yes ladies and gentlemen, I am determined to succeed this time. (This time of what, I don't actually know.) But all I know is I MUST SUCCEED!
I ran 2.8 miles or so yesterday, with the final .8 done in intervals - one minute at about 8mph, then 30 seconds or so at 5mph and another 30 at 4mph. I did that six times. The 2.8 is the mileage for the running - I guess I got up to about 3.5 or so total, with the walk/jogs included. Even just the two miles was hard! I feel like there's something wrong with me. :P Really I think it's just laziness, and the afore-mentioned caloric deficiency; I'll just have to live with it for a while I guess. Oh, I also did the first two miles working on speed a little: the first 1/2 mile was at my usual pace of 6mph, then I did .5-1.5 at 7 mph and the final 1/2 back down at 6. So I suppose that probably helped too. :P
Today I finally did 3 miles nonstop again! The last time I did that was last Thursday, and I was *trying* to go for five, but I ran out of time (and I had a, um, potty break emergency). Oh, no wait! I'm totally lying! Out of guilt and shame after bungling it on Saturday at the race I went and ran four miles straight on the treadmill that afternoon. Self-flagellation hurrah! (Seriously though: it was not punishment, it was redemption, just to remind myself that I could. It felt great. I wanted to keep going but my knees were saying "Um, you ARE aware that you've run more htan 7 miles today right? STOP IT!")
So, point being: I did my three miles today, nothing fancy, no elevation and it was all straight 6mph the whole time. It was STILL really hard. :( Not really really really hard, but I had the laziness "I want to stoooopppp" kick in pretty early. Sigh. Yesterday and today I went on to use the elliptical once my run was done. Tomorrow I have a longer run, 4 miles plus some intervals, so I won't need to use the cursed elliptical machine. I have come to loathe that thing.
Push-ups update: MONDAY WAS HARD. I was supposed to do 80 push-ups, man! **80**! I did 70, filling the actual requirements until I got to the "max", which was "Minimum 20". HAHAHAHA. I did ten and THAT is an accomplishment. Today I was supposed to do 100 (why is that extra zero there? ...Oh, right) and I managed 85, which I must say is FREAKING FABULOUS. I'm still planning on repeating this week next week, hopefully I'll find the time on Monday between the baking, cleaning, and general hostessing. (It's Canadian Thanksgiving on Monday, dontcha know.) I am also doing small sets of push-ups on my "off" days, which I suppose I'm not recommended to do, but I think it's okay. I'm only doing about ten and I'm paying REALLY CRAZY attention to form, which I think is just enough to kinda "boost" my endurance for the next day. Also trying to work crunches back into my daily routine, instead of just "that thing that I do when I am following a DVD that tells me to do them". I have pretty good ab strength that is just wasting away underneath the drapes of stretched-out skin - don't tell me you guys don't like that imagery because we all know every body is beautiful :P - but at least *I* know they're there.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Monday, October 6, 2008
Nursing my wounds
Well, I've been licking my scratches and feeling sorry for myself a little bit since this weekend, when I ran a 5k on Saturday and did - what I felt at the time to be true, anyway - incredibly poorly.
Fact is that I did *not* do incredibly poorly and I have to keep reminding myself of that. I did under 30 minutes and that's just fine. I feel like an out-of-shape schlub because at my last 5K I did just about 28:00, and at the 8K I did a couple of weeks ago I ran in 47 minutes, including two stops. This one - this puny little 3.1 miler - I finished in 28:45 (or 28:36, according to the results on the website - whatever, nine seconds I DO NOT DISPUTE) and had to walk for a significant section of it around mile 1.5 and 2.5. I took this very hard mostly because I have been having that happen a lot lately - I've had stamina trouble this past couple of weeks and it bothers me quite a bit. Not being able to finish 5 miles without stopping I can understand. Not managing three? Sadness. ;_;
Well, I've thought long and hard and I think here are some reasons, some of which are under my control and some of which are not:
1) I was pacing myself after a coworker who was also running the race and as a result I ran the first mile WAY too fast. Seriously, I did it in 8:15, which would be dandy if I were running a one-mile race. it's much too fast for the first third of a race though.
2) The course had a buttload of hills and I haven't been keeping up in training with hills - I've been sticking mainly with the treadmill the past couple of weeks. I ran the apartment perimeter again yesterday, almost but not quite three times around, then did a hill course on the treadmill. From here on out Sundays are hill days, the end.
3) I've been dieting and this is the first time, I believe, that I've gone into a race with a deliberate week-long caloric deficiency. I guess I can't expect to perform my best when I've been watching calories as harshly as I have. Not that I've been doing 1,000 calorie days or anything like that, but it's just probably best not to try to train for *real* running while trying to lose weight: you either run to lose weight, or you run to race, and the two are different.
