San Antonio Rock & Roll 1/2 Marathon Race Report

Sorry this race report is so late! I have had a busy week traveling for work, then this weekend was the Kiddo's birthday party, plus DH & I celebrated our 11th anniversary. Never a dull minute, I tell ya!



Friday, November 14

I managed to sneak out of work a bit early, but somehow we didn’t manage to get on the road until after 4 pm. We headed to the in-laws where we spent the night. I went to bed early, because I was up until 1am the night before working on my revised budget for work.


Saturday, November 15 – The Expo
5:00 am.

That’s what time the Munchkin woke up.

He must have noticed that he was in the pack and play rather than his crib, not to mention that he wasn’t in his room. He did not want to go back to sleep and as a result, he also woke up his sister who also refused to go back to sleep. Sigh.

Around noon I headed to San Antonio to meet the Woodlands Fit peeps. I was the 1st to arrive at our hotel, which was an old house that was converted into a condo-ish type of hotel. It was in an older neighborhood with lots of restored, historic homes – very cute with a Spanish-tiled roof and hard-wood floors! Once everyone arrived, we decided to take care of our stomachs first and headed to the tea room around the corner. Yum-my! Of course, the 1st thing on the menu to catch my eye was the "fishbowl" mimosas…if only!

After lunch, we took the 1-mile trek to the Alamodome. The expo was extremely crowded and the lines were long, but it was well organized and the lines moved quickly. Compared to other marathons of this size, I wasn’t all that impressed with the vendors there. However, I did buy some sunglasses which proved to be a very, very good idea. After the expo, we headed back to our hotel to look through our swag. Again, compared to other marathons, not that impressive – gloves (which did come in handy), an utter butter sample, a cold medicine sample, a $10 PF Changs gift card and what appeared to be information about every upcoming race that had a booth at the expo. We decided to head back to the same tea room for some dinner, then headed back to the hotel where we all talked until about 10 pm.



Here we are at the Expo!











Sunday, November 16 – Race Day
Brrrr, it was in the 30’s when we woke up! We decided to head to the shuttle lines no later than 5:30 am, since we had a 1-mile trek to get there. It’s a good thing, because a bus was just leaving and the line was not too long. However, 10 minutes later, the line was all the way down the block! Unlike NYC, where a half-dozen buses are waiting at any given minute to shuttle people to the start, we had to wait for awhile before more buses came. I forgot my Garmin in the hotel, so I had no idea what time we finally headed to the start. We chatted with some fellow runners and even sang "Happy Birthday" to a guy we met who was from Florida. We saw tons of traffic on the interstate, so it was pretty obvious that there were going to be some people who were not going to make it to the start in time.
<- On the warm and toasty bus!














Once we arrived, several of us needed a porta-potty stop. By the time we were done it was time to head to our corrals. We were all in corral 17…there were a total of 30 corrals. Honestly, the entire weekend, I was stressing out about whether I could run the race, get back to the hotel, get back to the family in time to get back to Houston in time to meet up with my friend for dinner before the Madonna concert. We were in our corral about 15 minutes before the race was scheduled to start and people were still arriving and sprinting to their corrals. The race actually began about 15 minutes late, probably to allow those stuck on the shuttle buses in traffic. Once the gun went off, it took exactly 30 minutes for our corral to cross the finish line….I felt sorry for those people in corral 30!



Here we are before the race....do we look cold? And another pic of 30,000 of our closest friends....

















We were off! It seemed to take me forever to loosen up...I think my entire body was tense from
all the shivering I had done while standing around in the cold. Early on, 2 of our 9 folks went on ahead of us. Then, another two. I was in the group of the remaining 4 and somewhere around mile 3 or 4 (I think), we had to head to the porta-potty. Fortunately, there was only one person in line at the 2 porta-potties. We probably lost 5 minutes there, but the relief was soooo worth it. I usually don’t have to make a stop on our long runs, but I think a combination of the cold and waiting for so long to start did me in. The bands were at every mile and sometimes more frequent, which was a nice distraction. Early on, we passed the Alamo and took a quick picture.

















I don't know if it was the weather or just the adrenaline from the race and crowds, but I felt great. It was really hard to remember that this was a training run and to not speed up. Plus, I knew if I sped up too much, I would lose steam at the end. I kept reminding myself to just take it easy. A majority of the route was in downtown and we faced the sun quite a bit - that's where those sunglasses were a Godsend! The mile markers seemed to pass quickly, which was a great feeling. Eventually somewhere around mile 8 or 9, our group of four became two groups of two. Katie and I stuck together for the remained of the race. We passed the mile 10 and 11 markers and knew we were in the home stretch! Finally, we passed the mile 12 marker and began to see the Alamodome. We hear the crowds tell us that the finish is just around the corner...about that time we can see the mile 13 marker - placed very cruelly at the top of a steep ramp near the Alamodome. Yes, someone very evil planned the final stretch of the route! Bastards! :-) Katie and I said we were going to run the rest in, but I was a wuss and stopped running about 1/2 way up the hill and walked. But, once we were up the hill, the finish was in sight and there was no stopping again. We were done!

All in all, I'd say this was my best 1/2 in that I felt great the entire way. It was also my slowest 1/2, but not bad to a training run. I hope I feel 1/2 as great in Houston in January...with a flatter course, I am sure I can better my time quite a bit.

















We made our way through all the crowds to get out medals. We were even interviewed by a TV crew! We grabbed some bagels, bananas, etc and made our way to our friends, where we had a bit of celebratory champagne.

After that, I pretty much speed-walked the mile back to the hotel. I was off to San Marcos to meet the family and then off to see Madonna....more on that later!

Gee your cell phone is crap

Tomorrow is my 11th wedding anniversary! The hubby sent some flowers to my office...what a sweetie!
I took the pic with my cell phone. Yeah, it's crap!

Amazing Weekend

I had an awesome weekend - 1/2 marathon, Madonna - it was fan-freaking-tastic.

I'll update more later with pictures!

Almost there...

Wednesday, 11/12 - P90X, Legs & Shoulders - 58 minutes
OMG my butt and legs hurt today. I must have stepped it up a bit on this workout, because I am not usually this sore! But, it was a great workout!

Thursday, 11/13 - Treadmill run, 20 minutes, 11:30 pace
Easy peasy run on the ol' dreadmill. The hill and shin are aching a bit, but nothing to worry about.

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It's almost time to head to the hill country....I have mine and the kiddo's stuff packed up and ready to go! I'll be at a Wellness Symposium most of the day, but will be sneaking out early so we can hit the road before the traffic gets bad. I decided on my new long-sleeve under armour top with my capris...but, I'm bringing the running skirt too just in case. LOL!

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In other news, I went to see nutritionist extraordinaire, Catherine, today! She did a metabolic rate test and gave me some great tips. Apparently, my metabolic rate is slightly higher than average, which means if I do what I'm supposed to be doing, I should lose the weight!

And, I found out that I am not eating enough calories! I've lost over 5 lbs in the past 4 weeks and that was eating only 1400 calories a day. Based on the amount of exercise I do, I should be able to eat 1800-1900 calories a day and still lose weight weekly! But, I have to eat the right foods, which is my big challenge (ummm, remember the Halloween candy?). If I keep eating the 1400 calories, I will keep losing weight but I could eventually slow my metabolism.

