Running!

Last week I ran 3 miles in 40:01 with an average pace of 13:20 per mile. 

Tonight I ran 3.25 miles (3 miles in 38 minutes and change) in 42:12 with an average pace of 12:59 per mile and an average moving pace of 12:38 (but I'm not exactly sure what this means).

I do know this: I ran further than I have in months and I ran faster tonight then I did I did a week ago. 


I can do this!  I know it.  I feel it.

What do you do when.....

Last night I was at Bible Study and a person, who doesn't know me very well and is several years younger than me, made a comment that was hurtful.

I was talking with a friend about how I had made my reservations for the Disney Princess Half Marathon and this other person, who was involved in the conversation said

"You know there's a time limit right?"

Ouch.

This one comment was pretty deflating.  In one sentence she implied that I would be slow as to embarass myself or to not finish at all.

She also implied that I knew nothing about this race or race-culture, for that matter.

Again, it burned.

Again, I knew she wasn't trying to hurt me.  But still, it was the kind of doubt that I regularly faced when I told people that I was running the Springtime Tallahassee 10K and again when I was going to climb Le Conte.  They looked at my body and presumed I could not do it; presumed I was setting myself up for failure and then they pitied me.

It's the kind of thing that is a binary of criticism that is completely devasting but on the other hand it makes me so angry and wanting to prove her and others wrong.  They look at me and believe I can't do it.

But I can.

I don't stop when I'm tired....

.from here.

Talk about a runner's high.  As soon as I committed (here and on Facebook) to run the Disney Princess Half Marathon I began to experience a real renewal to my fitness program.  After my hiking trip I was kind of going through the motions but not really pumped or excited to go to classes.  I've learned that I do my best work when I am preparing for a specific event rather than just exercising to lose weight.  I think this is why I have made my biggest gains before the Springtime Tallahassee and before my hiking trip up LeConte.  This race is months away but I am already excited to begin training and to take my running more seriously, to do speedwork, to log in the long miles, to do the strength training.

So here are my newer goals and schedule:
Sunday: rest or with an optional hot yoga class
Monday: jog 30-40 minutes, focusing on fartleks, Zumba
Tuesday: Pilates
Wednesday: Hot Yoga
Thursday: 40-40 minute jog or speedwork and an optional Pilates class
Friday: Zumba
Saturday: longer runs that focus on logging in the miles, developing a base, as well as the physical and mental endurance to spend long times running.

The great thing about committing to a race is that it really sparks a new, deeper level of commitment to your fitness.  It requires you to plan, to look for ways to make yourself stronger, to readily challenge yourself because you know that you will have to display that fitness soon in a very public way.

I am really looking forward to the upcoming weeks of training and really seeing what my body is capable of; I'm excited to bring any readers along with me.

First jog of the semester.

Today, for the first time since May, I laced up my shoes and drove to my favorite jogging path and spent 35 minutes putting one foot in front of the other.

Laborous and difficult, I put in the time.  I ran 2.66 miles in 35 minutes.  We are talking slow....even for me.  But that's not the point.  The point is that I went out there and did it.

And I enjoyed it.

It was fresh and sunny and beautiful outside.

There were baby ducks, dogs, and turtles. 

It was 80 degrees with a blue sky; really conditions don't get much better than that.

I am so happy to be back running.  It felt great to put my body on autopilot and just go.

I hope everyone else is getting their own fitness minutes in this week.

Big Announcement!

All, are you ready for a big announcement?

On February 26, 2012 I will be running the Disney Princess Half Marathon!

My Tallahassee Bestie, Jennifer, will run the race with me and we are already super excited planning our weekend.

The Disney Princess Half is a women's only race that runs thru and around both Disney World and Epcot.

"This race experience is fit for a princess earning her glass running slippers or a woman who runs her kingdom already. Gather your girlfriends for a magical getaway now, so you can all earn your Princess Half Marathon Tiara Finisher Medal!"

I think this will be a lot of fun.  For starters, you can wear a costume, so I'll be spending some time trying to think of who I want to run as.  Also, there are characters and other events and photo ops throughout the race.  My friend Wess, regularly runs the Disney races (he placed sixth in his age group this weekend at the Disneyland Half Marathon in California), and always raves about them as one of the most enjoyable races for runners. 

I am going to commit to the Jeff Galloway run-walk method that I believe will allow me to a)finish 13.1 miles and b) be more consistent in my time and enjoy the experience. 

I think this is a great fresh-start for me to have a new commitment to fitness and weightloss, not unlike I did with my Mt. LeConte trip or my Springtime Tallahassee 10K. 

Anyone want to come with us to Orlando in February?

What to say?

Everything here is kind of static.  On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays I go to Zumba.  I've been skipping Pilates but that changes next week.  I love hot yoga.  My weight has been up just a bit, which is why I've got to get back into a regular pattern of harder exercise.  Zumba isn't enough really.

I'm ready to jog again and I've decided to start back next week.

I think my schedule is going to go something like this:

Sundays, rest
Mondays, hot yoga and zumba
Tuesday, Pilates and jogging?
Wednesday, jogging or zumbaa
Thursday, Pilates and jogging?
Friday, zumba
Saturday, long run

Oh dear.  I am trying to keep up my good habits but the new school semester may undo me, entirely.