memba me?

HELLO! I have resurfaced! (if only for myself as I know I may have lost all my readers) but it is ok. I write for me and for anyone along for the ride. my writing is my reminder to myself that I have made a decision. I have decided to once again kick my ass in gear. enough is enough. summer is over. camping is over. food on the run is over. the scale tipping is over. I am ready to kick my own ass. I am ready to get back to where I was, and then go farther than I ever have been.

~I'm Hot and I'm Cold, I'm Yes and I'm No~

Summer. Is. Finally. Here.
Let's be real, summer here is short, so of course I want to enjoy every second of sun. We squeeze camping, drinking, and any sort of fun into every free second. Sounds great, right? The problem? HALF TRAINING! Yes I have another half around the corner---62 days to be exact. It has been HOT here. Wonderful for sitting in a lawn chair with a beer, not so wonderful for me to run in. I DIE IN THE HEAT, I tire so quickly. Today I am going to hit the treadmill in my basement. In my central air conditioned home. I HATE the treadmill, but I hate running in the heat even more. It is so hard to stick to my training schedule. I am a mama of 3. Kids have so much going on, especially in the summer. I run after work, but yet start to feel guilty that my husband is stuck home with the kids (especially after being home with them all day). I have to accept that I am a runner, but a mama and a wife and a nurse and a friend and a daughter as well. I need to allow all of my roles to take turns being first and accept that there are weeks where I can not run three times. I will do the best I can with the free time I can find. And that has to be good enough.

~New shoes, happy feet~

Ahhhhhhh I have new shoes. YAY! HAPPY BLISTER FREE FEET! I traded in my tired Saucony Pro Grid Ride 2 for a fabulous pair of Saucony Triumph 8. I got the last pair in November and trained for the half and ran the half in them. They were fine up until about 6 weeks ago when blisters started to appear. I went to a local running store and was fitted for my new pair. I have ran in them twice---blister free! I LOVE SAUCONY SHOES! YAY!

Good bye old:





Hello new:




This durable workhorse is a heel-striker's best friend. It props the heel up with a lot of soft cushioning and supplies a balanced, stable ride. Saucony dropped 1.5 ounces from the shoe by using lighter materials in the outsole and upper and sculpting the midsole. Overall, the Triumph's balance of stability and softness won over most of our testers, who appreciated its accommodating fit. Recommended for heel-strikers looking for a soft shoe with an outstanding fit.

Trail 5k recap

Yesterday my friend and I ran a trail 5k. It was my first trail race and her first race ever. It was at 10:30 am and it was very warm out already. I got there and was delighted to see that her 10 year old daughter had decided to join us. The 12k runners started first, then we were off. I had never ran on these particular trails and all I have is one word: HILLY. Good lord. The first half was OK, but about half way through my knee popped. PAIN. I literally walked the last half of the race. There was no way I could run the hills with my knee. I wanted to cry. I wanted to quit. I was pissed. I seriously considered walking around the finish so that my time was not recorded. But I thought about what that would say about me, and my character. But most of all what would that say to my friends daughter who ran that day? I finished, I literally walked across the finish line. I was still mad. My friends daughter finished 1st in her age group (I belive she was 9th OVERALL!!) and my friend finished her first race and she ran strong and did fabulous. Running is more than exercise, it is an emotional and mental challenge. I may not run well each time, but I run. I can not control my body, but I can listen to it. I can encourage and cheer on others, and hope to inspire others to run. Running has taught me so much more than I could have ever imagined when I started. After I digested the days events I look back and appreciate them. Because without set backs how can one truly appreciate moving forward?




P.S. to redeem myself, I did come home and go for a 10 mile bike ride with my husband. :)

P.S.S today my knee feels fine.........figures.

Green Bay 13.1 Recap

Saturday Jaime and I met Kim and Nigel at the expo. We got our packets and shopped. I bought more Bondi Bands www.bondiband.com (because a girl can never have enough), a spi belt www.spibelt.com , and an Amphipod handheld water bottle www.runningwarehouse.com/descpage-AHHL12.html .

Sunday morning we got up bright and early and enjoyed coffee and peanut butter toast along with a power bar. Jaime, myself, Mark, Chris and Catrina all were running. Sheri was out with an injury but bless her soul mustered up enough courage to come spectate. We got to Green Bay about 30 minutes before the race, we SEARCHED for the bag check, no one knew where it was. we finally found it. Did some quick stretches in the bathroom line and the hopped in the starting line. Jaime and I ran with no ipods. we wanted to truly be in the moment and wanted to hear everything. I do not regret this decision and I think next time (yes you heard right) I will run without music again.

