And the decision is..........

I have decided to continue training for the marathon this spring! On April 22, 2017, I will be a marathoner at the Illinois Marathon.  I have yet to send in my registration, but will do that in the next few weeks when I have the money to do so. At this point, I feel like I'm naturally progressing to those 26.2 miles, and I have been training all along with this thought of  running the marathon. Since I am 12 weeks into the program, with no intention of stopping, I am officially making the marathon my goal.  However, I'm still keeping the same goal of just finishing...walking at water/aide stops, especially later on, but and not focusing on time. I really want to go out there, and prove to myself that I can do that distance,  and have the best possible race I can. Plus, the thought of being in the "top 1%" of something sounds really nice, too!

So far, I have already hit these lines of questions during my training:
Am I scared of seeing these increased miles? Oh heck yes.
Am I ready to tackle them? Gradually, and have already hit 6 miles twice, and will hit it again at the end of next week.
 Will I have my doubts about being able to do it? Check those off already.
Will I want to quit? Yep, but I won't. I may have rough runs where I might even have to walk some here and there, but I won't quit unless something really dramatic happens. If a plan A won't work for a week, I'll figure out a a plan B to get the job done.
Will I also have those absolute kick butt runs where I feel like I can run forever? Oh yeah. I will need to hang onto those runs for the tough times.
What will keep me going? Picturing myself crossing that finish line in one piece with the biggest smile on my face, and thinking about my runing buddy that I dedicate runs to, and for those who need extra moral support for whatever reason.
What will crossing that finish line feel like? Absolutely exhausting, but hopefully the best feeling ever!

Happy New Year! (week 12)

For those of you celebrating tonight, Happy New Year!  I hope that everyone that is reading this will a better new year in whatever means they need.  A LOT has happened in 2016, both good and bad, and my best wish for everyone to keep pushing forward.  It may not be an easy ride, but we'll make it through if we keep putting one foot in front of the other.  

So this week, I finished the 12th week of my program.  I was briefly home for Christmas, and the day after, during the morning, I was able to get one 3 mile run in, which included a hill.  I'm originally from the Southen Illinois area (go Salukis!), which is hillier than my current area.  So, I decided to give myself the challenge of running on hillier street, and did so with a running friend of mine.  There is something to be said about running hills, and it's that they can be absolute freaking killer on the legs.  Last year, I conquered that same street, which is has quite a few more hills, for 9 miles when it was cold, windy, and raining at times.  

This time, it was 65 degrees with about 95% humidity (it had been raining off and on).  65 degrees now feels really hot for a run! Plus, with the humidity, I was dripping sweat in no time.  Now, we only did the one hill, on the run. We hit the incline on the way up, and the decline on the way back.  I had to push myself to stay relatively close behind to my friend, but managed to do so.  My friend is a super speedy runner...runs something in the 8 minute range (or even faster), but she ran a bit slower so that I could keep up.  So, I ate that hill for my running breakfast, and still managed to run 3.1 miles in under 30 minutes in 65 degree temperatures, plus nearly 100% humidity.  I consider that run a win, as it was super nice to have something different for a change.

A few days later, I went and did my long run.  That long run completely kicked my butt. I think it was partially due to me skating the day before.  The other part was due to it being almost 40, but wind chills in the 20s, and me running in lots of head wind.  I went to run with my Garmin on, but it somehow turned off, so I basically ended up putting it into my pocket and going by feel instead.  I have no idea what my pace actually was, but I felt like I was running like a turtle trudging through mud....or maybe a turtle that was facing lots of head wind..I don't know.  I also lost track on which mile I was on, so I ran a bit extra, in hopes that I got in the right mileage (found out later that I did...got in 6.4 actually).

