Three Things Thursday

1.  We have lots of stuff going on in the next week...

• 20 mile run on Sunday
• Halloween (John's favorite holiday!)
• A week off of work!
• John's birthday on Monday
• My first attempt at homemade raviolis for his birthday dinner
• A lovely massage on Tuesday
• And then 4 fabulous kid free days!!!  We leave for New Orleans bright and early Wednesday morning!!!

2.  We scheduled family pictures for the first week in December.  I am crazy, I will admit that!  We are planning the whole photo shoot around a sweater I found for J!  Isn't this perfect for a 4 year old to wear for family pictures?!?!  (He will turn 4 the day after we do them!!)

I joke around that my husband is a closet rocker.  His wardrobe consists mainly of rock t shirts and I think he secretly dreams of being in a band!  I am working on what the rest of us will wear.  J will most likely wear jeans with the sweater.  I might look for a pair of gray cargo pants that he will wear again.  This boy hates jeans!  I am going to put L in jeans and hopefully a shirt from the same line of clothes that coordinates with the sweater.  I (ok, my amazing aunt!) was able to pick up a coordinating scarf for the sweater so L will be sporting that!  Now I just need to figure out my rocker husband's outfit!  I think I will just wear jeans and a red sweater.  My sister thinks me in red will look silly!  I am open to suggestions!

3.  I cannot wait for the holidays this year!  J will be 4 and Logan 2 1/2 and will be so much fun!
         

Great giveaway

Here...

http://stacie615.blogspot.com/

I purchased a necklace and charm from Jessica at Jessica's Gifts for a friend and she loves it!  She is running Disney as her first marathon in January.  Jessica took this charm and custom did Mickey ears on the top charm.  I cannot wait to order one for my first marathon!!  Go check out this giveaway!

What marathon training has done to me...

John's favorite holiday is Halloween.  We have body parts all over our yard, a skeleton hanging from the trees, tombstones, etc...  He was taking pictures tonight and this is what happened!

What a great week!

Monday - 6.26 miles in the early AM
Tuesday - 7.4 in the evening after L went to bed
Wednesday - Core work
Thursday - 3.62 in the early AM.  I was shooting for 6 and I don't remember why it was cut short
Friday - 15 in the morning (John and I both home in the morning.  I was off and he worked late)
Saturday. - 7.82 miles at naptime

Total miles for the week - 40.1!!!

I am thrilled with this week after my low miles last week!!  I am shooting for 43-44 next week with a long run of 20 on Halloween.

The good and bad of being a running mama!

When I decided to train for a marathon I made a commitment for it not to interfere with family life too much.  I have two little boys and I work full time so my time with them is already limited.  I ran 15 miles this morning and I thought about how running has affected me as a mommy.  Here it goes...

1.  The majority of my runs are at 4:45 in the morning on my treadmill.
2.  I go to bed by 9 most nights because my alarm is set for 4:30 so I can get that run in before the boys wake up!
3.  I get extra snuggle time with J in the evenings because we both go to bed at the same time.  We have struggled with him for the past year with sleeping in his bed.  Because I am running in the morning, I have chosen to fight the battle of sleeping in his bed after my marathon. 
4.  Sometimes I have the pleasure of watching Wow Wow Wubbzy, Spongebob, or other various kid shows during my runs.
5.  When L is in the basement while I am running, he can't wait to get on the treadmill and run when I am done.  His running involved the treadmill at the slowest setting of .5 mph and holding my hand.  He is only 2 after all!
6.  The joy I have because I know I am setting a great example for my children.
7.  L asks me every morning when I get him out of his crib "Mommy, run?"  It brings a smile to my face every morning.
8.  The fun of moving planned runs in my week numerous times because the kids wake up early.
9.  The hope that one day J or L will ask to run with me!
10.  Running makes me a much much happier mommy!!

Back in the Game

After a low miles last week, I nailed my first two runs of this week!  I ran 6.26 Monday morning and 7.4 last night.  Can't wait to see what I have in me for the rest of my runs!

Fabulous muffins!

I stumbled across this recipe somewhere!

Healthy Pumpkin Banana Muffins

1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
1/3 cup old fashioned oats
1/4 cup wheat bran
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 ripe bananas mashed
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
3/4 cup and 2 Tbsp pumpkin puree
2 eggs
3/4 cup walnut pieces

Preheat oven to 350 and line a muffin tin with liners or grease

Mix flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices together in a large bowl.

