New Apt

My new apartment is not what I had imagined it to be... but it's a lot better in a lot of ways.
We don't have internet until Wednesday, so I've been hiking the 10 minutes to school everyday to check my email, watch some TV, send out resumes and talk to people.

I've had to learn to compromise on what seems like EVERYTHING. I can't be a slob at my new place - my boyfriend seems to get anxious if things aren't in their rightful place, and he won't sit down to relax unless all teh dishes are washed and everything is clean. Our new place is quite spotless and organised, but it takes a lot of effort.

I've had to move all of my things to make room for his, but we seem to have found a lovely balance so far. He has claimed the spare bedroom as his office/laboratory and the bedroom is decorated with my posters, holds most of my clothes in the closet, and we're using  my sheets & pillows on his (larger) bed.

I have lots of plans for the next month, mainly to BECOME EMPLOYED already!
We've been getting into a lovely routine of evening walks to the park, and I've been experimenting running up the one massive hill. It's insanely tall - I finally ran all the way up and almost puked. My aim for the end of this month is to do repeats of it - ALL the way up. We'll see how it goes.

I'll update again with pics (maybe) and more frequency once we have internet! :)

This week's (speed) challenge

I was talking to Calvin (the boyfriend) about wanting to get faster at the mile distance. As I excitedly chatted away as his eyes glazed over, I realised he may not be the best person to talk to about miles, treadmills, or anything cardio related.

[He has recently started lifting weights. So we're allowed to talk about weights, muscles, food as fuel, races I've signed up for in order to sync schedules and electrolytes.]

I decided the conversation should be ended right there before he gets completely bored and learns to associate speed and running terms with having a bad time, and then he will NEVER come to my races :( So the conversation will get shifted to this blog.

I have some time off since my last undergraduate semester has ended. I'm still waiting back for one grade, but things are smooth. My room-mates are relaxing, everyone is partying as they say goodbye and go back to their own homes. My days have actually been refreshingly slow and boring. I am still volunteering a little. I am seeing friends when they ask me to hang out (Hi Fadey!!) and I am planning a big trip to BC for my birthday.
But one thing my time off has been lacking is a schedule, and some discipline. I wake up late, do nothing, and then go to bed late. I've been completely missing the morning, and therefor half the work day. I have a few errands to run, so I need to get my act together. I've also stalled on my half marathon training plan and should definitely get back to it!

So here's the plan: In order to keep busy, accountable and motivated, I am going to do a speed/consistency challenge for a week. I am going to run ONE MILE everyday. I am going to try beat my time of 8:48 8:21 and get faster until Friday, when Calvin gets back. I've told him to ask me how fast my fastest mile is, and I'm already able to say that I'm faster than the last time he saw me :)

So Monday's already been a success!
(The second part of this challenge is to also fit in my normal HM training in with this challenge. I would like to get the mile done in the morning as soon as I wake up and then go to the gym 3 evenings this week to do my weekly mileage in. My long run will still be on Sunday, unless the weather suddenly turns beautiful, in which case I will switch around my days)

London

When I was packing for my London (Ontario) weekend, I noticed that I had packed a LOT of cables.

• My laptop charger.
• My Garmin uploading cable.
• My phone charger.
• My earphones (when they get tangled up, I go ahead and call them cables.)
• My E-reader charger cable.

While that may not be extreme for some people, I think it's a lot for 2 days away from my house. Just imagine all the cables I didn't take!

So I was thinking about electronics, and how they all used to be AA battery-operated when I was a kid. Which was a perfect situation, because whenever one set of batteries ran out, I could always steal another set from somewhere else. AAA were always trickier, and they remain unusual in my mind.

As an adult, I still have (too many?) lots of electronics. Even my leisure reading book is electronic! And I was thinking about this during my run. Since I was testing out my new Garmin's GPS abilities, I was thinking how far technology has come. I mean - I can mark down my friend's house, get dropped off 5 miles away and my WATCH  will tell me how to get back!!

While I would still trade TV for real-life action, I am glad I didn't get lost today. :)

The best thing about London is that it has hills! Here's one I ran earlier today, this was the first 5k of my run (/walk) today:

10 days ago....

