Route 66 Half Marathon

Once again I'm slacking when it comes to blogging.  I just wanted to give a summary of my very first half marathon.

Let me rewind back to January 2011.  I had decided that I was going to train for a 5k in March 2011.  I was not a runner, I could not run more than 5 minutes without almost dying.  I didn't follow a couch to 5k plan, I just built up my level of comfortability when it came to running until I could run 20 minutes straight, then 30 minutes... you get the point. I would have conversations with my friend Stacy about how I didn't think I could do it, that there was NO way I could run a 5k race.  I'm naturally athletic, but I'm not naturally a runner.  I'm not a fast runner, and I probably will never get below a 10 minute mile in a race but I'm okay with that.

I ran a few 5k races over the course of 5 months or so, then I ran a couple of 10k races here and there.  In June 2011, I decided I wanted to train and run my first half marathon in November.  13.1 miles.  This girl who started out almost passing out after running 2 minutes, is going to try to run a half marathon?  I must have gone insane.

The summer months were hard to train, in which I rarely ran since I DESPISE the treadmill.  I did some long runs, my highest being 11 miles.  It's funny that I now see 3 -6 miles as "short and easy runs".

The Route 66 Half Marathon in Tulsa started out as a cold and windy morning, and it ended that way.
My friend Stacy and I stayed at a hotel in Tulsa the night before, and maybe slept for 2 good hours, if that.  Stacy is a natural runner, and she is faster than I am and probably ever will be.

There were so many people there racing, and a lot of supporters along the road.  Total strangers cheering on other strangers as they ran.  Some of my favorite signs I saw were, "Be a honey badger, Don't give a S&*#"  "Run complete stranger that I don't know, Run"  and at the end "You're almost there" with a sign beside it that said, "That's what she said"

The first 6 miles were pretty hilly, and I have to say that I am never prepared for hills.  Mainly because I rarely train on them.  I've learned my lesson though, I have to get over my hill phobia.  The last 7 miles were pretty much a straight, flat way. After mile 9 or so, you had a straight, VERY cold wind coming at you.  In my experience, between mile 10 and mile 11 was the longest mile of my life.  My legs could not go any faster, my hips were getting incredibly tight, and my energy was depleting.

I took some Clif Shotbloks along the way and drank Gatorade every now and then.

I ended up finishing in 2 hours 32 minutes and 40 seconds.  It was a 13.3 mile course, which ends up being an 11:29 pace.  I am pleased with that considering I didn't train for 2 weeks prior due to life.  My goal was to finish and now I have a PR to build off of.

Right before we faced the cold weather.

All the people behind us that were racing.

Me and Stacy at the end. 13.1 finishers!

I have a marathon relay coming up in December at White Rock Marathon in Dallas.
I plan on running the half marathon in Ardmore and the half marathon for the OKC Memorial.

I have a goal to run a marathon in 2012.  I never thought I'd want to, and I never thought I'd say those words.   I may be crazy, but why not I say, why not?!

Running and Thunder Games

So who has two thumbs and is a complete blogging slacker?  This girl.


I ran my first 5k in Ardmore.  There were a ton of hills, which threw me off because I always run on very little incline at the Lake.
However, I finished in 32:01!  
My next 5k is the Red Bud Classic on April 10, then I am running the YWCA 5k on April 16.
I am running the Memorial Marathon Relay on May 1st with a team from the hospital, and I am the 10k leg.  Eek!

          Me & Jodi after our race.

I also went to the OKC Thunder v. Jazz game and had pretty good seats.

I have a NBA crush on Kevin Durant.  haha.

                                                                   Harden & Durant

                                                                  Half-Time

                                                                  KD shooting a free throw

                                                          WUSSSEELLL  WESTBWOOK!

My Top 25 Workout Songs

When I'm listening to music to workout I am either running or on the elliptical.

For me, it has to have a crazy good beat for me to workout and not get bored.

Some of these songs I don't really listen to unless I'm working out.

Don't judge me.  I will definitely have a guilty pleasure songs list coming up, so there will be enough judgment to go around there. I also included the time just in case you wanted to download any of these to add to your playlist.

