Big Bike, Big Run, Big Rain

Well, I haven't written in few days so let's catch up.
Sunday, Mike and I took a really big bike ride through the country, first with my sister and her husband Jeff on her "maiden bike voyage." After a 16 mile loop, we dropped her off at home to relieve grampa of baby duty and Mike, Jeff, and I took a little harder ride out to Afton and around back to town. It was the first time I had biked with Jeff and we had a lot of fun. It's nice to bike with folks at about my same level. I like the Velo club rides too, but this was more fun. We headed out to Afton and started west on Plymouth Church. The wind was wicked bad and at one point I heard Mike holler from behind me "you are biking at a 45 degree angle!" so I was hoping that the wind would not die down quickly since I would likely land on my nose! We had a pretty strong tailwind back into town, so that was nice.
Monday Mike and I set out along the bike trail for our first 10 mile run. We left from the Lions Beach trailhead and headed out on the trail that ends on the far north side of town behind the Home Depot. I did my PB for distance, although t was kind of slow since I was just not feeling it the first couple miles. It was almost 80 out for the first time this year and I was hot, drank too much from the water bottle too soon and made myself feel kind of nauseous so I ended up walking a bit the first mile or two. I eventually found my groove and Mike caught me on the way back and brought us in together. I like to run with him, but it always seems like I am holding him back from where he could be, so I try to wave him ahead after a while. I am a strong enough runner now that I WILL keep going even after he takes off ahead. Again after the long run I suffered a while, I think due to hydration/nutrition issues during the run. I have got to figure out what works for me for the long runs. This time I tried some dilute Cytomax and 1 shot block every 30 minutes. The Cyto was DISGUSTING and I think contributed to my gutache. The shot blocks were ok but weird. Either way, they didn't work the way i had intended to keep from feeling icky afterwards. I will have to keep working at it and hopefully get it figured out before it gets hot out.
Yesterday, we took the night off, since Mike had a doctors appointment in the evening. It was supposed to rain, so I didn't do the VElo Club ride, but it ended up the weather held and I could have gone.
Today is rainy and cold, very windy. I had part of my Peds Rehab clinical rotation tonight after work so I didn't get home until almost 6. I am taking tonight off as well since I got home so late. I have lots of homework to get done before Friday so I will work on that tonight so I can play outside tomorrow after work instead of burying my head in a book and writing papers.

A windy March ride

Yesterday, I took a long ride on my road bike in the country west and south of town. It was a typical March day, very windy, but warm enough. I took off into a headwind and somehow managed to come back into town with a tailwind, the way it should be, by some miracle.
It was nice to get out on the bike by myself again. I came home in a foul mood for no particular reason and it was good to hammer out some miles and clear my head. I rode about 24 miles along county roads, taking Mineral point out from my house, then cutting over the long way to Hayner Road. I went west at the crossroad at the end of Hayner and then south on Murray road. I had intended to turn south somewhere else apparently, because Murray road took me to a dead end instead of the other side of Afton that I had been shooting for but that was OK. I took Cemetary Road back in and cut across into Happy Hollow and back, which gave me the same amount of miles pretty much before I headed back to town on River Road.
It is definintely getting to be spring. Everything is starting to green up and all the farms are wet and stinky (you really notice this on your bike - LOL - phew!). I just love riding by the cows and horses, some of them give you a half hearted chase along the fence lines. I was looking to go down the road that has buffaloes (Kessler road maybe?) but somehow I missed the mark there. I could do without the farm dogs chasing me and nipping at my ankles but a girl can't have everything!
Tonight I volunteered to do the Relay for Life from 6-11 at the High School, so activity tonight will be 5 hours of walking in circles inside Parkers Gym. I think it will drive me a little nuts because - a) the gym is likely to be filled with teenage girls and b) it is going to be 60 and warm today and I will be inside (HMPH!).

Today's Inspirational Quote, brought to you by the letter J

Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.
-- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr

Sharing the Pictures

Here is Mike and I all gigged up for cold weather biking when we stopped by Jeff and Michele's along the way.

This is picture that was on my class reunion web site. I am on the far left. Sitting next to me is my best friend Trisha (who by the way has not called or emailed me in a really long time...... I think she forgot me) and the girl on the right is my friend Tracy. Guessing by the clothes I am ballparking us at about 9th or 10th grade (like 1984-85 ish), but who knows, it was the 80's - I looked like that for a decade......
This is my neice Izzy. Not that I am biased or anything, but she IS the cutest baby ever born I think. She's 3 months old now and lots of fun to play with!

