Packing hell

I can pack a mean rolly suitcase for a quick business trip anywhere. Two tropical day when it's 0 degrees here? Done. Clothes to stand on my feet at a conference for 10 hours and still look cute? Done done.

Things get substantially more difficult, however, when I'm gone for a long time going multiple places doing multiple things. Enter: next week. I need to fit the following 6 days into a couple carry-ons.

• 4 days of work in Portland. Requiring a ton of dress clothes.
• 1 evening of drinks with an old college friend and his wife. Requiring a super cute outfit.
• 3 days of rainy running clothes (at least). Hopefully including 1 day with new bloggy friends. (Eeeek, so nervous!)

After the first part of the week, I'm meeting The Husband in Denver to celebrate his birthday.

• 2 days of play in Denver. Requiring warm day clothes and, uh, appropriate night clothes.
• 1 evening at a Denver Nuggets game.
• 1 day of hiking around Rocky Mountain National Park.

I don't even know where to start. Perhaps I'll just go with my mom's travel theory. She used to say, "Make sure you pack medications and a credit card. You can buy whatever else you need when you get there." Maybe I'll just throw my running shoes in a suitcase and assume I can justify expensing the rest when I get there. Seems less stressful, no?

On the running front, Mother Nature is testing my patience. We got 6 inches of snow last night, and people seem to be over shoveling their sidewalks for the year. Outstanding. I guess I can do one more weekend of nordic runs, but that's just about it.

Chicken and veggie tortilla soup

My sister in law called last week to ask if The Nephew could come spend the night on Saturday. Of course! Our plans included making chicken veggie tortilla soup and chilling. I've made chicken tortilla soup a million ways, but I was trying a new recipe this time. This one came from Beth and her healthy food blog V02 Maxxed. (She's pretty much my bloggy idol with the athleticism and SoCal lifestyle I could only dream of having.)

They launched a little Burnout Paradise on the PS3 while I started the soup.

I added some stuff to the original recipe (black beans) and left a few things out (green peppers and corn). I intended to add corn, but the can in the pantry apparently met with some botchulism back in 2006. After a few minutes, I hear, "can I help?" Sure thing kid.

Don't cut yourself...
...or burn yourself...
...weeeee! Magic Bullet!

I cut and boiled while he ran off with my camera.

The husband provided the sound track for the night...

...while I continued to Martha Stewart around the kitchen.

When the cooking was finally done, I scooped the soup into bowls and topped with cheese and tortilla chips.

Although the pizza in the fridge was much more appealing to the kid. (Which was fine. The soup ended up being quite spicy after all the chilies and hot enchilada sauce. Plus, who doesn't love pizza?)

The remainder of the night was filled with Kung Fu Panda and general adorableness on the couch. (The Nephew thinks I'm cool, but he thinks The Husband is A W E S O M E.)

Overall, I thought the soup was great! A+. Very healthy and hearty and made for plenty of great leftovers. (Plus, it incorporated several of the beans and veggies I vowed to eat as my New Year's resolution.) It was a bit spicy, but that could be controlled with milder ingredients along the way.

On the slight downside, and perhaps it was all the extra "help" I got, it took a fair amount of time to put it all together. Definitely not a quick Tuesday night meal, but I certainly plan to make it again on chilly Saturday night. You should too. You won't be disappointed.

Climbing the stairway...

I don't do non-road/non-distance workouts very often. With one notable exception: stadiums. I love running stadium stairs. I attended a large high school with a large stadium for a bit, and running up and down those stairs was my first workouts when running roads still seemed boring and "too far" as a teenager. (Plus, it's a great glute workout!)

Fast-forward to college when running stadiums was made equally easy with a decent-sized stadium and a low fence to climb over. Plus, I figured a.) tuition was expensive enough for me to justify finding my own perks and b.) I was a student-athlete too, and my coach would hopefully bail me out with the football staff should anyone ever complain.

