Priorities

 It seems that having a child does tend to change priorities, like sleep and running. This morning was to be our 2.75 mile run, but I am too tired to go. I need sleep, really bad and it is beginning to take it's toll on me. This morning would be 68 degrees and would feel so amazing during a run but I just don't have the energy to go this morning, so even though tonight won't be cooler it will be around 80 degrees which isn't awful especially once the sun starts to go down. I can't say I am happy with this, but I've got to get sleep, 4-5 hours of sleep every night, getting up 5-6 a.m every morning to feed Dorian and pump is wearing on me and quick. The only day I get to sleep in until 8ish is Sunday and that is if Dorian goes back to sleep after eating, our normal bedtime being midnight.
  Did I mention this annoys me? Lol, this heat is beginning to wear on my patience, which is already wearing thin for a number of reasons. I prefer my runs in the morning or throughout the day for strength training work outs. I really, really, really, REALLY this heat.

A Tiny Bit Better this Time

  I drank 6 16 oz bottles of water today stretched throughout the morning but not close to the run. I have been putting my Iron Man Muscle Rub on my lower legs throughout the day, sadly I could not do anything about the heat. My sister is staying with me during the training runs, I warned that I was going to take it very slow but she was alright with it. We kept it around 11 minutes a mile, a bit slower than usual BUT it was almost 100 degrees and sunny and I did not walk so that is a plus. The run was supposed to be 2 miles but my Garmin 405 said 2 miles when we had like .4 miles left, so I came to a walk and then I couldn't take it anymore..........
   I took my shirt off, yep even though my stomach isn't toned (yet) or trim (yet), I was done giving a $hit. It was hot, sweaty and just plain miserable to be honest. I am glad I got out there and ran, glad I took it slow, I am glad that even though my knees were sore and my calves were tight I still sucked it up and ran. Saturday morning is going to be 68 degrees, and I really, REALLY hope things go a bit better than today, it will be 2.75 miles.
   Tonight I am going to relax and stretch, possibly take a bath.

Milestone for Me

This morning after I pumped, I decided to do the plank position and get myself to 2 minutes before quitting, for the last 3 days or so I have been able to do 2 minutes. Well, when I hit 2 minutes I decided to push more and try longer. I made it to 2 minutes and 32 seconds this morning!!!!!!!! I am so excited, and hoping this is a milestone that will gradually keep climbing, I know I might not make it to 2 minutes everyday because my arms have to bear the weight as well and sometimes they are just tired, I also still feel it in my left knee which is why I am hoping that the Plank Position doesn't effect tonight's run. They say in order to reach 2 minutes, your core must be in fit condition... or maybe it is all of the abdominal muscles? I can't remember, but since I have been reaching 2 minutes for a couple days straight now, all I am really needing at this point is to burn the fat away so that my muscles will start showing through. The only way that is really going to happen is with running, so I am going to try and be patient, more patient than usual which is EXTREMELY difficult for me. I think I have too much time for my mind to go around with all this, probably why I could never finish any of my books, I always start off great and know where I am going to go with it but then by the 3 chapter I've already finished it in my head......... ugh and I had some really good stories that could have been published.
    Tonight's run is 2 miles, I told Shauna already that I am going to take it slow and easy, at least for the first mile and then see where I am at after that mile. Last Tuesday, I only had maybe 2 or 3 16 oz bottles of water, that could have also been a issue too. We will have to see how tonight goes, see what works tonight and what might not have worked Tuesday night.
    Dorian is getting so big, he is already 11 lbs at almost 10 weeks old and talking so much (baby talk, not forming words yet) and smiling. He is so adorable, I honestly don't think I could fall anymore in love with him than I already am. Even at this age he is already showing so much personality it is unbelievable, I can't wait to see him at 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, 4 years and so on but I am going to miss these first months.

2.5 miles last night and it Sucked........

   Last night's run was discouraging, I am not going to lie at all. So many things went wrong, I am now wondering if this is good idea... already training for the October Half. So many things are against me right now, and they are not excuses but explanations:

1. I am carrying 15 extra lbs and I am beginning to feel it in my knees, shins and ankle.
2. The 90 degree weather has hit without giving me a chance adapt, the extra lbs make it harder.
3. November 2011 to May 2012, I did not keep up on my RUNNING mileage, this issue could be a too much too soon.
4. I am still recovering from pregnancy and delivery, but my legs.... or mind want to run at my average pace (before pregnancy weight gain), 10:00-10:30 min/mile but my body just doesn't seem ready as the mileage keeps increasing.
5. I want to keep up with Shauna.
6. I stretched before I ran, last year I learned that doesn't really work for me. 

