the week went as follows:

monday | run | four miles | out on the streets. did a four mile loop from the casa. felt pretty good, if I recall. maybe until the end. don't really remember.

tuesday | run | three miles | ran the liberty park loop. oh, picked up my stick from salt lake running company. I think this is going to revolutionize my life. I will end this cycle of tight muscles once and for all--I'm determined.

wednesday | ummm. . . | zero anything | okay, so I was planning on going to yoga. but then I got talked into going to a party instead. what's a girl to do? so yeah, it turned into a good quality rest day.

thursday | run | four miles | treadmill. I think it went well. can't remember anything specific.

friday | run | three miles | treadmill. kinda "raced" the girl next to me. sometimes I hate my competitive tendencies. really, it was just because she is one of those really good fast swimmers at masters, and I wanted to at least be better at her at running. needless to say I did have my treadmill cranked up higher than hers, and I wasn't even pushing it too fast, so that made me feel good about myself. I guess. like it really matters in the end, though. right?

saturday | run | ten miles | ten miles and I'm feeling great! seriously, I did not have as much of the usual aches/pains/tightness I usually do. ten miles was nothing. mentally, I think I'm right on track. and my body is following close behind. hopefully I can get it to the point where I can really push myself so as to reach that certain goal. it's kind of exciting. and scary. and I know there will be a lot of hard work involved. but maybe, just maybe I can do it.

eight

I felt good when I woke up yesterday morning. {I should have, I slept for almost twelve hours.} I felt good on the first part of my run. it was still pretty icy so I had to be careful and slow the pace a little. there was one little slip that could've been bad, but fortunately it was just sliding without the falling or even the pulling of muscles. there were a few times during the run that I didn't feel as great. I felt tight, et cetera. but then I'd feel good again. and then tight again. and then good. as always, though, it was a great time for thinking. and the weather was nice, not so cold, so it wasn't a bad run at all.

when I got home I stretched. then I took an ice bath. yikes! those are pretty intense. I filled up my bathtub with the coldest water from the tap, then poured in all of the ice cubes that we have. the hardest part about the ice bath is the pain in your feet. but once they get a little numb, it's not so bad. {that generally takes about two minutes or so.} I like to try and keep my core body temp as high I can by wearing a beanie and wrapping a towel around my shoulders. and yesterday I held my little rice bag that I heat up in the microwave for added warmth. that seemed to work nicely. you know, it kept the convulsions down to a minimum.

8 miles; baby pug tree south, west, north, east

friday

I did the elliptical. for thirty minutes. did the cross country workout. went a relatively slow pace. jammed to the juno soundtrack the whole time. loved it.

eliptical; 30 mintues; 3 miles

thankfully I remembered the ipod

I ran an easy four miles on the treadmill today. I feel a cold on the verge so I didn't want to overdo anything. I'll probably just take tomorrow as a rest day {or just an extremely easy day} and then do my long run on saturday as planned.

4 miles; steiner

the potpourri swim

I have been dreaming lately of effortless gliding through water. each time I'm swimming the backstroke. my kick feels great and releases pent up energy. the rhythm of my rotation in my stroke is both relaxing + rejuvenating. maybe my mind was trying to tell me something: my body wants to swim. {though I'm still not sure why it was calling for the backstroke. that seems random}

[does anyone else do cross training on wednesdays? I don't know why, but I've always done it on wednesdays. maybe it's just a cross training sort of day, what with it being in the middle of the week and all. tuesdays are always scheduled as speed days. is my training too predictable?]

so what with it being wednesday and all, I knew I needed to do something other than run. I also knew that my body was craving the pool. and since I didn't wake up ridiculously early this morning for masters, I was left to do it on my own.

I had no plan going into it, so I just swam whatever I felt like at the moment. I did the 500 warm up, some kicking, a few sprint 25's, some longer sets, a splattering of laps other than freestyle, I did some build: descending + ascending. . . it was a little bit of everything.

what I am most excited about is ironically not my backstroke. I mean, that felt okay, but my butterfly--oh, my butterfly! I was able to swim it! I mean, really swim it! {okay, so I wasn't doing endless laps and laps of the fly or anything. actually I did some 100 IM sets. but I was able to make it all the way without resorting to a drill. I felt fantastic, though I'm sure I still looked like a flopping fish} there's something in the rhythm of this stroke. the kicks + arm movements. maybe I'm finally feeling how it's supposed to be. how that little extra kick right before you come out of the water to breathe helps propel you forward, not upward. I don't know what it was, but it felt good. just about as good as the backstroke felt in my dreams.

swimming; steiner; 1 hour

monday | tuesday

monday: short run around liberty park. the run around the park was completely icy. out of the park, while running home, I did a little fartlek, speed play. had to be careful, though, because there were some slushy-ice patches.

tuesday: ran on the treadmill up at steiner. forgot the ipod, but was miraculously okay without it. the miles didn't drag on. I guess I was just lost in my thoughts. lost among the whirring white noise of the treadmills. lost in the darkening sky as it snuck across the valley. it was a good four mile run. I felt pretty strong. cranked that baby up a bit.

the year {so far} in review

monday, december 31st: hiked over six miles in telemark ski boots on a snowy trail. oh yeah, in the dark. {this will hopefully be another story for another day for another blog}

tuesday, january 1st: hiked over six miles in telemark ski boots on a snowy trail. this time in the daylight. it must be hard to hike in telemark ski boots for so long, because my legs were sore in slightly random places the next day.

wednesday, january 2nd: ran on the treadmill due to poor air quality. did about a 3 mile "hill" workout. tried to push myself. first time running in just the skirt. felt a little exposed while stretching, note to self.

thursday, january 3rd: took a rest day because my body was a little tired and feeling out of sorts.

friday, january 4th: did my long run so I could ski with the husband on saturday. six miles. my legs felt tired + tight.

saturday, january 5th: didn't ski because the canyon was closed until the afternoon due to heavy snow and avalanche control.

beautifully sunny winter run

I was only planning on only doing about five miles today--you know, since I didn't run much this week--but it turned out be something more like 7.5 (according to map my run, anyway).

the beauty of the whole situation is that I felt good. I mean, good for most of the run. it wasn't until the very end that my legs started cramping up a bit. that pesky hamstring almost didn't even make an appearance! I think I'm getting stronger and am ready to start the slow build of the marathon push. hurrah!

7.5 miles; 6th east, liberty loop, through the park to south temple, 8th east to bryan ave (quick detour to look at a house), 10th east to 17th south

my week:

monday: the holiday ski

tuesday: the HBJ 5K

wednesday: ice skating (with kids, so you know it's a workout what with the clinging and the pushing/pulling and the picking them up and all)

thursday: snowshoe (again, with kids)

friday: cross country ski (yes, once again with the children. I love my job!)

saturday: long run

HBJ 5K

the course is not officially marked, it's not officially timed, it's not officially sponsored, and it's definitely not USATF certified.


it's the HBJ 5K, the best christmas day run around.

thank you oatmunchers for letting me participate long distance, via the blog. I know this is a little late in coming, but I wanted to submit a photo of myself running the HBJ 5K in hopes to win a prize. I'm going for the cutest new running digs award. thank you, peter, for the sassiest new running skirt around! I absolutely love, love, love it! (enough to pull it on over the tights for the inaugural run) peter and I had a fabulous relatively 3.1 mile run through a beautiful winter wonderland. it was like a christmas miracle.

the Happy Birthday Jesus 5K
tuesday, december 25th 2K7

post scipt:

today I did some holiday ski with the husband.

telemark love, free-heeling it down the mountain.

my quads are killin' me.

saturday long run

saturday was a short long run. six miles. it was cold. my legs never felt like they warmed up properly. I didn't have time to ice afterwards. but since they were like icicles the whole time anyway I didn't really see the point...

it was a good run, the same old same old.

6 miles; baby pug tree west, north, east

biathlon team

back in the day when I used to go to masters in the evenings at steiner, my cutest husband would come too and do his own little biathlon team. he'd swim first and then go run on the treadmill. it worked out perfectly.

today I wanted to try my own little biathlon team. I reversed the order, because it just makes more sense to me to end in the pool. I just wanted a short, easy run and to see if my shoulder still hurts while I swim. (I haven't been back to early AM swim team since it really started hurting)

after a quick two mile warm up on the treadmill, I headed down to the pool. I did a lot of slow laps. my shoulder felt okay. (my flip turns felt fantastic, btw) I did one length of the pool at a fast pace, and my shoulder totally felt it.

it felt so nice to be back in the pool; I miss it.

