Running Wogging & the Glass Half Full

!3 miles- In my Half and Half Ghosts, & Pure Flows- Think i'm going to hurl- I'm so Happy!

2012-03-02T22:22:00.000-08:00

Can you believe we got an extra day this year?

Leap day-

Should have run,

But who can resist a chatty Mol's

Who's begging for a tuna lunch date?

Gotta love her!

So, now it's:

Thursday, March 1st

My last run being Monday

I was bound and determined to get one in today

Put together a ensemble that would find me going NO WHERE but the pavement

Took a self portrait reminiscent of ol' Uncle Sam

saying:

"I want YOU to run today"

I want YOU to run today!

Even pulled out my half and half Brooks Ghosts....

Yeah that's right- I hate white shoes so much I sharpie-d them-

Well, just one so far

(takes a wicked long time to cover all that white)

sharpie heaven on one
Cursed white on the other

And I ran.

fast

I just wanted to see what it would be like to really run it

Mile 1 was clipping right along

Over a minute and a half faster than my usual

My pace felt great-

I did the math in my head figuring an amazing half marathon time

Amazing for me anyway

It spurred me on the run even more

why not?

I secretly thought I'd finally figured it out,

and that today would be my breakthrough day

2nd mile had me faster still

Mile 3 had me hemmed in by hills,

pace slipped

Mile 4 had me taking odd turns, trying to get out

I turned off into a neighborhood, and wove my way through

up ahead I see a dirt road

I'm a sucker for a good detour,

Just had to take it.

It took me up, and spit me out on a road I knew well by the library

I cannot tell you how I love to just run and explore this way

It's like a scavenger hunt.

Mile 4.5 I'm toast

Yep, toast.

Tired.

Sore.

Done.

A little anticlimactic, seeing as I had a long run in the back of my mind

I think that's the problem with me

I give myself room to change my mind

At whim

Should I call it and label it a 4 mile tempo?

Should I soldier on

Why did I push it so fast at the start

Blame my ego...

What? How can you have an ego when you can't even hold a 10 minute mile?

I decide to blame my shoes.

Get it in my head that they needed to go

SO mile 5

Home, hydrate

change shoes

I'm now in the lovely Brooks Pure Flows

They have been my shoe of choice while the Ghosts were 'out of commission'

On account of the Ghosts being only half technicolor-ed.

The Flows had been a bit problematic when first bought

But just about a week and a half ago,

I'd found my stride in them.

Mile 6

Pace is back up, but no where near miles 1-3

I start to wonder if I will ever figure this running thing out.

Mile 7

Shoes don't have it today

Mile 8

Where oh where is my boost?

I usually get a fun boost of energy at mile 5 and mile 8

A lovely little 'cheering on' my mind and body give me to keep going

Dizzy

Weird

I run to our now empty rental house where I stashed another water

chug and run

Surely that would help

Then next 5 miles were a blur

An odd walk /run where I talked to myself

Flat mad bonkers bazerk

Funny

I wasn't really stressed or sad

I just didn't have anything left to give

Made it back to my car

13.04

Overall pace ended up not so terribly bad

**************************************************

Fast forward 30 minutes

I'm taking Moll's on a play date to big-bounce

(a play-place full of jump castles and big blow-up fun house slides)

I walk in

The popcorn smell is UNBELIEVABLY strong

Over the next hour

I run to the bathroom 3 separate times and hurl

Made me half smile.....

Maybe I wasn't such a wuss after all on that run

Either I had a touch of the flu and ran through it

Or I'd given it all I had for today and pushed myself to the limits

Don't know if I'll ever really know which it was

What I do know, is this:

I had very very very bad hair

And my breath was funky

Time to head home.............

Tomorrow is a new day

I'm happy.

Got my run in!

***********************************************

I know you're DYING to know which shoe I liked better.

The Ghosts had over all comfort in the bag

My foot is a wide one- short and stout

I don't notice this when I wear them

However, I never really found 'my stride' in them

Think the heel got in the way

That being said, I did run faster in them

Mostly due to the fact I wore them the first half?

hmmmmm

The Flows feel great

I find that seamless gliding gate in them.

However, I feel they are best with a slight decline or flat road

Uphill? Forget about it!

I don't think this means everyone will feel this way

Just that my foot being short puts the ball of my foot toward the back of the middle

I almost feel like I get stuck on the turnover unless I'm going faster, or downhill

The Mogo material has great responsiveness...but sometimes I get stuck in the bounce

Like a slightly flat bouncy ball that falters....

******************************************************

Tip of the week-eye roll worthy-don't judge

2012-02-28T22:24:00.001-08:00

Monday February 27th,

Finding myself runless Saturday and Sunday-

I could bore you with details-
But no one wants to hear me whine about having to:

fix a heater
clean a rental house
buy a new wireless modem

Fixing and cleaning is no excuse not to run

But rather a great reason to RUUUUUUUUUNNNNN!

How to get one in?
Early morning run it is---
Alarm set for 4

Up and out by 4:20

Took a route I'd taken just last Sunday and loved.

Little 4.5 mile route

I'd actually been thinking about running it all week since-

So I'm running along, keeping it fun, and my pace is quite nice for me....
Round the corner, walk half way down the block and see a stoplight up ahead.....
I stop and walk
WHAT????????

It dawns on me- do I do this all the time, stop halfway down the block, before I get to the stoplight?
WHY WOULD ANYBODY DO THIS?

Then I think about it a little more...
Not only do I slow down or stop to walk halfway down the block BEFORE I get to the stoplight/crosswalk---
I sprint across it like I'm about to die
Then stop on the other side of the street to catch my breath

What on earth am I thinking?
For someone soooooooooo worried about being slow, you'd think I'd strategise a bit.

So, my tip of the week
Stop AT the stoplight, not a moment before
Walk across-
Then keep on running when you get to the other side

Go ahead, roll your eyes
But for me, this was a breakthrough
Ran 9 miles 5 of which were a half minute or more faster than usual pace
A clean sweep if you will-
And I'm allll about cleaning and breaking things this week!

RUUUUUNNNNNNNNNNNNN!

Don't Touch That Dial!

2012-02-27T11:29:00.004-08:00

Friday
Still feeling good about yesterday's run, Friday had me wishy washy on just what it was I would do as far as running goes.

Had my Friday Sis--in-law coffee meet-up, and chatted with BlueSkyGirl who came too.

Should have run right after that, but DH was coming home Saturday, and somehow I picked a guy that feels loved when he sees a clean house-

So- home it is for me-

You know- next time I might just go for that run first and get it over with-
The house cleaning/organizing thing simply droned on and on- I felt like I was wandering around my house sorting through misplaced stuff-

Very foggy- my memory of the morning-

Maybe it was the Clorox fumes-
Then all of a sudden it was 11:45
11:45- means time to retrieve Molly from kinder-

Molly in tow, my run is reduced to a tread mill session-

Molly is delighted, for somewhere along the way, we've started this tradition whenever we go to the workout place-of buying some sort of power bar or Gatorade and splitting it-

Lucky for her, the gal behind the desk upon hearing me say "oh-just pick something good" decided to pick the grossest, most expensive bar in the whole joint-

One taste, and I decide the bar in its entirety goes to Molls, who thinks me "the best mom ever!" only she's not a 'dull knife' when it comes to culinary delights- and with one bite- decided it was "yuck" and discarded the entire $3 worth in the trash-

Sigh

It's mill-er time for me-
I hop on board, and wait for the excitement to begin-

Usually I can conjure up a story-line or two, while I whomp away on the machine-
Usually it's me 'reading' people-
(Tell me you people watch too)
Trying to figure them out-
Are they happy or sad, why? Etc--- and create a little story for them - usually my stories have people living happily ever after and no one dies- haha

But today, I got nothin'

I do have ear buds-
So I plug them in to watch the minuscule TV

Now, before you judge-you have to understand, we don't have cable at our house- and although we have a newer flat screen- no free channels either- only decade old movies and odd Canadian sitcoms from Netflix (no offense Canada)

I'm mildly entertained when I flip through and find HGTV is showing "Bang For Your Buck"

Only I can't see the picture- there's a glare-

Hmmm is TV really worth moving to a less glare-y screen.....

I look around-

And notice the machine in front of me has a perfect picture AND I don't have to hold my head weird- it's actually quite ideal-

I hop off flip through- find my show and run in TV viewing heaven-

Until some guy got on it and ruined my whole scheme- arggggg

At least I got 20 minutes

Next time I need to bring a post-it note that says "keep moving- this machine is in use"!!!!

Overall- a decent run-
Ok not really,
This was a'bide my time and throw down some miles'-run

But, as I'm writing this on MONDAY-
And well, today is starting off quite grand!
HA-------
But that's for another post-

11.4 with Moab-esque photo op and Hogan Blessing

2012-02-25T12:24:00.001-08:00

Thursday, February 23rd

It's Thursday-
I have been waiting for this day all week, and when I say all week, I mean ALL week.
Thursday is my scheduled long run, and unlike the crazy beginning of the week, THIS run would get done.
My chart said 13 or 14, but as can you see from the title, I only made it to 11.4 before I had to pick up my little sack of potatoes, Molly from school.

Usually I have plenty of time to get the full run in, but I was a bit discombobulated on account of my hubby coming home Wednesday evening, only for him to switch out suitcase clothes, to leave again Thursday morning.

I will say that I give myself a big pat on the back as a honey suitcase packer, on account of the socks.
Running has ruined me and turned me into a sock snob.
I guess you could say I pride myself on keeping him sufficiently SmartWooled
Nothing says I love you, like happy feet- right?

Ah, but this is not a blog about love
I know you are half sad half relieved on hearing this---

Back to my run
You know I started out late.
And you know I had a good excuse.

Began a warmup run up and out the neighborhood, then up Pinion.
Today I determined to run it up to 30th... oh yeah- a great incline of a hill would await me at the intersection of Pinion and 30th-but about 4ish miles or so lay ahead of it. I told myself that by the time I got there, I wouldn't even care about the elevation change.

Wore my Brooks Flows.
Think I just might have to do a review on those puppies---
If that sort of thing is of interest to you, watch for it in the next few days

First few miles were wonderful, and by wonderful, I mean WONDERFUL!
Even shaved some time off my pace with less effort than is respectable--

Past Butler, past Dustin------
Annnnnnnnnnd now we're on this road climbing with no where to turn off.
For a brief moment, I think ---now would be a great time to PANIC-
Am I really going to just run this road forever?
Cause that's what it felt like, looked like, smelled like, tasted-----
Hmmm

That's when I popped my first sportz bean.

I was a little on the unprepared side of my run today--- for some weird reason, I only had 4 sportz beans left in their bag--
Rationing was in order.
Not that I even should need a sportz bean barely mile 4-
But I did 'need'/want a drink
Didn't have one
So sportz bean would have to suffice.

It did- I soldiered on-
Had things on my mind to sort
The run was perfect for this
The wind was not
It was pushing me back

Reminded me that life is like this
2 steps forward -push back
One thing's certain- I'm not doing the 2 steps back bit today
Not in life-not in this run
I think I say something to myself like--"I'm tough"
But I sure as crackers didn't look the part- running into the wind

The road was strong arming me
Looking ahead all I could see was road upon road going up up up up up up

Then I looked to my right

Now that's beautiful
Flat gorgeous
Wow
I can run with THAT cheering me on

I bet that's a bit like Moab will feel like,
Only 4ish short weeks till I run my first half!!!!
Eeek!
And that's all it took to get me to the top.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There was more to my run,
Like the fact that I LOVE doing just one turn spontaneous and unplanned
Sometimes I take a road- and it's BAD, leaving you never wanting it again
Others are simply perfect- giving you a new route, great trail, short cut

Today's spontaneous was taking 24th all the way up
Usually 24th takes me to a trail turn off
But today, I wanted to take it all the way, and see where it landed me.

It landed me a 'blessing' of sorts-
You see, as I passed this Hogan type house-
Traditional Navajo home
and out of it was billowing this tanish billow of smoke
The smoke smelled 'dusty', a musty pungent sort of smell, though faint.
It intrigues me
I wonder what the house looks like inside, with it's giant domed top-
I think of Navajo rituals passed down from generation to generation,
Rituals and ceremonies I know nothing about

But the moment I run past, the wind whips the fog-like smoke over me
A thick savory smoke -not reminiscent of campfire
Something very incense-like
I cough, sputter and run on, almost certain I'd been accidentally 'blessed'

There were other excitements on this run,

But my total and utter disregard for my need of hydration kept me from really enjoying them.

I'm realizing I do need a sip of something at mile 5, and that every time I buck that notion, I set myself up for burnout at mile 8

Today was no different.

But I did find the Natural Foods store has little juice boxes for 55cents-

A happy stumble, to keep in mind for next time

I turn towards home

My run is harder now

I feel like a wind-up doll winding down

Tired, happy, and feeling blessed,

I let myself walk the rest of the way home.

Makeup miles & a Sunday stroll

2012-02-21T18:23:00.000-08:00

Sunday Feb19th,

My running chart has been looking a bit sparse

Life is getting in the way

I'm working to find a balance

but running only 2 out of your 5 scheduled runs

Doesn't scream balance, now does it?

I would need to plan

To be creative

I would have to run on Sunday

Sundays are special

We go to church both morning and evening

The afternoon is spent at an extended family dinner

8 adults

7 kids

4 families

We are blessed to be so close both in miles and heart

Sunday mornings I also have a wonderful tradition of going for an early morning walk

With gals from our church

Where do you sneak a run in that?

Pre-dawn run it would be

A run before my 6:30 walk was in order

When the alarm went off, I thought it was a joke

But no matter how hilarious the hour, I had to do it

Ran the College,

An old run of mine- from when I first started running

It was sentimental

Sentimental College run

But it was also freakishly early for a Sunday

Done with sentiment, I had to change things up

Went the OTHER way- down 30th to main

Rather than my regular up 30th to Pinion

I'm one to look down on a route because of perceived traffic

This was a stretch for me

A good yoga like stretch

Breathe in, Breathe out

Almost cringing the turn from English to Pinion

I closed my eyes as I took the turn.

