Marathon Fever

So I ran my third half marathon this past Sunday. I finished in a time of 2:13:03. I was pretty happy with the time although I know that if I had run smarter, I would have done better and finished stronger. I went out too fast (I was trying to run with my mom's friends daughter who's run a sub-2 hour half for the first 8km) and ran a positive split: aka slower on the 2nd half than the first. My 10km time was about 58 minutes , and the last 11 was...well you can do the math.

So it was a great time, and a great event. It was very warm but the course is pretty great and the crowds are fun! I was in pain from about 6km on. I've got some sort of weird pressure pain on the balls of my feet (both of them, but the left is worst) and it hurts on my long runs (not my short). For some reason, during the half, it started earlier than usual. After about an hour I started doing 10 and 1's, and I think that helped a bit.

All in all, it was a good race, good time, and I was so proud of my sister for doing her first 10km, I think she's caught the running bug! :)

To make up for my not-so-smart running I'm going to do the Johnny Miles half marathon on June 20th with the fam. My dad is hoping to do the half marathon too and my sister and mom will probably do the 10km. Im very excited!

And yes, I have the marathon fever. I think Im going to start training for a fall marathon (Im thinking PEI or Valley Harvest). Im very scared of 26.2 miles, and I know its going to be the hardest thing Ive ever done, physically and probably mentally. But at the same time, I know I can do it. My body is so strong and can run for that long, as long as my head can keep itself straight. My dad always says that after about 20 miles, it has nothing to do with your body anymore, its all mental. And thats what Im going to try and focus on preparing.

Still on the job hunt...anyone know of any sweet jobs in Halifax for BSc grads? If you do, let a girl know :)

Life is good

I'm gonna try this whole watching TV AND blogging at the same time, so I might be a little distracted. But there is a super bitchy lady on Say Yes to the Dress, so I want to see how it turns out.

Anyways, things have been going very well on the home front, although I am still unemployed and have heard nothing from any potential employer. Oh well, I'm just going to continue what I'm doing and try to work on the ol' resume. I'm taking a first aid/cpr course tomorrow so that might help :)

I just finished reading Eating Animals. It's a fantastic book about factory farming, the idea of "ethically raised" animals and vegetarianism. It has definitely confirmed my decision to go vegetarian. Up until now, I have been eating fish still because I thought fish were a bit more immune to the horrors of factory farming. Although it is different, the treatment and effect of fish farming and wild fishing is still pretty horrible. I might try to faze out my intake of fish. Dolphins are above all, my favourite creature, and to think of how many are killed during this kind of food production, is enough for me to give it up.

My mom did not react to this news well. I haven't told her for sure yet but she heard me tell my sister what I was thinking. She got mad because she thinks I'm restricting myself by not eating foods that I love. And honestly I do love lobster and shrimp and salmon etc etc. It's true. But the thing is, I love animals more. I love the environment. And I love food. Guess what? You can eat delicious, non restricting, healthy meals that do not include meat, poultry, foul or fish.

I've made some incredible meals the past few days: This soup last night, and this peanut noodle dish tonight. They are healthy, delicious and meat-free.

I've got half marathon #3 on Sunday and I'm so excited. Im on taper week so I had a 5 miler on Sunday but only have 1 or 2 runs for the remainder of the time (I'm still doing 30 day shred so I'm trying to take it easy on the running front). I've been trying to eat very healthy and clean until the marathon.

Oh wait, did I mention I have a pubcrawl on Friday?

So I'm trying to eat healthy and clean, not including the dozen beers I will most likely consume on Friday night. I know I should probably be skipping the beers/late night of drinking but you know what? I have plenty of runs/races/half marathons left in my life (and left in the summer) so I'm not going to skip a night spent with some really great friends and people (aka my sister and her nursing friends who I love).

All in all, life is good. Running is amazing. My eating has been exciting, delicious and healthy. I may or may not have a crush on a gorgeous boy. I just need a job (so I can start training for a marathon).

