Happy Halloween!

50 mins. ellip. incl. 6x3 mins. on, 3 mins. off
2x20 water pump extensions=80

I made it to the gym this morning before a long day of work, which seemed to drag forever. However, the day was made bearable by knowing that there were plans for a fun Halloween evening with friends. A late evening downpour did its best to deter even the most intrepid trick-or-treaters, but fortunately the downpour ceased in time for a few vampires and Supermans to enjoy some of our candy.

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Successful Baby Workout

Friday, 10/30
19 min. w/u (2.5 miles)
2 mile predator run in 12:33 (6:20, 6:13)
17 min. c/d (2 miles)
Total: 6.5 miles

Thursday, 10/29
AM: 30 mins. ellip.
15 mins. core
PM: 45 mins. ellip.
2x20 water pump extensions=80

As you know, the word "success" as defined when one is coming back from injury is relative. Although the pace I ran today averaged out to almost the exact same pace I ran for a half marathon in June, I couldn't have been happier to run sub-6:30 (hell, I would've taken sub-7) on my first baby workout. Jenna ran with the the entire way, which was a huge help, and kept me engaged in conversation for the first 1.5. That's right, I was able to hold up a conversation for almost 10 minutes of this effort. That in itself may be the most encouraging part; that, and Scott observing that my form looked good when he spotted us with 400m to go. Don't get me wrong; I was definitely pressing toward the end, and my body seemed entirely perplexed, as evidenced by the tightening of everything from my arms to my low back. But this was definitely an encouraging starting point, one that leaves me eager to improve my fitness as much as possible between now and nationals.

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Two Days in a Row

Wednesday, 10/28
AM: 4.5 mile run
30 mins. pool
2.75 mile run
2x20 water pump extensions=80
Total: 7+ miles

Tuesday, 10/27
AM: ~6.5 miles
2x20 water pump extensions=80
PM: 25 mins. ellip.

Despite the fact that it amounts to less than Jilane does on her typical warmup, I was pretty proud of myself to notch 13+ miles in little more than 24 hours. And, more importantly, to feel good doing it. Not "good" as in fit, but "good" as in my hip cooperated fully. The thought of running Thursday is quite tempting, but I'm going to do my best to restrain myself in hopes of saving up for a stellar predator run Friday. That, and I'm so busy with the week from hell right now that I wouldn't really have time to fit in an extra workout if I wanted to.


Fall foliage in Freedom Park, with view of the
B of A headquarters in Uptown

Also, just to state the obvious, I feel very, very out of shape at present. However I've decided to frame this situation positively, so I keep telling myself that every time I run, I'm gaining fitness. I mean that quite literally. When you're at the bottom, there's nowhere to go but up.

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Being Smart and Stuff

AM: 50 mins. ellip.
PM: 30 mins. ellip.
15 mins. core

Started the week off without running. Although I definitely wanted to get out there, Simmons and I both agree that I need to take it slow and keep things under control. I have four days of running on the schedule for this week, including a short predator run on Friday (don't laugh, thanks) and a "long run" of 8 on Sunday. Looking forward to it.

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Week in Review

25 miles
4 hours 30 mins. elliptical
30 mins. pool
6 AFDs
1 Team MJ run

I'm getting there...

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A New Record

AM: 7 miles
2x20 water pump extensions
PM: 30 mins. pool

Yes, you read that correctly; I ran 7 miles today. Trust me, it's a big deal. Had I not been running with Jenna the entire time and keeping myself distracted with our conversation, I'm sure I would've been focusing on nothing but how pathetically out of shape I am. Instead, I managed to make it to the last few miles before I was really laboring.

Post run Simmons showed me some one-legged exercises he wants me to do every day called water pump extensions. Basically you rest your back leg on something like a rail or a bench, do a squat with the other leg, then come up and extend onto your tiptoes. It's supposed to remind all my limbs to fire in approximately the same direction or something like that. Anyhow, 2 sets of 20 on each side was plenty for my already fatigued muscles. Count this as a successful "long run" in the books.

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Candlelight 8k

AM: 50 mins. ellip.
PM: Candlelight 8k volunteering

Jordan won some surprise cash tonight at the Candlelight 8k.


