My First Half-Marathon

So I'm pretty sure I will be running the Hartford 1/2 Marathon in October. Besides signing up, I've already started training and putting on more miles. I have plenty of time to go and my body seems to be handling the long runs well. I did my first run over 6.5 miles this weekend and ran 7.5 miles at 8:58 a mile. Not too shabby. I started off slower and let my body get faster over time. I think that's the key for me in making it through longer runs. Now, if I can just keep that mindset when it comes to a race.

This weekend, I am running an 8-miler. Its the 1st annual Little Lake Sunapee 8-miler. Although its a race, I don't intend to run it as a race. I'm going to use it as a training run. There is one big hill that I'm nervous about but other than that I think I'll be ok.

The office weight loss competition has been going well. It's been a balancing act. I did gain in one week, but I'm still down over 3 pounds. 3 pounds isn't a ton but I don't intend on losing 30 pounds either. I'm looking to stop at around 10 pounds.

I am allowing myself to think negatively during races, which is having an effect on me. I need to refocus my energy on speeding up and believing I will get thru it rather than allowing myself to think I wouldn't.

I Always Do This...

I abandon my blog for months and then attempt to reclaim it only to abandon it again in a few weeks. Admittedly, while I love the practice of law, I also hate it. Why you ask? Because I have no life. I leave the house every morning by 6:45 am and don't get home until at least 6. I never make time to run and in return, I don't feel good about my weight or the shape I am in. Our weekends have also been consumed with social plans, as well as working on the boats. Its never ending, but I guess that's life. This weekend, I have no plans, which is nice, including no work.

This week, I have been determined to get back on track with running and dieting. The office started a weigh-in so that's definitely helping knowing other people know where I am with my weight. So far this week, I've put in 10 miles, I've definitely been a lot more careful about what I am eating, as I've been weighing in on my own. I was so comfortable with my body last summer, I want to get back to that point. I know I can, I just have to put in the time and effort.

I just checked my dailymile account because I am obsessed with mileage and time. I've run 417 miles since last September. I've won my age twice in the last two of three races. My next 5k is the Cigna in Manchester. My plan is to break into the 23:00s if I can keep up with the running and pace for the next few weeks. I had set my mind on doing an 8 miler in August, however, I don't know if its a good idea since I haven't been training for long runs. We'll see what the next few weeks bring and I just may decide to do it.

Running Coach

Seriously, I have a running coach, and the best part - he's free! Right before I started working at my new firm, one of the partners googled me and found out that I run. He's also a runner and loves to run every day. So it's been his mission since I started here to make me a better runner. I really appreciate his efforts, and even though he annoys the crap out of me, he pushes me. He makes me run when I don't want to, he makes me run harder than I'd like and I've gotten better. When I run by myself, I push but I don't push to the point that I can't breathe and don't feel like I can push any further.

We usually run before work, which lapses into work time, but apparently that doesn't matter to him. I mean he's my boss so as long as he's ok with it and I get my work done, I really make out in the deal.

I've got my first 5k of the season lined up for next weekend. I haven't found anyone to run with me yet, but I am sure I will. Matt wants to do it but without knowing his work schedule, its hard to plan for next weekend. My goal would be to break out of the 24:00 minutes, however, it my first race of the season so I don't want to kill myself in the process.

