Monica's treats

I think I'm out of my funk from the last couple of weeks. I've been feeling much better as far as the anxiety and depression goes; and this morning, I felt absolutely fantastic! I got up at 6:30, dressed, drank a little water, and then headed out for my long run (10 miles). Lately, I've been waiting until late morning to run, but I was hoping that running on an empty stomach would make me feel better as I ran. It worked like a charm.

I've been enjoying sticking closer to home on my runs, so rather than doing a 10-mile out-and-back, or driving somewhere, I decided to do the circumference of all four neighborhoods (5 miles total) twice. It was GORGEOUS outside--57 degrees when I headed out at 6:45! It was sunny, but because it was so early, the sun was still low and there was a ton of shade.

Based on last week's long run, I knew I could hold a sub-9:00 pace and keep my heart rate in the correct zone, so that was my goal today. I thought it would be awesome to have all sub-9:00 miles! I haven't done that during a long run in several months.

As soon as I started running, I knew I was going to have a great run. I felt light on my feet, my step was springy, and I just felt really damn good! During the first loop of the neighborhoods, I didn't see anyone outside at all. It was actually really nice to run in such great weather, and just let my mind wander. My pace felt great, and I didn't feel like I was struggling at all. My heart rate was in the middle of Zone 2, which was perfect.

At mile five, the mid-point, I was back in front of my house. As I continued down the street, I debated whether I wanted to do the same loop again, or to do a five-mile out-and-back. The change of scenery won me over, so I chose the out-and-back. I ran out a mile, turned into a neighborhood (where I came across a couple of other people out exercising). When I hit mile 7.5, I turned around and headed home for the last 2.5 miles.

I changed the screen on my Garmin to see my average pace overall, and it was 8:39. I was shocked! To date, my fastest double-digit outdoor long run was an 8:44/mi pace (with the exception of my half-marathon PR in April). I wanted to keep the average pace in the 8:30's (just because I could!), so I picked it up a little for the last mile.

I was so excited to have had such an amazing run this morning! I laid in the grass, and just felt really happy in that moment.

 

Apparently, this heart rate training is paying off! The paces that used to feel pretty tough are feeling easier. It's getting harder to get my heart rate up, which means I'm getting more conditioned. Unfortunately, that also makes my calorie burn lower than I would like.

Next week, my long run jumps up to 15 miles! That is a huge leap, but I imagine it's all part of the Hansons' method of running on tired legs. I did 13 a few weeks ago, so I'm sure I'll be able to tough it out. I'm certainly not expecting my pace to be what it was today, though ;)

After I showered and ate breakfast, I had to run to the store. Our local bakery, Monica's Baker Boy, is nearby, so I stopped in there to get a long run treat. I planned to get a chocolate chip cookie, but once Jerry and I got inside, I couldn't decide what I wanted. There were lots of different kinds of cookies, brownies, and doughnuts. I was pretty sure I wanted a chocolate chip cookie, but then the woman working there (who was SO very nice) told me that some of the brownies had cookies baked into them. I was pretty much sold at that point!

Jerry picked out a doughnut, and we were going to pay, when the woman said, "Do you like coconut? I want you to try these cookies. They're chocolate cookies with a macaroon baked inside." Oh, man. Before I could decline, she gave each of us one of those. Then, after we'd paid, she gave me a chocolate chip cookie, too, because I had been so undecided! She was so nice I couldn't say no. So I wound up with all this loot:

I weighed them when I got home to calculate the PointsPlus in each item. The brownie was 20 PP, the chocolate chip cookie was 14 PP, and the small chocolate macaroon cookie was 5 PP. I had to decide what I was going to do with all of this. I ended up eating about 1/4 of the brownie, 1/2 the chocolate chip cookie, and the whole chocolate cookie. It ended up being 16 PP total. I had earned 11 on my run, so it wasn't exactly an even swap, but since I only get a treat like this once a week, I just used my regular snack PP to make up the difference.

I don't think I will ever lust after a Mrs. Fields cookie again--these goodies were spectacular! And because they are from a local bakery, they tasted homemade and fresh. Next time, though, I will make sure that I only leave with ONE treat. ;)

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Just a reminder, tomorrow is Motivational Monday! If you have a picture of a health/fitness accomplishment from last week that you want to share, you can email it to me (along with a description) at SlimKatie (at) runsforcookies (dot) com with the subject "Motivational Monday". I may use it on tomorrow's post!

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Rings

I feel like this week has gone by way too fast! Actually, this whole summer is flying by. I can't believe it's August already. Yesterday morning, I had plans of running at the hotel before we came home, but my shoes were still completely soaked from Cedar Point, so I just waited until we got home. I ran five miles on the treadmill.

Renee came over for wine last night. It had been forever since we got together for wine! I bought a bottle several months ago for us to have, and we kept having to reschedule for one reason or another, so it was long overdue. Yesterday felt like the longest day ever, for some reason, so it was nice to unwind and catch up with Renee.

