Never underestimate the power of a running woman. Inspiration, one step at a time

So Excited I Can Barely Stand It!!!!!

2011-09-18T07:28:00.000-07:00

First of all, I have to apologize to everyone. I haven't been very connected this past week. I haven't been reading about running and I haven't been writing about running. I have found myself really insulating against it, getting very introspective, almost. It is interesting, but I have found this to be my personal way of preparing for a race.

But that does not mean that things haven't been happening running-wise:

Remember those pumped up kicks I raved about a couple of weeks ago? The pretty ones. Well, it takes more than a pretty face, I tell you! I wore those shoes for the Graniteman and while I was fine during the entire race, the minute I stopped running, I discovered that I couldn't walk! I thought I had broken every bone in my right foot. I was fine after icing and stretching, but I will NOT wear these shoes for running again. My new pair came in the mail on Wednesday and I am in the process of breaking them in.

I have been spending a lot of time on the Omaha Marathon Web Site: checking the course, looking at the details, etc., etc. I have also been talking to Ron's Sister, who will be running her first 10K that same day. We start out together, but of course, she will be done much sooner than me (color me jealous!). The course is very interesting: The full, half and 10kers all start out together. We run the same course, with each of just finishing when our miles are done. The lucky 10K runners finish before the course gets hilly. The hills come for the full and halfers during miles 6-13. The course then gets flat again for the full marathoners, while those of us doing the half will finish on fully spent legs.

One thing I was worried about was getting to the start of the race: driving, parking. Our hotel was listed as being 1.5 miles away from the start. The Web Site said that start and finish were moved because of the flooding Omaha experienced this summer. Not knowing the city very well, I called the hotel yesterday to find out if they provided a shuttle to the start. When I told her where it was, she paused and said, "You realize that is right across the street from us, right?"

GOD ALWAYS PROVIDES!!!!!

Anyways, I am so excited about this race that I can barely stand it!!!!!!

I am hoping to write this week about the specific preparations I am doing to prepare to have a successful (read: finish without collapsing) race. I have done quite a bit of research on this and actually have tested them out with my previous longer distance races and triathlons. I hope to share what I have learned so that you can use these things as well.

The Graniteman Half Marathon pictures are finally up. The photographer had a glitch with her camera. Hence the black and white pic, lol. I am the one in the purple. This is the 1:55 pacer I started out with. I didn't actually remember what he looked like, I was kind of focused on the tattoo on his leg : ) But, as we all know, I didn't get to look at it for very long!

Again, I apologize for not being around, but In truly hope your training and racing are going well! Take care and Happy Running!

Angels Among Us

2011-09-10T10:42:00.000-07:00

I believe there are angels among us. This morning my angel's name was Dan.

I started this race with no real goals, except to finish and not die.

I was excited to start the race with someone I knew from Little Falls. I didn't even know she was going to be there, so it was a total surprise to see her! We parked ourselves behind the 1:55 pacer. My friend was planning on passing him. I was planning on falling behind him. We both ended up passing him, with her quite a ways ahead of me.

I caught up with an older man and we started talking. This was a training run for him as well. He has a marathon coming up. I don't think he realized he was an angel in disguise : )

Dan and I ended up running the entire race together. He coached me at the hard parts, aka the hills that I didn't think were going to be part of this race. He called out our time occasionally and mentioned that we were going to finish faster than his goal time of 1:55 if we stayed on pace.

I told him that 1:55 was my PR and then he made it his goal to get me a new PR today.

He was successful : )

I ran 13.1 miles this morning in 1:52:21. I wouldn't have done this if it weren't for Dan. He was truly my angel.

My legs feel good, but my foot is in just a little pain. My flip-flops are feeling pretty good right now.

Did you race this weekend? Have you ever encountered angels during a race?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Graniteman Half Marathon

2011-09-07T11:08:00.000-07:00

Graniteman. This term alone puts fear into my heart. The Graniteman series is well known around these parts as one thing: TRIATHLON. I have had the privilege of watching a Graniteman Triatholon long enough to know that I don't want to participate in one.

This year they have decided to add a half marathon to their series and I have decided that I will take them up on this race. I registered with plans to use it as a training run for the race in Omaha (two weeks away!!!!!) thinking that it couldn't be THAT bad, right?

Uggghhhhhh!!!!

They so kindly put up a video of the course on their website. It looks like not a whole lot of fun. Not hilly or anything like that. Just really, really flat and boring. Long country roads and commercial areas. If you want to, you can follow this link and scroll down to see the video of where I will be running on Saturday.

Graniteman Half Marathon Course

The only good part about this run is that quite a few people from my little town will be running it as well. Hopefully, I'll be in good company : )

In preparation for this training run, I am doing a small carbo-load and taper this week. Not on purpose, I made a soup in the crockpot last night. The recipe comes from Rachael Ray's magazine. It is chicken, potatoes, sweet potatoes and corn on the cob. Can you say "Carbohydrate Heaven"? Add in some bread or a bagel and I am good to go. Since it is Wednesday already, I started today along with extra hydration.

The tapering has also come not on purpose. With school starting this week, our schedule is CRAZY! I can only manage to fit in 30 minute runs every day (tomorrow will be a rest day). So, tapering I am.

Amelia had a cross country meet yesterday afternoon. It was on a beautiful golf course and the weather was perfect. She wore her brand new spikes, found at the local sports shop. There were 3 pair in stock (not 3 STYLES, 3 PAIR!) and amazingly 2 of them were her size. What are the chances? She choose the pretty blue ones. "Now you'll be able to pick me out in the race, mom!" she told me. Really, CC races aren't hard to pick out who the kids are. Skiing, now that's a different story! But, these blue shoes really did make her stand out!

So, my question for today is: do you ever use a race as a training run? If so, do you taper and carbo-load before hand?

And some advice: Will it hurt my performance in Omaha if I decide to race on Saturday instead of just run?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Did You Run Today?

2011-09-03T11:07:00.000-07:00

I did : ) Two hours straight at the lake. I am one step closer to being ready for Omaha!

What I see when I'm out running at the lake:

Hills, lots and lots of hills...

The iconic cabin signs...

The lake, of course...

The junk people put on the road to sell or get rid of. I see couches, chairs, tables, you name it, lol!

The campground, my half-mile marker...

Luckily, this was all of the wildlife I saw today.

Ainsley, Aliza and I took the dollies out for a walk this morning, too...

And this is what I plan on doing for the rest of the day!

Happy Labor Day!

Where did you run today?

Adding Speed Work????

2011-08-30T07:10:00.000-07:00

My training this summer has been kind of funny. I've really just been getting back into running and it has taken pretty much all of the last three months just to get back into shape. I have following a training plan. Sort of.

Mostly I have been lollygagging and just running how I feel. No watch. No prescribed distances. Just running. (This is not including the long runs from that I do every Saturday or Sunday morning, but that is for another post...)

It hit me yesterday that I am ready to add some speed work into my training. I am not quite sure where this is coming from... I really don't like speed work all that much. Ok, I actually kind of hate it.

So, last night Adrienne and I were heading to Walmart and I decided to map out a 3.1 run for this morning to test the training I have been doing this summer. It ended up being a crazy, loopy route (my favorite kind). Adrienne thought her mother was a weirdo and told me she didn't think her friend's moms did this kind of thing (actually some of them do and some of her teachers do this too, but I didn't mention that).

3.1 or so this morning were run in 23 minutes. I added the or so because I started in my driveway and not at the corner that I started clocking the distance with the car and then I ended up adding some in order to not get smashed up by cars that dared to drive on my route. Seriously! The audacity : )

Anyways, not too bad, but it could be better! I am ready to add some tempo runs into my training. I have in front of me right now the latest Women's running magazine and it opened to page 67. There is a very nice pink page entitled "Sub 20-Minute 5K/6:16 Race Pace". I am ready. It is a 12 week plan which is perfect for a turkey trot or a jingle bell run.

Yes, yes, yes I am still training for the half marathon and the ten mile. But, for me these runs aren't really about speed. These races are about celebrating the fact that I have been able to get back into running. They are a celebration of my love of running. The half marathon for me is all about strength.

Do you incorporate speed work into your training? What kind? (Track, hills, tempo runs?) Do you enjoy it? What do you do to celebrate your love of running?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

The Storm Before The Calm

2011-08-23T07:27:00.000-07:00

Minnesota has a state law that saws school can't start until after labor day. It is either a farm thing or a tourism thing. Take your choice. It doesn't really matter.

But that puts us at about two weeks before the kiddos head back to school. Two weeks of torture...

Don't get me wrong, I love my kids. ALOT. And, we have honestly had one of the best summers we have ever had.

But, the last two weeks are always CRAZY!!!!

The activities for the little ones are done. Bored little kids.

Middle school and high school fall sports have started with insane workouts and wacky practice times occurring at all times of the day. And, in the case of soccer, twice every day. Sore, tired, crabby big kids.

The storm before the calm...

Speaking of high school sports starting... Judy and I were doing our normal run last week, chatting as usual, when we looked up and both said "WHOA!" We were face-to-face with a six foot wall of black and purple. From somewhere in the huge mass, I heard, "HI MOM!" The boys soccer team.

Yesterday morning, we were doing our hill workout when we heard a whooshing sound behind us. Judy yelled, "LOOK OUT!" Before we knew it, we were in the middle of the girls varsity cross country team, lol! I ran into these girls again this morning on my solo run. They all smile and wave, a nice group of girls.

Do you ever run into huge groups of student athletes on your training runs? Has school started for you yet? (If so, I am seriously jealous!)

Have a great day and Happy Running!

All The Other Kids With The Pumped Up Kicks

2011-08-21T07:53:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, I sat down and started calculating all of the miles I had run this summer so far and estimated how many more I would do before the Omaha Half Marathon. It quickly became apparent that the shoes I had gotten this spring were not going to make it to race day.

I did some research online and in running magazines. I found my new kicks : )

Pretty, huh?

My family has had strep throat all of this week, so running has been tough. Three of the girls tested positive and are being treated. Mine was negative, but he gave me medicine anyways, because I had a sore throat was just wiped out in general as well.

I did continue running, but they were shorter and slower. Yesterday was my planned long run, but I woke up too beat to do it. So, I spent the day resting and reading out at the cabin. It was very nice : )

This morning I woke up ready to tackle the milage and gave the new shoes a chance to prove themselves. The jury is still out on these babies. My feet kind of hurt.

I'm not sure how far I ran this morning, but I went 1 hour and 40 minutes. I am mostly running by time and not distance. I am actually doing a half marathon in a few weeks as a training run. I think that will be a good gauge as to how my timing/milage are.

We head back out to the lake this afternoon. I'm sure the girls will want to swim and fish : )

What are your plans on this fine Sunday?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

So Cool!

2011-08-18T08:16:00.000-07:00

You don't have to look far to see that our world is in rough shape right now:

Riots in England

Starvation in Somalia

Obesity is epidemic

Politicians acting like spoiled children in the US

The economy sucks

The stock market taking nose dives on a regular basis

Heck, our whole fine state of Minnesota shut down for a month this summer

And yet, I choose to see glimmers of hope...

In the last couple of weeks I had two friends of mine post on FB.

One was a good friend of mine from High School. He had run 1 1/2 miles after not running in years.

The second was a good friend from college. He had run 5 miles twice that week after not being able to run for quite some time.

Both of these posts brought smiles to my face and a tear to my eye. I was so happy for them!

I also have "liked" a page on FB called I <3 to run. I stop by several times a day to read what people are posting there. I am too shy to post anything myself, but it is so neat to see people posting about their running. They inspire me so much!

In the bloggy world, my absolute favorite blogs to read are those written by people who are just starting out. I love, love, love to read their posts about their accomplishments and even their struggles.

I'm not naive, I know times are tough right now. But I also know that there are good things going on around us all the time : )

So Cool!

My question to you today: I am working on my playlist for the half marathon, any suggestions on songs?

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running!

Do You Give It All?

2011-08-17T13:09:00.000-07:00

I have been kicking around last weekend's race. It still kind of bothers me how it ended up. I let that woman beat me, I had it in me but I just kept thinking "She can have it, I don't need it".

I have had this issue before and have actually discussed it with some other people that I run with.

Why can't I win? Why do I feel like I don't deserve to win? What am I afraid of?

Keep in mind that I thought the woman ahead of me was in my age bracket. I wanted her to win instead of me...

Anyone I bring this up with thinks I am crazy. Obviously no one else has this issue...

Except me.

What I came up with:

1. I am afraid to give my all because I know I have other things to do during the day. I had four of my kids to take care of that afternoon. We had lots of fun things planned with their cousins. I didn't want to be so exhausted that I couldn't participate.

2. I am afraid of pain. I don't want to fall. I don't want to get hurt. I am afraid to race until it hurts.

I am just plain afraid.

So, I ask this of you: are you afraid of anything when you are racing? Are you able to give your all? Do you race until it hurts?

Do you have any advice for me on how to handle this?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Lessons Learned

2011-08-15T07:49:00.000-07:00

The St. Michael River Run was an interesting race. First of all, there was no river anywhere near the race. Apparently, the route used to run near a river. They changed the course, but not the name.

It is also a very small race. When we got there to register, there was almost no one else. They said 50 people had pre registered. While we used the potty, pinned on our numbers and walked around at least another 30 people came to run.

I started looking around and noticed there were a lot of women. Women who looked to be my age. Women who looked like they were serious runners.

There were also a lot of teenage boys.

I tried not to get nervous.

This was the first race I have ever done with my iPod, but I am really, really glad I had it along. The course was kind of funny. We ran mostly through a neighborhood. I don't think the people living there had any idea that a 5K was going to be going on in front of their houses that morning. Several people were trying to back out of their driveways, to no avail, what with all of the people running by their yards.

The course was marked with sidewalk chalk and measured in meters. This meant that we could barely see the markers and I had no clue how far I left to go anyways. I didn't even attempt to convert the meters into miles.

There were no spectators and most of the time I ran alone. I would not have enjoyed this race if I hadn't had my music.

Early on, I decided that this was just a run and not a race for me. I decided to find my natural pace and just see what happened. I really didn't worry about all those fast women too much. "Run your own race" was my mantra through most of the 3.1 miles.

With one exception. I spotted her about halfway through the race. You know the one. The woman you know is in your age group that you really want to catch up to and maybe pass? Well, this woman was wearing a blue tank and was running very strong. I really didn't think I would catch her.

Imagine my surprise when I was on her heel and in the last half mile, I passed her up. Very strange. Very strange, indeed. She did pass me again and finished before me. She obviously wanted it more than I did.

I am not quite ready to give my all yet. Could I have beat her? Maybe? Does it matter? Not really. But actually, it does. I need to figure out what I am afraid of.

As a side note, I passed quite a few of those teenage boys : )

Anyways, the times are posted now and my official time was 22:37. And that woman in the blue tank, the one who beat me? It turns out she is a Cross Country Coach. And she is 39 years old.

I came in first for my age group, 40-49. Totally not expecting that!

I learned so many lessons from this race:

1. You can never guess people's ages or abilities. Don't worry about the competition. Run your own race.

2. Music really, really helps me stay focused and run my own pace.

3. I have to decide if I am willing to give it all during a race. I walked away from this one knowing I didn't. The very fact that I could walk and was not even one bit sore tells me I have more to give. This is something I will have to ponder.

4. Run with your daughter and SIL as often as you can!

5. Passing teenage boys is harder than it sounds, but it is doable and actually gets to be fun once you do it enough : )

6. I miss racing and can't wait to do it again.

What are some lessons you have learned from racing?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

The First Race Report in Almost a Year!!!!

2011-08-14T06:07:00.000-07:00

I raced yesterday!!!!

For the first time in almost a year...

Last weekend, my SIL asked me to do a 5K with her in St. Michael, MN. We are both getting back into running after taking a leave of absence. Her, after having my incredibly cute nephew, Bennett, and me after recovering from all of these silly injuries.

The logistics of the whole race were kind of crazy. Getting there would be challenging, to say the least. We would have had to leave our house by 6 am to get to theirs on time for the race. With four girls, this is almost an impossible feat. We had plans for Friday night and I was wiped out after a very busy week.

And yet...

During my long run on Thursday, the thought that kept running through my head was: "I am finally ready to race again." I really, really wanted to do this with Laura.

I decided to put it in God's hands and accept whatever happened.

Apparently, God is ready for me to start racing again.

I ran the St. Michael River Run Saturday, August 13th at 8 am with my Daughter, Amelia and SIL, Laura. I am the one in the center. This is after the race. We all survived!!!!

I didn't look at the clock, so I don't know my official time. But, I asked the woman who finished in front of me and the teenage boy who finished behind me and figured out that I ran it in approximately 22:40ish. As soon as the results are posted, I'll let you know.

I'm really glad that everything worked out. It was a nice way to start off a Saturday : )

Tomorrow I'll post with the anxieties I had about this race, lessons learned, where I placed and hopefully my official time.

Today I am resting!

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Running on Vacation

2011-08-11T07:56:00.000-07:00

I am currently recovering...

From vacation, that is. Yes, it is tough, I know, lol!

My family spent most of last week in the waterpark capital of the world:

The Wisconsin Dells.

When I was a kid, we went at least twice a summer. These were always day trips because we were close enough to head home after a day on the waterslides. Ron and I also took our honeymoon in the Dells. We live farther away now and this was our first time taking the kids. I am kind of glad we waited, because they were all old enough to enjoy the fun water stuff. And there were no diapers involved!

That being said, the Dells have changed since I was a kid. I thought it was incredibly amusing that the slides that were touted as being big and fast when I was a kid were now in the kiddie areas. Aliza loved them!

I only went down one of the new slides and only did it once. I thought I was going to die and really didn't need to do that again. However, I could have lived in the wave pool! Teaching Adrienne how to body surf was one of the best parts of the trips. We spent hours in that pool : )

You are probably thinking: "Great! But what does this have to do with running..."

Well, I packed my running gear, realizing my runs were probably going to be done on a treadmill. I was planning short, easy runs.

Little did I know...

The resort we were staying at was called "Wilderness" and true to their name, they kept their grounds somewhat like a wilderness. There were miles of beautiful walking trails! I got out a couple of mornings and was joined by quite a few other people who were out using the trails as well.

It didn't take me long to realize that the trails were very, very hilly. I was running my "short, easy run" when it occurred to me that these were actually hard training runs. Not exactly what I was expecting on vacation, but actually quite a pleasant surprise.

I am back at home and back onto my "normal" training plan. Judy and I have lengthened our runs together. We are up to 4 three times a week. She is looking at a few races before we do the 10 mile in Oct. This morning I ran 90 minutes, not quite sure of the distance. It was a nice run. Our temperatures have cooled nicely and it is starting to feel like fall, making for very comfortable runs.

So, I am wondering: do you run on vacation? Have you ever had any pleasant surprises on these runs?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Rest?????

2011-08-01T06:22:00.000-07:00

I am notoriously bad at resting.

Especially when it comes to running.

Hmmmm... it is surprising that I spend half of the time being injured? I think not.

In our culture and especially as runners, I think we tend to think more is more.

Run more to run better. Run more to run faster. Etc., etc., etc.

When I started up and running again this summer, I decided that I wanted to do it differently and that I didn't want my body to hurt all the time any more. I wanted to make running something that I enjoyed more than I hated.

I realized pretty darn quickly that the only way to make this happen was to incorporate rest days into my schedule. And...

FEEL GOOD ABOUT IT

It was challenging at first, let me tell you! It actually took several weeks before I took a rest day. But, it felt so good!!!!

I am finally to the point where I take one or two rest days per week. I usually don't plan them. I don't write down beforehand: "This week, Monday and Friday are my rest days." Instead, I listen to my body. I usually know the night before, "Tomorrow is so a rest day!" I don't set my alarm and sleep in.

GUILT FREE!!!!!

