hoodie runs

Marathon Training: It Has Begun

2012-02-09T08:30:00.000-05:00

It is day four of Marathon Training: The Quest For Boston. So far, I am four out of four for completing workouts. Here's what my week as looked like so far:
Mon: OFF (I'm so good at these days. I kill them.)
Tues: 9K easy
Wed: strength training
Thurs: 11K easy

The runs on Tuesday and Thursday I did in the morning before work. As tough as it is to get out of bed and get moving, it's definitely better than waiting until the evening to get the workout done. That's what happened on Wednesday. I couldn't haul myself out of bed so told myself that I'd do strength training in the evening. That could have been disastrous but luckily, my favourite show, Republic of Doyle, is on Wednesday nights. So, I made a deal with myself. No Republic of Doyle unless I worked out during or after it. I chose during because an hour long workout after would have had me up until 11PM and I needed to get up early to run in the morning. As Jake got to the bottom of an attempted murder and antagonized poor b'y, Sergeant Hood, I worked my way through the Koalas strength training program.

2 sets of 12-15 reps of the following:
hamstring curls
shoulder press
bench press
shoulder flys
bicep curls
tricep kickbacks
weighted squats
weighted lunges
tricep press
calf exercise from physio on each side.

core:
one set of 88's
20 sit up twists
1min plank

Last Sunday, prior to the official start of training, I completed a 14.75K run too and had done a long run up to 17K in January as well. Nothing spectacular but definitely confidence boosters for the work that is coming in the next 16 weeks.

So there you have it.

@FitBoundy, @cellagirl, @bigbrnz and @Leslie_Morton - what's going on with your training???

2012-01-31T12:25:00.000-05:00

Dusty

1997-2012

And some of this has come out of my own mouth...

2012-01-30T18:30:00.000-05:00

Shit runners say. Embarrassingly, I've said a number of them.

The best part

2012-01-26T22:10:00.001-05:00

Every night follows a similar pattern. Come home from work, pull together a meal, clean up, work more or go to an extra-curricular. Rinse, repeat. The best part of every night is the few minutes we cuddle up together on the couch. Even better is when Allie-cat, Albert, joins us.

The worst part? Not getting a damn run done because it's way more warm and cuddly to stay on the couch.

To be entirely honest, physiotherapist LC, said no run tonight until the calf settles. But... I could have spun too...

An aggressive cuddle post ride

2012-01-16T22:37:00.001-05:00

This is Albert. She (yes she) is an aggressive cuddler, especially after I've been spinning for 48mins and not lying on the couch with her.

I watched episode three of season two of the British show Misfits, my favourite episode so far. Lesballs: you need to find it and watch it over there. It's so! good! As a reward for spinning, I've decided I get to watch an episode per spin which guarantees me at least 45mins on the bike.

And the aggressive cuddle is a pretty nice treat after watching Misfits and spinning on Ginger.

14 Sat - 9km run with @FitBoundy and HS
15 Sun - 9.8km run with @runnergrl
16 Mon - 48min spin (about equivalent to an 4.8k run)
17 Tues - scheduled: volleyball, soccer.

speed wobbles or fumbles, I'm not sure which

2012-01-12T12:28:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I officially signed up for the Ottawa Marathon on 27 May. I've got two good friends that are also training for it, plus another friend who is training for Around the Bay. Between the three of them, @runnrgrl, my sister-in-law when she's in town and various TV shows on my BlackBerry Playbook, I have no shortage of people to run with. Despite my support network, I'm still really worried about getting the training in. It's not just about motivation anymore though. It would seem that 2012 is going to be the year of the injury.

We are on day 12 of 2012 and I've got one busted index finger and now a strained calf that will not settle down. It's been tight/sore for about three and a half weeks, according to my training log. No particular traumatic injury to it, just a note "R calf tight, feels strained" in my log after a long run. Yesterday, over my lunch break, I did a 5.4km run and the calf is now very sore. As in, walking down a flight of stairs is better done leading with the left leg exclusively. No alternating because that just makes the calf hurt more. Maybe because I was so speedy (ha!) on my run yesterday I got the wobbles and made the injury worse? Or, more likely, it hasn't really had a chance to heal and I've fumbled this injury.

So, I guess this means that I need to book many physio appointments in the near future. An 18 week training plan for Ottawa would have me starting next week. A 16 week plan would give me some more time to heal. That would also help me narrow down the training plan choices...

workout roundup:
5 Thursday - off? I think so, can't actually remember and I don't have my log with me.
6 Friday - off.
7 Saturday - off.
8 Sunday - off.
9 Monday – off.
10 Tuesday – 60mins volleyball, 50mins soccer
11 Wednesday – 30mins run
12Thursday – ~~50mins soccer~~ scratch that, likely spin instead for the calf.
13 Friday – spin and strength or rest and strength
14 Saturday – ~8km in Eastbridge if the calf feels better.
15 Sunday – long run of about 14km if the calf is ok. If not, spin.

I think I'll just run it off

2012-01-05T09:26:00.000-05:00

Last night after the day of the fat finger, I thought I might maybe take a day off. That worked until the movie, Two Weeks Notice, ended and my distraction tactic disappeared. Hugh Grant and Sandra Bullock did a great job of keeping me distracted but unfortunately, the movie isn't all that long. Coinciding with the end of the movie was Albert the cat's disappearance from my lap to one of her many snooze locations. Suddenly both my legs and mind are free and since ME was out at hockey my thoughts immediately turned to "I want ketchup chips."

"Wait. That's a bad idea there Porkchop. You overindulged all holiday season. It's time to lay off the chips a bit."

"Good point Self. I should go for a run."

"Yes you should...Porkchop." My inner Self, such an asshat.

Forty minutes later I'd done an easy 5.6K at 1% incline on the hamster wheel with plenty of warm up and cool down to encourage the tight calf to relax. This morning the calf is only slightly tight. A good improvement. During the run, the finger ballooned up but was soon sorted with some Advil. Apparently I can't just run this one off.

Keep your fingers crossed for me as I wait for the follow up call from my doctor, because I certainly can't.

4 Jan - ran 40mins, 5.6KM, 1% incline.

so much for in like a lamb

2012-01-04T14:20:00.000-05:00

I've been a busy girl the last few days. Let me give you a quick run down of my year thus far:
1 Jan - 17.14km run with @runnergrl
2 Jan - sore calves so easy 35min spin and upper body + core strength session
3 Jan - 50mins of indoor soccer and possibly broke my finger.
4 Jan - two hours of doctor's office and xray visits. One splinted finger.

I'm cursing words with f, t, g, v, b, and r in them today.

NYE 2011: a quiet one

2012-01-01T17:58:00.001-05:00

You know that saying about March? In like a lamb, out like a lion? My feeling is that years happen in much the same way.
2011 we rang in with a bang, a wild night of shenanigans and then in early February an engagement. Nothing like a whirlwind to fling us through to a wedding in August. The first eight months were crazy but I wouldn't have traded them for anything. I married my best friend and we went through it all together with a sense of humour and the support of a great group of family and friends. The back half of 2011 settled down. There was a renewed focus on our relationship as we dealt with some scary health issues. A crisis weathered but it has been reinforcing just how important we are to each other and how lucky we BOTH are to have what we have. So, 2011 went out quietly, a night in on the couch, watching movies, doing nothing together and it was awesome. Wine glasses of champagne at midnight because we have no idea where any flutes are but that moment just added to the charm of the night.

Today has been lazy, spent on the couch snoozing. Chinese food for dinner and likely some more champagne. Very quiet and very lamb-like. I did get a 17.14km run in with @runnrgrl and then had to have a long nap this afternoon. 2012, you are sneaky. Nice and quiet but I have a feeling you've got a lot in store for us.

New Years Resolutions
1. Love my husband.
2. Be more consistent in all facets in my life.
3. Qualify for Boston.

I've got #1 in the bag.

MIA

2011-12-13T13:46:00.000-05:00

Sorry guys, I've been MIA lately. Its been a combination of crazy work demands, life hurdles and a lack of motivation to write about any of it. Last week was a breaking point... Plenty of tears but also incredible friends that had insightful, objective and heartfelt encouragement to help me. I sometimes forget that the only thing I really have any control over is myself. They were there with gentle reminders and hugs to pick me back up. Thank you friends.

My workouts have taken a hit over the last couple of weeks... No consistency. I had a great chat with KB on Saturday night that really helped remind me that doing consistent workouts will help me take on our monumental Boston Qualification goal. Thanks KB, sorry I was grumpy, but you did really help re-motivate me!

So, now that I'm back in the saddle so to speak, I got an 8M/13km run done on Sunday in the gorgeous sunshiny morning. Last night I did 60 minutes on Ginger. The saddle situation there is still an issue... Seriously ladies- what saddle is on your bike? Mine is killing me.

Tonight I've got soccer on my to do list. Might tack on a run to and from as it would only be an extra 20mins and it has gotten pretty mild here.

So there you go kids, I'm back and plugging away at my goals. I'm also still up to my crazy antics (see photos) so don't you worry!

Where are you at with your goals?

Early morning run!

2011-11-22T16:30:00.000-05:00

After Sunday's sore leg and bum episode, I took yesterday off to recoup. This morning, I told myself that I'd go out for an easy 10 minute run and see how I felt and make a decision from there. It was minus three degrees Celsius this morning when I started my run. Plus windchill. Very chilly! That cold air made my eyes water, my nose run and my feet fleet. Nine minutes into my run, I'd already covered 1.6km and I continued to push the pace from there, covering another 3.2km in 16:55. By then I was warmed up and I dialed it back to a gentler pace to finish off the run (6.67km in total). Total time 36 minutes. To recap: that's a four minute improvement of time from Sunday's run. My ass is officially unbroken!

Tonight I've got volleyball and soccer. Busy night.

My ass. It's broken.

2011-11-21T20:51:00.001-05:00

Thanks for nothing squats and lunges. I've got a pulled hammie and a sore knee, care of my broken assed hobble during my run last night. Oh, and, while the yelps have passed, it still hurts to climb stairs. I would've easily been caught if chased last night.

Completed 6.67km in 40-something mins.

To comfort myself tonight, I baked cookies but ate so much batter I have a tummy ache.

I'll be in the corner, pouting... With a sore bum.

Workout in but no run

2011-11-17T10:04:00.000-05:00

I'm in Toronto this week for a conference.

Gotta get the workouts in right? Right. Crucially I made the poor decision not to pack outdoor running gear. Why would I do such a silly thing? Well, my hotel has a gym. Perfect! Alarm goes at 6:30 this morning and off I go to the Fitness Centre!

Fitness Centre: It's an rinky dinky after thought, tucked way at the back of the building, next to service elevators and un-hotel-carpeted space. Hotel carpets are a psychedelic trip. Every single one of them. Where do they find these things?! Anyway, I made the safari trek through the labyrinth of halls to the "Fitness Centre". I opened the door and there is a small room, no windows, dim lights and five cardio machines. And a line up.

It feels like minus five degrees Celsius outside. Remember that crucially poor decision to not pack outdoor running gear? Sh*t.

Alright, I'm a smart girl. I've got the power of the internet in a little plastic box in my hand. Surely I can still figure out how to break a sweat today. Check, check and check! 100 jumping jacks, 75 squats, 50 walking lunges, 50 mountain climbers, 10 pushups, a weak sauce 30 second plank and 20minutes later, I'm sweaty and jelly-legged. Add in my 10minute walk this morning and again home tonight, that's 40minutes of exercise. Hopefully there won't be a line-up at the Fitness Centre(!) tonight.

Yesterday, I didn't get a workout in but I did mess up Google and went on a wild goose chase, correction - lengthy walk - to go for din din and bevvies with @bigbrnz @Wardy_ and @keilhammer. I definitely ploughed through 2 pints, 1/3rd of a bottle of wine, and STEAK. Sooooo good. Even better company. It was also a very motivational evening, with a "I'm gonna workout tomorrow, you'd better get your ass out of bed and workout too" flavour to it. So I did. Despite roadblocks.