Me, Tanya and Benny handed out water and cheered people on

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Conference Carolinas Champs

AM: 3 mile run
30 mins. ellip.
3 mile run
PM: Conference Meet



I had toyed with the idea of running Conference today, for nothing else than to help the team, but Simmons vetoed it. Probably for the best. The meet is at McAlpine, which is a notoriously flat and fast course, but there is one very short and very steep uphill followed by an equally short and steep downhill and a sharp righthand turn. This would no doubt spell trouble for me and we decided there was no point in risking it.

At any rate, Jordan and I headed out to the park early in the afternoon to volunteer and cheer on our team. Not surprisingly, this ended up being the worst weather day of the entire week--warm, humid and windy--and I knew our team and others were hoping for the cooler fall weather we'd been experiencing the past few days. Typical. I was cursing the fact that I'd worn jeans after about 10 minutes, but there was nothing I could do except roll them up and hope for the best.

I won't steal Jordan's thunder, so I'll let him tell you about the "race" he won before the meet started. Let's just say it involved the pond, basketball shorts and a sprint finish. After that, his duty for the day was to ride the lead bicycle (which, unfortunately for Jordan, ended up being the $20 bike Mike procured at Wal-Mart) in front of both the girls' and the guys' races. Tanya and I had the task of calling out splits at the 2-mile and 3-mile marks, both of which were around the pond and were spaced about 100 meters apart. Thus, we could easily get from one to the other after the majority of people passed our first spot but before the leaders reached the second one.

First up was the girls' race, and my teammates were hoping to capture their first ever conference title. Hard to believe they've never won before because this conference is absolutely, positively, unbelievably terrible--but, to be honest, this is the first year Queens has actually had an entire girls' team that was committed, focused and talented. The goal was to beat Lees-McRae, the yellow and green "powerhouse" of the region that, despite not having any standouts, usually does a remarkable job of running their top 7 extremely close together.

The first time I saw the girls after the start was when they reached the pond after coming down the hill. At halfway it was clear that Jess, Maraya and Holly would all place in the top 5 or 6. More importantly, all three of them were ahead of the first Lees-McRae girl. The problem is that once the first Lees-McRae girl showed up, so did 5 of her teammates. They had almost their entire top 7 in between our third and fourth girl; not good. I could see that Katie, one of our freshman, was gaining on their pack, but I wasn't sure if she would be able to make up any ground after they entered the woods again.

When they finally reappeared a mile later, I could tell the point totals were going to be close. Finishing 2nd, 4th and 6th meant that Queens had done a great job with our top 3; however, the final two were going to be important. I saw Katie approaching the final turn a few yards back from the Lees-McRae 5th girl and I knew she had to catch her. So, naturally, I found it my duty to run up pretty much right in her face and scream, "Go get that girl, Katie! We need those points!" I pretty much screamed my head off as she ran the final 200 meters and ended up nipping the Lees-McRae girl just before the tape. I didn't know it at the time, but her move ended up winning the meet for us. Once the final scores were tallied, Queens edged Lees-McRae by the slightest of margins, 50 to 52. Had Katie not passed that girl the score would've been tied and then gone to the highest-placed 6th runner. Queens only ran 5 girls (we had a few injured, a few sick, a few playing it safe like me), which means by default we would've lost. The girls were soooo excited when the results were announced, and I was so proud of them. They ran tough and strong and competed well.


Oscar and Futsum jump out to an early lead,
with Nelson and Simon in hot pursuit

The guys race was less exciting, mostly because of our utter domination. Even without Mike running, we perfect scored and had the sixth place guy as well. I believe the order was Oscar, Futsum, Simon, Nelson, Matt and Alex. If we can get Mike healthy again by Nationals, I honestly think the guys have a shot at making the podium.

This entry is already too long and filled with too many details, so I'll close here by simply saying how proud I was of my team, and how anxious I am to get out there and compete. Come Regionals, I'll have my chance. I won't be fit and I won't be fast, but I'll give 100% for these girls.