Guess what

I was wrong

English to pinion to college

Is WAY more comfortable

Than say---

College to pinion to Dustin

The bike lane was dreamy wide

The quasi running path next to it

Almost 'groomed'- nice and flat

Thank you 4 wheelers!

I thoroughly enjoyed this little run

Goal was 4-5 miles

Snuck in 6

Just in time for my walk with the girls by the river

And it did not disappoint

I am so blessed

Berg Park Walk

Goosebumps

2012-02-21T17:33:00.000-08:00

Last week simply flew by -

With Ryan out of the country for the week- on business

(heehee is Canada really out of the country?)

It really made me appreciate him more

And realize how much a dad and hubby are needed in the home

Little mini training runs on Monday and Friday

Saturday held little hope of miles

Save a tiny miniscule little road race

But still, I was so excited about it

I'd signed our whole family up for a free run put on by the hospital

It's their annual "Goosebumps" race

That highlights the hospital's committment to heart health

A 1 miler

A 3 miler

Free

Perfect opportunity to get everyone out

I signed us up good and early

When I told my hubby I'd signed him up for a race

He gave me "the look"

you know - the one that says

"Don't even think about it"

That was a month ago

And well, I guess he missed us last week too

Because Saturday he laced up his sneakers and together with:

My daughter Kate-11,

My Son, Riley-8

And my little Molly -4

We set off for 1 mile of family fun.

Before the run, I asked my sis-in-law to take a snapshot of our gang

This is newsworthy-

I can't remember the last time we took a family pic!

I think we tried last Easter for one- but someone was crying-

This shot doesnt even have kids looking at us or all smiling

But I don't care I love it anyway

our family

Took a snapshot of RunningMommaOf2's fam too!

Can you tell I'm super short from the angle?

The actual 1 miler was really non-eventful

My son Riley, and his cousin, J really tore it up!

Molly had alot of energy and sprinted almost the whole way

Hubby and I stayed with Kate

Running is not her friend yet.

We walked, and jogged

It was harder for her than I expected.

I really loved having hubby and kids join in on this run

Don't know if it will be repeated

But it was fun, fairly painless as far as logistics go

And free~

And it made me soooooo proud!

Coffee & The One Legged Wonder

2012-02-21T13:29:00.000-08:00

Last week I ran on Monday.....

Yippee!

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

No run

I meant to, really did

But with hubby out of town last week, it just didn't happen.

Felt kind of bummed.

Friday AM found me drinking coffee

And chatting up a storm, squandering my morning run time.

It was worth it.

But soon the guilt was setting in.

Think my sis-in-law (aka: RunningMommaOf 2) has a sixth sense

Because not much later, I got a txt

Do I?????

OH YEAH!!!!!!

We met up at noon

Clicked the machines on

And we're off....

Conversation flowed between the usual stuff- work, kids- you name it-

The week had been a bit of a blur for us both- a little stress around the edges-

The run was perfect.

So were her new shoes.

I kept trying to snap a pic of them while she ran

They just POP!

But all I could get was the one-legged version of her-
She's just that fast

And I 'll leave you thinking she's an amazing One leg wonder

Cause- I'm still a little bitter she went shopping for them without me....

Bwahahahaha!

Happy Running!

The NordicTrack Effect

2012-02-18T23:01:00.000-08:00

Monday

I'm still crazy behind on my posts

But this one is a fun one to write

Monday I found my stride

It was the weirdest thing- I'm running along....

Doop-de-doop-
De-doop......

Wha.......t juuuuuuust happened?

It was the smoothest feeling
Clockwork

I found my stride
Flat found it.

It almost made me cry, but nah, I was too psyched
Felt like a kid again

Yep, just like a kid
A kid at my friend K's house....

It's the 80's
She has EVERYTHING-

A computer -back when personal computers were unheard of
A water bed-remember when those were the rage
Nordic Track

I was in awe
The computer was worthless to me, no clue how to play pac-man
The water bed hilarious- sit on the edge and fall in
Nordic Track, now THIS machine
The weight loss machine-of-choice for the well-to-do
This machine was magical
Pull the handles and ski yourself slim

Harder you pull- faster you go
Glide glide glide

Only today I'm no kid
And that Nordic Track's my magic stride

Who'd a thunk it

Life's grand
And the walls are tumbling down
Happy

Run because you can- 13.3-15.6miler

2012-02-15T23:46:00.000-08:00

Saturday
Sherry miles

I chose to run alone

Had to

I planned my route
Well, the backbone of a route anyway-
A route with options

Only one thing was certain

I was running a road I'd seen while driving the past week

Knew it would be the highlight

I had 14 on my chart, making it an early start.

My run would be alone, but I would end my run at the coffee shop-
Meeting up with BlueSkyGirl and RunningMommaOf2
_____________________________________________

Now for the run down

Woke up early,
Tried to be as quiet as possible so as not to wake DH
Woke DH
Told DH to go back to bed

Banana
Access bar
Toast with butter and jelly
(would have had peanut butter, but we're running low & the kids can't live without it-I can)
Water, Gatorade

Stashed some Sportz Beans

Planned to bring $ for a water break at convenience store, and for coffee!!!

I head out the back

Mile 1 was VERY eventful
Warm up run out of the neighborhood had me realizing I'd forgotten my $ for water break and coffee.
Mini panic attack--- my mind was racing--- I could punt on the water, but no coffee money?
This panic had some sort of chain reaction, the warm up run was now turning into the runs

I'm sure the diarrhea dance was comical as I u-turned back toward home.
I rush to the back door trying the knob-----
(our back door is very finicky, you have to twist it juuuuuust the right way for it to give in and open- it often feels like it's locked, only to have you 'crack the safe' and gain entry)

Only today-----it was locked.
Holy 'I've got to get in that house'- dance ensues, AND now I'm worried DH will have heard the ruckus and think we're being robbed- GREAT

Run to the front- punch in the garage door code-

Yell-"It's just me!!!"

So much for DH sleeping in......

Bathroom dilemma averted, coffee/water $ retrieved-

And we're off!
It was still dark- so I did my usual run up college to the high school
A couple laps around and the sun begins to peek
Time for Pinion Hills

For some reason, Pinion had me worried about traffic
It's a Bi-pass type road... cars are moving fast
But at 5:30- on a Saturday, there's really none to speak of
It still had me spooked.
Took forever on that road.

My original plan was to run Pinion to Dustin, but I turned off early
Butler it was.
I'm at about 5.5 miles.
About time for a 7/11 water stop
There's something about hitting 5 that makes me run easy
My cadence was ticking right along. felt good.
Then I thought. "What if BlueSkyGirl and RunningMommaOf2 get to the coffee shop before me?"

I fiddle with my phone- Trying to check Endomondo to see where they were mile wise on their run.
Nothing.
I send out a txt blast to check on their ETA....

Of course, this fiddle-farting around has me walking.
Just then, my brother in law, aka Marathon Mike, runs past - yells a hello and is off up the steepest hill I've ever seen, at a full sprint.

Doggonit!

Why is it he always catches me walking!

Must start running.

Down Butler
I chide myself for the texting walk break
Promise never again to text and run---it's bad for your pace don't cha know---- bad bad bad

Forgo water break
(Not smart- I would pay for later)

Turn onto 30th
Head to 'The road'

I was tired, but I simply could not wait to run this little stretch of road I'd yet to run. It was quaint and provincial... rural almost. Lined with trees. Trees can be scarce in our town... we celebrate them.

On I ran....
Man, does 30th go on and on and on and on and on.....

And then,
Sigh

The Glade

It was better than I imagined.
Big stretch of road

Beautiful.

The run after that became a blur
somewhere around mile 8:

1.
I realized I was dizzy from lack of hydration. Stopped at a 7/11 off the beaten path. Got a pineapple coconut water.... I think that is my new all time favorite.. this is my second time having it mid long run.

2.
I realized Endomondo (my iphone gps app) was trying to 'one -up' Penelope (my garmin).
Mileage between the 2 was dangerously off.

Kept running.
Chose a bit of a short cut to coffee

Short cut turned into a long way around due to my mad directional skills
Wander

Finally on the right track, I head toward coffee
Endomondo puts me there at 15.6
Penelope, a more modest 13.3

Either way, doesn't matter.
I got to run the Glade

Met up with BlueSkyGirl and RunningMommaOf2,
Took a pic of them with their Sherry bibs

I was reminded again-

How blessed we are to be able to be out-

Run because you can.......

Promise

2012-02-15T22:18:00.000-08:00

Disclaimer**************
I am very behind on posts
I really really really like to blog each run
It gives me a diary of sorts
To go back to and remember

Last week was very hard
Very discouraged
Tired
Overwhelmed

I almost hit delete
So no one would know

But
The run you are about to read
Was the turning point

And thanks to that,
This week's training has been wonderfully perfect

So here goes
****************************************

Been tearing up a lot lately
Ran 4 days last week
Cried every time

Why oh why all these emotions-

My run Thursday night had me wiping tears again
Can't even remember why
Just remember thinking-
I can't go on like this

This is not me

AT ALL

I stopped

Just stopped

Walked

Felt like I was trying too hard
Trying to be everybody else

Then I thought about the first day running stuck

The day I just HAD to take a road and try it

Had to take a picture
Had to take it in
Found the joy
(go to post by clicking here)
So Thursday I stopped
Looked around

The trees on the boulevard
They're newbies too
Just like me

I pass them all the time
Taken a photo

Today
I saw buds
The promise of something
Alive
Vibrant

Like the runner I want to be

I can do this

I promise

Let the bragging commence!

2012-02-11T19:21:00.000-08:00

Soooooooo
I have to brag.

My hubby is starting to "get" the whole running thing

Sending me out to get miles in while he gets the kids ready for bed

Not making weird comments about the whole foam roller thing

Letting me sign up for races.

The other day he asks
"What if I buy you that Garmin thing you've been wanting for Valentine's day-
Would that be OK?"

Would that be OK?
Running jewlery for Valentine's Day?!
Holy Hallelujah, YES!!!!!

And so he did.

Meet- Penelope Jane
PJ for short if you want a nickname
OK
It's a recycled name

The name Penelope is this name I picked out
While we were trying to decide on a lovely name for our firstborn.

I LOVE THAT NAME!
DH did not

Name was thrown out

Thought about a children's book with Penelope
As this zaney child super hero
Penelope Jane -defender of .....
Yeah, I can't even write a complete sentance
Book deal never happened.

Garmin it is-

Garmin, I mean Penelope
Is a 110
My biggest fear was that it wouldn't give me an idea
Of my current pace.
It does!

The heart monitor is comfy

The only wonky thing is
That I wear it 'face in'

It's easier for me to sneak a peek that way.

The other weird thing
It measures distances about .2 shorter
Than my previous app of choice- Endomondo

This is not worrisome, just interesting.
I ran a long run today
(blog post to follow- it was a good run)
Garmin said 13.3
Endomondo said 15.6
Crazy -right?

The Sis Ran Away with the Flu

2012-02-09T16:49:00.000-08:00

The flu has hit our house.
Not the week long flu everyone else's house seems to be getting.
Ours is just the 16 hour sort.
I know most people would say-
"you mean 24 hour?"
But no, it's just 16,
Because by dinner time the next day, The kid that WAS sick,
Is now bouncing OFF the walls
Full of newfound energy and craziness.

First it hit R. my middle. He's smack in the middle of a sister sandwich. Poor guy (on account of of the sister sandwich, not the flu)

But he weathered it well- and the next day found him home from school with me feeling a bit bored.

Next it was my littlest M
She, poor thing,
Woke up on account
She'd been sick in her sleep.
But by morning she was healed

So far my oldest has been spared
She must be the disease carrier
That suits her personality

DH and I, well, we are feeling puny
Off and on
Sympathy sickness I presume

And what of running?
Ran Monday,
Ran Tuesday,
Off Wednesday
Ran Thursday-
Today is Friday, have yet to run
Planning a 14 Miler for Saturday

We shall see

I do think that running
Keeps us a bit less prone to sickness

Do you agree?

Feeling groovy

2012-02-09T14:10:00.000-08:00

Been awhile since I've blogged
I have been running though

Monday night,
My Hubby could sense I was anxious to get out
"Go out for a run if you want"
He said nonchalantly
Secretly I knew he meant
"Would you hurry up
And go for a run already-
I want my happy wife back"

Loved him for that

The run was a 4 miler
It was dark
Most of it done on the track
The track closest to me is a clay track
I wore my Brooks Cascadias
I like these shoes-
They seem "no- frills"
A little on the hard side
But man do they grip
When going off road-

The track was in need of grooming
The clay gravel was full of grooves
Running 'potholes'
Kept me occupied as I circled
'Round and 'round

I experimented with running-
Inside track
Outside track
Worn trail type path track

They all were a bust

But it passed the time

And as I turned toward home
I felt happy
Yep
Feelin' groovy!

Penguin Dash

2012-02-06T09:12:00.000-08:00

Never fails
As the weekend nears
Text blasts
Anybody running Saturday?

Looks like Jen and Steph
Have one planned

Ask if I can join them

Plan is to meet up
Saturday at 6am

Friday night finds me
Frantically foam rolling

Holy hallelujah that is some pain
But from what I hear
Pain is a sign that work is being done

Roll it again,
and again,
Pain starts to wane

This is encouraging.

Saturday's alarm
Finds me hitting snooze

Once
Twice
Ackkkkkk

I'm up
Granola bar
Banana
(hate them, but I always feel better on a run with one in me)
Emergen-C water

I don't plan to bring water or fuel
Shouldn't be too long of a run today

Water in the car

Meet up
Drive to Steph's

Harper Valley
I check the clock
It's now 6:30
We have to be back to our parking spot by 8
For a newly formed walk/run group monthly meet-up
We will have to book it to make it

We're off!
It is so crazy dark

And...... they're gone

Into the black

Gone

Flat gone

No worries
Just running up that hill
Across that highway
Down to .....
hmmm where do I cross?

