Change

Who likes change… no seriously… who likes change? For me it depends on how the change will affect me…

A good example… When the pounds fall off and I get to fit into those cute clothes I have in storage… I LOVE that kind of change….

HOWEVER—missing a turn and taking an additional 2 miles to get back to my house on an already long run? NOT OK! (No worries--- I logged EVERY ONE OF THOSE CALORIES!)

Adding running to a family of four means A LOT of things has to change- constantly. Stir into that mix the fact that my husband’s job can sometimes run after hours and almost ALWAYS happens on the weekend. Not helpful to a running schedule- so change is a constant effort on both of our parts… as well as patience!

In March, I got to run in the Diva Dash with the ladies in my family. It was my daughter’s first event and she was so excited. We talked about “wacing wif mom” for days and she was extremely hard to get to bed the night before. When we went to load up in the car, she shot off into the field! She was ready to RACE!!! She cried for the first few miles of us driving to the race but I think she eventually got it. we were still racing- but not in the back yard… we had to drive there first.

 I ran my 5k first… I thought I had beaten the last year’s time, far from it- but hey I got out there. I didn’t die and I crossed the finish... Goal accomplished.

Then it was Teagen’s turn… and bless her heart it was FREEZING! She was so excited though, we lined up at the 50 feet line, and they were off! Half way through the race the crowd on the side cheering them in had people giving out hi-fives to the little princesses. My daughter decided that would be a great time to stop, look at one of them and say “No touching, I no like you.” Nice. So proud! But my princess completed her race, got a tiara, a medal and a cupcake. And all was great… until mommy misjudged the grip on the cupcake and sent it flying. Eh… Whoops. I got her another one and that is ALL that matters!!

Still had a wonderful time and in the spirit of showing Teagen what it is like to live a healthy life... Mission accomplished. Racing has been a change of pace for my daughter but even more so now, we both look forward to the hectic (and sometimes cold) weekend schedule shake up just to be a little healthier.

Just remember, when you change something it can be super hard to stick too! Lately, my motivation has not been that great- okay, okay, okay… it has been non-existent. I have missed some runs here and there and I am pretty sure Jillian wants to know where I have been. Blech. Things happen, life happens- and that is a doozy for me! After much consideration, I have changed my running plan to incorporate 2 cross training days as well as 3 runs. This should help me to push forward with both aspects of my running program (turns out building up your muscles is just as important as using them- weird). I have included it for you if you would like a copy! If you

want help putting together a plan to join me in November- let me know! I would love to help in any way I can!

One last parting thought… Just because you think that is a nice looking pony from afar doesn’t mean you should get any closer to it… It might start barking at you and then what do you do???? (Lessons we learn when running)

Happy trails, sore muscles and calorie deficits,

~K

Mays Activities

(Week, Intervals, Miles)

Week 1	2/3	4	3	2	Xtrain 20	Xtrain 20
Week 2	2/3	5	4	2	Xtrain 20	Xtrain 20
Week 3	3/2	4	3	2	Xtrain 20	Xtrain 20
Week 4	3/2	2	4	2	Xtrain 20	Xtrain 20
Week 5	3/2	4	3	2	OFF	OFF

Rules of the Road

Road etiquette is not something I have made up nor is it something to be taken lightly! There are some of us that live in areas that either don’t care enough to put in sidewalks or cannot afford them- either way we are forced to share the road with some of you (often scary) drivers. Let’s get a few things straight here because I feel as though we are missing some very BASIC principles in how you should be behaving behind the wheel.

 

First of all, I am not on the left side of the road because I like to live on the edge… quite the opposite really. I need to know you are going to zoom past me!

Recently the left side of the road was not an option for me to be on, so I was forced (well I wasn’t at gun point or being chased by a lion) to run on the right side of the road. This was not a side street by all means, but a fairly busy 4 lane highway—yes it was a highway. AND it had just snowed- not dusted- but dumped the night before. But I had a schedule to keep and knew if I came up with an excuse once I would again. So here I was running as far away from the road as possible and here comes this green minivan (unknown to me) a bit too close to the shoulder. When this thing zoomed past me at 110 miles an hour- okay probably closer to 40- I am pretty sure I wet my pants. I didn’t know they were coming and I am confident that they didn’t see me either! I don’t think my outfit could have been any brighter either and it was in the middle of the afternoon- no excuses here! PAY ATTENTION!!

Again, people, I am not trying to play chicken with you. When I can be on the left side of the road, and there is no sidewalk… MOVE OVER and if you can’t… SLOW DOWN! Trying to get as close to me as possible is a horrible idea! I don’t like to look up when I run, at least not at the beginning; I am not a fan of seeing how much further I have to go! So help me out and pay attention so I don’t have too.

If there is a button for the cross walk- note that the whole right turn on red doesn’t apply to that button. So when you are flying through the light because you are late again, beware that you might commit a homicide because we didn’t see you!

Have I mentioned yet that exercising is clearly very dangerous and as I write this I am not sure why I participate in things that I thought was “good” for my health! I feel as though running with protective gear may be called for!

Lastly… no honking. Ever. Seriously. Just because the back of my shirt has begun to roll up my back, revealing my huge wedgy and too tight running pants, does not mean you need to honk at me. I know that I am pretty good looking, so this is no reason to honk at me either. Seriously. Ever. I enjoy living in the world of what I think I look like- not the world of what I actually look like.

So, in review, move over, pay attention and NO HONKING….

I hope you have stayed up on our challenge this year and continued to press forward. Remember, if you miss a run, a week or even a month- that is OK!! You just have to start again and keep going! No one is going to do this for you (even though it would be awesome if my sister would just do the work and let me reap the benefits)! No one ever said they regretted being healthier!

 

Happy Trails… and wear a helmet!

K~
(Still the captain)