171

8 miles on the new treadmill this morning. I don't know why, but for some reason it felt harder than my treadmill runs usually do. The grade felt steeper; the pace felt quicker. I set it at 6.0 (10:00/mile) and after 10 minutes it said I had gone a mile, so I assume the calibration was correct. I found that I had to reduce the grade to zero and I kept reducing the pace to 5.8. Nevertheless, I finished the 8 miles in 1:20:14, so regardless of what I did, I made it up the last mile when I did a few strides at 8.0 (7:30 pace!). I should also mention that I woke up quite sore from yesterday's workout and I was feeling sluggish before I began today's workout. I watched the movie Once which I don't recommend while running on the treadmill. The accents are so heavy that all of the dialogue was lost on me. Fortunately, there is more music than dialogue!

Tonight I'm going with some girlfriends to see Menapause. I'm not quite there yet, but it should be a fun night out.

171 miles for the month and I haven't even done a single 20 miler this month! Is it possible that I'm feeling the fatigue of accumulated mileage?

The New Treadmill Arrives!

I guess I'm not surprised, but I'm disappointed that John Edwards is no longer running for president. I really liked him and was looking forward to the opportunity to vote for him. Nevertheless, I like both both Clinton and Obama. But it's Clinton I'm backing now. Between the three, Edwards, Clinton, an Obama, I don't think the Democrats can go wrong. What a rare treat!

Yesterday I ended up running twice. The first time, it started to pour down rain when I was only a half a mile into my 8 mile run. I bagged it at 1.5 miles and went home. Later, I managed to squeeze in a fast five miles at the treadmill at the gym while Sarah was at ballet.

5 miles recovery today. Same route as yesterday -- that is, the treadmill at the gym, LOL. Then the workout:
Front and Rear lunges (8 lb dbs), 15 each leg x 3
Bosu squats 20 x 3
Plyo stepups, 30 alt. legs SS pushups (15) X 3
Ball pikes (10) SS Ball side obliques (10, 10) SS Ball crunches (15) x 3
Deadlifts (12 lb dbs) x 15 SS Curls (12 lb dbs) x 20 X 3

The new treadmill was delivered today. I'm going to break it in tomorrow for an 8 mile general aerobic run. I already went to Blockbuster and rented three DVDs because we're supposed to have a few days of cold weather. I'm prepared!

Say "Hello"

Say "hello" to the new addition:

It is a Spirit XT 675. We decided to go for the fully loaded Honda. The deck is nice because it's 22X60. I'm fine with a shorter deck, but we brought Freddie to run on it and he's almost 6 feet tall. It's got a couple of fans which I would have loved to have at the gym today. I sweat like crazy when I run on the treadmill. Also, it has heart rate control which is great for me because I've been doing heart rate training. It's coming next Wednesday.

Tea asked: Sorry to change the subject, but I was thinking about you while I was running today. I was wondering what your long term goals are....not this year goals, but have you thought about what you plan on doing few years down the road? Any interest in doing ultra-races? (like the wild west relay or other ultras)? Or are you more interested in getting a BQ?
Just curious

I really don't have too much interest in getting a BQ. I need 4:00 and I'm only at 4:31, so I'm not even at a place where I can visualize it. If it's challanging and fun, I'm interested. Ultras don't interest me because they seem more painful than fun.

Lately, when I look in the mirror, I see a couple of things running has done for me. One good, one not-so-good. The good -- my body looks great. I've never been in better physical shape. The bad -- my face. I wear sunscreen and hats, but for the first time in my life, I look in the mirror and think I look my age (still 44 for another month). I'm used to looking younger than my age, but my skin has caught up with me. I'm not happy about that part. I'm not going to give up running, but maybe with the new addition of the treadmill I'll do more of my running inside. Maybe I'll even schedule certain runs for the treadmill. Running outside is great but it's brutal on the skin. To all you young women running -- wear LOTS of sunscreen ALL THE TIME. I did not have these wrinkles two years ago. It came on fast.

I ran at the gym today. Temperature-wise, it's not that bad -- 31-- but it was windy and snowy this morning and I was on a tight schedule. Sarah had a late start today so she didn't have to be at school until 10:15. I was supposed to run 9 miles with 4 at 15k or half-marathon pace. It didn't exactly happen that way though. I ended up doing a general aerobic run for 7 miles. HR stayed in the 150-160 range. My pace was 9:40 throughout with 1% incline. EVERY SINGLE TIME I start running on those treadmills, I get the urge to go to the bathroom. The bathroom is downstairs from the gym so it's a real pain. Sometimes I stop to go and there's nothing there! I stopped at 7 miles because it was 12:00 and I had scheduled an Active Release massage for 12:45. I had just enough time to shower, buy a protein shake, and get to the spa.