The sound of music

I had a eureka! moment. One of the keys to my training is change of scenery. I felt it in Vancouver. Again in Kentucky. Even when I moved house.
And most recently in Algonquin Park.

I thought about this while I trotted beside my dad, who was accompanying me on a bike, on the very flat Old Railway trail adjacent to our camp site on Saturday morning. I ached a little bit from sleeping on the ground, and probably from canoeing the evening before (in lieu of running on Friday, despite what I thought I'd do), and perhaps slightly tired from only 4 hours of sleep. Up at 5:30 a.m., naturally no less, I thought I should get going fairly early since it was forecast to be hot hot hot.
Wolfed down a breakfast of champions: two slices of whole wheat bread with Nutella and a bottle of water.

The legs got moving pretty quickly, surprisingly. My dad rolled on beside me, asking questions about my training so far. In my head, I thought back to last year when we were on the same trail, only both of us were on a bike and I was trying to keep up with him. We'd seen deer last year on this trail and I hoped to see more this year.

This led to an endless loop of "Do a deer a female deer/Re a drop of golden sun/Mi a name I call myself/Fa a long long way to run!"

Over and over and over again. This is what happens when you opt to leave iPod at camp. You risk just singing songs from the Sound of Music to yourself for two hours.



Just short of an hour into the trail, we reached the general store. We needed a few supplies (because Mom is hanging with her dad in Hong Kong, we couldn't handle organizing ourselves and just forgot a few items). I took this opportunity to rest up, and crack open this Clif shot I've been looking forward to seeing what this energy gel can do. I opted for the mocha flavor goo (hadn't had any coffee for a few days). The sticky mess was surprisingly delicious. Followed it with a bottle of water, and said, "okay goo, work your magic."

I'm not sure that it did. I did feel queasy the next two miles after eating this stuff. Instead of just looping back to the camp site on the same trail, my dad and I agreed it might be a smidge shorter if we went on the highway, even if it were a bit more challenging because hills were now involved. And actual speeding traffic. But not being chased by mosquitoes, despite Deet, was good enough reason to turn to highway running.

And then my thoughts turned to images of Terry Fox, arguably one of the greatest Canadians ever, who attempted to run across-Canada to raise money for cancer research, running with only one leg after he had it amputated.
Another inspirational story, and these positive thoughts are good fuel for the mind. And the mocha fuel, I think, may have helped me maintain a non-sluggish pace up and down some pretty decent hills.

Did not see deer/The sun was awesome/I kept telling me to keep going/And I did run far.




When all was said and done, for you statisticians: I completed 13.97km/8.68mi in 1:50:39 (avg pace 7:55/km or 12:45/mi). Upon my return, my sister said I didn't even look tired.

Now that is music to my ears.

Rewarded myself with a nap -- that's the exhausted me in my tent about an hour after run), and a big fat s'more in the evening by the campfire.

The tent is up

Well, not literally. Just figuratively. It's a phrase that two workmates and I use when we're basically done for the day... productivity-wise, and usually in the early half of the workday.

I'll be heading north in a few hours to literally set up my tent, though the figurative expression will not apply to my running plan -- and even though it's TGIF -- ThankGodI'mnotrunningFriday -- I have a feeling the fresh Algonquin Park air and plentiful trees may convince me otherwise. One long run (7mi, according to Hal's plan ... but who knows, I may be inspired to do more.. but I'll be careful, it's a stepback week), a couple of short ones. Will I have enough energy? There's also bike rides and canoeing on tap. And poker. And gel experimentation.

I've resisted using energy gels so far in training during long runs. Not for any particular reason, but others have been expounding the virtues of these small packets of pudding-like energy, so let's give it a whirl. Choices are chocolate or mocha. I also have a packet of Sharkies, ready to go.

Weather looks okay, according to Environment Canada. Just a huge chance of rain on Sunday. I'm communing with the great outdoors for about 48 hours only, but it's nice to get out of the city on any chance.

