One Foot In Front Of The Other...

WOW! I am blown away by all the, been there done that, know someone who succeeded, comments I got on my sister and E Harmony...Thank you, thank you for taking the time to comment!! This really gave me and my sister hope and took away a little of the weirdness I think...Y'all rock:) I will keep you all updated as she meets people and hopefully finds her man!

Now to talk about my favorite subject. Running! This week has been enjoyable and perfect for it. It is definitely Fall because the air is cool and crisp and gorgeous. Amazing for hitting the pavement hard. Last night I went to a new spot that has been hidden from me this entire time and that I will definitely be revisiting. Its so charming and fun! There's a beautiful lake with geese and ducks and cute southern gazebo's all along the paved trail...I'm a sucker for looking out over water while the sun sets, so running there last night made me smile the entire 5 miles:) Yup, I said it...5 MILES!!! I have never ran 5 miles in one swoop ladies and I am so proud of myself! I recently bought another pair of shoes though, so this could be the reason that I'm not stopping at 3!?!?! I am in love with these shoes and will, for now on, be a loyal user of Asics. This morning I felt no pain in my shins or in my usually achy knees; nothing but sore well used muscles:)

I love how Danica over at Chic Runner does a break down of each mile so I will attempt to do the same...However she just has a gift for making each mile sound so interesting:p

Mile 1, I'm finding, is always the hardest...My legs are cold and not wanting to turn over and it just plain sucks. Its doesn't help that, where I live, there is a rather large hill to crest before I can get out on the main road. Don't even get me started on my lungs at this point, pah! I have yet to run up that thing and still have my breath about me...My sister went along this time though, so we drove to the spot skipping that killer hill altogether:) Even still, on mostly flat ground, my legs were not wanting to cooperate. It really gets you nervous thinking, this is going to be long and painful! But I was wrong on this occasion!

I loved mile 2! My breathing was steady and I was feeling just as grounded with each step. There were a lot of other runners, walkers and baby strollers out enjoying the gorgeous day too. The problem was they were going every which direction so sometimes it really messed with my groove, having to stop or jog in place until they passed or I could get around a large group.

Mile 3 I started feeling the strain in my calves so, for no more then one minute, I stopped and stretched them out against a tree. I remember the stretch burning like crazy! It seriously felt like my legs was on fire but I took off running just the same.

I caught up with M, rounding into 4, telling her I was going to finish it and try for another. She looked shocked because 2 days prior I ran 4 miles and had a really rough time. But I was feeling good! My legs were warm and wanting more so I wanted to see how far I could push. Obviously I finished that mile and made my way into 5, but not before stopping again to stretch.

Mile 5 was the toughest. My hip flexors were really screaming at this point and my breathing was getting quick and unsteady. To say it was hard to finish, that would be an exaggeration, but it was harder then the rest. I really do not know where the energy and stamina came from to run 5 miles but it felt amazing! The entire time was so much fun. I love that I pushed myself that far simply for this feeling of accomplishment! Once I stopped I could really feel where I went my furthest. My hip flexors where rusted up, and my calves felt like I was sporting rocks in them, but I was one happy girl:)

It is exactly 11 days until race for a cure and I'm feeling better about it! I really do not care if I run the fastest, I just want to finish without having to stop:) We are flying out on the 8th, so 2 days before the race. I did have one question that I hope someone can answer. I have heard some of you girls mention "tapering" what is that exactly??? I think its where you basically do nothing a week before your run??? Please correct me if I'm wrong! Because that just doesn't sound right to me...Also, is it necessary for a 5k? Keep in mind that I'm not a distance runner, yet, so a 5k will definitely take it out of me. Especially in Arizona heat...Not sure what kind of route we're running yet either i.e hilly or flat. I'm hoping for flat!

Ciao for now:)

P.s. Only one more mile, to make six, which means I'm on my way to getting that Garmin 405! Yippee! Should be just in time for my birthday, *hint hint* hubby;)

E Harmony, Oh yes I did!

What do you ladies think about E Harmony? Have any of you found your partner or know someone who has, dating through E Harmony or some other site?

A few days ago I did the meddling sister thing and put my sister M, on E Harmony without her knowledge...Bad, I know! I have told her since then, due to my husbands logic and threats of telling her himself:p She is skeptical and bummed that its come to this but open to the possibility of finding a true match here...

