At 9am yesterday morning I told myself I would be running twelve hours later.
At noon yesterday I went outside, hit a wall of 33+ degree heat, came back inside my office building and told myself I would be running later that night when it cooled down.
At five pm yesterday I sufferred through an entire streetcar ride home next to a man who smelled like the inside of my running shoes. I told myself that the dark clouds approaching would cool things down and I would be running as of 9pm.
At seven pm yesterday, I sat outside in the sun while sweating profusely and turned down OA's invitation of a glass of wine because I would be running two hours later.
At eight pm, I drank a glass of wine and gave up as the temperature was still over 30 degrees and it was definitely not going to rain.
It is now 10:45 am. I will be running in 10 hours and 15 minutes :)
UPDATED Goal: Run 72 miles - 24 X 3 - by November 3, 2007 (My 24th Birthday!)
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Monday, July 9, 2007
Adventure in Southern Hickville Ontario + Holy Crap it's Hot!
I went to a suburb of St. Catharines, Ontario on Saturday to celebrate my friend, A's, birthday. Last year, she moved from the Upper West Side of Manhattan to the town whose motto is officially "Where Ships Climb Mountains". Unofficially, the motto should be "Thorold - a town so boring even you can't find ways to spend money here"
We spent the afternoon swimming and eating and playing endless rounds of Catchphrase until about 10 when, it being July 7, 2007 (07-07-07), we decided to high-tail it over to the Niagara casino.
About 20 minutes into our journey my friend S stopped her car at a red light while waiting to turn onto the QEW. Twenty seconds after that we heard a giant squeal and were plowed into by some idiot who was a) clearly speeding and b) clearly idiotic since he admitted to having his head down to look for something on the floor of the car.
Two hours after the crash - in which no one was hurt - the St. Catharines police finally showed up.
We stayed the night at A's condo but were seriously cranky the whole remaining time of our trip.
In other news, it is now officially monstrously hot and humid. Stuffy, as my mother calls it. That lovely mix of horrible heat combined with air like that which you would find in a bathroom right after taking a hot shower.
OA went running this morning by herself. I am going to attempt to go this evening when the hourly forecast is showing a temp of at least 27 degrees celcius and humidity levels in the low 50% range.
Ew.
We spent the afternoon swimming and eating and playing endless rounds of Catchphrase until about 10 when, it being July 7, 2007 (07-07-07), we decided to high-tail it over to the Niagara casino.
About 20 minutes into our journey my friend S stopped her car at a red light while waiting to turn onto the QEW. Twenty seconds after that we heard a giant squeal and were plowed into by some idiot who was a) clearly speeding and b) clearly idiotic since he admitted to having his head down to look for something on the floor of the car.
Two hours after the crash - in which no one was hurt - the St. Catharines police finally showed up.
We stayed the night at A's condo but were seriously cranky the whole remaining time of our trip.
In other news, it is now officially monstrously hot and humid. Stuffy, as my mother calls it. That lovely mix of horrible heat combined with air like that which you would find in a bathroom right after taking a hot shower.
OA went running this morning by herself. I am going to attempt to go this evening when the hourly forecast is showing a temp of at least 27 degrees celcius and humidity levels in the low 50% range.
Ew.
Friday, July 6, 2007
Warning... Battery Low
Was all ready to leave for my first back-to-back run (I went yesterday evening as well), turned on my MP3 player and saw "Warning - Battery Low".
I must have left the darn thing on all last night and today and completely drained it's power. Ooops...
30 minutes later and a quick emergency charge, I was back out on the road.
I actually felt pretty good again despite the relative heat - it had been very warm all day (low 30s) and the sun had been beating down pretty well. Luckily, once the sun set, it was fairly cool with a bit of a breeze steadily pushing me along.
The only difficulty I had tonight was with my shins which were definitely voicing their concern by the end of the jog.
Oh well - I am taking tomorrow off for sure and will probably wait until either Sunday (if I feel particularly enthusiastic) or Monday (much more likely!) for my next jog.
DAY 15 REPORT
start time: 9:30 pm
1.25 miles
Total Walked (approx): 3/10 (0.30) mile
Total Ran (approx): 19/20 (0.95) mile
Legs - definite soreness in the fronts of my shins... pavement still sucks
Lungs - wheezy, but far less gasping than yesterday
Stomach - again some small stitchiness as I ran the last corner
Sweat level - less than yesterday's, still enough to leave me feeling soaked
Overall impression - less dog walkers than at 9... probably because it's a Friday night. My noticeable improvement in my enjoyment of these runs is making me think good things are on the horizon in terms of beefing my mileage/stretching out those run-walk intervals to greater distances.
