Mother Natures smiles...

Hooray, no snow!! As a matter of fact, it was pouring when I took the guinea pig to the vet but the sun was shining when I got back home so I scooted out to the trail before the weather changed its mind. It was cool (high 40's maybe) with a moderate wind but with the sun shining I warmed up in no time.

I continued with the 4 min:1 min running and walking and went about the same distance as on Sunday. Speaking of which, I had thought that the distance was about 4 miles (2 out & 2 back) but it turns out it's 1.5 out/back. So even though it feels like I'm running 10 miles *sigh* I'm actually running 3. That's ok, it's a little to early for me to get caught up in speed and distance when I'm still working on not hacking up my spleen. Ok, it's not that bad but I did feel like I worked harder, or maybe I should say I wore out sooner today, even though it was the same distance, time, and weather conditions. I didn't take that extra minute of walking 1/2 way through like I did last time and my the 6th running rep I was alot more breathless and just didn't feel like I was finishing strong. Once I stretched and began walking the rest of the way out I recovered pretty quickly though. Overall, this time out seemed too take more effort but I was still able to do it and keep my same pace so I can't be disappointed.

What I think about...

All I do is count my steps in different sequences (8's or 15's usually). I try thinking motivational thoughts or concentrating on my form, or singing a song in my head but I always come back to counting. It's not very exciting but it's kind of meditative I guess. I have been toying with getting an mp3 player but I read where some people discourage relying on music for your pace or motivation or distraction or whatever. I also am not sure I want to cover my ears as the trail I run on is wooded and often I am alone. I carry an attack cat (a small hard plastic weapon that fits over your knuckles) and I am an orange belt in karate, which is not too far advanced but enough to know a few defensive moves and hits, but if I'm not alert and aware of someone nearby those things would likely not help much. As I think more on it now I'm thinking the mp3 player is not such a good idea.

The view from here...

Ok, tomorrow is Curves and next run is on Thursday. I will stick to the 4:1 on that day and on Saturday and then try 5:1 x 6 reps next week. I am also awaiting delivery of a book called Run for Your Life: A Book for Beginning Women Runners which seemed to have positive reviews, particularly on the motivation piece.