The Turn Around: Obstacles or Opportunity

“An obstacle is often an unrecognized opportunity”

~unknown

Wednesday Hump Day sounds funny, but like an out and back run it marks the turn around to the work week. I wish this turn around was about an out and back run and not just my work week. I have not run since last Friday and I am starting to really feel some negative effects. Apparently, running not only keeps me fit and gives me reason to be proud of myself and feel accomplished, but it also makes me happy. Happy for conquering my mileage, doing more than most people in a day by starting out with a 3-4 mile run, for being skinner as a result and my favorite...sexy runner legs. No I haven't lost my sexy legs or gained all kinds of weight since Friday, but I do feel like I am missing something. Yesterday was my 2nd physical therapy appt. At my first one last Friday I was instructed not to run all weekend. I could still swim or bike, but no running until my next appt. Well yesterday was appt #2 and I still did not get the ok. To add to the sadness I have also moped around and not done any cardio since my yucky run last Friday morning. My initial physical therapy consult Thursday as well as my real therapy that started Friday both prescribed core specific work, so have I done that in earnest since Friday? Nope. Will I get too it? Yup.

Good night Bloggy Bloggers.


Thankful Three

1. For Great books
2. For Oreos
3. For Dayquil

Sunday Summary: Scatter Brained

Ambition is so powerful a passion in the human breast, that however high we reach we are never satisfied. 
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Ugh, I hate feeling scatter brained. Have you ever been driving and missed your exit? Went to the kitchen and forgot what you went in there for? Well as of late I have been feeling very scatter brained. Let's recap how this happened:


I have no idea where it started? There is no turning point, I just have been feeling this for about a month. I try to fight it, hide what I am feeling by making excuses and even try and convince myself that I believe something I don't. Here are the things that are making me feel scattered:

• I have 20 days to my marathon and I have not run longer than 20 miles.
• I just got a case of Bursitis which has halted my running, at least for a few days.
• I sit on the board at my congregation and have a ton of great ideas about how to improve some of our membership activities including a huge reworking of our webpage, but I can't seem to work in to my schedule time to layout the plans for implementation.
• Our congregation is doing a capital campaign fund raising thing and I am also on that committee and I feel like I could be doing more, but my schedule is too full.
• It is the end of the fiscal year at work and I am feeling the pressure to have all my employee feedback written up.
• I have 3 home projects going: house being leveled, exterior repainted and gutters redone. The last one has been a project since February and our guy has been so flakey I now have to look at finishing his partially done work. Did I mention I paid him in full? Yeah, I know I am a dumb-ass.
• I put in for a promotion at work, just found out I didn't get it. I also put in for the leadership program, yeah, pretty sure I didn't get into that either. Don't let those 2 failures fool you. I am damn good at what I do, I just have to rethink how I am approaching advancement. I have severely limited my options for the sake of my family.
• My house is cluttered. I am growing out of being a clutter bug, but I could really use someone else to do it for me, if only I could afford a professional organizer. I can't decide about what to purge sometimes.

So now let me this stuff down to manageable pieces:

• Yes I only have 20 days to my marathon with 16 miles being my longest run. However, I am pretty confident I can finish. I knew going in I wasn't winning any prizes and it is only my 2nd marathon...my first being 4 years ago. My only goal is and should be to finish.
• Bursitis. Yes it sucks, but at least it is manageable. I have gone to a physical therapist and have a plan for the next 3 weeks that should help me be able to complete my marathon.
• The membership webpage ideas I have do not have a deadline. While sooner is better, I can work at my own pace and have a great webmaster to help implement the changes when I am ready and the board approves them.
• Capital Campaign has been going on in a "silent" phase for over a year. While I want to tackle a bazillion assignments in a week, I know it is not feasible. My partners are not even available yet so why am I pressuring myself. Deep breath and a penciling in of the calendar and I am good. No worries.
• Three home projects: House leveling-it'll get done. We have identified a contractor and will be calling this Wednesday to firm up a date. While we hate shelling out cash, this guy is good, reasonable in price and my favorite: RELIABLE. Exterior painting: We already have a guy. He's good. He's affordable. He's RELIABLE...and I know the end date for the project is the end of October (it's a side job for him) so why I think about it is beyond me. The gutters. Well, what can I say about the gutters. The guy we hired and paid in full continues to take advantage of my flexibility. It sucks and there are some explicatives I'd like to use, but I am lady.
• So I didn't get a promotion or likely didn't get in the leadership program either. This one is a little more tricky. While work is not supposed to define us, I kinda let my success at work speak as the success I feel as a person. I know this is not the right way to think and I try and convince myself that it is just a job, just a necessary means to pay the bills. My husband noted the other night that he appreciates so much that I try and convince myself that work is just work, but reminded me that it is not really true for me as much as I want it to be. So there you have it, I am disappointed and am not sure really how to rebound from it. Don't get me wrong, I WILL rebound, the HOW is the thing I am still working on. 
• In terms of approaching advancement differently, I don't mean making myself available for a wider range of opportunities, I mean, accepting that I may not be going anywhere for a while and making the best of my circumstances. No this isn't a pity party. I literally have it really great where I work and while promotions in position type sound nice, any promotion outside of my current work district means a severe pay cut. You've gotta love the federal locality pay where I live. So my circumstances are mine because I have made them that way.
• House clutter. Well I am not worthy of an episode of hoarders to I am not that worried about it, but it would be nice to purge a little. I have too much stuff.

