The shallow end of the gene pool

Last night I sat down and made out a schedule of when I'm going to do which workout. I haven't been doing enough of any of them, and have been meaning to double up some of them, but just haven't figured out what, when, and how long. Today I walked 5 miles, and tomorrow I will be biking and running.

I subscribe to Runner's World Magazine, which I enjoy, it has lots of great information. But the last couple issues have also had some depressing profiles of runners. They're people who were overweight, but they started walking (and started losing weight), then gradually started running a little (lost more weight), started running longer distances (got down to their goal weight), and ran their first marathon in 3:30 (or less). And it took less than a year for all of this to happen. I walked 6 miles a day, 3 days a week, pushing DD in her jogging stroller, for more than a year, and never lost weight. I added in running several times a week when I was training for the half marathon I did last fall. I still didn't lose anything, and it took me 3 hours to do a half marathon. I took a couple months off because of the move and the weather, but have been walking, running, biking and swimming for about 3 months, and still haven't lost anything! Ok, I am building muscle right now, but that's not the point. And it's not like I'm eating whatever I want, I try to be real careful about what I eat and how much. Not that it seems to make much of a difference. Sometimes it's really depressing coming from the shallow end of the gene pool.

However, I've decided I like the way I feel in my bike shorts. I don't know how I actually look (the mirror is blocked by remodeling stuff right now), but I doubt I look as good as I feel. There's just something about the stretchy fabric that hugs your body and somehow, against all odds, makes you feel thin (well, thinner than your normal clothes make you feel, anyway). Maybe this is why so many larger people wear spandex shorts. Though in my defense, I only wear my bike shorts when exercising, never to the grocery store or the post office. Something to ponder....

Today my dad and I went to Lowe's to get more stuff for the remodels while the 10% military discount was still in effect. We took my car because I thought we wouldn't have any problems fitting everything in (I'm a master packer, and we have hauled all sorts of things, including a monstrous roll of carpet that should not have fit, but did). Unfortunately, the bead board panels were a lot longer than would fit in my car. So we tossed a blanket on the roof and tied the panels to the roof. Some key ideas to keep in mind when tying large sheets of wood to the roof of a vehicle: 1. Make sure you tie all the sides down, so that when you stop they don't slide forward down your hood and onto the street. In my defense, I didn't tie them down, my dad did. He remembered the back, but didn't think about the front. 2. Make sure there is no breeze at all. We went 30 mph the whole way home, and still had problems with the wind picking up the panels. 3. Make sure you have long arms for reaching out the window to hold onto the panels so you know when to slow down even more. I don't have long arms and it was awkward and painful. As I told my dad when we finally made it home: not an adventure I want to repeat.

The bathroom is going way slower than I had hoped, but dad's still not far enough along for me to help move things along. He did get the shower pan and drain in, as well as the backer board on the floor. Hopefully we can get lots done tomorrow, though I think we'll end up spending more time outside than in. My parents ordered a big roll-away dumpster for all the remodeling refuse, and it's being delivered tomorrow. So we'll have to load it up with the pile that's currently behind the house, and then we have to go around the yard and look for anything else that's just sitting around, taking up space, needing to be thrown out.

I did finally make dentist appointments for DD and myself, something I've been meaning to do for the last 3 months. Mine is this week, DD's isn't till August. Most regular dental clinics won't see kids under 4 years old, so I had to call around till I found a pediatric clinic that takes our insurance. It was a pain, as is the fact that the closest one I could find is twice as far away as the clinic I can go to. I guess I'm just peeved because the pediatric dental clinic we took DD to last fall, before we moved, was closer than the clinic I went to, and neither one was very far away.

Hissy fits, hill running, and book swiping

I had planned on going for a run after breakfast, before it got too hot. However, while we were eating, dad came in and said he wanted to go to Home Depot as soon as possible so he could get going on stuff in the bathroom. We had decided to go today and get the expensive stuff for the downstairs bathroom because they're offering a 10% discount to the military this weekend. Gotta save money wherever I can... So we ended up getting the tub (a deep jetted tub that still fits in the space of a normal tub- not a necessity, but it will be nice to have), the toilet and the sink and vanity, as well as some miscellaneous things like light switches and electrical outlets and some wood to frame in the windows (which is what dad wanted to get working on today). There's a few more things we need, like faucets, but we'll have to go to Lowe's on Monday for those; their 10% discount goes through Monday, Home Depot only goes through Sunday.

