Lots going on in my mind today. I ran a 10K this morning. It's the first I've done of this length in awhile. Overall it went very well. There was plenty of time before the race so I did a slow and easy .8 mile so my miles for the day would round out to 7. Actually, this race felt very good. I think it even surprised me. I'm getting a little faster (not really the primary focus) but I am feeling better while doing it (the primary  focus)! I'm on track for the half next month if I get to do it. Then I will keep my miles up after that to continue preparing for a full marathon. I'm pretty happy with my progress though it's been slow. Progress is progress  after all. So this week has been a rough one for me. I've gotten myself into a tight spot and I'm trying to make the best choices I can with what I have to work with. I had just about talked myself into quitting taekwondo. So a good friend came over this week and we talked it out and she got me to thi...

Chris and I with Mom at Church. While I was driving to my mom's today I was working through how I would handle lunch. I had packed my bag with an extra bottle of water and a snack bag of nuts and raisins. I was thinking about how much effort it takes to keep this old body in shape and running efficiently. I looked at my wrist which is looking better but I'm on tight restrictions per the doc until the bruise and pain are completely gone. I was starting to get frustrated because while it doesn't limit my running at all (thankfully!!!) it does hamper my efforts in taekwondo. If I follow the doc's orders correctly I can't punch "anything but air" until it is healed. I need to break boards, and punch pads! And I need to spar to prepare for an upcoming tournament. I figured I have to decide how well I want to take care of myself - no one can do that for me. I started thinking about my online running community and how they gripe at me when I mess up and rea...

So I delayed marathon training by one week so it's time to get started. Tomorrow is my official starting date for full marathon training. I am using a 4:1 run/walk interval plan. It's Coach Jenny Hadfield's marathon training plan. It includes 4 running days and 2 cross training days each week with one total rest day. That's going to be my foundation. My 2 cross training days are of course taekwondo nights. Part of my plan includes NOT running on those days. Even when I am having a great day it can be too much too easily. This week I used as sort of a trial week. I set my goal miles (20) and tried to achieve them without overdoing it. You know what? I did it!  I spread out my workouts and threw in cross training and even an additional 30 minute cardio class one night. The cardio class is after my taekwondo class and I was playing it by ear. If I felt okay and did well in taekwondo - then I could stay for cardio. I did fine so I stayed. I did not push it as hard as the...

So today I had one of the worst days I've had in awhile. I actually haven't felt really good all week long. I was excited to get out and get a run in since it was my first "official" run to begin my marathon training even though I haven't settled on a good plan yet. I'm still looking and tweaking to see what's going to work best. That's okay since I planned on starting after I finish the OKC half here in another week or so. I'm thinking I have a little time yet to decide. I did get in 3 miles this morning - well it was early afternoon really. It was a little warm but the clouds made it bearable for the most part. I just felt so sluggish. My chest was really uncomfortable but by about mile 1.5 I started feeling better. I still didn't push it much because I really don't  want to overdo it. I know that causes the biggest setbacks in training and in how I feel. Actually, I'm not real sure why I don't feel real good now. I've been ...