Ultra Addington

Double Trouble

2011-11-10T05:02:00.000-08:00

Last night I did my first back-to-back "Double." It's what we people in the yoga biz call "taking two classes in one day."

What was it like you may ask?

Terrible. I am never doing THAT again.

Before I tell you about this once in a lifetime experience, let me say that I have done a double before. 3 times. Just not back-to-back. Rather, I have done a 6am class and an evening class. Doubles are usually necessary while in the middle of a "challenge" like the 30 day one I am doing right now. 30 classes in 30 days- so if you miss a day, you have to do a double at some point. Keep in mind that there are limits to how many doubles you can do (in this case, 4 total).

My other doubles have been fine. Even pleasant actually. My second class of the day has been consistently better than the first. My body was already warmed up, and I had recovered and hydrated appropriately for the second class.

With a back-to-back double, your body doesn't have time to recover. I spent most of the class feeling like my muscles were going to give out any minute, wanting desperately to chug more water, and sweating like banshee.

First of all, my body started sweating within 10 seconds of the first breathing exercise. And when I say sweat, I mean...

The kind of sweaty you are in the middle of the class happened THAT fast. It was terrible. Miserable. Horrible. No good. Very bad class.

The other terrible part were the thoughts in my head. A few key phrases:

Instructor: Make sure you *cantrememberwhathesaidbutimsureitwasgenerallyhelpful*
My head: Make sure you shut the hell up.

On the floor, dreaming about iced tea.....
My head: These F*@ktards don't even sell Sweet-N-Low

Instructor: Gloriously cracks the door.
My head: *upon realizing that Robin, the owner of the studio is RIGHT BY the door*
"you sneaky mother f*$@#r, sitting right by the door, and effing telling me not to freeze my water bottles."

These thoughts! I haven't had these thoughts since my very first Bikram class ever.

After class, I even walked all the way to my car and realized I forgot my keys. Brutal.

NEVER AGAIN.

ultra love

Many Talented.

2011-07-24T19:03:00.000-07:00

This weekend I was awesome.

I hit the trails on saturday morning- ran 2.5 miles (I know, it's not far, but it will do for now). I had to walk up a few hills because I am old and fat and out of shape, but otherwise the whole experience felt like breathing again after holding my breath for a long time. I forgot what it feels like to have your feet just melt into the terrain, to have your knees respond to the downhills and uphills. I have another short trail run planned for (maybe) tomorrow morning and definitely thursday with my Luna. My version of heaven involves trail runs, lakes (for Luna), and Luna, of course.

Later on Saturday, I washed my car for 2 hours because thats how long it takes to get bugs guts off a white car. I also waxed my car and cleaned the windows. My life with minor OCD.

Then I went to yoga. Then I went to bed at 10 pm.

Today I was awesome YET AGAIN PEOPLE! I went to early church and came home and GOT CRAFTY. yep. CRAFTY. whaaaaaaaaaaat.

I turned an old pair of jeans that were too short (I know, that seems impossible given my current and forever height, but I think they shrunk over the years) and turned them into skinny capri jeans. This involved a sewing machine, special thread for jeans, and special jeans needles for my sewing machine.

Step 1: Practice. I used an old shirt to make sure the whole "sewing" thing actually worked. see below. beautiful.

Step 2: I turned my jeans inside out. Then I lined up my pair of skinny jeans so that the crotch and the inside legs were neatly together. Then I made pretty marks with a purple marker where I should sew. I also made marks where I wanted the capri cuts to be made.
Step 3: I sewed along the line. Then tried on my jeans and realized they were just too tight around the calves. So I took out the long stitch I made and started over with a new wider mark.

Step 4. I pinned my future seams because my jeans had a tendency to bunch up. Then I sewed. Though my lines aren't perfect, they will do.

Step 5: I sewed the hems. I pinned my hems first. I kept the stitches "straight" by keeping the edge of the foot along the outside of my hem.

The hems, again, aren't perfect. But who cares?

I am freakin Martha Stewart with vibrams and a yoga mat.

Check this shit out.

What's up, playas?

After I finished my craft, which took me two hours even though the blog I read that told me how to do it said it would take 20 minutes, I washed my "mom's" car (mom is in quotation marks because really it is my roommate's mom, but she is letting me live in their house this summer and I call her mom). Her car only took 20 minutes because the bugs came off her car with just a whisper.

Then I went to yoga. And now I am blogging. And I painted my nails while I wrote this blog post.

Be amazed.

Ultra Love.

You think you know....

2011-07-18T20:16:00.000-07:00

Raise your hand if anyone has ever said to you, "hot yoga/ regular yoga/ultra running/running is dangerous/bad for you!"

I swear. Who are these people? Why do they think they know anything about anything? Mostly I think they are just jealous of my cute running skirts and my fashionable yoga booty shorts, but other times, I wonder if they are just dumb. Tell me, what "exercise" could be more natural (obviously natural is a LOADED term, but just go with it here) than running or yoga?

The only other sport(s) that fall in this category would be swimming (but you have to eliminate the chlorine pools because let's face it, no one is meant to smell like that. people are, however, meant to wear spandex. fact. it's in the bible.) or gymnastics (but again, this is limited to the floor exercises and only floor exercises on a grassy field because real life doesn't have a trampoline floor) and dancing. by God, there will be dancing.

Football? Hell no.

Basketball? (as much as i LOVE it- no. mostly because you can get smacked in the face with a basketball. we all know that does not qualify as something your body was born to do.)

(** currently withholding many inappropriate jokes**)

Shotput? Polo? Tennis? Soccer? Rowing? (i know from personal experience that rowing is for prisoners and anyone who deserves torture)

Wrestling? (no again- ring worm. and violence.)

It's not that these sports are bad in anyway. or un fun. or un human. It's just that you can't wake up in the morning and say, "hmmmmm, lemme use my body and go do this stuff." I could run naked if i needed to. I could do yoga naked if I wanted to -- (side note- there are naked yoga classes. deep question of the day- would you want to be in the front of the class or the back of the class? think about it). Other sports require lots of stuff. It's not that "stuff" makes a sport bad, it's just that I don't understand how "exercise" that requires only the body is dangerous or bad for you. I will ALWAYS hold the opinion that any exercise can be bad for you if you are stupid about it.

Harry Potter Comparison- Skip this if you don't understand.

WHen i am running or doing yoga, I feel like I am in Book 4 in the graveyard of Little Hangleton when Voldy and Harry's wands connect and they have this electric current running between and around them. Except that I feel as if I am connecting to all the worlds before me, all the people right now, and all the humans to come. These are two instinctual activities- connections to past, present, and future. Kinda like old stones steps that have been worn down by centuries of feetsies.

Anyway.

I don't understand why people think that something so basic as running or something so fluid as yoga would be bad for you. I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that you are more likely to come away damaged from years of football (brain damage) or tennis (my mom has no cartilage left in her knees and my brother has had 2 knee surgeries). If i have children, not only are they wearing ear plugs everyday of their life, but they are also forbidden to play contact sports. Running only. I'm gonna be that mom who says, here son/daughter/perhaps ungendered child-- put on your vibrams and go run up that mountain in our backyard with your Auntie Sabrina and then let's dance around in our underwear for a while and THEN we can do yoga before bed to calm down and make sure you can touch your toes when you are 60 years old.

I will be the best mom ever.

And the rest of the world- the people who sit on their bumbum all day long telling other people that yoga and running are bad/dangerous for you- will NOT be the best mom ever.

The end. Stepping off my soapbox. and giving you a puppy picture to make things happy.

Ultra Love.

Proof

2011-07-06T21:00:00.001-07:00

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! I HAVE PROOF! I CAN DO STANDING HEAD-TO-KNEE!!

Obviously, it isn't perfect. But it is a start. That is the beauty of this yoga- you can always make progress.

1. I need to get my elbows lower. more below my calf muscles.

2. I need to get my toes angled back more towards my face.

3. #2 can be accomplished along with #3. I need to kick out my heel which will also get my hips more in line.

4. As I get better, my spine will be more curved- particularly my lower spine.

Also, I thought I would post two other poses that show ALOT of my progress.

This is the "Japanese Ham Sandwich" pose. When I first started this pose, I could barely get my hands behind my calves enough to grab my heels. Now I am pretty close to locking my knees. The entire goal of this posture is to smush your body together so there is no room for light or air-- with your smiling happy face (which you cant see in this picture! but it is there- I swear!)

This last pose is the "stretching" part of "separate head to knee with stretching pose." When I started this pose, I could not even get my legs flat on the floor. after 9 months I FINALLY got my legs locked. However, it wasn't until this summer that I started making progress bending my elbows. SEE?!?!?!?!

Before I close this post, just take a minute to appreciate the cleanliness of this studio. Doesn't it look so sanitary? Heaven.

I hope everyone is making progress in whatever they are doing. Especially Sabrina.

Ultra love.

PS. I made my handsome and health conscious boyfriend run barefoot. Totally made my LIFE.

Life Lessons Learned Watching a Bikram Newbie

2011-07-01T18:55:00.001-07:00

The other day, there was a new guy name Frank who showed up for class. Frank did everything wrong. Everything. The underlying cause was that Frank didn't listen. That is usually the cause of the problems facing newbies. While I watched Frank act a fool, Ludacris style, in the front row, I was enlightened with a fair bit of life insight.

1. Many things in life involve steps. Sometimes many steps. To get to step D, you must go through steps A, B, and C. Here is the important part: If you cant do step A well, you best not be moving on to step B. AND you sure as hell better not be trying step C or D. Otherwise, you will either hurt yourself or look like an idiot. It is true in yoga. It is true in regular life. If you don't lock your standing knee, you shouldn't be kicking out with your other leg. If you don't know how to play chords, you shouldn't up on stage playing guitar in concert.

2. Quit making noise. Shut up. Really. Making noise only complicates things. It makes you more hot, more tired, uses up the energy you need, and irritates other people. Same thing in regular life. Whatever metaphorical noise you are making is most likely distracting you from what is really important, and in the process, it is pissing off everyone in your path.

3. Your drama isn't special. No matter how hot you think you are. No matter how much you think you are going to pass out. Your drama has happened before to someone else, and it will happen again. Get over yourself. The minute you do, you will quit making excuses for whatever drama you think you've got going on and actually get to doing yoga or living life.

4. Love your body. If you spend time looking at that parts that you don't like, pondering fat pudgies, or criticizing things here and there, you won't notice how fantastic it is that your body is starting to get deeper into that back bend. You won't see how strong your legs are. You will miss the balance you have developed. If you love your body, you will love yourself.

5. Don't give up. Frank tried to leave the room. The heat is intense. Ask anyone who has tried bikram. But you can make it through. Not all of life is puppies and rainbows (thought having a Luna around thorooughly increases your odds of continuous puppies and rainbows)-- but you can make it through the rough stuff if you are just still and take time to breathe.

Progress for Progress' Sake

2011-06-14T18:26:00.000-07:00

I know...... It's been a while... my bff Sabrina let me know that...

So how about an update on all of my ultra-ness?

If training for a marathon and hoping to someday do an ultra marathon have taught me anything, it is that you have GOT to keep going, keep trying, and keep "going big or go home." This summer I get to live all of this out in 3 different ways.

1. I have started running again. Let me be honest. Every step terrifies me- I keep thinking that my foot and/or knee are just going to explode. Thankfully, my dear old dad told me that nothing is going to start hurting until i get up to 15 and 20 mile runs. Gee, thanks.

I am taking this "back to running" business slow so as not to overwork anything. I wake up in the mornings and run 20-30 minutes. I run SLOWLY for 20-30 minutes. My body seems to remember what running is, but my mind screams "I DONT WANT TO WAKE UP EARLYYYYYYYY. GO BACK TO SLEEPPPPPPPPPP. YOU DONT NEED TO RUN." Sometimes I listen to it. Tomorrow morning, I will NOT listen to this voice. I hope....

Moral of the story is that my new running journey is beginning. My real problem is that I much prefer running trails to running on pavement. Trails are hard to come by and pavement is plentiful. Alas, isn't that the way life goes?

2. I have found an awesome Bikram Studio in my summer location! It is SOOOOOO clean and smells like a baby's bottom. Even better, I seem to be making some rapid progress at this new studio. Sometimes a change of scenery can turn an exercise plateau into a steady increase in awesomeness.

Important Progress:

THIS POSE. I CAN DO THIS POSE. ALL THE WAY.

This is called standing head to knee, and I can now put my head to my knee. It happened today actually. Yesterday I was an inch away, and today my flippin forehead touched my flippin knee. It has taken 13 months for me to be able to actually straighten my kicking out leg, to be able to bring my elbows down below my claf muscles, to be able to bring my body down, and to be able to tuck my chin to my neck and touch my forehead to my knee. But I DID IT.

The truth is that I have actually made tangible progress in about 20 of the 26 poses. Someday (probably this fall) I am going to take pictures of where I was when I started Bikram (via my rough memory of my original struggles) and where I am now. Should be a fun post.

3. I am intern for the ultra-awesome-est organization ever. It is called Thistle Farms, and you should just go read about it. It is a rehabilitation for women from the streets who have survived lives of protitution, abuse, and addiction. These women then work at Thistle Farms making all natural bath and body products that are fab. The women with whom I work are unbelievable, and you better believe me when I say that they know what it takes to go the ultra distance. Our daily motto is "Love Heals." I love working in a place where I know I am doing good in the world. Working at Thistle Farms gives me the same feeling as running 20 miles just minus the sore muscles and joints.

Runners: order some Body Butter to moisturize all your nasty skin (I know you have it... chaffing... yuck....)

Yogis: order some Room Spray or Shower Gel because I know you smell bad after class ALL THE TIME.

Everyone else: my favorite product is the Lip Smoothie. My lips had been chapped for about 6 months straight from the Connecticut winter, and this lip smoothie had my lips back to normal in 3 days.

Hows that for an update?

ULTRA LOVE, PEOPLE. ULTRA LOVE HEALS.

you will probably think i am crazy

2011-03-06T09:43:00.000-08:00

But that's okay by me.

I think Bikram yoga actually works.

Now, I have no scientific evidence. I only have my body and the way it has responded to all of this. So here is my health story as of late. You can believe it, or you can think I am nuts.

Back in October, I felt like I was getting sick. So, I stayed home from yoga to get extra sleep and rest.... and then I got sick. Snot. Fever. Cough. All the good stuff.

In December, I felt like I was getting sick. It was almost time for Winterfest, so I thought, "I should stay home from yoga, get some rest so I wont be sick at Winterfest." aaaaaaaand I got sick. Fever. Lost voice. Nasty cough. Excessive snot. Awful.

So two weeks ago, I felt like I was about to get sick. Except this time, I was mid 30 day challenge, and, well, I don't fail at challenges. So I figured, "I am just gonna go to yoga. If I am passed out on the mat halfway through class- no big deal. I still get to put my sticker on the board." So I went to yoga. Everyday. For 5 days, I felt like I was on the verge of getting sick. I would wake up with a little tickle in my throat, and I felt a little tired. But I went to yoga.

And ya know what?

I DIDN'T GET SICK.

And thus, Bikram works. All the health benefits? I probably get them. All that talk about boosting my immune system? Well, it happened to me.

All that I can tell you is that I feel fantastic. It is hard to describe because you think your body feels fine- and then you do Bikram for nine months and you realize that you have never ever physically felt this way before. I can wiggle. I can roll around. I can stretch and reach for things. I can breathe. I have lower blood pressure. Luna is calmer. My handsome and health conscious boyfriend has noticed a change. And I am way less stressed about midterms than the rest of my classmates. This is just the tip of the iceberg.

But, it is hard to convince people to stick with Bikram. The first week is almost too much to handle. The next three months bring all kinds of weird bodily kinks (that you didn’t even know you had) to the surface. Every class is a challenge. You don't have "easy" days. You just have days where you feel a little less hot and so you work even harder. It’s tricky to figure out the proper way to hydrate, and eating the wrong kind of food can throw off your practice. And it is a 90-minute workout.

If you ever start doing Bigram- you will want to quit. You will want to leave the f-in hot room. You will want to never feel that much sweat dripping off of you again. But when you actually do leave the room, your body will be changed, and you will want to get back in the torture chamber.

I know that Bikram isn't for everyone because some people just cant take the heat- literally and figuratively. But mostly figuratively- you have to constantly work on your mental toughness for Bikram to work for you. Perhaps that is why it is really so difficult (kind of like long distance running). Your body, given the chance, can handle Bikram. It is your mind that wants to give up quickly, just like it is your mind that wants to give up at mile 20. The human body can do all kinds of wild and crazy things- just ask my friend Sabrina or watch the yoga national championships!

As I slowly step off my soap box- I know you think I am crazy for buying into all this Bikram health nonsense. And 9 months ago, I would have said the same thing. Yet, after this 30 day challenge that I completed, I think it is safe to say that I drank the Kool-Aid, y'all. Maybe you should too.

ultra love.

P.S.- My instructor, Robin, said she would take pictures of all my poses this week so I can mark my progress. I will certainly post them for all my loyal listeners, and so you can see my cute yoga clothes.

i am about to make your life better

2011-02-18T10:03:00.000-08:00

for all you people out there who like practical life advice, this post is for you. this post will make your life better and will save you money on future hospital bills. so all the money you are gonna save, you can just send my way. k thanks.

ready?

