4th Week - The Air Got a Little Tight

Today is the last day of July and Saturday marked week 4th week of 15 weeks of training. It is amazing at how fast time is ticking down. I feel like October is going to be here before I know it.It's an exciting and scary thought. 


This last week I really felt my mileage increase. 


Monday started off with a 6 mile run, the most I have done on a weekday yet. It felt good. I completed it in 51 minute with a pace of 8'28"/mile. It wasn't my best run but considering the wind was really high that day I was pleased with my pace running into the wind. It's like resistance training and endurance training rolled into one ball. 


Tuesday involved TRX and Nike Training Club. My Nike Training Club was the Endurance Master. I love doing Nike Training Club in my office gym because the guys always tell me how hardcore I am. It boost my ego.


Wednesday brought me another tempo run. The whole week I was terrified for the tempo runs. I ended up making really good times with them. My first mile was 7'56"/mile my second was 7'47"/mile the third was 7'42"/mile and my last mile was 7'08"/mile. My goal was to get them under 7'00" but I was really happy with them since my last tempo run wasn't this good. I really felt my legs coming back and my body working as one consecutive unit rather than all trying to do their own thing. Hopefully my speed will keep getting faster for me.


Thursday was another TRX day and for some reason my TRX instructors love to work my legs. Like they are not working hard enough these days. I always enjoy a good hard core TRX workout they always make me sweat and realize how much I can really push my body. I also did a Nike Training Club workout, it was the Fast and Fierce workout. This is one of my favorite workouts it has so much jumping and abs incorporated into it. When I saw it on my list of workouts I was super excited to do it. What is your favorite Nike Training Club workout? After work Mike and I went to Bikram yoga and stretched it out really good. We decided on going to Bikram on Thursday because we were going to be out of town all weekend.


Friday was supposed to be a 5 mile run, but I needed to make an executive decision to end early. I was down in Lethbridge and was running through a park. It was about 8:30 at night and there were a lot of homeless people. I was worried about my safety since it was getting late so I cut the run short knowing I had an 11 mile run the next day. 


Saturday was really rough on me. We were down in Lethbridge visiting my boyfriends family. I am used to running at elevation. I set out for a 11 mile run and I was feeling incredibly winded and tired out. I had to contend with a lot of hills on my run. Lethbridge is in the foothills of Southern Alberta so it is very flat and than it can just drop into a coulee and you'll have to run back out of it. I knew I was tired from this but even on the flat I was exhausted. When I returned to the hotel I checked what the elevation is and it is higher than Calgary. I ended up doing 11 miles in about 1:45, not my best but taking the hills and elevation into consideration I think I did well. If going up higher has such negative effects on me I am excited to go to sea level. Saturday also brought me a Nike Fuel challenge. I was aiming to hit 6,800 and ended up hitting 7,780!! I was so excited and thrilled when I hit fire!! I didn't even know fire existed but was ecstatic when I found this out. What is the highest you have achieved with Nike Fuel?

Happy Training.

Find Greatness

Nike just rolled out their new campaign and it is called "Find Greatness". What an inspiring campaign!! It couldn't have come at a better time. 

Friday marks the opening ceremonies of the London Olympics and I adore watching the athletes. My favorite events are swimming, track and field and gymnastics. I am actually going to set my PVR tonight so I don't miss any of my favorite events. In the Find Greatness video Nike talks about how greatness is within all of us and not just for the chosen few. 

I believe that Nike Women has given myself and the other girls an amazing opportunity to find our greatness. What I am learning that as you grow and find greatness haters start to come out and try to bring you down.

Have you ever watched crabs in a bucket, not the music video, actual crabs in a bucket? What I have noticed is that sometimes a crab will try to escape the bucket and the inevitable fate that will cross it's path and as it climbs to freedom the other crabs will grab it and try and drag it back down. Sometimes the crabs escape but most times they are dragged back into the bucket. 

