The BIG Day

We did it!

Well, I did it - I ran my first marathon! I can't believe it's already been 18 weeks since I started this journey... I'm not gonna lie, I was a little hesitant at first... I honestly didn't think I could run a full 26.2 miles. But, I DID! And another thing that came unexpected... I LOVED IT! Honestly, it was quite exhilarating. Well, here's how it went down...

Saturday afternoon Blake, Gary and I drove down to Columbus and went to our hotel. We went to the expo to pick up our shirts and bibs - boy was that an adventure! It was probably about a mile walk from our hotel to the convention center where the expo was held. Once we got there the people at the shirt distribution area told me they only had larges in the full marathon shirts... WTF? Dude, I signed up for this race and asked for a SMALL shirt five months ago! :-( So, instead of getting a shirt that's three times too big, I just took a small half marathon shirt - same design and color, just had 13.1 on it instead of 26.2. They also had a form to fill out if you wanted to exchange shirt sizes. So I did. No biggie.

I definitely earned that bumper sticker!

We walked around the expo and I bought my 26.2 bumper sticker! Eeeeeeeee!! =-D Then, after we walked all the way back to the hotel room and there was only 10 minutes until the expo closed, I came to realize that I no longer had my bib... I left it on the table when I was filling out the form to exchange my shirt! UGH! Of course I panicked, freaked out and we drove to the expo. It was no easy drive either... One way streets and traffic... Not a good combo. But, I made it in time and a lady in the back had my bib! Thank goddess! (and yes, I meant GODDESS - I heard one of the actors on True Blood say it and I liked it. :)...) Anyways... On our way out, I almost got clobbered by a giant sign that a worker was taking down. He didn't even apologize... And to top it off, guess what my bib number was? 3666! YIKES! lol I found it more humorous than anything though. :)

We went to dinner right after that fiasco with Christa from Grunt Girls and some other runners. What an energetic and pleasant bunch! It was a very entertaining dinner. :) The only downside was eating around 8:30 at night... My stomach didn't like that... I'm normally hungry in the morning, but not that morning and I couldn't get myself to eat my Powerbar. So, I had some Honey Stinger Energy chews - they're like little gummies and sooooooooo good!

Before the gun shot!

We walked to the start line, which was really close to the hotel. The race started at 7:30 AM. I was a little stiff in the beginning and nervous about the miles to come. The marathon was a record breaker in terms of numbers - 4,300 marathoners! That makes it the biggest marathon in Ohio! =-D So glad I was part of that.

Around mile six I felt a little tired and luckily Blake brought along some more of the energy chews, so we shared a pack, drank some Gatorade at the water stop and I was ready to go! I stopped at pretty much every water stop and had Gatorade, expect for maybe two stops in the beginning.

At around mile 15, Blake started to get a little slower, so I asked him if it would be alright if I went ahead and he said it was fine... Now, don't make fun of him, because he did not train nearly as much as I did. He only ran the long runs with me during the weekends. He never really ran during the weeks, which is crucial. If he would have trained more, he probably would have left me behind. So, don't go rubbing it in his face that he got beat by a girl, because that's just ignorant. Thanks. I actually felt bad and like a terrible girlfriend for leaving him... But, I trained hard for it and wanted to do my best.

Anyways... I felt GREAT, and got faster as the miles went on. I signed up for TweetMyTime through the Columbus Marathon website, so when I started, crossed the 10K mark, 15K mark, 20-mile mark and finished it posted my time on Facebook. It was pretty neat! It was great too, because then I could go back later and see my progress. People kept telling me that after mile 20 it all goes down hill, but I actually sped up after mile 20! Mainly because I had some GU around mile 17 or 18. It was the first time I ever had it, so I was kinda nervous because I heard it was nasty. But, they must of had the newer stuff because it was AMAZING! I grabbed a vanilla and it literally tasted like vanilla icing. NOM NOM NOM! After that, I was set! All the cheering spectators and 100's of bands also helped. My endorphins were definitely kickin'!

Although, around mile 18 my right hip-flexer and calve started cramping up - so I had to stop every mile or so to stretch them out and then was on my way.

Once I got to mile 25, I was in disbelief. Did I really just complete 25 miles? Do I really only have 1.2 miles to go? Then I saw the 1/2 mile sign up ahead and started striding it out. We have our names on our bibs so spectators were cheering us on by name and as I sped by one guy he was like, "Wow, there ya go Colleen, look at her speeding through!" :)

All smiles. :)

Then, down the hill of hundreds of spectators... The end was near! I could see the time clock and people crossing the finish line! I passed by so many people that 100-200 meters... According to my marathon results, I passed 347 runners between mile 20 to the finish and only got passed by 12. :)

I couldn't help but smile as I crossed the finish line. I took it all in as I crossed. I actually started tearing up, as lame as it sounds... But I was just so emotional by what I had just accomplished. I did was only 1% of the population has and ever will accomplish. I trained for and ran a FULL 26.2 miles! Now, I didn't break down crying like a baby, but there was definitely a tear. :)

I grabbed some water, waited for Blake to cross and we headed off to the food area! I treated myself to some chocolate milk. We headed back to the hotel - boy was that a painful walk/wobble! Blake and Gary had Chipotle while I got Panera! NOM! Then we headed home. And of course, I slept on the way home.

