Running Wogging & the Glass Half Full

Sunday Sunrise was breathtaking Our walk through the park Found us stopping To soak in the beauty And try our hand at capturing it- That was at 6:30-am At 3:00pm we were back NMRunnerGirl and her friend Hilary My sis-in-law and her daughter Kailey (5) I had Molly (4) in tow too! I just signed the family up for a fun run in February If you are from our neck of the woods (farmington, NM) Sign up! (it's free!!!!) Going to try to get the kiddos out To log a few miles So the Fun Run is just that when it gets here. Molly is a sprinter Then a 'stopper' It's sooo funny to see her All out 'gun it' Then down-right refuse to move another step. Funny, as in, now that it's Monday Yesterday, not so much I've had a bit of a nagging back And yesterday the back added a hip ache Pesky- these aches can be Exacerbated by stopping and starting Yes I didn't find as much joy in the exercise I kept trying to '

Change is good Keeps you on your toes Keeps you fresh Flexibility is a life skill My big change- Long run switch From Saturday to Friday Why? Saturday runs were becoming Hit and miss Both intensity & mileage-wise Saturday runs Were interfering with family time Fridays will serve better For training Although, as I type this I am reminded the kids Have next Friday off Arggggg! More flexibility planning... But I digress- Friday had me staring 14 miles in the face I've been crazy excited for the upcoming weeks of long runs I keep catching myself Randomly telling unsuspecting bystanders "My next few weeks of long run miles are 12, 14, 12, 13, 14!!!!! Even found myself Blurting mileage to hubby Who gently told me I'd already told him- THREE times already I text blast friends to see if Anyone cares to join in the fun Seems everyone is hooked up But Tennille has a small window Before a practice rehearsal for her Mozart concer

Ran 4 miles Thursday Almost didn't Had that inner fight Having only an hour What to do? Grocery store run? Load of laundry? Log some miles? But it was lovely outside Miles won I was in a rush No time to gear up You know The important stuff- Like Pig tails Headphones And taking off this silly bracelet It takes forever to put on.... Didn't want to take the time to take it off As you can see by the photo- That wasn't the best idea It didn't last long Now I'm running with that crazy thing in my hand The run had me thinking A million things Tried to focus myself by taking a new road Ahh the trickery Made me smile To think I'd pulled a fast one On my Psyche Oh the mind- and it's tricks it plays Felt good to get him at his own game for once. 4 miles done. Sans headphones Pig tails Clunking around with my bling. Think I could do just about anything today~                                  

Tuesday found me back on the treadmill I'm resigned to the fact that At least once a week You'll find me here. Today's running horiscope Brought to you by Brad Hudson Thankfully says "Easy 5" Ahhhh the guilty pleasure I pick my machine Rev up the old engine And we're off Chugging right along When it hits me I'm burning up About to die Panic attack Must de-layer OK For those of you who don't know me I NEVER go sleevless EVER I'm on the solid side of fluffy But today I was about to die from heat exhaustion Do I dare de-layer a shirt? No worries- I wear 2-3 tank tops under - And not the strappy kind either I dare- And now I'm running sleeveless Oh my! Must say- It's silly But Wouldn't have ever dared to do that Had it not been for my running girl-friends Egging me on to join in on their pushup challenge Amazing the confidence a week of pushups gives Even though I know results take much longe

Yesterday had me needing to work on "speed" --- Something about that silly word Strikes fear And butterfly excitement Honest with myself "Speed" and me Shouldn't be breathed In the same sentence But honest with myself Work must be done- AND Need help Time to 'phone a friend' BlueSkyGirl (aka Stephanie) Answered the call I chose a warm up run through Lions wilderness- Wanted to go in the back way to park Which means driving past Piedra Vista High School guard shack I roll down my window Try to ask the guard if that was OK She's on the phone Waves me in We drive around the high school To the back entrance of the park Gate is closed Great Now what- We park just outside On the shoulder I write a note Put it under my windshield wiper So as not to be towed The guard DID hear me ask- And DID wave me in Right? In case you ever need to write A 'please don't tow me' Windshield wiper note- It went

