Day 35 (Oct. 27)

This run sucked. I really don't have much to say about it except that I hated it.

We ran 55 minutes: 10-minute warm up, 30-minute tempo run and a 15-minute cool down. OK, maybe I was being a little harsh. I liked the warm up, but I definitely hated the rest of it.

I don't really know what went wrong. Except it was hotter than usual, and I didn't drink enough water. Oh, and I felt nauseous. Sounds like a recipe for a great run.

Since this run bit, I didn't take any photos or want to remember it in any way.

So, I'm including a happy photo. Today, we dressed as a pack of Zorros at work. It rocked.

Day 32 (Oct. 20)

I needed Thursday’s run to be good, and thankfully, it came through for me.

Our workout: a 55-minute run with a 10-minute warm up, a 30-minute hard run, and a 15-minute cool down. I went a little slower than I had in past weeks, but I still got a good workout. My running partner and I were talking about how amazed we are at our progress. We used to always have to walk at some point. Now, it’s not even a concern. In fact, we wanted to run more than our 55 minutes.

Of course, the weather rocked (and it never really has for any Tuesday or Thursday night run to this point). I did not sweat through everything I had on. In fact, I barely sweat. For a major sweater, this was quite the accomplishment.

We run in a pretty peaceful place (for being in the middle of a city). Well, aside from the occasional jet taking off, which is rather loud and obnoxious and fumey (yep, I just made up that word). It’s pretty, open and green. Pretty soon, though, we won’t be able to see it (due to daylight savings time). I’ll take darkness blacking out my views as long as that big, scary sun is out of the sky.

Day 29 (Oct. 13)

I highly dislike Thursdays. We even started the I Hate Thursday Club at work. Seriously, it’s that bad. Maybe that’s why I like running on Thursday. It helps get rid of all that awful workday stress.

This Thursday, we had a 50-minute run with a 10-minute warm up, 25-minute hard interval, followed by a 15-minute cool down. The hard interval was tough, but manageable. I maintained about a one-minute faster pace than normal during the hard interval.

My reward (besides running) for making it through Thursday: sushi + “Jersey Shore,” which equals happiness to me. As much as I dread Thursday workdays, I love Thursday nights (as long as work doesn’t spill into the evening). After running, I make a stop at the grocery store to grab sushi (yes, it’s actually really good), take a walk with my dog, and then I head to the Shore. This show fascinates me. I laugh at every episode – even though I probably shouldn’t.

Thanks to running, sushi and “Jersey Shore,” Thursdays became more bearable.

Day 26 (Oct. 6)

After a crappy day at work (with more crappy work to follow later that evening), I really needed to run on Thursday night. The plan: run a total of 45 minutes, consisting of a 10-minute warm up, 25-minute tempo run and a 10-minute cool down.

I think I was so happy to be running that I took off too fast. My warm up was quicker than usual. When I got to my 25-minute tempo run, I went faster ... and it felt really good at first. There's something about really stretching out your legs that feels so good. But, it didn't feel good for long. My legs were tired 10 minutes into the 25-minute hard interval. They just felt fatigued. I managed to keep going at a decent speed, but slower than when I started my interval. I made it 20 minutes into the interval at a decent pace, but then I had to slow down to a ridiculously slow jog for the remainder of the time.

I just felt like I didn't have any energy, and my legs were tired. They weren't sore or painful. It just felt like they were over it (as I was with my work week).

Whenever I have a bad run, which is thankfully a lot less frequently than it used to be, I always evaluate what I did that day that could have contributed to it. So, after evaluating my day, I came up with three possibilities: (1). I didn't get much sleep the night before (or really all that week, actually); (2). I didn't eat on my usual schedule, and I ate a different lunch than normal; (3). My legs actually are fatigued – especially after playing beach volleyball the day before. All seem like reasonable explanations, not excuses (I hope).

I decided I need to include some visual element in each of my posts. So, I decided to start taking a picture of myself before or after each run. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, our training group meets at Fit2Run in International Plaza, a rather spiffy mall.

So, I figured I'd take a picture of myself before I headed in to meet the group. I felt like such a 16-year-old taking a picture in my car. I got embarrassed, but I still took a few shots because of my vow to include photos. I'm dedicated to enhancing my blog posts, darn it!

The resulting photo cracks me up! It says, "I'm totally doing something a teenager would do, and I'm embarrassed because I'm over 30."

Oh, well. I'll keep working on the photos. And, try to start acting my age ... nah, that's no fun. But, I will start trying to get more sleep. Sheesh! Talk about dark circles.

Day 25 (Oct. 4)

Tuesdays are dreaded speed intervals day!

This week’s workout involved running a total of 50 minutes. Easy enough, right? Well, throw three five-minute speed intervals in there. It was difficult, but manageable. I made it, and I was really happy with my time. My hard intervals were significantly faster, and my warm up and recovery times weren’t too shabby either. Yay! Improvement!

Since I always include pictures of the crappy gym, I thought I should include a more pleasant photo of my Tuesday-Thursday route.

The big, scary sun is really big and scary. It’s getting less big and scary with somewhat cooler temperatures, but it is still my enemy. I’m pale. And, I sweat a lot. These are two things that are in direct conflict with the sun.

But, I think training in the hot sun beginning in September will make running in cooler months a breeze … or so I’m hoping. If Sunday is any indication, this theory is coming true.

Aside from the big scary sun, you can see a nice flat road. I like flat roads. At least for running, I do. Our group of about 20 girls runs along this road every Tuesday and Thursday. We actually run on the road for about a mile before we hit a sidewalk. There isn’t much traffic since it is an airport service road. I’m thinking of investing in some fluorescent running clothes before the time change. I always wear black pants and a darker shirt. I’d prefer to not get hit by a car, so maybe some bright colored shirts are in order.

I don’t care if I have to deal with a big, scary sun or traffic; it’s still better than the craptastic gym.

Day 23 (Sept. 29)

I'm so happy pesky work didn't get in my way of making it to my training group on Thursday. It is so much better running with a group than by yourself. In a crappy gym. With no ventilation.

I was just so happy to be there, I really wasn't that worried about the run. We had a 40-minute run on our schedule, with a 10-minute warm up, 20-minute hard interval and a 10-minute cool down. I was able to keep up a nice pace during the hard interval — about 1-1:30-minute faster pace than normal. I slowed down quite a bit for the 10-minute cool down, but I kept running.

The Women's Half Marathon also has a 5K associated with it, and the 5K training group just joined our half marathon group. It's so cool to see people just starting out, and even though I feel like I'm still a beginner runner, it's amazing to realize how much progress I've made.