So, even the ones I can't really control (like the course) I can at least try to work up on next time. Le sigh. I checked my coworker's time and she only finished a minute ahead of me, after all; and she said she had to stop too and the course was really tough, and that she was running with her son (his first race) and she had to let him go ahead, and he finished a minute ahead of HER. I felt a little better after that but I can't shake this feeling of being disappointed in myself, even though I know I shouldn't. My next 5K will be better. We're all allowed less-than-stellar performances sometimes.
Oh, in unrelated news, I have finally - for the first time! - finished week 2 of the 100 push-ups challenge! My exhaustion test was 26, which is a nice bit up from 19 (where I was two weeks ago). I started week three today but it's HARD; I could only do half of the "max" number listed for the final set (20! YOW!). I think I'm probably going to do the week and then repeat it before going on to week 4. Still though! Progress :)
Fact is that I did *not* do incredibly poorly and I have to keep reminding myself of that. I did under 30 minutes and that's just fine. I feel like an out-of-shape schlub because at my last 5K I did just about 28:00, and at the 8K I did a couple of weeks ago I ran in 47 minutes, including two stops. This one - this puny little 3.1 miler - I finished in 28:45 (or 28:36, according to the results on the website - whatever, nine seconds I DO NOT DISPUTE) and had to walk for a significant section of it around mile 1.5 and 2.5. I took this very hard mostly because I have been having that happen a lot lately - I've had stamina trouble this past couple of weeks and it bothers me quite a bit. Not being able to finish 5 miles without stopping I can understand. Not managing three? Sadness. ;_;
Well, I've thought long and hard and I think here are some reasons, some of which are under my control and some of which are not:
1) I was pacing myself after a coworker who was also running the race and as a result I ran the first mile WAY too fast. Seriously, I did it in 8:15, which would be dandy if I were running a one-mile race. it's much too fast for the first third of a race though.
2) The course had a buttload of hills and I haven't been keeping up in training with hills - I've been sticking mainly with the treadmill the past couple of weeks. I ran the apartment perimeter again yesterday, almost but not quite three times around, then did a hill course on the treadmill. From here on out Sundays are hill days, the end.
3) I've been dieting and this is the first time, I believe, that I've gone into a race with a deliberate week-long caloric deficiency. I guess I can't expect to perform my best when I've been watching calories as harshly as I have. Not that I've been doing 1,000 calorie days or anything like that, but it's just probably best not to try to train for *real* running while trying to lose weight: you either run to lose weight, or you run to race, and the two are different.
So, even the ones I can't really control (like the course) I can at least try to work up on next time. Le sigh. I checked my coworker's time and she only finished a minute ahead of me, after all; and she said she had to stop too and the course was really tough, and that she was running with her son (his first race) and she had to let him go ahead, and he finished a minute ahead of HER. I felt a little better after that but I can't shake this feeling of being disappointed in myself, even though I know I shouldn't. My next 5K will be better. We're all allowed less-than-stellar performances sometimes.
Oh, in unrelated news, I have finally - for the first time! - finished week 2 of the 100 push-ups challenge! My exhaustion test was 26, which is a nice bit up from 19 (where I was two weeks ago). I started week three today but it's HARD; I could only do half of the "max" number listed for the final set (20! YOW!). I think I'm probably going to do the week and then repeat it before going on to week 4. Still though! Progress :)
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Kitty in the middle
I don't know what that means. For all I know it's obscene. I hope not. :P I just like the idea of a kitty cat in between two other objects, durnit!
Well, not a lot going on... I did my run on Tuesday, but though it totaled about 4.5 miles it was very broken up (generally about a mile at a time with a little rest in between. The 0.5 was done in four sets of sprints). Yesterday I was going to just do a three-mile run and then do some Minna Lessig workout but I ended up changing my plan and doing five miles on the treadmill non-stop. This was easier for some reason than it had been - I was on a different treadmill, to start with - so I think there's some thing going on with the elevation on the treadmill I use at work. Again. Sigh. Well, no biggie, if I'm working harder than I think I am that's cool!
And finally, today I was back at the usual treadmill and although I did 4 miles (and the first two straight through) I still had to stop at the start of the third, and again about about 3.2 total before finishing. So there's got to be SOMEthing going on with that sucker.