2 mile run; 30 minute swim; steiner

you know you're competetive when. . .

I was hoping this statement would prove true last night: I am faster than weather. seriously. it turns out that statement is false. when you try and race weather, you're sure to lose. (unless you're really fast, which I am obviously not)

the run started out nice enough. the sun was out, there was a slight wind. I was layered in tights, shirt, long sleeve tee, windbreaker, beanie, mini gloves. almost midway through the run I had to ditch the windbreaker because I was overheating. (ahh, the beauty of layers) a few blocks after my turn around, I noticed something behind me. the darkest grey sky you have ever seen. this is when the race was on. I was going to beat weather.

I don't know if anyone else out there has ever experienced this, the feeling of being totally enveloped by darkness. {I'm glad it was literal darkness--the daylight fading coupled with the ominous darkness right on my heels--not a metaphor for my life. my life is not darkness, but bright sunshine with the feeling of warmth on my cheeks.} it's a strange feeling. my mantra became, I can beat weather. I can beat weather.

I tried. I failed. the rain started to lightly fall. then the wind became chillier. back on went the windbreaker. (again, the beauty of layers) then the cold, pelting hail started. man, it got a little intense at the end. hail in the face is not a fun feeling. actually, it hurts. a lot. I had to run with my hand near my face to sheild myself. to be honest, though, I did feel quite hardcore out there. (and we all know how I like to feel hardcore, even if I'm not hardcore) after the hail came the lightning + thunder (how often does that happen in a winter storm?!). then the snow.

all in all it was an exciting run. me and weather, a fight to the end.

3.5 miles; 6th east to 6th south to 8th east

not so cold, but dark

yesterday I did the same quick loop. tuesdays are always so jam packed with fun and excitement I barely have time to breathe, let alone run. so it had to be quick. and unfortunately in the dark. (no time to go up to steiner for the tready) so I pulled on my layers, but made sure the white long sleeve tee was on over my fleece. you know, for added visibility. I was out the door.

my turnover was pretty quick again. I was cruisin' until I started to feel it in my left hamstring, so I listened to my body and slowed down a bit. problem solved.

when I got home I only had time to stretch a little bit. definitely no time for ice. oh well.

3 miles; liberty park loop

cold run

I have a problem. I need multiple meals throughout the day to live. I eat breakfast, mid-morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack, dinner, et cetera. lately, though, I've been going without the afternoon snack. either a) because I'm too busy, or 2) because I'm not feeling hungry enough to take a break at work. usually in the latter situation, okay both of the situations, I end up feeling suddenly starved but by this time it's too late to eat anything because I'm almost off work and will be going running immediately after. and we all know how I have a wacky thing with food and exercising. I need at least a few hours in between. (usually. I find I'm getting better.) so by the time I actually get to my run, I'm so hungry I could gnaw off my leg. not a fun thing. I should probably just force myself to eat in the afternoon, even if it is just a little bit, to avoid these situations.

I did the quick three miler today. (you know, as opposed to the long three miler.) I was too hungry for anything else. and it was cold. my legs could feel it through the tights. maybe I should've doubled up. I felt pretty good out there, though. nice quick turnover.

I stretched a little when I got back. (I didn't start stretching right away because my muscles were so cold.) and then I forced myself to ice. I almost didn't. but then I did.

just so you know: when I got home I had half a banana with some peanut butter. (why half a banana? I'm still not sure. maybe I was thinking I was going to be eating dinner soon and didn't want to ruin my appetite. as if that could happen.) I was planning on making baked potatoes for dinner, but since we had roasted red potatoes in our dinner last night and then leftovers today, I didn't really want to eat more potatoes. but I did have a hankering for some treaty cornbread. so I made that. and then I had nothing else to really go with it so I ended up (after eating half the pan--peter helped and it was just a little pan) having some honeycombs and bites of the beef pete was making for his burritos. oh, and the other half of the banana. it was a very nutritious meal, as you can see.

3 miles; liberty park loop

eight

friday I was too busy to run. or swim. or anything. I took it as a rest day.

saturday I did my long run.

it was chilly when I woke up. something like fifteen degrees outside. I waited to go out until it was more like twenty-six degrees. I bundled up in all my little techy layers and braved the winter temps. it wasn't bad.

I did the baby pug tree run. it really is such a great run for it's convenience and simplicity. and it's water availability. {if you don't want to carry water, but want water every two miles or so, try a directional run. super easy. go out one mile in one direction turn around and come back. drink water. go a mile out in another direction, and so forth. water every two miles. it's a beautiful thing.}

my hamstrings started feeling a little tight midway through. otherwise I felt pretty good. this is the longest I've ran in this marathon push. I'm still building my base. eight miles didn't seem bad at all. my mind was totally there, and my body was close behind. I just need to keep working on my hamstrings and I think I'll be okay. {like being diligent about stretching + icing. ice is key.}

I rather enjoyed my run.

8 miles; baby pug tree south, west, north, east

run 4 your life

okay, so I was back at steiner again today. on the treadmill. it was okay. I don't know how people can run long distances on those things. but four miles really isn't too bad. I think six is the max. anyway, I digress.

I felt pretty good today. I ran two miles, put the machine on pause to stretch and by the time I was done stretching everything had been reset. good thing I don't care about my time or my caloric burn (does the treadmill tell you that? I know the eliptical does...), 'cause then I'd be pretty upset with mr treadmill. I just hopped back on and went another two miles. no biggie.

my hamstrings were behaving, though tight. and you know, the usual random aches and pains that come and go. nothing out of the ordinary.

4 miles; steiner

treadmill

I didn't run yesterday because I really had no time for that. (though I did almost wake up early and go to the gym before work. but yeah... that didn't actually happen.) I did go ice skating. which wasn't much of a workout. but it was something active. (and when you try to skate with two pre-teen girls hanging on the back of your jacket, it's actually quite a workout for your quads.)

today I opted out of swimteam. I made the decision last night, and neglected to set the alarm. for anything. yeah, I was slightly late for work this morning.

after work, though, I went up to steiner to run on the treadmill, since it was getting dark. (man, I'm so safe these days!) I did three miles. about halfway through I was thinking to myself how great it was that neither of my hamstrings hurt. about five seconds later I started feeling it in my right hammy. I guess I thought too soon.

3 miles; steiner

bum shoulder

I think I hurt my shoulder in swimming this morning. I don't really know what I did exactly, because it didn't even start hurting until I got to work. and then working just aggrivated it more. (you know, because of all the manual labor I do.) I hope this isn't something that sticks with me. I want to be able to keep swimming regularly.

I think this is the first time I've ever actually remembered my time intervals. (they're posted below with the sets) it was just me in the lane so I had to be very good about keeping track of laps + my times. sometimes I struggle with that; it's just so easy to lose count. I was having a hard time hitting the intervals for the 100's. the 50's were okay until the end. I pushed myself hard, though. (maybe that's why I now have a bum shoulder?) I was able to get the whole workout in. (okay, so I only had a 300 warmup. sometimes I show up a few minutes late...) so even if I'm slow, I'm still proud of myself.

500 warmup

4 X 75 drill (IM order)
4X 50 kick (IM order)
4X 25 swim (IM order)

2 X 100 (1:45)
4X 50 (1:05)
2 X 100 (1:45)
4 X 50 (1:00)
2X 100 (1:45)
4 X 50 (:55)
2 X 100 (1:45)
4 X 50 (:50)
2 X 100 (1:45)

100 cooldown

five in the snow

it did indeed snow today. but I couldn't bear the thought of running on the treadmill. so I braved the conditions and took it to the street.

it was pretty rough out there. it had snowed most of the night, and it was still coming down during the whole run. most people hadn't even shoveled yet. I was running through snow banks, dodging big slushy puddles, and trying not to slip or get hit by a car as I crossed the street. it was like a war zone out there.

I had to run slowly for the aforementioned reasons. conditions were far from ideal. I'm sure it didn't help my hamstring (what with the uneven, slippery surface I was running on), which still hurts, btw. I must have done something to it on thursday's treadmill run. my right hamstring didn't bother me a bit. I hope the left one doesn't become a chronic pain in my you-know-what.

