Failure is a ROUGH word.

I found this quote today and it hit me like a brick wall:

"I can accept failure, but I can't accept not trying."

Michael Jordan (#23! HA! I just had to add that!)

The more I run and train for the Seattle Half the more I worry that I wont be able to meet my goal of sub 2 hours. IF I don't reach my goal will it be failure? I honestly don't think so, 13.1 miles is a long way after all. And how many people head out to run a half marathon the weekend after Thanksgiving? Actually a lot according to the number of people that were running last year, aaaaanyway... But in the scheme of things running a half marathon at all is an accomplishment. Why do I neeeed to meet my goal so bad?

I feel like I can't move on to marathon training until I have broken the 2 hour half mark. I know, crazy.

In the end, I am trying. I am working harder, training harder and training smarter than I have for any other race. Only once before have I given everything I had only to fail, truly fail in every sense of the word. And that time is still considered a failure. But this, this half marathon will not be considered a failure. After all there is always another half, another race...another chance. For now I will give it my all and continue to train on these hills and shoot for a sub 2 hour half marathon on the toughest course I have ever run.

I will leave you all with this: "Ability is what you are capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it."- Lou Holtz

May you all find the Motivation and Attitude to reach your greatest Ability!

Today I am grateful for:

A beautiful drive along the water.

The Biggest Loser.

Warm and cozy PJ's.

Chore Charts that work like a charm for my 4 year old.

Run Happy Peeps!

Hills HURT.

There is no way around it, hills are painful. Simply, they hurt. Today on my 7 mile run I was pulled like a magnet to 30th street, the spawn of The Hill of Death. I set out with no route planned, just 7 miles on the Garmin, my MP3 player (not to be confused with my dead iPod), sunshine, and my thoughts. I ran and found myself running down 30th. The entire way down I was thinking “What goes down must come back up”. There is no way to get back home without running up a sick hill. At the end of the hill I turned to run on the (flat) path next to the water, but it is a popular place for walkers and often crowded and annoying, not to mention I would have ended up running up The Hill of Death to get to the street that leads back home. So I turned around and ran back up 30th, The Spawn of 36th. I did pretty well but it killed my time and my splits.

Stats for this run:
Mile 1: 8:45
Mile 2: 8:53
Mile 3: 8:41 (Elevation lost 766 ft to find myself 10 feet above sea level)
Mile 4: 12:10 (Ugh, elevation gained 760 feet)
Mile 5: 11:28 (recovering and feeling sorry for myself)
Mile 6: 9:49 (Hello 9 minute mile…)
Mile 7: 9:07 (that’s close to more like it)

I take it as a good sign that my times dropped after I recovered from the hill. No matter how much I hate hills, or how much they hurt, they are what I need right now. Seattle half is merciless, unforgiving and full of HILLS.

Now, for the hard part.

Accountability.

What happened to my mileage last week? 7.5 miles total. THAT my friends is terrible. Unacceptable. Inexcusable. I have no excuse. I skipped my 3 mile run on Friday, not sure why. And my long run today should have been counted for last weeks total but I do my weekly mileage Sunday to Saturday. I may reconsider and log my miles from Monday to Sunday. Anyway, for some reason the plan had this past week as a low mileage week. I have to trust plan and hope it will have me ready for Seattle in only 9 weeks! 9 weeks? NINE weeks...

Today I am grateful for:
Teriyaki
Wild blackberries
Cool tents in the living room for my Little Buddy to take a nap in.
My Wok, have I been openly grateful for that yet? Either way it is AWESOME!
All my AMAZING bloggy followers!

Runny Happy friends!

I'm SO HUNGRY.

Lately I have been so hungry! I know it is the running and the increased weight lifting but I just feel SO hungry all the time. And suprisingly, it is my rest days that are the hardest and I feel the most hungry. What is up with that!? I am trying to eat things that are good for me. My sugar challenge kind of fell off the cliff BUT I am super proud to admit that I am doing so much better and unofficially I have been cutting back on sweets. Just this week my husband was surprised that there was some Tuberlone that has been in the cabinet for about 3 or 4 weeks, I haven't eaten it. There is ice cream in the freezer left over from my son's birthday party (in early August). Now I am not saying that I don't eat anything with sugar or chocolate, that would be a lie. Simply I have cut back and it is getting easier. The challenge is finding snacks that make me feel full and are good for me but not gross.

What are some things you do when you are starving througout the day?

Today I am grateful for:
FRIDAY!!
Toothpaste (hey it is the simple things in life, right?)
Technology!
An awesome giveaway over at Fit This, Girl for her 100th celbration! Head over for your chance to win a sweet piece of jewelry (click anywhere on the sentence)!

