Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right

August 27  Plan: 5k hill work  Actual:  5k very slow

As you can see from the comment on my run pic, tonight's outing sucked donkey balls. 

Big, huge, sweaty donkey balls.

It was a challenge before it even began, and I think that was part of my problem.  I'd convinced myself the run was going to suck and guess what?  It sucked.  Silly me - I should know better!

My legs have been crazy sore since Sunday's run.  I haven't run since as a result.  I felt like they needed rest and some TLC before it was safe to get back out there.

Had a massage yesterday and that helped, I'm sure, but everything was still sore, especially my knees. 

I was also crazy tired today for whatever reason and stupid hungry.

Bad combination across the board.  Bad bad bad bad bad.

BUT!  I knew I had to get out there as my 16k LSD is coming up Friday morning and there's no way I was going to either go all week without a run in between or run Thursday night, then again Friday morning.  So tonight was pretty do or die.

We had to grocery shop on the way home so it was even later before I got out there.  Almost 7pm with no food since a protein bar at 2:30.  Eeps.

The whole run just felt...heavy.  Hard.  My breathing was laboured the entire time, my legs felt like lead, it was just extra challenging.  And this time I can't even blame the conditions - the temperature was great, I was in shade the vast majority of the time and the wind was a nice breeze which I always like.

Sigh.

Having said ALL that, it still wasn't as bad as I'd thought it might be.  I really expected my legs to be in worse shape than they were.  Sure, then cramped and seized on me each time I stopped for a walk break.  But expected more pain and agony from my legs than what I got.   The general level of fatigue is what really caught me off guard in the end.

I'm looking into taking some preemptive strikes against leg pain and am considering seeing a chiro who specializes in ART once a week to help prevent injury before it happens.  So many of my running friends swear by it so some phone calls will definitely be made tomorrow to see what's possible. The last thing I need is to get injured now!

So that's it for the moment.  Going to do some more stretching tonight so as to keep as limber as possible and fingers crossed all goes well for Friday morning.  Will be sure to write all about it!

Post birthday 14k

August 24  Plan:  14k LSD  Actual:  14k LSD

So following yesterday's birthday festivities - the 5k race in the morning, a princess pizza party from 1-4pm then dinner with the fam at 6:30pm - I was exhausted.  Micheal and I headed to bed well before 10:30, mostly because neither of us could keep our eyes open and we had to get up early the next morning.  Me, because I needed to get this run done.

Woke up just after 7am and my first glance outside gave me an idea of what the run would be like. Bright sunlight, not a cloud in the sky, means hard hard hard run.

Put on my new Glycerin 12's and a tank because I knew I'd be hot and hit the road after some toast and a coffee.  I'd had pasta for dinner the night before and more than my fair share of birthday confections so I knew I was loaded down before I even started. 

Thankfully the first short while wasn't nearly as bad as I'd anticipated and I actually enjoyed those starting kms.  It's been a long time since I've been up to distances like this and I haven't done it often so I was more than a bit trepidatious starting out.

Took it slow for my first k and I shook off the kinks. I've been having periodic pain in my left leg, starting at my butt cheek and heading down to my knee.  It generally works it's way out as I get going but lemme say, after the run it really dragged me down.  More on that later. 

Splits started getting better and better which really made me feel good as I went along.  Not super fast but hey, that's not the point of a LSD, right!?

Then the sun decided to bitch slap me.

Watch those splits just go up and up and up.

I actually had to stop not once, not twice, but three times from kms 8-13 in order to actually survive the run.  I stopped entirely, found shade, and just stood there, trying to regulate my body temperature.   But it's what got me through.

Sorry the 10k is doubled in the pics - it's how my phone made me screen shoot them.  But alas. 

After a few bad k I was able to get a bit of speed back up to make my way home.  I was almost completely out of water by then - three 10oz bottles, one with Mio sport in it - and I was so thirsty it was insane.  I even considered stopping into the Starbucks near our house just to refuel but I wanted to get home so desperately that I just kept pushing forward.

I don't know that I've ever been that happy to see my house.  All three times I had to run past it to get to the 14k mark. 

