Oh, hi again. This was such a momentous occasion that I thought it deserved it's own post.

I went for a run on Sunday, for the first time in months. MONTHS. Like, 6 months.

Last fall, we were going to the gym all the time. Every day, for 3 or 4 months, we'd get on the early ferry and head straight for the treadmill. We were doing so well for so long and then, as the weather started getting worse and it started getting super dark outside, we stopped getting up when the alarm went off, voting to slam the snooze and cuddle up instead. To stay warm, of course.

So, now that it's like...25 degrees out there AND in our house and the sun rises before the roosters (they are on island time), we really have no excuses. Kurt has been back in the gym for about a month now, but me? Not so much. I've been more focused on getting better, sleeping better, eating better (another FAIL lately) and, unfortunately, have let the feeling better part of the equation slide. On Sunday, on a whim, I dragged my running shoes and intervals watch out of where they had been hiding and took them for a run. And you know what? It wasn't so bad. Considering that I have done basically no physical exercise since late November, I was surprised at being able to run at all. I made it through about half an hour of running/walking and felt OK by the time I got back to the apartment and even felt pretty OK that night.

And then today I wanted to kick the yesterday Me's ass, because my legs are KILLING ME. It was even painful to sit in a beach chair and tan, because even when they aren't moving, my legs are hurting. I'm being punished for months of slothy behavior and I know it.

Ow.

I'm so delinquent. I blame the nasty cold and even nastier allergies I've been dealing with, all of which are on the mend, thanks to some lovely prescriptions which I now rely on heavily. I hate that. Though, this is apparently the worst time of year for allergies here, so at least I know it's not going to go any further downhill than my pink eye. Which isn't actually pink eye, but looks just enough like pink eye to make my co-workers walk around me with worried expressions and wash their hands obsessively. At least the prescriptions took care of that awkwardness.

While the early stages of wedding planning have begun to consume an inordinate number of my hours, I'm determined to keep myself cool, calm and composed. That being said, I'm already dealing with a bit of internal craziness over the booking of our venue. I think we've narrowed our search down to three locations, all of which would work with our (very loose) vision of the day, but none of which I want to jinx by mentioning...yet. Something about the fact that I'm here means that people take me less seriously and are less likely to get back to me, which is seriously annoying. I know it's because they can not physically lure me into their venue and pepper me with all of the amazingness and magic they encompass. I've actually filtered out one specific place for that reason only...it would have been perfect in every way, but their response time was crap and I just can't deal with chasing people down from here. My whole wedding budget would be consumed in long-distance charges. Anyways, the three finalists are all amazing for different reasons, and do what we need them to do. We want something unique, all-encompassing, God-less and well-situated, including a back-up plan and a great view. Is that too much to ask? IS IT??? No, I think not. Come on, Victoria. I sent half of my United Way donation to you last year, which means that one more homeless person has glasses...or something like that. Throw me a bone here.

Anyhoo...yes, what I was saying about being cool, calm and composed? Riiiight. I so am. Once this is nailed down, the rest will just fall into place. I know a big part of my problem also has to do with me being totally impatient, so I think some yoga is in the cards for me this weekend.

This week went by surprisingly fast. This time, I'm happy for time moving quickly. Mostly because I want to get to March 1st, which is when we are officially restarting our "regime". I haven't laced up my running shoes once since we got back (though I did a lot of running while we were away, and I DID have a nasty cold as an excuse), and I'm anxious to get going again. This week of sleeping in, missing breakfast and feeling too lazy and/or sick to cook has done a number on both of us. We're both very...blah. Anyways, Saturday it is. Running, new recipes, more sleep, clean the house. By the end of the weekend, we'll feel so "together" it will be ridiculous. At least, that's the plan...

