Now What?

Seriously. Now what? With no races in my future I am having a hard time figuring out what to do now that the marathon is over.

And umm ya, this whole waiting to find out if I am pregnant thing just stinks. I just want to know. Now :-).

More to write later but I haven't been running much at all so what to write on?

Happy belated Thanksgiving, everyone!

Two Days Later

I'm feeling ok. Sore, but ok. I had a massage today and that helped a lot! Man I wish I could afford to get one of those once a week! She said I have knots the size of baseballs in my upper traps. OK, so maybe she didn't say the size of baseballs, but she said they are big. She must have worked on those babies for a good 10 minutes...and she still couldn't get them to come out. At the end she was like "I really think you should come back in a couple weeks...you're so tight up th ere!" I also think she worked her magic on my tight IT band/quads. After my knee wasn't so sore so it must have done something. Woo hoo!!

I think chasing a toddler around for two days has kept the soreness to a minimum. Bonus! But I'd rather be lying on my couch eating ice cream. Oh wait, I did that last night anyway. I've pretty much been eating like crap the last couple of days. But I can do that, right????

So what's on the agenda? I know a little break from running, obviously. But i need to get my butt to the gym and get some weight on. Do you see those arms? Ya, no muscle. Seriously a sad, sad, sad story. Time to get back to my pushups. I did about 20 a couple weeks ago and holy hell talk about sore after that. I'm so embarrassed! Anyways, getting strong is my number one goal at the moment. But it's back to resting for now. Oh, and prepping the stomach for the food shoveling that'll be happening in a couple days. Yeah!

Philly Marathon Recap

I'll start out from the beginning. We left Saturday afternoon and it took us longer than we thought because of a couple accidents along the way, but not too bad. We got to the convention center and I had hubby illegal park outside since I'd already heard that the expo kind of sucked I had no plans of staying that long. I grabbed my goods and was going to buy some more GU chomps since I thought I might need more. Would you believe the convention center didn't allow the stands to sell them?? Apparently the convention peeps believe they interfere with the food stands. WEIRD!!!!! I grabbed some sport beans instead :-). Maggianos is located right across from the Marriott, so I was able to carbo-load with some yummy chicken pesto linguini. Yummo! We had to take it carryout because of the wait but that's ok...was kind of nice just to head back to the hotel room and chill that way. I then spent the next hour trying to decide what to wear...only to decide I'd just decide in the morning :-) Went to bed at 9:30...

Woke up before the alarm; 4:20-something. But I wasn't ready to get up so I just laid in bed until 4:50. I was surprised that I didn't start to get the nervous feelings I usually do before big days. The hubster was nice enough to take the steel cut oats I'd made the day before over to the 7-11 and heat 'em up in the microwave. I loved having a great support "team." :-) Ate a banana and peanut butter and drank about 12 oz of gatorade. I went outside in my shorts to see how cold I'd be. I finally decided I'd wear my shorts and sleeveless top because I warm up quickly and the sun would be shining. Soooo happy I decided not to wear my capris and/or a long sleeve shirt.

We took off around 6:10 and caught a taxi. I know...lazy, but I didn't feel like wasting any energy :-) We got there and I realized that even though I went pee right before I left I still had to go again. I think the 12 oz of gatorade was too much for me. Anyway, went to get in line at the port-o-potty and the lines were so long and didn't move AT ALL. I decided to just wait until after the race started and lose the 30 seconds or so I'd have to lose in order to pee. But as I was about to get in the corrals I noticed men peeing next to the softball field fences and I told the hubby how much I HATE men because they have the unfair advantage. But there were some women who had already decided to pop-a-squat and he's like why don't you just go? So yup, if you noticed those women peeing next to the trees in the WIDE open...that might just have been my butt in the open :-). Very happy I did it though! haha! But because of all my peeing nonsense I missed linking up with Natalie ('Lil Runner) and I am soooo bummed we didn't get to meet that day! Hopefully there will be another time to meet!

So onto the actual race!!! The waves were very well organized. Loved this!! This is the first run I've been a part of that is organized in this many waves and it helps out soooo much! I situated myself near the 3:30 group, and it turned out I was near the front when the wave took off. Kind of nice not to be in the middle of a crapload of runners, but I was quickly passed by a lot of people. Anyways, I was bummed they didn't have any music going in the beginning!! I thought for sure I'd hear the rocky theme song or something!

