Running Clothes Make a Difference! :-)

Running clothes for larger women is a problem.  I recently went and bought some clothes at Sports Authority.  The biggest size they had was XL.  I have stuff at home that is that size so I bought it without trying it on.  Big mistake.  I could get it on but everything was so tight I felt like I was a can of biscuits ready to pop.

Then when Joe and I went looking for biking shorts, the kind with the padding.  :-)  The first bike shop we went to didn't have anything bigger than an XL.  I tried it on and I could get it on but again, not comfortable.  So we asked a gentleman who worked at the store if they had anything bigger.  He picked up a box that had liners you can wear under regular shorts.  The biggest size he had was XL but he kept assuring me that he could get them all the way up to size 4XL.  Now, I know that he was trying to help.  Joe's take on it was that he was trying to assure me that there were more sizing options with those liners.  My take on it was that he must have thought I was a huge ole hippo.  He didn't just say it once, he kept repeating that they went up to 4XL until I just wanted to yell at him to quit.  lol  Joe was probably right but if you are going to be working in a service industry that sells clothing you might want to learn how to be more diplomatic when talking to women about sizes.

The second bike shop we went to also didn't not have anything bigger than a XL.  However, this gentleman was much more diplomatic.  He was telling me that he doesn't understand why these companies that don't make clothes for athletes bigger than a size 12.  Sweet man.  Bigger than a size 12 covers a lot of sizes.  :-)  This store also does try to keep in stock 2XL but they were currently out.  Evidently they go fast.  I ended up buying some men's bike pants.  They work pretty good but could use a little more padding up front.  I really am looking forward to the day when I can get into a women's size that they have on the rack.  It's a little embarrassing to have a bigger size in men's than my husband.

Here are clothing options that I have found work for me when I run.

I get my sports bras at Target.  I like the C9 by Champion.  It goes all the way up to XXL and does a good job of keeping the girls contained without feeling like I'm getting strangled.  Also, it isn't too expensive and comes in all kinds of colors.  :-)

C9 by Champion at Target, $16.99

I recently found tank tops at Old Navy that I love.  A lot of running tops are form fitting.  This causes two issues for me.  First, I'm self-conscious about my rollies.  I have learned to wear what is comfortable for me and to not worry about it as much but that doesn't mean I like it.  The tank tops from Old Nave are loose and kind of flow around the waist.  They are called bubble tanks and are super comfortable.   They don't have the built-in bra but since I have a good sports bra that isn't an issue.

These tops go up to XXL.

I also got one of these compression tanks.  This one does have a built-in bra and is just a little more expensive.  I am going to have to take it back though cause it is a little too big in the bust area.  But I like how it feels when I have it on and I like how it looks on me.  I got an XXL but will exchange it for an XL.  :-)

I have had the best luck with running pants, Capri's and skirts at Costco.  You have to watch through the spring and summer for anything to show up.  And if I buy something that I take home and really like I generally go back and get more because you never know with Costco if you will ever see it again.  I have one pair of Capri's that are my favorite.  I wish I had gone back and gotten more.  :-(  I also have three running skirts because I did go back and get more of those.  :-)  The downside at Costco is that they only go up to size XL.  But they fit better on me than the XL clothes I got at Sports Authority so it just depends.  

Another thing that I have noticed, more in the summer cause it's hot, is that the clothes are comfortable when I head out, but they are tight when I get home.  I can't wait to get out of them because I'm back to feeling like I'm busting out of a can of biscuits.  I think this is because I swell up badly when I run in the heat.  But I don't notice it while I'm actually running.  I notice it when I stop so to me it's not too bad and I can deal with it.  

I wear Under Armor Compression shorts under my running skirts and Capri's.  It helps with the chaffing in areas that it is not fun to chaff.  :-)

Because the pictures of the clothing are all slender women I figured I really should have a picture of me wearing them.  Remember I don't like having my picture taken but I'm willing to sacrifice for my four followers.  :-)

Bubble tank, running skirt and compression shorts.  I just finished an 8 mile run!

I had a great run on the hills last Saturday.  For the first time EVER I was able to run the whole route without stopping.  This route has two miles of rolling hills.  Followed by a half mile really steep hill.  Then you get to go down for a bit and then you get a one and a half mile slow and steady hill that gets a a bit steeper at the top.  Then you get to finish up with a nice downhill.  Usually it is about 5 miles but we decided to take a little bit farther route and I ended up with 6.75 miles.  Probably should have tried to get the even seven miles.  But as soon as I got the car my body said DONE.  lol  Since I had run all the hills AND gone 1.75 miles farther than normal for that route I was okay with that.  

Conquering the hills in North Albany!

Tuesday I ran later in the morning.  I'm trying to get ready for Cascade Lakes Relay.  I really hate running in the heat.  I only went three miles but I felt slow and it was a struggle to run the whole thing.  About all I can say is that I got it done.  

Wednesday I went for a swim.  I usually swim for about 15 minutes and then use the kick board for the last 15 minutes to work on my stroke and breathing pattern.  This time I swam the entire time without the kick board and fins and got my 1/2 mile done in 30 minutes.  Which means that if I had to do the triathlon tomorrow I could do the swim portion in 30 minutes.  :-)  That's a good feeling.  Hopefully by October that will be faster.  

Then I went on my bike ride.  I went seven miles.  I felt pretty good for the first five miles but I just ran out of gas the last two.  Still, I didn't want to go out and swim or bike today so I feel like getting out the door was a victory.  

