ahhhhhhhhh! where has the time gone? i have not blogged in forever and i am so mad at myself. things have been crazy around here though... Bradyn's been out of his preschool all summer and Elizabeth is not the teeny tiny baby that sleeps all day anymore. hence, i've not had much time to sit and write, some days i'm lucky to just get my runs done, much less blog about it.

overall, things have been going good. i ran (and LOVED) my first 5K on july 4th. My time was 25:44 (i think) and i averaged an 8:14 minute mile. not too bad. i just wanted to make it in under 30 minutes. competing was exhilerating! i wasn't competing to win, obviously, but once i got out there, i discovered i may be a little more competitive than i thought i was! it was tons of fun and i am already looking forward to my next 5K. i am going to do one in brownwood in september with my mom; it'll be her first one!

i'm in the midst of a 10K training plan, and it's not going so well. I do great on the runs, it's just every other day... i'm supposed to be doing at 2 days of cross training (for 40, 50, 60 minutes) and i never make it to the gym to do that. i do workouts on the tv here and there, but essentially, i am MAJORLY slacking. i'm hard-pressed to get to the gym with a husband that works over 40 hours a week, a baby that refuses to take a bottle, a 3 (almost 4) year old, all the household responsibilities, cooking dinner, etc. I don't go during the day because: Elizabeth is kinda finnicky (sp?) as to who is holding/watching her (she's a big time momma's girl) and i am scared to take her to the gym. it's hardly worth it if i'm going to get called out to come get her from the kids room 1/2 through my workout. she's too big to just sit in her carseat the whole time, but too little to sit completely unassisted. that means she'd be scooting on her belly on the floor (YUCK!), or the kid's room attendant would have to hold her the whole time. i don't want to have to worry about her choking on a toy that some kid has left on the floor. also, i'm hesitant to take bradyn anywhere for fear of him throwing a big time tantrum when it's time to leave. and alas, i'm still a swine flu freak. ;-) so, i my gym time has to be carefully orchestrated, otherwise, i don't get to go... which is most of the time.

in other news, i'm scheduled for a 5 mile run tomorrow. i hope it goes ok. we went on vacation last week and i, regrettably (sp), vacationed from my running also. i was sore getting back into it, but i'm going to be ok. i FINALLY got some songs on my ipod that my brother gave me for christmas, and i LOOOOOOOOOVE IT! there's no way i could do my longer runs without it! thank you zach!

Let's see.... my last 2 runs... Keith travelled last Tuesday thru Thursday, so Thursday after he returned home, I went to the gym to do my miles. Ah, the gym... a place I've only seen 2X in the last 6 months. :-p I was kinda sorta shooting for 3.5 miles, but gave in (due to extreme displeasure of being forced to run on the wretched treadmill), and did 3 miles in 30 minutes. Saturday morning I got up at 7am, fed the baby and went for my run outside at about 7:45. It was already scorching hot by the time I finished! I ran 35 minutes, not sure of the exact distance, as I didn't run around the "track" (2 undeveloped blocks in our neighborhood that is exactly 1/2 mile around). Assuming I was at my tried and true 10 min. mile pace, I know I ran at least 3.5 miles if not more. Tomorrow I begin my 10K training program and on July 4th, I will run my first 5K!

Hip hip hooray! I'm officially finished with the couch to 5K program and I am happy to announce that I can now run 3 miles, just 2 short months after I began running again! My last day of the program was this past Saturday. I have had a hard time keeping up with my blog lately. I've been trying to stay off the computer because I feel as if I've been unintentionally spending too much time online. I get on for a very specific reason (to look up a recipe or communicate with a specific friend or family member) and then I wind up getting side-tracked. Anyways, I'll try to pick up where I left off last. We went to West Texas the weekend of the 13th to visit family and I ran on the treadmill at the hotel we stayed at. It was not a good time; I was cramped in a hot, tiny workout room with a low ceiling and a light about 8 inches from my head. I did 2.75 miles and it seemed to take FOREVER! It made me realize how much I have been enjoying running outside. Despite all that, I was happy to have a place to run. More than that though, I was happy I actually got up and did it. It is so easy to "forget" about working out when you're on vacation or out of town. Each of my workouts is crucial though; I am learning to seize the moment and just get it done and over with, especially with 2 kids.... you never know what the day will hold! Keith and I ran together on Monday evening and Wednesday evening. It was nice to have a running partner, even though I don't especially like running at night. Monday was pretty special for me-- I hit my goal--3 miles! So was Wednesday, as was my last run, on Saturday morning. I did a Jillian Michael's workout + an extra ab workout on Friday and was SOOOOO sore on Saturday I wasn't sure if I would be able to make it. But, it was my last day of c25K and it was going to take more than Jillian to keep me from finishing! Also, one reason I did the Jillian workout is because I have GOT to start cross training and strength training. Running every other day is getting the job done I suppose, but I know I need more. My baby weight is off. I weighed 113 the other day, which was my pre-prego weight. This postpartum body is carrying 113 so differently than before I had Lizzie! I'm in some major need of some muscle and I still have alot of belly flab to get rid of so I can see my beautiful abs again. :) Anyhow, running lately has been ok. The ankle problem is completely resolved, thanks to my new shoes. I've not yet had a problem with my shins hurting, and I contribute that to my awesome Mizunos as well. I still get side stiches though; which, unfortunately my shoes cannot fix. I've only had one really debilitating side stitch; the others, which have occured on all my runs (except tonight-more on that later!), I've been able to keep at bay through a variety of different techniques, mostly mind over matter, lol, because they hurt! :(

