New Books

I currently work in a library, which means I have access to a ton of awesome books. When we get new stuff in, I'm the first person to see it. Which can be good or bad. Good: I get to sift through and read all the good stuff before someone else gets their fingers on it. Bad: I could literally get nothing done all day because I'm too busy checking out all the goods.

Today was an especially good haul for me. 

I am so excited about this book! I didn't spend too much time looking at it, but I did spend way too much time on this one: 

Get it here. 

In other news, I'm in the process of doing physical therapy for my shoulder. I've never done physical therapy and, I can't lie, I thought it would be a waste of time. I mean... time heals all things, right? And then I realized it had been 4 weeks since I injured my deltoid and yet I was still having a hard time putting on my deodorant. That can be a BIG problem during the summer, especially in Oklahoma where you can fry an egg on the sidewalk. 

So I went along with my doctor and have been doing the PT stuff for about a week, and I think it's helping. Today they put an Ionto Patch (or something like that?) on it. Idk, supposed to help. She explained it to me but... well I forgot everything, okay?

Looks cool, right?

I still can't throw a softball, but I'm able to run just fine. The clock is ticking... only 24ish more weeks until the BIG RACE!

Half Marathon Plan for Beginners

It's time to start training again! My sister convinced to start training for my half sooner this year than I did last year. I'll have to start incorporating some weights into my workouts once I get the all-clear from the doctor for my shoulder.

This is the exact schedule I used last year and, considering I ran all 13.1 miles and didn't die (not even once), then it must be a winner! It was adapted from Runner's World.

Some friendly advice: 

• Eat more, but not way more. It's really really easy to eat toooooo much when you're training for longer distances. It's easy to think you can just eat whatever you want since you're burning off so many calories, but be smart! I use MyFitnessPal to help me keep track of calories so that I don't go overboard. 
• Drink plenty of water. Try to skip the sugary drinks (ohhhhhh the Dr Pepper fairies are so mean to me...)
• If you're hurting, take the day off. It's better to miss one or two days of running in order to let your body heal rather than missing several weeks worth because you end up with an injury. 
• Don't try and do more that what's on the schedule. The first couple weeks are hard to get through, but, once your body starts getting stronger, you might think 4 miles isn't enough. Trust me, it's enough! Increasing mileage too fast can set you up for injury.
• Don't let your half marathon be the FIRST race you've ever done! Before you even start training for a half, sign up for a couple of 5ks. You'll run a whole lot faster during a race than you do on your own without meaning to. Run a few races and get a feel for what your "race pace" feels like. 
• Work yourself up to doing 15-20 miles a week. Again, this will help prevent injury. This is about how many miles a week you'll start out doing with this program, so get your body ready for that kind of mileage. 
• When you think you're ready to start training, do a 5 mile test run and see how it feels. **You should be able to do at least 5 miles without much distress before starting this program (according to Runner's World).**

AI: Aerobic Intervals - "You push the pace. But just a little." Basically this means just increasing your speed by enough to make you feel like you're working a little harder, but it's NOT  a sprint! You'll kill yourself if you try to run this part too fast, and nobody wants that.

GP: Gentle Pickups - "At the end of your run, walk for several minutes, then slowly increase your leg turnover on a flat stretch for 100 meters (the straightaway on a track) up to the point where you start to breath hard. Hold it there for 10 to 20 meters, then gradually slow down." I consider this a sprint, but remember that you don't want to do too much too fast because that leads to injury. Walk to full recovery before you start each one. 

7 Running Tips for Beginners

Yesterday's 5 mile run prompted this post... I was running and running and got to thinking about all the mistakes I've made and things I've learned over the past few years as a runner. They seem like common sense now, but I was apparently not so smrt (see what I did there?) back in my beginner days.

So here is some advice from a runner who's made every mistake in the book.

1. Never run an unfamiliar course without driving it first. I'm so bad about doing this. I have GPS on my phone, so why not run an unfamiliar road? I like a little adventure, seeing new sights, etc. so what's the big deal? A) Hills. It's really really good to know how hilly the course is before you try it out. Yeah, you'll survive even if you're unaware, but it's just better to have the heads up. Trust me. B) DOGS. In my neighborhood there are dogs everywhere! Most of them are chained up or in a pen, but you can't rely on this! Drive your course before you run it and look for dogs or any signs of them. And, to be extra safe, run with some pepper spray (just in case!).

