Ketchup Blog

I'm way behind on blogging so I'm just going to catch up with a list. (Read the list and you'll be rewarded with pictures at the end.)

• My third grade teacher, Mrs. Chalk, didn't like ketchup. So if our class needed a "catch-up day" (ketchup day) she liked to call it mayonnaise day.
• Apparently, I can't spell mayonnaise without help from my computer.
• Seeing a pattern here ... this might not be such a succinct list after all, given my easily-distracted mood this evening. Ooh shiny ...
• I'm running a 5K this Friday ... in a Halloween costume. It's the Cincinnati Run Like Hell.
• It's my friend, Mr. PurulentSmile's first 5K and I'm uber excited for him. He's going to murder it. 
• Sarah is running it too! Yay!
• If you're in a donating mood, please consider using my friend Leslie's donation page for the Run Like Hell 5K, which benefits the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Here's the link to her page. She's $160 away from her $500 goal. Oh, and her team (which I'm a part of) is called Marissa's Miracle, named after her daughter. Read Marissa's story on the page I linked above.
• My costume is almost ready. I'm taking two yards of tulle (the stuff that goes under tutus) to work tomorrow to get help from my crafty coworkers. I'm not crafty. Have I mentioned that? Then I'm getting a bunch of latex gloves from my cousin Thursday. (Have you figured it out yet? I'm guessing no. Hehe...)
• Tonight I met Caitlin for my last run of the week before the 5K. It went terribly for me.
• Here's when you know you have a great running buddy: Caitlin looked at me when tonight's run was over and said, "I was hoping you'd have a bad run tonight." Errr...thanks?  =)
• What Caitlin did was reiterate some advice I gave her a few weeks ago when she ran a 5K and met all of her goals (no puking, no walking, finish in under 40 minutes). She had a bad workout that week and was a little discouraged. I told her it was good because she got the bad run out of her system. See, bad runs usually travel alone. One and done ... for a little while. That one bad run could be REALLY bad and could REALLY discourage you, but it's only going to happen once...unless you let it defeat you.
• Speaking of the 5K Caitlin did, it was the day after my 30th birthday celebration, so I opted out. (recovery ... whew) But I did go to the run as a spectator, which I love. It was a beautiful day and I had the pleasure of bopping around the course with a fancy-pants camera dangling around my neck to play paparazzi for Caitlin. Super...super...FUN! Pictures below!
• I love that Caitlin wished a bad run on me. Punk.
• Caitlin is kicking my a$$ in running, more and more every time I see her. We tried speed intervals not too long ago. I failed miserably. She busted butt. And she may not realize it, but that one speed workout has kicked her normal running speed up a notch or three.
• In fact, everyone is kicking my a$$ in running. I'm slowing down. I'm not working out as much as I'd like, I've gained a little weight, and I'm just not improving my speed. I could work harder at this.
• I need to return to the land of losing weight. I've noticed a difference in the amount of effort required now versus when I was 6 pounds lighter.
• It's getting cold and dark out. I hate standard time. Seriously, someone give me a good reason why we should ever NOT be in daylight saving time. There is NO good reason. It should be all year round.
• Cold + Dark + Gaining Weight + Boredom Sneaking In = I'm joining a gym. Probably tomorrow after work. The gym down the street has some pretty good annual plans, but better yet, they have EXTREMELY reasonable month-to-month plans. I'm going to try to make nice with the dreadmills (read about my first treadmill experience here). I'm also going to take a body pump class. Basically synchronized lifting with a room full of people.
• I am extremely proud of my two running buddies. They're doing such a fabulous job and, as I've said, are completely annihilating me in terms of running ability and improvement.
• I can't spell annihilating either.
• I'm getting to be a very delinquent blogger, so please follow me on Twitter if you're the Twitter type. If you're not the Twitter type, my tweets show up on the right hand side of my blog page. I'm trying to improve the frequency of my posts there to compensate for my poor blogging habits. Plus, I often re-tweet or quote some really useful and insightful tweets from Runner's World, Women's Health, Eat This Not That, and other Twitter resources.
• This is a mighty long list, but I think I'm finished for now.
• This is my first blog post as a thirty-something!

