June 10th, 2014
I was not able to get up as early as I had hoped, so I slept in until 6 o'lock. I suppose my body needed that extra hour this morning. Surprisingly, my mind was alert. It was looking forward to seeing the morning sun. I was ready to walk out the door before putting on my running gear. The air was a bit chillier. There were more than a few cars commuting early on the road.
My one rule of running is never to run on the sidewalk. From my apartment to the trail entrance is about 0.4 mile. I use that sidewalk distance as my warmup and cool down periods.
The trail was fairly empty today. Perhaps because it was either too early or too late for some dedicated runners. I was a little apprehensive running certain stretches without seeing a single soul. There are individuals that live on that trail in their cardboard boxes and fully loaded shopping carts. I haven't seen them that early yet, but still, I was afraid. Afraid of what, I really don't know. It's not like they would arise from their sleep and throw me in the murky creek because they know I can't swim. Because drowning me was something they want to do.
My body didn't feel as good as Sunday. I was slower. The same tall blond woman, running with her feet pronated inward passed me again. I wonder if she's a long distance runner. She has a short stride and moves at a consistent pace. Probably 8 minute mile. I thought maybe one day, we might talk to one another, even if it's just a hello.
One thing I notice about running is that when you meet your fellow runners on the trail, you don't really greet them. I tried to shoot a smile their way but I got only a couple back. This makes me miss my morning rides where people seem much nicer. When I am on the bike, I often say hi to riders as well as walkers and we exchange friendly smiles. That action of recognizing the other being with a smile doesn't seem to exist in running. Even passing someone on the left remains silent in running. Is this the running culture? I wonder.
At this point in my running career, I average a 10-11 minute mile, which is not fast, but I believe I will get faster. My total mileage today was 5.3 miles. It wasn't a hard run, but my legs were tired.
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Day 2
June 9th, 2014
Monday is gymming day. I did a 25 minute interval on the treadmill at a 4.0 incline. Then legs and arms. Legs with 3 sets of 20 of the following: lunges (10lbs), squats (10lbs), deadlifts (20lbs), leg presses (150lbs), adductors and abductors (70lbs). Arms with 3 sets of 10 pushups (girly ones:) and 3 sets of 60 seconds planks.
My legs were screaming and shaking by the end. I think my arms stopped talking to me for a good 15 minutes. Thank goodness for the stretches; otherwise, I think my body would divorce me.
Monday is gymming day. I did a 25 minute interval on the treadmill at a 4.0 incline. Then legs and arms. Legs with 3 sets of 20 of the following: lunges (10lbs), squats (10lbs), deadlifts (20lbs), leg presses (150lbs), adductors and abductors (70lbs). Arms with 3 sets of 10 pushups (girly ones:) and 3 sets of 60 seconds planks.
My legs were screaming and shaking by the end. I think my arms stopped talking to me for a good 15 minutes. Thank goodness for the stretches; otherwise, I think my body would divorce me.
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Day 1
June 8th, 2014
Today marked my real first training day. It was a warm Sunday morning. I dressed in blue running shorts, blue CEP compression sleeves, blue Injinji toe socks, pink Icebreaker tank, and my most precious thus far, Hoka One One Conquest pink paradise shoes. Everything was perfect. My gear was perfect. The sun was perfect. The occasional breeze was more than perfect. A few runners passed me but it didn't matter because I was perfectly happy running. I ran 6.7 miles, which was the farthest distance that I have yet accomplished. No pain. And a smiley face.
I find that stretching helps a great deal. Recently, I discovered that the actual time of stretching should be the same as the workout time. So if I run an hour, I should dedicate an hour to perform various stretches. So far, my favorite stretches are: runner stretch, downward dog, pigeon, pretzel and straight leg hamstring with rope.
Today marked my real first training day. It was a warm Sunday morning. I dressed in blue running shorts, blue CEP compression sleeves, blue Injinji toe socks, pink Icebreaker tank, and my most precious thus far, Hoka One One Conquest pink paradise shoes. Everything was perfect. My gear was perfect. The sun was perfect. The occasional breeze was more than perfect. A few runners passed me but it didn't matter because I was perfectly happy running. I ran 6.7 miles, which was the farthest distance that I have yet accomplished. No pain. And a smiley face.
I find that stretching helps a great deal. Recently, I discovered that the actual time of stretching should be the same as the workout time. So if I run an hour, I should dedicate an hour to perform various stretches. So far, my favorite stretches are: runner stretch, downward dog, pigeon, pretzel and straight leg hamstring with rope.
How it all begins
One night early summer 2014, I decided I want to run a marathon. I asked K how long it would take to train for one. "Three months," she said. After a bit of maneuvering on the web, I found the Ventura Marathon. September 7th. I signed up. Paid $110. Now I really am on my journey to my first marathon.
I grew up pretty much below average, as far as physical activities are concerned. I was told that I was weak, too weak for physical labor. So I had many years to master my weakness. I remember in gym class, I wished I'd died whenever we had to run a mile around the track (I actually ran only two laps and walked the other two). Breathing was hard. The pain in my chest was unbearable. Moving my legs was torturous. My body did not like pain and neither did my mind.
Years later, now I'm in my early thirties. My body is yearning to feel that heart beat a little faster, experience a little more pain, and be a little more alive. I did a couple 10ks within the past couple years but nothing major. I am naturally a very ambitious individual so I figured if I could do a 10k, I could run a marathon. No need to do anything else in between, like a half marathon. Who needs a half marathon when they could do a full one?
So here I am blogging away my three months training.
I grew up pretty much below average, as far as physical activities are concerned. I was told that I was weak, too weak for physical labor. So I had many years to master my weakness. I remember in gym class, I wished I'd died whenever we had to run a mile around the track (I actually ran only two laps and walked the other two). Breathing was hard. The pain in my chest was unbearable. Moving my legs was torturous. My body did not like pain and neither did my mind.
Years later, now I'm in my early thirties. My body is yearning to feel that heart beat a little faster, experience a little more pain, and be a little more alive. I did a couple 10ks within the past couple years but nothing major. I am naturally a very ambitious individual so I figured if I could do a 10k, I could run a marathon. No need to do anything else in between, like a half marathon. Who needs a half marathon when they could do a full one?
So here I am blogging away my three months training.
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