This morning, I made an English muffin with Biscoff Spread for breakfast. I haven't had Biscoff Spread in my house in a very long time. I've been doing really well with staying on track for a few weeks now, so I feel strong enough to have it around. I'm not going to allow myself to have it straight out of the jar, though; that makes it way too easy to eat it all! I used two tablespoons on the English muffin, and it was delicious.

I had six miles on the schedule today, so I headed out after breakfast. Normally, I don't use earphones when I run, but today I really wanted to try to zone out and take it easy, so I brought along my iPod and listened to a Jillian Michaels' podcast. (Once I started running, I wished I hadn't brought it, however; it was more annoying than helpful).

The first couple of miles were rough. I just felt so tired. Ever since I started training by the Hansons' method, I've noticed a trend in my running; the first couple of miles feel really hard, and after that, it feels easier. That was definitely the case today.

A few miles in, a little dog ran out in the road, yapping at me. I stopped, hoping the owner would come out and get the dog. Right then, a car was coming down the road, and the dog ran out in front of the car, causing the driver to stop. I could see her cursing at me through the windshield. Then a woman in the house next to the road started yelling for her dog, so I knew where it belonged.

The driver of the car got out and started to scold me for not having "my" dog on a leash! I told her it wasn't my dog, and the woman at the house was still yelling for the dog to come (the dog had no interest in listening). The two women started bickering at each other a little, so I took that opportunity to continue on my way.

When I got home, I was disappointed to see I'd only burned 441 calories on a 6-mile run. My heart rate was in high-Zone 1/low-Zone 2 the whole time, and it was humid outside (100% humidity this morning). I was expecting to see a number close to 600. I've had this Garmin for a year and a half, and I never changed the battery in the heart rate strap, so I changed it this afternoon to see if that makes a difference. I'll find out tomorrow on my 10-miler.

After lunch, Jerry and I went to a jeweler to get his wedding band resized. He hasn't been able to wear it in a few years because it falls right off of his finger. Since our 10-year anniversary is in a couple of weeks (August 16), we thought it would be a good time to take care of it. While we were there, Jerry asked about getting my rings refinished.

The jeweler asked why I didn't have them soldered together; when he inspected them, he said that because they weren't soldered together, they were rubbing against each other and wearing out the gold. I guess I just never thought of doing it, but it does drive me crazy when my rings twist around. So, I ended up leaving my rings to be soldered and refinished. We'll pick them up next week. It feels so strange not to have them on my finger right now! When Jerry gets his ring back, it will probably feel strange to have it on, because he hasn't worn it in so long.

This feels like it was a hundred years ago

It's kind of funny; through all the ups and downs with my weight, my rings have never been resized. When Jerry and I got engaged, I was probably about 185 pounds. When we got married, I was 160. When I was pregnant with Eli, my weight got all the way up to 271. I wasn't able to take my rings off for several years, because I'd gained so much weight. They wouldn't budge! Now, at 135, my rings are still the same size. The jeweler checked them out today and said they seem like a good fit.

It's not to say that my fingers haven't changed size; they are much slimmer now than they were five years ago! But my rings were WAY too tight then ;)

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Cedar Point

Yesterday morning, Jerry, the kids, and I drove down to Sandusky, Ohio to go to Cedar Point (an enormous amusement park). The weather was perfect--about 75 degrees and mostly sunny. The kids kept talking about how excited they were to go on the rides, but when they saw the enormity of the park, they were really shocked at just how big it was.

We got there at around 10:30, right after they opened, and the park was pretty busy for a Thursday, but not nearly as busy as it gets on weekends. The kids were pretty scared of the rides, so we suggested we go on a roller coaster called The Iron Dragon first; it doesn't go upside-down, and it's not very rough.

When we got to it, we noticed that it was stuck on the track (with people on it), and they'd closed the line. The coaster next to it, called The Mantis, was ALSO stuck on the track (halfway up the first hill). Not looking good for roller coasters! The kids weren't tall enough for the Mantis, anyway, but Jerry and I weren't sure what other coaster we could start them on. Instead, we just started walking toward the back of the park.

We went on the antique cars (the kids were tall enough to drive them). Eli was scared to drive it! The antique cars are the simplest, gentlest ride at the park, so I knew it would be a long day. But I told him he had to try it, and he ended up liking it.

While we were there, we saw a roller coaster called The Mine Ride, and Jerry and I couldn't remember if we'd ever ridden it. It was a level 4 on a "thrill" score of 1-5 (most of the coasters were 5's), so we decided to do that next.

