Back at it with a 6er

Today was the first time I've run since my New Years double and the "official" start of my half marathon training. I originally had a 4-miler planned for Thursday, but I was still a little sore ... and I was back to working every night. I guess I was on the "keep around after holiday peak" list after all. Yay. Nothing else new on the work front. Rumors are running rampant and it'd be silly to get worked up over something that may or may not happen. All I can do is keep working hard and appreciate the trust my supervisors have placed in me ... and the paychecks. :)

I was eager to test out my new C9 cold compression gear I bought earlier this week at Target (yay sales and gift cards) and nature definitely provided the cold. Brr! It was right around 20* when I left the house. Thank goodness it was sunny and the wind was completely calm.

So...

Plan: 6 miles

Actual: 6.22 miles in 1:11:37 (average pace of 11:30/ mile)

I'm really happy with this considering I haven't run this far since before Halloween! Yes, I went back and looked it up. Lol. And. I ran the whole time. No walk breaks. :)

And now I need to go get ready for work. I'm thinking compression socks are going to be a necessity tonight. Good thing I bought myself 2 more pairs for Christmas. :)

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID

Fab Abs January Calendar

Have you guys seen this yet? Anyone else up for following it?

http://shrinkingjeans.net/2012/12/fab-abs-january-monthly-workout-calendar/

Hangover Classic and 2013 Goals

Oh man are my legs tired. I can (probably still) run 6 miles with no problems, but "racing" 2 5ks within 12 hours of each other and I'm wiped.

It was cold and sunny for the Hangover Classic today. It cracks me up how many people show up in old-school sweatpants (tucked into their tube socks, of course) and full-outfit pjs for this race. There was even someone running in a robe (like, terry cloth bath robe) this year! Midnight Special might be littered with sparkles, glow lights, and cheesy hats, but the Hangover Classic outfits live up to the race's name. The male and female winners get outhouse bobbleheads and the rest of us sit through the raffle of "leftover race crap". Despite how SLOW I was, I was pretty pleased with my performance today. I didn't walk at all and if I didn't finish exactly on the 33-minute mark, it's because the chick RIGHT in front of me decided to WALK into the finish chute. Gah. I ended up with a cheapy plastic photo frame alarm clock from the raffle (they were Glass City Marathon Relay Winner awards from last year). Hey, why not? I could use a clock in the bathroom or on my dresser ... I guess. Haha. Maybe I'll stick an inspirational quote in the photo frame.

I spent some time during the HC today thinking about my 2013 goals. Here's what I've got so far:

1) Run 2 Half Marathons.
2) Run at least 700 miles.
3) Bike at least 500 miles.
4) GRADUATE!!!
5) Take a vacation.
6) Be creative EVERY DAY. I don't care if it's blogging about my running, ranting in my journal, or spending 10 minutes doodling while I'm on the phone. For me, the best way to practice expressing myself is to JUST MAKE IT HAPPEN.

I'm sure I'll add to the list as I think about other aspects of my life, but these were the first ones that popped into my head (and made sense) today.

Midnight Special 5k

Apparently, the fast girls in my age division were either out drinking or home in bed. In case you can't read the picture ...

#183 overall

3/6 in my age group ... which means I got an award

75/101 in the women's division

Chip time of 32:06, which is an average pace of 10:20

I'm happy with this. Considering I've run 3 times in the last month and a half and the trail was a bit slick with fresh snow, I'm more than happy, I'm ecstatic.

My first mile was a 10:50. I blame this partly on my hesitation and mostly on the number of people I had to dodge to be able to run at a comfortable pace. It wasn't until around the first mile marker that I could really stretch my legs. Mile 2 was at 10:31. Better, but still felt like I was holding back and being cautious with the sloppy trail. Right at the 2 mile marker, the couple I was shadowing took off and I went with them ... 9:42 (which felt amazing, by the way). As soon as I saw the turn in for the finish line, I started hauling and sprinted across the mat.

So ... awesome start to the 2013. Now to get some sleep before part 2 of the New Years hat trick :)