Taking Charge, I so know the feeling. Tests suck. I hope you're feeling better since they're over. I've been a wreck this week as well... To make up for it, last night I just danced three straight hours. I feel a little more like myself now... since sometimes you need that release..

Sharon - thanks!

I don't have time today unless I skip out on my plans tonight, but going tomorrow for a nice long run!

Hi ladies, nothing to report here... our race was canceled! It was 20 and snowing/freezing rain this morning and someone slipped and broke their ankle before the race began so they called it off. Probably for the better... it was slippery and my hubby and I were wondering how on earth we were going to race without breaking our necks!

I was kind of bummed.. my legs felt good this morning and I think I could have had a great race. Oh well, got some free Panera cookiies, bagels and coffee in the meantime so it wasn't a total loss!

I'm currently looking for another 5k between now and our 10k in Nov... not much this time of year.

Oh Fat Pants...how disappointing Better to have it cancelled then run and risk an injury though.

Hey girls. Don't have time to write a full race report now, but just wanted to say that I ran my first 10K(first race ever, actually) today and it was AWESOME! Seriously, it was one of the most exciting moments of my life! Will definitely write more later, but just wanted to share that I accomplished my dream goal of finishing in under an hour and came in at 59:09!! Woot woot!

Anyway, hope everyone had great races/runs and I'll be back later tonight to check in with all of you!

HOLY COW takingCharge-----that is a FANTASTIC TIME!!! BIG CONGRATS!!!!! I think i ran my first 10k in 1:04 or something!! You did it!

SkinnyPants--total bummer about the weather yesterady!! I was thinking about you and wondering if they were still gonna have the race...GGgrrrrrrrr.....i hope you got a refund at least
It was even colder up here..... when i went out for my run yesterday morning (which btw, ended up being 8 miles, not 6) it was 17 DEGREES!!! At first my body was scared, but once i got out there i forgot how much i actually ENJOY running in the cold and snow!! it was beautiful, and NOT windy!! I ended up starting out dressing too warm..... I had on insulated tights, and this long sleeved midlayer i wear skiing, along with my light-weight running jacket, and a hat and gloves. I went out to the car to get something and i was already SWEATING!! so i ditched the longsleeved shirt for a tank-top and shortsleeved tech tshirt. ended up being PERFECT
(although it really doesnt seem like it was possible for me to stay warm in that in 17 degree weather!). The only problem was the gloves. I bought some new, heavy running gloves and my fingers were frozen..shoulda worn my huge ski gloves. But really, ill say it again, it was freaking 17 degrees out!! i think the gloves will be perfect for most of the time --like between 25 and 35 degrees....

Thank you ALL for your advice about the smoking weight gain thing.I talked to the councilors at my weight loss place, and for now we are cutting out the higher carb lunch "extras" and the high carb breakfast "extras" Basically i WAS getting a higher sugar fruit at breakfast (along with bread) and i was getting a heavy carb at lunch (bagel, or cereal) along with fruit. SO, we took some of that stuff out....and we will just wait and see, i guess.......im going to try my hardest to be positive about this whole thing......and im upping my strength training to..from 2 times a week to 4 times a week (which should help boost my metabolism) and drinking green tea..... Of course this weekend, all bets are off as far as food goes!! the day before my marathon (sat) im planning on having PANCAKES!! for EVERY MEAL!! with SYRUP!!! REAL SYRUP----not sugar free!!! Alot of people eat pasta to carbo load, and although i LIKE pasta, id rather have PANCAKES!!! which i LOVE!! YUMYUM even if im running 26 miles 385 yards, ill prob still show a pretty big gain come monday, between pancake FEAST and all day sunday celebration feast!! But i dont care..... Ive EARNED the right to eat whatever i gosh darn want that day!! Illget the weight off!!

its MARATHON WEEK------ i get to run 12 miles this week! TOTAL! I had a blistering 2.5 mile run today....... i DO get one 5 miler, on tuesday, but thats the highest mileage run all week.... Saturdays plan is a one hour long YOGA session, followed by an easy mile run to loosen up my muscles, then i will STRETCH STRETCH STRETCH. THEN soak in the gyms hot tub for a little while, and THEN my trainer offered to give me a MASSAGE!!!! The best part is that i have a HUGE crush on my trainer, so this will be nice.... (hes engaged, but i know he likes me too...does it make me a horrible person to hope that his nurse fiance runs off with a rich doctor, and that my BFriend blows himself up in some freakish drunken dutch oven cooking accident?) KIDDING. But seriously, he and i get along SO WELL... we fight and bicker and flirt and dish s**t to each other, laugh and have GREAT chemistry, both as far as a trainer/trainee relationship, and on a personal level....... SIGH........

