Being Normal

It's weird being normal. Having to work 8 to 4 or 9 to 5. I'm not used to it, but suddenly I'm spending my days in a small office without windows, my tools being a computer and a printer. I'm not a morning person. I'm an evening person. Having to get up at 6 or 7 (am?? pm?? EARLY in the MORNING...) rubs me the wrong way. Still, it's kind of nice, because I get SO much more done each day. Like running. Week 5 - Wednesday I got home from work, ate dinner, chilled out a couple of hours; and then I ran. I grabbed the (stupid) Dog, and we ran the same route as last week. It felt much better this time, but I still wasted much time waiting for the Dog to pee and poop and all that jazz. I tried pausing the Polar, but either I forgot to pause it, or I forgot to start it again. The route is approximately 6.2 km. I ran with the footpod, but that one is seriously funky. My stride is shorter than it thinks. Oh well. What the Polar say about yesterday is: 4.96 km - Average pace. 7.6 min/km (sloooow, I know). Max pace:10.7 min/km (I wish my average pace was 10.7....) Yesterday's conclusion: My shin splints definitely don't like asphalt. And the Dog is still stupid. The Dog, wondering if stopping means he can pee onthe lamppost. It doesn't. I also wanted to run today, because my day at work was super frustrating. But I felt sorry for the Dog, having been home alone all day (Boyfriend also working overtime today), so we ended up going for a long walk on Bygdøy. That turned out to be a smart decision, as it was icy and slippery and rrrrreally muddy. We found a bust of king Karl Johan. He was guarded by the the saddest-looking lion I have ever seen. He looked even sadder than Aslan did when he went to be killed on the stone table by the White Which. I tried to comfort it, but it was like talking to a...stone. I then talked to the Dog, but all he wanted was for me to throw his stick. So we walked on. The Dog has to wear a noseband, because he pulls too much. Stupid Dog. This is what normally happens when we stop while walking; he tries to take it off:
Somtimes it works. Sometimes.

A Stupid Dog and Onion Soup

Monday this week we flew back from Gran Canaria. A run-free week with tons of delicious food and wine. Good thing we didn't lie on the beach all week, but rather went scuba diving and horseback riding and dolphin scouting. I collapsed most of the days after dinner, about 9.30 (am/pm-whatever). But alas, no running. When packing for this trip, I fetched my running gear, and put it on top in the suitcase. Then I figured I'd better be honest with myself: I would never run, and it was better to leave everything related to running at home. So I left it, and it ended up being a good idea.An Eagle Ray, photo taken by Martin Rogan. I spotted it, though. Go me! Isn't it cute like a button? I wanted to take it home with me. I got the boyfriend up on a horse, for the first time in his life. It has been ages and ages since the last time I rode, but it 's like riding a bike - you never forget it completely. Me and the terribly grumpy Franscesca. She didn't like the horse in front of her. She didn't like the horse behind her. And she didn't like me. Fun!

Cuttlefish, photo taken by Martin Rogan.

Week 4 (oops, no running week 3) - Thursday I was feeling a little peaky Tuesday and Wednesday, so I didn't feel much like running after work these days. Thursday was my day off before the night shift weekend, so I had no excuse. It was actually my first outdoor run in 2011. There is too much snow and ice still, but today was sunny and warm and beautiful, and the sidewalks were mostly bare. I dressed myself and the dog, and off we went. The route I had planned is approximately 6.2 km, and goes from home to work, where I planned to join Martin and drive home. It. Was. Tough. Ok, it's been over a week since last run. And work; in Nydalen, is uphill from home. Enough excuses. I suck. That's a fact, but a fact I plan to change. This is why I run, why I have this blog. The dog was a good running companion. Last year... Today, he was impossible. My next dog is going to be a bitch, because it's hopeless to run with a male. He stopped every five meters to pee on trees, on bushes, on signs, on everything. Last year, he knew the drill. When we run, we do not stop to pee more than three times. When we walk, I stop whenever he wants to stop. Stoopid dog! I will not bother with finding and writing down the time spent, because I walked some, and the dog stopped me all the time. Bah. It was slow, though. As always. Tonight, the happy family (=us) is making onion soup. Yummy. Here's a picture of me gently stirring the onions: Why yes, that IS a diving mask. Onions make me cry. Diving mask (or ski goggles) erases that problem. And it was A LOT of onions: (This is not a food blog, but I like food, so I will sometimes sneak in pictures of food. I can't help it, I guess.:))

Let's Go Autobots!

