Photo Dump

Welcome to my completely random photo dump...

We've had some really nice days lately, other than the blizzard of course, and this is fitting.  And hilarious.

While it's nice and I'm stuck at work, I'd rather be running.  And my new tumbler cup let's everyone know this!

I traded in my Malibu for my Escape, but it still makes me a little sad that it's gone.  Anyway, I admired how nice they made it look online, and it actually was sold right away.  You know the town you live in is too small when you see the car you traded being driven by it's new owner two days in a row.  Take care of my Boo!

Don't be hatin, you'd miss your '05 Malibu too if it looked this good!

I was running a little low on Gu thanks to marathon training.  Monday night a fresh box arrived on my doorstep!  This should last me a while...

And Espresso Love is the ONLY flavor of Gu I will eat.  Just FYI.

Speaking of eating, I have a slight candy addiction.  I attended our state financial aid administrator's conference at the end of last week, and since I was a first time attendee, I was recognized with my favorite candy!  It was an ice-breaker/get to know you type of thing.  So judge away FA colleagues.  I love my M&Ms!  My co-worker and I discussed how we never win anything.  Which is true, I'm not lucky at all.  Well, guess who won the $50 door prize!  HOLLA!

Last but not least, an awesome quote from my fave, Kara Goucher.  There have been several bumps in this marathon training road, but I've made progress none the less.  Keep looking ahead!! Less than 3 weeks to go!

Workout Recap 4/7 - 4/13

Week 14 of marathon training... yikes.  I am pretty honest with anyone that asks me how it's going.  I'm ready to be done for a while!  I'm ready for a break.  It's been hard to stay positive and focused these past couple weeks.  Honestly, something usually hurts every day.  It's usually not the same thing.  I've had the issues with my feet, some on-going Achilles tendinitis that shows up every once and a while, a shin splint here or there, and of course my lovely right hip.  Complaining aside, I'm learning how to cope and listen to my body.  My mileage hasn't been that high, and I've taken more rest than I used to back when I didn't really listen to my body.  I call these weeks SURVIVAL MODE!

Monday - I had the day off work and was recovering my legs from my 20 miler the day before.  I used the elliptical and lifted a few weights focusing on shoulders.   Nothing major.

Tuesday - Body Pump Express and 7 miles after work.  These miles felt amazing!  I felt strong and energized.  Once I got done, my feet had a different opinion.  I ended up with a pretty big blister on the bottom of my pinky toe from the 20, and it wasn't too happy after the 7.

The next couple of days, my feet looked like this... (LOOK AT YOUR OWN RISK!)

Wednesday - Did not go as planned.  I woke up early to get my run in before work since I wouldn't be able to after, and well, one step out of my on my poor foot and I realized it wasn't going to happen.  Back to bed... my only activity was CXWORX at noon.

Thursday - My feet felt better after resting, so I made it out for 6 miles early Thursday morning.  I had a work conference the rest of the day and wasn't able to get out and enjoy the rest of the nice weather.

Friday - 4 miles, 20 minutes elliptical, and weights.  I was off at 2:00 when the conference ended, so I made my way outside to enjoy an easy run.  I also got a nice walk in with my mom.  The sunshine was amazing!

SHORTS!

TANK!

RUN! (this pic was taken today, when it's freezing and I'm wearing my fuzzy jacket...)

Saturday - 10 miles plus 3.1 in the Operation Steel Warrior 5K.

Sunday - REST!

Mother Nature... WTF?!

It was almost 80 degrees yesterday, and humid.  I was drenched with sweat after my training run and 5K.  And this is today:

It's literally a blizzard outside today.  Nothing in Nebraska should surprise me anymore.  Last year on April 12th, I believe it was, we actually had a snow day at work.   I work at the community college in town, and while we have a significant student population that commutes, we rarely close.  This year our April blizzard happens to be a weekend.  Go figure.

I was planning a running rest day anyway, so my couch time and plan to not leave the house today ends up working out.  

In honor of the snow, here are a few more pics from the SUN and the race yesterday.  

Please note my face of death.  I really wish I had some attractive action or finishing photos to show off, but I don't. 

Operation Steel Warrior 5K

I ran a 5K this morning after my 10 mile training run.  It's local, and for a great cause.  I definitely couldn't resist, and couldn't race.  My goal was to go out as easy as possible and just get the miles in, not worry about time or placing.  This is VERY hard for me because I'm incredibly competitive, but it was refreshing to have a different mind set going into a race.

