SECRET CITY SUCCESS!!!!

I DID IT!!!!  I **FINISHED** Secret City!!!  In 2 hours and 20 minutes-ish.  I can hardly believe I finished.  Much less that I finished well under the 3-hour limit.  From Mile 1 my knees hurt like Crazy.  Oh heavens, they hurt.  I couldn't bend them.  Not even enough to pick them up to take my next stride.  It was incredibly painful, but I was bound to keep on.  I would want to stop and walk, but I kept telling myself that the only way to make the pain go away was to Finish!  I had to constantly fight myself to keep running. 

Even though my right foot didn't feel good last night or this morning, it didn't bother me at all until Mile 8.  Then at Mile 8 it was like all at once my foot went to pot.  The good thing about my foot hurting is that it took my mind off my knee pain. 

I struggled for most of the run, little by little.  There was a soldier running with his pack that I tried to keep up with from the start.  I did for the most part give or take.  The last mile of the race, I stop to walk for a few seconds.  A girl behind me came running up beside of me, grabbed my elbow and said, "you're not walking now.  I've been following you and every time I want to stop and walk I look up and see you still running and it keeps me going.  Now let's go."  Ahhhh.  God sent me a little angel.  Her name was Jesse.  We chatted for the remainder of the run and she was such a sweet girl.  Her birthday is tomorrow, the day before mine.  She also does Ultra Runs (like, 40+ mile runs).  She said she can run long distances but she's just not fast.  She ran a race yesterday in fact.  Incredibly sweet girl that came along just at the right time. 

Here's some photos!

The girls.  Love them.  We're missing Sharon in this picture. :(

Getting ready to start!

More of the starting line.

This is me at about 7 miles in.  I may look like I was having fun.... but don't read too much into that :)  I was in Pain!

And off I go again

This is Jesse and I coming into the Finish!  Woohoo!

Jesse and I almost done!

And Jesse and I finishing!  

My running sisters Sienna and Dana!  And Evie!

Annnnd my Birthday Cake made by my Fabulous Aunt!  I cannot explain how delicious this cake was.  It was a S'more cake and was absolutely heavenly.  Thanks Auntie!

I had a blast seeing my old running girls.  They're all such wonderful people!  I'm so glad I did all of this, and so glad it's all over.  I did it!!!!  Thank you all for your love and support and prayers!  Never forget that anything is possible and when the goin' get's tough, the tough get goin'.  Huuuggs!

Itttt's SHOWTIME!!!

Can you believe it's finally here?!  Secret City is TOMORROW!!!  I'm all cozied up in my hotel room relaxing before dinner tonight.  I Cannot Believe that tomorrow is the day.  Tomorrow is the day that I put on my running shoes and give this thing a go after 3+ months of training. 

Last night, I visited with Mimi and my wonderful family.  Today, I spent the afternoon with pseudo-sister and her munchkin and my SuperFantastic momma.  We picked up our race packets and I got my shirt and race chip.

Ain't they purrrty?  The race chip will tell the time-keeping gnomes exactly how long it took me to cross the finish line.  If all goes well, I'm aiming to finish in two hours and thirty minutes, or there about.  Depending on how my feet hold up tomorrow, it could be better and it might be worse.  My feet are still pretty tender and sore, BUT, at least I'm walking on them which is a huge improvement from last week. 

I'm excited!  Dinner with the girls tonight will be a lot of fun.  Tomorrow will be a whirlwind, but I promise to report back in a closing post complete with lots of pictures.  Pray for me!  YaaaYYY!  *Can't*Believe*It's*Here!*

Part-Aaay!

You know what's good for a little pre-race distraction?  A *PaRtY!*  So that's what I did tonight.  Partied 'til the cows came home.  Had you seen us, or heard us rather, at the dinner table you'd have thought there wasn't a sober one among us.  My cousin dialed in to the party and E told him we'd invite him next year.  She's such a riot.  We *Laughed* and *Giggled* and *Reminisced* and *Laughed* *Laughed* *Laughed.*  It took a whole group to blow out the one candle on E's birthday cake.  As her late spouse said on his death bed, as E reminded us tonight, "We had a good time."  These are the days I live for.

 
Happy Birthday E!

Two days to go.....!

Do You Believe?

Yes, I Do Believe in Santa Clause.  But CAN you Believe that Secret City is Just *3* *Days* Away?!  Ohhh meee goodness.  I thought it would Never get here!  And now I feel like I'm not ready for it :(  It's like Christmas Eve when you don't have all your shopping done.  It's near, Very near, and I need more time. 

As my brother says, "What do you do when it's Fourth and Long?  You drop back and punt the hell out of it."  I'm punting.  I hope it lands inside the one-yard line!  I found my "Tennessee Running Chicks" t-shirt tonight.  They're bright yellow shirts that the girls that I'm running with and I wore at the 200-mile relay race we did in Indiana.  It made me smile.  I've packed it in my suitcase just as a reminder of why I'm doing this, along with the Nike 26.2 necklace around my neck. 

Even though I physically feel pretty bad about this race, I'm pretty excited.  I get to meet pseudo-sister's precious little girl for the first time!  I'm going to challenge myself once more and enjoy the fresh air and sunshine, or the rain, whichever the good Lord decides to grace us with.

We're almost to Secret City!  I start my journey tomorrow, stopping at the farm tomorrow night and then on to Knoxville Friday night and to Oak Ridge on Saturday for Secret City on Sunday!  Ahhhh!  It's soooo close!  Here's a nervous "WaaaHoooo!!" for you!  Or as my father said today, "Wooo."  WaaHooo Wooo!

Broken Peroneus

Five days to go and my feet still hurt to walk :)  I will get through it!  Office-Landlord Doug came over today because he heard about my feet woes.  He looked at my feet and said.... "you'rrrre not gonna be able to run Sunday."  I scoffed and told him to "GeT OuTtA Here!"  O.K., not really, but I did scoff.  Told him I was GoNNA get my t-shirt! 

Office-Landlord says, "You realize that the bruising means there is blood from damaged capillaries floating around in there?" He then explained to me that right below a lot of my bruising is the Peroneus joint/ligament (?) that runs along side the bottom of my foot and up around my ankle to my mid-calf.  ....EXaCtly, where I hurt so bad.  So at least I have an unqualified self-diagnosis!  My Peroneus is injured!  Knowledge is power.  ...I have no idea what I will do with this knowledge other than run around telling people that my Peroneus is broken.  It's gonna be So Fun! 

Don't Stop... Belieeev'n!

I find it frustrating and repulsive that I'm barely walking a week before Secret City.  BUT, I refuse to stop *Belieeev'n!*  My legs from my toes to mid-calf feel like they are on FIIRE.  This weekend, I had the luxury of icing my feet 2-3 times a day.  Today, not so much.  Couldn't this morning - had to rush off to work.  Though I did stop to consider wrapping my ice packs around my feet on my long drive to work.  But I realized that if I did that, I wouldn't have cold ice packs to use tonight.  So I deferred my ice packs until tonight. 

