found this quote on Janae's blog:

"When we feel stuck...going nowhere....even starting to slip backward-we might actually be backing up to get a running start."

love it.  =]

PCHM

(or provo city half marathon for those of you who don't know)
i ran my first half marathon on saturday and i have to say that it was the hardest thing i have ever done in my entire life. my goal was to finish and in under 3 hours would have been nice. my official time was something like 3:03:17 (just ballparkin' it....=] )

so, close enough to 3 hours and i wasn't last! i think that means success.

i'm going to try to explain to you my thought process at about 

mile 4 and i might fail horribly so...bare bear with me. 

(also i might have to go into a tangent about the phrase "bare/bear with me" haha)

in order to help other understand my thought process, 

i guess i have to explain how the race went. 

i ran/jogged almost the entire first 3 miles to
the second water station. at that point i was
pretty tired and my muscles were a bit fatigued
(keep in mind i did almost no training didn't train
as much as i should have for this race)
so i started a brisk walk. from then until mile 11 it
was a steady switch off from jog to walk as i felt
was appropriate and then the rest of the race i just
wanted it to be over so i pushed myself and jogged to the finish.

so, when i initially started walking i started to be a bit disappointed in myself;

wanting to run the entire thing, 

wanting to pass this person, 

not let that guy pass me, etc. 

i quickly stopped that thought process by thinking 

"why?!" 

why do i care if i run the entire thing?
why does it matter if that guy (who is 50 lbs overweight) passes me?
why do i care if i pass that lady or keep up with those two?

my goal was to finish and there was no way that i was 

going to quit unless i passed out or broke a leg. 

besides, i bet they all trained for this more than i 

did so why should i compare myself to them? 

it was a really interesting experience bc i realized
that i really didn't care what people around me were doing.
sure, trying to keep with someone is a great way to push
yourself, i'm not saying it's bad, but i was pushing myself
by simply trying to go 13.1 miles without much training!
i could gauge my level of intensity bc i knew what i was
feeling, not what anyone else was feeling or what anyone
else had done to prep for the race. i decided to really take
some advice that my dad gave me and just relax and have fun.

i started looking around at the things around me 

and enjoyed going through a part of provo that 

i'm hardly ever in. i saw tons of yard sales and a 

little girl gave me a high five as i was running by 

and i saw a guy on a riding lawn mower except he 

was standing on this tiny platform on one wheel 

that was connected to the mower and well, ya i just 

had fun with what i was given. 

and then miles 5-9 went by pretty quickly. i always thought it
was dumb when people would say that parts of a marathon
went by really fast, not because they were running faster but
just because they got into a rhythm i guess....well, at about
mile 2 i was sure that was NEVER going to happen and that
this half marathon was going to last foreverrrrrrrr.....but, to
my surprise, it didn't!
ok, it wasn't all puppy dogs and rainbows.

at mile 10 i hit a serious wall and my hips were killing me. 

i didn't even give myself places to run to like i normally do, 

i was just going bc there was nothing else for me to do. 

i certainly wasn't going to stop after 10 miles. so the last 3.1 

miles were terribly painful and hard but I FINISHED!!!! 

and after crossing that line i wanted nothing more than to lay
in my bed and go to sleep. i don't know that i would classify
this experience as fun quite yet, tho i'm sure at some point i
will look back and think it was.

ok, i'm sorry for the intense novel, i know blog posts are much more fun when there are lots of pictures but i didn't take my camera & i just wanted to share my experience! here's me at the finish with two girls from my ward-tippe and lauren. lauren finished her first half in 2:17:45 and tippe finished around 2:5  these girls ROCK!!!!

picture post!

 this is after the workout with my brother when i biked/he ran 

then we sneakily switched and he gave me challenges along 

the way. it was like a game! you can see that post here

 and this is the crazy look on my face after i saw the first picture 

of how cherry-red and on the verge of death i look!

(i promise i'm not dying!!)

 zucchini oatmeal chocolate chip cookies! i actually added 

green food coloring as it was st patrick's day but they were delish!

 the st patty's day spread:

lime jello shots

irish soda bread (soooooo good!)

green fresh squeezed lemonade

zucchini oatmeal cookies

corned beef and cabbage 

(this will definitely be an annual tradition)

i would type out all the recipes but i'm just too lazy so i have 

linked them all in case you want to try these out!

now (drum roll please) the moment you've ALL been waiting for........