Run Happy Peeps!!

Who is having an ENDURANCE give away?

Today’s schedule called for interval training on the track: 6 x 400m at 5K pace. So my goal was to keep my fast quarters below 2:00.00. Starting out was tough and I was sore from yesterdays run but once I got going there was no turning back. I am seeing too much improvement in my times to NOT follow through with this training routine.

Stats for today:

½ mile warm up: 4.43.23

Lap 1: 1:36.96
Lap 2: 2:42.46
Lap 3: 1:39.79
Lap 4: 2:39.28
Lap 5: 1:50.87
Lap 6: 2:42.66
Lap 7: 1:49.83
Lap 8: 3:46.58
Lap 9: 1:45.53
Lap 10: 3:00.34
Lap 11: 1:45.13
Lap 12: 3:31.68

½ mile cool down

Total: 4 miles

I know that my 5K pace is not a 6:30 (ish)/mile pace and ideally I would shoot for an 8 min pace which means I should be doing my quarters at 2 min per lap. So WHY do I kill myself just to get those faster splits? I think know it is in the hopes of improving my overall mile times. I am seeing my times fall below 9 min/mile BUT I am not sure how long I can sustain the pace. Can you say ENDURANCE? I neeeed it! So if any of you see on any blogs that someone is having an endurance give away LET ME KNOW! :)

Today I am grateful for:
Friends at the park.
Airline tickets for November for a sweet multi city West Coast vaca!!
Jeans that are fitting a little bit looser.
A chance to win some awesome Thorlo socks from Tall Mom on the Run!! Head over there for your chance to win too!!! (click anywhere on this sentence)


Run Happy folks!

Bye-Bye 9 minute miles

Today was a nice and easy 3.5 miles. I decided to give The Hill of Death another go. So I drove to my starting point. My initial plan was to run the hill first and finish with a flat three miles. But once I got there I turned left instead of right, sending me on the flat three mile route first. Oops. So I spent three miles thinking about that hill, imagining me running up that hill, picturing me crawling up that hill… My first mile was decent: 8:58.22. I spent at least 15 seconds trying to cross the street frogger style. My second mile was awesome: 8:25.71. I looked at my Garmin and could not believe it! My third mile was respectable: 8:44.07. I purposely slowed a little bit because I knew I would want some energy for the hill, it didn’t help. I turned and headed up the big hill. I made it ¼ of a mile before stopping to catch my breath. Did I mention it was pretty hot here today? The sun was beating down on me and I had a quarter of a mile straight up to go. So I started up again. I got a few “Are you CRAZY?” looks from people driving up and down the hill and I gave them the “Yes, completely INSANE, don’t mess with me look” in return. It was not pretty, it was not fun. But it IS done. One of these days I will run the entire hill all the way to the top (I didn’t run all the way up today) without stopping.

It is CLEAR as DAY to me that I need more hill work, not only incorporated in my daily runs but in my interval training. So I am on the lookout for a good hill that is about a quarter of a mile long so that I can do some hill work. For now I am excited to be leaving my days as a 9 min/mile runner behind! My goal of a sub 2 hour half is within site!!!!

Today I am grateful for:
Beautiful weather.
Confidence in my running!
Improved conditioning and times!

Pre school.


Run Happy!

Not Today!

This is why I named my blog 5 Miles 2 Empty:

I HATE buying gas, and it seems like I am always almost out of it. Today I made plans to meet up with AN the RB for a 6 mile run on 5 Mile(s of hills) Drive. I called her around 3 o'clock and practically twisted her arm over the phone, and maybe drug her out of her afternoon nap. Neither of us really felt like going for a run, it has been one of those lazy days. But she knew that if she didn't come along I most likely would not have made it out. What a trooper! What a gal! What a friend! What a running buddy!!! She came along! We met up and started out. It was painful. It was uphill. We both were achy, tired and full of complaints. We had pretty much decided to do like one mile and come back tomorrow for our 6. But by the time we got to the top of that stupid hill we had warmed up and loosened up a bit and continued on. We are such good running buddies. When ones slacks the other pushes and it just works.

We ran the 5 Mile Drive and I complained nearly the entire way about stupid cars that think it is ok to drive 50 MPH on a scenic drive. REALLY? Come on people, if you are in a hurry then just don't come. Whatever. That is my serious pet peeve: People who drive too fast around pedestrians. Get a life. Aaanyway...We saw 17, yes I said 17, raccoons on the side of the road, in one pack! It was like a convention or something! We feared for our lives. Thank goodness neither of us were wearing anything shiny or had a snack on us or we could have been raccoon dinner!