Cold Ride on the Bike Trail

Mike and I took a bike ride today from one end of the Janesville bike path to the other, a total of 18.93 miles including our ride to and from home to the trail.
It was colder than expected out and we were very happy that we rode into the wind on the way out, only to realize on the way back that it was actually on the way back that we were riding into a headwind. Sometimes its hard to tell where the wind comes from on the bike because you create wind as you go faster (****big heavy sigh***).
It was fun and I am glad Mike came with me even though I think I guilted him into it. :-)
I am trying to work on improving my cadence and spin faster in a smaller gear. Several people from Velo Club ride the other night tried to suggest it to me and although I don't think it feels natural, I am trying to use their suggestions to make myself a better biker. I would really rather grind it out in a bigger gear and spin slower, but I have been told that it is more energy efficient to spin correctly. I guess I should adopt the suggestions of the old timers in the club vs being stubborn and doing it my own way, so I am trying. Plus, it makes me a little crazy to have people talking about me, so I will try to blend in - LOL.

Congrats Pat on your PR at the HM! We are proud of you!

Review: Menopause the Musical

So here is the official review - Menopause the Musical totally blows, big chunks. But, Our mom would have totally dug it.
It is basically the story of 4 peri-menopausal women from very different backgrounds that meet over a department store underwear display and sing song parodies lamenting and celebrating "The Change."
First, Michele and I are a few years away from really having any firsthand knowledge of The Change. We were by far and away 2 of the youngest women in the theater (there were maybe 20 of us under 50 on the whole place). So, while most of the theater was laughing their butts off at the songs, Michele and I were just sitting and watching in amazement that these women were roaring with laughter at stuff we did not think was really that funny. Now, if they had done Childbirth, the musical or even Puberty, the Musical maybe we would be singing a different tune. We are o course young enough to remember those rites of passage well.
The music was OK, but again it was a little before our time. Some of the scenes were kind of funny, talking about weight gain etc. The scene near the end about not needing to have a man around to make yourself happy has pretty much ruined the song "Good Vibrations" for me forever- Eww.
I think I am not the fan of live theater I once was. Everything I go to seems hokey and over-acted, like a bad Lifetime movie.
Bottom line: 2/10. If you have never had a hot flash, I think you should skip this one!

My sister totally (Sham)Rocks!

Today we got up pretty bright and early to go run in the Shamrock Shuffle at Madison's Monona Terrace Convention Center. We rode with my sister and her husband and had a lot of fun.

It was our first race of 2007 and my sister Michele's first race ever. It was a cold morning with the temp about 30 degrees at the time the race started. Jeff and Michele ran together and Mike and I took off to work on PRs. It was a fun race, but very large with more than 900 people running the 5K, in addition to all the 10K runners and 2 mile walkers, so the path was very crowded and difficult to get started.

This is a picture of Jeff, Michele, Mike, and I just before the race started. Notice we are still all smiling at this point!

Mike finished ahead of me (of course!) and I had a PR time of 33:01 (10:38 pace)with a place of 650/892 overall and 100/148 for my age group.

I am so proud of my sister today- she did just awesome in her first race. She was 826, 136/148 for her age group with a time of 39:55 (a 12:51 pace that beats her time form our first run last week by minutes per mile). After I finished the race, I doubled back to run alongside her and be the cheerleader - she didn't need me for that, she super-poured on the gas at the end and ran that last 400 yards or so at full tilt. I sure hope she got a little taste of the running fever and will keep at it.
(Tracy - you're next, are you listening??)

This is a picture taken by Mike. The girl in the orange top is my sister hauling ass across the finish line. Over her left shoulder is her husband Jeff in the grey sweatshirt and I am on his left in the yellow bike jacket.

February Mileage details (don't lie, you know you've been waiting for them!)

January 2007 Miles:
Indoor Bike Miles: 147.52
Indoor Run Miles (treadmill and elliptical): 17.08
Outdoor Run miles: 16.73
Total Run Miles: 33.81

February 2007 Miles:
Indoor Bike Miles: 149.9
Outdoor Bike Miles: 0
Total Bike Miles: 149.86
Indoor Run Miles (treadmill and elliptical): 49.24
Outdoor Run Miles: 0
Total Run Miles: 49.24

2007 Cumulative Total Bike: 297.42
2007Cumulative Total Run:83.05

Lifetime miles (recorded):
Indoor Bike: 311.54
Outdoor Bike: 393.28
Total Bike miles: 704.82
Indoor Run: 66.32
Outdoor Run: 141.55
Total Run Miles: 207.87

My first B-R-ick outside this year

Tonight was a chilly night, about 32-34 this late afternoon and pretty windy. After work, Mike and I took a ride on the mountain bikes around town. A few miles out, we realized the gloves we were wearing were not cutting it. As part of our ride, we stopped by Michael's and picked up a couple pairs of windproof gloves, a very smart buy. I enjoyed the ride despite the wind and I'm glad Mike suggested it.
When we got back home I took a 3.5 mile run right away. It was cold and windy, but I averaged a 11:08 pace, which is really pretty good for me. I want to be sub-10 minute miles by Crazylegs in April, so this is a good start. The jelly-legs part of the BRick (bike/run--ick) went away really quickly for a change so maybe it is starting to get a little more natural.
Tomorrow my sister and I are going to see Menopause the Musical with some of her friends from work. Not sure about it, but what the heck, it gets me out of the house for a change. I will have to get up early for a spin on the elliptical so I can get in a lighter workout and burn some calories!

