Happy National Running Day

I got my long anticipated new running shoes today: Vibram FiveFinger Bakilas.  I've only run halfway up the street and back a couple of times (with the girls), but so far so good.  We'll see how they do on a longer run tomorrow maybe!

Coincidentally, today happens to be National Running Day!
Coincidentally, I officially announced the founding of the Sisters of Mercy Health System Running Club today, too.

Yeah for running!

Wednesday Weigh-In / Running Log

Today's weigh-in came in at 205.4.... which is .9 lbs away from "normal."  I'm less concerned about really being in the "normal" BMI range according to my Wii Fit.  What I really want is just to hear the Wii Fit say "that's normal" or whatever it's going to say.  I think I'll take a video of it when that happens!

Running plans include the St. Louis Science Center 5k/10k this weekend.  Sarahlynn is running the 5k.  I'm going to run the 10k.  The girls are running a kids 1/2 mile around the planetarium.  Fun stuff!!  We practiced this past weekend in the nice cool weather.

More fun - Sarahlynn's parents are coming to visit this weekend and help watch the girls while we're running.  (I think they're proud of us.)

Wednesday Weigh-In

I feel like I've been pretty flat in my weight loss for too long.  In the past month, I'm down just a pound.  So, I took the time to look back on the Wii Fit (really wish I could do that online and post some graphics here easily).  Last April, I was at a high of 265.4 (obese).  Today, I weighed in at 206.8 (barely overweight).  If I hit my goal by next Wednesday, I'll have lost exactly 60 lbs since last April and will have crossed over into the Wii Fit's definition of "normal" BMI range.

Clearly, I'm using my Wii Fit's calculations and ratings to measure my progress.  I do recognize that my ultimate goal isn't to satisfy the Wii Fit.  It's to get to a place where I'm comfortable with my weight.  That's obviously both a physical exercise as well as a mental one.

And update to my running log, too.  I'm now using SmartRunner on my phone for GPS tracking.  It also keeps my running log up to date online, too.  My RSS is here.

Running with the girls

Mommy is out of town at a weekend retreat tonight and tomorrow night and the girls had a late nap, so... we all went for a run together!  I thought the girls could just ride in the bike trailer / stroller, we'd run down to see the Clydesdales, and then run back while listening to some Disney read-along stories.  Well, the first 3/4 mile went that way, but then Ada REALLY wanted to get out and run, too. 

She did great!!!  She probably ended up running more than 1 full mile (on and off) of the 4.8 it takes to run down to the horses and back.  Ellie got out ran a little bit along the way, too.  They both got some great praise from a pair of mommies running past, and got to put some dogs, and throw rocks over the bridge into the creek.  It was great!


But not very fast:
Time:    0:86:40
Distance:    4.85
Average Speed:    3.36
Average Pace:    17:52

Wednesday Weigh In

Today's weigh-in: 213
Pounds left until I'm out of the "overweight" range on the Wii Fit: 7.5
Distance: 4 miles
Time: 40 minutes + 15 cool down

Challenges:
I gained 6 pounds while Nana and Grandpa were in town.  In response, I went back on South Beach Phase 1 for the next couple of weeks.  That was very effective at helping me take some weight off right after the Nov/Dec holiday binge.  It seems to have been very effective again!  As I said, I gained around 6 pounds with grandparents in town and have already taken that back off.  That's awfully fast to lose that weight, but I'm not eating unhealthily.

Running Revelations:
First, I'm really enjoying Born to Run. It's helped me realize how lucky I am that my natural running stride is probably also a very healthy one; and really motivated me to keep running.  It's an excellent read!

Second, I want to run faster.  I'm getting good exercise at my 11 minute/mile pace, but it does limit where I can run to in an acceptable amount of time.  I'd love to get to a consistent 9 minute mile for 10+ miles.  So, I stretched out in my last 1/2 mile today and pushed to see what a faster pace would look like.  I stretched out to an 8 minute mile.  That felt a bit fast, but I kept it up.  So, I've got something to work on and strive for other than distance now, too.