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Get On the Bus

60 mins. ellip. incl. 5x5 mins. on, 5 mins. off

Decided to play it safe today and skip out on the run. There was still plenty of adventure to be had, however...since my car is still in the shop and we didn't want to abuse Tanya's generosity again, this meant that Jordan and I each took the bus to our respective jobs this morning. Having never ridden a city bus before, I was a bit nervous. Fortunately for me it worked out perfectly, as there is a bus stop within a 5 minute walk of our apartment, then another one literally cross the street from the running store. The whole thing took less than 20 minutes and was super convenient. Not saying I plan on taking the bus every day, but definitely good to know that the option is there.

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Third Day In a Row

AM: 3 miles
30 mins. ellip.
PM: 30 mins. ellip.

Tanya came through huge time and graciously offered up her car for Jordan and I today since mine is in the shop. This meant I was more than happy to bundle up and head out the door at 7am so I could jog to campus and snag her keys. Since I had some extra time I tacked on a quick elliptical sesh in the fitness center as well. Always good to start the day feeling like I accomplished something.

However, in the afternoon, my ambitious plans for a long x-training workout fell a bit flat. Put simply, my legs are tired after having run (if you could call it that) for a whopping three days in a row. I think a day off is in order for tomorrow. Wouldn't want to get crazy and actually post respectable mileage for the week.

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Back in Charlotte

AM: 4.5 miles
PM: 45 mins. ellip.
3 mile walk

I don't remember much about this, even though I'm posting a mere two days later. Guess it wasn't too exciting.

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Monday Morning on the Mall

AM: 5 miles
25 mins. ellip.

Since Jilane had to go to work and Jordan and I had to get ready to head back south, Team MJ set out for a jaunt around the Mall at 7am sharp.The sky was still dark for the early miles, but by the time we doubled back around the reflecting pool we could tell it was going to be a gorgeous day. Pretty much the complete opposite of the rest of the weekend. Also of note, this was my longest post-injury run to date. I only had to beg Jilane to slow down a few times, and I'm pretty sure there was only one instance where I faked the need to stretch so I could take a break, so all in all I'd call this a success.

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Week in Review

12 miles
4 hours 40 mins. elliptical
25 mins. pool
2 runs with Team MJ
6 AFDs (not sure how I managed that)

This week was pretty awesome. I got to spend time with some of my favorite people in one of my favorite cities, and managed to work in two Team MJ runs. Can't really ask for much more than that.

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Same Old Workout, Different Fitness Center

60 mins. ellip.

I woke up this morning 100% sure I was catching Jordan's cold. I felt awful. That, combined with last night's revelry and merriment and the cold, dready weather left me with zero motivation to run. Plus, I'm still giving the whole "being smart" thing a try, so I figured it couldn't hurt to space out my runs by a day or two. Thus, I finally managed to rouse myself from the black hole that is Jilane and Ben's couch around 11 and hit up the fitness center downstairs. I wouldn't exactly say it was fun, but I got it done.

Oh, and my arms hurt. Like, real bad.

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Mr. and Mrs. Michael and Ashley Piche

AM: 4 miles
PM: Wedding and lots of walking

It's hard to know where to go with this entry. I could talk about the run, which was cold and rainy and dismal yet made perfectly enjoyable by the fact that it was pain free and that I was running with Jilane. Or I could talk about the wedding, which was lovely, despite walking through the aforementioned rain in high heels and formal attire. I could also spend some time on the reception, which predictably featured Jeff stripping his shirt off midway through and dancing like that crazy uncle nobody wants to claim. I could conclude with me walking six blocks barefoot from the metro with Jordan at midnight in the cold rain because my feet hurt so bad after 12+ hours in heels. Instead of elaborating on any of this, however, I think I'll let a few photos do the talking.


At the reception: three classy chicks plus Jordan and Tarpy


Brown XC '05 and '06


Brown XC '05 and '06 plus one of the most stunning brides I've ever seen


Me, Kim and her radioactive drink. So that's where Olympians get
their secret powers...


What's that? Jeff took his shirt off, wrapped his tie around his head
and started dancing like he was on coke? Sounds about right.


