Before I formally begin my update on life and a running tangent, please congratulate the lovely and super tiny Kristen on her speedy first half marathon. She and her husband are the cutest!!!

OK people, prepare yourself for quite the post – it HAS been over a week (I think).

Irrelevant Life Update:

Lately, I’ve been doing a lot of this.

 

Reading blogs and letting a dog sleep on my arm. Actually, I just wanted to post another picture of my sister’s cute dog, Zoey. Isn’t she just adorable?

Another distraction lately has been the release of one of my bestest friends ever’s wedding photos:

 

 

I love weddings. I love parties. If I get an invitation to your wedding, I will go and it will be awesome.

Someone at work did the nicest thing anyone could ever do for me- they left their extra Halloween candy at my desk! My heart seriously melted. Now THAT is someone who knows me. Or maybe its just common knowledge among the office? Doesn’t matter.

 

 

 

 

A shnazzy discovery among the collection: a Gummi Krabby Patty!!!! Any Spongebob fans out there? How did I have NO idea that these existed?

 

Another one of my bestest friends celebrated the big 2-6 this past week as well. I may or may not have had 6 glasses of wine. In my defense, I was drowning away my sorrow over the Charger’s loss to the Raiders. I mean really – 4 losses in a row? Phillip Rivers and I are in a fight. *FYI – I will always be a Chargers fan.

 

[I promise running happens in between all of this nonsense]

What better way to kick off college football Saturday than with a Bloody Mary (or 3)???

I also cannot think of a better way to kick off NFL Sundays with a buddy making me eggs and bacon??

 

And the best part? Edith (aka, my mom) returned from her fabulous escape to South America. I also got to sift through her fun presents and take some goodies before my sisters could. What – you snooze you lose in this family!

Now that we’re all caught up….

RUNNING TANGENT:

I’m a slow runner. I know people say that all the time about themselves, but I’m really serious. 10:45/mile is NOT okay. And it’s not that I’m entirely clueless about how to get faster. I’ve done my reading on speed training…hills, sprints, etc. (Thanks to Kristy, HRG, Emily and SO MUCH MORE). Then I came to a realization: I am mentally weak. This happened when I heard/read things from several blogs and people over the past week. Some things include…

  • Running doesn’t have to be comfortable – this one will really test my mental toughness and physical boundaries, but I think I’m healthy enough to go there. I’ve kind of slacked in this area and stay where I’m comfortable. This would explain why I’m staying in this slow-poke range.
  • It’s OK to get emotional about running every now and then – I am naturally not the most competitive person in the world. And a large part of me doesn’t WANT to get too self involved/emotional about running…I hate disappointment and being let down. But I do know that putting no pressure leaves me lacking motivation and drive.
  • Don’t be afraid to run with someone faster than you – self-explanatory. I hate the idea of slowing someone down, or having them stare at me huffing and puffing away. I would be SO embarrassed.
  • You have to train faster to run faster (DUH, but harder to implement) – kind of goes with my lack of mental toughness.
  • Make/find a REAL training plan and STICK TO IT – I didn’t have a formal training plan set up at ALL for the two half marathons I ran. I really just ran according to feel, or how I felt that day and just ran long runs on the weekends. And sometimes I cross trained. Yikes, so not professional.
I know, I know – a lot of these are kind of assumed to be common knowledge in the running world. But reminder: I’m still relatively a rookie here. I’m learning as I go. But I think it’s about time I give myself a swift kick in the behind and push myself a little harder. Therefore, I AM BACK WITH VENGEANCE. I think that I can push myself mentally and physically. Running is still magical and my favorite thing ever. But I need to get better.
Any other tips you’d like to add?
Also, I’ve missed writing and reading all of your lovely blogs – so glad to be back!!!