Phoenix-Bound!

Goooood early morning!

I'm finally Phoenix-bound for the second half of the Desert Double Down journey with these fabulous ladies:

While I just ran that half last weekend (and really, didn't do terribly all things considered), I'm curious how I'll end up with this one. I think I will be sticking to some intervals, knowing that my legs aren't fully ready for another 13.1 But at this point, I've just got my eye on this prize:

Heck yes! Two medals this weekend. This is my first race challenge series, so I'm super excited to be doing it and earning that extra bling. I do it for the bling, what can I say?

This is also weekend #1 of a two-part series where I'm driving to Phoenix this weekend for the race and some fun, and next weekend will be flying to Phoenix for a sorority board meeting and some more fun! Lots of Arizona in my future. Let's do it!

Are you racing this weekend? Will I see you in Phoenix? 

#RWRunStreak Week 4

 

So, Summer Run Streak is winding down! We're headed into our last full week - the last week is only 4 days, ending on July Fourth. Can you believe it? How is June almost over? Insanity.

This week was just as long as last week and certainly made for a less than stellar set up for some good mileage. Traveling again makes for a really difficult time in adjusting and getting yourself out there - funny to think how committed I was last year and ran ... on a boat! Almost all my runs this week were on the treadmill, which we all I know I hate more than Gu (that's a lot, FYI), and was some sheer mental torture. Week survived, but not by much!

Monday, June 17: 1.25  miles

Treadmill miles, nothing terribly exciting. I tried to push it a little bit, and did this in just over 11 minutes for a low 9-something pace. Not bad, all things considered.

Tuesday, June 18: 2.10 miles
Travels for the week - do you know where I was? I got these miles done on a warm but beautiful morning - I think I was just happy to be outside and not on a treadmill! What a relief.

More on this locale later this week! 

Wednesday, June 19: 1.00 miles
More treadmill miles - woo?

Thursday, June 20: 1.00 miles
You guessed it - treadmill mile! I got back to Georgia early Thursday morning from a red-eye during which I slept maybe an hour and a half. It was pretty close to as terrible as you can get. I managed to get myself to the apartment gym Thursday night for a lousy, slow, stupid mile.

Friday, June 21: 2.32 miles
Despite being just as tired as Thursday, Friday morning was my only chance to get my miles in, so I got up and out the door before 7 to get some mileage in around the neighborhood. I wanted to go a little further but just couldn't get into it - and was pushing it on time anyway.

Friday night HP had a gathering at DBA BBQ (om nom nom) for part 1 of her going away celebrations. She's moving to San Francisco! I am so excited for her - but I know she's certainly going to be missed around here, given the sheer number of people that came out to celebrate. Dinner and drinks followed at the Family Dog - I drove home that night (which I regret) and managed to make it home at the ungodly hour of 1:15 am. Poor decision.

Saturday, June 22: 4.01 miles
I set off to get in a good run with the Road Runners this morning - but after that drive back from Atlanta, I barely rolled myself out of bed to even go. But I missed them so much! Only a few people split off do to the 3-miler, but I figured I'd suck it up and do the 6-mile loop, figuring that Peachtree isn't that far away and I haven't done any decent long runs in a while. Yeah, that sucked. I cut out early and ran back for an almost exactly even 4 miles.


Sunday, June 23: 3.11 miles 
Sunday was pretty stupendous - laundry, TV, and a whole lot of nothing. Olivia and I took the pups to the dog park; I came up with the genius idea of running home from the park afterwards, so I could be sure to get my numbers on the chart for today. That idea turned into the even more genius idea of me running to Baskin Robbins while Olivia dropped the girls off at home - so my run literally ended in the BR parking lot. Best. Idea. Ever. Highly suggested for a warm, summer evening!

Yep, good idea.

Total Week Miles: 14.79
Total Streak Miles:  61.26

Erica killed her half marathon yesterday morning and while Tina and I knew it was coming, we didn't entirely adequately pull a lead early in the game. So Erica's up for this week. Snaps for Erica! One full week left to go - who's going to pull ahead?

How did you do on Week 4?Do you ever run to go get ice cream and feel less guilty? Flavor of choice?

