Cannot find my happy pace and 2.5 days in Quebec.

My blogging has been very inconsistent.

I have hit a spot where I get easily discouraged and frustrated.

The pain is still under control.  That is good.

I have reached a new milestone in distance: 6 miles. Also good.

So what is not so good?

The pace.

Most of my runs over 4 miles are hard.

I struggle like a new runner or I should say like the new runner I once was.

I cannot find my "happy pace" the one where I can run for a long time and not have to catch my breath or walk.

This is hard for me.  I get depressed and sometimes I want to cut my run short. But I don't.  I have not done that once so far.

I cannot keep a decent pace for very long.  My fitness is still not where it was.

My next race is October 28.

RnR LA half marathon.

I need to get busy and follow a plan.

The goals: finish.  Faster than the OC half.  Not get hurt.

That is reasonable.

After that I got Ragnar Las Vegas.

I want to be doing a lot better than now for that.

Patience....patience.....

I went back home.  If you are a new reader home is Quebec City Canada.  

I took the red eye last Friday night (3 flights during the night actually) to get to Quebec on Saturday August 17: my day's 80th birthday.

I got there on Saturday at 11 am and we had a party for my dad that day.

I was so happy to be there.

This was the first time I went back alone since I moved here to SoCal 13 yrs ago.

I have missed many Christmas and birthdays and other family events but this one was huge and I wanted to be there.

My brother came with his 2 girls, the oldest is my Godchild.  

Me with my dad and my brother.  (Do you think he is older or younger ?)

With Eve, my God daughter.  She is 15 and now taller than me at 6 ft!

I stayed only 2.5 days total.  That was crazy.  I travelled back home Tuesday all day, left my parents home at 9 am and got to my house 15 hours later at 9 pm ( midnight Quebec time).

Crazy but worth it.

I had time to see my family and a few close friends and that was great.

I even had time to squeeze a short run in my neighborhood, first one on the pavement.

I passed in front my old elementary school.

Went to one of my favorite spot called "cafe temps perdus" means "the lost times cafe"

And this place

"The runner's corner"

This trip went by way too fast.

I was feeling homesick all week.

Even after 13 yrs it is still hard to be living so far away from my hometown.

6 - hip problems - back to school (and One Tree Hill)

Yesterday I ran 6 miles.

It was not fast and it was not all running but it was 6 miles.

I felt no pain in my knee.

I still feel very sore in the right hip.

Not while I ran but after. 

That is annoying me a lot.

I should not have to deal with other kind of pain!

I am having a hard time finding good ways to stretch my hip. Stretching the hip not the quads.

I use a strap and lay on my side. Bring the strap over my head and hold.  (Other end is at my ankle).

That is what works the best so far and rolling it with a trigger point roller.

I remember being really sore in the hip after the  OC half marathon.  I thought this was all because of the power walking.   Running that does not hurt but walking does.

I hope this is just the body getting used to running again.

After that 6 miler I am feeling optimistic.

I struggle with pace.  My fitness is at maybe 60% of what it used to be. 

We survived week 1 of back to school!

4th grade is no joke, first spelling test was Friday and tomorrow is first social study test! 

First day of school pictures

Do you have Instagram?

If yes do you find that you blog less because of it?

I do.

I sometimes feel like I repeat myself here.  I still want to keep my blog of course.  I want it to be for my boys so they can get to know me better...know Caroline not just mom.

I am going back home on Friday, alone for the first time ever since I left 13 yrs ago.

I am going for a super short visit to celebrate my day's 80th birthday on Saturday.

I am taking the red eye on Friday and I am coming back home Tuesday night. Crazy I know.

I will spend 2.5 days there it will be worth it.  80 yrs old that is important.  I am sad that the boys and Bill are not coming but it was not possible this time.

This is going to be a crazy week: 2 nights of meeting the teachers at the school, 3 days of working including the day I will travel and leaving for Quebec. Oh and homework and 4 soccer practices!

After if finishing Scandal I needed a new Netflix addiction for my treadmill runs and I started watching One Tree Hill.  I don't know why I never watched that show before.  9 seasons and I had never seen one single episode!  I watched all the other shows in that very intellectual genre: Dawson's Creek, The OC, Gossip Girls and of course my all time favorite Felicity.  So now it is the Scott Brothers saga.  Did you watched that one when it was on?  Team Lucas or Team Nathan?

Five

Today I ran 5 miles.

5 miles.

Last time I went there was in April.

I did a few 4 milers and I decided it was time to test the machine...and go to 5.

Don't know why that number is like a milestone for me as far as coming back goes.

This last week was pretty good.  No pain in the knee.  I do have stiffness and soreness in my right hip after almost every single run.  I stretch and roll and that helps.  I am going back to PT Tuesday and will ask for advices.  I am now going to go every other week.  Best for my wallet. 😉

I am still running exclusively on my treadmill.  No road yet.

I plug the IPad and go.  I watched season 1 and 2 of Scandal and I loved it.  So good.

I discovered VEVO.  That is pretty cool, watching the music videos instead of just the audio.

The only problem is no Goo Goo Dolls and no Matchbox twenty.  But lots of John Mayer and more importantly Keith !

The fitness is still not back but it is getting better...I am far from where I was before injury.

I did not put any weight so that is good I guess.

I am still taking walking breaks but I continue to increase the running minutes by 1 min every week.

If I have to keep the walking in I am fine with that.

Better that than no running.

I hope that I will continue to make progress.  I am always waiting for the sharp pain to come back...

Last Saturday I went to my second summer concert.

This time it was John Mayer and Phillip Phillips.

It was awesome!

Both really good.  I would go see just Phillip Phillips he is that good.

John Mayer is a guitar God.

He played 22 songs and he sounded great.

He was really humble and gracious to the crowd and the musicians playing with him.

Go see him if you have the chance.

I went with my friend Nicole

Tomorrow is Back to School!!!!! 

We are ready! Got new haircuts and new backpacks, lunch pails and shoes!