VRB 4/9 - Good luck Kathy!

[SusanMac]

Kicking off the new week on a gorgeous Sat here.

Kathy's half marathon is this weekend (I forget whether it's today or Sun). Wishing you good rest, good nutrition, good weather & good pacing! Looking forward to the race report.

Speaking of which.....I did a 10K today myself :-) Didnt' mention it beforehand, but have had my eye on it for several weeks. It's the annual American Cancer Society 10K, which I've done many times in the past. It's a nice, rolling hill course that I really like. I felt good about my time (better than the 10K I did last month). As a bonus, I actually placed 3rd in my age group. This is only the 2nd time ever this has happened. Kind of exciting.

Yesterday was a swim day for me. Not sure what's planned for the rest of today, but it will definitely be outdoors!

Hope everyone else's weekend is off to a good start!

[Natasha]

Hi Susan! Thanks for starting us off this week :)

Seconding the good luck thoughts to Kathy, and also to Jennifer for her 10k!

I did a light spin yesterday and some core. Today I plan to do something more strenuous :) The nice weather is back! My mom is over this weekend so DH and I will also spend lots of time with her. We're having take-out Indian tonight. Looking forward to it. I was getting a real craving :D

Hope everyone else is doing well. Vicci, thinking of you as you have your hectic weekend. Hang in there!

Natasha

[Leslie Ferguson]

Good luck Kathy - you'll rock! Have a great day tomorrow and I can't wait to hear how it goes.

Susan - Thank you for starting this week and congrats on 3rd in your age group in the 10k. Some day I'll be there - running again and finishing in the money.
Nat - I hope you have a good weekend with your mom. Take out Indian food - that sounds good too.

After polishing my next to last sermon for my internship parish. I spent a little time this afternoon getting my road bike road ready; put a new computer on it. Of course after that I had to go for a ride - just over an hour and it was great to be able to not lug my mountain bike around the streets of Alexandria.

Hope everyone has a great weekend - happy trails,
Les

[Kathy B]

Thanks to all of you for the well wishes as well as the advice and encouragement leading up to my half. You have all been so supportive, and it went GREAT! :)

We got up at 5:00 to make the 45 minute drive and be there in plenty of time for the 7:00 AM start. I decided to start out with the 2:25 pacer, because she outlined her race strategy on the website, and it sounded good to me....start slow, walk through the aid stations, etc. The weather was beautiful (low 50's to start), the route was through nice areas and neighborhoods and mostly flat as advertised. Good crowd, and DH and DS actually found me FOUR times along the route and were at the finish line as well. That was really nice! (My pace group enjoyed it, too! :p). I ended up staying with the pace group most of the way, then finished in 2:23:29. :eek: :) Who'd have thunk it?!? I was very happy with that.

We went out for lunch, came home, and I slept for two hours! Getting ready now to go out for a gentle two miler before lunch. A little sore and stiff yesterday, but feeling PDG today.

Jennifer, how was your 10K? Hope you didn't have any muscle soreness bothering you. Did you have good weather?

Susan, congrats on your 10k results! 3rd in your age group is terrific!! Glad it went well and your time was satisfying for you.

Les, next to last sermon, eh? Boy it seems the time has just flown by. Do you have any inklings where you will be ending up? The road bike ride sounds refreshing! DD just got her bike out of the garage a few days ago, too. She rides all around as I walk the dogs, just keeps circling back to check on us. Nice to be outside regularly again with the warmer weather.

Indian food does sound great, Natasha! I love Indian buffets where I can have some of everything. Hope you enjoyed your visit with your mom. What workout did you end up doing yesterday? Thanks for your congrats to DD....she had a lot of fun coming up with posters. Two of my favorites were....

"As junior class treasurer, DD will NOT raise taxes!"

and

"2+2=4 Just some of the quality math DD will bring to the office of junior class treasurer!" :p

Vicci, hope your weekend is going well and you are finding time for a bit of relaxing with all you have to do.

Hi Robyn, Mary and Tkay! Hope you are enjoying your weekends!

[Robyn1007]

Congratulations Kathy!

Susan, glad the 10k went well, so cool to place in your AG!

Natasha, now you have me thinking Indian for a dinner out Tuesday night.