1. Satisfaction - Benny Benassi: It has a great techno beat.  Kinda makes me want to do the robot on the treadmill and then break out my glow sitcks. (I'm just joking, I don't have any glow sticks.... at the gym.) (06:31)

2. Boom Boom Pow - Black Eyed Peas: It has a lot of energy, and a catchy chorus.(04:12)

3. Jawbreaker - The Dead Weather:  This is a different type of workout song.  This is a band with Jack White and while it's not a typical workout song, it keeps me energized.(02:58)

4. Like a G6 - Far East Movement:  You can bet you will hear this song on the radio, as it is overplayed.  That being said, it has the ideal workout beat. (03:38)

5. Power - Kanye West:  I am not Kanye's biggest fan, but my dislike for him does not take away the fact that he does put out some pretty good songs.  This song is not kid friendly. It is a motivating song with a constant beat. (04:52)

6. Bulletproof - La Roux: I don't know how to describe this song.  It's pop-ish but also has a mechanical background beat.(03:26)

7. Bad Romance - Lady Gaga:  Rah Rah Ah Ah Ahh I can't deny that I'm a Lady Gaga fan.  She puts on a great show and has catchy music.  This is one of many songs of hers I workout to.(04:54)

8. Telephone - Lady Gaga & Beyonce:  Between the fun tempo and Beyonce's ghetto rap, this song keeps my stride fast. (03:41)

9. Buzzin' - Mann:  This is a newer song with an old school beat.  I can't place it, it's either from the late 80's/early 90's but I recognize it. (03:16)

10. Pass That Dutch - Missy Elliott:  Also not kid friendly.  This brings out the gangsta side of me, I just like it. (03:48)

11. The Way You Move - Outkast:  I think most people know this song.  I think this song or at least the beat has been in multiple movie soundtracks. (03:54)

12. Don't Stop the Music - Rihanna: I am also a Rihanna fan.  She's one of those girls that doesn't use Auto-Tune and if she does it's rare.  She also doesn't make me want to punch my eardrums out when she tries to sing live.  (04:27)

13. Rude Boy - Rihanna: NOT kid friendly.  I just love this beat.  It has a memory to it as well, (nothing to do with the actual lyrics), just a funny time.  (03:43)

14. Music is The Victim - Scissor Sisters:  Not kid friendly.  I love the Scissor Sisters, they always the most interesting rhythms and fun lyrics (usually not kid friendly as well) (02:58)

15. She Wolf- Shakira:  I wish I could dance like her.  Sometimes I try to.  On the treadmill.  It doesn't work out too well. (03:08)

16. Back In Your Head - Tegan and Sara: Not really a typical workout song, but I just love this song that it keeps me going.  It does have a beat to it, not that fast so I use it during my "taking it easier" periods. (03:01)

17. OMG - Usher: Another song you'll hear on the radio 8 times in a hour.  However, it's good stuff.  Best believe. (unsure)

18. Check It Out - will.i.am & Nicki Minaj: Not kid friendly. Despite the fact they both use auto-tune, it's a tolerable auto-tuned song.  It's a great song as far as workout rhythm. I only like the songs she does with other people, not her own songs.  (04:12)

19. Ugly - Bubba Sparxxx - Not kid friendly.  My friend once played this 3 times in a row accidentally because it has the same beat all the way through.  It's definitely a one time a workout song. (04:30)

20.  Acceptable in the 80's - Calvin Harris:  Calvin who, you ask?  This song is off of the first Just Dance for Wii.  I liked it so much that I downloaded it and workout to it on a regular basis.(05:33)

21.  I Like That - Richard Visson & Static Revenger: All around a good beat, I'm not even sure what they are talking about.  Every now and then it cuts in a futuristic slow motion pace.  I'll take it. (02:23)

22. It's Tricky - Run D.M.C.:  I'm bringing it old school. (03:05)

23. Spin Spin Sugar - Sneaker Pimps:  This is a Techno song, but I absolutely love everything about it. (04:41)

24. Canned Heat - Jamiroquai:  The song that Napoleon Dynamite danced to.  You know you love it. (05:33)

25. SexyBack - Justin Timberlake:  He's last on the least, but you can't deny that Justin Timberlake is talented, although I tend to prefer him on SNL than anything else.  (03:56)

Weight. Running. Shoes.