Catching up

Its been sometime since I've really taken the time to update everyone on my happenings. So to start (which I mentioned in my last blog), I've met someone incredible. Matt and I met on plentyoffish.com the day after Thanksgiving. I mentioned that I was a runner, and he in fact looked me up. He figured out that we had run together in the same 5k and I had beat him by 11 seconds. We ended up meeting a few days later at a local bar. We were both quiet and shy but tried hard to have a conversation. It was clear we were both scared and hesitant. Interestingly enough, we befriended someone at the bar, who was new to the area, and he bought our beers. We chatted very little the first week, except for a few texts. We had our second date on a Friday and we went to Margaritas. Concord had also shut down Main Street and was having a bit of a winter festival so we went to that as well. We grabbed a few beers after dinner and that was that. He drove me back home and I remember chatting in his car. I said "good night" and he simply touched my knee and said something. I don't remember what but I think it could have been "good night." The next night we went out on our third date, to the Appleseed. There was a band playing. Matt secretly invited his boss and his girlfriend to join us. Again we got free drinks (there was a pattern going there for a while). He coyly said to me: "I'll show you my house tomorrow if you show me your apartment tonight." He was so smooth about it, it was pretty funny. I knew though that I didn't want anything to happen; I didn't want any sort of relationship solely based on physical intimacy. So I led him up to the 3rd floor and showed him around. I remember pointing and saying "that's my bedroom" but I don't think I ever actually showed him. We were chatting, standing in the kitchen and he said "do I get a good night kiss?" If you can imagine, he was trying to be so smooth and cavalier. We kissed and almost couldn't stop. He remarked that I liked kissing and after a few kisses he said he didn't want to leave, but we both agreed he was going home. Since then we've been pretty much inseparable. We spend a lot of time doing activities together: running, skiing, grooming, grocery trips, home depot adventures and the sort. We really enjoy each other's company and usually spend a fair amount of time laughing together. In the past month, I've also moved and started a new job. On my advice, don't ever try to do them both at the same time, its disastrous. I was a stress ball for weeks and it really wasn't worth the insanity. Either way, I'm happy with both decisions. I've got a much bigger, nicer apartment. There's more space, its more organized (or will be eventually), and there's a potential of a pet now. Matt spends most nights at my place so having more room is also a bonus there. My new job is AMAZING! While I haven't been able to dive in fully yet, its real lawyer work. I have clients, I'll represent them in court, and the paychecks are livable. The partners and associates are great and its not a sham either! The commute is an hour in each direction, but I don't mind the drive and I enjoy the time (usually). Life is pretty good right now. I feel like I'm finally growing up and making some serious progress in life. Running will kick up again soon, I'm currently fighting a nasty cold. My plan is to run a 5k every month for the rest of the year. I already have a bunch lined up. Hopefully I can convince myself to eventually run something further, but we'll see how I progress with training.

The Next Sarah Palin?

I don't think so, but I have decided to embark on a political career. A few weeks ago, Big Pete mentioned to me that Town elections were quickly approaching. He told me that the seat for Town Moderator was open and suggested I run for it. This was Wednesday night, he told me I needed to sign up for candidacy by Friday. So I had little time to think over the decision.

On Thursday, I placed a few calls and asked advice from a few people, but by Thursday afternoon, I figured I should at least make the effort to try for it. So I am officially on the ballot as a candidate for Town Moderator.

Now you're probably wondering, "what is a town moderator?" Essentially, the Moderator runs the Town and special meetings. They keep meetings in order, tell people when it is their turn to talk, not talk or when a vote needs to be taken. Most of the rules for Town meeting are based off Robert's Rules of Order. Fortunately, during my time at Hillsborough County, I have provided a few legal opinions based upon these rules, so I know them quite well now.

When I signed up to run, I didn't ask if anyone else was running. It now turns out I do have opposition. I'm not scared or nervous about the opposition. The only thing I do happen to be scared about is actually taking on the role.

I think this will be a fantastic experience, no matter what happens. I've always been very opinionated and interested in town politics, so I figured it was about time I let the curiosity get to me and make a move. I have created a facebook page as a way to publicize my effort so we'll see if that pays off in the long run.

I've also been inspired by a friend to get back on running. I took the entire month of February off due to insane work hours and high stress. The running would have helped me de-stress but finding the time to run probably would have killed me. So as of today, March 1, 2011, the running begins again. I'd like to run a 5k every month for the rest of the year, aiming for a half marathon in September/October. Even though I've only gained a few pounds (not even 5) since I haven't been running, I am not at my healthiest. Its not just about the numbers its about how you feel.

