I need to wake up in 5 hours

For reals. It's midnight, and I need to be awake in 5 hours to start making my way to Jacksonville to spectate the 26.2 with Donna. But I'm so excited. I can't sleep (and I took a 3 hour nap today). So I'm blogging instead.

In some really good news I survived my 3-mile injury recovery trial run. I didn't feel a thing in my hip/butt/leg. *grins from ear to ear* I promised myself I was going to take it really slow, so I didn't do anything faster than a 9:50 mile. I finished in about 31 minutes, so not bad. But it felt so good to run again. I was super aware of every little small ache and pain, trying to assess whether it was injury related or just running related. Conclusion: I'm healed.

Time to get back to training for the Gate River Run 15K, but I'm still going to take it easy. Instead of running 5 times per week, I'm going to cut it down to 3-4 times per week, and try to cross train and strengthen more. I still want that 15K PR!!

In some other good news, one of my favoritest readers has started her first running blog. Let me give you a little background info. Whitney and I went to high school together in Utah. She's a year younger than me, but we were in choir together. We became friends in that class, but became even better friends when we went on choir tour to California my senior year/her junior year. Then life happened. We went out separate ways, went to college, got married, and then we found each other again on Facebook and through our personal blogs.

I haven't physically seen her since high school. Seriously. But we've totally connected again through FB and my blog. And guess what? She's a runner. I don't know if she's always been a runner (maybe I should've asked that?!), but she is now. I wasn't always a runner, and I most definitely wasn't a runner when I was in high school. Those were my chubby/"I hate exercise" days. Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that I feel like we are closer now than we ever were in high school. And it's all because of running. I run. She runs. We run. I blog. And now she blogs. YAY!

I'm so excited to read about her running adventures, and I thought I'd introduce her to y'all. Meet Whitney. <---- Go check out her blog!!

Whtiney, don't kill me for posting this picture! :)

How long have you been running and why did you start running?
I started running in January 2007. Thanksgiving 2006, one of my sisters gathered the family together and challenged us all to participate in the upcoming Salt Lake City marathon together. 7 of us chose the half marathon and the other 3 chose the 5K. I was completely freaked out, because the last time that I had seriously tried running was my 9th grade year for the high school track team. And I thought that I could do sprints and hurdles. Let me just tell you... I never once jumped over a hurdle, and only ran 100 meter dashes, and always came in 6-7 out of 8. I am not fast. Anyway, I started training and it was tough, but it was worth it when I finished that race in April 2007. I'm pretty sure that I cried. <---The SLC Half Marathon was MY first half, too!


Favorite running gear and why?
My favorite running gear is my Garmin. I only got it last September and I love it. It's really helped me so how slow I can get when I'm not paying attention (which is often). <---SOOO jealous! I want a Garmin more than anything.

What do you listen to when you run?
I listen to a VERY wide range of music when I run. My current playlist has Neil Diamond, Lady Gaga, Led Zeppelin, Glee, The Ramones, No Doubt and Linkin Park (to name a few). Zeppelin is my fav.

What is something you cannot run without, and why?
My music. It helps keep SOME of the head games away.

What race distance is your favorite and why?
I guess my favorite race distance is the half marathon. It's the only distance I've raced. I've done 5 of them. <----Now she has all these other distances where she can get instant PRs!


What time of day do you usually run, and why?
I run whenever I can find the time. Saturdays are my long runs, so those are in the mornings, and just recently I discovered running on my lunch break at work. So that's where I'm at right now.

Treadmill, streets, or trails, and why?
I hate the treadmill. HATE. And I've only ever run on streets and paved trails. I would like to try a real trail-run soon. Streets are the easiest for me. My regular route is to run from my house up to a lake that is 1 mile from my house, run around it on the paved trail and then back home. It's a 5 mile loop and I love it. There are lots of other runners for me to wave and smile at. I'm big into waving at other runners and flashing a smile.

What has been your most significant running-related learning experience to date?
Stretching really does help. I don't really stretch well (and I don't ever warm up before going out on a run - I know, I'm a sinner), and for the last two seasons I've had IT band issues. I've learned stretches that have really helped me, and I'm trying to do better... but I still don't do it regularly.

What advice would you give to someone new to running?
You are stronger and more capable than you think you are. Running isn't easy (at least, it isn't for me), but it does get easier if you keep at it. <----Love this!

Short-term and long-term running goals?
Short-term: work on speed. Long-term: I'm almost afraid to say this - a marathon.

Mileage goal for 2010?
I haven't ever thought of a mileage goal for the year? What's a good goal? I haven't a clue. Let’s say: 500. Is that too small? Too much? I really don't know! <---Whitney, I think you can do 750, at least!! I bet you already ran over 500 miles last year without even realizing it!

Do you have a blog, blog(s), or a website you’d like to share? If so, please list them.
I just started my running blog. I really don't know what I'm doing, and I'm not a great athlete, so I'm sure that no one will read it or enjoy it. But I did it for me. I like to log all of my info after I run, so I can see how I'm progressing.
It's What Moves Me