Puppy was sitting at the window waiting for me and was super excited to see me when I got home.  That, plus water, was the best part of getting home.  :)

After a lot of energetic licking from said puppy and some much coveted water thanks to Micheal, I worked on stretching out some very sore and rapidly tightening muscles.  I really must get better at this stretching thing - I think it's killing me.
 

Sun and heat really did a number on me this go around.  My hands swell up big time any time I go over about 7k, so much so that I can't wear my wedding ring to run at those distances.  This run was particularly brutal - check out these sausage fingers!!!

Following my run I had my standard breakfast of Greek yogurt, berries and granola but also decided to throw in a post birthday cupcake with my second cup of coffee for good measure.  I figured it was safe, having burned over 1,400 calories that morning!

 

Annnnyway, really paying for this run now that it's done.  Legs are sore today, as are my knees, and running to the car from the train today was damned near impossible. 

Went to the Running Room to grab some rollers to help with these muscle issues 'cause let's face it, the distances only increase from here and I have two more months of this to get through!  Off to YouTube some videos so I actually use the damned things properly.  But first, to bed.  So very tired after this fun but crazy weekend and a hectic Monday workday.

Supposed to be out on the road again tomorrow but not sure what tomorrow night will bring.  It's supposed to be 40 with the humidex, raining, and I have a work event meaning I'll be home around 8pm.  Good times.  Maybe a slow 3 or 4k on the treadmill might do the trick.  We shall see. 

All in all, as with most of my runs I'm glad I did it, though it is making me even more nervous about my upcoming 16k this weekend.  The longest I've ever gone is 15 so this should be interesting to say the least!

Until next weekend!!!

Birthday Run or Dye!

August 23  Plan:  4k steady   Actual:  5k steady-ish

It's my birthday!!!!!!

And what better way to start the day than with a race!? 

Yeah, I'm weird like that.  But it's fun!

I signed up for Run or Dye, one of those crazy colour races, months ago.  Thought that if there ever was a reason or time to give it a go, my actual birthday might as well be it.

I've always shied away from these kinds of events.  I rarely do these ones.  I'm not usually the type who enjoys getting dirty or all messed up. 

At all. 

But I went for it!  Made my own tutu and everything.

 Got up early and Micheal took me down to the race site where I met up with Andrea and a friend of hers.  Thankfully the friend is rather competitive and we therefore pushed our way up to the front, allowing a second wave departure which totally saved my butt from a timing perspective.  There were hundreds of participants and they let them go bit by bit which would have been downright excruciating, especially since I had a party starting at my house at 1pm!

We finally got rocking about 9:20 and we hit the trails at the Oshawa waterfront.  It was a loopy route, out and back kinda, with runners on each side of the trail.  We ran on grass for some parts, pavement on others, we were all over the place.

What I need to remind myself when doing these types of runs - the non timed, fun runs - is to just chill the hell out.  I'm not great at just running around other people for the hell of it.  Even leaving my watch and phone at home filled me with trepidation as for the very first time, I have no clue what my time was and I had to fake my own intervals. 

Once I got to a point where I could just - pardon the pun - run with it, things went relatively well.  I didn't get covered in colour nearly as much as everyone else did, mostly because I kinda ducked and cowered as I went through the dye stations.  Coloured cornstarch don't taste so good, yo!

Finished in relatively decent time, I think, and made my way back to the car where Micheal was waking.  We kept him far away from all the other participants to completely eliminate his chances of getting covered in crap himself.  Dumped what I could into garbage bags, toweled off what I could, then slid onto my garbage bag covered seat and home to one of the best (and longest) showers ever.

That stuff don't come off easily!!

And so I've done it.  And now, I never need to do it again.  :) 

Back on the horse. Not liking the horse.

August 21  Plan: 6k steady  Actual:  3.21k of pure hell

 So yeah.  This will be short and not at all sweet. 

I hadn't run since Sunday.  It was now Thursday.  All week long I'd been sick as I'd mentioned in earlier posts and I ended up leaving work early on Monday, staying home Tuesday, then leaving early again on Wednesday to go to the doctor. 

Double ear and sinus infection.  Good times.

Thursday I was feeling a bit better so I decided to try a run.  6k was on the schedule but I knew that wasn't going to happen - I just didn't have the energy.  BUT...if I didn't go out it set me up for a horrible weekend with a 5k race on Saturday and a 14k run on Sunday.  So out I went.