PS: lest you think I actually set up my tent yesterday, I did go for my first lunchtime run in a long while. 3.5mi on the dreadmill.

Rain rain go away

Oh wait, you never showed up. Skipped the hill training today. In fact, skipped the whole running thing. I secretly wanted it to rain hard like the weatherman predicted it would. It hasn't yet, and I'm feeling slightly guilty.

But, this is offset somewhat by my morning cross-training session on a stationary bike at the gym (just 5mi), and the fact that there's a heat alert declared.
Lots of rain forecast over the next few days. Maybe I'll have to reluctantly take the training back to the dreadmill... until the weekend where I hope to escape the storms that are expected to hit Toronto. I'm going camping this weekend. That means trail running! and outdoor cycling. Trees and fresh air. S'mores.

Can't wait.

Stay away rain, you're on notice.

Double the fun

Funny what can get you motivated sometimes. UltramarathonerBoy and I were talking today in the kitchen at work. He was talking about how he was just getting back into his running regimen with the slightly extra weight he thinks he's carrying. He ran 80 miles last week. That's more than half the mileage I've accumulated in training to date, and that began on May 15th. To which he replied, "ya I'm going to more than double you next week!"
He's aiming to do 100 miles per week, but he's finding that difficult with the shifts he's working, otherwise he'd run twice a day several times a week if he could.

Well, if he can run 80 miles a week, I can run a couple of miles today. I slotted in a toning class after work. And after a couple of errands, then supper, then I managed a steady 2-1/4 miles.

High Five

Sigh, enough with the "high" remarks already. But, I can't resist...

A high five for finishing Week Five. Despite having run just three times this week, I still managed to increase the mileage from the prior week.
Weekly tally: 19.72mi/31.7K
Training-to-date: 154.25mi/248.16K

A high five for not quitting, even though I really wanted to on the hardest training week to date, and knowing the road ahead is not going to be any easier, with barely a third of this 18-week program completed.

A high five for figuring out what minor adjustment needed to be made -- no human running partner -- to be a happy runner again.

On this rest day, I look back at my progress. It's been no easy task so far, but I'm proud of myself for sticking as close to the plan as possible without sacrificing all the other things I enjoy.

I look ahead to the next third of training, with the intention to think or implement these five things, in no particular order, that may help me progress further:

1. Pep talks to self. Maintaining a positive attitude. It's ok to run by myself. In fact, preferable.
2. Better nutrition. I will soon see a dietitian ... not only because my endocrinologist ordered it be so, but because I really need to know how to balance the needs of a diabetic marathoner-in-training.
3. Cross training. I don't care if it's swimming, yoga, or cycling. I just have to be more consistent about it.
4. New shoes. I've put nearly 155 miles on my New Balance 856s, and this is since I've been keeping track. I bought these shoes late last summer. Time for new ones, definitely.
5. Experiment with gels. Apparently these really work.

(s)Mile high

What's this? A smile? This is my thought at Mile 10 today, the end of a 2:09:48 effort that took me from my house, across and through a good stretch of the Beach area-- which was really the happiest part of my run because I passed many another solo runner, and the water view was just perfect. I started later than I wanted, at 8:45AM, despite having awoken two hours earlier.

The runner's high has returned? I stopped on the beachside boardwalk for a break, at exactly the one-hour mark feeling good about myself at what I figured was the halfway point, and for a few minutes watched some kind of Baywatchesque thing going on, a bunch of lifeguards running on the sand in what looked like some kind of competition or training program. I briefly reminisced about the summers during university when I'd skip trying to get newspaper internships and opt to prevent kids from drowning at local pools, or fishing out their vomit. But I digress, as usual.

The second-half route back to my house was more difficult, it was now warmer and uphill. But I made it. I had about 10 minutes to spare before my ride was coming to take me to a birthday party.

I deserve it today.

