Just dragging

Well, today my run intervals were set to increase to 10 minutes, and I made it through my first walk/run cycle without passing out even though I was certainly aware of the spicy V8 I drank just before I headed out. I felt like I was making good time compared to my normal pace - I covered 1.25 miles in 11 minutes, but when it came time to start back up... My legs didn't want to go. I could attribute it to a slight wardrobe malfunction with my, erm, support, but that would be a stretch. I tried to convince myself to take another minute to walk before I picked up speed again, but I just wasn't feeling it.

I really showed myself later though... As punishment, I attempted to do my 20 minutes all over again on the treadmill during the boy's morning nap. My average pace was faster than the one from early this morning, but considering I walked the last 7 minutes of my morning run... I would certainly HOPE a straight up run would be faster.

This leads me to believe that I needed a) to take advantage of my rest day yesterday or b) a cup of coffee.

But tomorrow is another day. And luckily a cross-training day.

As crazy as it might sound, I keep waiting for the day when I just decide that enough's enough and I will go back to being lazy me. I mean I've been pretty good about taking my physical fitness seriously this year, but there are quite a number of years before that which clearly demonstrate my natural tendency to be lazy.

All through school, I wanted to be one of those thin, beautiful girls that everyone seemed to admire. Instead I was just a nerd who played saxophone and was a little overweight. Marching was about the most athletic thing I did at a school where most of the self-proclaimed "popular" kids were generally pretty sporty. I had my fair share of friends, but the kids who hounded me were pretty vocal and persistent. There are days where I still think about some of the things they said.

In that world, I would never have been able to do the things I've done this far, and there's a certain amount of satisfaction I have in knowing that they cannot keep me from being who I'd like to be or doing the things I'd like to do. I have control over my own life. That's empowering.

With that in mind, my friend Jen posted a link to this video on Facebook. It inspired me so that I felt the need to share it as well.



But to leave on a lighter note, I had to share this one from Peyton and a few of his Colt teammates. Too funny.

Have I told you lately....

That I LOVE the Manning boys...  I must admit that I was pulling for Peyton during the "Manning Bowl", but I hated to see the Giants' O-Line let the Colts defenders just keep pummeling Eli.  At any rate, I saw this video yesterday morning, and while I'm sure there are people out there who are probably tired of hearing about these boys, I absolutely love them.  I love to watch them play normally, but I also have a deep appreciation for the kind of people they seem to be and the close bond they share. I must warn you though... it is extremely catchy, so watch at your own risk. ;)

No room for petulance

Training has continued to go pretty well in spite of the fact that I now have two bum big toes.  During my 20 minute runs, I have managed to improve my speed just a few seconds even with longer run intervals (8 minutes), and I'm curious as to what I'll find when the intervals are increased to 10 minutes on Thursday.  My long run last Saturday was really quite fun as I once again got to venture out with my hubby, and we were able to push one another's limits even if the average speed was a little slower.  The neat thing about it is that we were pretty close to making the 5K distance in the time that was allotted (30 minutes).  Well, at the very least, a lot closer than we would have been a few weeks ago.

After our run on Saturday, we once again ventured into Oxford for an Ole Miss football game at what seemed an unreasonable hour - kickoff was at 11:22AM.  If you follow such things, you know that it was a terrible game for Ole Miss fans particularly, but I learned two important PERSONAL lessons: 1) if you don't plan on eating at a lunchtime game, make sure you eat more for breakfast - and do NOT allow yourself to go with a calorie deficit; 2) stay well hydrated.  By the third quarter, I had "cotton-mouth" despite the fact that Brad was generous enough to share his water (as I blew through my bottle in the first half) and felt nauseous.  I hated to run out on our boys, but I felt like I might not make it back to the car at all if I did not leave with about 8 minutes left in the 4th quarter.  We stopped by the Rebel Shop and picked up a couple bottles of Powerade.  There was no friendly sprint back to the car...  it was all I could do to make it back to the car, where I just soaked up the cool air from the A/C.  Later, that night, I went into a terrible "freak out" session, but luckily, Brad was there and once he brought me some more water (I had been drinking like a fish ever since we returned home), I calmed back down & went back to normal.  Scary stuff. 

