Happy New Year!

I finished my run in an hour and 45 minutes. Yes, that's a 13.125 pace and SLOW... My reasoning is that I've done all of my runs for the last 3 weeks on a tread mill and this workout route today was for the hills... lots of them. I followed the Galloway method to a tee and never stopped unless I had met my 9 minutes of running. I even ran "striders" -- 3/4 sprints for the last half mile. I was the last of the group to come in, but there were a lot of people who weren't there today.... Someone has to be last.

And now I feel a little spent. I stretched, showered, massaged (with my new STICK) and drank a lot of water and coffee. ( I can't live without coffee). I ate my lunch, walked the dog and picked up the kitchen. I am ready for a nap... which is what I would be doing if I didn't have 2 kids. So I will finish this entry and play playdough. We'll have a small dinner, bathe the kids, put them to bed and share some GOOD snacks - shrimp, caviar and good wine, and put on a movie so I can promptly fall asleep.... Happy New Year!

Having a day..

Yesterday was a very hectic day... Cleaned house in the am, ran my pr, took the kids to the pool and to kids gym, cooked and cleaned up dinner and tried unsuccessfully to return a present (I really wish that "ONLINE" versions of brick and mortar stores would allow for returns at the brick and mortar stores... UGH!)

Today I planned on taking the dog for a nice am walk (done) and then actually taking some time for ME in the afternoon. Dad's on vacation and he REALLY needs some DAD time with the kids... Quite frankly, I am FRIED! I showered, dressed and even put on make up in preparation for meeting my sister for lunch when.... Emergency at work - server down - Husband gone. The timing could not have been better. I know he didn't plan it, and the woman from his office was in tears so I know it wasn't something she was prompted to do either. Let's just say it SUCKS!

It seems that the only time I have to myself these days is when I am running. I need to do that, but at the same time, I also need some real ME time... I tried to get a baby sitter - busy today, but she's coming Monday afternoon. I hate shelling out the dough, but I really have no other choice.... I love my kids, but I really need them to go back to school! Just a couple of hours and more importantly, a schedule really make my life that much easier...

On another note - I received some more donations this week and only need another $443.80 to reach my minimum. Hopefully the people that said they would donate really will. I am SO looking forward to having the fundraising pressure off so that I can fully concentrate on RUNNING! And, speaking of running... 8 Miles tomorrow!!! That will bring my grand total to 106 miles since 11/8/05! Good for me!

Another PR for me...

It's not like I was setting out to run fast this morning, but TA-DA -- another personal record: Four miles in 45:01 ... thats 11:15 min miles.... NICE... Next Goal: Sub 11:00 min miles... That's for January, and that's if I can even run... I am SO scared about what lies ahead. The schedule is this: 12/31 - 8 miles, 1/7 - 9 miles, 1/14 - 10 miles, 1/21 - 11 miles, and 1/28 13 miles!!! I know that it's nothing for the "call me CRAZY" Goofy Challenge runners like LynneD and Nancy, but for me it is DAUNTING.... I am so glad I will have the group behind me! I honestly don't think I would have the mental strength to conquer those numbers with out them. I just keep thinking about how good I will feel about myself after I am done... I am feeling pretty good about myself right now.

I made it...

I ran my 7+ on Christmas Eve, I ate my way through Christmas, I took Boxer Day off and I have officially started my detox and diet again... WW is Thursday and I will be there. If I can say anything about my running these last couple of months it's CONSISTENCY... I have been keeping a sub 12 pace regardless of the distance. I LOVE THAT! My goal is to finish the marathon in 6 hours... At the rate I am going it will be sub six and I can't ask for a better way to finish my first marathon.

I have to keep it short my nephews are coming; and they are a handful!

Almost Christmas.... HELP! My kids are breaking me!

My kids are OFF the wall! I know it happens every year, but this is the first year that its happening to both of my kids (last year Audrey was still clueless).... Oh the whining and the not sleeping and the can I open a present?... They are trying to break me --- I will not let them... I don't want rotten kids. I don't want spoiled kids and yet I want to give them the world... Where is the balance? How do you decide what is enough? How do you teach them compassion? How do you teach them that giving to those less fortunate is good for the soul? We go to church, we give our offering, we have done toys for tots (disasterously), goodwill (another disaster -- don't give my toys away!!! screaming unconsolable fit in car seat). We went to see GreatGram in the nursing home and brought cookies to the staff (Can we go now? Abbey repeated OVER AND OVER... All the sudden shy and NOT MY KID!) Rant over. I know they are young, self centered and all that, but ...... RANT OVER.

