Much Better Day

Wow!  Two days in a row that I’ve blogged!  I don’t think “heck” froze over, but it sure felt like it in Minnesota!

Today I stayed inside and ran a 5K on the treadmill.  I needed a speed workout.  Haven’t done one in a while and it felt really good.  I actually did it a little differently this time than I usually do.  I warmed up for a mile….pretty slowly.  Then I stopped and stretched.   I felt really warmed up and the stretch felt really good.

I got back on the treadmill and then started the speed work/sprints.  When I do this type of running workout, I usually run exact distances at certain speeds and recover for the same distance.  But today, I varied it up just a little bit.  I still pushed hard during the sprints, got the recovery distance in, and felt really good about the whole run.

After, I had a long stretching session followed by abs.

I had a feeling of relief after having this run go so much better than yesterday’s run.

I made homemade chicken noodle soup today and homemade rolls, so all that was waiting for me when I got home.  It all turned out really, really good!  Run was great, supper was great, and one of my favorite movies was on which wrapped up a great day.  It all left me feeling very happy and blessed!   Doing my own thing today was just what I needed!

Whine or Wine?

What a tough run today.   *Whine*

My husband and I went out for a run.  We have this route that is about 3 miles.  It was cold.  *Whine*

Early on in the run, I started wheezing.  I had a hard time breathing in general, but mostly getting a deep breath.   *Whine*

Soon, nothing really felt right.  It felt as though I was just plodding along and not really running.  *Whine*

My husband kept a quick pace though and even though things didn’t feel right for me, I was keeping up…surprisingly.  *Not-so-much-whine*

I was upset because as much as I was wheezing, I didn’t know if I could get through the 3 miles.  Really?  It’s only THREE MILES!  *Whine*

And then I remembered….we have some great wine at home.  *Hmmm….wine….*

And I told myself to keep pushing forward and that when I got home, I could reward myself with a glass or two.  *Hmmmm….wine….*

We got through the run and actually, our pace was really great.  *Not-so-much-whine*

Got home and was actually glad we went (I always love running with my hubby).  But started coughing quite a bit.  *Whine*

Then cooled down with all my stretches, abs, pushups, etc and just felt tired.  *Whine*

And now……….  *WINE*

Snow Day/Blizzard Issues/Long Run

Well this was interesting.  We had a snow day today.  I am a teacher and we didn’t have school.  Our forecast was for 10-12 inches of snow first, then once it quit snowing, the wind was supposed to pick up to 40-50 mph and we were put in a blizzard warning.  We are actually still in the blizzard warning.  School is 2 hours late for tomorrow….as of right now.

My hairdresser called and she had cancellations and wondered if I could come in today for my appointment.  Great!  Love to!  So got that done.

I decided that I am in MUCH NEED OF A LONG RUN so I headed to the workout place that I belong to to get on the treadmill.  At this point in the day, it had stopped snowing and the winds were here.  My goal was to pound out 10 miles on the old treadmill.  What’s on TV on a Thursday afternoon?  I had no idea but I was hoping something worth watching.

I got the 10 miles done….had a nice slow pace and it felt just awesome.  Yay me!  I feel really good about the run, however the treadmill is really boring for that long.

I stretched when I was done and all that and it was time to go.  The wind had really picked up and the snow was blowing all around.  I started to go and there was a small drift which I had no problem getting through.  But the next drift looked way to big for my car and I knew I wouldnt’ get through it.  So I decided to back up and go that way since I had been through that smaller one.  Not so much.  I got stuck in that one.  I tried and tried to turn my tires, go forward, go in reverse.  No luck.  I knew there was a shovel inside the door, so I got out and ran back to the building.  WOW, WOW, WOW.  The wind was so bad I could hardly run back to the building which wasn’t far.  It was absolutely unreal.  I got the shovel and started trying to shovel out the tire that was stuck.  But again, I could hardly stay upright!  I can’t find the words to describe how hard the wind was blowing and how COLD it was.  I was literally gasping for air.

I had called my husband and he and my son got there while I was trying to shovel out the tire.  My husband took over for me and quickly realized that I had been shoveling out the wrong tire.  NICE.  All that strenous effort for nothing!

Long story short, some people with a truck and chains saw us (people we knew who were driving by) and they helped pull the car out.

I am very happy with my treadmill 10 miles, not happy I got stuck (but it was my own fault for trying to take on that drift and actually, the wind is blowing so much I don’t know HOW the snow plows are keeping up), and now I’m in dry clothes, by the fire and soon having a glass of wine!

