Slowly but surely...

My running is going so much better...FINALLY!  I have actually done pretty good this week!  I worked on Sunday which = I laid on the couch and slept all day.  Monday morning when I got home The Hubs and I took Puppy Love for a run!  Knox hasn't ran with me in a while because it's been SO STINKIN HOT here!  I'm talking 110-114 degrees outside.  And at 10pm, its still 105.  Ridiculous I know! 

Anyways, we decided to take him with us and just leave it up to him how far we went.  We did 1.5 miles.  I know this is such a short run, but I'm increasing slowly because the heat is killing me.  It was a really good, STRONG, FAST 1.5 miles.  At least it was fast for me.  We let Knox pick the pace.... I did 1.5 in 16 minutes, after working a 12 hour shift, over night.  Yes that is Fast for me because yes I'm slow!  But I'm totally ok with being slow right now....I don't want to push it in this stupid HEAT.

Okay I say stupid heat....but I really LOVE Summer time...I'll take 114 over 30 any day!!

We finished our run in the park that is connected to my neighborhood.  It has a big pond in the middle of the 1/4 mile "track".  My super adorable puppy went straight to the pond and laid down in the water!!  We used to have to throw him in the water if he was going to get in, and now he just jumps right in to cool off!!  Needless to say I was very JEALOUS that I am afraid to get in the dirty pond! Yah he got a bath when we got home!!

Then assumed this position.....

Please don't make fun of my green rug...it's not that bad in person...and The Hubs picked it out....

Tuesday I met a friend for a run date along Katy Trail again!  She's having boy issues so for the first mile we talked AND ran at the same time!  This is a HUGE deal for me!  And I ran at her pace, which is a bit faster than my normal pace!  We talked the whole time!  We stopped to walk after a mile so we could chat a little more, without heavy panting!  We ended up doing a little over 2 miles then recovering with a cold beer!  It was seriously 105 at 10pm last night.  CRAZINESS!!

How are you dealing with the heat if it's as hot where you live?

My form sucks!

So Amanda @ 5MilesPastEmpty made a post about some running mechanics info she read in a book.  She posted a few things to think about while running, so last night,  I decided to think about them while I ran!  It's things like not pushing off with your foot but using your hamstrings to pull your feet up instead, landing on the ball of your feet, and letting gravity help you.  Well let's just say I SUCK when it comes to all of that!!  I only ran 1.8 miles (no walking) with The Hubs, and it was at a pretty slow pace, because I was concentrating on running the CORRECT way!! It's absolutely amazing how much lighter I felt!!  My muscles definitely felt weird afterwards.  My achilles tendon actualy was a little sore from attempting to land on the balls of my feet instead of my heel.  It worked a whole different group of muscles!

I'm going to keep trying to work on this...and hopefully it will help me improve my running!!

Sorry for the short post....Heading to Hurricane Harbor with The Hubs!  Might not get a run in tonight, but I'm definitely going to try!!  Oh and I need to start posting pictures!....Soon!!

Defeated by my esophagus...

Sooo...I had a run planned for Sunday morning when I got home from work....I was tired in the car the whole ride home, but had it set in my mind I was going to run...that is until the WORST case of HEART BURN ever hit!  So bad I couldn't stop coughing!  UGH!  So I didn't get a run in...I took a mouthful of Tums, had a convo with my friend about how old we are because we have heartburn and keep a stash of Tums in arms reach at all times, then went to bed!

I planned on at least going to the gym when I woke up, since I got to bed earlier than planned and had to go back to work tonight....but that didn't happen either.  For some reason I am not a fan of going to the gym alone when The Hubs is home, and he didn't wake up when my alarm went off....sooo I made dinner and watched Cake Boss instead!  Oops...Yup I sucked today!

Work has been NO BUENO tonight!  Almost over...then margaritas for breakfast!!! (Hey 7am is equivalent to happy hour in my world!!)  HUG YOUR BABIES TIGHT when they wake up!!

I THINK I'm back!!

So I'm slowly but surely getting back into the swing of this running thing.  I ran Thursday morning when I got home from work.  It was only 1.6 miles, but it was after a 12 hour shift....and at least half of it was uphill.  I never really realized this uphill part until that morning, because I rarely run this same street more than once, but I made loops around the elementary school and the back side is up hill! Man did my legs BURN!!