... I left India and came back to Canada. It's been fun, so far:

I went running - 3km barefoot

I like staring at my adorable kitty while he's sleeping.

I spent a week (and a weekend) in London and we talked while sitting on the hood of a car

Played pool at a friend's house. I'm still working on my Break

When I was in India, I especially missed the variety of foods and choices that I enjoyed in Canada. I missed the convenience of a supermarket that stocks EVERYTHING. I missed the freedom to cook  for myself and enjoy non-spicy food. So I was very excited to come back and COOK for myself! Even the grocery shopping trip was fun :)

I restocked my seaweed supply and made vegetarian sushi.

I eat A LOT of stirfrys because they are super easy and yummy

We don't eat the greatest in London... but it works occasionally! Fried mushrooms with peppers and onions, and garlic bread.

And that's a few pictures from my time back. I want to get a long(ish) barefoot run in this weekend and I'll come back with a recap (or excuses) for that. I've also been biking and have plans, hopes and aspirations, to do a 50k ride sometime in the near future. 

I can stand on each foot with my eyes closed for over 45 seconds! Can you? (This indicates balance and whether you should work on it.)

Return to Real Life

Okay, a quick recap of my 2 months in India, and I'll try and keep it brief and in order:
(I stole some of the pictures from two other interns, Analucia and Emily. They're very nice and I doubt they'll mind.)

We arrived and had to adjust to crazy traffic.

We ate a lot of food, with a lot of new friends.

We went to the AIESEC June National Conference (JNC) and made even more friends.

I even met someone I knew before! 

As it was an internship at a school, I spend a lot of time with kids.

Sometimes it was too much time, and sometimes there were too many kids.

I worked on learning the alphabet and I can now spell my name in Gujarati.

There were 5 of us working at the school from AIESEC, and I left India knowing that I had 4 amazing new friends that I could count on in the world.

We went travelling together.

We jumped together.

We sat on the road together (I'm not sure why).

And we experienced a new culture together.

I tried to fit in a bit of exercise when I wasn't busy travelling, playing with the girls or helping judge sports competitions. 

I went running along the riverside a few times.

I got blisters from rowing at Nakki Lake.

And we walked a few times... when our rickshaw's engines stopped working... in the middle of a rainstorm :)

And now I'm back in Canada after 4 very long flights. I've spent a lot of time thinking about all the things I've learnt this summer, and how I can incorporate these things into my life and my work placement, to be a better person and a better social worker.  I've got a couple of weeks before school starts and I plan on getting a head start on the new semester. I'd like to be a lot more organised this year, as well as be a lot stricter with my time.

I thought I would start running as soon as I got back - the weather is GORGEOUS! - but my bag with my running shoes got lost between Toronto and Windsor and I'll be separated from it until Friday. And for some reason, sitting in a seat for 18 hours on a plane isn't comfortable for my knees and I seem to have problems with them after a flight.

No worries - I plan to bike a lot and swim often and take an easy, but consistent, approach to running. No fixed races for the near future (because it's a lot of pressure) but I'd like to see some progress before it starts snowing :)

Bullets

Right now:

-my tongue hurts because I ate too many salted sunflower seeds.
-I am growing tomatoes on my windowsill.
-My calves hurt... some would say due to overdoing the new Vibrams, but I refuse to believe these lovely shoes would want to hurt me :)
-My cat decided he wanted outside this morning... so he ended up closely resembling a popsicle, since he had to stay outside until 5pm when I came back :(
-The 150min/week challenge is over at the gym. I thought it went until the end of Feb??? So I didn't win a T-shirt :(
-I went to the gym today with my new gym buddy. I had originally said 1h on the elliptical, but at the half hour mark, once my feet went numb and I sweated all the way down my shirt and wanted to quit, Modern Family came on and I decided to do my whole hour :D

Does anybody plan work-outs around the weather?

I used to live in the Middle East and I would try and run in the evenings/early nights to avoid the sun and the worst part of the heat.

Now that I live in Canada and experience changes in the weather, I have gotten into the habit of checking the weather online. I like to check the 5-day forecast and plan my outside workouts around the weather. (Or if it's snowing, hide inside head to the gym.)

