Test Run

Last night was my last run before the 1/2 marathon in Memphis on Saturday. I needed to test drive my new "Run for Elijah" shirt and I thought the tempature last night was close to what it is supposed to be on Saturday. It was pretty chilly last night so I don't know if it was a good match. I was wearing the Elijah shirt and a black running skirt. It was a bit chilly to start with but when we were running I was fine, actually even got kind of warm. I think I might wear a sleeveless shirt under the Elijah shirt and if I have to I can tie it around my waist. I am hoping I will be able to keep it on for the whole race. The only other problem is a lot of raised stitching on the seams, it was irritating me last night, so I guess I am just going to have to remember to apply lot's of body glide... everywhere!!



It was a good run last night., I was taking it easy both to recover from Tuesday and to save my legs for Saturday. Kelly and Robert came along for the first 3.25 Kelly's knee started giving her problems and she didn't want to take any chances with the race 2 days away.
Thank you Robert for reminding me to pace myself!! LOL

6 miles
1:02:48
Avg. 10:28
1 - 10:35
2 - 10:19
3 - 10:17
4 - 10:37
5 - 10:25
6 - 10:34

This morning was spinning. I literally didnt' feel like I had anything left in my legs, but I made it through class. I didn't give it my normal effort but considering how I felt I thought I did ok. Now it's time to rest and get ready for Saturday.

Tonight Kylie is spending the night with us... we will eat fettucine alfredo, drink chocolate milk and watch Dancing with the Stars :) I can't think of a better way to spend an evening!

Here is a picture from Kylie's visit to Team 1 yesterday




She wasnt' really in the mood to have her picture taken so she was making weird faces. LOL

Hard Tuesday

Tuesday's are usually one of my harder workout days. I have spinning at 5a.m. and then the Tuesday Night Flyer's running clinic Tuesday night.
Yesterday morning Andrea was our instructor, we did the interval training again where we would spin a couple of songs and then get off the bikes and use the weights, push-up's etc. It's good every now and then to shake things up and I love our regular instructor Stacy, but Andrea's class yesterday morning was really good. I wish I would have worn my heart rate monitor, it sure felt like my heart was about to come out of my chest a few times. I knew after that class the hill repeats scheduled for Tuesday night were going to be a challenge. I just didnt' know at the time how much of a challenge!!!!

My stomach was feeling a little iffy yesterday afternoon and I was hoping and praying that it would calm down before the clinic.
It wasn't as cold yesterday as it has been but once the sun went down it cooled off quite a bit. I wore capri running pants and a long sleeve shirt and was a little cold at the start but during the workout I never got too warm so that was good.

I think Coach Dennis is ready to strangle me. He wasn't a bit happy that we raced the Duck 10K last weekend just a week after the Tulsa 1/2 marathon and he is even less happy that I am running a 1/2 marathon this weekend. Three weeks in a row of races.
He told me last night to take it easy on the workout and to back down on the hill repeats. I love that Dennis really does care about us and is worried about injuries.

As soon as we started running I knew it wasn't going to be a good night. Luckily I had Cheryl by myside. We did our strides... kind of slow and then we had 1x 1000 at lactate pace. I ran just a bit slower than lactate pace but not too slow. Sonia and Jennifer had started off behind us and Sonia yelled at me asking if I was "shaking it" for them. I had on a reflective vest and I guess it was pretty jiggly... I yelled back that I was trying to make them dizzy so they couldn't catch up. I love those girls they always crack me up when I need it.

After the 1000 we headed to Outlook for our hill repeats.... Ummmm is Dennis mad at us????? OMG that was a steep hill, nothing like our normal Lila Loop hill. On our first run up Andrea and Brenda were coming down and Andrea called out that it's "really steep keep your pace." Cheryl - THANK YOU!! for getting me up that hill everytime. On the very first one I started to walk during the steepest part but Cheryl wouldn't let me she said come on you can do it. Seriously if it weren't for her I don't know if I would have done more than 3 repeats. The adavanced group had to do between 12-15 and the intermediate group 7-10... except for anyone racing this weekend. Since Cheryl and I were the only one's racing, (well except for Robert. Hey Robert how many repeats did you do??????)
Anyway we finished before everyone else and headed back to the school. We were just taking it easy, and after those hill repeats it actually felt kind of easy, but then my foot cramped up on top and I had to stop and walk. I know it's the new Sauccony shoes I've been wearing. They are hitting me in a weird place on the top of my foot. It has been bothering me for a little while and when I wore them at the race on Saturday and on my run with Brenda and Michele on Monday I loosened up the laces. Loosening the laces helps the pressure on the top of my foot but then after I finish the run my ankle is kind of sore. I think last night might have been the last time I will be wearing those shoes to run in. So it wasn't the best night of running i've ever had but I made it through thanks to a lot of help and support from Cheryl!!! I had a little pity party for myself last night but I'm all better today. I think getting to sleep in this morning helped. Oh and maybe the double shot of espresso, sugar free white chocolate mocha from Mountain Mudd, yeah I bet that helped too.