I was really happy with all the comments I received on Facebook. It really meant a lot to me that people cared. My hope is that people didn't take my blog or any of my posts about training for a marathon as narcissistic or  arrogant, because that was not my intention at all. It was to motivate myself and maybe even others to train for a marathon, half marathon, 5K or even just to get off the couch! It was to keep my friends who care up to date on my training and so I could look back and see what I did wrong and what I did right later.

On my "journey" I've learned A LOT. But the main thing I learned was that I can do ANYTHING if I just put my mind to it and commit. I know it's corny/cliche, but so true! Alright, I'm barely five-foot tall, weigh a little over 100 lbs, my body has been through hell with my eating disorder - yet my little body was able to run for four hours! Nothing but a little hard work and optimism, and I guess athleticism. :)

I'm actually hoping to run in the Toledo marathon in April or the Cleveland in May. It's just I really want to work more on speed for shorter distances, like 5K's. My goal is to finish a 5K in about 21 minutes. I really like the idea of blogging about my running progress - so I think I'll keep it up! Once I set my next running goal in the next couple weeks I'll start blogging again.

Until then, stay fit my friends! :)

First 20-Miler

So, I know it's a little late, but here's a post on last weekend's race! Blake, Gary and I ran in the Akron Marathon Relay last Saturday. We all did more than one leg of the race, even though you only need five people and we had five! :) Overachievers. Here is the outline of the relay legs:

Relay Point	Leg	Location	Miles
Point #1	First	0 mile/Start	3.5
Point #2	Second	3.5 mile/High St.	5.7
Point #3	Third	9.2 mile/Brown St.	6.3
Point #4	Fourth	15.5 mile/Sand Run Pkwy	2.8
Point #5	Fifth	18.3 mile/Sand Run Pkwy/Revere	7.9

 All three of us did the first two legs, but Blake and I ran all the way to point five! We handed off the snap bracelet to one of our team members and she handed it off to the last guy, but we just kept going since we were scheduled to run 20 miles that day.

Surprisingly, I REALLY enjoyed running 20 miles! Never thought I'd say that... I mean, don't get me wrong, it was pretty tough, especially after mile 10, but not as bad as I initially thought it would be. It was great to have so many spectators cheering on the thousands of runners and the pacers, they were AMAZING! Especially the one we ran with, which was the 9:55 min/mile pacer. He was so hilarious and motivational. I only hope he's at the Columbus Marathon in three weeks!

Guess who was at the Akron Marathon Expo the night before? HAL HIDGONS himself! I saw that he was going to be there that night and was so excited, but not excited enough to stay the whole time. We got to the expo, got our stuff  and left! It was just nice to be in the same building as the man who created the training plan that has worked so well for me so far. Also, not to mention how amazing and inspiring he was as a runner himself back in the day!

So, now an overview of the morning and after the race that day. I ate a PowerBar (Apple Cinnamon Crisp), some Gatorade, and made about six bathrooms stops before the gun shot off. Of course, I had the butterflies in my stomach, but that's just expected now. After the race I wasn't all that hungry, so I took a shower first and then had a PB&J, banana and yogurt for lunch. But, a few hours later I was STARVING. So, note to self - eat after finishing even if you're not hungry!! It'll catch up to ya later...

Well, tomorrow morning is my last double-digit run before the marathon! Twelve miles tomorrow, four miles Tuesday, three miles Wednesday and four miles Thursday... Not bad! Boy, is my body going to love these few weeks of tapering!

Well, that's all I can think of to write right now. My brain is throbbing from reading all evening for school... That's what I haven't really been posting as often, GRAD SCHOOL! I know one thing it won't stop me from ever doing though - RUNNING. :) I'll promise you that!

Stay fit, my friends! ;-)

Runners LOVE Vizslas

It's been way too long since I last posted! I've just been so super busy with grad school, work and my puppy. I figure now is better than never! It's about 9:30 PM and I have to wake up at 5:00 AM tomorrow morning, so I should probably be sleeping, but I'm not tired... Anyways, in this post I'll talk (write) about last weekend's Duathlon and then my preparation for 20 MILES tomorrow at the Road Runner Akron Marathon. 

Good thing Gary took pics, since this guy got in the way of my professional finish photo!

BLAKE! Needless to say, he beat me. :)

Last weekend was the Portage Lakes Triathlon and Duathlon. Blake and I competed in the Sprint Duathlon, which was a 5K run (3.1 miles), 12-mile bike, followed by another 5K run. It was not AS BAD as I thought it would be! It was pretty chilly in the morning, but I felt pretty good overall during the race. My overall time was 1:52:15. My first 5K was 26:56, 12-mile bike was 55:57 and my last 5K was 26:35... Not the best, but I didn't want to burn out, even though I felt like I could have pushed myself harder afterwards. I think I'm going to do more duathlons and actually train for them next year. They're a lot of fun!

On another note. We also met Miles' brother's owners at the Duathlon! One of them was competing in the triathlon. Runners LOVE vizslas! Here are some pictures of my little pup. Well, he's not so little anymore, about to be 14 weeks on Monday! Can't wait until he can start running with me. Dexter's (Miles' brother) owners said they've already starting running a couple miles with him. I tried running a little with Miles that same day, but he kept getting in front of me and whining. May take a few more tries. I'm also going to check with the vet on Monday first to see if it's alright if I start running him. Don't want my baby getting hurt, he's got a lot of training and races ahead of him!