#RWRunStreak Week 3

 

So, Summer Run Streak Week 3 is now in the books too. This week was rough, after recovering from Sunday night's red-eye back from the left coast for the weekend, and trying to catch up on life and settling back in. I felt exhausted all week, like I never really caught up from 4.5 crappy hours of sleep on that flight back. With that, though, I managed to get in my miles, even made it to our 5:30 am track sesh on Wednesday, and to just keep going... as rough as it was!

Week 3 the books! Just over two weeks two go - can I pass last year's mileage? We'll see!

Monday, June 10: 1.01  miles

One easy quick mile after work to ensure I got my mile in. After wanting to do nothing but sleep, I'm happy I got this far!

Tuesday, June 11: 1.55 miles
Made up in the morning to get it done - got a little extra distance in, which felt good, but I still feel like I'm stuck in that 1-mile zone and would really like to bust out of that!

Wednesday, June 12: 2.75 miles
Back at track practice this morning and it felt soooooo good! An awesome half-ladder workout to start the day is a good day in the making. But you can read all about that here. And then, obviously, like most runners in America, I spent my Wednesday night driving just over an hour in each direction (okay, that's probably not the 'most' part) to get inspired with this:

I haven't talked about this yet, or in awhile, but yes, I have another marathon itch. Now knowing that I can even just do a 26.2 mile race is good, but not good enough. I hope to start training for a race in late fall or winter and see what I can actually do when I train for time. More on that soon!

Thursday, June 13: 1.30 miles
Done. It was supposed to storm nearly all of the evening, and it sure did - some nasty winds and beautiful lightning, but the power was flickering so much, I didn't even want to attempt a mile on the treadmill at the gym. So Molly and I walked about .3  miles and called it a day when the lightning came back full-force. Oh well?

Friday, June 14: 1.25 miles
Finally got my butt out of bed - it was way too muggy from Thursday's storm to want to run outisde, so I finished my Thursday mileage and added on a little extra to break past this exactly-one-mile funk.Screw you, #RWRunStreak, and dear self: you don't always need to be so competitive!

Saturday, June 15: 1.01 miles
It happened. Like much of this week, it happened just barely.


Sunday, June 16: 2.5 miles 
Here's a shocking revelation for you, friends: the faster you run on the treadmill, the faster it's over. I know, I know, you didn't see that one coming. You're welcome for making your dreadmill time now seemingly bearable. ;)

Total Week Miles: 11.37 mi
Total Streak Miles:  46.47 mi

A super duper shout out to Tina because she totally killed this week and pulled ahead of me by almost 4 miles, and ahead of Erica by nearly ten. Killer. Snaps for Tina!

How did you do on Week 3? Goals for Week 4?

#RWRunStreak: Week 2 & Weekend Wrap Up

 

So, Summer Run Streak Week 1 is down and it feels pretty darn good. It's really motivating and fun to see the Twitter feed of all those participating - and using that as extra motivation when I need it most. This week was difficult - while I'm still enjoying running naked (sans-Garmin, if you're new to these parts) and running for the sake of running, it's tough to balance that with the thought that "I have to run today or I won't be streaking anymore!" It's going to take some fine-tuning the next few weeks as I try to manage that .

The Week 2 recap:

Monday, June 3 (8): 2.0 miles

By the time Monday evening rolled around, the last thing I wanted to go do was run - so I headed to the apartment gym, vowed that I'd only do a mile. I hopped and set the dreadmill to 9:40, just to push myself a little, and felt so decent (shocker!) that I kept on going and dropped the Mile 2 pace to a 9:31 (first 1/2), 9:13 (400 m) and 7:35 (400 m) pace. I was sweating buckets by the end. Success.

Tuesday, June 4 (9): 2.35 miles

I know part of my challenge has been getting up in the mornings - but especially on Tuesdays, I don't want to run in the evenings because of our Wednesday morning track workouts. Peeled myself out of bed and aimed to get in at least 2 miles - morning success! Beautiful morning temperature-wise and loved starting my day this way!

Wednesday, June 5 (10): 4.0 miles + 3.0 miles = 7 mile day! 
The first run of the day came along with my regular Wednesday track workout. Tough workout, but good. Surprisingly my legs weren't all that tired after work, and being that it was National Running Day, the ARR had a group run and cookout planned, even despite the thunderstorms schedule. 3 more miles on the day? Why not! 