I must have left the darn thing on all last night and today and completely drained it's power. Ooops...
30 minutes later and a quick emergency charge, I was back out on the road.
I actually felt pretty good again despite the relative heat - it had been very warm all day (low 30s) and the sun had been beating down pretty well. Luckily, once the sun set, it was fairly cool with a bit of a breeze steadily pushing me along.
The only difficulty I had tonight was with my shins which were definitely voicing their concern by the end of the jog.
Oh well - I am taking tomorrow off for sure and will probably wait until either Sunday (if I feel particularly enthusiastic) or Monday (much more likely!) for my next jog.
DAY 15 REPORT
start time: 9:30 pm
1.25 miles
Total Walked (approx): 3/10 (0.30) mile
Total Ran (approx): 19/20 (0.95) mile
Legs - definite soreness in the fronts of my shins... pavement still sucks
Lungs - wheezy, but far less gasping than yesterday
Stomach - again some small stitchiness as I ran the last corner
Sweat level - less than yesterday's, still enough to leave me feeling soaked
Overall impression - less dog walkers than at 9... probably because it's a Friday night. My noticeable improvement in my enjoyment of these runs is making me think good things are on the horizon in terms of beefing my mileage/stretching out those run-walk intervals to greater distances.
Thursday, July 5, 2007
A teeny tiny mini microscopic milestone
Today, 1 month and 7 days after starting running from an absolute comatose state I finally managed to break my semi-physical semi-mental hurdle of the 1 mile mark.
So here's how this milestone broke down:
RUN - 0.25 mile
Walk - 0.15 mile
RUN - 0.35 mile (the most I have ever run without stopping... mock me if you must - I'm proud at least!)
Walk - 0.15 mile
RUN - 0.2 mile (I hoped to do at least another 0.25 but completely ran out of steam at the end!)
Walk - 0.05 mile
RUN - 0.05 mile (the last corner of my street and up my driveway... the neighbour had seen me leave walking and I wanted to make it clear to him that I was not just a walker... I'm a walker/runner!)
DAY 14 REPORT
start time: 9 pm
1.2 miles total (+walking to starting point)
HUZZAH HOORAY WHOOPEE
Total Walked (approx): 1/3 (0.33) mile
Total Ran (approx): 6/7 (0.86) mile
Legs - fine (yea progress!)
Lungs - wheezier than Sunday which sucked... I was so looking forward to having finally progressed sounding like a dying seal
Stomach - minute stitchiness at the very end
Sweat level - can be measured only in buckets... it was hot
Overall impression - mock me if you will for my very short distances... but progress feels great no matter how small the number increased is!
*happy dance*
I think I am beginning to like jogging at night. Seeing all the neighbours walking their dogs makes me happy, and several of them even waved and said hello to me. In Toronto! Imagine! I would have been happy if no one tasered me!So here's how this milestone broke down:
RUN - 0.25 mile
Walk - 0.15 mile
RUN - 0.35 mile (the most I have ever run without stopping... mock me if you must - I'm proud at least!)
Walk - 0.15 mile
RUN - 0.2 mile (I hoped to do at least another 0.25 but completely ran out of steam at the end!)
Walk - 0.05 mile
RUN - 0.05 mile (the last corner of my street and up my driveway... the neighbour had seen me leave walking and I wanted to make it clear to him that I was not just a walker... I'm a walker/runner!)
DAY 14 REPORT
start time: 9 pm
1.2 miles total (+walking to starting point)
HUZZAH HOORAY WHOOPEE
Total Walked (approx): 1/3 (0.33) mile
Total Ran (approx): 6/7 (0.86) mile
Legs - fine (yea progress!)
Lungs - wheezier than Sunday which sucked... I was so looking forward to having finally progressed sounding like a dying seal
Stomach - minute stitchiness at the very end
Sweat level - can be measured only in buckets... it was hot
Overall impression - mock me if you will for my very short distances... but progress feels great no matter how small the number increased is!
Nothing to see here...
Yep.... so much for yesterday's run. Tonight is the night. I promise. I swear!eep.
