For the First Time...

I felt like a real runner today.

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I was at the gym doing a 10k run for my current training. I ran the first 1.3 miles straight through, then walked for 3 minutes/ran 7 minutes for 90 minutes. I was pouring sweat, settling into a nice pace, pumping my arms when I needed an extra boost, and running through every excuse I had to stop or cut my run periods short. This chick managed to do 6.22 miles in those 90 minutes! Woohoo!!

I NEVER would have thought I could do that. EVER. And for the granted it's only about half of what I need to run for my half marathon, but the pacing felt good and I felt strong. It's the first time I've done a run and not been panicked about the possiblity of being swept off of the Disney Princess course.

I was, at one point, a week behind on my training, but now I am only 2 days behind. Thursday I am doing a short run of 3.1 miles and then over the weekend I am doing an 8 mile run. Once those are done, I will be back on track.

How is everyone else's training going? I stop by and read blogs when I have a free moment, I just don't always have enough time to actually sit down and write out a blog post of my own. Maybe once the holidays are done? Who knows, right?

Anyway, in other awesome news, I bought a pair of size 16 jeans at Marshall's the other day and I didn't muffin top over them! Plus, the size 16 jeans I bought at Old Navy on Black Friday are too big on me. I'm excited because while the number on the scale isn't going down, it is staying steady but my clothes are getting a little bit bigger on me. It makes me feel good. It makes me want to stick with my training because if I do, I might be able to squeeze into a 14 by the time I go down to Disney in February.

Here's a comparison just for fun, so you can see what I sometimes have a hard time seeing:

Myself and my friend Joe in fall of 2010 before I started running. Size 22

My boyfriend and I this past fall- after 2 years of running for me. Size 16

Here's hoping I can keep whittling myself away!

Pride and Running

I am kind of proud of me, if I do say so myself. 

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And I do.

I had a very long day running programs with all ages of kids today and it was gross outside. I mean, sticky, hot, walking through a wet blanket, gross. I got home and sat down on the couch, knowing that that was the wrong thing to do because I had to get in a run today. I sat there for an hour, talking with my mom while my brother made dinner, then I got off my butt and went to the gym. (Considering how hot it was, I decided a treadmill run would be best for my sanity.) I didn't want to go, but I made myself do it anyway. Hooray for NOT giving into temptation and getting my butt in gear.

The gym was pretty packed, but I managed to snag a treadmill and started my 3.1 mile run. Instead of doing just 30min. like I have scheduled on my training plan, I decided to sneak in the Firecracker Virtual 5k I had to do. Needless to say, I finished in 46:03. Not too bad. I was hoping to stay with a 15min/mile, but considering how tired I was, anything under 47min was okay by me.

My plan of action for this week is a 30min run on Wednesday and then doing my 8miles on Friday before work or Saturday early morning (depending upon weather and such). That will put me at about 13.1 miles total for this week. I gave myself a goal of 50 miles and then I would treat myself to a massage. As of right now, I am 19miles away from that. By the end of this week, I will be 9miles away!

Also, I haven't officially registered yet (I will when I get my next paycheck), however-  

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I will be doing the Princess Half in Feb 2013!!. 

My boyfriend and I put deposits down on a Disney cruise for Feb. 17-21st and the race is on Feb. 24th, so we are going to stay at the Disney Caribbean resort after we get off the ship until it's time for me to race. I'm SUPER excited! I can't wait! Only about 214 days until I get to sail away! WOOHOO!!

 Anyone have any fun runs coming up?

Happy Birthday!!

Happy Birthday to me!

Well, ok, it was on Monday, but still! I actually had a great birthday weekend. My wonderful boyfriend took me down to MGM Grand at Foxwoods casino for the weekend. We stayed in a very fancy hotel room and wen to this restaurant called High Rollers. It's a contemporary bar/lounge area that also has bowling lanes! So, we were both dressed up (me in a dress and heels) while we bowled away the evening. We enjoyed some very yummy lobster dip (which I'm sure was completely awful for us- but darn was it tasty!). After we bowled for a few hours, we wandered around, taking in the sites and stopping to play a slot machine or two. As we headed back up to the room, we also picked up a slice of Junior's cheesecake. YUM!!

As it turns out, we didn't need to buy the cheese cake because the front desk clerk decided to surprise us both with a special Birthday gift (my birthday was Monday, my boyfriend's was Tuesday). When we got back to the room, we found these waiting for us:

Can you believe it?! All hand made chocolate and a dark chocolate cake in the middle! I know I'm not supposed to eat chocolate because it makes me sick, but I took a bite or two of my cake anyway. SO GOOD!

