Feeling old as dirt and completely out of modern day times

The neighborhood kids were over our house today. The ten year old girl was cracking me up and showing me dances, dances I had never heard of. Cat-daddy. Stanky leg. Spongebob. It made me feel so, so old. Her eight year old brother was showing me videos on YouTube. Yeesh, I haven't watched music videos in a long, long time. I promptly left and went to Target because I had to buy dental floss.

I got a new phone yesterday. I have to ask Martin how to do anything on it, because I'm a spaz. It has a front facing camera! Now I can see what I look like while I take my own self-portrait!

Can you see how impressed I am?

***Marathon training

06/27/11
Plan: Weights and easy 4.5 miles

Warm-up: .5 miles

Weights:
Back exer on Tricep machine. 100 lb. 3 x 20
Wide grip push ups in assist machine. 60 lb. 3 x 15
Tricep dips on assist machine. 60 lb. 3 x 15
Leg push down thingamajigs on assist machine. 60 lb. 3 x 15 each leg
High mountain rows. 30 lb. 3 x 15
Leg extensions (quads). 40 lb. 2 x 12
Hamstring curls. 30 lb. 2 x 12
Back rows. 45 lb. 2 x 12
Calf presses. 100 lb. 3 x 15
Rotator cuff exer. 2.5 lbs. 3 x 15 each side

I tried doing 3 sets instead of my usual 2 of most exercises to try to get myself to get stronger. I was able to do it except for a few exercises where I struggled with just 2 sets.

Run:
Incline: .5
I started at 5.3, but I was just feeling really good and kept upping it. I think I did most of the run at 5.8, but I know I went faster than that towards the end.

4.5 miles in about 47:20.

06/28/11
Plan: 30 minutes cross-training

Pilates, 30 minutes


06/29/11
Plan: 4 miles hard, strides

Incline: .5
Mile 1: 5.8 (10:21)
Mile 2: 6.0 (10:00)
Mile 3: 6.2 (9:41)
Mile 4: 6.4 (9.23)

4 miles in about 39:25

Strides:
8.5 and 4.0

Ran rest of run at 5.8 to make an even 5 miles in about 50 minutes.

A guy hopped on the treadmill next to me and started running at 8.5 (7:04 pace). It totally inspired me and I turned my run into a progression run feeling strong throughout the whole run. I actually felt like I could go faster at the end, but wanted to save energy for my strides.

The strides were totally challenging at 8.5. It was a sprint for me. I don't know how that guy managed to hold that pace.

I am actually starting to see improvements in my speed and it's making me happy. :)

Put on a shirt, lady!

Hehe. Today was my scheduled long run (just 6 miles since it's a cut-back week), and I decided to hit the trails. And well, why not work on my tan while I'm at it? So, I bit the bullet and ran in just a sports bra, shorts and my shoes and socks. Now, don't get me wrong, I would never wear this while running on the streets or the gym. But it's so common to see males running sans shirt and women in a sports bra on the trails. Why not be one of them?

Me on the trails in all my flat-chested glory.

Now to be honest with you, I did bring a shirt with me in the car to wear if I chickened out. I felt pretty fine in what I had on until I started running. Then it was not a pretty sight. All that belly jiggling around made me think of jello being pounded. However, pulling my shorts up slightly made all the difference in the world and contained the jiggling. Perfect!

I was pretty happy with this run. I felt good and strong through the whole thing. I was surprised to see the 10:54 average pace. Miles 3 and 4 were on dirt trails where I was jumping over a lot of weeds and dodging around uneven ground. I hurt my right ankle a few times.

Check out the elevation in the first mile! Crazy! But other than the time when I walked for a few minutes to readjust my shorts, I actually ran the whole way up. Okay, sometimes I was seeing a 14:36 pace (isn't this walking pace?), but I was still running nonetheless. And I did it in 12:36.

The fun thing about starting all uphill, is you finish going downhill. I love this part about this run. It totally makes me feel like a kid and that I'm fast. Hehe.

