Run #2 and #3 (overachiever...!)

Those expensive shoes have been a great motivation to keep running! lol... for me it's good that it's been 3 days and I haven't fallen off the wagon yet! ;) The shoes are GREAT, by the way. I went out on Saturday for run #2 (details later) and no pain! I actually didn't feel like I was wearing shoes at all - they are so light. I had a little bit of shin splints from Thursday but just told myself to run through them (is that bad?! They are much better today!) but the nasty thing on the back of my heel barely hurt at all.

Week 1, Run #2: Saturday, July 28
So, after speaking with my dad on Friday I decided just to *sort of* follow the C25K guidelines. I'm not exactly going from being inactive (I work out a ton!) so it's a little easier for me to go a bit faster-paced on this. Plus, I just get into this groove while I'm running and don't want to get out of it! Well, except for a quick drink of water! Anyway, instead of doing the 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking, I decided to start with the 5 minute warm-up walk then run as long as I could then do the 90 seconds of walking. I kept that going for the 20 minutes and it worked out really well. So much fun! I went to the gym on Saturday (pleased to find out my membership is still current!) and just did the workout on the treadmill. I ended up being able to do 1.93 miles in the 25 minutes (the first 5 of which was strictly walking). I think I got up to about 3 minutes of non-stop jogging before I stopped for a drink (bit hard to drink and run when you're on a treadmill - I'm a bit of a klutz so I tend to dribble!)

Week 1, Run #3: Sunday, July 29
Went back to the gym this afternoon after church, lunch, and painting a second coat on the inside of the front door (busy Sunday!) The gym was practically empty which was really lovely! I'm continuing with my "run as far as I can" thing which seems to be working well for me. I'm not pushing too hard since I know that has gotten me in trouble in the past, but it just feels good to keep going! I've noticed I only develop a cramp when I stop jogging and start walking! Nice motivation to keep going :)
Today I was able to do 1/10 of a mile more than I did yesterday! Woohoo! I know, that probably seems like nothing to seasoned runners but it was quite exciting to me. It means I'm doing a bit more running/less walking. Every little bit helps. So, I went 2.03 miles in the 25 minutes. The treadmill is nice since it tells me exactly how far I've gone and exactly how long it took! I know running on the street would be better experience for an actual 5K so I'll start working some of that in, too. My dad does some trail-type running so when I feel like I can keep up with him and the dog, I'll start joining them for some runs! That might be a while..! ;)
The shoes are still working well - no pain in the heel area again even though it still looks nasty. Hopefully I will eventually work up some harder skin back there which will help prevent it (that and my $20 socks! lol) I must be the only girl who *wishes* for calloused skin on her feet! The shin splints from Thursday (they were very mild) have also gone. I guess running through them on Saturday wasn't so bad! I've been stretching a ton before and after my runs - I really need to do some dynamic stretches before and just not care how goofy I look doing them - and save the static stuff for after the runs. Sure any stretching helps, though.

No run tomorrow - have to take a break to prevent more shin splints (or worse - stress fractures)! I do have 1.5 hours of tai chi tomorrow night, though, so it's not exactly a lazy day!
I actually have my tai chi lesson tomorrow so we'll see if I'm any closer to getting that test day set up!

Have a great week - I'll keep posting about my running progress! This week may be a bit *off* due to the fact I'm going out of town for a long weekend. Right now I'm planning on going out Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday before I leave. Maybe I'll take my shoes and squeeze in a run while I'm up in Santa Barbara so I'm not having to run 3 days in a row. Not sure my knees will like me so much after that! :)

Run #1 and running shoe porn!

So I actually did it - I went out on my first "run" for the C25K plan :) It felt so good... not really "running" - more of a nice long walk that incorporated a bit of jogging. Guess I should start out with a bit of information on C25K...

Here's the website.

