Sorry I have been gone/ Quick life recap

Since I actually had followers I really feel like I should apologize for suddenly dropping off the face the earth for several months.  Life got in the way of both consistent running and blogging. Yet, I still feel badly about not saying, "by the way I am taking a break for a bit." Also, I can see now how the blogging helped w/ the consistent running part.
So, I am back.

Here is a quick recap since my last post in October:

• October - End of October I had a flare up of an old SI injury and had to stop running for 2 weeks.  I was somewhat demoralized as I had just joined one of tall mom's challenges. Didn't feel inspired to blog at the time. Then some biggish "possibilities" came up in our life and I didn't have the time or focus to blog.
• November - got back to running. Ran 5.5 miles the Saturday before thanksgiving.  Hoping to run six miles with my brother over the holiday.  But nasty weather, and sickness cut that to about 3 miles. 
• December - Winter decided to set in early.  Not much time for running in the holiday busyness.
• January/February - Lots of snow. With no sidewalks, snow and ice covered roads w/ 3 to 4 foot walls of snow along the side - I decided it just wasn't a safe place to run. Especially in the dark early am, as during tax season that is my only option most days. I did some interval work on the treadmill sporadically. I did some weight training sporadically.
• Last wk of February - the weather started clearing, and I had gained 2 lbs since November. As I started flirting w/ 170lbs I decided I needed to get back to running. I was delighted that I could still run 2 miles!
• March - I was not impressed that after 2 weeks back to running I had gained 4 lbs!! Went to bed frustrated, only to wake up just after midnight in horrible abdominal pain followed by trips to the bathroom that left me shaking on the floor. Found out the 4 lb weight gain was an ovarian cyst, and the cyst ruptured in the night.  Spent several days on vicodin. Took 2 weeks off running.  
• April - I resumed running sporadically by the end of March. But with 2 weeks until my 37th birthday I was determined to lose the 5 lbs I needed to officially be at a healthy BMI.  When I weighed myself in on April 14th I was 164 lbs. My official maximum healthy weight!  That is the first time in more than a decade I wasn't overweight.  Of course with 3 birthdays, Easter, and Mother's day in the next 2.5 weeks I gained back 3 of those 5 lbs.
• May - my running was still somewhat sporadic. I decided I needed a plan and a goal like I had last year. I also encouraged myself that in May 2010 running wasn't even on my radar, and now I could run 2 miles (my very first goal) easily.  I knew my goal would be to do a 10k in September. For my plan I found a 8 week beginner and 8 week advanced beginner 10 training program.  With a few modifications I put them together to make a 15 week training plan.
• June - weather again has been a factor. A week of frequent storms threw me off schedule. That week was followed by vacation (which I had planned to "take off") So this week I am back at it and back on track. 

I ran 3.54 miles this morning in 48 minutes. Not a fabulous time. But since this time last year I thought I would die running 6 minutes straight, I am reminded how far I have come.  

Solving Problems...Learning...

I have been running for more than 3 months now. And I don't intend to quit!!! Yesterday I ran 4.5 miles in 58:14. Which means my pace was 12:56 per mile! So great to begin to move out of the 13's. And I am learning ways to keep going even when obstacles arise.

In order to run that 4.5 miles I had to get out in the cold, dark, predawn world. It was so cold! Frost was on the ground, I could see my breath, and I need warmer running clothes. (See problem/solution #1) It was also dark. I didn't know if I could run in the dark. My hubby isn't thrilled with the personal safety aspect. And, my concern is being able to see what I am running on (see problem/solution #2)

I have also been working with my treadmill. I say "working with" because just straight running on it can be tedious and grueling. (See problem/solution #3)

So here is how I have worked through some of my obstacles:

• Problem #1: I need warmer running clothes, but don't want to spend big bucks. I am finding that running gets expensive. And oversized long sleeve cotton shirts weren't cutting it. I can't even find long sleeve running clothes at the local super store where I got my other "wicking wear". I thought this was going to necessitate a trip to the sports store, where stuff is way more pricey. Solution: The thrift store! I found a long sleeve tech top in good condition, and a nearly new running jacket. Total price $4.90! I had read this suggestion online, but was still surprised at the amount of great stuff there.

• Problem #2: It is dark in the morning now. Really the only consistent time I get to run outside is if I can get out before my hubby leaves for work. But it is dark outside until after 6am now. Our little town is pretty safe as far crime. I have never heard of any "stranger danger" at all. But our little town only has scattered sidewalks and street lights, posing dangers to feet ankles and other body parts since you can't see the surface you're running on. Solution: A headlight! While I may look like a dork, this is a great solution. My parents put all kind of handy/goofy gadgets in my hubby's Christmas stocking. Last year he got a headlight. Basically it is a light on an elastic strap. And it even tilts down so I can aim it at the ground. It even gives my some added safety when it comes to "traffic" (I usually see at least 2 or 3 cars on the road.)

