Scrap and Run

Shopping (2.19)

2012-02-25T01:30:00.000-05:00

My generous brother gave me a gift card for JCPenney so I felt like I had to go shopping to spend it. I wanted to see their new pricing since they don't do sales anymore. I thought some of the prices were pretty good but didn't like some. Then others were really good. All the clearance stuff was insanely cheap but they didn't have anything good in my size. I was trying to find patterns but I failed. While shopping I overheard a lady say "This shirt is $5, but I have it at home and got it for $2." I ended up buying a nice red purse for $10 and Dave got new jeans. I probably spent over an hour in JCP alone. I couldn't even find sections I was looking for and then when I did, I wasn't impressed.

After JCP then it was time for the rest of the mall. I didn't have much time though so I didn't get to finish. I went in a few stores but only purchased things at the Limited. I had coupons but their sale of 40% off everything was better.
I've been wanting a white skirt for awhile and I couldn't pass up one for $10. It's short for work but for $10, I can have a weekend skirt. The shirts are similar to other shirts I have purchased from JCP. The purple/turquoise one has a slightly different neck and was more expensive. (But it is only 19.99 online!) Express used to be my go to store but now the Limited had been filling my needs and I've been hating everything in Express. I don't buy pants anymore at Express because the Victoria's Secret pants fit me way better.

Have you gotten any good deals lately? What are your go to stores?

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-24T23:59:00.001-05:00

04:07:28 PM - I got here at 7 to leave at 3:30 today. That didn't happen. Wonder when I'll actually leave.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

2.10 - Skate Party

2012-02-24T03:00:00.000-05:00

Poly tried to camouflage herself with my bags so I would take her with me.
I got to work early and was one of the last ones there. I left close to 5:30 to head to our NA-YGN Skate Party

We got some good pictures at the party.

I got some pictures of people skating but most turned out bad. I don't know how to work my camera well enough when it is dark and people are moving and with people so far away. I guess I should learn how to work the camera and practice a little more. I guess if I went to Schenley park more than once a year maybe I'd remember what settings I used by the end.

I left a bit after 11:30. I got home and should have gone right to bed but I did not.

The pictures of my car are what my car looked like when I got home. It was full of leftover stuff that needs to be given to someone else in charge of other events for NA-YGN.

Then after that, I loaded all my pictures and started making collages. I ended up staying up far too late. I just got too into trying to finish the collages and lighten some of the pictures. Also Poly had my arm so I only had one arm to work with.

Friend Friday: Technology

2012-02-24T01:00:00.000-05:00

As Katy followed along all the NYFW posts and tweets it got her thinking... "so much of what we bloggers do is all about the tools that we use. Technology certainly makes what we do easier, even if it is sometimes a major pain."

1. What are the tools you use to blog?
I use blogger to write my posts. I insert pictures from Picasa web album. I create my collages in Picasa. I crop my photos in Picasa. Lately I have been labeling my daily photos with where I got each piece using Snagit Editor. I use Snagit when I take screen shots dealing with my runs. I print the tables from Excel to Snagit and crop it down and save it from there. If I have good pictures and want to do something fancy with them then I use Photoshop.

To photograph myself each day I use a Canon Rebel T1i. I use my Canon PowerShot Elph 300HS for all other photos unless I have to use my iPhone to take a photo or two. I've used a variety of remotes. My current one is Alzo. Last year I had a Satechi and liked it better, but it bit the dust and it is more expensive now so I am testing a new one. I also have a cheap one but it doesn't focus. It is better to travel with because it is cheaper so I have less of a fear of breaking it.

I use my desktop to edit my photos. I never have to hook up my camera to the computer because both cameras have Eye-fi cards and just automatically upload. I use my desktop or laptop and sometimes my iPad to type the responses.

2. What technology item is on your wish-list?
Last winter I wanted some photography lighting equipment. When I have to take my daily pictures in before daylight, I hate the harsh shadows.
I also want a better remote but I do not know which one to get so that's the only reason I didn't get it yet.

3. Through the barrage of posts, tweets, pics, poses, messages, etc... how do you avoid becoming a slave to the constant infiltration of information?
The more I read, the more I want to read and see. The more I look at anything, the more I realize how much is out there and how little I know. But then I think about it and think about what is really important in life and that I don't need to be up on all the information.

Last January I answered similar questions about this.

What tools do you use to blog?

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-23T23:59:00.001-05:00

11:46:00 AM - I click to send a very important meeting invite and outlook crashes. And now I can't get back on the network
04:41:09 PM - I think my ankle pain is all in my head just because I have a big race this weekend (@TheNewChrissy)

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

2.4

2012-02-23T01:00:00.000-05:00

Shirt, Pants, and Boots are all from VS.

I did a lot of blogging. I didn't workout. I cuddled with Poly. I found an inhaler under my sink that expired in 2006. I've moved once since it expired and probably twice or 3 times since I got it. My printer is putting black dots on the right side of the pages.

At 7pm I went to Brie's birthday celebration. A lot of people showed up. More than she even expected. I stayed there until past 10, which was longer than the invite said or longer than I expected. I took 2 pictures there but the lighting was so dim that my camera took too long and then both ended up looking awful. Dave was already asleep when I got home.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-22T23:59:00.001-05:00

10:34:20 AM - So all the meetings I came in to work for today got canceled. The one meeting got canceled and good thing because the prep took way longer
03:22:36 PM - I thought today was going incredibly slow but then I realized it's already almost 3:30. I guess the day is actually flying by.
11:08:35 PM - Scrap and Run: Practicing Medicine http://t.co/J0P1X1Qb What are your thoughts?
11:49:13 PM - The more I walk today the more my rift ankle hurts. I don't remember doing anything to it to hurt it either.
11:50:30 PM - @MarnieCarlson you probably made that kid's day though.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

Practicing Medicine

2012-02-22T23:07:00.002-05:00

I guess they call it practicing medicine because it is all a matter of opinion. Each doctor has their own opinion. They have a different diagnosis. The fix may be the same, but the diagnosis is always different. The suggestions on what to do are often different with the same diagnosis. What is a normal person supposed to do or know in these circumstances.

Usually you go to one doctor, one specialist, and one physical therapist so you aren't wise to how the next person would be different.

Well here's my latest issues with practicing medicine.

On Tuesday, there were free physical therapy evaluations at the gym from Steve, the husband of the owner. I decided to ask about my hips. After 45 minutes and lots of talking, I heard a lot of the same that I've heard before. I also heard a lot of direct conflicts of things I heard before. I also heard some official terminology that I can't remember now and I wish I had written it down so I could google it.

He mentioned something about bursitis. He also said something else but I totally forget the name.

We got to talking about my knee and the PT I had last year and he said it wasn't my IT band.

We talked about my custom fit orthotics and he told me I need rigid orthotics since I'm a runner. A year ago I was told my rigid orthotics were not good for runners and I got new ones made that were not rigid. Just based on all my running, I think the orthotics I have now are much better.

I wish I remembered the recommendation for my hips. He knew exactly where to push and have it really tender.

I'm constantly told that I need to strengthen my core. I do core exercises at Body Pump and find them less challenging than other people do and I do other core exercises on my own. This last time I was told that my core isn't weak but to be a good runner, I want an even stronger core. I liked hearing that my core was strong but I just wanted it stronger because in the past I just didn't know what to listen to from people because I felt it was pretty strong. I guess for my workout goals I shouldn't count a 5 minute core workout as a workout and I should change the minimum to 6 or 7. I always hate it without shoes on. I can't really do planks appropriately without the so many times I have to focus on other core workouts but then it is hard to not get bored before going too long.

I was told the best recommendation for my hips is rest. Well that isn't going to happen. I have a 20 mile race this weekend. I have 2 long races in March too.

The next recommendation was Advil for 10 days (1200 mg/day).

Then I was told to stretch and strengthen. Too bad the evaluation was done after a double workout day and my legs were very fatigued. He basically said my hamstrings, quads, and abductors were weak. (My adductors were strong. I might have my adductors and abductors mixed up. I can't remember which one of the 4 tests I did well on.) Going to Body Pump and doing lifting at pump has contributed to weaker leg muscles because then I solely do lunges and squats and don't do any of the other exercises that I'm aware of. Monday after Body Pump, I actually almost did the abductor and adductor machines but then I ended up talking to Jen on my way out of Pump so I didn't doing it.

I was also told my balance is bad. I always knew that. I used to sit there when I was little and just fall over. Both times I went to PT, they gave me exercises to work on balance. The thing is the exercises they always gave me were just so easy that I never continued with them after PT was done. I guess I should use my friend, Mr. Google, about these things.

Do you ever notice hearing inconsistencies between different doctors? How do you decide what to believe? Do you google everything to come to conclusions on your own?

My hips started hurting a week and a half ago and have just gotten worse. I should have listened to my body instead of after a week and a day of hip pain deciding to spend about $200 registering for races.

Do any of you runners out there have any advice for me or things you've done if you've had hip pain?

2.14 - Valentine's Day

2012-02-22T21:58:00.000-05:00

I wore pink for Valentine's Day.

Dave had to work late. I was going to go run at the gym but he wanted to go to dinner and I thought a run + shower would take too long. Well we ended up working until after 7:30 PM. Granted I was super productive after most people left for the day. Most people left super early too. Dave had to work on a project with someone even though it was the other person's project and the reason he was there late is because she has to get it done and she is going on vacation so it had to be done earlier.

Dave and I went to Long Horn for dinner. Since we got an appetizer I just got soup as my meal. I still couldn't even finish the soup.

By the time we got home it was after 9pm and Poly was very upset at us for ditching her all day.

Late at night Dave copied Obama to give me a Valentine's Day tweet.

This monkey has been in Dave's cube for years. It can fly and when it lands it makes loud monkey noises. Well I went to try it out and the arm broke. I guess it got too old. :( How sad.

I only got one picture of Poly all day and it was before work. Poor neglected Poly.

I forgot to mention Dave woke me up by putting Poly on me saying Happy Valentine's Day. He said he got me a cat. I thought that was pretty creative. He went through some effort to get her because she was hiding under the bed. She usually sleeps with me then right before we get up, she'll go hide under the bed. When my alarms start going off, she hides.

Short Run

2012-02-21T12:20:00.001-05:00

I went on a little short run this morning before the snow or rain. My hips are still a little sore from the long run and just in general. I set out to do 1.5 miles. I thought I might do 2 but for some reason my knee started hurting 3/4 of a mile into it. I stuck close by so I just did the 1.5. I iced my knee afterwards.

My goal was 8:40 pace. So each split my goal was 2:10. My first split was 2:10 and my next one was 2:13 so I already had seconds to make up. My slowest split was the split that included running up the hill at Horizon Court. I figured that'd be the worst. The next split was 2:09 so at least I had bonus seconds again.

Next time I run around my house, my goal will be 8:30. Most of the time that I run around my house my pace is between 8:45 and 9:30. One other time I ran 1.55 miles and my pace was 8:18. I guess I should have pushed more today. The weather was much better that time though (I'm good at finding excuses). If I do 1.5ish again I need to beat 8:18 pace. So I have a new goal there too.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-20T23:59:00.001-05:00

01:13:33 PM - I think I went 2 full days without tweeting or reading twitter. I wonder what I missed out on.
01:14:33 PM - @reedaboutme Great job. 5 miles was a huge milestone for me. When I hit 7 it was even better. Any number after that wasn't so major for me.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-19T23:59:00.001-05:00

11:02:14 PM - Just registered for the 37th Annual Spring Thaw @Race360 - do it with me! http://t.co/a1WhItCI (20 miles!)

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

18 miles (2.19.12) - Downtown!

2012-02-19T22:17:00.001-05:00

I met Adrienne to run today. We ran with her normal running group. I hadn't run with them before. They meet on Herrs Island. I didn't even know where it was or that we had an island. I left home in plenty of time to get there just in case I got lost. I was there 15 minutes early. We got started about 20 minutes late. I'm not used to starting so late.

The first few miles were more of a struggle and I thought we were going too fast. I thought we'd go about 9:45-10:00 pace and that the group would split into 2. There were 9 people running with us at the beginning. It was one other person's first time there too. (We took a group picture but I am still waiting to see it.)

Around every 4 miles, Adrienne's dad met up with us. He was the support vehicle. I'm not used to that and it was really nice. I removed some layers and was able to throw them in the car. It was also nice to be able to get water.

We made a bathroom stop around mile 11.

I started running with the group and figured I'd try to make it until at least 12 and I'd definitely be done at 16 and just get a ride to the end.

Mile 15 went pretty quick because I was talking up a storm.

Adrienne and I decided to finish it out. We kept saying we'd run:walk it if need be but it never came to that. We ran to 18 miles then walked the last .4 as a cooldown. Overall today's run was much better than my last 18 mile training run. (My last 18 mile run involved running with a running group for the first time too.) The only other time I ran about 18 miles was my 30k race. The 30k was 20 minutes longer and ~.5 longer.

We went out to brunch afterwards. Since I didn't know what was up with the place or anything, I didn't have a change of clothes. One runner even showered before brunch. I did have a different shirt to put on but that was it. Now I'll know for next time. There were 6 of us at brunch (5 runners plus Adrienne's dad). All the other runners ran different cut offs to get shorter distances. I heard them say that the group usually isn't as big as it was at the start. I wonder how many they normally have.

Adrienne was in charge of making the route today. She made it and created direction sheets for everyone. They were even laminated. I'm impressed. I'm sad I dropped my (and another runner picked it up and kept it). Before we left to run, Jill got her phone stuck in the hinge on her car. That was an ordeal. She ended up with a cracked screen. It was pretty funny that while it was stuck, it was ringing.

How Adrienne planned out the run

How the Garmin messed up in the city

Elevation and speed chart

I was surprised how easy it was to run in the city. I thought we'd be hitting don't walk signs every second but there wasn't much traffic on the weekend and we got really lucky at a lot of busy street corners. Some people would have liked the rest at each corner though.

My calorie burn. You can tell when we stopped at the car.

This is a different Fit Coach wording than I have seen.

My steps for the day so far

Our route. I think in 3 places it is different than the plan. The only one I remember was about a ramp near the end.
But Adrienne said she cut off distances in 2 places and added distance in 1 place.

I could go on and on but I'm tired so I'll just have to try to remember the rest of the details for later and maybe add them here or just hope they stay in my memory bank for future long runs.

Today when Adrienne's dad saw me he said "well you didn't gain any weight I see."
Most of the people at brunch talked about eating healthy and how bad for you the brunch food we had was. I may be hardcore with my exercise but I am not with my eating.
At one point on the course we had to go down steps to get from one road/bridge to another road. I have no idea how Adrienne memorized the course. There is just no way I would have been able to do that.

February Workout Goals - Week 3

2012-02-19T21:33:00.000-05:00

Week 3 didn't go so well for anything but the running.

