oh dear

Uh oh.
Christmas festivities got me. Lots of family, friends, Bailey's, baking, chocolates, drinks....I could go on and on. I did manage to mostly keep up with my running schedule and had some great ones with my cousin and friends. It was really great to be able to run with Ben so much too and we will miss that now being back home.
We arrived back home on the 26th after a great visit to Ontario. Christmas was wonderful and it was so nice to spend time with my family and friends. We did our Vancouver christmas and slowly unpacked and settled in to being home again and somehow a week went by with no running. Or really any exercise of any kind. I was quite nervous to get back at it today but it was actually really good. I think the break was a good rest for my muscles. I am now on week 6 which is run 10 min, walk 1 min, 4 times.

Back to regular posts!

home sweet home

Hello!
 So I am in Ontario staying with my family for the holidays and have not missed any runs, but did juggle my schedule around a bit. Also, I am so missing my bootcamp and having a very hard time resisting the PC candy cane ice cream and christmas baking at my parents house.

My cousin, who will be joining us in Vancouver for the marathon, joined us for our run yesterday and that was super fun. Even though it was snowing, and I completely wiped out and landed on right on my ass, it was fun. When we got home we moved the furniture, rolled out the yoga mats, dusted off the weights I made my mom buy a few years ago (which may or may not of had the tags still on them) and I was lead through a workout inspired by her job this year at the gym at her school. She was a great motivator and just what I needed!

I am enjoying being spoiled, relaxing and having some time with my family.

past week happenings....

Oh no! I was very forgetful about posting this week. I have just been so enjoying all the time with the three of us as a family after things have been so busy in the past.

Yesterday I wrapped up week 3 of the 10k training and we have 7 more to go....it had been 5 min run walk 1, 5 times and it is ramping up next week with run 8, walk 1 but only 4 times so just increasing the interval length but overall pretty much stays the same. It is truly amazing how much better you can get in just 3 weeks!

 I am still LOVING my bootcamp and was sad to hear that our instructor is going to be replaced in the new year....hopefully the new guy is just as great. I am starting to notice a difference with overall fitness (hallelujah), speed and strength...push ups are getting better...core still needs work.

 I am really getting into the working out, now I just need to find the motivation to watch my food a little better...especially with the holidays coming and all the yummy deliciousness that goes with them.

Doing the next 2 weeks of runs and workouts while home in Ontario will be a challenge but also exciting since my parents will be happy to hang out with Arlo and Ben and I can actually run together. Normally one of us goes and then we basically tag off and the other goes. Also my cousin who will be running the big race with us will be there and it will be great to get a few runs in with her. She will be a great motivator and keep me on track since she already asked me if there are any weights at my parents or do I need her to get me some for when I am there! Love it!

i forgot how to party

Well it has been a few days since my last post. I did my last run of week 2 on Sat morning, still without music on my ipod since I am the biggest procrastinator I know. I really will have to fix that this week. Any playlist suggestions?

Sunday was a nice day off of working out and we dropped Arlo off for his first sleepover away at his grandparents. I had lots of fun getting ready for our big night out...straightened my hair, bought some new make up, wore a sequin dress like Vanna White and we really did have a lovely time.
So lovely.
So, so lovely that I spent the entire day in bed yesterday. I paid for my lovely time all day and sadly I missed a nice sunny one too.
It was so nice to meet all of Ben's classmates and celebrate all his hard work. We ate a really delicious dinner, drank lots of wine, laughed alot and danced the night away to some interesting musical selections.
We got home at the late hour of 1:30 and considering I normally would have been sleeping for 3 or 4 hours by then I was quite proud of myself! Also, Arlo did great at his sleepover and had a wonderful time being spoiled by Grandma and Grandpa.

Needless to say I took the day off yesterday and was right back at it this morning with the first run of week 3. We are up to run 5 min, walk 1 min 5 times. It is a very gradual program and it is feeling good. Tomorrow morning I am heading to bootcamp...and I am actually looking forward to it!

last night of homework!

Well, I made it to bootcamp all 3 times this week and I am really glad that I did. I'm not sure that it is in the budget to do it 3 days every week but it really makes a difference. And the getting up isn't so bad since Arlo is such an early riser I am well conditioned to be up and at 'em in the mornings.
 I am looking forward to regaining some strength and getting better at the plank and push ups, both of which are currently cruel and painful.

