Early Saturday run all alone

And I mean ALL ALONE!  Didn't see anyone else out there.  It was just me, the doves and the robins.  No. The doves were not crying.  The robins did, however, sing "tweet-tweetly-tweet" as one would expect on such a lovely, cool morning.

The run was a bit slower than yesterday.  I felt a little stiff-legged as I headed out and am not suprised that I slowed down a little.  It's fine, though.  I feel great about this morning's run.  I also paused for a moment to admire the thin layer of fog blanketing the field, which took a few seconds off my time.  It felt great to get out there so early (6:00 am on a Saturday!) and now I'm ready to go set up my Relay site.

That's about it for today's uneventful run.  See you here on Monday, after a significantly longer - and earlier - run. 

Gravel and ghetto?

Got up early this morning to hit the road - er, I mean gravel - and had a really good run.  I was surprised to see that the gravel road on my new route was wet when I approached that part of my run and was even more surprised to see that it had been (very) recently graded.  Scraped to smooth the wavy, corduroy-like surface... and loosen all of the stones that were so nicely packed into the road on Tuesday.  This slowed me down ever-so-slightly and I stepped on a particularly large piece of "gravel" and rolled my ankle a bit (not the one that I sprained a few weeks ago) but was able to easily recover from my misstep.  Interestingly, the 2nd half of my run was faster than my first.  Usually it's the other way around!

Seen on my run... anybody home?

I think I mentioned the couple of interesting houses that I passed on that road in my last post.  I paused long enough to take a couple of photos this morning (I'm blaming that AND the loose gravel for my slightly slower speed today) just because these kinds of things fascinate me.  This is a country road and on the other side of both of these building is a farm field.  They are not part of the same property so it seems like an unlikely place for the kind of graffiti displayed here, and the house looks fine, with the exception that everything is overgrown and it's empty.  It makes me wonder what happened that we ended up with these two places so close to my neighborhood.  Is the empty house a result of foreclosure?  Did someone move away and they just weren't able to sell it?  Did someone pass away and no one else in the family wanted the home?  And what about the colorfully tagged building just a few doors down?  Is there anything in there?  What was it used for?  There is a house fairly close to it that is occupied and looks well-kept... does it belong to them?  Who put the graffiti there?  It's nice that the scenery gives me these things to contemplate while I am running.  The time flew by!  Oh!  And my fastest song was by Marilyn Manson!  Who wouldn't run a little faster away from him?

Seen on my run... I want the story!

I saw no wildlife (or even domestic life) this morning.  Okay, I saw a few robins, but that was it.  And only one vehicle that was out and about went by me.  Must be the first day of summer break.  Great!  Now I wish I was on summer break!  daydreaming...  snap back to reality...  The temperature was awesome, at only 54 degrees with a tiny breeze that was just enough to keep me cool.  Humidity wasn't bad either and my run was very enjoyable.  Not sure what my route will be on Saturday.  I'm looking forward to going out early and then heading to Rochester Hills with friends, so I doubt that I will venture far from home.  Sunday is a longer run, then off to visit family for Father's Day.  I'm SO ready for the weekend!

Trash day always makes for an interesting run...

I learn so much about my neighbors!  More on that in a moment, first I'll tell you about my run.  It was actually more of a walk, because I had stomach cramps.  That was the reason I cut it short the other day, too.  Today I was determined to finish the whole distance, even if it took longer because I had to walk!  It added 10 minutes to my time.  All in all, I'm glad that I completed it, but I either need to not eat so late or change what I'm eating the night before or something.  I believe some investigation is in order.

Remember the flamingo picture that I posted last week?  Sadly, the beautiful Charger that was parked at that house wasn't there this morning.  I suppose they may have left already for work, but it wasn't even 6am yet.  Hope it wasn't a visitor...  But I digress (not unusual) because I was talking about the flamingos.  I had another flamingo sighting this morning but they were clearly U of M flamingos (or would that be fanmingos?)  Anyway I took a picture because they were cool and I certainly haven't seen any Michigan State ones around! Sorry Liz.  (No I'm not!)