Always a privilege to spend the evening with these two gentlemen

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"You Hate It...But You Love It"

AM: 2 mile run; 1 mile walk
15 mins. core
PM: 15-20 mins. running/ellip.
100 pushups in ~7 minutes
12 minutes P90X abs

Because I'm lazy, and because I just got home from a fantastic weekend in the District and am behind on life, and because Jilane did such an excellent job the first time around, and because her blog is password protected, I'm going to save all of us some time and simply copy her entry from Friday pretty much verbatim. As in same words, same pictures, everything. Don't worry; I promise not to do this for the entire weekend. So anyhow, here goes Friday afternoon according to Jilane:

Ran before work. I think it was 4 miles. Maybe it was 8. I'm really not sure right now. (Meagan's editor's note: I did not do this. But I would be a whole lot cooler if I did.)

More importantly, Meagan and Jordan are in town for Peaches and AWall's wedding, so we at Thomas Circle have the honor of housing the NC duo for the weekend.

Meagan and I had Microsoft Outlooked a run, but I wasn't out of work until about 6 p.m., and the 40-degree pouring rain really wasn't making us excited to get out the door.


Team MJ: Judging by the color of Jilane's face, I'd say this was after
she completed 100 pushups

Ben convinced the three of us to hit the fitness center for some weights ... and for the 100 pushup challenge. WHAT!?! Apparently Ben watches too much Flotrack and wanted to implement a showdown he'd seen. The boys went at it, with Ben breaking the elusive 4-minute mark and Jordan being a huge pansy (he's "sick" or something) and quitting around 50.


The manly men in action

Meagan decided to get in on the action next, cranking out her first 25 then steadily progressing from there. I jumped in a bit after and took a conservative approach, convinced there was no way in hell I was going to finish. Meago cruised in somewhere just over 7 minutes, while I was just happy to survive, hitting around 14:05. Then we did some x-training, went back to the apartment and did that stupid Ab Ripper X video. Oh, and Jordan and Ben analyzed MRN's stride on the treadmill for approximately 1:30. Somehow we still call ourselves runners.



PS- I'm blogging this on Monday. My pecs and triceps still burn when I type. (Meagan's editor's note: I second that.)

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Packing for the District

Thursday, 10/15
AM: 30 mins. ellip.
PM: ~20 min. run (2.5 miles)

Wednesday, 10/14
AM: 60 mins. ellip. incl. 6x3 mins. on, 2 mins. off
PM: 15 mins. ellip.
15 mins. core

Gotta make this quick, as I'm knees deep in clothes attempting to pack for my trip to DC tomorrow. The weather has thrown me for a loop; while I was envisioning the crisp, sunny, utterly amazing weather that greeted me for MCM week last year, unfortunately the forecast looks to provide nothing but cold temps and rain throughout the weekend. Lame. Oh well. Though the weather outside may be frightful, the thought of being reunited with Jilane, Jeff, Ben, Owen and many other friends warms my heart beyond measure.

Oh, and is it sad that my friend and former coworker Jake the Schnake, upon finding out I was headed to DC, asked me if "Slap the Bag Part 2" was imminent? I felt a bit sheepish telling him that although such debauchery wasn't planned, if it did occur it would actually be Round 3, not 2.

Actually, now that I'm thinking about it...anybody in??

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Progress

AM: 28 mins. (3.5 miles)
PM: 45 mins. ellip.

The fact that I ran 28 minutes this morning is secondary. The real news is that I ran 28 minutes pain free. I don't know what happened between last week and this week, but I felt like a completely different person out there. From the first few steps I could tell the hip flexor had taken a turn for the better, and things stayed more or less the same throughout the course of the run. My stride felt much more natural and less gimpy than it has the past few weeks when I've tried to run, and my breathing was also less labored. As proof of this, I reached the turnaround point (Freedom Park entrance) over 30 seconds sooner than I have in recent runs. Trust me, I'm not trying to convince anyone (least of all myself) that I was moving quickly, but I do think this indicates that my running motion is more fluid. Taking the run as a whole, I would rate my discomfort level as a 1-1.5 on a scale of 1 to 10, as opposed to the 7-8 of the past few runs. There were actually a few times when I uttered an audible thank you to the big guy upstairs. (I never got any response, but I'm fairly sure it would've been something like "Look, I'm thrilled for you, but I kind of need to get back to something more pressing. You know, like Afghanistan or something.")

I'm going to take a day off, then repeat the experiment on Thursday in hopes of replicating these findings. I haven't felt this optimistic in a long, long time.

