Week 2!

I was a day ahead of Andy, so I repeated W1D3. HOLY COW! My shins pretty much gave out on me and I walked for runs 5-7. Again, I caught my second wind and was able to complete the last two runs. Andy's shins also gave him grief... I'm quite glad that I had the chance to repeat this run.

W2D1: It definitely felt easier running longer and stopping less. The shins were still a tad achy, but the workout seemed to zoom by.

W2D2: The endurance is there! This run was by far the least tiring, but the shins (again) were not having it. Not as painful as the extra run in W1, but enough to not allow for speedy jogs.

Overall, we're completing about 2 miles of walking/jogging each time AND we've managed to workout out 4 out of the last 7 days! Tomorrow will bring W2D3; here's hoping the last two days of rest will have helped the muscles repair!

In other news, we went out to Screen Door last night for dinner and it was fantastic. I enjoyed the Screen Door Plate that included a few samples of their house made mac & cheese, fried catfish and coleslaw. Andy had a massive portion of fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and collard greens. We also ordered the hush puppies as an appetizer, not realizing how large the dinner portions would be. We brought home a LOT of leftovers! Following our feast, we checked out Full Metal Jacket at the Laurelhurst Theater for $3, while enjoying some after dinner coffee and candy. Talk about being desensitized to all things war... What's crazy is that I had previously seen the first 45 minutes of the film in a high school video production class, complete with all swearing and graphic imagery. Watching it 12 years later, I'm wondering how my teacher got away with showing it to a bunch of 16 and 17 year old kids. I recall him stating that the language wasn't anything we hadn't heard before, and we were supposed to pay attention to the filming style and incorporation of music. It's definitely an attention keeper no matter what your age!

Couch to 5k

If you're unfamiliar with Couch to 5k, the program gets you off the couch and jogging 3 times/week. By the end of 9 weeks, you should be able to run non-stop for 30 minutes. Here's a link for a synopsis of the workouts.

Personally, I'm still undecided on running a 5k. However, I have a feeling Andy is interested and we'll sign up for something before too long. I just completed W1D3 and Andy completed W1D2. I may repeat day 3 to stay on par with him and the extra run shouldn't hurt either.

Day 1: Felt like blah, running in cloudy weather on the nearby Burnt Bridge Creek trail. The run was easy at first; I made it 2/3 of the way before I felt super achy all over and walked the last 8 minutes.

Day 2: Felt okay, running in cloudy weather on the road/grass. Definite shin splints during the first 10 minutes, although I felt alright until the half way point and started dragging during the 5th run. I caught my second wind for the last two runs

Day 3: I felt good, running in cloudy weather on the BBC trail. I tried landing on my toes instead of my heels, which seemed to help keep away the shin splints. I did have a few right foot cramps for the first 5-10 seconds of the last few walks.

I'm trying to stretch for 20-30 minutes each day to keep myself limber. Yesterday before my run, I pulled a muscle in my back but ran anyway as it felt better than sitting in pain. Hopefully the strain will subside with my heating pad, stretching and rest!