Family Fun Run

Last week I fell in love with running all over again. I took a trip home to visit family, and I knew that I would need to keep running while I was there, so I called up my brother and asked him to run with me while I was there. We put an 8 miler on the books for Father's Day, and I was glad I had a plan to hold myself accountable.

 Katie, Joe, Matt, Me
 (Big thanks to our favorite spectator, my sister Noelle, for taking the picture)

When we set out on our run that morning, I had so many doubts running through my head. I had left my good running shoes at my dad's the day before, it was muggy, and I knew there were so many hills on the route he had planned. It didn't take long though for us to fall into a good rhythm, and I had this amazing energy running through me. We carried on conversations about random stuff with little bits of "wisdom" from my brother mixed in. It was also the first time I really ran in my hometown. I was on the track team briefly in high school before I quit because the only event open was 2 mile, so I decided I had better things to do. It's funny in retrospect that I didn't want to run 2 miles.

The next day, I went on a small group run with my brother, sister-in-law, and fiance. It was so much fun! I think we all had fun...mostly. There were moments of laughter, and maybe a couple of irritated moments, but we stuck together, and we knocked out a quick 3 miles. We laughed as we caused some minor road blocks in our small town, we debated the smell of the local dog food plant, and we waved at all the passing cars. It was one of those runs that is simultaneously relaxing and energizing. 

If you are a veteran runner or just starting out, grab a few friends or family members and head out for a run. Short or long, it doesn't matter. Just get out there and have some healthy fun.

Runner's Rambles: Running Makes Sense

Sometimes, it's nice to just get lost in a run. Being outside, running, thinking. It's a release from the confines of the chaotic rush of our society. There are days when I blare music to fit whatever mood I'm in, or whatever problem I need to work out. There are times when I run tech-free, and I just get lost in retrospection. Sometimes I let my thoughts run wild, run out of my head. Then there are the times when I want something to really distract me from the thoughts of wanting to quit early in my run, so I listen to NPR podcasts. I love NPR because I love learning new things, and I can easily get lost in their programming. Podcasts and audiobooks are also great for running because there isn't an underlying beat, like when listening to music, so it doesn't throw off the pace of the run.

Today, I decided to listen to a podcast of This American Life as I ran. I listened to episode #488 Harper High School, Part 2. It was about gang violence, and how it affects students at Harper High School in the Englewood area of Chicago. As I ran, I couldn't help but think of kids I work with every day in one of the projects in West Philly. The thought of what so many kids sadly go through is another thing that pushed me on.

It seems odd that the troubles of another person push me on, but when I feel there isn't really any difference I can make in a situation, it is like running is there to give me a bit of a beating. It is something that I can make myself rise to and above the challenge of. I know that running is nothing compared to the struggles they face. I often think of my grandma and how she struggled with the loss of her mobility near the end of her life, and I ran then too. I was thousands of miles away, and what could I have done even if I was there? There was nothing that I could have done to give her back her mobility, and so I ran. I have a pendant on my shoe now that reads, "Running for Grandma." I know I need to push myself now, take advantage of my mobility now because I could lose it at anytime.

In my experience, running makes sense of the senseless, and when it can't, it at least gives me a distraction from the senseless. There are many things I don't understand in this world, but do I have to?

Amazing Race

Pre-race with Matt

Today marks one year since my first half marathon, so what better way to celebrate than with a race? After the Joplin Memorial Run Debacle of 2012, my Anything for 10 Sister advised me to take some time off, and sign up for a 10k this fall. I did just that when I found out that I was moving to Pennsylvania and lived close enough to do the Runner's World Festival 10k. I posted a 10k 6 week training program on my blog, but due to life getting in the way, I ended up just running about 2 5k's a week for three weeks and calling it even.


I was pumped when we got to the starting line because the 5k was finishing, and Bart Yasso was up on stage with Dean Karnazes, and I was just a few feet away! I was too excited at the time to realize that I should be taking pictures, but no fear; I saw Bart again. It seemed as if the sight of them had sucked my energy because I felt like I was dragging when I started running. Matt, my fiance, quickly pulled ahead of me even though I didn't let him get too far out of sight. The fact that he had only run two times total to prepare for this race also weighed heavy on my runner's psyche. At the end of mile two, I was then passed by the overall winner who was finishing mile four. It seemed that was the last straw.