I decided to do my long run today instead of Saturday because we are going camping at the beach.  I didn't want to have to figure out where to go that I wouldn't get run over for a long run while camping so I got it done today.  It was a struggle.  I ran out of steam on about mile six.  Managed to run the whole 8 miles but it wasn't pretty.  I really struggled with my runs this week.  I hope that I don't struggle this way next week at Cascade Lakes Relay.  That would be really frustrating!  

Didn't get negative splits the whole way but did manage to suck it up for my last mile. :-)

I'm still not where I want to be with my weight or my speed.  But I'm so much farther than I was in January.  Trying to focus on that instead.  Some days that's easier than others.  This week has been hard in my head.  Maybe next week will be better.  :-)

I AM A RUNNER!

I am a runner!  Seems like an obvious thing at this point but I have had a hard time embracing this fact. I always make excuses and explain that I'm slow or can't run as far as my husband and our friends.  I have slowly been coming to the realization that I'm selling myself short.

I am a runner!  Me.  I go out and run.  Maybe not fast but I do it.  And I'm getting better at it and it feels good.

I AM a runner!  I really am.  Crazy to think about what I have accomplished the past few years.  When I started I could barely run the corners of the track, let alone run an entire lap.  While I may not be at the size/weight that I had hoped to be at this point, I have hit many other goals along the way that I am very proud of.

I am a RUNNER!  I run!  I don't sit on the couch.  I don't wish I could do races and get medals.  I am doing it.  I go out four or five days a week and I run.  Not only do I run but I run far!  I am doing things that four years ago I would have thought impossible.

If I measure all my success as a runner on my size/weight then I won't ever feel successful.  That is too narrow a measurement.

If I measure my success as a runner on the following things I have a much better (and rewarding) view:

• I love how I feel after a good run.  
• I love how I pick myself up after a bad run and try again the next day.
• I love how I feel at the end of a race.
• I really love how I feel at the end of a race that I get a PR.
• I love being able to share running with my husband.
• I love being able to share running with my friends who run too.
• I love that my husband, family and my friends cheer me on for all my accomplishments and pick me up when I'm struggling.
• I love that I can share my running, goal setting, setbacks and successes with my students and show them that running is a lot like life, not perfect but definitely an adventure. 
• I love running!  I don't always like getting going but I love the run and the feeling after so that balances it out.  

I have been working hard at not saying things like "I ONLY ran a 1/2 Marathon" or "I am so slow compared to everyone else."  I am finding that because I haven't been saying it out loud I haven't been as focused on it in my own head either.  Cascade Lakes Relay is coming.  It's only two weeks away.  I will be the slowest person on the team, as usual.  I have more miles to run this year and I'm excited about where I am in my fitness level compared to last year.  So the weight is about where I was last year during that race but I think I will be a better athlete this year.  And isn't that a kick in the pants to consider myself an athlete?  Part of the changing of how I see myself, in a good way.  :-)  I am very blessed to have teammates who want me to participate and are always encouraging and supportive of my efforts.  They have never done anything but make me feel like I should be there.  Gotta love it!

This week I have been adding other types of working out.  I am pushing myself outside of my comfort zone....again.  It's hard to try new things because I'm self-conscious about how I look when I am trying to do something and I can't do it right yet.

The bike riding has been fun.  More fun than I had anticipated.  Partly because it brings back so many memories of when I was a kid and I LOVED riding my bike.  :-)  Makes me feel young again.  I am really looking forward to doing the Last Chance Triathlon in October with my youngest goober.

I went to my very first yoga class this week.  My good friend is working on becoming a yoga instructor and is giving free classes to friends and family so she can practice teaching classes.  Goober #3 and I went last Monday and it was really fun.  I couldn't do half of the stuff that we were supposed to do.  But I worked up a sweat, tried everything and felt all loose and stretched out when it was done.  I really enjoyed it.  I'm going again next week.  :-)  A little jealous that the goober could fold herself up like a pretzel with no problem.  Oh to be young and limber!  :-)

This week I have ran 13 miles, done one yoga class, one water aerobics class and biked 7 miles.  All that just since Monday.  :-)  I have a long run to do tomorrow to finish out the week.

When I first started this blog I shared a blog post from a runner named Flint.  I have become a follower of Flint's adventures for a couple of reasons.  First of all, he is a runner who loves the community of runners.  And he includes everyone who laces up their shoes and goes out there as part of his community.  Secondly, Flint recently started on an adventure where he is traveling around in a fixed up camper van.  I have enjoyed reading about the getting ready part of the adventure and I am already loving the first few posts about what he's been up to so far.  If you get a chance check out his blog.  It's worth a read.  :-)  His post "Hey Fat Girl" has made the rounds on Facebook several times and he graciously let me copy it onto my blog last winter.   http://flintland.blogspot.com

All that to say, as my blogger friend Flint says:

Run Free  :-)

Swimming, Biking, Running...Sounds like a Triathlon

This has been a week full of struggles and setbacks for me.  It is always hard for me to start over.  Partly because I am mad at myself for losing ground.  I don't make that much ground so I really shouldn't put myself in a position to lose any.  And partly because my body really likes being lazy and complains loudly when I go back to convincing it that lazy isn't an option.

I have also added a new activity to my cross-training activities.  I am riding a bike.  My plan is to do a Sprint Triathlon next October.  Yikes!  I don't know why I start thinking I can do these things.  First problem with this plan, I don't have a bike.  Second problem with this plan, I haven't ridden a bike in over 20 years.  The mental picture I have of me on a bike is an overweight woman, one with a significant derriere, that is wobbling all over the road.  Isn't that a great mental picture for someone to have before trying something new?  It didn't exactly make me brimming with confidence.

