Thursday, October 1, 2009

Recovery


I don't have anything particularly interesting to talk about today, so I'm going to tell you about my run last night and a couple of my goals for today. Yesterday afternoon, after a full day of STATISTICS!, I met Beth and Lana for some speedwork -- 8 miles of speedwork to be exact. The total distance of the run was 8 miles with 4 1-mile repeats (which means that after you warm up for a mile or so, you run 1 mile at a faster pace than you normally do, recover for a half mile, then repeat a certain number of times). The first half was HARD because our first two repeats were into the wind, which was blowing 25-30 mph. The second half was significantly easier, until we got to mile 7 - our last fast mile. Our "fast mile" goal was 9 minutes 45 seconds (which seems like a nice, leisurely pace to many, but not necessarily to me). We did fast mile 1 in 9:20, fast miles 2 and 3 around 9:50 and ... wait for it ... fast mile 4 (mile 7) in 8:58!!! No wonder my legs and lungs were burning and I wanted to walk, crawl or die! Anyway, we finished with a cool down mile, some walking and stretching. I felt VERY SICK after this run (anyone have any ideas on this one?) and wasn't able to eat or drink much of anything until around 10:00 last night when I had some Stacey's Pita Chips. Then, still needing to ice my knees, I stayed up to watch an episode of Seinfeld (the one where Jerry and Elaine go to Florida and Elaine has to take painkillers for her back...) and didn't get to sleep until about 11:45.
This was all fine and well until I woke up at 5:15 this morning to make it to 5:45 HOT yoga. HOT yoga is not easy when you ran 8 miles the night before and haven't had much to drink since then. I made it through class, but let's just say the "balancing" (I use that term VERY loosely for today!) poses were an extra special challenge, involving a fair amount of dizziness! haha I got home with EVERY intention of eating everything in sight, stood in the kitchen for about 10 minutes trying to decide what sounded good, but couldn't think of a thing. So, instead, I showered and laid down on my bed and promptly fell right to sleep. Two hours later I woke up hungrier and thirstier than I have been in quite some time!
I have heard that after a long or hard run it is important to do 2 things: sleep and eat. Ha and ha. Very bad job at BOTH! : ) So! Today's #1 goal: EAT!!! I've got a 10 mile run on Saturday morning, which is my last long run before the Des Moines 1/2 Marathon on October 18th (with my Peeps) and I think it's important to be properly fueled for that run. I'm going to up my calorie intake a little today and tomorrow (with mostly healthy foods) and see how I feel at the end of 10 on Saturday morning.
Today's other goal: Do my stinkin' reaction paper (the one that's always due on Saturday mornings at 10:00!) so that I have tomorrow to run errands, clean, and have lunch with a friend. I guess I'd better get going on this one...

**Today's intention: GRATITUDE (I needed to remind myself every few minutes how grateful I was to be in class this morning! haha)

QUESTION: On last night's run, we talked about our favorite places to travel and some trips we've got planned (either in the near or distant future). WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE PLACE TO TRAVEL? WHERE IS ONE PLACE YOU HAVE BEEN THAT YOU WOULD GO BACK TO OVER AND OVER IF YOU COULD??? (Mine is Maine.)


7 comments:

  1. Hey, don't forget #3: REHYDRATE! It's important to replace all that H20 you use on a run.

    Outside the country, I'd really like to go to France. Partly that's because I have a loose grasp on the language, but also because I really like the food and sights. :) Inside the country, I'd vote for Eureka Springs, Arkansas. I have fond memories of that place from when we'd take family vacations there when I was younger. Ooh, also, New York. I've never been there, and think it'd be a pretty great place to experience. :)

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  2. Yes, THANK YOU! I have been spending the last few hours working HARD at the rehydration thing!

    France would be AMAZING! If we're talking out of the country... I've always wanted to go to Africa! ... or Palau ...

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  3. Great blog! Congrats on the run! :D I'm jealous, kinda... not enough to run, but just a little jealous. haha My favorite place to travel is North Eastern New Mexico. Ah! Its called "The Enchanted Circle" Taos and Red River are my favs; the foliage in the autumn is unbelievable. And I try to go up every year for the Octoberfest. Ah... :) happy times

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  4. Katie,

    Thanks so much for the article/ link you posted on my blog! It is sooo interesting because I actually learned some Tai Chi moves as part of my therapy last year. I have a binder full of them and should probably start doing them again along with the more vestibular type of exercises. I really appreciate you passing the article my way!

    I love so many of the places I have traveled to. In the US, I love the Pacific Northwest and want to see more of it! I also would love to go back to Guatemala and to India- both incredible places I have been lucky enough to visit!

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  5. Hello sweetie! I've been dragging my keister (sp?) the last week or so and am trying to get caught up on emails, blogs, etc. This is such a great blog! I'm also so incredibly proud of how dedicated you are to your running.
    To answer your question, I'd have to say my favorite place I've visited was Egypt, followed closely by Israel.
    much love
    your favorite aunt

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  6. Katie, I get email updates when you update your blog. I have been putting it off because I wanted to read word for word and really enjoy the reading instead of rushing through it like I do so many other things lately. So, I'm reading some of these out of order, but I must say, I've enjoyed reading more about you, the things you enjoy and especially the questions you pose. I enjoy pondering questions! I've been very fortunate to have many wonderful and memorable travels both in state, out of state and out of the country. It's really difficult to narrow it down to just one or two places. I absolutely love Germany. It is a beautiful country and the people are amazing. I have a huge list to "check off" for places to tour/visit and included in those are Washington DC and Hawaii! Thanks again for sharing! Kaila

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  7. Kaila, I'm so glad you like reading the blog! : ) It's a lot of fun to write, so it's always nice to hear that people enjoy reading as much as I enjoy writing! I've never been to Germany, but have heard it's beautiful. Also, DC is pretty cool and I'd go back any time!

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