Les, I really need to get my bike out and ready to go. And could do it today but am pretty sure I won't. Glad you enjoyed a ride.

Well, yesterday I did 5 miles in less than an hour which is a first for me. I stopped at 5 (that's what was scheduled) and walked home as a cool down because I had plans for a hike later yesterday afternoon with a friend and his dogs. So, we did 3 miles with a pretty decent grade so today my hips and shins are a bit sore. I decided not to ski and just enjoy a day off which I'm doing well.

This coming week is pretty crazy so not sure I'll be around much but I'm looking forward to dinner at Mcgeiger's tomorrow night after my group run workout. Tuesday is dinner out with the same friend I hiked with yesterday then Wednesday I get ready for my long weekend of skiing. Next weekend is closing day for most of the resorts so I'm skiing Thursday with friends to celebrate one's over 20 years of ski instructing, Friday will be with whoever I run into at Vail and Saturday I think I'm going up with a friend from down here. Not sure if I'll close the resorts on Sunday, depends on how I'm feeling. It's kind of bittersweet as I'll miss the skiing as usual (actually we still have Mother's Day scheduled for a big party) but I have a feeling that this summer is going to be a fantastic one so I'm excited to get it started. :D

Jennifer, can't wait for the race report!

Tkay, Vicci et al hope your weekend is going well!

[TKay]

Quick pop-in for me. We got back from Mammoth late Friday night. I did an hour on the TM yesterday and I'm not sure what's in store for today. Just wanted to say hi to everyone.

A big congrats to you, Kathy, for a job well done! Wow, I am so impressed. You rocked that race. So glad it went well. Hope your recovery goes just as smoothly.

Susan, thanks for starting us off. Great going on the 10K.

Nat - Indian food sounds good to me too. I haven't had it in ages. Enjoy your time with your mom.

Les - I can't believe you're so close to the end of school. The next to the last sermon? How is that possible? Glad to hear you got in some good bike time.

Vicci, Robyn, Jennifer et al, I am heading to last week's thread to see what's been happening with you guys. Hope you're all well.

Hi to anyone I missed.

ETA: I didn't mention Mammoth much. I got in some good mountain walks which were beautiful and relaxing. The 8 y.o. went skiing all of one day and then relaxed with me the next. Dh and our 10 y.o. snowboarded all of two days and had a blast. Dh took ds to the top of the mountain and they made it back down in one piece (dh is really good, but this is the first time snowboarding for ds). I happily drank a latte and people watched down below. : )

[Leslie Ferguson]

Congratulations Kathy your race sounds like it went well and that's a fabulous time for your first half. It sounds like the bug has bitten you and you'll be running them more and more. ;) :p You deserve a nap after getting up at 5am for your race too.
Robyn - Sorry the ski resorts are closing. Isn't there a lot of snow still on the ground? Have a good day off and a good week with Mcgeiger et al.
TKay - Welcome back and good job on your TM yesterday. Sounds like everyone had a good time in Mammoth.

It is hard to believe that the end is that close. 5 more Sundays and I'm done here. Definitely bittersweet - I'm finally meeting a lot of the folks here (there are over 1000 on the books but only ~350 on Sunday). One more preaching Sunday and it's done. YIKES! Great comments about my sermon too - soothing, thought provoking, and powerful. One more service this afternoon and leading a discussion on the same scripture passage (Doubting Thomas).

Here's to a great remainder of the weekend for everyone and a wonderful week.

Happy trails!
Les

[Natasha]

Kathy, CONGRATULATIONS!!! Your first half marathon is a huge deal (as you know) :) Sounds like so much fun, too. How cool that your DH and DS were there for you. Your own cheering section makes *such* a difference, doesn't it? Love the posters, BTW.

Susan, congrats on your placing!

Welcome back TKay.

Hi to Les, Robyn et al. Indian was awesome last night and we have enough left over for dinner tonight. We've been having a very nice afternoon. Got in a good run yesterday.

Hope everyone's doing well!

[VictoriaL]

Wow, you all have been busy bees! ;)

A huge CONGRATS to Kathy! It sounded like lots of fun, and you did so well. :) Also, what race is up next???

