2 miles = 30 minutes!!

Wow! I met one of my running goals this morning!  I ran 2 miles in 30 minutes!  This past Tuesday I was able to run one mile in 15 minutes and the other 15 minutes I ran just short of a mile.  I am happy I was able to push through and make that second mile in 15 minutes today!!! Now I will try to make 2 miles in 30 minutes for the next week or so then on to adding more distance to my 30 minute runs!! Maybe by the end of the winter I will be running 3 miles in 30 minutes!! A 10 minute mile, wouldn't that be something!!

15 minute mile!

Today I met one of my goals and was able to run a 15 minute mile!  Go me!!  All together I ran 1.88 miles in 30 minutes.  It felt good to finish! :-)  Now on to my goal of being able to run 2 miles in 30 minutes.

Running Uphill...

Today I ran outside and instead of taking my usual flat route I chose a route with some elevation change (read: hills!).  I managed to survive! I ran 2.5 miles but I don't know how long it took me because I forgot to mark my time when I started.  Drat!  Oh well, guess that means I will have to run that route agian next weekend so I can get an idea of my time.

Improving...

Today was one of those "tough" running days. The first part of my run I just wanted to quit but I kept up the self talk (yes, yelling at myself at times) and pushed through. I managed to run for 22 minutes at speed 4.1 for a distance of 1.5 miles. Then I finished up the remaining 8 minutes at speet 3.4 for a grand total of 1.95 miles. I was bummed though because had I noticed I was so close to two miles I would have gutted it out and ran the last .05 of a mile to complete two miles! Oh well...I am improving!!

Squeezing in a run...

I didn't have much time today to run but I did manage to squeeze in 30 minutes this morning. I ran 12 minutes at speed 4 then dropped to speed 3 for about 3 minutes and upped the hill setting. After running up a hill for a bit I jogged at speed 3 again for a bit then up to speed 4 for two minutes and finished out at speed 3. All in all a pretty good work out :-)

Getting easier....

Today I ran 5k in 41 minutes!! The main thing I noticed while I was running today is that I didn't get the feeling that I was going to die during the first 5 minutes of my run.  Up till now it has taken extreme will power to push through the first 5 to 8 minutes of my run.  Today it was, dare I say it, easy!  I think my 30 minute runs twice a week at speed 4 on the treadmill are definitely helping with my stamina!  Yay!

The Daily Grind

I can see now why people keep setting longer and longer distances as goals when they are running.  It is HARD to keep going week after week when your only goal is to finish the same thing you did last time you ran.  I am going to have to find a way to motivate myself through this school year because I can't spend the time needed to run longer distances. 

Today I ran for 30 minutes (twenty-three at speed 4 on the treadmill, six at speed three and the last minute back at speed four) for a distance of 1.87 miles.

Tuesday headache...

This morning I woke up to a headache.  I really didn't want to run but I forced myself onto the treadmill.  I am so glad I did!  Who knew running could be a cure for a headache?!  I feel much better now.  I ran 30 minutes, 20 of those were at speed 4 and the rest were at about 3.6.  I ran a total of 1.85 miles in those 30 minutes.

All I can say is "Wow"!

Today I set out to run outdoors on a beautiful fall morning in NW Colorado.  Blue skies, cool temps and a slight breeze.  Perfect!  I made sure to note the time as I started to run because last Saturday I was disappointed that I didn't have an accurate count for the length of time I had run.  As I was running I realized that it was feeling very easy (at least after the first 5 minutes which are always the hardest for me).  I ran and ran with no real shortness of breath or breathing problems to speak of.  When it was all said and done I was surprised to find I had run 3.56 MILES in 46 MINUTES!!!! WOW!! That is the farthest I've run to this point!  Needless to say I was proud of myself!  Running brings such a sense of empowerment for me!  If I can do that I can do ANYTHING!

A basic question...

Why is it that on a day I am not running all I want to do is run but when I'm in the middle of a long run all I want to do is stop?!?

It's all about the breathing...

Breathing during my run today was tough.  I kept getting what I call "breathing spasms" They lasted until I was about 3/4ths of the way through my run.  I ran on the treadmill 32.5 minutes today for a distance of 2 miles.

How I got hooked on running...

I decided to start this blog mostly for myself.  If it provides inspiration for others then that is an added benifit!  I started running in June of 2010.  I had been walking regularly with a friend and one day, out of the blue, she suggested running.  We started with Cool Running's,  Couch to 5k plan (http://www.c25k.com/).

I had never ever considered myself a runner or even all that athletic before I started the plan.  I'd like to say I was hooked from day one but realisticly it was probably about week 6 or 7 when I realized I was enjoying running.

Since finishing C25k I have been running 3 times a week.  Tuesdays and Thursdays I run on my treadmill and on Saturdays I run outside.  The farthest I have run is 5k (3.1 miles) and I have only done that one time.  It took me about 45 minutes to run that far.  Since school has started I don't have that much time so I have been running aprox 30 minutes and working on getting my speed up.

My blogs may be boring from here on out, they will mostly be a record of my distance, speed, how I felt and what my thoughts were about each run.  But, like I said, this blog is mostly to motivate myself on this journey.  :-)