Based on the neighborhood trash that I passed this morning, someone has a new microwave, there are a couple of new lawn mowers, a kids 4-wheeler and 4 big new flat screen TVs!  The trash in front of MY house was just that... trash!  Plus some yard waste.  There was also a LOT of yard waste on the curbs!  Tons!  A couple of houses had at least 10 bags of yard waste each out and I'm still trying to figure out just how anyone with a small yard, like ours, could possibly have that much to dispose of.  Tis the season, and I don't think it's going away again until November, this time.

Well, no running tomorrow (although I may do a really short one since I have the day off from work and don't have to be anywhere until noon) then I have a short one Saturday (plus a bike ride) and a longer run on Sunday.  It's gonna be a great weekend!

Two for One Blogging

I didn't get a chance to write on Saturday after my run so I'm rolling it into today's post.  I was supposed to go again yesterday, but we were out of town and up really late on Saturday so I didn't push it and try to run before Mother's Day brunch, and put it off until today.  That said, I did run this morning... 50% further than I did on Saturday!  I really do need to speed it up a little, though.

I made note of some interesting and unusual things that I saw on the roads on Saturday's run that I wanted to share.  Most of them were still present this morning. Number three was not:

1. Someone on the other side of the neighborhood has a pretty new deep red Dodge Charger. I was hoping that it wasn't some visitor and that it would be there again, and it was.  I didn't linger because I didn't think they probably wanted me drooling on their new car and didn't want to get arrested, since I had someplace to be in a couple of hours.  Remember the flamingos?  It was in front of that house - neighbors with excellent taste!
2. Used condom - Just assuming it's used... It's unrolled and that's already more than I need to know!  I had to see it, so you get to hear about it, too!
3. Huge tree root that someone dug out and thought that they could put in their yard waste. Nope!  It was tagged, to dispose of it some other way (and get it off the sidewalk)!
4. 1979 Chevrolet El Camino.  I used to hate El Caminos (this weird old man that my dad knew used to come over for breakfast on Saturdays when I was a kid and he had a yellow and white one).  This one is actually pretty cool.  It's in pristine condition. I guess it was kind of an auto-centric run.

Saturday, after my run, we did a bike tour of various historical brewing sites in Detroit.  It was great fun (and the reason for not lingering around the Charger) and we had really nice weather for it.  I'm posting a picture of some of the group, including our awesome tour guide, Steve.  It was a small group and he does a couple of different tours through his company Motor City Bike and Brew Tours.  I highly recommend checking them out!  The tours are a leisurely ride of 10-15 miles and generally include lunch (and beer).

Today I hit the road early to accommodate the additional distance.  It felt great to start my week out with a run.  I'll be out again tomorrow, doing my shorter distance again, then longer again on Thursday.  I had a huge squad of starlings in a tree cheering me on this morning.  A LOT!  I hope they're around again tomorrow - I can always use cheering!

So I did a really uneventful run this morning.  It was cool out... only 43 degrees with a wind chill of just 38.  Humidity was 75% with a slight breeze but the sun was coming up and it was a beautiful morning.  I'm really enjoying the lovely flowers that I see on my runs these days.  So much nicer that the early spring months before anything was blooming or greening up.  Of course my very favorites are the miniature lilacs that are blooming in my own front yard, and sharing their wonderful scent with the neighborhood.  Many of the other lilacs have already come and gone, but this miniature variety seems to bloom just a bit later.  Twelve years ago I was traveling for 3 weeks in May and completely missed my lilacs.  I was so sad about that, but in late June, one lilac bloomed at the top of the bush, just for me.  I was thrilled to have that single bloom when there were certainly no lilacs to be found, and it's done that pretty much every year since.

Today's run was pretty slow, despite some great music.  I heard Kid Rock, Fun., Chickenfoot, The Dollyrots, the Ramones and Joan Jett!  It was a great lineup of entertainment this morning and it kept me moving even though I wasn't feel all that great.  The strangest thing happened, too.  I've heard of this, but have never experienced it.  I zoned out for a part of my run.  I don't remember a good share of my first mile.  I wasn't thinking about anything and was just running.  When I think back on my run, there are places that I really only remember being once - but I did the loop twice.

