Sweetheart's gotta run.

Knee deep in chaos. That's all I've got to describe life lately. Good chaos, but chaos none the less. I'm sure you've noticed from the dwindling blog posts and complete lack of commenting on everyone elses blogs, but to say I've been busy would be a complete understatement. I wanted to thank you all for the suggestions regarding my butt in the last post, haha. In case you were wondering, I chose the tutu.

It's amazing how quickly life passes when you are busy for what feels like every second of the day. And I see the escape of time reflected the most in my children. No truer words have ever been spoken than "they grow up too fast". In the blink of an eye, my sweet little toddler Rowen has turned into an opinionated preschooler who refers to his mother as sweetheart. As in "Hey sweetheart, can you get me some more ketchup?" (true story, I kept waiting for him to ask me to go ahead and top off his coffee while I'm at it). My innocent little newborn Kain is now a toddler who runs around the house yelling "I'M MAD!!" instead of crying when he is upset, and giggling with pure glee as he mocks his older brothers every move.

I know I won't be in school forever, but I feel like at this rate I'm going to come home from class and one of them is going to ask for the car keys and a $20 spot. And so this week, I made an effort to spend as much extra time as I could with Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy (I've been informed by the 3 year old that from now on this is what my pair of offspring shall be referred to as. You know, just as an FYI.) and therefore blog land was put on the backburner. Sorry friends, I'm sure you understand!

But through the homework, papers, exams, work, ear infected non sleeping babies and truck stop talking toddlers, I've been training. One of the things that I love about running is that it's ALWAYS there for you. The only question that ever needs to be asked is will you step up and meet it? So it's cold. Raining. Early/late. You didn't sleep because amoxocillin acts like a shot of espresso for your toddler. You may not feel like running, and that's fine. But if you change your mind, it will be right there, waiting to challenge you. If there's a will, there's a way, as so many of you and your Yak Trax & determination have proven this winter.

Tuesday, after 25 minutes of zone 2, I was unleashed to run 25 minutes in a high z3 & z4. I couldn't stay in z4 and get to my 5k pace, but I was able to run low 8:00's staying in my HR zone. And let me tell you, it felt SO GOOD. My legs were burning, my lungs were getting there, yet it all seemed almost effortless, in a twisted, awesome sort of way. It had been a while since I had gotten a chance to run hard, and I relished every second of it. Wednesdays recovery "easy" run was harder than the hard run. I even tried it twice, and twice threw my arms up in defeat after 30 minutes. But I tried, and felt so much better that evening because of it.

This morning, I met up with 3 lovely ladies from dailymile for a group run. Coach wanted me to run a zone 2, conversational pace. Weeellll my heart rate had different ideas, but I assure you I was conversational. My mouth runs as much as my feet do some days. We talked about a whole slew of things, from kids to running (no surprises there!) but the consensus of the running talk today was that we all never imagined we'd end up where we were now: in love with running. And as I came upon the last mile in an easy, wonderful 9 mile run, I remembered the days when 1 mile was a huge struggle. Those days when I dreaded lacing up my shoes because I knew the pain and struggle that lay ahead of me.

I've come so far.

I've been accused a lot lately of being addicted to running (by non runners of course). Well if I'm addicted to running, then I'm addicted to air. Because I need to breathe, and I need to run. In my eyes it's not an addiction, it's a necessity. Good runs, bad runs, fast runs, slow runs, fun runs, competitive runs, and everything in between. Running is my zen, the keel in my boat. I don't expect everyone to understand that, though I have a feeling most of you do. Running isn't just an addition to the chaos, running is what helps me conquer the chaos.

And so in the chaos that is my life, I am thankful for so many things. I am sure to count my blessings every single day and night. But no matter how long the list, I never forget to thank these crazy legs and feet for the amazing journey they continue to take me on. Without them, I wouldn't be the same person I am today, there is no doubt in my mind about that.

Sorry to get all Nicholas Sparks sentimental mushy on you folks today, haha. Happy running friends, enjoy your journey!

the post about my butt.

I've got a lot to discuss today, and all of comes right back to one thing: my butt. Let's begin, shall we?

1. Slow running kicks my butt.

I spent another week of zone 2 runs per coach's orders.

Now, let me just say, I am but a meager wanna-be at this point. I am still in school learning the ways of the body. I have only half-ass trained my way through my 4 marathons. When it comes to 5k's I get lucky, but for the most part, I don't know what I'm doing. Coach Jeff on the other hand, has been coaching athletes almost as long as I've been alive. He's an ex elite with more degrees and certifications than I can count. So when Coach tells me to do something, I do it. When he tells me that running slow now will make me run faster later, I believe him. Even if it feels like the most counterproductive thing I've ever done. I believe, deep down, this is gonna work, and make my first triathlon totally kick booty. Heck, even Mark Allen agrees, and he pretty much owns this sport, right?

Today was the most gorgeous day of 2010. Well, the most gorgeous day that I haven't spent trapped in a classroom that is. After a morning at the beach with the boys (yes, go ahead and hate me, I paid my dues spending 21 years in New England, haha), I set out for a 1 hour, zone 2 run. It was BEAUTIFUL. So beautiful, I was nearly skipping to the music on my ipod instead of running. That is, until the Garmin yelled at me. Don't skip, Heather, it gets you too excited. *sigh*.

Every time I started to fall into a zone, my legs tried their darnedest to fall into theirs. And then the Garmin would yell at me again. HEART RATE TOO HIGH it shouted (ok, beeped) at me. The more time that went on, the slower my legs were forced to go to stay in the zone. At one point, I was CRAWLING along at a 10:30 pace, and the stupid Garmin told me I was going to fast. So, as per instructed by coach, if I can't get my heart rate down, walk. Do you know how silly I felt having to stop and walk on a run when i wasn't even tired? I couldn't help but laugh.

Maybe I need to lay off the caffeine.

