September Running Journal

September Running Journal... 32 miles 9/14-9/30!


Th 9/30/04
Just got back from my three miles today, still on the 2/2 intervals. This weekend (my next run) I'm scheduled to do 6 miles, and I plan to keep up the 2/2 pace the whole time. Then next week during the mid-week runs I might step it up to 3/2.

Got another donation yesterday! :-) This time my mom was the one to make me smile. I sent off quite a few letters last week, but so far I've gotten no mail-in donations, so I plan to send out an update email this week and some update postcards late next week. I've also decided to contact some local businesses to see if they'd like to sponsor me and help me support LLS. Wish me luck!


T 9/28/04
Wow. I have some great friends. If you look at that picture of me on the right, you'll see something green resting on the back of the chair just behind my right shoulder. That's Louise (well, her arm), a good friend and fellow music fanatic I met this year, and she and her husband just donated very generously. I can't thank them enough, and each time I see another donation on my Active Giving page I get warm fuzzies. :) It's still early in the game, and I'm creeping toward my goal faster than I would have imagined in the first week. Thanks again!

Today I continued with the interval walking/jogging and did 30 minutes of 2 minutes/2 minutes walking/jogging and 25 minutes of 2 minutes/1 minute walking/jogging, 55 minutes total (probably about 4 miles?). Rockin' On!


M 9/27/04
Happy Monday! No, I'm not perky because of a morning run (I'll be doing my three miles this afternoon), I'm excited because I've gotten my first two donations! Don't you want to help make me this happy? Donate Online Here! I had a Bridal Shower and Party to help give Saturday for one of my best friends, and two of my friends' mothers gave me checks for LLS.

I started the weekend with my five mile Saturday morning training, which I ran/walked with my mentor Cathi and a woman from Scotland named Barbara, and I tried actually folloing the suggested interval guidelines for beginners. First I jogged to Final Kick (1/2 mile), then when the group run started we alternated brisk walking and jogging, 2 minutes/1 minute for four miles, then I jogged home from Final Kick to get the last half mile in. It may sound strange, but we kept up a 12-minute pace that way, and I was more sore Saturday afternoon than I've been so far in this training. Oh, and Cathi talked me back into training for a full marathon in January, since I can always fall back if I can't do the longer runs once they come around. So, onward to 26.2 miles! 15 weeks to go...

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Afternoon Run Update: Just got back after three miles. I decided to keep up the intervals, but this time I did 2 minutes/2 minutes walking/jogging, and I kept it up without problems for the whole three miles. It's hard to admit how far I'd fallen back in a year of near inactivity - I could run five miles without a rest during my 1/2 marathon training last year! I'll be back there soon enough, and I think the intervals will actually help me get there sooner.

Fundraising update: I got another donation this afternoon from a friend and fellow New Model Army fan from Arkansas.


Th 9/23/04
Ever have one of those mornings when you find yourself dreaming about getting up and taking a shower, only to realize you're still in bed hitting snooze a half an hour later? This morning I was putting on my running shoes and hitting the pavement with my eyes closed. I did finally get up and get out there and get 3 miles in just after sunrise. I had forgotten how peaceful it is to run in the early morning. I wasn't planning to head for the park at first, but there were so many people out on the trail that I was comfortable (and not alone) heading toward the wooded area that takes me to the 1.5 mile turnaround area. I only ran a mile at first, but I got another half mile in on the way back as I passed little kids and their moms at bus stops along the trail in the neighborhood. All this before 7:30!

I finished getting my Active Giving site in order this morning as well (look for the Donate Online Here! links all over the place), so now all I'm waiting on to have a complete website is information (and permission) from my honoree and her family. Wheels are turnin' and feets are movin'!


T 9/21/04
Well, Tuesday's supposed to be a rest day for me, but since I didn't get to run yesterday (tough week at work), I went two miles today, as specified by my training schedule. I'm still in run/walk mode, which I remember last year lasted about a month, so technically I only ran a mile. I started my run at the trail and jogged to the half mile mark, where I was surprised to see that I had done it in 5 minutes (I've been a 12-minute miler even at the half-mile mark since I started running again). I walked (briskly) to the mile mark, touched my tree (at 12 minutes), and jogged back to the half mile (at 17) and walked to the my finish line 24 minutes after I began. I've picked up my walking and running pace quite a bit in only two weeks! Yay for me!

Today was actually a pretty productive day. I finished making a DVD for my friend, cleaned the bathroom and the bedroom, ran, finished my fundraising flyer, took the car to the shop, walked to Kinkos and made copies, had a smoothie at Planet Smoothie while I addressed and stuffed envelopes, picked up the car, and went to the Injury Prevention Clinic where I handed in 31 letters to be mailed out. I'm on my way! Now it's time for dinner and Star Wars!


S 9/18/04
Today was my first training run, and it felt so good to get back in the swing of things. We started with a Silent Mile - there were some volunteers and a patient honoree holding signs and posters along the first mile, and we ran in silence to reflect on what we were really training and fundraising for. I was scheduled to do 4 miles, but I walked from the house to the training area (1/2 mile) and ended up jogging back afterwards, so I'll consider it a 5-mile day. I ran at least 2 miles total. After the run, I asked Coach Bob for a hald marathon training schedule, 'cause I don't think I'll be ready for the full marathon until March.

Back at Final Kick (where we meet to run), the TNT staff had donuts and juice for the runners (hey, we needed the carbs...), and there was a meet and greet where I got to speak with one of our patient honorees. He's currently in remission, but he told me that one of his prescriptions would cost him over $45,000 a year if it weren't for the help from The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, and he has to remain on this medication for the rest of his life if he wants to continue to be in remission. It's good to know that the money I'll be raising can help people as much as it's helped him. Since my house is on the way back from the park where we run, I had considered not going back to Final Kick, but I'm glad I did. Now I'm even more motivated to raise this money for LLS.



Th 9/16/04
Two miles today... I started by taking my bike out to figure out where the one mile mark is from my house (somehow I don't think I ever did that last year), and there's a tree in the park that's perfect. So I went back to the house, locked up the bike, and ran all the way to the tree, touched it, and walked the next half mile. Then I ran the rest of the way home. :) 3/4 of a run actually running!



W 9/15/04
Ok, I did it. I've been thinking about it for a while, and I decided to sign up again for Team in Training. I've not decided which 1/2 Marathon to train for, it's either Disney or the Phoenix Rock & Roll. Either way, I'm going to see this 1/2 Marathon as just a part of my overall training - I'm planning to run the Shamrock Marathon here in Virginia Beach in March. I'm a little concerned about the fundraising because it was kind of tough last year. But I got lots of encouragement from the mentors at the information meeting last night, and I've got a few ideas about how I can make this less painful (including this website right here). I know I'll be able to make it because I know it's worth it. And I know you all (my readers out there in cyber-world-land) will help me reach my goal!

Did 3 miles today, 17 minutes running! That's the most I've run since I don't know when! (Very sad, I know. Time to get back in shape.) I've got my trusty iPod at my side as well, now, and it's a big help. Earth Wind & Fire and The Beastie Boys kept me company this evening. Oh, and I'm only at a 12 minute mile pace these days. Gotta get it back up to 10!

Donate Online Here!