Thursday test run....and breathing FUN!

Thursday-I woke up tired, sore and kinda ready to test drive my new skort!
I slept like crap Wednesday night. I was up at midnight sneezing! I think I might have a cold, because my allergy medication did no good!
I put on my skort and Garmin and headed out the door en route to the park. I decided not to even look at my Garmin. I hit the 1 mile mark and my Garmin chimed. I topped running to have a look at my mile split. 7:52. What, the what?!??! I had no vocal cord issue whatsoever. I am beginning to wonder if the reason for my anxiety/vocal cord issue is because I am trying soooo hard NOT TO CARE about my pace. Hmmmm. I was smiling so big and started to cry laugh that I almost started to hyperventilate--seriously. I was (and still am) over-joyed! I turned around and ran back (not looking at my Garmin) and ran my second mile in 7:53. Dang. No issues again. I was so happy that I went and grabbed the dog and we went for a half mile run/walk/chase/sniff.
I just need to have a plan for tomorrow. My big 10k day. I would love to run well. I wold love to not have to use my breathing techniques. I would love to NOT look at my Garmin for 6.1 miles. Is that realistic for me?? I am not sure. Only tomorrow will tell.
I plan on wearing my running skort while I race too. I will give a full report/review upon my return!
This weekend's race will be tons of fun. A lot of RunGr. Club members are either doing the full marathon, half or the 10k. There are several going for a Boston Qualifying time. I can't wait to cheer them on!!

River Bank Run 25k Race Report!

It's about time! It was a long weekend!

It was a FUN weekend too!

First I want to say how proud I am of my little girl!! She ran her first 5k on Saturday in 49 minutes! The first 2 miles-- 20 minutes!!!! She hit the wall after that! She did so much better than I could have guessed-- gutsy little thing she is!! She can't wait to do it again--as long as the weather is warm and she can wear her running outfit without a big coat covering it up!

It was a cold start to the race. The gun went off at 8:20 AM. I went into it with a great attitude. Very little anxiety over my breathing issues, but I knew I had to keep this race more low-key and treat it as a training run. I did just that.

It rained very little, but it would not be the River bank run without rain--it rains every year without fail!

The wind-well that's another story!! The wind gusts were not as bad as predicted, but it had it's moments. I ran with 2 fellow group exercise instructors for just about the whole race. (My girl Mary was out to get a PR--and she did!! Woohooo!! It was awesome.)

We averaged 8:41 ish a mile for the entire race. It felt really good. Did I mention how much fun I had!??! Cuz I really did. That was my main goal for once and I succeeded!!!

Here is my Garmin race info if you want to look: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/32747113

The pics are of my girl and hubby.... my friends and I afterwards and the post race BEER!!

First race of the season--kinda sorta....

Today was the Frostbite Marathon Team Relay! Lots of fun. COLD.COLD.COLD!!

I was the first leg of 5 people. I went out strong and finished not so strong! It's cool though. It was not a timed event. I don't even know what my time was. I think the number one reason I fizzled out fast was lack of fuel. I ate breakfast at 5:20 AM and the race was at 8. I ran out of carbs etc. I took a swig of a sports drink a few seconds before the race estarted, but obviously I needed more. Such a dumb mistake. I know my body and I know that I needed something else in me to fuel the tank! I ran over 5 miles. That's all I know for sure. I think I did the 5+ miles in about 42 minutes or so?!?? I have no idea and don't really care! It was meant to be a FUN event and FUN it was. The name of my team was-
What? Are you kidding me?

I thought that was funny. Many of the other teams came dressed up and with fancy batons to pass. There was a penis (yep, they actually got the cops called them by an upset citizen that saw it as they ran through town.) a rubber chicken, a miniature piano leg, and other fun stuff! We had a G.I. Joe doll and a Baribe doll kind of stuck together. Not sure what that meant, but it got a few laughs!

Since my portion of the race was at 8AM it was still rather chilly with a windchill of course. And naturally we were close to a lake so that made things a big more cold and windy! My face was so cold that when I tried to drink the warm( thank God) Gatorade it literally dribbled down my chin because I could not feel my lips. Yup. Super cute.

My team was very fun and we got to know each other a lot better since we were stuck in a mini van for the duration of the race. Things got quite silly up in there!

After the race we went to the pub that sponsored it and had our free chili and beer and treats. It was quite a gathering. Even though this was a FUN race and sooo not competitive, it really got me thinking I am ready to pick up my game this year. I think I am ready to do it. I just wish it was a tad lot warmer out already!!

Can't wait til next year!

Wordless Wednesday (sort of)

Race pictures from 2009! Feeling the motivation for an AWESOME 2010 season!!!

Monday Madness

Today was Race Day in Spin class. I think I should do one at the end of the month from now on...maybe. It went over really well too. It was a packed class with people waiting to get in...it's that time of year! All the folks are coming in from the cold and into the classes now. Fine by me...these people motivate me to put on a good "show"
Totally Toned was in the afternoon. It went well too. I had a great idea of heading back tothe gym to do lower body. Well I got to the gym and sat down on the comfy couches and just sat. For about an hour. Not working out. HA!!
It was fine though. For one I was sore from Sunday. Not only my upper body, but I remembered I added the plyometrics to the end. Duh. Oh, and I just did a race day in Spin class in the morning. Not sure what I was thinking, but I had to stay. I had just dropped the kids off to play in the kid area and could not show up 15 minutes later to take them home. No way. It was nice to put my feet up, head phones in and cell phone in hand to text away and people watch. And oh the people that passed by........ that's a whole other blog entry!

Wordless Wednesday

Day at the Races--A pictorial.

Today my family was able to race! Amara did a 220 meter fun run. Matt's uncle ran the 5k. Matt ran his fastest ever 5k to date and I completed my 3rd 10k. Not a PR today, but I can only say i did not run fast enough! I felt great. The weather was perfect. No excuses. I ran and finished a great race! Here are some snapshots of our fun filled day!