I wish I lived right next door to these trails so I could run here everyday. It's just so different from running on the streets.

06/24/11 Weigh-in: 127.0, 26%

So while it's not exactly the greatest numbers, at least I've been able to maintain it. It would be awesome if I could lose five pounds. But I don't know.

This damage was done singlehandedly in one day.

That is 1680 calories of iced oatmeal cookies consumed in one day.

P.S. - I swear I'm not 76.

It's Thursday?!

I just checked my calendar and was surprised to find that today is Thursday. For some reason I thought it was earlier in the week. Not working really throws me off.

I've had all kinds of aches and pains in the past few years from running - piriformis syndrome, runner's knee, bursitis (which I thought was peroneal tendonitis or plantar fasciitis, although my left arch is starting to hurt, too), crazy hip flexor pains, pulled hammies, pulled groin, toe nail falling off, etc.

Yesterday, I was able to add to the list. Iliotibial band syndrome, IT band syndrome for short. Sigh. I got up in the morning, walked to the bathroom sink and felt this sharp stabbing pain just above and to the outside of my right knee. It was super painful and nothing like I had felt before. It went away, but every now and then yesterday it would return, while I was sitting, while I was walking, there wasn't a specific pattern. Wonderful.

This week is a cut back week in my training so I get an extra rest day this week, today. Hooray! I'm actually thinking of not doing my "long run" this Saturday, a cut back 6 miler, to let my IT band rest.

Oh, and our ac went out yesterday. It was 98 degrees in my town. Thank goodness a guy is coming today to take a look at it. The good thing about sitting in the heat was that it killed my appetite.

***Marathon training
06/20/11 - Monday
Plan: Weights and an easy 4.5 miles

.5 mile warm up

Wide grip pull ups on assist machine. 55 lbs. 2 x 12.
Tricep dips on assist machine. 55 lbs. 2 x 12.
Leg presses. Mid. High. Mid together. 20 lbs. 2 x 12 each position.
High mountain rows. 30 lbs. 2 x 15.
Single leg hamstring curls. 20 lbs. 2 x 12 each side.
Back rows. 45 lbs. 2 x 12.
Calf presses. 90 lbs. 2 x 15.
Shoulder/back cross pull. 2.5 lbs. 2 x 12.
Rotator cuff exercise. 2.5 lbs. 2 x 20 each side.
Ab/knee raise. Front, left, right. 2 x 12 each position.

4 miles
1-3 @ 5.3
3.0-3.5 @ 5.5
3.5-4.0 @ 5.7
4.0-4.5 @ 6.0

Little less than 45 minutes.

06/21/11 - Tuesday
Plan: 30 minutes cross-train

Tae Bo Amped
50 minutes

I haven't done Tae Bo in years. It was pretty fun. But I'm not sure if I'll be doing it again. It didn't seem like it worked me out hard enough.

That's right. Be afraid. Be very afraid. I do Tae Bo. And apparnetly I don't clean my room or mirror.


06/22/11 - Wednesday
Plan: Hard 4 miles and strides

Incline: 0.5

Mile 1: 5.7
Miles 2-4: 6.0

I didn't feel like dying during this run. It was hard, but okay from the start. Usually I start out feeling ready to give up in the first mile or two. This run today wasn't that bad.

Strides - 8.0 and 4.0 x 4. The 8.0 is starting to feel a little easy now, at least for the 30 seconds I'm doing them for. Maybe I'll up it a little next week.

Total run was about 4.75 miles in maybe 50 minutes. I don't remember anymore.

My legs are killing me!

Note to self - For future reference, it's probably not a good idea to strength train your legs the day before your long run.

I woke up this morning feeling fine, but then when I got out of bed and started walking around my inner thighs we're feeling a tad bit sore. It made me happy though, because I love that feeling. I knew it was from all the leg presses I did the day before, leg presses I haven't done in like a million years. The pain wasn't horrible, and I figured my planned long run of 7 miles for the morning would shake out the soreness.

