New Year's Eve Quiz

1. What did you do in 2009 that you’d never done before?

Got engaged! Got a 5.9 A1C Result! Ran my fastest Half Marathon race ever!

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year? Not really into resolutions, I never keep them and find they dont last long!

3. Did anyone close to you give birth? No but Megan is pregnant and due in 2010!

4. Did anyone close to you die? Yes. Papa John.

5. What countries did you visit? Just the USA.

6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009? More enjoyment in my job.

7. What dates from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? November 14, 2009, day we got engaged!

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? The PR time in the half marathon was pretty great!

9. What was your biggest failure? Not keeping my blood sugars in line when we are not at home in Bethesda! they get too out of control when we travel!

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? A few colds, nothing big!

11. What was the best thing you bought? I got some good gifts, but the best thing I bought for myself was my orange winter coat that I love!

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? Cant think of anyone in particular.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? Tiger Woods, John Edwards, Balloon Boy Parents and the Ft Hood killer.

14. Where did most of your money go? Rent and credit card payments

15. What did you get really excited about? Wedding in 2010
16. What song will always remind you of 2009? Run to You by Lady Antebellum

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
– happier or sadder? Happier, I think.
– thinner or fatter? Thinner, a little.
– richer or poorer? About the same, poor. haha.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of? Had people over the apartment for dinners!

19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Eating things I knew would screw me up later.

20. How did you spend Christmas? In Erie and in Warren.

21. Did you fall in love in 2009? I think it was just more established after being engaged.

22. What was your favorite TV program? Flash Forward, The Office, Modern Family, How I Met Your Mother, Community, 24, and NCIS.

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? Not really!

24. What was the best book you read? I never read books!

25. What was your greatest musical discovery? Vampire Weekend.

26. What did you want and get? A healthier 2009 and it was that.

27. What did you want and not get? To get a new job or move closer to Erie.

28. What was your favorite film of this year? Hangover was pretty hilarious.

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I turned 27 and I had a typical birthday week, nicely capped by a Steelers Super Bowl Win!

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Shorter Commute!

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009? Jeans on Wknds and Work clothes all the time, mostly skirts!

32. What kept you sane? Running.

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? I still find ARod to be the most desirable, no matter how many steroids he uses.

34. What political issue stirred you the most? The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

35. Who did you miss? My family I dont see enough!

36. Who was the best new person you met? Nathan's girlfriend Laura.

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009. Probably from Father Ted about dealing with arguments.

38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year: "You were with me all the while."

40 things

* * * 40 Things * * *


1. Do you like bleu cheese? Yep
2. Have you ever smoked? A few times. Found it to be a stupid thing to do.
3. Do you own a gun? No and I wont allow any near my home.
4. Favorite type of food? I like almost all of them, not a fan of bananas though
5. Favorite type of music? Old stuff, Pop, Country
6. What do you think of hot dogs? Love Smith Hotdogs!
7. Favorite Christmas movie? National Lampoons Christmas Vacation
8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? Water
9. Can you do push ups? Not the correct way
10. What’s your favorite piece of jewelry? My engagement ring.
11. Favorite hobby? Reading blogs
12. Do you have A. D. D.? Nope, maybe sometimes.
13. Do you wear glasses/contacts? Yep, contacts since 7th grade, thank god.
14. Middle name? Lynn
15. Name three thoughts at this exact moment: I want to leave work now, I would rather be shopping on this Black Friday, I like driving Mike's car to work intstead of mine.
16. Name three drinks you regularly drink: Water, orange juice and milk
17. Current worry? Finding a way to pay for Xmas w/out using credit cards
18. Current hate right now? Traffic
19. Favorite place to be? Home.
20. How did you bring in the new year? Nice and quiet and perfect.
21. Someplace you’d like to go? Hawaii and Italy and Ireland.
22. Name three people who will complete this. Probably no one!
23. Do you own slippers? Nope
24. What color shirt are you wearing? Purple
25. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? Love them!
26. Can you whistle? Not even close.
27. Where are you now? At work
28. Would you be a pirate? No way. Id rather stay in a hotel than on the seas, plus I get seasick.
29. What songs do you sing in the shower? Cant think of one
30. Favorite Girl’s Name? too many to list
31. Favorite boy’s name? something italian sounding
32. What is in your pocket right now? no pockets!
33. Last thing that made you laugh? Veronica and I talking about this strange pt at work
34. What vehicle do you drive? SUBARU, the only car Ill probably drive
35. Worst injury you’ve ever had? Does diabetes count as an injury?
36. Do you love where you live? I do, but there are some negatives that are hard to get used too.
37. How many TVs do you have in your house? Two
38. How many computers do you have in your house? One now but a new laptop is on its way!
39. If you changed your job, what would it be? Something more flexible!
40. If you were granted three wishes, what would they be? Healthy Jenny, Healthy Mike, Great Wedding in 2010

Engaged!

at the race....