And, she recommended this cookbook - Cooking Light 5 Ingredient 15 Minute Cookbook - which I have already ordered from Amazon.com. We also talked about getting the kiddo to eat our food instead of chicken nuggets and macaroni everyday.

I think I can hit my goal weight with a little help from the expert!

Workout Update

Monday, November 10 - Treadmill run, 21 minutes

No Monday cycling this week thanks to Mother Nature and the torrential downpours. I couldn't decide what type of workout I wanted to do instead and finally decided on a run - especially since I hardly ever get in all 3 weekday runs between the cycling and P90X. Unfortunately, my run was cut short when the baby woke up. Must have been the teething, because he usually sleeps all night with no wake-ups at all!



Tuesday, November 11 - Treadmill run, 35 minutes

All my runs this week will be at an "easy" pace, because the left shin pain I've been noticing after my runs has decided to make itself known during my runs all of a sudden - even with my new shoes. Ugh! I iced for 20 minutes after my run using the kiddo's Cinderella ice pack, lol! Also, my right heel has been sore for weeks now. I don't know what's up with that, but luckily it doesn't bother me too much during my run. I iced it too just in case...but for the heel I used the Nemo ice pack. :-)

Let the obsessing begin!

As before any race, especially an out of town race, I am obsessing over all the details - checking the weather forecast 2x a day - too cold, too hot or just right?, deciding and then re-deciding what to wear - the capris or the skirt?, fixating on what to eat - more protein or carbs?, etc.

The weather forecast (per wunderground.com) appears to be perfect:

Saturday Night and Sunday
Mostly clear. Lows in the upper 30s. Highs in the upper 60s.

I don't know why I am obsessing so much. I'm treating this race merely as a training run, but at the same time I want to be comfortably dressed, well fed and have a good time...so that requires some amount of obsessing, right?

Thank You Vets!

Especially my favorite Vet of all - my Dad! Love ya Papa!

Insert Evil Laugh Here...

Okay, so the kiddo's Halloween candy was getting the best of me. The kiddo wasn't even asking for it, but I sure was consuming it! So in an effort to get back on track with my eating plan, I decided to gather up all that candy and bring it up to the office. Let the rest of the office eat it...hehehehe!

I'm down over a pound this week, so I am definitely back on track!

First, let me say congrats to everyone who ran the HMSA 25k this morning! I volunteered for that race last year when I was preggo and loved watching all the runners come in! I worked the relay area awhile and then removed chips from peoples shoes. I figured it was the least I could do after having so many people cut the chip off of my sweaty self. :-) Again, congrats to everyone who ran it and finished...you're almost done with the warm-up series and ready to for your big day! And, if you've never run the HMSA 25k, they have awesome finisher's shirts!!!

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The Saturday Woodland's Fit run was 8 miles. Thank God for good company because I was really not feeling it in the last mile. I don't know why, but I was so worried about the 10-miler last week and had no problems whatsoever. Then, I bonk at mile 7 this week. I think it's all mental, because after running 10, I think that 8 is no big deal and get myself thinking that it will be even easier than it really is. This run brought back memories of last year...I did about the same distance the day before I found out I was preggo. It's great to be back! Oh, and it was great to see Karen and Jon this morning too!

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Next weekend is the San Antonio Rock & Roll 1/2! We worked out all the logistics for the weekend - where to meet, what to wear, what to bring, what not to bring, etc. I am sooooo looking forward to this weekend with the girls! (Well, I will have part of the weekend with the girls - I'll take what I can get!) I found out the official race drink will be Cytomax, which I have never tried. After my experience with Accelerade, I think I'll play it safe and bring my fuel belt.

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As for the rest of the weekend, we had lots of family time together. Today we went to Discovery Green for the 1st time. While it's no Central Park (as if anything could be), it was pretty cool. The hubby, munchkin and I hung out on a big blanket while the kiddo played like crazy on the playground equipment. She also had a blast rolling down the "big hill". I have lots of pics, so I'll post a few later this week. I am about to spend the rest of the evening addressing birthday party invites for the kiddo. Disney Princess seems to be what it's all about this year...:-) Ugh, and don't even get me started on A&M's ass whooping this weekend....

Workout Stats

Saturday, Woodlands Fit LR - 8 miles, 1:28:50, 11:06 pace?

Sunday, P90X - Shoulders & Arms, 58 minutes -and- Ab Ripper X, 15 minutes

Woohoo

The weekend is almost here, baby! Yes, I'm practically dancing in my office with the realization of this. And, the weather is gonna rock. We're taking the kiddos to Discovery Green at some point this weekend....it's the only drawback to kickin' it in the 'burbs - we hardly ever get to the big city on the weekends. Hell, after driving there all week, I don't really want to drive there again on Sat or Sun. Sorry.

Tomorrow is an 8-miler with Woodlands Fit...by the way Coach, what was up with the "Oh my God!" when I said I was running the 10-miler last weekend? LOL! Then, the gang is going for coffee to chat it up about San Antonie next weekend. Damn, it's NEXT WEEKEND! Where oh where does the time go?

Thursday workout - 30 minute treadmill run
Workout went okay...shin splints are killing me! But, I'm picking up my new shoes today at Luke's, so hopefully that will help!

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I'm proud to report that I began my Christmas shopping this morning. I bought DH & I a new point and shoot camera...I will still get that SLR, but I need more time to do some research first. And, I bought my parents a new camera as well. They need one. They have what I think might be a 1st generation Kodak digital camera and it's horrible! I also picked up some stocking stuffers for the kiddo today.

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Okay, so the Madonna concert is next weekend. I have made pretty good progress in losing more of the baby weight thanks to Viv's weight loss challenge. I am down almost 5 more lbs...which is great, since I hadn't lost any weight since returning to work. I refused to buy new jeans, because I know I can get back into my old ones. But, I had to give in and get my "interim" jeans. I decided to make it a super cheap purchase and went to Target for a $27.00 pair of Mossimo jeans. When I get back to my goal weight I will reward myself with some awesome jeans, woohoo! When I loose another 5 lbs I will treat myself to a mani/pedi...something I used to do all the time, but that was before kids. Progress, progress....

About last night...

What a night - I was hot, sweaty and gasping for breath...



















Wednesday, 11/5 - P90X, Plyometrics, 1 hour
Get your mind out of the gutter people. I was doing the P90X Plyometric workout. It's the 1st time since Ike that I've done it and man, I could tell! For the past 6 weeks, I've been skipping the cardio P90X workouts and only doing the strength training and core workouts. I justified that by thinking that my training runs were enough cardio for the week. I didn't realize until last night how much I was cheating myself out of an awesome workout. I think I will start incorporating at least one P90X cardio workout into my weekly exercise schedule. Seriously ya'll, I was dying before the warm-up was even over. I know running is a cardio workout, but this is a totally different kind of cardio. The hour-long routine is comprised of lunges and squats but with jumps in between, plus a just a lot of jumping and hopping. I just need to remember to wear my heart rate monitor from now on. Anyway, it's crazy tough and I LOVE it. I forgot that in the past 6 weeks, so there will be lots more plyo to come!