SPLASH 'N DASH!

ok, so i don't have that many pics of it and they're not 

that exciting but it was fun and a great workout!!

 puttin on my number - 718

 

yep-that's my proud excited nervous pose!
 

 gettin stoked!

yes that is me using all random crazy made-up 

strokes to get myself through the water. 

should've trained more....

 ok, not the best pic quality but 

had to get a quick transition picture!

you can tell im super excited to run soaking wet....

 

YESSSSSSSSS........best. feeling. ever. =]

i conquered the beginner splash 'n dash! woo!

now i just wanted to show off some of my most 

sweetest bestest friends. they make me o so happy =]

 this is tierre. she didn't know we 

were taking a silly picture!!

 

tierre, danielle, and me. 

we like to eat food.....

 

 ...like this salad!!

romaine lettuce, tomato, broccoli, and avocado. 

sooooooo yummy

 um ya...we were supposed to do funny poses and 

i tried i really did but danielle's funny pose was 

just too hilarious i couldn't keep it together. 

and tierre didn't even try.

and this is marissa! we also like to eat food. 

sensing a pattern here? 

if you are, i have no idea what you're talking about.

we have cooking adventures every sunday together. 

she's A-W-E-S-O-M-E!!

blog neglect

i promise i have a good reason! or maybe just an excuse. or excuses, i should say.
1) the past few weeks have been CRAZY.
2) the past few weeks i've had a crazy headache that i
think might be FINALLY going away (yay!!)
3) next week is finals week so...i guess that will be my
excuse for blog neglect until next..wednesday? possibly...

regardless, i have been found guilty of blog neglect. 

sad day! i think there's just so much i want to blog 

about and i keep getting overwhelmed into not blogging 

at all. also i haven't uploaded my pictures from, well, 

anything in the past month and i want pictures in my posts!

{fyi, i did just take a photo booth pic with my mac
but i woke up late and didnt actually get ready this
morning so i will save your eyes from the horror.
wish i could do the same for those in the library
right now...o well!}

i will say that splash 'n dash was AWESOME 

and i got the coolest t shirt! pics to come!! it was 

so fun, in fact, that about a week later (on a 

monday early in the morning-that's my excuse 

for the momentary insanity) i signed up for a 

-half marathon in provo on may 7th, 

-a beginner triathlon in st. george on june 4th, 

-and a sprint triathlon in park city on june 18th. 

i'm a nut....actually, i think i just get really ambitious in the
mornings and think i can conquer anything! i can, right?....
anyway, the next two months promise to be interesting!
however, as a result of my not feeling well and being crazy
busy i didn't work out at all last week. shame on me!
actually, my legs will just be hating me come half marathon
time and i will have to take lots of breaks during that race!
so, yes, this is my life.

i feel so bad saying i'm sooooo busy 

sometimes when people like Erin at See Mom Run Far find 

time to train for MARATHONS while raising 12, yes that's 

right, 12 children! i am just so amazed by her and her passion 

for running. it's contagious! read her post

How I "do it"- she's pretty much my hero!

one thing i really got from that is that she MAKES time to
do the things she loves and that is supremely important!
if i don't make time to run, i just won't do it and i know i
won't feel as great as i do if i had ran. (makes sense, right?
in my brain it did...) anyway, i am recommitting myself to
working out every day and i hope you will too!

Will Smith on life

this is a-MAZ-ing. his crazy positive outlook on life is
infectious and can apply to exercise as well as...well, anything!




i have a new-found LOVE of will smith :)

12-Week Swim Workout Plan for Sprint Triathlons | Active.com

12-Week Swim Workout Plan for Sprint Triathlons | Active.com

busy as a beaver

i feel like mondays and tuesdays will never be work out days. (at least not this semester)
i start each day at 8am and have evening classes both days. i'm basically on campus all
day and always have something to do.

fyi splash n dash is in 11 days. i've got to get my butt in the pool so i don't drown! 

honestly since i've just barely started swimming i'm just making the goal now that 

i will not stop in the water. o boy, i feel like that might even be too much to ask but 

that's what i'm goin for! 

i am very strongly considering going to the pool tomorrow at 6am in hopes
that there will be less people and i can focus on relaxed breathing rather than
worry about what people are thinking of the crazy air gasping girl in the black
swimsuit. (that would be me) so that means bedtime will be early tonight!!!

what do you do when you feel you 

have no time to exercise but really want to??

se me olvidó...(i forgot...)