WHENEVER YOU "FORWARD BEND"- SUCK YOUR STOMACH IN.

what does this really mean? well, anytime you bend down to tie your shoes, anytime you are sitting at a desk kinda hunched over, anytime you wash dishes over the sink, anytime you sit on the couch to watch tv, anytime you are leaning forward AT ALL, just suck your stomach in.

this simple act protects your lower back from all kinds of problems and will give you a stronger core, which is also just a generally good thing.

my favorite instructor, robin (she taught the 2 classes my handsome and health conscious boyfriend took- YES HE GAVE IN AND CAME TO YOGA. I LOVE HIM.) talks all the time about how you can backward bend til the cows come home. BACKWARD bends are healing and fun, it's the FORWARD bends you gotta watch out for (forgive the dangling preposition, but i had to use the cliche). forward bends cause back problems, most notably lower back pain.

so now that i can not only touch my toes, but put my FULL PALMS on the floor, i feel like i can say this to all you cool kids. think about your flexibility right now: can you touch your toes? can you kneel/squat down without struggles? do you have even a little lower back pain? are your hips tight? if you are struggling even a little bit right now, think about where you will be in 20 years.

now, i am NOT telling everyone to go out and get hooked on bikram (though i will always encourage anyone who wants to!!!! yayyyy yoga!!!)--- but, you might wanna introduce some stretching into your routine. it could prevent some issues down the line.

AND most importantly, SUCK YOUR STOMACH IN WHEN YOU DO FORWARD BENDS.

ultra love.

a funny story

2011-02-02T10:31:00.001-08:00

2 days ago, in my bikram yoga class, we are about to go into standing bow pose. we all looked just like the picture below.

So the whole class of 20+ people is standing just like this and the instructor goes:

"WHO LOVES BIKRAM YOGA?"

bahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahaha i am laughing out loud still thinking about this.

ultra love.

to-do list

2011-01-24T19:58:00.000-08:00

1. increase my pain tolerance threshold. i mean, childbirth is coming in the next 5 years or so. better get ready now, right?

2. get back into running. this is hard to do when it is -4 outside. that is not an exaggeration. i just am not as hard core as sabrina is. alas, this just brings me back to #1.

3. bake Pioneer Woman's cinnamon rolls. this will most likely NOT help with #1 or #2.... maybe it can be "motivation?" mmmm i think that works.....

4. win the lottery. this will DEF clear up time in my schedule for numbers 1, 2, and 3, seeing as how i wouldn't need school or a demanding job.

5. figure out why our shower curtain has started blowing in on me while showering. this really decreases the amount of space in the shower. and i hate touching plastic gross stuff while i am trying to get clean.

i think this is a pretty honorable to do list. i thought of this during yoga. and after when i was in the shower.

ultra love.

To put you in the christmas spirit

2010-12-10T16:01:00.000-08:00

Enjoy, dear friends, enjoy.

ultra love. and merry christmas.

Lessons Learned at 2 am

2010-11-16T12:12:00.000-08:00

Last night I stayed up late watching Memphis take on Miami on ESPN. For those of you who know me, the start time (midnight) was already 2 hours past my bed time. In the 2 hours and 30 minutes that it took for my Tigers to eek out a win over Miami, I learned many valuable lessons. here they are, in no particular order.

1. It is not that hard to stay up late when your heart is racing. adrenaline bordering on cardiac arrest makes one decidedly not sleepy.
2. Luna's farts seem to give the Tigers extra energy. At half time, she was particularly gassy, and we all saw how the Tigers came out after the half. Once she fell asleep, they were less energetic. And when she woke up at the end of the game to release another one, chris crawford made his 3 pointer.
3. my Memphis pajama pants are NOT lucky.
4. i seem to have a knack for knowing when we are going to miss dunks. it is usually the ones that are wide open.
5. rubbing luna's little behind and saying "what a lucky bottom" seems to be helpful. though this method needs to be further tested.
6. angel garcia is still the ugliest man on the planet. and i am using the term "man" loosely considering he (and will coleman for that matter) played like a bunch of pansy girls last night and couldnt get a flippin rebound. okay i lied. they got 2. each. NOT OKAY.
7. we have a young team. which is fine, but, Lord have mercy, they make some freshman mistakes.
8. joe jackson needs to eat.
9. will barton needs to play to his hype. his brother is outshining him. injury or no injury, dude is lackluster.
10. when we are failing miserably on offense, we make up for it in some serious man defense. the good thing about having a team with this many talented players is that you can keep the rotation fresh, and the defense stays intense. if it weren't for defense, we would have been crushed.
11. for all pastner's hype about rebounding at the beginning of the season, we were destroyed on the boards. 41-21. really, gentlemen? and i say gentlemen on purpose, because only gentle people let others WALK ALL OVER THEM.
12. josh pastner is beautiful.
13. even with all the negatives of this game, pastner make good coaching decisions and our players never lost heart. i count those as two very good things to serve us the rest of the year.
14. i love it when my handsome and health conscious boyfriend talks basketball with me. it's 2 of my 3 favorite things all in one... and if Luna could talk or play basketball that would make 3 of my favorite things all in one.
15. one of my yoga poses is called balancing stick. our instructors say it is "having a little heart attack now so you dont have a big one later." Having one mini heart attack during yoga is enough. i would much rather my teams win by substantial margins. i feel that it will be more beneficial to my health.
16. since my daddy is a cardiologist, i am pretty sure the tigers pulled the whole "heart attack" game plan as a silly birthday present to him. pretty sure.
17. all in all, both my teams are 2-0. In yale grading terms, i give them an H. this grade is subject to change and contingent upon future performances.

go tigers go.

and, let's go hoyas (whose took care of business last night and thus did not warrant a somewhat criticizing blog post)!

ultra love.

Pumpkin Extenda-Week #4: Pumpkin Bread, but not the kind you think

2010-11-14T08:57:00.001-08:00

Pumpkin Bread- but the kind with yeast, not the kind you are used to.

this bread is reallllly yummy. it's even better toasted with some butter on it. This would be great as a bread to go with thanksgiving dinner- that is, if you don't eat sister schubert rolls like we do. nothing beats sister schubert. duh.

Recipe from here

Ingredients:
15 oz. can pumpkin puree
2 large eggs
4 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ground ginger
¼ tsp. ground cloves
1 ½ tsp. salt
1 tbsp. instant yeast
1/3 cup brown sugar
4 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine pumpkin puree, eggs, butter, spices, yeast, brown sugar, and 2 ¾ cups of the flour.

Mix on medium-low speed until combined. Add in the remaining 2 cups of flour and mix on low speed until incorporated and the ingredients have formed a dough.

Switch to the dough hook and continue kneading on low speed until dough is smooth and elastic, about 5-8 minutes. (Add additional flour 1 tablespoon at a time if necessary to help the dough clear the sides of the bowl.) Here is a video to show you what the dough should look like. it took me a while to get it to the right consistency.

Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 1 to 1 ½ hours; it should have expanded somewhat but won’t be wildly puffy.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, divide it in half, and then divide each half into three equal pieces. Roll each piece into an 18” log.

Working with three logs at a time, make a braid, pinching the ends together.

Coil the braid into a lightly greased 8” or 9” cake pan, shaping it into a wreath-like circle and pressing the ends together where they meet. Repeat with the remaining logs.

Cover both pans with lightly greased plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for about 90 minutes until they look puffy, although not doubled in bulk.

Bake the bread at 350° F for 30 minutes, until lightly browned and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center reads 190° F. Remove the wreaths from the oven and allow them to cool on a wire rack.

Enjoy!

ultra love.

Pumpkin Extenda-Week Recipe # 3: Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Bars

2010-11-04T20:39:00.000-07:00

Greetings all- today we are making (drum roll please!!!!!)

Pumpkin Pie Snickerdoodle Bars

(recipe from here)

and we also have the sweetest girl in the world as a helper!

To begin, please gather your ingredients.

Snickerdoodle Layer
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups packed brown sugar
1 cup butter, at room temperature
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9x13 inch pan and lay a piece of parchment paper across the pan, so that it extends the pan slightly (see pictures below). The parchment paper is an optional step, but it will make it easier to get the bars out later

To make snickerdoodle layer:
Sift together flour, baking powder and salt and set aside.

Make note not to put the sugar in the flour mixture. you will need to get that out if you do.

In large bowl, beat together butter, sugar, egg and vanilla until smooth.
Stir in the flour mixture until well blended.

Spread evenly in prepared pan (mixture will be thick and cookiebatter-ish.)
Next gather your pumpkin Pie layer ingredients.

Pumpkin Pie Layer
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
1 stick butter, at room temperature
1 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp ginger, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp nutmeg)
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin

To make pumpkin pie filling:

In a mixer bowl (you can use the same one you used to make the snickerdoodle batter) with a paddle attachment, mix together butter and sugar. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until well combined. This layer will be less thick and more pourable.

Pour over the snickerdoodle layer, smoothing out the top.

Combine white sugar and cinnamon in a little bowl. Evenly sprinkle cinnamon sugar mixture over the top of the batter.

Bake for 33-40 minutes @350 (maybe more depending on your oven) or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the pan comes out clean. Let the bars cool completely (about an hour). They will deflate a bit and remain a bit pie-like on the top layer. The bars that are closer to the edges of the pan will be more firm.

Next is the Drizzle
1 oz white chocolate, chopped
1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

After the bars are completely cool, place the chopped white chocolate into a bowl or zip-lock bag and melt on low power. When it's completely melted, add the pumpkin pie spice and mix (or knead if using a zip lock bag). Use a spoon or cut a small corner off the bag and drizzle the melted chocolate over the top of the bars and let it cool and harden.

**** This whole drizzle thing was not as easy as it sounds. That is why my drizzle looks a little homeless. The white chocolate is not all that necessary, but it is yummy. *****

Use the parchment paper to lift the bars out of the pan. Place on a cutting board and cut into bars. Store in a covered container.

These have been my fav recipe so far. really. i could have eaten the whole pan by myself. or like 60000 pans. forever.

so goood. go make them. now.

ultra love.

A little bit of Luna to tide you over...

2010-11-01T15:59:00.000-07:00

My girl, doing what she does best.

Pumpkin Extenda-Week #2: Crumb-Topped Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

2010-10-24T12:58:00.000-07:00

Welcome to recipe number 2! This time, we (Michelle and I ) had a special guest. Her name is Sabrina, and, if you are a good blog reader, you will remember that she is an ultra-awesome ultrarunning who was just recently featured in RUNNERS WORLD MAGAZINE! WHATTTTTT. SO GREAT AT LIFE. Here she is with our lovely kitchen assistant....

Crumb-Topped Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

(adapted from here)

Gracie voted this the best recipe so far. I really liked these, and they get better and better the longer they sit in the fridge (within reason of course). The blog from which I stole these says you can make regular cupcake sized muffins or the mini muffins. If you want to see the adaptation for that, go to the blog. Otherwise here you will find cupcake sized muffins.

In general, these are quite delicious. They almost make a good breakfast food. The crumbly bottom with the pumpkin cream cheesy layer are a delicious partnership. Expect the pumpkin layer to be soft and a little gooey. The recipe says it makes 24 muffins. I got 22 out of the pumpkin batter, but had crumble to spare. Okay, on to the recipe!

Crumb Crust

2 c. all-purpose flour

2/3 c. packed brown sugar

1/2 c. uncooked regular oats

1/2 tsp. salt

1/3 c. finely chopped pecans (or walnuts)

3/4 c. butter, melted

Combine flour, sugar, oats, salt, and nuts in a medium bowl. Add melted butter and combine with hands until mixture is coarse and crumbly. See mixture in the bottom right corner below.

Line cupcake pans with cupcake liners and drop a generous tablespoon of crumble into each liner. Press down with your table spoon.

Save leftover mixture to sprinkle on tarts before baking.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Filling

1 small can (15oz) pumpkin

2 8-oz. packages cream cheese (light works great), softened (THIS IS IMPORTANT)

1 tsp. vanilla

3 eggs

1 c. sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. allspice

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

Combine pumpkin, cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla with an electric mixer until smooth. (NOTE- make sure your cream cheese is softened and closer to room temp. I used mine straight from the fridge, and it would not mix smoothly/fully) Add eggs and seasoning and mix completely. Spoon into prepared crust. (I used a 1/4 measuring cup and this worked really well. You dont want to fill it all the way to the top. Just allllmost there- see pictures below)

Sprinkle extra crumble on top of the muffins.

Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. If you'd like the crumb topping a little darker, you can turn the broiler on for a few minutes, but you have to keep a close eye on them because they will literally burn in a few seconds.

Allow to cool completely and then refrigerate for at LEAST 24 hours. Serve with sweetened whipped cream on top if desired.

Ultra delicious. Ultra easy.

Ultra love.

Pumpkin Extenda-Week #1: Pumpkin Cookies

2010-10-18T12:30:00.001-07:00

The Recipe that started the whole thing... Pumpkin Cookies. I have a very soft spot (also known as a spoft) for pumpkin cookies because they are really delicious. Michelle and I spent lots of time looking for good recipes, and I eventually just picked this one. You shall see the adventures below!
Super Soft Pumpkin Cookies (adapted from here)
Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup canola or corn oil

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices together in a medium bowl and set aside. Make sure you stir them all together (not like in the picture below)

Put the rack in the middle of the oven . Preheat the oven to 325. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and butter the paper. (I didnt have parchment paper, so we just buttered the pan. worked like a charm)

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the eggs and sugar until smooth and lightened in color, about 1 minute. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl as needed during mixing. On low speed, mix the oil, pumpkin, and vanilla until blended. Michelle took care of this portion of the mixing. What a beautiful co-chef.

Gracie didn't help bake per-se because she was sweaty from Bikram.

But she kept our kitchen assistant entertained!

Our lovely kitchen assistant, Luna the angel.

Next, mix in the flour mixture to incorporate it. See demonstration below. This is a very hard job...

Then, using an ice cream scoop or a 1/4 measuring cup (or whatever you want), scoop mounds of the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing the cookies about 2 inches apart. Use a thin metal spatula to smooth and flatten the rounds. (We didnt have to do this step because I used Trader Joe's canned pumpkin which is a thinner consistency than the normal Libby's brand.)
Bake the cookies one sheet at a time until the tops feel firm and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry, about 16 minutes. Cool them on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. (I didn't test mine with a toothpick but if you are really anal about stuff, go for it) Make sure the kitchen assistant is having a good time. Picture evidence below.

MMMMMMMM look at the yummy cookies that are about to be iced!

Glaze- Ingredients
2 cups confectioners sugar
3 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon butter (melted)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions: Combine confectioner’s sugar, milk, butter and vanilla. Mix well. If needed, add more milk until consistency is drizzle-able.
Drizzle glaze onto cookies with a spoon. (I probably doubled the milk)

Final Product with Luna creeping in the background. What a girl.

Picture of the co-chefs .

These cookies were so delicious. And they really were super soft. I highly recommend them. I also recommend only icing the cookies after they are cool- otherwise the icing spills everywhere and then you have to lick it up. Nevermind, I highly recommend icing the cookies while they ARE hot so you CAN lick the excess icing. If you want, you can also add a cup of chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, or anything else you want. Me? I am a purist. Only pumpkin.

Enjoy!

Ultra Love.

Pumpkin Extenda-Week 2010

2010-10-14T20:00:00.000-07:00

So a few weeks ago, Michelle and I realized reading week (a week off from class, where you actually do need to catch up on reading) was coming. We just knew we wanted to bake PUMPKIN THINGS. At first it was just pumpkin cookies, but the more we looked for good recipes, the more recipes we found. So what was just lets get together and bake pumpkin cookies has turned into, "i just spent alot of money at the grocery store so we can bake pumpkin things many days in a row" aka "Pumpkin Extenda-Week 2010!"

Why Extenda-Week you ask? Well, I found more than 7 recipes (i think 10 total?). AND, sometimes in grad school you just can't bake everyday and live to tell about it. AND, i don't want any food to go to waste, so i am going to try to make sure things get eaten before i move onto the next food.

Thus far, two recipes have been made. Each will have an individual post, so don't fret.

I FREAKIN LOVE PUMPKIN EVERYTHING.

ultra love.

Real Life

2010-10-12T11:46:00.001-07:00

so remember when i was training for an ultra marathon? don't forget about that. it is still a daily dream of mine. mostly, when i walk Luna to the dog park, i imagine what life would be like if i could just run. and keep running. i miss running in shelby farms. i miss the trails, the grass, the mud, the trees, the smells, the aching joints, all of it.

don't get me wrong. I LOVE YOGA. And i am very happy that i found it, but running is just one of those things that feels right, even when my legs are about to fall off. specifially, running with luna is the most peaceful i have ever felt. when luna starts acting up, i take myself to my happy place (thank you cesar milan, for your fantastic dog advice) which is a very distinct memory i have of the two of us running through a wooded part of the tour de wolf trail. it was the perfect temperature, my legs were fresh, and Luna and i were perfectly synchronized in so many ways. she knew when to turn, when to slow down, which way to proceed. our brains and bodies were connected through this special moment we were sharing. That is my calm/assertive moment that i recall so that Luna is a calm and submissive pup.

I think cesar milan does bikram yoga. really. 1- i can just see him in half moon pose. totally uncomfortable but relaxed and killin it. 2- i can see him as an instructor, SHHHHH-ing people when they are doing the pose wrong.........

sorry for that side thought. it needed to come out.

but anyway- today i needed all of my calm/assertive energy slash my yoga "presence." See bikram is not about peaceful meditation. it is about remaining calm and relaxed even when you are in the middle of hell. today's hell was new haven city hall. i had to fork over $600 for my flippin parking permit, and the tax people are rude. and not helpful. and their whole system is dumb. and grad students dont have much money, so i just lost my mind in there. i was not a calm yogi or a calm/assertive leader of the pack. i was a hot mess. fortuantely, i eventaully got it together. all it took was a burrito (from the carts- a strange yale culture that is very delicious), a diet coke, some love from my roomie grace, a dog park trip with luna, and a shower.

i feel much better. hopefully i will get to go to 6:00 am yoga tomorrow.

