week 7, day 4

So yesterday's run started out amazing.  The weather was perfect and I felt great.  I set out at 12:30.  The sun was shining so bright - I was loving it.  It was so nice not to have to wear a headband and gloves.  Today was the first time I tried running with a Camelbak.  This may have been stupid since the was also the furthest run of my life.  However, I knew I would need to hydrate and this was the easiest way.  It turns out the sound of the water sloshing around bothered me more than the feel of the backpack.

I ran the first two miles by myself which was nice.  It was nice to look forward to meeting Leaha for the next five.  Those five were great.  We ran out to my parents house.  My knees started to tighten up around mile 4.  I kept running and eventually the pain would just come in waves.  I think running a route with hills def helps - it makes different muscles work.  While I love running an all flat terrain it only works certain muscles the whole time which takes a toll on my knees.  Needless to say we made it to my parents in about 71 minutes (7 miles) to find my dad in the yard waiting and waving - so motivating!  I dropped off Leaha, ate some Gu chomps for a boost of energy and continued my run.  Bekie met me around mile 8.5 and we continued into town.  My knees were really tight by now, but once we reached some hills the pain subsided a bit.  When we passed my house we had 2 more miles to go.  I could tell if Bekie had not been with me I would have been a head case and it would have taken everything I had to finish.  Thankfully her presence motivated me!  The last half mile my lower back was numb - I never experienced that before.  Maybe it was from wearing the Camelbak - which I ended up loving.  It was so easy to use and I was never thirsty.  We ended at my house with a total of 14 miles in 2:18:32 - a 9:53 mile.  I couldn't believe it!  I ran my very first half marathon (13.1 miles) in the same time!  I was pretty impressed!  Although, I was thinking the other day that I am not really a runner, I'm a jogger.  Well I don't like being a jogger.  So I don't care, I am going to continue calling myself a runner - LOL!  A "jogger" that runs this much has got to be considered a "runner", right?

I spent the rest of the afternoon eating and hydrating (hotdog, mac and cheese, blueberries, a banana, half a cucumber, Gatorade, water and advil).  I iced my knees for about 30 minutes.  Then Brent and I went out to eat at Iron Hill around 7pm.  I had a chicken salad sandwich, sweet potato fries and two brewskis.  I was so full.  However, I proceeded to order french fries (cowboy fries for the yellow dog) and two more brewskis at 9:30pm!  I was hungry again, already!  You can say I rewarded myself.  That's for sure!  Now next week is 15 miles.  If I can do 14.  I can do one more, right?  What will I eat then - haha I'm already thinking about it!  That's what they say, runners run because they love to eat.  So true!

147/463 miles complete!

week 7, day 3

Today's weather was def better than yesterday!  My run went well.  I def ran faster than I did yesterday.  I think I just wanted to be finished today.  I kept visualizing myself sipping my coffee on the couch in my warm living warm.  My breathing was noticeably heavier.  I didn't talk to Leaha nearly as much as I usually do.  She was probably grateful for that - LOL!  The rest of me felt good for the whole run.  I think the cold air really effects my breathing.  I wore the mask, but I kept pulling it down since it wasn't as cold.  Like I said it starts to get on my nerves.  Any sort of incline seemed to effect me way more than usual, but I guess if my breathing was hard to begin with then I would be more sensitive to inclines. 

We completed 4 miles in 37:33 (9:23 pace).  Now it's time to get mentally and physically (carb load) prepared for Saturday's run - 14 miles!!!!!!!  This will be the furthest I have ever run in my life.  I have only ever run half marathons (13.1 miles).  I'll take all the prayers I can get!  Time to think happy thoughts!