Friday night I talked The Hubs into running with me instead of going to the gym : )...He loved it, don't let him fool you!  There is a small lake in his division at work that we keep talking about running, so we decided to give it a try.  The plan was only 2 miles, but we were curious how far it was around the whole lake and decided to just go for it.  Well it was a great trail, minus the fact that half of it is under construction so you have to run around the "cement trail" in the grass...HOLEY, WOBBLEY GRASS.  I hate running on unflat surfaces....especially when it's dark...I'm accident prone!! Oh well it was actually a pretty decent run. 

I definitely feel like I'm improving with each run, and improving a lot quicker than I expected to.  I guess this time I'm not starting from scratch.  I have a strong running base....it's just been a while!  I ran the first mile at a really good pace, and talked the whole way.  The only reason we stopped was we ran out of trail and into a fence....so we had to figure out if there was a way to keep going!  I honestly don't know how much I ran straight the rest of the time, I was trying not to look at my Garmin....and just keep with the flow of things.  I'm trying really hard to listen to my body and not push myself to far to fast.  I feel like I'm doing a pretty good job of that!

Now I just have to figure out how to fit running, weights, sleeping, eating, and social time all in with my work schedule.  I guess I should probably make some room for that HEAPING pile of laundry I keep putting off?! 
Any suggestions on squeezing it all in?  On the days I work I go to work at 6pm, get home around 7:30am.  I have been working on running when I get home in the morning.  If I go straight to sleep I can get up around 3ish (used to be when I ran, but now it's to hot at 3pm to run!...and when I wasn't running I went to the gym at this time) I try to be home by 4:30 so I can shower/get ready and eat dinner before work.  If I run when I get home I'm not in bed until 8:30-9ish.  I eat a snack after my run and shower, then go to bed.  If that's the case I get up a little later..... I don't have kids yet but already feel like there's not enough time in the day!

3 Miles of pathetic-ness

BLAH! I ran 3 miles yesterday.  It.Was.Not.Pretty....AT ALL!!  But hey at least I did it!!

My plan was to start "training' on Sunday, then life happened.  The Hubs best friend from highschool was visiting!  He flies standby, and his flight was supposed to land at 5.  Well I was out of town floating the river with some girlfriends until Saturday afternoon, so I layed around and recovered from my lack of sleep the day before (I worked Friday night, left at 8:30 Saturday morning, slept approx. 2 hours in the car, then was up until after midnight, and awake by 9am) then showered and got ready, just to find out he didn't make it on his plane.  Then the next flight....we ran some errands, grabbed a bite to eat, then headed to the airport...for no reason...he never told us if he made it on the second flight, and his phone was going straight to VM, so we figured he made it.  NOT SO MUCH!  Right as we pulled into the airport he called to say he wasn't landing until 10.  GEEZ!!  So my original plan was to pick him up, grab dinner, chat for a bit...then run.  Needless to say I never got the run in because we couldn't make solid plans until he made it on a plane!

Monday we went to the lake after the boys woke up (The Hubs worked Sunday night and his friend did a ride along!)  We played at the lake for a few hours, then headed to the grocery store for stuff for homemade wings!  I make a KILLER wing sauce from scratch!!  So Monday was full of spending Q.T. with our friend.

Tuesday we made our way into Dallas to play around for a while.  We had chips and salsa, queso, and sopapillas, then I got some girls together to run a trail we've never tried before.  Conveniently there is a bar with a huge patio and a walkway to the trail, so I chugged water and waited on the girls while the boys enjoyed cheese friends and beer.  TORTURE!  It's ok though, I promised myself I was going to get a run in.

So when the girls arrived we started on our run.  LOVED this trail!!  It's flat, shaded, and full of skinny athletic people which = motivation to keep running!  However did not love my run.  I felt heavy (hmm could it have been all the chips and salsa I ate? NO never!!) and super duper slow.  One of the girls I was with told me she didn't think she could finish 3 miles. HA she SMOKED me....big time!  My friend's fiance is crazy fast and can run forever, even if he hasn't ran in 6 months.  He's Bosnian...we blame it on him being foreign!  He stayed back with me and kept me running for the first 1.5 miles.  It was funny, he kept telling me not to spit, that my spit was my hydration, and that pigs can't run because they're missing a bone in their neck to keep their head up, and i needed to keep my head up, and my shoulders back, and my arms loose.  All good advice, it was just funny!!