I cranked out the 7 miles outside loving life (Well, except for the first two or three miles, I always hate those.) and breathing in the fresh air. I got home stretched, ate a bowl of frosted flakes, showered, then climbed back into bed with Martin and fell back asleep.

Two hours later, I tried getting out of bed and started screaming because my legs were so sore and it hurt every time I moved them. Ugh! I've been limping around all day and cannot even squat down low enough on the ground to pick things up. I hurt this much!

What great workouts!

***Marathon training

06/17/11 - Friday
Plan: 45 minutes weights (lower body), 30 minutes cross train (elliptical)

Weights
Side, reverse lunge. 8 lb DBS. 2x15
Step ups w knee raise. 8 lb DBS. 2 x12
Back exerc on Tricep machine. 100 lb. 2 x 20
Lunge on bosu and bench w bicep and hammer curls. 8 lb DBS. 2 x 12 each side
Leg press Machine. Mid. High. Mid together 20 lb. 2 x 12 each position
Calf raises. 90 lb. 2 x 15
Quad extension. 40 lb. 2 x 12. ( 2nd set, break after only 7)
Prone hamstring curl. 30 lb. 2 x 12.
Rotator cuff. 2.5 lb. 2 x 20 each side.
Back row. 50 lb. 2 x 12

Cardio
30 minutes on the elliptical. Level 10. Random. Reverse mode every 5 minutes for 2 minutes.
A little over 3 miles. Boring, but I worked up a pretty good sweat.

06/18/11 - Saturday
Plan: Long run - 7 miles

7.09 miles, 1:15:58, avg pace 10:43.

3 more days!!!

I am so excited! Only 3 more days of work and then I am free! I actually think I might head to work early today to get a jump start on the ton of filing I want to get done before I go. Seriously, who am I?

I love fried eggs! Over medium? I'm not sure what they're called, but I have my mom make them for me. Because I suck whenever I have tried to make them for myself. When my mom makes them the edges are all nice and crispy and the yolk is just perfectly done and runny. When I make them I can't get the edges to crisp. The whole thing, whites and yolk, come out looking and tasting raw. And I'm lucky if the yolk doesn't pop while I'm cooking it. I am so grateful for my mom.

***Marathon training
Plan: Weights (upper body), 4 miles - hard, strides

Warmup: .5 miles, 5.5.

Weights:
* Back exercises on tricep machine. 100 lb. 2 x 20.
* Shoulder exercises (tap in front of you, press and tap above) with dumbbells on bosu. 8 lbs. 2 x 12. *Note to self. Do not do these again. I felt my left shoulder, which is prone to injury, start to hurt while doing these.
* Chest fly on bosu. 8 lb dumbbells. 2 x 12.
* Back row. 50 lb. 2 x 12.
* Shoulder/back cross exercise on cable machine. 2.5 lb. 2 x 12.
* Rotator cuff exercise on cable machine. 2.5 lb. 2 x 20 each side.
* Pushups with toes on medicine ball. 2 x 12.
* Wide grip pull ups on assist machine. 55 lb. 2 x 12. *Haha. I had to grunt during the last 3 of the second set. These got hard!
* Tricep dips on assist machine. 55 lb. 2 x 12.

Run:
I was feeling super tired from the get go so I thought I would take it easy and try doing a semi-hard 5.7 instead of my hard 6.0 for the whole run. I wound up feeling better as the run progressed and did a progression run.
Mile 1: 5.7
Mile 2: 5.8
Mile 3: 5.9
Mile 4: 6.0

By the time I got to Mile 4 I was feeling happy and bouncy and wanted to go faster, but knew I had to save some energy for my strides.

Strides:
30 seconds at 8.0, 1 minute at 4.0. Do 4 times.
The first interval was hard. But the ensuing ones were much easier. I guess my body just needs to warm up to things.

The treadmill read 4.8 miles by the time I finished. Combine that with my half mile warm up and that's 5.3 miles for the day and weights. Awesome!

The return to pilates

Today's plan was 30 minutes of cross-training. I figured I would do some pilates to give my body a break.

