Archive for March 30th, 2009

Important things I have recently learned:

1.  Do not have milk less than an hour before long runs.  This creates a two-part consequence:

• phlegm, phlegm, phlegm.  gross.
• serious stomach ache for at least 2 hours post-run

2.  Which reminds me, don’t eat peanut butter either before a run.  Peanut Butter burps are not good.

3.  Spending 30 minutes on the elliptical machine makes your feet go numb. 60 minutes makes your head go numb.  

4.  Sometimes if you put off what you could do today—until tomorrow—it’s okay. 

I woke up Saturday morning to not-so-pleasant weather and since we had weekend guests, I decided to not do my long run and play tour guide instead.  Plus, it gave my legs one more day to rest, so I could figure out if my problem was sore muscles or shinsplints.  

Good news! It’s not shinsplints.  What. A. Relief.  And I’m glad I decided to postpone my 12-mile run to Sunday, when the weather was absolutely gorgeous.  

Maybe it was the fact that my legs were fairly well rested, or maybe it was because I was on a tight schedule and had to get home and decorate a cake for a birthday party— but it was one of my better, faster runs.

I’ve recently grown fond of running along the Ballard/Fremont canal since I can run on the trail uninterrupted by stop lights for a good 8 miles.  Plus, running over the Ballard Bridge has awesome scenery of the Olympic Mountains and the marinas below.

12.1 miles, 1:40:05.  Good pace of 8:16, but there’s still room for improvement if I want to reach some of my running goals.