Scared to Run in the Dark

Fall has become my favorite time of year to run. The temps are perfect, the scenery is beautiful, no snakes, etc. Then daylight savings time hit and ruined my weekly running routine.

Where I live it's dark by 4:30 which is when I usually go for my run. But since I'm a woman and a little bit of a scaredy cat, I've been trying over the last few weeks to adjust my running so I can do at least two runs during the week. I've researched several options of what to do to make running in the dark safe and here are my experiences with that advice.

1. Run with a buddy

Me and my hubby

This one is hard for me because I am for sure a lone runner. I like listening to music, an audiobook, or pretty much anything other than having to hold a conversation with another person. Running is my alone time and I love that. But I tried this piece of advice anyways and grabbed my husband. He said he would run with me or near me so I would feel safe.

Well that fell apart as soon as he realized A.) He's not a runner and B.) He hates running. We were running and I needed to do three miles and he decided to turn at the mile 1 mark and make it a 2 mile out and back. I kept going on my favorite running trail and as I kept running I noticed it was getting dark very quickly. I was approaching one of my favorite spots of my run which looks like an enchanted forest. But with the dark encroaching on me, it started to look like that scene in Beauty and the Beast where Belle's dad is looking at the two paths, one dark and scary and one well lit and he pulls Felipe toward the dark path. Felipe, smarter than your average horse, pulls against the reigns as to say "What are you doing! That is clearly a bad idea!" To which Belle's dad responds "Come on Felipe, it's a shortcut. We'll be there in no time."

Well this is what this route was looking like to me. Good sense told me to turn back...and I listened. Glad I did too because it got completely dark before I even reached my neighborhood. I finished my run in my neighborhood and decided this might be a good idea which leads me into the next piece of advice:

2. Run in a well lit/safe area

The neighborhood I live in is very safe in my opinion and well lit so I decided for the my next run I would stay in my neighborhood and just run several out and backs to get my miles in. Well I took off around 5:00 and I figured I would see some other runners, walkers, bikers...someone! I didn't see a soul. Only person I saw was standing in his garage being way to still and creepy. When I got closer I realized it was a manikin, which seemed even creepier in my scared state. I finished my run early.

3. Run indoors

I decided to join a gym and just run indoors a couple days a week. Not that big of deal right? Well for me it is. I had tried the whole running thing a few years ago and quit because I hate treadmills. I get so bored and can't stop looking at my time and distance. "Is it almost over" mentality the entire run. I'm a fairly happy runner so this is new to me. But I decided to join a gym none the less.

I chose the cheapest one in town (mistake one) and jumped right on the treadmill. Well the treadmill was old, like the rest of the gym, but had a TV attached to the front. I thought "okay, this might be good." But the headphone jack on the treadmill I chose was broken so I couldn't hear it. That's okay I don't need a TV. However, the TV was like a foot from my face so I couldn't not look at the TV and therefore I couldn't concentrate on ANYTHING else - not my music, not an audiobook. It was terrible. I'd been running 4 miles on the road and 2 miles on the treadmill seemed like the worse decision I'd ever made. So I left after two miles and haven't been back since.

4. Join a running group

I'm the (slow) girl in the green jacket,
white headband in the front row.

Owensboro has a local running group that meets at a local running shop once a week. I've been thinking about going, but like I said earlier, I'm a lone runner. But since I needed a running buddy (that could keep up) I decided this might be the fix.

I showed up and soon we were off. Correction, they were off. I was slowly trudging behind them. One thing I forget in my lone running ways is that I'm slower than most runners. 12 minute miles usually, 11 on a really good day. These people were clearly faster and I was left in their dust. Luckily I wasn't the only one, there was one girl behind me. She was much slower than me, though, so I didn't stay with her long. Before I knew I was completely by myself in downtown Owensboro in the dark, the one thing I was trying to avoid.

I survived, obviously, (3.72 miles with a 12:15 pace) but that wasn't going to work either. I was starting to freak out that I wasn't going to get a run in during the week and then not be able to increase my distance and then not be able to train for and run my half marathon!

Then I had a thought: what if I just take off work a little early twice a week to get home and run in the daylight? Make up the time later (which is okay at my job). And that's exactly what I did yesterday. Three miles at a 11:25 pace. Not too shabby.

