the 3 mile route...

okay just a short message today. not sure if any of you have checked out the gmaps pedometer website but it's pretty cool! anyway, here's my usual 3 mile route that i run during the weekdays (which will soon be replaced by 4 mile runs as my training calendar says!)

the treadmill, a torture device

since i didn't manage to run on sunday due to the rain, i was all ready to make up for it on monday (which is normally a day off) with a run after work. of course right at 6:00pm i look out the window and it's raining again. dc has just been storming!

so i figure that i would hit the gym and use the treadmill. nothing too fancy, just an easy 30 minute run. now normally when i run outside, i average between a 9-10 minute mile, but yesterday when i got on that treadmill and set the speed to 6 mph, i almost died! it was like i was fighting to stay on that treadmill for dear life; after 5 minutes of huffing and puffing, i forced myself to realize that i had to lower the speed (and i hate running more than 10 minutes per mile!) after the first mile, it got better, but man, how is it that it's so easy outside and so hard on the treadmill? further, i realized that gyms are boring. i don't know what to look at (for some reason reading the text of wheel of fortune just doesn't do it for me) so instead, i count every second that i run. so what's normally a short run outside turns into the longest run ever on the treadmill!!!

upon yesterday's treadmill experience, my confidence in running was a little shaky, so i was a little worried how this morning's 4 mile run would go. waking up to no rain meant that i would get to run outside (yah!) and you know what? my run this morning was fine. i did 4 miles in about 40 minutes. my analysis? that i just don't like treadmills.

i ran into my neighbor on the way out the door and he was like, wow, you're able to run with this humidity? and my reply? well, i'm training! and that, folks, is why i'm running a marathon. otherwise, i'd be like, it's really humid and i'm really tired, so why wake up and run?!

rain, the demotivator

so i had a plan today to go and run my 3 miles at 8:30pm. that way i could eat dinner after my run at a decent hour and be back in time to watch entourage at 10. right when i went out the door, it started raining. i figure, oh it's only a few drops, i can handle it. and then the next thing you know, 10 seconds later the drizzle had become a waterfall. typical dc rain. so i went back inside and figure i could come back out in half an hour, after the pouring had stopped. what i thought would be a 10 minute passing shower turned into a 2 and a half hour downpour complete with lightning and thunder. i guess you could call it perfect timing. the rain slowed to a drizzle at 11, but seriously, at that hour, it seems a little late to run right? ahh, the rain, the biggest demotivator of all. looks like i'll have to save my 30-minute run until tomorrow.

running the trails...

yesterday morning, on a saturday, my alarm woke me up at 6:49am so that i could get to my run by 8. first thing i did after i woke up was check my emails. the weather reports predicted lots of rain and lightning storms all day saturday so i had to check to make sure the run was still on! lucky us, no rain in site. instead, we were met by another humid day... welcome to dc!!!

on my way over to rock creek park, a lightbult went off in my head and i realized that i had forgotton to take my water bottles! yikes, especially since this past week, my coach has been sending emails that keep saying "if you don't have a water bottle get a water bottle or i won't let you go out on the run." so after a pit stop at a random gas station to purchase a bottle of water, i hike it down to rock creek park to make it there by 8!

for us marathoners, we ran 9 miles. and for the first 8 miles, i was fine, but by mile 8, i was TIRED!!! with only 1 mile to go, i ran a little bit slower (or else the group i was with ran a little bit faster) and finally made it to the end, where an oasis of water, gatorade, bagels, peanut butter and pretzels were waiting!

it was a good run, but let me tell you, the dc humidity is a killer! and let me also tell you that all of us look gorgeous after our run. imagine really sweaty people wearing dorky fanny pack water holders. i know, you're jealous that i get to see that every week.

next week we're scheduled to run 10 miles AND because dc summer has finally hit, with crazily humid days, we are moving our running schedule from saturdays at 8am to saturdays at 7am. not sure how i'll cope with the time but i'll keep you posted.

update #1

now, onto the update about my training... training has been going on for a little more than a month now. so far, i've been disciplined and have been consistently running 4 times a week and cross training once a week! with all the increased exercise, one would think that i would be losing weight. however, all that exercise has made me hungrier, so in the end it just balances itself out. good thing i'm not doing this to lose weight then, huh?

training with the team has been lots of fun so far. hard work, but fun! each week, we've added on an extra mile and so far, so good. however, tomorrow we run 9 miles!!! eek! so maybe the next time i post something i might have a different outlook. as the miles get longer, the weather gets hotter! gotta love dc weather, hot and humid!

the creation of a blog...

hey everyone and welcome to my blog. i'm not a huge blog person so we'll see how frequently i actually post something! i wanted a way to keep you all informed on my training, especially those of you who have been so generous to support me and the leukemia and lymphoma society by donating. I can't thank you enough:

Agnes L; Alice & Stephen T; Andrea N; Andrew & Flora Z; Antonia & Norman T; Carol & Michael Y; Carrie & Leo Z; Chandra K; Christina & Joseph C; Debbie & Henry P; Diana & Steven C; Eddie & Greta N; Emi H; Eppie L; Franny & Stanley W; Grandpa & Grandma; Jane P & Robert C; Jennifer Z; Jessica S; Joe M; John & Christine N; Kathleen C; Kristin Y; La Leslie A; Lillian & Vinai C; Lillian M; Louie W; Mah-Lei & Jeffrey L; Mom & Dad; Monica G; Mueen B; Pamela T; Paul & Cissy N; Pooj, Tim, Asha & Tej D; Rachel F; Regis B; Rehva J; Rose-Jean & Samuel F; Rosina & Tony S; Ruth & Lawrence C; Selina & Johnson C; Serena & Kelvin L; Stro M; and Timmy C!