This weeks happenings!

Wow! This week has been nothing but gorgeous!  Beautiful weather along with beautiful temps!  Perfect for my runs and just hanging outside.  

Can you believe that it is already the middle of August??  Hello!! Where did Summer go?  Actually, I'm good with it.  Yea, not much of a Summer person at all!  I'd much rather have Fall, Winter, Spring, Fall!  

Anywho, we have just been getting things ready for back to school.  The girls actually did their own back to school shopping.  From what they needed in the class room to what they wanted to wear.  Of course I did some overseeing on a few things.  

This Summer actually was a nice Summer.  Yes the temps were great but I'm talking about the girls.  All three are growing into beautiful young ladies.   Who would have thought that two Summers ago compared to this Summer was heartbreakingly sad and miserable.  

Okay, now to my running.  I love to run.  I do.  But, it is something that has never came easy to me.  I'm not fast.  At all.  On a good day I am about a 10:50pace.  I have struggled for several years now with how slow I am.  But, I can't do that no more.  It is what it is.  For the past three Summers I have trained for my races...whether it be a 5k or a half marathon.  This Summer was no different.  I signed up for a couple 5k's, a couple 10k's and three half marathons.  Well, my body just wasn't gonna let me do those half marathons.  I did my first one and boy was it miserable!  That was the hottest most boring run ever!  The Cincinnati half marathon.  But, between everything that my poor body has been through I just decided to listen to it.  I wasn't enjoying it anymore.  I hated my long runs and hated feeling like I HAD to go out and HAD to get a certain pace.  I started running with a few of my girls that I train and that was so much better.  We ran here and there and even a few times on the bike route and even that was better.  I decided that I was going to go from one of my halfs to the 10k and the last half marathon I just decided that I wasn't going to do period.  I had already ran that twice.  Yes it's fun

and I love it.  But just needed to step down.  I needed to get myself back to where running was fun.  If I wanted to go out and run three miles that day then that's what I wanted to do.  I just needed to step away from what I had to do on that training plan.  I feel so much better!

Here is my runs for this week:

Saturday- 5miles

Sunday- 2miles

Monday- 3miles + trained w/Katy

Tuesday- 2miles

Wednesday- trained w/Katy 

Thursday- 3miles

Friday- rest day

I feel so much better!  especially with my body going through everything that it has been going through the past few years.  

So do you feel that you run the pace that you want to run or do you feel slow?  And are you okay with whatever pace you can do?

Summer catch up (picture overload)

Wanted to do a little catching up and I have added a ton of pics.  So much that has gone on over the Spring/Summer that I can not believe we are already in August and planning for another school year. Life just needs to slow down!  As much as I try, it just keeps getting busier and busier.  So, I've picked a few pics to just kinda describe a little bit of what has been happening.

At the beginning of this year I was set some goals for myself and felt pretty excited and determined.  I wanted to get my personal trainers certification......I did!

I wanted to do a lot of races......I have!  I did a 5k, two 10k's, a half marathon and have another half marathon planned for later this month.  I had also planned for another half marathon in September but decided not to do it.   The only other goal race was the Turkey Trot and as of now I still plan on running that.  

We have done a lot of little things and we look forward to a lot more to come yet.  We also are very excited that we are going to be grandparents again to another little girl and we are so very thrilled!!

This pic was from earlier this Spring at The Flying Pig!  I was so nervous running this even though it was a 10k.  I felt prepared and ready just wasn't sure of the hills....but it wound up being the funnest race yet!  And boy do they know how to put on a race and a great party after!!

This bruise that was much worse in person was from doing squats!! Yes squats!

This was the Columbus 10k and it was on my birthday!  Was hot and very humid but was a lot of fun!

My brother drew this for me for my birthday!  I love it!  I am alway's harping on myself for being so slow and well this is what I get!! Perfect!

I don't know....I just felt very pretty in this pic.  It seems like with running, working out and training my clients I don't get to put on girlie clothes too often.

Just one of my training runs and was feeling pretty darn good!

Oh, and this is what I saw on my training run!  Beautiful!

Completely love the views I have while running!

I had an 8miler planned and these girls had 4.5 miles planned so I did my first 4miles by myself and then they met me and I finished my run with them!  I love this and it makes my long runs so much nicer!

Was so hot even though we were out early that morning!

 I just love this place!  Downtown with lots of little antique shops!

 Having fun with the grandchildren!  

Trips to Young's Jersey Dairy!  Love that place!

Summer morning's on my porch and this is my view!  

Another morning with my coffee and it was so foggy out and just made things so beautiful!

 Just finished our run...again, pretty hot and muggy but so much fun when you are with somebody! 

 Just feeling good!

 Celebrated this precious little Nana's Lauren 2nd birthday!! I love her so!

