Last Trimester Running

Alright, now I am 7.5 mos prego and still running or trotting whatever you want to call it. Within the last month and a half I have slowed down quite a bit, but I still go out or run the treadmill everyday whether it's 2 or 3 miles. I still can so I will. I've even jumped some rope with the kids 100 jump sets - which seems to agree with me despite needing to use the bathroom often. Many times I don't feel like it doing anything, but I still do it because I feel great once I start and after. Yesterday my foot started hurting on the top. I might have hit it without remembering. It doesn't have any swelling or bruising, but it really hurts. I haven't tried to run yet - but will see how it reacts soon.

I am getting pretty excited about the new baby. I'm also anxious to get back into racing shape after. I attended some great races in November and December of 2007 and will miss not participating this year. There was the Run through History in Metairie, La Cemetery 5k, Ole Man River Half-Marathon and Larry Fuselier 10k on the levy along the Mississippi River in New Orleans. I also ran the Mardi Gras Half-Marathon in February 2008 - a blast - kind of like the CCC10k with parades of people along the route. I hope to be ready for it this year. Of course, I might have to feed my baby along the route - we'll see. I'll just do what I can do until next time...

You really shouldn't be doing that

So anyway, I am now about 5 mos with child and still running about 4 miles a day at 10-11 minute miles, closer to 11, and still being chased by dogs. I just began taking iron supplements because I found out I have pregnancy induced anemia; so maybe I'll have a little more energy and get closer to the 10 minute mile. I'm hoping to keep a little endurance going so it won't be too difficult to get some speed back after little Abraham or Dominick is born.

Just the other day I was out and passed a running friend that I see occasionally. Besides the protruding belly she knows of my pg state. As I ran by she said, "Girl, you need some water, you're gonna die." It's funny cause I didn't feel like I was gonna die, I felt great actually. I just said "yeah," and laughed. I think most people assume that pregnant women are not suppose to do certain things.

Here is my list that I probably am not suppose to do, according to some people, but do anyway:
Drink coffee (1 or 2 cups)
run or jog
run or jog in hot weather
play football on the beach
play frisbee on the beach
swim and play with the kids
get chased by dogs
pick up and hold my kids
stay on my feet all day
take sips of hubby's beer
get my hair colored
hot baths
I think I've eaten some oysters

I'm sure there is more to add to this list, but you get the idea. Until next time...

ps. the pic is of the girls watching the hannah montana concert with me in the background doing what I should be doing, nothing.

Who let the damn dog out!

I have had encounters with one owl protecting its roost, one very large alligator lurking down a swamp road, one goose behind my LSU campus dorm, and another goose in Audubon Park. These incidents scared the heck out of me, though I know when I venture out to run in nature, these sorts of things can happen and are excusable. I have also had unexcusable encounters with drunk teenagers driving in Audubon Park trying to mow me down, one large man smiling with his pants down on the side of the path in Audubon Park as I ran by, and of course dogs barking and chasing me as I run by (which this story is about.)

So, now I am 3 months prego and still running about 4 - 5 much slower 10 minute miles a day, sometimes 3 when I'm feeling less than below average. Anyway, the other day I ran one of my usual routes. A little black poodle runs to the end of its driveway and starts barking and chasing me, I immediately begin to walk. All I need is another dog owner to say, "don't worry he won't bite." I wish I had known that 13 years ago when I was bit on the ankle by a dog who wasn't supposed to bite. So now, I settle for walking when a dog is barking and chasing after me. The poodle's owner calls it in. On my way back home I pass a house with a huge galloping dog barking toward me. I immediately begin walking and say "GIT" really loud. A lady comes to her door and says, "Come in Titan" with a very low tone almost if to say, my poor doggy that lady was mean to him. With a name like Titan you can imagine its size. After she calls him in I grunt really loud. I was a little angry, as I always get when a dog chases me. My pace increased from that point. I often get called on by dogs that are loose and usually get really pissed off and uncharacteristically mean. Really, I could have written the "Who let the dog's out" song very easily if I thought about it. I figure I must be doing some purgatory time, because my own three legged dog use to chase and bark after people all the time, and even snagged the mail man. Of course, I was only about 13 at the time. When I go out for a run, I expect that I might encounter loose barking dogs, and will always begin to walk. It's a little aggravating to have to stop my run because someone let their dog out.