Guilt-free white chocolate mousse with raspberry filling for birthday cake, as well as the most decadent chocolate swirl brownies that exist... and I also took home some lemon meringue and butter tarts for later consumption.

Not quite a high

But at least it wasn't a low.

I took my first tentative steps back outside today after having a tempetuous tantrum on Wednesday night. Moving has definitely not helped my mindset -- CMan asked me if I was ever going to enjoy the new house because I've been mopey about unpacking; and upset that I haven't been able to make myself a proper meal in days -- and nevermind that we don't even have milk in the fridge yet even for a bowl of Cheerios.

Still, sometimes a good run by yourself, or at least accompanied by some good tunes, will help reset the mind.

I don't know if it's because of the tree-lined streets or if it was because of a fresh rainfall, but the air was very ... clean. And quiet. No real traffic, no fear of being hit by idiot downtown drivers. It was about 20C, and not at all humid or smoggy. I didn't have a distance in mind, just wanted to get the legs moving again. I ran through some of the twisty streets in the neighborhood, noticing that I was moving on a very slight incline through the first 1/2 mile through some of the area streets. Then I coasted down a nice significant downhill -- enjoyed it as much as I could knowing that there was a comparable hill to be climbed on the way back. Winded through a few more streets and found myself on the edge of Little India, which was the sign to make the climb uphill back home.

Time: 29:09.
Distance: 2.42mi.
Headspace: Nothing to complain about.

Runner's high

It doesn't exist. Not here, not anymore.
Instead, I'm Little Miss Crankypants. Stop reading if you're a positive person.

A combination of a 20-minute "fun run" challenge put on by the Running Room, the damned hill training, the to-and-from run of said hill, and a just-to-kill-time core strengthening session did not make for a happy Jellypepper yesterday.

Perhaps the stress of moving has also contributed to crankiness, but I think not. A few days ago, I asked myself what is the point of running with the group. I found myself asking it again yesterday.

Because I ran a lot of it alone. And when I'm alone with my thoughts on a run, it can escalate into something completely demoralizing. I found myself at the back of the pack again, and then slowly losing sight of the pack. That in itself didn't bother me because I've made peace with the fact that my pace is not their pace. I did eventually catch up to them at the hill, but I got about a minute of rest before attacking them hills. And I use the word attack in its broadest sense.

We were doing 7 rounds on these hills, which I think were about 200 meters one way, shorter than last week's hill, but steeper. At the top of the hill, there were cows at the farm and I actually thought that a steak would be really nice for dinner if I survived the rest of this exercise. But, back to the hill. I hated every second of it. I felt like I was going to die, which I took as a positive sign that I was doing these hills correctly. By my fourth time up, I was walking partway on the uphill.

I didn't finish 7. I did 4-1/2 trips.. stopping because most of the group was already done and they were meeting atop the hill. Then I didn't want to stretch with this group, I just wanted to leave and get as far away as possible, overtaken by ubernegative thoughts that I just don't belong.

And so I did leave, shoulders hunched, head down. Started the long walk back to the clubhouse because that's where my belongings were waiting to be picked up. I knew the rest of the group was running back, so trudged away.... though they passed me about five minutes later. They were high, and this made me feel even worse. Frankie was good enough to walk with this cranky girl anyway. Total mileage for the day was about 12K/7.3mi.

I'm contemplating not going back to the group. The point of going was that it was supposed to be supportive. It's having the opposite effect. It might be because I don't really know anyone -- the group is a marathon clinic made up of paying customers and I am not, I just usually crash the party on the free club runs on Wednesdays and Sundays. So there's camaraderie amongst them, and the opportunity to get to know someone better isn't presenting itself since people get to know each other while running with each other but if I'm running by myself, I'm just getting to know me, and I already know me.

Further, since training is partly mental, perhaps the best course of action for me is to run by myself and get myself in a better headspace. Physically, I can do this and have been fairly faithful to the training plan.