As I continue on my journey to the Nike Women's Marathon I have people who tell me that I can't do it, that it is too hard, or I am not capable of doing anything of this nature. I also have people who like to post mean anonymous post on my blog. I have chosen to delete said post and ignore the haters. The only people I need in my life are the people who believe in me.

This is my time to shine and no haters are going to bring me down to their level. I am ready to face obstacles and be a better person because of it. I have an amazing support system in my mom, my boyfriend Mike, Nike Women, Marie Purvis and my Sisters in Nike. 

Remember to find your greatness. I find my greatness within me and each time I conquer a goal or hit a milestone it only propels me to be a better person. 

Remember, haters are going to hate and those that love and support you will be proud. Make your supports proud and forget about the haters. 

Happy Training.

Week 3 Recap

My 3rd week of training for the Nike Women's Marathon went better than expected.

Monday started off with a 5 mile run on my lunch break. I had a pace of 8'59"/mile and was not happy with this in the least. It disappointed me in a huge way and I kept feeling like I was doing something wrong. However, I find it is the runs that are most difficult to get through that I learn the most about myself from. Despite the run being a slower pace I was still happy that I made it through and clocked my miles. 

Tuesday brought me a Nike Training Club. It was the Get Strong Energy Transfer. I struggle with the Get Strong Nike Training Clubs. They kill me for some reason. Even though these exercises are incorporated into other workouts in the Nike Training Club App however, doing them in the Get Strong it kills me. Am I ever glad when I get through it. I also struggle with the 90 degree abs, I look like a maniac doing them lol but I can really feel them working. 

Wednesday was my first tempo run. I was both excited and scared to do this run. A tempo run is running certain miles, in my case 3 at a pace faster than race pace. In away you are close to sprinting for those miles. My first mile was great since it was a warm up mile. I got into my tempo run and was doing great until the third mile of the tempo, my legs cramped up on me and I threw up all over the grass. I kind of just shook it off brushed myself off and completed my run. Again, I was upset with myself for not finishing my run without having to stop, but I got through it. That was the main thing.

Thursday brought me back to Nike Training Club but this time it was a Get Lean one. I love Get Lean I was super excited to do it. Slim Effect is one of my favorite workouts because it's a lot of jumps. I never liked jumping until I started doing Nike Training Club, now I see the difference it has made in my body and I love doing jumps. Thursday was also a 3 mile run day and this is where my week turned around. I did 3 miles in 7'28"/mile with a total time of 22:49 I was so pleased with that and I really felt like I was back. After my run I also did a light TRX workout with my trainer Tim. It was fun to do a beginner TRX workout since I have been really pushing myself hard.

Friday was a Bikram Yoga day and I yawned through the entire class. I was so tired come 4:00 I had to leave work early because I couldn't even keep my eyes open anymore. I went to Bikram and the poses were so hard because all I wanted to do was sleep. The thing about Bikram because a lot of the poses require balance it takes a lot of concentration. You can't just go into a Bikram class half wanting to be there, you need to fully be there body and mind. This was one of the hardest classes I did but I proved to myself I could get through it. I walked out of class feeling refreshed and ready to take on my 9mile run the next day.

Saturday morning brought me a 9 mile run. I choose to run Glenmore. The reason is because it has 1 huge downhill run and than 2 really big hills that you have to run up. My past few long runs were not the best so I was a little nervous to run 9 miles. I was doing amazing, until I hit the 6 mile point. I got struck with a cramp in my side that was bringing tears down my face. I ate a few Sharkies and kept running. I had to slow my pace down a little bit to accommodate for my cramp but I still did this 9 mile run faster than I had did my last one. I was proud of myself and now I really feel like I am back.

I think my biggest difference was using a different pair of shoes. I have a pair of Lunar Montreal shoes that I was strictly using for the treadmill. I only had around 10 miles on them. I used them on both Thursday and Saturday and I think having the new shoes made a difference to my legs. They didn't feel tired and I wasn't feeling the pavement under my feet. I might need to vear away from the Lunar Montreals now that my distances are getting longer, this makes me a little sad since I really do love the Montreals but I think I need to go back to the lunar glides. I never had this problem in them. 

