Category Archives: My Life

Mission: Accomplished

I am back home, back home after 39.3 miles on the roads of the Walt Disney World resort. I made it. The Goofy Challenge is complete, and I (excuse my language, but after almost 40 miles I think it is warranted) FUCKING ROCKED IT!!!! Thought I would give all my readers… if there are any… a summary of my race. So here it goes.

I have never really cared about my time when I run. It’s about completing a distance. Well that magically changed at WDW. I started the half marathon with 27,000 others on a crazy crowded course. It was jam packed with people who thought a half would be easy… very few serious runners. It was a very frustrating run, because of the crowds, and I ended up finishing in 2:45:05. My goal was 2:45:00, so I was very happy with that. I definitely thought that I could have run it 5-15 minutes faster without the mass of people I had to weed through.

I felt good the morning of the marathon, and was ready for a very hot day… A heat advisory was in effect due to the combination of temperature and humidity. As I crossed the start line, I felt amazing. Upon approaching the 5 mile mark, I realized that I was really doing great. My time was at exactly an hour, and I felt awesome. By mile 10, I was cruising. At the half way point, I realized that I had PRed from the day before, decreasing my time by 3+ minutes. It got very hot very fast on the course, and by mile 17 I started to worry a bit when I was getting the chills. I immediately made sure that my mind set was all about fluid, and I stopped at every water station there after. It continued to happen, but I was doing ok. I started really feeling the heat between mile 20 and 21, but I just slowed down a bit, and made it into Hollywood Studios with few problems. As Epcot approached, I was again cruising. It wasn’t hard, it was just a matter of continuing to move. I was nearly brain dead by the finish line, as I just couldn’t even comprehend what I had just done, but was overwhelmed with joy. I got a PR on my marathon by about 21 minutes.

So happy… I missed this amazing feeling that running give you. I am so happy to have it back, and I am not going to lose it again. More races are in my near future. Thanks for everyone’s support, kind words, and help over the past year of training. I am excited to re-evaluate my plan and continue to grow as a runner.

In the Words of Bruce Buffer…

Here We Go! I am currently sitting in the parking lot at Epcot. It is 3:14 am, and I am so ready to run this half marathon, it’s not even funny! I am so proud if myself for pushing hard enough to make the dream or running the Goofy a reality. When you work so hard for something, it makes the final experience so rewarding. But there are 2 things that are overwhelming me at the moment. The first is actually finishing all 39.9 miles with my body still intact, and the other is what I’m going to do when I get home from this. Training becomes such a huge part of your life, that’s it is super hard to be prepared for what to do next when it is finally finished.

As for now, I am going to go run…

I went back to the office today after a few weeks back in Kansas. I miss my dogs. I miss my boyfriend. Sometimes I wonder why I left. I know it was absolutely the right decision for me. I would not be happy if I had stayed in my old position at Fort Hays State. I was miserable there. I was a babysitter. I wasn’t running. I was working like 80 hours a week. It was all around a very bad situation for me. I lost myself there, which is funny, because I thought I would have everything I needed!

I am down to less than a week until I leave for Florida, and I feel that this will be a step back on the right path for me. One of the best years of my life was when I ran the first marathon 3 years ago. Running had helped me get through so many things, and being away from my family is one of those things.

I will leave you with this today, as it is how I decide my next move in life:

“Around here, however, we don’t look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things, because we’re curious…and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.”- Walt Disney

Keep Moving Forward…

keep_moving_forwardWelcome to January 2013! Hard to believe that 2012 has come to an end, but I am always up for a chance to reinvent myself again by setting new goals and objectives for the upcoming days. I am heading back to California today after spending the last two weeks in Kansas. I was so sad to have to leave, knowing that I am going back to my tedious days of work, running and sleep. With the ultra-marathon just 10 days away, I am trying to prepare my body for the task of running over 40 miles in a single setting. As overwhelming a task as that seems, I am so excited. After training for 6 months, early mornings, freezing temperatures, and more Clif shot blocks than a person can count, the moment that I have been waiting for. Temperatures are scheduled to be in the 60-70’s which brings up another challenge: deciding what to run in. The wrong gear seems to be the root of any problems I have running, so I will spend the next week trying to decide what feels best on the treadmill, and hoping that I will be able to fit it all into a suitcase for the trek from San Jose to Orlando.

My mom is meeting me down there, which I have mixed feelings about. This adventure is something that I know I couldn’t do without her. She takes great care of me and has great advice for any issues that may arise. But since the A-bomb got dropped in July, or should I say GAY-bomb, my relationship with my brother, and the rest of the family for that matter has not been the same. That news was not something that I was, or am, prepared to handle, and I still have very mixed feelings about it.

California has made me a must more cynical person, and I almost hate that about myself. Everything and everyone is so impersonal, which is so much different than in the Midwest where I grew up. But life there is what I consider actual reality: bad drivers, traffic jams, lots of Asians, rushed work schedules, and beautiful scenery. Haha, that’s a funny sentence. Oh well, freedom of speech, right? I miss the innocence of Kansas, the crazy weather, the flat land, and the hometown people. You never meet any farmers in San Jose, that’s for sure.

Anyway, like I listed in my last post, I have set some goals for myself this year in hopes that I expand my horizons, fill the hole that seems to be growing larger by the day, and enjoy the beautiful state that I have the wonderful opportunity to live in.

