Five + some.

Last Thursday I went out to Fort Pulaski with my friend Michelle, to take some pictures and learn how to use my new camera.  There are tons of great trails out there and lots of stuff to take pictures of.  We decided on a camera lesson before the run...but unfortunately we arrived a bit late and only had about an hour to get some pictures.  They close the gate to the island/park every night, and we did have to do a short sprint to make sure we got back to the car and off the island in time!

The trail we were on was 8 miles, I think, but we only had to go a little over a mile to get to the lighthouse. The trails were excellent and I will definitely be back to do some long runs out there!



Awesome trail that leads you to this wonderful sight...



After we made it off Cockspur Island, we popped up the road a bit to Rails to Trails and got in a 5 mile tempo run.  It was a little rough with the gale force winds that were assaulting us, but it was still a great day!  Here's the lovely sunset on Bull River, just as we got back to the jeep...

Fab 5.

Yesterday was absolutely gorgeous; sunny, mid 70s and breezy (keeping the sand gnats at bay). I managed to grab some great shots and had a lot of fun adding some textures to the pictures in Photoshop Elements (I learned how from Kim Klassen's Skinny-Mini eCourse).

So here they are:



Heron at mile 1.1, hanging out in the lagoon.




I love this huge, lonely live oak...Mile 3.2.




Caught this cardinal singing up a storm at mile 3.6.




Sign at mile 3.8...Since my neighborhood is half unincorporated and half within the city limits, there are a few of these about.

I'm back, kinda...

As with many things in my life, I go through these super intense phases where I want to do something EVERYDAY and ALLTHETIME!!! Then I miss one day...then another, until I feel so bad about it, that I just avoid the whole thing.  So long story short, my training fell completely off track.  I got so burnt out trying to keep up with all the intense workouts, that I dreaded the next day's workout.

I love running..the sweating, the exhaustion and the freedom of a clear mind.  I don't love the constraints of a training schedule.  This month started the marathon season for my team, a few of them are very frustrated by injuries and their inability to get in all the scheduled mileage.  I told them not to worry, that it was just causing them additional pressure and stress could be hindering their healing.  This is one of those moments where I stopped and decided to follow the advice that I was giving to my trainees.

I was telling them not to stress over a missed run, not to push too hard and to follow the sensible training plan I was giving them.  And I realized, I never take my own advice. I am always all or nothing; crafting training plans for myself where I look ahead with a sinking feeling in my stomach, dreading every new week and when I fail to complete a workout or two I am ready to give up.  So that is why I am back, just for the love of running and MODERATION.

Recently I started a Project 365, where I take a picture everyday.  On Saturday long runs (or run/walks, as the case may be) I have been bringing my camera to get my picture of the day.  I figured taking this blog in a different direction, away from the stats and distance and onto the beauty that I get to be a part of on every run would be a lot more fun and enjoyable...I mean do you really care what my max heart rate was on my last workout? Wouldn't you rather see pretty pictures of where I get to run?

Here is the first shot:

This is one of my favorite parts of my regular route.  I love everything about it; the trees, the shade and the slight downhill curve.

Lots of catching up.

I ended up rearranging my schedule a bit this week and missed my Insanity Cardio Recovery day, but I am not too concerned about it :P


Friday and Saturday: Off

Sunday: Watermelon Crawl!
8am - 8 mi group run to celebrate 4th of July.
Weather - Great! Sunny, upper 70s at the start low 80s at the finish.
Shoe - New pair of Ghost 2's.
Recovery/Supplements - WATERMELON! and 12 oz Accelerade.

Monday:
11am - Insanity Cardio Power and Resistance, Approx 40 min (incl 5 min HR recovery) starting HR (bpm) 64, peak 193 (!), avg 151, 517 cal.
Shoe - Infiniti 2
Recovery/Supplements - 12oz Accelerade, did additional calf stretching.

Of note - Whew...I definitely brought it yesterday!  The traveling push ups still kick my ass, but I am getting better.  My knees are a little sore today, I was killing the power jumps, so it makes sense.  I am finally starting to feel stronger and more powerful!

Today:
9:30am - 3 mi with the boyfriend, 3:1 intervals.
Weather - Partly sunny, 84*, 74% humidity.
Shoe - Wave Rider 12.

Of note - Ended up cutting this run short, but it was still good.  Wore ourselves out a bit early sprinting and trying to only have one footfall per sidewalk square...it got really hard in the neighborhoods that have rectangles :P

2 for 1.

Yesterday:
10 am - INSANITY Plyometric Cardio Circuit, approx. 40 min, starting HR 63, peak 178, avg 147, 500 cal.  Again my stupid upper body strength is killing me, but hopefully I'll get better soon!
Shoe - Infinti 2
Recovery/Supplements - 12 oz Accelerade

Today:
9:30am - 4.5 mi with boyfriend, .3 mi cool down...no watch, no HRM...very nice!
Weather - Overcast, drizzly, approx 79 degrees...awesome!
Shoe - Wave Rider 13
Recovery/Supplements - 12 oz Accelerade

Of note - Today was one of the best running days you'll get in SE GA in the summer, the weather was so perfect.  My legs felt great and full of energy, my stomach was a little wobbly but I woke up not feeling so great and didn't give myself a full hour to digest breakfast.  It was still a great run in spite of that!

It's the 5-0!

10:15 am - 4 mi, 9 min pace.
Weather -  82*, 79% humidity, partly cloudy.
Shoe - Ghost 2

Of note - only one lonely little fiddler crab scuttling on the road today, thankfully.  SCMP had some kind of sting going on today, there were cops driving around on every road I turned down and one was parked a little off the road in the trees down by the marshes.  Luckily I didn't encounter any problems, and I felt a little safer with all the cops out in areas that are usually pretty desolate.

Luckily (knock on wood!) my AC seems to be doing ok.  It was still acting up when I went to bed, but by morning it was working fine.  I was definitely not up for another sweaty, frustrating day!

A case of the Mondays.

9:30am - INSANITY Pure Cardio, approx 40 min, starting HR 68, peak, 177, avg 147, 500 cal.
Shoes - Infiniti 2
Recovery/Supplements - 20oz Cytomax, Flex-a-min, vit-pack.

Of note - I probably could've gotten a higher calorie burn, but the level 2 drills and push-up jacks about killed me...so I ended up mostly sprawled on the floor during those exercises.  Hopefully this will whip my upper body back into shape. 

I felt really great this morning after I was finished, then right after I got out of the shower the AC decided to stop working.  So I spent the rest of the morning and a good part of the afternoon troubleshooting it...finally got it working again, woohoo! AND THEN...the thermostat decided to stop working.  Good thing I already made a cold greek quinoa salad for dinner and maybe I'll get it fixed (again) before bedtime (please!) if not I am calling the HVAC place first thing in the morning.