Complete 18 cardio workouts (running, exercise bike, or elliptical) (January = 19, met; December = 18, met, November = 18, met)

2/2 Run
2/3 Run
2/5 Run
2/7 Bike
2/8 Run
2/9 Run
2/12 Run
2/15 Run
2/17 Run
2/19 Run (Need 8 in 10 days)

Complete 13 core workouts (January = 13, met; December = 12, met; November = 12, not met)

2/2 - 5 minutes
2/5 - 5 minutes
2/8 - During Body Pump
2/15 - During Body Pump
2/17 - 5 minutes
2/19 - 5 minutes (Need 7 in 10 days)

Frequency: Run 12 times. (January = 14, met; December = 10, met, November = 12, met with 15)

2/2
2/3
2/5
2/8
2/9
2/12
2/15
2/17
2/19 (Need 3 in 10 days)

Distance: Run 60 total miles [Reach goal = 70 miles (15, 15, 15, 20, 5)] (January = 13, met; December = 40, November = 65, met)

5.12 (2/2) + 12.3 (2/3) + 12.04 (2/5) = 29.46
3.01 (2/8) + 3.25 (2/9) + 5.03 (2/12) = 11.29 {40.75 mi}
5.11 (2/15) + 5.51 (2/17) + 18.43 (2/19) = 29.05 {69.8 mi} (Need .2 in 10 days to beat my reach goal)

Workout with Dave 9 times. (January = 10, met; December = 12, but with all other activities it is hard to also workout with Dave, November = 8, met)

2/1 - 2 mile walk after work
2/15 - at the track (Need 7 in 10 days)

Lift weights 5 times on my own. (January = 5 met; December = 5, not met; November = 4, met with 5)

(Need 5 in 10 days)

Perform yoga/BodyFlow 2 times. (January = 2, met; December = 2, met; November = 3, not met)

(Need 2 in 10 days)

Attend Body Pump 4 times. (January = 3, met; December = 3, not met; November = 4, not met)

2/8
2/15 (Need 2 in 10 days)

Have 2 double workout days (morning + evening, lunch + evening, etc) [New] (January = 2, met)

2/5 - Run (12 miles) + abs & foam roller (12 minutes total)
2/8 - Run (3 miles) + Body Pump
2/15 - Run + Body Pump
2/17 Run + core and stretch

Stretch for 10 consecutive minutes 2 times (January = 2, met)

2/17 (also did foam roller) (Need 1 in 10 days)

I have a few other goals that are related to exercise but aren't me working out.

Have another photo shoot to get some athletic pictures for at the top of this post.
Have at least 4 nonconsecutive rest days. I have been bad at resting and fear overuse injuries coming.

1, 4, 10, 11 (and more)

Put my monthly workout goals in excel or some program so I have them all together and can pull some data based on that.
Make more collages with exercise photos and add them to my exercise gallery

Feb 1 = rest day so only a walk with Dave

Feb 2 = 5 mile run + abs
Feb 3 = Run
Feb 4 = rest day

2.12

2012-02-19T01:00:00.000-05:00

I wanted to run 15 miles but it was just too cold to do it outside. I was supposed to meet a bunch of people to run but most canceled. I didn't go. 1 still went. I ended up going to the treadmill to run. I only ran 5 miles instead of 15. It is hard to keep running on a treadmill. It is far too hot. My hip started hurting. I decided I shouldn't push it and didn't keep going.

My stomach hurt after the run and all day so I just watched TV and napped. I watched some Lifetime movies too.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-18T23:59:00.001-05:00

03:13:32 PM - We made a 3 on 5 goal earlier. The last one we made in 1988. Impressive I guess. (Cooke scored the goal this time. Lemieux last time)

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

2.11

2012-02-18T01:00:00.000-05:00

I woke up and wanted to go running but there was snow everywhere. I decided to use my computer a bit and hope the snow was plowed enough for me to run or at least drive to the gym to run. I cleaned off my desk a bit and updated my calendar website. I actually had never finished uploading June or October in addition to December and January. They are updated now.

I had leftover pizza for lunch but wanted to watch more TV cuddled up under 2 afghans. We watched Kitchen Nightmares and Big Bang Theory. Then I said to turn on MSNBC so I could take a 15 minute nap since I just got comfy under the blankets. Well 3 hours later, I got a text and it woke up up. I had so much on my to do list and the nap did not help.

We went out to dinner with Chad and Jen. Then we went to Yum after. We did a lot of talking and it lasted 3 hours. I got home and finished doing some stuff on my computer. I went into bed at 10 and just took my laptop in to use a little.

(We went through an old CD case. Look Windows 98... how cute.)

3 Runs (Sunday, Wednesday, Friday)

2012-02-17T22:54:00.003-05:00

Today I went to run at Adam's Township Community Park. I didn't want to take the 20 minutes to drive to North Park. Poly was on my lap so she delayed me leaving for over an hour and I was pushing how close it was to dark. I planned to run 5. My goal was 9:30 pace when I started. I decided to play bonus seconds* with a 9 minute pace though.

At the end of the loop (that was slightly over 1.25 miles), I reset my bonus seconds.

There were a lot of walkers and runners out. The weather was just too good. Even though the windchill said it was 33 degrees, it was still very warm. Half the loop was sunny and half the loop was shady. It was too warm on the sunny portion and too cold on the shady portion.

Earlier in the day, I saw people running in shorts and short sleeve shirts. This winter weather is purely amazing this year. I'm getting spoiled.

I did better than my goals. I need to set goals that are harder to meet I guess. I don't go to this park often. My pace was 8:48 on September 21 before Body Pump, but I only did a touch over 1 loop. On August 8, 2010, I did 1 loop with an 8:52 pace. I might have only done multiple loops 1 other time and that was with Christina. This all makes me think my goals are too easy. I should quit making goals up off the top of my head and look at past data. I just remembered it was hilly and figured I'd be slower.

The loop

4 loops + a little

On Wednesday, I didn't know where to run. I wanted to run earlier but work got in the way. Dave wanted to go to the track so we went. I noticed in lap 1, I was going around in lane 1 but wasn't getting close to .25 so that would mess up my numbers. I started running all the bends in lane 2. I still ended up having to run extra at the end to get it to 5 miles. My right hip started hurting near the end. I was just running to run. I thought about doing an interval workout to work on speed but my heart wasn't in it. Some girl showed up shortly after I got there and ran intervals but she didn't seem to have any particular routine to it. Sometimes she'd run 600 sometimes 300 sometimes 700. Sometimes she walked after. Sometimes she crouched down and breathed heavy for a few minutes after and then walked. It made my 5 miles go quicker trying to figure her routine out. She would run much faster than I ran but her walking/stopping made it so I'd catch up to her.

I wanted to switch directions but since the other runner was there, walkers were there, and 5 lanes were covered in snow in a portion, I didn't think I should change it up. I noticed as soon as I was done the other runner swapped directions.

If you look at the map from the garmin you can see that it didn't quite show I ran in lanes 1 and 2. Also it doesn't round on the edges. I zoomed in and you see all the straight lines. I think my old garmin was much better on a track. I may google later what other people thought of track workouts and if they thought their data was accurate in the 110 or the 405. I probably won't though. If you have a garmin, how does the data look on a track?

Sunday I ran at the gym at work because it was about 2 degrees outside. I wanted to run 15 miles outside. I even had people that I was going to run with if it wasn't so cold. A treadmill is a lot harder for me to run for long distances. I just don't know how people do it. I did something different this time hoping that it would get me to last longer. I ran 1 mile, walked .1 and repeat. I ran at a slower speed than normal and trying to go further. I ended up having to stop at 4 miles to go to the bathroom then as soon as I came back my left hip was hurting. I think switching the speed every minute (or 2) actually passes the time a lot quicker than what I did here so I probably won't do this method again.

So out of my last 3 runs, my left hip hurt twice and my right hip hurt once. Also, when I woke up on Thursday morning both of my hips were hurting. I'm wondering what is going on. I'm wondering if it is over training. My hips hurting is a reason I didn't push speed as much this week.

* for those that forget bonus seconds are when I set a goal and beat the goal each 25 mi, the amount of time I beat the goal become bonus seconds. If I'm slower than the goal I subtract those seconds from the bonus seconds I've accumulated or I end up having negative bonus seconds. You never want negative. You want to bank a few extra bonus seconds so if you have to subtract from it, you still have a positive number.

2.13

2012-02-17T01:00:00.000-05:00

(The sweater is more of a violet. It looks extra blue in this photo.) I got 2 compliments on my shoes. I think this is the 3rd time I wore them so now I'm down to just under $30/wear. I need to wear them more!
I was so tired this morning but I also kept hitting snooze until Dave was out of the shower so I wouldn't be waiting around after I woke up. (When I was putting on my knee highs Poly climbed up on my lap. I was basically forced to sit there and pet her for awhile.) I got to work by 7:45. I was busy with meetings. The day flew by. My emails went over the size limit and I had to spent over 10 minutes cleaning out emails/archiving the large files just to get it down enough for the emails in my outbox to send. The limit at work really sucks. I waste so much time just moving and deleting emails than I should. It's awful.

Today I showed up 12 minutes late to a 30 minute meeting and I got there and feel like I didn't miss a thing.

I also called into a meeting 7 minutes late and still had to wait 9 more minutes for the person to open the call in number. Meetings are awful but then meetings where the people running them are late are the worst.

I wanted to leave work early. I did not. I left at 5:45. I got home before Dave because he was working late for once and then he went to the gym. I got to crop a few pictures while waiting for him. I also got to have my new idea fail and then snag it stopped working the way I thought and any time I'd insert text it'd end up disappearing. I don't get it. I gave up.

I had Chick-fil-a salad again. It is pretty good.
We watched American Idol, Smash, and then MSNBC. While watching TV, I was lying down on the chair and a half. Lying down is a little hard on a chair but I make it work. But then Poly decided to jump up and sleep in my nest. She was too cute so I suffered with my legs half falling off the edge. I did throw in some laundry to be a little productive.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-16T23:59:00.001-05:00

10:08:14 AM - My work computer is a piece of junk. I waste so much time each day

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

On This Date in History: February 16, 2010

2012-02-16T11:00:00.000-05:00

On February 16, 2010, I spun around in my car (the same red Chevrolet Malibu Maxx that I currently have). I was on my way to work. I was stopped at the red light on 3 Degree Road. The light turns green and I'm about to move like the red arrow is, when all of a sudden I continue turning counter clockwise and end up facing like the blue arrow. The roads didn't even seem that bad. I was going what I thought was really slowly. I guess I was wrong. Luckily there were no cars because I took up both lanes. Someone was coming down 228 which should have been the opposite way as me but they saw my troubles and kept their distance. A UPS truck was coming down 3 Degree Road to the light on the opposite side of 228 and he stayed at the light and didn't try to turn at all. He had half a rotation of the green light left too.

I then edged over and waited at the light and turned right back down 3 Degree Road. I turned around in the school and pulled back out on 3 Degree Road. I was at the light again. I knew better this time because of my last mishap.

The light turns green and I edge super slowly onto 228. I start spinning again. This time I didn' totally flip around because the butt of my car got stuck in a snowbank on the edge of the road. I was at a 50 degree angle from where I should have been facing. I was good enough to continue on the road the appropriate way. I continued to work.

Further down 228, a car was sideways. Another car had it's flashers on but it was mainly facing the correct direction.

BTW my road was perfectly clean and so was Ridge Road. Those are the 2 roads I can see from my house. I thought it all was good but leave it to the state maintained road to not be in good shape.

My car turned over to 25,000 miles on my way to work but I missed it. I didn't notice until 25,001. I wasn't paying attention it because I was focused on paying attention to the roads and my driving.

Now that I'm older and wiser, if I ever spin around again, I will go back home instead of trying to get to work a 2nd time.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-15T23:59:00.001-05:00

11:24:58 AM - @missylizzylucy my race pace is faster than random treadmill run pace which is why I was saying 8:30 was good. being sick hurts times too
11:34:24 AM - @missylizzylucy Well my treadmill runs are faster but also shorter...boredom. Pretty much only do 5 on a treadmill but can run 12 outside.
11:49:50 PM - @missylizzylucy I did 5 miles today outside. 8:31 pace according to garmin but I ran a tad longer than it said.
11:53:35 PM - @missylizzylucy do you run with an incline in the treadmill?

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

1.28 and 1.29

2012-02-15T14:01:00.000-05:00

I started the day running a 5k. Here are 2 official photos that include me. In the winter I feel like I look way worse than in the summer in running photos.

After the 5k, I didn't do much. I had variety for lunch. The variety consisted of 2 kinds of peanut butter sandwiches.
1.29

I ran 10 miles in the morning. I got dressed but can't remember where I went. I think we went to Campecinos and then Giant Eagle. Oh now I remember. Giant Eagle was packed. I hated it. It stressed me out. I couldn't even navigate the card around. There were too many people. This also didn't help my sore feet issues. I would take pictures of things and text them to my brothers. (see some of them below)

In addition to being packed the renovations were done and it is really fancy inside now. Also they had some cooking demonstration going on and people sitting there taking pictures/videos on their cell phones.

I got a new mask thing for when I run outside, but it smells like factory so I'm not sure if I will actually be able to use it.
Look how swollen my plantar fascia is.

2.8 - Telecommuting

2012-02-15T01:00:00.000-05:00

Since I was able to telecommute today, I was working by 6:45. I was going to run once it got daylight but it took a little while for me to stop what I was doing and go out and run. I ran 3 miles and got back to my work computer before 9.

I worked. I worked through lunch. I spent 45 minutes eating a salad and working that I finally put it back in the fridge. (picture of salad above is after 45 minutes of eating.) I worked until 5:20 and hurried and snacked a bit before heading to Body Pump.

My right arm is still a little sore from the allergy shot on Monday. I still handled Body Pump just fine. We mixed up old releases and it was a lot easier.

After Body Pump, it was time for actual dinner and we watched MSNBC. Then we watched Kitchen Nightmares. I wanted to go to bed after that but I logged back in to work to work a little. I just wanted to take care of some emails.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-14T23:59:00.001-05:00

06:26:53 PM - i'm over the size limit on my work email. CAPs won't work. was about to go to the gym but Dave asked me to wait until he's done working.
11:20:32 PM - I finally got home after 9:30. I planned for a Stampin' up party and by that time it was past my bed time. Ugh.
11:27:13 PM - @missylizzylucy the closer someone is the more it hurts. Even if an acquaintance did the same thing you'd be less hurt. What happened?
11:29:50 PM - @missylizzylucy for how long you were sick I'd day that is great 8:30 pace is fast
11:32:58 PM - @mikecherepko no idea. Balloons are dumb.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

2.3

2012-02-14T08:25:00.000-05:00

Dave and I went to lunch, Best Buy, Dick's, Costco, JoAnn Fabrics, and Giant Eagle. We took forever. We were also late leaving our house. I had things to do so it was making me mad. Poly had tried to sabotage Dave's shirt so he couldn't go. Later she was cute sleeping on my running coat on the floor.

After all that was done I was tired. I was icing my foot and Poly climbed up on me. She was a cutey. She usually only comes up on my chest after my alarms go off in the morning. This was the first time she did it when I was on the couch. I was highly disappointed to not have my camera but I did take some iphone pictures.

