First and hopefully last DNF

So Sunday was the Alexandria half marathon.  Megan was excited it was her first half.  It was a nice small half.  The only thing I was not looking forward to was the three laps around the park.  Really?!  3 laps??  But oh well.  So 7:30ish we started. It was a pretty humid day.  I would say temps were 70 to 75 degrees during the race.  We turned the corner and up a hill we went..ugh.  And so it began my hatred of this race.  My legs felt heavy and I felt like I was pulling a truck behind me.  Finally it flattens out and still I am slow and sluggish.  Finally I reach 3 miles.  I see Sean and Megan coming back towards the park.  Sean told Megan I looked miserable...probably because I was miserable.  3 miles and I am walking and wanting to give up.  So I do the out and back towards the park.  Off I go to the first loop of the park.  Suddenly I see a mile marker 8..yeah you have to figure out and keep track the mile markers (something I am not good at) because they are marked for each mile in the 3 loops.  Then after the 8 mile I see a 4 mile...so confusing.  Some of the faster runners are passing me..yep we are all running a narrow track around a park.  I then decided I couldn't do 2 more loops.  So around the park I went and after I finish my first loop I turn right and start walking the 4 miles back...No real reason to quit except I just mentally couldn't do it.  If that it was an out and back I would have been fine, but I just couldn't keep going around in circles.  I also kept thinking about all the walking I was doing and figuring I would be forever in finishing the race and that was not looking fun.  So off I walked with a DNF.  I cried a bit on the walk back, but I was the one that chose to DNF.  I finally made it back and saw Becky (my first cheer squad and I don't finish the race)  I am talking to her and a girl behind me goes down 50 yards from the finish line...that poor girl didn't know where she was.  Then we were waiting for Megan and another girl needed medical attention..it was a very hot humid day for a run.  Megan finished and really rocked her first half. 


One of us finished, one DNF'd...can you tell which one I am??

 After I thought about my lovely DNF I realized that I felt very similar to my Philly half.  I am still going to  conquer the half.  I didn't train properly for this race and I guess I am ok with the DNF (well as ok as one can be I guess)  I will do another half...I have the Army 10 miler in October and throw in some 5 or 10ks here and there and that is my upcoming race schedule.  I am hoping on doing another half in the spring...we will see. 

Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

So I guess I have some stuff to do this weekend.  Last night Becky and I went out with Megan for her birthday.

Happy Early Birthday Megan...oh wait I have another birthday celebration coming up for Megan..her birthday half marathon on Sunday. 

Last night I came home and went to sleep.  Then when I woke up I did something to  neck/middle of my back while sleeping.  I am hoping the motrin I am taking today along with hope will end the kink in between my shoulders.  It is just very odd..or maybe this is a sign not to run the half on Sunday. lol  Or it is a sign not to fall asleep on the couch...hmmm so many signs so little time to figure out what they mean.

So today is housekeeping...grocery shopping (I bet it will be a mad house with the holiday picnic time approaching) :(  And I have to start thinking about my New Kids on the Block Shirt that I need to make before the show on Friday night.  I am heading to the concert with Becca a.k.a. Grab.  We love boy bands!  New Kids were the first concert I went to without my mom.  Ah the memories.  And we usually make some homemade shirt to go to the event.  Sometimes we like to use some puffy paint to make it truly old school.

The back of my shirt. 



Classic use of the hair tie. 



Ah the boys...soon we will be together...

I think I might head out and run a few miles to try and get used to the heat that will be assaulting me during the half tomorrow.  Really it is the end of May..there should not be this much humidity and heat.  I have the water bottle beside me trying to stay water logged before tomorrow.

Tomorrow is the half.  Megan wanted to do her first half before her birthday so Sean and I will join her running three loops around a park.  A few good things have come out of this half marathon.  Becky is coming down to cheer us on (she better bring a sign since she left my signs that the kids made at school) :) When she is cheering us on, if she heads down to the park she will not have to go anywhere to see us 3 times during our loop around and around the park. :)  And finally, according to the map it is flat and some of it is in the shade.  Yeah for flat running!

Monday I am going to throw some dogs on the grill and Becky is going to come on over.  It is supposed to be a hot sweaty mess of a day but that will be fine.  We can melt in the back yard some...shoot that means I might want to mow at some point..grrr...

