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By kilax, May 16, 2011 5:43 am

Data has been obsessed with this Squirmle thing that Gina and Steve sent us as a joke.

Whenever we get it out to let him play with it (we have tied it to dental floss for sturdiness) he goes NUTS. He does leaps and flips to try to catch it. He makes crazy noises when he goes after it. You have to play with him for at least 20 minutes, or he’ll act crazy all day. And even then, once you put the Squirmle away, Data is looking for it the rest of the day.

Sadly, the Squirmle has seen better days.

It’s essentially made of all these little fibers, so you can’t really pull on it when it is in Data’s mouth, or it shreds all over the house (and breaks down!). Data was getting pretty bored with his sad little broken Squirmle, and my sister (Christina) won’t be here with reinforcements (from Bed Bath & Beyond) until Friday, so we decided to make our own homemade Squirmle. Here’s Data asking Christina for his new Squirmle:

Anyway, I just happened to have some pajamas that I was getting rid of (no, mom, you did not give these to me, nor did anyone in our family), so we decided to use them. YES, this is how I spend my Sundays. Fascinating.

Our method was to cut little disks of fabric and thread them together with fishing line (for sturdiness).

Data was interested, and tried to behave himself.

But as the thing got bigger, he got more involved.

We had to harass Steven to hurry up so Data could play.

The verdict? It’s more sturdy that a Squirmle, but not as bendy, and a little bit bigger. Data is interested, but not as crazy as he is about the legit toy. I guess he just has to play with this one for 5 days. He’ll survive.

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By kilax, May 15, 2011 6:26 pm

This is the week of the Wisconsin Half Marathon on May 7th.

Day 561 | May 2, 2011: cross

During lunch I took a nice and easy ride on the recumbent bike to get my legs moving.

Recumbent Bike Time: 45:00 | Distance: 7.37 | Set on “Manual,” Resistance Level 5.0

Day 562 | May 3, 2011: strength class

In the evening I attended my strength class. Hard to believe, but this is my 9th week of class! We did something different every two weeks (so four different things) and we’re back to dynamic weight movements. We did whole body movements with weights, then  resistance band work with another person, then did that sequence over again with higher weights… for a total of four times. It was hard. At the end I was using a 20-lb weight to do dynamic curling and lifting it over my head.

Have you ever used one of those two-person resistance bands (photo above)? They are fun, but they can really wear you out!

Day 563 | May 4, 2011: rest

Day 564 | May 5, 2011: rest

Day 565 | May 6, 2011: rest

Day 566 | May 7, 2011: Wisconsin Half Marathon (13.1 miles)

I ran the Wisconsin Half Marathon for the third year in a row!

Erin ran it too. And again, the photographer failed to get a photo of us together.

Day 567 | May 8, 2011: rest

Week Summary: 13.1 miles

Day 568 | May 9, 2011: cross

Bike Time: 45:00 | Distance: 7.62 | Set on “Manual,” Resistance Level5.0

Day 569 | May 10, 2011: rest

Day 570 | May 11, 2011: rest

Day 571 | May 12, 2011: 2 m run

This was sort of a test run to see how I was feeling – fine, except for the heat. 85 in May? Huh?

Distance: 2.0 |  Temp: 85° | Time: 18:20 | Avg Pace: 9:09 | 1: 9:01 | 2: 9:17

Day 572 | May 13, 2011: 3 m run

Distance: 3.0 | Temp: 58° | Time: 28:43 | Avg Pace: 9:33 | 1: 9:23 | 2: 9:33 | 3: 9:43

Day 573 | May 14, 2011: rest

Day 574 | May 15, 2011: 13 m run

Wow. I think I am glad I didn’t run a marathon on the 15th – 13 miles in the wind was quite enough for me! It was windy all day and I kept putting off my run until finally I couldn’t put it off any longer – and I went out in the 20mph winds with gusts up to 35mph. Despite not feeling like I was moving, the run went well. Ha ha.

