Dried cherries!

The kids are on spring break today through the end of next week! Eli's friend spent the night last night, and the boys were wide awake at 6:15 this morning. A great way to start off spring break, right? ;)

I had six miles easy on the schedule today, but Jerry was working this morning, so I couldn't leave the kids to go for a run. It was so nice outside that I didn't want to run on the treadmill, so I decided to just wait until after Eli's friend went home, and take my kids to my parents' house while I fit in my outdoor run.

For breakfast this morning, I was really craving something with the dried cherries I bought at Sam's Club yesterday. I adore dried cherries, but they're a binge food for me, so I had to be careful about even buying them. But they're okay in my trusty Kitchen Safe!

I ended up making a really tasty combination: an English muffin topped with Coconut Almond Butter and chopped dried cherries.

That was only 1 PP-worth of cherries. They go a long way when they're chopped up!

I spent most of the morning reading a book that Runner's World sent me to review: The Runner's World Big Book of Running for Beginners.

Now, I'm not exactly a beginner, but a lot of people ask me for recommendations about books on running. The ones I read are usually about a particular training method (like Hansons Marathon Method, for example), so I never have suggestions for a book about the basics. Most of what I learned about running during the first year I was a beginner came from Runner's World magazine--so I was curious to see what this book was all about.

I've now found the perfect book to recommend! This book is like everything I've ever learned about running all condensed into one book--and it's easy to read, which is even better. I especially liked the "Running Etiquette 101", which has a list of questions and answers about things that people email me to ask about all the time; things like: passing on the right or the left, wearing a chip timing device, where to put your race bib, which direction to run on a track, etc. They're questions that you don't really think about until you're in that situation and totally unsure.

It has training strategies for people who want to 1) start walking, 2) start running, 3) run nonstop, 4) run faster, and 5) run longer. There is advice on nutrition and fueling for runs; proper running form; advice on injury prevention; and what I found most interesting, real life stories from everyday people on "How Running Changed My Life".

Overall, this book is pretty much everything a beginner would want to know about running. The only downside is that it truly is very basic information--if you've been running for a few years, or do a lot of reading about it, then you probably know most of the info. But if you're hoping to start running, or you have only recently gotten started, it's a great read!

(Here is a link with info on where to get it. Just FYI, I don't get commission or anything if you buy it. I just think it's a great book for beginner runners!)

So I finally got to head out for my run at around 3:00 this afternoon. I hate running in the afternoons! And I definitely overdressed. I was really cold at home, so I was wearing long pants and a long-sleeved top, which is what I wore on the run--and it was 64 degrees outside! I should have been wearing my capris and a tank top.

I drove the kids to my parents' house, and then I decided to just run from their house around the neighborhoods for six miles. Instantly, I felt too hot, but my plan was to run slowly, at the recommended "easy run" pace of 10:15-11:00/mi, so I hoped the heat wouldn't be too bad. I stopped at each mile mark to take a photo from my point of view. Nothing very interesting on this route, though.

Everything looks so brown and gross now that the snow has melted. It was odd, but right after I took this last picture, it started raining. The sun was out, and it rained for about a mile. I could see steam coming off of the streets from the sun heating up the pavement and then the rain hitting it. You can kind of see the steam in this photo:

The rain felt SO good! I haven't run in the rain in a long time, and it really felt heavenly. Anyway, I wasn't feeling very good for most of this run, and I think it was because I had eaten lunch at 2:00. I'm not used to running with a big meal in my stomach, and I'd eaten cheese grits with Brussels sprouts and an egg on top. My stomach just wasn't feeling that great, so it was nice to be able to go at a slower pace.

Jerry's working all weekend, so we're going to do Easter with the kids tonight. They're ridiculously excited to see their Easter baskets! ;)

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Oh, I almost forgot! Yesterday's food log:

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Race pace run

Jerry was off work today, and I really wanted to skip my run to stay at home and have a lazy breakfast with him. Instead, I decided to just head out early--half an hour before the kids had to leave for school. That way I could be back home by 8:30 ish.

Usually, I do my tempo runs on the treadmill, because it's easier to maintain a constant pace, but today was absolutely gorgeous outside! The snow has melted, thankfully, and it was in the low-30's (which is my favorite for running). I put on some light long-sleeved clothing and headed out for a tempo run.

In the Hansons' programs, a "tempo" is just another way of saying "race pace". Normally, I think of a tempo run as a pace that you could sustain for about an hour, but Hansons defines it differently. So today, I had a 5-mile tempo run on the schedule, plus warm-up and cool down. Since I just changed my training paces, my half-marathon pace would be 9:00-9:10 per mile.

I ran the first mile as a warm-up, and then picked up the pace to around 9:00/mi. I don't know why I get nervous to do these runs! I was checking my watch every 30 seconds or so, as if I was going to keel over and die if I didn't hit my target pace ;) After about a half-mile of that, I decided that I could only check my pace every quarter-mile. Since I know the exact distances of everything on my route (ask any runner the quarter-mile splits from home, and they can tell you the exact telephone poles, fire hydrants, and pot holes in the roads!), I started looking every quarter mile and adjusting my pace as necessary.

It was harder than I thought to maintain that as a constant pace. I went too fast, and then I noticed I was running 8:45-ish, so I slowed down and realized I was running 9:20-ish, and then I picked it back up again. Rather than a constant pace, which is the goal of this "tempo" run, I was doing a lot of ups and downs. I hit pretty close to my goal pace for each split, though!

