College Flashback (a boring one)

Two weeks out...time to taper.

For tomorrow, I know I'll be running between 5-10 miles. I'd really like to run 12, but that all depends on when I wake up. Lazy, lazy.

***

In other news, I got my first Admitted Student newsletter from my law school and my first reaction to reading it was "Law school is hard already."

Apparently, some students have been hounding the dean for reading lists for the semester so they can get a "head start" on driving me crazy the required reading.

And you know all those gunners will totally be in my section.

I was an English major, so I have a tiny bit of experience with these types. A college literature classes is a true breeding ground for insufferable know-it-alls...


Now I'm having PTSD style flashbacks...the never-ending hand raising...the arguing with the professor...the frequent and incorrect use of the word "dichotomy"...the stench of pretension...




But thanks to those students (and years of practice) I can pull off a really impressive eye-roll. It can give you whiplash.

I remember sitting in my Gothic Literature class the day after the presidential election (in 2004) and listening to my professor and his minions (aka my peers) whine whine WHINE about the outcome of the election and I completely SNAPPED.

I wasn't making a political statement, I just didn't want to talk about the election in my literature class.

I don't remember my exact tirade, but I basically said that this "debate" was self-serving, inappropriate and idiotic. It was encroaching on class time. It had nothing to do with Poe or Billy Budd the Sailor. And it was making the rest of the class uncomfortable.

One girl spun around in her seat to make her appeal, saying "I just have a problem with--"

And I replied "I just have a problem with you cutting me off."

That pretty much squashed it. The professor apologized and class resumed.

Jokes on me though; he gave me B in the class.

Oh well, it was TOTALLY worth it.

Tiny Arms and the Return of Lacrosse

My upper-body strength is hilarious.

I can do four push-ups. Period. In any amount of time...45 seconds, one hour...it doesn't matter. And Hubs says I'm probably not even doing them correctly.

Thanks to years of lacrosse, I have tiny forearms and awkwardly large biceps/triceps.

Like this:

Or this:

So last week I implemented an upper-body strength training routine into my cross- training days at the gym.

I focused on exercises that will increase my push-up total:
- Tricep Press: 3 sets of 10
- Shoulder Press: 5 sets of 10
- Fly: 3 sets of 10
- Back extensions: 5 sets of 10

I know that Hubs is probably shaking his head as he reads this, because I probably did too many or too little sets with too much or too little weight...

But I didn't hurt myself or get my hair caught in a machine, so I'm marking down this workout in the WIN column.

SPEAKING of lacrosse, I signed up for summer league! I'm pretty pumped, except I can't find my cleats and they probably smell like 4 years of use + 2 years of stagnancy if they ever turn up. Maybe they are better off lost.

Also my first game is two days after my marathon.

Yup. Take that, body!

AM Runner Envy

Morning Routine:

- Wake up after Hubs
- Threaten to call in sick to work

- Shuffle into bathroom to take shower, get dressed

- Gracie Lou (aka The Destroyer) wakes up, comes into our room

- Hubs leaves for work

- Gracie steals socks from clean laundry, curls up in ball on bed to nap

- Breakfast

- Brush teeth; dog senses a threat to her comfort

- Chase Gracie around the bed as she tries to avoid going to her crate
- Dog escapes; curls up in ball on couch to nap

- Catch dog, who goes dead-weight as I try to carry her

- Crate Dog

- Go to work

"Go away, BB...I iz jus fine rite herr."

I read about people getting 4-5 miles runs in before they go to work and I really am jealous of those AM runners.

Not that my routine is especially tense or busy (it's not at all), I just can't make myself workout in the morning.

Ugh...but I really should. It's getting too hot to run in the afternoon.

4 miles yesterday at the park seriously felt like 20. I was tired the entire time.

And I would give my right leg to make my left leg stop hurting. Think about THAT for a while.

Is this training burn-out normal?

When am I supposed to get excited again?

Holiday Weekend Notes

- Rule of thumb: if you want to complete a double-digit mileage run, you must start your run before the clock gets into the double digits...

- Terminator: Salvation is pretty good and VERY loud

- Star Trek is EPIC...even for non-trekkies

- Hubs and I still have 43 hot-dogs left over in the fridge

Clean up in aisle 5

***Attention Wal-Mart Shoppers: Will the owner of the Swamp Beast wandering through the snack aisle please report to the customer service counter.***

My dinky 4 mile run yesterday was disgustingly hot...it was 80 degrees but the pavement felt SO MUCH HOTTER after baking in the sun all day.

I was a mess. Afterwards I changed out of my sweaty clothes and went to Wal-Mart to run some last minute errands.

I guess I hadn't sufficiently "cooled down" because I ended up sweating through my fresh t-shirt at Wal-Mart.

And I never thought I could embarrass myself at Wal-Mart.