Well, tomorrow is the Road Runner Akron Marathon! I'll be running in a relay with Blake, his dad Gary and two other people. Blake and I will be starting at the beginning and running to the last leg of the race to 19 miles, run an extra half mile and then run back and get on the bus to ride to the finish! I'm thinking (hoping) it'll be somewhat easier running with thousands of other people for 20 miles than just the two of us. It'll keep our minds of the pain! :)
Here is my preparation check list for a big race like this:
1. Dinner - Whole wheat pizza with broccoli and green pepper, with some almonds on the side.
2. Prepare breakfast - PowerBar and Gatorade!
3. Set out clothes and have bib by them
4. Put sensor on shoes.
5. Go to bed early (ehh, not happening!)
6. Set alarm for 5:00 AM (BLAH!)
7. Ice lower back for 20 minutes
8. Lay in bed and visualize how I want the race to go. Mentally go through the run and prepare myself for the ups and downs.
9. SLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP

About to go complete steps 7-9 now! I'll try to post again tomorrow on how the 20 miles went.

Stay fit my friends!:)

The Race Doesn't START Until Mile 20!

Blake and I ran 19 miles today! WOO HOO! A little bit of chaffing and sore legs later, I feel pretty good! I felt pretty good the whole time too - just had to slow down a bit the last few miles... Last night Blake and I made our whole wheat pizzas for dinner - it's our ritual dinner before a long run, and it works! Then about 45 minutes before the run I had a power bar and some Gatorade - which kept me pretty full and energized until the last three miles. After our run we had our favorite - PULP! I was pretty much hungry all day too... A couple hours later I had some Sun Chips and then three more hours I made lemon pepper chicken, whole wheat macaroni and cheese (I'm addicted to it no) and some peas and corn. Now it's almost 8:30 PM and I'm hungry AGAIN! :)

Blake made a good point during the run; it's true, the race doesn't start until mile 20... My legs were tired, sore and if I have to run seven more miles, I would have had a different mindset... It's hard to say how I'll be for that 6.2 race since I've never ran that far before. But, it'll definitely be interesting! Also, note to self, WEAR COMPRESSION SHORTS! The lining of the built-in underwear of my running shorts does some major damage to me inner thighs... I've been walking about like a baby with a diaper on all day! -lol-

Well, in two weeks I'll be running 20 miles at the Akron Marathon as part of the relay with Blake, his dad and some chick. Instead of just running one leg of the race, I'm going to start at the first leg of the race and keep running until I get to 20 miles (Blake is going to do that too). It should be interesting...

Also, next weekend is the Portage Lakes Duathlon in Akron, which is a 5K run, 12-mile bike and 5K run. I'm supposed to run 12 miles next weekend, so I'll just run six more miles on the Sunday after the race - if I can still move!

That's it for now. Getting ready to watch the season finale of True Blood! :)

Labor Day 5K: PRing and Missing the Power of Speed

1st Place Women 20-29!

Today was the Aurora Labor Day 5K at Sunny Lake Park. I not only finished first in the women's 20-29 age group, but also PRed! I ran about a 23:30 5K, a whole minute faster than my time last year at this race! Considering I haven't done ANY speed work at all, that's pretty damn good! My first mile was a 7:30 minute mile. I felt really good too, especially the first mile. The last mile though, I started to get a little tired and slowed down a bit.  But, I think taking a rest day yesterday was a good idea. My legs felt pretty fresh for the first couple miles. Blake was about two minutes ahead of me and his younger brother, Ian, was right behind me pretty much the whole time. I encouraged him the last half mile or so and then.... The last 200 meters the little booger sprinted past me towards the finish! -lol-

Adding on to my 10 + medals. :)

That's alright though, I'm just proud of myself for PRing! I've been running like 24-25 minute 5Ks lately because I don't train for shorter distances and I just run at a comfortable pace. But, after this marathon I'm training for SPEED! I never thought I'd say this, but I actually miss speed work! I used to despise it, but it's so worth it! My goal is to place in the top three overall women - and I know I can do it too! The lady who placed third overall today ran a 22:49! I hope to finish in 21-something at my next 5K, which won't be for a long time since it's already September...

Today is also Miles' 10-week birthday!! YAY! In a little less than six months he'll be running with me. :) Can't wait!

Well, off to take a shower and relax. Have a Happy Labor Day, everyone! :)

My little trophy showcase. Everything from 5Ks to Duathlons. 

Happy 10-Week Birthday, Miles!! :)

Slightly Disappointed, But Even More Proud

I'm a little disappointed in myself, but at the same time, proud. This week was supposed to be a 31-mile week, but ended up being only 21 miles... Why a ten-mile difference? Well, Thursday I was supposed to run eight miles, but it turned into a seven-mile run due to a pop-up storm and the fact that my legs were just killing me. Then, yesterday I was supposed to run 13 miles, but since I didn't wake up until around 9:30 AM and by the time I got outside to run it was around 10-10:30 AM and the humidity was hard to bear, my 13-mile run turned into a painful five-mile run... I was ready to give up around mile two! It was so hot and humid, plus my legs were still pretty sore... But, I pushed myself to get to the five-mile mark... Afterwards I felt like I ran 13 miles! I was sweating profusely!

Well, anyways... Like I said, I am also sorta proud of myself this week. Normally, I would have been so disappointed I wouldn't be able to stand it and probably would have kept running and hurt myself. I tend to push myself too hard and in the past it's led to injuries or burning myself out. It's not like I skipped out on my 20-mile run! It was just a shorter, long run - no biggie. Not going to lie though... I even Googled, "Is it alright to skip a long run?" -lol- Someone actually skipped out on a 20-mile run! Now that, that would be bad, considering I only have one 20-mile run in my training. Missing out on a full 13 miles won't kill me. Heck, maybe it'll make me even stronger for having a shorter mileage week!

