I was not...

...offed by an axemurderer such as might be suspected based on my lack of presence on this here blog. No, for the tons anyone!? who was worried? I am A-Ok. Alive and kicking. 
What have I been up to you all  anyone!? are wondering? Well, since you asked:

8) Summerin' it up (can I trademark that word? I kind of think I invented it)

 7) Running. In the heat. With my delicate, heat sensitive body. (and I am not whining! I am a delicate woman who wilts in the heat!) 

6) Channeling my WT small town roots by making a homemade water slide with friends on the 4th, dousing ourselves with dishsoap and taking a ride

All I am saying? Don't knock it until you've tried washing dishsoap out of...family friendly blog Sara, keep it family friendly

5) Sweeping the floor, telling the kids, "No, we do not eat in the living room. That is why we have a kitchen table. To eat on." x1000 (what part of that is not being comprehended here? I mean, how many times a day can I explain this to them?) Laundry, dishes, more laundry, sweeping, laundry, sweeping

4) Letting the cats in. Then out. In. Then out. In. Then out. In. Then out. 

3) See #4-5 above. Repeat. Then repeat. Then repeat. 

2) Landing a NEW JOB! I am very excited to have moved forward with my career goals (I know! I have some!? I mean, spending mass quantities of cash at lululemon can't be a career?!)  I am now working at a new school district as a K-12 Data Coach, working with teachers on state and local assessments. Love it. I love data. (yes, I am serious. I really, really do. Sick, huh?)
(shout out to Charisse for allowing me to freak out to her before the interview!)  It was a change, leaving the classroom, the friends I have made at my old job, the familiarity with it, but I am happy and feel the change was a positive step forward in my personal life as well. 

Finally, since y'all quit reading awhile ago anyhow,  this summer? I have been: 


Crap. That's it. There is nothing to add. I mean, unless you count when Corey drove in the driveway and found me hanging 1/2 way off the roof after I decided we needed to wash the exterior of the house. 
Oh, and making 90 individual data graphs for teachers (I have another set of  90 to start. Wait. I have to get current students data as well. Make that 180 + more graphs + specialists/interventionists. I'm going to go die now.) 

Can't wait to catch up with you all now~ 
 

  

Earth Day 1/2 Marthon Recap and a Winner!

Um, it's Monday. I said I would post the winner of the giveaway on Friday.

I'm lazy.

You see, I was busy napping getting ready for the 1/2 marathon I had decided to run, so I was all behind.
Yes, once again, I decided at the last possible moment to run a race. I like to do this to assure I pay the highest price possible for the race. #win

Anyway, onto the race itself. An 8:30 a.m. start time- which my lazy bum appreciates. My friend Heidi (who happened to be running it, but we were not running it together) and I had been commenting on how nice the weather was at the start line- perfect actually. Nice and cool, a little breeze...

Both Heidi and I decided to start at the 2:10 pace group. I was feeling really good, and figured I could go faster, but didn't want to start out too strong and fall behind. By mile 2, I knew I was coming out too slow and needed to speed up. I kept double guessing myself and thinking I needed to hold back or something. 

Mile 1 - 9:31 -I usually try to spend the first couple of mile admiring other people's workout gear. I like to multi-task and window shop and run at the same time. I love the TC Marathon for this, because it is boot season and I see a ton of adorable boots. Except it would be awkward to stop and ask where they purchased them.
2-  9:15
3-  9:21
4-  8:59
5-  9:40 - Confession. I got tangled up in my shirt here. I had taken it off, so of course, a 1/2 mile later, the wind picked up and it started to rain. I was headed over a bridge and freezing, so I stopped to put my long sleeve shirt back on. I ended up getting tangled in the stupid thing, putting it on backwards and inside out, and the arms were all twisted, driving me nuts. At least the people watching got a good show.
6-  8:42
7-  9:19
8-  9:04
9-  8:57
10-9:32 -This point? I am ready to be done, tired, WET, cold, sweaty, and torqued at my splits! All I could think of to get me to the end was Chipotle.
11-9:29 -Stupid hill mile. Stupid, stupid hill mile.
12-8:54
13-8:31
.10 @ 8:18


Um...notice anything? Like the incredible sporadic nature of my mile splits? It has been driving me nuts! I wish I would have just picked a pace and ran with it instead of going all over the place. I was huffing it the last 2 miles and pissed that I hadn't been more consistent. However, consistency in anything has never been my strong suit...