By the time we rounded the corner and caught sight of our cars we were nearing 4.75 miles. I had decided to stop and get in my car and be happy with 4.75. AN the RB also opted to end her run. Then I had a change of heart. My training this week has been pretty good, my times are improving and there HAS to be a good reason for this 6 mile run piggy backing my 3 Mile Pace run. I could not waste this week of training, 1.25 more miles it is. So I got a drink and headed back out to do the last of my run. It went pretty well and I finished my last mile in 9.03. Not too shabby with the hills and coming off of 5 miles.

So, today was not a 5 Miles 2 Empty day!

What fills your tank?

What keeps you motivated to go just one more mile?

Today I am grateful:

For a fun time at the dog park.
For my awesome running buddy (who is SO much more than that) who

keeps me going and came into my life for a reason. :)
Warm showers.

New razors.

Sweat pants!

Run Happy!!

Run for the Dogs

Today’s 3 mile pace run was uneventful. That is good when compared to an eventful run. On Wednesday AN the RB met me for an easy 3 mile run. Since my half training plan has me doing pretty short runs (3 miles) we decided we could bring the dogs along. If you remember last time I took Lazy Dog for a 3 mile run I was dragging him by the end, his paw started bleeding, and he was out (on a pillow; read about it HERE) for the rest of the day. I am happy to say I am slowly getting Lazy Dog back into shape. Anyway, AN the RB has a puppy (almost 1 year old) black lab that we can call Happy Puppy. She accompanies AN the RB often on runs so this was nothing new to her, but she hasn’t run with Lazy Dog for quite some time.

So we set out on our 3 mile run, the dogs were crazy and tangled in the leases for the first 10 minutes so we let them get it out of their systems before we started. Finally, we were off. Lazy Dog was leading the way, like he thinks he is the head honcho or something, typical German Shepherd. Around mile 1.25 we saw another Crazy Dog on the other side of a fairly busy street. It all happened so fast but that Crazy Dog just KNEW he HAD to come and play with Lazy Dog and Happy Puppy. He tore out across that busy street and tires screeched and yelps were heard! That poor Crazy Dog was hit by a pickup! Thank goodness the truck didn’t squish him with the tires, just hit him with the bumper and made a loud thud. Crazy Dog got up and ran to his back yard. It was quite a fiasco. AN the RB tied up Happy Puppy and ran to check on Crazy Dog. I stayed on the other side of the street for a few minutes, Lazy Dog can be kind of unpredictable under stress (i.e. he may eat someone). Turns out the dog seemed to be ok, the owner reassured the driver (who had a tiny new born baby with her) that it was not her fault and the gate was left open. It was awful. I hate seeing that sort of thing. Hopefully Crazy Dog is ok.

We continued on our run. We ran through a part of town that I haven’t ran through very often, maybe three times before. So we have decided for our next long run we should explore that area again. There were so many pretty houses, yards, and flowers. Before we knew it my Garmin yelled at us to tell us we were done. So we walked. We walked .96 miles home. I don’t know why we didn’t run home but I think it was because I was again dragging Lazy Dog.

Thursday was a rest day, which means I taught water aerobics and did yoga. I can really tell a difference in my flexibility since starting up with yoga again and spending more time stretching in general. Today was a 3 mile pace run which means I was supposed to run 3 miles at the pace I will be running my half marathon (ideally).

Stats for todays run:
Mile 1: 8:25.76
Mile 2: 8:20.66
Mile 3: 9:02.12 (Ooops, what happend here?)

Oh well, this is a good start, now if I can just hold that 8:20 pace for 13.1 miles I will have my sub 2:00 half for sure! I can certainly tell the tempo runs and interval training are helping!! I will press onward!

Today I am grateful for:
Running!
The weekend!
Sushi
Indian Summer!

An awesome giveaway over at Busy Running Mama! Click HERE to enter to win!! I love a chance for free stuff!!!!

Run Happy!

Tempo Jog...er Run.

Tuesday I did my 30 min tempo run. I updated my facebook status to read: Amanda is heading out for a tempo run. And one of my not-so-much-of-a-runner friends thought I said: Amanda is heading out for a tampon run. Well, not so much but it gave me a good laugh.

I have a really hard time doing tempo runs on the streets because of traffic and stop lights. I guess I could try it on a track…but I prefer to save the track for my interval training. So I do tempo runs on the treadmill so that I can control my speed and actually know how much I am speeding up and when I can slow down.