I had originally planned a six or seven mile route (I had conjured up a few different options), but decided to cut it down to five. it wasn't worth risking severe damage to the hamstring or risking my life out there on the snowy streets.

I stretched and iced when I got home.

5 miles; baby pug tree west, baby pug tree north + the liberty park loop

wednesday | thursday | friday

wednesday: swim
don't worry, I was able to wake up ridiculously early on wednesday. I did not miss my swim workout.

when I got to the pool the last lane was empty and there was a guy about to jump into the next lane. I always have a hard time deciding which one I should swim in. if nobody else is in it, I'll take the second to last one and let things just work themselves out. but one of those super fast chicks had just arrived too, and was going to get in the lane with the fast-looking guy. so I opted for my own personal slow lane.

as I was warming up that one guy--the guy that usually swims in my lane, the one who showed up with about ten minutes left of the workout one time--got in and started swimming with me. then my friend karla came. (she is a lot slower than me, and we kept passing her up. it leads me to my theory about swimming: I am a better runner than my friend tori, but she is by far a better swimmer. karla is a better runner than me, but I'm faster than her in the pool. so maybe good runners make slower swimmers. but then I think my theory is shot all to pieces when I look at those chicks in the super fast lanes who I know must be supper awesome runners too. they're probably kickin' butt and taking names at all the local triathlons. they'd kick my butt on the bike as well, I'm sure. anyway, I digress.) so yeah. we were all in the lane together.

now I don't remember what the workout was exactly. I do remember they were all really short sets. nothing farther than a 100 was swam at any one time. it was a really good workout, though. and the coach was worried my lane (meaning myself and the guy, karla kinda had her own little modified workout) wouldn't be able to finish it all in time. but we did, even with a minute or two for a cooldown. I felt very good about that. we swam our little hearts out that morning.

thursday: run
since I split my time between backcountry and youth ed on thursdays, I sometimes like to go up to steiner to workout since I'm going up by the U anyway.

it was a treadmill run. has anyone else noticed that they run differently on a treadmill? (and does this affect the ability to analyze your foot type and pronation at the running store? I've always been a little suspicious for this reason) I seam to take longer strides and my feet aren't as under me as I'd like them to be. maybe I'm just crazy. I don't know.

I ran 4 miles. I tried to push the pace without pushing it too much that my hamstring would go into fits. I had to keep reminding myself that I have time to work on speed. this marathon business is often a lesson in patience, isn't it? I guess you could say it was a good run, though. my right knee did start hurting for no reason at all at mile two. we're talking the whole knee was hurting. not just the outside or anything, but the whole knee cap. I stopped and stretched and that seemed to take care of the problem. it was kinda weird.

I stretched afterward, but obviously no ice because I was at the community rec center where bags of frozen corn are not readily available.

friday: run
I wanted a shorter run to stretch and get the kinks out. both my hamstrings are feeling it today. they are TIGHT. I did the liberty park loop at a pretty slow pace. I stretched briefly mid-run, then again when I got home. I iced. they still feel tight. so, so tight. hopefully I'll be able to work it out on my long run tomorrow. and by long run I mean I'll probably only go 6-7 miles. we'll see.

on a weather related note, it was slightly raining during my run. gotta love rain in the eyes. tomorrow it will most likely be snowing. I'd rather run while it's snowing as opposed to raining. it's less wet that way. so hopefully there's not a foot of snow on the ground when I wake up. if that's the case, I might be moving my run indoors. and I do not want to do that.

my run + a recipe

the temperature was relatively warm'ish this afternoon, so it made everything all melty. I ran the perimeter of liberty because the south side (I approach it from the south) had no snow on the path. I hoped this would be the case all the way around. it wasn't. pretty much the rest of the run around the park was through grey mushy snow. either that or I was slogging through muddy patches of dead grass. it was pretty fun.

it felt pretty good to be out there. just the normal random aches + pains. I almost didn't ice after I stretched. but then I made myself do it.

I also wanted to have my new favorite post-run food. . . the power smoothie. . . but the blender was still sitting in the sink from yesterday's post-run power smoothie. . . so it was a no go. I was totally bumming.

okay, okay. here's the recipe for the power smoothie already (it's really quite simple):

power smoothie
assorted berries of your choice
banana
peanut butter
milk

01. place a handful of berries into the blender.
02. cut up the banana and put in the blender with the berries.
03. blend a little
04. add a scoop of peanut butter
05. blend some more
06. add milk until desired consistency
07. blend
08. pour
09. enjoy

3 miles; liberty park perimeter loop

it's official

so I guess I'm committed. my snail mail registration finally went through. fargo, north dakota here I come!

ditch swimteam? check. ditch work? check! ditch my run? no way!

I slept through swimteam today. this is the first time that has happened since I've started going to the early AM masters. man, I suck. but in my defense I had a really hard time sleeping last night. even with my sunday afternoon nap limited to thirty minutes, I still could not fall asleep for the life of me. slightly frustrating. let's just hope this was an isolated incident.

so I just ditched work instead and ran in the early afternoon. it was perfect.

my hamstring didn't bug me too much, I don't think. overall, it was a pretty nice run.

I even stretched and iced when I got home. I am so good.

4 miles; 6th east/8th east loop, via 4th south

movement without moving

we woke up to a blizzard this morning. so much snow that peter was worried I'd slip and hurt myself or worse, get hit by a snowplow if I ran outside. so I obliged and we both went up to steiner for joint treadmill team.

I have decided that if I was given the choice of jammin' to music or having the feeling of actually going somewhere, I'd choose going somewhere every time. see, that's what I hate most about the treadmill. I run and run and my little legs are really going somewhere but I am not. I hate the feeling of movement without really moving. I want to see the world pass by me. plus, I need a better running play list.

okay, I'll be honest. I don't really have a running play list. I set the ipod on shuffle and just let it go. some songs, I discovered, aren't so conducive to moving fast. I need to work on that. {any suggestions out there? eye of the tiger obviously. but what else?}

I think I'll be spending a little more time on the treadmill in the coming months. {though I hate to say it} on days when air quality is poor or the road conditions aren't ideal, I don't want to risk it. I'll suck it up and do what's best for my overall health. (this is so far from my old running self who was do or die run outside) plus I think it will be easier to do workouts where I want to target my tempo or goal pace for a certain number of miles. I'll be able to gauge speed + distance. but don't get me wrong. I will spend time on the roads as well. I cannot run much more than six miles on a treadmill. I think I just might kill myself if I have to resort to that.

the run was pretty good. it's nice to see how far off my target pace I am. I was sitting at about a 9:22 minute mile for most of the run. I pushed it below 9 minutes for a bit. I am trying to be conservative and not push too hard too soon. I have time to get my pace + endurance where they need to be.

6 miles; steiner

the gloves in question

here is the text message conversation I had with my husband this afternoon after I frantically (okay, so not so frantically) looked all over the house for my favorite running mini gloves.

{me} do you have the mini gloves?

{peter} yes!

{me} oh man! I ned them to go running... plus I wiped snot all over them on my last run. sorry.

{peter} yes

so as you can see, my husband is very secure in his manhood (come on, red 'n pink striped mini gloves!) and is not afraid of a little snot. all good things.

needless to say, I went on the run sans gloves. I just pulled my little sleeves over my fists and went for it. it was a little chilly, but I eventually got over it.

I felt good. I felt pretty fast. (that's all relative, because who knows how fast I was actually going.) I stretched and iced when I got home. I was supposed to have another massage tonight, but my massage therapist is sickly. {get better, becky!} we'll give it a go next week for sure.

3 miles; liberty park perimeter loop

slow.

man, oh man, today was hard. I don't know what it was. for a split second, I thought about ditching swimteam and just staying in my cozy bed. maybe I should've. I rolled in to the pool a few minutes late. I only got a 200 warmup in. there were two other girls already in my lane. (and, just so you know, it wasn't the slowest lane) this is where things started to go downhill. with each length of the pool I saw myself slipping farther and farther behind. these girls didn't seem like they were that fast. was I just really that slow? at one point, while I was waiting at the wall to start my next set (the other girls had already left the wall before I got there), the coach came over and said, "you're doing great!" as if to say, hang in there, even if you're slow you're still swimming hard. yeah. it was a tough workout for me. maybe I was just tired. I don't know.

even though it sucked and I was trying so hard to catch/keep up (and failing) I know it was good for me. it was a tough workout and it kept me humble.