I really wanted the kids to have a good experience on a roller coaster, so that they'd want to try more rides. Well, I wish we'd picked a different one! It was really bumpy and rough. But the kids didn't hate it, so I was happy about that. After that, though, I had no clue about what roller coasters to take them on. We just let the kids choose some smaller rides to go on. Eli saw this octopus-looking ride, where you sit in a little car and the car spins and goes up and down while the entire ride spins. Basically, I was dizzy just looking at it, but I went on it with Noah. He was all smiles at first:

As soon as it started moving, he started saying, "Mama, I don't like this! I don't like this!" and he was panicking. I was trying to talk to him and tell him to just focus on Daddy and Eli in the cart across from us, but he was really upset. After that ride, I knew we were going to have a problem getting him to go on anything!

I saw a ride called the Super Himalaya (level 3) and I thought the kids would like it. Neither of them wanted to try it, but I told them they had to. I said there would be a few rides that I was going to make them go on (ones I knew they'd like and not be too terrified of). I rode with Eli this time, and he loved it!

 

That ride was interesting to me, because I rode it once when I was pretty overweight (maybe 185 lbs or so) and it was a comfortable ride. When I rode it this time, however, my hip bones were hurting really badly, because the ride pushes you against the side and the seat belt was digging into my hip.

We walked back over to The Iron Dragon, and it was working again, so we decided to ride that. The good thing about the older or less "thrilling" coasters is that the line isn't very long. We only had to wait about 15 minutes!

This picture Jerry took in line is totally an optical illusion--the way I'm bending somehow makes me look super skinny! (And yes, that would be my running SPI Belt I'm wearing to hold a few necessities).

I rode with Noah, and Jerry rode with Eli. This roller coaster was a lot of fun, and I loved it; thankfully, Noah did too! Eli said he hated it; go figure. After that, I took them on one of my all-time favorite rides--The Scrambler. When I was a kid (probably 8?) I was terrified to go on ANY of the rides, but my mom forced me to go on The Scrambler. She said she knew I would love it. I cried the whole time we were in line for it, and I really didn't want to do it. The verdict? I loved it! So I wanted to make my kids go on it, too. And, as I knew they would, they both loved it.

After that, it was already around 3:00, and we hadn't even eaten lunch yet. We walked to the car, where we had a cooler with sandwiches. (We managed to avoid all of the food/drinks at the park, which was nice). After we ate, we noticed the sky was getting cloudy. Jerry dramatically announced that it was going to storm, and all the rides would get shut down. I teased him for being too dramatic. Then we all went on the Pirate Ship ride (as lame as some people think it is, I actually really like it). The kids didn't like it.

Noah wanted to go on The Iron Dragon again, but Eli didn't; so I told Jerry he could take Noah, and I would take Eli on The Scrambler and The Matterhorn. While we were in line for The Scrambler, it started raining. First a few sprinkles, then pretty hard. Jerry and Eli showed up, saying that the roller coasters were closed because of the storm (it was lightening and thundering by that point). We all rode The Scrambler in the pouring rain.

Then we went to The Matterhorn, which is under a tent. We waited in line for about 15 minutes, just at the edge of the tent, watching the rain:

A few minutes after I took this pic, it was announced that the ride was closing. After that, ALL of the rides were closed! We were completely drenched, so there was no point in trying to avoid the rain. What happened next was like it was out of a movie.

We made the decision to leave the park and go to the hotel (we were pretty much done anyway). To have some fun, we started running through the rain, which was a total downpour; I can't even describe how hard it was raining! The water at our feet was getting deeper and deeper, and soon, it was up PAST my ankles. At some points, it went up to the middle of my calf. The entire park was like a big lake!

We kept running toward the parking lot, and laughing in the rain. It was unlike anything I'd ever seen before. Once we got in the parking lot, the water was even deeper--up to the middle of cars' tires. I couldn't keep my eyes open as we waded through the water. By the time we got to the car, it was much shallower (about halfway up my shoe), but we were all 100% drenched. I was worried about the seats of the car getting so wet, but we didn't really have a choice.

I was bummed because I'd only brought one pair of shoes with me (the ones I was wearing, and they were a retired pair of running shoes--very absorbent). Thankfully, Jerry and I had our phones in plastic baggies, because we'd planned to go on a couple of water rides. The phones were okay. I wish I'd been able to take pictures of the flooding, but I didn't want to ruin my phone, obviously.

We made it to the hotel, and my feet were squishing all the way to our room. We ordered pizza in the room, because we didn't have dry shoes to go out! There was a local place that had a pulled pork pizza, and it was SO good. I should have taken pictures, but I was starving. The kids swam in the pool for a while, and Jerry and I had a relaxing evening. It was a good day!

I'm glad we took the kids to Cedar Point, but I don't think I'd take them again until they are old enough to enjoy the rides. They were scared of most of them. I really wanted to ride my favorite roller coaster while we were there (The Raptor), but we all stuck together. Jerry and I are talking about going to back (just the two of us) in the fall, so we can ride more stuff. But I'm really proud of the kids for trying a few rides that they were scared of. It was a fun day, even with the rain!

