Vineyard 5k Recap

Yesterday was the Vineyard 5k out in Grapevine, TX. I carpooled with some friends and after a few twists and turns through the construction on 121, we made our way to Delaney Vineyards where the race was held. The Delaney Vineyards was pretty interesting because it was a small little vineyard right in town. It was neat to see the bustling suburbs juxtaposed with the casual atmosphere of the vineyard. It was a peaceful little get-away from everyday life!

The cool thing bout this race is that post-race, you get to sample various wines produced from the vineyard. Running and wine: a fantastic combination! The race itself was a pretty hilly race. And I was not expecting that! It was pretty brutal! I have been working more and more hill workouts in, but this course took my breath away. At the Big D 5k I participated in a few weeks ago, I was able to get my time down to 27:40. I was so happy with that time because my goal had been to break 30 minutes. I went into this (unknowingly) hilly run with the hope of getting my time down to 27:00. I knew it was a lofty goal, especially after the first hill!! My friends and I had been told that the last mile or so had decent downhills. So as the mile markers ticked off, I kept telling myself that a big downhill was coming. Just over the next hill, it was all downhill the rest of the way. I must have passed three hills telling myself this. And after that, my legs and lungs were just toast. I had started out fast (rookie mistake, I know) and I think my lungs were struggling to regulate my breath after that first mile. I did do a 9 minute mile for my first mile, and then I think I had like a 9:40, 9:30, and a pretty quick .1 mile (there was wine beckoning!). Overall, I finished in 29:21 and ranked 20th in my age group. Even though it was not a PR, I was still happy to have a sub-30 5k on such a hilly course.

The wine afterwards was pretty tasty. Although, I wish it would have been a half cup of wine rather than a third of a Dixie cups worth. Or that they would have poured a few tasters at once for each person rather than having to jump back in the line afterwards to get another. I had a muscat that was delicious and a blush that was so-so.

The company that puts on the race was having some technical difficulties and we didn't get the results until late today. That meant that no awards were given at the race. I obviously didn't qualify for an ae group award, but two of my friends won first place for their age groups. Would've been nice to be able to clap and cheer for them.

Overall, this race was okay. Will I do it next year? Probably not. Did I have fun with my friends? Absolutely! And that is what counts!!

Hello 2013

So, it's been quite a few months since I last posted (okay, okay, half a year. Whatevs.). I ran my marathon on 12/31/2012 in 5 hours, 46 minutes. It was cold, rainy, and kind of miserable, but I did it!  And the next day I walked a 5k and started to eat clean. I've kept up with the clean eating (for the most part!) and have kept up my running. I ran a 27:40 in a 5k last month (the Big D 5k). That was a huge PR or me. My goal for this year has been to become a little faster and to run more days per week. I've already registered for my next marathon: the San Antonio Rock n Roll in November. I don't start my actual training plan until July, so I have until then to ramp up my speed.

Here are some 2012 running/fitness goals:

1. Run at least 3 days per week and one long run on the weekend. 
2. Get my 5k down to below 30 minutes. (Which, I totally crushed this one!!)
3. Get my half-marathon time to 2:15 or below.
4. Get my marathon time down to at least 5:30. 
5. Do at least one triathlon (scheduled for 6/23/2013).
6. Start lifting some weights. (I've been slacking on this one!!)
7. Continue to lose weight. (Since starting weight watchers back in October, I've lost 25 pounds).

10 pounds and a Funk

I had my seventh week at weight watchers today, and I was down 10 pounds! It feels like this has been a long time coming. I mean, really, I've been trying to lose weight since we moved here - and tomorrow will mark our one year Texa-versary! While 10 pounds a year is not my goal, I am pleased that I have at least lost that much. Moving is so stressful and making friends even more stressful. I really thought I would gain weight over the past year. Instead, though, I just kind of maintained until I joined weight watchers and committed to losing the weight. Those meetings do make a difference!

