Today's run was great!

Well, it's over with, and that's the best thing about it!  I did well, but it was hard.  I was having thoughts like "maybe I'm just not cut out for this running thing...  maybe I'm not really a runner-girl, but a walker-girl!"  It was hard!  I was also thinking about the fact that it's 99 days until my half marathon and I am nowhere near ready for that.  Not even close!  I'm reminded of one of my favorite movie quotes: "If it wasn't hard, everyone woud do it.  It's the hard that makes it great!"  Therefore, today's run was great!

I was supposed to run yesterday, but was lazy about getting around to do it and it was too warm when I finally dragged myself out of bed.  Shame on me.  But... I made sure to do it this morning, and have a shorter run scheduled tomorrow.  Plus, I have somewhere to be early tomorrow, so I will definitely be up to do it early, when it's coolest out.  Sunday I have a long run.  I tried not to think about that when I was out this morning because it was discouraging to think that today's run was so difficult and Sunday's will be 50% longer.  Maybe we'll just go with 50% greater...

It certainly was beautiful out this morning.  I was out just after sunrise and it was a teeny bit hazy.  I saw way more cars than I ever do when I'm out.  And I have to admit that, now that I'm done with my run, and have cooled off a bit, I do feel really good - and not just because I'm not running at the moment!  Walker-girl... hmph!  That just doesn't have the same ring to it at all.  I'm a runner-girl, and I CAN do this!

Yesterday I slept in a little, sat around the house, played on my computer, did a little house work - and I felt guilty because I didn't run.  Yesterday was a scheduled rest day!  I wasn't supposed to run!  Why was I feeling guilty?  Upon reflection (today, while I WAS running), I started thinking that maybe it wasn't exactly guilt but was something different.  Yes!  What I was feeling was something new.  I wished that it HAD been a run day.  I missed it!  My husband told me that I was weird - like it was something I didn't already know. Ha!

So, after feeling like I was missing out on running yesterday, I got up bright and early today and headed out.  My run was solid.  No improvement.  I'm not quite where I want to be for my Chicago run in 12 days, so I need to work hard for the next couple of weeks.  But I was happy with my performance.  It was a great start to the day, which was followed by a very promising meeting about a new job, then lunch back at home with hubby.  Hoping to hear about the job later today or tomorrow.  It will be good, since my previous position simply disappeared during a reorganization as of July 1.  I can't complain about the time off, but have to admit that it has messed with my schedule and I do a lot better with running when I'm getting up at the same time every other day to  run before work.  Consistency is very helpful in keeping me on track - with everything.  We won't even talk about how I'm doing with Weight Watchers right now, but it is proof positive that a consistent schedule is the way for me to go!

It doesn't look like the Chicago Perimeter Ride is going to happen this year.  It's usually in August and there hasn't been even a murmur about it yet.  We were looking forward to it, and I was confident that I could do the 100-mile ride, since it's a leisurely, all-day, event.  Bummer!  But, we found a different cycling event that we're going to do, instead.  It starts in Mackinaw City, MI and has 4 different routes, taking you as far as Harbor Springs (just NW of Petoskey) before heading back to Mackinaw.  You can choose to ride 25, 50, 75 or 100 miles, and it's a non-competitive ride.  Since it's a little more hilly than Chicago, I think I'll aim for the 50 mile ride, then the next day all of the participants ride across the Mackinaw Bridge at dawn.  That's just over 2 months away and I think it will be loads of fun.

There was a small group of runners out this morning, and they kindly let me join them for a while.  I liked them!  They made me feel pretty speedy!  Here are the 5 members that I saw first, but when they joined the others, they unanimously decided to go swimming instead, while I continued on my run, alone.  I'll be back again on Thursday, running the same amount of time, so I'm looking for a little more distance in that run.

Heat relief... FINALLY!

I've been a bad runner!  But to my defense, it has been brutally hot here in the lower mitten!  Record breaking temperatures nearing (or over) 100 degrees.  Overnight it would cool down to the mid 80s. I was supposed to run twice in the last 4 days, and set the alarm, but when the time came, it was just too damned hot out. I did get out and walk on Thursday, and went along at an okay pace, but didn't put it in my running log, and (obviously) didn't write about it here (until just now).

This morning it was 70 degrees when I went out and 73 when I got back home, an hour later.  Not too bad!  My pace was slower than I would have liked, but not bad.  I've certainly been a whole lot slower!  We had a lovely thunderstorm in the night (I love thunderstorms, especially at night) that ended just 2 hours before I got up to run, so it was quite humid out, making my breathing a little harder than normal.  I ran all over our neighborhood, covering few places twice, and hitting every street, but one.  First time I've done that route.  Decided not to hit the gravel roads after the rain... I don't want my running shoes to get all dirty!

