Sorry guys, still no pictures...they're on Andrew's camera and I haven't had the chance to get them from him. Andrew, if you're reading this, SEND ME PICTURES. :P
So Monday morning I sparked Natalie and told her I needed a maintenance plan so that I would continue to have a schedule and actually keep up my workouts. She asked me what my goals were, and what I wanted to ultimately accomplish, and I told her I wanted to actually run an entire 5k, and maybe to do longer races later. So now I'm doing a 5k on May 7 (the day before Mothers Day) and a 5 mile race on June 19 (Fathers Day). The one on May 7 is a fundraiser for breast cancer, and if you would like to help me reach my fundraising goal, you can go to my personal page at kintera.org. Andrew, if you're reading this, DONATE. :P
So my running schedule has a lot of constant runs, starting with 3-3.5 miles this week all the way up to 6-6.5 miles a few weeks before the 5 mile run. I can't really describe just how intimidated I am by the last few weeks of my schedule, but when I think about how much I accomplished in 5 weeks, 2 months seems like plenty of time (sort of). On Monday I jogged 2 miles straight, then conditioning Tuesday. My right ankle has been bugging me since the 5k last Saturday, so I decided to rest and ice it for two days. Then on Friday I did 4 miles (FOUR MILES) jogging for 4 min. and walking for 1 min. I only had to rest for 1.5 min. twice and 2 min. once, and I made it through the whole thing. FOUR MILES. Saturday was a conditioning day, and then Sunday I tried for 3 miles, though I had to stop and walk several times so I didn't make it constantly running. But it's a good start.
My aunt Charlene and cousin Tonya were here this weekend, and I was sleeping on my sofa bed, so today I'm just kind of wiped out. And I asked Natalie about my ankle, and she said I should switch out a few runs with swimming this week, so that will start tomorrow probably. For some reason I feel really guilty or lazy or something about not doing a workout today, but when you think about it I've worked out 5 out of the last 7 days, and the total distance was something like 11-12 miles total. I should deserve a break, right? If only to catch up on sleep and let my body chill out for a day? Maybe I'm just rationalizing, but hopefully I can jump right back into it tomorrow, either conditioning or swimming, maybe in the morning.
So that's my long-winded update...wish me luck, donate to my May 7 5k if you want to, and look forward to pictures of my April 9 5k eventually. :D Love you all!
Monday, April 18, 2011
Monday, April 11, 2011
Mission accomplished!
As you well know, my first real 5k was Saturday, and I blew my goal away! My official time was 38:49, which was well under the 45 minute goal I set for myself. I couldn't have done it without my personal cheering squad: Charity, Andy and Stephanie all ran right along with me and pushed me to run even when I was tired, and Natalie met me about half a mile before the end and ran along with me with her "Run Liz Run!" sign, which was great. Andrew was the official photographer, and I'm hoping to post some of the pics later this week when I get them from him. I am so grateful to all of them; they definitely helped me have a successful first run!
My plan from here is to run another 5k on May 7, the CT Race in the Park, which raises money for breast cancer research. I already donated $10 in honor of my mom, a breast cancer survivor for 10 years now. If you'd like to donate, you can visit my personal page HERE. My goal for that race is to beat my other time, potentially getting under the 30 minute mark, but I'm not sure yet.
The bigger thing I'm training for is a 5 mile (not kilometer, mile) run June 19 in Branford. I figured that's a nice in-between run, longer than 5k but shorter than 10k. Natalie asked me today what my ultimate training goal is, whether that's a marathon or half marathon or something else. I told her I would just take it one step at a time, and those are my next two steps. So, after a very short break, I'm back in training again. I'll keep you all posted.
My plan from here is to run another 5k on May 7, the CT Race in the Park, which raises money for breast cancer research. I already donated $10 in honor of my mom, a breast cancer survivor for 10 years now. If you'd like to donate, you can visit my personal page HERE. My goal for that race is to beat my other time, potentially getting under the 30 minute mark, but I'm not sure yet.
The bigger thing I'm training for is a 5 mile (not kilometer, mile) run June 19 in Branford. I figured that's a nice in-between run, longer than 5k but shorter than 10k. Natalie asked me today what my ultimate training goal is, whether that's a marathon or half marathon or something else. I told her I would just take it one step at a time, and those are my next two steps. So, after a very short break, I'm back in training again. I'll keep you all posted.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
T minus 4 days
Yes, that's right: the 5k is this Saturday. My ankle's pretty much better after I rested it for a week or so, and the last two Sundays I've been outside with Natalie doing about 3 miles. It's a lot more difficult to actually jog/run outside, especially when it's cold...I haven't been able to jog that much at all, but I'm still wiped by the time I'm done. I do better at the gym, but I'm still not up to running/jogging an entire three miles.
