Zemgear Ninja minimalist shoe review

I recently got a chance to try out the Zemgear Ninja shoes.  I've worn them quite a bit, but haven't exercised in them much since they are only for use indoors and on soft surfaces.  I don't exercise indoors much during the summer and one would never call the streets by my house a "soft surface".

Aren't they cute?  My kids think they are hilarious.

 I've run on the treadmill once with them and they were great. Very comfy and nice traction.  I've also used them when I was lifting weights at my parents' house.  I wasn't fond of them on the elliptical, but that was because I always end up with my toes against the front of the step when I use it.  In normal shoes, this isn't a problem, but in these I felt like my toes were getting smooshed up against the step.  I bet these shoes would be awesome for yoga.  Assuming, of course, that I did yoga more than once a year...

Overall, I think these are an awesome minimalist option.  I love the spit toe.  I have really odd toes, so sometimes my Vibrams don't feel comfortable.  The single section for four toes in these takes care of that issue. 

Zemgear recently came out with a version that can be worn outside.  I'm actually quite excited about that and plan to try them out.  I have trouble getting my funny toes in my VFFs while wearing socks, so I'm hoping the new 360s will offer me a good option for the Philadelphia Half Marathon in November.

Anyone else tried these "shoes"?  What did you think?

Disclaimer: Zemgear allowed me to try these for free.  All opinions are my own.

Aftermath + running

We were lucky.  None of our trees came down and we never lost power.  I was up most of the night because I was worried about Jones and the wind had me completely freaked out.  We came through with only a small bit of damage: our street sign fell off its post.

My car was parked a foot or so ahead of where the truck is, but luckily the sign didn't go far.  And who knew that our county actually had a dude whose job it was to drive around and fix signs.  Beer Geek was going to fix it, but the guy beat him to it LOL.

This happened only a few blocks away

There were also some trees down in the park, but only one hit anything.

All in all, we and most of our neighborhood were extremely lucky.  Now we are just trying to get the house back to normal, which includes drinking all the water I stored in the fridge.  I've never been so well hydrated.

On the running front, things are going pretty well.  I ran 6 very slow miles yesterday and a total of 19.5 for the week.  I'm running every day right now, in an attempt to fix my form and build my endurance.  Some of the runs are as short as one mile and really slow, but I figure the more I run barefoot on the treadmill, the more that form will translate to longer runs.  We'll see if I'm right LOL.

Fingers crossed that this week is completely uneventful.  Last week's earthquake, tonsil bleed, and hurricane were quite enough, thankyouverymuch.

Don't forget to enter my YMX Tribal Sea Run Tee giveway! I'm totally in love with this shirt...

YMX Tribal Sea Run Tee review and giveaway

YMX contacted me recently to try out their Tribal Sea Run Tee.  I'll be honest, I almost said no because I tend to be a bit more conservative in my colors and design choices.  What changed my mind, though, was the description of the material.

From their website:

MadKool® technical fabrics enhance the athletic performance of the people who wear it. MadKool® efficiently moves sweat away from the body to the outer layer of the fabric, where it dries faster than with other fabrics.

In addition, MadKool® fabrics regulate your natural body temperature so you will stay warm in cool weather activities, and cool when your heart is pumping.

Some MadKool® fabrics, such as those used in YMX cycling jerseys, offer UV protection so you can wear them on your next outdoor excursion without having to worry about exposure to the sun's harmful rays.

MadKool® fabrics have a lot of stretch, hold their shape and are abrasion resistant. Although they feel delicate, they aren't. Wear YMX garments hard, they can handle it just fine.

As an added bonus, MadKool® fabrics are engineered to receive prints with vivid clarity and permanance, so you don't have to worry about wearing your garment hard.

I liked that it had an UV protection.  In fact, it has 50+ UV protection.  You might have noticed that I'm kind of pale.  Anything that protects my skin is worth a try for me.  When the package arrived, I was pleasantly surprised to find a pair of the arm warmers as well.  I've wanted to try a pair of arm warmers FOREVER! I've tried them on and they are comfy, but real trial of those will have to wait until it's a bit cooler here.

 The shirt has a really interesting feel to it.  It reminds me a lot of the rash guard I wear to the beach, but it's much lighter weight.  You may not be able to tell, but in the picture above, I am absolutely soaking wet.  I ran 4 miles in typical hot, humid VA weather.  The shirt did not chafe or feel heavy like some fabrics do when wet.  In fact, it actually felt like it was keeping me cool.  I've run in it twice and am quite pleased.

My only negative is that it's a bit on the long side (my taller friends would love that!), so it reaches too far down my hips.  Plus it's a little tight through the hips, but a bigger size would not have fit right.  Surprisingly, this did not cause any issues on the run.  I just let the extra material sit above my hips.  It didn't ride up or annoy me or anything, so I will definitely continue to wear this shirt.

Want to win your own to try?  Here's how to enter (PLEASE! leave a separate comment for each):

Mandatory:  Be or become a follower of MCM Mama and leave a comment.

Extra entries (leave a separate comment for each):

1. Like YMX on Facebook
2. Like MCM Mama on Facebook
3. Follow MCM Mama on Twitter
4. Follow YMX on Twitter
5. Post the giveaway on your blog, tweet it, facebook it...