Pre-group, I felt the runner's high. I felt good afterwards, daily stresses washed away by a nice run. By no means has this training journey til now been easy, but I'm finding it increasingly difficult to separate my feelings of loneliness within this particular group. That stress is replacing the daily stress. What a vicious circle of stress.

Will a return to training solo be an easier pill to swallow? I want the runner's high back.

Hysteria Lane

I'm no Desperate Housewife, but I've definitely moved into some kind of wacky neighborhood. One neighbor, probably the den mother of the street, came by last night with a homemade pizza with artichokes and fine slivers of onions literally fresh out of the oven because she carried it three doors down to ours on a pizza peel, presented it to CMan who was home at the time and building something. (For those of you who are curious, I was not home and I was not running... instead, dining on chilled tomato cucumber soup, seared salmon wtih tomato chili chutney, and chocolate mousse as part of the city's semi-annual prix fixe festival).
When I did get home from dinner -- with intentions of getting a couple of Ks in before darkness descended -- I met another two sets of neighbors, leisurely sharing a bottle of red on the porch. Bye bye run! (But no drink either. That counts for something). I think I'm going to really love the new neighborhood...I've met more neighbors in one week than I have in the four years I was at the condo.

This morning, I was up at 5:30 a.m. I could've run, but I didn't, and instead went to the condo and cleaned up the place a bit before heading to work. A long day of work before....

Them Hills tonight!

Then pizza.

Unpacked, but boxed in

The house is a mess right now, boxes everywhere, things yet to be assembled, cable still to be hooked up (good thing it's summer and it's nothing but reruns and bad reality TV, but this also means we have no internet so guess who's blogging at work, and will be for the next few days?), a BBQ yet to be purchased, king bed yet to be delivered, but some essentials are unpacked (like my running shoes!). Almost everything is in the house, except for a couch that didn't make it out of the condo (broken service elevator threw a big wrench into moving plans so it's stuck there until we figure out another way to get it without having to rent another truck).

First sleep in the house was restful probably because I was so exhausted. I opened my eyes at 5AM and for about 3-1/2 seconds thought about going for a run in the new neighborhood. And also because I'm supposed to go to dinner with sister and cousin tonight, so where am I supposed to find this time I don't have? There are not enough hours in the day sometimes.
But my non-action has boxed me into a corner for tonight and now I'm contemplating skipping tonight's scheduled run, using such fine excuses like I have not properly rested from Sunday's Long Run and have spent the last 2 days hauling boxes up and down 3 flights of stairs. At the same time, I'm still eager to check out the 'hood and look for the nicest tree-lined streets, and where to avoid hills. Not sure I'm up for the full distance of 3-miles... maybe just a short run around the block then.

Two projects, too tired

Today was one of those days when I question why I bother with the Running Room group. Fabulous people, don't get me wrong, but just about everyone is on another level than me. So what's the point? I wonder if other slower runners feel this way -- like T&C whom I met my first time out. Where are they? -- and so they don't come back because they haven't found someone to run with... at least not consistently. (I'll stick with the group for now. I may train alone, but I know you're all out there supporting me!). Today, I was separated from the pack within the first kilometer and I'd completely lost sight of them by the 4K mark.

Good thing I had a running partner, this girl that I see at the gym often in G's classes. I still don't know her name, and I'm unsure why I didn't ask today when it was obviously a perfect opportunity. What I do know is that she's not training for any race in particular, she was just out for fun, but had done a half-marathon race last year. She ran 15K yesterday morning when our shared favorite Saturday class with G was cancelled. So she was running slow. Which was fine by me, since I am a slow runner. Our combination led to a fair number of walking breaks, more than scheduled.. and longer than normal. The heat was also a contributing factor. It was 25C when I left my condo this morning, but tack on a couple of degrees with the humidex.