The next morning, we checked out of Foxwoods and went over to the other casino, Mohegan Sun, to do some gambling and such. We ended up eating at a very yummy BBQ place. And, because it was our birthdays we got a free dozen Krispy Kreme donuts, a free ice cream from Ben and Jerry's, 2 free Godiva truffles and so much more! Holy sugar high, Batman! Later that night, we met up with both our families at Joey Garlic's- this amazing italian restaurant that serves incredibly large portions. I got a gluten free pasta dish (yay!!) that gave me enough left overs to last me a few days. Then, they brought Anthony and I a tiramisu for our birthdays. After dinner, we went back to my parents for presents and were surprised with 2 different type of cupcakes, peanut brittle, white chocolate toffee, and a cheesecake! After this weekend, I feel I may need to go on insulin.

I have to say, I did eat a fair amount, but I did also try to restrict myself. I didn't have toffee or peanut brittle or cheesecake after Joey Garlics- I didn't have room. And I also took home about 3/4 of my meal from the restaurant.

To make up for all of that food though, I went to the gym after work yesterday and pounded out a 3 mile run. It felt great! Well, my tummy was a little unhappy with me, but everything else felt awesome. 3 miles in 43:33. Not my fastest time, but not too shabby either. I hopped on the scale, just to check in with myself, and saw that I'm down to 208! Woohoo! (Not sure how that happened over this past weekend- maybe it was all the walking we did, not to mention I did walk a good few hours in 6 inch heels- now THAT'S a workout!)

My plan is to get back to the gym tonight for another 2 mile run. Then, on Saturday, I'm going to do a 4 mile run and Sunday is the Jim Calhoun Cardioraiser where I get to do Zumba for Autism Speaks! Hooray!

Also, in case I don't get a chance to update before then- BEST OF LUCK TO ALL MY DISNEY PRINCESS RUNNERS!!! Have a great time! I wish I could be there with you!!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

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How did YOU celebrate your Valentine's day?

Personally, I celebrated Valentine's Day on Saturday as both my boyfriend and I had to work late tonight. It was very nice on Saturday though! We had a nice dinner and exchanged gifts. I got him a Build-A-Bear puppy (since I couldn't afford to get him a real puppy like he wants) and he got me some gorgeous earrings. (Seriously, he spoils me like you wouldn't believe!)

In any case, I decided that since I wasn't going out to dinner or anything after work tonight (like most everyone else was), that I would go to the gym and get in a short run. The gym was practically deserted and I had my pick of treadmills. I hopped on one and got to it! I felt good for the first 15minutes but then I started getting a wicked cramp in my right side abdomen. I slowed down my pace but the cramp wouldn't let up. Eventually, it got to the point where it was uncomfortable to breathe because when I tried to expand my torso it was super tight. I slowed to a walk for a bit, but to no avail. I ended up doing 1.83 miles in 25 minutes. Not my best time, but not my worst either (and definitely not too bad considering the monster cramping in my abs).  

Anyone know a good stretch for the abdomen? 

Or what may have caused the cramping? 

I'm excited because only 11 pounds to go before I'm under my first goal weight of 2012! HOORAY!!
On the agenda for tomorrow I have a 2 mile run and a Zumba class. Just need to make sure I can drag myself out of bed in the morning again. But, I keep repeating my mantra to myself -Little black dress, Little black dress (my boyfriend says it to me as motivation also). 

Oh! As a side note- I'm still doing gluten free! YAY! I'm kind of surprised I've lasted so long. I just feel so much better not eating gluten. Less bloating and, definitely, much less lethargy after I finish a meal.

 It's a great feeling!

Little Black Dress

Happy Happy Monday Everyone!

I am excited because, as you can see from my DailyMile tracker on the left hand side of my page, I got in a run tonight! YAY!!! I went to the gym with the intent of doing 45 minutes on the treadmill, no matter where that put me mileage wise. Right now, I'm still running by time and not by miles. I've decided my first 5k race isn't until March, so I should be alright doing minute-based training runs. I'm happy to report that I did complete my 45 minutes (even if it was a bit of a struggle). HOORAY!

I do have to put a big Thank You out there to my boyfriend. I was definitely NOT in the mood to run tonight and he gave me some awesome motivation! My mantra on the treadmill tonight was "little black dress" because that is what I want to be able to wear when we go to Vegas in October. And I'm super glad I had that mantra because while it felt awesome to run, my body was very sluggish. I'm surprised I finished 3.1 miles in 45 minutes. I kept pushing myself though- I ran the first 20minutes and then walked 2 minutes, ran 10 minutes, walked 2 minutes, so on and so forth (I also sprinted the last minute because I like to finish strong). When I started feeling like I wanted to stop, I would just start saying "Little black Dress" and "Vegas" over and over in my head. It totally helped. I may use that for a race some time.