500 warmup

4 150's (50 kick, 50 drill, 50 swim)

400 moderate free

4 25's fast

2 200's build

4 50's fast

4 100's (1-4 descending)

4 75's fast

100 cool down

let it snow

I left my house this morning to the most beautiful sunrise. the temperature was unseasonably warm, and I thought to myself what a perfect moment this would be to be running. sadly, I hopped in my car and drove to work.

this afternoon the scene had changed drastically. the storm blew in. it was snowing. yes, that's right. it finally happened. my first run in the snow for the season. but despite the cold and the wet, it was still a perfect moment for a run.

you see, I love winter running. I get to put on my tights, pull on some layers on top, wear the beannie + mini gloves. while I was running up 17th I saw my reflection in a shop window. she looked so hardcore looking back at me, as if she was saying: you were born for this. man, oh man, what a feeling. the snowflakes fluttering into your eyes. the snot rockets. the cold air in the lungs. not to mention the world is transformed into something so quiet and beautiful when it's snowing.

it was a good run.

3 miles; 8th east (17th - 6th)

my own swimteam

there was no coach this morning. that means no one on the side of the pool telling me what to do. isn't that what I wake so freaking early for? oh well. I just made up my own workout, and it went a little something like this:

500 warm up (I actually got to do the whole 500 this time!)

4 50's kick

12 25's IM order without freestyle (I just want to say that I was able to do each of my butterfly's. like I got all the way to the other end of the pool without having to resort to a fly drill or the breast stroke! this is huge for me. I know I was slow, and that it wasn't pretty, but I did it.)

50, 75, 100 freestyle, descending (each one getting faster)

25 breast

500 free

100, 75, 50 free, ascending

25 breast

4 50's hypoxic (25 - breathe every 5 strokes, 25 - breathe every 7 strokes)

100 cool down

fairmont; one hour

right where I started

how come after four days of rest, I feel exactly the same? am I ever going to be one-hundred percent healthy? should I just start working out again, because obviously it doesn't matter? should I swim tomorrow morning? someone please help me--is there a light at the end of my nasal passages?

(fyi, I don't feel overwhelmingly sick or anything. just annoyingly sick since it won't ever completely go away. )

holiday

yesterday I swam. it was a good workout. I led the lane. (and surprisingly, I wasn't in the slow lane. those kids were just too slow for me, both the coach and I agreed.) I felt pretty tired from it the rest of the day.

I still feel sick. I have had this head congestion for two weeks now. am I ever going to feel better? how much crap can a person's nasal passages really hold?

I had planned to do a preemptive holiday strike. I'd run four miles today, pre feast. but since I've been feeling so crappy I've now decided that maybe what I really need is a rest. I'm always just go go go. it's time to slow it down a bit and just take it easy.

happy thanksgiving!


what I remember of the aforementioned workout:
500 warmup up

8 75's (50 drill, 25 dps)

4 50's (descending, do the 300 the same speed the last 50 was swam in)
300


2 100's (descending, do the 2oo the same speed the last 100 was swam in)
200

100 cool down

cold

man, was it cold today. I went this afternoon after work. it was 40 degrees. add in the little windchill and it felt like 20 degrees. I hated myself for not putting the beanie on. and I had no mini gloves! (I haven't even looked for my mini gloves yet, it's probably about time) thankfully I warmed up and the wind stopped blowing so much. the last half of the run wasn't too bad.

I think the cold made me run faster, though.

I could feel my hamstring off and on. and every once in a while I would get a random pain in my right knee.

so why is it that I can wake up in the five o'clock hour to go swimming? but I have a hard time waking up at all when it's a running day? do I need someone to run with to get me out of bed in the morning? do I need an appointment, as it were? I guess the other factor is that when I want to go it's still dark! there's always the treadmill up at steiner. . .

3 miles; liberty park perimeter loop

beautiful morning swim

when I got to the pool this morning there were only a handful of swimmers. we were trying to work out the lane situation, who would share with who. the coach {who must swim while coaching every monday it seems} was trying to figure out what lane I should be in. {as if I'm ever in any lane but the slow lane!} she asked me what I swim my 100's in. I told her I really didn't know; I just know I'm always in the slowest lane. it's slightly embarrassing to not know how fast I swim. I mean, that's something you should know and pay attention to, right? the thing is, this coach has asked me this before {the only time I went to early AM swimteam over the summer} and I had much the same reply. and to add to that, the one year I swam in high school I never ever paid attention to my times. maybe it just wasn't engrained in me. maybe I just didn't care. maybe I just don't have a high attention span or a good memory. after I would race, if I looked up at the clock at all, I'd soon forget what I swam it in. maybe I should work on this. if it even matters at this point.

when we finally did the get the lane situation all figured out {of course, I was in the slow lane} I hopped in to start my warm up. this chick got in the lane too and asked if we could split the lane until someone else came. I asked if she'd just rather circle swim. because let's be honest, circle swimming is just better. she just made some comment on how I was probably faster, yadda yadda. as I pushed off the wall I couldn't help but wonder if she was even doing masters. when we were ready to start the sets, she was back at the wall and seemed to be trying to listen to what the coach was saying. she asked me about it and I tried to explain the set. if she wasn't a regular swimmer, though, she would've had no idea what I was saying. then she was like, "oh, I'll just do my own thing, I don't even have my contacts in..." yeah. I don't think she was really there for masters. she just did her own thing and it was probably better that we split the lane. she was kinda crazy.

as usual, I had to cut some of the sets slightly short. I just don't have time to do it all since I have to get out of the pool around 7am to get to work on time. the coach and two other fast swimmers were in the lane next to me. yeah, they're fast. I wonder how people ever get that fast. could I get that fast? it doesn't seem like it.

anyway, below is the workout. my legs were more tired afterward today than last week. and my sinuses still seem to be congested, which I don't think swimming helps. oh well, I love it. I even love waking up in the five o'clock hour to go swim. who would've ever thought.

500 warm up

[25 kick, 25 drill]
150 (50 fly, 50 back, 50 breast)
150 free
150 (50 fly, 50 back, 50 breast)
150 free

4 100's IM
200 free

4 100's reverse IM
200 free

4 100's IM (no rest between 100's)
200 free

100 cool down

masters; fairmont

sugarhouse park

I've been slightly sick the past week. just a little head cold. it hasn't really affected my energy levels too much, so I've just been doing the things I would have done otherwise. (except for thursday. I took a rest day and then had an awesome massage) so when saturday rolled around, I knew I'd be doing a "long" run.

the weather has been so nice lately. too nice. it's november and we need snow. (is alta even going to be open for our biannual thanksgiving day tradition?!) but it does make for some good running weather. yesterday was no exception. I was out in shorts and a tee. it was beautiful.

I decided to run up 17th south to 15th east and just head over to sugarhouse park. I did the big loop around (not inside the park, the perimeter) to add some more distance. the run was great, but I didn't have any water. I think I was severely dehydrated which doesn't help my sickness any. oh well. I survived.

starting out I felt really, really slow. I wasn't warmed up and when you're running east in salt lake city, utah you better believe you'll probably be running up a hill. this was no exception. so it took me a while to get in the groove of it. but I finally warmed up and felt pretty good.

5.5 - 6 miles; 17th south, 15th east, sugarhouse park

first post-massage run

I have the nicest friend in the world. she's a massage therapist and has agreed to do some work on me. she came over last thursday and it was like a dream. friday morning I went running.

all I can say is the first couple steps out I felt no tightness whatsoever. it was a good feeling. about a half mile into it, I could feel my legs slipping back into the same old feelings. my hamstring bugged me slightly but nothing major.

I'm interested to see how sports massage will affect me. I'm sure there will be positive outcomes from this grande experiment.

the run was just the usual. nothing too exciting other than the fact that it made me late for work. sometimes after a week of waking up really early, a girl just likes to sleep in a little bit.

