Saturday, July 28, 2012
4 mile good run
Today I ran close to 4 1/2 miles with Alicia. It was pretty good for me but I could tell Alicia was worn out and she has a loooong run tomorrow while I'm at work. I had a rest day yesterday due to the pain I felt from my last run. The first quarter mile I was feeling some pretty bad pain in my heel but I started running in the grass and adjusted my gait and that seemed to help a lot. I felt like I could have gone a couple more miles so it was pretty good. I think it helped that I stretched a little this morning. And here is a photo of a cool tree. I think that's where the gnomes live! I didn't get a good angel but there is also a little window :)
Sunday, July 22, 2012
half marathon for fun!
Friday after work Alicia and I went to Seth's Encore performance which was actually pretty good. I didn't really know what it was all about and thought it was going to be just singing but ended up being a whole show with acting and dancing too. Then we went out to Orlando Ale House where we got bad service and I had regular beer for the first time. It wasn't as bad as I was expecting but not really something I would want to have often.
Yesterday I got a lot done that I needed to such as cleaning. I built a bookcase we bought the other day and did laundry etc. I also finished 1984. It wasn't that great but was okay. I just felt like the autho really made his point and was super repeatitive about it. I had planned to read sparknotes as I read to get into any themes I may have been missing but it seemed pretty easy to follow. I was mainly reading it since it is on a lot of those lists of books you should read and I never had read it in class.
Today me and Alicia did a 13.1 mile run in 3 hours and 24 minutes. It was like 95 degrees when we left and then the last 4 miles it was pouring down rain on and off. It was okay with the rain b/c it cooled it down but it isn't fun to have wet socks while you run. Alicia only had pain in her hip toward the very very end of the run so it worked out better than expected. This is only the 2nd time I've ever run the distance of a half marathon without it being a race. I think it is good preperation. My feet were hurting most of the 2nd half of the run which is frustrating. I also felt a little sore and my lower back was bothering me but felt better after my shower.
Yesterday I got a lot done that I needed to such as cleaning. I built a bookcase we bought the other day and did laundry etc. I also finished 1984. It wasn't that great but was okay. I just felt like the autho really made his point and was super repeatitive about it. I had planned to read sparknotes as I read to get into any themes I may have been missing but it seemed pretty easy to follow. I was mainly reading it since it is on a lot of those lists of books you should read and I never had read it in class.
Today me and Alicia did a 13.1 mile run in 3 hours and 24 minutes. It was like 95 degrees when we left and then the last 4 miles it was pouring down rain on and off. It was okay with the rain b/c it cooled it down but it isn't fun to have wet socks while you run. Alicia only had pain in her hip toward the very very end of the run so it worked out better than expected. This is only the 2nd time I've ever run the distance of a half marathon without it being a race. I think it is good preperation. My feet were hurting most of the 2nd half of the run which is frustrating. I also felt a little sore and my lower back was bothering me but felt better after my shower.
If you notice we are soaked in this photo...the thing about wearing glasses in the rain is that it makes it very hard to see. The rain also makes the sweat go in your eyes so that doesn't help either.
I was trying to show off and pretty much missed my mouth but since it was raining it didn't matter much.
....................More running to come!
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
I maintained 11 minute miles!
So today felt like a long day. I worked overtime so I was gone from 7:30 (got a late start leaving this morning) and got home around 6:15 pm (but stopped and got taco bell on the way home). After I ate my unhealthy Taco Bell (the new doritos taco shells are really good), I went for a run aiming for 6 miles. I was kind of wanting to do 10 min. miles but wasn't going to kill myself out there either. I ended up getting 6 done in about 66 minutes and was going to go for an easy half mile or so cool down. However, I felt like I still had more in me and ended up going another 2 miles and was going really strong so that I got those two miles done in about 21 minutes for 8 miles completed in 87 minutes. I was definitely happy with myself. Somehow being able to still maintain that kind of speed for an additional 2 miles is exactly what I needed. As soon as I started walking I could tell that I didn't have much left in me at all but I'm really proud at what I accomplished.
I'm improving slowly but surely and getting it back after all the laziness of the couple months of not running. I know from my run today that if I was surrounded by runners and people cheering for me, I would have been able to push myself even more. That gives me confidence that I will be able to do well in the next race. I'm doing the Disney Land half marathon labor day weekend. That gives me close to a month and a half more training for it. I already know that I will not be aiming for a PR because I want to get my photo taken as much as possible and Disney races are pretty crowded unless you are at the front of the pack but it will be nice to get my speed up so that I can make up for lost time in the lines and such. I'm also really trying to get my speed and endurance up for my first FULL January13th. It is far away but at the same time I know time will fly by and next thing I know I will be waking up at 3am to run with all the other crazies out there who think the idea of running 26.2 miles is fun....lol. :)
With that I will leave you with a photo from the last run I did with Alicia. Yay for running photos where your feet arn't touching the ground!
