I have had NO motivation and NO willpower to run over the past couple of weeks. I finally realized it was because my shoes were making my feet hurt so badly after every run (I can't believe it took so long to realize THAT..).
SO -- I went to Runner's Roost yesterday and had them tell me what kind of shoe I need and OH. MY. GOSH. What a difference a shoe can make! I bought some Brooks Ghost 4's and they are the most comfortable shoe I have ever set foot in. I was so excited to run in my new shoes that I headed to the gym first thing this morning to try them out. Last week I would have used this sore throat of mine as an excuse to stay home. Not so today! Today I laced those babies up and hit the treadmill. Immediately I felt the difference in my footfalls. These shoes are so cushion-y and comfortable I could have ran forever if I hadn't got so winded (definitely coming down with something). Lately, it's been my sore feet that cut my run short. Now I'm excited to get over this cold or whatever it is so I can put some real mileage on these shoes!
Corlet and I have decided to run the Denver half marathon this fall, so I've got that to train for and keep my motivation up as well. March is a busy month in our house and it has been pretty crazy around here. I've been completely slacking on this blog because I was too embarrassed to acknowledge my lack of commitment lately. Now that I'm getting back on track in that respect, I should be posting here much more often as well. The weather here is getting warmer and more gorgeous every day. That means getting out of the gym and onto the road!
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Monday, February 27, 2012
Sorry week for running
I generally have a decent willpower when it comes to running. I do have a breaking point though. You know, those days where the universe seems to be saying, "Oh, you wanted to do WHAT today? Well, here -- deal with THIS instead.." and your light fixture starts leaking water and the basement ceiling starts sagging in an ominous "I'm about to collapse" kind of way. THOSE days.. What? You don't have those? That was my Wednesday last week. I ran Thursday, and had every intention of making up miles on Friday but woke up with a sore throat/fever and decided to stay home. It really is true what they say about the hardest distance of a run being the distance from your house to the starting line (wherever that may be -- gym, sidewalk, track, etc.).
In light of my lack of running week, I call a do-over this week. I'm just going to apply last week's running schedule to this week and suck it up. I'll be a week behind Miss Rockstar Runner (aka Corlet), but I can deal with that. I guess.. I may try to add distance to this week and next week and try to catch up that way, but I'm not going to hold myself to it. If I get my butt to the gym and run any distance at all, it's more than I would accomplish by sitting on said butt at home. I'm not going to put extra pressure on myself because lately all that does is overwhelm me and I end up doing nothing at all.
I am also going to try to embrace the morning. I am SO not a morning person. Which may seem odd when I am up every day by 7 (at the latest). That is not by choice. That is because my 3 year old has inherited her father's sickening love of early mornings and that is the absolute latest she will sleep. I am going to try to get my run done first thing in the morning (as soon as the gym daycare opens) to get it out of the way. Don't get me wrong, I love my run. I just feel so much better all day when I don't have unfinished miles hanging over my head. I'm not a morning person by nature, but having to get up so early makes it hard for me to find the motivation late in the afternoon. Also, I like to take my shower AFTER my run. This way I won't 1. Sit around my house unshowered all day, or 2. Waste water by taking two showers every day.
I'm interested to hear how others motivate themselves to get going. If you've got any "tricks" you'd like to share, please feel free to share!
In light of my lack of running week, I call a do-over this week. I'm just going to apply last week's running schedule to this week and suck it up. I'll be a week behind Miss Rockstar Runner (aka Corlet), but I can deal with that. I guess.. I may try to add distance to this week and next week and try to catch up that way, but I'm not going to hold myself to it. If I get my butt to the gym and run any distance at all, it's more than I would accomplish by sitting on said butt at home. I'm not going to put extra pressure on myself because lately all that does is overwhelm me and I end up doing nothing at all.
I am also going to try to embrace the morning. I am SO not a morning person. Which may seem odd when I am up every day by 7 (at the latest). That is not by choice. That is because my 3 year old has inherited her father's sickening love of early mornings and that is the absolute latest she will sleep. I am going to try to get my run done first thing in the morning (as soon as the gym daycare opens) to get it out of the way. Don't get me wrong, I love my run. I just feel so much better all day when I don't have unfinished miles hanging over my head. I'm not a morning person by nature, but having to get up so early makes it hard for me to find the motivation late in the afternoon. Also, I like to take my shower AFTER my run. This way I won't 1. Sit around my house unshowered all day, or 2. Waste water by taking two showers every day.
