How is it only Thursday? I feel like it should already be Sunday.
Maybe it’s just been one of those weeks.
I went to a long overdue eye appointment this week. Holy crap, I can see again! I didn’t realize how much I was squinting until I didn’t have to anymore. I can see clearly now the squint is gone, hehe. And good lord, my eye sight is bad. 🤓
Lately, I’ve been on a Battlestar Galactica kick. It’s my newest binge. I watched it years ago but now thanks to Hulu, I’m rediscovering it all over again. It holds up. The commercials are about to drive me batty though. The commercial free version is looking better.
I had this idea to make Las Vegas half marathon #30… except I am one short. So half #29 anyone? Any ideas?
I just went on a book buying spree on Thrift Books. Did I need 4 new books? Nah…but I love their prices! Downside is they are coming from 4 different warehouses so now I just have to wait. Wonder which one will show up first.
On the upshot, I’ve been dizzy spell free so far this week- knock on wood- and gotten in 2 runs. Let’s keep it going.
Week 39? How did that happen? It’s October people! How did that happen? Anyone else feel like this year is flying by? Damn that’s a lot of questions, I’ll stop.
My back was better last week but still very present if that makes sense. I went with 3 days of running instead of 4. Thought about adding a 4th on Sunday but ultimately decided not to.
Monday- 3 miles My legs were feeling a little tight from the previous day’s hot mess of a long run so I kept things nice and easy. And short. My legs were a little stiff in the beginning but they loosened up. I ended up walking more than I would have liked at the end as a man had 2 large off leash dogs running around on the river path. They looked friendly but I don’t take that chance. I don’t have the best track record with dogs. 😛
Tuesday- RestHoly crap, I was walking out the door to go to work and I was hit with the worst charlie horse! I get them occasionally while sleeping but this was a first while moving. Weird.
Wednesday- Rest My back was cranky and it was 90* in home town at 6. I had changed and planned on running but when my mom called and suggested we meet up for pizza, it didn’t take much convincing. 😛
Thursday- 2.8 miles ish Maybe?? Work ran late so I had a late start. It was still almost 90 in home town when I started running. I forgot my hat, luckily I had a visor. Should have worn shorts not capris. Probably shouldn’t have started a run when my Garmin was at 8%. Thankfully the changing seasons had the sun dropping quickly. Less cool was that my Garmin died completely around 2 miles in. 1 tiny buzz of “low battery” to black screen. No!!! I stopped and said a few colorful words but I only had myself to blame. I pulled up Strava and tried to squeeze in what I could in the dying light. Running wise- it was a decent run. It also told me that I really need to start carrying my Knuckle Lights with me.
Friday- RestOpen to close. Let’s be real, by Friday- I’m a little loopy- nothing extra outside of work is happening. 😛 I was looking forward to sleeping in the next day.
Saturday- 8 miles I swear I was planning on sleeping in but somehow I was turning off my alarm and getting ready to run. I planned on running 10 miles from my house and ending at my mother’s tennis practice. However a couple of wardrobe malfunctions had me crunched for time. I first realized that the shorts I wanted to wear were dirty so I went with my second choice. Except when I went to use the bathroom one last time before leaving the house I found a huge hole in leg. WTH? Ok, what is my 3rd choice? I ended up running in a skirt. Which I use to run in all the time but I don’t anymore because I feel uncomfortable in them being that I am a little overly fluffy right now. Thankfully, it didn’t suck.
By the time I got out the door, I figured I would only have time for 9 miles. That said, it was a surprisingly even paced run. I was feeling pretty good. My back was cooperating and so was my shin. Halfway, I see someone running my way and think I recognize them. I do! It’s NikeC! So we stop and chat a bit before going our separate ways. Then I ran on knowing I now only had time for 8 miles. Fine by me. In fact it was barely 8. I was coming up on 7.7 trying to get to the high school when my mother called. She had finished practice and wanted to know where I was. I’m trying! I ended up having to run a circle in the parking lot to hit 8 miles. 😂
Sunday- Rest This time I did sleep in. It was awesome. Less awesome was the 90* temp of the day. My back was a little fussy, not hugely more than usual but with the higher temps I kept pushing a possible run back. I finally cleaned my car and sadly it was so dirty that it was quite a work out. 😛
13.8 milesfor the week. Still low but the back is feeling a little better. I do have a doctor’s appointment this week and I am still going to ask for a referral to a PT. Can’t hurt right?
I feel like all I do these days is make excuses. One of these weeks, I will type “this week was awesome!”. But that was not this week.
My back has been acting up and my hope that my new bed would cure all has not materialized. Boo. Actually, I am still on the fence when it comes to the new bed. But it’s only been 2 weeks, right? It has to get better right? I do feel less tired, so that’s a plus.
Ok, let’s get to the running or lack there of. This week had a good run, a creepy run and a disaster run.
Monday- Yoga app. Monday is a running day and I should have run but my back was pissed so I passed on the run and headed home to try and stretch out my back. If a yoga app could get dusty, mine would be. I chose a flexibility workout and tried to follow it the best I could. I also used my foam roller.
