Get off the couch and run!

Friday, December 28, 2012
PHEW! Christmas went by just as fast as it came up upon us! I am still visiting my parents in Daytona Beach and had to drag myself off the couch to get my runs in over the holiday break. It was very hard to leave my mimosa drinking family on Christmas morning to get my run in. No need to worry, I made up for the lack of mimosa's later in the day.

One great thing about my parents location is that they live in a large golf course community. It isn't hard to get the mileage in. On Christmas morning, Gabe ran nearly 16 miles without having to leave the gate (I only got a 4 in on Christmas morning since I had a million things to do including cooking for 12 people):
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Gabe's 15.61
I did get 6 miles in yesterday morning. Let me tell you, running in 40 degree weather is not this FL girls kind of fun. I was asked by a polite couple who was walking where my sleeves were. When I tried to explain that my arm sleeves were in fact sleeves, they got confused. In positive news, this was the happiest I have felt since my half marathon 3 weekends ago.

I cannot believe that we will be running three half marathons in less than two months! We booked our hotel room today for the Disney World Marathon weekend. I also booked half of our flight for the Rock N Roll Half Marathon New Orleans, which I was able to use my reward points for, it cost me a total of $5 for both Gabe and my tickets.



Here is what I am currently working on with my running routine.

Extending my stride: I am 5'10" which is mostly legs, yet I have a super short stride. I wish I would have focused on this when I first started running. My first run where I did nothing but worked on my stride gave me a 7 minute mile, which I could only manage to do two. Still, someone with a 10:30 average on a good day took 3 minutes off but I was super sore. After some research, I learned I was going about it the wrong way and now I am following directions. Here is an article from Livestrong with some great tips. Right now I am incorporating yoga and going back to the gym next week to do some strength training (WAH).

No more negative thoughts: Ever since my half marathon, I lost all of my positive thoughts while out there hitting the pavement. I truly hit a mental wall. Yet with the three upcoming half's, I cannot even consider quitting, nor do I want to. Every time I get out there, I  turn my music on and bam here is my negative friend. My Mother came up with a brilliant idea: Audio books. I am an avid reader so I thought I would give this a try. I did some web research, learned about Audible, an app that syncs with your kindle device and bought a new book. My 6 mile run was the most mentally sane run I have had in 3 weeks. I loved it and I am so happy my Mom suggested this to me.

Stretch more and ice baths: This is two things I always give advice on but never take myself. I am no longer going to be the pot calling the kettle black. I have to start stretching, using my marathon stick and taking ice baths. My ankle is not happy with me and I know it is due to negligence.

What are your struggles when it comes to running? Do you have negative thoughts? What is one thing you would like to change?

Also, I have $10 off coupon codes for both the Rock and Roll Half Marathon in St. Petersburg and New Orleans:
Rock n Roll St. Petersburg: RockSTP2
Rock n Roll New Orleans: RockNola2



1 comment

  1. Way to go! I used to have more negative thoughts, but I've learned how to counter them (sometimes). My biggest issue right now is I'm comparing myself to others whose brisk walk is my running and pushing it. :( I just want to get faster.

    But my most recent issue is my back. My sciatica has come back and while I feel better after my run, but I don't know if I'm doing it more harm than good in the long run...

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