New Shoes

I did it! I stopped in at Fleet Feet today to buy an actual pair of running shoes...I was kind of nervous as I walked in the door. It's a small store so there's no way you can just walk-in and go unnoticed. When I'm nervous, my field of vision becomes very narrow and I quickly scanned the two ladies who looked up as I walked in. I blurt out "I need new running shoes." Another very nice, very helpful woman comes from the back and I immediately say "I've only been running a year. I bought these shoes at Lady Foot Locker. I'm now training for a half-marathon. I think I need real shoes. I'm getting kind of achey in the knees." She probably thought I was a little crazy!
Luckily, I immediately calmed down and was able to carry out a normal (and very fun!) conversation with her. I first tried on a pair of general, well-cushioned shoes so I could hop up on the treadmill and she could analyze my gait. She said I definitely needed a stability shoe...I tried on three pair with two of them feeling pretty good...I wasn't really sure what I needed to be looking for, but she had me walk around the store and try them out (unfortunately it was pouring outside or I would have taken them out for a quick jog...I don't know why I didn't suggest the treadmill again?). One pair just felt better, so that's what I went with! Here's a picture of them: Adidas Supernova Control
Tomorrow I hope to take them out for a run, just to make sure I really like them. She suggested that I no longer use my current shoes for running...I didn't think they were that bad :-)

70 minutes...done!

I ate a box of raisins at 3pm, left work fully-dressed at 4:20pm and was running around the reservior by 4:40pm. As I mentioned yesterday, the loop is a little more than 5K (with mile splits marked), with quite a few hills. So, for my long, slow run, this wasn't the ideal place to put in my 70 minutes. And I really didn't feel like I had enough energy, and that became apparent about 30 minutes into the run. I almost convinced myself to just stop and do the 70 minutes tomorrow (in the rain?). But, I decided that if I just kept going, I could swing by the car, eat a few bites of banana and get a sip of water. So, when I made it back near the car, I looked at my watch and realized that I only had about 15 minutes left...and I just kept going until I was finished. I was so happy to be done...and then I ran into an aquaintence from work. I had just finished and was feeling a little out of it...I think I mumbled something to him about just running over 8 miles and feeling really crappy. He kind of nodded, smiled and made a little small talk...when I made it back to my car, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror: I had little dried crisps of sweat/snot all around my nostrils...Nice! No wonder he didn't seem to want to chat long :-)

During the run, I really questioned myself about the half-marathon. One minute I felt really strong and then the next, I was dragging myself along. Maybe it was the hills, maybe it was lack of food. Also, I started to feel a little achey...first in my knees and then in my calf muscle. I've been meaning to make a trip to Fleet Feet and have my gait analyzed with the intent to buy new shoes. Tonight I convinced myself that should be top priority tomorrow...no sense in putting my body through so much without the proper shoes! When I started running last April, I tried on a single pair of shoes at Lady Foot Locker (in the mall), they seemed to fit okay (and they were relatively inexpensive), so I bought them! Who knows if they're the right type of shoe for me :-)

Schedule Change?

Today was supposed to be a rest day with a 70 minute run scheduled for tomorrow. Unfortunately, it's supposed to rain *all* day tomorrow...starting later tonight. So, I have three options: do the run tonight after work, run in the rain, or postpone it until Sunday (and skip my yoga class). Hmmm...I was looking forward to a nice dinner with a glass of wine tonight after a long week at work.

Last night was a little over 5 miles on a pretty hilly course. Just as I headed out on the path, the wind picked up and large drops of rain started to fall. Thankfully, about 5 minutes into the run, the sky cleared up and the sun came out. It was a very pretty run around the reservior.

I really want to give more details about me...it just seems so intimidating! Kind of like writing an email to a long-lost friend, detailing the events of the years since you last spoke. So, maybe I'll just do bits here and there to fill out the story behind my running (which isn't too long):

It has been a little more than a year since I seriously started running (actually, April 11th of 2004 to be exact!). I don't really know why I laced up my ratty tennis shoes, but I remember that it was really sunny out and it just seemed like something I should do! It was pretty tough going at first...I probably averaged 10 minutes before I needed to walk. But, for some reason, I stuck with it...I'd run periodically through the week. I didn't really have any goal in mind, like to lose more weight (which I'll discuss more later) or to run a specific race.

One day, I found out that one of the women at work was training for the Hartford Marathon with hopes of qualifying for Boston. She was obviously a pretty hard-core runner as witnessed by her very slender frame. One day, I asked her a little more about the whole process and she mentioned a race that she was running in July. She really encouraged me to run the 5K portion...and I did!

I've only run in 3 races so far, but I've been getting really consumed by the whole world of running...and now seems like a pretty good time in my life to attempt a marathon.

Thursday's Child

Happy Thursday! Today on the training schedule is 4 miles and I brought my running gear to work with me for the first time. There is a marked 5K loop around a reservoir just a few minutes down the road from my workplace. Hopefully, I'll fuel up around 3:30pm and head over to run 4 (maybe 6?) miles after work. I'm needing a new routine to keep me interested...normally, I just head home (a 15 minute commute), strap on the shoes/watch/iPod shuffle and head out the door to run around the neighborhood. Yet, the 4 mile stretch I have mapped out requires me to cross 2 VERY busy roads at rush hour. Luckily, there are stop lights with crosswalks, but I swear after I push the button to cross, I have to wait 3 minutes before I can cross! I start to feel all self-concious in front of the people sitting in their cars... and I know they get a little irritated when they have to wait just a little bit longer at the red light for me to run across the street! So, the reservoir loop should be a nice change of pace.

Yoga last night was just what I needed! I had my first 10K on Sunday, and my legs were feeling pretty sore/tight. Last night's class really helped loosen me back up!

Introduction

An introductory post seems awfully intimidating…how to make a big splash and entice readers to follow along as the days pass. Well, this will be primarily a running journal…I started a personal blog sometime last year and ended up deleting it because I rarely updated it. Plus, I never listed it anywhere so there weren’t any readers to follow along.

I found the Running Blog Family early on…yet, I was hesitant to start up my own running blog. I’m still not sure I’ll find as much time as I’d like to keep a witty dialogue about my training, but I really felt like I wanted to join the family. I read so many running-related blogs and I get *so* much inspiration and guidance…even as a lurker :-) So, here goes!

I currently live in Connecticut, but I’m originally from Montana. My heart definitely isn’t here in the East…all of my family is out West and that is where we (my husband and myself) long to be. But, for the time being, we’re out here because this is where the current jobs put us.

I’m now training for a half-marathon in June. After that, we’ll see how I feel about signing up for the Hartford marathon. It’s sitting there in the back of my mind. I’d like to run at least one marathon in my life, and now seems like a pretty good time to do it. Oh, and I’m all over the New Haven road race in September that was suggested by Dianna!

So, I hope to finally have a chance to get real input from all you bloggers that I so carefully follow! Thank you :-)