For Week One, I am supposed to do three workouts that are all the same. You go out and walk for 5 minutes at a brisk pace then alternate 60 seconds of jogging with 90 seconds of walking for 20 minutes.
I just went out and ran around my townhouse complex since I just didn't feel like driving to the gym! Besides, I'm not too crazy about the "gym culture" esp. not at the one I've been going to! The clientele are a bit much..!
It was really nice - I think I ran a bit more than I was supposed to because I kept getting into these little jogging "grooves" and didn't want to stop... that's a good thing, though! Plus, it was really hard to try to count seconds while doing my breathing exercises so I don't get a cramp in my side! Have to invest in a stop watch...
The only problem I had was that my old running shoes suck! :( They weren't cheap - New Balance - nice pair of shoes so I'm a bit pissed! I have had them a while (but they aren't worn out) and they've always rubbed at my heels (my heels have been slipping in them)...
I've been on this kick for the last couple years now that I'm going to start running. I always enjoy it but have just never been able to stick with it! I think these damn shoes have been part of the problem! lol... They hurt so much that I just haven't wanted to wear them...
Well, yesterday I just sucked it up and just kept going. When I got home I had rubbed a huge amount of skin off my right heel :( Left heel hurt a bit but was not badly "torn up." Immediately emailed my runner dad. The email went something like the following:
Hey,
I've decided to start running (again!). I went out this morning just for this little run following this plan I found but my shoes are killing my feet! I've rubbed all sorts of skin off my heel and it hurts like hell. Any suggestions on what I can do to help prevent this? Maybe some kind of insert/band-aid/wearing two pairs of socks/anything?!
I had a few more running shoe-related questions but can't quite remember what they were. Anyway, he actually ended up phoning me a couple hours later and spent 25/30 minutes going over shoes and feet with me! :) So great having runners in the family! Told me it was a size problem and that I might want to buy an insole to put under the shoe insole. Thought about that and then I asked him about this running shoe store that we have here in San Diego. His answer to the running shoe store was quite funny: "Oh, yes, well, I wasn't going to suggest that since you will end up paying a bit more there than you would anywhere else but I'm glad you brought it up!" He then proceeded to talk about this place and sing its praises for at least 15 minutes :) He told me all about pronating and that my feet were probably over-pronating (no idea how to spell that!) and that the Roadrunner place would do this whole diagnostic thing to help me find a pair of shoes that actually fit.

So, I decided to go down there today and explain what has been going on/try to find a decent pair of shoes. They were so helpful! My goodness - so nice to find a store full of people who actually have a clue as to what they are talking about! The diagnostic thing was fun :) They had you walk over this mat that showed where you were putting pressure on your feet (sure enough, I am a total over-pronator! lol) which is probably not helped by my dancer-esque frame (long legs, high arches, narrow feet)... Then I had to run on the treadmill for a bit so the machine could see how I run and do some more foot pressure things. Very cool all this technology! :) He then gave me three shoe recommendations and recommended some in-soles to go with them.
So, 1.5 hours and $160 later, I am the proud owner of a new pair of shoes! :) They feel great - even with my messed up heel! Oh, and I didn't spend the whole $160 on shoes - $30 of that was for the insoles and another $22 was for these blister-preventing socks... I'm sure I got suckered into buying the $22 socks but if they help this heel thing then oh well! And if they don't really work then it's no great loss :)
I can't wait to go out for a second run tomorrow with my new toys! lol I really want to go out tonight but my heel is still bothering me (I actually had to take my shoes off for tai chi last night - thank heavens we were inside on the mat!) so I think I'll give it a day off and go out in the morning :)

Oh! Here's some "running shoe porn" for you ;)
Don't say I never give you anything!

New Hobby - Running!

So I'm sure you've heard of people who train to run marathons or half-marathons? Well, I'm training to run a 5K.. lol
Start small, right?! :) Babysteps as the FlyLady would say!

Little background:
My dad and younger sister are both runners. Dad has run many marathons, half-marathons, 10Ks, 5Ks, all kinds of stuff on all kinds of terrain. My sister was on varsity track and cross-country for long-distance running in high school and ran her first marathon a couple years ago. Me... not a runner! Apparently the running gene skips a child. ;) I do enjoy running, I'm just not very good at it. I think I just push myself to hard - trying to live up to the family name or something! lol
I, as you have heard, do kung fu and tai chi (well, tai chi really is a form of kung fu - just slowed down a bit!).. I have been doing a ton of that lately - going in 4-5 times a week and spending anywhere from 9-11 hours a week on it (including group classes, lessons, and independent practice). I know, more than some people work out in a year, right?! However; tai chi is not exactly known for it's cardiovascular health benefits so I figured I need to step that up a bit! I have a gym membership through work (it's one of the health benefits) but I just don't use it since I'm not paying for it (!) and I'm at kung fu so darn much!