Giveaway ends September 9th at midnight.

Disclosure:  I got the Tribal Sea Run Tee for free to review.  YMX is also supplying the tee for the winner.  All opinions are my own.

As ready as we are going to get...

Irene is heading in.  For the moment, we have power.  Not sure how long that will last.

Jones had a bleed at the tonsil removal site this morning, so he and I got to spend a few hours at the hospital.  They ended up putting him under and cauterizing the bleeding spots.  Nothing like being stressed about a hurricane while your child is in surgery.  Thankfully, it went well, we got home before the rain really picked up, and he seems to be feeling better than he did before the surgery.  Fingers crossed that we are headed for healing now.

In between trips to the doctor's office yesterday and the hospital today, I've been in mad hurricane prep...

Garage packed with EVERYTHING from outside

My poor bare patio

Cooking water

Flushing water (more in the full upstairs tub)

Drinking water - we filled every bottle in the house, including the small ones from my fuel belt LOL

OK, lights are flickering, so I'm gonna go blow up the beds in the basement so we can sleep tonight. See you on the flip side...

Random Friday Facts: Hurricane edition

1.  I went to the grocery store at 6am this morning to buy milk and toilet paper.  I felt like such a stereotype.

2.  But we actually needed milk and toilet paper. And chocolate.

3.  Thanks to the earthquake and the hurricane, my stress levels are through the roof.  That's why we were out of chocolate.  These natural disasters need to stop soon or my pants won't fit.

4. I get to spend today trying to fit all the random yard stuff and the trash cans into our garage.  Our garage was designed to fit a Model T, so this could be interesting.

5. I have beer in the fridge, but more importantly we have a stock of good Belgian beers that do not need to be refrigerated to drink.  In a pinch, we also have red wine.

6. Apparently going to the store in a "hurricane panic" is even worse than going when hungry.

7.  We have 5 100+ year old oaks surrounding our house, therefore we'll be sleeping in the basement on Saturday night.

8. I plan to go fill the gas tank on my Pilot in a few minutes - mostly so I can charge my iphone if we lose power. I also filled the tanks of the jeep and the civic.  (Yes, I have 3 cars to primed to keep my iphone charged.  Priorities, people!)

9.  If we don't need them for charging, I may not need to buy gas until sometime in October.

Thank you for all the birthday wishes.  It was a pretty low key day with take out Thai food for dinner.  We'll celebrate as a family sometime after Jones is completely healed and Irene is gone.

Stay safe, people!  I'm hopeful that things won't get too bad here, but I'm prepared just in case.

TTT: Celebrating me

Today's my 41st birthday.  It's been a rough week (tonsils, earthquake) and I don't expect it to get much better for the next few days (hello, Irene!).  But I refuse to dwell on the less than stellar things in my life on my birthday.  So, here are three things that are awesome:

1. My marriage.  17 years ago a casual conversation turned into an engagement story.  Our marriage isn't perfect (what marriage or person is?), but it is ROCK SOLID.  We've moved past the stages of all of our friends getting married and having babies to that stage where marriages are failing.  Knowing that Beer Geek ALWAYS has my back and will support me in whatever hairbrained scheme I come up with makes stepping out of my comfort zone not only possible, but also fun.
   
   
   
2. My kids.  They may drive me insane and I still have trouble figuring out "typical boy behavior", but I love these crazy guys more than anything.  I can't imagine my life without them.
   
3. My running.  I know that may come as a surprise because I've been battling injury for almost a year, but running is still an awesome part of my life.  I may never run as fast or as far as I used to, but I'll take a short, slow run over not running any day.  Yesterday I had a fabulous 3 miles in my VFFs.  Mile 4 wasn't so wonderful, but I did it, I enjoyed it, and I was so much happier afterwards.

   

   Why yes, there will be a giveaway of a shirt like this tomorrow...

(As a bonus, I also have rockin' parents, a wonderful extended family, some super awesome friends, a house I love, and a comfortable lifestyle.  Yeah, I'm a lucky girl.)

So, happy birthday to me!  I believe I WILL have that 10 year old Alaskan Smoked Porter tonight, thank you very much.

We interrupt your regularly scheduled blog post...

I have no idea what I planned to write for today's post, but it all kind of fell by the wayside when the *earthquake* came yesterday afternoon.

Seriously.

I live walking distance to DC.  I expect traffic jams.  I expect crime.  I expect the President to drive past my house on occasion.  I even expect the occasional hurricane or two feet of snow.

I don't expect earthquakes.  I mean, really, don't we already have enough going on around here?

There I was, minding my own business, playing on the computer while Shoo ate lunch.  For the five millionth time, I told him to stop rocking the table.  Usually his response is along the lines of "I can't help it."  This time he told me he wasn't doing it.  As I prepared to reprimand him for lying, I realized the whole house was shaking.

My immediate response was to run down to the basement.  Why?  Because it felt like an unbalanced washer on steroids.  Halfway down the stairs, I realized a) I have a front loader and it has never shaken like that and b) I wasn't doing laundry.  I heard something fall in the storage room and my next thought was that our boiler was going to blow.  (Quite frankly, earthquake never even occurred to me.)

