Run before Work – Done!

My alarm was set for 5:30am again this morning.  I woke up at 5:20 feeling great! I jumped out of bed before the alarm went off. Used the bathroom. Changed my clothes. Brushed my teeth. Gagged A LOT. Didn’t throw up. Drank my breakfast drink. Went for a run.

Running before 6:00am is amazing! I’ve done early morning runs before, but after today I am officially hooked on running before work.  It’s so quiet. It’s so peaceful.  The only people I passed were also out early to beat the summer heat (although there was no avoiding the humidity today!). I passed a couple of runners, a few walkers, one dog, one biker, and a lot of mama geese and babies! Everyone including the geese said good morning!

I don’t feel any more tired this afternoon than I did yesterday. I was afraid I’d be ready to crash by noon.  I also love that I’m not thinking about when/how I’m going to run after work.  It is done! I can now go home and use my extra hour to play with Alex, read a book, or take a nap!

To help me keep track of my progress along the way, I’ve decided to keep a journal of a few things about each run – date, time, temperature, mile splits, overall totals.  The temperature outside effects my running ability greatly pregnant or not pregnant.  It’s good to keep a journal of the info so I can be prepared for race day if my body allows me to run the half.  I will have a good indication of how my body will respond to race day weather. I also love numbers. I like looking at my splits.  I like seeing what progress is being made and what needs to improve.  My goal right now is consistency.  I expect my times to get slower as my pregnancy progresses. I want to make sure I’m not using all my energy up in the beginning of the run. I need to save something for the end.

Here are today’s numbers –

Distance: 3.07 miles

Temperature: 73 degrees, 94% humidity (yuck!)

Splits: (1) 10:13 (2) 12:02 (3) 13:01

Totals: 36:02, 11:43 min/mile average, 3 walking breaks

I definitely need to start off a little slower OR take a walk break sooner. I try to take one every mile.

If you are new to running, racing, or just love numbers like me, I’d highly recommend keeping a running journal also.  It’s such a great reference.  I used one when I trained for the Shamrock Marathon also.  Because it was winter, I also kept track of the clothing I wore, when I started to get hot, and what I wish I had worn.  I’ve also kept track of food that I’ve eaten before a run incase I have stomach issues.  The journal lets me recognize patterns and track my progress. It’s a great visual motivator. I plan on updating my progress on my blog under the training tab if you’d like to follow along.

Quick Garmin Watch update – Christian called technical support for me yesterday (He is magical on the telephone! Honestly! He has a way of getting exactly what he wants ALWAYS! Lucky for me because I’m horrible at conversing over the phone. I get nervous and awkward). The technician emailed him a software update and instructions on how to do a master reset of the watch.  Right now it is in its final stages of charging.  Fingers crossed. I’ll test it out tomorrow on my 4 mile run BEFORE WORK. If it doesn’t work, it will be mailed to Garmin for service. For now, I’ve been using Endomondo on my iPhone. It works just as great. I just wish I could see it during the run. I do love that the information that uploads to my computer keeps track of my monthly and yearly totals. It even tells me how many trips I’ve made around the planet and how many trips I’ve taken to the moon!  AND how many hamburger calories I’ve burned! FUN! I’m a dork for weird random stuff like that! So far I’ve burned off 5 hamburgers this month by running – 2708 calories!)