In more scatter brained news:

• Friday I stepped on a baby rattler. I wasn't paying attention and fiddling with my iPhone so I didn't see it. Was I in the wilderness running? Hiking? Nope, I was on my way to an offsite work meeting and it was in the middle of the sidewalk. Pretty wild huh!  
• 
• On Friday I went for a 4 mile run and my "knee" hurt so bad I had to walk. Only got in 2 miles. The good news is I called my primary physician at 8:15, she got me in at 8:45 and called in to a fancy physical therapist that got me in at 10:00 all that same morning. I love that my primary care dr. is a runner herself. With the Nike Women's Marathon only weeks away, she approached my situation with a clear sense of urgency. I am on orders not to run this weekend and have a follow up appt tomorrow. Some rest and physical therapy a couple times a week for 3 weeks should be just I need to be able to run.
• Physical therapists orders? NEW Shoes and inserts to start. I have a whole regimen of exercises, but I was personally excited about needing new kicks. 
• 
• I am reading 3 books. They are all so wonderful. I for some reason need to have multiple books going at once and these are all so different I find myself torn each day and time of day about what I want to read. Today I am hooked on The Hunger Games, yesterday it was Little Bee and before I bought these books it was Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. On that note I am going to go back to reading.
• 

Do you focus and excel at one thing? Or do you prefer to be a jack of all trades? 

I am good at lots of things, better than good actually, but I find it hard for one thing to hold my attention or feel like I am doing enough. Because I feel like I am good at lots of stuff, it is hard to focus my energy on one thing and not feel like I am wasting my talents by not doing a wide variety of things.


Thankful Three

1. New sneakers and owl socks
2. Being good at lots of stuff
3. For this injury. I have been searching for something I can't live without and it looks like running is slowing but surely making it's way onto that list. I feel awful not being able to run, I need it.

Friday Five-Boo!

1. On Sunday I ran 16 miles. About mile 13 I started to feel pain below my right knee. Think, smacking your knee against your desk when swiveling in your chair kind of pain. Really?! Monday was a rest day. Tuesday my quads still felt pretty shredded, Wednesday...well I can't really come up with an excuse for Wednesday. Thursday I ran 4 miles, one of those was my fast mile in 10+ years. I felt a little nagging from the knee, but it was nothing I couldn't push through. I went to physical therapy for my left side ITB, had them treat my aching lower back and take a look at my right knee. Nope, not a "knee" issue. Not the tendons, muscles or ligaments. It is the top of my tibia. It feels bruised. There is no inflammation. Plus when I was there yesterday it was only nagging not actually painful.  Yesterday I was reading P's blog and learned sometimes we just need to HTFU.  This morning I got up at 4:30, was not feeling it. I was tired, my tummy was not ready, my lower back ached a little and my knee hurt!? I woke up in a little pain. Weird. I still got up, drove the 15 miles to meet my running partner and hobbled through a 2 mile run walk. Next time, I need to listen to my body better. I couldn't tell the difference between general ick and ouch. I will be calling the dr. today, x-ray maybe? Boo!
2. Looks like Sunday's TRI Club Championships are out. Boo!
3. My son just ate half my breakfast. Boo!
4. Come on, dig for something positive here.....um, I get a semi-half day at work! I am working all day, but 1/2 of my day will be spent off site doing something creative. Unfortunately that 1/2 day is the latter half of the day and in the bay area so I will be sitting in 5:00 traffic trying to get home. Boo! Oh wait, this was the positive one.
5. Ok, let's try this again. Um......well.....shoot I know I've got something. Ah ha! Wait, lost it. Ok, let's go with this. It's Friday!

Thankful Three

1. Breakfast with my son
2. Crawling back into bed after a hot shower
3. The prospect of sleeping in some time this weekend

Thoughtful Thursday: Success?

Not until we are lost do we begin to understand ourselves.
~Henry David Thoreau

 

There are so many definitions of success. Usually it has been black and white for me. I win or I lose. I am the best or I am not. I finish or I DNF. I am fat or I am not. I have the worst time with the in-between, the gray areas and the things I think I should control and the things I cannot. It is so hard when success is not so black and white. As I embark on this new season I need to redefine success for myself. Unfortunately I need definition, but I am going to work on making those definitions help propel me forward vs. making me feel held back. I have been feeling lost lately and I guess that is where I am starting with this blog. That Thoreau guy is pretty smart. Yesterday I felt really lost. I am not lost, but feeling that way made me re-look at the things I consider successes and failures. Honestly in doing so I haven't really had any failures lately. Don't get me wrong, I am sure things have not panned out perfectly in everything I have done or that has happened to me, but I don't feel like a failure.

 

What has been great?

• Um, hello? Family! My daughter is walking, she'll be 1 next month and I have a birthday party to plan. My son starts tot basketball this coming Saturday and I get to be the head coach. He'll turn 3 in a couple weeks so planning his birthday makes me feel like a good mom.
• Husband. We have done a really good job at planning weekends together and have a great fishing/hiking expedition coming up in a couple weeks.
• Work. So I may not be advancing at the pace I had set out for myself when I was young, unmarried and childless, but here is the deal: I have made choices. Another success quote: "One secret of success in life is for a man to be ready for his opportunity when it comes." ~ Benjamin Disraeli. Well opportunity sure has presented itself, there has been no shortage of that, unfortunately I needed to be ready. While I have certainly been equipped with the tools on the job, I have also been mothering two children and trying to balance that with being a decent wife. Meaning, I wasn't ready. Another quote, "Lost time is never found again" Benjamin Franklin. I have chosen not to lose time with my family and put off some career advancement moves. Now I am ready to put myself out for some select opportunities. Unfortunately, putting myself out there means preparing myself for disappointment. Not advancing at this point in my career is not failure, it is not missed opportunity. At this point, if I do not end up in the place I want to be, it means that it was not the right opportunity for me. I am very good at my job, but I know I am limiting myself by only choosing to go after select positions.
• My ITB has not bothered me in the least since I started physical therapy
• At the beginning of the summer my running goal was to run a sub 10 minute mile. If I didn't make it, it wasn't going to be a failure, just a continued goal. In case you were wondering, the sub 10 minute mile was totally achieved and this morning I hit 9:07. 