Of course, the most pressing thing on my mind as of late has no relation to either my training or lack of preparation for attending a game in the heat of the day.  Instead, it revolves around a seemingly simple concept: self-worth is self-evident.  Your worth is inherent from the moment you are created and is not derived from the perception of others or your own actions.  If you feel that the only way that you can feel secure in yourself is to put down another person, then you are setting yourself up to be disappointed in the long run. 

In some form or fashion, we are all products of our pasts (even though our actual value is a separate thing entirely).  Some people have experienced more pain and suffering than others, but you have a choice: you can let these bad things keep you down or you can rise above them.  You can assume that everyone is out to get you or give folks the benefit of the doubt.  I personally prefer the latter.  That certainly doesn't mean that I am confident all people like me, but I do my best to bring reason back into the equation.

However, if I am unable to convince myself that a person meant no harm, then I will more than likely take action.  If I have done wrong by another person, then I have no problem apologizing for my actions, and believe me when I say that I will dwell on it for longer than I should.  However, I will refuse to apologize for your ignorance.  I will feel no remorse for something I did not do.  When you feel you are unable to obtain the type of relationship that you desire with another person because of my relationship with that person - not because I have done anything to impede its development but merely because I exist, I will not apologize.  If you want something, put in the "legwork".  I will do my best to help you in any way that I can to obtain what you desire, but I will not accept childish petulance or any reference to what someone else has done to you.  If you want respect from me, treat me with respect.  Regardless of what you do, I will make the best of a bad situation, but believe me when I say this... my self-worth will stay intact.

On a lighter note, the smell of baked pumpkin mixed with cinnamon, nutmeg, & ginger is really quite intoxicating....  Looking forward to an Autumn Smoothie.

Takin' a Hike

After a wonderful gator po' boy at Oby's yesterday afternoon and another piece of my super delicious birthday cake (and some SoCola) last night, it seemed only natural that we'd attempt to discover another local trail as we have this idea that we'd like to do some trail running.  While the trail today didn't really lend itself to running exactly, it was SUCH a challenge - especially to my glutes.  For the most part, I really enjoyed the surroundings.  I wasn't taking it at a super aggressive pace, but it's remarkable how a little slithering thing can really light a fire under my feet.  Yes, I saw a small little snake slithering across the path and I found myself ready to run the rest of the way.  Suffice it say - I REALLY hate snakes...   Just hoping that my muscles get plenty of rest tonight so I'll be ready to run/walk my 20 tomorrow morning.

As promised, I will give you the details of my yummy birthday cake....

 

Brad baked a Sugar Free chocolate cake, split it in half. He placed one layer on the bottom and covered it with a layer of Caramel topping. He sprinkled some crumbled Snickers over that and then put down a layer of homemade fat-free caramel ice cream. Then he topped the ice cream layer with the second half of the chocolate cake and put some fat-free cool whip on the top with more crumbled Snickers sprinkled over the top. Absolutely the most delicious ice cream cake I've ever had. While it's definitely more friendly to my waistline than it COULD be, it's definitely not something I need to be eating every day... no matter how much I might like to.

SABOTAGE!

If I had a headline this morning... that's what it would be. 

Once again, I was highly motivated to run this morning...  As it is Saturday, I didn't have to worry about being up with the sun, but I was quick to brew my coffee and drink my juice this morning.  Just for good measure, I threw on my new bold (no doubt glow-in-the-dark) shorts  with the full knowledge that there was no way I was gonna color coordinate, but I was good with it...  I mean, when you are so super awesome that you can run for the majority of your time outside...  you can do things like that.  Or at least that was my rationale.

But... my "coach" had other plans. 

From the get go of my first run interval (1mn walk/5mn run), I had a good pace going.  Not too fast as to make my lungs scream, but fast enough to feel like I wasn't standing still.  I kept an eye on my time, even though it was a bit harder to do this morning than usual as instead of locking on the "tracking" screen, it apparently decided to "wake up" to my normal wake-up screen instead (I do wish I could come up with a better way of explaining it, but alas, that's the best I can do).  Well I was about 12:30 in and somewhere well past a mile, when I attempted to get the timer/tracking screen to show and I evidentally hit the "home" button one time too many and I was taken to my "home" page.  I attempted to go back into the "5K Coach" app to find that it had conveniently paused the timer for me, but I could get it to start my playlist again without ending my run, so I started my music through the iPod app and went back in to the "coach" app.  I started my next run interval, only to notice part way through that my distance had been reset at some point even though my time had not.  Devastated.  Completely devastated.  At that point, it was all I could do to walk the rest of my second loop. 

