Philly Half Marathon done!

CRIPES! I'm sore!  I seriously don't remember feeling like this last year.  Finish time of 2:26:42 = 10 minutes faster over last year.  That kinda disappoints me since I had to make a couple of potty stops (ahem...it was THAT time - BLEAH!) this year & NONE last year. So I'm pretty sure my time would have been even better without Mother Nature's interference.

Up to Mile 9 I was feeling pretty good - then it went downhill...actually UPhill is more accurate.  I realize now that I needed more fuel.  I felt like I was eating enough shot blocks but found out I only had about one package - should have had at least two packs of them. And it just wasn't Disney. No happy characters. No running through the parks. No spectators with signs like "Chuck Norris never ran a marathon." Or "Hello Perfect stranger.. I am proud of you."  I saw both of these signs at the Disney marathon last year & they still make me tear up.

And so, I hereby declare I am done with these Philly races (the rock n roll bands give me a headache anyway).  I'll run at Disney but that's probably about it.  The bling is nicer & the races are a LOT more fun!  I registered for the Donald at this weekend's Expo.  I think I'm skipping the Mickey this year - next year is a new medal with the 20th anniversary.  And I like the Donald medal. And I want something different.  I may do the 5K as well. The medal is the Three Caballeros, but I want to wait & see the medal first.

 

Three amazing students.

Well, in all honesty all of my students are amazing.  Yeah, they HATE keeping these blogs but I like learning more about each of them. Some are hilarious, some are inspiring, some are fascinating.

And of course, with me being a Mom, some of them freak me out. 

• Ronnie, who goes running at 10PM, to stay in top shape for baseball season.  He is SUPER dedicated to baseball.  I admire his perseverance.
• Nicole who "got" to go to catholic school (while I think I "had" to go) & who has been to Italy FIVE TIMES!  She realizes how lucky she is in her life and is very thankful. I admire her honesty & love for her family.
• Steve is probably the one student who really blew my mind.  His openness about his struggles were incredible (not easy for guys to express themselves - ask Neil).  O.K., I joked that his blog was super long, but it was very inspiring.  Steve hit "rock bottom" & instead of reaching for a drug to help him, he helped himself.  He has come so far in such a short time. I am so excited for him & his future! And I am so grateful he had the courage to share his story.

I am thankful for all of my students. They make me laugh, they teach me new things and they let me into their lives.  I am super lucky to have an AWESOME group of students who are succeeding & realizing their dreams.

September 11 - What would you do in the last hour of your life?

 All weekend I've been watching repeats of the attacks, words of the survivors & images of the heroes of that day.  My heart still hurts & tears still fill my eyes even after 10 years. Can it really be that long ago?  On the Disboards this morning a member posted this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwWzjjbIISw&feature=share

I am so thankful there are human beings like this gentleman in our world & yet I am saddened that we lost so many good people on this day.  I am so grateful for our soldiers for all that they do & have done, our firefighters who run in when everyone else is running out & to be an American - where I can be free to be anyone I choose to be.  To have the opportunities to dream & achieve those dreams.  To be able to raise my daughter in a land where she can & will graduate from graduate school & pursue her own dreams.

What would I do in the last hour of my life?  I'd want to let as many people know how much I love them & how much of an impact they've had on my life.  I have so very much to be grateful for.  I am so very blessed in my life: my healthy & happy daughter, my husband who greets me with "hello, my beautiful wife" every day, my home, my ability to go to Disney World a few times a year, my health, my car, my ability to run, my job, my co-workers & my students.  I wonder if these people know how much they mean to me?

So on this day, I'll start with my husband Bryan. I've known him for 10 years now.  Ironically our first date was August, 2001. One month prior to that horrible day in September. Why start with him you may ask? He's a firefighter.  He's the one who jumps up out of bed or up from the dinner table to go help someone else - most likely a stranger. He's the 6'4", 350+ guy who cries when a child has been killed, when a brother firefighter has died & who would help anyone @ anytime.  He's the one person in my life who will have the hardest time getting through today.  I saw a few tears roll down his cheeks this morning as we watched the news cover the attacks.  For all you do & more as a firefighter, husband & father....thank you & I love you.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pF3f79-UX0c&feature=related

A run like Philadelphia

Some parts pretty, some parts downright ugly. 