ARR group runners.

Thursday, June 6 (11): 2.50 miles
Had to get in morning miles, as I was hopping on a plane after work to LA for the weekend - morning was cool which felt awesome, but per usual (thanks summertime), I was drenched in the humidity. A great way to start the day - hopefully I'll get more of these morning runs in again soon!

Friday, June 7 (12): 1.52 miles

I managed to convince Doug to come run with me! So we took a quick running tour of his neighborhood around the community loop. Intentionally did not get too far, as we spent the afternoon at Disneyland and were trying to save some energy and leg power for Saturday's 5K.

Saturday, June 8 (13): Ontario Mills 5K, 3.14 mi
My dad's first 5K! Doug and I went to run it as well, and in a last-minute decision, my uncle came and ran too! Fast, flat course, but after 10-11 hours on my legs at Disneyland the night before, it was a little hard. I PRed by 2 seconds, but know I could have given a lot more than that. Ah well, Disney was worth the sacrifice! :)

5K recap coming on Friday - though it's nothing to write home about, but it was a good race.

Saturday afternoon, Doug and I went to lunch with my grandparents and other uncle, to ensure I got some grandparent time in over my short visit home for the weekend. After that, it was finally relaxing for a bit and getting off to Cal State Fullerton and another wedding!

The wedding was absolutely beautiful - the aisle was through that canopied gazebo you see above there, and she had done nearly all the decorations herself. It got cool outside quite fast, but was a fun time. It was also odd only knowing Doug, and he himself only knowing about three or four other people there - a far cry from the Atlanta wedding we were just at in May!

Sunday, June 9 (14): 1.01 mi
Treadmill miles. Boo.

Looking forward to getting back in some outside runs this week - I need some morning sunshine boosts! There's been lots of rain lately, too, which has made for some new challenges. Moving on to week 3, and maintaining that first place status with Tina and Erica! Keep it up ladies!

How did you do on Week 2? Goals for Week 3?

#RWRunStreak: Week 1

 

So, Summer Run Streak Week 1 is down and it feels pretty darn good. It's really motivating and fun to see the Twitter feed of all those participating - and using that as extra motivation when I need it most. This week was difficult - while I'm still enjoying running naked (sans-Garmin, if you're new to these parts) and running for the sake of running, it's tough to balance that with the thought that "I have to run today or I won't be streaking anymore!" It's going to take some fine-tuning the next few weeks as I try to manage that .

I remember this being a challenge last year, but not as much as I'm already facing. Again, maybe that mental battle this year...

So here you go... the Week 1 recap:

Monday, May 27: 1.55 miles

I think I forgot what it was like to run in the summer, legitimately. That you either run before dawn or practically in the dark because otherwise you'll drown in your own sweat. You're welcome for that imagery. It was rough.

Tuesday, May 28: 1.25 miles
Intended on only going a mile or so to save my legs for Wednesday morning's track session - so I took Molly along, to force myself to keep it slow. She was probably not happy with that decision, but it seemed to work out well for me!

Wednesday, May 29: 2.25 miles
And then I didn't get out of bed for my track day - just couldn't peel myself out of bed, but that was for the better because when I finally did, my tummy was not happy. So, in hindsight, suppose that was the smarter decision. I ran after work instead, and learned the tough lesson (again) that really, I should be getting up to do these miles in the morning. 

Thursday, May 30: 3.42 miles
Got up in the morning, finally! Had a lovely (finally) more than 2 mile run along the neighborhood routes. The weather was awesome - only 66 degrees - but add in that 97% humidity and I wanted to choke. Can't I just ask for that temperature without the extra blanket of moisture in the air? Please?

 

Friday, May 31: 1.01 miles
It happened. Barely.

Saturday, June 1: 4.5 miles
Saturday morning group run with the Athens Road Runners, of course! I was contemplating the 6+-mile loop with them, but my legs felt so heavy, I didn't want to push it any more than that. This is only Week 1, after all - there's more to come! Great run though, enjoyed it, and had a solid pace overall.

