Happy Halloween!

Sorry for the hiatus once again. I made it back safely from Tigerland (which was suprisingly gorgeous), then had to study for my mid-term on Saturday (which didn't go as well as I had hoped...not awful, but not an A), then we had a Halloween party to go to, next thing I know it's Sunday morning and time to volunteer for the 1/2 marathon (which was a blast, even though I had to miss the post-race fajitas and fun...playgroup duties!), then to playgroup and library only to return to a house full of Joseph's family and some chaotic family fun (including making Halloween cupcakes and pumpkin carving). Monday after work was a Pumpkin Patch party with the kiddo and boom, it's suddenly Wednesday...Halloween. Fun times with the kiddo...fun times indeed! What the hell happened to Tuesday??? This has been a crazy busy week, to say the least. I did manage to at least get on the treadmill a couple of times over the past week. I'm hoping to sneak away for an outdoor workout and maybe even a movie over the weekend...hey, a girl can dream! :-)

Here's a sample of the past week in pictures:

Tigerland...

Me and the hubby at the Halloween party....very tame costume for me this year (complete with a poodle skirt and saddle shoes)...


Ready for my timing duties at the Houston Half...
(thanks to Bill D for the pic, it was great to meet you!!!)

Halloween fun with the kiddo....
Getting ready to trick or treat at Grandma & Grandpa's...

Halloween Party with the cousins...
With our "kitty cat" jack-o-lantern after a long day...



Workout Stats
Thursday @ LSU - 40 minutes, treadmill (while watching Grey's!)
Tuesday - 30 minute, treadmill

Yo

Well, I'm off to Tiger-land in an hour.

With the back issues, I am not prepared to run the Koala Houston Half this weekend. So what's the next best thing? Volunteering! I'll be at the mile 8 marker with another fellow Strider calling splits. Afterwards, I'll help out with chip removal or assist wherever I'm needed. I hope to see a lot of my fellow Striders, Fitters and bloggers out there. I'll be cheering for ya!

Misc Ramblings

I managed to get in 30 minutes on the ol' dreadmill last night after the kiddo was asleep and before I had to hit the books. It's been several days, so just getting in a workout felt great. Tomorrow, I'm heading to Baton Rouge for work...more college recruiting! Thankfully, this is our last college trip until the whole process starts over in late January/early February! It was fun at first, but I am rather sick of interviewing students and seeing college campuses. Of course, this little trip couldn't have come at a worse time. Saturday, my take-home mid-term is due in International Mgmt (which has been pretty much done for almost 2 weeks) and I have my real mid-term in Finance. Plus, the hubby somehow managed to really hurt his back and can barely walk. That makes having kiddo duties while I'm out of town a little difficult. Luckily, his parents are coming into town and can help out.

I'm beginning to get excited for the kiddo about Halloween. She is really looking forward to getting all dressed up in her pumpkin costume and going trick or treating with her older cousin. I am really looking forward to seeing what kind of yummy candy she gets! ;-)

Workout Stats
Treadmill, 30 minutes

FALL

Fall has finally arrived in Houston! It's about freaking time! It was great to wake up to temperatures in the 50's for the first time since February. Now, if I had just gone shopping for the kiddo some fall clothes already. Bad Mommy! My poor child has 3 pairs of pants from last year that still fit...and two of them look like total high-waters. That's right, I sent my kid to school this morning looking like Urkel. Luckily, her cute little pink windbreaker with the fleece lining still fits. And, thanks to my Mom, who bought her three cute winter outfits last year that were big enough to put away for this year! But, I need to get them from my Mom. Of course, when I sent her to school this morning, I gave no indication to her that her pants were short...I just told her she looked beautiful. I mean, she goes to pre-school...really, do kids under the age of 5 even notice that kind of stuff? I hope not...I'd hate to give her a complex this early in life. :-)

It's perfect weather for some outdoor running. I hope and pray this weather lasts until Sunday, because that will be the 1st opportunity I'll have to run outdoors. In the meantime, I hope you are all out enjoying it. I'll just have to live vicariously through ya'll. ;-)

Another Sporadic Post...

Sorry, between spending time with the fam and getting ready for my upcoming Finance mid-term, there has been little time for much else. This was an awesome weekend for running and riding! Unfortunately, I was either at the library or doing stuff around the house, so I only got to spend a little time outdoors with the kiddo on Saturday. On Friday, I actually went to bed at the same time as the kiddo - 8:30 pm! Crazy! But, I woke up at 5 am on Sat to get in some studying before the kiddo woke up and then headed to school for a couple of hours for our mid-term review session.

