Sunday, November 30, 2008

To Half, or not to Half

There is a half marathon here this weekend, it's the race I did last year. Not the most exciting course, but for the $40 price tag, it's not too bad, basically running around Downtown Orlando.

I can't decide if I should run it or not. I have not signed up yet, honestly, I have been logging small mileage lately, so I just hadn't thought about it much. My average runs have been around 3-6 miles for the past month or two, have not done many "big" mileage runs lately.

This morning, I did 10 miles, and felt good, it was the longest run I have done in quite some time. It got me to thinking about the half, and wondering if maybe I should go for it? I don't feel confident that I'll do better than last year (2:11), but I also hope that if I finish in more than that, that I'm not bummed about it. So, I just can't decide what to do, I don't want to struggle out there, I want to enjoy it, if I think I'm going to struggle, I'll just do some more longer runs and do a half in a month or two down the road.

But, I keep thinking about this darn race, as it's been a year since my last half, and I'm itching to do one. I figure, if I felt good after running 10 today, that hopefully I can handle 13 without it being too hard? This is the race that I signed up for on a whim last year. I went out for a run on Thanksgiving morning, and when I realized I had run 12, I went home and signed up for the race, which was a week away.

Oh, what to do, what to do!

Saturday, November 29, 2008

Oh, Yay !!

I have been wanting a Garmin forever, just haven't wanted to spend the money. I just ordered a 305, it'll be my Christmas present from my mother, I told her about it and she told me to go ahead and order it. $150 through Amazon, I never thought I'd get one for that price!

Just had to share - I am so excited! I think running will be a bit more fun now...

Thursday, November 13, 2008

A New PR......

Well, sort of. I have run only two 10K's, and I am very, very happy with the way this last one turned out!

I'm too lazy to do a full report of the race, it was a standard race. Run last Sunday, in a town near Disney World that I used to live in, so it was nice being back there, such a pretty place for a run. The goal I had going into this race was to hopefully finish it in under 1 hour, because the only other 10K I have done (2 years ago) I finished in just over 1 hour.

Weather was perfect the morning of the race, low 50's, sunny, just perfect for running. I passed by the 3 mile mark at 27 minutes, and realized that maybe I could make a new goal to finish this thing in under 55 minutes. Wasn't sure it would happen, but I was just thinking as I ran along.

As I neared the finish line, I could see the clock said 54 something. I thought to myself that I need to get in under 55, so I sprinted to the finish, and I did it! Finishing time was 54:25. Awesome race, so glad I did it. Here's some stats, I am thrilled about them, because typically when I race, my pace is around 9:30-10:00 miles:

Finishing time: 54:25
Placed 357 out of 905 runners
Placed 15 out of 66 for my age group
Pace: 8:45 per mile!

Yay, yay, yay!! I am so happy about this race!

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Rough Week

I've run twice this week, yesterday and today. Yesterday, did a 6 miler that was a lot more challenging than usual. Then today, did 3, and that felt even harder than yesterday's 6! I have been sleeping terribly all week, so I'm assuming that's the reason for the tough runs. About a week ago, my daughter suddenly started waking up in the middle of the night, then getting up very early in the morning. Something seems to be scaring her, we're still trying to figure out why this is suddenly happening. She's almost 5, and this is the first time we've gone through something like this with her for so many nights in a row. So, needless to say, mommy has been missing sleep every single night for the past week.

During this morning's 3 miler, something happened that has only happened twice (that I can remember) in the 12 or so years that I've been running. I tripped and fell. The first time it happened was almost 2 years ago, approaching the finish line of a race at Disney. That was fun, since there were lots of spectators to watch my face plant. Today, of course it had to happen on a somewhat busy road, cars were going by. I was on the sidewalk, but how embarrassing, I'm sure some of those people had stories to tell of the silly runner falling flat on her face.

I am doing a 10K on Sunday, and after today's run, I am no longer looking forward to it. 6 miles is typically pretty easy for me, but with today's 3 feeling so difficult and tiring, I am starting to wonder if I can even handle a 10K right now. If I don't start getting some sleep, I can't see how I'll do well at all. For example, I was up at 4am for the day this morning, this was after going to bed at 11pm and being up with the little one at 12:30 for a bit. This has been the routine for a week, and I'm not liking it much!

I no longer have any goals for this race, if I do it, I'll just be happy to finish the darn thing at this point. The other 10K I did I finished in 1 hour, so I would like to finish this in a few minutes less than that, but I'm not listing that as a goal. We'll just have to see if I can handle it, can I finish this strong at all, and hopefully there won't be any falls for me this time!

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Enjoying some outdoor runs again..

It is finally fall here in Florida, and I could not be happier! Last night, we had temps in the mid 40's, and tonight we're going down to the low 40's. Highs for today and tomorrow are in the 60's, which to me is just perfect for this time of year!

