A moment to Brag...

So I'm feeling pretty darn proud of myself right now because for the last two weeks I have been totally rocking my workout routine! I made a goal to work out every day (except Sundays) and so far, I haven't missed ONE day! 6 for 6 last week, and so far I am 4 for 4 this week.

To count it as a workout day I have to do a minimum of 30 minutes of exercise. Some days I do two 30 minute sessions. One session for my strength training DVD and one power walk session. I try to do both but if I don't get one in at least I feel good that I did 30 minutes of something that day.

I can tell it's making a huge difference from my last pregnancies. I have more energy and my weight gain is happening at a much healthier pace than last time around. (in the 2nd trimester with Brinley I gained 10 lbs a month 2 months in a row! yeah, 20 lbs in 2 months was a bit extreme) Now I'm shooting for the recommended 4-5 lbs a month and I'm right on track for that to happen.

I've mostly been walking these days but yesterday I wanted to see if I could still run. So I did 2.5 miles and didn't walk the whole time. My average pace was 9:53 min. per mile. I was feeling quite proud of myself for the first 2 miles but the last half mile I started having those contraction like cramps again. I probably should've walked but I was so set on running the whole thing that I kept at it and when I was done the cramps continued for about 30 minutes.

Moral of that story is, it was a nice ego boost to see that I can still run, but I won't be running anymore, at least until I want this baby to come out and then bring on the contractions! For now though I think power walks and aerobics should be enough to keep me fit throughout this pregnancy.

So that's the update for today. Oh yeah, and we also found out we're having a BOY! We're so excited to buy some boy stuff and get some blue in this house that is overrun with pink : )

World's wimpiest workout partner

On Friday night I wanted to go for a jog outdoors but it was dark and I'm always nervous to run alone when there could be creepos out there. I was trying to think of a solution when Taber suggested I take our dog Monty. Dogs love to run, I figured it was a great idea. Now, Monty can be a real diva sometimes and I'm sure that Maltese aren't exactly bred for running. Still I figured I was mostly walking anyway so he should be able to keep up. I got all ready with a reflective vest, headlamp, and my trusty new workout partner. We set off into the night at a very slow jog. He was way excited at first and was 6 feet ahead of me pulling hard on the leash.

Sadly that only lasted for about half a mile. After that he slowed way down. Soon he was right beside me. The further we went the slower he got until his leash was all the way extended backwards and he was a good 10 feet behind me. I was determined to get 2 miles in though so I literally PULLED that lazy little bag of bones for the last half mile until we made it back home. What kind of wimpy dog can't WALK 2 miles?!! I mean seriously, we had to walk most of it because the guy could not keep up. I checked my stats later, we were doing 14 minute miles, come on MONTY! 2 year olds can go that fast, DOGS are supposed to be 10 times faster!

When we got back I gave him some water and then he sprawled out like he was half dead on the floor. I swear you would've thought the guy just ran a marathon.

I told him he was officially the world's wimpiest workout partner and that I wasn't taking him out with me again. Of course the next morning when I was lacing up my shoes he was wagging his tail and just begging for the leash. I decided to give him one more chance. SAME THING HAPPENED!! Our little 2 mile walk ended with me dragging my dog on the leash back to our house. I decided he is totally useless as a workout partner but still makes a great companion and a patient, loving (albeit wimpy) little lap dog.

August mileage challenge

Today I saw a cool challenge on It's What Moves Me, one of the running blogs I read. Whitney is 6 months pregnant and has accepted the challenge to walk, jog or run 80 miles in the month of August!! I was pretty impressed. I ran 87 miles back in March when I was training for my half marathon but that's when I could run double digit distances and before I was pregnant.

I love the idea of having a mileage goal though so I've decided to adjust the challenge to be more realistic for me considering my current fitness level. In June when I was nauseous all the time I ran a sad total of 16 miles. In July, feeling a little better, my monthly total was 25. I figure if I shoot for 50 miles in August that will still be a heck of a lot more than I've been averaging and be a pretty worthy goal for me. That means I'll have to run/jog/walk an average of 2.5 miles 5 days a week for the rest of the month. Much more than I'm doing now but totally doable!!