I have actually begun to reap the benefits of resting when my body needs it:

* I enjoy running a lot more than I used to.

* My running has improved. I am able to go longer distances and my times have improved.

* My "good" runs have begun to outnumber the "crappy" runs.

* I have a whole day with no sopping wet running clothes in the laundry : )

That being said, I have put in quite a few miles this past week. Training is going well.

Do you incorporate resting days in to your training schedule? Do you enjoy them or dread them? If you do take rest days do you see any benefits?

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running (I am resting)!

A Sport Of Her Own

2011-07-25T16:31:00.000-07:00

As you may know I am mommy to five kids. Five very, very active kids.

Alexander is 16 and a natural runner and Nordic Skier. Unfortunately, these sports do not offer the opportunity to hit, get hit or his favorite: get major concussions. Luckily for everyone involved soccer and hockey provide all of these opportunities and more. There were 3 concussions this past winter in hockey. 1 minor and 2 major. He was off for the season. Soccer this summer provided an opportunity for him to walk off the field all woozy with no clue where he was. Yay! (Yes there is just a tad of sarcasm here). As his mother, I hope he goes back to running...

Amelia is 13 and also a natural runner and Nordic Skier. She is also a talented goalie in soccer and pitcher in softball. She is the kind of kid who is just very athletic. Luckily her friends run and ski and so she runs and skis. As I write this, she is with the ski team doing competitive rowing on the river. Yes, they practice all summer long : )

Aliza is almost 7 and very, very active. She runs, climbs, rides her bike, flips on the rings of the swing set and pretty much just likes anything extreme and dangerous. She is now in direct competition with Alexander for broken bones and injuries. She broke her arm in June falling off a bench in our back yard. Her finger shows you exactly where the break is. She is all healed now and is back to her active ways giving me heart attacks every minute of every day.

Ainsley is 4 and has been able to turn a perfect cartwheel since she was 3. She can also do summersaults and the splits. She LOVED gymnastics this summer. At soccer, she asked to quit at every water break. Not a soccer player this girl, lol!

Adrienne is 9 and given the choice, she would rather read than be active in any way. She has always struggled with her swimming and just wasn't able to pass level 4 in her lessons. I asked her if she would like to join the River Racers swim team this summer to help with her swimming skills. Lo and behold, I have a child who is a swimmer. She loves swimming and goes four days a week. They have had two meets this summer and she really enjoyed racing as well. One day she got into the car and said "Mom, do you know they have River Racers during the winter?" She wants to keep on swimming all winter.

I am so proud! Adrienne finally has a sport of her own : )

I ran 3 1/2 miles out at the lake yesterday. The last half mile was all hill work. As soon as I write the words "Happy Running" to you, I am going to head out for today's run, I'll let you know how it goes!

I hope you had a great day and Happy Running!

WE'RE IN!!!!!!

2011-07-22T06:24:00.000-07:00

I got the e-mail this morning. It is official:

Judy and I are in for the TC 10 mile!!!!!

I am so excited because this is where it all began for me. This race is where I fell in love with running. It was the first long distance race for me and the largest one I have ever participated in.

Did I mention I fell in love there????

HEAD OVER HEELS!!!!!

I have also added another race to my finally updated list. The Brat Trot in Sheboygan, Wisconsin on August 6th. We are going to be there for a family reunion anyways and I figured it would be a perfect way to get my run in that morning.

Plus, the Brat Trot is a 4 miler, so it is an instant PR! And as a bonus, I will have a t-shirt with a running bratwurst on it : )

I decided just for the heck of it to go out this morning and see how long it would take me to do 4 miles.
I set my goal at 30 minutes and headed out.

The breakdown:

I looked at my watch at the mile mark and realized I was doing 10 minute miles. Oh boy!

I picked up the pace and did not look at my watch again until I was done.

I must have had some major negative splits, because I made it in 31 minutes. Not too bad, I am pretty darn happy with this morning's run.

About all of this racing I am planning: I am getting nervous. It has been a long time since I have raced. And while I love to race, the thought of it makes me a little queasy...

Do you get nervous about racing?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Mental Gymnastics

2011-07-20T08:20:00.000-07:00

For me, running is 99.9% mental. And there has been a strange sort of mental gymnastics going on with my training.

When I first starting running again this summer, I was really excited about running. It was all I thought about and read about. I started doing research online again and planning out my training.

And then I would actually go out and run.

During each and every one of those first runs, my brain whined: "ARE WE ALMOST DONE YET?" "STOP THIS STUPID RUNNING ALREADY!" "I AM SO DONE RUNNING RIGHT NOW!"

It was really frustrating because my legs felt fine, but mentally I was just struggling so much.

The gymnastics taking place in my brain:

Now when I think about running, I start to panic. Now my brain commands me: "YOU CAN'T DO IT!" "WHO ARE YOU KIDDING, YOU CAN'T RUN WORTH ANYTHING!"

But then I get out and start running and I don't want to stop! My brain is fully on board and loving the run right now. In fact, my legs are the ones who say "enough already!"

I can't quite figure out what is going on, but it is strange.

The heat wave that has hit much of the country has landed smack dab in Minnesota. We are setting heat index records and dew point records left and right. So while the temps might not even make it to 100, the heat index tells us that it feels like 115.

It is crazy hot out there!

Yesterday I woke up to thunderstorms. No running.

Last night: too hot and humid for words. No running.

Today is supposed to be worse.

This morning I met Judy early and we did three together. I went on and did three more on my own. Again, I felt like I could run forever, even though the air was oppressive! Too weird.

The highlight of my run this morning was when Judy and I were done, we ran through the sprinklers at the park we meet up at. Too fun!

So, do you find that your running is mental? Does your brain ever whine on your runs?

Stay cool, have a great day and Happy Running!

Running Underwater

2011-07-16T10:24:00.000-07:00

There may have been some adverse effects from running in the rain in the other day. Not to me, I am fine...

This morning I started out for my run and cranked up the old iPod. The guys from Pearl Jam sounded all funny and bubbly!

I felt like I was running underwater, lol!

It was actually quite amusing, but I am glad that it resolved itself by the time I was done running. I do prefer Pearl Jam to sound like their regular old selves : )

This week of training has just been so weird, what with all of the rain and "off" runs and everything. The storms did finally end yesterday and Judy and I ran in the afternoon. The humidity was extremely high and we ended up walking and running because the air was just unbearable.

I was, however, determined to get out and run a little bit more "normally" this morning. And besides the bubbly music, it was actually quite a nice run.

I felt like I could run forever. Of course, I didn't. I only ran six miles. But still, I haven't felt that way about running in a long, long time.

I thought about a post-run pic, but I kid you not, I looked like I had just jumped in the pool. It was pretty humid again this morning. I was really, really GROSS! Oh well...

Good luck to anyone racing this weekend. Have a great one and Happy Running!

Fair Weather Runner

2011-07-15T08:41:00.000-07:00

We have had rain for the past two mornings. Yesterday morning I sat around and waited for it to stop.

It didn't. I decided to run anyways.

"Real runners run in the rain! Real runners LOVE to run in the rain!"

Apparently, I am not a real runner...

I was soaked. I was crabby.

This morning it is raining again. I am not running in this crud.

If it stops raining, I will run.

I admit it, I am a fair weather runner!

Do you like to run in the rain? Is there any weather do you not like to run in?

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running!

In The Genes?

2011-07-12T07:48:00.000-07:00

I got an e-mail from my Aunt Donna this morning. She is my mom's only sister and is 57 years old. The e-mail asked how my running was going and said that she had run another half marathon in May. She is also doing her second triathlon in August and a Warrior Dash in September.

This past week my much younger cousin, Michael posted on FB that he was training for his 5K. I wished him luck and told him he would do great, he's a really fast runner. I said I was envious that he had discovered our family's natural talent for running much earlier than I had. He said it was probably in the genes, lol!

Several other of my uncles and cousins on my mom's side run as well. One of my uncles said he thought it was because we are addicted to adrenaline. This may be true, I guess...

I also have a couple of my own kids who like to run.

Could it be in the genes?

It just might be.

I ran three easy miles yesterday morning with Judy and then six much harder ones this morning. They were both very nice runs. I always put smiley faces by my good runs in my running log. That way when I have those really, really crummy runs, I can look back and remember that not all of them are bad. Four good ones in a row is really rare for me, but I'm not going to complain : )

Do other people in your family run? Do you think running is a genetic thing?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

A Beautiful Run

2011-07-10T08:04:00.000-07:00

I am so glad that I waited on my long run for this weekend!

I am using these longer runs to monkey around with pre-run fuel, what works, what doesn't, etc. I've really wanted to try to find a way to incorporate some protein before my runs. BUT... I know that if I eat anything too heavy, it will not be pretty and will come back to bite me mid-run.

Yesterday, I was at the grocery store, looking at the juices. I saw the NAKED Juice Protein Zone Smoothie. It is all natural: fruits and whey and soy protein.

This morning, I woke up, drank a cup of coffee and half of this smoothie.

I am flip-flopping between two different plans. One had me going 9 this morning. The other had me going 10. I left the house prepared to do 9. Somewhere along the way, I thought, hmmmm... I could probably do 10. I'll have to see how I feel.

Apparently I felt pretty good, because I ended up doing the 10, with the last mile being even better than the first.

The weather was nice. Cloudy with a breeze. A little too humid for my taste, but not too bad.

It was a beautiful run.

What do you eat/drink pre-run?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

A Change of Plans

2011-07-09T07:22:00.000-07:00

My plan for this morning:

A nine mile run.

Mother Nature's plan for this morning:

Thunderstorms followed by excessive heat and humidity.

I actually knew this because I had watched the weather last night.

But I was still hopeful.

I woke up at 6 am to rain, no thunder or lightening. When I checked the radar, I noticed that there was going to be a window of no rain. But I was going to have to wait a while for it.

Probably an hour or two.

At this point I figured I had two choices:

1. Go out early, get wet and run nine miles.

2. Go out later, stay dry and only run three, saving the nine miler for tomorrow when the forecast was for dry weather.

I opted to stay dry, run three this morning, but make them at 5K pace, with a nice kick-in at the end.

Tomorrow will be nine.

Have you ever had to change your runs because of the weather? How so?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Not a "Fastinista"

2011-07-07T09:40:00.000-07:00

I showed my daughter Amelia (a teenager now, gasp! she turned 13 this past year) the cover of the August 2011 Runner's World. It says "Fastinistas! The flashy new gear culture and the women who love it"

"What do you think about this outfit?" I asked her. "Gross! Who would run in a skirt?"

"Look inside, here's a running DRESS!" "EWWWWW!!!!"

"How about these socks they go all the way up to your knees!" "What's the purpose?" "None, I guess..." "Exactly!"

"The arm things?" "No."

She is not a "Fastinista," lol!

That's just fine with me : )

My run today was not great. The first three miles were very nice because I ran them with Judy. I had 6 on my schedule for today, though and so was going to do the other three by myself. I only made it another mile and a half before I had some major GI issues. I ended up walking home. Ughhhh...

Back to the fashion issue, are you a "Fastinista?" Personally, I am not. Although I do run in a skirt sometimes (this caused Amelia to roll her eyes in the back of her head), it is black and pretty boring. All of the rest of my running gear is pretty boring as well. I do have to admit that I think it would be fun to run in those nonfunctional long socks though...

Have a great day and Happy Running!

My Favorite Place To Run

2011-07-06T06:43:00.000-07:00

We spent a couple of days out at the cabin this last weekend. I got in two 3 milers out there.

The cabin is my favorite place to run!

Why is it my favorite, you might ask...

Let me count the ways:

1. It is beautiful. I can see the lake on a chunk of my runs out there. I also see the wildlife that goes along with the lake. Blue herons, loons, ducks, I even saw a deer cross the road this past weekend.

2. It is somewhere new to run. It shakes things up a bit and I don't get so bored.

3. It is a challenge. There are quite a few hills and I tend to run later in the morning out at the lake and so I deal with issues like the heat and humidity that I don't face at home.

And the very reason that it is my most favorite place to run:

4. People. Lots of people run when they are staying out at the cabin. All different kinds of them. Men, women, old, young, fast, slow. You name it, they are out there running. This is so huge for me because when I run at home I see: NO ONE. Very rarely I come across someone else running, but that is only once in a blue moon. If I see anyone else out when I am out, it tends to be an elderly man out for his morning walk. That's it. I love being able to see other people running!

This week's training so far:

Two 3 milers at the lake.

6 miles yesterday. I ate a banana beforehand this time and it really helped.

3 miles this morning.

So far, I am staying on track and following THE PLAN : )

What is your most favorite place to run and why?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Week One Complete!

2011-07-02T07:24:00.000-07:00

Week one of training for the half marathon training is officially complete! I have decided to celebrate small milestones and this is one, small, that is, but I am going to celebrate it!

It was a rough week, after I fell I spent most of the rest of the week in quite a bit of pain. I didn't immediately realize it, but I must have also fell on my right shoulder. It is scuffed up as well and my shoulder joint really hurts. Thursday was an especially bad day, but I made it through.

The funny (or not so funny) thing is that I ran into Judy, my running partner, at Walmart Thursday afternoon. She showed me her left knee. "I was just so jealous of you that I had to have some road rash of my own," she said. Sure enough, she had fallen running with her dog that morning. Ouch! It wasn't too bad, but still. We are quite the pair, I tell you!

This morning I did a 9 mile run, as per my schedule. The first six miles were pretty easy, there was nothing pretty about the last three, however. In fact, the last 3 miles just pretty much sucked. Lessons learned from this run: eat something before a 6 mile run or longer. Next time I will fuel my longer runs by eating a banana.

I want to thank you for your help on the gels! I decided to stick with the GU this morning and it worked out just fine. If it ain't broke don't fix it.

We are heading out to the cabin this weekend to celebrate the 4th. I know this is a big racing weekend for many people. Do you have plans to race this weekend?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Not the Post I Wanted to Write

2011-06-29T07:30:00.000-07:00

I had a post all planned out for yesterday. It was mainly focused on nutrition on the run. Gu vs. all other brands of gels.

Then my run happened. Or should I say my fall happened.

Luckily, I was close enough to home to walk and clean off all of the blood on my knee and leg.

Also, luckily, I was far enough from the railroad workers who work near our house so I don't think they saw me take my "little" digger.

In addition to the road rash on my leg, I hyperextended the last three fingers on my right hand. I spent most of the day yesterday at the clinic finding out that nothing was broken, but there is some ligament damage to the pinky finger.

I was in a whole world of hurt yesterday.

But, I did get back up and run the 6 miles I had planned for yesterday. I figured it was going to hurt whether I was running or sitting at home in my chair, so I might as well run.

This morning was three with Judy.

But, I am still interested in nutrition on the run. I have always used GU, but I am wondering what you use. I am specifically interested to know if anyone uses the Honey Stinger gels and if so, what flavor do you use.

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Let The Training Begin!

2011-06-27T06:34:00.000-07:00

It is official. I am 12 weeks out from the Omaha half marathon.

Let the training begin!

I spent last week looking for a training plan. I looked online, in magazines and in books. Nothing. Or at least, nothing I was terribly happy with. I finally settled on one, printed it out and sat around stewing. Something about this plan felt not quite right.

Then, as chance would have it (although, I prefer to think it was Divine Intervention), my Women's Running magazine came in the mail Saturday morning.

The front said "Half Marathon Your Perfect Plan."

I seriously doubted it, but looked anyways. And what would you know? There, in front of me was

THE PLAN

I am good to go. This morning was the start with a three mile run with my friend Judy.

Very nice.

Have you ever trained with a plan that you're not sure is the right one for you? Have you ever had divine intervention (or chance) bring you the perfect plan?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Not Quite Ready to Race

2011-06-25T07:52:00.000-07:00

This morning was the River Rat Race, our local 5K. I had several people ask me if I would be there.

Unfortunately, I had to say "no".

Physically, I can run 3.1 miles.

Mentally, I can't race 3.1 miles.

Racing is far more mental than physical. I'll get there, but just not yet.

I did get up early this morning to do my first longish run. I went 60 minutes (not sure how many miles, really don't care about that at this point).

It felt good and I felt strong the whole time.

On another note, I am planning on registering for the TC 10 mile race again this fall. It is a lottery drawing, with registration starting July 11. My SIL Laura has agreed to register as a team with me and immediately start praying that we don't get in. I'll be praying that we do, sorry Laura : )

The best news, I think, though, is that my friend Judy has said she might try to get in too. "I think I can run 10 miles," she said yesterday morning.

So, I am wondering: Have you ever skipped out on a race because you were mentally not prepared to do it? Do you agree that racing is more mental than physical?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

A Family Affair

2011-06-23T07:07:00.000-07:00

Amelia signed into her FaceBook page yesterday morning (technically it was afternoon, but to her 13 year old self, it was morning) and said "How far is a half marathon, Mom?". When I told her it was about 13 miles give or take, she winced. I told her there was also a 10K race that morning, which is more like 6 miles or so. "Can I do that one?"

Why yes you can, my dear!

I also asked my hubby, Ron and both of his sisters if they would like to run the 10K race as well.

Ron told me he was in for sure.

One sister said she would really, really like to. Did she have some time to think about it? Yep, until September. It also happens to be this particular sister's birthday that day. 35. A milestone one. I hope she decides to do it : )

The other sister is decidedly ignoring all of my requests. And so, Jennifer, if you are reading this: you know you want to run, right? Pretend there is a soccer ball in front of you... Also, I am thinking some of your computer geeks at your geeky computer store are going to be running this thing as well. It would be good for morale for you to be there, too. Ok, seriously, no pressure... I just think it would be fun.

I am also thinking about asking Ron's brother, he runs anyways AND he lives in Omaha anyways. He might be the only one who does the half with me. We'll see.

It will be a family affair.

Do you ever run or race with your family? Just wondering...

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Incentives

2011-06-22T07:55:00.000-07:00

I have now run four days in a row, 30-35 minutes per run and I can't believe how much better I am feeling already!

But....

Getting myself out of bed into the chilly, rainy mornings has been tough. I need

INCENTIVES!

I have built four in for right now:

1. My training log. I have started writing my running down every morning again. This is HUGE! Just the act of writing my time down and then being able to look back over the days I have run really, really helps keep me motivated.

2. Registering for a race. Yes, I have registered for a race. A half-marathon. The Omaha half, as a matter of fact. I have also announced this fact on Facebook. YIKES! This is pretty scary, but I am pretty sure I will survive.

3. Writing about running. Yes, writing my incredibly boring running stuff here really helps. Boring others publicly keeps me running...

4. And this is my main incentive right now: I have been eyeing up a "Life is Good" shirt. It is green with a flying running shoe on it. Two weeks of straight training and I am so ordering this thing and wearing it so much that my kids are embarrassed to be around me.

Ok, your turn. What are your incentives? What gets you out of bed and into your flying running shoes every morning?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Long time, No run

2011-06-21T07:17:00.000-07:00

Hmmmm... It has been quite a while. Yes, I have been pretty much MIA. I have spent the last nine, ten months, or so writing, reading and playing around with my camera. Running? Not so much...

My friend Judy and I went the odd few times this past winter. But, it was just once a week. Once a very random week. She called me up this Saturday at 9 pm, Judy that is. I was worried because it was late and I thought something was wrong. Nope. She was calling to ask me if I would like to commit to running this summer, a couple of mornings a week. Not too early, she said. Maybe 6:30 am or so. Surprisingly, I found myself saying yes, I would like to do that. We discussed how we were both feeling pretty crummy lately and it would feel good to do somethings for ourselves again. All this hauling the kids around and stuff was starting to take its toll on our oldish bodies.

And so we ran. Yesterday morning. It felt good. Plain and simple. My running shoes had begun to feel neglected, but no longer. I may be wrong, but I think I may have seen them smile just a tiny bit.

