A Nice Saturday

It was another great day for running. I didn't get out the door until almost 11 a.m. and went 5.5 miles before swinging back to pick up a couple of kids for another 2.5 (for those of you counting at home, that's a total of 8 miles). I signed us up for a 5k next Saturday so I wanted to make sure they're in good shape. My littlest one went to a sleepover the night prior and she was a wee bit tired. I know the feeling so we had a couple of walking intervals, which was fine. I'm loving this weather and my allergies seem to be leveling out.

Running with Kids

I can only imagine what people thought when they saw four kids and me running this afternoon. What kind of crazy person has that many kids? Maybe. I've been called worse. I "made" them run two miles since the 5k is just over a week away. They all did pretty well except the oldest, who is still having leg problems. Once I dropped them off I ran another four miles to get to my usual total of 6 miles. The day was overcast and the temperature mild - in other words, a perfect day for a run. Autumn brings some nasty allergies along with the good weather, but the past few days I've been okay. We'll see if that lasts into the weekend or not.

Lethargy

I felt just plain tired today when I got home from work. It was one of those I-could-take-a-nap kinds of tired. Even as I started my run I considered how well - or not - it was going to go. That soon passed as a I ran the first couple of miles. When I passed by the neighborhood again at the two-mile mark I had a brief flash of stopping and calling it a day, but I resisted. The temperature was a little warmer today than in the past week, probably in the low 80s, but I ran it all. Just like I was tempted to cut the run short I was also tempted to walk a few times. I just couldn't see any reason to do it, so I kept going. When all was said and done I felt pretty good, much better than when I started. That's not a surprise since what I needed was a little endorphin therapy. Today the treatment worked.

First Day of Fall

As The Boy told me today it certainly feels like the first day of Fall. Yesterday I was really looking forward to this run. I knew it was going to be good weather just like it was yesterday. In fact I thought more than once about running after work yesterday but decided a day of weights would be better. This morning I took off for a 6-miler and ended up with an overall 9:15 per mile pace. It was a lot cooler than I expected with the temperature under 60 degrees. When I was walking to "warm up" I briefly considered going back and getting a long-sleeved shirt but quickly determined I'd be just fine once I started running. Once again I saw several people out but not as many as I thought. A cool breeze was blowing from the north. Maybe that kept some people indoors.

Once I got home I took three of the kids for a run. I was planning on going two miles with them but both girls said they were experiencing pain, one in the knees and the other on the side of the leg above the ankle. We got all of a mile before they had to walk. The Boy and I decided to get in some more running and made it to almost two miles, 1.84 to be exact. For the week that makes my total mileage as 19.84. So close to 20 that I'm going to round up, especially since I more than made up the extra distance in walking. It's two weeks until the 5k at church, so these kids better pick up their game!

That Was a Good Run

Today was another great day for running. I'm feeling like I'm really getting back into stride as far as running goes, and as I've said before the cooler temperatures certainly help. My overall pace today was 9:30/mile, which doesn't seem terribly fast. But consider the fact that for the past five months or so I've been running about a minute slower because of the heat. Or because I've been on and off with my schedule. I ran 6 miles today and if it was a race I would have run a negative split. I felt stronger toward the end when I was running at a pace in the eights. Another telltale sign that I'm feeling better is the hills. In the past I've always attacked hills and stayed strong on the ascent, if not actually running faster. Lately I've slowed down on the uphills and tried to keep it slow to the point of walking them depending on the temperature. Now that the weather is back to a decent range I'm back to enjoying hills again. Watch out! I'm not the fastest person in the world but I certainly feel faster this week.

Back in Stride

Today was so nice. Really nice. Perfect running weather with a temperature about 68 degrees, sunny, and a light breeze. I ran 6 miles and loved every minute of it. My complaint about drivers and crosswalks still stands, though.

Running on Friday?

Today's not my normal day for a run. That would have been yesterday. Thursday was cool and rainy, and to be perfectly honest, I didn't feel like running in it. It was one of those rains that makes you feel like you can get sick from it, even though that's probably not what would happen. Still, it was quite a climate change after another hot day on Tuesday, so I decided to pass. And I'm glad I did.