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Tonight I'm heading to Luke's for a little party just for the store's 4th anniversary. There are supposed to be some nice discounts on everything and there will be tasty treats and cocktails. Woohoo! It's time for new shoes, so I am definitely taking advantage of that discount. I might even get a new running skirt too!

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So post election, the 1st thing that popped into my head was the song "It's the End of the World as We Know It (and I feel fine)" by REM. And you know what? I do feel fine. I don't mean it literally, like, it's really the end of the world. I mean it in a good way - optimistic for the best. Some people are so stinkin' dramatic about our new President-Elect and think the sky is literally falling and have that fear-mongering mentality. Puh - lease people, get ahold of yourselves! I didn't vote for him, but hey, I was cool with whatever happened.

Peace-out!

More Shiznit

Monday - 12 mile bike ride, 14 mph
Getting better, but hating the time change. It got dark before we got back to "base" which made for some sketchy riding! (which is probably why the pace looks better...riding faster to get out of the dark faster, lol.)

Tuesday - 30 minute treadmill run
Same old, same old.

Tomorrow - P90X!

That is all.


Glad election day is over...may the best man win.

VOTE!

I've already voted, how about you????



(besides, you can get free coffee at Starbucks and free ice cream at Ben & Jerry's if you do!)

Weekly Update

This blog is turning into a 1x a week update of my workouts! I'll try to do better, but it just seems like by the time I get the kids into bed, get my workout done and get us all ready for the next day, it's time for the 10 pm news and bed! So, here are my updates...

Sunday, 11/2 - P90X - Chest and Back, 52 minutes
First, lemme say CONGRATS to everyone who ran NYC! I recorded the coverage, but have only had the chance to watch a little of the beginning. It's by far my favorite marathon and one I have vowed to do again before I hit the big 4-0....even if it means doing all those long runs in the Houston summer heat. Getting back to my workouts - I started using the hubby's bands on this workout, because they provide much more resistance than the ones I've been using. Wow, what a difference! I could barely do all the push ups by the time I made it to the 2nd round of exercises, because my arms felt like jello!

Saturday, 11/1 - WFit Long Run - 10 miles (actually 10.8),
I was extremely nervous about this run. I wanted to opt for the 7 miler, but I knew I needed to do this. This would be the longest distance since getting back into running after the baby and even though I've run this distance dozens of times before, I was scared. Scared because getting back into running again has been tough. Tougher than after having the kiddo. Much tougher than expected. I needed to do this just to get the confidence back. I needed to know I could do this again.

Things worked out better than I expected. First off, the weather was great. I did panic for a moment when I got all the way to The Woodlands and realized that I had forgotten to eat breakfast. Doh! But it didn't matter, because I felt fine. Well, I felt better than fine - I felt great! Of course that might be partially due to the fact that we were moving rather slow. But, I remember looking at my watch and seeing that we were at the 1/2 way point and feeling great. Before I knew it, we were heading back to Luke's and I still felt great. We finished and I didn't feel like I had run 10 miles! Oh and for the 1st time, I took the advice of a certain nutritionist and had chocolate milk afterwards - she was right, it made a world of difference. And it was also great to see fellow blogger, Viv!

Saturday night, the hubby and I went to a costume party. I was Audrey Hepburn (okay, a non-waifish version) and he was Neo from The Matrix movies. We had fun...the costumes were hilarious - Joe the Plumber, Sarah Palin, and the my personal favorite - the Mormon. (I know, I know - not very PC, but it was great!)

Friday, 10/31 - Rest day
Seriously, even if it wasn't my usual rest day, there's no way I would have gotten a workout in. With a 3 year old who is sooooo excited about Halloween she can hardly stand it? Nope. My sister-in-law brought over the younger nephew and the kids went trick or treating. They managed to get a TON of candy...which I have been eating since. Ugh! It was fun and the kiddo had an awesome time - and stayed up much too late. :-) I'll post pics when I can.

Thursday, 10/30 - Treadmill run, 40 minutes
I totally felt like slacking off here. After the kiddos were in bed, I laced up the running shoes, but then I sat and watched 40 minutes of ER. Seriously. I almost talked myself out of running at all, but then realized - HELLO - I could not train by only running 1x per week. So, I decided to only do 20 minutes rather than the scheduled 40. But, once I got going my conscience got the better of me and I finished the entire 40 minutes. It was incredibly slow during most of that run, but I sped up in the middle and towards the end and got it done. Woohoo!

Wednesday, 10/29 - P90X - Shoulders & Arms, 1 hour & Ab Ripper X, 15 minutes
Nothing eventful here either, except I have been increasing my weights by a few pounds on most of the exercises.

Tuesday, 10/28 - Treadmill run, 30 minutes
Nothing eventful here. I did manage to maintain an 11 minute pace and only took one walk break at the 1/2 way point, which for me lately is pretty damn good.

I voted!!! I'm such a dork, I get all giddy as I walk into the polls. I won't go into who I voted for, I'll just say I went with the candidate who seemed less shady to me and who aligned well with me on a majority of the issues. I'm still not completely happy with either candidate, but the more I learn about one, the better the other one looks to me.

Monday, 10/27 - Bike ride, 50 minutes, 13.5 mph
Awesome weather for a ride. I was pleased that we did better with our pace too, getting up to 15 mph at times.

NYC Marathon

Today is NYC Marathon day! In just a short time, the runners will be beginning their 26.2 mile trek by heading over the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. There will be live coverage here and later, NBC will have a hour long re-cap at 3 pm. Don't miss it!

Catch Up

First congrats to all who ran and finished the Houston 1/2 Marathon! I toyed with the idea of running it, but I had to admit to myself that I am definitely not ready for a 1/2 yet. In fact, I may not be really ready by the time the San Antonio 1/2 gets here next month, but I'm just gonna do my best and finish. It's just a training run and a girls weekend for me, so no pressure. Oh and I found out this weekend that The Cult will be the headliner for the concert Sunday night after the marathon. At first, someone in Woodlands Fit said it was The Cure...I'd love to see The Cure again! I was a HUGE fan in high school and saw them live - at Southern Star Amphitheatre I think (at Astroworld). Or was it The Summit? Anyway, I loved them along with New Order, Depeche Mode, Erasure and all those other "new wave" bands. The Cult? Well, I loved them in high school (especially "She Sells Santuary"), but I can survive without seeing them live 20 years later. LOL!

Sunday, 10/26 - P90X - Legs & Back - 1 hour
Probably not a smart move to do the leg workout the day after a long run. Oh well, I can say that I felt the burn!

Saturday, 10/25 - Woodlands Fit Run - 6 miles, 10:51 pace
What can I say? The weather was absolutely perfect for a run! 58-ish and low humidity, so no complaints from me. I can remember the days, before the baby, when I could run in this weather and not break a sweat. Obviously, I am not in that kind of shape post-baby, because when we were done I was sweaty and my face was all red. I will get back there....eventually. Overall, the run felt good. I have to admit I was relieved that we were dropping in the mileage this week, since I didn't get to run the 10-miler with the group the weekend before. Afterward, the group had coffee together at Starbucks - an attempt to get to know each other before we all room together at the San Antonio R&R Marathon in a few weeks. As I was comparing my day planner to my Outlook calendar last week, I realized something for the 1st time...the Madonna concert is the same day as the San Antonio 1/2! Doh! Talk about a crazy weekend! I am going to have to run the 1/2, speed back to the in-laws in San Marcos where the hubby and kiddos will be waiting, shower, then head back to Houston! Oh well, I always say I love being on the go.