Friday after work I went to Kent State's Recreation Center for the FIRST time as a KSU student! I went on an Elliptical for about 20 minutes and then did upper body. KSU's rec is A-MAZ-ING! I'm so used to BGSU's tiny little, old rec center. KSU has multiple weight room and cardio areas that I couldn't decide which one to go workout in first! Check out the YouTube video to the right about Kent's Rec Center. Pretty sweet, huh? I'm going to try to go there more often after work on Mondays and Fridays since I don't have classes - maybe even on the weekends for my cross training!

Well, today (Sunday) is going to be a REST day. Tomorrow is Labor Day, so you know what that means? The Aurora Labor Day 5K! That's the main reason why I am taking a rest day today - so that I can run well tomorrow and MAYBE even PR... Maybe... It's supposed to be a five-mile run tomorrow, so I'll run two after I get done with the 5K as a cool down. I'll do another post tomorrow to let ya'll know how I did! :)

Have a great Labor Day weekend! :)

Seven More Weeks to go!

Whew... Eighteen miles down this morning! Only seven more weeks until the BIG day! I can't believe how fast this training/summer has gone by... I start my first week of graduate school this upcoming week - YIKES! Excited/nervous at the same time. But, I've already posted about that, so I won't bore you with the details. :)

Anyways, this week was pretty good running-wise. I did five miles on Monday and Tuesday, with a full body strength training workout after the run on Tuesday. Rest on Wednesday, ran eight miles on Thursday and then another rest day on Friday.

Dinner!

Blake and I were going to run yesterday (Saturday) morning, but we decided to have Miles sleep in his cage since he's been sleeping with me in my bed every night. Not a good idea... he cried ALLLLLLLLLLL night. He may have slept for three to four hours at the most, which also means I only got about three to four hours of sleep on and off. I felt dead the next day... So, instead of dragging myself out to run, I took another rest day! I've actually taken three rest days this week. One was on Wednesday, Friday and then Saturday. I felt pretty good this morning though. We ran the same place as last week - the trail at Silver Springs in Stow. My stomach felt a little yucky when we first got there... The night before I had lemon-pepper chicken, whole-wheat organic macaroni and cheese and green beans for dinner. For a snack I had some Triscuits last night and then this morning about 30 minutes before the run I ate a Luna Bar. I think it may have been the Triscuits. Maybe I'll try having yogurt or something the night before.

Around mile 17 is when I started to feel it. I just wanted to be done! I was also getting a little hungry. But, I finished! We ran 18 miles in about three hours and nine minutes. Not bad considering we walked up some big hills and stopped a couple times to drink. Overall, the run was pretty good. I didn't feel as good as I did last weekend, but not too bad either.

After our run I drank some low-fat chocolate milk. :)

Well, this week is another 5-8-5 week and then a 13-mile run during the weekend. Not too bad!

Have a happy Sunday! :)

Seventeen Miles Later and Feeling on Top of the World!

Guess what? I ran 17 miles yesterday! That was the farthest I've EVER ran! Also, guess what? I'm farther in my training that I made it to last year! VICTORY! I feel so accomplished and even better about running 26.2 miles in a couple months. I felt amazing during and after the run yesterday and am not as sore as I thought I would be today.

So, Blake and I got up at 5:30 AM yesterday to get ready for the run. I ate half of a whole-grain bagel and about eight-ten ounces of Gatorade about 45 minutes before we ran at 6:30 AM. We drove to Silver Springs in Stow, which is part of the Cleveland Metroparks. It was really foggy and dark out when we first started off. It was nice though. It was cooler than our usual 9 or 10 AM runs. We saw quite a few fellow runners out about an hour into our run. A few other runners who passed us asked how far we were going and what we were training for. At first, I felt ashamed that these guys were passing us, but then when they told us how far they were running (seven to eight miles) and heard that they've ran quite a few marathons, I didn't feel so bad. Running double their distance made me feel a little better about them passing.

I wish I had a camera on me. It was so beautiful and green everywhere. If you've never ran at Silver Spring, you need to! There are a couple bigger hills, but for the most part, it's a nice, flat path. From mile one to mile 10 I was apprehensive about the pain I would soon feel around mile 13-16. But, fortunately, it really never came. I never got to the point where I cursed at myself and legs in my head, where I wanted to just keel over and die! It actually felt quite good! At around mile 13, I wanted to go faster and felt invincible! Those endorphins really kicked in! I kept asking Blake if we could go faster, but he didn't want to run out of gas. Which, was probably a good idea. We ran at about a 9:45-10 minute-mile pace for the most part. Except we walked up two humongous hills and stopped for a potty break. We ran 17 miles in two hours and about 52 minutes. Not bad! Especially for our first 17-mile run!

Nom nom! I sure did deserve it!