Sunday, June 2: 1.6 miles
I woke up too late to run in the morning, so opted for the afternoon. I knew it was supposed to storm at some point, so I sucked it up and went to go check out the complex's renovated gym. I'd been on the treadmill for all of 3 minutes when the sky burst open and it poured - so I got a great (seriously) cool-down walk back home. Treadmills suck, in other news.

Much like last year, the first and foremost thing I'm learning this week is that I really need to take the time to stretch post-run. Not that I'm feeling tight or sore necessarily, but after pounding the pavement for 39 days straight, I know my legs will appreciate it.

In Week 2, I'm looking forward to racing a 5K on Saturday (my first 5K I'm racing since I started track workouts three months ago, so I'm excited to see what I can accomplish) and cheering on my dad through his first 5K EVER, a weekend in California, and continuing this streak... and my current first-place standing!

How did you do on Week 1? Goals for Week 2?

Runner's World Run Streak

If you recall, last summer I participated in Runner's World Summer Run Streak (I reactivated last year's page so you can check it out again!) - a challenge that has you running at least one mile a day, every day, from Memorial Day to Independence Day. That's 39 days to get in at least a mile! Totally do-able, totally awesome and super fun.

Last year, my ventures in this challenge had me running a 5K or two, running on a cruise ship, and running in the world's largest 10K on the Fourth of July through Atlanta. It was pretty spectacular. In 39 days, I ran 80.88 miles, something that at that point I was really proud of. I wanted to use the challenge as a way to ensure I'd stay active and accountable over the summer so when I jumped into a training plan in August, I knew I'd be ready. I'm also apparently an advocate for a little self-torture, being that summer in the South is no freaking joke.

Running on a cruise ship is not as fun as you would think.

This year, I'm back it. #RWRunStreak, here I come. No specifics in sight, as I plan to still run naked for most of it, but I have one goal in mind: surpass last year's mileage. 80 miles in 39 days? Done. I know a mile route to and from my apartment front door, so this is pretty easy peasy even running sans-Garmin. I think it'll be fun to participate in a challenge like this, where it's solely about seeing what you can put out each day, whether a mile or more, and that in itself is a feat, where it doesn't matter if your mile is a 15-minute mile or a 7-minute mile. Last year, I was able to improve my mile time and went from an 8:26  mile in week 3 to an 8:09 mile in week 5;  now in a mile test I'm busting out 7:30s. How much changes in a year! I'm excited to see where this takes me.

I have no races lined up as of yet for June, even no 5Ks (the horror!) so this truly may be 39 days of just... running. What a concept, Megan.

Peachtree Road Race 2012.

Are you participating in the challenge? Do you have a goal in mind?

You can get some really awesome badges (like the one on top here) and even a Facebook cover photo from Pavement Runner. Join the streaking!

Happy Friday and Happy Memorial Day weekend, friends! I'm off to sleep in, get a little running in and most importantly, going tubing on Sunday. Aaaah, sunshine, tans and beer. Happy weekend indeed!

On Running Naked

Just about two weeks ago, I committed to running naked for the rest of May - a challenge that I knew would be tough, but I wasn't expecting in the way that it's turned out to be. I'd been training since August, from starting an easy half marathon plan to jumping into full training, to taking a solid month off (and feeling super guilty) to jumping into a six-week grueling dreamer's sub-2 training plan for a half on April 28.

I'll admit that part of this burn out stems from not attaining that sub-2 goal, the one I'd blasted all over the interwebz, had talked about for weeks and had been literally dreaming about since mid-March. I'll admit that the emotion, the disappointment and frustration that spawned from that is what really got me thinking hard about what I was doing, what I was working towards and what I had worked for already.

So with that came the harsh self-realization that I was probably a little more burned out on running than I thought I was - I was almost forcing  myself out the door to get in 3-4 miles, only looked forward to finishing my runs instead of starting them, and generally... didn't care. I knew something had to change and fast or really, I'd give up on it all together.

And thus: running naked. No Garmin. No iPhone. No anything that would tell me how far I was going, how fast I was going, my heartrate, my pace, any number that should have mattered previously. I wanted to run for the sake of running without worrying about the things I (sometimes pretended) to care about before.