That's the thing about running. You've got to find what works for you.

I'm back! And running!

Well I'm back from my blogging hiatus with a new name and focus. Words from a Wobbly Yogi has now become Running, Reading, and Rocking. I still love yoga, but it has definitely taken a backseat to running.

So the when I stopped blogging I was training for a 5K, the Color Blast 5K. That went terribly. I wasn't nearly as prepared as I had hoped. That didn't stop me and I did another one in May in Frankfort, Kentucky. That one went wonderfully! Finished in 35 minutes and some change with two of my best friends in the world by my side.

Glow in the Park Run. That's me on the far left! So much fun!

So I kept running and did another one in August: The Glow in the Park Run. That one was a little hotter and the training was harder because of the heat, but I finished in I think about 38 minutes. Not too shabby considering I wasn't running like I'd like to.

The last race I did was at my college's homecoming. Very underwhelming race, but I finished in 32 minutes. However, I think the route was short because my Garmin said it was. So I'm taking that time with a grain of salt.

I've been running since that race attempting to increase my distance so I can, just maybe...run a half marathon in the spring! I'm planning on doing the Country Music Half Marathon, but like I said I'm working on increasing my distance to see if this is my thing. And so far...it totally is. I've been running about 4 miles as my long run and it is glorious! I'm planning to increase that this weekend to 4.5 miles.

Happy Birthday to Me!

So today is my birthday and I wanted to make a quick post of how I actually ran on my birthday!

And not just any run. I ran, for the first time in my life, four miles without stopping. It was a beautiful run. The first half was filled with music from my running playlist. "Welcome Home" by Radical Face anyone?

The second half was filled with my first audiobook while running. It's called the Wednesday Sisters and I highly recommend it. It's set in the 1960s and follows five house wives who are trying to figure out their place in the women's lib movement while learning to be better writers. I'm loving it so far!

Slipping on my Yoga Mat

Last night's class was a DISASTER! It was a little warmer than usual, I guess, and I was just slipping around like crazy on my mat! Both my hands and my feet were sweaty and I couldn't hold any of the poses for very long. I've had this problem before, but not nearly this bad. I had to drop to my knees a few times during downward dog just to wipe my hands off.

I don't think this is a problem that's going to get better as I go into summer. So I'm debating on purchasing one or more of these products:

• A Skidless Yoga Towel

 

• Yoga Gloves

• Yoga Socks

Does any one have any experience with these? I'm leaning more towards the yoga towel because I've seen people use these and also I just really like being able to have bare hands and feet in yoga. It's a more natural feeling. I already have to wear gloves in the winter when I run, and all year round when I bike because if I don't my hands sweat so much that I can't switch gears! (clearly this is a problem I've experienced in other areas of life). 

If anyone has any insight, let me know!

The Benefits of Yoga for Runners

Found this article the other day and thought it was pretty interesting.  I especially liked the part about the mindfulness needed in both practices, which is something I try to have in many areas of life.

The Benefits of Yoga for Runners

In other news, I did NOT want to go for a run yesterday. It was cold (37 degrees, feels like 27) with a lot of wind. I called my mom for some inspiration and she said she got up and walked at 5:30 in the morning, but then said the wind can be brutal and to not go if it was too windy.

So I was given an out and when I pulled in my driveway I had decided to not go. But then I got out of the car and noticed the sun was trying to shine, so I went. Good decision. With the right coat it was a very nice run. 1.25 miles as instructed by my 5K training guide. Glad I powered through.

Losing Flexibility

Last week I only made it to one yoga class, on Tuesday. Thursday I got caught up at work on a phone call so I missed class. But I did go for a run, so it wasn't a total fail.

The problem is that left me with only one class for a full week. My grandmother, who practices yoga regularly, told me that you can lose flexibility quicker than you would think. Well she wasn't kidding! I went to yoga last night and I could definitely tell a decrease in flexibility...in just one week! Makes me realize I really can't flake out if I want to remain flexible. Maybe I need to purchase that Tara Stiles DVD series I've been eying?

