I've been on the treadmill the past TWO days in a row! If you realize that I haven't ran for 18 days before that, I deserve a (small) standing ovation - or a kick in the pants. Plus, yesterday I also did about 15-20 mins of weights & abs. While my arms aren't to sore, I can feel my abs! Yeah, I still have abs - the fat hasn't swallowed them up! I decided to actually do weights after seeing my upper arms (the fat bulges above my elbows that are hiding my triceps) in the mirror after using the treadmill. I thought it was a vast improvment over thinking about doing weights.
I've decided to break away from what is "safe" and try out a new program on the treadmill called rolling hills. Despite it's name there is no change in incline, just speed. I heard a rumor that if you want to improve your pace you need to mix it up. So I'm mixing it up.
Rolling hills starts off at a painfully slow walk for two minutes and then a little bit faster for another two minutes. Then the fun begins. Every thirty seconds the miles per hour increase by .5 until you reach your peak, and then it goes back down in thirty second increments. For me, that's starting at 4.0 miles per hour (15 minute mile) - up to 6.0 miles per hour (10 minute mile) and back down to 4.0 miles per hour until you run out of time, which is whatever you've set it to be. Then with 4 minutes to go, it automatically does a cool down.
Since I'm only on Day Two, I have no opinion on how it's working to improve my pace, but the "change of scenery" is nice.
We have the last Reese race next weekend, so I'm going to try to rollling hill it as much as I can between now and then and maybe see a slight difference with my race results.
Stay tuned.
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Just checking in . . .
Nothing new here, but thought I'd write a post so no one thought I was dead. I'm still here!
Tuesday, February 6, 2007
Committed
The title of this post can mean different things to different people, so I'll let you decide. :-)
For at least 6 months now, J & I have been dreaming of our first half marathon. Sounds pretty easy - distance wise. Just run the Crim (10 miles) and then a 5K on top of that. Bang - half marathon. We even have one picked out, the Walt Disney World Half Marathon at the beginning of 2008.
We have been checking the web site, and last year it said the marathon & half-marathon fill up around July since they only let a certain number of people register. Well, I went to the web site yesterday and it said that registration was already at 85% capacity. So, we went ahead and registered last night!
No one expects to visit the Mouse and get away cheap, and this is no exception. $95.00 to register for the race, $8.95 for a commemorative pin, and $38.00 for a commemorative ChampionChip - all to celebrate this is the 15th year of these races. Entrance into the park for race start and awards ceremony, Fitness Expo and t-shirt are all things included in the $95.00 fee.
Okay, now the web site says they are at 95% capacity! Looks like we snuck in just in time. You can check out the action here: Disney Marathon Weekend. So now in a week or so I can start scoping out airfare and hotel prices. We already know we are going to stay on campus, at one of the Value Resorts they have. To say we are excited is an understatement. We are committed!
For at least 6 months now, J & I have been dreaming of our first half marathon. Sounds pretty easy - distance wise. Just run the Crim (10 miles) and then a 5K on top of that. Bang - half marathon. We even have one picked out, the Walt Disney World Half Marathon at the beginning of 2008.
We have been checking the web site, and last year it said the marathon & half-marathon fill up around July since they only let a certain number of people register. Well, I went to the web site yesterday and it said that registration was already at 85% capacity. So, we went ahead and registered last night!
No one expects to visit the Mouse and get away cheap, and this is no exception. $95.00 to register for the race, $8.95 for a commemorative pin, and $38.00 for a commemorative ChampionChip - all to celebrate this is the 15th year of these races. Entrance into the park for race start and awards ceremony, Fitness Expo and t-shirt are all things included in the $95.00 fee.
Okay, now the web site says they are at 95% capacity! Looks like we snuck in just in time. You can check out the action here: Disney Marathon Weekend. So now in a week or so I can start scoping out airfare and hotel prices. We already know we are going to stay on campus, at one of the Value Resorts they have. To say we are excited is an understatement. We are committed!
Sunday, February 4, 2007
Reese Winter Road Race
Well, we survive that one. The weather predictions for yesterday were right on the money. It was cold, and it was windy. It was also snowing - or maybe just loose snow was blowing around?