THIGHS--thats funny (about adding new music) i ALWAYS run better/faster when i have some new songs to listen too!! i get so SICK of the same crap, you know??

TAKING CHARGE-- when does half marathon training OFFICIALLY begin for you, now that you ROCKED your 10K?? What plan are you going to use?? WHen/where is the half?? Oh, and i am totally with you on the eating cleaner pact!! So far this weekend ive done really well!! Weekends are usually SO HARD!!

SHaron---Well??? Were waiting on a race report for that 10K!!?!? Hurry up and get it posted please!! And BTW, i will TOTALLY come to your pity party!!! Your struggles are your own, and cannot be compared to anyone elses, and are completely valid!! That SUCKS that you are gaining weight!
Hey, at least i KNOW WHY im gaining weight!! You havent done anything to deserve it!! And btw its completely normal for runners to NOT lose weight, especially when they are training hard!! I bet you are loosing inches though (over the longer trend!!) Give it some time...i was never able to lose weight as a runner. it wasnt until i did a MASSIVE diet overhaul and began eating REALLY CLEAN (on my diet, MRC) that i was FINALLY able to lose weight!! Running is hard on your body, you need to treat it well....on the other hand, just because you got in your morning run doesnt give you license to eat whatEVER you want, you know?

IRIS-- just like running itself takes practice, dedication and determination, so to does adjusting your body to waking up earlier and running!! To start with, try waking up alittle earlier, and going on SHORTER runs then you might normally do, till your body adjusts to the idea of getting up and working out! I personally need about an HOUR after i wake up before i can even get my butt out the door. I just sit on the couch for a while, with my coffee, and stare at the weather channel. I ENVY people who can roll outta bed and put on their shoes and go, you know?? Thats not me...however i DO know that crap ALWAYS comes up in the afternoon after work....... Im always tired, and grumpy and hungry.... Getting it done forst thing in the morning leaves you with such an accomplished feeling, and is SUCH a great way to start off the day!!!!! Not to mention you will have it outta the way, and then when you get home at night, you can park your butt on the couch and watch television to your hearts content, or whatever other lazy activity you enjoy!!! Give it a try for a little while! I say, promise yourself you will try it for 2 weeks!! GO to bed one hour earlier (which might take you a couple nights to get used to) and wake up one hour earlier, and get in some short runs!! by the end of the two weeks your body will have adjusted to it and then you will KNOW ALL THE secrets only us *morning* runners are privelaged to!!

Ok girls, I'm back for a quick race recap before I pass out in my bed! First lesson that I learned: don't get 4 hours of sleep the night before a race...oops! I had a date last night that ran much later than expected and I got into bed at 1, planning on waking up at 6. But for some crazy reason (nerves? excitement?) I woke up at 5 and was wide awake! Luckily, the adrenaline got me through the race but I've been pretty useless since then.

Ok, so I get to the race and there are hundreds and hundreds of people there! It was so freakin awesome!!! Young, old, skinny, not so skinny, elite athletes...it's amazing to be surrounded by people who love running as much as I do and who are dedicated enough to be there at 7:30am on Sunday to run! The weather was perfect. 65 degrees, nice and cool, right along the ocean. So beautiful!

I thought about you girls at the beginning and really tried to pace myself, though as I looked at my watch at mile 1, I realized it was 9:20min/mile! Same thing happened with mile 2, and then I slowed down to about 10min/mile for miles 3 and 4 because I knew I wanted to save my strength for the end. Miles 5 and 6 were about 9:20-9:30 and then I sprinted the last .26 (ya, it was 6.26 miles for this one)! My date from last night was waiting at mile 1 to cheer me on (how cute!) and my parents were at the finish line cheering! Official chip time was...wait for it...58:57!!!!

Overall, it really was one of my proudest moments because I've come so far in the last 6 months in terms of health and my general state of being and I feel like this was the first real accomplishment (other than weight loss, new clothes, etc) that showed me how strong I really am and how dedication and commitment are the keys to success! Ok, so sappy, sorry! Anyway, I attached a pic of me and my mom at the end of the race. Figured it was time for you guys to see what I look like, so you don't have to imagine me as a cartoon running on the treadmill!