I don't have a freezer at the office, so no ice during the day either.  My feet of fire were sooo glad to finally hit the couch this evening.  I haven't been able to ice or rest my feet as much as I would like (though I totally had my legs sprawled out on top of my desk today the few minutes I was sitting down). 

Today, I wore my necklace from the one full-marathon I ran in college.  Instead of medals, the finishers got a Tiffany's silver necklace that says "The Nike 26.2 FINISHER."  They had little men dressed in coat tails passing them out at the finish line off of silver platters.  True story.  I put it on to remind myself that sometimes the seemingly unachievable is absolutely achievable.  I plan to wear it all week as a reminder. 

And on to the next day.....

Ain't All Bad

Ice Ice Baby is the theme of the week.  I am Not giving up!  This week will be a lot of ice, rest and a *little* exercise here and there - maybe a little ride on the bike at the gym.  My original training schedule had me doing 6 miles this past weekend.  That.didn't.happen.  It also had me doing two 4-mile runs this week.  That's not gonna happen either.  When life throws you curves, you adjust.  You don't quit.  Albeit, any hope of performing really well at Secret City is out the window.  However, I do plan on performing.  It just might not be so purrrty.

Today, my evening went like this:

That's three ice packs, two bag of pees and one glass of wine.  See, it ain't all bad!

Ohhhh Bumfuzzle!

NurseMother says I have "stress sprains."  Today, my left foot also turned that yellow.going.to.bruise color and felt almost as bad as my right foot, but not quite.  Its most worse in the mornings.  During my runs in the past few weeks, my shins, calves and feet would hurt but I just thought it was normal aches and pains from running.  Who knew there were such things as "stress sprains?"  Or perhaps in a worst-case scenario they are even stress fractures.  Regardless of what they are or how they came about, I'm praying that they will go away or at least subside just enough to get me through Secret City.  I know they will.  I have asked the good Lord to get me through this and He will. 

I'm just so bumfuzzled about all this.  I had no idea you could get such things, much less that what I was doing would cause such.  This week will be interesting.  LOTS of ice on the schedule.

Spring, Sprang, Sprung

Ohhhhh *Boy*.....  My right foot you see.....  the one I couldn't walk on this morning..... is black and blue and swollen on both sides. 

I have No idea what this will mean for the next week.  :(  I have NO idea what happened.  NurseMother says I must have sprained it somehow.  I have 8 days to go.  Pray I get through this!

I Haven't Forgotten You!

I haven't posted in DaYsss.  But I didn't forget you.  I even took some pictures for you.  I was traveling for work and just didn't take the time to post. 

You'll have to pardon my finger.  I was running, ya know.

Tuesday, I took a run through downtown Nashville.  It was pretty nice.  The weather was great, much warmer than I expected actually.  I ran through downtown, across the bridge over the Cumberland River, around the Titan's Stadium, and back.  I had some uphills on the way back and could certainly tell that I haven't been training on any hills.  Whew.  (I walked some of the hills, but don't tell.) 

Then yesterday, I ran 3 miles on the treadmill doing "speed work."  I pushed myself pretty hard but was really glad to just be running 3 miles.  I felt O.K. while running last night, though my shins and calves were hurting a bit.  However, I woke up this morning to excruciating pain on the inside of my right foot just below my ankle bone.  I have NO *Idea* what has happened.  I seriously can barely walk this morning.  Though I finally figured out that if I walk on the outside of my right foot, it's not as painful.  I'm at a complete loss on this one.  I have no idea what the problem is or what caused it.  I just pray pray pray that it goes away SOON, like today!  I feel like a lame horse that can't put it's foot down.  It's really awful. 

So here's to hopefully a quick foot recovery! 

How Many More?

Iiiiiiii didn't run today.  My right quad is crazy sore.  I'm not sure what's up.  It feels like I strained it a bit.  But I can't imagine how, other than by playing soccer with my nephew.  But I don't recall it hurting ever until Sunday morning; and then I could hardly walk. 

I thought in theory that I might run today.  But work required lateness today and I was super hungry.  So I did not push it.  But I will run tomorrow.  I actually have to travel for work tomorrow and Wednesday but I'm planning ahead and planning when I will run.  Hopefully, it will actually work out just as planned and I will actually do it!

I had a most wonderful weekend, which I am still reeling off of.  Here's a little snapshot of my weekend:

My Last Long Run 'Til the Big Day!

Today I did my last long run until Secret City!  I ran 10-miles today and it went pretty well, I am *Pleased* to report.  It was/is a *BeaUtiful* day.  I waited 'til mid-morning to go run.  My brother's munchkins are in town so I waited 'til they went down for a nap..... for two reasons; 1) to procrastinate and 2) to let it warm up a little bit. 

The run went really well for the most part.  I was not concerned about how fast I was running whatsoever.  I didn't look at my watch for the entire run past 2.5 miles.  I tried to run better than a "i-might-as-well-be-walking" pace and I think I did for most of it.  With three miles to go I felt like I was at that "i-might-as-well-be-walking" pace.  It took me one hour and forty-eight minutes to finish the run.  Which is really slow, but who cares.  I didn't have to walk at all unlike last week.

My knees hurt quite a bit at the end but I pressed on and took some ibuprofen after my run.  All was well with just two weeks to go. 

I had plenty of time to just think during my run.  And so I did.  I thought about everything from Christmas presents to cows.  I'm looking forward to Christmas and already picking out some presents.  I thought about my cows and how much I do love them.  My friend Rachael, who runs her family's dairy, inspires me every day to be the cow loving girl I was born to be.  There's nothing better than good farmgirls.

I'm excited for the next two weeks.  Super excited to see my Secret City girls!!!

I can't concentrate much on this blog as I am being given vocal and dance performances by my niece and nephew.  It's incredibly precious.  Hate you're missing it!

Lame!

Ahhhh!!  I was totally lame today!  It didn't even rain!  It was beautiful.  I knew I should have stopped working and ran while it was light out.  But I wouldn't.  I kept working.  Then it got dusk.  Then I thought, maybe I'll run on the treadmill.  Then mom called and said she made a big dinner.  And then I came home and had a Mich Ultra.  Tisk Tisk.  I really am sad at myself.  I should have ran.  Soooo should have ran!

Tomorrow is another day.  I shall star anew.  Only *Two*Weeks* to go!

Treadmill Schmedmill

Today it rained.  So I retreated to the dumb treadmill.  And I did not kick its black belt tail.  I could only suffer through 4.5 miles today.  And some of that I walked.  But when I walked, I did walk on a Super D-Duper incline.  Daddy says its supposed to rain tomorrow too.  I don't particularly mind the rain, it's just that I don't like to run in it.  But I don't like to run on treadmills either.  But I Have to run tomorrow since I didn't run Monday or Tuesday. 

