Beer run and long runs

Tonight was my first BEER RUN!!!! Whooooo hoooooo!!!! Carol and I ran together and did about a 4 mile run (we didn't follow the trail!) and did a 30/35 interval... we broke ALL the rules tonight! HA! But it was fun! And believe me, going running tonight was really the last thing I wanted to do.  February has been extremely busy and I'm relishing every chance I get to get home before 5:00 and not leave... but I left tonight and I had a blast! BTW Buffalo burgers and a Cold Smoke for $9 at Al and Vics!!! YUM!!!

This week was a "small" run week... we ran 3 miles on Sunday and 2.5 on Tuesday and I gotta tell you, I'm starting to crave the longer runs!!! I almost feel like I can't get into my run enough by 3 miles, I need longer to really get in the groove.  And as an official BOP (Back of the Pack) runner, we're running 20/60 intervals which makes it even harder to get into the groove by only 3 miles.  It's been weird and nice to think of my running experience this way.  

Sunday's run will be a 10 mile run.  I'm still waiting to hit my wall.  Hopefully it won't be this weekend!!!

Run, Recover, Run

I was incredibly nervous for my run on Sunday.  I hadn't run my extra 30 minutes, I had a cold, and I wasn't mentally prepared.  

It rocked!!! I'm really loving the Galloway program.  Sunday's run was a walk 60 run 20 interval and it was perfect for the way I was feeling.  By the end of the 20 seconds, I needed to walk because my head cold was taking over and it was harder to breathe.  On a better day, I may have gotten frustrated with the slower pace, thought I could do better, and my ego may have gotten the better of me.  Yesterday, I was grateful for the slower pace, the allowance to recover, and the lack of ego.  I now know that if I can do 7.5 miles with a cold and a little run down from a busy week, I'll absolutely be able to do the 26.2 it takes to complete a marathon!  

I have another busy week ahead of me, but I know that I'll keep on truckin' and making it through! 

Busy week - New Shoes!

It's been a very busy week and the busiest yet in my running career! HA! And because of this busyness, for the first week, I didn't follow the program. I didn't get home before 6:00 this entire week and by Thursday, I came down with a head cold.  Combining these two things (not training and the cold) and I'm suddenly extremely nervous about tomorrow's 7.5 mile run.  This week has left me feeling weak and un-relaxed... a feeling I haven't yet felt while preparing for a run.

Tuesday's run was fast.  15.5 mile pace including the 5 minute walking warm-up.  I think it's the shoes.  HA HA!!! My mom and brother are both being especially supportive and both sent me money to get new shoes. So I went in to the Runner's Edge and got fitted for new runners! I got some gray and teal Nike Zooms.  LOVE THEM!

This week coming up proves to be just as busy.  My school is hiring a new Superintendent and they are involving the teachers in the interviews and the decision which is why I wasn't even home until 10:00 on Thursday and won't be home until a similar time next Wednesday.  I'm hoping these runs will help me calm down after these busy weeks and I will be able to use running as a destresser.  I'm already seeing the camaraderie with my in-laws as a huge help in these stressful times.

Big one!

Whew! Sunday was a biggie!!! 5.5 miles! I texted my lovely brother (yes the trainer) before I ran on Sunday and he said "good luck! My goal is to eat 3 times as many calories as you burn!" HA HA! I think that was his own way of supporting me... and saying it was Super Bowl (a holiday in his house).
We also did our miracle mile on Sunday! You take your time for running one mile and multiply it by 1.3. That will be your projected marathon pace.  Then I'll train 2 minutes slower than that.  I ran at a 12:50 pace! That's the fastest I've ever done a mile before! It was kinda fun! AND it was my first MM of the season so I'll probably get faster from there... not that that is my goal.  My goal is to finish!

So this week marks the 3rd week I'm at this.  My other goals (mentioned in the first blog) are in my brain, nagging at the fact that I haven't lost any weight yet.  Nagging at my conscience of "I should be happier." Nagging at many many other things that I thought would happen a bit faster when I started this program.  I do have a bit more of a social life, but I'm also much more busy.  I have afterschool program on Mondays and Wednesdays, running club on Sundays and Tuesdays, which means that over half my week is taken up with commitments.  Do I call this a social life? No.  Maggie and I both dashed off after running tonight to come home and do some homework.
I know things will come with time but it's the being patient part that I've always struggled with.  I am, by nature, a very patient person with other people and other things, but with myself; I want things to happen now.  Am I disappointed with the the Galloway Marathon training? NO, I'm not done yet... but the fear is started to settle in and the thoughts of failure are sneaking in when I least expect it.  I will complete this, but the other goals are the ones I'm scared will not be completed.

