Tired, Sore Back, and Running???

Sorry I haven't written in awhile. I've had my own mental battle going on right now. I've been pretty tired this week. Not sure why, except for the poor sleeping thing. Maybe I'm getting too worked up about this race in a week, so it's affecting my sleep.

I've also been dealing with a really sore lower back. My increased run times have been great for my legs, breathing and psyche. However, it's made my back sore. On Wed I went for a 45 min run at the gym. I only got 15 min in, because I could feel the pain in my lower back. My toes were hurting from my first steps, which is a huge warning sign for me. Once the pain was in my back I stopped.

After talking it over with Greg to make sure I wasn't being a slacker, I decided to ease up a bit. I want to make sure I can do this triathlon. I can't ruin my back now. I'm only 1 week away!

With all of that said... I ran an HOUR today!!! I took my Motrin right before the run, which helped me out enormously. I've been on ice for most of the evening. I stretched out the back. I think I have kept the damage down.

What to do tomorrow? I went to the pool today, but each lane had 2-3 swimmers in it already. The lanes are really narrow and not the greatest for more than 2 swimmers. So, I decided to make it a run day. I pick Greg up from the airport during the 2 hours of swimming tomorrow. So, swimming is out. I guess biking and a nice run is in order. It's supposed to me in the lower 80s, so I can finally get my heat training in!

Wish me luck!

Bike 60 min

Yup, a good long bike ride was in order for today! How exciting. That is... as long as your weather observation isn't...

KDEEANN 272000Z 07009G28KT 10SM OVC120 13/02 A3027 RMK FREAKIN' COLD!

OK, so in non-geek terms it was 55 degrees with 24mph wind gusts! It was cold!! I went for 5 minutes and almost turned around. However, I went the distance. I saw neighborhoods I've never seen before. It was wonderful. But now I'm exhausted.

I realized today that I only have 1 1/2 weeks left. It was a bit shocking to me. I'm starting to get nervous. I just have to tell myself that all I want to do is finish and not walk. I am not out to compete, just have fun. It's tough to remember that though. We'll see how nuts I get as the days go by. I'm sure I'll be a basket case this time next week :)

Run 55 min

55 minutes? Who the heck does this stuff? Me, I guess.

On my official training plan, I was supposed to run yesterday and strength train today. Instead, I switched the days due to bad weather here yesterday.

Lucky for me, Greg went for a 2 + mile walk about 45 min before my run. He sent back word that there were VERY strong winds out of the west, and I may want to rethink my route. So, I ran up and down my north/south road from the house. It is the beginning of my course, so I just ran it back and forth for 3 plus times.

It was a tough run for the first 15 minutes. I didn't' think I could make it the full 55 minutes. It was made even more difficult by the fact that I kept seeing my house every 15 minutes. After about 20 minutes I found my groove and was ready to finish it all. I ran the full 55 minutes, and felt like I had more to spare, but I didn't push it.

Tomorrow I was supposed to run 45 minutes, but since I already moved stuff around, I'm moving things again. We'll see what I come up with tomorrow :)

Run 40 min

First, I must tell you why it's been a few days since my post. I was in Washington DC for Altitude Chamber training at Andrews Air Force Base. It was a great class, but even better trip. Greg and I visited with our good friends Tina and Jimmy Blain. Then we walked around for 5 hours in DC on Wednesday to see all of the sites. It was very emotional walking through Arlington National Cemetery. The monuments were beautiful and awe inspiring. It was wonderful!

So, on to the work outs. I'll highlight it by days...

Sunday: I was going to swim 30 min, bike 30 min, then run 30 min. However, the 50 min run on Saturday hurt my back. So, I swam for 40 minutes... going over 1 mile! It was great!

Monday: I did some weight training at the lovely and scenic Comfort Inn at Andrews AFB.

Tuesday: I hoped on the stationary bike for 30 minutes EARLY in the morning. I fit it in right before class, which was a good thing since I couldn't exercise for 12 hours after the altitude chamber.

Wednesday: We walked for over 5 hours around DC. I felt it in my jello legs last night.

Thursday: I ran for a wonderful 40 minutes today. It felt so good!! I can really feel a big difference in my legs. My breathing is so much better. I just felt good! I also did some gardening, so worked those hamstrings out :)

Tomorrow is a rest day, and I'm taking it. I see my chiropractor tomorrow, and figure I need to give my back some TLC. My mom and I are also going to a local talk show taping tomorrow. It should be fun.

I hope your week has been great so far!
Deeann

Run 50 min

Run for 50 min?! Yup. I was excited to do this, but a bit nervous too. I haven't run for that amount of time for 3 years. Could I do this?

Well, I started off strong. It wasn't easy, but I did it! I felt so good for making it the full 50 min without stopping. I'm sure it wasn't pretty, but who cares. It was 72 degrees, sunny, with 15 mph winds. Nice run weather.

