2miler

So 2 miles yesterday in..get this..16:59. We're talking 7:57 pace. Are you kidding me?!?! You would have thought somebody was chasing me w/ a weapon. And it wasn't even cold(we're talking low 70's). I have noticed that I tend to run better(read-faster) in the cold as I assume a lot of runners do but good grief..7:57 pace? Now granted that's w/ 2 miles I suspect-in fact I know I more than likely could not keep that pace over more than 2 miles. But whoa..

I wanted to say thanks to all the congrats over my 1st 5k where I ran the whole way. Your comments mean a lot to me given how speedy you all are & once again confirms what great,supportive running community we have. Also to Sensationally Red my arm is feeling a LOT better since my mishap at the gym last week. I have updated my blog w/ races that I have run & those I have planned for next year on the right. I'd like to get some pics on here but I don't have a camera(although I may ask Santa for one under the tree). And all of my races except for the one I ran this past Sunday I go to alone.

I've got x-training today at the gym. And of course it's cold(well colder then it has been in the past few days-we're talking high of about 50 which is what it should be) today. But hopefully it will be cold tomorrow for my 5miler.

My 1st comment!

I know that for many bloggers this is a creative outlet. Just to put your thoughts out there. But it's nice to get feedback. Because honestly for me,I wouldn't make my life public if I weren't expecting some feedback. I think a lot of us are exhibitionists at heart. So thanks for showing this new blogger some love!

On tap for me today is an easy 2miler(in shorts & a t-shirt again-gotta love this crazy weather we’re having in Virginia!) Followed up w/ lower body strength training. I’ve got my 1^st tempo run on Fri.(according to my running program) & I am not sute how to do it w/o a Garmin or something similar. I have this Polar watch but it doesn’t give me a pace. I have to wait til I’m done & then look at the total time & then do the math. I would like to buy a Garmin but they are crazy expensive & I’m not sure if I want to invest that much into something that right now would be beneficial for my 10k training but after that I might not use it as much. Any thoughts?

5 miles

So...5 miles yesterday w/ the running partner,in 70 degree weather in December done in 46mins. Yeah I'm a little speedy(for me anyway). This crazy weather that we are having(70 degrees one day,a 20 degree drop the next day..fun times) makes running(not to mention dressing) a challenge. I had originally thought on Friday that I would only run about 3 miles after my 5k yesterday but legs were feeling good & I was anxious to start my 10k training. The program that I am on had me doing 6 miles yesterday but I knocked off a mile to be safe. But it will be 6 next Monday. So it will be the gym today for some elliptical & tread work followed by upper body strength training. Later.

5k & other weekend stuff

So this weekend past by in a blur. And I know that time usually does when you are doing something fun. Here's my weekend rundown(I won't be offended if you want to skip to the bottom-really..):

Friday:

Did a 3.1miler w/ running friend. Did it a 8:58 pace. Nice & easy since I had my 5k race on Sunday. Then later that evening I had drinks w/ said running friend. I was in by 9pm though cause I had some surfing on the net to do for a dip recipe for my choir annual potluck Christmas party.

Saturday:

Got my hair done in the morning then did some Christmas shopping & general errand running. I had to pick up a $5 gift for the "Dirty Santa" game that is played at the party. Ended up getting some black cherry jam at the World Market(I heart that store). I managed to get one person crossed off my list but of course I bought a couple of things for me as my reward! You know one gift for one person/2 gifts for me! Went to the Christmas party that night. I had tons of fun. And there was SOOO much food. Sausage dips,meatballs in a sweet type sauce,cheesecake. I never did surf the net Friday night for a dip recipe so I decided to buy a chocolate angel food cake for the party. It was never eaten!. No matter though,I sent it home w/ someone else. Didn't need a whole cake in my house since I live alone. We sang Christmas carols(of course we tried to do the 12 Days of Christmas & couldn't remember after the 9th day. Any know what's given after that?) But it was fun just the same. Later we played "Dirty Santa"(which I had never played). The rules were each person would pick a gift in order(1-how many gifts were there-we had 17). The next person could steal the previous person's gift or pick from the pile. A gift could only be stolen 3 times. I got the last number so I had the chance to see what everyone got that I could steal. There were some gag gifts(think singing Christmas trees & mice). No way I wanted those! Someone had a tealight holder in the shape of a snowman(done in silver) & one of those running water stone statues(runs by batteries). I really wanted the stone statue so I took that one. Then someone showed up late to the party & ended up taking it! So I ended taking the snowman tealight holder.

