best Run EVER

after 4.5 - looking a bit winded...

Saturday I knew that no matter what, come rain or shine, however I tried to spin it, I HAD TO hit 8 miles.  Hal Higdon said so, after all,  Who am I to argue?!  =D  Seriously, though, with my half marathon one month away, if I didn't hit 8, I knew I was in BAD shape.

I planned out a route in my head and got down to business doing 5/1 intervals.  The first 2 miles seemed effortless.  The third mile breezed by.  At this point, I started getting cocky.  I seriously considered tacking on an extra mile for a grand total of 9.  I was, after all, feeling ON TOP OF THE WORLDISH.  Mile 4 and still going strong and then eventually I hit the 5.25 mile point and I took a nose dive.  This wasn't really all that surprising considering I hadn't run all week AT ALL and that the most I had hit prior to this run in any one jaunt was 6 miles.  It took everything in me to finish all 8 and I have to say that the last mile was particularly pathetic.  I actually walked most of it as I got a blister on my left heel since my sock had slid down AND I had pain the ball of my left foot (courtesy of wearing heels the night before, I'm thinking) AND then, of course, I had an attack of the charlie horses (my b.f.f.s).

I took off Sunday.

Monday, I got a MUCH needed massage.  I have a monthly membership at Massage Envy, but for some reason I forgot to go in January and February...that is, until I couldn't bear it any longer.  My friend, and massage therapist, Sarah, worked her best torture techniques on me, but some of those knots are going to require another session, so I booked another appointment for next week.  I did feel better, though, leaving than I did going in, so that is progress!

I woke up this morning SO SORE from the release of all the knots in my neck, shoulders, left leg, and upper back.  I had hoped to run this morning, but it just wasn't going to happen.  I took an Epsom Salt bath instead and then I hydrated with the ol' H2O all day long like it was my job.  I'm talking a bajillion gallons, at least.

After a way overdue dinner with my friend Amy, I headed home for that run.  In my head I wanted to do 4.5, but I never tweeted or blogged a specific number because had I done that...well...we all know I would have been required to follow through on it. ;)  I knew that I wanted to run the mileage outright - no walking and no stopping and I knew that I wanted to feel good about the run.

I mapped out the course in my head and I got down to business.

Here are my stats:
Mile 1: 13:34
Mile 2:  13:10
Mile 3:  12:47
Mile 4:  13:15
Mile 4.5:  13:15/avg

Did you check out Mile 3???  Wowsers (uh...for me...it's all relative, after all)!

Bottom line, my little lamp chops - I felt AMAZING and STRONG - for all 4.5 miles.  Well, okay...a bit tired the last mile, but this indicates to me that I should run the Bayou City Classic 10K on March 12th without intervals! This makes me happy. 

Oh...I almost forgot to mention that I did run past a house that must have been a "coffee shop" if you catch my drift in the way that Amsterdam has "coffee shops".  Oh wow - the wretched pungent smell of "coffee" temporarily filled my lungs as I ran past said house.  So, my disclaimer is that I personally did not use any kind of enhancement ... um ... "coffee" for my run (though I'm pretty sure that kind of "coffee" would not be considered a stimulant anyway).  Ugh.

I have never had a week day run feel this good, not to mention this is the most I have ever run in a weekday (4.25 miles was my previous best).  A run like this restores confidence.  A run like this rocks my world!

What do I think lead to this accomplishment?  I freed my mind of all things cluttering it.  I released my body of all tension.  I was properly hydrated (for once).  I told myself, "you've got this!"

So, let's hope Thursday's run is just as dandy and that these two runs shall lead me to a FANTASTIC 9 miler on Saturday!

May you, too, have your best Run EVER or the equivalent in whatever area of life you've been struggling with!

Happy March to you!

source here

It's March, y'all!  Spring is in the air...well I suppose it's been in the air since we've been dealing with some HUMID conditions and some upper 70 to mid 80 weather for a couple of weeks now.  Today is a beautiful day, though, so I choose to focus on that!