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Orange is the New Black

I got the worst night's sleep last night. I hate those kind of nights, where I just toss and turn all night long! When I got up this morning, I got on the scale for Wednesday Weigh-in:

I was happy to see that I was down a pound from last week, so staying on track is paying off. I was 100% on track all week. Not that it was easy! But I managed.

I decided to switch over my PointsPlus target to maintenance now, even though I'm 2.5 pounds above goal. So instead of my daily target being 26, it will be 32 (plus my 49 weekly PP and my activity PP). I decided to do this because I felt pretty hungry a lot of the time, and with the higher mileage I've been running, I just feel like I need more food. So we'll see what happens with the higher target this week; if I gain, I might back off a little, but if I maintain or lose, then I'll be happy with that.

Today was a really tough day for me. I wanted to binge SO badly, and I think it had something to do with the fact that I got no sleep last night. I was dragging all day, and I really just wanted to eat and eat and eat. At around 1:30, I thought, "There is no way I'm going to make it through the rest of the day without a binge!"

I started trying to come up with something, anything, to take my mind off of it. Today was my rest day, and I had planned to get up super early tomorrow morning to fit in my five-miler before we leave for Cedar Point. Instead, I decided to run it today, for a couple of reasons: 1) So that I don't binge; and 2) So that I can sleep in a little tomorrow before we leave, and I'll be doing a lot of walking at the park. (Trust me, it was hard to make that decision!)

Since the boys were home with me, I ran on the treadmill instead of outside. Yesterday, I had started watching Orange is the New Black on Netflix. I'd heard really great things about it, and my friend Julie worked on the show (I'm not sure exactly what she did, but she's been writing about it on Facebook, and this was a very big deal for her). I only watched half of the first episode yesterday, but I really liked it, so today I turned it on again while I ran.

I was scheduled to do the five miles at "race pace", so I just decided to try and get my heart rate into Zone 3 (tempo zone) for at least 25 minutes or so. I set the incline at 2% this time, to see if that would help get my heart rate up the same as when I run outside. I definitely felt the higher grade! But it seemed to be the best match to simulate running outside, so I'll probably try and do all my treadmill runs at 2% incline now.

The miles went by kind of slowly today, and I was glad to be done.

I actually ran a little further than five miles, because I was interested in the show. I love when that happens! Once I stopped the treadmill, I forgot to stop my Garmin, so that sixth split is obviously wrong, even though I adjusted the total time.

I felt so great when I was done, and my urge to binge was totally gone. Now, I can sleep in a little tomorrow (by "sleep in", I mean until 6:30 or 7, haha). We're going to head to Cedar Point at around 8:00, and spend the whole day there (until the kids are tired/cranky) and then head to the hotel. We're spending one night at the hotel, and then we'll head home on Friday. Jerry's really excited to do something so fun on his days off this week, and the boys are talking more about the hotel than they are Cedar Point. I'm just looking forward to getting out and doing something different!

We're going to pack a cooler with lunch for tomorrow, so we don't wind up eating all kinds of junk at the park. I don't remember what kinds of food they have, but I imagine it to be all kinds of fair-type foods--lots of deep-fried stuff. If something is really tempting, we could always share a treat while we're there. I'm saving the activity PP I earned from today's run for tomorrow.

I'm not sure yet if I'll be writing a post tomorrow night. If not, I'll catch up (hopefully with lots of fun pictures from Cedar Point) on Friday.

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Grossology

Well, I survived another six-day workout week! I'm kind of surprised at how much I like this Hansons' method of training. It's a lot of miles, but it doesn't really feel like it for some reason. Probably because my longest run was only 10 miles. After the marathon, I'll probably go back to five days a week, but for now, it's fun to change things up.

Yesterday, I did a six-mile easy run outside. Today I had intervals on the schedule: 6 x 800's at 10K pace with 400's recovery (basically, that means after a one-mile warm-up, I would run 1/2 mile at 8:00/mi pace, then jog 1/4 mile to recover, and repeat for a total of 6 times). I like to do intervals on the treadmill, because it's easier to control the pace and keep it consistent. Today, I set the incline at 1.5% instead of my usual 1%, hoping that my heart rate and calorie burn would be closer to what it is outside.

After my warm-up mile and my first interval, I felt really tired. I honestly didn't think I could manage to do five more intervals, so I told myself I could run one more interval, then a mile recovery, and be done. I ran the second interval, and planned to just run easy for a mile, but after my quarter-mile recovery, I decided to do "just one more" interval.

And so it went. After each interval, I truly felt like I was done, but then after the recovery, I thought I could manage one more. So I ended up doing all six, and was so happy with myself afterward!

The extra 0.5% incline definitely made a difference in my heart rate. It felt more like running outside that way. Next time, I may even bump the incline up to 2%.

