Tuesday Kick In The Butt

I will begin with Runner's World Daily Kick In The Butt:

Nonrunners cannot see how they can afford the time to run every day. But runners cannot imagine getting through a single day without it.
~ Kevin Nelson, The Runner's Book of Daily Inspiration

So fitting!

--

I am so glad I ran yesterday.

I had to option to either do a cross training day or do a 5 mile run and when I got home it was a toss up but I finally decided to go for the 5 miler.

It would be more of a recovery run than anything else. I did a 7 miler on Saturday and a 4 miler yesterday. But I had been toying with the Marathon Pace Wristband Creator throughout the day and decided to run it at my Half Marathon pace.

I didn't print it out but rather decided to run sub-11 minute miles all the way through since the math would be easier!

I ran my usual route but rather than take the west side of the Street, I ran it on the east side of the street and it felt like I was running a completely different course.

Mile 1	0:10:27	0:10:27
Mile 2	0:11:07	0:21:51
Mile 3	0:11:45	0:34:10
Mile 4	0:11:00	0:45:02
Mile 5	0:11:43	0:57:05
.36 Mile	0:03:51	1:00:56

I was able to stay on pace the whole time with no real discomfort. Now the challenge is to maintain it on my 10 Mile long run this weekend!

In other news, I have discovered that my hip pain is actually caused by my hamstrings being weak. First it was my quads causing knee pain and now it's my Hamstrings causing Hip pain.

Geesh!

Today I am hitting the Cross training and adding some Hamstring focused exercises!

Happy Tuesday!

Eliza Vs. Thirst in Four Rounds

I feel like a day was randomly inserted into this week. Today certainly feels like it should be Friday! (Am I right?)

Last nights run required every once of strength in my body. I set out at 5:55pm and was hoping for the completion of 6 miles but I wasn't going to be disappointed if I got only 5. This is my 'rest' week when I'm supposed to run a little less than normal so either would have been fine.

The run played out like a Boxing Match! Eliza Vs. THIRST in four rounds!

Round 1: I started out ok. Nice and slow but then I started to feel tired an above all thirsty. I looked at my Garmin and saw I had only run 1.67M. So I stopped my Garmin as it hit 20:00min. Popped the Gu Shot I was carrying and started over.

Round 2: I felt a little better. Still thirsty. I ran for another 20 minutes and FINALLY reached my 4 mile turn left and run home point. I had run a little better than before, 1.69M. But if I turned now that would leave me with barely 4 miles. I wanted a little more than that. I stoped my Garmin again and I ran straight forward and kept going!

Round 3: I couldn't take it any longer. After about a half mile I ventured on to the golf course and took a couple swigs of water from one of the Gatorade containers (like the ones at foot ball games). I don't like doing this because I'm not a member of the Golf Course and I don't want to be chased down for steeling water .... I doubt it will happen but I'm paranoid like that. I felt so much better, a little guilty but AS thirsty! For the sake uniformity, I stopped my Garmin at 20:00 min again and noted I had run 1.69 again ... at least I'm consistent. :)

Round 4: After running only .5m into this round I was facing the turn-and-go-home point again. By this time thirst was winning. I contemplated venturing on to the Golf Course again but I knew I didn't ABSOLUTELY need to. My forefoot was aching and I just wanted to go home. But I wanted to finish even more. I pushed through and moved forward. I was running slower and even reached my walking pace at moments so I took some walking breaks. I ended up doing 1.54 M at the end of the 20:00min.

I did find it to be a rather well rounded run and I did learn from it.

• Never leave home without a hydration plan!
  

Once I got home, My legs were sore, my hip had a pinch and my feet ached!

I did some Yoga for Runners to get the kinks out and did a cool water bath for my leg soreness but didn't think the foot aching would last.

I was wrong!

Today my forefeet hurt like the dickens and my right arch is sore.

I am taking today as a rest day and massaging it with a Gel ball (really meant for your hands) and it's feeling better but it needs to be rested.

This Saturday I am hoping to meet up with the Miami Runner's Club for a Long Run.

Hope to be better by then.

Happy ALMOST Friday!