My next run is Saturday morning.  Then I'm supposed to be in Detroit for a bicycle tour at 9:45 am.  I also will be running on Sunday, which will be different because I'll be in a different city, so I'll have a whole new route that I've never done before.  Should be interesting.

Friday morning swim... er... I mean, RUN!

Well, it could have been swimming, with the amount of moisture in the air this morning.  The air was so heavy that it was hard to breathe and sometimes looked, and felt, like I was running through clouds.  It was so humid that these lovely tropical birds weren't even moving and one even had a dew drop hanging off from his chin.

Despite that, the run was pretty good.  Less distance than yesterday (again, per Coach Luke) but the pace was a bit faster.  Speaking of Coach Luke, I was watching my favorite inspirational running movie yesterday, The Spirit of the Marathon, and I saw Luke in the movie!  I've seen that movie a dozen times, but I just signed on with Luke and wouldn't have noticed before.  When they show the start of the 2005 Chicago Marathon, there he is, in his Hanson's running shirt!  Out of more than 33000 people, he finished 18th, overall!  Super impressive!  And he's MY coach!  If you haven't seen the movie, I highly suggest that you do.  It follows half a dozen runners through their training for the marathon - two are elite runners and the rest are regular folks who, for varying reasons, have signed up for the Chicago Marathon.  In addition, they talk to Jenny Hadfield, John Bingham and other running greats about the history and the heroes of marathoning.

So today's run felt good, even though it was sort of  like running through the shallow end of the pool.  I'm looking forward to the Cinco de Mayo run the day after tomorrow in Mexican Town and will check in on Sunday afternoon.  Tomorrow I may go for a bike ride before hanging out with some friends at a brewery in Plymouth and then heading to Detroit for my concert.  Enjoy your Friday and Saturday and I'll be back toward the end of my busy weekend!

Early run in my neighborhood

What a gorgeous morning!  For a run, or anything else, it was a beautiful morning to spend a little time outside before getting on with the rest of my day.  It was 63 degrees with an ever-so-slight breeze.  It was humid, (90%) but was cool enough that it wasn't bad - and the sun wasn't quite up yet, or it might have been a lot less comfortable.

I haven't run outside for nearly a week and was amazed at how much lighter it was out there at 6:00 am than it was just a week ago.  The sun rising on the horizon made the sky a beautiful color.  I saw a few people on their way to work, but not many.  One man was walking his fluffy little white dog, who either wanted to kill me, or was telling me how excited she was to see me. She was a fast talker so it was hard to understand her.

I felt good while running and increased my distance by 50% (per Coach Luke's instructions).  I did realize my error in eating too much wasabi on my California rolls last night, though.  Remember my comparison of running to wasabi?  Well, the two  may be similar in my desire for them, but it turns out that, together, they just give you a really bad stomach ache!  Not a mistake I will make again!

Last night I was at a steering committee meeting for DetermiNation, and those are always fun.  I got my official DetermiNation tech shirt, which is so cool. I may wear it this weekend when I run in Detroit.

Tomorrow I'll be out again, rest on Saturday (like I haven't done a lot of that lately) then on Sunday I have my Cinco de Mayo Run in Mexican Town, Detroit.  The race starts at 11:30, which is later than they normally start, but I think the run goes just ahead of the Cinco de Mayo parade.  I'm grateful for the late start though, because Saturday night I may be out a little later seeing Weird Al Yankovic (also in Detroit - maybe I should just stay overnight in the city).  We've seen Al before and he puts on a great performance - funny... iSmoothRun tells me my fastest song during each run, and today it was Weird Al's Alternative Polka!

Thunder and Lightning - Very very frightening!

