Chilly Half Marathon Training: Day 8 Rest Day

Today is my rest day.  I'm kind of glad as my legs need a day to recover some.  After dropping James off at school, River and I headed out for a walk.  It was snowing and I had to pry River off the couch.  She is not a fan of the snow.  She pouted almost the whole walk. 

I enjoyed the walk though.  The snow was the big fluffy kind.  It was cold, but it wasn't bitter cold.  I enjoyed walking through all the fluffy snow.  Now Wednesday when I go for my run I will be upset if people haven't shoveled. 

Here we are after our walk today.  River was ready to go inside and have her lunch.

River has been curled up on the couch ever since we got back.  Normally she wants to go out again, but she keeps burying her face every time I stand up.  She really hates winter.

Tomorrow I'm in the gym doing speed work and weights.  I'm looking forward to it.  I have enjoyed my rest day, but I'm ready to be back at it!

Chilly Half Marathon Training: Day 7 The Hanukkah Hustle

Today puts me at the end of the first week of training.  It's been a good week.  To end it, I ran the Hanukkah Hustle 5k.  I really enjoy this race as it's small and I love the course.  I like watching the residents of the assisted living facility get out and enjoy time with family and the volunteers.  Here we are before the race.

It was starting to snow as we headed to the start line.  It was a pretty fluffy snow too.  I reminded Mike that he should be thankful that I was only doing the 5k and not the 10k.  He didn't have to stand outside as long.  I know he went inside to stay warm.  He knows my times and knows when to be out at the finish line.  And he was!  Here I am crossing the finish line.

The race itself was okay.  My legs were really tired from my runs this past week.  I knew I would be slow, but I was fine with that.  It took me awhile to get my legs stretched out and feeling good.  By that point I was almost at the finish line.  The finish for this race is uphill.  I got to the hill and kept repeating, "Up the hill. Across the line."  It got me there.  It's not the hill was particularly big or steep, it was just my legs were that tired.  I got my finisher's medal and we headed inside for hot dogs, latkes, and to check results.

I didn't think I had gone fast enough to place, but I was surprised that I got 3rd in my age group!  We stayed for the awards.  The top 3 in each age group got Star of David pendants.  They were pretty cool!

Here's a picture of both my finisher's medal and my age group pendant.

Tomorrow is my rest day.  I will just take River for a long walk.  Tuesday I'm in the gym for speed work and weights, Wednesday it's a 4 mile run, Thursday cross training and weights, and Friday is my long run.  Saturday is my rest day and Sunday I have a swim meet so I can't run then.  I'm ready to tackle the 2nd week of training!

Chilly Half Marathon Training: Day 3

I know some people may not find my training exciting, but it helps me stay accountable and helps me organize my thoughts since running is my stress relief and my way of fighting depression.

Today was a 4 mile run.  It was cold and windy.  Such a big change from the weather yesterday!  I'm not going to lie, it would have been easy to stay inside and go back to bed.  I had to get River out for a walk no matter what so I figured I should just do my run.

The first 5k felt great!  I was moving at a good pace and I felt relaxed.  Then my stomach started to revolt against me.  I was hoping this whole thing with the iron was settled.  Guess not.  River had to stop to go to the bathroom so I took some time to stretch.  That helped.  The other thing I'm going to try is taking my iron pill at night before bed.  I'm hoping it will be through my system by the time I run in the morning.  I'll know Friday if it works.

I was afraid that my legs would be sore after lifting weights yesterday, but they felt pretty good.  They were tired, but not sore.  River loved running in the cooler weather.  She was all smiles.  When we got home she was ready for her lunch though.  As you can see, she was not amused by our selfie.

I'm so glad I did this run.  I could feel myself losing my stress as I ran.  I took over the swim school part of the team I coach and we have our first mini meet tonight.  I'm nervous about how it will go.  I know it's out of my hands as I've done everything I can to get ready for it, but I'm still stressing about it. 

I'm also worrying about Christmas.  I've gotten almost all my shopping done so I can just do the baking in December.  I have ordered some really cute shirts from Snappy Kid (www.snappykid.com) and can't wait for them to get here!  I love that sight!  It has great geeky shirts for James and my neices and nephews.  I thought I was finished and then I saw this awesome Minion shirt that I got for James for Christmas.  He will love it!!!!!!

Tomorrow I'm in the gym for cross training and weights and Friday it's my long run.  Week one is almost in the books!  March 1st will be here before I know it!

Canada Day 5k Recap

I know this is a day late and it may even be a dollar short.  I'll have to let you know if I find that missing Loonie in the couch cushions or not.


Yesterday was Canada Day.  Canada celebrated her 147th birthday.  Last year I started a tradition of running a 5k race.  I run the one in Burlington put on by VRPro.  We run several of their races and like the way the are organized and that they have a nice community feel to them.  Being a Canadian transplant, I'm trying to find my place still.  I get homesick on two holidays, Thanksgiving and Canada Day/Fourth of July.  Neither is celebrated quite like they are in the United States so I'm trying to start my own traditions and take the best of both of them and combine them into a great family celebration.


The Canada Day 5k is a nice flat course along the lake.  It's through a park that then hosts a Canada Day celebration.  I knew I wasn't going to run well because my body was still sore and dehydrated from the swim meet on the weekend.  I did start out to fast and 15 minutes into the race, the wheels fell off.  My muscles just started getting very tight and I knew I was not going to finish well.  I decided to take it easy and just enjoy the run.  The scenery was pretty and there was a nice breeze coming off the lake.  Then I hit the wooded area.  Ugh...that's when the humidity hit.  It was so sticky and the air was so close that it made it hard to breathe.  That's when I started to sweat really badly and my legs started to revolt.  I was feeling very sick due to dehydration. 