And so it goes

The penguin
That's me, this incredibly slooooow runner
Chasing those silly crazy girls that have vanished

Maybe I was running all alone
And I imagined the whole "group run" thing-

Am I really THAT slow?
I do the math in my head
If I'm 2 minutes/mile slower
Wow....
They're at least a half mile ahead of me by now

Potty break
At 7/11
Almost said Pity party

Felt like I wanted to

Then I remembered
Last week,
When I couldn't run
Back hurt so bad

I prayed,
"Just let me be able to run"

Am I that fickle
That I say
"No thanks- "
To His -"yes, if only you go slow"?

Challenging, this-
Running without anything,
But your discontent and doubt

Decided to be thankful
Thankful for this solitary
"Group" run

Passed the time
Singing a little ditty
My little moll's likes to sing

"Wibble wobble,
wibble wobble,
Penguins dash-
Down to the water,
Splish, splish, splash"

The girls called me on my cell

Several times

"Yes, I'm OK"
It was nice to be worried about

Down Apache
Down Navajo

hmmmm
Is UP the other side of Navajo
A short cut?

Up
up
up
up
up
up
up
up
up

That crazy insane sprinting hill
Pride myself that I didn't walk it
Till the tippy top anyways

The neighborhood is SO familiar

I've run it with Tennille
Run it with Clare

But now that I'm the one
Telling me where to go
I falter
Choose a wrong turn
Then another
I feel like
Dorothy - sand slipping through the hour glass
No time left
Must get back

Another call from the girls
They are headed my way

The group walk/run about to start

Find my way out of the neighborhood
Another half mile
I meet up with the group
at another 7/11 for a potty break
haha
8.89 miles run

I stop in for a drink

AMAZING!

Another 3ish miles
The walk is relaxing
No longer hurried

Another Saturday run down

Legs made it.

*************
This run really messed with my mind
I was really discouraged the rest of the day
Doubted myself quite a bit

I think it was mostly me being upset with myself

Definately not upset with the girls
(I always tell them to keep running
If they were to slow down,
I would have slowed down,
If they were to come back for me
I would have been demoralized-)

I'm still looking for that balance of being content
And pushing harder
But most importantly
Realizing that MY best is just that
Mine

Oh this crazy running thing
I have come so far-
But it's great to realize
I have so far left to go
Hope I'll never feel like i've arrived
Forever isn't long enough to try
***************************

11.11

2012-02-05T21:38:00.000-08:00

1. Ice cream flavor? Anything Bryer's- currently I love pairing their Coffee and Cherry Vanilla flavors

2. Saucony Kinvara or a shoe from the Brooks Pure line, like the Connect of Flow? I started of with Asics gel nimbus, but I'm a Brooks girl now--- I have Cascadias for trail, Brooks Ghosts for long runs and I just got Pure Flows....

3. Where would you go if you had the money to take a two week dream vacation? hmmmm right now I could go for a weekend anywhere locked up by my little lonesome with room service- aww ok, my honey could come too

4. Did you play sports in high school? Bwahahahaha! I sat the volleyball bench, and was awarded 'most improved' on the cheerleading squad!

5. One item of food every ? shucks- can't just choose one- coffee and chocolate

6. Do you have a favorite professional runner? Deseree Davila- heard she's 5'2" just like me! I figure, if she can run fast on short legs-maybe I can too!

7. What is one running item you would find it hard to run without? my iphone because it has a camera-

8. Morning/afternoon/evening runner? morning

9. What are your big races this year? Moab half, possible Durango Co. half, TCmarathon

10. Are you also a triathlete. no- but I'm a mom- doesn't that have it's own kind of superhero catagory?

11. What do you like better: intense speed work, tempo runs, or long runs? I love the thinking that i'm doing intense speed work & tempo runs...but my average speed has yet to fall below 11.5 mph...so long runs it is! my longest run yet...a mere 14, but it was snotting hard!

me and gang in the play Tom Sawyer

very old photo of my honey with the cute nose and me

the kids

random thoughts

1. I grew up an only child-

2. grew up in minneapolis, mn

Best memories- Mom, Dad, and I would walk Lake Harriet almost every Saturday then stop for bread at Great Harvest

3. Avid reader as a kid--- need to pick that hobby back up

4. College grad- Degree in Speech communications, minor Broadcasting

5. 1st job- Lagerquist (now Thyssen ) elevator---- I was in outside sales selling elevator maintenance

6. Married the boy with the 'cutest nose' I'd ever seen....guess you could say I 'picked' him- heehee

7. Moved to Farmington, NM a little culture shock....

Learned the difference between 'red and green'

(for those that aren't in the know---that's red and green chili)

8. Play piano for our church choir- teach piano and kindermusik

9. I love Ella, Nat and Bing but can't hate a great zumba tune or nora Jones either

10. Really really want this running thing to sick

11. if i could make running and blogging my job, i'd be in heaven

Can't Run 26.2- But I Can Run, and THAT my friends, is a gift!

2012-02-04T16:40:00.000-08:00

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so much is going through my mind

Registered for TC marathon

WHAT????
Yeah, I did.
I can't run 26.2

YET-
************************
Let's see,
What else...
Thought I was on the brink of an injury
went to the chiro
Zip-crack-pop

I walk out a new woman
Can it really be that simple?

No-
IT band still needs more working out
BUT my alignment is fixed
And THAT, my friends, is a crazy gift
Who knew?
I took a little jaunt of a run to find out
Where exactly my legs were on the wonky meter

The run found my legs a little scared
Tried to reassure them it would be OK
Promised them a foam roll session when we got home

On I run-
A friend drives past
Honk- waved & yelled "Go Heather!"

Made my day
My legs begin to trust me
And THAT, my friends,
Is a good feeling

Think everything's going to be alright

Yep, I surely do~

endorphin hunt

2012-02-01T17:10:00.000-08:00

Tonight i couldn't shake the feeling
I was missing something

Blue
Down
Blah

Any which way you describe it
It feels the same

Not that I'm full blown depressed
Think it would take alot
To beat this sanguine girl down

But

Sigh

When you want to run
You want to run

This afternoons try
Failed

I DID punt
Thankful for a gym class, a swim

But

Sigh

I need to run
Or at least pretend to run
After all
I did recently coin the phrase-
"Flexibility is a life skill"
Right?

Saw 2 bills hubby had asked me to mail

Our neighborhood box unit
Is a block or so away
hmmmmmmm

Tennis shoes on

But left jeans and cute sweater and scarf on
NOOOOOO running gear
Even borrowed hubby's sweatshirt
So as to throw off bad running karma
Or Puck
Whatever/whoever it was/is that was giving me fits

Down the block I jogged
Oh I LOVE a warm up jog

Usually I start going up
Today's route
(albeit tiny)
Started down

I love the feel of your breath
As it starts to quicken
reminding you your work is being done

Lovely, lovey run

Yes,
The gimp is there
Yes, yes, yes

But it felt so
Nice
To find what I was looking for

That the gym couldn't give me
Swimming
No

Took just a jaunt of a jog
Block and a half
Down and back
To find it

Endorphin hunt.....

Success!

CRX & a swim just to pass the time

2012-02-01T13:50:00.001-08:00

Tues-no wait
Today is Wednesday

Where did the week go?

Today is my regularly scheduled
Gym day
"Huzzah!"
She said,
With a slight bit of angst
In her voice

My morning had gone well enough
Surely this would too

My chart said 4 miles
I was itching for that run

But 2 minutes of treading
And I knew I should stop

This was not wimp hour
Self preservation
More apt description here

I wasn't
Sad
Worried
Discouraged

Just realized I needed to be patient

I really do feel it's
Alignment/muscle tightness
Issues

Saw a class getting ready to start in The exercise room
"yes,I think I will-"
"Thank you very much"

Turned out to be CRC Works
A short 30 minute core strength class

Hip hurt on round 1 of warm up
Then settled in
Felt good
I needed this

Before I knew it-
Class was done

Now what?

Swim it is

I did some water running
Worked on my
Non-existent kick form
Swam
Slow and steady

Felt good to
Let my body
Tell me what to do for a change

I felt kind
Kind is good too---

Drive through chiro anyone?

2012-02-01T10:33:00.001-08:00

Monday-
Oh Monday-

I so want to embrace you as if you were something special
After-all, you are my day off
And always give this
False sense of holiday

But more often than not
You punish me

Drop kids off at school
BlueSkyGirl
RunningMommaOf2
Are set to do another swim session
To get runningMammaOF 2
In ship shape for her triathlon

She worries about the swim
I offer to sign up for the tri
To make her look good
Picture me flailing helplessly
We laugh

They see me geared up
Ask what's on the agenda
"Easy 4 and hill sprints!"
I say
They are secretly jealous
I just know it

We part ways

I make a final decision
Route will start from home

Start is slow
I chide myself
"Are we walking or running today?"
I ask myself
Knowing full well
It is rhetorical

But my legs think otherwise
They think for a moment
Ummmmm "walking?" they say

I am not amused

I ask them again
"Are we walking or running today?"
This time
Out loud with severity
So they and all the world
Could hear my reprimand

But still they pretend not to hear

I push them to a run
They give up
Give out
Give in

Wonky pain in my back
Now hip
What's that?
Knee

I'm done

"Wiggle woggle" back home
If only I could see a chiropractor
I'd be back out in no time
Call hubby's chiro
Can't see me till Friday

Not good
Google drive through chiro

Just in case I could get a back pop
With an order of fries and a smile

No dice

Sigh

Friday it is----

Run- Stop- Sigh........

2012-01-30T13:15:00.000-08:00

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 'fix' her.
"Run like mommy-" I kept saying
"Slow and steady..wiggle woggle"
I said trying to make up a nonsense word
To make my approach sound fun.

Nope

Run
Stop

Run
Stop

Sigh.....

Halfway through
I saw my sis-in law Jen with her
Her sweet patience and encouragement for Kailey

Made me see the error of my ways

I remembered my first few training runs
Some short 6 months ago
Looked an awful lot like Molly's run today

Run
Stop

Run
Stop

Sigh....

I picked up my Moll's
Carried her on my back
Carried her on my shoulders

Put her back down
Set her free

She ran.......................

14 miles -absolutely thrilling

2012-01-30T09:48:00.000-08:00

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 concerts Friday Night & Saturday
(happy birthday Mozart!!)

Meet at her place
We head out

It's fun to run in someone else's "territory"

They plan the route
You just follow

Been on this end of town with her before
But not the exact loop

Thought it was great to turn a corner
Recognize where we were
For a brief moment

Only to turn the corner
And everything looks new again

We run
Phone rings
I check....
Then hit silence
It could wait
We ran about 5 and 1/2
Stopped back at her house
So she could head to practice
And I could grab a drink

Looking at endomondo I notice
Our pace had been quicker than my norm
This was exciting to me
Really wanted to keep it up
Back out
I'm on my own
Down some Jelly Belly Sportz Beans
Yummy

I choose the most scenic route possible

Found this gated property
With the most amazing tree house

Picture doesn't begin to do it justice
T had mentioned this house before
It was fun to 'find' it---

I wander from cul de sac to cul de sac
This is mile 10.5
The run is getting hard

Then I recognize the road
From my first hill repeat run
Remember
The 'secret trail'?

Just had to take it

WOW- that slow hill was killer
But when I reached the top
I saw it
That trail

Took it up and over

And then

MUD!

I was shuffle walk running
Telling myself to Go go go
Hoping to keep pace steady

Slam down Municipal to make up time
Only 3 miles left now
I'm getting wobbly excited
Tired, but energized

Phone rings
I check...
It's Tennille!
I answer it
We laugh
Secrets out-
She's on the 'will answer while running'
List

Guess who's running out to meet me
To finish my miles!!!!

Ready to throw in the towel
Not wanting to run up another hill
But then a phone call kicks me back in gear

Kind-of

We're running along
I had to stop
Had to walk
We'd shuffle jog some more
I hit 13.1 and hear endomondo tell me
I'd beat my old time
One mile left - to get to 14

It's here I really re-consider
Training for an October full marathon
I'm beat

What is it about 1 silly extra mile
That tears you down to nothing?

Tennille discovers this is my first time to run 14

What?
First time to run 14?
"Well then, we're running it!" she says
She really thought I could
Made me think I could too.

I have to say
Couldn't have finished 'strong'
With out the help of a friend today

By strong- I mean,
Not walking.
You most certainly could walk next to me
As I 'ran'
I was going THAT slow
But, in my mind- that jog was an all out concerted effort.

We made it.
14 miles down.
Thrilling

Absolutely thrilling.

Piggies and Bling~

2012-01-28T22:54:00.000-08:00

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~

c

Running Blind

2012-01-25T10:34:00.000-08:00

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 longer-

In my past life
I'd have just fainted in a pool of my own sweat!

Panic attack averted
I start to notice other things that bother me

The fact that I CANNOT get away from people
Why must people take the machine RIGHT next to you?
Why must they wear old lady perfume?
Do they really HAVE to snap & pop their gum?

On and on it goes
I try to count
Not a numbers kind of gal
I find myself just randomly picking a number
Starting your count at 56
Seems daring

Although 82 was absolutely thrilling
I picked it twice

Somewhere between counts 82-210
I noticed I was getting dizzy
My glasses jiggle around when I run the treadmill

Once you notice something like that
You can't shake it

Off they came
Now I was running blind

Can't say I didn't like it
Something tempting about running blind
You feel almost like you're asleep
Or in that dreamy state of just waking up
Makes a run not soooo bad

That,
And you can't see the silly
30 something teenager wannabees
Flaunting what I'm sure they think
Passes for buff~
I'd like to see them try to run in that.....
Yawn....

