But then again, aren't most mornings?!
Today the weather was in the mid 50s, breezy, and with lower humidity. Lovely! I took the dogs out for W2D2 (same workout as Monday) except today we ran with a neighbor and her dog. I can't remember whether her name is Lindsay or Liz. I know the dog is Sophie and the husband is James (or Jamie). Anyway, we did 1.75 miles in 29:26. It was fun.
Then I dropped the dogs off at the house to cool down and I went back out with the neighbor for a longer run. We did 2.84 miles in 33:44 for an average pace of 11:54. Coach Mark will be happy that I went slowly. It felt good on my tired legs.
Amy asked for friends to do a virtual marathon with her this month. There is an online contest for moms. You can win great mom prizes. I told her that I would love to participate, but I wasn't qualified. She said I should participate but not officially sign up for it. Fair enough. So far for this contest I have run 1.95+3.15+1.75+2.84 = 9.69 miles. Amy is doing C25k (and is at the same point I am with the dogs) but she doesn't have a way to track the mileage. I told her to guesstimate two miles per session for now. When she gets into the later weeks she'll probably being going a little farther. I don't know if she officially signed up either, since you have to provide proof that you did the mileage (photos of your Garmin, etc.). I think she likes the contest and it is motivating her. I just hope she won't get demotivated by me and my progress.
Wednesday, May 04, 2011
Tuesday, May 03, 2011
McGuire's Tuesday Night Run
I really enjoy this run! I was supposed to take it easy. Both Chris and Jen said they wanted to go slow, as they both ran earlier today. I think I need slower friends if I am going to run this slow! I enjoy running with other people, so I decided to keep up.
Total was 3.15 miles in 29:19 for an average pace of 9:19. Not a record, but pretty close. Splits: 9:34, 9:18, 9:12, 1:15 (=8:35 pace). Negative splits! It felt good. It wasn't comfortable, but I didn't feel like I was working too hard. Wow. Did you read that?! That is amazing! I held a 9:19 pace for a 5k and it didn't feel like I was working too hard.
I think all this training is working!
Total was 3.15 miles in 29:19 for an average pace of 9:19. Not a record, but pretty close. Splits: 9:34, 9:18, 9:12, 1:15 (=8:35 pace). Negative splits! It felt good. It wasn't comfortable, but I didn't feel like I was working too hard. Wow. Did you read that?! That is amazing! I held a 9:19 pace for a 5k and it didn't feel like I was working too hard.
I think all this training is working!
Monday, May 02, 2011
Well, that wasn't so bad.
I had my first swim lesson this morning! I was very anxious about it. I didn't sleep at all last night. I've been thinking about it constantly, hoping I was going to have the courage to get in the pool and do this. I was really hoping that I would not spend all day just trying to get my face wet.
IT WAS FUN! Believe it or not, I actually enjoyed my lesson today!
When arrived at Portofino, John and Mark were outside waiting for me. I got a royal welcome when I got there. They both gave me big hugs and congratulations for Saturday's performance. Mark was really happy that I ended the race with negative splits. That made me feel more at ease. Then John and I went into the pool area and he showed me some video. He wanted me to see the posture and form that I am going to build and also the drills that we are going to get to. I got nervous just watching them, but I had to give it a try.
John is so great. He was very patient. He took his time, demonstrated everything slowly and clearly, and was very positive. The first thing he wanted me to do was to go underwater and pop right up. OK. I've done that before. So I asked if I could hold my nose. He said OK, but that I needed to learn to do it without and talked about how to keep positive pressure in the nose so the water wouldn't come in. I only held my nose once!
Then we did some breathing exercises, through the nose and through the mouth. He made me retrieve rocks from the bottom. That proved to me that I am buoyant! It took many tries to get the rocks, because I couldn't get down far enough to reach them; I kept floating to the top.
Then we did a few more breathing exercises and he had me push off from the wall and float (a la Superman). With my face in the water! I did OK until I came up for air and then I would feel some panic about being out there and I needed to get my feet on the ground. Then I would jump up and float back to the wall. After doing this a few times, John got out of the pool and told me not to go anywhere. He went and got Mark and had me do it again to show him.
At first I thought it was because I made so much progress. But Mark was blown away because apparently my float form is perfect. They worked on float drills earlier this morning and everyone's feet kept sinking. Mine stayed perfectly aloft. Awesome!
Then John went and got my fins and kickboard. I held on to the board, resting my forearms on it and kicked my way across the pool. He said that I shouldn't leave dents from squeezing so hard, so I told him the story of the glider ride I took with Bill. And I showed him that I was not holding on for dear life. Then he told me to hold on to the edge nearest me and put my face in the water and kick across that way (rather than the doggie paddle we were just doing). I did that a few times and then we ended the hour by doing the rock pickup thing again.
