I can breathe!

Well, I got to California yesterday morning. It's a long flight, but well worth it. It's so pretty here. My friend lives about three blocks from the Pacific Ocean, so we feel the nice COOL oean breeze, and the humdity.....what humidity. I can get a deep breath when I run. I don't theink I've experienced that since Chicago....or maybe when it was winter in Jackson. Jackie and I had a great five mile run today at 8am, Jacksontime. She had never done interval running and was so excited half way through the run at how good she felt. We did a 2.30:1 interval. We go the same pace!!!! We ran five miles up and down, what they call, the strand, right next to the beach. I could get in to living here, but it's true what you hear about the expensive housing. I've been staying at her house and then we'll go to Disneyland on Sunday and do the half marathon on Monday. Tomorrow night, we're going to this comedy club where Jay Leno tries out new material every Monday night, tomorrow night. No, we're not going to see him.....I wish. It should be fun. More later. Hope everyone is doing well and staying healthy. Note to my Mom who reads my blogs: I'll call you tonight and tell you all about it.

Yea, it's Friday!!!!

Well, I did five miles yesterday in the heat and took today off. I look forward to seeing all of you crazy people at 5am. Looks like I'll be med teching in the UMC nursery/nicu lab every other weekend soon. I got offered the job after my interview. This will allow me to be a Mom to my spoiled kids during the week. They have gotten used to me being around the house all summer. I'll probably move in to a during the week job eventually. Miss. Symphony schedule is a bear starting the Thursday after Labor Day. We have something everyday for three weeks except for Wednesdays. Boomers at the Ballpark is Sept. 8th (plug, plug) at Smith Wills Stadium. I always enjoy playing the outdoor concerts; they're so fun and imformal.
Look everybody, it's normal to be a little nervous about the mileage, but think of all of the months of training you've done and know that now is the time it all will pay off. Don't think 20 MILES, think route: Fanning Landing, boat launch, Fox Bay, boat launch, then Campfire Circle. Piece of cake! To my running buddies: no, I'm not doing the whole twenty, but I feel your pain and agony of the heat and humidity. I'm doing nine because of the time constraint of tomorrow. Mark is out of town for the day and my son has band rehearsal at Pearl H. S. at 9am and my daughter (and me) have a Ms Metro Ballet Company pool party/meeting just past the Fannin Landing boat launch at 9:30am. So after running my nine, I'll go home, shower and become super chauffuer. If you see a maroon (no, we're not MSU fans) van drive by honking wildly......it's me cheering you on.

You CAN do it!!!!!

Don't know why, but I woke up tired this morning, so I decided to take today off. It may be that the forty-five minutes on the elliptical yesterday wore me out more than I thought. I set out to do thirty minutes, but got involved in a Golden Girls two episode story about Rose having to have bypass surgery. I need to do more crosstraining, but really enjoy pounding the pavement outside.
This afternoon and evening is very busy: take Natalie to ballet and jazz, go to Kurt's open house at the high school, and then go play horn quartets with my fellow symphony horns. You parents with three or more kids, I don't see how you do it. With Mark working forty miles away and having some school events at night, I'm the full-time chauffuer (sp?). Although, I do enjoy spending time with my kids. Enjoy them while they still live at home. Right?

To all first time LMMers:
Try not to worry about the twenty miler. This too, shall pass.
Take it one mile at a time.
Keep puttin' one foot in front of the other.
Find someone in the group to run or walk with; it makes the miles go by quicker when you have someone to talk to.
Run your own race at your own pace.
From here on, it's all mental.
Enjoy the fresh air, the sunrise over the water, the cranes and Canadian geese gliding over the water looking for fish.
Do it for those you know who aren't physically able to.

Here's two quotes that I think are appropriate to remember while doing twenty miles:
You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, 'I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.' You must do the thing you think you cannot do.
Eleanor Roosevelt

and my favorite

No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.
Eleanor Roosevelt

Look at those of us who've done the CM before, and some of us crazy enough to do it more than once. Do we look like world classs athletes? (Sorry running buddies) Ahem, NO! We're just like you. We're just determined, crazy people who set a goal and wanted to reach it bad enough. If we can do it, so can you. Just do it!