Friday, 10/24 - rest
I went to Luke's during lunch to look for a new running skirt. I forgot that it was packet pick-up day for the Houston Half and the place was pretty crowded. I did run into Coach Gaye, who is now working there and helped me find exactly what I was looking for.

Thursday, 10/23 - 35 minutes, treadmill run

Wednesday, 10/22 - P90X - Shoulders & Arms - 1 hour, Ab Ripper X - 15 minutes

Tuesday, 10/21 - 30 minutes, treadmill run
I could tell that I hadn't run in almost a week, because it was slow going. My legs and feet felt like lead.

Monday, 10/20 - 1 hour, 15 minute bike ride - 12 mph
My friend and I found ourselves talking way too much during our ride, which caused us to slow down!

Sunday, 10/19 - P90X - Chest & Back - 1 hour, Ab Ripper X - 15 minutes

Saturday - 10/18 - Neighborhood garage sale, so no WoodlandsFit long run for me

Friday, 10/17 - Rest - Garage sale prep

Thursday, 10/16 - P90X - legs and back

Wendesday, 10/15 - 30 minute treadmill run

Slacker

Okay, so it's obvious I've been a slacker. Sorry!

Here's the cliff notes version of the past week and a half:

Friday, October 4 - P90X in hotel room in College Station
Nothing exciting to report here, except that I was mindful about the folks on the floor underneath mine and tried not to jump around too loudly during the warm-up! :-)

Saturday, October 5 - 8 miler with Woodlands Fit
The run felt great despite the higher humidity. Our average pace was somewhere between 11:15 and 11:30, depending on the Garmin you looked at. Mine seemed to be off by a 1/2 mile. Strange!

Monday, October 6 - treadmill run, 2.44 miles
I was supposed to run longer, but had to take a phone call. Bill, just for you, I ran this run straight through with no walk breaks. :-p

Tuesday, October 7 - P90X - back and triceps
I had to go to Austin and didn't get home until about 7:30 pm. Plus, the sinus infection I'd been feeling come on since Friday was finally evolving into a full blown infection complete with sneezing, stuffy nose, sore throat, etc. This was a 1/2 ass workout if there ever was one.

Wednesday, October 8 - Rest day
There are usually no rest days between P90X and running, but I was feeling like complete crap and decided that getting to bed extra early would be the best thing I could do. Plus, I had to be at the airport at 6:15 am for my flight to Dallas, so I was dog tired.

Thursday, October 9 - 35 minute treadmill run
I decided to do 9/1s rather than 5/1s and it felt surprisingly good. There was no difference in my pace compared to when I do 5/1s though.

Friday, October 10 - rest day
Still feeling a bit crappy. Again, I let my body rest.

Saturday, October 11 - 9 miler with Woodlands Fit
Okay, so it was cool (not as cool as the previous mornings), but slightly humid. But damn, I felt beat by mile 7! I was really dragging at the end, which was disappointing after such a great run the week before. I ate the same way, used the same gu, so I'm not sure what happened. Maybe it was just me getting over being sick. Maybe it's the extra 15 lbs of baby weight I'm carrying around. Maybe I'm just getting old. I dunno. All I know is that for the rest of the day, I felt like I had been run over by a Mack truck and then it backed up and run over me again. I did manage to take enough Aleve to feel good enough to go the the Aeros game that night...a couple of 'ritas at the Toyota Center helped too! :-)

Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, October 12-14
I am being a total slacker this week! Well sort of...our big community garage sale is this weekend, so for the past 3 nights I've been working on getting all our crap together for this as soon as the kiddos are in bed. I know I should be able to balance this and working out, but dang it's taking forever! I must run on the dreadmill tonight!!! In fact, I am going to have to miss our 10 miler this weekend due to the garage sale. My goal is to do at least 8 on my own on Sunday.

I am working on my nutrition again thanks to Viv's new challenge! Huge kudos to her for getting this awesome challenge going. The motivation for me? I have not lost a single pound since returning to work 2 months ago...in fact, I've gained a few pounds. To help motivate me to eat better even more, I went to a networking luncheon yesterday where nutritionist extraordinaire, Catherine Kruppa, was the guest speaker. She is awesome...and has more letters following her name than anyone else I have met! Since I haven't been motivated to follow WW lately, I am thinking about visiting her for some individualized advice about my weight, eating, etc.

Howdy!

Howdy from Aggieland! I'm here recruiting for work. Talk about exhausting - I was at work by 5:45 am to meet up with a co-worker for the drive to A&M, next we spoke to students non-stop until 1 pm, ate a quick lunch and then interviewed until about 5:30 pm. We headed out for a quick dinner and then I headed down to the hotel gym for a run....no crazy messages from the equipment like Cassie experienced though! Tomorrow is a day of back to back interviews...fun! I am about to hit the hay and take advantage of a good night's sleep, which has been rare lately thanks to a certain 3 year old.

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I am bummed that the 10 for Texas was postponed until November 15. That's the same day as the inagrual San Antonio Rock n Roll marathon, which I have been persuaded to run by the peeps at Woodlands Fit. Will I be ready for it? Not quite, but I am thinking of it as just another training run and not putting pressure on myself about my pace. This is my season of getting back into the game - no expectations, no pressure.

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Workout Stats

Wednesday - P90X - Arms and Shoulders - 1 hour

Thursday - 35 easy on hotel treadmill

Workouts

Saturday - Long Run - 7.4 miles

Definitely a harder run for me, but I think that can be attributed to the poor diet and lack of workouts. I think I've felt entitled to eat anything and not work out because I didn't have power. Well, the power's back on and it's time to get back on schedule!

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Sunday - Bike Ride - 1 hour

Well my group of friends doing the Bike Barn's Haak Winery ride on Sunday fizzled out. Rather than go it alone, I decided to save my gas and some time by riding around the 'hood. I checked out all the new streets in the undeveloped side of the hood, which made for some good, car-free riding!

Sunday night, I met up with some former co-workers for dinner and The Color Purple. Both the dinner and the show were awesome!

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Monday - P90X - Shoulders and Back / Ab Ripper X

I decided rather than start the program completely over after my 2-week hiatus that I'd pick up where I left off...it turns out the 1st week and 9th week schedules are exactly the same anyway! OMG, I thought I was going to die! What a difference 2 weeks make! I honestly felt like I did the 1st time I did this workout. My arms and abs felt like jello afterwards and today my shoulders and back are super sore. It's awesome!!!

****************************************

Is it just me, or for the past week has everyone else seen convoys of Centerpoint (and other company) trucks all over town? Those guys are working their asses off, so kudos to them. Hopefully, the remaining 100,000 people will have power soon!