So whats next?

• The TRI club championships Sunday 9/26
• 3 birthday parties! son, hubby and daughter in October
• 1/2 marathon 10/3
• Nike Women's Marathon 10/17
• 50K bike ride 11/07
• 1/2 marathon 11/14
• 6 year wedding anniversary
• New mission? Sub 9:00 minute miles.

What this blog post is not. This is not a way to make failures sound ok. I am not looking for excuses and there are going to be failures. I am certain of that. What I am doing and which is a continuation of my 31 to 31 efforts this past summer, is being nicer and kinder to myself. When I am nice to myself, it seems that I have more success.

Thankful Three

1. For the value of putting out into the world the positive energy I want to feel in my life so that I don't feel so lost
2. For breaking 10 minute miles with gusto
3. For taking a few hours off work to catch up on my TV DVR'd shows

Sunday Summary: Not the best idea and Challenge Updates

So how much did I run during the week? 4 miles. Then if that wasn't just super awesome, I fasted Friday evening to Saturday evening, had a light meal Saturday and ran 16 miles this morning. NOT THE BEST IDEA. Don't get me wrong the run was great! A new girl joined me and my running partner. There were plenty of walk breaks to drink, take in nutrition and stretch. I took in a lot more nutrition than I normally do. For breakfast I had 1/2 a Luna Chocolate & Peanut Butter Protein Bar. This was a new thing and I enjoyed it. I saved the other half for right after the run. Over 16 miles I took in 2 Chocolate Power Gels with 2x sodium, 1 sleeve of Tropical punch Clif Shot Blocks and a Gu Blueberry/Pomegranite Rocatane. I actually had to have the Gu with less than a mile & a half to go, it was a new Gu and I was not disappointed. My tummy just started growling. I only drank 20 ounces of water. I am a bathroom breaker and I knew that after the 1 miracle port-a-potty that it was unlikely I would have another opportunity so I took in my fluids sparingly.

So where does the NOT THE BEST IDEA come in? Well it is 10:21 PM and I am still "experiencing" the effects of some dehydration. The fast yesterday included not drinking water either. Today I have had maybe 50 ounces of fluids and 20 of them were in the last 10 minutes. I am horrible, but when I run like this I don't really feel hungry all day and I am already really bad at hydrating. I love the blog-o-sphere challenges, I need to create a personal challenge to drink more.

Speaking of challenges:

The Legs Love Lunges Challenge, it is officially over. I am not dressed for cute leg pictures right now, but I am pretty proud of them. They may not look all that much different, but they feel great.

The Summer of Weight Loss Challenge is over.

Current weight 193 (size 14 as of June 26th)
Goal 180 (this is a pretty lofty goal so any loss is great or at least a comfortable fit into a size 10/12). 
Weigh in days are Tuesdays-----9/19 181 lbs 1 pound shy of my goal. I am a comfortable 12, actually they are kind of baggy, but not all 10's fit me yet. Is there an 11 out there somewhere?


Bust: Too big, still nursing, nothing I can do about them
Chest: 3----- same
Waist: 37-----33.5
Hips: 42 1/2-----40.5
Midway (my version): 41 big roll below the belly button, 40 right at the belly button and 38 1/2 at the roll above the belly button  I am about 8 month post delivery of my perfect baby girl and would love to lose the not so perfect post baby pudge/rolls-----39 big roll below the belly button, 38 right at the belly button and 36.5 at the roll above the belly button
Thighs: 24 each-----23 each
Knees: L 15 3/4 R 16-----15.5 each
Left calf: 15 1/4-----15
Right calf: 15 1/2-----15
Right upper arm: 12"-----11
Left upper arm: 12"-----11

 Hard Core is not going as well as I would like. Now that I have slimmed down a couple inches I need to do the muscle work in those areas. I have 27 days to the marathon and a strong core will be a huge boost to my training and race day efforts. Not to mention I can start toning some areas that are still not where I want them to be.


Thankful Three

1. For running partners
2. For a wonderful dinner with my family
3. For a fun week ahead 

Friday Five-the late night edition

If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call you could make, who would you call and what would you say?  And why are you waiting?  

~Stephen Levine

1. Bittersweet. I had the day off, but had to go into work. I was told I could leave once all our customers had been served, usually 4:00. The last person walked in at 3:57 and was a 45 minute interview, ugh. I rushed home, but had to stop at the bank to get money for the babysitter. I took the exit for the bank, called my hubby to tell him I was stopping off at the bank and he said he had already gotten cash. I got back on the freeway, hit traffic, then finally made it home. I took the day off to shop for the family that would be coming to visit us Saturday night. Great, now I'll have to try and squeeze in some serious shopping tomorrow, right?! Wrong. Every last person, save for the in-laws of course, have backed out of attending for one reason or another. Bittersweet? Yes, having them over at this particular time is my thing, bitter :( The fact that I don't have to prepare anything after a planned long day tomorrow, sweet.
2. Morning run of 3 miles was cancelled due to required rest and snuggling. Wish I hadn't needed to go to work, I could've slept in. Oh well, good news is my running buddy is up for 15-20 miles Sunday. I know a 5 mile range is pretty wide, but we're gonna see how we feel at 15 and go from there. I love having a running partner and am so grateful.
3. Watched the Mexican Bicentennial on DVR, WOW! Freaking amazing, wish I had been in Mexico City, I was moved to tears. Viva!
4. I get to go to Public Affairs Training next week. I will be way from home from lunch time Monday to Dinner time Wednesday. Like how I center my time around eating? I am so excited to mingle with other professionals, sleep in, since we don't meet each day until 8:00, and relax once the work day is over. Sure I will miss my family, but I think I will come back a well rested Momma. I am not sure when the hubby gets to recover from those days, but I am sure we'll work something out.
5. Do you say your sorry the second you realize you hurt someone? Do you wait and let the friend rebound on it's own without formally acknowledge your role in the hurt feelings. Repent to a hire power?

