Train or Insane

Latest..

2008-11-08T09:27:00.011-06:00

Well.. I just read Lana and Michele's race reports for the IronMan and I am completely inspired. I feel like I want to go run 1000 miles today in honor of them. Of course I could probably only bust out 3 of the 1000 but even so I am just in awe of their accomplishments and I think I will start training for my half..officially.

School is going really well for me. Better than expected. I have made a A on every test so far and the studying hasn't been too horrible. The professor has turned out to be a hoot and I love her. So much so I am taking her class again next semester. (A/P 2) I have met some cool people in the class I enjoy and have become friends with.

As far as training goes, my hip still hurts but I am trying to run. I have also started doing bootcamp at the YMCA every morning at 5:45 to sort of kick start me back into regular training. I figure it will get me into the habit of early morning work-outs since I have no time in the afternoons to train with school, work, and kids taking up the day.

I swam my first mile a few weeks ago (With breaks..can't do a solid mile yet). My kids are on the swim team this winter and I was going swimming on the days they swim cause I was there anyway but there is ONE lane open for free swim during practice and 6 people swimming circles in that lane so I am trying to go after work twice a week and then on sat. or sun. The weekdays are hard and sometim es I get there and sometimes I don't. After bootcamp is over in seven weeks..maybe I will re-join the masters swim program and swim in the morning at 5am. (Whew) I have to do it if I ever plan to REALLY swim a mile. Can't take breaks in the ocean or lake. I saw Lana talking about how much fun she had during the swim and I shudder. maybe someday I will feel the same way. I have to admit I am finally enjoying my swims somewhat but I can't say I would if I had to swim 2 miles while being kicked in the face. She's a freak of nature!!

Bailey in his warm-ups
This is Bailey standing between two of the biggest 11 year olds in the history of 11 year olds. Bailey is considered to be on the average/larger category of the growth charts if that tells you anything. What did they feed these kids anyway? He had to swim against them and was not happy.

Bailey about to start the race

Again.. Massive kids. Maybe I should get Bailey some protein shakes. Something. I never considered him to be scrawny till this day.

Connor on the other hand...He's just a skinny kid and will always be. He will never have to worry about a weight problem other than trying to put some on. He takes after my side of the family and looks just like my brother at that age. My brother can still eat his weight in food and not gain an ounce. Connor about to start his race

SCHOOLED

2008-08-27T06:43:00.011-06:00

I started school last night and there are some things I am going to need to figure out. To begin with, I slipped one of my kids ADHD pills last semester to see if it would help. Come to find out, that's what my problem has been all along when it comes to school. When it's kicking...I absolutely love the feeling. I feel ecstatic and my brain becomes an information sponge, so see why college kids buy it on the street. I didn't have to go to these extremes, though. I easily obtained a prescription and last semester I took it everyday. (Vyvance- 30mg)

The side effects are horrendous though. I can't eat, I am thirsty, I can't sleep at night, and talk about being a BTCH...when that stuff start's wearing off at the end of the day I become moody as hell and lash out. I talked to the doc about it and there's not much I can do but take a different pill towards the end of the day to ease me off, but I am not big on pills so I didn't do that. I just waited till the end of the semester and I have been off of it all summer. Well, I started taking it again last week to get used to the side effects and went to school last night. The problem is....it wear's off during class. (Downward spiral commence.)

So #1...The instructor is Russian. It's hard enough to understand her with the accent, but when I can't focus it's REALLY HARD.

# 2: She is very Russian. Strict, to-the-point. (Think Edna Mode of The Incredibles...The lady who made the "Super-Suits". Not sure if she is Russian but that's who she reminded me of. Or even Lucy Lu's character on Charlie's Angels. The scene where she was in front of the group of men at the business meeting) She bit someone's head off (Including mine) over a question on the syllabus, then asked "Anymore questions?" I looked around and everyone is timidly shaking their heads "No" with these huge eyes. "Good..Now, back to the syllabus." Ah Maaaaannnn. This is going to be a LOOOONNNNGGG semester.

# 3: During the lecture portion, I found myself floating away, feeling bored, and a song stuck in my head. ("In My House"...Mary Jane Girls. OMG SERIOUSLY?? No more 80's on the way to school for me!) This didn't happen last semester in my history class. I found it to be the most interesting topic in all the world and took notes that could be published for a study guide. (Everyone wanted to borrow mine because I always made 100's on the test...plus ALL the extra credit questions) I looked over my notes from last night when I got up this morning, and I can barely read them. It looks like a 2nd grader wrote them.

#4: I almost beat the shit out of the vending machine because it took my money. I snack like crazy when the meds wear off, and my blood sugar is low from the lack of food all day so it's not a good time to mess with me. Some poor kid put some change in the machine to help me retrieve the object of my desire (Cheddar cheese pretzel Combos) which worked because then 2 fell out. SCORE!! I'll pay him back Thurs.

So what do I do? School is going to be as challenging for me as an IronMan if I don't get it together.

Oh.. I almost forgot. #5: NO DRINKS IN CLASS! This includes water. The medication causes me to be extremely thirsty even after it wears off so there's yet ANOTHER distraction, and I was watching the clock and counting down the minutes till break so I could suck down my water bottle.

2008-08-25T18:03:00.005-06:00

Me: 19 on watch in the Navy

Here's another moment in time from the Vault. Responsible me...3 am watch with another chick. We were the only two in the barracks that night because everyone else was out doing some night drill. We had the radio up and we were dancing, and were having the best time blowing off some bootcamp steam, but was short-lived... unfortantly we got caught. The rest of this week was spent scrubbing floors and toilets with a toothbrush. Worth it? OF COURSE!!

This past Sat I did the M'Boro Hot 100, only I did the 33 mile loop instead of the 100 mile loop. (I'm not crazy yet) My riding buddy Jessika IS crazy though and she did the 100 mile. She has only gone 55 miles before that so she was convinced her life was coming to a close about half way through it, then luckily she said she went numb and doesn't remember miles 75-100. I think I did really good on my little loop and I was only beginning to wish for an end to it the last 3 miles. The weather was perfect...cloudy and spitting rain. Had it been hot and sunny like last weekend I am sure I would not have had as positive of an experience. The 17 mile stop was basically a buffet so I can only hope future rides will be as delicious. Can't beat peanut butter and honey sandwiches after a long ride.

Yesterday I tried out some speedwalking and let me just say..It Aint no JOKE!! I felt it in my calves and abs so instead of running I will do this when my training plan calls for it. I started Physical Therapy last week and they don't want me running for the time being. I am praying they can get my hip fixed because I am going crazy with anxiety. I need to RUN!! I swam today for 30 mins. and I am supposed to ride tomorrow but Tropical Depression Fay may have other plans for me. It's supposed to rain for the next few days. Bummer.

I start school tomorrow night, and I am taking Anatomy and Physiology. I will be going 2 nights a week. This is the main source of my anxiety because I know how I get over school. Everything else starts to slide and slack off....Working out, cleaning the house...etc. I have a 4.0 right now and I shudder to think I have to do a repeat of last semester to obtain one again this semester, but this class is going to be even harder than my last classes were. (History and Med. Terminology) I studied my ass off for those grades and that is ALL I DID!! If I am gone again for awhile, you now know the reason.

GNAC

2008-08-17T06:43:00.006-06:00

LAst week I did a ride with GNAC starting at Edwin Warner Park. There were three different levels to choose from, and I choose the shortest route of 24 miles. When I lived in Tullahoma, I used to bike 22 miles every other day on my hybrid and it was a piece of cake. This ride?.....not so much. Most of the people riding this distance had completed an Ironman only weeks ago, so this was to be a "Slow-recovery ride" for them. "Good" I thought. "A chance for me to keep up". They all had their IronMan gear on and their fancy Tri-bikes so I was already intimidated, but maybe since they were doing a "recovery" ride I had a chance.

I took my position at the back of the pack with the sweeper, and off we went. The pace was comfortable and I felt really good. They must either be tired or I am a stud because I was keeping up with ease. (I honestly figured they were tired..maybe I can keep up the whole distance) About 4 miles into it, we came to our first "Hill"..(Is that what they called it?) This is where I got left, and I came this close >< to loosing my breakfast. They went up the "Hill" like it was a straight-away. Just up and over...I swear I heard rocket engines. Where did they get this strength, and who is this guy coming back down the hill? Is he CRAZY? It was all I could do to keep from legs moving and not topple over. The guy who came back was coming back FOR ME!! (Awwwwwww. Now if I can only refrain from throwing up) He encouraged me onward and wasn't even winded, and I couldn't respond to anything he was saying except a grunt. FINALLY...the top of the hill came into view around the bend, and WOW; there was the rest of the pack not too far ahead of me. "See?" The crazy guy who came back for me said, "You did it, and you ARE keeping up." "Grunt" I said. From there we were going 37 MPH straight down and around some serious curves. I made it. This ride went on and on endlessly and FINALLY some dude towards the back with me got a Flat tire. THANK GOD!! I know that's awful but I needed an excuse to stop.

Deciding

2008-08-10T17:27:00.006-06:00

Kelli and Me

Somehow I am now motivated to start....or RE-start training. Maybe it's the Olympics, or maybe I am just stir crazy. I don't know. But Kelli has asked me to train for the M'boro Half in Sept. (BWAHAHAHAHA) and I am also thinking of doing the Jack and Back. Keep up the training and throw in some swimming for good measure and I can do a Half IronMan later next year. That's the plan. (Swimming....UGH)

Although I know for a fact I cannot be ready for a half marathon by Sept. considering I can't run to the mailbox next door, I will train with Kelli but I don't think I will sign up. Maybe by Dec. I can be ready for the Memphis Half so in reality I am shooting for that. My friend Kerry from the bike Pedler took me on an endless ride last week and I feel more confident on my road bike. I have issues with falling over so I rarely ride it. This morning I went 14 miles with Doug, and I think I could have gone 20 in the time allotted, but he has a Trek hybrid and can't keep up the pace so 14 it was. I plan to do another long ride with Kerry again this week and then a ride or two on my own.

In the morning I am going for my first swim OF THE YEAR and pray I don't drown. One lap. If it's all I can do then it's all I can do. I know I can do more but I don't want to set myself up for failure.. HA... If I do one... YES!!!! If I do more...even better, but it starts with one.

I am trying to get Kelli to train with me for the Half IronMan but she has Hair issues. Her hair is super curly and thick, and she only washes it a couple of times a week because it takes her forever to blow it out straight so she stays out of the pool unless it's a wash day. I recently cut all my hair off because it was damaged so it's no big deal to me to get it wet, but I can admit it was a pain last year when it was longer. I only washed it every 3 days if I didn't swim. NASTY! With it short I can wash it whenever. When I was 23 it was REALLY short, and I have thought about cutting it off like that again. Here's a pic of me with my sister in 1996 . ( I was 23)

UPDATE: I went swimming this afternoon instead and I swam 20 whole laps! WOO-HOO!
I will swim 21 on Wednesday. If I can do 40...even better.

Almost a year

2008-08-02T11:40:00.025-06:00

Where I have been? To be honest, I haven't been training AT ALL this year. I am a total bum. I have had injury after injury which has kept me from training..or running I guess I should say.

I signed up for the CMM half and my hip went out again during the 10 mile run. I hobbled home the last 2 miles and that was back in March. It's STILL screwed up. I am convinced it's a stress fracture but who knows. (The doctor if I would go)

SOOOO..my newest mission is bike riding. And I don't mean road bikes, although I have been doing that with my husband 3 days a week. (He's lost 20 lbs) I am running any errand in a 3 mile radius by bike if at all possible. Yesterday I ordered a F reeRadical to attach to my Trek which will make it even more of a beast. It should be built up by September hopefully and I will even be able to haul a weeks worth of groceries home.

I started back to school last semester and that took up a HUGE portion of my free time. For the first time ever I can say I am a nerd. I have a 4.0 gpa. Woo-Hoo!! Although I will be 80 before I ever graduate, I will chip away at it and hopefully get into nursing school. It is so competitive, though so my other options would be economics or urban planning. But I think nursing would be an easier job to obtain, and it has always been an interest so I have my heart set on that.

I would really like to start training again, soon. It drives me crazy to read the other blogs and see what ya'll have all been up to and I have nothing spectacular to report. I had hoped to pursue a half-ironman this year and maybe I would have if my hip had cooperated. Not only that, but my neck and back kept going out, too. I haven't had an issue with those for a month and I started walking again. My hip aches towards the end of my 4 mile loop, but it's almost immediate ( like 1/4 th of a mile) when I try to run. The biking/ walking is keeping my weight in check somewhat. I've gained 6 pounds, but compared to last year I needed the extra cushion because I got too skinny according to Doug. I don't like how my clothes fit but I guess it's Ok. They are tighter around the butt and thighs. I am blaming that on biking. (At least that's what I am saying anyway. LOL! Of course It could also be the chocolate malt balls from Fresh Market I am addicted to. It's like a chocolate bomb in your mouth. Heaven. )

Now for your entertainment... a pic of me at 19 years old when I was in the Navy. Miramar, San Diego, CA 1992..Grunge was cool...

I did my first 5 k around this time, The Carlsbad 5000, and I had a bike I rode EVERYWHERE. I went to the beach every weekend by bike. It was faster than taking the bus. I fell in love with the vibe there..everyone running and biking and just loving life. VERY different from the place I grew up. (Small town where I mostly got made fun of and crap thrown at me when I was out biking or running. WTF?? LOL.)

No responsibility..no worries. My friend took it. We were hiking around in the desert-like region of the base taking photos of the landscape and posing. I remember posing for this pic like it was two weeks ago. What was I thinking about? Not bills! I can tell ya that right now. I was probably thinking about the F-14 pilot I was obsessed with at the time. I was not "allowed" to date the pilot because I was enlisted and he was an officer. Did it stop me? (Did it stop anybody? Heeeeccckkkk NO!) Or maybe I was smiling because it was taken in a place I knew was "Off Limits". Oooooooooooooo..... We never could figure out why and of course that was the place we would all hang out. We never got caught either..lol! I think that was part of the charm...seeing what we could get away with in the military. So many rules... It was a good thing and a bad thing for me. I tended to "walk the line" a bit back then when it came to rules; sometimes crossing it, and I don't know why. My theory with the military was that the rules were there to keep us in line, and they knew we would break some. But if they had tons and tons of them maybe it would help to keep some kind of order. And some of them...eh..... The chick who took the photo was my partner in crime. It's like we were on a mission to see what we could get away with on a daily basis. What was under that concrete thing I was sitting on? A tunnel? A tunnel to what?? Is that why the area was "Off Limits"?

These days a flash of that girl shows up from time to time..esp when I go home. I don't know what happens to me, but when I get around my old friends...there she is. It happened this past weekend at a party in my hometown. I am no longer 35 year old married mother of two/ business owner bogged down with worry and responsibility. I'm the chick in the photo. Of course, those who really know me don't take me seriously. And those who don't know me...I apologize. I realize how I came off. And I would like to take this opportunity to blame the antics of Saturday night on my Best guy friend of all time...Timmy. I can't even look at him with a straight face and he just has this way of making mischief pure joy. Look at him...You can just tell there's gonna be trouble before the night is over and he brings that side of me out like no one else and he always has! Timmy, I love you more than I can say!

It's been MONTHS!!

2007-09-15T06:26:00.000-06:00

NO..I am not dead. I just haven't been training at all since the Triathlon. I noticed over the summer I was getting weaker and weaker until it got to a point that I could hardly run at all. I would go to speed sessions and barely make it around the track one time, I couldn't keep up with my running buddies, and I was just plain old exhausted. And then basically after the triathlon I collasped. I was so frustrated because it didn't matter how hard I tried to push myself, my body refused to cooperate, so it got to a point to where I just stopped training at all. I finally went to the doctor and after some blood work, they found I had hypothyroidism. Basically, my thyroid has shut down and that zapped all of my energy. The doc said over training can cause it...especially if it was starting to not function as well anyway. I had the flu back in March while I was trying to train for the Country Music Marathon..and I haven't felt 100% since then. I am thinking that may have contributed to it. So now I have to take a pill every day for the rest of my life to do the work of my thyroid. I have been on it since Thursday of last week, and I have been running a few times, but I don't feel much different. I hope it just takes a while for the pill to kick in. Of course, the lack of training these past few months might have something to do with it. I am able to complete a full work-out at the gym, so at least I can do SOMETHING. And I am walking....I have the energy for that. I will just continue to do what I can until I am able to train again.

Last night the boys stayed at my mother in laws house so Doug and I went out and got crazy. His friends were playing at The End so he invited me to go. (We hardly ever go out) We started at a Mexican Resturant and I have a Margarita. (yum).. then we went to this place called Alladin's Hookah Bar. How cool was that? They had a belly dancer come in and I wanted to stay but we had to get to his friend's gig. I already had a nice buzz working so I took pics of us making out, and we ended up leaving early (hehe) On our way out the other wives stopped us and said they were jealous. They wished their husbands would kiss on them in public places. Doug really isn't a PDA type of guy either...it was just one of those nights I guess. HA! I am wanting to be proactive in spicing up our marriage a bit. All I seem to do lately is bitch and complain about EVERYTHING that's not right in my life. I feel it's time to take matters into my own hands and stop waiting for things to happen. If I want excitement..then be exciting. Easy..simple. If I am bored..find something to do. If I am sick..go to the doctor. I mean DUH. If the house is a mess..clean it. .....Ok..that may be pushing it. :)

Cedars of Lebanon Tri

2007-07-29T10:37:00.001-06:00

Michele, Me, Wayne, and Patrick

Zbuck!

Connor's stitches are out!

Yesterday I did the Cedars of Lebanon Triathon (my third) and it was a sprint. Because I have been such a slacker this summer with my training..it was difficult and I am not exactly proud of my performance. But, at least I was out there...right? I need to be fully awake for any morning races/work-outs so I set my alarm for 4:00 and began the wake-up process. I got ready and arrived in Lebanon, Tn around 6:00. I was one of the first one's there! (I am so over zealous) When I found out my race number and found the place to rack my bike..I knew I had made a mistake. For some reason I put down a REALLY fast swim time so they put me up close to the front. I was number 163. No pressure! As I was picking up my race packet..I ran into a fellow blogger. ZBUCK!! I knew who he was immediately, because he looks just like the photos on his blog. I introduced myself and I met his brother . Zbuck was really fun to hang out with after the Tri. I also saw the usuals....Wayne, Michele, and Patrick. The swim was REALLY difficult for me..it was a 300 meter but since I can't swim worth anything..I struggled. I think got passed by like 100 people. Ther bike portion was no picnic either. LOTS of hills. Once again I called out to all the live stock I passed to see if I would get a re-action to take my mind off of it. I don't know why I can't resist the urge to do that. There's no tellin' what the people around me are thinking when I do that. HAH! The run was also hard. I saw so many people pass me on the turn-around..people I was close to in the swim line when we started. BUT..Wayne came back for me when he was finished and ran the last mile (which was uphill) with me to keep me from walking. THANK-YOU WAYNE!! AND>> I even passed a guy I started the swim leg with. He passed me in the pool and was out WAY before me..and I caught up to him in the run leg and beat him!

I ended up coming in 12th out of 23 in my age group. Nothing spectacular. Oh well. It was fun. If I am going to do tris..I have GOT to get out of this slacker mind set and actually train. I can't beat myself up for not performing well if I'm not training properly. I was dog tired after the tri and went home and took a nap. Next stop...Staggerwing Du in Tullahoma next weekend!

Connor got his stitches out last week. I took that picture right after they were taken out..and the scar is actually almost white today. Incredible! No one will even notice it in a few months.

3 days later

2007-07-22T10:41:00.000-06:00

Connor UpDate: We removed the bandage about an hour ago to get a peek of the damage and it's looking good. The swelling has gone down, and it's a little bruised, but it's not near as ugly as it was the night it happened. It's going to leave a mark for sure, but I think after it fades it won't be that bad. He hasn't complained of any pain or asked for anything like Advil or anything. He's a trooper. He has been really calm (unlike him) since it happened so I know it was hurting, but last night his energy and personality started to return. Today he's smiling again. The swelling in his lip is almost gone but the tooth is still loose. (cringe)

Yesterday I ran a 5 k with Bailey and Christy. I ended up having to push Christy's stroller which contained her 2 year old son and it was a work-out! My butt was on FIRE during that run. Needless to say I didn't even come close to a P.R., but I want to push him around at least once a week now because I think if I did my strength would improve tremendously. I'd hit all kinds of P.R.'s!