Anyways, so tonight started my "down" week, which isn't really down time at all, it's just a week that I don't have a set workout schedule. I ran 3.5 AMAZING miles tonight in 32:44. For some strange reason, I did not get a side stitch! It made all the difference in the quality of my run. I really enjoyed it tonight and am thoroughly convinced I could've gone another couple of miles if time would've allowed. Yes, that's how GREAT I felt. Next week, I start Hal Higdon's 10K training program. It's 8 weeks long, which means I'll be done with that on August 23rd. On August 24th, I start my official 1/2 Marathon training. It is 12 weeks long, and the last day of training is actually the race!!!

Keith and I are going to do this on July 4th, and I would really like to do this in August after my training for the 10K is complete.

Well, I think that's about all for now. oh yeah... One thing I am not proud of tonight: I topped my wonderful, awesome run off with leftover chicken fried steak, a biscuit, and a small sliver of pecan pie and a scoop of ice cream. Why, oh WHY THE HELL do I do things like that? YUCK! I made chicken fried steak and the whole 9 yards for Father's Day yesterday. I've been doing decent lately. Honestly, I still pretty much eat what I want to, but I try to fill up on veggies, fruits, healthy carbs, yogurt, cottage cheese, lean meats, etc so I stay away from the junk. I love summertime--the produce section of the grocery store is so beautiful and bountiful. Soooooooooooo delicious!

hooray. was up at 5:52am this morning, nursed the baby, was out to run by 6:30. i had a decent run today. 2.75 miles in 28 minutes. had a slight side-stitch, but it wasn't horrible like the other day. that's all for today. :)

ugh, i've been slacking with my blog... i guess i'll try to pick up where i left off. so, i ran last weekend, and my training was supposed to be 2 1/4 miles or 25 minutes. my pace is almost a dead-set 10 min. mile, so technically, 2 1/2 miles for me would have been 22 1/2 minutes. i made a deal with myself... if i reached 2 1/2 miles before 25 minutes, and i wasn't just DYING, i would run till 25. phew. i did it! i wasn't exactly dying, but i was probably pretty close. i kept looking at the stopwatch and was really ready to stop at about 23 minutes, but i forced the last 2 minutes out somehow. it felt great.

keith had to be in tennessee last week, and week 7 of the couch to 5K was "run 2.5 miles, or 25 minutes" EVERYDAY. (or technically every other day which is how often i'm running). so, i knew in order for this to happen, i would need to be strong and get out there early. it's really heating up during the day. if i don't get out early, i have to wait until late in the evening. that's exactly what happened on monday (6/1); lizzie had her 4 mo. checkup appt. at 11 so i drank my coffee and we got ready for that instead of doing an early morning run. :) we went about 7:45 that evening and i did 2.5 miles in 25:30, stroller and all! i was pretty proud of myself. i felt good that day though.... no aches and pains, no side stitch, etc. i got into my pace pretty good that day and didn't feel that compulsive urge to check the stopwatch every minute. wednesday was a different story though... we went early in the morning, which was nice. it was really tough running with the stroller and the kids 2 times in a row for that distance. i did get a slight side-stitch that day, but was able to keep it together. i finished my 2.5 miles in 26 minutes. i ate a salad later that day from Target and wound up getting an upset stomach on Thursday. it wasn't full blown food poisoning, thank goodness, but it sure made me feel terrible. i skipped running on friday, because i could tell i was weak from not eating and/or drinking much on thursday when i was sick. i did my last run of the week yesterday and UUGGGGGGGGHHHHHH. IT WAS HARD. i didn't have to take the kids because keith was home, and i sort of in my head thought it was be a good time and day to speed run, trying to improve my overall pace. i finished my 2.5 miles in 23 minutes. decent time, but i sure paid for it! i got the worst side stitch i've had since starting running again. the kind you get and it's so deep and painful it stays that way AFTER the run is over. the kind where when you take a deep breath it feels like a knife slicing your side. it feels a little better today, but like it could come back tomorrow when i run. i'm going to try to get up early and go before keith leaves for work so i don't have to take the kids and stroller. i enjoy going with them, and i'm sure pushing that stroller is making me stronger, but it's alot of work! this last week of training has been the hardest week of the whole c25K program. only 2 more weeks to go. i need to find a good training schedule for when this is over. i'm not entirely sure what i'm going to do after this.