The day after tomorrow is supposed to be +3 and rainy. I think I'll head outside for some fresh air on the day!! Nothing like relativity to make above-0 temps feel warm!

Recovery

I'm supposed to be studying for my Group Work midterm, but I keep getting distracted by the internet!
I have been thinking about getting some Vibrams for the longest time.

http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/products/Five-Fingers-Sprint-Womens.htm

I would love them in purple!!

The idea came about as I was cleaning my room and came across my pink shoes, which are reserved for summer and hold many awesome memories :)

Each summer I notice that the first few days I wear them I get a headache because I step too heavily in them. I then realise that the way I was changes, as they are basically made of pink material with NO support. However, once my feet get used to the heat (I could feel the ground in Kuwait) they are my favourite shoes to wear the entire summer. I even wear them swimming in the river/sea, as they dry quickly and are super versatile.

I will be sad when the day comes that I will no longer be able to wear them. They've lasted a bunch of years with minimal tearing and I am proud of them!

So...  Vibrams. They seem more durable and could withstand the pounding of running. I would love to try them out, but I'm a bit weary of the separate spaces for each toe, hmm.

Next time I am in London I will look around and see if I find any.

In the meantime... back to studying and resting my aching calf muscles (the hillbilly trail race this past weekend was tough!!)

Hillbilly 5k

EDIT: Results are out! Official finishing time was 48:16, and I wasn't last!! Perhaps I will do a trail race again :)




Hi everyone! I hope you've been enjoying your weekends :)


My weekend was spent ice-skating, going to the gym with friends, sitting in our igloo, breaking a light bulb in my hand (super painful) and my very first trail race.

Malden Park hill, in the summertime. Picture this with snow on top!

I will just copy and paste my race recap from DM:

Another shot of Malden Park - imagine this with lots of snow

My first trail race. I loved that it was low-key (they took back our race numbers!!) and there weren't too many people running it. We all got on the trail and received instructions, and I was standing at the back, so couldn't hear since everyone started talking. I heard to keep the red arrows on my right, but I didn't get the course details....

Once we started, it was straight up a hill. The snow was about 20cm deep, and I knew it was going to be a tough race since I had to walk 1.5min in. I ended up pacing behind Mr. Snowman (he walked all the downhills because he didn't want to be the Rolling Snowman) and there were two ladies behind us. I stayed with this group for about 10min, before we let the women run ahead. I started going slow due to the snow (never really ran in the snow before), the knee (****ing hurt this morning, luckily the strap is sort of dulling the pain), and the incline (need to train on hills more). I lost Mr. Snowman after the bridge, where he turned around to make sure I took a right and didn't get lost :) Very nice of him!

After around 15min, I was by myself. It was nice - there wasn't pressure to keep up or keep running if it hurt or I didn't feel it, because I was already last. This is one fear I've conquered! Being last isn't so bad :)

The course was mostly off the normal tracks, and certainly off-road, through the trees and up every single hill they could find! I got lost because I found the road and followed it  - I should have known they wouldn't have made it that easy!!

I came up to some ladies taking pictures of everyone coming downhill... and when I asked which way everyone went they said I was off the track!! They weren't very helpful - they just said to go back and find the arrows. So ~8 mins later, I'm back on track. The worst part was that the first two ladies that were behind me in the race, also went past the picture-ladies. They weren't told to turn back, they kept running. Turns out they only ran about 3k though! So I'm super glad I turned back.

Walk, walk, walk, run... I get passed by 3 people doing the 10k! Haha, at least the first girl was really nice :) I then met a family cheering all the runners, and they told me it was just down this last hill to the finish. FINALLY!! 48:17 and I was last.

My boyfriend was waiting at the end with a hot tea :) They took my race number away (I was 255) and Calvin told me a lot of people doing the 10k dropped to the 5, and several people got lost. Most people were saying it was a tough course!

I sat in the car crying because it was a really tough race for me - I didn't want to skip it and get a DNS (why sign up anyway?!), but I also didn't want to start it and drop out and see a DNF with my name. So I walked a big chunk of the course, I WENT BACK to find the course route, I finished my damn 5kilometres and know I didn't cheat.