My plan was to stick near the 3:30 pacer so I'd have a sense of how fast I was really going since I didn't have my Polar on me (remember my foot pod didn't work...I didn't get it back from repair before the race...boo!). My legs felt a little heavy in the beginning but overall I felt great going at this pace. The first mile flew by and before I knew it we reached the 10K point and I saw the hubby here, too. It starts to get a little fuzzy for me at this point. I'm trying to remember the route and I can't really remember :-) Almost forgot...I saw a lady holding a sign around this time that said "you're only getting started." Really? Really??? Who has a sign like this?? I can't decide what's worse...this one or the ones people hold at mile 24 that say "you're almost there."

There ended up being more hills than I thought we'd get. There was a big hill around mile 8 (I think). I think it was at this point or a little after I felt a little something-something happening in my left knee. I kind of shrugged it off but not soon after it become more than a little something-something. My first thought was you have to be f*cking kidding me. I managed to train the entire time without an injury and NOW is when I have something happen to me?? I kept going, keeping the 3:30 balloons in sight. I stopped I think around mile 11 or 12 to stretch out the quad and that seemed to help a little. But by the halfway point it was hurting A LOT. I started thinking that maybe I should just stop and finish with the half-marathoners since I didn't know if I'd be able to make it and what's the point of really injuring myself. But then I started telling myself that I'd go until I couldn't go any more. I saw the hubby and told him my knee was killing me and he said you can do it, you can do it. So then I told myself I could do it...yada, yada, yada. But I had to alter my stride a lot at this point so my knee wouldn't hurt. Not good.

I think I kept going with the 3:30 balloons in sight, but I slowed down a bit and had to stop a couple more times to stretch. I got to mile 17 or so I think and had to pee and stop and stretch again. I couldn't see the 3:30 balloons anymore at this point and was pretty bummed. It was at about this point I saw the leaders. They actually looked like they were working hard so it made me feel a little better :-)

At this point I gotta say I was happy to be running through Manayunk. I soooo wanted to just pull over and start drinking the beer!! I was happy to get to the turn around at mile 20 because just knowing mentally that I was on the way back made it a little easier to deal with. But knowing I still had 6 miles to go was tough! My legs were starting to get really tired at this point from my altered stride. At this point a girl came up from behind me and I decided to try and stay with her to help me mentally. That worked for a while but around mile 22 I had to stop and stretch again.

The last 4 really are a blur for me. I just remember doing the math and thinking ok if you push this mile then you can add a minute onto the last mile and still BQ. It was kind of like a reward system :-). I knew at this point it was going to be down to the wire if I was going to make it. I got to mile 24 around 3:20 I think and I was like, ok you can do this...just dig in and concentrate on other things. So I started the mantra...dig, dig, dig. Thank God for the support at this point. I would have liked to have it from 22 on but I'll take the last 2 miles! Especially loved the sign I saw a girl/woman holding that said "single and supportive." Made me laugh out loud. I swung my hips and dug, dug, dug and finally I saw signs that said finish line with an arrow, but somehow missed the 26 sign. Seriously...they should have had a huge sign so you knew you could totally kick it into overdrive. But anyway, back to the finish line signs...seriously, there were a lot of signs and I, like Natalie/Lil Runner, kept thinking where the f#ck is this dang finish line. It was on a curve and I had NOOO idea how much further I had to go. I finally saw it and realized I was going to make it in time to BQ and got a little emotional. It was a tough 26.2 miles but I'm glad I stuck it out. I'm not a quitter!

It still feels like I got a C- since I barely qualified but I am proud of myself. I think I am a little self-critical. :-)

All-in-all it was a great marathon. I couldn't have asked for better running weather. It was a beautiful day and I'm glad I was able to share with with the hubster!!

Here are my split times. You can see I seriously slowed down the last 8 miles! Official finish time was 3:38:05.

10K0:50:17Half1:46:1030K2:33:20

BQ yay!!

I did it...but barely. I did it in 3:38, so only two minutes to spare. Those last three miles were the longest miles EVER. I will write more later...off to get an ice bath :-)

what to wear what to wear

seriously deciding what to wear is the most difficult decision.

temps starting is around 40...topping out at 50 when I finish. I get warm really easily so this is a really tough choice for me!!!!!!