Distance: 3.0 | Start Temp: 50° | End Temp 48° | Time: 2:08:50 | Avg Pace: 9:54 | 1: 9:28 | 9:30 | 3: 9:48 | 4: 9:59 | 5: 10:04 | 6: 9:49 | 7: 9:41 | 8: 9:59 | 9: 10:06 | 10: 10:08 | 11: 10:13 | 12: 10:00 | 13: 9:59

Week Summary: 18.00 miles

Hmm. So these two weeks were a bit meh. And the two weeks before them. Dammit. I feel like I have lost my exercise and take care of myself mojo. Let’s hope I am getting it back!

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By kilax, May 14, 2011 8:41 pm

I need a medal rack!

Nah, just kidding. That isn’t my real confession. I just have all of my medals and bibs out because I am reorganizing the closet wall I hang them on (seen here and here) and thought it would be funny to take a picture of me wearing them all. Data sure didn’t appreciate the noise they made walking around the house! Clink, clank, clink.

My real confession is that I had been planning on running a marathon tomorrow. Back in January I looked at my calendar and realized I had the base mileage to train for a spring marathon, and I thought it would be perfect for me since I love winter running. My training went superbly and I did all of my long runs at really great speeds and was prepared to run a 4:15 marathon or maybe faster! I didn’t tell many people about the marathon, because I wanted to keep it under wraps in case something restricted me from running it. Heck, I didn’t even sign up for it.

And it’s the night before it, and am I running it? No. Do I feel like I could? Yes. Do I feel like I could run it and not feel like crap afterward? Definitely. But I am not. My IT Band was acting funky during the last two half marathons I did, and despite feeling great this week and on my last two runs, I am giving it a rest, so I can be ready for the Ragnar Madison to Chicago relay, and for the Milwaukee and New York City marathons in October and November.

But I am oh so disappointed. So disappointed. So upset. I hate being responsible and making this decision. Hate it. But hey, at least I never signed up for the thing. So I am not out any cash. Just bummed that I put in all that awesome training for nothing concrete. Yes, I built a great base, but I wanted redemption! REDEMPTION from Chicago!!! Seriously, I cannot even remember my marathon “PR.” I have to look it up whenever someone asks me what it is. The Chicago Marathon was a lot of fun, but I was ready to run a marathon for real. Time for me to learn some patience!

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By kilax, May 13, 2011 5:17 am

Do you write with expensive or cheap disposable pens?

Return of the Friday Question! Yikes, it’s been awhile. I lost my FQ mojo. Do you guys think I should keep the Friday Question going?

So this week I ate lunch with a coworker then stopped at a pen store afterward so she could order fancy pens for her nephew and his girlfriend for graduation. Guys, these pens were not cheap. I couldn’t believe how expensive they were! But they sure were gorgeous. And she was having their initials engraved on them too.

It made me wonder if any of you are in to pens. I had a friend in college who was. And a lot of my architecture classmates had pen preferences. But for me, I will always prefer the Pilot G-2 05. It is a very fine gel pin that writes beautifully (and it’s not very expensive). When I googled it, I found this facebook goup – “Pilot G2-05 is the Best Pen… Ever.” Ha ha. I concur.

These look fun too, but maybe not very practical?

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By kilax, May 12, 2011 12:34 pm

Last Saturday was the third annual Wisconsin Half Marathon. Back in the fall, Erin and I made genius plans to run the Illinois Half Marathon the week before and this one the next weekend. Our logic was that we run 13 miles back-to-back during marathon training, why not run two races back to back?

Genius.

I also feel the need to run this race every year, since Steven and I ran the inaugural as our first half marathon, and did really well. We went back last year and didn’t do quite as well. I figured this year would be fun and easy – I wasn’t trying to PR, a bunch of people from the running club would be there, and I got to run it with Erin!

