Top 5 runs

I know that I have not been running for very long but I have had some great runs so far.  Here is a list of my top 5 runs over the last year:

1: Running along the beach.
2: Running the 5 mile trail run.
3: Running with my sister-in-law Katherine.
4: Running my first 5K.
5: My longest run of 7 miles 2 weeks ago. 

Running Break?

Once again I have encountered a hurdle in my running.  A couple of weeks ago I went to the Chiropractor because I was having some neck pain that wouldn't stop.  The Chiropractor started her assessment and immediately told me my left hip was higher than my right and that I had a severe curve in my spine.  She took some x-rays and told me I had scoliosis.  The next day she went over the x-rays and we saw 3 curves in my spine.  I told her how I am a runner and I am training for a half marathon and she advised me to stop running for good.  She said that it wasn't bad for the curves in my spine but that it was rubbing an exposed disk in my back raw.  She says that if I continue running, as I get older I am going to have a lot of pain.  I was shocked and I still feel like I am trying to process this new information.  Since I have started running over a year ago, I seem to keep hitting hurdles.  It seems as if I am not meant to run.  But I am not giving up that easily.  I have halted my half marathon training and have been doing slow and easy runs.  I have set up an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon to get a second opinion.  If he advises me to stop running, I may accept defeat.  But I will not go down without a fight!

6 mile run

I had my long run this morning and had to run 6 miles.  That is the farthest/longest I have ever run.  I got up bright and early at 6:30 am and made the run in an hour and 4 minutes.  Along the way I saw some deer grazing in the grass and it made my morning!  The last mile was incredibly hard and it took all of my willpower not to stop and walk, but it is so worth it.  I am running longer and improving my time.  Here's to hoping I have enough energy to get me through the rest of the day!

Motivation

"It's very hard in the beginning to understand that the whole idea is not to beat the other runners. Eventually you learn that the competition is against the little voice inside you that wants you to quit."
George Sheehan

1/2 Marathon Training

Since I started running, I have had a huge desire to run a half marathon.  A marathon has always seemed completely overwhelming to me being a mom of 3 and back in school.  I feel I just do not have the time to be able to commit to the training, but a half marathon would be doable.  I still have never found enough motivation to sign up for one until I heard my sister wanted to do one.  So now I am training for a half marathon in San Antonio in October.  I am in my third week of training and it has been great so far.  I have an easy run on Tuesdays, a tempo or hill run on Thursdays, and a long run on Saturdays.  This morning I did a 4 mile tempo run and it was rough!  The most I have ever run in one day is 5 miles, so doing 4 miles at a tempo pace was not easy.  I thought I wasn't going to last the last 10 minutes of the run, but somehow I made my legs keep moving.  I feel stronger than I have ever felt as a runner and I am really looking forward to running with my sister! 

Back in the Game

I am finally starting to find my groove in running again!  I basically had to start all over again with running after my injury but I finally ran 4 miles last Saturday and then Tuesday and Thursday of this week I ran about 3 3/4 of a mile.  My pace is much slower now as well.  Before my injury I was averaging about a 10 minute mile and even faster during races.  Now I am averaging an 11 minute mile and I feel like I am pushing myself to get that done.  I know that it is just going to take a little time before I get back to were I was and I am just praying I can go a while without any injuries.  I have incorporated a dynamic stretch program before I run and I make sure to do a lot of long and slow stretches when I get done.  Another difference in my running is that I have had to adapt to running in the evening.  Dave has had to go into work super early the last couple of weeks and I would need to run at 3 am if I wanted to run in the morning.  The winter was nice because it didn't really matter what time of day I ran because there was no beating sun to worry about.  I have tried running at 10 in the morning and it was already too hot.  I have also tried 5 pm and that was still too hot as well.  So now I try and go at around 7 or 8 pm and it has usually cooled down enough to not be completely miserable.  I don't mind sweating and the heat, but the sun beating down on you while you run is just a feeling I cannot overcome. 
I am not sure when I will run another 5k but I have been invited to participate in 2 different marathons towards the end of the year.  I am not sure if I am going to do them because I just don't know if I will have that much time to devote to running.  I would love to try, but we shall see!

April Race

I did not run in a 5K for April.  I am kind of disappointed that I had to break my goal but I was just not ready to run.  I guess now I will have to run 2 races in 1 month!