Okay - I know I am old and slow - and coming off a semi-major injury...but when I did the 5 miler in under an hour I was very happy with that. I actually had just a little over 11 minute miles. It felt like my work had paid off. I was still way behind the pack - but for me it was a good run! And by the way - the outside temperature was 19 degrees F.... just to finish this cold booger was quite a feat! The really cool thing is when I crawled back on the treadmill yesterday I realized my base time is faster. When I started running on the treadmill I stayed at 4 mph on slow runs. I had been working on it all this time and shot for some 5 mph and 6mph  speeds. Yesterday I did almost my whole 2 miles at 4.5 mph. I know that it not much - but sometimes we need to celebrate the small progresses we make. Today - take some time to celebrate some type of progress you have made. Maybe you have stayed on an eating plan for a day or two - celebrate your accomplishment! Some may have added d...

It sounds funny to say it, but the most difficult part of training is staying on track. If you relax for one day, the next day it is even easier to relax. It takes staying with the training program one day at a time. As I am preparing for the OKC Memorial Half Marathon I am having to really concentrate on staying focused. And the funny part is - it's something I actually want to do.  But I know that if I do not stay on track every single day (including rest days) I will still complete the half marathon - but not as easily as if I stay with my training program daily.  If it is difficult to be consistent with something that I actually want to do - think about how much more difficult it is to do things that have to be done - but that are not chosen. To get to any goal - it will take doing what each day requires. What are you struggling with today? Is it difficult because you are looking at the whole picture? I have to look at a whole 13.1 mile run to know how close I am to tha...

Well, I just finished running 6.6 miles. That's the longest distance I have completed since I busted my knee back in August. I must say it was not easy! I had done 5 miles last week, and that was pushing it. I guess my run today made me realize how out of shape I am. My body is not just talking to me right now - it's screaming that I have to get myself back in shape by eating right. I know I am eating out of pure emotions - but I gotta figure out how to stop doing that...it's not easy either! I sort through a lot of my thoughts while I am running. It really seems like it makes it go a lot faster and I get a lot of goals set for the coming days and weeks. (usually) In between I do have crazy thoughts about things like not spitting into the wind and fears that I won't make it back to the bathroom in time! But I get a lot of my emotions and thoughts all lined up and controllable.  6.6 miles - not too bad for an old lady I guess. It's a little better than half of ...

When I first started running, my son was in a nursing home in Bernice. I would get up early in the morning and go for a run so I could get back and get a shower before they started the patient showers. (yes, I literally stayed there with him!) So tonight, I ran it in my mind...but there's more to the story.  My own life is filled with much stress - just like everyone else! Part of my struggles means that I am limited to running on a treadmill and not outside. Did I mention yet that I hate  the treadmill? And running in the evening is even worse because I can't see out the window so I stare at the living room wall! This just makes it more of a struggle to get on the thing! lol!  Quite honestly, I get depressed and just want to quit! Imagine that! So I had stayed off for nearly a week... even though I already signed up for the half marathon for April. So I had to make a choice - am I going to be a runner, or not? If I want to be a runner, then I will have to make use o...

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...

Last weekend I finished my 21st race! I will now think of myself as an "of age" racer! lol! This was my 18th 5K and I've done two 10Ks and one half marathon! It's been quite the journey and I have learned a lot about myself and my walk with God during the process. This race was very special though because I got to run it with my sister, Tina. It was our 5th race to do together! (all 5Ks.) We both starting running because of adversity in our lives.  I started about 3 years ago while my son was in the hospital after a tragic automobile accident. I am still his caregiver as he slowly makes progress. My sister has a brain tumor. She has several brain surgeries before they finally got a shunt in correctly. We actually decided last year to make the Race for Hope (for the Oklahoma brain tumor foundation) a yearly event for us. We three sisters have done it now 3 years in a row. And we kinda branched out from there.  We had done a race in June and met a new friend and she...

I am just coming off an almost-major knee injury. It was a "break" albeit a little tiny one! A few weeks rest and wearing a brace and I was good to go! The main reason I fell (I think) was I had some new shoes (they just now crossed 50 miles - so they were real new then!) and just misjudged the height of the curb, caught my toe and slammed into the ground. It happened so fast, I did not even feel the tripping part at all. My eyes never even closed! That's how fast it happened!  I think sometimes in life we can find ourselves in troubling or painful situations just that fast as well. One small mis-step and we are emotionally, spiritually, financially or otherwise eating dirt! Just a minor calculation and we are on the ground. So when I found this scripture this morning I could really relate to it.  Proverbs 4:12 says this in the New Living Translation: if you live a life guided by wisdom, you won't limp or stumble as you run.   Now that is a true bit of wisdom isn...