My First 10k

I ran my first 10k race on Saturday (6.2 miles). It was the Bridal Veil Falls 10k...we ran 3.1 miles up the trail and 3.1 miles down. It was a good experience and I'm glad I did it. I was nervous before it started, as I am with all firsts. But once I got running I felt better and my nerves calmed down. The challenge was figuring out how to pace myself. I think I did a fairly good job because I met my goal. I wanted to finish the race in 60 minutes and I did. Almost exactly, give or take 30 seconds. The official results aren't posted yet. Anyway, I think I could have gone a little faster had I not slowed down to grab a drink they were handing out after mile two. I grabbed gatorade before I realized they had water available. Bad idea. I guzzled it down and got rid of the cup and went on my way. It didn't sit well with me and slowed me down for the next couple of miles as it sloshed around in my tummy. When my stomach isn't feeling well it's hard for me to run fast. Oh well, I learned from that and I won't do it again. Anyway, I felt pretty good for mile 5, but during mile six I got this shooting pain in my back. I ran through it, but man that was tough. I sped up for the last quarter mile or so and finished strong. Boy was I happy to see that finish line! Brad came to watch me finish and took a couple of pictures of me. Thanks for coming and supporting me, honey!

I must admit that I don't love running. It's growing on me, though. I mostly do it because it's good exercise, I like the way I feel when I'm done, and it feels like I'm accomplishing something when I tackle each mile. It's been fun running outdoors the past couple of weeks and enjoying nature. I also run because I can. I never thought I'd be able to run this much due to my feet and knee issues. But thankfully, at this point in time, I've been running with minimal pain. As I was running the race, I couldn't help but think about what a blessing it is to be able to use my body to run through such beautiful scenery and to be able to push myself beyond limits I thought I was capable of. Our bodies really are amazing, with how they are able to heal and adapt over time. Especially when we pay attention to what our bodies need and give them proper rest.

So basically, it was a positive experience and I'm looking forward to my next race in less than three weeks. I want to improve my time by 2 minutes. It should be even more fun because I'll be running it with Brad and Julie, my sister. This is a fun new hobby and it will be fun to see how I improve over the next few years. Here are the pictures that we got from the race. As you can see, I was pretty focused at the end. I had to pass that girl!

The finish line is in sight!

So close...just a little longer...keep breathing!

My support! Thanks for coming!

I love long weekends!

Three day weekends are the best. It gives you time to get all the cleaning and chores and errands done, and still have some time to relax and have some fun. Some highlights from our weekend, in no particular order:

• Slept in
• Went on a couple of long runs in great running weather
• Played tennis together (got sunburned)
• Watched a couple of movies (yea for Redbox!)
• Watched a couple of shows we've been saving on our DVR
• Went to a family BBQ
• Ate some really good Bajio's Chicken Green Chile Quesadillas
• Cleaned our whole apartment
• Finished all the laundry
• Worked on a couple of home projects
• Went to church
• Went to the temple
• Took a long nap
• Enjoyed just spending time together

You know, these three day weekends don't come around often enough. One per month would be nice, don't you think? Well I hope all of you had a fun and relaxing Memorial Day weekend. We sure did.

Gotta Run!

I've been running more lately because I'm training for a couple of 10k's (6.2 mile runs) this summer. I even talked Brad into running the second one with me (this is a big deal because he's not really into working out...thanks for running honey!). The races are coming right up...the first one I'm running is the Bridal Veil Falls 10k on May 30th and the one we are running together (and with my lovely sister Julie) is the Scenic River Classic 10k in Idaho Falls on June 20th. I'm a little nervous because I haven't raced a whole lot and these will be my first 10k races. I keep reminding myself that all I have to do is finish the first one and then I can try to improve my speed on the second one. No comparing allowed, except for with myself. I've found that having these races planned has helped increase my motivation to workout consistently and to kick up the intensity a couple of notches. I feel like training for and completing these races really will be an accomplishment for me because 1)racing is new for me and 2)I have couple of stumbling blocks I have to deal with. I have exercise induced asthma as well as flat feet with overpronation (ankles roll in.) So I get kind of scared to run fast because, well, I hate not being able to breathe. But my inhaler seems to help some. As for the feet/knees, they've been doing all right as long as I don't overdo it. I find that running every other day works the best for me and doing cross-training activities (yoga, strength training, elliptical) on the other days works well and keeps my knees and feet happy.

