Three Things Thursday

1. Took advantage of this not working thing and snuck in another mid-day run with Peggy and her pooch Belle. And let me tell you, if it wasn't for our plan to meet up and run I probably would have headed to the nearest treadmill today. It. Was. Windy! For most of our run the wind wasn't too much of a problem, but when we made that final turn and headed west straight into the steady 30 mph winds? Yeah. That was brutal. And I forgot to mention. It was straight uphill. Double brutal. But we finished.

2. I think I'm still thawing out from that run.

3. Other than nearly getting blown away, it has been a productive vacation day. Doctor's appointment. Check. Oil change and tires rotated? Check. Instructing my Dad to find a cheaper place to get the rest of my car repairs done? Check. Dropped off my Toys for Tots donation? Check. Spend the rest of the afternoon watching Season 3 episodes of Glee (there's 9 of them and I've only got 3 more to watch). In progress. And I think there's even a Badger basketball game on TV tonight.

Happy Thursday everyone!

Taking advantage of the benefits of no work

So it was a tough work week. One day. Not kidding. You're probably saying, really. How could one day be so bad. But you know how Mondays in general are hard? Coming back after a weekend? Well just imagine having to go back in on Monday, knowing that all that stands between you and six days of workless bliss is one eight hour shift.

Yeah. It was hard.

But as soon as that clock hit 5:30 p.m. on Monday, I was out of there. I did a little shopping with my Mom and then headed up to my parents' house for my vacation. And even though it was late, I knew I had to get my short run in. And we're talking a run of the 2-mile variety. Shouldn't be so hard. But it was. I swear, during that first mile on the treadmill I was jumping off onto the sides every quarter-mile. The second mile got easier, but the run never became completely unsluggish.

It was rough. Brutal. But I finished.

And on Tuesday - my first full day of vacation - I got to go for a lunchtime run. In the daylight. With Peggy and her pooch Belle. It was a glorious 3.5 miles. For starters it was in the 40s, we live in Wisconsin and it's mid-December. A run in just long sleeves? I'll take it - although I am getting a little antsy for snow.

But the best part of the run was just getting a chance to catch up with Peggy - my running partner in crime for the last year. It's been way too long since we pounded the pavement together and today's 3.5 miles was just what we needed. In fact, we finished up our run and tacked on an extra mile walk for a cool down.

And then promptly made plans to meet again on Thursday at lunchtime for another run.

I think I like this no work thing.

Baby it's cold outside

So it was a little chilly this morning. We're talking 7 degrees with a wind chill of -10.

And while I may have momentarily thought about turning the alarm off, skipping my morning group run and getting the 5 miles done at some other point in the day - say when the temps reached 20 - I didn't. I got out of my warm bed, threw on my cold weather running gear and headed out.

I'm glad I did. It was a good 5-mile run with my friend Amy. We got to talk running, catch up on life and even talked about this whole idea of careers and how you need to be passionate about what you do.

In the end it was a good, cold 5-miles. Honestly once we started running it wasn't bad until we hit the turn around point and started to head back to the park. And that was only because a stiff icy wind had picked up.

We kept an easy pace and threw in a few very short walk breaks - mostly so I didn't make my IT band angry. Overall it didn't give me problems during the run, although it was starting to get a little achy during the last half mile, but that was to be expected.

And even though it was cold, it was nothing compared to Day 1 of the Fleet Feet half marathon group last year when it was zero and wind chills approaching 20 below. Today was downright balmy compared to that.

Now. It's a Saturday. And I have no Badger football to watch. What am I going to do with myself.

Tossing around ideas for 2012

It's never too early to start planning a race calendar for 2012. And while it's taken me this long to actually bring the subject up here on the blog, that doesn't mean I haven't been thinking about it. Because I have.

At this point, I haven't actually registered for any races. Wait. Take that back. I think I have (I'll get to that in a minute), but I know some of the bigger ones that I definitely want to do. And while a lot of the races I'll do in 2012 will be ones I've done in the past and are becoming my "regulars," I do want to branch out a bit and try some new ones. And I'm pretty sure that will be happening.