And congrats on the "surprise" 10k to Susan. You probably weren't even training for this, just woke up on Saturday and thought "think I'll run a race today", right?

Well, Robyn, a 5-mile run followed by a 3-mile hike-- your day off certainly was well-earned.

Tkay, your vacation at Mammoth was my kind-- mountain walks, relaxing, and lattes. You need a break from that TM, you know.

Les, only 5 weeks? Wow. Time really does fly,doesn't it? And the next 5 weeks are going to go even faster, I think!

Nat, our nice weather came back again, too. Wonderful, isn't it?

Well, the packing/ unpacking/ moving has gone well so far. We hired movers who we had worked with before so, no surprises there (yay!).

It has been a very long week. :)

I want to know how the couple who sold us the farm moved when we bought the house—he was in his early 90’s and his wife in her mid-70’s. Yes, they had their son and his wife helping but, for heavens’ sake, DH and I moved his mom from a two-bedroom to a one-bedroom apartment and we are totally, utterly exhausted.

Tomorrow The MIL returns, with the SIL, in late afternoon and we are so nervous. She didn’t want to do this, and only reluctantly agreed to move. Honestly, this new apartment makes her old one look like (to be quite honest) a dump, but will she see that? Our fingers are crossed…

And I wouldn’t have made it this far without running. I was actually able to get out every other day, only for 30 minutes at a time, but how wonderful it was to put the earphones in, turn on the music, and just get out into the beautiful spring days! I managed to get out Tuesday, Thursday, and this past Saturday, with hopes for another tomorrow. I probably did only 2.5 miles each time, but I wasn’t counting. Simply getting out was good enough!

But I have to tell you all about Saturday’s run. I did about ¾ of it on my newly-trimmed trails then headed back through the meadow paths to the house. As I stopped for water (I leave my bottle under a tree at the edge of our yard), Spooky came up to brush against my legs. I rubbed his ears quickly, and then told him that there was more coming after I finished. I commanded him to stay and guard my water bottle ( :) ) and ran up the first leg of a figure-8-type loop. As I turned, after about .11 mile, I glanced over my shoulder and saw my little black cat running toward me, about halfway to the turn. I figured that he would soon stop to sniff the scent of a rabbit or something and get distracted, so I kept running. I returned to my water bottle, looked up the trail and didn’t see him. So I kept running. At the end I looked left, then right. No Spooky. Figuring that he saw me turn right, I did the same and kept running. It wasn’t until after I made the next turn that I saw him a few hundred feet in front of me, running in the direction I had just come from. He heard me behind him, stopped and turned, startled, then recognized me and began to run toward me! We met, I rubbed his ears, and said “well, let’s go!”. He ran behind me the whole way back to the house!!! :D

I checked out the distance on my map and he had run .34 mile.

Okay, I think that it’s way cool that I can take my cat for a walk, and even better that he runs with me!

He has been left alone for many hours at a time lately as we move and set up my MIL’s new home, and the lack of activity is keeping him (and therefore, unfortunately, me) awake at night. Saturday night I went to bed and we both slept through until 6 (when I was awakened by heavy purring). That hasn’t happened in several days and I was sooooo grateful!

Okay, fingers crossed for us tomorrow, please. IF MIL arrives and is less than impressed, both DH and I will be crushed! And Spooky will be annoyed that he has had to spend so many days alone for nothing...

Happy Running, everyone!

[jjsooner73]

Kathy--That is incredible! Congratulations! I'll use that for inspiration. I'm very impressed.
I can't believe mine is two weeks away. :eek:

Susan-Congrats on your spontaneous 10K and AG finish. Way to go!

Natasha-I love Indian food! That sounds delish. DBF isn't a fan, so I don't get it as often as I'd like. I hope you've had a nice time with your mom this weekend.

Leslie-my how time has flown, hasn't it? It may not seem that way from your perspective. Five more Sundays-I hope they are all filled with blessings for you and your parishioners.

Robyn-congrats on the five mile run! And the hike too-you definitely got your exercise this weekend. A hike with dogs sounds like so much FUN!

Tkay-Glad Mammoth was a nice relaxing trip for you.

Vicci-that's so funny about your cat! What a character. I hope your MIL is pleased with all of you and DH's hard work.