Well, not today, but that was my excuse for not running on Sunday morning and then that night it was very warm and quite humid.  Yesterday it was just windy.  Up to 40 mph!  I know that I'm going to have to start running in less than perfect conditions so I can get used to it, but wasn't up for that quite yet.   Today was perfect, as you can see here.  43 degrees with 63% humidity... Clear, still air with a thick sliver of moon just above the trees.

There were actually quite a few people out this morning.  I think I was about 10 minutes later than usual, and I saw several cars filled with neighbors leaving for work.  I scared off a fluffy bunny when I ran around a corner.  Truthfully, he startled me, as well!  I also saw a few dogs.  One cute little sheltie ran out to greet me and tell me how glad she was to see me this morning, and her person assured me that she was friendly.  I knew that, she was my morning run cheerleader!  I stopped momentarily to give her a pat on the head before she went back in her house and I went on my way.  The birds were also especially cheerful this morning.  Lots of fluttering about and chattering aloud.   All in all, it was a lovely morning for a run.

I felt pretty good about the run, too!  Not good enough to think that I'm going to be able to run the whole 5K on Saturday, but I'll run as much as I can.  I'd like a time of 45:00 or better (remember how I said that I'm not fast?).  We'll see.  I'm looking forward to it, regardless.  I will be running again on Thursday morning, then the run on Saturday.  After that, Running Coach Luke is going to see how I'm doing and design the next part of my training program, accordingly.

Well, there really isn't anything more, that's particularly interesting, to tell you, so I'll sign off now.  Will definitely, absolutely, positively be back on Thursday to report in on my last training run before my next race.  I'll also be thinking about a goal to have in mind for Saturday's 5K.  After all, I will never reach my goal, if I don't set one!

Martian Marathon TODAY!

But I'm not participating in that one! I actually already did my run this morning and it was pretty good.  Not by best speed,  but I've been having some chest congestion, making it hard to breathe deeply and I think that slowed me down.  I think tomorrow I'll try using my inhaler before I run and see if that helps any.

I was planning to get up at 7am and run so we can go to Eastern Market then stop by the Martian Marathon to pick up some stuff for DetermiNation that I will be taking to the Big House Big Heart run tomorrow.  Nope, I'm not in that one either, but I'll be there with information about DetermiNation to see if there are people interested in joining the team.  But, I was awake at 6:00 so I decided to get up then and get outside. Just as I was getting dressed I heard sprinkles on the skylight, but the rain held off until I was done.

Who gets up in my neighborhood at 6am on Saturday?  No one, that's who!  Actually, I did see one car leaving, and at the end of my run a neighbor was on her deck letting her little dogs run in the yard for a minute.  They are the funniest little dog... they bark and bark at me, like there going to tear me up, and each one of them is about the size of my foot (and I have small feet - they go with my short stride).

That's me, running!  Yup!

So I run tomorrow, then next week on Tuesday and Thursday, before my 5K on Saturday.  I am hoping to build a bit more stamina by then, in hopes of not totally embarrassing myself in front of my D'Nation teammates.  Although I do find most runners to be very kind about us that kind of thing.  They are much more encouraging than they are critical.  When I am running and look down at the ground, it looks like I'm going fast to me.  And today I was wearing my new running capris and new run-girl tech shirt that I got from Women's Running, so I looked the part, and everything!  I felt great, even though it wasn't my best run!  Interestingly, my fastest song today was The Proclaimers' 500 Miles!

So this is where I stop yapping about running so I can get ready to go to Eastern Market.  Back tomorrow.

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)!

Awesome run on a chilly morning!

So, on Tuesday I started with Week 2, Day 1 of Couch to 10K and then decided to bump up a little and today did Week 3, Day 2, which increased my run to walk ratio.  It felt great and I really enjoyed it!  It was 39 degrees and pretty windy - the weather report said 8 MPH, but the gusts were a lot stronger than that!  Either way, it was chilly and breezy but it felt really good to be out there getting a morning run in.


