Summer, Summer, Summertime!

No time to sit back and unwind...

The thought of my first Florida summer since becoming a runner is making me nervous. I don't have any races on my schedule until September because the only thing offered in my area are 5ks and I still have a hard time with the first 3 miles of each and every run. During previous summers I've always tried to do as little as possible during the hottest portions of the day. Unfortunately that lasts from about 9am to 8pm here in Hades. Combine that with the facts that I am not a morning person and it's becoming increasingly hard for me to stick to a schedule and I'm totally worried that I'm in danger of missing too many runs and undoing all the work that I've put into my running thus far.

To combat that I made a training schedule that included speedwork, long runs, and tempo runs starting this week. So far that's been a #fail! On one hand I want to get faster and better, but when the time comes for me to I strap on my shoes, I just want to zone out and run. So I've decided that that's what I'm going to do. My plan is to run 20+ miles per week for the rest of the summer. I figure that is a good base and my pace will improve as my body becomes more efficient at running. One can always hope anyways!

Race Recap: Corporate 5k

My youngest brother had a ton of questions after spectating at the Disney Princess Half Marathon. And he was super impressed by my race medal. So much so that he tried out for and won a spot on his schools track team! When I found out that my mom's job would pay the registration fee for employees and/or their family members I signed up so that my brother and I could run his first race together.

We got downtown a little before 5 so I parked in a metered space and only had to pay $1.25, instead of the $5 that the garages were charging *Score* After checking in, LB and I walked around Lake Eola a couple of times to warm up and then headed towards the corrals. Just before the race started I looked back and could not believe how many people there were. The announcer said there were 12,600 people registered!

I went into this race figuring I wouldn't set a PR. Both because I wanted to go at LB's pace and because I figured there would be a lot of people there who didn't know proper race etiquette. For instance, there were three different corrals, one for CEOS, one for runners, and a final one for walkers but there were walkers near the front of the runner corral. So we ended up doing a lot of dodging and weaving right off the bat.

LB fell a few minutes into the race. I tried to take a picture of it, but my camera didn't power up fast enough. What? I am his big sister lol. Apparently the poor kid was having a hard time staying on his feet because he slipped, but didn't fall, a few minutes later. After that he managed to stay upright for the rest of the race. He'd told me previously that he could run around the track at his school twice before having to stop so I made fun of him for wanting to take walk breaks before we got to mile two. That led to an argument about how long the track at his school was (I ended that one by telling him to ask his coach).

As we continued along the course which wound through a downtown neighborhood, I spent the rest of the race encouraging him and pointing out other partcipants. There were firefighters running in full gear and an amputee, all of whom we both thought were really cool and awe-inspiring. When we got to the last quarter mile I encouraged him to kick it up so that we could finish strong. While it wasn't a 5k PR for me, the huge grin on LBs face after the race was priceless!
Final time, 32:54.
After the race several runners high-fived him and told him how great he did. Then he asked where his medal was lmbo. I had to explain that they don't normally give them out at 5ks but that he could have my shirt. I found a medal on ebay that I bid on, hopefully I'll win so that I can have it engraved to commemorate his first race.

On the way home he kept saying "I did it, I did it!" :)

Race Recap: AFLAC Iron Girl 15k

Last Saturday, I set out to tackle my first 15k race. I was kind of worried because I've done very little running since my half marathon so I felt very unprepared. Nevertheless, on race day morning I tightened my laces and headed off to Pier 60!

After FINALLY finding a parking space, I got out of the car and decided to run with my camera so that I could take pics along the course. Once I got all the way downstairs, I turned my camera on only to discover that it kept giving me some weird error message and wouldn't take pictures! FML. Then I turned Gabby the Garmin on, only to have her flash a "low battery" warning at me. Seriously? You couldn't tell me that last night? *Sigh*

Post race but we'll pretend it's a view of everyone lining up lol
After warming up I got as close as I could to the starting line and a short time later we were off! The course runs up and over the causeway and I really enjoyed the views across the bay and of the sunrise. Then we ran down a street before turning into a neighborhood. Somewhere around mile 4 I spotted my friend M, who was in mile 7 and getting ready to head back towards the finish line. M is amazing, she ran her first marathon earlier this year and ran it with a BQ time. Who does that???

Anyhoo... it was around this time that I realized that I had to pee but there were no porta-potties in sight. I figured I had just missed them but since the course looped through the neighborhood twice I didn't freak out because I figured I'd be able to stop on my second time around. Ummm... no. Can you believe there were NO portapotties on the frigging course?!? Well, correction... there was one set at mile 1.5, which was also mile 8 #FAIL.

