Wow, it's been forever!

Life got in the way and blogging wasn't something that came naturally. I decided to restart because...I signed up to run a marathon and thought I should document the experience.

I signed up for the Huntington Beach "Surf City" Marathon on February 7th, 2010.

I've been running since I completed the Couch to 5k (minus a few months here and there due to an ITB problem). I haven't run distance though. I've recently started running at least 4 times a week between 1.75 and 3.75 miles each run. I am working on doing a minimum of 15 miles a week until my official training starts in October. At that point I will be starting the Non-Runners Marathon Trainer. I bought it a few weeks ago. It's based on a "Marathon Class" offered by an Iowa university for beginning runners. It's 16 weeks and focuses on MENTAL training along with physical training.

So, this week's goals =

Think Positive!

Use, "but it doesn't matter." whenever I come up with some reason why it's too hard to run that day (or anything else that seems too hard in life). This is from the book.

Run a minimum of 15 miles.

6 weeks until training!

Changes

I accepted a position with a company and will be starting on the 12th. I am excited. I hope that all the positive possibilities are what come to fruition with this position. I think they will. I believe it has the potential to be really great. There were several red flags in the interview...but I decided to take my chances.

I ran my longest run ever, yesterday. I went swimming on Friday and I seemed to be able to breathe a little better, so that was great. I look forward to my swim classes this week.

Been a while....few happenings

A few new things going on, let's see...
I started swimming lessons so I can learn how to freestyle properly. I like the class, but I wouldn't say my that I am any further along. My problem is not being able to breathe, either because I don't get my head far enough out of the water or something related to not exhaling out of my mouth. I'm going to buy one of those hideous nose clip things and see if that helps.

I am pondering my employment options. I expect to be gainfully employed soon. That will be good as my poor adorable 85 year old house is in dire need of help! I am also looking forward to having health and dental insurance again. 3-4 years of no doctor or dental prophalaxis is never a good idea. Insurance will take a huge load of stress off my shoulders.
I want to start going to the free women's meditation classes that are offered at a yoga studio near my home. I'm also thinking a yoga class might be a nice thing to add to my schedule.


I didn't run for a week due to the wildfires that burned the city. The air quality was really bad. Luckily that was all. My family and friends are all safe and we all still have homes. My heart goes out to those that lost loved ones and homes. I can't imagine how devastating it would be. I spent a lot of my time helping to line up foster homes for animals being evacuated. I also went down to help care for the evacuated animals at the stadium.
That's about all for now.
Happy Running!

I am a TRIATHLETE!

I did it!!! My tri was yesterday!!! It was awesome and I can't wait to do another!!

