Thursday, October 27, 2011

Don't Be That Awkward Runner

Things have been busy around the Hoover resident lately. I started a Boot Camp styled group work out program @ Anytime Fitness, therefore I haven't been doing much running at all. We meet every Tues. and Thurs. at 6am in the morning and do some serious working out for a hour, then we have homework to complete before the following Tues. I must say, I did not even start on my homework(which consisted of 500 push-ups and 500 squats) until Sunday, I was just too sore. This past Tues. was our first weigh in and wouldn't you know I GAINED weight!!! I was disgusted and  discouraged, so I have really buckled down on eating habits this week!!  I have also signed up for a Good Running Form class so I don't look like this:



On another note, we have been having SO MUCH FUN since Adam has a new work schedule. We went to the fair two times this year, the 3 of us both times :) Friday nights are date nights now, it is such a blessing!! Eli and I went to the corn maze with Caiden and Kailyn. We all had a blast, we went on a hay ride, cow train ride, slides and of course to the animal barn. Eli is loving having his "favorite Caiden, I wuv him" over here so much. Every morning he wakes up saying is Caiden here, can we go get him?. I have decided to start trying to list Eli's most recent sayings on here every once in a while, they are just to cute to not share!!

Recent Sayings:

Caiden and Eli are on the swings talking about going to the fair. Eli says: "I am going to ride the fire truck, but I have to put my helmet on first"

I got some business to take care of.

What ju got, ju got a sucka? (I had a lollipop in the car)

Adam and I are discussing what we are going to get from Wendy's, Eli jumps in from the backseat and says:
"I want a hamburga, no onions, I want a coke, I want apples, I want chicken nuggets I want fries."

When  he saw the school bus in the afternoon go by he said " there goes the ice cream truck"

He gets so excited about playing with Adam and Caiden outside, he often forgets to call Adam Dad and says Adam or Uncle Adam.

He asked to sleep in the cats bed the night after the fair, so we let him, HA! After all the cat don't use it, he is outside now!!

Checking it out.
Telling Kailyn and Caiden, not to shoot him!
Shooting Kailyn and Caiden.
This was one of his favorites
Kailyn, Cole, Elijah
Eli passed out after the fair
I love this!
He came out and landed on his feet and said TA-DA
                                                             Cow train ride

Hope everybody is ready for Halloween, our weekend plans include spooktacular, fall festivals, softball and of course rest!!! Eli is going to be a Lumber jack this year, we put the costume together ourselves, I just couldn't bring myself to spend 25-40 dollars on a suit he would where ONE time. Have a great weekend!!

Thursday, October 6, 2011

I'm Back!

Wow it has been a while since I was able to post anything, so much has changed in our lives since the last post!! Adam has a new job, I completed my first 5k race, then 8k, and my second 5k. After my duathlon, I seriously thought that I would do a lot more bike riding than running. However, I saw that by improving my running, it will help my biking. I am currently training for my first 1/2 marathon, it is recommended to train for 6 mths before. My plan is to do my first 1/2 marathon (13.1 miles) Feb. 12 of next year, 26.2 with Donna. On Sept. 3 last month I ran my first 5k with the AIR in Fernandina, they announced at the race that on Dec. 3 AIR would host there 1st annual 1/2 marathon. If my training continues to keep going as well as it is now, I am going to go for it. Eli also did a run, he ran 1/2 mile, let me just say I am so proud of him! He is going to my little triathlete/marathoner. It took him around 10-12 min to do a 1/2 mile, he is only 2 yrs 8mths old! He ran the WHOLE thing except right at the end.This past weekend I ran my 2nd 5k, I am proud to say that I successfully beat my last 5k time! Improvement = Motivation :) As far as the month of October, I have two more 5k's and possibly 1 bike ride planned. If anyone would like to join me in training, check out my plan here. I would love to here your input and progress. I am doing all my training at my home, I am not going to Jax to train, just using there training plan.