   When we started this May, I was really excited and expecting Shauna and I to improve together, and stay together during training runs and the races. Last night I realized that just isn't going to happen, and I've been kidding myself. Even though Shauna hadn't really been running for a few years, since she became pregnant with Skyler back in.....2005, she was athlete in middle school and high school and her legs and lungs remember. Last night, I was fighting to keep up with her during the first mile, realizing we were hitting around 9:30 min/mile pace and she just kept going. I could tell she was getting competitive with others, and she was finally finding her groove again. Back in high school she easily ran 2.5 miles in 18-19 minutes (not awesome to those elite runners but it is a feat in my eyes. At 1.35 miles my left shin and ankle had finally hit their limit and I had to slow down to a walk, from there the outer part of my left knee began to hurt and I just watched her keep going. My left side began to hurt with a stitch, thankfully I have grown some brain cells during the pregnancy and have learned to listen to my body, otherwise I would probably have tried to keep going and really regretted it. I walked for maybe .2 miles and slowly started up again, ran for about .3 or .4 miles until I had to slow down to a walk again and it was very disappointing , Shauna had turned around and joined me, and we picked up the pace and I took it easy and slow.
   It hurts, it sucks and it is very disheartening. A big part of me is glad I ran, but still discouraged by it. I am a little worried, maybe I should have not started jump start, maybe I should have slowly began by myself and built my base mileage again..... maybe yesterday was just one of those crappy days, from now on I will not stretch before the runs, I will stretch after and throughout the days. I can only hope tomorrow's 2 mile run will not involve so much pain, and I will be icing my knee/s and ankle/s after every run from now on. 

   On a better note, this morning I finally hit 600 Bicycle crunches in once session rather than cutting them in half these last 2 weeks (300 in the morning, 300 at night). Six sets of 100, in between 6 sets of 25 Love Handle Crunches, 6 sets of 12 Oblique Crunches. Today I am going to try for a 2 minute Plank Position, maybe another 2 minute Plank Position at night.

Trying to Get Back to it

  For ten long months....... okay maybe just 7 of those 10 months; I did not try to lose weight but kept up on workouts that were safe for me during pregnancy. I gained around 32 lbs, started gaining that weight after the Half Marathon in October, and it was not easy watching that scale go up. It has been 2 months and 5 days since Dorian was born, and my weight will not go below 149, but bounces back up to 155 sporadically. I had weighed around 164 when I gave birth to Dorian, and though it feels great to finally have him out of me and in my arms, I still feel like a fight ass. During pregnancy, I forced myself to remain confident that I would get back to my before pregnancy body, but over the last couple of weeks I have begun to lose hope. Jumpstart training began May 22, it is now June 19 and we are up to 2.5 miles today and I see no progress with my body. I was hoping that as the mileage increased, the lbs would decrease but it doesn't seem like that is the case. 90% of that body I had, which really was just average if I am going to be honest with myself, came from a year of working out in the gym, weight training, not cardio, not running. Now I just don't have the chance or time to go to the gym at Ivy Tech, and I am not able to get a membership at a gym like Bob's Gym where I could go anytime...........though now that I think about it I could sneak out around 5 a.m every other day and go...... Dorian doesn't wake up to eat until 6:30-7:00 a.m so I could get out and get an hour of weight lifting in before he would notice... I need it, I really do; I mean I can do all the ab exercises at home but my legs and back and arms need machines and the little workouts I have for home just aren't going to cut it at all. I am trying to get up to 2 minute plank position 2x a day every day, some days are good days and some I have to divide those 4 minutes into 1 minute planks 4x.
   I am going to think more about Bob's Gym, Newburgh has one but I don't know how early they open and I am not sure if Cameron would be okay with it, heck I am barely getting 6 hours of sleep as it is, going to bed between 12-1 a.m on most nights and very few nights being as early as 11 p.m. I miss the gym so much.........

This Morning's Run

  This morning's run wasn't too bad, strangely enough we ran a faster pace this morning then Thursday's shorter run. The right side of my neck and my right shoulder keeps getting tight during runs, maybe it has something to do with my upper back always being sore lately. We ran 2.25 miles, at what seems to have been a 10:00 min/mile pace, but I was running late to the run, forgot to set my Garmin so we were about .2 miles into the run when it finally loaded and started up. I felt a bit crappy still, I can feel the lack of sleep wearing on me now, especially with increasing my workouts. Granted, I am averaging around 5-6 hours of sleep right now; which is better than a lot of other parents with newborns so I should really consider myself lucky. I don't know if it is going to get harder as the long runs get longer, heck I might have to run some at night if that is the case

Last Night's Run with Sister

   I will admit, last night was a bit crappy but I am glad we did it. I made the mistake of choosing a route with some inclines, and my left shin was sore for some reason. I figure maybe it was due to doing the Plank Position twice yesterday, 2 minutes both times which I am extremely proud of but I might not attempt it that many times on the days I run. We kept it pretty slow, which was sad since it was 1.86 miles but I figure it is usually easier when there are more people around you or maybe it just was one of those runs I guess. I am glad we did it of course, but hopefully Saturday morning's run won't be so.... ick. I will admit that I won't be upset if I don't make it to the group Saturday morning, and end up running by myself in the evening and maybe with Shauna. I don't know, my mind is off right now which is usual when I suddenly become obsessed with something, and and since I got back to using my camera that is all I can really think about. But I am going to stick to the running, even if these next few runs might end up being by myself or just me and Shauna, as the mileage gets over 3.5  I will definitely have to try and stick with the group because it might be difficult for me to stick to it by myself. We will see how things go.