Going sugar free for 10 days

So I decided to join Amanda at Run to the Finish in going sugar free the first 10 days of June.

 Hopefully this will help me get my eating under control.  I have been eating nothing but crap lately.  Although I will say that I have done a bit better this week than last (so that is good right?)  So I guess I need to get my ice cream fix, my soda fix, chocolate and the rest of that stuff that is oh so good, but oh so bad for us in before June 1st. 

On a related food note, I got the covered deep dish from Pampered Chef.  The pot is supposed to perform miracles.  You can cook chicken in the microwave and it comes out yummy.  Prepare a cake in 12 minutes in the microwave too.  So obviously I can not try the cake during the beginning of June, but maybe trying some new recipes in the old deep dish pot will help me eat healthy and not want the junk :) 

Run club does not allow tornados

What is up with all the tornados lately?  I know around my house we have had a few this year, which is pretty rare.  I have lived in Northern Va for almost 10 years and I don't recall too many funnel clouds in the area.  Joplin, MO is just horrible.  I could not imagine going through what they are all going through.  Prayers are sent their way.

Well I went to run club and had a good time.  Of course I didn't really want to run (which seems to be the norm lately).  But I ended up running, no tornados came upon us and the rain held off.  We did make a new friend at run club so that is good :)  Always fun to meet new people.

Tomorrow I am hoping to get in a run.  However  I am supposed to meet my friend Susan for dinner, so it might not happen.  Then Thursday I may have dinner with Kristen at a small diner in the area.  I heard on the radio that Restaurant Impossible visited the diner and revamped it for an upcoming show.  So, while I have never eaten there before the show was in town, I am excited to try it out.  I am hoping that when the episode hits food network I can either say, hey they don't have that on the menu anymore, or wow I had that and it was really good! lol

one week till death

Well I survived the end of the world, but now I have to worry about the half coming up next week.  I have ran one mile longer than I did for my previous half, so I guess that is a positive.  I just have not felt like running.  I really haven't felt like doing much of anything.  I really wanted to just stay in the house and be a hermit.  Now that I think of it, it has been very rainy this spring so maybe that had something to do with my desire to be a hermit.  I never do well in the winter when the sun doesn't come out much, so I am guessing that the rain and lack of sun might have contributed to my  lack of motivation.

Well today I am going to attempt to run 10 miles before the half next week.  It should be fun! Well as fun as 10 miles can get.  Unfortunately I normally have a bagel pre-run, and I am out so I made some oatmeal.  I hope that works out ok for me...yikes.  I think I will just keep telling myself that if I finish I will get some soft serve ice cream afterwards :)  Although who am I kidding, I going for ice cream either way lol.  I have to do something to try and stay cool on a warm day :)

Well I am going to lace up the shoes and off I go!

Sugar its whats for dinner!

So my eating habits have been horrible!  I am like a sugar monster!  I had a pampered chef party and had a leftover turtle cake that was made in one of the pans.  So I have been eating that with some butter pecan ice cream all week.  I have been drinking coke like it is my job.  (For those of you that do not know I do not work in a coke factory so it really isn't my job..I work in a library and no coke drinking is required).  Because I have been eating crap I have been feeling all sluggish and crappy.  I know it is because of my food choices, but really that coke and cake and ice cream has really been tasting good :) 

I crapped out of the 5k run at run club yesterday.  It really did look like it might storm (it was storming off and on all day long).  So Megan and I stayed behind and waited for everyone while enjoying a beer. 

Tonight I almost didn't go running at the gym b/c of a storm rolling through.  I have a fear of running the mill while their is lightening outside.  First I have a fear of being struck while running in front of the huge bank of windows.  And then I fear that the power will go off mid run and I will end up killing myself on the treadmill b/c of the sudden stopping.  I know that sounds odd, but it is my fear not yours :)  I did end up running, but I only ran 3 1/2 miles.  Tomorrow I have a 5 miles planned with Kristen after school.  And that means that Friday becomes a long run day.  If I can fit in two long runs in the next week before the half the following week I should be good.  We will see how that ends up though.

