Slow with the running, anyway. My Grandpa Keyser died on the 14th, almost exactly a year after my Grandma Keyser died last year. My parents, siblings, and I went back to South Dakota for the funeral and I was smart enough to take my running gear with me. I only got a 2 mile run in while I was there, but my Garmin said I ran one of them in 9:08! Woah! I'm pretty sure it was because the first mile was a lot of downhill stretches followed by flat stretches, but I'll take it! I forgot that the little town where we were staying has a lot of rolling hills, so it was a surprise to do the slightest bit of hill work while I was there.
Fast forward to Christmas Eve. I met up with Renee and her sister and managed a slow 3.5 mile run, 1/2 on pavement, 1/2 on the trails. It was nice to have a nice, easy run in the books.
Fast forward yet again to today. Our Director let everyone off work an hour early (yay!) so I went home with the intention of going on a longer run of 4-6 miles. When I started out, I noticed some dark clouds and lightening in the distance, but it seemed fairly far from where I was that I didn't worry about it too much. I got about a mile down the road and took a look around. The dark clouds had started to come closer and it was pretty gloomy, so I turned around and headed home. Within 5 minutes of me being home the lightening was crazy and it turned into a torrential downpour. I was pretty damn glad to be home! I don't even remember what my pace was, but I do know I ran about 2 miles.
I'm thinking about trying to get up to join the Shu's trail running group tomorrow to get in a few more miles before the year ends, but that also means I'll have to get out of bed earlier tomorrow than I have for the past few weeks. We'll see what happens...
Friday, December 30, 2011
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Destination Run: Truck Retrieval
The title of this entry probably seems way more exciting than it really was, but it is technically the truth, so I'll let it be.
Josh completed his 2011 goal of rafting every month this year by heading up to the river to go boating with his friend, Ted, on Saturday. Later that day, my mom called and invited us to their house for lasagna for dinner. When Josh returned to Ted's house from boating, he was rather intoxicated, so I offered to go pick him up and take him with me to my parents' for dinner. Josh went straight to be upon our arrival home and I ended up mapping the route from our house to Ted's. Before laying down for the night, my plans were made for Sunday: I'd run to Ted's to pick up the truck. It's just over 9 miles from our house to Ted's.
I didn't get started until 11:30, which was fine because it was still pretty chilly outside (30-ish). I wore my hydration belt for the first time since my 10-miler in the heat several months ago, which was a smart move. My shins were tight for the first few miles and I had a difficult time shaking it off and/or ignoring the tightness. It wasn't painful though, so I plugged along. Somewhere around mile 4 I stopped at a Walgreens for a pit stop and forgot to turn my Garmin back on for about 1/2 of a mile, so my overall distance and time were off. I ate some Clif Shot Bloks and remembered how much I love Nuun and was disappointed that I had run out on Tuesday.
I started to weaken around the end of mile 6 and by mile 7 I started to question my decision to make this destination run. I played my "make it to that landmark and I can walk" game and actually walked this time. Miles 8 and 9 were slightly easier but I still walked a bit...and all of the sudden, there was the house and the truck! My Garmin read 8.8 miles but I mapped my route on google maps and it was exactly a 1/2 mile more for a total of 9.3 miles.
My body ached for several hours after I finished but Ted and his wife, Deb, graciously let me into their home for some much needed water (I ran out just as I got to their home) and Ted gave me a much deserved PBR!
Semi-stats for the time my Garmin was actually running today:
8.8 miles at 10:59/mile average pace
Josh completed his 2011 goal of rafting every month this year by heading up to the river to go boating with his friend, Ted, on Saturday. Later that day, my mom called and invited us to their house for lasagna for dinner. When Josh returned to Ted's house from boating, he was rather intoxicated, so I offered to go pick him up and take him with me to my parents' for dinner. Josh went straight to be upon our arrival home and I ended up mapping the route from our house to Ted's. Before laying down for the night, my plans were made for Sunday: I'd run to Ted's to pick up the truck. It's just over 9 miles from our house to Ted's.
I didn't get started until 11:30, which was fine because it was still pretty chilly outside (30-ish). I wore my hydration belt for the first time since my 10-miler in the heat several months ago, which was a smart move. My shins were tight for the first few miles and I had a difficult time shaking it off and/or ignoring the tightness. It wasn't painful though, so I plugged along. Somewhere around mile 4 I stopped at a Walgreens for a pit stop and forgot to turn my Garmin back on for about 1/2 of a mile, so my overall distance and time were off. I ate some Clif Shot Bloks and remembered how much I love Nuun and was disappointed that I had run out on Tuesday.