I always blog after a run Sometimes writing them in my mind on the road Had a hard time with this post You see Saturday Instead of running a trail Or a great swath of open road We ran to the hospital It was my sis-in-law Jen who suggested it A friend had surgery Laid up in the hospital Not fun So that's what we did I'm not the hospital type Really missed that trail and open road But this run taught me some things FIRST: It's very easy to pull up the WRONG weather Farmington Minnesota and Farmington New Mexico are very easy to switch NM or MN I like NM temps WAY better-  SECOND: Putting 3 packs of emergen-C Into 1 glass of water Makes a pretty fizzy drink   THIRD: Camelbacks are wicked hard to set up and messy especially when filling with Emergen-C FOURTH: Borrowing your husband's chapstick And the ensuing "you can borrow it-as long as you bring it back- on penalty

I hands down love blogging It let's me hold a run in my heart I also love a great post~ So, today I thought I'd highlight A few of my favorites Click on the highlight to be taken to each post Enjoy! First up is one of the first blog posts that inspired me- Rachel is a gifted photographer Turned Marathoner as a surprise for her sister's birthday- Surprise as in -didn't tell a soul - Save her honey and a few close running pals- The result was a runner overflowing Words and feelings that had no outlet- She had to "secret" blog the whole training- The result: a beautiful inspiring post, Diary of the Marathon   Gave me the mantra "I can do hard things" Then there's that first post That made me cry By Pennsy How My First Half Made Me Whole I really enjoy Pennsy's writing style It's real- Honest- Shayne's Sunday Service aka OK_Shane Is a must read (I subscribe to his Sunday posts!) The post I linked to her

It snowed!!!! Being a Minnesotan Living in New Mexico- Snow is newsworthy This morning As I drove the kids to school I educated them "This is a dry snow" I said "Dry snow blows because it's light and airy" They were in awe of my Snow knowledge Encouraged by their rapt attention- I continued "Now if dry snow lasts- It can turn into greasy snow" I made the sound 'greasy' snow makes And warn of the dangers Temperature fluctuations could bring Black ice Then dialogue on: Wet snow Sticky snow Sticky sticky -no sticky You get the picture I was on fire! They tired of the subject long before I did And started their own conversation While I reminisced out loud about Snow up to the door posts April blizzards Icicles from roof to ground Ahhh snow- I was a little put out Snow came on a work day What fun a snow run would be- But work ended when Moll's School day did. And she's not game for a 5 miler. I w

Got in a run today Maria joined me She came on our group run Saturday ~ Think she's hooked! Our kids WERE going to play at the park While we figure 8'ed our selves around them on the running trail But the weather decided rain was in order Her kids would stay home (a little jealous that she has one old enough to babysit) I brought mine And a stash of: Books DSi's And the longest Disney movie I could find To hang out in the car while we worked. For you worriers- The parking area is RIGHT beside the running loop No 'ding-dong ditch' with my kids happening here. Today's chart said a progression run of 12 was in order Complete with 5 minute HARD uphill if possible BUT with the kids out on holiday- That work will have to wait- Thinking Friday So I chose another 2 mile sandwich with hill repeats Maria and I ran well together Her easy pace is faster than mine (I'm trying not to get a complex--- She was sweet and said maybe it's

Today something happened Something I've been thinking about for quite awhile Something that needed to happen Seems like when you Tell a friend you've been running You get a response like this: I'm not fast enough I'm not fit enough I'm not young enough I'm not------------------- You name it. So now a group of your friends have this crazy love While other friends are left feeling out Who says you have to be fast? Who says you have to be fit? Who says you have to be young? Cause I want to know So I can punch them in the face. I used to feel that way, Still do if I let myself Not good enough Today we fought back And won With a choreographed run/walk One group did a long run One group did a shorter run And we all met in the middle Where we joined another group to do a walk Being good Baptists that we are, We chose to end our trek With coffee My sis-in-law Jill Offered to really go the distance And make breakfast next time

Running is hard Lonely Tiring Dull When I started running 6 months ago, These thoughts crept into my head As I plodded through those first runs Especially as my legs cramped at mile 2 Running is hard But it's the most fun hard thing I've ever done Most satisfying hard thing Especially when you meet a challenge head on and overcome it Lonely Not when you realize You need that time To unwind Not when you share the joy And bring a friend along Tiring Sure, you bet But it's that great tired feeling That says you accomplished something Dull Why did I think that? Lacked focus Attention Discipline If I can run for 3 hours And enjoy it- I can find the joy in anything Lately it's been deliriously easy to find the joy hill looks easy enough starting lineup Today brought another run with Tennille This time I brought NMrunnergirl (aka Clare) I've been wanting to introduce these two They often run the same routes Simi