The picture in the middle is from when Dave was reading during my run. Poly slept on his legs.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-13T23:59:00.001-05:00

08:19:27 PM - Poly is hogging my chair. http://t.co/YBde3cgc
08:43:44 PM - Poly is a cute cat http://t.co/o6FRfg5y

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

February Workout Goals - Weeks 1 and 2

2012-02-13T21:38:00.000-05:00

What I look like at the gym every quarter mile

February started off well for my running miles but not for the rest.

Complete 18 cardio workouts (running, exercise bike, or elliptical) (January = 19, met; December = 18, met, November = 18, met)

2/2 Run
2/3 Run
2/5 Run
2/7 Bike
2/8 Run
2/9 Run
2/12

Complete 13 core workouts (January = 13, met; December = 12, met; November = 12, not met)

2/2 - 5 minutes
2/5 - 5 minutes
2/8 - During Body Pump

Frequency: Run 12 times. (January = 14, met; December = 10, met, November = 12, met with 15)

2/2
2/3
2/5
2/8
2/9
2/12

Distance: Run 60 total miles [Reach goal = 70 miles (15, 15, 15, 20, 5)] (January = 13, met; December = 40, November = 65, met)

5.12 (2/2) + 12.3 (2/3) + 12.04 (2/5) = 29.46
3.01 (2/8) + 3.25 (2/9) + 5.03 (2/12) = 11.29 {40.75 mi}

Workout with Dave 9 times. (January = 10, met; December = 12, but with all other activities it is hard to also workout with Dave, November = 8, met)

2/1 - 2 mile walk after work

Lift weights 5 times on my own. (January = 5 met; December = 5, not met; November = 4, met with 5)
Perform yoga/BodyFlow 2 times. (January = 2, met; December = 2, met; November = 3, not met) - I hate this goal. I know yoga is good though.
Attend Body Pump 4 times. (January = 3, met; December = 3, not met; November = 4, not met)

Have 2 double workout days (morning + evening, lunch + evening, etc) [New] (January = 2, met)

2/5 - Run (12 miles) + abs & foam roller (12 minutes total)
2/8 - Run (3 miles) + Body Pump

Stretch for 10 consecutive minutes 2 times [New] (January = 2, met)

I have a few other goals that are related to exercise but aren't me working out.

Have another photo shoot to get some athletic pictures for at the top of this post.
Have at least 4 nonconsecutive rest days. I have been bad at resting and fear overuse injuries coming.

1, 4, 10, 11 (and more)

Put my monthly workout goals in excel or some program so I have them all together and can pull some data based on that.
Make more collages with exercise photos and add them to my exercise gallery

Feb 1 = rest day so only a walk with Dave

Feb 2 = 5 mile run + abs
Feb 3 = Run
Feb 4 = rest day

2.7

2012-02-13T01:00:00.000-05:00

First Poly tried to sabotage me by lying on my clothes when I was getting dressed. Then she ran downstairs and climbed up my leg just as my first daily picture was snapping. I picked her up and we took a few pictures. Then I put her down and she didn't end up moving. I didn't pay attention to that and thought she left. So then we took some more pictures together. Poly has started running downstairs when she hears me turn on my camera. She's so cute.

I was at work early because I had to leave at 4 for a dentist appointment. This was my final appointment. I got the permanent crown for my tooth that had the root canal. When I was leaving work, the guard talked to me about working out.

When I was at the dentist, he commented that I'm always dressed spiffy. I commented that I always do for work. He said he was hoping I was home and I just dressed spiffy to come in and see him. I ended up getting 3 total X-rays at this appointment. I can't remember if I got any the last time. I got 2 or 3 the day of the Root Canal. I got 2 the day they were "fixing" my filling. I got 1 the day of my filling. I got 1 the day of my checkup. I think that is too many x-rays for one person.

After dinner, I did a slow 20 minutes on the exercise bike. I was going to do abs and weights but figured I should just boot up my work computer and get to working. I worked for 3 hours. If I was spending the time to boot up my computer, I figured it might as well be for as long as possible. I only stopped working when Dave came to bed and made me stop typing. If only productivity could be measured by things that don't mean anything because I went through so many emails and finally go my inbox to end with a lower number than I started with.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-12T23:59:00.001-05:00

06:07:29 PM - @briecs good job

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

2.5

2012-02-12T01:30:00.000-05:00

I woke up and went to run.

By the time I got home it was lunch time, but I analyzed data a little then showered. Dave and I went to Outback for lunch. (I was going to wear my gray shoes pictured above but my feet hurt so I couldn't.) It was tasty. I got home and went back to analyzing data. I also watched a lifetime movie.

I had to stop analyzing to watch the Super Bowl. I was bored and wanted to use my laptop but Dave wouldn't let me type at all. He is so particular about everything. He can't have noise and everything has to be his way. He never thinks he should learn to get used to it. Another thing is if he falls asleep I have to turn lamp off and if I fall sleep he gets to keep his light on because I am more accommodating. It is so annoying to me. I always want to use laptop and watch TV but he won't have any of that.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-11T23:59:00.001-05:00

12:37:22 AM - Poor Poly tried to go from my leg to the chair but the chair spun on her. She got scared.
01:08:46 AM - I want to get up but Poly is asleep on my lap and I ditched her all day. I'm too nice
01:19:58 AM - I took 200 pics today. About 4 looks ok. I need to figure out the best way to take pics of people outdoor skating in the dark while snowing.
02:01:06 AM - I meant to go to sleep 2 hours ago.
02:07:47 AM - @lisafilipek I can't watch now but emailed myself the tweet so I don't forget.
02:10:54 AM - @TheNewChrissy to me they are just another excuse to get pictures. To others? I think for save the date cards.
02:12:19 AM - @DaizyCh @lisafilipek we did the same with Monroeville McD's
08:55:38 AM - @DaizyCh I watched it. I saw that the day it was on.
08:58:58 AM - I wanted to run but it is White outside. That's too dangerous for my blood. Maybe later tonight I will drive to the gym to use a treadmill.
11:49:11 AM - I finally uploaded the rest of June to my calendar site. I had to download the pics form picasa and crop. http://t.co/dJm8zToE
10:17:44 PM - oh no I just realized I had 2 rest days in a row. Should I get out of bed and workout so I don't have today as a rest day?

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

2.9

2012-02-11T09:34:00.001-05:00

Today was super busy. I had a meeting starting at 7. My computer had issues and before I got that working I realized the room I booked was in the wrong building. I suck. I'm 0 for 2 for this meeting Well the last time, the other guy didn't show. At least this time we held it, just in an inconvenient location.

Then at 8, I had another meeting. I had computer issues so decided to reboot. We used the other person's computer. My computer was finally rebooted and working on the intranet at 8:55. The meeting ended minutes later, just in time for my 9:00 meeting. That ended at 10 but someone kept me after until 10:30 asking to explain stuff.

Then I hurried to my desk and changed clothes and headed over to building 1. I was just on-time to head to the Beaver Valley Tour.

We carpooled. I didn't have to drive. Boy was that nice. The tour was good all except the 2nd floor of the turbine building. The floor was the kind of floor with a grate and we are just too high up. I had to avoid looking at anything. It felt worse than the sand dunes. I hear there was a lot of cool stuff to see on that floor too.

As soon as I got back, I realized I missed a meeting and never followed-up with the 2 people I asked to back me up.

I had little motivation to work but still stayed at my desk working until 5:45. It was a long and exhausting day for sure.

I went to the gym and ran 3.25 miles (8:39 pace). I wanted to run 5 but didn't have enough time. I had future timed my Pizza Hut order and then when I was leaving work a coworker was and she talked to me for 20 minutes.

Around 4 pm I pigged out on Cheeze Itz, so then I only ate 1 piece of pizza after I got home.

We watched Whitney and American Idol. I showered. Then we watched Rachel Maddow. All evening I was just sneezing nonstop and my nose was running non-stop. I couldn't figure out if I got a cold or it was allergies. Neither would mean a good thing but I would rather it be allergies.

I almost went to bed without taking any pictures all day of Poly so I took 2 right before bed.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-10T23:59:00.001-05:00

06:34:22 AM - Im so tired

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

2.6 - Allergy shot

2012-02-10T01:00:00.000-05:00

I wore an outfit I planned out on Sunday! I was going to wear a skirt but my house was freezing so I wanted pants and socks up to my knees.

I got to work bright and early because I had to leave for an allergy shot at the end of the day and needed to get work in. Good thing too because I forgot I had a 7:30 AM meeting. Bad thing is the guy didn't show up for it. Note: Don't accidentally hit eject and sleep. Nothing good comes of it. You just want to hit eject.

I went and got my allergy shot and they were only 30 minutes late today. It's funny how 30 minutes wasn't long at all. They are ruining me. 30 minutes should NOT be acceptable to wait to get a shot. The guy who gave me the shot did it in a unique way. He started a 8 inches away and said "alright you'll feel a pinch" and then he just moved his hand over to jab me with the needle. 8 inches was too far to move. His hand picked up too much speed. It hurt worse than any shot I ever got. I have trouble moving my arm now. Also because I took 3 months to get an allergy shot instead of 4 weeks, my allergies seem way worse when I get the shot. Well it could also be that the guy should have done the same dosage or backed down but he increased.

Since that only took 45 minutes instead of the 70 minutes I was prepared for, I had time to kill before picking Dave up. I was going to go back into work, but realized it would take 20-30 minutes for my computer to start working and I only had about 20 minutes to kill. So I went to Famous Footwear and bought replacement shooties that I can wear with socks and just slip them on and off. Too bad these ones cost me $70 and my old ones cost me $5. I've been looking for replacements for 1.5 years so I figured I better pay $70. They were on sale from $85. (For those of you that don't know what shooties are. I didn't know either. They are little boots but shoes. They are boots but don't go up your leg and stop at the ankle. I just made up the written definition but based on the pictures that's what they are.)

After I picked up Dave we headed to pick up his car. I complained saying we should have had dinner first. Traffic was awful. So then we went to Monte Cello's, where I had more fried zuccchini left on the plate after I was done eating than you normally get at a restaurant. We also got an 8 cut pizza. We should have gotten a 4 cut. Now we have leftovers. We got the car and headed home.

I felt like I was ready for bed but it wasn't even 8am so I decided to finally compare some running numbers. I looked at all the data that I put in one file from each time I ran with Jen. Last time we ran was the best. One other time we had 10:04 pace but for 4.5 miles and then we had 10:07 once. All the rest were slower. It is fun to see it all in one place.

I wanted to workout but with my arm pain I figure I shouldn't. I could use the exercise bike but I'm even afraid all the moving of biking will make my arm hurt even worse than it does now. Looks like I'll have another rest day. 2 days out of 3. Ugh

I made my shadow box of 2011 races and medals. I tried to squeeze in as many pictures as I could. (The picture looks odd because it is in a white frame on a white desk.)

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-09T23:59:00.001-05:00

08:58:29 AM - I got to work at 7 and my computer is finally working at 8:58. Sucks.
05:38:10 PM - I'm so tired. Today I ate a Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cereal bar, chocolate chip cookie, and TONS of cheeze itz. Not satisfied. Want real food.
08:06:45 PM - @reedaboutme that is no fun. I've been there. You lose weight from running?
08:22:21 PM - @reedaboutme that's what happened to me. Dropped 2 sizes. But overall I lost 3 total lbs by the end. Gained it and the sizes back later tho
09:37:06 PM - my allergies are awful or my cold is awful. Either way it's awful.
09:37:55 PM - On the bright side I did run 3.25 mi today in 28:07 (8:39 pace) on the treadmill. But I wanted to run 5 miles. it was hard today.
09:38:20 PM - @reedaboutme slimming down is better than the lbs.
09:39:17 PM - @RestonStyle I ran 9.0 mph on the treadmill today based on your comment. Usually 8.0 is fastest. I didn't do much at 9.0 though. 3 min total

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-08T23:59:00.001-05:00

08:40:03 PM - @TheNewChrissy good job! I've only had that fast during a race.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

3 miles (2.8.12)

2012-02-08T11:27:00.000-05:00

I was finally telecommuting today so I could work until daylight (or a little after) and then run and be back by the start of core hours.

I ran 3 miles. I was going to do the 2.5 mile loop. Then I decided to make it a 5k. I stopped a bit short because I was already running back and forth on my street to get it to 3. It started snowing 2 miles in. I wanted to run before work because of the snow. You never know if it will accumulate but also it's more dangerous to run on the streets with any snow at all.

My goal was 9 minute pace. I was almost out of bonus seconds about halfway through. I know that's where the hill is that I lose all my previous bonus seconds and the last mile is flatter and just faster for me in general.

Since it wasn't sunny, I thought it might be colder. Also I wasn't running for that long so I thought I'd be OK. But it was definitely too warm to wear my waterproof jacket. I unzipped it about 1.55 miles in. I removed my gloves a bit later. I removed my neck warmer a little after that. I folded up my head band so it didn't actually cover my ears. I didn't remove my jacket because my watch was on the outside of it and that would have caused too much trouble.

My shortest run this week should have been 4 miles. At least I ran. I just need to make sure I get my weekend long run in.

BTW I was back to my work computer at 8:59. Talk about perfect timing.

Outfits

2012-02-08T02:00:00.000-05:00

I have 2 skirts that I don't really know what to wear with them. My mom helped me match some stuff back on October 1 and that's all I know. I have realized in the morning, I can't tell what is what shade and so I won't test out a new combination. The lack of natural light is awful.

I tested out some stuff. It started not being bright enough outside and the lack of flash resulted in some poor quality photos. So some of these outfits looked better in person. Do you ever try on a bunch of stuff just to figure out what outfits will work or do you wait until you get dressed in the morning?

My mom told me that purple didn't go with this skirt but I like it. The purple tights are new as of yesterday.

The first time I wore it.

The brown shirt with the ruffles is a shirt I've owned for 5 or 6 years and never wore it. I think it matches but I figure if I didn't wear the shirt in all this time maybe I shouldn't wear it.

I thought the light purple shirt went but not with tights. It'd be more in the summer. It made the pink it the skirt look more purple.

The one long sleeve brown sweater seemed to work. The other one was too loose and too long that it didn't look right.

I think the teal cowl neck looks good but my mom specifically said my teal (same shade) turtle neck didn't go with this.

The blazer doesn't work at all. The socks + tights also doesn't work at all.

I have one sweater to wear with this but can't seem to figure out how to wear it with the skirt in the winter. I've worn the shirt with a black shirt underneath but I'd need a different color to go with this skirt.

I put the outfits in the order I liked them. It is hard to tell in the photos but in some I have on purple tights and in some I have on brown tights.

The first time I wore it.

Here is the 2nd skirt. This one I did have a few more things to go with it because my mom suggested more. I didn't have the purple shirt in the pictures at the time and never thought of wearing it. I love it.

The first time I wore this skirt I wore it with black and black shoes and thought it went. In the pictures, it doesn't seem to go as much. I would have been wearing this with black all the time, but my mom said to wear it with brown.

The brown sweater doesn't work.

I still have the cardigan I wore with it the first time, but since I knew that went, I didn't waste my time trying things on.

I need to figure out what else to wear with this too. I wore it on February 2 with something my mom picked out.

Both of these skirts are slightly big now but knowing how I fluctuate and need things in multiple sizes lying around I'm not too concerned.

