Fortune Cookie Friday

The Universe works in mysterious ways. I run. I'm not fast, I'm not good, I don't particularly like running, but I run. To keep me motivated, I sign up for races. Sometimes I'm well prepared for them, sometimes I'm not. Some are virtual races to raise funds for awesome causes, some are in real life. Either way, races give me purpose. They give my training purpose, even when I don't feel like doing it. They give me a reason to get out and run, walk, hop on the elliptical to get some mileage. The give me a reason to get off of the couch or away from my computer. And that, my friends, equals success.

On race results and being a slow runner

I am a slow runner. There. I said it. Sometimes I can walk faster than I can run. I read an article this morning that said "There is no difference between the runner who breaks 30 minutes for the 5K for the first time and the one that breaks 16 minutes." My comment to that was that I would be happy to break 35:00 for a 5k. Another comment was that if you finish last there are more people to cheer for you. Maybe if it's a big race, but if it's a small race, I've experienced seeing people driving home while I have had to wait for car traffic to pass, not the other way around. That particular race was one of the worst I'd ever experienced. Now that I'm actually running (I use that term loosely) again, this conversation and article got me thinking about my race times. I dug up the index card I started writing out race results on, looked up a couple of more recent ones (though I was unable to find my results for the 2013 Bold In The Cold 5k) and added them to my card.I actually have broken a 35:00 5k. Once. Go me.

Run For Retrievers 5K (05.22.10)  - 41:02.7
Firefly Run 5K (10.16.10) - 36:41.23
White Rock Half Marathon (12.05.10) - 2:58:28
Bold In The Cold 5K (01.15.11) - 39:24
Rock N Roll Half Marathon (03.27.11) - 2:46:43
Run For Retrievers 5K (05.14.11) - 34:08
Medal Of Summer 5K (06.25.11) - 37:34
Liberty By The Lake 10K (07.04.11) - 1:31:21
Veteran's Day 10K (11.12.11) - 1:18:27
Bold In The Cold 5K (01.07.12) - 39:47.7
Wounded Warrior Half Marathon (06.10.12) - 3:13:00
Bold In The Cold 5K (2013 - can't locate race results)
Run For Retrievers 5K (09.14.13) - 43:31
Rock N Roll Half Marathon Relay (03.23.14) - 1:32.55
Irving Half Marathon (04.05.14) - TBD
 
It's very slow going, getting back to running after taking so much time off. Some races are slow because it's so stinking hot out during the summer in Texas, and the goal is simply to finish. Other races are slow because I'm run/walking intervals. So, yeah, I'm slow, but I'm still running.
 

There is no difference between the runner who breaks 30 minutes for the 5K for the first time and the one that breaks 16 minutes. Both worked hard, sacrificed to achieve their goal, and experienced the same challenges.
Read more at http://womensrunning.competitor.com/2014/04/training-tips/if-you-run-slow-who-cares_22791#Qp3xAlEV7GaFCYLM.99

There is no difference between the runner who breaks 30 minutes for the 5K for the first time and the one that breaks 16 minutes. Both worked hard, sacrificed to achieve their goal, and experienced the same challenges.
Read more at http://womensrunning.competitor.com/2014/04/training-tips/if-you-run-slow-who-cares_22791#Qp3xAlEV7GaFCYLM.99

There is no difference between the runner who breaks 30 minutes for the 5K for the first time and the one that breaks 16 minutes. Both worked hard, sacrificed to achieve their goal, and experienced the same challenges.
Read more at http://womensrunning.competitor.com/2014/04/training-tips/if-you-run-slow-who-cares_22791#Qp3xAlEV7GaFCYLM.99

And now, back to your regularly scheduled program

I have to confess, this week has been a little light on workouts. More functional fitness than scheduled fitness. The elliptical and I have an appointment this afternoon, so I'll at least have that on the books before tomorrow's long run with The Moms.