I told my husband that tomorrow I am getting up, walking the dog and going to the gym. I have at least 84 minutes of running to do... Please be consistant, please don't be painful, please let there be some good music on MTV... I will finish my 7 miles and hot tub and shower alone using as much hot water as the YMCA can supply... Only then will I be ready for CHRISTMAS.

Fighting the bug...

Here are my Christmas girls! I love their smiles!

Everyone in my neighborhood is sick. My daughter was sick Mon-Tues and now I am feeling that feeling -eyes kind of glassy, head just not right. It is 3 days til Christmas and I can NOT get sick. Plus, I AM RUNNING 7 miles on Saturday whether I am sick or not. I vowed that nothing short of amputation would keep me from my LSDs...

On another note a not so close friend who received a TNT letter just sent me $250 for my race. SHOCKED! and happy. I have until January 23 to raise my money and I am nearly 75% complete. If only my father and his greedy side of the family would cough up the rest... My cousin died of leukemia in September at 22. He had been sick since he was a kid (9 I think). Only my aunt Connie (Tim's grandmother) has even mentioned sending something. It's all just a little odd. The reasons why I 've never really warmed up to THAT SIDE just keep growing...

So - Christmas - yeah. I am DONE shopping. I have finished prepping for my part of Christmas eve - salad, and Christmas morning bagels. If you have never had NY Bagel Co. bagels, let this be a plug. SO good - pop them in the oven for 5 minutes and they are just (well, almost) like the real deal. Lox, fresh dill, capers, YUM. Plus, my weirdo kids LOVE it all so I don't have to prep any "kid fare" like munchkins that I might be tempted to pop in my mouth. I missed Weight Watchers this week. I KNOW I've not been good. I KNOW the scale would tell me so, and I figured a haircut would make me feel better. I am going next week. My holiday de-tox starts Monday!!

I'm back...

Well, I made it through the weekend with my in-laws. Overall a successful visit. The kids had fun, hubby had fun and I even enjoyed seeing everyone -- it is a once a year event... My mother in law is HIGH maintenance. The children are required to have an audience with her for no more than an hour a day, and don't count on her for any "grandmotherly" duties... Sad really, but after 6 years, I have learned how she operates and expect very little. I visited with my nieces and tried to help out my sister in law who showed up to the hotel with her car sick children (ages 2 and 3) and her hungry 4 week old minus the husband that had an "important meeting" and would catch up with us later.... He's pretty much hands off with the kids and my S-I-L is just crazy... on maternity leave for another couple weeks and then 3 in daycare!! I hate to judge, but OMG! how can you let your kids spend up to 12 hours a day in a center being raised by whoever takes the barely above minimum wage job?? How can you tell everyone how much you need the income and then spend 50k on a kitchen remodel and 28k on a mahogany deck! Rant over, lets just say we're different...

I ran 6 miles on the treadmill Saturday morning at the hotel. It was a crappy machine - I got shocked everytime I adjusted the speed or incline and forget about hearing the TV... I was really proud of myself. I always say that I am going to exercise when I go away, but I can always find reasons why it just won't work. THis is probably the first time that I told my husband to get the kids dressed and make a decision about how we would spend the day. I would be up to shower in a little over an hour. 72:31 to be exact... I LOVE that I am running a pretty consistant 12 min mile! This weekend I have 7 to contend with and it looks like I'll be running on the treadmill again since my sister is bagging on me and we have to be at a holiday brunch by 10:00. The rest of the day is killed with visits and another party xmas eve night. If I get to the gym by 7 when they open, I'll be finished and showered before 9:00 -- right??

Fat and Hungry

I am having a little pitty party for myself. I went to Marshalls to find some jeans to wear this weekend. I have NO clothes. I figured I would go for the Liz Clairborne in a 14 since they usually run big...UGH I could not even get them over my butt! The others were Old Navy 16s and they just looked awful. I hate tight jeans, camel toe and all! Was that motivation to get serious about my diet? Well, not really. I hadn't had "dinner" though I had snacked enough to know that I really had eaten what could be considered dinner. Nonetheless I went to WholeFoods and bought Stacy Pita chips and some smoked salmon salad on my way home. A serving would have been enough, but I ate the whole bag... All 700 calories worth. UGH UGH...

I woke up this morning with a huge TO DO list and about 8 hours to get it done... I don't really have time for the gym today, do I??? I better just go now and worry about the other stuff later. I can't believe the thought actually crossed my mind! Let me just smack myself and be done!

It's too early for it to be this COLD!