Keep your words soft and tender because tomorrow you may have to eat them.  ~Author Unknown

Thankful Three

1. For my mom, totally helped me out in a pinch tonight
2. For not having a lot to apologize for. I am so not perfect, but as I get older I do less stupid things requiring apologies
3. For my 2 year old son who is so eagerly learning Spanish, his accent is perfect!

Tuesday Tidbit: What are you a size 6?!

We do not see things as they are.
We see them as we are.
~ The Talmud ~

So my niece turned 21 a couple weeks ago and our schedules just haven't been inline enough to get together sooner. So tonight we went to a lovely dinner at one of the few trendy places we have in town. She came to my house so we could ride together and she was with me when I was getting dressed to go out. If you have been following this blog at all you'll know I have lost a little weight. Like 32 lbs since April. While getting dressed, my nieces says, "OMG Auntie Sophie, you are so skinny, what are you a size 6?!" Now if you have seen any pictures of me, you will know how ridiculous it sounds to put my name and the words "Size 6" in the same sentence. So you have a frame of reference I am a size 12 and a size 10 would be on the skinny for my body type. I got to an 8 once when I was coaching basketball and running a real lot, but that lasted all of one basketball coaching season.

Back to the story. We weren't exactly hungry yet, so we went to the mall to get a few things. While at the mall I couldn't help but trying to understand why she said size 6? Was she just trying to flatter me? Is she just so small, like a size 0, that a size 6 looks big to her? I would've pegged her as a 4 or 6 myself. So I asked, "What were you thinking asking if I was a size 6?" Her response: "I don't know, you were changing and you looked so skinny I thought we were the same size. Your legs look freaking awesome, I want your legs."

Ladies and Gentleman, this is coming from my 5 foot 6 in niece, who is thin and super cute. And she doesn't think she is "big" so this perception was not coming from a "I am fat, you are skinny we must be the same size" kind of place. She just actually thought I was skinnier than I am and I am totally up for taking the compliment.

Thankful Three

1. For Kind words, positively skewed perceptions
2. For Strong legs
3. For Creme Brulee

Monday Motivation: Boycavich or Nothing

So I went to sub in on a Monday night co-ed softball team tonight and as it turns out, I was one of 7 girls. It was a 9:15 game, it was cold and I so didn't need to be there. I politely smile, thanked them for the call and said to call me next week if you need someone. No hurt feelings, but I would much rather be snuggled on the couch watching TV. Which brings me to my Monday Motivation, trashy teeny bopper TV.

I was feeling a little glum when I got home thinking about the expenses of all our home repairs when my husband flashed to our DVR to show me the highly anticipated season premier of Gossip Girl. Then my husband proceeded to leave the room. I asked if he wanted to stay and he said it's "Boycavich or Nothing" making reference to Secret Life of the American teenager. Oh, and you had to just love that Catherine is back in Vampire Diaries. I do believe Biggest Loser is starting soon too. Oh, I was meant to be a couch potato, sweat, a blanket, yummy snacks & TV....I love fall!

So who wants a running update? I do! Who's got one, anyone? Yeah, well as you can see from my fancy blinking thing on this blog, I have 1 month left until my marathon and I haven't logged more than a 15 mile run. What the heck? I keep letting life get in the way. Last week was busy, this week will be busier. Oh yeah and next week I have to travel for 3 days for work. Ugh, make time stop for a second so I can breathe, then nap. Both are totally needed.

Random occurrence: Husband & I are at  dinner when a nice lady approaches us to tell us how cute the kids are. We both smile and nod. Then this lovely stranger looks at my son and literally says, "Is he yours too?" YES. YES. YES. The blonde haired, blue eyed child is mine. Is that really so hard to believe. It happens like 80% of the time I am out with my son. I look like the nanny I guess?!

Thankful Three:

1. For my little screaming, fever & diarrhea having 10 month old with no teeth, or sign of teeth, but every sign of teething  going to bed so nice and easily tonight. Tank you, thank you, thank you.
2. For my cute new purple long sleeve from REI that has little thumb holes, it was pretty cool tonight and the long sleeve was much needed.
3. For strangers who are completely ridiculous.

Saturday Sampler: Bullet Proof

I apologize, but this post is going to be everywhere and full of randomness. 

Passion Iced Tea Lemonade-already sweet so make sure you tell them to be easy on the sugar syrup pumps

• Where have I been this week?! Um, I am going to go ahead and say sleeping. 
• My gosh I had a freaking awesome week last week, totally racking up the miles. I even pushed through a sinus infection and cranked out 15 miles on a 12 mile day. 
•  This week not so much. Like 3 miles on Friday and thats it for the week.
• Tuesday, skipped my TRI club meeting, the first missed meeting all year! So tired, so sick.
• So smart person wouldn't pass on having a running partner this morning, especially after a nice run Friday right? Wrong, or right and I am just not a smart person. I was out late last night and decided on the way  home that the 35 extra minutes of sleep in the morning was needed and texted my running partner that I wasn't going to make it. 
• So what did I do when I got home at midnight? Stayed up until 1AM so I could finish my book. I know I am ridiculous. Water for Elephants was a great read!
• Next up on the book list? Well I am still reading Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, but book club has chosen, The Last Chinese Chef for our next book. I'm guessing we'll be discussing this one over some yummy food.