This week we'll be running for 75 minutes, continuing with our 2:1 intervals. I swear, that 1 minute goes by really quickly. I'm still super slow, but forward is a pace, and the miles all count towards the virtual races I'm doing. So far, I've completed the Firefly 14k and the Firefly 14 miler. Now I'm doing the Sherlock 22 mile race. I like virtual races because you do them at your pace. Even dog walks count if you track the mileage. The cause for these races is great, too. It's to raise funds to rescue and rehabilitate Galgos (Spanish Greyhounds), and to raise awareness of their plight. To learn more about this race and the cause, go to http://sherlockrun.weebly.com/     The group of people involved in this race are amazing, and the community that has evolved around these races are great. Hopefully I will meet some of them in real life one day. :)

Have a great weekend!

Kyra

New Month, New Start

It's still a bit dark out as I sit here writing this post. This very unexpected post. I know I've let myself slip these past couple of months, but I didn't realize how far down the rabbit hole I'd fallen. (Hi, Hoppities!) To be fair, I know a couple of pounds are from water weight because we went out to Abuelo's for dinner last night with a friend. Never go to Abuelo's when you're famished. Their chips and salsa are fantastic, and very easy to suck down.


But I digress. The good, the bad, the ugly.


Height: 5' 5" (in flats)
Weight: 182
Waist: 35
Hips: 42.5
R: 25.5
L: 25


There you have it. I am 3 pounds heavier than I was when I first joined Weight Watchers in October 3 years ago, and 20 pounds more than I was at the end of the summer. But, it's a new month and a new start. Luckily, I actually can still fit in my running gear, because this morning, in an hour and a half, I will be participating in my first group run with the Team In Training Moms In Training chapter. (Yes, I know, I'm not a human-mom, but dog-moms count, too.) Today will be 45 minutes, slow and easy. This won't be easy, it won't be pretty, but I'll be off my ass and moving towards a better, healthier me. Wish me luck.

Why I signed up for a Team In Training event

This weekend I spent some time with a good friend of mine. She told me about a meeting that she had attended on Saturday morning. It was a kick-off meeting for the new North Texas Moms In Training chapter of Team In Training. She said she was going to start training to run a two person relay in the Rock 'N' Roll half marathon at the end of March, and that she'd love it if I would be her relay partner. While I have never participated in a Team In Training group, many people I know have, and I have tried to support them when I was able. Well, to make a long story short, I decided that I would sign up, train with her and the new group, and start raising funds. This particular thing is not easy for me, but, in memory of my father, I am going to try. You see, he had leukemia, but he lost his long fight with this horrendous disease in February of 2001. I am raising funds to help fight this disease, so other families don't have to go through what my family did. 

If you could take a moment, and go visit my fundraising page, I would appreciate it. If you could make a donation, no matter how small, I will say thank you, thank you, thank you.  http://pages.teamintraining.org/ntx/momsnt14/KyraStuart

I like big bling, and I cannot lie...

Behold, the fruits of my labor. AKA the finisher's medal from Sunday's Wounded Warrior Half Marathon. Oh, yeah. And the four shiny new 5k charms I earned at Weight Watchers for having finished the half marathon. Not bad for a birthday, huh!

Wounded Warrior Half Marathon Playlist

Because nothing says Happy Birthday like race bling, I'm doing the Wounded Warrior Half Marathon on Sunday. Well bling, and the fact that it's a great organization that The Aussie and I believe in. Even though I really hate don't like running outside when it's hot out, I am doing this race. Even if it means I'm walking for half of it. My reasoning is that if the service people who are helped by this organization can deal with their injuries and trauma, I can suck it up and run/walk 13.1 miles in their honor.

I spent much of my lunch hour tweaking my alternate playlist. Alternate, because I would like to do as much of this to the Run To Cadence with the Navy Seals. I want a back up in case I start to lose my sanity by the 3rd time through for this set and start to think I actually am running with a bunch of hot guys in Navy uniforms. Hence, an alternate playlist with LOTS of music. Hopefully I won't hear anywhere near to all of these songs. Ginger, from twitter, was interested in what I came up with, so in no particular order, here it is! (Gee, can you half tell I'm a Gemini? These songs are all over the place.)