So here's my goal: finish the 5k in under 45 minutes, any way I can. I'm going to try and jog as much as I can, but I'm not going to beat myself up if I have to slow it down and fast-walk for a while. Several people have told me that adrenaline during the race will help me move faster anyway, and the weather is supposed to be rainy but fairly warm, so I can definitely do this.
Natalie promised to teach Andrew some cheers, so that'll be fun. :) Charity will actually be running the race now (she got talked into it today), so she won't be on the sidelines, but I know she'll be cheering me on at the end.
So, one more run Thursday and then the big event at 9 am Saturday! Hopefully I'll get some pics to post!
So here's my goal: finish the 5k in under 45 minutes, any way I can. I'm going to try and jog as much as I can, but I'm not going to beat myself up if I have to slow it down and fast-walk for a while. Several people have told me that adrenaline during the race will help me move faster anyway, and the weather is supposed to be rainy but fairly warm, so I can definitely do this.
Natalie promised to teach Andrew some cheers, so that'll be fun. :) Charity will actually be running the race now (she got talked into it today), so she won't be on the sidelines, but I know she'll be cheering me on at the end.
So, one more run Thursday and then the big event at 9 am Saturday! Hopefully I'll get some pics to post!
Thursday, March 24, 2011
I have good news and bad news...
I have clearly fallen behind on my blogging, but I will try to summarize the last week or so in my quest to run a 5k.
When we last left our heroine, she (okay, I) was going to start running with buddies so that I would have some motivation to keep going. Thursday morning I went to Erin's house to run around the water reservoir near her house, which was roughly 2 miles total. It was about 40 degrees outside and the beginning was a little trail-y (through the woods), and I got about 10 feet before I realized this was going to suck. Erin was really great at coaching me and trying to get me to run for a minute or two at a time and then rest for the same amount of time, but I was getting really discouraged. By the time I got to our marketing retreat later that morning, I was not feeling at all confident about being able to run a 5k in a few weeks.
All day I went back and forth about what my goals were (whether I should still shoot for running the whole thing, or just try to do my best and not worry about running the whole thing, etc.) and whether I should still be running the 5k on April 9 or if I should cancel/postpone the 5k. I even looked up the cancellation policies and found out that I could get a deferral (less a processing fee) and use it on a later race. I was just all over the place and really doubting myself.
But on Friday when I drove back up to the retreat, I told my friend Stephanie about maybe postponing the race, and she immediately told me to stop. She decided to sign up for the 5k and encouraged me to not worry about running the whole thing, just to try my best and see what would happen. I also talked things through with Erin and Carrie, and they all agreed that I should just keep going and not put so much pressure on myself. (Kudos to all of them for listening to me jabber on about my 5k all day!)
So, I went to the gym for a run on Saturday, and I managed to do two miles in about 26 minutes, and only 8-9 of those were walking. I found out that if I paced myself by going at 5 mph instead of 5.5 mph I lasted a lot longer, so I managed to run stretches of 3-4 minutes at a time. I forgot to add an incline of .5, but suddenly I was feeling sooooooo much better about myself! I was really excited that I ran 2/3 of the way and didn't even feel like I was going to die at the end. It was amazing the difference half a mile per hour could make, and how much my confidence level changed from just a few days before.
After that, I was feeling a lot more confident about actually running the whole 5k, and I reminded Steph to sign up Monday morning so we were all set to kick some butt. I went running Monday night for two miles again, this time with an incline of .5, and I didn't manage to run/jog the whole time, but I walked the same amount or less than before, plus the incline. I figured it was progress all the same, which is my overall goal, regardless of whether I make it all the way to 3 miles running by April 9; the date isn't important.
Unfortunately, Monday night my left ankle was bugging me, but I just figured it needed to pop or stretch or something. But Tuesday morning it was hurting when I walked or moved it a certain way, so I asked Natalie how I would know if I was injured. She says that if your ankle hurts, especially if you're just walking, it's really not a good sign. She told me to RICE it (rest, ice, compression, elevate) and just do some upper body and ab work for the night. I did the same thing yesterday, and today my ankle is better but still feeling a little sore.
Natalie said that if my ankle isn't better by our running appointment Saturday that I might have to drop out of the race, but I was talking to her today and decided that I would do the 5k on April 9 anyway, even if it just turns out to be a run/walk that's a baseline for future races. If I can't run the whole thing that day, I'll sign up for another one and try to beat my time. She was really supportive and thought that was a great attitude to have. I'm really frustrated that my ankle is messing up my training (if you had told me a month ago that I would be mad I couldn't go running, I would have laughed in your face), but I would also rather take it easy and make sure I'm completely healed than start doing too much too soon and injure it further, perhaps taking me out of the race altogether. I'm hoping it's better in the next day or two, but if not, I'll just have to deal with it.
