A Run and a Laugh!

I was finally able to get out for a run today with my friend K, and I must say that it really felt good to be out there again. I am not talking about the icy cold wind that was blowing, or the fact that I had to stop and walk because I was having trouble breathing, or even my stomach which hasn't been quite right since the last time I ran. I'm talking about how good it feels to be out running with my friend, even though I slowed her down quite a bit. We got to talk, which I have really missed out on, and we had a good laugh when K fell off the curb and ended up flat on her butt. I have to give her credit, she laughed just as hard at herself, as I laughed at her, it was so unexpected (what a great video that would have been). We really missed C and M, and they missed a good laugh! I agree with the girls, that the run from Cheseborough Pk, is my new favorite, and it is close to home which is very convenient for me. Hopefully as the days go by I will pick up some endurance and a little more speed, but for now I am glad to be back out, running and laughing with my friends.

Formal Fun!

I have been trying all day to download a picture and finally just walked
away and it worked. This is my son's group having a good time while the parents were swarming around snapping pictures. It seems to me that they had a lot of fun, but my son is related to my husband and to his three older brothers so the info I get is minimal. I am sure my friends will fill me in on what "really happened". I did hear that my friends C's daughter looked really good in her dress and that they liked the food at the restaurant that they went to. I thought they all seemed to be having fun and all the parents felt their age when the limo pulled out with music blasting and we were all glad we weren't inside! Oh how sad.

Letting Go Slowly

Today was a day of many firsts. My oldest son took his first SAT today and then put on his first tux and went to his first formal dance. As all the parents gathered to send their children off in the limo, I wondered to myself if I was the only one feeling rather sad and anxious at the same time. So what does any normal person do to get over it and clear their mind? They go for a run and that's what I did as soon as they left. My husband and I ran to Heritage Park and back from our house and did some tempo runs along the way. That was another first in a long time. I thought I was going to have a heart attack! One good thing about tempo runs is that you know ahead of time that the agony is short-lived. We ran 3 short intervals along the trail, one lasting 1 minute, the other two lasting 30 seconds each. Overall, our average pace was 8.4 min./mile for 3 miles. Not bad considering I haven't done any speed work for 6 months or more. And the run did help clear my head and put me in a better mood. I know my running friends will also be wondering about their kids tonight at the dance, but they're pros at this stuff. I'm not sure if it gets any easier, but I'm glad I have them around to ask for advice.

Sick and Tired

Well, I am going to post about something other than running because I have no running news to post. I was told by my friend that it was OK to use this blog to whine, and so I will but not too much. I have spent the past (almost) week going from my bed to the chair and not having the energy to even read or watch TV. I finally went to the doctor yesterday and he loaded me up with prescriptions that hopefully will kill whatever it is that has lodged in my chest. I have to say that I can tell the difference today already. I also heard from my other doctor and he says I have a bone bruise from when I stepped on the rock and that is why it has been so slow in healing. I will try to be a good patient and go to physical therapy (doctor's orders) and hopefully it will start feeling better in a couple of weeks. It already has been since Dec. 3rd and I am not a patient person! The thing that bothers me the most is that I feel I will be starting over, just a little over a month ago, I had finished the half marathon, conquered "the beast" and even though I didn't break any records or post any great times, I could really say I was feeling strong with the running. Ugh! Now I will have to play catch up with the girls, and to their credit they are very patient, but this is hard for me and I know that my family would really like it if I got back to the running, and in a better mood. I have whined and now I will stop.

The Gloomies

This weather and the fact that I haven't run with all my friends in a while is really depressing. I know I shouldn't complain because I'm not the one sick or injured, but when my friends are sidelined I'm not as motivated to run on my own. I suppose it's just as well that it has been raining to give everyone enough time to recover. Maybe I can motivate myself into running on my own right after work.

