encouraged!

Had a fantastic run today, despite my shoelace coming untied and a bug flying into my mouth. I think the last two fast run-walk sessions have helped because I finished my 3 miles in 34:49, 1:14 faster than my 3 miles last Thursday. I know I am still slow by anyone else's standards, but I am getting faster. My first "training run" was exactly 8 weeks ago and I ran 1/4 mile, walked 1/4 mile, for 1 mile total. I ran at 4.5mph. Considering I can now run 3 miles straight at about 5.17mph (today's pace), I think I'm improving. I wish tomorrow wasn't my rest day so I could go out and run again!

discouraged

On today's training run (3 miles) I tried running faster and then taking short (1 min) walking breaks to see how that felt. My time was 34:50, which is over a minute faster than last time when I ran the whole time, but I still felt so tired by the end. It's frustrating because I wish I was showing more improvement. I have gotten faster, but so far I only run 3 miles and then I'm spent. How am I ever going to get to 13.1!?

"the change"

I had two signs this week that I am slowly changing into a real runner. The first happened a few days ago. When I first started running my running partner said she would eventually like to do a half-marathon, and I remember thinking I would never want to do that. Within a few weeks, we were planning our first half. I knew for sure though that I would NEVER need or want to do a full marathon. Well imagine my surprise when earlier this week the thought of finishing a full marathon entered the realm of possibility. And I looked online and found one I could actually try, 2 months after our half. Dare I dream it? The second sign happened yesterday when I was driving to the airport and I noticed a nice forest-y area by the side of the road and I thought that would be a nice place to run. I wish they had a trail there. I have never thought anything like that in my life! I always despised running and would never wish I had the opportunity to do it. I know these are small signs, but they still made me optimistic that maybe I can stick this out and actually be a real runner.

A 5K Race Against Diabetes

This was by far the smallest race I have ever been in. They gave out bib numbers as people signed in and the highest number I saw was 39. It was about half runners, half walkers.

I started out of the gate a little too fast. In order to sustain running for 3 miles, I have to maintain a pace of 5mph/12 min mile. I hit the first 1/4 mile at 2:30 (6mph). I was excited to be running that fast but I knew I couldn't keep it up. I started struggling around 1 1/4 mile and I remember my husband said not to worry too much about running the whole time, I should try to enjoy it and have fun because otherwise what's the point. So, I allowed myself to take a short (maybe 1/8 mile) walking break. When I started running the second time I felt more energized and was able to run faster again. I took another short walking break at the 2-mile point to take advantage of a water stop. Turned out to be a bad idea since I felt sick as soon as the water hit my stomach. I probably didn't need to take a third walking break, but I wanted to make sure I was running across the finish line. I'm glad I had my watch so I could pace myself to finish on time. Despite taking three walking breaks, I ended up beating my old time by 2 1/2 minutes (35:41 compared to 38:15). Whoo-hoo!

I am definitely a fan of the run-walk method. I feel better during the running periods, I don't want to die at the end, and I don't get the usual aches/pains/blisters. I feel like I could go out and do another one right now. I read it is better for your body too because running and walking use different muscle groups so it gives your muscles a chance to recover. I'm glad I have 3 more 5Ks left to experiment with different running strategies. It's also kind of fun doing them solo because I don't have to worry about keeping up with the other person or slowing them down too much. My next 5K is solo, then I have one with my running partner, and then one with my husband. Then who knows!

#2 tomorrow

For tomorrow's 5K I'm flying solo. I feel less pressure to improve my time, but since I'm super familiar with the course (I run it 2-3 times a week) I feel like I should do better than last weekend. My 3-mile run on Wednesday took 36:03, which would put me right around 37:15, about 1 minute faster than last time. After the 5K I have to run back and shower and go pick up my husband from the airport. He's finally coming home! Yay!

badge of courage

I used to get embarassed when I would sweat through my pants while running, but now I view it as a badge of courage. I am courageous enough to let people see that my butt sweats. Deal with it people!

