7 days

Went 90 minutes in the Garden today with the girls... it was pretty foggy, but surprisingly warm (and humid?!). The hills were killer, but seeing an adorable goldendoodle puppy and a mid-run "packet-o-crack" (aka Carb Boom) made things a little more enjoyable..
All things considered, I'm ready to tackle 13.1 miles next Sunday.
Hopefully my 904TR's can take the beating they have coming their way..

The Course

It's USA Track & Field Certified...
Thank God.

A Milestone.

I ran 11 miles on Sunday. I'm pretty stoked...

Just Add Speed

Hi :)
I've been seriously neglecting this thing for a while now, and I finally decided that I just needed to suck it up and write something.

My running has been good lately, and by "good" I mean I haven't fallen down or had a heart attack yet... although to be honest, speed work days have me feeling like I could have a heart attack at any given moment.

You know what's weird though? Despite the "I'm about to die" feeling, I've begun to enjoy speed work days. Yes, it's uncomfortable, but just knowing that your body can run like that is... amazing.
I know, it sounds weird, but I don't know how else to explain it.

Other than that, my running has been pretty much the same: foundation runs, recovery runs, long runs. As monotonous as it seems, it's actually been quite the interesting journey so far.
Oddly enough, as each week passes, the dread or nervousness I've had towards the Half gets less and less.
In fact, I might be looking forward to it now... Might be.
I'll keep you posted.

Some Sentences About Running

I have not been motivated to write about running lately. I've been running, but the drive to actually put it into words has been non-existent. Regardless, I'm going to try to eek out a few sentences for the sake of the blog...

Sentence #1: I've started training for the half, which means that I now have a concrete running schedule instead of a sporadic one.

Sentence #2: I don't like having a concrete running schedule because that means I have to run even when I don't want to.

Sentence #3: Speed work doesn't make you feel speedy afterword.

Sentence #4: I'm happy to report that my stark-white NB 904 LW's are getting a little dirtier, and actually reflect the fact that I use them outside.

Sentence #5&6: This is my New Year's Resolution. It's not running-specific, but it does have some running-related pictures on it; something that can tide you over until my desire to write kicks back in again :)

Dear Starbucks,

Extra Hot.

Snow Blows

Today's run was in North Cheyenne Canyon... and I only have one thing to say:
Eff Snow.

Things were great starting out- the weather was clear, it wasn't too chilly- but so help me, my feet just couldn't get a grip on the ground beneath them.

About 30 minutes up Gold Camp, I grew aggravated. As I trudged on, the aggravation grew to to disgust, and by the 1 hour mark, I was having a full-blown tantrum. I felt like I was running in place! If I had desired that feeling, I would've hopped on the treadmill...
But here we were, out in the snow, and I was going to have to deal with it.

Eventually, I just stopped.
I found a sunny place with a good view and just quit running for a few minutes.

Everything was silent and still.

As I looked out over the trees, I realized what a dumb-ass I was being.

I had completely lost focus of what I most enjoy about running- the view. I hadn't been looking around much, but instead was fixated on the ground and how fast I was moving. Tisk-tisk.

So I walked. I forced myself to look around a little, and to stop worrying about my lack of progression up the road. My walking pace wasn't that much slower than my running pace anyways, so I had nothing to lose.

After that, things started looking up.

By the time I turned around and started the journey back, I was willing to give running another chance, and maybe even consider enjoying myself for the last stretch.
My feet were still slipping, but the new perspective and gradual down-hill did wonders for my previously grim mood :)

We made it back to the cars with a round-trip total of 90 minutes.

Sometimes I just have to remember to enjoy the ride... to take in the whole experience. I am so blessed to be where I am and to have such beautiful places within driving (or running) distance...