I have realized that I truly need to refresh my playlist that I use for running because it's getting quite stale.  There are a handful of songs that I am still excited about when they pop up but, for the most part, I feel pretty indifferent to the music on my iPhone.  I plan to remedy that this week!  Some of my favorite tunes for running are "I Hate Myself for Loving You" (Joan Jett), "Because I'm Awesome" (Dollyrots), "Unskinny Bop" (Poison), "I Wanna be Sedated" (Ramones) and "Baby Got Back" (Sir Mixalot).  I know, I know... That last one got into that mix and I don't know how, but it's really fun to run to.

I only saw two people out and about at 5:35am.  One guy was getting into his car as I was trotting by and actually said "good morning" to me.  The other person was driving away, presumably to work.  Other than that, not another person, dog, cat or skunk to be seen.  Well, I did see something run across the road a ways ahead of me, but I couldn't tell what it was, so I'm just going to assume it was a cat!  That seems pretty safe.  I took this picture at the end of my run and it is representative of the whole time I was out.  The neighborhood was dark and deserted, as far as I could tell.  I'll be interested to see what it's like when we start getting a little snow!  Well, I know what the neighborhood is like when it snows, but I haven't run in it before, so that will be a whole new experience! 


I decided that, as an incentive to do my runs on my scheduled mornings, I am going to reward myself by wearing my new favorite necklace.  I got a runner girl necklace when I did the 5K in Detroit last month and I just love wearing it.  If I run in the morning, I get to wear it that day.  If I don't, I have to pick a different necklace.  I have several necklaces that are special, but that one has a little different meaning right now.  Wearing it reminds me of my accomplishment, so it seemed like a fitting way to reward myself for sticking to my schedule.  I'm proudly wearing it today, and will get to again on Saturday (Sunday, too, because I'm participating in a Jingle Bell Run).  


If you are reading, I'd love it if you would leave a comment.  I can see stats on how many people ready my blog (more than I would expect), but it would be great to hear from you, and learn how you came across my blog and where you are.  On that note, I'll sign off for today, but will be back the day after tomorrow.

Still plagued, but better...

I haven't done much of anything since my last good walk because I've still been sick and just not feeling well, and really tired with no energy.  After an ear infection (both ears), a 10-day round of antibiotics and a bit of rest, I think I'm ready to go again.  Yesterday was World Run Day and I was supposed to be doing an individual run for that in the Metro Park.  I did a walk, instead, that was just shy of 4 miles.  It felt good and I enjoyed it.  More about that in a minute.


I downloaded an app for the Couch to 10K program, which I am going to start using tomorrow.  Although I'm not really down at the "couch" level, I thought that would be a good program to work with, since I haven't been as active for some time, and I want to work some strength training into the program.  That should put me at the 10K level by the end of January and I'll maintain that, while improving my speed, until I start the Half-Marathon program in the Spring/Summer.  My goal is to do my Half in 2:30 or less.  I have no idea whether that is realistic or not.  I chose it because it was smack-dab in the middle of my age group for the 2011 Half.  I may adjust it later if I learn that it's not an appropriate goal to aim for.

While I was walking yesterday it was beautiful out!  Almost 65 degrees and sunny.  Quite breezy and late in the day, so I watched the sun (nearly) set as I was finishing up.  As the sun began to sink to the horizon, the temperature certainly did begin to dip.  Daylight Savings Time has caused it to get dark by 5:45, so I knew my time was limited when I got to the park, but really wanted to walk for an hour.  I took a new route and looped back to the car a little early, so I ended up starting the loop again, but only going for about 10 minutes before I turned back to the parking area, so I could finish just before it got dark out.  While I was winding through the trails, in the woods, I didn't really see any wildlife, other than geese gathering to leave on their winter break.  I suppose it's just as well that I didn't, given that there are coyotes and other gnarly critters out there.


There were a handful of other people on the trails.  I crossed paths with another woman twice and was relieved to see her the 2nd time, since it help me to verify that I wasn't lost on this new trail.  Only saw a couple of cyclers and 2 other runners.  There was a couple walking in front of me but they were clearly there for leisure purposes... I could tell by their slow, meandering, gate, and because they kept stopping to make out.  Not to mention that they were wearing jeans and coats!  I had on running capris and a t-shirt.