I'm interested to hear how others motivate themselves to get going. If you've got any "tricks" you'd like to share, please feel free to share!
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Running while on vacation
How do you do it? My family and I went to Oklahoma for a few days to do some work on my grandparents' house that has been vacant since my grandpa passed. I had every intention of running while we were there. I was actually kind of excited to run there. With the altitude here, I'm always excited to run in lower elevations. I don't know if it was just that we were only there for a few days or what, but I got ZERO running time in. My kids were both sick for one whole day, I spent one day with my (other) grandma, and one day I helped finish up the tiling in the house and visited some family that I rarely get to see. I did fit in some extra running time before we left home, so I'm not behind or anything, I just don't get this whole "time management" thing.. I am really REALLY terrible at it apparently.
I always have all kinds of fun plans for the days and I just can't seem to make anything actually happen. I don't know where my time goes. I guess everything must take a lot longer than I think it will. Take this post for instance. I finished up a new post on my other blog and thought, "I'll hop onto SJR, and quickly type up a new post there, too. THEN I will take my shower." When I thought that, I figured I would be half done showering by 9:30 --- it's 9:35, and here I sit. Still typing. If anyone has any tricks for managing time -- I'm all ears. I'd love to hear how you do it. I am a stay at home mom. I figured I would have plenty of time to get all of my housewife-ly duties done, and still be able to do fun stuff with my toddler, and run, and do all of my fun crafting stuff that I enjoy. Some days, I take a sip of my coffee, look at the clock and realize it is almost lunch time and I've gotten absolutely nothing done. How does that happen? I don't FEEL like I am wasting so much time, but I must be. I just must be.
On that note, this is my plan for today:
Return overdue library books (and let Lilly wander the library and pick new books)
Home for lunch (make lunch/eat lunch)
Clean my house (sweep/clean bathroom/do laundry)
Decide what is for dinner and get it all ready to make (crockpot meal??)
Go to the dollar store and find bins for my craft closet (I need 20-ish)
Run (hopefully with Corlet)
Eat dinner
Bathe my child
Put child to bed
Craft
Pretty straight forward day. I don't feel like that is over-reaching. It is 9:45.. I'd better get going!
I always have all kinds of fun plans for the days and I just can't seem to make anything actually happen. I don't know where my time goes. I guess everything must take a lot longer than I think it will. Take this post for instance. I finished up a new post on my other blog and thought, "I'll hop onto SJR, and quickly type up a new post there, too. THEN I will take my shower." When I thought that, I figured I would be half done showering by 9:30 --- it's 9:35, and here I sit. Still typing. If anyone has any tricks for managing time -- I'm all ears. I'd love to hear how you do it. I am a stay at home mom. I figured I would have plenty of time to get all of my housewife-ly duties done, and still be able to do fun stuff with my toddler, and run, and do all of my fun crafting stuff that I enjoy. Some days, I take a sip of my coffee, look at the clock and realize it is almost lunch time and I've gotten absolutely nothing done. How does that happen? I don't FEEL like I am wasting so much time, but I must be. I just must be.
On that note, this is my plan for today:
Return overdue library books (and let Lilly wander the library and pick new books)
Home for lunch (make lunch/eat lunch)
Clean my house (sweep/clean bathroom/do laundry)
Decide what is for dinner and get it all ready to make (crockpot meal??)
Go to the dollar store and find bins for my craft closet (I need 20-ish)
Run (hopefully with Corlet)
Eat dinner
Bathe my child
Put child to bed
Craft
Pretty straight forward day. I don't feel like that is over-reaching. It is 9:45.. I'd better get going!
Monday, February 13, 2012
On The Run
Weekends seem to get away from me. I did my run on Saturday for Sherry. It was freezing here, so I was glad to do it in the comfort of the gym on the treadmill. I know there was a massive turn-out in many areas in spite of the weather. What a nice reminder that there are also wonderful, caring, and kind people to outnumber all of the horrible ones in the world. My heart still pours out to Sherry's friends and family. I hope they can take comfort in the support and kindness they have received in their time of unthinkable loss. Again, you can read the full story, including "virtual run day" details HERE.