I grabbed Shoo and Jones and we ran outside, where we realized that it wasn't just our house that was shaking.  I never realized just how many of my neighbors work from home LOL.

In the end, the only casualty was a can of fish food, but quite frankly I never need to experience that again...

We now return to our regular discussions of running, parenting, and beer.   LA LA LA *not thinking about Hurricane Irene* LA LA LA

The Ultimate Fartlek Run

Yesterday afternoon, I was getting desperate for a run and Shoo was getting squirrelly.  While Jones thinks the perfect day would involve playing Wii, switching to DS, watching a movie, and then starting all over again (yes, that is the one high point for him related to the tonsillectomy - unlimited screen time), Shoo is a very active kid and NEEDS to move all.the.time.  Jones was doing well, so I decided Shoo and I could go outside for a while.

Normally, when we can't go far from the house, I let Shoo ride his bike up and down the dead end street near us, while I sit on a curb and watch him.  After sitting in the house all morning, I decided I needed to move too.

So, I ran next to him.  We circled the block by our house.  We went up and down the dead end street.  We went in circles in front of the house.  For a total of 3 miles.

It was the best fartlek run EVER.  Seriously.  Have you ever watched a five year old ride a two wheeler?  They weave.  They sprint.  They come to a complete stop to watch a leaf or an acorn or a cat.  I saw a 14 minute pace.  I saw an 8 minute pace.  I saw everything in between.  I stopped dead on a dime.  I jumped sideways.   I went from a jog to a flat out sprint.  I jumped curbs and dodged parked cars.  By the end of the three miles, I was hot, sweaty, and tired (Shoo was fresh as a daisy).

Mission accomplished!

Shoo still had plenty of energy, so when Beer Geek got home, he took him out for a real ride.  Typical of Shoo, he went down a hill in his usual fearless manner and ended up flying over the handlebars when his wheel hit some grass.

Good thing he already had his front teeth pulled or he would have knocked one out today, for sure.

As you might guess, both boys had canned chicken noodle soup for dinner. Sigh.

Miscellaneous Monday

I haven't had a good night's sleep in several days. First I was nervous about Jones' upcoming surgery. Then I was up with him in pain. Then I had to set an alarm to keep ahead of the pain. Then last night, he slept and I didn't. I was convinced he'd wake up "in a few minute", when in reality he slept hours. (I'm having flashbacks to newborn days.)

The lack of sleep is making me kind of loopy, so I'm gonna bullet point it from here...

• I should have run yesterday, but I just didn't have the motivation.  I *need* to run today, but I'm still lacking in motivation.
• The saddest part is that I really don't care.
• I've been slowly putting our basement back together since the renovation. Today I discovered we have record, tape, and CD versions of U2: Under a Blood Red Sky.  In fact, we have two CDs since we each had a copy pre-marriage.  
• Apparently I had really bad taste in music as a child.  Most of my records are the K-Tel compilations.
• We don't even have a turntable anymore, so I'm not sure why we have records.
• Jones is doing as well as can be expected for an older child having a tonsillectomy.  Unfortunately, that means he still feels like crap.
• Shoo, on the other hand, has more energy than three kids.  He made Beer Geek ride for hours in circles around our neighborhood this weekend.  On the bright side, my dream of biking to Mad Fox Brewpub will become a reality sooner than I thought.
• Apparently when I'm overtired, I drink too much coffee, eat too many carbs, and sit on my butt.  Not exactly the best half marathon training plan I've ever come up with.
• I need to do some work, but I'm not sure I'm coherent enough to be useful.

And if you're worried about Zombies, check out my boys over at Parenting by Dummies!

The trifecta

Hungry. Tired. No run.

Jones' surgery went mostly well yesterday. They got him in late + he was last on the schedule as the oldest, so we were there until 5pm. Guess who forgot to take lunch? Yeah, I went the whole day on two granola bars and a big bottle of nuun. By the time I got his prescriptions and finally got food in me, it was late, dark, and stormy.

Could I have run on my treadmill? Probably. But honestly I was exhausted.

Last night was rough. Jones fell asleep around 7 and slept pretty good until midnight (despite frequent wakeups for medicine). I, of course, couldn't fall asleep and was just dozing off when it was time to give him his midnight dose. After that, neither he nor I slept much and he was up starving at 4am. I made an attempt to sleep from 5:30-6:30 but wasn't entirely successful. I felt like I had a newborn again (thank goodness, this will end in a week or two, which is much easier than those newborn days).

I had to run. I was exhausted and underfueled. I did it anyways. 3 miles so slow I was practically moving backwards. But it was just what I needed.

I'm still tired. But at least now there's a better than even chance that there won't be a mommy meltdown today.

Random Fitness Facts Friday

• When I was in college, I was in Air Force ROTC for a semester.  We had to run 1.5 miles in some reasonable amount of time ( think it was 15 minutes).  I went out too fast and failed.

• Facebook just informed me that my status on August 18, 2010 was that I ran mile repeats: 8:06, 8:05, 7:56.  I don't think I could run one mile anywhere close to that right now, even if I was being chased.

• When I was pregnant with Jones, I worked out 3-5 days a week.  I lifted weights, I used the elliptical, and I biked.  I was still huge.