So the 10K today was fun. It was HOT! I think it was around 80 at gun time (last year this race had a 32 degree start with blistering winds), which is warmer than I hoped it would be. We started at 2. The run was through the older, historical, and wealthy part of OKC. There were lots of families out cheering in support, some with water hoses, some live music here and there, and a lot of cute dogs. :) I'm not happy with my time, but considering the heat increase from my last 10K, I guess I won't dwell on it. And on a positive note, it was faster than any of my recent training runs. On another positive note, this is the first longer run I've done where I don't have something just hurting after. I feel pretty good. That makes me very happy. Hopefully tomorrow will be the same.
I had recently commented to someone that if runners always hurt like this after running, why do they do it? Then someone pointed out it wasn't normal. . . so I didn't push myself too hard this week, have been stretching, and feel good. Hopefully that continues.

I have one more long run to get in later this week, then will start tapering. Yikes!

[SusanMac]

Kathy - Congratulations on completing your first half!! Your time and your pacing was fantastic! So cool that your family could see you so many times on the course. Enjoy lots of well-deserved rest this week.

JJ - It think it's huge progress if you have no aches & pains after your 10K! Plus, being faster than recent runs. I totally agree that your pace probably had to do with the suddenly hot temps. Wow, 80 is warm for April in OK, I'd think.

Les - 5 more weeks is just amazing! Sounds like your sermon was very rewarding for everyone involved. Nice job on the bike ride

Nat - I made my first curry at home last week, and was pretty pleased with it. Not like authentic take-out, but good. Even better the next day, which might be typical.

Robyn - Your week sounds pretty fantastic!

Tkay - your relaxing trip sounds just perfect. I haven't tried snowboarding yet, just regular downhill. Maybe one day.

Yesterday was a 28-mile bike ride w/a GF. She's kind of new to clipless pedals & road biking, and is doing the 70.3 with me in July. So, we'll probably ride a lot together in the coming months. It went well & was just a picture perfect day for riding.

Today is happy, happy rest day :-)

[Natasha]

Jennifer, way to go on your 10k! Excellent job :)

Susan, ditto on your ride.

Vicci, fingers crossed that your MIL likes the apartment!! Please keep us posted.

And I LOVE the Spooky story. Cutest thing I've heard all day. I'm still smiling.

Gorgeous day out here as well. I plan to run. Got stew simmering away on the stove for dinner, too.

Hope everyone else is also doing well!

[Natasha]

Popping back in to report a fantastic run. Oh, and the stew was pretty good, too :)

[TKay]

Nat - Nice job on the run and the stew. Both sound good.

Susan - Great ride. It will be nice having someone to train with.

Jennifer - That's great that you completed the run in such heat. I'm sure the weather didn't help your time. Good for you anyway!

Vicci - I love, love, love the Spooky-as-runner story. I can picture him prancing up the trail after you (or in front of you). So cute. Glad you got all that MIL moving work behind you. Here's to a great reception when she and SIL arrive.

Les - Glad your sermon went well and was well received. For some reason, I'm not surprised. :)

Nothing to report for today. Spent the day working for this new client (which pretty much zapped me). And I'm helping dh with a paper tonight. I'll be glad when I'm out of school--er, I mean, when dh finishes his degree. :p

[jjsooner73]

Checking in quickly before I finish my taxes (still need to start them too...).

Tkay, good luck on your...er, DH's paper. :D

Yay Natasha on a great run and great stew!

Susan, your bike ride sounds fantastic. I'm itching to get mine out soon, and reading about your rides and Les' might just encourage me to.

Hi Vicci, Robyn, Les, Kathy, and anyone I might have missed.

I made it out of the office for 2-15 minute walks today. Each was a mile. I can do two laps around the inside loop of the state capital grounds. I even did the stairs of the capital on 3/4 passes. :) After work, I went to the gym and did weights.

After finally getting home and fixing/eating dinner, I took the dogs to the dog park and witnessed a beautiful sunset while the dogs ran around and socialized. Not a bad day at all!

OK, I better at least get these started....Later!

[Kathy B]

Rested yesterday and did 3 miles today. Working tomorrow, then we'll see.