On the next episode of Sophia's life......

Sophia attends her son's first day of religious pre-school which he is totally nervous about, then is heading to a family bday party. All of this is after a 4-6 mile run to start her day. Yes I am behind on mileage, but strangely OK with that and confident that 26.2 will still be enjoyable.

Thankful Three:

1. George Gershwin, he is certainly the bee's knees
2. Crepes, I am so stuffed
3. My super hubby: well manicured lawn, clean house, dinner and puts the kids to bed. After an 8 hour day at work today, he made it feel like I have had my whole weekend so far

Monday Motivation: Thankful

Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn't learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn't learn a little, at least we didn't get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn't die; so, let us all be thankful.

~Buddha

I know I have been absent. Thursday started out great, I put in my 5 miles, albeit slow, but then was hit by a sinus infection. Friday I put in my 3 miles, and my mile #3 was done in 9:44. Woo Hoo. Still sick though. Saturday my 12 miler turned into a 15 miler and now I am right back on track with my modified marathon training schedule. Good stuff! The downside, aside from my sinus infection, is that The Bug got a ick bug on Friday. Then Sunday The Duder got it and today Super Hubby got it. I am hopeful that I can avoid the ick bug. Am I complaining? No, not now. Sure I had moments of being annoyed that on a 3 day weekend I have gotten little rest. Or that when I get sick or hurt that my hubby one ups me by getting sicker or more hurt. Sometimes I just want to be babied. I want to milk it, stay in bed, be catered to etc. Some times I just want that break. I have been informed 2x today by 2 different people that  it'll be about 20 years before that happens and you know what? That is just fine with me...even if I want to complain about it every now & then. 

I found out on Friday that our friends granddaughter drowned. She is still alive, but it is not looking good, she was without oxygen for a very long time. She is 14 months old. It is painful to know anyone is going through this, but even worse that it is a family so close to us. It is hard not to be selfish some times about petty things. I have been petty this weekend, upset that I didn't get enough rest. Upset that I was sick on a 3 day weekend. Upset that I have an awkward work week ahead. But really, I am thankful I have my family so we could help each other through our illnesses. I am thankful that our illnesses are temporary. I am thankful for a bed to sleep in, a house to live in and food to eat. I am thankful that I am employed and have a job to go to tomorrow. I am thankful for friends.

I tend not to throw religion or spirituality on this blog too much. I generally don't ask for much either. But please pray, or send positive thoughts or anything that suits you. There is a 14 month old little girl, hooked up to all kinds of monitors that needs as much positive energy as possible. She has a mother and a father who are struggling with one of life's most impossible decisions. She has grandparents who are feeling the worst pain. Please give a small piece of your healthy, positive energy to family who so desperately needs it.

Thankful Three

1. Faith
2. Family
3. Friends

The Turn Around: Nike + and the kinks

"Goals are dreams with deadlines."

~Diana Scharf Hunt

Oct 17th is just around the corner, Nike Women's Marathon, I am getting ready for you!

Wednesday Hump Day sounds funny, but like an out and back run it marks the turn around to the work week. This week seems to have blown by quickly, I have a short day tomorrow and Friday, then a 3 day weekend. Sometimes as relaxing as this is supposed to feel it is like time is slipping through my fingers.


Tonight was a great night. Totally went back to basics for dinner and made enchiladas and Mexican rice, Super hubby and the family were pleased. After dinner, and not enough time to digest dinner, I headed out to the track for my 6 mile run. I got there a little late and while I am not too annoyed by it, had I gotten there just 11 minutes earlier I could have finished all 6 miles. I felt good enough to finish, but the rest of the workout crew was not putting in as much time as I was and it got dark quickly. I almost stayed out there alone, but safety became a concern. I wrapped up my night with 5 miles instead of 6. Not bad considering I hardly keep up with my training in the first place. I did get a chance to start breaking in a new pair of trail shoes the hubby got me today. I put in 2 miles before switching over to my Mizuno's. 

The downside is when I "paused" my new Nike + sportband and resumed, the chrono resumed, but the miles did not so it looks like it took me 55:46 to run 1.93 miles. I was trying to calibrate it, but telling the computer program I actually did 5 miles not 1.93 was out of it's "range". So hopefully tomorrows 5 miles is better since I won't be pausing. If I still encounter issues, I am glad the Nike + van will be hanging out in the neigborhood Saturday. I love the website, I just need to become a proficient user of this easy little apparatus. Like the black with red accent? You can see it in the picture below.

The rest of the week is sure to be great, I have a running partner for tomorrow morning, 5 miles at 5AM, Friday 3 miles at 5:30AM and Saturday the Nike + van is showing up to the local running club workout. I am going to map out my 12 miles to include participating in the group run, changing it up should take the sting off 12 miles.

Happy running bloggy bloggers!

Thankful Three

1. For a runner partner
2. For a hubby whose side job is the baby whisperer, The Bug was asleep when I got home at 8:20 tonight
3. For texting, my niece turned 21 today and was surprised with balloons, flowers and a limo and she was thoughtful enough to send me text photos right away. Hope she has a safe and fun night

Tuesday Tidbit: Leadership

My Monday Motivation, was going to bed at 8:30 PM with my Bug after a 10 hour day at work. I am a little behind at work, but catching up quickly. Today I only put in 9 hours, but had a congregational leadership thing to do right after work. So today's post will be short. I am still composing my response the the amazing leadership training I got a couple weeks ago, but here are a few ways leadership can be.


It would be nice if leadership was always a team effort, organic, creative, serving and consensus.

Then there are times when leadership is what is is perceived to be, one person paving the way for others.

Unfortunately, no matter how hard we try, there will always be those that see your leadership style like this.