One the way back across the causeway I was feeling so good that I was actually singing along with Beyonce and Rhianna, which I'm sure annoyed the heck out of the other runners since I can't sing lol.

Finishing time 1:51:25.

The lack of training showed because my finishing time was more than 5 minutes off from my 15k split during the half marathon. Still, I'm glad for this experience because it taught me that you can't brush off any distance race if you want to have constant improvement (like I do).

I had some issues with the logistics of this race and I made sure to submit feedback to the race directors via email. But I still plan on running this race next year because it's one of the last distance races of more than 5k in my area until the fall.

The Aftermath

After running my half marathon, I was a bit worried about Monday. My friends who'd an their first half last year told me horror stories about barely being able to walk. Add on the fact that when I went to bed I was still experiencing a lot of hip pain and I just knew it was going to be a recipe for disaster.

But I woke up with a minuscule amount of pain in my hip and slight pain in my quads. The quad pain was nothing that a little Biofreeze couldn't help and the hip pain wasn't enough to impair my mobility... if you don't count getting in and out of my SUV on my way to Track Shack to pick up my 13.1 sticker.

I was still feeling good later that afternoon so, in typical me fashion I decided that I needed to do something and went for a 2 mile walk with my furbabies... I still can't decide whether it was a good idea or not because within a couple of hours of getting home it hurt to move my thighs at all. I rested all day Tuesday. And yesterday I could still feel some soreness and tightness in my thighs so I did some Pilates which really helped. I've decided that the only exercise I should do for most the rest of the week is light stretching. Which kind of sucks because I want to do the Zimmerman Distance Dare event on Saturday. Boo!!!

This week is flying by! On my SparkPeople and Twitter pages I usually post three things that I'm thankful for each Thursday so here goes:

1. Faith: Even though things are not perfect in my life I have this strong sense that I am on the verge of something great, so I'm not stressed and am still able to appreciate the joys in my life. And I jump out of bed excited to see what each day will bring.

2. Being able to surprise my mom for her birthday: She thought that we had planned a family dinner with her, my siblings, and I, but I invited some of our extended family and some old friends and coworkers of hers. She was surprised and really felt special. Oh, and my sister made her wear a tiara.


3. My first half marathon: I met a lot of wonderful people both online and IRL while training for my race. Plus, I can't think of anything else that would have been as much of a confidence booster or given me as much of a sense of accomplishment as training for and running my first half. Ever since Sunday, one of my first thoughts in the morning is "I ran a half marathon!" and I get out of bed with a huge grin on my face. And I want to tell random people all about it. Like the guy at Michaels who was directing me to the shadowboxes. I bet he was like "umm... yeah, so I don't care" lol.

Btw, I don't know when I'm going to put my shadowbox together because I'm not ready to part with my medal or tiara. I like to put them on in the morning and walk around the house for a while. It makes me happy!

Race Day Recap: Disney Princess Half Marathon

Warning: This post is super long!!!

Race Eve: On Saturday I met Robin, along with some other DailyMile members who were running the Disney Princess Half for dinner. I still tend to draw back into my shell when I'm in a group of people that I don't know well, but they were all very friendly and encouraging... just like they are online.

Then I headed home and began getting ready for bed. After triple checking both the alarm clock and the alarm on my cell phone later that night, I finally went to bed around 8:45, only to wake up at 11pm. I stayed in bed desperately praying for sleep and then I began having random thoughts of going to Waffle House. It's been so long that I couldn't even tell you when I last ate there so really?

It was around that time that I concluded that getting a good nights sleep was a big fat #FAIL. So I got up, made breakfast, got dressed, and put on my tiara. It was still really early so I had to wait around a bit. I sat on the couch with my furbabies and watched Mean Girls and part of Legally Blonde. Then 3am hit and it was finally time to head out to Disney!

Pre-Race: For some reason, whenever I get off at 192 I always fail to take the ramp onto Disney property. Per usual, I realized I was headed out to Kissimmee before making a u-turn and getting back on track.

After waiting around in the athlete holding area the gate was opened, and we headed towards our corrals. I was the fifth person to go into Corral C so I got right up front.

Did I mention that it was cold? Well it was, but it wasn't cold enough to damper my excitement! I actually participated in the Cha Cha Slide, and even worse, the Macarena during the 45 minute wait. What seemed like a short time later, the fairy godmother announced that it was time for the race to begin and after counting down the runners in Corral A were off! The corrals were released 7 minutes apart so 14 minutes later it was my turn!!!