Saturday night, the hubby and I had a nice date night! We headed to dinner and then to a fight. Yep, not my choice for date night (obviously!), but it was an interesting outing to say the least. If you've seen the UFC, well this is similar. The hubby is a black belt in Hapkido and currently working on Brazilian Ju-Jitsu, so he is really into the mixed-martial arts stuff. There were a couple of guys who train at the same gym as the hubby and they were fighting in this Renegade Extreme Fighting event, so the hubby really wanted to go see them fight. Unfortunately, they both lost only seconds into the 1st round, so that was a bummer. But, let me tell you, the people watching was worth every second! Let me just say that the clubs must have been pretty empty that night...all the skanky, scantily clad girls were at the fight. :-) Seriously, I have never seen so much cleavage and legs in one place! Really. ;-) I told the hubby he owes me a trip to see a good chick flick on our next date night. Hahaha!

Sunday, I actually got to sleep in until 7:40! Then, the kiddo and I did our normal Sunday trip to playgroup, followed by too many hours in the library.

Congrats to Kay and Pam who ran the Nike Women's Marathon yesterday!!! I can't wait to see their Tiffany's "medals"!!!

Finally, thanks so much to everyone for the bike advice! I'll keep you posted on my research and what I eventually decide to do.

Back

Sorry my posting is so sporadic. I snapped out of that crappy mood last week really quick and had a great time in Dallas. The weekend went by really fast, since I had class on Saturday (and didn't get to enjoy the awesome weather...grrrr.).

I think I forgot to mention that the hubby bought a new mountain bike a couple of weeks ago at our local Sun & Ski Sports, so we took it for a test ride on Sunday. We hit the trails along White Oak Bayou. I haven't been on my bike since the Tour de Pink a month ago, so I was afraid I was going to be too slow. But, I forgot that DH hasn't been on a bike for almost 10 years, so he didn't mind my casual 12 -13 mph pace at all. After 10 miles, I was ready for at least 5 or 6 more, but the hubby made a dash for the parking lot and said he was done. :-) Now that he has the bike, it looks like I am not going to have a running buddy after all. No 1/2 marathon for him, but that's okay because at least we can ride together every so often...I may even learn to do a few off-road trails too. But no Vic, I don't think I'll be getting a kayak anytime soon. LOL!

I will be buying my own new bike very soon, but unlike DH, it will be a road bike. So, for the bike enthusiasts out there, I need some feedback. So far, I've only done a test ride on the Trek 100 and Specialized Dolce/Dolce Elite WSD models, plus I've read up on both of those brands. However, going to Sun & Ski made me realize that there are other brands out there! They carry Bianchi, Marin and Scott. If anyone has any feedback on deciding between one brand over the other, I'd love to hear it. Based on my conversations with the salespeople so far, I can go with either a 51cm or 54 cm frame, but the 54 cm would need to be adjusted so that I don't have to reach quite as far. I can tell that I am going to have fun trying to make up my mind!

Workout Stats
Friday - 10/12 - treadmill, 30 minutes
Sunday - 10/14 - biking, 50 minutes

Oh, and by the way, I did ace my presentation on Saturday! Woohoo!

post and run.

I am experiencing something this morning that I haven't experienced in a really long time - a really crappy, shitty mood. Seriously. In the past few years, I have gotten so much better about not sweating the small stuff, but today everything is getting to me. The traffic was horrible, the shirt my work gave me to wear to an event today is so huge, I can barely get it tucked in. My hair looks like crap, my computer is running slow, the copier got jammed, the shredder isn't working, and our new hire has not shown up yet (an hour late!). Small, stupid things to get all worked up about, but for some reason I am so incredibly irritable today!

Life has been insanely crazy the past few days. I'm sure that has a lot to do with my mood.

I had a visit to the back specialist Monday and she prescribed another month of PT, with more stretching added to the strengthening exercises. I forgot to mention in my Race for the Cure report that I ran into the PT hottie right after crossing the finish line. He gave me that "are you supposed to be running?" look and asked how my back felt.

In school, I have a project due in my international management class on Saturday and I am only 1/2 done. Plus our finance mid-term is in two weeks!

At work, I had to travel to our Austin office on Tuesday, went to a job fair at UH yesterday (arriving at work at 6:15 am to get some "urgent" stuff done before hand) and today I am in the office until noon and then off to Dallas until about 9 pm. And somehow, I have to finish my school project, so that it's worthy of an A. Ugh! I did manage to get in 30 minutes of brisk walking on the treadmill done on Tuesday and 45 minutes of jogging/walking with the kiddo in the jog stroller yesterday. This is the 5th week in a row that I've only been in the office 2-3 days. Yet, there is still so many big projects that have to get done.