My husband really rocks on the weekends. He rocks pretty much all of the time, but he really rocks on the weekends. On the weekends, he lets me sleep in as late as I want and hangs out with Lilly (our 3 year old) most of the day. She doesn't nap anymore (hasn't for a very long time), so my weekdays are full of toddler conversations and toddler activities. My weekends are too, but with Jake home I am free to do a few things by myself (..like shower..). This weekend I got in a nice run on Saturday and picked up some shelving for my newly claimed "craft closet" in our spare bedroom. We have this ability to collect clutter without realizing it. It apparently all lived in the spare bedroom closet. -- Not anymore. Now it has moved to the local donation center (ARC) where it will all hopefully find new homes. All I need to do now is have my wedding dress cleaned/pressed/preserved so I can find it a new home in the house. It's only been FOUR YEARS.. It's about time.
Lilly has been sick for over a week, and it's been cold and snowy here, so we've been stuck in the house. Today she was finally well enough to head to the gym. She loves the daycare at the rec center, and I love getting my workout done before lunch. I think it even got warm enough to melt off a lot of our snow. I'm pretty excited for that snow to shove off so we can get outside. I don't like to be cold, and Lilly takes after me that way, so we don't get outside much when it's super cold. When it's nice and warm we practically LIVE outdoors and I am ready, ready, READY for BBQ weather!
I have a jumble of ideas going on in my head for both blogs, and my budding crochet business. I find I procrastinate, get overwhelmed, then do nothing. I'm working on that and will hopefully have a system that works pretty soon. My 13 year old is actually very good at keeping me on track (which is ironic, because lshe doesn't do that great a job keeping herself on track!). I'm thinking between the two of us we'll get it figured out and I can become a better time budget-er. I guess being a stay at home mom has diminished my ability to manage time. My days have been busy, but have mainly consisted of playing, disciplining, cleaning, cooking, and playing some more. Not much of a time constraint connected with those tasks :) Now, I still have all of those tasks, plus the maintenance of two blogs and crochet orders suddenly piling in! <-- That's a GOOD problem to have! My long-winded point is -- have some patience with me while I'm figuring out how to manage my time. I'm doing my best not to neglect anything, but it just gets away from me from time to time.
My husband really rocks on the weekends. He rocks pretty much all of the time, but he really rocks on the weekends. On the weekends, he lets me sleep in as late as I want and hangs out with Lilly (our 3 year old) most of the day. She doesn't nap anymore (hasn't for a very long time), so my weekdays are full of toddler conversations and toddler activities. My weekends are too, but with Jake home I am free to do a few things by myself (..like shower..). This weekend I got in a nice run on Saturday and picked up some shelving for my newly claimed "craft closet" in our spare bedroom. We have this ability to collect clutter without realizing it. It apparently all lived in the spare bedroom closet. -- Not anymore. Now it has moved to the local donation center (ARC) where it will all hopefully find new homes. All I need to do now is have my wedding dress cleaned/pressed/preserved so I can find it a new home in the house. It's only been FOUR YEARS.. It's about time.
Lilly has been sick for over a week, and it's been cold and snowy here, so we've been stuck in the house. Today she was finally well enough to head to the gym. She loves the daycare at the rec center, and I love getting my workout done before lunch. I think it even got warm enough to melt off a lot of our snow. I'm pretty excited for that snow to shove off so we can get outside. I don't like to be cold, and Lilly takes after me that way, so we don't get outside much when it's super cold. When it's nice and warm we practically LIVE outdoors and I am ready, ready, READY for BBQ weather!
I have a jumble of ideas going on in my head for both blogs, and my budding crochet business. I find I procrastinate, get overwhelmed, then do nothing. I'm working on that and will hopefully have a system that works pretty soon. My 13 year old is actually very good at keeping me on track (which is ironic, because lshe doesn't do that great a job keeping herself on track!). I'm thinking between the two of us we'll get it figured out and I can become a better time budget-er. I guess being a stay at home mom has diminished my ability to manage time. My days have been busy, but have mainly consisted of playing, disciplining, cleaning, cooking, and playing some more. Not much of a time constraint connected with those tasks :) Now, I still have all of those tasks, plus the maintenance of two blogs and crochet orders suddenly piling in! <-- That's a GOOD problem to have! My long-winded point is -- have some patience with me while I'm figuring out how to manage my time. I'm doing my best not to neglect anything, but it just gets away from me from time to time.