Rainy Tuesday

I was researching my foot falling asleep issue from last's weeks post: Yuk, McDonalds? which happened again yesterday on my Monday Make up albeit a lot less than last time.

I found lots of posts accusing tight and misfitting shoes but considering that both runs were done with different shoes with which I have run quite well in the past I didn't think that was the answer.

I found a post on runner's world from LizardJedi:

I've gotten this before too, and I've linked it to a hamstring issue.
Mine have ALWAYS been really tight (and I've had issues with them before), and sometimes after running or stretching my feet will fall asleep, and my ex-PT and I figured that it was the muscles tighnting up and cutting off circulation (it was usually a lot better after stretching).

So maybe try stretching a bit more?

I figured it was worth a shot.

I made sure to stretch my hamstrings well and today's run went well.

Although my run today did end up being cut short due to the weather. I was forced to convert my run into 400s and was able to complete 9 before the weather kicked it up a notch. Here are my splits:

02:34.4

02:42.2

02:44.0

02:41.0

02:38.6

02:35.0

02:43.3

02:41.0

02:41.8

I was also able to fit in my challenges. I finally did some push ups, sit-ups and squats once I got home.

Challenges	Push-Ups	Sit-Ups	Squats
Set 1	6	9	13
Set 2	8	12	16
Set 3	6	9	13
Set 4	6	9	13
Set 5	7+ (Did 8)	10+ (Did 12)	13+ (Did 15)

Also, Check out the great Yoga Mat giveaway from "And Her Little Dog Too"

Have a great day!

Happy Friday

Started my day off by reading a great quote I had to share:

"The marathon is kind of like the Ph.D. of public fitness accomplishments. There are very few times as an adult that you can go out and do something that's authentically difficult and be publicly lauded for it."
-Marcy in Cate Terwilliger's "Marathon Woman"

Now back to our regularly scheduled blog post :)

Yesterday afternoon, I wasn't feeling so hot.

At about 3pm my blood sugar went down and my vision got blurry (I suspect the cause to be Mother Nature's monthly gift). I had some crackers with Peanut Butter and felt alot better.

Went to the gym as expected and started with my challenges again. I was still alittle low on energy but got through it.

I decided to jump back into my challenges schedules because doing the same number of reps each set is a great way to pigeon-hole yourself into that amount and not let yourself do more. So I jumped back on the bandwagon and found a place to pick up seamlessly. :)

Push Ups : Week 2 Day 2
Sit Ups: Week 2 Day 2
Squats: Week 4 Day 2

So my sets looked something like this:

Set 1: 10 Push Ups, 15 Sit-Ups, 27 Squats & Hold for 10 Sec
Set 2: 12 Push Ups, 18 Sit-Ups, 34 Squats & Hold for 10 Sec
Set 3: 9 Push Ups, 14 Sit-Ups, 27 Squats & Hold for 10 Sec
Set 4: 9 Push Ups, 14 Sit-Ups, 27 Squats & Hold for 10 Sec
Set 5: 13+ Push Ups (did 15), 20+ Sit-Ups (did 25), 28+ Squats (did 30) & Hold for 10 Sec

I pulled through it (I did very well I might add) and hit the treadmill which is where my workout went slightly a rye. My left knee was achy (nothing bad but being that I've had injuries to it before it makes me nervous) and figuring I'd had two good GREAT run's this week I had no intention of pushing it too far and walked my 3 miles.

When I got home I iced it and took some of Mr. Boyfriend's prescription of Chocolate Ice Cream ;) and I'm feeling much better today, hehehe.

Today I am hitting the elliptical for some cross training or possibly some Billy Blanks ... not sure how the evening will transpire yet.

Have an Outstanding Friday!

Blisters and Dreams

I woke up even more sore this morning (that will teach me not to stretch after running) but I am still feeling great about yesterday's workout which may explain the dream I had last night.

Normally, when I run in my dreams I am sluggish, slow and usually dragging one of my limbs (don't ask me why) ... but last night in my dream I was running on a trail away from some people who wanted to hurt me and not only did my dreams move at normal speed ... when I ran I ran fast (not cheetah fast but normal fast as you would like to when you are running away from something chasing you). When I woke up I felt like I had won the chase and gotten away :) until I felt the soreness from yesterday's workout :) hehe

Today's workout will be an easy day ... hitting the elliptical for 60 min and then the bike for 20min.

