Do you Ever??

Do you ever just have a really bad day...and all you want to do is put on your running shoes and hit the door?
If it wasn't 105+ outside....I would be out of here!

LSD Friday Run or the First Time I Have Run 11 miles!!

Great run this morning!
So glad I got out there and ran!
Now I have it over with and can relax this weekend!

MILES	SPLITS
1	9:52
2	9:30
3	9:34
4	9:09
5	9:08
6	9:03
7	9:07
8	8:36
9	8:34
10	8:33
11	8:41
TOTAL TIME	1:39

Bullet Update & Bananas

*We rented "Soul Surfer" the other night. Though I was prepared to not like it, I did. It was a good story with a positive message. Made me miss Kauai :(

*P90X Plyo pretty much kicked my butt! And it didn't really hit me until yesterday around noon. I got up from my desk and OMG my thighs were STIFF and SORE! I felt like I couldn't walk! And I still feel it today! That workout is intense!!!!

* I feel a little funny using wording like "OMG" or "LOL". Like I am too old or something. But they really express how I feel sometimes. And I am lazy typer so it works. The best one is "WTF"....because I am sorry people but sometimes this is just PERFECT!

*I don't like ripe bananas. There is something I find so revolting about a banana that is turning brown. I eat bananas almost every day....but sometimes I am literally gagging and having to force myself to eat them. I don't know if it's the consistency or what?

*My cat I have had for 10+ years has just recently started peeing in the bed. What a nightmare! Not only do I not have time to wash my bedding every day, butI am worried that he is having health issues. I think a trip to the vet is in order soon :(

*So I think today marks 70 days over 100 degree weather here in Austin. I am going to be SO happy when this summer is OVER!

And LAST BUT NOT LEAST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*I signed up for the See Jane Run 1/2 marathon on October 7th! Just thinking about it makes me nervous! My 1/2 marathon plan calls for only 12 miles before this race, but I think I am going to go for at least one 13 mile run before October. I really don't want any surprises and I want to be prepared as possible! Let's just hope we have some cooler weather by then!

Garmin Issues

So this morning's run wasn't so fun.

Not only am I very sore from Plyometrics yesterday....but my stomach is upset and I hope I am not getting the stomach flu or something....

BUT....my garmin really upset me this morning.

So I run the same route at work all the time...and have for years....I have clocked the mileage in my car before I had my garmin...and I have timed/clocked it on the garmin multiple times.

Today it was off. It beeped for a mile way past my usual 1 mile mark, and the 2 mile mark was off too! I didn't cut corners, I didn't alter my route at all.

VERY frustrating!

Why did this happen? Does anyone else have this issue??

LSD Friday Run

Planned on 8, ran 9.3. Learning when to drink and when to fuel up. Some days I feel like I can just keep running and running and never stop....
Today was not one of those days, but all in all it was a good run!

1	10:17
2	9:06
3	9:12
4	9:12
5	9:07
6	9:00
7	9:07
8	8:59
9	8:46
0.3	2:28
9.3 miles	1:25:18

Have a good weekend all!

Sometimes I Run

Sometimes I run because I know I need to

Sometimes I run because I am training for a 1/2 marathon

Sometimes I run because I am happy

Sometimes I run because I want to feel alive

Sometimes I run because I ate too much junk the day before

Sometimes I run because I am sad

Sometimes I run because I am angry

Sometimes I run because I am anxious

Sometimes I run because I like to sweat

Sometimes I run because I need time to think

Sometimes I run because it's the only time during my day/week/month that I have absolute control over just one thing

Sometimes I run because I need to be alone

Sometimes I cry

Sometimes I laugh

Sometimes I wince

Sometimes I grunt

Sometimes I let out a woo hoo

And other times I just run because I have these two healthy legs and I am thankful!

Posting Funk

I have been in a posting funk.

When I run I think of all kinds of things I want to blog about but when I finally sit down to do it my mind is blank.

Jessica and I didn't do our long run last week because of scheduling issues. Instead we did a 6 mile fartlek. Erin over here ,gave me a great fartlek routine to follow. I wrote it all down on the back of my hand (sorry no pic) and we were off!

10-15 minute warm up, 2 minutes hard, 2:00 easy, 3 minutes hard, 2:00 easy, 4 minutes hard, 2:00 easy, 4 minutes hard, 2:00 easy, 3 minutes hard, 2:00 easy, 2 minutes hard, 10-15 minutes cool down

I think on one of the 4 minutes hard we did 3 instead (I am blaming it on the humidity) and we cooled down for 1 mile instead of 10-15 minutes. It was a tough workout but WOW did I feel good after! And plus Jessica was there to sweat it out with me which is always fun! :)

So, another week begins and more training runs to follow. Hoping for 9 miles this weekend!

