I cannot believe it has been 2 months since I have posted anything. Not that anyone has missed reading this blog I am sure.
I teach preschool and the end of the year got really busy for me.
Running has all but come to a screeching halt.
Exhaustion and injury set in.
Plantar fasciitis first, followed by a couple of broken toes, have sidelined the progress I was making. It is amazing how LONG it takes to get your body in somewhat decent shape and how very QUICKLY you can lose all that you have worked for. Why is that? It is so frustrating.
I have gone for a few "runs" over the last couple of weeks and it is painful. I have an elliptical but it is so boring compared to running in the fresh air with nothing but the open road in front of me. So what to do?
I need like, I don't know, a new bone structure? An all the joints in your body replacement?
Oh well...I guess I will keep stretching, keep taking my vitamins and well...just keep running just keep running just keep running running running. (you know Dori from finding nemo? never mind.)
Friday, July 9, 2010
Monday, May 17, 2010
The Big One
Let me just say straight off that I didn't run the half.
Two weeks before the marathon I was running with a good friend of mine who was training to run the marathon relay. She was telling me that they lost one of their 10k leg runners and wanted to know if I would consider running that leg.
They were running for her little 4 year old cousin who had recently passed from Wilm's Disease. How could I say no?
Race day came and I was honored to run the last leg of the marathon. I never got nervous but I was so anxious to begin my leg. It felt like an eternity waiting to start.
I finally took off around 10. I felt good the entire race. The end was a little grueling with the hills but every time I felt tired I would think about little Sicily and that gave me a boost of energy. About 500 feet before the finish my two oldest children shot out of the crowd and finished the race with me. I still tear up thinking about it. That will always be a cherished memory.
I finished in an hour and ten minutes. It was such an amazing experience. The Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon is really something to be a part of and I will run in it as long as my legs allow me to!
Next year I will definitely be running the half since my registration was deferred to next year and who knows...maybe in 2012 I will run the full!
Two weeks before the marathon I was running with a good friend of mine who was training to run the marathon relay. She was telling me that they lost one of their 10k leg runners and wanted to know if I would consider running that leg.
They were running for her little 4 year old cousin who had recently passed from Wilm's Disease. How could I say no?
Race day came and I was honored to run the last leg of the marathon. I never got nervous but I was so anxious to begin my leg. It felt like an eternity waiting to start.
I finally took off around 10. I felt good the entire race. The end was a little grueling with the hills but every time I felt tired I would think about little Sicily and that gave me a boost of energy. About 500 feet before the finish my two oldest children shot out of the crowd and finished the race with me. I still tear up thinking about it. That will always be a cherished memory.
I finished in an hour and ten minutes. It was such an amazing experience. The Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon is really something to be a part of and I will run in it as long as my legs allow me to!
Next year I will definitely be running the half since my registration was deferred to next year and who knows...maybe in 2012 I will run the full!
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Running hurts
I am getting old. Well not really. I am only 30. How is that saying? "It's not the years honey, it's the mileage". Yeah, that sounds about right. Running isn't always easy. Some days it down right hurts. The first few months of training went smoothly. I felt better and better the more I ran. Slowly, however, things began to creak and groan. My husband says I am not built for running and he is right. But...I keep plugging along.
After the Frigid Five, I decided I would run in the Redbud Classic. 6.2 miles in the beautiful Nichols Hills. I was excited to run in warmer weather and on the plus side it starts at two in the afternoon! I really was geared up for what I thought would be a pleasant run. Yeah! Not so much.
By the time we got out of church the temperature had reached a balmy 80 degrees. I made the mistake of running to Subway to grab a 3 inch sandwich with the family before the race. That critical error set off a chain of events that nearly killed me. ( I exaggerate)
There was a huge line at Subway so I had to wolf down my little sandwich and make it back to the church so I could change into my running clothes. By the time I got that done, I was racing toward Nichols Hills to try and park and make it to the starting line on time. I ended up parking 2 miles away with 30 minutes to the start. I had no idea which way I should go but I followed the crowd and soon met a sweet woman by the name of Barbara who walked with me and explained I had plenty of time. We were a little more than half way there when she announced that she was going to stop by a shopping center and use the restroom. (she is a very wise woman you see)
I declined to accompany her because I was anxious to get to the start.
