Running With the Mouse... and more...

So, I have determined that the "I <3 to run" Facebook page "gets me!" :)

I haven't posted since June 15th, just a short time after we ran our first 5K in Fuquay-Varina... and its not like anything momentous has happened since then, but there have been a couple of highlights. It feels rather strange to not be "training for something," but its also exciting to know that if I miss a day or two of running it doesn't impede my ability to get back out there and pick up where I left off. :)  I'm still amazed when I remember that three months ago I couldn't run for 2 minutes without gasping for air!!

So, June was a crazy month, starting with Run the Quay 5k, which I both directed AND ran! Then there was the Rotary Triathlon (that I did NOT participate in, but did organize) the following weekend. Then we had a baby shower on June 15th for my daughter, complete with houseguests. I still ran all during that time, but sometimes I had to fit the runs in later in the day or adjust the days that I ran.

Then I took Kennedy to Disney for her long-awaited dance training trip. I researched running options while I was on the Walt Disney resort and found out that each resort hotel has their own running trails, and all I had to do was ask the concierge for one when I got there. So, we headed off for 5 days in the heat and storms on June 19th. I got my map upon arrival, found a 2.5 mile loop, and planned to go out the next day to "Run with the Mouse," as I called it.

The first day, we had to be in the park by 8:00 am, which would have required that I run at 5:15 in the morning, and it was pitch dark outside. I wasn't comfortable running in the dark on empty streets in a strange place, so I had to wait until the schedule allowed me to run during daylight hours. So, I did it on Sunday morning before we drove home -- SO GLAD I DID! I can always say "I Ran with the Mouse!" :) It was very cool sticking to a running routine while on the road. I felt like I had checked off another "To Do" item off my running goal list -- to run while on vacation (even though I did that in Myrtle Beach back in May) -- but this time it was at DISNEY!!

When I got home, however, my body simply crashed! I was like the walking dead, and even took a day and a half off from work to try to sleep it off. Although it kind of felt like a cold trying to happen, I think it was just pure exhaustion from everything in June topped off by the trip to Florida. So, needless to say, I didn't run for 10 days! I had good intentions by the end of the first week, but my body just screamed NO! every morning that I wanted to get up and go. When I finally felt good enough to get back out there, I really thought I'd be back to basics after so long ... but I was surprised that I could run my 2.3 miles without stopping to walk! I was excited!!

Today, Mark and I decided to try a new route in our neighborhood. Now that we've conquered "Heartbreak Hill" and do the same route every other day, we thought it would be cool to try another section of the 'hood and see if any of it was less hilly. We ran a 3.3 mile route today (not including our 5-minute warmup walk and 10-minute cool-down walk mileage), and kicked butt on one giant hill (long and steady, but not steep)!! We ran our own 5K this morning, and only stopped once to rest our hamstrings! We are so pumped!! ... and sore!! Having trouble walking around this morning, but I'll take it! On Saturday we will go back to our regular route, but we already have a 4-mile loop staked out from our house to Harris Teeter and back -- maybe next weekend!!