On these long slow runs I try to picture the Krebs cycle in my body like a bunch of newbie assembly line workers. Completely inefficient, but with all of this zone 2 training they will be kicking butt in no time. Look out, bonus checks! No seriously, I try to imagine that months from now, I will be at my "comfortable" pace of mid 8's to 9's , but in zone 2.

And months from now, I will look back and laugh at how slow running kicked my butt SO much more than regular running ever did.

Alas, this week the training really begins, and I'm sure by the time my next zone 2 run rolls around I'll be very thankful!

2. cycling HURTS my butt

SERIOUSLY you guys, when do you get used to this? I'm sorry but these padded tri-shorts are a joke. Kind of like someone throwing me one of Rowen's arm swimmies if I was drowning in the ocean. Thanks for the well meaning gesture, buuuuttt....I'm still drowning.

Thursday night called for a 90 minute spin. I was super excited as a) I love my new bike, and b) the kids went to bed early, so I could ride my bike and enjoy a little MTV in peace. Well, while my enthusiasm did not waiver, I'm not going to lie that when Rowen came downstairs BEGGING for a sippy cup at the 45 minute mark, I was super excited to get OFF of that darn seat.

When I bought my bike, I tried out a couple different seats. I chose one specifically designed for women, with a groove in the seat that the bike shop guy assured me would prevent my lower extremities from going numb (preventing pinched nerves I'm guessing?) That's nice and all, and I'm sure some day I'll appreciate it, but for now, a numb leg would have been a welcome distraction from the bruises I now have in the nether regions.

Are you noticing a trend here? Patience, Heather, work on your patience. All in good time, you will be faster and have buns of steel, resilient to any amount of time in the saddle!

3. What's a princess to do with her butt?

2 weeks from today is the Disney Princess Half marathon. I am SO excited. But in true princess fashion, I am torn. Whatever shall I wear? Holly and I spent a few hours last weekend picking out supplies and crafting our very own princess tutus. They are AMAZING. Now, I realize that this idea is far from original, and I will surely be one of thousands of tutu-ed runners,but really, when else will I have this opportunity? That's what I thought. Plus my tutu is way better than everyone elses. I'm just saying.

But, as the race day gets closer, and the disappointment from the cancellation of Myrtle Beach half marathon lingers, I'm debating my strategy for race day. I'd like to set a PR. I'd also like to run in a tutu and stop for photo ops with all of the characters. But then again...I'd like to set a PR.

SO, rambling aside, anyone know where I can get a **HOT PINK** running skirt? You know, in case I go for the try and PR option (I'm telling you this tutu ain't gonna cut it if I need to focus, haha). Does anyone have the pink skirt from http://www.runningskirts.com/ ? It says "Haute pink" but really, how "haute" is it? Becuase it's gotta match my shoes.

Quit snickering guys, this is the PRINCESS half marathon. Let me be girly for once.

Happy running my friends!

my first bike crush

So as we already established, Myrtle Beach half marathon was a total bust, thanks to mother nature. If nothing else, the lack of racing gave me a head start on the second mega event of my weekend: shopping for my first "big girl" bike.

I've been talking about getting a road bike for years now. But something always came up. Namely, I kept getting pregnant, haha. The baby factory is now closed (you can quote me on that one!) and this year was finally to be my year to buy a bicycle. The whole family was on board for me to make one decent sized purchase. An investment, I like to call it. In case you haven't heard me say it before, I justify these large purchases with the fact that I'm not a bag girl. You know, like really ridiculously priced purses: dooney and bourke, coach, Louis Vuitton whatever the latest "in" designer is. If that's your thing, more power to you. I personally couldn't tell the $20 back alley knock off from the $400 real thing. Instead, I carry around my old reliable $20 billabong purse form pacsun and spend my hundreds on permission to run the streets of someone else's town while volunteers hand me dixie cups of Gatorade. Whatever puts a smile on your face my friends, that is what it's all about!

But regardless of finally having the go ahead from all ends of this deal, I was a little hesitant to go bike shopping on my own. Every one of my well meaning friends have given me suggestions on what to look for, what to stay away from, and so on when it comes to bike shopping. The funny part was, I had no idea what they were talking about. Components? What components? So just as I enlisted the help of my Dad the first time I walked into a car dealership to buy my first brand new car, I called upon my very experienced cyclist sister and brother-in-law to supervise my first serious bike purchase (i.e, not from Target or Walmart).

So now that we've got that rambling preface behind us, Saturday morning Holly, Jim, and I headed down to Grand Strand Bicycles in Murrells Inlet SC. I could ramble on for pages and pages raving about the AMAZING customer service that I was given here. Seriously, if you are a local to the Grand Strand area, or even in town visiting, don't even THINK about going anywhere else, go visit Mary, Tim, and the crew at GSB. I never felt pressured or overwhelmed for a second. The staff was so knowledgeable, and didn't even laugh at me with all of my silly questions or newbie cluelessness. They spent at least a good 3 hours with me, doing everything from a thorough bike fitting, to teaching me how to use my new trainer (Cycle Ops Super Magneto Pro), how to clip out so I don't bust my ass (yet assuring me it's gonna happen anyways), teaching me how to shift and what the different gear rings meant, and even showing me specific workouts/exercises I can do to help build my cycling strength.

The bike fitting was awesome. I started out feeling pretty uncomfortable on my bike, to feeling like I could ride all day. (well, other than the sore butt, but at as you can see from my butt imprinting on the left here, I was fit on the proper sized seat. Really didn't expect that one, ha!)

After an afternoon that actually exhausted me a little bit (seriously, I'm NOT a cyclist! yet...) I left the bike shop, proud owner of a brand new shiny black Specialized Allez Sport, with all of it's special parts switched around to fit me personally. To show you even more newbie status, I have no idea if it's the compact, triple, or double model, because I don't' even know what that means.

But I do know that he or she still without a name is BE-A-U-TIFUL!