I was also well insulated. Too much so. Within the first 5 minutes, I was sweating. But I stayed bundled up to prevent freezing. I also remembered to bring a scarf to breathe through, so I'm not wheezing today like I could be.
Almost 75 runners and 5 walkers showed up yesterday. We are either the dedicated or the crazies.
The thing I forgot to bring was the camera, so no shots of me or J crossing the finish line. Even though it was bitter cold, I was happy to see J and our running friend B waiting for me at the finish to cheer me on. I sped up at the finish and gave it my all (as usual) and finished with a nasty side stitch and my glasses so fogged up from the scarf-breathing that I was in a stupor trying to walk off my side stitch. Plus at that point I needed my sunglasses from the glare of all that white.
The YakTrax were a blessing. The start and the finish were all ice and snow. The roads of Reese were surprisingly clear of snow, unlike the side streets of Bay City which are crap to drive on. Since you are not suppose to use them on dry pavement, I stayed off to the side as much as possible and ran on snow whenever I saw it available. I bought the glow-in-the-dark ones, just in case I feel it necessary to go for a late night jaunt during the winter. (Which is pretty much anytime after work here in Michigan!)
Today there will be no treadmilling. Today is recovery day from our evening with S & A. Red Lobster, drinking, and the three of them playing "Guitar Hero" on PS2. It's a miracle we are up at 10:30am, since we only got home around 3. :-) You have to have a little fun every once in a while! I'm surprised my legs are super sore, but I'm in pretty good shape.
I was also well insulated. Too much so. Within the first 5 minutes, I was sweating. But I stayed bundled up to prevent freezing. I also remembered to bring a scarf to breathe through, so I'm not wheezing today like I could be.
Almost 75 runners and 5 walkers showed up yesterday. We are either the dedicated or the crazies.
The thing I forgot to bring was the camera, so no shots of me or J crossing the finish line. Even though it was bitter cold, I was happy to see J and our running friend B waiting for me at the finish to cheer me on. I sped up at the finish and gave it my all (as usual) and finished with a nasty side stitch and my glasses so fogged up from the scarf-breathing that I was in a stupor trying to walk off my side stitch. Plus at that point I needed my sunglasses from the glare of all that white.
The YakTrax were a blessing. The start and the finish were all ice and snow. The roads of Reese were surprisingly clear of snow, unlike the side streets of Bay City which are crap to drive on. Since you are not suppose to use them on dry pavement, I stayed off to the side as much as possible and ran on snow whenever I saw it available. I bought the glow-in-the-dark ones, just in case I feel it necessary to go for a late night jaunt during the winter. (Which is pretty much anytime after work here in Michigan!)
Today there will be no treadmilling. Today is recovery day from our evening with S & A. Red Lobster, drinking, and the three of them playing "Guitar Hero" on PS2. It's a miracle we are up at 10:30am, since we only got home around 3. :-) You have to have a little fun every once in a while! I'm surprised my legs are super sore, but I'm in pretty good shape.
Friday, February 2, 2007
02.02.07
Happy Groundhog's Day. Whatever that means.
Tomorrow is our 5K in Reese, and according to weather dot com, we are in for a doozy. The race starts at 10am, and they are predicting temperatures to be about 10 degrees F, but with the wind chill it should feel like -4 degrees F! Plus, it should also be snowing.
Tonight after work I think I'm heading to Runners to pick up some YakTrax so I don't slip and fall on my tookis. My tailbone is fragile enough, I don't need to kill it for good.
On the up-side, tonight is pizza night!
Will post results and hopefully photos tomorrow or Sunday. Wish us luck (from remaining frost-bite free!)
Tomorrow is our 5K in Reese, and according to weather dot com, we are in for a doozy. The race starts at 10am, and they are predicting temperatures to be about 10 degrees F, but with the wind chill it should feel like -4 degrees F! Plus, it should also be snowing.
Tonight after work I think I'm heading to Runners to pick up some YakTrax so I don't slip and fall on my tookis. My tailbone is fragile enough, I don't need to kill it for good.
On the up-side, tonight is pizza night!
Will post results and hopefully photos tomorrow or Sunday. Wish us luck (from remaining frost-bite free!)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