Once I hit mile 6, I slowed to a cool down pace. I should have cooled down for about a mile, but I just wanted to get home, so I took a shortcut. I felt really good about today's run! I've been feeling so discouraged about my pace lately, it was nice to meet my goal pace without any problems today.

Jerry and I had breakfast and tea, and then we headed to Sam's Club. We usually go to a Sam's that's about 35 minutes north of us, but today, we decided to change it up and go down to the Sam's in Toledo. It took a lot longer than I thought it would to get there (probably 50 minutes), but it was kind of fun going somewhere different.

We got the stuff we needed, and it was noon when we got out of there, so we headed down the street to Panera for lunch. I got their black bean soup--it doesn't look very good, but it's one of my favorites!

I didn't realize it until I uploaded this picture, but you can see Jerry's face in the spoon ;)

After lunch, we went into Party City so that I could get a tutu for my brother. Yes, my brother. He's going to be running the Glass City Relay with us a week from Sunday, and since he's the only guy on the team, he agreed to wear a tutu! They had a rainbow colored one, and I thought it looked really cute on Hilary during Ragnar SoCal, so I bought that for myself; and I got Nathan a purple one. I'm so excited for the relay, because I really like the other girls people on the team (Jeanie's friends Jen and Deb, who were on last year's team; Audrey, who I just ran with for her first half-marathon; and my brother, Nathan).

My kids are having a friend spend the night tonight, so things are a little chaotic around here! Here is yesterday's food log:

Now I'm going to go for a walk with the kids to the corner store. That's Eli's favorite thing to do when they have friends over!

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Is it worth the points?

I felt so good after yesterday's run, I was almost disappointed that today was a rest day. ;)

I got the kids ready for school this morning, and then made breakfast--an English muffin with cocoa almond butter and a banana. It made me smile when I saw it on the plate:

Apparently, my food was into making faces today, because while I was waiting for my tea to steep, I tossed a teaspoon of sugar into my mug, and saw a pretty ghostly looking face staring back at me.

This face was a little creepier than my breakfast's face!

After breakfast, I headed to my Weight Watchers meeting. Last week, I didn't weigh in because I had just gotten home from San Diego, and I knew I had gained about three pounds. Today, my weight was up 1.4 pounds from before I left for San Diego. So it's not all that bad! I fully expected to gain 10 pounds while I was gone. I've been back to tracking for a few days now, though, so it's (slowly) coming off.

This month at WW, we've been talking about "IIWTP"--Is it worth the points? I think this is a fun topic, because I've learned so much since I started losing weight. When I was 253 pounds, a cookie was a cookie, no matter how it tasted. I never gave a single thought to whether it was good enough to be worth the points (calories)! I had the mindset that just because it was bad for me, it must taste good.

When I started counting points back then, I was shocked at how many points it would cost me for a small cookie. I started to ask myself if it was really worth it. And sometimes, surprisingly, the answer was no. Some cookies are absolutely worth the points! But some just taste completely blah.

I started to really pay attention to whether I really wanted a particular food, or if I just thought that I wanted it. One day, I did something I had never done before--I took a bite of a piece of cake, and realized it wasn't as good as I was expecting, so I spat it into a napkin. I had saved my points all week long for that piece of cake, and I was completely prepared to spend them and enjoy it very much. But when I took a bite, I realized the cake was a little dry, and there wasn't enough frosting for my liking. I decided not to waste my points on it, and I tossed out the cake. I love cake, and will happily save up my points to have some; but it better be damn good cake, or I won't waste my points on it.

Sometimes, I'll work a food up in my mind for SO long--thinking about how good it is, and how I can't wait to eat it--and then when I finally take a bite, I think, "Really? THAT'S what I was looking forward to?" This actually happened recently, with the new Ben & Jerry's "Core" ice cream. I was dying to try the "Peanut Butter Fudge Core" flavor--because, well, peanut butter + chocolate? Yes, please!

I kept looking for it at the store every time I'd go, but it hadn't hit the shelves yet. I saved up my points (a pint of that ice cream is 33 PointsPlus!) each week, until FINALLY, the store had it in stock! From the very first bite, I decided that it wasn't worth it. I've had much better ice cream, and I just didn't want to waste 33 points on ice cream that was anything less than mind-blowing.

Before I lost the weight, I would have blown through the whole pint without even thinking about whether I truly liked the flavor or not. In asking myself whether something is worth the points, I've discovered that there are a lot of tempting foods that really aren't all that great!

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Yesterday's food log:

I only spent half of my activity points yesterday so that I could spend the other half today (my rest day). I'm holding on to my weekly points so I can spend them on something good for my long run day!

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Back to the norm

When I got up this morning, I walked to the boys' bedrooms to wake them up for school. I opened the blinds in their bedrooms, and was a little taken aback at what I saw.

Snow. Everywhere. In APRIL.

Turns out that with this snow we just got last night, Detroit broke the old record for the most snowfall in a season.

The previous record was 1880-81, with 93.6". Today's put us at 94.8". So while I wasn't happy to see the snow, it IS pretty cool to have seen the snowiest winter ever. I think it's funny how the screenshot of the news above says, "We have done it!" like it's a big accomplishment that we had something to do with. Let's just hope it starts to feel like spring soon.

