Week 2: Portland Half – I Can Do This

Plan this week:

Mon: Strength Training (back, core, lower body, hips)

Tues: Run 3.5 miles

Wed: Cross Training – Cycling

Thu: Tempo/Internal 3 miles

Fri: Rest

Sat: Run 7 Miles

Sun: Rest

This week, I learned more and more about this ‘running’ thing.   I learned about proper hydration, stretching technique and even how mentally handle myself during the long run.   Again, it’s not the same with hiking at all.   The concept is the same, but there’s major different on the detail.    I love the fact that when I look back to last week, I know that I am better this week.    Yes, I know – it’s only week two, and I might hate this by the end of week 6, we shall see.   For now, I’m really starting to believe that I can actually do this running thing.   I don’t hate it.   I actually start to enjoy it.   In some way, it just like hiking to me.   I’m alone with my thought and there’s tremendous peace during it.   The sound of my shoes, my breathing and my heart beat become a perfect harmony that strangely enough, sounds pretty soothing in my ear.   Yes, I know.  I’m wierd.    In a good way, I hope.

How it went down:

Monday:

It took a lot of will-power on my part to get me moving to the gym.   I was tired and all I want to do just sit on the couch and do absolutely nothing.   My girls went to their dad, and it was so tempted to just veg out, but I mosey myself out of the house and went to the gym.   I did 10 mins warm up on the bicycle and start by doing 3 back routines, follow 2 leg routines, 2 hip routines and 2 core routines.  I did 15 reps, 2 set on each.   It seems fairly easy work out to me which made me wonder if I should do more or put more weight or do more reps, but I decided to be okay with it and went home.

Tuesday:

I was so tired and really didn’t feel like running.   I came home from work and sat on the couch and started to create excuse and justifications on why I should not go out and run but thanks to my mean awesome friends, Karen Lopez and Rob Drysdale that bullied encouraged me to just drag my behind off the couch and just do it (just like Nike), I managed to complete my run today.    John and I went to Snoqualmie Valley Trail and did our run/bike there.   He rode the bike alongside of me, while I ran.   I like that trail run a lot!   It’s pretty flat and wide and there’s interesting bridge that give us pretty awesome view.  I struggled a bit on the first half miles, but then I found my rhythm and finished strong.  I ran total 4.03 miles with about 12:30 pace and felt great afterwards.

Wednesday:

Today’s menu is cross-training, or any other cardio work out that is NOT running.   The suggestions are cycling, spinning, swimming or any aerobic class for 30 minutes.   I choose to do some cycling instead.   I set my machine to do a hill program, with level 10 (highest level is 20) and start pedaling.   It was fairly easy, even on the hard hill part and almost made me wonder if I actually need to bump it up a notch or not.  I sweat pretty good too.   I did 30 minutes on it and decided to call it a day.

Thursday:

Interval training – Tempo Run.   I need to run for 3 miles total.   The first miles is run for 12 minutes (5.0 speed) and I did just fine, and bump the speed up to 7.0 and ran really fast for 4 minutes, lower the speed down to 3.0 and jog for 2 minutes.   Repeat that twice with total a mile, and run for 12 minutes in the last miles.   On the second rep of the tempo run, and I actually had to reduce the speed a bit to get my breathing under control but in overall – I think I did okay.  I finished the whole routines withing 37.39.

Friday:

Rest. Day.  Yay.

Saturday:

Long run day.  I was a bit overwhelm with the task in hand.  Seriously, 7 miles is a LOT of miles and I never run that far without stopping.   The original plan is to go to Green Lake Trail and run a loop there while John ride his bike with my girls.  The girls would love it, and there’s playground and beach around to keep them occupied, but my youngest girl woke up feeling pretty crummy and even had a puke-fest in the morning so that plan is out.   I almost ditch the whole thing out and kept telling myself that my daughter needs me and I can run some other day.   Around 2pm, after almost 5 hours nap, she woke up with a huge grin on her face and back to her old-self.   So we packed the girls and dropped them at Grandma (thank God for Grandma!) and went to Lake Sammamish trail instead.     I put on my audiobook on (thank you Karen Lopez for this tips!) and start my run while John rode his bike alongside me.  To combat the overwhelm feeling I had, I broke the total miles into smaller chunks and focus on that.   I know I can run 3 miles just fine so I focus on that.   Before long, my iPhone told me that I reach 3 miles and I was feeling strong, so I kept on going another half-mile and turn around.   I kept running, and running and again, before long, my iPhone told me that I ran for 6 Miles!   Then it dawn on me that I only have a mile to go!   I finished the whole 7 miles withing 1:29 minutes with cheek-to-cheek grin to John.   My average pace is 12:29.   Not bad for the first timer!!   I felt great afterwards, nothing really hurt or sore.

Sunday:

Rest day.  Love it.

Fundraising:

I haven’t done any fundraising effort at all, other than mouth-to-mouth so there’s not much movement.   I plan to send my first email out this coming week, so we’ll see how it goes.   For all of you that happen to read this blog, maybe I’ll start with you.   Please help me fund my future medicine.   Yes, you read right.   The funds I raise will be used for research and development for future medicine, as well as patient support program by Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.   MY medicine.   Please visit my fundraising page here.