Toes of pain!

I decided to try to do some yoga for my cross training today. I thought it would be great to stretch out my muscles, and strengthen my core. It sounded like a great idea.

Remember back though, I broke my toe about 6 weeks ago on my dogs bone. It hasn't bothered me in weeks. I thought it was all better.

So 20 minutes in, I strike the pose shown here. My toes ached. I thought I'd push through. However, you need your toes for yoga, and mine were not happy.

The thought of running 6 miles tomorrow on bad toes made me stop yoga at 25 minutes. This stinks!

I then went outside to clean out my gardens. I cut back all the leaves from my plants to make the spring growth healthier and greener. It was a great time out there, cold, but good. However, 3 hours after yoga, my toe still ached.

I talked to Greg about this and he suggested I wait and do my run on Sunday. If I run tomorrow, I may just make it worse. Taking a day off sounds like it will be best in the long run. My toes are taped back together, and I'm back on Motrin. Sunday looks like it will be a much better day.

MOUSE!

By popular demand... here is the tale of my morning. UGH! (This is not a picture of THE mouse, just a Yahoo mouse)

I've had a feeling for a few weeks that this day would come. Each morning, as I come downstairs from my slumber, I look for my two lovely cats. See, if they are sleeping on the couch, all will be well. If I don't see them, my morning it going to be tough.

This morning, I didn't see them in the living room. I rounded the corner to let the dog out, and spotted the cats. They were both looking at the dog food, which we store under our kitchen counter in a Rubbermaid tub. I had a feeling that they'd cornered a mouse. I took a deep breath and walked past them. I wasn't ready to deal with this yet. I woke Skeeter up, let him out, then waited for him to return for his breakfast. This process is normally very fast, because my lab mix dog feels like he never gets to eat. By morning, he's just starving, or so he says. Anyway, he didn't come back right away. I waited a few minutes and decided to make coffee instead.

Why make coffee at a time like this? My little girl cat, Thunder, had come up to say hello. Maybe there isn't a mouse I thought. However, Boomer, my boy cat, was still interested in the food box. Boomer isn't a deadly hunter, and has a bit of kitten ADD. So, if he pays attention to anything for more than 5 seconds, it's big. Again, I decided to ignore this and go to make coffee. I needed something to deal with this and a beer wasn't in order yet.

25 minutes after I woke up, the dog decided to finally come in for breakfast. I'm happy to feed him, but it means dealing with his food box. At this point, Thunder is now laying on top of his food container. Not a good sign. What do I do now? I shoe her off the box and feed the dog. I then left to send my husband an IM to let him know of my concerns about a mouse being in the house.

Skeeter is done eating in 30 seconds flat and back in the living room to say good morning. Now, I hear the cats scratching at the food box. OK, I can't ignore this anymore. So, I stand up, take a few breaths, tie my pj pants tight, and head in for battle. At this point, my palms are dry, but my feet are sweating. Odd.

I move the dog's water and food bowls out of the battle field. I bravely (yes bravely) reach in and pull the food box away from the wall, so the cats can flush out the mouse. Amazingly enough, out shoots a field mouse. Both cats begin the chase.

It's quickly apparent that this mouse is not moving very fast. This battle must have been going on well before I woke up. It just isn't running around the house like a normal mouse. I may be able to catch this thing pretty quickly. So, I grab a paper bowl for my trap. The cats are batting the mouse around, who stands up on his hind legs to show the cats it isn't afraid. Thunder then gives that mouse a huge smack so it tumbles and lands on it's back. Then, I see, the mouse's hind legs are hurt. OK, so now I know it won't be running up my leg anytime soon. I grab my bowl and toss it on the mouse. Then I grab a folder, slide it under the bowl, and head outside. I tossed that little injured mouse pretty far off my deck.

I came back inside and took a big breath. Skeeter the Wonder Dog ran up to tell me how brave I was. Actually, I think he just wanted an ear scratch, but I like to think he knew I saved him from death by field mouse.

The house is now mouse free! OK, it's an old house and never quite mouse free, but I'm going with the mouse free thoughts. It helps me sleep at night.

