Canal Run

Ick. That is all I have to say about my attempt at a 10mi training run w/Guinness. Ick. We did about 6.3 mi when all was said and done and I did a bunch of walking (he tried to keep running by trotting next to me). Not because I physically or mentally couldn't run it, I actually felt really good today. If I had just bought my new running shoes earlier rather than later, I probably wouldn't have had a problem, but I didn't, and my old running shoes with the inserts have now caused a ridiculously huge blister on the arch of my foot. I could barely even walk back, it was soooo painful. I've been getting blisters from these shoes for about a month or so now and really should have picked up a new pair sooner, but I didn't, and I have no good reason for why I didn't except stupidity. Luckily, my friend Adam was working that afternoon at Medved so I could pop in and get my new running shoes. Before I bought my current shoes (Brooks Adrenaline), I had been wearing Saucony's and loved them, so, I decided to go back to the Saucony's. I love my new shoes, they are so comfy and just in time for the Temple Beth El 5K this weekend! Thanks Adam & Medved!

Chase Corporate Challenge '08

Last night was a total blast!! Myself and 7 of my collegues ran/walked the annual Corporate Challenge at RIT. There was a record of over 11,100 participants from over 400 companies in the Rochester area. We had so much fun as we jogged through the 3.5 mi course! It took us a while as we were in the heart of the crowd, but we had so much fun and my co-worker I ran with, Linda, did awesome as this was her first running event! I roped her in about a month ago :)

I have to say, the best part of the night was the post race food provided by our wonderful team captain. He got us all Wegman's sub's with the Wegman's extra super special oil and they were amazing!! I now have a new obsession of Wegman's super secret oil on subs!! I even ate the second half of my sub for breakfast this morning!! All in all, excellent weather, perfect night, yummy beers and food post race and lots of good people! Couldn't ask for a better event! Now.....I need to get ready for Lake Placid!! Ugh! I have scheduled a 10mi run for this afternoon.................Guinness is back to running with me and hopefully will push (or pull) me through this one!!

Guinness & I

Well, Guinness has rejoined the doggie-running-with-owner world and is doing so awesome!! I actually never enjoyed running with him last year because he was all over the place, but tonight, he could not have been better!! It was amazing. Of course, he had just spent the entire day and doggie daycare, so he was already a bit exhausted from romping with his doggie friends, but whatever, he was the perfect running partner. He stayed right next to me and never wandered! Loved it!

Now, I have been hesitant to run with him b/c he was so difficult last year, but what prompted me to take his tonight was his poor report card from daycare. I feel like a bad parent going in there sometimes b/c I generally get the he could be better speech. Love it. Today was no exception, in fact, they asked me not to bring him back tomorrow!! Crap!! My husband is out of town and I have class and the Corporate Challenge. Wonderful, my perfect angel at home, but hellraiser at daycare dog now has to stay cooped up in the house for a million hours tomorrow. Lovely. So, that is why I opted to take him for the run with me, figuring that would encourage him to be a bit more tired and hopefully not too unhappy tomorrow. I'm glad I did b/c now I know he is learning his leash manners when it comes to running and he can accompany me more in the future. In fact, I think I will take him on my 10 mi canal run on friday, I bet that will tire him out!! :)

Lilac 10K

Well, I finished my first 10K of the season today. Last year I did the 5K version of this run and wow, the 10K is so much more difficult!! Particularly because the last 1 1/2 miles if a gradual uphill. Ugh! Anyway, I finished in 1:10, which is only 2 min faster than my best 10K last season,, so while it wasn't the time I was hoping for, it is still better than what I ran last year so I know I'm still improving! Shockingly, I'm not sore........yet, we will see what tomorrow brings!! 4 weeks to the Lake Placid 1/2 Marathon!! Maybe I will get Guinness out there running with me now that the weathers better!

Back to Back.....

This weekend I did a 5k saturday and a 5k sunday. This was a first for me as I generally try to keep it to one race a weekend as I am really a novice runner! Honestly, it wasn't that bad as I would have run 3 miles both days anyway! I definitely ran better on aturday, but the crowd was also smaller by about 500 on saturday! The first run was the Run for the Young in Greece, NY and was a great time with incredibly yummy pizza and fantastic chair massages post race! How could I possibly pass up that race!! I had pretty much the same time as my last 5k, so that's not too bad. The sunday run (Mother's Day) was the annual Pink Ribbon Run for breast cancer and is an all women's run. There were over 800 women running the 5k that morning and it was awesome! It took some time to get to the start and get moving into the course, so I lost about 30 seconds from saturday, but oh well, it was a nice jog along Lake Ontario and a beautiful morning! Both runs were fantastic and I felt good.....for the most part!

I did learn something new about myself this weekend.....don't eat anything after 7pm the night before a race, especially a BLT, Sweet Potato Fries, Lasagna, Garlic Bread & Oil, and Cheesecake! Ugh! My system was not happy at all either morning! So, now I know, I must stick to my running diet before races and never ever eat at 9 or 10pm the night before!! I will absolutely keep that in mind as I get ready for the big Lilac Festival 10k this coming sunday! :)