Before I run I usually have a class of water and about 8 oz. of coffee to give me my initial boost.  Sometimes, I also have a Fiber One bar for a little bit of carb energy.  Today we didn't have any bars in the pantry, so I had an oatmeal, chocolate chip, walnut cookie instead.  Probably not the best pre-run snack, but it tasted good!  Sometimes, when I'm doing a race and don't have any coffee, I'll drink a 5 Hour Energy, but don't like them very well.  I don't really like any of the pseudo-carbonated soda-pop-like energy drinks, especially not before running. I have a neighbor who loves him some Monster!  Enough to put ELEVEN stickers on his car that I can see from one side!  Seriously... there are 11 of them!  If you don't believe me, you can count them yourself!  Now, I'm all for showing support for the brands that you're loyal to, but I think this is just a little extreme.


Close to the end of my run I got to see Charlie and he loudly encouraged me to go, go, go!  He's quite the cheerleader and I did, indeed, speed up a little when he said that I should.  I barely had a chance to say hello to his person!

Next run is Tuesday morning. I think it's supposed to stay a little cooler this week (cooler being upper 80s?) so I'm hoping for comfortable mornings for running.  Rock 'n' Roll Chicago is 2 weeks from today and I want to do well there but my Mackinaw Bridge Run is in less than 3 months and I'm not at the pace I need to be for that.  I may need to be more aggressive with my training (meaning not be such a wimp about the heat and get my butt out there, anyway!)  The half marathon is just 2 weeks later, so the clock is ticking!

Well, I set the alarm for 5:30 am so I could get up to run while it was still cool-ish out, but it was storming so I stayed in bed a little longer.  I did get up and out the door at 8:00.  Boy was I in for a shock when I stepped outside!  The air was on in the house, so it was quite cool inside, and I was fully aware that it was 75 degrees outside.  What I wasn't prepared for was the humidity.  Why didn't I think of that? It HAD just rained, after all!  It was like stepping into a sauna.  My glasses steamed up and it felt momentarily oppressive.  I stepped back inside to announce that it was "sweltering" out there, then headed back outside.

It turned out to be not so bad.  I mean, it was a little hard to breathe, but I persevered and actually matched my fastest speed, to date.  It helped that today was an exceptionally short run - only 30 minutes.  It may also have helped that there was another woman out there running.  I've never seen her before and don't know where, in the neighborhood, she lives, but our paths crossed twice and there was no way I was going to let her look like she was moving along faster than me!  I'm just a little competitive!  It was nice to see someone else out there doing the same thing as me, and we exchanged pleasantries both times that we saw each other.  

Not a new tattoo, but it means even
more, today!

About a mile into my run it started thundering again.  I was thinking of it as a crowd of fans clapping for me as I zoomed by on my Brooks branded go-fasters. Well, maybe I didn't exactly zoom, but I was keeping an eye on my pace and felt really good about it.  Then it started raining.  Not much - and certainly not enough to cool me off, but it felt kind of good to run in the rain.  There were quite a few people around. I guess 8:00 is the popular time to go to work.  

I got home and my husband left for a long bike ride and when he gets back we are celebrating my 5 year cancerversary and meeting up with friends later tonight (did that last night, too).  I am thrilled to say that I'm officially no longer a cancer patient!  Five years ago I had no idea what the future held - today I'm preparing to run the Detroit Free Press/Talmer Bank International Half Marathon! Yay me!

First day of July and it's a mowing morning!

New territory

Today was a longer run than the rest of the week and it didn't go all that great.  Still not feeling quite up to par so I ended up walking a good share of the time, but went along at a decent pace, so all was not lost.  I tend to have some seasonal allergies and, naturally, there were a number of mowing.  It's been dry so lots of dust and stuff in the air.  That was nothing compared to the field that I went by where they were harvesting wheat!  Okay, I don't really know if it was wheat - could have been any grain, for all I know, but the combine was surrounded by a cloud of dust.  My eyes are still burning!

Looking to the right

I saw more people than usual.  Probably because I waited until 9:00 to head out.  That was dumb!  It was hot, and I was mostly in full sun.  The weather site said it was 84 degrees, but my iPhone said that it was 97 where I was running!  I believe it!  I covered more ground than I have in the past, at least since I started running on the gravel road nearby. Today I got to explore 2 more gravel roads on my trotting travels.  I ran by a couple of famers... their pick-up trucks stopped alongside the road, one guy leaning on the other's truck, chatting with his hands in his pockets.  They were friendly and said hello to me.  Another lady was backing out of her driveway and rolled the window down to wish me a good morning.  Plus, almost all the folks out mowing waved, and most people who passed in their cars did too.  I'm really not used to that many friendly people when I'm out there!

Looking to the left (you can see the combine across the
field in the middle of the picture)

My right calf is still feeling really tight.  I need to work on some extra stretches for that when I have a rest day tomorrow.  I'll be back on the road on Tuesday and Thursday, then both weekend days.  I'm not working this week, so I have lots of time - but will still plan to get up, and out the door, early.  It's supposed to be a hot week!