After I got the kids off to school (in their hats and gloves and winter coats), I ate breakfast and tried to catch up on email. I got really far behind on everything while I was in California.

I was actually looking forward to today's run--which is unusual for a Tuesday! Tuesday is speed work. Today, I started the portion of the Hansons' plan where the speed work switches to strength runs. They are still intervals, but they're longer in distance (1-3 miles) and they're done at a slower pace (half-marathon pace minus 10 seconds per mile).

Since my pace has been suffering terribly lately, I switched my training paces to reflect a 2:00 half-marathon (rather than 1:50). A 2:00 half-marathon time would be a 9:10/mi pace (but I consider it more like 9:00-9:08, to account for a longer course). On the schedule for today was:

6 x 1 mile at 8:50 pace with 400-meter recovery jogs

I chose to do it on the treadmill (it's much easier to maintain pace for speed work). I didn't do a warm-up, because this was already going to be a 7.5 mile run without warm-up or cool down. I set the treadmill at 6.8 mph (8:49 pace) for the 1-mile intervals, and then switched to 5.5 mph (10:54 pace) for the recovery jogs.

I really prefer the longer and slower intervals of this strength run to the short and fast ones for speed work! Today's run wasn't bad at all, and I felt really good during the whole thing. Maybe I should be doing a faster pace, but I'm not going to worry about that right now. I think that after the Heartbreak Hill Hat Trick, I'll go easy for a few weeks and then do my best to train for a 1:50 half-marathon (the Detroit Free Press Half this fall, or, if not that one, the Monroe Half).

It's only been a couple of days, but it feels SO GOOD to get back to the norm with my diet and running routine. I'm counting points, which feels so hard after NOT counting for a few weeks, but I'm determined to lose this weight I've gained. And after a whacky run schedule due to being sick and then being in California, I'm back to the Hansons' HM schedule. Now that I've adjusted the paces to be a little slower, I don't think I'll dread the runs so much. For a while, I was just feeling totally burned out, but now I'm feeling excited to be back to the norm.

A few people have asked if I would start posting my food log again. Just keep in mind that my diet is far from perfect! I just eat what sounds good to me, and count the points for it. This is yesterday's log:

Next month, I was supposed to go to Boston to do Ragnar Cape Cod. My friend Caitlin was going to do the race with me, but something out of her control came up, and she can't go now. She lives in Boston, and my travel plans kind of counted on her being there, so it's just not going to work out for me to go. I'm disappointed, because I've heard that the Cape Cod Ragnar is a great one; but maybe we can work it out for next year!

So the next big thing on the schedule is the Runner's World Heartbreak Hill Half & Festival in Boston the first weekend in June. I'm actually pretty nervous about doing the Hat Trick (5K, 10K, & Half-Marathon), but I'm sure I can finish, no matter how long it takes me ;) I was kind of hoping to organize some sort of meet-up that Saturday for any of you that may be going. So if that interests you, let me know!

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Motivational Monday #59

Today's Motivational Monday post is another long one! I hope everyone has had a great couple of weeks. I obviously had an amazing time in San Diego for Ragnar SoCal, and I was so proud to see my little brother finish his first 5K on Saturday. But I am definitely relieved to get back to my typical eating/running routine.

Because this post is so long, I have to truncate it again--so I'm sorry, but if you're reading this on a reader of some sort, you'll have to click through to see the whole thing. Lots of submissions today!

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Katie is feeling the runner's high of completing a fantastic training run! Her husband gave her a run clinic gift certificate for Christmas, and her "homework" was to run 5K on her own with a great time. She reduced her time from 72 minutes down to 54 minutes, and that included stopping at traffic lights! She's looking forward to an 8K race on May 4th, and feels very confident in her ability, thanks to this run! (Katie's blog)

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Cindy Jo just completed her longest run yet--7 miles--in preparation for a half-marathon! She completed her first 5K last year, and her co-workers suggested doing a half. She said it's a scary goal for her, and sometimes she doubts her ability to do it, but she was SO proud to have accomplished her 7-miler!

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Elizabeth just ran the Cherry Blossom 10-Mile race in Washington D.C.! The race has a strict 2:20 time limit, which worried her during her training. She obviously had nothing to worry about, because she finished in 1:58! There were many times she wanted to walk, but she talked herself into running a little farther... until she'd run the entire race.

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Lauren (in the gray/yellow jacket) completed her goal of walking a half-marathon! She sent me an email back in January to ask about walking a half, because she was worried about the race's time limit. But she finished the Philly Love Run in 3:34, despite the 45 degree temperature and rain! She's already registered for her next half :)

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Jamie just ran her first 10K race! The race was in her hometown, so she wanted to make sure to support it. She even finished five minutes faster than she predicted! (Jamie's race report)

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Katelyn just ran her very first marathon--in PARIS of all places! She wanted her first marathon to be extra special, so she chose the Paris Marathon for her first. A year ago, she never dreamed she'd do a marathon--and she finished in 4:37:25! (Katelyn's race report)

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Allyson just completed her first half-marathon! She ran the Rock 'n' Roll Half in Raleigh. It was hilly, and harder than she expected. Her goal was to finish sub-2:30, and she crossed the finish line in 2:29:29!