After? I was wet. Very wet. Since we were in St. Cloud (where I had lived for 6 years during/after college), we wanted to run a few errands. Yes, with me wet, stinky, and sore. It was awesome. 

Asher told me at one point, "Mom, you smell like a cow."
Elijah mentioned, "You may want to take a nice shower when you get home." 
Angels. 


Finally, the random number generator generated #17! Congratulations Brandi! Contact me so I can get you your prize! 


Me? I am sore and have a sore throat from running. I am going to go nap. I love naps. More on that sometime, when I don't have a nap calling my name.

Run Sara Run

Boom! Okay ladies (is there any men who read this blog? Probably not, so I feel comfortable addressing just the ladies). 
Running Stats for the Year:


• 289 miles so far this year
• Chased by only one dog
• Picking up speed when I can- yesterday? Ran 5 miles in 41:42, which is pretty darn quick for me. (I will never claim to be fast. Much faster here and the rubbing would start my thighs on fire. Better slow and steady than fire thighs, right?) 
• Every Spring? I go overboard on new workout gear. Lululemon has been my drug of choice this year and I've bought them out. and unfortunately, I am not exaggerating...!


• Races? Sure! I have 2 half marathons on deck, and would like to grab at least one more, but am not sure which one or where. I also would love to do the Minnesota Women's Marathon in September, because I love the idea of a Women's Marathon here. I really wanted to do Grandma's Marathon again, but I'll be in Key West that weekend. I'll just have to live vicariously through Bobbi, who keeps rubbing her training for it in my face. sob 
I swore- numerous times- that I will never run the Minneapolis Marathon again after last year when I saw spots, dehydrated to the point I didn't have to - you know, use the girls room- for 6 hours and all that jazz. 
I will figure something out. Right?! I need a race to utilize all the new running gear after all. 

Does That Make Me Crazy?

...probably. (and don't answer that)

So, in my last post, I was freaking out a bit because the stomach issues were cramping my efforts with running, and I am set to pace my sister for the Twin Cities Marathon here in a few short weeks. (Fine, all weeks are the same length, but some seem shorter, don't they?) 

I decided it was do or die time. I set today as the day I was going to run the 20 miler, whether it killed me or not. If it did, well then that answered my question on whether I would be able to run with my sis. If not? I'd probably wish it had. I had a meeting today, so I didn't have group, and it was opportune time, right?
Being me, I decided it would be best to eat breakfast and let that settle a bit before starting. I fell asleep. (Dear Naps, you complete me. No lie) Then I figured I'd better eat lunch. Then that had to settle. ( I was loading up to have energy and all you know.)

Finally I dragged my bum out there. Um, who set up the wind machine in my neighborhood? #fail
I struggled through the first 5 miles, just feeling lazy and out of it. I started to settle in after that and enjoy the views. By mile 12, I had that familiar feeling I love- where my legs start to numb out a bit- and everything goes easier after that. I also played around with eating Gu Chomps one every 20 minutes or so, rather than taking 3-4 at once. I am hoping putting carbs in at a slower, steadier rate helps calm my stomach, rather than a shot all at once. 

Mile 17? Sang some Adele. She's got nothin' on me. except talent and a good singing voice 
Mile 18? Loooonnnggg, like that one mile on EVERY 1/2 and full marathon where somebody moves the mile marker about a half mile further than they were supposed to, and it goes on forever? I know they do that just to mess with us. 

I finally finished. 20.25 miles, with an average pace around 9:50/mile, which is fine with me. 

Then? My dad had taken the boys to pick out hockey skates, so when my friend asked if I wanted to go to Zumba tonight, I figured, why not? I mean, the more time on my feet the better, right? Besides, if you have seen me Zumba, you would realize it really requires little energy. I basically stand there and try to figure out what foot I am supposed to be on...and trip. My friend is the instructor so she can't laugh at me though, which does help.  She also didn't take it easy on me though.

I am pretty sure tomorrow I am going to pay for this. Big time. But you know? Stupid ideas have never been a problem for me, so why stop now?
 

I Run Because of Yoga

As part of our therapy, my group does yoga once a week. I guess it's something about making us in touch with our bodies, feelings, and all that jazz. Like I am not already, right? I am pretty much a legend in my mind as to how in touch I am with myself. okay, maybe that didn't come out the way I intended. 
Anyway, so there I am, being present in my thoughts, slipping in all the poses because I accidentally put WAY too much coconut massage oil on at the store where the tester was very generous. You should have seen me trying to do the tree pose. 
and concentrating on my practice, when she gives us a bolster and tells us to put it under our back. 