Yesterday I was reading an entry over at Frayed Laces (HERE) where she had a conversation with her coach. Coach? I NEED a coach. Her conversation got me to thinking, how many of my miles are “junk miles”? I need to really focus on my tempos, intervals, hills, and pace runs. I find myself finishing my half marathons (6 of them) all within the same time frame, actually within 2 minutes (except for the Seattle Half which I don’t really want to talk about right now but you can read my rant HERE).

So something has to change. I have to push myself a little bit harder, run a little bit faster. This reminds me of a convo I had with AN the RB a few weeks ago. We were talking about running and I told her I think we might just be joggers. Oooo, those are fighting words. But we don’t run fast. We jog. Then as we were discussing this two girls flew, and I mean flew by us. THEY were running. And they were running 5 Mile Drive so they were at least RUNNING 5 miles, maybe more. Their pace was fast, their strides long, their bodies sweaty. We were sweaty too, and nearing mile 8 but still…jogging. So how do you get over that hump and go from jogging to running? I have emailed my old cross country coach in hopes that she will be my Virtual Running Advisor. I can’t wait to hear back from her! In the mean time, I am going to work on running.

Today I am grateful:
That my mole was “a plain ‘ole mole”.
That AN the RB is on her way over for a RUN.
It is hump day!!!!!
For my new chop sticks from Japan! Thanks Hub!


Run Happy everyone!

Treadmill + Mirror = Let’s just say it hurts to watch.

Today I did my easy 3 mile run on the treadmill at the Y. I hate running in front of a mirror. It is just painful to watch. My iPod is still dead (I am 99.9% certain it will not be revived this time around) so I was running with nothing, old school style. There were two ladies gossiping it up next to me, too bad I was totally uninterested in the latest Y gossip, that could have helped entertain me. Then there was the super fit chick that walked by, like 5 times and was not sweaty at all. How she got to be super fit walking around the gym and not working out I have idea, but I would love to be in the secret. Then the poor lady who kept dropping her iPod, I swear it flew off the back of her treadmill at least three times, hitting a poor old lady in the foot once. It is quite amusing to watch all that goes on at the gym when I am not wrapped up in my own brain with music blaring out my ear drums.

When I wasn’t scanning the room behind me via the huge wall of mirrors in front of me I was watching my stride and my leg action. I sometimes get dizzy watching myself run, left foot, right foot, left foot, right foot…over and over again. It is almost hypnotizing. But today I noticed what the dude at the running store pointed out, my right foot pronates but corrects itself before it comes back down to strike the ground. So it would kind of come up and kick out to the outside then correct and straighten out and hit the ground in a neutral position. I watched this for quite some time and compared it to my seemingly normal gate of the left foot. Normal except for the fact that it looks like my left leg could come unattached at any moment and fall to the floor like an unfortunate Barbie leg. So my left hip looks strange when I run and I can’t quite explain it. I was told about a year ago that I have pretty weak muscles in my hips and I need to strengthen them, which I have tried to do. But to put it simply, it hurt me watch myself run. That can’t be a good sign. I think I will stick with the treadmill in the back of the room so I can’t watch myself. At least that way I won’t know how bad it is.

Today I am grateful for:
A delicious dinner made by me. :)
A quiet evening.
Spiderman Band-Aids
Cool presents from foreign countries.

Bank to Bay 1K

Today was my Little Running Buddy's big race, Bank To Bay 1K!! We began the day early and headed downtown to pick up his bib and t-shirt around 8 AM. We had plenty of time to get his bib pinned on and the Garmin set up, which he was super excited to wear! I had it programmed for .62 of a mile: 1K! I tried to put the heart rate monitor on him but he is just too skinny and I couldn't get it to stay.

They started the 6 year olds and up first followed by the 5 and under wave. My Little Buddy was pretty nervous, it was really cute. He kept asking if we were going to be running with him. The big ole bull horn sounded and my Little Buddy was OFF! He took off so fast I couldn't keep up! I was swerving and weaving in and out of kids left and right! They were like puppies! All under my feet! And none of them could run a straight line to save thier life. It is really hard running with 100 kids all under 3.5 feet tall! I was a good 25 feet behind my Little Buddy but The Hubs was on his tail. I finally caught up just in time for him to slow his pace a bit. At the halfway mark where we turned around he got passed by a girl with her mom and a man yelled out, "don't let her beat you!" and my Little Buddy was off again! He held either my hand or The Hubs hand for the next 200 yards until we saw the finish. I gave him some encouragement and told him to finish strong. He took off again! The little booger had been holding out for the finish! He ran so hard and crossed that finish line! They gave him his Medal and he posed for some silly pictures. In all it was a blast and I know he had fun too, and in the end that is all that matters.