Glasses on
Glasses off
Sweat
Txt blasts about Moab Canyonlands Half!!!!!
Are all rooms REALLY booked already?
Ackkkkk!

Run .............

......................Blind~

Just 2 moms out running.....

2012-01-24T22:47:00.000-08:00

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 something like this:
"We are just 2 moms out running-
Be back soon-
If you need us to move our cars
Call (505)xxx-xxxx"

I should have signed it ~
Love, WordQuota and BlueSkyGirl

But that would have
Made us sound famous
And we didn't want to
Be divas.

I'm noticing something
The last few times I've run
A group run

I say something like
"wow, I can't breath today"
Or
"Why am I so tired?"
Or
"Don't usually walk this soon..."

Some 'excuse' as to why
I need to catch my breath

Yesterday I pulled out the-
"Wow is the cold affecting you like it is me today?"

Then it dawned on me-
I have myself convinced it's just some fluke-
That today is somehow different
From my other runs

When in reality- mile 1 and 2
Must ALWAYS find me walking part of it-
Just never put two and two together it till now

We run through Lions Wilderness Park
Up up up the hill

And there they are
The mountains
So snowy today

This is where we will do our work
Road upon road ahead
Mountains cheering us on

I explain our ladder intervals
Like I'm the expert
The teacher in me
Knows just how they should be done
My theatrical side assumes I can actually pull it off

On your mark-get set-go!!!!!!!

First interval is 1 minute
I run like the wind
So fast

For all of about 15 seconds

Holy time standing still batman!!!!

1 minute seemed like eternity

Stephanie flew past

We were supposed to ladder
1 min
2 min
3 min
2 min
1 min
With jog recoveries in between

But I didn't have it in me

We sprinted 1 min with jog recoveries
5 times and called it good
The jog recoveries were so amazing
Like
Fancy ice cream at a birthday party
Relished doesn't begin to describe-

Oh,
Did I mention my
"Don't tow me" note
Worked
I got a call
Half way through our "ladders"
Seems they just wanted to know
How long we'd be out running

Finished off our run
With another easy 2 miles
We were done

Invited BlueSkyGirl over for coffee
But she was going shoe shopping

WHAT?
SHOE SHOPPING???????
Well yes, I do think I'll come with you!

Off to Brown's Shoe Fit
The best shoe store in town
(If I do say so myself)
My job title: ENABLER
NOW THIS I CAN DO!

30 minutes later,
She's lacing up a new pair of kicks

Are you thinking what I'm thinking?

Yep,
Just HAVE to try them out
We head off for a 'trial' run

Steph thinks they're grand
I do too~

**************

2012-01-22T23:01:00.000-08:00

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 of death" conversation
Is not worth it

FIFTH:
I still can't breath on miles 1-3

SIXTH:
Camelbacks make me so insanely hot
Almost panic attack trying to de-layer

SEVENTH:
Do NOT like adding little jaggedy switch backs
Simply for mileage's sake
Really want to take a direct route-
Or BIG loop to add miles

EIGHTH:
Really like group runs now

NINTH:
Why at one point were each of our little groups
Of our big running group
Talking about cleaning the house????
Weird
Think we need maids

TENTH:
I really like longer mileage
Wanted to all out run at mile 8

***********************************************

I still can't fully blog this run like I should.
We made it to the hospital

I feel happy to be there
Sad
Unworthy of my health
Mad
Overwhelmed
Cry
She is so discouraged
I tell our friend
"Don't let this take your joy"

"Don't let this take your joy"?????
Did I really just say that out loud?

Who do I think I am?

As if her just being happy will make her well
As if somehow in that little box of a room-
She could even find an amusement

Maybe my naivete made her laugh

I feel selfish
Guilty

But that too is wrong

That is why it was hard to blog this run

"Read Me"

2012-01-22T14:36:00.000-08:00

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 here
Is especially encouraging if you're like me
Anxious about pace....

The next post
Not a running blog,
But oh so applicable
A friend of mine posted this yesterday
Comparison is the Thief of Joy
Made me realize that we are each other's heroes
Never forget that.

What about the utterly hysterical posts
Oh I love a silly fun post
I've been searching for days trying to find this next one---

So please sit back and laugh
jen.m.yee
Cracked me up with her post
Have You Seen My Compression Sock

And the post I'm TRYING to find-but just can't
Been searching for a silly WEEK now
Argggg just can't find it!
Anybody on the loop remember the post
You know- the one about
Going into a running store....
Totally feeling out of place
Scrawny running store workers
Looking at you like
Like you're not supposed to be there
(except for the fact you run CRAZY bunches of miles each week)
Man- it was a good post, funny too
Think they offer some massive support shoe as an option
Just can't find it.
Please someone from the Loop help me out

And WHY oh heaven's why can't I read
Garbonzo a gogo's old blog posts????
I'm a bit put out that I can't pull up ANY of his old posts
On the account of there being
No 'Blog' tab when I'm on his profile

What about you?
Do you have a favorite post?
Favorite blog?

Post a link!

Squirrel!

2012-01-17T21:35:00.000-08:00

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 was relegated to a gym workout
And I was resigned NOT to run a treadmill.

Don't know why the angst today

Simply wanted to swim

A swim for me is like holiday

A slow smooth stroke
Can't even do a proper kick
Frog legs for me

Like therapy
The water soothes and calms

Really wanted that swim----
But in the back of my mind
That nagging chart with unfinished miles
Loomed
Tread mill?
Really?

Quickly drove home
Threw on running gear

Picked up Moll's
Back to the gym
Treadmill chosen

Press quick start

Annnnnnnd we're offfffff!

About mile 2
Dawned on me
I need the treadmill

You see
My attention span is paper thin

"SQUIRREL!"

On my road runs
I stop for photos
Take detour trails
Fun fun fun

Need to work those
Frog legs of mine
No stopping
No slowing
Move it, move it, move it

Yes, it's a cheat
I get it
Sooooo many runners look down on the tread

Tread
hmmmmmm
Yep,
Like treading water
It's not really great for a race
But oh so good for building stamina

And with that,
My work was done
Only one thing left

Slow smooth

Therapy....

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Who says you can't have it all!

New Runner Fog & Teeth

2012-01-16T12:30:00.000-08:00

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 because she's taller?)
Haha

The good thing is I'm trying to get faster

We walked and ran and and chatted and ran some more
Rain didn't bother us

Kids did
No
Not really-
Just a brother sister spat to untangle
Potty break request
And a HOORAY mom!!!!!
That I misunderstood as another fight
*smile*

We rounded out our half mile loop toward mile 2

Time for those hills
Kiwanis has a grand steep hill
Just perfect for 10 second repeats

BLAST!!!!

Finished it off with another hack at that trail
Huffing and puffing
(That's me!)
But oh so happy to have another run done!

On the drive home
Maria laughed and said
"Look- we must have done good"
"We're fogging up the car!"

Fogged up the car-
sure sign of a good run!

My running buddy Maria

Am I really THAT happy?
I guess running brings out my teeth!

Are You Good Enough?

2012-01-14T12:06:00.000-08:00

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
HA! (now THAT is tempting)

I learned so much today
Two of my "newbies" had run before-
One in highschool/college,
The other to lose weight after baby #2
Their children now grown, and off to college
They ran like it was just yesterday

Friends that hadn't run much
Save a few treadmill dashes
Found that they had nothing to fear

Run
Jog
Walk
Laugh

We did it all

Surely this is the start of something good

Wild Goose Chase

2012-01-13T22:50:00.000-08:00

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
Similar times
But never bumped into each other
About time
Our run held easy miles and hill sprints

Wild goose chases

Running talk over Tennille's famous homemade

Lattes and cinnamon rolls

Running is fun

Crazy

Exciting

Cool

I run to blog

2012-01-11T22:11:00.000-08:00

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 radio

The thing about treadmills is there's no change in scenery
Unless you count the muted show that makes you dizzy

The weight lifting 30 something dude who thinks he's still a jock
Flailing around before he does his "big" lift.

The Michael Jackson music video streaming on the big screen

Yep,
That's what I had

Sigh

Kind of made me smile
This menagerie of trite entertainment

It was a good run
I pushed my pace

Yes,
I realize a treadmill pace
Is a cheater's pace
But still,
Every time I'm on one of these things
It builds my confidence to try harder outside next time

And I get to write about it
What could be better than that~

On The Short List----Celery!

2012-01-09T15:38:00.001-08:00

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 fun this exercises would be with friends.
Old fashioned game of tag, anyone?

Finishing out my run with my remaining "easy" 2
Read: walk----again----*sigh*
I tried to think what the fatigue could be from
****************************************
Here's the short list:

NEED

More- Hydration
Preferably water..

Better- fuel
Thinking more whole foods, less processed

More- sleep
Notorious for 1am blogging
Curfew might be in order here.

******************************
How I got in a run without a photo is beyond me

So I leave you with a candid shot of my littlest, Molly
Tonight she was pretending
To be Linny,
The celery eating Guinea Pig
From Wonder Pets.....

Yes,
I let her bring celery to the mall
I'm flat proud of her penchant
For veggie eating----

11 perfect miles

2012-01-07T22:58:00.000-08:00

Got a run in today~
11 sweet miles

Great run

Full of things that make me smile

Spontaneous detour

winter berries

blooming cactus

Cookie Monstered

2012-01-06T21:27:00.000-08:00

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

Gimped my way up and down
High fiving my ugly car
Who cheered me on each time I passed.

I suddenly had a new found respect for that car
The older kids named her Maria
When she was shiny and new

Loyal
Always ready

But over the years
A little worn
Paint not so good

Our littlest Molly
Never knowing her given name
Dubbed her "The Dorky Car"
Sad.

I'll correct her next time

"Look for the joy"
"Find the fun"

I kept telling myself.

But the neighborhood was dark

There was nothing new

Up and down
Back and forth

Only .3 miles left
I couldn't quit now.

One more pass and I'd be done
The light from the streetlamp
Glowed brighter

Pampas Grass

3 miles
Done

Hill Repeats & The Secret Trail

2012-01-05T00:06:00.000-08:00

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 coached me on breathing
And the basic approach to hill repeats

On we ran
To a quaint neighborhood I'd never seen before
Hill was not daunting...
I was a bit more sure of myself than I should have been
How bad can this long slope of a hill be anyway?

Up I sprinted
My goal of a 45 second sprint got cut in half
Tennille flew past

Walk/jogged back down

Up I sprinted
My goal of a 45 second sprint got cut in half
Tennille flew past

Walk/jogged back down

Six times in all.

Hard fun work.
I felt like I could almost puke
Almost

At the beginning of our run,
Tennille told me we would end with a trail.
And that's just what we did.

This trail is very curious
You have to KNOW where it is to find it

I felt like I was a kid,
Stumbling upon a secret road
That lead,
Who knows where,
Just follow it
See where it takes you.

It weaved it's way above the houses
And roads,
Trees and undergrowth,
Stone outcroppings with moss
This is not New Mexico
Surely we trekked
Somewhere far far away.

And then,
It landed us
Back down to earth
To the road we knew well.

I wonder if she felt a bit of a sigh
Letting me see that secret trail.

It was wonderful.

Run back felt good
I felt stronger - in an odd way-

I think it was the hills
Or the magic secret trail...
Who knows.

Back to life..
One must.

So we did.
Lattes and cinnamon rolls
From Andrea Kristina's~

I could get used to this~

Hoping for a little hill work----tomorrow

2012-01-03T13:43:00.000-08:00

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!

Sissy Run~

2012-01-02T23:05:00.000-08:00

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 marathons under his belt
man can he flat run!

Of course he caught us walking.
Bummer
Smile and wave
He flies by

Running again,
lest we let someone else catch us walking
We soldier on

That's when we get an idea-
Mike's out running-
Why not run to his house
And grab his honey Jill
(our other Sis-in-law)
To go with us?

We know it will be tricky
She's not "a runner"
(what does that even mean anyway)
She's really going to have to trust us
And we're going to have to persuade her it will be fun.

I text her
Jen texts her
The Tag team texting works!
We're picking her up in 10!!!

Three sister-in-laws!

Our run turned into a walk...
But we didn't care.
We'd finally gotten Jill to join us!

We had an absolute hilarious time.

Climbed up huge hills
Even coerced Jill to try a jog down
Who knows....
Maybe this run will be the one that reels her in.

Ran across this lovely bridge

That weirdly sits next to a skate park

There's just something about a skate park

That brings out the crazy

I did some 'hill' repeats

Running up

Dowwwwwn

Uuppppp

Dowwwwn

That half pipe was MINE!

We tried to look tough

Shot some crazy 'skater' poses

OK epic fail on looking tough

We did however manage to take the saddest 'Charlie's Angels' shot I've ever seen

BwahaHAHahahahahahah

And NO we don't look ANYTHING like those shadows in real life!

A great walk/run/walk/hike/laugh fest

A great time with my sister-in-laws

Final mileage: Endomondo said 7.91

(although, to be honest-I think it was really about 7.5)

Did I mention

Mike bought us all Starbucks when we were done??????

YUM!!!!!!

New Year's Traditions

2012-01-01T22:47:00.000-08:00

So I'm relaxing around the house this afternoon
When it dawns on me.....

I haven't run any miles at all this year.

Can't have that!
Haha-Happy New Year to me.....

Heading out,
Say to myself,
Think I just started me a New Year's tradition!

First 2 miles were a bit sloggy
Chose my Asics Gel Nimbus-
Don't know why-
Maybe I felt sorry for them
Sitting in my closet
Holes in the toes
Next to my flashy Brooks
Cascadias & Flows

But there I was rounding out mile 3
And they felt good.

Since I was running 'old school' shoes
Why not an old route?

Gorgeous....

7.5 miles down in the books for 2012

Now off to another New Year's Tradition~
Dinner at the Chavez's-
Menu: Prime Rib

I just love traditions.

