Tuesday, August 31, 2010

A Good Week

Week 6 of training went much, much better than Week 5, largely because I actually ran this time.

Ran on a treadmill on Tuesday for the first time. I was underwhelmed by the experience. It was my first run since being out sick for a week, and I guess it was a good way to ease back into running. It was just boring. I think I've been running outside for so long that I have to feel like I'm getting somewhere, or I just go nuts. However, I was able to run at a slightly faster pace on the treadmill than I usually can outside, so it might not be a bad tool to use for speed intervals occasionally.

Thursday called for four miles, which were completed outside. This run was a fairly good one. I was nervous about it since I'm still not at the point where four miles, or even two miles, comes easily. But I did pretty well and felt really good afterward. I had to insert some walking breaks into the last half, but I'm slowly becoming okay with that. I have to do what I have to do, and who is grading me??

Sunday was my long run. Seven miles baby!! I felt like such a badass. Seven miles is a REAL distance that REAL runners run!!! It was hard, of course, but ironically the shorter runs actually seem harder for me. My time wasn't half bad, for me. I averaged about 14:20 a mile, which included water breaks and a couple walking intervals. This was also a very hilly run. I felt strong and powerful for most of it. The last mile and a half I started to get very woozy and dizzy, but I got through it.

The only bad part of training this week was that on both Thursday and Sunday, I got a very bad headache after I ran, which lasted most of the rest of those days. I think that they were perhaps dehydration headaches, and that maybe its time to consider fueling more. I usually stick to water to rehydrate because that has always worked for me in the past. However, it may be time for sports drinks to enter into the equation. Also, on Sunday I ran in the morning before breakfast. I hate running with food on my stomach, but it probably wasn't the best idea to run for almost 2 hours with no fuel. I need to find something to fuel my runs that doesn't lay heavy on my stomach. Any suggestions would be welcomed!

I'm working on my attitude. I'm tired of being a negative Nancy. I'm never going to be the fastest runner in the world, and that's fine. I need to get in touch with my star player, which my best friend helped me to realize in this post of her blog. I also realized that everybody has issues with their own performance, no matter how great they are. Beth from Shut Up and Run talks about that here. These two blog entries gave me a lot to chew on this week.

A lot of this is about attitude, and mine has really sucked for most of this journey. Negativity is a defense mechanism of mine because if I say how much I sucked before anyone else does, then NOBODY ELSE can criticize me or hurt my feelings. Putting yourself out there and saying how great you think you did is a risk. There's always somebody who could tell you "um no, not really. You should be going faster/farther/more often, etc." And of course that would crush me. Okay, I have issues. I'm going to work on them.

I love running because it teaches me so much about me that I never knew before! Nothing will pull layers of false bravado off of a person and make them get real like a good long hard run, that is for sure.

Have a great week, everyone!

7 comments:

  1. You are my hero...

    I'm so glad I can say I was with you for even a part of this journey. The growth and courage I have seen just amazes me.

    Well done....

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  2. Love this post! Way to go on the 7 miles! I usually eat 1/2 a Clif Mojo bar before running. I find that it's light enough to not bother me, but gives me something in the tank. You might want to try G2 as well, instead of water. Keep it up!!

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  3. You are amazing woman! Keep it up!
    I have been running too, but have only gotten up to five miles. You gave me a new goal to set for this month :)
    Have a great weekend!

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  4. For my long runs I have been taking a sports drink with me and it might be all in the mind, but I think it helps!

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  5. Ok, I know SHOCK, I am finally catching up!! But here it is, my advice...Drink a protien shake/drink before your run maybe try adding a fruit too it to add consistency. Also I def recommend drinking something with added elecrolyles instead of just water. So proud of you!! As always I love you muchos..

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  7. As a general rule I take water along (or plan on water being on the course) with me if I am running more than a hour. More than 1.5 hours and you should be taking in some calories and electrolytes and that means sports drink. Experiment with different ones and with possibly watering them down if needed. Check out my blog or shoot me a line if you need any advice. http://runorelse.blogspot.com I have run many marathons and ultras and am happy to help.

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