As planned, I didn't do the whole course that was laid out by RunningGuru. The rest of the group was doing 23K through some nice neighborhoods. Not me, I ran as far as 9K on the course, and veered off and did my own route back. Oh ya, and Garmin decided not to show up right away today, again, but the stopwatch works just fine. I was out for nearly two hours today, and covered 8.4mi/13.5K, one mile shy of my goal distance today. I won't worry too much about it, had to reserve a little bit of strength for the second project of the day -- moving house (part one), which went well -- and I was running late (too many walking breaks!)

I'm exhausted. Can't wait til this is over. Guess whether I"m talking about running the marathon or moving house...



Weekly tally, which includes last two weeks worth: 16.83mi + 18.1mi = 34.93mi/56.2K
Training-to-date: 134.53mi/216.46K

Cross-training cancelled

So much for my plan to reintroduce cross-training back into the schedule. G's classes were cancelled this morning. I guess that's a sign that a higher power really wants me to get moving on finishing boxing up belongings in the condo.
Maybe when I'm ready for a break, I'll sneak down to the condo gym a little later and ride the bike, or do my own core strength class. It's too hot to go outside... unless I go swimming. That's good cross-training activity. Who am I kidding, I'm sure I'd end up at the pool, with a drink that comes with an umbrella, bake in the sun, get heat- and/or sunstroke, won't finish packing. Bad plan, let's ixnay it now.

Here's the Long Run plan for tomorrow: Again I"m not going to do the full 23K/14mi that is on the Running Room Group's schedule -- that's 40 percent more distance than I've ever run in one go -- to prevent injury, but also because I don't want to tire myself out too much for the two-pronged process of a move (no, we did not hire movers, don't bother lecturing me). So I'm going to stick close to my plan and go 15K/9.5mi.

I've been thinking about the Running Room group. I've worked out with them 2.25 times so I'm not particularly attached to them, but I wonder if I should stick with them after I move. The group won't be in my area anymore, requiring a drive downtown. Granted, it's a 20-minute drive, so it's not unfeasible. The other option is to join another group, and there's one in the Beach, which is a 5-minute drive from new home. Still, I've made acquaintances at present group, and some of them are Chicago-bound too. The effort to go downtown may be worth it.

No rest for the lazy

I skipped my run last night, not because I was drunk off my tree, or that I didn't feel like it, or some other chintzy excuse like my iPod and/or Garmin was dead, or that I lost my shoelaces.

Here's the excuse: we spent some time at Sleep Country, and eventually put a down payment on a king-sized bed (one that is apparently featured at The Plaza's Presidential suite, and since I don't have $15,000 to spend on one night at the landmark hotel in NYC, then I'm going to make my own luxurious sleeping quarters)... And we cleaned the new house last night from top to bottom before Sunday's move.

Does this make me a lazy trainee? Well, maybe. A committed, disciplined runner would have had time set aside to run.

And guess what friends? It's TGIF today... Thank God I'mnotrunning Friday.

Lest you worry that I'm in danger of falling off track in Week 4, I hauled myself out of bed this morning to make up for the missed run. I was out the door at 6:20, with only a glass of water as fuel (I have medication that I must take on an empty stomach, but it makes me feel funny sometimes so I was just going to wait til after the run... and then eat an hour after that).

It was already muggy. Temperature read 21C, but it felt like 30C. Garmin didn't pick up a signal, and after 10 minutes, I just got tired of waiting. Ran the stopwatch instead, knowing that it takes me about 40 minutes to get through 3 miles.

I felt a little twinge in the left shin-to-ankle area not too long into it. Maybe I haven't stretched enough? I walked a little bit, and cursed Wednesday's hill training, and trudged along.

No surprise, but I felt slower than usual, and I didn't exactly adhere to my usual ratio of run 10/walk 1 minutes. But I pushed through the distance -- Gmaps measures it at 3.3 miles -- and Garmin kicked in, unhelpfully, for my last three-quarters of a mile.

So, now I can rest.

(But right after I reintroducing myself to my gym today -- my membership is getting wasted with all this running business -- so I'm going to a yoga class at lunch time.)

