Update - it's about time!

I've been really lame with blogging lately. I just hate it. I really really hate blogging. But then again, I have so many friends and family that I don't get to see very often that all ask the same questions and I know it's very convenient to update everyone in this manner. So I love blogging for that reason. But I have a hard time being motivated. Anyway, this is going to be a super boring post, but I just wanted to update my progress so I could I could look back at it later and see how far I've come.

I've been running.

A lot.

To be honest it's been hard on me. Emotionally and mentally more than physically. The smallest things make me doubt myself. And I get discouraged easily. But I'm not quitter. So I power through.

The past 3 weeks have been really difficult. I have a half marathon coming up in 2 weeks, and I haven't felt ready. I run on my own every day. It gets boring and lonely and it's hard to go it alone sometimes. But my new shoes rock and the weather's nice, so that's always good.

2 weeks ago I hit a wall. I had an 11 mile run. My in laws were all visiting so we were going to run together! We got about 6 miles in and I had a horrible allergic reaction to something we had passed. At about mile 7 my allergies triggered a horrible asthma attack. I ran one more mile and knew instantly I was spent. I went home discouraged after cutting our run short by 3 miles. After that every short training run I went on I would have an asthma attack. I finally went to my doctor and he gave me some really great prescriptions, and I am pleased to say they are working very well!

This weekend we came down to St. George to have a birthday party for my Trevor baby, and we all woke up at 4:30 to run 12 miles (my first long run since the bad run). It was AWESOME!!!! The combination of being at a lower elevation, having an inhaler, and running with a group of people did wonders for me, and I broke my 10 minute mile record - I ran at a 9.5 minute mile pace!!! Woooooooooo hooooooooooo! We finished the 12 miles in about 2 hours. It felt amazing and I now feel ready for the Bryce Canyon half.

I ran four miles today - a lot of hills. It was harder than the 12 but I know it was good for training. In summation: 12 miles = good. Nimbus gels = awesome. Running with family and friends = rockin. Me = kick butt.

Thanks for listening!

Hey Harry Potter Fans!

Alright y'all, I don't want to make anyone jealous, but I just got my own Nimbus. For real. No, not a Nimbus 2000. A Nimbus 12. Gel.





Okay okay, it's not a flying broomstick, but you better believe I'll be flying when I'm wearing these babies!!!! What? Too nerdy? Should I dial it down a notch? Fine. But I'd like YOU to find a better cure for jellylegs (okay, that was the last one).



Back to the shoes. I love them already. I've been having some pain a particular bone in both my feet lately, and then started getting some pain in my knees. I decided to take it easy for a couple of days, which helped. But I didn't want to start running again until I had new shoes because I figured that was a main contributing factor to my pain. I went in and did the gait test to see how I ran and what shoe I needed, and apparently I need a neutral shoe because I run with my foot exactly perpendicular to the ground, and the shoes I had were not neutral. I thought I was over-pronating when I ran because of where my pain was, but apparently it was the shoe!



So hopefully these babies will correct the problem and I will love them! They're super comfortable and actually have 600 miles of life in them as opposed to the normal 400 of most running shoes. So I should only have to buy one other pair before the marathon. Awesome.


Running's going good. Had my 9 mile on Saturday and apart from a killer sunburn, I returned in one piece. Can't wait to try out my Nimbus, Nimbuses, Nimbusi, whatever the plural is, tomorrow. I have my first hill run tomorrow - wish me luck!

Some bad news (that's kind of good news), and the GREAT news that (hopefully) counteracts the bad

Are you curious? I know, that title is the best blog post title in the history of all blog post titles. And it really got you thinking. I know. I'm amazing.

Anyway, bad titles aside, I first wanted to say thank you to my readers who left comments and emails about my breathing. You were right. That's TOTALLY what was giving me side cramps. When I run, I usually go in the wee hours of the morning, so it's either snowing, or I'm running next to puddles that are frozen solid. I guess I have a hard time breathing properly in the cold. But I focused more on my breathing today and didn't get one side cramp. So yay!!!!

Okay, so the bad news (that's actually good news) is that Trevor is done nursing. He was just done. He was actually done 2 months ago but I really wanted to make it to a year (mostly because formula's so dang expensive)so I forced him to nurse. In a battle of the wills. But he just wouldn't allow it, and he ended up winning. Betrayed by my own body, I stopped making milk.

In all honesty, I love the freedom. I haven't had my body all to myself for THREE YEARS! For the last three years I've either had someone living inside me or eating from me. It's nice for my body to be just mine. Very liberating. I love being pregnant, but having 2 babies back to back was a little much for me. The bad thing? Nursing burns SO MANY calories!!!! I haven't had to work out or watch what I eat in forever because of it. I'm really terrified that not nursing is going to make me pack on the pounds.

But, there is some great news that will (hopefully) counteract the bad........

drumroll........................

I am officially running the St. George Marathon in October. That's right, I paid my 80 bucks, got my name on a roster, and am running 26.2 miles on October 2nd. Yeeeeeeeeeeehaaaaaaaawwwww! So hopefully the training will burn the calories that nursing would have been burning.

That being said, today my long run was 8 miles. I ran it without stopping once! It's been fun to watch how my body has adapted to all this running and how much progress I'm making. Just one month ago I couldn't even run a mile. Anyway, I digress. Back to the 8 mile run today. That's about a third of the race right there, so I think my training is on track and I will be ready when the big day comes.

Advice would be appreciated!

I went on my 3 mile run again this morning. I got about a mile and a half into it and got the worst side cramp ever! I'm used to getting them. I actually get them all the time on my right side under my rib. I don't know what causes them (do you? Please share!) but I get them every time I run. I usually run through it and it goes away. If it doesn't go away I just slow down a bit and hold my side until it subsides. It always does. No matter how bad it is, I can always run it off.