Have you ever gone for a very, very long time without running and had to start up again? What inspired you to make your running shoes smile again?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Humor Training

2011-02-06T15:29:00.000-08:00

I love to look at my stats to see what people have googled to get to my blog. Most of them are the usual "running blogs", "women's running blogs", etc, etc... But inevitably there are some that really make me smile and even laugh pretty darn hard.

This week someone googled "Groundhog's Day Inspiration"

?????????

Ok, this one made me LMAO. Because as we all know, Groundhog's Day is so very, very inspirational...

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Someone else googled "Humor Training"

: ) : ) : ) : ) : )

In case you haven't noticed, one of my goals is to leave you with a smile. I figure if just ONE person laughs because of something I have written, I have done my job.

So sweet.

But so NOT about running.

On to running:

I am in sort of a dilemma right now and could use some advice from you, my fellow runners.

The problem? I am registered for a half-marathon in April.

Hmmmm... that really isn't the problem.

The REAL problem? I have no training plan.

The other MAJOR problem? Mother nature keeps sending us these arctic blasts. It is going to get down to 30 below with windchill again this week. I am only running outside once or twice every week.

Can we say

WEEKEND WARRIOR?

So, what would you do? Should I find a training plan? Would you scrap the half? I am still riding 20-21 miles every day on the bike and so I haven't lost much of my fitness, but I know it isn't comparable to running...

Please help!

I wanted to leave you with one of Ron's FB status updates from earlier this week:

RMAM (Round Middle-Aged Male) looking for running partner(s) to do a 1/4 1/2 Marathon sometime in the next 10 years. Interests include red meat, nachos, beer, fishing, hunting and a dislike for serious exercise. Seriously interested parties only please. (Chips and a boat are provided.)

I told him that he could run with me. He told me I was mean and that I would make him run really, really fast. I also don't meet his qualifications (red meat, nachos, beer, fishing, hunting...)

LOL! He got quite a few funny responses to this one!

I hope you are having a great day and Happy Running : )

Happy Groundhog's Day

2011-02-02T06:08:00.000-08:00

February second is a special day around our house.

No, not because of that silly little groundhog. Everyone in Minnesota knows it doesn't really matter whether Phil sees his shadow or not. It's going to be cold until July. That is a fact of our lives.

Twenty one years ago today, I packed up my trusty saxophone and headed off to the hockey arena. I was 19 years old and played in the pep band for St Cloud State's Hockey team. After the game a trombone player stood up and said "Party at my house, who's in?" My friends and I stuck our freshman hands in the air said "We are! We're in!"

I did not know at that moment that my life was about to change...

I walked into the party and saw a group of people sitting at a table. Unbeknownst to me, my future husband turned to his buddies and said "Who let the high school kids in?"

Hmmmm...

Ron worked the keg. I was a frequent visitor to the keg.

At one point my friend said to me "I think that guy spit in your beer!"

Which is how it came about that the first words I said to Ron were "HEY! DID YOU SPIT IN MY BEER?"

Dear Lord...

He still maintains that he did NOT spit in my beer. And this kind, wonderful, smart, handsome man found it in his heart to marry me. I will never understand how I got so lucky!

I ran twice last week. Once with a friend and once by myself. They were both very nice. But, my knee really hurt after the solo run. I think I ran farther and harder that day.

In case you are wondering what is going on in my "real" life, my friend "M" did a nice job of writing about it on her blog My Little Life.

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Going From Blogger to News Reporter Challenging and Fun

2011-01-24T15:04:00.000-08:00

The five W's, Inverted Triangle, AP style, Hey Martha stories. These were just a few of the things one running blogger had to learn when she started writing for the local weekly newspaper.

"I jumped right in the first week, covering meetings, taking photos and scheduling interviews," Anonymous Blogger said.

"One of the most challenging aspects is learning to write in the AP style," said Blogger, "it takes a whole new way of thinking, very different from writing a blog."

Blogger said her first story for the paper was about garbage, "Not necessarily garbage, itself, but the way the city collects the garbage. I have also written about Yoga, running, a local florist and our City Council's decision not to have their work sessions taped," said Blogger. Her assignment for next week includes interviewing the local funeral director.

The best part of the job so far, said Blogger, was the day she took the sports editor's camera to the ski team's home invitational. "Two of the photos made the paper," said Blogger.

Asked whether she likes the job, Blogger said, "I do like being a reporter. It is challenging and fun. I feel lucky to be able to do what I do."

Lol! I thought it would be fun to practice my AP writing here on the old bloggy blog. It's not great. But I am working on it. HOWEVER, I will probably never write AP here again, because this is the one place that I can write pretty much anything I want, any way I want. AND I can put 2 (not two, HA!) spaces between my sentences if I feel like it.

It is going to warm up this week in Minnesota and I am hoping to get outside running at least once this week. I have asked a friend of mine to run with me one evening. I hope she says yes : )

My half-marathon is looming and I really need to start looking at a training plan.

What did you do this weekend? Did you get out and run? It hovered around 20 below in these parts, so we were inside most of the time. No running for me. January can be over anytime, thank you!

Have a great day and Happy Running!

The Ones Who Help Us

2011-01-22T07:16:00.000-08:00

YOU HAVE BRAINS IN YOUR HEAD. YOU HAVE FEET IN YOUR SHOES.

YOU CAN STEER YOURSELF IN ANY DIRECTION YOU CHOOSE.

YOU'RE ON YOUR OWN. AND YOU KNOW WHAT YOU KNOW.

YOU ARE THE ONE WHO'LL DECIDE WHERE TO GO.

~DR. SEUSS

With all due respect to Dr. Seuss, I don't entirely agree with this quote. Yes, we have brains and yes we have feet. Yes, we decide where to go, but we are definitely not on our own.

Every morning I take a half hour of quiet time. This is when I pray, write in my gratitude journal and try to quiet my mind. This morning, I felt compelled to read my Guideposts magazine. This was odd, because I typically save this to read on Sunday nights when I have my adoration hour at church.

I opened up the magazine and you can imagine my surprise when I saw the very first article listed: "Runner Dude. A blogger turns his passion into a profession." It was written by Thad, better known as Runner Dude. I am friends with him on FB, and somehow I had missed the link he had put up. (I am missing a lot of things lately: FB, blogposts, etc. Things are crazy around here!)

I have come to consider Thad not just a fellow blogger, not just a FB friend, but a true friend. He was the first one I went to when I started my training for the triathlon. He guided me long-distance through that training. He was also the first one I went to when I was dealing with my injury this summer. Again, he helped me out tremendously, even doing research and writing a blogpost about achilles injuries. He's really a nice guy and very, very talented at what he does.

There is a chance he will send me a bill and I would pay it happily : )

If you don't get Guideposts magazine, here is the link to the article Thad wrote for this month's issue:
Guideposts magazine. I encourage you to go and read it.

This has been another rough week. As you know, I was quite "impassioned" this week by things that happened. I wrote that blog post in a state of upsetedness that I don't feel very often. Ron turned to me and said, "So, when are you going to start smoking and drinking?" That's not going to happen, but apparently I have turned to another form of stress relief. Ron's next comment was "You sure swear a lot now that you are working." Sigh... my language has taken a turn for the spicy. But, I am working on that.

Anyways...

Who has helped you along the way of your training? Another blogger? A family member? A friend?

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running : )

My "Word"

2011-01-18T19:12:00.000-08:00

My original title for this post was:

Passion (No not THAT kind, get your mind out of the gutter). I chickened out and decided to call this the very boring: My"Word". So, if you actually came and read this, thank you!

I just read an amazing post on The Curvy Life. She talks about her "word" for the year. Her "word" is determined. Go and read her blog to find out why. Trust me, you won't be disappointed.

This post got me thinking about what my "word" would be for this year. I thought about it for a while and even asked Ron what he would suggest. He had his headphones on and said "HUH? WHAT'S THAT YOU SAID?" So much for his opinion..

After a little more deliberating, I have decided that my word for this year is:

PASSION

No, not THAT kind, get your mind out of the gutter!

Ha, ha, ha : ) : ) : )

I am talking passion for life, here.

Passion for my job

Passion for my family

Passion for my faith

Passion for my writing

Passion for cupcakes

And not necessarily in that order.

More than ever, I am feeling extremely passionate about the things I am doing and the role I play here on this earth.

Oh and running? I will be passionate about that again as soon as those Canadians stop sending us their arctic blasts. It won't be this week. It probably won't be any time this month. But, it will warm up again soon, I know!

So, what would YOUR word be for this year?

Have a great day and Happy Running : )

Be Kind To Your Body

2011-01-17T05:17:00.000-08:00

I have Yoga on the brain. I am thinking about Yoga, talking about Yoga, writing about Yoga. Unfortunately I am not DOING Yoga... But, that is another story. Life is a little crazy around here.

Anyways, Yoga... I was talking to an instructor this week and something she said really stuck with me. She said, "In Yoga, we stress being kind to our bodies." I almost replied, "In running, we torture our bodies until they don't move anymore."

You know I'm right. Don't argue with me!

Runners are notoriously NOT kind to their bodies. They run until it hurts and then they run some more.

There is only one 4-letter word in the world of running and that is: (please feel free to avert your eyes if you are offended by this)

REST

Runners just don't do rest very well.

I have learned the hard way on this one and have ended up really hurting my body badly. I have made it a goal to be kind to my body:

1. I will not run when it is below zero because I never want what happened to Neil's behind to happen to me. Never.

2. If it hurts, I am resting it. I will not run on an injured leg, ankle, whatever, ever again.

3. I will get enough sleep if it kills me. I will not run at 5 a. m.

4. I will eat healthy foods unless I feel like eating cupcakes. Then I will eat cupcakes.

Sorry this is going to be such a short post this morning, but I have to head off to the ski meet. I can't wait to watch Amelia ski!

What are some of the ways YOU are being kind to your body?

Have a great day and Happy Running : )

You Mean There Are PEOPLE in Canada??????

2011-01-15T07:17:00.000-08:00

I want to thank Kate, a really nice running blogger with super-cool socks : ), for nominating me for

I am supposed to tell you seven things about myself, so here goes:

1. I grew up in the Southeastern part of Minnesota, in a town called Winona. It lies on the Mississippi River and when you look across the river, you see Wisconsin.

2. Winona Ryder was born in my hometown.

3. I am not particularly proud of this fact.

4. Even though I live millions of miles away from Mexico, I have walked across the border several times. I now can drive to Canada and back in less than a day, but I have never been there.

5. I was in my 30's before I realized that there were actually people who lived in Canada. It took me even longer to know that there are women there, too.

Canada means one thing to Minnesotans and that is FISHING. If you are ever sitting next to a guy from Minnesota and there is an awkward silence, ask him about his fishing trip to Canada. If he doesn't have one planned, his dad, brother, or buddy does. He will talk your ear off. I distinctly remember the day my dad told me that they don't allow girls into Canada. I realize now that he was just making it clear I was not allowed to go on HIS fishing trip with my brothers, but I was young. I took it literally.

I finally Googled Canada a few years ago. Imagine my shock to see cities. And people. And WOMEN.

??????????

It took me a while to get over the fact that Red Green is not the only person who lives there.

In a different vein:

6. Rap music is my favorite, favorite kind of music. Always has been. In college I dated a rapper from Milwaukee. His real name was Bill, but he went by "Dolla' Bill". I couldn't understand a word he said. THAT was an interesting experience.

7. I never, ever listen to Celine Dion.

It seems like everyone has already been tagged with this award, but if you haven't, consider yourself tagged!

Oh and make sure you stop by Kate's Blog and say "Hi!" from me.

I hope you have an awesome Saturday and Happy Running : )

Ski, Baby!

2011-01-14T06:20:00.000-08:00

OMG!!!!! I can't believe it is finally FRIDAY!!!! This has been a week, I tell you. This has been a WEEK! Good, mostly, but challenging as well. I have learned so much this week, my brain hurt. I sat at a computer so much that my butt actually hurt more. I have been overwhelmed to the point of tears at times. Luckily, I did figure out a way to get my workouts in and honestly, I think that is what saved me. Yes, sweat keeps me sane...

Moving on... Amelia had a ski meet in St Cloud yesterday. Ron went down to watch. I am so JEALOUS, but I am going to the home meet on Monday, so I can't complain too much.

Ron's family was shocked to hear that Nordic Skiing is actually a school winter sport (yes, they are from Nebraska and if it ain't football and it ain't red, they don't recognize it, lol). But, a true sport it is and a popular one at that. There are over 60 kids on our small town team (6th-12th grades) and they have a blast.

Nordic skiing is an endurance sport, many of these kids run CC in the fall, some swim and there are a few volleyball players on the team as well.

I really didn't understand this sport until last year, when someone finally explained it to me. In a nutshell: there are two events, classic and freestyle. Together they make up the pursuit. The athletes use a different pair of skis for each event and for some races they have to switch skis and then immediately ski the same course again. For other races, they ski the pursuit in two parts, taking a break in between.

It is an exhausting sport. These kids are incredible athletes. And similar to CC, I was warned that some of them puke at the end of the race. It is also cold, last year I watched a race when it was 5 below. But, these kids are tough! Most importantly, it is amazing to watch, probably my favorite sport to be a spectator at.

Amelia told me last night that she prefers running to skiing, but that skiing is still pretty fun. I think a big reason is because most of her giggly friends are on the team as well.

So, any big plans for the weekend? I have a large stack of newspapers that I am planning on attacking with a highlighter. I am guessing your weekend will be much more exciting : )

Have a great day and Happy Running : )

Food, Again?

2011-01-12T03:33:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I promised to spend some blog space talking about food. I am keeping this promise. Here goes!

Thursday nights are our craziest nights. Ok, that was BEFORE I started working. Now it appears that Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday AND Thursday nights are our craziest nights....

But, Thursday nights in our house are Mac and Cheese nights. I started out making the boxed kind. I was scared by the neon orange color of the "cheese". I felt like I was making supper for a family of aliens. I decided to go ahead and make Mac and Cheese my way. Surprisingly, the kids LOVED it! Amazingly, it is HEALTHY!

The basis of this dish is whole grain noodles. I am going to admit that for a very, very long time, I did not like whole grain noodles. I had tried making them and quite frankly, they smelled like dog food. I do not eat food that smells like dog food. I also do not feed my children food that smells like dog food. Then, my SIL, Jennifer, told me about Barilla noodles. She said they were actually good. I decided to give them a whirl and she was right. Very good!

This is my own made up recipe. Feel free to change it fit your own needs.

1 box (13.25) whole grain noodles (any shape). I prefer Barilla

I pkg shredded cheese (8 oz). Any kind of cheese works, as long as it is real cheese. None of that fake Velveeta stuff.

1/4 cup milk (more or less to your taste)

1 Tablespoon butter (again, more or less to your taste)

Cook the noodles.

Dump everything else in.

This is my kind of recipe.

And again, the kids LOVE it.

For proof:

Here is Amelia showing her enthusiasm.

LOL!!!!!!

What are some of your kids' favorite healthy suppers?

Have a great day and Happy Running : )

G Is For GU

2011-01-11T06:16:00.000-08:00

In our school, every week the kindergartners have a "letter of the week". They talk about that letter all week and every day, they are required to at least try and remember to bring something that starts with that letter.

The letter of the week is a big deal in our house and discussion about it starts in the car on Friday after school. We talk about the letter for the next week and all the cool things Aliza could bring. Everyone gets in on it and the wilder the items, the better. (There actually isn't a prize for this, but I am thinking about it...)

This week is "G" week. So last Friday, our conversation went like this: "Giraffe!" "Gorilla" "Grapes!" "Garbage!" The person who said garbage thought they had won until someone piped up and said "Goo! Goo starts with G!" Someone else pointed out "You can't bring Goo to school." To which I answered "No, but you CAN bring GU. You know that stuff I use for running?" Aliza rejected that idea and told me she was not bringing that gross stuff. She put a garbage bag in her backpack and called it good.

Well, the discussion came up again yesterday after school. Again, I mentioned GU. Ok, so maybe I begged a little... "No one else will bring GU, I PROMISE you!" But, yet again, I was met with rejection. Sigh...

I decided to let it drop. We walked in the house and that little girl marched her little legs over to the cupboard where I keep all of my running stuff and declared " I am taking GU!"

: )

Have a great day and Happy Running : )

Knuckle Down, Buckle Down...

2011-01-10T06:22:00.000-08:00

NOTHING IS AS REAL AS A DREAM. THE WORLD CAN CHANGE AROUND YOU, BUT YOUR DREAM WILL NOT. RESPONSIBILITIES NEED NOT ERASE IT. DUTIES NEED NOT OBSCURE IT. BECAUSE THE DREAM IS WITHIN YOU, NO ONE CAN TAKE IT AWAY.

~TOM CLANCY

Last night I had a dream that my alarm clock did not go off. I got up late, could not find my phone or my toothbrush. I walked around in my jammies all day.

Just a little bit nervous for today?

Ya think?

I am nervous that I will not be able to do it. I am nervous that I will fall down. I am nervous that I will drown.

Of course, my dream did not come true. My alarm went off, I got up on time, found my phone and my toothbrush (Yes, everyone I come across today will be glad for THAT!)

But still...

I will be the first to admit that being a stay at home mom is the world's toughest job. It is hard in every sense of the word. Not everyone can do it. But, for some it is THE MAIN calling of their lives.

While I have been at home for almost 15 years, the funny thing is that I have always known that being a mom is only part of my calling. In the words of a great man, "I have a dream..."

There is another purpose for my life as well.

Just as many women stay at home, I know that just as many (if not more) go out into the world to work each and every day.

I'm not sure how they do it. How do they keep all of the balls in the air.

I am afraid that responsibilities will erase my dream. I am afraid that duties will obscure it.

How do you balance your dreams with your responsibilities? How do you balance your family/home life with the rest of your life?

How on earth do you fit your run into all of this??????

I guess it is just time for me to knuckle down, buckle down... Well, you know the rest...

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running : )

Chilly Willy

2011-01-09T13:59:00.000-08:00

My iPhone said it was 9 degrees. ABOVE zero. I looked at my snowman flag. It was not moving. Awesome, no wind! Woo Hoo! I decided I could actually get out and go for a run outside.

A chilly 4 miles run and done. I may have turned into a penguin : )

Alex got his first job this weekend. He needs money to pay for gas and we need him to spend less time talking on the phone to his girlfriend. The funny thing is that both he and I start tomorrow at the same exact time. At 6 pm, Monday, January 10th, he will be making pizza and I will be covering my first city council meeting. I really don't think this is a coincidence. God truly works in mysterious ways...

One more pic

Yes, I am a happy camper!

I hope you are having a wonderful weekend and Happy Running : )

The Dreadmill

2011-01-08T07:21:00.000-08:00

Ron came in last night and said, "For a minute there I thought you were writing words in sugar and taking pictures of them. Wait a second, you ARE writing words in sugar and taking pictures of them." Yep!

Anyways, I slept all night, so life is

SWEET.

On to running. Running on the treadmill to be exact. Today is one of those days you may just want to consider taking your running inside. It is very, very cold outside today. 7 below with the windchill right now here in Smalltown Minnesota.

Personally, I have made it my goal to not run on the treadmill at all this winter. Mainly because I gave up my gym membership this fall and I don't have one at home. But also because I have had some pretty interesting experiences on these monsters. Read and learn, my friend. Read and learn...

1. I remember distinctly the first time I ran on a treadmill. No one told me you have to wait until it stopped to get off. Yes, that is right. I literally bumped off the treadmill. Bump, bump, bump. On my behind. (Do you see that picture over there? My hair is BLONDE. That is my excuse for this one.) It hurt. My ego. Not my body. But, it could have. Even worse, the guy on the treadmill next to me sat and stared. Not one "Are you ok?" or anything.

