Day 66: June 2, 2013- Day of Hope and Blondes vs. Brunettes

 

Day 66: 1:01 miles logged, 493.01 to go… What a day! Six hour drive home from LaPorte, home for a few minutes to grab my football gear, exhibited at the Chemo Buddies Day of Hope for two hours, and then off to Harrison High School for the 2013 Blondes vs. Brunettes match-up.

The power of the human spirit never ceases to amaze me. The Day of Hope was beautifully organized by Jill Kincaid and friends, and I feel honored to have been a part of the event. I know how devastating cancer can be to families, and I came away from the event appreciating the sense of hope that those afflicted have the opportunity to feel. Hope can be looked at in two ways… you’ll either get better, or if you don’t, going home to Heaven isn’t too bad of a consolation. The day was filled with survivors, care givers, medical professionals, and more, and the strength in numbers as well as the faith that some of these people had and shared was a touching experience.

 

Then when I got done with that, I had the privilege of packing up and heading over the football field to once again represent Team Blonde at the Blondes vs. Brunettes match-up for the Alzheimer’s Association. And did my teammates ever come through?!?! Oh my goodness, these women are amazing! Out of the 25k total raised, Team Blonde raised over 15k!!! We also came away with this year’s game trophy after a hard fought 37-33 victory. My new friend Heidi was a rock star, but all of the women who went out on that field deserve to be congratulated for their hard work and perseverance. The Brunettes played hard, and both teams should be proud of the effort put forth.

               

So, anyway, it was fun, literally “marathon” of a weekend. I survived it, and actually feel pretty great. The overwhelming excitement of the accomplishment of Saturday, the experience of being a part of Day of Hope, and the camaraderie of my teammates and coaches make me appreciative of good health and amazing family and friends. I am tremendously blessed! #1000MileMom2013

Day 55: May 22, 2013 Gearing up for game day

Day 55: 10.04 miles logged, 577.81 miles to go- A bit bruised up from practice, but getting really excited for game day!

 Double rainbows = double the fun at practice!!!

Day 30: April 27, 2013- 10 miles + a wedding = : )

Day 30: 10.03 miles today, Miles to go: 785.01… 8 mile walk this morning, and 2 mile walk late evening, shot a wedding in the middle. Productive day, and started my next 100 mile/2 week goal. My toe looks like a hot mess, though, so I am trying to wear open toed shoes as much as I can when I am not out running or walking. Nothing new to report other than I am super tired and am heading to bed. Gotta be up for my SUN 6am challenge. The girls and I generally do 6 miles, but I am trying to get in at least 8 before I head to New Harmony for pictures in the park.

Day 29: April 26, 2013- Oh, my toe!!!

Day 29: 2.03 miles today, Miles to go: 795.04… OK, so I know that 2 miles is a pretty low number for me, but in lieu of taking the day completely off, I wanted to at least get in something, so I just did a quick 2 mile walk on the north side by Bobby’s office. After 27 days, and a killer two weeks, I wanted to give myself a day to rest and recuperate. Particularly my toe… I will be up front, this is the same toe that had the nail fall off last year from all of the running that I did. While I know that that sounds super gross, it’s really not that big of a deal! Anyway, it’s been bothering me the last two days, and after last night’s 8 mile run, I thought maybe I had snagged it on my sock. That’s not exactly the case, though… I have a blister under the nail bed. Ouch! Ouch! And Triple Ouch!!!! I drained the blister last night before bed, but it was so painful at 2am that I had to get up and take some Tylenol AND ice it. I am grateful to Angie Peters for talking me through what I can do to push through it and heal it up. Hopefully, I should see some improvement by tomorrow, but in the meantime, I am going to enjoy my night off with the girls. We are heading to Hacienda and to catch a movie!  I think I am going to go with the Fry-yi-yi (waffle fries and cheese). I thought the burrito bowl would be way fewer calories…. It’s not, and it doesn’t taste half as good as the fries. So I will own those extra 100 calories and enjoy my reward for hitting 100 miles in two weeks. In case you were interested, though, you can find their entire nutritional listings at: http://haciendafiesta.com/images/downloads/nutrition-2012.pdf. So yeah to FRI! Yeah to hitting goals! And yeah to the upcoming weekend! Have a great one, and more to come tomorrow…

Day 26: April 23, 2013- Half Marathon Run

Day 26: 18.49 miles today, Miles to go: 811.25… A-MA-ZING day!!! Weather and mood-wise, it started out kind of rocky. Spotty storms always put me in a crummy mood, but it was clear when I got out at 6:30am for 1 mile, and I did 4 miles mid-day in the middle of a small drizzle that eventually cleared up. I ended my evening with a half-marathon distance all over the east side of Evansville.