Yesterday was Kelly's birthday... she is 27 ;) Arland and I had the pleasure of getting to go to lunch with her and Robert for her birthday meal.
Oh and Kelly I told Robert last night to tell you that you should be glad you had to work instead of coming to the clinic. Not that I really mean it, but at that precise moment.. yes I think I did!!!

Happy belated Birthday to Susan.. I hope you had a wonderful time on your special day.

Blah Monday

Yesterday was a gray chilly day add to that it was the first day back at work after a 4 day weekend. I am really lucky to have the job I have, but honestly I don't care how much you like your job it is hard to go back to work after a few days off. Lucky for me I didn't have anything pressing that had to be done. I had an appointment with Christy for a massage at 11:00 and then went home for lunch. It is nice to be able to go home for lunch, it saves me lot's of money and calories, plus I get to stay caught up with "All My Children". Later in the day we got a little visitor. Livia and Tracy were going shopping and Kylie wanted to go to Team 1 to see NaNa and daddy :)



I just love that little girl so much!!! We worked hard coloring and reading ballerina stories and she recovered by lounging on her fold out "bed" eating Doritos and drinking orange crush.





It was hard for me to leave her when it was time to go home at 5:00. Normally I would have stayed but Michele had called me earlier in the day to arrange a run.
Michele lives in a big neighborhood and has another nice big neighborhood across the street, so plenty of safe, fairly well lit and low traffic streets to run on.
It was pretty chilly last night, I had on a sleeveless dri fit shirt and a long sleeve dri fit shirt/jacket and running pants. I forgot my gloves and ear coverup, but I ended up being ok without them...eventually.
Brenda was already there when I arrived and they were outside waiting for me.. no I was not late, they were early!! LOL
We ran 6 and then walked over a mile back to Michele's house. I am loving all the Christmas lights, it really was a nice diversion. The dark helps too, we run through a lot of cul d' sacs, and through the same streets more than once but since it's dark and we are pretty much talking the whole time you don't even notice. The route has some rolling hills/inclines which will be good for our Nashville training.
It was a tough run, I never got that "good" feeling not even close, my legs felt like lead pipes the whole run,
but I got it done and of course I felt great afterwards.
6.06 miles
1:00:51
Avg pace 10:02
1 - 9:40
2 - 10:00
3 - 9:59
4 - 10:29
5 - 9:57
6 - 10:08
Not bad considering we stopped for just a little bit around mile 4 for a water break, and we would sometimes come to a top when we got to a few stop signs.

When Coach Dennis sent us our workout for tonight he had an add on at the end.
Remember to come rested to these workouts so you can get the most out of them.
Hmmm .... after the run last night and spinning class this morning my legs don't feel very rested today :(
We are doing Hill repeats tonight.. Wish me luck!!!!

Running for Elijah and Brandon

I'm ready for Memphis now that I have my Elijah shirt. I love the shirt but I am a little worried that it might be too warm for the race on Saturday. Last year it was 29 degrees at the start and I think it was still 29 at the finish. It is looking quite a bit warmer for this year. Low in the upper 40's and high of 65. Oh well it doesn't matter I am wearing this for Elijah and if he can go through all the pain he has in his young life I can be a little warm for a couple of hours! Elijah has a friend Brandon Tyler who recently lost his battle with cancer. I knew Brandon when he was much younger before he got sick. I worked with his mom at Little Rock Air Force Base. I had Brandon's caring bridge website saved in my favorites and I would check on him every now and then. I saw his Mom Kathy not too long ago and Brandon was feeling pretty good. I was very sad to click on his website this weekend and see that Brandon had earned his "angel wings." This Saturday I will be running for Elijah and in memory of Brandon.