I'm improving slowly but surely and getting it back after all the laziness of the couple months of not running. I know from my run today that if I was surrounded by runners and people cheering for me, I would have been able to push myself even more. That gives me confidence that I will be able to do well in the next race. I'm doing the Disney Land half marathon labor day weekend. That gives me close to a month and a half more training for it. I already know that I will not be aiming for a PR because I want to get my photo taken as much as possible and Disney races are pretty crowded unless you are at the front of the pack but it will be nice to get my speed up so that I can make up for lost time in the lines and such. I'm also really trying to get my speed and endurance up for my first FULL January13th. It is far away but at the same time I know time will fly by and next thing I know I will be waking up at 3am to run with all the other crazies out there who think the idea of running 26.2 miles is fun....lol. :)
With that I will leave you with a photo from the last run I did with Alicia. Yay for running photos where your feet arn't touching the ground!
Saturday, July 14, 2012
Didn't make 30 min. 3 mile run this time...
So today I went on a run by myself while Alicia was at work. I was aiming for either 3 or 4 miles. I made the mistake of trying for 2 goals and ended up reaching too high and not meeting either of them; but it was still good to push myself. I wanted to average around 10 min miles for the whole run and I also wanted my first mile to be around 8 min to match the speed I was able to do a few days ago. So I went strong and was doing really well the first mile but couldn’t see how fast I was truly going b/c of the settings I had on my garmin. So when I finished the first mile it showed at 8 min 31 seconds. I have to admit that I was disappointed even though that is a really good time. I was also really struggling with my breathing which hasn’t been an issue in a long time. I hope my asthma is not coming back. I think maybe the high pollen levels could have been affecting my breathing. Plus it was 89 degrees out.
My second mile wasn’t as good. I was tired from the first mile and I also stopped to stretch and thought I had stopped my garmin for the stretch and didn’t. I also had to walk 2 short times during the second mile. So the second mile was 12 min and 49 seconds.
With the third mile I was really trying to make up for the 2nd mile and was doing well at first and then my stomach really started hurting and I could tell it was from eating right before I left for the run. I actually felt like I was going to puke so I had to slow it down and walk more than I wanted. I ended up with a 11 min 47 sec mile.
Then I did a slow and easy .45 mile cool down that took me 10 min and 34 seconds to complete. I was definitely not going for any goal with that except to ease out of the run and settle my stomach. Overall it was a really rough run and I also felt very tense during the run in my upper back and shoulders no matter how much I tried to loosen up and stretch. Even though I didn't meet my goals I know that it was still a good time and I'm glad I pushed myself so hard.
Mile 1: 8:31
Mile 2: 12:49
Mile 3: 11:47
Total for 3 miles: 33:07 for 3
In other news. Alicia and I got Zoe to the vet for the first time since moving to Florida. I feel like a bad cat mom for not doing it sooner and she did have fleas. We also discovered that the brush we were using that worked well for Lillie just wasn’t working for Zoe and she really did have a lot of hair that she was shedding. We were able to get a new brush for her so hopefully between the new science diet we just started using and brushing her with the new brush, she won’t have so many hairballs. Of course Lillie has still been hissing at Zoe and it’s been 2 days now but they seem a little better. I told her she needs to be nice because she has her appointment on Tuesday. I got to give a cat a pill for the first time ever. Alicia held Zoe and I opened her moth and shoved the pill down her throat and got it on the first try. Lillie, however, was a struggle and, after numerous attempts, I put it in some wet catfood and she ate it that way. Wish I had done that from the beginning. To help fight the fleas we got frontline and also the pill that works for a month and we have been vacuuming the whole apartment and spraying it with flea killer spray.
Today I got up at 8:30 even though I went to bed around 2. I have trouble sleeping in these days when I get up at around 6:30 most mornings. I did some cleaning and read a little. I’m reading a Chicken Soup book about heavenly stories of people having contact with angels or dead friends or relatives helping them in some way or miracles. It’s pretty interesting. I made a French toast and spam brunch and made Alicia get up a little after 11. I went to Track Shack and got some new shorts and some energy gels for our long runs. I wore a ball state shirt and I had 2 people ask me about it. One said a bunch of her family lives in IN and another said her father graduated with his mastor's there and commented that that was where Davide Letterman graduated from. Then I mostly just messed around online a little and read from 1984 out on the porch with the cats and then went on my run. To relax I just finished watching the extreme makeover weight loss edition that I had started earlier in the week but had fallen asleep during.
