Stupid Viking City Planners...

I wish I could go 1000+ years back in time. I need to speak with the people responsible for Oslos location. Why would anybody think that it's a good idea to put the city in the bottom of a "bowl"? Because that's what Oslo is. It is impossible to find good, flat routes from Frogner. Either I have to start with running uphill, or I have to finish my run uphill. And that sucks majorly, when I'm all winded, having to huff and puff my way up home. Like today.

I went for my "long" run before breakfast today. Luckily I didn't feel to hungover, and I was stoked enough to consider the slightly longer loop around Frognerstranda. It was sunny, warm (almost too warm) and not too much wind.

Week 6 - Saturday

6.3 km - 36:44 min (This is not correct, I paused my Polar when the Dog had to poop, and I forgot to start it again, only to remember it after 3-4 minutes. So the distance is about right, but the time is not.)

Km splits:
Km 1: 6:18
Km 2: 6:06
Km 3: 6:13
Km 4: 5:59
km 5: 6:22
Km 6: 05:44 ( 0.91 km)

Max speed: 11.7 km/h - avg. speed: 9.7 km/h

Overall not too shabby, but I still have a long way to go before hitting that 21.1 km mark.

Stretching, icing and "foam rolling" - using a tennis ball. With an audience.

This is Why I Run

The run today felt like a fast one. I know, I know, I'm not really fast at all. It didn't feel effortless, but it felt easier than it normally do. The only "problem" was the choice to bring Maxim Electrolyte Energy Drink on the run. At best, it felt like breathing through jello after each sip. At worst, I choked and had to struggle to breathe. All this because I have a slight cold, and my airways gets filled up with mucus (Too much information? Probably..), and obviously mucus and Maxim don't go well together.

Week 6 - Thursday

4.04 km - 24:11 min

Yesterday I was frustrated with my Polar, but a quick Google search later, I was back to looooving it. I thought I had to manually punch the laptime button, but all I had to do was set it to auto. Duuh. Feeling stupid? ......yeah.

Km 1: 06:23 min
Km 2: 05:54 min
Km 3: 06:00 min
Km 4: 05:39 min (this was up a long "steep" hill. Man, I felt it. But I was almost home, so "no qutting, keep on running".)

I ran along the faboulous Frognerstranda, and the slow pace at km 3 was because of the headwind. At least I like to think so.



The Dog and I, all ready to go. I borrowed/stole the Boyfriends sunglasses, although I look like an überdork in them. Oh well, I have to live with it until I a)get a sponsor or b) can afford to buy my own not so dorky-looking.




Post-run; trying icing my legs for the first time. It's hurting in a really good way. I don't have a foam roller, but I massaged my shins with a tennis ball (the Dog did NOT like that - all tennis balls are his tennis balls.), and it felt really good.


Post-run fueling. White wine and water. And then, homemade italian pizza and red wine. And post-blogging? More red wine and some chocolate. Yummm....

Some Days, Running is FUN

What's my excuses for being such a lousy runner? ...Eeerhm. Working? Saving the world Superman style? General lazyness?

Week 5 -Friday

I squeezed in a run before the nightshift. I had planned to run 5 km, but after 2 km I realised that I was running out of time (pun intended, I'm sorry), so I sped up a little and finished after only 3. I stretched, and then barely had time to shower. Note to self: plan better next time. At least I ran. That's something, isn't it?

3.24 km - 31:34 min.

Max speed: 12.9 km/h

Avg. speed: 9.0 km/ h

Km splits: 7.33 - 6.06 -5.57 -1.57 (0.24 km)

I always start slow to warm up and it affects the time, but I won't bother with warming up and then start running "seriously", I'm waaay too lazy.

This week I worked Monday and Tuesday, and both days I practically ached to go running, but I had no time after work. Today, however, I am working the afternoon shift, so I had "plenty" of time to run before work. I brought the Dog, and he is showing some improvement, running-wise.

Week 6 - Wednesday

I used Google Maps to find a suitable route with the right distance. I slept in today, so I wanted to make sure I had time to cool down and shower before work (so gross not to shower, I know, but sometimes I just forget. Or, it used to happen when I lived alone. Totally gross, I know. I guess it's one of the single-syndromes...).

It turned out to be a magnificent run. I loved it, absolutely no hating at any point, which is unusual. My shin splints ached the first 500 meters, and then my legs felt great until I had about 600 meters left. Then the right shin decided to let me know that there's still problems down there, but it was only momentary. It was sunny, I had fun, and I "only" had to blow my nose 5 times. I wanted the run to last longer;I actually wanted to run longer.

