Michele's Wish Journal: From 5K to 10K I can do it! (I think.)

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

My Garmin Foot Pod arrived in the mail today, but DH is out running with my Garmin! So much for figuring out how it works...

My true goal is to finish a half marathon so I can add this to my Pandora bracelet!!
http://www.inspiredendurance.com/13-1-or-26-2-Marathon-Barrel-Bead-p/ch0026.htm

Monday: I did a slow, 30 min. run on the tread mill, which was nice. It was supposed to be a "stretch and strength" day, but I really wanted to try out the new foot pod. Unfortunately, I didn't set it up correctly, and according the the Garmin, I ran 152 feet, and burned 7 calories! I figured it out after the run, so I'll be set to go next time I have to run inside. Tomorrow, 3.5 miles!
Tuesday - 3.5 mile run. Another beautiful, sunny run on the bike path. I hit 3.1 miles at 36 minutes, and 3.5 in just under 40.
Wednesday - 2 mile hilly walk in the neighborhood. Very relaxing.
Thursday - Not a great run today. I was tired after a busy day at school, plus not enough sleep this week. On top of that, it was 83 degrees! it was my first warm weather run of the year, and I actually felt light headed for the last 1/4 mile. Be that as it may, I finished my 3.5 mile run in 41:48. I wish I had run faster, but it wasn't in the cards today. I'm just happy to have finished it.
Saturday - Personal Record at the OU School of Medicine 5K today!! I ran it in 33:30, and my first mile was in the nine minute range. I'm so delighted that my training is paying off!
Sunday - Awesome long run! 5 miles in 59.5 minutes. This is my longest long run to date. I was very relaxed because I wasn't the least bit concerned about speed. I think it was about 66 degrees, sunny, and all of the flowering trees on the bike path are in bloom. It was stunning! Peter rode his bike and was very encouraging. I used my hydration belt for the first time, and will use it on any run that is 5+ miles.

Total miles this week: 17 (plus about 3 or 4 walking miles)

 

[Heather.Mohler]

Michele,
I'm impressed with your tenacity! Congratulations on sticking with your plans for so long. I want to eventually be to the point where I can train to run a half marathon, but as it is now I am planning to walk the 5k at WDW at some point. I had never thought about the mp3 trainers - I think I'm going to get one. Thanks for the inspiration!

And good luck!

 

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

Michele,
I'm impressed with your tenacity! Congratulations on sticking with your plans for so long. I want to eventually be to the point where I can train to run a half marathon, but as it is now I am planning to walk the 5k at WDW at some point. I had never thought about the mp3 trainers - I think I'm going to get one. Thanks for the inspiration!

And good luck!

Thank you for the encouragement, Heather!
In addition to Personal Running Trainer, there is a program called Couch to 5K - maybe you know more about it than I do, but I've read a lot of blogs by people who are using it and love it.

 

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

Monday - Today is a stretch and strengthen day, which I did this morning before school. After a personal record at Saturday's 5K, and my longest long run (5 miles) on Sunday, I'm enjoying a "day off." I'm actually happier on running days. Tomorrow it is supposed to be 86 degrees, and I'll be running in the hottest part of the day. So glad I tried out my hydration belt on Sunday!

Tuesday - Last night I put the Garmin in my gym bag, along with my hydration belt, bottles, clothing, shoes, i-pod...I was planning to run during my planning period at school. But then my husband took an evening run with the Garmin. It never found its way back into the gym bag. I know how far a 4 mile run would be from the other side of town, but I didn't have time to drive there, run, and get back to school in time to pick my son up at 3:30. Likewise, I didn't have enough time to drive home to get the Garmin. So I went to the gym and did 4 miles on the treadmill, in about 48 minutes. I accidentally hi the pause button twice, and it wiped out the first few minutes of the run. I would have preferred to run outside, but it worked. When I got home, I looked at my training schedule and realized that I only had to run 3.5 miles today!! Oops!

Wednesday - I walked .9 miles at lunch time, and ran 2 later in the day. The first mile was nearly all downhill, and the second was up and down. Great run! No quad pain, so I feel like I'm on track for the Deckers Creek Half Marathon, which is mostly downhill.

Thursday -3.5 mile run in 40:37. The last mile or so was quite windy - in my face. I didn't want to run today, but I did it anyway. Once I got rolling, I enjoyed it. My time was 10 seconds faster than last week's 3.5 mile run. I'm looking forward to tomorrow - my day of rest.

Saturday - Great long run! 5 miles in 60 minutes. I think I was a few seconds slower than last Sunday's pace, but I'm fine with that.

 

[momof2minnies]

Michelle,
Doing a great job.Too bad about the Garmin- can't run without mine now, I am too self competitive.I like to try to beat my time every time I run.Of course it does not always happen but that is my goal each time I start out.

Keep up the great work, good luck at the 1/2.

