Posts by khooder

goddess - 11:02 is not bad at all! good job. nice work with the water bottle! hee hee.

P90X...it is a pretty intense workout regimen. it requires quite a bit of stamina. it is an hour workout 6 days a week. you alternate between weight training for different muscle groups and cardio training. right now we do Mon: chest/back/abs; tue: plyometrics; wed:shoulders/arms/abs; thur: yoga; friday:legs/abs; saturday: kempo and then after 3 weeks it changes. you never really get used to any one workout. it is definitely one of those "miracle" workout videos that promises the world in 20 minutes. you work hard. but i think that is the ticket. in 2 weeks i have noticed a difference. my arms, back, claves, abs have a little more definition. i can also do a few more push ups than i could 2 weeks ago. i think it helps that i am still running. but i really like it so far. however, yesterday i did not feel like doing it at all. i was very tired but my fiance pushed me to do it, and i felt great afterward. i am not looking to lose too much more weight. maybe 5-10 lbs max. i want to build more lean muscle to get more definition and get stronger so i will hopefully be less prone to injury while running. i am looking forward to see what the outcome is after 90 days.

manta - 38lbs! that is awesome. what a bummer that you have to move. i hope you dont have to go too far from the water. that would be a bummer for your training. i know what you mean about having areas where it is hard to lose weight. i hold a lot in my mid section. running seems to be the only thing that gives me results. but it is the last place where i notice a difference. i am having a hard time losing my last 10lbs. hopefully the added workouts will help me get there. strength training should help you tighten up your arms! good luck finding a new place.

good running everyone!

mkculs - so sorry! injuries are no fun. they are just frustrating and prevent you from running. i hope you heal quickly!! what kind of weight training do you do to strenghten that part of your legs?

goddess - great job! keep it up!

manta - 6.5 - that is great!! i can't get more than 6 miles in during my morning runs. i guess i need to get faster!! and probably get up a little earlier- hee, hee. morning runs dont seem to be as fun for your little girl. it looks like your hubby can handle it once in a while though. what do you do that you work so late? hope you get to rest up.

i ran at the gym yesterday for 3 miles followed up by a few squats. then i went home and did day 9 of P90X. i sure felt it this morning. i ran 4.7 miles today and my upper body was pretty sore. i will be going to the gym to work on my speed and then at home, P90X - day 10. lets hope i make it! my hope is that after the first month i will have adjusted a bit and i wont be as drained at the end of the day. i hope that running while i am tired will trian me to push harder and have better endurance.

cawilder- my push ups are on my knees also. especially after like the 5th or 6th set. planks are great too. 3 mins is a long time!

mkculs- it sounds like you have a trainer that knows their stuff. that is always good. i am glad you got to treat yourself. that is fun! i love food and beer so the thought of having that will get me get through my long run tomorrow. we are going out tomorrow night for a friend's birthday and i dont plan on holding back. i think that a 13 miler and 1hr of yoga (my p90x workout) should be enough to let me splurge.

it sounds like you have a very full plate! that is amazing!! hopefully you can fit running in at least when you need to destress and some "me" time. good luck!

cfeltontufty - happy anniversary!! you definitely have to celebrate! congrats! how many years? the workout is pretty intense. i was a bit concerned about injury also at first, but like you said, everyday is something different, so i actually only workout the same muscle group once or twice a week. i hope i see results! this is a lot of work. we took before pics last night so it will be interesting to see any changes at the end of 90 days. if anything at least i hope it helps my training.

that is good that you have your kclas linked to your mileage. did you figure out how much you burn per mile? you definitely got a good workout with those head winds...great training!!

happy friday everyone!

mkculs - my hat off to you. i loathe intervals. my "interval" trainings consist of me jsut running on the treadmill and increasing my speed every .5 mile or so until about the last 4 mins. of my workout where i increasre the speed every .5 mins. but i need to start interval training becuase i know that is the best way to improve my speed. an easy stroll will be a nice change for you.

mmmm...dessert! that sounds awesome. Enjoy! i hope your training session goes well tomorrow.

cawilder - sorry about your vacay. i hope that your husband is recovering well. nice time on your 5.5 mi. though! Roads are easier to run on than other surfaces, that is for sure....it is just harder on your joints though.

i could not get up early today, so i ran 5 miles at the gym. it was a bit tough though. my fiance and i started the P90X workout (not sure if any of you have heard of it) to help us get in shape for our wedding. I am also replacing my regular strength ttraining with this as a supplement to my running. it is a pretty intense program though. it is an hour a day, everyday, for 90 days, alternating between upper body strenght training, lower body strength, yoga and ab work. yesterday we did upper body. i had never heard of so many different types of push ups...let alone had the capacity to perform them. needless to say, my shoulders are quite sore today. i had to keep shaking my arms out while i was running to keep them from stiffening up. we'll see what workout we have in store tonight when i get home!

