Outside Finally!

Okay, I just went and was finally able to play with my new Forerunner for the first time! So, okay. I did my regular lap, which I had used google maps to calculate at .57 miles. I did six laps, which I would have calculated the old way at 3.42 miles. However, the Garmin calculated it at 3.34 miles. As you may recall, I did nearly all my training for the half marathon using this lap, and I have wondered since then if I was off in my calculations and that is part of why the race did not go quite as well as I would have liked. I gotta tell you, I am really trusting the Garmin on this one. I think my calculations were just a bit off, and when you are doing twelve laps and calculating them all at just a little bit longer than they actually are, your distance then gets quite distorted, right? So, my long training runs were never quite as long as I had thought they were, and my miles per hour was also off a bit due to that. So, I was never trained as well as I thought I was for that half. Which explains why I did not do as well as I thought I would.

BUT, it is the dawning of a new day, people!! Now, I can run anywhere and know exactly how far I have gone! Tomorrow, I plan to run a trail called the Plum Creek Trail here near my neighborhood. You can drive and park there and I see people do it all the time, but I was always reluctant to do it, since I would have no way of knowing how far I had gone, since Gmaps doesn't show it. But now I can!

Incidentally, the Forerunner put my time at 43:25 and my per mile time at 12:59, which I am quite pleased with. It also says I burned 450 calories, which I also believe is probably quite accurate, since it takes a profile of you including your weight. Awesome, huh?

There is supposed to be this software that you can download onto your computer to track all kinds of things with your Forerunner, but I can't figure it out! I have to get Chris to help me. Anyways, in the meantime, I am really excited about this thing!

It was a hard run today, but I am glad I did it. I was finding myself reluctant to go outside again, kind of like I was last year before I had started running outside at all. Although this time it was more due to just knowing that it was going to be harder than the treadmill. And it was hard! Even the walking was surprisingly difficult, but I guess that is to be expected after so much running and elliptical. I haven't really walked for exercise much in the past few weeks.

Anyways, what are you guys doing this weekend? No wasting the weekend!!!! You have the entire day to fit it in, so get it done!