I didn't want to buy a bike until I was a little more confident about the activity.  It would suck to spend a couple hundred dollars and then have the dumb thing sitting in the garage all the time.  My husband would just give me that look.  lol I don't like that look.  So we borrowed a bike from our friends since D is traveling for work and won't be using his for a few weeks.  A couple of weeks ago I walked over to their house with a bike helmet in hand and then rode the bike home.  I was a little wobbly at first but then I smoothed out.  Made it home without crashing into something or falling down.  That's a good start.

A week ago my husband looked at me and said, "Let's go!"  He took me for a bike ride.  We had to have a lesson on stopping cause the seat is so high that I can barely touch the ground so he showed me how to slow down and then slowly come off the seat and then stop and put a foot down at the same time.  It takes a bit of coordination that I'm pretty sure I did fabulously, when I was 14.  I'm a little bit wobbly when I stop but I'm getting better.  We did a loop that is about 5 miles and I played with gears and just got used to being on a bike again.  It was pretty fun.  I totally could remember what it was like to be a kid and be riding my bike with my brother and sisters.  We used to love riding our bikes around the neighborhood and would go around this big block that had a hill on the way back to the house.  Now I would have imagined that my derriere had enough padding that sitting on a bike seat wouldn't bother me too much.  I mean, I rode my bike all the time when I was a kid and I was a twig then.  No padding at all and I never remember my behind hurting.  I definitely could feel it by the end of our ride. I was trying to imagine sitting on a bike seat for 112 miles like Joe did for the Ironman.  No thank you!!

But I did it and I now know that I can do it again.  Gotta start upping the miles so that I will be ready for the triathlon.  :-)

So Sunday was the day of getting back into the routine of working out.  I went on a great hike with friends and my youngest goober.  We ran here and there but mostly walked but it was fun to be out doing something.  I enjoyed the friends, my kiddo and the beautiful Oregon scenery on the hike.  That's a pretty good way to start out a week of working out.  We went about 6.5 miles and had a great time.

Monday I got back in the pool and swam for 30 minutes.  It took awhile to get the rhythm back.  I snorted and sneezed water up my nose for quite a while.  I think I was trying to go to fast.  When I finally settled down and took my time it went much better.  I don't know how swimming is for most people but for me it is about the rhythm of my strokes and my breathing.  Overall the swim wasn't too bad but I could tell that I hadn't done laps for a few months.  Again with the starting over.  Grrrrr.

Tuesday I ran.  I went for a four mile run.  I went in the morning but evidently not early enough.  I was hot.  Everything hurt.  I wasn't breathing very well and I was going SO slow!  Starting over sucks!  Have I mentioned that yet?  My average pace was 14'02".  So slow compared to how I was doing in April.  I then walked another mile so that I could get the miles in that my training plan called for.  Wasn't going to be able to run that last mile.  It just wasn't going to happen.

Wednesday was the "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" 5K.  This is my fourth time doing this 5K.  It is the first race I ever did and I have done it every year since.  I was not looking forward to it this year at all.  I knew that I was not where I wanted to be in my running and that would make it a frustrating race for me.  Also, this race starts at 5:30 p.m. and it was hot.  This year it was about 85 degrees.  I really hate running in the heat.  The race started and took off WAY to fast!  My first half mile the Nike app informed me that I was running at a 10'30" pace.  Uh oh.  I can't maintain that speed on a good day.  I slowed down.  At the one mile mark I was going an 11'30 pace.  Well, I slowed down.  Just not enough!  Still going to fast and now I was having a hard time breathing.  I slowed down even more and used my inhaler.  I kept a more reasonable pace for mile two.  During mile 3 I started feeling nauseous. I had about a half a mile left when I had to start walking.  I would run a bit and then walk a bit.  It sucked!  The race finishes in Goss Stadium, which is the Oregon State University baseball field.  We run around the outfield and then run down the third base line and finish on home plate.  I ran the entire time I was in the stadium.  Finished in 41'43".  Not my worst time but not anywhere close to my best time either.  I was hot, I didn't feel good and I was grumpy with myself.  I know I can do better!  I did a 33 minute 5K in May for Pete's sake!

Thursday I went and did Water Aerobics.  In the summer they have a class at the outdoor kids pool in the current pool.  I did it a lot last summer and loved it and this was the first time that I could go this year.  My friend Maureen joined me and we had a blast.  The class is outside and the instructor plays music the whole time.  So I get to play in the water, listen to good music and work on my tan.  Pretty sweet way to get some exercise.  I like being able to do lunges and squats in the water.  I can work on doing them better than I can at home because if I fall down then I will just be in the water.  If I fall down at home it will hurt! lol

Today I decided to do my longer run.  I am supposed to do it on Saturday but we are picking Goober #3 up from camp at 9:00 a.m. and I would have had to get up ridiculously early to make that work.  And if I waited to do it after we picked her up it wouldn't happen.  I would find excuses not to do it.
I was out the door by 6:45 a.m. which meant it was much cooler than the runs I had done earlier in the week.  I made sure that I was starting out slow.  My goal was to get negative splits.  I do much better when I start out slow and work on getting faster every mile.  The first couple of miles didn't feel great but didn't feel awful either.  About mile 3 I felt it.  That really good rhythm that feels like you can just maintain that pace forever.  I haven't felt that for awhile so I was excited.  I was concentrating on my breathing and my posture and just enjoying the summer morning.  Every mile I was trying to go just a bit faster.  I reached the 7 mile point just around the corner from home.  I had a very good run and did a great job with the negative splits.