7 mile long run: DONE

2011-11-14T23:08:00.001-05:00

Yeah. That's right. Ran 7.2 miles (11.6km) in the dark and only got frightened by one bunny.

I'm awesome.

Night night!

Last week... gone.

2011-11-14T12:30:00.000-05:00

Last week I was MIA.

Monday I was super tired from all the training the week before. Decided to take a rest day.
Tuesday and Wednesday I was sick, possibly with food poisoning. Five lbs lost in two days in probably the least pleasant of ways.
Thursday was soccer. Felt weak and my stomach was still sore.
Friday off day.
Saturday and Sunday was spent eating Thanksgiving bounty at my parents' house. There was no working out. Just a light walk on Sunday.

So here it is Monday once again and did Hoodie get up and get her ass out the door for a run this morning? No. She elected to sleep until 7:45am.

Not only did I not get a run in this morning I also had the sad realization on my drive to work that I would miss all daylight and likely would have to run in the dark tonight. Late to work = late leaving work + needing to get groceries + put dinner on the table = late, dark workout.

There's also the added dilemma of what to do with my training schedule? Do I skip last week altogether and proceed to week three OR do I do week two this week and not complete week 12?

I'm very unsure of what to do here. Any suggestions?

Rosy Cheeks!

2011-11-05T14:13:00.001-04:00

Just nicely in from a 35min shake down ride with Ginger. Learned a few things:
1. The saddle is still iffy. I'm very sorry lady parts.
2. 5 degrees Celsius means put warmer socks on or booties.
3. I have the neck and shoulder strength of my 93 year old great grandmother. Maybe not even that much. Plank meet Hoodie. Hoodie meet Plank.
4. Aerobars are the most scariest things ever and the most exhilarating.
5. I'm not too comfortable in the aero position at 46km/h.

I also did a 30min tempo run. I hit and held BQ pace for 12mins and then mentally wet the bed. Was supposed to make it to 15mins. Ah well. Next week I'll get there.

What is your weekend workout plan?

whirlwind

2011-11-04T12:24:00.000-04:00

Right now it seems as though life and work are super busy, a whirlwind if you will. Thankfully, running is doing a great job at keeping me sane. This week I've really cranked out the workouts. In fact I'm really impressed with me. I actually hauled my ass off the couch on Wednesday night at 10PM and got my work out done. Despite the cat attempting to keep me pinned to the couch. Below is my week summary of workouts.

Completed workouts:

Monday - missed workout.

Tuesday - hill repeats run and soccer

Wednesday - 5K run

Thursday - spin, strength and soccer

Friday - REST!

Planned workouts:

Saturday - tempo run

Sunday - 10K long run.

Other obsession consuming my attention lately is pinterest.

Head over here to see see my Friday funny: http://pinterest.com/pin/441176805/

Great night for a barefoot 5K

2011-11-02T22:19:00.001-04:00

Well... Almost barefoot.

Day three, in the bag.

deep breath I have some news

2011-11-01T12:31:00.000-04:00

This is a big deal. *deep breath* I have some news.

No, I'm not pregnant.

I'm going to run the Ottawa Marathon on Sunday 27 May, 2012 and I'm shooting for a Boston Qualifying time.

Oh my god, I've said it. This is a big deal. KB and I are both committing to this goal. She and I are in the same age category and we both need to run absolutely no more than 3:35. That's an hour and 10 minutes off my marathon time. (cue butterflies in my stomach and general feeling of nausea.)

The last few weeks have been a bit of a roller coaster for me and as a result, I've been running like a madwoman. About four or five days a week, you can find me pounding the pavement, trying desperately to hang on to my sanity.

Two weekends ago I ran 7K with SK and it slipped by so quickly. Last weekend I ran 8K back home in Goderich and wanted to go much further. I was afraid of being accused of trying to run from my demons (aka Mom would get worried about me and drive out to pick me up) so I cut it back. During the week I'm getting in at least two 5K runs, a bike ride on the trainer in the basement, and a 6.6K run. And I'm feeling amazing. So logically, my head turns to "I wonder what we are capable of?" Not to mention a friend, MC, ran his first marathon at Niagara Falls on the 23rd and said, "I'm super proud, but I want to do another one and do it faster." Which is pretty much exactly what I said after mine. Yet another spark in the fire... Finally, I saw KB on Friday night. She and I chatted about a spring marathon and our parallel goals of 'better' and 'faster'. So that, dear reader, is how I got to "I'm going to do another marathon and I'm going to qualify for Boston while doing it."

"That's great Hoodie," you say, "spout off lots of big talk. Where's the plan Hoodie? Where's the PLAN?!?" Well, rest assured good friend. There is a plan and it started yesterday.

The Plan.
Starting yesterday I'm doing the Hal Higdon 12 Week Intermediate Speed Work prep. See below for the bang it started off with...

After the 12 Weeks of Hal, I'm moving on to 18 (more) Weeks of Hal. Again, an intermediate training program.

Status Update:
Day one: failed to run 5K. I ate Halloween candy, sat on the couch, and gushed over this cuteness:

Day two: because of time constraints, swapped the scheduled workout with the Wednesday workout. Completed 4.3K and 3 x hill sprint repeats.
_____________________________________

To refresh your memory, or to learn about how the marathon went for me the first time, read marathon before 25 - complete.

Check out the pictures at marathon pics almost a month late.

There you go. That's my big news. Hells yes bitches.

www.runottawa.com

I really have to slow down

2011-10-17T18:57:00.000-04:00

This weekend was a bit hectic. It started with a Friday night Oktoberfest adventure at Concordia with some of my favourite people:

(note: not all favourite people are pictured)

ME's highschool friend, BMcN, lost his Oktoberfest virginity in fine style, winning at crossbow but losing to a girl at fastest pitch.

A special shout out to our gracious, lovely and beautiful designated driver: SR. Thank you so much for getting us home safe and sound!

After having ~~too many~~ several wobbly pops, Saturday morning, ME, KB and I hopped in the Land Yacht and scooted to Toronto for the BICYCLE FALL BLOWOUT SALE(1). I have been jonesing to buy a new bicyclette and while I didn't get my first choice, the 2010 Cervelo P2 w/ carbon frame, I did get a brand new 2011 Cervelo P1 with an aluminum frame!!!

Ginger

Ginger, crammed in the back of the Land Yacht

I have named her Ginger. We have to go to Wheels of Bloor to get pedals and a fitting done but I'm pretty much over the moon! I want to ride so bad!

After that, ma petite soeur came to town and I showed her a good time (2) by 1. not really being all that exciting for night life (Chigaco Pub, 1/2 of Shaun of the Dead and early to bed) and 2. not really having much food in the house. Sorry LH. I'll be better next time.

Sunday morning came bright and early and damn was it cold. ME, KB and I ran the Oktoberfest 5K (3). It was great fun and went by too quickly. I finished in 25:52 (26:26 gun time), good enough for 6/54 in my age group and 201/840 overall. Not the top 3 finish I was hoping for but still respectable. ME had a solid race and beat me and achieved his top 10 finish goal, placing 9/35 in his age group. Well done Babies!

Sunday afternoon involved napping and groceries and cooking.

That was my weekend. Freakin' busy.

(1) capitalization is theirs, not mine. That btw, is the actual name of the show. No joke.
(2) I did, at least, have some spiced rum on hand for her. It's the small wins...
(3) There was a lot of bitching and moaning but I did it. I can wear the shirt without shame.

saddle sores

2011-10-06T19:00:00.000-04:00

In the words of Aerosmith: "I'm back! I'm back in the saddle again!" And boy does it hurt so good.

I've worked out everyday since Sunday (thank you KT, your let's get back to basics week of pain has encouraged me to get out everyday) and I'm deliciously sore. The legs are tired, I can't lift my arms over my head, it hurts to cough because I found my abdominal muscles last night and pummeled them, and I'm whipped. Love it.

Yesterday was the realization that TS is gone. She's gone for the rest of the year and while I'm very excited to meet Baby G, I am sadface that my mentor and role model is out of the office...

My BlackBerry Playbook tablet just arrived today! So happy she's here! Pictures of my new baby to come.

time to get back to business. status: in progress.

2011-10-03T18:30:00.000-04:00

ran yesterday. the husband flogged my sorry out of shape ass for 5K at near race pace. I did not barf.

ran this morning. 5.36K at 9:30/M pace. felt good. better than yesterday. husband was not running with me.

sent fat pictures of myself over the internet to a stranger in order to participate in a health challenge. did I mention I'm wearing a bikini and they are unflattering fat photos? ick. I feel like Lindsay Lohan.

so back on the healthy food eating bandwagon as of today. I did not do myself any favours last night by having Swiss Chalet after cleansing for two weeks. my body hates me. must continue to make smarter choices.

note to self: pick some of this up for Thanksgiving.

*happy birthday to Great-Grandma H, CP, JMP of debsaidno.com, and CMcK.

Wasaga 2011 race report

2011-09-23T19:00:00.000-04:00

This year's race was a significant improvement over last year and I'm quite pleased with the outcome!

I really wanted to take some time off the swim and I was successful in that venture. I also did my first race in my Fighting Koala's unitard. That's a bit interesting, not being able to quickly go pee if needed. And there are always nervous pees. Especially because I was really stressed about the swim.

The day was sunny but chilly in the morning. It was really perfect temperature for racing. The water was warmer than last year and it was flat. That was a huge relief after doing an open water swim in Sauble Beach the week before and getting motion sick from the waves rocking me back and forth. My nerves settled right down as soon as I saw that the water was calm and I had a great race. I was a bit chilled to start on the bike, being wet and all but quickly warmed up. By the time I hit the run, it was sunny and warm and I was feeling good.

my results:
overall place 244/399
time 1:35:35.3
age group place 17/39
swim place 33/39 (I beat SIX girls out of the water!)
overall swim place 337/399
swim time 21:09
time/100m 2:50
run up time 0:51 (there is a long way to run before getting to T1)
T1 1:57
bike place 17/39
overall bike place 254/399
bike time 43:04
bike speed 27.9km/h
T2 1:15
run place 15/39
overall run place 213/399
run time 27:22
run pace/km 5:29

Compare with last year's results:
overall place 252/355
time: 1:40:19
age group place 16/25
overall swim place 321/355
swim time 23:34
time/100m 3:09
run up time 0:42
T1 3:37 (um... was I blow drying my hair?!)
overall bike place 236
bike time 42:46
bike speed 28.1 km/h
T2 1:57
overall run place 212
run time 27:46
run pace/km 5:34

Let's analyze this a bit. I did very little training leading up to this year's race because of the wedding. Last year I was coming off an injury so, while I had done a lot more training in the early summer, I'd been off for 6-8wks mid season. So I think fitness levels are probably comparable, yet I took almost 5 minutes off my time! Where were the gains?
Swim - I took more than 2 minutes off here. This is a big deal because the swim is by far the hardest part of the race for me.
Transitions - Again, another 2 minutes or so saving in much faster transitions than last year.
Run - 30 seconds. Not much here but still respectable. I'm excited about this because I want to run the Octoberfest 5K and a respectable 5K time after swimming and biking will hopefully translate into a quick race time.

cleansing

2011-09-22T19:00:00.000-04:00

I'm on a cleanse to cap off a summer of debauchery and over indulgence. It is seven days of taking those crazy horse pills and clean eating, four days of shakes only, and then three days of steamed veggies and protein and more horse pills to 're-populate the flora of my colon'. Nice.

I'm at day three and a half.

Currently feeling: tired.

Today, I fell off the bandwagon and ate Arby's and I viciously paid for it.
Tonight, spaghetti squash and sauce.
Back in the saddle.

vices

2011-09-22T10:49:00.001-04:00

so there is this guy... who works in the factory next to my building... that we think is smoking meth at 9AM in the morning...

do ya think I'm sexy?

2011-09-08T12:30:00.000-04:00

apparently these:

aren't welcome in bed. who'd a thunk it? I hear a resounding 'not sexy' from the audience.

went to visit the awesome people at Runner's Choice last night after our brick work out. ME was in need of tri shorts and he found some awesome Zoot shorts. I picked up these bad boys, some gels and chews. now I just need to make an effort to get into the pool...

last night's workout:

~15K bike - nasty head wind
~4K run - 9:30/M

the calves were protesting when I came off the bike. likely that is the result of me not getting enough water or electrolytes throughout the day. must remember to hydrate better over the next few days.