Tuesday- More stretching I still hurt more than I could ignore so another rest day it was. Ugh, this was getting old.
Wednesday- 4 miles The pain had downgraded to an ache so I figured I would try a run. Honestly I thought I would only get in a mile or 2. Imagine my surprise when I felt ok enough to keep running for 4 miles. I was slower than molasses but I felt ok. It was a decent run. It was also in the 60’s for the first time. I almost felt cold. 😛
Thursday- 1.5 miles Creeptastic run. I knew running 2 days in a row could be pushing my back but that was not what cut this run short. I set off and was walking my warm up when I noticed a bush on the back side of the lake. Except that bush had never been there before. And it seemed really boxy….and was it wearing shoes? As I’m giving this bush the stink eye, it jumps up and tries to scare me. Ummm, no dude. He was full on wearing one of those camouflage bush outfits. What? 1/2 mile later, some guy tries to preach to me. Which normally wouldn’t seem too odd but something about him just weird-ed me out. 1/4 mile later, bush guy was in a new hiding spot. I gave him the stink eye again. 1/4 mile past that, there was a dude dressed in a black hoodie, all covered up with a large black backpack. All right, I’m done. Get me out of here.
I did get to leave for lunch though
Friday- Rest Being down my boss, means that Fridays will be open to close for a while. That said, no running will be happening. My back was feeling a little better though. Or the migraine and dizzy spells that came with that time of the month just took precedence.
Saturday-Rest Based on how I felt Friday I knew I wasn’t running long in the morning but I had thought about making up Monday’s/Thursday’s missed miles in the afternoon. At least until I took a nap on the floor and really pissed off my back again. Stupid.
Sunday- 8 miles I planned on running in the morning but apparently my body had other ideas. I vaguely remember my alarm going off and me thinking 10 more minutes sounded nice. Then it was 9:45. Well, crap. Instead I set out for my long run at 3:00. It was 82* but I figured I would be fine. Bad idea.
Miles 1-4 weren’t bad. I stuck to my 1 minute run/ 1 minute walk and drank water when needed. I added a new street to the route and ran until I literally ran out out sidewalk. It was on the way back that I started to realize I had a problem. I really needed a bathroom! I swear I have never had to pee that bad in my life. I knew there was a park about a mile away and I was hoping the bathrooms were open. I got to the dog park first but the bathroom was so disgusting- I wasn’t that desperate. There was another set across the street so I kept my fingers crossed. Much cleaner but there were no doors for the stalls! What? Ok, I was that desperate. Luckily, a nice stranger was waiting outside for her son in the men’s room so she kept watch for me. Thank you! But by then I was also figuring out that I was overheating. My fingers had turned to sausages, my head was starting to hurt. Miles 6-8 were a slow slog of just trying to take the shortest route back to my car. Screw 10 miles, that wasn’t happening today. Why was there no shade?!
13.58 miles for the week. Considering my track record lately, it didn’t suck. At this rate, I won’t hit the 20’s again marathon training. 🤣 I had better be wrong about that.
I had this cutesy little plan that if you lined up weeks 34, 35 and 36 the title modifiers would all add up to say “Kind of Back To Normal“. Except this week wasn’t the normal that I wanted it to be hence the title change. While I ran 4 days, when you add up the mileage it looks quite sad. And adding a run on Sunday became laughable when I was hobbling around and had trouble just walking.
Anyways, moving on. Last week was an odd one. We found out on Tuesday that my boss is turning in her 2 weeks so the week just felt a little off. Well, all weeks after a 3 day weekend feel off but this one felt more off. Then I realized I seriously overbooked my Saturday and couldn’t figure out how to fix it. I had a race, a shift at the Avocado Margarita Festival, a bed delivery and a possible haircut appointment. I needed a clone.. or a teleporter. Everything took place in a different town.
Monday- 3.1 miles With the day off for Labor Day, I had thought about getting a long run out of the way early in the week but then I overslept. It was another triple digit day and my motivation flagged as the day went on. At the last minute I threw on running clothes and managed to get out the door for a late evening 5k. It was short but I am glad I did something other than laze around like a sloth.
Tuesday- Rest I rarely run the Tuesday after a 3 day weekend. Work is usually crazy and runs late. Theory held. 😛
Wednesday- 2.0 miles This was supposed to be 4 miles but work ran late and this was all I squeezed in before the light really faded once I got back to town. Oops.
It looks so much brighter in this pic than it was
Thursday- 1.5 miles Failed kitten rescue! I set out to run but only made it about 3/4 of a mile up the hill before I heard a little meow then saw a tiny kitten in the storm drain. He looked like he needed help so I tried to rescue him. I managed to coax him out of the storm drain and noticed he was limping but he wouldn’t let me near him. I followed/chased him through bushes, freaked out a dog in a yard, almost fell down a little hill, got odd looks from other runners passing by but couldn’t find him. He went into stealth mode! After more than 30 minutes I gave up, sad. By then it was getting dark so I just headed back to the car.