In a medium bowl combine sugars, bananas, applesauce, pumpkin, and eggs.  Mix the wet and try ingredients until just combined.  Fold in walnuts

Fill muffin cups 3/4 full.  Bake for 20-25 minutes

This recipe yielded 21 muffins.

I think these are the best muffins I have made in awhile.  John asked me what I was making and he told me I lost him at the "healthy."  I read off the first three ingredients and he asked me if I was going to make him try one!!  L liked them.  I came down from putting L to bed and there was a whole the size of an almost 4 year old's finger in one of the muffins!  Needless to say, J was not a fan.

Time sure does fly!

How was I 235 days from the marathon on April 1st when I registered and I am only 34 days from it now.  Up until last week I kept saying "oh the marathon is still ___ weeks away."  And now all of a sudden it is "It is only 5 weeks away!!" 

Like I said in my previous post, last week was not a good running week.  I can now say I finished out the entire week with a bad running week.  I think my 13 mile long run over the weekend was only about 7 1/2 because of dear little L who did not want to sleep past 5am or nap this weekend!

I am still feeling pretty good about last week.  I am confident I am going into my 3 toughest weeks before taper pretty rested and strong. 

I ran a strong 6.26 this morning.  I still don't have the rest of the week figured out completely.  Because of last week, I think I am just going to set the alarm every morning for 4:30 and run what I can.  My plan is a total of 20 miles going into the weekend and then 18 on Sunday.  Saturday is a planned rest day.  The other rest day depends on the boys.  If I get four weekday runs in by Friday morning, I am sleeping in! 

I am still trying to figure out nutrition for the marathon.  The stops will have water and Gatorade and a few will have GU.  I am good with all three but I am not sure about how much and how often.  I don't feel as though I was properly fueled for my 17 miles last weekend.  My time to figure that out is running out!

Not a good running week for me

And I am surprisingly ok with it!  This is a stepback week for me on my plan and it was good timing.  The total weekly miles was supposed to be 32 which I thought was a little high for a stepback week considering my mileage for last week.  I was aiming for 28 for the week.  That is not going to happen!!  I will be lucky if I hit 22.  I took a rest day on Monday, ran 3.13 on Tuesday, and 5 1/2 on Wednesday.  My plan was to hit the treadmill last night after L went to bed and that was tossed out the window when John's friend came over.  They hit the basement for a movie so no treadmill run for me.  I rearranged and thought I would run this morning and do my 13 mile long run sometime over the weekend.  No run for me this morning.  J has other plans.  John is already at work and I don't mind leaving both boys sleeping upstairs for me to run in the basement but J was sobbing and did not want to be left alone.  He was sound asleep, I would make a move to get out of bed, and he would start crying again.  My kids will always come first!!

Not sure of our plans for the weekend yet.  I may still be able to get two runs in.  I should be able to get two in but I am not going to get my hopes up considering the way the week has been.  I will get my 13 miles in.  And who knows maybe I will tack on an extra mile or two if I can't get that second mile in.

This kind of week came at a good time.  I think my body was screaming for a bit of a rest anyway.  This week forced me to take it.  My Achilles has definitely been a little off so a good rest week might just have been necessary!

Three Things Thursday

1.  I have been on Weight Watchers for a little more than 6 weeks.  I have lost 11.2 pounds so far.  According to my scale at home, I am finally at my original pre-pregnancy weight.  It only took me almost 4 years!!

2.  I bought two new pairs of jeans today...size 12!  I cannot tell you the last time I wore that size.  On to size 10!

3.  Five weeks from Sunday is my big marathon!!!

A fabulous 17 mile run!!

After my sucky 16 mile run last week, my 17 mile run scheduled for today was all I could think about!  My anxiety level was crazy high this past week about the marathon in general.  I questioned why I was doing it, if I could do it, and if I should switch to the half marathon.  After my run today, I am good to go!  I know I can do this.

I knew I had to have a route planned out for the run this morning.  I mapped a few out over the past week and did not like any of them.  An hour before my run I figured out a great route.  There are a few ways I drive to my parent's house.  The first 6 miles of my run was one of the routes there, then I made a right, ran 2 miles, and then picked up another way back to my house.  The course I mapped out on Beginnertriathlete.com was 17.02 miles.  I figured it was a good route because I did not have to remember my turns or wing my run.  The plan worked well!