Love it when the last mile is the fastest!

When I got home I had a water bottle and Nugo bar.  Then I went for a bike ride with Joe.  We did the same route as last time, just a bit further.  It was pretty good.  I could tell that I had just done a seven mile run though so towards the end my legs were complaining loudly.  But I did it!  I'm using Runkeeper to track my bike rides and swimming.  I like that it has more activities than just running.  :-)

Bike ride!

Then I took a very long nap!  A very, very long nap.  I had sat in the recliner at first but I couldn't get comfortable.  And I also had gotten chilled.  I have that sometimes after a big workout.  It's really hot but I'm shivering.  I even had taken a hot shower.  I finally went and laid down in bed with all the covers and snuggled in.  Three hours later I emerged.  That felt soooooo good.  I love summer vacation!

So after a week of working out and lots of frustrations and complaints I finally had a good run.  (Thank you Joe for putting up with my whining!)  I feel like I've got my groove back a little.  I am a little worried about how I will do at Cascade Lakes Relay, not because of the distances I have to run but because of the heat.  I run my best at a temperature under 55 degrees.  Even 60 feels hot to me when I'm running.

Joe shared this video yesterday on Facebook and I wanted to share it here.  After a week of basically feeling sorry for myself, this video reminded me, once again, that I have it pretty good.

I had tears running down my face as I watched this.  What an amazing example of love and sacrifice.  I can do all things through him who strengthens me!

Some People are Jerks!

Time to get back into the groove.  No excuses anymore.  Graduation is over.  School is out.  Ironman is over.  I'm home.  Time to get at it.  Easier said than done.

During the last couple of months my running has been sporadic to say the least.  This is being kind.  I only ran 25 miles in June and only 22 miles in May.  Pathetic.  There is always a price to pay when I haven't been diligent and I'm paying that price now.

Yesterday I went out and did a three mile run/walk.  I ran the first half and walked the second half.  It was hot (already past 70 degrees at 8:30 in the morning) and I have a blister from the run I did last week in Coeur d'Alene.  But it felt good to be out there and doing something.

Today I was going to do better.  Go farther and keep a better pace.  I started out feeling pretty good.  Not super speedy but at a 13'30 average pace.  I felt good for the second mile as well.  It is a bit of an incline on the route I took but I was working through the kinks and the self-talk that wanted me to turn around and go home.

Then it happened.....

Usually I keep track of all the wonderful people that wave or give me thumbs up as I run.  I love that and it gives me a little boost every time it happens.  I feel like people are cheering me on for being out there and trying to get healthy.  I know that I'm not thin.  I know that things jiggle when I run.  But I'm doing something about it.  I can't help that it is taking forever and that progress is slow.  Better slow progress than no progress.  They tell us in teaching and parenting that it takes 100 compliments or positive comments to balance out ONE negative comment.  Why do we listen to the crap?  Today I did and it made me spiral into a crappy run and crappy day.

I was running and almost done with mile two.  I'm out on a country road by my house that is narrow so I keep the music low on my iPhone so that I can listen for cars.  I was feeling pretty good and was thinking I was going to be able to push it to five miles and run the whole thing.  I heard a truck coming up behind me and could tell it was slowing down.  I look over and there is a car load of young men in an old Bronco looking rig.  They have the windows rolled down and one guy has his head out the window.  He yells as they go by "Keep at it lady!  Your ass is still shaking!"  and then they all start laughing and roar off.

I know that I'm big.  I also know that things jiggle when I run.  Not as much as 6 months ago!  But because I was already working through negative self-talk this just tipped me over the edge.  I stopped running.  I walked.  And I cried.  I felt defeated and fat and that I should just go home because what is the point.  I haven't lost any weight during the last two months.  Why on earth did I ever think that I could do this?  I kept walking though.  I almost turned around when I saw a car in the distance parked on the side of the road.  I had the horrible thought that it might be the same boys and I would have to pass them again.  At that point I decided to keep going.  They may have gotten me to doubt myself and to walk but they were not going to keep me from going the route I had chosen.  Turned out it wasn't their car.  That was a relief.

The problem was that for the next 2.5 miles every time I started to run all I could feel was my butt jiggling.  I was so self-conscious about it I just couldn't bring myself to run.  I let those stupid boys win, dammit.  And I KNOW that they are the minority.  I KNOW that most people think it's great that I'm out there trying.  But dang it, it really hurt today.  The jerks won today.

I want my body to look like the effort I'm putting into it.  I want to see results.  Yes, I have been making gains but they are so slow compared to everyone else (it seems like).  I seriously want to smack the next person who says they started running and lost over 50 pounds in 6 months.  I wish!

So today I'm dealing with negative self-talk, frustration over slow progress and angry feelings toward a bunch of stupid boys that are idiots.

Tomorrow I will go out and run again because I'm not going to let myself or a bunch of stupid boys stop me from continuing.  The jerks won't win tomorrow!

Besides my husband told me that he thinks I'm doing great and he is the only opinion that really matters.  :-)

My quote for today.  Going to keep at it.  :-)

My Husband is an IRONMAN!!

2013!!!

Usually I talk about my running successes and my struggles.  Today I'm going to brag about my amazing husband!

Joe had toyed around with the idea of doing an Ironman for awhile.  He did a sprint triathlon a few years ago and was hooked.  He progressively did longer distant triathlons until the only distance left was an Ironman.

