The Next Step

As life gets busier and fuller, I've come to realize that I need to prioritize the things that I do. Of course family is always going to come first but under that file, comes a ton of subfiles in our lives. I try to be home as much as possible with my kids. I am always there in the mornings as they get up and get ready for school. I am able to cook them breakfast, tell them to change if they look strange and say goodbye when it's time to catch the bus. It is something that I wasn't able to do for almost three years with my previous job. I can't tell you how much this time in the mornings means to me. It is something that I cherish so much. I am not there when they get home from school except on days that I am off from work. However, I am home every night to make or eat dinner with them. I am there to take them to sporting events or activities. I do a lot for/with my kids and I wouldn't trade that for anything. Part of my reasoning for training and achieving my goal of my half marathon was to show my kids that just as I expect them to practice, try their best and follow through with things, I can and will do it too. Another reason for my training and working toward this was to become healthy and stay healthy. I cannot be the type of mom I want to be if I am not healthy. I want to be able to run, play and spend time with my kids doing fun, active stuff. We are not the type of family that just sits around watching tv. We like to go hiking, running, play kickball or Frisbee or just go walking. So, I am in pretty good health but I want to continue to be fit and maybe even improve a bit. I am starting to do more in the way of health and fitness. I am going to start with some weight training and spinning classes. I did my first Body Pump class today and it worked. I can already feel the muscles I worked and they are tired!! I am planning on doing the Pittsburgh Marathon Relay with a team of either just girls or a mix of girls and guys. I put out a Facebook status asking if anyone would be interested and the maximum number of team members is 5 but I had more than that respond so I would love to get a guys team and a girls team so everyone will have someone else to run with! It would make it more fun for all of us! After the half marathon that Chuck and I ran, he realized that he needs to get in shape too so he is going to start back at the gym and lifting weights and getting on the treadmill. We have a friend that is going to give us their treadmill that is in better condition than the one we have at home for free!!! I am so excited! Big things are happening and I couldn't be more excited. Health and fitness has become a priority for me. A longer, stronger life is very important to me so I can see my kids grow up and I can keep up with them along the way.

My First Half Marathon Recap

It's very true that if you create a goal for yourself, work hard to ready yourself for it and be diligent, you can achieve it!  I can now say that I ran a half marathon and I am so proud of myself and feel great. 

I went to bed on Friday full of nerves and figured that I probably wouldn't get much sleep because my anxiety was on high alert.  I planned on getting up around 5:30am because we needed to be out the door by 7:30am to head to the race.  My body had be up around 4:30am and I was able to slip in and out of sleep for an hour until the alarm went off. 

Chuck and I got ready and I had my outfit planned out and I only had to add one extra shirt to the mix.  I was surprisingly calm which had me kind of worried because I am never calm before a big event.  Usually, my stomach is in knots and I feel close to throwing up but I didn't feel that way at all. 

We got in the car and that's when my nerves hit.  I was getting so nervous and my anxiety was at a level of about a 9 on a 10 scale.  I thought I was going to yack.  I started to take some deep breaths and remind myself that I was going to be okay. 

When we got to the parking lot, we walked to the shuttles and we arrived at the starting point.  I was calm again.  We decided to do some stretching and some warm up jogging.  We were hoping to avoid the tight muscles and cramping.  We wanted to be warm and ready for the race. 

The start was upon us and we were standing in line to begin.  This was it......we were really doing this!!

We started off with adrenaline and as usual, Chuck was going faster than I wanted him to.  He has a faster pace than me, in general, and this happens every single time we run anything.  We had plans to do our 8:1 intervals of running/walking.  Well, he was so far ahead of me that I let the first walking interval go.  We ran through it.  Then, he let me catch up and was wondering when it was time to walk because he needed to walk.  We walked then we ran and for the first 3 or so miles, the intervals were messed up because he needed to walk and couldn't wait for the walk intervals.  I could tell that he was struggling a bit so I was trying to stick with him and be supportive since I knew he didn't train at all and he was doing this to support me. 

At mile 7, I was feeling good and I was starting to get back into the intervals but Chuck wasn't.  He couldn't maintain the running.  At this point, he urged me to go on ahead of him and do my thing.  He didn't want to hold me back from my goal and he couldn't go on with my pace.  So, I left him behind.  To say that it was a tough decision is an understatement.  This was my goal, I worked so hard to get to this point but to see my husband struggling and wanting to do this for me, I felt guilty. 