Planning Ahead- Don't Look Back

2012-01-01T00:15:00.000-08:00

Seems like the thing to do this time of year is look back and reminisce~

So I did-
And it shocked me.

My first documented run was June 28th, 2011
2.01 miles

Am I a "newbie" or what!

So my total for less than 6 months of fun is:

434.53miles

*******************************

Plans for 2012

So far all I have on the books is Moab Canyonlands Half in March

Goals-
Get leaner
Get faster

The first
Is a huge struggle for me.
40lbs over weight.
Love for running to be the "magic bullet"
But so far it's not happened.

That's OK
I feel great, and know that my body just doesn't believe me yet

The second
Is a huge monkey on my back.
Must get faster!!!!

One thing's for sure-
Can't wait to see what 2012 holds.........................

Magic 8

2011-12-31T14:02:00.000-08:00

Get up....
You need to run

That's what my head kept saying

I had 8 miles to log
But I'd stayed up late

I hit snooze

But the next time my alarm sounded

I bounded out of bed,
Wrangled on my gear
Laced up my kicks

headed out.

It was warm

This would be a magic run
I could feel it

Out I went,
Chose a totally new route
It was incredible

The miles seemed to fly by
How had I not seen this path before

I took it

On and on I ran
I was unstoppable.

Then I woke up*
Magic 8?
oh yes
8 magic hours of sleep~

Running Wogging & the Glass Half Full: Snail trail~

2011-12-30T16:02:00.000-08:00

Running Wogging & the Glass Half Full: Snail trail~

Snail trail~

2011-12-29T21:58:00.000-08:00

It's funny how the kids and I look forward to break
And then get so out of whack while we're in it

Today was dresser clean out day....
Clothes everywhere
Kids telling me
"Keep"-
"Give"-

Bags of hand-me-downs.....

Then we tackled the "lonely sock" bag
It had gotten out of hand- all plump and overflowing
Hours of mindlessly matching forgotten socks...

Blech....

I needed a run.

Got ready to head out
And did
Even got halfway down the block

But felt dead inside
Why was I out in the gorgeous day
While my kids sat happy to just TV vege?

I turned around, ran back up the block
Into the house
And told the kids to get their shoes on!

They looked at me in disbelief

A little bewildered to leave Phineas and Ferb behind,
But somewhat interested in a run with mom...
They obliged.

Out we went
I felt happy and alive

Look at me world!
I'm taking my kids running!!!!!!

We ran up and out the neighborhood.
Such excitement~ me and my brood~

Then we turned the corner,
And my oldest was done.

"I'm tired"
"How long is this going to take?"
Kate, my 11 year old said

"Not long~ It will be fun!"
I said, trying to convince her.

I could tell already~this was going to be a hard sell~
How could I keep their interest up?

"Anybody want to go 'off road'?"

My son Riley (8) was game
Molly chimed in she wanted to too....
Kate, not so much~

We did anyway-

Short cutting our way through our subdivision,
I knew just where we should head next.

Lions Wilderness Park
My favorite scenic run...
Surely that would save the day.

So we went.
It was hard, slow going
Riley and Molly ran from light post to light post
Then waited for me and Kate

I so wanted Kate to enjoy running
The younger kids came by it naturally enough

I wanted to be patient...
I could tell it was hard work for her.
Reminded me of those first days when I decided I would run.

Hard work
Not fun
Tired

Please let her love this.....
Please let her love this....
I held her hand.
That was the moment she softened.

On we went.

The park did not disappoint.
Seeing them love it like I did made me so proud.
We wandered
Explored
Climbed

The way back was fun,
We talked about going earlier next time
So we could stay longer.

Our first 5 mile hike.

Scavenger Hunt Run

2011-12-28T17:49:00.000-08:00

Slept in....

Knew I HAD to get out and run....

But I was "cozy-cold"
You know, that cozy feeling you have
Snuggled up in your pjs
Knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt
You'll be miserable cold if you take them off.

So I pulled out my running gear
Put them in the dryer
Hit start.

That'll teach 'em
I thought to myself
Smug grin.

Took a moment to check on the loop
See how all the running folk are doing---
They were all running fierce...

Better get MY run on

Dryer clothes retrieved
Ahhhhhhhh so cozy!

Molly sees me getting my gear on
"Mommy, are you going for a run?
"Why don't you just stay in and do that machine"
She says, pointing to the elliptical

Really?

Do THAT machine?

I appeased her-
Netflixed a Wallace and Grommit-
49 minutes of machine fun.

Ughhhh...

I really needed a run.

So----
Kids safely movied and Xbox 360'd
Out I went.
New shoes made me smile,
But I was bored.

I had to stay close for kids' sakes.
Neighborhood runs make my skin crawl.

But then I saw it-
Nothing exciting-
But the stuff popping out
Gave me an idea

Scavenger hunt-
Gather pics
Cool Christmas presents
Boxes tell the tale

I was off
The run became fun

Zig-zagging up and down
Blocks of cans

Snapping pics-
New jewelry box

Made me wonder -
Did she get diamonds?

New play kitchen for some lucky little girl
The exact one I'd have picked for Molly
If we had the room for it

Rounding the corner
I laughed at the overflowing
Recycling bin of bottles

Someone even got a kitchen remodel

About mile 3
Some gal spotted me
Snapping a pic of her trash

Awkward

I duck down the next street
Snap a pic of myself
Just to double check

Phew!
I look like a mom-
Not a gangster
Scouting her trash for a weekend heist
Surely she won't judge

On I run
Scavenger hunt continues
Can't remember when I had this much
Corny fun.

Almost 6
I wind my way toward home
I think of my fun present from my honey Ryan

But them I look down and see my shadow

Had to take a pic
Ok- like 10 pics
I looked crazy skinny and tall!

Maybe there's something to this running thing after all
*sigh*

Christmas Detox Run-13 little miles in my new pureflows-

2011-12-26T20:08:00.000-08:00

Christmas has come and gone..

Everything went well

Sunday service was beautiful

My Riley and Molly sang with the children's choir
My Kate sang the solo

Oh but the Krumkake almost didn't make it....

I really needed my mom and grandma-

But with a little help from my littlest molly,

All decked out in her new chef's hat,

We got them done. and they were delicious.

My family back in Minnesota eats them plain.

But Ryan's dad,

That first year I made them so long ago

He just HAD to fill it with whip cream

Tradition born,

We now fill ours with homemade whip cream-

Crazy good.

With all that good eating I was feeling fluffy...
I just had to get in a run.

besides--look what my sweetie got me for Christmas!

My sis-in-law Jen and I planned an early morning run

The first few miles were tragic

Sludge running-

Remind me never to eat junky again!

But the company was grand-

We ran and walked and walked and ran

I took her on my route up into the foothills

The hills were harder than ever

Curse you whip cream and Christmas goodies!!!!

Once we hit 7.5 we knew we might as well just make it 13

And that's just what we did!

The Brooks Pureflow mini review:
*loved them*
To Be Continued................

Frost~

2011-12-23T20:05:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas

Rite of Passage- The Pits

2011-12-22T22:19:00.000-08:00

This week's crazy-

Christmas is closing in...

Kids are full throttle excited-

It snowed..

New Mexico snow is delightful.

A morning romp-

Then melt.

Kids loved the snow-

But jackets?

No-

I've been a bit scatterbrained in the running department

Yesterday I was frantic to get something in

35 minutes between appointments and a playdate

Treadmilled out a few miles.

*******

Folding laundry tonight I reeled in horror-

What in the world?

A slight discoloration~

Girls don't do that!

The horror turned to a bit of a grin-

Guess I'm in.

Please note:

these photos

have had the color tweaked

to bring out said pit juice-

purely for bragging rights only

I promise you-

you can hardly tell...

And now that I've told-

I most likely will never wear this shirt again.

except for the fact that I'm wearing it

right now-

in bed-

so that when my alarm goes off in the morning

I don't have an excuse not to get up and run.

*sigh*

Photo Run

2011-12-19T22:57:00.001-08:00

Runnnnnnnn

2011-12-17T20:30:00.000-08:00

Got that run in-
Not a pretty one-

Bumbling Albatross

7 was on the ticket,
But time and body complained

5.56 was all she wrote.

But the sights were glorious!

Ghosts and the cure-all

2011-12-16T21:51:00.000-08:00

Molly leading the way!

New Mexico sky...

It's been a few days since I've gone on a run.
On my last run, Molly (4) came with me again.
She asked for her shoes---
She simply loves her Brooks!
I guess it's safe to say that is one Christmas present
I don't have to wrap!

The run was fun.
Molly would run about a half lap,
Then wait at the playground for me to lap back around.
Then she'd run her heart out for another half.

I think I just might have a runner on my hands.
It makes me smile just thinking about it....

Then the rest of the week took over.
Hubby's gone on business....
No running.
Writer's block.
No posts.

(twiddling thumbs-----while racing around trying to be "Christmas-y")

Tonight I have a really bad headache

I think it's self induced by all the elementary school party junk
Read--
Sugar--
We've downed record amounts of it to get into the Christmas the spirit
Not good.

POUNDING HEADACHE

My kids told me nonchalantly
"Just go for a run"
I laugh,

Can't get Moll out of her Brooks Ghosts!

I like that they think a run will cure things.
(because you and I KNOW it will!)

My mom had called earlier too to chat
(And mentioned that she noticed
I hadn't had a post since the 12th)

Nothing like getting the "get out and run!"
From both your mom---and your kids
I love it.

I want to tell you I got out and ran.
But I didn't.

I didn't have it in me to run circles again.

Ahhh but tomorrow's a new day-
Keep you posted.

wogging is offensive-

2011-12-12T21:07:00.000-08:00

Ok troops-

I've got a job for you.
It seems my seemingly witty word 'wog' is offensive.

For some reason, people over in Australia use that term in a derogatory way-
Silly Aussies, are you really that mean?

But yes, it is google-able,
Yes, it is derogatory
And mean

And my blog title has always been:
Running Wogging & the Glass Half Full

*Sigh*

Just know that if I ever use the term,
I say I'm wogging- which is totally different
It is a euphemism for walk/jogging

Not that I even need the term anymore...
I'm on my way to being semi-wicked-fast!

Kind of.......

shoot

Do I really have to say that I
Jog

Really?
Jog?

Can I be honest?

I'm offended by the term jog-

I have instant Jazzercise photo trauma

Ackkkkk!

Say it isn't so!

Now I'm really going to have to work on that pace----

Just how fast does one have to go before they can honestly say they are running?

New Program & the Running's Grand!

2011-12-10T18:20:00.001-08:00

This weekend has been a blur-

Christmas festivities are taking over.

In the midst of parties and programs, I've started a new training program.

A couple weeks ago on recommendation from my friend T -
I bought the book: Run Faster from the 5k to the Marathon by Brad Hudson
Alot of it made sense
Most of it went over my head

But his concepts of:
Adapting run to body each day
Pushing limits
Running mileage specific to races-

Really resonated with me

So I photo copied, cut and pasted a chart together
It looks huge and menacing on my fridge

Funny how a silly chart can be all the motivation you need.

I even found myself peddling it to my other running friends

Almost all of whom have been running forever-

Really not in need of advice from a 'newbie'

But here I was, pushing it anyway...

I was so excited I just couldn't help it.

I just had to spread the word-

Totally shoved it in NMrunnergirl's

(Clare's RW Loop name) hands during our kiddos

Christmas program practice.

"Look at my new chart I'm doing!"

"Here's and extra copy!"

I think she graciously stuffed it in her purse,

And mentioned her little guy needed a diaper change.

In her defense he DID have that certain funky smell-

Program practice finished well.
Kids were ready for yet another Nativity Story.

Mary & Joseph
Sheep & Shepherds
The Baby that was God
Come to earth for man

It never does get old
This story of God's provision-
His perfect gift

I can't help but feel renewed.

Shuttle kids home

Find Hubby studying
Must stay quiet

Time for a run-
Kids will join me-

fancy new inspiring chart says 7 easy.

Hmmmm I'm a bit stuck on the word "easy"
Running for me has never felt "easy"
And where could I run 7 miles with kids in tow?

Kiwanis Park it would have to be.
It had a 1/2 mile loop with a playground in the middle.

Kids were full of pent up energy
Ran the whole way

Round and round I went,
Kids cheering me each loop

5 miles passed quickly enough
But the kids' playmates were leaving one by one
Soon my kiddos were the only ones left in the park.

Cold set in.

Older kids were getting restless.

"Only 4 more!"
I yelled, trying to give them hope.

"Aren't you done yet??!"
they yelled back as I rounded the corner for the 12th time.
"Just 1mile left, only 2 more laps!"

The kids were not impressed.

Molly (4) decided she'd help.

"I'll run with you mommy, I'm fast."
And run she did.

She ran well for half a lap
complained about her shoes--
I thought of her Christmas present,
Told her not to worry,
Maybe she'd get better running shoes soon.

"Whoo Hooo!"
She screamed.
So full of happiness, this little runner of mine

Oh yeah, we got the miles in.

molls helping me run just 1 more mile

Glade run with Mrs. T

2011-12-09T10:42:00.001-08:00

Friday-
You can't hardly say it without grinning.

Friday-
Had to say it again,
Let it roll off my tongue till my eyes twinkled.

Ah, there's nothing like a Friday.
Unless it's one of those chopped up Fridays that make your grin waver
As you try to remember the 'to do' list schedule-

Today was just that.

But, no worries-
I had a plan.

I have this habit of wearing my running gear on crazy "free" days-
To remind me I have work to do-

Some days turn into an utter fail-
Subjecting myself to spandex for hours on end, no run in sight.

Others are pure magic.
A stolen run, taken while others would think there was merely time for a coffee break.

Don't worry-
I'm not hardcore enough to forgo coffee....
Just hardcore enough to go through the drive through while I plot a "quickie"-
Quickie run that is-

Today I didn't even have to plot.
A text from my friend- T popped up.
Did I mention she took 3rd for OVERALL women's category-
In her FIRST EVER marathon last month-
Can we call it like it is-
SUPERSTAR!