I do. 

Then? She tells us to lay back, stretch our legs out, lay our back on the bolster and let our hands rest by our sides. 

Something like this here: 

  I bet you are thinking the same thing I was, "Uh, if an axmurderer were to happen on in here right now? He'd have us axed in the chest before we knew what hit us. And? I am first in the room, so guess who goes first? Why did I pick this spot? Who invented such a pose?"

Our sweet yoga instructor pipes up, "You may notice that you feel a bit anxious in this pose, as if you are exposed, or vulnerable..."

Okay. What was THAT? Was she reading my mind? I mean, in my opinion, this has nothing to do with being "vulnerable" it is mere safety. Sitting in a room with your chest exposed could get you killed. (or if you were a high school girl you could get called some names by the other nice high school girls...) It has nothing to do with my fear of exposing my "feelings" to the world, having my "heart" all "open and exposed." No, not at all. 

So I sat there, my chest exposed to any want to be killer to hop on in when she finally ended the pose. Up next? Dead person pose. 

Yeah, the pose were you lay on the ground like you are dead and they are going to chalk outline your body before they remove you from the scene in a black bag. Zipped up. Nice follow up there, huh? 

Now you see why I run? Obviously. 

Naming the Runs...

-which is not as sick as it sounds (unless you want it to be. Wait, that is even sicker.) Anyway, thank you from the bottom of my being for the love and support you've offered. Thank you. I'll go into more detail in time (you know how I like detail...) but am giving myself some time to adjust to the new thing. 

Moving on. As I have embarked on some of my runs lately, I have began to give them "names" of sorts. You know, to help me remember the high/low points of the run, and put it into perspective. 

Last night? It was actually fairly cool out from a 100* + day, so I went on a little jaunt to relax. (Which, btw, was at 9:00 p.m., which for myself, is a great motivator to move quickly, to arrive back home before the bears get me. This is one pitfall of living in the boonies- you see more wildlife on your runs than cars, and wildlife is wild and can attack innocent runners who smell like rancid sweat.) 
All of which is besides the point. My point was...um, 

I'm naming my runs! 

Such as: 


July 6th- 4.5 mile run with Dana. The run where I was going to do some interval work with her, but we got so busy talking that I forgot. Side note: Talking while running is new to me, since I have mostly always run by myself, so I need to figure out how to do this and breathe as well, as I am getting rather winded without this ability. 


July 15th- 8.05 mile run (yes, I go down to the foot) 
The run in which it was really hot, my water bottle felt like it was 15 lbs, and I should have screwed the top on better because it kept dripping on me which was sucky, and in which I blamed some of my slow speed on the humidity, hills, and dirt roads I was running on. After all, everyone knows that dirt roads slow you down, right? It is not that I'm slow as dirt. 


July 19th- 4.65 mile run
The run in which I KNOW my right short leg shrunk- terribly! I could not run more than a few feet without that bugger climbing up to my BUM CHEEK and showing the whole world (fine, the corn fields) my cellulite farm. Ugh. Also spend a good deal of time pondering as to why my neighbors are unable to wave at me. Serious? Is it that hard? Oh, and what is with all the big old frogs on the road anyway? Big fat ones, just hanging out all over the road, waiting to be hit. And the run where I ate some bugs, which is good, because I was low on my protein for the day. #win 


So, anyone else name their runs? I certainly cannot be the only one, right?!
 

Grandma's Marathon 2011

This recap is for my memory as well, so feel free to skip past it, as it likely as entertaining as going to the dentist. 
I am serious. I got bored just rereading it myself, and I WROTE it! 

Each time a person learned I ran marathons, they asked the question "Have you run Grandma's?" 
No, no I hadn't. I was the only  Minnesotan EVER to not have run Grandma's. Where is my Minnesotan pride? 


So, I jumped at the chance to run Grandma's this year. It did cross my mind that I had just ran the Minneapolis Marathon 13 days before, but as reason and sanity have never stopped me in the past...


One "mistake" I thought I had made prior to the MM (Minneapolis Marathon, I am shortening it from here on, because it is long to type, and I'm on one of those mini keyboards- seriously, who designed these!?) Moving on.
The Friday and Saturday before the MM were busy for me. I finished the school year that Thursday, wrapped up my classroom stuff Friday, had my BIL's graduation Friday night, his party on Saturday...I had planned to meet my sister at 6 p.m. on Saturday night to head to Minneapolis. I was still in Isle (2 hrs north) at 6:30 p.m. And I hadn't packed. I was at Sports Authority at 9:30 p.m. grabbing Gu packets and peanut butter M&M's. 