But little people are coming to see me tomorrow!  Wooo Hooo!  And I can finally get rid of my halloween candy by pawning it off on the little people whom my brother has to spend 3 hours in the car with :)

18 Days To Go

I can do this.  I can do this! Eighteen days left.  And I only have about 10 more runs to go!  But honestly, I'm having a hard time getting "pumped up" about the big day or the remaining of my training for that fact.  I can do this!!!!  I Will do this. 

After taking *3* days off (shamefully), I ran 5-miles today.  It took me 48 and a half minutes.  It was pretty hard.  But I suppose I should have expected that after taking 3 days off.  During my run I tried to think about the ways God has blessed me this week.  My small group asks this every week.  It seems like it should be a pretty easy answer.  After all, I am incredibly blessed with a great family, great friends, great job, great church, a great life in all.  But when you get to the specifics of how God blesses you from day to day, it makes you think harder instead of just stating generalities.  It definitely kept my mind of the difficulties of today's run and on positive things.

Back to it tomorrow.  There's a hard few days of running ahead of me for slacking the first of the week.

Ohhh Sheesh

I've been lazy.  Horribly, lazy.  Well, today I blame my bosses.  Sunday and Monday.... not so much.  Sunday was my recovery day.  Monday, I was Just lazy.  I had a duty to the trick-or-treaters!  Of which I had a Grand Total of 1, uno, eins, one.  So I ate 9 Reece Cups myself.  The price of peanut butter is going up ya know.  I needed to get my nutty intake somehow. 

Shush.  I needed them.  I did!!

Not.  And so today, I was going to run For Sure.  But I got stuck at the office until 7:30 and had a 40-minute drive home.  I know.  I totally should have ran regardless.  I didn't.  Uuuughhhh.  (I'm flailing my arms out to my side right now in that i.know.i.should.have.but.didn't.and.am.really.sorry sort of way.)

I'm only hurting myself.  I know, I know.  And I'm in for it.  Grrrrrr.

Mental Blocks

Yesterday was so rough that I had to wait until today to do my blog post.  I did a 12-mile run yesterday.  Actually, I sort of did a 12-mile run yesterday.  Yesterday morning it was rainy and cold.  So I intentionally post-poned my run until the afternoon.  I spent my morning in the cold and rain working cows.  Something I would much rather do than run in the cold and rain, or anytime really.  I planned a "quick" stop at Wal-Mart before I would start my run.  Ha!  Ha...Ha...ha!  Nothing "quick" about it dears.  Ughhh, when will I learn. 

I finally started my run around 4:30.  The way down to the six-mile mile marker went pretty well.  Other than the first half mile when my feet were *Killing* me.  Like, serious, major pain.  Luckily, I was smart enough to stop and loosen my laces.  And wa-la.  No more serious major pain in the feet.  So up to six miles, I was just plugging along.  Doing the thing.  Observing the Beautiful fall colors and Beautiful landscapes of farmland and pastures. 

At the six-mile turnaround, I did just that (brilliant, I know).  I hit a pretty big hill where a bridge used to be, but was destroyed by the tornado this summer.  I ran about halfway up the hill and then walked.  But I felt okay.  Shortly thereafter, it hit me.  The mental block.  My heart just wasn't in it, I thought.  And for the remainder of my run, I struggled.  When I got to mile 8, I stopped and walked for a bit.  I decided that I wasn't going to be too hard on myself and if I walked some, so be it.  However, for the next 4 miles, I struggled so bad.  Long about mile 9, while walking AgaIn, I started to forget the whole "not be so hard on myself" attitude.  It started to really bother me that I was having to walk so much because I couldn't mentally get through it.  I think physically, I could have ran the entire 12 miles.  It would have hurt but I'm sure that I could have done it.  After all, I've done it before.  I just mentally could not get through this run.  I started to sniffle.  I started to tear up.  I thought "run! you can't cry if you're running!" 

And then there before me, about 20-yards head, out popped a precious black bear cub on the trail.  I immediately stopped (walking).  He/she immediately stopped, looked at me, pondered it's next move, and then darted down the hillside.  Ahhhh.... God was encouraging me.  He gave me something to get excited about, something to appreciate the fact that I was out there.  He knew I needed a pick-me-up.  God is so good.  I was aware enough to realize that Momma Bear must be nearby as well, so I hummed a little tune loudly so I wouldn't startle her wherever she might me.  Don't.Startle.Bears.  Wilderness Rules #1-10.

I finished my run eventually.  It took me two hours and twenty-six minutes.  F.O.R.E.V.E.R.  I walked on and off for the entire second half of my run.  I was not pleased with myself or my running.  It's mentally getting very hard.  I have three weeks to go.  I can do this.  I can do this.  I can do this.....

Ta-Ha!

Iiiiiii gave that treadmill WhatFor today!  Ta-Ha!  Take that grim reaper!  I Did you, Owned you, Overcame you!  Naaa-naa-na-naaa-na!  I did it :)  5 miles ON the treadmill today!  WITHOUT stopping OR Walking!  Incredible.  I thought it would never happen.  I kicked that thing's booty.

So maybe I'm exaggerating, a lot, but ya know, I'm pretty excited regardless.  I'm starting to conceive the notion that the faster I run, the less time I have to spend running.  And yeah, even saving myself a mere 2-minutes of running gives me joy.  I finished my 5-mile legit treadmill Run in 48 minutes today.  I convinced myself to put it on 6.2 speed.  I even cranked it up to 6.3 for a few short spurts.  And down to 6.1 a few times as well.  But I ran the whole time! 

Halloween is coming.  I can't wait to see photos of my sweet little people in their costumes.  They're so cute.

See.  I told you so.  Those are old pics but they never stop being cute.

Be safe you Halloweeners!  Watch out for the little tricksters and treaters!

Speed Racer

Today I was a speed racer.  Not literally.  Not even comparatively.  Not even close really.  But I felt like it.  'Cause I was super rushed.  Wednesdays I have a small group Bible study in the evenings.  So I need to get right out the door from work asap.  And the past two weeks - that hasn't happened.  Wednesdays have been my craziest days. 

So my want-to-be 5 mile run turned in to a Super Rushed 4-miles.  I initially thought I would just have time for 3 but I really wanted to do at least 4.  So I ran ran ran ran and hopped in the car and zoomed to small group.  I did not take time to stretch before Or after.  Tisk Tisk.  But I am icing at the moment.  It took me 37 minutes, give or take, to run 4 miles.  And I was hurrying.  Or so I thought I was. 

Just keep running.......

Bad Decisions

Today was a day of bad decisions.  I sat half the day in an administrative board hearing.  Always a bad decision.  Though in a weird twisted way, it sometimes can be quite entertaining.  But still a bad decision.  After the work day was done I thought about running.  But I was sore from yesterday's run and not feeling up to par from the FOUR shots I got today in my arms.  So I didn't run.  Second bad decision.  Today was a reminder of what I am going to feel like on November 21, the day after Secret City.