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Recently, Nicole and her kids completed a 5K Color Run! Unfortunately, her husband had to work, but she and her kids (including her 11-month old daughter) did the race together and had a blast! They followed up with a vacation to San Diego and Las Vegas--and even saw some of the Ragnarians coming through La Jolla :)

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Melissa had a very rough pregnancy, and was put on hospital bed rest due to severe preeclampsia. Not surprisingly, she gained a lot of weight. She read the Motivational Monday posts, and determined that when she got down to her goal weight, she'd be on Motivational Monday... and here she is! Six months later, through eating well and exercising, she's lost 70 pounds and 10 pants sizes.

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A year ago, Dean sent in a Motivational Monday submission for completing his first 5K. That post led to more posts, as he continued to progress. I eventually invited Dean to join my Ragnar SoCal team. His progress over the last year has been HUGE--I've even started calling him "Dean the Machine". Yesterday, Dean did another 5K race on the one-year anniversary of his first, and his time improved ridiculously: in 2013, he finished in 33:27 (10:46 pace); and yesterday, he finished the same race in 25:54 (8:21 pace)!! Last year, he weighed 259 pounds; and this year, 198. Nothing short of amazing! (Dean's race report--yes, he started a blog!)

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In November, Shelley (in black) joined a workout/weight loss challenge. Even though a quarter of the members dropped out within the first week, she toughed it out and kept going forward. She became friends with Lee (in blue) in the program, and they became workout buddies. They lost 20 pounds in 40 days, winning their challenge, and continued to push each other. Shelley convinced Lee to start running, and yesterday, Lee completed her first race--a 1-mile race to support the library! She did great, and has signed up for a 5K in a couple of weeks. Shelley has dropped over 100 pounds, and is working on her 5K and 10K times!

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Lesleigh recently stepped WAY out of her comfort zone when she saw that her local running store was asking for people to model some athletic wear in a fashion show. She signed up, but then started to feel self-conscious--she's lost 70 pounds, and was concerned about wearing shorts with some loose skin she has on her legs. Instead of backing out, she talked to the store about it, and they had her wear capris--problem solved! She was super nervous, but it ended up being a great experience. She wanted to show other women that runners come in all shapes and sizes. She was given a shirt and socks as a "thank you" gift, too!

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Krystal just completed her first 5K race! She sent me an email last month, looking for some reassurance about whether she could complete the race. I (tried my best to) ease her fears, and she did fantastic at the race! It ended up being mostly uphill, which was a huge challenge, but she was passing people and realized that just because someone "looks" like a runner doesn't mean they are in the shape to rock out a 5K! She had been nervous about being judged for her size, but she realized that runners come in all shapes and sizes. She ran the entire way, finishing in 46:20! She's already looking forward to her next race, and continuing the weight loss--she's lost over 50 pounds already :) (Krystal's race report)

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Kristine (in the middle) just set a 6-minute PR at the Rock 'n' Roll Half-Marathon in Raleigh, finishing in 2:21! This was her fifth half-marathon, but her first since the birth of her daughter last May. She did most of her training on the treadmill this winter, because of the brutal weather, but still managed to do some long runs outside--even when her water bottles froze! She's also lost 70 pounds since 2011 :)

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Kristina just completed her first half-marathon! I've "known" Kristina online since long before I lost the weight, and she was a big inspiration to me (she's lost a lot of weight herself). I'm so excited to see her board the running train now! ;)  (Kristina's blog)

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Finally, I just have to brag about my friend Stephanie--she completed her first full marathon on Saturday! I've gotten to see her through her entire weight loss/running journey so far, and I was so proud to see her cross the finish line. Steph had volunteered to be a guinea pig for when I got my RRCA certification, so I wrote her a training plan and paced her to a sub-2:10 half-marathon. She trained SO hard through this awful winter we've had, and she ran outside through all the worst weather imaginable. She finished her race in 5:05:50! (Steph's race report)

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

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The Holidome

My kids definitely don't understand the concept of "sleeping in". We had no reason to wake up early today, and I slept like crap at the hotel. Jerry left the hotel at 4:00 this morning to head to work. And kids woke up at 6:00. They were considerate enough to whisper to each other, rather than talk loudly, but their whispering is just as loud as their normal voices ;)

Last night, we spent most of the evening in the pool. I really hate swimming, but I wanted to spend some quality time with the kids, so I got in the pool with them. The pool has an opening that goes outside the building--you basically swim underneath a little wall, and then you're in the outdoor pool. When I was a kid, I loved that part! My parents used to take us there, along with our friends from the neighborhood, and we'd swim outside in the winter.

We'd always go in January or February, when it was freezing cold outside. I remember jumping out of the pool with my friends to make snow angels while in our bathing suits, then jumping back into the pool before we got frostbite. Haha!

Anyway, Jerry was working yesterday, so I wasn't expecting him to show up at the hotel until about 7:00. I was sitting in the jacuzzi when Jerry came up behind me and surprised me at around 5:15! Shortly after he got there, my mom came for a little while, too. When the kids were ready for a break from swimming, we took them to dinner at Chili's, and then back to the hotel where we swam some more.

I never thought I'd say this, but I am SO tired of dining out. Restaurant food makes me feel so sluggish and puffy and just gross. When I was in California, I ate out for every meal; and then I was only home for a couple of days before going to the hotel with the kids. I'm just really excited to get back to my normal eating routine, which rarely involves dining out.

