Ahh, that's good. :)

Saturday I finished up Week 3 with a whole 7 miles. It felt really good to just go out the door and run it straight through without stopping. I was pretty proud of myself. :) Granted the rest of the day my knees were PISSED at me, but still proud of what I did. :) I wasn't sure beforehand how the run would go or if I would think I needed to repeat this run or not, but I'm totally moving on to Week 4. I'm assuming I'll have to repeat that run, but we'll see.

Chapter 3 in the handy dandy book I've got said that one way to get a good run is the level of excitement about the run. Too little excitement and too much excitement equals a bad run. Well, that totally makes common sense, but the idea is to make sure that there isn't a crazy expectation of the run or else there's a chance of it not going well. Anyway, this is all common sense, but it was good to see it in writing, ya know? There's just something about advice coming from someone else instead inside my brain. Hopefully the next long run goes well - ahh!

HONK!!!

Week 3 has begun!

Today was the beginning of Week 3. We'll see after Saturday if I feel the need to repeat it or not haha. For the first half ish of the training each week starts out with 3 miles, so I'm getting pretty good at this 3 mile thing. I went to the gym today to run and totally wanted to get on the treadmill but they were all taken. So I had to go on the track. Which wouldn't be bad except that it's such a small track that you have to go around about a bajillion times in order to get a mile done. Which totally takes out anything nice or easy-ish out of the run. Just makes it redundant a whole lot faster.

I went slower than I'd like, but that's just how it went. I know that I shouldn't put a goal time on how fast I'd like each mile to go and that I should just be happy that I can do it, but I totally want my mileage time to be faster haha. Maybe it'll happen later on in the training. I'd like to get under a 13 minute mile, which I've done before, but it takes a lot for me. I'd like to be at a comfortable pace under 13 minutes haha.

Anyway, we'll see how this week's long run goes - hopefully pretty well!

HONK!

Week 2 Repeat Complete!

Today I finished up my repeat of Week 2. It was the 6 miler and it didn't go too badly. The weather was overcast and humid, but not too bad. The run started out pretty good, and that totally made me happy. It was the second half that was hard. More specifically the last mile and a half. At that point my body was pretty tired. Plus I sweat a LOT so my tshirt was far from dry haha. Usually my calves go through some pretty intense pain, but this time it was totally my butt muscles haha. Especially toward the end. All my jiggly parts hurt at some point! ;)

I went a different route this time, which was pretty good since I'm getting pretty bored with the normal routes. Overall I think my run went pretty well. I did stop a few times toward the end just because my body was really wanting to be done and back home, but it went pretty well. I'm thinking that it might've been better since my last run went so well. Maybe it's a turning point in my running? Eh, who knows. ;)

HONK!

Treadmills are funny that way.

Yesterday's run was really, really good. I went to the gym to get on the good ole treadmill for the 3 miler. The last time I went on the 'mill, it didn't go so well. So my expectations weren't very high, but I really don't like their track so I thought I'd give it a go. And man alive, it was so, I daresay, easy! I felt really good and got it done in the normal amount of time it takes me. And my legs felt really good, too. There wasn't any calf or ankle pain and it was pretty awesome. I think I'll do my short runs up there just to give me a break. I might do my 4 milers up there, but it depends on what time of day I'm up there. They like to have a time limit if it's really busy. But if it's not busy, they don't really care how long you're on the 'mill. I don't really think they enforce it, but it's just common gym courtesy really.

It just felt really good to finally have a really good run with no stops along the way. It reminded me that I really can bang out 3 miles and be okay. I don't really know what's going on in my head sometimes when I run outside, but I'm just really glad that yesterday went so well. I needed a good one to happen. :)

Saturday is the long run - 6 miles once again. I just really want it to be a good run without a lot of pain and whatnot. I'm going to run a different route, so hopefully that will make the run better. We'll see.

Till next time! HONK!

A little better.

Today was the 4 miler. It was better than yesterday, so that was positive. The new CamelBak water bottle worked out really well, so that was a plus. It was good to not have to stop to drink water or have it spill all over if I attempted to drink while running. I definitely tried to keep on truckin', of which I did pretty well. So today's run gets an A-. Which is totally better than yesterday haha. There was a nice breeze, which was wonderful as I love a good breeze.

The downside is that my knees were not happy later this afternoon. They just didn't like me and they're still hurting a bit. Good thing tomorrow is not a running day. I went climbing tonight with Sarah B & Sean H, so I know tomorrow my arms and legs are gonna be a bit sore. Which is another good reason that I'm not running tomorrow haha.

I'm still hoping that my 6 miler will go pretty well on Saturday. I really want it to go well and top of my week on a good note. Here's to hoping!

HONK!

Week 2 Complete! Now repeat.

I finished up Week 2 on Saturday with the long 6 mile run. It wasn't that easy. It was freaking hot and I ran with water (which has been my best idea yet, I think), so in order to drink it and not spill all over me I would stop to drink. I think the water pretty much saved my life haha. And my run. If I keep up that pace (without the stopping and drinking), then I'll be on point for my goal time for the Peachtree Road Race.

I bought a new CamelBack water bottle today so that it'll be easier to drink while running. That way I won't have an excuse to stop running hah. I think I've started giving myself allowances or excuses to take breaks while running. I don't know. Sometimes I feel like I have good reasons to stop (calves on fire, water), but other times I stop and think to myself "I have no idea why I stopped running." I'm not really sure what this is all about, but I don't like it. Fail.