Tomorrow is a "rest" day, meaning I'll just do a DVD, and then Saturday I'm aiming for another five-miler. I'd like to get these things a little more commonplace. By next Saturday I'm hoping to do a 5.5 mile run. The problem of course is that I do them on the treadmill so I'm kind of "on the clock". :P I'm just not really sure where else to go - I know there are places to go in the area, but it's the extra time of getting there and getting back and etc that puts me off. The treadmill is RIGHT there, about a two-minute walk from my apartment. Yes, I could certainly jog the perimeter of the apt complex, but for five miles that would be like six times around and I get effing BORED. ;D Oh well! I'll figure it out!
The Thanksgiving race that looks the best in this area is actually a 10K. I am all up for that - I have two months to prepare after all, and it's only a little over a mile more than what I've already done - but are the people who wanted to join me for it still up for it if it's 10k instead of 5k? (I know Mom is out, because it's on the morning of Thanksgiving, but it's early enough that the rest of us could still get back and get things done.)
Well, not a lot going on... I did my run on Tuesday, but though it totaled about 4.5 miles it was very broken up (generally about a mile at a time with a little rest in between. The 0.5 was done in four sets of sprints). Yesterday I was going to just do a three-mile run and then do some Minna Lessig workout but I ended up changing my plan and doing five miles on the treadmill non-stop. This was easier for some reason than it had been - I was on a different treadmill, to start with - so I think there's some thing going on with the elevation on the treadmill I use at work. Again. Sigh. Well, no biggie, if I'm working harder than I think I am that's cool!
And finally, today I was back at the usual treadmill and although I did 4 miles (and the first two straight through) I still had to stop at the start of the third, and again about about 3.2 total before finishing. So there's got to be SOMEthing going on with that sucker.
Tomorrow is a "rest" day, meaning I'll just do a DVD, and then Saturday I'm aiming for another five-miler. I'd like to get these things a little more commonplace. By next Saturday I'm hoping to do a 5.5 mile run. The problem of course is that I do them on the treadmill so I'm kind of "on the clock". :P I'm just not really sure where else to go - I know there are places to go in the area, but it's the extra time of getting there and getting back and etc that puts me off. The treadmill is RIGHT there, about a two-minute walk from my apartment. Yes, I could certainly jog the perimeter of the apt complex, but for five miles that would be like six times around and I get effing BORED. ;D Oh well! I'll figure it out!
The Thanksgiving race that looks the best in this area is actually a 10K. I am all up for that - I have two months to prepare after all, and it's only a little over a mile more than what I've already done - but are the people who wanted to join me for it still up for it if it's 10k instead of 5k? (I know Mom is out, because it's on the morning of Thanksgiving, but it's early enough that the rest of us could still get back and get things done.)
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Baby's First 8K
Well I had my 8K! I had predicted I would do obscenely poorly, because I preceded the race not with lots of training and concentration but with a half-week of beach vacation and bad eating. I *did* work out while I was there - only on two of the days, but in my defense, we were travelling for parts of the other two and so the time those days was limited. But I ran two miles on Monday and did some x-training, then on Tuesday I ran a total of five miles (about two on the beach, three on the treadmill). So that helped somewhat. But I was on the vacation meal plan, meaning I was stuffed full of things not condusive to running; so on getting home I decided to "detox" and catch up on my fruits and veggies. I managed this for approximately a day and a half before falling off the wagon on Friday evening. But I did eat reasonably healthy on Saturday night, including plenty of salad and fruits, and lunch was sushi! Yay! Sushi is so surprisingly healthy. We also had company on Saturday night and I'm pleased to say that, even though this did include plenty of chocolatey-pastry type stuff for dessert, it was much much better than eating out. We had cheese ravioli (store-bought) with a butternut squash sauce (homemade), which was designated by all as "tasty".
So, the 8K! First of all I sincerely thought it started at 8:30 am. All morning long I thought so. At about 7:45 while riding in the car to get there I realized it started at 8am. GAH!! Well, I made it about five minutes before the race started and all was well. In all I did a pretty good job - I was aiming for about 50 minutes to do the whole thing, but I surprised myself: even though I stopped (walked) twice, I finished in just under 47 minutes! If I hadn't stopped I probably could have hit 45 minutes, which is around my current pace for 5Ks - 9min/mile. To be able to sustain that pace for 5 miles is a lot more than I thought I could do!
I'm going to go back to training harder. I think I can shave some more time off my total and really improve my 5K time. :) My next one should be 10/4, right near the neighbourhood where I grew up!