March brings 2 races:

Bayou City Classic 10K on 3/12
Rock 'n' Roll Dallas 1/2 on 3/27

Now the really cool thing is that I did the Bayou City Classic race last year, so how fun to have an opportunity to PR on the exact same race!  This will be the first of only two races I will be repeating this year.  I make no guarantees on the PR, though, as my running has been questionable at best coming off this injury.  I've had only a handful of decent runs, but...I'm not giving up!

I signed up for the Rock 'n' Roll Dallas Half on October 10th (while in Scottsdale, AZ for my cousin's wedding) since I had a coupon code for saving $20.  Note - this was before The Houston Half hurt me, so I don't have any great expectations for this race either - JUST TO FINISH.  It would be really great to finish with a better time than my Rock 'n' Roll Chicago Half, though....just sayin'.  It's doable, but I'm trying not to set myself up for disappointment if it doesn't happen because...well...it's been a rough road getting back in the game.  It's especially awesome knowing I will be running the course with two of my friends - Melissa and Rachel!  I'm also excited to drive up to Dallas - I'm staying with a friend of mine I haven't seen in over 2 years, Julie.  I will get to meet her 1 year old, too!  I have some other friends in Dallas I would love to see while I'm out there (if you want to meet up - let me know)!  And of course, there is That Pink Girl (recent Ultra marathon finisher ---- so proud of her!) - don't you just love how you can make real life friends out of blog buddies?!  Can't wait to see her! 

March = March Madness!  The last few years I've been INCREDIBLY lucky at work and made some money having no background on any of the teams at all!  So fun!  All of my employees and fellow co-workers get so jealous of my mad skillz.  awesome.

March means St. Patrick's Day!  The funny thing is I never really do anything to celebrate, but I like to claim my 1/8 Irish Heritege, so there you go!

March also brings my birthday!  I'm trying to piece together my wish list.  I know I definitely want a good (read: expensive) set of earphones for my iPod.  I've had this big struggle lately.  When I put the cord behind me, my sweat makes it stick to the back of my neck which pulls on the cord driving me nuts.  When I put the cord in front of me, sometimes I don't pin it right with my shuffle and there are issues.  I don't need these kind of distractions.  This is the set I'm currently eyeing - Sennheiser Adidas PMX 680i Sports Headset.  Does anyone have them?  Thoughts?  I also know I want a renewal of my Runner's World subscription - love that magazine! 

I've yet to hit my monthly mileage goals, so hopefully March will be the month!  The plan is 50 and it starts TODAY! 

I wish you all a happy and healthy March!  =)

I love the 80s (well..parts of it)

You know what's really rad?  Being all decked out in your coolest 80s attire and having to stop at the gas station for some ice.  It's not uncomfortable AT ALL, oh no.  =/  haha!

Saturday marked my brother-in-law Craig's birthday and thus - a birthday bash was born.  It was a themed party - 80s, if you will, and Linda and Craig went all out with their decorum.

There were movie posters throughout the house representing some of the best movies - Goonies, Ferris Buehler, Gremlins, Back to the Future, etc...

There was an Alf cake.

There were slap bracelets.

There were famous quotes and other such era indicators printed and posted about.

The office was set-up with the original Nintendo gaming system with your choice of several games to play.  Of course, the favorite was Super Mario 3.

The dining room was set-up as a Karaoke room.  80s hits were belted out by many.

The wardrobes, however, stole the show.

revamp

Yesterday morning I Tweeted the following:

today is a new day and I'm going to be doing things a little bit differently

What did I mean by that?

Well, a wise woman I know (someone near and dear to me who I call mom) has this saying that goes something like this, "if you always do what you've always done, then you are always going to get what you've always gotten." 

I'm not happy with several aspects of my life right now.  I know that if I get some of it right, then most of the rest will fall into place.

4 MAJOR areas of my life need revamping - sleep, food, exercise, and attitude

They are all interconnected.

I am requiring 7 hours of sleep a night.  I know I have required this before and not followed through.  Believe it or not, I am capable of following a plan.  I will prove it to you (and me)!  =)

I am requiring a food journal of sorts.  Being a South Beacher does not mean calorie counting, BUT we all know calories do count.  I want to be aware of what I'm putting in my mouth as I have been quite guilty of emotional eating lately.  I downloaded an application for my phone (My Fitness Pal) and I have started documenting my food.  This way I can eat within my plan, monitor the calories I'm consuming, AND be accountable for everything I'm putting in my system.  I've also come to realize that it's okay to feel hungry.  What a concept!  Let's just accept that and move on.

