The Pay-Off

Posted on November 6, 2010 by Coco

This morning I had an awesome run. The weather was perfect for a fall run–sunny and in the low 40s. I was comfortable in a long-sleeved tech shirt, shorts, headband and gloves. The neighborhood hills were calling my name, so I opted for one of my hilly neighborhood loops. The worst hill (I call it Heart Attack Hill) comes at the end of the first mile, but every mile has at least one hill that takes my breath away.

I felt strong as I started out. I know the cool air was helping my pace, but I was suprised when I crested Heart Attack Hill and hit mile 1 at 9:50. Mile 2 starts with a long downhill stretch, but then has a long climb. My time for mile 2 was 9:15, which was too fast for a hilly training run. The rest of my miles were closer to 9:35, which is faster than my usual training pace has been, but felt good–a comfortable effort, but not too hard. I hit mile 7 just after I got back to my neighborhood, and decided to add a loop to finish at 7.5 miles.

I love it when everything comes together for a glorious run. Good weather usually has something to do with it, as does a good night’s sleep. I also think that some of my long-term efforts are paying off. I can tell that my strength training is making my legs stronger and helping my ITB. I’m sure yoga also is helping, although I think I need the yoga to counter-balance my all day desk-sitting more than my running. Either way, the twists and hip-openers feel so good. Even my eating habits have been pretty good lately–I’ve worked in daily doses of dark chocolate without pigging out on Halloween candy and survived an unexpected week-long visit from my mother-in-law without trying to hide in a bag of chips. My weight seems to be hovering a few pounds lower than it has been for ages, and I can tell the difference in my running. (At 5’1″ every pound counts!)

Realizing that all of these efforts are paying off gives me more motivation to keep them up. This is especially important as we head into winter, with its dark, cold mornings and constant march of food-focused celebrations. I can count on my fitness routine and good nutrition to keep me one step ahead of the hectic holidays.

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Temper Tantrum

Posted on November 3, 2010 by Coco

I am having an internal temper tantrum and I don’t like it. I want to get over it, move on, enjoy my evening, but I am pi$$ed and on the verge of tears. I am over-reacting and being totally irrational, and I am even more upset because I got myself into this situation.

What has me in a tizzy?

My mother-in-law was on her way overseas, missed a connecting flight, and ended up at an airport 45 min from our house and a 3 hour plane ride from hers.  She spent one night at an airport hotel, planning to continue on her trip the next day, but came down with a cold/sinus infection and decided that she couldn’t travel. She called my husband (the first we’d heard of her situation) and he picked her up and brought her to our house. That was last Friday.

Saturday he took her to a clinic where she got some antibiotics, and she’s been recuperating at our house ever since. She’s finally well enough to get on a plane to go home, but first we have to get her to the airport. Now, most people would take a cab to the airport, but that’s just not the way she does things. And, in all fairness, it would be a $75 cab ride.

She has figured out that her best chance for getting on a flight (she will be stand-by) is early tomorrow morning, so she needs to be at the airport at 6:45 am. Both my husband and I work, and we both have busy days tomorrow. My husband’s day usually starts at 6:00 am, while mine usually starts at the more humane hour of 8:00 am. So, it seemed natural that I should be the one to offer to drive her to the airport.

So I did.

And now I am stewing over it.

Stewing, because I have been on an awesome roll with my workouts and I will have to miss my morning run.

Stewing, because I was going to work at home in the morning, and avoid the stress of rush hour traffic.

Stewing, because I am resentful of the way that she intruded into our life and needs us to accomodate her.

It is really not a big deal. I’ve done it before. The traffic isn’t that bad. I will get in to work early and get a head start on my day. (Unfortuneately I have a 5:00 pm conference call, so I can’t leave early).

But I am still kicking and pounding my fists and screaming “I don’t wanna!”

But I offered.

I volunteered.

So I need to get over it and move on.

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Exercising My Right To Vote

Posted on November 2, 2010 by Coco

My polling place is at the edge of my neighborhood, along a road I run along. Yesterday I got the idea that I could run my 4 mile loop, stop to vote, and run home. Last night I verified that polls open at 6:00 am, put my ID out with my running stuff, and tried to get to bed early so the snooze button wouldn’t disenfranchise me.