Afterwards, I felt AMAZING, on top of the world! It felt good to complete so many miles all before 10 AM. I even treated myself. We stopped at a Circle K to get some CHOCOLATE milk. Last time I only took a few sips, but this time I drank the whole 16 ounces of it! It was orgasmic... Oh, how I've missed chocolate milk! After that I wasn't really even hungry, so I showered and got ready to head to PA to see my dad with my sister, Lindsey and Grandma. Then I didn't eat lunch until 12:30 PM, which was a turkey sandwich on whole wheat bread with lettuce (Iceberg - BLAH), cucumber and mustard with some yogurt and a banana. I was sleepy most of the day, but not too sore. Even today, I'm not all that sore! I attribute it to the chocolate milk. :-)

Today is SUNDAY! YAY! Normally it's a long-run day, but boy am I glad we ran yesterday! I think today I'm going to do my Jackie Warner circuit training. Then I'm going to take it easy for the rest of the day.

Have a great Sunday! :)

New Puppy + Marathon Training = Zzzzzzzz

Noah, Mile and I!

 Long time, no blog! Sorry about that, I've been quite busy with my new puppy lately. :) He's the best and so adorable! I love my little puppy so much. :) Now that I got that out there, even though I love him he's still a pain! Last week the most sleep I got during the night was FOUR hours. Maybe to some people that's about average, not for me and normal-functioning people. I need my eight hours of sleep! Surprisingly though, I've been alright. I still get up in the mornings to go on my early-morning runs. My mom is up early in the morning, so while she's drinking her coffee and stuff she watches him for me. But once 9:00 PM hits I just want to crash!

This probably goes against what every dog owner has ever said, but I can't wait until Miles is a grown dog. That way, 1.) He won't (hopefully) pee/poop in the house. 2.) Sleep most of the night. 3.) No more teething... 4.) DOG PARK! 5.) He can run with me. Don't get me wrong, I love being able to pick him up and how tiny he is. I feel as though he gets better every day though. He's not a bad puppy at all, just a normal, happy puppy. :)

Awww... Miles. :)

Anyways... Blake and I ran 13.1 miles Sunday at the same place I ran with the Grunt Girls. TOO. MANY. HILLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLS!! It's odd, I ran 15 miles last week and felt fine. But, this week, 13.1 was tough! Blake even had to stop at mile 12. Maybe running in the same hilly location two weeks in a row wasn't the greatest idea? Oh well, what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger! :) Speaking about killing... Next weekend is a 17-mile run. The furthest I've ever ran has been 15 miles, so this will be interesting. Remember, I stopped after week nine of training last year for the Cleveland Marathon and only made it up to 15 miles. So, once I complete this week, with the 17-mile run on Sunday, I'm going to treat myself to something! Not sure what yet, nothing too spectacular though, I'd still have 9.2 miles to a full marathon!

Tomorrow is a four-mile run, Wednesday is 8 miles and then Thursday 4 miles. Then of course the big 1-7 on Sunday. I'll keep you all up to date on how that one goes. Hopefully puppy let's me sleep some more this week. :)

Long Runs and Chocolate Milk

Ahhh yes... It's that time of week again, SUNDAY! This morning was a 15-mile run at the Bedford Reservation through the Cleveland Metroparks. I had two awesome ladies to accompany on the run too! It would have been a tough run to go on without some company!

Running and picture taking!

The run was supposed to start at 8:00 AM, but I got there about 30-40 minutes early so I could get four miles in before the other girls got there because the plan was to run 10 today, but mine was 15. It was a great path! I think I'm going to be running at this spot a lot more! It was kind of like Sunny Lake's little fitness area, but they had different fitness spots through out the course. They consisted of poles and such to do pull-ups and push-ups and stuff. The path was also nicely paved and had a divided line like a road. I took a couple pictures on my phone during my four-mile run. I brought it with me so I knew how close I was to 8:00 AM. Once the other two ladies arrived we went the opposite way I went to do 10.

Bedford Reservation

This weekend's long run was nothing like last weekend's, and it was even longer! Last weekend's 14-mile run was brutal! Blake and I also ran it at 11 or 12, so it was pretty damn hot out! This time the sun was barely out at all and the path was pretty shady for the most part. There was also a nice breeze. The night before I had whole wheat pasta with tomato sauce, some mixed veggies and crumbled up a Boca Burger in. NOM! I had a yogurt and banana as a snack later too. This morning I wasn't too hungry so I just drank a little over eight ounces of Gatorade and was ready to go! Christa seemed to be surprised that I don't take any kind of gels or anything. I think I'm going to start though... I drank water the whole 15 miles, but no other type of energy/electrolytes and carb replenishment.

Afterwards though I had, wait for it.... CHOCOLATE MILK! For those of you who have known me for quite some time know that I DO NOT eat any type of junk food... No cookies, candy, hamburgers, hot dogs, bacon, white bread/pasta, especially chocolate. I just started making my own whole-wheat pizza and that was  BIG step. But, chocolate milk? That's just crazy talk! I honestly can't even tell you when the last time I had chocolate was... It's been YEARS! I started restricting my diet back when I had my eating disorder when I was 11 years old and it got worse when I was in high school. I mean, I wouldn't even eat potatoes or yogurt because I thought they were too fattening! It all has to do with my Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and Anorexia... I say I'm recovered, but it's always there in the back of my mind trying to sneak back into my life. I still am obsessed with eating "healthy," but there's nothing wrong with having some chocolate or cake here and there. All in moderation. I just need to get myself to start believing it. But, I'm getting there, slowly but surely. Who know, maybe I'll have some cake on my wedding day?! :)

On the car ride back home I was debating on even drinking it... I was thinking about my meal to eat after the run last night... I kept thinking, is that too much protein? Is that TOO many calories? Then, I just tell myself to get over it and do something good for my body! Running 15 miles is tough and my body deserved some calories and protein! I didn't drink a whole thing of chocolate milk, a little less than eight ounces. But that was a BIG step for me! And I'm proud of me... :)

Anyways, back to chocolate milk! It's been proven to be a great muscle recovery beverage because of it's protein to carbohydrate ratio. A study from James Madison University found that drinking low-fat chocolate milk after a rigorous workout provides "superior muscle recovery compared to a high-carbohydrate recovery beverage with the same amount of calories." Check out the article in Medical News Today!