I had a hard time sleeping the night before. I packed and repacked my gear and made a checklist to go over the gear again in the morning. I got up and dressed at 4:30am and Lisa picked me up at 5:00. We got to the parking area early and parked easily. We unloaded and walked our bikes and gear into the transition area to set up. Lisa was in wave 13 and I was in wave 14, we each went to our transition sections. I chose a spot on the racks where two racks come together so I would have a little room to play with in set up my area.
Lisa and I met back up, hit the restrooms before the lines started and then looked around at the signs to try to figure out how this whole triathlon thing worked. This only took a couple of minutes (and just confused us), so then we stood around like dorks, not sure what we should be doing. We took some really bad photos with my phone, perpetuating the dorkdom, by posing at our transition areas.
Eventually, we grabbed our swim stuff and decided to head toward the water. Our feet hurt from walking around on the asphalt and pebbles.
It got light and there was music and announcements. We heard the announcement of the swim routes and what bouys were ours. OMG!! I look out at a bouy that appears to be in the middle of the bay!!! They want me to swim all the way out there!! I look at Lisa, she looks just as shocked and worried as I do.
Finally they start the swim waves, we watch, freezing, scared, overwhelmed by the whole thing. I try to make conversation with Lisa but she seems very distracted.
They get closer to our wave numbers. We are worried. What the heck were we thinking!?! We only trained for 4 weeks!! We NEVER swam that far and neither of us really know how to swim!!
Her wave is called. She looks at me, takes a breath and heads to the line. I walk over behind her and tell her that she is going to do great and to remember it is all about having fun, so if it starts to get ugly and hurt, just slow down. She says, "yeah", in a distracted sort of way. I watch as she heads off to the water. Then my wave is called and I line up. I miss her swimming out in my sudden paranoia. Am I going to live through this swim? I only have the use of one arm because my shoulder is still so painful. What am I doing here? I'm treading water, at the back of the group, the horn sounds, and we are off!
I find that I am not able to move at all because the people in front of me are really slow. I keep running into them. I head toward and edge and pass a few folks (even men, made me happy). I feel like I'm doing well. I round the first bouy and head toward the next. I am staying on the outside so people can pass me or I can pass them. Half way to the next bouy I run into a woman who looks wide-eyed with panic. I slow, to make sure she is ok and to make sure I go wide around her. At that same time a 'swim buddy' from the race comes swimming up and asks if she is ok. She gasps out yes. He asks if she is stopping, she gasps out that it's longer than she thought. I can tell talking is not really helping her. The 'buddy' asks her name she says nothing and then gasps out her name. I am treading water now, near them, and decide to engage the buddy in coversation so that the lady doesn't have to try and speak. He's congenial.
I look over at her, the panic in her eyes is gone and she looks like she is pulling it back together. I swim off, leaving her with buddy and I hear that she is laughing now. Getting around the bouy is hard, I have to go out pretty wide, as swimmer's from the waves behind me are now flying by. I make the turn and suddenly the swim seems harder. I finally get to the end of the dock and as I'm making my way around it, the lifeguard standing there yells out something about how I have a big head of hair (my hair is very long and didn't fit in the swim cap, so it was in a bun at the base of the swim cap. I didn't realize the bun had come undone), I smiled. Then asked who moved the bouys so far away?:-)

I got to the boat ramp and started up. I enter the transition area and put my hair back in it's bun. I am so wet and my mind has gone blank. I take off my wetsuit, earplugs (that I forgot to put in) and goggles. I swipe my feet and put my socks and shoes on. I somehow remembered to put my suglasses on before my helmet. I grab my race belt and put it on, then unracked my bike and headed for the bike mount area. I needed to use my inhaler though, so I got it out of the pack on my bike as I went, and of course, dropped the cap, so I bent and pick that up, and hit my head on my handlebars as I stood up. I'm just continuing with the whole dork theme, you know...
As I am putting my inhaler in the pack, I am mounting my bike and I take off. The bike is pretty flat and easy with only some slight inclines. I passed the "family wave" that included children....It occurs to me at this point that I am obviously not racing for time. I forgot to time myself and I figure just the swim probably took way longer than necessary.
I am going up one of the inclines and I switch gears and the bike makes a funny noise and doesn't let me do anything. You can tell it's not fully in gear. I appear to be alone, so I slow, reach my right foot back and kick the gear stuff a couple of times. It seems to make a difference, but I'm still not fully in gear. I reach my foot back again and give it a couple more hard kicks, that does the trick!! I am in gear, a woman comes flying by and laughing says she has never seen gears changed in quite that manner before. I laugh with her...sorta.
My quads are wondering what I'm doing. I slow down and soon the bike is over. I had passed several people in the beginning, but with the gear changing problem, they all passed me. I can see several of them just up ahead.
The bike is over, I am entering transition again. I didn't need my race belt and bib for the bike, but since I wore it while wet, it is desintegrating on my crotch and thighs. Oh good, that's a good look.
I rack my bike, remove my helmet, grab my inhaler (just in case), and stare at my transition area wondering what I am forgetting. Nothing, so off I go.
The run is short and flat. It feels like there is a rock in my shoe. I stop and take it off, nothing comes out. I start to run again, but i don't get very far, that rock in my shoe is really bothering me. I sit and take the shoe off, I see nothing. I smooth out the sock and am up and running again. I am running quite slow, but I don't care. I know I am going to finish this so I feel great!
I look to see if I can see Lisa on the other lane of the run. One gal is walking quickly, she stays ahead of me for about 200 feet. I yelled to her at one point that is wasn't fair that she was walking faster than I was running.
I finally enter the last part of the run, there are people on both side of the lane. They are all smiling and motivating. There's another runner about 10 feet in front of me. Some coach type guy yells, "Come on ladies, work off each other, power it up, who's gonna get there first?" I smile and chuckle. Then I power it up. I race by her. I see the finish is up ahead. A bunch of kids on the right have there hands out and big smiles on there faces. I run by and slap their hands, smiling and laughing. I hear the announcer saying my name as I cross finish. I smile and raise both arms in victory. I DID IT!
Lisa (r) and me with our medals!

