Disappointed

Besides realizing that I am completely slow after my initial use of the forerunner, I am a little bummed that I’m not sure I got the most accurate reading. It’s either that the forerunner is inaccurate or the running track at the nearby school is. Or maybe I really am THAT slow.

I usually run right on the center of the running track using my Nike+, which means I run right on the line of the 3rd and 4th lane.  This morning I took my usual position right on the white line and ran a lap using my spiffy new forerunner. It read that a complete lap between the 3rd and 4th lane was at .20 miles. Seeing that it wasn’t a full 1/4 mile, I then decide to run on the 4th lane, and still no luck. Then the 5th, nuh-uh. Then the 6th, the unused lane, and I say this because weed has actually spread right onto the dirt in large sections sporadically throughout that lane, and yet, that lane didn’t work either. They all measured at .20 miles, maybe .21 miles. I wanted to cry… because I’m a big ol’ baby but mostly because I’m PMSing so I have the right.

I instantly had buyer’s remorse. Should I have just saved that money for something more useful? Maybe it’s just inaccurate because no one actually uses it to run around in circles, which defeats the whole purpose of my purchase since most of my runs are on a running track. Maybe I confused it. Gah, which way is she going?! I ran 22 laps on the 4th lane of a 6 lane track, which should have been 5.5 miles, but instead it read 4.57 miles. I think the Nike+ had me at somewhere like 5.83 miles. That was higher because I ran in the lane further than what I calibrated the sensor in. I’m going to try again. This time I’m going to use it running from the stop light down the street from my apartment to the next stop light two blocks down. I’ve measured it in my car to be .50 miles so I’ll see what my new friend/enemy Garmy has to say about that.

I’m sure it’s a great product. I’ve read so many great reviews for it, but I’m wondering if maybe it’s not for me since I’m not an advanced runner nor do I run on running paths. I simply stick to running tracks or jog around my neighborhood. I don’t know what to do. I don’t really want to return it, and I’m not sure if Amazon would allow me to just because I changed my mind. Or maybe I’ll keep it and learn to love it.

Or who knows? Maybe the running track I use isn’t really accurate. Someone could have screwed up on the planning and construction. D’oh! Wouldn’t that be something?

I have to love it. I want to love it. I really do. I don’t want it to be wasted money. Augh. I won’t give up on it. If anything, maybe I’m right between what the Nike+ tells me I am and what the forerunner said I did. We’ll see. New post regarding Garmy coming soon.

It’s in!

It’s here. My brand-new Garmin Forerunner is here! Sure it took a couple days longer than I thought since I was impatiently tracking it on USPS.com, but it still got here before the date I was given. Gotta love amazon.com.

I will have a more accurate reading of my miles tomorrow morning, or maybe even tonight if I’m too anxious to wait! I’m excited! I’ve read it’s pretty easy to use so I’m crossing my fingers. I’m not sure if they took into a consideration that some of us are technology impaired.

Thanks, 1mile! I probably would have waited longer to actually get one since I thought it was for the elite runner, but it actually makes more sense to get it now since I’ve been giving myself wayyyyy too much credit for distance and speed. Not that my speed or distance is that great as it is, but I know now that I’m much slower than what Nike+ led to me believe. At least now I can calibrate the Nike+ along with the forerunner and be more accurate. Sure I’ll be disappointed but hopefully I’ll eventually build up to be a better runner!

Can’t wait! Details tomorrow.

I’m here, my pretties.

Big cyber group hug!

I’ve been MIA for almost 2 weeks now. Geez. Has it been that long? Anyway, we went down to the coast for 4 days and it was wonderful. It was a little chilly but I was fine wearing a light sweater. I just appreciated being away from this Bakersfield heat. We really had a good time and I seriously was so sad on Saturday, our last day. I couldn’t believe how fast time flew by while we were there. I really wanted to cry as we drove away. Now I’m just counting down the days until the next big family trip back to Cambria. 355 days! I told my boyfriend we should just quit our jobs and live there. I wouldn’t mind opening my own little shop of whatever and living off that. There’s tons of cute little shops there. I’ve always wondered how they made money but they seem to do well and live by the beach, so I’m in!

I managed to go jogging once while I was there. It felt so liberating to run along the beach. It was about 6:00 a.m. when I went out and there were already a few people walking. It doesn’t usually get crowded at that beach anyway since it is always a little chilly in Cambria, but it really felt nice to have the beach almost completely to myself. When my boyfriend and I returned later at about noon, I showed him where along the beach I had ran and the water was already covering that area. That was pretty amazing! I almost doubted that we’d gone back to the same place, but then I saw the huge rock I’d run by.

