Eight

Today I slept in and pushed my long run back to the afternoon.  It's pretty cold here today, and I figured I'd run during the warmest part of the day.  Plus it's nice to sleep in. :)

I ran 8 miles of hills today in order to get ready for my climb up Mill Mountain in a few weeks for the Blue Ridge Half-Marathon.  I am so stinkin' excited about Blue Ridge.  I love this race -- I feel like I have such a deep connection to it, and I cannot wait to see what they have done to change it up from it's inaugural year.

Today's run was pretty boring.  I haven't done a long run alone in a long time.  I always feel so bad the first few miles, but once I get going I usually feel like I could go for miles and miles.  Legs were a little sore, but nothing unusual.  We're supposed to get some snow tonight, and I'm so glad I already got my long run in for the weekend!

Miles: 8
Time: 1 hour, 31 minutes

Miles this Week: 28
Miles this Month: 70

Cold

The word cold perfectly describes my run this morning.  I think it was the coldest run I've ever done!  When I left the house to meet up with Hannah it was 16 degrees, and that's the temp it stayed during our run.  Some of the time I felt fine, but other times it was FREEZING!

I really enjoyed the run with Hannah.  It is so great to run with friends -- she definitely helps me push it up a notch, and I love our conversations while running.  I'm pretty sure I could run a marathon with most of my girlfriends and talk the entire time. :)

Mathis also ran on the Huckleberry while we were out there.  It was so great to be back on the trail -- I can't remember the last time the snow was gone and we were able to run on the Huckleberry!  Mathis' ankle has really been bothering him since the marathon, and I think he's going to take a few weeks off of it.  We're both really starting to consider whether it's best for us to run the full or the half at Blue Ridge.  We're signed up for the full, and we've been planning on running it, but today we're really considering dropping down to the half.  There's pros/cons to both distances -- guess we'll just have to weight them out!

Miles: 8
Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Miles this Week: 16
Miles this Month: 45

8

This morning I woke up bright and early to run with Hannah in the neighborhood.  I took the past two days off after Sunday's run, and it felt like the right decision.  It was windy this morning, and I seemed more tired than our early runs last week.  Either way we pulled through, and we got it done!  It's so nice having friends to run with, and I'm so grateful for them helping me train.

I'll do a shorter run of 5 miles tomorrow, and then the half on Saturday!!! :)

Miles: 8
Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Miles this Week: 23
Miles this Month: 46.5

You Know You're a Runner When...

I was schedule to work 8-5 today because of an orientation session, but yesterday my boss let me know that I wouldn't need to come into work until 10:00 or 10:30.  She told me I could sleep in, enjoy a quiet breakfast, but I immediately knew I'd use the extra hours to go running.  I had wondered when I'd get my long run in with work, and I was soooooo excited to know I could now run before work... When this happened I realized that I'm definitely one of those crazy running people! :)  I have quickly learned that I NEED TO RUN, or bad things begin to happen... haha!

I ran 8 miles around the neighborhood, and oh my hills!  I definitely walked quite a bit, but I still finished with an average 12 minute pace, which is what I was aiming for to begin with.  It was a really great run.  I love some of the neighborhoods that I live around.  I ran buy quite a few garage sales, so that was fun. :)  It felt great to stretch my legs at a longer distance, and the weather this morning was somewhat cool and overcast which really made the run feel good.  Have a great weekend!!!

Miles: 8
Time: 1 hour, 37 minutes

Miles this Week: 15.5
Miles this Month: 26.5

2 miles, 4 times

Today Mathis and I ran 8 miles, or as I like to think about it... 2 miles, 4 times! :)  Running is so mental that sometimes I like breaking up the longer runs into smaller increments.  I may worry about running 8 miles, but 2 miles?  I can run 2 miles!  Today I ran 2 miles, stopped and took a short walking break, and then ran 2 more miles, etc. until I had completed a total of 8.

I really enjoyed the run today.  I always seem to like the longer distances, and my legs are tired right now which feels goooooooooood.  It did get pretty warm out there.  We finished running around noon, and by then the temps were rising.  Still nothing compared to the heat in Texas, but I'll probably start waking up earlier on the weekends to avoid the heat of the day.