****************************************

Looks like I should have gone ahead and bought my road bike with my bonus last year, rather than being sensible and putting the money in our house fund. My company paid bonuses early this year to offset some of the costs employees were facing due to Ike (which was nice)....but, somehow my bonus was half the size of last years! And, I didn't start working for the company last year until mid-April! Looks like the MS150 might be out this year unless I can convince myself to splurge and get a bike...although it won't be the one I really want. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

Pictures of the Ike Aftermath...

After Ike, I took my camera with me everywhere I went and tried to snap a few pictures when I could. Most of these pictures were taken near my house...keep in mind that I live approximately 80 miles inland!

Saturday - after Ike

The kiddo in her "helmet" and rain boots with my Dad just checking out the damage. Fortunately, there were only fences down and tree debris everywhere.



A common sight around the city - billboards...or at least they used to be!








Water! This was taken on the I-45 feeder near 1960:


Trees, trees and more trees....

A few harmless ones in my neighborhood (there were lots!). This one is at the entrance to the subdivision.



This one is near the elementary school. There was an even larger one down at the playground across the street.


The next two are in my parent's neighborhood:




Almost every palm tree at this dealership was lying on the ground!


Some not-so-harmless trees. This one is in the neighborhood about 1/2 mile from where I live:



This one is in my Sister-in-Law's neighborhood in Humble:



Gas lines - this became a way of life for the week after Ike. These were taken off of I-45 heading north. I am lucky that I never had to wait more than 45 minutes the week after Ike.





This was taken at I-45 and Rayford and shows only 1/3 of the line. Behind the truck on the left was a weaving theme-park type line with at least 100 people in it. And this isn't even showing all the cars lined up down the feeder road!



This was taken on my way to work - excuse the crack in the windshield.


More damage from Ike:

This was also taken on my way to work.


1960 near I-45


On Rayford...


In Humble...


At 2920, I think. Oh and most of the Sonic restuarants in the area had damage similar to this.


1960 - dangling lights everywhere!


A part of the Texas Parks and Wildlife convoy on Saturday afternoon...

A part of the Border Patrol convoy...

The creek near my neighborhood...you can usually see the sandy bottom!



An attempt at humor during the storm. I have a picture of the same store with a similar scene from Rita.

Guess What!?!?

WE HAVE POWER!

Hallelujah.



At 2:16 pm (about 5 minutes after my last post) on Wednesday, the hubby called with the most wonderful news. At the same time, I swear I looked out my work window and saw the clouds part and heard a chorus of angels. We got power at 1:58 pm - the hubby said he knew that because the clock was blinking and showed that we officially had power 18 minutes earlier.



I almost didn't believe it until I arrived home to find the garage door opener working. Then, I walked into a nice, cool, air-conditioned house. After dark, every time I turned on a light, everything seemed just too bright! LOL, after living with one lamp and a lot of flashlights, it's hard adjusting to full lighting again.



There are so many things I took for granted before Ike:

1. A dishwasher


2. Electric stove


3. traffic lights


4. washing machine


5. cable tv/internet


6. my treadmill - since DH was working strange hours, it was near impossible to get in a run outdoors which meant I didn't get to run much at all!


7. street lights


8. gasoline - readily available with no lines


9. fresh produce


10. frozen foods - they are still hard to find in my neck of the woods

I know I'll think of a million more, but that's it for now. I am just happy to not have to wake up at 4 am to fill the generator with gas while trying to hold my flashlight under my arm and fight off mosquitos!!!!

Thank.You.God.

Oh, and I'm praying that Centerpoint can get the rest of the area's electricity working again soon. I know what a pain in the ass it is to live without it!

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Update - Thursday, 9/25

When we arrived home at 7pm, my garage door opener wouldn't work. I must have pressed the button a couple of times before it hit me - the freaking power is out! Again.

As I unloaded the kids from the car I said hello to the neighbors, who informed me that the power had been out for about an hour. And, they had just bought groceries - including frozen foods.

The kiddo ate her dinner by candlelight and we hung out for awhile. The hubby wasn't home and I was trying to decide if I should grab the dolly and attempt to get the generator out again - most of our neighbors already had theirs going. I opted to just wait and see what happened.

Finally, about an hour later the power returned!

I went on a 25 minute run around our section of the neighborhood. It felt great to get out of the house.

Day 12

Still no power. We're still on the Thursday list, but rumor has it that Centerpoint is "locked out" of our section of the grid (whatever that means) and we won't have power until Sunday. Whatever. I am getting used to the hum of the generator and waking up at 4 am to fight the mosquitos fill up the generator with gas, lol!



We did get power at work, so things are slowly getting back to normal there. I will be happy when our offices are rebuilt and we can move back in. Right now, I'm with the accounting department in an open space rather than an office. It's noisy, but it will work until the construction is over.



Speaking of work, yesterday I had to travel to Austin for a career fair. My co-worker and I ran into Jack Black at the Austin airport when we were waiting for our flight! He was there with his co-star in the movie "School of Rock", Mike White, apparently for a meeting with Richard Linklater. Here's a picture of the 4 of us....sorry it's so blurry, the man working at the chinese restaurant took the picture and I didn't want to ask everyone for a do-over:





I realized yesterday that I had not gotten in one workout this week...ummm, time to make some time to workout!!!

Powerless

Still no friggin power!



To add insult to injury, a large section of our subdivision got power back last night around 8:40 pm...just not our section.



I am trying to be patient, especially since as of this morning there are still 750,000+ of us without power...but it's getting difficult. I just want to cook indoors again soon. :-)



I intend to get on my bike tonight for at least 15 miles. I have to ride 30+ on Sunday and haven't been on my bike in over a week.

Still Okay

But still no power. My in-laws actually brought us a small a/c window unit, so that has helped immensely!!! I am currently using the internet at my parent's house, so I can check work e-mails.

I met up with Woodlands Fit yesterday AM for our long run - 7.4 miles! Our average pace was 11:30. Not bad considering I had only run once since Ike and have been eating all kind of crap this past week. Luckily, I was able to get lots of fresh produce and some chicken breasts at HEB yesterday, so the diet will get back to normal.

I'll check in again soon. Take care!!!

Checking In

Hi all!
I just wanted to get a quick post up to let everyone know I'm a-okay. Since the hubby was at work during the hurricane (and 2 days after), the kids and I stayed with my parents. Lemme tell you, that was some scary shiat! If Ike was a cat 2, I don't ever wanna be here for a cat 4 or 5!!! We had no damage to the house, but like the majority of Houston, we have no power.

Still.
Day 6 of no power.
Ugh!

We do have a generator, so that's been awesome. This cold front has also been awesome (huge thanks to the big man upstairs for that one!!!) For awhile there getting gas for the generator was a pain in the ass, but that seems to get better each day as more and more stations open up.

I can't complain, cause like I said, there was no damage to the house! I have a couple of family members who live by the coast who did have some damage and my friend Marlina who lives in Shore Acres had 3-4 feet of water in their house. But, everyone is alive and well, and that's all that matters.

I am at a Starbucks near my office using their internet so I can get some work done. Our office building suffered some major damage, so we've been in and out all week trying to get stuff moved into other parts of the building. We have no power there either - good thing we're a commercial general contractor, because we have a huge generator and the crews are already making great progress in the reconstruction of the damaged areas. I went to the Dallas office yesterday just to get some work done and met with the General Manager there.

