starting over

running with an injury, take 1

I started running again on Tuesday after a week long hiatus. It was really tough watching people running when I couldn't. I'm kind of addicted. Anyway, my doctor said after a week I could run. She also said I would need to wear an ace bandage, but when I found a knee band made specifically for patellar tendonitis sufferers, I used that instead. So Tuesday I was supposed to run 4 miles. Not knowing how it would go I decided to run on our treadmill instead of potentially getting stranded two miles from my home. It went alright. I don't know how much the little band did for me as I quit running 2.5 miles into it because my knee was starting to get really aggravated, which just made me aggravated that I couldn't finish. Ironically, after the run Lance Armstrong told me that I had just recorded my fastest mile. I think it was a fluke.

running with an injury, take 2

Wednesday I had a nine mile run scheduled. I decided to take a chance and run outside. Because the patellar band thingy was crap, I wrapped my knee instead. This was a better option as it put more (good) pressure on my knee. The only problem was that it was wrapped a little tightly, causing the muscle at the top/back of my calf to cramp. Oh well, if it means I can run, I'll do it. Now the title of this post is starting over. I say this because the way that I'm running is exactly like I was when I first started training for the Cherry Blossom run, where I would run one minute and walk 3, only this time I do it for 2 hours instead of 30 minutes. Every time I would feel discomfort in my knee I would stop and walk to give it a break. That system seemed to work just fine, although it brought my average pace to 14 minute miles as opposed to my normal 11:30 -12 minute miles. As I began the run, I was a little apprehensive, not knowing if this signaled the beginning of the end of my running, but after completing 7 1/2 miles, I know that as long as I listen to what my body (especially my knee) is telling me I will be able to continue my training for the marathon. It will definitely take me much longer to complete, but I think I can do it.

Happy Birthday Anne!

Best present ever...

...to me!

Twisted giveaway

Ok, I really don't want to share this news. It's not that I don't love you all, it's just that I'm selfish. If I let you in on the little secret then my odds of winning go down. But because I'm feeling generous today here you go:

Debra Mitchell, the owner/designer over at my new favorite website, Twisted Silver, is guest mom this week over at Design Mom. Among other things, she posted the craziest story about an experience she had at her local Home Depot. She's great. Today she is sponsoring a $400 dollar Twisted Silver giveaway, including two necklaces (well one is a convertable belt/necklace), two pairs of earrings, a bracelet and a 100 dollar gift certificate. This is a SERIOUS giveaway. You can enter the drawing here. Oh, and if you win instead of me, how about giving me a cut? It's the least you can do! (Only kidding...kind of...) Good luck!

confidence booster

Here I am trying to find the perfect shade of red. You can't really tell in the picture, but I have two different colors on. As a matter of fact, I don't believe I ever corrected it, which means I walked around Philly Saturday afternoon with lopsided lips. Hot!

Patellar Tendonitis

...was the diagnosis given to me by my doctor this afternoon. It is caused by overuse during activities such as jumping (which apparently is the main cause...the condition is also called jumper's knee) or in my case running. Yeah, I'd say that running 277 miles in 3 months could be considered overuse. I have been instructed to take ibuprofen two times a day for 7 days, wrap my knee (so that the bandage takes the impact instead of my knee), do rehabilitation exercises and the sucky part, no running for a week. I'm definitely frustrated, but glad to know that if all goes well I'll be running again next Tuesday.

minor setbacks

At the end of the week I decided I needed an escape, so I drove up to Philly for the weekend. I knew I had to run 16 miles, so I got some advice about good running trails from some co-workers who call (or have called) Philly home. I was told that the loop on Kelly Drive, a part of the Schuylkill (pronounced Skool-kill) River Trail, was a must so that's what I decided to do. Holly was kind enough to drive me past the trail so I would know where to park and to kind of get an idea of what I was in for. What I didn't know was how long the loop was, but that was ok because I had my handy dandy Ipod with nike+, or so I thought.

Saturday night I went through my duffle to get out all of the items I need for the run the next morning. Shoes...check, sports bra...check, tank top...check, sports shield...check, fuel belt...check, gum...check, ipod...check, nike+ receiver...ummmm nope. My trusty receiver was absolutely nowhere to be found. Now how was I going to know how far I needed to go? I depend on that little rectangle to get me where I need to go (especially in a strange city), to encourage me to keep going, to tell me I'm doing great, and it is MISSING! After a good hour of mourning, I accept the fact that I will have to try to run without it. I still don't know the mileage, so I just decide to run for 3 1/2 hours, which would be about how long it would take me to run 16 miles if I was running at a 12 minute mile pace. Sucky.

