Cleanliness is Godliness.

Half marathon results are in.  I wish I could crawl under a rock and pretend that I didn't run a super slow 2:39 race.....ugh!!!  I thought I was pretty well trained for this race, so that time is super hard to swallow.  I know, I know....I finished and that's all that counts...yadda, yadda, yadda....It still stinks, just sayin'.

In other news....Big Sis totally came through with her awesomesauce laundry skills!! She brought my loverly shoes back to their former glory and they look radiant if I do say so myself!  I should add that my beautiful Brooks are swiftly approaching the 300 mile mark and will be due for a replacement, so I didn't mind sending them on a spin cycle since I knew their glory was almost gone regardless.  That being said, I will be hard pressed to ever part with the first pair of shoes that brought me to my half marathon glory finish.  Shall we quickly have a before and after recap?  Duh, of course we should....

Brand spankin' new and looking beautimous.....

A handful of miles in and quickly becoming my bff's

WTH?  I betrayed my shoes and tortured them for a solid 13.1 miles.  

They were so gross post-race, but have no fear.....Big Sis is here!!  She worked her laundry magic and delivered these shiners to me the very next day! How's that for fast and efficient?

Cleanliness is Godliness.

So thankful to Big Sis for saving my shoes!!  They're back to their former glory. sorta.  I mean, maybe it's all mental, but they definitely "feel" different on my feet since taking a ride in the washing machine.  Am I crazy?  Perhaps.  Guess the only way to find out is to get a new pair of shoes and compare. bummer (heehee).  Besides, it's better to have two pairs of running shoes anyway, right?  I mean every runner should have a pair of back-up shoes,it just makes sense.  Totally.  Sorry Hubs, but it looks like this Mama needs a new pair of shoes! 

Moving on.....I've completely overhauled my training regimen for my half in November due to my lack luster performance this past weekend.  My new training includes lots of speed work and tempo runs which is something I never did in preparation for my last half.  I really think this will help me improve my endurance and hopefully shave some serious time off my runs.  This past week has been what seems like a ton of 3 mile runs, which I've loved.  It's kinda nice to go out for a quick run instead of a time consuming 6+ miler.  I even set a 3 mile personal record of 27 minutes (that's a 9 minute pace)....GO ME!  I looked at the results of the 5k from the same race that I ran my half last weekend and as it turns out, if I had ran the 5k (at that same 9 min mile pace) instead of the half....drum roll please......I would have placed 2nd in my age group!  Um, hello...is that for real?  I think I would have dropped dead from excitement if that ever happened to me.  Maybe I'm more destined for greatness in the 5k realm?  They're a hell of alot less painful, that's for sure!

And for all you inquiring minds......here is my new schedule....

			Intermediate	Table
Week	Mon.	Tues.	Wed.	Thurs.	Fri.	Sat.	Sun.
1	Rest	3-mi EZ	7 x 400 SPD	3-mi EZ	Rest	3-mi PC	8-mi LNG
2	Rest	3-mi EZ	2 x 10-min TMP	3-mi EZ	3-mi EZ	Rest	5-K RC
3	Rest	3-mi EZ	8 x 400 SPD	3-mi EZ	Rest	4-mi PC	9-mi LNG
4	Rest	3-mi EZ	2 x 10-min TMP	3-mi EZ	Rest	5-mi PC	10-mi LNG
5	Rest	3-mi EZ	9 x 400 SPD	3-mi EZ	3-mi EZ	Rest	10-K RC
6	Rest	3-mi EZ	20-min TMP	3-mi EZ	Rest	5-mi PC	11-mi LNG
7	Rest	3-mi EZ	10 x 400 SPD	3-mi EZ	Rest	3-mi PC	12-mi LNG
8	Rest	3-mi EZ	2 x 5 min TMP	3-mi EZ	Rest	Rest	Half