I was on the fence about what to wear today for the run.  I think it was about 55 degrees when I started out and I knew it would end up being about 65 when I finished.  I settled on my capris and a short sleeved shirt with arm warmers.  I was surprised and wore the arm warmers for the first 10 miles.  I wanted to make sure I liked them because I think I will wear them for the marathon.  I don't have a jacket or long sleeve shirt I would want to toss to the side and I hate running with a shirt tied around my waist.  As of right now, I have the outfit planned for the marathon. 
I started at a slower pace than I normally start my long runs.  I think this is going to be key for me and I plan on doing this for the rest of my long runs.  I had in mind what pace I wanted to run the marathon but I think I need to slow it down.  I am okay with that.  On my previous long runs I was doing run/walk intervals.  I had myself convinced I could not actually run the whole marathon.  I am still not sure I can but let me tell you, I ran that whole 17 miles!!  I did walk a few steps for one of my gatorade drinks though.  For some reason, I can't get a good flow out of my bottle.  I was ok for most of the run but that one time I felt like I needed a good drink.  I walked a few feet, untwisted the lid, drank right from the bottle, and started running again.

I don't run with headphones on so I am very aware of what is going on around me.  I was right under 7 miles and I noticed a car pull off to the opposite side of the road from me.  I looked back over my shoulder, saw the driver wave, and I quickly waved back.  I kept running though but then I heard the woman get out of the car and yell to me.  I hesitated but looked back again.  I think the woman could see my hesitation and she yelled "I know you from the Y."  I knew right away who she was and I stopped.  She is a woman I used to see frequently when I worked out at the Y.  I still have the membership but use it more for the pool now that I am marathon training.  We chatted for a few minutes and I learned that she has run the Philly marathon 4 times and this year she wanted to do something different.  She is leaving for Beijing later this month and running a marathon there.  Pretty incredible!  She wrote down my email address and phone number.  Looks like I might have an occasional running buddy.  She runs a little faster than me but told me she has no problem running my pace for some runs.  She offered me water or a bathroom stop (she lives where she pulled over) but I declined and was back on my way! 

I did have to stop at a Dunkin Donuts around mile 11 to get some more Gatorade.  The hardest part of the run was when I was back in town.  At mile 15 I was going straight at a light but it was so tempting to turn right and run the half mile to my house.  I kept going! 

I am happy to say my anxiety level regarding my marathon in SIX weeks had decreased!!  I don't have a time goal in my mind anymore.  My new goal is to say I RAN my first marathon instead of completing my first.

Total miles...17.04
Time...3 hours 25 minutes and 51 seconds
Pace...12 minutes and 5 seconds

Long run nerves

I am doing 17 miles this morning.  I will be heading out anytime soon.  I am just waiting for my aunt and uncle to get here to stay with the boys.  I love them!!!  I think I may vomit.  The thought of 17 miles is making my stomach sick.  Aunt and uncle just got here.  Well, here I go!!

Three Things Thursday

1.  I am so glad the week is almost over.  It has not been a bad week, just a busy annoying week!

2.  I am so proud of J.  He tested for his orange belt Wednesday night.  He is going to be so disappointed in two belts when he is no longer orange.  How do you explain to an almost 4 year old that he can't stay with his favorite color forever!

3.  My anxiety level has been crazy high this week.  I am hoping I feel better after my 17 mile run this weekend.  I need a good comeback after that 16!

What a Weekend!

The weekend was great but such a whirlwind!  We left our house at 8:15 Friday morning and drove the 20 minutes to the inlaws.  We left their house at 9 and arrived at the hotel the burbs of Boston at 3:45.  My boys did fabulous on the car ride.  I am still in shock.  It rained the entire drive up so it made for an interesting day.  Oh and I did all of the driving.  We checked in at the hotel and went right to John's aunt and uncle's house.  All of the cousins and their families were there so it was a great night.

John and I did not get much sleep Friday night because L partied like a rockstar until close to midnight at the hotel.  Our room had 2 queen beds so John had J in bed and I had L.  L was all over the bed and I constantly checked to make sure he was not going to fall off the bed.  J, on the other hand, did fall off the bed in the middle of the night. 

We were off to Boston early Saturday morning for the first annual Boston Brain Tumor Walk.  It was great to be able to participate and support our family!  The walk was followed by more family time.  We were on our way home Sunday.

This weekend could not have come at a better time for me.  One of the cousin's husbands is a marathon runner.  Being able to talk in person with someone after my sucky 16 miler really helped.  Paul gave me tons of tips and things to think about.  I am looking forward to my 17 on Sunday!