Other than that, it was a pretty successful class. Wasn't the best by any means this time due to missing class last Thursday and the super good girl was back showing off. Don't get me wrong, she's awesome and I want to be like her one day. But until then, she's a showoff. :)

New pose this week: Eagle Legs. We do Eagle Arms all the time, but this week we combined them with Eagle Legs. I was surprisingly stable through this pose.

5k Training

So not much to report on the yoga front. I've been training for a 5k in between classes so I ran a mile on Saturday and today. This has produced a little back pain but nothing a little Tara Stiles yoga can't fix! Also I'm back to yoga class tomorrow so that should help relieve some pain and soreness from running.

Motivation in Yoga

So I kind of felt like a rock star in my yoga class yesterday. There were two girls who had never done yoga before and one girl that had only been to one class. So when my teacher said "Okay you can go into child's pose OR you can go into a half series." We had just done a pretty tough string of poses so everyone went into child's pose. I was feeling great though so I went ahead and did a half series. Great feeling.

I also did something I've never been able to do (that I feel most human beings can do). When you lie on your back and put your feet in the air, can you straighten your legs? I feel like 99.9% of you can, but until very recently, I could not. I know this is a small thing, but it felt very big for me. So yay!

Running in between Yoga

Well I didn't make it to Saturday yoga, but I did go for a run both yesterday and today. Yesterday was intervals: run for a few minutes, walk for a few minutes. Today I walked for five minutes, jogged for 13 minutes and walked for 15 minutes.

This was per a 5K training guide I've been reading. I know it's not a lot, but I'm trying not to burn myself out. The 13 minute jog was actually really nice and I didn't get out of breath so I know I'm ready to move on. Wednesday I'm to kick it up to 15 minutes.

Progression of Poses: Week 3

I made some major breakthroughs this week with my one legged dog and I'm really working on getting the shoulder stand. Here's how far I've come!

Downward Dog Week 1

Downward Dog Week 3

One Legged Dog Week 1

One Legged Dog Week 3

One Legged Dog with a Hip Opener

Forward Fold Week One

Forward Fold Week 3

Warrior One Week One

Warrior 1 Week 3

Warrior 2 Week 1

Warrior 2 Week 3

Warrior 3 Week 1

Warrior 3 Week 3

Plow Week 1

Plow Week 3

Shoulder Stand...this was my first attempt at this

Foot Cramp During Yoga

So I haven't had a chance to write in the last few days so here's a quick recap of the last few days:

Monday: Went for another run and it went much, much better. I started off slower and ran for less time at first. It ended up being quite enjoyable and helped relieve my sore muscles.

Tuesday: Back to yoga finally. I thought it would be an especially difficult class since it had been a week since I'd been to yoga, but my muscles actually felt stronger, I'm guessing from running the past two days. I was able to move from a low lunge to a forward fold in one step.

Wednesday: No exercising. Ate pizza instead. A lot of pizza...

Today: Went to yoga and felt pretty successful. I did the best one legged dog I've ever done. Granted it was short lived, but for a few seconds both legs were straight and the leg that was up in the air was as high as the girl's next to me was (who seemed like an expert. Not sure what she was doing in the beginner yoga class).

One bad thing did happen. I got a terrible cramp in my foot while trying to go from pidgin to dancer. I guess I need more potassium? Not sure, but it was pretty unpleasant.

Tomorrow is a free day unless you count dancing to a funk/jazz band exercise (which I totally do). Then Saturday it's finally back to Power Yoga.

Yoga and Running

So as mentioned before, I have decided I need to add some cardio to my workout routine. I love yoga and it has in fact been the encouraging factor of why I want to start doing more cardio. So I decided that today I'm going to start running. I figure I need a goal, and this may be a bit out of my reach, but I want to try to finish the Color Blast 5k on March 23. Noticed I said finish. I don't know if I'll be able to run the whole thing because of how running went today.