3 miles; liberty park loop/8th east

fairmont

I did it again. I woke up early and went swimming. you all should be so proud of me.

the workout was pretty good. I'm back in the slow lane and the sets get cut for us. I guess we're just not that fast. it's okay, though. I'm still getting an hour's worth of good ol' hard exercise. and that's all I really want.

so let me see. . . can I even remember the workout? this is more or less what my lane did:

500 warmup

8 100's (25 kick, 50 drill, 25 DPS aka distance per stroke)

200 freestyle
2 100's stroke (anything but free)
100 (25 fast, 75 easy)

200 free
4 50's stroke
100 (50 fast, 50 easy)

200 free
8 25's stroke
100 (75 fast, 25 easy)

cool down

I'm experiencing back pain when I turn at the wall. it comes on after I'm doing flip-turns for a while, and then I start doing open turns and it still hurts. I think I'm just really inflexible.

I've got an appointment scheduled with my sports massage therapist tomorrow. hopefully it will be the remedy I need to start getting my muscles back under control. I know I need it.

swimming; fairmont; one hour

joint run team

today I dragged peter out of bed to go running with me. we did the liberty park loop. it was a bit chilly, but our bodies warmed up. it's always fun to witness the day's beginning. I love the early morning colors of the sky.

before we headed out the door my right ankle started hurting for no reason at all. maybe it was just in protest. by about a half mile into it the pain went away. other than that I don't remember anything else too major. just the same old stuff.

I didn't have much time to stretch + eat + shower when we got back. icing was out of the question. we should've gotten out the door earlier, but then it would have been so much darker. you take what you can get, I guess.

day two of early morning exerciser complete. it feels good.

3 miles; liberty park loop

the early AM swim

well, it's official. I have become that early morning exerciser. phase one is in full effect.

today I dragged my butt out of bed at 5:45 AM to go hit the pool. I've decided that I need to swim master's again, but I didn't really want to do it in the evenings anymore. so perfect solution. swim at six in the morning.

now if you know me in the morning, you'll remember I'm probably not the funnest person to be around. my only word of advise: if I'm not willingly talking to you, don't ask me any questions or try to talk to me. it will be certain death. and unpleasant feelings for both of us. trust me. but a curious thing has been happening as of late. I'm able to wake up early. (maybe it's because I go to bed at ten?) It's really not so hard. so I'm taking full advantage. let's hope this trend continues, because if I work out in the early AM, I won't have to do it after work when I'd rather just focus on getting something healthy and yummy on the table.

so the workout. I haven't swam in almost six months. it was good to be back in the water, but my body could feel it. my arms were tired after the first fifty! (though I was surprised how effortlessly I was breathing on my left side. usually I only breath on the right--a bad habit I'm trying to break!--and when I do try and breath on the left my whole body is thrown outta whack. today it was so much better. I just did it. without even thinking. it was like it was natural or something!) we did a lot of stroke. my butterfly is in a sad state. as if it was ever in anything but. when I did the set of breaststroke, I started to feel it in my right hamstring. I still cheat on the backstroke. my lower back started hurting, with all the flip-turns. I'm so glad to be back in the pool!

masters; fairmont; 1 hour

saturday AM run

I wanted to go running, pete wanted to go swimming. we both wanted to end up at the hot tub. so what do you do?

since running six miles on the treadmill didn't sound too incredibly appealing, I opted for taking a route out on the streets. I planned it out in such a way that I would end back up at steiner where I would reconnect with pete in the pool.

I threw in a baby pug tree at the beginning of the run--north, through the park and back. then headed back over to 17th south (instead of running back on 6th east, I chose 7th east so I could hit up the drinking fountain. it was my only chance for water out on the run, so I thought I'd take advantage.) I ran up 17th to 15th, which btw is one of my favorite streets to run on in slc. I did a loop in sugarhouse park (does anyone know the interior road distance of that park?) and then back out to 15th. it was pretty much a straight shot to steiner after that. well, after getting up to gaurdsman, at least.

it was such a pretty morning for a run. it had rained a little, so the gunk in the air was all cleared out. the morning sun + mountain views were amazing yesterday. the valley was beautiful. the temp perfect.

my legs felt overall good. I was surprised at how well they held up. near the end they did start to feel a little tight. my left knee was hurting at random times. that's not good. but my right hamstring held up.

when I got to steiner pete was still in the pool. I left him to go stretch. now usually I like to ice after a run, we all know that. but yesterday I did the complete opposite--heat. the hot tub felt good, though. nice and warm (hot) + cozy. after about ten minutes of that we got out. we had a whole fun day ahead of us, which included going up to alta to get our ski passes and getting guitar hero! hurrah!!

~6 miles; baby pug tree north, up 17th to 15th, sugarhouse loop, over to steiner

thoughts on my running on a random wednesday afternoon

the plan
phase I
phase II
Phase III

switch up AM workouts w/ spin class sometimes

adapt

throw in elliptical or anything else as I see fit

listen to my body

balance

commitment

support

work on core everyday

hydrate

rest
adequate sleep + easy days

eat well
healthy on-the-go breakfasts
raw veggies
proteins
complex carbs
variety
fish
juicing (wheat grass?)

periodization
train smart
research training plans

find out what sports drink fargo will have, train with it!

visualization

inspiration

why I run. . .

stay movtivated

stay focused

give back to the running community

back for a second time this week

I went back to steiner for some more elliptical. I figured I'd be over that way anyway, and the air wasn't that great, so working out inside wasn't a bad idea.

it was a good workout. I had forgot my ipod + a few other key items so I just grabbed a fitness mag and ellipticalled my little heart out in front of the figure skaters. time flew by. I was sweating up a storm. it felt great. my legs are now all the better for it.

elliptical; steiner; 35 minutes, 4.30 distance, 403 calories burned

a good day for a run

I'm sitting here eating milk + cookies (just one, don't worry) as I ice and type. man, this is multi-tasking to the extreme! it's a peanut butter cookie, does that count for my post run carb + protein? {I used this cookie as a reward for going running today--not that I didn't want to run and needed an incentive, rather the cookie has been staring me in the face for a whole day now and I needed a good excuse to eat it. food as reward, is that bad? maybe next time I'll just give myself the excuse to go shopping.}

I've had a lot of thoughts swirling around in my head about running today. I find it's the best time to think about other things while at work. and running usually pops up a lot in those thoughts. but today was an especially good day. more to come on that later, I'm sure.

the first few steps out on my run today I could feel my hamstring. it lessened as I ran and loosened up. by the end of the run it wasn't really bugging me and I felt good. it was just a beautiful time of day (and year) to be out there on the streets. I ran around liberty. the leaves are falling in abundance. the perimeter dirt path was mostly covered. the air was cool, but not so much so that I needed more than shorts and a tee. the afternoon light was slanting. I was caught up in the moment. it was just me out there. I didn't think of the other runners. I didn't try to race anyone. it was just me. my body. step for step. this is why I love running.

3.25 miles; liberty park perimeter loop, 8th east

tuesday: elliptical

since my legs are so crazy lately, I decided to head up to steiner yesterday after work to do something a little more low-impact. I took on the elliptical. I love the elliptical. it's by far my favorite peice of gym equipment.

I did a cross country route. my legs felt pretty good. my hamstring didn't bug me too much. I stretched afterwards, and then when I got home I iced.

my legs have felt pretty good today (I only kinda feel the hamstring) and I feel like I had a lot of energy last night instead of feeling beat. I think it was a good switch.

elliptical; steiner; 35 minutes, 4.2 distance, 400'ish calories burned

et cetera

I'm trying to juggle my working self with my training self with my housewife self. since I go to work so stinkin' early these days I'm off by 3:30, so I can come home and get a run in before making dinner. I think it's all going to work out okay. my sweetest husband even said I didn't have to work as much when my training kicks into full gear. I'm going to take him up on that. I'm envisioning two-a-days, both am and pm workouts of sorts on select days. I'm still trying to figure out how I'm going to fit everything in.

actually, I'm still trying to figure out my training plan in general. I thought I had it figured out, but I think it depends on my level of fitness and general health (you know, if my hamstring, IT bands, ankles are cooperating). I did decide today that I need to get back in the pool. I think swimming really helps your endurance. and since pete renewed our passes to steiner, I should really take advantage of the master's swim class. I miss it.

so the weather is still really nice. I ran today in shorts and a long sleeved tee. I really could've gotten away with short sleeves. my hamstring was bugging me a little. especially when I had to bust past the scooter gang of kids (okay, two kids on a scooter and one kid on a bike). I think they were speeding up too, just to piss me off. my left knee really started hurting too. IT band? I'm not exactly sure. and my ankles have been feeling a little weird lately. very reminiscent of my spring 2006 training. my ankles got so messed up I couldn't run the famous idaho potato marathon in boise (don't worry, I got to run it this year). I haven't really had a problem with them this year, so I'm hoping things won't get out of control. I'm sure it will be okay. maybe I just need new shoes. when did I get my last pair? how many miles have I run in them?