For this run, I decided to run a bit further on the actual marathon route.  The area I ran in is the miles that are in the 17-20 area.  I had been on the course to what is considered the mile 19 mark, but never further.  So, on this run, I decided to include the the mile 19-20 area, so that I can become more familiar with it.  In a lot of ways, this is really good practice, not just to get to know my surroundings, but to help me push through those mental walls.  On this run, it was that new mile route. That felt like the longest mile ever. I don't know what it was about it, but I really had to mentally push through that one mile, and my legs were just not really having it (I did allow a few short walk breaks at what would be aid station areas).  However, once I turned around to head on back, that mile felt MUCH shorter.  Maybe it's the thought of being at the turn around point...not just on my particular run, but also for the marathon in general.  In the actuall marathon, I would basically head about a mile further south, then work my way back up..sorta making a loop, then head back towards the stadium.  I can already tell that area is going to be a BIG mind game for me.  It's going to take a lot of training to push through that part of the race.  However, with continuing of long runs, I hope to complete all of those remaining miles on the marathon course, so that I will be better prepared mentally and physically for the race itself.

Yesterday, I took the day off from running (skated instead), and finished my week today with a 3 mile run.  Today, I was suppose to do a local 5k, which I was going use as a race/training run, but, as it turned out, I registered for a race in a DIFFERENT STATE that was under the same name.......yeeeeahh......only someone like me would be dumb enough to do that.  So...yeah...no in town 5k race for me.  So, I ran my own 3 miles today. I must've been taking out my stupidity of registering for the wrong race, as I actually ended up with these results: 

I did have a few stops because of traffic, and had to make one quick stop to drop off my rent check, but this is my personal best 3 mile time!  It completely kicked my butt, as I did this, just sort of thinking, "How fast can I go?" So, I pushed myself to do it.  Had I ran this in a 5k, this would have been a new racing PR for me (28:27 is my racing record).  Despite how tired I was, I am pretty darn happy with that time, as that is a new personal speed record for me.  I will take this as a very positive ending for my running year!  

Merry Christmas! (week 11)

I'm a bit late with the posting, but I wanted to wish all of you a Merry Christmas, and for those of you who may not celebrate, I hope that you are enjoying some time to yourself, or with some friends/family.

I officially have another week of training under my belt, but I didn't get in all of the required mileage that week.  That was because I took an extra rest day, which I really needed.  I've been noticing in my training plan that I've been having to skip a short run here every few weeks, partially due to the need for an extra rest day.  Sometimes, life does get in the way, but I definitely needed that extra rest day last week.  This was because I had a breakthrough in my skating, and decided it was better for me to focus on that.  Plus, I worked hard in my gymnastics class on upper body strength later in the day. I thought I would be okay with running the 3 miles the next day, but I did have some soreness in both my shoulder and left hip, and just general fatique from working my butt off in skating and gymnastics the day before.  So, as much as I wanted to get that run in, my body was balking at the idea. So, I decided it was best to listen to my body, let it take an extra rest day.  I know that missing a few miles here and there is not going to kill me, especially with getting in the long runs (which I did do). I am still trying to get in all of my runs as much as possible, but sometimes, my body just needs the break.

Fortunately, the weather has gotten decent again for runs outside, so I'm not completely confined to the treadmill.  I really hope that I can continue to run outside, whenever possible.  If I can continue to run outside, that will make things easier than doing everythign on a treadmill.  Past experience has told me that if I do a good chunk of my training on the treadmill, it takes a bit of time to get re-use to running outside again.  I know that on the treadmill, you can change the incline and all that (and incline intervals are a good way to change things up), but it's still a very flat surface, which feels a lot different than being on the road.

One other thing I have started working with some is a foam roller.  I had tried them in the past, but didn't see a lot of benefit to them. However, I decided to give them another a few days ago, and found that I liked it!  It's kinda having a bit of massage, but you hit upon those "It hurts so good" spots where you might have some developing tight areas.  Supposedly, if done right, foam rolling can serve as a type of myofascial release, which can help prevent injuries.  What is kinda nice is you can totally control the pressure given to the spot, and is way cheaper than going to a massage therapist (although, don't get me wrong, full body massages are freaking awesome).  

