I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly

"I'll do what it takes 'til I touch the sky" - Kelly Clarkson, "Breakaway"

Last night's run was very reminiscent of that song. I'm pretty sure I've said before that I've really been struggling to get much higher than 4 miles. Some of that is related to speed, some of that is related to workout length... But last night my darling workout buddy and I got together for a run for the first time in a while. She got about 5.5 miles, which I think is a biggie for her, and I hit 7 miles. SEVEN!!! And I mean a legit 7, as in on the treadmill and not just my watch reading into how often my foot hits the ground along with... I think it measured my stride when I calibrated the shoe pod.
So on the treadmill I got 7.01 miles and on my watch I got 7.05 miles. It was grueling, and I walked at least a couple of those miles, but the fact of the matter is that not only have I done it but I can KEEP doing it! AND I can do it and keep faster than the max pace!
Disney had better watch out, because I really plan to take that Princess Half by storm! That doesn't mean I'll be the fastest or anything, not by a long shot, but will I finish? Yes!

Another fun bit on the running front: Nike+ now has Nikefuel Missions, where you're basically turning your workout into a video game and trying to get a certain number of Fuel Points in an hour.
(I told my running buddy about this and she got so excited because she thought the Fuel Points were like the fuel points we get from the grocery store that we can use to save money on gasoline. It was pretty funny, but also kind of sad. I can only imagine how many more people would be active if it could save them tons of money on gasoline!)
My first mission I decided to up it to the "hard" level and work toward 450 Fuel Points in 30 minutes. When I started my watch it recorded the 30 minutes that corresponded with the challenge, and according to the website, I "destroyed" the challenge and got 672 Fuel Points. The next challenge, if I go straight for the "hard" level, is 800 Fuel Points in half an hour. I think if I keep a pretty good running pace of at least 4.5MPH (I think that's a 13:20-ish mile??) then it should be pretty easy.

I admit that I have yet to figure out how Fuel Points are calculated. Obviously it's something to do with the level of energy that is used, but I also have to wonder how time, weight, distance, etc. factor into the equation.

I have yet to decide if I want to go for another run tonight or if I just want to wait until Friday. It could go either way, really. And if a lot of it ends up being walking, I won't be offended, as long as I keep at 4.0MPH or faster :)
And last night I was ridiculously thankful for my calf compression sleeves.
Oh, and I got a blender from older BIL for Christmas - the blender I've been eyeing with the dispenser on the side and everything. Methinks I there will be running smoothies made for this!

Bring it on.