And now pictures...

These are from the Warrior Run.

Caitlin before the race started.

At the start line. (Caitlin is in pink.)

At mile 1. This was the prettiest race course ever. Through a super cute neighborhood with fall leaves everywhere. =)

Finish line! (Caitlin isn't there quite yet.)

There she is! She had to elbow and shove her way through a pack of walkers. Atta girl!

Caitlin's cheering section. Her husband Jesse (pointing toward their hidden child in the stroller, Emalynn). To the left in the red plaid is Jesse's brother Jason. To the left again, creeping over Jason's shoulder, is Kevin, Caitlin's twin brother.

The paparazzi!

And here's a collage of pics from my 30th birthday party. I didn't party like a rockstar as I intended (due in large part to me going "too big, too fast," if you catch my drift. But I got to see most of my most favorite people in the world, no exaggeration here! Thank you for celebrating with me, peeps. Love you all!

Happy birthday to me!

A Weak Week Recap

Hi all, sorry about not posting, but I have been running. I'll just give you a quick recap now and get back to regular programming soon.

I tried running on Wednesday last week at Veterans, but I think a few things kept it from going well. First, last Sunday I tackled the Five Mile Trail and may have had a little too much fun running down the hills. My shins and calves were quite tender last week. Second, I think I laced my shoes too tight. Third, my back was SUPER wonky on Wednesday and I could never really find a balanced stride when I was running. It's weird, I felt like I was lopsided, which, according to what I know about chiropractic stuff, I probably was. Either way, I lasted a solid 15 minutes before giving in and calling it a night. I felt like I was running on stone legs from the knee down. That's not so comfortable.

But I went right out again on Thursday, this time with Caitlin at Miami Meadows. I'm not sure how long we went, but it was good. Caitlin kicked my butt big time, and Emalynn decided that neither of us were going to run much longer when she became very "vocal" about her dislike of the evening's festivities.

Then I hit the road again on Sunday afternoon at Juilfs. I ran for 24 minutes straight, no walking. Yay! That felt good. I even did a little off-path running, just to see how I managed. I like it. It's almost like I was concentrating so hard on not tripping or spraining an ankle that I forgot to be tired. I immediately remembered to be tired when I got back to the paved path. I also remembered I had to pee.

So that's that. The weather is fall-like here in Cincy, and it's making me eager to get down to business. I'm actually excited about it!

Shout out to Mr. Purulent Smile for his major running accomplishment this weekend! Next stop, 5K!

Giggles: More Plus-Sized Activewear

In light of my recent ho-hums regarding running/exercise burn-out, I think it's a right-good time for a few giggles, don't you?

Back at the end of May, I spent the day with Caitlin, her family and her bestie. They were nice enough to invite me along for a trip to a giant thrift store clear on the other side of town. As a preface, thrift stores are generally tough places for plus-sized gals to shop. Clothes aren't often organized more than into categories like bottoms and tops, let alone into sizes or separated into regular sizes and "more to love" sizes. So unless you're an avid shopper who enjoys rummaging through miles of terribleness and things that don't fit (which I am most DEFINITELY not), it's not likely a big girl is going to find big girl clothes worth buying.

Well, I, ladies and gentlemen, hit the jackpot on this thrift shop trip. As I was wandering aimlessly behind Caitlin and her BFF, looking for the most terrible garments to hold up and make fun of, I found a sea--nay, an ocean--of plus-sized velour track suits!

Read my take on plus-sized active wear here.

Take a good long look at these BEAUTIES!
(Photos by the beautiful and talented Teresa B.)

This one was actually a really pretty color!
Sexy, for sure. Look how flattering those pants are to my figure!