Once Again...

2007-07-19T21:52:00.000-06:00

I had just run a 4.3 mile loop with Fleet Feet, and I had taken a shower when Bailey came busting into the house screaming. I only caught bits and pieces, but I heard "Fracture", "Medics", and "Connor", and "he's gonna die." Immediately I felt my blood rise to my head and I started shaking..and I thought the worst. Like maybe he'd been hit by a car. I was terrified! I had on my P.J. bottoms and a tank top and dashed to my car along with Bailey and Doug, and we drove to the scene. There were about 20 people..mostly kids and 6 or 7 adults gathered around him when we got there, and one of them was a doctor. He already had Connor's head bandaged. Apparently Connor had been racing some kids he knew in the church parking lot on his Scooter and slammed into a pole with a concrete footing. When he left the house he had his helmet on, but he had taken it off...of course...as soon as he was out of sight. The doctor on the scene (one of the parents of the kids Connor was playing with) directed us to the E.R. and assured us he would be fine but he would definitely need stitches. THANK GOD it wasn't serious! There was blood EVERYWHERE so I am sure Bailey just completely freaked and thought he was dying. He ended up with 9 stitches and it looks like the scar on Harry Potter's head. (Just in time for the release of the new Harry Potter movie AND novel. ) This is the 4th time Connor has had stitches in his short life. (He'll be 8 in October). He ALSO had a busted lip and one of his permanent front teeth are loose. I am fine with blood and cuts, but teeth....I'll hit the floor. When I saw that the tooth was loose, I got weak and sickly. (I have to have gas just to get my teeth cleaned and I have NEVER been able to pull the kid's teeth. Bailey always does it for himself AND Connor. I'd pass out) Anyway, the tooth should tighten back up in a few weeks. (just typing this makes me lightheaded). He did that once before with his baby teeth and loosened them from a bike wreck. They were all crooked after that..but they tightened up. PLEASE let this one stay in his mouth!! I couldn't deal if he lost it. I'd freak every time I looked at him.

Speed sessions

2007-07-18T18:59:00.000-06:00

Speed sessions really killed me last night. One mile warm up..then 4x1200 Intervals. I did the first 3 right on the mark in 5:45 with a 5:00 rest in between..but that last one was a killer. I really didn't do it. Just here and there with it. The last lap I decided to run with speed racer Jeff and try and do a 1:20 400. He was going to pace me and I got to the 200 mark in 40 seconds..started tasting metal, then quit. And to think this is his 10k pace!! How in the Heck??

Today I worked like a dog grooming dogs, then I went and swam laps. I am not sure what I have done, but I have a pain in my neck that is shooting down my arm. It started after the swim work-out. Hmmmm.

Tomorrows plan is to run the 4 mile loop with Fleet Feet (in my neighborhood...like a treadmill). We will see how that goes. My last few longer runs have been really sad. REALLY sad. I feel like I have never run before. I HATE that. I have a 5k Saturday and I want to break 24:30 but I don't see that happening.

Where have I been??

2007-07-16T14:36:00.000-06:00

I have been working my bootie off....THAT"S where I have been! The summer months are the busiest for me, and the majority of my income is earned this portion of the year. I can't possibly catch up on everything I have been doing since my last post, but the quick version is training, working, and going on vacation last week to Florida where I was a TOTAL slacker! Well..not completely..I swam laps everyday in the pool. 1000 m at a time and I felt really good. But, I only ran once and it was so hot I did a half-ass attempt so I skipped out on the running the rest of the week. I ran 6 miles yesterday after we got home from a 7.5 hour drive and I felt good to be moving. Here lately my runs feel like I am brand new, but I think it's because of the heat and humidity. I ran a 5 k on the 4th of July and my time was so pathetic I aint even gonna post it. Really embarrassing. Oh well. I am lifting weights today, and I have speed sessions tomorrow..so maybe I can swim on Wednesday. Hopefully. My next Tri is next weekend and I really need to get to the pool. So that's it. BORING I know. Sorry. If I think of anything exciting I have missed.. I will post it. Cheers!

The latest

2007-06-28T18:57:00.000-06:00

I'm back. It's been extra super busy in my corner this past week so I haven't been online much or updated the blog in a while..but here's what I have done this week.

Monday...Lifted weights with Jessika..Then had an acid peel on my face. It's peeling like a sun burn.
Tuesday..Speed Sessions-200 fast 200 jog
200 fast 400 jog
800 fast 400 jog....Then repeat these again. It sounded easy till I did it.
Wed...I don't think I did anything..but I had every intention of doing something. Ha!
Thurs...I ran 4.3 miles with Fleet Feet and I was doing good till my abs cramped up past the point I could run through. Someone said it may have been the combination of the gel I took..lack of hydration, and the humidity. It's never happened before like that...Upper abs. I have had stomach cramps and stitches..but this was doubled over pain and I wondered if I regretted not wearing my Road Id because I thought I may fall over on the side of the road for about 5 minutes there. Pretty Intense.
Tomorrow I have the day off again and I am having lunch with a friend. But I may try to go swimming sometime after that. (right).

Laurie's Day Off

2007-06-21T19:48:00.000-06:00

Any suggestions? Anyone? Anyone? I have the whole day off tomorrow and nothing has been planned. Anyone know what I should do? Class? Anyone? Anyone know what it's called when you have a free day and nothing to do? Something "L _ _ K-of-planning"?...... LACK-of-planning.

This is a dilemma for me. I can't tell you the last time I had a day where nothing was in my calendar for me to do. I just don't function this way. I don't have any dogs booked, the kids will be gone, the husband will be playing golf..and I....I have absolutely NO IDEA what to do with myself. How crazy is that? Hmmmm... What to do..what to do. ..

UPDATE: Ok..It's funny the stuff a person can come up with to do when the slate (calendar) is clean.I got up at 6AM and didn't go to bed till 2Am. I jumped from activity to activity..starting the day with a 6o minute run at 6:30 with Kelli, and the day ending at a Karaoke bar with a rowdy group of friends. I'd say I found something to do! I wouldn't wish for a day like that EVERYDAY, but was so good to just have a day off and see what it brings. There was running, shopping, Mexican food, margarita's, A LOT of water, bar hopping, beer, swimming, a sunburn, a pedicure, a nap, more beer, dancing, some shots, singing...the day just went on and on and each hour brought something fun. I now think EVERYONE should plan a free day with nothing planned every once in a while and just see what happens. It's safe to say a good time was had by all!

Speed Sessions Week 3

2007-06-19T19:10:00.000-06:00

When I drove out to the track..I could see a dark cloud starting to form, but I didn't really think it would rain. It has rained on and off all day, but the radar was clear an hour before Speed Sessions were to start..so I figured the night would be clear. I was wrong. A DOWNPOUR hit around 5:45. I called Doug to ask him to check the radar agin and see if he thought it would blow over pretty soon. From the looks of it he didn't think it would, so I hung out for a while and got out of the mood to run. I thought about going to the gym instead. Then...all of a sudden..it stopped. DANG! Just when I thought I was going to get off the hook.

Everyone who was waiting out the rain in their cars headed down to the track and warmed up 1.5 miles. It was still cloudy and I thought the weather was perfect. Then the Sun came out. MAN was it humid after that. I looked out over the track and steam was rising. it wasn't 5 minutes before everyone looked like they had jumped in a pool!

Tonight work-out was not a picnic either. I did 9x400's at a 1:48 pace and alternated a 400 jog after each lap. The jog was to take twice the time of the run. I was supposed to do 8x400's but I lost count and kept running with a chick who was pacing me and she was doing 10x400's. After the 9th one I asked her how many that was and she said 9. Opps. All of my laps were under the time frame though, with the last one at 1:39. Then I did a mile cool-down. I was DEAD after that work-out so instead of going out to eat all sweaty and nasty I came home and ate some Chinese food and drank a Mich Ultra. I LOVE Speed Sessions..but only after I am done with them for the week.

Patrick...Where were you???

2007-06-17T12:11:00.000-06:00

I have had yet ANOTHER slacker week. Spending time at the pool..blowing off running, swimming, and biking, Can't seem to get my act together with any form of training. However, I HAVE worked my tail off grooming dogs this week, which may explain the laziness in every other aspect of my life. Summer is so busy in the grooming trade. We did 17 dogs on Thursday alone!! I got finished around 6:45 pm and I was dead tired. But, I am bummed because I skipped out on the Moon Pie run. I never got the chance to build any mileage since my post-marathon hiatus, so I just didn't go. My kids were still in Baseball Tournaments anyway, and so I went to that. This week it is my hope that I will get back on it instead of talk about it. I have a 5k I am planning on this weekend because I don't feel like I am ready for another Tri yet. Last night I went out with my friend Kelli to try and blow off some steam. It was fun. Today I plan to spend another day at the pool aging my skin and drinking Long Island Teas. Doug wants to watch the Golf thing on Tv and it's Father's Day so he has the right. We went to eat Brunch at the Country Club this morning, and I should go run some of it off, but ...Nah. The Pool is calling! I do know that my newly defined ABs will not stay visible much longer if I don't get back on the training soon. It was hard enough to get them to show up...all of this laziness and beer is not going to help matters much.
Here's a photo from this morning at the Country Club. My Husband and my Boys. I am thinking I may shave the Mohawks off this week because baseball is over. Those haircuts are crazy enough, and they refuse to spike them up the way they are supposed to be, so it just looks like a REALLY bad haircut when we are at the pool or in public. If they would keep them spiked at least people would know it's supposed to be a Mohawk. I spiked them this morning, though. We got a few looks at the Country club..I don't care..but I think it would be better for the beach to go bald. I don't know..whatever.

Speed Sessions Week 2

2007-06-12T21:52:00.000-06:00

Super-Stud Patrick!!

Jeff and Mark

Melissa and Me

Man..This was a tough one..(Aren't they all). Coach Mark had us run a two mile time trial last week to get our base, then he based the rest of the summers workouts on our times.so my workout for tonight went like this...
Warm up 1.5 miles..then Run a 200 in 54 secs.....jog a 200...run another 200 in 54 secs....jog another 200...Run a 400 in 108 secs.....jog a 400..... then repeat this sequence two more times. Everyones workout was slightly different depending on the mileage they run during the week and how fast they ran the 2 miles last week. I was excited to know I had moved up to group 3 from group 4 last year. PROGRESS!!
Funny story...On the workout board all of our times were listed So I wrote them on my hand so I wouldn't have to keep the numbers in my head during the run. (Watch out for that runner's math) I wrote 200=54 and 400=1:08. Anyway..I would do my 2x200's in 54 seconds, then I would BUST ASS trying to do the 400 in 1:08 because that's what I had written on my hand....And I was gettin PISSED because the best 400 I could come up with was between 1:40 and 1:48. I just couldn't figure it out! Was I REALLY in that bad of shape, or was Mark just trying to kill me? I saw Wayne and asked what the hell and as it turned out I was hitting it perfectly because he informed me that the time was in Seconds..not minutes. I looked again and it said 108 on the board..not 1:08. I felt so stupid. I decided to keep it to myself till I was cooling down and started chatting with a few friends and they confessed they thought the same thing I did! We shared a good laugh. I mean.....to go from a 54 sec 200 to a 1:08 400?? And I was actually TRYING TO!! Hello??
After Speed Sessions I went out to eat with Melissa, Jeff and Coach Mark (I tried to invite you Patrick..but you "disappeared". Oh and BTW...I have "her" narrowed down. ;) ) Melissa and I confessed our "Duh" moments to Mark, and he laughed and said a bunch of people were scratching their heads too because they couldn't run the pace either and couldn't figure out why. Runner's Math, man. It'll get you every time!

Slacker...

2007-06-11T05:50:00.001-06:00

I have been such a lazy loser since the Tri last Saturday. I never went to swim team last week, and I only ran Speed Sessions and a mile or 2 on Thursday, so Sunday morning my plan was to run 12 miles and get back into the swing of things. I have a 10 mile run this Saturday called the Moon Pie, and I am not EVEN ready. I got up Sunday with good intentions, and met a girl to run with. We did the 6 mile loop and that's all I had in me. I couldn't run any more than that because physically I felt weak and mentally I was DONE. I can usually push through some weakness...but yesterday I couldn't find the boost ANYWHERE so I stopped. Wimpy. After that I went to the pool and got WASTED drunk with my friend Kelli for whatever reason (I'll tell you..one beer and 2 or 3 Long Island Teas..I lost count) I remember joking that I was going to blog about it and the heading would read.."Hello...My name is Laurie..and I am a Long Island TeaAholic" For some reason that was funny yesterday....this morning?...Not so much. I came home from the pool and shot off some foul emails, then I went to bed at some point and woke up around 9:30 pm...went back to bed at 10:30ish, then woke up this morning at 4:30 and made it to swim class!! Yee-Haw! I haven't been to swim class in over a week so it felt good to be swimming again. I am going to try my hardest to make it 3 times this week and lift weights maybe tomorrow or this afternoon. We'll see how it goes!

My new Employee

2007-06-07T15:20:00.001-06:00

Yeah..SUCKS doesn't it? It's a dirty job....

But SOMEBODY's gotta do it. Might as well be you!

FINALLY..A solution to my summer woes. If you haven't been keeping up, a couple of entries ago I was desperately trying to figure out what the heck I am supposed to do with my two paths of destruction running free in the neighborhood. Then it hit me.......Put their poor little spoiled Brentwood butts to work. I was so excited to be able to spend some quality bonding time with my oldest trouble maker, Bailey, this morning. He had SOOOOO much fun learning the ways of the cold-cruel world ..earning his keep. I'll bet it will be the LAST time he comes into my shop and complains of being bored. He'll find SOMETHING constructive to do..like clean his room, do the laundry, pick up the sticks in the yard, pick his nose......anything. I have laughed so hard today watching these scenes take place, I had to snap a few pictures for history's sake. Oh, don't worry. I paid him for all his hard work, and he'll have some cash to spend at the concession stand at the ball park instead of hittin' me up every 5 minutes. That snow cone will taste so much sweeter when he thinks about what he had to do to get it. Connor..You better lay low buddy, because YOU'RE NEXT! If you come in and tell on Bailey for something trivial ONE MORE TIME while I'm working, I'll have you picking dog hair out of every nook and cranny of that shop for the next SIX WEEKS!! You have the cutest little hands that are perfect for the job. It'll be a BLAST! I have HAD IT and I really can't wait. Yes..I am talking to you with your know-it-all sassatude, and your superiority. The end is near..I can FEEL IT!! (I have a strong suspicion that my groom shop is going to be spotless real soon.) Hey..sorry about the tone of this post..but I don't call it "Train or Insane" for nothing. I'm going CRAAAZY. Look into my eyes! (Of course..there could be a dash of PMS involved, too)

The agony of Defeat!

2007-06-06T21:33:00.001-06:00

Connor and his Division Leader Trophy

Final Score

This was a NAIL-BITING game..but we were defeated by one point! That was the closest game we have played and it was against the other divisions undefeated team. Both of us 16-0. We were ahead some of the time..they were ahead some of the time..but they had the Home Team advantage and got to bat last..and they got us. I want Doug to do a more complete version of what happened in this game, but he says "Let it Go". There were a couple of plays which I believe to be a bad call on the umpire's side..no seriously..there was some huffing and puffing of coaches and officials in the field for a few minutes..but it wasn't in our favor. We were behind at this point but scored SEVEN RUNS in the 5th..which is all they allow..so then the home team came got up to bat and had one out..scored three runs..and beat us by 1 point. They were a tough team. But even the parents and coaches on the other team admitted it was the closest game they had played, too. It could have gone either way..and SOMEONE had to lose. Oh well.The boys took it well, though. The tournament starts up on Saturday morning and I have a feeling we will see them again at the championship..hopefully beating them this time. They all got trophies tonight for being the division leaders, (That's what it's all about..trophies..right?) so the kids were happy. AFter the game we went out to eat with a family we have made friends with over the season, and I shared a MONSTER margarita with the wife, Anne. It was so good..and much needed after that game!

2007-06-06T15:37:00.001-06:00

Connor..Sporting his Tournament Mohawk

Bailey got one, too.

Shelli, me, And Jessika. (I haven't washed my hair in three days..that should explain it)

Today I did 2 dogs and hit the pool with my kids and some friends. I have blown off swim team both Monday and this morning so I swam some laps for 30 minutes and then put on the spf 50 and laid out for the rest of the day. As you can see in the photo above, I have nasty pool hair...but I will wash it tomorrow. Maybe...I promise. HAH!

Tonight is Connor's Baseball Division Championship. His team is UNDEFEATED this season..16-0..and they are playing the team in the other division that is also undefeated. It's sad because one of them is going to feel the stabbing pain of loss tonight, and I am going to cry if we lose. But we won't because a bunch of the kids got Mohawks. (His team is the Indians) That should make a difference..right? Connor plays catcher and he has done an awesome job this season guarding the home plate. I am so proud of him. He actually catches the ball! I have watched the other kids on other teams and they pretty much shy away from it at his age. Go Connor!!

It's already the beginning of a LONG summer. A few days ago Bailey decided to burn down my neighbor's tree, and today he was on a busy road in our neighborhood, and Winfield drove up in his Jeep and had to stop because Bailey (9) was positioning these boulder sized rocks across the road. Winfield apparently yelled at him in a DAD tone ( Winfield has two boys the same age as my two) and came to my house to tell me to get control of my kid. He drove me to the evidence, but the rocks had already been moved , and Bailey beat us home and played dumb while Winfield told me the story. Needless to say, Bailey will not leave the yard again for a while...maybe the summer. I thought he could handle a little freedom on our circle, but I guess I was wrong. It will kill him to see Connor (7) leave the yard while he is stuck at home. He needs a good ass-bustin' to go along with the grounding, but he's already as strong as me so I'll leave that up to the man of the house. I am seriously the worst mom, ever...I'm already counting down the days till school starts back, and that's just awful! I should be able to chill out and have some fun with my kids..but NOOOOO....that would just be a hallmark card commercial. NEVER gonna happen in real life! They just WILL NOT behave like civilized human beings when unsupervised and it's like watching an episode of Malcom in the Middle when it comes to my family. Where did I go wrong?

Summer Speed Sessions

2007-06-05T19:46:00.001-06:00

Mark..The coach layin' out the game plan for the summer!

Jeff and Melissa. I met them Last year and now they are Engaged. I think they make a perfect couple!

Speed sessions have started back! Woo-Hoo! It can't BELIEVE it's been a year since I have seen some of those people. I had been dreading tonights work-out for days because it was the 2 mile time trial...and it was HOT as hell outside this afternoon. I drove out there with the usual nervous stomach and anxiety I always experience before a speed session. It's a love/hate relationship. I love it because of the friends I have made and the way I feel AFTER the work-out..but I hate it because I know it's gonna SUCK!.

When I pulled up there were already people circling the track warming up and I started getting excited. Clouds were starting to form overhead outta nowhere, but I was glad because the shade would be nice. As I walked up to the track entrance, who did I see??? Patrick!! I was thinking.."Yay!! Speed Sessions are gonna ROCK this year!" We usually all go hang out after we run and from some of the stuff I have read on Patricks Blog..he likes to party! This is the 3rd time in a week I have run into him. I also saw my friends Melissa and Jeff. Melissa is the chick dressed up as Wonder Woman over in the margin. She's a lot of fun to run with so I was glad to see her there.

We started our mile warm-up..and at about lap 2 the sky opened up and a hurricane came through complete with 100 MPH winds and deadly lightning. Ok..this is Tn..no Hurricane or 100 MPH winds..but still. Not running weather. So we all moved it inside and had our pre-work-out meeting there. After 20 mins the storm passed and we hit the track again to warm up. Then they divided us up into 2 groups. Over 15 min. and under 15 min. (I was in the over 15 min. group.) When the coach said "GO" I took off like a bat outta hell, and after the first lap I thought..YUP.. this is gonna suck, alright. I HATE time trials. If someone were to tell me to go run two miles..I'd say EASY! But there''s something about being timed and running round and round a track that gets to me. Every lap was a struggle. The first mile was 7:15. Too fast. There is NO WAY I can keep up this pace. I was running with Melissa's friend Mary Jane for most of the run and she was FAST. The last mile was a blur of pain and puke (Almost) but I kept sayin to myself.."One more..then we'll talk" So I would run one more lap..get it done, and I would tell myself "One more.." again. FINALLY I crossed the finish line in 15:28. And as hard as that was for me tonight, I was happy with it. Mary Jane finished in 15:07 because she started sprinting the last lap, and I couldn't keep up. But I appreciated her pacing me through-out the majority of the run.