 Family bike rides!  

This was a 9mile run for me and a 5 mile run for them!  I did my first 2 miles by myself, met up with Candice and ran another 2 miles with her then met up with these girls and did our 5 miles together! Was a beautiful morning for a run.  Not too hot at all and the sun was nowhere to be found and I was okay with that!

She's growing too fast!

Three of my girls.....we have had a great summer!  They have grown so much into fine young ladies! 

Was perfect for the 4th of July!

Lunches outside on the patio!

 OMG!! This girl just melts my heart!

Was a bicep/tricep kinda morning!

 My run in Central Park! Absolutely loved every single step!!

We are always busy with something!  Life is never dull!  There are times that I feel overwhelmed but I just get myself to regroup and think of the moment and how there are no redo's in this crazy hectic life of mine!  Yes, I get tired, overwhelmed, and feel kinda crazy at times but I sure wouldn't trade any of these moments, these events, these memories for nothing in this world!  

So, how has your Summer been?  What memories have you made?

Treadmill Tell-All

We are smack in the middle of one of the coldest winters in years!!  With me just getting back into my runs I don't want to take any chances at all running outside in these below zero temps and with all the snow and ice that is out there.  So it's the treadmill for this girl!!

Such a love/hate relationship!! 

So if it has to be the treadmill/dreadmill we can at least have a little fun and tell-all about our likes and dislikes, favorite workouts on the treadmill and so forth.   Actually seen this in this girls blog and thought it would be fun to play! So here we go...

1. What’s your favorite workout to do on a treadmill? I would have to say (believe it or not) interval runs.  Simply because I'm done a little faster and can get on with my day!

2. How many miles, on average, do you run on the mill each week?  Well I prefer to run zero miles on the treadmill but with the type of freezing below zero temps we are having and me just getting back into my runs I'd have to say about 10-12miles and that's only on a good week!

3. What was the most mileage you’ve ever completed on the mill in one workout? When? Why?  I did a 10 mile training run and really thought I was going to die.  It was back in the beginning of 2011 and I was in the middle of training for my first half marathon.  The weather was pretty gross, cold, and wet...and it had to be done so the treadmill it was!

4. Do you mill at home, the gym or both?  Definitely at home.  I have a gym in our barn which makes it easy and convenient.  I love my gym and pretty much never dread going out there to do any kind of workout.  Except when my trainer Katie is there!

5. What distractions or entertainment (if any) do you use to help pass the time?  I'm not a fan of watching tv so I just really jam my music pretty loud since I am in the barn and it's not disturbing anybody.

6. If you have a treadmill at home, what kind is it? How old is it?  To be honest I'm not really sure of the name...lol I know right?!! You would think from me seeing it day in and day out that I would know this off the top of my head....I do believe it starts with an L!  Geeze! And I bought this back in 2007....might be time for and upgrade??

7. Do you fuel any differently for a treadmill workout than an outside one? Just the normal routine before my run...whole grain toast w/natural pb and a half banana.  Probably the longer runs I have used GU.

8. Any treadmill mishaps to report? Nope! Thank goodness!!

9. Do you mill at incline to compensate for not being outside? For my normal runs it's on a 1% incline unless I'm doing hill repeats....blah! Then it just depends on whats on the schedule.

10. Describe your perfect (if there is such an animal) treadmill conditions: My perfect condititions would be running when its these weather conditions but with the sun shinning and I had windows on all four walls so to see the beauty and feel the warmth of the sun.

Well, there you have it! How about you?  Treadmill or are you able to bare this extreme arctic weather and still run outside?

Getting back at it

Well I have had my surgery and I have been released to start my runs again.  Yay!! I have kept my cardio up by doing the elliptical for 30min or longer.  

Today, my goal was to just run a mile.  Thats. All.  I'm glad thats all I did.  I did a warmup lap and then started out with a slow run.  I wound up running 1.25 miles.  I felt really good and easily could have kept going but I didn't.  I want to be careful starting back up.  I'm not even 3 weeks post op yet.  So, I'm really good with this.  

So I have set some goals for 2014! I want to add to my collection of these:

 I will be starting out my year with a 10k to here

Then in June it goes onto another 10k in Columbus, August will be a half marathon in Morrow Ohio, September will be the Air Force half marathon the finally in October will be a Cincinnati Ohio half marathon.  I'm really excited and hope that I haven't bitten off more than I can chew.  But gosh darn it!! I have had so many obstacles come in my way that this running life I love so much keeps getting interrupted!! 

I'm going to train and train as smart as I can.  I also have a few 5k's in there too.  

Another big thing that I have put on my goal list is to get down to business with getting my ACE Personal Training Certification.  

Lots of things going on for sure and here's hoping for a great New Year and injury free!!

Amen!

What goals do you have for 2014?