Wasaga Beach Sprint Triathlon race report 2010 and run up to 2011

2011-09-07T06:00:00.000-04:00

yet another tardy race report for everyone (as in almost a year tardy)!

in September 2010, I finished my very first triathlon. it was a sprint distance tri, so slightly longer than a try-a-tri but nowhere close to the Olympic distance. it was still a big leap for me because it was a 750m swim. I knew I could do the run and bike distances but the real wild card was the swim. I can swim but certainly hadn't done proper training for the distance. I think I'd been in the pool 5 times all summer. not to mention that there's that pesky knee injury I'd sustained about 8hrs after the duathlon in June. that kinda slowed me down all summer long and since I'm moody and whiny, I didn't get in the damn pool.

anyway, I had three goals for the triathlon:

1. don't drown.

2. don't lose your shorts when you whip off your wetsuit.

3. finish.

I can tell you that all goals were completed successfully! I love it when a project goes so smoothly!

well... at least the run and bike portions. I kind of had a major meltdown on the swim. the air horn went to signal the start of the race and me and the 40+ men started. it was cold in the water but not hypothermia inducing. I was shivering anyways b/c of nerves.

hoodieruns              1:40:19

age grp  16/25

swim 23:34

T1 3:37

bike 42:46  (avg km/h 28.1)

T2 1:57

run 27:46  (pace/km 5:34)

now I'm four days out from the 2011 race and I'm nervous. the husband and I did an open water swim in choppy Lake Huron on the weekend. I was motion sick after 10-15mins in the water. hence the nerves. what should I do? Koach and another friend both suggested ear plugs. other friend also suggested non-drowsy ginseng gravol. meep!

I know that this year is going to be slower due to the absence of any training all summer long. the wedding consumed my attention and time. but that's ok. this year's goals are to finish and to do the swim faster than last year. will let you know.

a few changes for hoodieruns

2011-09-06T09:23:00.003-04:00

sorry folks. long time, no write.
I do have some excuses: I got engaged, I got married and now it's September.

but I'm back now. promise.

Montréal Weekend

2011-02-13T19:36:00.000-05:00

Well - a bit late on this week's post but here's a synopsis of my weekend two weekends ago.

Friday afternoon was spent snoozing. Evening we got some CC and then went to Peel Pub for dinner and pitchers. Home to the Sheridan for more CC. I fell asleep.

Saturday morning we hit jBloom and I purchased a super cute pair of cream pumps. Then off to Simon's for clothes and sunnies. ME bought some crazy man undies that put Bjorn Börg to shame.

In the afternoon, we went to La Cage Aux Sports - Saturday afternoon to watch the Habs beat the Rangers 2-0. (SQUEE!!) Evening activities included more shopping for a short sparkle skirt and a jacket and tie (Happy Birthday ME!). Then off to Dundee's Bar and Grill for dinner - School House Cab-Sauv was yummy and smooth.

Sunday was spent doing more shopping and then... HABS GAME!!!! So much fun! They lost unfortunately but we had a blast! The Bell Centre was a great atmosphere and cheering in French and English was cool. Afterwards we booked it to Peel Pub to watch to Super Bowl. We came home with random new caps (LNH!) and a silicon collapsible bowl. #canyousaytoomuchtodrink?

Monday we slept in and the jetted home.

Above are a bunch of photos from the weekend.

Up next: a new job, a birthday prank and Las Vegas.

(Koalas training and eating well... Fallen off that bandwagon. The long sorry crawl back up will be coming soon too!)

The much awaited resolutions post

2011-02-03T22:47:00.001-05:00

Allie says "Arrrrrr." She wanted to be featured on the blog this week and did her best pirate for your viewing pleasure.

¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤

It's Chinese New Year today. Year of the Rabbit starts tomorrow. What better time to publish some resolutions than now?

In no particular order, here they are:

• This blog is supposed to be about keeping me motivated. I've been doing a shoddy job of posting to it. Resolution: weekly posts. That's only 52 posts a year, minus the 4 I've already missed.

• Get serious about training and racing. Consistently complete training prescribed by Koach Koala. Resolution: sign up for and complete 3 triathlons and a half marathon.

• Getting serious about training and racing means getting better at managing my time. Resolution: make weekly plans for work, training, activities, and meals. Follow them.

• Food consumption is rampant. Not acceptable. Resolution: keep a food journal daily.

• Take better care of my ass. Resolution: drink more water. (go see The Ass Backwards Diet at http://theassbackwardsdiet.blogspot.com/)

Pretty manageable I think.

Gung hei faat coi!

It's been awhile...

2010-12-31T08:08:00.001-05:00

Here it is, already the last day of 2010. This year has whipped by and the last half of it seems to have completely slipped through my fingers. I'm now sure when or how but it's gone.
I've been negligent with blogging as of late. As my motivation to workout dipped toward the end of the year, so did my ability to write about my skipped workouts. Despite the lackluster finish to the year in terms of workouts, there have been a few very big highlights.
In October, I (mostly) completed the KW Bikram 4 for 4 Challenge. I attended 4 Bikram classes a week for 4 weeks, except in the last week when life got in the way and I missed 2 classes. This experience was incredible. Bikram challenges your mind and body in ways that are difficult to describe. It sounds cliché, and I'll be the first to admit it. Bikram changed my body, making me leaner, stronger and yes, a bit more flexible. These tight hammies are hard to conquer but I made some progress. What was maybe most surprising was the improvement in the range of motion in my injured right knee. My physiotherapist tells me that she's very impressed with my progress. I am too; my knee is mostly pain-free through my activities. Admittedly though, I haven't been running or playing as much soccer.
Another highlight has been the progress in the pool. Throughout the fall, I made a few appearances at the Laurier pool. Koach Koala has been putting me through the paces and my level of comfort in the water has greatly improved. Not to mention my stamina and tolerance of laps!
Overall, 2010 was a great year - I accomplished a lot over the last 12 months. I won my age group in a duathalon and was the 4th woman in overall, I completed my first triathalon and accomplished all my goals (1. Don't drown. 2. Don't lose my shorts when stripping off my wetsuit. 3. Finish.), lost 15lbs with my training... although I've gained 4lbs back this holiday season I think!
Given this base of awesomeness, 2011 should be even better!

**New Years Resolutions post to come in the new year.**

Oktoberfest 5K race report

2010-10-18T12:30:00.001-04:00

before I jump into this race report, let me set the scene for you:
it's Oktoberfest time here in KW and so I over indulged Friday night at Concordia and then there was a bachelorette on Saturday night and there was more indulgence there... and well, you get the idea I *might* have been a tiny bit under the weather.

Sunday morning rolls around and this is the dialog in our bedroom:
ME "You need to get up. We're going to be late."
hoodie "I DON'T WAAAANNNNNAAAA."
ME "Get your ass out of bed. You missed the bike show yesterday because you were too hungover. You'll better if you just get out and run this race."
hoodie "FINE. Mom."
ME rolls his eyes.

in the end he was right.

Sunday morning was sunny and beautiful and it was a great morning for a run. not too chilly and not too hot. the start was very slow since pokey people think they are going to win the race and line up right near the start line rather than in the back where they belong so there was lots of bobbing and weaving I had to do for the first KM. after that it thinned out a bit and I was able to hit race pace. I blew through 3 red lights under the watchful and protective eye of the Waterloo Regional Police Service (three cheers to the police women and men that kept all the racers safe!) and skipped the water table (three cheers for the race volunteers! thank you for giving us your Sunday morning!). overall, I ran a solid race but probably should have pushed a bit harder through KMs 2-4. pushed hard through the last KM but not hard enough since I a) didn't catch Koach Koala even though I could see him ahead of me and b) didn't dry heave at the finish line.

chip time: 25:26
gun time: 26:13
age group place: 4/55
gender place 80/525

goal for next year: hit the freaking podium.

Gravenhurst 2010 sprint du - race report

2010-09-07T18:00:00.000-04:00

my bad kids. I've been very negligent. I owe you guys a race report, so finally... I'm getting it written!

LM and I drove to Gravenhurst together from Wasaga Beach the morning of the race. LM drives everywhere like her hair is on fire so it was a quick ride. good thing b/c we were both suffering from pre-race nerves and coffee related issues... read between the lines... you'll figure it out.

we got to the race in time to see the triathlon-ers coming in from their swim. the transition area and expo/milling area was a bit of chaos but there was lots of cheering going on and the volunteers and police kept everyone safe. I love that energy of races - the crowds, the early morning, the nervousness... so exciting!

LM and I checked in, got marked up and walked back to the car to grab our bikes and gear. transition opened a few minutes after we arrived back so we set up our transition area, peed again, said hello to some friends and warmed up. my warm up was pretty weak... definitely didn't warm up like I should have. then again I probably shouldn't have drank as much rye as I did the night before.

we lined up in the finishing chute for the start of the du. as we were lined up, a racer from earlier in the morning was coming in and she got to run down the chute with 120+ people cheering her on. must have been a pretty cool experience!

so the race started off with a 5km run on a mostly flat course. it was perfect weather, sunny and not too hot. I finished the 5km in 27:34 (5:31/km). ripped through T1 in 1:16 and took off on the bike. the ride was 20km of a gently rolling out and back loop. I was quite pleased with my bike time, 43:29 (27.6km/hr). normally I'm the slowest at Koala's practice so it was great to actually pass a couple people on the bike. didn't fall off at the turnaround so that was good. last up was the 2.5k run. I rolled it up and smoked it. in the last 100m I saw a woman ahead of me that I made my rabbit and ran her down. I passed her in the last 20meters or so in a dead sprint. there were 2 dry heaves at the end of the race. and a big smile.

27th place overall
1st woman in age group
4th woman overall
5k time 27:34 (5:31/km)
T1 1:16
20k bike time 43:29 (27.6 km/h)
T2 1:01
2.5k time 13:18 (5:19/km)

stinky shirt update!

2010-08-04T11:14:00.000-04:00

I've completed my review of Agion Active's odour elimination technology (the stink shirt!)

read my review and vote for me here: http://stinkatnothing.com/index.php/2010/08/10k-in-a-tutu/

a blue post

2010-07-27T19:00:00.006-04:00

I owe you all an apology for not posting lately and not updating you on my duathlon two weekends ago. unfortunately I've had an injury sideline me and I'm working on getting better and trying not to feel too sorry for myself. being injured sucks, especially just when I was feeling so great.

the day after I ran my duathlon (proper race report to come, along with pictures), I played soccer. it was a physical game but nothing out of the ordinary happened in it. my right knee felt funny afterwards but I assumed that it was just tight. I went for an easy run to loosen it up. everything felt fine after the run. I crashed on the couch to watch True Blood and when I got up... bam. swollen, sore, not fully load bearing, can't full extend the leg. f_ck.

I saw my GP on thursday - he says just a strain or possibly a Baker's Cyst, continue icing and advil. he prescribes physio at my request.

saw my physiotherapist on thursday afternoon - she says torn meniscus. f_ckstockings. continue icing and advil. NO PIVOT SPORTS. cycle and swim (flutter kick) are ok. take me behind the barn and shoot me.

today the ultrasound confirmed no cysts.

today the physio repeated: NOT PIVOT SPORTS. cycle and swim only. race on Aug 7th? don't get your hopes up.

I want to cry.

the injury and lack of exercise is hard; you're frustrated because you can't workout and since you can't workout you don't have your usual stress relievers (vicious circle) and then all that crankiness starts to seep into other facets of your life. I've been feeling pretty down but was looking forward to today's physio and ultrasound appointments. I was hoping for great news - "Wow, this is much better! Clean bill of health!" or at least "Yes, you can run again." no luck.

so, off to Koala's swim tonight and possibly a bike ride too... I'm going stircrazy.

dry run for Sunday's race and the lucky green shorts

2010-07-15T12:00:00.000-04:00

last night the Koala's had a killer workout. Koach had us do a mini du as a dry run for the team's racing activities this weekend. several of us are racing at Bellewood this weekend and LM and I are racing in Gravenhurst. to help us practise transition, Koach had us start out running (10mins hard) and then hop on the bike for (about 45mins total) 4 x 3mins 90% effort w/ 6 mins of rest between repeats. lastly we came back and ran another 10mins.