As for the kinds of foam rollers, my gym only has two different varieties...a white foam roller and two black ones.  The two black ones feel a bit harder than the white.  So far, I like the black ones the best, as I feel like I can put more pressure onto them without feeling like it's bending. I usually don't have tight hamstrings or anything like that, but I am the pressure just feels good.  If I go onto my stomach, and support myself like in a plank position, I found that I can get the my quads, if I sorta push and pull myself on the foam roller.  I may occasionally do my IT band area, although I generally don't have problems there. I also use it with my back (hands behind me for support), and I want to figure out a better way to roll out my shoulder areas. I also want to try ones with different textures/grooves to see how I like those.

In the meantime, I will keep using what is available to me, and keep plugging away at these miles. Some of these runs may be faster than others, but as long as I continue to keep getting the job done, that's all that matters.

Happy Running!

Time is flying by (week 10)

I can't believe that I'm through the first 10 weeks of this 30 week training plan.  I still haven't made an official decision on doing the marathon training, but am leaning towards it still because...well...why not?  I'm starting to feel a bit stronger with my runs (runs were 2,3,2.5, 5.5 miles...but did 6 instead), and this week, I had two runs where I felt like I was flying. For one of my runs, I ran most of the run above a 6.0 pace..even faster than 9:30ish 5K pace, and even touched a 6.8 (8:50ish mile). I also had one run where I briefly touched a 7.3 pace, which is somewhere around 8:15/mile.  Holy moses, I was flying!   I definitely couldn't hold that later pace for long, but I did it for a chorus or two of one song...just to prove myself that I could. I came off of those runs tired, but SUPER proud of myself!

Since our weather has suddenly turned really cold, I've been taking my runs to the treadmill for the time being, especially with it being super icy outside. We've had a few days with wind chills in the -15 range, so it's really not safe for anyone to be out running in those temperatures.  Plus, it makes being outside dangerous with the ice.  Also, unfortunately, in my area, many sidewalks are not de-iced, which causes a lot of problems with trying to be out and about.  I think I would almost do better getting to where I need to go with my figure skates than anything else. However, unfortunately, the ice isn't thick enough for that to happen.

Knowing that we had some nasty temperatures headed our way, I decided to switch my long run and my last short run of the week, just in case I decided to stay inside.  I did end up running both days, but ended up being really glad that I did the long run first.  I was scheduled to do 5.5, but felt good enough to do 6, which I did.  The hard part about these longer runs is that I HAVE to go slower.  On this run, I felt like I was going at a decent speed. Then, I made a mistake at looking at the distance. It was much shorter than I anticipated. Then, I looked at the speed and I was only at about a 4.8, which was WAY slower than I was hoping. I swear, treadmills are the biggest liars sometimes!  However, there were times where I did adjust the speed some, depending on what I felt like I could handle, so that speed may have been a "recovery" speed of sorts, but I don't think I went faster than about a 11:30ish pace at tops.

 I know that I shouldn't stress over it, as that's probably the speed that I need, but it did mess with my head a bit.  However, I did my best to push it out of my head.  Then, I realized that I still had some pretty good energy once I hit the 5.5 mile mark, so I decided to push myself just a wee bit further, and finished out strong at 6.0.  I actually felt like that I could have ran more if I slowed down the pace a bit, but I didn't want to push myself too much.

As for the 2.5 mile run, I decided to change things up a bit by running incline intervals. I would run "flat" for about two minutes, then run on an medium(ish) incline for about 2 minutes.  I actually liked this as it provided a bit of variety on this run, and worked my legs just a bit differently.  Plus, there was that mentality of powering through that helped me out mentally ("Come on. You got this. Get your butt up this incline..."). I do have hopes to do at least or two hilly runs outside again somewhere when the weather warms up some, but in the meantime, I'll make due with what I have access to.

