Speed Workout.....FINALLY!!! And No Vomit!!!

"Oh. My. God. Ouch. Terrible." ~ Lance Armstrong after running his first marathon

(Don't forget: just a few more days to enter the Happiness Contest!)

Monday, August 1st 2011: Dear Work: I forgive you for keeping me in your walls for so many hours that I couldn't run on Monday. I still love you.

Tuesday, August 2nd 2011: 14 mile bike ride in 1 hour & 4 minutes (13.2 mph). I got my protein for the day by eating mosquitos as Mel and I were riding. Delish.

Wednesday, August 3rd 2011: 5 miles @ the track - SPEED WORKOUT!!! I haven't done a speed workout for ages and was so happy to get back on the track. I almost threw up a few times, but I didn't care one bit. It took months to work through some knee injury issues so I was positively thrilled that I felt good enough to run to the point of vomit.

I did Yasso 800's (two times around the track) and wanted to keep them around 4 minutes each. My times were: 3:58, 3:44, 3:38, 3:57, and 3:41. I can't wait to start working on building speed again!


Thursday, August 4th 2011: 17 mile bike ride with Mel in 1 hour & 11 minutes (14.4 mph).

Friday, August 5th 2011: Diet Mountain Dew + Hostess Crumb Donuts = Pure Bliss. Yum.

Saturday, August 6th 2011: 14 miles @ 10:29 minutes per mile. We made a last-minute decision to join a group of friends going to run a section of the St. George Marathon course. We dropped a total of 2,276 feet. If that doesn't pour gasoline on your quads then light them on fire, nothing does.

I ran the first ten miles with Mel and our friend Jess. They are girls. And unlike boys, a high proportion of their time was spent singing and dancing. I kept hearing them sing about putting a ring on it as well as numerous out-of-tune hits from the 1980's. They are good company so I was willing to overlook the singing.


Jess has been quoted as saying that getting a jumping picture is on her bucket list. If this is real, she probably has other fascinating things on her bucket list like finding a quarter in the parking lot or trying to endure a whole episode of Murder She Wrote.

She was too speedy to get a sharp picture (because she was a little embarrassed to be jumping while other runners went past). We talked about technique and she decided to go with the cheerleader pose. I tried that once too but got a frightening result.


I did the last 4 miles by myself at around 9:30 per mile and felt great. I was so happy to end the run feeling like I could go farther if I wanted to. I was so happy in fact that I tried a jumping picture myself. And it looks like I dislocated my right arm in the process.


The Moonlight Half Marathon is coming up Friday night! Anyone up for a blogger get together Friday or Saturday?

I'm considering the costume contest.....any suggestions?

The Happiness Contest!

I’d like to tell you about a fantastic book that I read recently called The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. It has even been perched on the New York Times Best Seller List. Rubin chose a different area of her life for each month and had specific tools to strengthen happiness, such as:
Remember Love (Marriage)
Aim Higher (Work)
Lighten Up (Parenthood)
Keep A Contented Heart (Attitude)

A year ago I checked out the book from the library. I returned it after two days and ordered it from Amazon because I quickly realized that this is a book that I would need to underline and write in my own notes.


One of the projects I did from the book was to make my own list of personal commandments. They are hanging on my bathroom mirror because I need frequent reminders. My personal commandments are:

1) Act the way you want to feel.
2) Do what ought to be done.
3) Be present in the moment.
4) Be kinder than necessary.
5) There is only love.
6) Live deliberately.
7) Say “yes” to life.
8) Smile always.
9) Spend out. (Taken from the Happiness Project book which talked about not taking things for granted, and celebrating the small victories of each day. Don’t save the nice dishes for a special occasion – because EVERY day is a special occasion.)
10) Be Cory.

I have great news for you! This incredibly nice author has donated a copy of the book for a free giveaway on fastcory! I hear you wondering how you can get your hands on this amazing book. There are four ways to enter the contest:

1) Click the follow button on the top right and become a fastcory.com follower. (If you are already a follower, just let me know in a comment): 3 Entries

2) Mention the contest on your blog or Facebook: 3 Entries

3) Visit Gretchen Rubin/The Happiness Project on Facebook and click the Like button: 3 Entries

4) Add a comment about something that makes you happy: 1 Entry per comment - the more the merrier!

Winner will be drawn at random in one week on August 10th. Good luck!

Attention Utah Runners

For all you fellow Utah runners, I have an idea. Lets run the Mapleton Moonlight Half Marathon coming up Friday night, August 12th. We can get together before the race, hang out, eat some Twinkies, and then run the race.