SEAFOAM GREEN!
This one felt like I was wearing quilted window treatments. Instant sweat, ladies and gents.

I implore you, f you're out shopping somewhere and you stumble across velour track suits, please please please model them and take a picture and email it to me: moretoloverunning@gmail.com

And that is all for this evening. Thanks for sharing a giggle with me. =)

The Cincinnati Flying Pig (Half) Marathon

I'm done. I finished. My feet (and toenails) hurt. I don't ever want to do anything longer than a 10K again. But apparently participating in these torturous events is similar to giving birth and getting tattoos (the latter which I actually know about), and I'm destined to want to do more. Not looking forward to that day. In fact, if you catch me slipping into the "I want to do another half marathon ... or heck, a whole marathon" mentality, please slap me ... hard.

Anyway, here's me at 5 a.m. on Sunday morning before heading out. Still nice and dry. (And excited about the new bib placement on my leg instead of on my shirt. Less snagging.)


Oh, in case I haven't mentioned it yet, the forecast for today in Cincinnati called for showers and storms, beginning at 6 a.m. (the race started at 6:30). Fortunately the rain didn't last the entire race, but it was definitely enough to drench everyone. It was also enough to soak my socks and shoes and to give me some seriously bad foot pain because of the intense pruning.

I was miserable. I was seriously considering quitting at least 3 separate times. What kept me going? Was it the drive to accomplish something huge? Was it the finishers medal? Did it have anything to do with the significance of the event? No. My driving thought was, "I paid for this sucker! I'm going to finish it!"

Even in the last mile, when my feet and ankle hurt so bad that I couldn't do much more than shuffle (not exaggerating in the slightest), I just wanted someone to bring me a wheelchair. I did manage to jog over the finish line, though I have no idea how I did.

So, on to some pictures and I'll fill you in in the middle.


Dark picture, but this is the band playing at the start line. Speaking of the start line, it took so long to get across it. There were 5 corrals (Pig Pens) leading up to the start. I'm not entirely positive, but I think it took 10-15 minutes to cross the start line. Whew!

Plus, walking to the Pens was a HUGE pain. The had fences erected to separate the sidewalks from the corrals (street) and THEN they put port-o-potties in that fenced-in sidewalk area creating a nasty bottleneck as my friend Sarah and I tried to make our way to Pig Pen E.

Speaking of Sarah, she was nice enough to stick with me through the entire first mile of the race. That was actually a really fun part. I ran the whole first mile and took two short walk breaks during the second mile and a few more during the third. My sock started rubbing funky on one of my toes during mile 4, so I stopped to adjust. Good story, huh? =)

My mom made her way from the start line up to 7th and Plum to watch me run up to mile marker 5. She snagged a few pics.

Dude dressed like a pig.

There's me in the light green Fernside shirt!

Speaking of Fernside, I raised $595 and some change! Yay!

Mile 5 and still trucking.

Hi mom!

Time for a pic with mile marker 5.

So, shortly after these pics, I continued down 7th, which turns into Gilbert, which is an enormous hill. I mean, HUGE. It's "The Hill." It's 3 miles of intense uphill followed by a lot more gradual uphill. As I expected, it killed me. I couldn't run up the hill at all and didn't expect to be able to. I actually had a lot of trouble walking up the hill. I hate uphills.

After the hill, I hit some pretty bad spots for me, including my first bout of wanting to quit. Nothing sounded better than a ride in a medic vehicle. With a few exceptions, I walked from the bottom of Gilbert (mile 6-ish) until the end of the race. I got a few short jogs in where the road was flat and on Martin Luther King where there were some little bitty downhills.

Then I got to see my coworker, Theresa, at the top of Gilbert and that gave me a little extra mojo to run down Gilbert. I was so worried I wouldn't be able to do it, but I did it. I ran the whole way down. That's why I pulled off a 15-minute mile that late in the race. (I'm good at downhills.) Another short jog across I-71 and down a hill on Central, and that was all she wrote.

