Sweaty Beast

That is what I am. Went on another run tonight and I came home a wet and sweaty monster. So disgusting, but felt so good. I ran my fastest 5k since the end of lacrosse season. This is my third night in a row of exercising and I realized that I need more exercise clothes. I sweat much more now that I'm 28 as opposed to when I was in college. Maybe I wasn't pushing myself as hard as I do now. Well, I'm about to admit to something that I hope others also do, but don't tell anyone (*cough* Vail, Meg *cough*). I sometimes rewear my workout clothes if I didn't sweat too much. Mainly sports bras and shorts. Unfortunately, I don't think I can do that anymore since the last three nights my shorts have been soaked through with sweat. I'm about to break the shopping ban again to restock. I did receive a $10 Dick's gift certificate and a $10 coupon to Sports Authority. Very tempting. I need it though!

Bleh then... Ahhhh

You ever have one of those meals where you just have this urge to just work it off because it puts you in a bad food coma?

I had one tonight.  It wasn't even that big of a meal.  Ribs and fries.  It just sat so heavy in my stomach that I had to go on a run.  4.5 miles.  It felt good afterwards.  Multiply that times three and there is my half marathon.  Too bad I'm just getting slower and slower.

Morning Fail

I tried again to wake up early and run before work.  It was quite the epic fail.  I had set my alarm for an earlier wake up time last night and I also did not shower last night in hopes that a shower after my run would motivate me.  Ha!  I did wake up to my alarm at 5:30 today, but my body was just saying no.  I thought maybe a snooze would help, but it didn't.  I really wanted to run this morning because I had an extra meal last night for good reason at all.  I wasn't even that hungry.

So I haven't lost those few extra pounds I put on while I was in Vail, and it doesn't look like I'll be losing them any time soon either at this rate.  I've also been offered overtime at work which means that I'll be more tired when I get home and even less motivated to work out.  This sucks.

That's more like it

Went on a run this morning before my games this afternoon because I've been eating like a pig. I only did one loop, but I cut a minute off my mile time. I think my lungs can take it, it's just a matter of getting my legs back into shape. As gross and disgusting i am after a run, I always feel great.

I also found and ordered matching shirts for me and my little brother for the half marathon! I think I'm more excited about the shirt than anything.

Running

I went on a run last night when I got home from work.  I'm pleased to say that I ran further than last week's run.  I'm still a little disappointed at the pace I was going.  A 10 minute mile isn't bad, but for only 5.2 miles that's not where I want to be especially if a 10 minute mile is the pace I want to hold for 13.1 miles.  I'm bound to get slower as I go.

Yesterday was hot and humid.  This is going to be my training weather for the rest of the summer.  I can't run long distances at the gym and I hate running on a treadmill.  I broke out my little running fanny pack yesterday.

I can't say I'm pleased with it, but it has nothing to do with the product itself.  I had to cinch it really tight to my waist because it would bounce too much when I ran.  It kept rotating on me and getting loose.  I was just taken aback that I wouldn't be able to run with it lower on my hips.  Oh well.  I am glad that I had the water bottle with me.  It was hot and I used it to squirt water in my face.  It cooled me down, but got all my salty sweat in my eyes and mouth.  GROSS!  I definitely need to decrease my salt intake.

My knee started to hurt after 2.5 miles which is what would happen to me when I first started running.  I think I need to just push past that point.  The odd thing is that the pain moved from the outside of my leg towards the inner part around my knee.  I think that has something to do with my shoes and insoles.  I ended up going 5.2 miles in 52 minutes.  Not bad, but I've got a long way to go.  I think today I'll give me legs a break from running and either hit up the spinning class or the weights class at the gym.  This will be the first time in 2-3 months since I visited there too!

Sore

I went on my first run in two months yesterday morning.  Even at 9 am, it was hot and humid!  I only did one loop around the golf course, and I was S-L-O-W.  Not very encouraging at all. =(  Once the lacrosse season is over, I'll have to pick it up again.  I'll probably top out around 8 miles and then increase it when I get closer to the race.  It is sad to see that I struggled with this run when a mere two months ago, I was running 6+ miles consistently.  That's the nature of the beast.  I still don't know why I'm so sore though.  I do more sprinting, changing direction when I ref and I would think my jogging muscles would be the same as my reffing ones.  Maybe it was the sustained usage that caused it.  Either way, it felt good to get out there and I really did like my new running shoes.  I did hit a new all time low when I weighed myself after the run.  That's good news too!

