notes on second trimester running

For a while there I thought I wouldn’t run anymore! After a 2 week hiatus from running, I embarked on the road again with my mom. Coincidentally on the last day in 2011… great way to end the year, huh? I think so.

12/31/11 run
We ran for 25 minutes on kind of icy roads, semi-slick. I made sure to have firm foot placement and switched to running on the grass when we went downhill. What can I say, didn’t want to risk falling.  I’m carrying precious cargo nowadays.

Pace felt great, probably anywhere between 9-10 minute miles. We talked the entire time, which meant my breathing was steady too.

Heart rate was at a steady 140 BPM, elevating up to 148ish only going up hill, then it would even back out at 140.

The bladder surprised me by not bugging me too much. Baby was being nice. 🙂

1/8/12 run
I ran by myself on Sunday, in a chilly 37 degrees. No ice though! I got all layered up and brought music with me.

After about 2 minutes my bladder was going crazy. The only way I lasted 35 minutes was with music. It was a good distraction, plus I got to listen to the new body pump release 80 during the run which rocks.

My pace, which was 10 minutes miles (covered 3.5 miles in 35 mins, easy peasy), felt more challenging in the beginning. The first 10 minutes are all up hill, so I’m sure that had something to do with it.

During my warm up my heart rate was high, like really high (shifting between 170-230), which made me think my heart rate monitor was broken. After 5 or so minutes though it evened back out at probably a faster pace than during my warm up.  I kept my heart rate between 140-146. During hills again it would jump up an extra 10 beats per minutes. Can’t avoid those hills though.

I felt strong the entire run, actually enjoying the chilly temperatures. I probably would have gone longer if a) I wasn’t on a time crunch to get to church b) that lil guy was pressing on my bladder like crazy and c) my arch would not have started hurting. Not sure where the strange arch pains came from, but I’ve been massaging it since then and it feels back to normal.  Probably just a mini foot cramp.

Final notes

Running makes me really sleepy. After most of my runs I seem to take a nap. I didn’t have time to on Sunday, but you better believe I wanted to.  I find this odd because my runs are shorter than my usual hour long workouts, and also the intensity is kept lower. I would think that combo would make me less tired, but the body likes to surprise me.

Here’s to hoping I can continue on with my weekly weekend runs? They really do make me do happy, and other than sleepy I feel great, both mentally and physically after each mile.

What exercise made you the most happy this weekend?

Heather