133/463 miles complete!

week 7, day 2

I had a good run today.  I had to bundle up again.  I am getting really sick of the cold.  I am so ready for Spring weather.  When I checked the weather last night it had said it would be 19 degrees but feel like 13 so I added an extra layer on top.  Thankfully I was warm and comfortable the whole time.   Except for my butt - it's always the coldest part of my body!  I find this weird because it seems to me like you use your butt just as much as your legs for running.  I don't get it.  By mile 5 the face mask started to bother me.  It had gotten so wet from my heavy breathing.  While I love that the face mask ensures I have warm air to breathe, it def makes it harder to breathe.  At least it wasn't wet and cold - it stayed warm as long as I was breathing under it.  I guess it just comes down to what I'd rather have a) warm air that is hard to breathe or b) cold air that is hard to breathe.  I think I'll take a.  So I ran 7 miles in 65 minutes.  I ran the first 5 miles at a nice steady pace (10:11 miles), but then I just wanted to get home so I sped up the last 2 miles.  When I got home Brent informed me that the feels like temperature (according to his iPhone) was 1 degree!  Yes, 1 degree.  How crazy!  I can't believe I ran in such bitter cold.  I never checked the weather again this morning before my run so I am taking his word for it.  Let's hope this is the coldest run I will have the rest of training!  Then I can say if I can run in what feels like 1 degree then I can run in virtually anything.  Come on warm weather!

129/463 miles complete!

week 7, day 1

I can't believe I'm already one third of the way finished with training.  So begins week 7.  Today was the most interesting run to date.  It snowed about 4 inches last night, no one had shoveled their sidewalks and the roads were not much better.  The temperature was reading 21 degrees.  I don't think I've ever run when it was that cold.  Lucky for me, Leaha braved the conditions.  I have to give her a lot of credit here.  If I was not training for a race there is no way I would have run today.  I would have done a video in my nice, warm house (you know, since we don't have a gym anymore).  Thanks, Leaha!  Thankfully, I dressed warm enough and felt good the entire run.  I had on 2 pairs of socks, 2 pairs of pants, 3 shirts, 1 fleece, 1 pair of gloves, 1 face mask and 1 head band.  The face mask definitely helped!  We ran 4 miles today for a total of 41:18 (10:17 miles).  Most of the time we had to run in slush to avoid getting run over (since we couldn't run on the sidewalk).  There was so much of it, it felt like running in wet sand.  It was a bit more challenging, but a nice change of terrain.  It felt good on my knees.  Let's hope the snow is gone by tomorrow.  I have 7 miles to run.


122/463 miles complete!

week 6, day 4

Technically this could be titled week 6, day 5 since I ran on Friday morning, but I was too lazy to post. LOL  Anyway, Friday was a nice easy run with Leaha.  We ran 3 miles in 28 minutes.  I can't wait to have warm weather like that all the time.  For now I'll just be grateful for snow/ice-free days.  At least 40 degrees feels pretty mild once I get warmed up.  I was supposed to run yesterday, but the wind was ridiculous.  The news said that at one point Kennett Square was experiencing 60mph winds.  Crazy!  Glad I decided not to run in that weather!  I ran today.  The weather was almost perfect.  It was in the mid forties and sunny.  Some spots were pretty windy though.  I ran 3 miles then stopped at Bekie's house to pick her up.  She joined me for the rest of the run (6 miles).  I started out feeling pretty winded so I was definitely looking forward to Bekie's company today (thank you, Bekie!!).  We took it easy.  I have been pleased with my ability to continue to slow my runs down.  The first couple miles I was averaging 10:30 miles.  By the end of the run I averaged 10:00 miles.  Overall it was a decent run.  This week my mileage increases to 4 on Tuesdays and Thursdays and 7 on Wednesdays.  We'll see how that feels.  Oh yeah, I did Cardio X and Ab Ripper X for cross training yesterday.  I was pretty sore when I woke up today (mainly my butt and upper abs).  After my run, I continued to grow increasingly sore.  I have to admit it actually felt good.  It's been really hard for me not to do any type of weight/resistance training.  Since the program I'm following doesn't recommend it, I'm afraid of over training.  After all, this is my first marathon.  I've decided that I'll incorporate weight training when (IF) I train for my second! :)

115/460 (+3 = 118/463)

week 6, day 3

Not much to report today.  I had a nice easy run of 3 miles.  I ran my normal "wickersham" route as I like to call it.  It took me about 27 minutes.  The temperature was even milder today, however it was much darker.  There was a full moon, but it was too cloudy.  I decided to add an extra run tomorrow morning since it's going to be so nice.  Can't wait for Friday! :)

