My motivation for running has definitely going downhill lately. As runners, many of us go through times when we lack a little running joy. Has this happened to you? What do you do to get that loving feeling back? Here are a few ideas to renew your motivation to run. 1. Get on a running routine. Plan what time you are going to run and stick to the plan. Routines form habits. For me, I need to run within 20 minutes of waking up in the morning or I have a difficult time getting out the door. 2. Sign up for a race. Nothing motivates me like having a race on the calendar. Races help me log longer miles than I would normally run. 3. Set a running date with a friend. I prefer to run with others. There is no better motivation than knowing that someone is waiting for you to run with them! 4. Treat yourself to a few new songs from iTunes, an audiobook, a new shirt, pair of shorts, or new shoes. 5. Remember that post run feeling. The feeling after a good run can't be beat! Get out there and run! You will be glad that you did. :) Happy Running! -Stephanie
Care to Comment? *Do you have any suggestions of how to improve running motivation?
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Wow! Days 5&6 of running camp have been better with my running. While I'm not feeling totally fit or fast, I'm going to update the score to Mountains 2, Missee 2. Yesterday I ended up,running a good portion of the 4 miles with a newer runner. As we approached a large hill, I told him I knew he could make it up to the next road sign. Once I had issued that challenge out loud, I had no choice but to make it up there with him! After we crested that hill, we could see the bus about 1.5 miles away! After the run, we hiked though Crazy Woman Canyon. It was on a dirt road, so we could enjoy the scenery on good footing. Today's run was an 11 miler. Last year, all the kids made it to the finish at whatever pace they could manage. Last night, I asked the mom driving the support vehicle if i got behind the last kid runner if I could get a ride. She said I wouldn't be last, but yes, I could get a ride if needed. Here is the elevation of today's run. Notice the first 3 miles and mile 10. Yikes! Boy was I happy that my son, D, jumped on a bike to come back and keep me company the last 1.5 miles. It was a total bummer, that the finish included running across a cross street, up a road, AND BACK! My time was super slow compared to what I'd normally expect to run at sea level and with better training leading up to camp. Since I finished ahead of at least a dozen of the kids, and finished at all, I'm calling it a win. Here is my watch and D and I hydrating afterward. This has been a very special week with D who is now a HS senior. I have loved watching the younger kids looking to his leadership as a captain. Next year, we will be moving him to college. I'm confident that he will be ready to tackle college. Two final photos from camp are a group photo of the runners and the seniors. Running camp was awesome; I'm so glad I'm here. 😍🏃🏃🏃🏃♀️🏃♀️🏃♀️
Our mom has been listening to audio books for many years. I remember when she would to check out a series of cassette tapes from the local library. Some of those audio books were eight cassettes or more! The technology has progressed into CDs and now to downloading books to a device. Mom enjoys listening to a book while she travels in the car, works in her sewing room, or spends time in the garden. If my sister and I talk about a book, she often says that she has "listened" to that book also. As I get older, it seems that daughters start to turn into our mothers in many ways. Like my mom, I am now a big fan of audio books! I listen to audio books when I run or walk solo. Listening to a story helps to distract me from the miles that I am covering. I have on occasion ran or walked just a little further than I had planned to in order to finish a chapter. I also listen to audio books when I am alone in the car or doing chores around the house. This summer I have listened to a few that I would recommend. These books are The Husband's Secret, The Handmaid's Tale, and Behind Closed Doors. I am still listening to Behind Closed Doors. It is a thriller that sort of reminds me of the old Julia Roberts movie, Sleeping with the Enemy. (This audio book was recommend to me by my mom.) These are three very different books. To choose an audio book, I often read reviews on sites like www.audible.com. It is good to check reviews for audio books because the reading of the book is important. For example, I enjoyed listening to The Handmaid's Tale. It is read by the actress, Claire Danes, who has a great read aloud voice. I also recommend checking reviews on Common Sense Media for content. If you are looking for audio books, there are a few options. Your local library may have audio books that can be downloaded for free. Ask your local librarian about what is available at your library. You an also download books from iTunes. The audio books are more expensive than getting a paper copy, so iTunes might be a good option if it takes you a while to get through book. Another option is purchasing audiobooks through a subscription service like Audible. I recently signed up for Audible and I really like it so far. Through an app on my phone, I can easily listen to my current audio books. After the 30 day free trial, it is $14.95 for one book credit per month. Like with all subscriptions, be sure to check the details before signing up. Happy Running! -Stephanie
D and I have now been in Wyoming for 4 days with his team. This camp is very physically grueling with the kids running twice daily. Parents are not quite willing to run that much. It is hot with afternoon temps in the low 90's. I do not care to run in heat, but the extremely low humidity helps make it tolerable. Since I haven't been running consecutive days for a while, I opted to bike yesterday. D said, "Good choice, Mom." There were some pretty giant hills that made my legs really burn! Here is D and a friend after their run. After the run, we saw a bull moose in the meadow. Super cool! The rest of the day included volleyball, swimming and a flashlight relay on the track after dark. Some of us parents walked while the kids ran, so we did rack up some steps. Today I ran with the kids. I feel really out of shape between a reduced amount of running the past few months plus the altitude. The current score would be: Mountains 2, Missee 0. Many of the kids are also struggling, so I can be useful running with and encouraging them. Here are some views on the run. We followed the run with a picnic and hike. There were options for a harder or easier hike. I was advised to choose easy due to a recent injury. I'm glad I did--it was plenty treacherous for my taste. Here are some views. Tomorrow will be another run plus a hike. This hike is on a less perilous path. I'm enjoying spending this week with D and working to regain my fitness. Keep cool and happy running! Missee