I had been so pleased with my time at first only to let some stupid piece of electronic equipment rob me of the joy I was fighting so hard for.  Lesson learned.

Now to take on another 35 minutes on the treadmill to make up for that wasted outing.... 

Setting a new PR!

At the suggestion of my "coach", I decided to drink a cup of coffee BEFORE my run/walk this morning, as he claims coffee is supposed to help you with your "athletic performance" if used regularly.  Now considering that I usually leave the house AT sunrise, it would normally be a stretch for me to even think of being up early enough to get the coffee brewed before I hit the door, but my internal alarm clock had gotten wind of my intentions and decided to sound an hour before sunrise.  By the time the sun FINALLY decided to cooperate, I'd already had my "simple carb" & cup of coffee and been "suited up" for about 20 minutes...  Needless to really say, I was chompin' at the bit.

With a goal of 20 minutes of 1 minute walk/5 minute run cycle, I hit the pavement with my new shoes and armband for company.  As I had done when Brad was with me on a couple run last weekend, I kept angling the "face" of the armband toward me so I could watch the time tick to the 1:00 mark and I propelled myself forward, my veins hyped up with coffee and spicy V8.

 It wasn't long before I felt that familiar tightness in my chest, even though I was absolutely convinced that I was hobbling along at a snail's pace as the scenery around me seemed to change all too slowly.  Of course, I will once again have to chalk it up to "treadmill trama", and as usual, once I let up on the gas, I could focus once more on the task at hand... make it to the 6:00 mark and so on.  When it felt like I just couldn't make it, I sought energy from the various tunes playing on my iPhone, and would generally find it - or perhaps I just looked deeper into my personal reserve as this app doesn't exactly lend itself to easily controlling your music on the run, but at any rate...  I did my best to keep a good manageable pace on the run intervals and not just completely fall out when I could slow up to a walk.  I actually had to modify my intended route as I needed to go a bit farther than I'd anticipated to keep it up for the whole 20 minutes.  When I made it back to the house, I was able to really take a gander...  I'd managed to have an average pace of 9:55 minutes per mile.  That is certainly a PR!!! 

While I felt like falling out in the yard just after that last minute running, the enormous sense of pride that overcame me shortly thereafter...  made it TOTALLY worth it!

Food and Thoughts

About a month ago, Brad and I worked on some delicious Butterfinger cupcakes at the special request of an intern we'd befriended from his work who was preparing to leave for her first semester at Bama, and boy, they were absolutely delicious.  Chocolate Fudge cake mix, butterscotch center, whipped cream frosting with a dusting of crushed Butterfinger over the top...  Divine.  Simply divine.  Anyways, at that time, I had made a point to tell my hubby that he'd have to top that when it came time for my birthday cake, and to hear him tell it, he has been planning ever since.  From what I've been able to gather, he has known for a while what he wanted to do - he just wanted to try to cut as many calories out as possible to be kind to our diets.  Well, as my birthday is coming up this Sunday, there were a few lower-cal/fat-free items that we couldn't get from the stores around here, so I ventured out into the great big "city" to get them.  While Brad was relieved that he didn't have to make the trek after work, he made sure I understood that he was a bit annoyed as the cake itself is a mystery to me but that now that I know these few ingredients... I "already know too much"...  Will be sure to share pictures and what not when the time comes...

At any rate, I decided to make a detour to the bookstore to see if I could get a hold of some of the other running magazines out there as I'd already picked up a copy of Runner's World before my appointment with the podiatrist last Thursday.  I found two others that I came across during my research last night, Running Times and TrailRunner, but also picked up the new issue of "Runner's World" just for good measure.  I must admit this was difficult as I hate to buy anything at list price and for the price of the two issues of Runner's World I've purchased so far (with tax) I could have bought a year's subscription, but anyways...  When I got home, I noticed that the toned gal on the front of the October 2010 issue of "Runner's World" had a tag indicating that she had just had her first baby back in April.  When I saw that...  My jaw hit the floor.  At first, I must admit I was jealous, but then I realized something...  it's only because it reminds me that I was so lazy before and during my pregnancy.  Ah well, I do look forward to reading the accompanying article.

