Must have missed logging a week

I ran last weekend, but for some reason did not blog about it. Really the main (usually only) reason I blog about my running is so I can keep track of it. Otherwise, I would never remember doing it. I am thinking I ran on Labor Day, but would not bet the farm on it. But I seem to recall feeling good about eating a lot at the neighbor's picnic that day, so I am going to go with that.

When I woke up yesterday, I was chilly for the first time in months. I looked at the temps, and decided that 55 degrees was too cold to run. Which is crazy, because in my running days, 50-degree temps were the best. But I guess my older body is used to running in warmer weather, and although I hate anything above 70, 55 felt too extreme.

So I blew off running and went about my day. But when I started walking the dog early that evening, I decided to try to run a bit. That decision was mostly made for me because Bailey was in a running mood from about minute 1, so I went with it. I might have slowed down or stopped a couple of times, but it was my almost-typical 1.2 mile run. In jean, no less. When we got back home, and I started to take off my tennis shoes, I decided to re-lace up and get back out there. I ended up running around the field at the end of our street for somewhere between 15 and 20 minutes. I kept a steady, not fast pace. I felt really good and probably could have kept going. I think it helped that it was all flat.I don't think I will be running in jeans again any time soon, but still, not constricting at all.

I am definitely glad I kept my streak up. Once the temps turn really cold or gets wet or snowy, I am guessing I will put my running on a hiatus. The dog needs her daily walk, and I just don't see myself running on wet roads with her without falling.

But until then, hopefully I can keep it up. And the walking. And the weight lifting, which I have been doing about every three days.

It was a run.

On Saturday, while at my mom's in Indiana County, I had one of what is likely my last runs there. I did not think about it at the time, but now I realize the significance of it. :-(

From the first step, my left calf hurt. I have been having some problems with it, where at random times I get a sharp pain that tends to last just a minute or two. Because of the pain, I started off running really slowly, wondering if I was hurting myself doing so. But after a few minutes, the pain subsided. I never picked up my speed a whole lot more, but I was okay with that.

I am not sure how far I ran. I ended up lasting for about 33 minutes. My guess is that I ran around 3 miles (I certainly was not doing a 10-minute mile). On a positive note, running up the biggest hill in the neighborhood was not awful. It went better than the steeper, though not nearly as long, hill in my neighborhood. Once I made it to the top, I felt not too bad.

I am glad I ran Saturday morning when the temps were in the low 70s. If I had waited until Sunday, the temps would have been close to 80. I certainly did not want a repeat of last week.

All in all, I am happy with the run. I hope to run during this coming week. We shall see.

Should have recorded that last run

I ran Saturday morning, but did not have time to blog about it before I went to my mom's. Originally, I had planned to wait until Sunday morning to run (there), but I figured better to get it done, in case something got in the way. Turns out something did.

Anyway, I, unfortunately, deleted my times for that run. I think I did the first trip with Bailey at around 6 minutes each. One trip might have been under, and one might have been a hair over. So it was good. On my second (dog-less) trip, I ran into a guy I saw last Saturday. We ran together for most of those .6 miles. It turns out this tall, thin guy (who has legs that pretty much go up to my chest) is 62 and has been running since HS, but things have come up that have kept him from running. He has been trying to get back into it, but uses the treadmill at times. I told him I hate the treadmill (not that I have one), but I am sure it is better for my knees. I also told him that my husband is afraid that I will need my knees replaced before I turn 50. He kind of laughed, but he did not say what I wanted him to, which was, "I have the same knees I was born with." I was glad we were able to talk, as that is distracting, and it even helped having him go up that awful hill. But I was also kind of glad that I turned around at the (almost) top of the hill, while he kept going, since I get so winded by that.

Anyway, I thought my second trip was a little slower, although I kind of think I did the first half with that guy at about 6 minutes. I finished it off up and down my street a few times plus a few laps in the field at the end of the street, for at least 8 minutes, and maybe even 9.

