9 miles and Street Sweeper Social Club

It was a busy, busy weekend!

Saturday morning, I headed out to meet Katye at the trail for some major miles. The goal for Katye was 12, and I suppose I was shooting for that, but only (ONLY??? REALLY???--Isn't it amazing how our perspective changes as we up our milage base?) ended up with 9.23. That is my furthest distance since my half marathon back in the middle of May. As in three months ago.

Remember those 8 miles I did on the treadmill last week? These 9 were harder. Perhaps it was the rolled ankle I hit at mile 2 (really, it’s the only injury I ended up with, which is really a victory in itself!)

I felt bad starting out because I knew I was going to slow Katye down. She has those long legs and I am more of a turtle. After some reassurance, I finally stopped apologizing and we went out. Our starting pace was a bit quicker than my normal long run pace, but it felt good so I went with it.
I don’t have a lot of great endurance to just run forever like some of the other bloggers I follow (and I admire you all) and I ended up having to do 1 min running/1 min walking on Saturday. I try not to beat myself up over it though, because in the end, I was moving and on my feet and enjoying a BEAUTIFUL morning. Honestly, I could probably have kept going one those minute one, minute off for another couple of miles, but it was getting HOT!

After the run (I was content to end at 9.23, but crazy Katye had to run a few more tenths to hit 12.5) we headed over to Wegman’s for some delicious muffins and fruit. After chatting a bit and drying off (ewwww) we parted ways, but I am really looking forward to our TNT run on Saturday (Dear Hurricane Earl—if you can miss hitting the East Coast on Saturday, that would be awesome. I would owe you big time. Love—E).
In the past, after a long run, my arches and feet just kill me for the next couple of days, so I am happy to report that it was not an issue this time. Maybe my body is getting used to this whole distance thing, finally :)

Sunday, I intended to work out, but the husband had tickets for the Rock The Bells tour in Columbia. I wasn’t thrilled about going, but husband was excited so I tried to be a trooper and went with him.

In the end it was a good concert. The best part of the whole show was Street Sweeper Social Club. Never heard of ‘em? Neither had , but they were awesome! The husband and I found them when we ventured back to a smaller stage when Lauryn Hill looked like a no show (she ended up being there, way late and we still got to see her) and were visiting with a friend of mine. When the band started, husband commented that they sounded like a Rage Against the Machine copy cat. I whipped out the iPhone and started googling them until I found out that the guitarist WAS Tom Morello and once our friends believed us, we all ran to the stage and were probably 4 people back from Tom Morello.  It was a huge shock to all of us and a very pleasant suprise!

Seriously, I’m not worthy—the man is a guitar GOD!!

This week is more of the same--running and cross training with a bit more available time. I am back to being a law school widow, so I don’t always feel the need to rush home following a workout.

Saturday is a TNT Training run (and the Iowa Hawkeyes first game of the year—by the by!!) and I am sticking around to get in 10 miles and Katye has promised to push me a little bit so I can work on my sub 5 hour marathon time! YAY!!!!

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend. Happy Running everyone!

Three Things Thursday

1--Iowa Hawkeye Football starts in 9 days.  9 DAYS people.  Seriously--I could not be more excited!!!!  Lets hope a win over OSU is my birthday present this year!

2--I have 12 miles planned for Saturday.  Hopefully Katye does not need to carry me the last 3 miles of the run!!

3--Fall is almost here.  Seriously, I can not be more excited.  Cute clothes, cute colors and cooler (better running) weather.

Stay tuned--I'm sure there will be plenty to say about this 12 miler this weekend!

Someone has a Golden Horseshoe

I just had to chuckle when I got the number for the giveaway and found out who the winner was. 

Out of the 85 entries (thank you so much to those who donated money--I, as well as the LLS, appreciate your support!!), ramdon.org selected

Which made the winner TMB.  This lady wins all the good giveaways, so go (begrudgingly) tell her congratulations!  Enjoy your "Will Run for Cupcakes" charm :)  Email me here so I can get your information to Jessica at Jessica's Gifts so you can claim your prize!

Happy Monday all!  Have a great day!

Feeling on Top of the World

I had a great workout today.  I was supposed to meet Katye this morning, but mother nature had other plans (but I was able to sleep in, so good news there!!), so I took advantage of some free time with the husband (starting next Monday I become a law school widow again). 

