May 03, 2012

Last double digit run before the marathon

Today I had 12 miles on the schedule--the last double digit run before the marathon! I am so glad to be tapering, but I feel like it's going by too fast. So far, tapering is my favorite part of training, lol. Anyway, I made plans to meet up with Jessica this morning to do our 12 at the Metropark.

When the kids woke up, Noah was complaining of a sore throat and headache. I took his temperature, and he had a fever. Surely, the same virus Eli had. So I had to keep him home from school--which meant I was going to have to come up with a different plan for my run.

Since Jerry and I are planning on spending the weekend together, I wanted to get it out of the way today. I sent Jessica a text and told her that I was going to have to do it on the dreadmill. I really didn't want to! I haven't used the dreadmill in a long time, and I would have liked to keep it that way.

I probably spent half an hour setting everything up for a long run. I knew I would need a fan, so I brought a fan out and set it up in front of the window, which I opened. Since the window was opened, I didn't want to blare the TV and bust my neighbor's eardrums (I have to turn it up loud to hear it over the treadmill). After some thought and creativity, I came up with this:
Cat tree=computer stand

Free Lifetime movies online
The cat tree was at the perfect height to prop my computer on so that it was directly in my line of vision. Estelle was a little pissed that I moved her throne perch, so she pouted and moved to the bedroom. I discovered that you can watch Lifetime movies for free online, so I chose a movie. I got some water, a packet of Gu, and I hooked up the computer to the treadmill speakers, so I didn't have to wear earphones.

It worked out really well! I started running and realized my foot pod wasn't registering on my Garmin. This was the first time I tried using it with the Forerunner 910xt. I stopped running and fiddled around with it, and realized I had to change a setting on it. Once I did that, I was good to go (again).

Since I was so bored, I was going at a faster pace than normal, and I waited 4 miles before doing a walk break. I would have just skipped the walk breaks altogether, but my knee started hurting; so I figured I'd better do what was working.
I don't know exactly how accurate the pace is, simply because I'm not sure how much I trust the foot pod, but based on my breathing and heart rate, I think it was pretty accurate. My heart rate seems to be getting lower and lower on each run that I do. I know that's probably because it's getting more conditioned, but it means I have to work longer or harder to burn the same amount of calories as before.
Two hours of running, and I only burned 844 calories?? Good grief!

I'm so glad to have that out of the way so my weekend is all free and clear to enjoy. Yesterday, I remembered that I have a bunch of gift cards from way back when I broke my jaw. So Jerry and I are going to work on using them up this weekend. That's a pretty fun task!

We have 2 free movie passes, and a $25 movie gift card; 8 free passes for the comedy club; a gift card to Chili's; a gift card to Buca di Beppo (was supposed to use that in Indy tomorrow night, but we found another one in Michigan that we'll go to). I also have a gift card to Kohl's and Home Depot, and a Victoria's Secret coupon for free panties. So we can do quite a bit this weekend and STILL save money. We will go to the Titanic exhibit, which is $27/person; but when all is said and done, this weekend won't cost much at all compared to Indy.

I got an e-mail this morning that made me *almost* glad I'm not running the half on Saturday...

 If there is one thing that makes me even more miserable than running on the treadmill, it is running in the heat. So for those of you running or walking in Indy on Saturday, make sure you be careful and listen to your body! I am praying that we have a nice cold day for the marathon. It's only 17 days away!

Considering how much I hate running in the heat, I have no idea what possessed me to sign up for a run called the Solstice Run, and I registered for the 10-Mile. It's June 23rd--which means it's going to be HOT. But I knew if I didn't have a race to train for after the marathon, I would probably slack off and not run much. I still plan on taking some time off--probably a week of no running at all--but since this 10-Mile race is a month after the full, it won't be hard to get ready for it. Oh well, hopefully it will be fun!

29 comments:

  1. Jason found the Solstice Run and got work to sponsor it! ;) We're doing the 10K since we'll be 3 weeks into Marathon training -it will be perfect! Enjoy your weekend with the hubby, sounds like overtime is about to hit hard.

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  2. You are amazing, 2 hours on the dreadmill would totally do me in! I can barely do 30 minutes before I die from boredom :)

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  3. I can't even imagine running that long on a treadmill! I think I'd die. :) For some reason whenever I run on one it seems 10 times harder. I don't know if it's mental or what, but I feel like on the treadmill I am running way faster and it takes way longer to do each mile. I live in a neighborhood that is full of hills and I'd still rather run outside than on the treadmill. The heat also makes it very hard for me. I've never taken the heat well.

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  4. This is my first year ever doing the mini in Indy and I am super panicked about the heat and humidity. My body does not do well with heat. Nervous!

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  5. Using up the gift cards will be fun!!

    I do long runs on the dreadmill with the portable DVD plugged in like your laptop. Shorter runs I manage by plugging my iPod.

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  6. I was wondering if any of the cats attempted to use their perch even though you moved it and had the computer on it! And that's an awesome pace for such a LONG run! I hope Noah is doing better. My kids always had a knack for getting sick on a holiday or a 3-day weekend when the dr's office was closed!

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  7. I love the set up LOL. Perfect :) Treadmills bore me to tears. We're getting ready to move from Hawaii to who knows where yet and I'm just terrified we'll end up with some place that has awful snowy winters and I won't be able to run outside and I'll be doomed to a treadmill for my runs. If you can do it, I can do it though :)

    Have a GREAT weekend! Sounds like lots of fun stuff to do/use up!