Linda

 

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

Thanks Linda! I'm also addicted to my Garmin and their web site, Garmin Connect. I love to get home from a run, upload my data, and marvel at my time, miles, incline, etc.

 

[momof2minnies]

Michele,
I am so anti tech I have never downloaded my info.Is it that easy?

Linda

 

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

Michele,
I am so anti tech I have never downloaded my info.Is it that easy?

Linda

Linda - It's very easy! I'm not overly tech savvy, but I did it. All you have to do is set up an account, turn on the Garmin, plug it in with the USB cable and follow instructions to upload. I think the program automatically syncs the Garmin with the computer.
My Garmin is a 305. You may have a wireless version if you have another model, so you wouldn't need the cable.
It's fun!

 

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

Monday - .5 mile walk at lunch, and a 1.5 mile hike in the evening with Chris and Peter. Our elevation gain on the hike was 353 feet. Strength and stretch after the hike. Tomorrow, 4 miles.

Tuesday - 4 mile run in 46:15 today during my planning period. My average mile was 11:34 min, and I burned 484 calories. All 4 miles had an average speed under 12 minutes! I'm really pleased that what was once my long run is now a short run. I have a long way to go to reach 13.1, but the training is going well!

Wednesday - 1 mile brisk walk at lunch time, and 2 mile run with friends after school. We ran for 22:28 (11:12 min miles) and then walked for a while. It was fun to run with people! The other 3 runners are fairly new to running, and 2 miles is their long run.

Thursday - I DID NOT WANT TO RUN TODAY!! But I did. and I did some strength junk as well. It was 86 degrees after school, so I ran on the treadmill. 4 miles in about 45 minutes. I say "about" because I forgot to hit pause on the Garmin when I ran downstairs to preheat the oven, and when I put a pizza in the oven a few minutes later. This just isn't an issue when I run outside!

Friday - My day of rest. I walked a brisk mile at lunch time.

Saturday - I attended a music/movement workshop for music teachers and did a lot of dancing in the morning. In the afternoon, I walked 2 hilly laps in the neighborhood. Beautiful, cool weather! I love spring!

Sunday - My long run. I ran 6 miles!! I'm so excited that I've reached this milestone! My time was OK: 01:11:54, with miles that averaged 11:58. I burned 700 calories, and gained about 227 feet of elevation. Next week my training plan calls for another 6 mile long run, but I think I'm going to do 7.
16 running miles this week, plus about 6 miles of walking/hiking. : )

 

[momof2minnies]

Hi Michele,
Doing great, keep up the good work!It is a great feeling when you don't feel like doing something then you do and you end up so happy you did!

Linda

 

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

Hi Michele,
Doing great, keep up the good work!It is a great feeling when you don't feel like doing something then you do and you end up so happy you did!

Linda

Thanks Linda! It once I actually started running, I felt great.

 

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

Original goal (to run a 10K)...check! OK, so it was virtual, but yesterday I ran over 6 miles, so I did it! Now on to the half marathon, which is only about 6 weeks away.

Monday - Stretch and strength day. I also walked 1/2 mile during lunch, and roller bladed for 30 minutes during Peter's soccer practice. I'm looking forward to tomorrow's 4 mile run.

Tuesday - Awesome 4 mile run today during my planning period! I ran it in 44:40, which is an 11:10 min. mile. That's my fastest 4 miles ever - about 23 seconds per mile faster than last week and 2 weeks ago.

Wednesday - Ran with 2 teacher/friends after school. We ran 2 miles in 22:37, at a pace of 11:16. Our pace was actually faster, but one of the teachers wanted to walk a few steps after the first mile, and I didn't stop the Garmin. It was fun and we had a lively conversation!

Thursday - I say this every Thursday, but I really didn't want to run today! I ran 4 miles on the treadmill, at a pace of 12:07 minutes per mile. Pretty slow, but I got it done. I'm toying with the idea of moving my Thursday run to Friday next week.

Friday - My day of rest. I walked .6 miles at lunch time.

Saturday - I ran 7 miles today! My training plan called for 6 miles, but I want to get closer to 13 by week 11, so I'm tweaking the plan a bit. My time was 01:21:19, which is an 11:36 min. mile. It rained a little in the last 2 miles, but it didn't bother me.

Total miles of running this week: 17!

 

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

The half marathon is in 5 weeks. Yikes! The training is going well, but I'm getting nervous.

Sunday - 6 miles of in line skating in 41 minutes, plus strength/stretch. It was windy but fun.

Monday - My day of rest, plus stretching.

Tuesday - An INSANE 4.5 mile run. I didn't feel like driving to the bike path, and I didn't want to do 4.5 hilly laps around our neighborhood. So I got on Map My Run and realized that I can do a 4.5 mile loop on beautiful country roads just by walking out my door.
What I didn't realize was:
1. The first mile is up a very steep road, and the next 1.5 miles consist of rather large, rolling hills.
2. BIG DOGS hang out on country roads!!!

