operation: like a gazelle

five years

2011-06-28T20:07:00.000-07:00

the end of may aaron & i celebrated our 5th anniversary. (yes, this time of year is celebration time for our family with sadie's b-day, our anniversary & aaron's b-day all within weeks of each other). we were able to get away, just the two of us, overnight for the first time since our 1st anniversary. crazy, but true. it was a simple little getaway. we didn't even go too far from home. but, it was absolutely fabulous...dare i say perfect.

our first stop...the newport beach temple. gorgeous. we felt like newlyweds.

next it was off to the quaint bed & breakfast. it was literally on the boardwalk. we had no idea it was that close to the sand. ah....heaven. we got another little surprise when we entered our room. the bathroom window had a view of the ocean. beautiful.

it was a gorgeous day outside. so, we headed down to the lobby to check-out the beach cruisers & go explore along the boardwalk/baloba peninsula. i instantly fell in love with "my bike". check out how adorable it is. i seriously want one for christmas.

we ended up riding around for 4 hours...yes FOUR hours of bliss. aaron loved that i had a smile on my face the whole time.

here is the only picture we took of the two of us the whole weekend. (the truth is we forgot the camera at home. so, the phone camera had to do. good things it's pretty good).

the waves were huge that day....quite possibly the biggest waves i've ever seen in person.

we joined a large crowd to watch some crazy body surfers tackle the waves at "the wedge".

we drooled over the fabulous beach cottages, enjoyed some tasty nachos & "guac" on the pier, and made it back to the hotel just in time to watch the sunset from the upstairs lobby.

we freshened up and headed to an amazing italian dinner at villa nova at 9pm. (can't remember the last time we've eaten dinner that late). we took our time...not to be rushed by tired girls or schedules to keep. we went all out with the food...ordering an appetizer, salad, and two entrees. a big splurge for us. :) we headed back to the hotel and grabbed some gelato on the boardwalk.

day two started off with a 7 mile run around town. (aaron was thrilled to have a break from pushing the double jogger carrying 50lbs. worth of girls!). once we were all cleaned up we hoped on the ferry to balboa island.

once on the island we did what we do best on vacation....explore! for hours we walked around & talked. once again, what a nice change of pace to not be on any sort of schedule. we could take our time moving as fast or slow as we pleased.

lunch was had at one of our favorite places to grab a bit to each...cafe rio. then we took our time driving home along highway 101....stopping to explore neighborhoods and beach cities along the way. corona del mar was quite spectacular. check out the view of the backside of "the wedge".

we arrived home to two happy girls. THANK YOU mom & dad!! we were refreshed, relaxed, and ready to tackle the next adventure ahead. getting away just the two of us was much needed & worked wonders for really reconnecting. i highly recommend it. we hope to do it again...and this time before another four years pass! ;)

My play by play

2008-05-27T20:48:00.000-07:00

I started to write this on my personal blog but decided it fit better here...
here's my recap of the big day-

After going to bed at 9:30pm the night before in a nice comfy hotel bed sans kiddos- sleeping with funky dreams (including wearing the wrong running shoes, going to the wrong starting line, etc, etc) I was awoken by Kristen knocking on my door. Luckily I had set all my clothes/gear out the night before and took a couple minutes to brush teeth, get dressed and meet her in the hallway. That could explain why I looked like this at the starting line:

We made a pit stop at the porta potties (along with at least 500 other nervous runners) and then ran over to the rest of you crazy girls. The starting bell went off and Jess said "Let's go" and we were off. In all the craziness Kristen left her Ipod in her jacket so she went back to get it. So we started without her (what the??)......not a great way to start the race. But oh well.
It became glaringly obvious that I was not to stay up to speed with you Jess and the rest of the girls. I ran with Brooke for a bit but then she sped up and I decided to stay at the speed I was comfortable with.

Around what I thought was mile 6, it occurred to me that the mile markers were further apart than what I thought they should be. Shortly thereafter I ran past the MILE 4 marker!!! YIKES! I seriously thought that somebody was going to announce at the end that it was a big mistake and we had actually completed a full marathon instead of a half.
My favorite sign ever!

I'm not sure if it was because I had never run the course before or what but the first half of the course proved to be tough. There was a part where it winded all the way down a canyon trail type thing and then all the way back up (mile 7). I had my GU and didn't have the urge to puke it up- thank heavens.
Everything was ok until about mile 10 when my knee really started to bother me. I have never had knee problems so I had no idea how to deal with it. I kept trying to "run it off" but with no luck. Two ladies asked me if I was ok and I told them I hurt my knee. They told me to walk because "there's always another race," to which I cheerfully replied, "I NEVER WANT TO DO THIS AGAIN!" I ended up run/walking the last 3.1 miles and severely screwing with my time (and my knee). But my original goal was ONLY to cross the finish line.
As I made my way towards that blessed line, I heard an older chap say, "I just can't believe anyone goes over 2 hours to do a 1/2!" I would've punched him in the jaw but his age saved him. HOW RUDE.
What a beauty- you know you're all jealous!

It was as amazing crossing the line as I had dreamed it would be- with a cheering section and all. I cried into Josh's shoulder that I had hurt my knee really badly and that I was embarrassed. He told me how proud he was as any good, supportive husband should do (thanks Joshie) and I was relieved it was over. I could barely walk. My knee was now throbbing and I had to sit down.
We took some quick pics of the group (minus my running partner Kristen) and then hung out for a bit before I had to say my final goodbye to Jess, Clint & Owey (they move on Thurs to BYU-I).

My only regret is that I gave off the impression to Jess that I was upset that I had done the race. And that there were a few moments of complaining along the 2:38 hours (final time).

I am proud to say that I was able to take it all in and feel lucky to be running, have good weather and know that I was accomplishing a big goal that I never even dreamt possible. Thanks Lup for pushing me outside of my comfort zone. I love you SO much!!!

Move out of your comfort zone. You can only grow if you are willing to feel awkward and uncomfortable when you try something new.
Brian Tracy

And while I'm on the I love you's-
can't help but say how much I love these guys!!!!!

And no pic of the rest of the cheerleaders (Mom, Dad, Yvonne)-
thanks for always believing in me!!

Thanks to all of you for your support over the past few months- it was an incredible journey!!!
GOOD JOB EVERYONE!!!

P.s. I know it sounds like I just won an Emmy or something but for me, running 13.1 miles straight was just about as likely as me winning an Emmy.

Good Luck!

2008-05-25T11:10:00.000-07:00

Girls, I just wanted to say "Good Luck" in the race. I am so proud of all of you and so bummed I'm not there. Have a wonderful race and maybe I can join you next time (I hope there's a next time!). Take Care!

plans

2008-05-24T16:17:00.000-07:00

hey all. are you ready for this?
we have so much going on right now what with all the packing our lives away and trying to soak in all the CA sunshine (i mean rain... boo) that race day still seems way far away when in reality it is (dun, dun, dunnnnn) the day after tomorrow. so here's the deal.
the inlaws come in tomorrow night. we will be leaving here at o-dark-thirty (aka 5 am) on monday to get up there in time to register and park and all that. the ma and the pa i think will be at the race as well as the inlaws, the hubby, and the babe. also miq's whole clan. so, since this is like a giant family affair, i for sure can't bail on everyone even though i really want to hang out with all of y'all afterwards too. so, my parents kind of offered to bbq at their house after if you want to. they don't have a pool, but they have a spa and a wii. (that has to count for something right?) and if you really want to swim, we could always head down to our place to use the pool at our complex. i just can't promise a warm and inviting home to relax in since we are pretty much all in boxes now.
so. what do you think? any takers?
regardless, can't wait to see all your skinny little bums at the starting line. bring your cell phones please so we can meet up?!

Race Day Plans

2008-05-22T09:23:00.000-07:00

Ok girls! We're almost there! I can't believe it! I've been nursing a hurt foot all week but it is feeling significantly better so I am PRAYING really hard that it is ok come Monday. The forecast looks good, not too hot I think.

I'm curious as to everyone's plans. When are you arriving, checking in to the race, who are you coming with, where are you going after? I think that my plan is this. Check in to the race on Sunday depending on the hours and how church overlaps them. Morning of- Drop one car off at the finish line area so we have a close parking spot then have Aaron drop me off at the starting area alone. Hopefully I can nurse or pump right before he drops me off. Then Aaron and the baby will go home and later walk from our house to the finish line area so that they can be there and since one car will already be there. (I just don't want to have to walk home even though its probably less than a mile!).

Last time I didn't bring my own water or anything, just myself. I felt like this was a mistake. Even though there were plenty of water stations, it seemed like one or two times I was DYING of thirst and there were no water stations around. This time I think I'm going to put gatoraid or something like that in my waist pack water thing and have that. Mostly drink water at the water stations but also have that around my waist for when I need it. It will also allow me to bring my shot blocks.

I haven't looked up the rules, I know some races are no longer allowing ipods. I hope that this one allows them because even though I plan to try to run with you girls I am so slow lately that I think I might be on my own for at least the second half of things so I do plan to bring my ipod loaded up with some exciting new songs (which I have yet to find).

Then I guess my last step would be to run! And run, and run and run. For 13.1 miles. My only goal right now is to finish. I don't think I'll be fast but I just want to DO it.

We don't have a big house or I would totally offer to have everyone over afterwards. We do have a community pool and a big green belt area so we could gather there if people were interested since it is close (like I said, about a mile from the finish line). If anyone needs a place to shower, nurse, change, whatever, you are more than welcome over at our house. If anyone is coming the night before and wants an air mattress or a couch I can offer you that too but that's about as good as it gets. Or if everyone is heading back down to San Diego after we are also welcome at my brother in law's who has a huge pool and back yard and everything but it is kind of a drive (Scripps Poway). I think it would be fun to socialize afterwards, its just finding the best spot I suppose.

Anyway, I want to know everyone' s plans!

2008-05-21T19:00:00.001-07:00

it's good to be back home again

2008-05-19T19:54:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure when the last time is that I've posted but, it's safe to say that it has been awhile. I have been pretty good about training except for this past week. The reason - I was in Utah helping my sister with her 4 kids (including a 1 week old baby) while her husband is out of town. Having a 6 month old myself didn't make the craziness any less. So, the two of us watched 5 kids under 7 for 1 week while also throwing a bridal shower at her house...all just one week after she gave birth and while my little one just had to be teething (of course!). Needless to say, I only got out to run once for 4 miles. I was pushing a jogging stroller and running at a much higher altitude so it felt like much more. This afternoon we flew back to SD and one of the first things I wanted to do was go for a run. I know it sounds crazy. The 4 miles felt great. I'm hoping to be able to run tomorrow with jess and "break in" my tank. I'm thinking of running on Thursday as well just because I missed so much last week. I can hardly believe the race is less than a week away but SO glad. It's time for it to be here! Speaking of the big day...any celebration plans for after the race? Are we planning on meeting someplace to start this bad boy together? Just thought I'd throw some of these thoughts out there for discussion since race day is so close. See you all soon....in just 6 days that is!!

4 on the coast

2008-05-19T11:16:00.000-07:00

buenos dias.
this morning i got to run 4 miles on the coast and although i felt sluggish, it felt good to get it done. it's funny how just a few months ago running seemed to consume my life. i thought about it all the time (mostly dreaded it), ate what would be best for running, planned my life around it, etc. and although i still have been very diligent about my training, it has taken on a different feel. it's just not as big of a deal as it used to be. it's just something i do. and i like that.
saturday i got to run for the first time with my sis. like, ever. did we ever go running together miq? i don't think so. they were down for the weekend for drew's birthday and joined us for the cf walk. mom, julia, clint and owey all walked along with shar and her family while miq and i ran the 4 miles. it was soooo hot down at mission bay, and we all got sunburned. it was fun to run with miq though, even though we were dodging walkers the whole time and pretty embarrassed by our spandex in front of people we actually knew. oh well. and here's mique sporting the spandex. shucks, i don't have any pictures of me. how did i miss that? :)

doesn't she look hot? love you miq!
i got to run on the coast today since clint's last day was friday and i really want to make these last few runs memorable here in san diego. pretty sure it'll be a little different in idaho. oh, and i wore my run girl run shirt today. breakin it in. it was great. no problems.
and now, only one run separates us from d-day. i thought i would be so much more nervous, but i really am not. i know i have worked hard to be ready. i am physically and mentally prepared. i am confident of what my body is capable of. and overall, i am just excited to reach the culmination of this whole experience. but really, it won't be the end, because i'm addicted now. (especially when people keep telling me that it looks like i never had a baby.)

Note to self...

2008-05-16T14:42:00.001-07:00

Do NOT get sunburned any time in the next week. Wearing a sports bra on a very sunburned back is VERY painful! (I made this mistake today) So despite our crazy warm weather (which I am PRAYING will be gone by Memorial Day), I am going to lay on the sunscreen all next week because this sucks!

Also, just wondering if anyone has gotten their shirts. I was totally scared by the whole "sizes run extremely small" thing since I would be a large or xl even if they ran normal. I ordered a 2xl and I had to pay EXTRA so I really hope it fits! Has anyone received theirs yet?