Wow! I did more today than I imagined I would. I thought I'd still be stuck at the beginning. I really feel great about this accomplishment. I enjoyed the time in the pool and I am actually looking forward to next Monday. We are going to meet twice a week, at least for the rest of the month.
I am super excited about this! I still can't believe it!
IT WAS FUN! Believe it or not, I actually enjoyed my lesson today!
When arrived at Portofino, John and Mark were outside waiting for me. I got a royal welcome when I got there. They both gave me big hugs and congratulations for Saturday's performance. Mark was really happy that I ended the race with negative splits. That made me feel more at ease. Then John and I went into the pool area and he showed me some video. He wanted me to see the posture and form that I am going to build and also the drills that we are going to get to. I got nervous just watching them, but I had to give it a try.
John is so great. He was very patient. He took his time, demonstrated everything slowly and clearly, and was very positive. The first thing he wanted me to do was to go underwater and pop right up. OK. I've done that before. So I asked if I could hold my nose. He said OK, but that I needed to learn to do it without and talked about how to keep positive pressure in the nose so the water wouldn't come in. I only held my nose once!
Then we did some breathing exercises, through the nose and through the mouth. He made me retrieve rocks from the bottom. That proved to me that I am buoyant! It took many tries to get the rocks, because I couldn't get down far enough to reach them; I kept floating to the top.
Then we did a few more breathing exercises and he had me push off from the wall and float (a la Superman). With my face in the water! I did OK until I came up for air and then I would feel some panic about being out there and I needed to get my feet on the ground. Then I would jump up and float back to the wall. After doing this a few times, John got out of the pool and told me not to go anywhere. He went and got Mark and had me do it again to show him.
At first I thought it was because I made so much progress. But Mark was blown away because apparently my float form is perfect. They worked on float drills earlier this morning and everyone's feet kept sinking. Mine stayed perfectly aloft. Awesome!
Then John went and got my fins and kickboard. I held on to the board, resting my forearms on it and kicked my way across the pool. He said that I shouldn't leave dents from squeezing so hard, so I told him the story of the glider ride I took with Bill. And I showed him that I was not holding on for dear life. Then he told me to hold on to the edge nearest me and put my face in the water and kick across that way (rather than the doggie paddle we were just doing). I did that a few times and then we ended the hour by doing the rock pickup thing again.
Wow! I did more today than I imagined I would. I thought I'd still be stuck at the beginning. I really feel great about this accomplishment. I enjoyed the time in the pool and I am actually looking forward to next Monday. We are going to meet twice a week, at least for the rest of the month.
I am super excited about this! I still can't believe it!
W2D1 DB25k
It was a little warm, but the dogs did fine. Today's workout was a five minute warm up walk, six 90-second runs with 2 minutes of walking in between, and a five minute cool down walk. On the walk back to the house, we ran in to the neighbor (Lindsay?) and her dog Sophie. The dogs sniffed each other for a few minutes and we set up a run day. We're meeting Wednesday morning and they are going to do W2D2 with us! Sophie is a much more accomplished runner, but we think it would be more fun to go together than not, so they are going to drop to our level.
Time to hit the shower and then I'm off to the Portofino to meet with Coach John. WISH ME LUCK!!
Time to hit the shower and then I'm off to the Portofino to meet with Coach John. WISH ME LUCK!!
Sunday, May 01, 2011
Small Sunday! I deserve a small sundae.
What a fantastic day!
I have gone through my wardrobe looking for hot weather clothing that fits and I have come up with very few pieces. I have two pairs of shorts and a few tees, but that is about it. I decided that I would look for some clothing today so I don't have to do laundry every other day. I am not a fan of clothes shopping because I feel like I have such a weird fat body and nothing fits exactly like I want it to fit. But desperate times call for desperate measures. I called my friend Angela because I value her blunt opinion, but I wasn't able to get a hold of her so I set off on my own.
I went to Kohl's first, as they were having a pretty good sale and I really like the way their store brand Croft & Barrow fits me. I found two pairs of sandals (yes, I've even lost weight in my feet!), four tees and a dress. Total damage? Just shy of $100. Savings from the sales? $145. Not bad!
The best part? SMALL! I fit in SMALL size now! Amazing! I really like the C&B tees I have (I have two short sleeve and four 3/4 sleeve) so I looked at those first, and they were on sale for $6. I decided to try them on and took a small into the dressing room just for kicks. It fit better than the medium! Unfortunately for me there were not many smalls on the shelf, and since the medium still fits well, I got the colors I wanted in whichever of the two sizes they had.