So what am I thinking of for 2012? Well there will be half marathons. And I'll even dip my toe into the relay craze. And there's a tiny part of me that wants to tackle a sprint tri again. And of course some 5Ks and I'll even try a new distance - the 15K.

February
Seroogy's Valentine Run 15K - I haven't registered for this yet, but I'll be doing it since it is the goal race for the Winter Warriors program I'm doing. First attempt at a 15K. You know what that means, automatic PR!

April
Run Away to the Bay - This is a new relay here in Northeast Wisconsin that takes you along a 55-mile route from Oshkosh (my city) to Green Bay. The girls in my original Fleet Feet half marathon group and I are talking about doing it. Should be fun.
Oshkosh Half Marathon - Back to the scene of my first 2:30-half marathon. Again, also in the city where I live. Hoping there's better weather than there was last year.

May
Sole Burner 5K - This one has become an annual race for me with my Dad. Site of my current 5K PR.
Cellcom Green Bay Half Marathon - quickly becoming one of my favorite half marathons. There won't be a loop through Lambeau Field this year (construction on the south end zone), but I'll still be there since it's a great race.

June
Ragnar Relay: Madison to Chicago - I'm super excited about this one. I'm joining up with 11 other bloggers for a team. I'm pretty sure this will be an amazing experience. Can't. Wait.

July
Firecracker 5K - Another family tradition. And always hotter that heck.
Chicagoland Trek Women's Triathlon - The site of my first tri. Toying with going back this year. It's an all women's event and very focused around those impacted by cancer.

August
Madison Mini Marathon - Really liked this course when I ran it this year. Can't complain about a half marathon that starts and ends on the campus I love.
Cheesehead Half Marathon - If I don't do the Madison Mini, this is an option. The plus, it's super close to home.

September
Fox Cities Half Marathon - Another local race and site of my very first half marathon and current half marathon PR.

October
Freaky 5K - A local 5K that I've done several years. Nice Halloween race.

November
Santa Scamper - That 1 mile fun run before the Christmas parade
Turkey Trot (5 miles) - Get the run in before the Thanksgiving feast
Noodleini 15K - Never done this before, but would be a nice way to keep the running up after half marathon season is over.

Hmm. Could be a busy year. But like I said, not all of those are set in stone. And there is a little part of me that would still love to be able to do a destination race somewhere. Still need to think about that and find out if my bank account will allow it.

So I've told you my (tentative) plans. What are yours? And will I see you at any of these races?

Three Things Thursday

1. The foam rolling is working. I've been diligently spending time torturing myself with my foam roller, multiple times a day, this week. So far I've gotten three runs in this week - two short 2-milers and one 3-miler as the training plan calls for - and my IT band really hasn't been bothering me much. Yay! So the plan is definitely to keep torturing myself daily.

2. We're getting our first real taste of winter here in Wisconsin the next few days. What does that mean? I'll be running in temps that are most likely in the low teens early Saturday morning. That's like a heat wave compared to the sub-zero temps we ran in last winter.

3. I'm counting down the days. I've got today, Friday and a Monday shift left and then I'm off until Dec. 19. Needless to say I'm ready for a break. And concentration at work has been a bit non-existent.

John Mellencamp said it best, it hurts so good

I've been spending a lot of quality time with my foam roller the past few days. And I can definitely say it's one of those love-hate relationships: I love the results, but oh boy do I hate that red piece of foam when I'm actually using it.
Let me back up.

Ever since I managed to fall off a 12-foot high wall and bang my knee at Tough Mudder - who am I kidding, running up and down a ski hill repeatedly probably didn't help either - I've been having issues with my IT band. Up through the Fox Cities Half Marathon in late September it would mostly bother me on long runs, usually once I hit Mile 8. It was never painful. It just got super tight. And of course then I'd start alter my stride. And it was just a bit cranky. But not so cranky that I couldn't keep running.

After setting that monster PR, I backed off on running in October and November. I still ran, but my "schedule" was one of those, eh, I'll run when I feel like it. And most of the runs were in the 3-5 mile range. On average I'd get 2 or 3 in a week. Nothing like the 30 mile weeks I was logging when I was running 5-days per week.