Post-college, and my first apartment was across the street from the site of the Nebraska State Track Meet. Another great set of stadiums! I developed a little routine of different patterns and speeds and intervals.

As I've found a love of running roads and transitioned to longer distances, I've run stairs less and less over the years. I do still go occasionally in the summer when I'm in the mood to get worked. There's something very satisfying about putting out a bunch of water, stripping down to a sports bra and shorts (to work on the tan) and working up a dripping sweat at high noon while you sprint your brains out up and down over and over.

Well, the weather Saturday was cold and windy in a way I no longer tolerate this time of the year. Instead of being miserable for half my run, I thought I'd drive across town to those steps near my first apartment. It wasn't quite as fulfilling as my summer stadium runs, but I walked away with shaky legs, burning lungs, and renewed love of stadium steps. Plus, the steps have black paws painted on them. How cute is that?
Marathon training with the new coach starts this week, so maybe I can incorporate a day or two of cross-training into my plan after all. Particularly if it gets 90 and sunny by March. (Come on global warming!)

My very own running coach

So after I mentioned about the free running screening yesterday, I didn't make it out of work in time. (Boo!) But I didn't make it out for 8 miles before it got dark. (Yay!) Even the 30 minutes more of daylight in the last month have made a huge difference in my ability to get back into running after work. So nice.

But in more exciting news, I think I found myself a running coach. And I wasn't even looking for one either. Now, I work for a large architecture and engineering firm, and while I am neither, I find their analytical-ness an endearing contrast to my expressive, extrovert, marketing self.

I was talking to one of our environmental guys yesterday who runs, and he asked how my running was going.

Me: It's going pretty well. I think I'm running the Lincoln Marathon in 10 weeks.
Him: Very exciting. Are you following a training plan?
Me: Not really. I didn't for my first marathon either. Online plans don't really work for me.
Him: Would you like a custom plan?
Me: Sure!
Him: Great, I've developed a spreadsheet and some formulas for me and another runner... blah blah... math and science major babble...

Here's a sampling of what I told him:

• I've never paced myself and don't own a watch with that capability. (Seriously, race times are always a complete surprise to me.)
• I don't track or plan my runs.
• I've done one interval workout, zero marathon pace workouts, and zero tempo runs.
• I can't workout inside or in circles.
• I may get a bike this spring, but otherwise, I don't really do cross-training. Just running 5-6 days a week.
• My goal is to cut my marathon time by 4:26 (getting sub-4 hours), so his bar for success is set fairly low.

But even after all my stipulations, he still agreed to do it. His love for running is only matched by his love for EIS's and counting bunnies, so the man has a passion for a systematic challenge.

He also said he could help with any "injury, motivation, or mental issues I may have." How lovely to offer full coaching services, but since I'd like to maintain a bit of professional respectability around here, I'll probably temper the crazy and just stick to the numbers.

He's a friend and he says he's willing to take it all on, but as I've documented, I'm a bit of a handful. And to be honest: I don't think he's ready for this jelly.

So THOSE are intervals

Turns out, intervals kind of suck. Who knew?

I probably haven't done interval work since my high school track days, and now I'm remembering why I don't do them as a free-willing adult. But since I already cashed in my "I just want to finish a marathon" card, I thought I should maybe start doing some speed work for the next one. Maybe.

Looking back, perhaps a windy, cold, dark morning wasn't the best time to test out the speed legs, but I did it today. Begrudgingly.

• 2 mile warm up
• 5 repeat 800s
• 400 jog in between
• 2 mile cool down

I didn't have a watch on, so I can only assume they were super speedy and decreasing significantly in time. (Ignorance is bliss!)

My biggest challenge is staying mentally engaged the entire time. Even for 3-4 minutes. How pathetic is it that I can't pay attention that long? I'm an MTV kid. I blame them. Anyway, my usual running style is turn on the music and go. Some days it's far and some days not so far, but by and large, I keep at the same pace. Something I absolutely need to work on if I expect to get any faster.