But all in all, 10 miles were completed this afternoon under a cloudy sky at an average pace of 10:38 = not bad considering I took 3 extended walk breaks.

Here are some things I learned today on my run:

• My husband really loves me (he called in sick today so I could run & have a break). 
• I get sunburn regardless of the amount of clouds in the sky.
• Clif Shot Bloks & Sport Beans DO NOT MIX WELL TOGETHER.
• It's really hard to find 10 miles of safe roadway in Glassboro.
• REALLY prefer Powerade Zero over water in my Camelbak.
• I really suck at hydration.
• Fiber One bars are yummy, but NOT on running days.
• I have GOT to use the Foam Roller every night....my knee is killing me now.

O.K., sorry about the Debbie Downer post today.  I'm tired & need to get some sleep.  Only two weeks til the Philly half marathon. I'll definitely finish...just may not be the prettiest ending.  Maybe I WILL just do the Donald in January...it's a new medal...but feel like a wus if I don't do the full marathon.

A GOOD but short run

Five miles @ 9:51 pace, low humidity & bright sunshine.  

Nice & easy five miles - should have been 10 according to my plan.  Just two weeks left til the half marathons so we'll need to make some revisions to the plan. Bryan is working today & all weekend, so there goes any other running days. Don't get me wrong...I LOVE LOVE LOVE my munchkin, but following a program is very difficult when hubby works 7-7, Maddy starts bedtime @ 7 (guess with whom - ME), plus working full-time, 90 minute commute & grad school. WHEW!  Plus we had a hurricane on Saturday/Sunday then me & the munchkin got colds. 

So only one run this week @ a piddly five miles.

That's O.K., next week we'll do 9-10 (depending on how I'm feeling)on Monday, 5 on Wednesday & 5 on Friday. Then the next Sunday we'll do 10-11 & then taper the rest of the week.  It's only the Philly Half, so no big deal.  DISNEY IS THE MAIN FOCUS! 

This video gets me so excited: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HcC6Y_ZLrI

YAY for lifting...FINALLY!

I've forgotten how good it feels to lift...and how stinky I get too.  Maybe THIS will help my endurance (well, once I get on a regular schedule that is)  Let's run down the list shall we?

• Walking lunges
• Bicep curls
• Smith Press Squats
• Tricep push down
• Lat pull down
• Calf raises (gotten strengthen those Achilles)
• Leg Press
• Frontal & Lateral Raises
• Leg Extensions

Not bad.  Have a little sniffle & sore throat, but I AM HEALTHY.  I AM feeling fine & I AM ROCKIN my run tomorrow morning!!!! 

Irene wasn't so bad, but my run sure was!

Still feel SUPER disappointed in myself.  They were right...most of this is MENTAL.  I psyched myself out before I started yesterday (again).  Hurricane Irene was threatening to hit Jersey around midnight last night, but it was all I could think about heading out at 8:30AM.  I made it 1.5 miles & felt lousy...then it just got worse.  A few miles in there were O.K., but most were pathetic...with extended walk breaks.  No energy, no motivation, sprinkles of rain led to mile 6 & I just quit altogether.  I walked strolled the last few miles leading to OVER 16 minute miles.  UGH!  Overall my 7.8 miles pace was 13:18.  Yes, you read that correctly. I didn't even do my scheduled 9 miles.

No excuse...it was all mental (maybe a tad nutritional deficient, but I had my Shot Blocks, Sport Beans, & PowerAde - didn't touch the Beans, but I finished the other two & it still didn't help). But physically I was perfectly fine. Was it this tough last year?  I don't remember it being like this. Last week I did 8 miles easy! 

I need some words of wisdom & motivation. Three weeks til the half.  I KNOW I can do it. I KNOW it will be easier with the crowd, but CRIPES this "training" is annoying right now. 