This week I jumped ship again. I'm sorry, Hal Higdon, but it was too much too fast. I need to take it slower because of my shin splits, and because of my lack of motivation. I will use Hal as a starting point, but take it easier, run shorter and not so often. Running Tuesday, Wednesday AND Thursday will probably kill me (I'm not melodramatic at all... No, really...), so I will either run Monday, Wednesday, Thursday/Friday and Saturday/Sunday, depending on night shift or not. This means that if I run Thursday, I can also run Saturday etc. And with my recent work schedule I can take a "long" run Wednesday, and then rest Thursday.

Week 2 - Tuesday

I rested Monday, so Tuesday came bright and shiny, and I was ready for yet another 5 km. Or so I thought. I really don't know what happened, but I started at a sloooow pace, then decided after 2 km that I would only run 3 km (my body felt so very heavy, and I was really lazy), so I sped up a bit. I wish I'd recorded laps, bit I didn't.

3 km - 20.49 min


Wednesday, I decided to rest again. I baked an apple cake, then ate half of it. Yummy yummy in my tummy...

Week 2 - Thursday

Thursday I was quite a bit more motivated. I started slow, then after 1 km I sped up, to see how long I could keep a 10 km/h-pace. It turned out that I could hold that pretty long, and here I've been, shuffling my feet at 8 km/h because I thought it was the fastest I could go! So I ran 3 km at 10, then turned it up to 11 km/h for the last km. It went well, thanks to the Transformer score. My shin split on the right leg kept bothering me the entire run, though. Uh-oh.

5 km - 30.44.min - New personal record, woot! (...)

And today I took some lap times.
Lap 1 - first 2 km - 13.27
Lap 2 - next 2 km - 12.02
Lap 3 - last km - 5.13

Fun! I should do this more, but when I'm on the treadmill, my head seems to be elsewhere. Speaking of which, here is my old friend:


And here is me, looking VERY motivated (note: I hate taking pictures of myself in the mirror.)

Aaand after (listening to my autobots):




Then I went to make sushi with my girlfriends. Lovely evening.

I don't think there will be much running this weekend. Friday I work a night shift, Saturday I'm hosting a birthday party for a friend, Sunday I'm probably hung-over. Monday I'm going to Gran Canaria. Can't wait!

Fail...

Saturday, I went to the basement for this week's long run. I tried, and I failed spectacularly. I was supposed to run 6 miles, translated to 9.6 km. I was really full of myself, boasting about it to the boyfriend. Guess the lesson is learned, then. After 1.5 km my legs loosened up, and I felt like it really was happening. Then I ran another 1.5 km, and I hit a wall. "That's a tad bit early to hit the wall", you might think. It's what I thought. So I pushed through. The meters klicked by sooo slowly, and I had take breaks, and I had to walk. At 5.7 km I realised that it was NOT happening. But I can be stubborn, so I said to myself: 7 km! You can do 7 km! At 6 km my body shut down. I considered laying down on the treadmill, but figured it would be much more comfortable at the gym mats.

Week 1 - Saturday (a.k.a. Long Run Day)

Slowest. Pace. EVER: 6 km in 45 minutes. So embarrassing.

But now I see the point of taking it slow, and listening to my body.

So, I nibbled on my protein bar, and sulked in the shower. And then I spent what felt like the rest of the day trying to get home. Seriously? Thanks to the World Championship in cross-country skiing, the metro and buses and trams were all retarded. I got home just in time for the preparty.