I am excited for the week to come. I will be down in Lethbridge for my 11 mile run this week. I am excited and nervous since Lethbridge is in the foot hills of southern Alberta. It is very windy and is built on hills. My pace is probably going to be a little slower than normal because I'll be running up a lot of hills. I am looking forward to it.

Happy Training. 

Learning Lessons

I have a very type A personality. I am a perfectionist and I strive to be number one. This pushes me in times when I need to be pushed, but can also be a hinder my performance.

When I was about 10 years old I wanted to join soccer. My best friend was playing and I wanted to join to. I had it in my head "anything she could do I could do better" well to be honest I sucked. I don't have the hand eye coordination to play sports where items fly at me. The problem is because I couldn't get it right the first time I gave up. I believe I went to three games and said to my parents "I suck I am done". They let me quit without argument mainly because I was already swimming and had a tight schedule for a 10 year old.

When I swam and couldn't master the breaststroke my first time I wanted to quit. My coach wouldn't let me. The same way he wouldn't let me quit when I was doing sprint sets. I remember yelling at him. Yes, I would yell at my coach. One day I was so mad and so angry he made me spend 2 hours after practice doing the breaststroke. I was never a breaststroker but he never let me give up.

It was around that year that things changed for me. I wasn't so quick to jump to quitting when things were not going they way I had planned for them too.

Recently, in my training for the Nike Women's Marathon I have had a few minor set backs. They set backs have been effecting me. I believe it is effecting me more mentally than physically. It is like a wall was up in my head and I wasn't able to crush through it.

Yesterday I went for a run and it seemed that somehow these walls that I had build came tumbling down. I was now running at my faster pace. I was feeling good and my body felt like it could take on the world.

I had to make a few changes in regards to my training.

First off, I need to get more sleep. If you know me well you are probably laughing because I LOVE sleep and I have a masters degree in it. Seriously, I got to bed at around 9 and get up at 5 and I'll nap Saturday and Sunday if I could. I realized that I needed MORE sleep. The thing about training for a marathon is it takes a toll on your body. If you think you are getting enough sleep get an extra half hour a night. It made a world of difference for me.

Secondly, I added more protein to my meals. I meet with someone who tells me what I need. I was already getting around 110 grams of protein each day. Guess what, that wasn't enough. Now I have a protein shake in the morning and one at night. This has helped me greatly in getting enough calories for my body to function. I am no longer concerned with loseing weight anymore as I am with making sure I have enough calories to properly do my training and keeping my body strong. I prefer to get most of my calories through protein and vegtables but I still eat pleanty of carbs.

Lastly, I remind myself why I am doing this. I love running. It's that simple.

Happy Training

Fuel Your Body Properly

It is no secret that I have suffered from eating disorders, I am very open about this part of my life. I believe my openness helps me not to have a relapse. 

I would starve myself and go to swim practice or the gym and expect my body to be able to function off of next to no calories.

I also went through a time when I ate WHATEVER I wanted too and hoped I wouldn't gain weight, yeah that doesn't happen.

Our bodies are like a car, but we only get one in our whole life. We have to maintain this car, make sure it runs well and give it proper fuel.

Maintaining our car would be taking care of ourselves. Getting regular check-up's to make sure that we are running properly, stretching out the muscles after a workout, getting proper rest. We all take our cars in for regular maintenance especially if they are brand new. When we drive our cars if we hear a noise, or there is something not right going on with our car we bring it in to get fixed. It actually surprises me how much I hear people say "I hurt (said body part" I say "have you gone to get it looked at" they say "No, I think it will heal"! That is a mistake people. My physio explained to me that people when they are born are at 100% and as we age and get small injuries our bodies go down. If you take care of yourself you can stay around that 80% zone. People that are in tuned with their bodies will feel pain a lot sooner than someone who isn't and they will, or should, get injury looked at. Get proper treatment and you can go back up to 80% don't and you'll go up and down, like the stock market at the moment, from feeling better to injury. Gradually the time between feeling better and injury will get less and less. Treat your body like that brand new car. I know it seems tedious but it will help. Take myself for example. I got planters fascistic a few months back. I went to the physio ASAP he took me off running for a week and now I am back and strong. If I didn't go and just hoped for it to go away I would probably be in some serious pain right now. Take care of your body it is the only one you have.

