I took a break from running for a few days because my feet were killing me. I started looking at stuff online and figured my ankles needed more support than my shoes were giving. My parents were in town so my mom and I (and Caitlin) went shopping Saturday. We stopped at the VA running store http://www.varunner.com/ in Woodbridge and I got fitted for a new pair of shoes. It was great - they measured my feet, watched me run in a few pairs of shoes, and really worked with me to find a pair that worked. I ended up with the same brand I usually get, New Balance, but they have more "stability" than my other pair http://www.newbalance.com/running/footwear/WR769/.
Chris also set up (with my dad's help) my old tv on a wall-mount right in front of the tv. So today when I ran I watched part of the movie Transformers. Dorky, I know, but it kept me entertained! I'm also starting a running/walking program. Basically, I'll run for 4-5 minutes and walk for 1. It worked out really well, I'm still running slow but I'm ok with that. I walked for 5 minutes and ran/walked for about 35 minutes. I only did a little over 3 miles but it's better than nothing!
Monday, March 30, 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Post-race blues?
It's been too long since I updated this blog! I think I had some post-race blues after the 5k and I was overwhelmed that I only ran 3 miles and the 1/2 marathon has 13 miles :(
I also think I'm dealing with a couple of minor sores/injuries. My heels are bothering me and from what I can gather from my running books and the internet I might have plantar facsciitis, which is basically heel pain. http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/plantar-fasciitis-topic-overview I can't figure out if I'm still supposed to run or take it easy. Right now I've been taking it easy although I did run yesterday. I went verrrry slooooow and it was painful to walk after.
Right now I'm considering beginning a running/walking plan for the race. I still have almost 9 months to train and I've found some good programs that, for example, incorporate 4 minutes of running with 1 minute of walking. I think that might be a better idea in the long run for me. One woman I read used that program and finished in 2 hours! The cut-off is 3.5 hours so that's a really good time in my book. I'm just hoping to finish in one piece :)
I also think I'm dealing with a couple of minor sores/injuries. My heels are bothering me and from what I can gather from my running books and the internet I might have plantar facsciitis, which is basically heel pain. http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/plantar-fasciitis-topic-overview I can't figure out if I'm still supposed to run or take it easy. Right now I've been taking it easy although I did run yesterday. I went verrrry slooooow and it was painful to walk after.
Right now I'm considering beginning a running/walking plan for the race. I still have almost 9 months to train and I've found some good programs that, for example, incorporate 4 minutes of running with 1 minute of walking. I think that might be a better idea in the long run for me. One woman I read used that program and finished in 2 hours! The cut-off is 3.5 hours so that's a really good time in my book. I'm just hoping to finish in one piece :)
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Survived the 5k!
3 miles down, 10 to go!
Happy to say that I did indeed survive the 5k, although I really only ran a few minutes longer than I'm used to. But my body did seem to notice that I kept running past the usual 25 minutes. I'm not sure of my exact time, I think it was around 31 minutes, and that's what I expected. I stopped once to tie my shoe and jogged the rest. I ran with a co-worker which was great. We chatted a bit but once I started wheezing I wasn't much of a conversationalist :) I'm I slowed her down but we both agreed we weren't considered with time, just finishing. The weather was cold but dry. Just my luck that last weekend I was running outside in shorts and this morning I had gloves on. It even snowed yesterday! I'm over snow - I'm definitely ready for nice weather.
Now I need to wean myself off the couch to 5k program and start thinking about training for the 1/2 marathon. I'm an English nerd so of course I bought 3 different running books with 3 different training programs. They range from 14-20 weeks. Since the race isn't until January I think I'll double the training time and see how that goes.
Happy to say that I did indeed survive the 5k, although I really only ran a few minutes longer than I'm used to. But my body did seem to notice that I kept running past the usual 25 minutes. I'm not sure of my exact time, I think it was around 31 minutes, and that's what I expected. I stopped once to tie my shoe and jogged the rest. I ran with a co-worker which was great. We chatted a bit but once I started wheezing I wasn't much of a conversationalist :) I'm I slowed her down but we both agreed we weren't considered with time, just finishing. The weather was cold but dry. Just my luck that last weekend I was running outside in shorts and this morning I had gloves on. It even snowed yesterday! I'm over snow - I'm definitely ready for nice weather.
Now I need to wean myself off the couch to 5k program and start thinking about training for the 1/2 marathon. I'm an English nerd so of course I bought 3 different running books with 3 different training programs. They range from 14-20 weeks. Since the race isn't until January I think I'll double the training time and see how that goes.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
5k on Saturday
I'm skipping ahead a week or two in my running program to run a 5k this Saturday, wish me luck! My co-worker found a 5k in old town Manassass which isn't far from our house. Chris is going to watch Caitlin while I run. I ran two 5ks when I worked at "US News & World Report," but that was a few years ago. I'm up to running 25 minutes now which is about 2.5 miles for me - I'm hoping to run the 5k in 30 minutes but we'll see.