I looked for a summer dress for the baptism and came across one. It is not exactly me due to the print, but I liked the shape, so I thought I'd try it on. There's nothing wrong with stepping out of your comfort zone from time to time. Of course, it only came in small. I found a medium in red, so I figured if I really liked the fit of the dress, I could order it online in the color and size I wanted. I tried on the medium and it fit OK. Then for kicks I put on the small and ...
WOW! It fit great! I actually liked the way the print looked, so I decided to get it. It was only $22, so not a bad investment. And it is super comfortable.
I found two pairs of sandals in the style I like (made with man-made materials!) that will look great with dressy clothes or shorts, so I left Kohl's feeling on top of the world!
I did not find skirts or shorts, which was what I set out to find, so I headed to the Navy Exchange.
More bargains, more ego building! I found a nice sundress in green with an empire waist and spaghetti straps on sale for $15 plus 20% off. Again, I had to get the small! I grabbed two collared pullover short sleeve shirts (again -- small) at $6 each. I found a skirt! It fits like a dream and I think I look great in it. Unfortunately there was only one style and one color. But I did find two pairs of shorts and two pairs of capris that all fit and looked stunning on me. All five were size 6! I cannot remember buying clothes in this size. I just cannot remember when I did that (if ever!). Amazing.
Oh, I almost forgot! I grabbed a steal off the clearance rack. I won't use it for months, but I'll be glad I have it when I do need it. It is an Under Armour cold weather running shirt. It is not a compression shirt, but it is quite fitted, and it is fleece lined. A steal at $22!
So I feel great! Now I have a good summer wardrobe of flattering clothing that is not three sizes too big!
How did I do it? Here's how.
That's me, gutting it out at the Fiesta 10k yesterday. My friends took that picture. They were near the finish line. It was right before I saw the clock and knew that I would crush my previous PR. Run Molly, run!
I have gone through my wardrobe looking for hot weather clothing that fits and I have come up with very few pieces. I have two pairs of shorts and a few tees, but that is about it. I decided that I would look for some clothing today so I don't have to do laundry every other day. I am not a fan of clothes shopping because I feel like I have such a weird fat body and nothing fits exactly like I want it to fit. But desperate times call for desperate measures. I called my friend Angela because I value her blunt opinion, but I wasn't able to get a hold of her so I set off on my own.
I went to Kohl's first, as they were having a pretty good sale and I really like the way their store brand Croft & Barrow fits me. I found two pairs of sandals (yes, I've even lost weight in my feet!), four tees and a dress. Total damage? Just shy of $100. Savings from the sales? $145. Not bad!
The best part? SMALL! I fit in SMALL size now! Amazing! I really like the C&B tees I have (I have two short sleeve and four 3/4 sleeve) so I looked at those first, and they were on sale for $6. I decided to try them on and took a small into the dressing room just for kicks. It fit better than the medium! Unfortunately for me there were not many smalls on the shelf, and since the medium still fits well, I got the colors I wanted in whichever of the two sizes they had.
I looked for a summer dress for the baptism and came across one. It is not exactly me due to the print, but I liked the shape, so I thought I'd try it on. There's nothing wrong with stepping out of your comfort zone from time to time. Of course, it only came in small. I found a medium in red, so I figured if I really liked the fit of the dress, I could order it online in the color and size I wanted. I tried on the medium and it fit OK. Then for kicks I put on the small and ...
WOW! It fit great! I actually liked the way the print looked, so I decided to get it. It was only $22, so not a bad investment. And it is super comfortable.
I found two pairs of sandals in the style I like (made with man-made materials!) that will look great with dressy clothes or shorts, so I left Kohl's feeling on top of the world!
I did not find skirts or shorts, which was what I set out to find, so I headed to the Navy Exchange.
More bargains, more ego building! I found a nice sundress in green with an empire waist and spaghetti straps on sale for $15 plus 20% off. Again, I had to get the small! I grabbed two collared pullover short sleeve shirts (again -- small) at $6 each. I found a skirt! It fits like a dream and I think I look great in it. Unfortunately there was only one style and one color. But I did find two pairs of shorts and two pairs of capris that all fit and looked stunning on me. All five were size 6! I cannot remember buying clothes in this size. I just cannot remember when I did that (if ever!). Amazing.
Oh, I almost forgot! I grabbed a steal off the clearance rack. I won't use it for months, but I'll be glad I have it when I do need it. It is an Under Armour cold weather running shirt. It is not a compression shirt, but it is quite fitted, and it is fleece lined. A steal at $22!
So I feel great! Now I have a good summer wardrobe of flattering clothing that is not three sizes too big!
How did I do it? Here's how.
That's me, gutting it out at the Fiesta 10k yesterday. My friends took that picture. They were near the finish line. It was right before I saw the clock and knew that I would crush my previous PR. Run Molly, run!
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