I will report in tomorrow after my first day of Couch to 10K.  I'm doing a Jingle Bell Run 5K this weekend, and will likely walk most of it... we'll see how things go.

Plagued by the plague - or a really, REALLY bad cold.

Yes, I've been sick for the last 7 days now.  Late in the afternoon, after my 5K last Sunday I detected a sore throat.  The next morning I felt pretty lousy, and had a doctor's appointment, where they said my temperature was close to 100.  By Monday evening, it was closer to 103, where it stayed for a couple of days.  I missed a lot of work - and I missed a lot of workouts!  Today I finally felt enough energy to, at least, take a walk.  It was nice to get out in the cool sunshine of fall in Michigan.  I used a new app to record my (very leisurely) walk called iRunner and it was pretty cool.  I think you can glean a lot of information from it, especially if you upgrade to the paid app, and it seems quite easy to use.  It also partners with the program that ACS uses for their training, which will come in handy later.

Since my walk way a leisurely one (3.4 miles in 1:04) I had time to enjoy the scenery a bit more than usual.  Peak color is nearly gone now, but the MetroPark was still really pretty.  Lots of leaves crunching underfoot - at least I'm assuming so... My head and ears are still so blocked that my hearing is really bad right now (for example I can't hear the microwave or the car beeper telling me when I un/lock it).  I saw lots of people out walking, riding and running.  It really was a beautiful day and I was glad to see so many people out taking advantage of it.  I've included a couple of pictures from my walk here.


In addition to the nice scenery, I saw some very interesting bugs along the way.  One may have been a Katydid of some kind.  It didn't look quite right.  I saw a couple of magnificent beetles.  I don't have a clue what they were.  Several abandoned wasp nest were along the path, on the ground.  A few wooly looking worms were crossing the path rather pokily.  Also, I saw what looked like a smooth, curvy stick, but upon closer inspection, it was a little striped snake - only about a foot long.   He seemed to be enjoying the sunshine next to the path, but my leering must have made him uncomfortable because he suddenly slipped through the grass and into the brush.  Here I was, looking at this snake, thinking to myself "Oh, look, a little snake sunning himself" and I have no idea why it startled me so much when he moved.  I literally jumped back from him, like I thought he wasn't real or something.  Funny how our brains work.


So that was today's walk.  No running for a week now, and I'm not sure exactly what I'll be doing this week.  I slept in today, and right now it's not even 7:00 pm yet and I'm already looking forward to bed time, so my energy level is really low.  

I can do this!

Seen on my run today

I can do this. I can do this. I can do this. I can do this. Which one sounds better? Today's run didn't go all that well, so I'm not quite sure where my "can do" attitude is coming from just now, but we'll go along with it. Today I did a combination of walking and running and went a little over 2.6 miles at a slightly faster pace than last week. It was kind of hot out - upper 70s. Very sunny for about half of my run, and lots of bugs.  Small bugs that kept getting in my mouth and in my eyes.  The ones that get in my mouth I can spit out, but the little ones that get in my eyes are a little harder to deal with.  


I suppose the "can do"  may come from the fact that everything I see about the Detroit Marathon, Relay, Half Marathon and 5K says in big letters YOU CAN DO THIS! If you see it enough you start to believe it?  Actually, I know that I can do it, but I'm concerned about the beginning of the race.  I'm worried that I'm going to start out with 2,499 other 5Kers and my brain will start telling me that I'm not very good, and I'm going to fail and that I really can't do this - at least not without doing so poorly that I will be defeated and humiliated.  I have been working hard to squash those feelings up to this point, but I also know that I haven't worked as hard as I could have and I question whether I'm prepared.  


Now, if I had signed up for the marathon, or the half-marathon... well, I could NOT do that, but the 5K?  I've done that before in my training, I can slow down to a walk if I need to, and it's a nice, fairly flat route.  No reason for me to be worried that I can't do it.  Plus, it starts at 7 25 am, so it will be nice and cool out, and I'll line up toward the back of the group and try NOT to compare myself to other runners.  Oh, and I got my race bib number yesterday!  I am runner 25259!  That's pretty exciting!  


