Refresh and Refocus!

Ok, not much changed this week! Stats are the same as last, I am ready to refresh and refocus~

A few of my friends and blog followers have requested I give out my diet. Unfortunatly, its not quite that simple. I can tell you exactly what I eat but it won't work the same for you because I have designed my diet specifically for my needs based on my body and goals, everyone is different! Is what I WILL do though is share my resources and recipes with you!

Tosca Reno The Eat Clean Diet, a great read! Iron Dolls by Karen Sessions is an ebook but I found it to be very helpful.

Here is my favorite pre cardio +weight workout meal. I eat it in the morning about an hour before I hit the gym for 45 min of weights followed by some type of pretty intense cardio> It has more carbs than most of my meals and it is inspired by one of Tosca Reno's many smoothies

Good Morning Smoothie:
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
2/3C skim milk
1/4 C dry oats
1 C any combination of 2 frozen fresh fruits. My fav is strawberries and bananas
Sprinkle of groud flax
1Tbs any nut butter( Raw Almond Butter is my fav)
A sprinkle of water to help it blend together

BLEND

These are approx nutritional values

250 calories
55 cho
3 fat g
8g protein
28g sugars

Its Thursday ALREADY???

Ok, so this week is almost a BUST! SUCKS but here is the deal... I cannot believe it is already Thursday! Monday, I kept Avery home cause she was sick, I did manage to get in a good chest workout with Tommy and Big Dave, BUT I did NOT teach my Zumba class so I could keep my sniffley child out of the nursery thus no cardio for me on Monday! BOO! I love cardio!!!Tuesday morning, I managed to run 3.25 miles with my awesome running buddy Sarah, we got splashed and sprayed by every passing vehicle on the highway INCLUDING a smelly dump truck..we were STINKY after that! Oh well, good stories! THen I went to support my brand new Zumba Instructor teaching her FIRST Zumba class (you totally rocked it Kristy) and then while I planned on working a muscle group afterwards, was needed to fill in for another instructors sculpt class...So my Bi's and Back workout was toast BUT I did hit them pretty good in sculpt class, along with everything else though, YESTERDAY was Wed, I took Brandon's "Insanity" Class that was basically cardio drills and yes..B, it kicked my butt , then hit the elliptical for 20 min looking for that slow calorie burn. TODAY?? ITS THURSDAY! My plans were to get up early and hit triceps and biceps and some Abs in the mix but I overslept, THEN I was called into teach water aerobics... so here it is, 130pm, ON THURSDAY and I feel like I have piddled away the whole freakin' week! I have NO motivation to work out, plus, I am about to pick up my munchkin so really, if I were going to work out today ,it would need to be happening NOW! Oh well. Im taking today off, tomorrow I am planning on a total body workout with circuits and then Ill also teach Z for my cardio, and Saturday??? Cardio and maybe a push workout. Sunday? Off. Monday? We will start again hopefully with more of a consistent schedule!!!

This is just life you know? You can NEVER completely plan for a workout schedule without expecting to improvise when necessary! Time and time again, I have scheduled the perfect workout week, or diet even down to the very last bicep curl, or oz of protein and inevitably , something will have to change. I may not be able to stomach ONE MORE EGG WHITE and have to adjust that meal, or like I just showed by my week above. I had a perfect week scheduled where I was going hit all muscle groups and then, I was faced with some uncontrollable scheduling issues that forced me to change my plan. Over all, I did pretty good, I give myself a A, how ever the real test here is that I didn't give up. This is a good example for what ever your fitness goals are. You have to be able to adapt to the inconsistencies of live! You may need a break in the middle of your week because your plan was too ambitious for your body to take on..If you don't listen to your body, make changes to you schedule to accommodate work, family or friends. You will never make it! YOu will get injured, loose focus, or burn out. This is a lifestyle change, lifestyles must adapt to not only our own wants or needs, but they have to be flexible and compatible with others. If you do not plan on these schedule conflicts then you will be in for disappointment, and setting yourself up for failure! Don't give up on the big picture just because you ran out of a little blue paint, if you just improvise a little, when you are finished, you won't even notice the small area of sky where you had to blend colors together, and improvise, to make it the right color blue!

Don't lie, you are impressed with my analogy! ;-)LOL

Stats again on Sunday~ K

Clean Diet = Clear Skin?? And much more!

