A new PR and a Blooming Onion

Getting ready to start the Ted E Bear 5k

Weather:
High: 90+ degrees
Temp at start: 68 degrees, 85% humidity




Check out the ankle timing chip. I put mine on too tight and it drove me nutty when I ran. But no way was I going to slow down to fix it!




The fast people





The slow people

It was a really good day and a really good run. The weather was cooler, still high humidity though, but plenty of shade. It wasn't a very scenic route, going behind a lot of buildings and under bridges, but the people running were super nice and made up for it. My watch time was 35:20 which is a PR by 11 seconds. Whoo hoo! I know mystart/stop times on my watch were a bit off so I am really curious as to what my official time is.




I didn't win a medal ( like that will ever happen) but I did win a Blooming Onion! Belly ache here I come!


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Packet pick up Ted E Bear

This is one of the best tee shirts so far. It is soft, not a bad color, and is somewhat fitted. I have a weird thing about tee shirts with stuff printed on the front - won't wear them. I might actually wear this one when I go swim since the printing is on the back.

Also got a low number this time. Maybe that means I will be faster! One can only hope, right?



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Lake Z run, 8/24/10

Weather during run:
Temp: 73 degrees
Heat Index: 75 degrees
3.01 miles @ 35:26 


My time is improving! It was only 11 seconds this time but that is still faster than last time. A slow faster but whatever. It was a bit of a difficult run and my lungs did not like it at all but I made it through.

This is the hill I have to walk down to get to the lake. With all the sun and rain it has really overgrown and is a bit muddy. It is also at the end of a cul-de-sac and and starting to creep me out. I think I need to stop watching Criminal Minds. 


Or start running with my dog.
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Happy Hour at the Pool

45 minutes of pool running.

Today there were 5 Grandpas and 2 Grandmas having a grand old time during lap swim, just like happy hour. When I walked in I was greeted with "Ohh, a young one!" They were quite funny about it and then wanted to know all about pool running once they saw what I was doing. One of them even tried it out but said it was 'too much work for a Geezer'.

Floating and flirting was more his speed.

45 minutes of pool running, minus a couple of minutes helping Grandpa, and it was a pretty good workout.

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One Year Ago Today..

One year ago today I started Day 1 Week 1 of the Couch to 5k program.

 I am 38 years old and had never run before or had never done anything athletic..ever. It wasn't always easy and I even hated it at one point but I am so glad I stuck with it and now can call myself a runner. A super slow runner but still a runner!

Since graduating from the Couch to 5k program I have run in five 5ks, one 8k, one 10k, and a Half Marathon.

Here is my post from that day and my very first blog post ever.. I sure have come a long way!

SATURDAY, AUGUST 22, 2009

Week 1 Day 1- 8/22/09 (why do all important things in my life deal with the number 22?)

Brisk walk for 5 minutes. Run 60 seconds, walk 90 seconds, repeat for 20 minutes.

I did it! So take that all you people who laughed hysterically when I told you I was going to start running. Honestly, I can't believe I made it the whole way through without stopping or giving up. I think my body allowed me to do it because it had no clue as to what was going on.
Chris followed me on his bike, pulling Addison in the trailer. I am not sure if they were a positive or negative factor. Addison yelled out "Hey mom! I didn't know you knew how to run!" and Chris keeps repeating "Wow, you don't run totally like a girl" Thanks guys. lol
I hurt already so I am sure the day after will not be much fun.

Pool running is paying off..

                                     Wow! I think the pool running has paid off!

The August 15th and August 19th runs were at the same time of day, same temperatures, and the same humidity levels. The only difference is that I had 2 pool sessions, one the day before the 15th and one in between the two races. The 19th was still a pretty tough run and a bit of a struggle but holy cow.. look at the time!
2:24 minutes faster.

The 35 minutes is still stinking slow but at least I am improving.. still a proud member of that Penguin Club though. I was starting to get worried that my injuries were going to keep me stuck in the 37 minute time frame so I am very happy to see such an improvement.

Pool Running

My Physical Therapist has been bugging me to add water running as part of my therapy and I finally got round to doing it.

Boy, am I glad I did!

It was easy on my joints but a tough work out. After 40 minutes of running I was sweating.. in the pool. lol I have gone twice now and am adding it to my running plan.