Medals from 2009, 2010, and 2011

The weather ended up being nothing like predicted – it was supposed to be overcast and rainy, but it was warm and sunny (in the 50s), until we stopped running, and the temperatures drastically dropped (in to the 40s?). But that didn’t really affect my running (just how cold I was after the race). Anyway, long story short, the run (pace) was easy, but my Illiotibial Band was pulling on my knee and making it ache until about mile 8. Erin asked how I was doing around mile 3 and I told her that if it was a training run, I would probably stop. I thought I saw a DNF in my future, but dammit, I wanted that medal, and Erin reminded me that I didn’t really warm up until mile 8 at the half marathon the weekend before. So the last 5 miles of the race felt better than the first 8.

I DO NOT remember posing like that! I do remember pointing at Erin and saying to the photographer “We’re together!” but apparently he didn’t get the message.

The funny thing about this race is that it has been the same course all three years, but it seems hillier and hillier every year! Ha. I am just happy I didn’t bonk like last year. I finished in 2:05:21, which I think is pretty good for a “fun” run. You can see my garmin stats here.

It was fun that so many people from the club were there. I got to see my friend Terry finish his first marathon (in 3:33:something!). And many people in the club set PRs so it was fun to share their excitement! Erin had a few friends running from her club too, who also set new PRs. Maybe next year I will set a half marathon PR on this course. Or maybe Steven will want to run it again!

It’s been a few days since the race now, and my IT Band feels fine. I recovered from this race much quicker than I did from the half marathon the week before it!

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By kilax, May 12, 2011 5:23 am

Tomorrow I get to do one of these – an electrocardiogram (EKG):

image from here

Has anyone ever had an EKG before?

At my annual appointment, my doctor noticed that my heart was skipping every few beats, so she ordered an EKG to make sure I don’t have an irregular heartbeat. I wouldn’t be surprised if I do – my mom has heart flutters from time to time (I think?) and her dad apparently had some heart issues.

I do notice that my heart seems to be pumping really fast and hard lately, but I think that might just be from stress. And I have noticed this before – my heart racing – in 2009 and again last year.

I’m sure there is nothing wrong with me, but I will be interested to see the results. Of course, they will have to get sent back to my doctor before I hear anything about it. Ah, the doctor waiting game. Maybe I can ask the nurse to give me some insight tomorrow during the test.

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By kilax, May 11, 2011 12:22 pm

I’ve been talking to the personal trainer (Brian, from Essential Fitness) who runs the weekly strength class I take about doing one-on-one sessions in June. We have class on Tuesday nights, and that schedule won’t work for me in June-August* so I asked him about one-on-one sessions, and I think they will be affordable! And he will come to my house! All I have to do is walk downstairs in workout clothes (and move the couch so we have some room to work).  

It’s time to get buff**!

I wore these Sugoi Midzero Arm Warmers during my race on Saturday. The one I still haven’t written about. At this point, I am hoping the race photographer puts up some photos for me to use since no one was there taking any.

I am excited. I really like working with Brian. He is energetic and creative with workouts – you never do the same thing twice. And I have a lot to work on. I wonder how far I will get with two sessions a week?

Have you ever used a personal trainer? Did you like working with them? Did you have any specific goals with them?

I want to:

• improve my core strength – I can do at least 10 pushups in a row, but my form is probably all off
• learn how to do crunches correctly
• tone up my arms (my bat wings)
• strengthen my lower legs to aid in running
• slim down my lower legs (I kind of have lower legs that look like drumsticks so that would be nice)?

I am naturally muscular, but my form stinks when it comes to strength training. It would be great to have someone there telling me what to do!

*for a really stupid reason – I like to attend the free “Events in the Plaza” concerts run on Tuesday night by the Lake County Forest Preserve District. Steven and I sometimes make a picnic and go. I know – DORKY! Anyone want to come?
**Oops, don’t want to scare Steven off – toned! Not buff.