I made it 1.5 then caught up to the girls on their turn around.  We walked for a few, then they blazed off without me again.  Damn.  What happened to me?  I ran a Half Marathon in May and then I got what I call "fat and slow" and now I suck at 3 miles! 

Oh well at least I ran....and I was sore today.  So I'm running again when I get home from work in the AM....MUST.RUN....and not suck at it!

I.Need.MOTIVATION!

AAAAAHHHHHH is how I feel about my running right now.  I suck...and I just flat out have not been running.  What the Hey is wrong with me? I WANT to run...I'm just not.  I have a list of a million excuses.  Ridiculous.  I "start" to get back into it (AKA I ran 3.1 on the treadmill last Sunday...Ridiculous I know.  3.1 on the treadmill? Woo Hoo...NOT!  And I have not ran since.)  I need a serious dose of motivation.  There are all these races in the fall I want to do...and have my running buddy thinking about running a Full in December.  I WANT to do these SO BAD...I just can't find the motivation to do it.  HELP ME PLEASE!!!!!!!!!! 

I'm going to the river to float....well mostly walk because it hasn't rained in Texas in who knows how long....and will be back on Sunday.  I AM GOING TO START TRAINING on Sunday, no excuses.  I might need some bloggy buddy motivation.  I am also going to get back into blogging.  SO PLEASE HELP!!! Thanks love you!!

Military famlies are amazing....

So lately my running has still been sucking....or just not happening!  I keep trying to have run dates, but the running gods just aren't working with me!  There's a little in this post a bout my running issues...and a lot about a new found respect....

Last night me and O-No were meeting in Dallas for a 4 mile run at White Rock Lake.  O-No called me when I was about 2 miles away and said she was just a little ahead of me, but with a flat tire!  We attempted to change it ourselves....Yah that was funny....and ended up waiting on AAA.  Once AAA changed and put her donut on we made our way, in the opposite direction, to buy a new tire.  Well our boys are out of town, and we had no clue what we were doing....so needless to say with some serious time and frustration later we were done.  And it was dark...and we were hungry....SOOOO we had dinner and margaritas instead.  Oops!!

Tonight there was more drama, and our run date turned into dinner and a movie on my couch...then I got called into work.  DANG IT!  Another disasterous run date!

Oh well.... this post has another point besides my lack of running....or how my muscles are getting cut and bigger!!

This post is about my new found respect for MILITARY WIVES.... I have always had a respect for the men and women who fight for our country, and leave their families behind to protect us....and I've also always respected the famlies they had to leave, but I have an even greater understanding now.  Let me start this by saying I'm the lamest cry baby ever! 

My hubby went on a vacation with his guy friends....a "guys only" trip.  I feel like I'm a pretty cool, understanding wife, and when The Hubs asked if I cared if he went...all I could say was have fun!!  I'm seriously jealous and a little bitter about not getting to go, but understand at the same time. I cried when I said goodbye to him (a few hours before he left, because I had to go to work.) How super lame am I?  I'm an adult, and married, and cried when my husband was leaving....for less than a week!  I had a few days off and seriously was hating being away from him.  We've been together for over 9 years, and have not been apart for more than a weekend since probably freshman year of college, 4+ years ago, when we went to different schools.   Sometimes I feel like a seriously clingy wife, because I love to spend time with my husband.  But at the same time I feel like thats a good thing...Right?  I'm happily married to a man I LOVE spending time with.  He enjoys spending time with me too...at least he doesn't complain or try to do stuff without me often. 

So I want to tell all you military wife bloggy friends (5MilesPastEmpty...you amaze me!) how truly amazing, strong, and encouraging I think you are.  I hated being away from The Hubs for 6 days, I couldn't imagine 6months or more.  You are truly strong women and I envy your strength!  Just know that thinking about all you have to sacrifice is what has kept me sane all week!  Thank you for all you do, for moving away from your famlies,  for keeping your famlies put together, and supporting your military spouses so we can all live in FREEDOM! 

I guess this kinda doubles as my Happy 4th of July post too!  Thanks to all our military men and women, and their famlies for everything you do!!