The dog was huge, and he walked out into the middle of the road, stood his ground, and with his bark he dared me to enter his territory. It was like the Sharks and the Jets in West Side Story, and I wasn't about to play the role of Tony. I stood still for a minute, then turned and calmly walked about 20 paces before running back the way I came.
I'm used to running on hills, but these were extreme hills, and I gained over 400 feet of elevation in that first mile. Even before my canine encounter, I had decided never to run this route again. It wasn't just the hills. The countryside is beautiful, but the road is pretty desolate, and there are a few run down trailers and shacks here and there. I didn't exactly feel unsafe, but it didn't seem like the wisest place for a woman to run alone.
Tomorrow, 2.5 miles with the girls...if I can move.

Wednesday - I ran 3 miles today. Part of it was with Jan and Liz, but they only wanted to run a mile and a half. I didn't run especially fast, but I was happy to be moving after yesterday's grueling adventure. My time was 34:19, with a pace of 11:24 min/mile. It's always nice to burn 369 calories!

Thursday - Another strange run! 4.5 outdoor/indoor/outdoor miles. I started out with 1.5 hilly miles in my neighborhood, but after the extreme hill training on Tuesday, I felt the tread mill might be a better choice for today. I ran into the house (literally) and got on the tread mill. The cable tv wasn't working. Boring! And, my Garmin Foot Pod was messing up. It showed that I was running a 43 minute mile for a few minutes, then eventually came down to a 23 minute mile. (All of this was closer to an 11 or 11.5 minute mile!) I kept running, and magically it began working. After mile 3, I ran (again - literally) downstairs and outside to light the grill so I could cook for my family. It wouldn't light, so I used our candle lighter, and singed the hair off my arm! There's nothing like the smell of burning hair! I got over the shock and went back up to the tread mill for another mile. By then the grill was hot. Back outside - put the turkey burgers on the grill. I was sick of the tread mill, so I finished the last half mile by running laps around my hilly back yard. Every few minutes I stopped to flip the burgers. I learned never to multi-task with fire, and I was just happy to get my run completed.

Friday - My training plan called for 50 minutes of cross training. I walked 10 minutes at lunch, and hiked 40 minutes with Chris and Peter after school. I guess that counts. I've been neglecting my arms! I need to get back with the weights. I'm looking forward to my 8 mile long run tomorrow! It's been a crazy week, so I plan to run at a relaxed pace.

Saturday - Actually, yesterday was supposed to be a day of rest, and today was to be 50 min. of cross training. Tomorrow I have to direct part of an elementary band rehearsal and concert, and supervise a large group of 5th graders between the rehearsal and concert. I thought it might require more energy than IAnyway, today I ran 8 miles!! My time was 01:38:03, and my average pace per mile was 12:15. My average moving pace was 11:57. I burned 934 calories!!

Total miles of running: 20!

 

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

Tuesday - I thought I charged the Garmin! About 5 miles in 57 minutes today. It was around 80 degrees, which doesn't feel quite as bad as it did during the early April heat wave. I used the mile markers on the bike path to measure the distance.

Wednesday - 3 hot miles! The temperature was about 87. I tried to push my pace, but still ranged in the 10-11 minute range. My moving time was 32:55.

Thursday - 4.5 miles . My time was 51:59. It wasn't quite as hot as Wednesday. My average pace was 11:33. I'm glad I did it, but Thursday runs are so hard!

Friday - Short bike ride with Chris and Peter.

Saturday - I ran 9 miles with Chris at 7:30, while Peter rode his bike. It was chilly and windy, but we had a good time. We ran it in 1:52:11, which is a 12:27 minute mile. I'm so proud that I ran 9 miles! That is my longest run to date. Bonus - I burned 1003 calories!

 

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

This is a crazy week! I have meetings, an in-service, the Mus/Art Show at school, house guests arriving Friday and Saturday for Sunday's March for Babies...insane! My mantra is "just try." I'll do my best to follow the training plan, but if I can't get to every mile, it will be OK.

Sunday - Mother's Day: stretch/strength and a hilly 1 mile walk with Chris and Peter.

Monday - I ran Wednesday's run today. 3 hilly miles in Wonder Hills. It felt great! My time was 33:14, and my average pace per mile was 11:04.

Tuesday - I hit the training wall! I was exhausted after a busy day at school. I stayed late to prepare for my Wednesday sub, and to get ready for Thursday's music program. Then I took Peter to the doctor with a very sore throat. When we got home, I cooked and labeled and packed his belongings for his trip to Gettysburg... Maybe I could have squeezed 5 miles out of the day, but I'm not sure how.