I make it and feel relieved until they announce we have 2 minutes to gun time and I realize I haven't stretched and... I need to pee. Great.
A little calf stretch, hammeys, quads, BAM!!! Gun goes off and the crowd starts moving. For the first two miles every stride is reminding me that my bladder is full. The sandwich that I ate an hour and a half before is sitting in my stomach like a rock, oh and did I mention it was 80 degrees? I was miserable nearly the entire race but I kept pushing myself to keep going.
I finished in 1:24:01. I had been hoping for and hour or just over but hey, I finished.
After being so on fire for another race just a couple of months ago, I was now wondering if I had any business running a half marathon.
I decided not to worry about it just then.
As I choked down the urge to throw up, I made my way slowly back to my truck two miles away and lived to see another race...the big one.
After the Frigid Five, I decided I would run in the Redbud Classic. 6.2 miles in the beautiful Nichols Hills. I was excited to run in warmer weather and on the plus side it starts at two in the afternoon! I really was geared up for what I thought would be a pleasant run. Yeah! Not so much.
By the time we got out of church the temperature had reached a balmy 80 degrees. I made the mistake of running to Subway to grab a 3 inch sandwich with the family before the race. That critical error set off a chain of events that nearly killed me. ( I exaggerate)
There was a huge line at Subway so I had to wolf down my little sandwich and make it back to the church so I could change into my running clothes. By the time I got that done, I was racing toward Nichols Hills to try and park and make it to the starting line on time. I ended up parking 2 miles away with 30 minutes to the start. I had no idea which way I should go but I followed the crowd and soon met a sweet woman by the name of Barbara who walked with me and explained I had plenty of time. We were a little more than half way there when she announced that she was going to stop by a shopping center and use the restroom. (she is a very wise woman you see)
I declined to accompany her because I was anxious to get to the start.
I make it and feel relieved until they announce we have 2 minutes to gun time and I realize I haven't stretched and... I need to pee. Great.
A little calf stretch, hammeys, quads, BAM!!! Gun goes off and the crowd starts moving. For the first two miles every stride is reminding me that my bladder is full. The sandwich that I ate an hour and a half before is sitting in my stomach like a rock, oh and did I mention it was 80 degrees? I was miserable nearly the entire race but I kept pushing myself to keep going.
I finished in 1:24:01. I had been hoping for and hour or just over but hey, I finished.
After being so on fire for another race just a couple of months ago, I was now wondering if I had any business running a half marathon.
I decided not to worry about it just then.
As I choked down the urge to throw up, I made my way slowly back to my truck two miles away and lived to see another race...the big one.
Friday, April 30, 2010
Sidetracked
It is funny how life can sidetrack you. You are going along living out your "plan" for you life and whammo. Now getting sidetracked isn't always a bad thing. In my case, it was one of the best things in my life...my daughter came into our lives. She just came a little early. I was still a junior at OSU, John and I had only been married about six months and we just didn't think we would be starting a family at that point in our lives. God had other ideas and His timing is often way off from ours. I love to tell her how God meant for her to be born when she was because He has something special planned for her.
One year eleven months and eleven days later her brother was born. Again, another sidetrack. We weren't "planning" on him either but what an amazing surprise.
As alot of mothers know, it can sometimes be hard to find time for yourself as a young mom. I would go to the gym every now and then or sometimes go run with a friend but I was never able to be consistent. Slowly my dreams and goals and "plans" became theirs and that was okay. For a while it had to be about them. That is what you do when you become a mom.