This time? For Grandma's? I was totally going to take it easy the day before. So on Friday, I woke up at 10 a.m., (2.4 hours later than planned) and hustled the boys out the door. We had to run to St. Cloud (1 hr away) to pick up our new car, grab some Gu packets (should keep these on hand in the future,) buy a father's day present, and be back to pack up to head 2 hours north by 5:30 p.m. 


Well, we made it to Duluth about 9 p.m., and stopped in at the Expo quickly. As Corey's luck would have it, everything was closing down, so I didn't have the opportunity to spend any money, because the only booths open were not good. Oh, and it was pouring rain. 
Driving to Two Harbors (which is the start of the race) Corey remarks, "Wow, I didn't remember Two Harbors being this far away. You have to run all the way back? That's a long way." 
You don't say? 


Saturday! Woke up and it was still raining. I will say this: I will take the rain over the heat and humidity ANY DAY. That was one of the draws of running in Duluth. Because of it's location on Lake Superior, it is naturally cooler there all year. When it is 100 degrees in Minneapolis, it will be 62 in Duluth. 
The rain lasted through the first hour or so of the run, but was only a sprinkle and actually felt pretty good. 

Fine, it is a bit blurry, but I had to stop and take a picture of this sign. I loved it! (This is the only pic in this post taken by me, Corey took the rest while I ran.)

I felt good, but was afraid to push it because of the experience at MM and stayed with the 4:30 pace group the majority of the time. 

Random: 

• Gu packets in Orange Vanilla are death in a packet. Obviously the taste testers on those had some numb taste buds. 

•There were people still wearing garbage bags at mile 13 (to keep from getting wet.) I have to say, you may have to suck 'er up and get wet at some point. 

• I hate porta potties

• It was FLAT! FLAT! 

Here is the MM elevation map on top, and the GM on bottom. Yes, keep in mind this is Minnesota elevation, so we aren't talking big numbers here to begin with!

• At about 12 miles, I had to use the ladies room. Since there were lines at all of them, I kept waiting for the next round (there are powder rooms every 2 miles.) Mile 16 had no line, so I stopped. A lady jumps out with a grimace on her face and says "good luck in there." I look past her and see what she is talking about. I made the executive decision that if I were going to have human feces on my body, it darn well would be my own and not some strangers. Condolences to the fellow runners who's GI tracts failed them here at mile 16. 

• It is always fun at "rural" marathons to watch the number of runners dive into the bushes, trees, driveways to mark a tree. There would be groups of 5-8 runners heading into a bush at the same time. 

• FIVE: Number of men who I saw lifting their short leg up to relieve themselves rather than pull the front down. Interesting. 

• Weather: 100% awesome! Wind blowing at our backs! Cloud cover! Cool! Happy Sara! 

• I need to do some work on my stomach around the 20 mile mark. It is touch and go there for a bit. 

•Someone moved the mile marker for mile 24. There is NO WAY you can convince me that wasn't more like 2-3 miles there between 23-24. 

• *TMI alert* I need to work on the whole hydration thing. With the Minneapolis Marathon, I didn't use the bathroom for 6+ hours, and only twice the rest of the day. Grandma's? I think I used the bathroom a total of 4 times Saturday. When you think of the fluids I took in both times? Yikes. 

The finish line was great! I came in at 4:27, which is not my fastest, not my slowest, but I was happy with it considering all things and the MM two weeks ago. I felt a few twinges in my right IT band from mile 11 on, so I was happy it didn't get progressively worse as I continued. I am planning to take a week or two off from running now to let it rest before it turns nasty. The last time it felt like this, I kept pushing and ended up hurt. 

On the walk (fine, it was more like a hobble/limp/crawl/sick looking movement) we passed 2 men with white shirts and HUGE red spots running down the front. MEN! Stop at the med tent and grab some vaseline. That has GOT to hurt. 

I felt great the rest of the day Saturday, and was not the least bit sore on Sunday. After the MM, I felt like I had been hit by a semi for almost a week. I had to walk down the stairs backwards for 2 days, and had a hard time even sitting. I was exhausted, worn out, and sick for 2 days after. Grandma's? I felt great, came home, did laundry, went grocery shopping, mopped, and went to Valleyfair for Father's Day on Sunday. SCORE! 

Finally, THANK YOU KACI and JON for hookin' me up! You are the best!