So the other day I decided that I needed running shoes because I thought my shoes were cross trainers. I talked to Brad and he gave me the go ahead (along with a price limit :). As I searched the internet for running shoes, I kept spotting the shoes I already have. I did a search for the best running shoes for flat feet and it turns out that the Brooks Ariel (the shoes I have) are great for people with flat feet and overpronation. They are running shoes, but they look different because they have extra structural support. They are a little heavier and bulkier than regular running shoes, but I can deal with that if they are helping my feet. No complaints about them, I just didn't think they were running shoes. So basically, I've realized that just what I needed all along was right under my nose, literally. And I really haven't had much foot pain since wearing them (just a little knee pain), so I figure, if it's not broken, why fix it? Plus my orthotics fit great in them. So I'll continue wearing them for training. That means I can use that money for something else...hmmm it's about time for a new swimsuit:) (I've worn the same one for about 4-5 years).

Brooks Ariel Running Shoe

(the shoe I already have)

I've mostly been training on the treadmill's at Gold's Gym, but I've been starting to run outside a little. Yesterday morning I ran with a few girls in my ward that are training for the Wasatch Relay. We did a hill run. It was intense and they probably thought I was going to passout from breathing so hard, but don't worry, I didn't. So I'm going to run with them as much as I can because I feel like it pushes me to run faster than I do on my own. But they run at a reasonable pace that I feel like I can handle. Anyway, I'm slowly being converted to outdoor group running. The time goes by way faster when you have someone to chat with.

Sorry I don't have any pictures to post. We'll take some pictures of our races. If any of you have any training or racing advice, I'd love to hear it. Gotta run!

Our Disneyland Trip

Brad and I took a fun little trip to Disneyland and got back a few days ago. It turned out to be a really fun trip. It was great to spend some quality time together and just get away for a while. We got to go on plenty of rides, some of them twice. We had to pace ourselves because Brad has a little problem with motion sickness. But we found that if we didn't do too many big rides in a row, he handled them better. Anyway, he was a trooper and went on most of the rides I wanted to go on. Thanks Brad! We spent some good time at Disneyland, but we spent a little more time at California Adventures, which is another Disney park right next to Disneyland. They had more "big kid" rides and some fun shows to watch. We had fairly decent weather. I wore my jacket about half of the time. Not bad compared to the snow in Utah! Our favorite ride was California Screamin'. It was a roller coaster that went upside down. Brad seemed to handle it alright so we went on it twice. My other top picks would be Hollywood's Tower of Terror and Space Mountain. My favorite show was the live show of Aladdin. It was really well done and we had great seats. I was very impressed and I would recommend it to any of you who will be heading to California Adventure's this summer.

Our hotel was just across the street from the park entrance which was very convenient. We were able to go home for lunch and a nap everyday. It was great! We also ate lots of good food including Cheesecake Factory! Wow, their cheesecake was superb. Brad did all of the driving to and from California. I offered but he said he was fine. It was fine by me because I got to watch a bunch of movies on my I-pod.

Our trip was short and sweet, but it was much needed and much enjoyed. So now we're back into the swing of things and Brad has started the spring term for school. You know, I think when you get back from a vacation, you need a day to get organized and prepared for diving back into real life. Unfortunately we didn't have that luxury, but we survived just the same. I finally got myself to go grocery shopping last night and the laundry is all caught up. Life is good.

Here are some of the pictures from our vacation for your viewing pleasure :) Enjoy!

Just entering Disneyland!

Brad on the Mark Twain ferry ride

Still on the ferry

The captain invited the two of us to ride up at the top of the ferry, right next to him. The captain of the ferry actually took this picture for us. It was fun. Brad got to pull the horn a few times and we even got to sign in a guest book and he gave us a certificate. It was a really great view of the park.

Waiting for the rides to open at California Adventures. We were all set for the Tower of Terror and it proved to be a great ride. Not as intense as the one in Florida (if I remember correctly) but we still really liked it. We got fast passes for it and went on it again.

We like Monster's Inc. so this was a fun ride.

A High School Musical show. Some fun singing and dancing. Brad let me watch for about 5 minutes. He was hungry :)

A parade featuring all the Pixar/Disney movies. It was cute and creative.

Just outside our hotel, the Tropicana Inn. It was a great place to stay. It had a nice pool and hot tub, it was clean, and there was a fridge and microwave in our room. Oh and kind of a continental breakfast. We would stay there again. So close to the park we couldn't believe it.

Our favorite ride, California Screamin'. Oh and Brad did scream. Loud.

Just leaving California Adventures. We chose the 'R' since our last name is Roper. Cool, huh!?