July 2019 Monthly Running Challenge

Got my weekend long run in! Though I think it was a bit longer than it needed to be, as the last 2 miles were pretty much a slog. My last long run was pushed to Monday and then I had what ended up as a 34-hour trip home, so I think I’m still recovering. It was a gorgeous day for a run, though—sunny, low 70s, low humidity. And I think we’re planning a hike with friends tomorrow, so this was the day to get some running in..

July goal: 80 mi

7/1 10 mi
7/4 5 mi
7/6 10 mi

July total: 25 mi

2019 Races:
3/16 Kirkland Shamrock Run 5K
4/13 Mud & Chocolate 4.5 mi trail run
5/5 Vancouver BMO Half Marathon
5/12 The Color Run 5K
5/18 Your Canyon for a Day 35 mi Bike Tour, Yakima
8/11 Lake Union 10K
9/22 Orca Half Marathon?

4 miles at midnight of the 5th. We walked to the slightly classier/safer neighborhood to the east of us before running. As I expected many people had leftover fireworks from the 4th and the whole neighborhood lay under a smoky pall of gunpowder. It was fun, if a little alarming. Heard a bunch of fireworks, ran past multiple people setting them off, also heard a bunch of gunshots, but mostly guns being used as fireworks I think. Our sidewalks are such a mess, at least it’s possible to run in the street when you get into the smaller fingers of the subdivision. It was hot and muggy even at midnight, this is not my favorite season to be a runner.

One of my two cats is so weird about fireworks - for some reason he knows the difference between the sound of a firework and a gun, and fireworks don’t bother him. I wonder if he picked it up by observing my husband and me? Every time there is gunfire he growls, raises his head, and looks at my husband for reassurance. He doesn’t even blink for fireworks, even ones that shake the walls. His little brother doesn’t know the difference and is equally alarmed by both, but instead of turning to us to reassure him, he meows at his brother. “Can’t you hear that? DO something!” Private fireworks are illegal here, but it’s a short hop over the border into Mississippi, and people come back with trunkloads of stuff. Someone nearby had some big municipal-level jobbies which were so loud I kept wondering if it was a firework or the transformer blowing! Fortunately our two guys are pretty chill, I hope everyone else’s pets survived the holiday without trauma.

Finally getting into July - will make a goal of 130 miles.

Air temps were in the 90s, feels like in the 100s so I waited till the evening. Temps were much better in the 70s, but the humidity was 99%. So calling my 9 miles a win.

Date...........Run.......Walk
07/01........00M.......3.5M
07/02........00M.......3.5M
07/03........11M.......3.5M
07/04........11M.......0.0M
07/05........00M.......1.5M
07/06........09M.......0.0M

---MTD: 12 miles walking, 31 miles running, and 0KM resting

Upcoming Races
Fleet Feet Liberty Mile - August 9th
Howl at the Moon - Nighttime 5k - August 10
EQT Pittsburgh 10 Miler - November 2nd

(a few more races yet to register for)

202? - Disney World Dopey! (if can raise funds)[/quote]

0707-16k total-29.3k, goal-100k

Today's run started out drizzling and cool, but soon warmed up and turned into a bit of a slough. But 16km done anyway.

@Avidkeo Congrats on the sell! Have a great time looking for the your new home.
@ContraryMaryMary If your legs have no problems about it, I say go for it. Sounds like great fun, and that's something that everybody needs once in a while!
@simcon1 Those running routes look great. Sympathy about the 12-hour workdays, my business trips are like that too.
@katharmonic I think I got sore just thinking about your workout... awesome work!

rheddmobile wrote: »

One of my two cats is so weird about fireworks - for some reason he knows the difference between the sound of a firework and a gun, and fireworks don’t bother him. I wonder if he picked it up by observing my husband and me? Every time there is gunfire he growls, raises his head, and looks at my husband for reassurance. He doesn’t even blink for fireworks, even ones that shake the walls. His little brother doesn’t know the difference and is equally alarmed by both, but instead of turning to us to reassure him, he meows at his brother. “Can’t you hear that? DO something!” Private fireworks are illegal here, but it’s a short hop over the border into Mississippi, and people come back with trunkloads of stuff. Someone nearby had some big municipal-level jobbies which were so loud I kept wondering if it was a firework or the transformer blowing! Fortunately our two guys are pretty chill, I hope everyone else’s pets survived the holiday without trauma.

Over here in China, the major fireworks time of year is Chinese New Years. Goes on all night. My cats are totally chill about it. They cringe a little for the very loud ones, but the rest of the time they just find everything else outside the window very meh.

7-1 rest
7-2 7k intervals
7-3 7k moderate
7-4 rest
7-5 7k slow
7-6 7k slow(er)
7-7 7k slow

July Total: 35k
July Goal: 150k

January Total: 131k
February Total: 159.5k
March Total: 183k
April Total: 126k
May Total: 128k
June Total: 161.5k

Monthly average: 148.1k

Next year when you pop in here claiming your December 2019 mileage, what accomplishments will you have made?
Run at least 4 5k races.
Get under 30:00 and a PR for 5k.
Average at least 135k per month, which would put me over 1,000 miles for the year.

Run the Year Team: Five for Nineteen

Cloudy, warm and humid today. Actually felt pretty good for the first 4k, but the planned longer run eluded me again today. Guess it takes me a week to recover from a summertime 5k race.

2019 Races:

4-13 Shine the Light 5K - 31:12 chip time; First Place male 65 and older
6-30 Strides for Starfish 5K - 31:34 chip time; 31/77 overall; second male 65 and older (no official category)
7-27 Solon Home Days 5K

Five miles this morning...although I really wanted to stop halfway through. But, I reminded myself that I don’t want to get back into the funk I had been in and start making excuses when I knew it was just a mind thing. So, I kept on going.

15.25 so far for July.

July 1 – 5.18 miles + 9 miles cycling
July 2 – 30 min kickboxing + 30 min Pilates
July 3 – 5 miles + 45 min Yoga + 11 miles cycling
July 4 – 4.09 miles – Red, White and Boom race
July 5 – 22 miles cycling
July 6 – 10 miles + SUP
Total – 24.27 running miles (Goal 110 miles)

Yesterday I ran 10 miles. We started at 6:00 am to try to beat the heat but it was still pretty hot and humid. It’s definitely July here in Virginia! A couple of my friends and I then went to a local lake and I tried stand-up paddle boarding for the first time. It was so much fun! After paddling around a while on my knees, I finally garnered the courage to stand. It wasn’t as hard as thought it would be and I didn’t fall in! I’ve been wanting to try this for a while now and I’m glad I did.

@rheddmobile – Two things stuck out from your post. (1) the fact that you ran at midnight. I don’t know how you have any energy left at that time of night for a run. I am definitely a morning person! (2) the fact that you know how your indoor cats react to gun fire. I’ve seen you mention before that your town is not the safest place in the world but how often do you hear shots fired? The only time I ever hear any shots where I live is in the fall during deer season.