I wake up the next morning before my alarm goes off, which is good because I didn't want to wake up my gracious host. I gather my things and set off for the trail. There to greet me is a map of The Loop which informs me that at a distance of 8.56 miles, I will have to run it just about two times. Yay. As I head off up Kelly Drive, which is gorgeous with a stonework wall separating the trail from the river and lush greenery, I saw this:

Wow, trail, what a great question! I ask myself that exact same thing every day of my life. It certainly gave me something to think about for the next several miles. Next up were the boat houses. For those who don't know, crew is a big sport in Philly. Each college has a team, and each team has a boat house along the river. They are the coolest houses with their boats stacked up outside and at night they are lit with strings of white Christmas lights, it's so beautiful. The top of "The Loop" is the setting of that pivotal scene in Rocky (which scene and which Rocky film I'm uncertain), the art museum. I couldn't run in Philly and not run up the steps...so I did.

I had planned to download the Rocky Theme and listen to it while I recreated the famous scene, but unfortunately that plan was thwarted thanks to a power outage at Holly's the night before.

As I turned the corner on the back side of the loop, now on the west side of the river, I was welcomed by this mural:

I know you can only see a teeny bit, but this is my favorite mural in all of Philly. It is on the side of the freeway that leads into center city (or city center, not quite sure) and it is the most ornate, beautiful and realistic painting. I just love it. I wish I could have captured more of it here for you.

This also marked the beginning of the end. My run was going well. The first 8 miles were relatively pain free, with the exception of a little numbness in my feet here and there. I had high hopes for an awesome 16 mile run. I crossed the bridge at the bottom, marking the end of my first time around and my knee decided it had had enough of this silly running. I have never had knee problems in my life. Not once in my 8 months of running have my knees cried "Mercy," and now...at mile 8.5, 265 miles into my marathon training, mister right knee decides it has had enough. The nerve! It was the most incredible pain I have ever felt. I thought I'd just be able to walk it out, but my few attempts to run were in vain. I was done. Silly me insisted that I couldn't quit after 8.5 miles, so I pushed myself to walk...er limp...another 3. Three miles I limped as tears streamed down my face in pain and in frustration. It was horrible.

Two days later I can finally walk without limping, although I can still feel some pressure below my kneecap. I am going to the doctor this afternoon, unsure what her advice will be. I don't know what I will do if she tells me I can't run anymore. I don't know what I'll do if she tells me to take it a little easy. I can't do that, I have a marathon to run. I need to be prepared, and how can I be prepared if I have to take it easy? Aargh. Realistically I know that the health of my knees are more important than a silly race. I'm hoping that she just prescribes a knee brace or one of those little band thingy and sends me on my merry way. I guess I'll find out soon enough...wish me luck.

4 x 9

I know I still have a teaser to address, but I'll get to that another time. I'm sure you guys have forgotten about it by now anyways. In the meantime, I've been tagged by Laura. Here are a couple of things you might not already know about me, in 4's.

4 things you might not know about me
-I have a VERY short attention span
-My hair has never grown past my shoulders. I'm convinced that years of a mushroom cut when a little kid stunted my hair's ability to grow (not that I'm complaining now, I LOVE my short hair)
-I consistently wake up an hour or so before my alarm goes off in the morning. However, I rarely get out of bed until I have hit snooze at least twice.
-I'm not very excited for my birthday this year

4 jobs I have had
-Paper filer
-US Capitol tour guide (this wasn't my ONLY responsibility, just the best one)
-Nanny
-Office Manager (found out pretty quickly that I wasn't meant to manage anything)

4 movies I can watch repeatedly (I don't really have any of those, so how bout a few recent goodies)
-Stardust
-Once
-Hot Fuzz
-Knocked Up

4 favorite books
-The Time Traveler's Wife
-Forever
-Harry Potter series
-Twilight

4 favorite TV Shows (it's hard to answer this one, being the off season!)
-So You Think You Can Dance
-The Bachelor
-The Office
-Ugly Betty

4 places I have lived
-Salt Lake City, UT
-Provo, UT (for like 2 seconds, it doesn't really count)
-College Park, MD
-Arlington, VA

4 favorite foods
-S'mores ice cream
-Ranch burger from Training Table
-french fries with fry sauce (Crown Burger's are the best)
-Zucchini

4 websites I check daily
-my email (all 3 of them)
-bloglines
-Entertainment Weekly
-Deseret News

4 nicknames
-Anniebean
-Anna
-Sis
-Crazy

I'm not going to tag anyone, but if you feel like sharing, go ahead!