I seem to recall that my knee hardly hurt, and my hamstring just a bit. I also don't remember my feet hurting like last time. But this happened three days ago, which is like a lifetime with my memory.

Unrelated (I hope!) to that is that the front of my right leg has been bothering me today and maybe a bit yesterday. I walked around just fine at Kennywood yesterday, but I limped during my short walk at work, and I was slowed during my 20-minute walk with Bailey tonight. If I don't feel better tomorrow, I won't be running. However, if the weather forecast does not change, I might not run the next few days regardless, if 88 degrees turns out to be the coolest.

It was kind of like walking on the beach!

This morning in the Burgh the windchill was about -6. Yikes. By the time lunchtime rolled around, the real-feel temp was around 0, which I decided would be just fine for a walk.

I had on a long-sleeve t-shirt, a wool sweater, a very thick Pirates coat, leggings, jeans, two pairs of socks, thick men's boots, a Pens winter hat, and a Pittsburgh scarf. I headed over to Phipps and walked rather briskly. I made it from my office in about 15 minutes, and when I walked in, I was sweating! Only my nose and cheeks were cold.

I spent about five minutes walking around the place, before I headed back for the 15-minute return trip. One thing I noticed about parts of the walk was the uneven snow in some places made it tough to walk, and it reminded me of walking on the sand at the beach. So I figured I kind of got in a bonus workout!

My lunchtime walk also meant I got to walk about up the 75 office steps a second time.

Throw in the usual bus-related walking, and all in all, it was a good exercise day.

And, I did pretty well eating today. Much less than I usually do. I did have a small handful of M & Ms, which I completely blame on my coworker who reminded me about my stash. I resisted for awhile, but gave in later. Still, not bad.

Progress.

Steps, walking, swimming and other things

This past week continuing through today, I have had various forms of exercise.

Today I ran the 65ish steps 20 times, for grand total of 16:01. Not my best time ever, but one of my better times. The temps were in the low 60s, and it was cloudy, so I was a bit chilly. Not that I am complaining! I think I was relatively pain-free, so yeah.

Yesterday and Saturday, I walked around my mom's neighborhood in Indiana County with her and my kid. Not a fast pace, but some exercise nonetheless. We walked between 30 and 45 minutes each day. The temps were in the upper 50s, maybe even 60 on Saturday and definitely in the 60s on Sunday. Sunny both days. Great walking weather.

On Friday, I started off with about seven minutes on the stepper. I used the weight machine to do some upper and lower body. Then I moved to the stationary bike and rode for 10 minutes. I followed that up with about 18 minutes on the treadmill where I started off walking for a few minutes then I alternated between short bursts of speed and walking and finished with a couple minutes of walking. Finally, I swam about 15 laps in the pool at a steady pace, throwing in a couple of faster laps for good measure.

Thursday I pretty much did nothing, other than a little bit of walking with the kids in the after-school program I volunteer for.

Wednesday the kid and I spent about three hours playing the snow and sun-filled sky. I probably shoveled for about 20 minutes. I was planning to swim but decided we had done enough.

Tuesday I did Zumba.

I think I gave myself the day off on Monday, but I don't really remember.

I feel pretty good about the level of activity. Unfortunately tomorrow I won't get to do my usual Zumba because I am going to an afternoon funeral, but presumably I will be back in the pool on Wednesday.

Moving on!

Guess who ran this week?!

After more than four months, I finally ran a real run, on the road. We had another nice Monday; it was sunny and in the mid 40s, so I decided I had come up with enough excuses not to do it.

I was cold in the beginning. I started running at almost 4 p.m., so the sun was going down and hidden behind buildings for a good part of the run. The thin hoodie and thin long-sleeved tee underneath were almost enough to keep me warm, but my head and hands were definitely chilly. Fortunately, I was able to put my hood up and keep my hands in my sleeves. And, as I suspected, I was plenty warm about a mile into it.