So those are the ups and downs over the last week or so. Sheesh. :P
When we last left our heroine, she (okay, I) was going to start running with buddies so that I would have some motivation to keep going. Thursday morning I went to Erin's house to run around the water reservoir near her house, which was roughly 2 miles total. It was about 40 degrees outside and the beginning was a little trail-y (through the woods), and I got about 10 feet before I realized this was going to suck. Erin was really great at coaching me and trying to get me to run for a minute or two at a time and then rest for the same amount of time, but I was getting really discouraged. By the time I got to our marketing retreat later that morning, I was not feeling at all confident about being able to run a 5k in a few weeks.
All day I went back and forth about what my goals were (whether I should still shoot for running the whole thing, or just try to do my best and not worry about running the whole thing, etc.) and whether I should still be running the 5k on April 9 or if I should cancel/postpone the 5k. I even looked up the cancellation policies and found out that I could get a deferral (less a processing fee) and use it on a later race. I was just all over the place and really doubting myself.
But on Friday when I drove back up to the retreat, I told my friend Stephanie about maybe postponing the race, and she immediately told me to stop. She decided to sign up for the 5k and encouraged me to not worry about running the whole thing, just to try my best and see what would happen. I also talked things through with Erin and Carrie, and they all agreed that I should just keep going and not put so much pressure on myself. (Kudos to all of them for listening to me jabber on about my 5k all day!)
So, I went to the gym for a run on Saturday, and I managed to do two miles in about 26 minutes, and only 8-9 of those were walking. I found out that if I paced myself by going at 5 mph instead of 5.5 mph I lasted a lot longer, so I managed to run stretches of 3-4 minutes at a time. I forgot to add an incline of .5, but suddenly I was feeling sooooooo much better about myself! I was really excited that I ran 2/3 of the way and didn't even feel like I was going to die at the end. It was amazing the difference half a mile per hour could make, and how much my confidence level changed from just a few days before.
After that, I was feeling a lot more confident about actually running the whole 5k, and I reminded Steph to sign up Monday morning so we were all set to kick some butt. I went running Monday night for two miles again, this time with an incline of .5, and I didn't manage to run/jog the whole time, but I walked the same amount or less than before, plus the incline. I figured it was progress all the same, which is my overall goal, regardless of whether I make it all the way to 3 miles running by April 9; the date isn't important.
Unfortunately, Monday night my left ankle was bugging me, but I just figured it needed to pop or stretch or something. But Tuesday morning it was hurting when I walked or moved it a certain way, so I asked Natalie how I would know if I was injured. She says that if your ankle hurts, especially if you're just walking, it's really not a good sign. She told me to RICE it (rest, ice, compression, elevate) and just do some upper body and ab work for the night. I did the same thing yesterday, and today my ankle is better but still feeling a little sore.
Natalie said that if my ankle isn't better by our running appointment Saturday that I might have to drop out of the race, but I was talking to her today and decided that I would do the 5k on April 9 anyway, even if it just turns out to be a run/walk that's a baseline for future races. If I can't run the whole thing that day, I'll sign up for another one and try to beat my time. She was really supportive and thought that was a great attitude to have. I'm really frustrated that my ankle is messing up my training (if you had told me a month ago that I would be mad I couldn't go running, I would have laughed in your face), but I would also rather take it easy and make sure I'm completely healed than start doing too much too soon and injure it further, perhaps taking me out of the race altogether. I'm hoping it's better in the next day or two, but if not, I'll just have to deal with it.
So those are the ups and downs over the last week or so. Sheesh. :P
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Strategy
So I have a new strategy this week...I decided to take Natalie up on her offer to run with me in case I got discouraged or needed a coach, so she is going to run outside with me Saturday afternoon, which will be the second two-miler and the last half-and-half run; after that I will be trying to run/jog the entire time. Anyway, not only will I be running with someone who can run circles around me and therefore yell at me when I need it, but I will also be running outside so that I can get more used to the kind of running I'll be doing during the 5k.
Once I got that figured out, I decided to call in a few other favors with friends who have volunteered to work out with me. So tomorrow morning my work friend Erin and I will be running near her house for roughly 2 miles, showering at her house and then heading off to our marketing retreat in Bantam, CT, at this giant house we rented for the occasion. The plan is to also do my yoga day Friday with Erin at the house, but we'll see whether I decide to just get it over with Friday morning or get lazy and do it Friday night or Sunday.
