Did you hear about the woman that missed the Air France 447 flight only to die in a car accident days later?
If the link to a photo album of tacky weddings is still on the bottom of the webpage, I recommend checking it out. I wouldn't necessarily call them tacky, just committed to their theme.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Saturday, May 30, 2009
It's Been a While
I haven't run since my last post so I took it easy today for 3 miles. It was a little warm out too - about 80 degrees so I averaged a 9:59 min/mile. Everything felt good so I don't have much to say. I'll try to head out tomorrow for 3-4 miles. Next Saturday there is a 5 mile race I hoped to run. I'm on the fence about it now. Maybe we'll see how the week goes and how the weather forecast shapes up.
I also took a little hiatus from my Special K diet. I was on it for a full week (long time, right?) and lost a few pounds. Of course I gained them back over the holiday weekend. So I'm back on it again. I haven't been hungry much lately but that's to be expected when I over-eat for days at a time.
For your entertainment, I found two websites that have made me laugh lately. Warning: not all readers may find the humor in these websites appropriate.
awkwardfamilyphotos.com and
textsfromlastnight.com
I also took a little hiatus from my Special K diet. I was on it for a full week (long time, right?) and lost a few pounds. Of course I gained them back over the holiday weekend. So I'm back on it again. I haven't been hungry much lately but that's to be expected when I over-eat for days at a time.
For your entertainment, I found two websites that have made me laugh lately. Warning: not all readers may find the humor in these websites appropriate.
awkwardfamilyphotos.com and
textsfromlastnight.com
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Some Days You Do
I got some good running in this weekend despite having plenty to do. Yesterday morning I volunteered at the finish line of the Geist Half Marathon/5K. I was supposed to be at there by 6:30 and since getting to the finish line involved taking a bus from a nearby church parking lot, my alarm went off at 4:45. Needless to say I was tired when I got home around noon and I didn't even run 13.1 miles. The race seemed to be well-organized with a scenic course, although hilly for Indiana, so I'll probably try to run it next year.
I ran 3 miles yesterday and decided to run at an easy effort without monitoring my pace to figure out what now seems easy to me. Turns out it's an 9:49 minute/mile. I suppose I can't complain about that but you know I wish it was faster.
This morning I decided to spend the rest of my birthday iTunes gift card and get some new running songs (and the newest Kelly Clarkson album). Once I had them downloaded and my Shuffle synced, I had to go out and try out my new songs. I hadn't decided when I started whether I'd run 3 or 4 miles but it turns out my music was so good, I did 4 miles. I gave it a pretty good effort and ended up with an average mile pace of 9:29 minutes. That wasn't my fastest 4 miles ever so I think it's time to start doing speedwork again. Did I mention this was my first skirt run of the year? Is it hypocritical that I refuse to wear a skirt to work but willingly run in them? It's different because they have shorts underneath, right?
It's almost time for the Survivor finale! Who will win this season? At least it won't be Coach but he was fun to watch because he's totally insane.
I ran 3 miles yesterday and decided to run at an easy effort without monitoring my pace to figure out what now seems easy to me. Turns out it's an 9:49 minute/mile. I suppose I can't complain about that but you know I wish it was faster.
This morning I decided to spend the rest of my birthday iTunes gift card and get some new running songs (and the newest Kelly Clarkson album). Once I had them downloaded and my Shuffle synced, I had to go out and try out my new songs. I hadn't decided when I started whether I'd run 3 or 4 miles but it turns out my music was so good, I did 4 miles. I gave it a pretty good effort and ended up with an average mile pace of 9:29 minutes. That wasn't my fastest 4 miles ever so I think it's time to start doing speedwork again. Did I mention this was my first skirt run of the year? Is it hypocritical that I refuse to wear a skirt to work but willingly run in them? It's different because they have shorts underneath, right?
It's almost time for the Survivor finale! Who will win this season? At least it won't be Coach but he was fun to watch because he's totally insane.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Rant: Blogger's Punctuation
Is it me or does it drive anyone else crazy that Blogger only puts 1 space between sentences? Was it a dream when I learned in school that 2 spaces should separate each sentence (and also after colons but not semi-colons or commas)? Am I doing something wrong? Is there some sentence spacing setting that I missed?
Day 2
Those of you that know me, know why my life will be different for the next 30 days. So I'm taking this opportunity to see how much weight I can lose (healthily, of course). Because I haven't tried enough diets in my life, it is time to do something different. I considered doing Weight Watchers again but the thought of counting & documenting everything I eat seems tiring. I also considered cutting back on carbs but was a little scared to do that since I'm running. So I decided to take the Special K Challenge. My plan is to have a meal bar or cereal for breakfast, eat a normal lunch, and have cereal for dinner. So far so good, but it is only day 2. I think the hardest thing will be watching TV at night and not snacking. I got some of the protein water mix and maybe it's just in my head, but I think it really does curb your appetite. I may change my mind in a week; only time will tell.
So tonight I made a batch of roasted chicken pasta salad (recipe from Cooking Light). I had a coupon for a certain brand of whole grain pasta and bow ties weren't available so I had to use rotini instead. I made some other small changes to the recipe based on some of the ingredients I did or didn't have in the house. I'm sure this will feed me for days - I can't wait to have some tomorrow!
So tonight I made a batch of roasted chicken pasta salad (recipe from Cooking Light). I had a coupon for a certain brand of whole grain pasta and bow ties weren't available so I had to use rotini instead. I made some other small changes to the recipe based on some of the ingredients I did or didn't have in the house. I'm sure this will feed me for days - I can't wait to have some tomorrow!