2. Run on the left side of the road. I am so grateful that someone once upon a time gave me this advice! It seemed dumb at the time. Why would I run on the left side of the road when you're supposed to drive on the right side? Is that even legal!? Where I run there are no sidewalks and no shoulders, only a road and a ditch. If you're running on the left side of the road you're able to see the cars coming towards you. If you're on the right side... you're blind to the traffic coming up directly behind you. People don't always pay attention. They're texting, talking on the phone, looking at their Garmin, or (if they're anything like me) they're distracted by the two year old throwing cheerios at them from the backseat. If you can see those drivers coming, you can jump into a ditch if you need. If you don't see them, and they don't see you... Ouch.

3. Always warm-up before you run. Again, I'm so bad about this. I'd rather just take off and get it all over with,  but that's bad. That's the kind of thing that leads to injury. A good warm up will get your blood flowing and your heart pumping, and that leads to better performance overall. A good warm-up depends on how far you're running or even how much you'll be pushing yourself. For me, I usually go anywhere from 2-6 miles and I don't push myself much, so a decent warm-up is usually an easy 5-10 minute jog and some minor stretching. Read more about warm-ups here.

4. Drink plenty of water. You know it, I know it, everybody knows it: water is GOOD for you. Personally, I'd rather fill my body with coffee and Dr Pepper, but those things kinda suck for a runner. I can always tell on days that I haven't had enough water: my muscles are weak and I get tired very early in my run. Muscle fatigue, my friends, is no bueno. You should be drinking water consistently all day long. If you're thirsty, you're already dehydrated. More on the benefits of drinking agua here.

5. Never run in your [pretty] new running shoes without breaking them in first. Have I ever done this? You guessed it: Yes I have. I bought these gorgeous Under Armour shoes and was SO excited when they arrived in the mail. Aside from the mistake of buying running shoes without trying them on first, I decided to run in them that same day. The sad thing is I knew I wasn't supposed to do it. Six miles later I had a quarter sized blister ON MY ARCH. Not to mention the fact that they were the most uncomfortable pair I'd ever put on, much less ran in. When you buy new shoes it's important to wear them and let them conform to your feet. Sometimes they will inevitably cause blisters, but I've learned that, after I've worn them several times and gotten used to the way they fit, the blisters go away and never come back.

6. Always do some kind of cool down after you're finished. This is one thing I definitely can't skip. A warm-up help your body to go from a resting state to an active one, and a cool-down does just the opposite. It's not good to just stop all at once without giving your body time to go back into chill mode. When you've finished your run, try to jog or walk for a while, 5-10 minutes. Let your breathing become more even and your heart rate go back to normal. I can usually tell when my body is cooled down because the flow of sweat begins to subside! Now is also a good time to stretch. If I don't do these things, I get muscle cramps like nobody's business.

7. Practice breathing correctly. Did you know there's a wrong way to breath? Crazy! Most people breath with only the top half of their lungs. When you breath you shouldn't just see it (or feel it) in your chest--it should go all the way down into your stomach. This is actually hard work, I tell ya. I have to practice breathing on a regular basis so that I don't have to think about it as much during a run. Try it for a sec: Take a deep breath and expand your lungs all the way down into your belly button. Your stomach should expand. I've learned that breathing correctly not only fights fatigue, but it also helps with side stitches. I used to get them so bad that I would have to stop running altogether. But now that I breath correctly I can literally get rid of a side stitch as soon as I feel one coming on because it utilizes the diaphragm. More info on this here.

I'm no expert, and I would never pretend to know everything there is to know about running (although my husband would probably disagree with that statement), but these are just a few things I would recommend ANY runner to at least consider and even do some research on.

Happy Running!

What's an "Altoid?"

Last Monday night, playing softball, I hurt my shoulder.

We were tied. We were already playing extra innings. I was on third base. I ran home, got in a rundown, and, before I even attempted sliding into home plate, I knew I was going to be out. But I slid anyway. It wasn't much of a "slide" actually. It was more like reaching my arm out as far as it would go and belly flopping on the plate. I banged by whole face in the dirt. I wish it had been cooler, or I'd at least been safe, but no, it was embarrassing and I was OUT. And of course, my shoulder was on fire. We played two more innings (I think?) and I couldn't move my arm. I bawled like a baby all the way home and went to Urgent Care the next day.

Deltoid. 

Long story short, I found out a week after the incident that I'd strained by deltoid muscle, NOT to be confused with an altoid muscle which is what I thought the doctor was calling it.

Altoid. 

"So how much longer until my altoid is back to normal?" I asked.

He kind of looked at me with this confused expression, one eyebrow cocked higher than the other, and said, "It's called a 'deltoid' muscle. You'll need to take several weeks off from softball, and no weight lifting on that arm, but after a few weeks you can start using it more. For now you need to just take it easy."

How embarrassing.