I'll be out and running again tomorrow and will report in then.  I'll want to get 3 runs in next week, but will walk on Saturday so I'm rested and ready to go Sunday morning.  

What an awesome morning!

I wish I could have gotten a picture of what the sky was like when I went out to run this morning at 5:55!  it was chilly out and wonderfully clear. I think I could see every star in the sky.  It was gorgeous and, despite my somewhat icy fingers, it was a fantastic temperature.


The run, itself, felt really good.  I sped things up from Sunday's run, which was great.  I didn't go as far, because I had to get ready for work.  My legs are sore from Sunday, but running made them feel better and then I had a good stretch afterward. I only ran 2 miles this morning, and took a quick - 3 minute - walk break in the middle.  I could tell that I was moving along at a faster clip than usual, while I was running and, oddly, I never quite got to that "Crap! What am I doing out here? What makes me think I'm ever really going to be a runner?" feeling that I sometimes get.  Starting out with sore legs, on my second run, after 3 weeks of inactivity seems like the perfect time for those feelings to crop up, so I think I'm making progress, despite that.  Looking forward to my Detroit Free Press and Talmer Bank 5K in 12 days!  Then the Run of the Dead, two weeks later.


When I first went out, I was walking for a few minutes to warm up my muscles, and was only about 6 houses away from my own, and this little white dog ran up to me barking feverishly!  Yes, it was a small dog, but it really startled me with it's sudden yappiness, dashing toward me in the dark.  There were no lights on in, or around, the house, but I finally did see that there was a woman attached to the other end of the leash - it's a good thing that I didn't trip over her dog.  She looked kind of grumpy!


Well, tomorrow I have a Zumba class, so I won't be running again until Thursday.  Check back then to see how it goes (and I might even tell you a little about Zumba).  Laters!

Oh! The distractions!

 
Wow! Talk about a difficult run... I knew I was in trouble when we pulled into the Metropark and I saw the sign indicating that there was a Classic Car show in the park today. I joked with my husband about the pancake breakfast that they were also having, but it was the steady flow of awesome cars cruising into the park that was going to get me! 


It was a fantastic morning! The temperature was a cool 64 degrees (17 C) and breezy. It was sunny, but I ran on a path that had a lot of trees so I was in and out of the sunshine. It felt wonderful and I think my speed improved a little. Still don't have my Nike+ sensor but I figured out what happened to it. It died right after I did my 5K and I think it had a heart attack! I mean, here we are consistently running a couple miles 3 or 4 times a week and then I up and run over 3 miles and also tack walking on to the front and back of the run. The sensor blew up!


I set off running and shortly after my warm up walk ran by the many classic cars displayed off to one side. But I ran BY them, not through them. So I planned the rest of my out-and-back run so that I would turn around and my cool down walk would start close to the car show and could walk through for my cool down. That worked great and I've included a few pictures of the distractions that I had to overcome. Ok... The corn dogs weren't really a distrction. Good thing I ate a hard boiled egg before I left the house!


Seriously, though, I did have an interesting realization when I ran by the car how the first time, and then again at the end of my run (I didn't plan quite as well as I thought and had to run into the area where they were displayed).  I was running with many people around. People who could obviously see me, because many of them said hello or waved at me. In the past, having that many people around would have made me terribly self-conscious - probably enough so that I would have slowed to a walk AND gone a different direction to be sure that no one saw me trying to run.  This was a huge breakthrough for me!  Whenever I have run - or done much of anything active like that - I been a closet exerciser.  I don't want people to see me exercise because I'm afraid that they are judging me and thinking that I'll never be able to finish.  That was different today.  Actually for a while now, but I just realized it today.  And it felt really great!  And maybe - just maybe - there was someone who saw me who thought "Hey, look at her.  She's a middle-aged woman and she's a new runner.  Maybe I could do that!"  Perhaps, by my having confidence in myself, I can inspire someone else!  I'll be out running again tomorrow morning. 