I am requiring cross training.  I have found myself relying solely on running.  Isn't that what got me into trouble to begin with (think pelvic stress fracture)?  I was supposed to be incorporating cross training as soon as I was released back to running.  Yeah, that lasted 3 weeks.  Bad Kim!  I need to do a minimum of 3 runs per week, but I also need to be cross-training twice a week with weights and/or cardio.  Consider it done!

Last, but not least...attitude.  I'm a quitter.  I know this.  I'm my own worst enemy.  I know this.  I'm a self-saboteur.  I know this.  WAIT A MINUTE.  I have been all these things.  Just because I have been doesn't mean I still need to be, if that makes any sense.  I am the one who makes the choice of which path I follow.  I can choose a path of positive thinking.  I can follow the mantra of "if at first I don't succeed, try try again".  I can stop being a defeatist and start being a realist.  Getting to my goal weight is going to take time, patience, and a whole lot of hard work.  Getting to my fitness goals is going to take time, patience, and a whole lot of hard work.  Since when have I shied away from hard work?  The patience issue...well that's the ticker for me, now isn't it?

I just signed up for another half marathon - The Chicago Monster Dash - October 29th.  This is the 4th official one for the year.  I've yet to sign up for the See Jane Run October 9th Austin half and the TriGirl 13.1 which should be returning to Humble (Houston area) in December.  Assuming I hit these 2, that will be 6 for the year.  Who is this girl?!  She is me.

I want to be eating 13.1 for breakfast.  That's something I won't have to journal - ha!

BUT for right now...let's just get me to my first half for the year, my first post-injury half for the year.  It will be here in less than 5 weeks and I'm not even close to being ready.  It's crunch time.

So, it's the dawn of a new day with a new plan to get me where I need to be.

Bring it.

my mom, the goose, and some chicken soup

My mom is precious.  I might have mentioned this a time or two.  Not only is she pint size (under 5' tall), but she decorates for all holidays, and just plain does and says the cutest things.  Remember our High tAcKy Texas Tea last July?  Yep. Cute.

She had to undergo major surgery on Friday.  Needless to say, we were all a bit nervous, but everything went well.  I had hoped to go visit her in the hospital on Friday after work, but my dad told me there was no point because she was pretty much falling in and out of consciousness every 5 to 10 minutes courtesy of meds.

Since we always do our family lunch thing on Saturday, we decided to meet (minus the parentals since my dad was at the hospital with my mom) at Red Lobster near the hospital.  We won't talk about how the cheddar bay biscuits are so not on my diet and how I may or may not have had enough to feed a small army (lack of self control much?).  After lunch, we sent older sister Cathy and brother-in-law Jay over to the hospital leaving younger sister Linda and brother-in-law Craig and I to seek flowers.  We went to the Kroger located in the same parking lot.  They had crap.  We didn't know what to do, so we decided to caravan drive until we found another grocery story.  Who knew we would have to drive for countless hours (slight exaggeration) until we happened across a Walmart?  Of course, Walmart doesn't have flower arrangements.  They have flower bouquets.  This meant that Linda and I picked out 2 bouquets of tulips (our mom loves tulips) and one bouquet of mixed floral lovelies.  We then sought out a vase, scissors to trim the stems, and bottles of water to fill the vase.  Whoa.  We were like our own freakin' flower shop.

We then caravanned to the hospital and Linda put the arrangement together (and did a wonderful job, I might add).  We arrived and spent some time with my mom.  About 30 minutes into our visit, the nurse came in to tell us she was being given the boot.  WHAT?!  Um...whatever.  She has gotten better sleep, more comfort, and better attitudes at home (she wasn't very happy with the nurses).