P.S. Forgot to give a shout-out to Tanya yesterday...she set a huge 10k PR (34:54) and finished 24th overall (20th American) at the US 10k Champs in Boston. After a disappointing race in Providence a few weeks ago she really turned things around. Nice work.

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Manic Monday

AM: 30 mins. ellip.
25 mins. core
25 mins. pool
PM: 20 mins. ellip.

This week is going to be absolutely crazy with work, school, homework, taking my car into the shop and hopefully trying to see Brooke again before she leaves. The good news is that a weekend in DC and a reunion with some of my favorite peeps is on the horizon, which will no doubt make all the craziness worthwhile. I can't wait to take a break for a few days and get out of town.

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Week in Review

6 hours 15 mins. elliptical
6.5 miles
30 mins. pool
3 Lifetime movies
3 days with Brookelet

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Sunday

60 mins. ellip. incl. 5x5 mins. on, 5 mins. off

Two major takeaways from today:

1. I love Brooke and am so fortunate to have the opportunity to see her as frequently as I do.
2. I am so incredibly, unbelievably, indescribably OVER being injured.

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Movie Night

AM: 45 mins. ellip
PM: Yama

Brooke was game for accompanying me to the fitness center this morning, so I took a gamble on the doors being open early and, to my surprise, they actually were. Thus, we were able to get in some quality elliptical and stretching time before I headed off to work for the majority of the day.

However, in yet another lucky break, we were overstaffed on a relatively slow Saturday, which meant that I got to leave at 3 instead of staying until close of business at 5. Since neither Brooke nor I had really eaten lunch, we opted for a late lunch/early dinner of sushi. This was followed by a blissful evening of toenail painting, wine and terrible Lifetime movies at home. One thing I realized while watching 5+ hours of Lifetime tonight is that their programs have gotten incredibly...well, how can I say this...slutty? I mean, the movies they were featuring on Saturday included sordid titles such as "She's Too Young" (about an underage girl losing her virginity), "The Painful Truth" (about an underage girl losing her virginity with, ahem, several guys...and she also has a cutting problem) and "Student Seduction" (about an underage boy attempting to seduce his incredibly attractive teacher (played by the actress known in equal parts for her portrayal as Jessie Spano on "Saved By the Bell" and as a stripper in "Showgirls")). Oh, and "Don't Leave the Children" or something like that about a young, nubile nanny who is trying to--you guessed it--seduce the wealthy, distinguished father of the children she watches over. I mean, the last time I watched Lifetime was around Christmas and it was all yuletide cheer and evergreen trees. At most there was one sexual assault per movie. But now? Well, it's certainly not material I would let my mother watch. It was just about right for me and Brookelet though.

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Ladies Night

60 mins. ellip. incl. 25 min. "predator"
15 mins. core

Although yesterday I was sad to bid Jordan farewell, my frown quickly turned upside down knowing that my bestie Brooke would be joining me for the weekend. She will be in Charlotte Monday through Wednesday for business, so it worked out perfectly for her to come in a few days early for a visit. Our grand plan included Jilane coming down from DC, but she gave us some lame excuse about her parents coming to visit her and wanting free meals or something along those lines. Whatev. I'm over it.

At any rate, I was thrilled to pick Brookie up at the airport tonight, and even more excited to introduce her to some of my new friends from work. Our store owner and his wife graciously invited all the RFYL staff to Ed's Tavern for free-flowing drinks and appetizers, an offering in which I was understandably eager to partake. We had a great time but must not have snagged enough apps, because we ended up ordering a pizza upon arrival back to the apartment. Oops. Overall it was a fun night and the start of what promises to be a great weekend.

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Another Week

Thursday, 10/8
AM: 25 min. run (3 miles); 10 min. walk
PM: 45 mins. ellip.

Wednesday, 10/7
AM: 27 min. run (3.5 miles)
15 mins. core
Chiro
PM: 45 mins. ellip.

Tuesday, 10/6
AM: 55 mins. ellip. incl. 6x3 mins. on, 2 mins. off
PM: 20 mins. ellip.

Monday, 10/5
AM: 25 mins. core
30 mins. pool
PM: 45 mins. ellip.