However, before I jumped to the October issue, I knew I needed to finish up the one from September, which brings me to a piece that I thought I'd share, "Liberty + Justice".  When I'd come across the brief synopsis of this article in the Editor's Letter, I couldn't help but roll my eyes a little.  I mean, I bought this magazine with the idea that it would be about running - not so I could have some ideologue to tell me how wrong I was on the politically charged topic of illegal immigration, but surprisingly enough, I found it an interesting read.  In my opinion, the writer did a pretty good job of reporting the facts of the case without being TOO slanted in the delivery.  It was interesting to read about the plight of a real person, who, despite doing many positive things for the community in which he was placed for 20 years or so, had never actually bothered to obtain American citizenship.  I would be a heartless and cruel person not to sympathize with Mr. Aparicio's situation - after all he sounded to be just the kind of person that I would want to coach my kids someday, but he did not obey the law.  He was still a boy when he crossed the border, but as an adult, he did not follow through to become a citizen of the country he apparently loves so much.  He knew he was "undocumented", but he let it slide.  Of course, one might also point to the fact that he'd been gainfully employed without a need for obtaining citizenship status (which is another aspect of the whole issue that definitely needs to be addressed), but the responsibility of doing the right thing, which he seemed to relish in every other aspect mentioned, rested on his own shoulders.  Yes, there was a time when Mr. Aparicio's basic actions would have done nothing more than just prove that he was a fine person and a rather ideal sort of American, but now there are more requirements to become an American, more procedures to follow.  There are also more responsibilities that come with being an American  - chief among these, paying taxes to fund the various state sponsored programs in which your fellows can partake.  I am not a fan of taxes, but it takes money to fund things like government sponsored schools.  If you partake in these services, in theory, you should contribute toward them - heck, even people who don't partake of these services have to contribute.  Of course, when it comes to schools, the contributions should come from the parents or legal guardians, and if you are an illegal alien who is working here in the States, you/your employer is not paying into the system, so you are stealing these services if you partake of them (or if you aren't using them, you are just declaring that you are superior to all the taxpayers in this country).  It might sound a bit crass to say "steal" when it comes to education as it seems like such a basic thing that we the people provide to our children, but it's not truly free.  The money must come from somewhere.  I don't like the system that we find ourselves in, but until it is changed, or perhaps completely overhauled, it just seems natural to operate under the laws we already have in place.  Of course, this is only one aspect of the need to enforce the immigration laws we have on the books already, but as this aspect was constantly brought into the limelight throughout the article, it was the one I guess I felt most pertinent to my commentary.  Whatever your personal opinion on the issue, I hope that you too will find the article an interesting read.

As for training, today was supposed to be a rest day, but I just had a lot of energy, so I threw in a 30 minute session on the treadmill for good measure.  Still pleased with the new shoes.

In with the new....

When my new shoes first arrived last Thursday afternoon, my right foot was unable to indulge in a test drive due in part to the condition of its "big" toe, but mostly because of the protective dressing around it (read "really large"). My left foot was able to take a few steps within its new shoe, but unfortunately I was unable to get a good feel for how the shoes would, well, feel as experiencing them as a pair tends to be a bit more reliable than just one or the other. Due to my concern for the nailless toe, I opted to take my old RunTones on our trip to my in-laws this weekend.



These shoes have been my go-to pair since I bought them in March. I've walked quite a few miles in them on the pavement and the treadmill - but also around various malls. They been with me through every one of my sessions with Jari and even a few others such as my "The Firm: Ultimate Fat Burning Workout" and "Reebok: Intense Moves". With their help, I've shed about 30-35 of the 45 lbs. I've lost since February.



Today, I decided to give my Brooks a shot - mainly because I felt like it was high time I at least tried them out in some capacity, and as my "coach" prescribed an hour of cross-training for today's task, I figured I could put them to a bit of test with another session with Jari. One of the first things I noticed was the ventilation difference - on the surface, they appear to have the same design, but I could feel more air flow even just moving around in the living room. Another notable difference? I felt oh-so light on my feet.

Now, for the first few minutes, the middle of my right foot was attempting to rebel against the shoe - as if it wanted to roll out and the shoe meant for it to roll in. It was a bit unsettling, but as it eventually seemed to settle down, I can only presume that it was due to the fact that I'd been underpronating all weekend in an attempt to reduce pressure on my toe.

