Running to stay sane

8 miles on a mild December afternoon! Tank top and shorts! Yahoo! I ran through Murray/Taylorsville. My knee did not hurt AT ALL! Praise the Lord! I ran the last mile at 6:30 so I felt pretty happy about that. 7:05 AP

6 miles on the dreadmill. Winter is here folks...time for me to start crying!

60 minute spin. I have a cool app on my phone that goes through a typical spin class. So I did some hill repeats, sprints, etc.

2 pairs of tights, 3 layers up top, 2 pairs of gloves, a warm hat and my warmest pair of running socks. Running when it's 9 degrees is SO FUN (<----Insert sarcasim here). 7.3 miles through Hollady. The roads weren't too bad but got a little icy in spots. Be careful out there!

Dreadmill day #2. I started off at a comfortable pace and then increased the speed every .5 miles. My last mile was a 6:30...Can't believe I ran SG faster than 6:30 AP. I was in good shape! I hope to get a long run in with Emily tomorrow. I hope the snow holds off so we can get out!

I am SO glad Emily ran with me today. We both are lacking in the motivation department and had a hard time getting out the door. But we ran at the perfect time (right before the snow started coming down). We ran through Murray into Holladay and enjoyed looking at the HUGE homes. The pace was nice and easy and we truly enjoyed ourselves. Thanks Em! 12 miles at 7:30 AP.

90 minutes on the spin bike. Too cold and icy to run this morning. I did two hill workouts and 2 interval workouts so my legs are toast. Love me some leg toast :)

7 miles through Holladay. Besides it being 9 degrees, it was pretty fun. 7:20 AP

7 miles through Murray neighborhoods. The roads were better this morning and I didn't have to run through any snow or on ice. Still SUPER cold. 10 degrees. 7:18 AP.

I slept in this morning which meant I had to do a short run before Bryant left for work. 4 miles around Murray. 7:15 AP.

Originally, I was going to run a "lucky 7" miles today since it's Friday the 13th. But then I remembered that I'm not superstitious and ran 8 instead. It was 18 degrees instead of 9 and it actually felt a lot better. The air was pretty nasty though. 8 miles at 7:20 AP.
 

Today was a super busy day so I had to run at 5:30. 2 dance recitals, a birthday lunch and a Christmas work party. It took a lot of effort to get out of bed. But it was somewhat warmer (22 degrees) so that was nice. Ran through Murray neighborhoods to the Parkway. 11 miles.

I was finally able to run one of my favorite hilly 8 mile routes. There was still some ice/snow on the side walks but I strapped an extra headlamp on my head and ran on the shoulder. It wasn't too bad. I decided to make it a progressive run and ran the first 4 miles at a comfortable pace and then my last 4 miles were 6:55, 6:49, 6:43, 6:45. Not super fast but faster than normal pace. My hamstring did pretty well so that was a plus!

I guess my little tempo run yesterday took it out of me. Ha! 6 miles was all I could do today. I'm getting really bored with this winter/cold/ice/smoggy weather. Is it spring yet? 7:28 AP.

9 miles through Holladay. 7:28 AP.

I guess I was being a "Negative Nancy" this morning and found that a lot of things were bugging me. I'll list them for you:

• Drivers who can't seem to look both ways when making a turn. I was almost hit twice.
• Drivers who can't seem to give me more than 6 six inches. I try and run as close to the gutter as possible but there is a lot of ice/snow still.
• Other runners who wear ALL BLACK while running in the dark. Seriously? That is dangerous people! The brighter the better. I wear a reflective neon yellow running jacket and a head lamp every morning.
• High school parking lots. Holy cow...you wanna die? Run by one in the morning when a million high school students are trying to pull into the parking lot.
• Smog. Winter. Ice. Snow. Tights. Gloves.

I guess the glass was half empty today. BUT...a small miracle happened towards the end of my run that turned my thoughts back to the positive. I had to go the bathroom so bad and was about to drop my tights in the freezing 14 degree weather when all a of sudden a port-o-potty appeared out of no where! It was a Christmas running miracle! Then I started thinking about all the things I love about running:

• Watching the moon go down and the sun come up.
• Feeling myself breathe. Feeling that air fill my body.
• Quiet moments when I can think about life. I solve serious problems in my head while running. All world leaders should run! We'd have world peace in no time!
• I love when I feel good inside my body. I feel this way when I'm in shape and can run everyday. I'm so glad my knee is better.
• Feeling a great sense of accomplishment everyday. I did it all on my own.

I think this is my longest post ever. Nice...

Walked Slipped outside and realized the groud was nothing but ice. So I slipped back inside and rode my spin bike for 50 minutes. I was really hoping to run everyday this week. Guess Mother Nature has a different plan. Boo!

Yaktrax. Side streets. Clean air. 8 miles.

13 miles by myself through Holladay. It was enjoyable but I wished I would have had a friend. Who wants to run next Saturday? Let's get a group together!

The theme for the day: "Caution: Falling Snow". This balmy 40 degree weather is making all the snow fall out of the trees. I was dodging the snow bombs my entire run.

2 mile warm up, then I did 15x1:00 pushes, 1 mile cool down. 7 miles of fun.

6 miles on slick roads. 7:08 AP.

8 miles through Holladay on a lovely, warm Christmas afternoon. 7:10 AP.

No running today. I'm sick with a fever, cough, congestion. Glad I got some good running in earlier this week.

90 minutes on the spin bike to try and sweat the sickness out.

The first run after being sick is always hard. I thought I would feel better but I felt pretty crappy the entire run. I could barely keep under 8 minute pace. But I was able to run my favorite Holladay route. 7 easy miles. I hope I feel better on Monday!

I felt SO much better today. 7 miles through Murray and it was great. 7:19 AP. I am excited for the girls run on New Years Day! Can't wait to see all the girls!

6 easy miles around my house. My legs were really sore from doing my PT exercises yesterday. My quad is starting to "burn" again...I swear, I need to move somewhere warm. These injuries don't seem to happen when my muscles can warm up.

I figured out my mileage for the year: 2,381. Not too shabby. I am pretty sure it's the most I've ever run in one year! GO ME! :)

Big girls run tomorrow! 8:00 at Murray High. Come one, come all!