It's true... I have always had trouble with acne!!!!I once said to a fellow group fitness instructor " It is totally unfair that I am plucking stray gray hairs out of my head AND covering up Zits!" UGGGG!!! It has been very gradual but my skin is finally clearing up! It just goes to show that diet really does effect EVERYTHING!!! Skin, teeth, nails, organs you name it!

Now that I really think about it...it is truly amazing how much our body's adapt to crappy lifestyles!! You know? It tries to tell you that it needs something different by showing up as acne, dry hair, dry skin, stomach bulging, thunder thighs , love handles, etc.. I mean think about it this way.. say you give your car crappy oil, or gas... it will run like CRAP! You will notice that at first but we soon adapt to the bumping and grinding and other annoying side effects of poor fuel, and it begins to seem normal to us, even though it is clearly SCREAMING for better quality fuel! More trips to the service station is a pain not to mention expensive, but you feel like you are getting a deal at the cheaper, more convenient, gas/oil station..

Think of your body like a bunch of little machines...BILLIONS to be more specific with millions of networks telling each cell or "machine" what to do and when! We have to fill it with the proper fuel so it can complete these complicated tasks with in our body's. These tasks include, making our heart beat, pumping blood nutrients to our organs, taking the trash out, and much more.. if we feed our bodies crap, our body STILL gets the job done to the best of its ability even if it has to pull nutrients from stored locations and our own tissue, its even smart enough to store nutrients away when you consistently deprive it of what it needs so it can tap into it later if necessary! The problem here is when we start building more trash than our body can take out, it starts building up... in our veins, artery's, colan and liver causing all sorts of sicknesses that we put on our selves caused by one specific reason.... we don't feed our bodies properly.

We begin to feed our body's crap for many reason's but the #1 reason?... it's "convenient" , Here is the thing... we are looking at LAZY, unhealthy, and uneducated (on the issue), NATION here! 2/3 Americans are overweight! 2/3 Americans are overweight! 2/3 Americans are overweight! Wake up! It seems to me that some of the other issues we spend so much time worrying about PALE in comparison! This percentage is based on stats from 2006! It's higher now AND to make it even worse, we are passing it down to our children..All because we, educated or not, upper class, middle class, and lower class, are too LAZY to change, too LAZY to learn, too LAZY to be good to that body of ours that is working tirelessly to keep you alive! All of this because fast food and processed food is more convenient!! That is messed up!

Don't get me wrong...You do not have to shop at whole foods for your all food, spend a ridicules amount of money, you don't even have to give up all of your convinces! Just be aware, learn about basic nutrition, read labels, if you can't, catch it, or pick it, or peel it..think twice before you eat it!

So, not only will clean eating clear your skin, but now, as I think I have shown above, it can quite possibly... give you a much better quality of life, or even save your life!

I'm signing off of my soap box for now, I will follow up with a recipe..Good Morning Smoothie... Yummo! Thanks for reading!! ~K

Stat Time!

Wt: 115..Holding Strong
BF% Using the Omron Bioimpendence method...20% Down like... .2 pts! LOL!

I am still seeing changes...so I feel good about it~ Not as frustrated this week..REady for my cheat day! Ill keep you informed!

So many BF% meathods

I have been frustrated because of my bodyfat % not budging from 20%. I had a trainer that works for us at the Y do a skin fold on me, just to see the difference from that and the omeron bf hand held analyzer( that is the method I have been using) and it came out 15.6 %, then I had another trainer do it on the same system, same sites, and viola! 17.8%...This goes to show that unless you have a bodpod, or a underwater system to analysize you BF% it is all a rough estimate and the important thing is to use the SAME method each time to see your gains and losses... that also means using the SAME TRAINER if you are using skinfold method!

This week is going well, I am feeling good, had a great chest workout with my buddy Tommy, and hit Bi's and Tris on Tuesday, yesterday i did a cardio class, and today I am hitting shoulders. I am planning on getting legs in on Friday, and working back on saturday( I hate working back) So I usually save it for last!LOL!

Bottom line, I continue to see results on my body! I am learning more and more that "abs are made in the kitchen"

Stats/10/04/09

Wt: 115
BF%: 20.2%


Well, what can I say? I'm about ready to through the scale out the window along with my body fat analysis! I didn't want to loose weight really in the beginning, I wanted to build muscle but for some reason, that number NOT BUDGING bothers me....