Hi!

goddess - welcome! i hope you had a good run today.

manta - that is so funny! it is usually like 95 degrees outside in the summer here, but on weekdays i dress for work like it is December. It is always freezing on my floor. i grew up in Cali so the winters were never that cold. Here, it can get below freezing, so it makes running tough.

that is great that you had a good long run and were able to keep going.

running in the afternoons has been tough for me lately also. I would rather just hang out at home with my boys! Speaking of, i wont be running this afternoon because it is my baby Behr's birthday! we are having a doggie cake for him. He is the one in my avatar. He is 3!! There were some intense thunderstorms this morning so i did not get my morning run in. although i love running in the rain, thunderstorms in TX, are a different story. So i will have to run at the gym during lunch. hopefully i can run 5 miles like yesterday, or 3 miles and a bit of weights.

mkculs - i love that you tuck your gear under your shirt! that is hilarious!! i would have never thought of that. i usually just wear a thermal over a tank top that i lose once i get warm and then just tuck in in the back of my shorts. a thermal doesn't provide much warmth though. in winter those first few miles are tough.

good morning! it's friday!!!

cfeltontufy - i have the 305 also. i do love it! i guess that is true though. if you combine everything into it, it should be pretty accurate. It just seems amazing that i am burning that many calories! you may have mentioned this already (my brain is not fully functioning yet this morning), so i am sorry if you have...what race are you running?

manta - that sounds like a great run. how are you able to make it out when it is so cold? i am a baby when it comes to cold weather also. im like a lizard. i like warm weather. it will start to get cold here in early October; which is good because it will make running a bit easier, but those first few minutes while you are warming up are killer!

i love garmin. it has been rated one of the best GPS running watches that you can find. there are newer models than the 305 (the model that cfeltontufty and i have) it comes with a HR monitor and it has GPS. Which is awesome!! it is a little bigger than its newer counterparts, but i dont think the size is intrusive at all. it gives you calories burned, pace, total minutes, mileage, and you can set up the screens to fit in the stats that you want to monitor as you run. you can set up lap times, you can set a min and max speed so if you go over/under it beeps at you...you can create a training partner so you can train against your last run. it's nuts all the stuff it can do. you can connect it to your CPU and keep a log, trails. and the watch itself keeps a history of your runs. i saw it on Amazon.com for about $189.00 w/ HR monitor. The 405 runs about $350 w/ the monitor. i would check them out and do a bit of research online for pricing. i am a fan of Garmin.

good luck on Sunday! i am aiming for 12 miles this weekend too. i ran this morning, but only ran 3.3 miles. i had to get ready a bit earlier for work today; which took away about half hour from my running time. I'm bummed. I am going out tonight, so I won't be going to they gym today at lunch or running after work. i better be ready for my long run since i am getting all this rest! have a great weekend!

sordino - I see that you have the same weather i do, being in Baton Rouge. i also hate carrying around water bottles. They are a huge pain. i also like to have my hands free so i can concentrate on running. Because of that, I have become accustomed to not really needing too much water during my runs (i hydrate before and after) but i really feel dehydrated during the summer months. I have heard that 20 miles is a good number to aim for as far as long runs and that adrenaline will carry you the rest of the way. i like the idea of doing it more than once though so I can get used to it. I will have to work towards that. YES! Body Glide is the best invention ever!!! i love that stuff!! i will definitely have to try eating during my runs as i increase my mileage. Thanks for all the good info!!

mkculs - i like that idea about running your first day in a new city. It totally is a great way to check out your new surrounding. i will have to try that next time im in a new place. i know So Cal is not for everyone, especially LA! I grew up in LA and i just miss it (friends and family mostly).

hi tamarita!! welcome! it is always great to see more runners. the most important thing is to enjoy it. If you love it, it will get to a point where you dont want to miss a day. some days it is tough to get out there, but once you start running, it is so therapeutic that you won't regeret having gone out there. it is pretty much an individual sport, so you definitely get plenty of "me" time which is great; especially in the mornings.

but like manta said...good shoes are important. for your first pair i would try going to a running store because they can recommend the best shoe for your foot and running style (how you plant your foot on the ground) to give you the most support and comfort. and signing up for races is great! it keeps you on track for a goal. also dont get discouraged. There will be bad days. Days when your body hurts or you cant run as fast as the day before. it happens to evryone. but the feeling of accomplishment afterwards, just surpasses all the bad stuff completely. two websites that i love: runnersworld.com is great for pretty much anything you want to know about running. and halhigdon.com has great training guides for all kinds of distances. good luck! keep us posted!