Race Stats:
1K: 7:41
1/4 mile splits: 4:37, 2:49

For some reason the Garmin logged this as .52 of a mile, not quite 1K. Not sure if this is due to Garmin Grimlins or the course is not USATF Certified Course. I may have to speak with the Race Director about this.

This is my Little Buddy at the finish! He didn't get a medal but a strange laminated piece of paper. Oh well, he thought it was pretty cool nonetheless.

So check out the Garmin Stats here:
Garmin Connect - Activity Details for Untitled

Shared via AddThis

I am so proud of my Little Running Buddy!

Today I am grateful:

for the beautiful day of sun!

that my Little Running Buddy had a great race today!

for a great date-night with The Hubs last night!

A sweet 100th post giveaway over at Run Faster Mommy! Head over and check it out!

Run Happy!

My New Kicks!

YaY!

I got some new kicks today!!! Here they are...

I tried on about 4 different shoes and this was the only shoe that really felt good. It is hard to tell in the store but I took a jog around inside and down the corridor to see how they felt. I had no heel pain and no shin pain (which I have been noticing a little bit lately). When I tried on a new pair of my old style (the shoe below) I had pain in my heel and a tiny inkling of pain in my shin. I think it is so strange how much difference a good shoe can make.

These are my old shoes. They actually don't look half bad. It is silly but I really try to keep my shoes looking clean. I know I have washed these a couple of times but still...they have lost their mojo and it is time for some new ones. The aches and pains are a tell tale sign that the shoe is beginning to break down, plus I am not in LOVE with the shoe. It was time to move on. I quit while the quitting was good.

So here are my last three pairs of shoes:

Brooks on the right, Adidas back middle, and the new KICKS, Saucony! I have had this brand before but don't really remember how they treated me. We will see! And if they are not perfect I will keep searching for that shoe that will make me run like the wind, lead me to VICTORY! Give me that sub 2 hour half! And carry me weightlessly to the marathon finish! Has anyone found that shoe yet?

Today I am grateful:

For the weekend with my fam!

My new kicks!

A quiet evening!

That The Hubs is home for a few extra days!!

Run Happy Everyone!

The Strangest Running Injury to Date...

I took Tuesday off as a rest day. I was super sore after Monday’s race. I am sure it had everything to do with not warming up properly then not stretching or cooling down properly afterwards followed by an hour car ride. Needless to say my calves are just today not-so-sore. My feet have been pretty sore too. That is a first for me. If you remember my Ode To My Feet I mentioned that they never get sore (I completely jinxed myself with that post). I think it is time for new shoes. My husband was quick to remind me that with the miles I put in I would need new shoes about every 2 months. I think it is more like every 10 weeks or so IF I run 30 mile weeks (which I do not consistently do). But nonetheless I do believe it is time for new shoes.

BUT the strangest running injury to date has nothing to do with calves or feet. It is a mole. That is right. A mole. I told you it was strange. Tuesday evening I was getting ready for a bed when I felt something irritated on my back. Thankfully The Hubs is home so he checked it out for me. It was a mole, or it used to be a mole. Ick. My bra had literally rubbed it nearly away! Ugh. I can’t handle that. It was just icky. So Wednesday morning I promptly made a Dr. apt to get it checked out. I spend too much time in the sun to not worry about a creepy mole.

I went to my Dr. appointment Wednesday afternoon and had to fill out a questionnaire mostly about feelings of depression or wanting to hurt myself, loss of interest in things I used to love (military health care here people…they have to check). All was good until I got to the question asking, “Have you fallen in the last three months?” Are you kidding me? Do I HAVE to answer this? Really do I need to be any more humiliated? Fine. YES. The nurse had a good time with that when I explained how I ate pavement just about 2.5 weeks ago.

Anyway, back to the moley. The Dr. examined it. Then mentioned a mark across my back that looked like something had been rubbing it. I mentioned it could have been my sports bra, he said No. Could it have been my heart rate monitor? No. Whatever, I am 99.99% sure it was my bra, this Dr. doesn’t quite understand 13.1 miles in rain with no Body Glide. I forgive him, I know what caused it. The mole is going to be ok but I am having a different one taken off today. Gross. TMI? I kind of wish they would take the irritated one off too but he said it looked fine, I have no idea how it LOOKED FINE, it was practically rubbed off. But that is my story of the strangest running injury ever.

So this week I have to get new running shoes and a new sports bra. Shopping!

