Training again...

...for my next half marathon, the 5 Points of Life race weekend. It's right here in Gainesville, so I won't have to drive far at all. I did my first run last night. I don't know why I'm doing this.

Music Monday: Fall Out Boy

It's been a long two months since I last wrote anything. At all. I've barely been running or working out...which is what happens when Life Happens. So in an effort to re-motivate myself, I started using iTunes Radio, the Adult Alternative station... & heard this gem of a song:

This is the kind of song that makes you want to get up & smash things. Lift heavy things. Kill a SlamBall. Run a 9-minute mile...you know, all the things I used to do all the time! I immediately downloaded & added to my workout playlist.

I hope you find inspiration in it, too!

What I'm missing...

I was commenting on a DailyMile's friend's page...he had a "great run & really enjoyed it." I was happy for him; he had some hamstring issues & I know what it's like to finally run pain-free.

But then I thought to myself: when was the last time I actually enjoyed running?

The answer: I honestly don't know.

Seems crazy, right? I mean, why keep doing something you're not sure you enjoy anymore? After my last, rain soaked half marathon, I think I hated running. Sure, people run in adverse conditions all the time...but it was so damned miserable that it made me hate the sport. Hate it just enough to seriously dabble in other things. I've always lifted, but I found I enjoyed lifting weights & cross fit-type activities more than running.

Even today, when I had my first run of the marathon training cycle, I still don't know when the last time I enjoyed running was... Maybe a year ago when I was training for the Munich Half Marathon?

As I go forward in my training for the Disney Marathon in January 2014, I hope I will find what I've been missing for quite some time. I hope rediscover the joy & exhilaration of running instead of it always feeling like a job to me. I hope the break I've taken helps me get the excitement back.

Lost & Found...All at the same time

After one international flight from hell & 918 miles of I-95S purgatory, we've finally arrived to our new town, Gainesville. That's the one in Florida, NOT Georgia, in case you're wondering.

The flight over was ridiculous. About 5 hours wasted sitting on the tarmac, just waiting for planes to take off. Yes, that's planes PLURAL. Every flight we took was delayed on the tarmac. With our dogs on the flight in cargo & the heat, I was nervous about that. But we all arrived in one piece.

I'm gonna miss you, Alps.

Awe man...I want to ski!

We spent time in Delaware & New Jersey visiting family. We ran a bit in DE. We hit the gym a bit in NJ because we were able to get a 2 week membership to Gold's Gym in Paramus. I didn't get to work out much because I hurt a muscle in my neck, so it really messed things up for us. At one point, I didn't even have full range of motion & couldn't drive at all. It was pretty bad...made worse by an ill-fated attempt to run with said injury. So we only got one week out of our 2 week membership. Which means I lost some of my fitness. :(

Became my FAVE water.

Mr. X got measured for running shoes!

But the real fun was visiting my old trainer, Heyda Diaz, at Fort Bragg, NC! She & I went to the gym a couple of times; I'd finally healed by then. She even took me on a "field trip" to GNC to learn about supplements. Which I did & tried. We started small with BCAA to help my "muscle children" stay in place with all my upcoming running (marathon training). We ate VERY well while we were there...her husband is an excellent cook. So is mine, so they were trading secrets. And my husband helped her husband finish building her in-house gym so she can start her business!

Husbands hard at work making pasta!

Yup. We worked out! www.BYFOFitness.com, folks!

Check it out at www.byfofitness.com, by the way. She's doing online & in-house training. I can't recommend Heyda Diaz enough!

If it sounds like a boring trip, that's because it was a boring trip. Moving is eventful & uneventful all at the same time. Now that we've found ourselves at our final destination of Gainesville, FL, all our energies are focused on finding a house...& the gym, because we immediately joined Gainesville Health & Fitness. And started going...because that's what I do!

Go Gators!  (See, I'm learning to blend with the locals)

Almost there...

Still on the move...driving in our final Florida direction. And once there, I'll be able write more...& run more. Because marathon training waits for no one!


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