I've been hearing on the Nest about this C25K program (Couch to 5K) and have been quite curious about it. I honestly just kept blowing it off since I've always thought I wouldn't be able to do it. Then I did some math and realized 5K is only 3 miles... I could do that! It's not like I want to come in first place or anything! So, after my Wednesday afternoon tai chi class (I will miss that when work starts up again!) I decided I needed another thing to do (!) and that I was going to start the program this week.
I got home and logged onto the website for it - Cool Running - to find out what it is really all about. Basically, you spend 9 weeks doing 3 workouts per week. They start out very slowly and gradually work up to 3 miles. It seems so do-able! I figure I can do some workouts at the gym on the treadmill and some I can do running around the townhouse complex just to get a feel for the road as opposed to some fake rubber thing! I'd run around the neighborhood/the block but it's full of steep hills so it's probably best not to start out there!
My goal is to complete the first 9 week session by mid-September then start it over again and plan on participating in a 5K early next year. Taking it slow but I think that's the whole point of this program. I'll keep posting on here about how I'm doing and what each of the workouts are.
I'm starting tomorrow - wish me luck!
Hmmm.. guess it's time to update the iPod!

FlyLady Week 3 Update

Can't really believe I'm still keeping up with this FlyLady stuff! I've been going with this for 3 weeks now which is a bit of a record for me. ;)
This week's focus has been the master bedroom which we are working on transforming from a huge heap of clothes to a "vacation retreat." Ooh, sounds so fancy! Our bedroom actually wasn't all that bad to begin with so it has been a pretty light week for me so far... that will be made up for if I ever have to do the guest bedroom! hee hee... that is far from a vacation retreat!
Here are some of the things I've been up to to make my room more "bed and breakfast-y":
Threw out a bunch of crap! I honestly don't know why I don't go into feng shui mode more often - it's really liberating! I tossed a couple purses and several pairs of shoes (hubby was quick to point out that I still have 44 pairs...); tossed a bunch of junk from the night-stand and head board; tossed some old make-up and stuff from the master bathroom. I've thoroughly dusted the room and have just been working on straightening things up. I've also been trying to toss some stuff from the guest bedroom and found a gazillion old photo frames! Some of the nicer ones were kept and I stuck some nice photos in those to go in the master bedroom. I have some candle things to put on the wall above the bed; just have to check with hubby first!
I really need to get in there and clean under the bed.. not sure what's lurking under there!

Oh, Wednesdays are Anti-Procrastination Days... lol, how appropriate for me! You're supposed to pick something that you have been procrastinating about and just do the dang thing. Today I had quite the list... here goes:
*Find a dentist (done - well, I found one right down the street who accepts my insurance! I just have to actually call them now!)

*Print passport application - done. I even filled it in! Woohoo! Quite the overachiever, aren't I? The funny part of this was when I came to look for my old passport which has to be returned with the application and I couldn't find it! Oh my God... panic mode set in! I seriously thought I'd just completely lost it but then found it - after taking half my house (and my car!) apart, I discovered it had been hiding on my desk the entire time... pesky passport!

*Start work on the final paper for my class... not actually due until August 4 and it's only 2 pages (nice!) so it's not really procrastinating... just wanted to motivate myself to actually start it! Oh, this was done - I actually got a huge chunk of the paper written so I should have no problems finishing it up tomorrow (I have 3 or 4 short paragraphs to write then I have to type it/edit it).

*Get back into some cardio workouts. OK, so I get more exercise in a week than a lot of people get in a year (right now I'd say I'm doing some kind of tai chi or kung fu 10-11 hours per week). That's great, but it's mostly all strength training; very little cardio. So... I have decided to take up running! I'll post more about this in a separate post but I actually checked out the Couch To 5K (C25K) program on the Cool Running website and printed out the schedule. It seems so do-able; I'm very excited :) Now to find a running buddy...

*I also have some painting projects I've been putting off - no real reason. I actually like painting - I find it quite therapeutic. So, I have added to my to-do lists for the next couple days some of these projects. Tomorrow, I will paint the baseboards in the master bedroom; Friday, I'll paint the door leading from the garage to the house; and Saturday, I think I'll tackle the inside of the front door. The outside was just painted a couple weeks ago and it has made the inside of the door look even more grody!

Boots!

No, not the shoes... I don't get excited over that kind of boots until at least early October :) I'm talking about the British pharmacy shop with the same name...!

So exciting - I was at Target yesterday stocking up on cleaning supplies (and a couple random impulse buys! Target is dangerous..!) and found myself in the cosmetics aisle (I really did have a reason to be there!) Well, as I was leaving I walked down an aisle and found a whole row of Boots products. I actually had to pinch myself to make sure it wasn't fake.. lol The ones in England are a bit of a mini Sephora - they sell all kinds of items from other companies - but also have their own line. The Target aisle was all Boots-brand product.
So much good stuff; shame I didn't *need* any of it...
Here's a link to the British website.
and a link to Target's site with the products they stock.
Yippee!