That night after the kids went to bed (these little hands are still WAY too fascinated by the shiny new toy mom brought home) Holly and Jim gave me another basic run down on clipping in and out, and shifting. Because the next morning, less than 24 hours after purchasing my bike, I was headed on my very first open road organized bike ride. The Michelob Ultra Bike Rides, a part of the Myrtle Beach Marathon weekend that wasn't canceled.

dun dun dunnnnn!

I was so excited about my new bike that I didn't have time to be nervous. It wasn't until we were suited up and getting ready to ride, when I had my full blown panic attack. Holly brought me over to an empty parking lot near the starting line to practice riding/clipping in before the official ride. It was then I realized that clipping in and out while secured on a bike in a bike trainer is WAY easier than real life, hahaha. After a few deep breaths and reassuring words from Holly, I learned the art of the back peddle to get myself going and took off around the parking lot.

Finally feeling ready, we lined up at the back of the pack. And when I mean back, I mean I was the LAST person to go. I didn't want any pressure. Oh, and did I mention the race started on a HILL?? Ok ok, to most of you that's barely a blip in the radar, but it scared the crap out of me. Much to my surprise, just as Mary from GSB told me, riding this bike felt like riding a rocket ship compared to my clunky old Schwinn. I didn't even feel the hill :)

The first few miles of the ride consisted of me riding my breaks down the backside of that minuscule hill, getting off the bike to walk across rail road tracks, and slowly taking corners. The next few consisted of me learning why I should invest in a pair of boot covers, and Holly convincing me that feeling would return to my fingers and toes, you know, eventually (it was a balmy high 37 degrees, somewhat windy morning). Before I knew it, we were at the 7 mile turn around (there was a 14.2 mile ride, 33.5, and 60 mile option. We were registered for 33 but due to the weather and new bike situation, we opted for the 14). The second half was a breeze. Holly and I picked up the pace on the way back, I actually shifted gears for once (ha!) and we passed many people in the back of the pack, working our way to a solid mid pack finish.


Seriously, I was almost as excited to finish this ride as I was when I finished my first marathon. I did it! And I am in LOVE with my new bike. I never imagine riding a bike could seem so effortless. Which of course means I need to go faster, but I'll deal with those details as I gain some more experience, haha.

I also didn't fall. I do realize that this means I'm bound to eat pavement any day now, and I'm not a "true cyclist" until I fall once or twice (or so I've been told). If it's any consolation, on the way back, I clipped out with my right foot at the railroad tracks and tried to put my left foot down, haha. I almost ate it, but quickly recovered. I'm thankful for all that time I spent pretending to be an Olympic Figure Skater wearing socks on the kitchen floor growing up. Triple axles I have not, but it sure gave me some decent balance.

So yeah, watch out Lance. Momma's got a brand new bike, and I'm coming for you and that crazy VO2 max. Ok maybe not, but we couldn't pass up the photo op!

I registered for the CCU triathlon April 18th. It's getting more official by the day.

Swim, bike, and RUN STRONG my friends!

(un)Lucky 13 - part one

I don't even know where to begin with this one. For those of you that haven't heard yet, the 2010 13th annual Myrtle Beach Marathon and half marathon were canceled due to snow. About 3-4 inches to be exact, none of which was accumulated on the roads by race morning.

Needless to say, people are angry. Read the hundreds of comments following any of the online articles regarding this weekends events, or the race's facebook page and you'll see the tension. We've got angry runners who spent a lot of money to get here, and a lot of time training, in conditions much worse than this. Then we've got the locals. There are the ones who think that the runners are being a big bunch of babies, and the ones who are shaking their heads because the City of Myrtle Beach has once again shot themselves in the foot when it comes to pleasing tourists. A classic case of biting the hand that feeds you. Anyone familiar with the Harley bike week controversy going on around here knows exactly what I'm talking about.

I really don't want to go into politics here on my blog, but let's just say as a member of a household that relies on the tourism and service industry for their income, and who also lost thousands of dollars this year due to the lack of visitors during bike week, you can infer which side of the fence I'm on when it comes to our local government, and whom I believe they really have in their best interest.

All politics aside, many of you commented and emailed me asking what I think about all of this. So here's what I think:

I think I'm totally on the fence about this one. Dissapointed, angry, upset, and somewhat understanding. I think I'm glad I'm not the race directors. I think they were put in an impossible situation. As a resident of Myrtle Beach by way of Vermont, I can assure you that people in this area DO NOT know how to react to snowfall. In the 7 years I've lived here, I've seen maybe a dusting or two of snow. And during that dusting, the city shuts down. Yes, it's ridiculous, but it is what it is. I laugh at some of you and your so-called "heat waves". But what it all boils down to , is nothing we've had down here recently even compares to the 3+ inches we received Friday night. The truth of the matter is no one could know what the road conditions were going to be like Saturday morning, and this town does NOT have means of handling the possible conditions (no plows, etc).

The race directors stated Friday evening that they believed they would still be able to carry out the race safely, but the ultimate decision was left to the city officials. The city officials were the ones who deemed the race course unsafe at 10 pm the night before the race. I was obviously not at any of these meetings, so I can't vouch that the race officials fought with everything they had to try and keep this race scheduled. I will , however, give them the benefit of the doubt and recognize that without the city's support, the race couldn't have gone on. They were between a rock and a hard place, no doubt.

Much of the course is only "closed" off by plastic orange cones separating the traffic from the runners and the cars...likely full of drivers who are inexperienced in driving in these conditions. Now that everyone is safe and no one was plowed over by a car possibly hydroplaning across some slush, it is very easy for people to say that this was a ridiculous decision and that the bad drivers should have just "stayed off the roads" (yes I actually saw that comment). I wonder what the forums and comments would be saying if and unfortunate situation did happen and a car blew through the middle of the pack taking out who knows how many people. YES a little slush is nothing to bat an eye at up North. Down here, people can't even drive in the rain, never mind the snow. It is what it is.

That said, I was incredibly disappointed when I woke up race day morning to this site: Snowy grass and dry roads. No ice, nothing even close.

