HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Hope everyone has a great Halloween. Good luck to Jenny and Mark on their half today. We had a change in plans and are just going to do a run on our own at the soccer fields today.

ALL IS WELL

The rain stopped, the sun is shinning and Amy arrived last night 2 hours late. We have a ton of errands to do today and I know that doesn't count as a run so I'm hoping this afternoon we will be able to get out on the trails. Tomorrow if the weather permits we are planning to do a 10K. Sunday we will start our road trip to San Diego.

BEAUTIFUL DAY

When the weather is this beautiful you just have to get out and go for a run. Blue sky, slight breeze and the sun makes running so enjoyable. I did my usual trail in the neighborhood for a little over 4 miles total. I'm hoping tomorrow will be just as nice.

CARD 9 JUMP JUMP JUMP

Whew, there was a lot of jumping going on today with Jillian's cards plus we added the box jump again. We're trying to get to a 12 inch height and are almost there. Jenny says this will make us stronger in our running. I hope so.
After the workout we did cardio for 20 minutes.

NIKE HUMAN RACE 10K

This morning I asked Christy if she'd like to go for a run. First she said no and then she said yes. We started out and I asked how far she wanted to go. "What day is it" she asked and I replied it was the 24th. "Let's do the Nike Human 10K" So off we went and I was trying to figure in my head just what route we needed to take to get the miles in. We decided we'd run 5 minutes and walk 5 minutes until we reached 6.20 miles and then we would walk the rest of the way. It was a beautiful day to be out and I quickly needed to take off my jacket and was wishing I had on shorts.

Total miles 7.21

A SIGN

Finally got out for my run after waiting for it to warm up. The air was cool but the sun was out, a perfect Fall day. I even spotted my first woolly caterpillar! I know that's a sign that Winter is coming, but could it maybe hold off. I'm not ready for cold weather.

MY GOBLINS

We were hit with another big rain today and so I headed to the gym to do my weights and cardio. I used the same exercises I used last week and then went upstairs to do 15 minutes on the bike. I finished and was going to go home but it was pouring out so got on the treadmill and did 2.50 miles.

BIG MISTAKE!

This morning I decided to add a bit more to my run since I will be doing a 10K in a few weeks. My big mistake was I was dressed to warm. the wind was blowing and it was cold when I stepped outside to check the temp. I forgot, you get hot when you run. I had to roll up my pant legs and shed my jacket to try to cool down. Miles done 5.48

SUNDAY CARDS

Christy and I were all set to do workout 8 at the gym and the good thing was we were going to be able to do almost all of the circuits in the room they use for classes. There was a lot of jumping, squatting and push ups on this card and yet I found it to be one of the easier ones. I'm not saying I could do them all, it's just that it seemed easier. While we were doing crunches I noticed a man outside the room doing jumps over a step-up box. I couldn't believe how easy he made it look and I was sure Christy and I could try this. I dragged down and set up the step box and gave it a try and then Christy took a turn. Hey, we weren't so bad and to think we were adding more exercises after just finishing Jillian's cards. I guess we must be improving!

MIXED IT UP

This week I mixed things up with a workout from the book The Abs Diet by David Zinczenko. I was suppose to do the circuit twice but did it only once an than did some miles on the treadmill. I thought his exercise were a lot easier than Jillian's.
Today I decided to also change up my running by taking a different trail. I had a few less hills to run up but the ones I had were very long. It was a beautiful day to be outside, the air was cool with a slight breeze and the sky was blue.

MONDAY MILES

I think the weatherman had it right when he said it was going to be " a gray, murky, damp day". I waited for the rain to clear and then headed out for a run/walk, 5 minutes walking 10 minutes running. Just my usual run. I did spot the road runner in the field.
Miles done 5.02

IT SUCKED !

Time for a Sunday workout with the cards from Jillian. Today was a real struggle for me. There were a lot of jumping type exercises which were giving me a lot of trouble. Christy was encouraging but I couldn't finish some of the sets and some I didn't even try. So when I got home and my husband asked how our workout went, I replied " it sucked!"

GYM DAY

This little guy arrived in my mail yesterday from Jenny. He brightens up the dreary weather with his cheery smile. I went to the gym to do a lower body workout. Did legs and back and then the treadmill for 1.34 miles.