Update: At church on Sunday the host of the party bought me a running water stone statue! She said she felt bad that my gift got taken since the game was over w/ by the time the late person got there. I told her that she shouldn't have but accepted it just the same. Almost brought tears to my eyes!

Sunday:

Did my 1st 5k running the entire distance! Clock time was 25:59/official result 26:03. It wasn't a chipped race so everyone had to walk down the chute so their time could be recorded manually. In a way I don't like non-chipped races because the people recording the time are often 10-15feet away from the clock not to mention the human error. But it was small running-club sponsored race w/ the proceeds going towards the Toys 4 Tots program so no chip. I didn't start off too fast like I was afraid of doing. Unfortunately I don't have a watch that gives me splits(maybe Santa-if you're listening-can bring a Garmin for Christmas?). Anyway I am really proud of my time & it was a well-organized race. The only negative was a lot of the kids on course kept stopping in the middle of the road to either look for the friends and/or parents. I have no problem w/ kids running in these races but please for heaven's sake MOVE TO THE SIDE! Don't stand right there in the middle of the road leaving everyone who is running to go around you! One great thing that happened(other than my time-I also placed in the top 10 in my age group(30-34)) my running partner showed up to cheer me on! She thought about doing it w/ me but due to getting mono a few months ago she didn't feel up to racing just yet. I had left her message that morning to remind of the time if she wanted to come out but I figured that she wouldn't show. Imagine my surprise when she tugs on my arm just I am about to line up at the start! That totally made my day.

Sorry for the long post(if you are still w/ me). I plan on doing an easy 5miler this afternoon. I am starting to train for a 10k in the spring of next year. I know that my running partner stated that I should do less miles today(since I just raced yesterday) & do a longer run either Tues. or Wed. But honestly my legs feel good & Tues. isn't going to work because I x-cross train that day(as well as Thurs.) & Wed. doesn't work because I do a short run(3.1miles) then & right afterwards I have choir practice. So I figured as long as I take slow,listen to my body(& stop if it starts to hurt) I should be ok. Until next time....

Gym mishap

Guess what?..... It's SNOWING here! I just heart the snow. We don't get much of it here in central VA. More ice & slush than snow. Of course when we do manage to get some of the white stuff people don't know how to drive in it. And then there's the rush to the grocery stores to try to buy up the world's supply of bread,eggs, & milk. I always laugh at those people! My grandmother used to tell me that if you don't have enough food to last you at least a week on a regular basis then you don't know how to grocery shop! No truer words have been spoken. Beside the fact these are the same people when the governor tells ya to stay off the roads so the state's snow crew can work their magic,are out there driving(due to severe cabin fever..but w/ technology to some extent keeping from having face-to-face contact..why would they have cabin fever!?) Anyway some of these people have the monster suv's & the few flakes that normally grace my neck of the woods gives them reason to be out there. Anyway to anyone who may be lurking who lives in the central VA be careful out there. So on to the title of today's post.

So I was at the gym yesterday evening doing my thing & I was on a machine designed to work your triceps. You have to sit w/ this pad about chest-level in front of you w/ arms over it. Then there is bar w/ 2 handles goes over top that when your arms are resting on the pad but bent at a 90 degree angle you grab the handles & push the bar that causes the weights to lift. I know not a very good description but work w/ me! Anyway usually the bar(w/ the handles) will lock into position then place up & out of the way. Well last night the locking mechanism wasn't working & the handle came crashing down on right elbow(right near the funny bone..but SOOO not funny!). Talk about an instant tear-inducer. I managed to finish the rest of my sets as well as the rest of my workout but could not raise(& bend) my right arm to drink from my water bottle w/ moaning in pain. I believe I just bruised the bone but man it hurts today!

I've got 3+miler this afternoon. I am hoping that the snow will hold out so I can run it but the forecaster says that it will change to rain by this evening. I'm out.

Windy run

So I managed to do a 4+miler w/ my running partner in my first VERY windy run. Winds were gusting at about 20mph but some of was at our backs which made the run somewhat easier. We did the distance in about 34mins. Coolness!

