Changes In Latitudes & Attitudes

 "Changes in Latitudes, changes in Attitudes..."

**Bonus points for anyone who knows the song!! :) So much going on for me personally lately, that I havent had time to post. Luckily running is keeping me sane. Thanks for all the kind comments and regular posting should happen soon!


Wednesday, March 31st: 5.1 miles (9:36 pace)

This was my last evening in Oahu. I decided to head down to my favorite park, Ala Moana, located in downtown Waikiki. I made sure to go down to the park at sundown so that the heat wasnt overbearing.

Notice my tan burned forehead!

The park is roughly a 2.6 mile loop which runs along the water between two marinas and overlooks Waikiki Beach. The beautiful park is well lit and maintained, and has seemed to be safe to run. (Although, don't bring valuables to leave in your car, it might be broken into!!) The park has various fields, benches, beaches, trees and tennis courts to play in. It is really a beautiful park.

Running path along the water

This was the first time in Oahu that I actually felt like I was running normally. Although the 9:36/mile pace was slower than my regular pace, it felt great. Even though it was really humid, and difficult to breathe, I was able to hold a decent pace without stopping twice around the park. I just missed taking pictures of the sunset (I didnt want to stop!!) but the few pictures I snapped should show the beauty of the park.

Evening clouds and people walking the Ala Moana path. The beach in the distance is also part of the park. Clouds usually roll in during the evening. But its still around 80 degrees!

Thursday, April 1st: 4 miles (8:45 pace)

West Seattle and Downtown Seattle from the plane

I flew home on an early flight Thursday. Even though it was a long day, I was really wanting to get a quick run in. I went up to BHS and ran the track. It was a LOT colder in Seattle than when I left. Meaning it was about 45 degrees and it was over 65 degrees when I left for Hawaii. How does that even happen? Brr....

Anyways, it felt great to be able to run AND breathe again. I easily ran 4 miles in under 9:00/mile pace. I have to admit it was pretty chilly though...it took over a mile and a half to warm up! What happened to the nice 50-60 degree weather from March?

Friday, April 2nd: 5.1 miles (10:25 pace)

Little Bro and I went on one of his runs through the neighborhood on Bainbridge. We decided to run hills, so we were not running for time on this one. Good thing, because our pace was pretty slow :)

We took our time and talked through most of the run (which means that we were not working too hard, even though the hills were long and steep). While watching the Garmin through the run, I noticed that it wouldn't be 5 miles by the time we reached the house, so we decided to run through the golf course to get extra distance in. WHY DIDN"T I THINK OF THIS BEFORE?? Not only was the path paved and flat, but it had rolling hills and was very scenic. No, there were no golfers on the course that we interrupted. Ill have to keep this in mind for future runs......go on golf course paths!! :)

Image found here

Saturday, April 3rd: 9 miles (9:56 pace)


Since the Whidbey Half is next weekend, I needed to get a long run in beforehand. I went to Battle Point Park to attempt a 9 miler on Saturday. Battle Point is roughly 1.5 miles around, so I had to do 6 laps to get to 9 miles! That is a lot of circles....

Luckily the park has many trees and a pond so that you cannot see your entire path at a time. My dad joined me for 3.5 of the miles, which was great. He has been running for years and has inspired me to keep running and staying active while growing up. It was really nice to have the company while running too :)

While coming to the end of his run, it started to rain POUR. I mean, it was movie-style rain and I wasnt prepared. It took a full 2 miles to get warm again after stopping and I was still shivering at the end of the run. Even though it was a flat course and I got my miles in, it was a struggle because it was so cold, rainy and windy.

Yet another cheeseball photo

Guess it was a chilly welcome back to the PNW!!

Tuesday, April 6th: 5 miles (9:16 pace)

I was planning on a longer run today, but Im starting to feel sick :( I decided to go on a short 5 miler with hills - similar to the route with Little Bro a few days ago, but not on the golf course :) The run was short and hilly, but I think it was a good training run. Also, my time greatly improved by less than a minute per mile off my past time!

No running for me today, Im totally exhausted and have a HORRIBLE sore throat. Honestly, Ive never had one this bad :( Im hoping to get better by tomorrow and fit a long run in tomorrow. Probably lots of tylenol and cold medicine tonight.....boo. It was probably from the airplane air.


Happy running and hope everyone else isn't sick!