OH, now that i have remembered, this post was supposed to be about my new friend. Her name is sabrina, and, yes, it is a little creepy that i am blogging about her. but it is okay because she is a part of why i can keep dreaming about running. see, sabrina is a REAL ULTRA RUNNER. LIKE FOR REAL, PEOPLE. a few weeks ago, she was doing a 24 hour race. no big, right? but she got injured 80 miles in. 80 miles, no big.

anyway- it is very nice to have someone here at YDS who shares my running love/obsession/craziness. Most people enjoy running, but few have the desire to just keep running for a long time. In my mind, if i could do an 8 hour run (and my body could make it and not break) that would be pure happiness. I want to be able to run for a long time and for a long way. Hopefully, my new friendship with sabrina will give me motivation, someone to chat with, someone to think i am not crazy. it also helps that she is super nice and fun to be around in general. grace and i will DEF have to invite her to our "fall fun fest" or whatever it is that we are having at our house. grace is making vegetarian chili- i think i am going to spike it with meat. BAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

okay. enough rambling for today.

oh wait. ps. grace has started to come to yoga with me. and i think i am getting her addicted. YES.

ultra love.

Miss Manners

2010-10-04T13:34:00.001-07:00

Greetings! I am blogging from my new smart phone. Impressive, eh? Well this past weekend i got to visit my handsome and health conscious boyfriend in nashville, and we went to the gym (it is the glue that holds us together). See at school, i have been going to yoga about 6 days a week, so i havent been lifting at all. Thus, man-friend and i lifted together! We had just sat down on an incline bench to do some incline presses when dude comes up to us and asks to work in with us.

For those of you in blogland who arent hip to gym lingo, this basically means sharing, rotating sets. This was weird for multiple reasons:
1. There were already 2 of us using this one bench.
2. There were 2 other open incline benches 10 ft away ( dude used some excuse about his lower back, but i say if you cant carry the weight you shouldnt be lifting it. Duh)
3. Some teenager was just resting his weights on the toher other other incline bench. (3 other options and dude asks to work in on the bech 2 ppl are using. Weird)

Fortunately, the kid moved his weights for the dude who ened up asking my boyfriend to spot him. He then proceeded to tell us his enitre life story slash wight lifting saga. Really. Dude. Stop. Thus, i give you some helpful gym etiquette:
1. There is rarely any need to talk to someone who looks even remotely into what they are doing. Just leave people be.
2. Be aware if you are taking up needed space.
3. Save others from weirdos if you can.
4. Try not to smell too bad.

Also, in honor of my weekend of bliss, i leave you with a list of things a person would miss if they just so happened to be living among and surrounded by VEGETARIANS (Gasp!) -
1. Hamburgers
2. Hotdogs
3. Bbq
4. Chicken salad
5. Good sushi
6. Bacon (bacon is good for me!)
7. Cupcakes
Okay so vegetarians eat cupcakes but i havent had any in new haven. And i got to eat all of these things this weekend. The picture you see somewhere in this post is my man with our burgers. Love. True love, people.

Oh and i got to see Vince Gill in concert.

I am a happy happy girl.

Ultra love.

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Push your face to you legs with your smiling happy face

2010-09-18T19:57:00.000-07:00

so thought that maybe i would fill you crazy kids in on my yoga progress. In the last month, i have been going to bikram at least 5 days a week, and this equals tangible progress, my friends.

For better pictures, go here.

posture number 2-- also goes into a backbend, and well, my backbend is starting to get pretty bendy folks.

Posture number 2 -- also goes into a forward bend where you push your face into your legs and try to lock your knees. I am very close to locking my knees. woo woo.

posture number 5 -- i am about 2 inches away from locking my kicking knee out. and for you people who know me, that is serious stuff.

posture 8-- this posture is particularly hard for me. and though my progress is minimal, i can feel my hamstrings slowly letting go of years of tension. you are supposed to put your hands on the outside of your heels. if you cant get your heels, then the outside of your toes. if you cant do that, then you put your hands on the ground in front of you. that's where i am. my fingers just barely touch the outside of my feet, but i really can tell a difference. they say that if you lock your thighs, that allows your hamstrings to relax. we shall see.

posture 12-- you start this pose with your foot on your thigh and then you bend over until your hands touch the ground. WELL, i used to not be able to touch the ground let along squat all the way down to this pose, called toe stand, because you stand on your toes on one foot. now i can balance for a few seconds without having my hands hold me up. what what!

posture 19-- i can get my thighs up off the ground. you people may think this is easy, but go ahead and try. see how strong your back is.

posture 20 -- this pose is hard on your knees- it stretches them out big time. and guess what, mine are tight (big surprise there). well, at first, i could only sit up on my knees (your feet are slightly on the outside of your thighs so that your butt rests on the floor) because my butt didnt touch the floor yet. Now i can lean back on my elbows and put the top of my head on the ground. eventually, i should be able to relax all the way into the posture.

Posture 22- camel pose-- is a wild one. i think it is about as close as i will ever come to doing drugs.

posture 15 is actually at the end between postures 24 and 25 -- and (this is the real kicker) I CAN lock my legs while holding my toes. YES PEOPLE IT'S TRUE.

I have had some fantastic classes that have left me feeling on top of cloud 9. I have had a plethora of teachers and most of them are fantastic. My favorite is the owner, mostly because she really takes the time to correct me. This is probably the reason I am getting so far into these postures. The other great thing is they give us fruit after each class. AND i love coconut water. you should go try it.

that's all i've got people.

ultra love.

Luna's Life- In Video

2010-09-08T19:03:00.000-07:00

This is what we do everyday. Without fail. It is ultra-awesome.

Ultra Love.

The journey to the haven....

2010-09-02T13:47:00.000-07:00

So i have a new roomie. her name is Gracie. She wrote a fascinating tale of our journey, and instead of retelling, i am just going to link you to her blog. Enjoy.

That is the story. And just to add my little bit of wisdom, i am a big fan of pet friendly hotels. Luna got to sleep on the bed with me and everything. And then we played fetch in the morning, surprise, surprise. And then i got one last chicken biscuit in Virginia before i left the southland for this yankee territory where there are no such things as chicken biscuits.

Ultra love.

How about I take you on a tour of my new place?

2010-08-30T15:41:00.000-07:00

Welcome to my new home. Would you like a tour? Let's start outside, shall we? Please keep in mind that one fun part of this tour is playing "find the Luna" in many pictures. Do you see her welcoming you below?

Welcome to the living room. We have two fun chairs that Gracie got off Craig's List, my dad's old couch plus slip cover, and my boyfriend;s parents' old table. See those curtains and curtain rods? I sawed through those metal pipes to make the the right length. It was a little painful.
View from the entryway.
View of the entertainment center. ALso, notice the stuff on the wall? those are fun pictures of nashville that Gracie brought. The plants, you ask? the big guy is ralph and the little one is Leilani.
Gracie's mom painted that picture on the wall for us.
And here's the dining room. This is Gracie's great grandmother's dining room table. Pretty cool.

This blank wall will eventually be covered in pretty plates.
This is pantry number one where we keep our food, cups, and tupperware.
Hello, Kitchen! It is much bigger than we thought it would be. Also, we built that island from a million pieces. It took about 4 hours.
Do you like my stainless steel pots on the wall?
Gracie organized our dishes so they would be pretty.
The bathroom. I think it is my favorite room. Mostly because i love pottery barn things. and the bathroom is mostly pottery barn.

Look at this fantastic bathroom storage! And the pictures of Luna on the wall.
This is Gracie's room.
Her chiffarobe.
AND HER GIANT CLOSETS! Any girl's dream.
This is the hall between our rooms, also leading to the entryway.
This is my room.
This is my wall of shelves, which don't look very pretty yet. But they will, someday.
A view looking at my bed.
Mini wall of Luna (and my dresser)
The Harry Potter closet. Yes, it is in fact under the stairs.
The entryway-- and the WALL O BASKETBALLLLLLLLL.

There you have it folks. That is my new place. It is pretty freaking awesome, and i feel so comfy and happy here. Eventually, there will be a rug in the living room, and a cool chandelier in the dining room. Fear not, i will show you pics when that happens.

If you would like to see before pics, you can see them on Facebook. There were just too many for a blog post.

I am off to bed- 6 am yoga!! woot woot. Oh and if you want to see the dude who taught my yoga class on saturday, go to his website. His name is Kasper, and i think he is an alien (but a good one).

Ultra love.

New Haven = New Heaven

2010-08-22T11:08:00.001-07:00

hello friends

i am safely tucked away in new haven, ct, where the weather is consistently in the 70s (high during the day, lower at night). we (my new roomie and i) do not have internet at our house yet (long, unimportant, and uninteresting story), but that will be fixed on saturday. right now i am at starbucks yoinking their internet. i meant to upload pics of the house and of the journey, but i forgot the thing to plug my memory card into my computer today. boooo. you will have to just wait.

our house is about 90 percent decorated. the last 10 will be finished soon. 8% today, and 2 % when the last 2 items arrive. i will post pics for your viewing pleasure.

as far as life goes- we really lucked out. Grace and i only got to see pictures of our place emailed from the land lady, and only got to see our neighborhood via google maps. turns out, our house is BEAUTIFUL and the neighborhood is safe and super friendly. the 2 best parts? our house is a (1) block and a half from the neighborhood dog park that (2) backs up to the divinity schoool. translation? i get to play with luna everymorning and school is only a 5 min ute walk away. AMAZING. we couldn't have a better place to live.

Luna and i have made lots of friends at the dog park. apparently, it is the best place to get to know the neighborhood. we met bill and seamus, karen and jessie, and a bunch of other ppl and puppies i cant remember. Luna get sufficient exercise from playing serious fetch, and then enjoys some "pack walking time" on the way home. she has been so great throughout the move- i am a proud mother.

My handsome and health conscious BF came to visit, and that made me happy. now he has mental pictures of everything i am talking about. oh, and i miss him already.

I found my new yoga studio today. It is a pretty nice studio. More details on that to come.

As soon as internet is readily available, i will try to give you a few good hard blogs:

1. the journey in Marge the Barge (the moving truck)

2. before and after pics of our home

3. the weird little quirks of our home

4. life at YDS

okayyyyyyy. must get back to using a power drill.

ultra love to all of my people- i miss you!

do not max out the air conditioner

2010-08-12T17:59:00.000-07:00

i am currently in the process of moving to New Haven, CT to attend Yale Divinity School. and boy is it a process. and ultra process if you will.

expect loads of serious blogging as soon as i am even slightly settled in to my new home. Luna is enjoying all the craziness, of course.

ultra love

Ode to Lori

2010-07-22T20:33:00.000-07:00

An ode to the greatest spin instructor on the planet, Lori:

I love you, Lori

Oh yes I do

I love you Lori

You kick my boo(ty)

When you aren't at spin, I'm blue!

Oh Lori I love you!

Now, I know that it is normal to love your family, your significant other, or your best friend. But I am not sure if it is normal to love your spin instructor as much as I love Lori. I am pretty sure that Martha and Ellen are with me on this..... Lori most definitely has a place in our hearts.

In a way, this shows that there is something wrong with us- that we have such great affection for someone who whoops us every Tuesday and Thursday. But there is nothing more satisfying than walking into spin knowing that I am going to get a great workout. AKA- there is nothing more satisfying than walking into spin and seeing Lori perched on the bike up front. It makes me happy to know that all of her CDs have one of my "faves" on it--- the waka waka song, burn it to the ground, lady gaga, ke$ha.

Today, when I walked into class, she wasn't there. I spent most of the class being irritated, because, well, I have been spoiled for 2 years with the best spin instructor ever in the history of ever, so I wanted her to be there. However, as we were cooling down, the new lady said Lori was taking a spin hiatus (as in a long time- at least long enough that I wont get to go to her class again before I leave for Yale) to heal her hamstring.

I kid you not- I almost cried. As I left the gym, I called Martha to tell her (almost cried). Called Ellen (def teared up a little). Then complained to my mom about how sad I was. (Lori- if you are reading this, note this is not a guilt trip but a way to show you how loved you are)

So, in honor of the best spin lady who has been so sweet to me, to marth, and to ellen, here is a list of things I love about Lori.

1. She is always happy to be at spin- whether she has torn her hammy in half, has a headache, or just isn't feeling well.

2. She picks music with beats that fit perfectly to whatever hill or sprint we are on.

3. She introduced us to the Waka Waka song.

4. She always wears cute exercise tops.

5. She doesn't go easy on us.

6. She turns the music up loud- and even though I have to wear my ear plugs, it still gets me pumped.

7. She always says encouraging words at JUST the time that you are starting to let yourself slack off.

8. We are facebook friends.

9. She takes the time to know the people in her class, and that makes us become friends too.

10. She takes the time to create fun classes- like the Tour de France class, or the BIG LONG HILL class.

11. She makes sure it's not too hot in the class room.

12. She always tried to make us burn 1000 calories in a workout (Marta has this calorie counter watch thing, and she promised us a pizza if Marta got to 1000 calories)

13. She is just cool like that.

14. She is funny! She always makes funny jokes or side comments, and I can't help but laugh even if i am pushing up a hill or have beads of sweat dripping down my face.

15. She is the best ever, and I am going to miss her classes. I can't wait for Christmas break when I can go to her classes once again.

If you haven't figured out how much Lori dominates from all of my previous blog posts, I hope this post shows you how I feel. This just goes to prove all the old cliches true- You don't know what you've got til it's gone, best things come to those who wait, kill two birds with one stone..... not sure how that last one fits, but I needed three.....

LORI. I (we) think you are the best there is. Heal that hamstring, but know how much you will be missed.

ultra love.

if i were the weekend, i would have just been owned by me

2010-07-19T20:06:00.000-07:00

oh hey- whats up? what did you do this weekend? eat yourself into oblivion? lounge around? watch tv? well lemme tell you what i did.

1. Saturday Morning: 8 am - 10 am. SPIN- Tour de' France style. How does that work you may ask? WELL, if you should happen to watch the Tour tomorrow, you will watch the stage that we "did" in class on saturday. See, Laurie, the greatest spin instructor in the world, crafted a 2 hour class where our intensity (think: tension on the bike which mimics different hill grades) followed the hills for Tuesday's stage. It was AWESOME. One of the reasons why Laurie is so good is that she knows just when to yell encouraging things, just when to crack it up or down, and just when to let you push yourself. On saturday, she made it seem like we were really in the race- pulling one of our team mates, having to take over when he had to drop out, battling the "big names" up the hill, and trying to push past them at the finish line. We won the stage, in case you were worried.

2. Saturday Afternoon: I sewed 2 dogs beds for Luna with my Grandmother! This isn't really a how-to blog, so I just took pictures of the "after" stage. How did this project come about? Well, I had some extra memory foam sitting around, and it needed to be used rather than dumped in a landfill where it would pollute our precious environment and contribute to global warming and killing dolphins with those plastic coke can holder thingys. So, Grandmother and I cut the memory foam- one to fit in her kennel and one to be more "decorative" around the house. The furry one is gonna go in her kennel, the pretty patterned one is the around the house dog bed.

(this is my grandmother's pool table- located in her rec room)

close-up of the furry one

close up of the patterned one!

It took up about hours to complete these two beds. We had some trouble getting our sewing machines working, but it didn't matter in the end since we just got to hang out and chit chat all day. See, I love my Grandmother. And, I love her house more than any other place in the world. It smells like all of my favorite memories and is still decorated in her orignal 70s style. See the evidence below.

This is my toy box, that she still has. Side note, Luna just joined me on the couch and licked my ear. yummy, i guess.

Grandmother's living room. She designed her whole house and decorated it.

Pretty bookshelf in the rock wall.

This was my Aunt Anita's room, and then my room when my dad lived with my Grandmother for a little while.

How awseome is all of this? I love this house. If i could live anywhere for the rest of my life, it would be this house. Hands down.

3. Saturday Night: went to a fancy dinner with my dad. then took the dogs on a walk.

4. Sunday- After church: i rush to workout with my dad and his trainer charles. Charles used to be a body builder. And he whoops you. You workout all of the major muscle groups, but its about intensity and keeping your heart rate up. Therefore, you do not get to stop between exercises. My personal favorite is the sled in the middle of the room that he loads up with weight and makes you push up and down the room.

5. Sunday: All day-- I cleaned out my closet. This was another task that took all day. I still have a few more sections of my room to go before everything has been cleaned out, organized, and/or thrown away. When that happens, i will show you the evidence. But not quite yet.

6. Sunday: 4:30-- I also went to YOGA. it was a packed class which made it really really really hot in there. Not a fan of full classes.

7. Sunday Night: cooked dinner with dad, kept cleaning my room, then took the babies on a walk.

yes. OWNED. and now it is monday, i just had a great yoga class, and i am POOPED.

ultra love.

I bake to control things in my life

2010-07-16T19:56:00.000-07:00

like trying to find a way to get luna to stop dropping her slobbery tennis ball on my capslock key (she is quite accurate) when she wants to play fetch which is all the time.

but i digress...

in light of the "great move" coming in less than a month, i had a real hankering for apple crisp. THUS after a killer (in the good way) yoga class, i skipped over to kroger in my sweaty (and i do mean sweaty) clothes to buy some apples and other necessary things.