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By kilax, May 10, 2011 6:42 am

Good thing I spent all of that time ironing my dress this morning.

Apparently, if you sleep on the train, when your messenger bag on your lap, it undoes any ironing previously performed. Good to know. Good to look like a doofus at work.

Ha. What do I care? I still look better in a wrinkly dress than I do on a normal work day. Signs people normally think you dress like a slob: you get lots of compliments when wearing a dress or skirt, even if it is incredibly wrinkly.

I don’t remember the last time I have gone a whole week without blogging, but honestly, I just haven’t been feeling it. I don’t even feel like writing a race report for the half marathon I ran on Saturday. I kind of drafted something up, but whenever I publish it, you’ll see that it’s pretty “meh.”

I miss being excited and happy. I just haven’t felt like myself these past few weeks. I am hoping that some downtime at home will make me feel better. Steven and I were really on the go throughout the month of April (and part of March) and I just feel worn out.

And I think having some fun events coming up soon (that do not involve traveling) will help too. We’ll see!

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By kilax, May 3, 2011 5:18 am

My grandpa passed away last Thursday. As per usual, I am trying to stifle my feelings with distractions and general avoidance. And, as per usual, it’s not working. I had a few little crying episodes at my desk at work yesterday. Thank heavens for cubicle walls.

I hate this part of getting older. I hate losing people. Just hate it. It makes me feel so raw and sick. And powerless.

The more I think about it, the more I know that for me, losing people is about being afraid of the future. What will life be like without them? How will our family change? I told my sister at my other grandpa’s funeral in February of 2010 – “I feel like our family is falling apart.” Death does make me feel that way. It just makes me scared. I mean really, who is going to…

…take me on boat rides?

…encourage me to achieve more than I dreamed possible and push myself beyond my limits?

…attempt to teach me how to dance?

…teach me how to be charming? (even in the hospital, grandpa was kissing the nurse’s hands and asking for kisses on his cheek)

Who is joining to fill that void?

No one can. It’s up to us to learn a new reality, but it just SUCKS.

At least I know, from the bottom of my heart, that my grandpa lived a full and adventurous life. I hope I do the same.

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By kilax, May 2, 2011 12:25 pm

On Friday and Saturday, Erin (check out Erin’s race report here!) and I ran the Ilinois (Half) Marathon I-Challenge in Champaign-Urbana – a 5K on Friday night and a half marathon the next morning.  We received one medal each for the 5K and the half marathon, and a special I-Challenge medal for being extra crazy and doing both races (photo stolen from Erin’s blog):

The 5K

Our goal was to run the 5K as a warm-up for the half marathon, and average 9:00-9:30 minute miles.

Riiiiight. Did you really think that was going to happen?

I think this is the ONLY 5K I have ever run negative splits – 8:51, 8:34, 8:23, 00:44 (6:48 pace) (garmin stats here) – and this is definitely the only 5K where I have said to my running partner (more than once) “We need to slow down.” Ha ha.

The race went through campus and ended in Memorial Stadium. The run was easy (although hot, in the low 60s) and my knee felt great. The only bad part was the steep decline into the stadium (where we saw two wheelchair racers run in to each other right before we went in). And it was a bit crowded, but with 4,700 runners, that is expected.

My official time was 26:31, which is an average of about 8:32 minute miles, a little bit off from our goal. 

The Half Marathon

I had a nightmare about the half marathon that night. Something about me getting in to several car accidents and my family putting me in an insane asylum and not letting me run the race. In my dream, I texted Erin to make sure she made her sub 2:00 goal. I felt guilty in my dream for not being there to run with her. This isn’t foreshadowing, just me sharing the messed up dreams I have the night before a race.

Anyway, I woke up feeling optimistic about my knee, since it felt so awesome at the 5K, but it was bugging me during our warm-up mile. I put on my knee brace and tried to find my inner optimist. I knew it would feel better after running a few miles. I had been looking forward to this race for so long – I wanted to be with Erin when she ran her sub 2:00 half marathon – I wasn’t going to let my stupid knee get in the way.

