Ernesto- NOT cool!

It's a rainy, icky, nasty day here in SC... Tropical Storm Ernesto (just 4 mph from being known as Hurricane Ernesto) has been pounding the coast all day. BLAH. I have resorted to doing indoor aerobics and running in place in front of the TV while watching the Weather Channel. What a nerd I am. Just get a damn treadmill, Tiff! :)

Good news- my ankle feels almost 100% again- even though part of the side of my foot has felt numb for the last week. My "foot doctor" (who ironically was my friend at happy hour the other night) says it might be a nerve being pushed by a muscle or something. The way I look at it, I would MUCH rather be able to NOT feel my body parts as opposed to feeling pain in them. Wimps.

On to more important topics- the OFFICIAL KICKOFF OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL. Now a tropical storm might keep me from going to the gym and running on the treadmill, but it will NOT keep me from driving across town in flood conditions to watch my Gamecocks kick off the season against Mississippi State. Buckets of beer? Check. Gamecock outfit? Check. Way to get home through the flood and a couple drinks? Ummm... no check. I could always stay at my friend's house downtown and just wear my Gamecock gear to work.

Let's just hope they don't lose.

I want to give a shout out to the blogger known as "Mike"!!! Sure I do not know him other than his blogs about drinking and running and running and drinking but I definitely recognize the genius in his comment, "Is it just me, or are runners also good drinkers?" Rock on, Mike!

When the morning run gets derailed….

Let me start by saying- I deserve a big gold star. I have gotten into the groove of running in the mornings (around 5:30-6:00 AM) to avoid the SC heat. For a night owl like me, this has been a slow and painful process. I normally would stay up until midnight or 1 AM just to make sure I did not miss any horrific reality MTV shows. It suddenly hit me one day that these shows are not really benefiting anyone, except give me material to talk about with my teenage cousins. Bummer!

So, the waking-up-early-and-running plan has worked beautifully… until now.

I decided to go out for a little post-work happy hour last night. After a couple (and by a couple, I mean six dozen) Coronas and a runner-up effort in the trivia contest (yes, I love useless knowledge), I found myself crawling into bed around 1:30 AM. Hmmm…. Did I set my alarm? Yes. Did I actually wake up? Not a chance. I totally would have gone if the world had not been against me and forced me to that happy hour last night.

And the best part? I feel MAD at myself… not because I was a total lush… but because I just feel better when I wake up and knock it out. I almost feel like taking to the parking lot here at work in my skirt and heels and getting at least 2 miles in.

No more excuses.

R-r-r-r-r-racing this morn!

So... I did my 5K this morning... in 31:45...not too bad for a race with a sore ankle. I mean, I was JUST off the course record! :) Of course, I am so happy I pulled myself out of bed for it. Nothing like that post-race high!

The funniest part was when an 80 year old man and I got into a sprint-out during the last 1/10 of a mile (OK, I let him beat me) and then I see him light up a cigarette right after the race. I just had to laugh at that one!

Couple quick observations about road races:

• People that are going to walk/run intermittently should probably stay to the left. I always tripped over several people that would just randomly stop to walk mid-stride
• I don't like to see from a faaaaar distance where I am running to. Today's race was ideal- the right amount of turns so you don't always see what is next. Bad example- the 4 miler I did a couple weeks ago on the beach. No turns, no twists. All you see in the distance are the mileage flags and finish line and they are too damn far away!
• Don't throw your water cup BEHIND you- it hit me! Ha ha... although it felt pretty good... but I don't like random people's spit
• I love when people are there to have fun and not take running too seriously. We are all out there to get in better shape and achieve some sort of goal. I love the camraderie!

Looks like my next race is 9/23- another 5K. Unfortunately (but fortunately), I will miss 2 great road races (10Ks) while vacating in the Caribbean in September and October. Can't wait for it to cool off a little bit too!

Well, that is all for now. Cheers to you!

Racing tomorrow!!!

Well, I decided to race tomorrow morning... a 5K at 7:45 AM... eeeeeeeeearly!

I am glad I decided to do it... cut off the night tonight around 9 PM (after a couple cocktails- ha ha) to get ready for tomorrow.

Yipppppeeee!!!

On the up...and up!!

So, I've been icing this ankle for a few days... and it has started to feel better. I get enough courage and motivation to go out running last night. Mainly because I started to miss the feeling I got and I felt like I was making some good progress. It is funny how you would have avoided running before at ALL costs and now I was getting angry because my body was not letting me get out there. Strange....

Even stranger...

I open my front door. It is POURING. The normal Tiffany would pack it up and settle down to a nice night of watching TV. But not now. I grabbed my raincoat, hat, and stopwatch (waterproof, of course) and headed out the door with gusto. I am glad I did! It still was about 85 degrees outside so the raincoat felt like a sauna after a couple miles. But DAMN... was I proud. Ironically, I saw no one else on the road :)

Ankle status- still a little sore. Debating whether to run tomorrow in the 5K- think I might run it at a moderate pace and now worry about 90 year olds beating me!

Eeeeekkk...

Here I sit... ankle elevated with ice on it.... blah...

The back of my ankle (archilles area) started to hurt earlier this week... but I decided to ignore it and run yesterday morning in Baltimore. Now it hurts like HELL and I am worried I might have to sit out of my race on Saturday. It feels like I have dull pains coming up my calf to my knee.

Well... I am going to give it a shot tomorrow morning and see if it feels any better.

Fingers crossed!!

60% of the time... I wake up 100% of the time at 5:30 AM to go running...

Hmmmm... my earlier post about bypassing a night out to go running this morning? Totally irrelevant. I slept through my 5:30 AM alarm and therefore decided I needed to REALLY sleep in because I had blown it. Ha! I woke up at 10:30 AM and felt pretty damn good. Yes, I know I am the spawn of Satan. No running and no church on SUNDAY morning?!!? How can I look myself in the mirror? :)

Looks like night running tonight... as IF the writing was not on the wall when I stayed up until 2:00 AM watching how to make sushi on TV.

Fortunately, I am traveling to DC and Baltimore this week with one of my runner co-workers so the running opportunities will be plentiful (and hopefully cooler weather!)

Couple 5Ks coming down the line... and then two 10Ks before my 1/2. I am shooting for my first marathon next year- either the Myrtle Beach or ATL Marathon in the spring and I would loooooove to do Chicago in the fall... but only if Oprah is there.

Over....

Accountability

Why did I create this blog? One word- accountability. I figured that random people reading my crazy blogs would somehow help me to complete a half marathon in a few months. Makes sense, right?

Quick disclaimer: if you only care about running, you might not want to bookmark my blog. I tend to frequently get sidetracked and talk about various non-running topics. Take it all with a grain (or better yet, a pinch) of salt.

Nonetheless, my return to running has been a fun journey so far... even with 90 degree weather! I finally have brought myself to hit the road IN THE MORNING before work which has helped with the high temperatures AND my procrastination problem. Strangely enough- I have even bypassed a worthless night at the bar in lieu of hitting the sack early for a morning run the next day. Wow.......... if only I was disciplined enough to NOT stay up all night watching Saved by the Bell marathons.... one can dream.

Next race is a 5K next weekend with Edi, my marathoner friend extraordinaire. We will also have a little cheering section out there... always nice :)

16 weeks til the Kiawah 1/2 and you can bet your A$$ that I will be there!

For now-