I love burpees

rested today

it feels so weird to only run 4 miles, but that's what's on the schedule.  why is it so hard to do less?

Today was supposed to be 4 marathon pace miles, but it really didn't go as planned.   My legs felt heavy after my mile warm -up, and didn't improve as i tried to speed up the pace.  I think i'm tired from tues run...dang it. i hope i didn't overdo it.  First mile was 6:40, 2nd 6:58 (and it felt way toooo hard).  So i decided to cut it short and just do some slow miles in.

  Also found out that my Grandpa passed away today - I'm glad that he is out of pain.  Time to head to Idaho.  The forced rest will do me some good too. 

I loved my chance to run in the cool Idaho mountain air today!  It was so beautiful and perfect.  I ran up a canyon, and then back down - legs still not great but ok.  averaged 7:50 overall, but also do a good amount of climbing.  Hopefully I get some high elevation training while i'm up here. 

I got to run 6 miles with my honey - I pushed him a little:) He wanted to stop at 5.5, but i made him run 6 (and at a faster pace:)))) He is such an amazing person, and so supportive of me.  I'm so proud of him.

I got to sit a lot this weekend - My family is so "country" - they spent the majority of the time sitting on the porch talking and laughing the day away.  I loved it! and it was really good for me. 

Went to gpa's funeral which was really good. This weekend ended up being a big family reunion, and it seemed like such a happy time.  I think that's the way it should be:)  to celebrate his life.  Also had to sing 2 solos during the service, which is one of the hardest things in the world to do when i cry so easily. 

Success today!  My marathon pace miles felt doable and strong.  6:39 and 6:37 at a high elevation on a relatively flat road.  the plan i was following had me add an 800m, and then a few strides at the end.  I don't think i needed the last part, but did it anyways. 

On a side note, I hope grandma's homemade country cooking doesn't kill me this weekend:) Especially all the yummy idaho potatoes she made.  and all the brownies, cookies,  pies.....etc. carbo loading right?  I don't dare step on the scale for a few days.

rest day back at home...ahhh, feels so good.  I had april work my lateral quads (which have been sore) and my back and calves.  Hopefully this will be just what i need to feel fresh this weekend. 

Signed up for the star valley half marathon today, and i'm actually excited to do this race on my old stomping grounds.  My hubby and sister signed up as well.  i'm so happy to share this with them!

rest day #2 - quads are sore from massage

2 slow miles with 150m striders

I am walking away from today so thankful for the ability to run and to be surrounded by so many amazing people that can push their bodies to unbelievable limits! I am thankful for what I accomplished today though it's not what i wanted. I only finished today with the Lord's help, that's for sure.

Great parts of my day include

1. I was able to place overall even on an off day.

2. I was able to finish without ending up in the med tent (lol)

 3. I think I've finally figured out how to fuel my body (no runner's stomach today)

I woke up at 3:30, took a quick shower, and ate 1/2 a banana and 1/2 a bagel. I don't normally eat before i run, but I also always seem to have problems taking gu on an empty stomach - It seemed to work for me today. I got to ride up to the top with Ash and Renee (2 of my favorite ladies in the world)and it really seemed to ease any nervousness that i had.

Got to warm up with steve and jeff at the beginning, and noticed that i could feel the elevation a little. I really wanted to make sure that i didn't go out too hard and get wiped out for the rest of the race. I was aiming for a 2:56, but would settle for sub 3 and i knew i could do it

I took 4 anti - fatiques and 2 s-caps to start. here's my race

1- 6:59 - uphill and was already a little breathy - ugh

2 - 6:35 - forgot to take gel at beginning - took one here

3 - 6:42

 4 - 6:38

5 - 6:42

Miles 2 - 6 were around where i wanted to be. I actually did feel relaxed and great at the pace. i was in 4th at this point, but it was pretty spread out.I think i've learned that i'm more motivated by chasing my competitiion - Next time I will try to stay with their pace. I did have 1 guy who ran by me for a while that was telling me if i wanted to run sub 3 hour i needed to slow down - It was messing with my head. So I feel like if i had gone a tad bit faster i would have been fine (and had some seconds to spare at the end - oh well - i'm still learning).