Tri Training

Lisa and I have been training at South Shores, but there was a water main break yesterday and many areas had contamination warnings, including South Shores. So we went over to Fanuel Street Park. It was VERY windy, really strong water current, white caps on the WAVES on the BAY, and the water temp was said to be 59 degrees. Boy that was a ton of freakin' fun. I thought Lisa was gonna bail out but I didn't give her the opportunity. It took us about 20 minutes to finish our swim and I think it was less than our normal 1/4 mile.

Then we got on our bikes and after we had gone a little way, Lisa says that we didn't need to wear our helmets because we weren't on a street, to which I replied we should always wear our helmets. :) She's concerned that we look like dorks.
Further into the ride there was a construction worker lifting a big beam across the the sidewalk. I started slowing, I didn't want to stop suddenly because I didn't know how closely Lisa might be following me, but I wasn't slowing enough. I headed to the side of the sidewalk thinking I would duck if the beam was still near me, but since I was watching the beam and not the sidewalk my front tire went off into the sand. I was going pretty slow at this point so it would have been no problem to just put my right foot down to stop my sideways fall.... HOWEVER... the bike I am using has the shoe strap thingies on the pedals that hold your foot in place, so I went to fling my foot towards the right but only succeeded in pulling myself over onto the concrete quicker. As I hit the ground it occurs to be that Lisa is probably going to run in to me now. I hear her utter some surprised noise and then she hits me and goes down.

I turn to her and say, "Aren't you glad we wore our helmets?".


Were we injured?
Barely a scrape.
Though I did search for one in a desperate attempt to call it my first Triathlon Training Injury. But alas, I have just the itty bitty tiniest spot of road rash on my leg. I will keep it in reserve.
No injuries to either of us. We could barely move we were laughing so hard. The poor construction worker guy was a bit worried. I think he might have thought we were crying and rolling on the ground in agony instead of hysterical laughter.

Making progress

Lisa and I are squeezing in training when we can. Both of us have been looking for new jobs. She just got the job she was hoping for yesterday. She starts Monday. New field for her, I know she's gonna do great!
I have a panel interview on Wednesday with the odd company. We'll see.
Lisa and I were planning to swim/bike/run yesterday, but the water at the bay was so cold we decided going to buy a wetsuit would be better. So today we will do a mini-tri and see if out bodies can live through it. My shoulder has really been painful (for weeks now), so swimming has been hard with only one arm. Hopefully it won't hinder me too much! Lisa bought a dirt bike and went out for the first time last Friday. She took a pretty good fall and has some horrible huge bruises at her tail bone and arms and legs, plus some road rash across her left shoulder. She was a little sore when we did swim yesterday, but she still did really well.

Running is going well. I made a 15k training schedule. I don't want to push too hard and end up injured. I find that after 2 grueling miles that I get a groove and feel much better. It's lasting through that miserable first 2 miles that is really, really hard. I need to work on more positive thoughts when I start.

I think it's gonna be hard!

Yesterday my friend Lisa and I did some training. We swam, rode bikes and walked 4.5 miles briskly in sand. She's not up to running yet.
I'm way more concerned now. It's going to be difficult even though the ditances don't sound like much. We only have 4 more training sessions together, then whatever we can do on our own. I don't think riding in my neighborhood would really hepl and it's such a high traffic area that I think it might be dangerous. I may pay to go swimming at the local municipal pool a few days a week for the next couple weeks and I will continue running in the mornings.

I just want to finish it and not get hurt. My standard goals these days.

