"Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go"
T. S. Eliot

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Flomax

Picked up my first prescription of Flomax. I was diagnosed with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). I don't think the doctor needed an MD to figure it out when I told her I usually get up about five times to the bathroom at night. It scares me to know for how long I will have to take this medicine. I hate the idea of taking a medicine for long periods of times. I read this is a life-long treatment...  sucks!

Friday, October 19, 2012

Pace and running solo or with a group

I am the first one to be surprised of my fast pace during 5K races! Where do I get the speed from? Is it pure adrenaline? Is it motivation to break a PR? I definitely like to follow good runners and see if I can keep my pace with them. Definitely, it must be a mental thing.
 
Last year, I ran 5K races with a pace of about 7:20 MM. I dreamed about running 5K with a 7:00 MM pace. I said, I'd be glad if I could run that fast. Surprisingly, I was I able to accomplish this dream this year!

Here's a list of all the 5K races I ran this year:
Amana Freezer, January 28, 21:31, 6:55 MM
Doc Dash, March 24, 21:25, 6:53 MM
Get Moving for Healthy Kids, August 26, 22:16, 7:10 MM
Run for the Schools, October 14, 21:38: 6:58 MM

The interesting thing is that I can never run as fast when I run solo. If I run easy, my pace would be about 10 MM. When I push myself and purposedly try to run fast, I can get to about 8:00 MM, but not better than that. I can only run 8:30 MM when I push it.

I like to see how runners my age do in the same races I run. They amaze me and leave me open mouthed! How can they be so fast?  what's the secret? Are they better fit than me? How long have they been running? What's their body weight?

I enjoyed my training this Fall.  I was running about four miles each day. I did intervals on Wednesdays, and long distance on Sundays.  I believe in this program.  I will continue this program and hope to keep getting better next year!

Sunday, October 14, 2012

Run for the Schools

Rained all day Saturday. More rain was pronosticated for Sunday too. We prayed and begged Tlaloc for no rain. Surprisingly, the rain stopped a few minutes before the race started. We could not believed Tlaloc heard our prayers. However, organizers cancelled the 10K and half marathon races. We had no choice but to run the 5K. I could not believe they were cancelling the half-marathon.  I always thought runners are tough athletes and they never quit.
Stayed on the side line with Dan. Then, we heard the big sound for the race to start at 9:00 AM. There were some walkers in front of us, but we passed them very fast. Recognized a few runners, but they were just running for kicks and pacing some friends of them. Ran a few meters with them and then decided to follow faster runners. The first mile seemed long. The second one was even longer, and by the third mile I was thankful I was only running 5K! Finished in 21:38 according to my Garmin. No one drop of rain during the 5K.

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Hump Day

Ran on Tuesday and Wednesday, slow and concentrating on running form. Tapering time and getting ready for Run for the Schools Half-Marathon on Sunday. I am looking forward to running this race. It should be fun running with so many people in my city. It will be my second year running this race. I plan to run with Dan B. Unfortunately, my friend Salvador M won't be running this race.
I read yesterday was the last day for registering to vote.  Am I registered?  Is it necessary to register to vote?  This is so confusing. I hope I can remember to stop by the public library and see if I can vote there.

Sunday, October 7, 2012

Bank of America Marathon

I ran nine miles with Jennifer this morning. We ran the South Route from Running Wild. Had some very good conversations. There were almost no runners this morning. Phil Young ran the Bank of America marathon in Chicago with a record time of 2:30:38!  Pretty amazing time! that's a 5:44 MM pace. Tsegaye Kebede from Ethiopia broke the Chicago record in 2 hr 3 min.

Saturday, October 6, 2012

Swim Competition



Assen did his first swim competition. He tried three different 25 yd races.  He did very well in his backstroke. He apparently came in second place. He tried very hard and I felt very proud of him. We saw some of his friends competing too. Weather is changing. Getting colder and colder and leaves are accumulating on the ground.