I didn't hit my goal of 20 miles for the week, but I came pretty close.  I'm not stressing over it... we had some other pretty important things going on this past week. :)

Today I have to give a shout-out to my beautiful sister-in-law Shelly who ran a 5K this morning!  Shelly has been a runner for a long time, and she continues to make time to run despite working full-time and raising two of the cutest children I know.  Shelly inspires me in so many ways.

Congratulations on this great accomplishment, Sister!!! :)

Miles: 8
Time: 1 hour, 26 minutes

Miles this Week: 15
Miles this Month: 39

Mental Sport

It always amazes me at how much running is a mental sport.  It can be so difficult to fight my negative thoughts while out on a run.  My body is physically capable, but my mind will play such tricks on me.

Today I got out there after a 9-day hiatus.  This week I was healing from the wounds of oversleeping my half-marathon, and I was also crazy busy with school.  Those two factors meant zero mileage for me.

Mathis ran with me, and we both knew we'd need to go slow.  This was his first run since injuring his shoulder 3 weeks ago.  We were aiming for 8 miles to get back on track for running the Blue Ridge Half in four weeks.

Around mile 3 I really hit a wall.  Pathetic? yes, but that's the mental aspect of this sport.  One day you run 10, the next 2 is tough.  I have to add that last night I completely pigged out on nachos and quesadillas, and I've paid for it all day.  I feel so gross today, and my stomach has ached since this morning.  It's really somewhat a good thing, because my body is rejecting that junk food.  I used to eat like that all the time, and it didn't phase me.  But now it's rare for me to eat all that crap, and I'm reminded today just how bad it is for you.

Mathis really pushed me today... we still ran slow, but he was like my Jillian on the Biggest Loser.  We made it to four, and then stopped to stretch and walk a bit.  I always stop the Garmin at this point to make sure I am "running" the right mileage.  We started back, and I seemed to do much better the last few miles.  I knew that I was just running to the car at this point (see -- all mental!!!!), and although I experienced some soreness I did alright.  I think my stomach ache and 9-day hiatus hindered me the most.

It felt great to be back out there.  I really love the place that running has brought me too.  I've lost 10 pounds this year, and I plan on loosing another 7.  I feel strong, and I know I'm much healthier.  The spring weather feels great, and I'm so excited to keep running on!

Miles: 8
Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Miles this Week: 8
Miles this Month: 43

Back on Track!

This past week I didn't get much running in.  But yesterday, I ran with Sarah for 8 miles!!  The weather was sunny and 45 degrees!!  We found a part of the Huckleberry Trail that was clear, and it was great!

I think this run was a little tougher than my 8 mile run last week, even though I managed to finish faster.  I was glad to have Sarah along for motivation!  :)

Miles: 8
Time: 1 hour 33 minutes

Miles this Week: 11
Miles this Month: 35.5

8 Mile

Today I had one of the best runs EVER!!!  Mathis and I knew we needed to get a long run in at some point this weekend, and since we're supposed to get a little bit of snow in the morning we decided to go this afternoon.  We run completely different routes, but it's still encouraging to know that we are both running.

I was a little unsure about how my run today would go.  I had planned on trying to get 8 miles done, but I was nervous because I'd be doing the mileage on my own and I was running loops in our neighborhood instead of running on the Huckleberry Trail.

I started out SLOW... I knew that if I was going to do this I did not want to feel tired 2 miles in.  It was pretty cold outside (mid 20s) and I never got hot.  I really, really enjoyed my run today.  I knew that it would feel good to get this mileage done, and I just really soaked up the time outside.  A lot of times I will stop half-way through my run to stretch, but I never once stopped this afternoon.  I knew that I could, but I just felt so GREAT.  My breathing felt right.  My legs felt strong.  Everything clicked.  I ran very slow, but it felt soooooooo good.  I didn't care about my timing, because I was soaking up every minute of my running.  I could have kept running past 8 miles today, and knowing that feels so great.  I am very excited for my 10 mile race next weekend.  :)

And the other great running news today is that my dad is giving me his Garmin!!!!!  I have become so attached to this amazing piece of technology, and I'm thrilled I'll get to continue to train with it.  Thanks, Dad!!!

Miles: 8
Time: 1 hour 40 minutes

Miles this Week: 20
Miles this Month: 24.5