Results from Richmond....

Congratulations Jenny on finishing the 2009 McDonald's Half Marathon.

There were 559 finishers in your age group and 4578 total finishers. Your overall finish place was 2796, your age group finish place was 315 and your gender finish place was 1369. Your chip time was 2:13:33 and your pace was 10:12 per mile.

You can find full results at http://www.richmondmarathon.com/

Thank You,
Richmond SportsBackers

quote

Believe that you can run farther or faster. Believe that you're young enough, old enough, strong enough, and so on to accomplish everything you want to do. Don't let worn out beliefs stop you from moving beyond yourself.

John Bingham, "Tools and Rules," Runner's World

2 days 21 hrs...

According to the race ticker that is how much time is left until the race. Ughh...this is nerve wracking. I am mostly packed up but surprised how warm it might be on Saturday. I am going to have to bring numerous outfits to wear! The hotel seems like it will be really nice and we already have Friday all planned out. Saturday we have the race at 730 AM and then will see how the rest of the day goes! The Pitt game is on and OSU plays so hopefully we can watch those and be in a good mood with good race results! We shall see!

10 and PR's...

The 10 miles on Saturday went a lot better than expected...in most regards at least. I was running pretty fast and finished pretty on target with my 10 mile pace from the Cherry Blossom race in April. That being said I was run/walking a lot b/c my stomach was killing me. Not a great thing to experience when you are on a trail in the middle of nowhere. Hopefully that was a one time thing and wont affect me in the race!

The 5K on Sunday for the Race Against the Odds was good too. It was a nice morning and for a very good cause. Mike ran with me the whole time and we finished around 27:55 which is a personal best for me for the 5K. Beating my old time of 29:16. That is a much needed confidence booster to say the least.

10 days

The race is in 10 days. I have no idea where the time has gone. I am not prepared for this mentally or physically. I still have some hope that I am going to be able to finish it at a decent pace, but it is hard to see that at times. I just wanted to be able to enjoy running and be good at it as a way for my diabetic self to stay in shape. Its not going very well lately. Running 12 on Sat was a complete failure. I ran maybe 5 and then ran/walked the rest of the way. I have never felt that bad running before and my blood sugars went from 65-250 throughout the whole time. Not good and that really affects my ability to run. Hopefully for the race I will be able to at least get my blood sugars in line. We shall see how that goes. This is draining lately.

Good to be at 10!

Running ten miles on Saturday went pretty good. Thank God for that! It was a little warmer than normal and I it was a nice day to be outside. I think my theory holds true of how it helped to run to the trail and have to only run 8 miles there as opposed to running all 10 there. It is easing me back into where I want to be distance wise on the trail. I think its hard to run to mile marker 7 and then one day go all the way to mile marker 8.5. It helps me to have it happen gradually and this is what I did this wknd. I did get pretty tired toward the end of it all. At mile 9 I saw Matt and I stopped and talked to him for a little bit. Then I finished out the last mile pretty strong. My legs havent hurt too bad but I am a little worried about a pain in my knee that seems to come and go. I am just glad I saw what ten looked like and remembered that I could actually do it.

legs and stuff

I have noticed recently that my legs have felt and looked rather strong. It is a new thing and quite enjoyable. And thats where it ends. My arms are incredibly weak and after babysitting 5 mos old Ari and 2 year old Benjamin for one night my arms hurt just from holding them. The rest of me isnt anywhere on par with my legs. This affects my running I think in a negative way. I think if I was overally fit then my running would improve. This is another issue that I had wanted to overcome before my 2nd half marathon. And yet now, 23 days, I am not going to be able to change anything now. Last night's 4 miles went rather well, but it was only 4 miles. It was less than 1/3 of the race. This wknd is bringing upon a 10 miler. I need to do well to prove to myself I can even finish the half marathon!!

