Singing in the rain

Well, actually, running in the rain. I love to run in the rain and it was finally warm enough to do it for the first time this spring/summer. I thought it was going to be a bit chilly (at 55 degrees) but it wasn't raining too hard, so it was perfect! I actually got kinda hot and had to take my jacket off. I took my iPod with me so that my Nike+ would track, but I ran the whole time without music. It was such an enjoyable 4 miles! And, it looks like I was hitting about a 10:30-11 minute mile pace, except for the 2 minutes I walked up a really big hill. So, while I had an average 12 minute per mile pace for the entire 4 miles, I'm very pleased that I kept the pace up the rest of the time.

Post-run picture....see, not raining too hard. I can't wait for it to be warm enough to run when its really raining hard.

Onwards

Onwards from AKQA on Vimeo<

Earth Day 5K Pictures

They finally posted pictures from the Earth Day 5K. There are some much better ones of Bernie (the Biggest Loser contestant) and there are some of me running and there are some that I liked just because (photography is something that has always intrigued me).

All pictures are courtesy of the Silver Spring Earth Day 5K and Mr. Brian W. Knight.

A pre-race shot - we are in the top right corner by the light post. You can see my teal top and Sofia's hot pink fleece



I'm the one with the teal top, black skort, sunglasses on top of my head




Finishing


A few better ones of Bernie




These are the ones that I liked just because...

Stretch!

You know, those nice people that said I looked graceful while I was trying not to fall...well, they also said to be sure to stretch because I would be sore from my 10 feet of bumble, stumble, and not falling. I thanked them, but silently I was thinking "Sure buddy, that almost fall is going to make me sore....nah, the next 3 miles are going to make me sore." Sure enough, my left hammy and my left buttocks are tight and sore.

Note for next time....stretch real good after you almost make a fool of yourself running by the library.

Oh well

So much for running this morning. Marc is running the GWP 10 Miler and the jogger is still in his trunk from when he picked us up at Home Depot Friday afternoon and his trunk is in Old Town Alexandria. Ok, so we'll take the other stroller and just go for a nice walk, let's take the dog since I'm not sure if Marc took him out before he left this morning and he could use the exercise too. Wrong! Jack freaks out when we go beyond our parking lot. It doesn't help that the bus comes to the grocery store across the street (he doesn't like loud buses, delivery trucks, anything diesel). We got maybe one or two tenths of a mile away and he was begging to go home. And I can't very well leave Sofia in her stroller in the parking lot while I run the dog back upstairs. It's just one of those days. Is the coffee ready yet?

A not so fun run

I went for a run yesterday morning. I knew it needed to be a longer run, but I didn't have a route planned out. I was just going to run around the city based on how I felt. Big mistake! I should have a planned route (and I should have worn my camelbak!). My total route was 4.9 miles, but my Nike+ says I did 4.5 miles (probably not calibrated accurately for all the walking I did). After 1.75 miles, I was over by the library and hospital and I was finally finding a groove, it still wasn't a great run, but I'd found a stride and I thought I could stick it out. Then....I tripped. One of the sidewalk squares was raised up from the others and I tripped. I didn't fall, but I stumbled, threw my arms out....I almost fell. It was bad, but some other runners were nice enough to tell me that I looked graceful while I almost fell. There was no coming back. My knee felt like I'd just run 10 miles, not 2. My stomach felt a little off. And I was thirsty. I re-routed myself to the town center so that I could go by a water fountain. Then I picked up the W&OD trail and headed home. It was still another 2 miles home from here....facing directly into the sun. Thank God there is a 7-11 right near the trail. I stopped and bought a bottle of water, then ran/walked the remaining 1.5 miles home.

I definitely think we are nearing the times when I'll need to start running early (6 or 7am) to beat the heat (at least for those longer runs).

I think Sofia and I are going to head out for a short walk before it reaches 90 today. We might run a little, we'll see how we are feeling.

Walking instead of running

Sofia and I were butting heads today, which is odd, since she was such a sweat-heart this morning (giving lots and lots of kisses without being prompted). And to top it all off, she just wouldn't take a nap today (which is probably why we were butting heads). We decided to go for a walk. We ended up at the playground, ran around, had fun. Then, I got it in my head that we should keep walking and go to Home Depot and get some herbs to plant. We ended up walking just over 2 miles from the house to the playground to Home Depot. Marc got off work just in time to pick us up at Home Depot.

I always seem to dread running and pushing the stroller at the same time, so I put it off and don't do it. I think I still have it in my head that I'm still building back up my strength and I'm not where I was a few years ago. Well, after my recent fastest 5K since Sofia was born and how great I felt after the 10 Miler, I am a much closer to being back and I am a runner again. I just need to get my mind to catch up with my body. This is why we tend to go for walks instead of runs, I need to suck it up and just do it.

And on the diet-weight loss front, I'm really thinking about giving "Core" a try. For those of you non-weight watchers, this is a method where you don't count points but you eat clean foods. I know I need to get my protein up and I even though I stay within my points, it's not always good choices and my weight is stagnant. Next week's goal (after we go grocery shopping) is to eat clean/core-like/filling foods.