Inspiration

There have been so many references to inspiration in my life recently. So much so that I felt inspired to to write about what inspires me.

FRIENDS! I'm so lucky to have an amazing group of friends who help keep me going.

Tina has such determination and perseverance. She wanted to get her masters degree, it was a huge goal for her. She worked so hard, and got her masters with honors. She is amazing! She shows me that you can get anything you want if you work for it.

Kait works so hard in so many ways. Her workouts are amazing. She can do so much. With a goal in mind, she finished a half iron man triathlon last summer. Amazing!

Lael has inspired me since high school. She has so much heart and determination. She is always there for me, whenever I need her. She listens to my every worry and pain. She is an amazing support in my life! She's a mom, a wife, a lawyer and now an athlete. She's balancing all aspects of her life so well. She has things in perspective, and knows what is truly important in life. She just gives me so much joy!

Kari is my biggest inspiration right now. She has nudged me along for years. 2 years ago she mentioned the Danskin triathlon to me. I never thought I could do anything like that, but she did. So, after a few months I said yes and off we went. Both Danskin Tris were amazing! I learned so much about myself. She never doubted me, even when I did. She always encouraged me, even when I might not have deserved it. After a week of biking across Iowa, I saw that I can do any physical activity I want. She was such a huge support that week, and so much fun to be around. She showed me that these events are supposed to be fun, and to take advantage of the fun times. Now, we're on our way to our first 1/2 marathon in December. I never thought I'd be doing something like this. She inspires me to push further and further. She is amazing!

FAMILY! I have an amazing family.

My dad has shown me that being loyal and a good friend can get you anywhere. He also told me that I could do and be anything I wanted. He never told me I couldn't do something. He is always excited to hear about my new adventures.

My brother perseveres over all sorts of hard times. Sometimes I think if Bill didn't have bad luck he wouldn't have any luck at all. However, he keeps moving forward. He is an amazing father and makes her his priority. He's made tough choices to make Scout's life better. He really is a wonderful dad.

My sister is a fabulous friend with a huge heart. She is a natural teacher who inspires her students everyday. I wish my math teachers would have been like her. She give so much of herself. She works with the swim teams, volunteers and church and spends her summers at an orphanage in Colombia. She truly makes the world a better place. I wish I could be more like my sister Dawn.

My mom is one of my best friends. She always listens to my rants. She gives me advice that has helped me make the best decisions I can in all aspects of my life. She has so much patience. She is loyal to her friends and family. She has drive and determination. She is an 8+ year breast cancer survivor. Her treatments were tough, but she never said poor me. She is amazing!

MY HUSBAND! Greg is my best friend in the whole world. I could write so much about how wonderful he is, but that is for another post. He inspires me through his unending support. He tells me I can do anything, and he believes it. When I want to do something, he's all in. He never tells me no, or I can't. He has a huge smile and hug for me when I accomplish something big. He's the first person I want to tell about my accomplishments. Now, he's decided to run the 1/2 marathon with me in December. He never was a runner, and is starting from the beginning. He's making huge improvements each week. Soon, he'll be passing me, and I can't wait. He inspires me to keep going, to keep pushing myself, to never give up. His enormous love for me is more than I could ask for, and I'm so grateful he loves me. I am so lucky to be married to Superman!

Running Success!

Happy Fall! I thought this picture captured what this Fall day is like right now in Minnesota. It's cloudy and windy here. It's also in the mid 40s after 2 days of rain. I didn't think it was the best day to run outside.

So, indoors I went. It's homecoming at Carleton College today. The big game is against the hated St Olaf, our in town rivals. Everyone is at the game, so the gym was pretty empty!

My first mile was at a 10 minute pace. I was pretty happy with that. 2 days earlier, at the same gym, I ran a 10:30 pace. Things just felt good. Only 1 other person was on the track, a college girl on lane 3. I run in lane 4 by the way.

At 1.5 miles I ran it at 15 minutes! Yeah me! I figure during my AF testing I can easily cut off 30 seconds due to adrenaline.