I decided to go for a run after DD got up from her nap. I thought about going during her nap, but decided it was too hot. I knew I had to do it today, though, since I've wussed out the last two days and haven't done squat. And I was doing so good... The break was nice, though. Anyway, I was getting ready to put DD in the jogging stroller and she started pitching a screaming hissy fit because my mom told her no (don't remember what for, but it wasn't something to cry about), and wouldn't calm down. I told her if she kept screaming, she'd be going back to bed. This usually calms her down pretty quick, but it didn't this time, so I put her in her bed, where she continued to scream for another 10 minutes or so before finally calming down. She had plenty of books, her water bottle, her lambie, and her blankie, so I wasn't too worried about her. Mom said she'd keep an eye out for her, so I went on my run- alone.

It's been quite some time since I've gone on a run by myself, I'm usually pushing DD in the jogging stroller. It was quite enjoyable to be able to move both arms at the same time! I had to concentrate on it a bit, though. I'm so used to the one-armed thing. It was a good run: the weather had cooled off, there was a bit of a breeze, my shins didn't give me too many problems, and I managed to run almost 4 miles. I did stop and walk periodically for a minute or two, so I didn't run the whole thing, but it's more than I've done in awhile, and I managed to keep a good pace. I still need to speed up, but at this point my main focus is just getting the miles in so I'm prepared for the half marathon and full marathon. I have no illusions about actually being able to run the whole race either time, but I would like to finish in a decent time and as prepared as possible. I do like the run for 20 minutes, walk for 2 method, though it usually degenerates to much shorter run periods. It worked quite well during the half marathon I did last fall, and it allows you a chance to breathe and regroup a bit. The hardest part is trying to start running again when you're halfway up a hill. That sucks.

I started my pinata for the reunion on Thursday, but when I looked at it yesterday, it was a dry, shriveled up prune.

Not sure what happened, but now I have to start another one. So I did that tonight and will hopefully have better luck with this one. I don't really have time to start another one.

I also started reading 'Freakonomics', the book my sister wants us to read for the book club thing she's doing. I've only made it about 30 pages in, though. I made the mistake of telling dad that it was already quite interesting, and he swiped it while I was giving DD her bath. Luckily he's a fast reader (most of us are), so I'll have it back soon.

A good hard run

DD woke up at a normal time this morning, no crazy sleeping in till all hours of the afternoon. We went for a run that felt really good. I did the five mile loop and ran about 3.5 miles and walked the other 1.5 miles. If it wasn't so hilly I think I could have run the whole five miles. My shins were feeling good, and my breathing wasn't too bad (I have had some issues adjusting to the altitude and dealing with pollen and stuff in the air). Unfortunately, I'm not quite strong enough to push DD in her stroller up all the hills, especially when I've already run 3 miles of rolling hills. But that will come. I wasn't always able to bike up those same hills with DD in tow, but now I can. I just need to be patient and work on gradually increasing my mileage so I don't get injured.

After DD's nap we made cookies to send to DH. Last time I sent cookies he and the guys he works with inhaled them in 30 seconds. I was going to send more this time, but those stupid flat rate boxes just aren't very big. I could use a bigger box, but it would cost a lot more. So I think I'll just send packages a couple times a month, instead of just once a month.

I was researching ideas for FHE with a toddler last night and came up with a couple good ideas. One was to use the nursery manual and talk about the same lesson that was taught on Sunday. This would be very easy, since half the time I'm the one who taught the lesson. The other idea I liked was to take a picture from the Gospel Art Picture kit and talk about it, using the info printed on the back. This is the one I think I'll actually try first, as soon as I get said picture kit (a couple weeks from now). We'll see which works best with DD.