The kids had a blast, and they stayed up watching TV while Jerry and I fell asleep by about 10:00 last night. This morning, they woke up at 6:00 and were begging to go to the pool; but the pool didn't open until 9:00. I tried to keep them entertained in the room, and then we went down to breakfast at around 7:00. Naturally, we were the only ones in the hotel restaurant at that hour on a Sunday morning ;)

The kids ate free at the breakfast buffet, but I wanted to eat something that felt more like what I would eat at home. So I ordered an English muffin, a scrambled egg, and fruit. I felt good after eating that, and not nearly so sluggish. At 9:00, we went back down to the pool for a couple of hours, until it was time to check out.

When we got home, I had a pretty unproductive day. The kids and I watched the movie Pearl Harbor, which is something like three hours long. But it was really nice to just relax and not have to be anywhere. Today was supposed to be my long run day, but since we were at the hotel, I skipped it. I'm going right back to my running schedule tomorrow, because everything has been so out of whack for the past couple of weeks.

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In thinking about Mark so much the last few days, it made me wonder how things are going with doing random acts of kindness in Mark's honor? I'd love to read about what any of you have done in honor of Mark, no matter how big or little it might have been. I forgot to post this earlier, but when my sister was in town, she took my kids to the store to buy a bunch of needed items for the Humane Society. They donated it in honor of Mark :)

I've done a few things here and there, and I'm always looking for new opportunities. But I've been trying to get more creative, so I'd love to know what acts of kindness any of you have done to give me some ideas.

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Tomorrow is Motivational Monday! It's been a couple of weeks since the last one, but if you have a photo you want to share of a health/fitness accomplishment, you can email it to me at SlimKatie (at) runsforcookies (dot) com, subject: Motivational Monday, along with a brief description, and I may include it in tomorrow's post!

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Martian Meteor 5K race report

I got up at 5:00 this morning to get ready for the Martian Invasion of races in Dearborn. The 5K didn't start until 8:00, but I wanted to get there before the marathon started at 7:15, so I could see Stephanie before the race. Today was her first marathon, and I was so excited for her!

I dressed in my muscle pants and the race shirt from the Rock CF Half I just did--I thought the "lungs" were appropriate with the pants I wore ;) I had a feeling I'd be too hot, but I've had those pants two years, and I've only worn them once! I ate a bagel thin for breakfast, and then went to pick up my older brother, Brian, from my parents' house at 6:00.

My younger brother, Nathan, was going to meet us as the race. I wanted to drive separately so that I could stay after and cheer on Stephanie, and my brothers could leave after the 5K. Brian and I headed to Dearborn, and just a few blocks before we got to the race, we spotted Nathan's truck. So we just followed him to the parking lot.

I went to pick up my t-shirt and race bib, and Brian had to register. A guy wearing a kilt and a pig nose and ears came up to me and asked for a picture together--I learned it was a reader of my blog! I always love when readers introduce themselves, and I feel absolutely awful, but I can't remember his name--I want to say Dave? (If you're reading this, I'd love for you to email me the pic! And I'm sorry if I got your name completely wrong. I hope you had a great marathon today!)

Then we met up with Stephanie at the starting line! She was standing with her friend Carrie, who was running the half; and Jessica, who was running the 10K. Steph seemed to be feeling good, and not nervous or anything. I was a wreck before my first!

Carrie, Steph, me, and Jessica (we've lost a collective 450-ish pounds!)

The marathon started at 7:15, and I waved and cheered for Steph as she got a strong start. Then I just hung out with my brothers while we waited for the 5K start. We put our shirts in the car, and used the porta potties. Brian suggested that we wait until everyone else started the 5K before we even cross the starting line. There were a TON of walkers, but the whole starting line was completely packed, so I thought it sounded good to me. It was chip timed, so there was no reason to start with everyone else.

It took several minutes for everyone to cross the starting line. Once the last person crossed, we started walking to the line. Once we crossed, we started running, and it was pretty easy to pick up the pace because the crowd had spread out a little. I really liked that strategy!

We fell into an 8:45-ish pace, and were passing people left and right the entire race (because of our late start). When Nathan said he wanted to run sub-9:00's, I assumed he meant 8:59 pace. Ugh, he had me huffing and puffing the whole way ;)  I don't have the splits with me (I'm at the hotel with the kids right now), but I think our first mile was 8:45-ish. I was staying as close as possible to my brothers, and just tried to keep up with Nathan.

Mile two was faster--I think it was an 8:35-ish pace. I was glad I had held on that long, and just hoped I could keep it up. I somehow got a burst of energy at that point, and found myself in front of my brothers, setting the pace at 8:30-ish. When turning a corner toward the end of mile three, Nathan got pushed in front of me. I guess he decided at that moment to sprint hard to the finish line, because he just shot forward like a rocket.

A couple of people cut in front of Brian and I, so it was hard for us to keep up with Nathan. Brian wanted to catch up to Nate, so he took off, too. And naturally, I didn't want them showing me up, so I ran hard to try and close the gap. Brian didn't catch Nathan, and I didn't catch Brian; so at the very end, we finished one right after the other--Nathan (25:58), Brian (26:06), and me (26:11). Damn boys!

Nathan, me, and Brian

Yeah, I know, you can't really tell that they're brothers, right? ;)

I'm happy I kept up as long as I did, but I'm still just a little surprised at how hard this run felt for me. I want to get my fitness back to where it was a year ago!