ASSHOLE.

I referred to him after that as "Stupid Guy".

Lesson learned: Wait until the treadmill is stopped COMPLETELY before attempting to get off. Also, do not be Stupid Guy. If the person next to you falls off, stop and ask them if they are ok.

2. My coach is not a big fan of treadmills and I remember hearing her tell someone to increase the incline when you are running on the treadmill to make it closer to running outside. I heard this, but I did not hear what I should increase it to. I eventually asked her about it one morning when we were out doing a long run. They all agreed 1 or 2 was a good incline. They wanted to know what I did. Ummm.... 4? More staring, this time from my running group. "Really?" Again, I point you to the blonde hair...

Lesson learned: Put your incline to 1 or 2, but not 4. 4 will cause you to be in a lot of pain for a very long time and your running partners to think you are a crazy fool.

3. One time I was using the treadmill only to look up and see the owner of the gym staring at me. (Seriously, all this staring is part of the reason I do not use the treadmill any more.) Apparently, my treadmill was making a funny noise. I couldn't hear it because I had nasty rap music blasting in my ears. And, apparently I was running too fast. He wanted me to get off.

DAMN.

I hate having to stop in the middle of a run.

Lesson learned: Do not listen to nasty rap music too loud on your iPod. Also, don't run so fast you break your treadmill.

So, as you can see, treadmills do not bring out the best in me. They obviously bring out my potty mouth and cause me to swear profusely. They also bruise my ego quite regularly. I will take running outside any day.

Ron was not happy this morning that I had used up all the powdered sugar to write the word "SWEET". His crepes will be just a little less sweet. Oops!

So, do you run on the treadmill? What are some of the lessons YOU have learned running on these beasts?

Have a great day and Happy Running : )

ZZZZZZ.....

2011-01-07T06:41:00.000-08:00

Sleep.

Americans are obsessed with it. Or rather, Americans are obsessed with their ability to do without it. It is a badge of honor to be able to say " I only need 4 hours of sleep! How many hours do YOU need..." No one is willing to admit that they need 7-8 hours to function. Only wimps need that MUCH sleep!

Is it any wonder we have a Starbuck's on every freaking corner...

"Hello, my name is Wendy and I require 8 hours of sleep EVERY night..." There I said it. I need 8 hours of sleep and I need it EVERY SINGLE NIGHT. My reality is that I get anywhere between 7 and 7 1/2 hours. I can do ok on that, but I would really prefer 8.

I have been wanting to write a post on sleep for quite a while now, because it is really a major portion of any fitness plan. Studies have proven that too little sleep can cause obesity. When you don't sleep enough, your body craves sugar (not to mention caffeine...) to function and you just can't effectively do your workouts when your eyes are only half open. It is a lose-lose situation.

The fact that I happen to be writing about the importance of sleep on a morning when I am walking around in a sleep-deprived stupor is ironic. Yes, that is a picture of my bed up there. But, I was not in it last night. I was on the couch with a child (who shall remain nameless) who could not sleep. I figured, what better time to write about this...

So, forgive me if it doesn't make sense, my brain is not exactly working this morning. I will write another post about sleep on some morning when I have actually had some. ( I will include include important info as how driving tired is the equivalent to driving drunk, etc. I promise.)

So, how much sleep do you require to function at your best? Do you get that amount? Do you notice that your workouts suffer when you don't get enough sleep? Or maybe you skip them all together when you have pulled an all-nighter? Do you write blog posts that seem to mean something, but upon further reading are really just mumbo-jumbo...

If you happen to see me at the grocery store this morning, please be a dear and prop me up on the cart, put a coffee in my hand and push me so that I don't end up staring at bananas all day. Thanks!

Have a great Friday and Happy Running : )

When You See An Opportunity...

2011-01-06T07:22:00.000-08:00

WHENEVER POSSIBLE CHOOSE SOME OCCUPATION WHICH YOU SHOULD DO EVEN IF YOU DID NOT NEED THE MONEY

~William Lyon Phelps

My degree is in Local and Urban Affairs. I am a City Planner by trade. I did it for a few years. I did not enjoy it. I especially did not enjoy working for the government. (The fact that I can say that publicly and not be afraid of being shot is not lost on me. God Bless America!)

When our children started coming along, both Ron and I agreed that it was important to have someone stay at home with them. I have worked on and off at various jobs, none career-wise and none worth really writing about. Except that last year, I had the honor of helping Ron start up his new company. I was his administrative assistant and there mostly for the moral support needed for a start-up. (We had been down that road before...)

Earlier this year, an ad was run in the paper. "I should really apply for that job!" I thought to myself. And then I promptly did NOT apply for that job.

The same ad ran again a few weeks ago. About the same time I read this: "When you see an opportunity, grab it with both hands!" I decided to go for it and grab this opportunity. With both hands.

Like I said last week, I am dreaming bigger than I have have ever dreamed before.

I am the newest reporter at our local newspaper. I will be writing. And doing photography.

I would do this job even if I was not paid.

What are some opportunities that you have grabbed with both hands? Would you do your job even if you weren't paid?

Have a wonderful day and Happy Running : )

Why Do You Run?

2011-01-05T07:13:00.000-08:00

WHAT IS THE USE OF RUNNING WHEN WE ARE NOT ON THE RIGHT ROAD?

-GERMAN PROVERB

Why do you run? I get asked this question a lot. The answer for me is because I simply have to.

When I announced that I was no longer running, I got a very thoughtful e-mail from my coach. It went a little something like this:

"It makes me sad to see someone who has such natural talent stop running"

This message made me pause.

I really can't tell you what made me sign up for the running 101 class. I hated it at first, but the more I ran, the more I realized that I did have a natural talent for it. I often question God: "Why did you give me such a strange talent? Why not something normal like a beautiful voice or the ability to draw beautiful pictures?" Running is not beautiful. In fact, it is often the very opposite of beautiful. It is sweaty, it is stinky and when I run my fastest, I almost always pee my pants.

And besides, I really didn't think of running as a talent in of itself at all. Can't everyone run?

Yes, almost everyone can run. But I know now that it comes easier for some people than others. So, while yes, I do have to work at it, I really don't have to work THAT hard. I know for a fact that my body has the ability to run fast and that if I put a little more effort in, I could probably win even more and bigger races. Right now, at this stage in my life, I don't know if I am willing to put that kind of effort into running. I am quite content to run much more slowly and enjoy it fully. I love to race, but discovered this summer that winning is not all it is cracked up to be. If I run at my natural pace and win, that's great. If I push myself and run my hardest, I don't enjoy the experience of racing. For me, the act of racing is far more fulfilling than the actual winning.

Yes, God has given me a "strange" talent, but I feel that I am morally obligated to develop it to the best of my ability at this time in my life.

I think a lot of people start a running program with the goal of losing weight or getting into better shape. While this is an admiral goal, it truly is not reason enough to keep on running. You may or may not actually lose weight while you are running. Some people do, some people don't. Running WILL change your body. Your clothes will most likely fit better, but the number on the scale may not change. Don't let this discourage you.

Find other reasons to run:

1. You love to be outdoors

2. All of your friends run

3. Running allows you to work off stress and think about the other things in your day.

4. You just feel better when you run

5. You enjoy racing just for the sake of racing

Do you have a natural talent for running or do you have to work hard at it?

Why do YOU run?

Have a great day and Happy Running : )

My Knee, My Achey Breaky Knee

2011-01-04T07:30:00.000-08:00

I love that my kids wear their goggles out in the snow! It's just too cute!

I have been wanting to write about this little issue I have been having for some time now. But then there was Christmas, New Years, stomach flu and all that jazz. My hurting knee was pushed off to the side.

When I was in 5th grade I started having knee issues. It hurt to run. It hurt to bike. And it hurt to kneel in church. It was that last thing that finally convinced my mom to take me to the doctor. He diagnosed Osgood Schlatter's Disease. There wasn't anything we could do about it, he said. Just wait until I was done growing and it would stop hurting. It turns out that Ron also has it and so do both of our older kids. We were suggested Tylenol and ice when we took these kiddos into see THEIR doctors when their knee pain affected their running.

Anyways, my Osgood Schlatter's hasn't bothered me in forever. Until... I started running again. Of course, get one thing healed and another thing breaks down. Kind of the story of my life. Hmm.....

The pain is not bad enough to stop me from running. But, it is annoying enough for me to complain about it to Ron on a daily basis. It may or may not be bugging him. I thought I'd share the love and complain about it here to you.

And now I will shut my mouth and go put on an ice pack.

I have become a real winter weather wimp this year and once again to chose to hop on the bike. But, hey, I do 20 miles every day. That has to count for something, right? I know, I know, the ratios: 2 to 1 or whatever (bike versus running), blah, blah, blah... I happen to like my nose and really don't want it frozen off. I am looking forward to January being over so I can head back outside.

So, I am curious... What are your current aches and pains? Join in on my pity party, I will listen to you complain : )

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running : )

What's Food Got To Do With It?

2011-01-03T06:32:00.000-08:00

So, this Fall when I wasn't running, writing about running or reading about running, I was busy thinking a lot about food. I am guessing that all of the training I did this past summer just made me darn hungry. Yep, that is it, for sure : )

Anyways, I started hanging out with the food bloggy people. Not that they knew I was there. I was a silent lurker. But, I was I frequent silent lurker. Have you ever visited a foodie blog? OMG, if you haven't, you really should take the opportunity! The food! The photos! The photos! The food! Seriously, these blogs are what I imagine heaven to be. Food, food, food. I am warning you, these places are addictive, but wonderfully so!

You may be wondering what food and running have to do with each other? Quite a bit, actually. Allow me to explain...

Many people start a running program with a goal of losing weight. They hope that running alone will accomplish this goal. Unfortunately, this is not the case. It is possible to start running and gain weight. (Yes, I have seen this happen...) If your goal is to lose weight through running, you also need to look at how you are eating. They go hand-in-hand.

I started reading these foodie blogs expecting to see people who were morbidly obese. I was shocked to see that most of them are actually in very good shape. You see, many of them have a little hobby on the side. It is called running. It is entirely possible to be a runner and a foodie at the same time. In fact, it is a very good idea. One thing I really appreciated from reading these foodie blogs is that these people are committed to eating well. Not eating a lot, but eating well. They are committed to cooking at home and using good, quality ingredients. There is no fast food. There is no processed food. Simple. But, not so simple.

I would like to dedicate at least some blog time and space to help you eat a little healthier. I have been researching these blogs and sites such as the Food Network for healthy recipes (and maybe some not-so-healthy recipes, too...) I will make them here in my little kitchen and pass on the results to you. Hey, if you happen to be in my neck of the woods, stop in for supper some time!

Last night, I made this Vegetable Lentil Soup By Ina Garten. Please don't let the word Lentil scare you off. (Or the word vegetable, either for that matter...)

This soup was very, very good! And, it was fairly easy to make. It took about 2 hours: 1 hour of prep, (think chopping, sauteing, etc) and 1 hour of simmering on the stove. It smelled good and most importantly, it tasted incredible. The kids ate it up without complaining and even Ron (who is allergic to healthy food), loved it. I got a big smooch-er-oo for this one!

The only bad thing is that it LOOKED kind of gross. Hence, the black and white photo. But, as we all know, it's what is on the inside is most important, right?

I would give this soup **** (4 stars out of 5). Try it, you'll like it!

So, I am wondering, have you ever hung out with the foodies? If not, here are a few happenin' places to start with:

Shutterbean
Pictures and Pancakes
Smitten Kitchen
The Parsley Thief

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running : )

Back To Reality

2011-01-02T07:23:00.000-08:00

January 2nd.

The toughest day of the year.

This is the day we have to face the facts. The Holidays are over. The fun is done. Yadda, yadda, yadda...

It is: Back To Reality.

I thought I would dedicate this post to the newbies out there. You know who you are. Sitting there on the couch, regretting the fact that 2 days ago you wrote out your resolutions and squeezed in there between solving world hunger and reading War and Peace, you scratched "start running". Now here you are googling "running blogs" and since you are here, my stats page tells me you probably googled "women's running blogs". (Although, last week someone googled "Should I play hockey with the stomach flu?" and was led to my page. Lol! I thought that one was pretty funny!)

Anyways, welcome! I am glad you are here. Regret your resolution no more, my friend. This is going to be your best year yet. You may not solve world hunger or read War and Peace, but learning to run is doable. Very, very doable indeed.

Some tips to get you started:

1. Invest in a good pair of running shoes. If possible, go to a running-specific store. They will watch you walk and look at your feet and old shoes to figure out the best pair for you. Running is a great sport in that you need very little equipment. But, a good pair of shoes is essential. Be prepared to pay at least $70-$80 or more. It is worth it, believe me.

2. Set a realistic goal. If you are just starting out, a very realistic goal is running a 5k race. Look in your area to find a local one and give yourself at least 3 months to train for it.

3. Call your local gyms to find either a beginning running class or a coach. Taking a class or working with a coach can help ensure that you train safely and develop a life-long love of running.

4. Start a running blog. No, not for the fame and fortune that goes along with writing a blog. Ha! No, because writing a blog keeps you accountable. You have to run to write a running blog... Also, the running blogging community is very supportive of new runners. You will get some great tips and meet some pretty neat people to boot. If you do this, make sure to send me your link and I will put you on my list. (I see there are some I still need to add over there. I have neglected my blog maintenance!)

5. Get out and run! No excuses, just get your body moving!

Most importantly:

6. Have fun! You won't stick with it if you don't enjoy it. Yes, it will probably be hard at first, but the benefits will definitely outweigh the costs. You will feel better, look better and be less crabby with your spouse (ok, so that last one's not true, but it's usually his fault, anyways, right...)

Our frigid temperatures are back. It is just freakin' cold out there again. I didn't run again this morning, but did the bike. Hopefully tomorrow I will be able to get out again. I don't mind the bike, but I am really missing the running!

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running!

Happy New Year!

2010-12-31T07:20:00.000-08:00

We have been have some very strange weather around here. Yesterday it rained all day.

Rain?????

In December?????

Rain in December in Minnesota is a bad, bad thing.

We had to drive up to Brainerd for Amelia's ski meet yesterday afternoon. In the rain. The whole time we were driving Ron kept saying "Are you nervous?" Duh! I kept watching the thermometer in the suburban. It was hovering around 35-36 degrees. The roads were wet, but drivable. But, I knew that if the temperature dropped a few degrees we would be driving on a skating rink. Yes, I was nervous.

We made it to the ski meet just in time to see Amelia finish (they had moved all of the races up to get those kids out of there). It was weird to see them race in the rain and it was weird to see parents holding umbrellas. Umbrellas in December are just wrong.

Fortunately, we made it home safely and it didn't freeze until overnight. This morning, those roads ARE skating rinks and we will not be going anywhere. And I will not be running. I hopped on the stationary bike this morning and cranked out 20 miles. It is kind of nice to have a change of pace.

Registration for the triathlon in Nevis, MN starts at 12:00 am. Last year it filled up in 2 days! This is due to the fact that it has one of the shortest swims in the state. I have many friends who will be at their computers at midnight with their fingers poised to hit the register button. As of now, I have decided I will not be one of those crazy people. The triathlon was fun last summer, but, I really, really did not enjoy the swimming. I am not ready to commit myself to torture again. If I do feel the absolute need to put myself back in the lake, there are several other triathlons I can register for at a later date. I am content to focus on my running for now.

Well, seeing as it is New Year's Eve, I am going to wish you all a Happy New Year. I hope you have a wonderful evening. Be safe whatever you are doing and I will see you on the flip side!

Happy Running : )

Dare To Dream Big

2010-12-29T08:03:00.000-08:00

Funny, I don't usually make resolutions. Not at this time or the year, or ever, really. Goals, yes. Resolutions, no.

For some reason, though, I have been thinking quite a bit about them this year. Although, instead of resolutions, I am choosing to call them dreams. I thought I'd share them here with you:

1. Dare to Dream Big. We have some big changes coming up in our family this year. Ron and I have been doing a lot of talking. Things are happening. They are exciting and scary at the same time. But, we both agree that we have been dreaming too small. We are ready to dream big. Really big. And no, this does not mean that I am pregnant, but hey, thanks for asking : )

2. Do What is Truly Important. Read, read, read. And then, read to my kids. Play on the snowhill. Volunteer for recess duty and in the kindergarten room. Write something every day. Read other people's writings; running blogs, foodie blogs, photo blogs. Leave comments and make new friends. Learn to use my new camera for art, print out the pictures and hang them on our walls. Bake ridiculously good cupcakes. Eat ridiculously good cupcakes. Ignore my children when they say "Mom are you REALLY taking pictures of cupcakes?" Run like my life depended on it. And then race like I've never raced before. Inspire other people to do what is truly important to them in their lives.

3. Accept the Person I Am. Swimming in my triathlon this summer taught me so much. One of the most important lessons was that I am different and that is ok. In a triathlon, everyone swims freestyle. Every time I attempted this, I failed. Only when I finally gave myself permission to swim on my side and on my back did I succeed. I may not have been as fast as everyone else, but I finished the swim in my own time and most importantly, I loved every minute of it. I will celebrate my uniqueness and see it for the blessing that it is.

4. Be Inspired By What is Truly Awe-Some. When we were in Chicago, we went to see a production of Wicked. It was amazing. It made me cry. It was truly awe-some. Closer to home, a few weeks ago Ron was testing for a stripe on his Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do. I have tolerated many, many belt testings. They are long and boring. Or at least I had thought they were. I decided to watch this one with different eyes. I was awed as I watched Ron do his pattern. And then I was awed again as I watched him help his students test as well. When did he have the time to learn all of this? I had no idea he could do this so well! My husband is awe-some! And then, my friend Shari got up and broke two boards, one with her foot and one with her hand. It hit me that not everyone could do what she was doing. Shari, you are amazing and you are truly awe-some!

My run this morning was treacherous. Yesterday we had temperatures that went above the freezing mark. This made for a great day to play outside, but then when it froze again last night, it left a slick coating of ice. I have never prayed more on a run in my life! We are supposed to be getting a nasty storm starting tonight and going in to Friday. We are looking at rain, ice and snow. We'll have to see what happens on the running front. There may be a lot of sitting by the fire this weekend.

So, I ask you, my dear readers, what are your dreams for this year? I hope that you are daring to dream big. Really big!

Have a great day and Happy Running : )

My Baby Is Four Today!

2010-12-27T07:17:00.000-08:00

Ainsley is four years old today. She is my baby and always will be, even when she is forty! This child brings such joy to our family. Her smile is infectious and her laugh often fills our home.

Ainsley is very strong and fast for her age. She wants to race people in the pool. I know this because she told me: "I want to race people in the pool, Mommy!" She is our water baby (actually, quite liteally, she was born under water). She is the one who stays in the lake until it is dark, swimming her little heart out. She has chosen to go to the pool today to celebrate her birthday.

Ainsley is also painfully honest. She tells it as it is. Yesterday in church, she pointed to the man behind us and said VEERY LOUDLY: "WHY IS HE NOT SINGING, MOMMY?" I wanted to crawl under the pew... And, not a day goes by when she doesn't look at me and exclaim : "YOU ARE NOT TINKERBELL!" I can't disagree with this fact. Contrary to popular belief, I am indeed NOT Tinkerbell : )

Ainsley is famous. Or at least she always tells us she is. This perturbs Aliza to the Nth degree. We actually have this argument frequently in our house: "I am famous." "No you're not!" "Yes I am." "NO YOU ARE NOT FAMOUS!" Sigh...

This morning's run was cold, there is no other way to describe it. I did not follow my own advice. I did not check the temperature. I did not check the windchill. I think it was about 50 below. Ok, so not really, but my ears just about froze off!

Amelia was the one who was up sick last night, leaving only Ron and Alexander left to be hit. I will be glad when it is done.