Here you go folks- how to make a delicious apple crisp. and don't worry, it's healthy because there are apples and oatmeal in it.

Step 1: Round up the most attractive assistants you can. I found two- see below.

Step Two- Preheat oven to 350 and butter up a dish. the recipe says an 8X8- but as you can see i just used what i had. it doesnt really matter. (please, do not stare at my midget thumb)

Step three: peel apples

Step four: Core apples and the slice into even smaller pieces. I did some long ways and some short ways just to "give it some texture." Frankly- i don't even know if that makes sense, but it sounded good to me at the time.Step five (and a few more)- lightly cover apples in lemon juice. toss. less lightly cover apples in sugar. dust apples with cinnamon. toss. put all of this in your buttered dish. hehehe.

Step six: make the topping. 1/2 cup (plus two tablespoons) of all purpose. 1/2 cup oats (the instant ones do just fine). 1/4 cup brown sugar. 1/4 cup regular sugar. 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg. 1/4 teaspoon (or however much you want) cinnamon. Mix with a fork. THEN (this is the good part kids) MELT 6 TABLESPOONS unsaled BUTTERRRRRR! and pour it in your mixture, then stir until its alllll mixed.

Step seven: Crumble the topping over the apples. Pop in the over for 35-40 minutes.

Step eight: admire your sweet assistant.

Step nine- remove from oven and feed your family--- hey dad!

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm delicious. and remember, its healthy because it is made with apples and oatmeal.ps. this was devoured by my family within 24 hours.

ultra love.

Apples to Apples

2010-07-12T11:03:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned in my previous post, I had the chance to try out a different Yoga studio in DC. What I want to do right now (and what I WILL do bc this is MY blog and I do what I WANT, like hoodrat stuff with my friends) is give you a little run down of the differences, things i liked, things I didn't like, etc.

1. The yoga instructor brought her son to work with her. Think: cute little 6 year old cherub with blond hair. My oh my was this child a talker. He took it upon himself to show Jackie and me a few of the yoga poses- Rabbit and Camel, for those of you who care. He also made SURE to remind us that THERE WAS NO TALKING IN BIKRAM YOGA.

2. Their studio had this strange floor- it was like plastic astro turf but more squiggly than grassy. I think that a few years ago there were some flip flops that had this stuff as the base... I cant decide whether this stuff is more or less sanitary than carpet (like the Memphis studio). Sanitation aside, my feet slipped less on this stuff than the carpet. The plastic-y-ness gave you better grip than Memphis' generic office carpet.

3. DC smelled way better than Memphis. Though I have found that the smell in Memphis is not as bad if you go in the morning. By the 6:30pm class, it is almost unbearable. almost, but not quite.

4. The DC studio holds the camel pose (see below) about 3 times as long as the Memphis studio.

(ps. this is DEFINITELY what I look like when I do this pose.
Serene expression, body that lacks any sweat whatsoever, and sunkissed skin. MOST def)

ANYWAY- this pose, as you may be able to guess, is rather difficult. It has alot to do with your head position and the amount of strain on your chest as you stretch. I am just now getting to the point that I can 1) get into the pose and 2) hold in during my Memphis classes. The DC studio held it for a full minute the first set and a minute and a half the second set. I almost keeled over because this pose makes you dizzy. In general (at least in Memphis, in general) the second set of the pose is supposed to be shorter than the first. big time FAIL and BOO to DC on this one.

5. At the end of the class, the instructor walked around and gave everyone an ICE COLD wash cloth that was soaked in lavender (i think) water. It was extremely refreshing. THUMBS UP to DC on this one.

All in all, it was a good experience. I do like the Memphis instructors the best. Even though Dc was very good, the Memphis peeps give that extra bit of instruction that makes all the difference. The Memphis studio is also a good bit cleaner than the DC one, and it feels safer in terms of "protecting your valuables." As far as the class, it really is fundamentally the same wherever you go. Each instructor may add a phrase here and there, but the script and the poses don't change. I like that.

Ultra love.

an Ultra American Fourth of July

2010-07-07T19:40:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, in honor of America, I went to the land of my college years (Washington, DC) to visit someone. This someone happens to be my best friend. Somewhere in the twists and turns of fate, God saw fit to let me spend 4 years living with my "womb mate." It's kind of like we were born to be rommies and besties, and that hasn't changed even though we have lived in separate cities the past two years.

ENOUGH of the sappy stuff. On to the manly, bestial part of our visit.

FIRST- we went kayaking on the Potomac. I have pictures to prove it.We had so much fun, minus the part where our arms got kinda tired from all the paddling.

This is my artsy picture of our paddles and our alma mater in the back ground. Beautiful, eh?

But really- we had so much fun out on the river. It reminded us of the days when we were on the crew team together- rowing down the Potomac at 6 am with a slight mist/fog covering the water.

THEN- I convinced jackie to go to Bikram Yoga with me. We went to the studio on Capitol Hill, and overall, we had a great experience. See, Jackie had been to a Hot Yoga class a few years back, and left with a bad taste in her mouth. See: way to hot, ended up army crawling out of the room so she wouldn't vom. This time- I let Jackie in on a few secrets and mentally prepared her for the class. We hydrated like crazy the day before. We had a little orange juice for breakfast so we wouldnt have anything to throw up. We wore the right clothes. We brought ice water.

The end result? I think Jackie actually liked it. Now, I dont think she will go on her own. I am pretty sure that she would want me/someone there just in case something goes wrong. But all in all, if someone doesn't run screaming bloody hell after a class, you have done something right.

I could probably write a more in depth post on this, but really the only thing that sticks out in my mind right now is how much fun we had. It was a fantastic weekend- filled with all the good things in life, like naps, waffles, pools, books, life discussions, southwest chicken salads, ice cream, st. mary's friends, jorts, and ultra happiness.

I leave you with two pictures from America's Birthday Celebration on the National Mall:

Ultra love.

for the newbies

2010-06-23T06:52:00.000-07:00

i recently convinced a friend of mine to join me at "HOT Yoga--- Bikram Yoga," and in the course of this first joint class, i realized that i should have given her a little more advice on what to expect.
i guess i forgot how much there is to learn in your first class.

1. Hydrate more than you think you need to. (As i typed this sentence, i ran to get some water because, folks, i really mean this. HYDRATE)

2. Wear minimal clothing. Girls- i even find a tank top too hot. Sports bra and biking shorts are the best. Extra fabric gets in the way. Guys- just shorts. and if you aren't too insecure in your manhood, you can wear spandex shorts too.

3. (learned this Monday) bring a FLAT yoga mat. there are some thicker (think 1/2 inch or 3/4 inch thick) yoga mats out there, but that's not good for hot yoga. just go for the thin kind that you can buy at your neighborhood Target.

4. For your first few classes, get there pretty early (like 25 min early) so that you can get a spot in the back row. If you don't set up shop in the back row, they will make you move back there.

5. After you "set up shop"-- i.e. set your mat down, spread out your towel, put your water bottle at the top right corner of your mat -- you should then rest in one of the poses: Savasana. This is the post where you are on your back, feet to the back of the room. heels together. palms facing up. RELAX. I use this time before class actually begins to take a mini power nap and get accustomed to the heat and smell. (side note- this pose is also called the corpse pose which WOULD freak me out if hadn't of been indulging in my new guilty pleasure - BONES the tv show-- which is all about bones/corpses. right. anyway)

6. Make sure you bring a Vitamin Water or Gatorade or something to replenish your electrolytes after class. My dad suggested pickles if you are not one for artificially flavored beverages.

7. Really though. I cannot even warn you for how much you sweat. What really gets me is when i am bending over and start to bring my head back up and a STREAM of sweat drips from my forehead. yummy.

8. Remember that there is no talking or whispering one you step inside the classroom. think of it as if you talk some crazy yoga lady will shoot evil yoga death rays from her eyes for disturbing her balance and meditation. Sometimes you can laugh, but only sometimes. And if you think you are going to be sick, you don't get to say anything- just rest on your mat. it will go away.

I think that's it for now. I had a terrible class monday- i felt like my skin was melting off. totally over heated. For a minute i thought i had stopped sweating, but that wasn't true. just one of my heat delusions. I am pretty sure this happened because i drank coffee that morning. No more of that for THIS girl.

Yoga tonight.... woo hoo!

Ultra love.

what does it all mean, basil?

2010-06-17T19:41:00.000-07:00

so, i've been thinking. about this whole "yoga" thing.

sometimes, during class, when they talk about how yoga can help people manage addictions or release toxins or balance your life, i want to scream at them that they are spewing bullshit.

but then, the other night, i had a particularly stressful night, and all i wanted was to go to yoga class to sweat it out. to meditate for just a little over an hour and a half. to center myself and regain a little pep in my step..

where those thoughts came from, i dont know. maybe i AM buying into the whole schpeel after all. maybe i am on the verge to being addicted.

(side note- i couldnt actually go to the class i was craving because i got a terrible headache. headache plus heat = no thanks, boss)

BUT on MONDAY- i made more progress.

1. i got my other leg wrapped around. YES both of them. WOO HOO. party time- excellent!

2. i made progress in the head to knee pose- see below. i got this from some website. i think this picture is kinda creepy, but it was the only picture i could find to show you what "head to knee pose" means.

My progress? well for about half a second i got my knees locked. but i was so surprised that this happened that i promptly pulled them out. this sudden movement was a little painful so i didnt push them back down. but hey, they were locked. and that IS progress.

in bikram yoga, it really is the little things. you make slow incremental progress in your ability to do this poses. and i guess you make slow incremental progress to sanity or at least closer to some sense of stability. this yoga teaches patience and metal toughness. more like you are forced into those things because thats what it takes to make it through an hour and a half of heat and pain and fantastic stretching.

that's all folks.

ultra love

the secret to success

2010-06-08T20:06:00.000-07:00

I have discovered the secret to bikram yoga.

Proper hydration.

Yes. Just drinking water.

I find that when i have been hydrating well all day, my classes are so much better. I can make it through all of the poses without sitting down or getting light headed or feeling like im going to vom. On Sunday night I had a full glass of water before bed. I had a glass with breakfast and then 5 more glasses throughout the day. Yoga on monday was my best class yet.

AND, i made progress. Yes, actual tangible progress. There is one standing pose called "the eagle"-- it has some fancy name in another language but i don't care about that. all i care about is that i made progress. Please, look at pictures of the pose below.

This first picture gives you a general idea of the pose, but her hands are actually supposed to be pulled so that the finger tips are beneath the nose. SO- look at the picture below, i know its small, but you get the idea.

And my progress? Well, you see how your leg is supposed to hook back around behind the other one? I couldn't hook my legs around at first. I basically just crossed one leg over the other and did everything else.

ON MONDAY I GOT MY LEFT LEG TO HOOK BACK AROUND! Some of you negative nancys may say- "what? just your left leg, not both?"

Well i say to you- for someone who cant even touch her toes, this is a BFD. big freakin deal. I almost exclaimed in excitement during class which is totally not allowed because you cant talk during class.

I am so proud of myself- i can't even explain to all my lovely readers. It makes me feel like the few classes of heat and sweat and smell have paid off. Before you crazy kids know it, i will be able to touch my toes. Watch out.

Ultra love.

dreaming...

2010-06-07T07:42:00.000-07:00

so i am about 6 months ahead of schedule here, but i am dreaming of my next marathon.... in the happiest place on earth...

Can you tell what this is? Yes, friends, this is the Disney World Marathon!!! It would be dumb to register right now because i know that my foot and knee are not healed yet. But, just imagine, in 6 months, THIS (see below) could be me....

Probably not with that finishing time, but, hey, you get the sentiment.

Would you like to know one of the other great things about doing this marathon? I could SIMULTANEOUSLY make a journey to the greatest theme park in the whole world....

The new Harry Potter World Theme Park of Awesomeness and Wizardry.

I have been dreaming about this park for a while now. I can buy a wand, ride the hogwarts express, kill some death eaters, drink some butter beer or pumpkin juice, put a jelly leg jinx on my handsome and health conscious boyfriend....

and speaking of him--- remember how he wants to run a 5 k? well, there just happens to be a 5k during the Disney marathon weekend.... hmmmmm.... i think this is a win win situation.

ultra love

vacation musings

2010-05-28T08:26:00.000-07:00

i am on vacation. it had been everything a vacation should be:

relaxing.

sunny.

filled with DELICIOUS food.

romantic (see: late night walks on the beach)

Here is a recap of things that are going on, that you should care about:

i have a fairly nice tan with a few splotches of burn (totally normal for my PALE skin)

my brother is being a jerk and demanded my dad fly him home ($700 plane ticket) because he has a FEVER BLISTER on his lip and is in SO MUCH pain he just CANT stay at the beach with the family where he has FREE meals, FREE home cookin, neverending TV, and uninhibited access to prescription meds. (please note, my dad did NOT fly him home, he has been moping on the couch the whole time, giving everyone the silent/grunt treatment) Oh and he is 21 years old...... my thoughts exactly.

my handsome and health conscious boyfriend, my dad, and I have gone to the gym every day we have been here. The ppl at Gold's Gym look at us like we are nuts for going to the gym on vacation. the first day we went, i just happened to show up at the right time for body pump. body pump is an hour class with a bar bell and weights. you work every major muscle group. it was hard core and really fun. myabe i should scratch hard core. there were definitely some ladies in the room who were pansies- TERRIBLE form, minimal weight. i dont have time for you people. ANYWAY- the lady teaching the class was a toothpick and had just had a baby 7 weeks prior. beastttttttt. love it!!!! it was a great class- i loved the squat song (you work every muscle group for a song- squats, lunges, power cleans, back, biceps, triceps, chest, shoulders, abs) and i found out that my shoulders are pretty weak. the other days have been filled with cardio and minor weight lifting. yesterday i had to squat because there were some boys in there who thought they were all that and a bag of chips squatting with just one 45lb plate on each side AND they were on the machine where the bar is attached to the machine. so i went on the squat rack where REAL people squat and slapped on my 45 lb plates as they did abs behind me. HA- showed them.

we go on multiple hour long walks a day on the beach. makes me wish i could have brought luna....... this is good for "working out" and fun time to spend with my family. also, the beach house we rented is 3 stories and full of stairs. stairs= stairmaster.

my bf and i saw dolphins yesterday.

i fell down the stairs 2 nights ago. i only hurt my feet (thank goodness) but am feeling the aftermath of this after walking yesterday and going to the gym and going to the outlet malls. ouch.

my handsome and health conscious boyfriend has decided to run a 5k (and maybe a 10k someday). Since my man is not a runner and has vehemently refused to run with me any time i ask, this is a big effing deal. I cannot express how excited I am to be able to go out on a run someday with luna and nate at the same time! It is one of those running daydream fantasies i have always had......

there is more, but the beach is calling and my family is waking up finally.

to my friends at home reading this, i miss you and will see you tomorrow!!

ultra love

feelin hot, hot, hot!

2010-05-17T18:41:00.000-07:00

hellooooo blog world.

sorry for being MIA lately. there has been a whole lot going on. I am about to blog about some of those goings-ons, so, please, let out the exclamation you have been holding in.

two weeks ago on wednesday, i started going to bikram yoga. for those of you uneducated folk, this is yoga in a 105 degree room. let me start by giving you a run down of my first day.

I did my research- hydrate, bring a towel, yoga mat, and water. wear tight fitting clothing. class starts at 6:30, doors open at 6 pm. i showed up a little before 6 and waited outside the door. i wanted plenty of time to get settled in because, well, i was flippin nervous. i have NEVER done official yoga before let lone willingly spent an hour and a half in a room that is heated higher than 72 degrees.

welcome to bikram yoga- is this your first class? well, yes, it is. okay, how about you sign this form that states that if you pass out or lose an eye ball, its your own damn fault for being looney enough to do this in the first place. sure- i'll sign that! no prob! okay cool- it's 20 bucks for a week of free yoga, and you should come every day. (yeah right, everyday, as if i have time for that). class is an hour and a half, once you get inside, there is no talking and you can't leave. (Dear sweet Lord, please help me. what am i doing? no escape!) if you start to feel dizzy or nauseated, just sit down, it's totally normal for your first class. okay, i think i can handle that. awesome! just go put your stuff in the locker room and take your shoes off- you can bring your towel, mat, and water into the room. okay, thanks for everything, dude.

i went to the girls locker room. I use the facilities one more time before class, put my stuff in a locker, took off my flip flops, and headed into the room.

HEADS UP PEOPLE. the one thing they DONT warn you about and you DONT sign a contract about is the smell of the room. it smells like a combination of the zoo (like the worst parts of the zoo- the poop and animalness) and body odor and sweat. oh and did i forget to mention---- IT IS HOT AS HELL IN THERE.

i managed to take a few shallow breaths of zoo air and humidity. I set my mat on the floor in the back row. and then i sat there. then i fidgeted. then i rolled over on my back. it ended up being a good thing that i had time to adjust to the smell and the heat. I think class would have been even more difficult had i not done this. I have gotten there early for all subsequent classes for the same purpose- extra time to suffer through that smell and the heat so that i dont notice it once class begins.

Class begins with this funny breathing exercise. Stand up. Feet together. Hands clasped under your chin- they dont move. Breathe in, bring your elbows up (hands/knuckles still on your chin). suck your belly in, you should see your rib cage. Exhale making a soft "ha" sound - elbows down slowly til they touch. head tilts back. do this a million times.