WHOOT WHOOT!

Sorry I did not blog on Sunday... I got a wonderful burst of energy that allowed me to clean my house like a mad-woman after the 4 mile run!
Sunday's run was wonderful... yes, there was black-ice, no, my tracks didn't work 100% BUT I was out there at 8:00am on a Sunday, running.  And when I could look up and take in the scenery, it was a beautiful morning! 4 miles is the farthest I've ever ran.   We did 20 second runs, 60 second walks on this run.  It was a brisk 30 degrees and I wore a long sleeved shirt with a t-shirt over top (I promised myself I would log that so I could remember what to wear in the future).

Tonight's run was AWESOME! It was about 40 degrees, no ice, and comfortable! It was our 30 minute maintenance run and it felt really good! My wonderful sister in law and I get to talk education and kids and family life while we run and it's a really great time to just relax and just run/walk/run! Gallaway-it-up BABY!

So Maggie suggested I write about the smell going up to the meeting room above the Runner's Edge.  It reminds me of a little babydoll I once had.  When I was little, there was a fire at the clinic my dad worked at and all of the toys in the waiting room came to live with us while they cleaned up the clinic.  One toy was a little babydoll that I loved! Since the store next to the Runner's Edge just witnessed a fire as well, the smell going up to the meeting room reminds me of that babydoll and it's strangely comforting!

Doubt

So Tuesday we went out and had our 2nd run... 30 minutes, warm up your muscles, play with your walk/run intervals... just run.  It was a little icy, a little cold, but I got out there and I ran.  And to be quite honest with myself, I had fun!

Wednesday I got up and got ready for work.  I knelt on the couch to pick something up under the couch and TWANG! OUCH! Hamstring pain like no other.  I remembered my brother's basketball injuries in high school were treated with a 30 minute ice, 30 minute heat rotation, so I did that on Wednesday night and did not do any running on Wednesday... but it scared me a little bit.  So I went out gingerly today and did another 30 minutes and then I called that old basketball player turned trainer...

My brother the trainer talked to me about my shoes... yep, that's right.  He knew I got ShapeUps for Christmas and he asked me if I had been running in them.  Yes I have.  He said there have been numerous injuries connected to the ShapeUps and there are even lawsuits connected to them...Thanks Mom and Dad for the wonderful present :P.

Alrighty, I'll change my shoes! So I talked with my husband today about the "shoe" issue and he said "Well isn't there someone that can help you, ya know, find a pair of shoes" and I said "Yes of course! I can go to the Runner's Edge but it will probably be expensive if I go there" He says "Well I'm sure if you tell them you're a beginner and you... might not... I mean you haven't done a whole lot... I mean maybe they can help you find a cheaper pair so that if you don't..." 

LIGHT BULB! He doesn't think I will stick with this! He doesn't think that I can do it! HE DOESN'T THINK THAT HIS WIFE WILL RUN/WALK A MARATHON! I don't want to tell my dad for this reason, but my husband? 

And a-waaaaay we go!

So this morning was the first morning of the marathon training group.  Turns out, since I have been running a bit and doing interval training anyway, I pushed myself a bit and ran with the marathon trainers on a 3 mile run.  The half marathoners ran a 1 mile run this morning.  

This morning I decided that I'll go with the marathoners until I feel like I can't do it anymore... I had fun this morning.  I can't lie.  We did 30 second intervals (30 seconds walking/30 second running) and they really stressed with this class that you are to go at your own pace, do not push yourself because those are the times when you get hurt.  This is much more my philosophy in life.  I really like to do things at my own pace and they really stressed that even if you are running a 15 minute mile but you're having fun and liking it, then GO FOR IT! Who cares how fast you're running?!?! LOVE THAT!!!!!

I heard all kinds of stories this morning.  My inlaws are "pace group leaders" and so I've heard all about the rubbing and the chaifing... Things I didn't even know, like it's not a good idea to wear cotton socks on long runs?!?! I've got so much to learn but I'm so willing to do it! It's going to be a great experience!