6 Miles

I went out for my first six mile run last night. I knew I would need to pace myself so my first two miles weren't taxing to make it. Unfortunately it didn't work out that way. I was tired from the beginning. By the time I got to the 2 mile point I was a lot more out of breath than I would have liked. The third mile took me down Birdie Hills Rd and hills is a very appropriate name for that road. The hills were steep, long and many but I made it. By the four mile point I was on a good pace 41 minutes total time. Then I just died on the 5th mile and the 6th wasn't much better. It took me 30 minutes to go the last two miles. So I'm a little discouraged about the 10K I only have one more over 6 mile run scheduled between now and the race. I'm not sure I will really be up to doing it.

I need to get in two runs in the next 4 days. Jake is Busy 3 of those 4 nights and my parents are taking care of James and Rachel. So I think I am doomed to take out the jogging stroller or go out super early in the morning. Decisions I think I would rather get up early until it is actually time for me to crawl out of bed at 5:00 am then I feel totally different about the situation.

Run with my Neighbor

Today my neighbor and I were finally able to go out for a run together. She is an early riser so we decided on a 7:00 run before it got too hot. So it was a very early morning after a late church night. We ran the 2.5 mile route. It was pretty slow going with several walking breaks. I enjoyed the company though. I like running by myself but it is fun to change it up every once and a while. I'm looking forward to further fostering that relationship through this shared interest of running. After we got back to our houses she ended and I went on to run another 3 miles. I went against the grade of the hill and did quite well. After making it all the way up the incline without taking a walking break I was smiling for a job well done.

Tomorrow I plan to tackle a 6 mile route. It will need to be latter in the evening when it gets cooler. I'm excited about this route it takes me around a big loop. I like routes that go far from my home it makes me feel like I'm really accomplishing something. I mapped the route on google and it said a 15 min driving time. Running should take me at least 4.5 times as long.

Miles for the week 16.5

Run Run Run

Let's see I put in three runs since I wrote last. I was suppose to run Monday night but was tired and busy and didn't feel up to it. So I planned on going out before Jake left for work. Yeah right! I was lazy and stayed in bed. I knew I had to get a run in so I was preparing to take the jogging stroller out when I realized I had a voicemail from my parents. My mom asked if I wanted her to watch the boys that day. I said sure I was about to go for a run come on over and watch them. So I avoided taking the jogging stroller out once again. I ran 3.5 miles with 4 1:30 aerobic intervals.

Wednesday I put in a run as soon as Jake got home. It was so hot. I only ran 3 miles and took two walking breaks. Last night it was a lot cooler after the rain came in. I ran 4.5 miles then 4 gentle pickups at the end for a total of 5 miles. I forgot to tell Jake I was going for a long run and he started to become concerned shortly before I arrived back. I felt great. I took the pace really slow. I barely felt out of breath for the first two miles. Of course the last half was more of a challenge. But I was able to run the entire thing and had a lot of energy for the gentle pickups at the end. It is fun to run really fast in the GP's but I can only do that a short time and feel like I'm going to die afterward.

The 5k I was planning on doing tomorrow had a location change due to some flooding. It will now be held at a track. 12 times around a track I don't know that I really want to do that sounds very boring. I'm not sure if I'm still going to participate or not. Still deciding on the 10K in may. I don't think I will do very well on the hills.

Go the Distance

Thursday I did a 4 mile run with 3 gentle pick ups. I think I got the only 5 minutes of sun for the entire day during my run. It was rather steamy so I was wanting the sun to go back behind the clouds and the rain to fall.

Saturday I decided to run a 5K race with my neighbor. The race was literally right behind my house. I ran over to the start of the race, about 1 mile. I got registered and waited for the race to begin. I spent sometime talking with my neighbor and some fellow runners. I felt really good during the race especially the first 1.5 miles I was barely out of breath. Maybe that isn't a good thing and I should have been pushing myself harder. Still I didn't want to push myself too hard and have no energy at the end. The second half of the race had some more hill and was harder. At about the two mile mark I was thinking why in the world did I run over here I could really use that energy about now. I finished up 2 minutes faster than my last race at about 30 min. It was taking forever for them to tally the final times so I left without finding out what my exact time was. Jake brought the boys over to me cause he was on his way up to church. So the boys and I walked home stopping at some garage sales and the park on our way back. By the time I got home I was so warn out. I couldn't wait for nap time so I could lay down too.

Today I had a great run. I ran 5 miles a new distance for me. I felt absolutely great. I had the same breakfast as the day before, toast with peanut butter and honey. It was the perfect meal before running. I couldn't believe how good I felt on the run today. I ran the whole time and even had energy at the end to push the pace and finish hard. I know my time wasn't all that great but I just felt great about going the distance.

I am a little discouraged about the 10K. I talked to someone at the race who has run that race before. He said it starts out with a fairly large hill. Then it just keeps having hills up and down through the course. So I don't know, hills are not my friend. Unfortunately there aren't too many 10k races so I don't really want to let this opportunity pass me by.

Miles this week: 18

Soaked

I only had a very small window in which to run last night. I had to head out as soon as he got home so that I would be back in time for him to go to his meeting. So even though it was sprinkling I started. I could see the ominous black clouds to the south and I knew that was a bad sign. When I topped the hill I could see rain falling from the hills to the south and west. I thought I think I can beat it home. At the 2 mile mark down came the rain. I was absolutely drenched. I couldn't have been wetter if I had been thrown into a swimming pool. I was just thankful I hadn't decided to wear a white shirt. The good thing about the rain is it gave me something else to think about during that last mile. I had no desire to stop and walk and wasn't even thinking about my tired legs and burning lungs. All I could think was lets get home and out of the rain. Actually the rain wasn't that bad I didn't mind getting wet. It was warm enough that it was a rather pleasant experience. The annoying part was the rain blowing into my eyes I couldn't look at anything but my feet. Well 3 miles last night and I did a 2 mile run on Monday.