106/460 miles complete!

week 6, day 2

Well since my gym closed randomly without warning yesterday, I was forced to run outside in the dark today.  Thank goodness Leaha was willing to run with me again.  It's scary running in the dark by yourself.  We were glad the sun started coming up 20 minutes into our run.  I just wish it would continue to come out that early, but we all know daylight savings time is going into effect soon.  I really wish we would stop changing our clocks - it's so annoying.  Anyway on to running...today's 6 mile run went well.  We had a nice, steady pace going and ended averaging a 9:57 per mile.  The dark and cold def added a new challenge, but watching the sun come up and feeling the temperature increase made it worth it.  Until I find another gym, I'll be running outside...here's hoping for no more snow and warmer weather!  On a more positive note, skipping the treadmill should help me to be better prepared for my marathon.

103/460 miles complete!

week 6, day 1

Today's run was amazing!  As soon as my feet hit the treadmill I felt great!  My strides were awesomely long today and my breathing was easy the entire time.  I began running at 6.6 mph and finished the first mile in 9:10.  So I increased my mph to 7.4 and finished mile 2 in 17:30.  For the last mile I increased my mph to 8.3.  Then the next thing you knew it was 9 mph and I finished with 10 mph for a total of 3 miles in 24:00.  That is almost as fast as my 5k race pr.  What a great run!

97/460 miles complete (almost 100 miles!)

week 5, day 4

Ok so I think I'm finally getting the hang of this long distance running thing!  Today's 12 mile run was great.  Leaha ran with me again, but this time she ran 6 miles.  I was so proud of her!  It's so funny how much better a run is when you have someone with you.  I had a little less than 2 miles left to run when we parted.  I definitely overestimated the route I had hoped would get me 2 more miles, but it was kind of fun to venture out onto some new turf.  I finished in 1:56:49.  That's a 9:43 minute mile.  I still need to slow down!  Ugh, it's so hard for me to do!

94/460 (20%) miles complete! 

week 5, day 3

Can't believe I'm almost finished week 5 of training!  I had another great run today.  I was def more tired today than the last two days, but it's been a long week.  I had been spoiled with all of the those snow days and delays the last 3 weeks.  Then this week was jam packed.  I had grad class Tuesday night, conferences Wednesday night and another grad class tonight.  I am so ready for Friday happy hour tomorrow!  Today's training consisted of 3 miles in 26:33, an 8:51 pace.  Now it's time to mentally prepare for Saturday's 12 mile run.  At least the weather will be nice! 

82/460 miles complete

week 5, day 2

Well good runs seem to be a trend.  I ran 6 miles today.  I set the treadmill to 6.6mph (9:05 pace) and was determined to keep a slow pace.  I felt so good it was hard not to increase my speed, but I did it.  Well for the most part.  I don't get it, why can't I just run at one pace and enjoy it.  I always have the urge to increase my speed on the treadmill.  When I run outside this doesn't happen.  It really baffles me.  For the first 5 miles I randomly increased my incline for 2-5 minute intervals instead of increasing my speed.  I figured this could make me a stronger runner.  I was dying to increase my speed.  I couldn't take it anymore, so I increased my speed to 7mph then to 8 then to 9.  I must have been tired because it was a little harder than I expected, but a challenge is what I wanted, right?  All in all it was a good run.  It took me 53:53 - an 8:51 mile pace.

79/460 miles complete

week 5, day 1

Today's run was awesome.  It started out easy and remained easy.  Of course I kept speeding up each mile and surprisingly enough each one felt good.  My breathing and my strides felt awesome!  I ran the first mile in 9:05, the second mile in 8:34 and the third mile in 7:21.  That's a total of 25 minutes for 3 miles, which is averages an 8:20 per mile pace.  Hopefully this is a trend of feeling good on my runs and not a phase!