Hoping I can figure this out in the morning...time to get some sleep!

Day before eating

What do you guys eat the day before the marathon?? I'm trying to cut out the fiber, but so many carbs are loaded with fiber, so if I do that, it's like, what do I eat??? Maybe just cut out the whole wheat stuff and lesson the amounts of high fiber fruits and eat more veggies?

Two Days!

Countdown is officially on! I can't believe I'm down to two days; the last couple months have flown by. I'm still nervous about how I'm going to do. To say my training plan has been a bit all-over-the-place would be being nice. I haven't really been sticking to a great plan. Kind of a mix of things because I didn't know where to place myself (experienced or middle of the road runner). I know I am somewhat experienced since I've been running for a while, but it's not like I've been following great training plans for a long time. Anyways, it'll be interesting to see what happens on Sunday. My minimum goal is to beat my previous time, which is 4:05:59. That's a 9:40 minute mile and I think I can beat that. I'm hoping I can anyway! My ultimate, "holy crap I did it" goal is a 3:30. I'd love to run a 3:30, but that's an 8 minute mile and I'm not so sure I can do that. The McMillan calculator predicted I'd run a 3:33 based off of my Army 10-miler time. So, I'll just go out there aiming for an 8:15 pace and see what happens!!

I just checked the weather and it's looking FANTASTIC for race day!! Start time temp should be around 42 degrees and by the time I finish it should be around 56 or so. So I think this means I'll be wearing shorts and a tank with a throw-a-way long sleeve shirt. I get warmed up quickly so I could probably run in just the tank and shorts and wear gloves and a headband. But I'd hate to be cold and not warm up properly so I guess I should play it safe :-)

I'm also hoping to meet Lil Runner this weekend since she's also running. This will be my first meeting of any of my blogger friends I've made over the last few years.

OK, off to do the laundry, make some food for the weekend and pack. It is just a little more difficult planning the weekend with a lil one in tow :-). The hubby will be on kid control by himself on Sunday so that shall be interesting! I think I am more happy for the great weather for this reason than I am about running in it!

Keeping my fingers crossed for low-anxiety/nervousness and a great weekend traveling!

The last few runs

So...can't believe I am on the last week!! Hard to believe that in 6 days I'll be running a marathon. As much as I am nervous about running it, I am excited, too. I am nervous as to whether or not I'll make my goal. But I'm excited to see if I can make my goal. I sooo want to do great on this big run. It's time to start the mental preparations, visualizations and all that good stuff. I really believe this trick works. I mean of course I have to have the physical prep work done, too, but I think a lot can be said for positive thinking and visualizing doing well. I need to sit down here in a couple minutes and plan out our meals for the rest of the week, too. Time to start building up that carb supply!! Now that makes me a happy camper!!

I just checked the weather for the weekend and it says there is a chance for rain on Sunday. That's a long ways away so I'm not sweating it. Saturday is supposed to be a great day so at least we can get out and hopefully get some great shots of the city. This is our third time to the city. The last time I went I was 5 months preggo. One of my best friends is from Philly so we went to visit her...and so of course we got this shot :-)

I debated if we should bring Jackson with us. It'd be kind of nice to get a weekend away from everything. But I really want to take a pic of ALL of us once I finish this!! So that weekend away will just have to wait a bit :-)

I'm also trying to decide what to wear. It's going to be cold at the start so a throw-away shirt is going to be a must. But shorts or capri tights? Decisions, decisions! And I'm not sure how I'm going to carry all of my nutrition. I have a fuel belt but I don't know if I really want to wear it the entire way. I'm used to running with it but running without is better! I plan on bringing a couple bags of chomps and a gel.

And like my previous post says I'm also trying to compile my playlist. Who all runs with music? It's kind of nice at points to rely on the crowd, but from what I've read it seems like there will be points during the race with little or no crowd support so music will be a must!

Alrighty, off to finish picking up the house. Then it's off to pick up the hubby. It's been three weeks since we've seen him so we're VERY EXCITED!!!!

Music for the run...

I need some new jams. Something that's going to push me through the three and a half hours of pain :-)

What do you all have on your playlist to make you move????