I submitted my resume for an odd looking job last week and had a phone interview this past Monday. The pay is awful, but it sounds like a pretty interesting position. I think the phone interview went well, I am waiting to schedule a second phone interview and then a panel interview with the board of directors.

It's official!

I signed up for the triathlon today!! It's 3.5 weeks away. The swim is scary to think about. My friend Lisa and I went to where the race will be held and jumped in the bay. The water was pretty darn cold and we only went half the triathlon distance and we were beat!!
My shoulder is still painful (I think it's a pinched nerve or a rotator cuff injury), so I can't seem to get a real stroke with my right arm.
Lisa and I will be borrowing her parents bikes for the race since neither of us own one at the moment. We went over and checked them out today. I'll have her dad's, it looks like a decent mountain bike....

My foster kittens were weaned and using the litter box, so they will just be staying at the shelter until they are big enough to neuter and be put up for adoption. I forgot to get some pictures before they left. The pics I have are at least a week old and they grew a lot. Darn it.
I wish them well and hope they get great homes.!

Today was a good run!

For the first time since June I brought my mp3 player with me on a run. I have to say it really helped. It enabled me to redirect my focus when I started thinking, "This sucks, I should stop." While it didn't feel quick today, it was nice. I may just have to bring the mp3 player with me from now on. I was hoping my runs would be like the ones I read about....enjoy the sights and sounds of nature, figure out solutions to problems and get to know myself in a different way....apparently, I'm more of a blaring Sly and the Family Stone kinda runner! :-)

Resume writing is a pain

I have finally finished my resume. It looks ok, but it is so 'animal welfare' oriented that I don't know how I will get a job that is not in that field. There is only one job right now that I am interested in that is animal related. I appear to have everything they want and then some. I uploaded my resume to apply for the position and it said "We currently have no jobs that 'conceptually' match your resume."
What? The job basically describes me and my experience. The wording is even similar. It does say that I have applied for the position though, so now I am left to wonder if a human will ever see my resume. I would go and bring them a hard copy but as of yet I have not found a physical address.

My foster kittens had their first check-up yesterday at the shelter. The were de-wormed, vaccinated, and tested for FELV. Everything went well, they are healthy and just need to get to 2 pounds so that they can be neutered and put up for adoption!

It's been awhile...

Well the kittens are almost six weeks old!! So I've been sleeping through the night for a while. They go back to the shelter tomorrow for their first medical checkup, then I keep them for a couple more weeks until they are old enough to be adopted. Fostering is very rewarding and I highly recommend it. But then I've never had a problem returning the animal when they no longer need fostering. Some people end up adopting because they can't give them up. I only foster the young babies because I have never had a desire to actually own a puppy or kitten. I think and adult animal would be much harder to give up.
I haven't been running as much as I would like. I finished the race in August and then didn't run for about 2 weeks. I realized I was slacking, so I'm back at it. My mileage has fallen though. I'm thinking about running the Komen Race for the Cure.

Let's see, other news, I'm sure I mentioned that the last few years I had been providing fulltime care in my home to an elderly family member, but that as come to an end. Having lost my sweet dog, there is no one at home to care for anymore...I am looking for a job again. I have been volunteering a ton, at the community center and with SDASF. It feels weird to be looking for a job at this point in my life.

My first 5K!!!

Well, ready or not, race day finally came and....I did great! The race started at 6:45am at the bottom a good-sized hill. I felt like I ran it a little too fast.
Up ahead is the killer hill. First is a long downward slope and then the road curves around to this long incline. I hear several people telling each other that this is the worst part. I remember to go slow and steady. I have run this hill on several occasions and I kind of like it, even though it is a long slow killer. So as I am making progress up the hill, I hear people telling themselves and those around them that they can and will make it to the top. The muscles that were bothering me a little on the starting hill are feeling like they may split out of my skin now, I wonder if I should stop. I decide to keep pushing.
I see a girl with black nail polish. I have noticed her on several occasions. She is walking. Everytime I see her, I pass her, then somehow she ends up in front of me again!! She's walking, how does she keep getting ahead of me?
I finally make it up the street to the last right turn and now it's time to run down the big hill that we started on, down to the finish line at the bottom. I'm definitely tired. Then, I see her! The girl with the nail polish is several yards in front of me!! How the heck does she do it, she is still walking!! I decide there is no way she will be crossing that finish line before me,I start to sprint downhill. I'm running fast, I see John at the sideline, he yells something, I don't know, I see a look of surprise on his face. I look the other direction, I am passing the black fingernail girl! I am running all out down the hill, I see the finish line, I see pot holes, I plead with the powers of the universe to Please, Please, PLEASE don't let me trip in a pot hole and fall on my face in front of all of these people!!!! I cross the finish line!!!! On my feet and in one piece!!!! AWESOME!!!!
What am I thnking at that moment? Man, I hope I'm able to walk tomorrow!