I like this running stuff -- I also like that I'm in better shape than I probably ever have been.  I had a friend from college tell me that I look like I'm in better shape than when we first met, Freshman year.

Running with purpose

I don't think that I'll ever be a full time running commuter, but I do like running with a purpose.  Last week, I ran the 9 miles home from work even though my fully functional car was sitting in the parking garage.  Today, I ran 6 miles round trip to the grocery store for a few things that we needed.  (No 8.6 pounds of milk, but I did have 4 pounds of sugar and 2 pounds of butter.  We were making cheese fudge to auction off at church.  And, yes, I did probably indulge myself of enough fudge to cancel out the calories burned in the 6 mile run.)

Today's run: 6 miles, 70 min

Late morning run

Late morning update today:

Distance: 2.9 miles ("around the block")
Time: 35 min + 12 cool down

Weather: sunny and mid 50s... perfect!

Wednesday Weigh-In

Today's weigh-in: 213.4
Pounds left until I'm out of the "overweight" range on the Wii Fit: 7.5

Challenges:
Nana and Grandpa are in town. Which means we like to go out to eat and there's deliciously tempting treats around constantly.

Powerful Reminders:
That it's my choice, what I put in my mouth.

Helpful:
Did 30 Minute Shred on Monday.
Ran 9 miles from work to home on Tuesday.
Maybe I'll run tomorrow and Friday morning, too.

Wednesday Weigh-In / Running Log

No-frills today (actually Thursday, but I'm going to pre-date my post.)

Today's weigh-in: 214.2
Pounds left until I'm out of the "overweight" range on the Wii Fit: 9.2

Today's run: 3.1 miles / 33 minutes

Running Log 2010-02-27

Time:    0:130:33
Distance:    10.53
Average Speed:    4.86
Average Pace:   12.34

Running Log 2010-02-10

Time:    0:105:31
Distance:    9.04
Average Speed:    5.14
Average Pace:    11:40


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Running Log 2010-02-07

Distance: 11 miles
Time: long time
Exhausted

Running Log 2010-02-05

Quick little jaunt around the highway in the snow. Pointed out that I need some wedgees for my glasses (we just bought some for Ellie and they're great).

Distance: 3.02 miles
Time: 34 minutes


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I'm Registered!

It's official. I'm registered for the Go! St. Louis 1/2 Marathon. Phew... now to get over this cold and get back to training!

Date: 4/10/2010
Time: 7:00 AM
Location: Downtown St. Louis
Target Time: just to finish

Running Log 2010-01-27

9.5 miles
2 hours


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Running Log 2010-01-17

My longest run ever, by a couple of miles...


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Time:	0:107:13
Distance:	8.39

Running Log 2010-01-10

Distance: 4.6 miles
Temperature: 20 deg F

Interesting experience:  From my sister-in-law, I got a tight, long sleeve, wicking shirt.  When I was done with this run, my body was completely dry, but the cotton shirt I had on top of that bottom layer was soaked like I'd been running in the summer.  Amazing textile technology!

Very tired.

Running Log 2010-01-08

Ran with a friend at work today!
Distance: 3.38 miles
Time: 40 minutes

He pushed my usual 4mph to 5mph.  Exhausted!

Running Log 2010-01-06

Yes, I know that it's one of the coldest days of the year so far and all the schools are going to be closed tomorrow.  But I got some awesome cold weather running gear for Christmas and had to try it out.  So, yes, I went running tonight.  Yeah!  It was GREAT!

Distance: 2.8 miles
Time: 38 minutes

Running Log 2009-11-01

Distance: 3.01 miles
Time: ~30 minutes

My favorite part about this run: after a little bit of warm-up and providing for a little bit of cool-down at the end, I ran the entire distance without walking.  Lately, I feel like I haven't been able to get more than a mile without walking a bit, so this was a good accomplishment.  I think the 55 degree weather helps, too.  By the end, though, I feel like I was breaking through another wall; as if I could have possibly done the entire loop again.  Maybe I'll try that next time.


Now, it's off for some more PragProWriMo / NaNoWriMo!
You can follow my progress on my other blog, Sharpening Stones, or via twitter.