So, a random running question: Do you eat before or after you run? What do you eat?

I eat after (or risk getting sick) and right now it is almost always oatmeal.

Have a great day and Happy Running : )

Getting Back In The Groove

2010-12-26T07:55:00.000-08:00

Traditionally, we don't travel for Christmas. We are typically at home with the kids, so they can wake up in their own beds and have Santa come to their house. We also traditionally go sledding in the afternoon at our local golf course, it is the place to be on Christmas afternoon!

We had kind of a rough Holiday as two more kids got hit with the stomach flu. Ainsley woke up at 1 am the morning of Christmas Eve. Her flu was honestly the worst I have ever seen in my sixteen years of parenting. I had brought her downstairs to the couch and it was a good thing. This child was up every ten minutes throwing up until 5 am. We finally collapsed, exhausted on the coach and slept until 8. Adrienne threw up as she was getting ready to sing at the Children's Christmas Eve Mass. Needless to say, we didn't go. I ended up going to the Midnight Mass instead. It was beautiful (and packed!), but I am not a night owl and was yawning half-way through.

So, after two days of sick kids, very little sleep, eating all of Santa's cookies (somebody had to do it...), and no running at all, I was starting to feel a little crummy.

The plan was to get up early this morning, have my coffee and then go for a run. What ended up happening: I turned off the alarm, drank no coffee and slept another hour. THEN, I got up and went for a run. My body was pretty stiff and creaky, I felt like the tin man, I tell you! But, I am glad I made myself do it. I felt so much better when I was done.

Technically, this entire week is still considered the Holiday Season. While it is wonderful to spend time with family and friends, it can wreak havoc on our running. My hope for you is that first and foremost, you enjoy your families, but that you also find at least some time to get out and run. You will be surprised at how much better you feel and how much better you will tolerate your Mother-In-Law : )

So, I am interested to know, what are your running plans for this week and how will you fit them in? And just for fun, do you like your Mother-In-Law (Don't worry, she doesn't read this blog).

Just for the record, I plan to run every day and I really do like Ron's Mom, she's a neat lady!

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running : )

Sting - Gabriel's Message

2010-12-24T07:42:00.000-08:00

Merry, Merry Christmas to each and every one of you!

Sweet Sixteen

2010-12-23T07:41:00.000-08:00

Alexander turned 16 yesterday. "Will he have a Sweet Sixteen party? " Amelia wanted to know. "I kind of think that is for girls, honey..." "Oh, I know exactly how I want to do mine!" "We'll cross that bridge when it comes, sweetie."

But, a sweet sixteen it was for him. He took his driver's test at 8 am and within the hour was driving himself to school. We officially have another driver in our house : ) ( I am so proud of him, I can barely stand it!)

My gift to him was a matchbox car, he loved it. I loved the fact that I got to walk down the "boy" aisle in the toy department again. It brought tears to my eyes, my little boy is really growing up.

His gift to us was actually joining us at the table, talking to us and even posing for a picture with his sisters. It was a momentous event, one I'm hoping he will repeat two days from now on Christmas morning.

My running attempts have been pathetic this week, so bear with me:

Tuesday night was Amelia's Christmas program. She asked if we could drive...

????????

We live 2 blocks from school. "We would have to park farther away than we live!" I told her. Then I looked down at her legs and realized that the girl who never, ever wears dresses was wearing a dress. A summer one. No tights, nylons or leggings. Summer shoes. Yes, indeedy, I knew why she wanted to drive.

We walked. Or ran, rather, because she was freezing. So that is four blocks ran. I am counting it.

I don't think I mentioned that over the weekend Aliza had the stomach flu. I figured that if only one person had it, there was no way I was going to get that crud.

Wrong-O.

Yesterday was spent on the couch. And then running the 15 steps from the couch to the bathroom. Many, many times. At a very fast pace. It was exhausting. I am counting it.

This morning I did actually get in a legitimate run. Outside, with my running shoes on. I did a little over 4 miles and it felt great. I am happy to report that I am eating real food as I am writing this (oatmeal, in case you care) and am feeling much better.

Tonight we are driving around to look at all the Christmas lights and deliver all of the cookies we have made to our friends and neighbors. It is one of my favorite Christmas traditions.

What are your favorite Christmas traditions?

Have a great day and Happy Running! : )

Silent Night

2010-12-21T12:22:00.000-08:00

I think yesterday I alluded to the fact that I like to shovel snow at night. In fact, this is actually one of my favorite things to do. Especially when it is still snowing. It is quiet, it is peaceful, it is very sparkly. Ron knows that I usually like to shovel at night alone. As in, no one else with me. Last night he asked if he could join me, I said "sure". I mean, hey, you have to get your date nights in any way you can, right? We spent about an hour of quiet peaceful time moving snow around. I had already shoveled once in the afternoon, so it was a fairly easy job. So, save the scraping of shovels and our neighbor, Tony's snowblower, it was a very

Silent Night.

I tried to get a picture of the snow, but it just didn't turn out well. Sorry.

Yesterday I also signed on for Luke's Iron Christmas Virtual 70.3 Race. It involves running/walking 13.1 miles, swimming 1.2 miles and biking 56 miles. Immediately after I told Luke that I was in, panic set in. What in God's name was I thinking????? It is the week of Christmas, we have one more birthday this week, I have two Christmas programs to go to, more cookies to bake, wrap up and deliver and even more presents to wrap. And then it started to snow. And snow. And snow some more. In fact it snowed all day, it snowed all night and it is STILL snowing right now, for Pete's sake.

But, then as I was shoveling (yes, both times), it dawned on me that shoveling uses the exact same muscles as swimming. Shoulders, arms, back and legs. There are however, a few more clothes involved. Just think of it as a wetsuit, lol! Anyways, it would take me around 1 1/2 hours to swim 1.2 miles. Yesterday I shoveled 2 hours. Today will be another hour of that fun stuff. At least.

The swimming is done! (and then some)

I ran 4 miles yesterday and due to extreme weather conditions (crappy roads, tons and tons of snow...), my run was turned into a walk, but there were 4 more miles put in (slightly slower than the run). 5.1 miles more to go on that front.

As I am a fan of staying alive, I will not be riding my bike outside anytime soon. I do have a stationary bike, but for some reason the kids complain very loudly when I use it. Especially when they are trying to watch A Charlie Brown Christmas, The Grinch, or whatever Christmas Special happens to be on at the time. The biking might not get done. We'll see. I told Luke I am not in this to win (yes, there are prizes) but just for the fun of it.

Ainsley and I had recess duty today. We got to play out on the snowhill for an hour. It was a blast. You remember the snowhill, don't you? You know, that humungous pile left when the plow cleans off the parking lot? What's that, you say you never played on the snowhill as a kid? I honestly feel sorry for you. It was one of the best parts of winter. I do have to say that my perspective has changed. Where I was once saw fun, I now see danger everywhere. "Don't roll down the hill! Don't push that kid off the hill! Slide down on your bottom only!" These are the school rules, not mine.

Luckily, it wasn't cold out, my iPhone said it 23 (above). And I did relax after a while and maybe even let one squirrely 4th grade boy roll down the hill, but don't tell anyone that!

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running : )

Running In The Snow

2010-12-20T08:12:00.000-08:00

Ok, so with the exception of Amelia, no skiing (downhill or cross country) has taken place yet. But, we did take the girls out to the cabin to ice skate this weekend. This was Ainsley's first time skating and she LOVED it! Too fun!

My run yesterday morning was very nice. It was snowing lightly, absolutely beautiful! But, as pretty as it was, it made things a little slick and I started to think of all of you who may be traveling this week to visit family in colder climates. You'll still want to run, right? After all that eggnog, you may just need to lace up you shoes.

I thought I'd give you some basic tips for running in the snow and the cold:

1. Layer, layer, layer. Personally I wear two pairs of socks (one is wool), long underwear, running pants, a long underwear shirt, 2 long sleeve running shirts, a windbreaker, either one or two hats, a scarf and mittens.

2. Check the temperature. Then check the windchill. The actual temperature may be above zero, but if the windchill is below, it will feel much colder. A guideline: our school lets the kids play outside until the windchill is 10 below.

3. Run on clean surfaces if possible. If there are no clean roads or sidewalks, running on snowpack is second best. Try to avoid running anywhere that has just a thin layer of snow. This can be very slippery and there may be a layer of ice under it. Very dangerous!

4. This is not the time to play chicken with cars. Depending on road conditions, they may not be able to stop even if they see you.

5. Stay hydrated. Even though it is cold out, you will still sweat. Drink lots of water.

6. Be cautious when you get back in. Shower as soon as you can. You will get chilled very quickly after running in the cold.

7. Remember: Shoveling snow burns just as many calories as running, so if you can't get out to run, grab a shovel. If you want an incredible experience, shovel at night while it is still snowing. There is nothing like it : )

I am sure there are many more tips, if you have any, please pass them along!

I am going to bake Christmas cookies this morning. Russian Tea Cakes. My favorites are those peanut butter blossom ones, yummy! What are your favorite Christmas Cookies?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

GO HOCKEY, GO HOCKEY, GO HOCKEY, GO!

2010-12-19T12:43:00.000-08:00

We were bamboozled. Things were waved in front of our face. Things like: practice is after school, not 9 pm like last year, most of the equipment is provided this year, hockey players have a 9:00 curfew on weeknights and 10:00 on weekends... That last one was what did it. We caved. We went to Hockey Zone in St Cloud and bought protective gear (if you know what I mean), so that Alexander could start his hockey career as a 10th grader. Know that most of these boys started when they were 2 or 3 years old. Hockey is a big deal here. Dear Lord...

I still don't like hockey. I don't like watching my son play hockey even more. At last night's game, the hockey moms behind me were yelling things like "Go hockey, go hockey, go hockey, go!" (this chant doesn't make sense to me, are they saying their sons ARE hockey????) and "Hit him, HIT HIM!" I was saying things like "Please don't hit that boy. Please don't hit my boy." Obviously, I am not a hockey mom.

This is my favorite part of the game:

Ron pointed out that I was the only one taking pictures of the Zamboni. Whatever.

Enough hockey talk, on to running:

Back when we did the half-marathon last spring, we discussed a phenomenon called "Post-race depression". This is a condition where you feel depressed after a big race that you have been training for. There is a let-down that comes when the training that has taken up so much time is done. It is a feeling of "where do I go from here?" This post-race depression eluded me after the half-marathon, but it blind-sided me after the triathlon in August. I never saw it coming and it managed to knock me flat on my back. I think the fact that I was injured and unable to run the marathon I had been training for compounded the problem. I dropped off the face of the earth, both real and virtual. I ignored all things running. I ignored all people involved with running.

At one point, Ron looked at me and said "One of the things I love about you is your spirit and it is gone." It was like someone took ahold of my candle and blew it out.

Yesterday, when I got home after my run, Ron took my face and kissed my sweaty, stinky forehead and said "I am so very glad you are running again". Later, he whispered in my ear "Your spark is back."

My spark is back. My candle has been re-lit.

Have you ever dealt with post-race depression? Have you ever had your candle blown out? What brought your spark back?

I hope you are having a wonderful Sunday and I hope you never, ever have to watch your son (or daughter) play hockey!

Happy Running : )

Unexpected Inspiration

2010-12-18T08:10:00.000-08:00

I know I said the last post was the last post...

But that was before I found inspiration in a very unexpected place. Inspiration I never expected to have.

I turned 40 last week and for my birthday, Ron took me to Chicago. I have never been there before and the whole trip was AMAZING! But mostly...

Ron centered the trip around watching the taping of "Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me!" It is an NPR radio show that plays on Saturday morning or afternoon, depending on where you live. We are dorks and listen to it every week. Even our 3 yr old knows what this show is... Anyways, we had front row seats and enjoyed the show immensely. Afterwards, the audience is invited up to meet with the cast and take pictures. I need to rephrase that: Afterwards, you get to meet Peter Sagal!!!!!!!!

And get your picture taken with Peter Sagal!!!!!!!!!!

Most people who got to talk with him, talked politics and his show. Not me. Oh no! I was not going to waste this opportunity! I told Mr. Sagal that I had written about him on my blog and that I had loved his article about triathlons in Runner's World. I think I may have taken him a little off guard, but he bounced back nicely and told me he wasn't able to compete in his because he had gotten hit by a car. (Major bummer!) But, he told me the swimming was the hardest part of the training for him. Oooohhh!!! Oooohhh!!! Me Too!!!

I got to see him again, just as he was getting ready to leave and I told him I hoped he was feeling better and asked him if he was training for anything right now. His face lit up when he said he had qualified for Boston and had actually gotten in. It was a sweet moment. I told him good luck, you are going to do amazing! And then I gave him a thumbs up. Again, I am a dork.

I think I probably drove Ron crazy the rest of the night saying "I met Peter Sagal, I met Peter Sagal...."

So, Mr. Sagal, if you are reading this (and I realize you aren't, but what the hey!), you have inspired me to run again. Thank you. I did 4 yesterday and 6 this morning. Not fast by any means. But it felt good.

You just never know where inspiration is going to hit you. I never would have dreamed I would have to go to Chicago to get mine.

Happy Running : )

The Last Post

2010-11-03T06:14:00.000-07:00

This will be my very last post here on Never Underestimate The Power. I am no longer running. My friend, who is also my sports doctor has told me that there is a very good chance that there are tears in my achilles that will not heal on their own. She has told me to get an MRI. At this time, I have decided not to. So, I have put running back up on the shelf. I am closing this chapter in my life.

Thank you so much for all of you who have followed me on this journey, I hope you have enjoyed it as much as I have. I have also enjoyed following you on your paths towards better health through running, biking and swimming.

I may not be running anymore, but my call to write has strengthened. I am now writing about the rest of my life on a brand new blog dedicated to my family and my obsession with Fruit Snacks. I invite you to join me on my non-running path at:

Fruit Snacks Are Not Real Food

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Yeah Baby!

2010-09-24T06:08:00.000-07:00

Tuesday and Thursday mornings my 3 yr old goes to preschool, leaving me with 2 free hours. In that time I clean the house and volunteer in the 6 yr old's Kindergarten room. I also use some of that time to get a workout in. Lately, "workout" has meant taking the dog for a walk. There has been no work and no sweat involved. I was really starting to wonder if I would sweat again.

So, yesterday morning I was feeling kind of yucky. As in fat and lazy yucky. I decided it was time, time to get good and sweaty. Since it was pouring rain, I hopped on the exercise bike in our living room and cranked out 25 miles. I sometimes forget the effect this type of workout has on me. The endorphins and the sweat combine and cause me to feel invincible and write embarrassing FaceBook status updates like "Born To Run!!!!!" or "It is not advisable to use your keyboard when you are dripping sweat!!!" or other stupid things. My friends are used to these ego-centric updates and I had one friend tell me that she thought I was so cute, she loved my updates. Hmmmm... I almost always regret them when I read them a couple of hours later.

I refrained from going near my computer after yesterday's sweatfest and spared those poor people from the knowledge that I was dripping in the kitchen. They didn't need to know that the most incredible thing happened while I was riding yesterday: I started visualizing myself racing again. The need for speed that I thought was gone forever was back. A thought popped into my head: I AM READY!

I set a goal of running 5 miles this morning (sorry Deb, Sara, Michelle and Ann. I really wanted to run with you this morning, but I knew I needed to do this on my own!) I left the speed up in the air, no goals there.

5.13 MILES, 34 MINUTES, AVERAGE PACE 6:37.

YEAH BABY!!!!!!

I thought I would share the endorphins with you this morning instead of my FB friends. Hope you don't mind...

Have an amazing Friday and Happy Running!

Cold Weather Running

2010-09-23T05:54:00.000-07:00

A while back Andrew Asked me about cold weather running. This is because we both live in the frozen tundra and are used to talking about things such as 20 below windchills. If you don't know what that means, you really need to come up north during the month of January : )

Anyways, I was thinking about it and I have come to decide that cold weather running actually means

Cross Country Skiing! I hope to do much more of this this winter! Anyone up to racing me on these babies?

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Milestones

2010-09-22T07:59:00.000-07:00

My birthday usually comes and goes quietly. This is mainly because it happens to fall on December 10th. Not a big deal, except for the fact that 5 out of the 7 people in my family have birthdays between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Add in the fact that we have to have Thanksgiving and Christmas in there as well... It is just a very busy time of the year.

My birthday just isn't a priority. Which is ok by me, I can't stomach that much cake! But this year is different.

I kept telling myself that 40 is no big deal. Except that it is.

No, I don't feel particularly old. In fact, I feel younger than I did when I turned 30.

But, I feel like I am entering a whole new time in my life. And I want to celebrate it accordingly. Not with a party. I had a talk with Ron about this last night. Last year, I planned a surprise party for his 40th.

I don't want it.

But, I'm not quite sure how to mark this milestone.

So, my question to you: How have you celebrated the biggies in your life? Or did you just let them pass by quietly?

I am still not running. I am walking, but that is about it. It is ok. Life is Good!

Have a good one and Happy Running!

Adding Insult To Injury

2010-09-18T07:29:00.000-07:00

This morning I woke up and whacked my knee on the wooden railing of the wooden stairs in our very old home. I whacked it hard and there is a huge bump and bruise.

I was in the process of figuring out when I was going to run today. Not a big deal, right? Except that it is a big deal. My achilles tendon is injured to the point where I am having a hard time walking long distances again.

But I am stubborn. And I want to run. So, whack. God's voice "You are NOT running. Get over it and move on with your life!"

I have posted about drifting and not having goals. I am still in the process of figuring out what I am going to do next in my life. But, I am pretty sure that running is not part of my immediate future.

The bike is coming back out of hiding today. I had put it there after breaking down one Sunday morning after the tri. I was at the cabin and out for a long ride. About 5 miles away, my chain got stuck in such a way that it took a screw driver to fix it. I was walking the bike home and many people passed me. Luckily, an older man stopped and put the broken bike in the back of his truck and me up in the front. It gives me faith to know that there are still kind people out there. What a nice guy!

I am going to call about getting a membership at the pool again. The thought of swimming leaves me a little sick to my stomach, but it needs to be done.

I am realizing that this is still about conquering fears. Fears of my bike breaking down, fears about swimming.

But, it encompasses more than just my training schedule. I am facing fears about where the rest of my life is heading.

I turn 40 in December. It is kind of a big deal, I guess.

I am more than running. I am not just an athlete. There is more to me than my ability to run, bike and swim.

God is making sure I know that. I have a big reminder on my knee in case I forget.

What are some fears that you have in training and in life in general? Do you heed or ignore the messages you get? Personally, I plan to heed mine.

Have a great weekend and Happy Running!

Fun Photo(s) Friday

2010-09-17T06:46:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was our home Cross Country Meet. It is called the Lucky Lindy and let me tell you, Little Falls knows how to throw a party! There are 18 teams, lots of kids and lots and lots of people come out to watch. It is the only CC meet I have been to that starts out with the National Anthem being sung. So cool!

My favorite part of the meet is the Apple Race for kids in 5th grade and under. The kiddos run and then get an apple at the end. We look forward to it every year.

My 3 yr old, Ainsley runs her hardest!

Eating apples afterwards : )

Amelia and her friends before the race.

It was a beautiful fall day, perfect for running! Thanks to all the people who worked so hard to put this event together.

I hope you have a great weekend and Happy Running!

Goal Setting

2010-09-15T05:46:00.000-07:00

Amelia's Cross Country coach had them fill out a goal setting sheet at the beginning of the season. I snuck a peek at hers before she turned it in. Her short-term goals: keep improving, come in at least in the top 20. Her long-term goals: run all-conference, run in college, run a marathon.

As far as her long-term goals go, she has been doing great! Last week she came #12 and this week she came in #6. I am so proud of her. Not because she is running so fast, but because she has set some good goals and is working hard to meet them. I wouldn't care if it were something other than running.