I have been meaning to post a pic but I just can't seem to get one (leaning out the car window with my cel phone is NOT the way to get a picture) but they posted all of the street closure signs along the race route. It is SO scary when I see them because I am like, wait that is because I am going to be running on these roads! For 13.1 miles! AHHHH!

eminem+christina= true love forever,m

2008-05-15T17:01:00.000-07:00

5 miles today would have been impossible had it not been for a few clutch moments from my good friends christina and eminem. just like all good friends, they always pull through when you need them the most.
my mom came to watch owey this morning for the last time (boo-wah) and i headed out the door to face the heat and the hills. somehow that combination managed to suck out all the energy and motivation i had in me within the first mile or so, and i was just not excited to be running. at one point, the little whiner voice in my head almost talked me into cutting the route short and it was then that eminem saved my little runner life. ok, not really, but once i heard that first line i knew there was no way i was doing anything but 5 miles today - like it or not.
"Look, if you had one shot, or one opportunity To seize everything you ever wanted-One moment Would you capture it or just let it slip?"
i know. so cheezy, but it get's me every time.
renewed energy, i overcame the whiner in me and pushed forward through the streets so aptly named:

yes, longrun drive and high bluff. pretty much sums it up.
yet still i had the steepest hill of the course in the last mile, and i was fully prepared to skip back to eminem to get me through it. and that's when my girl christina showed up.
"'Cause it makes me that much stronger
Makes me work a little bit harder
It makes me that much wiser
So thanks for making me a fighter
Made me learn a little bit faster
Made my skin a little bit thicker
Makes me that much smarter
So thanks for making me a fighter"
and that's how i made it through 5 miles today folks. true story.
oh, by the way - i ran 3 on tuesday. woopdee.

push through

2008-05-13T09:09:00.000-07:00

last night i ran 5 miles on the treadmill. had to push through my laziness and lack of discipline these days.
watching dancing with the stars to distract me definitely helped.
so, 5 miles, 50 minutes. yippee.
i have no idea when i am going to run today- i just can't find it in me to push the stroller.
ordered shirts for amy and i - hopefully they'll be here in time!
13 more days!

Eleven

2008-05-10T15:35:00.001-07:00

All the gory details here.

only 7 more.

2008-05-10T09:38:00.000-07:00

so, you may think i am talking about 7 more miles to do after the 6 i ran this morning to equal a half-marathon. while that is true (sick) that is not the 7 i am referring to. i'm talking about the 7 more runs to do... # 7 being the half-marathon itself. i must say, the thought of only 6 more training runs evokes all kinds of emotion: excitement, fear, thrill, anxiety, nausea (is that an emotion?), anticipation, terror... you know... all the good ones. i have been looking forward to this for what seems like forever and the last few weeks have definitely dragged on. but, now that race day is a little more than 2 weeks away, it kinda freaks me out.
anyhow- this morning was fine. nothing too eventful. unless you count my running to victory at the end of the 6 miles going up hill and finally getting to the stopping point to hear horns honking and a car full of young women and leaders from our ward flailing out the windows at me. on their way to a service project, i'm sure the last thing they wanted to see to inspire "good works" was me in all my sweaty spandex glory. and the humiliation begins. i guess i'd better get used to it and get over it. or i could just move away to a place where no one knows me and won't care if i am sweaty and spandexy. like maybe rexburg?

p.s. should i be worried that i have posted 6 of the last 7 posts? peeps? are you out there?

beware of the groove...

2008-05-08T12:36:00.000-07:00

i finally found my groove again after several "not good" running days lately. this morning my mom came to watch owey while i ran and i was able to get a good 5 mile run in. i felt great- no foot problems, no sore muscles, a good course, and good music. all in all, it felt awesome to be back.
side note: one of these days i want to do a humanitarian service project that involves carrying several dozen extra sports bras with me as i run and handing them out to perfect running strangers who have yet to understand the power of a good sports bra. or two. don't you think their lives would be changed forever? i do.

shirts...

2008-05-07T17:36:00.000-07:00

i decided to just post the shirt to the zazzle website and let you all order it from there if you want it... see it on the right? hope that's ok!! sorry it took me forever...

A good Samaritan!

2008-05-06T21:01:00.000-07:00

So remember the whole lack of motivation thing? Yeah issues. Anyway, Monday didn't happen and I started feeling REEEAAALLY guilty. Especially when Aaron leaned over that night and asked me if I thought I was even going to be able to DO the run. So I knew I had to get out there today. My neighbor was nice enough to come over and watch Z so I could go while he napped. I brought my cel so she could call me if she needed to. I did 4 miles with the dog and it was good. My foot fell asleep but not for too long, it was a nice cool day and it felt good to be out there and not be slacking. Then I got home and after my neighbor left, I realized something. My phone was no longer in my pocket. My new phone. The phone I got when I LOST my last phone. The phone that Aaron made me feel SOOO guilty for having to get. The THIRD phone I've had in the 3 years since I've been with Aaron. I knew I was screwed. I was running down on the trail by the middle school which had just gotten out. Surely some little 7th grader had already scooped it up. And they were probably texting people or doing something else that would cost me a fortune. I debated. Do I wake the baby up and go back out on the trail to look for it? Do I try to get Aaron to call it and pray that a NICE kid scooped it up? Do I go get a neighbor kid and tell them I'll give them $20 if they can find it on the trail? I didn't even want to TELL Aaron but I was desperate. I asked him to call the phone. He did. And someone answered! A nice old woman who was riding her bike on the trail with her husband had seen it and picked it up. AND, so I wouldn't have to wake up my baby, she rode it over to my house to return it! How nice it that!? It really made my day, and made me realize that there are really great and wonderful people out there. The woman probably thought I was nuts because I was practically CRYING about her returning my phone. She was so sweet about it. Anyway, it was a happy ending to my day. I have to get two fillings tomorrow but I really hope I can get out there one more time before my girls' weekend to Vegas and then I think I can get in a semi longish run in Vegas with Michelle.

wow.

2008-05-06T20:19:00.000-07:00

that was a rough run. it was raining this morning, and even though my mom had offered to watch o while i ran 5 miles, i didn't feel good about doing it in the rain. i just knew it would be my luck to slip and break my ankle or come down with a serious cold (like the one clint currently has). so, i waited it out and hoped it would clear up. i hit the road around 7:00 tonight, not giving me too much time before dark, but i was still aiming for 5 miles. since i didn't map out a course, i just kept running until i felt like i needed to head back to safety. (even though our area is super safe, it still freaks me out to be out alone at night.) the first 20 minutes were reallllly rough. my feet felt like they weighed 50 lbs each and i had a gnarly side cramp (probably since i had eaten only 30 min prior). i finally got into a groove, but still haven't felt like i've had a "good" run in about a week and a half. in the end, i only got in 4 miles and am a little discouraged that i've hit a bit of a wall lately. any advice???

that's it... i'm moving!

2008-05-05T20:54:00.000-07:00

the treadmills at our gym are out of order again. i guess i'll just have to move. like maybe to rexburg.
since the elipticals were being used by other disgruntled night exercisers, i decided it was the bike or nothing. not a big fan of the bike, but i knew i had to get my muscles going somehow. i thought i'd go 4 miles on the bike, but that didn't take very long, so i just went for a half hour. 7 miles or something. biking uses totally different muscles and although my quads feel like they just got a major workout, i am not sweating, not dying of thirst, and overall it doesn't even feel like i just did cardio. weird. running rocks. back at it tomorrow i guess.

need i say more?

2008-05-03T21:32:00.000-07:00

but you know i will...
pretty good run today. i was definitely feeling it after only running once this week in an attempt to rest my feet. i have switched shoes to the ones i got to rotate in, but since they have better cushioning i think i will wear them race day.
anyhow- amy already wrote about our run and there were definitely good and bad about it. it was not near as easy as the 9 we did a few weeks ago, it seemed to be ridiculously hot for the am, and a lot hillier than we had hoped for. but, in the end, we made it, and i am sooo glad! i have been starving and exhausted all day as a result, but i feel good about just adding 2 more miles to that. no biggy!
one thing amy forgot to mention was her husband's comments on how we looked (and smelled) when we got home. he mentioned something about a gatorade ad (lots of sweating). this is what i think he meant:

don't you think?

Long time no post

2008-05-03T21:19:00.000-07:00

Well, I feel like I haven't posted forever, maybe I haven't. I feel like I've been slacking a little and today I was thinking it was because I didn't have the pressure to report to anyone and that was bad for me. Also, I just wish the race was like two weeks ago or something, I am having a really hard time staying motivated.

This week and last were uneventful. I feel like my new shoes are giving me some issues so I think I might have to take them back. The foot falling asleep thing is worse than ever and so frustrating. I'm also getting a weird pain in one toe which I think might have to do with the shoes. I am going to switch back to my old ones until I figure something out.

I did 7 today and even though I would have really liked to do an 11 mile or more one I had a CPR class at 8 am and I knew it just wasn't going to happen. And next weekend I'll be in Vegas. Then the next week is the week before the race, can I run a really long run the week before? Do I want to? Should I? Should I just say 10 is good enough? I am a little nervous about this.

e·l·e·v·e·n· m·i·l·e·s

2008-05-03T13:34:00.001-07:00

where do I begin? how about where we began at around 7am this morning....11 miles from home! jess and I had a good run & kept a good pace (10 1/2 min. miles). I will say that my body knows that we ran a long one today. I am feeling like I just want to lay on the couch and take a nap. All in all it was great -the weather was nice (though it could have been a bit cooler) & no major hiccups along the way. we are ready to tackle this half...but still need to wait the 3 weeks until it is here. I am excited that the longest of of our long runs is complete. I am grateful to have such a great running buddy (thanks, jess!) & for all the detailed conversations we have along the way to help pass the time. we are lucky to live in such a beautiful area where we can catch glimpses of the waves crashing in the ocean to help keep us in good spirits. most of all, I am happy to check this 11-miler off the training schedule - done, complete, finished......HOORAY!

(just to spell it out for ya)

summary

2008-04-30T20:20:00.000-07:00

hey girls, it's been a little bit since I've done a post. I guess because there hasn't been anything too exciting to report. here is a brief summary:

saturday: ran 7 miles with jess. felt good. so happy to have good conversation to pass the time.
monday: ran 3 miles. short & sweet
wednesday: ran 3 miles at the gym b/c I missed the run on tues. no comments about the run being a mile short. It was all I could do to actually get myself to the gym & run tonight.

as for tomorrow, I'm hoping that jess is feeling up for running. I am in need of some motivation to do 4 miles within the next 24 hours.

fyi... a little freaked out

2008-04-28T08:41:00.000-07:00

so, i've been doing some research this morning on the pain i've been feeling in my foot and i'm a little freaked out. i'm afraid it's peroneal tendonitis. i hate self-diagnosing, but i think i would be better off to err on the side of caution than to seriously screw things up. so, i am not going to run today, and probably not tomorrow - we'll see how i feel (although i may freak out since i haven't gone more than a day without running for almost 5 months!) wish me luck.

so glad it was only 7.

2008-04-27T20:45:00.000-07:00

yesterday was such a crazy day and i have been so exhausted all weekend that i am so glad it was only 7 miles in the am. clint was kind enough to drag his hiney out of bed to drive amy and i out to the beach again so we could run home. we started at the border of cardiff and solana beach and ran to amy's house. we ran a pretty good pace - averaging about 9 min miles on the downhill, 10 on flats, and 11 on uphills. i think our total time was about 75 min. everything was good and fine (although it was really hot for 7 am) until about mile 6 my right foot started hurting. the past few weeks i have noticed that my 5th metatarsal (bone on the outside of your foot that connects to your pinky toe) starts to hurt after i run, but i don't usually notice it while running. anyways- i thought i was going to have to stop, but managed to make it through the last mile. i'm not really sure what to do about it, i need to do some research on what helps. i've heard cushier socks?? any one else know what i'm talking about or what to do? anyhow- i may take it easy during the week this week just to make sure i don't kill my foot just a few weeks before the race (a month from yesterday, by the way). i do still want to do 11 this coming saturday, so wish me luck.
and about mid-week posts - i will probably continue just because it helps me to be accountable. i think i'd be more likely to fudge it if i am not writing after each run. but whatever works for you guys. please don't feel like you ever HAVE to write.

Proposal

2008-04-26T14:57:00.000-07:00

I have a proposal. Are we all a little "over" the post-run blog? I still love reading about all of your experiences, but I feel like I personally don't have anything really new to report after each run. What if we morphed into more of a weekly summary of our runs? We could review the week on Saturdays, after our long runs? Unless someone has an amazing story to share, or a burning question, by all means, I don't want to limit anyone. I'm still so grateful for this blog. Especially in the beginning, it really helped me to get through each run, knowing that I had to go home and 'report' back to you all. And I still really like knowing we are all on the same page. So, just some thoughts.

