running because I should

I did it anyway

2010-12-23T08:57:00.000-08:00

I'm tired and busy and have no time, and the last thing I wanted to do this morning was get up and work out.

But I did it anyway.

I ellipticalled and lifted some weights.

32 minutes 3 miles
biceps & triceps 50 pounds (and man it hurt) 3 sets of 10
bench press (on all 3 settings of the machine) 20 pounds 3 sets of 10

learning to deal with the treadmill

2010-12-14T10:10:00.000-08:00

I decided that if I'm going to leave the cold biting wind and head for the gym instead, I'm going to have to learn to not hate the treadmill. I can still dislike it, and prefer "real" running. I can still spend time doing other things, but I'm going to have to be able to do more than 10 minutes on the treadmill without wanting to shoot myself.

So, last time I did a mile, this time I did 1.25 miles. At a comfortable 6.0 mph. Comfortable meaning I did not wish I was dead or see spots when I finished. I was still breathing hard, but I managed to whine at Jess the whole time anyway, so it wasn't too bad.

Then I jumped on the elliptical and did another 2.8 miles.

Not a bad morning.

The thing I hate most about the treadmill is that I have to stare straight ahead or I trip over my feet. Yes, I mean it. I can't turn my head and talk to someone like a normal human being, I must stare STRAIGHT ahead or trip and fall to my death. (Is that something I'll get better at the more I do it? Or will I always have to stare straight ahead?)

Stupid treadmill.

Hardcore

2010-12-11T07:34:00.000-08:00

I love it when we work out long and hard.

I even challenged myself to a mile on the treadmill - I HATE the treadmill. With a fiery passion. But I wanted to run "fast" even if it was just for a minute.

So I walked for the first tenth, jogged for the next tenth held steady at 6mph speed for most of it, but sprinted in at 7mph for the last 90 seconds. 7 is FAST! I know plenty of you feel comfortable "jogging" at that pace, but that just about killed me....

Jess was kind enough to encourage me instead of pointing and laughing. (There simply isn't enough good to say about a good partner.)

After I nearly killed myself on the treadmill, I got my butt on the elliptical, then to the weights.

So, here's the summary:

Treadmill: 1 mile 10:45
Elliptical: 3.75 miles 35:00
Weights: hams/quads 2x12 @ 60 lbs. rowing/lats 2x12 @ 70 lbs.

I feel really good about this morning's workout. Perhaps it will make up for all the garbage I've been eating all week.

Different muscles

2010-12-10T12:08:00.001-08:00

Jess & I finally went back outside again now that it isn't a blizzard and the temperature is in the double digits, and we had an "I am hardcore" moment.

Turns out real running uses different muscles than ellipticalling.

Who knew?

5 miles

2010-11-27T09:39:00.000-08:00

My mom is big on saying stuff about running. Probably because I'm big on asking her stuff about running.

She swears that if you can run 5 miles you can run any distance you want. You'll need to train (obviously) but you are capable of it, and suddenly after 5 miles you know you're capable of it.

I figured Thanksgiving would be a great day to just go run. Only it was so windy that the 2 minute jog to the clubhouse had me begging for mercy.

Although the elliptical is not the same as running (and I know it....) I'm still proud of my 5.55 mile "run" on Thanksgiving.

Also, now I know I can. And really the only things stopping me from doing it in real life are 1. lack of time 2. lack of heat 3. lack of caring.

I feel like I already proved it - so I guess I should do it more often, and maybe start getting faster so I don't have the time excuse anymore (55 minutes...) but for today I'm feeling good about it.

pre-turkey workout

2010-11-24T06:16:00.000-08:00

This week has been all about allowing for Thursday's looming meals.

So today Jess & I did the elliptical for 3 miles, then did weights. School is cancelled for both our husbands, which means we had the extra time to work a little more.

