Thanks to a late start, I had barely over 20 minutes to get in my run on Monday. So while doing my two-minute warm-up walk, I debated if I should try running the two miles, since that would not leave me much time after to stretch. Once I started running up the killer hill, however, I decided to really push myself, figuring if I was ever going to do that first, tough mile in under 10 minutes, this would be a good time to try.
I was panting pretty hard during this mile (though to be fair, the long, black yoga pants I wore on this warm sunny afternoon did not help), hard enough that I was thinking I had a pretty good chance of reaching the top of the hill before the stopwatch (i.e., my phone) reached 10 minutes. As I hit the top of the hill, I thought I pressed the "lap" button on my stopwatch. But when I looked at it as I started down the hill, I realized I must not have. So even though the time read 9:55, I might have actually finished that first mile in about 9:53 or maybe even 9:50.
Woo-hoo!
But I don't plan on doing that too often...
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Running through the pain
When I first starting running again, I would often write about various pains I felt. At one point, they seemed to be far and few between. Today, however, it occurred to me that I probably almost always have some pain, somewhere, when I run, but I just push through it and tend not to notice it so much. Hey, if professional athletes can sprain an ankle or injure a knee and get back out there sometimes during that same game, then I can't let a little pain stop me, right?
This morning it was about 55 degrees when I ran. I was kind of cold in my shorts and t-shirt, which was the opposite of how I felt when I ran in long yoga pants Monday afternoon when it was in the mid 70s. I can never seem to dress right. And right after I felt the chill in the air, I noticed my ankle hurt. I was pretty much willing it and myself to keep going, and eventually, the pain lessened. Or maybe I was too busy being chilly.
By the end of the run, I hardly felt my ankle pain, and a leg pain I had felt in the middle of the run also went away. At that point, I was glad I was in shorts and a t-shirt and happy to have run a good distance. I ended up running about 4.8 miles, my longest since 2002, in about 47 minutes.
It is also worth noting that when I ran my "regular" route on Monday afternoon, I finished the first, tough uphill mile in just over 10 minutes, which was my best to date, even if only by a few seconds. I am still searching for that elusive sub-10-minute first mile.
I will get there.
This morning it was about 55 degrees when I ran. I was kind of cold in my shorts and t-shirt, which was the opposite of how I felt when I ran in long yoga pants Monday afternoon when it was in the mid 70s. I can never seem to dress right. And right after I felt the chill in the air, I noticed my ankle hurt. I was pretty much willing it and myself to keep going, and eventually, the pain lessened. Or maybe I was too busy being chilly.
By the end of the run, I hardly felt my ankle pain, and a leg pain I had felt in the middle of the run also went away. At that point, I was glad I was in shorts and a t-shirt and happy to have run a good distance. I ended up running about 4.8 miles, my longest since 2002, in about 47 minutes.
It is also worth noting that when I ran my "regular" route on Monday afternoon, I finished the first, tough uphill mile in just over 10 minutes, which was my best to date, even if only by a few seconds. I am still searching for that elusive sub-10-minute first mile.
I will get there.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
A pretty good workout week
I started my Labor Day with a run around Indiana County (particularly, my mom's neighborhood). I added an extra street or two, so I ended up running around 3.3 or 3.4 miles (my best guess, based on my time, which was around 35 minutes) at a fairly easy pace. I really like that run. The hills don't seem awful.
Wednesday, I ran around my neighborhood, visiting streets I had not been on since 2002, when we bought our house. One of the hills was an absolute killer, but it felt good to complete it, even slowly. I am guessing I ran about 4.5 miles, again based on my time, which was around 45 minutes. Mostly I am glad that no one ran me over; a couple of times cars came pretty close, which I found surprising since I was running up the street (barely a hill) for quite some time. It was not as if I were darting across the street out of nowhere. This is why I no longer run while listening to music.
Today, I ran up and down the steps near my kid's school 20 times, with a break halfway between. I did that in about 17:30, but not sure how that compares to previous attempts. I did not feel as if I was running (well, jogging) as fast as I normally do, but I blame that on yesterday's run. When I completed the steps, I ran around the upper lot for about 12 minutes, ending with a sprint for the last 30 seconds. I hope that I did not correctly count my bpm; if so, when I finished my sprint, I was at 200, which might have put me close to a heart attack. But within a couple of minutes, I was down around 100, so I am guessing not.