I am a young leader, always learning and striving to be the best person I can be so that I can lead by example. I may not be a perfect leader, but I am self aware enough to know where I can improve. Not at all to sound ego centric, but I wouldn't mind being lead by someone like me. I think overall I do a good job and the reason why I think I do, is because I try to "Be the Solution" and stay open to wonderful ideas to achieve success... even if it is not something I would've come up with for myself.

Really, my mentor, my hero and the person I aspire to be when I too reach 800+ years old. 

Words to live by:


“Do or do not... there is no try.”
“Luke: What's in there? Yoda: Only what you take with you.”
“[Luke:] I can’t believe it. [Yoda:] That is why you fail.”
“Named must your fear be before banish it you can.”




Thankful Three

1. For taking chances
2. For learning to put myself first
3. For Nutella S'mores (I didn't have any Hershey's, great discovery)

Sunday Summary: Nike+ Sportband

It has been a simple Sunday so far. My dreamy family let me sleep in and let me tell you, it was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!

Yesterday was a little busy. I had 18 miles on the schedule, but if you have been keeping up, you will know that I have not been keeping up on my long runs. I love that there is a good "short" marathon training plan in Runner's World called Late Entry on page 37. It is a 4 week plan, I have 7 more weeks until the marathon. I plan on keeping my 2 week taper from my original plan and adding the 4 week RW plan right before that. I will do 12 next weekend and start the RW then Taper weeks. My goal is to finish without being pulled off the course which means finishing in under 6.5 hours. Sounds doable I know, but my first and only marathon finish time is 6:23:37 and San Diego Rock N Roll 2006. It was an easier course (terrain), I had a partner mostly and I didn't miss a single training run. I bonked in that event at mile 10, literally walked until about mile 16-18 then finished pretty strong. The humidity factor and my nutrition plan were less than perfect. This time, I'll have good weather conditions on my side, experience (mentally) for the distance and a better sense of my nutritional needs.

My girlfriend, whom I will from here on our refer to as Ms. Pepper Spray (MPS) said she needed to get in a long run this weekend, 8-10 miles. I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to get back into the swing of things having a partner. So I mapped out 10.2 miles. Like a smart girl that I am, I decided that cheese, salami and wine are not a great night before meal. So Friday night I had cheese, salami and a mixed drink made with Maker's Mark. Really?! I don't know when I am going to learn my lesson, but fortunately my digestive system protested Friday night and I had no, as in Z-E-R-O GI problems on my run Saturday. Woo to the Hoo! The pace was pretty slow for my friend who has earned her way to sub 10 minute miles, but it was faster than I probably should have reasonably held for 10 miles. My goal was to finish in under 2 hours and we came in at 1:56 (11:30ish pace?). Not bad, considering a mini walk break for Gu & Shot Blocks. This is the first time I have run more than 8 miles since July 4th so I am very happy with the result.

Good News:

My July 4th, 8-mile run had me limping because my ITB on the left side was acting up. Like someone driving a knife into the outside of my knee kind of acting up. Since then I signed up for physical therapy and my knee didn't even threaten any problems on my 10.2 mile run. In fact, while my legs and hips started to feel fatigued, I probably could've squeezed out a couple more miles and felt ok. Good news, saved $80 on the same day TRI registration by not registering (too tired). How is this good news? I used the money to finally get me a Nike+  Sportband. It won't give me an elevation profile when I download data, but I will get distance, pace, reg. clock time and calories both while I run and downloadable for tracking. I just don't have the cash for the Garmin I would want and I am not even sure if I want it. The Garmin 310XT is pretty bulky. 

Bad News:

I still haven't purchased my replacement bladder for my camelback fanny pack water thingy. So I stuffed a water bottle in there instead and my lower back is not please with me at the moment. More bad news is that I didn't have time to ice bath after my run and was teaching a tamale workshop with my mom an hour after my run. I was on my feet for 4-5 straight hours, then went out with D, R and a couple other girls for D's birthday. My body was toast. My feet, knees, hips and lower back were begging me for rest and I was supposed to do a triathlon today. So no triathlon today, much needed rest was a requirement today.

Yeah, pretty boring update, but there you have it, it is a pretty simple Sunday around here.

Thankful Three

1. Got a new sports bra today in the next size down, so excited for shrinking boobs.
2. For running partners, so didn't think I was going to make it to 10 when I mapped it.
3. For grandparent's, my hubby and I get a lunch date alone this afternoon...which will include a shopping trip to REI. YAY!

The Turn Around-Mama's Virtual Race Report

Wednesday Hump Day sounds funny, but like an out and back run it marks the turn around to the work week. This week is a special week for MCMama as she locks down another decade. In celebration she has organized a pretty freaking awesome virtual race with varying distances. Since I had 4.0 on my schedule today I was ready to rock it out.

4.0 miles in 47 hard earned minutes

So a smart person would have done a before picture, I am not a smart person and as you will read, a post race picture was so not going to happen.

Plan: meet a girlfriend at 5:15 for a 4.0 miler before the heat sets in with a goal of 42 minutes or less.

What actually happened: I woke up at 3:30 am anxious about a big presentation at work. Fell back asleep, woke up with digestive issues and was running late for the 5:15 run. I guess book club night at the movies with a pre-meal of wine, cheese and salami is not the best pre race meal. I step outside in my long sleeve and it feels like 75 degrees already and humid. Oh wait, it gets better, I took the wrong exit on my way and was even later than expected.

