Reality Check

Last Sunday morning was the moment of truth... the moment I had been dreading but knew I had to face... I stepped on the scale!  It wasn't pretty.  Not pretty at all.  But it is what it is.  They say grief is heavy.  All I know is that my eating for about six weeks was horrific.  I knew it and couldn't seem to stop it.  It didn't help that we didn't have a scale in Hawaii to confirm what I knew.

So it was back to basics this week.  Tracking every bite, every day.  It's a tedious task, but it works!  As of this morning, my scale said I was down 3 pounds.  I've still got a ways to go, it's amazing how much damage can occur in six weeks!  I have weighed more (much more!), so I know I can do this. 

I struggled with jetlag early in the week, but still managed some good runs:

Sunday - Ran 5.16 in 1:02:21, 12:05 pace.
Found some hills!  Actually, I don't have to look far to find hills here.

Monday - Rest
The real problem with jetlag is bedtime.  10:00 p.m. California time is 7:00 p.m. Hawaii time.  I had trouble going to sleep the night before and could not get up in the morning.

Tuesday - Rest
See Monday.

Wednesday - Ran 6 miles in 1:10:10, 11:42 pace
I was a little shocked when I stepped out the door to 46 degrees! 

Thursday - Ran 5.59 miles in 1:15:37, 13:31 pace
This was my hilliest and windiest run of the week. Santa Ana winds in April is very unusual, but that's what we had.

Friday - Rest
After two days of hills my legs were really feeling it.

Saturday - Ran 9.01 miles in 1:40:07, 11:07 pace
Windy again, but I pressed through.  My pace was at 11:20 at the 7 mile mark, so I really pushed to drop my average. 
It was 69 degrees when I got up, it's currently 75 with 24% humidity.  Big change from Honolulu!

Total 29.76 miles

Support for Boston Victims

If you have a favorite style of running shoes that you always wear, today would be a great day to buy an extra pair and help a great cause.  Click here.

Brr!!!

I have officially turned into a warm weather runner!  It was 46 degrees this morning, clear with no wind.  That use to be my favorite temp.  But 46 felt SO cold this morning!  I wore a jacket and wished for gloves the first mile. But I warmed up after about a mile and was fine.  I forgot what hills were like!  This morning I ran 6 miles with 762 feet of climbing.  Last week I ran 10 miles with 394 feet of climbing and that included a run into the Diamond Head Crater!

I forgot to share these pictures last week, I was too busy packing up to head home.  This was last Thursday morning, my final Hawaii run for that trip.  I stopped and caught some sunrise shots over Koko Head:

 

Boston Marathon

What a sad day.  The 117th running of the Boston Marathon ended in tragedy.  Three are reported dead with over one hundred injured.  I cannot imagine the terror.  There were those who had just crossed the finish line, while others were seconds away. 

As we were talking about it, Les said, "I sure am glad you ran slow at Ojai."  I just stared at him, then I remembered...

The Ojai marathon was my first marathon.  Ojai to Ocean, 2012.  My public goal was 4 hours.  The goal that only Les and I knew about was 3:55.  Three hours and fifty five minutes would have qualified me for Boston.  I would have still needed to get in on the registration day, but the first thing I had to do was qualify.  If I could have gotten in, I would have been there, Les and I talked about it last year.  He would have been in the stands waiting for me.  I could have been one of those crossing the finish line while Les waited in the stands when the bombs went off.

I agree with Les, I'm glad I ran slow at Ojai.  Very glad.

My thoughts and prayers are with those who were there today.

A Great Week!

I started 2013 with a half marathon and declared I would run 13 in 2013.  Such an easy goal!  I've run dozens of half marathons!  No problem! 2013 has not been a normal year. I've run exactly ZERO half marathons since January 1st.  Instead I've moved temporarily to Hawai'i in January, tried to adjust to high temps and humidity while running in February, and was handed a devastating blow when my father passed away in March.  I finally feel like I've turned the corner this week:

Sunday:  Ran 4 miles in 47:31, 11:53 pace
It was a beautiful Resurrection Sunday morning!  I ran through Ala Moana Park and there were two sunrise services going on.  At one point I thought about how Mary must have felt when she went to the empty tomb and then went running back to the disciples!  What a joyous feeling ~ I'm so thankful for a risen Savior!

Monday:  Walked 3.1 miles

Tuesday:   Rested

Wednesday:  Ran 9.02 miles in 1:34:29, 10:29 pace
Also walked 2.8 miles

Thursday:  Ran 5.08 miles in 55:00 minutes, 10:55 pace
Also walked 2.8 miles

Friday:  Walked 5 miles

Saturday:  Ran 13.1 miles in 2:28:10, 11:19 pace

6.12 miles, almost half way, at Waialae Beach Park

Finally!  I ran my second half marathon for the year!!  This was probably the toughest half I've ever done.  It was 68 when I headed out and 75 when I finished with 95% humidity.  I got rained on during mile three and would have gladly taken some more of that around mile 11.  I was drenched with sweat, but I did it!  This was only 7 seconds a mile slower than the one I did in January when it was 38 degrees out.  I think I'm finally adjusting to the warmer, humid temps and learning to take Endurolytes on a regular basis while I'm out.  Two down, eleven to go...

8.27 miles - Diamond Head Lookout

Ave HR 147
Max HR 163
Calories burned 1,292

Totals for this week:
Ran 31.20
Walked 13.70 
Total 44.90 miles

Two Days in a Row

I had another great run this morning.  I was sore from yesterday, so I wasn't sure how it would go.  I decided to do intervals and was pleasantly surprised with my results.  My intervals were 5 minutes running, 1 minute walking:

Warm up: 3 minutes
Interval 1: 10:25 pace
Interval 2: 10:12 pace
Interval 3: 10:22 pace
Interval 4: 10:17 pace
Interval 5: 10:09 pace
Interval 6: 10:13 pace
Interval 7: 10:25 pace
Interval 8: 10:36 pace
Interval 9: 10:30 pace

Total 5.08 miles in 55:00, 10:50 pace
Ave HR 142
Max HR 156
Calories burned 499

I'm so pleased with how April is starting out!  March was such a tough month, I'm glad to put it behind me.

This Morning's Run

At the top of the final Diamond Head climb

 I constantly remind myself that resting takes confidence. Anyone can train like a mad man but to embrace rest and to allow all the hard training to come out takes mental strength.

~ Ryan Hall

The above quote was in my inbox this morning.  Perfect, since I had taken the last two days off from running!  Those rest days paid off - I had a fabulous run this morning.  I think I'm slowly adjusting to flat, warm and humid running.  I cranked the iPod and ran:

Mile 1:  12:10  (this included 3 minutes of warmup walking before I started running)
Mile 2:  10:29
Mile 3:  10:52
Mile 4:  10:10
Mile 5:  9:55
Mile 6:  9:51
Mile 7:  10:26
Mile 8:  10:03
Mile 9:  10:17

9.02 miles in 1:34:29, 10:29 pace
Ave HR 150
Max HR 164
Calories burned 912

With views like this, who wouldn't want to run?