THEN, I thought about going to Zumba.  And didn't.  Another bad decision.  Instead, I came home, had a glass of wine, pathetically carved a pumpkin and watched Gilmore Girls.  And had lots of great fun.

Told you it was pathetic :)  But it was still fun :)

It's back to Secret City business tomorrow.  Getting closer!

Live'n On A Prayer

OHhhhh, I'm *Almost* There, OHhh-OHhh, I'm live'n on a prayer!  :)  I'm almost there!!!  Must keep going, must keep going!  Drum roll please..... I ran 10 miles tonight.  It was not fun but I did it!  It took me one hour and forty-two minutes.  The 5 miles down took me 48 minutes.  But I was a bit slower on the way back and it's slightly uphill, at least in some spots, so all in all, I was proud of myself.

At one point, my left toes and shin got almost numb.  It was very strange.  I had to stop and wiggle my ankle around a bit.  When I was buying new shoes, the Mizuno website has a series of steps is has you do to determine the right shoe.  I've worn the same shoe for years now but just wanted to double check.  One of the steps is to stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and squat to the floor.  If you can keep your heels on the ground when you squat all the way to the floor, you have normal flexibility in your ankles.  If you have to come to your toes to squat all the way down, you have restricted movement in your ankles.  According to these people at least.  I, of course, am not normal and have restricted movement in my ankles.  I wonder if this caused the weird near-numbness feeling today.  But then again, I don't remember ever feeling that before I got these new shoes.  So, maybe they're just not broke in real well yet.

Who knows.  I ran.  I succeeded in finishing.  I'm close to the end.  And I just want to finish and enjoy myself.  Goal and Goal.  :)  Now I'm icing, icing and icing.  And ibuprofen-ing. 

Here's a little clip that I just Love that I have meant to share with y'all for a while now and keep forgetting.
http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/terry_moore_how_to_tie_your_shoes.html

I hope that link works.  If not, Google "Terry Moore: How to tie your shoes" or look for it on Ted.com.

Hoddy Toddy

Thursday evening my dear Daddy and I headed out for a *Road*Trip* to Oxford, MS.  I knew the weekend would be busy and I wasn't sure if I would run or not over the weekend.  So Friday morning I hopped on the hotel treadmill (and even talked my daddy into joining me) and did a 3-mile "speed" workout.  I use quotations marks, because "speed" is a relative term to me.  My "speed" workout involved maxing out at 9-minute miles.  And no, not for a mile straight; just up to that speed.

Before we left the hotel, I took some ice bucket liners and filled them up with ice.  And this is how you ice your aches and shin splints on road trips:

Saturday, we enjoyed tailgating in The Grove and a great SEC football game between the Ole Miss Rebels and the Arkansas Razorbacks, thanks to our gracious friends and hosts.

We ate... A Lot.  We visited with friends and met new ones, enjoyed the sites and southern hospitality of Oxford and we ate... A Lot. 

Sunday morning my feet hit the floor and splintering pains shot up my shins.  :(  It's so sad.  And so frustrating. 

We went to a popular bakery on "the Square" in Oxford called Bottletree.  We got there just in time to A. get a table; and B. have Eli Manning and family join us for breakfast!

And for breakfast, we had a cinnamon roll.

Possibly the largest cinnamon roll in the world!  And quite possibly the tastiest!  I think there was a pound of icing on it!

All that I will get to run off tomorrow.... in what needs to be my first true long run in two weeks.  I'm trying to think positively!

Accomplishments

I made Huge accomplishments this morning.  I got up.  (That's an accomplishment in itself.)  Early.  (Super accomplishment).  And worked out.  This morning!  :)  Woohoo!  That won't happen too often.  But all went well.  It was cold and the wind was blowing 60 miles an hour and rainy.  So, I did that dreaded thing and ran on the treadmill.  I ran 4 miles, though I confess that I did walk some too. 

My legs still hurt.  But I carry on.  I didn't get to ice them last night (due to small group) or this morning after my workout.  I have no ice at my office.  But I will continue to stretch a lot today.  I'm leaving town today and will be gone through the weekend, so there is No Telling what my workouts will bring for the next several days.  My long run for the weekend (which hasn't been an actual "run" in 2 weeks - yikes) will probably get pushed to Monday.  We'll see.

I did get on the scales at the gym this morning and they say I've lost 8 pounds.  Which is pretty great considering I still eat whatever I want to.  But all scales are different, so the weight I last recall registering on different scales, could have been off.  I feel like maybe I've lost 3 or 4 pounds.  I can't really tell the weight loss in my clothes, but then again, I don't pay much attention.  That's not what this endeavor was about.  I do feel like my legs are stronger, my whole body really, except my arms.  They don't feel stronger.  Not really all that surprising. 

So "yay!" for feeling stronger.  Cool if I lost a few pounds.  And now I think that I deserve a cupcake.  :) 

I Am Not Alone

I KNOW I'm not alone in spirit.  I am NEVER alone in spirit.  I've got the Big Guy stride-by-stride with me always.  I've got *amazing* peeps who support me through prayers, blog comments, texts, e-mails, hugs, phone calls, gchats, you name it, I got 'em.  But I also learned today that I'm not alone in the physical "i.wasnt.made.to.be.a.runner" aspect. 

Today it rained.  It rained a lot.  Today it got cold.  Real cold.  Real fast.  I wasn't about to ruin those purrrrty new shoes of mine outside.  No way hosea.  I know, dedication.  So back to the gym I went.  To the *DreAded* treadmill.....  (*duhn*duhn*duhn*) (that was a sound effect in case you didn't catch it).  It was like staring at the grim reaper.  Stupid treadmills.  Treadmills cast a spell upon my body that make it IMpoSsible to run for any length of time. 

My work day ended in chaos and I needed to get.out.the.door to get to the gym to have enough time to get a workout in so I could make it to the first meeting of my small group on time.  I'm still a little nervous about this small group thing.  But I think it's going to be a great thing, once I get comfortable.  And they feed me.  And it's not bowls of cereal or pb&j.  Super plus.

Anyhow, I decided that I couldn't do anything about the chaos at work, and I needed to get.out.the.door.  So finally, I did.  I was just late.  By the time I got to the gym, a 5-mile (50 minute) run was out of the question.  Four miles (40 minutes) was possible.  I faced the grim reaper treadmill and started running.  Half a mile.  One mile.  One mile and a quarter.  One mile and half.  One mile point six. One mile point six six.  ....Onnn and on I stared at that stupid screen on the treadmill and convinced myself it was broken.  Not really, but I really wanted to believe it was broken.  So I gave in and told myself if I made it to 2 miles, I would "let" myself walk on a super duper incline for another mile before running the last mile.  So at 2 miles, I slowed the speed way down and put that puppy on a Super D-Duper incline and climbed a mountain for just over half a mile. 