Today I am Grateful for:
Removing a mole.
My legs and that they are feeling rested and back to normal.
My new retainer.
Lunch and leftover Pesto Pasta and Chicken!

a chance to win a super cute piece of Jewelry from Lift Your Soul! Check out Mel's giveaway by clicking HERE!

Run Happy!

Super Jock n Jill Half Marathon

You know how sometimes you do a race and you tell yourself that you would love to do it again next year? Well that was the Super Jock n Jill half for me. It has been on my sidebar as an upcoming race I want to do…But I never registered, until the morning of that is. What a deal! I got there and they had run out of shirts so they lowered the registration cost to $25! Cheapest race EVER! Plus my dresser is overflowing with shirts; I don’t need any more for a while.

I got registered at around 8:15 AM and the start time was 9 AM. So I wandered around a bit with The Hubs, my Little Buddy, and Lazy Dog. The Hubs tried to get me to warm up a bit but I opted out of that. I told him I would use my first mile as a warm up. Dumb choice. It was kind of chilly and wet and I just wanted to stand under the tree and stay dry.

The time came to head to the start, I got a quick pre race picture snapped and headed to my spot. I forgot that they did this last year too, but it is a gun start, meaning that there is no chip start, only chip finish. So everyone’s time begins when they fire the gun and if it takes you 30 seconds to start then that 30 seconds is in your total time. They had nice little pace signs where people were asked to line up according to their pace. I took my spot right in between the 8 and 9 minute signs. They were yelling out times as we crossed the start: it only took me 30 seconds.
We were off!! It was a bit crowed but not too bad. I enjoyed the start and seeing all the people running! About a mile and a quarter into the race I saw a familiar Jeep, with a familiar boy, husband and dog hanging out the window! YEAH!! My family! I love it!!! They cheered me on as I waved and yelled hi! We were mixed in with the people who were also running the 4.2 mile race so it was hard to tell who was running which race until they veered off to the right at about the two mile mark. Not many veered. I was hoping that everyone in front of me would make that turn leaving ME to be the leader! But that did not happen and I carried on.

This was about the time I decided to take a look at the trusty Coach Garmin. UGH. I forgot to change my laps to miles from quarters. So every quarter mile my watch would tell me just how fast I ran that .25 of a mile. So much for mile splits, I began pacing myself by the quarter mile. This actually ended up being kind of fun and will be useful for training.

Slowest quarter: #34 (8.5 miles) 2 min 49 seconds.
Fasted quarter: #2 (.25 miles) 2 min 2 seconds

So I tried to keep my quarters between 2:15 and 2:45 to make for 9:45 min/mile at the slowest.
When I hit mile 4 I kind of grumbled to myself. IF I had only done the 4.2 miles I would be almost done by now. But I carried on. This course is kind of funny because the middle of it is a serous pretzel. Miles 6-10 are all twisted in together. It is quite a site! People are coming and going on both sides of you! You just follow the signs and the people! Around mile 5.75 I am sad to say I saw the winning male blow by. And I kid you not he was flying! He won with a 5 min pace at 1:05.52. It was amazing! And the winning female ran a 6 min pace at 1:17.27.

Around mile 8 my iPod died. I can’t say I am surprised, I did wash it in the washing machine after all. It died and I didn’t have the energy to mess with it. I just ran and had to listen to all the chatting around me. So and so’s diet, and such and such said blah blah blah and can you believe ABC did XYZ to you know who!? Who cares!!! Shut up and run! I like to talk when I run too, but I didn’t have AN the RB with me this time. Then there was the lady with ANGRY GARMIN GRIMLINS! Her watch would not stop beeping and yelling at her. I sped up to get away from her, she sped up because her watch was yelling at her…I slowed down to get away from the horrible clatter. I don’t know how she could stand it! I would have thrown myself in the river! She went on and got far enough ahead and I sped back up a bit. But around mile 10 I started to get passed. A lot. I guess I was tired. But people were passing me, people in my age group (which was huge by the way! 30-39! That is a big age group!). It was annoying and I decided I needed to work on my endurance. However you do that.

At about 12.75 miles I saw my boys again. I waved wildly and was feeling pretty good! The finish was oh so close! My dog chased me down and tried to finish the race with me but he was caught by the hubs. Probably not a good idea to finish a race with my 110 pound German shepherd, off leash. Some people frown on that.

I was able to finish strong, despite red shirt girl trying to run me into a pole. I slowed to miss the pole then passed her. They even called my name as I crossed the line. The poor guy who was cutting timing chips asked he could cut mine off, I said “Sure, right here” and made the gesture of a knife cutting my throat. The kid didn’t get it but the crowd did. They laughed and so did I. He cut the chip off my shoe and looked at me like I was crazy. Eh, maybe so. But I think I was thirsty and oxygen deprived.