I Will Possess Your Heart - Death Cab For Cutie
Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic - The Police
Our Lips Are Sealed - The Go Gos
Rio - Duran Duran
Shake Ya Tailfeather - Nellie
Pleasure Little Treasure - Depeche Mode
Fake It - Seether
Time Of Our Lives - Paul Van Dyk
Since U Been Gone - Kelly Clarkson
Vertigo - U2
Don't Change - INXS
Dance With Me Tonight - The Wonders
Right Round - Flo Rida
Straight Lines - Silverchair
Uprising - Muse
Major Tom - Shiny Toy Guns
Run - Snow Patrol
I Like It - Enrique Iglesias feat. Pitbull
Break Your Heart - Taio Cruz
Tainted Love - Soft Cell
Times Like These - Foo Fighters
Check Yes Juliet - We The Kings
Favourite Shirts - Haircut 100
Closer To The Edge - 30 Seconds To Mars
Hold On Loosely - 38 Special
Gloria - U2
Give Me Everything - Pitbull
Lose Yourself - Eminem
Solar Midnight - Lupe Fiasco
These Days - Foo Fighters
Love Plus One - Haircut 100
I Will Follow - U2
Space Age Love Song - A Flock Of Seagulls
Steppin' Out - Joe Jackson
Mr. Brightside - The Killers
Back In Time - Pitbull
Monkey Wrench - Foo Fighters
Litany (Life Goes On) - Guadalcanal Diary
Fantastic Day - Haircut 100
Linus And Lucy - Vince Guaraldi Trio
Howlin' For You - Black Keys
Hold Tight London - Chemical Brothers
Girlfriend - Avril Lavigne
Good Vibrations - The Beachboys
International Love - Pitbull
Rompe - Daddy Yankee

I Am Stronger

Yes, I am stronger. I am stronger than some others are petty. Maybe not at first, but I am working on it. You see, I have toyed with the idea of getting a 13.1 tattoo. During lunch today I entered "13.1 tattoo" into a search engine. Silly me thought that the search results would be of people talking about their own tattoos. As it turns out, the first two results were far different. It seems there are some people in the running community who think that getting 13.1 tattoos, Iron Man tattoos, 26.2 tattoos, 13.1 stickers for their cars and such are people to be laughed at and scorned. Somehow, our accomplishments are less, that what I take pride in completing is their mid-week run. That my putting a sticker on my car or wanting a tattoo celebrating an accomplishment makes me lame.

At first I felt hurt and ashamed. Maybe they're right, maybe I am just a silly jogger. Maybe wanting a tattoo or sticker for my car is stupid. There are so many out there who are much better than me, what right do I have boasting about what I've accomplished. Yeah. At first I felt that. Then I got pissed. Who the hell are they belittling others who are pushing themselves. Who the hell are they to berate others for stepping outside of their comfort zone and striving to make themselves more. Who the hell are they for calling us hobby joggers and lame triathletes with blogs who just don't f***ing get it.

I'll tell you who am I. I'm a badass hobby jogger with a blog who stepped out of her comfort zone and got off the effing couch and just finished her second half marathon. That's who I am. And if you don't like it, you can shut the eff up.

Why I Do This

I asked my husband yesterday morning, as he dropped me off near City Hall in Dallas, "remind me again why I do this?" We both laughed. He, in amusement. Me, with a nervous lump in my stomach. You see, he's not exactly sure why I do this, and by "this" I mean run. But he's proud of me for doing it. A year ago, I wasn't even a runner. Yesterday I ran my second half marathon.

So why do I do this? I run because I am stronger and tougher than I thought I was. I run because it gives me goals I can accomplish. I run because it gives me freedom. I run because of how I feel when I'm done. I run because I have a new-found sense of determination. I run because it makes me feel strong. I run because I can.

I'm thrilled that this race was a PR. My chip time (I forgot to turn off my Garmin when I finished) was 2:46:43. I improved over my White Rock time by almost 12 minutes. I am beyond happy with how much I've improved. I hope to finish my next one around 2:30.

Thank you to the crew that put on the RnR Dallas Half Marathon. It was a great course, a fantastic cause, lots of awesome people running, fun costumes, and even an Elvis! And thank you to the people who came out on a chilly and dreary Sunday morning to cheer us on. Families, babies, dogs, cheer teams from area high schools. Thank you to the bands that played along the course. You guys, literally, rocked! Thank you to the woman sitting near Campisi's on Mockingbird, just before mile 7, with the sign "Embrace the suck." So true. I needed that!