•  With Shoo, I only walked and chased after a 3 year old.  I gained the exact same amount of weight (but unfortunately had started out 10 pounds heavier.)

• Moral of the story?  Do the best you can to stay active and eat right during pregnancy, but recognize that there are some changes that your body will choose on its own.  (Thighs and butt, anyone?)  And it is possible to come back in better shape afterwards.

• Before Shoo, I never ran more than 30 minutes at a time.  My first race ever was after he was born and it was an 8K.    I thought that meant 4 miles.  Needless to say, everything over four miles pretty much sucked.
• Qualifying for and running Boston is not on my "running goals" list, but I do want to do a relay and someday I really want to do a timed ultra (I'll never run one of the trail ultras that's out there.)
• I haven't run more than 6 miles since my half in March, yet I'm already jonesin' for another full marathon.  I swear the memory of the pain should last longer than a year LOL.  Maybe I should get through training for my Philly half before I start thinking about it.

Happy Friday, everyone.  Ours involves a tonsillectomy, so I'm a little stressed...

TTT: Re-entry is rough sometimes

1.  I love my house and my neighborhood.  I've lived here for a long time and it is definitely home.  I love having the city nearby with all its opportunities.  But every summer after I spend two weeks with my parents, I LONG to move to the midwest.  I'd love to live an easy drive to my parents.  I hate living so far away from family.  And I get house envy every time 'cause we could afford so much more out there.  I know moving isn't an option (I made that choice 16 years ago when I married a southern boy LOL), but the first few days back are always rough.

2.  We live quite near a major airport, so when the boys and I got off the plane, I called Beer Geek to pick us up.  He said he was on his way.  A few minutes later, he called me back to tell me my car wouldn't start and he was picking us up in the other car.  Then he called me five minutes later to tell me there was a big accident, so he was stuck in major traffic.  Needless to say, by the time he got to us, I was kind of cranky.  Trying to keep two boys who'd been cooped up way too long from doing something stupid while waiting outside at a major airport is almost definitely one of the circles of hell.  (AAA jumped my Pilot.  Fingers crossed it starts again today.)

3.   One of the reasons we came back with nearly three weeks left until school is that Jones is getting his tonsils removed on Friday.  Obviously, I'm a little worried about the surgery.  I know it's a frequent, fairly standard deal, but a mom always worries.  But to be honest, I'm really more stressed about the days after.  To say Jones doesn't deal well with pain is a major understatement.    Plus, we have to be pretty much homebound for the first week afterwards.  A whiny Jones + a bored Shoo = close to 100% chance I'm gonna be ready to ship them off to boarding school soon.

/whining.

I'm putting on my big girl panties and getting us back on track.  I have groceries to buy and bags to unpack.  And if I survive the next few days, I may just do a 400th!!! follower giveaway!

State #16: Michigan

Earlier this summer, my dad decided that we should get one more state.  Apparently Utah and Wyoming weren't enough for one summer.  I did some searching and found a race that was right over the border from Wisconsin in Michigan.  Beer Geek wasn't with us, so we had to be a little creative so that we could all get a race in.

We borrowed a BOB running stroller (Wow, wish they'd been around when Jones was a baby!) and loaded everyone up in the van.  Plan was for my dad and I to run the 10k while pushing Shoo in the stroller and my mom would walk with Jones and my nephew.  After a fun day at the beach on Lake Michigan and a dinner out at a brewpub, we arrived at the race ready to go.  Except for one thing.

Air in the tires.

Yep, the stroller's tires were flat.  Luckily, it was a small local race and a lot of runners had arrived via bicycle.  I looked for the nicest, most "tri" looking one and sure enough, it had a pump on it.  We borrowed the pump and got the tires at least sort of pumped up.  (I did find the owner of the bike after the race and thanked him.  In true midwest fashion, he was glad he had been able to help us out.)

Then my dad tried to kill me.  We ran the first mile in 9:22.  Yeah.  Not quite "where I am" these days.  I was dying, but I made myself stick with him for the first five miles.  He went ahead at that point and finished in 58:54.  I kept plugging along and managed my first sub-one hour 10k since my injury.

Post-injury PR of 59:46 AND my longest race to date in the Vibrams.  (My dad got third in his age group! While pushing a 5 year old in a stroller with slightly flat tires!)

The party's over!

This has been an awesome summer.  We had a lovely family vacation to Utah and Wyoming, where I raced in two 10ks, hiked a whole bunch, met up with a college friend, and met up with a fellow blogger.  Then the boys and I came to my parents' house for two weeks.

In the past two weeks, I've

• raced a 10k in Michigan (report coming soon, I promise!)
• visited several new brewpubs
• gone to the Wisconsin State Fair
• gone to the local town fair
• attended an awesome beer festival (Great Taste of the Midwest)
• drunk too many beers
• eaten too much food
• slept in late
• jumped on a trampoline
• sat on my butt a LOT
• swam in my parents' pool
• gone for a boat ride
• spent too much time playing on the computer
• ignored the computer completely to hang with my family
• Did I mention, eaten too much?  Oy.