Also, we saw our neighbor at the clubhouse. We confessed that we're the pansies who set the weight machines at like 30 pounds. He only laughed on the inside (so...bonus!).

My sweaty hair froze in the cold on the walk home. Sick. (Both the sweat and the freeze.)

It's been a good week as far as running/working out goes.

So today:
elliptical 3 miles on random level 11 (random is harder than hills!)
rowing 60 pounds
benching 30 pounds (I know...I know...)
legs 50 pounds
I'm getting stronger!

Dear Gym

2010-11-18T10:18:00.001-08:00

I hate your stinkin' guts. You make me vomit. You are the SCUUUUM between my toes.

Love,
Amy

PS I stink worse after spending time with you. Also you're entirely too hot.

Love,
Amy

PPS I have every intention of leaving you in the dust as often as possible this winter.

Love,
Amy

Now that's more like it

2010-11-04T09:16:00.000-07:00

We met this morning to run. Jess had mapped out our route, we walked for a while to wake up, then ran 2.5 miles in 26 minutes. I know we're still not fast, but I like us anyway.

There is a certain kind of peace that early in the morning.

It was quiet and good.

It's not that I'm entirely anti-social (although some could successfully argue that I am...) I even like all of the people who are at the gym that early in the morning. It's just that the news was blaring and there were 3 different conversations going on and I couldn't hear myself breathing hard. Forget about getting updates on Jess's life.

I'll just go ahead and say it: I hate the gym. But I really do like lifting weights....

Tonight I walked through a cologne patch

2010-11-03T18:35:00.000-07:00

I went for a walk this evening (all by myself - hold your applause) and came home smelling like a man.

Not the "icky stinky sweaty" kind. The "I just got out of the shower, use product in my hair and wear necklaces" kind.

Somehow somewhere I walked through a hardcore patch of cologne, and I smelled goo-ooood.

Try not to hit on me, OK?

A nice quiet jog

2010-11-03T10:51:00.000-07:00

I love talking with Jess every morning.

So much so that I'm irritated with this morning's weight lifting session.

We decided to go to the gym to do weights and it was uber-crowded. With the news blaring about all the election hoopla.

And Jess and I hardly said 2 words to each other while we worked.

Bleh.

It's weird to think this, but I'm now craving a nice quiet jog. Crossing my fingers for tomorrow morning.

can't walk

2010-10-29T09:51:00.000-07:00

A good friend of mine says that once you're old the pain moves from "the day after" to "the day after the day after".

I'm old.

I'm not sure exactly what happened, but there is definitely something wrong my with right hamstring.

I always tease Josh for not being able to sit up straight with his legs straight out in front of him. Because really, who is honestly that inflexible? He is.

And now I am.

I can't straighten my leg out in front of me.

Or walk normal.

Or stand up and sit down with any sort of fluidity.

What a pansy am I?

A solid run

2010-10-28T13:24:00.000-07:00

I think Jess might hate me (if I were her I'd hate me...) because she wasn't feeling well and today I made her run the whole thing anyway. Rude.

Anyway, we were done at 24:30 and feeling good.

If she were by my side the whole way I have no doubt I could run until the end of time.

2 days ago I could barely do a mile because I psyched myself out and I apparently CANNOT run alone.

This morning we ran 2.4 (after a half-mile warm up walk) and I felt like I could have kept going!

Poor Jess, I'll never be able to run without her again.

Don't run where you bike

2010-10-28T08:38:00.000-07:00

I had that stupid stupid run earlier this week and here's what I decided my biggest problem was.

I was running on the trail that I normally bike.

When you bike the half mile markers go by quickly. You spot one in the distance and barely have time to read it before you've flown past.

When you run the half mile markers are invisible for hours at a time. (OK, it doesn't actually take hours to run a half mile...but it feels like it.) And you stare at the same one for 100 steps and you think "If I look up now it will surely be gone. I'm positive I've passed it by now." But you never ever have.

