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Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Blogging in my head

It seems that a huge amount of time has passed, once again, since I have blogged! I often have blog posts bumping around in my head, but somehow they rarely make it to the computer.

ANYWAY. I continue to suffer from blisters from my new shoes. I have finally decided to take them back and exchange them for a new pair of my old model. (Mizuno Wave Inspires) I never got any blisters from those!

Last Saturday, August 17, was the Celebration of Running 5K and I met with some friends to do around 5 miles before the race. As soon as I ran about 3 steps, I realized it wasn't my day. I was sore, my feet hurt, it was horribly humid, and on and on. Sometimes it's just not a good running day! But I did my mileage and then did the 5K. I didn't have a very fast time during the race, but I wasn't going for time - I was just getting the mileage in. However, I did have fun hanging out with my friends and we did get really cute medals!

My amazing husband and biggest supporter came with me that day. Yep, he got up at 4:45 (which was really sleeping in for me on a Saturday) and napped in the car, and then met me at the finish line. After I drank a ton of water and we checked out the booths, I stretched and we headed to Aquatica. Once there, I took a few shots of my blisters because I knew you would like to see them. :) 
This is the biggest one I had gotten the week before. 
And this smaller but annoying one on my 4th toe.
And an out-of-focus picture of the huge callus I've developed. It was pretty
angry that day. And it had blisters forming around it.
These have required tape, blister band-aids, and moleskin over the past couple of weeks. They are better, but this past Saturday I added two more new ones and re-angered these. LOL! I really need for them to heal up. This coming Saturday I have a day off from running, so hopefully that will help.

Speaking of this past Saturday, I ran 10 miles for the first time. I was STRESSED about it! I stressed myself out by thinking and worrying about it all week, and then I didn't do a great job of fueling myself or hydrating the day before. All in all, it went pretty well. It was a tough run, but I stuck it out thanks to my wonderful running group! I was sore, tired, and hot, and I would have quit after 5 miles if it wasn't for them!

Afterward, I had a yummy breakfast with friends at First Watch. I had PANCAKES! Yummy! And bacon - REAL bacon, too...not turkey bacon! It was heavenly.

When I got home, I took an ice bath and I didn't play around. I sat in cool water and we dumped two 10 pound bags of ice into the tub with me. It was...intense. But I have to say, it was the best thing I've ever done after running. I sat in that ice bath for 20 minutes and then my legs felt amazing for the rest of the day! They weren't even sore...I couldn't believe it! 

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I've started going early to the workout so I can run 2 miles for a warmup. It's a good way to add some mileage to my week, but it means I'm now getting up at 3:10 on those days. So needless to say, I'm tired! I had a good run this morning, though, with only 88% humidity! It seemed so much cooler! I hope that's a preview of weather to come. I cannot wait until it's a little cooler!

That's about all I have for now. I'm still working with Bruce 2 days a week, and I'm still building muscle. But I still have a huge belly. I ordered the 24-day Challenge from Advocare, so when that comes in I'll be blogging about my experiences with that! Stay tuned!

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Running with Meteors

Lots of workouts have happened since I last blogged! I felt pretty good after my 8 mile run, although I was a little sore. That's to be expected. I welcome the soreness - it means I did something good for my body!

This past Saturday, I had a 6 mile run and I wore my new shoes. Around mile 3, I realized that something was rubbing against the inside of my left heel. Another mile or so and I could feel that it was the insole and I was getting a blister. When I got home and got my socks off, I did indeed have a pretty big blister that was full of fluid and also another smaller blister on the bottom of one of my toes.

Running is weird. I was a little proud of the blister. :)

Sunday morning I got a fire ant bite on my toe at church. On the other foot. So then both of my feet had "injuries." I'm so high maintenance!

So for my cross training on Monday, Bruce helped me cover the blister and the ant bite with KT tape. This tape is not really for covering wounds, but it worked great and came off easily. I had gotten lots of advice from other runners and from the internet. I thought about moleskin, but it's SO sticky that I was afraid when I pulled it off it would take the skin with it. Also, moleskin is no good for toes - it just rubs against the next toe and causes yet another blister! The KT tape worked like a charm.

(Incidentally, I realized yesterday that I was getting better at push-ups. Bruce even said that my push-ups were looking good! It feels really good to see some improvement!)

This morning's run was super cool! (um...not the temperature.) Since we run in the dark, we got to see several meteors! They were like falling stars and so amazing to see while running in circles around the track! Today's workout was 1200, 1000, 800, 600, 400 - with a 200 in between each for recovery. I had a great run and each lap was faster than my goal time. And the tape stayed on my war wounds! It was a great morning!

I am so thankful for my running group! They motivate me, push me, encourage me, and hold me accountable. Just knowing that someone will always be there to run with makes it a little easier to get up at 3:30. So thank you Sandy, Sue, Amanda, Amy, Sarah, Diana, Maria, and all the rest of you! :) You're rock stars!

Tomorrow I'm heading to the Track Shack for their sale, to see what to do about the insole in my blister-causing shoe, and to pick up my packet for the Celebration of Running 5K this Saturday. I know, a 5K in Florida in August. I'm crazy, but we already knew that, now, didn't we?

Monday, August 5, 2013

8 miles

Saturday I ran 8 miles for the first time ever! 8 MILES! To some, I'm sure it seems like nothing, but to me...it was an accomplishment! My legs were a little sore after, but nothing major! Also, I had the busiest week ever, so I was impressed that I made it, considering that I didn't sleep much or eat very well all week. Yay!

Smiling after 8 miles!
I also got new shoes on Saturday! Yay! I was dying for a new pair, so I headed down to the Track Shack and got some. I loved 2 pairs, but could only afford one...for now! ;)

My new shoes: Asics Gel-Kayano 19 

I also loved the New Balance 1260
I wore them to the gym today and they felt great! I did weights and cross training today, and after eating a bunch of crap this weekend (and for most of the week), it was difficult! I really need to focus on fueling better. Anyway, plenty of hard work today with Bruce! He commented that I'm tolerating the workouts a lot better than I did at first, so I'm glad to know it! 

Tomorrow morning I have a track workout at 5am, then a tempo run on Thursday followed by more weights/cross training, and then only a 6 mile run on Saturday. This should be a great workout week!

I'm starting to feel the pressure of the school year starting. My classes don't start until September 9, but there are so many things I've wanted to get done around the house.  I have about a month to do it. I made a job jar for myself earlier in the summer, but I haven't done one thing from it. I hope I can get it all finished over the next several weeks!