Adam now has a new job, he works at the Wellness Center  in Hilliard. It has been so nice for him to work M-F with the weekends off. Eli and I have really been enjoying all the time we have with him. This week I have started watching my nephew, and I have to say I am absolutely LOVING it. It is very nice for Eli to have someone to play with everyday. Here are some recent pictures of one our weekends! I hope everyone is having a good week so far!!



Sunday, August 28, 2011

Megans House Heels and Wheels

 I don't know where to start, I learned SOOOOOO much. I suppose I could start with the night I before, Friday night I wanted to be in the bed by 8pm, however my child and I are on Adam's JSO schedule. I just knew Eli wouldn't go to bed until 11 or 12, or my luck 1, then I would have to wake up at 4. That was a big concern with me, so at 6pm we headed out on a walk, we ended walking 1 mile total. We checked out some tractors that had been clear cutting, then took our dogs Cooper and Clementine swimming in the creek. When we got home we showered and he laid down in the bed, 7:15 by this time. I started cooking, I knew I needed to eat my last big meal around 12 hours before race time. I finished cooking @ 7:40 (we had hamburger helper, takes no time to cook) Eli had fell asleep by this time. I debated waking him up and decided to just crawl in the bed with him. I was asleep by 9pm physically, but I am positive that mentally my mind never went to sleep that night.

4:00 am the alarm clock rang, I jumped up, today was the day!!!! I needed to have consumed my breakfast by 5:00, so I got dressed and ate a bowl of Special K fruit and yogurt. Which I am not a fan of, but my husband insured me that it had what I needed for the race in it. Adam loaded up the car and we headed off, I dropped him and Eli off by my mother in laws, he had a championship softball game that morning.
I then met up with Alix and John and followed them to Waycross. My nerves were fine all this time, as we got to the park entrance I saw all the lights, cars, and people, and my adrenaline started to pump. This was 6:32, I am telling you I didn't miss a beat, this was a big deal to me and I didn't want to forget anything about it. So as I waited in line to pay for my park entrance, I realized that was what I had forgot, my 5 bucks for park entry. Yes, I knew I was going to forget something. I didn't panic, I stayed calm and asked if he would take my debit/credit card, to my surprise he said "No, but you can write me a check". I was SOOOO thankful, here I was 20-30 min. from a ATM and 50 min until race time, I was thankful for the good ole' check book. We parked and I pulled everything out, then realized I had to go to packet pick up before I could do anything, so I threw it all back in the car. At packet pick up I give them my name they give me my packet and chip then they direct to the side to be "drew on". So this lady starts writing my bib number all over me, my biceps, my thighs.Then my age on the back of my calf. I headed back to my car and began to pull everything out and get it ready.
Once everything was ready, I took my bike to staging and met up with my parents who had arrived. At staging I met a lady  named Carol, she introduced herself as "Megan's mom", one of the sweetest lady I have ever met! This race was being held to help "Megan's house" a home for medically fragile children. It was really neat to meet her in person.


My bike was checked in and I put all my stuff down, and headed over to the tent to listen to the instructions. OK, so I have to tell you a quick funny, my Mom bought me year pass to Okefenokee to ride my bike there, because she worries about me on the road. When she was paying they tell us, watch our for a BEAR, yes I said BEAR, around here. I was like thanks mom, now I wont get ran over, just mawed by a bear. Anyhow back to race, the man starts explaining instructions, I kinda lost attention, then I swear I heard watch for the MOUNTAIN LION!! I thought to myself WHAT!!!??? I stayed calm and really started focusing, then about 30 seconds later he said you will also see a disMOUNT LINE!!! PHEW, for a quick min I thought he had said that they had been seeing a mountain lion in the state park!!! Gotta love a country accent. I didn't tell anyone until after the race, but it was truly hilarious. Then we lined up to race, in the pictures, Alix and I got in the back, best strategy, right? A few pics to show you the crowd then they blew the horn. LET THE RACE BEGIN!!!