I have one more run of week 2 which I will do in the morning. This week went pretty well and I would like to get in the habit of going down to the water or somewhere new for my weekend run to keep it interesting and fun. Because believe me, with having both a dog and a baby and having lived in the same apartment for the last 6 years there is no direction or route out my back door I haven't gone a bazillion times.

I am pretty excited tonight because Ben is going to submitting his final paper of his MBA and I can hardly  believe this day has come. I am SO excited to spend the weekend with him and Arlo without knowing he has to go study and be up late writing a paper at the coffee shop all night. What an amazing accomplishment for him! I am so proud of him. And us, for making through this last year and a half.

And of course the gala on Sunday! I went shopping yesterday and bought an amazing sequin dress and I am so excited to wear it! It is pretty great that even from working out for the last 2 weeks I feel like I am in such better shape and more confident even though it is doubtful any change could have taken place already.

Okay, have to go pour myself a glass of wine and make some dinner...I can hear Peter Pan being read for bedtime stories.

half way through the week

Yesterday I had to do my run in the evening. I prefer to get it done in the morning...when I am half asleep and I don't really know what is happening. Also it was raining. Not a big surprise in Vancouver in November. (today was so gorgeous so I can't really complain) I ran past a coffee shop and was looking in at the people all warm and dry and drinking tea, and eating cake. It looked nice. I also saw some people look at me like "are you crazy? running in the rain, in the dark?" But it made me smile because I was one of those people not so long ago. But now I am a person who is going to follow this plan for the next 5 or 6 months so I can run this race and not have to duck out somewhere and collapse along the way.

I made it to bootcamp this morning and it was really good. I really like being pushed like that and knowing it is only an hour and I can make it through. We did some punching today and I think I better take some boxing classes. I think I would love it! I need to do some serious stretching. I think a good yoga DVD is needed. Maybe the library has one.

Just finished a tasty dinner of roasted veggies and baked sole on spinach with pesto. It has been so nice the past week or so that Arlo has been eating everything again! We were on a toast, yogurt, banana diet there for awhile. Hopefully I didn't jinx it!

Lastly, I am addicted to some delicious pumpkin spice rooibos tea. It was a birthday treat from a friend and I have one cup's worth left. I have to get some more, it is the perfect thing in the evenings lately.

I can make it to sunday

I enjoyed a day off from working out yesterday and was back at it this morning with my 6:30 bootcamp class. I really like the instructor and most the other women in the class are 10-20 years older than I am and can kick my ass. It is an inspiration and I hope I am like them at their age!

My plan this week is to do bootcamp Mon, Wed, Fri and my running training Tues, Thurs, Sat. We will see if I can still walk at the end of week. I need the challenge and the outlet this week!

Sunday will be a much anticipated day of rest and a day of celebration as well. My husband-to-be has been working on his MBA for the last 18 months and before that all the preparation that goes along with it. Pretty much since before I got pregnant, this has been a huge part of our lives and now here we are with the end in sight.
There was a lot of tough, exhausting and crazy times many of which would have come with having a new baby and many that were a combination of the intense MBA schedule, learning to be parents and sleep depravation. It is so hard to believe that we have almost made it through this and that we have an amazing one and a half year old son as well! Ben has been working so hard and I am so proud of him.
Sunday he will be completely finished and we are going to the end of program gala, complete with dinner and dancing. I am so excited to get all dressed up and go out and celebrate this huge accomplishment!

Yay Ben! And Yay Us!

it's raining, it's pouring...

oh man. so this morning i got up started making Arlo's breakfast and put on the coffee and then suddenly remembered...this isn't a snuggly, rainy, stay in my jammies kind of a morning. i had to go run. day 3 of week 1. good thing my coffee pot is insulated.

so off i went in the cold and rain and completed the last run of week 1. i learned that my running jacket, although i appears to be, is not waterproof. i spent most of the time trying different places to put my iphone so it wouldn't get soaked since holding it tucked up my jacket sleeve was not working.

i came home, peeled off my soaked clothes and happily drank my coffee. next i ate breakfast, headed to the farmers market to drop off my compost and went to 11:00 storytime at the library.

 now i am back home and made some yummy muffins to get ready for a very busy week ahead.
whole wheat blueberry and whole wheat pumpkin raisin muffins. the blueberry ones are right from Oh She Glows http://ohsheglows.com/2011/03/24/mini-whole-wheat-blueberry-breakfast-muffins/  a really delicious vegan blog that i have tried a lot of great recipes from and for the pumpkin ones i adapted her blueberry recipe and came up with this.


