Women's 4 Mile Race

This morning I ran my first race in more than a year and a half- the last time was New Year's Day 2009. I was a little concerned about the course because the course description kept talking about hills, but ultimately the slight inclines couldn't hold a candle to the hills I've been running while pushing a four year old in a jogging stroller.

And can I say how much easier it is to run when not pushing said four year old in a jogger? Holy cow! What a difference! It's been at least 6 months since I ran without her, so I'd forgotten what it's like. In training, I only managed to run two or two and a half miles during my four and four and a half mile walks. I knew I could finish a four mile race, I just wasn't sure that I could run an entire four mile race.

Other than a short distance (a hundred yards, maybe) between the mile 3 marker and the water table, I ran the entire race! Yay me! And I only walked that section because I couldn't catch my breath- I still don't have my inhalers worked out properly, so they helped, but not quite enough.

Because I was able to run almost the entire race, I also finished a lot faster than I thought I would. I wasn't really sure how long it would take since I didn't have any real benchmark to go from, but I definitely wasn't expecting to finish in 42:32 (that's a 10.6 minutes/mile pace).

Making the whole experience even better, my shins didn't bother me! This is HUGE- being able to run a race without my shins killing me is something I've been looking forward to for a loooong time.

Several of my friends also ran the race, and LMS was able to stay with their husbands and kids while I ran, which really made the whole thing possible. I left my camera with LMS, and she tried to get a picture of me, but my camera is a piece of crap and way too slow. So instead of me, here's a picture of the people behind me:

and a picture of me while we walked to the starting line, waving to LMS:

Apparently one of the husbands got some good video of me waving to LMS as I ran passed them to the finish line (they were a couple hundred yards from it), but I haven't gotten a chance to see it yet.

I enjoyed the course and I'd like to do this race again next year :)

Good hard run

Today I did 4.5 miles, and I ran a little more than 3 of those miles. It kicked my bum! It was a bit cooler (70's) than it has been (90's+), but still hot and humid, and I can tell that I still have a ways to go to get in shape.

Admittedly, I am running up and down lots of hills while pushing a 4 year old in a jogger, but I'm still not in shape. I think I need to start using my inhalers again, too :(  I hate being dependent on medication, but I could tell I wasn't getting enough oxygen, so I'll have to use them.

I've got 3 weeks till the 4 mile race, and I'd like to run the whole thing, so I need to start ramping up my training. I'd also like to start increasing my weekly mileage so I can run a half marathon in November.

Today I ran a mile

It's been a really long time since I ran a mile without stopping, especially while pushing LMS in the jogger. I can't say I was fast, but I did it. And aside from being very sweaty and out of shape, it felt good.

I've got just over a month till the four mile race, so I need to focus on getting my mileage up and making sure I'm prepared. Today was encouraging.

Off-road running

Thursday we went off-roading on our walk. It's beautiful out here. The view looking forward:

The view looking back:

I did run for short distances, which reminded me how much I enjoy running on dirt trails, especially if they're flat :)

I finally replaced the battery and recalibrated my pedometer, so I have a fairly accurate idea of how far I'm going now.

Saturday I went for a 3.5 mile walk, and managed to run about 1.25 miles of it. I broke the run up into four different sections, and it was definitely a good workout.

I'm sticking to walking/running three days a week, even though I am tempted to run more- it feels good to finally being running again, but I know if I push it too hard, too fast I'll just end up injured again. I really don't want that to happen.

Running Shoes

In my ongoing quest to get in shape and lose weight, I've been walking again, and have even managed to add in some running.

As per goal #50,  I've been looking for races to participate in. Registering for a race is one of the best ways for me to stay motivated in my workouts.

Saturday I registered for the local Womens 4 Miler that will be held the first Saturday in September. I'm excited- I haven't run a race since New Year's Day 2009. As usual, I'm trying to be careful to avoid shin splints- they're the reason I haven't run any races in so long.

Since my running shoes were pretty old and worn out,

I decided it was time to get some new shoes:

I love new shoes! The old ones were feeling saggy and lopsided. The new ones feel so good- nice and firm and supportive. 

I found some off road trails

Last Wednesday I finally went for a walk. It had been a couple weeks since the last time I went and it was nice to get moving again. We went about 3.5 miles and found some unpaved trails that were mostly nice, but a little rough in a few places. Good thing we have a BOB stroller! It handled everything with ease, even if I didn't- I'm definitely out of shape.

I need to start exercising in earnest. If I don't, and even if I do, I may not be ready for the marathon in September. I really want to be running, but I also want to be running without pain, so I can't push too much too soon.

I thought about getting up early and going for a run before Mr M gets up, but we have some schedule changes coming up, so that will only work in the short term. Going for a walk after LMS gets up, has breakfast, gets dressed, etc means we usually don't leave the house till 9 at the earliest. Mr M comes home for lunch at 11, so by the time I've done my walk, showered, changed, etc, it's time to get lunch ready and the morning is completely gone. This is a big part of why I haven't gone for walks for a while now- I'm trying to get stuff done, and I can't do it all.

Guess I'm going to have to figure out how to work around that.

I've made good progress on the sorting and purging, but still have some more to do. If I could just get all the stuff sold, I'd be good. Anyone need any random baby stuff?

Two current major goals

The first is to get my mileage back up. I'm struggling a bit with this one. There's great walking trails here, but there are no mile markers, so it's hard to know how far I've gone. I like to quantify things, so I'm not liking that so much. I finally found a battery for my pedometer, but I still need to recalibrate it before I can use it. I'm also struggling with low energy levels. I've been moving boxes and bins around, unpacking, sorting, finding places for things, and it's very tiring. Added to that is the nasty cold I had the last couple weeks which is finally mostly gone and the Easter candy I ate (I've really got to stop eating candy all together, sugar is just causing too many problems) and random food allergy problems (still not sure what exactly is triggering it), and I just haven't been feeling that great lately.

The second goal is to get everything unpacked and put away as soon as possible. I'm making good progress on this one, but I'm at the point where I have to start getting rid of a lot of stuff, so I've also started listing things on craigslist. Hopefully everything will sell quickly, but in the meantime the items are still here, taking up space. I love decluttering! Well, I love the results. The process can be stressful.