This week has been crazy busy, due to a combination of homework, working four days as opposed to my usual two, and other general activity. This morning I dropped Jordan and our friend Dave, a Princeton alum and Zap runner, off at the airport for their big Japan trip. Both of them will be competing on the Ivy League alum ekiden team in Izumo, a team that hopes to improve upon its mediocre at best showings from previous years (which both guys agreed was a much better position to be in than, say, defending champs). Dave drove down and spent the night with us last night to avoid a 4am departure time from Blowing Rock, and we had a good laugh remembering that the last time he was here, Dave played a key role (i.e. getaway driver) in what can only be referred to on a public forum as "the incident." Good times.

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Week in Review

8 miles
7 hours elliptical
30 mins. pool
4 AFDs

Things are getting better, slowly but surely. The highlight of the week is definitely the fall weather. That, and my alma mater being ranked higher than Jordan's for the first time since we started dating.

Riff, ram, bah zoo
Lickety, lickety, zoo, zoo
Who, wah, wah, who
Give 'em hell, TCU!

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Weekend Update

Sunday, 10/4
AM: 20 min. run (2.5 miles)
30 min. walk
PM: 60 mins. ellip. incl. 5x5 mins. on, 5 mins. off

Saturday, 10/3
AM: 45 mins. ellip.

Saturday was great times as I worked out in the morning, then met some of my fave OCOM peeps for breakfast at the Original Pancake House. Kim, Gunilla, Bess and Jason had just finished running Race for the Cure, which Jordan and I skipped out on due to the overall cluster effect of having 15,000 people converging on uptown Charlotte. That said, we were more than happy to meet them for a post-run breakfast, as were Jenny and Tanya. This was more or less the same group that I ran and breakfast-ed with last spring at the Great Harvest 5k, only we were minus Jeffrey this time. His presence and his stories about time in the slammer were sorely missed by everyone. In honor of our favorite season and our favorite flavor, Tanya and I both ordered the autumn-inspired pumpkin pecan pancakes and were not disappointed.

Sunday I joined the team at McAlpine for the first time in who knows how long, with an ambitious goal of running 20 minutes. The hip was pretty tight throughout and didn't feel nearly as good as I hoped, but nonetheless it was great to run a few miles with the girls and enjoy the cool weather.

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Run #2

AM: 25 mins.
3 miles
PM: 55 mins. ellip. incl. 25 mins. "predator"

I drove down to the bike path that's about a 5-minute run from our house so that I could meet Jordan for a few miles. The 5-minute section I skipped out on consists of an uphill section from our apartment, followed by a downhill section on the sidewalk, then an iffy street crossing to get to the bike path. Hence, I didn't want to waste what promised to be a brief run on crappy terrain. So Jordan ran from the house and I drove to the bike path to meet him. From there we ran to Freedom Park, where Jordan took a spin while I stopped and stretched the hip, then ran back the way we came. I'm not going to lie; my hip flexor is still very tight, but things felt about as good as they did a few days ago. Not perfect, but better than last week. At this point I'll consider that a success. As for the distance/pace, that's just an estimate as I didn't want to ask Jordan how slow we were running. I can't deal with that blow to my self-esteem right now.

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So You're Saying There's a Chance

Thursday, 10/1
AM: 25 mins. ellip.
25 mins. core
30 mins. pool

Wednesday, 9/30
AM: 30 mins. ellip.
20 min. run (!!)
2.5 miles
Chiro
PM: 40 mins. ellip.

Tuesday, 9/29
AM: 30 mins. ellip.
PM: 55 mins. ellip. incl. 2x6 mins. on, 4 mins. off; 5x1 min. on, 1 min. off

Yep, you read that correctly--I ran 20 minutes on Wednesday. It's a new record. And, to be completely honest, while I didn't feel 100% normal I felt about 10 times better than last week. Much less gimpy, more fluid, less uncomfortable. This was definitely a step in the right direction and the first time I've felt optimistic in quite a while. Even Jordan, who certainly does not go out of his way to spare my feelings in these situations, said my form looked almost normal.

With that in mind, I have set a rather ambitious goal of running 10 miles this week. Of course, this is pending how I feel post-run--so far so good--and how the rest of my body responds to the abrupt mileage increase. But I would love to crack double digits for the first time since returning to Charlotte.

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