For me, this week (although I did already write about Wednesday night), I ran Friday morning and today. Friday morning: yuck - major hurting knee, ran only 1.5 -2 miles and walked the rest of the way home, ~3.5 total. Today: much better: Miq and I ran 9, a good solid course with a nice mix of challenging hills and straight stretches. We weren't speedy (a little under 13min miles), but I felt strong, and definitely could have done 4 more (?!?). Memorial Day is just around the corner people! Wow!

on empty

2008-04-24T19:52:00.000-07:00

Tonight we headed out for the 4 miles and about 3/4 of the way through the run I ran out of gas. I guess I just didn't consume enough calories today...or enough of the right calories. So, we ended up only going 3.8 miles (thanks, jess for making up the .2 for me). :) I don't know if this has ever happened to any of you...but with breastfeeding there are just times when if I haven't eaten for a few hours and try to exercise I can all of a sudden feel really weak and out of energy. That is what happened tonight. Nothing that is a big deal...I just have to get some food in me. Ya know? Hey, and good thing that I love to eat!! So, I convinced my hubby that we needed some Papa Johns pizza tonight to refuel me. YUM!

a little more than i could chew.

2008-04-24T19:03:00.000-07:00

went to mom's house this morning so we could run a few errands together and while owey napped i took advantage to hit the road by her house. i took off to run the trail in their neighborhood (which by the way has an awesome view of all of encinitas) and then took a turn off not really knowing where i was going. i figured i know encinitas well enough that i couldn't actually get lost, so i just kept running. i did not get lost, but i did bite off a little more than i could (or wanted to, rather) chew. i ended up running up one of the steepest hills by my mom's house (leucadia) kind of on accident, and between that and the dirt trail (so different from pavement!) i managed to challenge muscles that must have been in hiding all this time. i did make it back alive, and since i ran somewhat aimlessly (kinda fun sometimes- you should try it) i was hoping i had hit the 4 mile mark at least. sure enough, 4.2 miles, 47 minutes. happy friday tomorrow. i think amy and i are planning 7 for saturday, and then next week will be the big one (11 or 12).

"Fun" Run

2008-04-24T16:35:00.000-07:00

I neglected running this week until last night (my 3 yr old broke his wrist and his nose on Monday, and everything else has pretty much taken a back seat). So last night I ran with Mique, pretty late, we didn't get out til around 8:30pm. She had a really "fun" six mile route planned out for us. It looked kind of like this.

The run really did remind me of a really "fun" rollercoaster ride where you start out really high and then face a sheer drop plummeting down down down and then just when you think you have caught your breath the "fun" starts again, although this time the ride ended after a climb up up up (think tick tick tick tick tick). Wow, thanks Mique for setting up that run for us, let's do it again really soon!

(OK, I'm being a little sarcastic, it actually felt great to be out and running, and although the course was a "challenge", I must say we handled it extremely well, and in decent time - we think - anyway hopefully I can get another run in this week before Saturday. What are you ladies planning for your long run this week?

yesterday

2008-04-23T09:23:00.000-07:00

all my troubles seemed so far away...

yesterday mom came to watch owey and poor amy had to push the stroller again while i was baby free. my mom feels bad that she can't watch both babies, but really - who could?!? anyhow- we ran from my house down to the bike trail and planned it so that we had run 5 miles before making it to the ginormous hill up to my house so we could walk up that. we ran pretty fast - the first mile (all downhill ) in like 8:30. Of course, the pace evened out quite a bit through the rolling hills of that trail, but the 5 miles took about 48 min or so. (i think... is that right amy?)

so, we were talking about race day--- how are you guys feeling about running together, pacing etc?? any thoughts on wanting to stick together, wanting to go your own pace, anxiety about being alone, etc etc? i know for me, i would like to run with some one as much as possible because i get so bored alone. but, i don't want anyone to be uncomfortable with a different pace, or whatever. i also want everyone's expectations to be met. what are you thinking? (am i being mother hen right now, or what?)

:( Sick

2008-04-22T20:58:00.000-07:00

Sick, sick sick. No voice, sore throat. Can't decide if its from allergies or if something is really going on here. We walked for about a half hour tonight. That's all I had in me. Hopefully things will pick up as the week goes on.

better than nothing.

2008-04-21T20:22:00.000-07:00

i had pretty much decided to bag it today. just plain ole' didn't feel like it. and then clint came home and made me do it. something about how i'd thank him later, blah, blah, blah. well, by that time, i only had 1/2 hour before dark, so i got in a whopping 3 miles at the track. i did discover that wearing shorts (i've been wearing pants from the beginning) necessitates body glide in a major way - glad i found that out on a 3 mile run and not a 10 miler. that would have sucked.

back at it

2008-04-21T19:05:00.000-07:00

After a 14 hour day at D-Land on Friday and finally crashing into bed at 1:20am I was just too worn-out to get up early for the run on Saturday. We had to be at the temple for a wedding at 10:30am and so I just knew if I was going to be worth anything that day I had to forgo the run. I must say that I am SUPER impressed with what each of you did for the long run. TEN MILES, Brooke!?! You're an animal. Awesome work. I LOVED the pics Kristen & Mique. And jess, I missed being your running buddy....the drop-off and run home method sounds SWEET! We'll have to do that soon.

As for today, I ran 4 miles. I'm a bit confused with what schedule we are all following now but that sounded good (plus that is all my husband was willing to do & he's the one pushing the stroller). Plus, knowing that I will be running 5 miles tomorrow PUSHING the stroller myself I didn't want to push it too much tonight.

Five weeks to go. Let the countdown begin!

Monday, Monday

2008-04-21T14:21:00.001-07:00

These are the new shoes. I liked that they were red since my running jacket is also red and I have that Angel's visor I wear a lot. I'll look SO coordinated! :) (cuz we all know that's important!)

Well, funny to say I actually WANTED to get out there and run today because I was excited to try out my new kicks. We went to Road Runner on Saturday and I did their fancy high tech shoe finder thing which involved walking on a mat (which I had to do like five times because I wasn't doing it right!) and running on a treadmill barefoot while they videotaped me (thankfully only from the ankles down). So I ended up with a stability shoe which I've never had before. I'm curious to see how it will be and glad they have a 60 day guaranteed fit policy where if I don't like them I can take them back. The girl also told me I had flat feed (knew that) and that I should wear an orthotic (not sure if that was just an upsale or legit). So I left with an expensive pair of shoes, orthotics and a bunch of shot blocks because if I got my total up high enough it got me into some savings club. The girl told me to break them in slowly, just do some shorter runs to see how things felt. I also overheard another girl saying that orthotics (I'm spelling that wrong but I don't know how to spell it right!) would take a month to break in so I'm not sure if I'll end up running the race with them or not.
So I decided we needed an "easy" run today so we just went down on the flat trail and did somewhere between 3 and 4 miles, probably closer to 3. I felt pretty good, I was over analyzing EVERYTHING in the shoes so it was hard to know what was just sore from running 10 miles on Sat. or if there were any weird things with the shoes. I did get a weird pain in the bottom of one foot close to the end and I think it might have been from the orthotic. Also, my foot did fall asleep so I know I need to mess with the laces. All in all though the shoes felt good and I think I'll pretty much take it easy this week to see how it goes. I also plan to do a few runs without the orthotic to see what I like better.

Good, Better, Best

2008-04-20T14:58:00.000-07:00

7:30ish am- pre- run
9:00amish- post- run
8:00ishpm - RS stake enrichment

Need I say more?

7

2008-04-19T21:36:00.000-07:00

Just checkin in...ran my three on Thursday morning, it was actually a little difficult, I felt kind of stiff, but it was fine, finished in :29.

Ran with Miq this morning, starting out on a pretty steep hill up and down, and then nice and mostly flat, with a few of what we like to call "inclines" (aka, mild hills). I ditched her on the way up the big hill and listened to my iPod (a little Martina McBride) and once I made it to the top, I turned it off and we gabbed our way through the rest of the run. We ran a really nice easy seven - didn't push the pace at all. I think (she disagrees) we could have gone faster, and we both agreed we could have gone on for another mile at least, but I feel good about doing the seven and not over extending myself. We finished in 1:29.

T-E-N!

2008-04-19T10:36:00.001-07:00

That's right ladies! I did it! 10 miles! I debated and debated yesterday about what I should do. In the end I decided that I would not regret doing a long run and that I would actually be glad next week when I didn't feel like I had to squeeze in a long run with the wedding. And given the fact that I hadn't done more than 5 miles in 2 weeks I figured it was time. So I mapped out a non-hilly (I thought) out and back where if I was hurting or my feet were annoyingly asleep I knew where I could turn around and have it be 5 or 7 instead. I got myself pumped, tried not to eat too heavy of a dinner and got my sport beans ready to try for the first time.

I was incredibly nervous for the poop issue. I didn't sleep well at all (so unfair that the baby of course sleeps all night and sleeps IN on those nights). I woke up at 6 and ate. I managed to poop (tmi sorry). I went back to sleep until 7 (seriously when has my baby ever slept in until 7!?) I was so nervous it took me until almost 8 to get out of the house. I pooped again and you would think that would have made me feel like I was in the clear but instead it made me MORE nervous! I had a 9 mile out and back mapped out and I planned to pull one of those tricks I like to play on the dog and do a mile around the neighborhood first which would put me at 10 and let me go back to the house if I needed to. I did go back after that first mile but only managed to pee. Then I started out. I stopped at Starbucks after only about another 1/2 mile. No luck. I decided to stop playing mind games with myself, be confident that my bowels were empty and go.

I had a really hard time the first couple miles. It was just one of those runs where you are thinking too much about running. Too much about shoes, poop, ankles, etc. But somewhere along the way I finally got into a groove and got my mind off things. I felt like I was keeping up a pretty good pace. I felt good and the best part, my feet didn't fall asleep! I did have a couple of surprise hills, funny how you can drive a road for 3 years and think it is totally flat until you have to run it one day!

I stopped at the half way and had the sport beans. They took too long to eat, they didn't taste very good to me (probably because I've been eating real jelly beans since Easter). I like my shot blocks, 3 of those and I'm good to go. I realized at the half way point that my timer had stopped, well I had stopped it somewhere and not turned it back on. So that sucked but I decided to time the second half and I knew that first mile I did was about 11 min. I felt pretty good on the way back and finished strong! I did the second half at 54 min so if you assume I did that as fast as the first half that was 108 plus 11 would be 118 min. Not sure how right that is but it gives me a general idea. Definitely could have done 3 more.

Really wanting the new shoes today. We'll see what happens. Maybe some gear too if my Road Runner is having a sale! Happy Saturday!

8 is GRRREAT! (says tony the tiger)

2008-04-19T09:20:00.000-07:00

i decided i needed to do 8 this morning- one more LONG one before the 11 or 12 in a few weeks. really, i had a great run this morning. one of the best.
i was a little nervous because i was hoping to go with amy (goes by so much faster!) but when i talked to her last night at 10:00, they were still at disneyland. crazy kids.
so, it was on my own. i had clint drop me off at cardiff state beach and i ran all the way home. i can't believe i just typed that sentence. i ran home from cardiff. that's insane.
the weather was: perfect. overcast, breezy, yummy.
my legs were: well rested, strong, confident.
my mind was: who knows where, but distracted, and made for less mind games.
the course was: hilly, definite ups, definite downs, but nothing to kill me.
the scenery was: awesome. descending towards torrey pines state beach was breathtaking.
the fuel was: cliffs shot blocks. my new favorite. by far. first time i've noticed a difference with any fuel.
the apparel was: perfect! i hit up road runner this week (they have a clearance outlet at the store here in SD - highly recommend it - i got 2 pairs of shorts and 2 tanks for $50. a steal!)
my time was: 84 min. that's not stopping the clock for stoplights either. a pretty fast run for me.

so, 8 was great. hope it was for you too!

Food for thought

2008-04-18T21:05:00.000-07:00

A wise man once said…
“"Where performance is measured, performance improves. Where performance is measured and reported, performance improves dramatically.Where performance is measured and reported publicly, performance improves exponentially."
–Thomas S. Monson

Thank you little public performance motivating blog! :)
Back tomorrow to let you know how the longestrunI'veeverhad goes!

I heart 3 mile days!

2008-04-18T12:25:00.000-07:00

Funny that 3 miles used to be my hard core work out! I remember someone telling me once that you know you are a real runner when 3 miles isn't a big deal. So I guess we're all real runners now! We actually didn't make it out yesterday, we had a rough night and a 2 hour babysitting favor for a friend turned into a 4 1/2 hour ordeal. But I knew that we could easily squeeze in our 3 miles today. It was warm but not too bad, and I felt good except now instead of just my left foot falling asleep both of them are. It is SO annoying and distracting and I am so frustrated with it since I feel so good in every other way. I am torn on how much to run on Saturday, I'd like to do a long run, like maybe even 10 because next week with my sister's wedding its going to be much harder to get in a long run and be there in the morning to help her get ready (and walk around in heels the rest of the day!). But I'm nervous about the foot falling asleep. I want to get new shoes but I don't think a 10 mile run is the time to break in new shoes anyway. So I have some thinking to do. I know I have to decide by this evening because when it comes to 6 am I am never good at making decisions. (well I'm really good at making ONE decision which is to stay in bed!). Either way I'm running at least 7 since I didn't do a long run last week.

lovin' a simple three

2008-04-17T12:01:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you guys, but having to run a mere 3 miles today was a treat. It's been a busy week for us and as I prepare today for some out of town guests coming tonight to stay with us, it was perfect timing for a short run. I was able to get out the door, run the three, and be back in time to clean the house, due the laundry & go grocery shopping before tonight. Oh, and I've got to fit a shower in there sometime before 5pm. Tomorrow we're off to Disneyland - so good thing it's a day off. I'm not sure I could do a long run & then walk all day the park. Though the 5 miles on Tuesday was nice to run on the coast with Jess, I much prefer just having to do 3 while pushing the stroller. So, how many miles is everyone planning on doing on Saturday? six? eight?

catching up.