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
Tonight's New Route with an Extra Quarter Mile
Please don't mock me for the punyness of the distance I jog/walk (i.e. 1 mile for the last month). It has been very difficult to do even my now standard 0.25 mile run-0.10 walk-0.25 run-0.15 walk-0.25 run but I feel comfortable enough to now be adding to my mileage...
So behold the new route in all its glory.
Essentially, it will be the following:
RUN, Benson/Alberta -> Benson/Arlington 0.25 miles
WALK, Benson/Arlington -> Benson/Christie 0.15 miles
RUN, Benson/Christie -> Tyrell/Christie via Wychwood Avenue 0.35 miles
WALK, Tyrell/Christie -> Tyrell/Turner 0.15 miles
RUN, Tyrell/Turner -> My homebase on Alberta Avenue 0.35 miles
Total to be Run: 0.95 mile
Total to be Walked: 0.30 miles
Total Distance: 1.25 miles
It is going to be nice and cool this evening with a light drizzle helping me out in this first attempt.
After Sunday night's great experience, I may be turning into an evening jogger!
So behold the new route in all its glory.
Essentially, it will be the following:
RUN, Benson/Alberta -> Benson/Arlington 0.25 miles
WALK, Benson/Arlington -> Benson/Christie 0.15 miles
RUN, Benson/Christie -> Tyrell/Christie via Wychwood Avenue 0.35 miles
WALK, Tyrell/Christie -> Tyrell/Turner 0.15 miles
RUN, Tyrell/Turner -> My homebase on Alberta Avenue 0.35 miles
Total to be Run: 0.95 mile
Total to be Walked: 0.30 miles
Total Distance: 1.25 miles
It is going to be nice and cool this evening with a light drizzle helping me out in this first attempt.
After Sunday night's great experience, I may be turning into an evening jogger!
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Wow... that felt great!
I was very, very, very bad all of last week and skimped out on OA for our planned Thursday morning run. There was simply no way I was getting out of bed for anything... insert guilt here.
The next time I ran was Sunday night - the first time I have ever jogged outside of the morning hours. It was surprisingly cool temperature wise and my weekend lethargy allowed me to get excited to be moving. Also, it was the first time I was trying out my new MP3 armband.
The combination of all of these factors led to the absolute best running session I have had since starting five weeks ago. I was exhausted and sweaty and gross by the end... but still felt an incredible high.
Gardening for 5 hours straight yesterday completely knocked me out though. I am so very, very weak. Gardening is for little old ladies! Why am I unable to move today???
DAY 13 REPORT
start time: 8:45pm
1 mile total (+walking to starting point)
Total Walked (approx): 1/4 mile
Total Ran (approx): 3/4 mile
Legs - fine (yea progress!)
Lungs - wheezy, but the advantage of listening to music while jogging is that I couldn't hear my own wheezing and get freaked out by the horrible sounds I produce while exerting myself in any way
Stomach - fine except for a little nausea after the jog... probably this is a result of having drunk a large glass of water an hour before starting out and the liquid not having been fully processed in my stomach
Sweat level - medium-high... more from exertion than from any heat. Which is good.
Overall impression - the best run so far... I want more and more and more like this one!
The next time I ran was Sunday night - the first time I have ever jogged outside of the morning hours. It was surprisingly cool temperature wise and my weekend lethargy allowed me to get excited to be moving. Also, it was the first time I was trying out my new MP3 armband.
The combination of all of these factors led to the absolute best running session I have had since starting five weeks ago. I was exhausted and sweaty and gross by the end... but still felt an incredible high.
Gardening for 5 hours straight yesterday completely knocked me out though. I am so very, very weak. Gardening is for little old ladies! Why am I unable to move today???
DAY 13 REPORT
start time: 8:45pm
1 mile total (+walking to starting point)
Total Walked (approx): 1/4 mile
Total Ran (approx): 3/4 mile
Legs - fine (yea progress!)
Lungs - wheezy, but the advantage of listening to music while jogging is that I couldn't hear my own wheezing and get freaked out by the horrible sounds I produce while exerting myself in any way
Stomach - fine except for a little nausea after the jog... probably this is a result of having drunk a large glass of water an hour before starting out and the liquid not having been fully processed in my stomach
Sweat level - medium-high... more from exertion than from any heat. Which is good.
Overall impression - the best run so far... I want more and more and more like this one!
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