Here is the low down on pool running..
Athletes of all sorts can attain the benefits of deep water running. It is a great form of cross training and an excellent way to deal with and prevent injuries. Water running can allow an injured athlete to recover without loosing fitness. It can also help with improving running form and decreasing risk of sustaining injuries by decreasing the stress on running on hard surfaces. The most popular form of aqua training devices among runners is theAquaJogger. Made from EVA foam it looks like a belt that you strap around your waist. Almost any flotation vest or belt will work nearly as well. The goal is to keep your body afloat while allowing you to perform a running motion without stress to the body.


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Boxer 500 5k results

Results for the Boxer 500 5k are in..

Weather:
High: 98 degrees
Heat Index: 111 degrees
Temp at start: 78 degrees, heat index 87 degrees

Race results:
314 finishers, average time 37:12

My time: 38:30
199th place of 314 overall
103 of 185 women
17 of 29 for my age group




Check it out.. I am on TV!
I am in purple, on the left, in front of the white hat. Watch out for the elbows.




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Boxer 500 5k Race

Brutal is how I would describe the race today.

It was so hot and humid with the heat index at 87 degrees(111 degrees later in the day) the sun was out in full force, and there was very little wind. The course was beautiful around the lake though and there was lots of scenery. Not that I was looking.. I was just trying to keep from throwing up.


The 5k race course.



My cheering squad.. At the correct finish line this time.


The winner was the guy in orange.



Trying to cross the starting line.

I now understand why they say not to try anything new on race day. Normally I drink coconut water (peach or mango) and water it down to about half and half, otherwise it is just too sweet. We were running a bit late this morning so I forgot to water it down. The extra sugar, baked in by the heat, just sat there in my stomach the whole time. At about mile 1.5 it hit me and I wasn't sure if I was going to pass out from the heat or throw up from the sugar. I was running a 3:1 run/walk ratio and had to drop down to a 1:1 ratio because my belly couldn't take it anymore. For a while I had to just walk. A lot. A lot more than I ever want to walk in a race and had to will myself to kept going. Rumor has it that some didn't finish and certainly see why. I think everyone, except the guy in orange, walked at some point.



The closest I'll ever come to an age group medal.

But honestly even with the brutal heat, the way too sweet drink, the blazing sun, and my body wanting to give up, it was a good race. It was a good race in that I put mind over matter, accomplished all 3 of my racing goals (1. Finish, 2. Don't throw up, 3. Don't pass out) and actually had a good race. I was expecting my time to be terribly horrific. For most runners it probably was.

My watch time was :38:30. And I am perfectly ok with that.



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Packet pick up

Sunday I am running in  a race to raise money  for colorectal cancer called the Boxer 500. You are supposed to wear your best (or worst) boxers. How cool is that?
"Participants are encourage to draw attention to their bottoms and colorectal cancer by participating in their boxer underwear. "


The forecast for Sunday is a high of 96 with a heat index of 103. The forecast for the start of the race is 78 degrees with a heat index of 85. Ugh.
So if you take the rule of 'slow down 30 seconds per mile for every 5 degrees over 60 degrees' that would be between a minute and a half to two and a half minutes. Add 2:30 to my minutes a mile and that has me running at a pace of ... well, walking. 
Double ugh. 

But on a good note.. My parents sent me these super cool (obnoxious) LSU boxers to wear for the event. The smallest they had was a mens small so I am hoping they will stay up. If not, well I guess that is one way to stay cool.

2.5 miles on the treadmill

The infamous treadmill. (Can you tell that it is mocking me?)

When we bought my treadmill 7 or 8 months ago Chris and I had a "discussion" as to if it would actually get used. He said it would be used a few times and then become the stereotypical clothes rack/ junk holder and I swore I would run on it all the time ( but secretly thought he would be right).

Well, unfortunately, I was right and the treadmill has gotten a whole lot of use. I did another run on it today..and it is still just as painful. I know most of running is mental so a lot of my bad treadmill attitude is in my head. But geez, I don't know how anyone can enjoy running on that thing. Seriously, how do the girls at the Y always look so chipper? Are they just faking it?

During my run I tried to do the math in my head to add up the miles I have put on the treadmill. A lot would be my guess. I have a running log that keeps track of all runs so I probably could go back and add it all up.

But I don't think I want to know. That's one stat I can live without.



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