I was finally all suited up to head to the train and it was raining again!  I decided to head to my gym instead and boy, am I glad I did. 

Let me be honest with you bloggy-world.  I have been a bit slacking on my runs.  I tell myself I am "tired" and let myself walk.  I am only cheating myself.  So, today, I vowed to tackle the 8 miles TMB Endurance has mapped out for me and went SLOW, which was ok.  You have to run slow to run faster!  No more being a wuss allowed!

Let me tell you, I wanted to stop.  I wanted to die.  But I kept going, and going some more, telling myself to just make it to the next half mile, and then the next quarter mile. Before I knew it (ok, not really--my eye was on my distance and time the whole time and I felt like it was dragging on forever!) I was done and because I am crazy, I decided to do some additional leg work with a series of leg curls, extensions and squats.  .  I left the gym feeling SUPER strong and SUPER upbeat.  To think, my motivation has been lacking lately too!  Its just nice to know I can do it, even if its slow!

I am currently 3 followers away from 50 followers (oh, I remember when I was excited to hit 10).  Once I hit that milestone, look for a giveaway, since I love you all so much!
 
Speaking of giveaways, remember, you have until midnight tonight (EST) to enter my giveaway.  I will announced the winner, selected at random, tomorrow by 10AM EST. 

Happy Running!!!


PS--For my Annapolis area peeps--on September 21st, I am hosting a spirit night at California Tortilla.  I get 25% of their sales from the night if you tell them my secret word of "Disney."  Please pass this along to anyone you think might be interested!!

Three Things Thursday

1.  I have a whole bunch of cross training to try now that I joined a new gym.  I am excited to try some new classes (sadly, they do not have jazzercise at all TheDawn) and see what works best for me in my efforts to become a sub-5 hour first time marathoner!!! 

2.  Being waitlisted for the Baltimore Half Marathon stinks--but its my own fault for waiting too long to register.  I am currently #146 on their waitlist.  I am anxious to see if I can still get in and training as such.  Fingers crossed that the running Gods are with me and I get in the race!

3.  Runningskirts.com's fall line will be out in a few weeks.  I am so anxious to see what they have up their sleeve!!!!

Happy Running everyone.  I am off for 3 miles of tempo run after work!

11:26

What is significant about that number? That’s the pace I need to keep to run the Disney Marathon at SUB 5 HOURS. Are you giving me a do-what? It’s ok; had a similar reaction when Katye first told me that the idea popped in her head on a run. I then started laughing uncontrollably; thinking of the bad couple of runs I had recently had (hello sucking for air). After a few encouraging comments and getting my head around it, I wasn’t laughing; I was determined, because I have awesome tools to achieve the goal. I have an awesome coach, a great support system and a heck of a lot of determination to get this accomplished. It’s not going to kill me to run it, and there are a lot of people who would KILL for the chance to be able to run. It’s worth it. Its going to be something incredible to accomplish!!

The first TNT run was awesome, BTW. It was a “know your pace” and a just a mile, but it was really nice to get to know the team and meet people who are working with you on a very worthy cause. I ran my pace way faster than I do in a race (woops) but I guess I should get used to it for the sub 5 I have planned! I’m looking forward to future runs with the team and having each other as a support system
In other exciting news, I was able to meet Julie this weekend. I feel like I knew her because of her blog and Facebook, so it was nice to really meet her and not feel so stalker-ish! She is a super sweet, beautiful girl who just started her first grown up job on Monday (go tell her congrats!!) and we were able to help each other out; I had a sofa to sell, and she had a living room with no furniture--Perfect :) Hopefully we will see each other again soon—perhaps at the Amish Country Bird in Hand Half Marathon

Don’t forget to enter my giveaway that ends on the 22nd. You won’t be disappointed--super cute stuff!!
Happy Running everyone!!

First TNT Run this weekend and a GIVEAWAY!!!

Happy Friday everyone!

I have my first TNT running with Katye and the rest of our group in Baltimore to figure out our pace.  Luckily, I am a bit ahead of the game and am pretty aware of my pace, but I am really looking forward to getting out there and getting started!  I am so excited about the program, training, and the race, even if it is 4 months away!