Well I've started back up with a training plan. And I don't know if it was the crazy downhill with the Santa Scamper, the longer Turkey Trot, the increase in mileage or a combination of all of them, but the last two weeks my IT band has been ANGRY.

And I got worried. Let's just say it hurt and bothered me so much during Thursday's 3-mile treadmill run that I was thisclose to just hitting stop sometime around 2 miles and quitting. And of course it wasn't just the IT band, but also a spot in my lower inside calf. And it hurt to walk out of the YMCA. I was almost in tears on the way home and of course in my mind I'm thinking stress fracture and boot was in my future.

But a rest day and a long, slow run with my friend Myriah on Saturday helped. She's battling a knee injury herself, so I was able to pick her brain about IT bands and what to do. But perhaps the best part is that neither of us was opposed to sprinkling walk breaks throughout our run. It definitely wasn't the fastest 5-miles I've run, but it felt good considering the circumstances.

And Myriah's advice (which was what I was expecting): Foam Roll. A lot. And schedule a massage with the sports massage therapist that we both see.

So that's what I've been doing. And tonight's run wasn't awful. It actually felt pretty good. And the IT band is a tiny bit cranky tonight post-run, but more of a grumble, not a full fledged temper tantrum like last Thursday.

Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a date with my foam roller for a torture session.

I'm smelling roses

Source

Football season in Wisconsin has been a good one.

The Packers just beat the Giants with a last second field goal to go 12-0. And last night? Oh boy, last night. My Badgers had me nervous. Seriously. To the point where I was pacing. Walking around in circles during commercial breaks. But they pulled it out - albeit thanks to some poor Michigan State player who picked up a roughing the kicker penalty - and beat Michigan State to win the first Big Ten Championship Game and earn a spot - for the second year in a row - in the Rose Bowl.

Who needs to watch the National Championship Game - we've already seen LSU and Alabama square off against each other once this season and it wasn't pretty - when you can watch the Badgers play Oregon? Oh, it will be a good one.

******

Time for a HBBC Week 2 update. Lots of stretching and foam rolling this week since my IT Band is SUPER angry at me. So angry that I was nearly in tears after my run on Thursday. Expect to continue to see those stretching points showing up next week as well.

Nov. 26 - 6 (4 mile run, 2 stretch)
Nov. 27 - 1 (1 stretch)
Nov. 28 - 4.5 (2.5 mile run, 1 stretch, 1 FV*)
Nov. 29 - 5 (3 mile run, 2 stretch)
Nov. 30 - 6.5 (2.5 mile run, 1 walk, 1 FV, 2 stretch)
Dec. 1 - 6.25 (3.25 mile run, 1 FV, 2 stretch)
Dec. 2 - 3 (1 walk, 1 stretch, 1 FV)
Total: 32.25

*FV = fruits and veggies

Three Things Thursday

1. So it's December, which means there are 31 days left in the year. 31 days to finish goals, especially those two big ones involving numbers for me: read 40 books and run 1,000 miles. Sadly I might miss both. I already touched on the books yesterday. The 1,000 running miles? I'm going to be close, but I don't think it's going to happen. Not counting today's run - which will get done after work tonight - I need to run 159 more miles to hit 1,000. That's a lot of miles. And it isn't going to happen. I was on track through September, but then I opted to go for a "run when I feel like it" schedule in October and November. And I needed it. But that leaves me 159 miles short. So at this point I'm just aiming for as many miles over 900 as I can. Any number I end up with will be a new yearly mileage PR for me. My highest yearly mileage to this point was 590 last year.


2. As fast as the year has gone, I'm pretty sure December is going fly. Which is scary because I've got so much to do. Decorate. Clean. Shop. Wrap presents. Family gatherings. Read. Run. Celebrate. Recover. Thankfully I've essentially got a week of vacation in the middle of the month (had to schedule the days and all the time around the holidays was already claimed).

3. Badgers. After I get done being a Warrior on Saturday morning the rest of the day is devoted to the Badgers. First it's the basketball game against Marquette and then at night its a rematch on the football field as Wisconsin takes on Michigan State in the Big Ten Championship Game. Crossing my fingers the football game doesn't end like it did in East Lansing.