The rest of the work-outs will be based on my time till the middle of the summer, then we'll do another 2 mile run to see where we are at. The target race is the Franklin Classic 5k/10k on Labor Day. I might be doing a half marathon on Labor Day in San Jose, though. We shall see. Either way I hope to get my 5k time down to the 22:00 range or better this year. I think I can do it. It'll be fun to try! (Not even) Whew.. I am glad that's over for the week!

Mach Tenn Tri

2007-06-04T16:33:00.001-06:00

Me and Winfield..settin' up Transition..I am so "Not in the know" at this moment!

Concerned look on my face as I surveyed the situation...and put my wetsuit on Backwards. Opps. HA!

I'm thinking "Smile..this is the LAST time I'll ever get the chance to!"

Tip-Toeing into the lake.. About to face death

Made it to my bike by the grace of God

SO glad I Finished! Me, Lana, and Michele chillin' with beer and bananas.

I got up at 4:30 and got ready for the 1.5 hour drive to Tullahoma. Winfield was late picking me up. (Winfield is the husband of my friend, Kelli. She is still too chicken to TRI. We're workin' on her) We left around 6:00. We drove in his Jeep and it was COLD cause he had the top off so I covered up with a blanket and turned the heat up full blast. Then it started to rain. Fun stuff.

We got there and set up the transition area, then I found Emmit who took all the photos for me, and I saw various other people I knew including Patrick, Michelle, and Lana. I was so happy to see my fellow bloggers!!

The Swim portion was living HELL! I was grossly under prepared. THe wet suit prevented me from reaching like I am used to, and my shoulders gave out almost immediately. I spent the majority of the 6/10 mile swim on my back praying to God I didn't drown. 30:38 later I dragged myself out of the lake and spent 5:44 in T1 trying to get my act together for the bike leg.

The biking wasn't all that hard, but it wasn't a piece of cake either. (Anything's better than the swim) I rode almost all of it with a guy that played catch me if you can the whole time. I would catch him..pass him..and he'd chase me for awhile. This went back and forth the whole 16 miles. We passed a bunch of Goat farms so I called to the goats every time I passed one. That was the most enjoyable part of the 59:23 ride for me. I was glad to be off the bike.

The the run was actually the easiest for me this time. I never had to walk..not even the hills. But, I had gotten a Microdermabrasion treatment done on the day before...so my face was ON FIRE when I started to sweat. I passed my bike dude early during the run and he never caught me. I did it in 35:29..4 miles. Now that time is a slow 4 miles for me but the swim just about killed me so I am giving myself a break on my run time. I grabbed a cold towel at the finish line and put it on my poor face. Then I ate pizza, bananas, cookies, beans, HoeCakes, and washed it all down with BudLight. I was buzzin' after just ONE! My total time was 2:13:40...which got me 12th out of 13 in my age group. HA!!! I was pissed at first but I am new so now I don't care. Next year I'll be at the top of the list. Next stop....Moon Pie 10 miler on the 16th..then the McMinnville Tri on June 23rd.

JCC Team Magic Tri!

2007-05-28T17:32:00.000-06:00

This is Tammy, me and Wayne. Tammy didn't look this happy after the race. Read on!

This is Michele , Lana, Patrick and Me. There is another girl pictured here I did not know. I think her name is Amy.
This is me coming in for the finish.

Just wanted to give a quick update. I placed 1st in the beginner's category of my age group! I am completely STUNNED by this considering the stress I was feeling over it. And the best part was the swimming! Here are a couple of photos and there are a few more to come! It was GREAT to finally meet Lana and Patrick. I felt like I knew them already, though. I saw David again and we ran together for a little ways for the last mile of the race. The swim was so much easier than I expected it to be. I was comfortable through-out the whole thing.. Then I ran to the transistion area and didn't even bother drying off. I just put on my bike shoes, helmet, and race number and took off. The biking was a whole lot harder than I expected it to be, but it was cool because I could see people's ages on the back of their calf so I picked them off one by one. There were a few steep hills and the finish was downhill.
Back at the trans area I re-racked the bike and put my running shoes on and my sports bra over my speedo. I was so tired at this point and I hadn't practiced any bricks so that first .5 mile was rough. I didn't have an iPod either so I was hurtin'. Once again I focused on picking off my age groupers and passed nearly everyone this way. Then David caught up with me and ran with me for most of the last mile. I saw Christy at the finish line! And my friend Valerie. (Valerie is the one who talked me into this whole thing and she didn't even get to do it due to the race filling up. ) I decided to stick around for the awards ceremony and I am so glad I did! I could not believe it when they said I was first because I felt like I did awful...(But I always feel that way in a race).
Here are my splits: Swim-5:14 Bike-35:47.74 Run-18:35.74
Non of those look impressive me me..but they somehow got my in first place in the beginner category..so I'll take it! The run was especially hard on me due to me not having my iPod/crutch and never practicing bricks. It shows in my time.

Update: I just got an email which said they had tecnical difficulties with the Transition Mats so out Trans times are included in the bike and run times..which means I did better than I thought on those. Whew..I thought I REALLY sucked on the run...But add about 2 or 3 minutes to that. (I was in the transitions FOREVER!)

I saw Tammy (another training partner) at the finish line and she looked like a Mummy. Apparently she had a bad wreck and ended up having a SERIOUS road rash, and they had wrapped her all up. But she's tough because she carried her bike the rest of the way....then ran and finished the race anyway. Lana placed third overall and I think that is awesome! Overall I am very happy with today and I signed up for the Mach Tenn this Saturday. PANIC!!!

Summer..summer..summertime..I just sit back and Unwind.

2007-05-26T19:18:00.000-06:00

School is out! They got out Thursday. On Thursday afternoon there was a cook-out for the kids on our street to celebrate the end of the school year . Connor went and Bailey went to my mother-in-laws to swim cause he "wasn't in the mood" for a cook-out. Then yesterday we spent the day at the pool and we did the same thing today. I am already sporting a decent tan..even with SPF 50 on! I refuse to get burned this year. I discovered I still tan through the sport's block lotions so I am going to use those this year and save my 34 year old skin from further damage. I can already tell it's going to be a long summer and I need to find something to do with the kids while I work. they have camp in a few weeks, then we go to Florida for vacation..but that's about it so I am in a panic over what to do with them.

I have been a total slacker this week in every respect. I went swimming once and ran a few times, but that's it. I have a huge fear of the Tri on Monday morning. AAAAHHH! What was I thinking? I don't know why I am stressed over it. My kids Swim, bike, and run every day in the summer and never give it a second thought. I will try to focus on that and just have fun.

2007-05-23T20:09:00.000-06:00

I went swimming on Monday morning and I walked Monday afternoon. I also went to the gym and lifted weights. Then yesterday I didn't do anything because of some other issues going on so I ran out of time. I skipped swimming today because I was up too late but I went and did a Speed session work-out w/ Tammy (a girl I met at swimming lessons) and it was a good one. We did a ladder workout. 200..400...800...1600...800..400...200, and we sprinted the last 400 and 200 and raced each other. My hips were on fire!!! (She beat me) I even had that wonderful metallic taste develop during the last 200. I was a good work-out and it gave me a hint of what's coming up in just a couple of weeks. I start the summer Speed sessions with Fleet feet and I CANNOT WAIT!! As much as I dread Tuesday nights in the Summer..I also look forward to them. I have a Love/Hate relationship with Speed Sessions. I love the misery if that makes any sense at all. It's a "good hurt". I came home and wolfed down a Subway and cookie and life is good for another day.

2nd in my age group!!

2007-05-19T12:04:00.000-06:00

Here are the results for the Run 4 Kids I did this morning. I placed 2nd out of 41...83 overall!! Woo-Hoo! Bailey (My nine year old) ran it with me, and it was his first 5k. He did it in 30:31. And Connor did the mile run in 8:46. I am so proud of them! I ran it in 25:21 (my Garmin said 25:20) but the girl who beat me REALLY whipped me good with a time of 19:19. Either way..it was a good sized race (479) so I am happy with 2nd place, and I was SHOCKED when they said my name. It has been a goal of mine to place in my age group this year so I guess I can stop running now. HA! And to think I almost didn't go! I haven't been able to sleep any these past few days and when the alarm went off this morning I almost blew the whole thing off. (I was up till 2:00!!) But then I knew Bailey would have been seriously disappointed because he has been training hard for it.(Not really...but he wanted to run it ).so I drug my tired ass outta bed at 6:00 and got motivated. I went in there and woke him up and he shot straight up and got dressed no problem. He was so excited..so that go me more in the mood to run. I am so glad we went! Doug even came to watch us and he was proud of me. Awwww. He NEVER comes to my races. But, I think he came to this one because Bailey was racing for the first time. That's ok....he's almost to his goal weight and he said he'll start running when he gets there so I have a feeling he'll be at more and more of the races in the near future. While I standing in the start line I started talking to David..who I have met before at the Tom King Half through Michele. It was good to see him again and e chatted during the awards ceremony. He placed 3rd in his age group!

I skipped swim practice yesterday morning due to lack of sleep so I went after I got off work and repeated the work-out we did Wednesday morning. I swam a whole hour this time. (well...not non-stop. I would pause here and there) I swam 250 without stopping though, which is a MAJOR accomplishment for me. Stop laughing. I am one of these people who struggles to do a 50 on most days. So I am making improvements! I am feeling more confident about the Tri on May 28th...and I don't dread the pool like I used to. These are all good things.

2007-05-16T19:18:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I went for a run to the gym...lifted weights....then ran back to my house. Then I ran another 3 miles. It was about 5 miles total, and I had to walk a bunch of it. BOOOO! Then this morning I got up @ 4:30 and went to Swim team. YAAAYYY! I swam really well today, but I don't have the stamina yet for the entire 1.5 hours. We move outside after memorial day for the long course and I am NOT looking forward to that. The water is 83 degrees in the indoor pool and it feels like ice to me, so the outdoor pool is going to make me scream. I might not ever get the nerve to get in! After Swim practice I came home and went back to bed for a while till my first client came. Then after work I went and got some fins, paddles, and a swim cap because I have been borrowing these things for other team members. I also got a new Speedo two piece. My other "new" one is already looking worn. Then I went and got an awesome micro-dermabrasion treatment which I traded for dog grooming with a girl who does facial's. (I am a fan of the barter system. I got a massage two weeks ago (90 min) from another girl for grooming her dog, too. )Bliss! My next treatment and massage is in two weeks. All is well in my world today. :) (And, I haven't heard a peep out of my crazy- ass neighbor!)

P.S...if you have a chance..make sure you check out Matt the bike store dude's blog. He has an excellent article on why bikes cost so dang much. Interesting!

Bla

2007-05-14T18:24:00.000-06:00

Just not feelin' it lately. I went Swimming three times last week..but I really haven't done anything since. Well, I went hiking with the Kids Sunday (mother's day) but that's it. I have attempted to run and my legs continue to feel weighed down..which makes me wonder if I should do my annual Run 4 Kids 5k this weekend. I never do well on this race because it's always the first one after the marathon, and I haven't done any speed work-outs so I always bonk when I run it.

Yesterday I got into a heated argument with our neighborhood drunk. She calls and threatens me and my kids every so often. (When she's drunk) My kids were gone ALL DAY yesterday, yet somehow she witnessed them throwing rocks at her dog numerous times and harrassing her. (Somehow they are always supposedly in her yard on the days she's drunk) She's crazy..but she's fair game if she calls me up wasted. She never calls anyone else about their kids. Just mine. (But she has my business magnet on her her fridge..that's my theory) I started off semi-nice to her but by the end of the call there might have been some foul language involved. (That's the red-neck in me) I ended up calling the police this time though, because she said she wished they were dead and they'd be sorry if she saw them out running around again. SCARY!! She has a dog I used to groom for her, and after her drunken phone calls she'll usually call me to book an appointment the next day. Last year I told her I wouldn't groom her dog anymore because she can't threaten to burn my house down one minute and have me groom her dog the next. I feel sorry for her more than anything. It was Mother's Day and her son moved to Washington state a long time ago..and her daughter was killed in an accident 18 years ago...so I know it's got to be hard for her. I do feel kind of bad for calling the cops on her...But still...I can't let her threaten my children...drunk or not. You start messing with my kids or even threaten to and I WILL TAKE YOUR @SS DOWN!!! (Or die tryin")

And that's about it here at the camp!

Still Swimming

2007-05-10T19:42:00.000-06:00

I got up yesterday morning again at 4:45 to swim with the MAster's team and I actually enjoyed it. I "swam" for 1:15...But I couldn't swim the last 15 mins. because I was freezing in the pool and so I got in the hot tub to warm up before hitting the showers. I am going to do it again in the morning which will be 3 swims for me this week! Maybe I will be ready just in time for the Tri on Memorial day. I am thinking about skipping the Mach Tenn because it's only a few days later and there's just no way I'll be ready for open h2o by then. I still haven't decided yet.

I want to wish Patrick and Michele Good Luck on the Half IronMan this weekend. You guys are CRAZY!!!

Swimming...FINALLY!

2007-05-08T13:22:00.000-06:00

Well I did it...I got up at 4:45 and went swimming. And the ONLY reason I actually got up is that I had to pee...but whatever..I got up and I went. I met my friend Tammy there (A girl I met at swim class) and I didn't swim very long..but I am going to try again tomorrow morning with the swim team. They practice for 1.5 hours so maybe I won't wus out with them. Then I went and did the hill training with Christy. If you are from around here..there is a hill off of Franklin road called Lynnwood, and it's almost a mile up with a 9% grade. I thought she would hit me for it..but she ran the WHOLE THING without any breaks! I was impressed. And it was steaming hot outside for even more enjoyment. Then we walked down it and there is another shorter, steeper hill that shoots off to the right that she did 4 repeats on. I really didn't run any of these except for 2 of the repeats because I am supposed to go run 6 miles later this afternoon with another group so I wanted to save my legs. (That's my story and I am sticking to it..ha!)

Yesterday I ran 2 miles and it took me 18:00!!! That's pitiful. BUT..the day before (Sunday) I went biking almost 40 miles with a group so my legs felt like lead! (My first brick...24 hours later!) I know..it doesn't count. But man I am dreading the run after biking. I can't imagine I'll be ready for it in 3 weeks. If my legs were that dead after 24 hours..what are they going to be like immediately after the ride? Jello!!

Run for Cinco de Mayo 5k

2007-05-05T18:29:00.000-06:00

Well...Christy has completed her first 5k! She was shooting for a 35:00 but that last half of it was all upHill so she ended up with a 42:00. She was disappointed but honestly..if I had been trying for a 23:00 I would have probably finished in 27:00. It was a tough course....especially for a new runner. The start line was at the bottom of a hill, and hills continued through-out..then coming back was ALL uphill. And she hasn't done any hill training at all so now we know what to work on starting next week. She said she thought she was going to die..and I reminded her that she will ALWAYS feel that way if she's trying to beat a time so get used to it. It never gets any easier unless you are just running for the fun of it...so it's not a sign of weakness to think you are going to die. That's how it's supposed to feel! Welcome to running! During the run I kept telling her to turn around and look at all the people she was in front of! (A ton!) She ran most of the distance without stopping. In fact, I don't think she took any walk breaks till after mile 2..which was a MAJOR hill. On her shoulder I wrote "My first 5k" with a Sharpie and so people where cheering her on..and lots of people came up to her and said it was their first, too. And, we were right on pace for the first part of it..my leg never cramped. ( I've been having some issues with my left thigh since Saturday....But I ran this at a much slower pace than usual so I was fine.) After the race she was happy because she knew she gave it everything she had..so she did her best. Now she has a time to beat. And she said she's hooked for sure!

There was a huge block-party after the race and it was fun. Lots of free food, margaritas, and beer! So she has her first 5k under her belt. Congratulations Christy!! I am so proud of you!

2007-05-04T06:22:00.000-06:00

On Tuesday I went on the field trip to the AG Fair with Bailey's 3rd grade class. Here is a pic of Bailey and I sitting together on the bus. AWWWW. I kept rubbing his head and mom stuff and he kept swatting me away because his buddies were laughing at him..so that made me do it even more.HA!

Here is a photo of the kids on the bus. Bring back any memories? And if you look closely, you can see someone in green hiding from the camera. THAT'S the "meanie mom". She was fine with everyone else taking pictures..except for me. She would hide. What's that all about? So Numerous times through-out the day I would pretend to snap a photo her way..just to see her sqirm. (I am ALSO in the 3rd grade) HEHE!

Here is a photo a Bailey in front of a combine that cost $250,000.00 in 1993! Can you imagine what it would cost today?
Here is a momma cow , and below is the baby . SO STINKIN' CUTE!
And this a pic of farmer John shearing down a sheep. That was fun to watch.

Later thatt afternoon there was a hot air balloon hovering over my neighborhood. It looked like it would land on our street it got so close!I learned a lot at the Ag fair. It was really interesting. I haven't done much in the way if exercise since the CMM. I walked everyday, but I never went swimming although I did make an attempt. I got up at 4:30 Wednesday morning and couldn't find my suit so I went back to bed. Then yesterday I decided to try to run, and my leg cramped at mile 2..the same was it did at mile 12 Saturday. It stopped me in my tracks yesterday though. Christy has a 5 k tomorrow that I am supposed to be pacing her in. She MAY be pacing me instead!

Ooo..Oooo.. 2:03:50!!!!

2007-04-30T20:05:00.000-06:00

There was some goof with the chip timing and now my results say 2:03:50!!! (My Garmin was closer to the original time) But I'll take it!!!! That's so weird. Also.. I looked up Eddie George's time (the football player) and his is now 2:04:08 ! I wonder what happened. Everyone's is different.

2:04:03

2007-04-29T07:55:00.000-06:00

Country Music Marathon Start

Well..I didn't quite hit the goal, but I gave it every ounce of juice I had so I did my dead-level best and so I am happy with my time. I was going for under two hours this year, and I guess the lack of training this month got the best of me. I was actually right on target for under two but I ran out of steam by around mile 11. Oh well. It was fun and the amount of people running it was unbelievable. Oh...and the weather was PERFECT..no rain!

I woke up at 4:30 to start getting ready. I ate a bowl of oatmeal and drank some sport's drink, then I put on my running gear and waited on Kelli to arrive. She was a few minutes late so we only got to snap a couple of photos.
So then we made plans to meet in Corral 11 because that's where the 2:00 pacer was going to be and Doug and I went to pick up my friend Nathan. He drove in from Memphis to run it with me and it was his first Half Marathon. He parked his truck at the finish line and we picked him up and drove to the Start line. The traffic was insane so Doug took 100 shortcuts through Nashville to get us there. Then we luckily found a place to park and headed to the Porta-Johns. Here's the scene at 6:30! And there's me surveying the area for an alternative. There were 4 other Porta-John areas with the same sized crowd so I was pretty much SOL!
I ended up standing in a shorter line at a permanent restroom at the park, but it still took forever. While I was there, Doug took my stuff to the UPS truck to be delivered to the Finish line, and at 7:00 I heard the gun go off for the start of the race. I managed to get through the bathroom line and get to the start line at 7:10...They let the Corrals out every 1.5 minutes and so it was a while before corral 11 got up to the start. There was a sea of 30,000 people, and I couldn't find Kellie ANYWHERE.! Here is a photo of Nathan and I waiting for the start of our corral.They had this new thing this year called Bones in Motion or BIM. You carry your cell phone with you and the GPS in your phone tracks you and sends text messages to all your friends every 15 or 20 minutes telling them where you are. They could also watch your progress from a computer map, or get emails. I decided to try it and I carried my phone in my jog bra. After we FINALLY started I was running ahead of the pace leader and I spotted Kellie way up ahead so I ran really fast to catch her. Somehow I ended up passing her because I kept running and never saw her. Then she saw me and ran to catch me. YAAAAAYYY!

So the first mile went by fast with us trying to catch each other. The miles actually ticked by pretty well until mile 6. This is where the pace leader passes me and the hills started getting to me, and I took my first gel. I could really tell I was starting to shut down at that point because I had not trained hardly any for the past month..and the runs I DID do were weak. I still managed to keep the pace leader in sight, though...and Kelli and Nathan were behind me. Then this massive hill came into view around 7 miles and I got passed up by Nathan. He asked me how I was (I was walking) and he charged on. This was the last time I saw him.

