Week 9: Day 1 - Feb. 29, 2016

• easy bike ride = 7.35 miles
• easy WALK with dogs = 2.5 miles

Almost 100% better, but not quite. I didn't feel strong cycling as I did last week. I finally got a battery for my bike pedometer/speedometer/computer, but I'll start using it on my next ride.

Week 8: Day 7 - Feb. 28, 2016

• easy trail RUN with one dog = 5.1 miles, time = 1:00:46
• easy WALK with three dogs = 2.1 miles

Total Running Weekly Mileage: 16.65

Total Running Monthly Mileage: 70.81

Total Running Yearly Mileage: 146.90

Total Running Shoe Mileage: 291.40

I had a sore throat and a little bit of coughing on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. I didn't mention this before because it wasn't a big deal and it stayed in my throat. I didn't have a congested, stuffy head, nose or chest. Then on Friday morning, I woke up with a very stuffy nose and a little bit of a stuffy head. I was lucky that I was still able to sleep on Friday night and last night even with a stuffy nose. Sleep has helped me feel better...enough to go for a run this morning. The run this morning has sweated off any virus or bacteria that I had, that I'm feeling much better now. Not 100%, but much better than the last two days. I ran a little slower than usual and I did take a little walk break, but I pretty much ran the whole way which was good considering.

Week 8: Day 4 - Feb. 25, 2016

• easy road RUN with one dog = 4.87 miles, time = 54:07, pace @ 11:07
• easy WALK with three dogs = 2.5 miles

Yay, sleep and rest day tomorrow!

Week 8: Day 3 - Feb. 24, 2016

• easy trail/road RUN with one dog = 4.48 miles
• easy WALK with three dogs = 2.5 miles

I just need to get through tomorrow's run and then I can take a break (no run or bike) on Friday. I think I need to catch up on sleep. I started the run feeling like I needed some sleep, but after ten minutes, I had a bit of a runner's high during my run this morning, so I know that I'm not bored or unmotivated with running. I don't work on Friday, so I'm in no hurry to be anywhere and I can sleep in until whenever. Walk the dogs in the morning and then sleep a few more hours until it's time to walk the dogs again.

Week 8: Day 2 - Feb. 23, 2016

• hilly trail RUN with one dog = 1.1 mile, time = 14:46, pace @ 13:25
• warm up = 1.1 mile
• cool down = 1.1 mile
• easy WALK with three dogs = 2.5 miles

It was so nice and cold on Sunday morning at 6:30am at the race location. This morning at 6:30am was not the same. WHY?!?!?!??!?!! What happened? I was enjoying the cooler weather on Sunday morning and now it's gone!

Week 8: Day 1 - Feb. 22, 2016

• easy bike ride = 7.35 miles
• easy WALK with dogs = 2.5 miles

My bike computer (speedometer thing) hasn't worked in a few months because it needs a new battery. I have to get a new battery for it soon. I think I'm getting better on my normal bike route that I do at home because the usual hills don't seem so bad anymore. I'd like to think that all the "mountains" that I trained/ran on had something to do with that.

Week 7: Day 7 - Feb. 21, 2016

• Firecracker Run (with one dog): 10k (6.21 miles) Official race time = 1:08:28, pace @ 11:01
• easy walk with four dogs = 2.1 miles

Total Running Weekly Mileage: 18.33

Total Running Monthly Mileage: 54.16

Total Running Yearly Mileage: 130.25

Total Running Shoe Mileage: 274.75

10K race is over...I can now relax and take it easy with running. Surprisingly...after eight weeks of running with four days a week, my motivation didn't crash and I didn't get so bored that I was in desperate need of a break. I don't need a break, so I'll continue running for awhile longer until I do get really bored and really lose motivation.

This year, the race organizers changed the course for both the 5k and 10k. I didn't realize that it would be the new routes until after the fact and I guess I will be running this new route next year and the following years. I just noticed the new change because it wasn't the same as last year or other previous years. In previous years, the hills that we (both 5k and 10k) had to run in the beginning seemed like mountains. They seemed like mountains to me. For me, there are hills and then there are mountains. I was starting to feel a little disappointed in the first three miles today because we were running hills and I was expecting a mountain. I even trained on mountains at home (I live in a city that was built on hills and these hills are not that easy). The mountain finally came somewhere between mile 3 and mile 3.5. The steep incline was short, but was so hard that I had to walk a little bit because it was worse than the mountains that I ran at home!

While I think it was great that the race organizers wanted to change the course and scenery for us because sometimes we needed that, I didn't like that the 10k people had to share the road with the 5k people who were trying to finish their race/run. I had to start at the back of the pack because I had a dog and there were so many people doing the 10k. I had to dodge all the people who were slower and it was harder to go around them when the 5k people were trying to run/walk and we had to share the road with them going the opposite direction.