Immediately after the blow of a steep hill combined with getting passed by the winner, I decided to let myself walk part-way up the even steeper hill I suddenly found myself climbing. I looked over and there was Matt! We spoke briefly through our huffing and puffing, and then I realized I needed to get ahead of him right then, and find away to push myself to still accomplish at least beating him. It's not that I didn't want him to do well, but at the time, it seemed like all I had to hold on to, so I clenched on to that thought with all my strength. I focused on the things I'd written earlier this week to help dismantle that mental wall.

Scenery: Oldest continually operating bookstore

At the 5k mark, I looked down at my watch to find that I was at 35 minutes! Holy crap! There was still a chance that I might be able to finish in a decent time! This was also the point where I started wondering how they had managed to make a route that had only uphills. It just didn't seem topographically possible, yet I also knew that I had only had one slight downhill that was nothing in comparison to the uphill I had to trek to get it. That's when I heard someone say, "What goes up, must come down." And I knew that person was right. I kept pushing even though I wanted to walk.

Finisher's Medal

In the end, I may not have met my original goal, but I didn't let it get me down or ruin my race. I am the type runner, who in the past, I let little bumps in the road completely destroy my confidence. I consider this race a major victory for me based solely off the mental obstacles I overcame. After my 1:10:45 finish, I am ready to start preparing for the Delaware Half Marathon even though I have till May. I have never claimed to be fast, but an 11:23 average pace is something that I personally am proud of, and that's what's so great about running; each challenge is your own, and nobody, not even the first place finisher, can take that away if you don't let them.

Dismantle the Mental Wall

Many times the hardest battle we fight when it comes to getting fit is the mental battle. I know by the fact that I have completed two half marathons that my body is capable of so much more than my mind gives it credit for. I have had runs and workouts where I have essentially given up as soon as I have started, but I have also found some ways to dismantle the mental wall brick by brick when I am running.

Practice Pacing

Pacing is important. I used to think that because I am not fast I didn't need to worry too much about my pacing. I have figured out that I am very wrong. When my pace is all over the place, then I run the risk of depleting my energy too quickly causing the wall to knock me flat on my rear. If I find that my pacing is off, I will focus in on my steps to fall into a bit of a rhythm. And even if you enjoy music when running, it is very important to turn it off for a few runs if pacing is a problem. I have also found that listening to music on my phone without using headphones and only the phone's speakers keeps me from pacing to the beat of the music too much.

Michelle's 3 M's

The three M's of running that I use to stave off the mental wall are Moment, Mantra, Meditate. It is very important to be in the moment when running. I do this by focusing on the little things around me that I wouldn't be able to take in if I were driving down the same street in a car. Sound dumb? I urge you to take a jog down a street you drive often; it might surprise you what you've missed. Look at the plants, animals, bumper stickers on cars, decorations on porches. Say hello to people you pass, wave to cars, and make it fun! Give yourself a mantra to keep yourself going. Anything for 10 seems like a good one to me. Running can also be a time to meditate, in whatever manner that may appeal to you. Maybe to you it means clearing all thought, focusing thoughts on problems you've encountered, or praying. 

Important tip: Plan ahead; don't think ahead! If you know you need or want to go a certain distance, plan your route ahead of time and memorize it so that you can stay in the moment instead of thinking about where or how far you have to go or have already gone. Put the distance out of your mind during the run and worry about that before or after.

Pump it!

Occasionally I will realize that my legs are beginning to drag. I usually realize it when I nearly trip due to stubbing my toe due to the dragging. When it feels like your legs are full of lead, start pumping your arms faster. I have occasionally told myself, "Come on, Michelle, one foot in front of the other," but this is the wrong idea. Body mechanics show that your legs will follow your arms, and it is much easier to focus in on pumping the arms faster than it is to focus in on the heavier legs.