 So the way I like to run is with music. I know a lot of people disagree with this because you can't hear your breath and keep your pace, but I love music. It encourages me to keep going and keeps me from getting bored. So here was my playlist:

1. Lose Yourself by Eminem
2. Thrift Shop by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis (Walk)
3. Raise Your Glass by Pink (Run)
4. Radioactive by Imagine Dragons (Walk)
5. Panic Station by Muse (Run)
6. Tiptoe by Imagine Dragons (Walk)
7. Lonely Boy by the Black Keys
8. Ho Hey by the Lumineers  (Walk)
9. (I cannot remember what I listened to but I ran to it) (Run)
10. On Top of the World by Imagine Dragons (Walk)

Overall about a 30 minute run/walk routine. A really good workout, possibly too good. But here was the problem. I started off with Eminem and my pace was pretty fast (too fast for someone who hasn't ran for nearly 2 years and wants to keep going after this song). But I thought, its only a 3 to 4 minute song and I can run this fast for that long. Well 'Lose Yourself' is actually a 5 to 6 minute song. I finished the song, and the entire run for that matter, but I never caught my breath. I kept thinking "And there are people who actually like to run???" I couldn't imagine in that moment ever wanting to run again.

Now I'm home and I can barely move. If I get up its a shuffle around my house (thank goodness I have hardwoods floors and socks). But I'm in a better state of mind about continuing running and I realize that that was the first step. I hadn't run in a long time, started out too fast and need to built up slower. So I am planning on running again tomorrow. Just a bit slower.

But I will not be doing my Progression of Poses today for two reasons:

1. I only went to one yoga class this past week so I don't know how much good it will do. 
2. I can't move.

So there you have it. First day of running a success because I finished what I set out to do, but now I am more tired than ever. I really hope this gets better. 

Great Rainy/Icy Day Workout

So I didn't make it to yoga today because ice was covering my car when I left work and was still coming down so I thought it was in my best (and safest) interest to go on home. But since I was already in my yoga clothes, I decided to to SOMETHING when I got home. So I found this workout plan on Pinterest and did Thursday's. Grrreeaaatt rainy day workout. I plan to use this again when I need to. I did some variations though:

• 100 Jumping Jacks - Only could do 75 at one time so I added 25 more at the end
• 25 vertical leg crunches
• 30 crunches - Thought it said 40 so I did 10 extra. Cool mistake.
• 20 squats
• 20 wall pushups - Maybe I was doing this wrong, but I thought these were way too easy so I did 10 of those and then switched to girl pushups and did 10 of those.
• 50 Russian twists - I read that these were right and left = 1 twist. So depending on how you look I either did 50 or 100. I choose 100. I did 4 sets of 25.
• 15 second side planks
• 10 lunge split jumps
• 5 jump squats
• 40 high knees

All in all a pretty good workout. I was out of breath and could feel the burn. Didn't take too long. Maybe 15 or 20 minutes? I'll be doing this again.

Curviness in Yoga

Sorry for the delayed post. I've been busy preparing for a wedding I'm in this weekend by picking up my dress, getting a haircut, etc.

But I did make it to yoga on Tuesday. I think it was Monday's post that I said I hadn't been shaking during my poses. Well strike that because I started shaking on Tuesday. Not nearly as bad as I had been, but I think missing my Saturday Power Yoga class really took a toll on my progress. I need that class! But I'll be missing it again this Saturday because I'm in my friend Kathleen's wedding (a sacrifice I am totally fine with!) But I will be excited to get back to that class the first Saturday in March. It really pushes me to improve in a way my beginner classes don't.

So while I was in class on Tuesday, I noticed that compared to my teacher and the girl next to me, my Warrior 1 didn't look right. I looked at both my legs compared to theirs and I seemed to be doing at least that part right. Finally, I realized it was my butt. My butt was sticking out a lot more than theirs. So I tried to pull my butt in. Still not right. It finally dawned on me that it may be that I'm not doing the pose wrong so much as I've got a big butt.

See I'm not your typical yogi. I'm a very curvy girl. And I get it honestly. So I called my mom after class and said "Okay mom, give it to me straight. Will I always have a big butt? No matter how much I work out?"

She answered fairly quickly "Yea, but that's a good thing. You don't realize how people just stare at you because of your curviness. It may not look good in yoga, but in the rest of life, its a good thing."

She went on to tell me that when she was 22 and working out everyday to hour long workout tapes and didn't eat any fried food, she still only got down to a 4 or 6 in pant sizes. So I guess the flat butt just isn't in the cards for me. But that's okay. I like being a curvy yogi. :)

No yoga today, maybe running in the future?

