Running with Friends

After two marathons and a tough mudder, it was time to give my body a little lovin' and a break.  Not to mention, I suffered a groin strain in May.
Can you say OUCH?
I strained it in May while running a 10k while beating my previous best PR.  I ran it in 46 minutes.  For me, that is really, really good.  And, I did it without peeing in my pants.
Heeeey! 
After visiting two doctors, I was told to nurse it with ibuprofen and time.  I was told to rest, stretch, and ice it.  The doctor said-- No running!  ...At least for awhile.
I was a good patient and listened to the doctors, of course.
A few weeks later, I was ready for a GLOW RUN with my friends.
Despite the horrid NM winds, it was so much fun!
We were goofy.

Girls rule!

And we were awesome.
Best of all, I got to run it with my husband.
He's quite the runner himself... seriously.  He's fast!

Love this guy!

 I would love to do more races with him.
As many running moms know though, somebody has to stay with the kids!
I'm lucky to have been able to run with my sisters, friends, and the love of my life.

What's next? A Tough Mudder you say? Check!

So, here's the deal:

I have a crazy blind friend who is training for a tough mudder.  Like seriously... he's blind; as in, he can't see.  Incredible, right?

Have you heard of a tough mudder?

They consist of 10-12 miles with many, many obstacles.

These aren't just ordinary obstacles either-- you drench yourself in freezing water, you run through live wires, you carry teammates or sometimes random strangers for any length of time, and so forth.

I was inspired so, of course, I did it.

On a whim, I signed up for the Arizona tough mudder... ALONE.

 I literally signed up the day before the race.

(I do not recommend this for just anyone at any given time.

You must understand that I had trained for 2 marathons in the last couple of months and I was extremely fit for this race.)

 So, I loaded up my girls and drove from our little Los Lunas town, all the way to the Phoenix airport where I would pick up the fabulous Gabe.  He's my hunk of a husband.  You see, he was in California for work when I started my trek west and it was easier for him to meet me in AZ.

Have I mentioned that he is my biggest supporter?  He's the best.

So anyways....

Before the race began

 To get to the start line of the tough mudder, you have to get over a big wall.  This is a good time to step out of your comfort zone and ask strangers to help you-- at least I had to.

I looked pretty foolish too.  I got both legs over but couldn't get my butt over.  Seriously.  I had to yell, "Push my butt up!"  Embarrassing.

Luckily, I found a nice team that welcomed me to their group.

One thing about these tough mudders is that they are full of camaraderie.  Everyone helps everyone.

I trudged through mud.

I scaled walls.

I swam under freezing water.

I jumped off a high dive.

BTW, did I mention that I greatly fear water?  I've never had swim lessons.

I ran up half pipe kinda walls.

I ran and got shocked by live wires.

I loved every. single. moment.

And I loved having my family there to cheer me on.

I hope to inspire my girls to be strong, independent, women.  

The End.

 

Disney has come and gone...

So, remember how I mentioned that during marathon training, I barely had time to fit in yoga?

Well, let me tell you what...

I had zero time to blog about my training for Disney.

Don't ask me why.

I'm not as cool as other bloggers, I guess.

But, seriously.

We had Halloween.

We had Thanksgiving.

We had Christmas time.

Then, BAM!

It was marathon time.  I hope you will understand.  

But here it is.

My sister and I had signed up late so we landed in the last corral.  

This was a big deal because there were HUNDREDS, maybe even thousands, of people running this race.

In fact, it meant that the gun would fire to start and we would patiently (or impatiently, whatever!) watch fireworks for a 1/2 hour or more before we would actually get across the start line. 

But hey, Disney does it right!

We ran all around Disney World, seeing the most magical sights and characters.  Runners even had the chance to jump on a roller coaster if they wanted to take a break.  We didn't... what losers, huh?

Oh yeah, that is Cinderella's castle behind us.

Words could not give this experience justice.  All I can say is:

Go. Run. Disney. 

At the end of the race we were tired of course.

We took a few photos.

This one is me, Sunny, and out amazing cousin, Kelli.  She is a fitness rockstar!  She did the 1/2 marathon the day before this picture was taken.  One day, I will run a full marathon WITH her.  

My wonderful, and generous, grandmother had booked us a room at Saratoga Springs right in Disney so we went straight there to sleep afterwards.  If you've run a marathon though, you know that your legs don't stop even if you are trying to sleep. Lol!

It truly was a fabulous experience though.

One of these days, I'll go back to Disney and race again.

These marathons have given me so much appreciation for what my body can do.

I have pushed myself to my limits and then pushed harder.

Running is me.

I wish I had known this sooner.

I AM MARATHON STRONG. 

And so are YOU!

Try it.