mileage | You Signed Up For What?!

12 miles done. Well, my Nike+ app says it was 11.57, but I think the GPS gets lost in the park a bit. If I’ve been wrong about the mileage of the park loops all these years, and therefore all my Marine Corps Marathon training was off, I think my head will explode.

So let’s just call it 12 since I have always trusted what I had clocked with my little distance calc on the jogging stroller, the computer on my bike, and the map of the park SAYING the mileage of the path.

I had a few good miles in there, really I did. But after mile 8.5 when I started to head out of the park towards home, all sorts of aches and pains started popping up. Pubic bone pain, knee pain, Morton’s Neuroma pain, foot pain, general stiffness. I think when the neuroma acts up I change my gait so it causes other issues. I stopped a few times to stretch but it didn’t seem to help much – only made it harder to get going again.

I had to really focus mentally – mind over body – and keep going with one foot in front of the other. I don’t think I’ll beat any pace records of mine from previous halves at the Nike Half, but I’d like to finish strong.

I returned to find the toddler was awake in his crib, but I couldn’t make it up the stairs to get him so I sent my husband up there. Here’s hoping I don’t look strange hobbling around the office tomorrow!

Let me be clear: I don’t have Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. But I am fairly obsessed with the NEED to know exactly how far I ran, what my pace was, and my total time running. I start the app when my feet start moving, I pause it at stop lights, I obsess about it. I need to hear the app tell me my average and/or current pace while running, I mentally note that pace and see if I beat it during the next time. And I often run the same route so I can see if I beat my pace for each mile or in total.

I used to spend time mapping routes on the computer, and before the websites or awesome map sites existed, I would drive routes to figure out where I’d go running the next day to get the mileage needed for my training schedule. So imagine how thrilled I was when technology caught up with what I wished existed. I was *thisclose* to buying a GPS watch when VOILA! my phone provided me with my dream come true – the ability to track my route with an app.

I’ve tried several: CardioTrainer, Endomondo, and have recently moved to Nike+. I really loved it for a couple of weeks but today – I’m irritated.

After spending half the day taking care of kids and feeling sluggish, I finally got out for the run during my toddler’s nap time. It was a gorgeous day and my first run of the year in shorts. What a treat! After about 2.5 miles, I paused my app at a stoplight (I cannot stand it ticking away for 4 minutes while I wait for a walk signal, thereby making it seem like my pace that mile was horrendous).

Suddenly – POOF! It was on the start-a-run screen. WHAT?! One reason I love Nike+ is that you can pause easily, but to finish the run you have to swipe deliberately. Anyhow, I had a bad signal there, which might have been the problem, so I couldn’t get it going again and went to Endomondo. Ran 0.7 until I got to a restroom and UGH – stopped it instead of pausing since the stop button is literally ON the pause button. A reminder of one reason I switched to Nike+.

By this point I was so frustrated, after more than 3 miles I was starting a run fresh again, with no fun badges from Nike+ to tell me how awesome I was today, and my progress broken up into several runs on two different apps. I wasn’t sure exactly how far I had gone since I had lost that first 2-something, so I went out of my way to go a bit longer.

When I got home, I obsessively mapped it on mapmyrun. Turns out my 9 miler was 9.96. If I had known that, I would have jogged around 0.04 to make it an even 10! (Honestly, I don’t have OCD…)

How was it? Awesome. My Morton’s Neuroma didn’t act up, only some numbness. I had some pubic bone pain. Otherwise, I loved the run. It felt great and I feel more secure for the half marathon in a few weeks!

(Now I’m researching GPS watches again…)