Today is also Annette's 50th birthday. Big day for her as shes been preparing for months so hope all goes well!

not so good 9

I was reading what I wrote for the last time I ran 9 miles for the Vegas Half Marathon. It was a lot better than this run went. The weather wasnt the greatest, but it was cool which I think always helps. Mike said he'd run with me for the first half of it. So we were supposed to go to mile 8 on the trail and then turn around. Well the first 4 miles were okay and then I just crashed. My legs and arms and lips felt tingly and I just couldnt go any further. I turned around before reaching the mike 8 sign. I ate all the energy jelly beans I had and then attempted to run. It was more a of a run/walk method from there until the end. Not good and not a good way to motivate me as the miles go up in nature. I felt horrible and tired and couldnt wait to just sit down. My blood sugar was 78 at the end which probably means it was even lower when I started to not feel that well. I am going to attempt to run 10 on Saturday. I dont know what the issue is. I just thought Id be a pro at this being the second time around and thats just not the case. Hopefully this improves soon so I can feel confident going into the race!

8 and then nothing

Mike and I ran on the track at Ohio State on Sun. I didnt know how it would go as we hadnt ran at all during the week for the most part. Plus with the wedding events and the drinking I was still skeptical. But we got out there and both did rather well. The track is a one mile loop and I ran the whole 8 miles w/out having to stop at all. Everything felt great too, except for the end when I had to go the bathroom really bad. Which is odd b/c that rarely happens and yet it happened last year when we ran on that same track. Anyway I was happy about how it went.

Then today. I was supposed to run 4-5 miles. And it didnt happen. It is cold here now and my muscles are sore and I am just always tired. I just couldnt go. Plus I hate running in the dark and at 645AM it was still pitch black out there. All these reasons caused me not to go and yet there are all stupid excuses which never bothered me last year. It sucks to do so well one day and then fail the next. We'll see how the rest of the weeks go.

7 on C&O

Running has been going a lot better lately. Mike "re-designed" my training plan and it has made a world of difference. On Saturday we ran on the C&O Canal Trail which was gorgeous. A lot more bugs, I saw a creep gray snake, and it was humid, but there was a lot to look at. There were turtles everywhere and the views were very pretty. Next time we'll bring a camera. The beginning was a little rocky but it picked up and the last 5 miles went rather well. I have finally ran more than half way for the 13.1 mile race in Nov! If this keeps up I can continue to feel optimistic. This week will have us running in Columbus so hopefully we can stick to our plan and not get too distracted by everything else we have going on there this wknd!

Not going well

This pictures sorta sums it all up. I just am not doing well with running lately. I dont get how someone can run a half marathon, a ten miler, a 6 miler, and a 5K and still not be able to do it. I was supposed to run 4 miles on Thus and made it probably a half mile down the road and had to turn back due to low blood sugar issues. Then I was to run 7 miles on Sunday and made it about 1 and then quit on Mike. Its just not going well. I am getting cramps I havent had before and I feel worn out all the time. I just really dont feel like I can do it, or even halfway do it. We'll see what happens. Mike is going to re-do my training plan and make some changes. I am just worried that I cant get back to the running regime I was once accustomed to. I feel that I have failed myself and Mike and am just not meant to do this running stuff. Hopefully this is just a setback and it will pick up again soon and the Richmond race will go well. I am just not feeling confident about this lately.

30 Things About My Invisible Illness You May Not Know

This survey has been going around the diabetes blogs I read lately so I thought Id fill one out.

