Alice is a Runner!

Summer has already put me into a time warp.  I almost logged this run on Wednesday.  It is Thursday, silly Alice!  I also asked my dad if it was going to rain on Friday, just after he told me it was going to rain tomorrow.  Silly Alice!

The run today was spectacular.  I ran a different route than normal(which is funny seeing I have only ran here once, so far!) and actually convinced myself to run the whole darn 2.2. Okay, I walked for a whole block, but that was it.  I NEVER stopped!  That is good for me.  I liked the fact that it was a little cooler and less humid today.  We had a storm system go through yesterday, which made it a bit cooler. I also think the ten hours of sleep I got last night helped a whole lot.  I am catching up from last week only sleeping on average about five hours!  Crazy!

I really am loving being here.  I am one lucky duck who gets to have the best of two worlds each year.  I get my beautiful mountains for nine months and then my pretty green evergreens for three months!  (I also don't miss how hot it gets in Utah in the summer! And I miss the real cold Wisconsin winters!)

I procrastinated getting on the road for about two hours.  It all started because my iPod was dead.  I can't run without my music.  Actually, I can't do a lot of things without my music! Anyway, I was proud of myself that I just kept running, even though I wanted to stop after about six minutes out.  I wouldn't let myself look at my iPod to see how far I had gone until I got to a certain house(that creeps me out).  That was my goal and I did it.  I love how running is a constant reminder to me that I can do anything, if I put my mind to it.  I love that!

I ran for 1.73 miles without stopping.  That is spectacular.  I think next time I am going to not let myself look at the milage and just keep running.  Unfortunately, I now have two routes that I know exactly what the milage is and I will want to stop anyway.  I think I do better when I trick myself into not knowing how long or far I have ran.  

I am also slow and okay with it.  I need to keep reminding myself that this is a journey just like my weight loss has been.  I am not going to be running marathons for a while and that is okay.  Slow and steady wins the race.  I do need to get a little better with form and training. Any suggestions on good books or websites?  

I like the weather today.  I just beat the rain so it was cloudy durning the run.  I know that I am a complete weirdo because I love rainy days.  I think it is the Wisconsin in my blood or something.  I like being here! 

SLOW AND STEADY WINS THE RACE....

 I ran the WHOLE 2.2 miles today.  I did it at about a 12:03 pace.  I have decided that I am like the black bear I saw in my parent's backyard today and I am built to go slow(for now).  It was a beautiful day to be running.  I saw a robin snag a flying bug midair, a red squirrel, and a monarch butterfly.  It is nice to be around nature.  I ran to Hodag park and sat along the lake after having my cool down and stretching.  It was relaxing to watch the people out on their boats and the kids swimming.  It must truly be sumer! The mile and a half walk home was nice, too.  

How does one's legs become lead over night?

It was a HEAVY run today.  I just wasn't feeling it most of the way.  My legs felt more like telephone poles than legs.  I guess it didn't help that I had a pretty strong head wind for the first half of the run.  You would think that the tail wind on the way back would have helped...but it did not.  I told my dad when I got home that it was pretty much a pansy run.  I would stop about every two tenths of a mile and wish I was back in my bed. 

Maybe I was just sleep jogging.  I don't think I was quite awake.  I made myself get up and run so I could still have time to get ready to head down to Madison, WI with my mom this afternoon.  We catch our flight to London tomorrow morning there.  I am excited.

I did see the beauty around me but it didn't take away my longing to be done.  :)  Hopefully, I will get a few runs in while I am in the UK.

Dundee, Scotland

I was thinking that if I didn't use my shoes and clothes that I packed to run in for my trip to the UK, it would be silly to have wasted the space in my suitcase!

 The run was HARD, but it felt good to be moving.  I feel like goo.  That is probably because I am eating fabulously delicious and bad for me food.  Today it was a full Scottish breakfast and then a fish and chips lunch.  Both very good.  Both goo filled.

It was fun to be able to run here.  The rolling green hills in the distance made me smile.  I keep having to pinch myself to make sure I am really here.  Scotland is beautiful.  The temperature is perfect for running as well.  Not for sun bathing or shorts but running is ok. 

There is a beautiful park near my friend's flat and I enjoyed the trails a lot.  I randomly and haphazardly ran around in order to stay close to the flat and not get lost.  The backdrop made this repetitive running worthwhile. 

I am going to be sore tomorrow.  I feel like a grandma.  I guess this is proof that regular running is key and that the fuel we take in matters. 

So glad I got to run here.  It was a cool and enlightening experience.

Madison, WI: Running+Humidity+Jet Lag=Bad Idea!

Well, I made it back from the UK.  It was a very long day yesterday.  24 hours of being awake does not make me happy.  I survived though.  I really wanted to get out today and run so I did it, even though I probably could have given myself a day to recoup.

 I forgot about humidity.  I hate it.  I hate feeling like I can never get dry.  Running is a sweaty mess with humidity.  I guess there is one good thing about Utah, the lack of humidity. 

Anyway, good little run around my sister's neighborhood.  I struggled a bit because of jet lag and not running much the last two weeks.  Luckily, I was still able to run a good first mile and I even ran it pretty fast.  That second mile kills me.  I need to do something about that!

 Well, it is nice to be home and running again.  Seems to make order in the world, doesn't it?

Back in Rhinelander, WI

I ran a very fast first mile.  I can't even remember how fast.  I kinda cheated though and paused my time when I had to walk a few times.  Going faster makes me have to stop.  I guess that is okay.  It made me smile to see the sun out but that there were a few storm clouds moving through.  I even thought to myself: "I think I picked a good time to run.  It is cooler than later in the day and it is not raining."  Unfortunately, the rain caught up to me on the way back from Boom Lake. I thought it could have saved me time if I would have just brought soap and shampoo with me...then I wouldn't have had to showered when I got back!

I decided that I was not going to whine about it, though, because I actually am a fan of the rain.  It was also peaceful to be out and about earlier in the morning when there were less people around.  It is calming. I guess my dad is right and there is something about being up earlier in the morning! 

I kinda feel like a pansy lately though.  I seem to do a lot of walking in the middle of my runs.  That is silly.  The mental aspect is hard for me sometimes.  I think I can run the amount I want to run if I run extremely slow but I want to run faster which makes me have to stop every once in a while.  That is a little frustrating to me.  Oh well.

I think a goal this week is to run the full run!

Cheers! 

Where has June gone?  I can't believe it is already the last day of the month.  At least it was full of good times!

 Today's run was excellent.  I ran the WHOLE time.  I felt like I was going slow but maybe that is the key to me running further!  

 I failed to mention yesterday that I ran my fastest mile at 11:02.  That is pretty big.

It was a nice cool morning again.  It has been pretty chilly here lately.  I am not going to lie, I like it.  

The last part of my run was a little hard, but I just kept my mind full of my inspirations.  Like the man who has MS and still finished the 5k anyway, friends who run in horrible conditions to finish the race and friends who fall on their faces and get up and finish their run anyway. Those kinds of stories keep me going and I was glad I had those inspirations today.

 Cheers!