I'm a little sore already as I sit at my desk, so it's good that I feel like it made a difference. Either that or running intervals 7 hours after a solid lifting session last night was a bad idea. Tomorrow morning will be interesting.

On another note, I see that the Nebraska Orthopaedic Hospital is hosting a screening for runners at a Sheel's sporting goods store Thursday 5:30-7:30. They will be "available to evaluate injuries and help answer questions." Anyone been to one of these? Is it worth it to go? I don't have any injuries or specific questions, but I'd go if anyone thinks it's good.

Masters Swim Report

As I mentioned yesterday, I went to masters swim practice this morning to try it out for the first time. Here is my recap:

My background
I did the swim classes when I was little and did the "swim team" at our health club in middle school. Since then, I've occasionally used swimming as a cross-training workout but not since college. After I decided I wanted to try this last month, I got a 7 day trial membership to Lifetime Fitness to do a little time trial with myself to see if I even made it on the pace chart on their website.

The night before
After a nice 9 mile run, I spent the evening laying out my stuff and tried to go to bed early since getting up at 5 is a full 2.5 hours earlier than I normally wake up. Oh, and I also busted out a brand new razor to make sure my armpits were extra extra smooth. Because, let's be honest, you may not blog about the sucky new girl, but every one of us would blog about the sucky new girl with stubbly arm pits.

Pre-practice
You would think having lived in Omaha for most of my life I'd know my way around. Not the case. After driving around like a crazy person lost, I finally found the college and walked in. Now, I have fairly low standards of cleanliness, but this locker room wasn't exactly as swanky as my 7 days at the over-priced health club. It was kind of ew. I suck it up and made my way out onto the deck to start making friends.

The coach was nice, and after giving him my "never been on a competitive swim team but I run a lot" speal, he sends me to the slow lane on the left. Fine by me. I'm greeted by 3 lovely ladies who proceed to tell me I need a swim cap. Is it clear yet that I'm a swim rookie?

Practice
We get our first set of instructions from the coach and I let the other three ladies go first. It takes me about 15 yards to discover that was a terrible idea. I let the one in front of me get over half way down, and I was still up on her feet in no time. Great. Next set, I go 3rd, and I'm still running over the lady in front of me. Next set, 2nd, same. Finally we start a new thing and the lady who's usually the leader of the little group is like, "go first." Damnit. I was totally That Girl who goes too fast and has no real sense of master swim etiquette. My biggest fear.

Now I have to go first, meaning I'm in charge of keeping track of time and what we're doing and how far and did I mention it's still a full HOUR before I'm usually up. All pathetic attempts at social pleasantries were out the window now that full mental capacities were going to figuring out what's 1:45 after starting on :20 and remembering which part of which set came next.

We did a few hard sprints, but by and large, there was too much rest for me between sets. My heart rate plummeted. (Did I mention I was the only one wearing a heart monitor? Another That Girl moment.) I wish I would have known the entire work out beforehand so I could have allocated my energy as necessary.

Post-practice
Final numbers were about 65% of the calories I would have burned on an average run. But what the workout lacked in cardio, it made up for in strength. My shoulders are super tired, and I suspect my lats will be sore tomorrow too.

If I were to go back, I'd need to be in a row or two faster, and I'd be interested to go on a harder workout day. I don't think I'll officially join though. In addition to the early start time, the cost is actually quite a bit. It's almost $350 a year, and as much as I'd actually go when the weather gets nice, I know I can find something cheaper (and cleaner) a la cart.

In conclusion, I'm glad I went just to know I could do it. And for everyone who said yesterday they'd thought about going-- you totally should! Thanks to everyone for their words of encouragement.

Tomorrow + The Interview

Tomorrow
So I'm finally going to master's swim tomorrow morning (last week was too nice outside not to run), and I have officially worked myself into a nervous fit about it. This is worst than the first day of school. What do I wear, what if I suck, what if no one likes me, what if I can't do math, what if I cry?

Assuming I actually make it out of bed in time to drive to the middle of town in a snow storm and be in pool by 6AM *gulp*, I shall report back tomorrow.