I am seeing muscle gains in the mirror, and my clothes are fitting differently in a good way! I shouldn't worry about those #'s BUT I am human and I do, at least I would like to see my BF% go down. I am 3weeks in and my body is definitely changing so that is good! Consistency is key here, I am NOT giving up by any means!! I am going to start running again in 3 weeks but until then, I am going to continue to build build build!!

The diet is getting easier! That is nice! Last week I was dreaming about chocolate and biscuits and bad food that I didn't overindulge in before this endeavor, I was looking forward to my cheat day so much that I couldn't even stand it~ This week, I am much more adjusted to the diet and I have not had the dreams or as many cravings, I am mainly glad to have a day where I don't have to constantly think about what and how much to eat!

Oh, and BTW, I added a few more carbs in the mornings with my oatmeal like fruit, and it has made a WORLD of difference! I am feeling much better!

I am off to enjoy my day off, it was tempting to go for a jog this morning with Hillman but I am staying on the plan, that includes a LIMITED amount of cardio and rest on my rest days, and rest does NOT include a morning jog! LOL!!

Until next time, keep checking! ~K

A small step back

Well, this week is not starting out so hot..Avery has been keeping us awake this week so it threw the beginning of week off. The diet was fine until today. I changed it this week to no carbs my last two meals and oatmeal an hour before my workout and today, I really learned that this may need a change. I just didn't have the energy this morning in my step class. My glycogen stores were totally depleted to the point tha my legs felt like led in class and I was getting dizzy spells, I struggled through that and I couldn't even TALK to my husband when I got home! I felt terrible and I was not in any mood to talk or smile! LOL! I ate a half of a power bar and some fruit and I was back to semi normal, then... my head was still sort of fuzzy and I backed the car into the Jeep that I had parked earlier! I am not blaming that serious brain fart totally on the lack of carbs in my body but I was definitly suffering from some serious glycogen depletion or better known in my household as "bonking" I went to starbucks and got a skinny vanilla latte and that brought me back up to speed.

SO, I still ate clean, however, not every three hours as usual and I ate a few more carbs than i have been! I feel a million times better now! I will not eat again tonight, but tomorrow I plan to get back on my schedule. I think I will try to add some fruit in with my oatmeal before my cardio and see if that helps. I told you I would be changing things as I see fit.... I refuse to stick to anything that makes me feel that badly! I want to be healthy, that is the whole point of this right?? I am not doing something right if I am left feeling that badly! More to come....

ho hum..stat day

I cannot lie, I am a little disappointed! I have been working sooo hard with my diet and in the weight room and being as diligent as I can about cutting down on my cardio and my results for two weeks are not as good as I had hoped for. I see changes! I really do though, the scale and bodyfat analysis is not yet reflecting yet though...;-(

Stats:
Wt: 114 (thats good actually, I lost almost a lb of fat, I was up on Wed, it could be water too)
BF: 20.4%

BF is actually a little higher but it basically hasn't changed.

I am noticing small changes in my body, for one, my abs are getting more defined, side view shown in the first and second pic.

Two, my muscles are getting bigger! Here is a pic of my biceps, I just woke up too, they look even bigger when Im actually working them! LOL!
Anyway, I am so ready for my "cheat day" I have some banana nut muffins in the oven as I speak, I am planning on having baked Ziti for lunch and some dessert too! Come Monday, back to it! I will now cut carbs out of my last meal completly. This should make my mood interesting for my morning workouts! LOL!


ALSO, this helped me, I just read this in the "Iron Dolls" ebook I am reading! This is a really good book. Thanks for reading, Ill update more through the week! ~K

"The first week or two you may lose weight, or you may gain some water weight. It all depends onyour body type, and what you were doing diet-wise before you came to be. Complex carbs hold three times the amount of water protein and fat do. Remember, any added weight the first week or two is just water and it will subside. It’s just your body reacting to the carbs. Once your body establishes that you are feeding it carbs, it will balance out and then we will start manipulating the diet for continual results.The first week or two you may or may not notice the scale change, but the mirror and how clothes fit may prove results. This is a good sign. Keep that in mind and don’t to get hung up too much on numbers just yet. They are a useful too, but so are the mirror and clothes" Karen Sessions

Goals

This week, I have been really trying to focus on finding what my goals are in this new bodybuilding plan. I am the worlds worst at deciding to do something full force but not sticking to it. As I have grown, I realize the reason I do this is because I start things with out defining my ultimate goal. Defining is the key word there. I will make plans like I want to run, or i think Ill try a half marathon, but not have a real plan in place. I will start off ready to go, but then, about two weeks in, I will fall off of my plan. I think a lot of people are like this. I learned this through out my training for the half marathon. I learned that if I wanted to complete a long term goal, I must keep reminding myself of that ultimate goal but also have "sub goals" as I call it, AND have a tangible reason for doing it. SO...I said at the beginning , I will shift my training to bodybuilding, I will follow a strict diet and achieve the goal of building muscle mass but now it is time to get deeper.

