[Mandy]  With Christopher being out of town all last week for work, my workouts were a little bit lonely.  It was motivating to know that he was working out at the same time in Arizona, and we did our best to follow our routine as much as possible, even without my PIC next to me.  I was able to squeeze in an extra day of rest due to some family time, and my body was especially grateful!  I kept my two runs during the week at a strict 6.25 miles but made sure I did them both all out.  I felt strong, rested, and like I was running effortlessly.  In short, I felt like I was “back.”  By Saturday morning I was feeling pretty solid, having had a few great workouts under my belt.  Since Christopher got back into town Friday evening, we took the night off and opted for rest instead. The scheduled 10 mile run on Saturday went off without a hitch. I allowed myself the first 2-3 miles to warm up, and by the time I settled in I was moving at a pretty good clip.  I knocked out the last 4 miles in under 8 minute mile pace; by the time I hit 10 miles I was exhausted! I left every ounce of energy on the treadmill (along with every ounce of sweat) and was thoroughly surprised and impressed to see Christopher hammering it out next to me.  I’ll let him tell you all about his week and his 10 mile run, but the man never ceases to amaze me.  He looked strong, focused, and downright angry as he flew along next to me.  I have never doubted his ability to run like this, but I’ve been so impressed that he’s taken to this as quickly and as easily as he has!  He’s proving that he can do anything he puts his mind to! I couldn’t be more proud of his work effort and his ability to push himself farther than he ever thought possible. I know this half marathon will have nothing on him

[Christopher] Yup, 10 miles of running. Had someone told me that I would be running 10 miles a few years ago, I would have smirked and let it go in one ear and out the other.

All last week I had to take a business trip to Scottsdale Arizona. The weather was supposed to be nice and sunny with the highs of 65°, so I did my research so I could plan to run while out of town. I was determined to keep up my training no matter were I was. I found out that there was an area not far from my hotel that I could run called the Greenbelt and leads up to Chaparral Lake Park. As much as I was not looking forward to being without my PIC for a week, the change of scenery would help with the distraction. I couldn’t believe how effortless the run felt on Monday and that I was excited to get back out on Tuesday and then again on Wednesday. I was a little nervous that I was going to have shin splint pain, but it was never an issue. Monday I got in 7 miles, Tuesday I was able to get in 6.5 miles, and Wednesday I got in another 7 miles. I did experience some soreness that I have never felt before, but that was going to be a given with a newbie running that much three days in a row. I’m not really sure how I ran that much? Any normal week I would be wanting to take a break in between a 7 mile run.  Although I was very determined, running in a unfamiliar area helped the time fly by. It kept my mind off every step I made and more about enjoying the moment and taking it all in.

Saturday came and I was finally back with my PIC. 10 miles was on the schedule. I tried not to think about it, but honestly, I was a little intimidated. The longest I had gone was 8 miles. Sure it was only 2 more miles, but 2 more miles after already being exhausted can seem like 10 miles. “Just take it slow and easy and see how it goes”, is what I kept telling myself over and over again. Keep my head focused on what is important; no injuries and don’t gas out too soon. The first 5 miles I kept the pace at around 6 mph. I was surprised that I had no real pain issues, and I really wasn’t out of breath. Mandy had told me once, “you should be able to carry a conversation throughout the whole run,” which sounded like a lot of malarkey to me. Now after mile 5, I was feeling like a conversation would be easy. I got to 6 miles and pressed stop since the treadmill quits at 60 minutes. I took a short break to fill up my water bottle and a quick stretch and got back to it. Only 4 more miles. This should be cake. My iPod was fixed to only play A Perfect Circle, and the treadmill was set to 6.5 mph. I have always heard about the “autopilot” thing but never understood what that meant until I reached mile 8. With my music blaring in my ears and my eyes staring at the television, I hit that sweet spot or the “autopilot.” Everything around me got quiet. No sound of my breathing, no stomping on the treadmill, no television noise; I was lost in the music and floating on air. Is this the runners high that I was in? Feeling no pain or exhaustion, I bumped up the speed to 7.5 mph. I really felt like I was gliding along. After finding the song “Judith” on my iPod, the last mile went quickly with a 8.5 mph pace. It’s crazy how a song can give me that extra boost.  I finished my 10 mile run at 1:33:45 and a wave of emotion came over me that I cannot explain: it was the longest I have run yet and it felt pretty good. I definitely felt like I could have kept up on another 3.1 miles, but for now, I will settle for 10 and save the next big achievement for a later date.

M&C

P.S. If you are asking why we named this blog the way we did, well.. it’s a Slipknot thing and we thought it was appropriate for this blog.