I got these new brown pants from VS. I've worn them a few times with pink, but am never too sure what to wear with them. Would these 4 shirts work? The only one I'm not sure of is the purple sleeveless one. I think it is too bright to go but Dave said it wasn't.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-07T23:59:00.001-05:00

12:39:55 PM - @TheNewChrissy well I might run a 50k in March. It depends how crazy I feel.
04:53:17 PM - While leaving work the guard asked me if I was working out today. I said maybe after the dentist
04:55:44 PM - @missylizzylucy I never count walking miles in my mileage totals
05:18:44 PM - The dentist commented on me always dressing "spiffy"
06:10:30 PM - Since when is this a full fry? @chickfila http://t.co/4hw6BOWL
08:40:15 PM - @missylizzylucy When when I'm injured/sick and can't run then I walk but still don't count the mileage. Then get sad about lack of miles.
10:26:46 PM - I'm down to 48 unread work emails. Oh the progress of working for 3 hours in an evening.\
10:45:45 PM - @wrkngmomscloset why did you sleep so little?
10:47:48 PM - @angelineevans my last 2 were like this. So annoying.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

1.31 - run, weights, yoga

2012-02-07T01:00:00.000-05:00

I loved this outfit. I felt classy all day. The last time I wore this skirt was September 19 and I really liked that outfit too. Wow I waited a long time to wear a skirt I always liked.

After staying up so late watching 90210, I had trouble sleeping. I kept thinking I would sleep in and miss talking to a director at work and miss my 8am presentation to directors and managers.
I woke up every 10 minutes or so all through the night checking the clock to make sure I wasn't sleeping too long. I slept about 2 hours. I got up and showered and still made it to work with plenty of time.

My presentation went well. Then I was busy all day.

In the dead of winter, this is what I wore to run OUTSIDE in.

I wanted to leave early to run at home. The weather was sooo nice. I only got home in enough time for a mile run. I ran 1.02 miles in 8:19.

After my run, I lifted weights. I had to in order to meet my monthly workout goal for weight lifting. Then we had dinner and watched some TV.

I also attempted yoga after dinner. Poly does not make it easy.

1.30

2012-02-07T00:30:00.000-05:00

I never know what to wear with these pants. I want to hem these pants 1 inch. I am lazy though. The current hem inside is 2 inches so that poses a problem.

Poly wanted in my daily picture.

I worked.
I went and ran .75 miles on the treadmill, did body pump, then ran 2 more miles. Then it was back to work.

I came home to eat a Chick-fil-a salad while watching The Biggest Loser. It was over and I was still eating so I watched 90210. Then I continued to watch 90210 until 4am. Ooops. Those 8 episodes were good. Just as the last episode was ending, Poly climbed up on my lap. She was so cute, I didn't want to get up.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-06T23:59:00.001-05:00

10:31:29 AM - They put in a railing. Now I don't have to be afraid on my way to bldg 1 http://t.co/7wqXrNfC
04:07:14 PM - As I was leaving work, the guard asked if I was going to workout. no :( the weather is awesome. I'm waiting to get an allergy shot
04:33:20 PM - Only called me back 30 minutes late today for my allergy shot.
05:18:02 PM - Since I haven't had an allergy shot in 3 months I am sneezing nonstop. Also that shot itself made my arm hurt so bad #bigbaby
05:26:21 PM - I keep buying things with my Christmas money but use my normal money instead. So now I still have Christmas money to spend on more fun stuff
10:44:44 PM - @SmilinColleen @thenewchrissy I meant 20 mile race. Typo. Sorry but now I made 20 sound a lot easier.
10:49:08 PM - @mikecherepko I often make my twitter go back 3 days. Some apps go back further. I've done it to go back 4

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

1.24

2012-02-06T07:30:00.000-05:00

Boots: Mudd
Sweater & Shirt: Express
Skirt & Long Necklace: Black House White Market
Pink Necklace: Gifted

Picking out my clothes Monday night really helped. I was able to get ready so fast. I made it to work before 7:30. I had a normal super busy day at work.

I really tried to leave at 4 but too much was going on. I ended up leaving at 4:20 and heading to meet Jen to run. At least I texted her a few times about how I was behind so she knew not to leave work.

We ran.

I analyzed data. I showered. I ate. I watched MSNBC. I watched the State of the Union. Poly watched too.

Oh what a tiring day. I brought my work laptop home and work home but I ran out of time to use it.

1.22

2012-02-06T01:30:00.000-05:00

I spent my morning cropping pictures.

I ran with Jen mid afternoon. I never blogged about that run (Shocking I know). I ran .5 before everyone showed up. Then there was a period of waiting before we all started.Then I ran 5 with Jen and Mandy. Then I ran 1.14 more with Jen. That was all for a total pace of 10:31.

I met Jen to run and we also met her friend Mandy. I was supposed to get there at 1. I got there a little early and ran .5 mi. I thought I might have time for a full mile but Jen is always early so I didn't want to keep her waiting. Her friend ended up being late so I could have ran 2 miles prior to us starting. The three of us ran 5 miles. Then Jen and I ran a bit more.

We all ran 1 mile, walked 1 minute, ran 1 mile, walked 1 minute, ran .5 mile, walked 1 minute and then we did 3:1 run/walk ratio for about 20 minutes. We just ran the last half mile in.

Then there was a little talking, a text to Dave seeing if I had more time, and then deciding I only had 15 minutes.'
Our last 1.14 was broken up with pictures. I had carried my camera the entire run so figured we better use it. We used the continuous feature on my camera and got about 200 photos. Many were out of focus or blurry. Many more were in an awkward part of the stride. But since we got 200 total, we got a ton of nice ones. Above are just a few. I cropped some of them. What do you think? I took off my jacket and said I could look like I was hardcore and we got some pictures like that. It was really warm running in my jacket. I should have had a lighter coat. The weather is tricking me all the time. I should just bring one of everything when I go to run. Jen put a few of the pictures on her blog too.

Paulo came over after. He was supposed to show up at 3 so I didn't run extra. Then at 3:15 he said he was running late so he wouldn't arrive until 5! I had some time to crop pictures from my run but didn't even get to analyzing the data.

Then we spent 3 hours watching Battlestar Galactica. Paulo brought his son who is about 10 and some of the scenes in that show are inappropriate for someone that young. I didn't like the show so much.

Then we watched some more TV. I snacked.

All I want to do is eat and sleep. I'm so tired and so hungry anymore. I've also lost a couple pounds.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-05T23:59:00.001-05:00

12:21:07 AM - Poly has informed me it is bed time.
11:38:12 AM - I accidentally ran 12 miles instead of 10
12:37:13 PM - I ran 33.23 miles this week. Highest ever (since last week). Last week was 28.3. Before that I had 27.21 miles the week ending with 10/30/11
03:09:20 PM - I love this weather.
06:37:48 PM - I'm already bored with this game. It just isn't the same without the Steelers.
06:40:20 PM - @TheNewChrissy did you get your run in?
06:42:47 PM - @TheNewChrissy ignore my last question. 6 isn't 8 but is better than 0
07:29:25 PM - @TheNewChrissy I might run a 30 mile race in 3 weeks. I am not well trained but ehh it should be fun
08:47:53 PM - @reedaboutme the girl who won x factor was in the pepsi commercial.
08:48:36 PM - @wrkngmomscloset I feel the same way. I still get confuse and it is the 3rd quarter.
08:50:05 PM - @TheNewChrissy Dave and I are just watching alone at home. It is better that way. Then it is acceptable to get distracted.
10:37:33 PM - @wrkngmomscloset I was even confused the last play of the game.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

Another 12 miles (2.5.12)

2012-02-05T17:37:00.002-05:00

I went to North Park again today. Originally I was going to run 6 miles. Then I thought 9. Then I thought 10 because that's 2 loops. I was meeting Jen at 10 and decided I'd run 1 loop prior to meeting her to run.

Before Jen and I started running, she told me she was thinking of running so I thought I can do that. Later she said she thought of doing 7. (She might have actually said 7 to begin with and I might have just misheard.) I was indecisive if I'd do that too but then went for it. That's how I got a total of 12 miles today.

I ran my first 5 miles with a goal of 9 minute mile pace the entire way. I planned to run versus intervals this time around.

The weather was 31 degrees with a 30 degree wind chill. I wore a tank + arm warmers, long sleeve shirt, and a very light jacket. A little over a mile into it, I took off the jacket and tied it around my waist. That was difficult to do while running. I had to remove my watch and put it back on. That was my slowest split.

A little over 2 miles into it, I ran into 2 people that I used to run with in the North Park Runners Group at 8am. They were making their run a 10 mile run instead of 8. We stopped and talked for a bit. You can tell when I stopped based on my BodyMedia fit data. As I went along I played my game with bonus seconds. Each split needed to be 2:15 and I'd add up my bonus seconds. Sometimes I'd subtract a few just because I know if my split says 2:12 to me it could have been 2:12.9 and I didn't want to get burned at the end with all those rounding errors.

My 3.5-3.75 split was 2:20 and I had to give up 5 of my bonus seconds. That was no good so I picked up the pace and ran a 2:05 split after. That made me feel better.

My second mile was the slowest and I lost a lot of time taking of my coat and putting back on my watch. It carried over into a second .25. I didn't get to pick up speed on the downhill.

The back half of the lake felt so hard today. I don't like going counter clockwise, but knew I'd be running counterclockwise with Jen and I should switch up my distance. I took off my neck warmer and wrapped it around my wrist at some point. Later I even took off my headband and put that around my wrist.

I think today might be my 2nd fastest loop ever. My fastest being on September 20, 2011 with a time of 42:38. That run was with Kelly and was really pushing me along. We also were only running 5 that day. Today I had to save my energy for a 2nd 5.

After my 1st loop, I had to get rid of more layers and drink some water. I removed my arm warmers and long sleeve shirt and just went with my light coat. I liked the coat because it had pockets. I also took off my gloves. I put my headband and neck warmer in the car too. The stop was a few minutes long because I was making sure to drink some of my vitamin water.

We ran the entire loop 4:1 intervals except at the beginning when the interval thing got messed up and we ran over 5 minutes.

Today was the first time Jen broke 50 minutes for the 5 mile loop. We were close but still beat 50.

After the loop, we stopped quickly at our cars to get water. I also ate 2 gummies. (You are supposed to eat 5-10 each hour you run. Oops. I also didn't eat breakfast.)

Then we decided to run 2 more miles starting by running the hill. We ran out to 1.05 then turned around and headed back. We didn't really follow intervals, but we did walk 3 times. Our goal was to take it slow. We were trying for 11 minute miles but we failed at that.

Overall the pace was 9:33.7. My last (and only) 12 mile run had a pace of 10:09 but I also had an injured calf at the time. All of my longer runs were a 10 minute pace or slower. On July 31, I did have a 10 mile run with 9:42. In 2010 I did a 10 mile run in a 9 minute pace (exactly) but that was back when I ran a lot of shorter runs and ran them faster. It is so hard to work on speed and endurance at the same time. I still haven't mastered it.

I need to figure out if I can run a 20 mile run 20 days from now. Oh boy that seems scary. I've only done 12 so far.

1st loop

2nd loop with Jen

Our last 2 miles

You can tell with the BodyMedia fit data where I stopped to talk and that I did intervals with Jen. Fit coach gives a warning that I'm on track. I bet I won't be nearly as ahead on my calorie burn at the end of the day. (I only ended up burning 2763 aka 713 more than my goal.)

1.21

2012-02-05T11:28:00.000-05:00

We got a bunch of snow.
I cleaned off the sofa table and thought I better take a picture to show something that is clean. But then look at the edges of the picture. The mess is sure visible in the hallway and dining room.

I shoveled a lot. Dave came out and started helping after I had about 1/4 the driveway done. Our neighbors now have a snow blower. I'm jealous. I think we got about 7 inches of snow. The forecast called for 3-6. My parents got 1 plus ice. At least we didn't have ice.

On a movie we were watching, someone was using a hot water bottle. Crazy, I have done that to keep warm. Timmy is the one that started with them and he gave a lot out for Christmas. They are nice.

The neighbor saw me shoveling and all he could talk about is how skinny I'm getting. I kept saying I didn't get skinnier. Then after I was telling Dave how crazy it is that he said that because I had many layers + big heavy coat on top. Dave then informed that is what made my legs look even skinnier. Looking at this picture sure confirms it. My legs look like little sticks.

1.18

2012-02-05T07:00:00.001-05:00

I got to telecommute so I got to sleep in later than normal and then still start work earlier than normal.

At lunch, I used the exercise bike.

After work I did a dancing game with Dave on Xbox. I could only do it 20 minutes and had to leave. I did Body Pump at 6pm.

I picked up pizza on the way home. I ate 3 big pieces and then ate more junk after that.

I watched TV after dinner until I fell asleep.

1.15

2012-02-05T07:00:00.000-05:00

Sweater: Express
Pants: VS
Scarf: NY&Co.
Earrings: Target
Shoes: Aldo (I think)

I slept in. I was tired. Poly slept with me.

Poly likes to peep out the window. Now she has to go between the window and the blind. Isn't she cute?

Dave and I went to the gym. Nobody was there so I had Dave take my picture. We used the continuous feature that I didn't realize I had.

I run too close to the front so my arms have to be angled up or the display gets in the way.

Changing speed. I do this every minute to make it less boring.

Writing down my time. I do this every .25 mi

The gym was in the process of being painted so equipment was all over the place and Dave couldn't take a picture from the side. I need to figure out how to get pictures of me doing Body Pump. I only ran 4 miles on the treadmill because Dave's blood sugar got low. I had to go get some emergency food from my purse (and now I'm out) and he sat down and ate it. I finished the mile and then we left. (I did 4 miles at a 9:09 pace.)

I fell asleep with Poly on me.
Poly was trying to move my lens cap and also to peep in my purse.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-04T23:59:00.001-05:00

09:11:25 AM - I have somewhere to be at 7pm tonight and I'm already fearing I'll be late. So I just set my alarm on my phone.
12:47:26 PM - @lisafilipek I peed 3 times yesterday too. Now I keep counting because of you. Need to graph this but too consistent at 3
03:22:53 PM - My new tights labeled tall and up to height 5'11 are 5 inches from my crotch. Hate.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

12.30

2012-02-04T22:00:00.000-05:00

Poly is so zonked on Dave.
Look at my messed up toe nail. It is cracked and then the nail is growing underneath it. I never have cool toenails. :(

Poly likes vacation days. She really enjoys sleeping while Dave reads.

12.28

2012-02-04T20:00:00.000-05:00

I was going to skip the last 4 days in December because it's been so long but I needed to post the pictures of Dave so anywhere here's the post.

Shirt and Jeans: JCP
Shoes: online probably zappos.

Those were his new jeans he got for Christmas. The shirt we bought in December when we were buying Christmas presents.

Sweater: F21
Pants and Boots: VS
Belt: Target
Scarf: NY&Co

Poly helped us sleep in.

We made macaroni and cheese.
We ate at some restaurant.
I also ironed but didn't take pictures of that.

Poly was so cute.