As for week 11, it's a set back week in terms of the long distance mileage (only 3 miles), but the other runs are increased to 3 miles a piece.  Then, the week after, it's a 6 mile long run, then the miles start going up from there.  The good news is that I know that I can do the 6 miles, so I should be able to do it again.  If things keep going as a well as they are with this training, you may just see an official announcement of me doing the marathon "for sure." :)

Trying to run on a budget (week 9)

This week , winter had decided to blow through. I've come to realize that I'm a wimp when it comes to the cold and wind...especially when the wind chills hit the single digits. Brrrrrrr......I think I'm finding that my willingness to, run outisde limit is somewhere in the 20s at this point, but only for the shorter runs.  My training schedule ended up being thrown off a bit, as I was suppose to run 3 miles, but we had wind chills in the low single digits.  I even considered trading the 3 miler for a shorter run, but when it came down to it, I just could not make myself run in that cold of weather. I then thought that I could run at my gym....but it's really hard to run when you forget to bring your running shoes with you.  So, with that plan scratched, I thought, "Okay, I will just run three days in row to get back on schedule. I ran FRiday, but didn't realize that my training plan called for 2.5 miles, and not just my normal 2.....ooops.  Saturday came around, and my body basically balked at the idea of running at all.  So, I decided it was just best to skip the three miler, and give myself a flat out rest day.  There wasn't even a freestyle session happening at my rink, and I worked on upper body in gymnastics back on Thursday (made it to the second notch on the knotted rope....YAHOO!!), so I gave myself permission to take the entire day off from any type of physical activity.
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As for these colder temperatures, I decided to get a pair of Under Armour leggings that I found on sale (gently used) for $25.  I found them through Poshmark, which is a website that sells new and gently used clothing for less than retail value.  I got the leggings, and they fit perfectly....but they're not the wam, fleece-on-the-inside leggings that I was hoping for.  They're more of a base layer type of legging.  They're still a good item to have, but when I was running the othe day, and it was in the 20s, I found myself wearing another pair of leggings over that to have enough warmth for the run.  Despite that, I'm not completely disappointed with the leggings as I also wear them for skating, and are nice enough for me be able to take one of my skating tests in them in a few months, if I want.  Plus, I can just wear them under pants and stuff for some extra warmth with these upcoming cold months.

As for my long run today, I did three miles on the treadmill, ending at just under a 10 minute pace (5.8).  I know that we all complain about being on the treadmill, but today, I was grateful for I'it.  Today I desperately needed the run, as I needed to relieve stress.  I was super stressed about money issues because I stupidly overdrew on my account by a few dollars.  For those of you who may not know me, I've often struggled with finances, although I do work full time.  I'm tired of having this struggle, and have come to realise that I need someone to help me sort things out financially.  Thankfully, our university has a "Money Mentors" program that is free of charge and completely voluntary.  I signed up to have a money mentor to hopefully help me organize my finaces, so that I don't come up short every month.  So far, we have met twice, and I'm trying really hard to make steps in the right direction...such as not touching my savings account.  We're in the process of trying to set up small goals each month.  Like last month was contriI buting a bit more to my savings and to my credit card payment. This month, it's to look through each item line by line on my bank statement and making a list/columns of where my money is going, so that I can establish a realistic budget.  I'm also trying to find out information on my interest rate on my credit card (which I unfortunately cannot get online) and how much money is going to my retirement fund with my job at the high school...stuff like that.

That being said, I was stressed because I was trying to figure out when I could pay my skating coach and a friend of mine who I owed some money to for getting my skates sharpened.  Plus, I was having an issue with my gym membership (which is only $10 a month), because my card wasn't being accepted.  I got that sorted out, but it resulted in my bank account being overdrawn by a few dollars. For me, this was a huge blow this afternoon because I am really trying to get better with my money. I must've cried in the bathroom for a good 30 minutes.  I managed a short warm up walk on the treadmill and a short stretching period, but found myself crying yet again.  I did let my money mentor know what happened, along with one of my best friends. I love my best friend like a sister, but I came to realise that I was coming across in a way that she wasn't deserving of.  My money mentor was super chill with me, and basically told me to focus on getting back into the postive with my bank account.   I was only a few dollars overdrawn, so I knew that in the long run, a few dollars wasn't going to make a huge difference, but at the time, it was a huge blow to my self-esteem.