When you bike you spot the landmarks and you know that you'll start to get tired "around the 4th bridge after the 2nd park".

When you run you're tired before you even get to the 1st park and you know very well how short that was because it would only have taken 3 minutes to bike the distance.

So here's my word of advice.

Don't run where you bike.

Different sports should have different routes.

Weights

2010-10-27T08:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I asked Jess if she'd teach me how to use all the weight equipment in our clubhouse.

I've only been finished for a couple of hours and I'm hurting in a whole new way.

We lifted weights for like 30 minutes. Then we ran. Her on the treadmill, me on the elliptical because I have a firey passiony hatred for the treadmill.

I did 1.7 miles in 16 minutes and I feel pretty dang good about that even though ellipticaling is not running.

Also, this is probably embarrassing to admit, but I'm just clueless enough to not know how embarrassed to be. I was putting between 30 and 50 pounds on the weight machines for all of my exercises. Which included the bench press thing (at 3 different inclines) the leg curl thing (forward and backward) and the ab machine (forward and backward).

So go us!

I need the distraction

2010-10-26T20:33:00.000-07:00

I knew that running was a mind game more than anything else, but I was 100% floored by what a wuss I am when I tried to run on my own today.

Jess and I do 2 miles as a standard run in the morning now. I like to think we're working up to more, but we usually run out of time.

I had a dream about running a 10k and liking it a lot, so I told Josh that I thought I wanted to run a 10k.

Stupid move.

So then I decided that I needed to see how far I can really run. I figured I can probably run for like 45 minutes pretty easily.

Stupid idea.

So I put my little on in the jogging stroller and headed out on the trail.

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.

I was certain I'd missed one of the mile marker and I was at LEAST a mile in, when I saw my half mile marker coming up ahead. I looked at my watch and sure enough I'd only been running for 4 minutes.

I thought I'd probably be able to run longer than my baby would stay happy, but he was entertained and warm and happy and I was winded and tired and discouraged.

My big "run as far as I possibly can just to prove I can do it" run was approximately 1.5 miles.

I'm SUCH a pansy when I'm by myself!

My lazy morning

2010-10-21T06:29:00.000-07:00

After a long night I was feeling good about myself for just getting outside this morning.

We were doing a different route.

We walked for a long time and I finally admitted to Jess that I had no intention of making us run. Because I honestly didn't care if we just walked and talked about Sister Wives for the next 4 hours.

She wanted to run. (Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.)

So we ran for a few minutes (10 to be exact) because we'd already sucked up so much time walking.

It was lovely.

We still covered a decent distance, and I'm calling it a success.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

2010-10-19T10:20:00.000-07:00

24 minutes
2.something miles
through our neighborhoods and around the little loop

Some days you just plain rock it.

That was today.

We usually walk for a bit to warm up before we run, and this morning the "let's run" part came earlier than usual. Then we did our regular 2 mile route, but at the end of it we still had some time on the clock, so we just went down the street a bit and came back.

On the way back I felt like I had a little more speed in me, but Jess was convinced that she was going to fall over and die. I was a step ahead of her while we were going "fast" to our finish so I told her that the first one to the end gets to choose tomorrow's route and we were gonna go far because I was in charge.

Turns out that she's been holding out on me in a pretty serious way. I kept up with her for nearly 5 seconds before she completely left me in the dust. Her inner track star came out hard and fast and although I gave it all I had I was nowhere near keeping up with her.

She swore she'd choose a 5 minute route for tomorrow, but I know better.

As soon as I caught up to her I couldn't stop laughing. I couldn't believe she could run that fast! We've been 'running' together for MONTHS now and she has never put me to shame quite like that before. I had no idea.

But now I know - and with any luck she'll teach me how to go fast too!

October 18, 2010

2010-10-18T09:34:00.000-07:00

We ran this morning.

And I forced Jess to run farther than she said she could. That always makes me feel good.

And we both agreed that we like running out of time before strength.

