Change to my blog template

I just found a picture from 2005 and posted it so you guys can compare the clothing I had on for teh 2005 and 2006 marathon. Take clothes for any kind of weather although you will be able to watch the forecast the week before you leave and have a pretty good idea as to what temperature and conditions you should expect!!! I was down to my sleeveless shirt only before the end in 2005. By choice! Pin your number on your shorts leg so you can wear as many shirts as you want and take them off!

Back from the Delta

Spent about 24 hours back in my hometown in Cleveland. My bro and I did a grocery store run and then took some food over to my mother's and cooked supper. But, just for us as she got my message confused and had already eaten. Her two blades of grass as I describe it. Now, most everyone in my family LOVES to eat. My mother and I included. I have vivid memories standing over a carton of vanilla ice cream as a child/teenager with my mother and polishing it off in one sitting/standing!!! But now, she eats less than a bird. So little that I do not know how she can subsist. But, I think she may get up during the night and bust into the junk food. And maybe she eats cookies and cake. But, I figure, at 97 years old, you ought to be able to eat whatever you want, huh? This morning, I took my brother to his PT session, then went by the car dealership to have my left blinker light fixed--having a family dealership in a small town is an awesome way to quickly deal with a car problem. And to trust what they say about a tire rod being loose or something. Then we went to drop pants to be altered, then to Neysa's shop, then back to dealership to fax blood sugars, than back to Merigold to fix and eat lunch. I finally got on the road about 2 pm--only four hours later than planned!!!! But I do enjoy the ride up there and back sometimes--I like looking at the open land, and the crops, and all the farm equipment. There was a LONG line of tractors pulling loads of cotton waiting to be waited on at the gym--I wished Deb was there to get a picture of that. Enough rambling. Although I did carry my bike up there, I decided sleeping in this morning was much more therapeutic than any exercise would be! I love sleeping in a Murphy bed.

Bruised feet syndrome

Okay, I've been trying to ignore it, but I'm getting the old generalized bone bruised feeling feet again but I'm trying to tell them to shut up. I did wear new shoes today but I still feel some pain but it isn't unbearable but I, of course, am medicated with my Relafen. Thank goodness for heavy duty anti-inflammatories!!!! And, speaking of heavy duty, I went to Sal Liz to try out some new heavy duty undergarments--don't want to embarrass you guys, but, if you can mentions bleeding nipples, who could be embarrassed???? So, I now have two new suits of armor to run in and they saw the damage that the bra I bought last year did to some of my lovely parts so they know I wasn't lying!!!!

I'm very happy to have now found a partner to do the 20 miler with--Paula! She can't do it on the 25th either so we are going to do it on the next Saturday when you guys get to do 10. We'll just do your 10 mile route twice from Fleet Feet. Ugggh. I have a mental block against repeating but this is better than doing 20 all alone with no water stops and no one to look at for five or more hours!!!! We probably will start at 4 am so that there may still be water out for most of our run--maybe we'll take some steroids so we can be REAL fast and make sure we have water! Maybe it will be good for my poor pitiful feet to get an extra week without the long mileage. We'll see whether I manage to do a ten miler in NY the morning of the wedding. I'm seriously doubting it but I think God will forgive for missing this day of my training. And, I had to miss many of the Saturday runs last year, and I don't think I've had to miss one yet this year.

You guys looked great out there today and I thank all of you who let me run with you today. Christa, Shelllie, and Christy--did I get your names right? I especially thank you for letting me tag along with you guys so that I would not be alone in the big bad woods in the dark. And I loved my yummy breakfast at Beagle Bagel. I got to get the cheese melt today which looked good the last time I was there when I had the peanut butter on the cinnamon raisin bagel which was awesome, huh Deb? I think I am a food addict because I love it so much!

I have sinned yet again

Okay, somehow I got in a little funk today at work. So, after having a nice grilled chicken salad with diet dressing for lunch, I hit the junk food machines about 5 pm. A large pack of sugar wafers followed by a big bag of peanuts. This was after an earlier bag of microwave popcorn which I called carbo loading. Then, I got an ice cream craving. I had text messaged my daughter to see if she was going to temple knowing we'd go out for dinner afterwards and she never answered. So, after the cookies and peanuts (and the popcorn), I left work briefly to go to Cold Stone Creamery and got the largest size cup of something sinful with coffee ice cream, peanut butter, pecans, and some other good stuff. But, I felt a bit gross afterwards, maybe needing a shot of insulin???? And, I'm not diabetic. Yet. So, we shall see what sort of running experience, in the dark, in the heat, that I have tomorrow.