Seeing Amelia working to achieve her goals has led me to look at my life. I am kind of a lost soul right now. I have no distinct goals at the present time. No goals for running and no goals for life in general.

It feels weird to not be training for anything specifically (Although, giving up the marathon is proving to be a very wise choice. My achilles is really starting to hurt again.)

But, what really bothers me is that I am just kind of drifting in the rest of my life.

While I am enjoying spending time at home alone with the 3 yr old, I need something more.

Mental stimulation. I am really missing it in my life right now.

I am busy, yes. But busyness does not equate fullness.

So, I guess my goal right now is to set some goals.

I am interested, what are your goals right now? Both in running and in life in general? Have you ever drifted with no specific goals?

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running!

Thin Mint Sprint

2010-09-12T15:07:00.000-07:00

This weekend I had the privilege of spending time with my 8 year old daughter, Adrienne. And 7 of her friends. And one of my friends. And gobs and gobs of Girl Scouts and their mothers/leaders. We were at an overnight camp just North of Brainerd.

It was a privilege, because I only got to go because of extenuating circumstances of the other mom scheduled to chaperone. I wasn't expecting to be able to go. (Although she is expecting. The extenuating circumstance happens to be a baby.) I have been on other overnights with this group of girls. I was a little worried because they can be squirrely, especially as bedtime closes in. We had a few incidences this weekend, but for the most part, they were great!

One of the best parts of this camp was that there were 7 sessions with lots and lots of choices. Choices like belly dancing, making homemade rootbeer and tennis. The adults could choose to do some sessions with the girls and others without them.

One of the first things I did with some of the girls was to go on a bog walk. Bog walking is something that made my list of things I have done and don't ever need to do again. Two steps into the bog and we were up to our ankles in water. A few more steps and the guide said "Don't freak out if the water goes over your head"! Dear Lord. I could not wait for that thing to get over. I try to make the best of most situations, but there really was no silver lining to this one. We came out muddy, soaked and cold. It ended with having to jump in the lake to clean off. I skipped this (surprise, surprise). The girls of course loved this whole sordid situation.

After all that walking on water, I needed some stress relief. One of the sessions was running a 5K, the Thin Mint Sprint. I did mine with four 12 year old girls who walked most of it and a 9th grade CC runner who had to get her running in for the weekend. My time was not impressive (25 minutes), but I guess I was the fastest one for the day. The name of the run in deceptive, though. We did not get even one Thin Mint when we were done running! Bummer!

We also kick boxed and learned how to Zumba. Both were fun. And exhausting. Much coffee was needed for the drive home after all that activity.

In between all of our sessions, there were rope swings and stilts all over the place. Our girls LOVED the stilts! They all tried them out and one was especially determined to master this skill. As a joke, I tried them out as well. Apparently I have the option of becoming a circus performer, because I walked quite a ways on those things. Sara, the other mom that was with me, commented that it must have been because I have a strong core. But, the truth was that I knew that if I stopped, I would fall on my face, lol!

All in all it was a great weekend. It is so nice to have time with my kids one-on-one, without all of their siblings around . Tiring, but fun!

And hunger inducing.

I am going to head in the house right now to make the spaghetti sauce from this month's Runner's World. Has anyone tried it yet? I thought about making bread...

Have you ever chaperoned an overnighter with you kids? What was the best part?

Hope you had a great weekend and Happy Running!

Busy, Busy, Busy

2010-09-10T06:15:00.000-07:00

Every August I start looking forward to school starting. I mean I really, really start looking froward to school starting. The last week of summer is something akin to what I imagine hell to be like and I just want out. But, what I forget is how much busier my life gets once everyone is in their new tennies, jeans and jackets and off to school. Ironic, isn't it?

During the summer, I tend to sleep in late (if you call 6:30 late). Once school starts, though, my days start before 5 and go until 10:00 pm straight. During the summer we can move at our own pace for the most part (read: SLOW), but once fall hits, it is rush, rush, rush everywhere.

So, I guess what I am saying is that I have been thinking about blogging. I have been thinking about reading other people's blogs. But I have not been doing either. Instead, I have been signing millions of pages of paperwork, spending hours discussing clothes with 4 girls who have very distinct opinions on what they should be wearing to school and then driving said children to and from school, cross country and soccer. Sometimes I sleep.

CRAZY!

Ok, so I have to admit that I have been haunting foodie blogs. Specifically bready and peanut buttery blogs. Apparently I am very hungry after all of that training I did this summer. Hungry for bread and peanut butter. Interesting. Very, very interesting!

In between all this school, child craziness and foodiness, I have been running. Not the distances someone training for a marathon needs to be running, but just enough to keep my legs happy and so that my jeans still fit after all of that PB.

You may be wondering about the TC. I have finally decided (and no, I won't be flip-flopping anymore, I promise, lol!). It's not in my heart to run a marathon right now. Enough said.

Fun Friday Question of the Day: Do you have any TV shows that you watch (drama, comedy, whatever) and are you excited for them to start up again? Personally I watch very little TV, but Ron and I DVR and have a date night to watch The Big Bang Theory. Of course, the Bare Naked Ladies sing the opening song and since it is recorded, Ron knows that we will be listening to (and singing along) it at least twice and preferably three times : ) This is just what I call payback for sitting through AxMen, Storm Chasers and Deadliest Catch. Dirty Jobs isn't as torturous because that guy is just a little easy on the eyes, if you know what I mean. Anyways, inquiring minds want to know what you drain your brain on...

I truly hope you have a great weekend and I will stop by and visit you on your blogs again as soon as I get a chance to sit down.

Happy Running!

Hello Running, My Old Friend. It's Nice To Talk With You Again...

2010-09-04T13:55:00.000-07:00

Yes, I listen to Simon and Garfunkel...

We are at the cabin and I'm sitting here by the fire, it is 3:00 in the afternoon. There is a sailboat on the water, but not much else. Fall has arrived and it is really chilly here.

I am musing about the training I have been doing this week. It has mostly been running. Some biking and ZERO swimming : )

The running has been sweet. I am not timing myself. I am not keeping track of the exact distances. I am putting my headphones on, turning up the tunes and reminding myself why I love running so much. Did I mention the running has been sweet?

I am very much in denial of the fact that I am running a marathon in less than 4 weeks, I think it's more like 3, but I'm not quite sure. I am not paying that much attention.

My original plans were to race this 26.2 miles and do it hard. My plans have changed. My injured achilles tendon humbled me and forced me to slow down my training pace. Then I was swooned by biking and swimming. None of these are bad things, by any means.

My new plans for the TC involve loving the run. I plan to run the way I swam last Sunday. My plan is no longer for my fastest (ok, so it still will be my fastest, since it is my first, lol) marathon, but my sweetest marathon.

Hello Running, My Old Friend. It's Nice To Talk With You Again...

Have you ever had to reevaluate your goals for a race? Why? how did it make you feel?

I hope you are having a great weekend and Happy Running!

Fun Photo Friday

2010-09-03T06:57:00.000-07:00

I love how these girls are smiling at the start of the race. My daughter, Amelia, is the smaller one in the purple shirt. She is loving Cross Country : )

Happy Friday and Happy Running!

This One Is For The Swimmers

2010-09-02T07:27:00.000-07:00

My Promise to all of you swimmers out there:

When I pass you on the run,

and you know I will : ),

I will not:

Hit You

Kick You

Slap You

Spit In Your Face

Run You Over

Touch Your Body In Any Way, Shape or Form

This is my solemn promise to you and I will keep it.

This picture? Too sweet, because it is my friend Deb (#386) and Heather (#385) contemplating the beginning of a very tough swim. Heather, hope you don't mind that I put this up!

Have a great day and HAPPY RUNNING!

Lessons Learned

2010-09-01T06:12:00.000-07:00

Now that the excitement has died down a little and the dust has settled, it is time to reflect on the lessons this race taught me: about myself, about triathlon and about life in general.

So here goes:

PRE-RACE:

I am so glad that I tapered and carbo-loaded. I felt very rested and very strong on race day. It was challenging, but very,very worth it.

That morning I changed my breakfast plans just a little. Ok, a lot. I ate totally different than I had planned. Instead of a bagel, I ate a Peanut Butter Breakfast Cookie from Erin Baker's Wholesome Baked Goods, (These things are awesome in all of the flavors, my kids love them toasted) a banana, and coconut water (can you tell I was just a little afraid of cramping?). This combination turned out to be the perfect fuel and really kept me going. However, immediately after eating, I felt pukey. Turns out I wasn't the only one. Apparently, doing a triathlon causes just about everyone to feel like they are going to heave right before race time. I heard some version of "I feel like I am going to throw up!" over and over again.

BODY MARKING:

Seriously LOVED this! I wore this all day as my badge of honor. I had EARNED these numbers (well, not my age, but you know...)

THE SWIM:

Where do I even start here? Even though I actually loved this swim, next year I would like to be a little more competitive here.

My major purchase this winter for competing in triathlons will be a wetsuit. Not only for the ability to float, but with my Raynaud's Disease, I need to be able to keep my core warm. I was lucky that the water was warm on Sunday. Next year, I may not get so lucky.

I am also going to do much more open water swimming. We have a cabin on a lake, for Pete's sake, and we are there almost every weekend. I will not waste that opportunity again.

THE BIKE:

If you would have told me when we started this training that this would be my strongest leg of the race, I would have said "No Way"! This really surprised me.

I think what really paid off for me was all of the hill training we did. I passed a lot of people on the hills as they were struggling. Turns out that biking hills IS just as much fun as running them : )

Also, all of the training in the wind. The windy conditions didn't phase me one bit.

I am looking at new bikes and have put in the request for my birthday/Christmas and hoping for the best. (No, I am not looking quite as hard as you, Deb, lol! Love ya!)

One of my main goals for next year on the bike is to learn how to maintenance my bike myself. I want to know how to fix the chain or a flat if I get caught somewhere. I ride alone quite a bit and I realize these are absolutely necessary skills.

Something I didn't mention yet is that I won a door prize: a $50 gift certificate for Erik's Bike Shop. I looked online and they have exactly the repair kit I was looking for, it fits in a small pouch under you seat. The price: $49.99. Fate? I don't think so. I will be getting this the next time I head down to St. Cloud.

Note of importance here: We took our bikes for a spin before the race. MAKE SURE YOU DO THIS IF YOU COMPETE IN A TRIATHLON! My chain was off and my waterbottle holder was loose (from transport). It would have been a huge bummer to find this out during the race!

THE RUN:

Ahhhh, my forte. I loved the run! Even though I couldn't keep up with Jacki, once I settled into my own pace I never got passed on this leg of the race.

It was so cool to yell out encouragement to people as I passed them, every single person who completed this race and had gotten that far deserves HUGE kudos! And, to get encouragement back. My favorite was when one guy yelled "Wow! You aren't leaving anything are you?" Sweet!

The biggest lesson I learned here was that by this time I craved plain water. I had put coconut water in my handheld and it was disgusting. I had drank it on the bike as well (awesome there, I wouldn't change that), but on the run? YUCK! I grabbed water at every stop and drank that instead.

OVERALL:

This was a tough race. The conditions were less than ideal, making every leg challenging as well as fun.

The volunteers absolutely MADE this race. They were INCREDIBLE!!!! On the swim, I felt very, very safe with the amount of boats and kayakers that were in the lake. They were also very encouraging "You're doing great! Almost done!" The same was found all along the whole course including the transition area. Awesome people!

Doing this race was so empowering. I learned that I can take risks, survive and even thrive. I learned that even in tough conditions, I am a strong person. During one of my training swims, I was getting tired and wanted to quit. I remember thinking "I am the kind of person that goes the distance: in my marriage, in my family and in life in general". This alone was worth doing this for.

Life is hard, triathlon is harder. If you can do this, you can do just about anything!

I also remembered how much I love racing: I love the people, the energy and the competition. Just so much fun!

So, my question to you: What are some of the lessons that you have learned from the races you have done? Whether it be a 5K, a half or full marathon or a triathlon, each and every one exists to teach us something. What have been your lessons?

I hope you have a great day and HAPPY RUNNING!

The Raw Emotion Of Triathlon

2010-08-30T17:49:00.000-07:00

This one is for you, my amazing friends!

Happy Running!

OMG!!!! When Can I Do That Again????

2010-08-29T13:40:00.000-07:00

I did not get one single wink of sleep last night. When we picked up our packets, someone had asked about the swim. The info was that instead of starting on the beach, we were starting in waist deep water. I heard: we will be going out into even deeper water. I sat up all night contemplating on the fact that I would rather run for 5 hours straight than swim 20 minutes in the lake. At 4:30, I showered and sat down to start praying. I prayed harder than I have in a long time. I then went up to my jewelry box and found a Guardian Angel pin that I put onto my tri shorts.

My friend Theresa was at my house to pick me up at 6:00 am and by this time, I was at peace and ready to go.

We all drove together and arrived at Whipple Beach in Baxter, MN by about 6:45. We got there at the perfect time and found sweet spots for our bikes. We were parked right across from a light post: excellent marker to remember!

Before the race:

My transition area was good to go.

I stayed away from the beach as much as possible before the race, but I did glance at the buoys that were

Way the Heck Out There. I then spent a considerable amount of time in a porta potty. Hiding.

I was in the 6th wave. We were the second to last to go out. As I stood on the sand ready to run in (the info from the packet pick-up had been wrong), I was oh so close to backing out. Ron told me later that he was reading my body language and he knew that was exactly what I was thinking. He considered pushing me in...

Your question: Did I actually do it? My answer: Yes, I did : ) My secret: I LOVED THE SWIM!!!

I chose not to race this part of the triathlon. I decided that I was just going to enjoy it. I side-stroked and spent a lot of time on my back. The sun was beautiful and I spent a great deal of time just looking up at the clouds. It was heaven! I celebrated each and every buoy that I passed, knowing that I was closer to finishing. At the turn-around and the second half of the swim, things were not so rosy. It was very windy and choppy. I couldn't see a darn thing and ended up running into the kayaks a few times. Finally, I could hear people cheering and I knew I was close to finishing this leg of the race.

My goals: to finish the swim and not have to hold onto any kayaks or buoys. Goal accomplished!!!!

You may be wondering what my swim time was. Well, there is one small detail I have left out. Not even 1/4 of the way into the swim, my timing chip slipped off my ankle. There is a fish in Whipple lake with a blue collar around it's neck right now. So, I really have no clue.

THIS IS THE BEST THING THAT COULD HAVE HAPPENED TO ME ALL DAY!

This race was not about time. This race was 100% a celebration of all of the hard work we have done this summer. More importantly, it was about my overcoming my anxiety of swimming in the lake.

The bike and run were fairly uneventful.

I've heard you can buy speed on the bike leg. I would like to politely disagree. My mountain bike and I passed many a very expensive bike. I felt amazing on this leg, the extra time falling in love with my bike paid off. I worked my behinder off to catch up with my coach. She had a Garmin and said she averaged 19 miles per hour. I am guessing I was doing between 20-21 just trying to catch her. Fun, fun, fun!

I ran out with Jacki and stayed with her for the first mile (7 minutes) and then told her to go ahead. She was on fire and I just couldn't keep up. I ended up coming in just a couple of minutes behind her. I was really happy with my pace and how I felt on the run.

All in all, I had an INCREDIBLE time and can't wait to do it again. We have decided, though, that we are definitely NOT DOING the 1/2 MILE SWIM EVER AGAIN. Next summer's swim will be much, much shorter. And I am OK with that.

So, here I am, all smiles after the race:

I am hoping to have more pictures tomorrow and will post them for you.

As an extra bonus, I got to meet

Heather, from the Junk Miles Blog

She is super-sweet and it was so cool to get to meet her. If you have never read her blog, you definitely need to! (Yes, that is link)

I want to thank everyone who has supported me during this training: my family, my friends and everyone who reads and comments on my blog. I would not have been able to do any of this without you! Thank you also for all of the prayers for me today. I know that Heaven was stormed with hopes for a safe swim this morning. All of this means so much. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

I am in some pain right now. My legs are just a tad sore. But, it is a good kind of pain.

I hope you had a great weekend and Happy Running!

Bittersweet

2010-08-26T10:01:00.000-07:00

As of this morning, Tri Training is officially over.

It is bittersweet.

On the one hand, I am sad to see it end. On the other hand, I am ready to be done.

One thing I know for sure:

I CAN'T WAIT FOR SUNDAY!

I had my last ride Tuesday, the last swim Wednesday and the last run this morning.

This means I can finish packing my Tri Bag!

What I will wear:

Pink Tri Suit : ), pants and sweatshirt for before and after. And yes, you see a winter hat and mittens. It could be 50 degrees when we go out in the morning. I can't risk my fingers freezing before we even start. All pink and purple. Am I a girly girl or what?

For the swim:

The Buggy Towel won out just on the mere fact that it is neon green and will be easier to see. Thank you to everyone who gave their opinions. I love the ducky towel, too!

2 pairs of goggles. Just in case.... I plan on using the blue Speedos.

For the bike:

Helmet, racing glasses, and waterbottle. Yes, these are new glasses. My other ones broke yesterday, sheesh!

For the run:

Running shoes, socks, racing belt, handheld waterbottle. Again, girly girl...

Nutrition:

Pre-opened powerbar for the bike, roctane, and enough coconut water for the state of Hawaii.

For transition:

Towel to put on my bike seat so if I miss the bugs, I will find my bike. Amelia picked this out for me. She loves blue. I told her I would be thinking of her when I saw it : )

Have I forgotten anything?

Tomorrow Amelia has her first CC meet in St Michael and then we will do school shopping for her in Albertville. Saturday is at the cabin, supper with the team and packet pick-up. My parents are coming up tomorrow. I am excited, they have never seen me race before.

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running!

Bring On The Taper, Baby!

2010-08-24T05:58:00.000-07:00

It is time to taper. You know, that time where we sit on our tushies and eat lots and lots of carbs. I have been looking forward to this week for oh, about 3 months now...

It sounds really great when you are in the middle of hard training.

But in reality, tapering is actually one of the most challenging parts of training schedule. As athletes, we like to move our bodies. Let me rephrase that, we NEED to move our bodies. Running, biking, swimming: doing these things are what makes us feel normal. Being active provides stress relief and those endorphins we are all so addicted to.

Resting for a long period of time goes against our nature and can make us antsy, itchy and downright crabby.

And then add all that extra food...

Now we feel sluggish and slow, too. Ughhhhhh!!!!!

But, we talked last night about how important tapering is to being successful on race day. Resting allows the body to be fresh and ready to compete. Even more important than the physical rest, though, is the mental rest. Not thinking about training for a few days really gives you a break so that you can sleep well and be well-rested to perform at your peak.

Of course tapering doesn't mean doing absolutely nothing. Last night we ran. 2 whole miles. It was in the rain, so I think it might count for more : ). Today is a short bike and tomorrow a short swim. Not enough to wear us out. But enough to keep the juices flowing.

In the midst of all this tapering, I am working on packing my tri bag for Sunday and can't decide do I take:

The Ducky Towel or:

The Buggy Towel.

Any opinions?

So, is tapering challenging for you? If so, what is the hardest part? Or, Maybe you enjoy the taper?

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running!

Nightswimming

2010-08-23T06:29:00.000-07:00

I did it : )

Thank you to all of my friends, my husband and everyone who supported me here on my blog.

Bring on the TRI!

Happy Running!

Humor Training

2010-08-22T05:58:00.000-07:00

I sat on the couch on the cabin porch with Ron, AKA Superman Friday night. The girls watched Strawberry Shortcake inside and we had his laptop. "Let's watch something funny" I said. I have to tell you that I married my husband, not for his dashing good looks, but simply for his ability to make me laugh. The guy has a great sense of humor, which is far more attractive than a nice six-pack I think : )

So, he pulls up Monty Python. Yes! I needed to see a bunch of British men hanging on crosses singing "Always Look On The Bright Side of Life..." and British men dressed as women and Barbarians singing "Spam, Spam, Spam, Spam, Spammity Spam...." Maybe you are familiar?

