April 8th, 10th & 11th – 2.98, 3.64 & 3.54 Mile Runs

The continued prayer is, “Lord keep me focused. Keep my mind stayed on You. Help me to bring You praise. I know You believe in me. Please help me in my unbelief. Amen.”

Something went terribly wrong from April 3rd thru April 7th. I’m not sure what it was, but during that time. Not only did I have no desire to run but I actually DIDN’T run!

It was weird. I can’t remember the last time I took 5 straight days off. Even after the half marathons I’ve done, I was at least hobbling around after about 3 days.

After the third day, I was feeling pretty antsy, but I still didn’t run. By day five, the pain of inactivity was far worse than my worst workout recovery, so I had to get on my feet again.

April 8th, 2011 – 2.98 Mile Run - Like most mothers of young children, scheduling is only one of the many things that have to line up if you’re gonna get a run in and today was a bad day for a run.

After a full day of work, we had plans to go over to the In-Laws’ house to have dinner. My father-in-law had some sort of training event at his office and they sent him home with trays upon trays of BBQ from Wood Ranch. So my mother-in-law called us over to help eat it.

Seriously, who’s gonna turn that down?

Fortunately, they have a *really* nice treadmill so I asked if I could use it while we were there so I could bang out a quick 5k before I ate. It was a super casual outing so after I set the husband and kids up with plates, heavy with BBQ’d ribs, mashed potatoes, cole slaw and dinner rolls, I dressed out and hit the treadmill.

It’s been years since I’ve used a treadmill, but how bad could it be? Very bad!

I thought treadmill running was easier because you didn’t have to provide your own forward motion! It wasn’t difficult, per se, but it was *so* mind numbingly BORING!!! And it really shouldn’t have been.

Their treadmill is really top notch! It has the built-in fan and an in-laid television. I watched Jeopardy. I love that show! But the whole time I was thinking “When will this be over?!”

It was a great workout and I fully understand why people like treadmills. I was able to do some great interval training and maintain very specific speeds and rest times. I’m sure it was a lot more efficient than my typical workouts, but give me open air and a shady sidewalk on a spring day any day!

Besides, just shy of the 3-mile mark, I accidently knocked the safety tab out of its magnetic casing and the whole machine stopped and wiped out all my data. Blast!!!


April 10th, 2011 – 3.64 Mile Run
This run was great!!! I was in a little pain after the last run. I think it was my shoes. I was having some serious discomfort in my left knee and both ATs. Today, I decided to take it easy and run in my 5-Fingers.

Running in 5-Fingers is always a treat. You can’t run nearly as fast, but it’s like running when you were a kid, barefoot and without a care in the world.

At about the quarter mile mark, Jordan overtook me on his bike to heighten the effect of this adolescent frivolity.

There is absolutely nothing noteworthy to report about this run except that this was the most joyous experience I had all week. Out on a run on a beautiful day with one of my favorite people in the whole world.

Seriously… A slice of heaven.


April 11th, 2011 – 3.54 Mile Run
The first a part of this run was pretty bad. It was after dark and I took Jordan with me.

He couldn’t quite prove that he didn’t have any homework, but he claimed he got a Homework Pass at school because he had done so well on his reading. This was plausible, as he is ahead of his class in reading, but he couldn’t produce the aforementioned “Homework Pass”.

So Chris told him, he could read for 40 minutes or run for 40 minutes. He chose to run with me and I was ecstatic!!! I didn’t really want to run but I knew I needed to. Once I knew Jordan was in, I was excited!

He whined the whole first half, which is always a drag for me. I would have gone easier on him, but the whining boils me right over. So rather than turning right at the corner, I chose to keep straight and run up the hill!

We only went about three quarters of a mile up the hill, but it was a pretty decent workout for him. We did it in 4 and 1 intervals because this wasn’t a disciplinary run, so he had several walk breaks. I wasn’t working him *nearly* as hard as I could have.

When we got to the halfway point, it was time to run down the hill. Oh, the bliss!!!

I don’t know if it was the ecstasy of the wind in his hair when gravity is carrying you downhill or the wonderful knowledge that we were headed back home, but he soared over the miles like a little bird on the run back home.

That was great! We sat down on the front walk way, checked our stats on my iPhone, high-fived, then went inside for a big chunk of Rice Krispy Treats and a glass of water.

I asked him, “Do you think any of your friends could run 3.54 Miles?” He said, “Probably not.” Another high-five.

And it was off to the showers, then prayers, then bedtime. Zzzzz……