Tickets Booked

Finally Southwest released their tickets for the rest of the year.  I was able to use my free ticket for my flight to San Diego for my half marathon in November.  One less thing to worry about.  Now to get back on track with training.  On a side note, I have yet to wear my new running shoes.

Eek

I haven't gone on a run in two weeks.  Eep =(  I was just getting used to running 5+ miles, now I'll have to start all over again.  Looking at my calendar, I'm not going to have time to fit a run in for another 2 weeks.  That'll be a whole month without running.

You know what?  I'm going to try to fit one in this Sunday after mentoring.  I shouldn't be running that much, and I really need to get one in.  I haven't even tried out my new shoes yet!

Training and Diet

I finally lost the weight I had gained from going to California for 2 days!  It only took 2 weeks.  I'm not surprised at how long it took to lose the weight, but how much I gained after two days.  I had even worked out when I was there.

I think the weight fluctuation is partially due to what I wrote in this post where I could not for the life of me satiate my hunger without wanting to vomit.  I don't think I can continue/re-start my half marathon training without making some changes in my work out.  I don't think it's wise to go on runs when on the verge of being hungry or only taking a few sips of water after each work out, then waiting an hour before eating dinner.  I know I should not be doing this, but I still do.  It's stupid that I have to this kind of wake up call to actually realize I should knock it off.

I'm going to start researching some good habits.  A few coworkers have suggested those energy gels to supplement my running.  I did buy what is essentially a fanny pack for a water bottle for when my runs go longer than an 75 minutes.  I hope that helps, but it's really going to be hard to eat something before running.  I've always had troubles with cramps when eating before doing any kind of exercise especially when I was younger.

New Shoes!

I've been meaning to buy some new running shoes.  I've had my old pair for a year, and I thought I'd want a new pair for the half marathon.  My older brother had gotten me a a gift card for Roadrunner Sports.  I went in this morning and did their Shoe Dog analysis.  Apparently, I put too much weight on my heels, my toes roll out when I run, and I have semi-flexible ankles.  I need stability shoes.  I ended up buying Mizunos, some custom insoles, and super comfy socks.  I really like these shoes and hope this helps me run my half marathon.  Here they are: 

Mizuno Wave Rider 14

Body Confusion

I'm in Huntington Beach, CA this week for work.  It's a quick trip for one meeting.  The meeting started at 9:00 am today and was done by 12:30 pm.  After the meeting, we (myself and some coworkers) went out to lunch and then I was dropped at the hotel since they were traveling on to Utah (without me *cry*).  So after I let my lunch digest and a quick run to REI to pick up some black rain pants for reffing, I ventured out for a run along the Huntington Beach.  I was aiming for 6 miles for my pre-half-marathon training, but ended up running 7.5 miles!  A personal record!  Yay, too bad I'll need almost another 6 to finish the race.  Anyway, I was exhausted afterwards.  I stopped at the hotel gift shop with the intention of picking up some chocolate milk.  They had yoohoo (which is not even made from milk) and Muscle Milk (which I found out is also not made from milk).  I bought the Muscle Milk and it was gross.  Anyway after a shower, I was shaky and hungry, but I didn't crave anything.  I tried to eat a protein bar, but putting it in my mouth just made me want to hurl.

So I ventured back to the gift shop  because I was waiting for my friend to get off work so we could get dinner together.  I end up spending $10 on... wait for it... an orange, a naked juice, and a peach yogurt.  TEN FREAKING DOLLARS.  Good thing I'm getting reimbursed for all of this.  All of this goes down just fine.  I get a text from my friend, he's working later than he thought and to go ahead and eat without him.  *sad face*  I decide to go to In N Out.  I get there and get my usual order.  I'm starting to shake again.  And guess what happens?  The Unthinkable.  I almost throw up when I eat my cheeseburger animal style. I only finish half my burger and most of my fries.  It's like "hello, body?!?!  I know you're hungry, why do you resist this yummy food?"

