Wednesday, April 27, 2011

25/25th or something close to that

or not actually that close to either one, considering that today is the 27th, and i lost a total of 13.4 pounds. i was 174 pounds the first week of february when jason, katie and i started, and this morning i weighed 160.6 pounds. (thats a 3 pound loss this week, and i am pretty proud of myself.) the end goal is still 148, so i have 12.4 to go. 12 pounds is not a lot. i can do that.

(i should add, jason lost a total of 30 pounds. way to be an overachiever.)

in other news, i ran 3 miles yesterday in 33 minutes. (do the math... thats 11 minutes miles!) and this afternoon i did 4 miles in 42 minutes. my first two were just under ten minute miles, and the second two at eleven. i am getting faster, now i need to focus more on my endurance and adding distance. time for another long run soon.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

i am so hard core

ha. who am i kidding?

i did FEEL pretty hard core for the 16 minutes i ran yesterday though. i turned 26 yesterday. i did the two things i typically try to do on my birthday: buy something for someone else, and do something just for myself, but i did a lot of atypical things too. i went for a run before dinner. outdoors. in the pouring rain and hail. with a headwind. and i ran uphill. and i liked it.

so heres to being 26 and making the better choice even with sometimes i dont feel like it.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

good times

i ran yesterday, out doors. after i sprayed poison all over a couple empty lots that belong to jasons dad (to keep the weeds down).

point: 4 miles in 44 minutes is a fantastic time when you consider that i walked at least a half mile of it because something in my leg was just on fire. the run felt awful, but the end result was a big boost to my running confidence.

today i did "cross training" and by that i mean i pulled weeds and shoveled rock. :)

Friday, April 22, 2011

new shoes, a long run, and my reflection

i think i mentioned that we have decided not to renew our rec center pass when it expires may 8. we could just use the money elsewhere right now (like to help cover having the old house empty. our renters moved out yesterday.) but, we compromised and decided new shoes would be good use of some of that money since i would now be running only on pavement.

i went to idaho running co and got fitted for a pair of shoes. i wish i could remember the name of the girl who helped me, she was fantastic. (sweet to the kiddos too, it felt easy to have them there, and shopping with both kids is never easy.) i came home with these shoes:


i really like them. they are nice and light, and feel good on my feet. well, except that after i put them on in the afternoon and walked around the house in them i noticed my toes rubbing the end. they were just a little too small after being on my feet all morning. i was so bummed. it was 330pm and i decided to drive back into boise and see if i could size up. i planned a 7 mile run and really wanted to do it in a pair of new running shoes. so i got back to Shu's and they didnt have a 9.5 in that shoe. so i tried on a couple more pairs and went with these ones:


(i feel like i should add, that is clearly a stock photo, not one i took of my shoes. but thats just what they look like.)

i ran in them last night at the gym. they are just fine. not fantastic, but comfortable, and i went 7 miles in them. i love their color, i just wish i knew if i liked them better than the others that i chose first. a hundred dollars is a lot to pay for a pair of shoes and i want to make the best choice, not just a good choice. so, im trying not to think about that, and just enjoy running in them for a few weeks before i decide.

enough about the shoes. i ran 7 miles (in 90 minutes)! well, i did some run/walk the last 3.5 miles, but my running was all at 12 minute mile or faster, and i was tired, but not a puddle when i finished. a bit bored though. i need four or five more songs to get through that long without repeating. im proud of myself, and thats what counts.
i also stopped and took a picture of my reflection i talked about last time. i took it after the 7 miles, just as a reminder that i did it.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

i have nothing interesting to say.

its been a long day and its only 330pm.

this morning i weigh 163.6 pounds, thats 1 pound up from last week. its about what i expected. i am going to have to work really hard for these last 15 pounds and right now im trying to pay more attention to adding distance and running than to the numbers of weight loss. i do have a plan full of fresh veggies and green tea, but it also happens on sunny days spent playing with my children rather than dreary sleep deprived days disciplining two fighting toddlers.

point: i am unmoved by my weight this week. also, my arms are sore. so im pretty sure the wrist weights and free weights yesterday will work out quite well for me.

now i have five loads of laundry to fold before my kids wake up for a lucky second nap.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

i should be sleeping. ill pay for it tomorrow.

but i wanted to get this in before i forgot for three or four days which seems to be my new trend.

last night jason and i took the kids and the dog for a 4 mile run. it was interrupted by a stop at the park for emma to take three slides, then a second stop at home to pick up a sweater for her. but it was nice to take everyone out together and jason and i both got in our runs.

today i did a short run, 15 minutes to the park and back (ish, i took a different route than usual) but had too much energy this evening so i went back to the gym at 9 and did half hour on the elliptical. (2.5 miles) so now im feeling nice and tired, and i should have been in bed an hour ago. (jason up doing homework, so ive been reading the internet. but im finished now. hes not.)

we will see what tomorrows numbers are. im okay with whatever it is. its been a good run filled week.