After my run, I quickly showered so that I could take the boys out today. I really felt like I needed to get out of the house, so I decided to take the boys someplace we've never been: Imagination Station in Toledo, a hands-on museum. When I looked up the website, I saw that they have a Grossology exhibit going on for the summer, and thought that would be PERFECT for my boys.

Getting there was a nightmare. I get really anxious driving in unfamiliar places, and the GPS was off. I finally found the place, but they didn't have parking there. I was driving back and forth on the road, trying to figure out what to do. I was starting to feel really panicky, and I called Jerry, who calmed me down. I finally found a parking garage a couple of blocks away and parked there.

The kids had a blast inside, which totally made up for the bad drive getting there. I was intrigued with all of the anatomy stuff in the Grossology exhibit. There was one display that I was not at all fond of, and I think I will have nightmares tonight about it...

Each of those holes contained a plastic bottle that you would squeeze so that a little puff of air would come up and out through the green nubs on top. You were supposed to take a whiff of the air, and guess what part of the body you were smelling. THESE were the choices:

I thought, "Okay, they can't be that bad. How do you even bottle a smell like that?" So I took a whiff of one, and seriously almost puked on the spot. SO GROSS. It ended up being "Foot"; after that, I couldn't bring myself to try the other three. That smell was stuck in my nostrils for a long time afterward!

Some other fun stuff at Imagination Station:

Eli sitting inside of a stomach

Noah coming out of the colon ;)

A life-size version of Operation

A "skin" wall, complete with warts, pimples, and other gross things

The boys were so well-behaved and so much fun to hang out with today. It made me look forward to taking them to Cedar Point on Thursday!

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I totally forgot about Taste Test Tuesday this week!

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Motivational Monday #26

Happy Motivational Monday! This has been a really rough week for me mentally, but I managed to stay on track and not eat away my anxiety. I've been feeling a little better the past day or two, and I'm very glad I've managed to get through the week without a binge.

I hope you've all had a great week! Lots of motivating stories today... :)

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On Saturday night, one of Caitlin's friends posted on Facebook that she was going to be running a 5K race the following morning, and asked if anyone would like to join in. Caitlin spontaneously decided that she was going to do it--and it was her first 5K! She set a goal of sub-40:00, and she beat her goal, finishing in 39:59.

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Jennifer (second from right) ran a first 10K with some college friends, and PR'd with a finish time of 1:09:11!

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A couple of months ago, Julie wrote me to say that she'd been doing well with staying binge-free, but then her husband was diagnosed with cancer; she she relapsed into binge eating. She gained back the 26 pounds she'd lost while she was binge-free, and she really wanted to take care of her health despite the scary cancer diagnosis her husband received.

In her recent e-mail, Julie reported that her husband is not doing well, and has been given just weeks to live, which is very scary for her family (she and her husband have a daughter). While no one would blame her for using food to cope during this time, she is happy to say that she's been taking care of herself and has taken control of her binge eating. She read a book called Brain Over Binge, which she found very helpful. Since then, she's lost the 26 pounds that she had gained back. She says that exercise is the only way she's staying sane during her husband's illness, and she enjoys walking, spinning, elliptical, weights, and yoga.

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In training for a half-marathon, Kali ran her first 10K race! She was thrilled with her finish time of 1:16:05, especially considering she was challenged with a monster hill on the course and some ankle pain. (Here is her full race report on her blog).

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Kelly started to get serious with her weight and health in mid-February, and has since lost 37 pounds! She has become much more active than she used to be. She loves Zumba and using the treadmill at the gym; and on the weekends, she and her husband take the dogs for long walks or play frisbee golf with friends.  Even though she still has 90 pounds to lose, she said she feels SO much better since she started her journey. (Here is Kelly's blog).

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Pamela stepped way out of her comfort zone and joined a 5K training group at her local Fleet Feet. She had tried to do the Couch to 5K program on her own a few times, but the discipline she needed wasn't there. She says she used to try to blend in, or run in areas where she knew she wouldn't come across other people, because she was embarrassed of her body. She's terrified of running in public, but is proud of herself for taking this step!

She also just completed a 5K that is helping to raise money for the victims of the Boston Marathon tragedy. She wasn't sure if she'd be able to finish, considering she didn't complete the training, but she did her best, and completed the race in 48:35. After her 10-week program with Fleet Feet, she'll be doing another 5K, and hopes to leave that finish time in the dust!

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Kim has been slowly but surely working her way through the Couch to 5K program. She thought she hadn't been making any progress in her weight, but when she got on the scale a couple of days ago, she saw that she'd lost nine pounds! After taking her measurements, she was also down a whopping six inches! She's very happy with her progress, and hopes to continue with the weight loss.