Jennifer, I can't imagine running in 80 degree weather (was it Les who said your body heats up another 10 degrees after you get started?). I wouldn't worry at ALL about a slower time in those conditions! way to hang in there! Glad to hear you were not sore anywhere afterwards! I would guess that your 1/2 will start in the AM, so hopefully it will be much cooler and you will fly through it! Is it on Saturday or Sunday in 2 weeks?

Vicci, hope your MIL was happy with her new place. Did things go well? Good that you were able to get in a little bit of outdoor activity to relieve the tension and exhaustion a bit. What a trooper Spooky is! Sounds like he has a lot of personality. :D Actually, DD and I may sign up for the Mother's Day 5K again this year. She really doesn't like to run, but she sounds pretty sure she wants to do this. It IS a fun event. We'll have to register soon.

Les, I imagine it must be pretty exciting to have things wrapping up and getting ready to move into the next phase. Have you been back out on your bike?

Tkay, your trip to Mammoth sounds like such a nice family event. And relaxing for you, too! Good for your 10 year old for snowboarding from the top of the mountain his first time. From what I hear, it is not that easy to pick up, but the one's who do, love it!

Susan, the bike ride with a friend sounds nice. Having someone to train with who has the same goal should be really helpful. 70 miles in July sounds really hot, but maybe it's not so bad in Wisconsin? I hope not....we will be heading that way in July for a family reunion.

Natasha, sounds like you have been getting in some really good runs. Good job!! Your weather must still be nicely cool in the evenings if you are making stew for dinner.

Wow, Robyn, you have such an ACTIVE week planned! Have fun with ALL of that. Sounds like a nice variety of fun activities.

Need to get busy doing a bit of cooking myself...dinner for tonight AND tomorrow night since I work tomorrow. Might try to throw some cookies in the oven, too. Take care all! :)

[Leslie Ferguson]

Jennifer - 80 degrees should make your pace ~15-20% slower than 45-50 (I think that's right - I did a 3:20 marathon in 40 degree weather and 4:00 in 85+) so slower isn't a bad thing in those conditions. It sounds like you had a good post-run run.
Kathy - I'm glad you've had a good post race time. Enjoy your cooking.
TKay - Sorry your new client zapped you but I'm glad that you've got a new client.

There is definitely a lot of mixed emotions about the end coming. I think it would be better if I had someplace definite that I would be going after I graduated. Still have lots of irons in the fire but still waiting patiently. I haven't been back out on my bike since Saturday but it was a long day at church Sunday and I got a brief about the retirement plan for Episcopal clergy (it's a pretty good program). I ran this afternoon - it was a nice afternoon to start with, a little drizzle when I started. Of course, that didn't last for the duration of the run because it started raining steadily by the end of the run. It wasn't raining hard but definitely very consistently.

Have a great evening and I'll see you on the morrow.
Les

[VictoriaL]

Jennifer, good going on your 10k! 32F with a nasty wind chill last year, and 80F this year-- nothing like typical spring weather, huh?! :p

Susan, now that you mention it, I am looking forward to my life settling down enough to get my bike out. Of course, 28 miles is a tad out of my abilities...

Nat, I have to take a photo of walking or running w/ Spooky so I'll be able to remember it forever. :) What type of stew did you make? Funny, whenever I hear the word "stew" I automatically think of "beef" because that's what I grew up with. I made a Mexican chicken stew last winter that was pretty wonderful.

Tkay what kind of degree is DH working on? I'm sorry if I missed it in a previous post.

KathyB, I remember you and DD running that 5k last year and I hope that you're able to do so this year since it sounded like a good time for both of you.

Les, you always seem to be running in the rain! Ahhhh, spring! At least there's no snow. ;)

I am overjoyed to report that MIL "loves" her new apartment. I have to admit, we did a pretty darn good job moving in and getting it all set up/ decorated in only 3 days. She and SIL arrived in time for dinner last night and the food there is quite good. :) We had a champagne toast in her apartment afterward and arrived home late. Today was gloomy and rainy-- and DH and I didn't wake until 9:30! I guess we needed the rest.

I planned to run today, but the weather kept me in so I cleaned my neglected house and baked bread and cookies. Tomorrow is packed, as is the following day, so I don't think I'll get a chance to go back out until Friday. Hopefully. I did get in a session with weights this afternoon, though. So I wasn't a total slug! :D

See you all in the next thread!