Anyway, I hope everyone has a great holiday weekend. I plan on eating my weight in hotdogs and maybe getting a double-digit run in tomorrow morning.

Have a good one!

Marathon Fuzzies

Just when a tinge of burnout begins to set in, something happens to get my excited about running again.

In this case it was an email from the Hatfield/McCoy race director.

Nothing too exciting...he was just introducing participants to the new "Rooms for Runners" program. Basically, the Reunion Festival and Marathon draw HUGE numbers (compared to the size of the surrounding towns) and hotel rooms become scarce for the runners.

This year the locals are opening their doors and allowing runners to essentially bunk-up for the race.

Now I knew that this race had a reputation of having wonderful community support, but this...this is just awesome.

This is exactly what I want for my first marathon: warm and fuzzies.

Just check out some of the reviews on Marathon Guide here. It's a love-fest!

It's also good to know that if I can't get an extended check-out at the hotel, someone may let me use their bathroom to shower.

Gotta love small towns.

This is the Hatfield Posse, fixin to stir up some trouble.

Love/Hate: Technology

aaaaaaaaa

Some e cards

Love: I work at a software development firm, so naturally I love technology. I love that I can blog. I love that I can download music on my computer. I love that I can whip out my Blackberry and google the name of the guy from "No Country for Old Men" (Javier Bardem) on a whim.


Hate: I work at a software development firm...in a non-technical capacity. So when technology goes wrong, I'm dead in the water. Take yesterday for example: it was supposed to be my peaceful work from home day...it quickly turned into telecommuting from HELL. I would lose my connection every three minutes or so, forcing me to sign BACK on over and over and over and over...

***

It took me two whole days to feel "recovered" from the 20 miler on Sunday. Monday night was dedicated to stretching only, and I think that helped quite a bit.

Leading up to my last big run I did more cross-training than actual running during the week. So it's back in the saddle for mid-week runs, I suppose...

In other news...

Some of you may know that Hubs and I are mega-Kentucky Basketball fans. Yes, the crazy ones. It's our alma mater, but during our tenure in Lexington the program suffered its biggest slump in recent memory.

But now...NOW MY FRIENDS we have the #1 recruiting class in the nation and then of course there's all the buzz about this.

It's a good day to be a Wildcat.

My spirit animal must be a Great Pyrenees

I did it...20 miles...only one more distance PR to set.

It was a perfect day for a run. I ran down my usual country roads and did 2 out and backs and a loop to make it to 20.

The hills never stopped coming. I can think of two flat stretches at mile 4 and 15, but that was it. After 10 miles you just expect hills and get used to them.

Overall, it was an eventful run. The scenery was beautiful and very peaceful. I passed the Women's Prison, which is always interesting. And I saw one of these:

From a distance I thought it was a pony. When I got closer, I decided it was a domestic polar bear.

I thought I was delusional-- finally, the distance was getting to me.

And then I finally realized it was just the BIGGEST DOG I've ever encountered. Seriously, massive.

I incorporated walk/stretch breaks after mile 16, which (aside from marrying Hubs) was the best decision I've EVER MADE. I found myself running stronger and faster after each break, and the result was a faster-than-usual average pace for me.

Here's a look at my run by the numbers:

-Distance: 20 miles
- Time: approx. 3:15:00
- Pace: 9:45/mile (see what I mean!)
- Ounces of water consumed: 50 (1.5 liters)
- GU packs: 2
- Counties covered: 3
- Silent prayers: 12
- Audible prayers: 2

***

Two MAJOR things I noticed after hitting the 20 mark:

1) Complete exhaustion. I almost fell asleep in the shower and I'm still feeling it today.

2) Total body soreness. Not just my lower body-- my back and core hurt too.

The worst part of the run yesterday was when I was done, I was DONE. Nothing left in the tank.

This tells me that walk and stretch breaks must begin in the early miles of the marathon.

Now, excuse me while I rest my head on my desk for an hour or two.

20 miler done...nighty night

Ouch.

OUCH!

I learned a lot, and I will expound upon these lessons when I'm not literally dosing off everytime I blink.

Over and OUT.

Birthday Month

My birthday is in mid-July.

I'm also an only child, so I typically declare ALL of July "Birthday Month."

It's never too early to start up the WISH LIST!

-Garmin Forerunner 305: I've heard great, wonderful, magical things about the 305. I've also heard that the newer 405 version is hard to operate when sweaty. That would be a major problem for me. This bad boy is at the top of the list.

- Gracie Gear Long Tank: I really love the concept of Gracie Gear...you can never have too many pockets! And the tank doesn't ride up on you while you run, an issue I have with most tank tops.




- Nike Tempo Shorts: MORE! MOOOOOOOOOORE! I have the plain black and the blue/black pair...I love them. Love love love them. They were on "sale" a couple weeks ago and I agonized in the store for an hour on whether to buy another pair or wait to put them on the wish list. It took a great deal of self restraint...but here it is on the list.