OMG! I forgot how tough pilates is!

I tried this video first.

http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=%2F&gl=US#/watch?v=lMnY5jAlp6Y

I couldn't even make it through the first exercise.

So I quit that and tried her "beginner" video.

http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=%2F&gl=US#/watch?v=lCg_gh_fppI

Easier, but I still had to take a ton of breaks and could not keep up. I felt so out of shape! I used to be able to do the leg circles. God, now I can do it for about 5 seconds before having to put my leg down and wanting to scream in pain. Pathetic.

I guess I know what I'll be doing on my cross-training days.

That wonderful next day soreness feeling

I love waking up feeling sore from the previous day's work-out. It let's me know that I accomplished something. I can almost hear my muscles repairing themselves and getting stronger!

My friend Steph texted me this morning asking if I was going to go to the gym. I thought about it briefly. But I already did weights yesterday. My training plan seems to be getting good results and I didn't want to stray from it too much. Good thing. Because when I got out of bed, I felt the soreness in my shoulders and biceps. And those are areas I never feel sore in.

The kids and I went to Target yesterday to buy milk, eggs and oj. We got those items ... in addition to a boatload of candy. I swear, I should not be allowed to go to Target without another adult to keep me in check.

I weighed myself last night. 127. Yikes. And then I weighed myself this morning, because usually I'm a little lighter. 126.4. Oh, no. Damn all that candy! And all the other yummy, delicious crap I've been stuffing my face with.

My kryptonite. I used to do really well eating peanut butter toast and a protein shake for breakfast everyday. But for about the past couple of months I've been grubbing on some frosted flakes. It's become my crack.

The countdown to freedom is on!

I gave my notice to my job on Friday. I gave them a one week notice. This Friday will be my last day. I am so stoked!

I've got all these wonderful plans in my head. I'm going to make a meal schedule for the family. I'm going to make a cleaning schedule for my house. I'm going to work on our yard and tackle home projects. I'm going to sign my kids up for all these activities.

More than likely I'll probably wind up just sitting on my couch all day with my iPad neglecting my kids and the house.

***Marathon training
Plan: Weights and 4 easy miles

Warm-up: .5 mile on the treadmill, 5.5

* Back exercises on tricep machine. 100 lb. 2 x uh, 12? 15? 20? Can't remember.
* Single leg squats with shoulder press and oblique twist on bosu. 10 lb. 2 x 15 each leg.
* Push-ups with toes on medicine ball. 2 x 12.
* Single leg Russian dead lifts with back row on bosu. 10 lb dumbbells. 2 x 12 each leg.
* Russian dead lift with hamstring extension with upright row on bosu. 10 lb dumbbells. 2 x 15.
* Squats with bicep curls on bosu. 10 lb dumbbells. 2 x 15.
* Spiderman push-ups on bosu. 2 x 12.
* Rotator cuff exercise on cable machine. 2.5 lb. 2 x 20 each side.
* Shoulder/back cross exercise on cable machine. 2.5 lbs. 2 x 12.

4 miles on treadmill.
Miles 1-3 - Speed: 5.3, Incline: .5
Mile 4 - Speed: 5.7, increased incline .5 with every tenth of a mile. Ended with a 5.0 incline. Hard!

4 miles in under 45 (44?) minutes.

Wha? Running slower helps you run faster?

A lot of the reading I've done on running promotes easy running on the majority of your runs (Kara Goucher, John Bingham, Hal Higdon). The marathon plan I'm following only has one hard run a week. The other three runs are supposed to be done at a nice easy pace. So far I've been following it. Yesterday was my long run of 6 miles. It was tough and horrible and slow due in part to 3 hours of sleep and eating popcorn for dinner the night before. But I did it.

Today was supposed to be a rest day, but I just felt like running. There is no hill training in my training plan, and my masochistic ass actually misses it. So I woke up this morning and headed out.

