Moondoggies or Bust!

I've been consistent in keeping my 4 mile runs under 40 miutes but I haven't been able to break through 38:00 minutes yet. The weather is changing and I can feel little twinges in my knees this week. We also have the Moondoggies run this Sunday and I'm hoping it will be smooth going. The course is relatively flat with no hills what-so-ever. I'm also trying to shake things up with weight training. I switch almost all of my exercises from machines to free weights. I really felt the DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) yesterday in my arms, which made it a little more difficult to run -- gotta swing those arms back and forth to run! I have about 2 weeks left in my BFL challenge and then I'll be looking to try something new.

I'm Returning!

I did a 6 mile run around the lake today UNDER an hour. I know that doesn't sound like much for the seasoned runner, but for me it was a really great run. For the past several weeks I've been plagued with asthma and the running has been s-l-o-w... I was lucky to muster 5 miles in an hour. Perhaps the mild weather played a huge factor on how I felt today, but I did feel good and didn't feel winded or tired after the run. It's amazing how breathing properly can make or break a run! I also wore my newer Nike's for the run. Gotta love new shoes!

Back To Basics

Vacation was fun. I did almost nothing in the way of eating right and exercising, but I did have my nephew find a Bally's for me so that I could fit in a 5 mile run on the treadmill... We played tourist a couple of times in Chicago, which required a lot of walking, so I suppose that counts for something... It was the excessive eating and drinking that threw me off course. Even Michael mentioned something about getting back to eating right upon our return. (Shock!) Everything has returned back to normal and I've already dropped 2 of the 4 pounds I've gained on vacation. Oh, and by the way, the above photo is my nephew/Chicago tour guide Kyle, husband Michael, daughter Renee and son Erik looking at "The Bean."

Vacation...

It's time for a family vacation once again... We're all flying to Chicago to visit my sister & family and play tourist for a week. It should be fun because we've never really been through Chicago before (and the airport does not count.) I've been hearing how hot it is there so I hope I'm able to go running at some point. Of course, there is always the gym, and I can use my membership out there. I'm just concerned about the eating part because I'm getting rid of the post marathon weight and I'm somewhat stable right now, plus I'm gaining muscle. I just want to be in control of my eating and drinking over the vacation and stick to my free meal plans of Sunday dinner and Thursday lunch or dinner. We'll see how it goes. My goal for this trip is to not loose any ground I've made thus far. I've been working out with weights consistently at the gym, and only a couple of times I had to stay home with resistance bands. I've been running at least 4 miles at a time on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays or Sundays, and keeping my time anywhere between 38 and 41 minutes for the 4 miles. I did have one really off day and did about 43 minutes for 4 miles. My goal is to run 4 miles in under 38 minutes, even if it's 37:59... Having bouts of asthma has thrown me off, and I know it's a seasonal thing. The running doesn't bring it on as I'm already dealing with controlling my breathing before I even set foot in the gym. As for the knee pain management, that's going well, in part to all the suppliments I take and cutting back on my running, since marathon training is over for now.