Fueling the car. There is a place not far from my house and it has cheap gas. Rumor has it that gas is so cheap because the gas is dirty.Would I ever put this into my car, of course not. It would cause my car to breakdown. Why is it that we give the best to our cars, but when it comes to our bodies we put whatever we want in it? We don't think of the repercussions of putting bad food into our bodies. Take a moment next time you are about to get MacDonald's or Fat Burger and think of what it will do to your body.

Lets try taking as good of care of our bodies as we do our cars.

Nike Training and Nike Women Challenges

Lately Nike Training and Nike Women have been doing weekly challenges and of course I have been participating in all of them, well all of the ones I can. I don't have the Nike+ Training Shoes yet. 

Me doing lunge jumps

Lunge Jump Top Performers

The first one was the Hope Solo lunge jump challenge and I loved it. I love lunges and often lunge around my apartment. 

Yes, I look crazy doing this but only Meho sees me so it's not a big deal. 

Before TRX one morning I had Meho record me doing lunge jumps, you can find the video on twitter follow @TiaraBeth.

I did 39 on my first try and this got me onto the leader board. Elizabeth did 44 so I was 5 behind her but I put in a good effort and she was great competition. I always love me some friendly competition. I was so excited to see my name on the leader board. 

Shawn Johnson Skip Knee Top Performers

Me doing Skip Knee

This week Nike Training put out a new challenge and it was the skip knee challenge with Shawn Johnson. The first time I did it I got 77 and the second time when Meho recorded me I got 84!! They were hard, I am not going to lie at the end of the 30 seconds my heart rate was up and I was feeling the blood pumping. I think I might do this as a quick cardio wake up in the morning. The 84 put me at the top of the leader board. When I saw my name on there I was so excited!! Always a good feeling to be recognized. I did have some good competition. 

Can't wait for the next challenge. Especially to get more pictures of me looking crazy. I am kind of loving the skip knee picture. 

Have you been participating in the challenges? If not get on board follow @NikeTraining and @NikeWomen on twitter and get into the game. 

Happy Training.

It hurts .. up to a certain point

It only hurts up to a certain point - then it doesn't get any worse.

I believe there is so much truth to this saying. I have been having so horrid runs lately. I could blame my ulcer, I could blame being tired; truthfully I don't like placing blame on anything.

When I was swimming I had an abusive coach. He got fired eventually but despite the vurbal abuse I went through with him he taugh me to push beyone my limits. He taught me that my limits are set by me and not anyone else. He made me a better swimmer. Sometimes I think he made me a better person. I mean I don't agree with his abusive ways but I remember one day he was making me do sprint sets. I was not a sprinter, 400m and above I owned anything below unless it was a 200m back destroyed me. He had me doing sprints and I was coming and I having to head right back out. I wasn't getting any rest off of these and I felt sick. I remember at one point I was crying and I yelled at him "I CAN'T DO THIS I AM NOT A SPRINTER WHY DO YOU HATE ME SO MUCH." It wasn't that he hated me. It was that he knew I was better than what I was. He knew I could do these.He looked at me and said "Tiara everything comes easy to you and you stick with what is easy to you I want to prove to you that you are not the greatest at everything, that you can fail that the girls in the pool are better than you" He also said a lot of really harsh things to me. I told him, my legs hurt, my arms hurt, I am going to vomit. He said "vomit and keep going the pain will eventually stop".

After a few weeks of swims like that I was swimming my fastest 400m. He told me what I did wasn't easy for a distance swimmer but in doing that he made me faster. He was making me unbeatable.

