Tired, Tired Legs

Today was Saturday, which means it was a long run day.  As it was still below 10 degrees outside, it was off to All American for a long five miles on their concrete track.

I am trying to make sure that I run early on my long run days to help mimic what actually race conditions will be like.  It was rough trying to get my muscles to losen up after only being awake for an hour.  My second mile was over twelve minutes- Lee actually saw me struggling and ran with me for a few laps.  I was having such a hard time physically getting with it.  Mentally I was doing great, which was really nice.  My head knew that five miles was no big deal.  My last mile was actually my fastest- I ran it in under nine minutes!!!!  My legs are really, really tired now.  Really tired.  So tired.

There was plenty of entertainment on today's run.  A thin girl with an Ipod was booking it around the track.  I kept watching her because she had an interesting running position- she really moved her torso dramatcically from side to side as she ran.  She also had on a really cute pair of grey running tights.  I kept attempting to see what brand they were because I really love running tights.  There was a small logo on the back waistband, and I kept trying to see what it was without looking like I was checking her out.  She ran too fast for me though.  Bummer.  The kickboxing class was going on as I ran, which is always nice because they have awesome music at a good tempo.  I like watching what they're doing and am relieved that I'm just running- that class looks so hard!!!  I keep telling Danielle and Lee that I want to do it, but I'm sure it will kick my hiney.  Maybe I could earn some abs in that class.  There were also some guys running that were discussing their dates the night before.  One guy was complaining that his date kept ordering really expensive sushi rolls and he didn't know if he was going to have enough money to pay for the meal.  I also had sushi last night (at Fuji with some of my closest friends), and I wonder what she picked out.  I discovered a new roll that I like- it's the Kazu roll- it has snow crab in it.  Yum.

The weather should be a little nicer this week- up to the thirties and forties.  I'm going to try and brave one of my shorter runs outside one afternoon and give my feet a break from the pavement at the gym.  Plan B (if I chicken out and think it's too cold) will be the treadmill.  I usually hate treadmills, but I think it may be necessary for my poor heels.

Today's Post-Workout Snack- Fruity Smoothie
--1 ripe banana, cut into chunks
--a few frozen strawberries
--a few frozen raspberries
--a few frozen cherries
--about a third cup soymilk
--1 scoop protein powder

Place all items in a blender and pulse until smooth.  Drink and enjoy!  ***  Post-workout recovery drinks and proteins should be consumed within thirty minutes of exercise to restore your glycogen stores.

Today's Stats: 5 miles in 53.06 minutes