So the other day DD and I went to Babies R Us to look at car seats. While there, I looked around, and noticed just how many of the women there were pregnant. At a guess, I'd say 90% of them were. It was rather depressing. I'm ok with not currently being pregnant (we were hoping I would be, but it didn't work out that way), but sometimes I still get that feeling of jealousy. I'm pretty much resigned to the fact that we'll probably only end up with 2 or 3 kids, and at least one of those will be adopted. But part of me really wants to get pregnant (and stay pregnant) one more time. I want a better pregnancy than with DD (I was in a lot of pain and could barely walk the last four months or so) and I want a better delivery (quite frankly, it was horrible). On the other hand, things still aren't back to normal down there (the result of said horrible delivery), and if I have another bad delivery who knows how long it'll take to heal. Despite that, I do still want to get pregnant again. I'm just glad that there's not twenty zillion pregnant women at church (I've been in wards where that was the case). And I'm working hard at trying to get in shape and lose weight so I have the best chance of getting pregnant and staying pregnant when I see DH when he has R&R. DH has an aunt who lives in Hawaii, so we're meeting him there and spending two weeks seeing the sights and spending time together. Luckily it's not till the last half of November, so I still have time to lose weight and get in shape.

Photos for Catching up (May 28th post) and Triathlon

Ok, so I'm a serious slacker in some things. I took these photos quite awhile ago, but never posted them. Here's the suitcase I bought for DD, before and after I picked out the embroidery.

And here's one of the blankets I picked the embroidery out of. They didn't turn out as well as the suitcase and other things I bought. Hopefully with washing the imprint will go away. This particular blanket also had a hole that I wasn't aware of until I picked out the embroidery, so that had to be fixed as well. The other blankets didn't have any holes.

Here's a photo from after the triathlon. I have some of me swimming, biking, and running, but I look pretty hideous, scary, or exhausted. And the photos show just how much weight I still need to lose. Rather depressing.

A Glorious day for running

This morning we went for a run. It was going to be a walk around the 5 mile loop, but there were some dogs running loose in that direction, so I had to go the other direction. Yes, I will change what I do to avoid dogs. I don't trust them, especially when my daughter is involved. You never know what a strange dog is going to do, so I avoid them whenever I can. Though I did realize today that I've been trusting my 15-year-old pepper spray a bit more than I should: I really need to replace it, since I seriously doubt that it's still effective.

Anyway, I wasn't planning on doing any running on the 5 mile loop because I can't remember where the mile marks are, and I need to know how far I'm actually running. As opposed to how far I think I'm running, which can be quite different. Since I went a different route, I ended up running 2 miles out, and walking the 2 miles back. I actually enjoy running that route because for the most part it's a gentle decline, with a few hills thrown in. The worst hills are right at the beginning, and right at the end of the 2 miles, but they're do-able.

The weather was just right for running: cool and overcast with the promise of rain, which made it a bit humid, but not unbearable, and a nice breeze (not the gale-force winds we've been having), just right for cooling one off. It was great! One of the best runs I've had in a really long time. My feet didn't hurt, and my shin gave a couple twinges at the beginning, then calmed down and didn't give me any more problems.

As I was running, I looked at the people who passed in their cars. People are pretty friendly out here: a lot of them will give me a finger wave (fingers lifted off the steering wheel) as they pass. Today, though, one lady gave me a great big smile and a thumbs up as she passed. It was nice of her, and gave me the little extra oomph to make it up the final hill.

I spent some time this afternoon figuring out furniture for my massage room (which still has to be remodeled, but I got the idea in my head and had to go with it, otherwise it would just keep bugging me), and then worked on one of my continuing ed classes. I actually managed to finish it tonight, and am now 3 credits closer to getting my certification up-to-date. Woohoo!

Dirt roads and sunburns

This morning we went for a 9 mile walk. I did the 5 mile loop and then the new route that I found that is 2 out, 2 back. Most of it's dirt roads, but the main dirt road is kept up very well and is very smooth. The other dirt road isn't as well-kept or as smooth, but it has very light traffic, so it's not too bad, either. Unfortunately, I did forget to put sunscreen on me or DD (I have got to work on that!) and since it took two and a half hours, I got a bit fried. DD got a bit of a burn on her ankles, and the tan lines on her feet from her sandals are now quite distinct, but she didn't get anything nearly as bad as I did. My training schedule doesn't call for a 9 mile walk yet, but since I'm down on my mileage, I figured it wouldn't be too bad, especially since I was walking instead of running. I could feel some stiffness and soreness in my shins, but I stretched and iced them when I got home and hopefully I won't have any more problems with them. I would like to start running as soon as possible, but I don't want to get shinsplints, either. Balance is the key.