I just felt really good. Nikki Manaj's "Superbass" came on my iPod, and it's just such a fun song that my feet picked up on their own. I would check my Garmin periodically and saw sub 9 mile paces from time to time while the song was playing during the first mile. And I wasn't even trying to go fast. I was just having fun. True, the first mile is mostly all downhill, but still.

Anyway, it turned out to be a great run!

I think that's my fastest mile to date outside on the road.

And check out the crazy elevation on this route.

 

It makes me wonder what I can do on level ground when conditions are ideal.

***Marathon training
06/10/11, Friday
Plan: 30 minutes cross-train

Well, I did jack on this day. I was going to do pilates later that night, but Martin suggested we take the kids to the drive-in since it was such a nice night.

06/11/11, Saturday
Plan: 6 miles

I did it. All but the last mile felt hard and sluggish. I ran wondering how I was ever going to find enough energy to run up the last hill, when I already wanted to stop and walk during the first mile. Somehow though, I started feeling good during the last mile and made it up the hill with no problems.

Mile 1   11:02
Mile 2   11:50
Mile 3   11:03
Mile 4   11:38
Mile 5   11:29
Mile 6   11:17
Last .03 9:58

6.02 miles
1:08:35
11:23 average pace

This actually surprised me, since I was expecting to see 12:00+ miles/minute paces.

Skank undercover

Today was my daughter's last day of school. Her friend was having a pool party to celebrate so we went. I bought a new bikini this morning and was excited to wear it. Well, none of the other mothers were wearing anything remotely resembling a swim suit. None had plans to get in the water. Oh. I didn't want to look like a skank by parading around in my two piece so I just stayed under wraps in my tank and shorts. I did, however, sit in the sun to tan my legs at least. Of course, I was the sole adult in the sun, while the rest of them discussed cancer and melanoma. Awkward. My legs are looking quite nice. Hehe.

***Marathon training
Plan: Easy 4 miles and weights

My knee is still hurting so I decided to forego the run altogether. I figured it would be the wise thing to do.

5 mile warm-up on the elliptical.

* Back exercise on tricep machine. 100 lb. 2 x 20.
* Wide-grip pull-ups on pull-up assist machine. 55 lb. 2 x 12.
* Tricep dips on pull-up assist machine. 55 lb. 2 x 12.
* Leg extensions (quads). 40 lb. 2 x 12.
* Hamstring curls on prone hamstring curl machine. 30 lb. 2 x 12.
* Seated row. 45 lb. 2 x 12.
* Calf presses. 70 lb. 1 x 15. 75 lb. 1 x 15.
* Ab exercises/ knee raises. Front, left, right. 2 x 12 each.

Ow, my knee!!!!!

My left knee really hurts. It's been off and on for the past few weeks, but never this bad. I iced it this morning after my run and it felt better. Then when I went to go take off my shoes, when I put all my weight on my left leg and bent over to untie my right shoe, I felt this shooting pain. Horrible. I hope it gets better. I will cry if I get too injured to run my marathon.

***Marathon training
Plan: Hard 4 miles and strides

Mile 1: 5.8 (10:20)
Mile 2-4: 6.0 (10:00)
Total: 4 miles in 40:20

I really struggled with the 10:00 pace today for the first mile and a half at this pace. But then I felt my body sink into it and then I felt fine. I wish this would happen all the time.

Strides
4.0 and 8.0. Challenging, but easy.

Planks

I read somewhere that holding a two-minute plank is pretty good. So I tried it. I can do two minutes! I did 2 minutes and held on for another 10 seconds for a buffer. And then I tried it again and made it to 2:15. But that was pretty freakin hard. My goal will be to work up to 5 minutes!

Warning - boring marathon training post ahead. Feel free to skip.

***Marathon training
Cross-training today. Hit the gym this morning.

Did a half mile warm-up on the treadmill. .05 incline, 5.5 pace.

