Training for a Belt Buckle

This afternoon I walked/ran to the gym as a warmup.

6 miles on the treadmill - working on intervals.  5 minute warmup, then a ladder of 2 min/4 min/6 min/8 min/6 min/4 min/2 min at 6.5 mph with 2 minutes in between jogging at 4.2 mph.

I felt really good going up the ladder and was even thinking of repeating the 8 min segment before starting down.  It's probably a good thing I didn't.  On the reverse 6 min segment I felt like I was going to hurl.  On the reverse 4 min segment I felt like I was going to pass out.  The 2 minute segment went fine and then I finished up the hour running between 5-5.5 mph. 

As soon as I finished I could really feel that the lactic acid had built up.  Its a good think I had a 1.3 mile walk home to clear out the crud. 

I don't know if this is a good workout and results or not - but I felt like I accomplished what I wanted to and am starting to feel 'faster'.

Goals for September:

• Learn to run through discomfort.  I think I have never really 'pushed' myself before and would like to see how I progress if I intelligently challenge my previous limits.
• Gain less than 100 pounds in my 2+ weeks in Italy
• Run in Naples, Rome, Venice and Florence, Italy
• Get down below 140 pounds before St. George (2-3 pounds)
  

I ran a new trail next to the light rail tracks in Sandy.  Need to find out how long this goes.  It is a nice running path (paved) and even has a doggie park if anyone wants a place to take a dog off leash.

I had 4 hours to kill, so walked 2 or more miles around the Cincinnati airport.

Tonight I went running around Gricignano - the Naval Support Base my daughter and son-in-law live on near Napoli, Italy.  Let me tell you - the humidity really kicked my butt!

My daughter walked with me for a half mile and showed me the apartment they used to live in and we checked out the Greco-Roman burial grounds that were right outside her building (crypts and all). As I ran around the base I found some Roman roads that they rebuilt into sidewalks and some gravel paths.  It is a small base, so I explored almost all of it - even taking in parking lots.

 /********************************/

Trip highlights:  Arrived in Rome on Saturday morning after a long time on planes and in airports. Once I arrived in Roma, the trains and automobiles part of the trip started.  I found my luggage and asked directions (in Italian) to the Fumicello Termini and got on a train just as it was leaving for the Roma Centrale Termini.  Enjoyed the countryside. It is very green and different looking.  Lots of apartment buildings - most look pretty old - with antennas all over the roof and laundry in a lot of windows. (I was informed later that most Italians do not have dryers.  Also, the taxes on the buildings are based upon how nice the building looks.  If the building looks really nice - it is probably Mafioso).

After arriving in Roma Centrale, I found my way to the ticket window and bought a ticket to Napoli Termini.  I even remembered to ask for diretto (direct) so that it wasn't a milk run train. Finally found my daughter in Napoli and we bought tickets for the Asserta Stazione where her husband picked us up.

Good thing Jenn warned me that the bathrooms are either pay toilets or won't have toilet seats or toilet paper in them.  I enjoyed both types in my first few hours there.

Of course, my runs are all posted on the wrong days once I publish them.   This one was from Saturday night. But, I am 8 hours ahead of most of you in Utah.

Tonight I ran around parts of Gricignano again.  My right quad has felt a little 'off' in the last week, so I just worked on running 8 minutes (the last minute fast), walking 2 minutes.  I spent most of my time running around soccer and baseball fields so that I could be on grass and gravel.  The humidity is still kicking my butt.

I only slept from about 1-4:30 last night and so took a couple of naps before noon.  I think I was battling some kind of food poisoning this morning, but felt better after getting everything out of my system and sleeping.