No swimming this week. We should have gone yesterday, but mom and DD are still getting over colds and ear infections, so we figured waiting a week would be better.

In my quest to work on my goal of writing a book, I've also been trying to do more writing period. I have two blogs I post on almost daily, and I'm keeping a journal of things DH and I talk about and the things going on in his life (this is also almost a daily thing, depending on our correspondence), and of course, I'm working on my book almost daily. It's slow going, but it is going.

I was looking through my planner the other day, and found an epiphany I had had and scrawled down so I wouldn't forget it. The occasion was when DD and I went to visit DH before he shipped out.

I had an epiphany tonight. DD and I were waiting in the car while DH got things squared away in the barracks. As I waited, I watched the soldiers coming in off pass. Most of them were wearing khaki cargo pants with pockets on both legs, just like their ACU pants. Soldiers are always shoving things in the pockets of their ACU pants: patrol caps, berets, notebooks, chapstick, sunblock, wallets, candy bars, gum, you name it. As I watched the soldiers, I realized that many of them had things in the pockets of their civilian cargo pants as well. And that's when it hit me: cargo pants are the male equivalent of the purse!

I did it!

Today I finished my first triathlon, and I didn't die! This was a concern, based on how I felt Tuesday after the wet run. In fact, I felt better than I did on Tuesday, even though all my distances were longer.

I started in the second to last wave, which meant I didn't have to be there at the crack of dawn- I got up when the first group was starting- that's how slow I am (it was based on your swim time). I finished my swim in 17 minutes, which is as good as I've ever done. I really need to work on my form and efficiency though, so I can get faster. The top people were swimming the same distance in 6-7 minutes. I don't expect to get that fast, but I would like to cut at least 5 minutes off my time. One thing I definitely change will be to get spandex shorts and a top and swim, bike and run in those. No more messing with a swimsuit that chafes when biking and running. It'll save time in the first transition, too (it wastes time trying to pull biking shorts over wet legs and up a wet swimsuit).

I did my bike ride in about an hour- it was 2 times around a 6 mile loop, with a lot of long hills. Not steep hills, just long, neverending hills. It did finish on a downhill, though. I need to figure out how cycle faster, although I think it's really a case of building my muscles, which means I need to work out more.

I ended up walking about half the run- I was pretty dehydrated by then, and my leg muscles were super fatigued. Not sore- just too tired to move anymore. It was a really weird sensation. So, I need to hydrate a lot better, eat more shot blox to keep my energy up, and be in better shape so I don't reach such muscle exhaustion again.

Overall, it was a great experience- I had a good time and will definitely be doing it again. I still don't have sore muscles, which is great- normally, if I'd been running for two hours, my feet would be thrashed, and my leg muscles would be really sore. Instead, I'm tired, but not exhausted, and my legs are still really tired (carrying DD up the stairs was a reminder that 'hey, we're here and we're still not recovered from this morning').

I just looked up the results, and my official stats are:
Swim (500 m): 16:55.9 (4.1 seconds under! wahoo!)
1st Transition: 5:02.6
Bike (12 miles): 1:00:17 (right on target- I was aiming for 1 hour)
2nd Transition: 1:10.9
Run (3.1 miles): 34:30.8 (11.07 min/mile. I was aiming for 10 min/mile)
Total time: 1:57:57.1 (2.03 min under the 2 hours I thought it would take me)

I came in 352 out of 378 finishers (I wasn't last!!!)
In my division (30-34 women) I came in 42nd out of 45 (I also wasn't last in my age group!!)
I was 162nd of 179 women (I came in ahead of people!)

Ok, so I was a little worried about coming in last. But that didn't happen physically (there were people who crossed the finish line after me) or on paper with everyone's results compiled. Yay me!