Friday, February 10, 2012
Running For a Reason
This blog is new, and I know this is tomorrow, but I want to make sure I mention it because I think it is worth it.
Tomorrow (Saturday, February 11, 2012) I will be participating in a virtual run for the family member of a fellow runner/blogger. Her blog is wildly popular, so the chances of your hearing it here first are very slim. However, if you are here and have no idea what I am talking about, go over to the Shut Up + Run blog and read the full story. You can get there easily by clicking THIS LINK.
It is a heartbreaking story. I admire Beth's courage and ability to rally so many so quickly to show support for the family and friends of her cousin Sherry. By following the link above, you can read the full story, and print a special race bib to wear during your run (or walk, or swim, or housecleaning). You can also make a donation for her family if you feel so inclined. Just give her a moment of your thought tomorrow.
It's so easy to connect with her as a fellow runner, but also as a fellow Mom, a fellow human. A woman who got up early and went out for her run, as she did every day and never came home to her family again. It really could happen to anyone. It is easy to get caught up in thoughts of all of the horrible things that could happen to us any day. This run is to stand up against that fear and "run on". Live life in spite of those things with your head held high, and maybe a bit more watchful an eye.
I'll be linking in a bit about running safety soon. I'll probably refer to the SUAR blog occasionally too, because I love it. I know Corlet is a follower also, and will be running for Sherry tomorrow as well.
So should you.
Tomorrow (Saturday, February 11, 2012) I will be participating in a virtual run for the family member of a fellow runner/blogger. Her blog is wildly popular, so the chances of your hearing it here first are very slim. However, if you are here and have no idea what I am talking about, go over to the Shut Up + Run blog and read the full story. You can get there easily by clicking THIS LINK.
It is a heartbreaking story. I admire Beth's courage and ability to rally so many so quickly to show support for the family and friends of her cousin Sherry. By following the link above, you can read the full story, and print a special race bib to wear during your run (or walk, or swim, or housecleaning). You can also make a donation for her family if you feel so inclined. Just give her a moment of your thought tomorrow.
It's so easy to connect with her as a fellow runner, but also as a fellow Mom, a fellow human. A woman who got up early and went out for her run, as she did every day and never came home to her family again. It really could happen to anyone. It is easy to get caught up in thoughts of all of the horrible things that could happen to us any day. This run is to stand up against that fear and "run on". Live life in spite of those things with your head held high, and maybe a bit more watchful an eye.
I'll be linking in a bit about running safety soon. I'll probably refer to the SUAR blog occasionally too, because I love it. I know Corlet is a follower also, and will be running for Sherry tomorrow as well.
So should you.
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Should be doing homework....
Jen and I have talked for a while about doing a blog, yet we have been a lot of talk and no action. I am said running partner, Corlet, though I think that Jen may have exaggerated my awesomeness!
I am a thirty-something runner, full-time healthcare worker, and full-time nursing student. I also have a husband and a twelve-year-old stepson and a seven-year-old daughter who make my life interesting yet fulfilling.
I look forward to being able to utilize this as one other way to vent as well as pass on information and look forward to doing it with my best pal Jen!!! Jen happens to be the one who first suggested that we run. I would pay money to see a flash of what we looked like that first time, running a max of about thirty seconds and stopping, gasping, dry heaving (you get the picture). Now we run almost every day and it has become a big part of our lives. Thanks to running I no longer have a muffin top and can HONESTLY say that the weight on my driver's license from when I was 21 is more than I weigh now. I must say that we rock and if we can do it, anyone with an extra thirty minutes a day can do it....
I have to get to my homework now...
Corlet
I am a thirty-something runner, full-time healthcare worker, and full-time nursing student. I also have a husband and a twelve-year-old stepson and a seven-year-old daughter who make my life interesting yet fulfilling.
