Ran 11km (6.5 miles) today in one hour on the treadmill. Am so proud of myself as two weeks ago I could only run 10km in an hour, so pleased I've increased my speed.
Was really struggling today as well, just found it a long time and never really felt in that 'zone' where I could go for ages, but struggled through it and didn't stop.
I tried on some clothes this afternoon and am starting to look good, so have to hang in there with the running!

Great to read all the hard work you are all doing. Very inspiring stuff. xx

miss may--dont you LOVE it when clothes start to look "good"??? i love shopping nowadays!! BIG CONGRATS ON THE DROP IN TIME on your 10K...and in ONLY 2 weeks!! Thats fantastic!! Imagin if yo ucould shave a couple minutes off EVERY couple weeks or month!! Youll see, the better you get, the FASTER youll get better!!

Hey all-- TMI warning AGIAN---(day 12). So last night i got to thinking, what will, INEVITABLY, without FAIL get things MOVING again for me? so to speak (please refer to my above post so i dont have to go into detail again! )
A RACE!! a race ALWAYS gets me going in the morning...... so MY BF and i are going to a race this am, hes going to do the 5k fun run (hes VERY outta shape, and might have to be carried off by paramedics) and i will do the 10K.
and it WORKED!! it worked like a charm!!! Things have started moving again!! I just hop i can get them to stop, before the race and all! Havent decided yet if im just going to RUN the race, or COMPETE in the race (ill decide after i get there and "size up" the competition...how horrible is THAT?

oh and by the way, one of the BEST things about marathon training is that i can race just about any distance now, on a whim...... im already more than trained to half marathons, or 10Ks or whatever.... so bonus!!
Love you guys!!

Just a super quick fly by post for me as we're heading out the door soon but had to come and report my quickest 3 mile run to date! 30:58!! Still no speed demon, but that'll come in time. Also wanted to report that I woke up at 7:30, at a pumpkin breakfast cookie and a tbsp of natural pb and a little water--waited about 45 mins or so then headed out the door--I'm happy to say there was no barfy feeling and no side stitches!! (I was worried about the water since I get side stitches super easy when I drink before running) So I think I'll be set if I stick to that next Saturday.

I can't believe it...one week until my first 5K!!! I'm getting excited!!

Have a great day girls! I'll be back later for personals and such!!!

I'm starting to get really bummed about how slow I'm running and how hard I'm finding it. This morning in our group training we did just over 5 miles in intervals of 1:10 running and 2:00 walking. We finished in about an hour and 15 minutes. The group that walked the whole distance were probably only 15 minutes behind us. I know it's fine - I'm out there going the distance - I just feel kind of discouraged.

iDream.... what is a pumpkin breakfast cookie? It sounds very tasty!

MK - glad you're not all plugged up anymore!

I just finished my first trail run of 2.5 miles and it was so much fun! I think this is the first time I have every used "fun" in connection with running, usually it's words like "torture" LOL! The only thing I wasn't prepared for was dirt getting blown into my eyes, but now I know to be aware of this. I was SO slow but next time I will up the pace a little, but right now just slowly ramping up to 3 miles.

Iris -- I'm slow too, but I'm sure the speed will come if that's your goal
mkroyer -- have fun at the 10K!
iDream -- pumpkin breakfast cookie sounds delic! yummy!
missmay -- 6.5 miles in an hour sounds fantastic!

Everyone have a great weekend!

not much to report about the 10K i just decided to run on a whim this am....... Oh, except that i TOOK FIRST PLACE FEMALE!!!!!! WAHOOS
So, i guess thats not TOOO Shabby....! I got a cool medal that says first place female in my age division, and then i ALSO got a cool backpack and a gift certificate to a local running store that sponsored the race for winning first place OVERALL!!

More importantly, howeve,r i shaved 2 MINUTES OFF OF MY previous best 10K PR!!! Thats BIG for a 10K!! If you'll notice my signature i have updated my PRs......!! a 46 minute 10K puts me in the "BB" wave for the Bolder Boulder!! FANTASTIC! For those of you who dont know, the Bolder Boulder is a BIG TIME 10K with workd class athletes and over 50,000 runners in it each memorial wave. Because there are SO MANY runners, you have to qualify for certain waves..... they also have waves for non-qualifying times, but they are way later in the morning......in any case there are the "A" waves (elites" the "B" waves (thats me!!) and then C and then D and then E..you get the picture! My overall pace was a 7:30 min mile.....so im quite pleased....

MK that is awesome!! Congrats!

Congrats mkroyer!!! Woot!

I was trying to plan more races but it looks like most of the 2010 ones aren't announced yet. When do those usually start popping up? After the new year? A little frustrating because I'm trying to plan my time between now and Ironman Wisconsin. I found an early Dec 8k though I might do but it depends on if I enjoy my Nov 1st 10k I think. I haven't actually done any running races yet just the run portions of Triathlons.