First question: Why?
This is a hard question for me but I have forced myself to narrow down the why's. This is the number one question I have to answer on a daily basis. When I can't have that glass of wine at a function in the middle of the week, or go to dinner and can't eat whats on their menu, why get up and work out when I am clearly tired or sore, why do I want to do this, put my body through this, the list of why's go on and on. There are 2 main reasons for me to do this.
#1: I want to be proud of my body, simply put. I have always been dissatisfied with my body, over recent years, I have found love for exercise, it has helped me keep my body in a more fit form which I have been happy with, I want to take it further. Being fit has given me freedom from having to constantly be insecure about how my body looked. I want to show others that they can do it too. Which brings me to my next reason.
#2. As a trainer and fitness instructor, so many people tell me how frustrated they are because they are killing themselves in the gym 7 days a week, 2x a day but seeing minimal results. My first question is...what's your diet like? The next response is usually filled with loaded excuses( i had a baby, i don't have time to eat healthy, my kids won't eat anything but junk), lies (they will tell me that they eat perfect), or my favorite " I eat 1000 calories or less a day". My response some of you reading this will be able to attest to this, its 80% diet 10% workout, they look at me in disbelief and continue on with their excessive gym habits, and continue to eat as they were and continue to be discouraged with their weight and eventually, they stop working out all together. I will run into them later and they will say " I just got burnt out on the gym, I was tired of working so hard without seeing results! Here is the thing! I KNOW BECAUSE I USED TO MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So..I want to prove that YES! Diet is 80%!!! I am not trying to send the message that you have to eat a body building diet to look good, or see positive changes but, this will hopefully be real proof for you guys who don't believe that diet is important! Not only diet, but rest and recovery! SO. For now, NO I am not doing this for a competition(the #2 most asked question), however I would not rule it out for a future goal.

My sub goals are goals that I try to meet daily, or weekly, like. Monday, i will work chest and shoulders at X time....blah blah

My weekly goal is to stick with my diet plan to get to my one cheat day!

Thanks for reading you guys! I will put up my stats again on Sunday morning before I begin my cheat day! I am so looking forward that!

~K

Encouraged today

WOW! So I know this sounds CRAZY, my stats have not changed but I was working out today and I saw some new things happening to my body already! Only I would notice, its not like people can look at me and see these slight changes but is all I know, is I have been consistent with my diet and workout plan for less than 2 weeks and I am already seeing more muscle definition!!! Especially in my shoulders and legs. This is so encouraging! I woke up this morning and had to face 7 egg whites, with a cup of whole oatmeal... I was like, uhhh! This is not looking very appealing to me, I barely got through it, then when I saw changes this morning it renewed my dedication, if I am already seeing changes, maybe I will really see a lot in the weeks to come! Wish me luck! I'm still truckin along on this plan!

Oh, and, I am going to get a massage tonight from my friend/massage therapist tonight! WHOOT!

One whole week..

Well, one whole week has gone by since I have started my new fitness goal. Not too many physical changes yet. I do feel GREAT though! Here are my stats as of yesterday before I started my cheat day: Wt: 115(back up)
BF% 20% ( it is slightly higher but expected this and I am not worried yet)

It is truly amazing that when you start feeding your body correctly it doesn't crave junk food! I used to always have to have something sweet after a meal! After the first day of this... that urge is GONE! Totally!!! Instead of craving chips, sweets, and junk, I crave veggies, salads, sweet potato's etc... amazing! NO JOKE!

I have had a slight set back, pulled a muscle in my trapizious in my back, spasms and all! OUCH! I woke up Saturday morning at 2am in HORRIBLE pain! Couldn't look down at all and to make matters worse... I had to teach a group fitness class that morning at 10am. I also didn't get to hit legs too hard which I had planned to do, but I am taking today off completely and I am already feeling better!

I will say, I was glad to have that cheat day! I needed a break from all of the conscious eating. I went out to dinner with my friend and my brother and just let loose for a while! AHHH! NICE!