While I was climbing, nice gym man (manager/owner?) brought some new towels to the cardio room and commented on the Super D-Duper incline I was not enjoying.  He said, "you must be a serious runner."  Ha!  I corrected him Real fast.  I told him about Secret City, noted that it is exactly one month and one day from today, and that I quit running some time ago.  Then he went on to tell me about how he used to run often, do 5ks and 10ks a lot, but just for the challenge and the t-shirts.  He, like me, said he never enjoyed running, he just did it for the challenge.  We talked about how running for us never ever gets easier, is not all too enjoyable for us, and some bodies just weren't made to be legit runners. 

I try to have a good attitude about running and dream of some day loving it.  But I felt so liberated when this man shared the exact same sentiment and experiences with running as I have had.  (And no, he wasn't just agreeing with me to hit on me.  He seems a very nice man, married with grown children and it was a slow day at the gym so he probably was a bit bored.)  I'm not made to be a runner.   But *That's*O.K.!*  I run for the challenge.  Not because I'm good at it.  Not because it makes the world make sense to me.  But because it is a challenge and it brought me together with some wonderful women who inspire me and support me and is bringing us together again.

I started this blog hopping that by the end of this training I would love running.  I now feel silly for hoping that.  It's O.K. that I don't love running.  Running is good for me mentally, physically and spiritually.  But so what if I don't love it?  Soooooo What???  I can still do it when I'm motivated by amazing women and friends. 

Planning to run (at the gym on the grim reaper treadmill tomorrow MoRninG!)  We shall see.  You know how I don't loooove my mornings.

Back At It

Today I was back to the trail.  I ran 5 miles in 45 minutes and 58 seconds.  My fastest yet, I think.  I'm very surprised because I was cringing the entire way.  I felt like around 3 miles, I really slowed down.  But apparently, not as much as I thought.  The first half-mile of my run usually takes me 4 minutes and 20 or 30 seconds.  Today it took me 3 minutes and 20 seconds.  I guess I was excited to try out those new kicks.

Really, I was probably running out my frustrations of lately.  My legs were tired from my workout yesterday and I could feel it.  I continue to ice and stretch.  Trusty peas.

And I, unfortunately, continue to dread my runs.  Dreading tomorrow's already.  Sigh.

New Shoes!

They came!  And they're purrrty.  :)  See!

Ta-da!

So, today I did my long quasi-run for the week.  Actually, for last week.  I planned on doing 12 "miles" on the elliptical.  "They" say that the elliptical is just as good for you as running.  But, I don't believe it.  Running seems harder. 

I did 9 miles on the elliptical in 86 minutes.  Then I ran 1 mile on the treadmill which took me 10 minutes or so.  ....In my brand new kicks.  I am certain that 96 minutes is the longest I've Ever done cardio indoors.  So all in all, I did 10 miles.  I had planned on doing 12.  But honestly, I was just *Tired.*  Even as I got off the elliptical and onto the treadmill, I planned on doing 2 miles on the treadmill.  But half a mile in, I was begging to be done.  So I let myself quit at 10.  And I was so completely exhausted once I finally got home, I had a lovely bowl of cereal for dinner.  Ain't no shame in it.

Progress

This weekend I made a little progress on getting back to my normal running routine.  Saturday I did not run.  I went shopping.  And my legs were screaming throughout the day.  But I pressed on, of course.  I iced them Saturday night and took ibuprofen. 

Since I've been on the elliptical all week, I didn't want to start back to pavement with my regularly scheduled long run.  I hope to ease my feet back on to the pavement little by little.  So today, I ran 4 miles on pavement.  And my legs did okay!  Knock on wood. 

Since I didn't do a long run this weekend, I'm planning on doing a long "run" on the elliptical tomorrow.  That'd be 12 miles on the elliptical.  Sounds exhausting.  And then I can start easing back to pavement and trail this week and get back on schedule.  And hopefully my *new* shoes will be here soon!

I will keep icing and keep stretching all week.  Momma tried to help stretch me Saturday night.  ....she tried.  :)  Which I appreciated.  She was a little confused about the whole process, but she tried, like the great momma she is.

Now I'm going to go sulk because tomorrow is Monday.

Friday Night or BuuhSt!

Some people like to celebrate Fridays with 4:00 happy hours.  Some with date night.  Some with bar hopping.  Some with family game night.  Some with high school football games (oooh, the days). 

Me.... pssshh.  I've always been a lil' "different" ya know.  :)  I worked late :)  Hit the gym for a 50-minute elliptical workout.  :-/  Went to *Target!*  Sipped on a pumpkin spice latte while cruising the aisles of *Target!* for baby shower goodies for the preacher's wife and buying adorable pink *sparkly* shoes for my niece. :) 

THEN, I cruised through the Brand New Chic-fil-A and had some SpaCtacular waffle fries :)  And THEN, I rounded out *my* kind of Friday night like this,

Ahhh.... the Joys of running!  It would be a little better if I had a pint of Ben & Jerry's.  I'll save that for *my* kind of Saturday night :)

Today was was an eery kind of day at the office.  It was dark outside, storming much of the day with *LOUD* thunder, the phone at the office didn't ring once until 4:00, and I had only 2 work emails all day (when I usually have 20ish, daily).  I'm not a fan of thunderstorms.  At all.  With all the quietness in the office and all the darkness and thunderness outside, I felt like something ominous was on the prowl. 

The GOOD news is that I got tons of work done!  I had to work late today and so I was late getting started on my workout today.  Landlord Doug told me today that I needed to try the Cybex machine at the gym.  It's an elliptical machine, but just made differently from your normal elliptical.  He bragged about how great it was and how much he loved it.  So, I thought I'd give it a try tonight. 

.....PpsssshhhhH!  Dougster can ride that machine all day long but I myself will pass on that opportunity in the future.  I ran like a grasshopper on that thing for 50 minutes.  I went 2 and a quarter miles.  ...In 50 minutes.  It's like climbing a mountain pulling your knees up to your chest every step.  I was not loving it.  Of course I like to see the miles rack up on whatever machine or trail I'm on.  But the miles weren't tick'n today.  But I ASSURE you, I got a workout. 

I headed for my long drive home and had to stop at the drug store to use a coupon that was about to expire (it saved me $15!).  Then I got home, showered, packed for the weekend, made me a PB&J sandwich (upscale, I know) and sat down to eat it and simultaneously fold clothes at 9:00.  Nine o'clock.  I finished the sandwich and folding and returned to the household chores of dishes and laundry.  I repeat... I*Do*Not*Know*How*You*Mothers*Do*It.  It was all I could do to feed Lassie cat and myself.  And she had dry cat food and I had PB&J.

Whew.  I did ice my legs while eating and folding clothes.  They feel like they could use some more ice.  If I can stay awake long enough, I'll ice them again before I go to bed.  ...Heading that way now.