I started to weaken around the end of mile 6 and by mile 7 I started to question my decision to make this destination run. I played my "make it to that landmark and I can walk" game and actually walked this time. Miles 8 and 9 were slightly easier but I still walked a bit...and all of the sudden, there was the house and the truck! My Garmin read 8.8 miles but I mapped my route on google maps and it was exactly a 1/2 mile more for a total of 9.3 miles.
My body ached for several hours after I finished but Ted and his wife, Deb, graciously let me into their home for some much needed water (I ran out just as I got to their home) and Ted gave me a much deserved PBR!
Semi-stats for the time my Garmin was actually running today:
8.8 miles at 10:59/mile average pace
Trying again: Running group success
I mustered up some courage and went down to See Jane Run again on 12/6 after work for the group. I swear I crossed my fingers and my toes on the way there hoping they didn't cancel the run without any communication again. I walked up to the store front a few minutes before 6pm and (thank god) there were girls inside. The door was locked (weird, because they are supposed to be open until 6pm and it wasn't 6:00 yet), but they let me in when they realized I was wearing running gear.
Turns out I was the only person who showed up for the group that night, but Olive (my fearless very-early-20s-something leader) and I went out anyway. I didn't give myself enough time to let my Garmin locate the satellites so I didn't have it on for the first half of the run. I have no idea how fast we were running. I do know this, however: Olive is a much faster runner than I am. We got to the turn around point and we stopped so I could catch my breath a bit. I turned the Garmin on and off we went again. We did about 3.25 miles that night; the 2nd half a bit slower than the first (with the second half at a 10:01/mile average). I know this much is true because I felt much more at ease during the 1.64 miles back to the store than the first 1.64 miles. Olive kept me company and gave me a heads-up that most folks tend to call the store the day before the group runs to let the girls know if someone is joining them for the run. While I don't think this is a very good way to judge who is or isn't coming to run, I did let Olive know I'd give them a call if I planned to join them on Saturday. We'll see how things pan out throughout the rest of the week!
Turns out I was the only person who showed up for the group that night, but Olive (my fearless very-early-20s-something leader) and I went out anyway. I didn't give myself enough time to let my Garmin locate the satellites so I didn't have it on for the first half of the run. I have no idea how fast we were running. I do know this, however: Olive is a much faster runner than I am. We got to the turn around point and we stopped so I could catch my breath a bit. I turned the Garmin on and off we went again. We did about 3.25 miles that night; the 2nd half a bit slower than the first (with the second half at a 10:01/mile average). I know this much is true because I felt much more at ease during the 1.64 miles back to the store than the first 1.64 miles. Olive kept me company and gave me a heads-up that most folks tend to call the store the day before the group runs to let the girls know if someone is joining them for the run. While I don't think this is a very good way to judge who is or isn't coming to run, I did let Olive know I'd give them a call if I planned to join them on Saturday. We'll see how things pan out throughout the rest of the week!
Monday, December 12, 2011
You know what I love?
I love deciding to go out for a run with no set agenda! I went out on December 3rd with the only plan being to run. I knew I'd have to do an out and back or loop run to be sure I got back home but I didn't care much about pace or distance. I ended up doing a loop and somewhere around mile 5 I decided to take a bit of a detour. I went on a slight downhill stretch knowing I'd have to make a killer climb back uphill to get home, making my overall distance 7 miles instead of 5.5 or 6. The uphill climb was tough and certainly proves I need to do more of them if I want to increase my endurance and strength.
Mile 7 was somewhat rough. I ended up setting short goals for myself: get to the first tree and if I need to I can walk for a short period. I'd get to the first tree and keep running with the goal of getting to the next sign, etc. I ended up running all of mile 7 and at a pace faster than I ran miles 3, 4, 5, and 6. Weird.
Overall:
7 miles at 10:45/mile average
Mile 7 was somewhat rough. I ended up setting short goals for myself: get to the first tree and if I need to I can walk for a short period. I'd get to the first tree and keep running with the goal of getting to the next sign, etc. I ended up running all of mile 7 and at a pace faster than I ran miles 3, 4, 5, and 6. Weird.
