a little of this and a little of that

I ran 17 miles today. YAY me! Well, I have to be completely honest and admit I did wimp out. Not about the distance, I did finish 17. The first half was AWESOME and I was feeling great. Then I turned around and headed back home. OH.....MY.....GOSH. The wind was so bad and so very cold that at mile 13 I called my hubby and asked him to come pick me up. I know, freak I am a wimp. I know I could have finished out there in that freezing and windy hell, but I just didn't want to. Anyways, I went home and changed my clothes and went to the Y and finished my last four on the treadmill. It was seriously the hardest four miles ever. Oh well, I got 17 in today.... YAY me!

I have decided to send back the Mizunos I just recently bought. I ran in them twice and the first time was good, the second time was not so good. I got a huge blister and I just knew these shoes were NOT going to work for me. So last night while on my hot date with the hubby (not really hot, but nice to be out and away from the kids) I went and picked up the Asics Kayano 15. I did something that I have never done and something that I shouldn't admit, but I will. I ran in them today for my 17 miles. I know, naughty. BUT....just listen to me..... I was in heaven. Really I was. I had one tiny little spot that rubbed raw but that was it. YAY... I have happy feet!

The other night we went to the UK ladies basketball game. My daughter was being recognized for her perfect attendance since the first of Jan. She was able to go down to the court at half time with a few other kids and have her name called and meet the mascot (wildcat). I just wanted to share this picture of my little cuties. This picture shows how different their personalities are. The 8 year old (almost) is shy and very timid, and my 3 year old is a crazy, outspoken wild child. I just adore them both.

3 yr olds say the funniest things......

Yesterday after my workout, I stayed in my running clothes for most of the day. This is something I never do. I tend to get really cold if I don't shower right after a workout, and I also just hate hanging out in my sweatyness... YUCK. My 3 year old is a hoot and we just can't seem to get enough of the funny things she says. I really need to start posting more about her silliness. This is the conversation she had at me..... yes, at me, yesterday.

3 yr old: "Mom, when are you going to take a shower?"

Me: I don't know, when I get to it.

3 yr old: Well...... (very irritated now) you need to shower

Me: why do you care if I shower now or later?

3 yr old: cause you are pretty when you get showered and do your hair.

Me: awwww, thanks that is nice. I will shower in a little bit.

3 yr old: Mom, you need to shower now, cause you are ugly when you don't shower after you run. But you are pretty when you shower.

So today I showered right after my run and after stretching, and before my 3 yr old could remind me that I am ugly after I run. I think I need to inform her that I don't try to look pretty while or after I run.

Flippin Mondays Suck......

I am just wondering if anyone else wanted to stay in bed this morning and not face another day, or week.... UGH.... I hate Mondays. It took everything I had to get up with the 7 year old and get her off to school, and then it took even more to not get back into bed, because the 3 year old was still sleeping, that never happens. I wanted to let her sleep in and then maybe I could go back to bed, but My friend Wendy was going to be waiting for me at the Y. We started up lifting together again today. We have been out of the routine for about a month. The ice storms here cause school to close and that caused us both to lose the routine and then with the marathon and everything else, so today we started back up. I am sure I will be sore from the lifting, but it is always a good sore. I am excited to get back into my running routine. The week before and after the Marathon were out of my routine as well. So I guess, I need to be grateful for a new week.... it's a week of getting back on track.

THE END........

My new Kicks.....

I got my new running shoes in the mail today. YEAH ME! I love running in Mizuno's and very rarely run in anything different. I ordered the Wave Nirvana 5 this time, and so far I am in Love. I will wear them around the house today and tomorrow and run in them for my 16 miler on Saturday. My legs are feeling surprisingly good after the marathon. I have taken the entire week off. I did 1 hr and 20 min of Yoga today and it felt so good. I plan on running a very easy 4-5 tomorrow to see how the legs are doing and then of course Sat is the long run. Thanks for all the sweet comments about my post race freak out. To answer a few questions...

Yes I took Roctane every 5 miles and drank water at every mile and Gatorade at almost every mile. It was very watered down though. I agree with a few of the comments that it could have been low blood sugar. I did nothing new or different with this marathon then I have done with past marathons. I think with the under training it just effected me more then normal.

