Dirty Knees

After not being able to get on a trail for almost two weeks I finally got back out there last Saturday. My friend Kay and I went to Kings Mountain and did 5 miles. The weather was not what we would have liked. The temps were about 10 degrees warmer than what we've been used to lately and there had been a torrential downpour for a few hours before we hit the trail. It was a tough run. The mud was fun but it also made for heavier legs and the temp with the extra dose of humidity wore us out. We did take quite a few walk breaks but we still had fun and kept a decent pace according to my Garmin even though it felt like a death march at times. The Boy Scouts were out hiking and we did lots of dodging around them. It is amazing how oblivious teenage boys can be. When we would announce we were coming up on their left the only ones that heard us were there Troop Leaders, the boys never flinched. Ah, the things I have to look forward to with my son!

I didn't get a trail run in on Monday since my son had to skip preschool due to a runny nose. So I waited until Brian got home and ran at the local park. It wasn't much fun and my IT band felt tight at the end. I felt pretty discouraged. I made sure to take extra good care of it over the next few days. My run Wednesday morning at the greenway with the girls was successful, no IT band issues. That gave me hope for my planned 5.75 mile trail run on Friday.

On Friday I hit the trail, literally. I still had Monday's run swirling around my head and I decided to start my run with a ratio of 4 mins of run to 35 sec of walk. I felt good and was cruising along somewhere after the 2.5 mi point and bam I was rolling on the ground! I clearly didn't see the rock/root responsible under all the newly fallen leaves. I was amazed at how fast it happened. I truly didn't realize I was falling until I was already eating dirt. I finished my log roll and popped up to my feet, checked for blood and went on my way. No blood just some dirty knees and hands. The rest of my run was uneventful. My ratio of run to walk went out the window around mile 4 due to all the short but steep inclines. I finished my run feeling good and tough! I finally ate it on the trail! I must say I prefer falling while running trails to falling off a horse!

Today I feel good and the only sign of my tumble on the trail is a tiny bruise on my left hip. I've been contemplating doing an 11k trail race next weekend but I decided this morning that I'm going to skip it. I think it would be just a hair too much for me right now. Kay and I are signed up for a 10k trail race on Nov 14th. Hopefully it won't rain that day or it will end up being a road race and that's just not what I have in mind.

Patience is the key to happiness

I'm pretty sure I've gotten that fortune in many a fortune cookie. When you have lofty goals swirling around your head it is so difficult to bide by that rule.

I've been reading the blogs of female ultra runners lately. They inspire me so much. I'm just itching to get to a point where I can run for long distances again. I have to say the discovery of my love for trail running has eased some of my impatience to get to longer distances, but it also fuels it some when I read about other women that are serious trail runners. Right now my long run is 5 miles, a far cry from an ultra distance. I know with time and patience I can get up to at least marathon distance. At that point I should know if I'm hardcore enough to go longer distances. I've just got to get my mind to calm down and be content with the next step and not keep skipping ahead to things that aren't feasible for at least another year.

One big reason I need to stay patient is because I constantly battle tightness in my IT Band (iliotibial band for those not familiar with running woes). I've been instructed by my Sports Med Dr. to increase my mileage by just 5-8% a week as opposed to the normal of 10% a week. I've decided to stick to 5% increases for now. At first that meant tiny increases of 0.2 miles some weeks. I'm finally to a point where I can increase by 0.5 miles a week and soon I'll be able to increase by 0.75 miles a week. It is slow but at least it is progress. I'm even proud of myself for having a self chosen step back week last week to allow my body some rest. This week I'm going to repeat my mileage from two weeks ago and start adding again next week.

So I need to take my new mantra and plaster it around my home to remind me of my ultimate goal. If I follow my eagerness and try to do too much too soon I'll be right back where I started. My brain needs to keep my ego in check so I can fulfill my crazy dreams.

Happiness here I come!

What am I doing?

I have no idea what I am doing or why. Recently I've been toying with the idea of starting a blog. I'm not sure I have the time or the mental energy to keep up with this. I'm also not sure anybody will be too interested in what I have to say but there may be a few out there. I have a few blogs that I enjoy keeping up with and inspire me, I am hoping that my blog can serve the same purpose to other people.

Just a quick profile on me. I'm a stay at home mom to a toddler that is very adventurous and outgoing. I know where he got the adventurous part from but the outgoing part is nothing he got from us. In the mornings, when my son is at preschool feeding his outgoing side, I am feeding my adventurous and introverted side by running trails. I have recently discovered that I love trail running. I try to do it at least twice a week. Once a week I do a social run with two other SAHMs that isn't a trail run (I may be mostly introverted but I do need some adult contact during the weekdays). I also swim and do yoga once a week.

I have lots of lofty goals in my head that I want to do. I just need my body to agree to cooperate in order to accomplish these goals. Goal number one right now is to complete a Marathon. After that I don't have any set goals just lots of ideas swirling in my head: trail marathons/half marathons, trying a triathlon, seeing if I can get a Marathon Maniac or Half Maniac status, pursue the Xterra Trail Running Series in SC and Ga. There is just so much I'd like to do and can't get my mind to settle on picking one and sticking to it. I'm sure I'll just be all over the place.

I have goals at home too. I'm not looking to be super mom. I'd like to be better at cooking. I'm working at it but it's not something I love to do. I keep my house pretty clean. It's not the cleanest house but I have no worries about ever being on one of those shows about people's horribly filthy and disorganized houses.

When I feel I have the house under control I like to dabble in crafts. Sometimes it's crocheting something simple, sewing a purse or softie dolls, or my new discovery of felt crafts. I made Emmett, my son, some really cute felt designs that I sewed on to some of his onesies and shirts over the past year. I am learning how to do needle felting. Lots of fun, easy (so far), and very meditative. I've made some penguins (with instructions) and a mutant dog (without any instructions, hence the mutant part). I love that it's a craft that I can eventually do successfully without patterns. Crafts are another area of my life where I have lots of ideas swirling around in my head and not enough time or energy to get them done.

Well, we'll have to wait and see what is in store for my blog's future. Will I flourish or flop? I guess that's truly up to me. One of my favorite quotes: Whether you think you can or can't you're right. -Anonymous