Hold your head high!

My last tip has two parts. It is easy at difficult parts of a run to let your head drop or to begin looking at your feet. This is a bad idea because you are partially restricting your airway when you let your head drop, so hold that head high! This also goes to say that it is not the end of the world if you have to stop, walk, or just have a crappy run in general. Just know that you are trying, and even a bad run or walking is better than nothing at all. Just keep moving. You can do anything for 10!

10k 6 Week Training Schedule

In a recent post, I announced that I am going to run my first 10k. I am gearing up to start my training program, and I looked around to figure out what training plan would be right for me. I am not a big fan of speed work, so I decided to adapt some plans and make on that would work best for me. My goal for this race is to do the whole thing without walking at all. When I run half marathons, I do a run/walk system, so I am looking to build endurance this time. Training starts next week, so here's the plan!

Michelle's Couch to 10k Training Schedule

Week	Run 1	Run 2	Run 3	Run 4	Total
1	2	2.5	2	3	9.5
2	3	2	3	4	12
3	4	3	2	4	13
4	3	2	4	5	14
5	5	6	3	7	21
6	6	4	3	race	19

If you have been thinking of getting in shape, or beginning running, but you don't know where to start, then this is a great way to get going. Running is good because you probably already own the necessities. Throw on shorts or sweats, a t-shirt, and some tennis shoes and hit the pavement. If you want to track how far you ran, or plan a route that is a certain length, then check out mapmyrun.com! And if you are just using this for a guide for personal fitness instead of training for a race deadline, then take it at your own pace and repeat runs or weeks if you don't feel confident that you can complete the next step yet. When I started running, I could only jog a quarter of a mile before I had to walk, but I walked the rest of the way, and eventually I was able to run for farther distances. I am not fast, and I never will be, but I am moving, and that's what counts.

I also have a post with my half marathon training schedule for beginners. It doesn't have any speed work or specific tempo runs, but it helps to build distance.

When in doubt, bling it out!

Ok, so I will admit that ever since my fiance, Matt, and I moved in together, I have been telling him repeatedly that this is not a college dorm room. He of course doesn't see the need to decorate or any of that jazz, but I have broken my own decorating rule. I taped some things up on my closet door, and he doesn't know it yet, but I taped something up on his closet door too. I know that he will say something about the college dorm feel when he sees it, but I needed some motivation because I have signed up for my next race!

For those of you who don't already know, my last race was a disaster to say the least. You can read about that gem of an experience here if you haven't already. My sister wisely suggested that I take some time off from running, and I agreed that I should most definitely not run a fall half this year. I recently had a debate with Matt about whether or not I could run a 10k within a few months, and he thought it was crazy that I wasn't sure if I could do it. That got the wheels a-turning in my head. Then I got the final push when that same crazy, Anything for 10 and take a break sister, called and asked if there were any 5k's in the area during the weekend she is planning to come visit me in October. Well, I did her one better, and now she, Matt, and I are running the Runner's World Festival 10k. I am pretty pumped because I have never done a 10k in terms of an organized race, but I am also nervous since I have taken so much time off from regular running.

The nervousness is what spurred the college-like decorating spree in my room today. I had actually just written out a training schedule and inspiring quote I saw today before I talked to her about the race, and then once we made solid plans, I went super motivational on my closet so that I will hopefully be on top of my running to ensure a much better experience at my 10k than I had at my last Half. Here's what my closet doors look like right now.

I am one of those people who needs constant reminders and motivational tools to keep working toward a goal that I might not always feel like working toward or that I might have times when I doubt by ability to reach the goal. So right where I will see it every single day, I have hung my two half marathon bibs (top), a training schedule that I made myself and a quote that I need to commit to memory (top middle), three bibs from 5ks that were important to me (bottom middle), and my two half marathon finisher's medals (bottom). The quote just happens to be from one of the best experts at Runner's World. Bart Yasso, RW Chief Running Officer, once said said in an interview, "Don't ever doubt that you are a runner just because you are slow. I hear people all the time say, 'I'm not a real runner.' We are all real runners, some are just slower than others. I've never met a fake runner." I super love this quote because I am super slow! I have never been fast, and I most likely never will be, but I have made it to the finish every time, and that's what counts. And in  two months from today, I hope to be making it across the finish line of my first 10k, thanks to my motivation and determination.