Testing... Testing...

Is this thing working?  Oh wait!  It was ME that was having a bit of difficulty!  I got up this morning, ready to run.  I didn't plan to do 5K again today,  because I didn't feel that I would be able to do that so soon after Wednesday's 3.125 miles, and I was correct.  I also decided to test my strategy of having a protein shake before I run, and was right about that, as well!  I did my warm up walk and then started running and it wasn't long before I ran out of steam.  I walked for a while longer, then sped up to a jog, but again, I ran out of steam before very long.  My total route was 2 miles today, but I ran less than half of it.  I've come to the conclusion that, now that I am going a little farther and a little faster, I definitely need to get some protein before I run.  That may not be the case so much, if I were to go out after I have been up and had a meal or two anyway, but for running first thing in the morning, start-up fuel appears to be necessary.

It was a glorious 64 degrees (17 C) at 5:50 this morning.  Wonderful temperature!  As the sun rose, there was a thin layer of mist just above the ground, giving the field near our house a quietly mysterious appearance.  You could see it and see that it was a plowed field, but you couldn't quite see what was in the field.  I happen to know that lots of critters make themselves quite comfortable there, and many of them are the kind that I'd just as soon not run across in the dark of pre-dawn.  The raccoons and opossums are are not so bad, although I wouldn't really want to startle either of them - they do have sharp teeth.  It's the skunks and the coyotes that I really don't want to see up close. 

The only interesting thing that happened while I was out today was that a guy in an SUV stopped and asked if he could have the money out of my purse.  I told my husband that it was fine, so he went back home to get it, and then waived at me as he drove out of the neighborhood with his bike in the back.  He probably used it to buy breakfast after he "worked out" while sitting down on his bicycle.  Seriously... 21 miles while you're sitting on a bike?  The only way to really  work out is on your feet!  No... not really!  But I'd totally rather run that have my butt hurt from sitting on a bike for 21 miles!

Next run: Sunday at the park (which is 8 weeks until the Detroit Marathon/Half/5K).  Looking forward to a good run to finish out my week.  I think I'll plan to do another 5K, then next week I'll be fully back to M-W-F + a weekend day!  Goal is to do 5K at least once a week and possibly a slightly longer one (4 miles?) before my official first race!

Today is a good day to run!

A really good day!  It was beautiful weather, and I started at a point at the MetroPark that would keep me, intermittently, in sun and shade.  It was about 68 degrees (20 C) with about 75% humidity, which was a bit moist, but not too bad.  It was my third time, in a row, running 25 minutes, straight - and It felt great!  I was initially concerned because the paths in the park go over small hills that I'm not used to - none of those in my neighborhood.  I was very pleased to have finished today with my farthest distance and my best time for a mile!  Hooray!


The path went along some really pretty stretches of road that I enjoyed while I was running.  Since it was 8:20 am there weren't a huge number of people in the park, and I had some of the most scenic sections of the trail all to myself, which I thoroughly enjoyed.

My biggest complaint would have to be the mosquitoes, but as long as I kept running they didn't bother me.  It kept me moving right along!  Maybe I should thank them for my improved pace today.  As soon as I got back to the car and stopped to get my water and everything, they swarmed toward me with a thirst for blood and murder in their eyes.  They were huge - nearly as big as hummingbirds!  Okay, maybe not quite THAT big, but they really were some big-ass mosquitoes!


As nice as the weather was when I was out running (I can say running now without the quotes and feel quite comfortable with it) - anyway, as nice as it was, it's supposed to rain this afternoon and evening, which is kind of disappointing because I'm going to an outdoor concert.  My playlist today included both Sammy Hagar and Kid Rock, and I will be seeing both of them live and in person tonight, from the nose-bleed section at Comerica Park.  Doesn't matter... rain or not, I'm going to enjoy the concert and am looking forward to a great evening.  I hear that Kid Rock goes all out for his Detroit shows and I've seen Sammy before and know that he's awesome.   I'll include a brief concert report in my next run entry on Tuesday!  Til then, toodle loo!