15 miles with CHLOE!!!

I was looking forward to this weeks long run for a while. No, not because I "got" to run 15 miles, or the 5:30 am wakeup call, but because I was able to run with Chloe. Can I just say how nice it is to have someone to run with? It probably had lots to do with the fact that Chloe is so easy to talk to, but I was so incredibly surprised when the first three miles flew by. I wish I could say that the rest of the run were that easy, but of course it wasn't.

I know I've said this many times before, but I don't really like to push myself. If I'm uncomfortable, whether it be physically or emotionally or mentally, I generally give up or remove myself from the situation. Running is definitely one of those situations where I want to give up. Honestly, if I didn't have tens of readers following my progress and cheering me on, as well as Chloe depending on me to help her get to the finish line on October 6, I would have given up months ago. So, even though I haven't given up, it doesn't mean I have a positive attitude about the whole thing. Poor Chloe endured three hours of listening to me whine about how much it hurt, is it a slow song yet (we followed her method of run 4(?) fast songs, walk 1 slow song), or can we stop yet?! Thanks Chloe, I couldn't have done it without you, seriously!

Thanks Chloe, for the distraction, encouragement, company, conversation and last but not least, the sports shield. You're a lifesaver!

For a more exciting recap, check out Chloe's post about the occasion here!

Here's the playlist. I've kind of guestimated on the songs that played because I spent most of the time chatting it up.

1. Shout - Tears for Fears vs. Evanescence
2. The Warning - Hot Chip
3. Extraordinary Way - Conjure One
4. Jump N' Shout - Basement Jaxx
5. Decepta-Freak-On - Missy Elliott vs. Le Tigre
6. Beautiful - Clem Snide
7. E-Pro - Beck
8. Apologize - Timbaland feat. One Republic
9. The Way I Are - Timbaland feat. Keri Hilson & D.O.E.
10. Time - Timbaland feat. She Wants Revenge
11. Tobacco Club Action - Yo Majesty vs. Bonde do R.... vs. Alice in Chains
12. IntenCity - ATB
13. After the Flame - ATB
14. Fit But You Know It - The Streets
15. Temperature - Sean Paul
16. Tequila Lip Gloss - Lil Mama vs. The Champs
17. Ramalama (Bang Bang) - Roisin Murphy
18. B.O.B. - OutKast
19. How We Operate - Gomez
20. SexyBack - Justin Timberlake & Timbaland
21. Persistence of Memory - Afro Celt Sound System
22. Pour Some Hot Sugar - Mims vs. Def Leppard
23. City of Delusion - Muse
24. Boys (The Co-Ed Remix) - Britney Spears feat. Pharrell
25. I See You Baby - Groove Armada
26. Here (In Yor Arms) Tommie Sunshine Robots Up Radio Mix) - Hellogoodbye
27. Where Does the Good Go - Tegan and Sara
28. Invincible - Muse
29. Adagio for Strings, Dance Version - Tiesto
30. Take a Bow - Muse
31. Exo-Politics - Muse
32. The One - Backstreet Boys
33. Stiff Martyr - Blaqk Audio vs. Depeche Mode
34. Technologic - Daft Punk
35. Sorry (Live) - Madonna
36. Faster Kill Pussycat - Oakenfold
37. Song 2 - Blur
38. Flash Runner - Vangelis vs. Grandmaster Flash
39. Lacrymosa - Evanescence

Teaser

I don't have time right now to blog about the weekend, but here's a teaser: 15 miles, high speed chases, feather beds, shark propoganda and new friends.

anti-chafing

I just got a little mailer chock full of important information pertaining to the St. George marathon and found out that Vaseline will be available at all 13 aid stations along the route. Hallelujia!!

Personality quiz

I've seen this quiz on a few blogs and thought I'd try it out. I think it's pretty accurate. What do you think?