Arguing the case, as some have, that they should close down the ENTIRE road, because after all big cities such as Chicago and Boston do, is a mute point. There has never been a problem with this set up before, and honestly how were the race directors ever to imagine that we would get this crazy, once a decade snow fall on the night before the marathon. Really.

I DO think city officials should have allowed the possibility of delaying the race start by a few hours. Come on people, I LIVE and WORK in Myrtle Beach, and I promise you the ONLY thing going on this weekend is the marathon. It's not like it's mid July and having the roads closed a few extra hours is going to seriously hurt the city. It's not, because if none of these people were here for the race in the first place, the streets would be a ghost town, just like it is the the rest of January and February.

A town that thrives on tourist dollars must cater to those tourists. End of story. Spoken, again, from a resident of this city.

There are talks of refunds/reimbursements/etc. I personally come from the understanding that when I sign up for an event like this, I run the risk of losing the money due to unforeseen circumstances. It's just the way it goes. Read the fine print, when you click that little button on active.com you agree to this. Would it be nice if the City would fork over some of the money to allow the race directors to offer some kind of (hopefully large) discount towards next years race? Yes, that would be fantastic. But I'm not going to pretend I know exactly how the financial part of organizing a race works, and from what I understand, over half a million dollars of this not-for-profit race has already been spent.

So that's where I stand, I guess.

It sucks. I am just as disappointed as the rest of you. I love this race and was really looking forward to it. I am not surprised by the city of Myrtle Beach's actions (not saying they were the right actions, just saying, I'm not surprised). Will I be back next year? Yes. Would I come back if I spent thousands of dollars to travel and stay here for a race that never happened? Nope.

One thing I love about runners, is that you can cancel their race, but you can't break their spirits. MANY kudos to the HUNDREDS of runners who showed up at the race start Saturday morning and ran the race regardless. Even more kudos to the city workers who showed up at the still set up finish line to hand out medals to those runners. I think that is fantastic. I'm kicking myself for not thinking of going. Holly and I did suit up and run our own little race in my neighborhood, on the dry roads. Highlight of the run was the guy outside playing with his family in the snow who asked if this was the marathon course, hahaha. Yes, we are the lead runners, you should see the other 5,000 in a few seconds here, haha.

We had a great rest of the weekend, and all of those details will come in part two. I bought bike, and I'm entirely too giddy about it :)

snowy paradise

I don't have a ton of time to post, but I had to share with you guys...so I'll just let this video I made for dailymile do the talking. (and if you aren't on dailymile yet, JOIN US!! ). Ohhh this is going to be fun :)

6 and counting...where it all started.

You know how every year at family gatherings, your grandma or crazy uncle will tell the SAME story she or he tells every year. And every year, you laugh and reminisce as if it's the first time you've heard the story, even though in reality it seems you've heard it a million times before. It never gets old. That's how I feel about the story of "how I started running". If I've told it once, I've told it a million times. But that time of year is approaching (no, not Thanksgiving, but the Myrtle Beach Marathon), and since this blog wasn't' created yet by this time last year, I believe it's time to make it a million and one. Here's my story

My introduction to road racing was completely backwards.

Fall 2004-my older sister Holly asked if my younger sister Cathy and I would run the Myrtle Beach half marathon with her that February (2005). I lived in Myrtle, and it could be a fun sister weekend. Cathy and I agreed, and before we knew it, Holly had registered us both for the race. Well, even though 5 month seemed FOREVER at the time, it passed in the blink of an eye. And before I knew it, race weekend had approached. My training had consisted of about two days of 3 mile runs on my apartment complex's gym treadmill, in a sheer panic of "what the heck am I getting myself into".

Man I hated running.

But race day morning, I pulled out my Nike's, which I had worn around for at least a good two years (hey, they still looked nice!) and toed the start line next to my sisters. Now, Cathy, the youngest sister and equally as unprepared as I was, had a theory that she could not stop running. If she stopped, she would never start again, and so she took off. We never saw her again. Holly and I, on the other hand, took the "run/walk" approach, which really worked well for me. I felt great.

Holly and I jibber jabbered away like we always do (as anyone who has been in a room with all of the Gannoe women will tell you, we like to talk. A lot.) Somewhere around mile 4 Holly pulled a surprise on me. That surprise was called Strawberry GU. Now as you recall, I was NOT a runner, and had no flipping idea what I was doing out there. Nutrition? What do you mean? Holly told me to open it up and eat it. Easy enough, right?

I bet you every single one of you can remember your first GU or gel. The consistency and the taste is NOTHING like you expect. Hopefully some of you went into the experience expecting it to taste less than ideal, but not me. Nope, I didn't even have that going for me. I took one big mouthful and almost tossed my cookies. Next thing I knew I had a long string of GU hanging off my chin while I nearly cried "WHAT DID YOU JUST MAKE ME EAT EWWWW" to my sister, who proceeded to laugh her a$$ off at me.

We ran/walked along having a great time. Somewhere around mile 10, I really needed a port-a-potty stop. I saw one about 300 yards ahead so I told Holly I was going to sprint ahead, but when she got there, she would wait for me. I ran, used the porta-potty (ah welcome to the world of racing!) jumped out and looked for Holly. NO where to be seen. I waited. And waited. And waited. Nothing.

So I did what anyone looking for a lost pal would do...I started to backtrack on the course searching for her. I got about 15 "you are going the wrong way!" shouts from well meaning spectators (did they really think I didn't realize that?) before a helpful volunteer stopped me. "Hey, are you looking for Holly?" (I knew these customized shirts Holly made us would come in handy!) I told the man yes, and he told me "Oh yeah she passed by here a long time ago".

UGGH. I took off RUNNING. I mean, really running, faster than I had in probably 5 years since I left high school. Fueled a little by frustration, and more so by the feeling of "oh crap, I have no idea what I'm doing out here and I'm stranded all alone at mile 10 of a half marathon, someone save me!!". I ran and ran, hurt my foot landing funny in a pot hole, but kept running, until just before mile 12 I spotted Holly. At that point, I was in such a state of exhaustion and frustration that I told her I couldn't slow down. I had taken up Cathy's mentality of "if I stop now I'll never start again".