On my first run out, I pulled myself back, everyone told me, just pull back you will pass them when they get tired. Well, looking back, I wish I would have never pulled back, but I was still very happy I came in running my first two in 22 min. I had a goal of 25-30 min. By pulling back I let a lot of people pass me and looking back I feel like I kinda lost some momentum, because I do good when I trying to beat someone. When I slowed down, there were only a few around me and they were running at my comfortable pace.
When I came in for my bike, I was feeling GOOD, I knew I had given myself a extra 7 min on run time. A big thing in duathlons and triathlons is your transition time, and I knew this. However, in the moment of racing it didn't occur to me at all. Between both transitions I  spent 2 minutes not good, but lesson learned. So I grabbed my camelbak, helmet and bike and headed for the mount line. As soon as I turned on the road I realized I forgot my gloves. I didn't turn around or get mad at myself, I just grasped my lower handles gently and said I got this!! The biking was a little tougher than I expected, around here the roads are pretty flat. The course description was flat and scenic, maybe it was just me, but it was defiantly not as flat as I imagined. My plan of attack turned into use every hill for all that its worth. I managed to maintain a pretty strong 14-18 mph throughout the race, my max speed was 20.4. I was hoping to do close to 20+ mph the whole ride, but it just wasn't happening. I did manage to pass around 20+ people on my bike, which had my feeling really good. When I seen  mile marker 12, I sprinted my bike all the way to staging. I was taking the last curve at around 16 mph when the guy on the megaphone yelled " slow down before dismount" because I was so concerned with getting a time penalty or disqualified, I jumped off my bike before I even knew what he said. then I ended up running my bike another 100 ft to the dismount line. Of course costing me more time, as I pass him, he was apologetic telling me I only had to slow down.I didn't achieve my goal of 45 min but I was still pleased with my time of 53 minutes. I racked my bike and headed out on my final run and 2 miles!!!

As I headed out on my second and final run, I was thinking I have almost did it!!! My legs felt like jello, my stomach under my ribs was cramping, my right knee felt funky and my right foot felt like I had let someone run over it with a truck. I started walking about the time I hit the road. When I looked at my watch I was making exceptional time to achieve my goal of 1hr and 45 minutes. So I walked almost the whole first mile, I was discouraged because my foot was in some kinda of pain and I seen people catching up to me that I passed miles ago on my bike. When I turned around at the 1 mile mark there were workers there cheering me "one more mile, you got this". I really needed that I picked it up to a jog, grabbed a cup of water and took off. I made it almost to the 1/2 mile left mark and began to walk. A young couple passed me and he said come on run it in with us, so I picked it up right behind them. At this point most of my cramping had went away it was more of a mental thing. I wanted it, but I could walk it out with a 500ft sprint at the end and achieve my goal. After all I counted 10 people who came from behind me and passed me. Then there was John he finished before me and came out to the fence to cheer me in. I am SOOOO thankful to him for pushing me! He saw how tired I was and started to yell "push it Megan, your almost there" "run Megan" in a very serious, stern voice. Every time I would slow down, I would hear him, I thought to myself its now or never leave it on the track!!!! I picked my pace up to a sprint and completed the race in 1:43:17. BEST FEELING IN THE WORLD!!!!  I had completed my last .5 of a mile in 3min and 14 seconds thanks to John!!!




When entering this race I debated between entering my age group or Athena (150+), I chose age group, to my surprise there was know one else entered in my age group, therefore I was able to take home the 1st place medal!!! YAY!!! Being the competitive person I am, I then scoped out the Athena's time and saw that I also would have came in first in the category, my conclusion> It was meant for me to get first, even if I was the only one in my age group!!