I'll post whether or not I survived later this weekend :)
I'll post whether or not I survived later this weekend :)
Sunday, March 1, 2009
No turning back now!
Chris and I just registered for the 1/2 marathon! Eeek - no turning back now! It was pretty expensive but at least a lot of the money goes to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. From what I've seen and read about previous marathon weekends it's going to be an amazing experience. Plus, and most important, I can say "I'm going to Disney World!" We're actually going twice in 2010: January for the race and December for my parents' 40th wedding anniversary :)
I started week 6 of the 5k program, and it's still going really well. Yesterday I ran 20 minutes without stopping... well, I stopped once to get Caitlin up from her nap but since I had to go up two flights of stairs and carry her downstairs I figure it was still exercise. Today it was back to interval training (run for 5, walk for 3, run for 8, walk for 3, run for 5) but now the times go from 20 minutes to 25 minutes. At the end of this week I'll be up to running nonstop for 25 minutes. I'm planning on running a 5k in about 2 weeks hopefully! I'm running with a co-worker so I need to try hard not to embarrass myself :)
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Checking in...
It's been really crazy lately at the school I teach at and I think that running has kind of kept me grounded. Last fall, while I was on maternity leave, one of our teachers passed away in his sleep. It hit the kids and faculty really hard. About a week ago a 9th grader (along with her mother and younger brother) was shot and killed by her step-father. Last Friday was the funeral and many of my 9th graders were there.
Sunday afternoon I got a call that a teacher in my department passed away Saturday night. Totally unexpected. She was in her early 50's (but she looked ten years younger) and in perfect health. Actually, she was one of the people I work with that inspired me to get into shape. Until a couple of years ago, Terri ran full and 1/2 marathons on a regular basis. We're all still in shock at school. Ironically, I thought of her last weekend when I was shopping at H&M because she shopped there a lot - she had amazing style.
I'm glad I'm still keeping up with running and I think it's helping me keep busy. I ran day two of week 5 yesterday. I ran 8 minutes, walked 5, ran 8, walked 5. The first 8 minutes were killing me until I realized Chris had just used the treadmill and left the incline at 4! I guess that's a drawback of sharing a treadmill :) The Disney 1/2 marathon is 50% full so we'll hopefully be signing up soon!
Sunday afternoon I got a call that a teacher in my department passed away Saturday night. Totally unexpected. She was in her early 50's (but she looked ten years younger) and in perfect health. Actually, she was one of the people I work with that inspired me to get into shape. Until a couple of years ago, Terri ran full and 1/2 marathons on a regular basis. We're all still in shock at school. Ironically, I thought of her last weekend when I was shopping at H&M because she shopped there a lot - she had amazing style.
I'm glad I'm still keeping up with running and I think it's helping me keep busy. I ran day two of week 5 yesterday. I ran 8 minutes, walked 5, ran 8, walked 5. The first 8 minutes were killing me until I realized Chris had just used the treadmill and left the incline at 4! I guess that's a drawback of sharing a treadmill :) The Disney 1/2 marathon is 50% full so we'll hopefully be signing up soon!
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Ups and downs...
I'm finding myself lately torn between being really proud of myself for exercising on a regular basis and depressed because I still can't fit into all of my pre-pregnancy clothes. I know the saying "9 months on, 9 months off" but it's frustrating because some of my clothes fit ok and some won't even zip up :( I had a reality check today at the mall. I picked out a few cute tops at H&M to try on, plus a pair of pants and a skirt, and nothing fit. I got the pants in one size and the skirt in a size up and neither one came close to fitting. The shirts weren't too bad but my chest is still larger than normal. I'm afraid that if I buy tops now they won't fit once I stop nursing. I guess I'll hold off shopping for a few more weeks and hope that I drop some more weight.
On the bright side, I started week 5 of my program today and feel great. I walked 5 minutes to warm up, then ran 5 minutes, walked 3, and repeated that twice more. That's day one of week 5 - day two consists of running for 8 minutes and walking for 2 or 3 and day three is running for 20 minutes. I'm nervous about day three but then again just a few weeks ago running for 5 minutes nonstop scared me. I think starting slow has really been the trick to sticking with things now. I've been talking with a friend about running in a 5k in the next couple of months. Hopefully I can keep up the enthusiasm until next January!
On the bright side, I started week 5 of my program today and feel great. I walked 5 minutes to warm up, then ran 5 minutes, walked 3, and repeated that twice more. That's day one of week 5 - day two consists of running for 8 minutes and walking for 2 or 3 and day three is running for 20 minutes. I'm nervous about day three but then again just a few weeks ago running for 5 minutes nonstop scared me. I think starting slow has really been the trick to sticking with things now. I've been talking with a friend about running in a 5k in the next couple of months. Hopefully I can keep up the enthusiasm until next January!
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