Color Me Crazy 5K

This past weekend was the Color Me Crazy fun run and 5K in Ardmore. What a blast! My Aunt put a whole team together ("Run or Dye Trying", cool team name, right!?). I usually train for 5Ks but I didn't this time; I knew I would be pushing J in the stroller and wouldn't be able to go all out anyway.

We woke up Saturday morning half an hour late. I have no legitimate excuses--I just wanted to sleep. J apparently wasn't ready to wake up either and he was a cranky baby! We drove about an hour and arrived in plenty of time. In fact we ended up sitting in the car for half an hour so avoid standing in the cold! Jordan didn't want to keep his hood on over his ears (I had to pull it back up about 500 times) and I made him wear my gloves (which he also took off repeatedly).

In our race packets we found our white t-shirts (which were very colorful by the end!), sunglasses (to protect our eyes from the colored powder I assumed), some color pouches, bibs, etc. We started off in the very back. Literally, the VERY BACK of the pack. I ran most of the way with my sister who was pushing her son in the stroller also (although he's older than J and a lot heavier and harder to push!) and neither one of our kids really liked getting covered in the color! I poured some of our color into J's cup holder. He put his hand in it (covering my nice white gloves) and then tried to wipe it off--he didn't play in it anymore after that! He's a clean freak like his dad, I guess.

This is the first 5K I've done that I actually took the time to enjoy. Usually I cram my earphones in my head and ignore everyone around me. This time I just kinda strolled and laughed and talked and didn't listen to my iPod at all. With about a mile to go I kicked it up a notch and actually ran the rest of the way at a good pace, not because I really wanted to but because I knew it was about to start raining. It started coming down pretty good during the last quarter mile but we missed the worst of it. By that point Jordan was sick of being in his stroller and wanted to get out and play. I coaxed him into playing with the color a little more (he liked smearing it all over Mommy) and then we went to the car. We missed the big color cloud finale everyone did at the end but we watched from the sidelines (out of the rain!).

MY FIRST 5K: I SALUTE YOU

I ran to my car (pushing a screaming J) only to realize that I should have gotten my keys out before facing the rain. I couldn't find my keys. I stood in the parking lot (poor J was crying for me to hold him and his little hands and cheeks were so cold) tearing apart J's diaper bag. I was sure I had locked them in my car! Alas, I found my lonesome little car key in the stroller and got Jordan inside with the heater on. And then he cried because he was thirsty and of course all I had was a 32 ounce Dr Pepper I hadn't touched from the day before. So I let him have it. A 2 year with 32 ounces of fluids protected only by Styrofoam and a plastic lid. It took me about 10 minutes to get everything back into the car. When I put J in his carseat he was NOT happy--he wanted my DP and I wanted him to stop crying so I gave it to him. 5 minutes later he pours the entire thing on himself. He was drenched. The carseat was drenched. I changed his clothes, we stopped and ate, and then he slept the entire way home.

Jordan happy with his DP (before the big spill...)

So colorful!! 

Sisters! I didn't get a pic with my other sister :(

My hands afterwards (and I was wearing gloves!) I had to scrub my poor ring clean.
Notice how white my fingers are?? They were cold!

All our colorful gear :)

Jordan's little shoes 

He couldn't go without his bear, duh. Bear had fun, too. 

My white glove Jordan was wearing. The other glove is AWOL.

My pretty shirt :) 

Mr. Sleepy Man before we even left the parking lot to go home.
 (Notice the towel under him...)

When we got home he didn't want to do anything
but lay on the couch and watch Barney!

Week Four of P90X

I officially challenged myself to doing 12 weeks of my own P90X version almost four full weeks ago. How's it going?

I've done well! The first week hurt, as did the second, but by the third week I could feel myself getting stronger. I started adding more reps to every set and even commented to my husband that I need some heavier weights now. Go me! I'm still not able to do all of the Ab Ripper workout. The goals it to do 25 repetitions of each move. My first week... I could only do 12-15. Now I'm doing at least 21 on them all!

The cardio days have consisted of 2-4 miles each time depending on how much time I had before it got dark (or how badly it hurt to walk, ha!). Now seems like a good time to ask:

AM I THE ONLY PERSON IN THIS WORLD WHO LOVES SPRINGING FORWARD AN HOUR THIS TIME OF YEAR!?

Sure, we lose an hour of sleep one night, but we gain an hour of sunlight for many days to come! To me it's TOTALLY worth the trade-off. Now when I get home I'm not rushing around frantically trying to get out the door to go run before it gets dark! I don't have to worry about wearing my dorky flashing light on my shorts to signal people that, "Hey, there's a live human being on the road here, please don't hit me!" I love waking up in the morning and it still being pitch black outside--it makes me feel like I haven't missed the opportunity to get something done that day!

Anyway, back to week four...

So far I've noticed ZERO changes to how I look. I feel stronger, I run faster, I breath better... but I still see no definition to my abs (after considering how ruined my stomach was after pregnancy, I wonder, "Will I ever have abs again!!??). My legs aren't "smoothed out" like I'd like them to be, my calves are rather puny, and my arms still look like spaghetti noodles. BUT... I feel stronger and I'm pretty proud of myself anyway.

This week has been a sort of "rest week" for me. The first 3 weeks are one day weights, one day cardio, one day weights, one day cardio... but week four consists of no weight training, only cardio and lots of stretching.  Next week will be the beginning of new kinds of weight training--which means I should really look these moves up before it rolls around!

What's cool about P90X is that you can go online and print out the worksheets for free and then, if you know what the moves on the worksheets are, you can do them on your own without buying all of Tony Horton's DVDs. I think the DVDs are worth it if you're a beginner and need the guidance, but if you're an expert like me (HA!) all you really need is a worksheet and some good YouTube videos that show how the moves look. After you've done them a few times you remember what they are without having to look them up.

It makes me feel pretty awesome when my husband is working out and has to ask me what a "deep swimmer's press" or a "crouching Cohen curl" looks like! Mhmm, that's right. Pretty legit.

Bucket List

I've had this list in my head for quite some time, but I seem to keep adding to it and, without writing this stuff down, it's hopeless.

So, here is my fitness bucket list:

1. Run a 5k in under 24 minutes.

2. Complete a half marathon. Woohoo!! Route 66 Half Marathon, 2 hrs 16 minutes

3. Complete a half marathon in under 2 hours.

4. Complete a full marathon.

5. Run the Spartan Race. (more specifically: the Spartan Beast) Did it and lived! December 14th, 2013. 

6. Complete a fitness program. (Will P90X finally be the one???) I think I can cross this off since I've been going to the gym regularly for 6 months and have no intentions of quitting. Woohoo!

7. Rock a swimsuit without worrying about my body! My husband has already told me a hundred times, "You already look hot, what are you wanting to change??" But, just like any other girl out there, I have my own insecurities. Regardless of what anyone else thinks about me, I want to finally feel confident about my body!!!

8. Run a mile in under 6:56. To some that may not be very fast (to me it's flying, FYI), but it's my PR (from way back in HS!!) and I. Want. To. BEAT IT.

9. Stop counting (and stressing over) calories. I only count calories now when my pants start getting tight! lol But mostly I just try to eat better and I don't worry about the calories. Best feeling ever. 

10. Run a race with all my sisters.

11. Run a 10k in under an hour.

Whew, I think that's enough for now...