 6 -6:42 - gel

7 - 6:41 - 2 s-caps and 1 anti-fatigue

8 -7:06

9 -7:20

10 - 6:45

Miles 6-10 - still feeling fine - the hills were a little more taxing than i expected (elevation?)

11 -6:43 - This is where I started to have problems. My ab/rib/back/nerve problem came back out of no where - The nerve in my back that comes around makes my abs tightens and cramps up under my rib cage and hard to breathe - usually it comes on slow, but it hit me hard here. It was pretty discouraging as it didn't let up for 9 miles. I was saying plenty of prayers that i would just be able to finish now. I saw Michelle l. running up the canyon and it was great to see a friendly face for 1 min or so.

12 -7:01 - - 1 potty break - girl #4 passed me while i was in.- took a gel

13 - 6:56 - half marathon was 1:29 on my watch - but running time as i passed said 1:30 - def not where i wanted to be at this point. It messed with my head as i probably could've finished sub 3 hour still if my ab thing wasn't killing me.

14 - 7:19

 15- 6:37

 16- 7:06

 17- 7:08

18 -6:52

 19 -6:55

 20 -7:06 Major loss of motivation at this point. My abs finally started letting up as we got off of the steeper hills around 18- but i felt like even sub 3 was gone (i just couldn't add in my head at this point). I was at 2:17:52 - if i could've kept it 6:40s i would have done it. 21 -6:52 22 -7:07

23 -7:07

24 -7:26

 25- 7:12

26 -7:16 21-26 I honestly was feeling ok at this point but had it in my head that a good time was gone. Legs were tired but ok. I was just holding onto 5th place. I didn't realize that my competition was only 1 min ahead of me, and if i would've kicked my pace up, i might have caught her. I think "Never Give Up" will be my motto for next race. I'm proud of myself for sticking throught the pain, hopefully things will work out better next time. grateful for the $200 today:) My girl team - Renee, Ash, and Liz - got 1st for the women's div - Yay!

swam 1 mile at the pool - felt sick and super tired!  I have to admit the tiredness felt like more than post marathon tiredness.  I was starting to suspect pregnancy.  I took and test and it was negative... so scratch that idea.

I taught core fusion and then took the stroller for very slow 10 minute miles

subbed heather's turbokick and kicked my own butt

5 easy  miles on the tread, taught strength class in the am, then zumba in pm

My legs were feeling ok, so i ran 10 trail miles today.  Abs acted up at the end. 8:19 average

I planned on still keep speedwork out of the training this week, but wanted to start on the miles again.  I had decided that i was going to up my miles for a couple of months so that I could do well at st george (high miles have worked for me in the past).  At this point im having a hard time holding myself back - but i know i needed to recover from the marathon.I do have a half marathon in 3 weeks and wanted to get the legs moving again.

I ran to cholla creek and back at 10 am...and it was HOT, HOT, HOT today. no more running after 7 am. - average 7:53 - legs are feeling good

spent the day with my boys since jim was out of town.  We did our own FHE - dinner, temple, and fiesta fun.  I love my little guys!  They are such amazing little spirits.

the boys fell asleep in the car on the ride home, so i put them in bed an ran 2 more miles on the tread.  Then i went to bed earlier than normal and go a great night's sleep!

taught core fushion in the a.m.

I knew i'd have to run on the treadmill again today and was dreading it.  I wanted to do 8 or 9, but only got 7 in due to time.  I tried to speed up my legs a little and run low 7s for a while.  I had the most insane experience today.  I was in the middle of my run and I had an insane desire to go grab a nice fat cheeseburger right then and there.  at one point I  had to jump off to help my little guy use the potty.  I ended up grabbing a pack of fruit snacks, a pack of gu chomps,  a piece of bread, and a granola bar (400 calories or so).  and then i finished my run!  I couldn't believe how hungry i was.