I went to the Italian Miners club with the family. I learned only men can be members there. Each member could bring in 2 guests and that's how we had to work it. I kind of tried to sneak the pictures because I didn't want them on to me, but my camera has the laser thing that goes out first to try to focus that blew my cover. Mike and Agnes were in from Brooklyn. Callie was visited from Colorado. I guess the club was where it was at.

12.27.11

2012-02-04T19:00:00.000-05:00

Dave and I got out of bed and started making a roast. Then we went back to bed. We were using our laptops in bed or napping. (Poly was trying to block my view of my screen. I guess she didn't want me to use it.

I made a very nice grilled ham and cheese for lunch. Then we had the roast for dinner. I do not like vegetables cooked in my roast. I don't like the taste of them. I never have. I gave it another try and didn't like it. I wanted to make corn and mashed potatoes on my own but we did not have corn.

Poly got all up in my grill when I tried to do yoga.

1.25

2012-02-04T14:54:00.000-05:00

Dress & Cardigan: NY&Co.
Necklace: Lia Sophia
Tights: Target
Shoes: Aldo

Work = Busy Busy Busy

From lunch until I left work I had 3.5 hours of NA-YGN/WIN meetings so I have that time to make up. But then I also had to leave an hour early to go to the dentist so I have that to make up. Oh boy.

So I fell asleep in the waiting room again at the dentist. They called me back into the room and then I fell asleep there before the dentist came in. Doing whatever they do for a crown was much worse for me than the root canal was. It was kind of cool watching the guy use a CAD program to design the crown. So now I have a temporary crown. I have to go back yet again for the real crown. I can't believe how many dental visits this tooth causes. Does your dentist do a root canal in one appointent and then a temporary crown in another and then the real crown in yet a third?

The appointment took a bit over an hour. I headed home and logged into work until we ate dinner. We had pizza.

We watched Gray's Anatomy. Then House. Then NBC Nightly News. Then Rachel Maddow. TV sure makes the night fly by. I was ready for bed at 8:30 but stayed up later.

12.29

2012-02-04T12:23:00.000-05:00

I spent the night at my parents. Callie and I went running. I ate cabbage on stuffed cabbage for the first time. Timmy took some lessons from Callie and decided to tape his jacket instead of sewing the lining.

Dave and I bought new plates at ikea. Look how full the cupboard is now.

It appears I never posted about my run. Callie posted about it ages ago.

We went to Braddock Trails. We ran on the roads first and did 3.5 miles at about a 10 minute mile pace.
Then we went and ran the trails. That was really muddy. We stopped and peeped things and stopped to figure out which way to go in many places. Finally we found the overlook. On our way from the overlook to the car we RAN at a 2.2 mph. Oh boy. A new record low. We did a bunch of actually running too but then we stopped to take pictures and iMapMyRun was still going.

We did a total of 5.02 miles. I didn't have my garmin since I didn't really expect to run. . I ran in a pink hoodie. It was in my trunk. I also ran in my hat that has the strings that come down and the balls on the end. Boy did I look ridiculous. After our 3.5 mile run, we took off some layers since we got hot. But then we ran so slow we were cold.

Cleaning

2012-02-04T09:41:00.002-05:00

I guess it's a sign I need to clean and organize more when I find something under the sink in the bathroom that expired in August 2006. I was married in August 2007. I moved in May 2006, then May 2007, and moved in here in August 2008.

I never even used this inhaler at all. I think I used to use it because it was long lasting and I used this in addition to another inhaler. It's been so long though that I forget.

Now you would think finding this would have had me go through the rest of the junk under the sink, but it did not.

2.1

2012-02-04T08:55:00.000-05:00

I got a compliment on my belt today. It was my first outfit compliment in a long time.

Work was busy. I realized that everyday I pretty much feel like I'm going to have a heart attack for 90% of the day. There is always way too much work and since there is too much work, I can never do enough of it in advance.

After work, I rushed home and changed so Dave and I could go for a walk. We walked 2 miles. Then I made pasta for dinner.
We watched Whitney and some new show that I already forget the name. It had the guy from 24 and the "series premier" isn't until March. So it confuses me. (I forget the name of it, but it involved a kid who didn't talk, numbers, and the guy from 24)

I was about ready to fall asleep after that so I went up to bed and watched 90210 and then One Tree Hill.

1.14

2012-02-04T01:30:00.000-05:00

I had eggs, bacon, and toast for breakfast. The picture of the counter still shows the dirty serving dishes from my party on January 7.

Dave and I finally hung up a curtain in our bathroom. It was a 4 hour process because we took a break to eat because I was lightheaded and Dave had low blood sugar. It should have taken 20 minutes.

Poly loves pencils.

Look how cute Poly is. She really loves to sleep on Dave. She doesn't like me as much.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-03T23:59:00.001-05:00

11:02:38 AM - I don't know how being 12 days behind on blogging makes me feel caught up.
01:20:17 PM - People say women take forever but Dave sure shops forever. And it sucks because we have 3 more places to go & I have to meet someone to run.
05:56:30 PM - I just ran 12.29 miles!
06:53:15 PM - I decided on my run today I might consider myself a Runner now (@TheNewChrissy this is reminding me of your post long about about a Writer)
07:58:37 PM - @TheNewChrissy Well thanks. I just ran and wasn't any good and slacked at it but now I seem to be doing better.
08:21:03 PM - I just wanted to talk so I went to pause the TV. Then I realized I wanted to pause Dave when he was talking. oops.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

12 miles (2.3.12) - Runner

2012-02-03T22:01:00.003-05:00

Oh I have so much to say about my run today. I apologize now for this long post.

I was meeting Jen at 4 to run and I wanted to run 5 or 7 before meeting her but Dave had us out shopping and he kept browsing and he was taking up all my time. By the time I was changed and out the door, I didn't have enough time for much running at all. I was able to run 2.25 miles before meeting Jen. She got there around 2.1 but I went into the bathroom so I had time to run a touch extra.

It was so warm earlier in the day that I just wore pants, tank top, and long sleeve shirt. I wore my sunglasses too. When I met Jen, I decided gloves were a necessity. It was good to have that little run before our loop.

The first part that I ran by myself was very similar to what I ran a week ago before meeting Jen and others, but this time I started with the hill versus ending with the hill. I didn't set a goal at all for this short run. I just ran. I didn't even think I was going that fast. It ended pretty good. I decided I'll have to do this more because I'll need to get more miles in than anyone that I'm running with so I have to either run before or after to supplement any group runs. 2 miles is a good amount to do first so that I'm not too tired out. I really wanted to do more though. Maybe next time I can do more. On weeknights, I already get there as early as I can so I can't run at all prior to meeting to run. Weeknights are more difficult too with limited timing before dark. I ran up the hill at the beginning and compared it to a week earlier when I ran the hill on my preliminary run and how hard it was. It felt easier today. I need to run hills more in general. I need to do some ladders like we did in high school. They are the worst while doing them but they would help me out so much.

Jen and I talked for a few minutes before starting to run so my run wasn't as continuous as I would have liked. It did give me opportunity to get some water. I should have even had more but I am always a water slacker.

We started going counterclockwise with a 4:1 ratio of run to walk. After 15 minutes we changed it to 3:1. It was Jen's 3rd day in a row running and her IT bands were sore. Going slower didn't bother me at all because I wanted to have enough energy to make it to 12 miles.

While running with Jen, I realized how much easier it is for me to run this year that it has been in the past. It's just like I move and run and it's not a struggle at all. The walk breaks help a lot according to Gallaway. I really think they do. You can go a lot further. Also the overall time is pretty similar to running constantly. About halfway through the loop, I started thinking about how I emailed Callie about my made up training plan and she didn't get back to me yet so I hope it's not stupid because I was doing 12 today like I made up.

Throughout our loop 2 different cars honked at us. Jen and I were both wearing bright colors so perhaps we were more noticeable.

We skipped our last walk interval to finish the 5 miles. Then I drank water. I tried to force even more down. I drank probably 8 oz. I'm so bad at this. Then I ate 2 gummies. You are supposed to eat 5-10 each hour of running. I at least put the rest of my package in my little belt thing to eat along the way.

I started the last loop with my watch set to do 4:1 intervals. I set my goal time to be 10:30 pace. After 2 miles, I realized I was doing pretty good and maybe could do 9:30 pace. I thought I'd make my reach goal 47:30 for 5 miles and my goal that I'd try to shoot for 48. I pretty much did math in my head the entire time between mile 2 and 2.5. I don't even know where the time went. Right before I hit 2 miles, a guy rolled down his window and winked at me. What is up with people these days?

Around mile 3.5, I could tell the tip of my middle toe on my right foot was getting a blister. Also around that time I felt like I was running slow and I was going at a 7:22 pace. I had to quadruple look because I didn't believe it. Even with walking 1 minute every 5, I was going pretty fast. I couldn't believe it. The split that included walking would be 2:35 which was faster than my initial goal should have .been for all splits.

Around mile 3.75, I decided I'll consider myself a Runner. I never thought I was before but I decided I am now. I always just considered myself a person who runs and not even a person who runs all the time. I'd do half (or less) than what all the novice training plans recommended for races so how could I consider myself a runner. Well now I do. I better not slack off now after deciding this.

My walk interval ended right at the 3.75 mile mark and I ran. I didn't even think it was that fast and my split was 2:02. My run interval length was 4 minutes so I wondered if I'd get close to the next .25 before the whistle went off telling me to walk. Well it did, but only by about 3 seconds so I just ran until the watch beeped. I walked for 1 minute then ran the rest of the way missing my last walk interval. My last mile was 8:29 including walking for 1 minute. I felt like I could keep going even with the blister aching on my toe. I almost ran longer but it was getting dark and I'd need my headlamp so I'd have to stop at the car anyway, but also I didn't eat or drink enough so I knew it'd be bad news bears if I tried to run more.

I don't know what made the run so great. I didn't even believe I was really running that fast. I kept passing people as they were running but still didn't feel fast. I'd pass people going the opposite way for the second time and do the math and realize the lady ran 2 miles while I ran 3. (I'm pretty good at knowing mile markers and areas to be able to figure out how far each of us ran.)

After running, I hurried home but in the trip home, all my sweat just felt colder and colder. Turning up the heat wasn't really helpful. I was shivering when I walked in the door. I hurried and went and showered. I took a nice warm shower. Some might consider it hot since it turned me so red. Oh it was wonderful.

After my shower, Dave informed me I was going to cook dinner. I iced my foot while cooking. My plantar fasciitis is still bothersome.

The first 2 miles I ran continuously. The next 2 loops I did intervals. There was also a break between them to get some nutrition and water in me. I wish I didn't break so long. The BodyMedia fit sure shows that I took a break. I need to go continuously next time.

I entered my food for the day in my BodyMedia fit and their Fit Coach yelled at me. Apparently eating Pizza Hut buffet for lunch doesn't help you eat properly. I've entered my food before but this is the first time a warning showed up. I only enter my food about once ever 3 weeks. I'm not good at documenting it. Now I almost want to document it more to see what other warnings it will come up with.

Well I'm happy with today's run. My long run should have been Saturday or Sunday but I thought I'd get it out of the way. I feel so accomplished. This winter is so awesome. I love it. I can't believe how mild the weather is. I want this all the time!

2.2

2012-02-03T10:59:00.001-05:00

I had trouble sleeping. I was so hot. I woke up once and actually got out of bed. My clothes were soaked from sweat. I guess I had a fever and I guess it broke.

Before work I finally sewed my skirt. It took 2 minutes. I picked out my clothes using the pictures I took when my mom showed me what matched my skirt back on October 1.

Work was so much less stressful than it has been. If all days were like this, it would be a lot better. I only had a meeting in the morning. I was able to be productive at my desk. I also left "early" to go run with Jen.

I ate a Chick-fil-a salad for dinner. We watched Big Bang Theory and American Idol. Then we watched MSNBC.

I made a new blog banner. It is different than my old one but I want to make something else. I want to get rid of the clothes background. I'll do that next. I want it more streamlined with words and just 1 picture on the side. It took me 6 months to change my banner this time around so who knows when I'll actually get to the rest.

I realized my running excel file is missing so much data. I'm only 1 month into 2012 too.

I want to have more time to do things with my life but I don't want to cut out anything that I do now. It doesn't work that way though. I just need to get more efficient with everything. I thought I'd only crop one picture above and label the picture, but since I was rusty at it, it took longer than my normal routine.

1.10

2012-02-03T02:30:00.000-05:00

This is what I wear when I"ll have on a coat.
Sweater: Old Navy (I hate the color)
Jeans: Express

I telecommuted. Poly hung out with me. Well she hung out in a bag by me.

These are examples of my training plans and then what I did in stead. How do you document your running?

Poly watched TV. She watched Romney's speech. During Ron Paul's speech she decided she'd stare at the kleenex on the floor instead.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-02T23:59:00.001-05:00

08:13:07 AM - The skirts I bought in September are too big. extra fabric at the hips :(
08:04:12 PM - @reedaboutme did you change your email address?
08:10:04 PM - @lisafilipek @mikecherepko @eutheria @ktpt23 would be fun to track. I'm at 2 for today.
08:12:41 PM - @mikecherepko @lisafilipek I hear people don't like cover letters.
08:20:33 PM - @mikecherepko I had a political blog in college for my politics class.
08:23:51 PM - @angelineevans in high school I liked full justified and now I hate it.
08:28:10 PM - @lisafilipek yea. It's only 8:30. I think I pee 3x. A day. The other day I peed 5 times and thought it was a lot.
11:30:13 PM - @lisafilipek I dunno. I'm in bed now and do still at 2 for the day. When I woke up and at 4 pm.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

February Spotlight - Liz

2012-02-02T21:37:00.000-05:00

I haven't had a spotlight in awhile because I'm a slacker but boy do I have a good one for you. I decided to spotlight Liz this month. She previously wrote a guest post on why she runs. Liz is great and you should follow and read her blog daily. She's athletic (like me) and has takes pictures of herself daily (like me), but she is a much better photographer than I am. (You should follow her on Twitter too @RestonStyle)

Where did the name of your blog come from? (Well where did the names of all your blogs come from?)
The name Reston Style comes from the place where I live. Reston is a suburb of DC in northern Virginia. It is one of the 5 largest planned communities in the United States and the first one to complete its original master plan. I actually work for the non-profit corporation that acts like the government, the Reston Association. I figured with a name like “Reston Style” it could be just a daily outfit blog, like it is now, but it could also be expanded to include all other aspects of style into it.

When did you start your style/fashion blog? How about the rest of them? Have you ever had any other blogs before?
My style blog started in December, though I started posting daily outfits on my tumblr in November of 2010. My tumblr was my first blog and I started it at the beginning of 2010. I currently keep my tumblr, Reston Style, and photography blogs up to date.

What are the main goals of your blogs? Why did you choose separate blogs instead of having 1 blog with a mesh of everything?
Since my tumblr was my first blog, it really was a mesh of everything. It had a little bit of everything, but a whole lot of nothings when you looked right at it. Then I started looking at style blogs... I liked how some of them just showed some pretty pictures and a snapshot into the lives of these real girls. It was like a little piece of scripted reality, and I liked that, so I stole like an artist and decided to start my own style blog. It’s definitely, genuinely me, just an edited for time and content version. It’ll also be something that I can show my kids someday, where as I’m not sure I’d ever want to show them my twitter feed or tumblr!

