A Little Bit of Everything..

Race Schedule (as of 8/21/14)

September 7, 2014- Ventura Pier 2 Pier Half

September 20, 2014- Harvest Half

October 26, 2014- Rock N Roll Los Angeles

November 15, 2014- Las Vegas 5K

November 16, 2014- Rock N Roll Las Vegas

November 27, 2014- Simi Valley Thanksgiving 5K

December 14, 2014- Santa to the Sea Half

December 28, San Diego Holiday Half

January 8-11, 2015- Tracy's Dose of Dopey

March 15, 2015- LA Marathon

April 26, 2015- Ojai Half

Training Schedule (as of 8/21/14) 

Training is for Tracy's Dose of Dopey in January (5K Thursday, 10K Friday, half Saturday, full Sunday) and also includes my race schedule. This is not a recommended training plan as the race distances were not part of the original training plan provided by Jeff Galloway on the rundisney website.

August 23, 2014- 9 miles

August 30, 2014- 3 miles 

September 7, 2014- race (13.1 miles)

September 13, 2014- 3 miles

September 20, 2014- race (13.1 miles)

September 21, 2014- walk 4 miles

September 27, 2014- 4 miles 

October 4, 2014- walk 5.5 miles

October 5, 2014- 15 miles

October 11, 2014- 4 miles

October 18, 2014- walk 7 miles

October 19, 2014- 17 miles

October 26, 2014- race (13.1 miles) 

November 1, 2014- 6 miles

November 8, 2014- walk 8.5 miles

November 9, 2014- 20 miles

November 15, 2014- race (3.1 miles) 

November 16, 2014- race (13.1 miles) 

November 22, 2014- 7 miles

November 28, 2014- walk 4 miles

November 29, 2014- walk 10 miles

November 30, 2014- 23 miles

December 6, 2014- 6 miles

December 14, 2014- race (13.1 miles) 

December 19, 2014- walk 5 miles

December 20, 2014- walk 12 miles

December 21, 2014- 26 miles

December 28, 2014- race (13.1 miles) 

January 3, 2015- 7 miles 

January 8, 2015- 5K

January 9, 2015- 10K

January 10, 2015- Half

January 11, 2015- Full

January 17, 2015- 3 miles

January 24, 2015- 5 miles

January 31, 2015- 8 miles

February 7, 2015- 6 miles

February 14, 2015- 13 miles

February 21, 2015- 4 miles

February 28, 2015- 8 miles 

March 7, 2015- 6 miles

March 15, 2015- race (26.2 miles)

March 21, 2015- 3 miles

March 28, 2015- 5 miles

April 4, 2015- 7 miles

April 11, 2015- 4 miles

April 18, 2015- 6 miles

April 26, 2015- race (13.1 miles)

I'm trying to decide on a running goal for next year. This year's goals were to complete my running streak of 500 days in a row that was cut short at day 235 due to an injury. I am still working towards running 1250 miles and completing 14 half marathons before the end of 2014. 

I love having something to work towards, but I also think I need something a little less next year, but I'm having a tough time doing less when I want to choose something that will push me to do more. I have time to decide, but it's been on my mind and will continue to be on my mind until I make a decision..

This weeks long distance training run- 9 miles scheduled. Goals for this run: stay between 12:30-13:30 minute miles, run all intervals (no extra walk breaks), finish all 9 miles.

I went out yesterday and invested in some better socks as well as some athletic tape to keep my bandaids in place. 

I took 2 full weeks off and then the blisters came back. I'm stubborn and decided to find a way to still run without pain. So far so good!

I reached all three of my goals for today's run and even though parts were difficult (like the uphill portions and 93% humidity at 7am) I finished and need to focus on that. I have a tendency to focus on the things that I didn't do or didn't do well and I really should start seeing what I have accomplished the way other people do.

 

This month (August) marks three years since I started running. I've accomplished a lot in that time yet I only focus on how much more I could have done. I can't seem to see what I have done as anything special, even though it kind of is (and I would tell anyone else how impressed I am with them). But because it's me, I feel like I should be able to push further, faster, harder, stronger and instead I find my comfort zone and stay there. 

To be honest, I am impressed with myself. Three years is a long time for me to stick to something that I hated once upon a time. Hate is a strong word and I don't use it for much, but I hated running. With a passion. 

Then I realized that I can do it. I didn't have to run distances without walking, in fact with the method I use it is encouraged. I shouldn't look at my completion of marathons and half marathons as less just because my time is slow or because I walk. I still finished the same race, course, distance as everyone else. There should be no justification. 

I'm never going to win a race, and I'm never going to go out to try to. I'm not out there to race. I'm out there for me. Sometimes I race against myself, sometimes I just go to enjoy the run. Either way every run I go on is an experience that I wouldn't trade for the world. 

This past week included two somewhat decent runs, 2.10 and 2.87 miles. I am hoping to do a little more next week and to begin to include cross training and strength training. I made a schedule (because we all know how well that has worked for me in the past), but I'm looking forward to attempting to try again. 

Sunday: walk 3 miles

Monday: run

Tuesday: 30 Day Shred, bike

Wednesday: run

Thursday: Body Revolution

Friday: jump rope, bike

Saturday: 3 mile long distance training run

Maybe at some point I'll be able to report back and say I've had a "perfect" week. Until then I'm just going to keep moving forward. I can't go back and I don't want to. What I want to do is learn to appreciate my body and what I do have along the way so that I'm not looking back and thinking "I wish I had that body again, the one I thought I hated when I had it.."

There have been many examples of pictures that I have looked at and wished I could go back to that body. For some reason, the top two are the two I go back to when I think of where I want to be again. It was post 30 Day Shred and I still didn't think I looked good enough.

 

I can't go back though. I can only move forward. I'm not willing to commit to another 30 day program right now, but I can commit to the workouts that I have scheduled because it's a small portion of my day and the workouts are doable. I'm the only one holding me back from getting the body I am happy with, I'm just not putting in the work to get there. And maybe the process is taking longer than I would like because my head isn't ready to see that "after" body. I don't want to get to that healthy toned body phase and still not be happy.

 

That's why I'm also learning to love the body I have now. Who knows, maybe one day I'll see a picture from this time in my life and realize it's not as bad as it is in my head. I'm working on quieting those negative voices in my head and working on focusing on the positive ones. Maybe one day they will all be positive..