Until next time....

Training for races

In 2007 I decided to run in the Crescent City Classic again, such a great race. During the race, I was thinking and wondering just how fast I could actually run. I knew this would be something I needed to train for, but I decided then that I was going to see how fast I could get. I finished the Classic at 54 minutes. I started training a little harder running about 4 miles a day and sprinting during the runs. My next race was the 2007 Hale Boggs Bridge Run 5k. It was rough, but I pushed myself to 25.01 minutes. Next was the 5k Run for Excellence in Houma, 23:36, mistakenly I didn't take the ticket right away, I was a little ignorant about what to do if I was one of the front runners. I think I came in 4th or 5th, but I didn't have the ticket to show it. I just wrote my time on the paper, not sure what place it said. I still won something, though I still haven't picked it up. I started running longer and harder 6-8 miles a day. Anyway, from then on I was coming out in the top few runners, sometimes as the first master 40+, sometimes 1st, 2nd, or 3rd overall in smaller races. I was having a blast and loved it when my husband and 4 kids would be at the finish line cheering me on. Sometimes I had to race without my family because my husband works alot on the weekends, so the kids stay with ma ma and pa pa. I scored alot of not great, but really good times. My best was in the 2007 Crescent City Fall Classic at 21:42 - I came in 10th place overall - really great runners to compete with. I was determined to get faster and faster. My goal now was a 5k under 20 minutes. I ran Ole man River Half-Marathon at 1:45:53 and Mardi Gras Half-Marathon at 1:42:01. I also ran a couple of 10ks, 2nd place overall in one, and 3rd place over all in the other. The CCC 2008 was a blast running down Esplanade (where my parents and brother share a duplex). It was nice getting cheers from my mom, dad, kids, bro and sis. It was not my best 10k 46:19, but I still came in the top 500 and am still waiting for my poster. My last race was the 2008 5k Hale Boggs Bridge Run in Luling, La. The winner got $500. My best bet was to get 1st masters for $150. Oh, well, I came in 11th at 21:57. Going up the bridge was tough. I felt like I wasn't 100% and thought that my time should have been much better, because I was training for it. Well come to find out I am pregnant with my 5th child. I was planning on 4 kids before age 40, and was so excited to be free to train and run hard - with the help of my family. I was pregnant while racing the bridge run. The week before the race I did feel a little sluggish and new that there was a possibility of being pregnant. I was also planning on winning the 2008 5k run for excellence in Houma. So now I am 8 weeks pregnant sick as a dog and still running on the treadmill 4-6 miles a day, a lot less intense than before. I never feel like running, but I am determined to keep my body moving, a little at least. My mileage will probably go down as my stomach goes out, but I will always find a way to keep it going for as long as I can. I decided that I'll just have to embrace this gift of pregnancy and work on next year to compete. I am very happy about the baby, but I still feel so sick and have to pretend that I am not. Until next time...

Why I run

I run because - uhm - hmm - that's a good question. Oh, yeah, I know why. Well, there is not one answer to this question. I guess when I started running it seemed like the easiest and hardest exercise to do. I didn't need a health club to be open, or another person to instruct me to do the grapevine in aerobics; All I needed was some running shoes, determination and the road. I developed a love for the freedom of running. In my early 20s I was running 7-9 miles a day. I would enter the Crescent City Classic 10k in New Orleans every year with my dad. I really never tried to push myself harder than a comfortable pace, nor did I ever time myself, although I did pick-ups at times. I have been bitten by a dog, attacked by an Owl, and had a close confrontation with an Alligator - and I still run. I have found people's drivers licenses and mailed them back to them; I have found money, one time sixty dollars and had a nice meal that night; I have run through four pregnancies, as much as my body allowed, I still have my first single baby jogger and also use my sisters double. Until next time....