 

Also during that run I logged my fastest 5k and 10k distance according to my sport watch. A few things of note from that last run…A) always start out with your shoes tied well, preferably double knotted. I have been interrupting walks and runs lately to tie my shoes, but the simple step of checking to make sure that I had them double knotted gave me an interruption free run tonight. B) always be aware of your surroundings. One part of my run was on the backside of Wesselman Woods, where there was a man walking by himself and a separate car with a guy by himself. Do I really think either of them would harm me… no, but it never hurts to be too careful. So make sure that you carry a phone, your keys, or pepper spray (or all of the above) when you go out by yourself, or better yet, grab a friend to go with you! Same scenario towards the end of my run. It had already turned dark when I got back to the State Hospital grounds, and I ran the last two miles around the park by myself in the dark. In these situations, I prefer not to run with headphones, so that I can not only see what is going on around me, but so that I can hear as well. Aside from that, I think it’s about time to call it a night. Way ahead of schedule to hit 100 miles in 2 weeks, and already very close to my 200 mile milestone. I hope that you all had a wonderful day, and I look forward to sharing what I am up to tomorrow!

Day 25: April 22, 2013- Wear proper footwear!

Day 25: 8.16 miles today, Miles to go: 829.74… Where did today go? I didn’t venture out this morning because the phones were ringing off the hook today at the office. However, I did manage to squeeze in just shy of two miles on the USI campus when I had to meet my professor. I do not recommend attempting any substantial distance if you are not in the proper shoes, though. A rubbed raw blister on my right ankle and an icepack on my left ankle are both the result of not packing my tennies to trek across campus. Doodle bug joined me after work for a 2 mile speed walk,

and then I did the last 4+ miles this evening after Art Smart and a stop up at St. Mary’s to visit a friend and her son. It was a quiet, beautiful night, one that was all the more enjoyable because the bright moonlight made for a very well lit path. Am glad the day is finally done, though. Just have some pics to upload for SMILE onto Facebook, and then I am turning in for the night! Until later…

Day 24: April 21, 2013- An interesting first…

Day 24: 12.8 miles today, Miles to go: 837.9…  I can officially say that I iced my butt for the first time ever… because the only thing sore from yesterday’s bike ride was whatever you call that area where your rear meets your leg! Other than that, I spent most of the day feeling great… did my SUN (8:30am instead of 6am) challenge with Debbie and got 7 miles in this morning. Also managed to get 5+  more miles in throughout the course of the day before a migraine took me out. The rough part is that I took Excedrin vs. a Maxalt because it was what I had on hand in my purse. The overkill of OTC caffeine made it so that I couldn’t lay down and fall asleep to try and get rid of the headache, which stunk. So kids snoozed (keeping in mind that they biked 18 miles yesterday, too) while I caught up on my to-do list in a quasi haze of half in/half out of a headache. Amazing weekend, though. Great weather, wonderful friends, and fun activities. Ready to tackle my week and wrap up my 100 miles in 2 weeks mini goal. Currently ahead of pace and looking forward to treating myself to a small reward if I can hit that mini goal!

Day 22: April 19, 2013- packed day, super tired

Day 22: 5.98 miles today, Miles to go: 859.77… Super tired. Wore out from the Cooper birthday party thing with wrangling 7 kiddos on top of an overly busy day! It’s already past 11, and I have another packed day tomorrow. Will have lots more to report after the super exciting Rockin River City Ride, so will write more then… we’ll see if the kids and I can last the whole 25K bike ride or if we’ll have to cut off early. Either way, I need to get my walking (there will be no running for a bit with my quad injury and now my knee bothering me again from MON’s fall) in as well, so it will be quite a calorie burning day! Can’t wait for tomorrow!!!

Day 21: April 18, 2013- tonight I’m not Singin’ in the Rain!!!

Day 21: 3.10 miles today, Miles to go: 865.75… Busy day of BNI, volunteering, meetings, parental duties, and more, but managed to squeeze in three miles nonetheless. Wanted to shoot for more this evening, but the rain is expected to continue until 2am. I don’t mind running in slight showers, but I draw the line at torrential rains! Tomorrow will be another busy day with my Doodle Bug (a.k.a. Cooper) turning the big 8. Have to earn the Piece of Cake birthday cake slice I want, though, so will try and squeeze the miles in or at least some other kind of cardio as an alternative. The POC cookies and cream cake with their chocolate frosting will be worth every mile!!