And how's it going, you wonder?

The toughest part was the first few runs where I all I could think was I wonder how fast I'm going, how long have I been out? It's so much harder than I anticipated to break out of that training/racing mindset. I will, however, credit myself twice: both track days.

The first track day was rough at first: during my warm-up mile again, all I wanted to know what my pace was. Running 4 laps around the track was easy, but how fast? Was the second lap slower than the fourth? We did a second warm up mile, followed by some striders and a mile test - here it comes. I told Al not to tell me my 400 splits as I came through, as he was planning on for everyone else. And he didn't. And I ran as good as a I felt. I ran my fastest mile to date, at 7:29. 

The second great run came with this week's track workout, too. I ran my six fastest (all of them!) 400s ever, the fastest of the day being at 88 seconds and the slowest two being at 93 seconds. Never in a million years did I think it'd be possible. Truth be told, it's not like I look at my watch while I'm doing 400s anyway, but I certainly know it's there ticking away. Mental barrier breakthrough?

I still have some ways to go. There are still a number of mornings where I don't run and by the end of the day I'm like Man, I suck, I didn't go run and actually feel guilty. Why am I feeling guilty? Running is supposed to be freedom, stress relief, anxiety and tension eraser and the cure to any bad day. I'm looking forward to continuing to find that place again. Progress for sure, but it's only been two weeks. More to come - this will probably extend well past May!

Have you ever given yourself a digital break from running and let yourself just RUN? Did you face the same mental block? How did you work past it?

May (No) Garmin Challenge

Marathon training (or even half-marathon training, for that matter) is all about increasing your mileage, bit by bit, so your body doesn't freak out on you when you try and convince your legs that you can, in fact, run 26.2 miles. Marathon training with a goal race, goal pace, goal time in mind is all about nailing those runs - not only that mileage, but nailing every goal pace run, tempo run, speedwork session and even those 'easy' runs to ensure that you're on target to where you're supposed to be to nail that sub-2 goal.

I did that. I did all those things. I nailed runs, nailed speedwork most certainly, and watched as every Garmin lap got faster and faster. And sub-2 didn't happen. And since then, I have crashed and burned.

I'm burned out.

Admitting it is the first step, right? I'm burned out on training, on schedules, on a plan, on times, paces, charting, planning and mapping every run, and making sure I'm not letting myself slack (too much). I've been in a training plan since August, when it first set up into Wine and Dine (and what would become AthHalf) training which bled into marathon training. Save for taking nearly all of February off, I jumped back in in March with two halfs and then six solid weeks of goal-race insanity.

I'm burned out.

 I miss when I was giving myself the freedom to just run. Run to be free, run for stress relief, run because it was raining and it is fun to run in the rain, and run just for the hell of it. I took Molly on a jog this morning, a whole mile and a half of it, and all I could think was, "I wonder what our pace is with the pup in tow?" instead of enjoying a gorgeous morning with my fur-kid by my side.

And with that, friends, I bring you my May self challenge: digital-free running. Here until (at least) May 31. No Garmin. No iPhone. Me, my shoes, and occasionally, Molly. I need to revisit when I ran for the sake of it, and because I could, and because I didn't care about nailing 1:40 400s or 9:09" miles. I won't lie - this will be quite the challenge, as I've grown so accustomed to having my Garmin on my wrist and have almost become neurotic in checking my mile time every time it beeps. 

No, it's time to run just because I have the health and strength to do so. I'll check in every week with some random on-goings and let you know how it's going. 

Do/have you given yourself the freedom after a goal race (or even just accomplishing a race) to go digital free and just be? How hard is it for you to run without something telling you your pace, your time, your distance?

#RWRunStreak: Week 6 and a Full Recap

So here we are, at the week of (technically) Week 6, though it's only a half week through the streak. I can't believe it -- 38 days have gone by!

Week 6. Done AND done.

It's crazy to think that when I first signed for this I was like "Okay, well doing it 38 days in a row will be a challenge, but I can totally do a mile a day, NBD." Wrong. So wrong. It turned out to be quite the challenge -- a sure-fire test of willpower, determination, strength, motivation, and mental capacity. And it was amazing.