 This truly was one of the best choices I have ever made. I have always wanted to do mutli sports, but with a 2 1/2 yr old and having not excercised other than softball, I didn't think it was possible. I started training for this event around the middle of the 3rd week in July. At that point I had only been working out "hard" for exactly 1 mth. To complete this race and start a new chapter in my life to fulfill a goal I have always dreamed of, but never saw it a reality, was one of the most amazing things I have ever done. I give all glory to God, because its only through him that nothing is impossible Luke 1:37. My goals have now been raised, my immediate goals are to eat healthier and continue doing small multi sports event. My one year goal is to bust my butt and be the Overall Female at next years Heels and Wheels. My 5 year goal is to complete a full Iron man. This race was so inspiring and fun, as I was competing I would look around and see all the different diverse people. Each one was there for a different purpose, with a different plan and  different challenge. This long entry was just a quick look into mine, I hope that you enjoyed reading, thanks for your support.
BTW- I have my first 5k this Saturday!!


Thanks again to my family and friends for all the support!!! A very special thank you to my parents for coming and supporting me, and for pictures!!!
















Friday, August 26, 2011

19 hours until RACE time!!!

Tomorrow is my first duathlon, I cant believe it is already here. The weather looks perfect, its suppose to be around 74 at start of the race and 80 by the end!! This makes me happy considering that the high is suppose to be 101 for the day! My plan of attack is to make it as fun as I possible can, try to not  let my competitiveness interfere, so I don't defeat myself. I went to bed at 1:00am this morning and intentionally let myself sleep until 11 this morning. Sleep is not going to be easy tonight so I figured if I could get good sleep, I better take it when I can get it. My goal is to complete the course in 1hr 45  minutes. I can do 2 miles in 25 min without pushing myself, however I want to allot myself 30 min per 2 miles so I don't get disappointed. My bike is a different story, I think I am stronger on my bike and  I would like to complete the 13 miles in 45 minutes. I am not giving myself any slack I plan to push push push!!! As of this morning there are 102 competitors registered online, however I only have one competitor in my age group. Through the help of my parents and loving husband, I was able to get everything I needed. Thank you all very much, and thanks in advance to my parents for getting up early on Saturday to come watch me. Also good luck to the BIG WINNERS, keep your heads up and win that championship that we gave up last season, you can do it!!!! Stay tuned for pics and results tomorrow, YAY!!

Yesterdays verse in my quiet time was this:
The Lord is the One who will go before you, He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Duet: 31:8
I personally love this verse and find so much encouragement from it.I always find myself repeating these words in hard times "I will never leave you or forsake you". I know from start to finish, if its a good day or bad day, he will be there with me and encouraging me.  As I began my race tomorrow many families will be loosing there homes to hurricane Irene, this breaks my heart! I am thankful that the Lord answered my prayer and the Hurrican turned, however I am continueing to pray that he will be with each affected family.

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Accident, Mommy!

 As most of you know I have been training for my first duathlon.(Which is Sat) Well last night I was really torn as to go workout or not, when I asked Eli what he wanted to do, he told me he wanted to stay home and take a bath. I decided to go anyways, I dropped him off with my (Uncle) Bubba Will and my cousin Stephanie. When I returned to pick him up this is what he was wearing....
Yes that is a pair of cheerleader shorts and LOOONG shoe string! To my surprise Eli had a accident! He pee'd his pants.I wasn't fast enough to get a picture of him in it but believe me it was HILARIOUS!! As if the outfit that my Uncle Will rigged up wasn't funny enough, I began to tell them what Eli told me before I dropped him off.

We were backing out of our driveway and I was explaining to Eli where he was going to stay. He then told me "I am going to have a accident" Me: What do you mean? Eli: I am going to pee in my pants, Me: I laughed under my breath and said your better not that is what babies do!! Nothing else was said, well he did exactly what he told me he was going to do, but I by no means took him serious. Eli has only had 2 accidents since he started using the bathroom, now 3!! Thank your Uncle Will, Aunt Joanne, Stephanie and Lauren!!! Eli really enjoyed his time and says he cant wait to go back!!!