As my children have grown, however, and I am becoming a "seasoned" mom, I realize the importance of me time. Taking care of myself and setting goals and accomplishing them in front of my children is one of the greatest lessons I could teach them without saying a word.
After the Biggest Loser contest, I knew I needed another goal, a deadline to meet. After I signed up for the half marathon, I began to train. I decided in December that I needed to run in a short race just to get my feet wet. I signed up for the Frigid Five in Edmond. On Saturday February 13th, I lined up with hundreds of other people to run five miles in 40 degree weather. I ran it in 57:34. Twice my daughter found me and ran with me part of the way. One of the best memories I will treasure.
With one race under my belt, in a time that I was really proud of, I was hooked and ready for another race.
One year eleven months and eleven days later her brother was born. Again, another sidetrack. We weren't "planning" on him either but what an amazing surprise.
As alot of mothers know, it can sometimes be hard to find time for yourself as a young mom. I would go to the gym every now and then or sometimes go run with a friend but I was never able to be consistent. Slowly my dreams and goals and "plans" became theirs and that was okay. For a while it had to be about them. That is what you do when you become a mom.
As my children have grown, however, and I am becoming a "seasoned" mom, I realize the importance of me time. Taking care of myself and setting goals and accomplishing them in front of my children is one of the greatest lessons I could teach them without saying a word.
After the Biggest Loser contest, I knew I needed another goal, a deadline to meet. After I signed up for the half marathon, I began to train. I decided in December that I needed to run in a short race just to get my feet wet. I signed up for the Frigid Five in Edmond. On Saturday February 13th, I lined up with hundreds of other people to run five miles in 40 degree weather. I ran it in 57:34. Twice my daughter found me and ran with me part of the way. One of the best memories I will treasure.
With one race under my belt, in a time that I was really proud of, I was hooked and ready for another race.
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
The Starting Line
In November of 2009, I participated in a Biggest Loser contest with the Taekwondo school I train at. I ended up losing twenty one pounds. When it was over, I wondered how I could keep from putting it back on(because that is my M.O.). I decided that I would train to run in the OKC Memorial Marathon in the Half Marathon event. And so my journey began.
I never really thought I liked running until I was in the 7th grade. Basketball (myfirstlove) was over and track season had begun. I was ready to sit this one out with the girls who detested sports when Coach Malone approached me and said "get in the truck you are running the mile". I looked at him, looked at the jean shorts and blue Keds I was wearing and said "no thanks". He said "get in". So I did.
We drove down the road. It seemed like we had driven forever. He dumped us out, told us to run back to the school and told me to keep up with the older girls. Ha ha ha, ok coach. So we took off. I didn't do too bad, I didn't do too great but as I was running and the school came into sight, I got really excited. This amazing feeling of accomplishment swept over me and I began to run a little faster. Soon I could hear the girls screaming for me as I neared the stop sign which stood as the finish line. A surge of energy came over me and I sprinted (which is a slow jog for most). I know I didn't look fast but I felt fast as I finished my first mile strong. I can still remember that feeling and I wanted to feel it again.
I never really thought I liked running until I was in the 7th grade. Basketball (myfirstlove) was over and track season had begun. I was ready to sit this one out with the girls who detested sports when Coach Malone approached me and said "get in the truck you are running the mile". I looked at him, looked at the jean shorts and blue Keds I was wearing and said "no thanks". He said "get in". So I did.
We drove down the road. It seemed like we had driven forever. He dumped us out, told us to run back to the school and told me to keep up with the older girls. Ha ha ha, ok coach. So we took off. I didn't do too bad, I didn't do too great but as I was running and the school came into sight, I got really excited. This amazing feeling of accomplishment swept over me and I began to run a little faster. Soon I could hear the girls screaming for me as I neared the stop sign which stood as the finish line. A surge of energy came over me and I sprinted (which is a slow jog for most). I know I didn't look fast but I felt fast as I finished my first mile strong. I can still remember that feeling and I wanted to feel it again.
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