Quieting the White Noise

I know it's been a while since I have posted anything, but I have just started working now that we moved to PA. for those who don't know me personally, I am a teacher, but I have decided to leave full time teaching, so I am currently teaching K-12 remedial reading part time. I am very fortunate in that I only have to earn a supplementary income, which has sparked a decision for me to really focus on my health and fitness. I have never been an athletic type person even though I participated in various sports growing up and swam competitively for more than 10 years. If every person who knew me well wrote a list of adjectives to describe me, I can guarantee that none of them would contain words like athletic, fit, strong, or any of the other things that I would like for myself. And if you have read the Anything for 10: Background Story, then you know I basically started this journey because people told me I couldn't do it. I have come a long way, but I still have so far to go. I would really like to become that strong, fit, HEALTHY, athletic person that I know I can be.

Although I haven't been to the gym this whole week as I started my new job, I have been going to walk at the local high school track in the evenings after dinner. Each night brought different internal battles. Away from the white noise of the gym, my mind was able to tear me down and build me up. I was dragged down by the thought that I was so weak because all I was doing was pitifully walking laps when I have completed two half marathons! I should be able to run! I could, but the truth is that I just didn't make myself do it. And there is also the truth that brisk walking is also a good activity for me to engage in, even if my inner-self was telling me that I was a failure.

I decided during my walk last night to pick up the pace. I was provoked to start jogging after my first mile when Garth Brooks' "Callin Baton Rouge" came on my ipod. As  Garth belts, "Hello, Samantha dear, I hope you're feeling fine," who isn't filled with a surge of energy? Come on, people! I am not myself a country fan per say, but I was raised in a rural community, so it has a bit of a nostalgic spark for me. I started thinking about so many things as I ran. I thought about my Grandmother who is one of my favorite people in the whole world, and how she is dying from ALS, which is a terrible disease that robs its sufferers of the ability to walk, stand, move, and eventually the ability to breathe. I felt a sense of shame for all the times I have taken those simple, yet beautiful, life-sustaining actions for granted. I thought about how shameful it is to let that little voice inside tell me who I am or who I am going to be. I cannot let that voice, or the voices of nay-sayers define me.

I am on a mission. I have decided to make myself the person I want to be. I can't let anyone or anything stop me because I don't know how much time I have left to utilize the body I have been given, but when that time is up, I would like to know that I have truly given it everything I've got. I know that this is going to be a very difficult path, but I will take it a day at a time. I want to reach the point where those who know me will have words like healthy, fit, strong, and athletic at the tops of their lists. It is time for me to push.

Reader Response:

I would like to know what I can do to make my blog better suit your needs as readers. If you have any ideas of things you'd like to see more or less of on my blog, then leave a comment letting me know. I have a few things that I've thought about, but have not yet written about like, my favorite home workout DVDs, confessions from a blogger, guilty pleasure workout songs, and a few others. Let me know if you are particularly interested in reading any of these, and I will bump them to the top of the list. Let's get fit together!

Happy Anniversary to Me!!

This is my one year running anniversary! It is so hard to believe that a year ago today I could only run about a quarter of a mile before I stopped to walk. I started keeping a running journal exactly a year ago, and it was mainly to keep me on track with training for a half marathon that I (probably) prematurely signed up for. So what has happened in the last year?

First Race
I ran my first ever organized race. I realized about a month before my first half marathon, that I should probably see what it is like running in an organized race. I signed up for a 5k in the small town I live in. My boyfriend (recently turned fiance) ran the race with me. I was well into my training, but it was not at all apparent. I had to walk a couple times during the race, and in the last mile, we got passed by some old people who were powerwalking. Also, and he likes to pretend I am evil, I sped up at the end to beat my boyfriend, and passed a 6 or 7 year old girl in the process...right before the finish line.

