running outside=glorious!

current temperature in sheridan, wyo is 36*.
about an hour ago it was probably 25*.

I was half “forced” to do something other than the gym today. I went to the gym with all intentions of doing a “cross training” workout. when I got there I noticed, not a single car in the parking lot. sweet. the whole gym to myself. I scanned my key card to get in. it unlocked, but the door wouldn’t open. after a closer look, I noticed that the door was pushed in beyond the door jam thingy. I jerked and jerked and never got it to open. it appeared the only way you were going to get it open was by pushing from the inside. no wonder no one else was at the gym. so…I climbed back in my car and drove home. I had already taken my pre-workout supplement, so I felt like it was a waste if I didn’t do something.

the weather was gorgeous. not cold if you had the right amount of clothes on. no wind. sunny. pretty perfect. so I braved the outdoors and told myself I was going to do the 5K loop that I know in town. too get to the beginning its about a 0.5 mile from my house. I asked around the house to see if anyone wanted to join me.

I got this look in response.

“a run?! I’ll go for a run with you Mom! oh please, oh please! pick me!”

so I stretched out, walked outside to make sure I was really going to do this. I doubled checked that Twogwotee was ready to go.

I’m pretty sure this is a face of…”are we EVER going to do this?”
don’t mind her ears…she’s lucky if she’s got them going in the same direction at the same time. they’re a little big for her….I wonder if she’ll ever grow into them.

the only snowy part of the run was the beginning and ending. my side road to get to the main road and the nice little bike path they have through town. the city does a very nice job of plowing the path through town immediately after a storm. its better taken care of than some of the streets. this run tested me, that’s for sure. the elements are a LOT different outside than on a treadmill (as I expected). this is the first time I had hills thrown in. I wanted to stop. I wanted to walk. I pushed through. the first little walk I did was over halfway into my run, and it was only for the purpose to take a few snap shots of the surrounding gorgeous-ness.

ignore the fence, really. the fence is for the “zoo.” there are a few buffalo (including a baby from last spring) and some elk in this “zoo.” you usually only see the buffalo. they were on top laying in the feed/hay. I was trying to get a picture of the glorious Bighorn Mountains.

nice clear running path. made it easy to focus on the running, breathing, and not tripping over Twogwotee. this actually only happened about once…and it was at the beginning. she likes to play with the leash for the first few blocks of our walks. this was the first day we tried a run. I think she did an amazing job. I was very proud of my little girl.

still glorious! just a few weeks ago when I was out walking this same path in a tank top and shorts the creek was completely open. not any more. I think the sub 0 temps had something to do with that.

“how you holding up Twogs?”
“great Mom! this is fun. but maybe could you slow down? I’m getting tired.”

remember I don’t have a garmin watch, so I just kind of have to guess how well I did with my regular watch and my splits I had set up.
for the first 0.5 mile; 4.54 minutes. perfect little pace.
the next 3 miles-ish (I may have taken off about 0.1 mile without the cut through the park where the start and finish were set up last fall; 28:35.
(side note: this 5K was walked last year by my mother and I for breast cancer awareness, that’s how I know the route is a 5K. )
the last 0.5 mile back to house; 5:24
total time for ~4 miles; 38:55
not too shabby for my first outdoor run. I’m more than happy with it. I felt great. I felt confident, except on the hills, but that will come with time. I’m happy that I finished under 40 minutes. better than a 10 minute mile.

nice stretch at home post run.
1.) don’t mind the crazy look in my eye.
2.) don’t mind the crazy woman hair…I had already taken my buff off.
3.) don’t mind my bright red legs. I really wasn’t cold.
4.) don’t mind all the dog toys surrounding me. my whole house is littered with them.

I did change out shoes for my outdoor running experience. felt great.

 

this is what I ran in. sports bra (not seen), tshirt (not seen), long sleeve North Face shirt (blue), North Face down vest (black) and shorts. and I was perfect! If the temperatures were a little higher, I might opt out of the vest. I did have my buff on and also gloves so my hands didn’t get cold. I even managed to break a little sweat. it felt great. who needs the gym? I can’t wait to get back outside for another run with my new partner.

rough night

most nights are better than others…but I still have some rough nights.

it will be 5 years this fall.
I still struggle.

flashback to November 2006.
I was attending my first semester at San Diego State University in San Diego, CA.
I had 3 roommates.
roommate 1 and I shared a room, while roommates 2 and 3 shared a room.

on this particular night, roommate 1 was out of town for some family reasons.
roommates 2 and 3 were out with their friends doing what almost every college student does on any night of the week…having fun!

I was the only one home.
I decided to turn in for the night.
locked the front door and went to my room, but something told me to lock my bedroom door also. so I did.

0200am rolls around.
I’m fast asleep. still home alone.
I hear voices. rustling of personal belongings being gone through.
first thought. roommates 2 and 3 are home for a quick stop, brought some guys friends back.

I wait.
listen for familiar voices.
then I hear the people try to get into my room.
I call out, “yeah?”
footsteps bolting out the front door.