I am nursing my blister. I finally feel like a real runner (in my head only real runners get blisters). Last night I used some Vitamin A&D ointment (left over from my last tattoo) and it seems to be working wonders. That stuff is so great for the skin. :)

Then today on my way in to work, I had an epiphany. I realized (two and a half years later) that I realized my dream of working at a software company (based on watching Hackers and Anti-Trust too many times). It took me a while to realize that ... but knock one more off the bucket list (131 of 311 currently completed :)

Oh, what a happy Friday!

Focus Friday

Actually, I should call it RE-Focus Friday.

For the last two days, I've kinda been beating myself up a little bit (I'm a Black Belt in Put-Your-Self-Down-Kun Do). I think it has to do but the energy-low I've been having the last couple of days since the FLU has been trying to catch up to me that caused me to slip this time.

I have a really bad habit of as soon as I get things in order (i.e. workout consistently for more than a couple of days, lose a couple of pounds, get organized) of doing something totally off the wall or unexpected to break my streak.

Hello, My name is Eliza and I'm a self-sabotage-er.

This always bothers me.

It's a weakness and I really don't like weakness in myself ... I feel like I have something to prove and I have to prove it 10x better than anyone else would have to.

Normally, I would let it get me so down I completely break what ever streak of good things I'm currently working on and veg out in front of the TV for a couple of days before I get fed up and try again. It's a bit of a vicious cycle.

NOT THIS TIME! I am not going to allow a little bump in my road to get me off this path.

Currently I am on a 12 day Exercise streak (i.e. I have worked out every day for the last 12 days for at least 1 hour or good worth while sweat-soaked-t-shirt exercise and I will not allow anything to break my streak :)

I have cheated though.

Out of those 12 days, I have run only once, which is shameful being that I am training to run. But I think I need to get it into my Thick-Taurean skull that I need to get in shape to get in shape.

I am caught in a catch-22 situation. I am a little too over-weight to be running (at least, the distances and times a week I want to run are in fact too much and this has lead me to suffer from Runner's Knee in the very recent past). So I need all the other "frilly" sweat-soaked-t-shirt workout to get my muscles strong enough to take my runs ... But I will admit I have been doing a little too much frill.

So today, I will re-hash my work out schedule with balance in mind and set a new goal of not beating myself up if I have a "frilly" workout because I need it to get me ready for the hard stuff :)

P.S. Thanks to the people who sent me comments ... they helped me shake off this funk :)

Have a great day!

It's Friday, I must have lost a pound

Well, let me start by saying last night I had a terrific run.

I drove to Bermudez Park straight after work. I knew that if I didn't my run would not get done so I decided to stack the odds in my favor. I grabbed my gym bag which had been packed for over a week and made sure to grab my New Balance Running Shoes (they seem to produce the best/fastest/injury free runs for me) and headed out.

As I started my run, I was excited and after stretching, only moderately in my opinion, I jumped right in to running. It felt great to be running again ... but at the end of the first mile my knee began to falter and I faded back to a walk:run strategy which made me a little upset. I knew I should have been doing strength training exercises with P90X in my hiatus which I only did once over the last two weeks and I kicked myself for not doing more. But then, as I began my third mile a woman started to run past me. She wasn't going very fast and I decided to match her speed and noted she was going 5.0 mph (according to my Garmin Forerunner 50) which is the low-end speed I was running right before my injury ... so I decided to see how long I could match her speed. She was running on the inner loop and I was running on the outer loop so the curves gave me a bit of trouble keeping up with her but I stayed with her the entire way! I was soooo happy.

Run Stats:
Start Time: 5:00pm
Distance Run: 3.2 mi
Time: 0:50:15
Average Pace: 15:42
Temperature: 84
Fells like: 89
Humidity: 65%
Comfort Index: 6

After my run, I made a shake EAS-Premium Protein Powder and water but the taste alone wasn't so great ... I'm going to have to find something to mix it with.