It probably wasn't the best idea...

Looking back I probably shouldn't have also signed up for a stairclimbing race in the middle of my 5ks. The race is on Sunday the 25th, 25 stories/580 steps, the day after my 5K Race for Diabetes. Today they offered a free "boot camp" session that I went to because they said it would be a little strength training, stretching, and stair climbing. It turned out to be 30-35 minutes of group exercise and running up all 25 flights as "practice" for next week. I'm pooped! And I get to do it all over again next weekend. At least I'm burning lots of calories! Once the stairclimbing race is over it will be a lot easier to train for the 5ks since right now I'm having to alternate running and stairclimbing every day, and then adding strength training 3 days a week. Just focusing on running will be a nice change!

Run the D.O.G. 5k

Today was the first of the five 5ks. It was rainy this morning, and the course had some hills which we hadn't trained for, but overall we did pretty good. There were a lot of "real" runners there, it was intimidating! We made the rookie mistake of wearing the race shirt during the race, which didn't help once it got soaked with sweat and rain. I felt bad about stopping to walk briefly in the middle, but I was just not feeling that good this morning. I think it was a combo of not enough sleep, not enough of a pre-race breakfast, and race-day nerves. After the race went to IHOP and I had stuffed french toast - sooooo good! Totally makes running worth it :)

Still waiting for chip time to be posted. They took pictures of everyone as they passed by - here's us!

Progress

I'm slowly getting faster...3-mile run today took 36 minutes. Not too shabby considering I didn't even think I'd finish it when I started! Getting excited for the first 5K this weekend. My friend is doing it too which makes it a lot more fun. And I get to eat carbs on Friday! Which reminds me, time to eat some dinner!

The birth of the 5 x 5K challenge

After having to walk the entire YVR, we decided to do a 5K next weekend so we can have a chance to actually run. I was looking around on Active.com, Virginia Running Club, etc to see what other events we can do. I noticed that 5Ks are offered basically every weekend, and usually more than one per weekend. My husband is gone for the next two weeks for work and when he's away I like to find something to do to keep me busy and keep me from digging in to the Ben & Jerry's. Thus, the 5 x 5K challenge was born. Over the next 5 weeks, I will run 5 5Ks. I'm psyched! I am hoping to get a little faster each time, but really I will just be happy if I finish each one. My 3-mile training run yesterday took about 38 minutes, so I'm hoping to finish the first 5K in under 40 minutes. I'm slow I know! But considering how I had to walk the 5Ks I did in Oregon and it took an hour, at least I'm improving. Anyway, here is a list of the 5Ks I will be doing:

April 17th, 8am
Run the D.O.G. 5K
Williamsburg

April 24th, 9am
A 5K Race for Diabetes
Hampton

May 1st, 8am
Tabb High School May Day 5K
Yorktown

May 8th, 9am
20th Annual 5K by the Bay
Hampton

May 15th, 8:30am
Salute to the Military "Red, White and Blue 5K"
Yorktown

Wish me luck!

Results

2:19.21. We had to walk the whole way! The woman at the registration table said it was a free-for-all and we could run and walk as we please, but when we got to the starting line they said that all walkers had to walk the entire time. Boo! It was still a good time though. Then we had a super fatty lunch at Olive Garden. We had to re-charge after burning all those calories! Kind of a bummer that we couldn't run though. My calves and ankles are super tight so I may go on a walk later tonight to loosen em up. Looking forward to the next race and actually running!

8-Miler tomorrow....

It's finally here! Yorktown Victory Run 8-Miler tomorrow. I was pretty proud of my carbo-loading today, I had spaghetti sandwiches which is carbs on top of carbs. Followed by some Special K, in case I hadn't had enough carbs yet. The longest we have run/walked during training is a little over 6 miles so hopefully 8 goes well.