So here I sit in my hotel room, not completely full, but not wanting to actually eat anything.  I think this is my body's way of telling to stop running so dang far.

Half a Half Marathon

I officially signed up and registered for the Silver Strand Half Marathon in San Diego in November this past weekend.  It's a little too early to train for it, but I've been trying to run more than my usual three miles when I go to the gym.  So after my run on Saturday and my general sedentary lifestyle for the past two weeks, I decided to go the gym last night.  I got there and started my run.  I went with the goal of running three miles and doing some mat exercises and some weights.  Well, I know when I'm in the mood for running and last night was one of those nights.  It's only happened once before and that time I ran for 55 minutes and my Nike Plus app said I ran a little under 6 miles.  So I scratched my plans for weights and ran 6.5 miles in an hour.  Yay, so that's half a half marathon or a quarter marathon.  I was exhausted which was good, but my right knee was aching.  Once I got home and ate dinner and showered, I was pooped.  The tiredness settled in and I could barely move.  My plans are to sign up for a 10K in April.  Now that I've been up for a few hours, I realize the back of my knee if hurting a lot more than I thought.  Maybe it's time to make an appointment with my doctor.

On a separate note, people need to learn some track etiquette:

• Group of 4 high school girls walking on the track, please don't take up all three lanes.  People need to pass you while you gossip away.
• Man doing moving jumping jacks, please don't do it in the middle lane and stretch your arms out as far as possible.  I don't want a black eye.
• People walking in pairs, please also do not take up all the lanes.
• People who walk and pass other walkers, please look before you pass.  I really love it when I have to come to a complete stop because you are walking slightly faster than the people you are passing, but leave no room for ME to pass.
• Walk on the inside track!
• If you choose to walk on the outside lane, don't be surprised when I pass you on the left.

Sunday

Sunday seemed like a big day for me.  Aside from the being unbelievably forgetful early Sunday afternoon, I did accomplish a lot.

• I bought my tickets for Vail and San Diego.
• I officially signed up for the half marathon.
• I finally bought a striped ref jacket
• We had dinner with the hubster's cousin down in Cincinnati and met his fiance.
• We went outlet shopping where we bought one shirt for the hubster.  Very disappointed.
• I finally ran outside - it was cold and I was not prepared.

After review the list, I don't think accomplish is the right word.  I just did a lot, but not really cause most of those I just sat on my butt in front of my computer.

I'm Crazy!

I think I'm crazy or have really high physical aspirations.  First, it was wanting to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro before I turn 30, then it was the half marathon (quite the jump in level of difficulty), now I'm considering doing a triathlon (for some reason, I keep sticking an extra "a" in the word triathlon).  I think I could handle the biking and running part easily.  Whether or not I could do them sequentially is still in question, but isn't that what training is for?  I've no idea what my swimming prowess/stamina/endurance is.  I can swim, but can I swim efficiently?  And by efficiently, I mean do I have the right technique or look like I swim correctly or swim with the least amount of energy used.  It's like when I go to the gym to run and I see these people (mostly women) who run like they are rag dolls.  It's like legs and arms are everywhere.  I'm not expert runner, but I feel like that's a lot of wasted movement.  It's not very "lean" if I want to bring in some work training into this.  Also, I think they look stupid.  Anyway, maybe I'll start substituting swimming as my cardio at the gym.  There is an indoor pool, but then I'd have to buy a more sporty swim suit.  I doubt cute triangle type, string bikinis are suitable for "long" distance swimming.  It's "only" a half mile.  Maybe I'll mix things up a bit at the gym and bike/run instead of just run.  I have been meaning to mix up the cardio routine at the gym, but never got around to it.  If I commit to it, I'll have to.

Then it raises all sorts of other questions.  Do I need a special bike for the biking part of the marathon?  I don't want to spend money on one when I have a perfectly good bike at home.  It's a road bike too.  Am I going to be a complete idiot during the race?  This whole transitioning thing that I've briefly read about is kinda scary.  And biking competitively, what is the drafting rule?  I'm gonna be the douche that causes the big crash in bike races because I didn't signal correctly or something.  It's very intimidating just thinking about it.  I might just have talked myself out of it, but I'd be more inclined to do it with someone else.  I'm such a wuss.