Yay and Nay

Yay: I am done and I enjoyed every minute of it (mostly). The race was fantastic! We had to be in our corral by about 6:30 even though the race didn't start until 7:30am. Man was it cold! I had started that morning in a long sleeve race shirt with a short sleeve over it and capri running pants. Luckily, I had brought some yoga pants to change into later because I went ahead and put them on because I was freezing! I also had a running jacket so I added that to my wardrobe. This was also the first time I had worn a running headband. Its purpose is to keep the sweat out of your eyes but it also helped to keep my ears warm!

My awesome husband was on hand at mile 8 to offer support and a little water (it was also a good stretching point). By then I had shed my jacket. Somebody is going to have a nice race jacket! I had a little bit of trouble for a few miles during my walking times but then I finally figured out about mile 10 or 11 that running felt better! The race was a complete success and I felt better than I usually have after the races I have done before. After we rode the shuttle back to the car, we ate lunch at a Texas Roadhouse. We were so hungry and really didn't care what we ate so we ate at the first thing we saw. We went back to the hotel and I showered and rested for about 30 minutes and then Danny and I went back out to do some sightseeing. We ate the most delicious pizza from a very questionable place (those are always the best places). One of my favorite things was eating at The Lady and Sons (Paula Deen's restaurant). It was much better than I thought it was going to be.

me and Danny at Forsyth Park (the race ended here)

Okay now for the "Nay" part ...

Nay:Before I left for the race, I felt like I was getting a sinus infection and my heel was hurting again. I went to see my doctor. He gave me meds for the sinus infection. He said it would be better to wait until I got back to get the shot in my heel again. After the shot, he recommends going easy on my feet for at least 48 hours. He said there is no way that I was going to be able to do that. The only thing really hurting after the race was my heel. On Wednesday, I finally called to make an appointment for my shot. I went yesterday and he was doing the ultrasound and told me he couldn't give me the shot. He said it looked like I had torn the fascia in my foot and that was what the pain was coming from. WHAT??!!?? He sent me for an MRI and we are now waiting for the results. Worst case scenario: surgery. Moderate case scenario: some sort of procedure where they take the blood from my arm, spin it down until healing agents are left and then inject it into my foot. Weird! Best case scenario: it is nothing at all and with a little rest the pain will go away. I hate waiting on things like this!! Will keep you posted on what they say!

Twas the Night Before Race Day....

Twas the night before race day and as tired as I am from sightseeing today, I can't sleep!! I hope to pass out soon. We are having such a great time but we are eating way too much. Looking forward to conquering this race tomorrow. The weather is cold and windy so I have had to add a layer to my clothes. Will do an update tomorrow on how it went!!

i'm sorry but this shirt was too funny and
danny is such a good sport!

we are ready!!!







Five Chins, Halloween and Anxiety

Couldn't come up with a good title for today's blog so I decided just to list the things I was going to blog about. On Friday, Danny and I did the Freaky Friday 8K in Tuscaloosa. This was definitely a race I would do again. The race was at night so it was a little difficult for landmark runners like me. I focus on a landmark up ahead and run to that and then take a break until another landmark and run, and so on and so on. It was hard to see my landmarks. If you registered for this race in time you got a free head lamp. I was super bummed because I didn't see one in my stash. Then yesterday when I was cleaning up, I opened up my race bag and there it was...a head lamp. Oh well. I want to give a quick shout out to my husband who did the race with me. He was planning on doing the race to see how well he would do. My running buddies couldn't make it down at the last minute so he stayed with me the whole time. He is definitely a faster runner than I am but it was dark and I was especially grateful. Five chins....

that is how many chins I have in this picture. This was the only picture that we took at the Freaky Friday. It is of me, Danny and my five chins. It was a bad angle because normally I have only two.


We had a great Halloween and I am so glad it is over because I was honestly getting tired of celebrating it! We started Monday, October 24th with Sorority Row trick or treating at UA. Then we had Trunk or Treat at the church. Then we had a Halloween party at our friend's house. We had plenty of candy and we were exhausted!! So exhausted in fact that we didn't even go trick or treating last night. We had a nice Halloween dinner of Taco Casa. YUM! The kids didn't even complain that we didn't go. The Halloween party that we go to every year was a blast. Danny went as a bank robber and I was a money bag. The costume was a big hit at the party. Unfortunately, now we have a house full of candy and I have a stomach that wants to eat it ALL!! I am going to try to be strong and keep it out of my system because I have got to eat better, especially this week since my race is Saturday.

Anxiety!! I am very excited about this race! I am also very anxious. I know I will finish but I would like to PR on this race. I actually never worry about my time and I think I have mentioned that in this blog before but for some reason I would really like to have my best race ever. The weather is supposed to be beautiful that day. I will have my husband cheering me on. And I already have bath salts to ease my muscles when it is all over. I am more anxious about the trip there than I am about the race. My running buddies are going and we are all riding together. Today one of them called and said that we may not be able to use her car so that sent me into a tailspin. But she has since called back and said that it should be okay. However, about 13 years ago, I went to Savannah with my best friend and when we got there the car broke down. I am hoping that was a one time thing!! Hopefully I will get to post again before we leave!

Following Through

I am horrible about not finishing projects! If you haven't noticed, let me tell you about the fact that I haven't updated my mileage in awhile. I have no idea exactly where I left off but I am going to try to re-total tonight and change it. I love to start projects and never finish them. Last year at work, I made a diary of sorts of what I did everyday at work. I figured once I got through a year, I could then have a calendar that reminded me when things needed to be done. I had this at Judson and it was very helpful. I did very well for about 6 months and then one day, for no particular reason I stopped. Oh, and don't even get me started on scrapbooking!! Mindy's books are done through about 4 years old and she is now 7. Mason's don't even make it to his second birthday. I know there isn't a lot of time when you work full time and have two children but I want to do them so bad but just don't have the energy. I could go on and on about the projects I haven't finished but I won't bore you.