I also ran my first 5K the day of our return. I did horribly, a lot worse than what I thought I would. And not to make excuses or anything, but I did get sick the night before. I was up at about 1 a.m. praying to the porcelain gods. I did feel slightly better after and then I got back into bed and knocked out for a few more hours. I was up at 10 a.m. Ahhh… bliss. I had one meal of calamari and chips before we left for home and didn’t have anything else. I felt I was well hydrated but I did start feeling nervous about the race as time ticked on. I don’t know if my getting sick the night before had anything to do with how bad I did, but I am really hoping it did. At least a little bit because then that’ll mean that I don’t suck THAT bad, heh. I do have another 5K in a week from tomorrow. So soon!? I know! What am I thinking? But I’m determined to shave off a few minutes from my time. I’m just really nervous that I won’t and then I’ll be even more disappointed.

I haven’t been running as well as I’d like to either. I’ve been eating really bad and everyday I tell myself I’m going to make better food choices and then I cave. But I don’t want to quit. I’ve already had a chorizo burrito this morning, but I will make a better choice for lunch. Maybe a salad. Hmmm… maybe. Geez, I really wish I could be hypnotized into making better choices. Don’t people get hypnotized to quit smoking? I’d like to quit my bad eating habits. Ugh.

On another note, I bought a new toy, the Garmin Forerunner 205. I probably shouldn’t have because I’m no hardcore runner yet and it is pretty pricey, but I thought it’d be a nice tool to have to give me a more accurate reading of the miles I’ve jogged and my pace. I love my Nike+ but after my 5K I discovered it was off. I’ve since then recalibrated the sensor, but I’m still doubtful of it’s accuracy. I don’t want to give myself credit for a faster pace or longer miles if I didn’t really do it. It should be coming in today! Amazon.com had lots of great reviews, and even though it’ll look like I have a brick attached to my wrist, I’m excited. I may not be a serious runner yet, but hopefully this will help me to be.

I’ll keep you posted. I’ve had so much to blog about but this post is long enough as it is. One week and one day left until my next race. I’ll have to be extra good running and eating wise. Wish me luck! Thanks for checking in!

And I’m still running

I almost didn’t do it, but I forced myself out of bed this morning. I’ve had to talk myself into getting up for the past week. I was fine for several weeks. It was so easy getting up in the mornings and then all of a sudden BAM! it’s like sleep caught up to me. All I want to do is sleep in, but then I realize that I probably won’t even be able to sleep comfortably for the next hour and a half anyway, and so I get out of bed.

And I’m usually glad I do. I’d even planned on heading to the gym this morning, but my honey actually said he wanted to go running with me. That was surprising, and so I decided to go running instead. It felt good. I tried not to think about how I must have looked to him in my running gear, but it was hard not to feel self-conscience. I’m sure he’s seen me looking worse than that, but I’ve never jiggled and frolicked in front of him for several miles before.

But anyway, great news. I’m officially entered for the 5K next weekend. Whoo! I’ll be getting a t-shirt. Awesome! We’ll be racing at 8:30 p.m. so I hope it’ll be cooler by then. It was 109 degrees today and the humidity this morning was so high even at 5:30 a.m. My jogs seem to be slowing down and I know it shouldn’t matter but I can’t help but feel a little disappointed by it. I thought I’d be improving, but it may be the heat or the recent running break I had that has slowed me down. Or maybe a combination of both.

Anyhow, I have a week and a day left to train for the race, so I hope I do well. The only bad thing, well honestly it’s not so bad, but the only thing that may hinder my training is that my boyfriend and I are off to the beach next Wednesday afternoon until Saturday. I’m really looking forward to it. His family goes down every year for a week for a family reunion. We’ve never been able to stay the night let alone a few days before this so I’m beyond excited! Usually we just drive down on a Friday when they all get together for the big family BBQ, which is so much fun. I will try to find time to run, and it might even be nice being in the cooler weather with so much beautiful scenery, but I’m not counting on it too much. The day we return home is also the day of the race, so I’m going to try to be good about my eating habits that day. I really don’t want to ruin the race, but I don’t want to ruin my fun at the beach either because I am so looking forward to the food and the drinks. Fun fun!

I hope to have pictures. It’s actually a very pretty place. We really enjoy the peacefulness of the little town. I seriously cannot wait to be there! Too bad I’m not bikini ready, but luckily it’s not the type of place where you prance in your skimpy bathing suit. Brrr… Heh. See? My kind of place.