After the hill we turned and started running past thousands of runners who had not gone though the neighborhood yet. I was psyched to see how many were behind me. I mean it was endless! By the time I reached mile 8..some of those people were just reaching the 4 mile mark. The gel was working and I was feeling better, but then Kellie passed me. This went on back and forth through-out the rest of the race. We'd run together for awhile..then pass each other. But by mile 10 I was REALLY struggling and she had me. The pace leader was completely out of sight by this time, but I kept my eye on Kellie and hoped for the best. I knew I had a 5k to go and I started to panic because I was out of steam , so I took another gel and almost threw it up. My Garmin said 1:31:47, but my pace band said I needed to be at 1:31:13. ok..Not a problem. I will make it up in this mile and be right back on track. Well.. That didn't happen. Mile 11 I was at 1:41:26. I should have been at 1:40:20. DAMN! Ok...re-group and Don't panic. You can still make it. Just really run hard this mile. (With absolutely NOTHING left in the tank!) At Mile 12 the pace band said I should have been at 1:49:27. Garmin time.....1:54:13. At this point tears were starting to stream down my face..The cheerleaders were cheering and moving me along but my legs stopped working. Still...My "Runner's Math" told me I could bust ass and still make it somehow. So I started "sprinting". ( Some people could walk faster than this feeble attempt) It just wasn't registering that I can't run 1.1 miles in less than 6 minutes. It was down hill though..So I'll try.

While I was running my heart out, this spectator jumped out in front of me and I was so focused I ran right over her. Knocked her completely down and kept running. I could her her screaming at me and I was praying she didn't try to catch me because I couldn't run any faster and I would have easily got my ass kicked at that point. With the finish line in sight..and I am sure some UGLY photos..I made a mad dash and crossed over to safety. I looked down at my Garmin and it said 2:04:05. At first I was disappointed..but looking back I gave it my best so I am happy with it. My chip time ended up being 2:04:03. ...and 2:12:58 was LAST YEAR'S time so I beat it!! Nathan finished in 2:03:34, and Kellie in 2:01:18. None of us got under Two. Eddie George (former NFL Titan's running back) did it in 2:02:56! He said it was a lot more difficult than he thought it was going to be, and he was going to do the Full next year but he has changed his mind. HeHe! Nathan has now caught the Marathon bug, though...and he wants to try the Full next year. You go, Nathan! Been there..done that..and I'll be waiting for you at the finish with my Half medal. I can't fathom another Full Marathon.

After the race I went to eat Mexican Food with Nathan and then I went home and took a nap. Later, I met Nathan downtown and we went to the Sara Evans concert which was free for the runners, but we left early because I was exhausted and really sore, and he wanted to go eat the entire Shoney's buffet so he took me to my car and I was home and in bed by 10:00. I am pretty sore today so I went for a walk and I have been eating and eating and eating. The post-race depression has started to set in as well because the anticpation is over..it's done..and I have to wait till next year to do it again.

Pre-Race UpDate

2007-04-26T18:50:00.000-06:00

My Anxiety level is so high right now I am bitchy and sick. Why do I get this way? For dinner tonight I am having Spaghetti with Whole wheat pasta, and I have been eating junk all day in an attempt to store some fuel in the tank for Saturday. I went to the Expo today to get my race packet and it was a ZOO. I am so glad I did it today instead of tomorrow. It's suppose to Rain on Saturday. (How fun will that be?) I usually avoid running in the rain, so I guess I'll pay for that lack of mental training. I need to get some Body Glide tomorrow just in case...because my new jog bra will probably make me bleed in the rain after about 10 miles. (SCREAM!!!!!)

Christy's Kickin'@ss!

2007-04-25T21:25:00.000-06:00

Christy and I did another training run today to get her ready for her 5k next weekend. She's shooting for a 35 min run. Today's run was 36:30! Woo-Hoo! Go Christy!!! My first 5k AFTER training was a 38:00 so she's whoopin' my butt as far as a newbie goes. She ran the first 1.5 miles without stopping and only walked a couple of times after the turn-around. I KNOW she can run a 35 or better next weekend. I put on my trail shoes and ran with her on the side of the road because I am trying to save my legs for this weekend's Half marathon.

I am so keyed up about this weekend. It's all I can think about. I don't know why because other runs don't do this to me..but this one gets me all bent out of shape every year. I am feeling strong (FINALLY) and I think I can hit it right under Two hours if I play my cards right. I have a new running skirt that is too cute to run it in, and a matching tank of course...with a straight-jacket of a jog bra to wear underneath to ruin the cuteness of it all..but whachagonnado? Kelly's wearing the same thing so we'll look like we are running together in pictures. She got on the JumboTron last year at the concert because of what she was wearing. (SchoolGirl outfit similar to the photo in the margin) We all wore those for the marathon, too..but I was too far behind to make it on the screen. BOOOO! (I didn't look quite that slutty for the marathon. I vamped it up more for the Party Run) I will post pics after we hook up Saturday morning. I CANNOT WAIT till this weekend!

Back at it!

2007-04-24T20:27:00.000-06:00

Ok..I have tweaked the diet a bit, and I am back at 124 today. I am thinking I must've lost a lot of water or something. I have eaten extra carbs for the past few days and I feel better.

Yesterday I rode my Trek beside Christy and paced her through a 5k work-out. I didn't run because I am saving up for this weekend .(Country Music Marathon...I am SOOOO not ready for it due to recent illness. Oh well...Suit up and Show up..That's the best I can do at this point) I warmed her up for a 1/2 mile..then I made her do sprints at .10 mile intervals. She got down to a 6:45 pace at one point! Then I would let her walk for a while, then sprint another one. She probably sprinted 5 times full effort, then she ran the last mile solid. It was a good work-out for her and we finished in 40 Minutes. She wants to do the 5k in 35 so I am introducing some speed work-outs to try and knock off a few minutes next Saturday (Cinco de Mayo) I think we may have started the speed seesions a little late in the game, but maybe we'll see a difference. Who knows.

Today I lifted weights and went swimming for the first time in a month. I am kinda back at square one with the swimming, unfortantly. Next week I plan to join the Master's swim team for a few months to get my swim fitness level up. I have two Tri's in the next month so I gotta get on it.

Then tonight I went to Connor's baseball game. This was the 6th game and they are undefeated!! Connor's plays the catcher position and he does a good job at it. He's hitting and scoring well this year, too. But the Mom of the Year award goes to me once again because I looked behind me on the other field to see what was going on..and what did I see?? Bailey's team playing baseball. Where was Bailey? At my mother-in-law's house. Yes...His game was tonight at the very same time Connor's was....one field over. Could I be more of a ditz? And to top it off..the "Meanie Mom" was there glaring at me from across the field. This woman has been on a team of my kids every year(Her boys are the same age as mine) and she has this superiority complex like you wouldn't believe. She talks to everyone but me..and always has a snide remark directed my way if she does talk to me. Just a lovely person. Her kids go to school with mine, too so she's always the "room mom" or whatever. Love her to pieces.

The Diet that works TOO well!

2007-04-22T19:37:00.000-06:00

Ok..The new eating plan need some tweaking. I went from 128 two weeks ago to 119 today, and I wasn't trying to lose weight. I look like an anorexic which is my worse nightmare. I am weak, too. There are carbs..lots...but they don't "Stick" if that makes sense. Nothing is really stored. This works great if you are not an endurance runner and you are trying to lose weight. But yesterday I went for a run and Bonked" (You were right Allez). This could be fixed if I eat more pasta and take some Gu's..but I haven't done that this week and it was a very difficult run. Nothing left in the storage tank after 2 miles. This will not work for me. On the other hand, my husband has lost 9 pounds this week and looks better already. His face is even thinner. Our metabolisms are so supercharged it's crazy. I am not going to post a before pic of me because I look grotesquely skinny. My abs show. Big woop. It's what I wanted but now I think I prefer me with about 8 or 9 extra pounds. This week I am going to eat alot of rich foods and try to store up some fuel for the race this weekend. Today I went for a run after drinking some Gaterade and eating peanut butter crackers and I felt decent.

Moral of the story..If you want to look lean and mean in a short amount of time, this diet is a sure shot. If you are already thin ...don't do it. You'll waste away. I am gaining it back hopefully this week because I seriously want to cry when I look in the mirror.

WOW!!

2007-04-19T15:11:00.000-06:00

Today I ran with Christy. We started off at Granny White Park and did 4 miles in 45 minutes...which is excellent for her considering it takes her that long to run 3 miles when she's on her own. Then after that we came back to my house and she got on my Trek and followed me while I ran my 5 k course. We left at 3:35 and returned at 3:58. So that's a 23 something. (I didn't have my Garmin on.... just going by the clock in my car so I don't know how many seconds) I am VERY excited about this because I haven't been able to run well in WEEKS and I haven't had a 5 k time like that since Feburary. I don't know if it's the new clean eating plan I am on, or the super-extra long rest break I took, or a combination of both. I know Christy made a difference because she never stops when I keep pushing her, and I couldn't stop if she doesn't stop...so I really pushed it today. THANK-YOU Christy!!!!!!

FOOD UpDATE: I did Really well today, and I ate my weight in Food..yet I was always hungry and ready for it. I won't bore you with the detail of every meal, but dinner was good enough to talk about. We had broiled Mahi Mahi which I marinated in a bunch of spices and lemon juice, asparagus (this was marinated in Balsamic dressing..which did have a touch of sugar in it, but it was far down on the list of ingredients so I went for it) and Mango salsa. OMG the Salsa was SO good. I got these recipes from the fish department at Harris Teeter because the Tuna recipe in the book was going to be too expensive. Still stuck to the diet though. The whole menu was delicious and I feel better after eating this way. I have been worried about carbs but I think there are PLENTY. Just not from anything sugery or processed. Healthy Carbs. If I find I am not getting enough..I'll do a Gu or something during my runs, but so far so good. I know I am going to have some whole wheat pasta before the marathon, and I am making my spaghetti sauce instead of the jarred stuff..(Full of sugar). That and a Gu should get me through the half no problem. I'll honestly let you know how my runs go on this eating plan so we can all decide if it works for endurance runners. I'll be the Guinea Pig. Still trying to get the nerve up for Before and After shots.

Latest work-outs and new Food

2007-04-17T17:39:00.000-06:00

Yesterday Christy came over and ran three miles while I was finishing up a dog. Then we loaded up the bikes and went to Crockett Park for a bike ride. This was the first time in 12 years that she has been on a bike. I let her ride my Trek,....which is s mountain/Comfort type of bike, and I rode my road bike. We went slow and did about 7 miles. No biggie, but fun and different for her. Then we walked to the gym and lifted weights.

Today I managed a 6 mile run/walk and it was HELL! I am STILL not feeling 100% but I covered the distance. I walked a lot then some chick ran past me..so I ran right behind her letting her pace me. It was good because her pace was slower than my usual pace, so I managed to run farther than I have been able to for the past couple of weeks. I'd say I did 2 miles without having to stop on that interval. Then she turned off and I immediately started running too fast again and walked. I'll be glad when I can run again. There HAS to be an end to this madness. But, at least I'm back at the gym and running.

The eating plan Is going really good, except it's SOOOO much food. I mean, seriously..there's no way I can eat that much. I have managed to eat 3 times already today, and dinner will be soon..then a bedtime snack, so I only skipped one of the meals today. (I ate 6 yesterday) The pork chops I made tonight are so spicy it set me on fire when I tasted it...live and learn. I know Bailey and Doug will eat them but there is no way Connor will and I am having doubts about me. I also made Pico de Gallo and sweet potatoes. For breakfast I had scrambled egg whites with cherry tomatoes, and multigrain toast with honey. Then for a snack I had cottage cheese on top of 1/2 apple and red grapes, with a glass of Vanilla soy milk. YUM. Then I also had some almonds and spinich salad with lemon juice. That's Alot of food for me. Doug has lost 2.5 pounds since yesterday from eating like this. I am SO glad because he seriously needs to lose some weight. He works out 5 times a week, but he looks like someone who sits on the couch all day eating ice cream. It's his diet. I don't want to lose, just flush out the gunk. I hate the jiggly stuff when I run so I think that will be gone in a few weeks.

Making a Come-Back

2007-04-14T10:36:00.000-06:00

Just when I thought the end was near...I'm feeling better. ABOUT TIME! Yesterday I worked out with Christy...sort of. I did half a Tae Bo tape..she did the whole thing, but half-way through it we ran a mile. That was all I had to give but she came back in and finished the Tae Bo work-out. Then today I got up and ran to the gym (Still gasping, but not as bad) lifted weights, then ran home. I walked some but I still did better than I have done lately, so I know I am finally on the mend. This gives me hope that I might be ready for the Half Marathon coming up in 2 weeks. (My previous post said 9 days...I don't know where I got that number.)

I have started a new eating plan called "Eat Clean" by Tosca Reno. It's basically eating foods in their purest form and eat 6 times a day, etc. I'll be healthier if I eat this way, and be naturally lean as a by-product. I also got her other book...."The Butt Book". I have no ass to speak of and I really want one, so maybe this will help. I'd like to look like this......

Yes... I know...keep dreamin'. But this is my goal by summer time. Maybe I should post some Before's so I can prove any progress made. (I don't think I have the guts)..HA!

F'n Bleep!!!!

2007-04-12T12:56:00.000-06:00

From a runner's perspective...I just went on the most pathetic excuse for a run in the history of runs. What the HELL??? Is it STILL too much to ask my body to do? It's been 10 days since I got sick..and my mind is ready..but when it asked my body to perform...it just...couldn't. I am so frustrated right now it could kick through a wall. I have a half marathon in 9 days, and I literally couldn't run from one mailbox to the next today. I have never felt so weighed down during a run..like I was trying to carry a 250 lb man on my back. Am I going to have to walk this HALF?? My lungs WILL NOT fill up with enough air, my feet won't lift from the ground....I am coughing like a pack a day smoker...and my head is pounding so loud I can hear it. Should I even be trying to run through that? Is that my body's way of telling me I will drop dead if I keep on pushing it? Is this a mental barrier I can run through..or a physical one that's going to need a few more days..if not weeks to get past. How can a few days of sickness destroy my fitness level the way it apparently has?

I took a WALK

2007-04-11T07:43:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I forced myself off the couch and took a walk. It was nice. I ran a tiny bit because I forgot something in my car while I was at a golf lesson...so I ran to my car to get it and I still can't breathe and I have zero energy. It's getting ridiculous. So yesterday afternoon after the lesson I was getting stir-crazy and walked. I went 3 miles...did the last mile with the kids and the goat, and went to bed at 9:00 pm. That's also unheard of for me. My usual bedtime is around midnight, but I was exhausted by 8:30. I am thinking I will do a 2:30 half-marathon on the 28th IF I am lucky. I was shooting for under 2 this year. Maybe I needed the rest. It's been a LONG rest break though, and I am definitely worried about my performance for the CMM.

About the Golf...I promised Doug last year I would learn to play because we never do anything together, so I took a few lessons and then it started getting cold. So this year we have joined the country club and there is a ladies group that plays every Wednesday. I went to a clinic yesterday and worked on some putting and driving, and then next Wednesday I go for another lesson while the rest of the group plays. I think I will take quite a few lessons before I actually have the guts to go play a round with them. They do nine holes then have lunch. There is an 18 hole group but you have to know your stuff to play with them. I am years away from that. I will be taking Wednesdays off for the summer though , so I can work on my game. Wish me luck!

Poodle Before and after

2007-04-08T08:57:00.000-06:00

Before

After Since I have been too sick to do ANYTHING this week, I'll show another Yard Monster I did on Monday. ( Before the Flu struck and took EVERYBODY in my family down.) That' s all I have to say for the week. The marathon is in a couple of weeks and I am not ready. Still sick, still can't breathe, and we have all had it. Doug has it right now and he's sicker than I have ever seen him in 11 years..yet he's still in denial. Ha! He considers it a sign of weakness to act sick, so he puts up a front. He's been laying on the couch half-dead for 3 days, but as long as he says he's fine, he's not "sick". Hopefully I'll have some work-out related posts starting next week, because this week has been a total loss in training. It was cold anyway. It actually snowed Friday. Crazy.

The Flu

2007-04-05T05:19:00.000-06:00

I haven't done crap this week. I came down with the flu Tuesday, and I haven't left the room. I finally got up this morning at 5:30 because my back hurt too much to stay in bed any longer. This is the 2nd time in 3 weeks I have been bed bound. (I had vertigo in Florida REALLY bad 3 weeks ago). Bailey had a 103 F temp on Friday and was sick all weekend, then I came down with it...although my fever hasn't exceeded 101 f. Then Connor came home from school early yesterday with it. His fever was 102 f. It feels like I have been hit by a truck. All my joints hurt, sore throat, fever, coughing, chills. A few days ago I weighed 128 lbs and I weighed this morning and I am 122 lbs. I think this is because of the buckets of sweat I have produced over the past few days. In the 7 years I have been grooming dogs, I have never had to call clients and cancel on them. I had to yesterday morning. On Tuesday Christy was working at my place so she did a lot of the dogs for me.

Also, my running partner, Jessika, has a stress fracture in her ankle. She did the 20 mile training run Saturday and it started bothering her at mile 10, but she ran through it because she's tough like that...but as the day went on, it got worse. She went to an orthopedic doctor (who is also into running) yesterday, and the x-rays confirmed it's broken. This sucks because her parents were flying in from Boston to see her run the Country Music Marathon, but she won't be running again for at least 6 weeks. She's so strong on her training runs, too. You'd never know she just ran 18 or 20 miles. I guess her ankle knew, though. I had a stress fracture up in my foot back in 2004. I started training for Chicago right after the country music and my foot just couldn't take it anymore. CRACK! Couldn't run for 8 weeks after that. MAybe we just aren't supposed to run that kinda of distance. I think after this half marathon in 3 weeks, I might not run like this anymore. Maybe stick with speedier races like 5 or 10k's. Do more Tri's so at least I am forced to cross train. Or take up biking and race. My poor body is worn out from all this distance running. I am supposed to do the 10 mile moon pie run in June, but I am having doubts about it. I just don't enjoy the distance running anymore.

So much for the Bike ride....

2007-03-31T10:20:00.000-06:00

This is my bike. Gunnar Roadie

My plan for the day was to go do a 25 or 50 mile bike tour/ride at Warner Park. So last night I got everything out and ready, and I thought I would tinker with my pedals (Shimano) for a few minutes so I could clip in. I have had trouble with them and I always kind thought that maybe it was just me and I didn't know the "trick" to getting into the pedals. Every ride I have been on was a hassle due to the stupid things..(or stupid me ). But now they weren't working AT ALL! I would push my foot in, but it wouldn't "stick" no matter what I did or hard hard I pushed. It would just pop right back out. I didn't know if it was the cleat or the pedal, and I tried everything last night to figure it out with no luck. I never got to go to the bike shop because I crammed two weeks worth of dogs into my shop this week and I never got off work in time to do it. But, I promised Patrick I would be there, so I got up this morning and headed out.
When I got there I explained the situation to some clueless volunteer, and that didn't get me anywhere. I read on the web site there was going to be some bike people there to help with issues, and she had no idea what I was talking about. Then I found some nice couple who tinkered with it for a few minutes. The girl put my cleats on and tried to clip in, and she couldn't get it to stick either. She then put HER cleats on and tried my bike and couldn't get hers to stick. So it wasn't ME after all! It was my pedals.

I ended up leaving and driving to my bike store PISSED because I missed the ride. Matt at the bike store (Allanti) put me on the trainer and messed around with the pedals awhile and then decided to change the pedals out and he did this for FREE! Thank-you Matt! (By the way...don't miss Matt's Blog. It's one of the best I have come across if you're wanting to know ANYTHING about biking.) Here are my new pedals. (SpeedPlay)

After I got the new pedals on, I clipped in and out with ease. I took it straight to the park and had a joyous, hassle free 17 mile ride. Bliss!

This is my pollinated car (Mazda 3) which I just washed and it's already covered again, and these are the new wheels my husband got me for my birthday! I love my car.

Latest Work-outs.