Today's run was just hard. It was hard for me to get moving and my legs just did not want to move. It was obnoxious. I decided to repeat Week 2. I really want to get that 6 miles down pat. So hopefully this time around this week will work out better than it did the first attempt. But anyway, I'm really hoping that this week will go well. Each day it's either a good run or a bad run. It's been hard finding a balance lately. But I'm keeping my eye on the prize - gotta get through that marathon! :)

HONK!

Go Speed Racer, Go!

Today was the first day of Week 2 and I only had to go 3 miles. So for some reason I wanted to run fast haha. I think it was partly because I just wanted to get it over with and the other was just to see how it'd go. I picked up my feet and pretty much hauled it haha. Which was definitely kinda crazy. It was pretty cool today, so I wasn't worried about getting dehydrated. That and the fact that it was a short run.

My legs definitely felt it, and still do actually haha. I have to admit that I had to stop a couple of times to stretch out the calves and to catch my breath since I was a running machine today. And my calves are still a little sore. I've got to figure out a way to rub them down or something when I'm down with runs. Something more than stretching. That way they'll be less sore the next day. I'm open to suggestions. :)

The different part about today was that I could only find one ankle brace. So only the left ankle was all wrapped up. Which was kinda nice because I'm not really a fan of wearing freaking braces all up and down my legs haha. But I totally remembered why I wear them haha. And I think it's time for new ankle braces again. Ugh. Dang legs! But I'm glad they made it through one more day of training. :)

HONK!

Bright, sunshine-y day!

Today was the long run day. It was Week 1 Day 4 and I had to go 5 miles. It was really nice this morning, too. The wind was really nice and I made sure to run with my water bottle. I decided that I should probably run with water now so I can prevent feeling/getting sick and dehydrated. So I took my time and would stop every now and then to drink some water and catch my breath.

Of course the first half was pretty good and not that difficult. The second half of the run was a bit harder. But at the end I didn't feel crazy spent, which was really cool. I ran all the way down through downtown Decatur and back since I knew it'd be the right mileage. I really like it! And on one of my water breaks, a woman ran by me and told me I was doing a great job because she had seen me a ways back and thought it was cool I had made it where I was in the time since. So that was cool to get encouragement from someone I didn't know. :)

Next week has the same mileage except for the long run and it really depends on how I'm feeling during the run if I'm going to repeat the length for this week or push on. So who knows. :) I'm really glad that I have a schedule that I like again hah. I'm still excited, but we'll see once I get up in to the really high miles!

HONK!

Goodness!

Yesterday I ran Week 1 Day 3, which was only 3 miles. But it was a hard 3 miles! My breathing was all kinda crazy and difficult. I had to keep stopping to stretch out my calves and catch my breath. I drank a lot of water all day, but apparently it wasn't enough because I really thought that if I had to go more than 3 miles, I was gonna get sick haha. But I didn't. Which is good.

The long run is Saturday - 5 whole miles. The funny part about this week is that I've run these distances before. The problem is that for a while there I didn't have the energy to go more than 2.5 miles. Stinkin' stress! I think I might repeat Week 1 just to get it all under control. But then again I'll just have to see. Week 2 is the same except for the long runs - those go up a mile each time. I guess I'll just have to see how I feel during the long runs to see how far I'll go.

So. Moral of the story: drink a CRAP TON more water since it's getting hotter and hotter. Can't pass out or get sick while I run!

Still excited about this whole journey - just have to survive it! HONK!

Not that easy.

Today was Week 1 Day 2 of the marathon training. It wasn't horrible, but I knew when I woke up this morning that it wasn't going to be an easy day of running. My calves were still a little sore and tight from yesterday, but I still wanted to get up and go. I wanted to go somewhere else to run - I'm really tired and bored of running at my house haha. So I went down to Piedmont Park. Sarah and I ran down there last week and I just really wanted to do something different.

The weather was really nice and I really liked the change of scenery for the run. Like I thought, my calves were still pretty sore, but I tried to truck through it. I stopped occasionally to stretch and just give my muscles a rest because 4 miles is long! Haha :) And you know me, it was a pretty slow run hah. But I was determined to get it done, and I totally did. Word.

The next run is a short run like yesterday - just 3 miles. I'm not sure if I'll run tomorrow or not. It really depends on my legs and seeing how sore or tight my muscles are. So we'll see. :) I'm still on the "I'm starting a new thing" high, but we're gonna hope that it stays this way. :) And I'm proud of myself, even though it's only been two days!

HONK! :)

I am a marathoner.

Today was the first day of my marathon training. It wasn't hard but it wasn't easy, either. I only had to go 3 miles, hence the reason it wasn't crazy hard. Our good friend Tiffany recommended a book to me called The Non-Runner's Marathon Trainer. It's really interesting so far and I really like it. It's a 16 week program designed by two professors from the University of Northern Iowa. It's a pretty successful program (it was up to when the book was published in 1998), and I'm excited to have a program I think is easy to understand. Each chapter is a week and is broken down into three parts: the physical part, mental part, and then advice and whatnot from actual students that took the course. So yeah, I'm pretty excited. :)

The main point so far in the book is that the mental aspect is just as important as the physical aspect. So from the get go, the writers are telling you to tell people that you are running a marathon and that you are a marathoner. I've spread the word that I'm running a marathon, so you hear it here first: I AM A MARATHONER. Word.

I'm really excited about this journey I'm about to embark on. Today's run was really good. I enjoyed it, which hasn't happened in a while. I felt like I could've done a whole other mile! Running has just been something that I know I need to do. Lately it hasn't been the best experience. Hopefully this is a good sign that most of my runs will be good ones that I enjoy. But we'll see hah.

This should be fun! And probably painful haha. HONK!