i went running this morning and despite how ridiculously humid it was, we had a good run. I wanted to get 5 miles in, but settled for 4.6mi. because we were running low on time (i got up a little late) and the boys were pretty much done. all in all, it went well and as usual, i felt great and so happy that i went. we'll see how tomorrow goes!

i didnt run this morning (sad face for me). i went out to play last night and got home pretty late. i could not get up this morning. i will try and make up for it this afternoon.

manta, that is great! i think the fact that you can even get runs in, let alone sign up for races with your schedule is a feat in itself!! isn't it addicitng? my fiance doesn't understand when i tell him what a big rush it is...he just thinks i am crazy.

cfeltontufty - That is so true! training in tougher weather conditions is a good idea as it will prepare you for the unexpected, or make race day a bit easier. i can't wait to run my first one!!

leslee - i sprained my ankle and that is the tendon that i injured. i stretched it two ways.

1- while sitting in a chair or couch, extend your leg out (with the ankle you are trying to strech), and write out the alphabet in the air. if it feels tight, it will help your range of motion.

2 - get like a face towell, and wrap it around your toes so that you can hold on to the ends.  extend your leg out and pull the ends to the right side,  then push your foot against the towel to the left and hold for a few seconds. then alternate. you can also pull the towell ends toward you and then push your foot away form you. and vice versa. you will need someone to hold it for you when you are pushing your foot toward you, since the towell will need to be pulled in the opposite direction. i hope this helps!

hi duzzie - sorry mine is long winded too!

running is great! just like the new balance commercials, it truly is a love/hate relationship. mostly love though. it can become very addictive. i have been running for a few years now and there is nothing that keeps me in better shape, gives me energy or is more therapeutic than running.

1- like ixxmmmxxi said, the longer you run and the more often you run, the faster you will become because your body will become used to running for longer periods of time. however, if you want to tackle speed training head on, treadmills are great (it is about the only thing that they are good for). sorry i dont like treadmills very much. interval training (most treadmills have settings for this kind of program) where you warm up for about 5 mins, then run at a faster pace (faster than you are used to) for about 1 min, then run/jog at a slower pace for like 2 mins to recoverand repeat as many times as you can...maybe start out with like 5 reps and then work your way up. HILL training is also great on treadmills because it is a harder workout if you run on an incline, but it will make running outside, easier. you can also set the program for this on the treadmill to give you variation of inclines so it is not as boring as one steady incline for your entire run.

2 - that pain is probably not good. you might want to stretch that out, but it might also be due to overexertion. sometimes if you run faster than what your body can handle, you sacrifice form, and that can lead to some pain in certain areas (at least for me) I would try stretching it out very well and maybe running a bit slower until the pain is gone. 3 - start out running with a distance and time that you are comfortable. try to set total weekly goals (maybe 15-20 miles a week) i am not sure how much you are running per week right now...and then break it up by day. you can also try to set up one of your runs on the weekend and run a little bit longer than your weekday runs. Ie, if you run 5 times a week, run 4 days during the week and then 1 day on Sat or Sun. i like to have a rest day before my long run so that my body is ready and not tired from my last run. long runs help your short runs feel easier, they build endurance, and eventually help you get faster.  you longer runs should be at a slightly slower pace than your other runs, which is ok, becauase you are working on distance.

4 - i would work on endurance first. speed comes along with it. ie, if you can't run 3 miles, you can't run 3 miles fast. youconstantly want to push yourself, but not to the point of injury. running on treadmills is ok, but running outside is a completely different animal. you might notice that you can't run as fast outside as on the treadmill. i would recommend running outside more often. i try to keep my treadmill workouts to no more than 20% of my weekly total. Plus there is fresh air, and so much stimulus that the gym doesnt offer.

5 - food...mmmm....yes it is a good idea to eat before and after a run (especially a long run). you want to have fuel to burn. your body wont perform at 100% if it has no fuel. if you run in the mornings during the week and dont run too long, you could probably do it on an empty stomach and that burns more fat. But you definitely want to eat something when you start doing long runs (and long runs i dont mean 10 miles - it could be 5mi) just whatever you set your long run to be on your wekend day. your body will be pushing itself a bit more, so you wnat that extra energy. you can also eat about an hour before (somehting small) like a banana. some form of carb so that you have some energy...not too big. you also dont want stomach pains. after your run, you want to drink plenty of water and eat within an hour of finishing your run. your muscles need to reapir themselves and they will need some food.