I started today with a 2.25 mile jog/walk on the treadmill. I jogged the first mile but was having really tight almost contraction like cramps the whole time so I slowed down and walked the rest of the way. Once I started walking the cramping stopped so I was glad I listened to my body and backed off. I walked at 4mph and a 2.0 incline and was still able to work up a good sweat! Next time I think I'll start off right away with walking and then when I warm up I'll attempt to speed it up. I think jumping into it too fast is what caused the cramps.

Anyway, I'm excited to have a solid goal to work towards this month. Wish me luck!

Life in the 2nd trimester

Well I'm approaching 16 weeks and happy to report that I'm totally over the morning sickness and my energy is starting to come back! My house is getting clean, I'm playing with my kids, I'm even cooking dinners! My family is happy to have normal mommy back instead of pregnant zombie mom. I started doing a strength and toning workout DVD in the mornings and I really like it. Much easier on the bladder than running and I feel like I'm toning parts of me that don't necessarily have to look pregnant.

Running has slowed down quite a bit. The bladder can barely take a 20 minute run so yeah, it happens once or twice a week max. My pace is about 10:30 these days and sometimes it can be disheartening but then I remember that I couldn't even WALK a mile when I was prego with Teya so jogging 2 is pretty darn good for me! I had to stop comparing myself to all the buff pregnant runners out there and compare myself to me. When I was pregnant with Teya I was completely sedentary, did ZERO exercise, gained 40 lbs, and looked like this (warning, it's scary).

And when I was pregnant with Brinley it was a little better since I tried to walk once in awhile and wasn't as sedentary since I was chasing around a 2 year old. Still, I wasn't exactly tiny.

So looking at my previous pregnancies, I'm happy that I'm actually working out 2-3 times a week and still maintaining some semblance of fitness. See, pregnant me running at on the track last week (excuse the cheesy face). I might not be fast, but at least I'm still moving : )

Keepin' it Real

So I'd like to say that thus far in my pregnancy running is a "blast and it's so great getting out and doing it everyday!" But I'm keeping it real and letting you know that it is NOT a blast, nor am I doing it everyday. I did manage to do it three times last week and that took some pretty major will power. I feel a little pathetic since my baby is only the size of an apple right now and there's women out there with melon sized babies running 10K's and kicking butt! But yeah, it's all I can do to lace up my shoes and crank out three 9:45 to 10 minute miles.

Oh well, some is better than none right? I think it's just hard right now because Taber is training for his half marathon and every Saturday he goes out at 6am with a bunch of our friends he's training with and has, what I imagine to be, a super awesome fabulous long run while I'm stuck at home gestating. I'm trying not to be jealous but darn it, I'm jealous! I wish I was out there with them having a super awesome fabulous long run too!

A time and season for everything I guess. Running will still be there after I have the baby. In the mean time I am really happy that Taber is doing so well with his training and getting some good runs in with great company.

So that is my keeping it real update for tonight. I'll leave you with my Runkeeper Stats from a little 4 miler I did last Thursday. Taber was out of town so I got a babysitter and actually did a nice outdoor run. It was tough, the humidity out here is brutal! But I finished with an average pace of 9:45 so I was happy with that. Here's the run.

Most adorable giveaway ever!

Just entered a giveaway from the failedmuffins blog for this adorable 26.2 pendant! They have them in 13.1 as well. What a great gift for runners, if I don't win I'm still getting one for myself!

Turning a corner...

The last two days in a row I woke up and didn't feel like barfing, which means I think I'm turning a corner and leaving morning sickness behind me! Today I even woke up at 6am to try and beat the heat and get a run in. I didn't get out until 6:30 and by that point it was already 75 degrees and 86% humidity! Not my favorite running conditions but better than what it would've been had I not gotten up early.

The best part was that I got to try running with my new iPhone and use Runkeeper Pro the way it's meant to be used! I had it on my iPod Touch but I had to enter everything manually. Now it's awesome having the GPS track my run and then coming home and seeing the maps with elevation and pace through my whole run. LOVE IT!! Here's a look at my run in case you want to check it out, nothing too impressive but still, fun to see my stats like that : )

Anyway, I'm excited to be feeling a little better and if I can find ways to beat the heat I think I'll be able to get back into a regular running routine. : )

Maternity Leave

I've been a little absent on this blog lately. I apologize, I guess I was just taking a little maternity leave due to the awful morning sickness I've been experiencing the last few weeks. The good news is, I'm pregnant and 12 weeks along! We're super excited but holy cow! It's really taken it's toll on my ability to run. Before I got pregnant I was reading all these blogs of ladies who ran through their pregnancies. I TOTALLY thought I'd be right there with them, logging at least 9-12 miles a week. (seriously, how hard could that be?) In fact, the first week I found out I was pregnant I was so excited about having a fit pregnancy that I ran every day! I even did a 6 miler that Saturday in 53 minutes. I was feeling good and thinking "Oh yeah, I got this!"