When I am out on the trail and my feet hurt, my legs hurt, my abs are hurting I remember "the pain will eventually stop" I mean there is a point where we need to listen to our bodies, but there is also a point where we need to tell our bodies that we are not going to listen to it and we need to keep going, push through the pain and you'll find that you can reach limits you had no idea were achievable.

Happy Training.

2nd Week of Training Down

July 8th - 14th marked my second week of training for the Nike Women's Marathon and I had a tough week.

Sunday morning I woke up with horrible pain in my abdomen, the only way I could get relief was by arching my back or bending forward. I spent majority of Sunday in bed crying because of the pain. It finally went away around noonish and by 2 I felt like I had the flu. I was sitting on my couch wrapped in a blanket despite the fact that it was 30 degrees C outside. I couldn't even lift a water bottle to drink water.

Monday, I woke up and my flu symptoms were gone but the pain in my abdomen was back and worst than the day before. I sucked it up got ready and took the train to work. I wasn't at work longer than an hour before I left for the hopsital. They ran test after test and finally around 1pm they told me I had a stomach ulcer. I was like great, this is all I need right now. Needless to say I didn't get my 4 mile run in and this was the first day I didn't make my Nike Fuel band goal :( my 38 day streak was over!! I was happy to know it wasn't anything serious and that I could manage it.

Ever since Monday I have been on a raw diet and haven't consumed any diet coke. I actually feel WAY better. I have been drinking diet coke since I was 3 so coming off of it I thought was going to be super hard. My body has energy and I don't feel gross. I thought I was going to have crazy withdrawl but other than a headache the first day nothing. I have been drinking a ton of water because at this point it is all I can drink.

Tuesday brought me a TRX day. Did you know if you walk backwards while in push-up mode it makes the push-up WAY harder!!! I am going to have biceps on steel by October. I also tried running a 4 mile run at lunch. It was 32 degrees C outside and I made it 2.14 miles and had to stop. My body was over heating and dehydration was setting in. I ended up walking the rest of the way back to work.

Wednesday morning I woke up at the crack of dawn to try and go for a 6 mile, but I still wasn't feeling 100% so I decided it would be a treadmill run after work. It ended up being a great run. I ran it at a pace of 7'53"/mile for a time of 48:02, nothing to complain about other than the fact it was on the deathmill.

Thursday morning was another TRX day and I feel like I don't even remember what went on. I know I was off work early that day and spent the afternoon in bed. I am still doing a lot of sleeping lol.

Friday I did Get Toned Intermediate Body Buffer this was the first time I had did NTC in over a week and I forgot how much I missed it. I really love the single leg deadlift dumbbell row because I can see how far my balance has come. I remember my first time doing these I think I fell on my face more than I was able to balance. Friday also brough Bikram yoga!! Part of me was dreading Bikram, it was already really hot outside and now I am going into a hot room to do yoga for 90 minutes. I thought I was crazy. After the first three poses were over I was actually really happy to be there. I was enjoying myself and I was getting a good stretch. I came out of yoga feeling rejuivinated. I feel reenergized and ready to take on the world again. My body had been so beaten up that week it was something I really needed. I am glad that yoga is incorporated into my training.

Saturday started bright and early especially for a Saturday. The alarm went off at 6am and I spent 20 minutes walking around my apartment in a tired haze. I put two different colored shoes on, I wasn't wearing socks. I finally got my bearings after eating a pre-run meal and by 7:15am I was out to door and on my way to Glenmore Trail. For the first time ever I used the Nike+GPS Sports Watch that Nike Women sent me. I have a little bit of a love hate relationship with it. I love it because:

• I don't chaffe my arm while wearing it
• The face is big and easy to read
• It is stylish
• It is user friendly and the buttons are big

I also don't love it because:

• You can't play music off of it and I NEED music when I run.
• It can't give me spoken feedback of distance covered.
• I have to wait for everything to cycle through before I can see what distance I have ran.