Today is my off day. But I've been thinking that I may need to start adding in some cardio/cross training to my workouts. I've been reading the blog Ben Does Life by Ben Davis and it's been really inspiring me to start running/walking/bike riding on my off days. So as soon as the weather starts being decent I'm going to try to get out there...slowly.

I'm also going to start reading Ben Davis' book "Do Life." Apparently it's got a 5k training guide as well as being inspiring. FYI that's in case I get REALLY inspired.

Jillian Michaels Yoga

This is about to happen...

....for some reason she doesn't seem like a relaxing yoga teacher.

Progression of Poses Week 2

Happy Sunday! This is my second time doing the "Progression of Poses" so I'm excited to see if there are any changes. Justin took the pictures and he mentioned I should take the pictures after I do a yoga workout so my muscles are more loosened up. Thoughts? Leave a comment if you think it's a good idea or if you think it'd be better to do it before the yoga workout.

Forward Fold Weeks 1 and 2

Downward Dog Weeks 1 and 2

One Legged Dog Weeks 1 and 2

Plow Weeks 1 and 2

Warrior 1 Weeks 1 and 2

Warrior 2 Weeks 1 and 2

Warrior 3 Weeks 1 and 3

So I think I can really tell a difference in my Down Dog which is pretty exciting. I can also see I'm getting better at Warrior 3 so there's some motivation!

PS: My cat Gus was trying to help me with plow. He's a pro at baby cobra. :)

Valentine's Day Yoga

Quick post about my Valentines day, Justin had to go out of town for business trip but my grandmother came to see me and we went to yoga! Yup, my grandmother is super cool and does yoga. She thinks it will keep her young and I completely agree. She's been doing it for much longer than I have so she's much better, but it reminds me how versatile yoga is. Everyone can do yoga!

Yoga Class #2 with Hubby

So Justin and I decided to try the Monday night yoga class since it was taught by a man. Justin found this article by Jill Lawson that talks about why yoga may be tough for men. Basically they have too much strength and not enough flexibility. Jill Lawson: Why is Yoga Hard for Some Men.

With that in mind, Justin thought that a class taught by another man would give poses that were better suited for men. Well apparently Lou, the guy who teaches on Monday's and Wednesday's, was out of town. So we got the girl who teaches Restorative Yoga on Sundays. The class seemed super easy, except when she kept us in downward dog too long. I had to drop to my knees a few times because I couldn't hold myself up any longer. (Just an FYI, my arms are still really weak.) But still, this class didn't shake either of us up too much.

Well I'm glad I decided to wait until today to post because, I AM SORE! The class seemed so easy at the time, but now I am sore from head to toe. Justin said he was as well. I guess yoga can be sneaky like that.

The Listening Act of Yoga

So just got done with my Tuesday Beginner Yoga class. Justin didn't go tonight since he said he was still super sore from last night's "easy" class.

Tonight was a more standard kind of hard (not sneaky like Monday's) and we did things like crescent  and one legged dog. I find those very hard, especially back to back. My legs aren't shaking as much any more though so I feel like that is an improvement.

Also, I started really listening to how teacher my teacher talks us through yoga poses and I feel like my crescent and one legged dog poses are more stable (that could also be due to the strengthening of muscles, though). But she said things like "push through your heel" for crescent and "push your heel towards the wall" for one legged dog. When I started to follow those instructions I felt I performed the poses better. See differences below:

Without pushing heel back

With pushing heel back

Without pushing heel back

With pushing heel back

 I don't know guess you can tell this but I'm much more stable when I'm focusing on pushing my heel back in these poses. It's like I'm forcing my wobbly-ness out through my heel. Yay!

Progression of Poses Week 1

So I'm still sore from yesterday's class, but I thought I share the first of many poses. I'm going to try to take photos every Sunday to show how I progress through the poses - how I become more flexible and aligned. Well, at least that's what I hope will happen. I may add more poses as I learn more (or as I'm able to do them), but for now here are some common ones.

Downward Dog

Forward Fold

Plow

One Legged Dog

Warrior 1

Warrior 2

Warrior 3