The span of mile 9 to mile 10 seemed like forever.  I would say it was the toughest part of the whole race.  I am reading from a lot of other runners that this was the case for them, as well. I figured if I could get to mile 10, I was good.  It was just a little while longer to the finish. 

As I got closer, I got more excited to know that I could do it and make it to the finish.  At the end of the course, you go under a bridge, around a bend and then it is a long, straight run to the finish.  When I was under the bridge, I started to walk because I was tired and my right knee was bothering me.  A woman that was going to pass me, tapped me on the shoulder and said, "you are too close to the finish line to start walking now, let's go!" so she ran with me and we ran together for that last .25 miles to the finish line. 

I did it!!  Holy crap, I did it!  I feel great, I feel proud and my husband keeps telling me how proud he is of me.  He didn't doubt that I could do it but I think it still surprised him.  Best of all, my kids saw that even their mom can create a goal, work hard and achieve it. 



Now the question is, what's next?!

Mind Over Matter

I am three days away from my first half marathon and several people have mentioned the fact that completing a run this long is more mental than physical.  I am not naïve enough to think that my physical strength and ability have no factors in this race but I am also trying to mentally prepare myself for it. 

I have a game plan and I hope that it works well for me.  I am going to do my intervals and I have my playlist ready for motivation and getting into a rhythm while I run.  I am planning my race day outfit and what exactly I will need for optimum efficiency. 

I am excited and nervous.  I have been looking forward to this day for so long and I have worked so hard to prepare.  I am nervous that something unseen with happen.  I am nervous that I won't be able to get into a good pace and/or rhythm.

At the same time, I am fairly confident that I can do this.  I feel like my training has prepared me pretty well.  I have been running a lot of hills lately to strengthen my legs and my lungs.  The course is mostly downhill so that will help.  I think the drink stations are spaced well to help me in the hydration department. 

The weather will be cooler, which is very helpful for me.  The rain should hold off until the late afternoon so we should be dry (as far as rain is concerned, not so much on the sweat front.) 

I can't wait to cross that finish line and shout from the rooftops that I did it.  I want this achievement so badly that I should mentally be right where I need to be.

MAMAVATION MONDAY, ER TUESDAY: What I have been doing lately

It has been a very long time since I have posted a Mamavation Monday post and I'm not quite sure why.  I'm back though so here's my first post to get back into a routine....well, a day late but hey, it's progress, right?! 

Anyway, I have been working out but not as much as I probably should.  I am not participating in any monthly challenges or workout routines but I have been running a lot since I am in training for the half marathon.  Included in that training in cross training and strength.  I haven't been doing any big lifting but rather lower weights with more reps and I've been walking or doing ab work for my cross training. 

This month, I am going to participate in the Virtual Ride for Breast Cancer with Jess from Run With Jess.  I will be riding 31 miles this month, most likely in a few rides.  I can incorporate that into my cross training and it will help strengthen my legs and keep me aware. I would encourage everyone else to sign up too and we can all ride together!

I need to find a monthly challenge to do!  I think I will look for an ab one to do so that I can strengthen my midsection and core.  I haven't been pushing myself as hard as I should be so this is a target area for me to strengthen.  I love the monthly challenges because I don't lose focus and I am building up gradually instead of trying to go balls to the wall.  Yes, I just said that! haha.

What have you been doing lately?  Do you have any monthly goals this month?  My monthly goal is to run at least 50 miles which shouldn't be too hard for me since my daily runs are at least 5 miles.

This is for Me

I have been training for months for my first half marathon.  I have put in the miles to train and build up to the long distance running that is required.  I've pushed myself harder than I ever thought I could. I never imagined that I would be able to run for over an hour at a time, yet there I am on the treadmill hitting a good rhythm while running for 75 minutes! The feeling I have when I am done is amazing to say the least. 

I signed up for my first half marathon after talking about it and training for it.  As soon as I received the confirmation email, I wanted to throw up from the anxiety of it.  What have I done?!  I'm so excited, nervous and anxious about it.  However, just like my training, I am going to take it one mile at a time, one step at a time. 

I am not too worried about my time for the race, heck, I want to enjoy the experience, the scenery and the cool, fall air on my face.  I won't beat myself up if my time is nowhere close to where I think it may be.  The feeling I will have when I cross that finish line is all I will remember anyway.

I signed Chuck up for the half as well.  He said he can't let me run alone and he would love to cross that finish line together.  I explained to him how I wanted to give myself a goal, train for it and achieve it.  That it would be a great life lesson for our kids and what a great example of dedication and determination it would be for them.  He asked why I had to choose such a long goal haha. 