Of course, right after I get the wheels in motion with my blog, I lose steam almost immediately. This time it was health-induced. I think I'm fighting something but not actually sick...if that makes any sense. My Monday run was amazing...so good that I actually jogged instead of walked for my little cool-down afterwards. But by Tuesday, my entire body felt like lead and I was lagging behind Kurt, and today I skipped my run completely. I guess everyone has those days. Still, it's a bummer to have to delete scheduled work-outs from my overly-scheduled calendar. As a little test, I went for 3 days without taking the glucosamine and guess what? The pain came back. So, started taking them again on Monday and guess what? Now it's gone again. Very. Interesting. My unsolicited endorsement stands. And my knee is feeling fabulous enough to do one final 7.5km along that narrow, windy stretch of road before moving production to a different oceanside locale. I don't know yet if I'll be doing any running while we're away. The beach is too slanty to run on (at least, it was last year), but I might be able to try it along some of the little roads in the town we're staying in. My shoes and watch are coming with me, so at least I'll have it as an option, if I get bored with exploring or poolside reading. Ha. Very unlikely.

I forgot something on my UPE: Running Checklist: lululemon headbands. I own at least 10 of these and use them constantly. They're especially helpful when you have long hair (check) and it's windy (check). Be careful though, because one size does NOT fit all, in my experience. My brown one is at least an inch larger than my white one and my green one is totally useless for running because it doesn't stay in place.

Yesterday morning, I reached my first running goal, which I set when I started running again last November. After not having run for almost 6 months, my goal was to run for 40 minutes. I did that this morning, running about 7.3 km in total.

While my distance/time may seem short/slow to some more advanced runners, it's huge for me. Mostly because I always hated running as a kid, loathed any gym activities that incorporated it, only started running seriously last year, and spent 6 months of that year nursing a crap knee. This is a real accomplishment for me, also because I normally give up on anything that requires consistent early-rising fairly quickly.

I rely on a number of things to get me through my runs, which I'm only now just beginning to really enjoy. These have become priceless and I highly recommend them.

1. The Running Room. For anyone who has never taken a Running Room clinic, the idea of running around the neighborhood with a bunch of strangers may not seem so appealing. I was a skeptic, but I signed up last March to get my ass out of the house and to see what I could do with a little motivation. The clinic cost me about $70 and lasted 10 weeks, and was more than worth it. Through their 10&1 system, I worked my way from 0 to 5 km in under 10 weeks. 10&1's are the Running Room's formula for running - run 10, walk 1. You start at run 1, walk 1 and work your way up to running 10 and walking 1 by the end of the clinic. The idea is that using 10&1's you can avoid injury and muscle pain, because it allows the lactic acid that builds up in your muscles during the running portion to drain during the walking minute, as well as allowing you to regain some energy through slower breathing. I don't know about the science, but I know that I am a faithful, pain-free subscriber (knee aside) and plan to always run this way. My instructor ran a marathon at the end of our clinic using 10&1's the entire time and her time was amazing. Anyways, the Running Room is a fantastic resource and worth checking out.

2. My Timex 50-Lap Ironman Triathlon Sleek watch. I love this thing. I picked mine up for under $50 and it is definitely a must-have if you are running 10&1's, or any intervals at all. Why? Because you can set it to time your intervals so that it counts them down for you and beeps loudly when the interval is over, saving you from having to constantly keep an eye on your watch, and automatically repeats them until you hit 'stop'. Even if you're listening to music and have to keep an eye on your time, it counts the sets as well, so you always know where you're at. Typical Timex...easy to set, easy to use.

3. Lady Hathaway Sports Bras. Secretly recommended to me by a Running Room employee, these awesome sports bras are sold at Costco in a package of 2 for $19.99 and are often on sale. For comparison, I tried on some of the more expensive brands at various other stores and couldn't believe how much more comfortable the Costco ones are. If you turn them inside out, they're seam-free, though the seams have never bothered me at all. Plus, they're cheap enough that you can buy enough to rotate through, saving you laundry time.

4. Mizuno Wave Rider 10's. I ran with Asics through my running clinic and into the early summer, until my knee started having issues and I looked at my shoes more closely. I realized that they are meant for people who have feet that turn outwards, which mine don't. I have the elusive neutral foot, which doesn't turn outwards or inwards, meaning that the shoes were probably causing damage. The Running Room offers foot assessments when you buy shoes there, so that you know which type of foot you have. It's imperative that you buy the right shoes. These ones have been amazing and I've put over 250 km on them. They're light, cool and really comfortable.

5. lululemon Racer Back Tank. Best. Tank. Ever. For running, that is.

