Running On...My Quest for C2FM

I decided to brush off the old hill routine of a few years ago - a brilliant little hill along the very quiet Village Nursery Rd that actually has two hill options. If you park in the valley of the two hills, you can decide which you want to do - the steeper, shorter one (37%), or the long, gradual one (30%). My workout had been 5 runs up the steeper one, walks back down then, on the fifth one, keep walking up the longer one, then run back down to repeat that sequence 5 times. Hits both hills, hits both the quads and the hamstrings, and good practice for uphill and downhill. To make sure I stuck to the plan - and for some company and a good catch-up - I called on my friend Janice to join me. The time flew by as we yakked about all sorts of things. And her awesome cadence helped me find a good rhythm, too. It was an awesome workout and the adrenaline is still pumping through my blood. So much to report about this run (you know how much I love my stats) - so I thought I'd let the...

This - is the first day since last Thursday that I've exercised... That - was a very short running streak! This - won't be the last time I have to pick myself up off the floor and get back at it... That - seems to be the M.O. around here! This - M.O. thing could be a self-fulfilling prophecy... That - has to end! In other 'this and thats'...I have taken up my pen and written 3700 words on a new manuscript since last week. It feels very, very good to be creating again. Now, if only running would feel very, very good ;) J

Ooh, I woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. Grumpy is too kind of a word to describe my mood before I even swung my legs out of bed. And it didn't get much better - my work site wouldn't let me log in, I had an e-mail reminding me of a deadline that I was perfectly aware of (thank you very much), and I had promised to make a frittata for breakfast to use up some leftover potatoes (I do not do well in the morning at the best of times, to add cooking to the mix really did me in). I wanted to ditch the one mile run. I wanted to say 'I did four days of streaking, I could have a break'. I wanted to crawl back into bed. But it was only a mile (see this post for my mantra that I keep forgetting to chant). Not an hour. Not even 30 minutes. And I knew - I KNEW - that stepping onto that treadmill, no matter if I ended up walking or running, I would feel 100% better. And it did. Once I got my 3 minutes of walking in, I was ready to tackle the run. So ready, th...

Actual text from this morning's e-mail to my friend Brenda: '...and (get this) enjoying my one mile runs (actually looking forward to this morning's run - just trying to decide if I want to brave the -15 windchill for a walk/run outside or if I'll hit the treadmill again).' I am feeling the love with this walk/run streaking thing I got going! And I did end up going out for my workout. It was cold (relatively speaking - with apologies to my Prairie friends who are suffering in extreme cold warnings and bitter windchills), but it was sunny and I knew the fresh air would do me good. I have lots of winter gear, so I bundled up and headed out. It.Was.Cold. Luckily, the nasty wind was at my back on the way home...the run segment of the workout. I did a little over a mile - not absolutely sure because I actually remembered to NOT start my watch (Watchless Wednesday). And other than the cold, it felt awesome. I came home to gobble up leftover spaghetti that Ron fried ...

I keep forgetting to post inspirational quotes here. Love this one, especially as I've rekindled my interest in writing (and that's what occupied my mind on my treadmill 1 miler today.  Grit is not just simple elbow-grease term for rugged persistence. It is an often invisible display of endurance that lets you stay in an uncomfortable place, work hard to improve upon a given interest, and do it again and again. ~ Sarah Lewis J

I am nothing if not determined to get on that wagon and stay on it...no matter how violently it careens around corners in an effort to get me off once and for all. Yesterday, I reset. I spent hours on Friday and Saturday looking back at my various running journals. What worked, what didn't, how was I feeling, where did I fall off - all of those questions were answered in those many pages of bullet point information jotted down after runs. A wealth of knowledge and inspiration at my fingertips. And the biggest lesson I gleaned from my scribbles... I am nothing if not determined! One of the best time periods in this running gig I've been playing on and off for almost 10 years, was when I streaked. I ran 50 days (ended up being 57) in a row, starting with 1 miles runs and ending up with some 2 and some 3 mile runs. I even ran a half marathon in there! It was hard - my journal entries can attest to that - but I never felt stronger, more controlled and faster (!). Another fa...

