Motivation gets you started, habit keeps u going

I got engaged last night!

And besides that today, i walked the dogs, I did abs, lunges, squats and planks. I have another long homework day ahead of me so no run. I will prbably wake up early tomorrow to get one in.

6:30am run 35 degrees 28 with the windchill

Great run. I was feeling alittle tight from the lunges and stuff from the other day but all in a all a good one. I ran the last .80 with the dogs (I wonder if I look like a crazy lady running with 3 dogs) LOL

Happy blogging!

6:40am 12 degrees with the windchill...this didn't hurt until i starting running towards the west...I really hate wind.

Intervals. I"m pretty sure my intervals were too long..and I definately went to fast on the first one b/c i had to walk during the slower time. I did a warm up then fast .25 and slow .40. I repeated this 5 times and then had a cool down.

I'll just give the pace for the .25--8.28, 10:14, 8:32, 10:47, 9:20

Should I shorten up the intervals? Would that make them more consistant? Or is consistancy not the name of the game with intervals?

7:30 am run 10:30 pace 15 degree windchill

I threw on another layer. Turned out to be too warm...so I guess yesterday being a tad chilly wasn't such a bad thing.

I came home and played fetch with the dogs while I did 3 sets of 15 squats. and lots of stretches. My knees don't hurt they just feel tired. I think I will soak in a warm bath...laters!

Oh yeah and it has been snowing on and off...nothing is sticking..but it is still cool to look at!

6:30am Okay don't laugh at me. I ran .80 with the dogs. I had set my alarm for 4:40 but I started saying, "False alarm" to the dogs and reset my alarm for an hour later (my usual time) I wanted to wake up....but I think b/c I dont' have to I'm not as motivated to. I have school and work tonight so hopefully I get out at a reasonable hour and I can run later.

I was sooo tired yesterday from the reunion on Saturday night. The reunion was fun, glad I went!

I started before the snow did!

5:15am start 30 degrees no windchill at start. 10:21 pace. It was a nice quiet run. Very little cars. i dont' think I will take this route again b/c there was a slightly ghetto area. If I run to far north things start to turn a little shady in some areas (there is spill over from Chicago and Gary)

This maybe my long run for the week. We shall see how I"m feeling on Thursday or Friday which is my usual long run day. After the 4th Iwill have to do my long runs on Saturday or Sunday. That will be sooo weird!

Happy running all!

I was awake at 4:45....but so was the howling wind. 25 mph wind. It isn't cold out (38...27 with the windchill)...but I hate wind so I opted to stay in doors.

I did some ab work and pushups while the dogs attacked me on the living room floor. I think they thought it was play time. I take notes from my husky. If she runs inside than it is too stinking cold!

I feel like my blog is becoming more of a weather report than a running report.

5 am this morning it was12 below with the windchill. Now it is 17 below...Grrr...I thought it actually looked pretty decent outside. I'll check back at around noon to see if the weather is any better. This reallllly stinks! I guess this will teach me that I need to not be lazy when the weather is nicer.

8:00am 10 degrees -1 with the windchill. I didn't care. I had to get out of the house. It felt good. I was actually hot for the last 2 miles..which kinda sucked. Taking off my gloves helped with that. The only part that was yuck was running towards the west. But lucky for me I only had to do that for about 1/2 mile. The wind was icky. But I got some MP miles out of it!

splits

1: 9:34 2: 9:44, 3: 9:33, 4: 9:43, 5: 9:49, .16: 9:46

 http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y122/aamuller/Decemberrunning.jpg

9:45 am 10:00 AP

17 degrees with windchill. Nice run...

8:00am 36 degrees no windchill

I brought the yellow dog with me. Was that a mistake! I forgot about mud! he was so dirty! I had to carry him in the house over the carpet and plop him into the tub. He didn't want to stay in the tub. Which is only funny b/c yesterday I cleaned the tub-went for a run-came back to shower and there were puppy prints in the tub (mind you the shower curtain was closed). But he smells better now and hopefully the bath helped with his itchies.

My left knee started to hurt me. I was going to run tomorrow at 0'dark thirty but maybe I won't. It wasn't stp me in my track hurt but it was "hey i'm concerned about this' hurt. It could just be that my joints are cold. I did wear less warmer layers today.

Weights

I woke up at 6:30...-4 out...so I got some stuff done around the house and headed out at 8:30 when it was zero with the windchill. I really need a TM or a trainer. I just can't decide which I would use more. What am I going to do when I have no choice but to run when there is no sun? Grrrr...

7:00am 11 degreeswith the windchill. 11:26 average pace

I wish there was a button for a hard slow run. B/c this was not an easy run. I was soooo cold. I just could not warm up. I wanted to run 10 but made a turn and I guess I cut more from the run than I thought I was going to be. But it turned out well b/c my knee again was killing me. Like it was frozen. I guess that is the best way to describe it. I think I' going to tear apart these fleece pants I have. They are huge. So I will cut off the legs to make them short (and I will have to take them in quite a bit) I will use the rest of the legs to make knee sleeves and hopefully that will work.

Last night I paid for the South Bend FULL marathon for June. It ends in the Notre Dame stadium. My brother is suppose to do it with me. He hasn't been able to run lately so hopefully after his work busy season is over he will have more time to run.

Well I'm going to go hope in the shower b/c I am still so very cold!

knee is hurting. Very frustrated. My training isn't going well. November I was sick. Last week was a deep freeze and now this.