Monday, May 11, 2009
Back At It Again
I ran yesterday for the first time since the race. I did 3 miles in 28:28 (my second fastest 3 miles) and did 3 miles again today. Today's 3 miles were a little slower (28:50) since I ran a route w/ some hills. I hope to run again on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. On Saturday, I'll be experiencing a half marathon from the other side of things. I contemplated running the Giest Half Marathon earlier this year for a whole 5 minutes and am glad I didn't go through with it. Instead, I signed up to be a volunteer. I've been assigned to the Course Marshal team so I'm not sure what I'm in for other than "directing participants and traffic." Maybe the experience will provide some interesting stories :)
So I'm totally re-thinking a marathon in the fall. I know I can do it if I train properly and it's not that I want to stop training. I think instead of training to run longer distances that I should train to run faster this year. There will always be a marathon to run next year, right? Even though I registered to run a full marathon in November, I can opt to run the half marathon instead. I may even sign up for another local half marathon in October. My other race plans for the year include the Outrun the Sun on June 6 (5 miles), the CarmelFest Freedom Run on July 4 (4.5 miles), a race in Pittsburgh in September that has yet TBD, and the Race to the New Year 5K in December. So far the only race I'm signed up for is the November marathon but these races don't typically sell out so there's no urgency to pay for them now.
So I'm totally re-thinking a marathon in the fall. I know I can do it if I train properly and it's not that I want to stop training. I think instead of training to run longer distances that I should train to run faster this year. There will always be a marathon to run next year, right? Even though I registered to run a full marathon in November, I can opt to run the half marathon instead. I may even sign up for another local half marathon in October. My other race plans for the year include the Outrun the Sun on June 6 (5 miles), the CarmelFest Freedom Run on July 4 (4.5 miles), a race in Pittsburgh in September that has yet TBD, and the Race to the New Year 5K in December. So far the only race I'm signed up for is the November marathon but these races don't typically sell out so there's no urgency to pay for them now.
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Mini Marathon Race Report
The Good:
1. The weather was perfect: about 50 degrees and cloudy. There was a slight breeze most of the time.
2. The first 10 miles: I was averaging a 9:39 min/mile until then. See The Ugly for the remaining 3+ miles.
3. My legs: the shin splints I battled during training did not bother me during today's race. My legs felt pretty good during the race although they did get a little tired towards the end. Of course, after the race is another story. I wasn't quite sure I was going to be able to make it to the car but eventually I got there.
4. My husband: he learned his Mini lesson last year and refused to run it again. So instead, he did everything he could to help my run go well. He picked up my race packet earlier this week, got up before the sun on race day, waited 3 hours for me to finish the race, and drove me home.
The Bad:
1. The track: I really enjoyed running around the track last year. This year, not so much. The back straight-away seemed to take forever. And there was little breeze inside the track (I had heard about this from runners in prior years but didn't think this was an issue last year). Plus there was no music over the speakers on the back straight-away. I finally noticed the music as I entered turn 4 but then it was only hip-hop - wth?
2. The crowd while running: I thought my race this year was a lot more congested than last year. Maybe it was because I started further up in the corrals and I was around more people actually running my pace.
The Ugly:
1. The last 3 miles: this is where my lack of training hurt me. My body felt good but that little voice in my head just kept telling me to stop and in the end, I walked. Mile 11 took me over 12 minutes. I tried to run the last mile+ but I still ended up taking a short break.
2. The post-race party: all of the participants (39,000) and their family and friends are supposed to meet up and celebrate in a relatively small park downtown. Needless to say it gets very crowded and after running 13.1 miles, my patience wears thin and all I want is a shower at home.
By the Numbers:
Total Time: 2:12:41
Overall Place: 13,157 of 30,147
Age Division Place: 880 of 2,529
Sex Place: 4,689 of 15,849
5 Mile Split: 49:18
10 Mile Split: 1:38:27
2008 Mini Time: 2:19:01
Half Marathon PR: 2:08:21
Mile Splits:
1. The weather was perfect: about 50 degrees and cloudy. There was a slight breeze most of the time.
2. The first 10 miles: I was averaging a 9:39 min/mile until then. See The Ugly for the remaining 3+ miles.
3. My legs: the shin splints I battled during training did not bother me during today's race. My legs felt pretty good during the race although they did get a little tired towards the end. Of course, after the race is another story. I wasn't quite sure I was going to be able to make it to the car but eventually I got there.
4. My husband: he learned his Mini lesson last year and refused to run it again. So instead, he did everything he could to help my run go well. He picked up my race packet earlier this week, got up before the sun on race day, waited 3 hours for me to finish the race, and drove me home.
The Bad:
1. The track: I really enjoyed running around the track last year. This year, not so much. The back straight-away seemed to take forever. And there was little breeze inside the track (I had heard about this from runners in prior years but didn't think this was an issue last year). Plus there was no music over the speakers on the back straight-away. I finally noticed the music as I entered turn 4 but then it was only hip-hop - wth?
2. The crowd while running: I thought my race this year was a lot more congested than last year. Maybe it was because I started further up in the corrals and I was around more people actually running my pace.
The Ugly:
1. The last 3 miles: this is where my lack of training hurt me. My body felt good but that little voice in my head just kept telling me to stop and in the end, I walked. Mile 11 took me over 12 minutes. I tried to run the last mile+ but I still ended up taking a short break.
2. The post-race party: all of the participants (39,000) and their family and friends are supposed to meet up and celebrate in a relatively small park downtown. Needless to say it gets very crowded and after running 13.1 miles, my patience wears thin and all I want is a shower at home.
By the Numbers:
Total Time: 2:12:41
Overall Place: 13,157 of 30,147
Age Division Place: 880 of 2,529
Sex Place: 4,689 of 15,849
5 Mile Split: 49:18
10 Mile Split: 1:38:27
2008 Mini Time: 2:19:01
Half Marathon PR: 2:08:21
Mile Splits:
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