Today it was 72 degrees outside, sunny, and just plain gorgeous. I got off work an hour early and laced up my running shoes when I got home. I ran 6 miles with no walking, more testament to running in cooler temperatures. I've mentioned before that running four miles in 95 degree weather is probably the same effort as running longer when it's 20 degrees cooler out. I think today's run proves that. My pace was closer to the 9:30 range, and it felt pretty easy. Yep, it's called level of effort. You read it here first. Or maybe not.

I Thought I Was Done

After Saturday's run I had a horrible allergy attack, the worst I've had in a long time. It probably didn't help that I also mowed the lawn, spent several hours painting downstairs, and sitting on my neighbor's driveway hanging out for a couple of hours. Fortunately I rested a bit on Sunday and although the attack was past I still felt drugged for a couple of days. I thought we were done with summer but today proved the weathermen don't know their hole from an ass in the ground. It was right at 90 degrees when I headed out with the littlest daughter. She ran a mile with me and I returned her back to the house before heading out for another 4 miles. It was fun because we talked about competition and nutrition and being in shape. She's a sharp kid. Yes, I'm biased.

Because of the temperature I took my water bottle with me and did the walking thing when I needed to. As I was walking up the hill just after finishing Daughter #1 came driving back from the grocery and tooted her horn at me. I jumped in and got an air conditioned ride the last few hundred yards back to the house. It wasn't my normal cooldown, but it was a nice treat.

The bottom of my right foot has been hurting for several weeks, and I'm hoping it's not plantar fasciitis. I think the pain is due to the lower profile of my running shoes and the inserts I've been wearing in my dress shoes. The past couple of days I've been wearing my dress shoes at work without the inserts but I haven't noticed a difference yet. In fact, today I felt a little bit of pain in that area during my run, which was new. Usually it only aches when wearing my dress shoes or first thing in the morning. I have to figure out what to do to figure out the cause without ending up causing pain in my knees. More to come on this late-breaking story.

One More for Summer and Another

Never got around to posting Thursday's run, so here we go. It was another day in the mid-90's. Frankly I was so worn out from work that day that it would have been justifiable to stay in and avoid the heat, but those are the kinds of days I really need to run, so I did. A nice breeze helped keep me from a heat stroke, as well as walking regularly. I actually saw about a half dozen people out for a run, which was surprising. I don't remember seeing that many on previous runs where the day was so hot. I went 4 miles and spent a little bit of time cooling off when I got home.

Today was absolutely beautiful outside. I ramped up to 6 miles and made it without walking, other than having to stop for the idiots in cars who can't figure out that a person on foot should have the right of way at a crosswalk. It was in the 60's for the run, sunny, and breezy - refreshing! Plenty of other people were out enjoying the day as well. The forecast calls for temperatures to remain below 90 degrees from here on out, so I guess this is the end of summer weather. I enjoy running in the cooler temperatures of autumn, but I will certainly miss summer.

More Walking

Another hot one in KC today. With the downstairs in disarray while we paint I knew I needed to get outside if I was going to run since the treadmill is indisposed. Once again I told myself that it was okay to walk if needed. Somebody also amped up the humidity, and boy, did that make a difference. Before I'd reached the end of my first mile I knew I'd be walking more than last week before we had a few days of rain.

The funny thing was that I walked four times by the time I returned to the traffic circle at Shoal Creek. I crossed over 96th and resumed running, planning on going to the neighborhood and then walking the rest of the way home. But when I started running again I quickly started feeling bad, as though my systems were having to work too hard to maintain even the slowest of paces. Using some common sense I called it quits after about a tenth of a mile. It made the walk home a little bit longer, but that's okay. Today my goal was to get out and sweat a little. Mission accomplished.

Running in a Hurricane

So it wasn't really a hurricane, at least not any more. Isaac petered out after it made landfall in Louisiana and became a big tropical depression again. It hit the KC area on Friday and lasted through a lot of Saturday. I stood briefly on the front porch and pondered whether or not I should run. It was windy, almost thirty degrees cooler than Thursday's run, and raining. But there was no thunder or lightning, so I went out and ran 6 miles. The last couple were the toughest since I was running against the western edge of the storm, which rotated counterclockwise and from the north. I did walk once by the golf course on the way back, and that was because I didn't want to waste all my energy running uphill against the wind. Once again I left the iPod at home and just enjoyed the run and the weather.