WTH was I thinking when I set up a public blog to share my running quest? WTH was I thinking when I set up a running quest? WTH was I thinking when I thought this time would be different? OK, now that I've got that off my chest. Plenty of time to realize my goals, plenty of time to make 2019 THE year I stick to running. And work persistently toward a healthier me. This is more about finding that inner #grit than it is about checking a marathon off my bucket list. And as long as I remember that - remember that I am working toward finding a true happiness when it comes to running (or exercise in general) - then my WTH will become WTG (way to go). We continue on... J

No, the two of them don't go together. No, I am not happy. It is what it is - I will continue to curl into a fetal ball until this dizziness passes and then I will get back to work on my C2FM. J

Oops, missed yesterday's blog. Not the run, thank goodness, but just didn't have time to blog about it. It was uneventful anyway - a planned 3 mile run, treadmill, done and dusted first thing in the morning. Haven't been feeling well of late, and questioned whether or not I would get a run in today (as per the schedule). But by noon, I was a little better, so took to the great outdoors to do 2 miles non-stop around the 'hood. Watchless day  but I forgot and actually set it for the run. Then, I remembered my promise, so I keep it tucked under my sleeve and simply ran. I'm glad I got out there. More bad weather on the way, so there's a very good chance I will be plugging in the treadmill for my weekend run. And the fresh air did me good. Still not feeling 100% (I think vertigo is living on the edge of my reasoning - please, please, please hope not), so tomorrow will be a quiet day. If I'm feeling good, I will get on the spin bike - if not, maybe a nap will...

Is sub-quest a word? Well, it is now!! So for the past couple of weeks when I've been working out on the treadmill, my CD of choice has been Mamma Mia 2. OMG, I love Mamma Mia - ahem...And, at the end of my workout, after I've stretched, Super Trouper (Cher's version) has started to play. OMG, I love Super Trouper... *cough*...So, I get up and dance around the bedroom. Zoe is usually in the room (see photo of her idea of exercise), and I encourage her to get up and 'dance'. I have tried since we got her to get her to dance - she is getting better, lifting each front leg in time (not really) to the music, her toe nails clicking on the laminate flooring. It doesn't last long as she gets distracted by her toy box and then thinks I want to play tug o'war. The other day, the same scenario takes place - only Zoe is in the living room while I'm working out. Mamma Mia soundtrack is blaring as usual. I get to my stretching point, anticipating the next son...

Today was what I call 'speed day'. A little something extra on the run that gets my legs turning over faster than usual. I had thought to do the same as last week (2 mile run with 30s 'sprint' or 'fartlek' at then end of each of those miles), but because of icy conditions on the road, it was treadmill day. So, I opted for my favorite workout - HIIT! High Intensity Interval Training And I opted to push my limits. I usually do HIIT on the treadmill (a great place to do HIIT, by the way, as you can regulate the speed) at a 5.5mph for a minute. OR, if I want to do 6mph, I usually only do 5 intervals of a minute or drop that time frame down to 30 seconds. Today, I wanted to see how many intervals I could do in that 2 mile parameter. The ultimate goal was 10, but I wasn't sure - so I gave myself permission to either drop the time or drop the speed if I got tired. Nope to both those options. I pushed through to 10 intervals. Here's how it broke down in my...

Long runs are Saturday morning. And, yay me, I got my long run in this morning before 10am. Truthfully, I'm not really at a long run stage. Today's long run was 3 miles. But for me, that's long. The whole idea is to build up the mileage slowly, so today's long run will be a short warm up a couple of months from now. 'They' say nutrition before the long run (or Race Day) is very important, thus the whole 'carb loading' thing. That means Friday night is an important step in preparation for my long run Saturday morning. BUT, Friday night at Chez Corcoran's is Pizza Night (should that be 'a casa di Corcoran', since we are talking pizza?). I can't envision a Friday night without pizza, we've been holding that tradition for so very long. And what I've read suggests pizza the night before a long run or a race day may not be your best option... UNLESS, you've trained that way. So, on top of training for whatever big event I seem t...

A new outlook. Gave myself a good talking to last night - wrote a few pages of my journal - looked at reworking my daily schedule in the hopes I can jar myself out of the ho-hum that was January and create a banner February. Working from home is awesome - but it can also be a bit of a nightmare when it comes to getting things done. This month, I've opted to revamp my morning routine so that I get that much needed exercise done at the start of the day. Today was a 2 mile spin bike session with weights to follow. Felt great to check that off the To Do List right away. This afternoon was a walk on the beach. With temps around -7, windgusts nearing the 49kph mark, it was a very cold 1 mile. But, we had the beach to ourselves! And we all ran around to keep warm...well, Ron and I ran around to keep warm and to chase Zoe (she chased us, too), she just ran around like the crazy dog she is. As for that month of January...all was not lost as I logged 87 miles with my running and walkin...