Running is cheaper than therapy!!!

Alright, today is the first day on this blog, and also the first time in 18 months that I am going to truly rededicate myself to running.  My second daughter gets the blame for that one, but now it is time for some me time.

Lunch run of 4.0 at an excruciatingly slow 34:05 today.  Since it is just the first day back, and was 70 degrees out, I planned to run slow anyway, but had been looking for something around 31:00.  However, I got serious sidestitch just under a mile into it, and never could get into a groove.

Hoping for better tomorrow morning.

Note to self, don't grab a handful of Jelly Bellys right before heading out for a run, because I am pretty sure that was the cause of the sidestitch I got yesterday.  I know better than to run with something on my stomach, and especially with junk like that.

Anyway, todays report was another 4.0 at lunch, but did it in 31:15, which is closer to what I was looking for.  I can definitely tell that I haven't hardly done squat for the past 18 months, because I don't have the legs or the lungs right now.  Must keep reminding myself to just take it easy these first few weeks to get some conditioning back, before starting to look for anything in the way of speed.
 

Early morning today.  Put in 6.2 miles at 54:00.  It was nice and cool (50) out, and just a great day for a run.  A couple of nice hills on the route, and not many cars out at 5:00 AM.  They are calling for rain later today, and I am planning to take the girls out to the bookstore or the park later (if not raining) as my wife says she needs some time to clean up the house.  (I'll take quality time with the kids over housecleaning any day.)

Three days in a row now, and am going to take tomorrow off, and get back into it again on Monday.  Gotta hit the shower now before everyone wakes up.

Have a great weekend.

Day off today. Got up early and did some stretching, which I need to do much more of. One of my goals is to get into a groove of running in the mornings, and then go to the gym at lunch, to work on stretching and also some weight training, because I feel that both of those would help me tremendously.

We had the Easter Egg hunt for our subdivision today. It was pretty cool, and lots of eggs for the kids. However, I was not happy when I got back home and saw my Razorbacks lose to Georgia in the finals of the SEC tournament. We should have stuffed them in the trash.

Had planned to do about seven miles today, but my wife told me she wanted to leave for work by 6:30-6:45 this morning, so I had to get up earlier and shorten the run a bit to make sure I had time to take a shower and be ready for when the girls woke up.

Actually felt pretty good today.  Covered the 5.9 in 47:16.  Legs felt good, and I wasn't pressing at all.  I'm usually pretty sluggish in the morning, (started at 4:45) and can't get the legs turning over very well, but just ran comfortably.

Went to the gym at lunch to lift some weights and do some stretching and core training.  Got to keep this part up, to see if being stronger will help me be a better runner, which I'm sure it will.

Stayed up late last night, so took my running clothes in to go out for a run at lunch.  Well, the first phone call I get was from my company's new CFO asking me to attend a meeting he was holding with the managers of one of our subsidiaries that I do the accounting for.  Needless to say, I accepted his invitation, and spent the rest of the morning and my lunch break scrambling to make sure I had all of my ducks in a row to be able to answer any questions he asked.

Try again tomorrow.

Went out for 4.0 at lunch today and covered it in 32:03.  There is a front coming through today, and it is pushing some big winds out ahead of it.  Something like 20-30 MPH most of the day.  The route I usually run at lunch has lots of turns in it, so the wind we beating the bejeezus out of me.  I would be leaning into it one minute, and then trying not to get knocked down from behind the next.  However, I'll take it for the inch or so of rain they are predicting for tonight.  This drought is killing stuff left and right around here.  Our neighbors across the street look like they are going to lose one or two big pine trees in their yard, and we are losing several shrubs.

Went out again at lunch.  (I've got to start getting to sleep earlier at night.)  Ran 4.0 in 31:06.  Still feeling good a week and a half into this blog.  Have a bit of discomfort in my left knee, but it doesn't seem to be anything more serious than my body that had gotten used to being a couch potato asking for more couch time.  :) :)

Okay, where have I been for the past week?  Well, let's just say that I fell off the wagon for a bit.  There were a number of issues that just got in the way of running.  Nothing serious, and they would all just be excuses anyway, so I won't even go into it.  Just need to get back into the groove.

One thing I will say, is that I really need to clean up my diet.  Gotta get over this CSD addiction that I have.  In particular Vault.  Also, need to learn to watch the portion sizes on what I eat, because I know that I sneak in much more than I should.

Okay, today's run report is 4.0 at lunch in 31:31.  It is warming up finally.  I hope to plant some vegetables in the garden in the next day or two, to hopefully have fresh vegetables in a couple of months.

Gotta go pick up the girls at daycare.

Okay, went out again at lunch today, for another 4.0 in 31:38.  It is definitely warming up now in these parts, though I hear that Sunday is going to only get up to around 50.  I plan to try and get some plants in the ground tonight or Saturday.

Snuck out at lunch today for a nice little 7.2 in 59:55.  Not the fastest in the world, but I'll take it. Weather was kind of weird here today, because it was 60 when I woke up about 7:30.  Then when I got back from from my daughter's ballet class at 10:30, it was 54, and continued to slowly slide all day.  Tonight they are calling for a low of 41, and the high tomorrow will only be 43.  Sounds like a good day to stay home with the family.

 We are going to grill some pork spareribs tomorrow, so should be a good dinner.
 

Oops, didn't run the course I thought I was this morning.  Intended to go out for about 7.5 miles, but when I ended up back at the house in 48:42, I knew something was amiss.  Checked the distance at USATF's website, and found out it was really only 5.8 miles.  Oh well.

It was quite a nasty morning out today.  It was 41 when I left the house, and the roads were a bit damp.  Just past halfway, and also about a mile past where I could have turned to cut my run short, it started coming down in a steady light rain.  I absolutely hate running in rain, and cold rain is usually avoided at all costs.

Planning to go to the gym at lunch today to lift some weights, do some stretching and core exercise.

Best of running to everyone this week.

It was pouring down rain this morning, so I slept in an extra hour.  Am going to the Y at lunch to run on the treadmill (I hate treadmills) for a few miles to break in my new pair of 1062s.