Well, it’s been a while since I posted so there’s much to share…
This past winter has been interesting from a running standpoint. Lack of snow meant more opportunities to run for me. But I learned a few things about myself…
Over the holidays I gained weight – roughly 15 pounds. Although I was running, they were fewer and further between. But what I also discovered was that I was suffering lower back pain during my runs. Last year, I never experienced that.
I signed up for the NYC Half Marathon. And I found I got in (part of the lottery). SO I stepped up my training in January – or so I tried. This is when I started to get those pains. It was cutting my runs short. I found I could not run more than 3 or 4 miles. Once in a while I would manage 5. Not nearly enough miles.
My initial thought was the weight gain. Made sense at the time, but I made a few discoveries here too. For one, when I was in the early part of my running last year I was the same weight. I didn’t have the back pains. As the temperatures started to increase though, my pains decreased. So I believe part of the issue was temperatures. Maybe – maybe not. All I know is, I ran 12 miles today with no pain and it was almost 60 degrees 🙂
Anyway, because of the poor training I decided NOT to run in the NYC Half. I was disappointed, but I feel it was the right decision. Plus, I knew there was another one on the horizon: at Rutgers University in NJ. The Unite Half Marathon:
http://unite.cgiracing.com/Home.aspx
That is in about 2 weeks from today and I am looking forward to it. My training has improved considerably, and I feel great. Along with my runs, I also still go to my personal trainer twice per week. She is also a runner so we have been concentrating on things that will help improve my running overall. Like loosening up my hamstrings, my calfs, etc. I am tight and it impedes my running a lot. So far, it’s helping.
As I said, I ran 12 miles today. My total RUN time 2 hours, 8 minutes and 33 seconds. Not what you’d call “speedy”, but I am not looking for speed right now. I want to be able to finish 🙂 Here are my split times (pace):
Mile 1: 10:24
Mile 2: 10:45
Mile 3: 10:33
Mile 4: 10:34
Mile 5: 10:31
Mile 6: 10:25
Mile 7: 11:08
Mile 8: 10:53
Mile 9: 11:03
Mile 10: 10:44
Mile 11: 10:50
Mile 12: 10:17
I can live with that 🙂 I did make 2 stops of about 3 minutes each. One at about 6.5 miles and one at 10 miles. Water and stretching. Overall I feel great, although I do have some sore knees 🙂
I will post more as half marathon day approaches, and of course I will post results. In the meantime – keep on running 🙂