Lifting tomorrow - not sure if we even have class due to the flooding in Philly.  Feel like I should cancel class since students will just be moving in tomorrow & run, but SO TIRED right now and been just non-stop eating.

Movin Right Along

Ah...The Muppet Movie:  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMR5JVo21wQ

They should bring back The Muppet Show.  I think it was on Saturday nights.  That was always fun to watch. Did you watch it? And the Muppet Vision 3-D at Disney takes me back there. Anyone been there?  I've finally got my daughter enjoying The Muppets Take Manhattan - THAT was a good movie.

Movin Right Along was the theme of my run yesterday.  5 miles completed @ 9:44 pace.  Now keep in mind that I do run/walk ratios to prepare for the marathon.  I am not a Kenyan.  I NEED breaks to make it all 26.2 miles.  So I follow Galloway's ratios & I find I REALLY enjoy them: 
http://www.jeffgalloway.com/training/walk_breaks.html 

I am not exhausted after my runs (well, the ones for which I am properly hydrated that is) & I enjoy my runs more with the ratios!  Even if it's a little mental trick..."I only have one more minute before my break..."  So if you figure I walk for a minute (now, walk quickly...not stroll), 9:44 pace really isn't half bad!  Mile 2 was @ 9:03 pace.  WOW! Yeah, but don't get too excited, it went slower from there.  But overall average was 9:44  

I'm such a Garmin freak now since my WONDERFUL hubby got me my Garmin.  The first thing I do after my run is rush to the computer to see my overall pace.  LOL. In all honesty I think my pace was pretty good due to the fact that I knew I HAD to hurry.  I left work late, rushed home & got started knowing I had to pick-up the munchkin from daycare by 5.  And I wanted to stretch before I picked her up.  So I stuck with a tried & true route where I wouldn't have to wait for traffic lights to change - The Rowan University loop (well, more like a square).  All the way around is about 2.3 miles, so I kept going til 2.5 and then turned around and went the opposite way back. Wha-La 5 miles!  I don't know about you, but I need to be super conscious about switching my down leg pretty frequently AND stretching to prevent my ITB issues.  I'll write about THAT in my next posting.

After my run I had a killer headache.  Due to allergies...maybe? But I took my Claritin-D.  Maybe dehydration? (of course, this IS me remember!) & due to low blood sugar.  I wasn't hungry when I finished, but knew I had to eat since my last food intake was 11AM.

Had some trail mix (just nuts for protein), water, Diet Coke (of course!) & mini pretzel bagel.  Gotta get to the store for bananas!
9 miles re-do scheduled for Saturday morning, but it looks like Hurricane Irene may change that.  Arrrggggh!  I'm hoping the rain & wind will hold off til the afternoon hours. No time to run today or tomorrow.  School is starting!  All you in the path of Irene... STAY SAFE!  Get some flashlights & non-perishable food  (that's what I'm doing after work today.)

Who moved the finish line?

Love that t-shirt slogan.  But that is EXACTLY how I felt this morning.  I left the house with the wrong focus.  I kept saying I should do 9, but I only feel like doing 5. Add that to lack of sleep, dehydrated AGAIN, too much food this morning (two mini pretzel bagels), stress eating yesterday (well, they were JUST animal crackers) + a little monthly thing going on (I know...TMI) & that just makes your run even harder. So I finished all 9 miles, but honestly only ran 6.  Kinda have to finish all 9 when you're already 4.5 miles from home. I even paused my Garmin at 6 miles since my legs were like cement. 

Still, my pace for those 6 was 10:13 - I'll take that considering how VERY slow it seemed I was trucking along.  Oh well. Five miles to do on Wednesday afternoon (let's hope for low humidity) & we'll re-do the 9 on Saturday morning.

I will need to start those 9 miles EARLY to make it to Maddy's karate class @ 10.

I need my Milk Duds!

O.K., honestly I probably just need more hydration.  Got the salt effect again today.  I only had about 10 oz. of Grape Powerade Zero with me so that didn't help either.  But I FINISHED!  That's the important part, right?  I had a mini pretzel bagel again + a Entenmann's Multi Grain Chocolate Chip Cereal Bar (together that's only 5g protein)

AM Stats:  113 # (probably cause I horked down everything sight yesterday) 

8 miles @ 10:14 pace

Felt O.K., but I was struggling a bit after mile 4.  Some Sport Beans helped. 