Have I told you how much I hate winter?!! I grew up here, but lived most of my adult life in Washington DC, until I had my daughter 5 years ago. I love being close to family, but I CAN'T STAND THIS COLD!! I miss DC where seasons were true to their calendar starts - winter didn't start til Dec 22 and by March 20 it was Spring without fail! Of course it went from pleasant to BLAZING HOT by June, but Fall lasted... never any snow before the New Year. How can we be expecting another 4-8 inches on Friday? How can it be -4 ! YUCK!! The worst is that we're driving to PA to meet my in-laws on Friday during the storm... Great. We can't leave sooner because we have to kennel the dog - who I love dearly after just one month and feel terrible that she'll be someplace strange for 4 days, wondering if we've given her away too... UGH!

On a brighter note, I have been running awesome this week! Yesterday I finished my 4 miles in 45:30 ! That included my walk breaks every 9 minutes! 11:36 pace, and a personal best! I am thinking that Galloway is a smart man!

Keep warm!

Brrrr... Baby it's cold outside!

I went for a walk this morning with the dog. She's been waking me up at 5:00 a.m. for the past week. It's dark and it's cold(er) at 5:00 a.m. But I kind of like it. It's quiet. I don't know what protection a Goldendoodle would provide in an emergency, but I feel secure just the same. I can't wait until she can run with me. Because of hip issues the books say I should wait until she is at least a year old. That will be February 9th. We walked about a mile or so at a dog's pace. Definately not exercise, but certainly theraputic.

Yesterday's run was cut short - 3.3 miles instead of the 4 scheduled. We were VERY late getting to the gym. I was determined to run and managed to finish the distance (which included a 5 min. cooldown) in38.54. That's an 11:18 pace and pretty good for me. I felt really good and I wish I could have kept going... Of course there is today. 4 miles.

Week 6 - 128 day til BOSTON

Yikes! I am so impressed with myself and my schedule. I have completed all of my runs, focused on form and I have even ventured outside - alone for some of them. Six weeks! I know the heavy mileage is coming, but I know that I'll be ready. I've done what I have been told.

If only I could do that with my diet! I am SO hungry and it definately does not help to have home baked cookies around... or were those potato chips???? My mom took the kids over night Saturday and sent home 2 doz sugar cookies - so that she wouldn't eat them... Thanks! They were ALL delicious! I don't know what came over me, but I do hope that the feeling is OUT of my system for the season. I really could use some self control.

I will not beat myself up about it anymore. I just needed to get it out so that I can move on. I KNOW that there are better days ahead for me and my diet. I hate to think that I am putting things off til the New Year... I don't want that to be the case at all. That is why I am continuing my meetings with Weight Watchers. That is why I went last week knowing that I could not have lost any weight. Now, I have 4 days til weigh in and I NEED to make them count. I am ready to set a personal goal for myself and that is to weigh 185 by Christmas. This will be my present for ME!

No Group Run

No TNT group run today. The roads really were messed up. I have never seen so much snow in a December storm.... Oh well. I kept my run appointment at the gym, running on the treadmill for about an hour to get my 5 miles in. I followed the Galloway method (9/1) to a tee and felt pretty good when I was done. I stretched and took a lovely 30 minute shower in peace. Lots of endless hot water and no kids killing each other or needing to go potty.

I am bummed that I will not run with the group again til New Years Eve. I will have 2 weeks of long runs on my own - 6 and 7 milers. I know this is not a lot for the veteran marathon runners, but I honestly haven't done it since 2003 when I trained cluelessly for the half I ran. Today I really tried to focus on form and was actually able to catch myself getting sloppy if I zoned out. I am going to remember that... I am also going to put together some play lists that will take me through my runs. I do not want to feel the way I did after the half marathon -- sick, really horrible. I want to finish the way my coach has promised - up right and in relative comfort. I can take some discomfort, but if there's a way around it, I am all for it!

Snowed in.

Snowed in… I am NOT a winter kind of gal, especially now that I have kids. It takes forever to get ready to go out and after 2 minutes in the snow they want to come in to use the bathroom. They are in now for good. My house is trashed… wet dog, wet clothes, cold kids. It is still coming down hard, but expected to stop in the next few hours. And then I shovel. No snow blower for me… It’s good exercise, right? Did I say how much I hate to shovel? Unfortunately I have to do this chore. My husband is the world’s worst shoveler. He sees no reason to actually clear the driveway. Just get the build up from the street plows away from the end of the driveway and barrel right through it. If he were in charge we would only wear boots from now until April. We’d never have company, and the mail would not get delivered… I shovel.