3.5 miles; baby pug tree run: west and north (to 13th east and up to 8th east and over to 17th south, home)

situation: rectified.

friday: went running. the usual liberty park loop. I know, I know. the same old thing again? yes. it's quick and easy and I know (basically) how far I'm running. I did go up to 8th east on my way home to make the run slightly more exciting. even that's getting a little old. oh well. I don't quite remember how I felt, but I know I didn't ice. probably should've iced.

3 miles; liberty park


saturday: since I only ran two other days this week I decided to go easy on the saturday run. I went through the park to 4th south, up to 8th east and home. I remember feeling really good the first few miles. like incredibly good. it was just a perfect day to be out there. I could've gotten away with shorts and a tee, but my yoga capris and long sleeves (pulled up, of course) weren't too bad either. the autumn leaves are really pretty. anyway, I started feeling my right hamstring near the end of the run. I should've iced after I stretched when I got home, but didn't. I'll be better next week, I swear.

4 miles; 6th east - 4th south - 8th east - 17th south

rectifying the situation

I hadn't gone running since last saturday until about 30 minutes ago. I really hate it when my life gets overly busy and my running is the thing I have to sacrifice. I guess I could try harder to make the time, but I'm not into running at ten pm as much anymore. in my non-running defense, though, I did go on three different hikes (they were kinda baby hikes, but hikes nonetheless) over monday and tuesday, and yesterday I took a walk. (okay, so that was only about a mile. it was nice to be in the sunshine, though. yesterday was a fantastic day.)

I should be able to get a run in tomorrow. (it is another strangely busy day--in fact, it's been a strangely busy week, and it continues right on through the weekend.)

and saturday I'm hoping to get a short (shorter than last week's?!) long run in.

wish me luck.

short long run

I woke up this morning and did the usual long run routine. I don't know by this distance if you could call it a long run, per se, but it's the longest I've actually run in a long time. and I'm still working up my base. so needless to say after I ate my pre-long run toast I laced up and hit the road.

it was a little chilly this morning. in the low to mid forties. soon I'm going to need to get myself a pair of those cheep little gloves. or find a pair I already own, I guess. I started thinking about winter running with snow on the ground, etc. I can't believe we're almost there.

the run was pretty good. the first four miles I felt pretty tight. I started loosening up in those last two miles. it made me feel good, even if my legs were still a little tight by the end. mile five was uphill, and I didn't even think about stopping and walking. I just plodded on. that felt good.

overall it was a good run. we'll hover around this distance for a couple weeks and then maybe push it up a little.

6 miles; baby pug tree run: west, north, east

a quickie

I did a quick run before work. I just wanted to get out there. I probably needed it more after work to relieve some stress, but I did not have time for that. so whatever. I ran through the park, up 9th south to 8th east and just ran home. nothing too major. my legs still feel tight.

I iced and then somehow tweaked my hamstring a little bit. I really don't know what I did. it kind of bugged throughout the rest of the day. oh well, what can you do?

2.5 miles; 6th east to 9th south to 8th east to my casa

confessions

okay, so I didn't go to yoga last night. if you really want to know, I was sitting at home shoving my face full of food. that's the problem with not going to the store for over a week. when you've finally made dinner after starving all day, you really can't help but eat everything in sight. and just so you know, we still haven't gone to the store yet. we're holding out until at least next week. I mean, with family parties and such we've at least got dinners covered through the weekend.

but I did go running after work again. today I wasn't as hungry. more thirsty. {how could I not be adequately hydrated after drinking fifty nalgenes at work?!} but I felt a lot stronger. my quads (well, right above my knees, is that something more specific than my quads?) still took a beating. I made sure to target that muscle group when I iced. maybe that dirt/grass trail just isn't that soft. and speaking of that path, those dead, fallen leaves were out to get me. or at least catch a ride home in my shoe. I needed some serious gaiters to avoid all the stowaways.

one of my favorite things about running the dirt paths at the park is racing the runners on the inner sidewalk. it makes me feel cool when I can run up ahead of them on the outside because I have so much more distance to cover. it doesn't really make a difference if they're old and slow. I still feel hardcore anyway. {just so you know, they're usually old and slow.}

3 miles; liberty park perimeter dirt path

almost perfection

I ran this afternoon after work. my goodness was I ever hungry. {it's never a good sign when you've pretty much eaten all the food you brought to eat for the day by 12:30pm} and my legs seemed pretty tight/sore. other than that it was a gorgeous autumn running day. you know it's perfection when you can be out there in shorts and a long-sleeve tee.

I did the outside perimeter loop at liberty. even on the softer (though let's be honest, is the grass/dirt around here really that much softer?) surface, it still felt like my legs were taking a slight beating.

you better believe I stretched and iced when I got home. I'll be doing yoga tomorrow.

3 miles; liberty park

forgot to mention. . .

about my run yesterday. see, I purposefully didn't post about it because I was going to add a PM swim to my AM run. the swim never happened because I have this cold just teetering on the verge. I figured I wouldn't overwork my body with two a days until I was in the clear--if I ever am in the clear. this thing is just sort of hovering around my head without getting better, or worse, really. slightly annoying.

anyway, I did do a three mile run in the morning. my hamstring was okay. I came home, stretched and iced. not really an eventful run, I guess. (I'm sure I would have had more details to say about it yesterday, but whatever)

in other news, I mapped out my training schedule for the marathon. I pulled it off runnersworld and it seems pretty intense. {it's the intermediate plan} I very well might die, but I want to put in a good effort towards qualifying for boston. so putting myself through pure hell might be the only way of getting there. I just have to get my body ready for pure hell first. good thing the intense training doesn't start until february.

3 miles; liberty park loop and home via 8th east

saturday run

I almost didn't go running today. good thing pete was at swimteam when I got back from the boutique because I might not have gotten out the door otherwise.

the weather had cleared up a bit, though. and I knew I had to go; I'd hate myself if I didn't.

for some reason I wanted to run up to 15th east and run along that street, but the hill getting up to 15th east didn't sound too appealing. so I did the usual run (6th east, through the park, and up to 4th south) but ran all the way to south temple instead of turning around at 4th south. I ran back along 8th east as well (with a minor emergency bathroom break at the maverik on 3rd south and 9th east. yikes.). it turned out to be a beautiful day for a run. I only got hailed on a little bit. it wasn't too cold. there was blue sky peaking out of grey clouds to the west.

my hamstring was feelin' it, though. I'm icing right now. hopefully that helps the situation.

my stomach was also feelin' it. that vegetable chili I ate for lunch was sitting a little heavy. I love my stomach.

oh, but I was in luck. when I got home pete was back. this is a good thing because I had locked myself out.

5 miles; 6th east - south temple - 8th east - 17th south

yogi

athena|tree pose, modified via waterbottle on head

thankfully I was able to go to my yoga class tonight. it was fantastic. I know my body needs this. I noticed how tight my IT bands were. and how inflexible I am. but it actually felt better than the last yoga class I took. so maybe I'm making improvements on my strength + flexibility.

chilly morning run

I woke up at seven-thirty this morning. it was still dark. I thought to myself, hey maybe I should go running. now usually I don't go running when it's dark outside. okay, I take that back. I will run in the night time darkness any day of the week. but that morning darkness? I don't know. I guess I always feel more unsettled about it.

but by the time I pulled on my running tights + jacket et cetera it was getting light outside. no worries.

I just wanted to do something quick, so I ran the usual liberty park loop. my left knee was hurting a little bit again today. I don't know if it has something to do with my IT band or a residual problem from that kayaking accident last year. (sometimes I feel it acting up) my hips kinda hurt today too. maybe it was from all that elliptical yesterday.

I think I need yoga in my life. good thing athena (my costa rican traveling partner friend) teaches a free yoga class every wednesday night. hopefully I can make it. I think it all depends on my eating situation. yes, everything in my life is dependent on and revolves around eating.