It’s been a pretty good day!
My second mile wasn’t as good. I was tired from the first mile and I also stopped to stretch and thought I had stopped my garmin for the stretch and didn’t. I also had to walk 2 short times during the second mile. So the second mile was 12 min and 49 seconds.
With the third mile I was really trying to make up for the 2nd mile and was doing well at first and then my stomach really started hurting and I could tell it was from eating right before I left for the run. I actually felt like I was going to puke so I had to slow it down and walk more than I wanted. I ended up with a 11 min 47 sec mile.
Then I did a slow and easy .45 mile cool down that took me 10 min and 34 seconds to complete. I was definitely not going for any goal with that except to ease out of the run and settle my stomach. Overall it was a really rough run and I also felt very tense during the run in my upper back and shoulders no matter how much I tried to loosen up and stretch. Even though I didn't meet my goals I know that it was still a good time and I'm glad I pushed myself so hard.
Mile 1: 8:31
Mile 2: 12:49
Mile 3: 11:47
Total for 3 miles: 33:07 for 3
In other news. Alicia and I got Zoe to the vet for the first time since moving to Florida. I feel like a bad cat mom for not doing it sooner and she did have fleas. We also discovered that the brush we were using that worked well for Lillie just wasn’t working for Zoe and she really did have a lot of hair that she was shedding. We were able to get a new brush for her so hopefully between the new science diet we just started using and brushing her with the new brush, she won’t have so many hairballs. Of course Lillie has still been hissing at Zoe and it’s been 2 days now but they seem a little better. I told her she needs to be nice because she has her appointment on Tuesday. I got to give a cat a pill for the first time ever. Alicia held Zoe and I opened her moth and shoved the pill down her throat and got it on the first try. Lillie, however, was a struggle and, after numerous attempts, I put it in some wet catfood and she ate it that way. Wish I had done that from the beginning. To help fight the fleas we got frontline and also the pill that works for a month and we have been vacuuming the whole apartment and spraying it with flea killer spray.
It’s been a pretty good day!
Monday, July 9, 2012
It's a monday...
So it looked like it was going to pour down in a huge thunderstorm and I really wanted to run outside today so I took the toll road and quickly got dressed with the goal of going for speed for possibly just 2 or 3 miles I ended up deciding to run a mile as fast as I could which turned out to be in 8 min and 5 seconds. Not too bad. That makes me feel like if I work on it I could definitely make it under 8 which has always felt kind of impossible to me in the past. Then I most walked the mile back home. It took me 15 minutes to walk/jog the 2nd mile home because it zapped so much of my energy to do that mile so quickly. I would love to be able to do a mile in less than 8 min and I also would like to be able to do 2 miles in 18 minutes which would also be a challenge to me.
In regards to the Vet. I decided on the Union Park one because I called each and they were pretty much the same price, Union Park $117 and University $115 but Union Park said on Tue and Th. they could take appointments as late as 6:15 and at University the latest appointmnet they could do is 5:15. I typically get home no earlier than 5:15 and would then have to corral the cat into the crate and get to the appointment so that is not feasible at all. I did consider that they are open on saturdays but both places in reviews did not recommend people going there on the weekend and I don't want that to be the only option. I figure give it a shot. If I am really unhappy with the vet I can always go to the other and plan that I would have to leave work a half hour early to get the appointment considering they shouldn't really need more appointments than once a year unless there is an issue.
In other news, I have started reading 1984 because it is on a lot of recommended reading lists and somehow didn't have to read it in school. It is up my alley of interests anways since it is about a future world which I like to read about. I'm ahead of schedule with my 50 books in a year goal so that is exciting!
Well, enough of that. I am going to get to some reading and cleaning!
In regards to the Vet. I decided on the Union Park one because I called each and they were pretty much the same price, Union Park $117 and University $115 but Union Park said on Tue and Th. they could take appointments as late as 6:15 and at University the latest appointmnet they could do is 5:15. I typically get home no earlier than 5:15 and would then have to corral the cat into the crate and get to the appointment so that is not feasible at all. I did consider that they are open on saturdays but both places in reviews did not recommend people going there on the weekend and I don't want that to be the only option. I figure give it a shot. If I am really unhappy with the vet I can always go to the other and plan that I would have to leave work a half hour early to get the appointment considering they shouldn't really need more appointments than once a year unless there is an issue.