I wasn't sure how I'd feel given that I'd tweaked my groin in the soccer tourney on the weekend and was still feeling the effects of sleep deprivation. I told Koach that I was feeling about 70% but in the end, after a solid workout, I was feeling good. today, I'm still feeling good. no sore muscles, groin feels fine. this all bodes well for a good race this weekend... assuming LM and I don't over indulge with the adult bevvies on Sat!

to help me put in a good workout last night, I wore my lucky green shorts. they were a reward to myself after my very first 10K back in 3rd year university. I think these shorts are a green sister pair to the Bowl Full of Sunshine Shorts worn (sported? rocked?) by Steve In A Speedo?! so to maintain a shred of modesty on the bike I wore spandies underneath.

don't I look like kalediscope puke?!

HE > will try and get my schedule posted for you ASAP.

first full week of July - the 'run' down (hehehe pun intended!)

2010-07-06T16:45:00.000-04:00

Monday (5) - 55 min soccer
Tuesday (6) - 1 hr swim, 45 min speed work
Wednesday (7) - 1.5hr brick (1hr bike/.5hr run)
Thursday (8) - off
Friday (9) - 1x 70 min soccer game
Saturday - 2x 70 min soccer games
Sunday - rest or 1x 70 min soccer game

june challenge summation

2010-07-02T11:00:00.000-04:00

here's the summation of the june challenge:

PASS

Partial pass

FAIL

1 - 15 mins stretch, Koala's run (scheduled: 30mins yoga, Koala's run)

2 - 40mins swim (scheduled: Koala's bike - cancelled, inclement weather)

3 - 45mins run (scheduled: 45min run)4 - soccer (scheduled: soccer)

5 - none (scheduled: 20mins run, 1hr bike)

6 - none (scheduled: 30mins bike, 30mins run)

7 - golf (scheduled: 30mins weights, golf)

8 - Koala's run (scheduled: 30mins yoga, Koala's run)

9 - Koala's bike/run (scheduled: Koala's bike/run)

10 - 1hr Koala's swim (scheduled: 45 min run)

11 - soccer (scheduled: soccer)

12 - 20mins run, 40mins bike (scheduled: 20mins run, 75mins bike)

13 - none (scheduled: 40mins bike, 40mins run)

14 - 30mins weights, 30mins run (scheduled: 30mins weights, golf)

15 - 30mins shred, Koala's run (scheduled: yoga, Koala's run)

16 - Koala's bike (scheduled: Koala's bike/run)

17 - none (scheduled: 45mins run, beach vball)

18 - soccer (scheduled: soccer)

19 - 20mins walk (scheduled: easy 20min run)

20 - Waterloo Classic 10K (scheduled: Waterloo Classic 10km, 30-60mins aerobic bike)

21 - golf (scheduled: 30mins weights, golf)

22 - Koala's swim and Koala's run (scheduled: yoga, Koala's run)

23 - Koala's bike and run (scheduled: Koala's bike/run)

24 - off (scheduled: 45mins run)

25 - soccer (scheduled: soccer )

26 - off (scheduled: run 20mins/bike 40mins/run 20mins)

27 - off (scheduled: bike/run )

28 - 45mins run (scheduled: weights, golf)

29 - off (scheduled: yoga, Koala's run)

30 - 35km Koala's bike (scheduled: Koala's bike/run)

I fell off the exercise bandwagon pretty hard on the last week of June. very disappointing. that said, the run on the 28th was pretty killer. I felt absolutely fantastic and I negative split the run. my mile splits were sub 9:00/mile except for the first one which is pretty quick for me!

overall:
I took 8 days off in June.
I worked out 22 days in June.
For 8 days out of the 22, I modified my prescribed routine.
I lost 6.2lbs in June.
June challenge = SUCCESSFUL.

July's goal:
I've been asked to post exactly what workouts I'm doing in July by a friend so for this month, I'll try to post weekly what workouts I have when and duration/intensity/details of the workouts.

TUTU pictures!

2010-06-24T12:49:00.004-04:00

Blogger is being a hoser so here's a link:

http://picasaweb.google.com/runwaterloo/WaterlooClassic2010#5486187951054063170

bike failure!

2010-06-24T12:38:00.003-04:00

the little blue monster, seen here, has had a wee bit of a meltdown and is currently in the shop. poor guy decided to spit bits at me and not change gears for my back gears. I wasn't happy with this behaviour so the little blue monster is at the doctors to get fixed.

I still managed to get almost an hour of cycling in last night, interpersed with a couple of 20min runs. a tough workout for sure! Koach is preparing us for race season with double bricks! despite the hard effort last night I still didn't sleep well.

tutu pictures are coming I swear... just waiting for the race photos to go up so I can link to them!

10K PR!

2010-06-21T12:05:00.001-04:00

yeah! 10K PR (personal record) in the books!

my previous 10K best was 55:08, and I trimmed that to 54:43 on Sunday! woo hoo! that time was good enough for 9/38 (a top ten finish ma!) in my age group and 61st out of a field of 246 women. smiles all around :o) oh yeah, and all this was done in a tutu that was pretty much like running with a parachute on. I'll post a picture once the race photos are available. (because I'm awesome like that and didn't document any of my day... duh)

at the race, I was hoping to meet Heather of Books and Quilts who is an awesome volunteer and runner on the K-W running scene. unfortunately I didn't find her. Heather - I'm sorry we didn't connect!

update on the june challenge and my health

2010-06-18T12:00:00.004-04:00

so far I've been doing ok with my June challenge.
I've got my workouts for the month written below and for the days that are done, I've included their status.

PASS
Partial pass
FAIL

1 - 15 mins stretch, Koala's run (scheduled: 30mins yoga, Koala's run)
2 - 40mins swim (scheduled: Koala's bike - cancelled, inclement weather)
3 - 45mins run (scheduled: 45min run)
4 - soccer (scheduled: soccer)
5 - none (scheduled: 20mins run, 1hr bike)
6 - none (scheduled: 30mins bike, 30mins run)
7 - golf (scheduled: 30mins weights, golf)
8 - Koala's run (scheduled: 30mins yoga, Koala's run)
9 - Koala's bike/run (scheduled: Koala's bike/run)
10 - 1hr Koala's swim (scheduled: 45 min run)
11 - soccer (scheduled: soccer)
12 - 20mins run, 40mins bike (scheduled: 20mins run, 75mins bike)
13 - none (scheduled: 40mins bike, 40mins run)
14 - 30mins weights, 30mins run (scheduled: 30mins weights, golf)
15 - 30mins shred, Koala's run (scheduled: yoga, Koala's run)
16 - Koala's bike (scheduled: Koala's bike/run)
17 - none (scheduled: 45mins run, beach vball)
18 - (scheduled: soccer)
19 - (scheduled: easy 20min run)
20 - (scheduled: Waterloo Classic 10km, 30-60mins aerobic bike)
21 - (scheduled: 30mins weights, golf)
22 - (scheduled: yoga, Koala's run)
23 - (scheduled: Koala's bike/run)
24 - (scheduled: 45mins run)
25 - (scheduled: off)
26 - (scheduled: run 20mins/bike 40mins/run 20mins)

this has been a really interesting exercise because it's showed me which days I tend to bail on (hello Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays, you guys are really hard to work out on!) and has helped to improve my overall consistency and commitment.

in other news, I've been working on leaning out and dropping some weight in preparation for the multi-sport season and a fall marathon. obviously I've still got a ways to go (thank you wet suit for reminding me of that...) but I'm pleased with my progress so far. it's a very fine balance to strike, making sure I'm getting enough calories to fuel my workouts and keep my performance up but not too many that I have the opportunity to store them. this week I definitely did not strike a balance. on Wednesday night's bike I was dogging it pretty badly. I just didn't feel fresh or strong. the legs were heavy, I was very tired. since I struggled so much on the bike I decided to skip the run portion and head home early. probably for the best. I'm feeling much better having taken yesterday off altogether and getting some more sleep. last night my calorie deficit from earlier in the week caught up with me and I was ravenous. ate so much last night that I was still feeling sick and overstuffed when I woke up this morning!

on Monday this week I had my followup blood pressure appointment. my readings were within normal range this time which was great news! yay for drinking lots more water! (yes, I know that you are supposed to watch salt intake too and I discussed my diet with a nutritionist at my first appointment and she felt that I wasn't consuming enough salt to be causing my high blood pressure on its own. she and my doctor both felt it was likely my training and work stress coupled with chronic dehydration causing problems.) next to get off the list is an ECHO for a heart murmur. that's not until July though.

wetsuit!

2010-06-17T15:04:00.005-04:00

a big thank you thank you to my lovely friends and family for their generous birthday gifts! because of them, I've made a purchase....

a wetsuit!

(KT says "you look so professional" my brain says "oh, hello. not much left to the imagination there...")

I'm very excited for this arrival. it's making my decision to do a sprint tri this fall all the more real.

now to get out for some open water swims so I can try this sucker out!

ps - thank you little Hood for the hot pink swim cap > it's going to go very well don't you think?!

a thank you and a tutu plan

2010-06-08T12:10:00.001-04:00

first off, a thank you:

lovely Julie at debsaidno.com, wrote an awesome post about reasonably priced sunglasses which she claims started with me but my belief is she's too modest and really she's the one with the great style. thank you for the mention Julie! you all should follow her blog. it's all about real life looking and feeling great.

so, remember this?

this is the stink at nothing shirt, featured in my hoodie has been MIA post.

whelp, on 20 June, I'll be running the Waterloo Classic 10K in that and this:

after the half marathon fail, it's time to reinvigorate my running with some fun!

ME is gonna love showing up with me in this.

ahh... the scent of chlorine

2010-06-03T10:21:00.003-04:00

I jumped in feet first last night. literally.

KT, the bestest workout buddy, invited me over for a swim last night. we swam for 40mins.
omg, I'd totally forgotten what a full body workout swimming is and how fast my heart rate skyrockets while swimming! it was awesome!

according to an online calories burned calculator, I burned approx 275 calories. not too shabby. running is more efficient but swimming is a better full body workout.

I could do 2 full lengths without stopping and probably could have done more but I was getting water in my ears and that was super uncomfortable. need to pick up some ear plugs. speaking of stuff to pick up, I luckily thought to try on my bathing suit before heading over to KT's. good thing I did because after owning that sucker for a full decade (admittedly not wearing it much) the elastic had kicked the bucket and the ass of the suit was approximately at my knees. nothing like dragging a parachute behind you while you swim. so, I ripped over to the mall and picked up a new TYR suit that is thankfully less obnoxiously coloured than old Droopy Bottom.

the swim was precipitated by KT and my respective sports getting cancelled due to weather last night. and while I really need to get back on my bike, I was really glad to hop in the pool!

ottawa 1/2 marathon report and june's challenge

2010-06-01T12:30:00.001-04:00

sunday, ME, his little sister HE, and I ran the Ottawa 1/2 Marathon. HE was running with a friend and had a comfortable and happy race. she said she felt strong and enjoyed her race. ME kicked ass - he ran sub two hours! 1:59 and change! now that he's achieved that I think he's more motivated to train properly for a 1/2 to see what exactly he's capable of. I was very jealous of him but that's b/c I mentally had a terrible race.

my race went like this:
kms 1-12 > felt awesome, was clipping along at around 1:57/1:58 half marathon pace
kms 12-15 > bad cramping, tried to run through but ended up wasting time trying to push through. mentally checked out. started beating myself up a bit. convinced myself I'd lost any chance at the sub 2hrs goal.
kms 15/16 > saw the sign and checked my watch, continued beating myself up.
kms 16-17 > started to realized I messed up and could have pulled my shit together
kms 17-21.1 > had a 3 mins deficit to make up and had I realized it before the 17km mark I probably could have done it.

finish: 2:02:40

that was a 8min course PB and my fastest time this year in a half. when I finished I was a mess, so upset, frustrated and in tears. it wasn't until later on, on the drive home that I started to reassess my race and realized I do have things to be proud of for this race. a course PB and my fastest time this year and an age group PB. so not as bad as I first thought :o)

june's challenge

so, I've got a new, refreshed motivation to kill a half marathon this fall. and I mean it! that means I need to get on the work outs now, especially to build a strong fitness base for the summer's set of multisport races, a fall half marathon and full marathon ! as a result of all these big plans, I've set myself a june goal:

complete all scheduled workouts Koach Koala has assigned.
-this translates into at least one activity a day for the month of June! giddy-up!!

today's schedule: 1/2hr yoga, Koalas run practise.

easy peasy lemon-squeezy!

happy birthday to me!