I'm thinking I may have to start going to Cleveland, Mississippi that is, each weekend to check on things, so yoga may be out of the picture, and also Monday morning lawn mowing, but we shall see. I have enjoyed all the me time I've had these past 2 or 3 years but it may be time to think about others first for a little while. I may even have to move up there but I'm going to postpone that until after the Jewish holidays in September and after the marathon in October if at all possible. I'm afraid I won't be too accountable just to myself to exercise and train for marathons but maybe I will if I can blog with you guys and join a gym up there. Who knows???

Nice change of scenery, don't lift full coolers

Jody and I had a nice walk through Belhaven and walked up to Fondren to see his potential new house. We walked a little ways and ran a little and even got told hello by a fellow Marathon Makeover person--Merrill McKewen--I think I mispelled both of her names. Then I came home to gather up all the stuff I made for snacks/dinner for the board meeting at the temple tonight. This included a loaded cooler with ice and drinks which I had no choice but to lift by myself up into my van. Actually, one of my neighbors was out across the street and I should have asked her but I didn't. Thank goodness our custodian was available when I got to temple to help me get it out!

I think I might order some Strassburg socks today to see if that helps with my plantar fasciitis. They only have the large ones at Fleet Feet and they are too big for my darling, petite little legs and feet--hah, my feet are bigger than some men that I know! I also encourage the ones of you whose feet are hurting to consider new shoes. If they hurt from blisters, that's one thing, but if you just have generalized pain, your shoes might be worn out again! I have bought some new ones that I am holding as long as I can before I wear them, but I got them out of the box and looked at the bottom of them and at the bottom of the old ones, and I could see a LOT of wear on the old ones. And my feet are beginning to be sore in various places, sort of like bone bruises, sort of like they began to feel last year before the marathon where I ended up with a stress fracture. So, BE KIND TO YOUR FEET as we have three more really long runs--20, 22, and 26.2!!!!

It's even hot in the swimming pool!!!!

Wednesday is usually swim day for me although I almost bagged it for yoga. But, I went and did my weights and went out to the pool. I stuck my foot in and it was almost as warm as bath water! So, I walked in to the indoor lap pool, hoping it would be cooler, and, of couse, it wasn't. It is only cool if it is winter or if they just changed out the water. So, back outside I went and got in my usual lane. It was so hot after one lap that I decided to go to the other side of the pool which is shadier to see if that made any difference. Not much. I almost decided to stop at 12 laps but then I remembered about all that heat that you lose from your head. So, I took off my swim cap which made a HUGE difference. However, there was hair everywhere but I dealt with it. Most of you probably haven't seen my hair down but it is pretty long and feels yucky when it is wet and clinging to the shoulders and getting in your eyes. But, I did it and I always feel better about myself when I manage to get in some sort of exercise in a day. I brought my yoga stuff to work in hopes that I get enough work done to leave here and come to that, too, because I thought the stretching there was very helpful to all of the sore and creaking parts of me that I have. I'm dreading the 20 miler alone already but have planned out my route and hope to get Jody and Sally to distribute many bottles of water and Propel all over creation at the reservoir so I can drink some of them and pour the others on top of my head!

Be Kind to Carol Week

Well, I usually push myself to the ultimate brink--of disaster, usually!!!! But, I don't think my leg muscles had fully recovered from the 16 miler in time for the 18 miler. I put on a thigh wrap on my right thigh which helped a lot but my muscles were and still are very tired, including my back. Just general fatigue. So, guess what I did today???? I walked rather than ran which felt REAL good. So, you guys that are still feeling sore and tired, take it a little easier this week than usual and don't feel guilty about it. If you had run a long race, you'd be taking a few days off so just go easy on yourself, if you can. And I'm not one who usually does that but I do think that, if you push yourself when you know your muscles are still sore and fatigued from your last run, your potential for causing more harm than good is pretty high. Just my humble opinion but I do have a couple of years experience of debilitating myself under my belt because I would NOT slow down or miss any workouts. So, Thursday Jody and I are going to meet in Belhaven at New Stage for a change of scenery at 530 am. We probably will walk and I won't run ahead since I won't know where I'm going! So, Saturday may be the next time that I run, believe it or not.