And They Care

More caring happened today and it was wonderful.  My office landlord came in today to check on a "beeping"  noise that I was totally ignoring because I was too lazy to get up and see what it was about.  Landlord Doug came in with his superstar sidekick Lisa and they looked at me sitting at my desk and said, "don't you hear that?"  I shrugged my shoulders and said "yeah...."  It was that kind of day.

Superstar Sidekick Lisa said "my dear, you don't look like you feel good."  I said, "yeah, I've got shin splints or something or the other."  Doug, who's awesome and wears basketball shorts to work most days, said "are you icing those legs?"  I said, "uh huh.  I've got some super frozen peas."  Then Doug turned to me, pointed his finger like all dad's do when they're serious, and said, "I'll tell you what I tell my daughter.  You're running too much.  And it's not going to stop hurting until you stop the pounding on your legs."  Doug's two children are/were college athletes you see, and since he was wearing basketball shorts, he looked like he knew what he was talking about.

I said "but, I can't stop now!"  Sir Doug said, "No, no, you don't have to stop.  You just have to stop the pounding.  You can get on an elliptical and get the same benefit without the pounding."  Ahhh.... Landlords in basketball shorts are so wise!  "That's not a bad idea," I said. 

Then I told Doug and Superstar Sidekick Lisa about my new shoes that I ordered.  Doug agreed and said the shoes could be part of the problem too.  Lisa said, "aren't you supposed to get new running shoes every six months or something?"  Doug asked how old mine were and I said with a half-shoulder shrug, "a year and a half."  Doug rolled his eyes, pointed his finger at me again like all dad's do when they're serious and said, "elliptical," as he walked out the door.

Why hadn't I thought of this before??  Doug's so smart.  So, I'll tell ya what I did.  I went to the gym after work and paid my $6 to beat up on an elliptical machine for 45 minutes.  I went 4.6 miles in 45 minutes on the "cross-trainer" setting (which is pretty intense mind you).  I thought for a minute that my legs might start hurting and I begged them not to so that I didn't have to stop.  And wa-la.  Super workout, no pain (though still icing tonight Just in case), and I feel better about life than when Doug and Superstar Sidekick Lisa first found me this morning completely ignoring the blaring beeping they heard from next door.

And then I came home and had hummus and blackberry cobbler for dinner.  Don't judge.  ...And FYI, "New Girl" is the funniest show on earth right now.  I'm in love.

Support

My friends and family are amazing.  Occasionally, I have to remind myself of that.  I have been flooded with support and love since my crappy and brutal run on Saturday.  My family calls, my friends ask, these beautiful people take time out of their busy to day to research and reach into their resources to help me.  I'm just so blessed.  Though I'm training alone for Secret City, I'm never alone.  And that's an amazing feeling that keeps me going when I really get down.

Some of my *amazing* friends posted stretches and suggestions for me to try.  I had a great internal debate about whether to run today or not.  Just to be safe, I didn't.  Instead, I spent a good 45 minutes Just Stretching my legs.  In every sort of way I could possibly think of to stretch my legs, I stretched.  Unfortunately, I didn't have anyone handy to help me stretch as a few of the found and recommended stretches called for, but I did what I could.  I pulled on my toes, the sides of my feet, squatted on my toes, held my legs above me and beside of me, you name it, I did it if it had been recommended or I could think of it.

I also ordered a new pair of running shoes today.  I had been thinking about ordering a new pair, but knew if I was going to do it I needed to do it soon so that they will be plenty broke in by Secret City.  So, shoes were bright on my mind after Saturday's run and these shin splint/leg aches I have prompted me to take action in the shoe department.  The shoes I have been running on are trail shoes.  When I bought them a year and a half ago, I was running on a bike trail 90% of the time.  Now, it's about 50/50 between a bike trail and pavement.  The tread is worn off my current shoes and because they're trail shoes, they're a bit heavier than normal running shoes.  I've always heard that you should replace your running shoes every 500 miles.  While I don't keep count, I'm pretty sure that my trail shoes are at least close to having 500 miles on them, if not more.  Regardless, new shoes are on the way.

I'm going to run tomorrow.  I've taken 3 days off in a row, so it's time to give it another go.  I will only do 3 or 4 miles tomorrow, and probably won't do a long run this weekend.  But we'll just see how things go.

Hugs and kisses to all my supporters out there.  Y'all are the absolute best and mean the world to me.  I couldn't do this alone and knowing that I'm not alone is the greatest treat in the world to get me to Secret City.  XoXo!

Runner Down

Shin splits.  Mother said these words on Saturday and I thought, "eah, people get those all the time.  No problem.  I can shake it off."  Originally, (meaning as of Saturday), I thought I'd still run today.  As of this morning, I thought that I'd do some cross training, such as the Jillian Michaels DVD.  This evening, I thought "Not!"  My mother-diagnosed shin splits do juuuuuust fine.  ....Until I'm on feet for say... 10 minutes or something crazy like that. 

So, I decided that yoga would be good for me And my legs today.  I thought it would stretch my legs and help my shin splints and still be a decent activity to do.  Well, it wasn't nearly as feel-good as I thought.  At All.  See that whole 10-minute on my feet thing above. 

And after yoga, making dinner complete with an appetizer and dessert, my legs were back to feeling like they were blown up from the inside.   

My training this week may take some devastating blows.  I consulted WebMD about shin splints, as every girl seeking partial advice for a self-diagnosis would do.  WebMD wasn't nearly as passive about the treatment of shin splints as I thought.  Ah hem.... "they" (whoever that is) says it's not uncommon to take 3-6 months to heal from shin splints and that if you keep running on shin splints, you will do permanent damage.  "They" recommend lots of rest and ice. 

Sigh.  Ice, I can do.  But I refuse to quit training.  I have yet to decide how the rest of this training week is going to go.  I will definitely scale the mileage down a lot this week.  But hopefully, I don't have to not run at all this week.  I will play it by ear.  I will keep you posted!

It Ain't Good

Here's the latest report.  ...And it ain't good. 

Saturday morning I yanked myself out of bed early to do this @$^%$*! 12-mile run.  I was determined to do it.  During mile 6, my right knee started hurting a bit.  I shook it off and carried on.  During mile 8, the side of my right knee/hip/thigh started hurting.  I told the pain to go away and insisted on ignoring it.  The side of calves hurt just above my ankles, with sharp yet dull pain shooting through my legs.  The last mile and a half, I honestly didn't know if I could finish.  I hurt so bad, was so over the fact that by the time I finished, I would have ran for 2 hours, and I *hurt.*  I wanted to cry, but luckily, *you*can't*cry*while*running.*  I felt like even if I stopped running, there was no way I could even walk the last mile and half.  So, I did the only thing I knew to do.... I kept running.