Overall:
7 miles at 10:45/mile average
I tried out the shower at work!
I work in an outreach office which basically means my coworkers and I get the shaft in terms of services available at our office. Our colleagues 6 miles away have drinking water and we have a janitor's sink inside a closet. They have a full break room with tables and we have a conference room that's sometimes available to have lunch. They have showers in a large bathroom and we have 2 individual stalls with sinks to wipe ourselves down. But on the 1st I had to be at the other office for a period of time, including the lunch hour, so I took advantage of the situation and went out for a 3 miler near the main office. It was the first day of logging miles for Miles for Meals and I was glad to get a hot shower after my run instead of a PTA (pits, tits, ass) bath at the outreach office!
3 miles at a 10:27 average pace and that's that.
3 miles at a 10:27 average pace and that's that.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
I tried to break out of my comfort zone...
...but my plan was foiled due to See Jane Run's lack of communication. I had been thinking about joining a running group for quite some time and have talked myself out of it every time for various reasons. I made up my mind one Friday night though: the next day I was going to go to the See Jane Run Saturday morning run at 8:00 am. Josh had his poker buddies over to the house and I witheld from joining them for a late night tournament so I'd be nice and rested for the group run in the morning. I was awake by 7 am to have a decent breakfast and a cup of coffee before I headed out the door to meet up with the group. I must have checked their website and facebook page a million times on Friday night and Saturday morning to be sure I had the right time and to be sure it wasn't cancelled. I made my way to downtown Boise and got my gear on at my car before walking to the store front. It was 7:55 and there wasn't anyone there. I walked up and down the street to be less obscure and when there still wasn't anyone there by 8:10, I went back to my car and checked the website and facebook page again. Still no word of it being cancelled.
I wasn't about to let a lack of communication change the fact that I was going to run that morning, so I locked my car and ran around downtown. I ended up doing about 3.5 miles at an average pace of 10:07 which felt pretty good. But the problem with running downtown at that time is that I also had plans to go to See Jane Run that morning to sign up for the See Jane Run Half Marathon at a cheap ol' price of $55 AND I wanted to sign up for their Miles for Meals program that started later that week. I took advantage of being done running at 8:47 and got some coffee at Thomas Hammer (yum) and sent a message to my friend, Renee, to see if she wanted to join me by walking around at the Farmer's Market. She strolled down and we enjoyed the sights as well as some yummy croissants from Le Cafe de Paris (double yum!).
Eventually the store opened and I got signed up for both of my events, but not before letting the employees know that I was quite disappointed in the lack of communication regarding their group run cancellation. I've also managed to find 4 sponsors for the Miles for Meals program where I run and my sponsors donate either canned goods or money to the Women's and Children's Alliance based on the number of miles I run from December 1 to December 15!
As for the See Jane Run Half Marathon, I know I said I wouldn't run it again given the disappointment from the 2011 run, but when I found out the event would only be $55 (compared to the normal $75 or the last minuted $95 entry fee I paid earlier this year), I jumped at the opportunity. More about this later, I'm sure. For now, I've got miles to run!
I wasn't about to let a lack of communication change the fact that I was going to run that morning, so I locked my car and ran around downtown. I ended up doing about 3.5 miles at an average pace of 10:07 which felt pretty good. But the problem with running downtown at that time is that I also had plans to go to See Jane Run that morning to sign up for the See Jane Run Half Marathon at a cheap ol' price of $55 AND I wanted to sign up for their Miles for Meals program that started later that week. I took advantage of being done running at 8:47 and got some coffee at Thomas Hammer (yum) and sent a message to my friend, Renee, to see if she wanted to join me by walking around at the Farmer's Market. She strolled down and we enjoyed the sights as well as some yummy croissants from Le Cafe de Paris (double yum!).
Eventually the store opened and I got signed up for both of my events, but not before letting the employees know that I was quite disappointed in the lack of communication regarding their group run cancellation. I've also managed to find 4 sponsors for the Miles for Meals program where I run and my sponsors donate either canned goods or money to the Women's and Children's Alliance based on the number of miles I run from December 1 to December 15!
As for the See Jane Run Half Marathon, I know I said I wouldn't run it again given the disappointment from the 2011 run, but when I found out the event would only be $55 (compared to the normal $75 or the last minuted $95 entry fee I paid earlier this year), I jumped at the opportunity. More about this later, I'm sure. For now, I've got miles to run!
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