Yesterday, it was a very cool morning, and I was able to run further than I ever have, which is a very good thing, since I've signed up for a 5K run next May during the Illinois Marathon. I know it's 9-months away, but I also committed to running it in less than 20 minutes. I thought that was a conservative projection, but after doing some research (why-oh-why did I do research after I made the commitment?) 20 minutes or less is what more experienced runners run. So now I'm in a bit of a, "I don't want to be embarrassed" panic about meeting my announced time estimate.Today is another very beautiful morning, so I'm off again to run - I know I said yesterday I would hike today, but remember the panic? - it's still rumbling around in my stomach, so this morning I will run, and this afternoon I will hike.
Nancy, when are we going to make our climb? We've agreed to sometime next summer, but we haven't discussed an actual date. I was thinking about late July or early August. What are your thoughts? If we set a tentative date, I found a countdown gadget I can add to the bottom of the blog that will track the number of days until the climb...kind of like those goofy millennium clocks everyone got for Christmas in 1998.
Also, followers and friends, we haven't heard from you...Perhaps you could recommend some physical challenges that we could try to meet in preparation for the climb, or you could suggest some training ideas. (Ron and Nancy, you've both run "K's" a million times; tell me what to expect on race day and how I should prepare.) We'd love all of your ideas and comments (as long as they are nice:-)!
I took a stopwatch along this morning and ran for exactly 20 minutes. I still need to drive the route to see exactly how far I ran, but I think I only ran a little over 1 1/2 miles, which means I have some major work to do. So, here's what I'm thinking…I have approximately 35 weeks until the race; if I shave 1/2 minute off my time each week, I should be able to make a respectable showing…Ron/Nancy, is that possible for an old girl like me?
ReplyDeleteThe final calculation on the distance in 20 minutes is 1.7 miles...I have my work cut out for me!
ReplyDeleteYou'd better believe it's possible Lori!!! The human body is an amazing machine!
ReplyDeleteI am reminded of the young man, perhaps much like the personal trainer you interviewed yesterday Lori. He was running a race and quite easily ran past a very old man, at the beginning of the race. He felt sorry for the old fella, but nonetheless, left him in his dust.
Towards the end of the race, the old man overtook the young fellow and beat him to the finish line.
Once he slightly recovered, the younger fellow decided he simply had to talk to the old fellow. He went up to him and ask what his secret was for pouring it on at the end like that.
The older fellow said quite simply, "Oh, today was a very bad day for me! I had way too much to drink last night! I would have normally not let you pass me to begin with!"
So you see, the young fellow wasn't only beat by an old man. He was beat by an old man with a severe hang over!!
That is a true story Lori. Read it in a runner's magazine! Trust me...anything is possible!