I hope all is well with everyone else. I haven't had a chance to check anyone's blogs and may not until we have power again. The hardest part is not being connected to the rest of the world with no cable and no internet. We bought some rabbit ears, so we can watch one channel - 13 KTRK. I swear, after this, we are getting Direct TV, our breaker box wired for the generator and a gas cooktop. I love camping and grilling, but I'm getting tired of pulling out the grill every night for dinner. :-)

Take care and stay safe!

Take care everyone!!!

Never, Ever Forget!

I know those of us in TX (especially those near the coast) are preoccupied with Ike, but let's all take a minute to remember those who perished on 9/11. May it never happen again!

Take a Hike Ike!

Well, as of tonight, it looks as if Ike may be visiting a little closer than we originally thought! I get to help make the decision tomorrow morning whether or not the office will be open the full day tomorrow and whether we'll be open at all on Friday.

I thought we had plenty of the usual crap we get at the beginning of every hurricane season - batteries for the radio and flashlights, some extra canned stuff like Ravioli (for DH), tuna, PB&J, etc., and some extra bottled water. Of course, we were low on the one thing I am completely not used to buying - BABY FORMULA! Ummm, hello! Until last week, I didn't need baby formula if you catch my drift. Figures I would pick the week a hurricane is coming to visit to stop nursing. So, I made the trek to my local Krogers. It wasn't as bad as the madhouse I encountered before Rita was supposed to hit, but it was definitely not your normal trip to Krogers - the parking lot was full and I had to circle a bit to park, the canned goods and water aisle were looking bare and the checkout lines were stupidly long. Fortunately, they were moving fast...even the store manager was ringing people up. Thank God I filled up my gas tank earlier today, because the lines at the Kroger gas station were several cars deep at each pumping station.

I've been through this before, but back then I was 11 or 12 years old and it was all so exciting. It was hurricane Alicia. My Aunt Joyce who lives in Bacliff came and stayed with us. I remember waiting up for the storm until about 2 am - for me, it was like a slumber party. I finally fell asleep only to wake up around 7 am to find that we were in the eye of the storm. Many of the houses in our neighborhood flooded and we were without electricity for 14 days! 14 friggin days! We didn't have water for the 1st week of that and stayed with my Grandma and other relatives during that time. I remember seeing footage from Galveston and seeing the glass flying from the windows of the buildings downtown. I remember that our neighbors had a generator and they could get power to their fridge, a fan and of course, the TV. My friends and I would head over there during the day to watch The Price is Right or General Hospital and sit in front of that fan for awhile. I remember that while it was exciting at first, it got really old fast.

So, I am hoping that Ike is not quite that bad, mainly for selfish reasons (because the hubby will be forced to stay at work all weekend and I'll be here alone with 2 kids!) I'm also hoping that everyone out there in bloggerland stays nice and safe!!! And, I am a bit annoyed that this is going to screw up our Saturday run dammit!

Hallelujah!

Woohoo, hallelujah for cooler weather...most importantly, hallelujah for the lower humidity! To make matters even better, it's FRIDAY!!!! And, this weather is supposed to stick around long enough to make Saturday's run much more pleasant than the previous few weeks.

I just realized that I never blogged about last Saturday's long run. It was ~5.55 miles at an incredibly slow pace. I actually remembered my Garmin this week and overall it was about a 12:15 pace. Could it really be possible that we ran that 10:43 pace last week? The run did feel more comfortable than last week, but I thought it was just because the humidity wasn't as high. I don't know, but I
am not going to get all freaked out about my pace. Seriously. I feel like I am still in the process of rebuilding the base (stamina and endurance) that I had pre-baby. It's going to take awhile to get where I need/want to be.

Here's what has been happening all week:

Sunday - 1 hour P90X - Chest, Shoulders & Triceps and Ab Ripper X
Monday - 1 hour P90X - Plyometrics
Tuesday - 1 hour P90X - Back & Biceps
Wednesday - skipped P90X yoga - 30 minute run OUTDOORS (yay outdoors! 11:40 pace)
Thursday - 1 hour P90X - Legs and Back and 25 minute treadmill run (11:30 pace)
Friday - see below

Okay, so I actually slept in this morning. Normally, I'd be doing the 4:30 am wake-up thing to do the P90X KenpoX workout before the kiddos woke up (yeah, that 4:30 thing's getting real old!). However, my left shin has been bothering me and I just felt, well, tired. I have been staying up late the past 2 weeks watching the DNC and RNC, then the news, then Nightline. It makes the 4:30 am wake-up call come really early. So, I gave myself permission to sleep until 6 am. Woohoo! :-)

I also skipped the P90X Yoga workout on Wednesday. In addition to my morning P90X workout, I was supposed to run on Tuesday night. But the baby would just not go to sleep (very rare for him!) and well, life happens (right?). Since I have to be at work at 6:45 am on Wednesdays, I knew there was no way in hell I'd be getting up before 4:00 am to start the 1 1/2 hour routine!!!!!!!!!! So yeah, Yoga was out. But, I really needed to get in a weekday run and I also knew I'd have a chance to run OUTDOORS on Wednesday evening after the kiddo's dance class and before the hubby had to get ready for work. Yep, that's right...the hubby got to have the joy of trying to bathe the kiddo while holding the starting-to-get-tired-and-cranky-baby while I went out for a run. LOL, I have the multitasking thing down, but the hubby's been fortunate to miss out on the fun due to his Hapkido classes for the past several weeks! I thought about doing the Yoga workout after the kids were in bed, but decided against it since it would be 9:30 before I even started.

I am looking forward to tomorrow's run in the cooler, less humid temps. We'll see if I can get the pace up just a bit. I know there are others out there looking forward to this as well. Happy running and happy weekend!

Ps. I hope you liked the joke in the last post. :-) I really haven't decided who I am voting for just yet...I have some more research to do on each candidate and I want to take a better look at their past voting records. I like the charisma of Obama, but seriously, charisma can only take you so far. And if I see/hear the McCain POW stuff again...seriously. I loved Palin's speech and the idea of having a female veep. She is an excellent speaker and her daughter was beyond cute slicking down her little brother's hair! But, I don't agree with her on A LOT of the issues. Biden, well his speech made me want to take a nap, LOL! This is going to be a tough decision for me!

Huge news...

Most of my friends know that I am unhappy with both Presidential candidates. Well, the big news is that I've decided to take matters into my own hands. This is huge for me, so I appreciate any and all support. Thanks!

http://www.inews3.com/topstory.php?id=436872697374797c476f6e7a616c6573

Old Faithful...

Well, I finally had a chance to exchange my Brooks Adrenaline for my old faithfuls - the Saucony Grid Stabil.

Okay so they're not pretty, but sometimes you just shouldn't mess with what works! Many thanks to the staff at Luke's for getting me fixed right up.

I am happy that I don't have a run tonight, because after my scheduled 25 minutes on the dreadmill, it was time for P90X....Plyometrics!

Fortunately, I had a little break between the two workouts and I was able to do the P90X full-out. So much so that my legs had that wobbly, jello-y feeling after I was done. I love it! But, I don't think my legs would like me very much if I made them run after that.