So, the 8K! First of all I sincerely thought it started at 8:30 am. All morning long I thought so. At about 7:45 while riding in the car to get there I realized it started at 8am. GAH!! Well, I made it about five minutes before the race started and all was well. In all I did a pretty good job - I was aiming for about 50 minutes to do the whole thing, but I surprised myself: even though I stopped (walked) twice, I finished in just under 47 minutes! If I hadn't stopped I probably could have hit 45 minutes, which is around my current pace for 5Ks - 9min/mile. To be able to sustain that pace for 5 miles is a lot more than I thought I could do!
I'm going to go back to training harder. I think I can shave some more time off my total and really improve my 5K time. :) My next one should be 10/4, right near the neighbourhood where I grew up!
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Latest and greatest
Hey! Today I ran outside (so lovely) for 3.5 miles without stopping!
Okay, strictly speaking that's a lie: I stopped once at a traffic intersection, but I jogged in place while waiting. Then I stopped for perhaps a minute or 30 seconds or so to fix my hair; this was right around 1.75 miles or so, right at the halfway point. What matters is that I made it! I didn't stop again after that! Woowoo, I'm Mrs. Fantastic, and everything I touch turns to gold! ;P
No, but seriously, it's a nice feeling. :) I feel at this point like I can do the 8K - I don't know how long it'll take me or anything, but I know I can *do* it and enjoy it and not toss my cookies. And anything that doesn't involve the tossing of cookies is an automatic win! ...Unless it involves, like, the kicking of puppies or something awful. Then again, I think if I did something awful like kicking puppies, tossing cookies would just naturally follow since I'd be so disgusted and horrified with what I'd just done. So I stand by my first statement!
Oh, and I could go for some cookies right now.
Okay, strictly speaking that's a lie: I stopped once at a traffic intersection, but I jogged in place while waiting. Then I stopped for perhaps a minute or 30 seconds or so to fix my hair; this was right around 1.75 miles or so, right at the halfway point. What matters is that I made it! I didn't stop again after that! Woowoo, I'm Mrs. Fantastic, and everything I touch turns to gold! ;P
No, but seriously, it's a nice feeling. :) I feel at this point like I can do the 8K - I don't know how long it'll take me or anything, but I know I can *do* it and enjoy it and not toss my cookies. And anything that doesn't involve the tossing of cookies is an automatic win! ...Unless it involves, like, the kicking of puppies or something awful. Then again, I think if I did something awful like kicking puppies, tossing cookies would just naturally follow since I'd be so disgusted and horrified with what I'd just done. So I stand by my first statement!
Oh, and I could go for some cookies right now.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
What kind of foooool am Iiiiii
1) I didn't get to work out today because of an all-day meeting. I knew this would be the case at the beginning of this week, much as I knew that the meeting was catered and I would therefore overeat, AND I knew I'd be going out to dinner with my parents tonight and thus overeat some more. I decided not to care, because I did really well earlier this week and most of last week. And I'll do really well tomorrow and Friday. So dere.
2) I did Day 2, Week 1 of the push-up challenge even though I didn't work out! I got them done just about 45 minutes ago. Woo hoo. :) That's 12-12-10-10-10. I've started carrying the program in my workout bag so I will have it with me on Friday, it's just a matter of remembering to do it while I'm in the gym.
3) Next week I'm on vacation. The hotel we're staying at has a fitness room (did I mention this already? It feels like I did) so I'm a little less worried about getting exercise and mainly worried about keeping up with the pushups. I bet I'll forget to bring the dumb program with me. :P
4) Registered for my 8K on 9/21. *gnaws fingernails*
2) I did Day 2, Week 1 of the push-up challenge even though I didn't work out! I got them done just about 45 minutes ago. Woo hoo. :) That's 12-12-10-10-10. I've started carrying the program in my workout bag so I will have it with me on Friday, it's just a matter of remembering to do it while I'm in the gym.
3) Next week I'm on vacation. The hotel we're staying at has a fitness room (did I mention this already? It feels like I did) so I'm a little less worried about getting exercise and mainly worried about keeping up with the pushups. I bet I'll forget to bring the dumb program with me. :P
4) Registered for my 8K on 9/21. *gnaws fingernails*
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Wussy-girl-running.
I will make this short and do it just because I want to write something today.
Anyway I ran a total of 5.0 miles or so on the treadmill, though that wasn't without stopping. I feel kind of like a wuss, because I've gone without stopping before, but admittedly that was on the treadmill in my gym and the settings may be different there. Ah, well, not a huge deal; I still did it, regardless. :)
Anyway I ran a total of 5.0 miles or so on the treadmill, though that wasn't without stopping. I feel kind of like a wuss, because I've gone without stopping before, but admittedly that was on the treadmill in my gym and the settings may be different there. Ah, well, not a huge deal; I still did it, regardless. :)
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