2 great websites: runnersworld.com - just an awesome website for runners. you can get answers to EVERYTHING!! and halhigdon.com - this website is also great if you want an idea of weekly or monthly mileage goals. this site has training programs for races, from 5k to marathons. depending on your comfort level you can start with like the 5k or 10k program. it breaks down what you should be running each day. you can adjsut the mileage and days as you go. whatever works for you. it is like a template for you to go off of. each program also have different levels. the more advanced levels work on speed as well as distance. which is something that interests you. totally worth checking out!! GOOD LUCK AND HAPPY RUNNING!!

hi dasluv, that is great! AM runs are great, i wish i could make myself remember that when i hit the snooze.

wow olivia, you do have that down! that is amazing! it takes me about 15 minutes at least just for peeing, brushing teeth, clothes and harnesses. i need to tighten up my routine. i think i can do it...i just need to get a pattern down.

i need to leave my house by 6:15am, no later to catch my vanpool for work. i am going to give it another shot tomorrow morning.

Hi!

Olivia - My b-day is the 18th!

I cant do stationary bikes just like I cant do treadmills for very long. I feel like a hamster!!

tamarbee - I am having the same problem at the moment. It is so hard to get up early (4am for me)...even though it feels great to get in a morning run. My last run was on Saturday. I got up late that morning too so i was dying from the heat even though it was only 8am. My goal was to run 10 miles, but I only did 8. Not great at all.  :(

But i am going to remedy that today. I am taking my lunch break and going to meet my nemesis (the treadmill). Hopefulyl i can get about 4 miles in. we'll see!

hi leslee! yeah running is great for the boys...they know it too, as soon as i put on my tennis shoes and my watch, they run to the hall closet to get in line for their leashes. yeah humidity is horrible. Last night we went running at 8pm, and it was 93! i kept running through sprinklers just to keep us all cool.

hee, hee, that is funny olivia. it is weird typing your name because my name is olivia too! were you born in 77? i was! yeah i am not very coordinated either. I am not very good ona  bicycle...i have tried. i have fallen a few times running too and that is actually how i sprained my ankle! (makes you wonder how i walk around in heels).

i understand the work dress code thing and please dont get me wrong, sandals are great too! i love flip flops but unfortunately those don't fly at work, so i had nothing to work with. But my faves are heels. i just feel great in them...i think i have better posture with them on.

HI! I get excited to hear about other runners out there, so excuse me if this is long winded. Today I took my first morning run. I am not a morning person at all, and usually run in the evenings. I run with my two dogs, but the humidity really hinders their endurance. It was so humid on our run last night that I decided to give it a shot. I have to be at work at 7am, which meant getting up at 4am to run...but it was great! Like you said, I felt like the boys and I were the only ones left in the world. It was so serene and a bit cooler too. I loved that there were no other dogs or people to distract them (they go nuts) and with a combined weight of 150lbs. between them, it is hard to run with them sometimes. So it was a great change to not get a shoulder workout at the same time.

As far as your knees go...I used to have the same problem. I noticed the pain was more evident if I tried to run more miles or run faster than what I was used to. I started taking Glucosamine supplements, which helps repair and maintain the cartilage in your joints. Often what happens in sports like running, the cartilage in your knees can wear away and can then lead to knee pain. This works great for me. It takes a while before you start to feel a difference (maybe a few weeks), but the pain did go away for me. I also do weight training. You want to make sure that your quads are strong. Running works out your hamstrings quite a bit more than your quads, so you might want to do some weights for those muscles since they directly support your knees. The stronger the muscles, the less pressure on your knees. The fitness section of msn.com has a great thing called "the fit zone" click on that and then click on the particular muscle group you are interested in and it will give you a list of weight training exercises.

Yeah, I dont use my ipod anymore. It started out because I used to run around 8-9pm so I wanted to be aware of my surroundings. But there is something about the tranquility in silence and the rythmn of my breathing and my shoes hitting the ground, that I just don't miss it.

It is hard to find new routes. I live in a new subdivision so it is hard to find developed areas where I won't kill myself by running on uneven ground. We don't even really have sidewalks! I like loops too and it is hard when the loop I am used to covers about 6 miles, and my goal is farther than that. I get bored easily, (that is why I can't do more than 3 miles on a treadmill) and sometimes I need new visual stimulation to get me through the tough miles. Yopu can try picking up the pace for shorter distances on certain days to add variety, but I would try looking around for trails or parks nearby. If your area is well developed, maybe you can try mapping out a course you are familiar with (like to the supermarket) that will meet your mileage goals for the day...just to spice it up...Well, happy running!!!