So let’s talk maximizing your walks by utilizing arm motions…

I found this great article online that should be helpful to anyone who enjoys walking as a past time or for fitness: http://walking.about.com/cs/beginners/a/howarms.htm

“Arm motion can lend power to your walking, burning 5-10% more calories and acting as a balance to your leg motion.

• Bend your elbow 90 degrees.

• Hands should be loose in a partially closed curl, never clenched.

• Clenching your fists can raise your blood pressure and should be avoided.

• With each step, the arm opposite your forward foot comes straight forward, not diagonally.

• As the foot goes back, the opposite arm comes straight back.

• Keep your elbows close to your body – don’t “chicken wing.”

• Your forward hand should not cross the center point of your body.

• Your hand when coming forward should be kept low, not higher than your breastbone.

• Many poor examples of arm motion are seen with walkers pumping their arms up high in the air, this does not help propel you.

• If at first you find adding arm motion tiring, do it for 5 to 10 minutes at a time and then let your arms rest.”

Here is some additional information from:

http://www.walkingconnection.com/Walking_Technique_Form.html

“ARM SWING

A walker’s shoulders should be relaxed, not drawn up towards the ears.  Arms should swing naturally with each step, and should be bent at the elbow at a 90? angle.  This is important.  Straight arms on long walks lead to problems with swelling, tingling, and numbness of the fingers or hands.  Bending them will not only eliminate this problem, it will help you gain upper body strength and tone your deltoids, biceps and triceps.

For many walkers, weight loss is a goal.  By bending the arms, you will also burn 5-10% more calories.  One more great reason to keep the arms bent and moving in an athletic motion is that you will immediately be able to pick up your pace for greater periods of time.

The bent arms should swing comfortable and naturally at about waist level.  Your hands should be relaxed and loosely closed.  Any excess tension in the arms or hands should be avoided — it wastes energy.  The elbows should be close to the torso, with the hands going no higher than the center of the chest on the forward swing, or past the back of the hip on the back swing.  Again, more motion than this is wasted energy.

If you are new to this technique, you might initially find your arms getting fatigued.  When practicing, keep your arms bent for 5-10 minutes, then lower them to recover.  As soon as you feel rested, raise them again.  As part of your training, you might consider doing some upper body weight work (not while you are walking) to increase your endurance.  Specific exercises are suggested later.”

Hope you find this information helpful and that you are staying dry on this dreary evening! More to come tomorrow… Later!!!

Day 20: April 17, 2013- damn that quad!!!

Day 20: 13.25  miles today, Miles to go: 868.85… A lot of smaller walks yielded a big distance for the day. Started out walking two miles with Dante and Maggie (well… Maggie only did a fraction of that, and I had to carry her most of the way) while we waited up at the vet office to open. Another almost two miles from the office in the a.m., and then a hot 4 mile walk mid-day. Nice that the weather has finally made a turn for the warm. I actually broke a sweat. Then ran 1+ miles before football practice, and finished out the night with a 3 mile walk, one mile of that with Bobby.

Football practice is always such a fun time, but I tweaked my left quad again… grr!  Natalie, who is our unofficial trainer person, gave me a great analogy to describe what I have done to my quad when I injured it on SUN and again tonight. I started out the practice well, but midway through a play, the sprint motion quick burst basically pulled apart what is like the equivalent of an internal scab on the inside of my leg that has been trying to heal the last few days. Disappointing that I can’t get in more practice of the plays, but this injury will dictate how fast I can get back into actually practicing. In the meantime, the goal is more stretching, more bananas for the potassium, and more water to stay hydrated.

Aside from that, I am really looking forward to the Junior League of Evansville/Evansville Morning Rotary Rockin River City Ride on SAT (www.RockinRiverCityRide.org). Need to get the bike out and dusted off, but think that the change of pace will be nice for my muscles, and the change of scenery will be good for the soul as well. The event has a variety of run/walk and biking options along Evansville’s beautiful Greenway, so the kids and I are going to try the 25K with a fellow Team Blonde teammate. I have some other people who joined my “team,” but they are doing different distances walking. The event is a Lets Move! event. Let’s Move! is a comprehensive initiative, launched by the First Lady, dedicated to solving the challenge of childhood obesity within a generation, so that children born today will grow up healthier and able to pursue their dreams. The event is also a great way to make an Upgrade commitment to yourself. For more information on the Upgrade campaign, visit: http://upgradenow.org/ For additional information on Lets Move! visit: http://www.letsmove.gov/

Now if ya’ll will excuse me. I need to ice my quad, then take a rolling pin to it (it was recommended?!?! I will be the first to admit that it looks really funny!), then shower and head to bed. Early day with BNI tomorrow!!! Later folks!