But before the whole-38-day-recap, my last three runs:

Monday, July 2: 1.0 mi/8:09 pace/8:09
I knew I was close to the end and was wondering if I had improved my 1-mile time from two weeks ago or so. I was also feeling the beginning of the "Uggggh, just a few more days" syndrome and just wanted to get my mile over with. I figured, then, I needed to at least make my mile count - and whoa, I did! Pleasantly surprised and so excited! Wonder if I kept this up if I could break an 8-minute mile. That thought is crazy.

Tuesday, July 3: 2.72 mi/8:19 pace/23:05
Day 2 of "Ugggggh, so close, just want to finish running already." This was also a toughie because I needed to get it the run done in the morning (which I haven't done during the week in forever), since I was headed to Atlanta right after work. But it turned out to be a pretty good run -- humid, for sure, and felt like I was sweating buckets by the time I got home, but it was a nice morning out otherwise. Maybe I should go back to those morning runs... nah.

Wednesday, July 4: 6.67 mi/9:46 pace/1:04:40
43rd Annual Peachtree Road Race! Recap here [coming soon]. Crazy run -- I was prepared to be very overwhelmed with the crowds, and while it was daunting, it wasn't nearly as bad as I anticipated. I mean, after 43 years, they've certainly got it down to an art. Thankfully! Check out the recap for more stories!

38 Days of Running: #RWRunStreak 2012

Holy crap.  I just ran for 38 days in a row (if you want to be technical, 40 days, since I started with the Mama Bear 5K the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend and a run on Sunday before the challenge started). I can't believe it, truly.

It started here. And ended here. 

I had started with a goal of doing at least 2 miles a day, to really make it count. Little did I know how hard it would be to even want to do a mile most some days! Truly, there were a few days when getting out that door was the last thing I wanted to do, and those were the handful of days where I opted for a walk instead with the dog, or the slowest jog I could muster to make it count. Days on the cruise where I thought I was legitimately insane (then realized there were a few others like me on the boat); days where I'd go as late as possible in the day to avoid the heat; and days where I'd rearrange my entire plan just to make sure I got in that mile. Oh, the life of a runner.

In 38 days...

• I ran 80.88 miles.
• I ran 2 5K races.
• I ran 1 10K race.
• I ran on a boat in the Bahamas. 
• I ran the fastest mile of my life - twice! First an 8:26, then an 8:09!
• I PR'd my 5K (27:58). 
• I ran my first speed/track workout.

It is rare that I feel so proud about something I've done, let alone to keep blogging about it and talking about it again. I loved following along on Twitter and Daily Mile, cheering people on, and connecting with folks who were running their minimum 1 mile, or running insane amounts of miles every day. What a fun, pushing, challenging, crazy experience!

While also pushing myself to my true limit, I learned quite a bit not only about myself but about running and what it really takes to make a good run happen.

• I am more stubborn determined than I think am.
• When I set my mind to something, I really can do it!
• The importance of stretching. I suck as a runner in that I don't stretch as nearly much as I should. Like, at all. Lesson learned.: stretch more. Stretch often.
• Community is important -- whether it's a one-time tweet conversation that goes nowhere, or posts and comments from friends on Daily Mile, it goes a long way! No wonder running communities are so strong. We're awesome. 
• Running on vacation, let alone on a boat, makes you look legitimately insane. 

So you ran 38 days in a row... what's next? Darn good question. I have to admit, I'm looking forward to taking today off. But at the same time, what a change in attitude! I wonder if I'll miss going for a run this evening after work. And I kind of want to see how many days I can push myself to do. However, I've also learned that my body needs the rest, and to listen. And listen good.

But as far as what's next, I'm looking forward to running casually for a few more weeks and then starting training for my fall/winter line up. Training for these overlaps nicely, which is always a smart way to do it, as I've learned. :)

• Ragnar DC: September 21-22
• Disney World Wine & Dine ½ Marathon: November 10
• December Half Marathon, TBD
• Surf City Marathon: February 3 (training starts October 1)

Adventures to come. Love my life. Thank you all for your support, encouragement, and love through these last six weeks! I did it!