I am terrified.
this can’t be happening.
I come from Wyoming.
I’m living in “on campus, gated apartments.”
I thought we were suppose to be “safe.”

I get up and open my door.
look around the apartment.
notice nothing major missing.

I investigate into roommates 2 and 3’s room.
I notice a computer missing.
I notice a purse contents dumped on the bed.

I immediately call the campus police.
”I’m pretty sure someone just broke into my apartment.”

they respond quickly. thank God.
men, football sized men, running from the police.
men, football sized men, being tazed.

I call Mom, hysterical.
”I’M COMING HOME!”

the police catch 5 men, football sized men.
our apartment isn’t the only one they broke into.
they had been let into the locked, gated apartment complex by someone else coming or going at the same time.
they have stolen a bunch of others belongings including roommates 2 and 3 belongings.

I finished out my only semester at SDSU and came home to Wyo in December 2006.

I have struggled being home alone ever since.

Hubby is on nights currently for his job.

I have been doing really well, but some nights I just have overwhelming anxiety and barely get any sleep, sleep with every light on in the house.

Having Twogwotee makes me feel a little more secure, although I’m sure she would lick anyone to death, but she does sound pretty mean when she does bark out back.

Last night was just one of those nights.
I woke up feeling like I didn’t get any sleep. I felt like I tossed and turned. I woke up numerous times soaked in sweat. I slept with the hall light on. If Hubby’s at work, I sleep with the front and back porch light on.
We sleep with a handgun on the night stand.

I pity the person that ever does really break into my house if I’m the only one home.

hopefully tonight is a little better.
I just wanted to sleep well last night.
I had 6 miles to run today.
I managed to pound them out in 56:08. 9:20 minute/mile.
I know I will be taking a nap later today.

I’ve got to get showered and cozy-ed up on the couch. my boys in black and red (SDSU boys basketball) made the big time today. they play BYU on CBS in about an hour and half! yippee.

date night

last night was Hubby and my date night. we don’t do these often, but when we do…we always try to change it up.
last nights date was a first for us as a couple. we went to dinner (not new) and a high school play (new).

I loved this as a little kid on video. Hubby obviously hadn’t seen what I had as a kid. He was impressed when I was singing along…”I don’t wanna grow up. I don’t wanna go to school. To learn to be a parent, and recite a silly rule.”

we got all prettied up.

the boots (often referred to as my “hooker boots.”) complete the outfit.

we headed out the door for dinner.

subway…because we are classy like that.

steak and cheese for me.

chicken bacon ranch for Hubby (he tried with all his might to refuse this picture until I started making a scene inside Subway…he quickly agreed).

before we headed to the high school we stopped off at Safeway for some snackies. the play started at 730pm and I wasn’t sure there was going to be a intermission WITH snacks or not. plus I felt kind of rebellious.

thank the lord for a purse with lots of room.

flipz, hershey’s drops, a mountain dew and water. no room to spare.

before the crowds showed up. it got packed and really hot in the theater. not fun. had I known it wasn’t going to be freezing, I might have decided on a little less clothing. but I didn’t want to freeze considering it was below 0 outside. you just never know.

we were able to put the snackies in a very easy accessible location to sneak them during the show. I’m pretty sure it was so hot inside the theater that the chocolate on the pretzels started to melt.

 

the play was decent. long. but decent. there was an intermission, but I don’t think they had snacks available. only vending machines. the intermission came 2 hours into the play, and I over heard someone say there was still an hour left. I asked Hubby if he wanted to leave. I was not really into it, but we decided to stay. I’m ok that we did. We didn’t miss anything too spectacular. We got home close to 1100pm. So it was a “longer than I expected” performance. I remember when I was in high school that I would go to EVERY play performance to see how they differed with the different people playing the rolls. I won’t be doing that this time.

some new best friends

meet mr. oil of oregano.
not really my favorite, but we’ve spent some quality time together today.
trying to boost my immune system to kick this cold I feel coming on.

meet mr. tea
hopefully these hot liquids will help.

breakfast was a bowl of hot oatmeal (sorry no pictures. too early).
lunch was scrambled eggs.

eggs placed on top of a toasted english muffin with a little dab of syrup on top.

a lot of time has been spent on the couch again.
I haven’t made the gym yet. unfortunately. today is a cross training day according to my plan. I am thinking of just taking it off completely so I can give it my all on my interval run scheduled for tomorrow.

Hubby and I managed to pick up our finished V-Day masterpieces.
want to recap? v-day 2011

they both turned out great. I can’t wait to do it again!

certainly not a productive day

 

after waking up to this…and 1* temperatures. I quickly lost all motivation.

I really wanted to get to the gym this morning and stretch out after my run from yesterday. But with little motivation…I struggled though the whole 40 minutes of my time spent with the elliptical. And my time lifting weights was useless. I did get all my reps completed, but the whole time I kept thinking about giving up.