I was at Red Coyote Running Store yesterday to get a pair of really good running shoes.  I've been training for a 5k in March and I also plan to run in the Memorial Day Marathon with my work.  I'm not running a marathon, I'll just be running in the relay probably the 5k leg, maybe the 10k?
I needed to find some running shoes that were perfect for me.
This place is awesome, they have you run or walk on a treadmill and they video tape your feet.  They look at your gait to see what areas of your foot that need support.
I had a wonderful guy help me, and he was very patient as I tried on a billion shoes and couldn't seem to tie my laces correctly.  
This should probably be for my "Friday Faves and Flops" review, but there is more to this story.
I ended up getting these shoes (in blue stripes), they are so light and great!

http://www.roadrunnersports.com/rrs/product-detail/product.jsp?id=KSS409&sc=CX10M075&cm_mmc=portal-_-googlebase-_-na-_-rrs206-KSS409



As I was sitting there this other customer is talking to another customer that he knows.  There is a larger girl in there and he makes the comment to his friend, "She's getting running shoes? Gotta lose weight for the new year."  Then they laughed.


People are so insensitive sometimes.  So what if that's what she is doing?  At least she's trying to better herself as a person, which they should try to better their attitudes.  As someone who has struggled with her weight starting at 12 years old, it's not something that is easily fixed.  I've gone over countless diets throughout the years, binge diets, fad diets, weight loss pills, etc...  Obsessively hovering over the scale and pinching areas of yourself you wish you could take off. You can do it for so long, but it doesn't really ever change the source inside you that makes you eat and overindulge.  As of now, I'm just sticking to eating healthier and working out toward a goal that I made for myself.  If I lose weight in the process, that would be great.  


Who knows if that girl in the running shoe store will lose weight?  Maybe this is the beginning of a life changing year for her and she doesn't need people knocking her down.


I once had a friend that said that "fat people disgusted her".. that watching The Biggest Loser made her want to vomit.  She would say, "just stop eating so much!  Eat a salad!"  I asked her if I gained weight, would she still be friends with me?  She told me that it depended on how much weight I gained, 250 lbs would be her limit.  This is in all seriousness, and I was very hurt by this, when she knew how much I struggled with eating better and getting in shape.
This friend was diagnosed with depression, and was being treated for it.  I never mentioned it to her, but I probably should have... People that have problems with eating are no better or worse than you and your depression.  It is a mental/emotional problem that we deal with, just like you do. 


She never understood it, she claimed to be so open-minded, but was very ignorant when it came to that subject.  To make a comparison, I wish I would've told her that there is a certain level at which she was depressed that I would stop being her friend. (Which I wouldn't have done, we parted ways due to other matters.)


Regardless, I wish that more people would just be loving and supportive instead of sitting in judgment to things you have no idea about.  You have no idea what has gone in that person's life.  


1 Peter 8-11
⁸ Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. ⁹ Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.¹⁰ Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. ¹¹ If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.

Consistency

I'm trying to be more consistent with my bloggings.  If that's even a word... wait it's not, because the red line just popped up underneath it.  Oh well, I made it a word.

I'm drinking a cup of hot cocoa in a mug that someone got me.  I can't remember who got me it, but whoever did, thank you because it's cute and it keeps my cocoa warm.

I think my dog is getting the hang of potty training.  That's one thing I've been consistent with.  I've read over and over how dachshunds are hard to potty train.  Believe me he's had his share of accidents, one in which he pooped at Kaylee's house, but that's been forgiven. :)

Another thing I'm trying to be consistent with again is working out.  I used to love working out.  When I was doing P90x or Insanity I was working out 6 days a week.  In hindsight that may have been a bit overkill, but I was pumped up.

I recently joined a gym.  I like it so far.  I usually do the elliptical or run on the treadmill.  Tonight I did a Zumba class and let me just say that it is SOOO fun.  I get to shake my booty, hips, and pop it, with no judgment.  It's great.  I know I probably look dumb doing it, but nobody notices.  Everyone else is trying to work on the  moves and watching themselves do it.

To give you a little taste of it, here's a short video.  Doesn't it look like SO MUCH fun?

I broke my dang toe.

I broke my pinkie toe.  Well, I didn't have an X-Ray or anything, but it hurts to move it, it's bruised and swollen and I can't bear weight.
You know what that means?
No working out for awhile.
I'm hoping it's just sprained, so maybe it'll heal faster?

I'm not being a wuss either.  I guess maybe I am a little.

I was all into Insanity too.  I completed a week and half and I love it a billion times more than P90x.
I was also already seeing subtle differences in my body and I even lost 2 lbs!

Oh well, once my toe heels, I'll just start over again.

Just wanted to give an update to anyone who reads this, and to let you know I'm not being a slacker.