Delightful Vegan Whole Wheat Pumpkin Raisin Muffins


makes 12 large muffins


1 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup ground flax seed
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all purpose flour
1 and 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 tsp pure vanilla
1 cup raisins
1 14 oz can organic pumpkin puree

Preheat oven to 375. Line muffin tin with muffin papers. (I use parchment paper ones that I love) In a small bowl add apple cider vinegar to almond milk. Measure all dry and raisins into a medium bowl. Add the rest of the wet ingredients, including pumpkin to the almond milk/vinegar mixture and whisk it up. Combine wet with dry until just combined. Bake for 20-25 minutes. A delicious quick breakfast or snack for the stroller.

week 1 day 2

ugh. babe's molars coming in did not make for a super restful sleep last night and 6:00 felt very early this morning. of course the fact that it is dark and wet out doesn't help. but day 2 is done and i felt way better for having done it.

i have been trying not to let myself think past the distance i am doing now...it is too daunting! of course it is months away and i will be working my way up slowly but imagining running for 2 and 1/2 hours* is a little crazy when currently i am quite glad when my 20 minutes are up!

another runner waved at me today as he passed by. maybe it's like the boat wave at the cottage, a mandatory gesture. "hello i am up very early too, dodging branches and puddles on the sidewalk in my tight pants".

i like how to be a runner, you just have to go out your front door and.....run! there. now you are a runner. old pros are giving you the head nod and wave as if you have been doing this for years.

*i completely guessed at that time...i have absolutely no idea how long it will take me!

my sweet little darling teething boy is a year and a half today! how that is possible i do not know, but i can certainly not imagine a day in my life without him. love, love, love.

day one down...only 165 to go

today was my first day of official running training. I really like the app...a mans voice tells you to start your warm up and then it dings and says "run" and "walk" at the appropriate times. it reminds me of my disney record books from when i was i little and the chime told you when to turn the page. it also shows you where you went on a map, how fast your running and walking were and has a spot to record your mood. i think that will be neat to look back at.

it went pretty well and i kept reminding myself that even though it was dark, and wet, and i was tired this was not punishment. it was a half hour to myself and the first session to cross out, getting me in shape and closer to being able to run 21k. i'm a big crosser-outer...i have been known to add an item that i already completed to my to do list just so i could cross it out.

i really need to put some music on my phone since the only album on there is elizabeth mitchell which was our go to fussy babe tunes for m-a-n-y long walks with the ergo...but ya, not really running music.
time to put some energy into some playlists! and really into my music in general...my itunes are a gigantic mess in desperate need of organization...a nap project maybe.

and now off to a much needed girl's night! yay!

mondays

i have been trying to lose the way of thinking that holds mondays to be a fresh start so it doesn't become an excuse to slack off by the weekend and then *ba-bing* fresh start for monday. but it really does have some strong new beginning connotations and it is kinda nice to have a clean slate and the hope of a great week ahead.

this morning i was off to bootcamp for 6:30. it was dark out when i left and it was hail/snow/raining when i left. eww. i really love bootcamp though, especially when i am done and it's 7:30am and i have done my workout for the day. i think i will stick with it on mondays as a cross training day for part of my training.

i'm pretty happy that my husband-to-be finally signed up for the marathon as well. it's nice to have a little team together...my dear friend in victoria and my amazing, inspiring cousin in ontario have signed up too. because we are spread all over the place and our running stroller shakes uncontrollably at so much as a jog i think i will be doing alot of the runs alone but it is nice to know they will all be working hard too!

now i am back home enjoying a quiet hour or so with my coffee while my boys are at swimming lessons. better go throw something together for lunch and grab something out of the freezer for dinner before chaos begins again!

holy f*ck!!?! i signed up for a half marathon

so with some encouragement and not a lot of thought i have signed up for a half marathon in vancouver on may 6th.

what the ? what was i thinking?

quick i need a plan. after my credit card info was entered and my confirmation had been received, it began to sink in...i will be running 21.1km in 168 days.

after some questioning people and poking around i decided on the "ease into a 10k" training program and bought the app. http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/ease-into-10k/id358536821?mt=8
 it is a 3 day a week, 10 week program and i will start on tuesday. once i finish it i'll move on the half marathon training program from runner's world. it is 12 weeks so i will have a few weeks to spare before the big day.

oh? my current running schedule? umm...ya...that would be...oh...none. aside from chasing my 1 and a half year old cyclone around little mountain..nothing.

i have running shoes. and i have run before...a 10k a few years ago. so we will see. i am excited though, for the challenge and to do something for myself and to see if i can do it!