Wednesday - I went to a mentor/resident educator training session in Nelsonville, and we got out early! It was supposed to end at 4, but I think we finished at about 2:45. It was raining, and I so wanted to go home for some quiet time and a snack. But I had my running bag in the car, so I stopped at Habitat House, changed, and ran 5 miles. It felt fabulous to be running . I ran 5 miles in 57:51
at a pace of 11:34 min/mile.

Thursday - The run that almost didn't happen...Between my dress rehearsal and school program, I went home and ran 3 quick miles on the TM. i wanted to run 5 miles, but there just wasn't time to run, shower, change, and get back to school. Considering I hadn't planned to run today, the outcome is fine. Time - 32:05. Average pace - 10:41, burned 375 calories. Why inside? Tornado and severe thunder storm warnings.

Saturday - 10 miles!!! Chris and I ran on the bike path in the morning. I was a little tired after my crazy week, and though I normally look forward to my long run, I was kind of intimidated by my first 10 mile run. The last 1.5 miles were especially rough. I couldn't quit, because we ran 5 miles out and 5 back. I'm so proud of myself for finishing!! Our pace was 12:30, and our total time was 2:05:05. As always, I'd love to see this number a bit lower, but I'll take it!

Sunday - Walked 5 miles with the March of Dimes, in memory of my son Ben. I was asked to share our prematurity story, so I was the featured speaker. Though the walk is always emotional for me, I felt especially drained after speaking to the crowd. The love and support of my friends and family helped me through.

 

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

Tuesday - 5 wet miles on the bike path. I'm finding that the Garmin loses a signal more frequently now that the trees have leaves. Time: 57:18.
Pace: 11:27. Calories burned: 609!

Wednesday - 3 miles on the tread mill in 34:14. Pace: 11:23. Calories:373.

Thursday - 5 miles on the bike path. It's closed in one spot where the path washed out due to flooding. In both directions, I had to run across a field to bypass the closed place. Though it looks like I only took 2 seconds off my time, I'm sure the grassy detour slowed me down a little. Time:57:16, Calories: 597, Average pace: 11:27.

Sat/Sun: UGH! I missed my long run for the first time. I have a gastro-intestinal issue that is not allowing me to run this weekend. I feel lost without my run! I hope to get back on track tomorrow!

 

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

Still sick!!!
Tuesday - Skipped my 5 mile run due to gastro-intestinal distress and a killer head ache.

Wednesday - 90 degrees today, and I'm still not back to normal. I ran a mile anyway. It didn't feel great, and my stomach ached, but hopefully today's mini-run will make tomorrow easier.

Thursday - 3 miles on the mill, in 35 minutes. I'm finally feeling better!

Friday - 3 miles on the mill, in 34:08. My average pace was 11:22, and I burned around 368 calories.

Saturday - 6 hot and humid miles on the bike path in 1:10:37. I ran into my friends Jen and Jay, and got to see their 3 week old baby! So cute. I stopped for about a minute, so my moving time is more like 1:09. Pace per mile: 11:45. 712 calories!

 

[momof2minnies]

Michele,
Glad you are feeling better.You had asked me about the increase in pace a while ago- I had never run with an ipod before and I added that plus lost 15 lbs.They probably both had a little to do with it.

Linda

 

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

Monday (Memorial Day) - I got up and ran 3 hilly miles in our neighborhood. Time: 37:11. Average pace: 12:23. Calories: 320.
It was very humid, but not overly hot. I've been getting post-run head aches lately, and they're pretty severe. I've tried drinking lots of fluids, running with a hat, consciously relaxing my neck and shoulders during the run... Today I switched from drinking water to drinking Gu Brew. Maybe this will help.

 

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

OK, I fell off the face of the "world" but I didn't stop running.
I ran the Deckers Creek Half Marathon in June, and I finished it in 2:36:45.
I didn't set any speed records, but I was very happy with my time. The race began in a drenching rain, and though I'd done some rainy training runs, this was the type of rain that creates huge puddles, soaks everything, and leaves one with very squishy shoes. By mile 7 I was still squishing and splashing in puddles, but the air became steamy and hot, kind of like a rain forest.
I felt so happy when I crossed the finish line!

I ran a few 5K's in the summer, and then in late August, I ran the Spirit of Columbus Half Marathon. It was super hot, but I was still able to shave 2.5 minutes off my previous time!

My most recent race was a 10K trail run. Wow! It was grueling, with lots of hills, roots, rocks, and uneven terain. I'm not sure if I want to do that one again. It was fun, but I was pretty sore the next day.

In 3 weeks, I'm planning to run the Nationwide Columbus Half Marathon. Though I'd like to try to beat my August time, I promised a friend I would stay with her and finish together. Everyone (here and in real life) was so supportive of my first race, I feel it's the least I can do for her as she runs her first half.

Iloved reading back through this training log, and I appreciate all the nice comments and advice.