/*********************************************/

On Sunday I went to church in Caserta with my daughter and son-in-law.  Their church meets on the second floor of a building.  Jeremy drove us there - enjoying showing how he could get his Mustang over 100 mph on the freeway.  I'm glad he was driving. The streets are very narrow and cars make their own lanes.  Motorbikes don't have to follow any rules at all and a lot of the drivers have helmets strung on the handlebars if they have them at all.  The countryside and cities are very dirty.  People don't like to pay for garbage pickup (when the garbage teams are not on strike), so they just open their car windows as they drive and throw out their bags of garbage.  Some areas appear to be a 'communal dump' and they said that last winter the piles covered some entire roads.

Church was fun. Everyone was very friendly and we visited beforehand.  I impressed people because I bore my testimony in both Italian and English.  The missionaries were relieved because it was one last testimony they did not have to translate.  After church, they had a brunch they call 'breaking the fast' where everyone brings food to share and visits.

Monday, Jennifer and I went shopping on base and converted my money into Euros for the trip.  We also signed up for a couple of tours in the Naples area for Wednesday and Thursday.  Lots of travelling around base.  My son-in-law has got me hooked on Heroes. We watch it together every night.

Tuesday morning I visited with Jeremy before he went off to PT and then work.  It was a short day for him, so in the afternoon, the three of us drove around Naples.  They took me shopping at an Ipercoop.  We bought lots of food items to share and for me to bring home (yum - bufalo mozzarella (makes our mozzarella seem pitiful)).  I also found a bookstore and bought a Sue Grafton, 2 Harry Potters, the first 3 books in the Twilight series, a JA Jance, and a kids Jungle Book and Walt Disney Tarzan all in Italian.  I found that my Italian came back pretty good and I can speak to most people and understand them.

After the shopping, we went touristy and drove around Naples.  Some of those suburbs wound around on teensy one way streets. Again - I'm glad Jeremy was driving.  A one lane road would have cars 3 across at the stoplights.  Did you know that in Italy - a STOP sign is only a suggestion?  It really means yield - and nobody does. We saw an old Greek Temple (the ruins) and took some pretty pictures along the coast.  Hopefully - our tour on Thursday will cover some of the same places because we are taking a bus tour of the Castles of Napoli.

Walked around the base for an hour while my daughter took a nap.  Today is a day to get laundry done and pack for the tour since our day tour of the Caserta Royal Palace was cancelled due to lack of interest.

I will go back later and update my blogs at Leslie's orders. 

/**************************************/

Today is kind of a rest day.  My daughter is suffering pretty badly from allergies and our tour of the Reggio (old palace) of Naples was cancelled because not enough people registered.  We hit the Naval Exchange again and got reimbursed for the cancelled tours and I bought toys for my grandkitties.  They are finally in love with me and won't leave me alone.  We are doing laundry and repacking our bags for the BIG TOUR - we leave early Friday morning to head back to Rome.  Also, Jer's mother and grandmother arrive in Rome on the last day of our tour and we will be bringing them back to Naples with us.

Just did one trip around base this afternoon.  86 degrees and about 80% humidity.  I ran 3.25 miles.  Only got sidetracked once. The navy was doing something on one of the roads I was running on and they told me I had to take a different route.

Tomorrow morning we leave for Rome.  I probably won't be posting again until the 18th or 19th as we tour Northern Italy.

 /***************************************************/

This morning we took the 'Castles of Naples' tour.

We first went to Castello Sn. Elmo. It used to be St. Erastus' Castle. The tour guide did not know how it got named after a red puppet on Sesame Street.  All the castles we saw today were 'functional' castles - purely for defensive purposes.   The outer walls on this castle were about 10 meters thick.  It is hard to imagine something this big in comparison to buildings in the states.  We got some gorgeous view.  This castle was at the top of the city and is in a roughly 6 pointed star shape - so lots of different angles to take pictures from.

We next drove by Castell'Ovo - The Egg Castle. We just took pictures of this castle - it is not open to the public.  I guess one side is oval - hence the egg name.

The final castle was Castello Nuovo - the New Castle. It was named this because it is newer than the other castles, but still predates when Christopher Columbus left to discover the New World. There were some neat frescoes they had saved in this castle and some marble alterpieces.  There was also a neat room with a floor of glass built over an old Roman excavation they found under the church.