I think this is going to be a really fun race for a few reasons:
1) It's at night!
2) The Perseids Meteor Shower is that night.
3) It sounds pretty casual, more like a fun run than a race. You run without a watch - the goal is to see who can finish as close to midnight as possible. You can start anytime you want around 9pm or 10pm. Awesome!
4) Awards for best costumes. (Hmmm, I may have to think about this one.)
5) Big finish line party.
6) Finishers medals for everyone.

This will be a unique challenge for picture taking. I'm excited!

Do you like to run in the dark?
I love it. Me and the head lamp have become close, personal friends over the years.

A Snake, A Tortoise, and Amazing Scenery

My legs were crrrrrrrrazy sore for a few days after the Deseret News Marathon. I always try my hardest to not limp around at work.

Thursday, July 28th 2011: 16 mile bike ride at 16.3 mph which was one of my speedier rides.
Friday, July 29th 2011: Nothing.
Saturday, July 30th: Kylee asked me to go on a bike ride with her. She said going on a ride with me was one of her most favorite things in the whole world. It's one of my favorite things in the whole world to go on a ride with her too and I'm glad we get to do it a lot.

Her bike has this little bell and pink tassels on the handle bars. Basically it is one of the cutest things ever.


Kylee also spotted this fiesty fella along the way:


After our ride I did a 4 mile run @ 10:52 minutes per mile pace. This isn't at all accurate because it doesn't count all the times I stopped to take pictures.

I went to the Jem Trail. I kept thinking how spoiled I am that this amazing trail is only seven minutes away from my house:


On October 15th there is the Hurricane Jem Trail Marathon here and I am very, very tempted. This may be the most beautiful marathon ever. My only hesitation is that this would be a marathon every other week for two months, but I don't think I will be able to pass it up.

Literally one minute after I started running I saw this desert tortoise crossing the road:


When I was training for the Buffalo Run 50 miler I ran lots of miles on these trails. But Saturday I went on a new section of the trail which was incredible. I arrived on the top of this cliff and the view was simply amazing. This picture doesn't even come close to doing justice to how awesome it was. It was one of the most breathtaking things I have seen while running:


As I was finishing up I caught a hint of a rainbow:


I got in my car to drive home but caught another glimpse of the sunset and got right out of the car to take more pictures:


There is nothing like running on a trail alone with your thoughts and some amazing scenery. I love being surrounded by fresh air without another person in sight. I loved every second of this run.


"Set your goals high because what a person accomplishes is in proportion to what they attempt."
~ Mitchell Naufell

Enquiring Minds Want To Know

Nelly asked: How do you get such good running pictures?
I’ve found that the only way to get good running pictures is to stop for a minute so that I’m not moving when I take the picture. Otherwise they get blurry. Of course I’d probably have faster races without the camera, but I love taking the pictures.

What is your dream race?
I would love to do a marathon in Hawaii or the Rocky Raccoon 100 miler in Texas.

What major injuries have you had? and What is your favorite running moment?
Great questions. I'm going to come back to these and write a little more.

Julia asked: Out of all the races you have run, which one is your favorite and why?
My first marathon, the St. George Marathon was probably my favorite. But the Red Mountain Ultra was probably my most meaningful. I started the race with major knee injuries and the course completely beat me up. The last 20 miles were pure agony and it was the hardest thing I have ever done. I think I will always look back at that race and say "If I can do that, I can do anything."

What is the secret to such amazingly awesome jumping pics??
The key is to lift your legs up during the jump so it looks like you’re catching more air.

Christina asked: What is your ultimate favorite Hostess product EVER?!
Can I pick 3 favorites? I’d go with Crumb Donuts, Cupcakes, and Snowballs. Pardon me while I wipe the drool off my lip.

What is your go-to meal before a race? How about after a race?
I prefer pizza or pasta but I’m not too picky. When I was training for an ultramarathon I practiced eating while I ran. Since then my stomach has been pretty tough and I've never had any GI issues. My favorite post-race treat is a Slurpee.

What motivates you on days you just don't feel like running?
I really like the motivation of having a race coming up in the future. Then each run has a purpose. Following a training plan also helps me keep some structure.

Matthew asked: Why did you start jumping in your races?
It started earlier this year when I wrote an article for Runners World Online. I wrote that since I am not fast, I have to have different goals for races. One of my goals at the time was to get a good jumping picture. Since then I’ve kept trying to perfect the running jump.


Why not Little Debbies?
I’m not anti-Little-Debbie because I like almost any form of sugar. But I think Hostess just has a better taste. I’ve just never met a Hostess product I didn’t like. (Hostess….if you’re listening….I know this marathon runner who would let you sponsor him.)

Does your family think you're as hilarious as I do?
Only when I'm showing off my insane dance skillz (or lack thereof).

More responses coming soon....