Kate

I woke up later than I had planned this morning, but hey, it’s a holiday right?! I set out for a 2 mile easy run.

I use Runner’s World Smart Coach to set-up my training schedules. I like how it sets things out for me for at least 16 weeks and I don’t have to think too much about the set-up of my plan. I always use my 2:30 half marathon time to set it up. This way the schedule expects me to run around 12:00/miles for my easy runs. With my nervousness over my knee, this is good. It forces me not to go and run too fast too soon.

Well, today I did much better than I had even imagined…. under 10:00/mile!

It wasn’t an easy run for the first mile. It’s been a long time since I have had a real run of any sort. Once I settled in and tried not to think about my left knee, I felt better. It was amazing, if I concentrated on my left knee it started to feel funny. If I tried to think about other things, I felt nothing.

To be safe, I’m doing things the right way this time (ice, strength training, stretching). I am so glad we went to the farm and filled our freezer with tons of vegetables for the winter. I don’t know if we’ll eat them, but they sure come in handy to ice my knees. Today, split peas on my left knee, corn on my right. Ahh, that feels good. Maybe some vitamins will seep through the plastic bags?

Lastly, I received an email confirming my entrance to the Half Marathon next spring, May 2009. I’m thrilled! I’m a confirmed entrant and now my training begins!

Running Kate is back!

And for the first time in a long time, I feel more comfortable in my own skin now than ever!

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 09/01/2008
• Time: 08:15:00
• Total Time: 00:19:52.00
• Distance: 2 miles
• Average Pace: 9:56.03/mile