Next up: 5 miles on Friday (calling for thunderstorms, so it may be on the treadmill - Bleah!)

 

Definitely need to use the foam roller tonight.  Have you noticed how much of my blog focuses on food.  Hmmmmm......
P.S. I was in bed by 8PM so no lifting & no foam rolling last night.

Yesterday's run

I got so busy yesterday I forgot to blog about my run.  IT WAS AWESOME!  O.K.,only five miles, but @ 9:36 pace & I felt great afterward! 

Was it the low humidity?  The burning desire just to exercise? (hadn't done squat for two days) or was it the breakfast of two mini Thomas' pretzel bagels + a few Milk Duds?

Guess we'll find out tomorrow.  Eight miles on the slate.  Thank goodness no running today - too sleepy.  I'll do some lite lifting @ home, lunges, squats, bicep curls & definitely FOAM ROLLING.

Seven miles on a low humidity day!

After all of the heat & humidity this summer I am definitely ready for Fall. Pretty colored leaves, mums, smell of a fire burning, a crisp breeze in the air, pumpkins...can't you just smell everything so nicely? AND we'll be almost halfway done with the semester.

But alas, here we are August 12.  Today was actually REALLY nice!  Low humidity, comfy temps, a Friday in the summer...so what happened?  Miles 1-3 went well (slow, but well), then Mile 4 came & so did my dehydration.  I even wore my Camelbak today, but I had two diet cokes before my run and no water last night.  When will I learn??????

You know you're dehydrated when you start to get a headache and you are just salty, not sweaty.

I still finished my planned 7 miles with a semi-respectable average pace of 10:41 (better than my 5 miles runs lately!)

Garmin said I burned over 500 calories! Whoo-Hoo!  However, my post-run meal (s) made up for that. I am grumpy today, but NOT defeated. 

Next week we have runs of 5, 5, & 8 miles. T-minus 4 weeks til taper, 5 weeks til the Philly Half.  HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

Garmin is working & had a GOOD run!

YAY!  Trust the Garmin NOT the odometer. 

Garmin read 5.52 miles today & I ran the same route as yesterday.

This morning I had honey roasted peanuts & a bagel. MMmmmm......

So much tastier than PB on a bagel.

I felt good.  Low humidity, temp was decent & I had a good run.

Still a littel dehydrated after Mile 3, but finished all 5 & then some!

WHOO-HOO!

Next up...lift on Thursday & 7 miles on Friday.

New attempts today!

• Bagel w/peanut butter for pre-run breakfast  
• No Garmin (well, THAT wasn't planned)
• Trail mix for post-run food

The peanut butter was HEAVY, pretty dry in my mouth. I'm so used to having jelly with it & even then I'm not a big fan of PB & J.

I bought a new battery for my Garmin Foot Pod & "thought" I had put it in correctly.  Warning: ALWAYS test it BEFORE you run. Oh well. I ran according to time to what I thought was about 5 miles. I got home, threw on a clean t-shirt & shorts (others are sweaty - gross), grabbed some trail mix & a diet coke (I know, I know should be water - I'm working on that), got in the car & drove my route which came up to 5.2 miles. Whew!  Made the 5 miles I was aiming for!

Loving the trail mix, but I need to make my own. More honey roasted peanuts, less coconut. LOVED the nuts. YUM! 

Amazing how happy I get after a good run. 

When it rains it pours.

• Left the house....forgot my headband
• Tried to leave again....forgot sunscreen
• Broke my sunglasses
• CamelBak is twisted
• Camelbak starts leaking

Not a great start to a 6 mile run.  The first 3.25 miles were pretty good, but then I just lost all motivation. That & my "leaking" CamelBak had completely soaked my back & my shorts (good thing only water was in there today & not PowerAde).  Then of course I came home & drowned my sorrows in some leftover brownies w/mini M&M's.  Not exactly the ideal athletic portrait there.