This morning I did the "Back and Biceps" workout, but I still have to do the "Ab Ripper X" tonight. I meant to mention the craziness that is the "Chest, Shoulders and Triceps" workout. I did this workout for the 2nd time on Monday and let me tell you...it is killer! The worst part for me was the slow push-ups where you go down slowly over a count of 4 and push-up over a count of 4. Killer! Then you do it again toward the end of the workout with 3 fast push-ups, followed by 4 slow ones and repeat over and over. I seriously hope I have some super sexy arms after all this! Oh and then there are the one-arm push-ups - I suck at those, but my goal is to do at least one full one before the 90 days is over (right now I can only go down a little without falling to the floor, lol!)!! I don't know what it is, but I just love the upper body workouts!

Hope you have some happy workouts too!

Absent

Sorry I've been so absent here. I've been enjoying the family time after work. After the kiddos are in bed, I squeeze in an hour of P90X and then the treadmill. Then I get all the suff ready for the next day - lunches, clothes, etc. By the time I'm all done, it's 10 or 10:30 pm and I'm ready for bed!


On Saturday I met up with Woodlands Fit for the long run. A huge shout out to Christy (sp?), Jennifer, Therese, two others whose names I can't remember (that's okay, because they don't have access to this blog anyway, hahaha!) and of course, the awesome Coach Debbie. We had a great 5:1 group going this weekend! It was cooler than last week, but incredibly humid - yuck! I was worried at the beginning because I was huffing and puffing during the 1st mile. I found out why when Christy looked at her watch and said we were at a 10 minute pace.



Ummm, yeah...I've been running at about an 11:30 pace. Last week we ran our 6 miles at an 11:40 pace.



We did slow it down a little and of course we had our walk breaks, but I won't lie, it was pretty tough keeping up. I can't for the life of me find my watch and I forgot my Garmin, so I had no idea how fast or how far we had been going the entire run. I know that I did take 2 extra walk breaks toward the end of the run, but I still managed to keep up with my group. The end result - 5 1/2 miles in 59 minutes - or a 10:43 pace! I'll take it. I guess it showed me that I really need to start pushing myself harder on the weekday runs, because I am capable of going faster.

Afterwards, I had a date with Ann Taylor (among other stores). The hubby's 20 year high school reunion was later that night, so I needed a cute outfit pronto. I think all that walking at the mall helped keep my legs from getting tight, because I had almost no soreness. I wanted this awesome pair of red shoes, but they didn't have them in my size...grrrrr!




It seems that my feet have grown yet another 1/2 size since having the munchkin...something I keep forgetting. Crazy! I don't know what's come over me lately, but I have suddenly become a clothes whore when it comes to work clothes. I used to be okay with getting my few really nice staple pieces - you know, the black suit, the navy suit, the brown suit, etc. And then buying the tops and other stuff super cheap. Let's just say Target and I are great friends when it comes to this. But lately, I have been hearing places like Ann Taylor (and Loft), Black HouseWhite Market, Banana Republic, etc. calling my name! LOL! These are places I loved to shop at before having kids....then I went into super budgeter mom mode (paying for diapers and daycare will do that to a gal!). I think it's because most of my pre-pregnancy clothes don't fit well and I need some new stuff. To top it off, none of the clothes I want are ever on sale! I may need an intervention, but I think I will be okay if I just stay away from the mall. Fortunately, I've been able to show some restraint and not get too crazy. Besides, I'd much rather spend money on stuff for the new house!


Speaking of shoes....I went to Luke's in The Woodlands over a week ago to get some new running shoes. thanks to Woodland's Fit, I had an awesome coupon plus it was tax free weekend! Woohooo! Well, they don't carry my heavy, not-so-pretty motion control shoes, the Saucony Grid Stabil, at that particular store. Not suprising, because they aren't the cutest pair of shoes, so I'm sure not many people just come in asking for them. I asked to try alternatives including the Brooks Ariel (which I used to wear before they changed them a little). They were out of my size in the Ariel, so I tried the Brooks Adrenaline GTS 8, a pair of Asics and one other pair. I went with the Adrenaline and I went up a 1/2 size, because my pre-baby size just seemed too small. I opted not to wear the new shoes on the long run and try them out on the ol' dreadmill first (just in case there was an issue with the fit). I'm so glad I did, because they did not fit well at all! The just felt huge! No matter how I adjusted the laces, it just felt like my feet were sliding all around in them. So, they've been sitting in my closet in their box for the past week. If I ever get to have a non-work-related lunch, I will head over to the Houston location and promptly ask for my Brooks Ariel again. That's too bad too, because the Adrenaline come in an awesome shade of pink too:







Trust me when I say that Motion Control shoes almost never come in any color but blue. Don't get me wrong, I like blue, but it does get boring after awhile!

Well, that's it for now...have a GREAT week!

What doesn't kill you....

makes you hotter!

LOL, that's a lyric from Legally Blonde: The Musical. It cracks me up, but it's oh so true...especially in the case of my recent workouts. I don't know about the hotter part, but the workouts have been killer. :-)

I survived last Saturday's 6-miler! Woohoo! It wasn't fast and it wasn't pretty, but I did it!

I actually got in 2 of the weekday runs last week and so far have done 2 of the 3 weekday runs this week. Just one little thing I discovered...don't run before doing the P90X Plyometric workout! My legs were tired and then to have to jump over and over...well, that just doesn't work too well!

As for Saturday, it was hot. No big suprise there. Afterall, it is Houston and it is August. It was also humid. Again, no big suprise. When I arrived at the Woodland's Fit meeting area, I actually went to where the full marathon folks were at and could not figure out where the 1/2 folks were. Then, I saw a large group of people starting their run. Me and another girl took off after them and sure enough, it was our 1/2 marathon peeps. Luckily, I met two others (Tamara and her friend from out of town) who run at pretty much same pace as me and we stuck together the entire distance doing 5/1 intervals. Can I just say Coach Debbie is awesome? She constantly hung with each of the 5/1 groups and encouraged everyone the entire way. And, after the run, Coach Bill assured me that we would be staying in the 6-7 mile range for most of September, so I didn't need to panic about having to run the mileage after not running much the past few weeks.

I think I've figured out why I am having motivational issues with the running:

1) It's hot as hell outside and I hate the heat! Yes, I am a pansy. There, I admitted it.

2) I hate running alone. For the shorter runs, it's no big deal, but for the weekly longer runs - it sucks.

3) Starting over just plain SUCKS! I remember the days of training after I had the kiddo. Being so freaking slow and having to build up the endurance all over again is not fun (not to mention carrying the extra weight). To do that yet again - for the 3rd time - sucks. The good news is that I know it will get better. Eventually.

Anyway, enough of the whining. Tonight it's 25 minutes on the ol' dreadmill followed by 55 minutes of P90X shoulders and legs, plus the Ab Ripper X. I have learned to LOVE the Ab Ripper. Bring it on, baby!!!

Not so bad

I got my arse back on the dreadmill last night...that's the only thing that sucks at our house right now - dreadmill time. The hubby works nights, so he starts getting ready for work around 8 pm, leaves around 9 pm and works from 10 pm - 6 am. I'd much rather run outdoors, but by the time it is getting cooler outside, the hubby is getting ready for work and I have to get the kiddos into bed. I could run earlier, but that cuts into my time with the kiddos and hubby. I can't go out for an early morning run, because the hubby isn't home until it's almost time for me to leave for work.