Good run and two weeks to go

Hey all,
From our new pad, it was so nice being able to hop on the interstate, drive to Clinton at dark-thirty Saturday morning, and get there in only twenty minutes. The nine miles was a good run. Paula, Bessie, and Bobbie kept me going at a 2:1 interval most of the way. After spending almost two weeks at 2.30 : 1 interval during the week, I really want to switch to a 3:1 interval this week, but I'm worried about doing that in the heat. I've been doing this for 2 1/2 years now, after a twenty-two year running break, you'd think I'd be able to finally go to a 3:1 for most of an hour workout. So much of it is mental with me. Yesterday, I found myself running the last downhill all the way to the Clinton Blvd. intersection with no walk break, just so I could get it over and done with. I really think my endurance is better than I think it is. Maybe the reason I've remained injury free is because I haven't increased my run time. I think the reason I started having IT band problems halfway through the marathon last year was because I got caught up in the excitement of the start and ran the first mile with no walk breaks.
Two weeks from tonight, I'll be getting ready for the Disneyland Half Marathon. It should be a lot of fun with my crazy friend, Jackie. The medal is supposed to be big and pretty. I've never been to California, so this is all new to me. Jackie plays horn in one of the Disney orchestras, so she is considered an employee. As an employee, she gets two one day passes, so we'll get to actually visit Disneyland, not just run through it. Woo hoo! I just hope it's cooler there.
It seems like the overall concensus is that yesterday's run was a good one. It really helps to have a good run before the twenty miler. If you can do eighteen, you can do twenty. I think I had to miss the twenty last year because of work. Hang on, you're almost there.

Great cold four miles

Ha, just kidding! The themometer said 85 degress when I got back in the van after running. Dropped my (spoiled) kids off at their schools this morning and then did my four mile run at the Rankin trail. The usual walkers/runners were there; a few new faces, but mostly the same ones. While I was running around for my fourth time, I thought about this photo I took of Carol and Melissa a year and a half ago in the freezing cold of February at Fannin Landing. Thought it might make everyone feel cooler. Then, while looking this one up on the computer, I ran across the group photo from 2005. Notice all of the smiling faces. I think I was walking/limping four feet off the ground that day. So thrilled I finished, so happy and sad at the same time that it was over. The feeling of finishing is the best. You can do it. Yea, tomorrow's Friday.

Hot!

Here's a quote I found on marathonrookie.com:
"We are different, in essence, from other men. If you want to win something, run 100 meters. If you want to experience something, run a marathon."
- Emil Zatopek, 1952 Olympic Marathon gold medalist

Yesterday, I was driving up the interstate, taking my little ballerina to class and just happened to look at the thermometer. Big mistake! Granted the van had been in the sun for a while, but it said 110 degrees! My crosstraining yesterday consisted of going to Walley World, Big Lots, Office Depot, and Fred's looking for school supplies for my son. This took an hour and a half, not counting the evening before trip to Wal-Mart for the supplies he just HAD TO HAVE on Monday for one class. Yep, he's a boy; he forgot to tell us he needed them on Monday.
Well, I found a foolproof way of making myself go run: Dress in my running clothes before taking the kids to school and then go straight to the trail. I did three miles this morning. I forgot my cell phone which has my itunes on it, so no tunes, no friends, and lots of heat equals more walking. That was hard. After running three days at Rankin Med Center, I noticed there are quite a few regulars. Two of them walk with canes. I got to thinking about how fortunate I am to be physically able to actually run. It's ironic to me that the trail goes right by the emergency room. A few times, an ambulance has pulled in with a patient. All this makes me count my blessings and realize that life isn't all bad. Usually, when I feel like life is blah, somehow someway, I hear about someone who is so worse off than I am. If you're out there in the heat running, walking, and panting, wondering why you're doing this; think about the friends or relatives you've lost or the people you know fighting a disease or are physically incapable of getting around, and know that you are doing this for your long term health and can do this in honor or memory of them. Like I've said before, my grammar stinks. You can do this. Have a great day! Another interesting quote from marathonrooke.com:

"Now if you are going to win any battle you have to do one thing. You have to make the mind run the body. Never let the body tell the mind what to do. The body will always give up. It is always tired in the morning, noon, and night. But the body is never tired if the mind is not tired."
- George S. Patton, U.S. Army General, 1912 Olympian

Feeling out of shape because of humidity

Yikes, it's supposed to be over a hundred degrees the next couple of days. It's like living in a furnace. The nine mile run was great, Saturday. Everybody looked great. The end of the run felt better than the beginning. I ran with Bessie, Paula, Rebecca (Ms. Tripp) and Bobbie. To each his own, but I couldn't do long runs without running buddies. Bessie and Paula helped relieve my mind about the Disney Marathon when they told me they would also be training for and running it in January. I had visions of doing my 20 and 22 milers all by myself during the holiday season.
I was telling Rebecca that someone needs to do a feature story/article about some of the LMMers. I have heard about someone beating cancer, people losing a lot of weight, and some who have over come a lot of adversity in life. And what are these people doing? Running/walking a marathon. There are some amazing people in this group! What an inspiring story that would be.
I dropped off the kids for their second day at their new schools. So far, so good. Because of the move, I'm disappointed I'm not able to run with the Tues/Thurs crew at the rez; unless they want to met at 5am. Yuck! (I wish I was a morning person) From where we live now, it's impossible for me to run with them at 5:30am, drive home and help get the kids ready(yep, they're spoiled), and then get them to school on time; especially with Mark having to leave at 6:15am and not able to help me. Plan B is now dropping the kids off and running at 7:45am on the trail at Rankin Med Center. I just think how nice and easy it will seem running in cooler Disneyland in three weeks. I feel so out of shape running in this heat and humidity. Hang in there, it's all worth it, I promise. Hope everyone has a great week.

Hang on, it'll be here before you know it

Yep, it's soapbox time: First of all: Congratulations to all who did eighteen miles or five hours yesterday. One thing only those of us crazy enough to do this know or will find out soon is: when you train for and complete a marathon, it changes you in many ways for the better. This is the one thing you can do for just you. Especially moms know, you go through the day doing and doing for everyone else in your life, but training for a marathon is something you do for just YOU. This afternoon, I was watching part of the coverage of the Kona(?) Ironman Triathalon held in Hawaii. Seeing the participants throughout the race with their grit and determination, and then seeing the look on their faces when they crossed the finish line brought tears to my eyes. That feeling of accomplishment, exhaustion, and wow, I did this after nine months of training can be a very emotional experience. Mark is right: If you can do eighteen in hot and humid Mississippi, you can do 26.2 miles in cool, no humidity, flat, people cheering you on the whole way Chicago. Soapbox time is over.
Well, I didn't do any running since last Saturday, so I was kind of worried about how I would do yesterday. We moved from our four bedroom house at the Rez to a three bedroom apartment in Pearl last Sunday and Monday. Either I was trying to get unpacked and settled in, or too exhausted and lazy to get up and meet the crew at 5:30am to go run. Hubby is now much closer to new job and the kids will be going to Pearl schools. I won't miss having to go down Lakeland everyday for almost everything. We've lived there for ten years, and boy, are we a family of messy pack rats. Junk, junk, junk. I couldn't decide how many miles I wanted to do yesterday. Eight? Ten? I wasn't going to do eighteen since I'm just doing a half marathon in four(!) weeks. Oh yeah.... Paula, Bessie, and Bobbie tried to get me to go the whole eighteen, but no thank you. I ended up doing a little over fourteen. How you all did four more miles after leaving Lakeshore for the second time yesterday in that heat was an amazing feat. Be proud of yourself. Until next time; keep on puttin one foot in front of the other.
One more thing: Thanks Cathy for a great party. It was so much fun having the time to talk with fellow LMMers. Both butts were wonderful, Mark and Clark. And the desserts. Good stuff.