Fly Lady Progress

Well, I have survived my first week of "Flying lessons!" ;) I didn't do perfectly but I'm still getting the hang of this stuff so I'm not too concerned that I didn't get to it all. Besides, I started a master's degree class the same day I started this Fly Lady thing so I have a very valid excuse!

So last week's focus was the kitchen. I'm pretty anal about keeping my kitchen clean to begin with so it wasn't really hard to do the stuff on the list. I thoroughly cleaned most of my counter-tops (there are still a couple I need to do!) - I got the nasty bleach cleaner out and used a scrubbing brush so you know those bad boys are clean! I can't stand using bleach - the smell just eeks me out and I always have to wonder just what exactly it is that I'm breathing in??? Can't be good, especially when you think that if you mix it with certain other cleaners it can kill you... always a pleasant thought! I really try to stay away from the harsh chemical stuff but once in a while I have to break it out for these darn white tile/white grout counter-tops I have! Can't wait until I can get new ones!
Anyway, small bleach vent over! :) Other than that I was able to clean out under my sink and clean out the fridge! I do still have to get in there and wipe down all the shelves and stuff...

This week's focus is the main bathroom (since hubby takes care of his own bathroom, I'll just do mine/the master bath) and one other room in the house. I think I might do the office... it could use some help! ;) I don't have a list of what all I'm supposed to do this week - should have an email about that soon (seriously, you get so much email from this FlyLady person! I had to start a whole new email address for it...! Helps me to not ignore it since I can't just tell myself "oops, that one got lost in with all the other mail... hee hee)

The Baby Steps things are going well - those are pretty easy, though! Today is Day 8 so I've set up my binder with the morning and evening routines. Those should help - I'm a list-maker so this will allow me to "check-off" what is done and keep me focused!
There is a woman on the Nest who started a daily check-in so that is also preventing me from falling off the wagon (which I'm sure I would have done by now!) I'll keep posting on here about it as well. Not the most exciting blog topic but if it helps Mrs. Distraction stay on task then it's all good!

Have a wonderful week!!! Hope it's not too humid where you are!

Tai Chi

Well, tonight is my second observation with the sifu (head instructor) before I get to test for my purple fringe... Pretty exciting! I just hope he doesn't ask to see my sabre (sword form) since I haven't practiced it in a while! oops! From what my instructor has been telling me, he should only want to see the fan form and the long form (maybe not even the whole 108 steps since sifu already saw part of it and the sabre during the last observation).

I am just so ready to test and start learning something new! I love tai chi - it's probably my favourite hobby - I am just started to get a bit bored with this material... Maybe if I actually practiced outside of the school I'd be done by now! lol ;) I've been working on the fan form and the long form since I got my green fringe so it's been about a year and a half now (yeah, yeah, I'm slow..) and I really want to do something different! I'm not even sure what I'll learn at purple fringe... I think it's another sword form - the longer gim (straight sword) form which should be fun - and a hand form (the 48 combo form or something like that).

Hopefully my observation tonight will go well and I won't have too many little details to fix!! ;)

Fly Lady

Ok, so I broke down and joined in the Fly Lady cleaning craze! My house really doesn't need it, it's generally very clean and organized but I figured it would help me not have to do all the cleaning and organizing on the weekends. So far it's going well, but it's only my second day with it so we'll see how long I can keep that up! :)

The beginning is just really easy stuff to help you get started. What they call Baby Steps.
So far, I've done all the Day 1 and Day 2 stuff which was as follows:
*Shining my sink - bit of a pain since I have this UGLY white ceramic sink (I really want a stainless steel one) so it took quite a bit of scrubbing. It looks great now! Hopefully I can keep it that way!

*"Get dressed to lace-up shoes" - well, since I live in San Diego and it's the middle of summer there was no way I was going to wear lace-up shoes (well, except for kung fu!). And anyway, I don't wear shoes around the house - I'm trying to keep it clean, not make it dirtier! But, I did set out clothes to wear today last night which I'm pretty sure was part of that...

I've also been working on the Weekly Focus which is Zone Two: The Kitchen. I love my kitchen (even if the tile, sink, and oven are all really ugly!) so it's nice to spend time showing it some of that love. :)
Here's the details/things I'm supposed to do this week:
*Empty and clean the fridge
*Clean the microwave (done)
*Clean the stove/oven (the stove is done; cleaning the oven intimidates me...)
*Wash canisters for knick-knacks
*Wash the inside windows (done)
*Scrub down the cabinet fronts
*Clean under the sink

For Day 3 (tomorrow), I'm supposed to just do what I've already been doing on Days 1 and 2... nice and easy! :)