He did, however, say I could continue running. I am SO glad, especially since one of my sisters agreed to SIGN UP FOR THE SPARTAN BEAST WITH ME!!! We're both already mortified at the idea of it but it's too late, we have already signed our lives away. AND... coincidentally, I was supposed to go to my OWN graduation that day. Yep, this girl will miss it so she can be a Spartan. Run a 10-12 mile obstacle course instead of wearing a boring cap and gown?? Totally worth it.

Spartan Beast

Fortunately we have plenty of time to train. I plan on doing the Route 66 Half Marathon again in November, and then we'll do the Spartan Race in December.

And then... I WILL do a FULL marathon in April! I will be able to finally cross a few more things off my fitness bucket list at last!

For now I'm just doing short runs, 3 or so miles, a few days a week, and will have to start doing some crossfit type stuff soon. Oh, and I should probably stop eating cake and donuts and Dr Pepper all the time.

Stay tuned!

Warrior Wedding

Once upon a time....

My sister got MARRIED!

She had the most unique and FUN wedding I've ever been to. Don't get me wrong, traditional weddings are great. But don't you ever dread going? You wonder how long it will last and how long your kids will sit still before causing a scene... My two year old doesn't usually last more than 5 seconds and then it's an embarrassing dash for the door.

This wedding, however, was awesome. Meet Tonya and David, my sister and her (now!) husband.

They decided to get married at the finish line of the Warrior Dash! The bride and groom, including everyone in the wedding party (sisters, husbands, dad...) all signed up for the Dash so we could run together and then cheer them on as they said their muddy vows! 

Two days before the wedding my sister got really sick. She went to the doctor and found out she had a sinus infection. She rested and medicated and rested... but even with all that, she wasn't able to run the race with the rest of us. She did, however, meet David at the finish line (where she received a BIG muddy hug and kiss!) and there, in an open field right next to the mud pit, they said "I do" and got married. Do I have pictures? OF COURSE I DO! Are they great pictures? We can't be picky, okay.

Bridesmaids' shirts

Cute daughter

Cute son (like the bow tie??)

My husband during the drive up there. 8 AM, 9 AM, 10 AM. 

It really wasn't that long of a drive, but once we got there, traffic was nuts. We pulled in where the signs pointed thinking the line of cars would end just around the corner. And then after that corner we thought maybe the line of cars would end after the next corner. Nope. 

Cars as far as the eye can see...

When we finally made it, we (I mean my hubs) had to push our son in the stroller over grass, bumps, roots, etc. for what seemed like forever. My daughter complained about the grass but she never asked us to carry her, thank goodness! Let's see some more pictures of my cute kids, shall we?

My sister photo bombing in the background.

Grrr... my little clean warriors both refused to get muddy. They're so much like their dad!! Walking onto the campground we saw my poor sister sitting in a lawnchair looking so miserable :( She was so sick (but still looked super adorable). She was too weak to run the race but insisted that everyone else go ahead and do it. We put on our adorable tutus (the boys wore white shirts and ties, how fun!), got her all ready with her wedding gear, took a thousand pictures, and then headed to the starting line. We literally stood in line for half an hour before we actually started because there were so many people!

Mi madre y padre... 

We all agreed to stay together but Dad and David said they really just wanted to walk it and that we should run it without them. This is my 3rd Warrior Dash and by FAR the most fun I've had at any of them! I laughed so much with my sisters, and at every obstacle we couldn't help but mention how sad we felt that Tonya wasn't able to do it, too. 

I jumped over the fire holding my husband's hand, how romantic! ;) Then we crawled through the mud and crossed the finish line together. Awwwwwwwwww!

When David crossed the finish line Tonya met him (wearing her WHITE tutu and WHITE top) and hugged him! 

The back of her outfit... It got a little muddy!

And then they got married, and even though it wasn't traditional, I still cried. It was still so special to hear my sister say her vows and commit her life to the man of her dreams.

Dad giving away the bride.

Bride and Groom

"Let's do this! I'm ready to get married!!"

Husband and wife, kisses and muddy hugs <3

My heart feels all warm and fuzzy for them, I am just SO happy they found each other!

After Warrior Dash Oklahoma, 2013? 

They live 

                  Happily

                                Ever

                                             After. 

Why Do I Run?

When I was younger, I thought running was stupid.

I thought people who run do it out of vanity.

To look good.

For bragging rights.

To be able to say, "I am a runner, hear me roar."

I even joined them a few times.

Run a mile here, run a mile there.

Call myself a "runner" because one mile seemed like a long way.

One mile?

But even then, I thought it was stupid.

It hurt. It made me sweat. It made me tired. 

And I always ended up in the same place I started.

It seemed a little unproductive.