The bottom of my left foot hurt a bit only a couple minutes into the run, but the pain was minor, and I hardly thought about it. My knees did not hurt at all, so victory!

This run was not exactly my usual run. Instead of running up the killer hill, I started more than halfway up that awful section. Then I ran the rest of the first mile. I ran back to where I started, but decided to keep going until the bottom of the hill/where I normally start. Then I ended where I actually did start. So, yes, I did cover the same distance, but it was "out of order" so posting my times will be a little pointless. Ultimately, it took me 20:24, which is two minutes slower than when I last ran. It did the first not-quite-one-mile in just over 10 minutes, but to be accurate, I would need to add at least a minute for the section of the hill I did not run until the end.

Regardless, I am not discouraged. I was 40 back then, and I can believe four months of age once you get in your 40s makes a difference. And even though I have been swimming and doing Zumba, it is not the same as running, so it is nearly impossible to not have a drop off after four months without running. Plus, it was cold. Running in 60 degrees is a lot different from running in 40 degrees. When I was in my late 30s, I loved running in 40-degree temps, but now I much prefer the 50s. To think that a few years ago I ran in temps in the mid 20s is almost laughable. I am pretty sure I won't hit the pavement unless it is above 30 degrees for the rest of my life and I may just stick to the 40s and above. But never say never. [Worth noting, it appears the last time I ran in temps below 30 was in February of 2011, when it was 29 degrees. I last ran in temps in the upper 20s and 30s regularly in 2010.]

It still counts!

I last ran in October. Yes, it has been almost four months since I hit the pavement. Today, although I did not exactly run, I did jog up and down those 65ish steps 10 times, plus another one for good measure.

This school year, I think I have run up and down the steps no more than a half dozen times, and it appears the last time I did it was at the beginning of October. Since I had about 10 minutes to kill at the school today, and the weather was sunny and in the mid 40s, I figured I might as well make use of the day.

I started off strong and fast (for me), but quickly realized that was a bad idea, as I was gasping for breath after only one trip. Regardless, I pushed myself and made the 10 trips in 8:06. The 11th trip was just for fun. Not that it was!

I probably should have gotten out there and actually ran, but doing the steps was probably better. I have a feeling when I finally do run my usual route, my time will be high, and I will be disappointed. Or I will end up not doing the entire two miles, which will also disappoint me.

Even though I have not been updating the blog, I can assure you that I have been working out. I swim two to three times per week and I have been doing Zumba once a week for the last three or four weeks. I feel pretty good, but not great, when I work out three or four times a week. At least I am staying in decent shape. But I feel even better, and as if I am actually doing good things, when I work out five or six days a week. Unfortunately that does not happen too often. But I guess that makes the times when it does that much sweeter. Right?

Until next time.

A run I am proud of

Yesterday morning my right hip flexor was hurting like, well, something that hurts a lot. I was wincing every time I walked up steps or lifted my knee even slightly. And I am assuming it is my hip flexor because that is what another mom at school told me it was as I pointed to the place where my leg connects to my body, for lack of a better description. This pain was rather unfortunate as it was such a beautiful sunny October day that I hated to think I would miss a chance to run it. Luckily this woman, who is not a doctor, told me I would probably be fine to run; she insisted my body would tell me if it needed to stop. I decided to go with her thoughts. And I am glad I did.

I don't think I noticed my knee or hip flexor hurting at all, for whatever reason. My left foot hurt only a bit and not consistently, which is always a nice thing. And running to Nine Inch Nails and Arrested Development made the experience of running in sunny and mild (the mid 60s, I believe) temps everything it should be. Best of all, I did not feel lousy and winded, as I often do. Maybe I was still on my "I-came-in-third-place-in-my-age-group-and-finished-the-race-in-under-29-minutes" high. Who knows, but I will take it.