But back to the title of my post: It's Friday, I must have lost a pound

Granted, I always seem to be a little lighter after I run. My trainer even noted that the exercise seems to suit my body well because when I run consistently I can see results rather quickly even though I am still considered heavy to be running. But yet again, it's Friday and again I am at my lightest weight.

I know why too! Because during the week I am able to eat healthy foods and make educated nutritional choices ... but some how as soon as Friday hits ... BAM! I become a nutritional idiot! By the end of the weekend, I will have gained 2,3 or even 4 pounds. I don't drink enough water, I eat ALL THE TIME, and when I do eat it's foods I would be disgusted by during the week.

Why is that? Does my brain suddenly shut down as soon as I go into weekend mode?

What do I do about it?

HELP!

Surviving Runner's Knee

Well, I am still resting my sore knee which is improving ... slowly.

I decided to research what I need to do to survive this injury and the recovery process without feeling like I'm not working out and giving up completely. It has taken me a while to get to a place where I am happily training consistently and working on a Athletic goal and I don't want to lose that.

So, it turns out my injury is called Runner's Knee. It is characterized by a dull soreness around the knee and behind the knee cap. It seems that the cause is weak quads.

The only prevention (not cure) is to take ibuprofen (with a meal and never before a run) and to work on strengthening the quadricep muscles.

Here are some links for the improvement of Quad Strength:

• Quadricep Exercises: Complete with Images & Descriptions
• Quadricep Exercises and Quadricep Exercise Videos
• KNEE EXERCISES
  

And here are a few tips I picked up about cross-training:

• Being injured doesn't mean you are completely out of the game ... Cross training is a viable option to help maintain your fitness while on the road to recovery (Consult a physician before doing any kind of physical activity!). Choose activities that will not put additional strain on your injury and help you maintain your cardiovasular fitness.

  "Biking and swimming are excellent aerobic exercises that keep you off your feet but still give you a good workout. Water running may be the best cross-training activity during an injury-related hiatus from running."
  

  - Survive the Injury Recovery Process (About.com)

• Ease back into running. Don't try to run the same distance you did before your injury. Start with half the distance. You will be able to work back up slowly over the next few weeks.
  

"As you build endurance, you'll be able to extend the amount of time that you run and reduce the walking time. In the beginning, take a day off after every running day. For your weekly mileage, you'll need to gradually work up to your previous level. If you were running 40 miles per week before your injury, stop at 20 or 25 miles for a couple of weeks, then build up to 30 or 35 miles per week before you hit the 40-mile mark again."


- Survive the Injury Recovery Process (About.com)

Other Great Articles

• Cross-Training for Runners
• Running Injuries: Runner's Knee
  

Seeking Inspiration

I'm feeling a little low.

I have a knee injury, although minor it seems to be. I have been instructed to take a few days off, ice it, keep it elevated and keep my weight off it. I am also starting a regiment of
Glucosamine Chondroitin & MSMfor a bit of joint protection in the future.

I guess that's good news but I haven't had a good work out since Thursday and it looks like I will be out until this Thursday. Putting it in perspective it really only is a week but coming off the 7 Mile Bridge Race, The Corporate Run and a week long vacation ... I feel like I haven't been "training" in over a month and it has thrown me off my 1000 Miles in 2009 Goal (which has me a little bummed).

So I am searching for inspiration in the blogs of my contemporaries ... and I think I found some :)





Special thanks to http://howmanymiles.org/

Absense makes the heart grow fonder

I am still trying to recover from a very sore knee. Today, I did a 4.2 mile walk with my mom at a reasonable 17min pace but my knee seems to be getting worse. Again I don't think I stretched enough in the after portion of the work out and am become more and more concerned.

I've done a little bit of research and found that the soreness I am feeling is not uncommon and can be improved or even repaired with strength training to the muscles around the the offending appendage.

In this case:

Exercises for the muscles that surround the knee include quadriceps strengthening exercises, hamstring strengthening exercises, and calf strengthening exercises.

For now, it's ice and rest (as much as that frustrates me).

Tomorrow I plan to hit the gym and do the eliptical which will reduce strain on my knee and hope for the best.