3 miles; liberty park loop

the gym

I don't know why I did it exactly, but I passed up a perfectly good autumn running day to go to the gym. maybe it was for the pure joy of jammin' to the ipod (I am strictly against this while road running. hey, a girl's got to watch out for herself). maybe it was to get my elliptical fix. maybe it was to rest my legs a bit. maybe it was just to see if my membership is still current (it is! I think it expires next month, though). regardless, I went up to steiner to do some elliptical workout fun. and what fun it was.

I decided to go for an hour. I set the machine on a lovely little cross country circuit, grabbed some health + nutrition mags, plugged in and jammed out. it was fabulous.

yesterday a little while after my run my left knee started to hurt. it was very random because the pain came out of nowhere. I could also feel my left hamstring this morning. yikes! I really should've stretched and iced yesterday. I did stretch a lot better today. still no ice, though.

5.56 elliptical distance (~530 calories burned); steiner

autumn run

well, after a week of doing THIS {okay, so it was really just two days of doing THIS, plus more days of playing in the jungle} I finally went running again. even though the oatmeal was still sitting a little heavy in my stomach (and tried to derail me of my plans) I stuck to my guns and ran the route I was planning on. nope, no running around liberty park. this time it was through liberty park. and then on to 4th south where I turned east two blocks and rome home via 8th east. one nice big loop.

I ran it pretty slowly, sure. but the route was longer than the usually loop through the park and back. my hamstring didn't really bother me. I did have a pretty random pain in my left knee about halfway through. it was in between the outside and the front the of the knee. kinda weird. but it didn't stay with me too long. or I just stopped noticing it. not sure. either way, it was a very nice run on a beautiful fall day.

I'm a slacker, though. I got home and pretty much neglected my legs. didn't stretch very well and certainly didn't ice. that will probably come back to bite me.

4 miles; 6th east to 4th south to 8th east

my run

I found out some very exciting news at work today that gave me the urge to go running. I won't divulge what that is just yet. I'm working on building suspense via the blog. I'm waiting for everything to come through and be official.

so when I got home, I did just that. went running. I've still got this cold kickin' around, but I'm overall feeling much better. almost one hundred percent. perhaps ninety-two percent healthy? plus or minus five? (I've got to account for this headache that snuck up on me this afternoon)

I did the usual three miles. you know, liberty park and all that. I ran the outside perimeter dirt path. there was a couple running a ways ahead of me that I was making significant gains on. eventually the chick ditched the guy to go run on the inside sidewalk. in my heart of hearts I wanted to pass them so badly. it was my inner kenyan coming out. and when it was just the guy, I wanted to pass him even more. but since this was my first time back out there in a while, I didn't want to push it too fast. I figured if I could just find a fast enough speed that was sustainable, I'd make my attack. I didn't. I mean, I closed the gap somewhat, but he was always just a little out of reach. I'd like to think that if I was in shape and it wasn't hot {okay, I'm going to be a little running princess for a moment. it was freaking seventy degrees outside and I'm still complaining about it being too hot. it wasn't too hot, unless you were in direct sunlight. the shade was just perfect.} that I would've been able to kick this guys trash. I really think I could have.

basically during the whole run I felt the yogurt/granola I had eaten at work. it wasn't the greatest feeling in the world. maybe I should've waited a little longer. I felt a little sluggish too. on the way home, running up 13th south to 8th east I felt pretty tired. but the rest of the way wasn't too bad.

I didn't really stretch very well when I got home. I did some and then just laid there on the floor. then I hopped in the shower so I could get dinner ready before pete got home from work.

speaking of, I wish he'd get home from his run soon so we could eat!

3 miles; liberty + 8th east

the state of affairs

I haven't been running. I've been sick. hopefully I will be on the up and up soon so I can get back into the routine. I miss the routine; it has been such great running weather as of late.

{notice: rain in the valley, snow in the mountains!}

I'm running again!

finally, a non-cleanse related post! so I'm back in action. eating. running. the whole shebang.

since it was my first run after my little sabbatical, I only did about three miles. I felt pretty good though. I could feel my right hamstring in the beginning, but by the end it loosened up. everything else was fine overall.

it was a perfect day for a run. we're transitioning into my favorite running conditions: cold. I love cold running weather. {my body shuts down in any kind of heat} I love pulling on the running tights. I love layering. I love the fact that my body warms me up sufficiently. I love feeling hardcore when everyone else stays inside or just goes to the gym. winter running can be so beautiful. I'm excited for the changes. I like fall running too. especially on days like today. chilly {enough for the tights}, the sun finally peaking out after two days of rain. I love it. it's days like today that remind me why I love to run.

3 miles; liberty loop to 8th east and back

the master cleanse: post-cleanse, day three

hurrah, I'm back! yes, the old anna jo that you all know and love is back! today I ate food, real food! and it was heaven.

I started the morning out with a bowl of grape nuts trail mix crunch cereal (of the maple nut & brown sugar variety. not as good as the original since it's sans raisins). then I made a yummy salad full of fresh veggies (red leaf lettuce, cucumber, tomato, red onion, radishes, mushrooms, with a slice of lime to squeeze on top) to take to work, along with some cut up veggies (carrots, celery, and broccoli) and a strawberry yogurt. {I'm not taking the probiotic pills at this point, just hoping the yogurt does the trick. so far so good.} and for dinner tonight? fish! yes, you heard me. anna jo ate fish. willingly! it's all a apart of my new plan: enjoy fish. we went to red rock brewery up in park city and I had the almond crusted trout with rice, steamed carrots and a side salad.

I just can't believe the day of eating I've had. I no longer feel sick to my stomach. I no longer have a headache or sore shoulders. it's like I'm me again. and I'm loving it.

the master cleanse: post-cleanse, day two

well, today was a little better than yesterday. I'll give it that. I still have a headache and my upper body is sore. I still feel all yucky in my stomach. pete is convinced it's due to my lack of caloric intake. seriously, I'm consuming fewer calories now than I was on the juice diet. so he's forcing me to eat food even though I feel a little pukey inside. but I think it's exactly what I need. hopefully tomorrow my eating ability is a little more normal. I really don't want to be anorexic, but eating just isn't appealing right now. what's a girl to do?

here is a rundown of some things I ate today:
some cream of wheat (sweatened by none other than organic grade b maple syrup!), though I couldn't even eat all of it.

some vegetable broth (from the homemade vegetable stock I made this morning.) with a few saltine crackers. (which, btw, I found out are pure death. yeah, the saltines have high fructose corn syrup.)

orange juice. (I don't think it sits well with my stomach)

homemade vegetable soup (made with some of the aforementioned vegetable stock and more fresh veggies)

a {very tiny} piece of lemon cake. okay, I know what you're all thinking, you ate cake?! doesn't that go against everything you just did? well, yes. actually it does. the lemon cake had high fructose corn syrup in it too, but I ate it anyway. but our neighbors brought it over and it just looked so good and it was only a littly itsy-bitsy piece anyway. so I did it. all things in moderation.

the master cleanse: post-cleanse, day one

well, this day ranks as the worst day of the cleanse by far. I've had a headache and my back/shoulders/neck feel really sore. let's be honest, the orange juice is no lemonade beverage. how do they expect anybody to live off of this stuff for a whole day? I should've stuck with the lemon/syrup/pepper combo. at least it would've given me energy throughout the day. seriously. I want to die. oh, and did I mention I kinda feel like puking? I think it stems from my severe lack of food, coupled with the oj and that jamba juice I had (okay, so I could really only handle a couple of sips). no good. but now I'm home and eating saltines. real food! my mouth doesn't know what to do with it all! I've had, like, maybe seven crackers so far. I think it might be helping my energy levels. {"*gasp* food gives you energy!" --peter h.} now I just need to go drink some water or something, because I think I'm severely dehydrated.

so tomorrow I get to eat soup. I'm planning on making some fresh, homemade vegetable soup and I'm really quite looking forward to it.

say goodbye to the juice

and juicing equipment

and say hello to whole food!
{seriously, don't I look happy?
oh, it might be the fact that I feel like puking up my guts.
which actually wouldn't be much, I suppose.}

so hopefully I made the right decision in ending the cleanse when I did. this morning I woke up with very sore, achy legs. which is a sign of detox. and if you end the cleanse without flushing those mobilized toxins out, it's bad news bears. but I did eliminate this morning, for the last time, so hopefully that did the trick. I mean, I have been feeling crappy all day, but maybe it's unrelated. right? right. . .