Heartbreaking Tragedy

It’s such a day of sadness.  The nation and the world are in shock over the horrific tragedy in Connecticut.  As a parent, I cannot imagine the horror, pain, and total devastation to lose a child…to be running to the school not knowing if your child survived.  I am also a teacher.   I cannot imagine the terror and fear the staff must have felt knowing there was a gunman in their school and wanting to protect each and every student.

I left school Friday and as soon as I got in my car to go home, I burst into tears.  I cried all the way home, which is about a 10 minute drive.  I saw that my son’s car was in the driveway and I ran into the house.  My husband and son looked at me (it was obvious I had been crying) and asked what was wrong.  All I said was,  “I need to hug my son.”  And he just held onto me.  My son is 16 and 6’3 and he just held his mother while she cried.  Then my husband joined in and we just hugged as a family.  It was a few minutes before we let go of each other.  My son had a basketball game later Friday night and he gave me several hugs after the game……even in front of everybody including his buddies.  He just knew.

I don’t understand how that gunman could shoot those precious little children.  There were just babies.  Sweet and innocent, full of wonder and excitement for school and all the things they were learning.  Most likely so excited for Christmas and Santa Claus.

And we cannot forget the adults who tried to protect the children.  The ultimate sacrifice given to save lives of other children that were in harm’s way.

I went out for a run this afternoon and I thought of all of the victims and their families.  I cried again while I was running as my heart is just so heavy.  So many of us feel so helpless.  All we can do is pray for strength for these families.  I pray for the surviving children and staff as they return to school.  It’s going to be a long, difficult, and painful road ahead.

May God hold them in the palm of His loving hand.

13 in 2013

Well….I decided to share my challenge because I shared on Twitter.

One of my fellow Girls Gone Sporty Ambassadors is hosting a challenge to run 13 half marathons in 2013.  She actually is allowing participants to choose a variety of distances so you have 13 races in 2013.

I have most of my planning done as to when and which races I do.  I have it planned carefully to allow for proper rest time.  I am one of those runners that firmly believes in a day of rest…and I mean total rest.  Not even cross training.

I am very excited about this, but also a little nervous.  I hope that my planning and my work/family schedule all comes together so I can do this.  Planning now, as I did, should allow for it to be completed!

As for my blog, prepare to read about how this is going.  I am going to complain, be happy, vent…get it all down so I can document this journey.  So just a warning….if you don’t want to read about A LOT OF RUNNING AND TRAINING, then you don’t have to follow along!  It’s okay!  But I am going to write a lot about my feelings, my workouts, and my runs.

Thank you JILL CONYERS for this challenge and I’m excited to have you follow along if you choose!

 

 

Ups and Downs

And here I am.  Life has been up and down lately….let’s get started and I’ll start with the downs.

Down #1:  My friend who had the stroke.  Well….he made it through the first night.  The next morning was really rough, and then he started to improve.  So after that, they decided to move him out of ICU and into a room to begin rehab.  However, he suffered another stroke and went back to ICU on Saturday.  As of yesterday, there was still no improvement and he is still in ICU.  Continued prayers are much appreciated.

Down #2:  I have been under a great deal of stress lately and not working out.  There is an end to the stress shortly, so that’s actually an up.  The stress and lack of working out has left me feeling tired, sluggish, irritable…you name it.  My eating hasn’t been up to snuff either.  It’s just been sort of a snowball effect.  But, as I said, the stress I’m feeling now will be over soon and I can relax.

Up #1:  My son.  A couple of things here.  He was honored today with a great award for his high school!  It’s called an EXCEL award and it acknowledges academics, volunteerism, leadership and participation in activities.  And now he is put into sort of a competition for the state EXCEL award, so this has been the first step.  The next thing with my son is that his basketball season started last night.  Even though their team lost, they back from a 21 point deficit to go ahead.  Then the game was tied and went to overtime.  I was very proud of the team’s effort as they sure played with their hearts.  One of the other ups to that was that my parents surprised us and came to the game!  It was so fun to sit with them as they watched their grandson.  Lots of laughs together was sure what my heart needed.

Up #2:  Even thought I haven’t been working out lately, I am starting a new adventure as far as working out goes.  I am going to wait to write about the details, so please don’t ask me!  I want to get started  and see how it goes.  I will write about it, but I will be a little vague for a while.   However, I am excited about it and I’m hoping it gives me a boost.

Up #3:  25 Days of Christmas on ABC Family.  What else needs to be said?!

I will try harder to keep blogging more regularly.  I really appreciate all of you who write to me wondering when I’m going to write!  I’m so glad that some of you are taking some good out of my blogs and that you enjoy it as much as I enjoy writing.

So until next time, I wish you all well!