Monday, April 18, 2011

feeling the burn

both kinds.

i bought wrist/ankle weights today while picking up a new car seat for emma (im giving hers to george, and got one for her that will convert to a belt adjusting booster when she grows. blah blah blah back to the point.) so these are the ones i chose i wore them for a little while this afternoon and while i wouldnt call them comfortable (worlds bulkiest bracelets?) they are not uncomfortable, and i think will work just fine. i am excited to see if they help me build some more muscle in my arms (something i STILL havent started working on.)

and the other kind of burn.
(i apologize for the foggy mirror, i had turned on the shower and got emma in while i finished gathering our clothes and thought i should take a picture of the seasons first burn.)

it was a beautiful day yesterday and i need practice running outdoors so i put on my favorite running clothes and decided to go the three miles around our "block". (from the corner of greenhurst and midland, west to middleton, north to iowa, east to midland, and south to greenhurst again.) but when i got close to our neighborhood i decided not to be finished yet and ran another mile around the neighborhood track. (there is a loop at the end of our street that is a quarter mile around, and it is a quarter mile to the loop and back from our house. so, there, three loops and back equals one mile. its pretty handy.) i am proud of myself for RUNNING the whole 4+ a little miles. 48:20 minutes

and, my reward is the sunburn. first one this year, im sure ill get some more because the road is my new treadmill.

youre so vain

as promised, the post i mentioned friday while running at the rec center. i run facing a window where i can watch the leaves grow on a tree, and traffic drive by on 12th ave, and also watch my reflection as i run. my "trouble spots", the places i would like to trim a little of me off of, dont show up in that reflection. its really more of a shadow silhouette than a reflection, because its on a window, not a mirror. i quite like watching myself run. that sounds completely ridiculous. i have gained a different perspective on myself. i LIKE what i see in my reflection. thats a big deal.

so when our rec center pass expires in just a couple weeks (we decided the money would be better spent elsewhere this year), i will greatly miss watching myself run in that window. its become one of my new favorite places.

while running friday, i also noticed a change in my clothes. my favorite running clothes right now are a pair of cropped black leggings (even though i am a firm believer in Leggings Arent Pants), my hot pink champion sports bra, and a black and white racer back top i bought at old navy a couple years ago. i just bought the leggings this fall, around september i think. they are tummy toning, so they sit high and were pretty snug when i bought them, but should fit a size 10 approximately. anyways, as i was getting to the end of my run, i could feel the seat wrinkle a little. the butt of my leggings is getting too loose. im sure i can run in them for another month or two, but after that, i think they will be too loose to stay up and in place for a long run! ill have to get another pair! (this really isnt a bad thing, because right now i wear them both for running, and as my leggings with dresses. i can still wear them with my dresses, it will be okay for them to be a little more loose then.)

fridays run: 4 miles 50:33 min

Friday, April 15, 2011

in that promised post, i also need to address the issue of being TOO SKINNY for some favorite work out clothes. (!)
will write a post titled "i want to run like the girl in the reflection" or "my carrot" or "youre so vain you probably think this post is about you"

Thursday, April 14, 2011

10k

i ran a 10k last night in 77:46. i had to remind myself often that my goal was completion, not speed. that i wanted to run as much as i could, not as fast as i could.

i still need new socks, and probably new shoes.

under arm chafing of my bingo wings does not make running sexy. i mean, i feel pretty fantastic after a good run, but when my flabby/loose skin gets a rash from rubbing on my shirt/side of my boob, i do not feel so hot. literally.

point: 10k, completed. longest run yet. minus bingo wing irritation, i could have continued. for a little while anyways.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

this morning i weigh 162.6 pounds. i lost 1.4 pounds this week, and i am very satisfied with that! i havent had progress in ages, so more than a pound is great.

tonight i run. i will imagine i am running away from 2 year olds. that should make me want to go the whole five miles. ;)

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

lots of excuses

i didnt do 5 miles. before i list my excuses, let me say, i plan to do it tomorrow.

i walked the kids to the park and back (1.75 miles) this morning. it was fine.
i went to the gym tonight and (ignore my lack of caffeine and headache and bad attitude) decided to walk. so i walked till i felt like running. then i did a little running, but every time i ran the channel changed on the tv. it went from biggest looser to something on cbs that was crime related. not encouraging me to run. then my knee started to ache and i called it quite at 2.5 miles.

my first step down the stairs i turned my ankle. i was holding the hand rail (which i never do) so i didnt fall, but both ankles went weak and i limped the rest of the way home.

tomorrow i will make and drink my morning coffee, i will take my ibuprofen with dinner, and i will go for my 5 miles. promise.