Half the Glory
I ran my first half marathon at the Kansas City Marathon and Half. I was not really at all prepared by the small town 5k filled with powerwalkers. I prepped for this race by starting from the couch. It was less than six months from the day I started "running" till I ran my first half. I got scared by an issue of Runner's World that was all about running your first half marathon because it said that you know you are ready to try a half if you have been running for a few years. I had barely been "running" a few months when I read that. It was long and hard, but I finished. You can read more about that in "The Background Story," if you have not already.

I will be running my second half marathon in just 10 days! I will be running with my brother and his wife, both of whom ran the first half with me as well. Go us! This will also be their second half marathon. And my sister who started us all on running will be back to run her third half marathon that day!

Research
I am a big fan of reading, so naturally, one of my first moves was to subscribe to Runner's World. I absolutely love the articles. So many of them are things I can relate to even in my short time as a runner. I love it! I also read Runner's World Complete Book of Women's Running, Run for Life: The Anti-Aging, Anti-Injury, Super-Fitness Plan to Keep You Running to 100, and Faster Better Stronger. I loved all these books, and I am sure that I will be doing some running book reviews on here in the near future when I start my summer reading and summer running!

Journal
I didn't always write down my mileage, and there were times when the miles were few and FAR between. I also know that not all those miles were pretty, but in just one year...my first year...I have logged 271 miles! I am very proud of myself for setting out to get healthier, to get inspired, and to meet goals, which I feel like I have done!

Taking the Scenic Route

One of the reasons I fell in love with running in the past year was because of the experience. Running allows for an experience that is unlike anything else. When I am running, I am able to experience the world around me in a brand new and completely different way. There are so many things that I am able to take in about the place I am running that I can't experience when I am driving and whatnot. There were places that seemed brand new to me in the town I live in when I started running the same roads I had driven down a thousand times before. I had the same, only maybe more profound, experience when I ran my first half marathon in Downtown KC. I had driven through the busy city so many times, but that was the only time I think I ever REALLY experienced Kansas City.

I think that one of the things that has really put a dent in my craving for running is my super crazy schedule. I have to run at the most ridiculous time. I have to be at work around 6, and I run around 4. I know I am not the only person in the world who has to wake up before the sun, but that is the whole issue with it. I enjoy running at night every once in a while during the summer, but I don't want to run under the moon and stars every single day. I love being able to really enjoy my surroundings when I run and running so early kind of puts a damper on that.

I ran a wonderful run today. I forgot my watch, so there was no pressure for time. I also had nothing else to do today, so I took it slowly and just relaxed. I got to run through a beautiful park with trees, a pond, and there were people having picnics, and the soundtrack for my run was the roar of the crowd attending the little league baseball games. It was glorious. I was able to think about how beautiful the Earth is, and how thankful I am for it all. I also remembered to take a drink to keep me hydrated. I hid it under a bench, and I ran multiple loops of a 2 mile trail. My sister had told me once that she would plant water bottles along the route she mapped out before she went to run, and I need the boost more and more as it begins to warm up some more. The only downside to the whole thing was that someone stole my water bottle. Now I would think the whole thing was just an honest person doing their part and throwing away some trash, but this was a reusable, double walled bottle with water and ice floating in it. It clearly hadn't been there that long. Either way, I am really not even too upset about that, but I was getting too thirsty to run the last lap, but I still got in a pretty good run overall.

The True Chronicles of a Bad Luck Runner

I am not entirely sure, but I am beginning to think it's me. I promise that I have not made up any of the ridiculous stories contained in this blog, and for those who have read several or all of my posts, I wouldn't blame those who have wondered if the stories are true. The universe may be trying to tell me not to run...or in retrospect, it may just be telling me to run faster. Those who have read older posts also know that I am admittedly an ugly runner. I know that I look like crap, and based off my encounters last week, I apparently also look as if I am either on my first run ever or as if I am in extreme pain based on the looks people give me.