Hope you all have a great week!

Excuses

This morning, like a lot of other mornings I woke up and made excuses why I shouldn't run.

I am tired
I can run tomorrow
I can run tonight
my stomach hurts
Really, the list can go on and on...

I really didn't want to run this morning....but I did. And I am so glad that I chose to ignore the excuses and get out there!

The more excuses I have...the more I really need to just get out there.

Running teaches us a lot about life.

Are there things in your life that you make excuses about? Things that you know are good for you, or will improve your situation but you don't do them because you are making lame excuses? You feel lazy? You feel tired? You are scared?

My advice is to just get out there and do it.

Where to Find Good Running Music

I don't know about everyone else but since I run pretty often I get tired of my music fast! I have a couple standby songs that I never take off my running playlist, otherwise I am constantly rotating songs and trying to make new mixes. And sometimes I run out of ideas!


Here are a couple of sites I look at for music ideas:

Running Skirts

A TON of songs on this site!

And some really cute skirts!


Jog Tunes

I think the beats per minute thing is kind of interesting.

Runner's World

I like looking at what "professional" runners are listening to. It's funny because everyone has different music tastes. Some people like slow music, some like fast music, I read that one lady likes to do books on tape!


I just added a few songs this morning...

• Nicki Minaj - Super Bass
• Katy Perry - Friday
• Coldplay - Every Teardrop is a Waterfall

Looking forward to some new music tomorrow morning :)

Does anyone have some other sites you get your music ideas from? Or any really good music suggestions?

Doing the Tempo

I wasn't happy with last week's tempo run. Not only did I not really make it the whole 4 miles at tempo pace, but I felt like crap and just pooped out at the end. I knew I had to do better this week.

So last night I ate WAY too much pizza, and had 2 glasses of wine. I was prepared for a tempo failure today. Much to my surprise it didn't go all that bad.

Total Miles:

6 (1 mile warm up, 4 mile tempo, and 1 mile cool down)

Splits:

Mile 1: 8:13
Mile 2: 7:26
Mile 3: 7:41 (I think I would have been closer to a 7:30 here but I had to wait on traffic)
Mile 4: 7:32
Mile 5: 7:24
Mile 6: 8:38

My tempo pace per Runner's World Calculator is 7:50...but honestly 7:30-7:40 is comfortably hard for me and feels right.

All in all I feel like I accomplished a great tempo run!

On another note, another record breaking HOT day. Forecast says it's supposed to be 106!!!! YUCK!

LSD Saturday or My First Time Running 8 Miles

Saturday was my LSD run. Unfortunately Jessica had to cancel and couldn't join me. So, it was just me and my trusty ipod.

Total Distance:
8 miles

Splits:
9:21
9:19
9:07
9:29
9:18
9:08
9:05
8:54

Total time:
1:13

You know I feel a little guilty about bragging about how easy this was. I feel like I should have a long sob story about how tough it was....but great runs don't happen every day....or even every month so I need to brag a little!

I took a route with some good gradual up and down hills which I was a little worried about. But all in all they didn't bother me. I just chugged a long really trying to keep it slow and relaxed. The weather was GREAT! It was overcast, almost like it was going to rain. There was a slight cool breeze which really helped, because though cooler, the humidity was pretty high.

I used my Nathan Fuel Belt which I LOVED. It didn't bounce at all, it sat very comfortable on my hips, and how great that I could stick my ipod in there along with my mid run fuel candies! Part of the reason this run might have been easier than some other runs I have done is because I had water to drink along the way. I drank a sip or two every mile.

The last mile was mostly down hill and I did start to notice a little tightening in my shins and my ankles were a little tired. The only drawback to running this route is that shoulder of the road is pretty slanted and I could tell it was affecting my ankles even from the beginning. Is is normal to get a little tight on the last mile?? Mentally I wasn't tired, I just felt like my body was ready to slow down or stop.

So another week down on my half marathon training. This is week 6, 4 more weeks to go.

This is my plan for this week:

Today-4 mile easy
Tuesday - rest
Wednesday - 6 miles with 4 miles at tempo pace (Didn't have the best tempo run last week so I am hoping to redeem myself)
Thursday - rest
Friday - 4 easy
Saturday - 8 mile LSD
Sunday - P90x Yoga

And I thought I would share my make shift training chart, (I also keep track of my miles on Runners World and Daily Mile) but here is my hard copy.



So all in all a BIG WOO HOO on my first 8 mile run!

Splash Pad with Phene