Well, I am off to get more of those "urgent" work tasks done before I head to the airport. I'm beginning to wonder if I am ever going to get back to regular posting again.

Nice.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/cs-071008downey,0,4773526.column?page=1

Chicago

Wow. I just got an update from a friend who ran Chicago yesterday. Apparently, when the race began at 8 am, it was already hot by Chicago standards. Yesterday's race sounds like a completely different race from the one I ran last year. Completely disorganized! By the mile 10 water stop, they were completely out of water and gatorade. Runners were heading into the convenience stores to buy more, so they could keep going!

Someone tell me, if the race organizers were watching the same weather forecasts as the rest of the world, why on earth could they have not been more prepared? So, did the race organizers realize it was going to be hotter than normal, but just shrug and say, "Oh well, if we run out of fluids, then we'll just stop the race!", instead of going out and getting more? Thank God my friend and her crew had their fuel belts and had just refilled!

She said that somewhere between mile 17 & 18, cops lined each side of the street and a helicopter hovered over them and announced that everyone was to go to Grant Park because the race was being cancelled due to the extreme heat! Ummm, extreme heat? Maybe for Chicago, but for those in Houston, we train in the heat all summer. To quote one friend, that was winter in Houston. LOL! She said it was mass chaos.

Anyway, my friend and so many others are disappointed, angry and still in disbelief because of what happened. All those hours of training, only to be rewarded with a totally chaotic and unorganized experience. Ugh! I just can't believe a race of that size could be so unprepared. The heat is one thing...it's out of anyone's control. However, the water situation - that is completely unacceptable!

Holy Crap!

Anyone else see this?

I thought something odd was going on when I received a friend's electronic notice that said "TRG's friend, 04:21:44 (net) @ Finish (unofficial).(course shortened due to heat) By The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon."

October 7, 2007 Attention Participants and Spectators:
Due to the rising heat index and higher than expected temperatures, LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon Executive Race Director Carey Pinkowski and Medical Director Dr. George Chiampas, in cooperation with city officials, have implemented a contingency plan, as a precautionary measure, to effectively close the Marathon course at the halfway point. Runners who have not reached the halfway point by approximately 11:30 a.m. will be diverted back to Grant Park via Halsted and Jackson. Jackson will be closed to automobile traffic and the participants will be provided with additional support along this route. Participants who crossed the halfway point prior to the shut-down will continue to be fully supported along the standard course to the finish line. Participants are asked to take advantage of medical personnel, cooling buses, runner drop out buses, water, Gatorade and other means of support en route back to Grant Park.

Race for the Cure

When I woke up for the Race, I could hear thunder in the distance. Knowing the Houston weather, it would either pass quickly or not even be thundering in downtown Houston (a whopping 9 miles away!). I got dressed and headed out. As soon as I walked out the door, the warmth and humidity hit me. I was a teeny, tiny bit relieved that I wasn't doing a LR this morning, as I hate running in these conditions.


I pulled into the same surface parking lot that I've parked in years past, only this time there was an attendant there. Imagine my surprise when he told me it would be $10 to park. Ugh! I never carry cash, so I had $9 and some change...he took it. I met a couple of Houston Fitters while waiting for the traffic light. We proceeded to the chip pick up tent, which was a bit chaotic - the signs showing which numbers were where were down low, so no one could see which line to get in. I really wasn't even going to bother with the chip, since I am not really supposed to be running. But, I decided that at least I would have a record of the race, so why not? Besides, with 29,000 other people, it's not as if anyone runs this event for a PR! After getting my chip, we headed over to the start to meet the other folks from Houston Fit (who had just finished 6 miles of the scheduled 9-miler). After chatting for a few minutes, I headed to the back of the sea of people. If I wasn't going to really run, there was no reason to be in the front. About the time the kids K was starting, the heavens opened and it rained hard for a few minutes. I think most of the crowd was happy to get a little relief from the warm temps.

I knew that there was no way I was going to walk the entire course. That would be way too boring. And, I really wasn't supposed to be running....so, I compromised. I set my intervals for 2/2. I decided I would walk 1/2 and slow jog 1/2. That was better than nothing. So, off I went. The 2's of jogging did bother my back, but the 2's of walking were fine. It wasn't as bad as it had been a few weeks ago, but definitely not 100%. Anyway, here are my slow splits...

Mile 1 - 12:33
Mile 2 - 12:40
Mile 3 - 13:20 (mostly walking)
0.1 - 1:11
Total - 40:14

During Mile 3, I hit the sloping hills of Allen Parkway and decided that running up or down them may not be good on the back, so I walked both. Then, I ran into one of the Houston Fit crew who had bonked from the 6-miler earlier that morning, so I walked a bit with her as well. I finished mile 3 in 13:20 and the .1 in 1:11, with a total finish time of 40:14.