Start - Mile 3: I normally struggle with the first three miles of my run, but not today! My first three miles flew by... but not before I passed a bunch of walkers who I'm assuming started out to fast, a high school band, Flik from A Bugs Life, and Captain Jack Sparrow and his ship. A lot of people stopped for pictures but I was on a mission!

Mile 1: 10:10
Mile 2: 10:31
Mile 3: 10:41
Official 5k pace: 10:31

Miles 4-6: This was without a doubt, the best part of the race for me! My cheer squad was somewhere around mile 4.5. I should mention that my cousin was so excited that she had some random (but fun) lady screaming my name too lol. After taking a few pics and giving my camera to my sister, I ran on feeling like a rockstar.

Before I knew it we were entering Magic Kingdom. When we turned the corner onto Main Street USA I could feel the biggest grin come across my face. It was awesome because spectators were lined up along the street! Then I saw the castle. Now, I don't normally get excited about stuff like that but it was seriously amazing to run through the castle (still wearing a huge grin, of course). I stopped long enough to take a picture, which I'm pretty sure is going to look really dorky because I vaguely remember throwing my hands up into something that probably resembled peace signs. Then I headed on.

Mile 4: 11:14
Mile 5: 10:31
Mile 6: 10:55
Official 10k pace: 10:55

Miles 7-9: I don't remember anything exciting about Mile 7. But Mile 8 is another story *sigh* About halfway through Mile 8 I realized that my hamstrings had been tight for a while and it wasn't going away, so I stopped to do a couple of stretches. When I started running again Oh Em Gee!!! My hip was hurting! But I kept running, albeit it slower. After all, this was my first half marathon and I didn't go there to walk. But by mile 9 I was doing just that, which did not make me happy Ugh!

Side note: I wish there were more spectators between Miles 9 and 10 of the course because that part runs along another service road and is very boring. My cheer squad clearly isn't any good at following directions because they'd all gone back to the finish line at Epcot instead of spreading out along the course as instructed.

Mile 7: 11:20
Mile 8: 11:26
Mile 9: 14:21
Official 15k pace: 11:30

Miles 10-12: By mile 10 I decided that I was going to run the last 5k come hell or high water. Unfortunately the version of hell that I envisioned didn't have the effing onramp that I came to around 10.44 miles. I would have been okay with the incline because it wasn't that steep, but the stupid thing also had a wicked slope to the right. The slope increased the pain in my hip and it was just too much!

I still didn't feel physically fatigued and I had been strong mentally up until that point. But having to walk that ramp was sooo frustrating that I began tearing up. And it was a slow walk at that. I looked down at Gabbie (my Garmin) and realized that there was no way that I was going to hit my 11:00 min/mile pace goal and started getting even more bummed about the whole situation. I'm sure I looked like a princess who'd kissed one too many frogs at that point.

Once I got to the top of the ramp I looked over the overpass at the sea of people who were behind me and in such good spirits. That actually cheered me up a bit. I ran on and realized that I was coming up on Jack Sparrow again, then Flik, and the highschool band! That must mean that I was almost finished!

Once we got back into Epcot there were spectators and volunteers cheering us on and telling us that we only had one mile to go. I really did not want to walk any of that last mile so I prayed that there would be no more sloped ramps and kept going. When I rounded the corner and could spot the finish line I started grinning like an idiot. I didn't have it in me to sprint to the finish line but I did finish it running!

Mile 10: 13:18
Mile 11: 14:32
Mile 12: 12:55
Mile 13: 11:43
Last .25 before I stopped the timer: 2:37

Official time: 2:37:37
Garmin time: 2:36:24 for 13.25 miles (Not sure why, but most DailyMilers said their Garmin also charted the course at 13.25 miles instead of 13.1)

Post-Race: I picked up my finisher's medal and walked towards the food before realizing that my hip felt like it was gonna fall off lol. My only thought beyond getting a banana and something to drink was to get to my car so that I could stretch and sit down. After finding my family, we took a couple of pictures...

then I headed off in the direction of my car. Only I couldn't find it! I seriously wandered around the parking lot for at least 10 minutes before realizing that it was on the row that I had initially started on, but farther down the row FML. I dragged my left leg into my SUV and headed back home. Somewhere on the trip back, I realized that I was rubbing my medal, grinning, and planning my next half marathon!