the master cleanse: day eight

well, I guess this is the last night. I've actually gone back and forth in my mind for the past couple of days as to wether or not I should end at day eight or day ten. I mean, I know I can make it to day ten, but do I need to? should I?

if the stupid maple syrup weren't so expensive (I can't believe how much I've spent in maple syrup alone! and I'd have to go drop another twenty bucks tomorrow to continue with this thing) I'd probably do it. I'm sure there's more to flush out of me. but a lot of people do it for eight days and that's good enough. honestly, a lot of what's holding me back is the fear of-- well, the unkown. the fear of my body revolting anything but this stupid lemonade drink. when I start drinking orange juice tomorrow, and then vegetable broth and soups the next day is it going to make me feel sick? am I not going to have the sustained energy I've experienced with just the orange juice? am I going to crash and burn tomorrow? it freaks me out. maybe I'll just be anorexic for the rest of my life. {okay, we all know that is not happening!} oh yeah, and then there's the whole probiotic debate. I'm supposedly depleted of those in my system now, and all the literature I've read say I should take a probiotic supplement. pete tells me I should just eat our yogurts that have probiotic cultures. now my question is this: is the probiotic culture in my yogurt enough? do the pills have more, the needed amount I need to restore my body's natural probiotic levels? someone help me out here, I'm freaking out!

okay, phew! I just had to get all that out. {did I just detox or what?!}

speaking of detox, here are some symptoms I think I had:

sometimes I would have a general feeling of tiredness, or yuckiness, or coldness.

there was one day (that this was extremely noticeable) that I was having a hard time remembering things. mostly relating to speach. I was having a hard time trying to think of specific words or what I wanted to say in general. and then when I did think of the word(s) I was having an awfully hard time getting them out of my mouth.

last night my legs were a little achy. and I've had some random headaches.

so who knows. I'll let you know how I feel tomorrow--day one post-cleanse. I am still planning on drinking the tea tonight and doing the salt water flush in the morning. I feel that I've been drinking this bloody lemonade juice all day, which supposedly loosens up the toxins and built up crap, why not flush it all out of my system tomorrow. then I will be done with it. gone. out of my body and out of my life.

I only have one more day of drinking ocean. . .

the master cleanse: day seven

day seven. one week. who knew I could last this long?

so things are going well. it's still much of the same. people ask me if I feel cleansed. in all honesty, I don't feel much different. I know I have gotten rid of stuff in my body. I mean, I haven't eaten anything solid in seven days now and I'm still eliminating every day. so that tells me something. but I don't feel like a sparkling, shiny new version of myself or anything. I think I'll probably--hopefully--notice it when I ease myself back into regular foods. my energy levels should be up and I should feel clean. let's all hope and pray. {because if I don't, I'll be slightly irritated.}

in an attempt of normalcy, I like to put my juice in the cupboard. {I have to split the 32 oz up into two nalgenes--one big and one baby--so I have mixing room for the extra stuff. while I'm sippin' on the baby nalgene, the big one gets to wait in the cupboard.} it makes me feel like I'm just grabbin' something tasty to eat. we all know what a lie that is. but I try and trick myself into believing it every day anyway. so the juice has a home right next to the syrup, cayenne, sea salt and tea. they're all friends.

I'm still only taking in two nalgenes a day. but I have plenty of energy to sustain myself. the funny thing about this whole experiment, is that I haven't really craved food. at all. me. anna jo. not pining for food. sure I'd see something or smell something or even just think about something delicious and I'd think to myself, that would be nice. but that's it. I wouldn't dwell on it. because for the most part, I haven't even been that hungry. I even cooked today and was barely phased by it! {I did almost slip up when I took the eggplant out of the oven and the pepperjack cheese was gooey and deliscious. I had to catch myself, because without thinking I almost tried to take a nibble.} I watch cooking shows and read foodie blogs. I browse through recipes. nothing. it's truly amazing. cooking for peter tonight was fun because it took me out of my mundane juice life and into the fabulous world of cooking that I've missed so much. I even donned my apron. I've missed that.

the master cleanse: day six

yeah, I totally suck at drinking this little bevvy o' lemons. maybe I'm just in anorexia nervosa training or something, but I'm struggling to drink two of these things let alone three! seriously. it is now ten o'clock and I just barely finished my second nalgene of this stuff. it's partly due to the fact that when I get engrossed in something {sewing the cutest shirt ever} I totally forget about drinking. or maybe the fact that I'm just getting sick of this stuff. or possibly that my body is used to this deprived state and she just doesn't care anymore. like I've said before, who needs to eat?! obviously not me.

I can live all hyped up on sugar water.

well, anything else to report? basically it's still the same deal. I'm eliminating waste from my body. if you think about it, it's really kind of exciting. . . in that gross'ish sorta way.

oh, the liquid love

the master cleanse: day five

wow. day five. that's a long time without food.

so not much to report. it's been about the same as the previous four days. I still hate chugging the salt water, I still can't go anywhere until about 11 o'clock, I'm still drinking that bloody lemon beverage...

I do think I might be putting too much lemon juice in. can that be bad? I don't know. but whenever I'm measuring this stuff out after I've juiced up those lemons there's always a little bit left. so I dump that in too. I think I can taste it--too lemony. and it might be making me feel slightly sick throughout the day. too much citrus maybe? who knows. tomorrow I'll only put in the required amount and see if that affects anything.

I only drank two nalgenes again today. tomorrow I'll try for three, I swear.

I'm starting to look forward to real food again...

the master cleanse: day four

so I think the more of this stuff {this stuff being the lemonade beverage} you drink the better the cleansing the next morning. that's just my theory, though. unfortunately I only drank two nalgenes today. sometimes I get a little sick of the whole ordeal it is to make this stuff. what with the peeling and the juicing and the adding of the other ingredients and then the washing of the juicer and all. oy vie it all gets old.

I guess I was a little lower energy today. it seems that every other day I'm feeling fantastic, then not as fantastic. (still not terribly bad, though)

I haven't eaten any food in four days. I can't even believe it.

the master cleanse: day three

well, day three wasn't bad at all!

my salt water concoction is still pretty hard to get down. it's that last little bit that gets ya every time! but it's been working nonetheless. not like that first day--man, oh man--but now maybe we're strippin' away at some gunk? who knows! I'm just glad I'm eliminating, as it were, 'cause I hear that some people just retain this salt water sometimes, and it'll make you all bloaty and uncomfortable. like your eyes will puff up. and you just feel miserable. I hope and pray each morning that that doesn't happen to me. so far, so good.

I've had a lot more energy today. I don't know if it was the fact that I went through three nalgenes or what. I got really sleepy around three o'clock'ish, but I'm not really sure that has anything to do with my cleansing. usually at work (and I did go to work today, whoot!) I get sleepy around that time. otherwise I've felt fantastic all day. you wouldn't even think I hadn't had anything to eat for three days by just looking at me. I'm bounding with energy, just bounding.

so there ya have it. I don't feel like I've really had any symptoms of the detox. and I know that my body is harboring all sorts of toxins, so I don't know what the deal is. maybe tomorrow.

I'm off to make some tea!

the master cleanse: day two

so they say that day two is one of the hardest. it was harder than yesterday, it's true.

I had a general feeling of "blegh" all day. I had more noticeable hunger pangs, as it were. I felt pretty thirsty all morning (could it have something to do with drinking ocean?)

I don't think I'm drinking enough of my juice. I only drank two nalgenes yesterday (64 oz for anyone who's counting), which is on the lower end--I had planned on drinking somewhere along the lines of three nalgenes a day, the max. and I'm on track for drinking only two today as well. maybe that's contributing to my feelings of hunger. my energy levels felt pretty low today too. I just felt kinda yucky in my system.

overall it's not horrible yet, though. I can tough it out six more days. (lemonade diet, eight days; post-cleanse eating rehab, two days) it's just the monotony of having the same thing over and over again. I like variety in my diet. and I miss the actual, physical preparation of food. preparing and cutting up the lemons is as close as I get to that these days. at least I get to bring out the cutting board and good knife for something! I think I will actual look forward to the herbal laxative tea every night, just as a change of scene.

btw, right now I feel hungry with a slight headache.