So....the dreadmill it is!

Better than nothing I suppose.

To be honest, the dreadmill run was not that bad. Did I just love being on the run again? No! But, it felt good to get the heart rate going and to see the calories ticking away on the screen.

I've decided that I will try to get on the bike more (a friend and I are meeting up after work once a week to bike beginning next week), work on my horrible swimming and continue to train for the 1/2.

I also want to continue the remainder of the 90 days in my P90X cycle...I am loving P90X!

So, I will go to the Woodlands Fit run on Saturday. Let's face it, I am a total social runner. I don't mind running so much when I have peeps to talk to. The only problem is that it's a 5-6 mile run and so far, I haven't run farther than 3 miles this season. Oh, and that was almost 2 weeks ago. I don't know if I can hang for the entire distance. I may, or most likely will, be at the back of the pack and walking a lot at the end. P90X does include lots of cardio, but it's completely different than running!

So, that's it for now. I need to get to Luke's for some new shoes asap!

Confession Time...

I have a confession to make. School's been a bitch the past 3 weeks, so I decided I only have time to do one workout or the other. I don't have time to run and do P90X.

Guess what?

P90X won.

Seriously, in the 3 weeks that I have done it consistently I am already feeling stronger! I like results, so I decided to keep going. Screw running. I did miss some of the P90X workouts last week, so I am starting week 4 over again.

I only ran 2x in the past 3 weeks and you know what?

I.didn't.miss.it.

at.all.

I think I am nearing the end of my running career. After 7 years of training for something - a marathon or 1/2 marathon - with a break to have 2 kids, I think I'm done. Ready to try something new, explore other things.

I don't seem to enjoy it anymore. I definitely didn't miss it.

I may take a little time to really do some soul searching about the whole thing, maybe it's just because any running I have done has been solo and not with a fun Fit group. But I think ultimately, I will have to change the title of this blog. :-) Anyone wanna 1/2 marathon entry????

Done.

Well, it's official....I have my MBA!

It's been the roughest week of school projects I've had in a long time. And it was even worse because I (and the rest of my group) had motivational issues due to good ol' senioritis (or the grad school version of it). But, I am pretty confident that we did pretty well with both our final paper and our presentation. And, I am pretty sure I will end my grad school career with 2 A's.

I am so freakin' glad it's over. I was supposed to run 4 miles tomorrow, but honestly, after this week I just want to get some rest. I need a decent night's sleep!

I'll catch everyone up on all the other stuff in the next day or two.

Woohoo!

Our group made a 100 on our Marketing presentation...woohoo! Pretty good considering we actually met once in person the entire semester. One of the peer evaluations actually directed a comment at me - "Christy: great presentation skills!" I am definitely stoked...too bad I still have a final to study for, but no worries it shouldn't be too bad.

Still here...

Yep, I'm alive and kicking.

Still stressing about school. I have a marketing final, plus managemenet group paper and presentation. The management final went pretty well...it was tougher than I expected, but I made a high B which should be good enough for me to keep my A in that class.

But, in exactly 6 days I will be done with school!

Forever.

Well, okay maybe not forever. There's always the thought in the back of my head about getting a PhD and teaching. Or, going ahead and earning my Master's in HR too. But either of those options are a long way away.

Very.far.future.

Lucky Lady

Ugh, I was sitting here at my laptop at the kitchen table working on my paper due Saturday when I started to get a little weepy. You see, on Monday I have to return back to work full-time after 12 weeks of maternity leave. This leave was much different from my leave with the kiddo. Back then, I was part of a huge HR department. I had a back-up who took over everything and I probably had to answer 2 questions about work-related stuff during my entire leave (which was 15 weeks and fully paid!).

This time around I am working as a manager of a 2-person HR team. I call a lot of the shots, or I make recommendations to people who make the big decisions. Therefore, since the day after I arrived home from the hospital with the baby, I was receiving calls from work and answering e-mails. (I'm sure if I didn't leave the hospital on a Sunday, I'd be taking calls the day I left!) There was a pretty major employee relations issue and I was the one who had to handle it...

Anyway, as I look back at the past 12 weeks, I realize that I wasted a lot of precious family time stressing out about work issues. Now, I was also stressing about school, but that wasn't that big of a deal in the grand scheme of things. Seriously people, life is too short. Don't get me wrong - there was some great quality time with the family in there...but there should have been more.

I don't know why I am writing this. I guess just to remind myself that school is going to be over in less than two weeks...I better take advantage of those free Saturdays to create some awesome memories with the hubby and kids. A few minutes ago I decided I needed to get up from my computer and stretch my legs. I decided to take a stroll around the 2nd floor, where the kiddo and muchkin's rooms are located. I snuck into the baby's room 1st and just stood there looking down at that cute little face. Of course that was after I placed my hand on his little chest to make sure he was breathing, lol! (When does that mommy paranoia stop?) Then, I headed over to the kiddo's room. I had to let out a quiet chuckle, because I could hardly see her buried in between about 15 of her favorite Disney princess dolls and stuffed animals.

Before I left only one thought entered my head - Man, oh Man, I am one lucky lady! Then I said a quick "thank you" to the big man upstairs.

Life.is.good.

Yes I'm still here!

I've been studying for a final and trying to enjoy the last couple of weeks of freedom with the family, so no time for blogging. I have been at least doing my P90X workouts...but I did miss two this week, Doh!

I'll be back with an update. Later taters!

Kenpro X & other random stuff

First of all, I did get in my scheduled 20 minute run. Yay me. Afterwards, we closed on our old house. Woohoo! Can I just say we have the most awesome realtor??? Seriously, most of the homes in the same area have been on the market for 6 months - 1 year. Ours was sold in less than 2 months. If anyone out there needs a realtor, let me know and I'll give you her contact info.

Workout #1 - 20 minute run, 5/1 intervals, treadmill

Afterwards, we bought a few select pieces of furniture that we absolutely knew we wanted for our gameroom. Huge thanks to Noreen at Star Furniture for all her help!

Piece of advice:

Don't take 2 children furniture shopping...especially late in the day when they're getting tired. The baby had a diaper blowout like I've never seen before! I'm standing there talking to the salesperson when all of a sudden I feel a droplet on my foot. I practically sprinted to the ladies room with the baby in my arms and the diaper bag on my back. I won't go into details but it was nasty! LOL! To make matters worse, the kiddo got her second wind and was hopping around all over the place and wanted to jump onto all the couches. When I told her not to do that, she decided she wanted to go home and tried to pull me in the direction of the door. It was surely one of those "CALGON TAKE ME AWAY" moments!

Once the kiddo and munchkin were in bed, the hubby and I did our "Kenpro X" workout. This was probably the easiest and most fun workout so far. It was a lot like Tae Bo...very fast paced, lots of kicks, jabs and punches. Some of the combinations were difficult, but overall it was not bad!

Workout #2 - P90X - Kenpro X - 1 hour (we started at 9:30 pm!)

Saturday is back to school and a P90X rest day..thank God! By the way, the school projects are going well! If things continue to go this well, I should end my final semester with 2 A's. Wooohoooo!