I'll sum the run up in three words - sun, humidity and bugs.

I don't enjoy any of those on a run, let alone all three. 

My goal was to do 4k - I figured that was reasonable, given how I was feeling and that I hadn't run since Sunday.  But I just couldn't.  Could not do it.  Not going to happen. 

I walked a lot, sweated a lot, tried to hide in the non-existent shade, and had a hard time breathing because I was desperately attempting to keep the flippin aphids out of my mouth - they were everywhere!

Rounded one last corner and decided to call it a day.  As always I was glad to have gotten out there but yeah, this ranked right up there in my list of worst runs ever.  But done!

Quick Sunday 4k

August 17  Plan:  4k steady  Actual:  4k tempo

Another run that ended up much better than I'd anticipated.

For the past few days I've been feeling like I've been coming down with something.  You know, that scratchy feeling at the back of your throat, the fatigue, all that stuff?  Yeah, that's been me since Friday. 

For yesterday's long run I wasn't feeling horrible but there was something there.  I ran anyway, knowing that sometimes the run can actually help push something off and actually make you feel better.  So since I wasn't feeling like total crap, I went for it.

When I get sick, or feel that it's coming on, my best defense is sleep.  Bar none.  It's what helps me stop something in it's tracks if I even stand a chance. 

So Sunday morning I was conflicted.  Get up and run then, early in the morning, when I feel my best, or get sleep and run later in the day, which would mean I'd be thinking about it allllll daaaayyyyy long.

Micheal was heading out for about three hours and needed to leave the house at 9:45.  If I wanted to have access to our one and only car for that time then I'd have to drive him and pick him up.  So when 9am rolled around I had a really quick decision to make - get up and go or just sleep. 

I took a quick peek outside and noticed it was overcast again despite them calling for sun all day which solidified my decision - out for the run it was. I love running with clouds and it was too good an opportunity to pass up.

Threw on my gear and my shoes and told Micheal to be ready right at 9:45 because I figured I'd be  down to the line time wise and we likely wouldn't have a minute to spare.  And then I started running.

I knew I'd have just enough time but I had to hustle. 

Which I did!  Was actually surprised to see my pace.  Again, not stellar fast but faster than I'd been which I was happy about.  I'd had a big dinner out the night before so had lots of carbs to fuel those 4k.  Guess a bit of time pressure really does help move my feet a bit faster!

I can't say that it was a super easy run - though IMHO no run ever is - I really felt the increased speed.  But was really happy to round the corner to my house at 9:44, just in time to get where we needed to go.  Micheal grabbed my purse and got in the car then met me at the end of my street where the 4k officially clicked over. 

I love it when a plan comes together!

12k and it felt great

August 16  Plan:  12k LSD  Actual:  12k LSD

I was a bit nervous about this one, I'll admit it.  I haven't run anything more than 10.5 since the middle of June when I hit the 15k mark.  I know the kms are going to increase pretty rapidly now so 12 was the start of the climb. 

Last weekend's 10k damned near killed me so I was both stoked and terrified at the thought of 12.  I felt a bit better during my week runs so that was something but I really had no idea what 12 would feel like when I actually got out there. 

Saturday morning I set my alarm for 7 something and got out of bed after a snooze or two.  Had a cup of coffee, two pieces of toast with some peanut butter, and got all my gear together.

Loaded up my fuel belt with all three 10oz bottles, two water and one with lemon lime sport Mio for electrolytes.  I find that any run over 7k means my hands will swell up like crazy so anything I can do to try to keep my sodium levels in check I'll do. 

Still trying to find a balance on the nutrition side of things as I run.   Haven't tried any of the gels - quite frankly, they freak me out.  But I do have a good supply thanks to a friend of Clif Shot Bloks and those seem to do the trick for me.  So I popped three of the cherry chocolate ones into a ziploc bag, tucked it into my fuel belt, strapped on my heartrate monitor, and hit the pavement.

It was still rather early and pretty overcast and, therefore, the perfect conditions for running.  Truly, I loved almost every minute of it. 