I will get over these issues after using it a few times. Saturday morning I looked like a walking Nike ad. I was wearing all Nike, of course, but I had on the Fuel band and Sports watch lol. Saturday wasn't my best run. I ran 8miles in 1:10:15 with a time of 8'46"/mile I didn't have one mile under the 8'00"/mile mark. It was a slower run but I covered the distance I needed to cover. I am trying to concentrate less on spide for my longer runs and more on distance. This is a big difficulty for me because I want to be fast. After my run I headed to TRX class where I was killed. A thought it would be a good idea to make it more of a cardio class. Everything was quick. We did 10 one legged burpees followed by 10 push-ups followed by 10 burpess on the other leg followed by 10 more push-ups. We did one legged squats (15) followed by on legged push-ups (10). We got on a treadmill and didn't turn it on instead pushed it with our own force. Try this, honestly it is really hard.

After that I went home and slept for about 3 hours. Rest was much needed and now I ready to tackle another week!! 

Happy Training.

New Gear has Arrived from @NikeWomen I am so Over the Moon

I was sitting on my couch having a convo with my mom and I got a tweet from Nerissa stating that she had received a box from Nike Women. I jumped off the couch and ran downstairs to see if my box had come. I asked the concierge if a package came for apartment 1416. Guess what!??!?! I had one!!! I was so over the moon.

One of the first things I noticed and put on, was the Nike Overdye Women's Racerback tank top. Mine is mint green. One thing about me, I adore mint green. It's such a great color and totally in season. It's so lightweight and I can see my wearing this often. I am wearing it right now with a pair of jean shorts, cutest outfit.

I love getting new bra's. Seriously, you cannot do a workout with a bra. This time I got a sick green Nike Victory Shape Bra. It's awesome, super comfortable and really stylish. One of my goals is to have abs, or be able to wear a bra and shorts while running and feel comfortable doing that. I am hoping I can wear this one.

I picked up the Nike Loose Tri-Blend shirt and the first thing I noticed about it was how soft it felt. Seriously is this shirt cashmere because it feels like it. It is beautiful on and can be worn on causal Friday's to work. Please go out and get one, at the touch of it you'll want to purchase one yourself. I promise.

It's summer here and we are having the hottest temps we will have for the rest of the summer. Now that I have the Nike Critical 2S Epic top. This top is lightweight and not hugging. I want to tell you how it feels to run in so I am hoping for a chilly morning so I can take it out on the trail!!

I got the most awesome pair of capris out there. They are an awesome color, anything with color I love but these pants they are blue!! I'm dying over them. They are the Nike Relay. Waiting for a cooler day to get out and wear them. Mother nature give me some cool weather for one day hehe. To keep me loving the warm weather I also go the Nike Twisted Tempo Shorts. Mine are bright pink and orange. I want to wear them to work tomorrow, not on dress code. These are going to be great running shorts. Bring on Saturday. 

Last, but totally not least in my box of goodies from Nike Women was the new Nike Sports watch. I have been thinking about getting myself one of these because it would really help me with improving my pace and being able to do each mile faster than the next. This watch is going to help me reach my goals. 

Thank you Nike Women you ladies are amazing. I will let all of you know how I train in each of these, tomorrow is a Nike Training Club at 5 am and Bikram afterwards. 

Keeping Hydrated While Running

Staying hydrated is critical to running performance and, more importantly, for preventing heat-related illnesses. Dehydration in athletes may lead to fatigue, headaches, decreased coordination, and muscle cramping. Other heat-related illnesses, such as heat exhaustion and heatstroke, have even more serious consequences. Either way running when not properly hydrated will have effects on your ability to run. Runners need to pay attention to what and how much they’re drinking before, during and after exercise.

When I am doing a long run (more than 8 to 10 miles), it's important to make sure you're well-hydrated during the few days leading up to your long run. I always know when I am well-hydrated because of the amount of times I go to the bathroom. In the days leading up to my long run, I drink plenty of water and nonalcoholic fluids, these fluids include milk, tea, water. Alcohol will dehydrate you, but it can also prevent you from getting a good night's sleep. It's not a good idea to run with a hangover because you'll most likely be dehydrated when you start running. I've committed to no alcohol while training.

