I'm not crazy...I'm just bored!!

What a great morning! I decided since I should be 'tapering' for SLC 1/2 I'd only do 3 miles today, and try step aerobics. I haven't done it since my stress fracture!

It was SO good! I forgot how hard that class can get. Lots of plyometrics and side to side movement as opposed to running & spinning's forward motion. Not to mention lots of sweat! :)

Hit the TM afterward for 3 miles, did the first 2 at 9:40 then bumped it up to 9:30 because I was feeling good. But it still wasn't doing it for me, so at 2.5 I would increase the mph by .1 every tenth of a mile. Then the last two I dropped it .2 each time and ended at 8:04 mm I was really feeling good, so I decided to keep going until my 30 minutes ran out, I finished at 3.2 miles (or more, it only does tenths, not hundredths). However, in aerobics we'd done .2 mile run outside so I figured I'd finish up the last .1 to round out at 3.5 for the day.

I really just felt good and then better today on the TM! Even at the 8mm I was feeling good. Days like today make me think there may be some sort of hope for me to finish under 2 hours on Saturday, but I'm trying not to put a time goal on myself, because I need to listen to my body more than push the pace.

Woke up to the pitter patter of rain on the windows (well, okay I couldn't tell if it was raining, I actually had to go downstairs and stick my hand out the back door, but it was - a little bit), so I pulled a pansy and went back to bed and skipped BBK's this morning :) 

Hit the TM for some good miles! The first two I didn't realize until the very end were at 2.5% incline!! I usually (lately) have kept it at .5-1%. I thought I was going to die, and that I'd never finish 6 today - until I noticed that, then I felt pretty tough :) 

2.1 TM miles @ 9:40 (with the incline higher than MY normal).

Weights: all upper body (most on the bosu ball), squats, push-ups and obliques.

2.2 TM miles 9:30, 9:10, last .2 @ 8:40ish

Weights: same stuff

2.2 TM miles 9:22, 8:57, last .2 @ 8:10ish

Weights: same stuff, last set.

I was bound and determined to do under a 9mm that last set. It was nice to actually achieve it and not feel like I was going to die :) I felt my best during mile 4. Running is still my favorite part of the day!

Another good sleep in day, but last night was full of nightmares - SCARY weird dreams. Then, in the middle of the night a box that has a fold up tent in the linen closet in the hall fell. It scared the crap out of me AND my hubby - all the kids stayed asleep, but we shot out of bed. It was nice to finally figure out it was then tent box and not someone breaking in and trying to kill us! The scary dreams were before that, so ugghh! It did get better the rest of the night/morning.

Went to Boot Camp which was a lot of kick-boxing and then circuits. We did a short .2 mile run outside, and I ran it strong enough to stay the front runner in the group - felt good.

Hit the TM afterward, and I think my legs were done. I started at a 9:40, but after about .75 I had to take it down to 10mm. It's a good thing Kelli was there, before I knew it I was at 2 miles and feeling better (especially after a short break to get my ipod on and working after she left). Felt good enough to finish up 3.3 miles to even out the miles for the day.

mile 1: 9:50 (about); mile 2: 10mm; mile 3: 9:40 - slower pace today, but again I was feeling better by the end. TIRED of the TM, but not enough to wake up early :) I am psyching myself up for early AM with BBK's tomorrow: I will, I will, I will!!

Got up for BBK's this morning *yawn* - when I went to leave my sweet little girl was in her room whimpering. She said she had felt sick all night! When do they get too old to come in your room at night and tell you they don't feel good and let you help them? Made me feel like I'd failed at being a mother if my poor sick 9 yr old couldn't come tell me she was sick :( Got her some tylenol and took off. (She is feeling much better now, so we'll send her off to school to share all those fun germs with her class - gotta love school!)

Started out WAY slow this morning, plus the first mile is all uphill - yuck! Finally around 3.5-4 miles I started feeling better - what else is new, huh? We (those slower paced BBKers) did just one 5K loop, and then a couple parking lot loops @ a mile each. I figured I should be tapering a bit for Saturday, so I was game to do only 5 and not 6. We finished the same time the rest of the group finished their 2 - 5K loops. Yup, I'm slow!

AP: 9:37 splits: 9:59, 9:32, 9:15, 9:38, 9:39, 8:00 (for the last 20 feet over 5 miles - hehehe, had to throw that in when I saw it!).

Now I'm off to yoga and to make sure my daughter isn't going to crash at burn at school when the meds wear off. I hate it when they want to go to school and I feel hesitant to send them!! I'm volunteering in Kindergarten at 10:30, so I'll check on her when I'm done and make sure she doesn't need to come home. I'm now just hoping I don't get whatever she's got!!

Next run: SLC 1/2 marathon!!

Nice and easy bike ride on the recumbent bike at the gym. 60 minutes, I forgot to look at miles - but it wasn't too many probably around 16. 

Rested and ready for the 1/2 tomorrow!!

Okay, I must say - I've been kind of psyching myself out of this all week: I'm too tired, I'm too big, I'm too...yeah, the list goes on and on. Now that the race is over I've busted all my excuses and feel great! I honestly could've gone a few more - not 26.2, but maybe 15 or 16. It all just felt good!

Picked up Tom Slick and my SIL and got to the race in decent time, and started about 3-4 min back from the  gun time. Had a few good laughs about my shirt with the trax train crowd, and some good 'looks' from people as we were in the porta-potty lines.

Started out nice and easy, I didn't want to waste energy weaving around people, so I mostly just took what they'd give me. I blame the slowest 2nd mile pace on a mixed up water stop, it was our first as a group: stop, don't, okay stop, go back a few steps to get it, where are you?, group up, run on. The rest of the water stops were MUCH more successful!

It was great chatting with Tom and my SIL, I really didn't even think about miles until I got to my 'death point' at about 6.5 from the first time I'd run the race...I knew I was 1/2 way and was still feeling good! I felt like we kept passing people and were keeping a decent stride, I rarely remember being passed. I would hear a few giggles from some folks as I passed them, and a couple comments, but I honestly thought I'd get a lot more from the crowd with the shirt. Maybe they just felt too defeated that a pregnant lady had just passed them :)

I was pleased that I had absolutely NO ITB pain the entire run, first time I've run that course w/out the pain. I guess that is one GOOD thing about pregnancy hormones: keeps all those tendons nice and relaxed :) As we headed up the last hill just as you cross mile 12, besides the heavy breathing I really still felt just GREAT...so I let the stride go a bit. I really, truly would not have guessed the pace was as fast as it was! If I had that much left in me at the end I should've run a bit faster throughout. Meh...I felt good! Who am I to complain about time when I'm finishing a 1/2 marathon 30 weeks pregnant?

Crossed the finish feeling good and with a little bit of kick in my step! No pain, no fuss - just a wonderful easy run with a couple of excellent friends! When I noticed the time was just over 2 hours, I honestly felt a bit cheated...I wish I would've knocked enough out to finish just under instead of over, but that's the competitor in me I guess. It was hard sometimes during the race to see people I was running behind and think "I should be in front of you..." Maybe that's what kept me motivated, who knows!

I'm SO grateful for Slick and my SIL that made the day even better with good laughs and GREAT company. It was fun to run into a few people too, missed BSRools crowd - we'll have to do the parkway sometime!

AP: 9:17 splits: 9:43, 10:13, 9:19, 9:11, 9:23, 9:19, 8:57,  9:21, 9:00, 9:37, 9:07, 9:38, 8:06

 Had hubby take these pics afterward...I hope you enjoy them :) No laughing at the fat pregnant lady!!