i forgot to include muses from yesterday's workout!
¡lo siento! (español for i'm sorry) apparently i'm in a
spanish mood bc i sang the hymns today in church in
spanish with my friend who had a spanish hymnbook lol
ok anyway, muses from yesterday:

my brother-totally inspiring and amazing

i LOVE playing sports! so excited to play more football

i kind of realized that even after my legs were super 
fatigued from biking, i could still jog. 
i can do more than i thought i could =]

wow.

so yesterday i was a slacker. well, not entirely true, i didn't skip a workout
because i was too lazy, i skipped it bc i honestly had no time to go. so, i'll
chalk that one up as a rest day =]

today however was awesome!!! 

my ward is having a powder puff football game 

next week and today we had a practice but only 

4 girls from our team showed up....o well, more 

ball time for me! it was so fun to catch and throw a 

football again and just run like crazy from someone 

trying to pull my flag (so, we didn't actually have 

flags to practice with but i was visualizing.) 

it was just a really fun morning. 

i love how playing sports can just bring such a joy and
happiness to exercising. it's like you don't really think
of it as exercising bc you're just playing around. that's
how it is to me at least, i just love playing football. so after
that practice i came home, did some laundry, and then went
out for a bike ride along side my running brother (who is
training for a 50 miler on March 26th) and that kid gives me
such motivation i can't believe it.

he is one of the hardest 

working people i know and

there is no way to stop him 

when he has a goal in mind 

(particularly if it has to do 

with running-he just loves it). 

he also has some of the most 

amazing stamina and endurance 

i've ever seen and i wanna be just 

like him when i grow up! 

haha, well i'm pretty sure that will never happen but he really is a
great example of hard work and perseverance and i just can't say
enough great things about him. he's my older brother, what can ya do?
so at some point during this run/bike ride we switched positions.
it was completely unintentional on my part but maybe he was being
sneaky. i got off the bike at a hard part where i just couldn't go
anymore and, like a gentleman, he pushed the bike so i could focus on
not falling over. anyway, once we got to a flat/downhill part he got on
and rode slow next to me. then i had to start jogging a little to keep up.
definitely a sneaky little maneuver! anyway, he would give me little
challenges like jogging to the top of this hill or past that funny looking
rock and it was fabulous. i still can't believe my legs were still moving
at that point but it was great to have a motivator there right by my side.

at one point after he gave me my next challenge i 

said,"o goody cuz my legs are on fire!" his response 

was,"good, fire is a good thing" lol 

so sympathetic, right?? 

but i kept goin and accomplished all my challenges
(at a snail's jogging pace, mind you)
and felt great afterward! i really can't say enough how
great exercising makes me feel though i don't know if
anyone would think "ya, legs on fire, thirsty, sweaty, and
tired all sound like really fun things right now." well, ok
maybe not when you say it like that! but seriously i get
such a high off working out i can't believe it!
it's the most amazing feeling and i can't even put it into words.

how would u describe the post workout 

high you get without using the word 'high'??

race across the sky

the leadville trail 100 is a mountain bike race with 14,000 ft of elevation
climb in 100 miles. this is just a teaser for the movie/documentary they
made on it in 2009 when Lance Armstrong beat out the 6 time winner
Dave Wiens. I own the full movie (it is absolutely worth the $30!!) and
let me tell you, after watching that you feel like you can do ANYTHING!

out of context

my chem professor said something interesting last week while givin a lecture.
he had a PowerPoint slide up of a practice problem we should work on/know
how to do. after seeing lots of the students sittin there not doing anything he said,

"if you don't know what to do, do something" 

I loved it and have been thinking about it ever since. That simple statement
can apply to lots of things in our lives including exercise. even if you don't
know what to do, do SOMETHING that will get you closer to your goal,
whether it be fit into a smaller swimsuit for the summer or run a marathon in
under 3 hours, as the chinese proverb goes,
"the journey of a thousand miles begins with one step".
you can't meet a goal if you never start!

so get out there and do something!!

new experiences

wow my workout was A-W-E-S-O-M-E.
(and yes, it was necessary for me to spell it out)

first of all, i need to tell you about the playlist i came 

up with for today's run. now, don't think me weird, 

but i specifically planned out what order i wanted 

these songs in to line up with my warm-up, stretch, 

work out, and cool down. there was no such thing as 

shuffle tonight! ok, here it is (with length of songs included):

Warm-up (brisk walk):
"The World's Greatest" R. Kelly (3:56)
"Rockstar" Hannah Montana aka Miley Cyrus (3:00)

Stretch:

"Just the Way You Are" Bruno Mars (3:40)

Run/Jog/Brisk Walk:

"The Space Between" Valencia (3:39)
"Stronger" Kanye West (5:12)
"Supermassive Black Hole" Muse (3:30)
"I'd Do Anything" Simple Plan (3:17)
"Show Me Everything You've Got" The Rocket Summer (4:48)
"Lifestyles of the Rich and the Famous" Good Charlotte (3:10)
"Forget You" Glee Cast Version ft. Gwyneth Paltrow (3:41)

Cool Down (quick walk, not quite as 

fast as the warm up or during work 

out but fast enough to keep your heart 

rate from dropping rapidly):

"Yellow" Coldplay (4:29)
"Fix You" Coldplay (4:55)

Grand Totals:

Warm-Up: 6:56

Stretch: 3:40

Work Out: 27:17

Cool Down: 9:24

There are just so many things I want to say about this playlist, 

I don't even know where to start. I know there are some pretty 

old songs on here plus some that make me sound like a 12 yr old 

girl however, they are good, upbeat, keep-you-goin songs that 

just help me during a run. 

What songs keep you going? 

Or do you prefer to not listen to music?

FYI: my run was interrupted by minor drink breaks, 

a bathroom break, and a 2 minute social break when 

i saw one of my friends and her fiancee (just thought 

you should know i DID take breaks. i'm not up to a 

level where i can't. just keepin it real peeps)

After my run I swam laps as promised! 

and HOLY CRAP i have this all new respect 

for professional swimmers. 

i honestly thought i would be fine, 

i was such a natural as a kid, but woah was i wrong! 

i probably only did 3 laps (6 lengths) and had to stop 

at the end of each length to catch my breath. i felt so 

dumb and probably looked it too, i just couldn't get in 

a rhythm of breathing. but that's what practice is for right??? 

so, having learned a lesson from tonight, my next
swimming adventure (hopefully tomorrow) will be
just that-a swimming adventure (i.e. no running first).
i'll get in the slow lane and take my time getting used
to breathing the right way during a freestyle stroke.
guess that's what i get for being over confident.
i am, however, extremely happy that i did it because
i worked some muscles down the sides of my upper
body and back that i didn't even know existed! yay!! 

tbs=heaven on my tongue.

ok, post work out meal included my typical TBS (triple berry smoothie) 

and an egg scramble. i had planned on having meatballs for dinner bc 

they're in my freezer.....but when i got home all i wanted was eggs. 

so, following my craving (bc i most always do!) i scrambled some eggs, salt, pepper, turkey (the lunch meat kind-hey, i'm a poor college student), 

provolone cheese, and salsa. mmmmmm it was a delicious meal. 

and now i am super excited to shower and go cuddle up in my bed!

finished product =)

in the process....

muses from today:

i am so terribly excited to work at swimming and 

get to the point where i feel comfortable doing it

craving healthy protein-filled foods after a workout

new playlists that give me a great beat!
i now smell like chlorine....i LOVE this smell!! =]

BYU freeplay schedule!

so, i was having the hardest time getting info 

on the facilities that are available to BYU 

students and when they are open online. 

i ended up going down to the RB and getting 

a little slip of paper with all the times on it. 

i am righting this wrong by publishing this 

information on the world wide web! 

although, i'm sure im not the first to do it....o well.

this is for this semester: winter 2011
apparently a wristband is required for use in all facilities
but...not quite sure where to get one of those. we'll see.
basketball: M-Th 6am-8am, 12pm-1pm; F, S 6am-10pm
volleyball: M-Th 6am-8am, 12pm-1pm; F, S 6am-10pm
pool: M-F 6am-7:15am, 7-9:50 pm; S 1pm-9:50pm
indoor track: M-F 5:30am-8:45am, 11:45am-1:15pm, 5pm-10pm; S 6-11am, 1-10pm
outdoor track: M-S 5:30am-12pm, 6-1pm (?)
wallyball: M-Th 6pm-10pm; F 8am-10pm; S 6am-10pm by reservation only
raquetball: M-Th 6-10pm; F 8am-10pm; S 6am-10pm
outdoor tennis: MW 6-9am, 11am-12pm, 7pm-10pm; TTh 6-9am, 11am-12pm, 7pm-10pm; F, S 6am-10pm
indoor tennis: M-F 6-11am, 6-10pm; S 6-9am, 12-10pm
badminton: 6-10pm
all freeplay is subject to change due to intramurals, sports camps, and athletic events and all facilities are closed for devotionals Tuesday 10:45am-12:05pm
website: hhps.byu.edu

ow! [kinda]

so, today i'm a little sore from last night.

i know, i didn't go that far or very fast but getting back into an

exercise routine is definitely hard to do. to me the key is to take it 

slow at first, just get your body and muscles used to working 

before you go and kill yourself training. 

and definitely don't get discouraged if you can't complete 

a workout that you think you should be able to do! 