Monday, April 11, 2011

some running

saturday i got changed and drove to the gym to find it was closing in five minutes. so i came back home and ran around the neighborhood for just 1 mile. that mile felt so long, and so slow, and as if my legs had been dipped in a slow drying plaster. when i got home we brainstormed a few things that might help, and what might be causing the blah.

sunday after church i headed to the rec again. katie had mentioned that she tried out the intervals and felt like the run went better than before, so i decided to do a 1 and 2 minute interval. 1 minute at 5.2 miles an hour, then 2 at 6 miles per hour. i finished 2 miles in 22 minutes 13 seconds, and it really didnt feel very difficult. i have not run at a 10 minute mile pace for that long before, so that felt really good. then i did 10 minutes on the elliptical just to mix it up a little. when i got outside, the weather had changed to beautiful, so i ran the 0.56 mile loop around the rec center before going home. at home i tossed the car keys to the front door and headed around the neighborhood and did the .75 mile loop.

when i first started running around the rec center i knew what was hurting my knees. its impact. the change from treadmill to asphalt was clearly what caused the pain. but, as i get used to running out doors more, that should lessen. so even though that half mile hurt, it was also good to know that the pain will go away after i get used to it. (i reminded myself that i couldnt run on a treadmill a few months ago, and now its super easy, so it will just take some practice.) by the time i got home, i wanted to run. i think 4 miles really is the distance i need to go to start to like running (2 miles on the treadmill, 0.9 on the elliptical, and .56 on the track outside the rec is 3.46 miles). the .75 miles around the neighborhood felt much easier. my knees felt better, and so did my attitude.

so, i plan to run tomorrow night again, hopefully around 5 miles but it will depend on how much time i have. im not sure if i will try to keep a pace, or do some intervals, or split some outside and inside running or what, but i know i need to go a longer distance because i have been hanging out at 3 miles too long since my last long run.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

how much is too much

ibuprofen and aleve? im stiff and sore and my knees ache. i will myself through the achy knees thinking katie has it SO much worse, im sure. and if she can do it, so can i. but i am ready to be used to this running already. guess this is what i get for doing so much elliptical and so little weight bearing exercise.

i did 3 miles again tonight in 34 minutes 49 seconds. thats 11 minutes 36 seconds per mile, and a great time.

oh, also, its wednesday. i am down one pound, 164 even.

Monday, April 4, 2011

what are YOU inspired by?

i ran tonight. like, actually ran. i walked my first two minutes to get my legs moving, then finished 3 miles in 36.27 minutes. i was so stiff the whole time, but it really felt great.

i have 7 songs in my play list that i listen to while running, and every one of them (for different reasons) makes me want to be better. but seven songs is NOT ENOUGH. it is not enough for 3 miles, and definitely not enough for 13. so let me have them, what song(s) move you?

*edit
i forgot to mention (and i cant believe i forgot) i received no less than 7 compliments on sunday. and another two that jason received on my behalf. i had such a hard time getting dressed on sunday because i have no dress pants that fit, and my dresses (almost all of them i have made) are TOO BIG. i ended up with one thats almost 4 inches too wide at the waist and belted it. i put on so many different outfits before getting in the shower that the water ran cold before i got in! i was frustrated and settled on an outfit and was blown away with compliments. i NEEDED that encouragement and THANK YOU!!! again if you were one of those compliments. seriously. i needed it. and i appreciate it.

Sunday, April 3, 2011

5 miles

my battery is running low, so this will be quick. i bought the music, it was worth all 594 pennies i paid. fantastic. now i just need to find three times that much more. :)

i taped my feet and went to the gym with the ipod this afternoon and chose the treadmill at the back of the track all alone. it was perfect. i turned the volume way way up and really enjoyed myself.

5 miles 65 minutes 534 calories.

i beat my 3.5 mile time by a minute and a half, and my 4 mile time by 3.5 minutes. i think 4 miles is the distance i need to get to in order to start enjoying the run again. and for the half, that puts me a third of the way through it, so its a good distance.

today felt really good. hope i still feel this good in the morning. :)

Friday, April 1, 2011

running

4 miles, 54 minutes, 400 calories all on a treadmill. ive been running. this is the fourth night i have run, but only the second that ive gone more than a mile. i taped up my feet last night. it really did help (no new blisters) but it was also kind of irritating. also, i get bored. i know i could keep going, but i just get bored of running. and greys was a MUSICAL last night (and just odd too) so that didnt make running any more interesting.

i think i should look up all my motivation songs on itunes and buy myself a play list. also, ear buds. mine DO NOT STAY ON. i saw yurbuds recommended by carrie at this mama makes stuff and they look fantastic. but they are 50$ and that seems a bit outrageous. but they are used by iron men. so that kind of makes sense.

it is sunny, and this is encouraging. i want to make plans! but i dont want to have to spend a lot of money. (also, my sewing machine needs serviced. thats 45$. sewing machine vs ear buds. thats not really a choice. :)

my point? im running. i kind of like it. i think i could like it more with a few strategic purchases. and im taking today off, then planning to push it tomorrow and see just what i can do.