I was a bit grossed out during my run though. The man two treadmills down from me was continuously hocking up a loogie whilest he walked on his machine. And it wasn't a random one-time thing either. I mean, there are times when I'm running or walking and I have some junk in my lungs that needs to get cleared out- but this was a bit much. It happened every 3-4minutes and it was LOUD! I could hear him doing it OVER my music. Grossness. 

After my run, I came home and made some gluten free pasta topped with sauteed mushrooms, spinach, diced onions and turkey. SO YUMMY!! I made enough to eat tonight and to bring to work for lunch tomorrow. Currently, I am enjoying an italian ice as my late night treat (normally I would have a large bowl of fruit and yogurt, but I'm all out of both- BOO!).

I do have to admit something, and I hope y'all won't think less of me, but I sort of fell off my gluten-free diet over the weekend. I know, I know! I'm a horrible person! I couldn't help it- sort of. I was at my grandmother's for my cousin's birthday dinner and she made spaghetti (she even got me alfredo sauce because she knows I can't do tomatoes). I felt horrible because she had been cooking all afternoon- so I ate it. I've decided that I'm going to tack on another week of gluten-free-ness in order to make amends.

Have you ever "fallen off the wagon"? If so, what did you do to get back on again?

A Run...And a Runny Nose

I FINALLY managed to get a short run in last Thursday after work.

Color me excited!!

It felt so good to be on the treadmill and just moving. I could feel stress start to instantly melt away.
If I hadn't been so crunched for time I would have run longer than 20 minutes, but alas, my life stops for nothing lately.

However, my running high was short lived. Boo! The next morning I woke up and I sounded like Barry White (sexy, right?). The cold I had been fighting finally won. My nose was stuffy and running and my chest was all congested. I dosed myself with a ton of Mucinex, Zicam and Emergen-cee (plus tissues and cough drops) and went to work. By the end of the day (right before my show- because the show must go on!) I started to feel a bit better, but definitely not close to 100%. I was able to do the show because, thankfully, my character's voice is in a higher register than my actual speaking voice so no one could tell I was sick. As soon as the show was over, I went home and climbed into bed. I was hoping that if I slept as much as possible before work the next morning, I would get better. NO SUCH LUCK.

I awoke Saturday morning even worse than the day before- Barry White was back for another performance. Needless to say, no work for this sick kid. I spent the entire day in bed, Netflix on the television, medicine on the side table, and going in and out of consciousness. I think I slept about 14 hours total. It was so nice. I woke up about an hour before I had to be at the theatre and felt a tiny bit better.

I really felt the best on Sunday. I was excited because my voice was almost back to normal and I wasn't coughing as much. However, I woke up this morning and I think the cold is trying to beat me again. My coughing started up again last night (but whether that's because I changed the type of Mucinex I was taking or what, I don't know). I wasn't exactly Barry White this morning, more like Elaine Stritch (points if you get that reference, double points if it made you laugh).

I'm hoping to get a lot of rest this week so I will be better by Christmas. I am going to do another 20 minute run on Wednesday, though I don't want to push myself too much if everything is settling in my chest (no bueno for my lungs).

Anyone have any home remedies they use that work pretty well? I'm up for trying anything!

11 Miles Later

Ok, so remember that 10 mile run from hell I had? 

I just blew it out of the water!

KABOOM!!

I, literally, just got home from the gym where I did my 11 mile run. So many amazing things to report!!

Let's start at the beginning, shall we? (After all, it's a very good place to start. And extra points if you get the musical reference!) When I woke up, I was having a hard time motivating myself to get to the gym for my run. My body is just exhausted from everything I have going on and it didn't want to do 11 miles. With some helpful motivation from my friends, I finally got my butt out of bed and headed to the gym.

I hopped on the treadmill, started my Pandora radio station and went to town. Before I knew it, I had 2.1 miles under my belt... in less than 30 minutes... and I hadn't stopped to walk yet!! WHAT!? That's insane for me- but also a banging achievement. Woot!  

But, wait, it gets better! 

I continued on with my miles, trucking along with some awesome music being played. Seriously, I was super impressed with my Pandora today, it was like reading my mind and knew exactly what songs would keep me moving. The treadmill stopped at 60minutes, as I was at about 4.1 miles. Over 4 miles in an hour?! Another super achievement!