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Kelly had some AWESOME NSV's (non-scale victories) this week! In her words:

"I am so very proud of myself for this past week. Every single day I had a big NSV which really shows me that I am committed to making small changes towards a healthier life style. I've lost 115 pounds with WW then got pregnant with my baby girl and am working on getting the baby weight off (down 30 so far!).

Some of my NSV's include:

- Having protein filled snacks before bed instead of junk food with my left over points.
- I made a dessert for company but didn't really care for it so I tossed the rest in the garbage (would have kept eating it even tho I didn't like it).
- I sent back an order of mashed potatoes that I didn't care for and ordered fries instead and only ate half. (I had slammed my hand in the car door earlier in the day spent a few hours in Emerg and could have said "I've had a rough day an deserve it" but I didn't!
- opted for a dinner at home instead of pizza since I didn't have the points for pizza.

All while doing major kitchen renos AND working through my hand injury.

I was down 2.2 pounds this week but am honestly more proud of my success making better choices."

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Don't forget to check out the Motivational Monday Facebook post as well, for more stories!

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Feeling that runner's high!

Eight hours later, and I am still floating on my runner's high from this morning. I had a fantastic long run today! I can't even describe how badly I was in need of a good run after feeling so crappy last week. And honestly, I wasn't expecting today to be any better, but I was hopeful.

I ended up eating breakfast when I woke up, because I knew I wouldn't be able to head outside to run until my dad picked up the kids to go to church; so I ate breakfast, and had my tea while I waited to go out. It was 8:45 when I left the house, and as soon as I stepped outside, I was in awe of how cool it was outside. It was 59 degrees--I couldn't ask for better July temps for a long run!

Again, I decided to stay close to home in case of cramps or other issues I've been having lately. I did a five-mile out-and-back first, and then a five-mile loop around the neighborhoods. The first couple of miles were a little tough. My heart rate was in Zone 1 (long runs are supposed to be in Zone 2), but I felt like I was struggling. I was breathing kind of hard, and couldn't understand why it felt so difficult when I wasn't even pushing myself very hard.

When I hit mile two, it was like a switch flipped on in my body, and I started feeling really good. When I made the turn-around on the out-and-back route, I had a tail wind, and my pace picked up a bit. I assumed it was from the wind being in my favor, but even when I changed directions again, it was like I just kept feeling better and better.

I was afraid for a while to go too fast, because I didn't want to burn out. But my heart rate was right in the middle of Zone 2, so I was nowhere near pushing too hard. The last five miles flew by--my feet were feeling like they were just springing off the ground, and a sub-9:00/mi pace was pretty effortless. It's been a long time since I maintained that pace for a long run. (Actually, I just looked, and the last double digit run that I averaged a sub-9:00 pace was in early May!)

I felt like I could have just kept running forever. With the exception of the first 2 miles, I felt really strong and amazing through the whole 10 miler. I had mapped out my route before I left the house, and it was exactly 10 miles; but I must have screwed something up, because when I reached mile 10, I was still a quarter mile from home. The extra quarter mile didn't hurt, though ;)

When I got back to my house, I just sat on the porch with my water bottle and enjoyed how gorgeous the day was! (Definitely feeling the runner's high).

I was feeling SO good after that. After last week's runs, with the stomach issues and muscle cramps, and just feeling crappy in general, I was really starting to doubt myself and doubt the new training I'm doing. But today really showed me that bad days (and bad weeks) don't mean that all of my runs are going to be like that. I know I've said this a thousand times this summer, but the heat really does make a huge difference in my pace and effort level. Having such a cool morning today was just what I needed to boost my running confidence a little.

I had been planning to get a cookie with my Activity PointsPlus today, but after my run, I was in the mood for ice cream. So I bought some cookie dough ice cream (15 PP) and ate that this afternoon. My favorite part of my long runs, for sure ;)

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Just a reminder, tomorrow is Motivational Monday! If you have a picture of a health/fitness accomplishment you'd like to share, you can e-mail it to me at SlimKatie (at) runsforcookies (dot) com with a short description, and I may include it on tomorrow's post :)

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Change of plans

Well, we didn't end up going to Cedar Point today. Jerry and I were both thinking that today was the 28th, and the tickets his employer gave us are good from July 28-Aug. 3. We made our plans to go on Saturday, the 28th--and then last night, we realized that the 28th was Sunday!

It probably worked out for the best, though, because it was storming on and off today. We decided to go on Thursday instead. My mom has a bunch of hotel points saved up, so she is going to let us use them to stay the night down there on Thursday night. I think the kids are more excited about staying at a hotel than they are about Cedar Point ;)

I had six miles on the schedule today, and after the issues with my stomach during the past few runs, I wasn't feeling very optimistic. I decided to head out right when I woke up, before I ate breakfast, so that maybe my stomach would feel better. I always used to prefer running on an empty stomach, but when I was marathon training last year, I made a habit of eating first. My body has always felt best when I run before breakfast, though.