So, finally about a hour later, I got onto the treadmill, and did my run.  It was a "run to relieve stress" run.  Having the blotchy, "I've just been crying" look probably didn't look too great, but I decided to focus on the job at hand. I had my ipod with my recently downloaded songs that I'm still jamming to, and I tried watching something on the t.v. I didn't like what was on, so I changed channels, but found that I just couldn't focus.  So, I decided to shut the t.v. off, and just focus on running with my ipod playing my new favorite songs on almost full blast.  I was picturing myself running the marathon, or mentally improving routines to whatever song was playing for skating competitions/events.  I also just kinda let my thourghts ramble a bit, while allowing myself to run harder, breathe, and physically beat out the stress that was in me through my legs.  I ended up running 3.25 miles, which was slightly longer than my originally planned "long run" of 3 miles. I felt a lot better afterwards....not my easy going self, but better than what I had coming in.

One of the thoughts I had during my run was related to budgeting.  How does one make a budget for running?  What is considered to be an adequate amount of clothing for runing?  Do I really have enough there, or are new running items more a want?  Did I really need the pair of workout/running capris  and tank top that I just bought for $6? As a whole, what is best for me in terms of paying for things?  Is is better for me to pay things in one chunk (such as my last paycheck always going to rent), or is it better to split things up?What about food? How am I going to manage my food budget when I need increased fuel, especially if I start hitting those longer runs?  Plus, how can I keep fuel for my runs themselves without breaking the bank?  How can I make this budget so that I'm being reasonable and realistic with my budget, without feeling like I'm depriving myself?

Now, if running was my only sport, I probably wouldn't be in as much financial craziness.  However, I'm also involved in figure skating and gymnastics.  I've already set the firm rule that quitting skating and gymnastics is a non-negotiable item for me.  They've become part of who I am, and I've come to love both sports.  I know that a lot of people would say, "Oh. Well, you just have to drop those sports." I do realize that both of these sports are expensive, so I want to figure out a way to make it work, so that I can still participate.  On the skating end, I am willing to not skate a freestyle session once a week or so, and maybe cut out a few public skates, and maybe take a lesson every other week rather than every week. I also get my dresses for cheap (and stone them myself), or I reuse dresses I currently have. My gymnastics gym allows for people to "pay as you go," which is also very helpful.  I guess I feel like everything with trying to come up with a reasonable budget is a mind boggling process.  There's also the thought of obtaining a second job, which may have to happen.  The kicker is that I don't want to feel like I'm constantly working. I put up with that for years, and it's really not a good thing. However, since I don't get paid for breaks and many half days (teachers meetings and stuff).  That would also bring up the question on how I could continue to run/train for this potential marathon, plus still skate and take gymnastics.  I'm trying to stay positive, but it really does make me stress out some with things being so uncertain, and trying to sort it out.

However, since I know things are questionable, the one thing I know I can do is to do what my money mentor is reccommending at each of our meetings (we've only had two so far, but will keep meeting each month), and continue to slowly build from there.  If I try to tackle everything at once, it's going to not end up in a good result.

That beingsaid, at least running, as a whole, is very cheap.  It doesn't cost anything to run outside, so I'm grateful that I am healthy, and able to run. I actually have it very lucky there, as I know many people can't run, or are in much worse financial mess than me. I'm just having to take baby steps, but they're going in the right direction. This overdrawing at the bank was just a minor pothole.  I could be losing a house or car, or out in the streets, but I'm not.  I just hope that things will smooth over a bit better soon, or that new opportunities come up to help me sort out...and possibly improve my situation.

Keep on running!