We had a long talk about it.  It is not something a couple goes into without both parties being very aware of the time and sacrifice involved leading up to the event.  The entry fee was $650 and that was just the beginning of the extras that came up throughout the year.  We talked about the time he would take for training, that there would be plenty of times (actually most of the time) where training came first.  However, we have been married a long time and that does have it's advantages.  Talking about it up front and acknowledging the challenges that would come was important.  Being willing to accept those challenges and have a plan to not kill each other was also important.  :-)

Joe had just done a half Ironman distance triathlon at Pacific Crest in Bend, OR.  The bike ride got cut almost in half because of a snow storm on Mt. Bachelor but overall that race went well.  On the way home we stopped in Bend at Burger King because we could get free wifi for the lap top.  We then waited for registration to open for the 2013 Ironman Coeur d'Alene.  Once we registered it was the real deal.

My husband worked hard.  When he decides to do something, he does it 100%.  He found a training plan he liked online and then tweaked it around his firefighter schedule, 24 hours at work, 48 hours off of work.  Except for the weekends it worked out well for the family because he was able to get his training done while we were all at school.  :-)  And since Christmas I have had my own long runs to do on the weekends so we were both training.  Although he obviously was doing WAY more than I was.

Fast forward to one year later.  I went to DC/NYC with 8th graders from my school.  I got back last Wednesday night late.  Joe left for Coeur d'Alene with his buddy Josh, who he trained with and was also doing the Ironman, on Wednesday morning.  This gave the guys a few days to get situated and get checked in and drop off all their gear.  Believe me, there was a lot of gear!  The hotel room looked like an exercise room had exploded in it yesterday.  lol

Wendie and I left Friday morning to join the guys.  We had a fun drive over to Coeur d'Alene with lots of laughing, talking and singing.  :-)  I was more than ready to see Joe! It had been seven days since he dropped me off at the school to leave on my trip and for us that's a really long time.  :-)  Twenty-three years of marriage and I still miss him like crazy when we are apart.  Lucky me!

Now usually before races or events my husband is calm, cool and collected.  Actually in most aspects of life he is calm, cool and collected.  It takes a lot to ruffle his feathers.  The Ironman ruffled his feathers.  My job as the spouse was to be the "You Got This" girl.  Not a hard job when I totally knew he truly did have this in the bag.  So Friday evening, Saturday and Sunday morning my focus was on encouraging, supporting and making sure he knew I believed in him 100%.  Was trying my hardest to drown out his negative self-talk.  He does it often enough for me so I was just returning the favor.

We dropped the boys off so they could check in and get ready for the swim. As soon as they were out of eye sight I cried.  Typical for me, I'm a cryer.  I cry when I'm happy, when I'm stressed, when I'm angry, when I'm proud.  I'm a cryer.  My friends and family know this about me and laughingly tolerate it.  So after a weekend of encouraging my husband and stomping down my own fears and concerns I could let it go a little.  I never once believed that he wouldn't finish the Ironman.  I totally knew he could do this.  But I did worry about him getting injured or not being able to finish because of something outside of his control.  That would suck and be really hard for him.  That's what I was scared about.  And to tell you the truth, it freaked me out a little to have him freaking out.  Joe just doesn't freak out about things, ever.  I didn't want him to get more freaked out because I was freaking out.  We could have easily cycled into "I can't do this" mode in a hurry.  I also knew that once Joe got going he would mentally be fine.  So we needed to hurry up and get this party started so that he would stop thinking about it so much.

Josh & Joe ready to head over to the swim.  Let's get this going!

We left the guys and headed over to the cheering section on the beach of Lake Coeur d'Alene.  What a beautiful part of the country Coeur d'Alene is!   The weather had been raining all week but the forecast was for fog in the morning, low 70's in the afternoon and then rainclouds moving in during the evening.  Almost perfect weather for an Ironman.

IronMates Lisa & Wendie

I don't know how I would have made it through the day without this fantastic lady!  Wendie was there for hugs and high fives all day as we watched and waited for our guys to finish.  There is a lot of hurry up and waiting for those that are cheering on loved ones.  It makes for a very long and stressful day.  Other than the few times we see them and the tracker that shows they hit another checkpoint we have no idea how they are doing, mentally or physically.  

The swim was a rolling start.

The swim started with a rolling start for the first time at Coeur d'Alene.  Instead of everyone stampeding into the water when the cannon fired, they had them line up along the beach according to their estimated time to finish the swim.  Then they started letting people in the water at 6:30.  This kept people from getting hurt but it did make the course clocks not completely accurate for the athletes.  Joe crossed the start pad at around 6:45 a.m. so the time on the clock at the finish was not his actual finish time.  This meant that there was some mental math going on.  The midnight finish was not going be accurate because everyone was in the water before 7:00 a.m.  They each had 17 hours from the time they crossed the start line. Joe basically had to finish by 11:45 p.m. to be an official Ironman.  No problem!  :-)

Josh is to the left with the red cap showing under the green cap.  He's finished lap one of the swim.

They athletes had to do two laps in the water.  They would run on shore and then run back into the water and swim at angle back over to the buoys for the second lap.  In the picture above the swimmers in the background are finishing their first lap and the athletes standing in foreground are heading out for their second lap.  Volunteers stood in the water all morning showing the path for the athletes.  That was a cold job!

Joe finishing the swim.  Official time of 1:16:58!  He rocked it!

By the time the guys were heading out on their second lap of the 2.4 mile swim the fog was burning off and the sun was coming out.  So beautiful!  Wendie I made our way down to where they came out of the water.  Being part of the Ironman crowd was so much fun!  Everyone was cheering and yelling for all the athletes.  It was like a big all day party.

