Still going . . . but needing sleep

Still training for the mini . . . . only 10 days to go now. I'm getting excited and a little nervous. 4 weeks vegan now. That's going well too. Not sleeping well due to hot flashes, etc. That's not much fun and I feel sleep-deprived. Making up for it by eating carbs which isn't good either. Need sleep.

3 weeks vegan - last long training run

I've been eating vegan for 3 weeks now. I feel great, not that I got through the detox period. It takes me a lot longer to plan meals and shop for food now, but it's worth it. I know it will come easier the longer I do it. Also, I ran my last long training run, 12.7 miles, this morning. My pace was good (better than I expected). My sweet husband carried my water bottle and rode along beside me on the bike while I ran. I appreciate his love, support, and protection so much. I am so blessed. My muscles are "talking" to me right now - 6 hours later. I am going to be so sore.

Two weeks in vegan eating, and counting . . .

I've been eating vegan for 2 whole weeks now. It's REALLY good. I am amazed at the recipes I've found. Some I've already tried (and loved) and some I can't wait to try. My husband, a meat and dairy eater, is even eating my vegan dinners. Amazing. It sure helps to not need to make two different meals each afternoon/evening. Anyway, I feel great (except a little tired from the mini-marathon training) and I'm beginning to get results.

15 K 500 Festival Training Series

Tomorrow is my first 15 K race. 9.3 miles. And I'm feeling really tired today. I don't know if it's from all the training for the mini-marathon or being on Day 10 of a vegan diet or just because. I don't like it though. And I'm trying to get the house ready for a showing tomorrow morning by myself. Normally my husband helps me but he's helping his daughter do some remodeling on her house today. It will all get done. I just want to lie down and take a nap, but there's still so much to do. I've got to run into town too . . . I have a library DVD due that I haven't even had time to watch. Oh well.

Running Tired

With Saturday's 11-mile run, little sleep for 4 nights, Monday's workout, and a trip to Ohio later Monday morning I got really run down. I took a few days off from running. I still feel a little tired today, but I'm gradually improving. This morning I ran 6 miles into 20-25 mph wind gusts. Part of the time I felt like I wasn't moving at all and other times it reminded me of Mary Poppins and The Flying Nun. Sure was nice on the way back though to have a gentle shove.

Vegan Food

Life is a process of choices and changes. I'm considering a vegan food plan. It seems healthy and reasonable although most of my family and friends will probably disagree. I'm doing some reading and research on it today and experimenting with it.

Friends

I'm so thankful for my friends . . . how rich I am to have such good friends. I had the privilege of meeting a dear, sweet friend today for lunch that I hadn't seen for at least a year. What a beautiful time of sharing our hearts, our thoughts, our joys, and our needs. Thank you, Lord, for my friend, Brenda.

Shoes

I think my" new" (2 weeks old) running shoes are not working for me. They're a size larger than I normally wear because my previous two pair began feeling like they were too short. My foot must have spread out in the last year, so something. I don't think feet are supposed to "grow" at age 53, but they probably do change along with everything else. Anyway, I'm heading back to The Running Company in Broadripple today to hopefully exchange them for a pair that fits. I've put 35 miles on these and as of yesterday's run I'm now limping. I have a very sore, maybe bruised arch area on left foot.

4 AM on Monday morning comes early

This morning was my regular strength training in Indianpolis at the St Vincent Sports Performance Center with Scott Hudson. He's helping those of us on the Fox 59 mini-marathon challenge team strengthen our core muscles. That's very important I've found out to be a good runner. After the 6 A.M. workout, I drove home and ran for 45 minutes on the treadmill in the basement. I don't like running indoors anymore, but it was raining cats and dogs and the temperature was in the low 40's so I opted for staying warm and dry. It was my first time to run on the treadmill for quite some time and my first time on the treadmill with my new New Balance 760 running shoes. I don't know why, but my left shoe really hurt my arch. It doesn't hurt at all when I run outside, but it's still sore 5 hours later. Oh well, the important thing is I got my Monday run in. I'm tired now. The 4 A.M. thing is catching up with me. Maybe I'll try to take a nap.

9 + miles

I did it! I ran over 9 miles Saturday morning. I wasn't sure I could do it. I wa actually worried about it. My husband, Doug kept encouraging me. He's really good at that. He said all my hard work and training would pay off. I hadn't run over 8 miles since mid-November 2009 - over 4 months ago. The longest run I had done recently was 6.2 miles. I didn't go run with the group from the Carmel Running Company. I decided to run around my neighborhool (6 x), that way I would have a restroom available and I could stash my water bottle in the bushes by the mailbox. Also I love running as the sun comes up and it saved gasoline, which is expensive now - $3.78/gallon. Anyway, the run was absolutley fantastic! I ran strong and ended strong (fast even) with God's help. I wore my yellow LIVESTRONG wristband that helps me focus on my new-found strength. I felt great the rest of the day too. Thank you, God.

This is my first ever blog. I wanted to write about running, nutrition, health, and life in general from the perspective of a 50-something late bloomer. I started running about 3 years ago. It was accidental. I always believed, based on past evidence, that I could not run. I didn't like running. It was painful (side stitch), left me short of breath and generally I thought I looked silly . . . . all legs and arms flailing about. All that changed one evening after I had an argument with my husband and needed to let off steam, clear my head, etc. I'd been walking regularly on a treadmill for a year or so, trying to improve my overall fitness, so I headed for the treadmill. As I rehearsed all the reasons for being angry I began walking faster and faster. Maybe I was trying to outrun my demons. I don't know. Anyway, I kept bumping up the speed until I was running, not fast, but running. I ran and ran. When I glanced down at the readout I realized I'd run 2 miles! I was so shocked and then elated that I forgot all about being mad. I was 50 years old and running! More later.