Christen and I are getting ready for our Open House at the office and the workload is just nuts. But, I'm determined to not let it get in the way of working out.
So far this week:
Sunday - I kind of lifted and did some leg exercises.
Monday - I ran 3.3 miles at lunch. It was a pretty awful run. I had to stop and walk a few times. I'm really not sure what is going on with my legs. The ache is bad and is the entire leg. Eventually it can go away. But it's so painful...and a recent development in things. I just don't know.
Tuesday (tonight) - I ran 8 x 200 at the track. I don't know if that was enough, a good amount, or what. It was hard. By the time I came to the end of each 200, I could barely breathe. The weather got super humid all of the sudden, so I'm sure that is part of it - the other part of it being I haven't been doing this.
I'm trying to get some consistency back into my workouts. I feel like I've been trying to do this for quite some time though.
Plans for the rest of the week... I can't ride my bike tomorrow because I have a bunch of errands to do. But perhaps I'll lift and run. Thursday and Friday I could ride... I just don't know when to do my runs. My schedule is all out of whack still and I'm not sure how to fix it.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Day 2 after running 13.1 miles, and I'm not as sore as I was yesterday - woohoo! I can get up now without having to stabilize myself for a few seconds.
A quick recap of the Pig Half:
• 2:33:something. Which is a slow pace. I didn't want to go that slow. It was a slower pace than I ran my marathon! That says a lot, lol.
• Felt great in the beginning. Got a bad side stitch mile 4 but I ran through it by grabbing my side and making what had to have been a pretty hilarious face.
• Fell apart on the hills; they wiped me out. But I'm not surprised, as I wasn't very well trained. I need a hill plan. Hills and me aren't friends right now. They bully me! I need to learn how to fight back ;)
• Races are a lot more fun when you are properly trained for them. While I was willing to have a suffer-fest, I just couldn't move any faster than a shuffle at times.
• I am very very very happy that my joints never hurt during this race or afterwords. My hips hurt afterwords, but that pain went away the next day. I am so thankful for this - it's a good sign. My IT band didn't hurt either, though it was sore to rub after the race. But it didn't make my knee hurt. All good stuff.
• I looked at this race as a really good workout, kicking off a new phase of training for some fun times ahead!
I put some race ideas/options in a tab up top, mostly 5Ks. Just have to see what people want to do! I love running with friends! And I have some goals for myself this summer.
A quick recap of the Pig Half:
• 2:33:something. Which is a slow pace. I didn't want to go that slow. It was a slower pace than I ran my marathon! That says a lot, lol.
• Felt great in the beginning. Got a bad side stitch mile 4 but I ran through it by grabbing my side and making what had to have been a pretty hilarious face.
• Fell apart on the hills; they wiped me out. But I'm not surprised, as I wasn't very well trained. I need a hill plan. Hills and me aren't friends right now. They bully me! I need to learn how to fight back ;)
• Races are a lot more fun when you are properly trained for them. While I was willing to have a suffer-fest, I just couldn't move any faster than a shuffle at times.
• I am very very very happy that my joints never hurt during this race or afterwords. My hips hurt afterwords, but that pain went away the next day. I am so thankful for this - it's a good sign. My IT band didn't hurt either, though it was sore to rub after the race. But it didn't make my knee hurt. All good stuff.
• I looked at this race as a really good workout, kicking off a new phase of training for some fun times ahead!
I put some race ideas/options in a tab up top, mostly 5Ks. Just have to see what people want to do! I love running with friends! And I have some goals for myself this summer.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Burning Leg
I had a 5 mile loop mapped... Cooper to Zig Zag to Kenwood to Cooper and a big more on Montgomery. But soon after starting to run, my lower right leg hurt incredibly. It was mostly on the outside, a burning pain. It was annoying but I kept running for a little over a mile, until I started limping. That's no good so I stopped. I tried to stretch but that hurt even worse, like I was going to rip something. So I turned around and started hobbling back to the office.
After a little bit I tried to run again, hoping it would just loosen up. It still hurt, but was manageable. So I went down random roads just running slowly, trying to get some miles in. Sometimes it hurt worse than other times. Hills or any uneven terrain was really bad.
