I thought that with me living in Florida for at least a year that my usual bout with the autumn doldrums wouldn't happen. That's definitely not been the case. Maybe because October was such an exciting and action-packed month, November now seems a bit of a let-down. The things that usually make me feel all pumped aren't doing the trick. Running is increasingly becoming more difficult, and staying focused at work is a job in itself. I'm usually not a very social person to begin with, either, but I feel even more introspective than usual. There definitely has been a change in the seasons and in my internal clock, even though the temps in Palm Beach County firmly remain in the 80s, and the sun still shines brightly during the day.
Going back to numbers, I realized that I am now 5 weeks away from the Palm Beach Half-Marathon, and that we're 8 weeks away from the new year. *gulp* It's kind of scary to think that 2009 is now, really, on its way out.
I hope I can turn a corner and regain some of my momentum and motivation for HM training. But on the other hand, sometimes I think motivation is also a bit overrated. Motivation helps, but it is, at least for me, sometimes just not enough to get me out there and going. I prefer to sometimes do things on autopilot because all the motivational stuff leads to self-questioning, which then leads to me to... not doing anything. So maybe going with the flow and not feeling too enthused about things is just the way it'll be from here until December. I'll just stick with my training plan as best as I can, and that is that.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Another Race Notch on the Belt
The Race: Wellington Horse Country 10-Miler
When: Sunday, Oct. 25, 7:15 AM
Where: Around a lot of horse stables, apparently. ;) If you couldn't see them, you could most certainly smell them...
The past couple of weeks have been eventful for me, on the personal and athletic fronts. I entered my first 10K race, and a great one at that (the Epcot Race for the Taste 10K). I became a godmother to my nephew, and saw my husband for 2 weeks while he returned from Iraq for R&R. So now I'm quite happy to say that I completed my first 10-mile race bright and early today.
It was a fun and great event... And it felt so incredibly slow at times, unfortunately. I felt OK from a cardio standpoint, but every time I tried to go beyond a 9-min mile pace, my legs felt like 2 lead weights. Overall, I felt quite heavy and uncoordinated today. But that's a feeling that will pass soon enough, and it'll happen in the natural scheme of things.
I had pumpkin pancakes afterward at the Original Pancake House, and never has breakfast been so good. Something about running for a considerable distance makes food taste a million times better.
Until the next race!
When: Sunday, Oct. 25, 7:15 AM
Where: Around a lot of horse stables, apparently. ;) If you couldn't see them, you could most certainly smell them...
The past couple of weeks have been eventful for me, on the personal and athletic fronts. I entered my first 10K race, and a great one at that (the Epcot Race for the Taste 10K). I became a godmother to my nephew, and saw my husband for 2 weeks while he returned from Iraq for R&R. So now I'm quite happy to say that I completed my first 10-mile race bright and early today.
It was a fun and great event... And it felt so incredibly slow at times, unfortunately. I felt OK from a cardio standpoint, but every time I tried to go beyond a 9-min mile pace, my legs felt like 2 lead weights. Overall, I felt quite heavy and uncoordinated today. But that's a feeling that will pass soon enough, and it'll happen in the natural scheme of things.
I had pumpkin pancakes afterward at the Original Pancake House, and never has breakfast been so good. Something about running for a considerable distance makes food taste a million times better.
Until the next race!
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Oh Crap!
So... I've been really awful in keeping my blog up to date. What can I say, I'm very good on loafing around that time-suck known as Facebook, and my various forums, but lax when it comes to my own log.
I haven't gone crazy with entering races, but I did a local one by me in July (the Dreher Park Dash 5K), and made it to Disney's Race for the Taste 10K last Sunday. I'm especially proud of my results on the last one - even laid up with a chest cold, I ran it in under an hour (chip time: 57:38; clock time: 59:35). It was teh awsum. Allow me to add that a Disney race experience is fabulous. They are so well-organized - we started at 7 AM right on the dot, as promised - but still incredibly fun. Fireworks kicked off the race, and even though the course snaked through Epcot and Hollywood Studios (probably the least magical areas of Disney - as fun as they are, they not the Magic Kingdom), it was still sprightly enough so that 6.2 miles seemed like a piece of cake.
Wish I could wax more about it, but on to more races. Next stop: the Wellington Horse Country 10 Miler on Oct. 26.
I haven't gone crazy with entering races, but I did a local one by me in July (the Dreher Park Dash 5K), and made it to Disney's Race for the Taste 10K last Sunday. I'm especially proud of my results on the last one - even laid up with a chest cold, I ran it in under an hour (chip time: 57:38; clock time: 59:35). It was teh awsum. Allow me to add that a Disney race experience is fabulous. They are so well-organized - we started at 7 AM right on the dot, as promised - but still incredibly fun. Fireworks kicked off the race, and even though the course snaked through Epcot and Hollywood Studios (probably the least magical areas of Disney - as fun as they are, they not the Magic Kingdom), it was still sprightly enough so that 6.2 miles seemed like a piece of cake.
Wish I could wax more about it, but on to more races. Next stop: the Wellington Horse Country 10 Miler on Oct. 26.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Still Here!
Even though my mileage has gone down the toilet in the past 2 weeks, it's only a small blip on the radar screen, in the grand scheme of things. I'm still feeling confident about the half-marathon. Don't know if running it in 1:45 is doable at this point, but I'm still aiming for it.
On other fronts, I have some serious paperwork re-organization to do at home, and have to figure out where to pick up in terms of my training schedule. Even being off by 2 weeks just makes me feel so discombobulated.
The ear issue is still there, and I'm scheduling an appointment with an ENT specialist for later this week. I've had enough. I'm currently on a new round of meds, and I actually spent almost an hour last Thursday going through my prescriptions, and figuring out when to take each. Up until now, I had never taken so many medicines in one sitting in my life. It's mind-boggling to me, people. :P
On other fronts, I have some serious paperwork re-organization to do at home, and have to figure out where to pick up in terms of my training schedule. Even being off by 2 weeks just makes me feel so discombobulated.
The ear issue is still there, and I'm scheduling an appointment with an ENT specialist for later this week. I've had enough. I'm currently on a new round of meds, and I actually spent almost an hour last Thursday going through my prescriptions, and figuring out when to take each. Up until now, I had never taken so many medicines in one sitting in my life. It's mind-boggling to me, people. :P
Saturday, July 11, 2009
"Meh"ness
That sums up my overall feeling the past week. Since the 4th of July I've had a clogged right ear, and finally went to the doctor's on Friday to have it checked out. (I'm one of those types who really tries to avoid going to any medical caretaker, but to no avail).
The diagnosis is an ear infection, and that explains why I haven't been feeling myself the past week. Initially I'd just chalked it up to monthly female issues, but there was indeed something else going on. Meh. My mileage this week consisted of 2 miles. Total shite.
So no long run tomorrow, and probably no exercise, period, for the next few days. And the world isn't going to end if I don't work out for a week. I have to keep that in perspective, because I do get paranoid about missing workouts - yes, even the ones due to illness. Funny how the Puritan work ethic gets in the way of rest and recovery.
Over and out.
The diagnosis is an ear infection, and that explains why I haven't been feeling myself the past week. Initially I'd just chalked it up to monthly female issues, but there was indeed something else going on. Meh. My mileage this week consisted of 2 miles. Total shite.
So no long run tomorrow, and probably no exercise, period, for the next few days. And the world isn't going to end if I don't work out for a week. I have to keep that in perspective, because I do get paranoid about missing workouts - yes, even the ones due to illness. Funny how the Puritan work ethic gets in the way of rest and recovery.
Over and out.