After this breathing exercise, there are 26 poses- the first half standing and the second half seated. In my first class, i had to sit down a few times. my head was swimming- i just knew i was going to throw up. somehow, i made it through all the poses. You finish with another breathing exercise, but i dont feel like describing it. go try bikram for yourself.

FACTS:

1. i have never sweat that much in my life

2. i definitely thought that i was crazy multiple times during this class (and all subsequent)

3. i thought my heart was going to explode at a few different points.

4. there are old people who can do this shit better than i can.

5. i had a tank top on, but after 5 minutes sitting in the room before class, i took it off. it is best to go to class in a sports bra and shorts.

6. did i mention that you sweat? every pore of your body sweats. when you bend over, a stream of sweat pours off your forehead.

7. sometimes you have to grab your feet or your legs but your body is too sweaty to get a good grip.

8. i have never felt so energized post workout- it's this strange fresh feeling.

I have gone to a few more classes. I haven't made a whole lot of progress other than being able to actually make it through the class without sitting down.

and i like it. i know, i really am nuts. however, i will say, that class would be a millions times better if the room smelled like honeysuckle.

ultra love.

Country Music Marathon- Running- the end.

2010-05-05T21:01:00.000-07:00

..... AAAAAAAAAANNNNNDDDDD

i made it past the split. I was energized and could not stop thinking, "i am going to run a marathon. a whole freaking marathon." I had't eaten the Gu packet i had picked up about a mile or so earlier because i was saving it to when i could drink some water after i ate/drank/gummed/swallowed the Gu.

Please remember that Gu has the texture of snot, and it makes you a little thirsty. therefore i knew that i would need some water to wash the Gu-snot down. So i made it to the next water station, sucked down the Gu packet and drank a little water. i took a moment to stretch and moved on.

The truth is that i dont remember much over the next 3 mile stretch. I remember the weather starting to take a downward trend. I remember running through a weird path thing with pretty trees and flowers. There was a sweet old black lady with two dogs that made me happy. We came around a curve and were on some random road. There was a 14 mile marker. I remember starting to feel a little alone.

I wasn't really prepared for this part of the race. My middle aged man friend had told me that the part where the FULL people split off the the half is really peaceful. For me, it was like a shock. All of a sudden i was alone. This is the part of the race where i know now that it would have been nice to have a running buddy. As the lonely feeling crept in, i realized that my knee was really hurting. Yes, i meant to type the word KNEE. I am certain that all of you were expecting me to type FOOT. well, so was i, actually. but it was my right knee, not my left foot that was in pain. At mile 15, i stopped at the medical aid tent because my knee was exploding in pain. Every time i bent my knee- aka ALL THE TIME- shooting pain shot up the side of my leg.

Some dude wrapped my knee up. And when i say wrapped up my knee, i mean he wrapped my leg from mid calf to mid thigh. It was tight. Needless to say, this left my knee pretty much immobile. I hobbled on with this contraption on my leg for the next mile. Walking and then running- willing myself to go on. After 1 mile, i took that stupid crap off my leg. It was too damn irritating.

I was so mad at this point. With all of my running for the last 4 months, i had never had any knee problems. And all of a sudden, my knee geeks out on me. All i could think of was my blog post having to tell people i didnt finish or having to call my boyfriend after the race and saying i didn't finish. Or having to post on facebook that i didn't finish. Or JUST NOT FINISHING. i couldn't bear the thought. I wanted to finish this race so badly.

So for the next two miles i managed to figure out a way to pull my leg around that i didnt have to bend it. I hobbled along, walking at times and running at times. Other runners would offer encouraging words. It just pissed me off becaus my knee hurt. The rest of me was FINE. TOTALLY FINE. but my knee? no. stoopid doo doo dumb.

As i neared the 18 mile mark, the rain begain. When it rains it pours, i guess. And that's when my boyfriend's and ellen's and martha's and my dad's voices in my head said, "permanently hurting yourself is NOT worth it." I started getting cold and put my little jacket back on. Then i put my hat on so that the rain wouldn't get in my eyes. i realized that my foot was hurting now, mostly because i was putting more weight on my foot now that the knee on the opposite leg was failing. This was not good. Not good at all. And i decided to quit. I kept run/hobbling and looking for the next medical aid station. I asked a police officer where the next one was. He didn't know. It was still pouring down rain, and my knee was exploding.

Finally, there it was. I saw the tent. I could quit. It was mile 18. I walked up to the medical aid thent and said, " I'm done. I hurt my knee."

They gave me a bottle of water, a plastic poncho and some tylenol and said, well the shuttle is about 3 miles down the race course.

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

Yep, that meant that i had to walk 3 miles to the next shuttle. I was so miserable. My knee hurt and here i had to KEEP WALKING just so that i could quit. Why on earth i couldn't quit there, i have no idea.

So, i walked. More like limped. I walked and walked and walked. All i wanted to do was stop and put ice on my knee. But i walked. I got to the next water aid station and asked some chick where the next shuttle stop was, she had no idea. Then out path kinda met up with the half marathoners for a bit. As i kept walking, i could see LP stadium, and I thought, this is ridiculous. I could see the stadium, where the finish line was, but yet still had to walk to some dumb shuttle. And then, the most miraculous thing happened.

Right where the marathon and half marathoners were supposed to split again- THEY WERE REDIRECTING THE MARATHON COURSE. They were directing both the half and full runners into the stadium to finish the race. Of course, this was in the plans all along because of the bad weather. Thank goodness. I walked on it. Hobbled on it. Tried to run the last little bit across the finish line but was in pain and quit.

It was a fantastically anticlimactic finish to this race for which i had worked so hard. I "finished" at 22 miles, or so the announcers said.

When i finished the race, it was still pouring down rain. Quite appropriate. I walked past all the food and free stuff they give you, dying to find the gear check UPS trucks so i could just get the hell out of there and home. I got my gear, called caroline to see where she was (we had obviously gotten separated along the course because my time got super slow when i was run/walking and because of the weather) and get directions to her house. Then proceeded to my car.

My car.... hmmmmm where was my car? Not where i thought it was. Yes, even more icing on the cake of "ha, take this, elise" --- i had to hobble around the parking lot for about 10 minutes looking for my car. REMEMBER- it was STILL pouring down rain. I slipped at one point and that did not feel very nice.

Upon finding my glorious vehicle of rest, i climbed in the back seat. I took off my wet shirt and put on the clean dry one that I, so intelligently, packed in my gear bag. I pulled off my soaking wet shoes (the whole, "don't run in puddles" rule was thrown out the window once my injury depression set in. splashing through puddles was the only bright side of those last 7 miles). I crawled from the back seat to the front (this was difficult because i was sore and injured). Then i sat in the parking lot, listening to harry potter on tape, calling my handsome and health conscious boyfriend (who made me feel a zillion times better), and waiting for the traffic to move.

Caroline had sweetly collected lunch for me, and she and her sweet husband, jeff, offered my a comfy seat for lunch, a dry place to change clothes, and a friendly hour to relax (slash ice my knee) before hitting the road. Though my race may not have been a success, i will forever remember the love those two showed me during/after my race. Good friends are hard to come by, and these two are gems.

From their house, I hit the road back to memphis. The country music marathon was behind me.

As you can imagine, I am not satisfied by this race at all. I am unhappy, embarrassed, and irritated. I have, however, learned a few things.

1. My knee injury is my IT band. Which is good and bad. Good- because it doesn't need surjery or anything. Bad- because it can come back very easily.

2. I need to be more flexible and have stronger hip muscles to get rid of my IT band problem.

3. I need my training to last longer, and i need to build up slower.

4. I need my mileage to get up to 26 miles before i run the race because my body will not just add 6 miles on at the end.

To remedy this situation, i will be doing a few things in the weeks to come.

1. No running for 2 months. This is to heal my foot and my IT band. A little rest will be good and smart.

2. I will be going to Bikram Yoga 3 times a week. This is HOT yoga- as in yoga in a 105 degree room. I have already been to one class. Expect a blog post on this.

3. I will continue to go to spin class 3 times a week.

4. I will be doing a little more weight training, and particularly focus on my hip strength.

5. I will be wearing my Vibrams to increase my foot strength.

So, here goes folks. Let's see if we can't get it right eventually. It's all about doing what you love and loving what you do (and not hurting while you do it).

Ultra love.

Country Music Marathon- Running- the first half

2010-04-30T11:55:00.001-07:00

And so the race began to the sounds of Black Eyed Peas "I got a Feelin" (not sure if this is the real name of the song, but you know which one I'm talking about) on the big people speakers and Christina Aguilera's "Come on Over Baby" on my ipod. I quickly changed my ipod to something more appropriate and motivating, though I don't remember what song it was.

And so I ran.

I was running with that girl who was also wearing pink. We had a similar pace but weren't really concerned if one or the other fell behind a few feet. I liked that about this girl- I will never know her name. Yet, she was a source of calm those first 10 minutes of the race. Neither of us were alone, and someone knew we had started and looked good.

After the first mile, when we stopped at the water pit, she said she was going to slow her pace down. I marched onward, going with the flow of my body. I felt fan freaking tastic. I managed to sneakily take off my little jacket i was wearing, and reattached my my race number to my pink under armor shirt. I vividly remember running across a little bridge and seeing some dude wearing his vibram five fingers. I wish that i could be that guy. Maybe i will be soon.

Running a marathon is a blur. There are crowds of people lining the way, cheering you on. There are pit stops every mile or two miles. There is music and there are other runners getting in your way. There are sweet puppies that give you more inspiration than the zillions of people you dont know cheering you on.

Before the race started, i had read the little info book they give you. It had mentioned this dude and his wife who sit in frnt of their house with a little table and a bottle of champagne, toasting the racers. CHECK- saw them! totally cute.

Before i knew it, i was at mile six. And, i have to let you know, that i got emotional a few times during the race. The start was a little emotional, but not like mile 6. At mile six, i ran past my handsome and health conscious boyfriend's apartment complex. And as i ran by, i thought about all the sweet things he had done to help me prepare for this big day. I thought about all the ways that he had been supportive, and probably didn't even know it. And by golly, i started to cry. Well, really my eyes watered and i couldn't quite breathe, so i knew that i had to get it together because running, in fact, does require the act of breathing. So i got it together, and RIGHT as i settled myself down, i saw my dear friend Caroline jumping up and down cheering for me as a came around a corner. We had talked about her being at the split later in the race, but i was so surprised that she was there at mile 6ish! Annnd, i got a little teary again. Her support really meant a lot to me. I can't even express how uplifted i felt seeing her there, just for me, to let me know that she thought i could do it.

Anyway, enough mushy gushy. I ran on. We looped back on the same street. We ran past Belmont University and there were people there giving out oranges which tasted very delicious. at about mile 10, some middle aged man just decided to up and talk to me. The strange part about this was that while i was really annoyed with him at first, after a few minutes, his presence was very comforting. We talked about how he and his wife run marathons together, but she didnt want to run this one. We talked about how he thought i was making good time and would have no problem finishing. We talked about vibram five fingers and running barefoot. We talked about the crazy marathon fans dressed up as the band, Kiss. He helped me keep a good pace when i was started to get just a little bit tired. Then, i stopped to grab a Gu packet and he stopped to get some drank. At that point we got separated. Yet again, another person whose name i will never know, but who was a great source of calm for me.

If you are wondering if my foot hurt, i can't really tell you. I don't remember any pain at all. But for all i know, that could be the race adrenaline. Moral of the story is my "injured" foot was not causing me problems. My muscles felt great, and i had the energy to finish.

Next up came THE SPLIT. where they separate the boys from the men. And when i got to the split, caroline was there, jumping up and down, high fiving me because i was GOING TO RUN THE MARATHON. I had managed to keep a great pace so that i was right on target to finish. My legs weren't super tired- they were a little because i had run 12 miles at this point..... But there i was. I was gonna do it. The FULL freaking marathon.

Of course, i started to get a little teary eyed here too. I had been working so hard for so long, and despite the weather and my foot, i was going to finish.

The second half is on the way. I am milking this blog post for all its worth, which is three blog posts.

Ultra Love

Country Music Marathon- Before The Race

2010-04-26T17:43:00.000-07:00

I woke up at 4:15. I put my eyeballs in, brushed my teeth, rinsed off in the shower, and put on my running gear.

My handsome and health conscious boyfriend called at 4:30 to make sure I was awake. He then sent me a sweet and encouraging text message. The day started off well. :)

I took care of my feet- little vaseline on the problem areas and a blister preventing band aid. I put on the blister preventing socks that my sweet man bought for me and put on my shoes.

I double checked my email to see if anything had changed (nothing new), and began to prepare my breakfast. My bf had cooked me eggs the night before, so all I had to do was heat them up. I poured a bowl of some yummy kashi cereal, and tucked a banana away in my gear bag to eat right before the race. I filled two ziplock bags with ice and put them in my little ice chest for after the race.

Next I copied down directions to LP Stadium and loaded my car.

As per usual, I got a little lost on the way to the stadium, but I only had to turn around once. It is rather easy to figure out the right way to go at 5:30 am on a Saturday when 35000 people are going to the same place. Once I was headed in the right direction, I was able to use one of my most prized personal talents: crowd manipulation. See, the thing about crowds is that most people are idiots. stupid doodoo dumb. So, of course, the left turn line into the stadium was 3 miles long. I drove along it, seeing if maybe I could sneak into the line somehow, but when I couldn't find a spot, I just kept going. This was the smartest thing I did all day- I went around the crowd and turned onto a street that led to rather empty parking because people had been too dumb to find it. Fantastic parking spot. WOO WOO!

I hopped out of the car with my gear bag, and saw the LINE for the shuttle. This baby wrapped all halfway down the length of the stadium. I began to wait in line, praying that I would make it onto a shuttle in time. A few minutes later, some dude cam along RIGHT where I was standing and said, "there are 5 lines for the shuttle, and the others are considerably shorter." So, I hauled it over to a shorter line, and before long, I was on a double bus with my own comfy seat. I sat next to and across from these people who seemed to be chronic half marathoners. One dude was talking about the time that he ran a half marathon and other people were running it naked. I think it was in California, go figure.

Then all of a sudden our bus driver is honking his horn, and I witness some tiny little car crossing inches infront of our bus. It was a scence out of a movie, I swear. We almost hit that car- granted, it was the car's fault because it pulled out in front of a bus rolling down the street at 45 mph. Scary all the same.

I got off the bud, took some tylenol, and got out my banana to eat my last minute snack.

THEN I SAW IT. there was a sign, calling my name, that said, "PEE LIKE A ROCKSTAR." -- and I knew that was where I was meant to be. I had to wait in line (I know, you are thinking, "do rockstars have to wait in line?" but this line was infinitely shorter than the LINES to the other porta potties.) Standing in line was one of the best parts, there were 3 other ladies around me who were so nice and encouraging. We totally bonded. I liked it. Now, there were bathroom attendants wearing tuxedo t-shirts who also happened to be holding patters of these energy gummy chew things. Classy- I felt pampered.

Once inside the bathroom, I almost cried. It was CLEAN and SPACIOUS and SMELLED NICE. I could SIT ON THE TOILET and WASH MY HANDS with SOAP. Just a little tid bit of info for anyone looking to run a marathon/half: make sure you take a good serious dump before the race begins, otherwise, you have to do it while you are running with no guarantee of toilet paper. And yes, this means that i took FULL advantage of my time in the VIP porta potty. Too much info? This is a running blog people, not suzy homemakers how-to-do everything and make it pretty blog. We runners talk about poop.

After my zen-like experience in the VIP porta potty, I proceeded to bag check. I checked my gear bag in Van Number 1 (special perk of having a last name that starts with an A is always being number one/first in some way or another) and hurried to my corral.

If you aren't familiar with the lingo, a corral is the group with which you start the race. Contrary to popular belief, the start line isn't just a free-for-all. Everyone is organized depending on how fast they run. I was in corral 15- which was a projected pace of about 10 minutes a mile. Therefore, 14 other corrals started before me.

While waiting to run, I started talking to a girl next to me who was also running the full. She was alone too, so we chatted it up before the race started. I told her that if she wanted a buddy to start the race, we could run together. That seemed to freak her out a bit (I was just being friendly because she looked lonely), so I said, don't worry, I am not a chatty runner and do not feel any pressure. That seemed to make things better. We put in our head phones and inched up to the starting line......

Part 2 is on its way....

ultra love

Marathon Pre-Race Prep

2010-04-19T19:03:00.000-07:00

t- minus 5 days and the pre-race jitters are beginning. today, I went on a 1 mile run just to see how my foot would respond. I spent the whole run being terrified that my next step would result in pain, and this made it a very un-relaxing experience. My body responded with the physical equivalent of "WTF" - i was short of breath and my legs felt pretty heavy. But, my foot didn't hurt- though I am not sure if that is saying much after only 1 mile.

t-minus 4 days:today i went to spin class. nothing too intense. nothing too special. just a normal spin class. ate dinner with dad and other family. made dad start to read, "ultra marathon man" so we can share our opinions later.

t- minus 3 days: today, i took Luna on an hour long walk. cooked yummy chicken, green beans, and rice-a-roni. watched ghost whisperer. cleaned up dog poop in the back yard. all round success of a day.

t-minus 2 days: today i went to spin class. didn't push too hard because you aren't supposed to. otherwise normal. nerves really setting in.

t- minus 1 day: today i slept until 11. had a carb-a-licious breakfast. ate a picnic style lunch with a dear friend. picked up my race stuff (the t-shirt is GREAT- it's like a reallllll running shirt, not just a cotton t-shirt). Now i'm getting all my pre-race stuff together.