Goals for the week...
STAY CONSISTENT ON THIS PLAN!!!

ALSO, I have been reading a great book called "Iron Dolls" it is really good, it is an ebook and if you are interested in body building, it is a great, simplistic, yet COMPLETE look at how to be successful! I am learning alot~

Ill will keep you posted! ~K

First few days...

Ok, here is where I am starting:
wt: 115.4lbs
body fat % 19%'

I have to say it is hard to get used to eating 6 meals a day! Planning alone is time consuming not to mention cooking the food! I am eating a very strict and clean diet! Allowing one cheat day where I can eat anything I want, that way Ill be able to stick to my strict diet through out the week and this should also keep my metabolism guessing and will hopefully keep the metabolic fire burning! I know some of you who have experience have different opinions on how I should be doing this but I am basing this off of research and my college education... I think the numbers should work! I am taking in around 2000 calories a day, 30% fats and proteins, and 40% complex carbs. I am also adding in chicken and turkey which I wasn't eating before, I am not saying you can't bodybuild with out meat, but for me, its easier just to put it back into my diet...protein protein protein!


Day 2: I am feeling very full and bloated! The protein shakes that I am taking in after exercise are discusting! I am going to have to find a different type if I am going to keep this up! The water I am consuming is making me have to pee every 5 seconds! I only made it through 2 liters of water today and yesterday. Hopefully my body will adjust soon!! I had to stay up until 10 last night to get in my last meal of the day which was a discusting protein shake with no Carbs that I had to chase with water! GROSS!!

Day 3 : I got on the scale this morning because I feel like I am gaining fat around my mid section! YUK! I was suprised to see that I am down 2 lbs...must be because I am not retaining water anymore since my body has an abundance of it...I expected to gain, Ill hop back on the scales on Sunday and let you know what I weigh.

Day 4: I am loving my breakfast of 1/2 cup of oatmeal and 1tps of natural peanut butter mixed in. At first I thought it was nasty, now I am looking forward to it! It is amazing how my cravings for sweets and chips and junk has dissappeared! My body is liking the food that I am giving it~ I feel totally satisfied after my meals! I will say that my grocery bill is much higher! AND I went to GNC to get some new protein shakes and supplements and dropped $100! I must say thought that the protein shake tastes a million times better! If you are going to drink protein shakes on a regular basis. I do suggest you go ahead and spend a little more on it!

Day:5 I AM SOOOO SORE! the new supplements are making me feel like crap! Ill give my body another day to adjust but uhhh for now! Hillman thinks it doesn't have anything to do with the supplements but that I am running low on my glycogen stores. I had a tough time keeping my energy up in my step class yesterday... that could be it, my body will have to adjust to me not eating so many "fast carbs" We will see.... I am thinking clearly so my stores aren't too low. I am still taking in carbs, just not the same kind.

More to come....

New Finess Goals!

As of Sunday, September 13th, I decided it's time to change up my fitness goals. I have been running and training for long distances now for a while and while I still LOVE running and do not intend to give up 5k races and the occasional 10 k race, I am going to shift my training goals to bodybuilding. I used to lift weights regularly and loved the way my body looked. I have been so focused on running that I have not been able to do anything else, thus, losing most of the muscle I put on in years past. So I decided that I would totally change it up and focus on bodybuilding! I am following a "bodybuilding" type diet that gives me quite a few calories per day, (around 2,000)and training muscle groups as a bodybuilder, not as a person who wants to maintain, but BUILD muscles. I am measuring out how many carbohydrates I need, Protein, and fats that I will need to build lean muscle mass/ Eating 6 small meals a day and drinking 3 liters of water per day! I am also going to track weight loss and gains with you. I have never tried this before so I may get it wrong first but I will bring you along on my journey! Here we go, a new adventure! Who knows what will come out of this! ~K

How about a lyrical quote today?

"I've been spendin' way too long checkin' my tongue in the mirror
and bendin' over backwards just to try to see it clearer
But my breath fogged up the glass
and so I drew a new face and I laughed
I guess what I'd be sayin' is there ain't no better reason
to rid yourself of vanities and just go with the seasons
it's what we aim to do
our name is our virtue"~Jason Mraz

Avery and her "Pop"

Are these sweet or what??

Spirited Personality!