ESPECIALLY when you're first starting out, 

it should be about taking it slow because the 

last thing you want to do is: 

1) get injured

2) get so burnt out that you never 

want to move ever again. 

so, yes my legs are feelin it a bit today but i love that. 

i feel like if i'm at this level of soreness it means that i 

worked my muscles but that i didn't go so hard that it 

will be impossible for me to run (or even move) today. 

plan for today's workout:
run 1.5 miles on the track taking it really easy.
probably run for 2 minutes, walk 1, etc.
then i'm going to try my hand at swimming.
haha that will be funny.

i haven't swam competitively since i was....8? so we'll 

see how difficult it is for me to remember how to swim in a lane! 

i'm super excited tho, i went to the RB (Richards Building)
to check out how busy the lanes would be around 7:30.
there were people down there for sure but it didn't look
impossible to join in.

all i wanted to do was go jump in that water right 

that second but don't worry, i didn't. i had my clothes 

on, after all. i don't think they would have loved that.

in other news i went to sports chalet last night to find:

a) swimsuit 

b) goggles 

c) stop watch 

and i was in luck!
everything i got was on sale and while i still spent more
than i would have liked to i feel like as long as I get
good use out of everything it will be completely worth it.

muses for today's workout:
excited to get back in the water and do something different!

i'm going to put together a new playlist that i will share tomorrow (i haven't actually made it yet)

i love this sore feeling and am excited to have it again tomorrow!

first workout!

this evening i walked over to the Smith Fieldhouse (BYU) to run some laps on the indoor track.
for every workout i do, i start with a 5 minute-ish warm-up, stretch, then go for it. o and a 5 minute-ish cool down post 'going for it'.

stretching honestly does wonders for me and i feel 

so much more excited to run after i've done it 

and it make my legs feel great!

i did about 2 miles combining 2 laps running/jogging 

with 1/2 a lap walking at a quick pace. 

i love the feeling i have after getting lots of 

oxygen and blood pumping thru my body. 

it just makes me feel like i can conquer the world! 

coming out of the Smith Fieldhouse the weather 

was perfect, and i mean PERFECT for a cool down 

walk. there was a light breeze, cool temp, and a 

beautiful sunset. 

i was also looking forward to the fabulous and 

simple smoothie i would make when i got home:

triple berry blend (frozen)

EAS whey protein powder

1% milk

mm-mmmm tasty =] 

that smoothie is my ideal post workout snack/meal. 

just thinking about it makes me want to go work out again!

muses from this post:

triple berry smoothie (pretty sure that's my muse for EVERY workout)

stretching - gets my muscles loose and ready to rock!

wonderful weather which will hopefully continue tomorrow

splash 'n' dash

i have decided to do the byu splash 'n' dash (info here)
it's basically a shortened biathlon (just running and swimming).

i haven't been training or doing anything really...
school life is super time consuming.
HOWEVER, i officially want to make time to work out.

so i'm signing up for this TODAY so that i get my
rear in gear and start swimming/running asap. (aka TODAY)

they have multiple options for beginners (like me) to hard core athletes (not like me):
beginner: 1/4 mile swim, 3K run
standard: 1/2 mile swim, 5K run
elite: 1 mile swim, 10K run

and there's also a team option that, well, i don't really understand.

but anyway, i initially thought i would be all ambitious and do the standard.
my train of thought was as follows: i'll train really hard and take it WAY easy
on this thing and just get a feel for what a biathlon event could be like.

then i remembered that i haven't been involved in a daily exercise routine
since probably april of last year. also the event is in 2.5 weeks (March 26th).
hence the need for a shorter distance and i'll use this as a
stepping stone to getting back into a regular exercise routine.

i honestly love working out esp. running
(well, the high i get after a good run)
and lifting weights but i am convinced that
broadening my horizons (i.e. cycling and swimming)
will be awesome for me and i won't be allowed to get bored.

so, here's to working 
hard and having fun doing it!

ps-i'm going to be using the BYU facilities to get my work out on (bc it's cheap!)
and i realized it's very hard to find the information on free play in the RB/SFH online
so i will be posting my discoveries on all the wonderful services that are available for students.