Now, I am not sure any of that warrants being chased by the same wiener dog every week, being trailed by six dogs at once, getting chased by a schizophrenic woman, or any of the other crazy things I have endured while running. I have decided that it's just me. Keeping in mind that I obviously look severely pained, I tried today to not look so pitiful when I encountered people. I semi-waved at passing cars and everything. At one point, there was a small boy who was playing in his yard near the street. I was on the opposite side of the street, but we had already made eye contact, so I mustered up a smile and a small wave at the boy. As I passed him I heard and sort of felt a rock hit behind me, so I turned to see what happened, and the kid was clearly guilty. He threw a rock at me!! What? Kid! Did you seriously throw a freaking rock at me? What did I do to you?! I didn't say any of that to him, but when I glanced up at him and saw that he had clearly just thrown a rock at me, he yelled out, "Stupid girl!" Really? What did I do to him? I just can't catch a break. Even first graders are trying to get me to quit running...or like I realized earlier....maybe just to run faster.

Not Gaining Ground

I hate treadmill running. When I run on a treadmill, I feel like I bump the speed up to a pace much faster than what I normally run on the roads because I would be running forever to complete the distance I need to at what feels like my normal pace. I am always astonished to see that I have covered virtually no ground when I check the distance at my usual timing points! Now, I know that literally I am not covering any ground, and that is another reason I hate treadmills. I read an article on the RunningPlanet website that cited the mental challenges of treadmills as a good thing when training for long distances. I just can't do it. I just can't ever seem to make it through a run on the treadmill, which I know means that I will just have to suck it up and start running on the road in the rain. I know some people love to run in the rain, but I hate rain. I also don't like getting dirty, so you will never see me doing a Tough Mudder or Warrior Dash race. I even told my sister I wouldn't run the Color Run with her for the same reason. It might be time to invest in a water resistant running jacket.

 

It's been a long week.

This was by far the strangest week I have ever had in my running life. I had one of those tough runs on Tuesday. It was in the 80's, which I am perfectly fine with, but I struggled with my first run in the heat. I had an amazing run on Wednesday. I decided to run in the morning because I wanted to beat the heat. It was nice to run in the cool of the early morning under the stars. It reminded me of the great runs I had in the evening last summer. I also decided at that point that I should try to start running in the mornings in general now. It is so much easier to run in the morning when I haven't used all my energy at work all day.

On Thursday, I set out on my run in the morning as I had previously decided. I am a teacher, and I do morning tutoring, so I have to be at school at 6am. I do my morning workout at 4 am. I had no idea that I was setting out on a run like any other I had ever experienced. I was only about two blocks from my house when I made the first turn on my route. I noticed a woman crouched down on her porch smoking a cigarette out of the corner of my eye. As I jogged past her house, she suddenly jumped off her porch yelling, "HEY, HEY, HEY!" as she ran through her yard in my direction. I looked over and said, "What do you want?" The woman was wear big Jackie O. sunglasses, a white nightgown, and she had no shoes on. She didn't answer, and I kept running. Well, so did she. She ran down the street behind me yelling out, "Get back here, Get back here, Get back here!" over and over. I was so freaked out. I sprinted all the way down the street to my next turn, and the woman was trailing behind me for about three blocks just screaming at me. I realize in retrospect that she probably would have stopped chasing me sooner if I had turned sooner. Duh. I had to stop and walk a bit to clam myself, and I was so nervous the rest of the way. I was so scared she was waiting somewhere, and she was going to follow me back to my house.

Now, for this story to be in complete perspective, you need to know that after my amazing run on Wednesday morning, I stepped out of the shower to local first responder in my living room. The man argued with me for a bit about whether or not I had called 911. I had not. And I am still trying to overlook the fact that I apparently look like I am 30 when I am wrapped in a towel. I do generally keep my door locked, but apparently I had not locked it when I came back from my run, and the man thought that the supposed emergency was hindering me from answering the door. In all actuality, it had been my music and the show running that hindered me from answering the door because I had not heard him knocking. ::sigh::

So back to Thursday, I immediately locked my door when I got home. I didn't want any variation of a repeat from the day before with the woman who chased after me. I was on edge all morning as I got ready. I didn't have time to fix breakfast, so I stopped by a convenience store to grab some breakfast on my way to school. I was startled by someone crouched down by the building smoking, and then I told myself to calm down. I couldn't believe I let my imagination run away when I saw a worker on a smoke break. I went in to get my food, and then I heard the voice! It had been her crouched down by the building!!! I was so freaked out. I talked to a co-worker that day who lives across the street from the house where she had been. He told me that she has schizophrenia. I am still debating as to whether or not I should change my route. I am beginning to think that the trail of dogs behind me wasn't so bad after all.