2008-04-17T07:49:00.001-07:00

so, i am still here by the way. the toe-stubbing turned out to be really minor (thank goodness) and i even still have a toenail! tuesday amy and i ran along the coast - mom watched owey and i felt really guilty that amy had to push audra in the stroller for 5 miles while i was childless. thanks mom! sorry amy! anyhow- it's funny how you think 5 miles is not a big deal nowadays and then you remember "oh yes it is" when you are out there. pretty good run, great scenery, great conversation, pretty good time (although both of our watches stopped- we think we did it in about 55 min) - all in all, not bad.
today i woke up so excited about only having to run 3 miles. i of course just ran on the treadmill cuz i'm lazy like that and ended up doing it in 28 min. i run so much faster on the treadmill because it is soo dang boring!! i just want to get it over with!
anyhow - a little pick me up from "The Non-runners Marathon Guide for Women":

My final recommendation cannot be purchased at the store. (Unless you have a lot of money. And questionable morals.) I recommend surrounding yourself with great people during your training. Try to find at least one other person to go through this hell with you. He or she will provide you with more support than a sports bra ever could. (In a figurative sense, of course. Unless you are very close with your running buddy.)
Your running buddies don't even need to run with you. But they do need to b@*#% with you. I personally hate running with people, but I absolutely love complaining with them. So I run alone and bond with running buddies afterward, comparing our various aches and pains.
Just about every good (or bad or ugly) experience in life is better if you have someone to share it with, someone you can call 25 years from now and be like, "Remember how much that sucked?" Like you, they'll remember that all the running and sweating and chafing really, really sucked. Like you, they'll also remember that all the laughing and the finish lines and the friendship formed from a common goal were pretty friggin' cool.

hope you all know how lucky i feel to have such great friends and to share this misery with you!

Easy, breezy, beautiful...

2008-04-15T16:55:00.000-07:00

Ok, at least that's how I FELT if not how I looked. I was putting off running until after hubby got home because we had morning plans. Well when our morning plans fell through and I called about everyone in the entire world to try to get someone to go with me and no one could I decided to take it as a sign that I wasn't supposed to be out playing, I was supposed to be running! Add to that the fact that the heat wave seemed to have let up at least for today and it was a beautiful cool crisp spring day I just HAD to hit the road. SO off we went at the random hour of 11 for a great run. Funny how it can be SO hard one day and so great the next. I felt great, no mishaps, the weather was perfect running weather, a nice thin thermal over my running tank and I couldn't have felt better. My foot did fall asleep for a few minutes (still don't know what the deal is with that!) but it was right before our turn around so I was able to stop and shake it off a bit. Even tricked the dog into going the full 5 miles with no protest whatsoever, she seemed to be enjoying herself as well. I am happy now that its evening and I don't have to stress about when or how I'm going to make my escape or eat dinner.

I also broke the news to hubby that I need new shoes. I am going to be in San Diego next week so I could hit up Movin' Shoes where I am guaranteed to get great service and a good pair of shoes but I also kind of want to check out this new Road Runner Sports by us which has some computer dealy hooked up to a treadmill that looked pretty awesome. But I am scared of technology or that when I step on that treadmill it is going to flash my weight across some marquee on the store front. (I have issues I know) So I guess you'll just have to wait in suspense to see what I decide to do!

Is it just me....

2008-04-15T14:47:00.000-07:00

Or does running provide the same smell-sensitivities that can only be compared to that of a pregnant woman? I went on my run last night (first since last Monday mind you) and I was totally distracted by all the smells. And last night wasn't the first time....Granted according to Jess I have "fart nose" (I'm always asking if someone cut the cheese) and a more sensitive nose than most (save my Jules- who apparently inherited my nose; I'll be cooking something and she'll come in and say, "Mom it smells like chicken." Or even open a candy bar and she'll say "I smell chocolate." Try to chew gum in secret with that girl, you can forget it- "Mom I smell gum."....anyway back to my point)............but for some reason I find running brings out the best (or worst) in my sniffer.
On the plate for last night? For some reason since it was 90+ degrees in the beautiful SCV every house on my run decided to start bbq season early. It stunk. Not a big bbq fan here. I also had the pleasure of smelling something similar to a broken septic tank. YUCK! Again a lovely smoker decided to puff smoke towards me (although this time it was not directly into my mouth and he didn't laugh- I think he just HAD to get that puff in when he saw me huffing and puffing past him).
Unfortunately for me- this time I didn't smell cherries or roses. Maybe on my next run (with Kristen tonight)? Am I alone on this?
4.2 miles (not on purpose), 50 mins.

Dig down deep and find...

2008-04-14T18:25:00.001-07:00

I hate mondays (as has been said by all of us at some point on this blog). By the way, it occurred to me today that race day is a Monday. That kinda bummed me out/scared me to death. What is it about Mondays? Is it because it is just a few days after the long run? Anyhow, today was probably one of my top 5 worst runs yet. I ran my super duper hilly 4 and super duper struggled. I walked for the first time in this training (except the run where I hurt my shins). I walked for probably five minutes down the steepest part of the hill. I just didn't have it in me. I tried to dig down deep and find my inner stronger Kristen, and she said I don't give a rip, I'm walkin'. And ok, yeah, so I didn't eat anything this morning, and I forgot to bring any kind of fuel, but I am out of groceries and... apparently out of my mind! So, hopefully somehow tonight my body will miraculously remember that I have been training for several weeks now (months even) and I know how to do this, enjoy it even sometimes. We'll see tomorrow.

dilemma.

2008-04-14T12:15:00.000-07:00

so we have a bit of a dilemma on our hands with the shirts. now that i got all of your sizes, i went to go order them and the tanks are no longer on sale. they are now $25. tees however are $10. so, i can look around and see if i can find another website with cheaper tanks, i can get tees instead, or if anyone has a better idea i am open to it. again, i'm not sure if you all want to wear them the day of the race or if you just want to take pictures or whatever. i guess that would make a difference on what to do from here. i need your votes.
and if i'm not mistaken, everyone wants a large except amy wants a medium? is that right? sorry, your responses are all over the place and i think that is what i remember. sorry to put us back to square one.

Sooooooo Hot!

2008-04-14T12:02:00.000-07:00

So I want to steal Amy's pic for the day since that was me Saturday and today. Saturday was just a joke. I was soooooo tired and I traded 3 extra hours of sleep for my run. I should have just gotten up to do it but I didn't. So when I finally made it out the door it must have been over 90. And I had the stroller. I don't really know what part of me thought that 7 miles wasn't going to be a big deal because it was. And it didn't happen. I was sweating, baby was drenched with sweat in the stroller, I started feeling like I might pass out, my foot was asleep, it just wasn't happening. I turned around in the middle of a big hill, didn't even push myself up the hill just turned around and came home. I think it was around 4 miles, probably a little less. I didn't feel too bad though because we spent the rest of the day walking and I am sure I still worked my muscles.

Today I tried really hard to get out earlier, ok not that hard but sort of hard. We made it out a little earlier and it was quite a bit cooler so we did our 4 miles relatively easy, except for my stupid foot that keeps falling asleep! It is seriously the most frustrating thing. I have loosened my laces to the point that I'm sure its not good for my ankles because I have no support. It looks like I'm going to have to break the budget once again this month and get some new shoes (and I've been SO good on my budget!)

I may have to tweak the schedule a little for traveling purposes and I personally want to do 12 miles, something about that makes me feel better but I think it looks good. I'll stick with you guys for the most part.

hot mama

2008-04-14T10:21:00.001-07:00

...and I'm not referring to the sexy type. I didn't get out the door until 9am this morning & let's just say with the heat wave that is currently passing through SoCal I came home a sweaty mess! The run actually felt really good - the sun not so much. Hey, maybe I'll get a nice tan out of this whole training thing (if you call a shorts & sports bra tan a nice tan). Due to the internet acting a little funky this morning, I was unable to map out a 4 mile course. So, I just went out and ran - hoping that my body would know about when to stop. Funny thing, I ran 4.2 miles just like you, Jess! I think we must be rubbing off on each other from all the hanging-out we do. ;) The difference is it took me 50 minutes...I'll blame it on the stroller. ;) So, the run is over and that feels great...because as you ladies know I usually run when the hubby comes home. This week is crazy busy for us, especially at night, so I will be a morning runner the next week or so. Hey, maybe it'll stick. That's all for now, folks!

does it run in the family?

2008-04-14T07:26:00.000-07:00

stunning good looks? charming and magnetic personality? yes, of course! clumsiness? bad luck and stubbed toes? apparently.
boo.
last night i stubbed my toe on the stroller. no, it's not broken or near as bad as miq's, but stupid nonetheless. i'm pretty sure i won't have a toenail on that toe with all this running. oh well. if that's the only injury i have to go through in all this, it's fine with me!
anyhow, it was a little uncomfortable - had a little bit of a different "hop" in my step this morning, but i made it nonetheless.
and i just mapped it out, 4.2 miles - which i am glad about because i felt like i was pretty fast but it took 44 min.
so, that's my story. have a good monday!

Back to the grindstone

2008-04-13T17:06:00.000-07:00

So I'm back from our vacation. As I explained before, I ran Mon and Tues of last week, and planned to run Thurs at Disneyland, and Sat somewhere near our campground. Due to some major family setbacks we didn't get down to Anaheim til around midnight on Wednesay, and needless to say, I just couldn't get myself out to run Thurs am. I actually possibly would have, but my clothes were buried (and I mean seriously buried, I loaded the car - clothes and camping gear for six people for four days, not an inch to spare, yadda yadda). I did plenty of walking around Disney, so at least the muscles moved! Saturday I ran about six miles with a friend from my ward who is going to try and do the St. George marathon in the fall. We had a good run, she is an experienced runner and I picked her brain the entire time - she had some fun and very entertaining advice. The revised training schedule looks fine to me! Back to the grindstone tomorrow, week 14 !?! Wow!

a bit short

2008-04-12T16:25:00.000-07:00

well, today I only made it 5 miles. the problem...my left quad. It felt good the first couple of miles but then I started having sharp shooting pain. so, I decided that a 5 miler was all my body could handle today. I was bummed to not complete the 7 miles listed on the training schedule but know that this is the best for my body in the long run. I know that this isn't a major injury but just a something I need to baby for a little while. I'm hoping to be back to full strength very soon.

as for the training schedule, here is what I am thinking:

	Monday	Tuesday	Thursday	Saturday
week 14	4 miles	5 miles	3 miles	6 miles
week 15	4 miles	5 miles	4 miles	7 miles
week 16	3 miles	4 miles	4 miles	11 miles
week 17	4 miles	5 miles	5 miles	6 miles
week 18	5 miles	4 miles	5 miles	4 miles
week 19	4 miles	4 miles
week 20	RACE!

Tell me your thoughts, ladies.

7 by 8.

2008-04-12T07:56:00.001-07:00

i had to squeeze 7 in before the trek up to miq's house for the funeral, and lucky me, owey had me up by 4:30 so i was sure to make it in time. wasn't that thoughtful of him? i held him off until about 5:30 and fed him and was out the door as soon as the sun started to come up. this is my favorite, favorite time to run. i just love that there are no cars out, the sun is barely peeking through, it is still cool out, just love it. i did a loop from my house to save time (i would have loved to do the coast again, but driving to and from takes an extra 15 min or so) so i ran to the coast instead. it was a nice easy run there, downhill, and a much tougher run back uphill. really, it is tougher on my body, but mostly on my mind. when running alone, it is easy for me to give up and walk up a hill. anyhow, i did the 7 miles in about 80 min. a little slower than my flat terrain pace, but not too shabby. now, my hubby beat me to the shower, so here i am blogging.
hope you all have a good saturday and a great run!

Kink in my plans

2008-04-10T20:57:00.000-07:00

Where to begin this post? Well things started to go downhill last week when I hurt my neck/back while trying on a running shirt at Ross (long history of nightmare try-ons at Ross. Just ask Jess). Anyway- I ran that night just because I wanted to. Dumb. That's all there is to it. Note to self- don't run with a kinked neck. It will hurt. Not while running. But REALLY bad after.
Then I left for Mesquite- still thinking I could run at least 7 miles (mapped out plan and all). And then my father-in-law died. Basically it's been survival mode ever since. I went running on Monday and felt like Super Woman. But haven't been out of the gates since. I am for sure not gonna be able to go at all the rest of this week. So I only have a little over 3 miles for the week. But obviously family comes first.
I'm hoping to get back into the swing of things next week with little (preferably no) setbacks.
I have my magic beans. My water butt thingy. My new running clothes (testing them all out before the big day obviously). Now I just need a little one on one time with the road.
I'm missing my alone time this week.

father-son bonding.