Probably my favorite sign of the day!

Josh came out of the water a bit behind Joe.  Looking good!

I didn't get pictures of Joe's transition on the bike because I wanted to stay and see Josh come out of the water.  The funniest part of watching people get out of the water was the way some of them staggered out.  Evidently if you don't wear ear plugs the cold water in your ears for that long can affect your balance.  A lot of the athletes looked drunk when the started walking.  Fortunately they balanced out quickly.  That would not be good on the bike ride to be wobbly.  They had volunteers who would grab the strap and unzip the wetsuits as the athletes went by.  You can see it in the picture above.  Then they would get a little further towards the transition tent and the had two volunteers who would grab the wet suit and whoosh, peel it off for the the athletes.  Those suits are not easy to get into or out of.  That saved the athletes a ton of time!  Looked entertaining too.

Josh heading out on the bike.

 Joe passed us after the first big loop.  The pictures I took were all blurry.  I was more interested in seeing my man than taking quality pictures.  He was smiling and pointing at us as he went by.  Usually when he races and I'm spectating he doesn't see me.  He is very focused on what he is doing.  It made me so happy to see him smiling and waving at us.  He looked like he was having a blast.  For the first time all day I relaxed a little.  I didn't realize how tense I was until I saw him at that point of the bike ride.  He looked like he was having a blast!  Guess what I did.  Yep, I cried.  lol  Not long after he went by Josh passed us as well.  He caught up with Joe on the little loop so they were together when they passed us again.  Loved seeing these two fabulous men riding together.  They did a lot of training together this past year and it was amazing for Wendie and I to see them go by together, laughing and joking.  What a kick!

Josh caught up with Joe after the first big lap.  I LOVE this picture!

My favorite picture of the day!

The smile in the picture above says it all.  Joe wasn't going for a super fast time or trying to beat anyone.  He was going for the experience and trying to enjoy it all. He didn't kill himself on the bike but had a good ride that would leave something for the marathon.  I will never forget how he looked during this point of the race.  I was so proud of him!!!

They had another 40+ mile loop to do before we would see them again.  One great thing about this race for the spectators was the way the course was set up made it easy for us to be in spots often where we could see our athletes go by.

Wait, you have my shirt on!

The guys came out of the transition tent after the bike ride and they were wearing their shirts for each other.  So fun to have Joe wearing the Team Gum shirt and Josh wearing the Team Van V shirt.  They were hamming it up for us and we were laughing.  They looked really good and ready for the last portion of the day.  Bring on the marathon.

Couple of Hotties!

The things I do to make my husband smile!

We waited at the turn around for the halfway point of the marathon.  Joe chaffs really bad if he doesn't put on his "nippy covers" which are the small round bandaids.  So this seemed like a funny sign to make that would make him laugh.  His splits were looking good and he was keeping a somewhat steady pace.  When we saw him he looked good and still had a smile and a wave for us.  At this point we were pretty sure he could have walked the last 13 miles and would still make it in the time limit.

I'm good, I've got this!

I had an app on my phone call IronTrac that would give me splits when he passed different checkpoints.  It was great all day.  It helped give us an idea of where the guys were and how much time we had before they would be somewhere we could see them.  Due to the fact that we refreshed the stupid thing often our batteries on our phones died quickly.  Luckily we had been able to score a parking spot a couple blocks away from the park where everything was centrally located.  When we knew we had some time we would go back to the car and get some food and then charge the phones.  It was a pretty good system.  

When Joe got to the last six miles of the marathon he crossed a check point and was averaging about a 15 minute mile.  The first half of the marathon he had been averaging 13 minute miles.  I now know that if I want my husband to run as slow as I do then all I have to do is make him swim 2.4 miles and then bike 112 miles and then I can keep up with him on the run.  :-)  I have a funny feeling he is not going to go for that.   The wait for him to cross the next check point was an ETERNITY!  When he finally did he was averaging an 18 minute mile.  I knew then he was walking.  But it is so hard to wait and know that it is taking a lot longer than it should if he was running.  I was figuring that he was walking but then I started to worry that maybe he got hurt.  How would I know?  Waiting is so hard!  Especially when you don't know what's going on.  He couldn't carry his phone so it's not like he could text me and say "Hey, I've got a blister so I'm walking, I should be there a little after 11 p.m."  That would have been nice.  

When he went over that last check point he only had two miles to go and he would be an Ironman.  We had already been standing in the chute for over an hour.  It was going to be at least another 40 minutes if he kept at the same pace as the last check point.  Good thing it was a giant party in the bleaches in the chute.  It was so much fun!  They had music blasting, spectators were dancing, singing and yelling for the athletes.  Some athletes came down the chute very focused and went straight to the finish line.  Others slowed down and high-fived people in the stands.  Some made a huge production of it.  Those were my favorite.  They wanted the moment to last as long as possible.  One guy stood at the start of the chute and waved his arms up and down for more cheering.  The crowd when bonkers.  Then he proceeded to slap all the hands on one side and then he would back up and get all the hands on the other side.  He just went back and forth down the whole chute doing that.  He didn't miss anyone.  There were married couple that held hands as they finished.  Smiles that were so big and bright we didn't need lights.  Tears, lots of tears.  Both from the athletes and their families.  And from me because I just can't help watching them having their moment and not get emotional about it.  It was so freaking awesome!  Some athletes would see their loved ones and stop and get huge hugs.  Others would be so overwhelmed by all the people and excitement that they didn't see their loved ones.  It was all good!  At this point my phone is going bonkers with Facebook notifications and texts from people who were wondering if Joe was almost done and letting me know that they were watching the live feed from where ever they were.  We had family all over watching.  So fun!  Even family in Iowa watching and they had to stay up even later to see it live. 