#RWRunStreak Week 3

I'm a little behind, to say the least. Forgive me! It's been a crazy week trying to settle back into "real life" after an amazing vacation (that post is coming soon, too!). But, here's my catch up on my #RWRunStreak adventures, brought to you by Week 3!

Week 3, not bad!

Monday, June 11: 2.21 mi/13:15 pace/29:18
I was already mentally ready for vacation, this was rough! Mom, Dad and I took Molly to the park and being that I wanted to get in my run and the day was almost over, Mom and I walk/jogged home through the neighborhood to get in some miles. Was definitely still really warm at 8:30 in the evening -- hmm... summer is upon us!

Tuesday, June 12: 2.02 mi/9:25 pace/19:03
I had no choice but to run first thing in the morning - today was the day we left for Charleston and our cruise! So I hauled out first thing in the morning and was pleasantly surprised with my quick 2 miles. Maybe I need to be a morning runner again!

And here begins my first major battle of the #RWRunStreak: Running/working out on vacay.

Wednesday, June 13: 2.11 mi/9:58 pace/21:02
Last run on land for a few days! On the treadmill - I hate treadmills - at the hotel, but made it count none the less. Was ready to get on vacay and leave the worries behind! But, all in all, got in a good run and core workout, followed by Embassy Suites' stupendous breakfast buffet. Perfect. 

Finally on the boat! First cruise, here I come!

Thursday, June 14: 2.0 mi/10:09 pace/20:18
Once you're used to running with a GPS (watch or phone or otherwise), it's really hard having to run without one! I used the stopwatch on my iPhone as my timer for the morning, which just felt awkward. It was also quite torturous being that it took ELEVEN - read that, 11 - LAPS to get a mile out of the ship's track. In addition to treadmills, I hate tracks. Running in circles is boring. Good thing there was scenery... the wide open ocean!

That's just cruel.

Friday, June 15: 2.01 mi/9:57 pace/20:00
I checked out the ship's gym Friday evening. After dinner, we went out on the ship's back deck and read as the sun set. What a view. *insert heavy sigh here* Afterwards, I made my way to the gym to get my workout done for the evening. Again, on the treadmill, because the idea of running up on the track... alone... at night... just weirded me out. Not that the gym, had anyone in it (maybe 2 other folks), but at least no one could throw me overboard from there! Good run, decent pace. As I set myself up for my run, my only goal was to run hard-ish for a solid 20 minutes, and hopefully get in at least 2 miles. Squeaked through, made it work!

Sunrise, June 17.

Saturday, June 16: 1.04 mi/9:52 pace/10:15
This was the hardest day to get up and run on vacation. Like Friday, I went after dinner/reading on the deck. I was SO over this run by the time I hit the half-mile marker, not to mention my mom and I wanted to go see a comedian that night, so I hauled butt to get my mile in and call it a day.

To make up for it, I did a quick 6 minutes on the rowing machine to feel like I did a little extra work that day... sort of.

Sunday, June 17: 3.04 mi/12:37 pace/38:22
Not a great pace, but my far my best run on the ship! Last full day on the boat - without an alarm, my body sprung wide awake at 6:30 am. Um, what? This is vacation, not real life! But being that I was wide awake, I figured I'd take advantage of it; thought I was up early enough for a sunrise. I got the middle of the sunrise - gorgeous, and a perfect wake up call!

I started my run on the track upstairs, only to learn how freaking windy it was outside. I decided I'd fight a mile in the wind, then go back down to the gym inside - that mile was rough, but managed to do it in just over 10 minutes. Considering I was running into the wind at that point, I was pretty excited. There were quite a few people outside with me, also trying to fight their way through it. Some gave up quicker than others. :)

Morning run on the deck!

Moved back inside to the treadmill... as mentioned, this is how I feel about treadmills in general...

But got myself to go 2 more miles on the treadmill for my longest run(s) while on a ship, and on vacation. Pretty proud that I made it happen every day of vacation, something I've never been able to stick to before! After this run, I hopped on the bike for a 5 mile cool down, just to get my legs really moving for the day. And by that point, I was out of the gym by 9 am, and in a bathing suit on the deck by 9:30 with breakfast, a book, and a day full of sunshine.