1. The illness I live with is: type 1 diabetes
2. I was diagnosed with it in the year: January 1985. I thought I was three but with this date it appears that I was 2. My father informed me of this when I was like 25 years old.
3. But I had symptoms since: Not too long before.
4. The biggest adjustment I've had to make is: Constantly carrying a glucose monitor with me and wearing an insulin pump.
5. Most people assume: that I have not had diabetes as long as I have.
6. The hardest part about mornings are: Never really knowing what my blood sugar is going to be b/c you never know what could happen during the night.
7. My favorite medical TV show is: House!
8. A gadget I couldn't live without is: my glucose meter and pump.
9. The hardest part about nights are: having to wake up to check my blood sugar on nights where I eat foods that I dont know how it will affect it.
10. Each day I take some pills & vitamins: I take one for blood pressure, iron pills every other day and a vitamin D pill twice a month.
11. Regarding alternative treatments: Insulin is all I want to try as it works!
12. If I had to choose between an invisible illness or visible I would choose: No illnesses!
13. Regarding working and career: Everyone at work knows I have diabetes and since I work in a hospital I feel rather safe most of the time!
14. People would be surprised to know: That this is a constant 24/7 disease where I am always thinking and counting and examining and planning on how to manage it next.
15. The hardest thing to accept about my new reality has been: that I have no memory of what life is like without this disease.
16. Something I never thought I could do with my illness that I did was: run a half marathon.
17. The commercials about my illness: Are always about type 2 which may have the same name but is a completely different illness.
18. Something I really miss doing since I was diagnosed is: Dont know! too little to remember!
19. It was really hard to have to give up: Eating as much pizza as I once did, but not eating that much has helped my A1C level improve!
20. A new hobby I have taken up since my diagnosis is: Reading diabetic blogs.
21. If I could have one day of feeling normal again I would: wow. I cant think of that b/c to me it still seems like a miracle to make happen.
22. My illness has taught me: To always be thinking.
23. One thing people say that gets under my skin is: When they know people who have had complications and assume itll happen to me.
24. But I love it when people: Ask questions that are appropriate and want to see the insulin pump.
25. My favorite motto, scripture, quote that gets me through tough times is: Probably my Dad's attitude when something would go wrong diabetes wise and how he always said it was going to be okay and not to overreact.
26. When someone is diagnosed I'd like to tell them: They can have a normal life.
27. Something that has surprised me about living with an illness is: It is manageable to still be healthy if you do the right things!
28. The nicest thing someone did for me when I wasn't feeling well was: Rub my head.
29. I'm involved with Invisible Illness Week because: We need to raise more awareness to make this disease go away.
30. The fact that you read this list makes me feel: that you wanted to learn more.

7 became 6

I was supposed to run 7 miles yesterday but I havent been feeling well. I kept thinking that if I ran 7 and it went bad than I would feel bad about the whole running thing. So I decided to run 6 and have it go well and feel good about the whole thing. So yes 7 became 6 and it went really well even though I didnt feel that great and seem to have a cold now. Oh well. I need to get over this cold as the next few weeks get pretty intense with the mileage!

Another 5K and the wknd in Erie....

We signed up for another 5K race in Arlington, VA on Nov 8th. That is right before the half marathon on Nov 14th so I think itll be a good way to get me ready. The race is in honor of a little girl who has brain cancer. Her Dad is a John Carroll graduate and I saw an article about the race in a John Carroll email I got today and I thought I had to sign up. The little girl has a webpage devoted to her and it was nice to read it and see how she is doing.

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/teamalexis

Mike and I went back to Erie again this wknd. Papa John passed away on September 13th. It was all very sad but he was finally at peace and hopefully the funeral went how he wanted it too. One of the last things I told him about was how we are running in the half marathon in Richmond.




Running in Erie went okay this wknd. Mike and I ran 6 miles in DC on Saturday which went better than expected. I had to walk a few times but I never felt that I couldnt do it at all. I didnt run again until Tuesday and though we only went 3 miles, it felt brutal. Taking days off in between running is great sometimes, while other times it really hurts! Of course I am not running again until tomorrow so I will probably be kicking myself then as well!

Erie running

Running on the Peninsula this wknd went better than expected. Mike and I ran 5 miles. 5 is the distance to beat right now and I still feel I am struggling more than I did last time I did this. We shall see. Here are some Erie and Pittsburgh pics to enjoy.

Half Marathon #2

I am signed up for my next half marathon. It is the McDonald's Half Marathon in Richmond, VA on November 14, 2009. This one is cool b/c it is sponsored by Runners World Magazine that Mike and I both read. There will be a lot of events there and it seems that the race will have a lot of things for runners to enjoy. The goal is to beat my Las Vegas Half Marathon time of 2:25. We shall see!