I'm sure the list could go on, but unfortunately, all good things must come to an end.   Today, dad and I are heading out for one more run and the boys are going to the farmer's market and getting haircuts.   Then it's time to start saying good bye to all my extended family.  Wednesday morning, we head back to Virginia, where Beer Geek is waiting.

It's been an awesome time and I'll miss my family, but I'm ready to sleep in my own bed and see my husband every day.   I'm even ready to do my own laundry and cook my own meals. LOL

And I'm ready to start training again.  Philly Half is in about 14 weeks.  Time to drop the "summer indulgence" pounds and start picking up the mileage!

CHIPS ARE DOWN Virtual Race

This morning I ran in Amanda at Run to the Finish's Virtual Race.

I turn 41 in 10 days and I'm feeling every one of those years lately.

The only problem was that I forgot I was "racing" until the last half mile. D'oh. I had set a goal of sub 30 for the three miles, but my first mile included a really slow warm up.  I sprinted the last half mile and got as close to 30 as I could.

Happy birthday, Amanda!  Hope you had a wonderful birthday.

I survived Great Taste of the Midwest

Yesterday was our second favorite beer event of the year (Savor is awesome in a totally different way.) Beer Geek joined me in Wisconsin for the weekend and my parents kept the kids. We stay at a hotel right near the event (if you follow me on twitter, you know I already booked our hotel for next year LOL. You also know I had a great time yesterday.)

This was the 25th year of this event and you can tell they've got it down to a science. There's a huge crowd waiting to get in when the gates open, but they get you in quickly and efficiently. This year we were smart and brought chairs to set up under a tree. So, we got in, parked our chairs, grabbed a beer, and got food all within about 15 minutes of gates opening.  In fact, I never stood in a line more than 3 deep to refill my beer.

This is a marathon not a sprint (five hours of unlimited tasting), so we took our time and enjoyed ourselves. We met up with a few VA people we knew were going and then met up with Steena from Finding My Happy Pace and her husband. The weather was perfect until the last hour and then it poured. We kept drinking anyways. ;o)

Random crowd pic - it was gorgeous out!

Brewer from New Holland (maker of one of my favorite beers).  I think he's dressed as the cowardly lion.

Yes, my shirt says "First Wife".  On the back it says "Polygamy Pale Ale: A marriage of barley and hops and hops."  I got a lot of comments on the shirt. LOL

Now I need to go take a nap.  Sure wish beer didn't give me insomnia.  (And Jamoosh, be very jealous.  They had an entire tent of Real Ales and I tried a ridiculous number of them.)

Random Facts Friday

1. I love vegetables.  In fact, I'll eat nearly any vegetable you give me, most of them in any way you give them to me.  The glaring exception to this is beets.  I have not found one single recipe for beets that I like.  Ever.  But my mom keeps making me try them.

2. I have a conference coming up for my "day job".  I discovered that there is a race one morning of the conference.  My "boss" is ok with me missing the first session that day.  West Virginia, I'm comin' for ya.

3. My dad put up their old trampoline out at my grandmother's house for the boys.  I proved to the boys that I can still do a front flip.  And I didn't break anything doing it.

4. I went on a shopping spree at the outlet mall the other day.  I didn't buy myself any new shoes.  I know.  I think I must have been ill.

5. I love to travel to new places, but I hate traveling.  Ever since we had kids, I worry excessively about flight delays.  Not sure why since even the few horrible delays we've had have worked out fine.

Tomorrow Beer Geek and I are heading to the Great Taste of the Midwest, which is one of the best beer festivals EVER.  Today I'm going to try to get in 6 miles and then this evening we are heading to the town fair.  I'm pretty sure they won't have fried butter, but if they do, I'll be getting a picture.  ;o)

TTT: fat, fatter, fattest

1.  I love visiting my parents.  It's the one time each year when I can really take a break.  My mom does all the cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc.  (Yes, I know I'm super lucky.) But, I find that I take a little too much of a break.  I lounge with a book.  I lounge with my computer.  I don't tend to run as much (and my achilles is holding me back too.)  Their house is a ranch style, so I don't have to run up and down the stairs a million and one times a day...  I haven't really gained weight, but I'm feeling heavy and out of shape.

2.  Most of this week I've been eating REALLY well.  Every meal has involved at least three vegetables and some meals I eat so many vegetables I don't even get around to eating any meat or starches.  Seriously.  One night I had cucumber salad, Ukrainian coleslaw (which is nothing like the creamy stuff we eat here), tomato and feta salad, and corn on the cob.  Yesterday?  I ate a cream puff the size of my head and had two beers.  Not exactly a healthy eating day.

3.  Speaking of not healthy eating, we went to the State Fair.  Now, I'm a big believer in "everything in moderation", but seriously?  Deep Fried Butter.  WTH?  (I'm still kicking myself for not taking a picture.)  Aren't deep fried oreos and turkey legs the size of my calf enough over the top?  And we wonder why America has an obesity problem.  The sad part was that most of the people we saw eating that kind of stuff didn't look like it was a once a year kind of indulgence.  Even sadder were the obese kids with them.

It's time for me to get my act together and get really running and training again or pretty soon this blog will need to become a weight loss blog.