During this race I saw the oldest man ever running. I wanted to just slow down and jog with him and find out his story. He was wearing one red sock and one blue sock and American flag shorts and matching shirt. It was awesome. I saw a mom pushing her nearly grown son with cerebral palsy in a running stroller. I will never ever complain about pushing my 36 pound 4 year old again. It brought tears to my eyes to see the joy in this boy’s face as he got to do the race. It made me think of the story I read about the father who did an entire Iron Man with his son. Check out the story here! You won’t be sorry! Isn’t it amazing what people will do? I find that during these races I really get to evaluate my life and where I am and what I take for granted and what I want to do. I want to do something great. I want to inspire people like this mother inspires me, like the old man running and loving every minute of it, like the old man wearing his Pikes Peak Summit run shirt, like the 8 year old who ran the entire half, like the veteran who is an amputee and ran the half with his cool leg thing, like all the people out there who are working against all odds to prove that it can be done.

In all this was a good run, not my best and not my worst. The official results have me at 2:05.10 but my Garmin had me at 2.04:13. Either way, I am happy with it. I am pretty sore today. More sore after this half than I have been in a long time. So today was a rest day and I am starting back up tomorrow. I have a half marathon to train for!!! :) And will Iever get a sub 2? We will see!

Now here is the Garmin link to the race!
Garmin Connect - Activity Details for Super Jock n Jill Half Marathon

Shared via AddThis


Today I am grateful:
for a wonderful weekend with the fam
for the sunshine
for my Garmin

Today's Half Marathon!

What better way begin training for a half than to run a half?

Last night at around 8:30 I made the decision to do the Super Jock n Jill race (I had been on the fence about this one for quite some time). I was still undecided as to whether I would do the 4.2 mile run or the half marathon. I decided I would decide when I got there for the day of race registration. Not many races offer the race day registration. So I woke up this morning feeling good and lI actually felt ike running the half. I got dressed and ate my toast and apple and updated my facebook status to say something about running a half marathon today (locked into it now for sure!). We hit the road at 7 AM, the whole fam and my friend Jess. As we drove the rain seemed to come down harder and my idea of a half marathon was quickly changing to thoughts about the 4.2 mile run. I could be done in 35 min! That was starting to sound pretty good!

When we got to the race start I headed to the registration table. I had my check ready and was happy to find that they had run out of race shirts so I could actually do the 4.2 mile race (which I had changed my mind and decided to do) for $20 OR the half for $25!!! WHAT?!? A half marathon for 25 BUCKS? I am SO in! Ugh, changed my mind for the last time, wrote out my $25 check and pinned on my bib. Done. Half Marathon it will be.

Here is me ready to start. It was about 58 degrees with a slight rain, not a deluge thank goodness!!

Here is me, Jess, and my little buddy after the race. I didn't have the energy to lift him up.

There were no action shots taken but here is another one of me after the race. Still smiling, that is a good sign. Although the smile looks a little forced. :)

You will have check back for a full race report later!

Today I am grateful for:

a good run for $25!

spending time with my family and actually having The Hubs there to cheer me on!

spending the rest of the day lazy and relaxing!

Pizza for dinner!!!!!!

Run Happy!

DEATH to EAR BUDS!

**** UPDATE****
I DID IT!
30 MILES FOR THE WEEK: DONE AND DONE!


I am so thrilled that I did it!

Can I just say, I LOATHE, I HATE, I DESPISE my ear buds? I spent 78% of my energy during today's run on putting my ear buds back in my ears, adjusting them, and messing around with them. One of the things I love about winter running is my awesome ear warmers because they hold my headphones in my ears. I don't know for sure but maybe I have unusually small ear canals? Or unusually sweaty ears? Am I the only one with this ridiculous problem? Does anyone have ear phones that they absolutely love? I am willing to try anything, even the 80's style boom box on my shoulder would be better than what I went through today! My ear buds are so bad they are dead to me.

Today I am grateful:
for a fun picnic on the Sound with my little family!
for a napping little boy so I can blog!
that I accomplished my 30 Mile Challenge!
THAT MY JOB SEARCH IS OVER!!! YIPEE!

Run Happy Everyone! And THANK YOU FOR ALL THE MOTIVATION THIS WEEK!
You are all the BEST!

30 Mile Challenge: Will I make it?

Final day of the 30 mile challenge!

I have 5.25 miles to go!



Today I am grateful:
for some great family time!
breakfast in bed!

that my iPod has been revived after I washed it in the washer!

