RunningMoms' Blogs

Nope, not a condiment for the taste more of a I ve been busy with life that I haven t written, but I ll try to 'ketchup' everyone on how busy life is .The last time I wrote it was a race report and giving some excitement to a new product I was going to be testing/demonstrating for a good friend of mine at Bite Tech (www.bitetech.com) that has partnered with Under Armour (www.underarmour.com) to release a new line of mouth guards. I m a firm believer in mouth guards since I have 2 fake teeth, I ve tried eating a couple of softballs in my day and have a chipped tooth to show for it, and have been saved by mouthguards as I dig playing volleyball in the past, not to mention the times I ve probably been saved of a concussion in hockey and/or bandy. Yes, they are a part of my equipment no matter what

I know I've blogged about this before, about a year ago.  That's when I went for a run with my youngest daughter Grace.  But today I had an interesting experience -- trying to convince my oldest daughter to go running.

I'd been sidelined with a sinus infection for two weeks an hadn't run since that craziness started.  So when I felt better today, I had the itch.  I knew I'd need some tissues, but I was going.  Even if it was short.  Even if it was slow.  I was determined not to feel bad.  

2.5 weeks until the race, holy crap!

What a whirlwind of training September has been!  My fiancee Ben and I spent Labor Day weekend in Washington D.C. on vacation.  We each picked one big thing to do while we were there, he picked a Washington Nationals baseball game, being that I'm in the middle of training, I picked a 5K race to help me stay on track.  Ben used to be a serious runner about 15 years ago, and now runs when he can on the treadmill at the gym, so he wasn't too sure about this race.  It was the Arlington 9/11 Memorial 5K race at the Pentagon, and it was a nice route, with a lot of pride from local Police and Fire Departments, along with members of the military.  Ben ran roughly a 33:00 minute 5K and I did 36:50.   As you can see, in the picture here, Ben was quite relieved to have the race over.  I highly recommend signing up for a race, even if it's just a 5K like this one, on your next vacation.  It's a great way to make sure you get in a run, enjoy a new running route, and meet fun people, who usually have great recommendations for local restaurants and whatnot. 

Minneapolis Duathlon Race Resultsbib number: 572age: 30gender: Foverall place: 150 out of 814 (Top 18%)division place: 10 out of 89 (top 11%)gender place: 32 out of 398 (top 8%)time: 1:48:11run1: 23:51 (pace = 7:41)trn1: 1:52bike: 54:04 (pace = 20.0 mph)trn2: 3:02run2: 25:24 (pace = 8:11)The morning started out just beautifully with my usual support crew waking me up Reese ready to go for another couple of hours on the leash outside while Thom cheers me onto the finish line! The weather started out a tad on the chilly side, but nothing that wasn t easily adjusted to by getting started on the run!The course was a 3.1 mile run, a 18.5 mile bike ride, and another 3.1 mile run. The course was mostly along West Riverside where I ve ridden my bike many times before, so I had an idea of what to expect that was to my advantage I think, however, it could have also been to my disadvantage

To Caffeinate or not to Caffeinate?  That is the question.

This Saturday, as ventured out to do some nice speed work with my gals it hit me, half way through our 6X800 sprints, my caffeine headache.  It was a painful one, not as bad as one of those, "I shouldn't have had that fourth glass of wine headaches,"  but one that got me jonsing for a Diet. Mt. Dew or a latte, or just anything with precious caffeine!  This has always been a debate for me, do I enjoy a bit of caffeine before morning runs or races to prevent such happenings, or will that dehydrate me and end up hurting me more?

The 4 R sRagnar Runningmoms.com Race ReportRun, Rest, Refuel, RepeatThis is the 3rd year I ve done this crazy race where you and 11 of your crazy friends cover 200 miles from Lacrosse WI to Minneapolis, MN this year, though, they moved the start line to Winona, MN so our route took us from MN to WI back to MN. The changes they had to make this year were due to some permits that they couldn t obtain or something. With those changes came a change to which leg of the race I would run. To clarify there are 2 vans, each van has 6 runners and any designated crew they may want (our van had 2 crew members). In our van was Casper, Dani, Amy, Erin, Karen, and myself and yes, we ran in that order. Our crew was Thom and Joel. The other van was led by Coley

Did a lovely eight miles this weekend, and let me tell you, this lack of humidity made quite a difference, holy moly! I could have gone even longer (but of course, I'm ramping up slowly, don't want to re-injure myself).

The one thing I have learned during this training so far is that running and strength training more = great for my booty, but it also = bad for my skin.  I can't believe the way my face looks!  I feel like a teenager again!  I do have adult acne, but never anything like this, where there are noticeable red blemishes on my face.  My hairline and forehead have really taken the brunt of the abuse.  Have any of you had this happen?  What have you done to cure it?  I'm thinking I should wash my face immediately after getting home from a run, maybe that will help??  I am a big procrastinator when it comes to jumping in the shower at night after a run, I always want to make and eat my dinner first.  I would love anyone's help, my face needs a reprieve! 

Long time no blog! As many of you know, I'm getting married next June, so part of my motivation to run (besides how freeing it is, and how great I feel after a good run), is getting my body ready for the big day.  Well, this summer, I've enjoyed some summer foods a little bit too much, and now I'm on a exercise and eating regimen!  My three training runs a week really help things.  I only try to get in at least one of strength training or Yoga.  I'm also writing down what I eat, boy, does that help.  I've tried many things, but keeping a food journal is the only thing that really keeps me honest.  I'm one week down on this plan, and so far, so good!

Had a pretty good run yesterday with my friend Marika around a new area, the Lake Nokomis neighborhood.  We did the lake and surrounding area, and it was so nice to run something different!  We fit in 7.5 miles, and hit the pavement a little before 9:00 to try and beat some of the heat.  Well, by half way through, my water ran out, but the rest of me was sopping wet from the lovely Minnesota humidity.  Thanks to Marika giving me drinks off her water, her motivating words, and a couple of racer Jelly Beans I made it through!  Long run for this week completed!

Race Report TurtlemanWhat s a little water?Well, if it s in the lake for a swim during a triathlon, a little water means that you are running in muck and crap instead of swimming in a nice lake. It also means that you could end up running the swim portion instead of swimming it because it s falling from the sky. A little water has a big impact!A little water is also a threat when you are riding a bike on roads that have painted lines and the painted crosswalks. Those things are slick when a little water gets on them.A little water means that you will feel it on your skin as it pelts you while running. Your shoes become 5 pounds heavier per foot and you

How in the world did I ever decide to do a race that spans across the state of Minnesota from the south to the north, covering about 550 miles of the great state? I still am not sure how it all began, but Paul claims he sent me an email stating this would be fun and I jumped on it agreeing and saying we should sign up. I can t find that original email, but I do remember looking at the web site he sent to me and thinking it would be fun .What exactly is this race ? The race is called the Minnesota Border to Border (http://www.mnb2b.org/) and it takes the racers ~230 miles via bike from Luverne, MN to St. Cloud (day 1), ~220 miles via bike from St. Cloud to Virginia/Evelyth (day 2), 50 miles of running from Virginia/Evelyth to Orr (day 3), and 50 miles of canoeing from Orr (Lake Vermillion) on the Vermillion River to Crane