Pumpkins, Cupcakes and Jello

I can't believe that October is almost over already!  How does time go so quickly?  For example, yesterday was Niko's 5th birthday.  My baby is 5 years old.  That seems impossible!  But it is true, my babies are no longer babies really, which is exciting and sad all at once.  We had a birthday party for him last weekend at Chuck E Cheese and he seemed to really enjoy himself.  However, I will NOT be planning a birthday party at 1pm on a Saturday at Chuck E Cheese ever again.  I clearly lost my mind when I decided that was a good plan.  It was sooooo busy there!!! 

Birthday boy at Chuck E Cheese

I took a week off of running because my knee (the other one this time) was really bothering me last week, especially at soccer.  It would be nice if my body would cooperate with me a little more and stop with all these aches and pains.  However, it is nice to do some different activities- I climbed 100 flights of stairs on Monday along with an upper body workout, did boxing class Tuesday and Thursday and this morning I tried a new class called Advanced Circuit.  It was awesome, there was a bunch of stations set up and when we were done my whole body felt like it was made out of jello.  I will definitely be taking that class again! 

10/29/2010- 152 lbs (same as last week- weight is so weird)

***Happy Birthday to my friend Sarah on 10/27***

Some of my favorite things about her:

1.  She is very easy going, yet will always speak her mind

2.  She loves sushi as much as I do

3.  I have known her since high school and she is married to Scott, whom I have known since 1st grade-     they are the classic "high school sweathearts" and are an awesome couple

4.  She is a fellow twilighter, although she prefers Jacob.  I forgive her.

5.  She came with us to Sequim to cheer me on during my first half marathon.

6.  She made me amazing cupcakes for my birthday, even though she couldn't be there. 

 



Devan, Jaime, me, Cynthia, Sarah and Izaiah after the North Olympic Discovery Half Marathon. 
Jaime and Sarah made all of our fabulous signs!





My birthday cupcakes that Sarah made- they were awesome!



Memories

Kendall and I on Halloween.  We were probably 2 or 3 years old.  I have the big afro in case you couldn't tell!

I attended a funeral today.  It was for the mother of one of my cousins.  I do not, however, consider her my aunt.  She was married to one of my paternal uncles a very long time ago and together they had one son named Kendall.  We are the same age and I have quite a few memories of playing together as children, however I had not seen him for close to 20 years.  She was also the sister of a very close friend of the family that I considered an uncle while growing up.  I never put two and two together until last week when my mother called to give me the sad news.  Without going into great detail about the dysfunction of my family history, I felt like I should go to this funeral and possibly reconnect with some family I have not been in contact with for a very long time.  My mom and my brother also attended the funeral.

It was really great being able to visit for a bit with Kendall, even though the circumstances weren't the greatest.  We were able to catch up and exchange contact information.  We only live about 30 minutes from each other so hopefully we can get together soon and be part of each others lives again.  I also was able to visit with one of my paternal uncles, which was nice.  He reminds me visually a lot of both my paternal grandma and grandpa (who have both passed away) so it made me a little bit sad.  I miss them a lot.  And he also reminds me a lot of my dad, who I haven't seen for a couple of years (he lives in Ohio).

Mostly this whole experience made me rethink a lot of my childhood and try to remember at what point everything went from roses and rainbows to a string of alcoholics, drug addicts, theft and various reasons that my relatives have ended up in jail.  Either I was completely sheltered and ignorant and this was happening while I played hopscotch and rode my bike or at some point my extended family started unraveling during my teenage years and that is why I was never around any of them from that point on.  I guess I should just be thankful that somehow my parents managed to keep my brother and I away from that lifestyle.  Sometimes I look at my family history and wonder how they did it.  But whatever they did, however they did it, I am thankful.  Kudos to my mom and dad.

On a completely different topic, I wore my Vibram Fivefingers twice this week.  Once to boxing class and once for a 15 minute run.  I LOVE THEM!  They are the most comfortable shoes I have ever put on my feet.  Honestly.  And while my toes and feet were a bit sore from them, I have not had sore calves whatsoever.  I guess they must be toned up enough already!  I ordered a cover for my Nike+ sensor that will allow me to attach it to the velcro strap on my Vibram's and still use my Nike+ program.  I hope it works, I should get it next week.  That way I can visually see any difference in my pace with the Vibram's and still track my mileage.  Oh, and I have now officially run 500 miles in the last 8 months.  SWEET!

10/22/10- 152 lbs (not sure how that happened, but darn if I was going to argue with my scale!)

Barefoot

I did it.  Wednesday I went to REI and purchased a pair of Vibram FiveFingers Treksports.  They look identical to the ones in the picture above.  I have been contemplating this for months and I figure that now is the perfect time.  I am not currently on a training plan for an upcoming race so I can slowly build up my tolerance for running in them.  I am hoping to do the 10 mile race in Maui with them on my happy feet!  If you want a little background/info on this type of shoe here is a link, or just google it.  There is a TON of info out there about the pros and cons of these types of shoes.

http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/

I have worn them around my house for a total of 2 1/2 hours now and I think my feet are getting used to them.  They definitely work different muscles in your feet and calves!  I will keep wearing them casually over the weekend and am hoping to do a short run in them by Monday.  Of course I will be keeping you posted on my progress.  They are supposed to improve my form, help prevent injury and eventually knock some time off of my pace as well.  Which would be nice!