And so I ran. Those last 1.1 miles hurt. BAD. But I finished my very first half marathon, and thus, created my very first horrible finishing line photo. Please enjoy for your entertainment:

2005 Myrtle Beach Half Marathon Finisher!

Look at that face! I look like a fish out of water gasping for breath. I crossed the finish line, barely, and was given my very first finishers medal (if only I knew then what an addiction that little piece of metal and ribbon would be). 2:41:01 I found my little sister, standing completely nonchalantly on the side of the finishers chute, wearing her medal and holding a Gatorade for me. By the looks of it I would have guessed she finished hours a head of me and not just 3 minutes earlier. We waited for Holly, who finished 3 minutes after I did.

We hobbled (well, I hobbled) over to get some post race food, and all I can remember is the overwhelming urge to take my shoes off ASAP. eventually we made it home, where I encountered the stairs to my third floor apartment, that now looked something comparable to mount Everest.

I couldn't walk very well for a week after that. My boss, whose wife had properly trained for the half marathon that year, made fun of me and shook his head in that "you are an idiot" way for the entirety of the week.

But I finished my first half marathon. I certainly did not get hooked on running that day, that week, or even that month. But a tradition had started, one that would eventually fuel a passion I never knew I had. A tradition more fun to the Gannoe girls (well, at least 2/3 of us) than a yearly weekend in Vegas or on a cruise ship.

Holly and I have participated in the half marathon every year since. Some years we have added in the 5k on Friday or the bike rides on Sunday, and some years Cathy has jumped back in to join the fun (although I don't really think she finds this stuff as "fun" as we do, but she is certainly a good sport!). I can promise you I won't live in Myrtle Beach forever. But I have a feeling that no matter where we are in the country, Holly and I will find our way back to Myrtle Beach every February for our race!

2006-about 2 months pregnant with Rowen (surprise!) Holly had hurt her knee, and I was feeling less than stellar, so we walked....with our custom made "I'm knocked up" and "I'm broken" shirts. We got a few comments for those ones, haha

2007-Holly and I ran the 5k and the half marathon together. We had a blast as usual

2008 - surprise! (Again!) Pregnant. About 5 or 6 weeks to be exact, as in I just barely found out before the race. But I ran my 3rd fastest half marathon (just barely over 2 hours). It was a great temporary finish to my running, because at the end of that weekend I was run over by the morning sickness train, and didn't participate in anything athletic, unless you consider running to the bathroom to toss my cookies a sporting event.

2009 - Post baby Kain. Well if you didn't read that story....you can read it here. As you can tell by my face it was, uhh, less than ideal, haha

So here we are, approaching the 2010 Myrtle Beach half marathon. Year #6 for us. My training was sidelined for the month of January with a foot injury, so hopes of a P.R. are certainly gone. Hopes of a really fun time are not. I get more and more excited for this race every year. I feel like a kid on Christmas Eve waiting for Santa!

Is anyone else running the Myrtle Beach full or half marathon this weekend? Say hi if you see me in my hot, neon pink shoes! (Really, they are bright!)

Happy running (and racing!) friends!

The struggle

Every now and then I get side-swiped by the "reality" truck. I'll be cruising along with my crazy chaotic life, and then out of nowhere, the reality truck will swerve out in front of me and try to throw me off course. I stumble a little, but I get back up, and keep moving forward.

Today was a rough day. I woke up with two incredibly cranky kids who didn't sleep well the night before, and for some reason or another clung to me like little koala bears on tree branches. I caved and skipped my first two classes, which is something I avoid at all costs. School is expensive after all, so I want to get the most out of it (wow I sound so grown up!). But my babies needed me today, and as always, I will drop whatever is necessary for them.

I did eventually remove the koala toddlers (they were easily swayed with an extravagant lunch made by Daddy) and headed in for work and my once a week biomechanics lab. Got to school only to find that the lab report I spent hours on the day before wouldn't print out at the computer lab . My file, emailed to myself and backed up on a junk drive, was "corrupt". I have no earthly idea what that means in the computer world, but I'll tell you what it means in my world: I had to show up to class WITHOUT my lab report. Furthermore, I had to give the lame ass reason that "the printer didn't work" making me look like a) a slacker and b) a procrastinator for waiting until the last minute. So maybe the later was the truth, but I still hated it.

Motherhood: 1 Heather: 0

This evening my school hosted an informational session about the upcoming triathlon. The USAT coach hosting the meeting was very informative. At one point, as could be expected, the topic of Ironman distance races came up, along with the incredible amount of training they require. Without any hesitation, the coach looked at the classroom full of young college kids and said "but if any of you want to do an Ironman, now is the time in your life to do it" along with something about having a lot of free time, blah blah blah.

Bam, there goes the reality truck, in the LAST place I was expecting it. Knocked me right down.

I may be an idiot for having this obsession with finishing an Ironman when I've never done a triathlon period, but I'm not an idiot when it comes to realizing how much of a HUGE time commitment training for one is. But in the back of my head, I've always had the the idea that it's not impossible. Nothing is impossible. It seems there is always a story of a new mom out there training away and finishing an Ironman with a smile on her face and her cute little toddlers crossing the finish line by her side. There is no reason I can't be one of them.

But lately, I've been struggling with guilt. Guilt of two types really. Some days I feel guilty for the time I take away from my family. Rich is incredibly supportive of me in every way. Not only does he watch the boys all day so I can chase my dreams at school, but he sacrifices the free time we do have together so I can go do hours of training for a measly sprint triathlon. And when I get back from one of those two events, he's off to work. Most nights I'm fast asleep before he gets home. My family makes huge sacrifices for me, and I never want to take that for granted. I never want to take my babies, and the fact that they will only be such cute little babies for a short period of time, for granted.