We took off with 7,500 runners a few minutes late. Our goal was to run 9:00 minute miles, and I had a pace band on to try to keep us on target. We had a lot of energy in the beginning, and I kept saying, “we need to slow down a bit.” I felt like a total nag, but didn’t want us to be totally zapped in the end.

We started on campus and ran all over Urbana. Our husbands saw us a few times.

We even ran right by Erin’s parent’s home around mile 6ish. You can see how excited she was to see them in the photo below:

Mile 6 was one of the hardest miles – it was near open fields and it was crazy windy. But we pushed through.

I didn’t feel like I really got in to the race until mile 8. My legs warmed up and I started to perk up. Other than that, I was mentally checked out. At one point, along mile 4ish, I told Erin I was going to talk so I had a distraction, but I just couldn’t come up with anything to say. That is UNUSUAL for me. Usually, you can’t shut me up. I’ve been a bit down lately, and just feel so blah.

I felt really strong from miles 8 to 10ish. We walked through water stops around 10 and 11.5 though, and that really bugged my knee. The last two miles were a struggle. The sun came out (it had been in the 50s and overcast until then) and I was just kind of out of it. I felt like I was holding Erin back. Sigh.

BUT! We finished strong. There was great crowd support along Memorial Stadium at the finish (and along most of the course!) and we saw our husbands again. We perked up and ran in to the stadium, knowing we were well under our sub 2:00 goal. Right before we entered the stadium Erin heard Mica cheer for us (!!!) and we sprinted toward the finish.

Our final time was 1:57:34 (well, for me, Erin was a second faster in both the 5K and the half marathon), an average pace of 8:58 minute miles. Right under our 9:00 minute mile goal. And our splits were pretty frickin’ even (stats here):

1: 9:00
2: 8:56
3: 8:53
4: 8:52
5: 8:53
6: 8:52
7: 9:01
8: 8:48
9: 8:53
10: 9:08
11: 8:47
12: 9:07
13: 8:52
13.2: 1:30 (8:09 pace)

Woo hoo! I was so proud of Erin and excited that she made her goal! I gave her a big sweaty hug after we finished.

After the race we collected our two medals and made our way up the stadium to get some food. I grabbed a little bit of everything – they had a great spread – bananas, bagels, pretzels, crunchy granola bars, pasta, pizza… yum. Our medals clinked together with every step and I told Erin that was the sound of being a badass. Ha ha.

I think I was a bit dehydrated after the race. My fingers were really swollen. I didn’t wear my hydration belt and had water at every stop (and GU at 4 and 8), but after the race, I drink an entire bottle of water and two cups of Gatorade before we left the stadium to get food. Oops.

So… yeah. This race felt much harder, mentally, than my half marathon PR on April 9th. I was just not in to it, even though I had been looking forward to it for so long. And… I put on a few pounds this month, so I am sure that didn’t help! I felt heavy and blah.

But we did really well. And the course was great – minor hills, great crowd support, and music throughout. The race is well organized. It was a bit crowded for the first few miles, but I expected that.

And of course, I loved running withmy best friend, even though I was not all with it. Let’s hope I am more chipper for our half marathon this Saturday, in Kenosha!

Thanks to our husbands for driving all over and cheering us on (some of these photos are from Erin’s husband)! And thanks to Erin’s parents for cheering us on and letting us crash at their place! And thanks to Mica for cheering us at the finish even though I was out of it and probably looked like hell!

I felt really stiff Saturday, better on Sunday, and pretty good now. The knee pain comes and goes. I will have to be careful when deciding if I should do my next races or rest. I was expecting to get injured, just not this early in the year. But I have been running consecutively since the beginning of July. 10 months – that is a pretty long span for me to go without an injury.