I have been pounding the pavement and emailing people like crazy to beg ask for donations to help raise money for my TNT fundraising account.  I was fortunate enough to speak to Jessica at Jessica's Gifts, who makes awesome handstamped sterling silver charms, among other items.  She was super supportive of my request for a donation (she is also a runner who has completed the Goofy Challenge at Disney) and has kindly offered the winner of this giveaway at $25 gift certificate to her store. 

See how cute her stuff is?  Check out her site here to see more.  It was hard to pick just a couple to put up in the blog.

How cute is this charm?  I may order one myself!

I LOVE this one too. 

(Photos Courtesy of Jessica's Gifts)

You want to enter?  Here's how:

1. Become a follower of my blog and post to tell me.
2. Add me to your blogroll and post to tell me.
3. Add this giveaway to your blog and send me the link in a post.
4. Donate money to my TNT page here.  This will get you an entry per dollar donated, but to encourage generosity, donations over $10 will be awarded additional entries.  You can email me that you donated here.  

Again, a huge thanks to Jessica for offering up the gift certificate and helping me with my fundraising and making this giveaway possible! 

What are you waiting for?  Get your entries in.  Deadline for the giveaway is August 22nd at midnight.  The Lucky winner will be picked at random and announced no later than 10AM the morning of the 23rd. 

Happy running everyone and have a great weekend!

Have a plan, will train!

Yesterday, I embarked on Day One of Week One of my Half Marathon Training plan written for me by TMB Endurance Training.  3 miles at 80%?  Sounds easy enough.  I set out after work (heck, I worked LATE to try and let it cool down--in case you have not heard, its a bit of a Sauna around here), with an air quality alert to AVOID stenuous activity (woops!!!) and temperatures in the low 90's.  Luckily, I was armed with my Nathan Quickdraw Handheld water bottle (I LOVE this so much more than my water belt), sunglasses and plans to run a pretty shaded trail.

I started out, and the heat was not really an issue.  Aside from worrying that every branch, crack or spot was a snake, I was enjoying myself.  I had to SLOW myself down a few times were I noticed my pace was creeping up to my tempo pace (that's Wednesday's run).  It was an enjoyable three miles that i wrapped up in 37 minutes, and I was super glad to head mostly downhill at the end of the run. I treated myself to a Rita's ice after the run (what, I had to hydrate!!) and headed home REALLY pleased with my first run of the training plan.

I have avoided cross training for most of my training, but I am starting to realize how important it is.  I fought the urge to run (weird to say that!) and decided to head to the gym (it was 100 when I left work) to get in some miles on the stationary bike.  How people can do this for any extended period of time, I really can't figure out.  I managed to get out 10 miles of hill work at a medium level and I was bored to tears.  What is your favorite cross training? 

So, as you may have previously read, I have signed up for TNT (feeling generous?  Go here--I am going to match donations contributed by an individual--for every $5 donated, I will donate $1 of my own money for the first $1000 donated!) and I am currently signed up for the half marathon (disney--yay) but I am really starting to consider attempting the full instead.  It would be either my fourth half or my first full.  I am tenatively running the Philly Half in September and the Baltimore half in October. Depending on these races, I will make my decision on the full.  All you seasoned runners out there--is it feasible to go from a half to a full in about 2 months?  Is this idea good in real life, or just my crazy head??

Happy Running everyone!!

Chasing a Mouse

Happy Monday, runners! I hope that you all had a great weekend!


Friday, I set out for 4 miles at a trail by my office. I started on a pretty quick pace (for me) of 10 min/mile. I was enjoying the shade of the trail, the pretty evening and the ease of my pace when I looked down and about 10 feet in front of me, a big (about 5 feet long) nasty black snake was crossing the path. In case you don’t remember I am deathly afraid of snakes; black, rattle, garden, it does not matter—if it’s alive and close, I am pretty much freaking out. For those who say that they are more afraid of me than I am of them, I beg to differ. If you had seen me Friday, I was clearly more freaked out! I debated turning around, but I was less than a quarter of a mile into my run. I let the beast creature head into the woods and then high-tailed it past where I saw him. The rest of the run was enjoyable and uneventful (i.e. snake free!) and I felt great about finishing my run at a faster tempo!  Perhaps my legs just needed a bit of rest after getting back into training.