Duck Pictures

Brenda with her 1st place Female Masters Award

Back Row Left to Right

Kelly,Susan, Raquel, Joan, Robert,Toni

Middle Row

Brenda, Jennifer, Annette (me)

Front Row

Sonja

Rainy Sunday

I knew last night I was not going to want to get up in the cold and rain and run this morning. I called Kim to let her know and I sent Brenda an e-mail. It was so nice to sleep in this morning!!!
Brenda called around 7:30 she said she was thinking of going to the Community Center to run on the treadmill. I told her I would meet her there and then I went back to bed for a little while. I never actually fell back asleep but it was nice to just snuggle in the warm bed and listen to the rain knowing I didn't have to run in it.
Brenda called again around 9:00 and we arranged to meet at the Community Center. I called Jane and told her our plan and she said she would meet us there as well.
I have not run on a treadmill in over a year and just the thought of it usually makes me cringe, but knowing I was running with the girls made it much easier. Jane was at the reception desk when I arrived and we went upstairs together. Brenda was already upstairs waiting on us. The CC has three treadmills... very nice one's, much better than what I have here at home. There was a gentleman that we usually see at the pool on one of them, I grabbed the other one and Jane started off on the recumbant bike and the eliptical until he left. I guess all of us running while he was walking got to be too much for him and he told Brenda we were making him feel bad. I think it was all our girl talk! LOL
The worst thing about running on a treadmill or one of the worst is the lack of any kind of breeze, even with a fan on it was pretty miserable. I was able to crank out 4.5 miles the longest I have ever run on a treadmill and then another .25 miles walking on a steep incline. Vicki came just as I was finishing on the treadmill. After the treadmill I got on the recumbent bike for 10 minutes just to stretch out my legs. Brenda finished her run I think she did 6 miles and then we stretched a bit and I got on one of the eliptical machines. I was pretty much just playing on it, I have never really used one of the new ones.

After Jane finished her 5 mile run she said good-bye and Vicki, Brenda and I headed to the pool. We did 100 meters on the kickboard 600 meters freestyle swimming and then another 100 meters on the kickboard. It was a good workout and our reward was about 20 minutes in the arthritis pool. That is always my favorite part of our Sunday morning swim workout. We get out the styrofoam weights and play with those and just chat.
Despite the rainy cold conditions I was able to get in a great workout thanks to Brenda, Jane and Vicki!
Brenda and I had discussed going to Tropical smoothie in Jacksonville but once we changed clothes she had a message from her husband needing her and I had one from mine.
After a quick trip to Kroger to pick up Arland's Pop Tart's and a few other items the rest of the day has been spent relaxing and enjoying the last day of our 4 day weekend.
It has been a great weekend full of time spent with family and friends and I am very thankful for every moment.

The Great Duck Race 10K

This is a fun little race in Stuttgart Arkansas Duck capitol of the World. Kim and I did this race last year and although I struggled through the whole thing it was a good experience and I was looking forward to running it again this year. Cheryl was going to do it with us as well. Turns out that Kim and Cheryl decided against running in the cold.

We did have a nice little group going.

Rock,Brenda,Kelly,Robert,Joan,Toni,Susan,Sonja,Jennifer, and myself. Susan from Benton and her wonderful husband Chasen also came for the race. It is always a pleasure to see the two of them!!

Rock and I rode to Stuttgart with Kelly and Robert. Arland is still injured so he wasn't able to come to the race.

It was a nice ride and the time passed very quickly and before you know it we were there.
It was SO cold this morning 34degrees and cloudy. I wore capri tights a long sleeve technical shirt and my Cabot Cruiser singlet. I was a bit dissapointed to realize I was the only one wearing the Cruiser singlet!!! Oh well I was very comfortable the entire run.

We sat in the car for as long as we could... but then Joan rounded up the troops and we headed out for our warm up run. It wasn't much of a warm up but it was enough for my stomach to warm up and send me to the port-a-potties. Luckily I had a successful visit and was ready to race.

Dennis our running coach was not very happy with us when he found out we were racing today after our 1/2 marathon last weekend. He told me to just be careful!! I told myself I was just going to take it easy this race.

Kelly and I lined up together... she asked what I was planning on running and I told her 10:00min miles. She said she would hang with me for as long as she could.

After the introduction of the Duck Queen we were off
Kelly and I ran together, we started off a little too fast during that first mile,we were both trying to slow each other down. I remember at one point saying slow down lets enjoy this.
Kelly did a great job and I really tried to keep it at a 10:00 minute mile, but when we reached the one mile mark I heard 9:4???? Ooop's too fast. Soon after the first mile Kelly sent me off she said she needed to find her comfort zone. I understand that very well so off I went. I was still trying to keep it slower but I was feeling good and decided to just relax and enjoy and whatever my pace was I usually only glance at my garmin occasionally so I tried not to look at it. I was starting to pass people and that is always a good feeling.


