I turned into a morning person

Why, hello, blog!

Yes. I still exist.

I seriously have no good excuses here. I stopped writing. I ran a half marathon. I stopped running.

But you know what?

It is SUMMER.

It is WARM again.

I can step outside the house without six layers of clothing and without potential frostbite.

Potential dehydration, okay, yeah. But no frostbite.

And you know what that means?

Running. Lots of it.

Mostly taking place before the sun is up, but you know what? I'll take what I can get. There are very few things that feel better than shoes on pavement wind in hair sweat in eyes cramps in muscles power in legs.

Even if I want to smack my alarm clock every morning.

Cookie Monster

It is hot.

Stiflingly hot. Muggily hot. Soul-suckingly hot.

My run this morning was supposed to be five miles, but I cut it down to three when I realised that I'd started sweating before I even made it outside (I couldn't even be bothered to castigate myself for this, so I think it was a pretty good decision).

Thankfully, it should be a lot cooler over the next few days, but... I'm taking tomorrow's run to the gym, I think. I don't love treadmills, but I do love air conditioning.

Side note: I am wearing a Cookie Monster t-shirt today, and I've gotten more comments on it than I have on any other article of clothing that I've worn in the last, oh, six months or so. Kind of funny to think that that's the case, especially given that a) I picked it up at Goodwill because I needed more exercise-happy shirts and b) I've never watched Sesame Street.

It seems to be making other people happy, though, so I'll be content with that.

Note to self: stretch more.

I probably should have...

1) Skipped the hill sprints yesterday

a) Did them because: I keep saying that I need to add hill sprints and intervals to my running, and then I don't...

2) Stretched more this morning

a) Didn't because: I hate stretching. I have nobody but myself to blame for this one.

3) Skipped this morning's run entirely (my hip was wicked sore (nothing that skipping the hill sprints wouldn't have fixed))

a) Didn't because... but, but, NO RUN???

4) Stopped to stretch again when my shoulder gave out on mile two

a) Didn't because: My shoulder is always the first thing to get tight, so...

5) Gone home when my hip gave out on mile three

a) Didn't because: I really hate skivving on Sunday long runs. Besides, my hip actually hurt less when I ran than when I walked, so I just had to be careful not to turn my foot the wrong way or lengthen my stride.

The upside of the run this morning: My hip was in so much pain that I didn't even notice silly things like fatigue and asthma. There's always a silver lining!

I just want somebody to suffer with me

I called my dad the other day and we chatted for a couple of minutes. Eventually he asked (I don't call all that often, and when I do it's generally for a specific reason) if there was anything in particular going on. "Well," I said, "now that you mention it, what are you doing October tenth?"

He poked around in his calendar - he tends to be very, very busy, and he travels a lot for work, so there was no guarantee that he wasn't scheduled straight through to 2011. "Nothing, yet," he said.

"Oh, good!" said I. "How do you feel about running a half marathon?"

So... barring as-yet-nonexistant timing conflicts, he'll hopefully be coming up here to run a half with me. He said that his times are currently really, really slow, but... well, his "really slow" times are my "sort of slow" times, his "decent" times are my "no way in HELL is that going to happen anytime soon" times, and since he has three and a half months to prepare and I don't really plan to get much faster in that period (and considering that he is, hmm, goal oriented and doesn't always know his limits - gosh, I wonder where I got that same trait from?)...

Anyway. "I just want somebody to suffer with me," I told him. Good thing he understands my sense of humour.

Good days

I loved my run this morning.

It wasn't that it was exceptional by any standards... I got a late start (7:45?), so it was warmer than I would have liked, I hit a lot of "don't walk" lights, and I literally don't remember the mile or so that I ran through the "downtown" part of my neighbourhood.

But... I don't know. Maybe it was the man I passed who (also running) was singing "Alejandro" at the top of his lungs. Maybe it was just that it was a lovely day. Maybe it was that I kept up a comfortable pace (barring stoplights and the occasional pause at a drinking fountain) and didn't feel like I was dying at the end. Maybe it was that it was my longest run yet and it didn't feel impossible.

It was just a good run.

Applying pressure to the brakes

Longer runs = more energy spent = more energy must be taken in.

Must work on that last bit.

I saw pictures from the 5K, which is pretty exciting - not that I'm willing to pay the exorbitant amounts of money that they charge for prints or digital copies, but I like having proof (well, proof beyond the racing bib) that I ran a race.

On the subject of racing, I've re-thought my original plan to run an August half-marathon. In the first place, I can't find a local one that suits my timing (I rely on public transportation, so... I'm limited in terms of location!); in the second place, August seems like it might be a rather hellishly hot time to run more than 13 miles; in the third place, I want more prep time anyway. So... now I'm eyeing the BAA's half-marathon in October. Registration's not open yet, but - well, that's the current plan. I'm trying to remind myself that there's no hurry and that I don't want to spoil the enjoyment by doing too much, too fast.

Otherwise... not much of interest. Spin class yesterday (definitely, definitely need to make a point to eat more next Wednesday; the class kicked my butt because I had no energy), four and a half miles this morning... beach this weekend?

And all before 9 AM

I woke up in a decidedly pissy mood this morning - no good reason; I think it was just that my dreams have ended their (unprecedented) mild streak and gone back to being on crack all the time - and decided that my run should end at the gym (I used to say that tea cured all ill. Now I say the same thing about ergs). That was easy enough to plot out, so... away on a run I went.

It was a three-mile run, and for a while I did the whole try-to-think-profound-thoughts-but-really-hum-middle-school-choir-songs thing (Sadly, I am not kidding. I get stuck on songs that I sang when I was 12. Also, hymns. I've been thinking about tweaking the lyrics somewhat... "I know this rose will open" could be "I know this run will end"...). And then - miracle of miracles - I realised that, two miles into my run, I was no longer cranky. Instead, I was definitely in a "la-la-la isn't this day PRETTY" state of mind.

Nice to know that that can happen.

I did the time on the erg anyway, of course, since I've been neglecting it of late. The day was salvaged! And all before 9 AM.