Jaime and I started out at a nice pace, being very careful not to let the excitement of the day make us run too fast. We knew the importance of not burning out too quick. This was a long race. We paced our selves. We ran with no garmin or watch, again it was a decision. We really just wanted to run the race without stressing about time or distance. We trained together all winter. She is 12 years younger and faster than me. We knew that there would come a point in the race where we would part, but we planned to run as much as we could together. The first few miles were fine, lots of crowd support and energy. I saw my first spectator Kelly at mile 5. To hear my name was so fabulous. A HUGE burst of encouragement. We saw Jaime's family and her dad was just beaming for her. It was awesome. We crossed the 5 mile mark in under an hour and I remember saying outloud "we got this" At mile 6.5 Jaime started to pull ahead (that sounds much better than me pulling back) and we gently broke apart. We didn't speak, it just happened as we knew it would. I watched her get farther and farther in front of me. It was ok. This was our race, yet it was MY race as was HERS. I wanted her to run the best race she could as did I and I knew if I stayed with her I would tire. So I plugged along. At mile 7-8 I saw Nigel with a fabulous sign for me. YAY another spectator. It was so nice to see a familiar face. This was about the time where there was a band playing in a driveway and some guys were handing out beer. There was NEVER a point in the race that I felt I couldn't do it. Actually I thought "this is easy" now yes I am a SLOW runner, but a runner. I ran the whole way. The training is the killer, the race is fun. At about mile 11 I could see and hear Lambeau. I was almost there. At mile 11 I heard my necklace gingle, it was a gift from my BFF. I smiled. As I entered Lambeau I saw Kim and Nigel cheering for me, I remember yelling "I have nothing left" I ran through the players tunnel and out around the field. There were spectators in the stand and it was great to see Crystal. Back through the players tunnel and out to the parking lot. This is where I saw marathoners running beside me. I cheered and told them they were kicking ass! I saw Kim and Nigel again and I sprinted to the finish. I did a "Lambeau Leap" over the finish and my time was 2:33. I heard Sheri yell "I am so proud of you" I know that this day was so hard for her. I DID IT. I set a goal and followed through. No one got me to that finish but myself. No one trained endless miles after work for me. I did. I stuck with it and made it. It felt FABULOUS.

Jaime and I (P.S. she finished 10 minutes ahead of me)

Half Pics!!!!

http://www.asiorders.com/view_user_event_video.asp?EVENTID=75604&BIB=4332&S=230&PWD=

My professional half marathon pics.....recap coming soon!!!!!!

MINE

There are some things in life you do for just you. Some things that some understand and others don’t. Some things that matter so much to yourself, yet seem minimal to others. These things that we carry close to our heart, our soul, our being. These things are ours. Our moment, our thing, our journey. While you hope that your loved ones understand how much this means to you, some will and some won’t. You need to remember that these things are for you. For no one else. Cherish this, as it is yours.

Sunday, May 15th, I finished my first half marathon. This was a goal that I made for myself a long time ago, yet really set in stone at Thanksgiving. I trained after work, on weekends, any free time I could carve away from my family. I know it was a sacrifice. For myself and for them. The day came yesterday and I ran. I did it. I completed my race. My race against myself. While some don’t get it, some chose to ignore it, some chose to disregard it, I embrace it. Because my embrace is all that matters. A full race recap will be later. But for now one of my favorite quotes:

“The miracle isn’t that I finished, the miracle is that I had the courage to start.”

I AM NOT READY

I could puke. I am nervous, scared, excited, upset, worried...mostly nauseous. My knee injury really set my training back. I AM NOT READY. the half is a week from TODAY. I wish I could rewind about 2 months and have a do over. I could cry. Ok now I am crying. Seriously. This half meant so much to me and now I feel so defeated. I feel kicked down, I am pissed off. I did not train enough. Not even close. WHAT DO I DO?

Let the truth be known

My right knee sucks. There I said it. I am disappointed in my body. I feel let down. Now I know there are people far worse than me, for christ sake my dad had a stroke a few weeks ago and here I am bitching about my knee.

I have gone to PT for a few weeks. I have had U/S therapy, massage, and even rocked one of these stylish patches for 8 hours.

I still hurt. I have a stabbing on the lateral side of my knee which wraps inward behind the knee. I have had a few diagnoses: meniscal tear, IT band Syndrome, tendonitis.....etc. At this point I have refused a MRI and injections. Part of me probably doesn't want to know the truth, the other yeah I am in denial. The race is 17 days away. I just can't swallow the idea that I can't run it. Not yet. It just breaks my heart. Soon I will have to make a decision. But tonight I will not.

Awesome Giveaway

Check out this giveaway http://runningdivamom.blogspot.com/2011/04/air-sports-watch-product-review.html

I have been following her blog for a while and she is so inspiring! I hope to be half the runner she is some day!

~The Stick~

I purchased The Stick today, check it out: www.thestick.com

Anyone have it?? I had a fuel belt to exchange at a sporting store and had a store credit, so I chose The Stick. I will let you know how it goes......

I live in one of these cities!!! Can you guess?? Go ahead and tilt your head to read......




My cat Annabelle enjoyed The Stick


As did my 5 year old!

~34 days~

Only 34 days until my first half. I am struggling with IT band issues. Today on my 4 mile run I had to stop in my tracks. The pain in my knee was unbearable. It took me 20 minutes to walk about .5 mile. I came home and iced and took a celebrex. This is so upsetting to me. I am giving this training all I have and yet my body and mind are not on the same track. It just breaks my heart. My dad had a stroke this week. Again breaks my heart. He is lucky, as it could have been much worse. Yet, seeing him struggle to walk and swallow, is almost too much for me. I am coping by being sarcastic and cynical. Someone has to be. We all can't sit around and cry. I put on a brave face for my family, and grieve silently. I want to run this half for him.

~63 days~

63 days until my first half! I am so excited. My running partner Jaime and I have been religiously training. She is Running for a Reason and has raised $330 for charity! We run on an indoor track and are hoping to get outside soon. The cold, ice and snow have kept us indoors.

19 days without beer! This is seriously a world record for me! I have given it up until after the half.

Jaime and I have decided that we will NOT be running with an iPod. We do not train with one anyway. We want to truly experience the half. We want to hear all the sounds. The cheering, the cowbells, the talking.

My foot is giving me problems. The lateral part of my left foot HURTS. It goes from an ache to a stabbing. Any ideas?

Dart Fish Gait Analysis

I have been having medial knee pain. I work at an Orthopaedic office and had a sports medicine doctor look at me. Everything looks good. He felt that pain was coming from my form. He sent me for a dart fish gait analysis. Here is what I found.