The thrill of a hill

Hills. 600 meters each way. Five times. That's 3K, or as I figure, a recipe for pain that I'll surely feel tomorrow. Right now, I feel fine. Actually, quite accomplished. Tomorrow, I'm sure my body will tell me something different.

This was a last minute decision on my part to start hill training. Frankie had been talking about it during the day, saying that his Running Group was beginning this portion of their program today. I said, good luck with that. Then I had a change of heart by the time I got home from work, called Frankie and asked him to take me with him to the hills.

It began to rain on the way. Great, we said, but agreed that at least it was not a cold rain, and it was humid outside. The group gathered at the metting spot, nestled in one of the tonier areas of Toronto.

We warmed up with a short 2.5K jog. It had stopped drizzling by now. I managed to keep up with the group for nearly all of it. I got left behind at a light, but one woman stopped on the other side and waited. Well, maybe not. She was giving directions to someone. Anyways, no matter, we finished the warmup together.

And then the group faced the hill. Remember to keep your head up, was the one tidbit I caught from RunningGuru's pre-hill powwow.

The first uphill wasn't so bad. Neither was the second or third. All downhills were great. I started to struggle a bit by the fourth, breathing hard ... but I could tell I was certainly not as taxed as Frankie was when he lapped me (which, later on the drive home, he said was cool. I'm glad I'm a motivator). He was one of three runners in the group of about a dozen that lapped me, but the point is to do the distance. I wasn't dismayed, focusing instead on the idea that these hills are supposed to make us stronger, faster, and build endurance. I didn't stop to walk until the fourth lap. And I took a slightly longer break during the fifth time round at the crest of the hill.

When Frankie passed me on his way to finishing the task at hand, it sounded like he was going to die -- and apparently that's the correct feeling to have at the top of the hill. I didn't once feel like that, but there's a few more weeks of this hill training so I have no doubt that I'll hit that feeling. Maybe next week. And next week, the iPod will accompany me... I think Man in Motion running constantly could help.

I didn't wear a Garmin today, but I estimate my entire workout took about 50 minutes. Frankie clocked in around 55 minutes, and he included a recovery run. I skipped the recovery run, and opted for a good stretch instead.

Post-run, RunningGuru said we'd be tackling a shorter hill next week, but that we'd do them in "gears" just as a car might, so that our heart will be worked just the same as tonight. Funny, I felt like I was on the same gear the entire time tonight... do I have other gears?

Rejuvenate is a color, not how I feel

Today I woke up and really for the first time in a while felt the after-effects of running. Or was it a hangover?

I took on the task of the Tuesday 3-miler (this is the easy distance for the first 10-weeks of Tuesdays in Higdon's 18-week plan). I was feeling pretty uninspired to begin with, and I did nothing to fix that as I stayed close to the condo and ran laps around Queen's Park, the provincial legislature building which has some green space behind it, popular for rallies and such, a great thoroughfare for cars whizzing by on the way uptown and downtown.

There were a few other runners wiht the same idea. I kept up with a girl in a green shirt for a lap and a half, nearly overtaking her at one point, but fell behind when Garmin told me to take a walking break. Round and round the park I went, and thinking the entire time that this is my fault the scenery was so boring and was further distracted by the laundry list of other things that need to get done soon. Have I yet mentioned that moving and marathon training aren't quite compatible?

CMan and I went by our new house last night so he could show me his paint job. There was a disturbingly bright yellow in one of the bedrooms but it's now been replaced with a lovely shade called Rejuvenate)

Meant to only pass through -- still needed to eat -- but met three new neighbors who invited us to sit on their new decks. Three bottles of red wine later .... I had one glass. Honest.

Gentlemen, start your engines!

It's Molson Grand Prix weekend in Toronto -- amongst a long list of other cultural happenings in the city -- and as I stepped out into the 21C, sunny morning, I could already hear the hum of the racing cars reverberating off the downtown buildings. (To be honest, it took me a few minutes to clue in on what that noise was... a giant mosquito? Don't be silly).

