Work It Out Wednesday

Last May (2011), I ran my first half-marathon. I was able to "run" the whole thing and felt like a complete rock star when I finished. Tired as I was, I still had enough endorphins pumping through my body to go out dancing later that night. In 3 inch heels. Like I said, rock star.

About two weeks after that, my sister came and visited me in Spokane and I slacked off on running. Her visit was followed by a visit from my in-laws, which was followed by a visit from my mom, which was followed by news that the husband would be losing his job. Needless to say, my running stopped, my stress level rose pretty darn high, and my stress induced indulgences sky-rocketed. In short, I gained 20 pounds from the end of May 2011 until we moved to Dallas in late November 2011. In six months, I gained 20 pounds, lost my strength, and gained about 6% body fat. I felt like one unhealthy momma, on many levels.

My self-talk was pretty horrible too. I saw a quote on pinterest the other day, "If you had a friend who spoke to you in the same way that you sometimes speak to yourself, how long would you allow that person to be your friend?" Isn't that true? When we moved to Texas, I felt pretty horrible about myself - I've got to admit. I don't know if I would have been my friend. But, really, who wants to be friends with someone who constantly puts themselves down?

Remembering how I felt when I was a runner (and that runner's high! <3), I decided to join a gym. I'm sure I could have just run outside, but a 1 year old and a then-2 year old were not my ideal running partners. And my little side-kicks were not going anywhere. That is why a gym works for me: childcare! I can sweat it out (and believe me, I do sweat like a crazy person. Like I just got drenched with a super soaker. It's pretty gross.), and D and P can run and play in the childcare area.

Following the lead of one of my junior high BFF's, I decided to register for a race every month in 2012; as a dedication to getting fit and getting back into running. In January, I did a MLK 5k pushing the kiddos in a stroller on one of the most humid January days I've ever experienced. You can be sure that I was extra sweaty after that one! In February, I did an adventure race: the Zombi Race (and yes, I left the 'e' off of zombie intentionally). It was approximately 5 - 7 miles and had zombies who would chase you as you tried to find clues to create a 'zombie survival pack.' It was fun, and I did it with my mom, sister, and one of my sister's friends, so that was fun too. I'm doing my first half-marathon, the Rock N' Roll Dallas, on March 25. My Dad and sister (did I mention that KL is really my step-sister....well, to be technical, ex-step-sister?) are doing that one with me. It's only like 2.5 weeks away!

I've been training since I joined my gym back in December. I cannot run 13.1 miles, though. I can barely run 3. But, with a combo of running and walking, I am hoping to complete this half marathon in about 3 hours (a half hour behind my previous half-marathon timing). I am following the Hal Higdon Novice Training Program, and am supposed to be doing 9 miles this week. That's a lot! To get me through it, I have started using sports nutrition. At my last half, I used gels, gummies, HEED, and stingers on race day having never used them before. Everyone told me that having done that was pretty dangerous because some people get sick to their stomachs the first time or two they use sports nutrition. Woops! This time, I decided to add them in a little earlier. I am trying out a couple of different products to see what works best and does't taste disgusting. I have tried one that had a God-awful after taste. For reals, I thought I was going to get sick. But, the good news is, I tried them BEFORE the race, so I know what will make me want to vomit now rather than in the middle of 13.1 miles (and thousands of people). I'm hoping to do a little product review here shortly, when I have tried a few more flavors/brands.

Today, I ran 6.5 miles in 91 minutes. It was incredibly hard to do. I was completely unmotivated and for the first 2 miles, you would have sworn I was a man with a cold (is it just me, or does every man seem to act like the BIGGEST baby when they get a cold??!!??). I was whining (in my head, not out loud. That would have been weird), and my legs hurt, and...okay, wait. I'm starting to whine again! Anywho, after I got through the first two miles, I made it to 3, then 4, and then my motivation completely left and I had to do a S-L-O-W mile where I just convinced myself that I would be proud of myself when I got to 5. All I had to do was get to 5. When I got to 5 though, a really good song was playing, so I upped the speed and ran for 1 mile to make it to 6 miles. Then I just wanted to show myself I could do it, so I did another another half mile. And I was right, I did feel pretty proud. On a day when I felt like calling it quits at mile 1, I didn't give up. I did 6.5 miles. Rock Star. Now I can't wait for tomorrow's run!