Yeah!!! I ran today!

I got up at about 6:00am to feed kittens and I didn't feel quite as tired as I have lately (meaning, my eyes actually opened), so I thought I'd try a run. I ran a few miles with hills!! I'm so happy! The hills were tougher than they had been and I had to walk for a few seconds after reaching the top of one of them, but that's ok with me.
I feel a little better about being able to complete the race now. It's just 5 days away!

What was I thinking?

So my neck improved, I was sleeping well, and then a few days ago I agreed to foster two kittens. They were a day or so old. It's been several days now and I have to wake up every couple of hours to bottle-feed them. Come morning, I am too tired to run (or even think). I didn't run for about a week and then the last few runs I have done on my treadmill. I am just too exhausted.

So I wonder...did I subconsciously create some sort of excuse in case I fail to run the whole race? I don't know. What was I thinking, agreeing to take these little kittens. It's rewarding in the sense that they are alive and happy, but it wasn't a very good choice with my current goals. I don't know. What's done is done. I did ask my friend if she will take them for the two nights before my race and she agreed. At least I will eventually get some rest.

My darn neck!

My neck has been a just a little sore for a few weeks, but yesterday it became so sore that I am barely able to move it. Today the same thing. Sleeping was awful I can't believe how stiff and painful I am. I didn't run this morning. My race is in 2.5 weeks and now this!! Hope I'm feeling great tomorrow!

Don't drink the punch!

Saturday there was a regional meeting at Soka University. Amy came with me, even though she's anti-religion in any form. So we sitting there listening to speakers and watching the various shows and I'm getting more and more uncomfortable, thinking about what Amy must be thinking. I have to say it was the weirdest event I've ever attended. It seemed very cultish and odd. At one point toward the end, they are announcing refreshments will be served outside. I ask Amy what she thinks of it all, she says, "Well, it seems a little cult-like." Since I'd been thinking the same thing, I wasn't surprised, just turned toward her, very seriously, and said, "Just don't drink the punch."
LOL!!!!! ...yeah, well, guess you had to be there.

Today I am suppose to set up a computer that I reconditioned for a student from my mom's school. She worked really hard to graduate high school and she just got a studio apartment for her and her baby. My mom wants her to learn how to use a computer so she will have more job skills. The gal wants to stay off welfare and make her own way, so hopefully the computer will help her out.

After doing that, I REALLY want to go body-boarding but my Daimoku toso meeting is tonight. Hopefully I can fit it in.
Was this a rest day?

The dreaded hill

This morning I ran the big dreaded hill as part of my hill training. It went better than I had anticipated!

Sting rays and jelly fish

I went bodyboarding with my mom yesterday. Last week we had seen a couple of stingrays near us and decided to call it quits early. Then yesterday, we saw a bunch of large jellyfish washed up on the shore. We caught a few waves, but when we started seeing the jellyfish in the water, we called it quits again.
It so weird to see these things. I have lived here all my life and never seen jellyfish or and few stingrays in the ocean. I have seen tons of stingrays in the bay and hundreds of clear colored jellyfish, also in the bay, but never anything like what we've seen in the ocean this past couple of weeks.

Today is a rest day, I am hoping my friend Amy wants to go snorkeling at The Cove.

