Check back later...I'm putting this on the web to motivate me. My knee feels fine now so I'm going to get my booty on the treadmill since I got the kids in bed at 730Pm (I'm AWESOME!) and all is quiet in the Padgett home (except for me on the keyboard...clak clak clak). The plan: Friday night 6m, Saturday morning 2m, Sunday morning 9m, Monday rest. Then I should be caught up, right!?!?!? Let's see how it goes - and I expect encouragement from anyone who cares about me meeting my personal goals b/c I could totally bail out and watch Supernanny tonight!
No SuperNanny for me...I ran 6.2 tonight on the treadmill. I'm beat - ready to hit the hay and recover so I can do it again tomorrow AM before the kids wake up. My run tonight was not good on time but enlightening...I didn't realize that I slouch when I am tired and at the start of mile 5 - I started having horrible pain all through my abdomen and lower back and shoulders . I tried the whole pretending like I have a string pulling me up and that really helped me to keep my abs tight and I ran through my 5th mile and I think that it was my best mile tonight. So all in all...tonights workout was very productive for me.

Wednesday was my easy day - so I took it really easy. 2 miles in 18 min...can't take it much easier than that! My knee was fine on the run but achy once I was walking again. I'm not sure where to go from here. I'm supposed to do a 6m today but am hurting just walking up & down the stairs. Self preservation in kicking in and I'm scratching my head wondering what the best thing for me to do is. Should I suck it up and (hopefully) run it out OR take a break and wait for it to stop causing me pain?

Cry baby

Ouch...I'm feeling it in my left knee. I don't know if this is all in my head but this morning when I woke up knowing I had a 5 mile hill run ahead of me my knee was already aching. I ran it - the whole thing although I stopped about 5 times for a drink, to walk, grab a towel or just change the cd on the stereo (rotating between Shakira, Gwen or Justin...they all are helping me bring my sexy back) I finally finished about 45 minutes later. Mind you, this was all on the treadmill(the treadmill said 42 min but that doesn't count my frequent stopping). It was a tough run - thought my knee was going to tear apart and I can barely get up and down the stairs today but I did it - it's behind me.

Sunday

3 miles...no big deal. I was sore from yesterday. I was VERY tired...9 hours of sleep overnight yet I felt as though I could've used more. My run was slow and almost relaxing, I enjoyed it but felt good knowing it was behind me. I spotted a baby gator in the pond behind our house though...they seem so harmless when they're that small - but I know better. I've got to get serious about working on my speed so that I can outrun a frisky one - forget all that "zig-zag" running nonsense! :) I will embrace my day off tomorrow.

Noah's party ..should I or shouldn't I?

I ran that day...the day when I claimed I would take the day off. I ended up running only 3 miles and they whooped me. Today, I surprised myself again by running. I know, I'm supposed to be committed to my training but today was Noah's birthday party...a big deal in my world. I was up until 2AM and then woke around 630AM - feeling decent so I figured there was no reason not to run. I did...all 7 of my miles, plus a little extra to impress myself I suppose. I felt it though, my muscles were tired and although I was doing fine during the party and into the afternoon...here now that it's 930Pm...I'm ready to hit the hay. Let's see how my 3 miler tomorrow goes. It's 3 miles, right?

Being Olivia

I am who I am. I rarely pace myself...I'm more like a tornado than a hurricane (sorry dad). There is an endless list of things that I should do to better myself, learning to follow a plan and pace myself is one of them. Today I am not going to do my 5 mile run due to a combination of exhaustion and a nagging pain in my left knee. I felt fine as soon as I woke up but within an hour (I had Sela awake at 6AM and couldn't take off with everyone else sleeping since I didn't want to have to push a stroller for 5 miles) I was feeling rough. Hopefully I didn't get the cold my mother in law is fighting while I was over there yesterday. I'm taking today and tomorrow to rest. Saturday morning before Noah's party or Saturday evening I will take some "me" time and finish my week strong.

What day are we on?