BUT there is bad new on the horizon, in the form of tornadoes. The email i received is below:

"After consultation with all the involved city authorities, due to the weather forecast in the Nashville area which is projecting severe afternoon storms, the MARATHON will most likely be subject to an abbreviated timeline.

At this time, there is a contingency plan to limit the marathon to 4:30 and under. Any runner who is behind this pace (10:20 per mile) at mile 11.2 will be directed to complete the half marathon course. This timeline may change based on the actual race day weather pattern.

While we know that this will be a disappointment to some (as it is to us); if implemented, this plan is in the best interests and safety of all involved, especially the participants and volunteers. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation."

Yeah, so where does that put me because at this point, i am set to finish in 4:20. I picked that time long before i hurt my foot. I have no idea if my hurt foot pace (aka how fast i can run after a few weeks of not running and how fast i will be if i have to run/walk bc of my foot) will be fast enough to finish the marathon. Perhaps this is a sign from God that maybe I am just not ready for the full. Maybe I should run the half, no big deal, and rest up for some good races in the fall.

OR MAYBE- i am just gonna go for it. Dorothy and Toto totally survived a tornado. No prob...... Sometimes I am a little too stubborn for my own good. it makes me mad that i trained so hard for this marathon and now it might not happen because of my foot AND and "act of God" (according to my race waiver). Thus, this anger makes me just wanna do it. So, in light of this ever burning fire within, I give you, my pre-race prep.

1. Eat lots of carbs the day before. (check, check and check-- thanks boyfriend!)

2. Drink lots of water. (check- thanks boyfriend for being such a pain in the butt about this one)

3. go to bed early.

4. wake up- 4:am

5. Eat breakfast: banana, cereal, little bit of eggs.

6. put on race clothes: black running skirt, pink under armor short sleeved v-neck, new brooks shoes, jacket, hair band, bobby pins.

7. get feet ready: little gold bond powder to help soak up germs and moisture, little vaseline on problem foot areas that are prone to blisters, blister band aid on my callous that came off the other day for extra protection.

8. get my body ready: sunscreen (YES), and vaseline in areas prone to chaffing (YES), chapstick,

9. gather gear check bag: Gu, Cliff bar, gatorade, keys, baggies of protein mix that my handsome and health conscious bf gathered for me, hand held water bottle, cell phone, ipod shuffle, extra t-shirt, toilet paper (YES), water bottle, garbage bag,

10. get ice chest ready: cheap-o cooler with ice so i can ice down my legs after the race.

11. put on race bib: number 15040

12. double check VIP potty pass is on my race rib. (most important prep of all)

13. wish my sweet luna were coming with me

14. leave house around 5 for LP field parking. Take shuttle to Centennial Park for race start. Enter VIP PORTA POTTY.

15. RUN

Other people have a lot of things they do too. Here are bit's of their advice. FYI- their is an ambiguous term. i took this stuff from lots of places, all you have to do is google it. My side comments are in red.

There's nothing you can do in the last week to improve your race time but there are a thousand things you can do that will hurt your time. (like hurt your foot, for example)
In the last two weeks before your race, don't run more miles in a single day than the number of days remaining before your race. (wasnt going to happen anyway, hurt foot, remember?)
Don't double lace your shoes, just tie the knot tightly and tuck in the lace ends. (not even sure what double lacing is. maybe that's double knot? well i'm gonna double knot mine anyway. hasn't failed me in all my years of running)
Stay off your feet as much as possible the day before the race.
Don't run in new shoes. (mine are kinda new, but i have worked out in them. just part of the whole, "need something to support my failing foot deal")
Get one hour extra of sleep each night the week before the race. (actually a big fan of this. i love sleep)
Get to the start early. Sit down or lie down and rest. (well, there is plenty of soft grass in centennial park)
Avoid stepping in puddles. (i thought this would be obvious)
Clip your toenails. (check, did that wednesday night- don't want to do it the day of the race because you might cut them too close)
Take a large garbage bag to wear at the start if cold or wet. (good idea, just added it to my gear bag list above)
Don't get a massage in the five days before your race. (no problem, can't afford it)
Sip, don't gulp, water on the course.
Take one gu (or whatever you're use to) just before the race and one each hour during the race.
Don't eat red meat for several days prior to the race. (interesting...)
Don't lace your shoes too tightly, your feet will swell during the race.
Drink 2 to 4 ounces of water every 20 minutes.
Run the tangents on turns but stay away from the very inside of turns because they tend to be too crowded. (too much detail)
Eat your final snack no more than 30 minutes before the start of the race. (you mean i get to eat more than just breakfast! woo woo!)
Make sure you have tried out the electrolyte drink that will be used during the race. (fail)
Review the map of the course. (very helpful so you can get an idea of where you are going, duh)
There should be no strength training the week of an event. (glad i read this one a few days ago)

These last two paragraphs are good for a little scientific info on hydration. Enjoy- i know i did.

Consuming sports drinks shouldn't be "saved" for late stages of the race, when significant fatigue is beginning to set in. At that point, sports-drink consumption actually has little effect on performance, since the carbohydrate in the beverage must make its way past the stomach, into the small intestine, across the wall of the gastrointestinal tract, and through the blood to the muscles, all of which take a lot of time (in fact, so much time that the runner may be across the finish line before the first drops of carbs actually reach the sinews).

Take a bottle of water with you to the start of the race. The most-important quaffing of sports drink actually takes place 10 minutes before the race begins, when eight to 10 ounces should be consumed. After that, five to six ounces should be imbibed every two miles or so during the race. Incidentally, one ounce is considered to be a normal, regular swallow of fluid. Don't forget to utilize this sports-drink-intake pattern during your long training runs, too.

OKAY KIDS. THAT'S IT. MY NEXT POST WILL BE ABOUT THE RACE. WISH ME G'LUCK!

ULTRA LOVE

my worst nightmares

2010-04-15T13:07:00.000-07:00

I have had three terrible nightmares (or, as my handsome and health conscious boyfriend calls them, evening horses. think. laugh. there you go) the past few nights.

1. the first was less a scary night mare but more of an excuse for continuing to hit the snooze button repeatedly in the morning. see, i watch the show, Ghost Whisperer, religiously.And well, this is gonna sound complicated BUT Melinda's husband, Jim, dies, and then his spirit takes over the body of a different recently deceased person whose spirit successfully and quickly crossed over into the light (thats why it all worked, ya see, the body was pretty fresh, if you will). Anyway, once Jim took over Sam's (the other dude) body, he couldnt remember ANYTHING. Like amnesia- except this was all weird and ghostly.In my dream, I had to stay asleep or else Sam wouldn't be able to figure out he was really Jim, but in a new body. The dream made me really on edge because there was SO much at stake here. I HAD to make sure Sam figured everything out.

2. I had a dream that I found out why my foot was injured. The real reason. And it was not a good one.

The doctor told me that my right stride was 9.5 inches longer than my left stride, and this caused an undue burden on my left foot. He then told me this wasn't something I could fix because it was my natural stride. AHHHHHHHHHHHH.

3. My third and final nightmare/eveninghorse was this morning when I dreamed that I was at the start of the marathon but had FORGOTTEN to go to the Brooks VIP porta potty. It was terrible. Really. I have been looking forward to this thing for months, even though i just got my potty pass last weekend.
Tonight I am going to a Birthday Party at Pump It Up, so I will probably have night mares about blow up clowns chasing me for 26. 2 miles while I try to get these weird flag things that Ellen keeps telling me about.

Stay Sane.

Ultra love.

ugh, i guess you people need an update

2010-04-13T20:41:00.000-07:00

so, in case you don't remember, though i can't see how you wouldn't remember since it's the biggest f-in deal in the whole f-in world---- i have an injured foot.

AND in case you people can't tell, that doesn't make for any exciting blog material, since, well this f-in blog is about f-in running.

what have i been up to, you ask? well. not running, that's for damn sure.

I have been stuck on stoopid elliptical machines. I continue to spin (if i didn't have spinning, i would lose my mind), but let's be honest, it isn't running. i don't get to feel the wind on my cheeks, run the hidden pine trails of the forest, hear the wolf cry to the blue corn moon, or ask the grinning bobcat why he grins. i don't' get to sing with all the voices of me mountain or paint with all the colors of the wind....... eh, sorry bout that. trip down Disney lane there. inevitable, really.

the only good news in all this crap-o-la is that my foot hasn't hurt in a few days. whoop dee freakin doo.

in an effort to help myself help others---- i mean, really just help myself---- i bought a new pair of running shoes with arch supports. before i tell you THAT story you need the back story. see, i have a friend who is a physical therapist and my dad has friends who are doctors. both peoples said- you don't have a stress fracture or plantar fasciitis, but you will if you don't support your arch. SO i listened to them, even though all the barefoot people tell you you don't need that stuff. well, i think you don't need that stuff if your feet are strong. apparently, mine are not. i need to work on that.

the shoe story: i went to fleet feet Brentwood in Nashville for my new pair of Brooks running shoes. there is a very specific reason that i went to this store and bought a pair of Brooks shoes......

THE VIP PORTA POTTY PASS

before your imagination drifts off wondering if, indeed, i managed to secure this oft-desired vip potty pass and the questionable methods to which i went to obtain said pass---- please know that i got it fair and square by purchasing my pair of shoes.

The dude who helped me was a rando friend of my handsome and health conscious boyfriend from way back during the college years. He listened to my babbling, looked at me walk barefoot, put me in shoes, watched me run (said i have a perfect gait- what what!- i was actually nervous running for someone else, wondering if i run sideways like luna or something-- thankfully he boosted my confidence), and fitted me for arch supports.

i used them at the gym the next day (on the freaking elliptical, vom) and was pleased with the results slash the way my feet felt post workout. at this point, i am still resting my foot from running, but advancing to some weightlifting.

which brings me to tonights story- i was squatting tonight before spinning. my former trainer (james) was working with these boys- very obviously in high school with their scrawny bodies and baby faces. i went on my merry way, squatting a gentle 165. after wards, i stopped to talk to james. he said that as i added on the pounds, the two high school boys turned to him and said, "um can she lift that?" -- at this point i only had 25 pounds on each side-- and james said to them, "y'all just watch." these boys were impressed by my squatting skills, thinking each time that there was no way i could lift that weight, and apparently have an intense leg workout scheduled for thursday since neither of them can squat more than 95 pounds.

though it is no magnificent feat to squat more than a 17 year old boy who looks like i could break his arm with one swift scissor kick, it is an amusing story to me.

that's all i have for you. the marathon is swiftly approaching.it's gonna be a huge challenge, but i can't wait to say that i have run 26.2 miles. the tshirt better be good, and i better get something cool to commemorate my magical experience in the VIP potty....

i leave you with dreams of an air conditioned porta potty with puppies and flowers and butterflies.... and a marathon run without a painful foot.

ultra love

One of those days.

2010-04-04T10:25:00.000-07:00

Saturday's mileage for my marathon training schedule: 22 miles.

I had decided to do 24 because it was just mathematically easier. The trail is six miles so 4 times 6 equals 24. I had thought about going out to Shelby Forrest, but a few things changed that plan. The first was this sweet little creature:

Her name is Ginny (Like Ginny Weasley), and she is my mom's new puppy. Ellen and I went to meet Ginny on Friday night. We got out there late because we ate a late dinner with my dad. Anyway, we played with sweet Ginny for a while. She is an angel- half golden retriever and half yellow lab.

Since I went to bed late, I woke up a little late. This meant that in order for me to make it to my 3:45 hair appointment (which was SOOO necessary. I was getting a little wild), I had to go to shelby farms since it isn't 30 plus minutes away.

On to the run--- I woke up at about 8:30. Now, I will not lie to you, faithful readers. During my 30 minute snooze time, I had a very detailed conversation with myself. It went a little something like this:

Self: maybe i can just run tomorrow after church

Self: but you dont know what time you are eating with your family. there might not be time.

Self: but who really cares? no one will know if you dont run.

Self: THE WHOLE BLOG WORLD WILL KNOW. (side note- i love dark chocolate m&ms)

Self: the whole blog world can.......... okay but it's so comfortable in my bed.

Self: get up. you can do it.

Somehow I managed to get out of bed. Still not sure how i convince myself of certain things when I am half asleep. Anyway, I ate the breakfast of champions: cheerios (no milk) and applesauce and a mini cliff bar. (another side note- ellen is super impatient with this episode of ghost whisperer- i cried for about 30 minutes straight watching it) -- anyway- this was all that I had to eat because, well, I am poor right now. saving my pennies and all.

After I ate, I got my "stash" together:

Pictured: Cliff bar, blue frost gatorade, water, Gu, apple, cheerios, water, and dark chocolate m&ms. I also got my pre-game pep talk from my favorite cheerleader:

Then I hit the road.

One thing you must know, dear readers, is that it stormed late friday night. I was a little worried it would be muddy, and I was also worried that my foot wouldn't hold up for the 24 miles. But, off I ran, all fears aside.

Fortunately, they finished the "facelift" at the start of the trail. I will say that it has made this part much less muddy. Good thing. As I was running, I started to settle into my pace. It felt fantastic after a week of "taking it easy" -- The trail was wet, but not gross muddy. I got a real life tutorial on how to judge the "muddiness" -- packed trails dont get muddy right away. but if the mud is smooth on the surface and it looks like you want to touch it- it's squishy mud. Squishy mud makes you lose your footing and then sticks to the bottom and sides of your shoes. Squishy mud is bad.

Anyway, the run was feeling perfect. Perfect temp- perfect pace. I had even remembered sun screen that morning. And then I stepped in a puddle. The puddle was hidden by some grass and such. But the thing is, that when i stopped running, the pain started. The pain shot through the arch of my foot, and I knew I was down for the count.

I walked the last two miles. It was so embarrassing- I effing walked. ugh. I just felt miserable walking those last two miles. I was going to run 24 miles, and I only made it 4.

That was the end of my run. I went home and cleaned up Luna's poop in the backyard. That dog poops alot.

At this point, i don't really know what is wrong. A few of my dad's friends ruled out stress fracture and plantar fasciitis- which is good. But i guess i just have to rest it and see what happens. Updates to come.

Stoopid foot. Stoopid doodoo dumb.

Oh yeah, and dumb Duke won.

Ultra love.

Struggles

2010-03-31T23:57:00.000-07:00

So I started writing this post a few days ago (monday), and I was going to tell you about how I work through the hardest parts of running. I was going to give you my bits of advice on what to do with pain, lack of drive, etc. It was going to be really funny, and I was going to use this line about how everything I have to say here is just from my own experience and not approved by the AMA, FDA, NRA, PDA, or any other of those acronyms. I am so clever.....

Well forget all that. Tonight, I was on the elliptical and started reading, Racing Weight.

AND BOY AM I EXCITED ABOUT THIS BOOK.

The intro to this book is KILLER. This is what you can expect in coming blogs, other than reports on my upcoming runs (and the fact that I hurt my foot over the past weekend and have been resting it. yuck. hoping its not a stress fracture or plantar fasciitis)....

1. An assessment of what my "optimum performance weight" is. This is part one of the book.

2. An assessment of what I need to change in my nutritional and workout habits to achieve this. This is part two.

3. Exactly HOW I plan to change. (Part 3)

So the book begins by talking about weight as it relates to endurance athletes. For athletes, losing weight isnt about "looking good" -- it's about reaching the perfect muscle to fat ratio that gets you to your optimum performance weight. It talks about all the ways that body fat percentage affects performance etc and how to effectively and safely get your body to that point over a 12 to 24 month time period.

THEN it goes through the typical body compositions of different endurance athletes: CC skiers, swimmers, triathletes, runners, rowers... it's so awesome. oddly enough, my body shape fits most with a runner. who would have thought- runners have smaller upper bodies with more built legs. aka- me. I THINK IT'S A SIGN FROM GOD.

i cant wait to get a little further into this book. really, people, it's gonna be great. don't worry- i will share all my new knowledge with you. get ready.

ultra love.

penny for my thoughts

2010-03-23T11:50:00.001-07:00

I just recently finished reading Ultra Marathon Man by Dean Karnazes, and I have a few thoughts to share with you about this book. (Don't worry your pretty little face, I won't be spoiling anything)

Dean is an normal guy. He has a pretty sweet job and makes good money. He has a precious wife, and he loves her. He ran when he was little and in high school, but stopped at some point for one reason or another. He had a few coaches during his time that inspired him. His younger sister died in a car accident, and this changed his life.

There is nothing terribly unusual about Dean's life, and that is one of the important parts about this book. Most people can relate to Dean and the course of his life. It is the part of the book that makes you think, "well, if he can do it, so can I!"

Dean became "Dean-the-lean-mean-running-machine" on his 30th birthday. He had a sort of drunken life crisis during which he sobered up while running 30 miles and eating taco bell. After this drunken life crisis he got back into running, but got into ultra running when some dudes beat him running up a hill. He found out they were training for Western States and decided to it this himself.

Tho book chronicles all the crazy races this dude runs. And this is where my feelings about him get iffy. His pure desire to run turns into this insatiable need for extreme adventures. He does some crazy stuff like- running over 100 miles through the desert and running a marathon TO THE SOUTH POLE. what? the south pole? yes, the south f-ing pole.

But i'm not sure that an extreme seeker really puts forth the best "model" for people who want to run. He makes it seem like if you don't run 20343849037459287340958 miles in extreme heat or cold with a 500 pound gorilla strapped to your back and chopsticks up your nose then you aren't really a serious runner.