Training

We are tentatively training for another half marathon on Nov 1st. There is one in Dallas and one in Pittsburgh on that day. We havent signed up for either of them yet but hopefully we will figure out that part of it rather soon. In the mean time I have been slowly training to get back to the point of running a half marathon again. I ran 5 miles on Saturday at Perkins Park in Warren, (that is a real picture of the park too thanks to google.) It went rather well but then again it always does when I run on a track so I know exactly how many time I have to go around. I saw some Siberian Huskies on the way and there were a lot of people out to either say hello to or watch the kids play soccer. When we got home I ran 4 miles on Monday around the neighborhood and that went well too. It helps me to have an exact plan of where I am running and how far that will be. As long as I keep doing that hopefully Ill be okay.
\

A1C

I got my A1C results back today to a record low of: 5.9%

I am thrilled with this as it has been 6, good also, for so long that I didnt know if it would go down or not.

Here is a description of what an A1C is:

What the test measures
Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) is a blood test that shows your average blood glucose level over the past two or three months. It measures the percentage of hemoglobin with glucose attached (altered hemoglobin).

Glucose in your blood stream attaches to hemoglobin in red blood cells and stays there. Red blood cells live for about 120 days.

The higher your blood sugar is, the more glucose is attached to hemoglobin. So, the higher your A1c level is, the higher your chances of diabetes-related eye, kidney, nerve or blood vessel damage are.

Normally 4 to 6 red cells in 100 have glucose attached to its surface; hence the range of HbA1c in a normal person is 4 to 6%

Chart

I found this on the blog of another diabetic runner and I thought it was worth putting up so I wouldnt forget about it and how true it is.

Running in the heat

I attempted to run 4 miles, for the first time in months, on Sun during the epic 90+ degree weather. It was a disaster. We meant to get up earlier but that didnt happen as we both wanted/needed some sleep. By the time we got out the door at 1045 or so it didnt seem so bad, as long as we were running in the shade. In reality the first 3 miles werent that horrible. As soon as I got to the last mile it became dreadful though. It was just too hot and there was no shade. I gave up and made Mike run home by himself. I proceeded to walk and then ran the last part of the way home. Who knows if I actually ran the 4 miles I was supposed to run or not. Either way it was a fiasco and I always know I should only run early in the morning, but I thought it would be okay. I was very wrong.

Dresses

I have some dresses I have been trying on that just dont fit anymore, ie they wont zip up. I cannot stand that and wont deal with it. I want to look like this again and wear all of the pretty dresses I actually do own. My running has officially begun again effective yesterday. The run went horrible. 3 miles of me walking almost as much as I was running. I dont think it matters though as I need to do something now. Depending on how Mike's injured foot is we might sign up for a half marathon in Pittsburgh on Nov 1st, or we might do a 10K on Nov 15th or we may even do both. I dont care as long as I have something to strive for again.

Komen Race

The Susan G. Komen 5K race is on Saturday. The goal is to run it in under 30 mins. Last year I ran it in 33 mins. I should be able to do it, but I will have to be flying through it according to my standards. Some days I have more confidence in this task than others. We shall see!

Capital Hill Classic 10K

679 228/346 1564 Jennifer 27 Chevy Chase MD 63:30 62:07 10:00

679 out of 1143 women is pretty respectable. And I came in 1618 out of 2233. I am relieved with all of that. Considering how much crap I gave Mike in the days and weeks ahead of this about me not being able to breathe and probably not finishing Id have to say that my fastest race yet went off way better than expected. Of course I do say that about every race, but such is running I suppose!

Pictures to come as soon as I get some as Mike and I only took one!

Living like a runner

Mike and I ran 3 miles on Tues night and I still didnt feel that I am where I want to be. 6 mile race is 2 weeks away and though I know this will be fine, I want to feel good while running it like I did for the 10 miler.

I think part of my problem is that I dont feel like I am a runner. I think that I need to have a runner's lifestyle that I just dont seem to embrace completely yet. I need to eat healthier all the time and not look at doing other forms of exercise as such a chore. I am hoping that the warmer weather helps me to turn this all around and I can actually feel comfortable wearing a bathing suit this summer!

Back at It....

Today was the 2nd time I have gone running since the 10 mile race. It was rough in beginning but after the 1st mile it seemed to get a little better. I still find myself struggling more than I should be with only running 3 miles though, but I am hopeful it will get better as I stick with it more. Mike and I signed up for another race in May in DC, 6.2 miles. So now I have 2 more upcoming races in May and June. Id like to improve my times on both of these races so I need to get out there and practice more. I also think I could afford to lose a few pounds and I am counting on the running to do that for me. We'll see how it all goes!