My time isn't stellar, but I'll take it for my first (winter) trail run!!! :)

Saturday

Hi everyone!

I know the last post had a lot blood in it, but this post should be happier!

Here is a picture of my kitty:

This is from a while ago, and he was angry that I woke him up :(

I slept in today, until almost 11am!! It was awesome:)

I then had an AIESEC  meeting which was a lot of fun! Our OGX (out going exchange) team is awesome and I look forward to working with these people :D

I studied a bit after I got home from that, and wasn't planning on going outside since it was snowing all day.

We were supposed to go food-shopping, but it's on the list for tomorrow.

(I looked up some cool recipes for Indian dishes, and I am super excited to try them in the next week!!)

---

RUNNING PART OF THE POST! :)

I had plans to go to the gym with Julia at around 5-6, but we ended up going at 7.

I always see a bunch of people I know at the gym, and it's fun because I sometimes don't get to see them in the outside world. I was on the treadmill next to my summer room-mate today and I got caught up on the house drama lately :) I am super glad I moved out of that place....

I felt pretty great today running. Considering I donated blood at the start of this week, I am 99% back to normal, it feels like. :)

However, my knee is really acting up. It's my stupid left knee, and I bought a knee brace to try see if it helps, but I keep forgetting to take it with me to the gym!

Muscles are hurting when I do crazy inclines on the treadmill, so I may try to stay away from that.

I did a few reps on the 'rowing machine' yesterday and my arms hurt super crazy. It's such an odd feeling, since my arms almost never hurt in normal life.

I have a 5k next weekend!!!! It's a TRAIL run AND a hill run. I am more than a little scared, but I'm not looking for time on this race... I just want to come in before the last person!

It should be a fun time, and at $15 I think it's one of the cheapest races I will do! :)

Failure

Well, in a running sense, I am a failure.
I broke my blog-promise last night because I did not go for a run.
GASP.
I really wanted to go - I was even dressed to go! But I got into an argument with my roomate, and it was just more important to sort it out than go running.
I am also not going today, because it is very snowy and I don't feel like being cold tonight. There is plenty of time this weekend for a long and cold run :)


However, I am not a failure in other respects:

• I am a student leader on campus. I am part of VISA and AIESEC  and proud to be part of them.
• I am in my 3rd year of university and doing well so far.
• I have run 2 5ks, one 10k and one half marathon. I have signed up for two more 5ks and one half marathon this year.
• I have great roomies that want to do an Adventure Race with me!
• I am injury-free.
• I am super busy but make time to get in enough sleep :)
• I am healthy and haven't been sick in a long time.
• I volunteer a lot, so I feel connected to the community :)

Hehe, there's my list of awesome to make me feel better.

Dailymile

The point of this blog post is to make a promise to myself.


DM is saying I haven't run in a week.
But I played Kinect Sports (track & field - hurdles) a few days ago and my bum hurts. So I really want to count it as running.


This past week, each and every day I've thought about going for a run. I had even gone so far as to putting aside time for it. I felt bad each day I didn't get to go.


Here is my list of excuses:

Icy sidewalks

Busy Gym/Hate treadmills

No time

Too dark outside.

I think all those are fair things to consider as I like to run outside. I like to bundle up with double layers of everything, plan out my route on Google, make sure to carry a phone and ID. I even leave my route on my laptop in case anything happens and my room-mates need to find where I went.

But the biggest issue was the it's dark outside, or that the sidewalks are icy. Well I'm not afraid of the dark... and there isn't much ice out today.

I WILL go for a run tonight, after my Toastmasters meeting!!!

Hehe, and then I will finally be able to log into DM without feeling bad :)

Bloggerland

Today (yesterday) was a long, long day.
It started at 6am. It included a 40 minute freezing walk in the cold to waste time because I was too, too early for work this morning.
Today was MAKING POVERTY EVERYONE'S BUSINESS. It included the chance to listen to some amazing speeches and meet some awesome people within my community. I learned a lot and met some passionate people. I was a note-taker this morning and was able to listen in on the brainstorming process that goes on behind Poverty-reduction strategies from a non-profit point of view. There were some common themes and concerns with the process, but even business owners agree that taking little steps NOW can lead to a big change 5 years down the line. A Living Wage is one example.


