I've certainly put in a lot of miles compared to what I was doing the first couple weeks. I've worked up to a 12 mile long run. My long runs I have felt pretty strong for the most part--especially the 11 mile run. For the 11 miles, I ran across the arsenal bridge, along the Iowa bike path, all the way to a Veteran's memorial park, across a bridge that is currently closed because the foundation was crumbling so it is being reconstructed, back along the Illinois bike path all the way home. For the 12 mile run, I ran 6 miles on the Illinois bike path and back home. It has been hot, a little wet, & humid the past couple weeks--heavy on the humid side (90%). I've been sweating buckets. I'll tell you a secret, but you have to promise to still be my friend. I don't even bother with the deodorant before I run because it's pointless. I shower when I return home & CJ is napping.
Fun (Not so fun) story about my 12 mile long run this past weekend: I got up at 7 a.m., checked the forecast/radar. I figured I could make it there and back before the heavy rain hit. Just over 3 miles to go, and I could see the dark storm clouds rolling in. They were the kind that you are just waiting for them to burst open at any second. There was someone leaving a construction site who yelled out his window to me, "You better hurry, the storm is going to be here in about 15 minutes!" I had about 30 minutes to go. :/ Not 5 minutes later, it started down pouring. According to the radar before I left, there was a lot of green before it got to the yellow and red. It was wrong. I didn't see a single sprinkle. It was torrential down pour. I couldn't see (despite my choice to where contacts since glasses are easily fogged). It hurt my skin. Heavy winds (gusts up to 38 MPH). My shoes were soaked. My shirt and shorts were soaked. My underwear were soaked. I mean--most of those were already pretty damp from the 94% humidity--but rain water is a lot heavier than sweat apparently. And then the streets flooded. Not just little puddles, but I was running through at least an inch of rain for the last 3 miles. Lucky for me, scientists say that you don't get pneumonia from being out in the rain or from wet feet. I didn't get pneumonia. I just got really wet. But I got the run in!
I have had some people ask me if my dog Lyna is still going with me. Yes! She doesn't do the long runs with me, but she has ran up to 5 miles multiple times with me. That's about her max, especially on the hotter, more humid days. She pees a lot. Half the time she fakes it, and I believe it is because she wants a break. Today we only ran 3 miles, and she gave up on me a half mile from home because it was just that hot & humid. We even left at 7:30 a.m. She does get really excited when I put on my running clothes though. I'm not sure if it's because she is excited to run, or the more likely scenario is that she is very concerned that I might leave without her.
The half marathon (13.1 miles) is THIS Saturday! I can't believe it's already here! I do not feel as strong as I did when it came time for my marathon, but I can definitely finish--I'm not worried about that at all. I've been having some foot pain, so I'm hoping that taking this week easy will help that disappear along with a strong dose of prayer. As far as goal times, I initially was hoping to be able to do a 10 minute pace, but I think that would be asking a lot. I'm hoping more for an 11 minute pace which would be a 2 hours 24 minutes and 6 seconds finish time. I hope P. has fun entertaining CJ while I run! hahaha! Mommy gets a "break" running a half marathon. The race starts at 7:30 a.m. with registration starting at 6:30 a.m. so we'll have to leave here pretty early that morning. Exciting!
I have had a few people donating recently after I sent another round of emails to everyone in my inbox as a reminder. So far, $450 has been raised for the American Heart Association & that is absolutely fantastic! I'm still not giving up hope for $1000 by the time I do the Heart Walk in October though. If you would like to donate, please follow this link. Running by itself is great for your mind and body. When you run for something other than yourself (through the power of God), you truly are unstoppable. More importantly than donating to my cause, I urge you to find your own cause and work hard for it.
Here is what the past few weeks entailed:
Wk-Mon-Tues- Wed- Thurs- Fri- Sat- Sun
| 9- | Rest- | 3 m run- | 5 m run- | 3 m run- | Rest- | 6 m run- | cross | |||||
| 10- | Rest- | 3 m run- | 5 m pace- | 3 m run- | Rest- | 11 m run- | cross | |||||
| 11- | Rest- | 3 m run- | 5 m run- | 3 m run- | Rest- | 12 m run- | cross |
Awesome job today, Amanda! We were excited to hear it went so well! Congratulations! - J,F,F,G,H
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