Back in the Saddle

After two terrible weeks I have think I have managed to overcome my speed bump. My eating has improved (although I still struggle with not starving myself during the day while I'm out and about) and I have worked out every day this week! I started on Monday when Dan, Tell, and I were able to get back to running together again. We ran the track again and this time (with Dan's boyfriend Freddy cheering us on) we ran a mile, without stopping. This was quite an accomplishment for Tell and I and, although it was hard, it was a great feeling to be running again. We also did intervals again but this time when we ran the straight parts of the track we sprinted much, much faster. Apparently I am a pretty fast sprinter. Dan, Tell, and Freddy were pretty impressed by my speed and it felt great to be so encouraged by them all.

On Tuesday I went running by myself at the track and tried to do a mile again without stopping. I had to walk briefly 3 different times but I did the mile. It really does astound me how much of a difference there is between me running on my own and running with my friends. They are such an encouragement to me and without them it is hard for me to find the strength to push myself to continue when I get tired or my legs start hurting. Although I have struggled for the previous two weeks it have been such a blessing knowing that these two awesome women are in my corner pushing me to keep going even when I feel like giving up.

Wednesday was a rest day so when we met on Thursday I was feeling ready to try again. This time Dan had us run for 1 mile continuously, take a one minute walk break, than run for another mile. It was definitely difficult but we did it so that was encouraging. After that run Dany's boyfriend, who got to come with us again, had been working on his 5k time and needed to finish the .8 miles he had left so he asked if I wanted to try running it with him to see how I did. I agreed and he let me set the pace so I could be comfortable running the whole time. I found my pace, ran for about .9 miles, when it was all said and done my total distance for the night equaled 3.2 miles! This means, ladies and gentlemen  that I did a little over a 5k!! I was stoked and I recovered very quickly after the run which is how I know that the pace I was running was comfortable and sustainable for me. Freddy was very encouraging and I was very happy to have his advice and support.

Friday was another rest day so Saturday I tried two miles on my own. Unfortunately, I had indulged a little too much during lunch and felt pretty terrible during the run so I wasn't able to do as well as I probably could have if I had waited a little longer and not tried to do so much after having eaten. It's fun learning how food effects my ability to perform and although it can cause days like Saturday when I don't do well on a run because I don't know how much my eating effects me, it's good information to remember for later down the road! I also went running on Sunday but I'm going to post about that day separately as it is a big milestone (pun intended) for me.