VIEW THROUGH MY GLASSES

The weather hasn't been too great here but I wanted to run outside so I drove to school to use the track, I figured that there would be no classes outside this morning and that I would be near my car so if it did start to really rain I could make a quick getaway.
I'd no sooner started than so did the rain. A very fine mist, nothing I couldn't run in. I continued to do laps and the rain continued to get a little harder. Still nothing I couldn't run in and I didn't want to quit at only 1 mile. My vision was soon down to zero. I needed wipers for my glasses. Couldn't see with them on and couldn't see with them off. At one point I thought someone else was coming to run, when I got closer it was just a trash can! I endured for over 3 miles then called it quits.
Miles run today 3.37

ON MY OWN

Yesterday was coffee day with my friend and after that I went to the Half Price Book Store and picked up about six books that looked like good reads. This Fall weather with the gray days is perfect for curling up in a comfy chair and reading. And so I missed a workout day at the gym.
This morning I put the books aside and headed to the gym. Today I had to do weights and a run. I was surprised at how few people were there, maybe because I was at a later time. I decided I would do upper body and then run on the treadmill. It's a lot different not having a trainer or using the red cards from Jillian. I'm on my own, but I think I did a good job. Finished with 2.20 miles on the treadmill.

COOLER WEATHER

The sky was cloudy and the temp was 55, perfect day for running. I alternated between running and walking. Still trying to improve my times. Any big hills I walked up. I was really surprised how many people were out. It looked like a mini race except we weren't wearing bibs. When I got to the field I spotted the hawk and later two road runners. I guess everyone is enjoying the cooler weather.

Miles run today 5.07

APPLE PIE

There is something about Fall and the cold weather that makes me think of apples. Just like Forrest Gump with shrimp I think about apple pie, apple crisp, apple cobbler, apple dumplings. You get the picture. So yesterday I made a beautiful apple pie with a homemade crust. Yum!
Today was time to get to the gym and work that pie off. It was card 6 of Jillian's Bod in a Box. This time it actually seemed easy, except for the jumping lunges. I did manage to do more than the last time but I'm no where near doing a whole set. This card had us doing a lot of squats and back exercises. I'm sure I'll be feeling it tomorrow.

RUNNING FOR A WINE GLASS !

Last night Christy and I decided that we would run the Vinyard 5K in Grapevine. We left the house at seven and got there in plenty of time to register

and get our chips on our shoes. They were starting to set up the wine tasting area and there was a combo playing music. Very festive for a morning race.

The sun was shining on the vines and from these vines you get...

bottles of wine.

We headed over to the start, there were quite a few people lined up.

We're ready to go, just time for a quick picture before we get sweaty.

This was one of the easier hills to run up. I was thinking the course would be flat but there were 4 other hills and the last was a killer.

Surprise, I placed 1st in my age group with a time of 40:08. Instead of trophies they gave out wine glasses. Love that!

Here's my glass, half full.

And here's a toast:

To Mark for his PR today in a 10K

To Christy for finishing before me, again.

To Katy and Tonya, good luck in your half marathon tomorrow.

To Kathryn, good luck at the Chicago Marathon. I know it's not far away.

To Jenny who is training so hard for the Dallas White Rock Marathon in December.

To Amy who didn't feel like working out but went and got the job done.

And good health to all.

HAWKEYE

It was a perfect day for running. There was a chill in the air but I knew not to dress for cold weather . I started out from the house and headed for the trails.

Just after I crossed the street and headed up the hill that goes through the field a lady stopped me and pointed out a hawk sitting on one of the electrical towers. He was a big fellow and in all the times I have run this course I have never seen one hawk.

Total miles today 5.05

Miles to reach 500, 199.70

MILES TO GO....

Last night I decided to figure out how many miles I've run this year. Not near as many as Mark, but I'm not training for a marathon. I was surprised when I added up the numbers and saw that I had done 295.25 miles.
How easy would it be to get to 500 miles for the year? There are 13 weeks until the end of the year, that would mean I would have to average at least 15..71 miles per week. This is doable and I gave myself the challenge.