You Are An ISFJ

The Nurturer You have a strong need to belong, and you very loyal.A good listener, you excel at helping others in practical ways.In your spare time, you enjoy engaging your senses through art, cooking, and music.You find it easy to be devoted to one person, who you do special things for. In love, you express your emotions through actions.Taking care of someone is how you love them. And you do it well! At work, you do well in a structured environment. You complete tasks well and on time.You would make a good interior designer, chef, or child psychologist. How you see yourself: Competent, dependable, and detail oriented When other people don't get you, they see you as: Boring, dominant, and stuck in a rut

What's" Your Personality Type?

Soccer

When I was a wee thing, my parents enrolled me in all sorts of activities; dancing, sewing, piano, cooking (hard to believe...I know), and sports such as bonnettball (softball for all of you non-Utahns) and soccer. I had a really hard time with the latter activities. I was never very good, or probably more likely I didn't really try. I picked the positions that didn't see a lot of action, such as left field in bonnetball (what 10 year old girl can hit the ball all the way to left field??), and full back in soccer. I wasn't very helpful in keeping the ball away from the goal. In fact, that poor goalie probably worked twice as hard to make up for the lack of assistance I was giving her on the right hand side of the field. I used to think that I was this way because I was afraid of the ball, but considering I played volleyball in high school, which as you know consists of hitting a ball (with your body!!) that most of the time comes flying towards you at supersonic speeds, that excuse didn't really fly. I think I've finally realized that it all had to do with disposition. As I was a shy kid, I think avoiding the ball was an effort of not wanting to direct any attention towards myself. I really wish this wasn't the case because I think I would have really enjoyed playing soccer, not to mention I would have benefited from that type of exercize. But now, the thought of running around a soccer field wheezing doesn't sound at all appealing.

So why am I thinking about soccer today? Well, the LA Galaxy (home of David Beckham) is playing DC United tomorrow at RFK Stadium, and every time I turn on the radio, I'm reminded of the big event. I really could care less about David Beckham, although I wouldn't mind getting a glimpse of the hottness in person, but I absolutely love the energy of soccer games. It's probably the only sport, besides NASCAR that I really enjoy watching (only semi kidding, I like watching volleyball too), if only because everyone knows that soccer players are the hottest. The game tomorrow is sold out, so there will be 45,000 screaming fans cheering on David Beckham...er...their favorite team. It's going to be crazy and loud and obnoxious and I wish I was going to be there.

I will be eating out tonight...

alternate title: Why I should not be allowed in the kitchen

Gearing up for tomorrow

10 miles - Ugh!

Today's run sucked, I mean really sucked! It was literally my slowest run ever. I can tell you exactly why: I ate crap all week, I didn't run my four miles on Thursday (for good reason of course) and I didn't eat enough carbs last night. Oh...and I forgot the body glide. Bad mistake...very bad mistake. It felt like a straight-edged razor was making tiny slices in my thighs for about 8 miles. I am in SO MUCH PAIN right now. Well enough whining. I am super excited, but at the exact same time very nervous to run with Chloe on Saturday. Excited because it will be nice to have a running partner for once, and I'm just generally excited to finally meet her. Nervous because I have been sucking it up lately. I've decided to make a few changes in my diet this week so we'll see how that impacts my running, if at all. I just spent 50 dollars on vegetables, chicken and lean cuisines and I am giving up sweets (cold turkey). Please let that be enough so that Chloe isn't cursing having me as her running partner! (Ok, now I'm REALLY done whining)

I made it a point to say hello or good morning to every runner I passed. I even waved to the Secret Service uniformed division guys watching the White House. It did wonders for my spirits.

Here's the playlist!