2008-04-10T20:41:00.000-07:00

sound like a strange title for a post about my 5 mile run since i am neither a father nor a son?
well, that's what it was all about tonight. and that's not even counting the father-son bonding going on at my house while i left owey with his daddy (cleaning the garage out with owey in the baby carrier!) i went to the track tonight and while it is usually boring as all get out, tonight i was very entertained. the 5 miles went by way fast because the whole time i got to watch some serious boy-bonding. my favorite was the little mexican boy and his dad. they got to the track about 15 min after me and were there the whole time i was. the boy must have been 10 or so, and his dad timed him on his cell phone as he did 100 yard dashes over and over. and he was fast!! it was really cute to see the dad pump him up and get all excited when he did well. my favorite was his last sprint when dad raced him and the boy totally smoked his dad. so cute. later another father and son also joined us on the track and same scenario - dad timed son running a mile. on the way out i saw another dad and boy playing baseball together. so sweet. so glad it entertained my mind for the duration.
anyhow- i ran 5 miles in about 50 min. that pace is really pretty natural for me. longer distances i have to go a little slower though.
anyhow- enjoy the day off tomorrow. i am planning on 7 miles on saturday before heading up to miq's father-in-law's funeral.
amy- i totally nominate you to redo the schedule if you're up for it. thanks.
by the way - if you didn't see my other blog yesterday, i am finally at my goal weight. yippee!!! all the torture has paid off!!

bummed

2008-04-10T18:51:00.000-07:00

so, my left quad. has been hurting ever since the 4 1/2 mile run on the treadmill the other night. I had the hubby do a little Icy Hot massage on it last night wishing that the pain would magically go away. tonight we headed out for a 5 mile run and after 2 minutes of running I knew it was a no go. I'm pretty sure that I've just slightly strained/pulled a muscle. Walking feels okay. Going up & especially down stairs in painful. Running right now is out of the question. :( So, I'm going to baby the muscle and hope to be back at it on Saturday. I'll keep ya posted. For tonight it was an easy 45 minute walk just to keep the muscles moving. It's funny how when running isn't an option it makes me want to do it all the more!

p.s. we need to decide on the revised training schedule! it sounds like most everyone is up for 7 miles this saturday. yes? Would you like me to do a proposed revision?

Anyone out there?

2008-04-10T12:49:00.000-07:00

We did a little over 4 miles today (puppy, baby and I!) and felt good. I was glad to be back out there, I feel so fat and sluggish when I don't work out and when I do, I feel good even if we don't do anything else all day. We had a really scary incident where a guy ran a red light going about 50 mph right as we were crossing a busy road. He missed us by about 5 feet, so not too close but close enough to give me a heart attack (I hate how in the stroller baby is so out in front and vulnerable). He somehow (seriously miraculously) made it through the intersection in between 3 cars and I honestly still can't replay exactly how it happened without him hitting anyone. It was SO scary, I hate crossing busy roads but we really have no choice around our house, I just try to keep it to a minimum. I said a big prayer of thanks that we were kept safe today on our run. I think that I will do 7 on Saturday, I feel good enough and definitely rested after only 2 shorter runs this week.

C A R E F U L L Y

2008-04-08T21:56:00.001-07:00

That is how I ran today. I waited until hubby came home so I didn't have to push the stroller. I decided just to run for 30 min nice and slow to see how things felt. I felt pretty good. I realized it was the hills that were hurting my achilles tendon so I think I need to lay off of those for a while. I ran about 27 min, my tendon started aching a little so I walked and then ran again a little later. I probably didn't even do 3 miles but I would rather do something than nothing and rather do less than hurt myself. I don't feel it at all now so I must have done a good job of not pushing too hard. I really think I'm going to have to break down and buy new shoes.
I think I might skip tomorrow and try for 4 on Thursday.

As for shirts, sorry I must have missed this along the way, are they fitted? XL for me if they are, maybe L if not? I'm not sure these days, but these gigantic boobs have a hard time fitting into anything lately.

one of those days...

2008-04-08T21:21:00.000-07:00

i guess it was just one of those days. i decided this morning to run for 60 min. i made it almost 6 miles (like 5.8). i totally agree with what kristen said about mentally being tired and over it. i kinda wish the race was this weekend. nevertheless, it is not.... so we have to keep moving forward - maintaining all that we have done and preventing injury all the while. so, i guess a revision of the schedule that we can all be happy with is in order - i think it really helps to all be on the same page. any volunteers?
LAST CALL FOR SHIRTS... ARE YOU IN? SO FAR CARLIE AND AMY ARE THE ONLY ONES WHO HAVE GIVEN ME A SIZE. LET ME KNOW.

rough

2008-04-08T20:21:00.001-07:00

tonight was a tough run for me. I only had 45 minutes to run and only got 4.3 miles in. Have I mentioned that I have a terrible relationship with the treadmill. I hate everything about it...from the lack of any change in scenery to the constant reminder of every second slowly passing right in front of my face. I also feel that every time I run on that blasted thing something on my body hurts. Last time was my left shin, tonight it's my left quad. I'm hoping it's just a tender muscle and that a nice little massage with some icy hot will do the trick. I'm happy that tomorrow is a day off & will for sure run outside on Thursday.

thanks for letting me vent, ladies!

Spring break

2008-04-08T18:54:00.000-07:00

I am so glad I read the posts re: a new training schedule before I tortured myself with seven miles today! I could barely, and I mean barely make five. I felt so slow, I was actually surprised I came in at 1:02. There is no way I could have done seven yo!

This week is our spring break, and tomorrow I am off to Disneyland for 2 days, and then camping, so I won't be posting, but I will be running, and I will think about the proposed new schedule. Like I said in my comment below, I am open to change; I definitely don't want to over train. I agree with Jess, after the 8 and the 9 milers, I felt like I could have easily (well, relatively) kept going to the 13! Sometimes I feel like the novelty has worn off a little bit and we're all a little tired of training at this point, not physically so much as mentally. The newness is gone, but we're still far enough away from race day to not have those pre-race jitters and excitement to help us along. Maybe it's just me. Anyway, have a nice week everyone, I'll be back Mondayish.

training

2008-04-07T19:03:00.000-07:00

Okay, so let's talk training, ladies. I have looked over our schedule and let me give my humble opinion. I disagree with running a long distance every weekend (9, 10, 11, 12 miles). With the minimal experience I have had training for a race, we have always run a long distance one weekend followed by a recover semi-long distance run the following weekend. The training during the week was very similar to what our schedule looks like except it was always for time (e.g. 30, 45 or 60 minute runs).

Here is an example for all of us visual peeps:

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Saturday
40 min.	50 min.	rest/cross	35 min.	9 miles
45 min.	60 min.	rest/cross	40 min.	6 miles
35 min.	50 min.	rest/cross	40 min.	10 miles
45 min.	65 min.	rest/cross	40 min.	6 miles
35 min.	50 min.	rest/cross	35 min.	11 miles

So, I guess to get to the point. I don't think that we should do the consecutive long runs every Saturday for 4 weeks. I'm just afraid that is over-training. I have researched other training schedules online & they all have a recover week so to speak. When jess and I were talking about this on Saturday, I asked to look at the original schedule that we are using before the changes were made. The week day runs match-up on both schedules and the weekend runs look like this (starting with this saturday, week 13) with what our current schedule suggests in parenthesis...

7 miles (7 miles)
7 miles (9 miles)
7 miles (10 miles)
12 miles (11 miles)
6 miles (12 miles)
4 miles (4 miles).

I am not sure if any of this is making sense. I'm just typing as I think. For me, I am going to follow more closely the original schedule. I may even run 6 or 5 miles tomorrow instead of 7 (I'm not sure what that is all about). So, here is what my schedule is most likely going to be for the remainder of the training:

	Monday	Tuesday	Wed.	Thurs.	Saturday
week13	4 miles	5 miles	rest	5 miles	7 miles
week 14	4 miles	5 miles	rest	3 miles	5 miles
week 15	5 miles	5 miles	rest	4 miles	7 miles
week 16	3 miles	4 miles	rest	4 miles	11or 12 mi.
week 17	4 miles	5 miles	rest	5 miles	6 miles
week 18	5 miles	4 miles	5 miles	5 miles	4 miles
week 19	4 miles	4 miles	rest	rest	rest
week 20	RACE DAY!

The changes I made from the original schedule are in blue. I guess each person just needs to do what is best for them. Whatever you choose, please just take care of you! remember to stretch, hydrate and allow your body time to recover (in other words if you miss a few runs, don't try to jam pack & run 7 days in a row). That's all from Momma Amy. ;)

Happpy Running!

p.s. tonight's run went well. as soon as aaron got home from work we headed out the door. we ran 4 miles in 38 minutes (super speedy!). I'm pretty sure the first 1.5 miles being downhill or flat really helped. The last 1.5 were all a steady uphill but we kept a good pace. I was shocked at how quickly 4 miles passed. I'm not sure how I'm feeling about the 7 miles scheduled for tomorrow. As mentioned above, I may just do 5 or 6 miles.

Nervous...

2008-04-07T14:37:00.000-07:00

So after Saturday when I couldn't walk the rest of the day since my achilles tendon hurt so much I got majorly nervous. I just do NOT want to get put on the injured list right now, I don't! I have worked too hard for this! I spent a good amount of time in the hot tub on Sat (as a precaution of course) and took some advil and when I woke up Sunday it didn't hurt at all. But my on line searches have me totally freaked about this one. So I decided I needed another day to rest and then I need to take it easy this week and see what happens. I am going to reduce all the runs this week to 3 or 4 miles and we'll see about 7 on Saturday. I am just trying to play it safe!

Things are heating up!

2008-04-07T14:34:00.000-07:00

I had to run in the middle of the day today, and like I've said before, whole different story. The weather continues to be beautiful here in SoCal, but that sun makes you feel overheated and drained pretty quickly. I ran 4 in 39:55, and I was dying. I now feel silly bringing my fuel belt when I'm running less than an hour, but I probably should have. And I totally second Jessica's opinion - 7 tomorrow!?! That was totally just our long run, no fair! I think this is the only time we have a 7 midweek, and I keep telling myself that this will just help build my strength and endurance, character and integrity, stuff like that. Also, I am totally bored with my music, any suggestions?

lazy monday

2008-04-07T08:01:00.000-07:00

ok, so i guess a lazy monday would really be sleeping in and not going running at all, but even though i got out of bed before 6 and did go running, it was a very lazy run and i didn't even finish. i ran 3.6 miles before i started to feel a blister coming on on my big toe. i got paranoid (since tomorrow is 7 miles... what? wasn't that a long run like a few days ago?) and stopped. anyhow, i don't even feel guilty. i am tired, and it's monday. so there.

Me

2008-04-06T19:30:00.000-07:00

Oh yeah, here's my picture that I keep meaning to post. Wow, I am quite attractive post-running! :)

Nueve

2008-04-06T19:01:00.000-07:00

I was nervous Saturday morning getting ready. I went to the bathroom no less than 4 times and kept forgetting things. I hadn't had a chance to buy GU or beans or anything, so I brought a clementine cutie with me (worked great by the way). Anyway, in the end, my run was great! I had a moment where I was coming down my first big set of hills and looking at what was ahead - I had plotted out my course and was familiar with the streets, but you know when you are in your car you don't really notice whether or not there are hills. So as I came down this hill I looked up and got the same sensation that you get on a rollercoaster when you've plummeted down and look ahead to see the track heading straight back up! I was nervous for sure (as in, oh crap!), but the closer I got, the less daunting the hill seemed and it was do-able. I listened to a Lost podcast for the first hour of my run and made a pitstop at a McDonalds. I took things pretty slow, still fearful for the shins, but I enjoyed plodding along early on a Saturday, the weather was beautiful. My course ended up quite hilly and I had to stop for quite a few stoplights. I finished my 9 in 1:56, just in time to sustain Pres. Monson! Not to sound cheesy, but I actually felt a little teary as I headed into my driveway, I was quite proud of myself and felt a little bit like yes, I can do this! Or maybe I was just crying because upon stopping my knees felt like they were going to pop out of my legs, which felt like they were suddenly made of cement. Anyway, I did it. This week will be a challenge as we will be at Disneyland and camping down in San Onofre on Saturday. Spring Break can't mean a running break! Great job everybody, I loved reading about all your successes. Go gazelles!

amy beat me to it...

2008-04-05T15:53:00.000-07:00

so, i know amy already wrote about our run, but i just had to add my two cents. i can't believe we ran 9 miles this morning!!! seriously!!! we ran from here:

all the way to here:

and i just can't get over it!!
it really felt easy- almost too easy and i know that it is because not once was i caught in the mental game that i sometimes find myself in while running long distance. i didn't have to fight myself the whole way because i was entertained and really just not focused on every single step. what a difference! it makes me feel that much more confident about how all of us will do on race day since we will have each other's company as a distraction.
one detail amy did leave out is what an idiot i am... somehow i had a serious brain fart and left my keys in her car all the way up in carlsbad. did not realize this until we were at my car in solana beach. since clint was at home with owey and no car to bring me a key (long story) and aaron was at home with a sleeping baby, i called my mom to the rescue to come pick us up in solana beach and drive us up to carlsbad to amy's car. i felt like such a retard... so, we could have been home by 9:00 just in time for conference, but instead we weren't home until after 10. dumb, dumb, dumb!! thanks mom! sorry amy! won't make that mistake again!!

