Nine More Weeks

Remember my last post on getting new shoes? Here is a comparison pic: old versus new

I meant to post more on being halfway through half-marathon training, and now we are over half way! We are on week 14 and only have 9 more weeks to go until the Rock and Roll Half on November 3rd! Woohoo!

It's hard to believe that it's getting closer and closer. But it seems like I've been training forever... which, I pretty much have been doing since January 1 of this year. The build up and anticipation is certainly increasing as it gets closer, as well as our weekly mileage! I have no idea how I will handle the crossing the finish line... will I break down into an emo mess and weep like a baby? Or will I finish strong and feel like kicking ass upon crossing the line? Maybe I'll be crawling up the chutes, barely able to walk, and crying from pain!?! LOL Hopefully not that last one. I'm pretty sure lots of catching of breaths will ensue and trying to find water will be the first thing on my mind. Who knows! All I know is that I can't wait to find out!!!

We (the Pooler CREW Training Group) did 8 miles this morning on a dark golf course. It was pretty neat, as I've never run on such a course. It was a great change of scenery - even though the first half of the run was in complete darkness (thankfully the blue moon was still out at 5:30 am!) and there was some dense fog lingering over us. The 2nd half of the run was much better and cooler as the humid fog lifted and the sun started coming up.

Another old vs new comparison... Inside of my overpronating right heel

I've got a new injury this time around... It's called um... *something* bursitis (I will fill in the blank later when I feel like getting up to get the paper in my purse with the correct term)!! It's basically some fluid buildup at the back of my knee from my uneven leg lengths (due to scoliosis) and overcompensation of the shorter leg. It's nothing that inhibits my running, but it is one of those minor aches that gets annoying throughout the day and you'd just rather not have it exist. It only bothers me when I extend my left knee. I feel some minor discomfort at the back of my knee. I went to a free injury clinic at Fleet Feet after the 8-miler today and that's what the physical therapist told me. He suggested icing, compression, strengthening exercises and a heel lift (to lift my shorter leg up a bit). I actually have one from another PT that I threw in a drawer somewhere. I used it a few times, but decided it sucked. I might try to find it. I was apparently using it wrong. I was supposed to put it under the shoe's insert, not over it. (Duh!) Apparently this was caused from over striding from sprinting. With my last few runs, I've been trying to sprint at the end, like the last 1 to 1.5 miles of the run because I have energy saved up and I ALWAYS love to see how fast I can go for however many miles we do... Bad idea!! I need to save that stuff for actual races, not training runs...

Other than that I think I'm really getting stronger - especially with the crossfit class I'm going to. It's pretty intense, but I like a good intense workout where I'm not running on pavement for hours at a time! I'll blog more on that at a later time.

Speaking of getting stronger, I decided to start a Plank-a-Day challenge, where you pretty much just do a plank for as long as you can (time it) every day for a month and see how much longer you can do it by the end of the month. The plank position is one of the simplest ways to increase your core strength and stability – something I know I need in order to further reduce my chances of injury when I run.

I found out about Plankaday via a new blogger that I follow: Cherierunsthis.com! Cherie is a fitness blogger from PA who posts lots of recipes, workout tips and fun photos! Check her out if you can! I can't wait to do the Foodie Penpal this month! (I'll blog about that later too).

But it's another fitness blogger who started the Plankaday challenge: Lea at runningfordummies.net. She's got a leaderboard going and I'm currently #11 at 2:23 minute plank. Not bad for my first time! Lea holds 7+ minute planks!

I'm not sure if I was doing it properly, but my abs (and surrounding areas) were shaking for the last minute or so, so I think I at least got some real plank action going on! I'll have to have Joel check my form tomorrow. Lets hope I can keep this up every day! It only takes a few minutes of your time, so I have no excuse not to do it! Join me!!!

Mid-July Update (sorry my subjects are not exciting)

It's the middle of the month of July and I have already logged 35 miles! Woohoo! I have at LEAST another 27.75 left for the month - which is what I have scheduled with the training group, but I always like to to go a little above the set schedule each week (or so has been the trend), so I'm sure I will do more. So if I just did the scheduled distances with the group, my total monthly miles for July will be 62.75 miles! Let's see how much we can add to that...

I've been out of town this past week in Atlanta for work. I managed to get my miles in as well as do a 4-mile race with my friend/coworker, Justin. Our boss threw a shindig at her lovely house the night before and we ate and drank and had a great time. We of course left way later than we should have and definitely ate more than we should have, but it was all so good (we had home made mac and cheese AND lasagna)! So on little sleep and full carby bellies, we went out and did the race the following morning. Not too bad for me - there were hills of all sizes on this course. A shock for my body, but I liked the challenge. I ended up finishing in 41:03.

7.2 miles into my new PDR!

Jen running through the beautiful Isle of Hope neighborhood

On the 4th of July, some of my running mama buddies and I did the Watermelon Crawl at Lake Mayer/Isle of Hope put on by our local Fleet Feet. There was a choice of a 6-mile or 8-mile course, and I did the 8 mile with Jen (thanks for popping my 7.1 cherry, girl! LOL). This was a new personal distance record for me!! The previous longest distance I had done was 7.1 miles (recorded by Nike+ in 2008). The Isle of Hope is an awesome place to run.

I'm testing out some new inserts for my flatass feet. I tried them on the 5-miler today, well one insert in the right shoe only. I tried both on last Sunday's 5k and my left foot started feeling funny (in a bad way) during the run. It says you have to get used to them, but today, I didn't feel like getting that foot discomfort on a long run, so I only used an insert in one shoe (right). I might just wear them both around the house or something to break them in more. I don't know. Or I might ditch them altogether. I guess "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" My arches/feet have not been bothering me at all, but I read that if you over-pronate due to flat arches, it can cause back problems and knee problems. My knees are pretty bad (thanks Dad!), and I get back aches sometimes after runs (which I figure is due to my scoliosis), so I figure I'd give it a shot. They make my feet feel like they are being pushed to the outside of the shoe. A weird feeling. We'll see.

Happy running!