Which led to this:It was a fun night, though. Got to bed at 6 in the morning, which is really late for me. Good thing Sunday and Monday are resting days.

No Pain, No Gain?

Week 1 - Thursday

Yesterday was not so much fun, and today was not better. Still, after 1.5 km I noticed that my legs felt a little lighter (the first mile or so my legs felt heavy and I just wanted to quit), and I sped up. Not so smart. When I had run 2.8 km I realised that all I wanted was to end the run at 3 km, like I used to do before. Oh, the temptation. I came up with excuses, such as "I did run Tuesday and Wednesday" and "I AM gonna run 10 km on Saturday, so I can go a little easier today". But before I even realised it, I had run past 3 km, and figured I should just continue. You know, to see how far I could go before I REALLY wanted to quit. Suddenly I had just 900 m to go, and then I couldn't quit. It's as easy as that. But it makes it obvious that Saturday, with my first ever 10 km, won't be much fun. It will, however, be much pain. No pain, no gain? Eeeeeh...


5 km - 32.10 min

I'm still painfully slow.
And I will be for some time, I think. I'd rather take it slooow, than to be hasty and get injured.

My faboulous shoes: Asics Gel-Kayano 17. I love them, nuff said.

Compression socks for dummies. But it's all good, because I don't know the difference between left and right most of the
time.

Before-picture. I'm sorry it's so bad, but I could hear someone coming, and thought it would be awkward if I stood there, posing like an idiot in front of the mirror. And I was right, I felt so incredibly stupid after the run, when I posed to take the after-picture. There is no real purpose for these pictures, other than to prove that I work my butt off. I am so red and sweaty in the second picture.. Oh well, it's on the internet forever, now.

No running tomorrow, yay! Or maybe I'll miss it? Looong run coming up on Saturday, so I think I'll survive.

Some Days I Soar...

This Monday I started on Hal Higdon's Marathon Training Guide . Frankly, it's scaring the shit out of me. Especially since I have now (only) completed three of seven days in the first week. Monday was easy. It was a day of resting, easy-peasy. Come on, I thought, give me a challenge. The challenge came Tuesday.

Week 1 - Tuesday

Run 3 miles, it said. Since I'm used to the metric system, I looked forward to an easy distance. I used to run 3 km a year ago, ever so slowly running my way up to 5 km. I was so proud of myself back in the days. Then I got a boyfriend, and we both fell into the trap. We've been more or less couch potatoes since last April. As it dawned on me that 3 miles is actually 4.8 km (give or take a few meter), I got a little less enthusiastic.

5 km - 32.56 min.

I know, it's still not fast. But I really, REALLY don't want any injuries. I took the time to strech 20 minutes afterwards. I know it's probably only a placebo effect, but Wednesday came without any soreness or stiffness, and I give the credit to the stretching.

Week 1 - Wednesday

Started out fresh and fine. Tuesday, my legs felt awesome. Wednesday, not so much. But I remembered some of Susan's posts about lacking motivation and don't feeling like running, and I kicked my own butt and went to my favourite basement to get some miles under my belt.

5 km - 31 (?) min.

I think that is correct. I run with my Polar RS200, but this time I had a few stops (drinking water, blowing my nose, dropping my iPhone on the floor), and I only stopped the treadmill. The time isn't really what matters. What does matter is that I run the miles Hal Higdon tells me to run. But at least I ran 1-2 min faster than Tuesday. There's nothing like some dragons and ikrans to make me soar...

That's correct, I listened to film scores. How to Train Your Dragon, and Avatar. Feels silly, but I get some kind of a runner's high after 20 minutes, and I can prolong and intensify it by blasting my favourite songs into my (poor) ears. Speaking of music, I really need some tips on what music to listen to. I'm hopefully in for some long runs in the future, so I need some new upbeat music.
I love bragging about my beautiful dog, so here's a picture. It's also showing the reason I run inside for the moment. SNOW. And ice. And cold. Can't wait for spring to come.