I know.. none of us like to really talk about goal setting. But this morning while I was beating out a couple of miles on the dreadmill I realized if I want to do the half marathon (that I have already signed up for) I'm going to have to set some realistic goals. It's never an easy task no matter what - but coming off a relatively major injury sure does seem to make it more difficult.  The funny thing is that I know I can run 13.1 miles - because I have done it~! But I also know that I cannot do that today! I hate starting all over! I am up to about 10 miles a week again since the injury that sidelined me for about 10 weeks this season. (frustrating --sigh) And you know what? I really did not want to get on that treadmill this morning! It's difficult because I really like to run outside. However, I do not have the privilege of doing so. That means that if I really want to do the half marathon in April I do not have the luxury of a choice! So I have to ask myself How b...

When I committed to running one mile a day for the rest of the year, I thought it would be a cinch. Seriously! Yesterday I did a little more than 2 because I did some speed work and my mind set is geared toward getting ready for a 5K by the end of next week. Today was supposed to be an easy mile. Sheesh!  It took several minutes to convince myself that this is indeed going to be worth it; and that it will take less than 15 minutes of my precious time! lol! But I finally drug my cold butt onto the treadmill this morning and slowly took off. It took me much longer than I thought to get warmed up and going. Once I did though, I raised my base speed from 4 mph to 4.2 mph. (don't laugh I am old and coming off a major injury!)That's when I realized the whole point is to better myself as a runner. Isn't it?  If I can simply raise my base speed and keep my metabolism going it is beneficial enough. Plus I am guaranteed at least 7 miles a week! lol! I will never get that few I d...

That was the challenge issued by Runner's World magazine! They are doing this big try-to-keep-everybody-in-shape campaign during this part of the year. I thought about it for quite awhile before I signed up to do it. It's not like a contest or anything and there is no other reward than being in shape really.  But I didn't want to say I'd do something that I wasn't going to do. It may sound crazy,but we must first have integrity with ourselves before we can ever have it with others.  So I have done it for two days. I will do my mile today after I finish writing a couple of blogs this morning. I think running at least a mile every day will help me stay focused. I can only run a mile today and stay within my limits. I am still on the mend from the busted knee cap so I cannot add miles too fast. I did do a 4.4 mile long run this week. (one of the reasons I have to only run one mile today!)  I guess some people take the season off. I do not know what that means! I tr...

Did I ever mention I don't like running on a treadmill? Maybe not. Mostly because I hadn't tried it. However, our aid quit and the new aid has very different hours so that means I cannot run in the mornings. I also cannot run at noon in this record breaking triple digit heat wave either! So I got a treadmill...the first time I tried to run on it I hated it...and nearly hurt myself!  I actually gave one thought to quitting running...but then I have a half marathon I'm committed to this fall in Chicago...The more I thought about it, I looked at the treadmill as a help to get to my goal instead of an obstacle in the way. My goal far outweighed my obstacles.  I have had to go pretty easy on the treadmill this week, because it makes my whole body hurt. But this morning was a little better so I am hopeful that I will be able to log some miles on this puppy!! And then the good news is that the aid will be here early two mornings a week so I can run outside those two days until...

Yesterday's run was very discouraging. It was so hot...But I probably pushed it a little too hard. I did the first half of the out-and-back in record time...then the heat started sucking away at my stamina and energy. I had to walk two or three times. I even ran on the wrong side of the road because there were a few more trees and I could bask in their shade for ten second increments as I slowly glided by! It was hot!  I wanted to go 6 miles to prepare for the 10K this weekend. But I barely made the 5. I really don't like hot anymore! Today I will rest and then Wednesday and Thursday I'll do a couple of short 3-4 milers. Then Friday off and Saturday my second 10K.  I must be honest and say I am very frustrated with myself right now. The time of day I run cannot be changed as I have to run when the aid is here with my son. So 8-10 in the morning is it...or there's nothing. (praying for a treadmill for Christmas - then I can train for the full marathon!!!) It's di...

That may not seem like a big deal to some of you, but I almost had to sacrifice my Monday run due to another obligation. It was okay, but it only gives me 4 days in a row to run and some weeks I need an off day in the middle. My goal of course is to work up to running all 5 days - with a little biking thrown in. I have several goals right now - but I can do them all at the same time basically, so it's not too overwhelming. The heat has got to be beaten, miles have to increase, and I need to lose at least another 10 pounds. Since none of these are mutually exclusive I should be able to work out a plan! Sometimes we give up too soon on projects or plans because it gets too complicated. That can make us feel like none of them is do-able! I am finding that if I hang in there and don't change the goals just because of a complication I can figure out a way to accomplish almost anything! Here's an example. When I am running I get all sorts of ideas. I write stuff in my head f...

That's right - this morning was my first half marathon! And I actually met all my goals.. I am very happy with myself and my performance in the race. I was so scared! I kept thinking about how until today I've only run 10.5 miles and I'd have to gut it out - and gut it out I did! First the weather was terrible. It was raining the whole race. There were two lightning strikes downtown before the race so they had to move the start time. I started slow and just kept going. I did okay and before I knew it I was half way done. That's no biggy - because I've done a 10K before. I talked myself through the whole thing in a crazy sort of way...After I got to mile 9 which is where I figured I'd start having challenges with my attitude and thinking...I started working it backwards. I told myself I only have 4 miles to go. And I do more than that on my regular daily running.   Basically, I ignored the fact that I had already run the 9 miles. Then at ten I was like I have a...

It really is easy to get distracted. Maybe it's just how overwhelmingly huge my goals seem from where I am living right now! I was so excited to sign up for the Chicago half that I forgot it requires a lot more training as they implement time constraints. I will have to improve my time at least just a little! And that was great the other day...but now I have to get out and run another 10-miler! I took two days off because of a slight muscle strain. So that makes it easy for me to want to scale back a little. However, I have to build at least 3 more miles and the OKC half marathon is only a month away! The last week has to be tapered off so that you are running on fresh legs. (not that my legs could ever be really fresh !) And now the blister healed...but I have an ingrown toenail.. perhaps I should scale back for this week....and... Do you see where I am going with this? There is always a reason to drop off training, to scale back or to lighten up. But it takes discipline to...

I started running basically for my life. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. All of my days were spent sitting in the hospital with my adult son who was seriously injured in an automobile accident. In general I am a very active person and I was feeling myself go downhill fast. Joining a gym was out of the question since I was not sure what the future looked like or where we would be. One afternoon I went out to catch up on the laundry and was looking for something different to read when I discovered a popular running magazine. As I was reading it I thought it might be something I could do to help me stay in shape. I figured it could be done anywhere and would have very little expense. I was so out of shape that I had to "work up" to begin the beginner's program! The initial goal was to run 2 miles, or 30 minutes. It took me two weeks to be able to run one minute and walk two - repeat 10 times! And even then I ran one minute praying each second would go a lit...