I have a 5k toy run on this Sunday. This will be my first race where I am running the whole distance instead of the Galloway run/walk method. I used to do a 5mins run followed by a 1 min walk but a couple of months ago I was running w/ my friend & we were talking about her buying a house in my hood & before I knew it I hadn't looked down at my watch to take a walk break & had been running the ENTIRE time! My friend didn't let me know it til the end(such a good run buddy she is). She said "Dana you are a RUNNER,there isn't really any need for you to walk anymore unless you absolutely have to." She asked me how I felt during the run & I told her that I felt great & didn't feel tired at all. She also let me know that we kept a pace of around 8:45 to 9:00 the whole distance. I thought I was moving so slow! Since then I have not looked back. The running club that I belong to organized this run to raise donations for needy kids who would otherwise not get any toys at Christmas. You can either pay the $10 registration fee or donate a toy worth $5-$10. Very worthy cause. There is guaranteed to be at least one person dressed as Santa running it. I can't wait! So I am thinking of a pace of 8:30-8:45. Nice & conservative because I know I am going to try to run faster due to all the excitement from the race.

So I have cross-training today at the gym(some tread & elliptical followed by upper body strength training). One of these days I need to put my workout schedule,the races that I have done as well as the blogs that I follow on this site(because I know you all are SOOO interested in that!). Later!

Weekend recap

Miss me?..Ha Ha..I know that I am just putting myself out there for my own masochist enjoyment. Well I did a 4+miler(in about 38mins..yeah!) w/ my running partner on Friday. It was nice & chilly of course but a good run was had by all. Of course my partner wanted to sprint at the end & my body was not having it! Between all the gunk that I had been swallowing during the course of the run(due to a stuffy nose) my stomach was staging a revolt by the end of the run. Obviously she smoked me but immediately felt bad afterward when she asked me how I was & I told I could taste my day's meals back in my throat. Such a good friend! Anyway I spent the rest of Fri. evening doing laundry,cleaning & blowing my nose. I know,I know you are soooo jealous! Spent Saturday running errands & did Chinese takeout. That's my one day that I don't cook & treat myself to someone else's work! I always get a hot 'n' spicy shrimp dish that is done w/ Old Bay seasoning(it's a seasoning salt that is commonly used w/ steamed crab & shrimp) in a gravy type sauce. It's sooo yummy. I have thought about trying to re-create it at home but I'm lazy & figure someone else can cook for a change.



So I was at the grocery store(a fairly popular one here in the VA that is kind of pricey) & I go to checkout. I am walking up to the express checkout & see that the person in front of me has way more than the limit(but in her defense the clerk asked her to come over because she was free). The person tells me to go ahead of her since I only have about 5 items. I proceed to put my stuff on the conveyor belt & the clerk is checking me out. Now I have cloth,re-usable bags(trying to be green & all that) & my store gives back a 5cent credit for each bag used. Then the clerk tries to put my eggs into a plastic bag. I tell her not to do it,that's what the cloth bags are for. You would have thought that I told her to explain the big bang theory because she goes totally blank & gives me that vacant stare. It's like she didn't know what to do when I stopped her from putting my eggs in the plastic bag. I'm like didn't the store train you on customers who buy the cloth bags to their groceries are trying to SAVE the environment not destroy it! So I give her another cloth bag to put the eggs in & then she tries to do the same thing to my ice cream! I'm like my goodness this clerk needs a crash course in reusing & recycling. The lady behind me jokes that I am going to eat the ice cream on the way which is why I don't want to put it in a plastic bag(how did she know that?..lol) Anyway at this point I am SOO ready to be out of there & then the clerk says that I am paying w/ cash when I clearly show her that I am paying by debit card. At this point I'm like can I please end this pleasant(not!) experience for the both of us & pay & get out here!



That brings us to Sunday morning which I spent in church(always an uplifting good time). Our church is decked out the biggest(stands over 30 feet high) Christmas tree that I have seen done in red & gold. Almost makes me want to go out & buy a tree for my place but I have absolutely no storage space for the ornaments once I take the tree down. I've got one of those prelit almost Charlie Brown like tabletop trees which is enough for me.



Well I'm off to cook some pasta & sauce for dinner. Ciao!