Today's RW Quote

I signed up to get the daily email. Here's today's; how true is this??? :-)

In the 30 years I've been a runner I've run more than

150,000 miles. Still, some of the hardest steps I take are

those first fewgetting out the door for daily runs.

- Bill Rodgers' Lifetime Running Plan

Carbo loading

So does carbo loading two weeks out from the marathon count?? *wink* *wink*

I made these boys with the help of my lovely assistant. They are really, really yummy. Now I just have to get them in the freezer so I don't eat them all at once!!!

And then while I made the frosting 'lil Mr decided to get some of his own. I had my back turned and I heard "mm, num, num." Apparently he liked them :-)

And last night as I was bringing in the groceries he decided to tear into the olive bread I brought. All I heard from upstairs was "mmmm, num num." I went down to see what he had discovered...only to discover him eating the loaf. Notice a theme???????

Lil Runner Giveaway

Make your way over to Lil Runner. She's having another giveaway!!! A yummy chocolate one!

When is our government going to act?

Until a few weeks ago, I had no idea that BPA was in so much of our canned foods. It really is scary how much we don't know and how much the government shields certain information. I thought I'd share an article from today's NY Times.

Chemicals in our Foods and Bodies

Of course we have no idea if there really is any evidence this certain hormone is the real cause of our issues. Just think about how many different chemicals we come into contact with every day. However, there are scientific trials done on lab rats that indicate BPA directly caused birth defects and other abnormalities. Since I have a degree in biology, I'll take the scientists studies seriously!!! I, for one, would hate to not take action now and find out 5 or however many years later that it is in fact harmful to our bodies. So, I'll be playing it safe and really watching what we eat. Thankfully I don't really eat too many canned foods. HOWEVER, that being said, I do eat a lot of canned tomatoes. And in a previous article it states there is a large amount of BPA in canned, acidic foods. So, it's time to stock up on tomatoes in glass jars and waxy-cardboard containers.

30% off at Gap and its sister stores...attached the link this time

Click here to get the coupon. Hope it works. Let me know if it doesn't....

My helper

So I have to share this because I think it's just way too cute :-) And I normally am much better at being a disciplinarian and stickin' to what I say....don't want you thinking I'm one of "those" moms :-)

The end is the best...make sure you see the look he gives me!!!

Pictres only...

Forgot to post a pic of my cute little ducky on Halloween. I scored the costume for $10 at Target. Yay for waiting till the last minute!!!

And was just checkin' in on the latest Hollywood gossip. They have a pic of Giselle Bundchen and can you say cute mama???

30% off at Gap and its sister stores...

Leave me a comment with your email addy if you'd like a 30% off coupon for the stores.

FYI....Old Navy's outerwear is 50% off.....

Feeling better about my decisions

Thanks for making me feel better. I slept on it and had a good day today and am very thankful that I didn't get pregnant when I had originally thought I"d be ready, ie...a few months after J turned 1. I know he is still a baby at heart and I like it that he gets all my attention. I think it'll be easier for all of us having him a little older so he understands it a bit better. PLUS, there is NO WAY I want to be having a baby around with a tot who is two...and no hubby around. Mama can't handle that! I'm still running it through my head whether or not I will try and run a 8:30 pace for the marathon. I'm totally leaving it up to the day to see how I feel. If I feel like sheiza then I am not going to ruin the day just to try for my goal. Ultimate goal is to just run another marathon and do the best I can. So that's still going to be my goal :-) And to remember to enjoy the day!!! I have only run one other marathon but I have fond memories of it. I was still stationed in Germany so I ran the Frankfurt Marathon (2006) and it was a good last hurrah before I left the country. I still remember the gift bag from the expo: we received a bunch of stuff...to include 6 hard boiled eggs. Weird, right?. I remember going through different parts of the city thinking, wow, I am totally going to miss this place!! And I do. Really, really badly! I remember being the only one in regular shorts. Seems Germans wear Spandex for marathons :-). It was just such a great day. I didn't get to share it with my hubby because he was back in the States training up for his new job. But my parents were there and that made it totally special. They spent many hours coming to my high school sports games so it was nice to have them there again by my side, and watch me accomplish a big goal of mine!

Natalie...we are going to really need to link up...even if not for the marathon (depending on what I decide...). You're planning on running around a 9 minute pace, right? Err, there abouts anyway. We're staying at the airport Marriott on Saturday. I'll obviously be coming in for the expo, though.