I finally called it and mapped what I had done. Instead of 5 it was about 3.5, so at least I still got some miles in. My only guess to why it was so awful was the trails in Symmes Township. While not feeling sore after that, maybe my muscles needed some rubbing and stretching.
Today I'm going to ride my bike to work. I just installed the light on the seat post. Here's hoping traffic is nice.
After a little bit I tried to run again, hoping it would just loosen up. It still hurt, but was manageable. So I went down random roads just running slowly, trying to get some miles in. Sometimes it hurt worse than other times. Hills or any uneven terrain was really bad.
I finally called it and mapped what I had done. Instead of 5 it was about 3.5, so at least I still got some miles in. My only guess to why it was so awful was the trails in Symmes Township. While not feeling sore after that, maybe my muscles needed some rubbing and stretching.
Today I'm going to ride my bike to work. I just installed the light on the seat post. Here's hoping traffic is nice.
Monday, April 18, 2011
Symmes Township Park
Today I finished up taxes - yay. I had some faxing to do to the CPAs, then dropped off the checks, then got my allergy shots. Reward? A nice run. Greg and I went over to Symmes Township Park. I wanted to run kind of long today, but didn't feel like heading out of the neighborhood and trying to make a 10 mile route. Plus, it's been a while since I ran, so all of the sudden doing 10 maybe wouldn't have been good. So I thought the soft challenging hills of Symmes Township park would be good for me.
Greg ran the first ultra-slow mile with me just so he would know the distance since I was wearing my GPS. The loop is 1.6 miles.
The trails is split up by the parking lot. The first section starts out on a mulch path that winds back into the woods with some easy ups and downs. It goes past the dog park the turns right and heads even farther into the woods, changing surfaces: crushed up asphalt-gravel. It winds around and goes downhill for a while, back onto mulch and gravel. Then a long uphill begins with a couple of steep sections, where you feel like you are just climbing stairs on your toes. It was nice. I saw a lot of greenery starting to pop up between the old leaves.
The second section goes to the other side of the park, winding down along the creek on a paved trail. It kind of feels like Sharon Woods here. The path winds along the creek and is pretty. Then it turns left and a steep uphill begins. It levels only slightly before an even steeper uphill happens. Then it is slightly uphill until you pop out of the woods again and there is a bridge. After the bridge you turn left and almost double back on the part you were just on except that now the path is up on the top of the ridge on the other side of the creek. This part is sidewalk, and winds around the small amphitheater and basketball courts. Then it dumps back into the parking lot.
Given all of the changing terrain, environment and running surfaces, the 1.6 miles goes by very quickly! I did three total laps. I know I'm not supposed to be looking at time right now, but I just wanted something to gauge effort as I went along, and also to be a starting point for hopefully improving in the next weeks. So, first lap was 18:27. Second lap was 18:35. After the second lap I was overheated. I felt my face getting really hot and I had a bit of a headache. So I sat in the shade for a few minutes drinking water before going on. Third lap was 19:37, an entire minute slower, which I wasn't surprised about. It was rough and I had to walk up one of the crazy inclines. Greg also did three laps, quicker of course.
Overall, this is an awesome place for a great workout! I think it will be good to whip myself into shape for trail running. The extreme up and downs are like nothing you can get on the road.
I'm hoping to start riding my road bike to work this week. I'd like to start riding my motorcycle too, but first I think I need more exercise. The mornings will be chilly, but the evening will be awesome. It is 7.4 miles to the studio, so 14.8 total for the day. That's nothing on a road bike, but it's rolling hills and sprinting in traffic, and will probably take me a half hour. So that's an hour extra of exercise. It's time to get to work. I really feel like I've lost it. I need some accountability.
Greg ran the first ultra-slow mile with me just so he would know the distance since I was wearing my GPS. The loop is 1.6 miles.
The trails is split up by the parking lot. The first section starts out on a mulch path that winds back into the woods with some easy ups and downs. It goes past the dog park the turns right and heads even farther into the woods, changing surfaces: crushed up asphalt-gravel. It winds around and goes downhill for a while, back onto mulch and gravel. Then a long uphill begins with a couple of steep sections, where you feel like you are just climbing stairs on your toes. It was nice. I saw a lot of greenery starting to pop up between the old leaves.