Yesterday I had a GREAT four mile run.  So maybe today was too many runs stacked together - I usually take a day off in between for strength or cross training.  I KNOW I have to improve my eating habits - especially breakfast. 

Monday they reveal the Donald Duck Half Marathon Medal in honor of the 15th year.  I still haven't decided which race I'm doing, so maybe this new medal will inspire me. 

Gloomy start to the day & update from yesterday.

I DID lift Tuesday!

• Walking lunges w/kettlebell
• Reverse lunges on Bosu w/kettlebell (THAT was hard to keep my balance!)
• Smith Press Squats
• Incline Leg Press
• Calf Raises (single & double - gotta strengthen that Achilles)
• Lat Pull Down
• Bicep Curls (standing & concentrated)
• Tricep Push Down
• Frontal & Lateral Raises

But honestly, eh...I only did 10 & 12 reps, 2 sets each.  Didn't want overdo it since I know I'm stacked on running this week.  

Wednesday:  Ran four miles.  SLOW run...average pace was 10:10 YUCK!  I don't know what was up.  Dehydration I'm guessing. It was 7:50AM, so it wasn't too hot or humid yet.

Today hubby had a 7:15AM tee time & left me with daycare drop-off so no run this morning, plus it was raining.  It is clearing up now w/a high expected of only 84, so this afternoon I'll get four GOOD miles in!   Focusing on the positive & bringing more happiness to me.

CRACKERS!

O.K., confession...I did NOTHING yesterday. No run, no strength training - NADA.  Just lost all motivation by 3:30  Weight was 111.2 this morning & I'm feeling gross. Weight-wise no, but just lack of exercise-wise.  So I have a 10:00 appointment this morning & then I am going to the gym to lift!  Looks like with my schedule I'll be running Wednesday, Thursday & Friday this week.  I gotta get my runs in & my mileage up.

Especially since the hubby pointed out to me that the half marathon is in six weeks. YIPES!

WOW! Haven't posted in over two weeks!

Not a great example for my students who will be posting weekly. WHOOPS! Gotta work on that before school starts in.....GASP!....four weeks! So much to do, so little time.

Such as today...I NEED TO RUN, but I also need to pick up Maddy from daycare & was thinking of just lifting today. I NEED TO LIFT TOO!  And I also have a lot of work to do. AAArrrrggggh!  I am doing at least one of them (I'm thinking strength training since it is pretty hot out today).  I have 4,4, & 6 miles to do this week.  May need to do three back to back runs  Wed, Thurs & Fri since hubby works this weekend and I have no one to watch Maddy in the early AM.

But at least I made our reservations for the marathon...although I haven't registered for it yet. Shhh..  Waiting to see what medal is the 5K too. Definitely doing the marathon, just waiting to see if there will be any specials later. Last year they gave away some gift cards or something towards the end of registration.  PLUS, it is a pricey race! $160 for the full, $50 for the 5K. The Goofy is $320!  YIPES! 

Had an nice run this morning.

Well, actually it was more of an "O.K." run.  I finished but it wasn't pretty or easy.  Didn't sleep well last night + two cups of Diet Coke to wake me up + NutriGrain Chocolate Chip cereal bar does not = a great prep for a run.  Oh well. The breeze was nice, no humidity & 84 degrees.  Finished four miles at a 9:42 pace so I'm happy with that.  Saturday I've got five miles slated. I swore this time last year I was doing more miles at this point, but I'm following Higdon's plan again so I guess I'm on schedule.

Still can't decide to do the Full or the Goofy (half marathon on Saturday, full on Sunday).  Last year my knee gave me major issues so I had to walk the last 11 miles = a horrible finishing time.  I also didn't stop for pictures with the characters since I was so worried about the 16 minute per mile time limit.  Funny how before I started 16 minutes didn't seem that long & racing makes it an eternity!  I would LOVE to get all three medals: Donald, Mickey & Goofy, but maybe I should just enjoy the full this year & go Goofy in 2013.  Hmmm.....