Anyway, I'm really proud of Nathan for finishing--and with a sub-26 to boot! This was his first race, and he already wants to do a 10K. He's going to be running on my relay team for my sister's marathon in a couple of weeks. One of the girls that was going to run on her team backed out, so Nate said he'd do it. He's even going to wear a tutu. What a champ!

After the race, I said good-bye to my brothers, and then met up with Jessica so we could cheer on Steph. We got a coffee and then went to the finish line to cheer on some runners for a while, then decided to drive to mile 20 to see Stephanie. We had a hard time navigating and figuring out where to see her, but we asked some guy in a parking lot for help, and he told us how to get where we needed to go. Once we found a spot to park, we saw a few runners go by, and we cheered them on. I started to try to do the math in my head, hoping that Steph hadn't already gone by, when Jessica said, "There she is!!" and sure enough, Steph was coming. It was literally about three minutes after we got out of the car. We couldn't have planned it better.

Steph looked extremely tired, and she didn't say a single word to us--just nodded when we asked questions--but Jessica and I remembered that feeling very well, because we felt the same thing during our first marathon in Cleveland together. We asked if she needed anything, and she shook her head no. So I told her I'd see her at the finish line, and we headed back to the car. Even though she looked tired, she seemed to be going strong, so we weren't worried about her.

Jessica had to get home to her kids, so she dropped me off at the finish line, and then she left. I waited  at the finish line for a while--the weather was gorgeous today!--and someone named Kelly came up to me to introduce herself. Another reader :) She had just finished the marathon (in great time, too).

I went to the 26.1 mile mark to watch for Stephanie, and I saw her coming right around when I predicted. She was still going strong, but looking like she was totally ready to be done. I sent her friend Carrie a quick text to say Steph was on her way, then I ran for the finish line to get there before Steph, so I could take some pictures.

That's her son with his arms reaching out--so sweet! Steph crossed the finish line in 5:05, and she did AWESOME!! I got choked up when I saw her finish. She trained through the worst winter imaginable, and had a great race day. I'm just so proud of her :)

Just before I left, a familiar face came up to me to say hello--it was Burt, another reader of my blog, who I'd met once before at the Halloween 10K last year. He's so sweet, and has lost a lot of weight himself! He did his first half-marathon today. A big congrats to him!

It was an awesome day--getting to hang out with my brothers, seeing Nathan finish his first 5K, seeing Stephanie finisher her marathon, spending some time with Jessica (I hadn't seen her in a while), meeting a few readers... and gorgeous weather on top of it all. Now I'm at the hotel with the family, so I'm going to head down to the pool with the kiddos.

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Mark on my mind

I've been having a ridiculously hard time getting back to the norm after spending a week in California. I'm so tired in the mornings, and it's so hard to get out of bed!

This morning, after I got the kids off to school, I ate breakfast and got ready for my run. I was so sure that I had six miles on the schedule today, but when I double-checked, I saw that I only had five. I haven't had a run in a while where I could see where my pace is right now--yesterday, I forgot my Garmin; during Ragnar, I had a ton of stoplights and I got lost; before that, my sister was in town, and I ran with her at her pace.

Lately, I've been feeling so slow! This morning, my brother told me that he'd like to run sub-9:00 miles tomorrow, and it makes me nervous. It should feel like a cake walk--even my very first 5K was faster than that. But I'm feeling so doubtful right now, and I'm not sure why. I think it's just a combination of being out of my routine, and the weight gain over the past few months, along with all the treadmill running over the winter that's making me doubt my abilities.

Anyway, I was curious to see what my "comfortable" pace was today. I was hoping I'd be running an effortless sub-9:00 pace, but of course it didn't work out that way ;) My first mile was 9:32; second was 9:50; and third was 10:02. I was getting more discouraged by the mile. My fourth was 9:37. After that, I decided to see if I could even get in ONE sub-9:00 mile. I knew if I couldn't run one, then I certainly wouldn't be able to do three tomorrow.

I picked up the pace, and focused on my arms (my little trick for pushing through when it feels tough--I focus on my arms instead of anything else). My pace settled around 8:30, and even though it was definitely tough, I managed to hold on. I finished the fifth mile in 8:27. That definitely gave me some hope that I can keep up with my brothers tomorrow! I don't want to hold Nathan back on his first 5K. I just might be able to pull off an 8:59-ish pace.

This afternoon, I got a package in the mail from Caitlin, who was Runner #4 on my Ragnar SoCal team. She sent me a gift as a thank you for co-captaining the team--a three-month subscription to StrideBox!

It's a box of products geared toward runners. Each month, the box contains different items. In mine today, there was: Quest Peanut Butter Cups, NOW Trail Bar, Huma Chia Seed Gel, Achiva Native Energy Chia Seed Chews, CytoMax Sports Performance Mix, ZipFizz Energy Drink, and a StrideBox Running Belt. So awesome! I thought this was such a thoughtful gift for a runner, and now I have something to look forward to in the mail for the next couple of months. It's smart marketing, too, because now I'll get hooked on all these products and buy more ;)

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I've been thinking about Mark a lot lately. His death is really starting to sink in. When I was grocery shopping yesterday, I would see something he'd like, and think, for a brief moment, "Oh, I should get that for Mark!" And then I'd remember.