Well, that's it for now. Getting my puppy Miles tomorrow! So excited! MANY pictures will be posted. :)

P.S. New motto - Stay HEALTHY my friends! ;-)

Anticipation...

So, I have a lot to anticipate for in the next couple of weeks and all this anticipation boosts my anxiety, which in turn means constant stomach aches, like the ones I get before a race which also means frequent stops to the restroom. =-/ BUT, they're all good things to be anticipating about!

These are the two male puppies I get to choose from. :)

One, I'm getting my puppy Miles next week Monday!! Eeee!! I'm nervous and excited all at the same time. I'm nervous because of the time commitment to taking care of a puppy. I know it sounds stupid, but as much as I'm going to love my puppy, I don't want him cutting into my training... I'm afraid when I get up in the morning he'll want to be with me and be sad when I leave - but hopefully he'll just stay asleep! I won't be able to run with him until he's between 6-12 months old to avoid any fractures while he's growing.

Two, I'm waiting to hear back from a graduate assistantship I had an interview for yesterday. It would be with the Financial Aid office at Kent State and, if I get it, I'd start next Wednesday! The next couple of weeks before school starts they'd have me working 40-hour weeks. I don't think I've EVER worked that much! But, that just means more mula! Not only would they be paying my tuition, but during the summer I'd get paid more than I'm making now! Plus a stipend every month during the school year. :)

Three, I start graduate school in THREE weeks! YIKES! I'm VERY excited about learning more about my future career in Public Health, but also nervous because I don't know what to expect with the workload. I've heard from a lot of graduate students that your exercise kind of gets set aside... I don't think that will happen with me, but it may be tougher to get the motivation to run on top of working, going to school, studying and taking care of my puppy... At least this time around I'll be commuting from home and not packing up and moving two hours away in BG!

And four.... Next week is the half-way point to my marathon training program! YAY! BUT, the last time I signed up for a marathon, the Cleveland Marathon last year, I gave up after the half-way point, week nine... Well, next week is week nine and I plan to stick with the program! This weekend I'll be running 15 miles, which is also the farthest distance I ran when training for the Cleveland... Luckily, the weekend after the 15-mile run is a half-marathon and then the week after that is 16 miles. My last training program had me running 15 miles one weekend and then 16 the next. I just felt burned out and lost all motivation... NOT THIS TIME! I've got TONS of support and I REALLY want to do this. :)

So, there's really nothing BAD that I'm anticipating, just a whole bunch of exciting things coming up!

Well, today is a REST day! I think I'm going to take advantage of it too! My quads have been really sore these past couple of days, so I think they deserve a little R&R. Not too sure what I'm going to do tomorrow, it's supposed to rain all day... I'm planning on saving my 15-mile run for Sunday with the Grunt Girls, but most of them are running 10 miles... May just do it Saturday if the weather is nice in the AM.

Have a happy Friday everyone! :)

My Top Five Running Pet Peeves

So, we all have our own pet peeves. Listed below are my pet peeves as a runner, in descending order.

5.) The Speeder Upper and Slower Downer - This is someone who likes to speed up to get in front of me and then slow down significantly to the point where I have to go around them... It's great to be competitive and try to pass people - it's a great feeling to pass several people during a race. But, to cut someone off and slow down? NOT COOL!

4.) UH OH... -  One of my pet peeves within myself is when I'm in the midst of a long run and all of a sudden my stomach makes some strange sound signaling it's time to find a restroom and FAST! Especially when I'm on a trail where there are no restrooms around... =-/

Shamrock 15K, 2010

3.) Ready... Set... WALK! - It's cool if you want to walk a 5K, half marathon or marathon. Good for you for getting out there! But, get in the back PLEASE! I can't stand it when I'm in the middle of a pack of runners prepping for the gun to shoot off to start the race and once I get going I'm stopped by a walker who thought they could walk just as fast as us runners... It's just race etiquette that if you're a slower runner or a walker to go as far back as you can so not to interrupt the rest of the runners' pace.

2.) "Marathon, 5K, Whatever?!" - Ahh yes, ignorance is bliss... Some people believe that a 5K is in the marathon category, despite the BIG mileage difference. A 5K is 3.1 miles compared to a marathon, which is 26.2 miles. That's a difference of 23.1 miles! Yes, that is a BIG deal. So, if you ask me on a day that I run in a 5K, "How was your marathon?" and I respond saying it was only a 5K, don't respond by saying "Oh, marathon, 5K, whatever same difference." Nope, it's NOT. Try running a 5K and then a marathon or even a half marathon (13.1 miles) and see if you can tell the difference. I bet your lungs and legs can. So, to some all the races may seem the same, but they're not. Each distance is different, 5K, 10K, 15K, Half Marathon, Marathon - so treat them as so. :)

1.) "I'm too old to run." -  There are always those who I come into contact with who say they're too old to start running or to be active at all, even if they're JUST 30 or 40 years old! Sorry my friends, you're NEVER too old to start exercising... If a 101-year-old can complete a marathon (26.2 miles), then you 30, 40 and 50 year olds can go out there for a jog! Check out this article on the oldest man to complete a marathon "He Sings, He Run, He's only 101." Also, check out the Physical Activity Guidelines for older adults as recommend by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

For Important Health Benefits. CDC.GOV

Older adults need at least: 2 hours and 30 minutes (150 minutes) of moderate-intensity aerobic activity (i.e., brisk walking) every week and muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest,  shoulders, and arms). 1 hour and 15 minutes (75 minutes) of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity (i.e., jogging or running) every week and muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest,  shoulders, and arms).   An equivalent mix of moderate- and vigorous-intensity aerobic activity and muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest,  shoulders, and arms).