I rubbed raw around my sports bra and man it has been a killer this time. It almost feels like a burn. If I didn't hate my body so badly I would share pictures. I am looking to buy some new sports bras... any suggestions?

Race report

I did it. I finished. Knowing I wasn't trained and only had a 14 mile base, my goal was really just to finish the race, and maybe do it in 4:30.

It was the perfect day for a race. The sun was out for part of it, and I threw my gloves at about mile 20. I think I mentioned the race was a one mile loop. I was little worried about that. Turns out, I loved it. Well, loved is a stretch, but I liked it. As long as I just took it mile by mile and didn't start thinking about all the laps I had left, I was fine. There was water at every mile because of the loop. I walked at this point every mile. I would drink and walk for about 20-30 seconds. (Every mile) I knew this would ultimately help me finish and recover faster. After about mile 16, I was waiting to hit the wall. With each mile, I kept thinking, "This is going to be the mile I crash" Well, I never really hit the wall. My legs hurt, and I was tired, but mentally, I was good to go.

It was a bit to cold for my little girls (7&3) to be standing out there, so the first time I saw them was at mile 11, and then at 16, and then they came out and stayed at mile 22. I stopped and chatted with them at mile 16 and 22. My hubby told me a funny story about the 3 year old. They were walking back into the lobby from being outside, and my 3 year old saw a lady from the back wearing the same Boston '08 Marathon jacket I have. She went running up to her, and quickly turned to face her and Roared really loud, she thought it was me, and she was trying to scare me. (That is something we all do to each other in our house) LOL- what a nut.

I crossed the finish line in 4:09. WOW, I was shocked at my time. I would have LOVED to have finished sooner and I am certain if I had trained for this race, I would have. I felt so good too. I went in to the room and showered and we packed up to leave. The family was starving (my stomach was hurting, which is normal for me) so we went to the Macaroni Grill for a late lunch. We went in and sat down, and I quickly started to feel horrible. I was sweating like crazy and couldn't see straight. I rested my head on my arm for a little while. I didn't feel nausea and I didn't feel those post race poopy cramps, I was just dizzy and sweaty. It got so bad, I thought I was going to pass out and I was just sitting there. My husband got nervous because when he would look at me and ask me a question, I would just stare at him and not say anything. I starting to breath really heavy at this point and so my DH went and told the waiter I was sick and we had to leave, which was so embarrassing for him. I couldn't walk straight or see straight and so I had to hold on to my husbands arm. I got into the car and my husband was ready to take me to the hospital. He was punching it in to the GPS when I told him to stop. I thought I was OK, and that all I needed was some French Fries and a Gatorade. He raced over to McDonald's and grabbed me FF and then across the street to get me some Lemon Lime Gatorade. It took about 10-15 min, but I started to feel normal again. I was scared, my DH was scared and my poor kids were scared. I am not certain what was wrong with me, but I am sure it had something to do with my electrolytes. What do you all think?

*I didn't have any blister and I only rubbed raw around my sports bra.... OUCH...

My hubby took this video of me at mile 22. None of the pictures they took turned out normal. They were fuzzy and out of focus.

"A second Life"

I am eating my Oatmeal and then I am going to shower up and pack and get on the road. We have a 3 1/2 hr drive a head of us today. My cold seems to have calmed down a bit. On Thursday I ran 3 miles and got super dizzy and started to doubt myself. So when I was feeling better yesterday, I ran 5 miles and found myself feeling awesome. Let's hope my Roctane really is magic. ;)

I read a story in the March issue of Runners World. It is called "A second life" and if you haven't yet read it, you need to. It is about a NYC firefighter who had tried so hard to qualify for Boston. He did, {3:13} and just weeks before his training was to begin for that race, he was crushed by a 14 ton bus. His story is amazing and the trials and anguish he went through. He has a rod in his left leg from his hip to his ankle. Can you imagine? He woke up one day and decided he wanted/needed to be an athlete again. So he gave himself 9 months to get himself ready for the 2008 NYC marathon. He basically had to learn to walk again and then he was able to work on running, which was really a shuffle. He finished the marathon, who cares what his time was. I was very inspired by his story and cried A LOT. I hope I think of Matt's story as I am out running tomorrow, and hope it will carry me through my 26.2 miles.

Good luck to everyone else who is racing this weekend.

RUN FAR!