When planning my route I was looking at different options nearby and decided to try something different.  Mapping things out I realized just how far 12k really can be.  I thought I'd start and home and run down Brock Street then get Micheal to come and pick me up once I was done.  Well, turns out my house to the frickin lake is only 8ish k!!  I would have had to run along the lake then up part of Thickson to actually make it to 12k.  Seemed way too far for me and way too much of a pain in the ass to coordinate a ride so I went for a straight out Taunton out and back.

By and large the run out that way is rather flat. There are a few inclines which, funnily enough, I didn't really notice until I'd turned around to come back home.  Didn't seem downhill on the way out but back, you sure did feel the uphill!  Had to cross Taunton a few times as there's no sidewalk for some reason in certain strips of the road but as always I made it work. 

At the 10k mark my lower back started to get sore which was a bit unusual but I'll chock it up to carrying so much liquid around that area for a longer time than I normally would.  Since it wasn't as hot out and there was some great cloud cover I didn't go through as much water as I normally would have meaning I carried it for a lot longer. 

All in all it felt really good to be out there, and I was delighted I was able to improve my pace even over 12k.  I'd been over 8 for a while and sure, 7:55 might only be 5 seconds under 8 but I'll take it after the week I'd had!!!

Sometimes the hardest part is just getting out the door

August 14   Plan:  5k steady  Actual:  5k steady

So yeah.  This is the run that almost wasn't.  Reallllly almost wasn't.

I didn't want to go out so badly I can't even describe it.  All train ride home I was thinking about why I shouldn't go.  Got off said train and it had just started raining - perfect excuse.

I was so tired.  Didn't feel great.  Stomach was kind of upset.  Just wanted to sit and chill and put my feet up. 

But 5k was on the agenda, 12 was coming up on the weekend, and I knew that since I was already skipping the Wednesday runs I pretty much had to get this one done.

So I did.

It was cold and wet out but I couldn't stomach the thought of a treadmill run.  So I decided that a tank top and my Running Room jacket were a good combination so that's what I went with.  Meant I could put my water bottle in one pocket and my phone in the other where it should stay dry if hte rain should start to fall.

Got outside and decided to do a new-ish loop before I headed to a semi regular route.  That got me 1k into the run and helped warm me up, both mentally and physically. 

A few minutes into everything I looked down at my watch and saw those terrifying words - battery low, dismiss.  Eeps!  My watch measures everything for me!  My walk intervals, distance, everything!  How would I know when I'd actually gone 5k?  I hadn't mapped out the route but instead was counting on my watch to guide me.  The Nike app on my phone would have been a good back up but I wasn't sure even that would get me home because my phone battery was low as well.  Yeesh. 

Well, fortunately my new Forerunner 15 made it all the way through my 40 minute run and didn't die. Impressive!  My last one never would have lasted that long, so another improvement over the 10. 

Anyway, timing mechanism issues aside, the run was actually surprisingly enjoyable.  I was able to pick up my pace a bit over the past few runs I've done even though I really wasn't pushing myself.  So that helped - made me feel better overall, like I'm getting back into things as I should. 

Got a bit warm along the way despite the cooler temps and overcast skies so I opened up the vents on my jacket and that allowed in some much needed fresh air. 

4.5k in my house was in sight and I was going to take one last loop around the cul de sac to get me to the 5k mark when the skies opened up and I got drenched.  I decided to just go with it, especially since I was close to home, and actually enjoyed how refreshing it was.  Huh.  So this is what those people I previously thought of as whackjobs are talking about when they say the like running in the rain.  Mind blown.

Came home sweaty, wet and tired but so much happier coming home than I was going out.  Will remember this run for a long time for those occasions where 'but I don't wanna' run on repeat in my brain.  :)

Back to weekday runs

August 12  Plan:  4k tempo  Actual:  4k slow

Late with these updates but alas, life has been busy this week and I've been exhausted.  Good times. 

Annnnyway, Tuesday was my first weekday run in about a week and a half and it was both good to get out again and totally crappy.  Ha!  I knew I couldn't get up at 5am to run, mostly because it was going to rain in the morning and I was just too damned tired.  So after work it would have to be.

At first I thought I might have to do a treadmill run but by the time I got home the rain had stopped for the most part and the skies had begun to clear.  I got home, got dressed, tucked my iPhone into a ziploc bag prior to putting it in my fuel belt, and headed out to do my 4k run.