Then, there is the guilt I feel over NOT feeling guilty. How's that for a head scratcher? Seriously, most of the time I do not feel guilty for taking the time to pursue this hobby. It's good for my health, mentally and physically, and both of those aspects not only benefit me but my they benefit my family as well. A happy mom equals a happy family, right? My boys are young. Yes, they notice when I'm not there, but not nearly like they would if they were older, and I was missing a soccer game to go to class, or a science fair because I have a training run. I'd rather this chaos now rather than later. And after all, it is this healthy lifestyle that allows me to go to school and work all day, run for an hour or two, and STILL have the energy to chase my kids in circles, build lego spaceships and Thomas the Tank engine train tracks, and giggle over hide and seek games. Who can feel guilty about that? But , it is written somewhere in the mom handbook that if you dont' feel guilty for doing something for yourself, then you are doing something wrong. I think I ripped that page out and burned it, but it still lingers in the back of my head.

The realistic mom in me tells me to wait this Ironman dream out. Kain, my baby, will go off to college when I'm still at the ripe young age of 44. I'll have an empty house and PLENTY of time to sit on the bike trainer all damn day if I choose. Until then, I have babies to raise and an income to bring in, not to mention a college degree to finally finish earning. But the true Heather, the one with the crazy competitive personality, the one who has always thrown the realistic ideas out the window, can't stop thinking about it. Yeah, I want to do this first sprint triathlon just to do a triathlon. But I'd be lying if I didn't say it's really only the first step in a much bigger picture for me. I like to make 5 year plans, and in my 5 year plan, I see a 140.6 finish line.

The realistic mom in me realizes that 99% of you are going to tell me that I have plenty of time, that I will get there one day, and that I need to focus on the here and now. And I get that, and appreciate your comments in advanced. But what I'm really looking for are the other 1% of you...the IronMOMS and DADS, to tell me how you do it. Tell me if you struggle with these thoughts too. Tell me how you do it.

Alas, the reality truck didn't cause any permanent damage. A little feeling of temporary defeat, maybe, but in all honesty I wouldn't change my situation for anything. My kids are the greatest blessing I have ever been given, and I will make sure they always know that. And for now, I'll keep moving forward, but I have a feeling there is only one cure for this fever. And it isn't more cowbell...

**THANK YOU so much for all of the kind words and support so far! I just wanted to add, before anyone thinks I'm totally off my rocker, that this Ironman business wouldn't begin until I am done with school (1.5 more semesters to go!)

The Sunday Review

Welcome to the Sunday Review, the post where I share some more kick butt gear that I think you need to know about!

So let me start off by saying, my camera died. I thought it was merely the battery, but no, the whole camera, kaput. Needless to say, with the number of times the little munchkins have gotten their grubby little fingers on it, I'm not surprised. Alas, it is over 2 years old, which in my history of digital camera ownership is nearly a record. Point being, you'll have to forgive me for the stock photos here.

BornFit-Apparel to fit your active mom life

BornFit is a line of women's workout wear, created by two fit Colorado moms, and inspired by the Rocky Mountain peaks they love to hike. Not only does this company offer wonderful women's active wear for the running mommy-to-be (Like my pal Bethany who just found out she's got another little bun in the oven! Congrats B!!!) but it turns out they have a great line of workout wear for the rest of us non knocked up pregnant women!


The lovely ladies at BornFit sent me a "Sunlight Tee" to try out. Mine is a really beautiful shade of teal, but again, my camera didn't show up for work this week, so please refer to the model on your left in the pink shirt instead. As I always do when new gear shows up in my mailbox, I put the shirt on the second I pulled it out of the envelope (good thing I wait till I get inside to open my mail.)

The first thing I noticed about this shirt was it's relaxed, longer cut. Now, I've busted my rear end to keep my post two babies in two years body in (somewhat) shape, and I like to show it off, usually with a little more form fitting clothing. Yet the Sunlight tee, despite being roomier and forgiving in the bottom, was still incredibly flattering. Bonus points for the Bornfit people, keeping the running mama's looking stunning!!

The bottom part of the shirt, as you can probably see in the picture, is mesh. Not 1980's see through mesh, but a breathable mesh, making the feel of the shirt really light. And the moisture wicking fabric does it's job, just as it should. There is a small bornfit logo out of reflective material, to add a little safety to your run.

What I appreciate the most, is the basic designs and color schemes of this line. Nothing too flashy, no crazy designs or patterns. While we all like to be a little crazy sometimes (heck, check out my neon pink sneakers, I certainly love a chaotic outfit every now and then), the born fit line offers basic high quality products that will work for every woman. Honestly, I'm kicking myself for not discovering them back in my pregnant days! I'll just have to apologize to myself by ordering a Wilder Skirt and asking myself for forgiveness (retail therapy usually does the trick).

So pregnant mamas looking for something cute, comfortable, and non frumpy to fit that ever expanding belly, non pregnant mamas looking for some workout wear to flatter your mama figure, or even non mommy's looking for some great quality workout wear (for running, yoga, cycling, golf, and more!), be sure to check out http://www.bornfit.com/



Next up: Black Diamond Sprinter Headlamp


The wonderful people at Backbone Media sent me this headlamp over two months ago, and I had yet to give it a try. Other than running through the complete dark (despite promised lit roads) at Beach2Battleship, I've never done any night running. I figured the headlamp would give me a headache, would bounce around like crazy in turn driving ME crazy, and last but not least, the bouncing beam of light in front of me would, you guessed it, drive me crazy.

Thursday day flew by in the blink of an eye, and I still hadn't gotten in my run for the day. So I figured it was now or never, let's give this night running business a whirl. I LOVED it. There is something so relaxing, yet empowering about running at night. No wonder the rest of you all rave about it!

Now, as I already mentioned, this is all new to me, so I have nothing to base the Sprinter headlamp against, but I will tell you this: I forgot it was even on my head. It was super comfortable and didn't even budge, and gave off a nice, steady, wide area of light, as opposed to what I imagined would be like a flashlight beam coming off of my forehead. What's more, it has a flashing red light on the back as to alert drivers and crazy wildlife of your presence. It certainly made me feel safer.