Then weights.
* Back exercises on tricep machine. 1st set of 15 at 90 lb. 2nd set of 15 at 85 lb.
* Pull-ups on pull-up assist machine. 65 lb. 2 x 15.
* Tripep dips on pull-up assist machine. 65 lb. 2 x 15.
* Back rows on machine. 45 lb. 2 x 15.
* Rotator cuff exercise on cable machine. 2.5 lb. 2 x 20 each arm.
* Ab excercises. 2 X 12 each - front, left, right.
* High mountain row machine. 30 lb. each side. 2 x 15.

30 minutes on elliptical. 
I set it to random and reverse mode to try to decrease the boredom factor. Level 10 out of 25. Finished a little over 3 (miles?) in 30 minutes.

I was sweating buckets on this thing today. I tried keeping my speed over 6.0. It's so weird. I have no idea what is good or not. That's why I hate the elliptical. I also found myself in the 7.0-8.0 range for periods of a time.

But when I finished, I didn't feel like my body had gotten beaten up, like I usually do after the treadmill. I guess all that lack of pounding can be a good thing.

Work

I was this close to giving my notice today. It's just so hard showing up at a place that has zero regard for you. My hours and my salary have already been cut. They're selling off the furniture like there's no tomorrow. Files are being boxed up. There's only a shell of us left. And yet, we haven't been officially told when our last day will be. As a matter of fact, we haven't been told anything. It's infuriating. I'm just so ready to be done with it all.

I've worked at this place for the past five years. I loved it. It sucks that everything is going down like this. Sigh.

***Marathon training
Today's plan was an easy 4 miler. I was a tad bit sore from yesterday's half. The first two miles felt like torture even though I was doing them at a slow 5.3. At the start of Mile 3 I felt better and upped it to 5.5, still trying to keep it easy. I felt pretty awesome so at Mile 4 I upped it again to 5.7 and kept upping it and somehow finished at 6.5. Oops, so much for easy. But I felt great after this run. 4 miles in about 43:35.

See Jane Run - I Run For Chocolate & Champagne Half-Marathon - Race Report

It was cold and raining and horrible the day before the race. Rain was forecasted for race day. I briefly thought about just not doing it. But I can't have a DNS on my record due to wussiness.

I left my house around 5:15 am after shoveling down a small bowl of frosted flakes with skim milk down my throat. The race didn't start until 8 am, but they recommended you get there by 6:30 to allow time to find parking. And since I can't parallel park to save my life, I intended on getting there early.

By the time I got there, the rain had stopped. Yay!!!! I found a spot a couple blocks from the start and headed out to pick up my bib and chip. Then I hit the porta-potties (Hurray for being early! I was the first one who used my porta-potty of choice). As I started to walk back to my car, I couldn't find my keys! Two thoughts immediately crossed my mind - Either I left them in the porta-potties or I locked them in my car! It was only 6:30 by then and if I called Martin he would make it to me in time for me to get into my car so I could get my iPod and cap out. And then I briefly remembered setting my keys down on the bib table and reminding myself to not forget them. D'oh! I went back to the bib table and sure enough there they were. Thank God!

Back to my car, where I hung out staying warm munching on a Clif bar and getting the rest of my stuff together. I headed back to the start at 7:30 am to take in the activities. The line for the porta-potties were a mile long. I had to pee again, but was pretty sure I could hold it. They had music going on and someone on a stage leading everyone through dance warm-ups. It was pretty entertaining.

Before I knew it, we were all set to start. I felt pretty good for the first few miles.

I kept having to remind myself to run my own race and to slow the f down and quit following the crowd. Unfortunately that didn't work. But I was feeling pretty strong. I stopped to take a gel and some water at the 4 mile aid station. I remember at the 6 mile mark I was still feeling good and remember thinking at my previous two halfs how exhausted I felt at the halfway point.

I stopped again at the 8 mile aid station for another gel and water. And then by Mile 9, the wheels started to fall off. I started talking walking breaks.

Another stop at the 10 mile aid station for another gel and water. I told myself that I had only 3 more miles left. I could do this. And then I walked more. Ugh! I was so on target prior!

Mile 12 was the worst. Walk - jog - walk - jog - walk - walk - walk.