As far as the knee I'm not sure what I"m doing wrong. I made knee sleeves but I guess I will either try them later today or tomorrow...Hopefully my knee will stop by then. It is weird it felt okay at work last night. i wonder if this is my new phantom pain. My dad is being a pain in my butt right now...hmmmmm

I took some time off of running. My knee is feeling good today. I also bought an elliptical. Of course when I get home I read all the reviews on it. And there definitely are some mixed reviews. I did buy it for more than 1/2 the MSRP. I wanted to get a used ones but the ones they had for sale around here were just horrid. I bought the Garmin despite some bad reviews so hopefully my elliptical will turn out along those same lines. It is a Proform in case anyone is interested

The fiancee is putting together as we speak. So now I will use it depending on the weather and such.

7:30 am 29 degrees 96 % humidity 2 mph winds. And SNOW!!!I love running when it is actively snowing!

I ran pretty slow b/c I felt like in some uphill parts I was running in place. Really weird.

Elliptical is sitting in the basement waiting for a part. They put the wrong size thingamajig in the box...grrr...should be about 5 days. I hope. Plus I think I need to put it in a different part of the basement b/c I don't think I have head clearance in the area that it is in now.

My parents were over for the weekend. They watched the dogs for us while we went to Indy for some Xmas festivities. While we were gone they rearranged all my junk in the basement. Now it is all usable. I'm so extactic!

8:00 am 20 degrees with the wind chill. 15mph winds 10:52 average pace

My side of the knee or the part of the ITB that is hurting as I'm figuring out was really screaming today. i walked some. I even stretched some. I'm going to do some abductor exercises and see if that helps. I was doing some stretches a few months ago that seemed to help but when the pain went away so did the stretching.

So please FRB friends...if in the future after I fix myself this time and I complain again about pain--ask me--April when is the last time you stretched? LOL

8:30 am 22 with the windchill. ICE!!...I put on my yaktraks b/c the driveway was filled with ice. It wasn't too bad on the roads. I kinda felt silly for wearing them. I took them off when I took the dogs for a walk. And boy was I sorry! It was actually slippery. Couldn't see it. So now I"m glad I wore them on my run.

IT band is still causing me grief but running backwards for some parts got me through.

So I was feeling sorry for myself last night and the feeling of doing really bad as far as mileage. I looked at my mileage for Nov and Dec of last year and it was even worse! If that is even possible. I was tracking on Runners World at that time so I didn't really blog all that much. But considered a long run a 5 miler. HAHAHAHHAHA. So I guess I have come pretty far. I was still running 2 milers and stuff. Now I won't let myself run less than 3. I do remember I had a tough time after my 1/2 marathon (which was my first). I wasn't really sure how much to run or not run etc. I think this year I over did it. I was running 2-3 days after. I think I will do that again but I will keep the runs shorter. I think I needed a longer cooling off period.

Another thing I noticed I'm doing differently over the last few weeks (which could explain the IT Band pain) is that I haven't been able to walk the dogs after my run. I serves as my cool down. And in general keeps my legs loose. It has been too cold lately to walk them with any consistancy. I'm glad I got to walk them this morning.

Okay well this turned to be VERY long. Merry Xmas Eve bloggers!

10am run 17 degrees with the windchill and actively snowing.

It wasn't until about mile 6 or so when the knee/IT Band started acting up. There were a lot of hills so that may of been a mistake...Oops. So now I'm STRETCHING and kinda working my legs.

10:30 run 11 with the windchill. Reallly snowing out. 12 min average pace

So I went to bed at 11 last night...then woke up at 6 to let dogs out...went back to bed till about 8. woke up till 9 and went back to bed till 10. Then ran.

I decided to do hill repeats. I thought I used good land marks but apparently not...Some of them were 113 ft. some were as much at 180 feet and everything in between...so I'm not sure what is going on with that. I won't even bother to post the times b/c again the distance isn't really consistent.

And I would say we got atleast another inch of snow last night.

We closed 45 minutes early last night. It was sooo slow and then there were suppose to be bad storms. I was glad to leave at 11 instead of closing at 11.

8:00 am run. I have no idea of how cold it was b/c I don't have my computer with me.

I drove up to Illinois to meet with my brother and Tracy from the blog. Sooo fun, and so glad to finally meet Tracy! My IT band started hurting otherwise I would have liked to have gone longer. Oh well. Oh and I'm so glad my brother and Tracy were there I went a lot faster than I thought I did. I got 2 + MP miles in. Yippeee!!! I'm sure we could have been faster had it not been for all the snow.

1: 10:41, 2: 10:03, 3: 10:08, 4: 9:23, 5: 9:24, .33: 9:33

stretching and resting. I used the tennis ball on my leg for a little while...then the dogs realized I had it and went nuts. Felt good well it lasted LOL

7:45 am 12 with the wind chill

I forgot my shoes at my mom's..blah! So I'm back to wearing the old ones until I get those back. About mile 4 my IT band starts hurting again. Should I be icing it post run? I have been stretching it and using the tennis ball. Today I"m going to get a foam roller. Garmin was dead (wasn't plugged into the wall) so I don't have any stats.

8:15 run 25 with the windchill- woah that is warm!

I got an MP and a 1/2 mile in today. This is making me feel better. Muscle still hurts but I feel like I"m getting my fitness back slowly but surely (back to where I was before the 1/2 and before I was sick). I sort of felt like I was getting it back after the 1/2 but then I got sick and there was weather issues.

I also did a mile on the elliptical today. There isn't much resistance on it. I have to crank it up pretty far. Not a huge deal. There was also a clicking sounds at some point. I'll have the SO look into that. Other than that it hasn't fallen apart so that is a good sign. I just hope I can get a few years out of it before it falls apart. I'm really glad I didn't pay full price for it.

Well I need to make some NYE goodies....I think I'm going to make cookies and dorito taco salad (first time so we shall see how it turns out. Also If I get super carried away I may make guacamole and some hummus...I also want to see a movie...I better get off the computer and get started!