Did the intent or content of your blog change since you started?
Reston Style has stayed true to itself since the beginning. There are probably only 4 or 5 posts that don’t follow the same format. Since it’s inception, I have added a “fit style” segment that recurs as well as a new “trend to try” segment. But for the most part it is pictures of what I am wearing, and a little glimpse into some of the happier moments of my day. It’s actually really nice to write because it does provide a little escape from some of the harder moments of life.

How many hours per week would you say you spend blogging?
I would say that I spend between 10 and 15 hours a week working on blogs or blog related things (I am also doing some consulting about blogging). I have a really great work flow, so to keep Reston Style going I could probably only work about 2 hours a week on it, but I like doing it so much that I spend a lot more time on it!

Do you spend more time reading blogs than you do writing your own blog?
That depends on the week. I realize that being part of the community is the best way to gain and retain readership, but it takes a lot of time to read all the blogs of all the people you find interesting. I feel like a bad bloggy friend when I spend my time working on my blog and not reading my friends blogs, so I do try to check in at least once a week! But on average I would say I read blogs for about an hour a day.

How many blogs do you read on a daily basis?
Some days I will read 100 blog posts by 90 different bloggers, some days I will read none. I do actually always ready my friend, Michelle’s blog That’s so Michelle, because I have liked watching her photography progress AND giving her some phototips. That is actually something that I have learned about myself, blogging and reading blogs has made me more interested in photography. So if I just have a few minutes to read blogs, I generally go for ones with great photos. When I have a lot of time, I go for ones with great content.

Do people email you often because they read your blog?
I get a couple of comments per post, but not very many emails. I would say that most of the time the questions I get from readers are more about my running than my style. I guess it’s the running that makes me interesting, not the fact that I get dressed everyday :)

Do you communicate with a lot of your readers via email/IM?
I am always open to emailing or IMing, but I would say most of my reader communication is through Disqus and Twitter.

What is your inspiration?
This is actually a tough question for me. I think I was inspired to start outfit shots by Jessica Quirk of What I Wore and then by Kendi Skeen of Kendi Everyday. I really liked the photos on their blogs and I thought “I can do that!” (I also thought, “maybe if I do that, I can make some money or get on the Today Show or something.” It’s my dream to be a contributor for the Today Show.) So the idea that I could do it is what got me started. However, the focus has really changed as I have continued with it. I am really inspired by photography now. Writing Reston Style has really helped me discover that passion. So now my inspiration is all photography related and the rest is just getting dressed.

What post are you most proud of? Did it get the most hits?
I am most proud of my guest post about self portrait photography - and yes, it brought a lot of traffic to my blog. But I think it’s because of how much passion I put into it. I am actually trying to come up with some more photography posts to submit as guest posts on different photography technique blogs.

What is your daily routine regarding your blog? (Ex: When do you take pictures? When do you upload them? When do you write the post?)
I try to take my pictures in the morning or in the evening, just because the light is at its best, but a lot of my shots end up getting taken at lunch. I generally shoot through out the week, then edit the photos as I have time and load them as batches onto flickr. The day I am wearing the outfit, I try to come up with a title. other than that I generally write all my posts over the weekend. Then as they get ready to get published I have the bulk of my content ready to go. Sometime I wait to do the second paragraph, so that I can add something about what is actually going on “real time” in my life.
I try to publish before noon everyday. Then I share the link on facebook, twitter, and make the pictures public on flickr with the link to the blog post in the title. In the past I have used flickr groups to try to boost my views - and they work - I just haven’t had the time to keep up with everything. It’s part of my expanded workflow - but my order of importance is: 1)get dressed, 2)take pictures 3)post 4)make photos public on flickr 5) share on facebook 6)share on twitter. If I get all of those things done - I call myself a bloggy success!

How do you juggle all your competing priorities and still have time to blog?
I read this great post (http://www.austinkleon.com/2011/03/30/how-to-steal-like-an-artist-and-9-other-things-nobody-told-me/) and pretty much decided that since I already used a calendar, I might as well add my blog goals to it.

What is your best tip to photographing yourself?
I would love to say “have fun” but really the best tip I have is change your focal length. Go with 55mm or up. If you have a point and shoot - that means ZOOM! I think this advice is probably the best that I have - 85mm is your friend. It blurs the background and makes you look prettier! :)

What is one interesting fact you’d like to share about yourself?
When I was a kid I hated writing. Mostly because I am a horrible speller and it made me insecure. So its kinda interesting that I spend so much of time time writing now!

What is your next running goal?
I have a couple in mind:

set a new marathon PR sub 4:15 (okay, so I really want sub 4, but I am trying to be realistic!)

sub 1:45 ½ marathon

sub 6 minute mile

Olympic distance triathlon

How many days a week do you run/train? And how many do you just exercise in other ways that aren’t training for runs?
I live life like a kid. I aim to run about 3 times a week. If I do that I’m happy. The rest of the time I just try to live an active lifestyle. I like stretching on a foam roller, so I try to go to the gym to do that twice a week. Other than that and the exercise that I get from coaching swimming - I generally just say yes if someone invites me to do something active! I was indoor climbing about once a week for a while, and hope to get back to that soon.

If you could only share 1 fitness tip, what would it be?
Set lifestyle goals and set them one at a time. Instead of thinking about what you want to lose, think about the things you want to gain. For example, don’t think about losing weight, think about gaining fitness. Setting goals with a positive connotation will help keep the whole process aimed towards success. Small lifestyle changes over big changes in the short term.

What motivates you to keep up with exercise?
My goals. I do so much better when I have a race to prep for or a time goal in mind. Exercise is important for my wellbeing, but that alone isn’t always enough to motivate me. So setting out to accomplish something that is measurable keeps me accountable. It also helps that I train with friends. They rely on me to help get them to their goals, and their reliance on me helps keep me accountable to my goals.

Does your family ever get to see you race or do they participate in any races with you?
They have come to a couple of the 5ks I have done, and even though my mom is also a runner (and has started training with me), we have yet to run anything longer than a 5k together.

What is your proudest running accomplishment?
I have a couple. I am really proud of running a 14.78 mile training run alone. It’s the longest I have ever run alone before. And my half career is really kinda a cool story. I ran sub 2 hrs in my first ½ ever, then a year later I ran it only 8 minutes slower (just over 2 hours) only 18 days after having my tonsils out, then my PRs in both the outer banks ½ and the flying pirate ½. And of course, I completed a marathon this year. It is impossible to describe how that feels.I wanted to thank Liz for putting up with all my questions and putting up with me being a slacker posting this. I am still having trouble trying to insert all the pictures I wanted to so you are just getting less.

5 miles (2.2.12)

2012-02-02T21:15:00.001-05:00

Jen and I ran after work again today. We didn't want to run more than 5 miles so we decided to switch it up. We parked at the boathouse but left the parking lot in the opposite direction and then ran the big hill. We ran out 2.6 miles then we turned around and headed back. We ran the entire way. We had a goal of 10:30-11:00 pace (or maybe it was 10:30-10:45 pace). The goal was to be in that range and take it slow. Sometimes it is hard to slow down. Also there are times each mile gets progressively worse and we did not want that to happen.

I told Jen we should push it the last half mile. (I actually told her this while we were still at work.) I probably mentioned it again around mile 4 and she said she didn't think so. ha. She did. Look at that last mile time.

The weather forecast called for 43. It was much colder than that. Then the windchill was colder. It got even worse as we ran because of the lack of sun. We did finish in the daylight but still it was getting colder.

This is the first time we ran the entire way for 5 miles. Last weekend when 6 of us ran, our last mile split was also 9:51. Talk about consistency. We ran:walked that and our pace was 10:07. We ran walked on 1/24 and our pace was 10:17 and on 1/10 it was 10:17. That is some evidence that the run:walk method actually allows you to go faster. I think it feels easier too. But it also feels like cheating.

February Workout Goals

2012-02-02T01:00:00.000-05:00

I met January goals. Since February is a shorter month and the end of January was so hard, I am going to decrease some goals.

Complete 18 cardio workouts (running, exercise bike, or elliptical) (January = 19, met; December = 18, met, November = 18, met)
Complete 13 core workouts (January = 13, met; December = 12, met; November = 12, not met)
Frequency: Run 12 times. (January = 14, met; December = 10, met, November = 12, met with 15)
Distance: Run 60 total miles [Reach goal = 70 miles (15, 15, 15, 20, 5)] (January = 13, met; December = 40, November = 65, met) - Goal created without comparing it to my training plan but with my 2012 mileage goal to be 700 which averages to a little less than 60 a month.
Workout with Dave 9 times. (January = 10, met; December = 12, but with all other activities it is hard to also workout with Dave, November = 8, met)
Lift weights 5 times on my own. (January = 5 met; December = 5, not met; November = 4, met with 5)
Perform yoga/BodyFlow 2 times. (January = 2, met; December = 2, met; November = 3, not met) - I hate this goal. I know yoga is good though.
Attend Body Pump 4 times. (January = 3, met; December = 3, not met; November = 4, not met)
Have 2 double workout days (morning + evening, lunch + evening, etc) [New] (January = 2, met)
Stretch for 10 consecutive minutes 2 times [New] (January = 2, met)

I have a few other goals that are related to exercise but aren't me working out.

Have another photo shoot to get some athletic pictures for at the top of this post.
Have at least 4 nonconsecutive rest days. I have been bad at resting and fear overuse injuries coming.
Put my monthly workout goals in excel or some program so I have them all together and can pull some data based on that.
Make more collages with exercise photos and add them to my exercise gallery

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-02-01T23:59:00.001-05:00

12:11:04 PM - Everyday the first 90% of my workday are me being stressed out and ready to have an anxiety attack because I have too much work to do.
10:12:21 PM - If I would have stayed downstairs I would have fallen asleep 2 hours ago. Now I'm in bed not sleeping.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-01-31T23:59:00.001-05:00

03:03:28 AM - well i was in the middle of the 8th episode and now the program won't work so I can't watch the rest!
03:35:19 AM - @ADayinLifeToo welcome back
03:50:02 AM - I picked a bad day to stay up so late. 8 am presentation. need to talk to my old director before that.
03:52:35 AM - Poly always does this. The last episode is over and now she's on my lap purring hugging my arm. I hate to get up. She's too cute.
03:53:38 AM - @lisafilipek The new one. I'm caught up until tomorrow's episode.
09:46:34 AM - @lisafilipek I watched the old 90210, but haven't watched it since it was on originally. The new one is good when you watch lots in a row.
07:15:20 PM - I function surprisingly well after less than 2 hours of sleep last night. I even worked out.
07:29:43 PM - @BodyMediaFIT I didn't sleep much yesterday. http://t.co/1AiwU4Of
09:08:56 PM - Is 650 Calories a lot for a salad? How about if the salad took me 45 minutes to eat (yesterday same salad took me 50+ minutes to eat)
10:05:44 PM - I have no idea how I'm still awake. I only slept 2 hours last night. I even worked out today. (run, weights, and yoga)

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

January Workout Goals - Overall

2012-01-31T21:07:00.002-05:00

I did them all! I actually made it. 4/5 of the way through the month, I thought there was no way I would ever do it. I killed myself the last few days and the workouts feel so good.

Complete 19 cardio workouts - Completed 22
Complete 13 core workouts - Completed 14
Frequency: Run 14 times - Completed 16
Distance: Run 60 total miles - Completed 60.35
Workout with Dave 10 times. - Completed 10
Lift weights 5 times on my own. - Completed 5
Perform yoga/BodyFlow 2 times - Completed 2
Attend Body Pump 3 times - Completed 3
Have 2 double workout days - Completed 4
Stretch for 10 consecutive min. 2 times - Completed 2

I had 1 bad week and still was able to make it. I had to double/triple do a lot of workouts. The miles I ran were a little end of the month heavy... I got 28.3 miles in the 4th week and 28.28 miles the first 3 combined. I also kind of cheated with the yoga not doing the full video.

January just flew by! Now it is time to make my February goals. I have to take into account there are 2 fewer days.

Complete 19 cardio workouts (running, exercise bike, or elliptical) (December = 18, met, November = 18, met)

1/2 - Run
1/3 - Run
1/4 - Bike (20 min)
1/5 - Run
1/7 - 5k
1/10 - Run
1/13 - Run
1/15 - Run
1/16 - Exercise bike (almost shouldn't count I went so slow)
1/17 - Exercise bike (slow but faster than 1/16)
1/18 - Exercise bike (during lunch)
1/21 - Exercise bike (30 min)
1/22 - Run @ North Park
1/23 - Run @ work (outside then inside)
1/24 - Run @ North Park
1/26 - Bike
1/27 - Run
1/28 - Race
1/28 - Pre-race warmup + post-race cooldown (since it was at different times I'll add this)
1/29 - Run
1/30 - Run
1/31 - Run

Complete 13 core workouts (December = 12, met; November = 12, not met)

1/4 - 5 min after Bike
1/8 - 5 minutes
1/9 - During Body Pump
1/10 - 6 minutes (with Dave)
1/13 - 5 min @ Gym
1/15 - 5 min (2 am)
1/15 - 5 minutes (9:30 PM)
1/17 - 5 minutes
1/18 - During Body Pump
1/21 - 6 minutes
1/23 - 5 minutes (tough)
1/26 - 5 minutes
1/29 - 5 minutes
1/30 - During Body Pump

Frequency: Run 14 times. (December = 10, met, November = 12, met with 15)

1/2
1/3
1/5
1/7
1/10
1/13
1/15
1/22
1/23
1/24
1/27
1/28
1/28
1/29
1/30
1/31

Distance: Run 60 total miles (0, 8, 12, 15, 20, 5) (December = 40, November = 65, met)

3.15 (1/2) + 1.25 (1/3) + 1.6 (1/5) + 3.03 (1/7) = 9.03
6.01 (1/10) + 2.51 (1/13) + 4 (1/15) = 12.52 {21.55}
6.73 (1/22) = 6.73 {28.28}
5.1 (1/23) + 5.37 (1/24) + 3 (1/27) + 4.64 (1/28) + 10.19 (1/29) = 28.3 {56.58}
2.75 (1/30) + 1.02 (1/31) = 3.77 {60.35}

Workout with Dave 10 times. (December = 12, but with all other activities it is hard to also workout with Dave, November = 8, met)

1/1 - 4.5 mile walk at North Park
1/3 - Gym at work (cardio then arms)
1/5
1/7 - Walk
1/10 - Core workout
1/15 - Gym at work
1/21 - 30 minutes of shoveling :)
1/23 - Gym (sort of)
1/26 - Bike
1/27 - Cardio then Weights

Lift weights 5 times on my own. (December = 5, not met; November = 4, met with 5)

1/3 - arms at the Gym
1/13 - arms after running
1/26 - before exercise bike
1/27 - Arms with Dave (30 min)
1/31 - Arms (not shoulders) + back (10 minutes)

Perform yoga/BodyFlow 2 times. (December = 2, met; November = 3, not met)

1/29 - shortened (by a lot) p90x
1/31 - p90x

Attend Body Pump 3 times. (December = 3, not met; November = 4, not met)

1/9 (@work)
1/18
1/30

Have 2 double workout days (morning + evening, lunch + evening, etc) [New]

1/7 - 5k + walk with Dave
1/18 - bike at lunch + Body Pump after work
1/23 - run after work + 8:30 PM abs & 10 min stretch
1/29 - run in the morning + yoga in the evening

Stretch for 10 consecutive minutes 2 times [New]

1/23
1/26

I have a few other goals that are related to exercise but aren't me working out.