2007-03-30T05:55:00.000-06:00

I've been SLAMMED busy at work so I haven't posted much..but on Wednesday I ran 6.36 miles. Then yesterday I actually went to the pool because I told Chad I would in his comments section. Nothing like someone to be accountable to. I did try to talk myself out of it, but then I knew I would be posting work-outs today and I didn't want to say I never swam. The pool work-out was probably my best solo work-out yet. I swam 1000 yards! I did various drills during the swim and even timed myself on a 250. (Still not telling what my time was..haha).

Then this morning I set my alarm for 4:40 am and pushed snooze a couple of times. I was up by 5:05 and at Kelli's house by 5:18. We started running at 5:30 and did 6 miles. It feels really good to know that's over with for the day, and I think I will do better at work today since I ran. Jessika and I are going to try and start meeting Kelli at the gym in the mornings and just get it done. I will come up with ANY excuse not to go to the gym because I have so much to do in the afternoons with the kids, and by the time I am done with all of that, I just wanna crash. So I am going to make an effort to get in the bed at night around 10:00 so I can get up. It's nice to have that done already and I don't have to stress over it anymore during the day. I still might try to go to the gym today, but at least the running is done.

I signed up for my first Tri a couple of days ago and I am nervous and excited. It's an easy one so I think I am ready, but it's the unknown that's freaking me out.

I think I may be doing a 25 mile bike ride tomorrow morning. I'll keep you posted. I gotta get the kids off to school now so I'll check back later!

Yard Monsters...Tis the season!

2007-03-27T14:24:00.000-06:00

Before (Click on photo)

After (Click on Photo)This poor dog had not been groomed since THANKSGIVING!! And she even brought in a cute photo of what she wanted him to look like. I call these dogs "Road Kill" make-overs because it looks like someone scraped the dog off the road and brought it to me. I also call them "Yard Monsters". This time of the year they all start showing up for the yearly groom and the owner usually brings a photo of a show dog and makes demands on me as if I had a magic wand or something. She told me she couldn't comb or brush him because he bites. Well great. No problem...I'll just bust out my wand and he'll be good as new! BWAHAHAHAHA! Needless to say, they all get shaved down. And because I was dodging teeth through-out the entire groom, it still looks like crap, but anything is an improvement!

And Zeke just wanted to say Hello and beg for help before I gave him his bath. He gets a bath once a week and he's always pissed about it. Click on his photo to see the terror in his eyes! Goats hate getting wet. He's better than a lot of the dogs I do though. Sweet Zeke! I love you!!

Tonight I have Speed Sessions and we are suppose to do another 5k time trial and I am DREADING it! This is the last winter session. I'll update you later on how I do!

UpDate: I skipped Speed Sessions and ran to the gym to meet Jessika and lift weights instead. As much as I was dreading the speed work-out, it wouldn't have been any good anyway. We lifted the heck outta some weights, though!

Florida Pics (Click to enlarge)

2007-03-25T18:36:00.000-06:00

Me and Doug . I had been up 36 HOURS at this point!

The BeachThe Condo..We're on the 18th floor.

A photo Bailey took of a shovel

Bailey and Connor (They were fighting just 5 seconds before this was taken..then went right back to fighting after I snapped it)

This is Bill the Beach Dude. "Hi Bill!" I met him back in 2001 when he was just a 19 year old baby. (He's 26 now) I cut my thumb and he bandaged it for me. Awwww. We've been buds ever since. I go to the condo 3 times a year and I can always count on seeing Bill. So girls..if your ever in Destin and stay at Hidden Dunes, ask for Bill. He's a cutie and he's single.

We had fun on the trip, but for me it was one thing after another breaking down. That Half marathon was hard on me I guess. I tend to grind my teeth when I run so the area where I have had a root canal TWICE hurt so much I couldn't eat and my whole head throbbed in pain for most of the week. I took a TON of advil and soma. Then after that cleared up I got hit with the worst case of vertigo I have ever experienced in my life. I've always had issues with it since I got hit by a car back in 1995. I got thrown 40 feet and landed in a ditch on my head. I had neck injuries and other various things, but the vertigo started shortly after that. The last time it hit me hard was 3 years ago and they gave me a bunch of steroid shots in my jaw and neck and it went away. (not totally, but I could walk in a straight line and not be sick).

I woke up Friday morning and got out of bed, the room was spinning like a Merry-Go-Round, and I hit a wall and hit the floor. I don't know why it decided to come back, but DANG! I literally could not lift my head and inch off the pillow without throwing up. And even when I was laying bedsore still, I had the bed spins workin'. Imagine spinning in circles 50 times then trying to walk. It was like that. Then to add to all the fun.... I got a migrane. I loaded up on Somas and Advil again, and slept ALL DAY! I took more every four hours, and slept. It was the fastest day of my life, and a completely wasted day at the beach.

Saturday morning I refused to give in to it and Doug wanted to play golf so I bit the bullet and went down to the beach. It wasn't as bad as Friday, but it was still pretty bad. I figured I could be dizzy on the beach as well as I could be in the condo, and the kids were going crazy. We got down there at 9:00 am and didn't get back up till almost 1:00. I wore Spf 50 and still got burned! Oh well. The sand made it extra hard to walk and when I would look out at the horizon, I had to keep my head totally straight because if I moved my eyes around, the horizon would go vertical and I would get all wobbly. (I am sure people just thought I was drunk. The only beer I had last week was on Tuesday for my birthday. I'm 34!!)

I managed to get a few runs in, and I took my Trek this time and rode the heck out of it. It was really cool to bike at the beach and see the sights I normally wouldn't bother with in a car. My Trek is a beast of a bike,...Big...heavy... but I can ride the thing all day in perfect harmony. I didn't take my Gunnar (road bike) because I didn't want to clip in and out of those pedals with all the traffic and college kids and endless stopping. The Trek was much better suited for the beach.

We got back yesterday afternoon, and while I was gone I had my shop repainted, so everything was in my kitchen and my house smelled like a dog. It was a disaster Zone! I nearly had a stoke when I walked into my house. And to top it off I had not gone to bed the night before due to insomnia. I think that was from all the Soma I had been on all week and then I didn't take any Saturday night, so by the time I went to bed last night, I had been up 39 hours! I just said "screw it...I'll deal with it in the morning." And this morning at 7:00 we put all that junk BACK into my beautiful new groom shop to get it out of the kitchen. Tomorrow we are going to de-clutter the shop. I had no idea that much crap was even in there. Where did it come from??

I STILL went to my last Swim class though. I swam about 800 yards total, and was timed on 250 of them. (I'm not EVEN gonna say what the time was. So very sad. Ha!) Then the swim class went to eat Mexican. I posted a pic of me and Doug at he Mexican place at the top. I thought I would be dead, but I actually had more energy last night after swimming than I did earlier in the day.

I am glad Spring Broke is over. ( I have no money left in my "Fun Fund"...it was worth it though. I had fun in spite of my ailments. ) I'm going back again in July or August so I better start saving my pennies now!

Happy Excuse To Drink Beer Day!!!

2007-03-17T11:56:00.000-06:00

Mile 11 at the Tom King Half

I did a new P.R.! 2:03:11..Woo hoo! I was shooting for a 2:10 because I never do all that great on this one. Jessika ran it with me, and I even ran with Michele some! It was awesome to finally meet her..and I felt like I had known her forever. VERY nice person! Jessika and I drank beer as we ran because a bunch of the water stops served it (Being St.Patrick's Day and all) That was fun. Click on Race Reports and I'll give you a full scoop and more photos of the race.

After the race I went to the hospital to visit my mom and she was being discharged. She was doing MUCH better so now I can leave for Florida tonight and not worry as much.

We are leaving around midnight and will be back next Saturday. I am going to try and get some good runs in while I'm there, but my legs are already getting tight from today's race, so we'll see how it goes.

Later!!!!

Change of Plans...

2007-03-16T16:15:00.000-06:00

As it turns out..I WILL be doing the Tom king Half tomorrow because we decided not to leave until tomorrow night or Sunday. My mom was put into the hospital last night for chest pains. So far it's turned out to be nothing serious, but they are keeping her in to make sure and I am sticking around just in case. I figured if I'm here anyway and I've already signed up, I might as well do it. I'll update my race report tomorrow after the race.

2007-03-15T06:26:00.000-06:00

My Treadmill

I skipped Speed Sessions Tuesday night because I didn't get off work till late, and by the time I took a shower and got dressed to go, it was too late due to traffic. I sat down and became part of the couch for about an hour and watched Discovery channel, and then some commercial came on about running. All of a sudden I felt the need to run. I mean, I was already dressed for it, and it was a running day....so off I went. I ran on my "treadmill" which is a 6 mile loop here in Brentwood. Start at my house then go to Franklin Road, then turn on Maryland Way then Granny white, then Murray Lane, then back onto Franklin Road. I have ran this route so many times I do it in my sleep. Also in this photo is my neighborhood 5k route. (The 10k surrounds the 5k) Anytime I am dreaming about running..it's usually in this area.

Yesterday Christy came and after work (around 11:30) we went to Percy Warner Park. This time I had her do the Red Trail. I'm evil. It's a 4.5 mile mixture of beauty and hell. We have been doing the White Trail, but I was thinking we needed more of a challenge so we went for it. Not a good time for Christy. I think she hates me now and I have a feeling she won't train with me again. (I'm sorry Christy...we'll wait a while before we do that one again.) I do the Red Trail every week in the spring and summer, but I forget how difficult it can be because I am used to it.

Hopefully today I'll make it to the pool. I went and bought new shampoo to get the green tint out of my hair yesterday, and I plan to use it after I swim this afternoon. I will be missing Sunday's workout because I am leaving tomorrow night for Florida and I won't be back till next Saturday. I'm going to miss you guys! (I guess I'll have to read an actual book in my spare time.) See ya!

Update: Not going to make it to the pool....again! But, I did use the shampoo and my hair is no longer green and it feels like silk. The shampoo completely stripped it and the conditioner re-moisturized it. It's a little flat..but the "straw" look and feel is gone. Woo-Hoo! It's called Malibu 2000 if you wanna try it. I got it at Beauty Express.

My ADHD life!

2007-03-12T20:10:00.000-06:00

Today was one of those days where I was constantly reminded of things I told people I would help them do, or go to, etc. I had dogs show up all day I had forgotten to write in my book...then Valerie called to remind me about the cook-out. "What cook-out?? I said..."oh, you know...the cook-out at the farm where you are supposed to show everyone how to paint the memorial rocks. I told you last week about it." Valerie said. "What??? uh...ok. I guess I'll be there. What time?" I say..

Then a few hours later Connor gets off the bus without Bailey. (I was literally about to leave for the cook-out. The kids were coming with me ) Connor then tells me Bailey had Cinderella auditions and I would have to pick him up at school when he calls. What?? First of all Bailey has NEVER liked being on stage. Secondly, I never knew about these auditions. I have mentioned in a previous posts that I am ALWAYS the last to know, and I'm starting to think I DO hear about things, but they just go right through my head and don't stick . Apparently, I need some meds for ADHD. I ended up getting my mother-in-law to pick up Bailey. Connor is just as bad about it. Above is a potato leprechaun he told me about on the way to the cook-out. It was due tomorrow. We got home at 8:15 and made it, but I had to scramble and find a potato first. We didn't have any. STRESS!!!

Update on Sunday's Swim lessons:....Hard. And I almost missed them. We set the clocks in our room forward, but didn't in the rest of the house...so all day we were an hour behind. We (Me, Doug, Bailey, and Connor) started the day at waffle house, and couldn't figure out what all the church people were doing there so early, then we went to Target and it was packed. Then we came home and got Willow and Zeke and spent all day at the park. We were still an hour behind because we had not set the car clocks forward either. So then we went to Chili Burrito and got some take-out, and I got home and had just sat down to take a bite of my fish taco when the phone rang. It was Val asking me if i was at the rec center yet. It looked up at the microwave clock and it was only 3:20. Why would I be there? Class isn't till 4:30. Then it hit me. OMG....IT'S 4:20!!!!! I immediately hung up on Val without any explanation and made a mad dash around the house trying to get ready, then flew to the rec center. Somehow I actually got there in time.

ATTACK of Spring

2007-03-10T21:06:00.000-06:00

well...Spring is in the air..literally. This morning I ran 9.26 miles with Jessika, and I pretty much sneezed and snotted the entire time. It was frickin' misery at it's finest. I wanted to do 12 or 13, but we were doing a 3 mile loop through downtown Nashville, and I kept running past my car. We had 1 loop to go, I saw my car again, and that was it for me. I couldn't breathe, and I was blind from the teary eyes. ....So I called it quits. Then I went to Wal-mart and cleared the shelves in the pharmacy of the allergy products. Eyedrops, cough drops, throat spray, sudaphed, benedryl, etc. I took a Benedryl, went to my nephews' birthday party, and sat through that in a fog. When I got home I slept 4 hours! This was around 2:45. Luckily Doug came home from his golf tournament around 3:30 so the house had not burned down or anything, and he said the Boys were in the sun room playing a video game. Whew!

Here is a photo of Leelan . He is my brother's boy, and it was his birthday and he turned 2. There is also a picture of Bailey and Connor with Leelan at the top. Leelan is so stinkin' cute.

Christy

2007-03-10T08:04:00.000-06:00

This is my friend Christy. I met her when I was filling in at a kennel called "The Farm". She works there as their bather but she decided she wanted to learn to groom so I am teaching her. She comes to my place twice a week and brings a dog to do or does one of mine if I have enough booked. Her husband woke up up one morning about 6 weeks ago and decided he was tired of being married. (When they got married she was 19 and he was 18 and they were still in high school!! They are 23 and 24 now, and they have a 2 year old son.) So, instead of getting crazy- upset and going nuts, she is going to have a sweeter revenge. She asked me to train her. The first thing I did was put her on the "Body for Life" program AND the "Couch to 5k" program, and she has signed up to run her first 5k on May 5th which will be the Cinco de Mayo 5k. She has also signed up to volunteer at a water booth for the Country Music Marathon which is held the weekend before the 5k. I told her this would be a great opportunity to see all the different types of people who actually run, and it would just be fun and a chance to get out of the house and do something totally different. I hope it will be inspiring. She hasn't needed too much inspiration though, because she has been on the ball and in 6 weeks she has already lost 25l bs on the scale. (Who knows how much body fat is gone.) She gets a little discouraged about the scale not moving faster, but she is lifting weights so it won't move as fast as she thinks it should. However.... I think 25 lbs is a lot of weight to lose in that short amount of time, and she eats 6 times a day so I know it's not due to starvation.

Last night we went out shopping to try on girl clothes, (she always dresses like a guy) and we did make-up (she has NEVER worn make-up before...she looked totally different and she really liked it.). Then we went to Jonathan's (a bar) and had a couple of drinks. While we were there we met these men who where in town and one of them was the producer for "Trading Spaces". It was cool to hear all the ins and outs of that show. And Christy got hit on by a few guys and that got her ego pumped.... someone even bought her a drink. (No one bought me one.) We got home around 12:00 and snapped the photo above with photo booth to forever be preserved on my blog.

The Latest....

2007-03-08T19:17:00.000-06:00

So Tuesday night I did the speed sessions, which I mentioned in the previous post. Then on Wednesday, I went to the gym and swam the same work-out we did Sunday night at swimming lessons....only mysteriously those lasted over an hour and Wednesday's work-out only lasted 30 minutes. Hmmmmm. Maybe it was because I did the whole thing start to finish without listening to instruction between laps, or maybe I just skipped a bunch of stuff. I don't know. I haven't lifted weights all week like a lazy bum, and there is NO excuse because I have weights here at the house. I just couldn't get motivated to do it. Oh well. Then today, Jessika and I met at Percy Warner to do the 5.8 loop. I cheated the entire time by cutting through the woods here and there to get back in front of her because SHE WAS KILLING ME ! She has become so strong and I would get so far behind I would just cut through and meet her and she'd be like "What the hell?" ....but so what? I wasn't trying to prove anything today other than I'm a wimp. We did it in 55:00 minutes. I cut through a trail at the very end which knocks off almost a half mile, and she STILL met me at the end at the same time. Weird. Maybe SHE cheated, too??

I am bummed because two of the runs I have planned for the next couple of weeks are not going to happen for me. The St. Patricks Day 5k in Manchester is this Saturday, but everyone is bailing out because of family coming into town or whatever. Then the dreaded Tom King Half is next Saturday but I am going to have to back out because we are leaving Friday night for Destin, Florida. Doug likes to drug us all and drive all night and get there early Saturday morning so He can go play golf all day. So basically, he'll be up for 2 days straight. Who does that? This is the reason he drug's me. I am a FREAK when he drives. He scares me to death so he knows if I'm asleep I can't bitch. When we get there, me and the kids will hang on the beach all day while Doug golfs, then he'll fall into bed around 6 pm and I won't see him again till Sunday night because he'll get up before we do and play golf AGAIN. We go to the beach 2 or 3 times a year and this is ALWAYS the routine. He golfs, I babysit. One year we went without the kids (They were in school already. It was right before Hurricane Ivan..we had to leave a day early) and that was fun because I stayed drunk on the beach all day with the locals having pre-hurricane parties while he played golf. Can't do that with the kids, though. This year I hope to take the bikes so me and the kids can all ride around some during the day. That would be fun. And another good thing is they are old enough to play basketball with the other kids now, and I don't have to stand there in one place watching. I can just say "Go play Basketball". What I would really love is to be friends with a group of girls that like to take "GirlTrips". I mean we all PLAN to do stuff all of the time, but it never happens. I want it to actually happen for a change. A GirlTrip is just what I need. I don't even really know what we would do when we got there,(Maybe run a 5k? Gotta have an excuse to go..right?) but I still think it would be fun.

Speed Sessions Week..Uh...I can't remember.

2007-03-06T20:35:00.000-06:00

I think week 7, but I could be wrong. I do know it was super extra hard this week, though. I haven' t been for 2 weeks because of rain, and a school program my son was in, so tonight I went and it kicked my butt in a hurry. Coach Mark based my work-out on my 22:59 minute 5k I did two weeks ago. (I knew I would regret that time) We did a tempo run, and we all had to run a total of 40 minutes with no rest breaks. My personal work-out was 2:00 minute laps. I ended up doing 5.1 miles in all over 39:23 minutes. (I stopped there because I was back at my starting point on the track. ) But, I had to stop and take a 2:00 minute rest break after the Garmin beeped the 5k point. It just messed with me when I heard it so I started walking. My 5k time tonight was around 23:40, which is fine with me considering I knew I still had another 16 or so minutes left to run. And considering that my 5k goal FOR THE YEAR was only 24:30, I am kicking butt. However, I have yet to post a time like that on the road, and I will get my chance this weekend at the Irish Day 5k. If I post a 24:30 there...I will be THRILLED!

On my way home I was CRAVING a beer, and even though I said just a post ago that I am cutting back, I stopped at the gas station to get a Mich Ultra. They were out. BOOOOOO. I guess that's good because I would have totally drank it and LOVED every drop. Something about beer after a run is hard to resist. I have found that I really like Mich Ultra. I usually go for a calorie packed brew and end up feeling kinda sick, but Mich Ultra doesn't do that. It taste really good, I stated drinking it only recently because a good friend of mine in Tullahoma drinks it. Good stuff. I have eaten healthy all day today and yesterday so I haven't caved much on that. (Pat on the back). My "digestities"(as my youngest son calls them) are ticked off at the moment, but my healthy food friends assure me this is a "passing phase". ha..haha...hahaha.. (Sorry)

EWWWWWWW

2007-03-06T16:50:00.000-06:00

You have GOT to check this out. OMG it's so disgusting.

http://runtrails.blogspot.com/2007/03/making-your-own-toenail-necklace.html

Make sure you click on the photo to enlarge it. YES!....

Swimming Lessons Week 2

2007-03-04T21:01:00.000-06:00

Another tough work-out. We got right to it tonight, and swam continuously for the whole 1.5 hours. Well, I mean we'd take breaks for instructions between laps, but it was pretty much non-stop tonight. We did something fun called Touch and Pull where you have a kick board and alternate the hand holding it and the arm pulling you through the water. Then we did it with-out the kick board. I started out with the fins on but for some reason those things KILL my feet so I always take them off. It makes the work-out a bizillion times harder, though. I need to figure something out with the fins. The other thing I can't stand is water going into my ears as I turn my head up for a breath. I am going to look for ear plugs. It freaks me out so much I stop swimming in the middle of a lap. My ears have always been touchy so if I am going to continue with this, I'll have to do plugs. (I hate those too, though...but I hate the water even more) The next thing I will have to deal with is my fear of an open water swim. It's too cold to practice in the lake, but I will definitely have to work on it. Swimming has always been the reason I have never attempted to do a Tri. I'm just no good and I have a general fear of drowning. It doesn't stop me from swimming, but it's there. I can imagine it will be worse in a lake. There's fish and the water is brown. Pollution. Gross. Just seems like an infection waiting to happen...or maybe I'm just a big baby...but whatever.