I jumped in on our zumba party that night.  So fun!  One thing i noticed though was that my belly was sticking out more than normal.  I had been soooo strict with my food, and had even taken my shakeology which always flattens out my belly.  So I was kind of frustrated.  My weight was about the same - 117-118, so i couldn't figure it out.

Well I went to sleep that night and woke up at 3 am.  I could not go back to sleep at allcause of something on my mind!  So after an hour and a half, i got in the car and drove to wal mart.  Strangely i was the only customer in there:) well i picked up some milk, band aids, and a pregnancy test.  I was late that month, and had been extra tired.  Post marathon symptoms could have been the cause of it too, but i was positive i was right.  And i was!  While driving home, i experienced a whole gammit of emotions - I was extremely happy of course - This had just come earlier than we had planned.  but also disappointed that my racing season was over after all that training.  I was relieved to know that my last marathon felt like it did because of the pregnancy (your average heart rate goes up right away - when every workout starts feeling really hard like that, i usually know i've got a bun in the oven)

This pregnancy is already different cause i usually get extremely sick right from the get go.  I have had few symptoms aside from being tired...and needing to pee more:)  So I'm hoping for an easy one this time - it sure makes it go by faster. 

I never did get back to sleep last night and I was tired!  I was also starting to feel a bit sick - I had jinxed myself after saying that last night.  Thankfully I'm figuring out that if i stuff my face all day, i feel fine (oh dear).  I'm starting out a tad bit underweight, so my body is trying to fatten me up.

I didn't get outside to run til 10, and it was a scorcher already!  I was very paranoid about running pregnant in the heat, so i doused myself with ice water every 5 min or so and only ran 5.   It definitely was a slow, recovery run today.

i subbed kari's zumba at night, and could tell that my body was extra tired.  zumba is usually pretty easy for me, but i was definitely getting a workout.

i list marathon pace miles right now, but my miles were only 7 min miles.  I'm making sure to watch my breathing and body heat to make sure i'm not over-exerting. I'm already signed up for the star valley half in 2 weeks, so i'm hoping to maintain some sort of decent pregnancy pace when i run it.  I'll do it with absolutely no pressure to win though!  I'll run for fun (what is that again:))   Strangely my body felt great today, and i didn't feel any different.  I did have to eat right before i ran, and then eat a granola bar and chomps in the middle. 

Can i just say that being able to eat more is seriously the best part!  My hubby raised his eyebrows at the amount of pasta on my dish last night:)  Only runners/ exercisers can do it though without gaining 50 lbs!  I still keep it really healthy though.

Sasha needs to add a pregnancy tracker on here:)  I'm almost 5 weeks along.  Due feb 24.

That was the hardest 13 i've done in a while. I ran to la verkin and back through cholla, so it wasn't easy. I'm surprised how bad it was today though. I had to bring food with me to eat during the run, and i still ran out of energy. The biggest thing was my knees - they were so bad by the end of the run! I've never tried to maintain these distances pregnant, so i guess i'm seeing that my body can't handle it very well. I don't know if i'll do that half marathon now either....

Oh man, i cursed myself saying i wasn't going to be sick this time.  It hit me this week!  And i am so unbelievably tired. i did zumba this morn,and that was good enough for me.

I taught core fusion today, and it seriously wiped me out.  Again, i couldn't find it in me to run today.  i shopped later in the day, and that did me in.  I was gone.

It's so weird to go from exercising 2 to 3 hours a day, to less than 1.  i have to get it in my head that 1 workout is ok.  It's more than enough right now.

I ran 8 on the treadmill averaging 8:10, and it felt ok.  a lot better than sat for sure.  I'm going to do 10 on fri to see if i can handle it.  if so i'll go ahead and run the half next weekend.  I'll have to carry gatorade with me since im learning that i  can't let my blood sugar drop while running pregnant.  My body doesn't want to use my fat reserves, so it just ends up slowing me down and making me feel like crap.  I just drank gatorade instead of water today and it seemed to help. 

I really started feeling more sick and tired today, so I got a sub for zumba and just laid around.