More runs like this, please?!?

4.42 km - 27:48 min

Max speed: 13 km/h

Avg. speed: 9.5 km/h

I definitely felt like I ran faster than I did Friday, although the average speed is almost the same.

Five minutes ago, I thought how much I've started to love my Polar. "It even finds the km splits, which is SO fun" and bladibla,bladibla. It seems I was wrong. I have to manually punch the "lap" button at every kilometer, I think. That is like a slap in the face. I guess I have to buy a Garmin after all...

My not so much beloved Polar RS200. I have to find out if it can automatically save laptimes for me, but I threw away the user manual a looong time ago. Stupid me.

Btw, I want to become like http://www.skinnyrunner.com/. Not having to work, only run. And live in SoCal.

Edit: I totally forgot that in addition to the 4 km I ran today, I discovered that my round at work is another 4 km. Like, seriously? 4 km? That means I walk more than 8 km at each of my weekend nightshifts... That's radical...

Being Normal

It's weird being normal. Having to work 8 to 4 or 9 to 5. I'm not used to it, but suddenly I'm spending my days in a small office without windows, my tools being a computer and a printer. I'm not a morning person. I'm an evening person. Having to get up at 6 or 7 (am?? pm?? EARLY in the MORNING...) rubs me the wrong way. Still, it's kind of nice, because I get SO much more done each day. Like running. Week 5 - Wednesday I got home from work, ate dinner, chilled out a couple of hours; and then I ran. I grabbed the (stupid) Dog, and we ran the same route as last week. It felt much better this time, but I still wasted much time waiting for the Dog to pee and poop and all that jazz. I tried pausing the Polar, but either I forgot to pause it, or I forgot to start it again. The route is approximately 6.2 km. I ran with the footpod, but that one is seriously funky. My stride is shorter than it thinks. Oh well. What the Polar say about yesterday is: 4.96 km - Average pace. 7.6 min/km (sloooow, I know). Max pace:10.7 min/km (I wish my average pace was 10.7....) Yesterday's conclusion: My shin splints definitely don't like asphalt. And the Dog is still stupid. The Dog, wondering if stopping means he can pee onthe lamppost. It doesn't. I also wanted to run today, because my day at work was super frustrating. But I felt sorry for the Dog, having been home alone all day (Boyfriend also working overtime today), so we ended up going for a long walk on Bygdøy. That turned out to be a smart decision, as it was icy and slippery and rrrrreally muddy. We found a bust of king Karl Johan. He was guarded by the the saddest-looking lion I have ever seen. He looked even sadder than Aslan did when he went to be killed on the stone table by the White Which. I tried to comfort it, but it was like talking to a...stone. I then talked to the Dog, but all he wanted was for me to throw his stick. So we walked on. The Dog has to wear a noseband, because he pulls too much. Stupid Dog. This is what normally happens when we stop while walking; he tries to take it off:
Somtimes it works. Sometimes.

A Stupid Dog and Onion Soup

Monday this week we flew back from Gran Canaria. A run-free week with tons of delicious food and wine. Good thing we didn't lie on the beach all week, but rather went scuba diving and horseback riding and dolphin scouting. I collapsed most of the days after dinner, about 9.30 (am/pm-whatever). But alas, no running. When packing for this trip, I fetched my running gear, and put it on top in the suitcase. Then I figured I'd better be honest with myself: I would never run, and it was better to leave everything related to running at home. So I left it, and it ended up being a good idea.An Eagle Ray, photo taken by Martin Rogan. I spotted it, though. Go me! Isn't it cute like a button? I wanted to take it home with me. I got the boyfriend up on a horse, for the first time in his life. It has been ages and ages since the last time I rode, but it 's like riding a bike - you never forget it completely. Me and the terribly grumpy Franscesca. She didn't like the horse in front of her. She didn't like the horse behind her. And she didn't like me. Fun!

Cuttlefish, photo taken by Martin Rogan.