I Must Be Slightly Crazy

I am so amped that I'll be running my first ever half marathon this Sunday! Who gets this excited about running 13.1 miles? Although I didn't do all of my planned training runs and my longest distance was a 10 and a half miler a couple of weeks ago, I feel like I'm ready.

I am also really excited that that I will have my very own Royal Cheer Squad there.

Yes, I gave them a name and even send out newsletters (in pink and purple fonts) that say From the Chambers of Princess Rekeesha. And yes, I know that I'm a dork lol

I thought about going it alone, but then I decided that I really wanted someone there to cheer me on. So I volunteered my sister to come, as in I told (not asked) her that I would be picking her up that morning so she would need to take the day off. She, in turn, volunteered her boyfriend lol. Then I found out that I have two friends who will be volunteering at the event. And within the last week my cousin and two other friends have called me saying they want to come spectate. Who knew that people would be so willing to volunteer to get up REALLY early in the morning to come cheer me on? I'm glad they are though, because I have a feeling that seeing their smiling faces along the course will give me bursts of energy and make me want to keep going if it gets rough.

Also, although I said only really crazy people run full marathons, the thought has been running through my mind that I should train to run a full in 2011. Training for this half has been such a positive experience for me that I want more.

Disney Princess Half Marathon Training Update

So, I realized late last night that the Disney Princess Half is almost here! As of today, it's 29 days away. Someone asked whether I am ready for it and I am. I'm going into the race without setting time goals. My only goal is to complete the run... I've even given myself permission to walk if need be. I'm really hoping to run/jog the whole thing, but have a feeling I'm going to get swept up in the excitement and start out too fast. Whenever that happens I hit a wall and have to walk a bit to bring my heart rate back down. I just want to enjoy race day, get some bling, and start training for my next race.

I have an 8 mile long run scheduled for this week. I'm really looking forward to it because that will be the farthest I've ever run at once. I love how I feel each time that I set a new personal record :)

My cousin totally bailed on me and our plan to run the Gasparilla 15k so I am planning on running the Heart Health 10k instead. If I do well enough, I'll qualify for higher corral placement at the half. Woot!

I came up with this Banana Nut Greek Yogurt recipe earlier tonight after I started craving Chunky Monkey Ice Cream. I'm still experimenting with Greek yogurt, but this dessert really hit the spot!

Another Milestone

I ran my first 7 miler yesterday, and it felt amazing to complete it!!!
My pace 11 minutes per mile on the dot... not too bad, but I'll be glad when I gain some speed.

For some reason, it never fails that the first 2 or 3 miles of each run are the hardest for me, no matter what distance I run. I feel like I need to take a walk break after each mile and want to quit. Then, just past the 3 mile mark the running fairies finally wake up and sprinkle their pixie dust on me; after that everything starts clicking and I'm okay for the rest of the run.

I feel like such a weirdo because it seems like it would be the other way around (easy at the beginning and harder near the end).

Anywho... Since I did originally start this blog to document my hair journey here are a few pics that I made my brother take the other day. *You can click on it for a bigger picture*


According to this handy dandy day calculator, I have been locked for 2 years, 8 months, 5 days. So... I'm kind of over my hair. I love my locks and can't imagine not having them, but I just haven't been taking pics and analyzing them like I did at first. So from here on out this blog will be a place for me to document what ever random thing I happen to be obsessed with at any given time.

Halfway There!!!

I weighed in yesterday and I am halfway towards my goal weight! 15 lbs gone baby!!!

It took forever, but I finally found a routine that works for me and everything is rolling along smoothly. If you aren't incorporating strength training and HIIT sessions into your routine, start doing it asap! I had been stuck in the 170s for a few months now, but adding these two things into my routine have kicked my metabolism into gear.

My midway reward is a spa treatment so I've booked it for the 29th of this month. As an added bonus, the spa is having a special happy hour night and the theme is chocolate! Can it get any better than a massage and chocolate? I'm going to set aside my weekly cheat meal for that night so that I can indulge in the complimentary chocolate-tinis (and hopefully chocolate covered strawberries) without feeling guilty. I can't wait!


Today also marks the beginning of Week 6 of the 12 week half marathon training program that I'm following. I cannot believe how well the training is going, considering that I just started running in the middle of December. I have logged over 55 miles since then! My last long run was 6 miles and while I feel like I walked entirely too much during the run, I finished it... I was grinning like an idiot for most of the last two miles lol.