Back to the island

Ran on Fiesta Island this morning where it's flat. The hills will be two days a week, a flat easy run on Fiesta once a week and the Saturday long run on Fiesta as well. Or maybe I'll make the long run Sunday?
Anyway, the run went well. The sun was out so it was hotter than it has been recently. I'm looking forward to tomorrows hill training. Time seems to be flying by and soon it will be race day!

Busy Saturday

The fundraiser was yesterday. I am sooooo glad it's over! Our prices were really, really low and the stuff we were selling was true junk...or as the program is called...C.R.A.P. for Critters.

I miss Radlie so much. I am still having a hard time grasping the fact that I will never see him or smell him again. It doesn't seem right that my life goes on, almost as if nothing has happened. I remember the same feeling when my grandmother died. How is the world not a different place with out them in it. Only my my world is, I guess.
I cannot express what Radlie meant to me or what the loss of him means either. There are no words, I won't try.

Hills

I'm worried about the race. It starts with the big hill and has a pretty decent incline for some of the rest. I really need to monitor my pace and practice on the hills up until race day.

My schedule this week has me resting tomorrow and then my long run on Friday. I've organized a fundraising event for SDASF at the swap meet this Saturday. It should be interesting.

I plan to look for a job soon. I was really debating on whether or not I should go back in to Animal Welfare, but recently I have been thinking maybe I should just get a job that I am not so invested in, that I don't take home with me. I can always continue volunteering with animal welfare groups. I don't know. We'll see. I have a while to decide.

Decided to take some rest days

I have been so incredibly tired lately that getting out of bed is a major struggle. I have never been a person to nap, but I find myself falling asleep if I read during the day.
I going to take a couple of rest days and see if things improve. I'm not even gonna get on the bike.

Life outside of running...
The loss is of my dog is, of course, huge and to help me cope I've decided to call in favors and extra help so I can stay away from my house as much as possible. Respite care helps.
I've been taking John's motorhome to the beach. Solitude is a good, the beach and the sun soothing to the soul.

Twenty - two

I took some time off of running because just getting up in the morning was an emotional chore and I wasn't keeping food and water down very well.
I thought I would have lost some ground, but the next week I did my longest runs ever. Then this last week, every run has been a miserable struggle. I am lucky to get past 20 minutes. It's been very discouraging.
My race is in 5 weeks, I hope I'll be ready.

Forever Loved and Forever Missed, My Sweet Radlie

I haven't written anything in a while. I lost my sweet Raddog 3 weeks ago this coming Monday. The loss of him is huge. My house is empty, my heart aches.

I had it done at home where he would feel comfortable. He was having a really good couple of days. I layed on his bed with him and held him and kissed him and told him how grateful I was to have had him in my life. He went peacefully...even gave a couple of Raddog snores.
My sweet boy, I love you so much. I will miss you more than I can say. Thank you. Thank you for coming into my life. Thank you for so many years of absolute joy. I stand in awe.

I've decided on next week...sort of...

I don't know, have I? Can I? My sweet boy, I love you so.

I don't know what to do.

I'm really struggling about Radlie. Part of me says it's time to help him go, his life is not what he wants it to be anymore. But, it's so hard to choose to rip a big hole in my own soul. It stops my breath just to think of him not being part of my everyday. He is my life, my joy.
I don't know if it's time or not. I think it is, but I don't want to make the decision too soon. But I don't want to wait too long either. I want to do what is right by him.
Please, let me make the right decision.

Twenty - two

Run sucked today. I'm not sleeping well, just walking feels weird. I'll try again tomorrow.

Twenty - one

The day started badly. Radlie my sweet lab/dane hasn't been doing real well. He's 15 1/2 years old and I think I will need to make a decision on his quality of life very soon. He's been a constant source of joy since I adopted him more than 14 years ago. I cannot imagine life without him.

I remember how I use to tell him that he had to live to be 15 years old. It seemed like a far off time, a dream really, considering he’s a big dog. But here we are at 15, should I have asked him for more? The amazing thing is that his health is wonderful, bloodwork near perfect. It’s the neurological issues in his rear-end that’s the problem. Luckily, they say there is no pain and indeed the problem is that he cannot feel where his back legs are and that’s why walking has become more and more difficult.