I iced my back down after the run. I could feel this one in my back. Motrin will be my friend for the next few days. The ice really helped me though.

After I showered, I headed out to my hammock to read the Chi of Running. The hammock is tied to one of our crabapple trees, which is just starting to bloom. It was so relaxing. Skeeter would check up on me every so often, with a nudge to my butt. At least I knew he was still there. My time had to come to an end though. Rain clouds were forming overhead, so I pack up and headed inside.

What a great day!

Swim 30min & Run 25min

What happened to my old professors at the pool? It was full of 18 year old college students!!! They were also all over the lawn when I drove up. They must have my training schedule and were out to mock me!!!

So, I swam through the mental pain. It went well, but I could have done better. I finished and put on my running gear, and I was out the door.

I decided to run in the upper Carleton Arboretum today. It was 70 degrees and fabulous out! There were some really steep hills, but I made it. In fact, I made it up the hills then took it easy for a few steps and off I went again. It felt really good. In fact, I think I can run for longer than I would expect. I'm finally winning my mental battle!!!

So, here is a lovely picture of my dog and his giant piece of asphalt he brought to me today. Nice, huh? So, now he and I are both exhausted. Good thing tomorrow is a rest day. Speaking of rest, Skeeter also relaxed in the chair after his hard day...

Bike 30 min & Strength

Let's start with yesterday. I ran for 40 min, as scheduled. I went up to my Mom's to spend the day with her, after dropping Greg off at the airport. Since I was early, I decided to run there. There is a great park about 1/2mile from her house. Well, Coon Rapids has had a string of random beatings in the town. People have been warned not to go alone anywhere. So, my Mom got in her car and watched me run around the park. I took Skeeter with, but he pooped out at 20 minutes, so I handed him of to Mom.

Today, I hopped on my bike and rode around my beautiful town. I forgot it was for only 30 min, and i went for 43min instead. Too much time isn't so bad.

I'm substituting gardening for strength training today. I bought some beautiful plants 2 days ago, and need to get them in the ground. It's a gorgeous 65 degrees today, so why not spend it outside.

Tomorrow's swimming and running. It supposed to be another beautiful day. I'm liking this training thing more and more.

Race for the Cure

Happy Mother's Day!!

Today was also the Susan G. Koeman Race for the Cure at the Mall of America. At 7:30am, I ran a 5K with 7,500 other happy runners. I bettered my time from last fall by 10 minutes! Not too bad. It was still slow, but I made it. It was so much fun to be a part of that group. I also broke in my triathlon t-shirt.

Following the run was a 5K walk. Greg and I walked with my brother, sister and mom (a 7 year survivor). That was even more crazy! There were about 30-40,000 walkers. Nuts.

Oh, did I tell you it was 40 degrees this morning with 20kt gusts? It was freezing, but fun.

I felt such a great sense of accomplishment from this that I can't wait for the Danskin Triathlon!

Bike 45 min & Run 10 min

It was supposed to be a beautiful, sunny day here. Well, it turned out to be overcast and in the low 60s. Not too bad.

I set off on my bike to see Northfield. It was a nice ride, but I realized I need to bike faster. So, that's my goal for the next bike day.

I dropped the bike off in the driveway and headed out for a quick run. It was tough. My legs felt like jello. It was made better by the GIANT hill at the beginning of the run. It was slow, but I finished my 10 minutes.

My knee is sore though. I was going to run 45 minutes tomorrow, but I think I'll just do my pilates tape to make sure I don't screw my knee up.

All in all, not too bad today. Can't wait for tomorrow. It's Girls Night Out in Northfield!!!

Swim 30 & Run 10

Hello to all of my readers! It's been quite some time, but I'm finally back in Minnesota. We had a great time in Biloxi with my parents. We had a ton of shrimp, they met most of our MS friends, and we were able to have a relaxing time.

I did get most of my workouts in while I was there. I was still getting over my cold, so I took an extra day off, but I tried very hard to make training a priority. On Sunday, we had our PT test and I cut 1:30 off my time from 6 months ago! As I told Kait, I guess this training thing really does work.

On Monday, I ran for 40 min around the flight line at Keesler. I ran a little over 3.25 miles. So, Kari, I will be doing my 5K faster than a year ago. Pretty darn cool. I also ran 2 miles yesterday, before we caught our flight home.

So, now I'm back to my routine here. I went to the pool with all the other college kids. It was tough today. My cold is still hanging in there, and it isn't easy to cough while swimming. After my .75 mile swim, I went for a run in the Carleton College Arboretum. I thought I should try running in my swimsuit and why not today, since I only needed to run for 10 minutes. It wasn't so bad. The trail wasn't the greatest though. It was pretty muddy, because we've had a lot of rain lately. It was nice to have a change of scenery though. Only running 10 minutes was pretty easy too, since I've been running 25 minutes or more for 2+ weeks. Again, this training thing really works.

I hope all is well with y'all.

Deeann