Last year when we did this race I started off way to fast at the beginning and was falling apart by mile 1... I was determined this year to be smarter. To be fair to myself, last year I was a new runner we had only been running for a couple of months when we did the race, we had a few 5k's under our belt but I had no idea how to race 6.2 miles.. heck I could barely run 6.2 miles at that time.

Today was wonderful, I fell into a groove and just ran. When I got to the first water stop I grabbed a cup of water while still running and tried to take a drink, but it was not working so I slowed down just for a second to take a sip. Just before the water stop I had passed a guy in a gray sweatshirt, as I took that one second walk break to drink he passed me. As I started running again I reeled him in and ended up running either just behind or beside him for the next 2.5 or 3 miles. Just after the 4 mile mark I don't know if he slowed down or I sped up but I soon passed him, I really didn't want to it had been nice having him to pace off of and he was kind of a big guy so he helped block the wind too!! Right around the 5 mile mark we came back onto a main road and a police officer was blocking traffic, as usual I had thanked all the volunteers.. I was just about to thank this guy when he says hurry up.. hurry up. Ugh I didn't want to hear that!!! LOL but hurry up I did :)

Soon I was turning the last corner and it was just a little less than a mile to the finish line. I didn't think that road was ever going to end, you can see the finish line for a long time so it can trick you into starting your final kick too soon. Plus I forgot that a 10K is 6.2 miles not 6.1. By the time I did make it to the finish I was DONE!!!.. but I did manage a nice little sprint at the end. I had been hoping for 1:00 I didn't quite make it but I was VERY happy with my time.

6.2 miles (my garmin said 6.3)
1:01:11
avg pace 9:44

1 - 9:41
2 - 9:58
3 - 9:57
4 - 9:52
5 - 9:38
6 - 9:32
.2 -2:36

I ran with my i-pod today and I really enjoyed it... for once it was playing all the good songs. It was funny because one of my favorite running songs is "Push It" the techo version. It came on during the last .2 and it was helping spur me on, and just before the finish line there were Joan, Brenda and Raquel cheering me on and just as I passed Brenda she yelled PUSH IT...how perfect!!!

Susan's husband was taking pictures and he got a couple of shots of me finishing... I like this one of me crossing the finish line and he got my official time in the shot as well. Thank you Chasen!!! :)

After I crossed the finish line I was heading over to the girls when I saw Chasen on the sidewalk, I walked up to him and just kind of grabbed his arm. I was still a little breathless. We talked for a minute and then I kept on walking. Kelly's husband Robert had a great race too and he was with the girls when I got to them, we started walking down the road to cheer in the rest of the girls. Kelly was next looking strong and pretty in pink! Just behind her was Toni. Robert and I kept on walking, and soon we saw Susan.. she was looking very bright and shiny and like she could run forever. She is going to have a great Marathon in Memphis! After Susan was Jennifer and thenSonjaand right behind her was Susan. Everyone did a great job and today was the first 10K for Toni, Susan P., Sonja and Jennifer. It might have been for Kelly too... she went straight from 5k's to 1/2 marathons! lol

After scoring some free coffee drinks we headed back to the car to put on warm clothes and then inside the bank for the award ceremony. There were freshly baked cookies so I snagged a couple and sat down by Brenda. She said you know we are going to breakfast after this. LOL I was just so hungry! I had a 1/2 of a peanut butter sandwich at 5:00am, but just before time for me to leave to meet everyone I got nauseous and threw up a little bit. Gross I know.. sorry. We weren't even to Stuttgart yet and my stomach was growling so after the race I needed something to tide me over until breakfast.
The Cabot group cleaned up at the awards ceremony. Raquel was 3rd female OVER ALL!! Brenda was 1st place female Masters. Robert, Kelly, Joan, Toni, Susan and I all won age group awards. Kelly was FIRST in her age group, I was second in mine and Robert was third in his. Toni was second in our age group and Susan P. was second in her's and of course Joan was first in her age group as well.
Soon it was time to say our good-bye's and head for breakfast. We had seen a little restaurant in Hazen on the way in and apparently that is where the group has stopped during previous races. We walked in the door and the place was wall to wall camo.. it was kind of surreal looking. The whole experience was a big dissapointment, the waitress told us we would not be able to get breakfast and then it took almost an hour for us to get our food. Luckily we were all having so much fun talking it passed pretty quickly. Good thing I had those cookies!!!

Another great race with the Cabot Cruiser's and our honorary Cruiser Susan.