I arrived at their house and saw this:

Yes, it's my mom's goose.  Do you remember it from Valentine's Day in his little outfit of love?  Now he is wearing scrubs, as you can see.  I didn't understand why I hadn't noticed when I stopped by TWICE on Friday to help with Oliver (their bull dog).  My dad confessed that my mom forgot to dress the goose before she left for the hospital, so he had to do it on Friday night when he got back from visiting her.  Okay, if you knew my dad AT ALL, this is hilarious - him dressing a goose.  I mean - imagine your own dad dressing a goose...or a doll...same difference.  Hilarious.   My mom later told me that he couldn't wait to dress the goose...as in he was all kinds of excited about it.  weird.

A few weeks ago my dad was on a golf trip, so my mom put the goose in this outfit:

So, I had 3 vacation days left from last year and they had to be used by the end of this month.  I saved them to help with my mom.  I have mom-care-duty Monday thru Wednesday.  I have such great plans for us.  Um...she is gonna sleep and I'm gonna....do whatever she asks of me.  =)

I decided to start off by making her chicken soup for her soul.  I never roasted veggies before hand when making soup.  I've always just thrown the raw veggies in the pot.  I decided to change things up a bit.  I filled a pot with water and put 4 large (trimmed of fat) chicken breasts in along with several buillion cubes.  I cut up carrots, onion, and celery and placed it all on a baking sheet.  I then brushed the veggies with a bit of olive oil and sprinkled them with rock salt and garlic (from a grinder I bought at H.E.B.).  In the oven they went for about 40 minutes @ 350 degrees.  Once my chicken was done, I used two forks to shred it.  I added my roasted veggies to the soup and put some more water in, as well.  I honestly didn't need to add any more seasoning other than a bit of black pepper.

This will be dinner!

Kim versus the 5K: Chick-fil-A 5K

I just love me the local 5Ks, you know?!  So nice not to have to drive down town and deal with parking.  Last night I pulled a "Kim".  You know what that means.  total. aggie. moment.  I knew I had to pick-up my race packet at the Chick-fil-A off of 2920.  I was apparently not clear on which part of 2920, so despite the fact I was coming from my parent's house which is closer to the one I should have been going to, I proceeded to go to the incorrect Chick-fil-A.  About 2 minutes into my uncomfortable awkwardness of standing around inside the wrong location, it dawned on me that there were no packets being distributed and that I was clearly mistaken.  I used my trusty Android to find the correct location and went on my not-so-merry way.

It was a cutie packet in a Chick-fil-A box instead of a bag.  We got a t-shirt, a kiddie toothbrush, coupons for free Chick-fil-A, a pen (I have a thing about pens...bet you didn't know that), our respective bibs with safety pins, etc.

I placed all my gear on the dining room table the night before.  Man - it sure does take a lot of stuff just to run 3.1 miles.  Sheesh.

I had the best intentions of going to bed early, but...well...you know me.  I got about 4 hours and 45 minutes of sleep.  Blech.

I met up with Rachel first.  We headed over to Lowe's to use the facilities.  There was a chain across an area near the bathroom that Rachel and I had to climb across.  I made a joke about the turtle (me) doing a hurdle before the big race.  We then headed over to the Chick-fil-A to pick-up our time chip.  This was when we found Lauren.

We started the race - it was a decent route - out and back with a few supporters sporting bells along the path.  I made the decision to run the entire 3.1 (sans intervals) knowing that a PR wouldn't happen as I just can't seem to run as "fast" this way.  For the record, there is no accomplishment for me in running the whole thing without walk breaks as I run 3 miles without stopping all the time now, but still...it was my first 5K to run in its entirety.

I felt good for the entire run - had my breathing under control, etc.  I have to laugh at how different a 5K is for me now versus a year ago.  A year ago I would be all sore later that day and the next.  No soreness today, of course, and tomorrow I'm going for my long run of 7 to 8 miles.

I finished strong, was handed a bottle of water, and found Rachel (who handed me a banana) and then Lauren.  Lauren had found Brittaney, a local runner and blogger we were meeting for the first time IRL.  Brittaney won 1st place in her age group - AWESOME JOB!  Both Rachel and Lauren PR'd this race - AWESOME JOB!

