Random Running Rambling

Sometimes when I'm out on a run, I feel like I should pull my phone out and take snapshots of the random stuff I see along my routes.  Sadly, I cannot share pictures because I did not take any pictures for a few reasons: 

1.) I'm really not coordinated enough to run and take a picture at the same time

2.) The one time I tried, I learned that launching my camera app messed with the app that records my pace and distance

3.) It would not be tasteful to capture some of the things I see in a picture

So, we will simply rely on my vivid memory to relay some of the things I've seen during the past thirteen weeks of my half marathon training.  Some things make me look the other way, some things make me chuckle, some things cause me to make up hilarious stories in my mind to pass the time.

• During one run, I followed a Hansel-and-Gretel path of Oreo cookies.  How cruel is it to find a trail of cookies as I'm huffing and puffing and trying to "think" healthy?  All I could think was that some poor school kid's backpack was open on his way to school and part of his lunch snack dropped out, one cookie at a time.
• On another run, on a different road, I saw a discarded peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  Or so it appeared to be a PBJ.  Some kid must not have gotten sick and tired of the same sandwich packed in his lunch box each day.
• On any given run, there is always a plethora of roadkill.  I always avert my look - running forward but looking sideways until I'm passed the mess on the side of the road.  While on my vacation and running, it was especially sad to see a grouping of baby turtles that did not make it very far across the street.  Same with lots and lots of little frogs.
• I always see lots of live animals too - from dogs in fenced in yards to bunnies and groundhogs and beautiful yellow finches and even cute little fawns once.
• I also see lots and lots of empty beer and pop cans, which is rather puzzling since cans are returnable and worth ten cents in my state.  Shouldn't some person on a bike with a garbage bag be on the lookout for these?
• When I was running down a long country road in the middle of no where, there was a Jay-Z CD on the shoulder of the road.  It seemed so out of place!
• One of my favorite running encounters was an empty bottle of vodka along my running path.  A few feet away from that bottle was a box of condoms.  Hehe.  It made me chuckle and wonder if they were both discarded at the same time.

So, what random things have you seen discarded on your running path lately?

Another Post on Running - With Lists

This past weekend, I finished up Week 5 of my training schedule.  I'm working on a 15 week schedule for running another half marathon in July.  It will be my fourth "official" half marathon. 

Whenever The Little One sees my Nike running shirts, she touches the Swoosh and says "Airplane!"  Not sure why she thinks it's an airplane, but it's cute.

With each training run, I keep asking myself why I signed up for this. I can't wait for the training to become less of a chore.  And I wonder if it will ever move into the "enjoyable" category this time around. 

I've realized that over the years with running and not running and running again and not running again, I truly do have a love/hate relationship with it.  Add two kids, an extra thirty pounds, being several years older, and a major life event to the mix, and I'm a sketchy runner at best.

A little history for my own records.

1. January 2006 - PF Chang's Rock 'n Roll Half Marathon, Phoenix, AZ (Chip Time 2:06:17, Bib 45542)
2. April 2006 - Rock 'n Roll Marathon, Nashville, TN (Chip Time 4:54:41, Bib 5278)
3. April 2009 - Big D Half Marathon, Dallas, TX (Chip Time 1:55:25, Bib 3313)
4. October 2011 - Free Press Half Marathon, Detroit, MI (Chip Time 3:03:57, Bib 11079 - Silly me did NO training)
5. July 2012 - Half Marathon, Chicago, IL (Time TBD)
6. October 2012 - Free Press Half Marathon, Detroit, MI (Time TBD)

Some of my "dislike" things this time around with running....

1. I am thirty pounds heaver than I was during any of my other training stints.
2. My hip has been hurting me with each run (see #1 above).
3. My pace sucks (see #1 above)*. 
4. Running with two kids in a double jogger (a little over 80lbs to push)**. 

Some of the "love" things about running.....

1. My pace may be off and I may weigh quite a bit more, but I'm getting out and exercising.
2. I'm taking much needed "me" time.
3. I'm hopefully setting a good example for my girls that taking care of yourself and exercising are important.  The Older One always asks me at the end of a run "Are you happy yet?" because I told her that running makes me happy and I need it :)

Sweaty after an 8 mile early morning run.

Now, I need some good running play list suggestions!  I had play lists that helped me through my runs in the past. This time around I've been too lazy to create new ones.  I've simply been listening to my S!rius radio through my phone, but I'm super bored with it.  I'm open for song/play list suggestions!



* In the past, I had a decent pace going for me, but I never really monitored my pace and just noted it after a run was complete. When I've trained in the past, it was me, a heart rate monitor, and an iPod. Now that I have a plethora of running apps available to me on my phone, there are a million and one things that are tracked with each run. I had to shut off the coaching that tells me my pace every half mile. My pace has always been all over the place, and continues to be random. But listening to some lady tell me my pace is awful really plays mind games with me.

** In the past, I could run whenever I needed to, knowing there was a significant other there to watch the kid. This time around, I either have to push kids in or inconvenience my sisters or the neighbor to watch them. I had hoped it might be some extra "bonding" time between the kids and I, but they whine most the time or pick on one another and I end up putting my headphones in my ears so as not to listen to them say "Mama, she's touching me" or ask "Are we almost home yet?" over and over again.

A Post Where I Complain About

A few months back, I signed up for the Detroit Free Press Half Marathon.  My thought process was that if I signed up for it and paid for it, that would surely be all the motiviation I needed to train for the run.  Nevermind the last time I signed up for this half, I didn't train at all and it was money thrown out the door.  This time around is going to be different, right? 
Right.

I decided to take a look at the calendar today as I had this nagging feeling that I should have started training by now.  And, um....yeah.....I'm a few weeks behind schedule already.

The last time I actually ran a half marathon was two and a half years ago.  I wasn't working and had all the time in the world to train.  I only had one kid.  When I started training, I had a full 14 weeks to train and I was about 20lbs over my goal weight (which I happily lost during the weeks of training).

This time around, I'm working full time.  I have two kids.  I'm a single parent.  I have 8 weeks to train (10 weeks is ideal), and I'm now 30lbs over my goal weight.  I have a lot of things counting against me this time around.  And I feel like my heart is only half in it because of this.

So I went for a very quick run at lunch.  My knee immediately started hurting (due to the extra weight I'm carrying).  I couldn't get my darn running app to work on my iPhone.  And then my headphones got a short in them.  Let's not talk about my heart rate monitor sitting in my closet that needs to be sent in for maintenance.

But I'm determined to do the race. Even if I have to walk more than half the course.  Even if I get frustrated that I'm not as fast as I once was or as thin as I once was.  Even if I will be constantly reminded of my personal best time that is not within reach this time.  There will always be another race to train for next season.  And at the end of the day, at least I'm getting my big ol' booty moving again.

And I can't wait for the day that I get that runner's high again!

Half Marathon April 2009