Bonus:  Amanda over at 5 Miles Past Empty is conducting a study focused on personal growth & awareness gained through running, training, and racing.  If you want to participate, email her at 5miles2empty at gmail.com

Mostly Wordless Wednesday: Just for Zoe

Hey, Zoe, apparently even nekkid semis can appreciate good beer...

On a non-nekkid semi note, I ran 3.5 miles yesterday with minimal twinges from my ankle and calf.  Fingers crossed this continues.

Today we are heading to the Wisconsin State Fair.  I haven't been since I was a kid.  You know any event that has a tab on their webpage for "food on a stick" is going to be an interesting experience...

State #15: Wyoming

Once again, I prepped well for this race. We spent the afternoon prior to the race hiking around Fossil Butte. Then we attended the Oyster Music Festival, which may have involved drinking a few Fat Tires and eating freshly made potato chips and funnel cake. What can I say? I know how to treat my body right.

Sure, I look happy, but I can already tell my legs are tired.

There were only 16 people signed up for the 10K race.  I was pretty sure I was going to end up DFL.  We had gone up another 3000ft, so breathing was once again a challenge. 

The race started with two miles of one small hill and then mostly "false flat".  You know, that slightly uphill that looks flat but takes a heck of a lot out of you.  Mile 3 was wicked rolling hills.  It was an out and back, so mile 4 was the same awful hills.  I tried to pick it up after the hills, but it seriously felt like the "flat" part was still uphill.  I actually contemplated walking when the finish line was in sight.   I finally picked it up with just a little bit to go because the 5K walkers were finishing and there was no way I was coming into the finish at a walking pace.

No, as a matter of fact, I can't get enough oxygen.

I manage to beat two people and arrive at a new PW - 1:05:22. 

I've never been so happy to have a state behind me!

State #14: Utah

We traveled out to Utah for a family vacation this year.  We were able to make it coincide with the Pioneer Days race, so my dad and I ran the 10K and my mom ran the 5K.  To make things as challenging as possible ('cause you know altitude and a wicked hill weren't enough), we walked up the 1.5 mile trail to Timpanogos Cave the day before.

Feeling good before the race

Long story short, I was breathing hard from the first step, I thought my heart was going to explode *walking* up the big hill, and my legs ran out of energy completely at mile 4.  I truly was thrilled to even finish.  The below pictures tell the story pretty well, LOL.

"This hill sucks, but I can give you a smile."

"Can't you walk any faster than that?"

"Halfway, heading downhill, woohoo!"

"I'm pretty sure I'm gonna pass out or puke"

This was a beautiful race and was extremely well organized.  Unfortunately, the altitude and the hill at the beginning nearly killed me.  1:04:36 (which I think was a PW).

3 states, 3 races, 3 weeks

After feeling like my goal of running a race in all 50 states was at a stalemate, I jumpstarted my progress this summer. 

I did 3 10ks over 3 Saturdays and gained Utah, Wyoming, and Michigan. 

I ran at 4000+ feet, 7000+ feet, and near sea level.

I ran one wicked hill, several awful hills, and completely flat.

I ran two in Saucony Triumphs and one in Vibrams.

I learned a few things:

• Altitude matters.
• Hills + altitude sucks.
• Hills + altitude + being undertrained is even worse.
• Finishing IS winning.
• I always have a sprint left in my legs, even if my lack of oxygen makes me nearly pass out at the end.
• My dad can still kick my ass - he finished ahead of me every.single.time. (Even in the last race where he was pushing Shoo in a running stroller for the whole distance.)

It was a blast, but I admit I'm looking forward to starting next Saturday with a beer, rather than a race.  More on that beer and the individual races later.

10K in the morning

Isn't this how you prepare?

GBBPX guest post

Today I'm handing over the reins of my blog to Sophia from Tales of an Ambitious Slacker.  I promise I didn't bribe her to be nice to me.  ;o)
 
Thanks to P at Adventures of a Average Athlete for putting on the GBBPX and MCM Mama for graciously posting this. I am super excited about posting for MCM Mama as she is one of my favorites on the blog roll (shh, don’t tell the others). I mean, a woman who prepares beer inspired menus with perfect pairings and runs with the best of them while also coaching, PHEW! I am tired just thinking about her schedule. How she finds time to read a book a day?? Beyond me. Ok, here goes….

Stay at home moms are lucky and yet, face very difficult challenges. How do you get “me time” to exercise when you are trying to entertain little ones all day? I have a full time job which some weeks can be more than the standard 40 hours. My kids go to a very distinguished academic daycare, lots of structure, lots of activity and lots of learning. I am happy that I can afford to send them there, but sad we as a family can’t afford to keep one of us home.

I can focus on lots of things here: Struggles of a single parent to entertain kids all day, getting “me time,” the challenges of a single parent trying to supplement income vs. a working parent trying to supplement family time. There is such a variety. So I am going to talk about how I do squeeze in exercise as a working mom and learning experiences from my week of stay-at-home momness. Caveat: I have two kids under 3 and this totally changes how I deal with things vs. a mom of older or younger children. Everything can be adapted.