Foto Friday & My "Run Far" Tattoo

I have had a few people ask me about the story behind my tattoo. So I decided to use this as my Foto Friday, (thanks NikeMom) It's not really much of a story. I got my first tattoo (lower back) in 2002, I don't just love that one. My younger sister had spent four years in China, teaching English, and when she got back she had a tattoo done on her right foot of the symbols for LOVE-LAUGH-HAPPINESS or something like that. I loved it. It was so cute and dainty. So I decided I needed one on my foot as well. ( 2004) I looked through her book of Symbols. I knew I wanted it to be something about running. I decided on "RUN FAR" and then of course I put the 26.2. My sis was getting one done on her left big toe of a Lilly or something. She offered to pay for mine, so I let her. ( I think it was a birthday gift)

I like my tattoo, but it is NOT as dainty as my sister's. I am very active in my religion and we are very strict about no tattoo's.. OOPS.... I hate it when my little girls want to put their fake rub-on tattoo's on their foot, or their lower back. I feel like it wasn't the best choice, and someday I will probably have them both removed.

My 7th Marathon

Thank you to everyone who left me such supportive and encouraging words on my last post.

I have decided to go ahead and run the Marathon this Sunday. Here are a few of the reasons why I have decided to run this Marathon with very little training.

• I have already paid for it, so I may as well run it and get the shirt.
• The course is not overwhelming to me. I am confident that with the one mile FLAT loop, and seeing my family every mile, it will help me finish.
• When I ran my 2ND marathon I didn't train well. I only ran twice a week, because I was lazy, and only ran 17 before, and then did not run for a month before the race, due to an injury.
• My sister Maria ran a marathon with only a 16 mile base and she finished.
• I loved Mark Berry's words at the end of his comment..... "When time comes, bottom line is do what you want - in running, it should never be about what I "ought to", "need to" or "have to" do (there's enough of that in the rest of life!)"
• Marci ran this marathon last year and this was her comment..... "Go for it! I wish I could run it, but I don't think its in the cards this year. Its not as dull as you might think, plus there is water every mile, so lots of support, and the food after was good!"
• My next marathon is "Kentucky Derby Marathon" and that isn't until the end of April. So I think I have time to recover and then continue my training for that race.

I am super excited about this race. I know I am not as ready as I should/could be, but it will be nice to remind myself how much I love this distance.

a little advice please......

So I am needing a little advice from my fellow marathon running/blogging buddies.

I registered for a marathon back in September, and the race is Next Sunday, the 15Th. I was training for it and doing fine until December came. I didn't train so well that month and found myself doubting that I could do it. I ran a 14 mile run in Dec and then kind of slacked until January. I did not pick up where I left off, I started at mile 10. So today I ran 14 and I felt pretty good considering the fact that the wind was trying to blow me over. So this is where I need some advice..... I want to go ahead and run the Marathon next Sunday.

It is called "The Last Chance for Boston" marathon, and it is in Dublin, Oh. It's only about 3 hrs from me, and I really want to try and finish it. I realize I wont PR, or even come close. In fact, my goal would be about a 4:30. But I am wondering from you all, what you think of this idea? Do you think I am crazy? Do you think I will have big time trouble finishing? This would be my 7Th marathon and my last 26.2 was 9 months ago. Any words of advice?

Oh ya, and the course is a one mile flat loop. If I do run this race, I think I will end up dizzier then anything else.... ;)

8+5= 13

Well, I decided to run 8 on the treadmill yesterday (Sat.. it was 12 degrees) instead of trying for 13 out on the ice and snow. I am wishing I had waited to run my 13 for Sunday, because the temps were up over 40. Our church was pushed from 9:30 Am to 1:00 PM so Sunday Morning when I saw this....
I decided to go out and run 5 before I showered for Church. I am so happy I did. It was so nice and it felt so dag-gum-good. I took my camera and was able to get some shots of my run.

This dog meets me out at the road every time I run by. He barks and does his thing, but I think he just wants a friend, to bad I am not willing to be that for him/her.

I love this barn. They grow a lot of tobacco here, and in this barn you can see it hanging and drying. This is my 2 1/2 mile turn around.

Just thought I would snap a shadow picture. It's hard getting a decent shot while in motion.

I love the sound of all the water running, and the sound of my feet splashing in little puddles of melted snow. I can't wait for SPRING.