I Surprised Myself Today :)

I did it... I ran 3 miles.

3 miles without once letting that little nagging feeling of doubt take over. 3 miles of not pysching myself out. 3 miles of feeling both mentally and physically strong.

I ran 3 miles without stopping for a walk break. Today was the first time that I've ever run for more than 2 miles without stopping. It felt so good that I decided to keep going.

And before you know it I'd run another mile. 4 miles... at once!!! Woohoo!

And THAT felt so amazing that I wanted to keep going. So I ran, and I ran, and I ran. And I ran until the little voice came on my iPod telling me that I'd run 5 miles. I looked at the treadmill to confirm it, and it was true!

I still can't believe it. And I still feel strong, and amazing, and so proud of myself.

I ran 5 miles today without stopping. And it felt wonderful!

60 Days til the Disney Princess Half Marathon!!!

I'm still following my program and super excited. I may be a bit of a weirdo because I actually look forward to the long runs that are scheduled. I think it's so exciting to run farther than I ever have before. I ran 5 miles this past weekend. 5 miles!!!

This from someone who had never even run a nonstop mile just 3 weeks ago and would have laughed in your face 8 months ago if you told me that I would be gearing up for a half marathon. I still walk a bit (1-1.5 minutes every 2 miles) but...

I always feel like a total rockstar when I finish a run!

Choosing a Weightloss Goal

When I first set my goal weight I chose 155 pounds, which called for a 30 pound weight loss. I chose that number based on the last time that I felt good about my body. I wasn't thin, but I was solid and didn't have a lot of fluff around my midsection. And yes, it's fluff, not fat!

So I happily continued on my journey until one day when I was playing around with the BMI calculator. It said that I would have to lose another 10 pounds to be in a healthy weight range. And that is on the very high end of the healthy weight range. What's a girl to do?

I've decided that I'm going to pursue my original goal of 30lbs and then go from there. I really don't think that BMI takes enough factors into consideration so I am shifting my focus to my body fat percentage instead. And as of this mornings weigh-in I am halfway to my goal weight!!!

I wrapped up week 5 of my half marathon training program and everything is going well. I have logged 54.54 miles since December 15th, 17 of them this week alone! Time is flying by and the Disney Princess Half Marathon will be here before I know it.

Happy New Years!!!

I'm so abnormal... I don't make New Years resolutions since I set personal goals each year on my birthday. I guess it would be too easy for me to start when everyone else does lol. Oh well, the goals that I set for myself on my 29th birthday (last May) were to be more fit and fulfilled. I'm so proud of myself for all that I've accomplished in the last 8 months. So I hope that all of my readers are Fit and Fulfilled in 2010.

I haven't run since Monday, so I excitedly set my alarm in order to meet up with a local running group to complete my first ever 5 mile run. Oh, and I didn't go to any NYE parties. True, I wasn't feeling too hot, but I wasn't THAT sick. Anywho, I digress... Turns out I didn't need the alarm because I was looking forward to it so much so that I woke up at 5am even though my alarm was set for 7. And I am NOT a morning person. But it's raining cats and dogs outside... Bummer! It would be just my luck that I would break my leg if I tried to run outside while it's wet so I guess I'll go to the gym later today to get my miles in.

Oh emm gee! I almost forgot to tell you all. *Drumroll*

I was selected to be sponsored to attend a local bootcamp! One of my friends told me about it and I'm super excited because she lost MAJOR inches during her 6 weeks on the program. Between Zumba, aerobic step, FIRM videos, and now running, I am the Cardio Queen. Strength training, however, is something that generally bores me, so hopefully this experience will help me find some joy in it. I have orientation tomorrow so I'll tell you more about it this weekend.

Where's S0utherngirl?

Hi Blogland,

I have been a busy bee lately and haven't been blogging lately. Life is fantastic... with the exception of me being out of work after being laid off just before Thanksgiving. Despite that I'm happy and feel like I'm in a really good, happy place. I don't have much to say about my hair, other than that it's on the grow. Somewhere along the way I discovered that my hair was long enough to rock a full on ponytail. Here are a couple of recent pics:





Now for the exciting stuff :)

On my birthday one of the goals that I set for myself was to run the 2010 Disney Princess Half Marathon... but then I didn't do anything. No running, no training, nada. Well, I registered for the race back on the 15th and have been training for it since then. I'm now in Week 2 of Hal Higdon's Novice Training Program and so far so good. I'll keep you all posted on how my training is going.

Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays everyone!