I also had to explain to him that this is for me.  This is my goal, this is my race, this is my accomplishment.  Yes, he will be with me and this will be his first half marathon as well.  I am proud and thankful that he wants to do this with me and I can't imagine a more fitting finish to this run than to cross it together.  However, at the same time, I am doing this for me.  For years, I have been catering to others.  I have been serving my husband, my kids and pushing myself and my goals to the back burner to accommodate everyone else.  This is my shining moment (hopefully I feel this way at the end ;))

I hope to have a great time and that it is an experience I won't forget but I am also hoping that I enjoy it enough to sign up for the Pittsburgh Half Marathon next May.  ;)

It's Not Easy Seeing an Empty Shelf

I became a blogger ambassador for the Monkey Do Project with the intent to help spread the word about areas in our own country that are in desperate need of our help.  Families and individuals who have so little, that do not have the means to get help, no running water, no electricity and are often forgotten.  Children that go to school and the lunches that they eat are the only meals they have.  Yes, there are children in our country that are only able to eat 5 times a week. They need our help.  They need someone on their side who can help them receive the most basic of necessities. 

The mission of the Monkey Do Project is to help spread awareness, raise funds to help the people of Appalachia and to better the lives of many people who know the desperation of just trying to survive. 

One of the places that they are trying to help is in Clay, West Virginia.  There is a food bank there that the organizers said had empty shelves.  The Monkey Do Project visited the food bank in Clay and saw for themselves that the shelves were not low or lacking a few items....they were literally empty.  No food to help the families that it is there to help.

 

An image of the food bank shelves, empty.

 



They have two refrigerators and a deep freezer in the food bank as well.  The contents were 3 packages of meat.  This is all they had to hand out to families in need.  Families who need to feed their children, the elderly.  It really pains me to see this.  We are so lucky to have the things we have. 

So many times, I have thought to myself about how tough life is, how much I wish that my life were easier but it doesn't compare to the way that these people are living.  We need to do better for our neighbors.  No, I don't live in Clay, West Virginia, they need us. 

The Monkey Do Project is pledging to help Clay, West Virginia food bank as their FILL THE FOOD BANK PROJECT.  Can you help?  Are you able to make a donation, no amount is too small.  Every dollar is a dollar toward a meal for these families and individuals.

You can go here to make a donation today!

A Different Chaos

Well, the new school year has begun and with it, comes more chaos.  The thing I love most about the school year is the routine that is established in order for everything to run smoothly.  We now have bedtimes, wakeup times, homework times, eating times, you get the drift.  The thing I hate the most about the school year is the homework and the fighting that comes along with it.  I am hoping that we can establish a very set routine when it comes to doing homework. 

We always say that the kids should do their homework as soon as they come home to get it done and over with.  That wasn't always easy for Chuckie when he was in the elementary buildings because he would get home around 4pm and had to get ready and eat before heading off to football practice.  This year, he is in the middle school so he is home before 3pm everyday.  That gives him three hours before practice to do the things that need done. 

Lincoln is not really used to having too much homework since he was in kindergarten and I'm not really sure if he will have a lot of homework this year in first grade but if he does, I want to get him in the habit of doing it at a set time and make that something he gets used to for the remainder of his school career! 

We have a desk for Jada in her room and we have an old antique desk for Lincoln so we need to get a desk or study area for Chuckie.  Although that may be coming soon since we are thinking of converting the loft area into his own bedroom.

The beginning of the school year is so crazy though with the forms I need to fill out and sign, orientations, curriculum nights, etc.  I feel like I am running a lot lately but it will slow down and soon enough we will be in the school year rhythm of it.  We will move  as if we've been doing it all along. 

The kids' first day of school went well.  They all liked their teachers and didn't complain about a single thing.  I was kind of surprised.  The biggest shock was Lincoln who didn't want to go to school, getting excited to go back again today.  He kept asking me if it was time to go yet so he could get on the bus to go to school!! 

His teacher seems to be a great lady and several people have said how great she is.  I had one first grade teacher tell me that if she had a first grader, that is the teacher she would want for her own child so I don't think you could earn a higher praise than that!!

I am excited to see what the school year brings.  I am hoping for only the best for my kids and I want to see them excel at their classes and do well.  I am going to push them to do their best because I really lacked at that last year and it was reflected in their grades.  I am pushing for all A's and B's this year!  I may have to motivate them with something good. ;)