Race Schedule

So here are some races that I have coming up.  I have my third half marathon at the end of the month in Alexandria, VA.  Hard to believe that I have ran 3 half's this year.  I am already looking into some for next year.  There is one in West Virginia that is ran in Jan during the middle of the day (so hopefully the sun warms things up for the run).  This race only costs 20 dollars and would help me cross off another state to run in.  I also was looking at running a race in Kentucky..I think it is the derby half marathon...we will see about these two.  Last night I signed up for the Army 10 miler.  It sounds like it is going to be a really nice race.  I hear that it is very inspiring, especially running with amputees.  I also read that there are bands and music every two miles.  Its like a Rock N' Roll race in camouflage. 

I am also going to run a local 5k for Hep C.  I ran my first Hep C run last year and what can I say I am hooked.  I also loved the fact that they had mucho door prizes to give out!  And a band.  I think it is the Sock Monkeys.  You have to love the Sock Monkeys! 



Saturday plans

So this morning I am helping my friend Becky move.  It is a beautiful rainy day to help a friend move.  I am hoping that she has a canoe all tethered out front :)  I am thinking I will count lifting boxes as my lifting for today. 

Then after the move I need to run 8 to 10 miles.  If it didn't take me so damn long to run 10 miles I would probably look forward to it, but as it takes me 2 hours it is not on my list of fun today.  Then at some point I have to clean and then put together some food for my pampered chef tomorrow.  Although I guess it doesn't have to be that much food, b/c I don't think too many people are coming.  I guess that makes it easier for me lol. 

Pink is the new Black

So on Monday I had a few girls that ran the 5k come up to me and tell me how proud their parents were that they ran a 5k...looks like I might be doing it again next year.  Once they cross the finish line and I hear things like my parents were so proud of me, I forget about how the week before the run I vowed never to organize a girls run club again.  I think next year I will do it in the fall instead of the spring. 

I went to run club last night.  What a great night for a run.  It was fun as always although the fact that 2 chatty girls were running on our heels for most of the run was rather annoying.  I don't mind that you are so chatty but really if I can feel your breath on the back of myeck just pass me.  Trust me you will not irritate  me at all by passing me. 

Came home from run club and went to bed.  Woke up at 3 am and felt like I had a case of pink eye.  I went back to sleep and woke up to get ready for work and lo and behold pink eye.  I hear that pink is this seasons black...The crappy thing is that it is not bacterial (no goop) so no prescription will help get rid of it.  I just have to put warm compresses on my eye and saline drops.  The silver lining would be that I get 2 days off of work and maybe I can then run tomorrow morning around the hood.  I also got some cleaning done today and got to sit in the backyard and enjoy some sun.  The bad thing is that I am now the town leper...

Girls Run with Pride 5k recap

So Saturday was the big day for 10 elementary school girls, their first 5k!  It turned out to be a beautiful day for a run.  On Friday I went and picked up 20 packets.  Thankfully the lady who was putting them together was nice and didn't kill me :)  There were 220 people running the race.  Perfect numbers for a first 5K.  I love smaller races.  We got a lovely 2006 Manassas City Police Department Christmas ornament.  It was Christmas in May!  That will go front and center on the tree this year. 

Saturday I woke up and picked up two teachers, Becky and Kristen and then headed off to a local school to meet two more teachers.  Lucy shows up and we are waiting for Lisa.  For some reason Lisa is at Kohl's dept. store instead of Coles Elementary School.  She will head over to the race and meet us there.  One teacher arrived at the race at 7am.  It was her first 5k and she must have been very excited too :)  We make it to Manassas and unload the large bin of race packets.  The girls start to show up and they look a bit nervous.  We start pinning bibs and applying tags to shoes.  Oh I hope they all have a great run.

The teachers (4 have never ran a 5K before)

The nervous Girls Run with Pride crew

We decide to start to do some stretches to loosen them up and take their mind off of the race.

 Now we head off to the start line.  Oh the parents looked so proud taking pictures of the girls.  It was great! 