It was a great morning for a run--completely overcast, on the verge of raining, and just 68 degrees. Instead of doing an out-and-back run, I decided to just run around the neighborhoods around my house. I was afraid of going too far from home, in case my stomach gave me trouble again.

Running on Saturday mornings is actually really nice! I didn't come across a single soul outside this morning; it was almost eery, the way it was so overcast and the streets were empty. It made for nice running, though.

At first, I was planning to keep my heart rate in Zone 1, for an easy run, but I was getting irritated from looking at my Garmin to see that my heart rate was constantly in Zone 2. After a couple of miles, I just decided to screw what the heart rate monitor said, and just run however my legs felt like running. It was definitely more enjoyable after that.

Thankfully, my stomach didn't act up today! I think my anxiety level was lower, because Jerry was off work. I wasn't feeling the "This is the greatest run ever!" attitude, but I felt much better than I have the past few runs. If tomorrow's weather is anything like today's, I'm actually looking forward to my 10-miler in the morning.

When I finished the run, I sat on the porch with a huge bottle of ice water and Jerry sat with his coffee. It was so nice outside that I didn't even want to go in the house. Eli brought his blanket out there and sat with us :)

I was definitely ready to eat breakfast after that, but Jerry and I realized we had to weigh in at Weight Watchers today. It was 9:00 already, and Weight Watchers was only open until 10. I quickly showered and got dressed, then we all went to WW. My weight was exactly the same as last month. I'm still under my WW goal, so I'm good to go for another month.

When I got home, I finally got to eat breakfast (an English muffin with Nutella--yum!). Since we'd been planning on being at Cedar Point today, we didn't have any plans all day. I organized some boxes in my bedroom closet, and Jerry mowed the grass. We just had a really relaxing afternoon, which was nice, but boring.

For dinner, I made sloppy joes, but instead of using buns, I made a quick dough out of Bisquick, and made the sloppy joes into "pockets". (For the crust, I just mixed 2 cups of Bisquick + 1/2 cup boiling water, which made enough dough for four pockets). They turned out really good!

After dinner, I was dying for something sweet. I had been planning to save my activity PointsPlus for a treat tomorrow after my 10-miler, but I just wanted something today. So we ended up getting ice cream at McDonald's, and I got a dipped cone. They are SO good, and well-worth the 7 PP!

I didn't even save enough PointsPlus for a glass of wine tonight, and I always have wine! But I was ravenous today, probably because I ran right when I woke up. I've noticed that when I run first thing in the morning, I feel like I can eat everything in sight all day; but when I run late-morning or early afternoon, my appetite is pretty in-control all day. Interesting!

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The mystery smell

For the past couple of days, I was making myself crazy trying to figure out what the heck is making my kitchen stink. Usually, if I smell something, it's the garbage, so that's an easy fix. But a couple of days ago, I smelled something funky, and I cleaned out the fridge, to make sure it wasn't bad food or something. It wasn't the garbage.

Yesterday, I thought I pinpointed it to the garbage disposal. A few times yesterday, I ran the disposal for a couple of minutes with hot soapy water. No change. Today, the smell was even worse, so I googled "stinky garbage disposal" and a bunch of home remedies came up. I used baking soda and vinegar, I used coarse salt, and a bunch of ice cubes, and I was sure that I took care of it.

After that mess, I went for my easy four-mile run. Goal heart rate was Zone 1, which meant I could go nice and easy, and not worry about pace. I was kind of looking forward to running, because I was desperate to have a good run after the past couple of crappy ones I've had. I did laps around the block again, rather than the treadmill. The temp was a little hotter than yesterday, but not horrible.

I wish I could say that the run was fantastic, but my stomach is still not feeling good. I'm almost positive it's a result of my anxiety. Since Jerry started his new job, we've been way off of our routine, and it's throwing me off a bit. Right now he's in training, and he's been working long hours. Once he starts his regular schedule (next week), things should get better, because we'll form a new routine. But for now, I've just been feeling anxious all the time, which is giving me an upset stomach--especially when I run. (Jerry really likes his new job, and the people he works with, which is a relief to me!)

I struggled through four miles. The last mile, it was nearly impossible to keep my heart rate in Zone 1, so I decided just to go with it and throw in some strides. Strides are shorts bursts of speed, roughly 100 meters or so, at around 5K-pace. I just picked a sign or a tree or something, ran hard to it, then returned to easy run pace. Doing that helped keep my mind off of my stomach.

After I finished my run, I walked in the house... and smelled something funky! I seriously thought I was losing my mind. I started opening and closing cupboards in the kitchen, sniffing the whole time, trying to find the source. It still seemed to be coming from the sink area. I opened the cupboard under the sink, and the smell was a little worse. I pulled everything out, and there was nothing that could be causing the odor.