My family and I just returned from a relaxing week at Two Inlets Lake. We had great weather, delicious food, and lots of fun family time. Of course, we had to fit in some vacation running. My usual daily run was about five miles. Some days I ran with my husband and other days I ran with my daughter. It is nice to have runners in the family! We rent a cabin at a resort. It is not on a major road, so traffic is not an issue. The road, with one turn, goes to a dead end that is 2.5 miles from the cabin we rent. It's perfect! Running to the end of the road and back is five miles, a perfect distance for me. There was even a port-a-potty at a Public Lake Access about 1.5 miles from the cabin so on a out-and-back course, there were two opportunities for a pit stop. (Runners can appreciate that.) Here are some of the sights from my vacation running. Our resort has a legendary bingo game on Thursday evenings. It is sort of "Bingo Theater" when Bingo Bandits show up to steal the bingo money. The two superheroes, Captain Bingo and Corporal Bingo Balls, arrive to chase away the bandits in order to save the bingo game. The resort guests look forward to this event every year. Captain Bingo even has a website. You can find the link here. It was a great week! Until next summer... Happy Running! -Stephanie
I am away at running camp with D and his cross country team this week. We took off at 3:20 am yesterday and made several stops along the way arriving at our final destination about 8:00 pm Mountain Time. That was one loooooong day, but in a fun way. I am riding with another mom, K, who is very sweet and considerate. She brought along an extra phone charger for me to use in the car and even offered to store any gluten-containing snacks in the car top carrier in case they might make me ill. Not necessary, but a nice offer. Here was my favorite stop from yesterday's trip and K on this morning's run. (she rode bike, hence the helmet. 🙈) This morning, we ran in the Big Horn Mountains. The elevation KICKED MY BUTT! I was totally winded the first mile or so, but the view was breathtaking. When I was headed back to the finish area, I encountered T having a difficult time with breathing at altitude. She and I ran/walked together about 30 minutes. It probably took 20 minutes to get T breathing deeper and no longer hyperventilating. By the time we finished, she was happy and willing to pose for the blog! Ironically, T's sister is also on the team and with us at camp--Running With Sisters!
I'm looking forward to a smoother run tomorrow with my mountain legs under me. It's so gorgeous here that I'm certain to have more photos to share. Happy running--Missee My daughter and I headed out for a morning run together. We had some amazing scenery to enjoy on our miles together. At first, L was a bit annoyed that I stopped to take a few pictures for the blog. As we became more fatigued, she didn't mind my requests to stop for photos. Here are some of the amazing views that we experienced. The middle picture was a sign that read "Dinner Creek." I'm not sure our dinner was in there, but what a great name for a creek! The third picture was a cute little lending library. It even had a bench to sit while you choose which book to take home. We did not stop for a book... just a quick photo. The next two signs sort of summed up my tired legs this morning. :) It is always a joy to run with my daughter! Enjoy a run with someone you love.
Happy Running! -Stephanie Today is Emoji Day. I truly enjoy injecting emojis into my texts 👍🏻. I don't consider my messages complete without a little pic to demonstrate my feelings whether embarrassed 🙈, amused 😉, or laughing like crazy 😂. Emojis are developing at a fast rate. We used to have two choices for running...🏃🏽 and👣. Then they added a female runner, 🏃🏼♀️ plus options for skin color. New emojis are showing up all the time! I have emoji shoes the kids at school ❤️. They were a Mothers Day gift. One little girl told me her mom likes yellow emojis 😜 but not brown ones 💩. I asked her what the brown emoji is and she said, "POOP!" The poop emoji had often been mistaken for a Hershey's Kiss. Quite a different sentiment!!'
Emojis are a fun way to liven up a message. Just like written words, the intent of the message can still get lost. It is still best to communicate face to face when you can and via phone when practical vs electronic messaging. Better still, grab a friend, relative or coworker and have a good chat while running. You'll have plenty of time to clarify and understand one another. Until your next run, be sure to express yourself with a few emojis. We❤️ our 🏃🏼♀️💦 who 📖 our blog. Many thanks and happy running!! Missee 😍 Our weekend included plenty of relaxation on the beach and running. My memories of Minnesota summers include many thoughts of time spent at a nearby lake. We now bring our children to "the lake" to swim, boat, relax, read, and play cards. More Minnesota memories in the making... While I enjoy some quiet time sitting or reading near the water, my kids enjoy the water activities. We also made time for some vacation running. Wishing you a happy week and some good running! -Stephanie
I would have to say I am FINALLY on the road to recovery after my hamstring strain. Yesterday, I ran with my friend D and we did intervals of 14,9,9,4,4,4 minutes with 1 minute rest between. That went well so today I did 20 minutes straight, a short rest and then finished running down the hill I was on. The 20 minute stretch was a little over 2 miles. Wow! Two miles feels like real running compared to all the run-walk over the past few months. I am supposed to progress slowly which is hard but necessary. Patience is not something I'm particularly good at when it comes to running. My husband can't wait for Christmas or birthdays. He always gets excited about the gifts he has selected and wants to pass them out as soon as they arrive. Our oldest is getting a Garmin 235 like mine for his 22nd birthday in September. Amazon delivered it this week and B can't wait to give it to him. We won't make it 8 more weeks, but maybe closer to when he goes back to college. Is there anything in your life that is hard to be patient about? Try to keep cool on your runs this week. Happy Running! Missee
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AuthorMissee and Stephanie are two Minnesota sisters and moms who love to run. We are not experts in running, parenting or anything else, but we do have years of experiences that may be helpful or entertaining to others. Archives
May 2020
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