I restarted the treadmill and continued trekking along. Around mile 7 my legs started feeling tired (I had forgotten my compression sleeves at home- damnit!) but I pushed through and managed to do 8.1 miles in 2 hours and 2 minutes. That's the longest I've EVER held a decent pace for..Holy crap crackers Batman! I ended up getting off the treadmill at 8.1 miles to refill my waterbottle and get a Powerade as I was sweating monster buckets (seriously, you should have seen the treadmill floor.... gross!!). I hopped back on and finished up my last 2.9 miles. Those last miles were a killer- my legs were cramping, my body was tired of holding itself upright, but I pushed through and managed to hit 11 miles at 2:48:50!! That's faster than my 10mile run by like 15-20minutes! Granted, I know it is easier to wrack up miles on a treadmill, but I'm still rather impressed with myself. I just hope I can get my legs to recover in time for rehearsal tonight.

Oh! And don't forget to donate to my fundraiser for the upcoming Half Marathon and get an entry into my give away HERE!!! Thanks in advance y'all!

Bigger Girls Can Run Too

Again, I know I've been absent and I feel super awful about it! *Please don't throw anything at me, I've been kicking myself about this all weekend- but sometimes life is just too hectic for me to be able to accomplish everything.* Friday I worked and then spent my free time crafting a friend's birthday present, well, really, one part of his birthday present. Then, on Saturday I had CPR and First Aid training ALL day long. It was actually a super informative class and I'm glad I went (even more excited that I get paid for it haha). I learned how to make a sling, perform proper chest compressions, administer rescue breaths, create multiple kinds of splints, and how to make a bandage into the head band thing Daniel-Son wears in the Karate Kid. *Be jealous- Kurt at Becoming An Ironman, has wicked awesome skills*

Continuing on with my crazy weekend, after we got certified, Chelsea and I headed back to her place to make a birthday cake for Sunday. One of our good friends had a birthday and we, aptly, celebrated it with him. Later on Saturday, I went to see the closing night of Chelsea's show (she was one of the lead's in Moon Over Buffalo and she was AMAZING!). Got home kind of late Saturday and had to finish the other part of my friend's gift, so I was up much later than I intended. Needless to say, I overslept and woke up at 11:15, which did not leave me any time to get in my long run like I wanted, as I had to be at Chelsea's for 1 so we could drive to the festivities. Our friend is a musical director at a school and his high-school kids put on Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. It was FANTASTIC! His kids are so talented and he just does a superb job with them.

I got home late again last night and I had to be at work for 10am today so I didn't have a chance to go running before work (I'm NOT a morning person, ask anyone who knows me, so even though I had good intentions about waking up early to workout, I hit Snooze instead).  I worked all day and had rehearsal for my chorale concert tonight and then, FINALLY, got to hit the gym for a run. I did 3.26 miles on the treadmill- not too bad, but not great either though.

I do have to say, I felt good for the first mile of my run, it didn't take much out of me, and I was able to go 1.6 miles before I had to stop and walk. And even then, I only walked for a few minutes before I ran another half mile or so. My recovery times are getting shorter, and I am able to run farther after walking than I used to be able to. Out of the 46 minutes that I was on the treadmill, I ran 35 of them. Holler! *dusts my shoulders off* I'm impressed with myself. It may not seem much to other people, but for me, who six months ago could maybe run 0.25 miles before I had to stop, this is a HUGE accomplishment!

And I don't mean this in an offensive way, but being a bigger girl, I have to say that it made me feel kind of proud when a skinnier, more athletic looking girl got on the treadmill next to me and only did 0.75 miles before she stopped and got off. Granted her time was lower then mine, but I kept running! It made me realize that I really am becoming a runner and I rather like it. I felt proud of what I have been able to accomplish so far, even with my extra weight tacked on. I'm contemplating changing the name of my blog to Bigger Girls Can Run Too. Thoughts? Suggestions?

For my run tomorrow, I'm planning on running to the local library... mainly because I have to return some books... and then running back home. It's about 4.4 miles for the entire run so it should, hopefully, take me about an hour. I find that I run better on the roads/sidewalks because my body can adjust it's own pace as opposed to being on a treadmill where I'm forcing myself to stick to one steady pace. I mean, it's good training to be able to run a steady pace for a long length of time, but there are some times when my body may want to go faster or slower and it can't do that on the treadmill- Well, not without me possibly falling off of it in a rather embarrassing and possibly harmful fashion and that would not be fun. As awesome as it would look in a youtube video, I don't think I want to risk it.