1. Shake - Loo & Placido
2. Wind It Up - Gwen Stefani
3. Dogstar - Hybrid
4. Knights of Cydonia - Muse
5. The Way Simple Men Are - Timbaland vs. Lynard Skynard
6. Life Begin Again - Afro Celt Sound System
7. Faith - George Michael
8. Viva - Bond
9. Stars - Ulrich Schnauss SO GOOD!!!
10. Plug It In - Basement Jaxx feat JC Chasez
11. Romeo's Drivers Seat - Basement Jaxx vs. Sniff 'n the Tears
12. Excuses - Alanis Morissette
13. Somebody to Touch Me - Benassi Bros
14. The District Sleeps Alone Tonight - The Postal Service I don't remember this one playing...weird!
15. Falling Stars - Pulso Da Vida
16. Processed Funk - Kasabian vs. Daft Punk
17. Stiff Martyr - Blaqk Audio vs. Depeche Mode
18. Choke - Hybrid
19. Castaway - Benassi Bros.
20. Lacrymosa - Evanescence
21. Feel It - DJ Rap The beat to this one matches my most comfortable pace perfectly
22. I See Right Through To You - DJ Encore
23. Apologize - Timbaland feat. One Republic
24. Irreplaceable - Beyonce
25. Love or Hate Me Banquet - Bloc Part vs. Lady Sovereign
26. Cassie Bear - Cassie vs. Teddy Bears
27. UR - DJ Tiesto & Aqualung

Success

Remember that one time I tried to give blood but was completely and utterly rejected? Well guess what I did today:

Success!! Yay for saving lives!!!!

blog finds

If you're not reading Oh Happy Day, you should. Jordan has amazing style and posts lots of wonderful ideas and beautiful things every single day. A few days ago she posted about these:

You see what I mean about beautiful things? I love this picture. Anyway, she mentioned that she bought the jars at Ikea so that very day I took a trip out to Ikea (30 dollars and more stuff than I even know what to do with later) and then did something that I never EVER do...I stepped foot in the kitchen. Can you believe it?! I baked some freaking awesome mint-chip cookies, if I do say so myself. It's a top secret recipe but since I'm so incredibly generous I'll share it with you. First, go out and buy a bag of Nestle Toll House brand chocolate chips and some dark brown sugar (you'll probably have the rest of the items in your pantry already). Secondly, turn the bag of chocolate chips over. You see the recipe for Nestle Toll House cookies? Follow it exactly. :) I swear this is the recipe my sister uses (she makes incredible cookies) but somehow mine didn't taste as good. Weird, but it's all good, I still ate a billion of them. So I made these lovely cookies, put them in the cute jars and gave them away. It was kind of fun. I might just do it again. Thanks for getting me in the kitchen Jordan!!

Speaking of Jordan, her sister Gabrielle also has an awesome blog, which although many of her posts are kid/mom centered and I have none/am not one, she still posts wonderful things. Just today I was checking things out and found a post about this absolutely fabulous jewelry at Twisted Silver. Oh...my...gosh!! This is the coolest jewelry ever! Here are a few (ok, several) of my favorite things:

Aren't they great?? I tried to be strong and not spend my money, but I decided to splurge, so I ordered this:

How funky and cool is that?! If I need any justification I've got it. I call this my "You ran 13.1 miles...you're halfway there" reward.

Even cooler than the jewelry is the customer service. I had a question (or two) so I emailed the company and the founder/designer Deb (who coincidentally grew up in Utah) personally, and not to mention promptly responded. She is great! Oh, and apparently I have great taste, the ring I bought is her personal favorite. Do me a favor and go check out her jewelry. It's...dare I say...twisted! ;)

fabulous songs and food

I have been a total glutton lately. I have quite literally eaten everything in sight and unfortunately, there have been lots of cookies, donuts and candies in my range of vision. I've had a tummy ache for the past few days, but I can't seem to shake the sweet tooth. I might just have to cut out sugar completely (for the third time), but that might be tough because Andes mint chip cookies and mango sorbetto and blood orange sorbetto and dunkin donuts boston creme donuts, and s'mores Ben & Jerry's ice cream, and tootsie roll midgies, and Mike and Ike tangy twisters andd Jell-o frozen pudding pops are SO good!! Ummm...in case you were wondering, those are all things I've eaten within the last few days. *sheepish grin*

I ran 7 miles today and there were a few songs that made their debut on the marathon machine. I've been feeling rather sluggish while running lately, I can't imagine why, *cough* donuts, but these few songs were the perfect pick me up...or maybe it was the fact that I was running downhill when they played. Now I'm not so sure. Anyway, I thought I'd share the love:

Relax Djinns - Mika vs. Djuma Soundsystem
Stiff Martyr - Blaqk Audio vs. Depeche Mode
Icky Love - White Stripes vs. Led Zepplin (at least I think that's who it is...)

I hope you like them, and if not, no biggie, just send them to the recycle bin. :)