I always thought the end would be more cut and dry. I guess I always assumed he would develop some disease like cancer or some kind of organ failure, I don’t know what specifically, just something that would make the decision clear. But more often I hoped really hard that he would let me know when he needed to go, I would kiss his soft temple, thank him for sharing the his life with me and he would go quickly and painlessly in his sleep. I guess that isn’t going to happen. I am going to have to make the decision.

14.5 years ago when I adopted him, he promised to be the best dog in the world and to bring joy and love to my life. I promised to care for him and love him and someday to helped him fight when he wanted to fight and help him go when he is ready to go.
He has so beautifully fulfilled his part of the promise; I pray that, when the time comes, I have the strength to fulfill mine.



So yeah, the day started badly. I was crying on the way to Fiesta Island for my run. I cried during the warm up walk and cried for the first few minutes of the run. I ran with just my thoughts. I didn't feel like listening to music.

As I ran my mood improved and I was able to think of other things for a time, it was a decent run.

Twenty

Going kayaking today. I can't wait for the water temp to go up a couple degrees. Snorkeling, boogie boarding, trying to surf, all highlights of summer!

Nineteen

I'm thinkin' I might do a short triathlon. Did I say that out loud?

Eighteen

Run went well today. I didn't hit a good stride until about 20 minutes in, but after that it was smooth sailing.

Seventeen

Some swelling and pain this morning but decided to go out anyway.

Had a FANTASTIC run!

I set the timer on my watch to count down minutes, but accidentally set hours. I must have looked at my watch 50 times before I realized the problem. I was thinking that I was experiencing the longest minutes known to mankind. I even hit the watch face a couple times like it was stuck (stupid really....since it's a digital!).

Sixteen

Had a dentist appointment yesterday. I need a root canal and a crown. I had a filling once a few years ago. Something tells me this will be a bit different.

Fifteen

I'm taking the weekend off, for sure. My mouth is swollen and painful with a bad tooth. Add that to an awful run on Friday and I need some time off. Volunteering with the Rock 'N Roll Marathon tomorrow. Gotta be there at 4am. Hope it's fun!

Fourteen

Today went well. I was fully into negative self-talk for the first 5 minutes. I had just about convinced myself that I couldn't do it. Then a song came on that cracks me up so that distracted me and then about the time that ended I realized I was feeling good and in my groove.

Thirteen

I was also thinking today that run days are not about whether or not we are able to do it. We can do it, all of it. Some days will just be harder than others. Perhaps I should have been thinking that all along?

Twelve

6 weeks or so in and feeling good. I thought the run this morning was going to be difficult. I went to a Padres game last night, stayed out late and had a couple of beers (for me that's a lot). But it went really well. I ran on a different part of the island than normal, and that was good. It not only offered a change of scenery, but it was more of a trail run and that was pretty neat.

Eleven

I made a special playlist last night for today. It was very motivating and my first real long run went well today. Still struggling mentally for the first 10 minutes, but I'm sure all get over it.

Ten

The last 5 minutes....hell, pure and simple. Luckily, about that time, Robert (the guy on the Podcast), told me there was only a minute left. 'Only' didn't seem like only, but I figured I might be able to go one more minute. He says to try to speed up for that minute. If I had had the energy, I would've laughed out loud! But, pick it up I did, and even lived through it.

I don't know what to do about the podcasts. I like that they allow me to ignore my watch, but the music is horrid. In fact it's not even music, it's just noise. There must be something better.

Nine

I was in a good groove this morning.

As I was running, I thought "this would be so much more pleasant on the treadmill!"
LOL! See what a couple of runs on a treadmill will do?

I look forward to the next day I get to run!

Eight

If I can get through the mental hell during the first 5-6 minutes of my runs, I think this running thing will work out. I'm shocked at the stuggle I have with myself in my head.

Seven

I didn't get much sleep last night and ended up sleeping in this morning. So rather than run with the sun beating down on me, I ran on the treadmill again. I need to be able to leave the house without guilt and get back in my early morning schedule at Fiesta Island.

Six

I tried out the treadmill and was...unimpressed.