In other news, I have started reading 1984 because it is on a lot of recommended reading lists and somehow didn't have to read it in school. It is up my alley of interests anways since it is about a future world which I like to read about. I'm ahead of schedule with my 50 books in a year goal so that is exciting!
Well, enough of that. I am going to get to some reading and cleaning!
Sunday, July 8, 2012
So....first post. There is so much to say but not a lot that I think people would care about. I guess I will just go through the basics of my day today. Me and my roomie/bestie Alicia made the discovery that the cats have fleas. I have been suspecting this because we had them 2 years ago and Zoe has an allergic reaction to the bites and scratches until she gets scabs. However, I was hoping it wasn't fleas because we saw no evidence of them on the cats other than her scratching. I thought it could be her food so we changed foods and it hasn't seemed to help. Today though, after the umteenth time of checking her for fleas we could see them. Ugh. We had stopped giving them Frontline because it is so expensive and since the cats don't go outside we figured they were probably safe from the fleas. No such luck. We went on our 6 mile run and immediately after church we made a stop at Petsmart for some frontline. At least it is the weekend so they also had a bunch of dogs, rabbits, and hamsters and the like for sale or for free to adopt there. There was a super sad white rabbit and a super cute 3 legged dog and several adorable kittens. When we got home it was certainly a chore to get the frontline on the cats, where were very unhappy to be held when they could tell something was up. Me and Alicia were a great team and got that stuff on them in no time.
Last night I looked up Vets in the area because both cats are due to go by sometime next month (I'm proud of myself that I was able to find the documents from the last vet so I can show their shot history). There are two close by with good and bad reviews on google.
http://www.unionparkanimalhospitalsite.com/
and
http://www.uahvet.com/
It's like...how do you pick a vet really? Their last vet was chosen primary out of laziness and the fact that it was close enough to walk to. It was good enough for what we needed and didn't seem too expensive but we also didn't really review other prices...
I mean Union Park Vet is close to home. Got a 15 out of 30 on Google reviews. It has 125 likes of facebook....It seems small and appears to only have one main vet and a back up vet working there. One benefit is that it is open Tue and Th until 7 and Saturday until noon which makes it convenient for me considering the earliest I get home is 5:15 if I actually leave on time. They can board pets which would be good if we had to do that with our cats; they'd be familiar with them already.
University Animal Hospital is also close to home. Got a 13 out of 21 on Google reviews. It has 307 likes on facebook....It has four vets there which would be good for a second opinion. It is also open on Saturday but on the weekdays it closes by 6pm which could pose a problem. They can board pets which would be good if we had to do that with our cats; they'd be familiar with them already.
I guess you really just have to go and check it out. I don't know anyone living in the area so I can't find out from their personal experiences and I don't want to drive out to a farther location. I think I'll be calling to see how much a basic appointment costs this week and see what they say. The hours at the Union park one would be good but it seems like University may have more to offer in the way of deals on pet meds but I'm not sure if being larger is actually better...sigh.
I definitely want what is best for the kitties. We shall see.
Last night I looked up Vets in the area because both cats are due to go by sometime next month (I'm proud of myself that I was able to find the documents from the last vet so I can show their shot history). There are two close by with good and bad reviews on google.
http://www.unionparkanimalhospitalsite.com/
and
http://www.uahvet.com/
It's like...how do you pick a vet really? Their last vet was chosen primary out of laziness and the fact that it was close enough to walk to. It was good enough for what we needed and didn't seem too expensive but we also didn't really review other prices...
I mean Union Park Vet is close to home. Got a 15 out of 30 on Google reviews. It has 125 likes of facebook....It seems small and appears to only have one main vet and a back up vet working there. One benefit is that it is open Tue and Th until 7 and Saturday until noon which makes it convenient for me considering the earliest I get home is 5:15 if I actually leave on time. They can board pets which would be good if we had to do that with our cats; they'd be familiar with them already.
University Animal Hospital is also close to home. Got a 13 out of 21 on Google reviews. It has 307 likes on facebook....It has four vets there which would be good for a second opinion. It is also open on Saturday but on the weekdays it closes by 6pm which could pose a problem. They can board pets which would be good if we had to do that with our cats; they'd be familiar with them already.
I guess you really just have to go and check it out. I don't know anyone living in the area so I can't find out from their personal experiences and I don't want to drive out to a farther location. I think I'll be calling to see how much a basic appointment costs this week and see what they say. The hours at the Union park one would be good but it seems like University may have more to offer in the way of deals on pet meds but I'm not sure if being larger is actually better...sigh.
I definitely want what is best for the kitties. We shall see.
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