After the work-out I came home and PIGGED OUT on Mexican food. I have got to improve my diet. I went to the store tonight and bought a ton of healthy stuff so I won't have an excuse when I'm starving to just eat whatever. I bought some good fruits and veges..mangos, strawberries, squash, oranges, apples, bananas, spinach...and I got some Kashi, and some snack bars, and some Met Rex so I can make some smoothies. I am going to cut back on my beer consumption..(Lord help me!), and I am going to try my hardest to stay away from the remaining Girl Scout Cookies we have left. I couldn't button my jeans earlier today so I know the cookies are part of the problem. Wish me luck!

Zeke..Pick-up artist extraordinaire

2007-03-03T15:32:00.000-06:00

I was having another "One of those days" I have been famous for the past couple of weeks, so I decided to go for a hike and take Zeke. We did the 2.5 mile white trail and although it was really muddy, it was a great day. The Boys had no interest in going for whatever reason so I left them at home, and when we arrived the place was PACKED. There were these two guys unloading their mountain bikes and they liked Zeke. We chit chatted a little and off I went to the trail. During my hike every time we came up on some people I would get stopped. (Everyone loves a goat)

The wind got a little crazy during my hike and every so often sticks would fall from the trees, which would spook Zeke and he'd start bucking and kicking along the trail. Too cute. But then towards the end of the hike, this HUGE wind blew through and we really freaked out. Trees started falling over, and large limbs came crashing down. Zeke took off running down the trail...zig zagging and dodging the limbs, and I just crouched down like they teach you at school in the hallways during a tornado..scared outta my mind. I was thinking :If a tree fell in the woods, and no one was around..would anyone hear my screams for help as I lay trapped? Almost as soon as the wind started, it was over. I ran for the rest of the distance because I didn't want to get caught out in that again.

By the time we got out, the guys were back at the truck putting the bikes up. One of them came up and discussed my reasons for goat ownership, the wind, etc for a few minutes, and I was avoiding eye contact because he was cute and I looked like a homeless person.. no make-up, old dirty clothes, probably smelled. As I was putting Zeke in the car he asked me out. I couldn't believe it, and I started laughing. Then he started laughing...it was awkward. I explained that I was married so I'd have to pass. He said he'd never met anyone with a goat before and he thought I was cool so he took a chance. Awwww. Who knew a goat could attract so much attention? I came home and told Doug about it, and he agreed that he couldn't have gotten a good look at me. It HAD to be Zeke. Ha. Thanks, baby. Love Ya. :) I think I'll mention Zeke's abilities to my sister, Amy. She's single and looking, and not having any luck. Maybe a goat is just what she needs.

Bored

2007-03-02T20:46:00.000-06:00

I never went swimming this week, although I had EVERY intention to. I wanted to go yesterday, but they had the pool closed due to the storms...even though it's in indoor pool. Whatever. Then I decided I would go today, but I ended up doing a total of 14 dogs ON MY OWN so I didn't get off work till 5:30. By the time I got off, Doug wanted to go out to eat, so I told him to go ahead with the Boys and I went for a run. I only ran 3.5 miles, but it was fast and it's just what I needed to get out the days frustrations. Doug met me at his mom's because that's where I ran to, and the Boys wanted to spend the night at her house, and Doug is playing poker there tonight with his college buds,(Like he does EVERY Friday night) so I drove his car home. When I walked in the door of the groom shop (In my house) there was water all over the floor, and I can't figure out where it's coming from. I took all the dirty towels from today and dried it up, then lifted weights, and then I took a shower. I decided to start a load of laundry so I went to get the towels and water was all over the floor again! It looks like it's coming from the tub, but I can't figure out why because there's no water running. So where the heck is it coming from??? My pet Pygmy goat..Zeke, sleeps in a crate in the Groom shop at night. Goats hate getting wet so when I was putting him up for the night he stopped dead in his tracks and looked at the floor, made his little goat sound and looked up at me with like "I don't think so" or something for trying to make him walk through it. It was so funny. I had to pick him up and carry him to his crate because there was no way he was getting his hooves wet on purpose. I called Doug and of course he doesn't believe me when I tell him there's a flood, so I guess when he gets home tonight, HE can walk into the mess and HE can clean it up this time, and possibly figure out where it's coming from. All this at 3:00 am! HA! I wish I had taken a picture to post on the blog. I have dried it up again, though. I'll check it once more before I go to bed and if it's back, I'll take one.

So tonight I am here alone, and I don't really know what to do. I have TiVo'd some movies I guess I could watch. That might be fun. I was in Tullahoma last Friday. That was fun. But tonight....I'm so bored. (Sigh)

Spring Fever=13 miles

2007-02-28T15:42:00.000-06:00

I was supposed to go to the gym today to lift and swim, but it was such a beautiful day..there was no way I was gonna do that. So instead I ran 13 miles. I have been stressing over the fact that I have the Tom King half -marathon coming up in a few weeks and I had not done any major mileage so I decided to just go for it today. I am now covered with that nice salty frosting we all love, and I have a pounding headache, but other than that I feel great. I am not sure how long it took, because my Garmin wasn't charged so I didn't have anything to time me, but I'm guessing maybe 2:15. I didn't run it fast because it's the first long run I've done in over a month. It was actually kinda nice just to go the pace I felt like going instead of racing a timer. The sun was out, the wind was blowing, and it was just a PERFECT day to run. The first 6 miles was really easy and I know I did them in under an hour, but the last 7 wasn't as kind. It still wasn't horrible, though. I had to walk some, and that's fine with me because the way I see it if there had been water stops I would have walked through them... so what's the difference? Ok..Shower time. I HAVE to wash this salt off and get some Advil in my system before my head explodes. I need to stretch this time, too. I can already feel my legs getting tight.

Update: Ok now I feel like total frickin' crap. What kinda idiot goes and runs 13 miles without training? The most I have done in a WHILE is 10, and that was 4 or 5 weeks ago. Hello??? I've managed to eat everything we have in the house, and later I am going to be scouring the streets for some pills. (Ha) I'll be fine tomorrow (I hope?) but right now I am suffering! Note to self.....Please don't do that AGAIN!

1st grade School Production

2007-02-27T20:27:00.000-06:00

Uncle Sam

Connor, Barrett, and Grahm

Daddy, Connor, and Mommy

Tonight we went to Connor's President's Day program at his school. It was so cute and he had a speaking part at the very beginning. He was Uncle Sam. He would have taken over the entire production if they had allowed it. He's one of those people that HAS to be center stage at all times. My other son is the exact opposite. He HATES doing those little school productions. But, I have a feeling Connor will do Drama Club and Choir and anything else he can do to be on the stage as he gets older. They did a quick P.T.O. meeting beforehand (Yawn) then the kids sang some songs and talked about the different presidents, then it was over and we went to the classrooms to visit, and now we're home.

I took Connor to a doctor's appointment today, then I dropped him off at school and me and Christy went trail running. We did the 2.5 mile White trail and then ran some on the 2 mile loop. We ended up doing around 4 miles in all. I am really proud of Christy because she is taking this running thing seriously. Her plan is to be ready for the Cinco de Mayo 5k (on May 5th ..Duh) and I have no doubt she'll be ready for it. She wants to be able to run the whole thing without stopping, and I told her if she sticks with the training plan, I will buy her a new pair of running shoes before the event. I'll even do it with her. I have a Half-marathon the week before so I won't be ready to run a 5 k the next weekend anyway. It'll be fun. I ran the Party run with Cora last summer and it was one of the funnest runs I did because I could relax and enjoy it for a change. No pressure to beat my time or any of that craziness, or sickness I usually experience before a race. I think I will even dress up. I LOVE dressing up for races. Anyway, today has been a much better day. Tomorrow the plan is to hit the gym around 1:15, then swim around 2:00. I am really going to try to get all my swims in during the week because I want to do well in the swim class I have paid 40 bucks to be a part of. It's a waste of cash if I don't do my homework.

Help me out of this hole!

2007-02-26T15:08:00.000-06:00

I'm not sure what's up with me lately, but I have done nothing but sleep for the past 3 days! I went swimming last night, but I slept most of the day yesterday, I slept all day Saturday, and today was a repeat. I think I may be dealing with a bit of depression for reasons I won't explain, but this sleeping crap has gotta stop. There's NO WAY I could be tired enough to sleep for days. I go to bed at night around 12:00, and get up at 7:00. That's decent.

Today I had one dog, and I went back to bed. My friend Christy called and forced me out of my room. I am usually the one pumping her up and motivating her, but today she was the "Tow Truck". She talked me into going for a run and lifting..which I did...but only half-ass. I do feel better though. Usually when I am feeling stressed or depressed, I immediately start exercising because I know it helps. I used to take prozac but I found running worked a lot better, with the added benefits of what running does for the body in general. Depression runs rampant in my family so I always have to keep in in check because it can take over if I am not careful. It has before, and I vowed never to let that happen again...no matter what. I had it bad after the birth of my second son. It was Post Partum depression and it took a couple of YEARS to shake. It got better with the prozac, but I found I didn't even need it anymore when I started training for the Country Music Marathon in October of 2003. So, I stopped taking it in March of 2004 and I have been fine. I hope this sleeping stuff isn't a sign of depression creeping back in. Whatever it is..I'll find a way to shake it off. Life is too good for me to be unhappy for any reason!

Swimming Lessons week 1

2007-02-25T18:34:00.000-06:00

Aquatics Center

Coach Dee

Tonight was the first night for the new triathlon swimming lessons being held at the Williamson County Rec Center. There were a ton of people there, and the ones I knew were Valerie, Mary Thom, Wayne, and Martin. Dee was the coach and Ashley assisted. Ashley also teaches on Monday and Wednesday nights, but I can't make those so I was thrilled to learn about the one opening up on Sunday nights. We are going to meet for 5 weeks, then practice on our own during the week (She said 2 or 3 swims) then we should be ready for a tri or a master's swim team. I am SOOOOO glad I have been swimming some for the past 2 months because I would have been pitiful. It was a difficult work-out for me, but there were some people there who had not been swimming since they were kids so I know it had to be rough for them. We started off by doing 100 yards freestyle so we could get warmed up and she could see how we looked. There were 5 or 6 to a lane so it was chaos at first, but we got the hang of it. Then we put fins on and grabbed a kickboard, and swam 100 yards on our side hanging on to the board with our face out of the water. Then the other side. Then we did the same thing on both sides with our face IN the water and taking a breath every 3 secs. We had to make sure our legs were STRAIGHT and we were kicking from the hips. That was HARD. The fins started to hurt my feet so I took them off, and it slowed me down but I didn't care. Then we had to tread water with our hands out of the water, and once again kick from the hips. WOW!! That was REALLY HARD! I couldn't do it but she said if I had fins on it would be easier, so i put them back on and sure enough...it was. I am going to try and swim again on Wednesday and Friday and do the same work-out if possible. I don't think I can do it tomorrow since I swam tonight, but I might. The best part for me was seeing Valerie. I haven't seen her in months so I hope we can start running and hanging out again. I've missed her. She moved to Nolensville last summer, and it's really not that far from Brentwood, but it's a pain to to go running like we use to because the drive kinda sucks. We both work weird random schedules so that makes it even harder, AND she home schools her youngest boy on Tuesday and Thursday...which are my running days. But, we talked tonight and we are going to make more of an effort to see each other. :) What an awesome work-out, though! I can't wait till next week!

Had a "Ball"

2007-02-25T08:44:00.000-06:00

Me and JessikaWelby, Jessika, Emmit, and Me

Yesterday..after my 3.5 hour coma, I was cleaning out Zeke's crate (My goat) and the phone rang. This was around 5:15pm. It was Jessika and she said she had an extra ticket to a formal event and she wanted me to go and be at her house by 6:00. I laughed and said NO WAY because if you could have seen me, you'd understand. When I went and told Doug about it, he questioned why I wouldn't go, so that made me question it too. I hardly ever go to any dress up events, so I said WHY NOT and I tossed up my hair, threw on a dress, put some make-up on, and headed out the door in less than 20 minutes. Now my make-up only consisted of some mascara, eyeliner, and lip gloss.... and this is painfully obvious in the photos, but whatcha gonna do? It was a record for me to get ready to go anywhere, and that's all the time I had by the time I made my mind up to go. Standing next to Jessika, I probably looked like a troll. (Oh well...Who cares? ANYONE who stands next to her looks like a troll. HA!) Luckily, I had washed my hair that morning because it smelled like smoke from the night before. ( I went to Tullahoma..lots of smokers down there..hehe) I really didn't have time to fix it though, so it had the "I meant to make it messy" look working.

My "date" for the night was Jessika's room-mate, Welby. I have met her numerous times but we had never really hung out. She was a lot of fun. We didn't get to sit with Emmit or Jessika, but we sat with a really fun group of people who were already pretty lit which made it even better. This one guy in particular, Cameron, had me laughing so hard I think I even snorted during one of the speeches. (Who brought me??) I LOVE comical people, but they tend to get me into trouble. Hey... I wasn't the only one amused by his antics, and the whole table was pretty rowdy so I don't think anyone noticed the tears of laughter running down my face. I think anytime you are really supposed to be prim and proper, (like at weddings or church or any dress up event) and something is funny, it makes it even worse. At least for me.

There was a Silent Auction going on, too. I wanted the cabin getaway and bid on it, but this woman out-bid me, then she hovered around the table until the time ran out, and I couldn't go back and re-bid. Welby bid on some acid peels and Botox, and she won hers. She told me I could do the Botox. Woo-Hoo! I need it on my forehead. After the auction, we left because we were both getting tired. (How could that be after the nap I had earlier?? ) Jessika and Emmit drove separately which is good because they usually don't come home till the sun comes up. It was fun and I am glad I got to go. I would have missed out.

Stress

2007-02-24T12:08:00.000-06:00

Here's the latest...On Wednesday I was supposed to go to the gym and lift, but I didn't get off work till time for the kids to get home from school, so we went to the pool instead. I swam for a half hour but I tried to swim the whole time. On Sunday night I am starting a Triathlon swimming class that I am REALLY looking forward to. It's at the Williamson County Rec center and I think it will help me. Mary Thom, Jessika, and Valerie are going to do it as well.

On Thursday I ran the 5.8 loop at Percy Warner Park. It wasn't a good run because I could barely lift my feet from the ground. My leg muscles really hurt in the pool the day before from running the 5k on the track, and I think I was tired on Thursday because of the swim on Wednesday.

On Friday I ran another 6 miles with Kelli, and this time it was much easier. We set out to just do 4, but we decided to keep going and it felt fine. Well, up until the last mile, then I started slacking. I haven't lifted weights since Monday so I hope to do that at some point today. The Boys had basketball games today, and apparently they were supposed to go to Baseball evals today as well but I didn't find that out till I was at the game. The last email I got said they were tomorrow afternoon, but I guess they changed them because they thought it would get rained out. It's pouring down rain today, though!! Bailey has already missed his, but Connor can still go to his after his game. Unfortunately Bailey needed to go to his because his age group starts pitching this year, (instead of machine pitching) and he's a catcher so they needed to see what he could do as far as catching. Maybe they'll have a make-up day. I would like to think I am not the ONLY parent who didn't get the memo, but that would be typical Laurie fashion to be the last to know.(Sigh). It's just one more thing to add to my list of reasons I have been voted the "Crappy, Disorganized Mother of the Year Award". I wish that once...just once, I could be the hero and know what the hell I am doing as a parent.

Update: Connor went to his evals and Doug saw a previous coach there and he told him there would be a make-up day because apparently I am NOT the only one who didn't know about today. When I checked the email, it had been sent early this morning, but I didn't check it till later. Oh well. It was a good day for a nap anyway. Me and Bailey decided to take one and I slept 3 .5 HOURS!! (I guess I was tired. )We'll call this my "Rest Day".

22:59!!!

2007-02-20T14:45:00.000-06:00

I was supposed to do Speed Sessions tonight at the track and do a 5k time trial, but it's supposed to rain so Mary Thom and I went to the Vanderbilt track and did it. I used the virtual trainer on the Garmin and set it for 26:00 because I thought there was no way I would do better than that on a boring track. Well....I beat the heck out of it. 22:59 was the final time! I am absolutely thrilled, and I almost wonder if it's right. It has to be right, though. The distance says 3.11 and it stopped timing me at that and a message came up that said "You Win!" Mary Thom did a 24.30 which is a P.R. for her as well. I called everybody I know and gushed about this P.R. I just set. It feels so good to see the times dropping..I HAVE to tell people. Nobody cares, but oh well. Then I went by Fleet feet to show them the Garmin and log my time so they could give it to the coach. Since they know me at least they were impressed. I don't think I could do a time like that on the road...yet...because the road isn't flat like a track, but still...I'll take it!

UpDate: As it turns out it DIDN'T rain at all. Not a drop! But Doug and I have been married 8 YEARS today!!!!!so we went to Stoney River to celebrate so it all worked out anyway. I can't believe it's been 8 years.( We have been together 11) We have been through hell and high water and we are still here. Happy Anniversary, Doug! I Love You!!

Finished Product!

2007-02-19T20:33:00.000-06:00

I am excited. There is a bidding war going on for the house we put up for sale last week. It turned out to be beautiful. The inside is even better than the outside! (Click on the photos for a larger, more detailed look.) My husband is a real estate agent/property manager/remodeling business owner and this is our latest project. It started out as a run-down "crack house". We gutted the whole thing and it's pretty much brand new now. We put a huge deck on the back, and rebuilt the storage shed. On the inside every single thing is new. It was pitiful but now it's chic. I LOVE it and I would live there in a heartbeat if I were single. It's got three bedrooms, 2 baths, and the master bath has a garden tub. Hardwood floors through-out, and stainless steel appliances., tiled floors in the kitchen and bathrooms. There's a fireplace, new driveway, and landscaping! It's a little cottage! I have like a million pics and I wish I could post them all. One bad thing, though...It had a window unit air-conditioner and floor heaters, so we put a central unit in. Someone STOLE the thing off the side of the house less than a week later!!!!! Can you believe that? I have never heard of anyone stealing an air conditioner off of a house before. We ended up having to pay for another one out of pocket because of some insurance B>S> which we are still trying to get straightened out, but the new one has concrete post surrounding it and it is chained to the house somehow so if they take this one, half the house will go with it. I don't see how they could get this one though. There are now lights all over the outside at night and it would be a helluva job anyway with the posts in the way.

Run it off!

2007-02-18T17:16:00.000-06:00

After the previous post...Mary Thom called and wanted to go for a run, so I jumped on it. We met in the BelMont area and ran about 6 miles. I way overdressed and was burning hot, (even though it was only 36F)and I am still sick so my breathing was off, but I was glad to be out running on this beautiful sunny day. Everybody and their dog was out running as well, so it was great! I didn't stress over anything. We were going to do 10 miles but opted out because we have a 5k time trail Tues night at Speed sessions. (I am NOT looking forward to this. It's supposed to rain again and I just don't think I can go out there and run like that on a track in the rain. Already made that mistake last week) I hope he'll just take my time from the Preds Run last weekend. We'll see. This day had FLOWN by though. I think I'll go rent a movie tonight and curl up with the kids and some popcorn. They are out of school tomorrow for some reason so they can stay up later. On a sad note...the Girl Scout Cookies arrived shortly after my run. Cookies are one of my biggest downfalls. Oh well, at least I ran today.