2010-05-26T11:18:00.002-04:00

my birthday was yesterday and a bunch of friends came by our place for beers and icecream to surprise me after koala's practise. thank you everyone for coming by! thank you also H family for the throw back to my 5year old self!

I'm much healthier this week, having fought off a cold and pink eye (yarrrr). did the Koala's workout last night in W'Loo park and felt good. there is hope for this weekend's half marathon! I was definitely concerned on the weekend when I was still feeling miserable and an easy 5km run put my heart rate in to the 200's. not good. everything seems to be good now though and systems are go for this weekend. it'll definitely be interesting to see if I can maintain a sub-2hr pace to get me to my goal: sub-2hrs or bust.

update on the stink shirt:
after two 5km runs on the weekend and never really getting dry it was... well... skanky. I had to break and wash it. it'll be interesting to see if that smell lingers. you know the one, the smell that hangs on to tech fabrics and just always kind of stinks even when the clothing item in question is clean.
it's currently hanging to dry so it'll get another use tonight when I get out for a bike ride.

training update to come.

I think I dodged a bullet??

2010-05-18T09:10:00.004-04:00

I'd signed up for the Freewheels Project put on by Ziggy's Cycle to celebrate their 25th anniversary. if you follow the link you won't see my name listed as one of the 25 selected applicants. but, I think I dodged a bullet.

the wait for the last few days was killing me. I really wanted to participate but after looking at my commitments list and thinking through the logistics of biking to golf on Monday nights with my golfbag... well, I started having doubts. then the doubts became pangs of anxiety. what if I get selected?! what was I thinking? adding in another 'thing' to my list of commitments. I mean the project is a brilliant idea and will definitely help raise awareness of cycling issues and opportunities in our community. but, I do not need to add to my 'stuff to get done' list by biking everywhere and having to plan the logistics for that AND blogging about it. that would have probably put me over the edge.

and the thought of me biking with a golfbag sending me into fits of laughter. I tried to find a picture of what that might look like and my search turned up these gems:

smiles for my monday morning

2010-05-17T09:46:00.003-04:00

so this is the week of refocusing and getting back to being consistent.

I got a good night's sleep, packed my lunch, and got to work early.

at 6:15 this morning I had a purring happy kitty on one side of me, a big warm sleeping boy on the other side, the sunlight was coming through the blinds and the birds were singing. it was a great start to the day and the week.

got to work and checked my feeds and saw these two gems:
New Toy from my friend K(F)S about breaking the rules.
Nailing It from runnr grrl about being alive and embracing the positive

it's going to be a great week.

hoodie has been MIA in more ways than just blogging

2010-05-14T12:30:00.001-04:00

the last three weeks have just disappeared into a blackhole of... um. I don't even know how to describe it. they are just gone.

work has been wretched lately. big deadlines and conflicting project schedules. long hours. boo hoo poor me. I'm gainfully employed with a great group of people and a great company and there shouldn't be an excuse there but work has really been at the root of me not getting anything else done lately.

as Koach Koala can attest, my attendance and commitment to Koala's workouts has been lackluster, shitty in fact, in the last two weeks. I've haven't made any beach volleyball games yet. haven't been running on my own. energy levels have been low. I've been eating like an American.

lastly, i'm stretched way too thin. see my weekly schedule below. note that it doesn't include the other workouts for koalas.

current wkly schedule:
mon - golf (7 more weeks)
tues - koalas run
wed - koalas bike
thurs - beach vball
fri - soccer
sat - long bike
sun - long run, baseball

something has got to give so...

proposed wkly schedule:
mon - golf (7 more weeks)
tues - koalas run
wed - koals bike
thurs - free (sub for vball when needed)
fri - soccer
sat - long bike
sun - long run, baseball

that minor thursday tweak, + a recommitment to getting my workouts in, + new badass red highlights, + new bike shoes that don't make my feet fall asleep + better eating = kicking ass and taking names.

in other news, because I really just cannot slow down...

I'm an official tester for Agion Active (http://www.stinkatnothing.com/)!

this is me in my special test shirt at my volleyball tournament a couple weeks ago (isn't that a hawt double chin?!):

one half of it is treated with Agion Active and the other half isn't.

from their website:

"Agion Active is the latest in stink technology for apparel and gear and is so new it’s not even on the market yet. The patented system is built into apparel and will eliminate odor from any source."

Agion Active isn't a clothing company - they make this awesome anti-stink stuff and it WORKS.

no joke. I sweated all day in that shirt, balled it up in a backpack and then pulled it out two days later and wore it for Koala's run practise. one side was a bit smelly, other side... nothing. up next: hot yoga. my yoga mat is stank so if this shirt doesn't get stinked up from it... it'll be a miracle. as part of my testing I don't really plan to wash the shirt, just to see what happens. will keep you posted! FYI - ME, always the voice of reason said it would be bad to wear the shirt everyday for a month for every activity as one side of it IS NOT treated. point taken.

I've also signed up for my races this summer:

Gravenhurst – sprint du – July 17-18
Bracebridge – sprint du – Aug 7-8
Wasaga – sprint tri – Sept 11 > I kinda just signed up for this one without looking at how far I'd have to swim. this sucker is 750m. oops. guess I'll be hitting the pool.

and one last thing. I've got a four day bootcamp for PMP coming up in June. I have to study for an exam and I have to have work sheets done and a bunch of stuff memorized by then! dude. I haven't written an exam in years and haven't had to memorize anything since approximately HIGHSCHOOL. balls.

PacMan made my morning

2010-05-14T11:06:00.002-04:00

it's kind of running related and it's badass. lovesit.

Naughty hoodie didn't do her workouts

2010-04-24T15:31:00.001-04:00

Last week was a bit of a test as we were travelling for ME's 2nd Boston Marathon adventure. A pass was defined as getting in 2 workouts in the 4 days we were away. FAIL.

I did get lots of activity in last week, hitting my projected number of hours of exercise as prescribed as Koach Koala (clever eh... Like that?). The exercise was mostly unstructured and not sport specific though so I guess should be filled under the 'Fun and dirty but not really training' column.

As a result, I'm playing a bit of catch up and trying to get errands done as well. I'm currently sitting in Shoppers Drug Mart waiting for a prescription to get filled. Ran here and looks like I need to run to yoga after if I'm going to hope to make it in time. Did NOT plan this well. Ah well.

C'est la vie and I'm embracing it and giving myself the gift of exercise.

week's activities

2010-04-12T12:16:00.002-04:00

mmmkay. pretty good week for me. completed 8/10 scheduled workouts, which isn't equivalent to 90% of my training load. I completed about 75% of my training load but didn't do my long run yesterday or 30mins of yoga on Thurs.

the weekend was kinda crazy with ME's cousin here from Orlando and a birthday party and my cousins in town w/ a Dallas (the bar) adventure planned. so if you're reading between the lines here - I drank too much and ate very poorly pretty much since Thursday.

aside from the previously mentioned workouts, I did:
Tues - 1hr volleyball.
Wed - 30 min tempo run; 1hr bike
Thurs - 1hr run
Fri - off
Sat - 1hr bike
Sun - off

ME has a cold and we're 7 days until the Boston Marathon and that is Not Good. my resting heart rate was elevated a little bit over the weekend which usually means I'm fighting something, so if ME gave me his cold... Not Good.

this week is shaping up to be a doozy. we're leaving for Boston on Friday and are there until Tuesday. scheduled workouts for this week:
Mon - weights, 1hr bike.
Tues - 1hr volleybal, 1hr run.
Wed - 1hr bike
Thurs - 30mins yoga, 1hr run.
Fri -off
Sat - 1hr bike
Sun - 2hrs run (~18km)

this is what's more likely to happen:
Mon - weights, 1hr run.
Tues - volleyball, 1hr bike.
Wed - 1hr run, 1hr bike
Thurs - 30mins low ropes @ YMCA,
Fri - off
Sat - run
Sun - off
Mon - off
Tues - volleyball

Lookie what came in the (e-) mail last night!

2010-04-09T09:38:00.001-04:00

Thanks Coach Koala!
Updates on other workout this week to come.

for real gold star.

2010-04-08T15:22:00.002-04:00

want to know why?
well internets, I earned a real gold star (along w/ LM and Mr. A who's last name I don't know) last night by going out for a bike ride IN THE RAIN when bike practise had already been cancelled. that's right I'm hardcore.
Coach's email said:
Sorry i didnt get out but thought it was going to rain for sure.
Therefore you all get GOLD STARS!

I know. I kick ass.

two gold stars!

2010-04-06T12:10:00.001-04:00

I earned two (2) gold stars last night! Coach Koala sent me my schedule yesterday afternoon and since I'm a keener I tweaked evening plans last night to fit in my workouts. here's the breakdown of my activities:

bike
55:31
18.65km
622cal
80rpm avg
20.2km/h avg (max 46.4km/h)
143bpm avg (max 187bpm)
instructions were 1hr at 140-160 HR range - success!
ME (aka Captain Fast Bike) came with me for the bike as he wasn't really feeling a run last night either. he did some of the drills we did at Koalas practice and then I beat him up the hill. Coach Koala! I got out of the saddle and kept up my momentum!

strength
12-15 reps of each exercise (12 exercises total) - mostly success!
sit-ups - boring, did 1 min plank and 15 crunches and 15 reverse crunches instead
stretching - fail
I didn't get a chance to look up what a dumbbell pullover and side lateral raises were before I went home so I skipped those. at the request of the Physio Goddess, I added 12 reps each side of the hip aductor strengthening exercise she gave me done with a band. I also did different core exercises than sit-ups. and then I skipped the stretching in favour of a shower and bed.

also, I cooked dinner which was a 'make your own stirfry sauce from scratch' adventure that turned out quite well. very pleased with that since the last try wasn't so good. got Captain Fast Bike's stamp of approval. leftovers for lunch - yum.

gold stars might not be quite so abundant tuesday b/c of volleyball.

beer instead of running on Easter weekend!