6. A buddy. While not really necessary in many neighborhoods, it's always recommended that you don't run alone. And if you do, to make sure you change your route often so that in the off chance that some creep is keeping an eye on you, you can avoid putting yourself in a "situation". I always have Kurt with me, riding behind me on the bike.

7. My Running Logs. I mentioned these before and was surprised that so many people were interested in being geeky like me and logging runs (or other types of exercise...whatever). The ones I use are through the Running Room and are free. Go to their website and sign up to use their tools. They're awesome...and they use fun colors for the visually motivated, such as myself.

8. Glucosamine. Now, this one is brand-new to me, so I'm not totally sure yet if I should be reviewing it yet but...so far, so great. I bought a Glucosamine/Chondroitin/MSM complex to take each day (two gigantic horse pills that I can barely gag down) in the hopes that they would improve my knee. I self-diagnosed my knee as being a case of "runner's knee", which is a pretty common and not too serious problem involving my knee not tracking properly and grinding under the knee cap. Yes...gross. So, after some serious googling, I found myself a bottle and started taking them two weeks ago. Two weeks ago, I could not walk down stairs without serious pain...to the point that I would often go down stairs backwards. I know. Ridiculous. However, I would yell placebo effect if I hadn't been in so much pain before, and able to walk down stairs like a normal person now, with very little pain or none at all. It's been a long time since my knee has felt normal, even though I'm running more now than ever. So...I'm giving glucosamine the thumbs up. The glucosamine itself isn't supposed to kick in for at least 4 weeks, but the other two components are fast-acting, so I think they've taken the edge off for me. Thank you, chondroitin and MSM, for allowing me to descend stairs without looking like a fool. Having bought mine here, it was pricey. However, one of the best combination pills is available at Costco (as well as a liquid version) and is relatively cheap. Even if you don't have runner's knee, it's fantastic for joints (often prescribed for arthritis).

9. MEC's Turtle White LED lights. We bought these originally as headlights for our bikes, but as the sun started coming up later and later, it was obvious that I needed some kind of light on me during the early morning runs. So, I grabbed mine off my bike and looped it around my watch strap. They're tiny, cheap ($3.50) and apparently have enough juice for 150 hours of light. I run with mine on the flashing setting.

And....

10. Goals/Rewards. I don't really work well without them, in any aspect of my life. Running is no different. I knew that I was starting from scratch in November, as if I'd never run before. Reaching a goal gives you a feeling of accomplishment, no matter how small your goal may seem to others. Now that I've reached my first, I'm going to wallow in self-glory for a few weeks and keep my runs the same and then start working towards 60 minute runs. That sounds like a long time...

And as far as my reward goes...that's tricky. I bought myself a necklace today for yesterday's accomplishment...nothing expensive, just something I saw and immediately loved and couldn't leave the store without. I do want an iPod Shuffle to clip on and run with, so maybe I'll work towards that going forward. 60 minute runs might be a tad boring without something to listen to.

The only worry I have right now is running out of space...literally. There is only so far I can go and really only one route I can take, and with only a limited amount of real estate to run on, I may have to get a little creative at the end of my route to be able to keep going...like, literally run in circles or something. If I turn the other direction out our front door, I have almost the entire country ahead of me, but the road is a lot less appealing with it's blind corners and worst driving ever (and I lived near Quebec...), so that's not really an option. Tricky.

Every time I finish a run, I log it in an online running log. I do this in part to keep track of how far I'm running and how often, and in part because I absolutely love filling in those little windows and watching my latest run pop up in my monthly stats in a pretty color-referenced table. Runs are blue, swims are green, cycling is red, yoga is yellow. I know...I have issues. However, if I didn't do this, I wouldn't know that I'd run 90.5 kilometeres so far in January, which equates to running the entire length of this country, and back again, plus an extra 10K on the end just for fun. A year ago, I probably couldn't have run to the end of my backyard without feeling like I was going to keel over, hack up a lung, and then die a slow and painful death on the lawn, amongst the dandelions and the dog crap left behind by our neighbor's wayward hound. Now, I finish feeling great and ready for the day, even though the long flight of stairs up to our apartment is far more difficult than normal and my legs are wobbly in the shower. It does take a toll on my morning solo dance party, but I'm proud of how far I've come.