Thank you to my trainer, EJ. My mileage has not been good this winter due to injury and weather, but the strength training was a major part of my finishing the race this strong. All in all, it was a good day. A lot cooler than I expected, but a good day. When we got home at noon, I fired up the oven. I earned my treat. I had three of these bad boys. They were soooo good!

My 13.1 flowers from my husband. :)

Shaking my head

*whisper whisper whisper* Did you hear what happened to Kyra? She just registered for another half marathon? Is she nuts? Don't know. She might be. *collective shaking of heads*

Yup. I signed up for another one. Hey, I've got some nice kicks, a shiny new Garmin from Santa (aka my wonderful-I-haven't-told-him-I'm-doing-this-yet husband), quite the collection of running shirts that need something to do, and a finisher's medal that's lonely.

In all seriousness, I think I need to have a goal. Running circles around my neighborhood isn't fun, so there has to be a purpose to all of this. Plus, as the magnet I picked up at the DWRM expo says, Running Is Cheaper Than Therapy. My plan is to be a lot more diligent with my training, doing the cross training as well as the running, and lots and lots of stretching. I've got more of a clue this time as to what I'm doing, so I'm looking forward to this. The adventure continues...

13.1

This spring I had the goal to run my first 5K before I turned 45 in June. I accomplished that goal, and set about looking for the next one. How strange. I kind of liked running. Whodathunkit? In July, someone I know IRL suggested doing the Half at White Rock in December. You know, that doesn't sound like a bad idea... Say what? If you told me a year or so ago that I, an overweight woman in her mid 40s would be running a half marathon, I would have politely (*snort*) asked what you were smoking and if you were nuts. Yeah. Well. Maybe not so nuts after all...and I have the aches, pains and YES!!! a finisher's medal to prove it.

Me, before the race. It's about 36 degrees out and I'm very cold. I'm also feeling rather anxious, hence the cheerful expression on my face. You can see the big ferris wheel on the Texas state fair grounds in the background, which is pretty neat.

This is the course map. The half runners didn't get to run around White Rock Lake, but other parts of the course were really beautiful. I was in the last corral, so I didn't actually start the race until it had been going about an hour. NOT FUN. Standing around in 36 degree weather with limited clothing on is not a good time. In fact, we had just started and were less than a mile in when we saw the elite half runners coming in. They were screamingly fast. Very impressive.

Odds and ends that stick out in my mind from the race: the really cute black lab puppy I saw at about .25 mile in (yes, there is a dog theme here!); the historic houses on Swiss, between miles 1 and 2, were beautiful; the BRIGHT BLUE Bentley that I saw somewhere just after mile marker 3 (I didn't know they made them in that color); the wait in line for the first port-a-potty stop took waaay longer than I wanted; the gorgeous golden retriever that I got a high five from around mile 4; being thankful for the hill down McKinney as we headed onto Turtle Creek; how beautiful the Turtle Creek, mile 5, area is; how disgusting the energy gel that rhymes with eeww is (IMO only); how beautiful the Lakeside area is and how impressive their holiday decorations are; running for a little while with the friends from church around miles 5.5; seeing their family cheering us on Lakeside around mile 6; getting a call from my husband when I was nearing mile 7 - he was trying to figure how to get through the street closures to come see me; the neon yellow sign held by a guy at mile 8 who totally reminded me of @damanlovett saying "congratulations total stranger"; seeing my husband just before mile marker 10 and getting a hug and kiss from him (I also got to leave my purple hoodie with him since I'd really warmed up); the cute yellow lab around mile 11 who'd just gotten to say hi, along with his mom, to a family member running. He sooo wanted to join in and run too!; seeing other runners along the route getting hugs and kisses from their family members; seeing a police officer get out of his car to check on a man who was crouched over by a telephone pole near mile 12. The man did look a bit wobbly, but he was just trying to stretch out his legs and he was okay; the sheer number of people stretching their legs in the last few miles (including me); the bands that were playing along the way - very interesting musical selections some of them were playing; seeing the marathoners, still so full of energy and speed where the courses met back up again. They were so impressive; the crowds cheering and other runners who'd already finished clapping and cheering us on, saying "you're doing great runners, keep it up, you're almost there"; being acknowleged as a runner by these amazing athletes just because I showed up to try and do this race; CROSSING THE FINISH LINE!! My chip time was 2:58:28; making it into the automobile building, covered in my mylar wrap, and being handed my Finisher's Medal. I have worked so hard for this medal. I started to cry a bit when I got the medal. Heck, I'm tearing up writing this, remembering how it felt; Getting a huge hug from my husband after the race, hearing him tell me how proud he is of me; meeting up with Mary, Syble and Ben afterwards; the LONG walk back to the car; my husband handing me a bouquet of roses - 13 long stemmed roses and 1 short rose for my 13.1 miles.