Ah...Sweet Running Rest Day.

So today was a much needed Running Rest Day. The hubs got in late last night and by the time we got in bed it was around 2 A.M. Then it was up at 6:30 to get the day going. I hit up the YMCA for my usual Thursday morning water aerobics class then it was off to yoga. I was worried about the yoga today, and it did hurt at times. My palm is still quite sore and swollen but being hurt is not an option anymore…

Tomorrow is a new day…I still have 8.25 miles to reach my 30 mile goal this week!

Today I am grateful:
That the hubs is home, safe and sound with a new outlook on life!
For certain circumstances that I believe will work out for the better, WAY better!
For all the awesomeness surrounding me every day! It rarely gets better than this!

Run Happy!

What Kind of Runner am I?

Today I met up with AN the RB for an easy run. Well easy for me. She decided to do 9.5 and I elected to meet up with her to do the last 3.75 with her. She came hauling down the hill to our meeting spot with her arms flailing, like she was flagging for help. It was funny. But not as funny as the woman who was dancing and jogging at the same time. Oh trust me, it is possible. She even stopped to do the leg out to the side, slowwwwwllly toe-drag it back to center, spin, wave arms, shrug shoulders, cock head to the side, spin, repeat…I kid you not. I could NOT make this stuff up! She was oblivious to anyone around her. She was lip singing like no other! It was amazing! I kind of envy people who have not a care in the world. We were snickering about her for a good quarter mile, and then we met her again on our return to the ending spot. She had not slowed a beat and was still dance-jogging.

So I have crossed paths with the Beauty Runner and the Dance Jogger...wonder what kind of runner I am?

I decided to take my dog with me since it was going to be an easy jog. He is quite lazy and doesn’t get out much to run. As usual by the third mile he was dragging behind. Poor guy. When we got back to the car he even had a bloody paw pad. I am such a bad doggy mom!

But at least I saw to it he had a pillow to rest on!

I am even closer to my 30 mile challenge goal! I will definitely make it.

I am grateful:
That the hubs will be home in about an hour!
That I had a nice run.
That I got to have a long talk with an old friend!! I love catching up! It has been too long Annie Baby!
For a clean house.

Run Happy!

Run in the Mist...

not to be confused with We Run in the Sun. Hello September. I have been expecting you.

Today I hit the road with AN the RB (thank God!) for an easy 4 miles. (I am over half way to meeting my 30 mile challenge!) I dropped my little buddy off at preschool and headed to the YMCA for the amazing route AN the RB has ran a few times, easy and all downhill. Ahem…how can it be all downhill if it is a loop starting and stopping at the same place you ask? Well, I don’t think it is possible. It was not all downhill (sorry to ruin the route for you AN the RB but it had some hillage sista). Either way, I need the hill work and it was nothing compared to yesterdays run up 36th street. It was a good route and we will definitely be hitting it up again!

Some highlights from the run:

-The blackberry bush that got it’s thorns tangled in my hair and almost ripped my head off.
-The very strange old man on a reclining tricycle, on the sidewalk, wearing the craziest helmet and creepiest smile I have ever seen.
-AN the RB trying to convince me to run the Super Jock n Jill Half Marathon on Monday (probably will…) because her “boy friend” will only run if I do (what in the world? No pressure now!!!!)
-The discussion about my legs looking out of proportion (and tree stumpish) with my upper body and how boob implants could even that out. Or I should just not lift weights so much with my legs. Tough choice here…
-The three women who looked as if they were beauty jogging: makeup, fresh faces, great hair, no sweat, and doing what we used to refer as the Air Force Shuffle (i.e. not really running at all). We could have SO taken them.
-My mini mental breakdown when I had to walk for about 20 seconds to take off my sweat shirt (who am I kidding, I was tired).
-The awesome running weather, light mist and around 59 degrees! The best running weather EVER!

And now, 10 things you use your palm for and probably never even realized (if you wonder why my palm hurts click HERE):

-washing your hair
-crushing garlic
-DRIVING
-washing your face with face scrub
-shaving your legs
-getting out of a swimming pool
-holding your child’s hand
-lifting weights
-closing the drinky thing on a water bottle
-PUTTING HAIR IN A PONY TAIL!

My palm is still bruised and hurts pretty bad but the wound is healing slowly. I hope to maybe hit up yoga on Thursday! I’ll keep you posted on that one.

Today I am grateful for:
-A good 4 mile run with AN the RB.
-Less leg pain than was anticipated after yesterday's run.
-The hubs should hopefully be home tomorrow night!!
-My new Wok that will make for some yummy meals!

Ok every one, run happy!!!!