thoughts from the pool

Why is it that I can run a 1/2 mile in 5 or 6 minutes but it takes a 1/2 hour to swim a 1/2 mile?

It just seems odd since when you run just your legs propel you and when you swim its your entire body.

Also why doesn't the smell of chlorine wash from your skin?

Well as you can guess I swam today for my cross-training. I did 1/2 a mile.

A year-to-date summary:

I have run a total of 216.2 miles. 67 of those were in the month of May. WOW. This month I have done 18 miles and it is only the 10th. In January I only ran 22 miles the entire month. Wow what an improvement.

This weekend I intend to run the same route I ran yesterday to see if I can manage any improvement. The race is in 3 weekends. So this weekend I will run 11 miles again. Next weekend I will do 12 miles. Then the race is the following weekend and is 13 miles. I figure if I am able to do 12 what is one more... right?

My day off work

I took the day off like I said in my last post. I woke up and took the kids to daycare. Then drove to the park so I could run. I ended up running just over 11 miles in 2:06:27. A whole mile more in the about the same amount of time as the 10 miler. Yay! The run was pretty good. I ran continuously the fist 30 minutes. The first hour I only walked a total of 10 minutes. The second hour was a little rougher. But I did it and I made good time.

After I ran I went to the store then headed home. I painted my son's room, showered, then cleaned the house. I then did a second coat of paint. I was go go go. I even kept track of the number of times I went up our stairs; 15 times since my run.

Then a church meeting, dinner with the family, and we topped off the day with a walk (1 mile total) to Dairy Queen.

It was a very productive day. It wasn't a dream vacation but I got a lot done and now I am ready for bed (its only 9:45)

painting

No workout today since I had to take Zoe to the dentist which meant working through lunch. However I have been remodeling my son's room which requires manual labor (painting, rearranging, sanding, etc.) Does that count? Tomorrow I am taking the day off so I am going to try to get 10 miles in then I am painting the rest of the day. Now that I said that's the plan I suppose I have to get up and do it. :-)

I am competitive.

Today I didn't feel like running. Actually for the last week I haven't felt like running. I have been in a funk since the 10 miler. But I ran today. I did 2.32 miles. Not a lot of distance but since I didn't want to be out there I think its pretty good.

About an hour after my run my motivation came back. Some friends ran a 20K this weekend. I saw their speeds. All I can think now is I can do better than that. I know I shouldn't be this competitive, but I am. And hey if it gets me motivated to run again then its worth it.

I'm not lost I swear!

So life is kinda getting in the way again. Friday was a rest day. With the way my Friday schedule works out it almost has to be that way. Then I was going to do the my waterloo days 5k on Saturday but as I headed out the door it was raining pretty good. And since I had not paid yet I decided I should stay home and run later. Well I should have run then because later never happened. And today is turning out the same way. I hope to get a least a few miles in at some point even if it is not the long run I need to do. Now back to cleaning, yard work, and painting.

Total Body workout

Yesterday my joints needed a change of pace. So I swam 1/2 a mile at lunch time. It felt great. I can feel many of my muscles today. I think I need to get swimming back into my regular routine.

5 miles

I ran after work today. I knew I needed to more than 3.5 which is about all I can fit in over lunch so I arranged with my husband for some running time. I did 5.1 miles in 59 minutes 50 seconds. So just over a pace of 11.5 minutes per mile. This is a slow pace but I took Dad's advice because, "running slow is a lot better than walking fast". I ran 95% of my run today. I was in the right place mentally too. And I didn't eat anything for 2 hours prior to running. :-)

I also decided to run the My Waterloo Days 5K on Saturday. I need to do something to get in a better mindset after last weekend. A 5k should be a breeze and really boost my confidence and competitive edge. Plus the race is close. To get more miles in I plan to run to the race and home. By taking a direct path its just over 1 mile from my house. Then I will take an indirect path home.