Marathon Foto pics

Since Mike too much better pics than these I am not going to order any, but wanted to post them on here to see. It is great how I am once again not smiling in any of these pictures!

Cherry Blossom 10 Mile Race

This race went above and beyond how I thought it would go. Results were:

1:54:37-clock time
1:42:31-chip time
10:16-pace

If I finished the Vegas 13.1 mile race in 2:25 that puts me at about an 11 minute mile. So if that is the case I would have run 10 miles in about 110 mins or a 1:50 time. Knocking off about 8 mins from my overall time and 45 seconds from my pace is fabulous for me and I cant believe I did it for this. I had felt under prepared and that finishing at all would be a miracle. For some reason I felt like I was running well the whole time, never had to stop, and never felt like I was out of breath. At the end I was able to sprint by some people and make it to the finish line feeling good. I was so glad Mike was there to watch me as well b/c I think it gave me motivation to keep running until I saw him again and I look forward to seeing him at the end. There was a lady who told me she was using me to help pace herself so she would walk for 5 mins and then run to catch up with me and then walk again. It was rather odd at times but I felt she did help me to want to run faster to lose her! ha! I dont know if I would do this race again as it was very crowded at times and I felt I didnt get to enjoy the cherry blossoms as much as I had wanted to b/c of this. Overall though it gave me some much needed encouragement to do another one soon and as soon as I finish writing this I will be looking for the next race. Here are a few pics that Mike took at the race. On to the next one.....

2 days

I ran yesterday and today. Both days it felt like a rain forest outside b/c of the humidity and the fog. It was craziness. Plus I didnt have my water bottle with me or my ipod b/c I am trying to run w/out those things when I go for shorter distances. It went okay, not great though b/c of the weather. Tomorrow I pick up my race stuff and then run on Sun. I think I am ready so hopefully it will go okay and its supposed to be gorgeous for the race. Before the goal was to get a better split time than the Half Marathon but now the goal has become to just finish the race under 2 hrs! We'll see how it all goes.....

4 days

I have now 4 days until the race on Sunday. Mike and I ran 3 miles after work on Monday and it went okay, though I am not used to running with someone else so I constantly try and keep up and end up getting tired too soon! The issue now is the ipod. Technically you are not supposed to use one for the race. Most people don't but there are still some that do. I am trying to decide if this is something I would even be able to handle. I would like to not run with it and hear what is going on around but I also think it does a lot to keep me motivated and help me along. Plus I will wear the camelbak as I think stopping for water slows up my rythmn so I could afford to not have one more gadget on me. We'll see what I decide! 4 more days! Ahh!

9 went well...10??

This was a great wknd in so many ways. I will put up more pics later from Mike's surprise wknd for me to celebrate our one year anniversary. We stayed in DC, got a hotel, went to dinner, and I loved it all. We went to the Cherry Blossoms on Sunday and spent hrs walking around and going in the paddle boats on the Tidal Basin. Running wise everything was good too. I went for 9 miles on Sat morning before we left and it was rather successful. I did not have to stop and walk once and I felt that I was in a pretty good rhythmn all throughout the run. It took me 1 hr and 36 mins which I am pleased with. So the race is in 6 days and I think I might acutally be able to pull it off!

Running at 540 AM

While Mike is trying to get back into running after his foot surgery he is more on pace with where I am right now than where he usually is, which is a lot faster than me. Today we went running together in the morning before he went to work. Since he gets to work a lot earlier than I do we had to go rather early. I think we got out the door around 540AM. That is such an ungodly hour it is hard for me to think about it. Once we got out there it was rather nice. There was barely anyone around, we saw maybe two people on the trail, and it was incredibly quiet. Mike wore my headlamp so we were not running in the complete darkness as well. 10 days to the race and today I feel that I can do it. We'll see what happens when I attempt 9 miles on Saturday before we go away for our wknd trip!

One Year and the Running 11 days

Today is Mike and my One Year Anniversary. Pretty Awesome too! What a great year it has been in so many ways. I am thrilled that we have reached this milestone as I never imagined one year of my life could be as amazing as it has been with him. Here are a few pictures to represent that.