This is M and I on the day I got married...Such a beautiful person inside and out and I love her to death...A little background about my sister. She just turned 30 and is such a sweetheart, but most of her life she has devoted it to taking care of others including our parents, up until recently, while sacrificing a personal life of her own. She has always worked in the medical field and just graduated with her EMT IV license back in May, another example of her selflessness. I love my sister for who she is, but I'm so tired of watching her go through life a lone and lonely...I just want to see her taking more of an active interest in finding her man! She has this crippling romantic idea in her head that he is just going to sweep into her life someday and take her with him...While this does and can happen, my only argument is that M does not put herself in the path of available men for that to happen...She spends ALL of her time with either family or her job...Occasionally she goes out but its never to a public place. More along the lines of a river and good hiking path. Her jobs do not help either. They are mostly female dominated. Well, I'm sure once she gets a job with her EMT license that will change. She was engaged once, 9 years ago, but even she will admit that wasn't too well thought out. It ended shortly after it began. She hasn't been in a relationship since, nor has she been on ONE date...She's had men approach her but she's either not been interested or those men turned out not to be available. She deserves so much more then this and a real romance! M is SO ready to be a wife and a mother. I know I'm bias, but I couldn't think of anyone who would be more worthy of both... M was made for this and it just breaks my heart to see her year after year, a lone:( I really want to see her happy and living all of these things and soon...

What are your thoughts ladies? Do you agree that she needs to start putting herself out there, or do you think her dream will come true; that this man is going to just come waltzing into her life? I would love this for her more then anything, but I still think she needs to start making an effort...

5k Update

Wow, this 5k has really snuck up on a girl! I cannot believe I have just 19 more days, then its off to Arizona...Ekk! I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous. This is my very first race and I am stressing out. The sad truth is that I love to run but I'm still out of shape. Because of that, I am painfully slow runner:( With the weather cooling off though, I am feeling my motivation coming back! It has certinally helped that R is running consistently again too. Last night he got out and ran with me where I completed 3 miles! I think I've said this before but R promised me, a long time ago, that if I make 6 miles and run that consistently, he would buy me a 405 Garmin...AWWWWESOME! I have wanted one of those ever since I got into running in '09 so I am determined to meet this challenge and get that watch! Maybe for christmas!?!?! Hubby, if you're reading this...lol... I know that a lot of you have them and I am so jealous. No really! I love knowing stats while I'm running. It really keeps me going if I can see how close I am to making my milage for the day. The pace keeper bit just depresses me, but I know I will get faster and being a calorie burning junkie on top of a visual person I know I will love the "how many calories burned" feature. Imagining those calories and fat cells burning alive in there does a lot for me! I replay those Mucinex commercials in my head but imagine those disgusting blobs of mucus as fat! Have any of you seen those commercials and know what I am talknig about??? A weird moment brought to you by me:)

I am off to start my day! It is a little past 11:00 a.m and I still have not showered or eaten breakfast. R is out getting his hair cut and renting a carpet cleaner. Yes, we are both off for the day and doing stuff like cleaning the house and shampooing our carpets. Pathetic, I know! But it is necessary:) I hope all of you are enjoying this cooler weather and the outdoors. I will do a few more blog posts before Arizona to keep y'all updated on my progress, so wish me luck!

5k In Four Weeks And Vegas!

Hey ya'll!!

I think I'm correct in saying that a lot of you haven't been seeing my blog posts right? I just realized that when I switched my IP name, that you guys would have to as well, in your google reader, in order to still follow me. So I decided to switch back because I miss you all!!! Even my own sister was asking me where my blog went...I guess thats when I figured it out! So I was always, and still, here but I am back offically:)

You really haven't missed much though...I had the makeover done and wrote just a few posts then dropped off the blog'o'sphere. I took a job as a store manager and that has been keeping me SOO busy. But, I have been running!!!

In just four weeks I am scheduled to run my first 5k with my sister in-law and hubby in Phoenix, AZ!!! It has been so hard training for it with this new job though. But finally today, I was driving the 40 minutes home from work, and told myself that I just needed to buckle down and do it no matter how tired I was. So I did! I got home, threw on my runners, some shorts and a T and took off...I was shooting for 4 miles but only made it three before my hip flexors started acting up. They have always been my down fall in running. It honestly starts to feel like I'm all rusted up like the tin man:) Any advise on helping this out would be great!?!? I will be running every day that I possibily can before the run. With the heat and terrain, I'm a little frightened that I might fallout if I don't! But wish me luck if you think about it:)

In more exciting news, right after the 5k in Phoenix, R and I are headed to Vegas for three wonderful nights! We are meeting up with his best friend, who lives there, and my sister who is flying in for that part of the vacation. I am BEYOND excited. We have booked our room at the HardRock Hotel, just shy of the main strip and the room is GORGEOUS! I have never been to Vegas as an adult, but only as a kid passing through with my family so this is going to be an experience!