Mk - Gooooo Girl! Oh and glad you got things moving in all types of ways...hehe

iris - pls don't worry about your time. From what I can tell I have been running the longest on thread other than MK (i think so don't bite my head off if I am worng) and I am actually the slowest. I just started running a confortable 10:42 that I can run longer than 2 or 3 miles. I started running in January. But you know I am still inpressed each time I improve even a little bit. And everyone around thinks I am like super psycho runner even I am slow....they don't think so...

okay so I did 8 today in 89:00. pretty good.

Congrats MK!!!


I finally wore my new shoes outside yesterday, and loved them. I was afraid I'd wear them outside, hate them, and waste $100.

Good job cake!! how did it FEEL?!?

Pertaining to speed (AGAIN): i think as athletes or runners we get caught up in defining our self worth by how well we perform, or how FAST we can run...... If i have a bad run, (or a couple weeks of bad runs) i tend to let it be my MEASURE of myself as a runner..... why? Cake--your 10:42 BASE pace is awesome! that is an INCREDIBLE improvement. What makes it more awesome though, is how you FEEL when you are running, and the fact that you can now knock out 8 miles, no sweat.
I want to start trying to very consciously start noting how im FEELING while im running...focus on how my body is reacting to my run, and how my brain is responding... Maybe my run tomorrow am wont be my FASTEST ever, but it will be a good run none the less... i hope..... And speed does NOT define how good of a runner you are, nor is it ANY indication as to whether or noty oull be able to go the distance (whatever your goal distance is). Ive ran with ladies who do ultra marathons, with base bases slower than mine....there were woman in the race yesterday who looked so very fit, and had been running for so long, and they LOVED it, and were "hoping" to finish the 10K in under 1 hour and 10 minutes....
Let me give you guys a secret.....i have not one SPARK of athletic ability in my body..... every time i PR im scared that that is it, thats the TOP my body will EVER be able to do, etc etc..... I LITERALLY have never played a sport, i have NO coordination, i have short fat legs. This is what i DO have....an addictive, OBSSESSIVE PERSONALITY that needs SOMETHING to throw myself completely into!! I have dedication!! that is it! I replaced my 7 year methamphetamine addiction with running.... if you guys were crazy enought to wake up at 2 30 in the am just so you could run upwards of 50-60 miles per week, you would get faster, believe me.
But at what price?
Let your bodies get faster naturally, dont force it like i do...i have no life....... now i need a NEW addiction to replace the SMOKING one i just gave up...HHmmmm, mayhaps an obbsesive calorie counter?? (im NOT calling all calorie counters obsessive, im saying if i were to do it, it would BECOME obsessive Unfortunately, im sick of being obssessive about body weight things...... Gambling?????? a SEX ADDICT!?!! Or i could just take up knitting......

Lizzy--did your heel slip outside??

JUST FINISHED MY FIRST 5K RUN!!!!!!!!

I beat my planned time finishing in 29 minutes and 51 seconds!! ~9.48 per mile. Though, I know I did basically 8:10 for the first mile; 10:00 second mile and 10:00ish for the third mile! My goal was simply to get around a 30 minute mile. I trained since July starting off unable to even run around a track... (though before this, I was conditioned... but I stopped for around 6 months and gained back weight!). Eeee, so proud of myself. Plus, I saw someone I know who runs marathons (and who I dislike!) after my first mile, I was faster than them for a short minute or so. =P

I'm so thrilled. I can't wait to up my miles and do a 10K... and get faster!

Congrats mkroyer! Your story is pretty amazing. I can only strive to be as great as a runner as you!

Nope, no slippage, and I used the 'loop tying' or whatever its called, that you suggested. The guy who finally found these shoes for me, felt that NB shoes just dont fit my feet, and even with a smaller size and width, they still slipped.

I did have them tied a little TOO tight though, and on the 2nd mile had to stop and loosen them a bit, because it was making my foot hurt. I actually did my best on the 3rd mile. Once I realized I wasn't going to get blisters, and that my foot didn't hurt anymore, I stopped focusing on my feet

Hi everyone! I have about 30 seconds until I have to run out the door, but wow, so much going on! Congrats to Mk on the HUGE 1st place win and the really great mental place that you seem to be in, to Cake for the amazing 8 mile run, loquacious on your first kick*** 5K, and everyone else on your runs and successes of the week!!! So wonderful to hear that you're all doing well and having a good week so far.

I ran 5 times this week! That's the most I've ever run in a week. All of the runs were on the shorter side (no longer than 4 miles) but a little speedier than I normally run, so I guess it was more of a speed week. My overall mileage for the week (17.1) is also the most I've ever done in a week, so that was exciting! Now my food intake on the other hand...not so good I can't seem to control myself. I'll be totally great for a few days and then I'll have one day where I just eat all the healthy snacks in my apartment, and healthy calories totally add up! I've learned not to be hard on myself about it because I know the next day I'll just go back to normal, but a bad day once a week is basically making it impossible for me to lose weight, which is frustrating. Any wise words of wisdom? Anyway, really have to go study now, but hope everyone's having a great day!