10 seconds and one Carl's Jr.

2008-04-05T15:29:00.000-07:00

That is how far away I was from pooping my pants today on my run. Let me rewind a little.
I got up and out the door by 7. I was nervous, not sure I slept all night. I had an 8.5 mile loop planned so I had to start out with a little .5 mile warm up around the neighborhood so I would total 9. I was feeling pretty good, felt like my pace was good, I was in the "zone".

Well I couldn't poop before I left in the morning so I was a little nervous but the first 45 min or so was fine. Most of my run is through neighborhoods so I have wondered a few times what would happen if I had a bathroom emergency. But I figured there were plenty of gas stations scattered throughout so I should be fine. WRONG. About 45 min into my run I started to feel "the urge" at that point I was probably the farthest I would be the entire run from any kind of store or gas station. I was pretty close to a friend's house so I contemplated knocking on her door but decided I was too embarrassed and I knew there was a gas station about a mile away.
LONGEST mile of my LIFE. I was trying to run as FAST as I could but that only seemed to make things worse! So I came up with a little, sprint, stop walk thing so that when things got a little too close for comfort I had a minute to "pinch it" so to speak.

I knew I was getting closer to the gas station but at a certain point I just couldn't run any more, I knew I was going to poop my pants. I was in tears. I was looking for a bush, for anything but I had neighborhood one one side and business park on the other side. There was no where to hide. I was glad I had brought my phone because I figured once I pooped my pants I would probably just have to call Aaron to come pick me up. Then I saw it, the Carl's Jr. Just a little closer than the gas station. With tears streaming down my face I made my way to the bathroom. It was so embarrassing and so relieving all at once. And yes, seriously I was crying in the bathroom of Carl's Jr.

Once I took care of my bathroom issue I decided it was a good time for my shot blocks (3 this time I had left over from last week) and some water. I felt like my dilemma (which only lasted about 10 min but seemed to me to be an eternity) had really thrown off my zone. And about 10 min later I already felt like I had to go to the bathroom again. I didn't come close to an accident like I did earlier but I was uncomfortable the rest of the run. I just kept thinking, go faster and you'll be done.

I finished my 9 miles in 102 minutes. I did pause for some of the walking and the bathroom break but didn't pause for any stop lights. So again, I figure that puts me just about at an 11 min mile. I feel good that I finished. I am, however, a little worried because my achilles tendon on one side is so sore I can barely walk. I plan on icing it and hope it feels better by Monday.

Good job everyone!

1:37

2008-04-05T12:44:00.000-07:00

I think I may be on a runner's high. I have barely sat down since finishing the 9 miles this morning and I still feel all excited inside (like a kid in a candy shop). I guess I'm just SO happy with the accomplishment of today's run and also how GREAT it felt! Jess and I met bright and early at 7am at the Solana Beach train station. We parked one car there & drove 9 miles up highway 101 where we parked car #2. The running started right there on Island Way and continued along the coast back to the train station..passing through little beach towns like Leucadia & Encinitas along the way. I know it may sound crazy to say but I had a BLAST! The time passed quickly and physically I felt awesome. Jess & I chatted about everything under the sun....from self-confidence to relay races. One of my favorite parts of the run was having jess point out all of her favorite "hot spots"...taco shops & breakfast joints she would frequent during her high school years. It really was just a great run... I'm not sure what else to say. THANK YOU, jess for being such a great running partner! I hope that each of you had a great 9 as well. NINE MILES!!!! I love it! I can hardly believe it! What a great start to the day.

Slacker!

2008-04-04T16:45:00.000-07:00

I'm outing myself today. I didn't make up my 3 mile run from yesterday when it was raining. It just kept getting later and later and now at 5 the thought of going at all when I have to get up and do 9 is just too much for me to handle! But I've mapped out my 9 and i hope I everyone has a good 9 tomorrow!

A Dreaded Disease

2008-04-03T13:20:00.000-07:00

I have been a bloggin slacker! And also a little bit of a running slacker. I was all about the comeback from my shin splints, and then I got a serious case of . . . busy-itis! Man, life is just getting in the way. As my friend said today, wouldn't it be nice if school just started when I got there, and ended when I was ready, and homework was due when we were finished, etc. You get the picture. But that is not the way life works with four demanding kids, and a husband with 3 jobs, and so! I have again entered catchup phase. I ran 5 on Wednesday, and did my superduper hilly 4 today. Both were OK, I haven't had any more shin problems, thank goodness, but I feel a little weaker/slower for my missed runs, and yes I'm scared for Saturday.

Oh yeah, Jess, large shirt for me por favor.

done.

2008-04-03T13:18:00.000-07:00

today was a battle of the wills and the hills. i was not feelin it. could be the fact that i was up from 1am to 2 am and again from 4 am to 6:30am with the fussy babe. it's a good thing he's so darn cute. my mom came the rescue this morning to come watch owey while i ran, so that made it pretty impossible for me to talk myself out of sucking it up and going. i ran 5 miles in about an hour (my watch mysteriously disappeared this morning) - half of it was uphill, half downhill. a comment on that from captain obvious: i much prefer the downhill.
good news is, it's done, it's over, and can't wait to run 9 on saturday. YIKES! oh- i also have run all the way up the big hill on the way back to my house the last 2 times in a row (normally i walk/run up it because it is so steep and i am mentally exhausted by the time i get there.) now that i know i can do it, i almost can't stand to take the wussy way out. hope you all have a good day off tomorrow... relax and enjoy before the torture begins!

morning run

2008-04-03T09:21:00.000-07:00

I decided to get the 3 miles done early today. I headed out the door just in time for audra to take her morning nap. She did her job and fell asleep in the stroller. I did mine and ran the 3 miles. I even had time to run to the grocery store and grab some things for dinner tonight before she woke up & it was time to feed her. It's only 9:30am and I feel like I've had a pretty productive day so far...although I do need to shower!

five miles.....check

2008-04-02T20:03:00.000-07:00

well, nothing too exciting to report. I ran the 5 miles today instead of yesterday (just worked better with my schedule). I have found a nice loop that is becoming somewhat of regular for me. It has hills (I think we all can agree that we cannot avoid those here in SoCal) but nothing that is too steep or long. Tomorrow's 3 miles should be nice. Jess & I were talking today about how it's funny that we say, "only 3 miles" or "just 4 miles to run". I guess just a sign of our rockstar running status, ladies ;) I'm not sure how I feel about the 9 miles this weekend, though. Jess, wanna run together? Kace?

Nothing new...

2008-04-02T14:36:00.000-07:00

Well, nothing too new to report. I missed Tuesday, made up for it today. The baby and the dog were driving me NUTSO so it was actually good to get out of the house where I knew the baby would sleep and the dog would get tired. I decided to take the dog even if it meant I didn't get to go the full five miles because she was driving me crazy and I knew it was because she hadn't been for a walk in days. I NEEDED her tired. So I dragged her to the 4.6 mile turn around and managed about an extra lap around the neighborhood after. I wasn't hurting as bad as Monday, but still don't feel "normal" my foot fell asleep AGAIN, I was so frustrated, and my ankles were hurting a little. We made better time than on Monday but still not great. Oh well. We did it and that is what counts. Hopefully tomorrow's 3 miles will be a little easier on me.
And today was totally worth pushing myself out of the house since baby was much happier after his nap "add on" and dog hasn't done anything annoying since we got home.

out of order.

2008-04-01T21:54:00.001-07:00

decided to swap the 3 miles for the 5 miles (thurs) today since my momma is coming to watch owey thursday morning. saved the run till tonight and planned on a quick treadmill jaunt. however, when i got to the gym at 9:15 tonight there was a big sign that said "machines out of order." what the? they can't do that to me! so, i hopped on the eliptical for 30 min and called it good. by the way,have any of you done an eliptical lately? that thing is EASY PEEZY. seriously. i wasn't even sweating. and i was going fast. turns out running has made me hard core. or something like that.

Is this thing on?

2008-04-01T19:48:00.000-07:00

Hello? Hello? Where are you people?
4.3 miles. 51 mins. Almost 12 min miles- but I must say I had to walk for almost 10 mins of it. I reversed my route tonight from home and it ended up being the wrong choice. The hills of death ended up being at the end instead of the beginning of my run. Thought I could handle it. Thought wrong. So all things considered- did ok. Glad it's done. It was torture and I came home wondering why I am doing this to myself. Anyone else feel the same?

Following Brooke's advice

2008-04-01T11:52:00.000-07:00

I saw this recipe over at Kristi's blog:

National Marathon Baked Ziti
16 oz. ziti pasta
1lb 10 oz. bottle spaghetti sauce (trader joe's has a great one)
6 oz. sliced provolone (or enough to cover 9x13)
6 oz. mozzarella cheese
1 ½ -2 cups sour cream
1 pd. Ground beef
1 onion, chopped
Grated parmesan cheese
Cook pasta according to package directions. Brown ground beef and onion. Add spaghetti sauce. Layer as follows in a greased 9x13 pan. Half of the ziti, provolone cheese, sour cream, half of the sauce mixture, remaining ziti, mozzarella cheese, and remaining sauce mixture. Top with parmesan cheese and bake at 350 for 30 min. or until cheese is melted.

Anyone want to try it with me on Friday night? I might be out of town (still working the logistics out and running on Sat. is a big issue- running 7,8, or 9 miles in Mesquite, NV sounds terrible.....) but I'm planning on making it no matter where I am.

Monday, dreaded Monday

2008-03-31T20:42:00.001-07:00

DID NOT WANT TO GO. Read the blog. Got motivated. Decided to go anyway. 3.65 miles in 41 mins. 11.23 mins/miles. Not good for all of you. But good for me (and that's all that matters to me at this point ;). Better than over 13 min/miles for Sat's run. How am I ever going to catch up to you guys?
I must add in there that my route today was from my house again which means ALL HILLS. It kicked my hiney.
I'm already dreading tomorrow. But thanks for the motivation today- I obviously needed it!

Hey Ladies!

2008-03-31T19:43:00.000-07:00

Wow, it feels like eternity since I have posted. I think I don't even know half of you. I'm glad the pack is growing! Well, stress fractures are taking longer than I thought to heel. I am going to the physical therapist twice a week for grooling treatment. I get bruised up everytime as well as have electrical shock stimulation, stretching, strength training and this week I finally started walking. I am only aloud to walk 1/2 mile at a time and if my shins hurt I have to stop. They seem to be taking well to the walking though. There's no way I can be ready for the run in May but I'd sure love to get a t-shirt (large please) still. I promise to not put in on until I run a half. I am planning on running the Provo River Half on August 11th. My sister-in-law is going to run with me.

first day back

2008-03-31T19:21:00.000-07:00

....and I ran 5.3 miles!!!! what!?!? I was SO excited when I got home and figured out that was the distance we ran tonight. Considering this is my first day back since having the stomach flu last Thursday (as mentioned in one of Jess' previous posts), I didn't have high hopes for myself. I didn't have time to map out a course before we set out for the run so we just went out & ran. I didn't even time it...just enjoyed being healthy & able to run again. I can say that I am happy to be back to running again. I guess the .3 miles over the 5 scheduled for today is the least I could do for missing the 8-miler on Saturday.

Seriously?

2008-03-31T17:41:00.000-07:00

Seriously did it take me almost as long to run five miles today as it did for me to run EIGHT on Saturday? Seriously did it hurt about 100 times worse than running eight? Seriously did my foot fall asleep and stay asleep for the majority of my run?
YES.
boooo for Monday.

monday, monday...

2008-03-31T12:29:00.001-07:00

so, i've been trying to figure out how to fit in these "short" runs (that aren't so short) on the weekdays. the dilemma is that if i go before clint leaves it is dark. if i go when he gets home i feel bad for making him a single dad right when he gets home from work. if i go while he's at work i have to push the stroller for 5 plus miles (not gonna happen). and if i wait until owey goes to sleep, it's dark again. ugh.
i think i came to a pretty good solution this morning.
5:30(AM!): wake up, feed the babe, put him back down.
6:00: get dressed, a little somethin in the tum-tum, out the door.
6:05: start run in the dark on the treadmill, run until the sun comes up (only about 13 min by that time)
6:20-ish: hit the road and finish the other 3.5 miles
6:55: back in time to take the dog out, stretch and kiss the hubby on his way out the door.
7:05: shower, hope the baby sleeps a while longer, crawl back in bed.
PERFECT.

a much different run...