This is for adults 65 and older! So, if you're under 65 you shouldn't be making up excuses for why you can't run or be active. Being active, especially into the older years, can help keep you healthy for life. "Exercise can Help Elderly Avoid Devastating Falls."

Well, those are my top five running pet peeves. Stay FIT everyone! :)

It'll All Be Worth it at Week 18!

Boston Store Visitor Center on the Towpath.
Courtesy of NPS.GOV.

One word: WHEW! Did my 14-mile run this morning/afternoon... I decided it would be nice to sleep into 9:30 AM this morning, the most I've gotten to sleep in forever! Well, maybe that wasn't the greatest of ideas! HAHA I decided to take Blake out to the Towpath out by Boston Mills where I ran with the Grunt Girls last weekend. That was about a 20-minute drive or so, by the time we got out the door and to the towpath it was already close to 11 AM.... The first couple of miles felt good! We ran five miles one way and back and then another two miles out the other way for a total of 14 miles. I followed instructions from an Active.com article titled, "The Pre-Race Meal,"  I came across where it said to drink about eight ounces of a sports drink about 30 minutes before a long-distance run and to eat little something. So, I had half of a whole wheat bagel and about eight oz. of Gatorade G2. Now, my legs felt GREAT and I felt GREAT, however, my mouth was dry as heck! We filled up Blake's water backpack with Gatorade and sipped on that every 2-3 miles. I don't know if it was the sodium in the Gatorade, but no matter how much I drank I had the worse dry mouth ever! Another factor could be my medication, Celexa, which may cause dry mouth... Either way, it slowed me down because all I wanted to do was DRINK DRINK DRINK! Afterwards I felt a little queasy and could barely stand still... After about five minutes though I felt fine, just still thirsty since we drank all of the Gatorade.

All in all, it really wasn't that bad of a ran today. I wish we would have gone a lot earlier to beat some of the heat. But, there was LOTS of shade on the Towpath and a pretty nice breeze. The last four miles I stripped my top off, which isn't usual for me because I feel very self-conscious about my stomach... =-/ But, boy did it feel good to run in a sports bra! :) Minus the dry mouth, it was a good run! Towards mile 11, I was thinking, "Damn, I am barely half way to 26.2! How am I going to do this in a couple months?" But, I just tell myself that I need to gradually increase my mileage and 14 miles will be a breeze! Shoot, a couple years ago I thought I'd never even run a half marathon and that more than five miles was a lot! Sometimes I even ask myself, why the hell am I doing this? Well, because I LOVE it, the good and the bad. The pain and the victory. I may complain after a 14-mile run, may even be a little cranky (ask Blake haha), but to me it's the best thing I can do for my body and mind. :)

Mango, Pineapple and Banana Smoothie!!

OH! Blake and I made some pretty awesome smoothies last night! Maybe even the best ones we've made so far! We used some frozen pineapple and mangoes with bananas, honey and yogurt. AMAZING! Also, for dinner last night we loaded up on carbs with chicken, broccoli, carrots and cauliflower on top of pasta with cream of celery for the sauce. Not too bad.

After the run today I refueled on Diet Arizona Green Tea with a PB&J on whole wheat bread with low-fat Activia yogurt and a banana. :)

Now I'm just going to finish  up my laundry and RELAX. These past couple of days have been nothing but running and driving around. I'm just going to rest my legs and relax for the rest of the day. :)

Stay FIT my friends!

Vacation Doesn't Mean No Running :-)

Our hotel!

Blake and I just got back from four days in Atlantic City, New Jersey. We stayed in the Taj Mahal, which is right in a casino. Unfortunately, we did not gamble... I wanted to, but we just didn't get around to it, even though we walked right through both casinos multiple times. The hotel was nice, minus the smoking in one of the casinos... BLAH! Our hotel was right on the boardwalk on the beach. Super nice! Each morning we woke up semi-early to go for a run on the boardwalk. In the evening the boardwalk is swarming with people, but it's nicer in the morning because it's mainly fitness walkers, runners and bikers.

Monday was the eight-hour drive to Atlantic City, so no running just driving and lots of walking once we got to the city since we got lost multiple times. Tuesday morning we ran four miles on the boardwalk at around 9:30 AM and BOY WAS IT HOT! Then we spent the rest of the day at the beach. :) Wednesday, another four miles and day at the beach. We were going to go to the Fitness Center early because if you go in before 8 AM you get in for free. There's a $20 fee for using the fitness center and pool after 8 AM, so I figured, "Man, this must be a nice fitness center!" Nope... It was shitty... Only two treadmills worked and they were very old. Only a couple bikes and elipticals. The machines were in pretty good shape, but there wasn't very many of them. So, we walked in and walked out! Off to the boardwalk we went! Thursday we only ran two miles since we had to check out of the hotel. So we ran to this nice little breakfast place. It was pretty nice running on the boardwalk, surprisingly. Except for, of course, those damn smokers! I would hold my breath as we ran post one and then take a big deep breath afterwards. I don't understand the appeal of smoking, to me it's the nastiest, most disgusting habit out there... I can go on a whole rant about smoking, so we won't go there.