We headed to Rome today and experienced a taxi driver trying to rip us off (but we knew better). Beautiful hotel to stay in for two nights (I wanted to pack it in my suitcase and bring it home with me).  We met our tour group and took a side trip to the Spanish Steps. We also did an authentic Italian dinner with tons of antipasti, pasti, sausages, and tiramisu. It started thundering and lightning and raining (the first rain of the summer) during dinner.  We tried to go to Trevi Fountain and got there in between rainstorms.  About 5 seconds after I threw my coin in, it started pouring. By the time we got back to the bus, we were all soaked.

Vatican City, the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica were our first stop of the day today.  It is incredible to see the size and scope of these buildings.   They are amazing.  I could have stayed in the Sistine Chapel all day long.

After lunch, we drove past all the Forums and to the Colliseum.  We bought a neat book about Rome then and now that I read that night to see all the changes in the buildings.

That night I went running along a road near the Appian Way.  Lots of hills and no need to turn much, so my legs were very happy.  Most of the sidewalks are paved with marble curbs, so I could stay on the sidewalk and not get killed by the drivers.

Long drive today as we drove up to Venice.  What a terrific city!  We started out with a gondola ride and one of our gondolas had an accordian player and singer on it.  Our local guide then walked us throught the labarynths of streets to St. Mark's Square. It was pretty cold out, so I picked up an Italia sweatshirt that became my companion from then on. We finished up the day with a private boat tour for about 2 miles along the Grand Canal.

I speed walked for a mile this morning in order to say I got some mileage in while in Venice.

Today was a VED (Very Expensive Day). We started off with a water taxi over to Venice then a tour and exhibition of the Murano glass factory.  I then went hog wild with the credit card and bought six beautiful vases and 2 tumblers that will be delivered in a month or two.

We took a side tour over to the island of Burano for lunch.  This island is where I could spend a long time living (although the running might be kind of hard). Each house/building is painted in a different bright color.  We had a fabulous seafood lunch and I fell in love with Risotto with shrimp!  A little more shopping - because Burano is famous for its lace. We even walked the whole length of the island - it takes about 10 minutes.

Back on the bus for a drive to the lake district for the night. I walked about 2 miles during a rest break in the little town of Garda along Lake Garda.

We had 50 minutes after pulling into the hotel in Lake Garda for the night, so I threw on my running gear and took off for a quick 3 mile run.  It felt so good to be running again.  My knees are really suffering (the ITB bands are swollen) from hours of walking on uneven pavement and cobblestones and marble.

Today was another VED because we started out at the Peruzzi leather factory. I bought a purple belt, some driving gloves and a leather purse.  We toured another fantastic church (can't remember the name at the moment) and took a tour through most of old Florence.  

I skipped the extra tour that night and ran 6 miles around the outskirts of Florence and over the Ponte Vecchio. Then I took a bath and walked another mile and a half around our hotel and the River Arno.

Back to Naples today.  My son-in-law joined us in Rome and we picked up his mother and grandmother at the airport.  They were coming in from touring England, the Azores and the Phillipines.  I got to walk a lot around airports and carried two 50 pound suitcases up and down stairs and onto trains.  

My daughter took her in-laws over to the commisary and NEX.  Since the car was full of people, I ran over there and met them and then ran back.  Did the same later in the day when my son-in-law took them over there.

I ran twice around the base this morning - once in both directions.  It rained for several hours last night, so is a lot cooler and the humidity has dropped.  After that, I stopped by for some gatorade, a potty break and went out again.  I was hoping to do 12-15 miles, but ran around the high school track for 4 miles and had to make some emergency potty breaks, so decided to head back to my dauther's house.

We went out this afternoon and bought some chocolates, nutella, and risotto mixes (my new love) and I have packed and weighed my suitcases.  I am taking back a full suitcase and a dufflebag (only came with the suitcase) and we shipped off two boxes full of books, pasta and chocolate yesterday. 