Jillian Michaels: Friend or Foe?

So I started 30 day shred yesterday. 

Man, I thought I was in good shape. Well, after day 2 I'm reconsidering that thought. Actually, that's a lie. I know I'm in good cardio shape. How do I know that? I ran 12.5 miles on Saturday and could have gone for much more (marathon training anyone?). But, those strength moves in the DVD: killer. And they are not something I'm used to.

So I'm definitely happy I bought it/started it. I'm a little worried about doing it while starting the taper for my half marathon, but I guess all I really mean when I say taper is "no long run this weekend" so a 20 minute workout everyday isn't going to hurt. I also probably won't do it on Saturday (5km race) and the day before, of and after the half. So max I'm looking at is getting 26 of the next 30 days done.

But I'm still looking forward to seeing  some results. My eating has been pretty good and my running is going amazing so I'm hoping to lose a bit of fat/toning up a bit for the beginning of swimsuit season! And once these 30 days are up, I think I'm going to keep using some of the workouts on the DVD for my cross training days.

Anyways, still on the job hunt. Hoping to get back to volunteering very soon. I miss working with animals, so so much, so I emailed the SPCA and told them my situation. Seriously, if you don't already volunteer, please please consider doing so. It's one of the most rewarding experiences I've ever had and it's opened me up to so many opportunities.

I'm really looking forward to this weekend. I've got my 5km race on Saturday and then sleepover with my sister and 15 year old cousin that night. And no long run, I think I might actually miss it though! I am seriously a crazy person.

Employment

...or lack thereof.

I have been unemployed now for about a week and a half. Well, actually Ive been unemployed for almost five months, but most of those months were spent in my last semester of university (working towards straight A's, my first and only 4.0 of my undergraduate career). Now, I have no school. No MCAT studying (which is what I did all last summer). My focus for these next few weeks (or, god forbid, months) is job hunting. Job hunting AND running.

Thank god for running right now (and I know, this is my second time mentioning god in the span of about 2 sentences, I do recognize that). If it wasn't for running right now, my day's wouldn't have the purpose they do. Yes, Im constantly looking for and applying to jobs (I'm trying to get something in the healthcare and/or research field) but for the most part, that is out of my control. I don't control when and what job postings go up and I can't control if they are applicable to me or not.

What I can control is my running. And this is not some obsessive compulsive lose-weight thing. This is a "when I wake up in the morning, I have something substantial to accomplish other than applying to one job and this makes me feel good" thing. When my parents ask about what I did today, yes I start with the employment thing but I can also say "I ran  three and a half miles today in the rain" (which I did, this morning, 730 this morning actually).

Running gives me something to work towards, and although I dread it sometimes, it gives me something to look forward to. Like I said, I can't really control what employment positions go up or what interviews I do or don't get. But you can be damn sure that I have control over my workouts. And tomorrow, I'm taking it to the track.

It's been a few months since I've done a track speed workout. I have done a few treadmill speed workouts and some tempo run's outside that I consider speed workouts. But my 400 and 800 repeats? Not since January I think. I think I've mentioned here a few times that I have been getting faster. Im running a sub 10 minute mile pace for my half marathon training long runs, and that should help me reach my goal of a 2:15 or less half marathon (on may 23rd). But I've also got a 5km race (actually it's called the "spring sprint". Whoever named that is NOT a runner. 5km is not a spring, 400m is a sprint) on the horizon, may 15th.

Although I do enjoy my long distance running, Im hoping to work on my speed over the next few weeks, and over the whole summer, on shorter distances like this 5km. My goal for the end of the summer is a sub 25 5km, but for the one coming up, maybe sub 27? sub 26 if Im feeling good. Either way, Im pumped for the track.

Like I said, running gives me something to look forward to. I know that tomorrow Ill have to look for some more jobs, and Ive got errands to do. But beyond that, I know Im going to go to the closest track, and run my little heart out. And if thats not something to look forward to, I don't know what is!