I pulled the drawers out to check under and behind them, but it was too dark to see anything, so I got a flashlight and shined that through the space where the drawer would go, and behind the sink.

And I found the source of the smell!

It was a dead mouse. Remember, back in February 2012, when we found evidence of a mouse under the sink cupboard? I had set some mouse traps, but we never trapped one, and had no other evidence that a mouse was there. I just left the traps sitting under there, just in case.

Well, apparently the little bugger came back or told his friends, because the trap had a dead mouse in it today. It probably died a few days ago, based on the smell. As gross as it was, I was glad that I wasn't going crazy, and very happy to get rid of it!

Before Jerry left his job, his employer gave us four tickets to Cedar Point (a huge amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio). I haven't been there since 2003, before I got pregnant with Noah. We're going to take the kids there for the day tomorrow. Jerry's been wanting to go for the last few years, but I'm actually scared to. I used to like the roller coasters, but after fainting in 2010, and breaking my jaw (not at all related to roller coasters, haha), I am worried that the motion of the rides will cause me to faint again.

I know the chances are slim that it would happen, considering I haven't fainted at all since that one day, but I've been afraid to do anything that might make my dizzy. I think going with the kids will be good for me, because they can't go on any of the really big rides. Noah is very scared of roller coasters, so I'll probably be sitting out with him while Jerry takes Eli on them. I may try them (starting small) if I can get Noah to try it!

Anyway, I have no idea what time we'll be home tomorrow, so I may not write a post tomorrow night. But I can't imagine the boys staying there very late, so who knows?

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Laps

It was another gorgeous day today--a high of 75. Unfortunately, I didn't take advantage of it as much as I could have, because I was SO into the book I was reading. I opened up all the windows to get a nice breeze through the house, and then I sat and read my book until I finished it. I was reading Lisa Gardner's "The Neighbor", and I think that was my favorite of hers so far. It was one of those "just one more chapter!" books.

At around 11, I forced myself to put it down and go for my run. I had five miles on the schedule, at marathon pace. Since I don't have a marathon goal pace, I decided to try and keep my heart rate in Zone 3 (like I would for a tempo run). Eli was out fishing with my dad, and Noah was home with me, so I was thinking I'd just do the treadmill. Noah said he'd be fine with me running outside, but I would be too nervous leaving him alone (he's only nine).

Instead, I decided to run laps around the block--my house is visible from all parts of the block, and if Noah needed me, I'd be in yelling distance. Our block is only 0.4 miles around, so it certainly wouldn't be a scenic run, but the weather was so nice, that I wanted to take advantage of it.

I headed out, and took my time getting my heart rate up to Zone 3. Five miles is a long way to run in that zone, so I didn't want to burn out too early. Every time I lapped by the house, I yelled "Marco!" and from inside the house, Noah would yell, "Polo!" ;)  That way I knew that all was okay.

At one point, I actually saw some guy (probably about my age) out running, which was very surprising; I never come across another runner in my neighborhood! Even more interesting, he was wearing a Kona Run shirt, which is the 10-mile race I did last month. I just said "hi" as we passed each other in opposite directions. Then I saw him again a couple of miles later. I asked him if he was training for a race, but he said no, he was "training just to train". It would have been a little embarrassing if I'd seen him a third time, because he certainly would know that I was running circles around my block!

At mile three, things went south very quickly. I got a really sharp muscle cramp in my abdomen, which caused me to slump over and my breaths to be really shallow. Normally, I can run through muscle cramps, but this was awful. My pace slowed way down, and at mile 3.5, I just couldn't take it anymore. I stopped running, and just walked home (it wasn't very far, thanks to the laps!). When I got home, I sat down and drank some ice water.

I sat for about 10 minutes, until the cramp went away, and then decided to head out and finish the run. I only had a mile and a half left at that point, so it went by pretty quickly.

My heart rate was in the right zone for at least three of the miles, so I'd consider it a success. But I really need to have a GOOD run tomorrow.

When Eli got home, he wanted to play catch with a baseball outside, and Noah didn't want to, so I told him I would. I haven't played catch in a very long time! He had a mitt in his baseball bag that fit me, so I went out to play. When Noah learned I was playing, he changed his mind and decided he wanted to play, too ;)

It ended up being really fun, and a good chance to chat with the boys while they're not bickering. Maybe I'll ask for a baseball mitt for Christmas. I'm sure the boys would love to pick one out for me! I love that I'm able to do active stuff with the kids. Four years ago, you would never find me playing ball (or any sort of sport) outside.

I think the weather had me thinking about fall today, because I was really in the mood for soup for dinner. I hadn't made Loaded Baked Potato soup in a very long time (probably a couple of years), so I made that. It was SO good! I'm going to put this back in the rotation.

I'm really excited to watch Dexter tonight. It's been on the DVR since Sunday, when it aired, but with Jerry's work schedule, we haven't been able to watch it yet!

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