Avery is certainly showing her quick tempered side these days! The last few days have been rough so, after seeing her interact with others in the nursery in a poor mannor, she usually loves being around her friends in the nursery, I decided to take her to to the pediatrician to get her checked out. The way I see it is, if she is just needing tough love then I can give her that,but I want to be sure she is not in pain, or sick..I also am struggling with how to discipline her at such a young age. She is clearly needing boundaries from us but she doesn't respond to many things I have tried. The only thing that works is ignoring her...The pediatrician was great, I love the group that she sees, we spoke at length about these concerns and he reassured me that I am doing the right things. Turns out, she did have a double ear infection and a big glob of wax creating pressure in her ear canal! WHEW. Here is some video of her dramatic self...these are quite mild but you can get the idea! Enjoy!! ;-)

Country Music Half Marathon

(<--- Im the one in the red hat)


Hello all! I haven't taken a minute to write in a long time but here we go again! I wanted to share my experience in the last half marathon I ran. It was a local one, The Country Music Marathon an Half Marathon. It is the second half marathon for me this year, I did the Tom King Half Marathon back in March. I was very pleased with my performance finishing with a personal record of 2 hours and 2 minutes. The CMM is a wonderful course. I thought showcased the best parts of Nashville. Starting at Centennial Park it takes you down Broadway, then back up Demonbruen through the Belmont area then back down Music Row and even wraping around Bicentennial Mall ending at the Titans Collisium, the marathon splits off around 11 miles and goes through metro center and down to Shelby Bottoms park ending up in the same location as the half. 32,000 runners this year topped every other year. This is the first race that I ran with this many people involved and boy, was it a scene! Here is my experience.

At the starting line, 30 some odd corrals contained thousands of runners based on what time they purposed to finish. Fastest in first corrals and slower runners and walkers last corrals. I was assigned to corral 4. After a long morning of preparation, meeting up with friends, car-pooling, shuttling over to the park we were set to go all before the wee hour of 6am. Port a pottie lines were outrageous , thousands of port a potties lined up filling the park with blue and white stalls and in front of them thousands of anxious runners waiting in line for that last chance to empty there blatters or what not! Me? I got lucky, on the shuttle, we snuck into the bathroom and held on to the rails for dear life while emptying our blatters as the driver seemed to take those turns at the most extreme measures! We get off the buss at exactly 605am and are amazed at all the people! WOW~ people running around warming up, waiting in line for the porta pottie, the speaker announces "race numbers such and such - such and such should have already dropped there bag at the UPS trucks and be on there way to their corral! Shoot! Thats me! I strip off my shirt (I didn't mention that we had record breaking highs today), down to my sports bra and throw it in my bag. Hugged all my friends and wish them good luck and off I went, to the baggage drop off...scarfing down half a cliff bar on while frantically sorting out what I need and don't need, and I realized, "damn, I have to pee again"! I spot a bathroom that the line dosent look too intimidating so i get in it, 25 minutes later I emerge from the bathroom at 6:56,4 minutes till corral 1 is starting! I book over to my corral and its closed, no biggie, just got in the 5the corral instead. This is when I realized that this may be a lonely race despite the thousands of people running along side of me, and the thousands of spectators cheering us on. I didn't count on that happening! As we inch up elbow to elbow, I cannot see a thing in front of me besides other people's back. "On your mark, get set POW!" We are off! The sound of watches starting , shoes pounding on the assphalt, and heavy, anxious breathing was a sure sign we were on our way! A flair of excitement traveled up from my stomach to my chest, I took in a deep breath and sighed, this is what I love about racing..

The road sloped down hill and I could see all the way down Broadway, the whole road full of runners, I glanced behind me and saw much of the same, runners, gliding down the hill, I smiled as I started my ipod up to hear the sound of Cold play drifting into my ear, "Life In Technicolor", life is good right now.

We make a right turn on forth, everyone is having fun around me, spectators are hooting and hollering for us, families are out to support there loved ones, children, friends, spouses. Life starts to feel a little less enjoyable as we begin climbing the hills that lead us to Belmont. The sun barreling down upon us and people's shirts are beginning to show perspiration in unique patterns. I push past a few groups of people and am happy about all of those 5am morning hill runs Sarah, Emily and I suffered through in our training runs. I am clicking along at an 8-9 minute pace, hitting my 5k mark on schedule, 27 minutes.