UPDATE: We rented the animated film"Open Season". Pretty good....funny, but very Shrek-like with the bear and the buck taking the place of Shrek and Donkey.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!VENTING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2007-02-18T11:03:00.000-06:00

I am going to stew over this while I write, then "Let it go"....
I have been grooming this Shih tzu for about 2 years now. This man is a member at my church. He is VERY hard to deal with wants the dog in and out the door in an unreasonable amount of time, and is just a big whiner when I can't meet his demands. I bend over backwards for him and I always have, but it's never good enough. This past time I groomed the dog (A month ago) he made the appointment THE DAY BEFORE so I was already booked, but I fit him in anyway. His dog is a full-coated monster that is ALWAYS matted to the bone so he take almost 2 hours on a good day. Knowing this, he should realize I can't get the dog done in the half hour he thinks I should, especially considering the fact that I had 7 other dogs booked that day. But I took him in anyway because I want to try...once again... to make him happy. He called over and over wondering why the dog wasn't finished yet, and why I told him to bring it so early if I couldn't do it right then. The truth is I have no idea how my day will go so if the dog is there waiting, I can get to it when it is convenient for ME if he wants me to squeeze him in. If he makes an appointment and wants me to start right then, then he needs to book in advance and be there at 8:00am. Otherwise, be there at 9:00 so I can get my husband to bathe the dog and I'll get to it when I can. Well, he was ticked when he picked him up, and unhappy about the de-matting charge I added, and I didn't hear from him again till today at church. I asked him where he had been and he said he wasn't happy with the time it takes me to do his dog, and the price I charge so he's going somewhere else. He also said I have too many dogs there. Now I have worked at other shops, and I can tell you most dogs are there ALL Frickin' DAY! Where is he taking him that he is in and out? And considering the shape that dog's hair is always in, it takes an eternity no matter what!! I try to be off work everyday by 1:00 or 2:00, and he has NEVER been the last dog out the door, (He's usually the first) How much faster can I be? And as far as pricing goes, if someone is grooming him cheaper than me then they are screwing themselves, and will get a gut full after about the 3rd groom and the price will go up. Mark my words! He bitches that it's "Just a bath" Bla Bla Bla..but I can groom THREE DOGS in the time it take to bathe and brush that damn dog, so if that's the case I am actually UNDERCHARGING him. And, most shops have 30 or 40 dogs there at a time! I do on average 7 or 8 a day....(sometimes more, but I'm on the lazy side so that's usually it) Does he think he's the ONLY person in Brentwood with a dog that needs grooming? And if I am so bad, then why do I even have other dogs there to begin with? I must be doing something right to be so booked. And do I not deserve to make some money...or should I just be grooming a couple of dogs a day just for the "fun of it" . What is this guy thinking with that comment? It just makes no sense to me either way. Screw it. He'd die if he took a tour of the holding area of most shops. There are dogs piled to the ceiling! The truth is I've always wished he would just take the dog somewhere else, but I have to admit I am insulted that my best wasn't good enough. What an ASS!!!!!!Ok....I have vented. Deep breath...Let it go :)

So Very sick

2007-02-16T16:47:00.001-06:00

As it turns out...there's A REASON I don't do Cold and Wet. I ran the Speed sessions Tuesday night in the rain...and I even knew better, but I didn't think I would REALLY get sick. Well, Wednesday morning I woke up with a BAD cold. It serves me right. I am so stuffed up, I can't do anything but sneeze and blow my nose. My throat hurts, and I am exhausted. I can't breathe at night so I have to sleep with my head propped up, and I have throat spray by the bed to calm the coughing. It's awful. The bad part is I have had to work during all of it. No calling in sick for me. I was supposed to go lift and swim on Wednesday...didn't happen...run Percy Warner yesterday...didn't happen...But I did get to the gym today for my microfit test. I figured I'd do horrible on the cardio since I can't breathe but I scored excellent on everything surprisingly. I weighed 131lbs today and my body fat is 15.8%. Not too shabby. My weight range is 128-133 depending on the time of the month, etc. I have been as low as 119lbs last year, but that is way to thin for me. I don't worry a whole lot about my weight anyway...I usually go on how my clothes are fitting.

AFter I did the Fit Test I went and did upper body with the weights. I am changing the way I lift and I am going to try the Body For Life program as far as the weight training goes. I don't think I need to do the diet because there are not enough carbs which I need for the running I do, but I definatly think I need to improve my eating habits. I don't think I eat enough, and when I do eat, it's all the wrong stuff. I usually wait till I am starving, then I cram junk down. It's bad. So..I am going to try to choose better food, and eat 6 times a day like the book says. Just more carbs than the book calls for. I'll never be able to run a half marathon or train for it with that tiny amount of carbs.

Cold AND Wet

2007-02-13T22:53:00.000-06:00

As it turns out...I guess I WILL run when it's raining and cold. I said in the previous post that I wouldn't. Well, tonight was speed sessions and it poured down. It was raining on and off all night, but the temp was around 57 which is decent if it rains. Tolerable. So....I decided to go ahead. When I got there, the rain had stopped so I went to the track and started my warm-up, and of course it started back...HARD! By the time I made it back around I was soaked to the bone. I dressed in layers even though it was hot because I figured I could take stuff off if I got wet., but it didn't take long to be drenched all way through. I went a stood under an overhang and thought about leaving. It was ridiculous to try and run in that kind of rain, but then it let up again so I headed back to the track. By this time the wind was starting to pick up and I was getting cold. By the time I made my mind up to leave, I saw Mary Thom, and I figured if she's man enough to be there, then I'll stay and be a man, too. As it turns out, we were only 2 of seven men who were crazy enough to show up. Jeff was also there, but Melissa was smart and stayed home.

So, the work-out tonight was a one mile warm-up, and 4 mile repeats with a minute rest between them. The first miles was good, but felt really super fast. We only had to run it in 8:40, but I swear it felt like an all out sprint. I don't know if it was the cold, or if I was just tired, but it was hard. It did it, though. The second mile was really bad. I started getting the chills and I had to walk about 100 meters because I started feeling like I might throw-up. I caught up with Mary Thom again though and got really hot for some reason, so I stripped down to the last layer. The third mile was decent, although the rain started back and was really pouring hard. Since I had stripped down, I got so cold my teeth were chattering and I was ready to quit. After the third lap, I got confused and started walking because I thought we had completed the mile, but Mary Thom informed me we had one lap left. I dug in and ran it. I was seriously done after that one, but somehow I managed to complete one more mile. I am not sure where I found the strength or courage to do it because the rain and wind was BAD. I could feel the temp dropping with every cold, miserable lap, and we started talking to each other to get through it. Stuff like.."Well, if we had been out in the middle of nowhere running and it started raining like this...we'd just be stuck and have to run and finish. This is no different". Mind games to get us through. We finished it though. I am so proud of myself. The trip home was rough, and I got in the shower and ran all the hot water out trying to get warm, then I had hot tea..then I ate like a pig. But...I DID IT!!! Thank-You Mary Thom. I would have just left if you hadn't been there!

Lastest work-outs

2007-02-13T15:13:00.001-06:00

I guess I need to update my work-outs since I haven't done so in the past few days. Sunday I ran with Jessika and Kelli. I was really tired and my feet and hip were hurting so it wasn't a good run. Since Jessika is training to do the Full marathon this year, she needed to do 14 miles, so I went with her for 8 or 9 of them. I lost count and my Garmin wasn't charged so I am not sure exactly how far, but too far for me that day in my opinion. Kelli went 5 miles due to time limits while her kids played with my kids. I would have been more than happy to call it quits with her but I went another 3or 4 with Jessika. By the time we came back to the house again, the Garmin was charged enough for her to take it and finish her run.

Then Monday I went to the gym and lifted, and after that I swam. I have to say my swimming has improved a ton over the past couple of weeks. I had one really BAD day, and after that it's been good. I swam more laps than I have been...ever, and it's starting to feel natural instead of that drowning motion I have been doing.

I am supposed to go to speed sessions tonight, and I really want to take Bailey with me, but it looks like it will be raining so I am not sure we'll go. I don't mind being cold, and I don't mind being wet, but I can't deal with both at the same time. Hopefully it will stop long enough to sneak in a run. Bailey wants to try and do a 5k in the next few months so I promised him I would help him train. He'll probably whip my butt when he runs it!

i would love to spin tonight but my right shoe refuses to clip into the pedal. I need to take it to the bike store but I am not sure if it's the pedal or the shoe and to take the bike I would need to get the bike rack out of the attic. I'm feeling lazy though. I guess I could just take the pedals off and putt them on the bike there to see what the deal is. Hmmmm...I'll call them and see what they think.

Today's Masterpiece...Old English Sheepdog

2007-02-12T16:26:00.000-06:00

This is the before photo..He's had a bath and is all brushed out, but desperately needs a haircut!

This is the After photo...He can see!!!!

I took about 2 inches off. Elisa (my fellow dog groomer)and I did two of them this way, and ganged up on them to get the job done faster! It used to take 3 hours each start to finish, but they had a bath today and they only took and hour and fifteen minutes each to complete. I felt the need to show one of them off, and I will try and post others from now on as I take photos of them. if u click on the photos, a larger more detailed pic will come up:) Don't do that on any pictures of me though! HA!

Jessika spanks me in the Preds 5k

2007-02-11T09:43:00.000-06:00

Here's Jessika...Laughing at me...Taunting me!

Yup!! I am a little P.O.'d. Not at her! Just my inability to stay strong in a race. Here's the story...

I have been doing everything I thought I was supposed to do to get ready for this Preds run which was held yesterday. I hit a P.R. (25:36)last week while doing a speed session,so I wanted to at least beat it and try for a 25:30. I ran Sunday and I did speed sessions on Tuesday, but that's all the running I did all week because I tend to do better on races if I taper a little. I know that sounds silly for a 5 k, but it usually works for me. I tried to eat right all week..... with the exception of the 600 cookies I think I ate. I went to the gym and swam and lifted on Thursday. Meanwhile, Jessika ran endless miles because she is training for the marathon. (Full) She ate whatever, and went out every night.

Yesterday morning she showed up for the Preds run and wasn't even sure she wanted to run it! She didn't even think she wanted to get a chip because she didn't care about her time...she just wanted to finish. All I can say is "WHATEVER!" We ran together for about the first mile, then she took off and was GONE! I couldn't keep up with her no matter what. I don't know where it came from! She has never been competitive like that when we run. It was crazy. I would totally expect that from Melissa (Who didn't show for this one.BOOOO), but Jessika has never acted like she even cared. My chip time...25:52. Jessika's chip time...25:08!!!OMG!!!

So..It just makes me question...Does training even matter?. I am so happy for her as far as her time, and she is extra excited because it lit a fire for her next race because now she has a time to beat. But, it sucks for me because that's a big gap I have to try a close next time we race. It seemed so effortless for her, and I thought I was gonna puke!

A Road Bike Trainer in my ATTIC!!!!!!

2007-02-06T14:22:00.000-06:00

OK....ALL WINTER I have been thinking about getting a trainer, talking about getting a trainer...shopped for a trainer, compared priced on trainers, and so on and so on. Well, yesterday my husband over heard me talking with a client about getting a trainer and he informs me we have a brand new one in the attic, and it's been up there for 3 years!!!!!!! WHAT???? He bought it 3 or 4 years ago when he bought his bike, used it once, then put it in the attic because it was in the way. I had absolutely no idea, and I am ticked because I have been stressing over it all winter, when I could have been using it! So last night we got it down and I hooked it up to my poor, lonely road bike and road for about 45 mins. I watched Ren and Stimpy and The Smurfs with the Boys while riding. I can't believe it. I know he has heard me discuss the need for one. What I can't understand is why he just now told me we had one. In fact, he was making fun of me paying off my bike the other day and being sarcastic about me never riding, and I said I couldn't ride in the cold, and I needed to get a trainer so I could ride it. Did he mention we had one? Nope! Not a word. WHY?????

Snow Day!!

2007-02-03T16:22:00.000-06:00

Friday morning we had a snow day. Well, actually we had one yesterday as well, but I have no idea why since it didn't snow...but today we awoke to about an inch! My Great Aunt, Mildred passed away Wednesday night, and I had to go to her funeral Friday, but since we never get snow, I left the kids at my mother-in-law's house to play in it. They didn't really know er that well anyway, and kids pretty much hate funerals, so I was more than happy to leave them. Here is a pic of the Snow Man they built. ( I knitted the scarf as a gift for Mrs. Hester, and the hat is an old Titans hat.) There's also a pic of the bridge in the Hester's back-yard I think is nice. The kids had so much fun playing in the snow. I wish we had snow more often!

Thursday I ran Percy Warner with Jessika. I didn't do a s well this time as I did the week before, but I think it was because of the run I did Tuesday. We did it in 1:04. This isn't a bad time at all, but I had to walk some of the hills and I just didn't have the same energy. I lifted weights and swam on Wednesday, and I feel like I am back at Square one with the drowning...I mean swimming. I couldn't even swim one lap, and I was all over the place with my form. I think it's because I have only been able to do it like once a week lately. I really suck, though.

Saturday I didn't do ANYTHING but sleep. It was one of those days for me. Depressed, tired, and cranky. But Sunday after church I managed to run 6 miles with Mary Thom. I really need to do a long run of about 11-12 miles at some point this weekend, or I am going to get behind on my training. I hate long runs, though. Especially if I have to go alone. The problem is I have 2 basketball games I have to attend on Saturdays, and it makes it hard to hook up with anyone for running because my schedule is all messed up. I have "windows" of opportunity to run, and no one wants to wait on me. I can't blame them. They have a life, too. But this usually means I am on my own, and I have never been good at that when it comes to long runs.

25:36 5k!!!! A new P.R.!!!

2007-01-30T16:41:00.000-06:00

I skipped out on the Speed Sessions this morning because it was so frickin' cold, and I couldn't go tonight because of a school function at Bailey's school, so I went to the park today to do it on my own. I thought the work-out tonight was going to be a 5k time trial. (Although I later found out that's next week. They did the Mile repeats tonight. ) So, I programed my Garmin for a 25:30 in the Virtual Partner mode, but I really didn't think I would even be close this early in the season. The first mile I had the wind behind me (19mph gusts)and I ran a 7:10 mile..after I turned around it's all a blur, but I know I was running into the wind and it was so strong and so cold I was being blown off the path. But somehow I STILL managed to hit the 5k at 25:36! I couldn't believe it. I really think if it had not been for the wind, I would have beat the Garmin, but I wasn't looking for a time like this until March or April. (My best 5k to date was a 25:56 set on Labor Day last year at the Franklin Classic)This says to me that 24:30 will not be an issue this year. In fact, I may even hit a 23 something. Who knows..But that would be AWESOME!!! I have looked at some of the times to place in my age group in some pretty big 5ks and I think I may be able to do it by the fall. (A goal of mine) We shall see!!

I can admit I almost threw up during the last mile and I even stopped and started walking at one point because I was getting sick, but I glanced down at the Garmin and saw I was ahead of my predicted time (26:30) and thought"I can do this!" so that kept me running. On my way home I got a pounding headache and my nose started bleeding which got all over my body armor. OF COURSE I didn't have a tissue ANYWHERE in the car like a dummy..then I sneezed and it went everywhere. Disgusting. I think the cold wind caused the nose bleed...Although it does happen from time to time when I push too hard. It was worth it. I am so pumped right now.

Carmen Electra Strip Tease

2007-01-25T16:54:00.000-06:00

I have purchased some new videos that are alot of fun. Carmen Electra has them and they teach you how to strip plus it's a good work-out. I started them last night and I really enjoyed it, then today I did another one and I could feel it in my legs and butt from doing it the night before so I know it worked. I'm ALWAYS looking for new ways to work-out because I get so bored so fast. This should keep my attention for a little while. Besides, I am "challenged" in the whole coordination department anyway, so maybe after a few weeks of doing these on my "rest "days, I'll be looking hot when I try to dance in heels. HA!

This morning I ran Percy Warner park instead of working and I did the whole (5.8 mile) loop without stopping for the first time ever! I ALWAYS have to walk this because the hills are so crazy long and steep, but today I kept thinking..."Would Melissa walk this hill?" and it kept me from stopping. I did the entire thing in 59:02 according to the Garmin, so I will try and beat that next time. I think the biggest reason I ran so well is I was P.O.'d at some hateful B-word woman who's 4 malti-poos I was supposed to groom. Her appointment was at 9:00 am, and at 9:15 she STILL wasn't there so I called her to see if she was still coming. Well, she couldn't be there until 10:00, but she never even called to let me know. Meanwhile, I had 2 other people call to try to get in today and I could have done them if I had known. I told her I would have to re-book it because I wasn't going to sit and wait. And she went off on me!!! IF she had called and let me know something I MIGHT have waited, but she was so rude and inconsiderate..there was just no way. (later I realized I let over $180.oo float away because of my stubbornness..but I just can't stand people like this so OH WELL!!) I decided to go run instead of wait, and I stewed over it the entire run. I don't know why I let people like that get to me, but it helped with my work-out...so that's good.

Speed Sessions week 2

2007-01-23T21:24:00.000-06:00

Tonight was Speed Sessions again. We did 6x800's at a 4:30 pace, but we consistantly did it in 4:10. I had my iPod this time, so it was much better than last week.(Gotta get off that thing, though) Melissa ran beside me.... I can't hardly run without her in sight because she's the same pace and everything as me. After we did the work-out, she challenged me to a 400...which I gladly did, and she beat my ass in it. I was way ahead of her till the last 100 meters, then I thought my legs were going to explode and she charged past me. Something about that mentally caused me to stop running. I physically could not run another step. She beat me. Just wait till next week, Melissa!!

After Speed Sessions we took off to McDougals to drink some Yazoo and hang out. We got into deep topics about life and parallel universe, etc. It was me, Melissa, Jeff, Martin, Grady, and a guy named Paul that I had not met before. We shared two pitchers of beer and some 2 for 1's and then headed home. I am glad I am off work tomorrow! I definately need to lift at some point in the morning, and possibly do a spin class if I have time. I am getting my hair done tomorrow and that usually takes forever so we'll see. I lifted Sunday with Jessika and swam laps. I really need to swim tomorrow but I won't because of the hair situation.

My oldest son, Bailey has had the Flu since Sunday. He has been so sick it was like a bomb hit him. High fever, achy joints...and so far I haven't felt the least bit sick and neither has Connor. I'm keeping my fingers crossed because there were 10 kids absent from his class on Monday and 8 yesterday due to this flu. I CANNOT be sick. I'm just too busy for that right now.

10 mile long run

2007-01-20T20:21:00.000-06:00

Today I set out to do 9 miles, but I ended up doing 10. I had my Garmin on and Laurie Austin and I did the first 4 miles together. We ran through Deerwood and back, then she stopped at the park where Michael (her husband) was playing with the kids (her son Mark, Bailey and Connor). Then they took the Boys back to my mother-in-laws and I ran an additional 6 miles. It wasn't that bad till the last mile. I had a hard time, and I really should have just done 9 miles today, but there was no way around it with the loop I chose to do, so finished. I will probably repeat the 10 mile next weekend, or even drop back to 9 because I don't want to over-do it.

After that I came home and washed the stink off, then got ready and we all went to ShoGun to eat for Kathy's birthday (Doug's sister) I ate like a pig but that's a good thing considering the run I did earlier. I DO NOT want to get as skinny as I did last year, and I can already see this happening. I just think it looks gross to be anorexic.

Swimming work-out with Jessika

2007-01-17T20:23:00.000-06:00

I went to the ymca with Jessika tonight and she beat up on me in the pool. She's an REALLY good swimmer. She is also certified to teach so she ran me through the wringer, which I desperately need. There is NO WAY I would have swam as much as I did tonight if she had not been there coaxing me on. We also lifted weights and that was good because I actually did all of my work-outs instead of skipping stuff like I usually do. (I loathe lifting weights, but she enjoys it.). I had a lot more energy mostly because she was there so...THANK-YOU Jessika!!!!!

I am really bummed out about the Zoo Run 5k. I just learned that it is SOLD_OUT and 1,200 people signed up for it. I was going to do that one!! This makes me kinda mad, because if I had known there was a limit, I would have signed up a long time ago. BOOOOOO!!!!!!

Speed Sessions Baby!!!!

2007-01-16T19:51:00.000-06:00

Tonight the Fleet Feet Winter Speed Sessions started! Woo-Hoo!! It was SOOOO cold, I thought I was gonna die, but we got through it. There were almost as many people there as the Summer Sessions, which was surprising because they had cancelled the winter ones last week due to no one signing up. There were so many complaints when they canceled that they decided to go ahead with it, and what do ya know..Huge crowd! It was held at CPA (Christ Pres. Academy) at their track where the coach teaches (he's a calculus teacher), and the track wasn't lighted except for one street lamp so we were running in the dark. I couldn't see my Garmin readings at all. I think I can light the Garmin up, but I don't know how yet.