I wish I could say all engines were revved up to go on my part, but in truth, it took me a long time to get out of bed this morning. My agenda -- because I didn't do that Long Run yesterday as planned (funny how an upcoming house move gets in the way) -- was to get a head start on mileage before joining up with the Sunday Running Room group and top up the rest of the distance with a group. I meant to be out the door by 7:30. But it was more like 8 by the time I got my act together.

I notched 1.81 miles/2.9K before I got to the Clubhouse (that would be the Running Room store). Which was a good time for a pit stop.

Then I needed to make a choice. How much further was I going to run today? Because I'm blending plans, I decided to split the difference on what Running Room and Higdon called for this week on the Long Run. Higdon had 5 miles on the schedule -- which I felt, would you believe it, was too short! -- and Running Room asked me to do 8 miles. I decided to do 6.5 miles/10.5K.

However, conundrum. The Marathon Group was going to do 23K today -- a mock half marathon, and I believe the route was pretty much the one I'll be doing in September. But, I am not ready for that today, now, no way. And besides, I was slightly disappointed my new running buddies, T&C, from two weekends ago weren't even there today. Who was I going to run with? I'm in no condition to ever be in pole position either. The rest of the group runs too fast for me, including Frankie.

What I should have done is gone with either the 5K or 10K group today, as I had other business to attend to at 10:30. Which basically meant I had to wrap up the run by 9:30 or so.... but those groups had left by the time I thought of it. So I set out with the Marathon Group. I managed to stay with them for nearly a mile -- and Frankie was good enough to run much slower than he is accustomed to just to keep me company -- but decided this wasn't going to work for me. I was going to run solo today, and musicless, except for a Strokes song that I had looping in my head (Juicebox, from latest album "First Impressions of Earth"). Then parted ways with them and headed for the Don River trail.

I passed a pack of runners who were likely the 10K group at the tail end of my trek. I walked a little bit more than usual. Before the Group had set out, the RunningGuru doled out a bit of advice about hydration and said since it was the longest run the group has done together, we'd probably get tired. So he said we should think about why.

I thought about why I was running on empty and I reached a conclusion pretty quickly.
1. Not a lot of sleep.
2. Poor nutrition the night before and certainly not enough breakfast.
3. It's hot outside.

And then I started to lose some confidence. Like this whole marathon training is the dumbest thing I've ever come up with. I think 10K is tough at the best of times... how on earth do I think I can do that times four?

Fell close to a half-mile short of goal distance, as time was getting tight. Completed 6.33 miles/10.19K over 1:14:21. Maybe next weekend I'll run better and with more focus, but I better plan now. Next Sunday is moving day, part one.

Down the drain

It's not fair. I think I'm in reasonably good health, diabetes notwithstanding, and then my doctor calls. I've never dealt well with swallowing pills. In fact, I'd rather just suffer through a migraine than take an aspirin. But alas, I am on a couple of different meds to control the diabetes and I'm dealing with it to some extent in my own twisted way.

Now here's the kicker. I have to temporarily add another pill... apparently my visit to the endocrinolgist a couple of weeks ago, which included all sorts of fun tests like peeing in a cup, yielded the unwelcome result of a bladder infection. Don't worry, the doc says, it's normal. I said, Bladder infection? Get outta here. I feel fine. This doesn't feel like a bladder infection.

Of course, as soon as someone told me, I started to think about it. And when I went for the makeup 3-miler tonight, I had to stop after 10 minutes and find a washroom. Ducked into a University of Toronto building .. and later noticed the building was fittingly called the Facilities Building. Anyways, I finished the rest of the run over 38 minutes without incident, but it wasn't comfortable. This clearly fits into the Too Much Information category.

But knowing that this is the latest thing wrong with me, I am not looking forward to a Long Run tomorrow. Must plan one that includes lots of public washrooms. My time, not that I care all that much, is going to go down the drain.