Saturday morning I got up bright and early to head to the Hard Rock Café in Baltimore to meet up with Katye and check out the information session and kickoff they had for Team in Training. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I don’t think I anticipated being touched so much. Maybe its because I am a tadmore emotional right now coupled with knowing I would be involved with such a worthy cause, but I totally felt my eyes misting up a few times. So, drum roll please………..I have signed up for team in training to run the Disney Half (or full, but that is another blog post for another day).
I am really excited about taking on this adventure and the opportunity to help people and make a difference. It’s easy to see why people are so passionate about the cause and sign up time and time again. I figured if I am going to run anyway, why not try and do so for a cause.
If you have done TNT before and want to share your experiences with me, please do! If you want to share them privately, please email me here. I really think the stories will help keep me going and push harder. Additionally, if you have any fundraising suggestions, please let me know. I am fortunate that Katye is going to help me, but I am open to any suggestions you may have for me!

So, in addition to training with TNT, I am starting week one day one of my half marathon training plan supplied to me by TMB Endurance Training tonight (have you checked her out yet? Go over here to see what she has to offer—I promise you its incredible!). I am just so excited for my future races plans and becoming a speed demon (or at least a bit faster than my snail paced self )
Happy Running all!

Running as a Statement

A few days ago, a friend posted this as their status on Facebook.



“Running is a statement to society. It is saying ‘no’ to always being on call, to sacrificing our daily runs for others’ needs. When we run, we are doing something for ourselves.”

--Phoebe Jones

I am thankful my friend who posted it did so because it really got me thinking. I really put off running consistently for other people and things I think I need to do—I like being social, doing things with/for people. In doing so, I become a heck of a lot more stressed, cranky and overall less pleasant than my running self because I don’t get the “me” time I get while running that is really important to my overall health.

It resonated with me, especially, because this is the first week where I have been running on my terms and when I want. I am not sacrificing my runs to run errands, putz around, or meet my husband at the golf course. Since I have been running, I am feeling a lot more like the Erin I of training days, and I got away from that.

They say it takes 21 days to form a habit. So far, I have run 4 out of the last 6 days. I think I am working my way back towards getting in the habit of running. Some days I still look at it as a chore, but each day, it becomes less like a chore and more like my own special kind of therapy.


So, I am off on a well deserved rest day, but looking forward to picking up my habit tomorrow.

Happy running!

Where have all the runners gone?

I had every intention of getting 6 miles in Saturday.  I stretched, hydrated and felt good (aside from the headcold) and the weather was beautiful.  I got my start a tad later than I hoped for (11 instead of 10), but it was not insanely hot. 

I started out on the train and felt pretty good.  My legs are still feeling a bit leadish, but I was moving.  I enjoyed some good tunes (I am obsessed with Ke$ha right now), the beautiful weather and friendly cyclists on the trail.  Then I hit mile two and I hit a wall.  I just felt like I was running in place.  I stopped to walk for a few minutes and then Helga the Garmin, my cruel trainer, quit on me!!  It was like she said, "Ok, you want to give up?  I am giving up on you!"  I fortunately knew  my distance and my turning points, but decided to turn my 6 miles into something closer to 5.5 miles.  I figured having not run over 3.5 miles since the beginning of June, 6 miles was probably a tad ambitious.

In the end, its probably a good thing that Helga quit on me.  Instead of getting fixated on time/pace for the run, I was able to just run and get back into a higher distance.  Its a bit disappointing that I slacked so much this summer, but I am trying to not to fixate on that and instead look forward. 

It was a bit weird though.  The path was busy, as usual, which is one of the reasons I pick it to run, but I never saw a single runner the whole time.  There were plenty of cyclists, and a couple people rollerblading, but no runners.  Where have they all gone?

In case you guys did not hear, Katye rocked the RNR Chicago Half Marathon this weekend.  Make sure you head over and give her some love because she killed her PR by 10 minutes.  Thats right---10 MINUTES.  600 Seconds.  Super fast!!!

Sunday was a rest day for me, but tonight, 4 miles is planned.  Fingers crossed its a better experience!

How do you try to avoid being discouraged in your training?  What do you do when you have an off day???

Happy running everyone!