***

I'm going to attempt my first 20-miler this weekend. The forecast looks rainy for Saturday, but Sunday is pretty clear.

I'm strangely calm about it. No sense getting all worked up. Just...run.

Run until I'm done, that's my plan.

Anyone out there done 20+? As always, I'm open to suggestions!

Let's talk about Lost, baby.

Time to talk LOST season 5 finale...if you haven't seen it, I might spoil it for you-- so proceed with caution.

Ok, all you Losties out there--what did you think?

I kind of, sort of loved it.


Here's my list of favorite finale moments and random thoughts:


5) Rose and Bernard's island paradise: I think this was the best possible wrap-up to their story. I'm also assuming that they were the "Adam and Eve" skeletons that Kate and co. found in the cave in season one.

4) Is Juliet really dead? If Jules is dead so is Kate, Sawyer and Jack because that would mean the bomb just plain exploded instead of pulling a cosmic CTRL-ALT-Delete, right?

3) What lies in the shadow if the statue? Apparently "He who will save us" or "That which will protect us" or "That which will save us" or "He who will protect us." Or any combo thereof. And the statue is Sobek?

2) The Sawyer vs. Jack epic beat-down: Die-hard fans have been waiting for that since season 1... And the good doctor actually held his own!


1) The Jacob Reveal: Thank you, Lost producers, for a) letting Jacob be a real person, b) revealing him to the audience and c) making him kind of creepy. And his final "They're coming..." has to refer to the original losties, jettisoning into present day from the 1970's. Or at least I hope.

I won't address the big LOCKE question because I'm still reeling.

Oh, and if Sayid dies I'll need a new favorite character. This will not stand.

Random Wednesday

I didn't have any caffeine this morning, so you get THIS CRAPTASTIC POST.

Just a mish-mash of random considerations:

- Just how important are the short/mid-distance runs in a marathon training schedule? I know that every run can't be a "long" run...I also know that I have to keep my overall fitness level up. But if I'm still feeling the proverbial burn from a long weekend run, should I push myself to crank out 5 miles?

- I'm wearing heels to work for the first time in MONTHS and they have somehow cured me of my shin splints...It's a miracle!

- I don't have a Garmin, so I have no idea how long it will take me to run 20 miles. I'm guessing several hours.

- I'm pretty forgiving when it comes to poor grammar, but there is one unforgivable grammar sin in my book: using "apart" vs. "a part" or vice versa. When you use one phrase incorrectly you are actually saying something that is the opposite of what you really mean....

It's like a SUPER HOMONYM but the meanings are OPPOSITES.

Is there a word for that?

Whoa, I had a nerd-blackout moment there. Sorry.

And since I ragged on bad grammar, there will undoubtedly be a hojillion spelling/grammatical errors in this very post.

Some Cruise Pictures...

Some highlights from the cruise...

Capt. Tony's in Key West...it was originally called Sloppy Joe's and Hemingway hung out there a lot. Some of his writings were found in a back room after he died. When it became Capt. Tony's, a bar down Duval Street changed it's name to Sloppy Joe's to cash in on the legend.

Having a Land Shark at the original Margaritaville! Hoping Jimmy B would show up for an impromtu concert...

Big ol' boat...

Freeport in the Bahamas...very colorful!

The cruise served Corona's in plastic bottles with funnels on the end to make room for the limes. We kept them and packed them home with us.

I don't feel like fighting with the blogger picture uploader right now, so I'll throw in some more cruise pictures later.

I contemplating getting my 20 miler in this weekend. The cruise set me back a little, and I want ample time to taper.

I never realized how far 20 miles is until I tried to map out a 20 mile running route. Yikes.

And...

I'm back.

I'll have a picture-post tomorrow with all the cruise highlights.

Things I learned from my cruise:
- The sun is hot
- The ocean is big
- Elderly people will do whatever they want, whenever they want...with little regard to your personal rights or maritime law
- Access to a 24 hour soft serve machine comes with great power and great responsibility

I ran twice while on vacation and got back on track yesterday by running 16 miles...I was supposed to run 18, but I got to my car and called it a day.

Rest night tonight...rest and laundry.

Rest, laundry and trying to get rid of my "sea legs" (I can't stop swaying back and forth).

One part land and one part sea...

Well, folks...I'm outta here!

I'll be back in a next Saturday...hope you all have a great week!

Carb-o-licious

The only thing that stands between me and my vacation is my 16 miler tomorrow morning.

Time to load up on the carbs!

BB's Pre-Training Run Meals:

Approved:
- Baked Spaghetti
-Fajitas

Banned:
- Quesadillas
- Pizza

I've got some serious decisions to make about dinner.

Also, I never realized how hard it was to incorporate more protein into my diet...goodness. But Hubs is a protein shake wizard, so he's helping me figure it all out.

Some e cards