So tonight we did Tempo work-outs, and I think we are going to focus on those for the next 10 weeks. My group (Me, Marion, Mary Thom,Melissa, and Jessika) did 12x400 at 2:15 pace with 15 second rest breaks. we never did hit 2:15 though. Every lap was under 2:00. The problem with that was we were supposed to be shooting for a pace that's 30 seconds slower than our CURRENT 5k times, which we all decided would be in the 26:30 to 27:00 min. range if we would have run a race tonight just coming off the holidays. So basically we ran the laps a little fast, although they felt pretty good.

I am so glad I got it done though. I have a love/hate relationship with Speed Sessions. Let's just say that if it were up to me to run them alone...I wouldn't. It helps to have 75 other people out there as miserable as I am..freezing their butts off and complaining right along with me. This summer we all had a heat stroke..and I guess we'll all have hypothermia for the next couple of months this winter. Yee-Haw! The fun part comes after the work-outs, though. BEER!!!!!! I like to knock a few Yazoos back after running. Quickest buzz in the south. We usually go out afterward and do so...but it didn't happen tonight. All I wanted tonight was a HOT shower, my flannel P.J.'s., and some lotion on my poor chapped face!

Picnic at the Park

2007-01-14T15:33:00.000-06:00

Monkeys

Zeke...King of the Park

Bailey and Connor on the Trail

Connor

Connor, Bailey, Zeke, and Me

Bailey..Mouth full of food.

Today the Boys and I went on a picnic at Warner park, then went on the white trail for a walk. We took the the goat with us for the first time, and he had fun but I think it may have been too much for him because it's a 2.5 mile trail. (He's still a baby) The kids played football and goofed off after we ate, then we hit the trail. I am not used to walking it, so it was really interesting to see all the stuff I usually miss as I go zooming by. We walked in in an hour and 15 mins, and I usually run it in less than 30 minutes. ( Trail running takes longer due to the terrain) There's all kinds of cool stuff, and it seems really far when you walk it. We stopped and took a ton of photos along the way, and the kids did alot of swinging on the massive vines that grow in the woods. I think Connor ran the whole thing. He was ahead the entire walk...run...whatever. Bailey went really slow and picked up around 10,000 rocks, and Zeke just yelled at us the whole time because he was tired. I hope to get him used to it so he can start carrying water for us. It was a really good day.

This is Doug

2007-01-13T19:34:00.000-06:00

This is my hottie husband, Doug. We've been married almost 8 years...going on 30.ha! I have tried numerous times to put it on the side where the other photos of the family are located, but it won't work, so I had to put it here. Hey Baby!!!

Workin' It!

2007-01-13T13:41:00.000-06:00

I am exhausted! Yesterday morning, I went to the gym and lifted weights, then I did a spin class for 45 mins. It was so hard. Before it was even over, I decided to try running immediately after spinning to try and get a feel for what a triathlon will be like. It didn't have my iPod, which is a first because I NEVER run without that. (I have to break the iPod habit anyway because they are not allowed during tri's) So off I went. My legs felt like they were filled with sand, and I could barely lift them off the pavement. WOW! I really had no idea how hard running would be coming off a bike. I think I will do that from now on when I spin. I ran about a mile and turned around and came back and man...I was spent. After that I proceeded to eat my weight in food when I returned home. I had fish tacos left over from the Cheesecake Factory the night before, and beans and rice, then I had a sandwich from Arby's an hour later, with a vanilla milkshake, then later that night I ate about 15 cookies and a bag of m&m's. oooh, and a had two cheese sticks and a bowl of cereal.

I ended up needing all of that food for the run I did this morning, though. I have a new Garmin Forerunner 305 which I tried out for the first time today at Percy Warner park. I ran the Blvd. and the 5.8 mile loop with Mary Thom and Wayne (The couple in the photo) and it was SOOOOO freakin' humid I wasn't sure I was going to be able to finish it.
I did the Blvd. first to warm up, and that was about 2 miles which we did really SLLLOOOWWW. 18:00 mins. then we did the 5.8 hell run, and my Garmin went off constantly telling me I was over my heart rate, and that drove me nuts. Every time it would beep at me, I would lose my focus and decide that I was tired and start walking. Especially up the hills. I try not to walk those but I just couldn't get past the mental abuse the Garmin was putting out, so I walked. BOOOO! The whole run took me an 1:20 due to me trying to saty within the zone so I wouldn't have to listened to the alarm. I think I will disable the alarm next time, or re-set the zone. SOMETHING! I can't go through that again. Percy Warner is a tough course so I am obviously going to be out of the zone a lot when I run it, I just don't need to be reminded every 5 seconds.

Now I am going to Connor's Basketball game. Doug took Bailey to his. I want to see some wins this time!

Trails W/ Melissa

2007-01-10T20:46:00.000-06:00

Yesterday afternoon after work I ran the trails with Melissa. We were going to do the Red trail but opted for the White trail due to time and sunlight constraints. It was freezing cold, too. We only did it once (2.5 miles) then I went home and took a shower to wash away the mud, then I met her at Christopher's Pizza to eat. I haven't seen her since before Christmas so it was good to hang out with her again. Hopefully we can meet up this weekend to do a long run.

I have worked my butt off the past three days..but that was my choice. I try to cram all the dogs into two or three days in January so I have extra time off. There isn't many to do so I hate to book one on Monday, two on Tues, etc. I would rather just get them all done on one or two days.

Today I worked then went to a doctor's appointment for the kids, then we ate at the Cheesecake Factory. Once again I have eaten my weight in food and I feel like I am going to explode. I didn't get to the gym today or yesterday, so I feel like a disgusting slob. I am going in the morning, though. I plan to lift, then do a spin class, and I need to swim but I doubt I will get that far. I took a pill...1st one in over 2 weeks!!! WHY DID I DO IT???? Last night I went to bed feeling fine, but I woke up at 1:00am drenched in sweat and chills. My throat was hurting BAD and closing up on me so I had to take some flu medicine to get back to sleep. Doug let me sleep in because my first dogs today weren't due in till 9:oo. I have a feeling it'll be a repest tonight so I went ahead and took something. Excuse? Possibly.

I ordered a new digital camera from Wal-mart.com and it's ALREADY HERE! I just ordered it 2 days ago and shipping was only 97Cents! It's really small so I can take it everywhere with me, and very user friendly, so I can post a ton of pics on this site!

I CANNOT WAIT till the speed sessions start next week. They canceled them for like 5 minutes because no one had officially signed up, and everybody whined and complained so much they decided to go ahead and do it. they were supposed to be a 6 am, but they changed it to 6 pm..(much better..I am NOT a morning person) Well, that's it for now. Goodnight!

Tired and anxious

2007-01-08T20:57:00.000-06:00

Doug and I have been bickering back and forth literally ALL DAY! I am not sure why, but it seems like everything we said to each other today hit a nerve for some reason. I went to the gym to blow off some steam, but it didn't really help because then I was just exhausted so that made me even more moody. PMS?? Not quite time yet, but maybe Aunt Flo is going to be early. Who knows.

I did weights for 35 minutes, then I swam. I wasn't in the pool very long..maybe 25 minutes, but it wore me out as usual. I kicked around on the board for awhile, then I got the leg float and did arms, then swam some laps without any assistance. I have to swim faster than I am really capable of just to stay afloat. When I try to slow down, I start to sink...so I have a hard time making it back across the pool because I am so tired from the first lap. it's terrible. Other swimmers are kinda slow and graceful, and they swim like that doing endless laps. I know if I could slow down I could swim farther. What should I do? Doug was going to help me out today in the pool because he's a really good swimmer, but he was just too over me today to swim with me, so I was solo. He came and watched for a minute on the side, but then tossed his keys into my bag and walked home because I wasn't ready to get out yet. I hope tomorrow is a better day.

The kids had ball practice this afternoon, which is a complete nightmare in rush hour traffic. They both have to be at practic by 6:00pm at two differnt schools. Then they both have to be picked up by 7:00pm. The schools are no where near our house, and the traffic makes me want to scream. (I suffer with road rage as it is) doug kindly took them tionight, but I had to pick them up. I forgot my cell phone and when I finally picked up Connor, I was almost 20 minutes late, and the coach was p.o.'d because he had been trying to call me to figure out where the heck I was. Apparently he had to pick up a kid somewhere else , too. I guess I'll pick up Connor first next time, then Bailey.

Tomorrows plan is to go running after work. We shall see.

Wow! That felt GOOD!

2007-01-06T13:15:00.000-06:00

Today I did the 5.8 mile loop at Percy Warner with Mary Thom and Martin. I swear if I did that a couple times a week I could run a 21:00 5k no problem. It was grueling, but it hurt so good! Martin came in first, then Mary Thom, then me. Mary Thom had already run 5 miles before she met up with us so she was smokin'! Good run.

Bailey had a BasketBall game this morning. They lost:( but that's ok. They did really well anyway. The score was 16 to 22. Then I ran the park, then I went to Connor's game. They ALSO lost. They didn't seemed to bummed out about it though. I guess one team HAS to lose. They both played really well and that's what matters.

After that game, I came home and took a nap, then I went to my sister-in-laws house for a Body Shop home party. It was fun, and I smell like a Lifesaver. I ordered a nail file, and some face spritzer for after runs. Jaime commented that she is sure my boobs have shrunk 3 sizes in the past year, and I agree. i went from a double D to a C. BoobJob?? I really hate that it has happened, and Doug is extra upset about it. He's also P.O.'d that I have literally run my ass off as well. He likes his women to look like Play Boy centerfolds, and I used to fit the bill until I took up the running. I can't just stop, though. So I don't really know what to do because I refuse to gain a bunch of weight and be lazy so I can have Boobs and a Butt again. It's nice to have those things if you're a girl and all, but I can't have both ways, and I choose the running. I wanted a breast reduction at one point anyway. Now I got one...for free! I can easily try on swim suits now without a whole lot of hassle, and I can wear small shirts. I used to wear medium or large and they were always all loose at the bottem. They're still nice..they're just not the HUGE porn star quality they used to be. So be it.

Tomorrow's plan is to go to church with the family, then hit the downtown ymca with Mary Thom to go swimming. Maybe I'll lift weights while I'm at it. I am starting to see hints of muscle forming on my arms and this excites me. I don't want to look anorexic. Gross!

Thursday I didn't do ANYTHING!!!

2007-01-06T00:02:00.000-06:00

I mean NOTHING in the way of working out. I had every intention, but it SOOOOOO didn't happen. I ended up doing 8 or 50 dogs and didn't get off work till 4:30 or so, and by the time I got off, I just said FORGET IT!

Today I went to the gym early this morning and lifted weights, then did a spin class at 8:30. It felt so good! ( it hurt like hell) then I did 6 dogs and wanted to go swim, but once again I didn't get off till 4:00ish. we had to meet Doug parents at Caraba's at 5:00 so swiming was out of the question. Now tomorrow, the plan is to go to Bailey's basketball game at 9:00, then meet friends at Percy Warner at 10:30 to do the 5.8 mile loop. (this feels like 10 miles after you run it) I need a good long run so this is the ticket. I am meeting Mary Thom and Martin, and maybe Michael and Laurie Austin.

I need to add that I think Sundrop and George Dickle may in fact be THE BEST drink EVER. I've been craving it, and although it's not good for me, sometimes I cave in and go for it.
Pure LOVE. (It's a Tullahoma thing...my hometown) Just had to get that off my chest. Those of us that have experienced it understand how powerless I really am against the sweet taste!

eh

2007-01-03T21:08:00.000-06:00

I really didn't do a whole lot of much today in the way of training. I ran a little..no biggie. I started back to work though so that took up half the day, then I ran, then I took the Boys to basketball practice, then we went out to eat at a Japanese Steak House. I was supposed to go to Excel tonight to swim, but I am so tired I couldn't gather the strength to do it. My thighs are extremely sore from the lunges, and my shoulders are sore from the swimming. I can't function like I want to. I felt ok till I started running today, then the pain started creeping up on me about a half mile into it. I ended up just doing 3 miles and it only took about 29 mins since I wasn't pushing myself or anything. So 29 mins of exercise is all I managed.

This will be my 5th day without any sleeping pills to send me off for the night. I'm still not going to bed early like I want, but I am really tired when I do go to bed and I stay asleep which is unheard of when I don't take something. I have serious bouts of insomnia that I think is mostly stress related. Who knows. That's it for now. My husband is looking over my shoulder so I can't type under that kind of pressure! lol!

Swimming Day 3

2007-01-02T13:26:00.000-06:00

I went to the Y today with Doug, and the boys. I lifted weights today for about an hour, (full body..Self Ultimate Body Book) then I hit the pool. I swam for about 30 minutes and I saw serious improvement. It's only my 3rd swim, and my form is really bad, but I made it back and forth a few times and even raced someone. (It wasn't a race to her, because she didn't know I was racing her..she was just swimming..and KICKING MY ASS in the process.) Then I got the kickboard and did legs and arms. The hardest part is keeping my abs tight while swimming and trying to breathe. This was easier today than it has been, but I still have a LONG way to go. I think I will try a spin class on Friday, then go swim after that. Or maybe I should swim first, then spin. Hmmmm.

My time for the Res. run yesterday pretty much sucked. 27:14. I am embarrassed to even post it. That used to be considered a decent time for me. That's ok, though. Speed Sessions will be starting soon and I WILL knock off some time this year if it kills me. I shooting for a 24 min. 5k by June, and maybe a 49 minute 10k. The pain will be unbearable, but I will just have to bite the bullet and do it. Makes me want to puke just thinking about it.

Happy New Year!

2007-01-01T14:50:00.000-06:00

Today I did the Resolution Run 5k. Although my time sucked, it ended up being better than I thought it would be. I got a 26 or 27 something. (Official times have not been posted yet). It's a hard 5k with lots of hills and an endless loop around the Coliseum. Michael Austin did it in 24 something and Laurie Austin ( Number 587 in the pic) did it in 37 something. Martin did it in 24 something as well.

Jessica and I ran Crokett Park on Saturday with Erin and Tracey. We did 6 miles at what felt like a 5 minute mile pace (HA>>just kidding..it was fast though)

I plan to swim at some point tomorrow if all goes well. I am actually looking forward to it.

Next planned runs....
Jan. 27...Zoo Run 5k
Feb. 10...Fangtastic 5k

Speed sessions start in 2 weeks!

2006-12-29T20:09:00.001-06:00

This morning I went swimming again, and it was MUCH better. It's not good..but better. I made it two laps today without having to stop in the middle of the pool choking or gasping for air. WOo-Hoo! Then I grabbed the kick-board again and worked on arms and legs. I swam for about 45 mins, I guess. Then this afternoon, I lifted some weights here at the house and did some push-ups and crunches. I am determined to get a super-human bod this year! It may only last a season, but it'll happen. I am running with a girl I met at Percy Warner Park in the morning.(Erin) Jessika may go, too. We are supposed to do around 6 miles, which will actually be pushing it for me, but I will trudge through. I won't run or do much more of anything again till Monday morning for the Resolution Run. (Gotta taper a little for the 5k...ha) I have been trying to drink more water through-out the day, and I have been eating like a pig. The eating part doesn't really bother me because I go days without a decent meal sometimes. But, I ate so much tonight I feel sick. We ate at LongHorn and I ALWAYS eat too much when I go there.

2006-12-28T20:28:00.000-06:00

Today I ran for 3.1 miles in the neighborhood. Little 5k course I have mapped out when I need a quickly. I did it in 28 mins.,which sucks but I wasn't trying to show off or anything. Just run a little and de-stress. This year I hope to hit a 24 something 5k or better. I won't be looking for a time like that till the end of the summer, but it'll happen. My time this past summer was 25:56. That was with Melissa ( Wonder Woman)on my ass the whole time, though. I love running with her because she always challenges me. We are pretty competitive..but it's fun. No other running partner would ever take me up on any race or challenge, but she ain't scared. That's good for me! We don't worry about hurting each other's feelings or getting P.O.'d or anything. It's just for fun! Well, I guess I do get a little mad or frustrated when she stomps me, but that just makes me work harder the next time.

I tried to go to do the free trial at Excel last night. The guys at the office didn't think they were meeting so I winged it at Maryland Farms on my own. (Well, I took my kids and they tried to help). What a disaster THAT was. I couldn't make it across the pool even one time, and I am supposedly in good shape! This is quite distressing to me to say the least. I ended up getting a kick board and working out my arms and legs to try to build some strength. My arms felt like I had been lifting weights after two laps. Some swimmers I have talked to compare it to running. I remember when I first started I couldn't make it from one mail box to the next, but now I run miles. They say it's like that. Before I know it, I will be swimming lap after lap. After last night's performance though, I am having serious doubts that I will EVER swim decently. My fornm is terrible, and I can't breathe without sucking up a bunch a water. DANG!

2006-12-27T10:23:00.000-06:00

I tried all day yesterday to get to the gym. That didn't happen...BUT, I did go run for 50 mins in Woodway Subdivision with my friend Martin last night. It was the first time I have run with him one on one, and he kicked my butt on those hills. He has just started running in the past few months, but I couldn't tell. We did some sprints, too and I am feeling it today. Really good run.

I bought a new Garmin 305 last night on eBay. Brand new..$253.oo..free shipping. AWESOME deal. they usually run about $350.oo or more! I went to Fleet feet to get one, but they were sold out, so when I found it on eBay that cheap, I went for it. I can't resist a good deal.

SO today I plan to hit the gym for some upper body training, then go sign up for swim lessons. (They were closed yesterday) And maybe go look at some decent swim suits. I only have a two-piece, and I can't swim laps in that.. now can I? I REALLY dread swimming. I hope if I learn how, it won't be such a burden.

Train or Insane

2006-12-25T22:13:00.000-06:00

Well, it's Christmas night, (here is a pic of my Boys by the tree. Aren't they sweet??) and I sit here typing away as I think about my racing goals for the upcoming year. I decided to call this blog "Train or Insane" for a ton of different reasons. My husband (Doug) thinks I am insane for wanting to train for a Triathlon this year. He thought I was insane for training for the marathon in '04. Basically he thinks I am crazy for doing ANY of it. But, I think I would be insane if I didn't. Running is my prozac. I used to have to take the stuff, and I have never been good with taking pills. I felt pretty depressed and crazy all the time. So, I started running again, and signed up for the CMMarathon in 04. Eventually, I got off the prozac because running did it for me. Here's the thing, though....when I don't run, the depression creeps back in, which brings me to the start of this blog. It's Christmas night....

I feel sort of depressed tonight, and anxious, and overwhelmed. I have been so busy with work and getting Christmas together this month, I haven't been able to run like I need to, or enjoy my kids, or enjoy much of anything, really. Instead of focusing on all the "joy", I feel panicked, sad, and stressed. I REALLY need to go on a long run tomorrow, and just get it all out. I have NO IDEA how to train for the Tri I want to do this year. I bought a new road bike last year. A Gunnar Roadie, but I haven't been able to ride it like I thought I would. Hopefully that will change this year. I am going to the rec center tomorrow to sign up for swimming lessons with Excel. (I swim like a rock). And, I start Speed Sessions back up for 10 weeks in the middle of January. This is one thing I am REALLY looking forward to. Those work-outs this summer were grueling and I LOVE that feeling. I am weird like that. This is the one thing Doug doesn't understand about me. I want it to hurt. The more it hurts, the better it is for me. I LOVE it when my muscles are screaming, and I can't breathe, and I am sweating till I feel sick. I love to run hills, and sprint. Make me puke and pass out without the aid of beer!!!HA! (there is NOTHING better than Yazoo or Blue Moon after a work-out..BTW)

December has been rough because I haven't had time to feel this way. I have been lashing out at my kids, my husband, and anyone else in my path. (Maybe I need prozac) January is coming though! And the first race of the season will be the Resolution Run 5k! I am not going to concentrate on a time for this race..just doing it will be good enough for me. I really don't start worrying about 5k times till after the CMM anyway. I mostly concentrate on distance till after April. (although I do want to get my half marathon time under 2 hours this year)

So..my first few goals and resolutions are

-Learn to swim effectivly
-spend time on my road bike
-Do 10 weeks of speed sessions
-Do CMM under 2 hours
-Build some decent upper body muscles

These are a good start. Maybe I should also add

-Go to bed without the aid of pills
-wake up early to work out
-stop bitchin' so much...I HAVE IT MADE!!!!!!

So, that's it for now. Merry Christmas to all, and to all a Good Night!
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