I am filling out postcards today and hope to do another few miles walking around base tonight.

It has been a pleasure to run around Italy - but I am ready to come home and let my knees and ankles quit hurting and get my stomach back to food it is used to. It has loved the new food in one way - but my digestive track has not loved it in others.

Later: Walked 3.5 miles around base to put my postcards in the mail and kill time.

Yesterday was a VVLD (Very, Very, Long Day) as I took a train from Aversa, Italy, to Rome, then another train to the Rome Airport.  I flew from Rome to New York City and then on to Utah.  It was almost 1:00 AM before I got home and I hadn't slept much.  I think I was pretty tired because I took a hot bath to relax me because I hurt so bad and woke up when my head went under water.

Went to work and got in 5 hours before coming home at noon and sleeping again.

Tonight I went out to dinner with Leslie, Harold, Paul and Julie.  Leslie and I did some talking about upcoming races and that started me doing some serious thinking.  I was on track last May to be ready for a 50 miler this fall, but lost a lot of training with my hysterectomy and recovery and then didn't get in as much mileage as I wanted to while in Italy.  I 'could' finish the OV 50 miler, but I don't think I am ready for it and I don't think that my body is in a state where I would enjoy the challenge at all.  I rolled out my legs tonight and the IT band from the hip to the knee on both legs is so inflamed I couldn't put full weight on the roller.

Given the state of my current physical and mental status, I have decided to not sign up for the OV 50 miler in the end of October and let St. George be my last big race of the year.  I am a little disappointed because this was going to be my year for a 50 miler, but I would rather put it off a year than get myself injured or lose my enjoyment of training because I push myself to do one when I am not really ready.

My stomach was a little more settled today and I woke up really early (could it be because I fell asleep before 8 p.m.?), so headed to the treadmill at the gym.  Did 5.5 miles in an hour, did some stretching and came home.  My weight was 146 the first day home from Italy, but after working out this morning I was back down to 142.6.

/**************************/

Later - ran 4.6 miles up the Little Cottonwood Trail and back and headed down the road.  A nice lady drove by and picked me up and even took me to her house, let me pet her dog, cracked my back and fed me dinner.  What a nice way to end a long day.

Walked to work this morning.

I read another blog this morning which mentioned milk intolerance and it has made me start thinking that maybe adjusting my schedule for Europe kicked my lactose intolerance in (I haven't had it in years).  I am going to buy some lactaid on the way home from work and see if it helps - because I really don't want to spend St. George Marathon rushing to bathrooms like I did when I had food poisoning last year.

I was talking with the HR Director for the City of St George this week and she promised me good weather if I wouldn't mess up her database for her (took a few threats to get that promise out of her).

FYI:: Leslie, Kevin and I are planning to run near the Cliff Bar Pace Team 5:15 group (if there is one) - so look for us there!

Ran a paved path next to Trax with Leslie this morning.  It was a beautiful morning out.  The knees are still a little tender, but I will ice and massage all week to keep the ITBands happy. I am a little concerned about Leslie though - she saw penguins on our run.....

My son just called and told me he rolled his ankle in a storm drain last night - so he won't be running St. George.  Bummer. He'd better be a good cheerleader for us.  He knows how much having cheerleaders last year helped him out.

 /**************/

Afternoon - by decree of Queen Leslie, I set out to bike the length of The Queen Penguin's Trail. Um - QL?  It is 3.3 miles long.  We were almost at the end when we turned around. It ends at 114000 South when Sandy ends.

9.4 miles biking.

Went and ran 3 miles with Leslie tonight wearing my Vibram FiveFingers.  The legs felt pretty springy - which is a good thing.  Then Odee and I went running for another mile to get in a little more mileage.

I have a feeling my ankles will be sore tomorrow because when Leslie called I had been playing Guitar Hero Aerosmith for about 45 minutes standing on my balance board to work on my ankles and calves.

55 pushups.