Wait, I take that back. I did do tiny little jogs to see my coworkers Theresa (again) and Lisa and Lisa's daughter, Kate. I thought since they came out to see me, they deserved to see some action. Then that was it until my finish line jaunt (maybe 100 yards).

Bad, bad, bad. UGH!

Yes, I know I finished, but it was just so hard and I was so obviously not prepared like I should have been.

Okay, back out of the dreariness hole...here are the "Finish Swine" pics my pal Caitlin took when she met my mom to see me cross the line.

The Finish Swine

Check out the sign on the US Bank Arena.

There I am! Light green shirt, looking like death.

At this point I was choking up and was seconds away from hyperventilating. No joke. Couldn't breathe because I was freaking out, in pain, emotional, and my feet felt like hell.

Dying some more.

Pretending like I have some "kick" left in my step. I almost fooled myself here.

I'm glad these shots are from behind, because I was seriously puckered up right about now.

So, after crossing the line, we were given our finishers medals and a Mylar blanket, and ushered through the recovery area. Water, Gatorade, people to cut the tags off your shoes, bananas, fruit cups, donuts, potato chips, go-gurt, chocolate milk...

All I wanted was a banana and a spot on the concrete. It was crazy crowded down in Sawyer Point, so I found the first curb I could that wasn't covered in garbage or people and collapse to the ground--exactly what you're not supposed to do. But oh, it felt so good. My mom and Caitlin found me and I immediately showed them why I was in so much pain.

BEWARE OF GROSS PICTURES!!!

GROSS! ESPECIALLY IF YOU DON'T LIKE FEET!

Ohhhhhh! My poor feeeeeet!!!

And here I am. My only post-race shot with my medal. Yay feet!

So here are the stats:

Official finish time: 3:40:49
Official pace: 16:52/mile

Here are my lap times, recorded by yours truly on my iPhone, which I managed to keep try with my trusty bandanna:

0-1 13:44 (ran it all)
1-2 14:14 (few short walk breaks)
2-3 15:34 (few short walk breaks)
3-4 14:00 (yep)
4-5 16:36 (still yep)
5-6 16:10 (7th to Gilbert)
6-7 19:19 (up uphill)
7-8 18:29 (still uphill)
8-9 17:10 (still uphill, though less, but still walking, wanted to quit)
9-10 19:05 (wanted to quit and die)
10-11 15:58 (Hey hey hey! Downhill fun!)
11-12 18:24 (dying again)
12-13 20:43 (low point...shuffling and limping)

Here are the Flying Pig's official photographs.

Thank you to everyone who sent me emails and texts and Facebook messages. You're all wonderful and I could tell you were really happy for me and that you believed in me.

Thank you to those of you who donated to Fernside and contributed to such a successful fundraising project.

Thank you to Theresa, Lisa (and Kate), and Caitlin for coming to watch me.

Thank you to Sarah for signing up for the event and for sticking with me for the first mile.

And a HUGE thank you to my mom for getting up extra, extra early, chauffeuring me and Sarah to the race, standing in the rain, hiking all over the downtown area, taking pictures, watching me finish, taking me home, making me lunch, doing my dishes and taking care of me! I don't know what I would have done without your help today. I love you!

And with that ... I'm going to bed with my man, Mr. Biofreeze.

There Should Be An Award For Last Place

Unfortunately, Blogger has been a HUGE pain for the last two days and won't let me upload my photos (thus me posting this a day later than I promised). I thought I'd go ahead and post this without pictures and do a picture post later when I can actually get them loaded.

grumble grumble stupid technology grumble

There should be an award for last place.

I really do believe that. It takes a special person to finish last. It takes a special attitude to not quit in a last-ditch effort to avoid being last. "Oh, I didn't finish ... I just didn't feel right so I dropped out."