2010-04-05T13:57:00.003-04:00

there I am at Around The Bay. in the other pictures I'm smiling more but I like the yellow sunshine happy shirt more than my coat :o)

in other news - I'm officially a Fighting Koala. race schedule is tbd but planning something in July, August and September with the Ottawa Half Marathon in May, the Waterloo Classic in June, and a fall marathon.

had a 13M run planned for the weekend but that fell apart when Easter weekend decided to be 27 degrees Celsius! golfed 9 holes instead and drank beer. and rye. sigh... time to get back on the fitness bandwagon. at least I walked the course instead of rode.

up this week:

run tonight volleyball tues koalas bike wed run/yoga thurs rest fri bike sat run sun

30K Around The Bay

2010-03-30T06:00:00.001-04:00

ME is still planning to do Boston in 3 weeks. Longest training run to date: 30K Around The Bay

race: 30KM (Around The Bay, Hamilton)
time: 3:23:33
pace: 6:57/km
place in age group: 240/315
notes: ME wanted to take it easy and treat this as a training run. and there was an eight (8!) minute potty break about 20 mins into the race. so we definitely took it easy... very laissez faire. ME also started to struggle with lower leg pain at about 12km. definitely related to shoes. he has big feet so selection is limited for him and finding a good pair hasn't been easy. as for me, I felt like a million dollars. I think I definitely would have beat last year's time (3:16:05) had we been racing. my left knee started acting up at 8km though and is still feeling yucky. I've got a physio apt tomorrow (today I guess w/ autopost). finished the race with a mad dash to the line. sneaky ME tried to get away from me but I'm a competitive little bugger and wouldn't let that happen. the finish line announcer said "holy cow!" about my finishing kick. boo. ya.

other news:
Fighting Koalas - Waterloo - I'm planning on joining. typically I do very well under a coach and that accountability will definitely help my fitness. can't wait to hear back from them!

hard decision

2010-03-16T08:48:00.004-04:00

I came to a hard decision yesterday but one that ultimately, will be a good decision...
as you can likely tell from the blog, marathon training has been almost non-existent. ME is running Boston in 5.5wks and I was planning to run the Ottawa Marathon at the end of May. my longest run to date was the Chilly Half Marathon (race report coming) a week ago Sunday. we are both signed up for Around The Bay in 2wks. that will be the longest run I've done this year. given that I want to run a couple marathons this year and run them well, Ottawa wasn't feeling good. I'll be signing up for the half in Ottawa and I won't be worrying about staying off my feet at the Gleeb Garage Sale or the long drive or sleeping arrangements. it's for the best.

lessons learned from this:
1. don't be such a hero and sign up for a freakin' clinic
2. consistency is key
3. I'm inconsistent
4. I'm better at life when I'm running regularly.

upcoming races:
Around The Bay - 28 Mar
Ottawa Half Marathon - 30 May
10K Classic - 20 Jun

in positive 'getting consistent' running news: HE and I ran this morning. (woo hoo March Break!)
distance 6.18km time 33:30 pace 5:50min/km calories 330 felt good after loosening up at hot yoga last night. left ankle was sore, like a bruise. felt good to get up and get going nice and early!

Chilly Half Marathon tomorrow!

2010-03-06T21:28:00.001-05:00

Heading to Burlington to run the Chilly Half tomorrow.

Not well prepared but would like to hit the 2hr mark again.

ME and our buddy KB are running too- it's KB's first ever official half!

Wish us luck...

Olympic Hangover, the Leaf lose, and I MET WALTER GRETZKY!

2010-03-02T22:15:00.001-05:00

I've been so tired since getting back. Olympic sized hangover from the olympics. The trip was fantastic - so much energy and patriotism.
And then we win double gold in hockey (SID the KID!) and set a gold medal olympic record. Owned it. Canada is so badass.

Went to the Leafs game tonight and as usual they lost. But... SR won at the BMO card jumble on the jumbotron! So exciting! I was as nervous for her playing that as our men and women in their respective gold medal hockey games.

And then...

I got to meet Walter Gretzky and get his autograph on the way out. Awesome.

Pictures coming.

Monday night run:
10km | 59:21 | 6:00/km | 590 cal - on the dreadmill. Legs are sore today when taking stairs. Need them to be feeling fast for Sunday and the Chilly Half Marathon! (Uhhh kinda forgot about that little race)

new look and a run! (gasp!)

2010-02-22T13:09:00.002-05:00

tinkered with my template today to move towards something more minimalist. you know... the way I need to move with my closet... :o) let me know if any fonts/colours make it too hard to read. I appreciate your feedback.

after last night's rough go with a busy head that wouldn't shut up, the cat, Miss Allie Cat, woke me up at 5:40am. I thought about staying in bed but then realized I need to hard reset myself. rather than changing my alarm to somewhere in the neighbourhood of 7:30am, I got up, dressed and went downstairs... running shoes in hand. me, the treadmill and Olympic Morning cranked out 6.44kms. boo. ya. and I did it hilly too. by the last 10mins I was feeling vaguely lightheaded (no breakfast) and nauseated (gulping water) but finished without incident.
time: 45min
distance: 6.44km
pace: 6:59/km (so slow...)
calories: ~450
avg grade: ~5%
hopefully this gets me reset and better adjusted to eastern standard time. I want to carry this momentum, found at the Olympics, forward this year and really kick some ass at Ottawa. athletes at the Olympics aren't necessarily paid to do their sport yet they make the time to excel. I can make time.

Insomnia

2010-02-22T01:06:00.001-05:00

Can't sleep.

Haven't really slept well since before we left on vacation. I thought getting home would help but it hasn't yet. Right now it's 1am and I'm in bed but no sleepiness. Usually, my bouts of insomnia are caused by stress and that's the case here. The root of my stress isn't going away in the foreseeable future though so hopefully, getting back to running and training will help clear my head.

Running - I need you. I need you to fill the gaps before I start picking at them and making them worse. I need you for the high, the energy, the sense of well being. I need you to keep me on an even keel.

Packed Ireland House!

2010-02-18T21:46:00.000-05:00

We saw Stephen Colbert (Ice-hat Captain) and now the place is rammed to the gills for OT of the Canada v Swiss hockey game.

The tension!!!!! So stressful!

Mr. Stephen Colbert

2010-02-18T13:32:00.001-05:00

Watching his taping right now!

The man is hilarious!

The seawall

2010-02-17T18:10:00.000-05:00

In Vancouver is covered in these.

Um... Isn't this

2010-02-17T17:32:00.000-05:00

The winter olympics?
Flowers?!

Aww Belarus...

2010-02-17T15:40:00.000-05:00

It's 2-0 in the first.

Shots are 18-2 for Finland... Not going well at this point.

But hey! I got a Belarus flag!

Finland v Belarus

2010-02-17T15:02:00.000-05:00

We are at men's hockey this aft.

We lucked out with seats again - front row of the upper deck.

Just got handed a Belarus flag so I'll be cheering red and green!

A Little Canadian Band

2010-02-16T22:48:00.001-05:00

Called Bare Naked Ladies!!

Men's curling

2010-02-16T14:02:00.000-05:00

We are at men's curling this morning and the Canadian men are currently up 5-4 in the 8th end. They are in white shirts on the third sheet from the right, curling against Norway in argyle pants. I think I want some of those pants for golf!

Its been a long day

2010-02-16T00:29:00.001-05:00

This my buddy snoozing on the SkyTrain. Too funny!
Irish town was great as was the Palamino(?) At Milestones. Mmm fuzzy peach tasting alcohol.

Tonight was great, on our way home from downtown Vancity, there were throngs of people singing O Canada and everywhere you look, there are people wearing the colours of their country... Mostly Canada. This places makes me so proud to be Canadian.

Vancouver - you've done us proud.

RIM party in Vancity!!!!

2010-02-15T18:41:00.001-05:00

Hey!! Guess who! K(M)P!!!!

Ireland House!

2010-02-15T16:04:00.001-05:00

Am visiting Ireland house... You know, green, leprechauns, sexy accents...
(AVD: Matt Goode!)

Have I mentioned I love the Olympics?!

Who wants to save their pennies and come to London (summer) or Russia (winter)?

Sled dogs

2010-02-15T14:24:00.001-05:00

Real authentic ones! This one is just a pup and he's so sweet!

The flame.

2010-02-14T23:30:00.001-05:00

Finland is winning

2010-02-14T21:17:00.000-05:00

4-1 in the third.

Women's hockey

2010-02-14T19:42:00.001-05:00

Amazing! So fast!

Finland vs Russia

2010-02-14T18:44:00.001-05:00

These seats are awesome!

Probably the coolest hat ever

2010-02-14T16:58:00.000-05:00

It's this one.
We stopped at the Lululemon Lab this morning and picked up this, a pin and a 'eh!' shirt.
Loving the olympic fever!

Now have picked up our tickets for men's hockey (Finland v Belarus) and men's curling. Still trying to get victory ceremony tickets to see Bare Naked Ladies. Women's hockey is later this aft.

On the SkyTrain this morning we got to overhear the phone conversation of a self-proclaimed "very popular" protester, nattering on about hanging a very large banner with Sister somebody's blessing. He saw me on my BlackBerry Bold and suddenly changed sides of the train and seemed to be craning to see what I was doing. Takes all kinds I suppose.

More Olympics updates after I have my tea.

UBC Thunderbird Arena

2010-02-14T15:27:00.000-05:00

This, in the academic home of KT, is where we'll be watching hockey later today. Currently in line for more tickets.

Breakfast in Vancouver

2010-02-14T12:58:00.001-05:00

Out for breakfast, decked in our Canada gear.
(For KT: we are in NWM at The Pen)

Women's hockey this aft. S.o. e.x.c.i.t.e.d.!!!!!

All of the group minus 3!

2010-02-10T19:21:00.000-05:00

Just waiting on just three more people.

Doused. 9-ish drinks in.

Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

First drinks of the Vegas trip

2010-02-10T12:06:00.000-05:00

Oooo! Exciting! Water and coffee!

More to come!

(Sry for the AT&T plugs... I'm too lazy to go remove them.)

Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

Las Vegas!!

2010-02-10T02:28:00.000-05:00

We are here after the hottest flight I've ever been on. Literally really hot and figuratively hot because we had the MOST entertaining crew!

It's raining here but whatevs... Better than snow!

Picture is of the view from our room.
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

Canadian World Juniors Team - Let's Go Boys!

2010-01-05T22:34:00.001-05:00

Just watched the Canadian boys barnstorm the Americans in the last two minutes of the 3rd period to tie things up. What a nail biter! My tummy is in knots... Now just waiting for OT to start. There are lots of Rickards commercials on. Man. I want a beer. A red one would be awesome.
Go Canada!

Game's back on! Gotta go!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-02T17:16:00.001-05:00

Hey 2010!
Glad you're finally here! I've got some big plans for you... Good thing there's still lots of time left.
Goals for 2010:
1. Change log to metric. I live in Canada after all, should make better use of the easy system! (Complete)
2. Marathon in May. Sub 4 hrs. (In progress - training)
3. BQ. (In progress - Gulp.)
4. Fit into my skinny jeans by May marathon. (In progress - right after I eat this dip)
5. Clean out my closet and give away everything I: a) forgot I owned b) doesn't fit c) haven't worn in the last year. Including shoes. (Not started)

Runs over the holidays:
29 Dec | 8.65M | 1:29:57 | 10:24/M | 1015cal | -11 degrees C including wind chill, snowy, with HE in Owen Sound. L knee irritated a bit but no complaints after. Felt heavy after so much food!

Total mileage since 9 Sept 2009 - 165.64 miles (...and press the trip button! It's a new year!)

2 Jan | 11.07km | 1:10:40 | 6:23/km | 804 cal | -14 + windchill approx -25 degrees C (frost on your face cold), clear sunny, no body/injury issues aside from a frozen ass. Ran into the wind to Country Squire and then the GRT (Grand River Trail) home with HE. ME gets off for this one since he was out with KB* (aka John Deer Pants) making an investment for both our training programs...

Must go! ME is home with the treadmill!!

(*super huge thank you to John Deer Pants for his heavy lifting abilities and big honkin' truck! We definitely couldn't have done it without you! Sorry we picked the coldest day ever to do it all...)

Christmas tree 2009

2009-12-23T12:00:00.001-05:00

finally! as promised! here are the pictures of the tree!

I finished wrapping all of my family's stuff and now we're down to ME's stuff. when you add 3 young nephews to the mix, the number of things to wrap rises exponentially. luckily, ST mentioned a smart solution: dollar store christmas boxes. I'm heading there after work.

on running front:

saturday - 6.3M on wilmot line. that road is so freakin' hilly. and man was it cold!

monday - the usual 4.5M around the neighbourhood.

this morning - bailed on my run as my running partner is up home in Owen Sound for the holidays. HE - I'm bringing running stuff and we'll run while we're up there!

at work I'm organizing a Biggest Loser weight loss competition. I'm so looking forward to this. a new year's resolution is to BQ this year (gulp... I can't believe I just made that really public!!) which means dropping 1hr and 46mins from my marathon time... and to help with that, dropping a few pounds is a good start. and for real training would be good too. I think with some decent, consistent training I should be able to do 4hrs. as for the other 20+ minutes... well that's going to mean some hard core work.

oh yeah!!! I totally forgot this:

2009-12-18T14:28:00.002-05:00

Christmas tree update

2009-12-18T11:14:00.005-05:00

we've been puttering away at decorating for christmas. it seems like everytime I turn around another box of decorations appears... we definitely don't have a spot for everything and the number of bins of Christmas stuff is starting to get to me. I think it's about time to say uncle and stop with the decorating.

we've got the Christmas bedding on. Allie cat seems to like it, reclining and crossing her paws pretending to be a lady. pfft. she's bonkers. she jumped on ME the other day trying to open a door because she wanted out. she's no lady. Kitty: you don't have opposable thumbs or knowledge of how to work a door knob. give up.