Another work friend, Carrie, is addicted to running (*cough*crazyperson*cough*...j/k, I love her), so I also asked her if she could take a day and run with me. Next Thursday at lunch we're going off on a run for roughly 2.5 miles...she mapped out a nice loop that's 3 miles, and I told her to figure out where the 2.5 mile mark was and after that we can walk and cool off.
I'm hoping that having someone else with me either encouraging me or yelling at me (or alternating between the two) will help me push myself. They might also distract me enough to make it seem faster, which I would appreciate. As I mentioned in my last post, I'm starting to get really intimidated about running an entire 5k, but so many people have been incredibly supportive. I was talking to a friend that used to work at TicketNetwork, and she reassured me that what mattered was that I was making progress, getting in shape and building endurance. She said she was proud of me just for trying and sticking with it, and if I wasn't quite ready to run the 5k April 9, I'll just do what I can and register for another one. The time frame doesn't matter as much as the fact that I achieve the goal I have set, and once I get rid of the stress I feel about the time frame, I feel a lot better about the whole thing. What do you guys think? Can I still be proud of myself even if I don't work up to running an entire 5k by April 9?
Once I got that figured out, I decided to call in a few other favors with friends who have volunteered to work out with me. So tomorrow morning my work friend Erin and I will be running near her house for roughly 2 miles, showering at her house and then heading off to our marketing retreat in Bantam, CT, at this giant house we rented for the occasion. The plan is to also do my yoga day Friday with Erin at the house, but we'll see whether I decide to just get it over with Friday morning or get lazy and do it Friday night or Sunday.
Another work friend, Carrie, is addicted to running (*cough*crazyperson*cough*...j/k, I love her), so I also asked her if she could take a day and run with me. Next Thursday at lunch we're going off on a run for roughly 2.5 miles...she mapped out a nice loop that's 3 miles, and I told her to figure out where the 2.5 mile mark was and after that we can walk and cool off.
I'm hoping that having someone else with me either encouraging me or yelling at me (or alternating between the two) will help me push myself. They might also distract me enough to make it seem faster, which I would appreciate. As I mentioned in my last post, I'm starting to get really intimidated about running an entire 5k, but so many people have been incredibly supportive. I was talking to a friend that used to work at TicketNetwork, and she reassured me that what mattered was that I was making progress, getting in shape and building endurance. She said she was proud of me just for trying and sticking with it, and if I wasn't quite ready to run the 5k April 9, I'll just do what I can and register for another one. The time frame doesn't matter as much as the fact that I achieve the goal I have set, and once I get rid of the stress I feel about the time frame, I feel a lot better about the whole thing. What do you guys think? Can I still be proud of myself even if I don't work up to running an entire 5k by April 9?
Monday, March 14, 2011
Why am I doing this again?
I went to the gym this afternoon and went 1.5 miles, half running, half walking/jogging (or pretty close to it, though I may have erred on the side of walking a little bit more). It was not fun. By the end my legs hurt, my side hurt and I was breathing hard for like 20 minutes afterward. Why do people do this to themselves?
Despite my skepticism that I will actually turn into a person that can run/jog an entire 3.1 miles nonstop, I will press on. I think I'm going to ask Natalie if she can run with me Thursday or Saturday, possibly outside so I can get an idea of what that's like compared to the treadmill. Also, she can yell things at me to keep me going.
P.S. Thanks to Charity for texting encouraging things to me after I told her I was about to die on the treadmill. Bonus friend/coach points for her.
Despite my skepticism that I will actually turn into a person that can run/jog an entire 3.1 miles nonstop, I will press on. I think I'm going to ask Natalie if she can run with me Thursday or Saturday, possibly outside so I can get an idea of what that's like compared to the treadmill. Also, she can yell things at me to keep me going.
P.S. Thanks to Charity for texting encouraging things to me after I told her I was about to die on the treadmill. Bonus friend/coach points for her.
Friday, March 11, 2011
Success!
Just had my second running day at the gym. I decided to walk for 2 min., then jog/run for 1 1/2 min. and alternate until I had done the required 1.5 miles. Basically my reasoning is to keep upping the length of my running spurts so eventually running a whole 3.1 miles won't seem so bad. The first three sets I walked at 4.0 mph and ran at 5.5 mph (which is about the max required by my whole regimen), and then I backed down to 3.5 mph walking and 5.0 mph jogging. And I made it the whole 1.5 miles!
By the way, I think taking a lunch break to go to the gym is about the best thing ever, because it gets me out of the office and gives me a mental break, as well as a physical workout. PLUS now I don't have to go after work or later tonight. Win!
By the way, I think taking a lunch break to go to the gym is about the best thing ever, because it gets me out of the office and gives me a mental break, as well as a physical workout. PLUS now I don't have to go after work or later tonight. Win!
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