[Kathy B]

Hurray, Vicci! :) I am so glad to hear that your MIL was happy with all of your efforts and her new place. What a relief that must be in so many ways. Good for you for sleeping in and relaxing with a baking day....well deserved!!

[TKay]

Vicki - Wahoo! I am so happy to hear that MIL loves her new place. I agree with Kathy. You have earned that rest. I have to tell you, I keep picturing Spooky out on the run with you. It makes me smile. Oh, and dh is getting his masters in health care administration. (I probably haven't mentioned it before.)

Les - Mixed feelings for sure. I can completely understand that. I'm sure your faith really helps you remain peaceful when facing uncertainty. The running doesn't hurt either.:)

Kathy - Sounds like your recovery is going really, really well. How did your legs feel for the three-miler? Your cooking/baking sounds good. Hope work went well.

Jennifer - A lovely day all around for you. Good luck with the taxes. Mine are still on the counter waiting to be mailed. We get a refund, so I don't know what I'm waiting for. I guess I just love a deadline. :rolleyes:

I did a quick TM weight walk yesterday. I've upped the handweights to five-pounders (I think I'd been using threes before). I've also increased the incline a bit. Trying to make it a bit more challenging. Rushed around taking care of work and school and scouts and various other things yesterday. Today is calmer, thankfully, but I still haven't worked out. I'm headed up there now.

Happy Wednesday, runners! And hi to those I missed: Nat, Robyn, Susan, and anyone else who's hanging around.

[TKay]

Got in an hour-long run this morning. Boy, it was hard getting myself going. But I was really glad I stuck with it.

[Natasha]

TKay, nice job on the run!

Jennifer, sounds like a lovely day :)

Les, I can also understand the mixed feelings.

Vicci, yes, please do take a photo of Spooky if he does that again (or even otherwise - I'd love to see a photo of him). What a personality!

The stew I made was loosely based on an ancient CL recipe I'd cut out goodness knows when - Peasant Stew. I came across it while tidying and figured it would be a good quick meal. And it was. It had chicken, tomatoes, beans, cilantro, and so on.

Got in a very nice spin today, followed by an even better massage :) The shoulders so needed it!

Take care, all
Nat

[SusanMac]

Natasha - very jealous of your massage!! I recently got out our electric back massager & have been using it regularly on my legs & shoulders.

Kathy - your temp comment made me laugh! You truly are the TM Queen! since you've got several months over 80 degrees there, I'd think. Yes, my July race in Michigan will be blazing hot. Yesterday was 80 here, as well. Crazy warm for April.

Vicci - your Spooky story was adorable! I think you've got a little runner on your hands...or at least a dog ;-) Congrats on the MIL move. I'm so excited that she liked her new place.

JJ - what kind of dogs do you have? Our local dog park is one of my fav places to run (sounds odd, but it's really a perfect trail running spot) Is your half-mar coming up this weekend? Or do you have one more week?

Here's my update...

Tues - Neighborhood run with Bode :-) 30 min. It was a 2-bagger, if you know what I mean. Do we need to report on that??
Wed - Great bike ride. 34 miles with good hills and 20 mph winds. Ouch! Felt good, though. Followed by buffalo burgers for dinner :-)

[TKay]

Susan - Buffalo burgers? Really? I've never had them. Your ride sounds killer.

Nat - Oh, a massage! Sounds lovely. In fact, that's a good idea for dh's birthday (which is Sat). I'm having trouble coming up with gift ideas for him. Perhaps a gift cert for a massage is in order?

ETA: Got in another hour today. This time, weight walking with lunges and whatnot.

[jjsooner73]

CHecking in quickly and then bed.

I did my last long run today before the half. I only got 7.75 before dark, but did it under a 12:00 pace (good for me)! I feel good. I wish I could have gotten a longer one in, but the day's schedule didn't allow for it. I'm worried that I haven't done enough long runs, but it's too late now. Hopefully adrenaline will keep me in it. :) And the fact that my body feels good helps. I had an extra spring in my step tonight. Maybe it's the chia seeds? :D

Have a great weekend everyone.