No, no, no ... a last place finisher deserves as much attention as a first place finisher. Yeah, maybe the last place finisher crosses that finish line when the awards ceremony is already halfway over, but that doesn't mean the whole crowd shouldn't turn around and applaud, and maybe--maybe they're chanting the last-place finisher's name.

Beckey!
Beckey!
Beckey!
Beckey!

"Ladies and gentlemen, please turn your attention away from Mr. Meb Keflezighi and toward the finish line. We are about to welcome the esteemed Ms. More-to-Love Beckey to our party. Let's cheer her on as she crosses the finish line at an astonishing 1:28:07 in 250th place out of 250 runners in today's 10K race."

(The crowd goes wild. Meb looks confused, but slowly joins in the clapping.)

I'm not going to say either way, but this scenario may or may not have been playing in my head for the last mile of Saturday's Rat Race 10K. So Meb wasn't there, but I'm pretty sure I was dying and I desperately needed something to keep me going. Granted, the fact that Caitlin told all the volunteers along the course for the final 3 miles to cheer me on did help a little, Okay, a lot. I still needed more. I was wiped out. My shin muscles wouldn't flex to bring my feet up off the ground, I was wet and cold and hot all at the same time, my lungs couldn't possibly take in any more air. The cheering crowd was all I had--er--I mean, all I might have had, had that daydream actually been playing in my head.

Yeah.

So, in case you haven't gathered by now, I finished this past Saturday's Rat Race 10K in ...

Wait for it ...

LAST PLACE

And frankly, I don't know that I've ever felt better about a finish. I've never felt like I left everything I had on the course. I never felt happier to cross the finish line after a run that didn't want to end. I never felt like I had just accomplished something truly not many people do.

I never wanted a hot dog more. Well, unless you count that time I was a vegetarian for 5 months... (photographic evidence forthcoming)

I had more individual attention in that race than I've ever had in a 10K, and not the creepy kind of attention. I'm talking about ...

• The volunteers who were happy to see me pass because it meant they could pack up and go
• The rest of the 10K runners who had already gotten to the turnaround and gave me words of encouragement when they discovered that they weren't last (something I kept reminding them of as they passed me:"Congrats! You're not last!")
  
• The idiots who were standing on the path or walking backwards through the finish archway who realized what they were doing when they saw me barreling (right...try trudging) toward them and when my mom yelled at them, "Ah, come on people!"
• My mom at the finish line with the camera
• And Caitlin, having crossed the line more than 2 minutes earlier, circling back around to watch me finish

(I like the last two best.)

=)

Anyway, it wasn't a bad run. It was freezing and raining the whole time, we didn't have time to warm up, we were amongst a group of rather serious runners (all the casual runners were smart enough to do the 5K), and my shins froze up almost immediately. But we did have gummy bears in our pockets for mid-race energy boosts (seemed to work for me!), and I clocked a 14:17/mile pace and beat the time of last year's last place finisher.

While it was definitely difficult and painful, I'm definitely glad I did it and I can see myself trying maybe 1 of these each year ... though now I'm considering the Cincinnati Thanksgiving Day Race (a 10K). (If I continue to consider that 10K, please make sure I remember the discomfort I felt the evening after the Rat Race, along with the day after that and the terrible post-race run the Monday following. Thanks.)

Extra special thank you's to Caitlin for picking this run out for us and for doing such a kick-ass job (this girl and her super strong finishes is meant for marathons, folks) and, of course, to my mom; she had the option of going or not, but despite the cold and rain, she put on my pink rain tarp (jacket) and played photographer for us. Thank you!

Up next, smushing some runs in before the Flying Pig (Half) Marathon on May 1. I'm pretty sure that one is going to kill me.

Oh, and some news ... I had planned on beginning Cincinnati Adventure Fitness Bootcamp for Women this coming Monday. Thanks to flexibility from the ABC folks and the advice of some wise friends, I've decided to delay camp for a month to make way for the Pig.