Have another photo shoot to get some athletic pictures for at the top of this post.

Dave took a few at the gym on 1/15 (want more though)
Jen took some on 1/22 at North Park

Create a new running file with more information on Summary tabs in excel for 2012.

Updated. Might change it slightly as time goes on.

Rest Days
11, 12 (Both days I went to bed super early. My tooth + Vicodin)
14 - Issues with being lightheaded and having to rest (I blame it on the medicine for my tooth)
19 - Didn't feel well
20 - Busy
24 - Dentist and Ran so many days in a row.

Work Emails

2012-01-31T14:47:00.000-05:00

I love data. I wrote about my work emails before.

Here are 2 of my updated graphs. I try really hard everyday to sort/delete emails as they come in. I also try to read them all. I currently have 104 unread emails. The more unread emails the more stress. The last time I had 0 unread emails was December 14.

I have to change the scale almost daily for new maximums in my emails in my inbox graph.

Since I hate unread emails, sometimes I read an email and flag it. But then I get too many of those and then I can't keep up either. Flagged emails = stress. Daily I quickly look at my flagged email folder to see if I have done some of them or if they are no longer needed so I can unflag them. Too many of them are still required. I think I need a vacation from getting emails so I can try to catch up.

A few times coworkers have seen my excel file where I document this and have a bunch of graphs. I have gotten a few weird comments. One was "sometimes I worry about you" when they saw my excel for fun file. I'm off work this Friday and am going to try to spend 2 hours handling emails. Usually on a weekend, I can spend 3 or so hours and get through a good chunk. I will start with the unread emails then I will go to the flagged emails. I wonder how far I will get.

I love data. What would you graph {if you were to graph something}to show how good/bad you are doing in your work?

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-01-30T23:59:00.001-05:00

08:44:21 PM - Salads take too long to eat. I've been eating this one from chick-fil-a for 45 minutes so far.
11:03:52 PM - I'm on my 3rd episode of 90210. This might end badly. I have 5 more to go before I run out but I better stop after this one.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

1.4

2012-01-30T02:00:00.000-05:00

I telecommuted. I didn't get dressed in real clothes. I wore a sports bra and a tank top with jeans. I guess since I put on jeans I went somewhere but can't remember where.

I used the exercise bike + did abs.

I decided to try to set a goal of 700 miles in 2012. Do you think I can do it? I had about 530 miles in 2010 with an injury so I was off for 2 months.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-01-29T23:59:00.001-05:00

02:36:42 PM - I ran 10 miles today. The last mile was in 8:38. Not bad
10:59:10 PM - @TheNewChrissy 10 miles in under 10 minute pace. My goal was 10:20 too. I feel good.
11:03:09 PM - @reedaboutme that is the truth.
11:05:11 PM - In bed trying to sleep and Poky caught some ponytail holders so she meows until we acknowledge her.
11:12:50 PM - Yay. How was it? RT @angelineevans: How I spent my Sunday morning. http://t.co/bLtJSW4i

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

Long Run (1/29/12) - 10 miles

2012-01-29T21:51:00.005-05:00

I did my long run today, the day after my 5k. I planned to do 10. I was meeting a bunch of people at 10 AM but they were only going to do 5 or a little more. I decided to do 2 first before meeting the group so I at least got 7 in.

I ran out 1 mile and turned around. I didn't come back the same way and decided to run the big hill. That hill was slower than everything else I ran but it wasn't as bad as I ever thought it was. I guess I'm getting better.

Since not only was my long run the day after running a 5k but was also my first over 6.5 miles since I ran the marathon, I figured it would be slow. I was also running with new people and didn't know their pace. I was hoping to finish it all at a 10:20 pace. I was successful.

The temperature started around 28 degrees and warmed up to 35. The wind chill said it was 18 when I started and it was 20 when I looked later. I forgot to check at the very end of the run. It felt much warmer than that. I started the run with my hat on and my ear warmers. I took off the hat and my sleeves off after 2 miles. I took my gloves off and my light coat with about a mile left of the loop. I dropped those off and my neck warmer thing off at the car after the loop and ran in just a tank + dry weave shirt and headband. My hands got cold on that run though.

Here's some detailed information if you are interested.

The 2.11 miles were run continuously.

The 5.04 miles were run with 4:1 intervals.
The 3.04 miles were run with 3:1 until the last mile and we ran straight through.

My first 2 miles

At one point I dropped back (aka turned around and ran for a bit) to see if the 2 that fell behind from our group were OK with it. Then I had to speed up to catch back up with the group. No wonder I was huffing and puffing when I finally caught up to them. I was going close to a 7 minute mile pace. Crazy

1.8

2012-01-29T14:00:00.000-05:00

I stayed in bed late morning. I was so tired from my party. I did play with instagram for the first time ever. I should play with the effects of instagram because they are pretty cool.

Poly hung out in bed with us. I had to lay out my clothes from the day before to get my "daily picture" because I keep forgetting to take my picture days I wear those pants.

Poly got confused and thought she had to sabotage my clothes so that I wouldn't put them on.

I napped. I woke up to the door bell ringing when my parents visited. They came to help eat leftovers and to watch the Steeler game with us. Oh it was such an awful game.

Poly chose my dad to sleep on. Poly knows how to make company feel welcome.

1.7 - Party

2012-01-29T02:00:00.000-05:00

I woke up and made Chili. Then I went and ran a 5k.

I came home, prepped cooking some stuff. Looked at excel (brifely). I didn't even analyze race data.
I took a brief nap.
I went for a walk with Dave

Then we went on to cook.

We were not ready when everyone showed up :(

I had a ton of food. I didn't take pictures of any of it. I didn't get my daily picture. I didn't take pictures of the 13 people in attendance either. (That's a Jello shot. That's also Jen using 2 iPads to compare them.)

The last people left around midnight. Man was I tired.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-01-28T23:59:00.001-05:00

06:20:12 PM - It is sad that I feel like it is bed time and it isn't even 6:30 PM

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

Frostbite 5k for Autism (1/28/12)

2012-01-28T22:14:00.001-05:00

I ran another 5k at North Park. Not only were the 5ks at the same location but they had the exact same course!

I got there around 8:40. I was unsure where to park. I decided to park in a lot .25 from the Boathouse but didn't want to take my chances. Plus I wanted to get some extra miles in so parking further away helped.

I ran to register. Registration was upstairs in the Boathouse. I didn't even know there was an upstairs. It was pretty big too. I did see a sign once on the door saying a birthday party was through the door but I didn't know the door lead upstairs.

I ran back to the car (so another .31). I sat there and played on my phone until 9:30.

Then I ran to the start and went inside to keep warm. I ended up talking to some lady I didn't know and was glad we kept talking. At 9:50 I went outside. The race should have started at 10 but it didn't start until at least 10:30. The weather was way better than I expected. The previous few days I kept seeing cold rain. But the rain held off until after the race. The temperature was 35 but the wind chill was 28. (Screen shot was before the race started so it showed 33 and 28.)

I wore too many layers but I had the layers for before and after the race and figured it would still be good for the first 2 miles of the race so I would just feel hot the last mile or so. That is exactly what happened. I wonder if I would have run faster/better without so many layers on.

I didn't PR this time :( I was very close to my time last time. This time I didn't pick anyone to chase. I just ran. The course was the same but we didn't really cross the sides of the roads as much as last time.

At the very end I passed up this girl. I passed her up with 2 steps left. The timing was all manual so the guy made me stop to pull my tag off and then the girl who I passed and who ran into my BACK when they made me stop, had an official time ahead of me. What makes it worse is she was 2nd in my age group and I was 3rd. The only thing that makes it a little bit better is only the top finisher in each age group got an award so neither of us got something.

I forgot to stop the timer so the pace got so slow at the end that you can't see the pace graphs as good. The peak halfway through was the turnaround.

After the race, Adrienne and I walked down to see her son finish and then her daughter. After we saw her son, we saw some lady that was injured. She was grabbing her knee. She injured it. I'm not sure what she did, but I assume fall. She kept grabbing her knee but I think it was bloody. Adrienne and I ran to get the race director and some lady went to get her with her fan. She was concerned about driving on the course. It was only about .25 from the finish and since it was so far into the race, there weren't that many people so we told her she'd be fine driving to get her. I never saw what happened to her after that. I'm kind of curious.

Adrienne and I stayed at the finish for a few minutes until she saw her daughter coming in. She ran down to run in and finish with her. I got a picture at the finish. Race photographers did too. Their pictures were better but who knows if I'll get to see those official ones at all. I'm still waiting to find out about the Resolution Run pictures.

After the race, we headed to Parish Hill for the awards. The directions needed to be more specific to get there. I didn't know the distance. Also they should have warned that I'd have to park up the hill because Parish Hill doesn't have enough parking in their lot. I had to go all the way down to JC Stone field to turn around and head back up the hill.

They had some food and some water. There was some local up and coming rapper there. Then they did awards. That's where I learned only the top runner in each age group got a prize instead of the top 3. They also only gave the top female an award not the top 3 females. It was the first year for this race and I hope they make some changes for next year. There were 300 runners this year so that was pretty good for a first year race especially a first year race that had very little online about it.

While I ran this time, the splits that popped up were rounded down and my mile 1 added up was 7:59 but unrounded numbers ended up with 8:01. This was the first time I realized each split is rounded down that pops up. I think I will have to set goal times 1 second lower from now on to account for this.

Compare my splits from the Frostbite 5k to the Resolution Run. My best split and worst split were the same. I had 3 splits under 2:00 in both too.

Official results are posted and I'm shocked how many there are in my age group!

1.6

2012-01-28T15:30:00.000-05:00

I was off work so I wore workout clothes on top and jeans so that I could be productive
Jacket: Soma
Tank: F21 (I love the fit and color. I tried to go back and buy more but they didn't have them anymore)
Jeans: Express

The picture in the top right shows how I document my mileage/speed on the treadmill. I write when running and sometimes add a little more later.

The top left picture shows how our fridge wasn't 100% full after we went shopping. I don't even know how that happened.

Dave and I went grocery shopping for our party and we both needed a nap after. Poly napped with us too.

1.3

2012-01-28T00:30:00.000-05:00

Blue and orange.... the colors don't look so dominant in these pictures
Shoes: Connie
Pants: Gap
Sweater: Express
Tank: ?
Necklace: Target

I discovered the bruise on my leg a few days before taking this picture. I have no idea how I got it and it's a pretty big bruise too.

Dave and I watched Iowa Caucus news all evening.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-01-27T23:59:00.001-05:00

07:13:47 AM - I accidentally carried my gym bag into work instead of leaving it in my car. now i'll just have to carry it back out when i go to the gym.
07:35:26 AM - Well it's 2012 and I've animated something on a PowerPoint slide for the first time in my life.
06:34:35 PM - @briecs No. I used some finite elements program in college but don't remember a thing. Never used ANSYS.
08:53:32 PM - It's sad when I feel like I'm catching up blogging when I am only 16 days behind. 16! That is a lot.
09:23:20 PM - Dave and Poly are sleeping. http://t.co/NkHQQHRq
09:26:06 PM - Help me reach my goal for my Bowl for Kids Sake! http://t.co/zhtiO44h
10:07:12 PM - @lisafilipek that's what I did when the Internet was out (re: Internet on phone)

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

Life

2012-01-27T21:24:00.002-05:00

I've been thinking about life lately. I do the same things; I like what I'm doing at home but I'm not doing anything to improve myself. TV is taking up too much of my time. I'm doing things I like to do like blogging and analyzing my running data, but I'm not reading, learning, or being productive. I read reddit about running. I read in general about running, but really what do I learn from this. I need to start reading or doing things that will benefit my career. I have some things on my to-do list for months and never get to doing them. I've had a skirt that will take 5 minutes to sew sitting around for a few months. I need to sew a button back on a shirt and it's also sitting right there.

Why is it so hard to be productive and to do things that will benefit me in the long run?

The problem is that I don't want to give up anything I do for fun. I've been thinking that I need more of a specific schedule so I get something productive done each week day. What do you do (even if it doesn't always work) to stay productive?

I want to learn how to use my camera better. I want to learn what all the manual settings are and when and how to use each little thing.
I want to use my sewing machine more and sew a few skirts. I bought fabric almost a year ago.
I want to try on clothes in my closet and come up with new outfits. I have so many clothes and so few "outfits" because I have such trouble matches. At 6AM I just keep going with what I know instead of trying something new. I also just want to see what fits and what doesn't.

The more I think about it, the more I want to do something more with my life. Do you ever go through times like this and what changes have you made after you thought of this?

(BTW I've been watching TV for the past 4 hours tonight which is the opposite of what I want, but at least I have been watching the news instead of normal TV shows.)

1.2

2012-01-27T18:30:00.000-05:00

I was at my computer until midnight on the first and thought that wasn't too late but then my tooth hurt so bad it kept me up past 2am. I finally thought of taking Advil and that helped and I was able to get to sleep.

But since I was up so late (plus only sleeping 5 hours the previous night), I was really tired in the morning. I allowed myself to reset my alarm and sleep in a bit. I still hit snooze some too. I still got to work by 8 which is better than a lot of people.

I had so many emails that I ended up doing emails all morning and not getting to any of my regular work that I knew I had to do.

Dave and I went to Moe's for lunch. Then after lunch, I meant to do real work, but only did emails. I think I still had 110 unread emails when I left.

I left at 3:30 to go run with Jen. That means I'll have time to make up later this week. I do that without even trying.

After the run, I analyzed the data while a purring Poly sat on my lap. I wanted to get up and do some stuff but I just couldn't disrupt her.

After Dave got home, I ate dinner and we watched In Treatment. Then we began finalizing our menu for our Christmas Party. I ended up with 6 cookbooks around me. While menu planning we had on MSNBC and then I couldn't turn it off. I had to pry myself away at 10:30. At least after menu planning, I loaded the dishwasher and cleaned up a bit. Now the main floor isn't a wreck. It isn't neat but it isn't a wreck. Hopefully it only gets better as the week goes on instead of getting worse.

1.23 - Sapphire

2012-01-27T01:30:00.000-05:00

This is the first time I wore black tights with this skirt. I like it.

Skirt + Shirt = Express (Shirt 2002, Skirt 2010)
Belt: Target
Tights: Target
Shoes: Aldo
I swore I was wearing a necklace in the morning but I guess I wasn't.

I really wish I left for work in the daylight or that I got home from work in the daylight. These shadowy pictures suck.

I took far to long to read ready in the morning. Perhaps going over to my computer wasn't the best way to hurry it along.

I had numerous meetings. I got lots of action items at the meetings but I didn't have time to do anything because I had far too many other meetings.