It was cold out this morning–in the 30s–and totally dark @ 5:30 when I headed out, but my neighborhood roads are pretty well lit. I had to find a fuzzy head band to keep my ears warm, my lightweight running gloves, and my awesome lightweight Asics jacket. It didn’t feel too bad outside, but I cut my walking warm-up short so I could start running.

It was a good run. Nothing hurt, ached or twinged–my ITB didn’t even feel tight–my pace was steady at about 10:00 min/mile, and I was dressed perfectly–not cold but not too warm. I felt strong on the hills and steady on the flat stretches.

I hit mile 4.0 about 1/4 mile before my polling place, and kept running up to the entrance. By then it was about 6:15, and there were a few other voters coming and going, but no real wait to vote. I was a bit disappointed that I only had one person to vote for (Congressman) and now understand why mid-term elections have such low voter turn-out. Still, I have been a faithful voter since I turned 18 and had no reason to miss voting today, especially when I could make exercising my right to vote part of my exercise program.

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Flat Out Harder

Posted on November 1, 2010 by Coco

My favorite running routes have hills. I like the challenge of powering up a big hill, and the instantly easier effort when I reach the other side. I also like the variety hills bring–both the variety in effort and the variety in scenery. My least favorite mile of the bike path is the one that’s dead flat the whole length. Maybe because I can see how far I have to go, or maybe just because its boring.

Now that I’ve finished the Army Ten Miler and don’t have any new events on my running calendar, I feel like I am in a long, flat segment of my training. I’ve looked around for some November or December events, but I haven’t found anything that fits my work and family schedule. I feel like I am in limbo with a long, boring stretch ahead.

Training for an event demands my best from me. I need to choose my workouts carefully (some easy, some hard, some speed, some hills, plenty of cross-training) and commit to fitting them in and getting them done. With no event on the calendar, I’m afraid it will be easier to slack off and get used to hitting the snooze button again–especially this time of year, when mornings are dark and cold.

I think one reason that I am so eager to find another event is because I missed three out of the last four weeks of my Army Ten Miler training due to injuries. I couldn’t do those hill workouts or speed intervals because I couldn’t run at all. Of course, I could start doing them now, but it takes quite a bit more motivation (and craziness?) to workout that hard with no “moment of truth” marked on the calendar.

I will figure out how to make the most of this uneventful time. Running “just for fun” can be fun, especially when I’ve learned to appreciate just being healthy enough to run. Not having to train also means not having to run if it is too cold or too wet, or if I feel like doing something else–like the eDiets Best Body Boot Camp session I signed up for. Before I know it, I will have traversed this stretch of my running life and will be running up the next hill on the horizon.

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Recovery Run

Posted on October 30, 2010 by Coco

Today was actually my third run since the Army Ten Miler. Tuesday I ran 4.5 miles outside and Thursday I ran 40 min on the TM. But today was my first run on the bike path since my spate of injuries in late September and early October–my one and only bike path run in October as a matter of fact. So, it marks a recovery from those injuries, and a recovery from a grueling week at work that culminated in a wretched aural migraine yesterday.

Today’s run just might have made up for all that. The weather was perfect. I felt great. Running 8 miles felt natural. It was glorious.

I got to the bike path at about 7:00 am, knowing that it would just be getting light by then. It was much emptier than usual since most running groups are focused on the Marine Corps Marathon tomorrow. The sunrise was beautiful–deep pinks rising over the trees on the far banks of the river and reflecting on the water. I took a video on my iPod Nano but can’t figure out how to get the darn thing onto my computer!

I walked about 1/3 mile to my usual starting place, stretched to loosen my back a bit, picked a playlist, and started out. My goal for the run was to have no goal, just run at a comfortable pace. I hit mile 1 at 10:05 which was actually pretty fast for a warm-up mile. I hit mile 2 at 9:49 and then every mile got faster, including some crazy miles at 9:15. My final average pace ended up being 9:35 min/mile which really is too fast for a “recovery” run, but it felt good and I felt good.

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