    ~Ang
    droppingtheplus.blogspot.com

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  8. Way to go on the run!

    We are doing Solstice too, can't wait!

    Hope your little guy feels better!

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  9. I can't even imagine running 2 hours on the treadmill!

    I weekend using up all those gift cards actually sounds fun, enjoy! :D

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  10. Your flexibility and creativity are very impressive! Have a great weekend, it's Derby on Saturday if you want to take in some KY delights on the Telly!

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  11. I have run the Solstice 10 mile since they had it. This year is the third year and the only race I will have run three times in a row. It's a challenging course (not too bad) and really fun. The group that puts it on does an excellent job.

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  12. Holy Crap!!! I cannot believe you lasted 12 miles on the damn treadmill. You are a champion.

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  13. 12 miles on the dreadmill is amazing. And you are a mad genius to come up with the cat stand set up. Best best best of luck with your upcoming race!

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  14. 12 miles on the treadmill is unbelievable. Love your set up though. I may do the Solstice 10 miler, but I have to wait for my work schedule. I agree about the heat! Heat/humidity is one thing that will relegate me to the dreadmill. Just curious...what did your treadmill report for time/distance? Is the difference the same as the difference with your old Garmin?

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    1. The treadmill time/distance showed that I ran much slower--I forget the exact number, but it was around 11 miles (when the Garmin showed 12). I KNOW I was running faster than that, but probably somewhere in-between the Garmin distance and the treadmill distance. I just chose to believe the Garmin, because it was over with sooner ;)

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  15. So what movie did you watch, only reason I ask is because it must have been a good one to keep you occupied for 12 miles! :/

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    1. It was called Miracle Run, and it was really good! About a single mom with twin boys that have autism who grow up to prove wrong the people who doubted their abilities. One of them becomes a super fast runner, and it was fun to watch him race while I was running ;)

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  16. I laughed so hard when I saw the cat perch with the laptop on it. Genius! :)

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  17. AnonymousMay 03, 2012

    You seriously rock! 12 miles on a treadmill... I would probably jump off. Nice pace, too! :) I did my longest run to date (9 miles) last Sunday at a 9:45 pace, and it kicked my butt! I can't imagine keeping that up for 3 more miles. Good job :D

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  18. I'm predicting a very good weekend for you and Jerry...especially if you use the gift card for the free panties at Victoria's Secret;) Enjoy!

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  19. Let us know how the Titanic exhibit is. I saw the ad for it in the paper right around the 100th anniversary of the sinking and thought that I would LOVE to see it!

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  20. You are a freaking rockstar! You were rushing through 10 miles? That's awesome!
    I love the cat perch TV stand. Brilliant use! My dad and I built a work out bench and covered it with carpet. My cat uses it as a scratching post and perch. Who knew the many uses! :)
    Have a great time using up the gift cards. Buca Di Beppo has the BEST margarita pizza. It's super thin crust and crunchy with chucks of melted fresh mozzarella cheese, tomatoes and fresh basil. YUM!

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  21. Annnnnd you just gave me one more reason to buy my cat a tree. Thanks! :]

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  22. Wow, I can't fathom running that many miles on a treadmill! Good for you! I find that by mile 4 I'm itching to hop off.

    I've only tried the Buca in Philly, but oh my lord they give you enough food to feed a village. My favorites are the apple gorgonzola salad and chicken carbonara mmmm

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  23. Running 12 on the dreadmill takes some dedication! With your creative setup thought I might have been able to work out. I hate running in the heat too, but in Texas we have it about 9 months out of the year! I think its awesome how our bodies can condition itself, BUT major bummer that the calories drop off, some days the only reason I get off the couch is because I think I can eat a little something extra if I run. :)

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  24. This is hilarious!! I love it. How do you run in the summer? I live near St Louis so basically directly Wed of Indy. I figure we have basically the same temps. And the past two days have been humid and hot. It's been a shock to the system. I took a week off of running(BAD idea) due to being out of town. Yesterday I ran at the gym because I felt it was too hot for me outside for my first run back. The gym's AC is broke so really I may have been better outside with some wind. In any case, I'm starting to think I'll have to carry water even for short 3-5 mile runs because it's simply getting too hot. Mentally I need it even if it's just to wet my mouth. I guess I'm going to have to run in the early mornings. But I'm very nervous going into summer. I just started running in Jan and so I haven't experienced this before and I don't want to get discouraged by the heat.

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  25. Love how you rigged up your workout! I do something similar in my garage. Makes longer indoor workout times much more doable being able to watch a movie or tv show.
    Wow, sounds like you'll have a wonderful weekend! Enjoy your time together!

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  26. Awesome cat tree laptop stand! I can think of a time or two I've finagled a laptop stand out of random books or objects! You will have to tell us how the Titanic exhibit is! I have seen the one in Vegas at the Luxor resort and it was so amazing, with the artifacts and detail. Blew me away! Have fun!

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  27. AnonymousMay 04, 2012

    Love the creative laptop stand! :) I think the treadmill and I are going to become great friends this summer. I live in Florida and even early in the morning it's hot and humid.

    I hope you enjoy your weekend!

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