An hour before I start my run, I try to drink about 16 ounces of water or other non-caffeinated fluid. To make sure I am hydrated before starting my run, I drink another 4 to 8 ounces right before I take off.

The current advice about running and hydration is very simple -- try to drink to thirst. Scientific evidence says that drinking when you're thirsty can help prevent underhydrating (which can lead to dehydration) and overhydrating, which can lead to hyponatremia (low blood salt level due to abnormal fluid retention).

During longer workouts (90 minutes or more), some of your fluid intake should include a sports drink (like G2, this is my personal favorite) to replace lost sodium and other minerals (electrolytes). The carbohydrates and electrolytes in the sports drink also help you absorb the fluids faster. Always make sure you are replacing your electroylytes. I actually ended up with an inbalance because of this and believe me it is not a fun recovery process.

Don't forget to rehydrate after your run. I have a little trick to getting rehydrated. I weight myself before my run and after my run, while I stand on the scale I drink water until I am back to my before the run race. Any pounds you lose while running is water weight unless you ran off 3,500 calories.

First Official Week of Training Down

Monday marked my first official day of Training for the Nike Women's Marathon. I actually had a really good week of training.

I love the mix up of running and Nike Training Club. I am so glad I get to train with Nike Training Club. This is going to help me keep my muscles lean and strong so I can push through those last miles.

I had a really tough run on Friday. Friday morning marked the first day of the Calgary Stampede, the greatest out door show on earth. I was downtown at 6am on Friday. I finally left downtown to come home around 1pm and I was beat. My boyfriend and I took a nap and than we saw Spiderman. Around 6pm I thought it was a good time to go for a run. I was WRONG it was still around 28 degrees Celsius and I was already feel a little dehydrated. I pushed through and had an amazing run in regards to pace.

Saturday I woke up at 6am and headed out to the trail. I wanted to get my run done early because they were calling for a 30 degree day. I live in such high elevation that to have 30 degree days it is very uncommonf or us. When it gets 20 around here we consider it hot. 30 is not something I am used to running in. I was out the door at 6:45am and the tempy was already registering 20 degrees.

For my longer 6 mile run I decided to chose a more hilly route. It was constant up and down all the way out and all the way back in. I think I am going to run this route more often because it will help me better prepare for what I will be doing in San Fran.

We have another hot week ahead of us so I am having to get my runs in early rather than later. Getting a morning workout in always makes for a better day anyways.

Happy Running.

Let the Journey Begin

Yesterday, July 2, marked my first official day of training. I had trouble sleeping the night before. I had butterflies in my stomache and was so nervous to run the next day. I kind of laughed at myself because the marathon date isn't even here yet, but maybe I can get all the nervous out before October 14th gets here.

Lucky for me yesterday was a holiday. I slept in until around 8am, got up at was out on the trail for 10am. I had a really good run. I ran 4 miles in 31:54 with an average time of 7'57"/mile. I was disappointed with my mile splits. I'm really aiming for all my miles to be under 8'00"/mile and two of them were above this. I guess I need to push myself a little harder. Overall I had a great run.

After my run I did the Shawn Johnson stretch. I took my shoes off and put my foot on the ground and recognized a pain that I never wanted to feel again. My planter fascitis is coming back again. This is totally my fault because I haven't been stretching out enough and I have not been rolling out my foot. I guess this is my body reminding me that doing these simple acts that take 15 minutes are so important to staying healthy and strong. I spent most of yesterday resting my foot and rolling it out. There was minimal pain this morning, but I brought my lacross ball with me to work to make sure I roll it out after NTC today.

I have made myself a promise that after all my runs I will stretch with Shawn Johnson and a couple nights a week I will do yoga with Leah Kim along with going to a yoga studio. I think this will benefit me and help me be a stronger and better runner. I actually talked with Leah about Bikram and she gave me some really good thoughts on this. I think until I am finished training for my marathon I am going to hold off on Bikram and do another type of yoga.

What type of yoga do you practice?

I am looking forward to my first full week of training.