Get In Gear Race Recap

My friend Steph had been planning on running the Get in Gear 5k as her first for some time. When I found out I had nothing going this weekend, I decided to tag along and run the 1/2 marathon. Let's face it- I needed the run. To say my running mojo has been dearth lately is...well, correct. 


Anyway, I decided to go for it. Luckily, as I signed up on Tuesday, the weather forecast for the weekend looked terrible. (I pretty much figure if it looks bad it will, in fact, be fine. #FAIL) 


Steph and I woke up Saturday morning to the sound of pouring rain. We dressed, chatted, ate, and drove to the parking area in pouring rain. As we stood in line for the buses to the starting area, we questioned our sanity. (We decided we are sane. Just lacking common sense.) 


Here we are, fresh as daisies, after fighting our way into the pavilion for our gear drop: 

 See? Wasn't kidding about the crowd. We all had this idea that standing under shelter before the start would somehow help us stay dry in the long run. 
We also found FREE cowbells before the beginning of the race. I had to have one, despite the fact I had nowhere to keep it. Instead? I carried it for 13.1 miles in my hand. 


(as I questioned my sanity of doing so, Steph responded, "Because you are Sara, and that is what you do and why I love you." So to all you peeps out there wondering why? Because I am Sara, and I loved my yellow cowbell.) 


The race itself? Wet! 
The 1/2 marathoners ran with the 10k's until mile 5, where we broke off. I think I have run a large portion of the course before with other urban Twin Cities races. There were no pacers on the run, and I had forgotten my Garmin at home, so I had pretty much no idea of my pace the entire run. I was just going for what felt good given the wind and rain. 

Confession: I never look at the race course before a race. Serious. I have no idea where I am going, what the hills or turns look like before I hit them. I like to tell myself it is a strategy, but it's really just that I am lazy and can't read maps anyway. 
Instead, I just smile and follow the crowd. 


I was thirsty the entire race. I didn't have a water bottle on me as I was planning to use the aid stops, and I figured I could open my mouth and grab some rain drops as needed. 
At one or ten point, I thought about grabbing a handful of water from the puddles and sucking away. (I've had a dry mouth all week, so I should have known better!) 
Actually, I did grab a handful of puddle water to wash my face at mile 9...it seems I had a hard time getting the GU packet in my mouth rather than on my face. 
I also made the age old mistake of mixing GU types & flavors. NEVER a good thing for me...hello stomach distress from mile 10 on. 
Mile 12 had me almost throwing up- I couldn't decide whether it would be better to hold it in or get it out. I struggled a bit with the gear as well. It is hard to know how to layer for a rainy run, and I had too many base layers on, so my core was hot while my arms were cold. and wet...oh so wet...


Coming across a bridge over the Mississippi at mile 12? The wind was blowing the rain at an almost vertical slant. 
All the better to pelt me in the face and direct the water into my mouth, right? 

Final result: 

Location	Race Time	Time of Day	Overall Place	Division Place	Sex Place
Time	2:01:21	11:02:29	516/1021	67/201	180/531
10 Mile	1:33:20	10:34:29	540/1028	76/202	197/533
4 Mile	37:47	9:38:56	575/1028	84/203	224/536
GunStart	00:00	8:59:54
ChipStart	1:16	9:01:09	579/1245	91/253	264/670

 

I came in slower than I would  have liked, so I will take that as a reason to train harder! 

Things to work on:

• I've felt a few tinges in my left knee on my last few runs. I need to do some amped up cross training to avoid IT problems. 

• Core strength 

• Proper hydration. (There may not be puddles at the next race as an option.) 

• Not mixing GU types. I have done this multiple times, paid the price multiple times. Blueberry GU + Expresso + Vanilla Bean + Lemon Gatorade= FAIL 

Anyway, to finish it off? I love running. I love these types of races. There is nothing better than seeing thousands of people out there doing the thing we love, hearing the feet hitting the pavement, seeing the effort put out, and giving it our all.

To the sweet lady at the end who told me she had spent the race following my bum and how much it helped her? I lub you. 
To the bums I chased? You, with the unique white piping on your pants? Purple jacket lady? Girl who ran with her legs flying sideways? Thank YOU. 


I came home yesterday to the boys playing with my nephew, who was over for the day. On a runner's energy high, I baked 2 cakes, cookies, brownies, did 5 loads of laundry, cleaned the house, organized the cupboards, cleaned the fridge, played Mario, read a story to my nephew, broke up 1,000 arguments, and ran errands. 
Today? I pretty much haven't moved over a 10 foot radius all day. I'm going down for a nap now.