One suggestion on the street sneaks. What I do is when I retire my running shoes they become "run around shoes" until the next ones retire.
Thanks for the tip on the sneakers - I actually didn't know if that was something people did, so it's good to know for the future. My most recent sneakers are not in the best of shape for anything, so I don't know how much I can wear them around (they hurt a little at Costco today, but that may have been because it was less than an hour after my run), but if they only have to last me the 6-7 months until my current running sneakers get retired ... I may be able to make do with what I have. We'll see what I find on my DSW trip.
Also be sure to checkout Running Warehouse for good deals on running gear.
Running Warehouse is one of the sites whose email list I want to get on ... I think I signed up last week, but I have to check my email to make sure because I haven't gotten anything from them yet. I've heard they have good stuff & good deals, and I'm glad to hear another person recommends them!
I don't want to cause any more trouble, but I know you're in NYC. Have you thought about the Brooklyn Half Marathon? (It's on my list of races I want to do some day and so I had to suggest it.
The one thing I forgot to mention is that my current plan is to do my first race of each distance at a Disney park, so rI'm just looking at the runDisney races right now ... but even if I don't do Disney as my first half, I want it to be something with more of a "fun" element, which I hope will take some of the pressure away from it being my first half.
Plus, I have a bit of an aversion to Brooklyn ... it's hard to explain. I may end up considering that race eventually, just not right now. My eventual plan is to do rD races 3 out of every 4 years and something local the 4th year (to give my wallet a break), so that may be one I do on my non-runDisney years ... although it was on a Saturday last year and I can't do Saturday races (but they may change the date eventually).
I used some quiet time this morning to get caught up here! Now lets see what I can remember to comment on.
I'm honored that you spent your quiet time catching up on my journal! Thanks!
You did awesome in July meeting (or exceeding) all of you goals. That is really great!
Thanks! I was really impressed that I was able to keep up with everything despite the heat (and a few other things I had going on).
I think your goals for August seem really well thought out with just the right amount of challenge vs. attainability!
Thanks! I'm really trying to find ways to challenge myself but at the same time not set myself up for failure - and I think I'm starting to get better at finding the balance, which is something I've struggled with a lot in general.
Once you start paying the big money for running shoes it is best to just use them only for running so nabbing some street sneakers is definitely a smart idea. I like that I know exactly how many miles my shoes have on them plus being able to see how I wear the tread down is helpful to me in understanding how I run (and I am hoping will help the running store fit me for shoes to compliment/help with that...I am hoping to go this coming week to replace the pair I purchased in January).
Definitely. At my old job, I used to sometimes wear my sneakers to work, especially during slower seasons when we weren't going to have visitors, and while this was before I started running, I can't imagine how much it beat up my shoes - I'd rather get the wear and tear from running. Looking at my last pair of shoes, a lot of the wear and tear is on the heels, and most of that comes from walking (I'm not a heel striker when I run, but I come down very hard on my heel when I walk). I can't imagine doing that to my new shoes! I'm hoping that in a few months, once these shoes get a little more use, I'll be able to look at them and see where I'm wearing them out most and see if that corresponds to any problems I'm having or if I think the wear and tear is in the "right" place.
Let me know how it goes at the running store - I hope you can get another good pair of shoes!
A 69 minute run is great! Longer runs should be a slower pace so I would try not to get to caught up in the time not being what you had hoped.
I definitely expect my long runs to be slower - during the summer, I'm hoping for 11:30 - 12:15 for short runs and 12:00 - 12:45 for long runs. It's just disappointing to me because I have been faster, even on my long runs. Today I did better, though - I think I was around 12:15ish today (70 minute run!!), which is around where I like my pace to be.
I like to see you trying to incorporate cross training. That is something I kind of slacked on with my training before so I am hoping that seeing you do it will keep it in the back of my mind.
When not running I Jazzercise but I really can't do much of it when running because it is hard on my hips. I really want to try swimming even though I am NOT a swimmer. I love the idea of the full body workout and the no impact.
I think that cross-training is definitely something important, especially for someone (like me) who doesn't run every day - it means getting in some other exercise. I think that once you find something that you enjoy, it's easier to stick with - but that's just a guess.
If I had easy access to a pool, I would probably swim at least twice a month, more if I had time. I'm not much of a swimmer - I'd probably have to take a break every 2-3 laps - but I love being in the pool. It really is supposed to be a good workout, though ... and you don't have to worry about sweating as much because you're in the water!
Do you just use your FitBit to track your runs? Just curious because I find that my FitBit is usually way off on my runs and would never rely on it to track my distance.
I use the Fitbit app, which is a little more accurate than the Fitbit itself (the app uses the phone's GPS, whereas the Fitbit itself just uses its internal measurements). That or MapMyRun. Either way, I don't know how totally accurate they are, but since I'm going by time and not distance, all I really need is an approximate distance. I'll probably "upgrade" to a Garmin (or something similar) eventually, because those are supposed to be more accurate (and less likely to drain the battery on my phone), but I'm waiting a little while to do that.
Although it's interesting, we actually had this conversation with my dad today - he said he used to go out in the car to plan a route, and then he had to stick to that route to know how far he was going (this was pre-GPS). I like my way better - I can change my course mid-run if one park is too hot or crowded or I just feel like going somewhere new.
Laughing at your break up comments....while Miss Piggy and Kermit were upsetting I too was super sad about Gwen and Gavin.
Kermit and Miss Piggy had a tough relationship, and those can't always last.
But Gwen and Gavin ... if those two can't make it, what hope is there for the rest of us? They're both so weird, I thought they were perfect together. But I guess sometimes things happen.