Food-wise, not half bad! I'm always worried about vacations because that means I have to eat out everyday and I never know whether they'll have healthy options. Luckily, we used Blake's phone to check out what hotels were around and what was on their menus. One of my favorites was a place we ate Monday and Wednesday night for dinner, Pickles! Instead of biscuits or some kind of bread for an appetizer they give you a bowl of PICKLES!! NOM NOM NOM! I LOVE pickles!! I got the same thing both times too. Asian Chicken Salad (picture on the left)! It had grilled chicken, romaine lettuce, mandarin oranges, carrots and those skinny little white things (no it's not cheese) which I'm not too sure what they were but they were good!

Pickles at Pickles!!

Tuesday night for dinner we ate at a Ruby Tuesday and I got the white bean chicken chili and salad bar. For lunch we ate at this little deli where I got a turkey sandwich on wheat with PICKLES and cantaloupe. We also ate at the Rainforest Cafe where I had their Tuscan Chicken, red mashed potatoes and zucchini. Then on our home yesterday we ate at a stop on the turnpike where I got a side salad and some strawberries.

For Breakfast each day: Monday I ate at home - wheat bagel with peanut butter and banana; Tuesday - no breakfast, we ate lunch at 11 AM; Wednesday -  wheat bagel with peanut butter and banana; Thursday - we ate at a restaurant after our run where I got scrambled eggs with wheat toast and orange juice.

Not too bad considering we ate out every night! I didn't feel bloated or gross after I ate out. We also did A LOT of walking. It really helped having Blake's phone to check out the restaurants before going to them. Also, Atlantic City has a pretty good selection of restaurants with healthier options.

OH! Blake and I also got massages! We went to a little place on the boardwalk where we both got a massage for 45 minutes! It was pretty nice... I was kind of nervous because the two ladies didn't speak much English at all and I think they told us to strip down naked and then left the room, but I wasn't 100% sure that's what they said. So I stripped down to my underwear and bra and ran to the table to put the towel over myself. Once the ladies came in my lady unstrapped my bra... I think I was supposed to be nakie!! I guess that's what they do in the movies, right? Oh well! Anyways, it was slightly awkward, not only because they couldn't speak English and were talking and laughing to each other most of the time but also because she kept touching my behind! I kept my underwear on as I mentioned earlier, but she pushed my underwear up and into my cheeks like giving me a wedgie! YIKES! Then she massaged my whole backside. Don't get my wrong, it felt great, but I just felt strange having a stranger see and touch my butt and whole body... It felt great on my calves after running too! The ladies were super nice too! They both gave Blake and I a hug afterwards and said how nice we were and that he was handsome and I was beautiful. -lol-

I had a really good time overall. Eight hours of driving wasn't my favorite though.

Anyways, just got back from showering from a 5-mile run with Blake. We split up the seven-mile run I was supposed to run yesterday into two yesterday and five today. Fourteen miles on Sunday! WOOT!

Until then, stay FIT my friends! :)

Six Weeks of Training Down, New Friends and Cycling

IT'S SUNDAY!! WEEEEEE!! This morning I FINALLY ran with the Grunt Girls! I met up with a few of them at the Boston Mills Store on the Towpath, which was supposed to be at 8:00 AM, but I didn't get there until a quarter after because as usual I got lost... If you know me, you know that I am directional challenged... But, I made it and ran nine miles with some awesome ladies!! The trails were beautiful and it was nice to run with some females for once. We talked and got to know each other. That's one of the best parts of running with new people - learning about them and finding common interests. It makes the time go by soooooooooooooooo much faster!

The last mile I was struggling though... No matter how far I'm running, the last mile always gets me! But thanks to Christa I was able to keep pushing! I wanted to say "Hey, can we walk?" but with Christa's cheerful personality and optimism I didn't make one complaint. :) I really enjoyed it, minus the humidity... I was sweating profusely and was a dumb butt by wearing a heavy cotton t-shirt... Once we were done with the run though I stripped off my sweat-drenched shirt and threw it in the back seat for the drive home. I think I'm going to actually join the Grunt Girls! It'll be fun to have a group of girls to run and race with. :)

Yesterday Blake and I went on a 20-mile bike ride through Hudson and up through Seasons Road and 43. So, my booty was a little sore today, but what a great feeling that is! haha Then after our bike ride we went to PULP! NOM NOM! I got the usual, Asian Chicken Wrap on whole wheat and a small Anna Banana. For those of you who don't know or haven't been to Pulp (shame on you lol) an Anna Banana is a smoothie with pineapple juice, guava juice, low-fat yogurt, honey and of course BANANAS! SOOOO good! For dinner last night Blake and I had salmon burgers, corn-on-the-cob and fresh green beans (picture provided)! So good!

Well, while I'm writing this blog I'm also in the middle of getting ready to go to my dad's in PA so I better wrap things up. Tomorrow Blake and I are heading out to Atlantic City for four days! YAY!! Can't wait to run on the boardwalk and the beach! I will try to blog some on vacation, but we'll see how that goes. Until then, stay fit my friends! :)