*here are a couple before shots of the tree. it's mostly decorated now. it smells so good. I love having a real tree.

*not pictured - the strings that anchor that sucker to the wall .

the runs as of late

I haven't missed a monday or wednesday run in 3 weeks. all are pretty much the same so won't bore you with those details. this weekend (sat) we'll probably do Wilmot Line to get some hills and distance done.

weekend of christmas cheer and a sore ass

2009-12-07T10:45:00.003-05:00

this weekend was a good one. we got some more shopping done. I'm getting closer to being finished. then comes the wrapping hell. it wouldn't be so bad if I wasn't so anal. my inner Martha Stewart (you know you're a runner when you start typing Martha's name "Marath...") comes out and there have to be bows and ribbons and other stuff for Miss Kitty to destroy and rip off. I need to audit but I think I've only got one more item for Dad H and one more for little LH, one more for little LH's hubby, and ME's cousin and my work secret santa left to do. not too shabby given what was on my list. oh and AE... she hasn't submitted her list yet. naughty naughty. Santa is watching.

activities and exercise:
saturday - trail run with HE
distance: ~7M
time: ~70 mins
pace: ~10:00/M
calories: ~700
notes: oh. my. g. my ass was so sore. friday's Jillian Michael's workout shredded my butt so much that stairs are still painful 3 days later. I love it! I wanted to get 10M in for my long run but my body was just wiped and HE was play my conscience for me which was a good thing since mine was all "I'm so tired. can't think or talk right now. figure it out yourself." which is probably conscience code for "stop right now. you're about to pass out." plus I was busy wasting energy on imagining the hills as mountains, which is why I probably could have crawled up them faster. sorry HE, I was definitely slowing you down on saturday! that afternoon I ate my face off and had 2 beers. so that wiped out any benefits from that run. I've got the willpower of my cat around a treat when faced with trays of Great Grandma's fudge and . I start drooling and freaking out until I eat and eat lots. so food on saturday wasn't so good. also had date night on saturday night and I ate a ton of buttery popcorn and coke.

sunday - hockey
time: 60mins
notes: forgot to wear my headband under my helmet and sweat was running into my eyes. that's a good thing b/c I was actually skating hard enough to get sweaty! need to take power skate something fierce. I suck on blades. bad. and I hate sucking at a sport. ate well in the morning and then it fell apart in the afternoon. I was supposed to go to the gym right after hockey with KT but it got delayed and ME and I had planned to shop in the afternoon so I had to bail on the gym. my ass hurt all day especially going up stairs and getting in and out of the car. I didn't eat lunch until around 2pm and then I ate an A&W Momma Burger, rootbeer and fries. and then more popcorn. ME and I bought 2 bags of Kernels popcorn in creamy caramel and double butter. dammit. I was stuffing my face before we even left the mall. and then we had dinner with 3/4 of the E clan at LN's house. where I ate too much and had 2 glasses of wine. and then later I ate more popcorn. 1/2 a bag in a day.

monday - run with HE
distance: 4.76M
time: 46mins
pace: ~9:44/M
calories: 460
notes: dehydrated. almost threw up. wasn't feeling it this morning. really glad I got a run in though. no pain from injuries issues. was dressed appropriately for the 0 degree weather. overall it shouldn't have sucked but it did b/c I'm an idiot and didn't hydrate. internet high five to HE who has run for three straight days which is a record for her. food is going well today though! I've had a medium coffee made with love, a bagel with peanut butter, a baked chicken breast with broccoli and cauliflower, and I'm about to start on a spinach salad with balsamic vinegar for dressing and fresh veggies for snack.

and my ass still hurts. although somewhat less.

week update and the christmas tree

2009-12-04T15:42:00.005-05:00

first the activity for the week:

monday
distance: 4.5M
time: ~43min
pace: 9:34/M
calories: ~400
notes: ran with HE. just a nice regular run. no pain, no issues. so glad to have HE to run with. she keeps me motivated. she'd also mentioned that she wanted to pick up the pace for our runs a bit b/c she was concerend about going too slow. so we went from 10:10/M to 9:34/M.

tuesday
indoor volleyball. no subs, low-med effort game. I was tired and my lower back was bothering me so I didn't play very hard. went out and had beers after = all benefits of playing erased.

wednesday
distance: 4.5M
time: ~43min
pace: 9:34/M
calories: ~400
notes: HE and I kept exactly the same pace as monday. (note: I estimated the time and distance b/c I don't have my log with me at the moment to know exactly but I do know we were exactly the same pace 2 days in a row!) again, uneventful run - no issues.
indoor soccer
distance: 4M
time: 50mins
subs: 2 female subs... cuts down playing time significantly!
calories: ~400
notes: strained my left calf. ankles felt like they were as strong as spaghetti noodles. right ankle rolled but no pain or swelling. played one of the best teams in the leg and lost 4-2. I scored one of the goals off a free kick.

thursday - rest. slept in.

friday
gym with KT. did Jillian Michaels Making the Cut day 2 workout before work. remembered to eat before the gym this morning so had a much better workout than last week. didn't push hard enough though b/c at no point did I ever feel like puking. which is unusual. did feel very weak though. definitely out of shape!

today was the first Operation Witchy Wednesday Telephone Pole meeting. KT and I are trying to avoid the pitfalls of Whopper Wednesdays and have scheduled a healthy lunchtime replacement. came out of it feeling really motivated and now I have to be accountable to someone. also discuss a Biggest Loser competition to start in the new year to coincide with the new BL season starting 4 Jan.

last weekend ME and I got our christmas tree. it's my first real tree since I was about 5. very exciting! so we picked it up on sunday. monday night we get home from work and ME is in the living room when the tree falls over. randomly. Miss Allie-cat was not in the room and cannot be blamed. I was upstairs changing out of work clothes when I hear "DISASTER! TREE! TOWELS!" repeatedly. ME loses his words when there is a crisis apparently... anyways many needles and "Very full, lots of sap" comments later, the tree is back up and that fucker is tied to the wall. last night, almost a week later, we started decorating. note "started"... as in not finished yet. so far it's looking pretty awesome. it smells pretty awesome too. yay christmas!

pictures to come all before and after. I know. I'm awesome.

florida, a couple runs, gym, and not enough sleep

2009-11-27T12:00:00.002-05:00

this week and last weekend were pretty jammed packed. I was in florida, with ME, visiting ME's cousin JH and her husband MR. lots of food, bevvies, fun and shopping was crammed into 3 days. did I mention lots of adult beverages?

yeah. all class, I know.

many many thanks to JH and MR for their hospitality! I had a great time and look forward to when you guys can come and stay with us!

anyways... since getting home I haven't slept much and I'm dead tired from the exercise I've gotten in this week. so much so, that I was woken up this morning with a cold paw in the face and the saddest "Why haven't you feed me yet?!" eyes you've ever seen. at 7:30am. 2 hours later than she normally gets me up... which means I slept through my alarm, gym appt, and a howling cat. fine start to my day.

this week I ran Wed morning with HE.

distance: 4.75M

time: 49mins

pace: 10:10/M

calories: 490

notes: was really warm. ran in capri pants and wasn't chilly at all! pretty good considering it has snowed this month. felt good to run after such a lazy and boozy weekend.

Wednesday night was a late soccer game at 11pm. had a terrible touch, like there was cement in my feet and my ankles had fused. it was a good 50min run though but didn't push hard enough to feel the dry heaves come on.

Thurs morning I did a gym trip with KT

completed Jillian Michaels Making the Cut day 1. minus the cardio stuff involving the threadmill. too much of a pain in the ass to hope on a treadmill for 1 min of sprinting and then have to wipe it down afterwards. didn't realize how out of shape I'd gotten. the 5 circuts were hard. like really hard. I had to stop doing mountain climbers for a few seconds so that I wouldn't barf my yogurt and granola breakfast. yogurt barf is gross. worse than regular puke. Jillian would have probably yelled at me and called me a baby. I would have deserved it too.

in other news:

christmas shopping has begun in earnst. need to find a good hidey hole to stash my treasures that ME won't find. I'm thinking his sister's place might be my best bet. bought a pair of Spanks to wear with the disco ball dress on Saturday's charity dinner. I don't know where the Spanks put it but keep doing what you're doing! shoes are going to be an issue for that dress. might need to check out the mall on Saturday. last night I went and saw New Moon and it was delightfully cheesy and bad and I loved it. sorry Twi-Hards, it's not brilliant literature, nor a particularly good movie but I embrace the cheese and enjoyed it all the same.

happy belated thanksgiving to the Americans out there and enjoy your Black Friday shopping!

dream I had + two runs

2009-11-18T17:36:00.003-05:00

I now have an Official Dream Interpreter. here is the first dream dissected via IM conversation:

LH [5:33 PM]:
so... spider dream
LH [5:34 PM]:
I dreamt that I was vacuuming and ME and HE (his sister) were there and there was this huge massive spider and I got all stressed and had to vacuum it up 'cept I had the thin nozzle attachment on the vacuum and the spider was really really big
LH [5:34 PM]:
and I was afraid it wouldn't get vacuumed up
LH [5:34 PM]:
and it would crawl down the vacuum tube thingy and on to me
KT [5:35 PM]:
*shudder*
KT [5:35 PM]:
i hate spiders
LH [5:35 PM]:
but ME was like "just do it!" and I did and the spider went "Ka-thunk"
LH [5:35 PM]:
and got sucked up
LH [5:35 PM]:
but I could see all its legs wiggling frantically at the end of the vacuum tube before it got properly sucked up
LH [5:36 PM]:
I wonder what it means...
KT [5:36 PM]:
let's look it up
LH [5:37 PM]:
where?
KT [5:37 PM]:
maybe you are the spider, and the vaccum is
LH [5:37 PM]:
hahaha
KT [5:37 PM]:
apparently dreaming about spiders is good luck
KT [5:38 PM]:
Spiders in a dream are a sign of general good luck; to kill one signifies good news. If it was spinning a web, it augurs approaching money; if it was climbing a wall, it's a harbinger of success in all that concerns you most deeply.
KT [5:38 PM]:
hahaha
KT [5:38 PM]:
or: Spiders in a dream are a serious danger signal This can mean female intrigues aimed at ensnaring men, and refers to the cold, calculating nature evident in some women.
LH [5:38 PM]:
but what about sucking it up thru a vacuum!!!???
KT [5:40 PM]:
there are no details on this specific dream
LH [5:40 PM]:
damnit!
LH [5:41 PM]:
the intertubes suck at dream interpretation
KT [5:41 PM]:
maybe the spider is one of your goals, and you being afraid to suck it up is being afraid of failure, and then the sucking it up is you acheiving that goal, and the wiggly legs struggling is the final obstacles you overcome in reaching your goal.
LH [5:41 PM]:
I like you better. I think you'll be my Official Dream Interpreter from now on.
KT [5:42 PM]:
good
KT [5:42 PM]:
please bring me dreams on a regular basis
LH [5:42 PM]:
will do.

runs this week...
tuesday -
distance: ~4M
time: ~34mins
pace: ~9:10/M
calories: ~400cal
notes: good run, was listening to tunes so that's why I was going so fast (for me). did the usual loop outside of the neighbourhood and it was chilly. legs felt good but right hip started to malfunction around 3.5M. has felt ok since then.

wednesday -
distance: 3.5M
time: 35min
pace: 10:00/M
calories: 300
notes: easy run this am w/ HE. love that she keeps me honest and gets my ass out of bed. no leg/foot/hip pain. was warm this am and I was overdressed w/ a fleece on! thanks HE (for the runs and company and hard work!)

other exercise -
tuesday - volleyball, 1hr, with no subs and a player short. but we won!
- 1/2 hr extravaganza walk at lunch w/ TOM, KT, HJ
wednesday - soccer 50mins.

morning run

2009-11-11T12:07:00.002-05:00

Ran the outside of the neighbourhood with HE
distance: 4.7M
time: 47:5o-something mins
pace: 10:10/M
calories: almost 500
notes: hebrew! that's what I'm going to call HE from now on. hehee! take that google ad bot! btw: HE (hebrew) has a blog here. yeah. so about the run, it was good. watched the sun come up. felt much better this morning that monday morning. ran in my ancient blue saucony's and they are pretty much done. time for a replacement. ME says I should scale back on the shoe buying. what does he know? he's a boy. boys don't get the shoe thing. plus he buys running shoes at like every race expo we got to. something about how they are cheap. wait. huh. maybe I should be buying shoes at expo instead. I need a race to sign up for so I can buy shoes. suggestions??
right. back to the run. frosty and cold this morning so my first mile was at like 8:20/M because I was shivering and needed to warm up fast. I even went back for my fleece vest it was so chilly. glad I did because I was comfy for the entire run.

