Anywho. I'm not going to go on with that...you get the gist. I unintentionally broke up with my training because life took pole position. It was crazy there for awhile but then it wasn't.
I had many opportunities to kick it back up in November and December. However, the Holidays and Travel made a pretty good EXCUSE (that is totally what it is) to push the workouts aside. Honestly, I just didn't feel like it. There. I said it. I was not motivated and I could care 3 Fs about suiting up and working out or making it a priority. I had a million other things on my plate and my mind and body didn't crave it.
I ran exactly ONCE each month since I last posted
here. LITERALLY. One 4 miler in September, one 4 miler in October and one 5 miler in November...I didn't even bother with being consistent in December (although I planned on running in Central Park on our trip, but didn't).
We returned from our NYC Christmas trip on December 30th. I had mentioned maybe once or twice to the hubby that I felt the time was coming for me to get back up on the saddle. I really like being healthy, fit and tone. I like when my clothes fit right...it makes playing dress up on dates nights or GNO that much more enjoyable. While packing for NYC, I made the realization that some things were fitting a little snugger than I prefer. Or I just didn't like how I looked in one outfit or another. Ugh. Too many indulgent dinners and desserts over the holidays! Damn you NEW YORK CITY for having amazing food!!
I also made it very clear to my husband that although I KNEW these things, I also did not want to DO anything about it. Motivation: zilch. I may have posted as such on FB at some point and friends came out in droves offering to run with me. At 5 am. Uuuuuuuugggghhhh. Nooooooo..... No thank you.
But my amazing hubby knew that I could never turn him down. He knew that if HE offered to go for a run with me, I would never turn him down. Suddenly, on the COLD, early morning of January 1st, the guy who hates being cold and really thinks running is super boring, dragged me out of my warm bed and took me to Memorial Park for a one loop run (3 miles).
I really wanted to punch him. Hello? Who are you?
But I didn't. We ran. I was stiff. I was cold. I was miserable. But I was there.
We started off slow and the sad, sad realization that the great pace I had achieved over the Summer was LONG GONE. Boooohoooo. I was so slow. And then, my hubby turned motivational coach and number one cheerleader says...."let's try changing it up....let's run real fast then slow down or walk" Huh? Hello? Who are you again? So after the boring mundane first mile, we ran a sprint for about a minute and a half. We jogged for a bit and did it again. Over and over and before we knew it, we were done! And, definitely not cold anymore. It was exhilarating and also exhausting. I was glad to be done and to go back to my warm home.
The next day, Coach V (as I started calling him), got me to go on another run. This time in our neighborhood but to the nearby track. We did the same thing. Run a loop and half, jog a loop and half. It was awesome!
Half a mile from the house, I was looking ahead to some gravel and didn't see the pipe sticking out of the ground when I STEPPED on it. My ankle completely folded over and down I went hands first into the gravel I was eyeing! OUCH!
I got up and hobbled for a bit and finished my run (very achy). It hurt for a bit but I "walked it off". The next day Coach V set up a workout at home for us. Afterwards we went for a short walk and realized it felt better to jog little steps than it did to walk. The day after that, he had another workout for me and after I went for a short/slow jog with my son (2 miles).
I worked out for a consecutive 7 days. Hubby got really busy at work again and couldn't coach me daily but he had given me the best gift ever. My motivation! He pushed me and got me going again. I took a day off when I had a crazy carpool, work late at night from home while hubby worked til midnight kind of day. That's pretty much it. I have been pretty diligent about doing SOMETHING. Yay me.
Today is January 28th. I have logged 56.1 miles in the month of January. WHAT?! Yes. That is crazy.
Want to hear crazier? Yea, on Houston Marathon day, over a week ago, I decided to go out for my longest run, a quarter marathon! I could do it, I was sure of it. I had so many friends running the full and half that day and the weather was AWESOME that I felt super inspired to get out there. And I did just that. I ran a new route and lost track of my distance from home. By the time I turned around, I made it home at 8 miles! OMG. It wasn't super fast but it was fantastic. I felt great and could have gone further.
That night, my elite marathon running friend threw a "post-marathon" party. Unbeknownst to me, in attendance were all her running friends. (Why did she invite me?!) This group is a hardcore running group. How hardcore? Houston was my friend's 42nd marathon. FORTY SECOND. Because she is 42, she said. Duh. Haha.
This year, she will have run Boston, 5 years in a row. She is running New York in the Fall (which is harder to qualify for than Boston, by the way) and is running the Woodlands Marathon in about 6 weeks. Why am I telling you all of this? Well, because I left that party super inspired and motivated and the idea that I actually COULD run a half marathon (Woodlands) in 6 weeks. I mean, I just ran 8...how hard can another 5 be? Right?
I signed up. I ran several times last week plus joined hubby on his P90X quest that he started from Day 1 last week (he's on week 2 and still going strong). My friend offered to coach me on my endeavor, even offered to run with me on my long run on Sunday. She is THAT nice.
We met at 7am at Memorial Park. She had 5 under her belt before we met. We ran the loop with no issue and left the park. At mile 5, the ankle decided to hurt. WHAT? I felt that turning around would be the best idea. About a tenth of a mile later, I couldn't run anymore. Another tenth and I could barely walk. Putting pressure on my foot was incredibly painful.
It appears that ankle roll from January 2nd had done more damage than I realized. And all the running I have done probably exasperated the situation. I have iced, taped and rested the thing and I am yet not able to walk normally. :(
I am waiting another few days before I see a doctor but I know what they'll say. Stay off of it. Rest. I either have a strained ligament or fractured a baby bone in my foot. Whatever the diagnosis, the treatment will be the same. I am SURE. But I will confirm it next week.
So where does that put my half marathon? Not sure. It's 5 weeks away so it's not looking good but I will remain positive and hopeful. Whatever the case, I am not letting it hamper my motivation.
I rode my bike on a trainer last night for an hour! My ankle/foot does not hurt at all when I do that!
I'll keep joining hubby with his workouts and modifying as necessary. I have my fingers crossed that I will be well enough to run it, shoot at this point, I would be happy to WALK it!! I will be sure to come back and post an update on that and to keep coming out here more often. There are duathlons, triathlons and the dreaded first day back in the pool that I need to still experience and tell you all about. I bet you can't wait! Haha.
Sorry this post was so long, it's been awhile! I've missed you! :)
I'm updating my daily workouts and motivations on my new insta account: @FullHouseofRoyals (because my friends and family don't want to hear about my workouts! haha)
Come check it out for inspiration, motivation, healthy recipes, smoothie idea and quirky day in the life of pics. I promise, all positive!! :)
Happy Thursday and I'll leave you with this:
Goodbye. ;)
V.
#NewYearGetMyAssInGear