Tomorrow, I will be subbing for the gym teacher, so I should get some jogging in during the kids' warm ups. All in all, I call this a good week. I feel (and felt) pretty good overall and I "mixed" it up a little.
Wednesday, I ran around my neighborhood, visiting streets I had not been on since 2002, when we bought our house. One of the hills was an absolute killer, but it felt good to complete it, even slowly. I am guessing I ran about 4.5 miles, again based on my time, which was around 45 minutes. Mostly I am glad that no one ran me over; a couple of times cars came pretty close, which I found surprising since I was running up the street (barely a hill) for quite some time. It was not as if I were darting across the street out of nowhere. This is why I no longer run while listening to music.
Today, I ran up and down the steps near my kid's school 20 times, with a break halfway between. I did that in about 17:30, but not sure how that compares to previous attempts. I did not feel as if I was running (well, jogging) as fast as I normally do, but I blame that on yesterday's run. When I completed the steps, I ran around the upper lot for about 12 minutes, ending with a sprint for the last 30 seconds. I hope that I did not correctly count my bpm; if so, when I finished my sprint, I was at 200, which might have put me close to a heart attack. But within a couple of minutes, I was down around 100, so I am guessing not.
Tomorrow, I will be subbing for the gym teacher, so I should get some jogging in during the kids' warm ups. All in all, I call this a good week. I feel (and felt) pretty good overall and I "mixed" it up a little.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
My longest run since, well, a long time
Yesterday, I ran (well, mostly jogged) up and jogged (perhaps closer to a fast walk) down the 65 steps in the school lot about 22 times. I felt it during and after, but just not enough to give myself a day off today. With that in mind, this morning I decided to try a longer run, without pushing myself speed-wise.
I did not time my first (usual) mile, though it was probably around 11 minutes. The middle part of my run was on Greensburg Pike, which I used to run on when I lived in the Forest Hills/Chalfant area. I sped up a little during that part because I noticed two senior citizens running at about the same pace as I was; there was just no way I was going to let grandma and grandpa outpace me! Fortunately, there are no killer hills on that road, just some smaller up- and downhills, and I ended up running that leg of the journey in under 25 minutes. I tried to take a slight advantage of the last, mostly downhill mile (I again passed the grandparents), though that mile still took me about nine minutes to complete.
I ended up finishing the run in 45 minutes, give or take a minute. When I measured the jaunt, I was happy to see I ran almost 4.5 miles. I am guessing the last time I ran that far was during the Great Race in 2002 (I actually ran 6.2 miles, since I ran the 10k).
The thing about running races, at least for me, but I bet for most people, is you don't really need to run that distance on a regular basis. If you can run close to it without taxing yourself too much, then you will probably be fine to run farther. This entire summer, I ran 3 miles only twice, and yet I managed to run the 3.1 5k on Saturday just fine.
Anyway, I felt pretty good at the end of today's run, confident I can run even farther next time. So much so, that if I were going to be in town on September 26, I would so be running the Great Race (at a very slow pace, mind you). I guess I will just have to try to get in some more longer runs, for my own satisfaction.
I did not time my first (usual) mile, though it was probably around 11 minutes. The middle part of my run was on Greensburg Pike, which I used to run on when I lived in the Forest Hills/Chalfant area. I sped up a little during that part because I noticed two senior citizens running at about the same pace as I was; there was just no way I was going to let grandma and grandpa outpace me! Fortunately, there are no killer hills on that road, just some smaller up- and downhills, and I ended up running that leg of the journey in under 25 minutes. I tried to take a slight advantage of the last, mostly downhill mile (I again passed the grandparents), though that mile still took me about nine minutes to complete.
I ended up finishing the run in 45 minutes, give or take a minute. When I measured the jaunt, I was happy to see I ran almost 4.5 miles. I am guessing the last time I ran that far was during the Great Race in 2002 (I actually ran 6.2 miles, since I ran the 10k).
The thing about running races, at least for me, but I bet for most people, is you don't really need to run that distance on a regular basis. If you can run close to it without taxing yourself too much, then you will probably be fine to run farther. This entire summer, I ran 3 miles only twice, and yet I managed to run the 3.1 5k on Saturday just fine.
Anyway, I felt pretty good at the end of today's run, confident I can run even farther next time. So much so, that if I were going to be in town on September 26, I would so be running the Great Race (at a very slow pace, mind you). I guess I will just have to try to get in some more longer runs, for my own satisfaction.
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