The Interview
Now, on to the interview! Jess at 21 Days had posted her own interview a while back, and I signed up to continue the game. (Thanks Jess!) The questions are hers, the answers are mine. If you want to play along after you read, follow the end directions and you too can be interviewed.

1. If you could give someone new to running one piece of advice, what would you offer?

Running will get easier. I promise. It may not be very fun when you first start, but your lungs won't burn and your heart won't feel like it's going to explode forever. Just stick with it, and you'll see results in no time.

2. In terms of running, what's your favorite route?
Probably the oldie but goodie route around my house. Particularly the out and back next to the cornfield. There aren't many cars, but there's plenty of sunshine, and I feel ultra fast when I can hear the gravel under my feet.

3. If you could eliminate one part of your day that feels unnecessary or tedious, what would you eliminate?

The commute to and from work. Omaha has nothing compared to big cities, but even sitting in traffic for 10 minutes tests my patience.

4. If you could completely eliminate one of your pet peeves, what would you want people to stop doing?

Unproductive coughing. If you're hacking up a lung, fine, but the unconscious, million-times-a-day, half-assed throat clearing makes me nuts. (Guy who sits in the row next to me: I'm talking to you!!!)

5. If you could pick one famous person to be your neighbor, who would you choose and why?
David Beckham. He'd walk around shirtless and Posh and I would turn into total besties. She'd make me over, let me play dress up in her shoe closet, and call me MAJOR for being able to work her heel-less, leather, shoepants like a pro.

To play along:

1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."

2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. (I get to pick the questions).

3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.

4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others in the same post.

5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

Raced, racing, and will race (?)

Raced

First, thank you to RunToFinish for hosting the 7 on the 7th virtual race. (And thanks to RunningLaur for the adorable race bib!) Coming off "I heart running" long runs on Thursday and Friday, I wasn't expecting to set any land speed records. The weather was once again beautiful, and I suited up and headed out the door.

I didn't take any fun pictures, but assuming I can count any 7 of the 10 miles I ran, my finishing time was 58.09. It's faster than I planned, so maybe I'm gaining more speed than I realize. Who knows. Hopefully the weather stays nice, because I'm excited to start marathon training in the spring.

Racing

Keeping up with cool people hosting cool things, NonRunnerNancy has recently fallen on crappy running times because she's freakishly flexible and can no longer run. Not cool. In her honor, US Jogger is hosting a 5K on Valentines Day. Go sign up now!

Will Race (?)

Today's post is coming to you from lovely Ronald Regan airport in our nation's capital while waiting for my plane back home. Not a very exciting trip. The highlight was probably finding a bowl of free Luna bars and fruit outside the workout room this morning. (Guess that's what $300/night on M Street will buy you!)

I managed 45 minutes on the elliptical machine, but I was extremely bummed to see a sign right by the front door when I walked in.

Please join our General Manager every morning at 6:30 for a 3 miles jog around our nation's capital.

Check the clock: 6:45. Damn. I've been to D.C. several times, but our office is located in Alexandria. And since it's the opposite direction from all the monuments, I've never seen them in daylight. This trip was at someone else's office right down the street, and I would have loved to take a running tour of everything first thing in the morning.

Which got me thinking--according to some in-flight magazine, the Marine Corps Marathon ranks among the country's best for scenery. That I absolutely believe. Giant races like that make me a little nervous, but maybe I'll weasel a trip next October and finally see what this crazy city is all about. Plus there's bound to be a few hottie marines floating around too, and that's really my kind of scenery.

Running Renaissance

So running and I have been going through a rough patch the last couple weeks. We weren't necessarily on a break, but we just weren't making enough time for each other. Work was consuming 10-12+ hours of my day, I'd been traveling all over Kingdom Come, and running in the dark just didn't seem all that appealing without the urgency of a race on the horizon. I was making time for long runs on the weekends, but it was my mid-week runs that had fallen by the wayside.