Finally I saw the finish, which helped me out a lot mentally and I was able to pick it up again.

The awesome thing about this race was that there were a lot of people out there supporting the runners. I saw tons of little kids with their dads along the course holding up signs supporting their moms. And there were tons more at the finish line. It made me smile to high five all the little kiddos holding up their hands.

I felt a bit dejected as I saw the clock read 2:20:XX when I crossed the line. But my Garmin read 2:17, which made me feel a tad better. We'll see what my official time is tomorrow.

Garmin splits:

1    10:23
2    10:22
3    10:24
4    10:06
5    10:36
6    10:23
7    10:18
8    10:16
9    10:39
10   10:45
11   10:37
12   11:11
13   10:38
.10   8:54 pace

2:17:55
10:30 average pace, which was exactly what I was aiming for.

I still have problems pacing. Either I go too slow or too fast. I really need to work on this. I was trying to find someone who was running a 10:30 pace, but I guess, like me, we all go up and down.

Another race for the books. I really liked this race. I can't wait to do it again next year!

Edited to add:
The official results came out.
Official time (gun time): 2:20:22 (Booooo!!!!) (10:43 pace)
Net time (chip time): 2:18:39 (Yay!!!!!!)
Age group: 142/275 (Man, women in my age group are fast!)
Overall: 694/1519

Thank you Rain Gods for taking a break this morning

Today was See Jane Run's I Run For Chocolate and Champagne Half. Yay! I PR'ed! Garmin read a moving time of 2:17, but the total time was 2:18:55 or something like that. The official race results will be posted tomorrow. The clock read 2:20:xx when I crossed. And if that turns out to be my official time I'll be a bit bummed as my PR was 2:20 on the dot. I'm hoping that that's just the gun time.

After the race I met a really cool girl. She was stretching and I told her congrats and she wished me the same. And then I asked her if she knew where the chocolate was and then she and I went in search. Hehe. I felt like I was in pre-school again making friends. Her name is Allison and she's actually thinking of or maybe doing the Nike half in October! The one where I'm doing the full. As we were walking to our cars my shins starting tightening up. It was horrible and I wanted to die. Thank God for Allison because she had us do some stretches and it totally made my legs feel much better.

Then I drove to my friend Claudia's house just a few blocks away. She and I have been friends since the fifth grade. What is that? 10 or 11 years old? Yeah, we're 37 now. She and I havent hung out in about a year so it was fun just talking and catching up. I think I put the racing seed in her mind and told her that if she ever wants to do a 5K that I'd do it with her.

I'll write a full race report soon. For now I just plan on grubbing on tons of food for the rest of the day.

Cotton Candy and Kettle Corn (aka Carbo-loading)

Today my daughter had a field trip to the county fair. Like most county fairs, it was pretty boring. The kids had fun looking at all the animals there. They had some kind of animal exhibit with red kangaroos and opossums and other animals. They also had your standard 4h animals, too, with tons of pigs and goats.

Our favorite part, and no county fair experience would be complete without, was all the yummy crap food - cotton candy (and more cotton candy we bought again later to bring home, we're huge fans here), kettle corn, soda, nachos, hot dogs, ice cream, shaved ice. Ugh, my stomach hurts remembering it all. But come on, when in Rome, right?

For someone who has to run 13.1 miles the day after tomorrow, I sure haven't been making the wisest decisions in regards to my fueling. Hm, perhaps I should try and drink some water today.

Martin and I saw The Hangover 2 last night. Then we snuck in to see the midnight showing of X-Men First Class. Eye candy galore! Unfortunately I didn't get to bed until 3 am this morning and had to wake up at 7 to get myself and the kiddos ready for the field trip. Needless to say, I hit my bed some time in the early afternoon when we got home and didn't wake up until a little past 5 pm feeling disoriented and groggy as naps often make me feel. Ugh.