Week 4 (oops, no running week 3) - Thursday I was feeling a little peaky Tuesday and Wednesday, so I didn't feel much like running after work these days. Thursday was my day off before the night shift weekend, so I had no excuse. It was actually my first outdoor run in 2011. There is too much snow and ice still, but today was sunny and warm and beautiful, and the sidewalks were mostly bare. I dressed myself and the dog, and off we went. The route I had planned is approximately 6.2 km, and goes from home to work, where I planned to join Martin and drive home. It. Was. Tough. Ok, it's been over a week since last run. And work; in Nydalen, is uphill from home. Enough excuses. I suck. That's a fact, but a fact I plan to change. This is why I run, why I have this blog. The dog was a good running companion. Last year... Today, he was impossible. My next dog is going to be a bitch, because it's hopeless to run with a male. He stopped every five meters to pee on trees, on bushes, on signs, on everything. Last year, he knew the drill. When we run, we do not stop to pee more than three times. When we walk, I stop whenever he wants to stop. Stoopid dog! I will not bother with finding and writing down the time spent, because I walked some, and the dog stopped me all the time. Bah. It was slow, though. As always. Tonight, the happy family (=us) is making onion soup. Yummy. Here's a picture of me gently stirring the onions: Why yes, that IS a diving mask. Onions make me cry. Diving mask (or ski goggles) erases that problem. And it was A LOT of onions: (This is not a food blog, but I like food, so I will sometimes sneak in pictures of food. I can't help it, I guess.:))

Let's Go Autobots!

This week I jumped ship again. I'm sorry, Hal Higdon, but it was too much too fast. I need to take it slower because of my shin splits, and because of my lack of motivation. I will use Hal as a starting point, but take it easier, run shorter and not so often. Running Tuesday, Wednesday AND Thursday will probably kill me (I'm not melodramatic at all... No, really...), so I will either run Monday, Wednesday, Thursday/Friday and Saturday/Sunday, depending on night shift or not. This means that if I run Thursday, I can also run Saturday etc. And with my recent work schedule I can take a "long" run Wednesday, and then rest Thursday.

Week 2 - Tuesday

I rested Monday, so Tuesday came bright and shiny, and I was ready for yet another 5 km. Or so I thought. I really don't know what happened, but I started at a sloooow pace, then decided after 2 km that I would only run 3 km (my body felt so very heavy, and I was really lazy), so I sped up a bit. I wish I'd recorded laps, bit I didn't.

3 km - 20.49 min


Wednesday, I decided to rest again. I baked an apple cake, then ate half of it. Yummy yummy in my tummy...

Week 2 - Thursday

Thursday I was quite a bit more motivated. I started slow, then after 1 km I sped up, to see how long I could keep a 10 km/h-pace. It turned out that I could hold that pretty long, and here I've been, shuffling my feet at 8 km/h because I thought it was the fastest I could go! So I ran 3 km at 10, then turned it up to 11 km/h for the last km. It went well, thanks to the Transformer score. My shin split on the right leg kept bothering me the entire run, though. Uh-oh.

5 km - 30.44.min - New personal record, woot! (...)

And today I took some lap times.
Lap 1 - first 2 km - 13.27
Lap 2 - next 2 km - 12.02
Lap 3 - last km - 5.13

Fun! I should do this more, but when I'm on the treadmill, my head seems to be elsewhere. Speaking of which, here is my old friend:


And here is me, looking VERY motivated (note: I hate taking pictures of myself in the mirror.)

Aaand after (listening to my autobots):




Then I went to make sushi with my girlfriends. Lovely evening.

I don't think there will be much running this weekend. Friday I work a night shift, Saturday I'm hosting a birthday party for a friend, Sunday I'm probably hung-over. Monday I'm going to Gran Canaria. Can't wait!

Fail...

Saturday, I went to the basement for this week's long run. I tried, and I failed spectacularly. I was supposed to run 6 miles, translated to 9.6 km. I was really full of myself, boasting about it to the boyfriend. Guess the lesson is learned, then. After 1.5 km my legs loosened up, and I felt like it really was happening. Then I ran another 1.5 km, and I hit a wall. "That's a tad bit early to hit the wall", you might think. It's what I thought. So I pushed through. The meters klicked by sooo slowly, and I had take breaks, and I had to walk. At 5.7 km I realised that it was NOT happening. But I can be stubborn, so I said to myself: 7 km! You can do 7 km! At 6 km my body shut down. I considered laying down on the treadmill, but figured it would be much more comfortable at the gym mats.

Week 1 - Saturday (a.k.a. Long Run Day)

Slowest. Pace. EVER: 6 km in 45 minutes. So embarrassing.

But now I see the point of taking it slow, and listening to my body.

So, I nibbled on my protein bar, and sulked in the shower. And then I spent what felt like the rest of the day trying to get home. Seriously? Thanks to the World Championship in cross-country skiing, the metro and buses and trams were all retarded. I got home just in time for the preparty.

Which led to this:It was a fun night, though. Got to bed at 6 in the morning, which is really late for me. Good thing Sunday and Monday are resting days.