Give A Girl The Right Shoes...

I wasn't planning to post again today since I usually only post once a day, but I decided to pop in and tell you about yesterday's run.

For starters, yesterday's run was at a normal time of the day and not at 9pm like Monday's speed workout.  It felt weird walking into the gym less than 12 hours after I had left the previous night.

The run ended up being 5.5 miles in 43:30 for an average pace of 7:54/mile.  I started the treadmill at 7.0 and increased the speed by .1 every time the song changed, ending at a speed of 8.1.  I had no real plan for the day, but wanted to get in over 5 miles.

I ultimately decided to call it quits at 5.5 miles because I was so so bored.  I guess that's what I get for saying yesterday that I haven't minded the treadmill that much lately.  And I really haven't, but yesterday I was just not feeling it.  I was unbelievably restless and just wanted it to be over.

I would've like to go farther, as I said last week I want to change what to consider a "normal" run to be closer to 7 miles than 5.  But hopefully that will get easier to do when I can run outside again.  I'm really looking forward to spending some time at the Elk Grove Forest Preserve where the loop is 7.5 miles.  So as long as I hit that up (and run the full loop) a few times a week, I'll be golden.

I was pleased with the average pace though.  I know I had also said a few weeks back that I'm going to try to not really care about my pace as much right now and just get the mileage in.  I've been doing a good job at that I think, but it's also harder to do on the treadmill, whereas outside I can just go by feel.

In other news... I've been playing around with PicMonkey lately and am going to try to make up my own cool graphics and such.  Here's one I just made last night :)

I have a feeling Marilyn Monroe was talking about a different kind of shoes...

PS - Those are my beautiful pink Nike Flyknits that I've been running in a lot lately.  They are minimalist shoes, which I'm not sure yet how they will be outside, but they've been great on the treadmill!  And my poor yellow Timex watch that has been getting neglected since I got the Garmin for Christmas.  Actually the Garmin has been neglected to due to the polar vortexes and snow.

I'll pin this and any future graphics I make on Pinterest and I'm sure I will put them on Instagram as well, so make sure to follow me there!

This is also going to encourage me to start taking more pictures!  I know I keep saying that I need to, but do you really want to see the inside of a gym or a picture of the treadmill dashboard?  It's not that thrilling.

Do you use PicMonkey or any other photo editing program to make graphics?

What shoes do you run in?

What is your favorite non-running shoe?  I really love my pink Sperry's.  And my purple Hunter rain boots because those have been a God send all winter.

Making A New Ending

I don't think I've given a weekly training recap since I was training for the Chicago Marathon way back when.  And now that I'm training for another, I suppose I should be recapping my weeks.  As of now, I'm pretty sure my goal race is the Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon in May.  I haven't registered yet though, so that could change...but either way, a spring marathon.  So we'll call this past week my official first week of training.

Monday - 4 miles

Tuesday - 4.25 miles

Wednesday - 2 miles

Thursday - OFF

Friday - 4 miles

Saturday - 10 miles

Sunday - OFF

Total - 24 miles

I also did a decent amount of weight training and core work, but I'm gonna stick to just recapping the running and cross training.

As for this week, I'm not going to make a specific plan again.  I will still be using the week as a rebuilding/getting back into running regularly week.  And hopefully no more polar vortex so that I can run outside more than on the treadmill.

AND I'll be in Phoenix next Friday - Tuesday!!  So I'm not exactly sure what our agenda will be like and how much running I'll get in.  But hopefully some, considering I'll be there with a bunch of former UDXC girls :)

I'd say my goals for this week are:

30 miles, with another 10 mile run

some cross training, like a spinning class or 2

continue weight training and core work

I want to make more of a set schedule week by week, but for now it is nice to just run as I feel.  Although I am kinda stressed out that I feel so out of shape.  It will come back eventually though, and I had a good 10 mile run on Saturday.

And for a little motivation to start the week:

I can't change what has been done over the last week, but can always keep improving to make a better ending.

What are your goals for the week?

Where the Heart Is

I was really bored when I ran Tuesday night.  So much so that I cut my run about a mile short, so it ended up at 6.2 miles.  I didn't bring a watch, so I'm not sure on the pace.

I love running (obviously), but running is just plain boring sometimes.  Actually, every cardio exercise is for the most part if you're doing it alone.  I had my music, but it just wasn't enough for me that night.

What are you supposed to think about?  I have things that I think about sometimes, but I went through some of those options and nothing seemed worthy of my thoughts on this particular night I guess.  I know you're not SUPPOSED to think about any one thing - everyone thinks about different things all the time.  And some people don't even need to think at all while they run; they just get lost in their music and on their run.  But I was running on city streets at night so I couldn't blast my music TOO loud and couldn't just stop thinking or get too completely wrapped up in my thoughts because trust me, that's happened before and then I tend to forget to check whether the light is red or green.

I think my problem right now is that I don't know where my heart is.  I'm not completely in love with being a tax accountant.  I'm still single while 95% of my friends or married, engaged, or might as well be.  Post-marathon depression is a real thing.  I spent so much time training for and thinking about that one event on that one day and then it's over.  So now that is one less thing to put my heart into.  Sure, I can (and did) pick a new race to train for, but I also don't want to get too concerned over it and worked up when I don't hit my goal paces or distances in training.  I know race visualization, etc. is good and I still do it, but I thought about that all too much while training for the Chicago Marathon.

I daydream about non-running things as well, just about life and the future and fun events coming up, but I also don't like to do that too much.  I used to think about all sorts of things all the time, and plan things out in my head, and come up with grand ideas.  And then those things rarely happen or come true.  So I'm trying to steer away from that and live in the present.

On the treadmill, I try to make up stories about the other people I see running on the treadmills.  I try to pick out someone with a shirt that tells me something about them, like where they went to school or a shirt from a certain event.  And then I make up a story about them.  When I am on the treadmill at my Xsport gym, I'm usually right next to one of the group class studios that has big windows, so I can see in and watch what they are doing.  One of the classes is some type of cardio dance class and it's funny to watch them while my music is playing in my headphones because their moves obviously don't match up to my music.

When I'm outside, my stories are a little more.....scary. As I've mentioned before, I was SVU a little too much to feel safe running outside alone in the dark.  I try to stop those thoughts quickly though, while still being cautious of course.  Another reason I can't have my music on too loud.

But enough of that down talk, here's a few fun things I did the past few days:

Tried ENERGYbit for the first time!

ENERGYbit is a new type of energy source/fuel for runners, other athletes, and even people who just need an extra bit of energy or nutrients.  I used them right before my Tuesday night run and I'm going to try them again during tomorrow's long run.  Then I'll have a full review & a GIVEAWAY!!

Saw Wicked!

Mom has been wanting to see a show for awhile, so we finally decided on and went to see Wicked.  I thought it was good and Glinda was very funny, but it was also a little too long.  That could just be because it was a Wednesday night and ran past my bedtime.

We also had a really good dinner at Petterino's before the show!  We each got a fru fru drink - Sparking French Martini, Blood Orange Margarita, and Mai Tai.  My meal was really good - roasted garlic whitefish with cauliflower, caesar salad, and of course, the unlimited bread and butter.  I have a problem resisting hot bread.

What do you think about most often while running?

What do you use to fuel your workouts?

What is your favorite Musical?  Mine is Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.