I had to test out some new kicks that I got for my birthday (my birthday was over a month ago. guess that’s what happens when you order customized stuff only couple weeks before my birthday) from the Rents.

pretty sweet, huh?
I designed them all by myself. The Rents say they are a little to wild. But I like them. They felt good. I’m not sure I want to run in them. Even though that’s what they are designed for.

this is where I have spent the majority of my day. lounging. I don’t know what is going on, but I’m thinking I need to listen to my body. I have never really felt so…blah. I’m not sore, my body just aches, ALL OVER. Maybe I’m not refueling properly. hm….

definitely need more of this! this is only my second glass today. could be the big culprit to my ginormous pounding headache! I tried to take a nap to hopefully sleep some of the pain away, but as soon as I got to sleep the landlord called. ugh, and I couldn’t get back to sleep. So I got out of bed to let Hubby sleep comfortably (he has to work tonight). I came downstairs and hung out with the dogs and kitty.

this isn’t from today, but I couldn’t resist showing this picture of my lazy kitty snuggling with my momma last night. soooo jealous!

I’ve spent my afternoon with my new best friends

DL-ing some new songs, making new playlists, and showing Mom and Dad how to skype.

I’m hoping that you (YES! YOU!) can send me some encouraging words and what I am doing wrong for the body aches. Currently I feel them in my lower back. I have never had these before and I’m almost 2 months into working out steadily. I didn’t do anything high impact today, just the elliptical. Maybe a day off is in order tomorrow?

solid 5 miles

good morning!
well its almost afternoon, and may be afternoon depending on where you are and when you read this.

I had a good morning. I actually when to bed excited for my gym session today. I couldn’t wait to get up and see how solid of a run I could do. Yesterday was my “rest” day. It was tough to just relax, but I managed to do it. I did clean the house and did a little grocery shopping and meal planning for the week.

So I did burn some calories.

This morning I woke up giddy. I was super pumped for my run. I am trying to remain patient for summer so I can attempt a run outside considering I woke up to this.

Fresh snow flakes and a Winter Storm Warning.

Even though there wasn’t enough snow accumulation to make the roads slick the gym was surprisingly quiet this morning for a Saturday. I felt no pressure to NOT feel like a whimp on the treadmill.

I gathered my gear and made a new play list.

I’m starting to re-love itunes, and even more in love with the fact we have fast internet!

I felt great throughout my entire run. As I hit 4.75 miles I thought about pushing to do a 10K, but I remembered yesterday answering a question from Lindsay @ COTTER CRUNCH about refocusing. I planned to refocus on actually follow my training plan. Yesterday…”rest” day; today…5 miles.

I don’t have a Garmin watch, but totally wish I did. After I purchase new running kicks, totally saving my money for a Garmin! So until I do have enough money…this will have to do.

Great! Grand! Wonderful! I hate a great time and really felt great throughout the whole thing. I averaged a 9:30 mile the whole time.

Came home. Showered. Smoothie.

mmmm….strawberry banana!

I’m relaxing on the couch with a heated rice bag on my knees.

 

Only a little sore, but should be good to go by tomorrow and most definitely by my next run on Tuesday.

Hopefully everyone has a GREAT weekend. I’ll let you know how snowed in we really are tomorrow. They are calling for 5 inches of snow just tonight. Should be a fun trip to the gym in the morning!

happy feet!

there are a couple of things that need to happen in order to have happy feet.

STEP 1

pick out colors.

STEP 2

endure the tickling. Jenna has super ticklish feet…she struggles through this part of pedicures.

STEP 3

show off your finished toes. yesterday was amazing here. 60*+, not a cloud in the sky. I did wear flip flops and capris.

today. we’re not so lucky. and this definitely happens every time Jenna and I have our monthly pedicures. no snow…yet. But its definitely cold enough to snow! The day isn’t over yet.

STEP 4

be able to run in your favorite shoes without getting blisters. The first time I took off on a run in these I got a blister on my heel. Not fun! So…I switched out shoes. And the other shoes worked GREAT. No blisters. I felt good until I was about 7 days of running in them. I started feeling pain in my right foot…right along my arch. It was like STRESS FRACTURE kind of pain. No, no! This can’t be happening. wahhh! So, I decided to switch back since my blister had healed. I just tightened the laces. I’ve done two solid runs on them and no pain.

I LOVE MY SHOES!

my workout today was solid.
a short walk warm-up; 3:30 at 4.5mph
1 mile run at 6.0 mph; 10:00 mile
2 mile run (short distance pace) at 7.0 mph; 8:34 mile
1 mile run at 6.0 mph; 10:00 mile
a short cool down; 3:30 at 4.5 mph
total time=44.25; total distance 4.5 miles.

I came home and made a quick breakfast.

fruit, pear and apple

add to oatmeal with a little brown sugar and nutmeg. most tasty bowl of oatmeal I’ve had yet! I only had room for half of each, so I saved the other two halves for a snack later today.

can’t forget to re-hydrate. I saw this on Kath Eats Real Food. I thought she was crazy, but then I tried it. BEST. IDEA. EVER! It makes drinking water so much easier for me.

I’m off to clean the house, right after I finish this weeks Biggest Loser. Company is coming on Saturday…and it might just take me up until the last minute to get this disaster spick and span.