Quick run, day two of my streak!

So, I went for my run this morning.  Just a short one, so that I could say that I ran today - I planned to do a mile.  Once I got going, I figured that I might as well make it  a little more worth my while so I made it 2 miles.  I'll be running again tomorrow - W6D1 of Couch to 10K for a total of 73 minutes.  I think it's supposed to be raining!


Today's "seen on my run" photo (below) shows what I ran by in the middle of my second mile.  Two police cars sitting in front of a neighbor's house.  Always a curious occurrence.  The van pulled in after the police were there and when she finally got out, she stayed by the garage, talking to the police from across the driveway.  No idea what was happening, but they were there when I turned the last corner.  I'm not sure if the fact that they were there made me more, or less, comfortable.

I did my fastest miles ever, today!  Probably because my run was so short! It felt awesome and then I showered and went out for breakfast.  Great way to start my Saturday.  Catch you all tomorrow after a longer run...

One week + NO running = Naughty Runner!

Yes, it's been a week - just over, actually - since I have run.  I allowed the onset of chilly weather, some rain and a holiday to interfere with my running schedule and I shouldn't have.  I decided back on November 17 (the last day that I ran) to doing some running every day from Thanksgiving until the end of the year.  Here's my tweet making that commitment:

mishlnaz mishlnaz 

@ 

I'm in! @runnersworld We're pledging to run every day from Thanksgiving through New Year's. ow.ly/7wTE1 Who's with us? #RWRunStreak

I can't believe that I skipped out on running yesterday and already messed that up.  Maybe I can start it today...


During my little hiatus I did go to a 5K to cheer on some of my fellow DetermiNation team members.  That was fun, and it was great to get to know them after the run!  It was a cool, sunny day in Wyandotte and they all did well.  I did see a couple of scary things while I was there, though.  One poor little girl (about 9) was at mile 3 and she ended up along side the trail, on her hands and knees, throwing up in the grass.  I felt so bad for her.  Hopefully, that experience won't be the thing that she takes away from this race so early in her life.  She did get up and run to the finish when she was done getting sick.  I also saw an older man running along (also at mile 3) and he could see the finish line when he veered off the track.  Medics ran to help him but he kept telling them "no" as he got further and further off the track, when he collapsed.  They got him up and to the medical tent, but I don't know what happened to him.  I hope that turned out well.


Today was a gorgeous day to run!  Blue sky, 51 degrees.  Beautiful!  It was pretty windy - 19 mph - but I only really noticed it a few times.  I actually improved my pace a bit - probably all that rest from not running for a week!  I went just over 4 miles and then did some stretching back at the car.  It felt SO good! I can't believe I have neglected this for a week!  Something for me to remember, and think about, next time I want to ditch my run!


As I look ahead at things that I want to accomplish, like next year's half-marathon and running over the Mackinaw Bridge, I don't see the appeal of doing a triathalon.  Well, I SEE the appeal, but it doesn't appeal to me!  I've never been sure why, maybe because I'm not much of a swimmer.  Okay, okay... I haven't been swimming in years!  When I was doing my cool-down walk, and headed back to the car, I walked by the pond and saw this sign, which cleared it all up for me!


Well, that's it for me, today.  I'll be back for a quick post tomorrow, after a short run, then will do a longer one on Sunday.  

I did it again! (But better, this time!)

Yep! Ran my 5K Jingle Bell Run today and improved my time over the Detroit 5K a month ago by a good 5 minutes. When you're as slow as I am, that's less of a big deal than it is to someone who is actually speedy, but still... I was very happy for the improvement! Especially since it was really windy!  22 MPH!  I've included a picture taken about 5 minutes before the race started.


I ran a good portion of the route and met up with Karrie, Rachel and Mary at the finish line. I started out feeling a bit intimidated by the whole thing because I know that I am slow and have to remember that I am only competing with myself. My mantra was one of my favorite Penguin quotes today: "The only person I have to outrun is the person that I used to be." And that's true. And I did!


I don't know how many people were in this race, but I certainly didn't finish last. I have no idea how I ranked in my age group and am hoping that I wasn't last, but if I was, I was. I went to the starting line and I finished along with lots of other people. I passed some people and got passed by others. Sometimes I passed them, then they passed me back and then I passed them again!  All in all, it was a very good experience and I'm really glad that I did it.


Here is Karrie, Rachel and me at the finish. Piper and Digby ran, too! They are great runners! We all had a really good time (and Karrie is an awesome cheerleader - thanks for running that last bit with me)!

What an amazing morning!

So I was supposed to do a 5K run yesterday morning.  I got ready and headed out and about 1/4 mile in realized that (me + running + darkest  before dawn + uneven sidewalk = FAIL).  Okay, maybe not fail maybe more like fall!  Did I give up?  Well, yes and no!  No... I HAD to get back home, and walking was my only option.  Yes... I quickly learned that my nice wicking pants were getting stuck to my road rash, and what skin was left on my knees was going to be rapid rubbed off, so I picked my self up (after looking around to be sure that no one saw me) and pulled my pantleg up, while blood dribbled down my shin, and took myself home.  

