A very runny Christmas

It was a good Christmas for me. My family and friends were very good to me, especially on the running front.

Hubby got me something I've wanted for a very long time: a Garmin 305, including heart rate monitor. Woohoo! I'm so excited to have more accurate data on my runs, especially distance. It'll be interesting to compare the data to what my dear Nike+ has delivered over the past 2 years. Though I'll likely keep on using the Nike+, too, given that I'm addicted to the challenges and website.



My parents were awesome and got me a new pair of running shoes... my trusty Asics 1140s. The new pair will be my shoes for clear conditions, while I'll be installing screws into my old pair for icy/snowy conditions. I love the colour, too!

My brother gave me a gift certificate to a sports store, while I did get a bit of money to spend on gear.

I was very blessed this year with non-running gifts, such as perfume and a new jewelery box. Life is good. Now it's time to work off the turkey dinner!

A week of milestones

This week I'll hit quite a few milestones. I'm pretty excited about them because it really drives home the fact that careful, measured training can pay off.

Tonight I'll mark the first milestone: the beginning of the second phase of my pre-half marathon training. This week I begin running four times a week. It doesn't sound like a big deal, I know. But, it's such a huge step for me. I tried to do this back in September, but it was just too much too soon. Now I'm ready to make the jump. For the next four weeks I will maintain my mileage at 28K a week. I'll run 3K on Mondays, 5K on Tuesdays, 7K on Thursdays and 13K on Saturdays. I just need to remember to slow down. I've been running my long runs too fast, even though my perceived effort is consistent. I always end up feeling like I could've gone faster.. but that's a post for another day.

I'm really looking forward to tonight's run. It's supposed to be warm (I love how warm is a relative term in the winter months!) at -3C, with some snow. I love running in downtown Ottawa at this time of year. The Christmas lights are lit and it feels so cheery and festive. I always come back from my runs in a good mood.