I did it! Week 3 in the books. Running on vacay challenge accepted and completed. My mom commented on my commitment to this challenge and making it happen, despite being on vacation and told me she was impressed with how much "determination" I had and that she was "proud of me for it." Not that I do it to make someone proud (aside from myself), but I like the word determination. Call it commitment, determination or stubbornness, I'm proud of my ability to make this work!

Week 4, coming on up! And a post about my cruise, I promise!

#RWRunStreak: Week 1

So, Summer Run Streak Week 1 is down and it feels pretty darn good. It's really motivating and fun to see the Twitter feed of all those participating and seeing people excited about their progress, because I'm starting to see it too. What a push!

I knew this would be a challenge, regardless if I ran a mile every day or made it more like a training cycle, but so far it's been worth the chaos of scheduling, trying to fit in at least that mile, and making use of time and good weather! It's also allowed me to see how my legs react when they're tired - the first three days were pretty rough (Day 3 in particular), but days 4 and 5 turned out to be spectacular! Tired legs ain't got nothin' on me! This is going to be great practice and testing for running on tired legs so I know where I've got to do some work before Ragnar.

So here you go... the Week 1 recap:

Monday, May 28: 2.28 mi/10:47 pace

After a fabulously long, exciting weekend, this was a little rougher than I anticipated. Not to mention that this was actually already day 3 in a row (5K, then a walk/jog through Piedmont), so my legs were already feeling heavy given the otherwise recent lack of activity. But I did it, and really was excited to get going on this challenge!

Tuesday, May 29: 2.01 mi/10:44 pace
Still super heavy legs -- I remember saying aloud to myself during this run that while the minimum is to run at least 1 mile a day, I wanted to run at least 2. So I did this to 2.01 and called it over. Please note my lack of following said rule ... tomorrow! :)

Wednesday, May 30: 1.52 mi/10:24 pace
Oh, hey heavy legs! This run was torture and was not feeling it at all. Trucked along, made it as far as I could/managed, and headed straight home. Whew, tough one! But still... I did it! Day 3, check!

Thursday, May 31: 3.89 mi/11:56 pace
Molly and I ran to the dog park, where she played for an hour and then we jogged home. I think she was ready to pass out and slept pretty good that night! I enjoyed it -- it was super muggy that evening, but it was nice to be super active, and get Molly uber tired. Winning all around!

Friday, June 1: 1.37 mi/9:28 pace
I had the plan to get in a long run on Saturday, so wanted to make sure I didn't exhaust myself too much with my Friday run! Finally made it up to run in the morning and kick-start my day with a nice, short burst of energy. I attempted a few 200 yd. sprints, just to get that heart rate up and my legs working. Overall, turned into an awesome pace, I was super excited; now to only convince my body to do it further than just over a mile. But you gotta start somewhere, right?

Saturday, June 2: 5.43 mi/9:37 pace
I rolled out of bed later than I wanted to on Saturday, but wolfed down a granola bar, grabbed my hand-held and got out the door while it was still nice out (gorgeous morning in town!). I set out on my favorite long-run loop, the "big block" up and around towards our dog park and back home. The last two miles are pretty much downhill, which is also a nice boost (yeah, check out those splits dude!) but also requires a little bit of stamina to finish the stretch. This was my first mid-distance run with an under 10" pace... ever. Excited, to say the least!

Sunday, June 3: 1.37 mi/9:20 pace
Sunday came and went before I realized the day was almost over! Oops! I didn't get out for this run until almost 8:30 pm, which turns out is a decent time here in summer to get outside (noted). I decided that I'd just squeeze in the same route I did on Friday, enough to make it count but push myself appropriately. I wanted to push myself more than Friday, just to see what I thought I could really do, and boom! There it is. I cut 13 seconds off Friday's time and dropped my pace enough for a really happy ending to the first week!

Pretty stoked! Not a bad first week back on the horse.

My legs cooperated overall quite well this week. I only felt the need to ice once (after Day 3), but I know I definitely need to be stretching more than I am. On to Week 2. Goals are to make another 17+ mi week, make sure I'm stretching every day, get in the mindset of getting ready to run while on vacation the next week, and making it all count for another week in a row. Here we go!

How did you do on Week 1? Goals for Week 2?