Oh, and a bonus, this headlamp is rechargeable. Yes, no batteries to replace! I have two toddlers with a gaggle of toys that require about a million double A batteries, so to not have to worry about one more thing sucking up batteries with every use is a relief.

Here's what the people at Black Diamond have to say about it, for you techies:

The urban-inspired Sprinter opens up the dark for those whose running isn’t restricted to daytime hours. This rechargeable streets-to-trails runner’s headlamp features excellent fore-aft balance and a super low profile, which minimizes bouncing and shifting with your stride. A red rear strobe offers safety around cars while a strong, ovalized beam keeps your vision focused on the path ahead.
•DoublePower LED with 68 lumens (max setting) projects a strong, ovalized beam optimized for running
•Red taillight strobe for visibility in urban areas with on/off switch
•Powered by a lithium polymer rechargeable battery (6-hour charge time)
•Settings include full strength, dimming and strobe
•Regulated for constant illumination on max brightness setting
•Sealed waterproof to 1 m (3.3 ft)
LED Type : DoublePower
Lumens : 68
Max Distances : 50 m
Max Burn Time : 64 H
Weight Without Batteries : 100 g, 3.5 oz
IPX Rating : 7

Needless to say, I will never use the excuse "but it's getting dark out" again. Thank you Black Diamond, for reforming this "daytime only" runner!

and if you call in the next 19 seconds..

I've discovered a new weight loss secret. It was right under my nose this whole time. And because I've grown to love all of you, I'm going to share it with you today. Not for $89.99 or even two easy installments of $39.99. No, I'm going to give it to you for free...but only if you read the next paragraph in the next 60 seconds. (Or, you know, whenever you get around to it, the offer still stands)

Want to know how to get your body ready to rock a swimsuit this summer? Well forget summer, put your swimsuit on NOW, and get in the pool. Quit worrying about how your butt looks, swim a bunch of laps like you mean it, and then thank me come July.

(I'm practicing my kick butt personal trainer attitude, how's it working for you? Have I scared you to drop and give me twenty? No?)

Seriously though. I slacked off on my running last week, didn't even get to cycling, I just swam. And in just a week and a half of swimming, those extra 5 lbs of home cooked Christmas deliciousness (that I held onto for the month of January) disappeared. All of this while coming home STARVING and ransacking my kitchen for a feast. No wonder Michel Phelps eats like 12,000 calories a day and still has abs of steel. I love it! Really, I never would have guessed such a low impact sport would kick my bootie into shape so quickly. And believe me, it's kicking me, I'm exhausted!

However, I will not make it far (no further than the pool deck or lake shore) in the world of triathlon if I don't get out there and practice the bike and run. So last night I donned my headlamp and my heart rate monitor, and set out for my first ever heart rate zone based run, based on the zones determined from this week's VO2 max test.

In one 50 minute run last night, I realized why I have had 3 sucky marathons in a row. Because I don't know how to properly build up my endurance. Last night, zone 4 was the only zone Garmin and I got along , because during zone 2 & 3 it beeped at me and kept telling me to slow down. I'm not good at telling my body to pace itself. I go all or nothing most of the time, and then crash and burn. This is why 5k's seem to be my race of choice, and I've yet to come out of a full marathon with a smile on my face. So last night, I obeyed Coach Garmin and followed Coach Jeff''s plan, and tried my very best to stay in the prescribed zone, not worrying about how fast (or really, slow) I was running. And despite all of that, I had a fantastic run.

But you should have heard the Garmin yell at me and my heart rate when I came around the corner and faced off with a pack of wild, rabid raccoons. OK....maaaaybe they were little raccoons, and looked absolutely terrified to see this crazy woman with a bright light on her forehead running at them, but they certainly caused me to jump into a quick zone 6 (or something)! All of this mid day suburbia running has really softened me, ha.

And so the adventure continues...

Happy running my friends!

Drool Max test

a.k.a. adventures with VO2 max testing. I'm a little sad there aren't any pictures of myself to go a long with this post. You'll just have to use your imagination, haha.

A quick really, really basic review for those of you unfamiliar with a VO2 max test- there are various types of tests you can do (bike, treadmill, different protocols), but the concept is to determine the maximum amount of oxygen your body can consume while at work, and at what point your body goes from aerobic glycolysis (using oxygen) to anaerobic glycolysis (not using oxygen, and thus making that awesome stuff known as lactate that makes our calves and quads and whatever else scream at us with burning fiery pain, haha) The idea is that you can use this information to a) know how awesome you are at consuming oxygen so you can compare your numbers to Lance Armstrong, and b) use corresponding heart rates to determine proper training zones (if you are into the whole heart rate training methods).

Boy I hope I got that right, one of my professors reads this blog!

So for those of you who have been following for a little while now will remember, last semester I was given the opportunity to demonstrate a VO2 max test in my exercise physiology class. Of course, when my professor asked for a volunteer, I practically JUMPED up and down before anyone else could utter a breath...although I'm *pretty* sure you could have heard crickets chirping if not for my enthusiasm. Not a ton of people get giddy over the idea of the pushing yourself till you feel like puking on a treadmill in front of all of your peers. I am not obviously not one of those people! It was a great opportunity, and I was SO excited to take advantage of it. Long story short, after just a few minutes the test had to be called off because my heart rate just would not register on any of the monitors. The polar heart rate monitor strap was too big, and wouldn't stay put. I almost cried in class, I was so disappointed!

Fast forward to this semester. Coach Jeff wanted to gather my training heart rate zones, and I told him that I had access to doing a VO2 max test instead of doing a more basic, somewhat estimated calculations. And my awesome boss/lab coordinator/professor ordered a size small heart rate monitor strap. I asked to be tested, we set it up, and I was good to go for attempt #2 at my VO2 max test.