Race Time: We started out on a country road and about a mile in (11:26 pace) I knew it was going to be a rough one, darn pre-race "meal". At mile 2 I had picked up pace (10:30). Approaching mile 3 I had to walk a little just to ensure that my intestines wouldn't fall out. At about this time my run went to hell in a hand basket. A wild dog came running from a farm house and my partner who was a few steps ahead of me was prepping to discharge her pepper spray. I of course did not see her doing this because I was watching to see if the dog was actually going to cross the road to come after us. My partner swung back towards me and the dog and discharged the spray. The dog was too far away, but not to fret my face picked up the slack. Wouldn't want to waste pepper spray after all.

So of course we stop running, I am completely blinded in my left eye and my right eye is tearing pretty badly. Oh yeah, and my face is on F-I-R-E! My friend is obviously worried about me and worried about the dog, ahem, now two dogs that are way too close for comfort. I couldn't see them, but the ferocious barking sounded scarily close. We are running in Walnut Orchards and I just so happen to hear sprinklers. My partner grabs my arm and walks me over. I rinsed, rinsed, rinsed while she yelled at the top of her lungs "Go Away Dog" and threatened to pepper spray them. Was enough was out of my eyes we start walking to make sure the dogs wouldn't chase us. When we were far enough away we resumed running. My friend was mortified to say the least, but really it wasn't that bad. So we start trucking along and I have completely forgotten about my digestive issues, we're going to salvage this run after all. Then about a 1/4 mile later a duster started spraying the Walnut trees and we had to pull our shirts over our faces to be able to half way breathe for about an 1/8 of a mile. Yeah, apparently pepper spray wasn't enough. Half mile from her house I my body remembers I have having digestive issues. And that is how the 47 minute 4.0 mile Mama Goes Master's Virtual Race came to an end.

I had long sleeves that I used to wipe my eyes over and over. Unfortunately the skin on my wrists were on fire for a couple hours even after my shower from pepper spray being wiped on them. My lips burned for a couple hours and my face felt the pepper burn until about lunch.

I was going for a "Do Over" tonight at the track, but the heat was awful and I had an opportunity to run with a group instead of alone so I did a leisurely 3 miles instead.

Thankful Three

1. For great stories to tell, I mean really Bears and Pepper spray in one week? I'm a lucky girl.
2. For running partners, totally worth the pepper spray in the face.
3. For 4-Food Groups Dinner, classic in our house and delicious every time.

Monday Motivation: Ho Shower

Yeah, you read that right, Ho Shower. I usually do not indulge things that are not PC, but really this one was pretty startling given the circumstances.

So this week you probably were thinking that this athlete training for an October marathon was out doing her long run...FALSE. For the second weekend in a row I have been hiking with the hubby. The weekend before last was luxurious with day hikes and an over night in a comfy hotel. Well not this weekend, this weekend was a little more rugged. We left town late on Friday night and found a camp site about 15 miles away from our trailhead to stay over. We got there around 9:30 PM, made camp, a small fire and got through the night getting acclimated to the elevation (about 6800 ft).

Saturday we headed to our trail head, threw on our not so lightly packed 20 lb backpacks and were on our way with cousins A & R. Love couples camping trips. We started up our trail, so we thought, and not so quickly realized, 3/4 of a mile up, that we were on the wrong trail. Our total elevation change on the trail we were supposed to take was 200 ft. Pretty easy 5.4 miles. Well in 3/4 we covered an 800 foot climb. Yup, we went from 6300 ft to 7100 ft. Then, in case this wasn't fun enough, we decided the shortest route to the lower trail was not backtracking, but scaling down a gorgey style drop. Did I mention I am terrified of steep drop offs, like paralyzing kind of fear. Some how I survived the climb down and we found the trail we were supposed to take.

As we are strolling along a 1 mile segment that is more of a horse trail than a hiking path we saw LOTS of bear Sh*&, L-O-T-S. Yes I read the sign at the trailhead that read "You are in Bear Country", but I don't think I really comprehended it until this one mile stretch. We got to our camp spot, it was cozy, I brought a book to read, but 30 pages in I was ready for a nap. I slept for 3 hours while the hubby and A fly-fished.

Upon waking around 4:45 PM I realized I should probably wash up before it got too cold. So cousin R and I went our separate ways to the river to clean up. Upon return, A said something along the lines of how we took a "Ho Shower." When he saw my confusion, he explained that since we did not fully submerge and only washed the "Hot Spots" that it is considered a Ho Shower. So what is more motivating on a Monday than a good quality real shower.

In other news, I had my first semi-Bear encounter. Yes at 3:30 am on Sat/Sun there was a little nudge to our tent opening. The moonlight was so bright all I could see was the bear's silhouette. It felt like an eternity that he just stood there and stared at our tent. I was too afraid to wake up the hubby for fear he would scare the bear and provoke him to lunge at the tent, so I just laid there trying to control my breathing and heart rate. After a while when I went from trying to talk myself out of the fact that I was seeing an actual bear, I started to shake uncontrollably. I have never been more afraid in my life. Once I was confident the bear was gone, I woke up my husband. He thought I was cold and hugged me. I looked at him and said, "I don't think I can ever go camping again." Yes tears were welling up in my eyes and I told him there had been a bear outside our tent. My hubby said he was sorry, hugged me and promptly fell right back asleep. Nice huh! At least I got flowers out of the deal next morning.

I don't know how I was able to sleep for a couple more hours, but I did. And for fun on our hike out on Sunday we decided to count the bear poop on Bear Sh&% Trail, Guess what? It was WAY more than I thought, 79 separate droppings. Some dusty and old, some fresh, but literally a total of 79 just in the 1 mile segment.

Any tips on what I should have done about the Bear? Google says try and scare the bear, but trying not to make a sound seems to have worked for me.

Thankful Three

1. That a bear didn't eat me
2. That I have the resources to shower daily, seriously folks, a Ho Shower is just sad
3. That I killed our hike both days and was easily conquering any up hills

The Turn Around-Friendship

“Truly great friends are hard to find, 

difficult to leave, and impossible to forget.”