I let myself think about him for a while today, and it made me so sad. When we celebrated his last birthday, we had no idea it was for the last time. He was diagnosed in November, and he died in March. It all happened so fast!

Something has been bothering me a lot about the last time I saw him. He apologized to my dad for his being sick for so long, and he said that when he gets better, he can go fishing with my dad. I had explained to Mark, when the hospice nurse came to evaluate him, that he wasn't going to get better; but I don't think he understood that. It just makes me feel so sad that he thought the treatments had cured his cancer. It was such a hard thing to explain to him, and I don't think he understood.

I've been trying to think about what his birthday will be like this year. Every Halloween, my dad brings him over to his house for Mark's birthday and to pass out candy. It's actually kind of funny, now--Mark always told us his birthday was on Halloween, and that's when we celebrated. But when he went into the hospital, we noticed that on his hospital bracelet, his birthday was listed as November 1. ;)

I was thinking about doing a Virtual 5K this year on his birthday, and possibly raising some money to donate to his group home. He loved that home and all of the residents and staff there! When I was visiting there, I saw that they could certainly use some donations, so I think it would be a good thing to do in Mark's honor.

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Anyways, tomorrow is going to be a very busy day! I'm getting up way too early to drive up to Dearborn for the Martian race. I want to see Stephanie start the marathon, and then I'll run the 5K with my brothers at 8:00. Then, I'm going to try and go to a couple of spots on the course to cheer for Stephanie.

I definitely want to see her finish, which will be at around noon. I'll go home, pick up the kids, and take them to the Holidome for the night. My brother had some points on his credit card and wasn't able to use the night specified, so he booked the room for us. We took the kids there once before, and they loved it, so they're really excited to go back. I'm not sure what the internet situation will be, so I may or may not post tomorrow night.

Hopefully I'll see some of you at the Martian tomorrow!

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Running naked

It's been kind of tough getting back to normal after a week in California! Yesterday was pretty busy. I woke up at 7:00 to get the kids ready for school, but I think my body was confused--in CA, it would have only been 4:00 AM. I was really tired, but I got the kids ready for school and took them to the bus stop.

I ate breakfast and got dressed to go to Weight Watchers. I knew my weigh-in was going to be awful, because I didn't count a single point the entire time I was gone. When I got there, I asked Glenda (my leader) if I could skip the scale this week--and she said that was fine! Not that being in denial is going to change anything; but it was literally about 12 hours since I arrived home, and I didn't want that weight written in my book. I will weigh in next week for sure.

Someone in the meeting brought in a new Hungry Girl book called "The Hungry Girl Diet". She said that the recipes were mostly made with Simply Filling foods (the HG books are notorious for using lots of "fake" ingredients, and this book focuses more on whole foods). I don't eat a "clean" diet, but after eating pretty much nothing but junk for the week, I was craving real food. So after the meeting, I stopped at Wal-Mart to buy the book.

This book is different from her others in that it's more of an actual diet plan, and not just a recipe book. I'm not going to be following the plan itself, but I do like the meal and snack ideas, and the recipes sound good.

When I got home, I had just enough time to eat some lunch and then go to the dentist for a cleaning appointment. I really wanted to reschedule it, but I ended up having to reschedule last time. So I went and got my teeth cleaned, and when I was done, I had just enough time to make it home before the kids got home from school. I couldn't believe how fast the time was going.

Martian Half-Marathon 2013

This morning, I had another difficult time getting out of bed. I just felt so tired! I got the kids off to school, and then I registered for the Martian 5K, which takes place this Saturday. My little brother, Nathan, asked me if I'd want to do it with him, so I said sure. It's his first race, and I really want to be there to support him.

I'm not sure if he wants me to run with him or not, but I'd like to. I don't know if I can keep up with him, though! I think he'll be running about an 8:15-8:30 pace, and I haven't done that in a while. I'd be lucky to hang on at a 9:00/mi pace!

My older brother, Brian, is flying in tomorrow, and he's going to do the race with us also. Should be fun! I'm planning to wear my muscle pants again this year ;) At this race last year, I did the half-marathon, and finished in 1:52 (an 8:33 pace); and this year, I doubt I'd be able to run that pace for the 5K. Good grief! A lot has changed. I feel like I'm back at square one.

Today, I was hoping to get back on schedule with running. I really wanted one more day off, but I knew I should run. I had six miles on the schedule, and I decided to go to the State Park to run it. I got all ready to go, and then when I drove to the park, I noticed that I forgot my Garmin. Normally, if that happened, I'd go back home to get it; but I've been wanting to try a run "naked" --without my Garmin--because I thought it might feel freeing. I decided to just go for it.

I know the park really well, and where all the milestones are, so I could judge the distance. I was really surprised at how windy it was when I got out of the car! (I later looked at the weather report, and the winds were a "mere" 29 mph!)

I wanted to relax and run for fun, because I didn't have my Garmin; but I was on-edge the whole time. I hated not having my Garmin on! I planned to run six miles, but it was so windy, and my feet were hurting pretty badly, so I just did the 5K loop. I'm not sure why my feet were hurting--they felt like they do when my shoes have too many miles on them, but they're pretty new. (I never ended up getting the Brooks Ghosts; instead, I found my Adrenaline 13's online for $72/pair! I bought four pair to last me the whole year...)