So anyway, for those of you unfamiliar with the test...you have to wear this big head piece that holds the mouth piece and tubes in place. Ours looks exactly like what this guy to your right is wearing. You shove a snorkel like mouth piece in your mouth that blocks any air from escaping, and then your nose is plugged. All of this breathing in and out of an open mouth that you can not close results in a lot of drool.

I knew you were wondering where the title of this post came in.

But have no fear! See the tiny little tube sticking down near his left pec? That is a spit trap. Part of my job at the lab includes cleaning other people's spit out of the spit trap. Yes spit trap is it's technical term (ok maybe not). Funny thing though...it seems my spit never made it to the spit trap.

I knew the test would be hard. I never imagine I would need a bib! After a few attempts at wiping my chin while running, I gave up and let the spit fly. Drool everywhere, down my chin, down my neck. All in the name of science and training right?

But back to the actual testing...I survived. Running with all of that stuff strapped to you really isn't as awkward as it looks, or first feels. You get used to it really quickly. And in my case, all of that plastic acted sort of like those blinders they put on horses to prevent them from getting spooked. It made me just zone out instead of focusing on the fact that I was about to be exhausted. And it was exhausting, and for a second I thought my lungs packed their bags and left me, but it wasn't nearly as horrible as some people make it out to be. Then again, I live for this sort of gut wrenching, breath stealing, endorphin producing stuff.

Looking back, I probably could have pushed just a *little* bit longer. The second I signaled that I was done, the words of a fellow endurance athlete friend rang through my mind. "when you feel like you can't go any further...hang on for 30 more seconds". Ah well. Next time!

For now, I have my numbers, which is what I had hoped for all along. ACSM ranks me as just barely excellent for my age/gender, but leaves me plenty of room for improvement. Watch out Lance Armstrong, I'm coming for you and your 85 mL/kg/min. Ok maybe not, but there's always room for improvement. Let's see if my genetics will allow for Superior status!

Happy running friends! Train hard, train happy, and get those VO2 max numbers up!

I'm gonna come at you like a spider monkey

I give myself a grade of C for week one of triathlon training. That's a breakdown of an A in the pool, C in the running department, and F- on the bike (because I never got on it).

I started with the best of intentions, like I always do. But my body had other ideas and I ended the week on the couch with a fever and general allover "ick" feeling, watching episode after episode of Kipper the Dog to keep the toddler rambunctiousness at bay.

I'm a firm believer in listening to your body when it tells you to rest, especially when it's "rest now" signals include swollen lymph nodes accompanied by alternating chills and hot flashes. So rest I did, but it did not take away from the giant slacker guilt I felt when emailing coach at the end of my very first week of training telling him I needed a "first week do-over". I skipped my tempo run and only bike ride scheduled for the week. Whine, whine, excuse excuse. I hate excuses.

Late yesterday afternoon, after doing laundry load #5 in the new washing machine (there's an adventure I forgot to tell you about...let's just say it involves a large taco bell cup and me emptying the washing machine like I was bailing out a dingy...good stuff!) I felt a surge of energy. Perhaps it was the new washing machine fumes, but I felt like a new person. As soon as Rich got home, I hopped in the car and took off to the gym. There was hope yet, I could end this first week of training on a good note with my scheduled 1 hour run.

Now one hour on the treadmill makes me shudder as much as the next person, but after doing a face plant on my back deck the other night, I wasn't taking any chances. Yes, ice, at the beach, in South Carolina. I don't remember that being on the travel brochures. So treadmill it was, and I was excited to test out my latest addition to the shoe family....
oooh ahhhh sooo preettty! Nike Free 5.0 V4's. I've been coveting a pair for a while now, so I was thrilled when the fed ex man finally dropped them off at my doorstep. Now I'm certainly a glutton for punishment for putting these puppies on and attempting an hour long run in them on their first day out of the box. I promised myself I'd stop if I felt even a twinge of pain. I never did. As expected, the minimal shoe caused me to step lighter, and it was nice to not have the normal "clunk clunk" of heavier shoes on the treadmill.

I've been emailing back and forth with a wonderfully helpful employee of Newton running regarding my foot pain. Long story short, from all sources it appears the foot pain I suffered from the past month was a direct result of my feet being "out of shape". Years and years of running in highly cushioned shoes has coddled my foot into not having to do any work when we are out for a run. Jumping into the Newtons, which are a much more minimal shoe with less cushion/heel lift, put that foot to work, and fast. Too fast (my fault). When Newton recommends that you start out "slow" with these shoes, I didn't realize exactly how slow they meant. 30 miles in two weeks wasn't slow enough.

So long story short, it was the Newtons that caused my pain, but they were no more at fault than the dumbbell that makes your shoulders hurt after you lift for the first time in a year, haha. I will not give up on them, and I am keeping them in the shoe rotation with the hopes of eventually steering away completely from the big, cushy shoes. While you probably won't see me running down the street in vibrams any time soon, I am very interested in the concept of barefoot running, and I'm continuing to do my research.

But back to the treadmill run. After I finally got dibs on one of the 2 out of 4 functioning treadmills at the gym (seriously, division one school, you need more than 2 functioning treadmills. Can I put a note on my next tuition check "must be used to buy treadmills"?) I ran an effortless hour. VO2 max test is tomorrow (yay!) but I ran at an "estimated" zone 2...about a 9:30 mile. In other words, the "I can go all day" pace. Well, all day if I wasn't on the treadmill...around the hour mark that thing makes me dizzy (reading the closed caption version of Lady Gaga and Sir Elton John's performance at the grammys probably added to the dizzying effects).

I went home on the highest running high I've had in a while. At 11:30 pm, while I was still jacked up on endorphins, I realized why I prefer to run in the mornings. Today, I'm tired. Which is why this post is the most scatter brained random thing I've probably ever written.

But the good news? My foot doesn't hurt. Not one bit.

Here's to an A+ week 2 of triathlon training.

Happy running my friends!