But then I had a baby.

And my body changed.

And it jiggled. 

And I wept.

And I decided running was suppose to help.

And so I ran.

It hurt. It made me sweat. It made me tired.

The first day I jogged 5 minutes before breaking down.

I cried in the middle of the street.

I couldn't believe how hard it was.

Not even a mile. One mile.

But I kept doing it, day after day.

It wasn't fun.

For a long time I dreaded it. 

But it helped!

My body changed, this time for the better.

It no longer jiggled.

I no longer wept.

"So why keep going?" I thought.

So I stopped.

But then my newborn baby cried.

He cried a lot.

He had colic.

And ear problems.

I was stressed beyond belief.

Sometimes I cried, too.

It was so hard.

He cried and cried and I cried and cried.

Sometimes I felt like I was at the end of my rope.

Sometimes I needed a break.

And so I ran.

I ran because it cleared my head.

I ran to expel my frustration.

I ran to sweat. To breath.

To relieve stress.

It still hurt, but I appreciated the ability to feel pain.

With every drop of sweat, I felt relief. 

One day I realized I'd changed. 

I felt giddy anticipation before each run.

I didn't dread it.

One mile. Two miles. Three miles.

Four. Five. Six. Seven...

I haven't stopped since. 

I don't want to. 

Why do I run? 

I run to look good. I run so I can eat more!

I run to experience the utter exhaustion at the end. 

I run to feel my heart pumping vigorously,

pumping blood throughout my body.

Pumping life throughout my body.

I run to relieve stress. Anger. 

I run because someday I'll be old

and I'll look back and wish I had taken advantage

of these legs, these muscles. My health. Youth.

The world looks different when you run. 

It looks bigger. Brighter. Majestic.

I run to experience the beauty in it all.

I run for my mind.

My soul.

Why do I run?

For Me.

Quitter Quitter, Pumpkin Fritter

What else rhymes with "quitter"??

Well you can call me a BIG FAT QUITTER because that's exactly what I've done! I stopped doing P90X, again. I blame the pictures. You know the ones... "before," "during," and "after." Well technically I've never, in my whole life, gotten to take an "after" picture because I always give up shortly after taking the "during" picture. Maybe next time I should just not take that one? Or at just not look at it!

So I QUIT the program and I've been avoiding blogging about it for a whole month because I'm too ashamed. Not that anyone would ever judge me for being such a loser, but I judge myself. Harshly.

I had decided I was NOT going to share the pictures, but really... what can it hurt? Besides my pride, I mean. So here they are: Before and during pictures. The first was taken after one of my first workouts (because I forgot to take it in the very beginning, oops), and the second was taken 6 weeks later.

And yes, I know my stomach is "crooked."

I can blame my quitting on these pictures all I want, but the real fact is I got lazy and bored with it. It seems to always happen that way--I get tired of working out by myself, tired of having to take breaks in between workouts to tend to my toddler, tired of looking in the mirror and not seeing a difference. Running is just so much easier to enjoy doing, day after day. I mean sure, sometimes I get tired of running all the time and I take a week off, but I never quit. At least have that much going for me!

However, softball season has officially started up again and I'm weaker now than I was before I started P90X in the first place. We had our pre-season tournament last weekend and I couldn't even hit the ball out of the infield; embarrassing! So now I'm torn: do I start working out again (knowing I'll just QUIT in a few weeks because I'm a big fat QUITTER!) or just be a weakling for the rest of my life?

P90X Week 7

Yeah, this is exactly what I look like when
 I do the frog stretch, too, only I have a human
child on my back using me as a trampoline. 

Has it really already been 7 whole weeks since I started!?!? After week 4 I got a little lazy and only half did the next two weeks of workouts, but I'm happy to report that this week has been much different. If only it would stop getting COLD on cardio days then maybe I could actually get a decent run in. Yesterday I went only two miles, not because it was cold but because that was all I could muster. I guess it was just one of those days! Luckily it was just supposed to be an easy day, anyway, so it wasn't a big deal. I did about 10 minutes of stupid painful stretching afterwards while Jordan climbed all over me. Do you know what the frog stretch is? It is one of the most awkward positions to ever put yourself in and it HURTS like nobody's business, especially when you get really deep into the stretch and your 30 pound 2 year old decides to jump on top of you.

So I still don't look any different than day 1 which is very disappointing. However, I am now capable of doing FOUR UNASSISTED PULL-UPS now!!! I was so proud of myself and showed my husband who appropriately told me how proud he was of me! AND, I did 329 of Tony Horton's crunches the other day which is only 10 short of the full workout. Wowzas!!

Tonight's workout is legs and back, my favorite one!

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.