Mk - Thanks for the encouragement!! I can't believe your marathon is SO SOON!! I can't wait to hear all about it! I haven't set an official start date for half marathon training. It's February 7th in Huntington Beach (another one along the ocean!) so I have plenty of time. I'm definitely sticking with running 4x/week for now, but I can't decide if I want to stick with a constant pace and build distance, or if I should work on distance and speed. I'm actually kind of happy with my speed if I can establish my base at around 9:30, so I'm not sure how many tempo/interval runs I'm going to incorporate, at least for the next month or two. Maybe closer to the race, once I've built my distance up to around 10 miles or so, I may rethink my strategy. For my training plan, I basically wanna do a combo of a bunch of plans I've found online. Something like this: Tue 4-5mi, Wed 3-4mi, Fri 4-5mi and long run on Sunday, starting at 6 and then working up maybe every other week. I'm sure I"ll throw in some tempos/intervals to keep things interesting, but I don't know if I want to devote a time every week to them. What do you think? P.S. I love that you have a crush on your trainer. I've totally been there! Maybe you'll both realize you're meant for each other and run away together and live the healthiest, most athletic life ever! It'll be like The Notebook: Marathon Edition...hahaha.

Ok, longest post ever! Hope you all had fantastic weekends!!

TC, CONGRATS!!!

Sharon, I can't wait to hear about your 10K.

MK, thanks for the morning- run pep talk! Tomorrow I have a Dr. appointment so I'm not going to start it just YET, but I really do want to try - I definitely want to be able to start my day with that feeling of accomplishment already!
Also enjoy the massage from your trainer! hehe

Nope, no refund... we just stocked up on free Panera food LOL. Truth be told I think it would have been a great run because there wasn't any wind, despite the chilly temps. I mean I was all decked out in my gear... I wanted to really put it to the test!

I signed up for another 5k in two weeks, the Manitou Springs Mayor's Cup. Hopefully we have better conditions for this one!

TC - Nice job on the 10k!! Great race report... sounds like you had so much fun! and how sweet of your date and your parents to be cheering you on!

Wow, I'm so behind!!

Ok, first of all, here is my insanely long race blog post. The 10K was both totally awesome, and totally totally horrible! I've never had such a rough time running so far. I even cried a little bit while I was running, I was so discouraged. I had to work really hard on my mind the whole time to keep going. And a lot about the race was poorly organized, and the course was awful, so that didn't help. But......in the end, we finished! And I ran the whole time with no walking breaks! So I both loved and hated it and I felt so incredibly proud of myself at the finish line. And now I feel super tough, both physically and even more so mentally, that I can succeed with all the stuff that's going to be changing and scary in my life in the next few months. So on the whole, it was a great experience, even if I hated it in the moment

Thanks so much for all your support and advice and cheering! To be totally honest, there were a couple points that the only thing I used to keep myself running was thinking about how much I would hate coming back here and telling all of you that I had quit.

TakingCharge - I'm so glad your race was awesome!! Your time was incredible! I'm so inspired! Way to go!! Also, congrats on what must have been a pretty great date

SkinnyJeans - major bummer about your race being canceled, but it sounds like it was maybe a good call by the organizers. Now you'll be super hungry and pumped for the next one!

MK - thanks so much for the sympathy. I should probably do a bit more tweaking to my eating plan - and I'm going to do some yoga classes this week, because I've heard it's good cross-training for running, and I think it will help with the post-big-event burnout. I'm so excited for your big day! I can't wait to hear about it! Just 12 miles this week? Wow, this is my one chance to match mileage with the Great MK! That's awesome that you've found such a great fit with your trainer. I know having the perfect fit for a running buddy has made a huge difference, and I'm nervous about how it will affect my running when I move. Your significant-other-disposal scenario cracked me up!!

ok, this is a way too long post. Happy Monday, everyone!

Wow, sharon, I read your blog entry and it does sound like a really poorly designed/planned race! I think I would go nuts having to run the same loop that many times!! Either way, you didn't quit, you ran the entire time and I think you had a FANTASTIC time for your first 10k! You should be VERY proud of yourself, especially considering you only had 3 weeks to train!

Thanks everyone! I'm thinking about signing up for another 10K in 2 weeks because I had so much fun with this first one. What do you all think? Too soon? It's not hard to run 6 miles but it's more the emotion of it all, waking up super early, etc. I don't know!

Fat Pants - Glad you have another race to look forward to since yours was cancelled. What a bummer!

Sharon - Sorry you had such a crazy experience with your race! But I think it's amazing that you ran the whole time and really showed yourself that you can do it and kick some serious butt!