Mile one: 10:19
Mile two: 8:26

That first mile was my best this school year. And I have not done my second mile in under 8:30 since last fall, I do believe. Many months ago, I said I might never get my first mile below 10 minutes, and I was probably okay with that. I still am. Even though I won't completely give up on that happening and I am not necessarily considering that as a goal, I will keep it in the back of my mind.

In other exercise this week: swimming on Sunday, nothing on Monday, Zumba on Tuesday, lunch duty along with running and some tag and soccer playing at the park on Wednesday, and a short (20 minutes round trip) walk this morning. May or may not get in something Friday.

Race for Pace

I completed the Race for Pace in 28:55.

If I would have run the race about three weeks ago, when I was working out like crazy, that time time might have been a little disappointing. But I have to keep telling myself over and over that I am 40. Unfortunately, saying it does not help me accept it all that much. Not that I am 40; I am cool with that. But that I am past my running prime. But proof of that was right before me: I ran into a former student whom I beat by about two and a half minutes when I ran the race two years. This year, he bested me by seven and a half minutes.

I know I should be focused on my finishing the race in under 30 minutes, which is great, considering I have been running about once a week. And I am absolutely proud of myself, particularly considering that I struggled a bit during my runs lately. I was not convinced I could do it in under 30 minutes. But I did it.

A few other notes:

It was cold, probably about 35-degrees at race time, but sunny. My running gear consisted of a long-sleeved t-shirt, a windbreaker, yoga pants, socks as gloves, and a flexible knee brace I used to wear at the beginning of this century when I ran several times a week. I unzipped the windbreaker during the last 2/3 of the mile, and maybe even took it off. The socks on my hands also came off about that time (I did not have gloves, but those babies worked great, even for nose-wiping purposes, as gross as that sounds, but it was cold).

I am happy to report that I was almost pain-free the entire time (the knee brace was a good call); even my feet hurt very little, though during the first mile, two of my toes were numb from the cold! I have this odd breathing pattern, which I tried to replicate when I was lying in bed, but couldn't. Regardless, it seems to work for me, and, almost as important, I am not wheezing and gasping as I seem to always notice some people do during these races.

I started off strong, kept a pretty steady pace, struggled a bit near the end up the last hill, but "kicked it in" as best as I could the last tenth of a mile. Having my friend Diane there cheering me on really helped. As I was struggling up the last hill, she made me laugh (or at least smile as I was out of breath) when she yelled, "Go, Faith! Don't embarrass me." 

During the last mile, a woman who I determined was somewhere near my age (which impressed me, because I am lousy at figuring out ages) passed me. I thought about pushing myself even more, in case she was going to be the difference between my getting third place and fourth place. But in the end, the last hill was too much for me, and I could not go any faster. I convinced myself to just keep going as I was so I could finish in under 30 minutes

When the time came for my age group awards, the person they announced for third place was that woman who passed me. I could not believe it! Oddly enough, when I checked my results online that evening, I was listed as being in third place in my age group. I emailed the race director about it, who just emailed me a bit ago saying she would look into it. I admit the competitor in me is disappointed to think they made a mistake that cost me getting my name mentioned and a medal, but the mature gal in me is going to keep telling myself this:

I am 40, I finished the race in under 29 minutes, and I am proud of this body!

But wait, it gets worse

For three days this week, I was pretty crazy with exercise. I basically crammed five days of working out into three. And I am suffering for it. My aching body.

After Monday's over-abundance of physical activity, I (comparatively) took it easy on Tuesday with an hour of Zumba. But Wednesday I went for another marathon of activity.

I stared off doing lunch duty. The school has three lunches, each lasting 40 minutes. As a monitor, I walk up and down the aisles making sure kids are doing what they are supposed to. After about 25 to 35 minutes, I walk the kids up a few steps and down a bunch more to go outside, where I again walk up and down the playground many times. Then we bring them back in and do it two more times. Although I cannot call that working out, it seems pretty reasonable to "count" it as exercise.