Plan was to do a simple out and back as I just wanted to get it done and mix up my normal routes a bit.  Barely left the house and ended up with a wicked stitch in my side that stayed for the entire run.  Delightful. 

Then, before I even knew what was happening, the skies cleared completely.  Poof - clouds just gone.  Sun beat down on me like crazy and it was surprisingly humid so that added to the fun. 

Pace was slow given the stitch and humidity but another run in the books.

See the rain cloud in the app screen shot?  Yeah, not so much.  Here's how the sky looked from my driveway when I got home.

And here's my sweaty self post this tiring run.  But done!!

Back on the road again

August 10  Plan:  10k LSD  Actual:  10k LSD

Well that was interesting. 

It's been two weeks since I've done a long run.  One week since I've run at all. And let's not even discuss how much vacation weight/bloat I have since getting home from Mexico on Friday.

It's abyssal.  But alas.  That's vacation for you.  Back to good eating and better habits - and routine!! - right now.

I wasn't sure if I was going to go the whole 10k today given how long it had been since I'd run so I elected to go with my 8k run which I knew I could cut short if need be.  And if I felt up to it, I knew I could also add those last two k on relatively simply so I laced up my shoes and just went for it.

I told myself I was going to go slow, very slow, so that I could just get through it all.  The last thing I wanted was to hurt myself so slow and steady was definitely the way to win this race.

And boy did I set records - my slowest 10k ever!  Ha!  Almost laughable how long it took me.  But surprisingly I managed to run the vast majority of my intervals instead of adding extra walk breaks with a few exceptions in mega sunny and/or hilly spots.  I just.went.slow.  Period. 

I was breezing along until about the 6k mark, then I started to get a bit sore.  I really debated going for 10 - at that point, even my 8k route seemed long and home was far away.  So I stopped for a second, had some water, stretched out my sore calf, and kept going. I had about 1k to go before I had to decide if I was going for 8 or 10 and by the time I got there I made the decision to just go for it.

The last k was very sore as something strange happened in my right knee and I had to walk more than I normally might.  I also found myself getting crazy hungry on this run, something that's never happened to me before.  Ever.  I don't eat before I run because I hate having food in my stomach.  And usually by the time I get home I feel gross and need a bit of time before I can even consider food.  Today?  Totally different ball game.  Was starving at the 8k mark and was really regretting not bringing a Shot Blok with me for the run.  Strange!  Really enjoyed my greek yogurt and thin bagel when I got home.

So that's that.  Slowly getting back on track and looking forward to getting into a routine again.  Am hoping to get all three weekday runs in this week but the weather's looking weird so we shall see.  I've been doing okay with two week day and two weekend runs so that might be the key to getting back on the horse. 

And now it's bedtime and real life begins again tomorrow.  Fingers crossed getting back to good eating gets some of these vacation pounds off and that makes running even a little bit easier again.

Lone run in Mexico

August 3  Plan: 4k tempo  Actual: 3k steady

So yeah.  We went to Mexico.  They have a gym there with awesome treadmills where everything is actually measured in kms.  Super cool!

The plan was to run three times while I was there - Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday.  All shorter runs because I hate the treadmill but hey, three short runs are better than none, right?

I felt brutal missing my long run that weekend but knew I was getting home the following Friday so wasn't missing two.  That's something.

Well, the one thing I didn't factor in was a wicked awful sunburn on my first full day in the Mexican sun.  Crazy bad.

I'm actually surprised that I made it to the gym at all on Sunday - how I put a sports bra on then ran for 3k is now beyond me because I'm still recovering from the burn.  Like, I have to wear a bandaid on a certain part of it, that's how badly damaged my skin is.

I wore sunscreen, I swear!

Anyway, I made it through Sunday's run but didn't really wear a bra after that because it hurt too much so no way was I adding the friction of bouncing up and down for 30 minutes into the equation.  Especially since the suit I was wearing during the sunburn day pulled up at the top so it wasn't even like my bra would sit on the white/unburned areas.  No dice - directly on the burn.  Sigh.

So all things considered this 3k was pretty decent.  My phone did a factory reset the day before so I couldn't listen to any of my music which was a pain but I made it through.