I plan to try to make it down to Disneyland at least once a month, since I have an annual pass and have only used it once so far. I also need to make it up to The City. I have been in San Jose for 6 months, and haven’t made any trips. I want to go places to run and take photos as I don’t think that I explore my surroundings enough. 1,500 miles in 2013 is my goal. I have .65 down, and 1499.35 to go…

I have a ton of travel planned this year, from Orlando to Ohio, Birmingham to hopefully Hawaii, I can’t wait to explore these locations a lot more. I am so excited for the possibilities that lay before me, and I am grateful that I have the opportunities to see and do so many things. 2013 is going to be epic! I just know it. And the best part… I am going to share it all here, with you.

Last Minutes of 2012

New_Year_2013There are approximately 50 minutes left in the year 2012. I have a lot of words to say about this year, like difficult, exciting, stressful, and many more, but I will spare you most of the mushy details of my year. Let’s just say that 2012 was a challenging year for me in many ways, and I am happy to see it go personally.

I am ready for a new start, and happy to say that I have many goals that I want to accomplish in the next year. Here are just a few that I am aiming for:

1. Because I am turning 30, I want to run 30 races within 2013.
2. I want to make it back to Hawaii in 2013.
3. I want to run 1,500 miles in 2013.
4. I want to do more craft projects… haha, i laughed too when I read that…
5. I promise to get my financial situation in order in 2013.

I think these are all attainable. I will just have to work a little harder. Another thing that I promise to do is give something to this blog every day. Ideally, I would like to start video blogging on a daily basis, and making a diary of my struggles, great moments and ideas. We will see how it all goes, and most importantly take it one day at a time.

Now that I have approximately 32 minutes till the new year, I am going to end this blog, snuggle with Chas and my puppies, and watch another episode of 30 Rock, because honestly, there is nothing in the world that I would rather do at this moment.

Happy New Year. Here’s to great accomplishments to come in 2013.

Overwhelming!

So I started this blog a while ago to more or less be able to write to myself, about what I was going through with my running, my life, and my normal every day. I am attempting to take classes online to finish my Master’s degree, and I am having a ridiculous amount of trouble. My professors will not email me back. I have no grade or assignments so far, and I feel complete lost and helpless. For some reason today is just an overwhelming day. I need direction. I thrive on getting things done! My frustration is growing. My running is not going how I planned it to. It is all just a lot.

On the other hand, I have so much to be grateful for. I have a job that I really do love, and that gives me the freedom to move and think outside the box. I have a great family, great friends, good health and everything I need. The abundance of thankfulness that I have for all in my life is also overflowing, and I know that every moment is perfect. This is how it is supposed to be, and I will make it through. There is no other option. I am living the story right now.

So much of my life revolves around Disney, and there are so many things that help me through moments like these:

Just Keep Swimming!

Keep Moving Forward!

There are a ton more, but I will spare you the Disney Pixar references for now. I am so lucky, and it is moments like these that I need to remember who I am and what I have.

How the West was Won…

So a lot has happened since the last time I wrote on this blog. I moved 1,600 miles across the country for a new job. I am now a California resident, and for the two weeks that I have been here, I have loved every minute of it. It is always fun to move someplace new. Reinventing yourself is something that I think everyone should get the chance to do. I am so grateful for this new opportunity.

Over the past year, I have worked so hard for so little money. I spent countless hours helping others, and I have truly been rewarded for my work. 80 hour work weeks plus school on top of it is just overwhelming sometimes. I have found myself again. I get to run, watch tv, and be creative in my new job. I am enjoying my life so much right now, and I am truly grateful for this wonderful opportunity.

I am hoping to post more about my training experiences from now on, so look for more to come.

My Nose Bleed Run

So I have been doing well, lifting, running, getting in shape in general. I had a night off last night, and decided to walk my dogs, Lucy and Milton to the baseball game then run back home. The distance was just over a mile, not very far, but a good way to loosen up my legs after a few days of lifting heavy. We made our way to the game (a trick in itself with 2 bulldogs) and enjoyed the 80 degree evening watching the Fort Hays State Tigers beat Washburn.

A side note here: let me tell you, it is quite a workout with those 2 dogs. Both are about 45 lbs of solid English bulldog muscle, and they like to sniff and pee on stuff…

Finally the time came, and I took off on my run. It was a great run! My quads were a little tight, which I should have expected, and the felt tired, I’m assuming from lactic acid, but other than that, I was cruising. I got close to the house and decided I would just keep running for a bit longer.Unfortunately, my plans were suddenly derailed. My nose started running, which was unusual, since it wasn’t cold, and after wiping the drippiness on my hand, I realized that I was bleeding, and not just a little bit! My nose was pouring. I detoured my long run back to the house and took care of my crazy nose.

Who would have thought! I guess crazier things have happened… I have class tonight, but I may give it another shot.

And So it Begins…

Training is hard work, but I have yet to find anything in this world that feels more rewarding when you are done. I love lifting, I love running, I love practice. I am now training MMA, and I can’t wait to actually get to use it in competition. Finding a way to push my body is something that I crave. I’ve started doing some shadow boxing and am okay at it. It interests me, and its something different to try.

I found a great boxing workout to try today, and since my trainer is gone, I get to see if I can push myself a little bit… http://www.menshealth.com/fitness/3-powerful-boxing-workouts

Pain is temporary… (I just have to remind myself sometimes.)