About an hour after I finished that, I went for a run. My stomach was probably a little too full to do it well, but I wanted to get that run in, since the weather was nice. Turns out the 60 degrees kind of felt too cold during the first mile; in fact, my ears actually briefly "burned" as they do in the winter. Crazy.

I don't have much to say about the run, other than I struggled a bit. But when I remind myself that I had already walked, ran steps, swam, did Zumba, stood on my feet for three hours for three mornings in row while subbing, and did a lunch duty within a 54-hour period, finishing the two miles is an accomplishment in itself. Let's go with that.

Mile 1: 10:57
Mile 2: 8:58

An hour later, I swam almost 15 laps and tread water for a bit.

I sort of took the day off today, other than a couple hours of standing while subbing and another two hours of lunch duty.

Who knows what tomorrow will bring. But I am pretty sure my feet, thighs, and ankles wish it would be lying completely still. 

No, weather people, it does NOT feel like 73 degrees!

My second run in as many weeks. Look at me go!

When I went to bed last night, amidst the windy, stormy weather, I was convinced my morning run would be in 70-degree and low humidity weather. I figured I would take the same route as last week, and see if my time had improved. But when I started my run around 9:50 a.m., the temps felt about 80 degrees and the sun was blazing, I was pretty sure that was not happening.

When I was halfway through my water bottle and only 1/3 of the way through my run, I, once again, considered cutting in short. But I decided even if I could not beat last week's time, I could at least come close to it. So I soldiered on.

Because of the sun, heat and humidity (I cannot believe it was only 73 degrees, but I can believe the humidity was 100 percent), I hardly noticed any pains. I was, however, cursing the sweat that kept running down my face. The ponytail holder kept my hair off my face and neck, but what I was really missing was a hairband to  keep the sweat on my brow. Oh, well.

When it was all said and done and my lukewarm water was down to its last few rationed drops, I ended up coming in at 29:16. I have no idea how I bested my time from last week by almost two minutes. And I really felt it at the end (as did my rapidly beating heart which took quite a few minutes to slow down). But I did it.

Not sure when I will get my next run in (just last week I said it would probably take me a month or two), but if I can keep up with swimming and/or Zumba a couple times a week, hopefully I can stay in decent shape.

Slow and steady finished the run

After over a month of not really running, I finally laced up my shoes this morning, two counties over. As I first set out in the cloudy, 55-degree morning, I decided I would try to run for about 20 minutes. But the more I ran (and by ran, I really mean jogged), I figured I might as well keep up my slower pace and go for 30 minutes.

About three minutes into the run (jog), I noticed a slight pain in my left foot and calf, but nothing unmanageable. Soon after, I realized I should have gone with a short-sleeved tee and shorts, rather than my long sleeves and yoga pants, but there was not much I could do at that point. I also ran with a bottle of water, something I do whenever I am at my mom's, probably because she uses bottled water and it helps. For whatever reason, I noticed I prefer to keep the bottle in my left hand and would often switch it back to that hand without realizing it. As my mind wandered, I tried to make a connection between my left-hand preference and my left foot hurting.

About 20 or so minutes into the run, I noticed my right foot and calf hurting, but they could have hurt before that and I just never noticed. Fortunately, the pain was minor.

All in all, I call it a good run (jog). I am glad I got out there and can still do it, even if doing it means doing it slowish.

I continue to slack off

Having started a part-time, temp job, I have less time than I used to (duh!). As much as I hate to slack off  exercising, I am afraid I have done just that. The week leading up to Easter I managed to swim in addition to the steps I last blogged about. But I am pretty sure that was it.

This week, which is nearly over, has not been any better. At the park on Monday, I ran around with my kid off and on for about 10 to 15 minutes, but that pretty much left me winded. I have no idea why I can run a few miles (not fast of course, but I manage some speed), but yet when I am trying to tag my kid or run away from her, I am so out of breath that I have to take a break after only a minute or two.