Our first Velo Club Ride

Tonight we took our first ride with the Janesville Velo Club (see ride details here). We started in Riverside Park and went out north of town from there. We had a total of 2+ hours including our ride to and from the Park.
Dealing with the new Shimano pedals was kind of a pain in the ass and I nearly bit the dust trying to clip into them several times. I'm sure with time it will become second nature like the SPD style pedals I am used to using, but for right now they are a little dicey.
It was awesome to get out and ride outside again and the temps were great, although it was hella windy on the way out. The tailwind back in was nice though.
FitDay says I burned 1266 calories on this ride, so I am very pleased with that. I hope it helps me break my plateau.
I don't think Mike had a super time, although he seemed to tolerate it. He says it would be more fair if all the skinny folks strapped a bag of water softener salt to their bikes - that made me laugh.

Nice Day, Big Run

After work today, Mike and I took a big run (for me) from our house to the hospital to Oakhill Cemetary, behind the high school to home. It was just under 6 miles at about a 12 minute mile pace. View it here. It was comfortable and I could have done more. I will next time. It was still kind of sloppy out there - the sidewalks were really wet and muddy and still had slushy snow and ice on them along the walkways where no one bothered to shovel last week when it snowed (GRRRR!). My shoes got really wet but thats OK, it was still a great run. Mike stayed with me even though I think he was itching to take off at a faster pace. It really is OK if he does that, but he stayed with me anyhow.
We need a bigger route for our next big run. I want to try to do 10 miles one of these days. Maybe Sunday........... we'll see.

Its another beautiful day

What a lovely weekend we had. The snow is nearly gone and the temps got up to 48 on Sunday, 50's today and 60s tomorrow. I have the biggest case of spring fever EVER!
Saturday we went to the BikeORama in Madison, to check things out. What a joke. If you were in the market for a bike, it was a good deal. If you went for the accessories, forget it. There was little selection and most of the stuff they had looked like it had been marked up so it looked like you were getting a "sale" price. We picked a couple small items and headed out to better shopping. Before going home, we stopped in at West Towne Mall so Mike could look for a small backpack for biking. You would think that it would not be a big deal to find one, but it seems that every small bag we saw doubled as a hydration pack and cost $80 or more. Since we were in Madison, we stopped for a slice at Rocky Rococo's pizza (is this a Wisconsin thing?? Do other places have these?). It is only my favorite pizza in the whole wide world, so I splurged and ate one slice, even though it was about an 600 calorie slice when I looked up the nutrition facts.
Once we got home we took advantage of the beautiful day and got in a run. I was doing quite well for about the first 2.5 miles of my 6 mile plan. Then my stomach felt a little iffy. I slowed down and walked a little ways and started feeling much worse. I turned the corner to start heading for home and realized that my belly was fixing to reject the pizza. I walked a little farther down the road and as I began to pass St Williams church, I refunded my lunch into the stream of melted snow running through the gutter. Eating Rocky's is not nearly as good in reverse, take my word for it! I walked a little farther and realized how brisk it was out - around 45 - for what I was wearing. It was fine while I was running, but it was far too light for the slow pace I was holding as I walked home. After a little while I began to weigh he pros and cons and came up with 2 choices - 1) keep walking, don't puke, and freeze, or 2) start running, get warm, and maybe puke again. I went with option 2 - it was much warmer! Too bad I couldn't have done the full route - I was really cooking at a pretty good pace!
Sunday, Mike and I took the new treks out for a spin on the road in the morning. We rode to my sister's to check out his new Madone (which was SWEET!) and see my baby. We rode around a little, then rode home. Later, I did my first training run with my sister, who is thinking about the Shamrock Shuffle this weekend. We fartleked a 5K, which was pretty good for our first time out. (I know I should be more grown up, but I sure like working that word into conversation!!) When I was done, Mike and I drove to do some more errands, then took another spin on the bikes since it was so nice out, a crime to spend it indoors.
I did a quick almost 3 miles on the elliptical before work this morning. Mike and I plan to run to my sisters and back after work tonight (about 7 miles round trip). Tomorrow Janet and I are going to do the Velo Club road bike ride after work since it will be 60 out.
I am trying to work up to some distance since the Crazylegs in coming up soon and I will need to be ready to do more than a 5K. That should be a nice transition into the 10Ks we are planning later this spring.

Today's Quote

First we form habits, then they form us. Conquer your bad habits or they will conquer you.
-- Rob Gilbert

As I struggle with an extended weight loss plateau, I found this motivational.

Quote of the Day

Games require skill. Running requires endurance, character, pride, physical strength, and mental toughness. Running is a test, not a game. A test of faith, belief, will, and trust in ones self. So hardcore that it needs a category all to itself to define the pain. When game players criticize, it's because they aren't willing to understand, not because they're stronger. Running is more than a sport; it's a lifestyle. If you have to ask us why we run, you'll never understand, so just accept.-- Jessica Propst