241 Days: Back Slide

A combination of things have put me on a bit of a back slide regarding my running regimen.  Two of my daughters have had bad colds for the past week, meaning lots of interrupted sleep and clingy girls who don't take naps. On top of that, I seem to have done something to my ankle. At the advise of a friend/physical therapist, I am icing and resting for a few days. I hate to admit I have only run 4 times in the last 8 days. I did do a kettlebell workout last Wednesday that made it difficult for me to sit or walk down stairs for two days after.  Wow, Bob Harper can really kill you in 30 minutes.  He's sneaky, because it doesn't start to hurt until at least 4 hours after you complete your workout.
I think I need some cheerleading.  I have a feeling it is going to be tough to get back on the horse (treadmill)!

Change of Venue

One of the biggest factors in running a marathon has been to show my daughters that I can do it.  I am not naturally athletic and we all know I haven't been the best role model regarding health and wellness (no exercise, lack of veggies in my diet, etc.) but I think this initiative I have taken on has turned things around.  So, when I started looking at accommodations and spectator routes for the Chicago Marathon, I realized expecting my husband and my mom to take my daughters to the marathon and keep track of them for 5 hours was not logical.  And, in reality, my daughters probably wouldn't even be able to spot me amongst the 45,000+ runners in downtown Chicago.  So, I am changing the venue.  I have decided to run the Des Moines marathon.  It is the week after the Chicago and has only 1,700 runners for the full marathon.  In all, 4,500 runners jog the offered races (5K, 1/2 marathon, and full).  I did feel a bit guilty about changing locations, because my friend and running motivator is from the Chicago area and I kind of felt like I was ditching her! She assured me otherwise.
So, you will notice a new countdown in my header.  I have bought myself an extra week, or I have added a week of torturous training, depending on how you look at it!

249 days--wardrobe malfunctions, colds, and registration

Of course, the day registration opens for the Chicago marathon, I wake up with a raging cold that comes with earaches and a sore throat.  But, I got out of bed anyway, at 5:45 am, to run.  I only ran for 8 minutes.  I walked for 23 minutes.  Now, I am feeling a bit skeptical about registering today.  On one hand, if I register, I have to pay $150 and I am not one to pay for something and not use it.  I hate letting food go to waste and I use coupons regularly.  On the other hand, I will be really mad at myself if I don't make it or if I can't physically run 26.2 miles.  I am hoping others feel like this when they sign up for a marathon. 

In other news, the past two days have been littered with wardrobe malfunctions.  Yesterday, I wore a new sports bra, one very similar to my current favorite sports bra.  Somehow, it does not provide enough support, even though it is the same model, brand, and size as my favorite.  Maybe it is the color of the bra. The same thing happened today, but with a different bra I just bought and decided to try out. And then there is my pants.  I love this pair of yoga pants I have that has pockets.  The pockets make a great place for me to stow my mp3 player and my insulin pump.  However, I got on the treadmill yesterday and started my jog, only to realize that my favorite pants were too big.  They slipped down pretty quickly, necessitating me to yank them up every 30 seconds.  Now, this can be looked at two different ways: 1) Yah! My pants are too big! 2) Crap, I have to buy new pants, not just one pair but several because they all fit the same way.

Can you tell I am grumpy?