Then week 6 of my pregnancy rolled around and I got steamrolled by the miserable forces of pregnancy nausea and fatigue. I could not for the life of me do anything that resembled exercise. I could barely feed and care for my children, let alone work out! Housework was neglected, dinners consisted of fast food or cold cereal. Things were rough, I'm not gonna lie. I still managed to force myself to run at least once a week (which sounds so pathetic) but really the effort was monumental. So yeah, 12 weeks down and my dream of running through my pregnancy hasn't gotten off to a very good start. In May, the month I found out I was expecting, I ran 55.7 miles. In June, the month morning sickness took over my life, I barely squeezed out 16!! Ugh!

The good news is, I'm heading into my second trimester and starting to feel a lot better. Today I ran 3 miles and even though it was slow for me (29:34) I did it and I didn't feel like barfing afterwards! That gives me hope that I just might be able to get some good consistent running in before I turn ginormous and can't do it anymore. To all you ladies who are running pregnant or who have run pregnant, I salute you! Seriously, I thought you were awesome before but now that I know how hard it is, I'm blown away!

I'll keep you updated on how everything goes. Here's a picture of the little bean and my baby bump, which is more like belly bloat, but whatever, I'm claiming bump! : )

Baby # 3 at 12 weeks

Belly bump at 12 weeks

Looking on the Bright Side

So I was about to write a post about how dismal my running efforts have been lately but then I decided, "You know what? I'm not doing that bad!" I mean really, the last 3 weeks I have literally gone from one "vacation" to the next. A trip to Maine, a trip to Utah, and then having my sister and her 3 kids out to visit for 10 days straight. With all the busyness of trips and being off my schedule I'm actually proud of myself for getting any running in at all! So instead of whining about my low mileage I'm going to celebrate the fact that I've pulled off a run in all my vacation settings.

In Maine I did a lovely 4 miler on the beach. In Utah I got to run a nice 3 miler with my younger sister who is training for a half marathon in September. And While my older sister was in town I managed to get out twice for a 3 and a 2. Nothing impressive but I keep going back to a quote my friend posted on Facebook that has really helped me lately, "Some is better than none." : )

We have more travel plans and visitors coming in the next two weeks but I'm hoping when things settle down I'll finally be able to get back on track and sign up for a race. I'm thinking a 10K would be fun since that's the one distance I haven't raced yet so it would be an automatic PR : ) Until then I'll "just keep swimming" and hope that my small efforts will help me maintain enough fitness that I'll be able to get right back into it!

Setting a good example

One of the coolest things about running is the way it has impacted our kids. Brinley isn't even 2 yet but if she wakes up in the morning and Daddy's not there she'll ask, "Daddy wunning?"

It's neat that they know that's what we do. One of the best compliments I ever got was when we were driving in the car and Teya saw a toned athletic looking woman running down the street. She looked out the window and said, "Hey mom, that girl looks just like you!" Total ego boost : )

We've brought them to a couple races and even did a 5k pushing them in strollers. Teya loves the race atmosphere and has told me several times, "I can't wait till I can run a race!"

We take turns running on Saturdays and last time after I ran, I got the girls all ready and we drove out to find Taber and cheer him on. Teya brought a spray bottle to cool him off when he passed us by. It was the cutest thing.

You can see the little pink spray bottle in her hand. She might've just squirted his fingers but it was a sweet gesture. : )

We caught up with him again closer to home. This time Teya gave his behind a nice squirt : )

After seeing her Daddy run Teya wanted to do it too. I had to take a picture of her charging down the street with her down going full steam ahead. When she got to me she was out of breath but she looked up with a smile and said, "It doesn't matter if we win mom, it matters that we have fun." Wise words from a 4 year old. Makes me think that even though I've never come close to winning a race, I'm still teaching her something worthwhile : )