Today was different.

I honestly could not shake the thing! It was so sharp, too. I'd never felt anything like it. It literally had me doubled over. You runners out there, what is this?!? I'm sure it happens to everyone who runs, but seeing as I've never run before it caught me by surprise and I didn't know what to do about it. It really ruined my whole run for me. I was bummed. I ended up doing the whole run and adding a half mile on, but it was not an enjoyable run for me.

Those of you out there who know what you're doing when it comes to this whole exercise thing, please impart your knowledge.
What causes this?
How do I prevent it?
How do I stop it once it has happened?

Any answers you have would be appreciated.

pictures and stats week 4...plus my favorite things!

I haven't fallen off the wagon, I promise. I've been exercising but haven't really felt like blogging. In a nutshell, I've been running 3 miles consistently (with rest days on Monday and Friday) and Saturdays are scheduled for a long run. This past Saturday I decided I was going to finally run outside rather than on a treadmill (I've been getting so sick of it). I've never run outside before so I didn't know what to expect. Here's my take on it - running outside is a lot harder physically, but infinitely easier mentally. Turns out that the whole mental thing is a big deal for me. I had a 6 mile run scheduled - I was going to run from my house, around the northern border of Heber, to our local produce co-op where Sam would come to pick me and our food up and we'd drive home. I got ready and went outside only to realize - it was snowing! I didn't want to run in the snow, but I REALLY didn't want to run on the treadmill, so I decided to stay outdoors.

The first mile was rough. I had gotten up to a decent speed on the treadmill, and was trying to keep that pace outside. I would get about a quarter of a mile and then I'd have to walk. It was pretty depressing, and I almost turned around to go back home and do it on the treadmill, but then I decided instead of running I would just jog for a little bit just to warm up. I ended up jogging the whole thing. After that first mile I never walked again, I ran a full 5 miles without stopping - a first for me! It was amazing. And so beautiful. My run took me around the east border of Heber, to the north border, and back around through to the Heber Creeper train station (my favorite part of the run). It was so fun.

I got to the co-op station at 10:20, and the co-op didn't open until 11. I thought I'd be cutting it close, figuring it would take me at least an hour and a half to run 6 miles. Nope. It took me a little less than an hour, which means I ran a consistent 10 minute mile! Woot woo! Anyway, I didn't want to hang out for 40 minutes, so I just figured I'd complete the run and head home. It added on another mile.


Workout summary: I traveled 7 miles - the first mile I walked / ran, and then ran the last 6 WITHOUT STOPPING! That is double the length of my last longest run. I was so excited. The whole thing took me about an hour and 15 minutes.



Stats for week 4:

This is me after my 7 miler, so I look gross. Sorry.

bust: 35 1/2

stomach: 27 1/2

hips: 37"

thighs: 21"

weight: 129

So I'm slowly losing everywhere, I guess. But gaining in the hips. Which has always been my problem area. So that's kind of depressing. Oh well.

My Favorite Things round 2:

Sobe lifewater. How do I love thee. I also like vitamin water, but to me Sobe is way better. I live off these things. Favorite flavors? Mango Melon, Fuji Apple Pear, Yumberry Pomegranite, and Cherimoya Punch. So good, and good for you. They're packed with vitamins and electrolytes, no calories, and naturally sweetened with PureVia, a sweetener from the stevia plant. Pretty much the same thing as Stevia or Truvia. Yum.

Tiger's Milk power bars. I can't really run after I've eaten breakfast, but I also can't run on an empty stomach. Enter Tiger's Milk power bars. They're full of protein and taste like a candy bar. What more could you ask for. My favorite flavor? Peanut butter and honey.

Jergens Healthy Glow Daily moisturizer. No, it's not getting me any healthier, but I feel better when I look better. And I look better when I'm tan. Skin cancer runs in my family (pretty badly, too) so I don't really want to lay out to get my color, but I'm also sick of being so pasty white. This stuff is awesome. It doesn't turn you orange, which is nice. It's a gradual daily lotion so you don't get all streaky like when you use a true self tanner. It just gives you a nice healthy looking tan in a week's time. Although I was visibly tanner after just 2 days. But at about 5 days I looked like I'd been on a cruise or something (for me). They also have a face moisturizer to the same effect, but it includes spf 20, which I love. I use them both and love them.

What do you usually eat before you work out? Or drink during your workout? Or listen to while you run? I'm always on the lookout for new things to be my "favorite".

Another First

I ran faster AGAIN today, which has me tickled pink. I'm really happy that I've been getting faster and been able to go longer every day. I guess that's the point, but still. Anyway, I ran three miles again today, and my time was 32.49 minutes. Which puts me at a 10.83 minute mile. Yipee!

Also, I hit another first today. I actually ran 2 miles today without stopping. Again, I know that's probably not a big deal, but to me it's a HUGE deal. I was so happy. That's really all for today. Nothing super exciting. I just thought I'd get on here to document so that I can come back here in a month or two from now and (hopefully) see how far I've come.

Has this ever happened to you?

I woke up refreshed this morning at SEVEN THIRTY! I'm supposed to wake up at 5:50 to go work out. My alarm never went off. I set it on my phone and I forgot to charge it so it went dead. Boo! I woke up and was so disappointed. Sam was going in to work so I didn't have time to work out anymore. I do have two rest days on my workout schedule, so I'm still debating whether I should switch out my rest day for today and do today's workout on Friday, or if I should just go to the gym when Sam gets home tonight. Neither sound appealing to me. Dang.

On the plus side: I got to sleep in!!!! Yay! I forgot how lovely 7:30 am feels. :)