******

Fernside fundraising update: $531

30 Miles in 30 Days: COMPLETE!

Yay! I did it! After running 4 miles with Caitlin this morning on the Five Mile Trail, I completed 30 miles within 30 days, the Spring Into Fitness Run Challenge through MapMyRun.com.

Good run today. Took us 58 minutes and includes some grueling hills, but we did great. Caitlin finished stronger than I did and kicked the final hill's butt, big time. Good job, Caitlin!

Now, on to training for the 10K and half Pig. No biggie ...

The Longest Yet

Oh folks, I don't know how to ease you into this, but this could very well be a painfully not entertaining post. I'm so exhausted that each keystroke is like an individual effort. But the key is why I'm exhausted. Naturally from spending the entire day in warm pajama-like clothes, being extremely lazy on my couch.

Oh, yeah, except for that 90-ish minutes this morning/noon when I ran about 6.5 miles with Caitlin.

No big thang ...

Here's our course on Gmaps Pedometer: click here for the course

We took the out-and-back approach on the Little Miami Scenic Trail. The first half was easy. Too easy. In fact, it wasn't until we turned around to come back that I figured out why it might have been so easy. I think it was down hill. 3 miles down hill. Yeah ...

Needless to say, the "back" portion of the out-and-back was really hard for me. We maintained a 5:1 run/walk interval the whole way out, but took one medium-long and one long walk break pretty early into the second leg. I thought it might make the rest of the run feel like the second run of the day instead of just a continuation. Not sure that worked so well. I insisted on some other longer walk breaks.

The problem for me came mostly with breathing. That's another reason I'm convinced it was uphill on the way back. I don't have breathing problems anymore unless I hit a hill. I couldn't draw in a breath without making noise. You know, like when your breath catches your voice box and makes that hyperventilating sound?

No?

Well, I know what I'm talking about. It's bad news for me. I've hyperventilated once in my life and it was horrifying; I don't wish to experience it again. (Hello, plyometrics box jumps for track practice at Wilmington College! I think I even scared my coach.) Anyway, I don't do well at pressing past episodes like that, which is why I've cowered away from hill workouts so much (and which is why I think I need to do some hill work this week).

As far as leg pain, I didn't have any really until we stopped at the end and I don't even know if I'd classify it as pain. My legs were just tired and me knees were a little disgruntled. (Side note: Apparently during my freshman year of college I once yelled "disgruntled!" out in the middle of the night. Former sleep walker and sleep talker, right here folks.) I felt so good going in and good through the first half. That second half just killed me.

So my question for myself is whether it was the possible hill that got me or the new longer distance that got me. Essentially the halfway point of our run marked the longest I've ever gone.

Either way, when I finished I was elated to chug down my bottle of full-calorie Gatorade to re-fuel (thanks to my pal, Rob, for reminding me I'd need to do that). I may have chugged too fast because I got a teensy bit nauseated. I also thought I was going to shiver to death for a good hour or two after. My blue lips startled my mother a bit. What's the deal with that anyway? Such a weirdo.

Anyway, here are a few pictures of Caitlin and I after our run. Pictures after 90 minutes of running? We must be crazy ... or really amused by the sign and some well-placed graffiti at the entrance to the trail. Please excuse the grossness and consider that we ran the first part of our run in the rain. Thank you.

Wonder where he went?

Caitlin, do you see him?

Really, where'd he go?

Yay! Caitlin found him!

Emerald Miles: Full Recap

So I had a bit of a goal going into this race. Blech. Goals. You know how I feel about those. I didn't make this one for myself, though. I kind of adopted it from Caitlin. I wanted to run the whole stinkin' thing.

Since she and I had a great 3.1-mile run two weeks ago, I knew we had a pretty good chance of making it happen.

So anyway, backing up a bit ...

I had some buddies in this run. Caitlin, of course. This was her first 5K and the one she wanted to complete before her birthday later this month. Matt also jumped on the bandwagon.