Friday- Rest I worked then out to Avila Beach to pick up my race packet. Packet might be a misnomer- it was a bib and shirt. And I almost got lost in the parking lot- a few more signs would have been nice.
Saturday- SLO Ultra 5 Miler Recap to come but I will say -oh my quad—the hills.
Then I attempted a quick change before heading to work town for the Avocado Margarita Festival. Where I had to park way too far away and book it down to the volunteer tent in flip flops. My haircut appointment was a no go and my dad was a champ and met the delivery guys to accept the bed delivery. Even though that was an adventure in itself. His solution to making sure that the cats or dog didn’t get out while the guys were there was to just have them deliver the new bed to the garage. Then when I got home we carried it into the house and set it up. 😛
Sunday- Haha! Oh my god, I’m broken. I can’t move. I can’t even remember the last time I’ve been this sore. Like I wish my bathroom had those handicap accessible bars in it for I need to use the restroom. 😂 I kept telling myself that I was going to run but the very idea of going down my driveway actually scared me. Ouch!!!
11.6 miles for the week. Haha. I really should have run that long run on Monday. Maybe I also should have looked at the elevation profile of the race sooner than Friday too. I might have anticipated my broken-ess a little more. Right now I am just hoping I can walk normally on Monday. 😛
I ran 4 days this week! And bought a bed! I don’t know which is more exciting.
Ok, truth, my miles were still super low but 2 of those 4 days were still technically when I wasn’t “supposed” to be running. Combine that with our crazy heatwave and I was pretty stoked. Until I looked at the overall number. Then I felt a little bummed. Apparently I’d done my math wrong somewhere, I thought I’d run more. Boo.
Back to the bed. My freakin’ bed is breaking me. My back hurts, my arms hurt, my left hip hurts. Sleep is just no fun. To be fair- my left hip can often be fussy- I sleep on my left side. I went to another bed store to check out more options. Blech, less blech, yuck, too soft, wait. Wait a second- no left hip pain? Sold! It’s some sort of hybrid- memory foam and springs. I can’t even remember who makes it right now, I just want it but instead I have to wait for it to be shipped and then delivered. Boo.
Back to running, my miles were a bit of struggle this week. I feel like that break made me lose so much fitness. Well that and a lackluster July due to conversion. I’m also not using either inhaler right now because it can still have a reaction with the meds in the antibiotics. Never taking those again. So each run has been super slow and a lesson in breathing. But the doc gave me the all clear to run on Thursday as long as it’s slow and easy, so woo hoo!
Monday- 3.2 miles It was 100 degrees in home town so I ran in work town which temp wise was about 30 degrees cooler but a super dense marine layer moved in so I was a little worried about how my lungs were going to react. I kept it super slow and walked whenever I needed to. I might have run longer but a man popped out of the bushes in the eucalyptus grove and scared the crap out of me so I hightailed it back to my car. I think he was just waiting for a ride but it weird-ed me out.
Tuesday- Rest
Wednesday- 2.5 miles. Miserable miles. It was over 100 degrees after 6. My shorts kept riding up into non existence. My pack kept either trying to choke me or the bottle was smacking me in the back of the head. My breathing was nuts considering I was barely moving. Finally I decided I was doing more harm than good. Why I thought a 5 miler was a good idea with temps like that when I wasn’t even technically supposed to be running anyways? Who knows?
Thursday- 2.3 miles All clear! However it was 101. So in deference to the heat and the migraine I could feel coming, I just stuck to 2 laps of the lake path. Either way, it was still better than the day before.
Friday- Rest Migraine City, baby. Fun.
Saturday- 6.22 miles I planned for an 8 mile long run but when my alarm went off, I was a little too ill to run (stupid stomach), I managed to get out the door by 9 but with the temp predicted to hit 112, I knew it was going to get hot too fast. I signed up for the #RunforTexas virtual run to help raise funds for those affected by Harvey so I knew I was making myself finish a 10K. To make sure I took it easy, I ran 1 min, walked 1 min which actually put me around a 12 minute pace. Who knew? This was working out ok until 4.8 when my stomach forced me to stop for a bit. So I parked it on the sidewalk for a few minutes hoping it would calm down so I could continue. Funnily enough- there was a bright red Corvette for sale on the road side about 20 yards up from where I was sitting. It was getting a lot of attention from drivers passing by. I was trying not to stereotype but by the time the 4th car had stopped to check it out- #midlifecrisis anyone? I finally got up and ran on. I slowed a bit more, but finished the 10K. It was 98 when I finished. 8 miles wasn’t happening.
Sunday- Rest I thought about running but couldn’t get a handle on the weather. It was 100 again but we also had thunderstorm and lightning warnings. The humidity was intense and the sky looked weird. Rain is cool- lightning, not so much. The rain did come, the storm mostly hit southern county though.
14.2 milesfor the week. Better than previous weeks but not what I had somehow convince myself I had done. Oops. Well, at least I’m not a rule breaker anymore.
Slacker Runner 