I sent text messages to both @FitInMyHeart and @damanlovett to let them know I'd finished. They, along with @DareToBecome, @whiskyd, @foodiemcbody (who also ran her first half yesterday!!!), @KCLAnderson, @MizFitOnline, @tidbits_of_tara and so, so many more, have been so full of encouragement. It means a lot to me that there are so many supportive people out there in twitterland. You guys rock!

I'm about to cross the finish line in this picture. I'm just behind the person in bright red in the middle. If you look closely, you can see a tiny bit of hot pink in there!

We've all got our bling on!

Now on to more adventures in running! The story continues...

Back on schedule

I had a disasterous week and a half battling computer viruses the last part of August. I was so depressed about the thought that I'd possibly destroyed my computer because I clicked on a link to a friend's blog through Facebook that I didn't even want to run. Thanks to my wonderful husband, the computer is doing much better, as is my frame of mind.

So I'm getting back on my training schedule. There are 14 weeks to the White Rock marathon. I'm re-starting my Hal Higdon half marathon training. Today's schedule is a 4 mile run. I walked for a mile with the dogs and then did a 3.56 mile run in 40 minutes and 19 seconds. It was a beautiful, sunny 75 degrees with 37% humidity.

Favorite song in my running mix: Solar Midnight by Lupe Fiasco. What are your favorite running songs?

Refocus

I need to get my head out of... well you know what I mean. It's time to refocus, stop whining and JUST DO IT. No one said this would be easy. I have to train hard and work for the mileage, and I will. And on the way I'll earn that finisher's medal too. I'll also earn the 13.1 tattoo that I'm thinking of getting. ;)

It's a struggle

I don't want to say that I'm not a runner, so don't expect great things from my running, but dammit, I'm working hard to become one. Today's training plan is 3.5 miles and strength training. I'll be the first to admit that I haven't really started strength training yet. Though, walking with two dogs, 65 and 35 pounds, that like to pull at their leashes, can be considered strength training in my book. When I woke up this morning at 5.45 I opened the door to let the dogs out and a blast of hot humid air hit me in the face. Curious, I turned on the tv and clicked over to the weather channel and the weatherbug widgit. It was 88 degrees and 58% humidity in my town. Yuck. So I decided that I would do my run at the rec center during my lunch hour, and went back to bed. Fast forward a number of hours later and I'm on a treadmill, listening to my iPod. I do a 3 minute warm-up and start running. I'm running at a pretty good pace for me, and I push on to 10 minutes of running. Walk break for a minute, and I plan to do 5 minutes running before the next walk break. I made it 3. Run a little, walk a little.... I made it to 2.41 miles according to my nike+. I was done done done. It's a struggle to get past 2 miles most days. Those are the hardest miles. I'm really looking forward to cooler weather so that it isn't such a struggle to train.

Accomplishment and Challenges

My friend Jeep Jenn wrote a guest post today over at Journey of Hearts. Something she said really rang true with me today. Actually, a few things she said did, but this in particular:

“When you accomplish something that’s a challenge, change your view of yourself!”

My view of myself is changing, or at least starting to change. Outside, I still view myself as a somewhat frumpy, heading towards middle-age, overweight woman. Funny, pictures of me show that too. On the inside, though, I'm viewing myself as something more. I'm viewing myself as someone who's becoming a runner, someone who's setting goals and is pushing herself towards accomplishing them. Jenn also says “Try something that you’ve always wanted to do, something that SCARES you!” I'm scaring myself these days by training for a half marathon. I can't say it's something I've always wanted to do. In fact, before this year it isn't something I ever had thought about doing at all. The Aussie pointed out last week on the way home from the airport that 13.1 miles is roughly the distance from our house to DFW. Say what? Am I nuts? Yes, probably. But I have a lot of friends in the jar of mixed nuts to keep me company!