The second section goes to the other side of the park, winding down along the creek on a paved trail. It kind of feels like Sharon Woods here. The path winds along the creek and is pretty. Then it turns left and a steep uphill begins. It levels only slightly before an even steeper uphill happens. Then it is slightly uphill until you pop out of the woods again and there is a bridge. After the bridge you turn left and almost double back on the part you were just on except that now the path is up on the top of the ridge on the other side of the creek. This part is sidewalk, and winds around the small amphitheater and basketball courts. Then it dumps back into the parking lot.
Given all of the changing terrain, environment and running surfaces, the 1.6 miles goes by very quickly! I did three total laps. I know I'm not supposed to be looking at time right now, but I just wanted something to gauge effort as I went along, and also to be a starting point for hopefully improving in the next weeks. So, first lap was 18:27. Second lap was 18:35. After the second lap I was overheated. I felt my face getting really hot and I had a bit of a headache. So I sat in the shade for a few minutes drinking water before going on. Third lap was 19:37, an entire minute slower, which I wasn't surprised about. It was rough and I had to walk up one of the crazy inclines. Greg also did three laps, quicker of course.
Overall, this is an awesome place for a great workout! I think it will be good to whip myself into shape for trail running. The extreme up and downs are like nothing you can get on the road.
I'm hoping to start riding my road bike to work this week. I'd like to start riding my motorcycle too, but first I think I need more exercise. The mornings will be chilly, but the evening will be awesome. It is 7.4 miles to the studio, so 14.8 total for the day. That's nothing on a road bike, but it's rolling hills and sprinting in traffic, and will probably take me a half hour. So that's an hour extra of exercise. It's time to get to work. I really feel like I've lost it. I need some accountability.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Running from the New Studio
Track night...cancelled again. I can't say I was too disappointed though. I didn't fee like trying to run fast. But I did feel like just running for a while. Aimlessly. Since I was on my own, that's what I did.
I decided to try out a run from the new studio in Montgomery. I went down Cooper and then south on Kenwood into a neighborhood that I've ran in quite a few years ago when I did a training group at Fleet Feet. I just plodded along, not really paying attention to much. It was a hilly route. My legs hurt a lot in the beginning, as they seem to be doing regularly now. This time I knew I wasn't dehydrated because I was careful to drink a lot of water the past few days. Also, my lungs hurt as if it was bitter cold out. Not sure what that was about, unless it's just my allergies. I had a lovely high pitched wheeze on the exhales. Ah spring. No wait, ah anyseasonbutwinter.
The little neighborhood I ran in had a big hill, which was great. This route was really good hill training for the Pig: no flats, just up or down. I was tired and felt kind of sluggish, but the weather was nice and I enjoyed the sun greatly.
When I got back to the corner of Montgomery and Cooper, I checked my phone. I was running the MapMyRun app, which turns out to be pretty awesome. However, it sucks the battery life away. Maybe the screen was on the entire time - I'm not sure, I just stuffed the phone in my pocket. Anyway, I saw 5.4 miles and was pretty shocked. It just didn't seem like I had been out that long. So close to 6...I had to add in more distance to get there. I had guessed the route would have been 4 miles, but apparently it was more. I turned onto Montgomery and at 5.75 my phone completely died, but I knew that was where I needed to turn back to finish up to 6 at the studio.
It was pleasant. I'm sure some of the bliss came from the fact that I am not familiar with the area, so everything went by quickly. But one run in, I really like running in this area...and like it way more than the sparse options I had from Loveland. Maybe I'll run from the new place more often. I already know I can bike pretty easily from it into Indian Hill, thanks to my crazy hilly bike ride I did with the Trek store ride leader on Saturday. That ride was great, but man. Eye opening to how bad of riding shape I'm in! At least it's only April I guess. It was a very fun ride that would have been even greater if I could have handled it a bit better. Soon.