Last weekend we headed down to Portland to support Cynthia while she ran her first marathon.  It was kind of strange being on the spectator side of things and not actually running.  Although I didn't envy her one bit- the weather was TERRIBLE!  Absolutely poured down rain the entire time.  We decided the best thing for me to do was meet up with her around mile 10.5 at one of the aid stations and run back to the hotel with her, which was right at mile 14.  I stood in the pouring down rain, freezing cold for about 45 minutes before she ran by and I could hop in and get warmed up!  It was really cool to be with her at the halfway point (13.1)- I gave her a big high five and told her that was my favorite part of every run.  Halfway. 

Saying goodbye to Cynthia at the 14 mile marker.  It was pouring rain but we still have smiles on our faces!



 When I left her I gave her a hug and off she went.  She ended up having some trouble with her knee but finished with a great time of 4:48:22!  It was interesting watching all the finishers- some were really serene, some happy, some were crying and in obvious pain, some had tears of relief and joy- but they all had this aura of accomplishment.  I want that.  I want to say that I ran a marathon.  I wasn't 100% sure until I experienced what happened in Portland last weekend.  But now I am sure.

But first things first.  I need a stronger, slightly smaller body to make my goal a little easier.  I have been doing really well making my exercise program a priority.  I haven't missed a workout yet!  I will count today as my first official "Friday weigh in" at home.  The gym scale is an old fashioned one, while mine at home is electronic.

10/15/10-  155 lbs

Knowledge is Power

Today is officially my last day being 32 years old.  I really enjoyed being 32- it has been an amazing year overall.  But I am ready for 33- bring it on!  Age is just a number really.  I keep telling everyone that you don't get OLDER, you just get BETTER!  I really am blessed to be surrounded by great friends and family.  My children are smart, healthy and amazing.  I have everything I need.  I am lucky. 

Since I am not currently following a training plan for an upcoming race, I decided to shake up my workout world a bit.  My plan is to exercise 6 days a week -it should look something like this:

Monday- run 5-7 miles
Tuesday- boxing class at the gym
Wednesday-  run 5-7 miles with 20 minutes of strength after
Thursday-  boxing class OR stair climber with weight training afterwards
Friday- soccer (or long run if soccer is Saturday)
Saturday-  long run- 8-12 miles (or soccer)
Sunday- rest

I met with my personal trainer at the gym on Wednesday for my fitness assessment.  She took my height, weight, age and gender and plugged it into this nifty handheld machine that then presented me with my total fat percentage while I held onto the sensors.  Fun!  At first I was horrified by the number.  I am pretty good at math- the first words out of my mouth were "What?  50 pounds of me is made of fat?!?" but then she made me feel a little better by explaining that I should only be about 3-5% lower than where I am at.  So, I am going to do what no "normal" female would do and post my weight and fat percentage for the world to see.  Mostly because I want to hold myself accountable for losing these last few pounds and finally be at my goal weight.  So here goes nothing- my lovely statistics: 

Height: 5'4"
Weight: 156
Percent of body fat:  30.3%  (equivalent to about 47 pounds-awesome)

And here are my goals:
Weight:  145
Percent of body fat:  25%

I am going to try to achieve this in 11 weeks.  That is a pound a week and should take me right up until the end of December.  My plan is to weigh in once a week on Friday mornings on my scale here at home and then once a month at the gym where I can also check my fat percentage.  I have started restricting my calories a bit more this week as well.  Knowledge is power- I encourage all of you to find out this information.  Don't be scared of the numbers- use them to your benefit!

So, for the last 4 days I have been sore and hungry.  But I feel good overall and I am excited for this new challenge I have presented to myself.  Once I have completed this goal I will begin a 6 month training for a FULL marathon towards the end of spring/beginning of summer.  It seems like the only conclusion to this crazy "race running" life I have become addicted to.  After that- who knows what I will come up with!!! 

My BRF (best running friend) Cynthia is running the Portland marathon on 10-10-10 and we are heading down to support her and cheer her on.  I plan on jumping in and running a few miles with her to give her some encouragement and a little extra boost hopefully at a time she will need it.  She is going to do great- I am really excited for her.  I am also a little sad -this will be the first race we have not done together, but I am glad we can be there when she crosses that finish line! 

Tomorrow is my birthday.  I am going to have a nice, mellow morning followed by lunch with the kids before handing them off to my mom for the night.  Then happy hour with the hubby, 2 soccer games and then some well earned beverages at The Blazing Onion with about 15 of my favorite people.  It is going to be a good day!