I run to blog I've tried to separate the two, But it's impossible Planning a run I think of the possible story On the run I look for the surprise Photos Always How else would anyone believe Today I realized I didn't run yesterday Hate to have 2 days between posts Guess its the thrill of throwing words out Like a kid that can't help but blow a dandelion But Wednesday is my crazy day I work til 11:30 Pick up my little Molly 11:45 Window of  3 hours Then work again.... Good thing Molls loves The play place at Defined Fitness I had a run to log Gazing down the long row of machines I thought, Pick your poison. I really wanted to loathe and hate this run Everybody hates treadmills But here I was, Guiltlessly watching Phineas and Pherb No one to judge Only, shoot- No audio I'd brought my wireless headphones No idea how to sync them Sooooo Like french fries dipped in ice cream I watched Phineas and Pherb Listening to Zumba r

Getting excited about my training- Nothing like a little work to make a run have purpose- Today was ladder intervals, Sandwiched between easy 2's Planned an early morning run- But cozy covers and hum of a heater lulled me back to sleep. Breakfast- Lunches made- Kids to school- Whew Now I can run Started off easily enough Went a different route to keep it fresh 2 easy miles That was my first task Easy for me means SLOW I used this time to work on my breathing... I am notorious for huffing and puffing Like a coal fired steam engine Coughing and hacking my way through My friend, Tennille had given me pointers on breath control- Crazy how little adjustments make for a more comfortable run. But towards the end of mile 2 My energy was gone- I still had ladders to do I went to Kiwanis Park Intervals were to be sprints of 1, 2, & 3 minutes with jog breaks in between I kept it simple and picked landmarks to run to. All I could think was how

Got a run in today~ 11 sweet miles Great run Full of things that make me smile                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Spontaneous detour    winter berries blooming cactus 

Hung up my sneakers today- No walk No run. That means I'm out~ I've been Cookie Monstered Cookie Challenge lasted One week- ONE week? That sounds weak.. But looking at my last few weeks of training I feel better. Yesterday had me feeling Those hill repeats from the day before. I needed a rest. But really wanted to get those 3 challenge miles in. So tired. Surely I could improvise. Yeah----- THAT didn't work Headed out It's only 3 miles People run 3 in under a half hour alllllll the time.... Surely tonight was my night to break the pace barrier With daddy still out of town on business, Had to stay close My route Up and down my block 1.2 miles had my body telling me to STOP No records broken tonight Stopped in to check on kiddos Amazing how America's funniest Home Videos Get kids belly laughing Back out Walked Should have called it a night Guess it was a pride thing

Remember yesterday? Shoulder a mess.... Pain, pain, pain~ Barely eeked out a walk. (on that skinny excuse for a sidewalk) Well, tonight I must say, I'm still in pain. But it's the good kind. Got in those hill repeats! Last night, I was feeling like I needed help That's not like me Usually I ignore Make excuses Pretend Until the feeling's gone But last night I knew I needed help. So I sent out a txt blast to all my running buddies Anybody want to run hill repeats???? NMrunnergirl  (aka Clare) Had a noon run on the books With Runningmommaof2 (aka Jen) Steph had a chiro and hair appt I just realized that I didn't txt Katie (Katie, if you read this, I need your #) Tennille came through And said she'd do hills with me!!! (For which I gave a huge sigh of relief I don't have the faintest idea how to DO hill repeats) We met at 8:30ish am Chilly, but not bad We ran an easy 2ish miles During those 2 miles Tennille coach

Not feeling my best today Have a pinched nerve or something Going on with my right arm Rotator has a numb burning feel to it Been this way off and on for about 3 days now. Too much late night blogging? perhaps I signed up for the cookie challenge Barely made it 3 walking miles today. But I did It feels good Hoping for a little hill work tomorrow... Keep you posted!

Sis-in-law Jen and I were planning Another 13 mile run today. Ran out of  my usual hydration choice (Capri Suns) Must resort to the Camel Back. A little apprehensive- Remembering my last attempt Glug, glug, glug My friend Natalie gave me some pointers I'd yet to try so it wouldn't slosh around I also really don't like the plastic taste The water takes on when it's in the pack.... So today I improvised- I added EmergenC powder Have to say, this had pleasant results Not too bland, not to sweet, And a bit of whatever it is that makes EmergenC powder so EmergenC-ish  Jen & me-why do I always have a cheesy grin? Up and out- We decided to stay around town Pinion Hills to Dustin We walked about half a mile Then picked up the pace felt good... Running along Chatting Walking a bit here and there Almost to Dustin We saw a runner headed towards us. We knew it had to be our brother-in-law Crazy runner Mike- The man with nearly 25