Running in the rain!

The trail I was running this evening, only it was a bit muddy!

                     My "newest" running shoes, muddy and wet!

I am following the First Marathon Made Easy program developed by Yuri Elkaim and Jill Bruyere.  Since I have not been running long distances I am beginning my training using their "Pre-Trainer Schedule".  The schedule consists of 3 mile runs on Monday and Tuesdays, Wednesday is a rest day, 4 mile run on Thursday, with Friday a rest day, then 6 miles on Saturday.  Sunday is a rest day.  On my rest days I walk, hike or ride my mountain bike.  I also do strength training 2 days a week.  I will follow this schedule until I am able to run the 6 miles without difficulty.  Today is Thursday, so I had a 4 mile run to complete.

Today was a drenching wet day; we had pouring rain and wind gusts!  But the temperature was a balmy 75 degrees F.  I was determined not to have to do my 4 miles on the dreaded treadmill (yes, I hate running on the treadmill).  I was able to go to Vorhees and run on the trails for 4 miles before dark in the pouring rain.  The trail was awesome, the wet, dark tree bark was in sharp contrast to the bright green leaves.  I just love the intense beauty, the peacefulness of the woods.  I knew I was running on the wet, muddy ground, but didn't care.  The rain felt good against my skin; it had a nice cooling effect. 

When I got home I looked at my "new" running sneakers...they were dirty!  My Mizuno Wave Creation 11 size 10 (yes, I need much bigger running shoes for my size 8 1/2 feet) were filthy.

Oh, what the heck, I had a great run!

I have 7 months, 7 days until my first marathon.  I will persevere, rain will not deter me from reaching my goal!

competition????

Up until today my longest run has been 4 miles.  But I am following a new schedule towards running a marathon, so today I increased my longest run to 6 miles.  This morning I set out to run those 6 miles on the Colombian Trail from High Bridge.  I had a goal of running a slow 12 to 13 minute mile average for the 6 miles.  The first mile I was slow, 15 minutes.  The second mile I was faster, 12 minutes.  I was not winded and could easily carry on a conversation.  Around the 1 1/2 mile mark I ran into a couple and their big dog.  I was hesitant to past them slowly, so I sprinted past them.  They laughed, but I ignored them. 

Soon after I passed by a woman running with water bottles attached to a belt around her waist.  I marveled at her; she must be running a great distance, and at such a pace!  Immediately after the woman passed me, the man from the couple, started running and ran past me.  He was coughing, hacking and breathing hard as he passed me.  I wondered if he was okay, but he ran on.  A mile later the woman with the water bottles around her passed me again, she held her thumbs up in the air and said "great job!" to me.  I smiled and thanked her.

I marveled at the beauty of the trail, especially when I got to the railroad bridge at the Ken Lockwood Gorge.  How many happy memories I have from years ago of camping, swimming..just having fun!

After crossing the bridge I soon reached the 3 mile mark on the trail, I turned around and headed back to High Bridge.  The scenery was breath taking, I was in heaven.  But then about 1 mile later I heard the huffing and puffing, coughing and hacking of the guy from the couple.  He passed me again, and I wondered if he enjoyed running.  He slowed down soon after passing me when he met up again with his partner who was walking with their big dog.  I finished the run right behind them. He kept looking back at me as though I was actually competition.  I laughed to myself, he was not my competition, I am my own competition.  I just want to be the best I can be.

I had such fun, and I was happy that I was able to run 6 miles!  Yeah!!!

I love to run.  God has given us certain abilities and I don't want to neglect the gifts that I have been given.  I so appreciate the fact that I can run.  Life is fragile, tomorrow I could lose this gift.  I never want to take it for granted.

Today was a great day!

lousy math+imagination=scared

Pictures of my favorite places to run!


Okay, if I run an average of 10 minute miles, then it will take me 4.36 hours to finish a marathon? If I run an average of 13 minute miles, then it will take me 5.67 hours? If I run a cool 15 minute mile average, then it will take me 6.55 hours to cross the finish line? If I run an average of 18 minutes a mile, then I will cross the finish line in 7.86 hours? If I fall and scratch my knee, or have tummy trouble, it could take me 10 hours....or even longer! But then again, I was never good at math, so I could be wrong.


I wonder, what is the record for the slowest marathon time? I probably have a chance at breaking that record. Someone has to be the slowest, there are much worse titles one could earn, right?


When I ran my 5K back in June, there was a young girl that started out in my "pace pack". She was excited to tell us that she came in dead last in the last 5K she entered. I asked how many 5K races she has completed and she said "Oh, about 10", adding that she usually comes in last or next to last. She smiled; she didn't mind being last because to her finishing the race was like winning. Yes, it was inspiring to know she had this incredible attitude, but I was determined to stay ahead of her, so I upped my pace(I panicked at the thought of finishing last). As it turned out she did not finish last, or even within the last few runners. I actually had goosebumps as I watched her cross the finish line. Her face glowing with a huge smile. That is when I realized that "last" can be the "best". I was really happy for her, she was doing what she loved and getting better at it. Now that's guts and determination; a true winner!


I am slowly reaching out and reading other blogs about running. I can see that my fears, worries and vivid imagination are much like other people who are taking that leap onto a new path towards achieving a new running goal.


I know I am slow, but I'm starting to grow and in my running it will show!

new goal

I have decided to set a new goal for myself. I now have a goal to run a marathon. I still have to choose which marathon I will run, but I have chosen my Trainer and training program. I have decided to follow Jill Bruyere and Yuri Elkaim's First Marathon Made Easy Program, with Jill Bruyere as my Trainer. I will follow their program and receive monthly coaching sessions from Jill.

I do have to say that I was very excited when I finally made my decision, but within a few hours I was feeling a little overwhelmed with the prospect of running 26.2 miles.

Just being able to run for 40 minutes plus straight, has given me such confidence. What I thought was impossible is achievable!

I hope you feel the same as I do, that life is full of possibilities! Yes, it has sadness and struggles, but it has so much joy! I am going to cling to the "joy" and run like hell with it!

Journey

I have been trying to increase my mileage over the past month. I am now up to 4 miles and I love it! I am still slow, but if I incorporate speed training I am sure my mileage will improve. The question is, do I want to incorporate speed training? I always hated it in the past and only did it because I felt I "had" to. But if I want to get faster, I need to train.
In life we have many choices to make, some are easy but many are not so easy. Sometimes things happen out of our control and we are faced with incredible hardships. Through it all we do have some control. Some times we are at fault for what happens, but sometimes we are the victims. No matter what, we still have choices, we can change our ways and we can overcome any hardship if we truly want to. Bad things happen all the time to everyone. Many bad things have happened in my life. Many of them were out of my control, but many were also my fault. We can't hold onto these events, just learn from them and move on. I cannot blame something that happened to me 40 years ago for a mistake that I made today. I have to take responsibility for my mistakes and learn from them. Life is a journey, it can be a joyful one, or it can be a miserable one, it is YOUR choice. I choose to think of my life as a joyful, exciting journey. Yes, I lost my precious son Tommy, but what a wonderful son, brother and grandson. He was a great blessing. I lost my husband after we remarried. I thought we would be together for 20 or 30 more years, but I was wrong. I wouldn't trade one moment of our time together. He was my partner, my love, my strength.
Will I incorporate speed training? Yes, I think I will, only because I have a goal of running faster. I believe we can accomplish any goal we set for ourselves. Life is a challenge, but the rewards are worth it! I don't want to walk away from any of life's challenges, there is just too much to be gained from them, too much to be learned!