Runner's Rambles

This is basically going to be an outpouring of my thoughts during my run today. I started off thinking of motivation for people getting started with a new active lifestyle and motivation for myself. Then my thoughts floated to smells...yeah. Then I let the pain creep in, and lastly I thought about how a song I hate but heard on the radio this morning was stuck in my head, floating in and out subconsciously until I noticed it. I will put subtitles to allow people to skip to the parts they want to read.

Training Ideas

I had this idea today of a way that I could have started my training in turning myself into a runner. Although, I admit that it is still hard for me to think of myself as "a runner." The first sort of theory I came up with was that any person really should be able to jog for at least 1 minute. I love the show The Biggest Loser, and even the contestants on the show can jog a minute when they first arrive on the ranch. So no matter how out of shape you are, you do it. I think it would be cool to start at the first of the month (any month), and do one minute for the date of that day. If it is the 5th, you run five minutes. I know that this would be a bit of a challenge for some people considering it would be an increase of a minute every day, which is really quite a bit. When a person starts running, it is also important to remember that you shouldn't over tax your body, so I wouldn't recommend running more than 4 days a week.

I also had the idea for people who want to start pushing themselves to do more interval training during longer runs. Take the day of the week like before, and then push harder for five minutes and then a slower jog for five and repeat. I am not sure how great it would work, but it worked for me today. I did it a little bit differently though. I pushed hard for 13 minutes, and then I slowed it down to a power walk for a minute because today was my first run this week. So tomorrow, I would push for 14 minutes, and then I would power walk for two minutes because that would be the 2nd run of the week. I think you get the idea.

Smells

Smells can be quite the distraction on a run. I can vividly remember how cruel it was to head out on an evening summer run when my neighbors were grilling steaks. And sometimes, it seemed like everyone in town was grilling steaks, while I had chomped down a bowl of cold cereal that evening. Today was a different type of smell distraction. Today the temperature got into the 80's where I live. I LOVE warm weather, but this being the first "hot" day this year, I found myself contemplating whether or not I would be able to look up the trash pick up schedule for the whole town. I would like to find a way to avoid running past everyone's smelly trashcan that is sitting on the street attracting flies that have their attentions averted by a sweaty runner they can follow...annoyingly.

PAIN...without love

I. Hate. Shin. Splints. I have been over this before. Read my post entitled, "Take it Easy."

Stupid Song

I also hate kitschy pop music. I had a stupid song floating in and out of my head during the whole run today, and every time I consciously noted that it was there I was like, "Ughh, why? Why is that song in my head?" In that way that you are singing along to a song on the radio and then realize what you are doing, and then you change the station because you hate the song, and you are relieved that there was on one in the car with you to witness the atrocity that just took place. When I got home from my run, I happened to see a link to an NPR story about why songs get stuck in your head. I am going to provide the link below.

Here's the Link

Half Marathon 12 Week Program

Training Schedule

Week	Run 1	Run 2	Run 3	Run 4	Weekly Total
1	3	2	3	4	12
2	4	3	3	4	14
3	4	4	3	5	16
4	4	5	3	6	18
5	3	5	4	7	19
6	4	3	4	5	16
7	3	5	4	8	20
8	4	5	4	3	9
9	4	5	4	7	20
10	4	3	3	11	21
11	4	3	4	5	16
12	3	3	3	RACE	22.1

 Training starts this week for my next half marathon. This is the training schedule my sister Grace gave me that I will be following. Here we go...