We did our group cheer...1,2,3 Girl Pride!  And they were ready to rock out their first 5K.  I also yelled out some reminders:  pull off to the side to start walking, have fun, try to maintain a steady pace and make sure you run across the finish line!  And off they went.  I was running with a 9 year old girl with long legs.  She was a jack rabbit.  Sprint for a few feet and then walk..sprint and then walk.  I couldn't get her to do a slower jog.  If I would do a slower jog she gave me the look like I am walking..oh well its her race.  It was a beautiful area to run.  We ran through some quiet neighborhoods that were very shady.  It was great.  We had some nice neighbors that were out handing out water.  At one point my girl just looked at me like am I allowed to take the water bottle?  Sure you can, that is why they are there.  It was the only 5K that I have been in that you had 2 water stops (thanks to some nice neighbors).  Towards the end I was trying to get her to run a bit more by pointing out the guy running with a small boy on his neck.  She didn't want them to beat us??  Well it didn't really work.  As we approached the finish a man with no shirt came running up and tried to get her to run some more by telling her that he was the winner of the race.  I don't think my girl cared that he won the race lol. She did run for a tiny bit and then she let him go.  I thought the idea that he just ran the course twice would inspire her, it didn't.  We climb up our last hill and hear the crowd!  We start running (I might have started her running too soon, but she made it running across the finish)

Yeah we did it!  Kristen and I decided we would head back out and see where the last few girls were at and run back in with them.  Turned out they were not that far behind us so we only ended up running the last bit with them.  But the funny part was that every time I ran with a girl they would call my name crossing the finish line.   Pam just kept running the finish! lol 

Afterwards the man who put together the race pulled me aside.  They had extra medals from previous years and offered me up some medals for the girls.  How nice was that?  So  I got to present each girl with their first medal for their first 5k!  I was so glad I picked this race as their first 5k race.  It was the perfect size, the people were really nice. 

Now to find out if anyone won their age group.  Rumor has it that one of our girls might have won.  But after checking we realize that the girl didn't because it was the 10-14 age group and not the 10-12..two 14 year old kids beat her!  So close.  But wait, my girl that I was running with won the under 10 category...I won!!  I mean she won!  I think that is the closest I will ever get to winning :)  So she stuck around for a medal. 

 Ok time to head home.  Wait they are handing out door prizes.  I love door prizes!!!  This is the best 5K race ever!!!  And since most people left, my odds are pretty good too :) 

 Kelly is the first of our group to win a door prize.  50 dollars to a local running store.  Then more prizes are given out.  It seems like they are never ending.

Kristen is the next to win a prize.  Yeah Kristen!  Turns out I didn't win but that is ok, it was a great day for a run! 
One of the girls asked if I was doing the running club again next year. I don't know.  I said last week never again.  But it did turn out to be a great day for a run.  If I do it again, I think I will do it in the fall.  The springtime was way to busy.  We will see. 

I thought I was faster...

So in my mind I used to be fast..well not fast fast, but pretty fast for me.  Then I visited http://www.athlinks.com/default.aspx  Athlinks gathers up all of your race info that is posted online.  So I registered for free last night and started to gather some of my races.  My first race was in 2008.  I thought I ran a 10 min. mile..turns out is was 10 but the ten was followed by a  26 (not bad for the first race).  I was also doing some crazy workout competition and was working out for hours a day so I was really in shape. Then the competition ended and so did my 10 minute miles.   Then in my mind I stayed at that 10 min something pace..turns out I must have been dreaming..I am really more of a 12 min mile runner.  WHAT?!?  I know it shocked me too!  Well at least I haven't lost a lot of my run time.  I am much slower at longer distances, but it is not as bad as I had previously thought.  I am not that far off of my average.  I am not sure if that is good or bad. lol.   Ok my goal is to get back down in the 10's. 

Running randomness

So this is the last week for my Girls Run with Pride. :)  Saturday will be the first 5K race for 11 girls in grades 3, 4 and 5.  I am so proud of them!  I hope it is a nice day and they have a great run (or run/walk for some).  I think I might have some pizza delivered on Thursday (our last official practice) to celebrate their running. :)  Some have really taken to running.  Which makes me really happy.  I can't wait to see the look on their face when they cross the finish line! :)

Speaking of running, I did none of that this weekend.  I am hoping to squeeze in  7 miles tomorrow..but not sure if that is going to happen.  I have girls' run club and then I have to run over to Michaels' to get some t-shirts to make for the run on Saturday. It may get pushed to Wednesday..but we will see.  Maybe I will try to get up early and squeeze in a run before school...as some of you may realize this will probably not happen, but one can hope right?  I have 4 more weeks until the half marathon.  Yikes!  I hope it is not too hot.