"Running" Errands

Wow! My cold-temperature run went much better than anticipated. The beginning of my training for the half-marathon has been off to a rough start, and today got me (more or less) back on track! My basic training plan is to run 2-3 days during the week nice and easy and then do one long run per week on Saturdays, increasing the long run by 0.5 miles every week. I missed my first 2.0 miler because the gym wasn't open yet and I was afraid of the cold air, then I was swamped with work last week and had to cut out the gym from my schedule.

Yesterday, according to my schedule, I was to run 3.0 miles, but I just wasn't prepared. I couldn't mentally get myself together to get to the gym and get on the DREADmill, plus I was dehydrated. I spent last night organizing my life, taking it easy and relaxing by myself, and hydrating. REALLY hydrating. Then I woke up, had a cup of tea and a clementine, and decided, "To hell with the gym with it's stuffy air and too few machines!"

I have asthma, so the cold air typically does a number on me, but I had never run outside in such cold temperatures before (22 F, when I ran past a thermometer outside a store front). Usually, come first snow fall, I am at the gym until all the snow goes away, then I make my way bake outside. Add the the asthma problems my inability to stay upright while walking in ice-free conditions (my mom has been known to call me 'Grace' for my complete lack of it), cold weather in central Mass scares me. A lot! But as of today, I had had enough, and set out to run my favorite 3.0 mile route, albeit a day late.

Like I said, it went surprisingly well! I finished in 33:47, for an average pace of about 11:15. The only times I stopped running were at lights (but I jogged in place), and then I had to do some banking (lol), so I paused my watch and "ran my errands." I hadn't noticed the effects the cold had on me until I got inside, when I started wheezing. Just have to be a little careful about that, and consciously pay attention to my breathing, I suppose.

So yeah, success in the cold! Not my favorite, but it's doable and doesn't cause too much damage. I don't think I could run much colder than this though... the wind chill was 9 F! It was bitterly cold when I started, but once I got warmed up it wasn't so bad at all, especially because it's quite sunny today. It started to get cold again near the end when I started sweating - once I acquire some funds I'll have to invest in a ColdGear UnderArmour shirt...

Oof!

It's been a rough week and a half. Last week was the second of the semester, and I already had a presentation worth 20% of my grade! It was a difficult presentation regardless of who my partner was, but I ended up getting paired with a girl who spoke very poor English, which made everything doubly difficult! Because of my attention to the presentation, I slept very poorly and only got one workout in (2 miles last Tuesday).

And now I'm behind on my fitness, and my work for all of my other classes! I figured that if I don't get back to my workouts, I'll just let them slip away completely, and then I won't get to run my half marathon, so I am prioritizing. Sure, my work is important, but I can sacrifice and hour and a half a day for this (re: for myself). Today I have decided to run outside (20 F, windchill 9 F), and I hope it doesn't come back to bite me in the butt. I just HATE treadmills. SO boring, and the gym at school is not a very good facility and has incredibly poor air circulation. I just can't handle it! So I'm off to brave the cold - I'm already all suited up. Wish me luck!

That's Better

Today I had my second run of the week. I was still a little bit sore and remembering how laborious running at an 11:00 pace was, I slowed it down to 12:00. I'm in no rush!

On Monday I had to divide up my two miles of running into four segments: 8 minutes, 3 minutes, 5.5 minutes, and then 5 minutes. Today, I managed the whole two miles without stopping or even changing my pace, which is awesome! It definitely shows that I'm out of shape, but I've still got some oomf in me.

I think I'll increase my speed on the machine by 0.1 each week to bring me from 5.0 (12:00) to 6.0 (10:00) or better by race time. That change seems gradual enough that I can achieve it! As for my outdoor runs, I'll just have to pay attention to my watch.

So fitness is going well this week, but food is going poorly! The food that I'm eating is healthy, but I can't manage to eat enough of it. Oh, the woes of being a poor college student! I get paid tomorrow though (phew!), so I can finally go food shopping and eat something besides oatmeal, rice & beans, eggs, and grapefruit (a little bit of an exaggeration, but not far from the truth). I've got to hit my nutrition ranges! I've been killing the fiber and water, though :)

Until tomorrow!

Man are my sides sore!

I forgot how great running is for your core muscles! My legs are definitely not feeling the burn, but the muscle soreness in my lower back and abs reminds me how out of shape I am. ...In a good way. Odd as it sounds, I love have sore muscles (from working out, at least). It shows that I pushed myself and that my muscles are growing back stronger than they were before.

I've got to get into a rhythm and a system where I make time for what's important (gym, cooking good meals, school, work, and socializing), which is a very difficult task. My long training runs will be on Saturday mornings. That should be fine and undisturbed because I don't work on weekends, my school work can hold off for an hour or two, and my friends are never awake early on Saturdays. Tuesdays and Thursdays are the only days where I have to physically be in class (I'm taking a directed study, and honors thesis, and two courses), and there is a perfect amount of time in between the two courses to hit the gym, get a shower in, and scarf down whatever lunch I pack with me.

Monday/Wednesday/Friday I have work and I will need to be working on my honors thesis and other school work a lot, but I should be able to get to the gym first thing in the morning before I really start my day. I can't wait for when it's warm enough for me to start running outside again and forego the gym all together! Sadly, I have asthma and the cold makes me wheeze something fierce.

Okay, Massachusetts senate race is today! Gotta go vote :)

Today running was not my friend! I knew I was out of shape but I didn't know just how bad it was. Let me tell you: it was bad. I ran 2.0 miles total, but I had to take 3 walking breaks - after the first 8 minutes, then when I finished the first mile, then after the next half mile. Oof! But let's be optimistic - my endurance may be embarrassingly low, but I got it done!

I'm already behind a little bit on my self-created schedule because I assumed the school gym would be open this weekend since students were coming back. False! I have no idea why they weren't, but in any case I had to push my start back a few days.

I am ALMOST regretting my decision to run a half-marathon, but then I thought about it, and I realized that this is my one-way ticket to being a complete badass. Also, I never complete anything I start, at least fitness-wise. This one is going to be completed.

Run on!

New Year, New Goal

So on a Saturday night, I found myself at a website listing all of the half-marathons this coming year. I don't know what prompted me to search for them, but once I was there I typed in Massachusetts. Lo and behold, there is a half in Worcester this June - the first half the city has ever held. June 13th, 2010. Since my goal is to run 10 miles by May, why not just add a 5k to that by June? I can totally do that, and paying $55 to enter a race is plenty of motivation for me to keep at it - I don't want to waste my money! I won't be able to enter until next week when I get paid, but I've already settled on it.

Funnily enough, since I started running casually 2 years ago, I've never ran a road race, even though the majority of my runs are around the 5k distance, which just so happens to be the most common race distance. Oh well, looks like I'm skipping a few steps and going straight to the half. But who knows? Maybe I'll find a shorter training race in between now and then. I've got about 6 months to go - better get crackin'!