I just had to take a break because my 3 year old stuck a raisin up her nose. This was a first for me. Called the pediatrician and the nurse on duty told me to block the non-raisin side of her nose and blow into her mouth CPR style. Wow… raisin out… let’s not try that again.

I got a note from my TNT coach about tomorrow’s practice. No cancellation unless the streets aren’t properly cleared. Wellesley is not supposed to get as much snow as us, so hopefully we’ll still be running. If practice is cancelled tomorrow, I won’t run with the team again until New Years Eve day. I need the motivation. I need to run outside. I really hope we run!

My workouts have been great this week. Two treadmill runs and one outside. I even took a short run with my puppy, which seems like she’ll be a great companion for medium length runs after her birthday in February.

Does anyone have “THE STICK”? Do you use it? Does it work? My running coach swears by it, but then he’s got a strong relationship with the local running shop so I don’t know how much is advertising. I’d love your comments.

All by myself...

I actually got up this morning and since the "big storm" materialized into not one flake, tied up my laces and headed out for a 3 mile run - ALL BY MYSELF. I have this thing about running outside alone. I don't know what it's all about, but I do know that I am really working on getting over it. Today was morning one. I figure that as my mileage increases, I am not going to want to run it on the treadmill. I have to plan routes and just go. I went. 3 miles today, 4 on Thursday. They are predicting another "big storm" for Friday night and I am just hoping that the group run is not cancelled Saturday morning. I really look forward to the group runs now. I don't know why, but the mileage seems easier. I am going to miss the 17th and I am really bummed about it. I want to make it through the rest of the program without another absence! Cold days are coming and I know its going to get tougher. Have I mentioned how much I love Team in Training?

Control...

I don't know what it is about food. I am SO in control from the time I get up until about 5 p.m. and then -- poof! It's all over. I can't not even fathom the number of calories I have consumed over the past 3 evenings... And more importantly --- WHY? I have got to pull out a loss by Thursday... UGH!

On the flip side, I have been working out so well these last few days. Running really strong on the treadmill -- a personal best today for 3 miles (32.40 - which included a 5 minute warm up walk!) I wanted to see how fast I could go, and honestly this was pushing it... I was almost to that point of wanting to puke! I guess my thing is not to be the fat girl. I don't want to be the one that everyone is waiting for at the end of a practice. I want to just fit in. Back of the pack, athena girl is fine -- just don't make me a spectacle.

I got an e-mail from my aunt yesterday and it has really bothered me. My dad's side of the family is not very close. I see my father about 3 times a year and he lives about 40 miles away. I see my aunts, grandmother about 2x a year and that's usually for xmas eve and funerals.
My aunt Connie is a lovely lady and my fathers older half sister. Family dynamics aside, I never saw much of her growing up. She was from my grandmother's first marriage and grew up with her paternal grandmother. She kept in touch with my dad very rarely, but I always noticed pictures of her kids around my grandmothers house and wondered who they were... Connie had 8 children. Anyway, the point of this is that I sent out my Team in Training letters and included Connie even though I haven't seen or talked to her in a year. She e-mailed me back to thank me for including her. She was honored to give to the team as she and the rest of her family had gotten so much from the Leukemia Society during her grandson's illness. Timmy died in September - he was 25. I knew that someone had cancer, but didn't know it was leukemia and didn't know that he had died. Part of me just felt awful for being so distant and not knowing. Part of me felt more committed to the race and the charity part of it. It has been on my mind all day... wow.

Run, Diet, repeat...

I am snotty, but feel far better than I did last night. I detest being sick. I have far too much to do, and the inconvenience of it all is just too much! And that is my whine for the day. 138 days until the Marathon, and a 3-mile run on tap for today. I wish I could say that after a month of running and focusing that I am down 10 pounds, but quite honestly I have maintained. Just here on my plateau of 6 months… I feel like I need to tape my mouth shut for a few weeks to just lose a chunk of weight and get the weight loss moving again. I won’t do it, but I’d sure like to know why my body likes to weigh what it does –189. There I said it. I have been between 187 and 193 since June – never more, never less. I know that Marathon training by itself is not very conducive to weight loss, but if I focus on diet as well as my running, I should be able to lose something!?
I honestly don’t mind being an ATHENA. In fact, I kind of like it. I won 2 second place medals this year in my triathlons and it felt really good! I guess I like the recognition that I trained just as hard as those 120 lb wonders – who eat chocolate cake batter by the bowlful and never seem to gain an ounce (yes, my roommate from college – and she’s still 120lbs!!) I will not give up! That Biggest Loser finale really made me think that if all of them could do what they did, than I should too! Right??