Half Marathon Training Week 4 Day 2

What a fantastic run! I didn't think it would go so well. I woke up this morning kicking myself in the pants for going to bed so late and for not setting my alarm. Well I didn't set my alarm on purpose. I knew I was going to bed late and I didn't want to wake up early. But when I woke up I thought oh no, it is late to be going for a run and it will be so hot and humid.

I got up at 7:45 and didn't get out running until a little after 8. The odds were ever in my favor this morning. It had rained a lot last night so it was cooler this morning than usual. The sun was hiding behind ominous clouds.

Today I decided to listen to some upbeat music to get me going. It is amazing how much of a difference music can make to your mood. With every song I felt more energized. I even danced a bit and that was probably a sight to see.

There were so many birds out. And the clouds were gorgeous. There were planes in the air from the airbase practicing their tricks. I was entertained on this run.

Looking back on my comments about a lot of my runs I realized that I wasn't being very positive. So when I started this run today I made sure to be positive and it helped so much. The run I had to do was 3.2 miles with a 12:52 min/mile pace. When I reached the end I felt like I could run longer. It was definitely an "easy" run and I had a smile on my face almost the whole time. Awesome run!

Half Marathon Training Week 4 Day 1

Um, have I mentioned that I got fitted for new running shoes?? Well I did and I LOVE them! They are so light and comfortable and don't weigh me down. One day I will put a picture of them on here but I am too lazy right now to do it.

Today I had to run for 26 minutes with 5 strides. When I saw that on the training plan I had no idea what it meant. No worries, Endomondo had it covered! So I was supposed to run for 10 minutes at a 12:52 min/mile pace and then I would do 5 strides 20 seconds each fast (well, a 10:42 min/mile pace but I ran faster) and a minute in between each stride at the 12:52 min/mile for recovery.

This was an awesome run! When I left the house it was nice and cloudy. It was raining a little but it felt so good. I was listening to my jam and so ready to rock it. I felt really positive and I could feel that in my run.  I need that positive energy during my long runs.

What I need to work on is my stretching. I feel like the moment I step into the house from my runs I switch into mom gear and I don't get in good enough stretches because I am helping the kids with this or that or making breakfast.  So this week I will look up running stretches and try to get them in after my runs.

Half Marathon Training Week 3 Days 2 and 3

On Day 2  of Week 3   When I woke up in the morning I wasn't feeling so great so I ran in the evening. My sister in law mentioned that it is 20 degrees hotter at night without the sun than it is in the morning when the sun comes up, and I felt the difference. It was hot. When I run I like to made a note in my running app about how I felt or did during that run. I made a note "should run in the mornings" so I guess it's better to get the runs done first thing before the heat comes.

I was supposed to run an easy 1.8 miles at a 12:52 min/mile pace. I decided to get in some sprints so in the last .8 miles I ran a few sets of sprints. That was a good run.

Day 3 of Week 3 was a long run. 5.8 miles at a 12:52 min/mile pace. That was a hard run for me. I tried to go to bed "early" on Friday night and ended up going to bed at 10. I guess that is early for a Friday night but for how early I wanted to wake up it wasn't early enough. I didn't sleep well that night. I wanted to be out and running around 6:15/6:30 am but didn't leave the house until 7. Halfway into my run the sun came out. When the sun comes out it is just harder for me to run. I start to sweat more. I feel the UV rays burning my skin. The sun blinds my eyes... all that fun stuff.

Did I mention I live in a humid place? The sun was out, there was no rain, and it was 100% humidity. I felt like I was running through smog the air felt so heavy.  I tried to focus on the book I am listening to and forget about the sun and heat and humidity.

I haven't been drinking enough water. On Friday night I drank a lot so that I wouldn't be dehydrated for Saturday's run. But that meant that Saturday morning I had to go to the bathroom. A lot. I think I ran back home every mile to use the bathroom. Let me just say that when you are sweaty going to the bathroom is difficult. It is like going to the bathroom when you've been swimming and trying to get out of your swim suit. Yuck.

The most important thing is that I finished. I ran all 5.8 miles and I am always proud of myself for completing the workouts.