2008-03-29T12:28:00.000-07:00

today was sooo different from any other run i have done up to this point. first off, i didn't go until after 10:00, which meant i got to sleep in and take my time to get out the door. it also meant it was a little warmer than i'd like, but it was worth it for the extra rest.
it was also very different because instead of loading my ipod with the pump-you-up-junk i normally run to, i filled it with my "church music" playlist. i know, sounds weird, but i am in charge of part of the combined yw lesson tomorrow and really haven't had much of a chance to sort things out in my brain. i figured if nothing else, maybe i could clear my head a little and get some inspiration.
the last reason this run was so unique is that since i was so sick the other day and haven't run since tuesday, i went out there without a real specific goal in mind of how far i was going to run. i just figured i would do what i could, listen to my body, and hope for the best. i really was feeling like 5 miles would even be really good for me. i would have settled for that except that as i was leaving i told clint i was just going to try for 6 and see what happened and wanted to make sure that he was ok with me being gone for over an hour. he told me not to worry about it and that he thought i could do 8. of course that got the competitive side out of me, and i decided to try and find a balance between pushing myself and really being conscious of what my body needed (but without making excuses... harder than it sounds!)
i headed out on basically the same course amy and i ran on tuesday (which was just over 6 miles) i took a few more detours to stretch it out a little. most of the way out is uphill and although i felt pretty good, i did stop to walk a few times just to conserve energy. i made the decision to sacrifice time for distance today. the run went by really fast as i tried to plan out my lesson in my head and was surprised at how motivating some of my music was. different kind of motivation, for sure, but very peaceful and constant.
i got to the last hill going up to my house and called clint to check in. (i debated whether or not i should do one more mile at the track) he assured me that things were fine and to just finish. so i did one more mile, and came home feeling really good about what i'd done. slow and steady, slow and steady. really, really slow. it took me 1 hour and 40 min and i ran 7.5 miles.(yeah- that's a 13 min mile, folks.) i couldn't believe it when i mapped it out. part of me was so excited that i did that much even after a rough week, but part of me was so upset that i didn't just run 2 more laps to get the full 8 in. that's ok. better luck next week.
what i love about this course i ran, one of the streets is called "longrun drive." love it! (one of these days i'll have to take a picture of it!)
good job the rest of you girls! i am so proud of all of you!
p.s. still never heard anything about shirt sizes..??? do you guys still want to get shirts??
p.p.s. you will notice a new contributer on the right side- ann. she is the very same ann that i ran with last weekend (you know, the one way faster than me!) and she said she would like to contribute every once in a while too. so, welcome ann!! (sorry i didn't run with you today!)

Beans, beans the magical fruit....

2008-03-29T10:17:00.000-07:00

Luckily for me, these things didn't make me toot....instead they proved to be just what I needed for my run. I just got back after a really rocky morning (try not to fight with your husband right before a run- it is mentally draining and we all know running is mainly mental).......anyway, I decided to go an alternate route after talking to my other mentor and Josh. Josh didn't want me to run to Lombardi Ranch (my original route) because he was worried about the cars whizzing past. I wanted to run that way because it's desolate. I'm getting kind of tired of running on very busy streets that are packed with people from our ward/school, etc.
Anyway, I took Kristen's suggestion- starting straight up hill (not the greatest idea btw). I was thinking about taking a picture of all our hills surrounding Team SC so you guys can appreciate how hilly our area is. Jess and Kristen can vouch for me.

So after a straight uphill start, the rest of the run was miraculous. I'm not sure if it really was the beans (love the lemon-lime flavor) or what. I only stopped at a gas station to get water (I put money in my shoe planning on stopping there to buy water and give myself a 1 min break) and at annoying stoplights. I was amazed at how many runners were out today and that when a car was in the way,they would reverse for me to get by. I was pleasantly surprised by the support and friendliness of my town.
My one downside was when Josh and the kids stopped in front of me after coming back from a drive towards the end of my run. Josh sort of heckled me and took a minute to drive away. That totally irritated me (wouldn't it irritate you?) and broke my concentration for a second. But I still kept running. I ran 5.8 miles in 80 mins. Not great. But considering I'm only on week two back in the game and that I had to take off some time this week, I DO FEEL GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I know I didn't do 8 like everyone else but I'm feeling (terrified) and excited....like I might be ready by the end of May. But I don't want to get ahead of myself. I'll just keep plugging along with my plan to be ready by then.
I am SO glad I have off until Monday. Hope your runs went well. :)

Whoomp Here it is!

2008-03-29T09:39:00.000-07:00

Ok, so only Jessica will really appreciate that title but I was actually thinking that/singing that as I was running! ha ha.
Well today was GREAT! After my fall on Wed., I did a slow tentative 3 miles just around the neighborhood on Thursday just to make sure everything was still in working order. I felt pretty good, knee was only a little sore but nothing that worried me. Friday was a good day to have a rest day after running 3 days in a row and I tried all day to psych myself up for today. I even treated myself to a big bowl of pasta for dinner in the name of "carb loading" (I think we should have a pasta party the night before the race!) I originally thought it would be good to run 8 miles of the actual course but the course is on some pretty busy streets which will be closed down on race day and running on them with all the cars and smog didn't sound very appealing. But I didn't really want to do an out and back. So I got ambitious and mapped out an 8 mile circle on walkjogrun.net. Its the same concept as google earth so nothing that exciting but I found it a little more user friendly, I always have issues w/ google earth.

So, I got up at 6, fed the baby and ate and went back to sleep until 7. I was out the door a little after 7 and on the road. I had debated timing myself but decided to do it just so I would know. The first part of my run was on the actual course and it was downhill, so don't worry there's at least one down hill! It was cool and I felt GOOD! My knee didn't hurt at all, I just felt good. I would say about 80% of my run was up hill but even that wasn't too bad. I had chosen good streets with wide bike lanes so I could run in the road, they weren't very busy and it was just a good day. At about one hour I stopped and paused my watch and ate two Shot Blocks with some water. They are kind of like big gummy bears but they are squares. They weren't as gross as I thought they'd be and I do think they made a difference, plus they weren't messy at all. I probably could have used a few more later but I only did the two. I drank most of my water at stop lights so I think I kept pretty well hydrated and I didn't really start feeling tired and slowing down until the very end which was great. My knee only hurt once on a pretty steep downhill where I was going pretty fast. I finished in 92 min but I also didn't stop my watch at all stoplights so I am going to say that averages to about 11 min miles. Not too shabby considering I didn't feel like I was consciously trying to run fast. I was proud of myself. I think I can do what I did today and five point one more. I can! Yay!

Long Time, No Write...

2008-03-28T15:35:00.001-07:00

Fear not ladies, I have not hurt myself again. In fact on every run I dream up my future post about it. But I'm too darn tired by the end and just put it off. So I have a little catching up to do.
Saturday I ran about 4 miles (I think?). It was not fun. 4pm on a Sat. 85 degrees. Yuck. But I did have a chance to enjoy some lovely things. Running has taught me more of what I need to learn apparently- enjoy the little things. Like squirrels, birds, butterflies. And the 65 + man gimping along (running while gimping) that waved at me. It was my signal start running again (I had been walking for a bit due to heat and pure exhaustion)- if the 65+ gimpy guy can run in the heat, heck I sure can. That was Sat.
Took Mon & Tues off because I was under the weather. After consulting with my mentor, I decided against going. She was right. I got over my sickness quickly and had I not rested, I probably wouldn't have.
Weds I was back in the saddle. Didn't start off so well. Josh begged me to take Shortcake the dog. I obliged. Bad choice. HOW IN THE HALIBUT DO YOU GUYS RUN WITH DOGS? Granted I do have Shorty the dumb dog (who happens to still be a puppy and sniff every speck of earth before her). I had to turn around and go home about 1/18th into my run. I was not deterred however. I decided to run from my house. However there is a reason I haven't done that before. I live in the middle of Mt. Rushmore with 4 hills surrounding me. I knew it was a risk but I also know that Jess decided we needed to enter a really hilly race (thank you Lup) so I had better start training hills. I ran. And I ran. And I ran. I felt like super woman. I conquered many hills. And then the last one was a doozy. It was SOOO steep I felt like I was going to fall backwards if I stopped. I was running slower than any snail in my path. And breathing loud enough to scare a father/daughter team watering their grass (really). I finally gave in and walked about 20 feet to the top. BUMMER. I felt really good when I made it home after 2 more hills. Only to be thoroughly disappointed. A little over 3 miles. SAY WHAT!? No way. Josh, being the kind soul he is (and knowing how ticked I was at him for making me take the dumb dog in round 1), said "But it was ALL hill. You need to add a mile to that. 4 miles." SO I ran* 4 miles.
Yesterday. I decided to run while I had a babysitter. What's dumber than running at 3:30 in the afternoon (as in when school is getting out, hotter than heck, etc, etc)? Paying someone to watch my kids so that I can run!!! Never ever thought I'd ever ever say that. We were supposed to be doing something with some friends so I went while Brianna (the babysitter) was here. The friend thing didn't happen later but at least my run was done. So I was off. With my dead Ipod. I swear I am Ipod doomed. But there was no way I was turning around. I was beyond frustrated but decided to go for it. There were little signs from heaven on this run. Just when I felt like I couldn't go on, I saw arrows on the ground in chalk. A long row of arrows (I'm talking about a mile worth). At one point they started to say things like, "Keep going. Don't give up. Almost there. Thirsty? Drink your spit." No joke. I could almost see angels scribbling these things on the ground in front of me. What are the chances? I totally smiled and even laughed (when I came to the spit one). It got me through my run. As did the sprinklers (I'm sure it's illegal to be running sprinklers at 3pm in CA but I appreciated it). And the breeze towards the end. I also was so relieved that I parked 3 spaces closer and that I had to run that much less.
Not so refreshing? The dumb guy sitting on a truck who blew smoke directly into my mouth (seriously) while I was running up another Mt. Whitney. And then laughed as I coughed and tried to wave the smoke out of my face. If the chalk writers are angels, then that guy is for sure of the devil. The other disappointment was realizing my run was yet again a little over 3 miles. DARN IT!
I'm gearing up for tomorrow. I know I don't have 8 miles in me. I'm going for 6. It's a lofty goal I know. I mapped out my run though. While figuring out the route I realized that it's considered a long drive with my kids and I will be actually attempting to run it. Scary!!! Because of that I'm going to get a water butt thingy tonight. There goes another $50 of Josh's hard earned money.
Be back with a report manana.............................good luck girls!!

pukity-puke-puke

2008-03-28T07:47:00.001-07:00

did not run yesterday. figured montezuma's revenge all day was a good enough excuse. (i was just saying the other day that i hadn't missed a day yet in all these months. boo.) i'm trying to save my energy and feel better in time for tomorrow, but i'm a little nervous about 8 miles. plus, running buddy amy has the flu too (i thought i had food poisoning, but now i've heard of all these people with the stomach flu). we'll see. the good news - only 1.5 lbs left to my goal weight. i guess even puking over and over has it's up side.

The good and the bad...

2008-03-26T20:58:00.000-07:00

Ok, I'll start with the good. My kid I tutor canceled today so I had a babysitter for 2 hours and no obligations. I decided it would be a good time to make up for the run I missed on Monday and hopefully have time leftover for a secret errand that I had been DYING to do since baby was born.
That mission was accomplished. I finished my run (details about that coming up), and made it home in time to drop off the dog, change my shirt and go get a pedicure! I couldn't think of a better treat for my feet that have been working so hard these past few months. I hadn't had a pedicure since I was pregnant since it is sort of out of the new one income budget but I had saved my tutoring money and treated myself. It was pure heaven. Seriously revved me up to go back home and be able to deal with world's fussiest baby.

Ok, now the bad. And I am worried it might be really bad. I fell! I was tired and it was hot and I took a shorter way home and I guess I just wasn't paying very close attention and I totally tripped over a spot where the sidewalk buckled up. The good part was that no one saw, I was on this random sidewalk in the middle of our condo complex. The bad part is that I am hurt. My knee (the one that was already hurting) and my ankle both hurt. It isn't terrible pain, I mean I picked my self up and walked/ran home but it hurts. It really hurts when I walk up the stairs. I am so bummed. I can't believe I fell, and I really fell, like just ate it. I dropped the dog's leash and she was so surprised she didn't even run away. I actually think she felt bad for me! So I don't know, I guess I should down some ibuprofen tonight and pray hard that it feels better tomorrow! I won't run tomorrow if it hurts, maybe try to get on the bike at the gym or something but I am definitely not going to push it. I am really really hoping its just a little sore and will feel much better tomorrow. Please send me good vibes!!

Cheap Tricks

2008-03-26T19:16:00.000-07:00

Pretty good run today, again I wanted to ease back into full speed. I ran 5 miles in 62 minutes. I felt good, whew! My shin was hurting this evening, but feels better after some icing. I guess that may become more of a regular thing - me and the frozen grated cheese hanging out, tonight watching Return of the Jedi with my sick 3 yr. old.

Two random tricks that helped my running today. Does anyone else sweat in their elbow crease? Maybe I'm just wierd, and I normally don't really sweat too much elsewhere, but for some reason I get annoyed when I get a little sweaty/drippy in the elbow crease! Well, today I slapped on some deodorant there, and it totally did the trick! How fun!

My other help: so, instead of listening to music (I feel like my list is getting a little old) I listened to a totally cheesy podcast about the Twilight series! Hahaha, yes it was me and three teenage girls discussing (me, just in my head) Edward Cullen and the casting for the movie and wether or not Cedric Diggory can live up to all of our expectations. I must say, it helped the time go by. I know, I'm a total nerd. (And for the record, I was pleased with this casting).