One of the main selling points of the RunTones was the fact that they would create instability to make your muscle work harder. To some, this would sound like a bunch of crap, but as I was doing various exercises with my new STABLE shoes, particularly those that required me to balance on one leg, were all weird because I was so UNSTABLE. Apparently my body will just have to learn how to be stable without instability again - almost makes me wonder what holding some yoga poses would be like about now. Or it might just be that my feet just react that way when I have shoes on, because I've done fine barefoot with the various balance poses and stretches I've attempted recently. Feet really are pretty awesome like that.



Oh well, I'm not convinced that it's completely a case of "out with the old, in with the new", BUT it is the start...

Weekend Warrior?

Even though I was still in a fair amount of pain/discomfort on Friday, I did manage to complete Ellen Barrett's "Slim Sculpt" and the last segment of the "Ballet Body" workout. When I first started doing the Slim Sculpt workout back in January/February, it really was difficult to go more than about 5 minutes with even my 3 lbs. weights due to the big ranges of motion. However, after several months away from the routine, I was pleasantly surprised to be able to easily handle the whole weight section on Friday. Even brings a smile to my face now...

After some TLC from my mother-in-law for my gimpy toe on Friday night, I headed out to tackle the first long run of this "5K Coach" program with my hubby. I was amazed at how much he motivated me to keep going and to keep pushing my pace. I was quite satisfied with our performance (even though I knew full well that I was holding him back, but he got his all-out sprint in at the end) over the 30 minutes - 1 minute walk, 3 minute run. Later that day, we headed over to see our Rebels play and even though the game didn't turn out the way we would have liked, we still felt a good bit of satisfaction for keeping up our pace on the way back to the car - and even sprinting back to the car once we reached the mall parking lot.

On Sunday, we decided to check out a local trail with the intention of running a bit on it, but my toe really wasn't feeling up to that sort of a challenge - especially about a half mile down the trail when we were essentially running in water. We had a moderate sort of pace, but evidentally it was effective because shortly after our run this morning (20 minutes - 1 min walk, 5 min run), my glutes were definitely feeling it. In fact, they are STILL feeling it, so hopefully all will go well with my cross-training tomorrow.

As sort of a side note, I've had my new shoes since last Thursday, but was afraid to break them in this weekend with the toe. Looking forward to trying them out on Thursday if not before.

Mission Accomplished!

According to my "5K Coach" (an app on my iPhone), yesterday was supposed to be a day of rest.  I feel I actually followed the recommendation, but I DID get in a nice walk as I pushed Coop around the neighborhood in his stroller and he seemed to have a good time, humming for part of the way - presumably to try to stay awake.  I must admit that I was impressed that he actually kept his cap and glasses on the whole time.

When I woke up this morning... well perhaps the 5th and final time I woke up this morning because evidentally I drank entirely TOO much water before I went to bed last night...  I felt fresh and ready to tackle the walk/run goal set by my coach.  Since my first attempt on Monday, I've been taking in all kinds of digital material about breathing exercises, general running tips, common mistakes beginners make, etc.  As a result, when I laced up this morning, I felt like I was better prepared to take on the challenge ahead of me. 

Goal: For a total of 15 minutes - Walk 1 minute, Run 3 minutes  

Result: Surprisingly, I was able to handle the task quite easily.  When I first quickened my pace to a run, my lungs attempted to freak me out again as they had on Monday, but then I consciously slowed my pace and suddenly breathing was rather natural again.  The most amazing thing to me?  That when I slowed up, I was still faster than I typically "run" on the treadmill, even though I felt like I was dragging behind my normal walk.  Brad pointed out that I'm actually able to realize my full stride length outside, which would account for the speed difference.  Honestly, that gives me hope... 

Of course, I have a potential temporary stride-breaker...  Either as a result of a pedicure gone bad or shoes that were too tight when I was preggers, I have two big toenails that need to be dealt with... well I HAD two. 

From Be a 10 in 2010

Now I have one.  And just part of it will have to go.  I might need to take a break from my normal morning walk tomorrow morning, so I can instead allow my toe to heal, but I should be able to manage to do some sort of cross-training as recommended by my coach.  Reckon we'll see when morning comes...