My weight loss helped make my week a little better. I've been in a bit of a funk. I think it's a mix of lack of sleep (my adorable two year has decided to wake up multiple times a night), feeling like my house is a mess, and feeling a little insecure in my running, my friendships, etc, etc. A friend of mine and I were talking a few weeks ago and we both voiced that we want friends to like us because of who we are, and not out of obligation. And I think that's what I've been feeling this week: just hoping that I'm not a friend by obligation (read: forced hanging out through play dates and meetup groups). Does that make sense? I think my problem is that I want close friends and I want to feel like part of the crew. And I simply haven't been here long enough for that to truly happen. True friendships, I guess, take time to make. I'm getting there, just not as fast as I sometimes would like. Anyway, before I get all emo and funkalicious on ya'll, I would like to report that I'm feeling better about all that :)

Today I also had a migraine which made me feel *awesome*. I had a play date scheduled that I was hosting, so I really didn't have time to be sick. I went ahead and hosted the play date, but my migraine  meds left me tired and a little weak. It's going to be an early to bed kind of night at our house! When I picked Danny up from school, his teachers let me know that thy had to send multiple kids home today with fevers and hacking coughs. Tis the season! ;) I'm really Hoping to avoid all of that. At least until after my marathon!! Anyway, time to snuggle up with my cuddle bugs and watch The Lorax. I know I'll have the songs stuck  in my head for a week, but I love that movie (and the cuddles!), so it's worth it!

7 Weeks

Can you believe it? There are only SEVEN more weeks until my marathon. I'm so excited/happy/nervous that it is unbelievable. I'm still having a bit of trouble staying motivated to run my midweek runs, but I am doing them....so I guess that's all that matters. I am not, however, following my training plan. That has me a little stressed out - mostly because I've been skipping over the mid-week semi long run (I'm supposed to do one midweek run ranging from 6-10 miles in addition to my shorter weekday runs and Saturday long run) and I'm wondering how that will affect my endurance for the full marathon. I was reading some info from Jeff Galloway yesterday, though, and his impression was that as long as you are doing *something* during the week and your long Saturday run, you should be okay. After my 18 miler last weekend, I am confident that I can go 26 miles. Running, walking, or crawling - I will cross that finish line!! I just mostly worry about my endurance to keep up a good pace and not take the full 6.5 hours allotted for the course. Plus, I don't want to be SO sore afterwards that I can't keep up my Saturday long runs (after a few weeks of rest, of course) so that I can properly train for the Cowtown Ultra. Oh running!! Who knew it was such a mental sport that requires planning, evaluation, refinement, and re-evaluation? No wonder this health educator loves running!!

A lot of 'life' will also be taking place in the next 7 weeks as well. My baby boy will turn 4 (!!!) is the biggest happening on the forefront of my mind right now. Can't believe my little guy is so big! I think I've decided on a birthday party location. I don't know why, but picking a place for his first party that will not be at our house has caused me a great deal of stress. The place I really wanted to have his party is moving locations and won't be able to host his party until January. And that just seems cruel to make a little one wait four weeks after his actual birthday for his party. So I'm settling on another place. I think. I keep going back and forth about the whole thing! What do you think...wait four weeks for the place I really want, or just do it now? His birthday is about two weeks before Christmas, so maybe January *would* be better just so we get a better turnout?? See, told ya - stressing me out!

There will also be two little holidays inbetween now and my marathon. Thanksgiving is coming up quickly, and Christmas will be here before we know it. Better start planning for those too. I absolutely love Christmas. It's my favorite time of year. Trimming the tree, Christmas carols, holiday parties. Love it all! Lots to look forward to in the next 7 weeks.

Good news

So I had some great news earlier today - Piper's bloodwork check-up to test her iron levels came back today and the doctor said she is no longer anemic! I kind of assumed it would be better after the huge reduction in milk we had about 4-6 weeks ago. This was a huge relief though because I really had some guilt about the whole milk thing. And even though Danny didn't have his blood tested for anemia, I knew he was anemic based on his brittle toe nails and excessive milk drinking. Now, though, his toe nails are no longer splitting. Yeah!

In other good news, Derek's work had a chili cook off today. Derek officially won 2nd place. Officially ; )

Two month catch up

Oh, hi! That's right.....I have a blog?!?! I have really neglected my little blog for almost two months now. Whoops! Not too terribly much has happened in that time. I'm still running (got up to 18 miles so far in my marathon training), cooking (have started using Bountiful Baskets to get fruits and veggies), and taking care of my littles (Danny is now loving preschool, Piper is resisting potty training). See, all caught up! :)

I officially rejoined weight watchers about a month ago. This means actually going to the meetings and tracking and counting all that I'm eating. I've been losing and feeling positive about reaching my ultimate weight goal by end of May 2013. That seems so far away now, but I know it will be here before I know it. My personal goal is to be at my goal weight by the time I run the 2013 Patriot Half Marathon. Only about 6.5 more months to go! But that will mean I will be back to my pre-Piper/pregnancy weight. *someday*

My full marathon is quickly approaching. It is actually 8 weeks from tomorrow! I'm very, very excited and pleased with how my training is going. I'm still slow, but that's okay with me. My goal is just to finish....in hopefully about 5.5 hours. I did 18 miles yesterday in 3 hours, 48 minutes, and 2 seconds. I just need to add 8 more miles to reach my marathon. I think I can do it! It has made me anxious to plan my next marathon adventure.