~Unknown

Wednesday Hump Day sounds funny, but like an out and back run it marks the turn around to the work week. For me this is a very special week as tomorrow and Friday are going to be a great change of pace. I was nominated by my employer to participate in an Intergovernmental Management Training opportunity. I am not sure I have said too much about where I work, but I will say that I am a federal employee. This training opportunity will bring together a variety of levels of government: city, county, state and federal. It is designed for management level employees with a minimum of 3 years mgmt experience, but no more than 10. I am very excited about this, but because it is a 2-day retreat style training my husband is fairly sure trust falls are going to be involved. What is even better is that this 2-day training will be repeated 5 more times between now and June 2011. So what does this have to do with friendship? Well not much except I will probably be making new friends. 


Actually, I am starting with this because while I do not like to talk about what I do specifically, I can say that leadership is one of my passions as is ethics, cultural-ethnic studies and fun topics like friendship. This blog started out as a way to talk about my way back into fitness and all the things I wish i could or would do were I not such an ambitious slacker. Well writing is one of my "wish I was good at it" things, and blogging fulfills that wish for me a little. So instead of strictly fitness, running, triathlon and the like, I would like to randomly plug in a few discussions about other things. Please keep your eyes peeled next week as I reflect on the IGMT retreat session and the concept of leadership. Today, I am going to talk just a bit about friendship.


While dropping The Bug off with the sitter, I sat and had a chat with B about friendship. We talked about the value of our friends and the concessions we make to keep friends that fill specific needs. We put up with quirks and some times meanness to get what? Companionship, girl time, someone who will be excited for us or with us during exciting times in our lives, cry with us when we need to let it out and bitch with us when we're pissed off. There are friends who float in and out of our lives, some who leave us forever and those that will never leave us no matter how far away they may go.


I am guilty of having quirks. I am guilty of not sending birthday cards or making regular phones calls. I love to hang out on occasion to have a hot chocolate and gab, but I don't think I could survive super girly hanging out time several times a week (unless we're running and talking, then I am game). I am just not that kind of super social let's talk every night kind of friend. Yes you can say that I don't put in the effort, but I am a low maintenance person and can't stand high maintenance friendships. I have lots of good friend qualities myself. I am loyal, extremely trust worthy, rational and dependable. I am also consistent, caring, compassionate and understanding. I am brave and will try just about anything and am good for last minute invitations which works nicely to my spontaneous friends. If my closest friends need me, I am a reliable resource to tap into. While I hate high maintenance friendships, I tend to cater to the needy person style. I don't have many of those friends, but the ones I do have can be exhausting, but again I weigh what I get from the friendship with the effort is takes to maintain the friendship. It just turns out to be worth it sometimes. The downside is I can be a good friend to a fault. When is dealing with the bad, the quirks or the neediness too much? I have literally stayed in friendships where it was obvious I was completely being taken advantage of or not valued, for example:

• Stood up or left waiting for someone running a hour late with no phone call or heads up
• Had mean comments made to me or about me because the other person was feeling hurt or slighted
• Judged for my friendship style, apparently not hanging out every single time I am invited to something makes it seem like I am rejecting others
• Having other friends or groups that I participate in without integrating all people from all areas of my social life
• Being put down for my successes or ignored instead of high five'd

I think the worst thing is not being able to talk about things that are happy and keeping up good positive energy because some friends no matter how much they have in life continue to focus on the negative. And like the old saying goes, misery loves company.


This sounds like a ranting of the bad I know, but having this conversation with B this morning really helped me have a great day. First instead of rushing through baby drop off, it was nice to slow down and have a conversation. It then set the pace for a day of reflection of the friends I have and have had in my life. So yes I may be guarded, there are things about my life and history that only few know the details about, but I think that is ok. I think we all need friends in varying degrees. For most things I am an open book, but it takes a special someone to earn my full trust and I can count those people on one hand. So if I am one of those people for you, thank you for entrusting in me your friendship. If you are one of those people for me, thank you for being part of my life. If I have fallen into a category of people who have at one time or another either taken advantage of you or not valued you enough, I am sorry.

What sets you apart as a friend?

Thankful Three

1. For my sitter B, thank you for your friendship and all that you do to help my Bug have the most loving and encouraging environment to grow and be the happy girl that she is
2. For good friends especially Super Hubby your still my #1
3. For blogland, this medium has been such a wonderful outlet for me

Monday Motivation: Legs Love Lunges Challenge

I ACCEPT!

Amanda at 5 Miles to Empty has a great challenge going from August 10-Sept 10 challenging folks to do lunges 3x per week. Oh, wait and eck, she wants us to post pictures too! So here are my legs pre-lunge challenge. To make the picture even more attractive I happen to be wearing oversized, baggy/scrunchy shorts. I know, pretty HOT huh! Well, besides the need for photo's, I love challenges and in addition to the lunges, I am doing SOWL and Hard Core challenges, just click the buttons on the right hand side of my page to find out more about those.

  

If getting my tush, ahem, legs in shape via lunges is not motivating I don't know what is. I have commented alot about my weight loss, but now it is time to focus on toning up my body. The Hard Core, the SOWL and now this Lunge challenge are all great ways to keep my distracted self focused on success and that ladies and gentleman is motivating.

Thankful Three

1. My hiking weekend with the hubby where he told me, "Honey, Deet is the sexiest perfume you've ever worn"
2. That we made it home in time to put the kids to bed ourselves last night, I really missed my little ones this weekend
3. For being invited to play co-ed softball tonight, yes I know what you are thinking and yes I needed one more activity to fill up my free time ;p