At 2, someone brought a "guest" to my meeting. I then learned that guest is my new director.

I took a break from working to go run and then I came back to work. On my way back to my desk my admin asked if my face turns that red just from running. She's seen me before after a run so maybe it was worse. I didn't notice anything out of the ordinary in the locker room and then I forgot to look to see what I looked like. Oh well.

I stayed at work far too long. I finally came home and Dave told me to take a shower before we ate dinner. After my shower I had Dave cut my hair. Then we ate leftover stuffed peppers. Then I watched MSNBC all night except the time I was watching the debate. I did miss a little debate because I ran upstairs to analyze some running data.

We went to sleep before the debate was over. We're old. I'm so tired anymore.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-01-26T23:59:00.001-05:00

01:33:05 PM - My desk isn't super messy. I handled all the post-it to do lists. http://t.co/y2fYOpnX
06:11:59 PM - Can I switch to a job where I'm not overworked please?
09:05:39 PM - even with screwing up & not having orthotics or insoles in my shoes in my gym bag today, I can still meet my mileage goal w/ 2.25, 4, 10, 5.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

1.16

2012-01-26T01:00:00.000-05:00

Cardigan: NY&Co
Shirt: Express
Pants: Express (but I thought I put on my VS ones and I wondered why they felt so big
Shoes: Aldo
Necklace: Lia Sophia

I got to work early. I was so busy all day it was insane. I feel so busy a lot lately so it was nothing out of the ordinary. I wanted to go to Body Pump + run. I did neither and left work after Body Pump would have been over.

I came home and watched TV. I cleaned up a little. I watched more TV. Then finally I used the exercise bike for 16 minutes. I only count it as cardio if I use it for 15 minutes. I prefer longer but for my workout goals I had to have a cutoff. I was doing the bare minimum.

I watched some popping videos that Dave was extremely grossed out about. {Dave would recommend that you do not click that link.} Then we watched this other one that he said he needs to recover from. He is traumatized. Now tell me it wouldn't be the coolest thing if someone you knew had a huge pimple/cyst and you got to pop it and go at it?

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-01-25T23:59:00.001-05:00

11:16:40 AM - stress = someone presenting in less than half hour and I still don't have their presentation. I'm running the Live meeting. Sigh
11:17:05 AM - @DarlingSparrow1 The knee feels good. The legs are tired. They are used to 2 months of laziness. How is your running going?
04:05:59 PM - Why do waiting rooms always cause me to fall asleep.
04:26:41 PM - I can't stay awake. I need a nap.
06:34:50 PM - Oh boy my mouth/tooth hurts. The crown stuff they did today was way worse than the root canal. Then I have to go back to get the real crown
06:40:43 PM - The pizza guy shows up and Poly bests us all to the door.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

1.17

2012-01-25T20:54:00.001-05:00

Sweater & Cami: Express
Pants: VS
Shoes: Connie via Famous Footwear
Necklace: Lia Sophia

Poly slept with me and then I got up and she still slept there.

I got my root canal. It was nothing like I expected. There was a lot of testing to make sure the tooth I was complaining about was the tooth they were about to do the root canal on. The dentist got a piece of ice and held it with little tweezer things and rubbed it on my teeth one at a time to make sure the one that made me flinch like crazy is the one that he was going to work on. The dentist also sings a lot during the entire process. He takes songs that everyone would know (but me because I don't know music) and then changes out the words to dentist stuff or stuff going on in the office. That's the best part about him. The dentist said my root canal is perfect so I made him explain what a bad root canal would look like on the x-ray.

I took my picture when the dentist left the room at one point. I took pictures of my x-rays twice. I sent an email when the dentist stepped out too. I wonder if people normally do this.

I got called back over 15 minutes late and I kept falling asleep in the waiting room. What is it about waiting rooms that make me so tired and I fall asleep. People tend to look at me weird when they see me sleeping.

Have you ever had a root canal? Did you get a crown or a temporary crown?

I got home and tried to take my pill because I forgot at lunch and when I heard liquid hit the floor, I realized I wasn't swallowing it all. My shirt also ended up all wet. No good.

I watched TV. I used the exercise bike for a short time. I rested and went to sleep early.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-01-24T23:59:00.001-05:00

11:26:31 AM - @BodyMediaFIT Check out my post about not having time to eat healthy http://t.co/o0DxYPTr
07:04:51 PM - I enjoyed the hot shower after the cold run outside. But then I realized my skin was all red so I should stop standing there under the water
08:47:21 PM - Our Internet is down. I ate 3 eggs an 4 pieces of toast and I'm still hungry.
09:19:44 PM - I ran 17.2 miles in 3 days!
09:27:47 PM - We had to pause the SOTU so we could figure out why Kerry looked like he was beat up.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

5.37 Mile Run (North Park - 1/24)

2012-01-24T22:05:00.000-05:00

I ran again with Jen. We ran 1 mile, walked 1 minute, ran 1 mile, walked 1 minute, ran .5 and then turned around. Then we set up my run/walk app to run 3 and walk 1. We did that until about a half mile left and we just continued running. I think ended up missing 2 walk intervals.

Our 5-5.25 mile split was 2:18 which is very good for that far into that run. Then we booked it even further and ran the last .09 at 8:25 pace. Then we walked horizontally across the parking lot to the car and I stopped the timer after that.

My legs were tired at the beginning since it's my third day in a row running. I ran 17.2 miles in 3 days. Lately I have been running 10 in a week.

We made it until about the 4th mile until we had to get out our flashlight and headlamp. If only I didn't leave work 20 minutes late, then we would have made it further or even finished before needing the lights.

We stayed on the back half of the lake to avoid traffic. It's a lot safer that way. We turned around at 2.66 miles.

Jen sure is improving a lot over the last few months. I can't wait to see what her running future holds.

If I want to meet my monthly mileage goal which I have said there is no way I'd make it, I would need to run almost 22 miles in the next 6 days! I also have a 5k on Saturday so that also puts a damper on resting my legs. My legs are far too tired for a race right now.

I need to turn on auto pause on my watch but I always forget when I'm near my watch except for when I'm running and then I'm running and don't want to be messing with it. I forgot to stop the timer today but at least I had a "moving time" to use so the 3 minutes I spent stretching were subtracted out.

I need to compare all runs with Jen and each mile split to find out how they compare. I used to make a table comparing my own north park runs but ever since I got the garmin and adjusted how I track everything, I forgot to compare all the extras I used to. I need to compare my run from yesterday to other runs around the loop at work.

1.19

2012-01-24T00:30:00.000-05:00

Pants: VS, Sweater: Express, Shoes: Aldo, Necklace: Sears

I've worn this combination before but different shoes this time. These shoes aren't as tall and it's noticeable that the pants are too long. I hate how it is dark when I leave for work and Dark when I get home. Indoor daily pictures are kind of sucky. (Granted outdoor ones are too because I don't have a working remote so then the shrubs across the street are in focus and not me.)

I made it out of bed to shower and get to work by 7:30 for a meeting.

I didn't feel well at work. I swear I had a fever or something. It was rough going at work. I wasn't very productive. I probably should have left a bit early but I didn't.

I ran to Target after work to buy stuff for our Holiday Party. The snow had started coming down so everyone was trying to leave work and drive and it was all going far too slow. I wish I would have remembered to buy some Mr Clean to mop with. Sigh.

I got home and was very productive emptying the garbage, taking out the trash, moving the mower, moving the boxes, and moving the recycling. It was exhausting. I wanted to curl up in a ball but knew some of that had to get done before Dave's car was in the garage. I also shoveled the entire side of the driveway to make it easier for Dave to get into the garage. He didn't get home for 30+ minutes and the driveway was covered again but at least he was able to make it up it without having to stop in the street to get out and shovel.

We made little hot dogs wrapped in crescent rolls for dinner. I ate a bunch of junk after that.

We were watching American Idol. We stopped that at 8pm to watch the debate. I can't believe the first question was to Gingrich about how his ex-wife had interviews about him asking for an open marriage. 17 minutes into the debate, Romney only said 1 thing (let's get on to the real questions). I thought they should try to be even.

I cleaned up a little bit. I finally washed 2 trays still dirty from my party on January 7. On January 8, a friend asked me if I did all the dishes yet. I laughed. I still haven't done them all! There are 2 cutting boards still sitting there waiting to be washed. I was productive even though I didn't want to be. I wanted to curl up in a ball.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

2012-01-23T23:59:00.001-05:00

05:31:08 PM - nice weather so I head to run outside. .08 mi into run it starts pouring. i run 2.09 miles. poured from .08 on.
05:31:28 PM - then I ran on the treadmill. I heard that shortly after I was done running outside, the rain stopped. Also I missed a double rainbow.
06:55:53 PM - I just had Dave cut about 5 inches off my hair. Only been wanting a haircut since June.
07:44:18 PM - I ran 32 miles in 23 days and need to run 28 in 7 days to meet my running goal.
09:59:31 PM - my legs are tired.
10:35:50 PM - What workouts would you do for the next week if you were me? (@TheNewChrissy @iamoddd @RestonStyle) http://t.co/ccXJHwGI

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

Run (1/23/12) 2.09 mi + 3.01 mi

2012-01-23T22:34:00.000-05:00

While I was working this afternoon (after core hours ended), I realized how warm it was and figured I would beat myself up if I didn't get a run in. I checked the weather and it projected rain the 4:00 hour and it was about 3:50. I looked outside and it looked clear enough.

I decided to go run then go back to work.

Well I went over and changed and by the time I was running I got .08 mi into the run before the rain started. It poured the entire time I ran. I then went in and changed my shoes and went to run on the treadmill. I looked a bit soaked but figured nobody would notice. I learned that just a few minutes after I was done running, the rain stopped. I know JUST how to pick the worst time to run.

Except the run was really good. My first split was 1:56 for 1/4 of a mile. My 2nd split was 2:02. I guess the rain was doing good. I used to run the entire loop in 18 minutes. Then I got it down to running it in 16 minutes plus the little over 2 minutes it took to get to the loop and the 2 minutes back. Without looking at any data, I'm 99% sure this was the fastest I ever ran at work. It was definitely faster than any time last year. Two years ago I was a bit faster than last year and I still think I beat all of those times. I didn't have a garmin back then and just used a timer and compared 1 loop to the next. For those of you that forget, the loop at work is very hilly. It felt much less hilly than it used to.

I had to stop at the cross walk because for some reason cars have the right away.

My first mile was pretty good. After my first split in the second mile, I decided to make a goal of 9:20 and even with the biggest hill in the loop, I met my goal.

I went to the loop at a different entrance this time. My run was 2.09 instead of the 2.18 it could have been. (Today it should have been 2.10 but I walked a bit past the door getting my GPS on.)

On my way back into the building some guy said to me "This is a bad time to run with soaked socks." Now that seemed like such a weird thing to say. You are soaked all over that I could barely tell my socks were wet.

On my way into the locker room to change, one janitor saw me and said hi. He's the janitor that always says hi to me but never says hi to any of the guys I see around me. Then after my run, he was out there again and said, "You poor girl." Sometimes I think the reactions are so funny. I could have not run out in the rain so it was my own doing. I could have returned back much earlier since there are 4 entrances back into the parking lot.

After I ran outside, I went to run on the treadmill. I wanted to run 5 miles but I just wasn't feeling it outside. I ran 1 mile doing 1 minute intervals. This time I did 7.4 mph, 6.6 mph, 7.6 mph, 6.6 mph and repeat. I stopped and got water. I only drank about 6 oz all day and some of that was fruit punch and not even water. The 2nd mile I started at 6.6 and went up every minute by .2 mph until 8.0 mph and then I went down to 7.8. I would have kept going but I stopped after a mile of this because Dave came down to the gym and I wanted to talk to him. I did talk to him for over a minute while I finished my mile.

Then I decided to run 1 more mile. I started at 7.8 mph. I went down by .3 mph this time since I was tuckered. I got down to 6.3 mph and then climbed back up. I ended with 1.01 miles to compensate for the .09 from earlier so I could have it end in kind of a round number.

I had to run on the treadmill without my headphones because I left my one pair in my gym bag at home and I left the other pair in my purse back at my desk. I am SHOCKED I made it 3 miles on the treadmill without headphones and after running outside. I can't believe I kept up with the speed as fast as I did.

You can tell from my BodyMedia fit screen shot that I did in fact stop after each mile. I also only stretched for about a minute after. I should have probably stretched about 5 minutes like I normally do based on my level of soreness now. I guess a hard run 1 day after my longest run in 2 months wasn't the best choice.

January workout goal needs

2012-01-23T20:11:00.000-05:00

Photo Credit: Jen

In 7.15 days I have to do the the following to meet my workout goals!

Complete 5 cardio workouts {19} - 74% complete
Complete 3 core workouts {13} - 77% complete
Frequency: Run 5 times {14} - 64% complete
Distance: Run 26.62 total miles {60} - 59% complete
Workout with Dave 2 times {10} - 80% complete
Lift weights 3 times on my own. {5} - 40% complete
Perform yoga/BodyFlow 2 times {2} - 0 % complete
Attend Body Pump 1 times {3} - 66% complete
0 double workout days {2} - 100% complete
Stretch for 10 consecutive minutes 2 times {2} - 0% complete

The month is 74% over. I'm only on track for 3 of them I guess. Oh boy. If only week three wasn't such a bad week. I should put my goals in excel so I wouldn't manually have to do all the numbers and percents above. I probably messed something up.

How should I plan out my next week to accomplish as many of these as possible.
So far my plan is to run with Jen on Tuesday and run 5 miles (that will help out 2 goals)
Wednesday I have to get my crown at 4 so I won't be able to run after work. I also have a meeting all through lunch so I can't run then. I do hope to be done and ready to be able to get to body pump at 6pm.

Now plan the rest of the days for me! Keep in mind I am sore today from my fast 5.1 miles that I ran. I also ran over 6.5 yesterday.

12.31 - NYE

2012-01-23T16:00:00.000-05:00

I assume I didn't do much prior to leaving for the 5k. I probably did something and can't remember though. We headed for the 5k around 1:30 PM.

I can't believe how good the weather was for a NYE 5k.

After the 5k I ate. Then I went running to meet my monthly mileage goal. Right after that I showered and then I had to do work.

Poly was trying to help me get my work done on NYE. I was there and she cuddled up between me and my computer. I just had to get up to get my camera. Doing the work caused me to be late for the NYE party. The work I had to do wasn't really my work but it was doing work for my director and I couldn't have done it until I got an email from her granting her approval and then I had to do some things for her.

I actually wasn't that late to Callie's but I like to be the first one there. I didn't take many pictures. I was there until 4:30 am or so. We played Encore and I hated that game. I don't know songs. Then we played catch phrase. That is more fun. I love how we play that game every year.

Just look how cute Poly is. I used photo shop to edit the same picture in many different ways. I don't know which one I like the best. I named the files based on what I did to them but once they went into the collage, I don't know which is which.

I took my daily picture at 5am. I had a different outfit on but then Dave didn't think the skirt went that well.
Sweater: Express
Necklace: Black House White Market (or whatever the name of that store is)
Skirt: F21 (I think)
Tights: Target
Shoes: Aldo