Suddenly Wendie is yelling "I see him, he's coming!!" Sure enough there comes my man.  Here's his moment.  What he has worked for for an entire year.  Just thinking about it right now is making me cry.  I can't begin describe how it was to watch him come down that chute.  He had the biggest smile on his face and he was slapping hands as he went by.  He didn't see us and it was so loud that he could hear us but he knew we were there somewhere.  That's all that really mattered.  I watched him cross the finish line and put his hands up.  "Joe Van Veldhuizen...you ARE an IRONMAN!" the announcer said.  Wow!!!  I practically trampled people trying to get out of the bleachers.  I wanted to get to the other side before he went into the athletes area.  I came around the end and I could see he was looking for me.  He knows me well enough to know I was going to be there somewhere.  I yelled and he spotted me.  That was another moment that I will never forget.  He started to cry and, of course, so did I.  He wrapped me up in a HUGE hug and just squeezed me tight and held on.  Have you ever tried to convey to someone how much you love them and are proud of them all in one hug?  That's what I think we were both doing.  We just held on tight for the longest time.  I didn't want to let go!  My man is an Ironman!  

There is a reason that this race is called the Ironman.  It is not easy.  There are the obvious physical challenges of doing the distances for a swim, bike and run.  But there is a lot of the work on the mental side of things too.  I met one woman who had to stop after the swim.  She was telling me that she just panicked about swimming in the open water and the first lap took her over 90 minutes.  We saw another guy at the halfway point of the marathon and could see it on his face that he was done.  He happened to be parked by us and he said that he just could keep going.  His body felt fine but he just couldn't get himself to keep going.  He was so close to finishing!  Crazy!  I'm not sure I could handle the physical aspect or the mental aspect of this kind of race.  It was hard enough just watching my husband go through it!  

We had a whole group of guys from the Willamette Valley area participating.  All of them finished.  What a great group of people.  Loved cheering them on and truly enjoyed getting to know their families and friends that came to support them.  I think the reason these athletes can do what they do is because they are the kind of people they are.  They are the kind of people they are because of the kind of people they have around them supporting them.  The picture below is just three of the other guys we cheered on.  There are a couple of young guys that finished while it was still light outside that aren't in the picture.  Oh to be young and crazy.  lol

Joe V, Josh, Joe Y, and Terry.  Ironman one and all!!

I'm so incredibly proud of Joe!  I'm so thankful that I got to be there for his "moment" at the end of the race.  It has been an amazing journey.

Washington DC

Today I got to run in Washington DC. Lots of people do that every day. Each day that we have been here I have seen people running everywhere we go. No big deal to them. It was a very big deal for me. Last year when I went on this trip I thought it would be amazing to be able to say I ran in Washington DC. Since my friend Dannielle is technically the program leader there was no issue about leaving the students without their group leader. We also have three parents along on the trip so she had help if there was a problem. 

I changed into my running stuff while we were at dinner. Then we headed over to the Pentagon Memorial. That was an incredibly moving memorial. Pictures do not do it justice. If you haven't seen it and you are going to be in the DC area I highly recommend you go. 

Then we headed to the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial. The group took off to see the memorial and I took off for my run. I was uncertain how I would do. I hadn't run in a week. This was the third day of walking all over and I was pretty beat. It was about 80 degrees and humid. I don't like running in the heat at all. Running in the heat and humidity didn't sound fun at all. The first place I got to was the Lincoln Memorial. 

The sun was going down and it was beautiful peeking around the memorial. Looking the opposite direction I got this view:

The Washington Monument is under repair due to the earthquake damage it received a while back so it is covered with scaffolding. This is the first time I have see the reflecting pool up and running. They had just started upgrading the water system my first visit four years ago. Last year it was almost done but not quite so there was no water in it yet. 

Next stop was the Vietnam Memorial. Another amazing place. We saw it yesterday and they had long-stemmed roses all along the wall. It was in honor of Fathers Day for all the dads and sons who didn't come home. Red for the men who died. Yellow for those that are MIA and white with red tips for those who did come home. It was beautiful. 

I followed the trail and worked my way back up the way I had come, just on the opposite side. I was just following my nose. The goal was to finish at the Jefferson Memorial and meet up with my group there. I had about an hour to do that so I had plenty of time to make the run longer. The next stop was the World War II Memorial. 

Then I turned left and ran up to the base of the Washington Monument. 

This is the view from the Washington Monument looking down at the WWII Memorial and then the Lincoln Memorial past that. The weather had been trying have a thunderstorm that never quite happened but it made a spectacular sunset.

Are you jealous yet? Just wait, it gets even better. I then ran down and found a path that followed the tidal basin opposite of the Jefferson Memorial. I could see people all along the water to the memorial so I started down the path. 

I went over a bridge and the path continued around to the Jefferson Memorial. The group wasn't there yet and I was close to getting three miles so I kept going until I got to the FDR Memorial. I didn't stop to take pictures because there was a ton of tour groups and it was crowded. I turned around and headed back to the Jefferson Memorial.

I walked about a 1/2 mile to cool down and then I asked a very nice lady if she would take my picture. 