I look forward to being able to utilize this as one other way to vent as well as pass on information and look forward to doing it with my best pal Jen!!! Jen happens to be the one who first suggested that we run. I would pay money to see a flash of what we looked like that first time, running a max of about thirty seconds and stopping, gasping, dry heaving (you get the picture). Now we run almost every day and it has become a big part of our lives. Thanks to running I no longer have a muffin top and can HONESTLY say that the weight on my driver's license from when I was 21 is more than I weigh now. I must say that we rock and if we can do it, anyone with an extra thirty minutes a day can do it....
I have to get to my homework now...
Corlet
Here We Go!
I recently discovered blogging, and I love it. I've actually realized a few new loves over the past year(ish). Running, crochet, crafting, cooking. All new loves of mine. I've always enjoyed writing, so the fact that I love blogging is not really very shocking. Starting a blog has been something my running partner and I have been talking about doing since the beginning of our running lives. We were hubbers for awhile, but somehow that isn't as fulfilling as this (for me anyway). I recently started a crafting blog with another friend, and once I sort of got it "figured out", I decided I would start a second one. Who knows? Maybe if I get it REALLY figured out I'll start a third.. or a fourth! The possibilities are endless. I plan on inviting my running partner to co-author this blog with me so she can feel free to write whenever she wants. Hopefully she will bless us all with her optimisms and motivation that she blesses me with all the time. Best. Running Partner. Ever. She pretty much rocks and I like to make sure she knows I think so.
In addition to writing about running, I plan on writing about stuff.. I don't know exactly WHAT stuff, but stuff. Whatever rambling of life events happens to be on my mind on any given day. I love crochet and am trying my hand at a home-based business. I will probably be linking up with my other blog, but I will post all pictures and prices of my wares here as well for easy reference. I'll also be providing you with links to things I think are worth looking at. I follow several blogs and will do my best to show you why you should be following them too! I'm pretty sure you can see a list of blogs I follow if you click on my full profile link. I don't follow things that aren't worth reading, so you may as well just go check them out :)
So now that I've filled you in on some of what you can expect from this blog, I'll tell you a bit about myself. I'm Jen (aka Crafty Jen). I am a SAHM (stay at home mom for those who don't know that abbreviation) in Colorado. I have a pretty great husband, 2 daughters, and a dog. My daughters are almost 13 and almost 3. They drive me nutty sometimes, but are the lights of my life. I've got amazing girls. My husband is wonderful and very supportive. He's also a pretty handy guy who enjoys doing DIY projects around the house. I may ask his permission and post about his projects on this blog. He's not much of a blogger himself..
I'm excited about creating this blog. One of the things I absolutely love about crafting is creating something from nothing. I just love the feeling of accomplishment I get when I finish something that started as a mental picture in my brain. Nothing better. I hope you enjoy reading what I've got to say, and if you like any of my projects that are for sale, by all means send me an email and I'll get right back to you!
In addition to writing about running, I plan on writing about stuff.. I don't know exactly WHAT stuff, but stuff. Whatever rambling of life events happens to be on my mind on any given day. I love crochet and am trying my hand at a home-based business. I will probably be linking up with my other blog, but I will post all pictures and prices of my wares here as well for easy reference. I'll also be providing you with links to things I think are worth looking at. I follow several blogs and will do my best to show you why you should be following them too! I'm pretty sure you can see a list of blogs I follow if you click on my full profile link. I don't follow things that aren't worth reading, so you may as well just go check them out :)
So now that I've filled you in on some of what you can expect from this blog, I'll tell you a bit about myself. I'm Jen (aka Crafty Jen). I am a SAHM (stay at home mom for those who don't know that abbreviation) in Colorado. I have a pretty great husband, 2 daughters, and a dog. My daughters are almost 13 and almost 3. They drive me nutty sometimes, but are the lights of my life. I've got amazing girls. My husband is wonderful and very supportive. He's also a pretty handy guy who enjoys doing DIY projects around the house. I may ask his permission and post about his projects on this blog. He's not much of a blogger himself..
I'm excited about creating this blog. One of the things I absolutely love about crafting is creating something from nothing. I just love the feeling of accomplishment I get when I finish something that started as a mental picture in my brain. Nothing better. I hope you enjoy reading what I've got to say, and if you like any of my projects that are for sale, by all means send me an email and I'll get right back to you!
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