I haven't been inspired just about running, but in life generally. One of the greatest friends that I have from college, Jenn, is also a blogger. Just yesterday she wrote an awesome blog about balancing life, running, dieting, etc. It really inspired me to make the time to get back into balance. Its really draining when I don't make enough time for myself; I get tired more often, I'm more irritable, and generally more anxious.

Also since my last post, I met someone. Interestingly enough my last post was about the Turkey Trot. I did pretty well during that race, not my fastest, but not my slowest. More importantly is the guy who finished 11 seconds behind me (its still a running joke between us- sorry for the play on words). I didn't know him at the time but four days later we went on our first date, after meeting online. I remember seeing him at the race right after I went through the finish line while they were taking my number, but given the weather and the hill during the race, I was more focused on catching my breath, than I was trying to find a date, at the time. We've been inseparable since. More to come on him when I have time, but I'm glad to report that I am happily in love!

Sunapee Turkey Trot!

Another fantastic race for me! I ran the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning with about 800 other people from the area. It was a good run with a challenging beginning.

The first third to half mile of the race was up a very steep incline. I kept my head down and just focused on keeping a good pace for myself. I passed a few people on the hill. I don't think a lot of people were prepared for the intensity of the hill. However, since I moved so well up the hill, a lot of people ended up passing me on the way down or throughout the rest of the race. I finished 99th out of 813 runners, with a time of 24:34. Not my personal best, but still good considering. I finished 6th for women in my age group too.

A lot of the Fentons ran/walked the route too. Pete and Kyle both completed their first 5ks with good times.

I've started tappering down on my running. I've taken 2 days out a week to do Zumba instead. It helps with the cold weather, and I find my muscles like the change. I'd really like to run a half marathon in the spring. I'm going to start looking for a half marathon and start a schedule of distances I'd like to accomplish each week. I am also hoping that with winter picking up the various sports will help strength my muscles for a longer run.

My First First

I am happy! And I'm proud to say that my happiness has been self derived. Life has been good. Work has been busy. And running has been great.

My latest race was about a week ago. It was another local fun run. It was a brisk Saturday morning, approximately 30 degrees when I left the house at 8 am. The race was taking place about 5 miles away. When I got there, no one else was around so I was afraid I had gone to the wrong place. After a few minutes, people started arriving, however, it wasn't very many people. Actually only 4 people ran the race. I guess that's what you get for small towns. I think more people would have run, except the route was right on the lake and the wind blowing off the lake made the temperature about 25 degrees. So I ran in full gear. Winter hat, running gloves, pants, three layers and a jacket. All running appropriately gear (wicking, etc.) but my face remained cold the whole time.

So the four of us took off. We stayed together for a few minutes and then two of us broke off ahead. I stayed behind the only other female running until we hit a hill. She slowed down. Since I've done quite a bit of hill running, I knew I could push ahead on the hill, and taper off coming down. I passed her, but I knew she wasn't far behind. I kept up my pace, but eventually I heard her behind me. Since I let someone pass me in the last race, it wasn't about to happen again. So I pushed harder than I ever have probably. I finished first out of all 4 people. My time was 13:37. After I finished, I tracked the distance of the run and it was 1.8 miles. It definitely wasn't the 5k I had signed up for but I was happy for the first.

The next run isn't until the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning. I'm pretty stocked for the run, and I'm hoping in that time I'll have a faster pace for races. Right now, I am staying pretty steady at an 8:30 mile for most runs, short and long.

This weekend will be an exciting time. My Mom and Dad fly in Friday for my swearing in. The last time I saw them was Christmas and since then my Mom and I have both lost 40 pounds. She'll be staying with me for a few days while my Dad visits the rest of the family in Mass. We have a lot planned, so it'll be jam packed but definitely still fun. My swearing in is Tuesday. I'm actually getting sworn into the NH bar and the NH federal bar. Two different bars, but only one test. After that, they'll fly out Tuesday night. I'm pretty sure I'll be quite exhausted after all that but I'm excited just the same.

I'm also happy to say in what has seemed like chaos, I feel like I've finally figured out my social groove up here. Hanging out with new people and getting out more. Its been nice, and I'm hoping to keep it up.