But there she was texting me-

Did I want to go for a run?

Ummmmm yeah!!!!

I had 45-50 minutes to get one in. I text her back,
Heading her way, in hopes she meant....
Right now.

Fly across our tiny town-
Up to her doorstep
Looking anxious and hopeful
Like a girl-scout selling cookies.

She was ready!

We were off.

Did I mentioned she brought along a handsome hunk?!

This is Sentry.

Isn't he magnificent?

And what an enjoyable run it was.

We took a road I'd been dying to take-

Glade- so beautiful.

With a name like that, how could it not be?

We chatted-

It was just plain fun.

I thought we were flying-

But at the same time, felt so comfortable.

We hit the halfway point-

Laugh at Sentry and his silly wonky running gate.

Done.

I check endomondo-

Pace-13.36

WHAT?

Had t really allowed herself to run THAT SLOW?

She did.

Graciously.

It was beautiful.

I will remember this.

Moab Half & spanx~ don't try this at home

2011-12-06T19:18:00.001-08:00

DH left for a business trip this afternoon.

One of our last conversations was about signing up for the Moab Half Lottery-
OK...so it wasn't really a conversation, I kind of just kept asking "can I -can I -can I.."
I think he said yes...

So I got on the horn and texted my sis,
Who texted NMrunnergirl,
Who facebooked S---
And talked to K----

http://www.moabhalfmarathon.org/index.cfm

If I'm lucky, and our group gets picked- Maob will be my first Half Marathon race.

I really would love that.

Just thinking about it makes me want to run.
So I did-

Now let me just tell you about my run....

Remembering it was cold-
But also remembering my warm gear was in the wash-
I decided to improvise.

Let's just say that was my first mistake.

I pulled out some footless tights I'd accidentally bought the other day-
Thinking that surely they would make a great base layer-

Ok, these footless tights-
Were the Spanx kind.
No worries, I'm always up for a little compression, right?

After wrestling them on for what seemed like a half marathon,
It was evident that these footless tights were not only Spanxy
But the kind that you're supposed to pull up to your arm-pits.

I should have just ripped them off then and there-
But it had taken so stinking long to get them where they were,

I jogged around the living room-
yep, just what I suspected,
they rolled down.

Now all that extra Spanx material viced its Boa constrictor strength on my middle
I looked like an old lady- wearing a too tight belt
fluff on top
fluff on bottom

and I couldn't breath.

There is nothing athletic about this picture.

But I have blond roots, and am determined.

Out I went.

Oh, did I mention DH is on a business trip?
I have 3 kiddos?
Can't really run anywhere?

I would run around my block.
How bad can it be?
Block is one big hill-

First go around, I note that 1 time around equals a half mile-
Not bad---
Hill is tough, but what doesn't kill us makes us stronger, right?

Round and round I went, til I couldn't breathe for sake of those stupid tights.
Pause Endomondo
Run in-
Check on the kids-
Look for some scissors-
Settle for a knife-
Cut those bad boy tights-
Instant relief-

I just want to run!

Off for a few more rounds.

Hill smiles.......

*Sigh*

Playlist

2011-12-05T19:10:00.001-08:00

Last night I told myself-
I would run in the morning.

Morning came-
Hit snooze once-
Twice-

About to go for round three-
When the most ridiculous country song woke me....
Nothing like a good wail and croon to get you out of bed.

I peeked out the window-
Not a snow day-
Kids would be bummed-

But it did look cold-

Bundle-

Out-
The sparkling ground distracts me-
I try to capture it's light.

But it can't be done.

I realize the cold is closing in-
My mind won't rest til I know just how cold this cold is-

This is New Mexico?

My mind is going a million directions-

Thinking about childhood Christmases in Minnesota-
Snow as tall as tall....

Then on to the realization that I have Christmas shopping left-
And mail to post-
And a camel costume to make-

Ackkkkk!

I fiddle with my phone-
Christmas music!
That's the ticket.

But all Pandora would give me were sad slow depressing Christmas-

Why is it when you're in the car you get obnoxious 'dance' Christmas,
But when you run its
This:

Or even better-
This:

It just wouldn't quit!
After the Vienna Boys Choir tried to serenade me,
I had to call it

And not a moment too soon-
Got a text from DH

I wanted to txt back

"no I'm dying out here"

But I didn't

Sunday Snow

2011-12-04T19:45:00.001-08:00

Sundays are special-

A sabbath of sorts-
Rest from the busyness of life,
To take time to worship.

Church and family recharge me.

This tradition of rest spills into my running schedule too-

Set apart for a Sunday walk.

I relish this time.
Non- running friends join me.
I love how a walk is accessible.
No pace worries here.

******
Snow fell in whispers on our walk today.

It's feathery crystals shimmering all around-

Even the old bridge looked magical.

We walk.
The air takes my breath away
Crisp, brisk-
However you describe it,
It's wondrous.

War Memorial

We pass the War Memorial.
The air is still.
The flags glow in the winter sky-
We linger longer
Proud of those who gave all.

Friendship-
A glorious walk-

The beauty of a Sunday snow........

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Hill Run & shhhh don't tell the kids!

2011-12-02T09:44:00.001-08:00

Hill run

Hmmmm

Don't know how I feel about this little part of a runner's training.
I do know that it has been missing from my schedule thus far.

Today I added it in.

A short run, packed with hills-

It was horrid and fun at the same time.

As the new year hits,
Goals are forming in my mind-
This surprises me- delights me-
No longer content to simply run.
This will be a training year.

One filled with hard things.

Like hills.

The whole time I kept thinking
"The kids would love this"

I thought about the secret gift I had for them
Tucked in the back of the car.

Shhh...

Don't tell them that this seemingly small gift
May just open up a world to them.

Health
Happiness
Togetherness

A gift, that will last a lifetime.

13.1 wild hare run

2011-11-28T15:35:00.001-08:00

I just couldn't help it-

I'd been thinking about it all last night-

My Sis-in-law gets to run yet
ANOTHER half this weekend
Seriously!
Isn't that a bit excessive?

Not in the least-
I'd run one too if I could.

But wait-
I can-
Virtual though it may be-
13.1 is just a mile marker
Anybody can get to.

And that's when the white rabbit
Jumped the hole.

How was I not to follow this
'Wild hare'?

Prep was minimal-

2 water bottles
3 packs of fruit snacks

Dropped kids off at school.

Deposited said water bottles
At mile 6 and 9.

Then home to start the trek.

Route chosen-
It would be a run up foothills-

Chosen mostly for it's solitude-
NOT it's abundant crazy hills-

The first three miles could be Described by most as an
Utter fail-

The stoplight took forever
Toward the end of mile1-
Which turned into a gruesome
Hill climb in mile 2-
Mile 3 laughable-
Some truck flagged me down
For directions-
I thought they were stopping me
Because I looked like
I needed help-
Probably did.

But mile 4 brought the most
Beautiful sight-

Look at that
Snow on the mountain!

My iPhone doesn't begin
To capture the scene
That ran with me-

Oh it was marvelous

The route took me up
Up
Up
Up

I finally rounded the corner Foothills to Lakewood
Marking the halfway point of the run-

I said hello to our land
That held a stashed water bottle-
And thought about the
'Someday' house we might build

Sigh

Then off to retrace my steps
Toward home.

Only took a wrong turn once-
You can see it's finger jut on the map-

Then down
Down
Down
Down
Down

One last water bottle

Home.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

The Sigh Between Thankfulness & Giving

2011-11-26T15:18:00.001-08:00

Thankful-

Very thankful-

So many blessings:

Family,

Friends,

This new found gift of running.

What better way to give them their due, than a run.

The sky so blue,

Not a single cloud.

But wind- oh there was that!

Reminding me - winter and all the festivities that go with it,

Chasing me down.

I want to catch this moment

The moment between thankfulness and giving

The sigh before Christmas rush

And run.

Running days of Christmas

2011-11-24T17:01:00.001-08:00

On the first day of christmas
Running Santa gave to me-
A lotto draw for New York City

On the second day of Christmas
Running Santa gave to me
Two round trip air fares

And a lotto draw for New York City

On the third day of Christmas
Running Santa gave to me
Three high tech gadgets

Two round trip air fares
And a lotto draw for New York City

On the fourth day of Christmas
Running Santa gave to me
Four running shoes

Three high tech gadgets
Two round trip air fares
And a lotto draw for New York City

On the fifth day of Christmas
Running Santa gave to me
FIVE MINUTE MILES!!!!!

Four running shoes
Three high tech gadgets
Two round trip air fares
And a lotto draw for New York City

On the sixth day of Christmas
Running Santa gave to me
Six practice races

FIVE MINUTE MILES!!!!!
Four running shoes
Three high tech gadgets
Two round trip air fares
And a lotto draw for New York City

On the seventh day of Christmas
Running Santa gave to me
Seven sassy outfits

Six practice races
FIVE MINUTE MILES!!!!!
Four running shoes
Three high tech gadgets
Two round trip air fares
And a lotto draw for New York City

On the eighth day of Christmas
Running Santa gave to me
Eight epic PR's

Seven sassy outfits
Six practice races
FIVE MINUTE MILES!!!!!!
Four running shoes
Three high tech gadgets
Two round trip air fares
And a lotto draw for New York City

On the ninth day of Christmas
Running Santa gave to me
Nine nifty socks

Eight epic PR's
Seven sassy outfits
Six practice races
FIVE MINUTE MILES!!!!!
Four running shoes
Three high tech gadgets
Two round trip air fares
And a lotto draw for New York City

On the tenth day of Christmas
Running Santa gave to me
Ten coaching sessions

Nine nifty socks
Eight epic PR's
Seven sassy outfits
Six practice races
FIVE MINUTE MILES!!!!!
Four running shoes
Three high tech gadgets
Two round trip air fares
And a lotto draw for New York City

On the eleventh day of Christmas
Running Santa gave to me
Eleven sports massages

Ten coaching sessions
Nine nifty socks
Eight epic PR's
Seven sassy outfits
Six practice races
FIVE MINUTE MILES!!!!!
Four running shoes
Three high tech gadgets
Two round trip air fares
And a lotto draw for New York City

On the twelfth day of Christmas
Running Santa gave to me
Twelve more months of running

Eleven sports massages
Ten coaching sessions
Nine nifty socks
Eight epic PR's
Seven sassy outfits
Six practice races
FIVE MINUTE MILES!!!!!
Four running shoes
Three high tech gadgets
Two round trip air fares
And a lotto draw for New York City!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

better, faster, farther

2011-11-19T10:22:00.001-08:00

Today I ran my first 5k

Now-
I have a different opinion on these types of things.
It was not my first time to run 3-whatever miles.
So I really hate saying it was my first-

But it was my first ever race.
Hate calling it that too,
I'm slow, and not competetive.

Let's just say it was my first ever
Numbers, T-shirt, Hoopla.

I would really love to rant about how I despise the mentality,
That it takes a race to affirm one's running prowess.

But I'll spare you.

Because for the first time I ran consistently faster than I ever have before.
And no- I did't shatter any records-
I may have even come in dead last- for all I know
But I do know this-I got past a pace that has been haunting me.

So what was the race like?

Well, for starters I was running late- no surprise there.
Breakfast was a banana
(hate them, but heard they were a good choice)
Down it went
Water
Melaluca Access bar
(the chocolate caramel ones are so yummy)

Fidgeted with the bib pinning thing-
Then took it off to figure out later

Pulled out a new pair of Feetures socks--
Bought the wrong style
They were 'Light'
I like 'Lightly Cushioned'

Got out old pair.

Surprised myself and pulled out my Brooks Cascadias
(What better choice for a race sponsored in part by Brooks)

Shoes tied in the most 'hard-core' double knot I could muster.

Out the door.

Drive and park.

The real test begins
Where do I go?
What do I do?

Heard my name,
Some friendly voice was rescuing me!
It was B's mom.

She chatted me up and calmed me down-
Kept me from pinning my bib numbers on upside-down too.

Saw both sis-in-laws, each had family in tow
Saw friends

Shoot!
Everybody and their mother IS here!

Nervous again.

Porta potty break
One older gentleman was slightly appalled that I was standing in line in front of a BLUE instead of PINK potty....
There was only one pink potty,
And that line was......hmmm
I let him cut in front of me.

5 minute warning is announced.

I try to situate myself in the running pool, somewhere in the middle.
Endomondo at the ready

Gun start.

Running feet all around me
Pulling me with them

All I could think was,
Is THIS what it feels like- to run a race?

I try to remember all the things I told myself I would tell myself -

But there just wasn't time,
Everyone was running so fast.

So I ran, tried to not worry about the feet passing me.

First turn
Second turn,

First Mile- wow, 2 minutes faster than I usually do a first mile!
Thought it would slow me down,
But I knew there was a crazy huge hill coming up,
So I just kept running.
Well, I wogged in there too.

Mile 2- crazy hill.
I'd driven it the night before,
Told myself "it's not THAT bad"
Visualized myself running gloriously up it-
But now that it was staring me in the face,
I was beginning to worry.
Heard the gals in front of me say "ah heck, let's just walk it"
I passed them
Then I couldn't will myself to go any further.
They passed me.

Mile 3-
The excitement kicked in
A beautiful downhill behind me,
a bit of a flat before.
I CAN DO THIS!
I round the corner
And notice the runners ahead
WHAT!
Another hill???
I had thought we were only a block away from the downhill finish
Here we were doing yet another hill before the final decent.
I will say I struggled.

Final approach had me pummelling down the hill to try to save some time-
One misstep and I'd be flat on my face
THEN Endomondo told me I'd met and beat my time goal.
I was thrilled.

Final turn to the finish-
I was pretty much on my own down this stretch
Had this weird feeling that maybe I was really slow
Got self conscious
Heard friends cheering
Tried to do "something exciting" when camera guy took a shot

Done.