Back to the treadmill (week 8)

I think winter has been sneaking in here, and we had our first snowfall today.  I had good runs this week, but got thrown through a loop with seeing the snow coming down this morning.  Keep in mind that I don't like winter weather because I hate being cold, especially for running.  I did consider running out in the snow, but it was also windy with the big flakes, and it wasn't quite sticking, making a bunch of slush.  This is not good when you don't have the proper running gear for winter weather running yet (working on that...more about that later).

So, today was my first run at the gym this winter.  This meant hitting the treadmill for 5 miles, and I was initially nervous about the distance.  I don't know why...probably because it feels like a long ways to me, but again, once I got going, the mileage wasn't that intimidating.

As a whole, the treadmill is not my favorite method of getting miles in, but it sure beats running on an indoor track for laps on end.  I brought my ipod, and played some of the new tunes I had recently downloaded. I started off with a 5 minute walk, just to get things moving a bit, then took about 10 minutes to stretch. After that, I hopped back onto the treadmill to start my 5 miles.  It took a few minutes to get use to being on the treadmill, and my legs needed a few extra minutes for warm-up, but I ended up really enjoying the run!  I got into the music on my ipod, was mouthing along with the words, and even mentally changing the lyrics here and there to make them race/finish line related. I was even picturing myself running the marathon, holding a great pace, feeling great, and just enjoying the run.  I kept my pace and distance indicator covered most of the time to avoid the mindset of "Ugh. I've only done X miles at X speed,", but I think I was running somewhere around 10:30 pace (maybe a bit slower) for most of the run.  I varied the speed some throughout the run....ran a bit faster when I felt like I could, then slowed down some when I felt like I needed a bit of recovery.  I finished the last 10th of a mile at a 10 minute pace, and finished somewhere about a minute or two above 50 minutes.  For a marathon pace, that's actually not bad.  I had to remind myself of that towards the end of my run, because I did have that thought of "Am I too slow?" sneak in.  However, I had to remind myself that if I do this marathon, I'm going for distance, not time, and that my pace was really good for me....not for anyone else, but for me.  I certainly won't first finish first, but I wouldn't be last, and, most importantly, finish the race like a boss.

As for fueling, all I needed was some water, which I had on me at the treadmill. About a hour before the run, I realized I was really hungry, as I didn't have lunch.  As I normally like to do, I slept in late, and had some oatmeal, with plans of doing the long run outside, but those plans got foiled.  Then, I remembered there was a gymnastics meet on campus that I was wanting to go see, so I went to that instead, which caused me to not have lunch. In other words, I didn't plan my schedule well. So anyways, I went to our local food co-op, which is in the same building as my gym.  There I was only planning on buying a banana or small snack to tide me over, but found myself buying two slices of pizza and some pesto salad instead.  I wasn't sure on how well it was going to work with me, but it ended up being fine, and I had good energy throughout the whole run.

As for this cold weather thing, I'm trying to still run outside as much as possible. However, I really don't have the warm weather gear for it.  Plus, warm weather gear can be expensive to get.  So, I've done some snooping around online, and came across this site called Poshmark.  It's a website in which people sell (mostly) gently used clothing, including running gear.  I did try on some Under Armour "Cold Gear" running tights at the mall that I found on sale for $25, but neither size fit.  However, I decided that I would be okay with a gently used pair, and found one that will hopefully fit me well for the same price.  I figured it's worth a shot.  Now, I am also trying to find a winter weather/cold gear type of running shirt, as my Nike Pro shirt (which was super cool, as it also had thumb holes) has gone MIA. I *might* have accidently gotten rid of it when I moved to my current place back in August, but I'm not sure.  Plus, I still want a good jacket, and some reflective gear/lights. It gets so dark so fast nowadays after work that I have a narrow time frame to get my run done. At this point, I may be having to run at the gym on the treadmill more because of the daylight issue.

In the meantime, I'll do the best that I can with this weather. I believe in two weeks, I will have my 6 mile long run, and will be making my decision about doing this full marathon training around then. I am still on edge about it a bit, but with knowing that I conquered five miles nonstop today, I'm feeling more confident that I can start running six, and maybe continue on with the training.

Happy Running!