Tagged by Chefsy

And though, I have much to blog about, I have been really busy at work and haven’t had the time. Work is actually my best time to blog because I’m at a desk all day in front of a computer, plus it takes me away from work for a bit. But I did answer these questions really quick to let you all know I’m still alive and miss my blog buddies.

Copy the rules (or your version of them) and the set of questions onto your blog post, provide your own answers and then tag at least 5 new people. If tagged, you’ll find your name at the end of this post.

To be sure everyone tagged knows they’ve been invited to play, go to their blogs and leave them a comment notifying and referring them to your blog for details.

Lastly, once the chosen have answered the questions on their own blog, they should come back to yours to tell you.

1. How would you describe your running 10 years ago?

I would run 2 miles (on a good day) and pat myself on the back for it. I did it strictly as a form of exercise for weight maintenance.

2. What is your best and worst run/race experience?

Ooh, my race experience will begin July 19^th. The best experience thus far is actually filling out the entry form and sending it in with payment making it official. Yeah, buddy! Worst running experience? The recent shin splints and the hassle to find the right pair of running shoes. Ugh. So glad that’s over.

3. Why do you run?

I used to run every now and then, get bored, head back to the gym, get bored, start running, get bored, and so on until recently when I discovered Nike+ and it kept track of my mileage. It was really motivating. It IS motivating. It has really made me want to get more and more serious about running. I love increasing my mileage and having my Nike+ remind me of how much I’ve run. I’ve started looking at running from a different angle, not just as exercise and have noticed the additional benefits of it. My legs are a little firmer, still chubby but firmer. It helps relieve stress and since I’ve stopped counting laps around the track I can instead focus on different things, sing along to songs and just feel so much better mentally. It’s MY time. I LOVE it.

4. What is the best or worst piece of advice you’ve been given about running?

Best advice: Finding the right pair of running shoes and slow down.

Worst advice: Don’t run, it’s bad for your knees.

5. Tell us something surprising about yourself that not many people would know.

There’s not really anything surprising or interesting about me. Though, I can actually run further and longer now that I am 30 and overweight, than what I could at 20 being an itty bitty thing. Must be the extra energy stored in my excess fat tissue. Is that surprising? Or I must watch ALL my movies with caption. I know, annoying if you’re a guest in my home, right? It drives me nuts when it’s not available on certain DVDs. Heh.

Oh well, I tried.

If you’ve read this, consider yourself tagged.

And then there were 4…

…shoes, that is.

Monday afternoon I went to see the podiatrist. I hadn’t felt any more pain except for the minor discomfort I felt in my shins on Saturday evening when I went for the 3-mile walk. Had I ran instead I knew I would have felt a sharp pain in my shins. So the doctor checks my shins and says I’m fine. He then has me stand up and face him. He then proceeds to tell me that I overpronate. Say what? I tell him I just bought shoes for the neutral to underpronator, and he says I need a shoe with motion control. Well, color me silly, ha! Who knew?

I told him that I’d done the wet test and thought I was either a neutral or underpronator. Obviously, the wet test isn’t very reliable. He told me my arch was fine, but that my feet still go inwards. I feel relieved and better knowing that I don’t have to stop running. Yea!

And so what I did after I left the doctor’s office was drive home, pick up the receipt for the shoes and drove immediately back to the shoe store to exchange my shoes. Now I’m on my fourth pair in less than 3 weeks, and I really hope that was the last time I’ll be in there for a long, long time. For real, this time.

That evening when it cooled down I went for a test run in my new shoes, and lo and behold, 3 miles and no shin splints. Yay! I should have probably waited before I went running again, but early the next morning I couldn’t resist, I went for another run. This time it was 3.5 miles and guess what? No shin splints. Then I thought it’d be good to take today off and go to the gym, but neh, so I laced up my shoes and went for a 4 mile run. Yay! But tomorrow I’m definitely taking the day off from running. I may head out to the gym after work but that just depends. But I’m back, baby! And it feels really good to be able to run again, since I’m no longer feeling shin splints. I am however feeling something different on the outside of my right shin. It’s not pain or discomfort, just a “feeling”. I hope it’s just my foot getting used to the shoe.

See, I really do want to be like 1mile when I grow up, and follow in his overpronating footsteps, heh. I’ll be running marathons in no time, ha! Okay, maybe not too soon, but I am feeling more confident about the 5K that’s coming up and I’m so glad I don’t have to walk it. Well, who knows, but if I do walk it won’t be because of the shin splints.