I have already mentioned my plans for the Cowtown Ultramarathon and am now registered for the Texas Independant Relay (203 miles of awesome relay fun!!), but I am also considering a couple of fall 2013 marathons. I don't think I would ever qualify for the New York City marathon, or the Boston marathon..but Chicago currently does not require you to meet a qualifying time and I don't believe they rely on a lottery entry. How cool would it be to run Chicago?!?!?!? Also around that same time is the Route 66 Marathon in Tulsa. It has won awards for the best medal. And if you know me, you know I'm all about the race bling :) Anyone up for a race-cation?

I went and visited my family in Nashville at the end of September. It was my first solo trip with kids. 14 hours in the car with two littles was exhausting. But, being able to see my dad, step-mom, grandmas, aunts, uncles, and cousins was totally worth it. We had a great time and my step-mom and I did the Lady Speedstick Women's Half-marathon. That was one very hilly course!! I did set a PR though, so yeah! 2 hours and 36 minutes. It was a PR by like a minute. But still a PR. Plus it was on an extremely hilly course, so I felt really great about that.

Well, hopefully I won't forget about my blog for two months again. No promises though - sometimes life just gets in the way of blogging. And your three year old steals your iPad to play angry birds and bad piggies.

Milk guilt

Oh milk. I really don't like milk at all. The only time I drink milk is either in a milkshake or in my post-long-run recovery drink of pink bunny (aka strawberry) milk. I don't think I've ever thought to myself that a tall glass of milk sounded really yummy. Ever. Well, in my adult life anyway! That's why it always surprised me that my kids loved it so much. Like crazy love it. they guzzle it down throughout the day. I never really thought that they were drinking way too much milk; I assumed hey we're drinking the same amounts as other kids their ages.

I took P in for her well baby check up (the big two year old checkup!) on Monday. When we moved to Dallas, our old pediatrician gave us a copy of the kids' medical records. Which I promptly put in a box somewhere and haven't seem since. Turns out though that our old school 'I don't use electronic medical records' doctor gave us the ORIGINAL medical records and not just a copy like I thought. So now the kids have no medical records (that I can find anyway!). Anyway the moral of the story is that the doctor said in addition to the two shots my sweet P had to get, we should also check her blood to make sure she is not anemic. So we ended up getting a blood draw along with her shots and that was that.

I knew that excessive milk drinking could cause anemia, but since my kids eat a fairly well balanced diet - and eat fairly well - that the amount of milk they were given during the day could not be affecting their health. I did ask th doctor how much milk is recommended for toddlers and he said less than 24 ounces per day. I started to think bout how much milk I freely give my kids on a daily basis and was shocked. Their sippy cups hold about 8 ounces of liquid. My kids easily get that filled up multiple times throughout the day. And I'm not talking 3-4 times a day. Much more. So I did a little research.

Excessive milk consumption can cause a myriad of health effects, including anemia. Anemia can cause pale skin and brittle nails. I started thinking about Danny's nails, and how his toe nails split all the time and are thin and, well, brittle. I didn't wait for Piper's bloodwork to come back. I immediately scaled back on the milk. Now the kids are getting no more than 3 cups of milk a day. Instead they are offered water. Piper doesn't seem to have a problem with this, but Danny is not handling it so well. It's been a real challenge but I've stuck to my guns on this one and today he drank two cups of water and two cups of milk.

I am feeling incredibly guilty about this one. I didn't think that I was really hurting them by giving them milk. I thought they were pretty typical. Turns out not so much. Pipers bloodwork came back today and her hemoglobin levels were borderline. The doctor said to cut back on the milk (which I've already done and will continue to do so until they are at 1 - 2 cups of milk per day) and to give her a multivitamin with iron in it. I am dreading taking Danny in to get his levels tested because of his pale skin and brittle nails; I'm positive that they are really low. However, the doctor won't prescribe the vitamins until he gets the bloodwork done.

I really thought I was done having milk guilt after I quit breast feeding and introduced milk to the kids. I guess I'm not passed that quite yet. I know it's not horrible and h problem is being fixed...I just feel like I should have known better or asked our doctor for the blood work to check their iron levels sooner. Or just looked up how much milk a toddler is supposed to have a day. Oh well. It's taken care of now.