Yesterday, we went swimming, where I managed about 18 laps and some arm exercises. Again, nothing to brag about, but at least I was moving. This afternoon I will be Zumba-ing, after not having class last week. Since I work tomorrow, I guess that will be the end of my exercising. Admittedly, since late winter has returned, I am not that disappointed that I have not gone running this week. Getting some exercise is better than none.

Going the distance

I ran about four miles yesterday. Yeah, me! I understand that most runners would be unimpressed by that, but considering how often (or infrequently) I run, I think running four miles is pretty darn good.

It was a beautiful, sunny day, in the mid 60s. For that reason, I decided that I wanted to do a long run. Probably about eight minutes into the run, I was wishing I had short sleeves, so up my sleeves went for the remainder. For some reason my legs, covered in yoga-like pants were fine, despite their being insulated with more fat and muscle.

I did not push myself, as I was going for distance, not time, and I am not really sure how far I went. I decided after I ran my first usual mile, I would make a right and go up the Pike for about 10 minutes, which would leave me 10 minutes to get back. I made it back in less time, because there were more down hills. Then, about halfway through my final (usual) mile, I cut down a sidewalk and ran through a park, down that street and then up another steep one to get back onto the usual street.

As for pain, I noticed the top of my right thigh hurting for a bit. My left knee also hurt at the beginning, which made me panic, as I had somehow forgotten that my left knee has been hurting the previous two days. Luckily, it mostly subsided. My feet hurt off and on, but nothing major.

I did Zumba today, and I found it much more difficult to do it high impact, but I kept up. Tomorrow I will probably swim. A pretty good week.

Swimming and the knee

Other than a brisk 15-minute walk both Friday morning and Sunday afternoon, I had not done anything in the way of exercise since Zumba last Thursday. But because, for whatever reason, my left knee hurt Sunday evening and most of Monday, I was considering skipping my planned swimming yesterday. Fortunately, I thought better.

I ended up swimming, at a pretty good pace, 25 laps in about 30 minutes. I followed that up with about 15 minutes of jogging in the pool and some arm and leg water exercises. I did not notice the discomfort, which can best be likened to having twisted my knee, at all during my 55 minutes in the pool. It came back once I was home, but I will take what I can get. I hardly notice it now.

I have really been slacking off swimming lately, only one day last week, so I was glad to get in that workout at the beginning of the week. Most likely we will swim again on Wednesday unless the predicted 60-degree weather beckons us to the park. I do hope to either run my two-mile jaunt or hit the steps on Wednesday unless it rains. I think I will give my knee the day off today.

Until next time.

Leaves are falling

After a month off from running, I got out there yesterday. The day began full of sun and decent temps, but by the time I started running, the sky had clouded up. About halfway through my run, I felt a few raindrops that fortunately did not turn into an all-out rain. Not so bad when it is almost 50 degrees nearing the end of February. Worth noting is that a leaf hit me in the face during my run, which struck me as odd since it is February. Shouldn't all the leaves have fallen off by December at the latest?!

As I began the run, I felt pain somewhere, and I tried to make note of it for this post, but I forget where exactly, so that is probably a good thing. What is not so good is that my left knee has been bothering me since the run; it feels as if I twisted it. Weird, because it is usually my right knee that bothers me. My thighs also are a bit sore, but I blame that as much on swimming some laps at the pool an hour later as I do the run and subsequent five trips up and down the outside gym steps. Yeah, I definitely got in a good workout yesterday.

When I started running, since I had just gotten over my cold, I told myself to take it easy and not be worried about time. This is hard for (competitive) me, and when I looked at my stopwatch on my cell phone as I was nearing the top of the hill at the end of the first mile, I did try to push myself so I would not be too far over 10 minutes.

Mile one: 10:25
Mile two: 8:54

Even though that time is worse than what I did last month, which was against the wind (there was some wind yesterday), I am satisfied. I was sick last week and did almost no exercise. Plus I have to think my nearly gone cough had to affect my running. I know I was breathing hard during most of the run. But the important thing is I went out there and did it. And swam some laps after that. Oh, and I did Zumba yesterday and plan to do it again today.