Caitlin in her first race T-shirt and race bib. YAY!

The three of us before the race. (Thanks for the pictures!)

We couldn't have asked for a better mid-March day to run the first race of the season. It was warm enough to leave the gloves, fleece vest, and ear-covering headband in the car. The sky was completely clear and the sun was shining.

The starting line at the start of the Purple People Bridge in Newport, Kentucky.

We found out mid last week that the mighty Ohio had overrun its banks so much that our race route was underwater. During packet pick up on Thursday, they assured us that there was a new path and that it was flatter than the old one (YAY!) Unfortunately, it wasn't all that much flatter. There was still a monster hill to climb during the last half mile of the run. Slow and long. Whew.

So yeah, unfortunately that hill had me pretty much convinced from the beginning that I wasn't going to be able to run the whole time. I'm wicked bad on hills, which should make the Pig really fun. I walked for a total of maybe 1:30 to 2 minutes in three different places. Two of those were really brief, one (on the hill) was much longer. I stayed in front of Caitlin until the hill up to the bridge where, as I predicted, she kicked my butt and got a nice distance ahead of me. Go girl!

As I finally got to the top of the hill (the middle of the Purple People Bridge), I could see the finish line and REALLY wanted to sprint to the finish. Yeah, turns out it was a bit further away than I thought. That was the hardest I've worked during a finishing stretch yet. My body just did not want to go any faster and I couldn't catch up with Caitlin.

Caitlin finishing. I'm in the white long-sleeved T-shirt over her right shoulder.

All in all, I'm pleased with myself. I set a new PR and I ran more than I could have dreamed I would at my last 5K. Very cool!

Me, post-run and post-post-run-snack, quite content to be sitting and leaving a monster butt print on the pavement.

Somehow they captured our finishing times and pace without timing chips. Someone will have to explain that to me. Anyway, here's the screen shot of mine and Caitlin's finishing times. Matt, the newest runner of the three of us, came in around 33 minutes (WOOHOO!) and kicked both of our butts.

There we are!

The good news is I won't be running another 5K until mid-May (Forest Hills 5K). That will be after a 10K, after a half marathon, and after completing another 4-week session of boot camp. I should be hot to trot! (Oh yeah, looks like Caitlin and I are doing the Rat Race 10K. Yikes again!)

And to wrap up, here's our group post-race picture.

Great job you two!

Non-Stop 5K At Juilfs With Caitlin And A Blowout

Oh good god. I'm so wiped right now. First, yesterday I did Jackie Warner's lower body workout on my lovely DVD. As my Facebook friends already know, I've been acutely aware of my butt today. Why? Because it has been screaming in pain all day, along with my quads. Ouch-ee! It's the "good" kind of pain though ... not injury pain.

Big news though. Caitlin and I rocked 3.1 miles tonight at Juilfs without walking, including two hills. I believe it kicked both of our butts (which made my sore one feel all that much better), but we did it and that's all that matters. It's the longest (time and distance) either of us have run straight, ever. It took just a bit over 40 minutes.

Here are some screen shots provided by Caitlin's phone. (By the way, I've confirmed that my iPhone's GPS is inaccurate. BOO!)

Map of our path at the park

All the stats. I'm loving that distance.

The elevation map. This is not what I pictured.

I also had a pretty interesting day in a way that has nothing to do with running, but I think the pictures are funny. I blew out a rear tire on my way in to work today. I was on the highway, traveling at 65+ MPH, but was very fortunate that the blow-out wasn't a violent one. No accident, no scary moments, all is well. And since my tires were 15,000 miles over what they should have been and were dry rotted, I had to dish out some serious cash for four new tires. Ouch.

Anyway, here are the pictures of my tire. I don't know about you, but I'm pretty sure I could have patched this up with some duct tape.





But I'm here and alive and just ran 3.1 miles straight. Tires schmires. =)