I decided to try out a run from the new studio in Montgomery. I went down Cooper and then south on Kenwood into a neighborhood that I've ran in quite a few years ago when I did a training group at Fleet Feet. I just plodded along, not really paying attention to much. It was a hilly route. My legs hurt a lot in the beginning, as they seem to be doing regularly now. This time I knew I wasn't dehydrated because I was careful to drink a lot of water the past few days. Also, my lungs hurt as if it was bitter cold out. Not sure what that was about, unless it's just my allergies. I had a lovely high pitched wheeze on the exhales. Ah spring. No wait, ah anyseasonbutwinter.
The little neighborhood I ran in had a big hill, which was great. This route was really good hill training for the Pig: no flats, just up or down. I was tired and felt kind of sluggish, but the weather was nice and I enjoyed the sun greatly.
When I got back to the corner of Montgomery and Cooper, I checked my phone. I was running the MapMyRun app, which turns out to be pretty awesome. However, it sucks the battery life away. Maybe the screen was on the entire time - I'm not sure, I just stuffed the phone in my pocket. Anyway, I saw 5.4 miles and was pretty shocked. It just didn't seem like I had been out that long. So close to 6...I had to add in more distance to get there. I had guessed the route would have been 4 miles, but apparently it was more. I turned onto Montgomery and at 5.75 my phone completely died, but I knew that was where I needed to turn back to finish up to 6 at the studio.
It was pleasant. I'm sure some of the bliss came from the fact that I am not familiar with the area, so everything went by quickly. But one run in, I really like running in this area...and like it way more than the sparse options I had from Loveland. Maybe I'll run from the new place more often. I already know I can bike pretty easily from it into Indian Hill, thanks to my crazy hilly bike ride I did with the Trek store ride leader on Saturday. That ride was great, but man. Eye opening to how bad of riding shape I'm in! At least it's only April I guess. It was a very fun ride that would have been even greater if I could have handled it a bit better. Soon.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Track Night
We tried a different track- Sycamore. It was cold and windy. That's nearly all I remember.
Ok, not really. There were a whole bunch of little kids there practicing, which was entertaining but kind of scary at the same time. They just don't watch what they're doing and move so irregularly!
I ran a mile to warm up with Roman. Then I did 4 x 400...in lane 8. So I guess it was more than 400, but it doesn't matter. By the third one I was very down about the experience and so freakin' cold and grumpy. I felt like a snail. I didn't take a watch, still continuing with just worrying about effort rather than any times. I tried to tell myself I was at least pushing and working hard. But I just felt crummy. I did the last 400 anyway, because I knew I'd be really upset if I didn't. Then I cooled down a mile. Then I sat in my sun-warmed car and thawed my legs. Man it was cold!
Today is beautiful though. Not getting out today, but hopefully tomorrow after work? Work is just nuts. I can't wait for this week to be over.
Ok, not really. There were a whole bunch of little kids there practicing, which was entertaining but kind of scary at the same time. They just don't watch what they're doing and move so irregularly!
I ran a mile to warm up with Roman. Then I did 4 x 400...in lane 8. So I guess it was more than 400, but it doesn't matter. By the third one I was very down about the experience and so freakin' cold and grumpy. I felt like a snail. I didn't take a watch, still continuing with just worrying about effort rather than any times. I tried to tell myself I was at least pushing and working hard. But I just felt crummy. I did the last 400 anyway, because I knew I'd be really upset if I didn't. Then I cooled down a mile. Then I sat in my sun-warmed car and thawed my legs. Man it was cold!
Today is beautiful though. Not getting out today, but hopefully tomorrow after work? Work is just nuts. I can't wait for this week to be over.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Awesome weather, less awesome run
I am tired. I have spent the last few days moving the studio, lifting things, on my feet more than usual, blah blah blah. I'm beat! But I wanted to run 6 miles today. Actually, I wanted to run 10. However, after spending all day at the new studio again, my feet and legs told me why don't you start with 6 and see how that goes? Those feet and legs... they're always right.
It was a horrendous run, lol. Painful, slow, painful... But I chugged along and was happy to be outside in the sunshine. I think I have windburn on my face! It was super windy coming back.
So, 6 miles is still OK. I picked it up at the end and pushed, which felt good.
It was a horrendous run, lol. Painful, slow, painful... But I chugged along and was happy to be outside in the sunshine. I think I have windburn on my face! It was super windy coming back.
So, 6 miles is still OK. I picked it up at the end and pushed, which felt good.
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