W7D3

Today was the big one... the last big run before the 10k.

I left the house with Lucy just after 9. It was bright, sunny, and not too cool that I was worried about being cold in my sleeveless jersey. I kept the pace nice and easy, so even when I started feeling really heavy and tired around mile 4, it wasn't too difficult to keep going. I finished with an average pace approaching 14 minutes per mile, but still in the 13s.

Came back, took a glorious shower, made some more award-winning buttermilk pancakes, and spent the day painting the house.

W7D2

It was supposed to be an easy 2 mile run. Handling two excited, tugging dogs was a little more tiring than I expected. Was a nice sunny morning on the golf course though. I think I'm really going to enjoy my new jogging trail.

Also, new low this morning. I hit 163.2, an overall loss of TWENTY-EIGHT (28) POUNDS!

WOOHOO! That's almost "round-able" to 30!

W7D1

3 mile run on the golf course this morning. It was very cold, in the mid-50s. I was concerned enough to wear a short sleeve shirt and 3/4 pants, but I warmed up nicely halfway through.

W6D3

I postponed this run until Sunday morning because I enjoyed last weeks golf course run so much.

The entire golf course loop turned out to be over 5 miles. I swallowed a bug around mile 4, threw it up a few minutes later, and felt much better for the rest of the run. Average pace was 13:22. Not bad.

W6D2

I pushed myself and managed a pace of 12:25 minutes/mile for the first half of this morning's 2 mile run. The 2nd mile slowed significantly. It's HARD to run faster.

W6D1

Very cold 3 mile run (13ish pace) this morning. I don't think I truly warmed up until halfway through mile 2. The sun was fully up though. YAY for daylight savings time!

I'm a One Hour Runner (W5D3)

The rain has been a real drag lately. I haven't run since the 3 miles on Monday morning, but I really want to progress with my program. I kicked myself out of bed at 8AM this morning with the goal of running 4.5 miles.

It was in the 50s, but bright and sunny. I grabbed shades from the truck and walked off toward the abandoned golf course/running path behind Scott's house. Lucy's tail was wagging happily and she reached her nose out to catch the light breeze.

I love being able to track distance on the Forerunner. The GPS helped me decide to turn around after reaching the end of the 4th section of the golf course (new territory for me). In all, I found that running 4 sections of the golf course gave me 4.2 miles. I doubled back on the close one to reach 4.5 miles. At that point, I was only 1.5 minutes from running for a full hour, so I kept going just long enough to give me that coveted 60 minutes!

My pace for the whole run averaged around 13 minutes/mile. I'm pretty happy that I didn't sink down to the 14s. I was feeling good, even at the end. I'm not at all worried about reaching 5 miles next weekend.

W5D1

I slacked a bit last week. Between a tight deadline at work, a really rainy day, and being exhausted come Saturday morning, my running schedule suffered.

I'm back at it this week. Today was one of the coldest runs I've ever done. The middle school marquee said 55°, but I got my 3 miles in. I averaged just over 13 minutes per mile.

A science blog I've been reading had a great post on running this morning: To Dad, from a Runner

I found myself identifying: slightly nerdy girl with her head always in a book got started running. We all get started for different reasons but in the end it all boils down to that daily challenge to get out there and get that run in. She's several years ahead of me in speed/distance and definitely an inspiration.

W4D3

Another 4 mile run this morning. When I started just before 7, it was almost completely dark outside. By the time I finished, the skies were cloudy with big patches of bright blue. A beautiful mid 60s morning.

I'm happy to report that my average pace improved slightly to 13:50/mile. I'm taking these runs nice and slow. I'm even starting to look forward to next week's 4.5 mile run.

W4D2

An easy (and sunny) 2 miles this morning. I slept in a little and left the apartment a little after 9 AM. It felt good to go out in daylight without fear of overheating.

One of my neighbors was outside working on his truck. We chatted for moment before I took off. He was a little concerned that I'd be too cold (it was in the 60s) in my sleeveless running top (bathing suit material) and biker shorts. I assured him that once I got moving, I'd be just fine.

W4D1

Got up at 6 AM this morning to run 3 miles, mostly in the dark. Lucy was thrilled to see that the armadillos were out again. The jr high marquee said 80°.

Also, new low on the scale. At 164.8, I've dipped my toe into the bottom half of the 160s.

W3D3 - New Program!

With my 10k race coming up quickly and the new training monitoring abilities available on my Forerunner, I've decided to switch to another program: Hal Higdon's 10K Novice, but only for the running distances. Following the cross training schedule there is a little bit more than I can handle. I just know I'd be setting myself up for failure.

I started with W3D3 and a 4 mile run this morning. I kept my pace nice and slow, averaging 14:11 minutes per mile (56:48 minutes running).

For purposes of "goal completion", I'm counting this run as One Hour Runner W9D3 (54 minutes minimum). When I manage a 60 minute run, I'll consider OHR completed.

My legs have been sore all day. I really hope I didn't overdo it.