ARG still here!

Hello! I’ve been MIA from blogland mainly because there hasn’t been much running around these parts. I’ve still been taking it easy since my ankle issue, patiently waiting for it to get better. And it is progressively getting better. I managed to run 2.25 miles last week. It was a slow run and I noticed my first mile was better than the second mile pain wise. I wanted to run 3 miles but no need to push it now. I do plan to run 3 miles tonight (hopefully).

My plan was to re-join my speed training group but now I feel like I’m so far behind after missing a month of sessions. I haven’t even ran 3 slow miles yet so there’s no way I will be able to do speed work. So disappointing.

I have been keeping busy with other things over the past few weeks (besides work, which isn’t exciting enough to write about). Like spending too much time at the pool working on my tan! Hey, I have to let my ankle heal, right? Fortunately, I tan pretty easy even with using sunscreen (okay maybe it was only SPF 25). I’m still going to body pump class and spin class, but I’ve missed Pilates for the past 3 weeks, yikes! I can’t wait to go back this week.

We’ve also been getting some TV time in. Very important I know. I usually don’t watch much TV, mainly because there’s just not enough time. But we like Hell’s Kitchen and a new season started a few weeks ago. Although we are already behind after being off some last week. We also got The Walking Dead season 1 & 2. I kept hearing everybody rave about this show so I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. One word – AWESOME. We finished season 1 in a few days and just started season 2 last night. I’m pretty sure we could finish it one day if we started watching before 9pm!

I have also been working on my running plans for the half marathon training which is to start in July. I am going to join another group (because they work so well for me and I never get injured) with ON’R called Streakers! Although called Streakers, they do wear clothes. This is the running group that my buddies I met from the WRS group last year joined and ran their first half this past February. I know my husband will roll his eyes when he reads this because he feels like I’m just wasting my money since I seem to have bad luck when it comes to these groups. But that’s okay, because I’m going to join anyways. To put in those miles, I’m definitely going to need other people to run with. In the nicest way to say (write) this, I have two words for my hubby – Road Bike ;)

Speaking of bike, I am looking for a used spin bike. I’ve been looking on craigslist for a very inexpensive one. You have to be so quick on craigslist though. I really like spinning as a great cross training workout and my class meets on Thursday’s which will conflict with the Streakers group and WRS...which brings me to one more announcement…

I decided to volunteer as an assistant coach with the Women’s Running School (WRS) this year. I’m super excited about it and a little nervous at the same time! Nervous because I really don’t know anything about anything running (note blog title: Aspiring) but I have enthusiasm! We had a meeting the other night and it sounds like it’s going to be a great year. I’m excited to meet some new runner girls and learn more from the experienced runners and coaches. I hope I know what I’m getting myself into! For any local runner girls interested in joining, go to this website Greensboro Running Club for more information. There will be a kick-off event on July 16 and the school starts on August 2.

Goals update: I didn’t post a goals recap for May, but nothing new has changed. My total miles for May were 18.13 miles. Sad, I know. I’m sure the half marathon training miles will add up to cover the lack of running recently for my 500 miles in a year goal. I did finish a book. Yay for me! I’ve still get way too many magazines to catch up on but hanging out at the pool is helping with that. I also just bought 3 more books on running at the used book store last week. Not too mention, I have some overdue library books...better get those back!

I don't have any recent running pictures, but here is a picture of me and Michael at Run the Runway a few weeks ago. I was the cheerleader and holder of all things for everyone! Also a picture of us hanging at the pool. Seems to be what we've been do here lately!

One mile and new shoes...again

Since my last whiny post about my ankle, it has gotten better. I am being smart and taking the proper rest break and not running on it. Well, almost.

So last Friday night me and some of the other "Breathless Babes" did a 1 mile downhill dash called PM in the Park. None of us consider ourselves fast; it was just for fun and a good excuse for us to go out to dinner afterwards. Let me also say it wasn’t completely downhill. Some of the mile was flat and there were two small inclines. The winner finished in 4:18! There were 54 people and 14 finished a sub-6 minute mile. My mile was 8:46 which is a new PR! My fastest mile before was on the last night of bootcamp recently I ran an 8:55. The sad thing is…I PR’d but still came in next to last.

I wasn’t expecting to come out and do some crazy fast mile and set a new record or something (HAHA). And yes my ankle was still hurting and I probably shouldn’t have been running anyways. But that just sounds like an excuse. Nobody wants to finish last or next to last. Yet somebody has to and will always have to. There will always be a last place. But even last place always finishes the race and that’s what matters the most. And I finished my little 1 mile even though I wanted to just stop, especially after the other 9 runners in my wave left me in the dust. It helped to hear my friends at the finish line cheering me on even though I know I was last in my wave. So this time I gladly take next to last place and a PR!!

Breathless Babes + 2 extra kiddos!
(that's my son being silly!)

One good thing about the mile run (I guess I can call it a good thing) is that I have self-diagnosed myself (disclaimer) and figured out what happened to my ankle. I think it was my new shoes! Well, maybe. Who knows. At 2am Saturday morning I woke up and my other ankle was starting to bother me. Okay, so I’m sure I was over compensating but it just hit me that maybe my problem was the shoes. Less than a month ago, I got the Muzinos Wave Alchemy. They are the first pair of stability shoes and the second pair Muzinos that I’ve tried.

Even though I haven’t actually ran in them much (due to said ankle issue), I’ve never felt comfortable in them and I think they are just not the right shoe for me. I compared them to my Brooks Ghost and my old K-Swiss Tubes and the heel backing does come up higher on the Alchemy’s. Of course, I can’t say for sure if the shoes had a part in my ankle issue but I just knew I didn’t want to run in them again.

Luckily, the folks at ONR have a generous return policy and for just a small re-stocking fee, I can exchange them for something else. So back to the store I went. The first thing was to try on the K-Swiss Kwicky Blade Light shoes that I really thought was the best shoe last time but hated the bright yellow color. At this point, I did not care about the color. I just want to be able to run again! I tried on a few other pairs and it came down between the K-Swiss and the Saucony Mirage 2.

Both shoes felt really comfortable and I ended up going with the Saucony’s. The main reason was because the K-Swiss has a much lower drop and I wasn’t sure if I was ready to go that low yet. Especially with half-marathon training starting in less than two months. After buying and then researching the shoes online, it seems the Mirage 2 is more of a minimal shoe. I like the mesh and the minimal overlays so that the toes have more room (hopefully I will not lose another toenail). I like the idea of a minimal shoe with a lower drop. The Alchemy’s felt very clunky. I hope they work for me but there is only one way to find out and that’s to get out there and run!

My new shoes! (again)

In honor of National Running Day, I plan to run (my ankle is feeling better). It may just be for one slow, easy mile or maybe two miles…or maybe just a quarter mile! **UPDATE: this post is a day late - I did run almost two miles! It was slow but still a run for NRD 2012!**

I also wanted to say how proud I am of my hubby, Michael for his 5K PR of 18:55!! He did the Blue Points PTI Airport 5K on the Runway on Saturday and in a field of almost 700 runners, he finished 16th!! The course is an out and back and almost completely flat. Congrats to several of my friends that PR'd in the race too!