Yes, pun intended. Gah.

Proud homeowners

Just picked up the keys to our new home. We're very excited. We may even have a cake ceremony later. Yes, wonderful fuel for a diabetic marathoner-in-triaining, but it's a special circumstance.
I think tonight's 3-mile run is in danger of being pushed aside... til tomorrow, which is pegged, as Yumke says, TGIF (Thank God I'mnotrunning Fridays).

The Higdon Room blender

This is Week 3, and I still haven't really come up with a specific program to follow. I'm divided between the programs of the Running Room and Hal Higdon. Both programs have two rest days, Mondays and Fridays. That's gold. Hal's specifies a cross-training day, but RR schedules in Tempo, Hills, and Steady runs. There is more mileage covered in RR.
I think what would suit me best is to blend the two; this way I have a better chance of getting to the gym and do other things I enjoy -- like G's Saturday morning program of aerobics, some weights, then core strengthening, as well as yoga. And I'll stick to the Sunday Group Run (where I will probably encounter longer-than-expected runs...the group is on schedule for the Toronto marathon .. so I think this will work out fine).
Ran 4 miles today with less problems than the night before, at an average pace of 12:36/mile. Total time out there: 50:32. I started slow, as usual, but felt better as I ran further. I'm going to call it a good run, and a nice way to finish off my vacation.

And just because I forgot to do it, here's the tally:
Weekly tally: 26.96K/16.75 miles (Sunday end)
Training-to-date: 160.26K/99.6 miles

Ice Ice baby

Maybe it was from being carbound for hours, but my legs just didn't have any spring today. Or maybe it was because, for a fleeting moment, I thought my brief running career was over from whacking my knee into a rather large tent peg at the Kentucky party (recreated on the right).
I really struggled through my 3.5-mile (5.6K), iPodless run today. Although I toughed out the whole distance over 49 minutes, I was definitely not into it. I tried to take my mind off the heavy legs by trying to count Italian flags joyously waving from cars whizzing by, celebrating the country's World Cup 2-0 victory over Germany. I only counted 7 flags, including the one at the Italian consulate, but this run was happening at least four hours after the fact.
Iced my knees for 10 minutes upon return. Hopefully this will help make tomorrow's run -- 5 miles -- be of better quality.

No Bull

Meet the mechanical bull at Bobby Mackeys, an authentic country western bar not far from my brother-in-law's family farm in Wilder, Kentucky. Fascinating place, not the least of which the building is purported to be haunted. Anyways, perhaps more on this later but I literally just stumbled back home to the Toronto condo after a 14-hour car trip home (which included an outlet mall stop).
But, just wanted to check in and say the vacation schedule didn't interfere with the training schedule -- I actually just had the Long Run to do, and cross training, which were sandwiched between two rest days (or in this case, car travel days).

My cousin, who is running the half marathon in September, and I agreed to celebrate our country's Canada Day with an 8-mile run. So on Saturday morning, before the Kentucky heat really heated up, we drove out to the family farm from the hotel because there was no obvious place to run by the hotel which was right off a highway. The country road leading to the farm is two miles long. Perfect. The schedule called for a 7 miler, but what's a mile between friends. In truth, we wanted to avoid the country road, only because there were several long hills, but the other option was to run around their field (which we tried for 400 meteres. It wasn't pretty). To make a long story shorter (because I really need to get to bed), the Garmin says we ran a fairly steady 8.75 miles (14.1K) in 1:45:28; with an average pace of 12:03/mile. No bull.

And by the way, even though at some point I might have said to my friend, Angela, who lives out in Calgary that we might ride a mechanical bull before we hit 30, I just couldn't do it. I was watching the bull operator control the bull, and there was a definite difference in how he treated the girls versus the boys on the bull. Let's just say it wasn't PG where the girls were concerned.
And my father was at the bar.

No bull.