Then I got a healthy dose of my favorite comedian, Jeff Dunham. But, I can only watch the videos where his hair is short and he is a little bit scruffy. Ron thought this was endearing. Ok, he thought it was stupid, but he laughed at least...

So, here it is Sunday morning. I am facing my swim in the lake this afternoon. When I am in the pool, swimming millions of laps, I think about many things. But one thing I think about are my bloggy buddies and what you happen to be up to. And how the heck any of you get through these stinking laps, lol!

When I am in the lake all I think about is how I am going to drown, how much I hate weeds and what if that huge snapping turtle comes back. Obviously, I am still having huge amounts of anxiety about the lake. I have decided that I may need to laugh my way through this torture. I will be singing "Always look on the bright side of life. Life's a piece of sh$$ when you look at it...", you know the rest... That will only take up some of the time.

I am calling out for your help. Tell me a joke. Give me the link to a funny (mostly clean, I can handle some raunch, but not too much...) song, comedian sketch, etc. Or tell me something funny about yourself or your life.

I hope you have a great Sunday and I am really hoping my next post will be a success swimming story!

Happy Running!

Race Day Nutrition

2010-08-20T08:22:00.000-07:00

I am guessing that if you race longer distances, you have a nutrition plan in place. If you have never raced before or you only race 5k's this may not be part of your training plan as of yet. My triathlon next Sunday will take me at least 2 hours to complete, so I will definitely need to eat and drink while I am racing so that I don't bonk.

We have been doing full bricks for about 6 weeks now and I have used these as opportunities to practice eating and drinking before, during and after. I have tried some different things and this is what I have come up with:

1. Pre-race (2 hrs before): Bagel with almond butter and pumpkin butter. 1 cup of coffee and water.

2. Pre-race (immediately before): Liftoff (an energy supplement by Herbalife) in a waterbottle. Roctane
GU.

3. On the bike: Powerbar Performance Energy Bar, chocolate flavor. These are designed specifically for tri-athletes. I have tried them on several rides now and really like them. The chocolate one reminds me of a squished tootsie roll. It also has a slight coconut taste to it. Coconut water in my waterbottle.

4. On the run: Roctane GU and more coconut water.

5. Post-race: Whatever they have for us. I am hoping for some good stuff : )

What you eat on race day is not terribly important as long as:

*It is portable

*It is high in carbs, low in protein and fat

*You have tested it out beforehand (never, ever try something new on race day!)

*You stay fueled and hydrated enough to finish the race

On the training side of things:

I have a sweet new ride. Ok, not too sweet, it is still a mountain bike, but a newer, lighter one. We went for our last long ride yesterday to try it out. I realized one little issue as soon as I got to the trailhead. Their is no waterbottle holder on this bike! I am glad I figured this out before next Sunday!

Otherwise, it went really smoothly. We went 26 miles and got to ride under the longest covered bridge in the state of Minnesota. Luckily, it was cool, so water wasn't even an issue for me.

I swam in the pool last night (did the full half mile freestyle again) after another failed lake attempt on Wednesday (I did go 1/4 mile that night though). We are heading to the cabin this afternoon for the weekend. My goal is to swim the full distance with superman next to me on the boat at least once, maybe twice. I will let you know how it goes.

Questions(s) of the day:

1. What do you use for nutrition on race days?

2. Totally unrelated to running, but interesting nonetheless: Beatles or Stones? I'm just curious...

Beatles for me : )

Hope you have a great weekend and Happy Running!

Success and Failure

2010-08-17T11:56:00.000-07:00

One of the best parts of having a blog, for me, is being able to write down my successes and failures. I get to share them with the world, or at least the people who stop by and read my ramblings (thanks for reading btw!). I also get to process them and put them into perspective for myself.

My everyday life is full of successes and failures. Today alone: I took all four girls for haircuts and didn't lose my mind: SUCCESS! Sitting on my behind writing a blog post instead of folding the laundry: FAILURE!

I thought this would be a good topic for today because even though it's only Tuesday, I have had some major successes and failures training-wise this week. Allow me to share:

Success: Sunday afternoon I took my bike and running gear out to the lake to do a bike/run brick by myself. My goal was to ride 18 and run 4. Roughly the distances for our tri. This was a major success. I didn't time myself, but I rode hard (it was very windy) and ran the full distance. As I was running, I realized how much I loved doing this. It was very exhilarating and fun.

Flash forward:

Failure: Monday night we were scheduled to do our final full brick. 6:00, Green Prairie Fish Lake, city beach. I was there. I knew this was going to be a failure before I even got into the water. After breaking heat records last week, we had an arctic blast blow through on Sunday. It was FREEZING! My fingers were frozen even before I got into the water. I started the 1/4 mile swim out and had to turn around. I couldn't even force myself to stay in the water as long as everyone else. I was so chilly, it wasn't even funny.

But, the truth of the matter was that this was a failure from the minute I was told we were doing the out and back swim last week. It took us almost all the way across the lake. I had been having huge amounts of anxiety about it for days.

Success: This morning's run. I ran a little over 6 miles at a pace of 6:35! Last week's runs were in the 7's and sometimes in the 8's. I literally could not make my legs go any faster than that. This morning I overcame that obstacle and had an awesome run.

I plan on swimming this afternoon and then again in the lake tomorrow. I think I am going to do it at the cabin with Ron following me on the boat. Green Prairie just creeps me out (and it kind of stinks)!

There is also a long bike ride and another bike/run brick planned for this week. And, I have to get in my strength training...

As I read over the events of the past three days, I realize that I have a choice. I can choose to focus on my failures or I can choose to focus on my successes. I am choosing to focus on my successes. The haircuts are cute and I WILL get to that laundry later on today.

What are some successes and failures you have experienced? Do you choose to focus on the failures or the successes?

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running!

Body Sculpting

2010-08-16T06:19:00.000-07:00

Way back when we sat down to put together our training plan for our triathlon, we made sure to include 5 components: running, biking, swimming, strength, and rest. The rest days looked like this on our schedule: REST : ). It was the only day that had a smiley face on it and it is the best part of the whole training (ok, actually eating all of these carbs is the BEST part...)

But, I am not writing about rest today.

Today I want to write about that OTHER day. The one with no smiley face and the word STRENGTH on it. We all agreed that we would do some form of strength training as part of this training plan. For me, this meant going to the gym once a week and lifting weights on the machines I knew how to use. I used the same machines every time and although I increased my weight and reps, I only did this for 30 minutes. I simply could not tolerate ONE MINUTE MORE of lifting weights.

Even though I have been doing this every week, I have never written about it because it is so BORING!

Well, upon getting injured a couple of weeks ago, I considered that adding more strength might shake things up a little bit with the loss of my running days. The gym I go to offers training on a twice a week body sculpting program that a friend of mine has been doing (and loving) since the beginning of our training. I have poo-pooed it because in case you have forgotten, I find lifting to be very BORING. I couldn't conceive the idea of going twice a week. Until now.

I had mentioned this idea in a post a while back and someone asked if I was doing it for looks. Ummmm....no. In case you didn't see my response to him, I mentioned that it is purely for strength, BUT I am enjoying having bigger guns than my hubby right now.

But, I digress...

For as boring as it is, the strength part of this training is really the most important component of the whole plan . It is truly the foundation that allows me to do the rest of the sports. The body sculpting program is great because it is personalized and the person training me worked around my injury. There are different exercises using the amounts of weight that I can lift. You start out doing 10 reps of the lowest weight you can handle and then 10 reps of the highest. You then do 10 reps of incrementally lower amounts of weights. This program incorporates upper body, lower body and abs. Personally, I have seen the biggest difference in my upper body and abs. My favorite one is bench-pressing, who'd a thunk? Although, ladies, I found out the hard way, NEVER WEAR A RUNNING SKIRT TO BENCH PRESS. You have to put your legs up on the bench and I could not figure out why this guy kept walking by and staring at me the entire time I was doing this. OMG, wear SHORTS!!!!! I'm just saying....

I have to admit that I still find strength training incredibly boring. I literally have to make myself go to the gym to do it. But, I like the results and I can tell that I have gotten much stronger in the last couple of weeks.

Question of the day: Do you incorporate strength training into your schedule? Why or why not? What is your favorite lifting technique?

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running!

Running 101

2010-08-14T20:12:00.000-07:00

Well I am back up and running.

If you can call the strange, slow loping I am doing right now running...

Last week I ran on our brick. It was only 2 miles, and I was interested in seeing how my achilles would feel. It was ok. I actually ran half-decently that night, but the ankle was a little tender that night so I iced. The next morning I had the brilliant idea to take the 3 little girls grocery shopping with me. Ok, so I really didn't have choice. We had no milk, no bread, etc, etc. All 3 of them took mini shopping carts to put their own stuff in. This is a great idea in theory and I am sure that grocery store owners think they are pretty clever putting these things in their stores. I am guessing that none of them have been rammed in the achilles tendon (particularly a sore achilles tendon) by a very strong 3 yr old yielding a large metal object filled with food. I almost cried right there in the cereal aisle.

Needless to say, I took a few more days off.

By Thursday, I was feeling itchy and antsy to go out and run. I just needed that feeling of freedom and zoning out if you know what I mean. I did go 6 miles, but it was the weirdest 6 miles I have ever run. I swear to God that while I was sitting in the chair icing, my left leg grew longer than my right leg. I feel so lopsided when I run now! And then my legs get this strange crampy-uppy feeling and it is really bugging me! And SLOW! S L O W ! ! !

We only have one more week of training before tapering. I have to figure out a way to get my body back to somewhat normalcy so that I don't look like a lopsided loser on the last leg of triathlon thing we are doing!

On a personal note, Superman finished his MBA program today. I am so proud of him! He started 18 months ago and plowed right through. The girls an I had a little family party for him at the cabin this afternoon.

Oh yeah and I am typing this on my very own computer! It came in the mail today. The keyboard works beautifully!

So, my question to you: how do you find your legs again after taking time off? Have you found that your running was changed after an injury?

I hope you are having a great weekend and Happy Running!

All The Rage

2010-08-12T06:05:00.000-07:00

Yesterday afternoon I drove down to St Cloud to pick up a few last minute tri items totally necessary to my race. (Or so I tell Superman).

My first stop was the running store to get elastic shoe laces. They promise "Lightening fast transitions". Whatever. I am just not in the mood to die by way of having a shoelace get stuck in my bike chain.

When I was looking through the selection (it was very picked over), I asked the guy if people were liking these. He said they couldn't keep them in stock! They had already gone through 4 huge boxes of them already. When I explained I was using them for a tri, he said "I know, all of them are going to triathletes!" (Sara, by the way, I am a dork and bought 2 packages because I thought there was only one shoelace in each. Yes, my hair is naturally blonde... So, I have a bright neon green pair for you if you want it, let me know!)

My next stop was the cycling shop to look at tri shirts. There were only THREE women's left and none were my size. That guy said "We just really went through the tri stuff this year!"

It seems to me that triathlons are ALL THE RAGE right now. And seriously, I'm not surprised. Competing in a tri is fun, challenging and very empowering. I am planning a blogpost on how to train for your first one. It will come out after we are done competing in OUR first tri. I will share some of the lessons we have learned along the way.

Yesterday about 7 of us decided to go up to Baxter to bike the route for our upcoming event. I am so glad we did! We had heard there were hills and approaching them, they looked like doozies. But, once we got to them, they were actually a piece of cake. Far worse were the incredibly bumpy conditions and driving neck and neck with semis. Hmmmm... good thing this thing takes place on a Sunday morning!

One of the garmins showed the route to be 17.5 mile instead of the listed 17. When we drove the run route, it seemed waaaaayyyyy longer than 3.9 miles. All I have to say is that an extra 1/2 mile on the bike is one thing. An extra 1/2 mile on the run is pretty doable as well. But if they add an extra 1/2 mile onto that swim, I will be conked out even before I get out of the water!

Today is a rest day (Yay!). Good thing, too. It looks like it is going to storm again!

I have one question for all of you triathletes:

We have each had our training issues and one of our group now has one that I have never read about. Her jaw locks up after she swims in the open water. It was so bad after our last brick that she couldn't eat the brat her wonderful husband made for her. Have you ever heard of this? Do you have any advice for her?

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running!

Sick Computer

2010-08-10T15:29:00.000-07:00

I spent about an hour sitting at the Apple Store in the Mall Of America last Friday to find out that my computer is very, very sick. As a result, they airlifted it to a nearby "computer hospital". Hopefully I will have it back by Friday or next Monday.

Somebody said to me today "I miss your blog". Quite frankly, I miss it too. I also miss reading other blogs. Not only did my computer get sick, my iPhone pooped out last week, too. I can make calls, but I have ABSOLUTELY NO ACCESS TO THE INTERNET. GASP!!!!!

Superman has kindly agreed to share his computer, but since it is source of oxygen, I will only get it for short bursts of time.

Trust me, you don't realize how dependent on the computer you are until it is gone...

Anyways, on to more exciting stuff, there is no time to waste here...

I had lunch with a friend today and we talked carbs. Specifically, how many we need as tri-athletes. She said she read somewhere that we need 400-500 grams of carbs a day! Wow! This seems like a lot! She pulled out her phone (which had internet access) and figured out she was getting only about 200 grams a day. That's 200-300 grams short of what we need!

I really started thinking about this and after she left, I pulled out some foods to check their carb content. Unfortunately, I realized how much I needed to clean the pantry and got distracted for about 1/2 hour. It looks much better now, thank you. So, here is what I found:

Granola: 22 grams (but I never eat one serving at a time)

Oatmeal: 31 grams (again, I eat double that at one time)

Craisins: 33 grams (yes, I eat more)

Breakfast cookie: 52 grams (I only eat one of those)

Raisins: 31 grams (you don't even have to ask...)

The Spaghetti I am making for supper tonight: 41 grams

When I added up how much I eat in a day, I figured out that I need to get more carbs in my diet. At snack, I added granola to my yogurt. I am sure I will figure out ways to get more in... (rough problem to have, huh?)

Training is going well. I took a couple of rest days while we were on vacation, but hit it hard again on Sunday doing out second to last brick. This morning was strength training (Yes, I did decide to do the body sculpting. More on that in a later post). Tonight I will swim if it doesn';t storm.

Question of the day (maybe week): Do you count carbs? How do you get enough in your diet to support your training?

Just a little over two weeks until our triathlon, I can't wait!

Have a great day and Happy Running!

Busy Week

2010-08-05T08:44:00.000-07:00

Not quite sure where this week has gone, can it really be Thursday already?

We are busy packing and cleaning today because we are actually going on a mini-vacation tomorrow. Just an overnight trip to the cities, so nothing major, but I am looking forward to getting away. We are going to do some of the old standbys (Science Museum) and some new stuff, too (farmer's market, Mill City Museum).

We are also going to the Mall of America specifically because my keyboard is still broken and that is where the Apple Store is. I would also like to find a store that carries GU, Nuun, etc. If you live in the cities do you know of a store in the MOA that has that kind of stuff?

On the training front, I have decided to change my attitude on my injury (not the boot, though, I still don't like the boot a whole lot). I really think that it is a blessing in disguise. If I wouldn't have gotten injured, I never would have taken the opportunity to find out my abilities on the bike and the swim.

My run became strong quite a while ago. That happened for me on the bike last week. This week was spent focusing on the swim. I was waiting for things to just "click". It just wasn't happening. Until last night.

A couple of weeks ago, Father's homily included a story of a little boy trying to carry a big rock. He told his father he was using all of his strength, but still couldn't move it. His Father said,"You aren't using all of your strength because you haven't asked for my help yet."

I was trying to do the swim on my own, using my own strength. I finally gave it up and asked for God's help yesterday. I was able to swim like I have never swam before. It also helped that I had a friend who challenged me to farther than I was comfortable going. I am going to do the same for you, my friend. Deb, I challenge you to put your face in the water on Sunday night when we do our brick. Not the whole time. But, at least some of the time. I have faith in you. You are a strong swimmer and you can do this!

Don't get me wrong, I still have a lot of work to do, but I have two weeks and will be spending quite a bit of time in the pool.

I sometimes feel a little silly praying for help on my training. I know that my completing a triathlon ranks nowhere near people who are starving or living in war-torn countries. But, Father mentioned that we should invite God into ALL areas of our lives, no matter how small. So, I have invited him into my training.

My question to you: Is prayer a part of your training? Do you find it silly to ask for God's help as you swim, bike or run?

I may be gone from blogging for a while because it may take a few days to fix my computer. So, I hope you have a great weekend and Happy Running!

Whatcha' Do, Break Your Foot?

2010-08-03T09:58:00.000-07:00

If I had a penny for every time I have heard THAT today...

But I digress...

We had our weekly brick last night at a local lake. There were 8 of us there to swim, bike and run. Or in my case, swim, bike and then bike again.

One person who has yet to appear on my blog is our coach, Jacki. I finally got a picture of her last night : )

This woman is an incredible athlete and coach. When she is actually coaching us, she pushes us HARD and there are times we may swear at her under our breath (I never do that, I promise...). But, when she is training with us, she is one of the nicest ladies around and we're so glad she decided to do our tri with us (she is doing a different one in 2 weeks as well).

Deb's transition area, so neat and tidy! I think one of the best parts of doing these bricks is practicing the transitions.

Getting ready to go!

The whole thing was really awesome last night. But, I learned some lessons:

1. My swimming really stinks. I am darned near the slowest one and didn't go nearly as far as some of the women. I hit the pool this morning and an older woman came up to me afterwards and said "I was expecting you to swim fast!" OUCH!!!! that hurt! I need to spend some more time in the pool. The fact of the matter is that I hate the crawl stroke and just can't maintain it for very long.

2. My time on the bike is paying off. I rocked the bike last night.

3. I was really sad that I couldn't run. I did bike the run course twice. But, it was boring and lonely and I really wanted to be running.

Afterwards, we were standing around talking and the group unanimously decided that I needed to be put in a boot for my own good. (ok, it was not totally unanimous, because no one asked MY opinion on this). But, when one of your friends is a sports Doc, you go along with what she says.

So, that is why I would be a rich woman right now if I had a penny for every person who asked me if I had broken my foot or something.

Do you have tips for me on increasing my endurance on the freestyle, or is that just something some people can do and other's can't?

Do you practice your transitions during a brick?

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running!

The Swim

2010-08-01T19:20:00.000-07:00

Sorry for laughing at the beginning, Ron was in the room and thought this was pretty funny, too : )

Happy Running! I am Jealous!

Marathon Training Revisited...

2010-07-31T09:05:00.000-07:00

Ok, it seems just a little weird to be writing this right now when I can still barely walk, much less run. But here goes...

I got little "talking to" at the track this week about my decision to quit the marathon. Apparently, there are a couple of people who think I could still run 26.2 miles. Since one of these people is my running coach, I am apt to take this seriously. I explained to her that I just can't get the miles in while I am doing the tri training. She countered with the fact that my endurance is actually increasing with this cross training. Add to this the fact that the tri is August 29th and the marathon is October 3rd. This gives me exactly five weeks to focus purely on running. (And actually one of my running buddies has done a marathon with a base of 9 miles, painful, but he finished. I won't be doing THAT!)

Enter a conversation I had with the marathoners concerning biking vs running ratios. They seemed to think that it was a 2 to 1 ratio. You have bike twice as far to get the same distance in running. I'm not sure if this is true (does anybody know if this is correct?). But, going on this premise, I sat down with my training log this morning to crunch the numbers.