Until yesterday. Yesterday I finally finished up some projects, yesterday the weather was in the 50s, and yesterday was my absolute favorite kind of run. Nine glorious miles with no real time-table or destination. Should I turn on this road? Sure! Should I sprint down this hill? Why not! It was my favorite run of 2009.

Until today. Today I ditched work mid-afternoon, today the weather was in the 60s, and today is the reason I run. Another 9 miles with a slight breeze and warm enough to work up a sweat for the first time in months. Running and I were back, baby!

I finished up and sat on my porch to cool down with a bottle of water and enjoyed the sunset. I had a chat with a coworker today about running and motivation and how to make it less of a punishment to her and more of an enjoyment. I told her to go running today. Today you can't help falling in love with running all over again.

Hello lovah. (an update)

First, thank you all for your pleas to the universe yesterday in the quest to locate my "misplaced" wedding ring. Here is what happened yesterday evening:

After an entire day of silently freaking out at work, I sped home, hopped into some comfy clothes, put up the ponytail, and turned every light on so the bedroom looked like the runway at JFK.

I had 60 minutes before the husband got home. I certainly planned to tell him about misplacing it since a.) he was bound to notice and b.) he's my insurance agent and someone would have to run the paperwork on that jewelry rider. My hope however, was to end the story with, "but no worries, I found it!" and wave my hand in his face all excited.

Deep breath... and go...

I dropped to me knees to inspect under the bed...

(Ew, someone needs to vacuum in here)

I carefully took out everything in the top drawer of the dresser...

(Where did half these clothes even come from?)

I emptied the entire jar of q-tips and cottonballs that sit near my ring holder...

(Don't look at the vent on the floor)

I took the comforter out of the duvet cover...

(Maybe I should put on the honeymoon lingerie? And open beer! That'll buy me time!)

And then, just as I'm about to hop off the bed and continue the freak out, what should wink at me from the bottom corner? AHHH, MY RING!!! I FOUND IT! I FOUND IT! I FOUND IT! YAY!!!

I have no idea how it ended up there, but after quickly running to get the camera (natch), it's happily residing on my finger safe and sound once again.

The husband came home about 10 minutes later, and I was able to do the spastic hand-waving and million mph recount of the previous hour's CSI work. It's a good thing he's used to my wacky antics by now. I'm clearly a bit of a handful.

LOST! Well, MISPLACED

So... I, uh... kind of... sort of... misplaced my wedding ring today. (I know, I know!) I call it misplaced since it's not technically lost. I mean, it's in the house someplace, that's not lost right?

The ultimate irony is that it's my engagement ring that gets taken off and put back on a couple times a day. I figured I'd lose that long before I lost the wedding band. I specifically kept them separate so I could always have my wedding band on whether I was sleeping, doing dishes, working out, ect. The only time I take it off is to cut chicken or conduct my Sunday night sugar-scrub beauty routine.

You don't do Sunday night sugar scrubs? Oh, let me tell you, you are missing out. It's a simple way to get a head to toe exfoliate super cheap and easy.

Take about 1/2 cup sugar in a bowl
Enter shower
Mix with minimal water to form a paste
Apply and rinse
Lotion liberally afterwards

Your makeup applies great the next day!

Anyway, I follow the sugar scrub with some cuticle attention and a new coat of nail polish for the week. Between the sugary paste and extra-strength lotion, the wedding ring takes a little break on my ring holder atop my engagement ring. Uh, until the morning.

I think I put it on after the shower, and I think I took it off before the lotion, but I can't be sure. (I can't even talk about the heat vent right next to my nightstand right now.) I tried to do some searching before leaving for work, but it wasn't in the 6' radius where it would have simply fallen. Plus, the last thing I want to do it wake the husband. "Oh morning, hon. Don't mind me. You know how you tell me I shouldn't take off my ring all the time? Well you're really going to laugh at this..."

My goal is to put this out in the universe so I can come back tomorrow all "FOUND IT!" and it'll be awesome. Keep your fingers crossed.