Crack of Dawn 8k!

This morning I got up at 3:45 and headed over to pick up my mom and dad for the Crack of Dawn 8k.

We got their before the sun was coming up over the mountain and drove up to the start in the Mill Creek Canyon. We were the first ones up there and we waited for a good 30 minutes before the buses came up with all the other runners.

It was a little chilly up there, I think it was around 45, but we figured that once we started moving we'd warm up. The weather was perfect, it had rained the night before and the roads were all drying and it had that really yummy rain smell up in the canyon. I love that smell.

The race was about to start at 6:00 and we were standing in the potty line. It's a good thing we had timing chips for this race cause we were about 1.06 late crossing the start line. We started out and the down hill started killing my IT band. I don't think I was warmed up enough, so I told my mom to go ahead of me and that I'd catch up to her when it leveled off, if it did. I walked/ran the first mile and ended up doing the first 2 miles at a 12:45 pace. After that my leg warmed up and I started rocking it. My next mile was in the 10s, the next was in the 9s, and the last mile (or .94) was in the 8s!!

Here's my attempt at taking a picture with my iPhone while running. :) I think it looks cool! My leg felt awesome the last 3 miles. At the end there was a little itty bitty hill and after running almost 5 all down hills your legs say, "Oh wait...I just ran 4+...I think I'm tired now." I pushed through and my last mile was at a 8.33 pace.

I crossed the line around 55.20, but my watch said 54.14. Not bad, not bad!

This is us right after finishing. I really love running races with my momma.

Running is a family thing!

A new friend...

Yeah!!! I did it. I saved up and sold stuff on ksl.com and bought myself a BOB Revolution Duallie today. I LOVE IT! I went on a 4 mile jog around the lake with J and the kids. Oooh, I don't know what I did without this baby. It's such a smooth ride.

I love that it didn't feel like I was pushing a ton of weight like the old stroller. It's my first jogging stroller and I'm SOO glad I have it and I can't wait to do more runs with it!

Tomorrow's run is a 12 miler! Yay! I love long runs. :)

Hike to "Y" mountain

This morning J's dad, bros and I hiked up to the "Y" on Y Mountain. It's a tradition of theirs to hike it each time they come out to visit. So, since J's pop is so impressed with my running that he invited me along. This hike is pretty nuts. It's only 2 miles total, up and down, but it is CRAZY steep. We started out J's bro, Ant is in ROTC so he hiked with his 50+ lb rucksack, and was ahead of everyone for the first little bit, until he started getting tired and then I passed him and everyone else.

 

I beat all these tough guys up the mountain and had to wait for them for about 5 minutes before they finally got to the top. Then...I beat them all down the mountain. How cool is that, all these tough guys were beat by a girl! Haha!

The view from the top. Pretty cool, huh?

The last time I hiked up to the Y, it took me FOREVER and I was huffing and puffing up the whole thing. It was pretty pathetic. I'm glad I could do it this time without any problems.

The only bad thing about doing a hike like that is my thighs and butt are SOOOO sore...not the best thing to have right before a big long run the next day. No worries though, I'm going to run it with no issues. I can't wait!

My wanter is broken....

I want, I want, I want.....

After missing yesterday's run because I procrastinated and because there were no baby-sitters home, I've decided I want one of those babies! A BOB Revolution Dualie Stroller...I want it SOOOO bad. The only thing that sucks is the cost...maybe if I have it for 20 years it would be worth it. I gotta save up for this baby. Maybe it'll be a Christmas present to myself this year.

Today I didn't wait until the last minute and I got out and got my 9 miler in. I felt good! There weren't any aches, but I could feel myself tightening up so, I stopped a couple times to stretch. It's crazy to think that my marathon is only 30 days away! Oooh! It's happening, it really is. I can't wait to see how I do. I really like racing the half marathon, it's my new favorite. I wonder if the marathon will become my new favorite distance after this race. Tomorrow's going to be an easy 5, I think I'll get it done early so I can enjoy the day.

Whoa...I never thought there would be a time that I would say, "I'm going to run an easy 5 miles today." It's SOOO cool to be able to say that and mean it.

J's dad flew in today. He's back for some R&R from Iraq. He ran a marathon and was on the cross country team at BYU in his hay day, so it's fun to be able to talk running with him. He even wants to run a couple runs with me while he's here. Fun, fun!

Run to Walk Family 5k

Today's race was FUN! I'm telling ya, it's such a great thing running as a family. Sure, everyone finished at different times, but it was fun to talk about it when we were all done.

Hayley and Adam were amazing. She did it in 26 and Adam did it in 19. I could only dream to do it that fast. I can't believe this was the only picture I got of Adam today. Lame...

Mom and pop before the race. :)

Mom was 2nd in her age group and did it in 34 (I think.). Dad did it in 36, but I'm not sure. All I know is he finished WAY before we did. He kept saying, "I had to do this every day for 34 years and now I'm paying to run!?" Hahaha. The joys of being in the Army. :) At least he's retired now and doesn't have to do PT if he doesn't want to. I think he enjoyed it.

Here's Mr. J before the race started. He was all ready. He screwed up his back a couple weeks ago and his PT told him he couldn't run, so he walked... He's such a tall guy that his walk is my jog. So, while pushing 3 little kiddos in a stroller and putting up with one of them getting in and out of the basket in the back while he was still going.  B got in and out of the basket and ran about a mile of it.

Poor guy, he's not used to going that fast for so long. The last time he did a 5k was a year ago with me. He just laid there on the ground for about 15 minutes. It wore him out!

It's all good. I still love him! :) We walked it in 44.02, not bad considering he was pushing over 100 lbs in a non-jogging stroller. He puts up with so much. I'm glad I have such a great man!

Before the race I ran 4 miles around the riverwalk and then did the 3 miles with the race. Good times!

Happy MAY!

I can't believe it's May already! This year is going by SO fast. So far this year I have reached over 410 miles and I've run 2 Half Marathons. I would have never thought last year that I would have been able to do that. It's amazing what you can do when you put your mind to it. It gives me SO much hope for my future in running. I think it would be really cool to run 2+ half marathons a year so I can get 50 before I'm 50. I think that 13.1 may be my new favorite distance to race.

This week is going to be fun!! My little bro, Hayley, and Little Miss are coming to visit!! Plus, my mom and dad are coming too! So, here's the cool thing...on Saturday 6 of us are going to run a 5k as a family. I LOVE it! I love that we're a bunch of runners having fun together as a family. :)

My goals this week are to get back on track when it comes to my running and have lots of fun with the family.

This weeks runs:
Monday: 4 miles
Tuesday: 6 miles
Wednesday: 8 miles
Thursday: 4 miles
Friday: 3 miles
Saturday: Family Run to Walk 5k + 9 miles (maybe)
Sunday: OFF

I think I'll throw some swimming in there and also some walking with my man. It's gonna be awesome! Adam and Hayley are MUCH faster than me, but it'll be fun running together. :)

Have fun running this week and congrats to all of you who ran races this weekend!!!