As we head down past Belmont college, I notice a nagging pain in my outer left knee that has given me slight problems in the past. I know I can deal with that pain though so I don't let it get me down. The partiers are out in full force with beer and lots of cheer, even at 730 in the morning, I'm thinking these folks haven't made it to bed yet and this is a continuation of last nights frat party! 5 miles down, almost half way and the leg pain is worse, all of the sudden BAMMM, a girl in front of me decides to stop. As I cut around her my knee felt like it went in 2 different directions. Pain soared up from my leg to my gut as I hopped off of the course to assess the situation. The pain was now pulsating and making me nauseous, sweat dripping in my eyes. I am fighting back the tears and panic, stretching my IT band vigorously trying to work it out , I get back on course limping and in denial. I hit the 10k mark under the desired time frame and am feeling defeated. "I can do this for another hour! I know I can hold it together" I am thinking. I stop at a water stop and stretch and drink. Getting my rythem back is something I never gained. I kept thinking " if i could just make it to 10 miles, I know i can make the last 3 on hope and adrenaline alone!" #8 mile sign up hill up hill and more up hill. It is getting hot and I have reverted to counting my steps to try and keep my mind off of my pain. I look over and an older gentle men cut off the course and grab a police officer's arm as he passed out cold onto the ground beside him. The first of many pass outs and injuries due to the heat I witnessed. I see the medics rushing on there bikes to whisk away the man who desperately needed help. #10 is approaching and I am seriously thinking of abandoning..the only thing that kept me in the race was the fact that my parents were both at the finish line waiting to see me cross it! No way was I letting them down. It just goes to show that no matter how old you are you still need your parents! And it really does make a difference to be there for someone even in such as small way as this is. I unzip my pocket in my shorts where I stored my "GU" packet, there must be a water stop soon....the heat is getting to me now, my leg is hurting and I began to cry, tears streaming down my cheek felt good, cooling my face off, i pulled it together. WATER at mile #11!!Sucked down my gu and stretched, drank a water and poured one down my back..AHHH! Heaven!

11.3 miles is the split of the marathoners and the half marathoners. I am so thankful that I am on the half marathon path, even though you would be amazed at how may marathoners decided to stick to the half and did not make that turn!

As I am heading through to the last mile I find that this is indeed the LONGEST mile of my life! My leg now feels as though there is a knife stuck into the outside of my knee twisting and turning with every step, as I slowly plod through I am noticing a young girl passed out on the sidelines and the medics are trying to determine if they should start chest compressions. I am feeling a heavy feeling in my chest that I have never felt. I am now afraid I am going to have a heart attack! Taking deep breaths I keep telling myself that it is just the heat and pain making me panic, that's all, just keep breathing! 2 more young guys passed out on the side, another girl, getting oxygen, the medics were busy! Here is the turn, tears well up in my eyes again as i and see the # 13 sign and people are yelling and cheering and OH GOD FINALLY! THE FINISH LINE!

My leg went completely numb as the adrenaline took over my body and then I looked over to see my mom and dad, I blew them a kiss and was so relieved it was over! I have never in my life been so glad to be finished with a race!!! As I crossed the finish line all the madness came to a screeching halt as we waited to get our medals. Behind me, a man finishing collapsed, I took a deep breath and thought, to hell with my time and PR's! I finished damn it! I limped to the medic tent where they so graciously wrapped my knee in ice. Later, that evening, i found out that the man I saw collapse behind me at finish line was more than likely the man,26 years old, who died at that moment of a heart complication.

In reflection of this race I have learned much! 1: no more long runs the weekend before a long race, 2:what doesn't kill you really does make you stronger! 3: When running a large race such as this, it is important to keep people you know around you, it is amazing how alone you can feel in a sea of people, 4: don't ever underestimate the power of your presence to others. Just knowing that my parents and husband would be there watching me cross the finish line helped me see this effort through. Also, all of the people cheering us on made a huge difference in so many runners, including myself!

Thanks for reading. More to come. I am going to try a triathlon this summer and another half marathon. Who knows...maybe, just maybe, one day, Ill do a full...Never say never, if you would have asked me 5 years ago if I would ever run a half marathon, I would have HELL NO! LOL! ~K

Avery Video

Here is a video of her just being her! Enjoy!

Fitness Blog for YOU!

Hi everyone!! I have a seperate blog that you may want to put on your favorites list! It's http://stayfit4lifeblog.wordpress.com This blog has all sorts of fitness related information on it including video, articles, polls, etc...Check it out! I recommend you checking in EVERY DAY! I will add things to it often! Happy Fitness! -K