Desperate Times

These are desperate times when I resort to asking my husband to run with me. It's not that I don't want his company, but he makes me run too fast. However, it was still better than not running at all. Patty is still under the weather and C had something that she needed to do. We needed to pick up my husband's car from the Honda dealer so I suggested that we run there. We ended up running just under a 9 min pace for 3.25 miles, which is way quicker than my comfort zone, but I suppose it's good to run out of that comfort zone once in a while. Those of you who know my husband also know what a prankster he is, so he suggested that we run down the street while holding hands. Now wouldn't that be an interesting sight! Needless to say, I didn't oblige. As we headed toward the bike trail behind Creekside, we realized they have once again closed the trail at the post office and have dug up the trail. We ended up having to run down Creekside. Now that's seriously going to hamper our run from Peete's Coffee. Hopefully everyone will be up for a run by Saturday.

Shoe Mileage

It's almost track season and I started thinking about new trainers and spikes for both of my boys. Then I realized I'm probably due for a new pair too. As moms we think nothing of dropping hundreds of dollars on new running shoes for our kids, but when it comes to us, we tend to procrastinate. In fact, one of my friends who also happens to be a frequent follower of this blog, had the same pair for maybe 3 years! I'm happy to report that she finally purchased a new pair for herself and is back to running everyday. I've always heard that you should buy a new pair of running shoes when you reach the 500 mile mark or when your hips start hurting, but after some research I've realized that there are other signs as to when you might need a new pair of running shoes. Below is a link to some helpful hints:


http://running.about.com/od/shoesapparelandgear/f/replaceshoes.htm


As for me, I'll be buying another pair of Newtons soon.

Change in Weather?

Somewhere in the back of my mind I knew they were predicting rain for later this week, but it was such a shock to me to wake up to cloudy skies. Yesterday my family and I spent the day at Carpenteria and it was so warm and beautiful that I really didn't expect this sudden change. It was actually nice out this morning and the cloud cover actually kept the temp slightly warmer. It was just me and C since Patty was feeling a little under the weather. I hope she gets well soon. I know how she really hates to miss our runs. As for M, she mentioned something about her legs being really pissed off. We originally planned on running at Hart Park, but I'm glad we didn't. I asked my friend's son who runs for Hart about the trails at the park and he indicated that they were rather steep, although he has never been on the back trails where the buffaloes are kept. I looked on Google Earth last night and it seemed quite hilly, but it's hard to tell from the aerial vantage point. I tried to measure the distance and it looks like one loop would be about 1.5 miles. Who knows, maybe we'll get there one day.

At least She's Out There

Well that is what the husband and I always say when we see someone running who is in obvious distress. That is what I felt like yesterday morning when I ran with the girls from Lowe's. I had really wanted to particiapate in "Ben's Ten" which is a ten mile run which starts at Lowe's and takes you out to the Southfork Trail, and back. I knew my foot and lack of running were going to keep me from running ten miles, but it was a nice morning and we figured we would go as far as we could. I didn't make it a mile before my stomach started churning and it kept me miserable for the rest of the run. The nice thing about my running friends is that they are always willing to stop when one of us is having trouble. I felt really bad about ruining their run and even though we were able to get around 4 miles in, I slowed everyone down considerably. I really contemplated about posting something that wasn't positive and full of news about what a great run we had, but I don't think I will have anything great to post until I get past the injury issues. The only good news is that I have such good friends that are willing to wait so I don't have to run under the bridge by myself and will sit and share a cup of coffee with me afterwards. I can't really complain, because "At least I'm out there".

Misery Loves Company

If you read my previous post, you could probably tell that I was rather upset at myself for not doing any form of exercise yesterday. I mean, it's not like I have any excuse like an injury or anything and so because I felt like a complete couch potato, I decided at the last minute to go on a 3.5 mile run from my home this morning. While I'd like to report that I had a wonderful time on my own, I have to say I was miserable. I probably feel miserable on all of my runs, but my friends usually distract me from how I'm really feeling with our bantering back and forth. I'm glad I decided to run, but it certainly was not a pleasant experience. I really could have used the company.