1.0m Running From the Boogie Man

Week 4, Day 3

It was pitch black out, but thanks to a relatively full moon I was able to barely see my way. Until tonight, I didn't realize that we only have one street light on our street and it is on the opposite end of where I run. I was running from the shadows and the boogie man. Okay, I really did run from a dog right after I drop kicked it for sprinting out of the shadows and trying to bite my legs. The neighbors who were driving home saw this and then followed me to make sure I made it home safely. After stopping to chat with them for a while I called it quits and went in for the night. So much for the four miles I was supposed to do. Running in the dark of the night is very different from running in the dark of the morning. Not sure I want to do that again.

5.0m Crack of Dawn

Week 4, Day 2

I was feeling crazy again so I got up at the crack of dawn and ran before work.  I needed to get some miles in and was desperate to find a way and get it done.  Not to make the same mistake as last time, I ensured the caps on my water bottles were closed.  I had a time I had to be done, so I kept up the pace.  It was eerie again on the first lap, then the sun started to rise and the beauty of the morning showed itself.  I kept right on pace and finished a minute ahead of last week.  Five miles in 54:55/10:58 pace.  I'm pretty happy with that.

4.03m Round and Round I Go

Week 4, Day 1:  Track Workout

Today’s workout felt great and relatively easy since I was coming off three days of “rest.” It was supposed to be my second run this week, but s#*! happend and here I am behind. The story of my life.

I was concerned about my foot because I’d worn some fashionable heels to work yesterday and by the end of the day my foot reminded me that it had been fractured less than six months ago. Oops…yep, I try to forget that and then wonder why my foot talks trash to me when I do dumb things like that to it. To my surprise, my foot felt great today and the hardest part was slowing down and trying to keep a consistent pace without constantly checking my watch. So, I just ran and hoped my pace was close to where it was supposed to be. Here was my training for today with my projected and actual paces:

800 m warm up: ran 12:13 pace

4-6 x 800 meters with 3-4 min recovery

1st @ 5K pace (11:00): ran 11:00 pace- nailed it!

2nd @ 20 seconds faster than 5k pace (10:40): ran 10:43 pace- I was close.

3rd @ 10 seconds slower than 5K pace (11:10): ran 10:48 pace- oops a bit too fast.

4th @ 5K pace (11:00): ran 10:52- It is really hard to gage my pace and be consistent

5th @ 15 seconds slower than 5k pace (11:15): ran 11:24- I think I was slacking a bit here waiting for the grand finale

6th @ 5k pace or faster (11:00): ran 9:15- OMG, I had to check my watch twice to make sure that time was correct.

800 meter cool down: ran 10:33 pace

All said and done, I ran 4.03 miles in at an average 10:51 pace. I really happy with that and it felt good to get out and run again. What I don't like about the track workouts is how boring they are and make me feel like I'm chasing myself...round and round I go....

5m I've Gone Off the Deep End

Week 3, Day 3

Its official, I've gone off the deep end.  My first morning of a three day weekend and instead of sleeping in I set my alarm, got up at 5:00 a.m. and went running.  Yep, that’s right.  I voluntarily got up before sunrise on my day off to torcher myself.  And so, off I went in the dark of the morning.  It was a cold fall morning and the dew off the road was spraying up onto my legs.  No, wait…I didn’t get the cap sealed on my water bottle and it was splashing down my rear onto my legs.  Perfect.  Yes, I chose to be here. 

I was already two days behind on my training plan, so I decided to use the “rest days” I just had to jump ahead and start my next week’s training run.   It was a bit eerie and still so ran with my IPod off for the first of two loops to help me be more aware of my surroundings until the sun started to rise.  How beautiful the sunrise was!  That made it all worth it.

I felt strong and fast (for my slow poke pace) and had a goal to stay consistent and finish my five mile run in an hour like last week.

All said and done, I ran five miles in 55:12!  My 11:02 pace knocked off five minutes from last week’s time!  I do question my sanity, but I loved the run...especially my pace.