And I'm pretty sure we both agree we're not getting up earlier just to run longer.

But she also confessed to running another night last week, which I think I really should do too.

*sigh* Is running two short runs sissier than running one longer run?

Also if I run two short runs per day, does it mean I don't have to shower and get ready EVER? That'd be nice.

short, but good

2010-10-14T07:44:00.000-07:00

This was only day 3 of running this week because Monday was "sick and tired' day.

But after having nearly a week off before that, Day 3 hurt.

My legs were sore and it took a long time to feel like I could keep going.

But we did it anyway, and I made us cut it short so I could come home and help Josh study a bit more before his test.

So it was short, but still good.

And mostly I'm just glad we did it, because running in the morning helps me make better choices all day long. I say as I eat my bagel with cream cheese and homemade jam..... - er maybe not.

Sick & Tired

2010-10-11T07:40:00.000-07:00

This morning Jess was sick and I was tired and to my knowledge neither of us ran.

I guess some days are just like that.

But I know I'm gonna pay for it all day long.

a great run

2010-10-07T08:53:00.000-07:00

This morning we ran 2.3 miles in 24 minutes. We did the same route in a different order.

The temperature was cold enough to shock you when you first walk out the door, but perfect once we got going. It really was a beautiful morning.

I know that for a lot of people that doesn't even count as running, but for me it does and for me it is FREAKING awesome.

We only have so many minutes before life at home sends us running back to take care of people and things, so I sortof think we'll max at out just a 30 minute jog in the morning, but wouldn't it be great if that 30 minutes turned into a 5k every morning?

bailed

2010-10-06T20:15:00.000-07:00

I flat out bailed this morning.

Josh had a test today (he thought) and for whatever reason he was up ALL night studying for it and worrying about it and sometimes washing the blood taste out of his mouth with ultra-strong Listerine. Mostly though he just wanted to talk about it. Which is why I was up at 2. And 3. And again at 4:30.

That's why this morning I put on my running shoes, my clothes, filled my water bottle, grabbed my watch then told Jess that I really just wanted to go back to bed and asked for her permission to bail.

When she said it was OK I ran back home to get in more sleep time.

What a pansy huh?

October 5, 2010

2010-10-05T11:40:00.000-07:00

This morning's run was surprisingly fantastic.

We did 2 miles, and it was windy and we did a different route (to the church) so I was surprised to still feel great at the end of the run.

I feel like now we run out of time before we run out of energy and have to quit.

What a fantastic feeling!

Just plain running

2010-09-01T08:43:00.000-07:00

No recent races, just regular boring plain old running.

We go earlier.

In the dark.

When the cold is still leftover from the night.

I gotta say, waking up before anyone else on the planet for something like "a quick jog" is not really my style, BUT it's given a whole new structure to my day that I love.

Plus watching the sun rise is truly a beautiful thing.

There were some fantastic race events going on that I so badly wanted to support, but instead we're paying tuition, buying books, grocery shopping and trying not to lose power to our house.

One day when I'm independently wealthy I'd like to run a race every weekend, but it's just not in the cards (or the budget) right now. So in the meantime I'm keeping ready to run at a moment's notice. If we suddenly walk into money that could justifiably be spent on a race, I'll be ready to do it.

This morning's run

2010-08-09T09:24:00.000-07:00

It was an incredibly beautiful morning. Perhaps in part due to the fact that I went to bed ridiculously early last night.

I walked outside, saw the sunset and immediately started throwing bark at my window to wake up my husband so he'd see it too. He agreed, it was stunning.

We ran nearly a mile and a half this morning, and I was surprised to be feeling so good at the end of it.

It seems that the conditions were perfect for a jog this morning. Not too hot or too cold, no major wind to speak of, a beautiful sunrise with plenty of clouds, and plenty to talk about with 2 full weekends.

I never thought I'd say it, but I love a good morning run.