Wednesday, May 03, 2006

New discovery that has been right under my nose for years!


Lately my highlight has been new scenery. I have spent time planning out new routes and it rocks.

Another thing I am working on (after my great 10 mile trail run that felt short) is running on more forgiving surfaces. I have been plagued with recurring hip and knee pain which has (knock, knock) been on the downlow lately. And this week I have started ramping up some of my efforts but I have been running primarily on trails and in the grass. Subsequently my legs have been feeling amazingly good.

On Tuesday I climbed my butt out of bed to get to the pool and splashed through 1500 yards in my 15 yard pool. Yeah, that may not sound like a lot but it is 50 laps which seems like enough turning around for one morning. Not to mention, my less than stellar swimming technique!

Then on my lunch break I journeyed outside for a new loop from my office. As often as possible I ran the grass which worked out pretty well. This loop is definitely longer than my normal one and since when were these roads so hilly, I kept thinking. Total ran 4.5 miles on lunch and proceeded to rush off for my quick shower.

Quick walk jog with Matches in the evening. My husband's mom who breeds & shows golden retrievers said he needs to lose some weight. So now I will try to incorporate a mile or two of exercise for him daily as well. On a side note, Matches' mom was having puppies last night which was exciting to see!

Wednesday morning, totally mad at myself for skipping my morning workout as I was tired. I just feel sluggish all morning when I skip my early workouts. Lunch time run I decided to do the same course in reverse, thinking this way might feel like less uphill. No such luck. This direction felt much more tiring. However as I expended a ton of energy trying to get up what seemed like the never ending hill, something caught my eye.

Is that a track right there? Must go run over there and see if my eyes are tricking me. So I cross the four lane road and inspect. Holy crap, 6 years working in the same office location and all this time I have trained outside and never noticed this track less than a mile away. Well I suppose I always went the opposite direction, but still. This is awesome. Now I can incorporate some track work into my lunch time training...SWEET! So yeah, pretty excited about my new discovery.

Tonight I have a long biking session on the itinerary and my mile or two with Matches. I am attempting to spoil him a bit at the moment since he is getting a few less pats at the moment with little Zipo getting used to things.

5 comments:

Trisaratops said...

YAY! Track workouts are FUN! Or at least I think so. Ya gotta love instant gratification.

Papa Louie said...

It is cool to explore and find new routes and even a track. You may want to check out www.farvoriterun.com. You can map your runs and switch to satellite view and find hindden gems like a track.

Mojo said...

Hey, nice track! It's really cool when you find something that's always been there.

I'm sure Matches loves his runs with you. Is he bent out of shape about the new arrival, Zippo? I bet his alone time jogs with you make him feel better!

Janet Edwards said...

Well the track is not is as pictured and not quite that nice, but heck it will certainly work!!

Yes, my little Matches is all bent out of shape about Zippo. He just keeps pacing around in circles, panting so hard, and trying to get my attention by chasing his tail. It will take some time. Unfortunately with our schedules we have been away from home a lot, so they have not spent much time together (as for now they are apart during the day).

qcmier said...

I love track workouts....