Well, I have to give myself kudos for getting off my butt, abandoning my cup of coffee, and getting my run done early this morning. I ran at 1pm the other day and almost DIED it was so hot! I kind of got discouraged because I really DON'T know when I'm going to run this summer. I've been going about noon or 1pm with the kids because the sun is high in the sky and the sun canopies cover the kids completely, but now that it's getting 90+ outside, I can't do it anymore! I'd LOOOOOOVE to wake up early every morning and go, but have been hesitant because of my boobs. Running with full nursing boobs in the morning when the baby hasn't eaten all night is painful. But, running in the evening isn't really an option either, especially when I get to running long runs... I can't just leave Keith with the kids for an hour and a half while I go off to do 10 miles. But then again, if I take them with me at night, I don't want mosquitos getting them either, and I don't want Lizzie falling asleep for that long that close to bedtime. Plus, there's dinner, bathtime, the whole night routine that we have... I don't know exactly what I'm going to do yet.

And actually, Lizzie did wake up last night to eat, so only 1 boob was really full, but not overly full and painful. I rolled out of bed this morning at 7:14, poured a cup of coffee, and sat down at the table. Keith was reading the paper and I asked him how hot it was supposed to be today... 90. ughhhhhhhh. I thought if I were smart, I'd get ready and go run before he went to work. So I did. It was nice. Nice to run without the stroller, without anyone talking to me, without the wind blowing, without it being 90 degrees out. It was nice to have 45 minutes of peace and quiet (yesterday was one HECK of a day with Bradyn--I went to bed crying and woke up crying because... just because...moms do that sometime, I suppose). I just needed to get out of the house. Without children. So, if my boobs can handle that in the mornings, today was refreshing enough to motivate me to do that more often. About the stroller-- don't get me wrong, I LOVE the stroller, but it doesn't have wind/air vents.. when the wind blows, as it has so many days the last few months, the sun canopies catch the wind and make it so hard to push! It's great resistance, but phew, geez! Oh, and also, Bradyn tries to talk to me the whole time. I can't hear him under the canopy, in the wind, when I'm running and trying to breathe, and when I DO hear him, and give him an answer, he can't hear me. He's like, "What'd you just say Mom?!" Grrrrr! "Nothing Bradyn. Nevermind." "What'd you just say Mom?" (Me, gasping for air...) "I. said. never....mind. Bradyn. I'm trying. to........ BREATHE!!!!" Today I ran 1 mile, walked 3 minutes, ran another mile. I felt kind of crotchedy when I began, but started and finished feeling good, besides a side-stitch. Poo.

Yes!!! I did it!

I RAN 2 MILES TODAY!!!! Yay! I am so proud of myself. I did go without the kids and the stroller today because I knew it was going to be tough, but actually, it wasn't. Ok, it wasn't exactly easy... on the last 1/2 mile I had to be mindful to keep my form from getting sloppy to keep my breathing rhythmic, not sporadic. I made 2 miles in 19:30 and then continued to run an extra 30 seconds to get the full 20 minutes in. I am pretty sore from my workout yesterday; I did a Slim-in-6 workout and my hamstrings are tender today. Running didn't hurt, but stretching and doing my foam roller afterwards did. I am so freakin' proud of myself! Gosh, this is what I love about running... the feeling after you're done is so much more rewarding and satisfying than, say, stepping off the stairmaster or another peice of gym equipment. So, 4 more weeks of couch to 5K and I'll have my "base" and be in good enough shape to do some REAL 1/2 marathon training!

Thank you Tyly for finding this recipe! yum yum yum yum! It's a great base recipe. Honey and peanut butter are glue enough to hold ANYTHING together, so the possibilities with this recipe are endless. I had everything but brown rice cereal, so I emprovised and used 1 1/2 cups Kix cereal instead and 1 cup oats. I used 1/2 cup peanut butter and 1/2 cup almond butter. I threw in some whole flax seeds and wheat germ. SOOOO delicious, healthy, and chocked full of vitamins, fiber, and healthy carbs. yum-o!