I did not do Sundays run...I had good intentions to take the day off in order to start a new week a day early. This did not happen, so I'm going to do my best to stay on schedule. That in itself is a difficult task. I used to think that it was a cop out when people failed to make race goals due to time issues. Today, as a wife and the mother of 3 young kids, with 2 businesses run out of our home...I accept that excuse for them...yet still not for myself. So this is how things have been going with my training.
Tuesday I got a wild hair and decided to bike 15 miles - but got my route all confused and ended up biking only 10. I felt good, came home for a drink and headed out for my 5 mile, scheduled run. I was whooped by the time I was done. I recuperated by laying out and swimming...and by night fall I had fully transformed into a lobster. I was crispy...not as in delicious Krispy Kreme but as in toast. Not good. I went ahead and did the weight training and ab work suggested by my brother and training partner Jason & my husband Rob around 8:30 after the kids were in bed.
Honestly this is harder than I thought. The workouts are awesome...I love the workouts but the time requirement is tough. I'm committed to not only running the 1/2 with Jason...but doing great.
Today - I ran my "easy" 2 miler with Caleb in tow and Chevelle (my sassy black lab) to keep me motivated. I didn't time myself but it was awesome...early around 730am and quick...about 12 or 13 minutes. I felt great. I'm looking forward to tomorrows 5 mile run again. No biking before hand though.

Day 6

I am pleasantly surprised at how good I felt all during and after my 7+ run this morning. I wish I had chosen to run further or faster- knowing now that I can do it no problem. Not much to say about this run...it's a good day!

Days 3 & 4

I realized Wednesday that I was off on the training calendar because I started a day early. My run on Wednesday was uneventful aside from the air being so thick that I was dripping wet with sweat from an "easy" 3 mile run. Today I decided to start training on my bike - I rode a little over 10 miles and loved it. I have a new found respect for cyclists...my quads and shoulders are sore. I had a hard time walking back down stairs after my shower! I didn't' run today - the kids were giving daddy a hard time while I was on the bike so I felt a stronger calling to be helpful than selfish and continue to workout. I am definitely going to keep working on biking - I averaged a 4 minute mile today. I don't have a set goal yet but I know that when I do my first sprint tri - I want to be at the top of the finishers rather than the bottom.

Day 2

I ran my 5 miles this morning between 8-9AM. My time was right at 45minutes. I have a lot to work on but it's nice to know where I stand. I was tired but feel good now that I'm showered and rehydrated. I did 2 laps of 2.5 with a lot of sprints on the way back...I forgot about them until the second 2.5 loop but made up for it. I felt really good when I was running all out but when I'd slow back into my "comfortable" pace I felt like it was rough on my body. I'm looking forward to a easy 3 tomorrow. I wish I had a training partner here in town though.
I'm also going to keep track of my weight for now too. I want to lean out while I'm training...my goal is to be 115. Today I'm at 122 before my shower but after my run, swim & drinking my Post workout Recovery shake, fiber drink and a bottle of water. Watch me melt away over the next 2 months - no-one will ever believe that I am the mother of 3! :)

Day 1

Monday July 2, 2007

Today was a rough start. I'm on day 2 of an Herbal Cleanse so my energy is down. In my first attempt to run this morning I couldn't get out of the gate of our gated community. The gate literally wouldn't open and I waited 5 minutes for a car to come through...but the gate never moved. We only live about 1/10 of a mile from the gate but just the walk to and from, along with the wait, I was sweating and the dog was overheating. I got down on myself and wound up engrossed in housework before I actually put in my miles for today.
I ended up running on the treadmill on an 5% incline at 7.5 mph for the first 3/4 of each mile and went up to 12% incline at 9.5 mph for the last 1/4. Total running was 3.1 m in 24 minutes. I was super disappointed in myself today b/c I felt every step of my run. Due to my poor planning, the kids (Noah & Caleb) interrupted me so many times I don't think I ran even 1 mile continuously. I have higher hopes for tomorrow and a new schedule to go along with it.
I'm looking forward to feeling good about my run tomorrow!