The stats: Since Sunday I have biked 89 miles and run 4 1/2 miles. With the ratio used above, that puts me at 48 1/2 miles run. My marathon plan called for 39 miles this week. Could it be that I really might be able to do this?????

I have some serious healing to do first, but if I take care of my achilles, I just might be able to!

We are out at the cabin this weekend with Superman's sister and her fiance. They are a blast, we are having a really nice time with them.

I biked 20 miles of hills this morning (I remember the first time I had the feeling that I could run forever, I had that on the bike this morning, so sweet). And I plan to swim in the lake this afternoon, Superman has agreed that he could fish, ummm... spot me on the boat.

No questions today, just comment with a "hi" if you feel like it today, I'd love to hear from you.

And Peter, I finally changed my blog, let me know if you like it...

I really hope that you are having a nice weekend and Happy Running!

The Miracle Worker

2010-07-30T04:58:00.000-07:00

Those of you who are friends with me on FB know that I had a really crummy morning yesterday. It was one of those days where nothing goes right and the fact that I couldn't walk made things even worse. I was hobbling around the house throwing a HUGE pity party which finally ended up in my crying on Superman's shoulder, "I'll never run again...blah, blah, blah".

He looked at me and said "You need to go see Mike. Today." I stomped around some more and then decided he was right and called Mike to make an appointment.

Who the heck is Mike, you may be wondering. Well, I call him the Miracle Worker, but his official title is Physical Therapist. I spent lots of quality time with him last fall and I knew he could help me again.

I actually had another motive for calling him...

Mike is a huge BIKER DUDE. (Not huge as in size, huge as in he rides. A lot.) I really, really wanted to pick his brain about some of my biking questions.

It was awesome, we talked bikes for an hour non-stop. Ok, so we also discussed my achilles tendon, but mostly we talked bikes. He gave me some really good tips on form and where to go to get a bike. (It's Revolution, btw if you are local. They fit you exactly to your bike).

And about the achilles, it isn't as bad as I had originally thought. No tears or major damage. Thank God! He used the ultrasound, a laser treatment and a cortisone patch. I felt amazingly better afterwards. AND... he said I can start running again as soon as I can walk up and down the stairs without pain. I'm not there yet this morning and honestly it might take a while. But I know I will run again : )

He did approve the biking and swimming and said that would be fine. Which is good because I had actually biked just before I saw him.

Excuse me while I swoon, because it may just be that I am falling madly in love with my bike (blush, blush). I went out on the trail yesterday afternoon and realized that I was smiling like a kid. I went the farthest I have ever gone, 23 miles and averaged about 18 miles an hour. I was telling Mike about this and he processed it and then said "You went that distance and that speed on a MOUNTAIN BIKE?" Yes, I ride a MOUNTAIN BIKE... And yeah, you know that part about not having a need for speed on the bike? You can just nix that...

I did a recovery workout in the pool last night and then we had an awesome early morning ride today, good company, big hills : ) I will be spending some time with the ice pack today, which will give me a chance to read that novel I am in to.

Do you have a "miracle worker" in your life? Do you have a regular sports doc or physical therapist?

I am excited to say that I am officially a:

Happy Friday and Happy Running!

Three Things Thursday

2010-07-29T05:35:00.000-07:00

I don't usually do this, but here goes:

1. I messed up my achilles tendon last night at the track. However, I still managed to run a 3 minute 800 : )

2. It hurts like heck, I can barely walk, the ice pack is my best friend.

3. This means I get to spend more time working on my relationship with my bike (we are getting much closer, btw. Superman, you may just have some competition...), in the pool and GASP I may actually make an appointment to start that ghastly body sculpting thing at the fitness connection. OMG, did I just say that?

How do you deal with an injury? Does it make you crabby? Because I am needing a little attitude adjustment right about now...

Thank you to my friend who sent me the very nice message this morning, you made my day. : )

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running!

Rest Day?

2010-07-28T08:43:00.000-07:00

I had not taken a full day of rest since oh, June something or other. That was back when I was "Burnt Out"... One of the things that I decided when I nixed the marathon training was that I was going to take one full day of rest per week.

Easier said than done. I was prepared for a day off. Or so I thought. I don't do rest very well. I made it until 4:30 yesterday afternoon, which is the exact time I put my swimming suit on and packed my goggles to go to the pool. This is also the exact time the tornado sirens went off.

DAMN!!!!!

Sorry for the language, but that is how I felt.

CRAP!!!!!

That is also how I felt.

Suck it up!!!!!!

That is what I did.

The storm ended, I did not swim and we took the kids (yes, even the 15 year old went with us) to see Toy Story 3 at the movie theater. It was so worth it. (Yes, I cried, btw, just for your information).

As difficult as it was, what a difference a day of rest makes! This morning I woke up, biked to the pool and had an awesome swim. I swam for 40 minutes straight and LOVED it! I still can't get over how much I am enjoying the swimming part of this training!

Tonight is speedwork at the track. It has been a while, so we will see how THAT one goes.

I am not a huge KISS fan, but today I am going to put their song "Beth" on my iPod. I love this song and I think it will go very nicely right after the Chipettes singing "All The Single Ladies" : )

My question today: What advice do you have for me as I start shopping for a bike? I am very new to this and really don't know much about them. What brands/styles do you recommend? (Remember I am still somewhat of a newbie and don't have a huge need for speed on the bike. Well, not yet, at least...)

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running!

You Can Do Anything You Put Your Mind To

2010-07-27T09:07:00.000-07:00

Sunday night we did our weekly brick out at the Kresha Cabin. We scheduled a 15 minute swim, 12 mile bike ride and 2 mile run.

Before everyone arrived, though, the 8 yr old wanted to do a mini-brick of her own.

We biked for 1 mile and then ran 1/2 mile. These are half of the distances she will have to do for her kid's triathlon. She wanted to do the swim part as well, but her mother was not up for getting wet twice in one day.

The first time we attempted swimming together, NO ONE would let me take their picture. We are getting braver:

Monday morning, I looked at my motivational calendar and amazingly, it said "You Can Do Anything You Put your Mind To." I knew this was true because during our brick this Sunday, I swam out in the DEEP WATER for the first time.

I wasn't even nervous. I knew I could do it for 3 reasons:

1. I was physically prepared. Last week I went to the pool and swam for 30 minutes straight, without touching my feet to the ground. Physically, I have the strength to swim deep.

2. I was mentally prepared. I had been preparing mentally ever since the last brick and decided to prepare myself physically for the task at hand. See #1.

3. Superman was spotting us on the boat. Yes, he was fishing at the same time (he didn't catch anything), but he knew he was in BIG TROUBLE if he didn't watch me. This is the kind of trouble that only a wife can inflict if you know what I mean...

Anyways, It was such a huge feeling of accomplishment! I didn't swim fast, but I did swim the whole time. It was so cool.

After the brick, I spent some time talking to one of the women training with us. She said that she wasn't exactly enjoying the whole training process, but that she felt so proud of herself when she was done. This is why we do what we do : )

Last night, the MS TRAM stopped and camped in Little Falls. (This is "The Ride Across Minnesota" to raise money for Multiple Sclerosis"). The 8 yr old's Girl Scout Troop sold breakfast to them this morning. It was an awesome sight.

I developed some serious bike envy looking at their sweet rides. they were very nice people and it was fun to give them coffee and bagels before they headed out on their 60 mile ride for today.

Superman and I decided last night that we are going to get new bikes for our Birthdays and Christmas this year (We are 6 days apart, both in December, so it is very fitting). I may have to make a trip to see:

Erik the Bike Man

Yes, this a link. If you live in Minnesota, there is a good chance this ad is stuck in your head. If not, it soon will be...

Question of the day: Do you ride/run for charity? I have not yet, but would really like to. Can you recommend a good cause to ride/run for?

Well, my alarm went off at 3:30 am this morning and typing this is painful right now, so before I make any more typos, I am going to wrap up and go lay down.

Happy Tuesday and Happy Running!

Having An Affair With My Bike?

2010-07-25T05:56:00.000-07:00

As I took my focus off of the marathon training, it became painfully apparent to me that I have been sorely neglecting one very important aspect of this triathlon.

I train hard on the run.

I train hard in the pool.

I ummm... for lack of a better word, lollygag, on the bike.

I wake up at 4:30 am to freeze my behind off riding 16 miles. But, I don't particularly enjoy it.

It's kind of funny, and I'm not quite sure exactly why, but I just kind of thought that the bike part really wouldn't happen. I pictured myself swimming and then maybe just sleeping my way through the bike ride? (Maybe this is because I do most of my rides BEFORE the sun comes up and I usually am still half-asleep)

BIG MISTAKE!!!!!

I finally forced myself to read the chapter on cycling in my triathlon book "Triathlons for Women" by Sally Edwards.

She opens this chapter by saying "In a triathlon you spend more time on the bike than in any other leg." This is one of those "No duh!" statements that I have basically chosen to ignore.

She goes on to say, "Becoming a truly good cyclist... requires falling in love with your bike-which becomes a continuing love affair that seems endless in miles and hours."

So, am I in love with my bike? This is an awkward question, especially since I always refer to my bike as a girl. As in, "I'm going to take the old girl out for a ride now." Technically, she is a he because it really is a boy's bike, so I am actually wrong in calling it a her, but I do. And if I am falling in love with her, I may have some other issues I have to deal with.... Superman if you are reading this, we may have to talk!!!!!

AAAAHHHH!!!! Now I am both confused and grossed out!

The whole point of this is that, no, I am not yet having a love affair with my bike. I am slowly falling in like with IT and maybe even moving into the crush arena. But I just know that I can ignore it no longer.

So, instead of doing my usual long run yesterday morning, I took the bike up to the trail we like to ride and did roughly 17 miles. It was awesome. I am slowly training myself to eat and drink on the ride and this is helping tremendously. It is much better riding in the middle of the day.

So, my question to you:

If you are a triathlete: Is there one part of the race that you neglect more than the others? And, what are your tips for falling in love with your bike?

If you are a runner: How many days/miles a week do you run to effectively race shorter distances? I am revamping my training and am interested in knowing what everyone runs.

I hope you are having a great weekend and Happy Running!

I Can't Even Begin To Thank You Enough!

2010-07-23T06:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday morning I wrote my blog and then sat down and prayed for wisdom.

I know that I have shared on my blog that I spent some time working as a Doula. What I didn't share is that I also spent several years as a La Leche League Leader, supporting women who were breastfeeding their babies. Our motto in La Leche is " People Before Things". This is something I have carried on my heart ever since into all areas of my life.

Which brings me back to why I am doing all of this: running, biking, swimming, blogging.

My main goal was to inspire other people to be active and really enjoy participating in endurance sports. The comment from my friend Laura yesterday was what really hit home for me: "When you talk about the triathlon, I really hear the excitement in your voice... I think if I really work hard over the winter, I can do one myself next summer."

If I have inspired only one person, then this whole blog is worth it.

My other main motive in this is all of the wonderful people I have gotten to know. Runners and triathletes are amazing people. I don't care if you are just starting out or if you have been doing this for your entire life. If you run, bike or swim, you are an inspiration to ME. The people I train with are AMAZING, the people I have met through blogging are INCREDIBLE.

So, thank you to everyone who commented, called, texted, e-mailed and stopped over to visit yesterday. I am truly blessed to have you in my life.

And the verdict is: The marathon training has been put on hold for right now. I have decided to really enjoy the triathlon training and do the very best I can at it. I still plan on running more than my cohorts (sorry, ladies) just because that is still my first love and you just can't ever forget your first love...

I am a more than a little sad about this, because it has been my dream to run a marathon. But, I know there will be other opportunities. I also know that when God closes a door, He always opens a window. And I am excited to see what is outside that window!

I know this post is a little sappy and I apologize for that. So, I am done with the sappiness:

TRIATHLON:

BRING IT ON BABY!!!!!!!!

Happy Friday and Happy Running!

Daily Kick In The Butt

2010-07-22T05:40:00.000-07:00

Every morning I get my Daily Kick In The Butt. No, this is not Superman kicking me out of bed. I am usually up way before him. It is generally me kicking HIM out of bed.

My Daily Kick In The Butt comes in the form of an e-mail from Runner's World Magazine. The subject line quite innocently says "RW Quote of the Day". When you open it it hits you with the fact that it is kicking you in the butt.

Anyways, I really liked today's quote:

"You have a choice. You can throw in the towel, or you can use it to wipe the sweat off your face."

This is apparently a Gatorade Ad.

It is very fitting for me right now as I make the decision whether or not to scrap the marathon training. It is very challenging to get my marathon miles in and effectively train for the triathlon.

I had originally entered into the triathlon training half-heartedly and really focused on the marathon. But, it turns out that I am enjoying the swimming and biking more than I thought I would.

Funny, I few months ago, I saw myself only as a runner. Now I see myself as a triathlete. Once our race is over, I don't want to give up any aspect of it. I want to keep on biking and swimming. This training has been empowering in a way I never thought possible. And while I still want to keep on running, I'm not sure that I want to make that my primary focus anymore.

Just re-reading those previous paragraphs is weird for me. I honestly never thought that I would feel this way. Or that I would write it down for many, many people to read...

I may just have to change the name of my blog...

But, back to the marathon training. It is taking a toll on my family and on my body. I am starting to show signs of fatigue. And my family is starting to show signs of being tired of fatigued mommy.

I do have a 15 miler planned for tomorrow morning, my longest run ever. Last week's was doable. I have run 13.1 miles before. I realize now that I am fully trained to run another half-marathon. I'm thinking that maybe this is where I want to stay. There are a few halfs coming up that I could run. I think I would be ok with that.

So, I guess that that I am asking for your advice. I would really like your opinion.

Yes, go ahead and kick me in the butt, per se. Is it time to throw in the towel or do I just wipe the sweat off my face and keep on running?

Oh, and if you want your own Daily Kick In The Butt, click on this link and sign up:

Runner's World Magazine

I hope you have a great day and Happy Running!

I Swam In the Lake! I Swam In the Lake!

2010-07-20T05:31:00.000-07:00

Ok....so I didn't swim ACROSS the lake like everyone else. (I remember a message being sent out saying we wouldn't be doing that on a brick, hmmm...). I'm not there yet, but, I did swim laps for the entire time in the beach area. And I didn't just stand there saying "don't splash me. don't splash me!" like last week. Luckily, one of the other women stayed with me to swim near the shore. The only obstacle we had were some larger boys/men who wouldn't move. I swam right through them.

When I went to bed last night, I thought a lot about this whole swimming in the lake thing and whether or not I am going to be able to do this. For some reason, I can totally see myself swimming with everyone else on race day. I think this is because I will feel safe. There will be lots of people, lifeguards and kayaks watching us. I know I can go the distance, I just need to feel safe. I didn't feel safe last night swimming across the lake without a spotter.

My goal is to swim again tonight, preferably at the beach. If it isn't raining, i am going to talk Superman into going to the triathlon beach with the kids and myself. I know myself, and I know that I need to face these fears on my own. I also sometimes train my best on my own. If it is raining, I'll just go to the pool.

We finished off our brick with an 8 mile bike ride and a 2.5 (MORE????) run.

It felt GREAT!!!!

Our whole group was there. I pulled up to the beach to see 11 very fit, very athletic-looking women preparing their transition areas. Sometimes I can't believe I am part of this group. Thank you for for letting me be part of the "Crazy Tri Group"!

We were definitely impressive last night. I don't think we had to worry about anyone stealing our stuff, I don't think anyone wanted to mess with us!

So, after a very fun brick, I went home and finished my run for the marathon training (only 2.5 more miles, don't feel bad for me), watched "Everyone Loves Raymond" repeats with the hubby and went to bed. To contemplate swimming. And then dream about swimming. All night long. It was sweet, good dreams, not bad. I will get there, I promise you ladies. I will not let you down!

My question to you: Do you dream about your training? Which part? I have also ran a half-marathon in MY dreams...

Have a great day and Happy Running!

The Bucket List

2010-07-18T07:09:00.000-07:00

We had some pretty strong storms move through last night, giving me lots of time in the house alone with 5 kids. Superman was in the cities golfing with my brother and my dad. Since the tornado sirens were going off, we ate supper in the basement and when it was finally safe to come up, the 12 year old and I played several games of speed (a card game). We also listened to "her" music on my computer. She is quite the card player and has quite the interesting taste in music. But, before too long, Hannah Montana was calling out to her and i was left alone with my cup of tea and my thoughts.

I figured this was the perfect time to do two things: update my vision board and write a bucket list.

I have kept a vision board for several years now and try to update it every couple of months. If you don't know what this is, let me explain. I get out a whole bunch of magazines and a scissors. I go through and cut out words and pictures that touch me and put them on a board that is is hanging in our office. My board happens to be magnetic, but yours could be poster paper or one that uses pins.

Last night I cut out things such as "Adventure is Afoot", "Unforgettable Moments" and "Rising to a physical challenge can make you FEEL POWERFUL in every way". At the top of my board is the word "God". He comes first and leads everything else I do in my life.

Then I sat down and wrote my first ever bucket list. I don't know why I have never done this before. things seem to just happen to me I guess and I just go with the flow. Writing things down that I want to do in my life felt very empowering. I wrote "run a marathon", "finish a triathlon", "climb mountains" and "ride my bike across the country". There were quite a few other things I won't bore you with, but the list is no where close to being complete.

On Friday, we went to the beach where our triathlon is held. I freaked out. my anxiety about swimming in the lake is very high. I am definitely going to have to spend more time at the beach. Some people can just jump in and swim. I need to take baby steps. It will take me a while to feel comfortable. Superman assured me that I won't drown. He said that physically I am capable of this, it is all mental. He is right.

I ran 7 miles yesterday. Note to self: do not make plans to run 7 miles with the fastest woman in town the day after you have ran 13 hard, fast miles. It was a painful run, but I felt good when it was done.

Question of the day: Do you have a vision Board or a bucket list? What is something you include in yours?

Happy Sunday and Happy Running!

Playing Golf In The Pool

2010-07-16T05:24:00.000-07:00

I was at the library this week, picking through the magazine exchange pile when I came across one I had never seen before, "Experience Life". It didn't take me long to realize that it was probably sponsored by Lifetime Fitness (Every page had an ad...) But, on the cover it said, "Pool Workouts You'll Love, Even If You're Not A Swimmer". Honestly, I was expecting a cheesy article like most of the women's magazines have on pool workouts. You know the ones: "Walk back and forth in the pool three times and lose 20 lbs in a week!" And such. Those articles really bug me.

So, I opened this magazine up to the pool workouts and was very pleasantly surprised! Speed workout for the pool! There were two of them, but we only tried one last night: Swim Golf.

To play Swim Golf, you swim two lengths of the pool at a moderate pace timing yourself and counting the strokes you take with both arms. You add the two numbers together to get your score. Repeat this seven times trying to lower your score by decreasing the number of strokes you take. The goal is to cover more distance per stroke.

It was a little challenging to count the strokes, concentrate on form (and breathe) all at the same time, but I really loved this game. Because I had never counted strokes before, it took a few times to get somewhat of an idea of how many I used per lap. But, then I was able to improve my score by reaching further with my fingertips. I could really feel the difference when I stayed focused!

I ran 13.1 miles this morning (yes, my plan said 13, but I was determined to get in that .1 to say I had done the distance of a half marathon!). I met up with the Cool Group for 5 of the miles and it made the time go by so much more quickly! It was an awesome run, ladies and the sunrise was beautiful.

This afternoon, a couple of us are heading up to check out the beach where we will be doing the triathlon. We are taking the kiddos and at least one hubby, so it should be fun. Today is supposed to be HOT, a perfect day for the beach!

I have two girls who want to do the kid's triathlon the day before ours. This leads me to the question of the day:

Have your kids ever done a kid's triathlon? How did you help them prepare?

And one more:

Do you do speedwork in the pool? Any good workouts?

TGIF and Happy Running!