Halling Go To Alaska

My running...mmmm.  I think I've talked about this before.  It was probably last fall when I was "training" for Goofy.  You know...that little 39.3 miles in two days.  The race that I felt amazing at the end of - exhausted - but amazing.  I've lost my running mojo.  Granted I'm still running about two days a week right now and decent miles at that, but my drive is gone.   I know part of why I refound my love in running 6 years ago was because I needed something just for me.  Something for me to own.  Something to be proud of that was mine.  I can't tell you how tiresome it got to always be referred to as somebody's mother, somebody's daughter, somebody's wife, somebody's sister.  Running was mine.  Especially when I felt like I needed to maintain to keep others motivated.  When I came up with the idea of participating in Team in Training with Shrinking Jeans, I had a group of women who really hadn't run much, if at all, be...

This is a hard and yet honest post to write.  One that may be hurtful to many...but it's not intended as such.  It's just my heart on my sleeve.  So please...if you feel this applies to you, it's not meant as an attack.  It's my perception of my life experiences and how my perception has changed in the last year. As a kid I never questioned my parent's love or support for me.  My family (including extended family) was always one of if you do something stupid, they will make you take responsibility for your actions, support you through your idiocy, and then good-naturedly laugh at you for eternity over your idiocy.  This was never really an issue for me.  I knew that this was a sign of love from my family.  That may be a bit twisted, but it usually has us laughing at ourselves in hindsight.  It's good to be able to laugh at yourself. I am a people pleaser.  Always have been.  On some level I always will be.  I never wanted to be...

Going through a divorce has taught me many things. One of them is a truth that I overlooked or knew but thought that pushing it aside was ok. You always hear about making your spouse a priority. That the marriage has to be a priority over the children. Over work. Over extended family. Those other factors can enhance your marriage if used properly. (Yes, I just said "used" and partially referenced my children. :) In the beginning of my marriage we were a priority. Many factors played into this. The fact that he had just joined the military and we spent half of our first year of marriage separated made us appreciate the time we had together more. For me I didn't want to waste time fighting. I just wanted to get along. Remember, I'm a people pleaser. Then our oldest girl was born. And she was beautiful and precocious and amazing. And as new parents we both enjoyed her thoroughly. Then our middle girl was born. But we had moved. He was back in school full time with a com...

So I did it.  Tuesday the Disneyland Half Marathon opened for registration.  I was considering doing the Dumbo Dash, which is the 10k on Saturday and the half on Sunday.  But it sold out in less than an hour.  By this morning the half marathon was sold out.  Thankfully Barb mentioned yesterday afternoon that the half was already at 75% full, so I just bit the bullet and signed up.  I'm so glad I did.  I figure this is truly my only chance to get my Coast to Coast medal.  With a huge change in mentality that has happened for me in the last six months, I've realized that I need to plan better for what I want in 15-20 years down the line.  I equate this realization to how some people just all of a sudden have that moment where they get the eating right and exercise and it stops feeling like an uphill battle.  I'm in a better place emotionally and intellectually.  I've gained ownership over what I want in my life and for my future. ...

Okay, so let's go back to June 2010.  Rock and Roll San Diego.  Team in Training.  Ms. ChristieO.  "I am running the Walt Disney World Marathon in January...you should run it too."  Uhm...a marathon? Really.  You mean the full 26.2?  Uhm...maybe.  Then there was a booth at the expo...where you could sign up for that race.  And I convinced the ex that I should sign up.  He said, you sign up? I'm signing up too.  So we forked over the cash and made the committment to train for 26.2. September through December 2010 - hardcore training plan.  Injuries.  Fears.  Horrible runs.  Fabulous runs.  Cold and snowy runs.  Treadmill 20-milers. January 2011 - Florida.  Running 26.2.  Feeling really good for the first 22ish miles and then my legs just wanted to be done.  That was the longest 3+ miles of my life.  When I crossed that finish line I cried.  Sobbed like a little baby.  I coul...

Thursday Coffee in Vegas Outside the hotel. :). Friday EXPO!! Me and Barb!! Her first half!! Three-shirt weekend One of my favorite people Saturday Pre-race coffee. Delirious and on the bus to the start line. She did it!!!! #sheblamesKirsten Necessary evil Sunday Extra tired. Nervous. Castle day 2 Halfway - 2/3 of the way through Goofy. Was craving a banana. Turned the corner and there were bananas. :) I look like I'm grimacing. But it's only from the sun. I'm giddy at this point because I had just seen Christie and I still felt amazing. Mine. Dinner. Milkshake with booze. :) Recovery On my way home. Proud 39.3 finisher. Right where I belong. Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

I'm not sure how to recap last weekend.  I went into this race weekend feeling woefully undertrained but determined to cross the finish lines upright and hopefully not in too much pain.  I logically knew what I needed to do, but wasn't sure I would be able to accomplish it.  Problem number 1: Training with one to two training runs per week.  Yeah.  Perfect way to train for two back-to-back endurance races.  WTG, Kirsten. Problem number 2:  I usually am not hungry after long runs.  I needed to not get into a calorie deficit between races.  Problem number 3: Time change of three hours.  I would be sleep deprived for two nights in a row and expecting my body to perform.   Problem number 4:  Heat.  Our temps here hadn't been above 40 in close to a month.  Predicted temps in Orlando? Lows in the low 60s and highs in the high 70s/low 80s.  Ugh x10. So how to solve these problems?  Number one: There was nothing I c...