There something to be said for pushing your body. But i'm not sure pushing it to its "limits" is really what running is about. Why on earth would you want to run in subzero temperatures and almost die? How does that achieve any of all the awesomeness that comes with a perfect 6 mile run with your dog? I see the benefits and the challenge of pushing your body to see what is possible. But there has to be a line between this "extreme seeking" and seeing what our body is capable of or perhaps what our body was made to do.

I think that humans truly were born to be runners. I think its obvious in the complexity of our feet and the make-up of our muscles. I think that running through mountains and just plain running is a way of "going back to our roots" - a way of being in touch with some intangible purpose. But Dean goes beyond anything reasonable. And for some reason it irks me. It makes me feel like his need for his next adrenaline high will turn off future runners because, lets face it, how many of us are ever going to run 226.2 miles in a row? How many of us want to?

I see a joy in the possibility of a day of running- 8 hours? sounds like fun if i can train my body to where it needs to be. 50+ hours of running? no thank you. That just seems like too much.

The reason good ole dean-o just doesnt do it for me: yes he has a good story. yes i am sure he runs for other reason's other than that next extreme fix. but what he shows to the rest of the world is the reason why people think ultra runners are nuts. And thus all us cool kids who just wanna run, look like crazy people because we get lumped in the category with the deans of running.

I'm not sure if i have clearly expressed my feelings here. I just know that the feelings i have about running- like the way i felt pushing myself for 6 miles to beat the sunset while letting luna run free for most of the run- are not in sync (nsync?) with dean's. Luna feels the same way. She just told me.

ultra love

20/20

2010-03-20T20:17:00.000-07:00

friday night, as i was getting ready for bed, my roomie, ellen, said, "hey boo- how far are you running tomorrow?" i said, "i'm not sure let me check my schedule."

and then i realized i was going to be running 20 miles.

so saturday, i ran 20 miles (on march 20th- whoa). yes, im spoiling the ending- i completed the full 20 miles. this is going to be a beast of a post, so get comfy because this is not for the light of heart... okay i dont know how that really fits in here, but i felt like saying it.

riiiiight..... so about my running adventure.....

I woke up around 9 (ish). Talked to my man on the phone for a bit. Got up, put on my capri spandex and my t-shirt. I made the breakfast of champions- honey bunches of oats and scrambled eggs. I gathered my "running stash" and put some vaseline on the top of my sports bra line to prevent chaffing. (For some reason, that is where my skin gets most irritated. vaseline is great at preventing this) Below you will see my stash. Its pretty sweet, and there is an angel puppy who insisted upon modeling.

I took my delicious stash out to shelby farms for a day of epic running. I started out at the beginning, as most people do.
The first part of the run is across this hill (its not steep at all, but it is a hill none the less) and you run towards the entrance to the woods (the better part of the run). Well, as i approach the entrance, i see this:
and i'm thinking, "OH NO! there has been a rock slide or a murder thats going to be on SVU!" so i approach this mess to read the sign, which says:
facelift? how do you give a trail a facelift? so i think for about 2 seconds and decide that this whole facelift thing can suck my.... i mean, is for the birds... and go right through that caution tape- throwing caution to the wind (HAHAHAH)- and proceed on the trail, interested to see what this whole face lift thing really means.

as i was sneaking through the trail, breaking the rules and otherwise being a bad ass, i heard some yelling. And i was immediately afraid i had been hunted down by the rangers for my second misdeed at shelby farms (remember i had gotten escorted back to my car bc i was in the park after sunset?). However, it was just a bunch of boy scouts getting rowdy in the woods. for what? i dont know. but they were running around having a good ole time.

along the path, i figured out what the facelift was. they were putting in some gavel and such in certain places to prevent mud build up. all in all, a good idea, but no reason to keep my from running my trail. i made a mental note to break this whole "facelift" rule the next two times i looped around. (AND I DID! bahahaha. i'm such a rule breaker)

after you get out of the first woods part- you run past this lake. it's pretty cool. take a look.
The reason that i have these pictures is that on my third lap around, i decided to take my camera- for moral support and for something to keep me busy while i trudged along. it was very helpful. On that third lap, i saw this deer poking out from the bushes!!!
This picture shows you just why this trail is so great for running.
Pretty daffodils!
About two miles in, you get to what i like to call, "THE HILL OF DEATH." this pictures doesn't quite do its steepness and depth justice, but at least you can see it. For some reason, the placement of this hill just about kills me every time i run it. My last lap around, i let myself walk up it. its that bad, or i'm just that bad at hills.
After you go up the hill, you run for about another half mile and then you hit the fun part. THE DOG PARK! see picture below. this part is one of my favorites because it always gives me a good boost of energy.
Thought i would show you some pretty flowers.....
Now this is probably my top favorite part next to the secret passage. This old abandoned car. How it got 3 miles into this trail, i dont know. but it is pretty cool.
the car is to your right and this rando building is to your left. so cool right?
This is about half a mile further along. It took me a good many tried to get luna to walk over that bridge the first time we ran this trail. but she LOVES to jump over that fallen tree in the background.
This little bit of awesomeness is right about 4 miles in. I just love it.
This "robert frost" split in the road is right before the secret passage (which will be shown in full detail at the end of this post. its kinda fun to take one side or the other depending on my mood. they split to go around those trees and meet back up on the other end of them.
This picture shows you one of luna's fields. I usually let her run free right around here. you can imagine her majestically bounding from side to side, jack rabbit running wherever her little heart tells her to go.
This is the last mile of the trail. I always love to see this mile marker.
But i think i love seeing this one the most.
So after the first six miles, i turned around to add two miles on (run back to the 5 mile marker then back to the 6 mile marker). I decided to add these two miles (for all you non-math ppl out there- 6 miles times three loops equals 18 miles plus two equals twenty).

On my way back to mile 5, i passed three girls. Well, im a competitive soul, and once i turned around i decided it wasn't okay for me to not beat them. SO i picked up my pace and blew past them. In hindsight, that was a bad idea because it kinda sucked the energy out of me. Oh well, it was worth it to pass those biotches runnin so damn slow.

After mile 8, i stopped to go to the bathroom. I ate a mini cliff bar. I refilled my water bottle. And i ran on. This time, i rand the course backwards, you know to spice things up a bit. Not backwards like, not being able to see where i was going, but like starting at the end of the trail and going to the beginning. On this loop, there were like a million people on bikes and i had to jump out of their way alot. Oh yeah, and there were 3 people on HORSES. no wonder i kept seeing horse poop along the trail.

By the time i i finished this loop, i had run 14 miles. i was pretty tired. my legs already hurt. my calves were tights. my feet were sore. Sitting on the toilet was a blessed relief. This time, i ate some Gu and refilled my water bottle again. I discovered that i like the combo of half water half gatorade in my little water bottle for the trail. I knew this last loop would be pretty painful- thus the camera for the pictures you see above.

Well i was right, i hobbled along. One thing i learned is that even going down hill can hurt when your joints and muscles are are tender. The only thing interesting about these 6 miles, other than the pain, was around mile 4 when i ran past this Asian couple. They must have been in their 40s or 50s. Keeping in mind that they are FOUR MILES into the trail, they were wearing polo shirts, ironed khaki pants, WHITE tennis shoes, and sweaters tied around their shoulders and they had a little frufru dog. I was so bewildered by this couple that my mouth kinda gaped open in surprise...

and then i swallowed a bug. yep, a bug flew in my mouth and i ate it. it kinda tickled so i took a swig of from my water bottle. then i coughed up part of the bug. i guess i just needed a little extra protein for the last two miles. a little bit after this bug incident i came to my favorite part of the run- the secret passage. and i have a special little video for you!

After the secret passage, i just had a little ways to go . Around mile 5 of the trail, these bikers rode past me and asked, "have you been running this whole time?" i said, "yes- i'm at the end of 20 miles!" well there wasn't quite an exclamation point in my voice because i really wanted to kill anyone who interrupted what little will power i had left. but i put on a happy face and pretended like i did mind their disruptive intrusion into my running zone. I actually saw those same 3 bikers at the end of everything in the visitors station. they were fairly impressed that i ran 20 miles, and well, so was i. The last mile was really painful. I was barely shuffling along- searching my ipod shuffle for any song that would give me a good rhythm to run to. The last 1/2 mile i had "you cant stop the beat" from the musical hairspray which, oddly enough, had the perfect beat and perfect message.

20 miles. DONE!

When i finished, i stretched a little, hydrated a little, and started snacking on a peach and cliff bar. When i got home, i could barely get out of my car. I was so stiff and in more pain than when i had finished. Fortunately, i had an angel waiting to greet me at home.

and then, i hopped into this. the hot tub is perfect for after a long run. i can't even begin to describe how much this saved me.

This is the big fat blister/callous on my left foot. Its kind of a beast. Sorry- my feet are ugly because, well, i run alot.

I also forgot to wear sunscreen and have a sweet farmers tan (actually its a burn) you can see the lines below. its pretty red.

You can also see the line on my calf if you look closely. its about an inch below my jeans. Luna also wanted to be in this picture.

Well, that is the end of my story of 20 miles. I hope you enjoyed this beast of a post.

Ultra love.

I'm Legal

2010-03-15T20:39:00.000-07:00

I ran 18 miles. When i type it out or say it, it seems like a really long way. When i ran it, it seemed like a really long way. When i remember it, it doesn't seem that far.

Before i took the trip to shelby farms, i put on my trusty spandex pants and my nike jacket. I filled my new Nathan Brand hand held water bottle (it kinda straps onto your hand and has a one way valve so you dont squirt yourself while you are running---- genius) with water, grabbed a packet of gu, a cliff bar, and a bottle of Gatorade. I was so smart and googled the 10K course so i would know where to start. I made this fantastic plan to run the 10K course 3 times because i knew the Tour De Wolf would be muddy.

So i park in the right parking lot and begin to look for the big sign that would mark the start of the 10K. FYI PEOPLE- the Shelby Farms website LIES. LIES. ALL LIES. There is no start billboard. SO i had to resort to plan B (bahahahah) which fortunately, i had. I opted to run this 2.75 mile course 6 times and to add a loop around the lake. The lake loop is 1.67 miles. All this added up to a glorious 18 mile run.

I began to trot. And when i say trot, i mean, i was running pretty damn slow. My legs were sluggish because i hadn't really run like i should have for the past 2 weeks. I made it about 2 miles around the loop when it started to rain. The rain kind of hurt a little bit. It was comin at me sideways and stinging my face. Nevertheless, i powered through it. Scratch that. Trudged through it. Lap one--- DOWN!

Lap two was uneventful. I hit the lake loop in the middle of Lap #2. Also uneventful. Lap 3. Still uneventful. After lap three, i stopped at my car to suck down a packet of Gu. Lemme tell you about Gu. I got the vanilla bean kind- it tastes really good, but it has the consistency of snot. So while you eat it you think, "man this tastes good, but am i eating vanilla flavored snot? ehhhhhhhhh not sure. but i think i will keep eating it." I opened the hate-or-ade and filled my little hand water bottle with it. yum. then i chewed a piece of gum and got back to running.

Lap 4 was also uneventful. On lap 5 it started to look dark and about a mile in, i saw these two guys that i had passed about 2 or 3 times before. as we ran past each other they were like, "hey, how far are you running today? we ran past you a bunch." I said, "18. Im training for the Nashville marathon." one dude said, "cool, i just ran the little rock" and then we went on our ways. It was a good time to chit chat with other distance runners, even if one was 40 and the other looked 60. Kinda gave me a little push for the end there.

When it was time for Lap 6, i thought, maybe i should just go run these last 3 miles at my dads house since it is kinda dark (it was cloudy so i couldn't tell when the sun set). BUT- i kept on running anyway, hoping i could just be sneaky. WELLLLLLLL, that didn't work. .75 miles in the RANGER picked me up in his truck and took me back to my car. I played dumb like i hadn't been paying attention, but i knew what i was doing. good thing i have an innocent looking face. i sure fooled him.

So since i got kicked out of shelby farms, i drove to my dads house, grabbed winston and his leash, then ran --- scratch that--- hobbled the last two miles of my 18.

How did my body take it you ask? I was tired, stiff, in pain, sore, but oh so happy. My hip flexers were the most tender- i definitely could not have done hurdles and there is a good chance i couldnt have jumped up on a curb if it werent for those AWESOME handicap ramps that are on every corner now. Thank goodness for the Americans with disabilities act or else i probably would have fallen on my face those last two miles.

Fortunately, i had a good attitude about this run. I have just finished the book, Ultra Marathon Man by Dean Karnazes. I will blog about that later, but in his book he makes a good point about running and pain. Running hard should be a little painful, and as long as you feel good pain from working yourself like a mule, you are doing the right stuff. He also talks about baby steps and taking it one stride at a time. Both these things made the 18 miles a little easier and rewarding.

I am proud of my accomplishment and I cant wait til i get to run 20! yay!

Ultra Love

The Grandeur of the Seas

2010-03-11T20:19:00.000-08:00

So, two weeks ago i went on a cruise with my handsome and health conscious boyfriend. See his angelic face below. (My photography friends with be proud of that sun spot/sun flare)

So this cruise was chartered by a bunch of Ohio State Fans who wore red Ohio State gear the ENTIRE cruise. Every single day. I kid you not. The boat was pretty sweet. You can see the center deck below.

The first day out we stopped in Key West- you can see the whole gang below. What a crew.

Then my BF and the band played at Sloppy Joes. Nate did such a good job. Way to go Nate. You look good.

To the exercise portion of this post. There was a pretty small gym on the boat. It had about 8 treadmills, a few elipticals, and some outdated weight machines. One day i ran 6 miles and the other i ran about 3. The thing about running on a boat is that as the boat moves back and forth, the treadmill inclines goes up and down. This was kind tricky and made for a pretty intense workout. I also had to take some sea sickness medicine because the boat was super rocky one night. FYI- sea sickness medicine makes you pretty tired. It made it alot more difficult to run and feel good while running. Another time, i was going to go running, but decided to take a nap instead. goooooood choice! :)

The rest of my "exercise" included walking on the beach in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico. See the evidence below.... HA!

Nate looks pretty next to the tender boat that was taking us back to our big boat from the beach in Mexico.

Once back on the boat, the last night Nate played two shows. And, again, he did a good job. He looks super cool here.

Reasons why i love cruises, and particularly this one:

1. Naps. I love naps and nate let me take MILLIONS of them!

2. Midnight conversations in a steaming hot tub with the cold night air blowing across the deck.

3. Working out with my boo.

4. Walking along the beach in Mexico, holding hands.

5. My new J. Crew swimsuit

6. Towel animals made the the cruise crew

7. Old people doing cheesy line dances

8. 11:30pm free buffets

9. Endless food

10. The solarium

11. Watching the sunset or watching the sky after the sun has set with my favorite person on the front deck of the boat

12. Key lime pie

13. relaxation and happiness

14. good music

15. good people

true luv

2010-03-04T20:25:00.000-08:00

Luna and Gibson Carter were meant to be.

14 miles and still alive to blog about it

2010-03-03T11:49:00.000-08:00

So the day after the blog post you see below (ps. Sorry for the emo-ness of it all, but sometimes you just gotta blog and make cheesy but rather accurate metaphors to get all those “feelings” out….) I ran 14 miles.

14 miles is the longest I have ever run in my life, and, frankly, it wasn’t that bad. In fact, it was pretty good.

I woke up early that Saturday morning- around 7- got ready, ate some cereal, filled my water bottle, gather my energy bars, and hit the road to Shelby Farms.

NOTE- there are some people who cannot eat before exercising. I am not one of those people. While I probably couldn’t eat an entire thanksgiving meal or Huey Burger pre-workout without vomming, cereal/oatmeal/eggs/sandwich/granola bar/fruit (anything relatively light in size and general texture—does that even make sense? I don’t know) are just fine pre-workout. Pre-workout equals anywhere from an hour to right before my workout- FYI. If eating pre workout makes you nervous, try starting with a granola bar or a little bit of apple sauce. If you (me) are going to be running long distances, you have to get used to eating while running because your body needs fuel. From what I have read, what and when you eat on a long run really depends on the individual. As I figure out what works for me, I will share. Duh.
Anyway, my 14 mile run. I ran out at Shelby Farms sans Luna. I just didn’t think jumping into 14 miles was a good idea for her. I’m relatively sure she could handle it, but I want to work her up to the long runs (and make sure I can get her proper access to water along the way- her safety and health are number one).

Anyway again- back to the run- I ran the Tour D’Wolf (6 miles) twice and then tacked on 2 miles at the end, like I did on my 8 mile run from a little bit ago.

There were a few things that made this run particularly enjoyable.

1.The weather was perfect. Just the right temperature, partly cloudy (too much sun= squinty eyes and sunburn).
2.The perfect weather meant there were lots of dogs out and about. I got to smile at lots of dogs which made the run seem less long. A sweet puppy-semi jumped on me and left a muddy paw-print on my pants. This made me really happy for some strange reason.
3.I found a secret passage.