I am usually pretty good about adjusting when a race just doesn't feel good, but this one I was having a hard time with.  I had to walk and I haven't had to walk during a 5k or 10k in a long time.  I had to remind myself that everyone has races like this.  Oh was it ever a really long last 1.5k of that race.


I finished and I had a smile on my face.  It may have been a smile that was holding back a string of profanity that would make a sailor blush, but it was a smile.


I drank lots of water over the weekend knowing I would need it and yesterday I drank even more water.  I'm feeling rehydrated and ready to go tomorrow morning for a nice 4 mile run.  The storms have blown through and it will be a beautiful morning to go for a run with River.  Hopefully tomorrow morning goes better than yesterday.


Needing a shot a redemption, I think I'm signing up for a 5k race on July 17th.  I'm still debating this, but I know I will probably give in.  I won't be dressing like this for that race though.

I'm looking forward to tomorrow's run!

Valentine's Day Couples 5k

Today we ran our annual Couples Valentine's 5k race.  James got to run it with us this year.  Mike and I have run this race 3 years in a row now.  We register as a couple and have to run tied together.  Here we are before the race.

This year we had James so he registered and ran as a single.  He was very excited as the finishers medals are big hearts and he has always loved our medal.

 It was snowy and cold, but that didn't stop us!  The course was a bit slick so we ran a bit slower to make sure we didn't fall.  James did a great job of running the first 3.5k.  He walked to drink some water and then finished the race strong.  It wasn't a best time, but it was a pretty good time for the conditions.  We ran a 38:52.

Here we are after the race.

We went back inside for some pizza and the awards. James ended up getting 2nd in his age group.  He won a running hat and a $10 gift card to the Running Room.  He was so excited!

After he got his prize, he got a post-race massage before heading home.

It was a great day!  Tomorrow starts my half-marathon training!  112 days until I race my 2nd half marathon.  Day 1 starts tomorrow!

Day 8: Sunday Was Race Day...The Hannukah Hustle

Yesterday was a great day to run.  The weather was warm and the sun was peaking out.  Mike and I were in Hamilton for the Hannukah Hustle.  It's my 3rd year running this race and I love it!  The course is so pretty and VRPro puts on such great races!  This year was no exception.

Here we are before the race.  It was a bit chilly standing around.

I hadn't run since Wednesday so I knew I wasn't going to go much faster than my best time.  River ended up with a cold and couldn't run Friday.  My schedule got all thrown off because I had to take her to the vet so I didn't get out for a run either.  River really keeps me going.

The race starts with a downhill and since it's an out and back that means it ends in an uphill.  Ugh...It's not a big hill, but it's still a hill.  I felt really good the whole race.  I knew I was going to slow down a bit at the end going up the hill so I tried to push a bit more than normal at the front end of the race.  I could feel that I did push harder around the 3k mark.  I really tried to keep my pace up though.  It always seems that the hills that are the gentle rolling hills are the hardest for me.  Yep, I felt this hill!  I was not a happy camper going up it.  Once I got to the top there is about 100 yards to the finish.  I tried to push it, but my legs wouldn't go as hard as I wanted them to go.  I need to get more speed work in starting this week.  Here I am crossing the finish line and after the race.

I was off my best time by about 50 seconds.  I ran my 5k in 30:53.  Not bad and about what I expected.  After getting some water, a hot dog, and a potato latke, we checked the results.  I ended up first in my age group!  I have never placed in a race in the 4 years I've been running.  I was really excited!  There were 5 other women in my age group.  It was pretty cool to place.  Here I am getting my medal and then posing for pictures.

Here is what the medal looked like.  I think it's pretty cool!

I really love the races that VRPro puts on and am looking forward to running the Santa Race Hamilton with James on Sunday.  Right now I'm getting ready to head out for a quick run with River.  She's allowed to go on short runs for now.  It's going to be a windy one though!  Hope we don't blow away!

Day 49: Stryker Dundas Cactus 5k Race

Today we all ran a 5k race.  Mike ran with James so I could see where I was with my time since I have upped my training.  It was a great race!

The race was at a park in Dundas.   It was a nice little park and while this morning was warmer than it has been, it was still a nice morning to run.  Here are a few pictures of us before the run.

The 10k started off the morning.  Some of those runners were speedy.  They were finishing their first loop as we were starting our race.  The course was mostly flat.  I was happy about that.  I know I've been training hills, but I still like a flat course.  There was one hill towards the end of the race, but it wasn't so bad.

I ran a best time of 31:59.  I was really happy with that time.  It's a best time by about 30 seconds.  I thought that it would take James and Mike around 43 minutes, but I was wrong.  I crossed the finish line, got some water, looked up and they were coming into the park.  They crossed the finish line in 38:15.  It was a best time for James by at least 5 minutes.

James was so excited about his time and the fact that he ran almost the whole race.  He asked if he could get a massage and while we were waiting in line, I went to go check the official times.  I looked at his time and saw that he got 3rd in his age group.  Here he is after I told him.

He was so proud of himself as were we.  He got his massage and then we had to get some after race pictures.

VRPro always puts on great races and this one was no exception.  Looking forward to running my next race that they sponsor.