Even with all the people, I love doing the Race for the Cure. It's definitely not the place to worry about your time, but it's great to be able to celebrate the victories over breast cancer and remember those whose lives were cut short. It's a cause near and dear to my heart!

Green Eyed Monster

This weekend is the Chicago Marathon! Woohoo! Lots of good luck vibes are going out to Red group coach Rebecca and fellow Fitter/Strider Margo! I have to admit, I have a few pangs of jealousy. This time last year, I was heading to Chicago for my very own marathon experience. This year, I am trying to get over this nagging back pain. Sigh. Okay, enough of the self pitty...Margo and Rebecca, I'll be thinking of ya'll on Sunday morning. Remember - "Legs be strong, mind be stronger!"

So what else is new? I had another round of PT for the back Wednesday and the quads, hammies and glutes were sore on Thursday. I had a chance to "power walk" 30 minutes on the treadmill yesterday and tomorrow I am walking the Race for the Cure. Ugh, finally a Saturday with no classes and no other obligations and I can't run with Houston Fit. :-( Oh, and I think I am officially on sugar overload. The hubby, kiddo and I went to the mall earlier and went to one of those candy shops where you pay 3x as much for your m&m's and such, because you pay by the ounce. I made the mistake of buying a big ol' bag of candy corn. Ugh, It's like crack! I can't stop eating it! Someone stop me please!

Okay, enough of that. Hope everyone has a great weekend! Don't forget that the Greek Fest is going on this weekend...Opa! And, the Wings Over Houston Airshow is at Ellington Field. (Two of my favorite events in Houston!)

Update

I've been having trouble getting the kiddo to sleep the past few nights. Last night it was 9:30 pm before she drifted off. Since I can only study and blog after that, studying always has to come first which leaves little time for blogging. And, I've returned to my treadmill in the mornings before studying some more, so again, no time for blogging.

I talked to the PT hottie during Monday's session about the back and not being able to run. He feels that since I am showing improvement, that if I stick with it, I will be running soon. We'll see. He really increased the intensity of the workout and I felt it yesterday. My quads were sore! Everytime I went up and down the stair at work, I'm sure I grimaced! Today will be my last PT session until I see the doc again. Unfortunately, I've had to reschedule the doc appointment until Monday due to a work meeting tomorrow. It looks like I'll be walking the Race for the Cure on Saturday! Oh well, it's a huge race anyway and definitely not the best place to plan a PR, so I'll just enjoy being part of such a huge, awesome event.

In other news, the hubby has taken quite an interest in running lately. He ran a 5k distance on the treadmill yesterday and we are talking about going to Memorial on Sunday, so he can run a loop outdoors. He is also talking about signing up for the Turkey Trot 10K in November, so he'll have a goal to shoot for. He's taken up running here and there in the past, but then dropped it after a few weeks, so who knows. I'll be estatic if he decides to continue! He's also looking at bikes, so maybe we'll have a couple of hobbies in common soon. He is more interested in mountain bikes...but, he's promised to go on some rides with me as well.

Workout Stats - 10/1
30 minutes, treadmill, walking :-(
1 hour PT torture

Workout Stats - 10/2
30 minutes, treadmill, walking

Speechless

Okay, I'm never completely speechless. However, I am currently at a loss about what to blog about since this is technically a "running blog", but I have not run in almost a month.

I am happy to report some improvement with the lower back. Not much, but a little is better than nothing I suppose. I can now sit for pretty much any length of time painfree and I can do a "power" walk on the treadmill with almost no discomfort. But, I was greatly disappointed when I attempted to do some intervals on the treadmill last Thursday while in Lubbock. Let me back up a week...there was one instance in NYC when my friend and I were forced to run down 10 blocks of 8th ave to get to 47th st. so that we wouldn't miss our show. I noticed the back pain then. I was hoping it was just because I was caring an assortment of souviners and my Cold Stone ice cream and wearing non-running shoes. But, it was confirmed on the treadmill last week...my lower back feels no different when I run. It feels exactly like it did before I started PT. Sigh.

Will I ever get to run again???

If I was training for the marathon, I would probably run regardless. Bad, I know, but that's just how I am. However, since that's not the case, I felt I should follow doctor's orders and not run until given the okay. I wasn't given the okay, but I figured why not try it and just see if we're getting anywhere. I have more PT today after work, so I am going to bring this up. It's been a month, I feel like I should be able to run again!

This is very frustrating.