It was a crappy run, and I just didn't feel very good the whole time. No doubt because of my stellar diet in California ;) Tomorrow, I'm going to do my best to get in six miles, and then Saturday is the Martian 5K. I'm looking forward to spending some time with both of my brothers! Anyone else running an event at the Martian Marathon Saturday? I'll be easy to spot!

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Ragnar SoCal, Part 4

On Monday, Colleen woke up at 7:00 and went for a 6-mile run! I wasn't feeling so ambitious. I'd finally gotten a good night's sleep, though, so I was grateful for that. John had to work; Dean and Thomas headed to the Midway; and us girls (Martha, Bonnie, Cat, Colleen, and me) decided to head to the beach for a walk.

Bonnie had never been in the Pacific Ocean before (and I couldn't remember if I had or not when I was in San Diego over 10 years ago), so she wanted to step foot in the ocean. Bonnie is absolutely adorable, and I took a bunch of pictures of her. Then we wrote "Strangers to Sole Mates" in the sand, and asked someone to take our picture. I love it!

I hadn't had breakfast yet, and I was starving! We stopped in a little bar called Sandbar, and ordered a few appetizers to share and a round of margaritas--a nice breakfast ;)  It was 11:00, so I guess it wasn't really breakfast by then.

After that, we went for a long walk along the boardwalk, all the way to the pier. I couldn't believe how many people were out walking, running, skate boarding, and bike riding! It was a Monday afternoon, and there were SO many people out. I came across more runners in a few hours than I do in about a year where I live!

Dean and Thomas told us they'd meet up with us for lunch after the Midway, so we started looking for a place to eat. We found a place called FatFish, and that looked good. So we had another round of margaritas while we waited for the guys. I wasn't very hungry, because we'd eaten the appetizers just a few hours prior, so I ordered lobster-stuffed mushrooms. It was only three mushrooms, plus a few crostini. They were really good!

After lunch, we (sadly) had to say good-bye to Thomas, because Dean was going to drive him to the airport. Saying good-bye to each person was so hard, because there were so many things I wanted to say, but they just couldn't really be put into words. Cat and I walked to a little clothing shop, because we wanted to buy the same shirts that Bonnie and Martha had just bought. They were super cozy!

As if we hadn't eaten enough in the past few hours, we all went to Yogurtland and got self-serve fro-yo. For the first time (in my entire life, probably), I ended up throwing a third of mine away, because I was just too full to eat it. It had sounded SO good the whole time we were in San Diego, but I should have gotten it when I was hungry.

Dean met us again after taking Thomas to the airport, and we went to a souvenir shop. I looked around to try and find something for Jerry (I'd gotten the kids something at the zoo--paper made out of panda poop!) but I couldn't find anything. Dean still hadn't stepped foot in the ocean, so we went back out to the beach and took a bunch of pictures.

We played around for a little bit, and then it was time to take Colleen to the airport. Again, with the good-byes... so hard! We had plans to meet up with John and his Aunt Sue after he got done working, so we went to one of John's favorite bars called Gossip Grill. We sat outside, and it was so nice out! I ordered a caprese panini, but only picked at it, because I felt like I'd done nothing but eat all day, and I wasn't even close to hungry. But I was still in the mood for margaritas, and Bonnie and I got talked into ordered an "Ass Kicker"... it wasn't nearly as strong as the name made me think it'd be. But it was pretty!

We sat and chatted for a few hours, because it was the last time we'd all be together. Everyone had morning flights.

With Colleen and Thomas gone, I had the hotel room all to myself Monday night. It was pretty lonely! I went to bed at around 11. On Tuesday morning, I had some time to kill, so I FaceTimed Jerry and talked to him for a while. Then I packed and got ready for Dean to pick me up for the airport.

There were good-byes all around, and Bonnie and I discovered our gates were just a couple apart, so we got to hang out until our flights (11:00 & 11:15). We had our matching shirts on that we'd bought, and we sat and ordered a beer while we waited. I was actually in the mood for a beer instead of my usual pre-flight wine.

Bonnie is SO very sweet, with the cutest southern accent, and she's fun to chat with. The time flew by, and soon, we were heading our separate ways.

I'm a super nervous flyer, and I am very particular about where I sit on a plane. It has to be on the left side of the plane, a window seat, and just in front of the wing. I got my ticket early and my favorite spot was available, so I was very relieved to have selected my window seat.

Delta apparently defines "window" a little differently than I do:

It was literally the ONLY "window" seat on the plane that didn't have a window! I could see just a tiny sliver of the window in the row in front of me, and could only see a sliver of the wing out of the window in the row behind me. I felt claustrophobic and a little panicky, but there was nothing I could do.

Thankfully, the take-off was super smooth (that's the part that causes the most anxiety for me). The rest of the flight was uneventful, and I even started nodding off a few times. My eyes would close and then my head jerked up. I watched a couple of movies, and the flight didn't drag on as long as it had on the way there.

I was so happy to land in Detroit. I missed Jerry and the kids a lot! The three of them picked me up, and I wasn't home until almost 8:00. The day went by so fast. But it felt really good to be home again.

I had the BEST time with my new Sole Mates! I wish we'd have had more time together, but I have a feeling we'll be getting together again. I ate terribly, and drank like a fish, but I don't feel the least bit guilty. However, it's back to counting points today!

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