After my 1.5 mile point, the college girl caught up to me. She passed, but didn't stay to far ahead. In fact, in 2 laps, I passed her again. We traded places about every lap, because she would go inside 1 more lane, cutting her distance. It takes 7.6 laps for 1 mile in lane 4, 7.8 laps in lane 3, and 8 laps in 2. She really helped me keep my pace up.

At 2 miles, I was at 20 minutes. Could this really be happening? Am I keeping a constant pace? Well, at 2.5 miles I was at 25 minutes. It seemed to be true.

At 3 miles, I had run for 30 minutes! Yeah me! I was a wonderful consistent pace run. I don't think I've ever kept my pace for longer than 1/2 mile. It is amazing! I'm so happy. It was a great confidence boost.

I may be a runner yet!

Defeat of Jesse James Days 5K

OK, I'm not doing so hot at keeping up with this blog. On Friday, I went for my first bike ride since RAGBRAI. It was only 1/2 hour, but it felt great! I actually missed my bike, and didn't know it. I'm looking forward to riding my bike more often, at least until the snow starts to fly.

Yesterday, I ran in the Defeat of Jesse James Days 5K in my hometown of Northfield, MN. Greg was so excited to run with me, but he is still recovering from his cold/swine flu. So, he brought Skeeter the Wonder Dog to cheer me on. It really means so much to have a cheering squad out there for you.

In past years, there have only been about 50 runners with me. This year there was easily 200 runners. Missing from the crowd was my dear friend Kari, who didn't have the vacation time to come up from Dallas. It wasn't the same without her, but I completely understand why she couldn't make it. Also missing, the blind man who kept passing me. I really wanted to see him too!

2 blocks into the run, I saw a member of the James Gang on horse back. It was so cool! Then we were headed up a short hill. 1 mile into it, there was a pretty good hill, but not as bad as I remembered it. A little over 1 mile into it, I passed a local girlfriend of mine, Sarah. Her 11 year old son then smoked me! 1 1/2 miles into it I hit the hill that haunted me 4 years ago. However, this year it was like an ant hill. I can't believe that hill made me have to walk back then.

At 2+ miles it felt like most of the course was downhill. I remembered it being almost all uphill, but now I realized that there are some big ups, but it mostly a gradual downhill course.

The last 3 blocks of the course had people lining the streets and cheering us on. It made me grin from ear to ear. Again, this is very different from 4 years ago when I was quietly flipping off the crowd. Greg and Skeeter were at the finish cheering me on. It was wonderful!

I forgot my watch that day, but Greg timed me and said I finished in 31 minutes flat! What a difference 1 year can make!

Hey fever, a Cold or the Swine Flu

Week 2 of the 1/2 marathon training began today. I ran 30 minutes. This isn't too bad so far. It's pretty much where I've been for the summer.

However, when I hit the trail, I felt odd. I'd been stuffy all day. Now, my back muscles feel odd. I think it's hey fever. It's pretty bad here right now, with everyone feeling the hey fever itch. Then again, Greg has a pretty bad cold right now. Or, Greg may have the Swine Flu. They symptoms of both are so similar for him. He is slightly stuffy, but now he has a pretty deep cough. I just hope he slept better tonight than last night. He looked pretty rough today on Skype.

Tomorrow is cross training day. I'm planning on going for a bike ride in the morning. It will be my first time on the bike since RAGBRAI. I can't wait!!!

1/2 Marathon Training

Yesterday, Greg and I officially began training for our 1/2 Marathon. We will be doing the Rock-n-Roll Vegas 1/2 Marathon in December. It's scary, but should be so much fun. We're starting at one end of the Vegas strip, running to the other end, then back again. It's going to be so flat! Yeah!!

So, back to yesterday. I was to run for 30 minutes. It was supposed to be speed drills, but with my sore foot, I decided just to concentrate on keeping my pace up for the duration.

It was a good run. My first mile was 10 minutes, which is really good for me. I'm getting slowly faster, and it feels great. I'm excited to see where I will be come December.

I think the training plan I've chosen will be so good for me. It's time based for the majority of the week, with the mileage days on Saturdays. It seems do-able. I can't see doing 13.1 miles, but then again I never saw myself doing a triathlon or riding my bike across the state of Iowa for a week.

This should be a trying and amazing time. I'm so excited!