Hopefully in another month or two, I can work on getting my time back down. But until then, I will try to focus on just getting exercise.

Slacking off

Because I subbed three days the week before and all five days last week, I have been a little lax with my exercise. I cannot even recall what I did the week before last; I know I did Zumba, but I have no idea how many times I went swimming. Since I subbed for gym that week, I guess I can count the many laps I did that day!

Last week, I did Zumba on Monday and then swam on Wednesday. And that was it for the week. I'd like to think my dancing around with the kids in various music classes also counted for something, but that was only a few minutes per class and I was hardly moving. But at least it was most days.

Today, despite my sore throat, I headed to the pool. I started off jogging for 15 minutes and eventually did 15 laps. It was not an intense workout, but at least I got there.

Here's hoping that the temps will warm up enough to melt the snow so I can get a run in again. It has been too long.

Against the wind but into the sun

According to the weather peeps, today was supposed to be in the 50s, but rainy, so I planned to do my weekly run tomorrow or Wednesday when it was supposed to be sunny, though chillier (between the upper 30s and lower 40s). It certainly did pour this morning, and it was a bit chilly, in the 30s, but fortunately by noon, the rain seemed to leave the skies and the temps started to rise.

So I set out to run around 2 p.m., going my usual route, when the temps were in the upper 40s. As sunny is it was, one could have thought it was 60. In fact with the sun feeling so warm, I decided to skip the sweatshirt/hoodie and wear just a long-sleeved t-shirt with workout pants. Wise choice. I was chilly for only about 30 seconds once or twice the entire run.

As for pain, I felt little, so yeah. I did notice my right knee hurt about halfway into my first mile, but not again after that. The roads were wet, but fortunately, I never slipped.

All in all, it was a good run. Even though the wind on the way down was a bit strong, the sun more than made up for it and left me feeling pretty good.

Mile one:10:12
Mile two: 8:46

Considering the wind, I think I did pretty well time-wise.

Until next time.

A lot of swimming and some boredom

Since I last blogged, I have gone swimming three times. I swam 25 consecutive laps on Wednesday, about 30 laps on Sunday, and then yesterday, I swam about 15 laps and threw in some jogging for good measure. For some reason, my laps were sluggish yesterday. Whereas on Sunday, I did my 30 laps in about 35 minutes, yesterday it took me well over 20 minutes to get in 15 laps. I was okay going slowly, since my speed was pretty good the day before. But I was not sure what was causing me to languish, if you will.

Nonetheless, with this crazy weather, I am glad I have the indoor pool option. Right now it is about 50 degrees, but it has been raining all morning, so running is out. That means no exercise for me today; I definitely do not feel like getting in the pool three days in a row. Tomorrow, probably.

That first mile keeps getting longer!

Wanting to take advantage of the decent (mid 40s) temps again, I decided another run was in order. Today's jaunt was a bit chillier than Friday's; I was only slightly warm as I ran up the hill, but never enough that it warranted removing the same hoodie I wore on Friday. In fact, I almost wished I had gloves on as I was running up the hill, but after about a half mile, I got over that.

My left foot hurt less than it did on Friday; really, it was hardly noticeable, so that was good. But I did not push myself, mostly because I had eaten a pretty big lunch about an hour prior to the run. But a bigger reason for my running without worrying about time was that I don't want to get my heart rate up too high. When I ran up the steps after my two miles on Friday, I checked my pulse, and it was over 180, which is too high for my age, unfortunately. So I just can't see myself giving it my all as I run up the final hill at the end of my first mile.

Mile one: 10:42
Mile two: 8:52

So even slower first mile than on Friday, but what can you do? Over the next few months, I will have to decide if I can accept that mile one may never get below 10 minutes again. For now, in January, at the age of 40, I am okay with it. After all, I am still running!