• Problem #3: The treadmill. I have had to deal with the fact that I will have to get used to the treadmill. Running on the treadmill is hard. I thought about it a lot. One of the hard things for me is the repetitive motion. Outside you have terrain changes varying the demands on your muscles. With the treadmill it is just the same thing over and over. Mentally and physically it is boring. Solution: Focus on exercising, not running. I had to shift my paradigm. Distance is not the point. Working up a good sweat is the goal. I do my own version of speed work. Not because I am driven to be speedy, but it is a way to challenge myself. The treadmill is actually fun when I run a mile in less than 12 minutes. My treadmill also has programs where the speed and incline varies. It can actually be fun to do these, even though they include some walking. And I can speed them up if I want. So, even though I don't focus on running, I still run.

Perseverance, creativity, discipline...running is helping me to develop these characteristics. I am so thankful God chose to bring running into my life. ( BTW I love that I am only 1 pound from my pre-1st baby weight as well ;) )

Problem solving needed

I want to scream, cry, or whine. But what a waste of energy. I just need to solve these logistical problems.

I feel like I will never be able to run more than 3 miles!! Not because of lack of ability, but because of availability. With the changing of the season the sun has started sleeping in until almost 6 am. And my hubby has started to need to leave for work by 6:30. 30 minutes is just not enough time.

I tried starting just before sunrise, but our sidewalks are hit and miss (both quality of sidewalks, and existence of sidewalks) Lighting is pretty hit and miss as well. So besides the traffic issue, I have a hard time seeing the ground. It just seems like a good way to get injured. Also, my husband does not like the idea of me running in the dark.

That leaves the treadmill. So I decided to just get on the treadmill this afternoon while my 1 y/o was napping. Once when I did this I just set my 3 y/o up with a movie and she promptly fell asleep, it wasn't too bad. Well the last 2 times I have tried it, I am constantly being interrupted. I guess this is more of a behavioral issue w/ my child. But it is hard for her too, my running on the treadmill a few feet away is distracting. And I just don't deal with distractions well when I am running so I become frustrated and "mean mommy" comes out. I don't like running in the afternoon that much anyway.

Maybe tomorrow I will try getting up at 5:15 for a date with the treadmill. I really wish I had an mp3 player so I didn't have to entertain myself, while I stare at our paneling. I used to have no problem when I walked on the treadmill, I would read. But I haven't figured out how to read while running yet. Alas, I will probably have to wait until Christmas for the mp3 player...sigh...
I think I will type up a few super-large print Bible verses, tape the to the paneling and memorize them while I run. I actually have some posted, but they aren't quite large enough. Maybe I can find some dealing with perseverance to keep me going....

Struggles and Accomplishments

What a difference a day makes. Yesterday I was going to write a blog post titled "struggles". But I was too tired to bother. Today is a different day where I want to write about my accomplishment!

39:49!!!

That was my time for the first 5 kilometers I ran this morning! I accomplished my goal! Then I ran for another 5 minutes, so I know in a race situation I could even finish faster. I ran a total of 3.5 miles. (3.76 miles including my warm up and cool down walking)

I noticed how long it has been since I posted. Life got busy, between my 3 y/o's birthday, vacation, new computer training at work, my mom's group starting back up, etc....etc... But, I have still been running, some days better than others. A lot of the time I have been struggling. But struggles are a part of life, an integral part, as that is where we learn. So here is what I learned about running through some struggles of the last few weeks:

1. If you eat badly, you will feel badly when you run. I discovered this on vacation. The first morning I ran I felt pretty good. Then after eating too much food, and food that mostly fell into the categories fried, rich, or sugary; I felt awful when running. Plus I gained 4 pounds. It took me a couple of days to recover, and I still have 2 pound to go to my pre-vacation weight. SO: eat well to run well!
2. Sleep is crucial. This one I couldn't control much this week, but sometimes I can. My 16 month old threw up in the middle of the night 3 nights in a row. When I tried to run on 4 hours of poor sleep I just ran out of gas. I probably would have been better off with a nap SO: sleep well to run well
3. Don't run where you know you might run into obstacles. I decided to try running north again, the first time I didn't encounter the dog, but I did burn some time and energy watching for him. The second time, sure enough he came blasting/barking out into the road, and I twisted my hip in my quick turn away from him. Truly my best runs have been my runs south. That route lets me concentrate on my running form etc... not on what I might encounter along the way. SO: Choose your route wisely.
4. A few bad days or a bad week doesn't reflect reality. I went on vacation and thought I had set myself back for weeks, but then I had 2 really good 3+mile runs a few days after I came home. This week I had a really bad 3 days of running, then today I met my goal! SO: keep running it will get better.

My new goal is to run 4 miles by October 1st. I don't think that should be too hard to reach. The trick is that I usually only have about 45 to 50 minutes to run (including warm up/cool down). So I need to get a bit faster to run 4 miles in that time frame. But I'll just keep running until I get there.