Eeeeeeeeeee! Excitement! Let me tell you about this secret passage. At mile 4 ¼ into the trail, there is this gap in a fence that you have to run through. This gap is ALWAYS varying degrees of muddy. From squishy to standing water. Mostly, some level of standing water is involved. AND- because the muddy area extends from about 20 feet in front of the gap in the fence to about 10 feet after this gap, there is nowhere to go but right through the mud.
Well, that USED to be how it was til I found my secret passage, my hidden jewel, my sanctuary of awesomeness. To the left of the muddy area that is in front of the gap in the fence, there is a tree that fell over some time ago. In my desperation to not have wet shoes for 10 miles, I inched my way to investigate what looked like it could be some other footprints. I climbed over this tree and what did I find???? THE REAL MILE 4 ¼ OF THE TRAIL. How do I know this, you ask? Because the 4 ¼ mile marker was there! From what my St. Mary’s/Georgetown education has enabled me to discern, this tree fell many moons ago, thus making the gap in the fence SLASH redirecting of the trail necessary. However, the trail on the other side of the tree is NOT muddy at all. And you can see puppy paw prints in the ground. This real/old part of the trail meets up with the fake/new part of the trail about 50 feet down the way where the fence ends. For the visual- the old trail runs along the left of the fence, and the new trail runs along the right of the fence. The fence is pretty much hidden by trees and bushes though. FANTASTIC. It really made my day. I am not kidding. If you ever run with me, I will show you all its secretness.

In other news, after mile 6, when I looped around to start the trail again, I stopped by my car to drink some water and eat a Cliff bar. The water was perfect, but my mouth really didn’t want to eat the Cliff bar. I am thinking of investing in Gu because chewing doesn’t seem high on my list of priorities mid-run.
Besides that, it was a great run. I even pushed myself on the last mile. My time was about 2:20 -2:30 which is right for me. I am a 10 minute miler and have always been. That will probably get better over the years, but, for my first real try at a marathon, I will stick with my 10 min mile goal.

Tonight is 16 miles. My schedule was de-railed slightly because of a CRUISE. Don’t worry- the 16 mile run and the cruise will suffer HUGE dumps of blog.

ultra love.

Today I Feel

2010-02-19T13:18:00.000-08:00

Today I feel like I have been running a marathon and am coming up on the finish line- what is supposed to be the happy ending of my difficult but oh-so-worth-it run.

Sure, around mile six, I stumbled a little. The terrain was kinda tricky, and I thought about giving up then.

Something kept me going then, and, once I hit mile 8, things started to really pick up. I felt so good about this marathon, it was wonderful to feel myself settling in. Mile 13 was the best of all. Great things happened in Mile 13.

The next 12 miles flew by without any hiccups. I needed to push myself a little harder on miles 24 and 25, but got the job done. There were things I needed to do to help myself get to that finish line.

And now its mile 26, and I feel like someone just knocked me over. Like I got punched in the gut. Like I sprained my ankle.

I’m not really sure what to do at this point. What do you do when you get a blow like this- with your metaphorical finish line virtually in sight?

Keep running anyway?

Ultra love

5ive

2010-02-16T10:07:00.000-08:00

I have a few things to report to you that have to do with the above number.

First, I have lost 5 pounds since January 1. Losing weight was not really an intention of mine, but it seems to be a natural occurrence when training for a marathon. I am eating better and exercising more. Makes sense.

Second, I have five days of workouts to report.

1. Thursday- Martha blogged about this workout too. Obviously, it was ridiculously good. We went to a killer spin class, and then Martha, Ellen, and I minxed around the weight section for a few minutes. I made them do bicep curls, seated rows, and incline chest presses- just so we could get a few solid muscle groups in to compliment the spin class. Well, while we were over in the weight section, I saw one of the trainers wandering around aimlessly.

****CONFESSION**** for the last two years it has been a secret desire of mine to work out with this said trainer. His name is Isaac, and, after watching him train his clients, I can tell he is a motivator and makes really intense and effective workouts. I have been holding in this secret jealousy for all his clients for a long time….

SO when Isaac said that his client for that time slot didn’t show, I immediately jumped at the chance to maybe have him give me (which really meant us, but I was in selfish mode at this point, no going back) a few “things” to do.

THIS WAS THE BEST IDEA I HAVE EVER HAD. EVER. Really. James, another friend/trainer, first showed us how to do these crazytown push-ups on a medicine ball. I will explain this in fuller detail when I can do them for real and can post a video. My new goal is to do them every time I workout so I can get really good at these push ups. When you see the video, you will not be disappointed. ON TO ISAAC- he decided to make us do a circuit workout:

1 sprint lap around the track.

30 seconds of squat jumping jacks with weight. (jump out equals squat)

30 seconds of these weird foot switch things on the Bosu ball- works your core and legs.

Then sets of jumping jacks (2 count = 1), sit ups, push ups, and butterfly kicks (in this order rotation). First set was 20 of each. Next set was 10, then 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, then 20. Get it?

1 final lap around (as fast as you could go at that point)

Needless to say. I felt so great during/after this workout. Workouts like these give me an insane high- ask Martha and Ellen- I was practically out of my mind with joy. I loved every bit of the pain and exhaustion. Can’t wait for more workouts like this.

2. Friday- 4 mile run. Easy peasy. Ran around the track. Nothin fancy.

3. Saturday- 8 mile run with Luna out at Shelby Farms. We started out on the tour d’wolf, but after 2 miles I changed directions. It was super muddy (again), and I just did not want to go through the stress of starting and stopping and starting and stopping. You get the idea. Just so you know- the 2 mile mark of the trail is VERY close to the 5 mile mark. The last mile of the run is on a dirt road/field that was NOT muddy. Luna and I opted to run up and down that 1 mile stretch (thus equaling 2 miles) three times. It worked well for us. There was a good hill on this stretch, so, all in all, a nice run with minimal mud. The last four miles felt better than the first. I like that.

4. Sunday: 6 mile run. I went to the gym with my handsome and health conscious boyfriend in celebration of Valentines Day because, well, nothing says “valentines” like a lot of sweat and heavy lifting. His new YMCA gym has a room about the size of a basketball court dedicated to cardio equipment. I hopped on a treadmill with its own TV (super nice, woo woo) and got to running. My thought was to increase my speed every 5 minutes for the first 30 min, then back down the next 30. Well, this plan was laid to waste when some chick on a treadmill in the row in front of mine was going faster than I was. Not to be outdone, I boosted my speed to match/surpass hers and ended up with a KILLER run under my belt. Ran 6 miles in about 55 minutes and felt GREAT for the last 3 miles. I think that I am a huge fan of feeling better in the second have of my medium runs. Big Fan. I also watched the cross country skiing finals while running, which, surprisingly, got me super energized during my run.

5. Monday- 3 miles. Again, boosted the speed on this one and finished in about 26 minutes. Felt fantastic. Finished up the run with a 3 minute jog. Ended the workout with a 3peat circuit- crunches on the AB ball (50), pushups on the Bosu ball (12), lunges with two 15 pound weights (20)—all this times 3.

Third, I am having great success with personal motivation during spinning. Every time I feel like slowing down, I push myself a little harder. This has made for even better workouts lately. I have also taken to run/sprinting on the choruses of songs. Also a good idea.

Fourth, in light of my last 3 runs, I have decided to start doing speed work with my “inside” runs. I think this will be very beneficial in the long run. I will let you know how it goes.

Fifth, I hope this isn’t information overload. If it is, I will leave you with a little cool down (or “fire me up” in my case!)--- my boyfriend on national TV! See him play with David Nail on the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. My boo is the one with the good lookin pants! I am so proud!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fk39k4Hw_TA

ultra love

want. to. read.

2010-02-11T06:28:00.000-08:00

right now there are a few books i am dying to read. fortunately, i have time because my grad school apps are done! my goal is to get these books before i go on my cruise so that i have some "light" reading to do lounging on the decks with my handsome and health conscious boyfriend. AHHHHHH i am so excited about this cruise and these books that i think i might explode. AHHHHHHH

okay, in a particular order, the books i want to read are:

Racing Weight by Matt Fitzgerald

This is definitely my number one reading. My running obsession, Scott Jurek, recommended it. Therefore, it is a must read.

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth SteinEven though this one has nothing to do with running, it is about dogs. And i love dogs. And one dog in particular. Duh. Thanks, Leslie, for blogging about this one. If anyone knows any other wonderful dog books that are NOT Marley and Me and DO NOT involve a dog dying, send them my way.

The Ultimate Guide to Weight Training for Running by Robert PriceMost of the time, i just make up my own weight training schedule. But, it would be nice to have a set weight regimen for a while. Of course, i would add in my beastly squatting whenever i wanted to. Goal is to get up to 225 pounds.... but why stop there? why not 255?

The Athlete's Plate by Adam Kelinson
This looks like it has some really good recipes. Most importantly, it has QUICK recipes. This book understands that runners spend most of their spare time running, so there isn't as much time for gourmet meals. Can't wait to buy this one and eat yummy food.

If you feel like getting me a present, any of these books will make my heart (and running legs) smile! :)

ultra love

185

2010-02-09T20:39:00.000-08:00

today, i squatted 185 pounds.

that is all.

for proper technique, go here.

ultra love.

do the 12

2010-02-08T14:46:00.000-08:00

while there are only a select few who will understand the significance of this title, the rest of you can just translate it into exactly what you think it means. i ran 12 miles.

sunday after church, i took a 3o minute nap and was OH-SO-CLOSE to just going back to sleep until super bowl festivities began at three. somewhere, i found the motivation to get up, get dressed, eat lunch, and get luna ready to go my dad's house.

i chose to run at my dad's house for two reasons.

1. it isnt muddy on sidewalks

2. i could run with 2 dogs and have companionship the whole run.

how i did it:

before i ran, i mapped out a 6 mile course in my car (it was actually .1 mile less than six so at the end i added one extra loop). then i saddled luna up and hit the pavement. after the first 6 mile loop, i dropped luna off and picked up winston, my dad's golden retriever.

while the last two miles were certainly the most challenging, as it seems to be almost every long run, this run was not particularly difficult. it was very helpful to have a dog running with me the whole time. luna was a perfect angel, and winston was a perfect gentleman. i listened to my ipod shuffle-- DISCOVERY! TLC's "No Scrubs" has the perfect running beat. i probably listened to it about 5 times.

not much else to report. 12 miles down. this coming week is just an 8 miler, but next weekend is 14. longest i have ever run. woo woo.

now i will leave you with a video that shows off both luna's and my running skills....

squishy

2010-02-06T21:09:00.000-08:00

Tuesday: Spinning

Wednesday: off

Thursday: Emotional break down when spin class was full. circuit workout.

Friday: off. not supposed to be this way, but necessary given thursdays episode.

Saturday: much better.

This morning i woke up at 8 to make it to 9 am spinning class. good thing i got a bike. and i got a good one, with the full handle, just like i like it.

crazy cathy was teaching today, and since she was slightly sick, she was a little less crazy than normal which made for a stellar spin class. she picked good music too- the theme was grammy winning songs from this year. these included lady gaga (who falls into the category of "i-hate-this-song-in-real-life-but-man-it's-good-to-spin-to) and the jai ho (aka tally ho) from slum dog millionaire. GREAT workout, super sweaty, and free sample cliff bars at the end. yay.

a little bit after spin, luna and i went running out at shelby farms. WELL- since it snowed last weekend and then rained this whole week, i had an idea it would be muddy..... but this was more than i bargained for.

That's my little piglets belly when we finished. The run started out across a field which was a little wet, but nothing bad. We ran through a bit of woods, and luna stepped on my shoe. I thought, UGH, luna, why did you have to get my shoe muddy. i also thought, "it's definitely not as muddy as i thought it would be." soon after these two thoughts crossed my mind, the mud kicked in. and when i say kicked, i mean, look at the end result of my kicks below:

this was probably one of the most emotionally frustrating runs i have ever taken. the trail was so muddy that i had to walk many, many parts of it. sometimes luna would miss the memo that i had to slow down and she would pull me and i would slip and i would be afraid that i was about to face plant into MUD. MUD, PEOPLE. MUD. so for the first 3 miles i tried really hard not to get too muddy. i would walk along the edges of the path. try to walk on branches. walk through the trees for a bit. oh- almost forgot- along the way, we met a nice black lab mutt named bolt. bolt loved luna and wanted to play very much. i chatted with bolt's dad for a while. he was a nice man and thought luna was very pretty and powerful. she is both.

anyway, around mile three-ish we hit this patch of mud and water. it was about 3 inches deep and there was no going around. SO i just plowed through. so did luna. at this point, it really didnt matter where i stepped because my shoes were soaking wet and my feet were squishy. super squishy. but ultra runners keep running through gross stuff.... yeah.

oh- almost forgot- a little after this point i just couldnt hold it any longer. i had to pee so bad..... hahahahahaha TMI? maybe, but its allll part of the training.

moving forward- around mile 4 i let luna run through the field without her leash. she had so much fun- she found some mini puddle-pond and jumped around in it while i laughed at her. needless to say, she got way more muddy.

to sum up the run- all the starting/stopping, walking/running really wore on my nerves. it seemed like every time i got going, i would run into some squishy mud part and have to walk again. i kept going though, and it was one of those important learning experiences. the frustrating first four-ish miles were made better by getting to watch luna go buck wild and be so happy when she wasnt on the leash. every run isnt just about the mileage you are adding up. it contributes to your mental toughness, which is the only thing that will get you through a marathon and an ultra.

in the end, this is what we both looked like after the run. muddy, tired, and happy.

ultra love.

oh the weather outside was frightful, but my runnin shoes are so delightful

2010-02-02T20:59:00.000-08:00

my previous post let you know that Friday was a BOMB in terms of keeping to my marathon training.

saturday= success! luna and i ventured out into the SNOW to run 6 miles.

*** makes you close your mouth that dropped open in surprise***

yes, luna and i ran in the SNOW. here's the thing, the there is a trail(ish) behin

d out house that is 3 miles to the end and back. therefore, cue math geniuses, we ran the trail twice. but elise, what about all the snow and ice?!?!?! well friends, the sidewalks were super slick, but the trail was just snow slush. this equals good for running. though i have a few thoughts on snow running. maybe it's just one thought- snow running is slightly less hard than sand running, but on a similar level. ponder that.

sunday = two fifths (ish) fail. i was supposed to run 10 miles, but this did not happen. I had to finish some grad school apps (which are completely done, yeah!) and only had an hour to run. thus, luna and i had a nice 4 or 5 mile run (not really sure how long it is). the snow had melted enough on sunday that the roads/sidewalks were about 95% runnable. see pictures of our running gear below.

mother and daughter getting ready to roll.

luna in her jacket. it has her name monogrammed on the butt. spoiled, i know.

fyi- the thing on her face is a gentle leader, not a muzzle.

Monday= success! since i did not get the ten miles in on sunday, i knew i had to do it on monday. running ten miles on monday means that it has to be run indoors (safety, remember?).

lesson learned from monday's 10 mile run. running is 10 percent physical, 90 percent mental. the truly difficult thing about running is TO KEEP GOING. there are so many times you want to stop, but you have to play mental games with yourself.

here is how i did it.

Miles 1-4: Treadmill. Every two minutes i increased my speed by .1 and then reduced it by .1 to make a pyramid of speed. example.......

time 0 min, 6.0

time 2 min, 6.1,

time 4 min, 6.2

time 6 min, 6.1

time 8 min, 6.0

the next ten minutes went from 6.1 to 6.3.... you get the picture.

Miles 4-8: Track. every fourth rotation, i would sprint(ish.... mostly just speed up a little).

Miles 9-10: Treadmill. changed speed every one minute.

Here is the mindgame part about running inside:

1. it is easy to get bored on the treadmill, and it is also easy for your knees/legs to start hurting because your terrain never changes. by changing up the speed every few minutes, you keep yourself interested and not as focused on how much you want to stop.

2. it is easy to just walk. while running the track (around miles 7 and 8) my legs started getting tired. by counting my laps very well (imagine, me repeating the lap i was on over and over and over again each time around), i managed to keep convincing myself that is was only a little further.

3. it is easy to just stop. miles 9 and 10 were pretty physically challenging. i dont know how i made it through those miles. the treadmill kind of hurts at the end, but i knew that i had to finish. dont let yourself stop til you reach your goal. i like rewards- like ice cream for dessert (only a little bit, mind you) .

so i did it. i ran ten miles inside and topped it off with 150 crunches. all in all, still on track to run a marathon. week 1 of 13 = OVER! yay. way to go me. way to go luna.

ultra love.

fie on you snow! fie!

2010-01-29T21:21:00.000-08:00

Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday were in perfect accord with my Marathon Training. Then, today, the great blizzard of 2010 happened. I woke up at 7 and immediately texted my office spouse to see if our office was closed. Now, i texted him before i even looked out the window. Thus, approximately 45 seconds after texting my office spouse, i looked out the window and noticed the ground wasnt even WET and promptly send a second text that simply stated, "nevermind." So, i got ready and drove on into work. By 8 am, it was rain-icing. By 9 am it was even more rain-icing. by 9:30 it had started to snow, and by 9:45 it was a blizzard. At this point our boss closed the office. While the roads weren't bad then, the snow/ice/rain combo continued all day, and Lord knows no one in memphis knows how to drive in this weather. I therefore had to forego my trip to the gym for safety reasons.

Instead of the gym, i took my sweet angel outside to play in the snow.

Here she is, patiently waiting to go outside. She just loves the snow.
Luna also loves to eat sticks and to dig them out from under the snow.
She really is the prettiest thing i have ever seen. Look at that face.
This is Luna right before she rubbed her face in the snow. Thats another favorite of hers.

I am hoping that somehow, someway (Somewhere Someday? if you can name that song reference, you win the awesome at life award) I will make it to the gym tomorrow for a 6 mile run. Sunday is supposed to be 10. Cross your fingers that I can get out to shelby farms for that to happen. It may be fun in the snow.

It also may not. We all know how coordinated i am in regular weather, ice and snow could be dangerous. But, if i want to be an ultra runner, i gotta live on the wild side- like wild bill, my roomba vacuum.

ultra love