Glee is on tonight (squee!) and so is Top Gear (double squee!).

Oh and I might buy a car today.

google ad bot

2009-11-09T17:03:00.003-05:00

apparently is in Hebrew now. (not kidding, I recognize it, I look at a lot of localized text and that is definitely Hebrew). enjoy!

in other news. sore throat. creeping around the edges. I hates the sore throat. in the book I'm reading (AVD: brigadoon!! I can't stop!) people die of the morbid sore throat. hope I don't have that. sounds morbid. I'm going to take 3 ColdFX (http://www.coldfx.ca/) to keep the morbid sore throat at bay. aww hell. I just googled morbid sore throat and according to Ruddy's List of Archaic Medical Terms morbid sore throat seems to have been invented by the author of the book I'm reading. seriously. AVD, you get this. I know you do. insufferable.

weekend activities and morning run

2009-11-09T06:50:00.001-05:00

saturday run (haha I just typed rum)

distance: 7M
time: 1hr 8mins
pace: 9:45/M
calories: ~800
notes: longest run since the 1/2 a couple weeks ago. solo. felt really good. no pain, no tiredness. probably helped that I ran about 40mins before sunset, when I tend to feel the best. I ran up at mom and dad's to the conservation area. did a 2.2km loop and headed back towards their place since it was starting to get dark. I jammed my right ankle on a root but aside from some localized tenderness at the bottom of my tibia on saturday night, it's been fine. (whew! lucky!) after stopping to get some water, I headed up the highway and back and did mom and dad's street a couple times to get 7M. it was a good run. definite runner's high afterwards. also was my first run in the new shoes- Saucony ProGrid Xodus in blue.

aren't they sexy? :o)

on sunday we did family photos in Goderich. Claire from Claire K Photography came up and did our pictures. we had a lot of fun and I can't wait to see the pictures! P.S. go check out www.clairekphotography and see the work of Claire K > she takes beautiful photos! she's awesome, hilarious, wonderfully creative! thanks again Claire!

monday morning run w/ HE
distance: 4.3M
time: 44mins
pace: 10:10/M
calories: ~400
notes: didn't feel so great this morning. maintaining what should be an easy pace for me was hard. woke up with right ear and throat sore. not a cold sore but swollen/pressure sore. was likely just the way I slept. right hip was also tight which makes me think that it was more how I slept. so glad HE dragged my ass out of bed. I felt better after the run, even though my legs and body felt (and still feel) heavy. as the coffee goes into me this morning I'm started to feel better and better. the massive, heavy, carbolicious supper I had last night probably didn't help. mmm cheesy potatoes....

the plan - see that? not in all caps.

2009-11-03T12:44:00.003-05:00

last night's run:
4M around the neighbourhood
38:00 mins
avg pace 9:30ish/M
effort: 2M @ E (easy), 2M @ goal M(marathon)
pain: none aside from nausea
notes: ran in my new trail shoes on people's grass or rocks instead of the sidewalk to make it a bit more of an authentic off-road experience. I hate the people with freakin' slippery faux brick driveways. they should be banned. almost ended tits up in the rhubarb three times. fuckers. shoes were great though. socks were sucky and I got a blister from them. they are now for after run feet warming. never. ever. for running. ever. otherwise it was a great run. I started out a bit too quick instead of taking my time and warming up so the first M was 9:30ish pace and the mile 2 was 10:30ish and then I kicked it up for some tempo work for a mile and then took a 2 min recovery jog and then gave'er again. miles 3 and 4 were 8:30 and 8:15ish. I wanted to barf by the end but that's what mile repeats are for according to the Best of Running article in this months Runner's World.

now for the plan (formerly THE PLAN) update
I needed more than 24hrs to recover from the Niagara 1/2. instead, I took one week off. at this point I need to evaluate the p90x lite approach for weight loss or instead build a solid base for a spring marathon and use that to lean out. if I'm going to attack a BQ, the weight loss is a must. sucks for soccer and hockey b/c I'll get pushed around more but it'll make me quicker over 42.2kms. I think p90x lite might be too much for me as I dial up the base mileage running. that said, core work and strength training will be essential for me to BQ. I need to be all around strong to hold my form through a marathon. so it's eval time... review the p90x dvds, rummage through the wealth of other fitness stuff I have for alternatives and come up with a new THE PLAN. the training schedule posted at runbayou is really interesting. it uses periodization which is cool since I've never done anything like that before. so investigating it for use for the spring marathon training plan. in the mean time, the plan is for the week:
M- run medium
T - volleyball and run or strength train
W - soccer and easy
R - hot yoga and easy
F - easy
A- long run
U- rest.

Niagara Falls International Marathon - 1/2 marathon race report!

2009-10-26T12:42:00.013-04:00

friday night I started my prep for the 1/2 writing out my pace tat:

in hind sight, I think I'll just splurge for the actual pace tat as the permanent marker ink follows the creases in your skin and appears slightly blurry. the pink is the mile splits for a 1:56 1/2 marathon and the blue is the mile splits for a 2hr 1/2 marathon.

sunday was 1/2 marathon day in Niagara Falls! MC, his lady friend, me and ME travelled to Niagara on saturday to check out the expo and pick up racing kits. ME had decided not to race earlier in the week b/c he's been since with a chest cold since turkey weekend. poor guy. it wasn't an easy decision to make but he was smart and put his health first. so, he picked up his kit and turned in his chip right away so he wouldn't be tempted to run.

the expo was small but good, lots of good deals. ME got a pair of shoes for $60 and I got a new skirt, long sleeve shirt, some gels, and a magnetic necklace. after, we had dinner at Boston Pizza and went to bed.

both of us slept terribly! there was a dripping tap and our curtains wouldn't stay shut. by midnight we were both going a bit crazy so ME jimmied the tap and we clipped the curtains shut and finally got some shut eye.

at 6:30, my alarm went off so I got up to start the foot and toe lubbing rituals and to get dressed. ME made me coffee, hopped in the shower. I tried to eat a bit but was dawdling over getting dressed. 7:20 came too quickly and we were late meeting MC in the lobby. ME drove us to the bus meeting spot, snapped a picture and went back to the hotel to check us out.

MC and I waited for 5 mins before they started loading busses, both of us trying to down a bit more breakfast but neither of us were feeling like it with our pre-race distraction!

we rode the bus for, what felt like to me, an hour and finally disembarked at the start line (or the marathon half way point).

since we caught one of the first busses, we had some time to kill so we walked laps of the start area to keep warm and moving. it was pretty chilly and the wind started to pick up as we waited so staying warm became kinda tricky. my hands were definitely pretty cold by the time ME got to the start and lent me his mitts. my feet were also pretty cold. ME snapped another photo before we lined up:

I'm holding my fancy, hi-tech yellow raincoat (read: plastic garbage bag they give you on the maid of the mist) that I was wearing to protect me from the wind. at this point the line ups for the porta potties were ridiculously long and I kinda felt like I needed to pee but thought it was just my nerves and the feeling would go away once we started. I was wrong.

this is mean clapping at the start of the race to get ME's attention. there's such a mass (2100 of 'em) of runners going by, it's hard to pick people out.

ME met us again just before 5 miles. I'd stopped to pee and lost about 2mins of time waiting for a pottie to open up. but, I was feeling WAY better having stopped. MC went by first looking all determined. then I came by later. look at me! all smiles still at this point. for the first half of the race, I was feeling like gold. I at my lemon-lime gu at 45mins in and got a much needed boost since I only ate half of my bagel breakfast pre-race. I took water and gatorade at a couple stations and until I pit stopped, just before mile 5, I was on pace for 1:56-1:58.

around mile 7, I was working on reeling in some of the people that I'd been running with prior to my pit stop. I ran a bit with a guy from Alberta who was 'sucking wind' because he'd had a cold all week. he found me at the end of the race to say hey and congratulations. eventually I pulled ahead, trying to catch the 2:00 pace bunny. she must have come in around 1:58 though because I didn't catch her.

at 1:15 I took my second gel (expresso lovers yum!) and turned it up a bit. I ran for most of the last 3 miles with "my buddy" a guy who I didn't talk to until very close to the finish. we just ran side by side, reeling people in. he was great, picking up the pace in the last 2 miles and powering up the little hills.

by the time we got to mile 12 I was in pain. I really really wanted a 2hr finish but I was exhausted and wanting to quit. I checked my watch for about the millionth time and my 'pace tat' and saw that it was going to be really close. it was time to buckle down. I picked it up in the last mile, likely running about an 8:50 mile. for some reason, I didn't kick. I don't know what the hell I was thinking but I didn't kick. I passed ME but all I could think was FINISH!

ME got these last photos right near the finish:

see "my buddy" beside me to the left? tall guy with a mustache? I wouldn't have hit 2hrs without him. I just kept running beside him starting at around mile 9. I thanked him at the end, he totally kept me on pace.

as I crossed the line I smiled and raised my arms so that I wouldn't have a sucky finish photo like I normally do. in fact, I didn't even stop my watch until I was getting my chip cut off. and that meant... I didn't know if I'd got it! I didn't know if I'd hit 2hrs or not!

luckily ME is tall and read that I'd got 2:00:27 on the results papers being posted. WOO HOO! mission accomplished! that time was good enough for 46/144 in my age group.

super congrats to MC who kicked ass and got 1:53:40 in his very first 1/2 marathon! you owe me a full marathon in the spring buddy!

and finally, the happy finishers!

Oktoberfest 5K race report and THE PLAN

2009-10-22T09:54:00.003-04:00

bah hell. so the taco bell did not help my performance at the Oktoberfest 5K. I did not PR but did PR... hehehe. I'm in a new age bracket so technically it's a PR for this bracket, being my first race, but not a lifetime PR. I ran the 5K in 25:31 (chip time), good enough for 5/50 in my age group. I was pretty uncomfortable in the later third of the race, dry heaving once. ME was super duper (sometimes I get so mad at him! not training at all and beating me!) pacing and pushing me through most of the race. I didn't kick and didn't push at all in the last km. that was poor. I lost the mental game with myself and didn't even try to override what my body was telling me. this weekend I'll have a good opportunity to work on my mental game during the half.

this weekend is the Niagara Falls 1/2 Marathon and I want to PR in the half. need to be 2:10 which I think is achievable. I plugged my 5K time into a predictor and got an estimated finish time of 01:56:19. so there it is folks - a sub 2hr 1/2 marathon should be achievable. will let you know results via twitter and/or the blog.

so, I was wandering the internets, mostly the runner's world web site and found these awesome forum discussions and new website: your weekly workout, P90x and running, and Shane's Training. all were very informative and inspiring. just what I needed as I ramp up for THE PLAN.

THE PLAN consists of training for the next 7 months, hopefully culminating in a wildly successful spring marathon. the work break down structure: the next 90 days will be filled with base building running and P90x Lite for weight loss. the next 4 months will be hard training for a spring marathon. likely this one because it gives me 18 weeks of training. wish me luck. it's going to be hard!