What It Takes

Even though I ran the 5k on Sunday, Bryan at RU showed no sympathy on Monday. I had a hard, sweaty workout. Oh, don't get me wrong, it was good workout and it wasn't long before I ready to be done.

Speaking of working, I filled in at work on Monday. It was nice to be back, in spite of having to learn their new computer programs and fee schedule. It wasn't difficult, just different. Everything else was just like riding a bicycle and it was good to see some of our regular patients again. I keep hinting that I'm available to put in more hours when they need me, especially since my coworker (who is on maternity leave) may not want to return to work so quickly.

Monday was also another Runner's World wear test shoe event for March 2010 issue.* Even though this event is now (supposedly) by invitation only, people start lining up for this event at 3:00 PM, and it begins at 5:30 PM. There are always new people in line, hoping to get something after the people with invites go through, and sometimes they do score some running shoes. Since I worked I couldn't leave the office until 5:30 PM. I showed up at 6:00 PM, placing me at the back of the line. I am so thankful that they decided to check IDs a few times (I was on their list) and I moved up to the middle of the line. Whew. By the time I made it to the front of the line, there were only two pairs of my size left. I ended up with Brooks Switch 3.


I've never tried Brooks before, nor have I ever worn a stability shoe. I normally take a neutral or neutral plus. With my inserts for high arches, they seem to be OK. I took them for a test run on the gym treadmill today, and immediately noticed that they had a lot of heel cushion, and that's a good thing. Time will tell how these shoes will fare for my bones. Bonus points that these shoes aren't Easter egg colored. It's difficult to see in the picture, but the trim is royal blue and dark purple.

I'm also trying out a new sport's bottle.* It's from Smash Sports. The concept is similar to that of a Playtex nurser, which is what my husband immediately pointed out. The bottle holds the liquid inside a biodegradable liner. Just hold your finger over a small hole on the bottle and squeeze. It took me a few times of squeezing the bottle before I realized I had to cover the small hole, but once I did that, everything worked great. Since the bottle isn't super hard, it's ergonomic. There's also hand strap available to place on the bottle. I'm not sure if I'll go the strap route yet, until I become more familiar with this bottle. I'm also not 100% sold on the idea of the liners, since they have to be replaced, but it does prevent that sloshing liquid sound that can be rather annoying.

Today
Activity: Run
Date: 11/10/09 10:00 AM
Distance: 3.31 miles
Time: 0:32:00
Speed: 6.2 mph
Pace: 9'40 min/mile
Calories: 304

I put in my intervals on the gym treadmill. As sore as my body was from yesterday's workout, I felt really good on that treadmill. Being plugged into some really good tunes helps. I did pyramid intervals and took one minute walk breaks between sets. Walking pace was 4.2 mph and built up to a sprint pace was 7:50 mph. My goal for intervals is to get rid of the walk pace completely. I'm not quite there yet. I still need that walk pace to recoup from the sprint. At least I can now hold the sprint pace for a minute without wanting to pass out or throw up. I know, I'm still not super speedy, especially when compared to the women in my age group who can run 6 minute miles, but, hey, it's good for me at this moment.

Sunday's song:
Dancing In The Streets - Martha and the Vandellas - Run-DMZ

PEACE



*Disclaimer - I reviewed these on my own. Other than receiving the products for free, I didn't get paid to give my two cents.