I only have 11 days left until Savannah! I did 8 miles on Sunday even though it was supposed to be 9. Danny and the kids came to bring me the Gu that I forgot and they stayed at the park to play. It started raining on mile 8 so we just packed up and went home. I was very happy with my 8 miler. By the end, I wasn't near as tired as I would normally be and I wasn't near as sore. It makes me feel a lot better about the actual race. Today I have 5 miles to do. I am on a little bit of a time constraint today and I have to be home by 4:45 so it will depend on what time I leave work.

Anyone have any suggestions on food, shopping and fun stuff to do in Savannah??

Lucky Number 13

13 more days until Savannah! I can't wait to get out of town for a few days even if I have to run 13.1 miles while I am there. I have gotten to a point with my training where I am treading lightly. I do not want to injure myself but I still need to go the distance so that I will be ready. Luckily, on the training schedule this is also the point where you begin to taper off a bit. Today is supposed to be a 9 mile day. Was planning on getting up this morning to take care of it but I was woken up 3 times last night by the kids and I couldn't drag myself out of bed at 5:30 this morning. My plan is to go later this afternoon.

me and the kids after the race

Last weekend, I did the Race for the Cure 5K and I had a good time. I couldn't believe how big the race has gotten. From what I understand, there were about 16,000 participants!! It took me 10 minutes to get to the starting line and the crowd didn't thin out until about mile 2 so I was dodging people left and right. This coming Friday, I am doing the Freaky Friday 8K in Tuscaloosa. I have never done this race before but I think it might be fun. The plan is to walk most of this. The race starts at 9pm and I don't want to run the risk of tripping over something and hurting myself a week before the race.

On another note, I am thinking of coming up with a different name for my blog. I am still gonig to keep trying to lose weight but I won't be training for a race for awhile. I want the blog to be more about my day to day stuff like most of my friends do. Any ideas about a name for my blog??

Adding It Up

I was blog stalking today and found a few blogs where runners are posting their total mileage every month. I thought since this was the beginning of October I would go ahead and do that too! It makes me feel good to see just how many miles I actually do in one week. So on the right side of my blog, I have added My Mileage.

I just got a pedometer. Actually, I have had several pedometers in the past but I just never wanted to take the time to figure out how to program them. But, my boss got an extra pedometer so she measured my stride and whatever else you do and programmed my pedometer for me. Yesterday, I had 11,897 steps. Apparently you are supposed to have at least 10,000 a day. I am sure I will be obsessed with this thing for a week or so and then I won't be able to find it again. That's the way it goes right?? I hope I will hang on to it longer but that is not usually how my mind operates.

Today, I have a 3 miler so it isn't a bad day. I have been meeting a friend of mine after school every day to walk. I am her accountability partner. We have been doing this for about two weeks. I asked her yesterday if she thought she had made a habit out of it yet. She said, "Not Really." She says that if it weren't for me then she would not go walk. She would grade papers and watch TV. I don't have any grading in my job but I do LOVE me some TV. However, I would not feel good if I didn't at least get out and walk. I like to feel like I have done something to sweat at least once a day. Sometimes, I get up early in the mornings and go to the gym and then after school I will meet her to walk. Yesterday, I met her at the park. I had to do 4.5 miles yesterday so I ran 1 mile before she got there and then walked 2 miles with her and then finished up my 1.5 miles. I feel good because I have done something and I feel good because I have helped her. It is a win-win situation!

Mindy and Me at Race for the Cure 2005

Yesterday I signed up for the Race for the Cure in Birmingham. This is one of my favorite races because it is a good race and because it is for a good cause. My mother is a 5 year breast cancer survivor so it is something that is very close to me. We have been doing this race for awhile now and I have always enjoyed it. I haven't been able to do this race for the past couple of years because something has always come up (namely my sister's birthday). I will be the only family member doing the race this year. It is a tough time for everyone, me included, and so I will be representing my family, myself. I hope that Danny and the kids will be able to come so that I will have some cheerleaders!

My sisters, my mom and me with Mindy and my nephew Jack

Hopefully I will post pictures after the race (October 15th)! Keep checking my miles and keep me motivated!

Out of Control

Some of you may notice that I changed my weight ticker. I was out of control! I had a horrible binge eating episode where I ate everything in sight and in large quantities. I am definitely on the mend now and I haven't weighed myself since about the 25th of September. I will not weigh myself until my clothes start to fit a little better and I notice a difference. I think I will start noticing a difference in a week or so.

In running news, I did my 7 mile run/walk on Saturday. I got a huge blister on my right heel a few days before when I did my 4.5. Luckily I own some blister band-aids which are magic! I put them on my heels and I don't even feel like I have a blister. While you have them on, the band-aids are working their magic on your heel to advance the healing process. They are wonderful and I highly recommend them! When I finished my miles, I could hardly move. When I got home, there was lots to do because I wanted to decorate for fall so I moved (very slowly) around all day and slowly worked the soreness out. My advice to any new runner/walker is after you have done a long run/walk, NEVER go home and lie on the couch or chill out in your bed. You will regret it later. When I first started doing half marathons, I would get back to my room, shower, eat a snack and go straight to sleep. It is what your mind tells you to do. However, your body will say keep moving. I learned my lesson when I did the Disney Half a few years ago. Since we were in Disney, we wanted to go to the parks. As tired as I was, I went and walked around that day and night. I was exhausted by the time we got back to our room. BUT, the next day I could move much easier.

I have about a month until Savannah and I am getting super excited! Hopefully, I can keep my training up!