He has pushed me to do so much in this past year esp with getting healthier and running. The 10 mile race is 11 days away and that goal seems like a big one but I am really hoping I can make it happen. As long as the blood sugars stay in line and I dont do anything to screw it up I still want to give it a shot right now as opposed to a few days ago when I wanted to throw in the towel.

Should have been 8

On Sunday I attempted to run 8 miles and it did not go very well. Started off okay and made it to mile marker 7.5 which I haven't seen since before the Vegas race. This made it about 4 miles and I turned around to run home. That was the beginning of the end. My blood sugar must have dropped suddenly as my hands and feet both felt tingly and I just couldn't run. I ran/walked to mile marker 6 and then just couldn't do it anymore. I had to walk 1.5 miles on the trail and then the rest of the 1 mile home. It was ridiculous and took me over two hrs to do all this. I was so mad that this happened as I really thought I could do 8 miles. This makes the whole race in two weeks seem not very likely to happen. At this pt it is going to be a wait and see approach.

Animals on the Trail

Last week I was running in the morning and for the first time ever a dog came out of nowhere. He looked at me and ran away. It made me think what would I do if an animal attacked me while out on the trail. Its basically just me, a few bikers and other runners, and that is it. I still have not come up with a solution to that issue besides squirting water in it's face or hitting it with a stick. Anyway today I was running and this odd looking cat ran across the trail. It was not a raccoon and not a normal sized cat. So this is what I think it was. A Scottish wild cat, which makes its home normally in Asia and Europe. The real question is then what is he doing in Maryland???

Ran 4 miles today, no ipod and no water bottle. Not having the water really hurts me at times but I wanted to go without it for once.

Goal is 8 miles on Sunday, 2 weeks and 2 days until the race.

made 7

I ran 7 miles in 1 hr 15 mins on Saturday. Finally getting back to where I want to be again. Hopefully this continues as seeing ten miles seems a little bit more realistic now! And Pitt got a #1 Seed in the tournament for the first time ever.

Finally 5

Ran 5 miles yesterday for the first time since the Half Marathon without feeling like I was going to pass out. I started out slow and kept a rather steady pace throughout the whole time. It felt good to run 5, without stopping, and to feel good about it at the end. Hopefully this is a good sign of things to come and not just a one time deal. It gave me new found hope that I might actually be able to run the 10 mile Cherry Blossom race in a little over 3 weeks. We'll see how this wknd goes! I want to run this race and do well so badly I just want to feel good doing it as well!

Attempting 6

Well at least I dont run into poles like this one guy did, but running lately has been overly difficult. I remember running 10 miles for the first time and how easy it was and how well it went. Of course I dont remember the months upon months of getting to that point. As the Cherry Blossom 10 mile race gets closer I am losing confidence that I'll be able to do it. Which is equally horrible b/c I really want to do it. Sean said the race itself is great and the course is perfectly flat which helps a lot too. I went for 6 miles on Sunday but probably only made it about 3 running and walked 3. My blood sugars have been dropping while I run and it makes it impossible to keep going. Everything else feels fine though so I keep thinking this is going to change and it just hasnt yet. The goal this week is 3 miles Tues, 5 Thurs and 7 on Sat. Hopefully this goes well b/c I need a good run to boost my self esteem again!

Attempting to get back into it

My running has been seriously lacking. The 10 mile race is almost exactly one month away and I just don't know if I can do it or not. 10 miles was always so easy for me to run before the half marathon as I did it w/out having to walk at all. I want to get back to that, but it is difficult. This weather is not helping. It was absolutely frigid when I tried to go 5 miles in Warren, OH on Sunday and I ended up walking more than I have ever had to do before. I was supposed to try for 4 miles today but the temperature was at a stellar 10 degrees when I woke up and that just didn't seem reasonable. This cold weather needs to pass soon b/c it is hurting my running way too much. I just hope I will have enough time left to be able to actually make 10 miles again.

steelers win again

I had to acknowledge the amazing victory by the Steelers on Sun 2/1. What a great way to start off my birthday week 2009 as well. The game was fantastic to watch and one of the most enjoyable Superbowls I can remember. Oh and the fact that Mike and I bet on them to win in Vegas helps it be even more rewarding. Nice work boys!