Forgot to stop endomondo

Who knows what official time is.

I don't really care.
I ran those first 3 miles-
5 minutes faster than I did at the beginning of the week.

Chatted with friends
Family

*Sigh*
******************************
Driving home, I was mortified to think I'd not taken one photo to commemorate this race!

Much like racing affirms your running prowess,
A picture confirms that it actually happened!
(and I'm here to tell you I know the "something exciting" running pose I did will surely be a bust)

So I wrangled a pose and took a shot when I got home.

I really enjoyed this race.
I've always turned up my nose at smaller distance races-
That won't happen again.

Now I know-
Races make you want to-
Better
Faster
Farther

Think I need to look up my next race
Whether or not I get to go,
I want to be ready!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Anticipation

2011-11-17T20:32:00.001-08:00

Anticipation

You feel it bubble up

Half giddy
Half scared

Do you dare?

Just one step

And suddenly

It's GAME ON!

Other Side of the Fence

2011-11-15T20:18:00.001-08:00

My Fence
Outside looking in-

Been wandering aimlessly this week.

Even thought about forgoing running all together and post a few fall "spring cleaning" blurbs for good measure. (my cupboards are looking especially happy these days)

Cleaning house is a sign of discontentment.

My hubby loves it when I clean and organize, but for me it reinforces my shortcomings.

I guess it's good to get it all out in the open, right the ship, and move on... rather than have some unsuspecting visitor happen upon my stash of heaped up pots.

My discontentment lay in a secret wish.
Don't ask me why I didn't vocalize it.
A silly little wish of a run.

Hubby's in the home stretch getting his M.S.M.E through Purdue.
Every ounce of energy is focused on him finishing strong.
His "marathon" of sorts-
Only 4 weeks left,
I am so proud-

And yet, I digress-
About a month or so ago,
Our little town started organizing it's first Turkey Trot.

This phenomena is SO newsworthy I know-
Especially when compared to the insane blankets
Of numbers, letters, lines of code
Worked tirelessly each night,
Homework upon homework completed at the dining room table by DH.

But there it is.
I wanted to run it.

It's in our own town for pete's sake.
It's only a 5k

Everybody and their mother is running it.

Last night was the registration deadline.

Midnight came and went-

I was on the outside looking in again.

But THAT was last night.

What a difference a day makes.
Txt and phone calls this afternoon.

My favorite shoe store Brown's had 10 sponsored entries-
Did I want one?

Did I want one-
Boy did I ever!

Tonight, I had to run.
3 little miles came and went.

I wasn't crazy fast-
But I was happy.

No-
I was thankful.

Can't wait for Saturday!

Saturday's Sky

2011-11-12T23:35:00.001-08:00

Saturday's sky-

How can one describe it...

Magnificent seems trite-

Glorious- overused

No words even come close to dignify the vast beauty of it.

Yet, can you believe-

I almost missed it.

My running chart told me 8 was on the menu.

The morning started well enough-

But as I stepped out on this run, my mind got in the way.

First, it was a new compression shirt-

Embellished stripes on the back suddenly had seams-

Windbreaker swished.

Running form- wonky

No slight annoyance went undetected.

I thought about my friends and their scheduled runs-

Some have 10

One, is running Rim Rock 26.2

Crazy Marathon through Colorado National Monument.

The night before, T texted me while driving the course

THEN she texted me THIS

Isn't that crazy awesome!

It was her run that got my mind off myself.

That's when I noticed the sky.
And knew I had to have a special run.

I chose a hill climb-
College/Hood Mesa/Lakewood

I willed myself to try to run the hills

First hill-
Fail

Second-
Half walk half run

Third-
Made it! no walking!

The rest of the miles slipped by-

The sky went with me-

P.S. T finished her first marathon, taking 3rd in women's with an incredible 3:40!

vanished-

2011-11-11T17:48:00.001-08:00

runner ahead of me on the track running through the fog

My first 'running winter' is approaching.

A month ago I was petrified the cold would hamper my running efforts.

But after having run in snow flurries last Saturday, the worry is no longer the cold-

But visibility-

My mid-week training runs must take place before the sun gets up,
Or after it goes down-

Thursday we had fog-

Absolutely wondrous phenomena,
Not so wonderous on the visibility chart.

The photo above was tricky to get-
A fellow runner ahead of me on the track-
Visible for about 5 seconds-

Then vanished into thin air.

It's time to get creative-

I wouldn't have it any other way~

Fog on the field

First Frost!

Re-live it & Make it New

2011-11-09T12:10:00.000-08:00

This post is a procrastinated post.

This run was completed 3 days ago.

Typically I can't wait to share thoughts and pictures on a run,

Blog it into oblivion.

But this run was different.

It's not that it was a hard run.

Discouraging, no-

New route-no.

Ever have a run that didn't go as planned, and it haunts you?

Maybe even a race-

Just something that you keep replaying in your mind.

craving a 'do-over'

I've got one too.

Nothing serious.

Just a training run that rocked- then ran awry-

A missed photograph of a building that intrigued me.

Not really worth all the emotional drama-

A silly little training run, but I can't shake it.

Monday morning I finally got the chance to re-capture it.

Funny how I had built it up in my mind-

This perfect run-

This perfect picture-

It was neither.

Just a simple run

Ordinary snapshot

"The photo"- yawn

How many times do I do that to myself?

Live in the past.

Reliving yesterday's victory as if it's today's.

Or defeat-

I finished the run more thoughtful-

I pushed harder-

Sweated a little more-

Ran a bit longer-

Savored it-

Only then did I realize, I hadn't relived an old run

I'd made it new.

The one meant for today

And it was good.

Live in the Moment

Ode

2011-11-08T12:13:00.000-08:00

It is notenough to merely know the air is coldthis time of year,

One mustfeel its whispers as it rushes by.

Nor enoughto simply trust earth’s crust be sleeping,

Lest youmiss the frost beneath your feet.

How can asoul be living if he linger by the window,

Watching forspring’s waking sigh?

Now is themoment, take it, bear it up, embrace the fear-

Venture on apath, and live complete.

There is noshame in slowing pace to take it in,

Nor pride inspeeding up to find relief.

So go, myfriend, and conquer wind and snow-

With openarms, and running feet, and heart.

Coffe Run

2011-11-05T16:16:00.000-07:00

Saturdays are for celebrating.
My son, Riley enjoys a good pancake.
He has single handedly created a tradition of
"Pancake Saturdays" by his sheer will and sweet coaxing.

Today Molly helped.

Usually we make Great Harvest pancakes,
But I ran out of mix-
Good old fashioned home-made were just that-
GOOD-

Breakfast cleared and cleaned,
One thing on my mind.

MY saturday tradition- a good old fashioned run.

But the day had other plans.
Kids rooms needed tidying, floors needed sweeping, you get the idea-
The day was getting away.

I wondered if my girlfriends had gotten their run in already-
A quick check to Endomondo told me, not yet-
they had 8 scheduled for today.
I had 6.

As if they read my mind, my phone chimed in a text.

Boy did I ever want to run with them again-
The last time I'd run with these gals was all the way back in August (read about it here)

Wow- had it really been that long ago?
They had continued their Saturday group runs,
Training for Duke City-

I had run on my own.

I couldn't wait to try a group run again-
And what better incentive than running to Durango Joe's-
(I'm a coffee fanatic!)

I head out, to get a few warmup miles in-
But there was nothing warm about them-

I snapped a few photos before the snow sarted flying-

Soon I see the girls coming up the road, and we are off !

Chat, chat, chat-

I'd forgotten how a group run brings with it the fun of conversation.

I'd forgotten how winded I get when I talk!

Snow upon snow

Wind

I want to run faster, but need to walk

And I do

The next few miles were filled with this silly walk jog

We laugh

We wipe our drippy noses

We finally make it!

Now THIS is a tradition I could get used to-

Coffee run-anyone?

Confession~

2011-11-03T10:48:00.000-07:00

crabby when i don't run

This is my crabby face-

Well, not really, my crabby face is much to scary to post.

I wanted to start this post,
"Forgive me Father of all runners, for I have sinned...
It has been 1 week since my last run....."

But I'm not Catholic.

I AM a procrastinator.

A procrastinator in denial.
You see, I always THINK I will have time to accomplish whatever task it is I'm putting off.
I even go through self visualization techniques of me completing said task.

The glass is always half full.
Can't even begin to explain how I do this to myself over and over again, why don't I just do the task at hand, rather than leave it for later?

Take this week for instance.

Sunday night-
I'm thinking about the week ahead, and planning my runs.

I get giddy at the thought of Monday being Halloween, even plan to 'steal' my daughter's cat woman mask to wear for a fun early morning run. Then I try on my daughter's tutu, thinking THAT would be hysterical to run in ---- No one would see me- it would be early -right? Realize the tutu only fits my right thigh, and the cat woman mask looks downright evil over my glasses. Head to bed pondering suitable alternatives to entertain my early morning run.

Monday Morning
Single handily assault my alarm, by constantly hitting snooze button-
I sleep in, telling myself I can get a quick run in after I teach my early morning classes.

Classes taught, I get a call from the landscaper- we meet at the land to discuss scope of work.

Time to pick up Molly from kinder, take her to violin lessons- have lunch and get ready again to teach, take Kate to violin lessons- and take the kids to trick or treat-

I think I should pull a night run, but the whole Halloween holiday thing weirds me out- no run-

Tuesday Morning
Ditto to Monday's alarm assault-
I sleep in, telling myself I can get in a run later.
Fully awake, I realize Ryan is set to leave on another business trip, and the girls have a hair appointment

Still in denial, I tell myself I will run the treadmill after the girls' hair appointment to make up for yesterday.

Kids to school.

I'm off to teach 3 classes.

Call from Molly's teacher-
Molly's been poked with a pencil-

Hair appointment out- Doctor visit in.
Molly is fine, her visit turns into a well-check and shots ensue.
Molly is NOT amused.

To make me look like the 'good guy' I take her to Wal-mart for a Happy Meal and a toy.

Then home to teach afternoon classes.

No run.

Wednesday-
You get the picture.

Wednesday night, I was pretty much berating myself for my lack of discipline...
Something's got to give.

Thursday Morning-
Snooze 1 time- alarm is thankful, and notes that hideously sad country songs get my attention best.

Up and out.

Freezing cold-
Now, I know this is NM folks, but it was COLD this morning at 5:15am
My legs felt like they did when I was 8, after a day of sledding in Minnesota.
Tingly all over.

But the run was fun.

Pace wickedly slow.

Walk- yes

I get bogged down in the realization that it doesn't matter how many miles I ran last week, or last month. This run is the only one that matters.

I realize I have so much to learn.
Find the joy in the run-

Realize it's a bit too cold for running joy-
Must run faster to GET HOME!

I must confess, I am much happier now!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhon

Dear Asics-I'm not racist- I just hate white

2011-10-29T20:13:00.000-07:00

Glorious run today-

Nice five mile jaunt

More fast and slow
More form adjustments

I really enjoyed this run-
I had a light attitude, and talked to myself the whole way-

First:
"You know-if you'd just move those stubby legs God gave you-
You'd go faster..."

I laughed-
partially because I always try to stay sheltered from such 'horrid' thoughts-

And partially because I was proud of being able to joke with myself-

I'm learning not to loathe what I consider flaws-
but be thankful for this quirky body-
This 'tool' I was given-
It may not be a 'power tool' like yours-
But, hey- it gets the job done.

Second:
"Dear Asics, I'm not racist, I just hate white."

I've ranted about this before- (Glass Slipper)
But why, oh why are running shoes white?
I love my Asics Gel Nimbus,
Really feel I need to keep a cush stability shoe in the lineup for longer runs-
But I'm so over the boring color choices.

And for the next few miles I dictated a letter to the 'powers that be'-

Warning-
I WILL choose a suitable flashy replacement for my Gel Nimbus

Pleading-
I beg you- with all that is holy
STOP using white.

Threatening-
I'll blog you into OBLIVION
Yeah- you heard me-
Be afraid-
29 whole people read my post yesterday-

Wishing-
Someone with more clout would take up my cause-
"Get-er-done-"
And SEND me that first fabulously flashy trial pair!

*sigh*
I pass this torch on to the 29 people who read my post yesterday-
Please boycott white shoes everywhere.
*sigh*

Rant over-
I get back to my run-

And what a beautiful run it was-
Don't you love it when you run your 'regular'-
With fresh eyes?

How had I not seen this before?
I run in awe-

Why I love the desert!

Stubby legs
Flaming white shoes

We run on and on and on............

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

the wonder

2011-10-28T14:11:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I saw the most beautiful sight.

Grey hair running.

She was so beautiful, so happy as she ran-

I teared up, thinking WOW-
It is possible to have this love of running last a lifetime.

**********************

Later that morning. I ran on the treadmill at the Spa.

The last time I did that, I had a terrible time with boredom.
This time, I was prepared,
Headphones and a plan-

The goal was small- a mere 3 miles-
BUT -I had a time crunch-
I had to finish in time to pick up Molly from kinder-

Nothing like a little 'have-to" punctuality to spice things up!

My 'plan' was to try a suggestion my friend Cassie had given me-
Run 3min walk 1

Now-
Given my predisposed aversion to tooo much order,
I decided to simply-
Run some- Walk some-

And boy, did I run!

That's the beauty of a treadmill-
YOU tell your legs what to do, not the other way around.
And for the next half hour or so- that's what I did.

Worked pace
Worked form

I've never sweat so much in my life-
Felt great-

Think they just had the heater on-
But I'll take it-

When I got home, I remembered a suggestion from a fellow runner-
Use a rolling pin to massage your calves after a run-

Brilliant!
(thank you runningchick6560!)

This will now be added regularly to my routine-

Might have to buy a bigger one- this one looks downright pitiful, but worked GREAT-

my rolling pin 'massage'

I was just finishing up, when I saw another beautiful sight-
My Molly-
Flat out running-
So beautiful so happy-

IN THE HOUSE!?!?!

