Beauty in Blue

Running in Central Park has been my new Sunday ritual for the past several weeks. I had done the 6 mile loop around the park previously but this week decided to take the 1.5 mile around the reservoir. The 6 miles are doable but I would be in pain for the rest of the week. I'm scaling back and working up to the 6 miles again. My shins and calves are grateful for this decision.

Today the dirt track around the reservoir was now mud. Gross but challenging. I was so focused on not slipping that I could barely make the silly 1.5 miles around. It is so much harder to run in mud! Seems obvious now but I had no idea how much harder it would be. Plus I was freezing.

I'm such a baby. I like to think I'm so hardcore but really - not so much. Still working on it I suppose ;-)

Midway during my run, I stopped for a few seconds to catch my breathe and snap this shot. This is why it's such a joy to run in the park despite the freezing weather. I hope to capture more views of Central Park on future runs.

Marathon Training Week 5 and 6

Week 5: 10 miles total; feeling pain in my shins
Week 6: 2 miles; Shin pain nearly unbearable on short run. Did weight training this week to give shins a rest.

They were painful to the touch. I found a way to stretch and message them to relieve the pain. Reading and advice from an experienced runner suggests that I need better shoes. I have a pair of cross trainers and I've had them for a while now. My birthday gift to myself will be a pair of fancy running shoes =o)

Oh and one more thing - I'm adjusting this marathon goal to half-marathon. Yep, shin pain is also an indicator of over training. Sometimes you don't know until you know, you know? But there is no shame in half-marathon for this rookie runner. No shame at all.