Never "perfect"

I have this really bad habit at staying or looking back at the past and wishing I would have made different decisions. I am really starting to rethink my decision to hold off getting pregnant. It's really starting to bother me. I know it's way easier to look back on it and think that I should have made a different decision. anyways, I'm rambling.

I couldn't take the suspense so I took a pregnancy test. Not pregnant. Of course I am not supposed to get my period until Sunday but I figure a negative test now means not pregnant since it's so close. I'm so frustrated! We have "tried" three times now and no luck. Of course I say "tried" because according to my online ovulation planner the hubster wasn't really home for much of the necessary special times, i.e. the day I ovulated. Still, we ahem, tried as much as possible anyway.

But still, I'm frustrated. Part of me looks back and says WTF was I thinking waiting? I know in my heart I wasn't ready to give up my body and everything that goes along with being pregnant; sick, uncomfortable, tired, etc. BUT now that I really want to be pregnant, and want a baby, all of those things seem so stupid and extremely selfish. Plus, of the last 6 months I think the hubster has actually "been available" twice. And that was early on. So, yes, life also just got in the way. Sperm donor anyone??? I've said this before but, why oh why can't we just pick up our kids from the market? I know there is a saying about getting pregnant, something along the lines of it being the one thing in life we just can't truly control. And it's true. No matter how type-a we want life to be, ultimately when it comes to baby making it truly is out of hands (sorta).

And the marathon...part of me is just not wanting to run it. I'm being a total baby. Again with the negativity. I just really, really wanted to qualify...why I don't know. But now that I really don't think I will I am just getting a bad attitude and want to just say screw it and not run. This is just not my normal mindset at all; not a quitter. I get frustrated easily but not a quitter. Plus, who knows, what if this training really is a problem at trying to get pregnant?

Ok, off to bed to get a better mindset! But first I'll be stopping to eat a couple strawberries out of the edible arrangement my hubby sent me. They are super delicious! So much better than flowers!!!

Have a great weekend everyone!!!

Also...Sunday was a GREAT day!

Not only did I have a great run, but I got home in time to take my ice bath, catch the last few miles of the NYC marathon (felt so bad for Paula...she looked like she was in so much pain), AND I was able to watch the Vikings game (I never get to watch my team play since I live in the DC area), and they beat the Packers. What a great game!

finally....a good run!

My las, long run went well. And that makes me feel super happy. I will say it was a very LONG and BORING run. I had to run the entire 20 miles by myself again. The next time I choose to do a marathon I will choose one that someone will run and train with me so I am not so alone in the training. :-) But getting out there to run has been kind of hard these days. I fear I am overtraining and getting bored. But being in the taper keeps me going. I know I am on the downhill and will see the end of the marathon soon! Sad part is I am not really looking forward to running it. I think the hardest part is setting a goal for yourself and hoping you will make it, but having that part in in the back of your brain that thinks and knows you just won't do it. I hate being such a pessimist and Negative Nancy. I need to do the psycho-babble and tell myself I can do it. Afterall, I ran my 20 miler well (and of course "well" is all relative...I'm not super fast ya know!). The first 20 miles I ran at a 9:15 to 9:45 pace. It got tough at points because I knew how much further I had to go...and I was bored already. Plus I kept thinking back to how much I wish I could have stayed at my friend's house because she was making pancakes, eggs, sausage and hashbrowns when I dropped off the boy. Talk about discipline! Anyways, back to the 20-miler. The last half of the run I ran at a 8:00 to 8:30 pace. There were times I felt like I was really pushing myself to maintain the pace, and others I was completely in the zone and it felt "easy." Not sure if I'll be able to maintain that pace for 20 odd miles but I'll try my bestest. :-)

I really don't know if I should just set my hopes a little lower and aim for a pace I know I can maintain. Or do I just go forward with my plan and hope I don't die out at the end?

On non-running topics...since we decided to not, not-try any more...I'm waiting impatiently for Sunday to get here. I could take a test now but am telling myself to just wait it out and see what happens. If nothing happens now I really do hope that baby making is good for marathons cuz we'll be pretty darn focused the minute my hubby gets home...and that's only days away from the marathon :-).