(shhh dad was still away on his business trip)

a blur running past me

Nobody taught her how to run.
She just runs.

She runs like mad-
Stops when she's tired-

Then runs some more-

I want to be like that.

Never lose the wonder.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPho

Let's Dish

2011-10-25T13:39:00.000-07:00

Ok- yesterday I was terribly crabby.
This is NOT a drill people.

There are lots of cures for crabbiness.
ice-cream comes to mind.

But I went for a 'run' instead.
Well, not really a RUN, 'kite surfing' is what I picked Endomondo to post-
I was going to try on some interval training for size, and kite surfing seemed to fit the bill-
Plus it made me smile, and THAT my friend, is an accomplishment.

Sick of having pain.
Sick of being slow.

Sick of reading about running-
I just want to get out there and do it-
And do it NOW-
Then read some more.

My reading of late is centered around running form.

I've been watching all sorts of YouTube videos on proper form. Seems, the one thing (among many) I forget, is that little lean forward.

I tried it last night.

An ever-so-slight lean.
It helped.

Intervals went well too.
Running faster felt so much better, smoother than my normal woggy jog tempo.

But I find I loose my breath faster than my legs tire of it.

I guess that's why it's called interval training.

Pain is back in my left calf.
I really do need to adress it- just trying to figure out where and when.

Don't think it's major, it doesn't tell me to stop... just has been lingering for over 3 weeks now.

I was so proud of myself tonight,
I worked first---
Telling myself I'd double back for this great architectual photo op I'd seen at the beginning of my run.

But as I was working a speed drill, checking my time on my phone
(I had just picked up my replacement iPhone a few hours before my run-yay!)
I dropped that silly thing-
It blacked out-

I really, really, really need a Garmin-
Any favorites on this front?

I trudged home--- hoping Ryan wasn't texting or calling- knew it had to be at least 10:30pm by now.

He wasn't-
He was lost in a sea of numbers and letters-
Fluid Mechanics
Design Optimization

I plugged my phone into it's jack-

Little apple lights up....

I grab a bowl of ice-cream anyway.

It's been that kind of day.

ps,
Today is sooo much better, might even 'kayak' my endomondo self out tonight to snap that pic!

Aurora

2011-10-22T22:46:00.000-07:00

Last night was truly magical.
Another late night run, the lights danced in and out of the trees.

How is it life can be this beautiful?

I am so blessed.

Carbo-loading Sympathy

2011-10-21T12:55:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Thursday-

And what a day!
In a funk.
Eating everything in site,
Eating without even thinking about it-
Crazy, horrid----

Carbo-loading?

Now there's an excuse I could live with,
It sounds so sporty too-
Only I already ran My Half- 3 weeks ago-
And have been plagued with a small injury,
Leaving me in no way worthy of a glorious carbo-load.
(and I know you serious athletes out there would be appalled by my idea of what one is anyway)

Surely there's some other excuse I could create-

Sympathy carbo-loading!

YAY!

The past few days, I've been thinking about Duke City this weekend.
About my great friends running their 'Half"-
About injuries-
About what I would do if I couldn't run again.

Compulsive running blog reading...has rounded out my late night entertainment.
Oh yeah, I submitted my blog too----
To be catalogued on their site amongst some of my famous favorites.
Favorites like:
Run Faster Mommy
26.2 Quest
The Loop
And for a whole week my blog was eerily in the TOP 50----WOW!
What an honour!

I put their little logo on my page...
Nothing wrong with a little backdoor bragging-- right?

Soooooo I just checked it -
Scroll down to the flame logo and you'll see it too--
Not only am I NOT in the top 50 (surprise surprise)
But I am now 142 down on the list.
Can I get a 'WHOOP! WHOOP!' for mediocrity! haha

I really am belly laughing as I type this-- that is tooo funny!

Well, after the shameless grazing-
Reality hit.
I am going to have to pay big for the:

1 Melaluca Access bar
1 Raspberry pop tart
5 Hershey's mini chocolate almond bars
2 pot stickers
1 egg roll
1 fried chicken leg
1 med Starbucks caramel macchiato

And it was only 2pm
SAD, SAD, SAD

I put on my tennis shoes.
Surely just that act alone would burn some calories.

No time for a 'proper' run, I tried my legs out running a figure 8 around my kitchen and living room.
'Viola'!!!!!!
The carbo-loading worked!!!!
(just kidding)

BUT
There was NO PAIN!
I am so happy- I text my honey:
"Just ran around the house, and I have no pain!!!!!!!"
Thinking he'd say -'get out and run!'
But he is the voice of reason, and texted only:
"Be careful"

Now that I think about it,
Maybe he was more worried about me actually running in the house,
Than me actually running....
Hmmmm....
I'll have to look into that.

****************
The rest of the day was a blur--

'Til suddenly it was 10:15pm
Ryan was still plugging away on Thermo homework

I remembered my run around the house,
Knew it was time to try my legs outside.

Ryan graciously loaned me his iPhone so I could at least stream Pandora
(Can't wait for my replacement phone to come in!)

Warm-up walk out the neighborhood felt better than good.

Next up- the jaunt across the street to get to the College.

This simple crossing of the street, tells me everything I need to know about a run.

Today was GOLDEN!!!

I can't tell you how unbelievable it was to simply run across the street with no pain.
I wanted to cry, to shout, jump up and down!

I simply said "Thank you- I will never take this for granted again"

And I ran.

How the iPhone changed my life

2011-10-18T18:43:00.000-07:00

It's been a few days since I've posted.

Life is happening as we speak---

Honey is on yet another business trip-
Which means no early morning fitness classes at Defined.
No late night walks.
No running.

Not that I could run if I even wanted to.
I'm still a little gun-shy on that front.
The last walk I took had me trying a bit of a modified "wog"
And THAT my friends-is entertainment.
(will someone please stalk me so we can make some YouTube money)

Oh--- and my iPhone crashed-

OK- I crashed my iPhone-

Remember that first 10 miler I ran---when my phone went wonky?
The one were I thought for SURE that 10 miles was 13 or more---ha ha
(funny how "long" runs can mess with your head)
Especially when you don't have endomondo to track your miles as you go
Well, ever since, my phone has had a glitch- a message pops up saying something like-
"this accessory is not optimized for your iPhone....blah, blah, blah"
AND I blew a speaker out-

I finally got fed up with the madness and took matters into my own technically challenged hands.

I pressed the phone reset button on iTunes.

I am BRILLIANT-

PHONE LOOKS LIKE NEW!

NO contacts
NO apps
NO calendar
NO Notes-
No Face book-
NO PINTEREST!!!!!!!

Oh, MY!

So, after some deep breathing and meditation techniques
you know- where you chant affirming things to yourself like:
"do not cry"
"do not panic"
"do not hurl"
I took some NyQuil and pulled a RazzyRoo Funky Runner over my eyes
(did you know they make great Diva sleep masks?) and went to sleep.....

Morning came,
and with it the realization that this nightmare was not a drill, but mine to maneuver through.

Best Buys Black Tie warranty doesn't look so much like a scam now---
New iPhone is ordered;
My cost- a big fat goose egg $0.00.
This is the best news I'd had all day-
The worst:
My phone would take 3-5 business days to get here.

Just HOW does one live without their iPhone?

I know that sounds soooooo eye roll worthy,

And I have lived in perfect oblivion before I took a bite of the 'Apple'
But do you realize what that phone has done for me?

It counts my calories, and cheers me on if I want it to, when I exercise.

It let's me Craigs' list on the fly-

Want to read a book? Sure thing-

Pay gross receipts while waiting to clock in for work- no problem.

Phone book? Mine looks it up, and asks if it can dial the number for me.

look up a recipe on it in Walmart to remember that silly obscure ingredient you told yourself not to forget, but some how now can't remember- oh yeah- that too-

I mean to tell you, this is as close to organized as I will ever be.

Even let me parking lot blog while waiting to pick up Molly from Kinder-

*sniff*

And don't even get me started about streaming Pandora night and day- changing genres on a whim- How else can you listen to the Zumba station without feeling you owe an apology to Ella, Bing, and Nat?

*********************
I used the elliptical last night, while I watched a few Netflix reruns of "Say Yes to the Dress"
Did some crunches-
Old school leg lifts-

I could have posted these amazing exercise feats to Face book,
But it looks so much better when an app automatically brags for you-

*sigh*

Window Shopping

2011-10-14T13:20:00.000-07:00

Previously on Running Wogging & the Glass Half Full-

We were finishing up a review-

Oh, and I had this brilliant idea to head out on a short RUN so I could finalize my thoughts on the SmartWool Running Lite-Micro. I'd been taking the week off from running due to a seemingly small injury to my calf. But couldn't bare the thought of another day down without running. Who cares that my actual out the door time was 9:20pm, I was ready.

Warm-up walk out the neighborhood felt good. Music told me it was time (socks felt fabulous)

I ran.

I stopped.

Pain is still there.

I cried. Then I laughed.
Did I really just CRY because I couldn't excercise?
I laughed at myself again.

I don't get it-
I'm from a long line of strong women-
German-Norweigan stock-
We don't get sick-
We don't get tired-
We do whatever it takes to get things done.

What do I do now?

I decided to walk.

Tears still coming down, looking for the happiness-

I pass by a row of storefronts.

A window catches my eye, I have to snap a photo.

I can't help but think of Audrey Hepburn and that iconic photo for Breakfast at Tiffany's

I feel the same way today.
I look at the dresses SILK has in it's window-

So pretty.
*sigh*

I think I should call it a day and head home.
But right as I'm turning around to do just that, Endomondo tells me I have a message from Stephanie:
"Hope you are enjoying your night." the automated voice says-

I smile.
I guess I am-

There's nothing wrong with a midnight stroll and a little window shopping.

I add on another 2 miles, rounding my route out to just over 3.

As I head home, I think about my socks. They feel like a cozy bathrobe after a bubble bath. I like them ALOT. My foot does move in the sock and my sock in my shoe....but the comfort is there.

I think if they made a sock with the compression technology of the Feetures brand, with the feel of a SoftWool, we'd be golden.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Sock it to 'em!

2011-10-13T20:09:00.000-07:00

When I first started running, one of the first words of advice was buy 'good' socks.

So I did.
I went to TJ Maxx instead of Walmart.

I obviously had no idea what 'good' socks meant.

I have since been further educated on the whole sock matter-

And can honestly say: "Socks matter!"

I am by no means an authority on the subject- this review serves as a gentle guide and personal description- and as you will see, is by no means exhaustive, as only two brands will be reviewed today.

Feel free to message me for my address, to send me samples of YOUR favorites to try! HA!

But I digress-

Here's a few thoughts.

-Feetures brand-

Feetures Elite socks were my first try at a performance running sock. I actually bought them, right on the spot, when trying on running shoes at Brown's. I needed a 'try-on' sock- they pulled out the Feetures-

I have to say, this was an eye opener.
For the first time, my feet felt good. I was hooked.
Feetures! Elite claims to be Feetures' most technically advanced sock. Thanks to the Sock-Lock™ support system, your foot and sock become one.

I loved the compression.
I loved that the toe was reinforced without seams
I have crazy elf toes that point up- Which means they eat socks on a regular basis (and shoes too- my Asics only lasted 3 weeks before getting a hole in both toes)
The toes on these babies are PERFECT.

I like the way the arch hugs your foot (their web-site calls it a Power Arch, and it's being patented- it's THAT good)

I really do love that they are anatomically created specifically for your Right and Left feet.

Though this pro can turn into a con when coupled with my organizational skills. I worry about the sock monster eating them- I have already worn a pink R with a blue L because I couldn't find a matched set after a wash. My advice, buy two pairs!

This brand fits snug, if you are unsure, go up a size.

My only negative on this is that it does have a bit of a synthetic feel.
Their fiber content is:80% iWick® Nylon, 13% Polyester, 7% Lycra® Spandex.
Your feet don't sweat per-se, they just feel like they could.

That aside, the overall the fit on these makes them a great choice for running-
Absolutely NO sock movement AT ALL.

Smartwool Brand
The king of performance socks- their brand recognition is by far the best.

I've even heard the term 'smartwool' used much like Kleenex is used interchangeably for tissue-

First up is: SmartWool's PhD running ultra lite mini:

I love the way these look and feel.
They are knit in USA of 57% Merino Wool, 39% Nylon, 4% Elastane with WOW technology- (wool on wool) to reduce shock and abrasion in high impact areas.

Smart Wools run larger than Feetures.

I wore these ONE day with my Danskos.
The ankle band is wicked tight.
I don't consider myself to have 'cankles' but the fit on these could make me self consciously believe that I did.

Oh, and I rubbed a hole in the toe.
BY NOON.

Yeah- tell me about it.

These are definitely NOT for me.

next up:
Smartwool's PhD Running Light-Micro

Now THIS sock has some beef to it-
In a Teddy-bear kind of way-

Same WOW technology as the Ultra Light Mini, but with a bit more cushioning. On their website, they have a cushioning chart- this sock is a 3 while the Ultra-lite is a 2.

The feel of these beauties is AMAZING-

So THIS is what 'SmartWool' means-

Your feet are never hot, never cold, never anything but comfortable.

There is a light 'compression' to this style, though not really supportive.

And that, is the one thing I wish it had more of.

I think the sock might slip a bit on a run-

WAIT A MINUTE-

Here I am giving you a review on these lovely Pink socks, and I just realized-
I've never run in them. I bought the SmartWool Running Lite-Mico's as a 'pity-me' gift to myself because I had to take a break from running.

hmmmmm.
*maybe we should fix that* slight grin-----( I haven't had any pain ALL day---)

I know it's 10 minutes past 9pm --but I know you're dying to know my humble opinion on these guys-

I'll be right back-

TO BE CONTINUED......................

http://www.feeturesbrand.com/index.php/category/multi-sport/163#