On Sunday morning, I went for my first outdoor run in quite a while, and it was spectacular. The temp was in the upper 50's, which is pretty much perfect for running, in my book. It felt great to be able to run off the treadmill for a change, and I look forward to many outdoor runs in the coming months. Today after I dropped Ava off at school, I decided to go for a run, even though it was about 48 degrees, but they said it felt about 44 with the wind chill (it was pretty windy out there). It was good, but not quite as great as Sunday's run. Only got in about 3 miles, but I came home and mowed the lawn, so I figure, that was still sort of exercising, right?

I have decided to do a 10K race in a couple of weeks. It's a really nice course, and the $25 cost is right up my alley. This will be my first race since the half marathon I did last December, that's a long time between races! I don't have many goals, I really never have goals going into races. If I finish under an hour, I'll be happy. I don't see why I shouldn't finish in that time, but you never know.

I'm starting to consider getting a Garmin. I have always been interested in getting one, but lately I feel like I really want one. Just starting the search, as I don't know a lot about them. I have heard that the 305 is good, any Garmin users out there have any suggestions?

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Not a lot to write about

It's been a few weeks since my last post, and there isn't all that much to write about (can I be more boring?!).

Been plugging away at the gym, at 5:30 each weekday morning. I have been slacking in my running big time, I have been running only 2-3 times a week lately, all of it on the treadmill, and usually only around 5 miles. The weather here in FL still isn't good enough for me to run outside, I do look forward to the cooler mornings ahead, when I can go out for a nice long run on a weekend.

Been doing Spin class 2-3 times a week, which has cut into my running. I love the class though, such a good, challenging workout!

Husband and I spent the weekend at Disney last week, just the two of us. We live about 45 minutes from there, so while we are there quite a lot, it felt so nice to be there without Ava. We missed her, of course, but we needed the time away. Going back again this weekend, as we have family coming down from NY, Ava is so excited to get some play time with her cousins.

I'm not running the Race for the Taste 10K. It was something like $50, and I just don't feel like paying that to run 6 miles right now. As fun as that race is, I know I will be sad on Sunday morning, but I can always do it next year. Plus, we're spending the day at Disney on Sunday, and I wasn't going to drive 45 minutes back home after the race to shower, then drive back, so I guess it all works out for the best. Now I don't have to walk around the parks all sweaty for most of the day.

There is a 10K I will do next month that's right down the road from Disney. In a town I used to live in, a really pretty place, so running a race there will surely be fun. And, I like the $25 cost a bit better, that'll be a little easier on my wallet.

In a bad place with workouts this week actually. I was too tired from our weekend to workout on both Monday and Tuesday. I then did a spin class yesterday, and I was up half the night with a cold last night, so I opted out of the gym this morning. Assuming I make it there tomorrow, and try to squeeze in a run on Saturday, it'll be a 3 day workout week, so I guess it's not the worst thing. Why is it though, that I feel guilty if I don't get to the gym at least 4-5 times a week?!

Friday, September 12, 2008

Spinning, Sickies, etc

For about a year now, I've been saying that I want to try out a spin class. Just thought it would be something different to cross train my running, maybe even something a little fun. I joined a new gym last month, and I had not really taken the time yet to look at their class schedule (except for the kid's fitness class for Ava, she loves it!).

So, I'm running on the treadmill on Monday morning, was just about to hit the 30 minute mark, when an instructor came running through the gym asking if anyone wants to try out a spin class. It was a rough morning, I was just about to quit and call it a day after just 30 minutes. But, I decided to try it out, and I loved it! I looked around the room a few times, wondering it I stood out as the newbie, was I doing everything right? The guy next to me asked if it was my first class, and when I told him yes, he told me he was surprised, because I looked like a "natural". Okay, maybe I wasn't doing so bad after all!

Did it again on Wednesday morning, loved it even more (liked the Weds instructor a little better). It's such a great workout, but man is it hard on the legs! My legs were very sore Thursday and again today, bad enough that I skipped both days of the gym. :-( It's funny how I can run, do the Elliptical, etc., but doing a different cardio workout just works the muscles differently I guess. With the way my legs felt yesterday, I felt like I had just started working out. The best part is that the class is at 6am three times during the week. I like to get to the gym when they open at 5:30, so it's nice that I can get 30 minutes in of running, then do the 45 minute spin class, feels great after all of that!

My husband has strep throat, and guess what I found out I have today? Yup, good ole strep. Fun times. I rarely get sick, so this just stinks, but what can you do. At this point, I'm just hoping that Ava doesn't get it, I'd hate to see a 4 year old have to deal with something like that.

Not much else new going on here. I have a few races in mind for the upcoming months, but have not officially registered for any of them yet. A 10K at Disney next month that I did a couple of years ago, it was a fun race. One or two local 5K's I am considering, but just not sure, I never feel motivated to sign up for a 5K for some reason? I'm thinking about a 13K at Disney in November, need to check to see if it's full yet actually. It's pricey, I just can't decide if I feel like paying the big tab for it. And, I'm hoping to do a half in late November too. We shall see.