When I am feeling most like a rock star, I am waking up at 5 am and running or swimming from 5:30 am-6:30 am before work. I am not a morning person so EVERY.SINGLE.DAY. I struggle to wake up. I am ALWAYS happy I did. It’s easier when I have company, but running is sometimes solo and swim is always a group workout. When I work out in the morning, I have so much more to give to others at work and my family when I get home from work. The energy is amazing…until about 8:30-9:00 when I become a zombie. The downside is once kids go to bed, around 8:15 pm, is when I have time for my husband and I to talk, watch TV, just plan ol’ hanging out time. I hate that I am running on empty once the kids go to bed and hubby gets short changed. I hit the wall. What do you do in these situations?

My Tri Club has regular workouts 2 nights a week and long rides every weekend. I feel totally guilty when I go to these. I used to workout 2 evenings a week for a few months. When I quit and went back to more family time every night of the week and more AM workouts, I could not bring myself to leave the kids at night anymore for a workout. I already miss 8+ hours of their day when I am at work, it makes me feel selfish to leave at night, and especially when I know I have AM workout options. Not everyone has this option, in which case, a few nights a week should not shroud a mother in guilt. If working out makes you happy, your family will appreciate your investment in your own happiness. Happy mom=Happy family.

This week I got to be a stay-at-home mom. I took a week off from work and my family and I have spent an amazing time here in Mammoth Lakes, Ca. So that you fit moms get some ideas, let’s talk Playground. There is a delightful playground on Old Mammoth Rd. One day I ran from our condo and met my husband and kids at the park. Not everyone has an available second person to meet them at the park with kids, so the adaptation could be running with a jogging stroller from home to park. If a good park is too far to run there and back, try driving to a suitable point closer. My kids are hit and miss with tolerating the stroller so I can usually only get 4 miles or less with them before I start getting whines about wanting to get out.

Once at the park, embrace the park. Close your eyes a moment. Think about what life was like at about age 10. I loved going to the park with my friends. At this park in Mammoth Lakes a.k.a. California Running Mecca, we saw countless cross country teams meeting at the park for a stretch session or core routine before heading out for a group run. Summer time is prime cross country camp time here in Mammoth and it reminded me how great it was to meet my friends at the park and all the things we would accomplish. Lesson this week, make friends. Find someone, meet them somewhere and accomplish something.

 

I would walk there or ride my bike. Once there we’d chase each other and play tag (read speed work: playing tag=sprints). Riding bike to park, playing tag=Brick workout. All this you can do with your kids and call it a workout on days you can’t get out for a true training session. The older the child, the harder the workout. My 3 year old is fast, I am really going to be in for it when they get older! I know I am not a genius, many of you moms have this routine in the bag, but for those of us who don’t get to do this as often as we’d like, stating the obvious is helpful.

Be one with the playground. At this park I observed more than one runner mosey on over to a laddered play area and step up to stretch their calves. Do you just stand in the sand and watch your kids play? I can do a few workout type things with my 3 year old, but my 1+ year old I have to watch like a hawk and sprint to catch her from almost falling off of EVERYTHING! If you have kids that can play pretty independently, then the park is yours for the taking. Things you can do:

• Stairs
  • Step Ups-Strengthen hips and glutes
  • Lunges/Dips with one foot on a step, one foot on the ground, then dip knee down
  • Stretch legs-lunge format for quads and hammies
  • Plyometric foot work by alternating quick toe touches to a low step
  • Calf dips
  • Calf stretches
    
    

• Ladder
  • Do you suffer from plantar fasciitis? Step up on a rounded ladder step and roll it out. Hurts so good.
  • Since it is a kids park, the ladder steps are probably pretty close together. Practice stepping up the ladder skipping a step or two and really work those hip flexors and you raise your legs to climb. If you have ever done “climbers” on the ground, this is a great alternative. Bonus: Holding the railings is engaging your arms in a different way than having them planted on the ground for regular climbers.

• Monkey Bars (or variations of)
  • I don’t know when it happened, but at some point over the last 10 years I have lost the ability to travel the length of the monkey bars. In fact, I cannot go from one bar to the next even one time. Can you do this? If not, work up to it. Start by simply hanging with two hands and working up to hanging with one hand and then trying to travel. Like how I slipped the word “simply” in there? For some, even hanging may pose a problem.
  • If traveling monkey bars is easy, try hanging and doing leg lifts for some core work.
  • Next, try pull ups

 Finally, there is always just running

• Yup, pretty simple, run around the play ground while your kiddos play, small track, but laps are laps and better than nothing

• Chase them or play tag

• If you have help, leave from the park on a 20-30 minute run and let your special helper handle the kids.

Ok the list could go on, and I bet MCM Mama’s readership has a ton to add on how to work in a workout when you have limited time or are always attached to small people. I personally am all-ears when it comes to figuring out this balancing act called life, so fire away.

Now go hit the playground and play!

Thanks, Sophia!  If you're looking for me, you can find me driving over to Michigan.  ;o)  You can also find me sometime later today or on Saturday over at Running on Words.

TTT: Vibrams, massage, and veggies

1. I ran today. I know, I know. I decided to try my Vibrams because my foot felt funny in my shoes yesterday. I headed out with my dad with a plan of stopping as soon as there was any pain or 2 miles, whichever came first. I had a couple of twinges during the first half mile, but after that, nothing. My achilles didn't say anything. My other calf was fine. And I actually saw the number 9 on my garmin for chunks of time. So, I'm gonna give the race a try. There are a number of spots to bail if it goes south, but if I take it slow and wear the Vibrams, I should be able to finish without injury.

