Runner's High

Freezing before the race

In Corral 19...way back there!

Almost to the start line

Alright, I'm hooked! :)  I had so much fun today running 13.1 miles in my first half marathon! I ran the 2013 St. Louis Rock and Roll Marathon in downtown St. Louis. The weather was freezing, which I wasn't quite prepared for. I get hot easily and thought I would be fine in my tank. When I realized it wasn't going to warm up past 32 degrees at 10am, I grabbed a long sleeve running top too. It worked out and I shed that layer at the 4 mile mark. I felt really good the entire time. At around mile 5, 8 and 10 I was bothered by my ankle, but I tried to shrug that away mentally. That worked pretty well, because I felt great coming in at mile 12 and 13.

My goal was to run the whole time, and I did it! I really underestimated myself, since I thought I would finish in about 3 hours and instead I completed in 2 and a half hours. YEA! Next time (yes, there will be a next time!) I hope to beat my time and sprint in the last half mile or so (instead of the last 20 yards). I am really excited about this new passion and hope to run more half marathons in the future, which I think is a great sign as to how the race went.

I also realized how many people were there for me and cheering me on and praying for me. That meant so much!! Especially Tom, who got up early, drove me down and managed to follow me with the camera!

Mile 4

The numbers:

• Finished in 2:30:46, which gave me a 11:31 overall split
• My 5K time: 32:54
• My 10 K time: 1:09:30
• My 10 mile time: 1:54:59

The Finish Line

All wrapped up, it was cold afterwards!

With my medal

-

Enjoying the concert by Atlas Genius and ready for lunch!

We'll see where my next Half Marathon leads me!

Been Out for a Run

I have no reason for my lack of posting recently, except that I have been busy RUNNING! I've set a big goal that I have been wanting to attain for awhile. Tomorrow, I will be running my first half marathon! I'm excited and nervous about running the 13.1 miles. I'm trying to psych myself up for it...I know my body can do it...now just my mind needs to get in the game!

A little motivation:

I can't wait to post about how it went!

Blank Pages

Yesterday was the first day of school! Here's to a new school year, and a new year (To me, this is the new  year more than in January, because my birthday is coming soon and I'll be starting another year of life)! Being a book lover, I connected with this quote. Since I'm starting a new journey as a reading teacher, and saying goodbye to the experience of being a classroom teacher, I feel like I'm writing a whole new book.

I hope it is a good one!

The 12 Minute Work Out

Tom shared this interesting study with me about how 12 minutes of high intensity workouts, even at a low volume, can reduce cholesterol and fat successfully. The 16 minutes work outs were even better, but still at a manageable time limit.

This is so surprising to me, but refreshing too. In my mind, a workout should be 1-1 1/2 hours long! I know. Ridiculous! But that's what I did in high school and college and I was in great shape (not surprising I guess, considering the time I spent at the gym.) So, now, I feel this pressure to work out for a long time. But you know what happens? I get so overwhelmed by not working out long enough that I just DON'T work out at all. So silly. And not at all healthy.

So, all that to say, I can handle 12 minutes, or even 16 minutes! It is so do-able! Here's my plan I've been following (keep in mind: high intensity):

16 Minutes to Fitness

2 minutes of bosu ball burpees

2 minutes of jump rope

2 minutes of side steps with resistance band

2 minutes of pylometric jacks

2 minutes of push ups

2 minutes of regular burpees

2 minutes of mountain climbers

2 minute plank

Stretch!

Here's my oh-so-fabulous gym I belong to:

Fooled ya! It's my basement and it USUALLY doesn't have wood in the middle of it. 

And guess what? Once I do my 16 minutes, then I wind up stretching and wanting to do more exercises because my adrenaline is going and I feel great. In the end, I'm working out for a solid 30 minutes, which I feel pretty dang good about. [Because let's face it, you only have time for hour and a half work outs when you are in college. I mean, I had to squeeze them in between studying and playing intramural football and hanging out and getting my meals cooked for me and having dance parties and studying and talking and sleeping. Rough life!]

Here's to 12 minutes of fitness!

My new (old) friend Denim

I am no fashionista. But I love to try out new looks and put together outfits where I feel like one. The problem? Lack of disposable income...aka the ability to buy every cute thing I see at Target. I shop mostly at Target with a little Macy's and Forever 21 thrown in there. I am proud of a few purchases I've made that incorporate denim. I feel very put together in these outfits, and that always is a benefit to my [low] self esteem.

Here they are:

A denim shirt from Forever 21 I mentioned here paired with a super cute denim accented fedora from Target [bonus: it was on sale] with white shorts:

My new denim jacket I found for a good deal at Marshall's. I tried to by like this fabulous shopper and blogger and take my picture like she does. MUCH harder than it looks, although I didn't have access to a mirror, I believe that helps!!

Denim on denim makes me a bit nervous though, it seems to be a trend, but it also goes against everything I ever learned about fashion. We'll see about that! :)

Refreshed

I needed some refreshment and that's exactly what I got this past weekend! I had the 6th Annual Cottage [where I lived Senior year of College] Reunion, with all my fabulous closest and dearest friends.

We did everything every girls getaway should: screaming with excitement, shopping in the cute area of Cedarburg, stopping ice cream and coffee houses, talking and laughing, eating, sharing stories, staying up until 2am, ATVing, laying out at the pool, loving time one another, getting dressed up for a fun night out, going downtown to Milwaukee, sharing exciting news, taking a million pictures, talking and crying, screaming with animation, eating more snacks and ice cream and dessert than I ever need, having dance parties, more talking and praying together. 

It was beautiful. Every minute. And I feel oh so refreshed.

Provoking and Powerful, a book reccommendation

I love reading, and as you saw on my Summer Bucket List that I had a few books on my list for the summer. This is the current one I'm addicted to:

I absolutely love Peggy Orenstein's style of writing. The way she conveys emotion, truth, pain, and [sometimes irrational] hope is amazing and speaks right to my soul. I certainly don't agree with everything, maybe even many, of her religious viewpoints or perspectives, but it is very interesting, and made me think deeply about various beliefs that I had not considered before. I highly recommend it, whether or not you have faced infertility, I think it is a powerful read.