Enough about my work :)


I didn't have much time between work and my 7pm meeting at school.
Calvin had said he didn't want to drive me out just yet (at around 5:30), so I took that as a sign I shouldn't head out. I changed out of running clothes and went into bum-vegetable mode.
A few minutes later he says he's ready to drive me. I had already decided to skip the run.
I went back and forth, vocalising my indecision to go for a run.
I then realised I had posted it on my blog, so I HAD to go out! :)


I ran 6.6km today, in about 45 mins (slow) but I got out there, felt great, and didn't let myself down! :)
I may go for a run tomorrow, but I think it's date night - next long run will definitely be Saturday.

Non-Running

Am I allowed to post an entry on a running blog if I haven't run today?
I would say YES! because I think rest days are very important when you're training for a long distance race.

I hate following specific training plans. Sometimes I just don't feel like running and having my expected mileage written down makes me feel guilty about wanting to stay in bed or at home on my computer. Sometimes I don't feel up for a run (especially a long one) so I'll want to ride my bike instead or just do some easy Elliptical cardio. The master of rationalization that I am, I have come up with 3 reasons why cross-training (or resting) are great for running:


+ You'll strengthen your body by using other muscles, which will improve your overall training.
(I hear) this one especially applies to strength training. I don't do as much of this as I should, but I did have a brief love affair with weights last year. While I was working on my core, legs and arms, I found that my legs had more power and running felt easier. I hear that with a good core (I wouldn't know) your running form improves and this should prevent injuries by reducing impact force and bad foot landing (so overall technique).
This could also incorporate swimming. I know I find swimming difficult since I have tiny arms with little power to drag me through the water. However, the act of staying afloat develops your core and it's always nice to have toned arms :)

+ You'll prevent over-use injuries by giving your legs a break.

It's called ACTIVE RECOVERY. Think bikes, elliptical or swimming. While you're still working out, you are still getting the health (and weight loss) benefits without using the same exact muscles as when you run. There is still a lot of blood flow within your body and research has shown that this brings nutrients back to tired muscles and helps repair any damage if your last run was intense (ever experienced DOMS?)

+Take a mental break from running
As much as I love the biology of running, I do understand that it's a very mental sport. You have to WANT to run and LIKE to run to get out there enough to improve. I always find that taking a break from running makes me miss it a little and enjoy it more. I also think cross-training gives me an opportunity to enjoy something else other than running. I would have never realised that past the intensity of swimming there's a sense of calm and quiet beneath the surface (haha) that I just love. (Sometimes being injured can turn into a positive thing!) By venturing a step away from running, I've gotten a peek into the world of other races - triathlons, for example - that I may want to try in the future.


So... don't feel bad if you don't feel like running today. Try and get out for a walk, bike or swim and enjoy the day instead of worrying about it or feeling guilty.

New blog

Hello everyone!


I've just deleted my old blog and started this one. :)


My last blog saw me training badly for my first half marathon and running it close to my 20th birthday! It has seen me move houses three times, run 3 races and document my time at the gym over the course of 2 years.


Perhaps I should introduce myself:
+I'm a social work student.
+I'm very interested in health.
+I'm a vegetarian and 5 years will be marked on Nov 11.
+I live in Canada and love how many road races are put on every month of the year :D


I hear that goal setting is a good way to stay focused and motivated. So here are some goals for this blog:
+ to meet other people that stay fit through running or have similar goals to me.
+ learn about how to get faster.
+ document my journey to my second half marathon and little races along the way.
+ a place to keep my thoughts regarding running so they don't float away.


My running goals for the future are:
March 6th - Spring Thaw 5k, Windsor
May 1st - Forest City Road Race HM, London
June 5th - Trot to the Beach Half Marathon, Blenheim


And finally, here's some running stats from DailyMile, since I joined that site (jan 25th):


196 total miles, 60% of which is running.
My other miles were done walking, cycling, swimming and using the elliptical (although I mostly don't include it since it's weird mileage).