Five

This morning, I dropped John off at the airport at some awful hour when we should all be sleeping. I decided not to run at Fiesta Island, just hit the roads when I got home. Bad idea, my shins are killing me.
Additionally, I decided to start crosstraining yesterday. I rode dirt trails on my bike. When I got back to the truck, my butt was really, really sore from the seat! Then, last night I went to a Gosho study meeting and had to sit for an hour and a half. The longest hour and half of my life, my butt hurt so bad!

I lived through it. And I lived through the run this morning. I feel good that the run is completed. I hope my shins will forgive me. How am I going to run my 5k on the street?

I miss running with my sweet dog! Yeah, it's been about 13 years, but...I have always loved his company and would love to share that special time with him again. I love you Raddog. I see you're dreaming of running as I type this....I hope those rabbits run slower in your dreams!

Four

My new shoes were a problem today but only because I had tied them too tight. During the walking portions I loosened them a couple times, but I just couldn't seem to get a good fit.

The Podcast music is better than week one, that was a nice surprise.But the podcast music does leave a lot to be desired.

I wonder if there is a C25K for bike riding? Wouldn't it be cool if I did a triathlon someday. I'm not much of a swimmer....but I am not much of a runner either...things change.....hmmmm......

Three

Ranyesterday morning. I think I may have started off too fast. I slowed it down on the 3rd running interval and I was able to complete it all.

I found that the first day or so that I used my MP3 player it was useful in distracting me, not so much now. Yesterday I forced myself to think about something else and the running was MUCH easier. I think I will enjoy myself more if I am able to distract myself. I'll have to work on that, as it apparently doesn't come naturally to me.

John and I both work(ed) in animal welfare. A local sanctuary Lions, Tigers and Bears just took in 3 lion cubs from another sanctuary that couldn't care for them. John helped the local sanctuary with media support and they invited us to come out and meet the babies. I had baby lions playing in my lap and sleeping in my arms. It was an incredible experience!

Two

My run this morning was awesome!! John ran with me and said I seem to have picked up my pace. I did feel like I was going faster, but I also felt like I was taking smaller steps.

Taking more than one day off seems to have been a detriment, so instead of doing a specific schedule, I think I will just plan to run every other day.
I have not yet incorporated any cross training into my life, but I am thinking about bike riding. I'm looking forward to kayaking this summer, doubt that counts as crosstraining. :-)

One

So, I let some things come up and I didn't get to my run yesterday. But I di it this morning and it felt. great. Well...ok...while I was doing it it didn't feel so great, but having done it feels great.
Fiesta Island was beautiful at 7am. The water was glassy all around, sun was bright. I used Robert's Podcastsand kept my feet going to the beat of the music. It seems quite fast, but I am guessing it's not.
Still feels good to have done it and pushed myself.

In my early 20's every night I use to ride my bike all out, for several miles, I lived for the quad burn, then I would grab my dog and run a couple more miles. I loved it. But it's been nearly 13 years since then, (my big sweet dog is 15 and not up to running anymore). In that 13 years work and life overshadowed exercise. I'm hoping running will become addicting again and this time I will make it a priority.

The Beginning

I came across the phrase at the top of this blog (having seen it before but it had been a while)during an time in my life that I was feeling pretty despondent about the path I was in. But it helped me recognize that I could choose happiness and victory in my life or I could choose to let obstacles defeat me. I decided to choose victory. This is a blog of my journey to personal victory. I find it a bit odd to do this publicly, a friend suggested it, it's like keeping a diary that the world can see. But hey, I'll try anything once.

My first thing was to start running again. I went out, bought some running shoes and a good sports bra (Enell... highly recommend it, best thing ever!!!).

By the fourth day I was sorta comfortable running at a snail's pace I felt encouraged to continue and thought having a goal would keep me on track. So I signed up for a race in August.

My confidence waned a few weeks in. My left knee was painful and my neighbors dog bit me in the face (in an unrelated event). Was I crazy to think that I could be a runner again? Ultimately, I decided that indeed I could, I wasn't dead yet, right? I did decide to wait for the stitches to be removed from my face.