I finished in 2 hours exactly.  And wanted to crawl.  To say that I was hurting, is an understatement.  I knew I wouldn't have time to soak my legs in cold water when I got home, which was incredibly disappointing.  If I've ever needed an ice water soak, it was then.  BUT, it was a Saturday on a fall day in east Tennessee.  You.See. 

*Tailgating* & *UT*Football* required a rush order on my next move. 

So, as any well-trained southern girl would do, I adapted.  I iced on the go!

This shall start the list of my injuries from my 12-mile run.  Remember me saying the sides of calves above my ankles were hurting?  Uh huh.  Swollen.  The right worse than the left, but both swollen.  And sore to the lightest touch.  Still swollen and sore today.

My right knee.  Nearly too stiff to bend.  And continues in the same condition today.  Extremely painful.

And my left knee.  General aches and pains on the outside of my knee.  Quite a bit better today. 

In addition to these injuries, I have severely chaffed inner-thighs, sore quads, and a sore bum even.  What's worse than running 12-miles in great pain and resulting injuries such as above?  ....Doing said activity in an underwire bra.  Uuuuh*huh.  Someone didn't double-check their overnight bag.  Super.


The joys of tailgating, fall, football and family and friends dulled some of the pain for the remainder of the day.  And the day continued like this:

With a disappointing ending, but an exciting game for an SEC rivalry.

And then I got that.  A pretty gnarly blister from the orange and white wedges I wore to the game and walked a few miles in to, from and around the stadium.

The day got really great when I crawled into bed at 1 a.m. with allll my aches and pains, still in Full force and effect and slept like I hadn't slept in days.  Then I woke up and enjoyed my most favorite treat. 

A Dunkin' Donuts old fashioned donut. 

And then I enjoyed a most blessed Sunday.

I will need Lots of *ice* this week to fix these aches and pains.  My mother has diagnosed the swollen spots on my legs as shin splints.  I've started taking ibuprofen and glucosamine.  Here's to the road to recovery.

It's Personal

"Don't take it personally."  P*Lease.  When someone says that, it's clearly personal.  My running is personal.  And I do take it personally.  Uughh.  I just keep trying.  I'm not any good at it, and I truly don't look forward to it.  But I keep doing it because I said I would.  And if I weren't running I'd be ballooning into a lazy, unfocused couch potato. 

I piddled around Forever tonight putting off my run.  I have had a super long week at work, was soo tired and hungry too.  Between my office door and the 100 yards to the trailhead, I managed to piddle for twenty minutes before I finally started my run with a roll of the eyes.  I ran 5 miles in 48 minutes.  My thighs felt like cinder blocks.  I think I need a lot more yoga in my life to stretch out my heavy legs and relax. 

Oooooh, I need to relax.  I absolutely cannot wait for this weekend.  (Except that whole 12-mile run thing.  Let's not talk about that.)  It's been a rough week.  Can you tell?

It Was An Octopus

It's funny how when I take one day off from running, my body acts like it's been weeeeeeks since I last ran and that it's nearly impossible to get going again.  ONE DAY!  I started my run this evening and I felt like, as ESPN commentators once spoke of Casey Clausen trying to run the football, "an octopus falling out of a tree."  Truly, I'm not sure I could have possibly felt more awkward. 

It took me a mile and a half to ditch the octopus tentacles.  Only to pick up half a ton of bricks to distribute between my feet.  The bricks tagged along for an additional 2 miles.   Finally, my body remembered how to run like a normal personal with a mile and a half to go.  I finished my 5 mile octopus run in 48 minutes. 

I saw some pretty horses today and a Lot of smiling runners (while Super refreshing an appreciated, I can't help but want to stop those Smiling crazies runners and ask them What In the WoRld they are smiling about!)  They know something I don't.  I'm GOING to figure it out!

....Maybe.

Can't Catch A Break

I can't catch a break.  Really, this is what I feel like lately.  Lately, meaning Today.  I was born to be a farm girl and I should clearly not be using technology.  It is Never my friend.  On top of that, I can't get one thing done at work for getting another thrown at me.  I'm trying to get the piles off my desk just so that I can find the things I need to work on.  Crazy.

So today I intended to rest my knee/thigh/hip thingamajig.  And I InTended to rest in general.  Yeah, well, you know what they say about the best intentions.  ...It's something clever I'm sure.  It was a looooong day.  I didn't sit down until nearly 11pm.  No yoga, no lazy couch sitting, nope.  Just busy busy. 

About mid-day, my knee ached when I tried to get up from my pathetic excuse for an office chair.  It made me nervous.  Knee problems are hard to get over once they start peeps!  And this is the opposite knee that I normally have problems out of. 

We'll see how tomorrow goes.  It's not going to go so swell if I don't get in bed!  Looooong day!

Injury! Injury!

The little girl who cried wolf.  Not really!  My first injury related problem of my training!  Help! 

So, I ran 4 miles today on my lunch break.  I got late information that my evening was going to be occupied so I took the liberty to run during my lunch break.  Even though I'm usually very opposed to such because I get all sweaty and icky and my hair.... pshhh, let's just not even go there.  But I did today.  It took me 38 minutes and 40 seconds.  (Still under 10-minute miles!) 

Near mile 2, the outside of my right leg from the knee up started hurting, all the way up to my hip.  I actually had to stop at 2.5 miles and try to stretch it.  How do you stretch the outside of your thigh???  I haven't figured it out yet.  It was like my bone ached.  I finished the run, went back to my desk, and continued to ache every time I got up.  It Hurts!  *Bad!*  And I don't know what to do about it.  I guess I have to rest it tomorrow and pray it's all better.  Though if any of you have recommendations on how to fix an achey and sore outside thigh/knee/hip, whatever all the business is, I'm allll ears!

I'm going to go look up some crazy yoga poses now.

I Almost Died Today

Kinda.Really.Truly.  Almost died.  Yeah, yeah, the run was terrible and I hurt really bad and kinda wanted to die, but I Really Almost Died Today.  I Really Kinda Truly was Almost FLATTENED by a Tour Bus/RV.  We're talking arms FlaiLing, me half-Leaping half-being Blown down into an embankment over large pools of water.  Yeah, it was spectacular.  AND of Course, NO, there was NOT someone in the other lane preventing him from moving over to Not Nearly FLATTEN the girl jogging in the bRight Red shirt and Whiiiite hat.  Don't Even pretend like you didn't see me mister.  I've had some close, unnerving calls before folks, but This was Something Else.  Near Death, I tell you.

So, obviously I ran today.  I felt awwwful.  I didn't want to do it.  I've been fighting this nagging cold/allergy/something nasty all week and I just felt bad.  I laid in my hammock, wrapped in a fleece blanket, book in hand, and Finally convinced myself that I HAD to do my long run for the week.  It was a very depressing moment.  Thank goodness Superwoman made me pancakes this morning. 