I think the smile says it all. I had so much fun! I had a great run in spite of the heat and humidity. I got to take amazing pictures along the way. I can't really explain why it was so important to me or why I got emotional when I was done. Other than I tend to get emotional about stuff so that really wasn't a surprise.  This run just was special and I'm very glad I could do it. 

Here's a map of the route:

And here are my splits. The first time I stopped to take pictures I forgot to pause it so I think the average pace was better than it showed. But either way it was a good run and wasn't as hard to do as I thought it would be. Here are my splits:

I'm still smiling. :) 

We head out for NYC in the morning. I wonder if I could get a run in Central Park? Hmmmmm :)

I'm posting this from my iPad so hopefully the formatting isn't funky. ;) 

Making Me a Priority? How???

The last couple of weeks have been crazy!  I have been going full steam with all the end of the school year activities.  This is always a busy time of year when you are a teacher.  The combination of wrapping up projects and units combined with trying to maintain order with a bunch of students who have already mentally started Summer Vacation.  Add to that, end of the year report cards, getting the room ready for summer so the custodians can clean floors and it is a bit chaotic.

Both of my oldest kids are in choir at their schools.  They both had end of the year concerts the last few weeks.  The one on May 30th was for all the choirs in Albany from the middle schools up to the community college.  My son sings in the community college choir and my oldest daughter sings in the high school choir.  The concert was called "Albany Sings" and it was amazing.  I was so impressed with the quality of singing from all the schools.  The middles schools sang beautifully in four part harmony and held their own with the big kids.  Our little town has some very dedicated and talented music teachers who are able to push the kids further than they probably realize.  My oldest daughter had a solo and was amazing.  I'm so proud of her.  Bri is in the choir robe on the left.  :-)

I then spend May 31-June 2 up at our camp site getting it ready for the summer and fullfilling our duties as camp host for the season.  It was a lot of work but it will be worth it later when we get to go up and camp.  I also did a lot of grading of papers trying to get caught up so that the kids would have one last shot at getting missing work in before the end of the year.  

The last full week of school was a busy one.  The students are all squirelly and have a hard time staying focused.  Many are not happy about school being out and their behavior gets worse and worse the closer we get to summer vacation.  Breaks my heart a little bit.  

My son had a concert on Thursday of that week and it was awesome.  He had a solo with his acapella group and looks so comfortable on stage.  I love watching both my kids perform because they just look like they are having a blast.  

Friday began the craziness of preparing for Bri's graduation party.  Shopping, food prep, cleaning, more food prep, more cleaning.  I was a busy lady!  I made two HUGE pork roasts for pulled pork and a variety of fruits and veggies to have out to nibble on.  

To say my refridgerator was full is an understatement!  The party was a ton of fun and the graduate had a good time.  She doesn't generally like being fussed over but does understand that sometimes other people who love her need to fuss over her a little.  So every once in awhile she lets us.  :-)

Monday was the 8th Grade field trip.  We took the students to Oregon State University.  The Memorial Union has a bowling alley and other activities in the basement.  We reserved the whole area and let them loose.  They had a blast.  Then we loaded up and went to a park and had pizza and let them play basketball, football, frisbee or just hang out.  The weather was perfect and they had fun there too.  I came home and took an hour and half nap.  I was pooped!

Tuesday was the graduation.  By the time I got home I had enough time to change my clothes, fix my hair and then take off.  Graduation started at 6:30 and we got done about 9:00.  Lots of speeches, the choir sang and then the kids crossed the stage to get their diplomas.  Bri got an honors diploma and was the second to the last to cross the stage.  One of the school board members is a friend of ours so he jumped up and made sure he was the one presenting her with her diploma and he gave her a hug instead of just of a handshake.  It was fun to watch!  Can't believe my little girl is out of high school.  It seems like she just started kindergarten.

Wednesday was the last day of school.  We had field day and then the kids signed yearbooks and t-shirts.  It was another amazing day.  I had several students come tell me that the loved my class.  It made me laugh because I was just sure that some of them hated me because I pushed them to do better all the time.  :-)  School was out at 1:30 and I spent the afternoon working on grades.  Then I went to dinner with a bunch of the teachers from school.  After dinner we went to the 8th Grade Promotion.  (No, it's NOT a graduation!)  They were so excited.  It was fun to be part of their special day.  What a great bunch of kids.  They are going to do great in high school.  By the time I got home it was almost 9:00 p.m.

Thursday was grading day.  I had a list of end of the year things to do in order to check out for the summer.  On top of that I had to pack up and move all my stuff into a new class room.  Luckily my youngest daughter came along and helped me out.  We got it all moved into the new classroom.  I will go in later and start organizing and putting things away in their new proper spot.  By the time we got done it was after two.  I took Meighan to lunch to thank her for helping me.  When we got home it was about 4:00 and I laid down on the couch and I was OUT!  I slept for over two hours.  I think I would have slept longer but my phone got a text and it woke me up.

Today I am leaving for Washington DC/New York City with fourteen 8th graders.  So I was getting ready for the trip all day.  I started with a massage.  Wow, did that feel good.  I was one tense lady and it felt so good to have all the kinks worked out.  Then I had to get a pedicure with the other teacher who runs the trip with me.  After that it is shopping, going to the bank (twice because I forgot to get cash for our lunch and dinner allotments for one of the days of the trip) and packing.  My hubby is getting ready to take me out to the school so we can get going on the trip.

I tell you all about my crazy couple of weeks because I want to know.  How do I make time to exercise when I have so much going on.  I get really frustrated when things are crazy like this because I feel like I have so much to do and a limited amount of time and energy to get it done.  Something has to give.