2. I also got a massage today. I think it would best be described as a deep tissue massage. She pressed so hard into my calves I thought she was going to push her fingers out the other side. Holy cow! I'm hopeful that she released some of the tightness in my calves.

3. One of the reasons I love to come to Wisconsin in August is the food. I'm sure you've all seen the nightmare stories from the fairs around here - deep fried twinkies, deep fried cheese curds (which, I'll admit are a food from the gods), etc. But that's not the food I'm talking about. My parents have a huge garden plus they live in a small town bordered by farms. I've only been here two days and so far I've eaten my weight in cucumbers, not to mention servings of kohlrabi, tomatoes, sweet corn, eggplant, zucchini, arugula, onions, and beets, most of which was grown by my mom or farmers nearby. (I've also eaten most of a cantaloupe, but I have no idea where that was grown LOL). Needless to say, I'm getting my full servings of veggies this week!

Tomorrow, as part of Pahla's Bloggy Exchange, I'll be handing the reins over to Sophie from Tales of an Ambitious Slacker. You'll be able to find me at Sarah's Running on Words. Please give Sophie a warm welcome and come over and visit me at Sarah's.

Also, if you are in/near Wisconsin, I'll be here for two weeks.  Let me know if you'd like to meet up.

Not so Wordless Wednesday: To race or not to race

File under: You think *running* hurts...

So, I have another 10k this weekend, this time in Michigan.  Yes, three states in three weeks.  Yes, it seemed like a good idea at the time.  But, my ankle is being "tweaky".

I ran an awful 3 miles today.   It was super humid and sunny and hot and hilly and my achilles got angry any time I picked up the pace.  So, it was a slow 30+ minute trudge of a run, followed by a quarter mile walk because I misjudged my loop and didn't feel like running farther than 3 miles.

I know I could finish the 10k this coming weekend, but it's not likely to be fast by any means.  And I'm really worried about whether I am headed down the road to real injury again.  On the other hand, I can take a week+ off running after it and use my parents' elliptical and pool to stay fit.

The thing is, unlike Utah and Wyoming, Michigan is a state I can do later.  It's near enough my parents' house that Beer Geek and I could leave the kids here and go race someplace he wants to visit sometime. 

Any thoughts?  Any ideas besides RICE for strengthening/healing my achilles?  'Cause I am so OVER this issue...

On the road again

Long time readers may recall that I go "home" for two weeks every August.  Usually, I go for the middle two weeks, but this year Jones is losing his tonsils two weeks before school starts, so I'm hitting the road today.  Yes, 36 hours after I hit the house from Utah, I'm heading out again.  As one might assume, yesterday was a little crazy.

In my one day at home, I:

• did two loads of laundry
• packed the freezer full of food for Beer Geek while we are away
• took Jones to the lab for blood tests
• picked up Pinewood derby cars so the boys can design them and do the wood work with my dad
• met with my non-runner client to work on some projects so I have work to do in Wisconsin
• renewed Jones' library card and got Shoo his first one
• straightened my house
• drove both of my cars (Yes, we still have three cars for two drivers.  No, I don't know when that will change.)
• re-packed a suitcase (Thankfully, I was smart enough to send one of our suitcases from Utah home with my parents, so I only had one to deal with.)

What did I not do?  Run.  But, for the next 15 days, I'll have extra adults around to watch the kids + an elliptical and treadmill in my parents' basement, so soon I'll have no excuse for not getting back on the wagon.  I'll miss my husband and my bed, but I'm looking forward to eating fresh veggies from their garden, swimming in the pool every day, and catching up with all of my extended family that I haven't seen since last August.

Now I just have to survive a two hour flight with Shoo talking non-stop the entire time.  I swear I thought my ears were bleeding after our four our flight on Sunday...

10 days in Utah

We just got back from an awesome vacation in Utah and Wyoming.  I raced in two new states and we visited five different brewpubs.  I also got to meet up with a sorority sister I hadn't seen since college graduation and a blogger who I'd never met before.  I learned that it's not totally foolish to escape to Utah in the summer (they had reasonable weather while DC was going through a hellish heat wave.)  I also learned that altitude + hiking mountains every day (hello, trashed quads!) does not equal a good race.  I'll have a couple of race reports up in a few days, but I'm waiting for results to post for the second one since I was too wiped at the end to even care about my time LOL.  And, contrary to my tweet before the race, I did not, in fact, come in Dead F$%$ing Last.  I beat two people.

So, here's our 10 day vacation in pictures...

View on hike to Timpanagos Cave

Park City, Utah

Golden Spike re-enactment

Pioneer Day Parade in Ogden, UT

Dinosaur Park, Ogden, UT

 

Floating in the Great Salt Lake

Rodeo practice

Pioneer Days rodeo

71 of the 444 steps at Minnetonka Cave

Hiking up Fossil Butte

Panning for gold at "This is the place" Heritage Park

Blogger meetup with Kaye from Reflections on a Run