I had originally planned on running 12 miles today.  The cold/allergy/something nasty started to change my mind about that earlier in the week.  And even laying in my hammock this afternoon, I considered just doing 8 miles.  But I convinced myself that it was OK to just maintain this week, but that I was not going to move backwards.  So I did 10 miles.  A Legit, honest, hard, somewhat hilly, 10 miles in one hour and 43 minutes.  At mile 7, I told myself that if I could just make it to mile 8, then I would let myself finish the last 2 miles however I could; walk, crawl, skip...  The last half of mile 7 was a slow incline, for.half.a.mile.  So when I reached the top of the incline and 8 miles, I convinced myself I could make it and that life wasn't so bad.

It hurt.  I hurt.  I soaked in ice-cold water for ten minutes, showered, and then at some goat cheese and "chicken of the woods" pizza that Superwoman and I shared from the *amazing* Harvest Table http://www.meadowviewfarmersguild.com/HarvestTable.html.

Not Swell

Today, was not so swell.  From.the.getgo.  I woke up, and was woken up numerous times through the night, to the *ding*ding* of my Blackberry.  You see, between midnight and 7:30 this morning I had 90 (yes, 90!) emails come to my work account.  No, these weren't "things I need to take care of" emails, but rather, repeat emails.  One email sent to me 50 times, another 20, another 10, you get the picture.  And this continued throught the day.  Until I finally removed that email account from my Blackberry.  I will re-add it when the !$%#$#(#$%#%(! server "engineers" get their act together.

My day continued with one internet or wireless issue after another and consisted of hateful phone calls to the !$##%%$%!#$%! sever "engineers."  I hate being hateful, I Really Do!

And to top it off, I feel like crum crimminy cricket today.  I ran 4 miles today and my nose was running faster than I was.  I finished in 38 minutes and 20 seconds (less than 10 minute miles, which I was pleasantly surprised with considering how I felt).  I was going to run 5, and even wanted to run 6, but once I got going, I knew there was little hope of that. 

My legs are not too impressed with this new goal of mine.  They were so heavy.  I'm pretty sure I heard them say, "Excuse me, but WhO authorized this goal??  Cause it wasn't us!"  My legs felt heavy the entire run.  There was no easing off. 

I really think my bed needs me right now.  And I'm anxious to go comfort it.  But first I have dinner with lovely Herdmother and a shopping list to cover.  You probably won't hear much from me through the weekend.  I know, don't all cry at once.  Superwoman is coming to see me.  And we will be busy.  The good news, however, is that I should return with lots of *pretty*pretty* pictures for you.

I would like to get up and run 3 miles in the morning, since my long run this week probably won't be until Sunday.  But, those of you who think I will actually do that please raise your hand.  Now slap your silly self with it.

I Have A Goooooooal!!!!

After Weeks and Weeks of training without much focus, I have Finally realized a *Goal!*  One of my first posts was about finding a goal.  FInally, I have one.  Granted, it's not a goal that's going to change my life or push me to extremes that I've never been to before, BUT it's a *Goal!*

I Must have a goal.  I Must have focus.  Now, I Do!  You see, yesterday's run gave me something to think about.  It was hard and I pushed myself really hard and it paid off.  I ran the fastest I've ran 5 miles in potentially-ever.  I surprised myself.  So I said, "self, you should push yourself more everyday because you know you can."  So now that I know I can run 5 miles in 45 and a half minutes, I know that I Should be running faster and pushing myself everyday.

So here it is folks, my *Goal* for now is to STOP running 10-minutes miles.  I know I can run faster, so therefore, I Should run faster.  Now I don't expect or necessarily desire to run 9-minute miles consistently.  But I do know that I should Not be running 10-minute miles consistently.  Perhaps with the exceptions of my long runs and really bad days.

I'm still a little miffed over last week's long run.  I want to think I miscalculated the miles because I can't Believe I ran near 11-minute miles.  I sure wasn't anywhere near 9-minutes miles, but I am surprised that I ran 11-minute miles.  Oh well.  Regardless, moving on and moving forward.  With my new *Goal!*  :)

Today I ran 5 miles in just over 47 minutes.  And it was comfortable.  I wasn't killing it like yesterday but I was pushing myself a little more than I have in the past.  I think goals make things more fun.  Don't settle for status quo.  Don't just maintain.  Always aim to improve.  I Have A Gooooooal!!!

Gosh Golly Wilikers!!

I ran 5 miles tonight in..... wait for it....... !!!!!!

*Forty-Five*minutes and *thirty seconds!*  !!!!!!!!!!  If my math is correct (and it's probably not), that's 9 minute and six second miles!  That's 54 seconds per mile faster than my usual!  WoW! 

I saw the Cutest sight on the trail ever.  There was this SUpeR cute fella, MaYbe 4 years old in a polo shirt and his hair flopping in the wind as he Very Seriously ran down the trail.  Behind him was his Papa jogging with the lil' fella's younger sibling in the jogging stroller, And behind them was the AboutAgeSeven Sister jogging behind, also Very Serious.  When we passed she puffed up her cheeks like any exhausted jogger would, yet in a very dramatic and childlike way.  SoooOoooo darn adorable!  Way to go Papa, start them early!

My collar bones hurt me for a bit while running today.  They hurt bad!  Luckily, it went away after a few minutes.  All else went pretty well.  I wanted to drop down on my knees and crawl after I finished running my super hard run today.  And then I planned to throw up.  See, I had it all planned out.  The last 1/4th mile I wasn't sure I could keep up the pace.  I was Secretly hoping I could finish in 45 flat.  But I'm not complaining!

Who would have thunk it?  Don't expect any repeat performances people.

I Rested

Today, I was lazy.  I did A Lot of physical activity this weekend, so today I just felt like resting.  I wanted to give my body a good break before I aim to have another good training week.  I kicked back, feet up, nearly all day and nearly all night.  It was nice and much needed.  Last night I was soooo tired I couldn't even comprehend how tired I was.  Yeah, that's tired. 

No excuses tomorrow!

I Biked

Today I biked 17 miles of the Virginia Creeper Trail.  Before you act real impressed, consider that its nearly all downhill.  I will add more photos later if the trail czars e-mail me theirs.

I Hiked

Today I hiked.  And saw *Beautiful* things.  The fall colors are out *Bright* and *Early!*  We hiked 10 miles through the beautiful Grayson Highlands State Park on an absolutely beautiful day.

Meet Megan and Steve.  Hiking extraordinaires.

 AT crossing a creek.

They were prettier in person.

Megan, approving of the colors.

Double white blazes, right turn on the AT!

HeLLo bRiGht green catipilar with a stinger/thorn thingy on your tail!

We decided that this is what Ireland looks like.  No, silly, none of us have ever been to Ireland of course!

The lame Blackberry pictures don't do it justice.

This girl had the Prettiest lil' face!

She's working on her camouflage skills. 

They really think they're hiding.

And the sweet ponies topped it all off.