Til next time!

good friend = good run

2008-03-25T21:17:00.000-07:00

tonight jess and I headed out the door for the 6 mile run as soon as the dads were home to watch the little ones. we ran a nice, easy pace to help keep us going up & down those lovely hills of carmel valley. running with a good friend vs. running alone is like night and day for me. good conversation helps the time to pass and keeps my mind off my burning hamstrings. thanks jess for the great run. what am I ever going to do around this place without you???

Because I've been slacking...

2008-03-25T12:08:00.000-07:00

1. I gained back 3 lbs :(
2. I think I actually started feeling depressed! I felt guilty for not going very much on the trip or the first few days back and I lost so much momentum it seemed 100 times harder today to get out there.
3. I think my body got some much needed rest (good thing, my knees weren't hurting at all the past few days)
4. I decided getting down on myself wasn't the answer, getting back OUT there was.
5. I decided to stop stressing myself out about time.
6. I got my butt out there today even though I didn't want to.
7. I ran 7 miles. Just to prove I could. With the stroller. I didn't time it, I went REALLY slow, felt REALLY good and was happy that I could do the miles even with the stroller.
8. It was a beautiful day, I am happy with myself that I went. I don't have the desire to sit in my pjs all day and eat easter candy like I did yesterday and I don't feel like my world is going to end because our DVR broke (the week new shows are finally starting!)
So, to myself, welcome back!

Theories

2008-03-25T10:40:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted in a few days because I haven't been running. I had pretty bad shin splints last week and was a little scared. I took a few days off (4 to be exact) and did a lot of reading up - stuff I had already read about, but this time it pertained to me so I took it more seriously (kind of like when I skipped over all the c-section chapters with my first pregnancy, only to end up having 4 c-sections). I was pretty bummed and could relate a little with Mique and Carlie. Pretty much, not running sucks. I don't know what caused my sudden problem, but I have some theories. I will list them so you guys can learn from my mistakes. Pay attention now class! (or skip ahead to the last paragraph, and my run from today):

theory 1) Pre-problemo, I didn't run for almost three days (when husband was out of town). Maybe my body was not prepared for returning?

theory 2) I ran too hard, too fast on returning from my brief absence? I don't know, I felt great while running, but maybe problems were forming...One website said the most common reason for shin splints can be summed up in four words: too much too soon.

theory 3) I didn't stretch enough following that run? (I was sitting in my son's karate belt test, doing stretches as he warmed up. I know that wasn't enough).

theory 4) I wasn't hydrated? I know I keep bringing this up, but rereading all the running info I could find, I was reminded again how crucially your body needs water, not only for health but for lubrication - you need that squishy stuff sloshing around so your joints and muscles can function properly, and not tear, separate, etc. Or hurt.

theory 5) I wasn't running carefully/consciously? I loved running with Mique on my fateful Thursday run last week, but looking back, I was kind of pounding along, not paying attention at all to form, etc. Not that I really stress about this usually, but maybe I could have been more careful?

So, thanks for letting me get all that out. I hope you all know that 90% of the reason I blog all this is for my own outlet, and so that I can go back and read it later, sort of the record of my journey to 13.1, and maybe beyond. So thanks for putting up with me.

And better news, I nervously got back out there today. I was determined to go super slow and walk at the slightest feeling of pressure, pain, etc. I ran 3 miles in 40 minutes and really concentrated, I didn't even bring my iPod. I felt a little tight, but not bad enough to have to walk. I stretched really well before and after. I have been drinking water all day like crazy. And I feel good right now, about 1 hour post run. I hope to be back to normal, bolder and wiser, soon!

as the sun goes down

2008-03-25T08:21:00.000-07:00

I got the 4 mile run in last night.....the last 2 miles of it being in the dark. By the time we got to running the sun was already setting. About 1.5 miles in Audra was not happy in the stroller. So, Aaron took her out and played with her in the center of the track while I continued to run. I have to say that knowing they were waiting for me motivated me to try and run a bit faster. My muscles weren't as up to speed as I would have liked but it felt good to push myself. Tonight it's 5 miles that Jess and I are running together. I'm still looking for a route that is not too hilly. I'm not sure my body is up for lots of hills. We'll see what we can find.

Happy Running!

3.25

2008-03-24T07:17:00.000-07:00

i know, not the desired 4 miles for this morning, but i only had a half hour before clint left this morning to run and i jumped at the opportunity to go by myself. so, 3.25 is all i got. that's all folks. happy monday.
p.s. shirt sizes???

i heart san diego

2008-03-22T09:37:00.000-07:00

7 miles!!!! i did it!!
i was really nervous about the run this morning for a few reasons. the obvious: hello - 7 miles. i've never done anything for 7 miles except drive. even when we ran 90 min i don't think i even ran 7 miles. maybe i did. i don't remember. anyhow - i was nervous. on top of that, owey has still had some really rough nights lately, and last night was no exception. he was up screaming from about 3:30 till 5:30 when i finally fed him. (no, i'm not a mean mom, just trying to get him to sleep through the night again!) clint took him and let me try to sleep at about 4:30, but still - i just kept saying to myself "go to sleep! you have to run 7 miles in a few hours!" which of course made it impossible to sleep. lastly, i was going with a new running friend, ann from my ward who is way faster than me. yikes.

the best part about today's run was running along the coast - beautiful sunny day, runners and bikers everywhere, ocean breeze... the works! it just reminded me about how much i love where i live. so grateful.
we kept a pretty good pace the whole time. we ran a pretty fast split - 33 min for the first 3.5 miles, and then turned around. the way back was pretty good, but on the last hill i had to walk a bit. i've realized that this really helps me out- stop and walk (especially on hills) if i need to catch my breath, recharge my muscles, and take a drink. then pick up the pace and make up for lost time. i know this doesn't work for everyone, but it works for me. when i stopped to walk, ann kept going and so i was on my own trying to catch up to her for about the last mile. even still, i came in about 2 min after her at 70 min. i was so thrilled with this! it was definitely a push for me - a 10 min mile pace is pretty comfortable for 3 or 4 miles, but beyond that i start to feel it! once again, i didn't love running while i was doing it, but felt so awesome once i was done. i just can't believe i just ran 7 miles! is that amazing, or what?
oh yeah, and as amy already reported, we ran 3 miles together on thursday at a pretty good pace - 31 min (even with strollers and babies). i did think i was going to hurl right after for some strange reason, but managed to keep my dignity (and my breakfast).
and by the way - i finally registered for the race this week. i'm official - and there's no turning back!
i also read (i don't know where) that the first 6 miles of the course are downhill, the middle is kind of rolling hills, and the last 4 miles are a gradual uphill. guess i'd better make better friends with those blasted hills!

short

2008-03-21T21:40:00.000-07:00

good news: I actually ran tonight
bad news: I only clocked 4 miles

here's the scoop: we're headed to Palm Springs area tomorrow morning to spend Easter with Aaron's family. so, I decided to be a good girl and do the run tonight because I won't have the chance to do so tomorrow. The problem is my hubby was going to join me but he is feeling a bit under the weather. so, as soon as he got home from work I ran down to the gym and ran as fast and as long as I could until it was time to feed baby. I ended up only being able to do 4 miles...but, I did run it in 38 minutes. I was feeling it. sorry to disappoint. All you 7 milers tomorrow are awesome. I guess I'll blame the short distance tonight on the short amount of time I've been training. I really am hoping to jump into the regular schedule soon.

To end on a good note, I did finish all of the runs this week (4, 5 and 3 miles). Jess and I ran the 3 on Thursday on the bike trail with babies. Once again I am reminded why I don't like to run with the stroller...three words....TOO MUCH WORK!

That's all for now, folks!

Problemo

2008-03-21T10:52:00.000-07:00

Sorry I haven't posted, I'll briefly summarize my week. My husband, Royce, had to go out of town last minute on business Sunday afternoon, and I'll spare you the details, but suffice it to say taking care of 4 young kids by myself and all that goes with that, plus his delayed flights, meant I didn't get to run 'til Wednesday early evening. I ran 4 miles in 40 minutes, and I felt great.

Thursday night I was excited to run with Mique, who had been waiting oh so impatiently all week for our promised reunion. Un problemo: I had promised the Elders we would take them out to dinner at La Cocina. I didn't feel safe to run (post-mexican food, yikes) til about 8:45 pm, and even then I had to ask Miq to run upwind a few times. Just being honest.

I felt a little stiff and definitely sick to my stomach (Jess, I could so relate to your post-Indian food run) for the first mile, and then the fun really started. My calves/ankles started to tighten up. Then cramp. And then they started to hurt. A lot. And then more. And then I started my grandma shuffle run. I had to stop a couple times to stretch, but it didn't help too much. It was the most painful run I've had so far. Kind of wierd, because yesterday was great.

We ran four miles, and I was shocked to find we did it in 27:05!?! Does that even seem possible? I didn't think so either, and my watch confirmed it when I realized it had stopped, probably long before. So who knows how long it took us, but it felt loooooooong. Mique did great, and ran up the last big hill while I hobbled behind her. I was bummed when I got home and Royce diagnosed me with, you guessed it, shin splints. Yep, I've been hit.

(**hahahaha I just reread this before I published, and I mis-spelled a word in "shin splints" - I mixed up some of the letters, and ended up with a more colorful adjective for these stupid pains, which seemed appropriate, but unfortunately, unpublishable on our PG rated blog. hahaha, gave me a good laugh though.....)

Dr. Royce, the ex-volleyballer leg injury expert, had me ice the crap out of my shins while we watched Lost, and it helped (after the numbing torture). Today I feel fine, but I'm not sure if I should take it easy (I was going to run today and Saturday)? To tell the truth, I'm a little nervous. I don't want to join the injured list. I want to continue running. I love it and I need it. Hopefully this was just a typical, part-of-the-process pain, and I'll have another successful running post soon!

From the road...

2008-03-19T15:05:00.000-07:00

Well I wasn't sure if I would be blogging this week during our "luxury" retreat (paid for by hubby's work!) but I coughed up the $15 a day (are you kidding me!?) for the internet since I have to be stuck in the hotel room at night while hubby is at fancy dinner meetings. (That's ok, I'd rather stay here and watch AI than schmooze with the accountants!) I won't even brag about the 80 degree weather or the hotel room that is almost as big as our house, or the fancy bathrobe I'm sitting in after spending the day at the pool. Nope, won't gloat in it at all ;)

So Monday was a no go since we were traveling all day. But I did pack the jogger and made a note as soon as we arrived as to where the gym was. Tuesday I didn't even know what I was supposed to be running but I headed to the gym with the intention of doing 4 miles. Ok, what happened!? Could it have been the six + hours of sitting the day before? The massive quantities of candy and junk I consumed in the car or is Scottsdale at some kind of high altitude? I'm not sure what it was but I could NOT get into a groove on Monday. The tiny little fitness room at the hotel was HOT, I was drenched and progressively running slower and slower and slower. My treadmill turned off after 40 min and I decided that was good enough. I only did 3.6 miles. Oh well, I'm on vacation and I figure something is better than nothing.
So the rest of the day yesterday my armpits hurt (well my arms really, right below my arm pits). This is where I chafe if I am going to chafe so I didn't think too much of it but by the end of the day I could hardly stand to have my arms by my side, I was literally walking around holding them out! I don't know if it was the excessive sweating or the t shirt I wore yesterday or what but I am SO chafed its raw. I tried putting aloe vera on it in case it was a sun burn but that burned so bad I had to wash it off!

So I tried to run again today, but with the chafing I had to wear a long sleeve shirt and in that tiny 90 degree gym I seriously thought I was going to pass out. I haven't wussed out like that on a run in a long time but 2 miles and this chick was done. I lifted weights after just to make myself feel better and so hubby wouldn't ask me why I was coming back after only 20 min at the gym.

I would like to run outside here and they even have a map of a 4.2 mile loop but it is all on cement and my knees haven't been feeling so good lately so I don't want to push it. I figure that a few months ago when I went on vacation I didn't run at all, so the fact that I'm getting out there says something and something is better than nothing! I might try again tomorrow or I might give my body a break and just see what happens on Saturday.
Happy trails ladies!

Day 3- roughing it.......

2008-03-18T23:25:00.000-07:00

Instead of complaining about how terrible my run was (because I am just glad that I am out there again), I won't (don't worry I'm sure I will start back with the complaining soon- it's only day 3). I ran/walked 3 1/2 miles. And I'll just leave it at that. I'm happy to have tomorrow off to recuperate.

glad it's over

2008-03-18T18:20:00.000-07:00

So, today was one of those days when I just didn't want to run. But, I knew I needed to just get it done. So, after Aaron got home from work I headed down to the gym. It was going to be a treadmill run tonight. But, just as luck would have it (or my lack thereof today) both treadmills were taken. I jumped on the eliptical machine only to realize that my iPod was not working for some odd reason. argh! After just a few minutes one of the treadmills opened up (hallelujah) and I ran 4 miles. Not quite the 5 miles the training scheduled requested...but, 4 was all I had in me tonight. I am now home, showered and icing my left shin which is killing me for some odd reason. SO glad that tomorrow is a day off! Hoping for a better run on Thursday.