This race was a fundraiser sponsored by the four Nucor divisions in Norfolk, NE. Money will go to Operation Steel Warrior which supports the construction of "Smart Homes" for severely wounded service members. Nucor's current recipient is Captain Ben Harrow, who lost both legs above the knee and a large portion of his right arm, which included two fingers on his right hand. 

I ran my 10 miles first and came home and foam rolled and changed into dry clothes.  I met up with Heidi before the race.  I was pushing the time pretty close, I was actually the last person to pick up my packet... OOPS.  That's how I knew I was taking a laid back approach to the race!

It was an out and back on the Cowboy Trail here in Norfolk.  Easy and flat.  My goal was to run my slowest 5K, and it was actually my second slowest at 25:17.

It was a small race, I ended up third in my age group and nabbing a medal.

Heidi placed first in her age group, and super speedy JD won overall.

Workout Recap...sort of

This past week was a long, blur.  A tragic family loss, not a lot of good sleep, and too many thoughts.  I think Luke Bryan's line in Drink a Beer was fitting.  "Sometimes the greater plan is kinda hard to understand, right now it don't make sense."

So on to the workouts or the lack there of this past week.

Monday - CXWORX and some cross training.  I did a 5K on the elliptical and 20 minutes on the arc trainer.

Tuesday - Body Pump Express and 6 miles outside after work.  I don't have many watch pics this week.  My pace wasn't great, my legs were heavy.

Wednesday - CXWORX and 7 miles.  

Thursday - 30 minutes of weights at lunch.

Friday - Rest

Saturday - 3 miles and some quick abs.

Sunday - 20 miles.  

FINALLY got this one done.  It's one of those things that just looms over your head during marathon training.  The big 2-0.  I've done one before, but there is always a bit of nervousness associated with 20 miles.  I took 2 Gus and drank Powerade Zero.  My handheld started leaking bad and made a huge mess with about 5 miles left.  I have extras, and this one was old, so I ended up throwing it away with my 5 miles left.  I don't know why those last 5 miles of a 20 are so hard.  I was hurting pretty bad, and my right hip has been iced and KT taped heavily ever since.  Let's hope I can recover strong this week and not end up with a hip repeat of last time...

Best week ever

Anyone remember that show on VH1 that would recap a week in celebrity news or TV gossip?  It was one of my favorites and a sure fire giggle.

Anyway... I might not be the Pope or Justin Timberlake, but I think I had one of the best weeks ever.

The BF and I hit the 3 year dating anniversary mark.  I used to think it was lame to have a dating anniversary, like "happy 6 months babe" like high school... Three years is a while, and I thought it was kind of a big deal.

I had some good runs and felt great.  It was a HUGE improvement over last week when I felt very down on myself.

LOTS of foam rolling made for happy legs!

I found heaven in a bag.  No really, this coffee smells AMAZING.  Oh yeah, it tastes amazing also.  Thanks Target.

You might think well what's SO great about this week?  I GOT A NEW CAR!!!

New to me, it's a 2013, which is the newest vehicle I've ever had.  I'm pretty excited about Mr. Escape!

Workout Recap 3/24 - 3/30

Last full week of March!  Holy cow, where is this year going?!  I did think March was a bit of a long month, but yet, not really.  The weather has been kind of crazy, but all in all, it was a decent month for training.

Monday - Cross training and CXWORX.  I ran 11 miles last Saturday and Sunday, so I opted for cross training on Monday.

Tuesday - 7 miles of happiness!  This run felt great!  I went to Body Pump Express at lunch, and even after some killer squats, my legs were ready for a run!

Wednesday - CXWORX and 5 treadmill miles.  I was reeeeeally hesitant to get back on the treadmill after it made my foot hurt last week, but it went ok.  The wind was 40 MPH and there was a high wind warning.  I was happy to stay inside during that.

Thursday - 6 miles outside before work in the drizzle.  It was still nice and warm in the morning, but that drizzle turned to snow later.  BOO.

Friday - REST.

Saturday - 18 miles!  This long run felt fantastic!   It was definitely the confidence boost I needed after the last two weeks.  Next week I'm set to tackle 20!  

Sunday - 4 miles at 8:22.  This was a "recovery" run and I still felt like I was bolting out strong!  My legs felt great after the long run, and I had to really contain myself not to run further.