Saturday Morning

Why is running on a treadmill so horrific for me? I honestly think treadmill pace/mile times are off. G-tree and I have had this discussion before, but I think I'm running faster than the treadmill shows. How, you ask? Well, my breathing is a good indicator. I sort of know when I'm huffing and puffing, and it seems every time I'm on a treadmill and just want to jog for 30 minutes, I'm gasping to keep up with the belt. Then I look at the screen and curse treadmill makers everywhere for displaying those pace/mile times anyway. I already think I'm slow, but I don't need a treadmill displaying some snail's pace in my face to let me know that I'm ultra-slow.

Enough of that. I can say that I'm very proud of myself for waking up at 6am while in Ft. Worth for a conference and going down to the hotel gym to run. The treadmill did have a new feature for me; it showed a birds-eye view either a track, hill, or 5K route while I ran.

I was away from my family for about 3 days for the first time ever. I have never been away from all three of my boys at the same time. I think they missed me more than I missed them. I did miss them, but the conference was busy, and I had no idle time to really pine away.

For years and years, almost every night I turn my lamp off beside my bed after reading. If I'm not terribly tired, I will think to myself, "One day I won't turn this lamp off." Some nights, I will think, "One day, I won't be laying in this bed, falling asleep." I'm not talking about moving. I'm not talking about getting a new lamp or bed. It is the blight I was born for.

Fall Equinox

Happy first day of Autumn. In Texas, that just means we might notice that the daylight and darkness are exactly equal since we won't be noticing any lovely leaf changes just yet. In honor of the Fall Equinox, I will post a beloved poem below (by my favorite poet, no less).

Since this is also supposed to be a blog about exercise/running, I will recap my feeble attempts at squeezing in time for a meaningful workout. Since I started my new (full-time) job, I have only managed to run twice/week. So last week, I vowed to change that (it also helps that a cool front blew in and I had to wear pants that I hadn't donned for months and said pants were snug).

Monday - 900s at Zilker. Being out of shape reminded me why I used to despise this workout. It was good to see my 5k/10k buddies though. I warmed up (and even did drills!), and then the group completed 5 900s. Once again, I admit I'm sucky at running up hills.

Tuesday - Lifetime Fitness. We've been giving our money to this gym and then staying away. Perfect scenario for them. I did 30 minutes on that running elliptical machine, then took the boys to the outside pool and watched them shiver in the cool water and colder breeze.

Wednesday - Bootcamp with Richard. I had planned to run beforehand but plans were foiled on two fronts. I forgot a sports bra, and DV forgot Joshua's bike helmet. I refuse to run without a sports bra, and my children aren't allowed to bike without a helmet. Instead, Joshua and I strolled around the new pond next to Palmer Auditoreum while Elijah was at piano. It's a really lovely little park area, and I quite enjoyed the time with Joshie. He's recently been clingy, and I think it's hit him that I work full-time now and am not around as much.
Bootcamp was awesome, btw. I really like that class and would go there over running on Wednesdays if I couldn't do both.

Thursday - 2 miles around the Small Middle School track during Joshua's football practice. It's not much, but it's more than before.

Friday - Does sitting in a chair for 2 hours getting my hair done count?

Saturday - Long run with Leslie and Elizabeth. They did 7 and I did 5?. I had to leave Runtex at 7:30am to get home in time to leave for Joshua's flag football game. It was really nice to run with them both. I haven't run with Elizabeth in ages. I also absolutely love running on the northeast side of the trail. It's so breathtaking in places.

Now for the promised poem. It's a good one, so please do read it. :o)

"Spring and Fall, to a Young Child"

Margaret, are you grieving
Over Goldengrove unleaving?
Leaves, like the things of man, you
With your fresh thoughts care for, can you?
Ah! as the heart grows older
It will come to such sights colder
By and by, nor spare a sigh
Though worlds of wanwood leafmeal lie;
And yet you will weep and know why.
Now no matter, child, the name:
Sorrow's springs are the same.
Nor mouth had, no nor mind, expressed
What heart heard of, ghost guessed:
It is the blight man was born for,
It is Margaret you mourn for.

-- Gerard Manley Hopkins

A Shout-Out to All the Moms Out There

I was reminded yesterday why I started this blog over a year ago, and that was to represent moms in Gazelle class (or really any mom trying to train for an event or just exercise). I remember tiring of the posts that listed detailed split times and hours spent training. I remember thinking, do these people have jobs? Kids? Other hobbies? Chores to do? A yard to mow?

Well, the fact is that many of my running friends do not have children or their children are old enough to care for themselves. And many of the blogs from a year ago are authored by non-parents or men who have a situation enabling them to run frequently and blog about it.

So, here I am. A full-time working mom who actually would rather skip a long run (which I did this weekend) so she can spend time enjoying family and friends before the Sunday chore crunch strikes. I also must confess that I have a husband who also runs, so it makes it even more difficult to schedule blocks of time for me to go lope around the trail or track. I also have other hobbies, some of which I greatly prefer to running (No!).

Here's a shout-out to Mary Ann and Elizabeth. A big one goes out to Sarah, my dear, sweet friend who is a big reason I go to the MW afternoon class at all anymore. I send a shout-out to former Gazelle Moms whose family commitments pulled them away from Gazelles: Kathy (maker of Coach's awesome Gazelle shirt) and Tina (she trained for the Austin marathon on her own!). Here's a shout out to Ivi, Ava, Michelle and all the other fast Gazelle moms. I know there are others out there who spend almost as much time scheduling their running time as actually running. I send a hearty shout-out to you as well. I'd love to meet you, so I can shake your hand and give you a nod that only busy moms can understand and appreciate.

And you know what? In honor of my mother, who never trained for anything while I was growing up, here's a shout-out to all the moms out there. I send a you a virtual high-five.