After the award ceremony, we took some pics (of course - we all blog, you know!) and then Rachel, Lauren, and I headed over to Starbucks for some chitchat.

Official Time:  41:59
Laps  (Garmin stats):  Mile 1 - 12:55
                                 Mile 2 - 13:25
                                 Mile 3 - 13:32
                                 Mile 0.18 - 2:14 (which is a pace of 12:11 which means I busted a$$ - hahaha)

Finishing Song:  Ke$ha's Take It Off (I know a lot of peeps don't dig her music, but I can't help but have a few of her tunes on my iPod for running.  If it's got the right beat, I'm down with it, yo)

Next Stop:  Bayou City Classic 10K - March 12th

fancy (read French) beef stew

first you cut the bird...out of the meal cuz it's all about the beef tonight...er tomorrow since this meal takes FOREVER to cook!

By the way, did you totally imagine me saying that in my absolute BEST Julia Child accent?  I thought so!  ;)

I was shopping around aimlessly the other day for some kind of inspiration for this week's meal.  I saw some nice lean stew meat for a good price at Walmart, so that got me thinking about Beef Bourguignon.  um...yeah...don't ask me to pronounce it.  I mean it's perfectly clear in my head, but when I go to say it in the audible format, it sounds like a bunch of mumbo jumbo.  This would be a South Beach Phase 2 recipe, by the way.

I found several different recipes.  Whichever way I went, I knew I would have to employ my lightening skills - no, I can't conjure up thunderstorms with mere concentration and a lightening rod as if I were some kind of pseudo MacGuyver meets Benjamin Franklin kinda gal.  I mean that I knew I would have to remove some calories and fat without removing flavor.

I headed over to ol' faithful allrecipes.com to find a starter recipe or two and these are the two I found:

Beef Bourguignon I
Beef Bourguignon II

Here's what you need for my version:

1.5 to 2 lbs of lean cubed stew meat
3 TBSP whole wheat flour
2 TBSP olive oil
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp dried parsley
1/4 tsp Adobo seasoning
1 onion chopped
10 oz carton mushrooms sliced
1/2 package Turkey bacon chopped
1 yellow squash chopped
1 lb asparagus chopped
1 1/2 cups red wine (Cabernet Sauvignon, for example)
1 cup beef broth
1 TBSP tomato paste
1 tsp minced garlic
1 TBSP whole wheat flour
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp dried parsley
pinch of salt
shake of pepper
2 Bay Leaves

In a plastic Ziplock gallon-size bag, add in flour, thyme, Adobo, and parsley.  Shake and then add in beef.  Shake until beef is evenly coated.  Heat olive oil in pan on stove.  Brown the beef.  When the beef is done, put it in a 2-qt casserole dish.

Return pan to heat and add in chopped onion, mushrooms, and bacon.

While that is cooking, add yellow squash and asparagus to the beef mixture in the casserole dish.

Once the onion, mushroom, and bacon components are ready, add them to the casserole dish. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Return the pan to the heat and add in the wine, broth, tomato paste, remaining seasonings, bay leaves, garlic, and then whisk in the remaining 1 TBSP flour.

When your oven is ready, pour the wine mixture  over everything in your casserole dish.

Cover the dish and bake in the oven for 2 1/2 hours.  Uncover your dish and bake for another 1/2 hour.

Serve over brown rice or whole wheat pasta.

Now "they" say never to cook with a wine you wouldn't drink as the alcohol cooks off and you are left with the flavor.  I'm not really too much of a wine drinker and if I were to drink wine, I would most definitely not choose a red (tsk tsk, I know).  This meant that I could honestly have cared less and didn't want to spend the money on something expensive when I probably wouldn't have been able to tell the difference.  My point is that I bought a $2.97 bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon and still thought the dish tasted AMAZING.  I have to say that this is the most tender *fancy* stew I've ever eaten.  The flavors blended so beautifully and I couldn't have been more thrilled with the final product...ahem...save for the 3 1/2 hour prep and cook time.

Oh and I have no doubt you can use whatever veggies suits your fancy when you get all fancy with your own stewaging.  Next time I shall add zucchini to the mix AND there shall be a next time cuz it was THAT good!

bon appetit!