I tried again this morning, being much more mindful of the terrain, and ran without incident.  I did not, however, run the 5K that I had planned.  I only went about 2 1/3 miles and spent part of it walking.  I did run the majority of the distance, but my right knee is pretty stiff, and I didn't want to overdo it.  It was absolutely gorgeous out this morning!  After a wicked storm last night, the sky was a beautiful royal blue at 6:00 am today, and clear as a bell.   The moon and many bright stars illuminated the sky.  It was the prettiest I've seen in since a clear morning in 1997 that we went to an isolated area to see Comet Hale-Bopp or the time we were driving to the upper peninsula of Michigan and went to a park to see the milky way and the millions of stars that you can see from an unpopulated area on a clear night.  I wish I could have taken a picture of the sky this morning, because it was truly glorious!

The most exciting thing about this week, though, is that I got to meet John "The Penguin" Bingham and running Coach, Jenny Hadfield last night.  It was a thrill because I read so much by them and about them, and they are like running rockstars.  John, especially, is an everyday guy who started running in his mid-forties (like me) and has been doing it almost 20 years now.  I will write a separate blog post about meeting them, along with a couple of pictures.

So that's my story for today.  Will run again tomorrow morning, then on Sunday.  Planning on shorter runs than I planned today, and the next 5K run will be next Wednesday - the last day of August!  Where has the summer gone, when I'll be starting my 13th week of running (and no one is more surprised than I am!).

Holy Freaking Cow!

So, I was looking at the calendar yesterday and realized that my first 5K, the one alongside the Detroit Marathon, was exactly 2 months away.  TWO months!  61 days!  Time to kick into a higher gear and get my tuchus moving, farther - and faster!  C25K has been going well, but I have yet to actually run 5K.  Until today, that is!  

I finished my new John Bingham book, Accidental Athlete, last night and really enjoyed it.  Definitely learned some new things, but mostly, it left me feeling totally inspired.  So, when I went to bed I decided that I was going to run a full 5K this morning.  Or at least I would try.  No walk breaks - just running (well, jogging, actually) for the entire 3.125 miles.  Of course, realizing that I haven't even tried this before, I was well aware that I could get into the 3rd mile and decide that I needed to finish up walking, but I was so excited about this new goal, that I had trouble getting to sleep last night!  

I got up 3 minutes after the alarm went off.  I walked for about 5 minutes, which got me to the point where I started mapping my 5K route on Map My Run then I started my run.  One mile...  feeling great.  I started out a little earlier this morning, knowing that it was going to take me longer, so it was still dark out.  Two miles...  still feeling really good, knowing that, in just over a mile, I would accomplish something major for me.  Three miles...  okay, I am now aware that this is more than I've ever done at one time, but am still feeling good.  Keep going... around the next corner, and I can see the intersection where my 3.125 miles ends.  Nothing can stop me now!  I kept on running and I did it!  And I couldn't be more thrilled if you gave me a medal (well, maybe if you gave me a medal)!  

My pace was slow.  I really want to pick that up in the next 2 months, before I run a timed 5K, in front of other people.  But that's okay!  That was why I wanted to do this today and see exactly where I am.  I know  that I can improve my time before my first 5K, and now I know where I am starting from, and will be able to see - and measure - my progress.  

YAY ME!  I think I floated the rest of the way home.  Now, there's NO stopping me!

Quiet Saturday run, with a slight twist!

I woke up to run yesterday and it was raining. Hard!  Accompanying it was a lot of lightening and thunder and I considered whether or not I would be wearing anything that was conductive.  Maybe I would go out despite the weather to keep on track.  It then occurred to me that I wear my iPod on my arm and none of my running clothes have pockets.  That much rain would surely not be good for my iPod, so I opted to postpone yesterday's run until tomorrow.  I was already scheduled to run today so I'm tacking it on to the end of the week.  


Today's run was quiet, but I was really surprised when I realized that this week not all of the runs are the same. Wednesday it was split into 3 runs, with short walk breaks in between.  Today it was two longer runs with only one walk break! The next one is one long run with no breaks, but I think I'm going to repeat today's run when I go tomorrow, then do the long one on Tuesday.


I was a little concerned that I seem to be progressing kind of slow, knowing that I have 5Ks scheduled and I REALLY want to be able to run the whole 3+ miles. I'm less worried now that I see that I am moving on to longer runs, but still.  I need to try an not worry about that and just follow the program and give it 100%.  


Detroit Free Press Marathon 5K in 78 days
Run of the Dead in 91 days
Jingle Bell Run in 106 days


I'm really excited that I got a new book!  John "The Penguin" Bingham's An Accidental Athlete: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Middle Age.  It was scheduled to be released in September and I pre-ordered it forever ago.  I was thrilled to learn that it would be released early, but still didn't think I'd get it until about a week into August.  The 1st book of his that I read, The Courage to Start, was a huge inspiration for me to start running.  My new book arrived last night and I'm in a quandary:  I just came in from running... do I shower or start reading?  Maybe I should shower THEN start reading, but I had all I could do to not start the book when I got home last night, which would have kept me up much past my bed-time.

I am dedicating this post to my wonderful dog, Roxie, who we lost a few days ago.  In the past, this would have been the time that I would have taken a nose dive when it came to exercise and healthy eating, but I have maintained my schedule and my diet throughout the week.  She always greeted me at the door and helped me stretch when I came in from running. I miss her so much!