73/460 miles complete

week 4, day 4

So I made a decision.  I decided I should compromise.  I ran right after school so that I could have a later happy hour! :)  The run was awesome.  I was so nervous for it, but I ate plenty of carbs throughout the day to supply me the energy I needed.  I ran 3 miles really focusing on running at a slower pace.  I was averaging a 9:51 pace.  Then one of my awesome friends, Leaha met me and ran the next 5 miles with me.  This was so helpful!  It def made the run a lot easier.  When I parted with her I had 3 miles left.  These were the hardest part of the run because I was freezing - the sun had gone down and wow, what a difference that made!  Needless to say I def sped up this part of my run, but at least it was the end.  My lips were purple for a good hour afterward - not good!  I even took a hot shower, bundled up and sat in front of my space heater - lol.  I ended up running 11 miles averaging a 9:47 pace.  I think that's a good start for a slower training pace.  I still can't believe I was able to run 11 miles on a Friday after work!  It also dawned on me that I have never run 11 miles unless it was during a half marathon.  Anytime I trained for a half marathon the most mileage I put in was 10 miles.  This run was more of a milestone than I realized - toot toot beep beep (yes, I'm tooting my own horn!).  I rewarded myself with a bbq chicken dominoes pizza, a bottle of sparkling white wine, and Jersey Shore on dvr with Leaha of course!  Good times.

70/460 miles complete!

week 4, day 3

So I realized that I was supposed to run 6 miles on day 2 (Wednesday).  Luckily I felt awesome running yesterday so I added a fourth mile and I ran it at a 6:30 pace!  For the first time in a long time I felt good within the first few minutes of running.  I was so happy it didn't take me a mile or two to get warmed up.  I ran 4 miles in 33:27!  I better run my long run this weekend at the slow pace I intended to train.  Speaking of this weekend, I normally run on Saturday afternoons.  Well of course they are calling for icy rain in the am and rain the entire day!  No, I'm not freaking out at all (sarcasm).  There is no way I can run 11 miles on a treadmill.  Talk about a hamster wheel - not gonna work for me.  This Sunday is out though, unless I skip church - which I really don't want to do.  We are having a Superbowl party starting at 3.  Church is over at 12 and it will take me 2 hours to run.  Def too stressful.  I am a little worried.  Maybe I should just run it today after school, but then I have to skip happy hour! :(  Oh priorities - I've never been good with them. LOL!  I have today to make a decision I suppose...

59/460 mile complete

week 4, day 2

Today was another successful run!  Since I felt good I had trouble sticking to my plan to run my long runs at a slower pace.  I stuck to my plan for the first 4 miles, but soon realized that since my run was going so well I could speed up and complete 5 miles averaging less than a 9:00 pace.  Low and behold I did.  I ran 5 miles in 44:22.  This is yet another reason why I'm hating the treadmill these days.  I can't stop looking at my speed and distance.  Therefore, I grow competitive with myself.  For some reason when I run outside I am able to just enjoy running and I don't worry about my time or pace.  I run with my ipod using Nike+ so I definitely have the opportunity to obsess with my time and pace, yet I don't.  It must be that when I'm on the treadmill those numbers are just staring right at me.  My dad suggested I just cover it up, but we all know I would lift it up and keep looking at it anyway.  Oh well, I guess I'm just going to have to learn to be disciplined.

55/460 miles complete

week 4, day 1

Week 4 is starting off quite well.  My run went great!  I felt like a runner again (that's two runs in a row - woohoo).  It didn't start off as easy as my runs used to, but it only took a mile to get warmed up.  Then I felt like I could run forever.  Rather than extend the mileage (for fear of over training), I increased my mph.  I started out at a 9:15 mile pace and ended up averaging an 8:34 mile for the entire run.  I ran 3 miles in 25:43.  I'm definitely happy with that!  However, I've been reading about running marathons and have learned that a first time marathon runner's most common error is starting out too fast.  My goal is to start out with a 10:00 or 10:30 mile pace.  I was worried that speeding up when my run feels easy during training might be a bad habit.  Then I decided that it would be okay to run my 3 mile days at a faster speed (if I'm feeling up to it) and just take my time on my longer mileage days.  Who knows if this makes any sense or not...it's worth a try.  Here's to a great week of training ahead!  Having an "ice" day today (no work and no grad class) should definitely help.

50/460 miles complete