***Marathon training
I understand that reading about my marathon training can be boring as hell, so I thought I'd just put it at the bottom of my posts. It's just so easy to keep track of it here as opposed to writing it down in my journal. Today I'm supposed to do 30 minutes of cross-training. I think I'll do Insanity's Core Cardio Conditioning and Balance, or whatever the hell it's called. It's been so long I can't remember. It's the one you do on recovery week. Or is it the one you do to recover midweek? Whatever. I'll do it tonight. I just need something easy because my hammies are sore from yesterday's strength-training. Yay! They're getting stronger!

Staying on track

Today's plan was an easy 4 miles. I still want to strength train because I'm vain like that, so I figured I would do weights on the easy run days.

Warmed up on the treadmill at 5.5 for a half a mile. And even that felt hard.

Then did an hour of weights. There are so many exercises I want to do and it's hard for me to choose which I should fit in for the hour. I originally planned to do just 45 minutes, but wanted to squeeze in a few other moves.

* Single leg squats with shoulder press and oblique twist on bosu. 8 lb dumbbell. 2 x 15 on each leg.
* Single leg push-ups on bosu. 2 x 12.
* Single leg Russian dead lifts with back row on bosu. 8 lb dumbbells. 2 x 12 each leg.
* Squats with upright back row on bosu. 8 lb dumbbells. 2 x 20.
* Lunges with one foot on bench, other foot on bosu. Bicep curl when right leg forward. Hammer curl with left foot forward. 2 x 15 each leg.
* Wide pull-ups on pull-up assist machine. Weight set to 60 lb. 2 x 12.
* Tricep dips on pull-up assist machine. Weight set to 60 lb. 2 x 12.
* Ab exercises (knee lifts?). 2 x 12 for front, left side and right side.
* Back row. 40 lb. 2 x 15.
* Rotator cuff exercise. 2.5 lb. 2 x 20 each side.

I love doing the first few exercises because I know I'm working several muscles in each exercise. I hate doing weights, so I try to mulit-task as much as possible. And I love working on the bosu, because it automatically works my core.

After strength training I headed back to the treadmills. The plan was 3.5 easy miles. Unfortunately even running at 5.5 felt difficult for me. I tried 5.0 but that just felt so slow for me. So I did most of the run at 5.3, sometimes upping it, sometimes lowering it. It just felt so long and labored and boring. At about 2.75 miles when I turned my head to my iPod on my arm to skip a song, I noticed a cute guy behind me on a treadmill. Well, I couldn't really see what he looked like, but I told myself that he was cute. Right away my posture straightened and I felt stronger. Hehe. I finished the last .75 miles starting at 5.7 and kept upping it and finished at a nice fast 7.0.

Yeah, I got a good look at the guy after I finished my run. He wasn't cute.

Making strides

Yesterday's training plan called for a half hour of cross-training. So I did Jillian Michaels' Banish Fat Boost Your Metabolism. And just like last time, my left knee started hurting after doing back kicks. I think I might have to put that DVD up for awhile.

Today's plan called for a 40 minute hard run plus strides. I did the first mile at 5.8 (10:20/mile) to warm up and finished the last three miles at 6.0 (10:00/mile). 4 miles in about 40:30. Steph came by during the end of the run and asked if I wanted to do weights with her. I went and kind of half-assed did some tricep exercises while I showed her other moves. But since it really wasn't my weight day I mostly hung out with her showing her what to do and caught up on some girl talk.

Then she went to go tan and I went back to the treadmill to try out these strides thingamajigs in John Bingham's plan. Accelarate to a controlled fast past for 30 seconds, walk for a minute. Repeat 4 times. I warmed up at 5.5 (11:00/mile) for about 2 minutes, then put it up to 8.0 (7:30/mile). I wouldn't say that staying at that pace for 30 seconds was a piece of cake, but it wasn't as difficult as I thought it was going to be. 30 seconds goes by quick! And that I can manage. I actually have no idea how a ton of folks can sustain that pace for more than a minute though, much less 26.2 miles. But 30 seconds! Sign me up! Hehe. I alternated between 8.0 and 4.0. Done! Not too bad! Next!