Mom on the Run--Woman of Steele

July is a slow racing month for me.  I like it that way though, as it can get quite hot in Wisco!! Milton Optimist Fourth of July 10K July 4, 2014 I have not run this race before and this year I felt silly knowing that I would be running that day anyway through Milton, so I signed up.  It was a warm morning, but I wore my hydration belt with electrolyte tabs in it again.  I knew that even though the race began at 8 that it would get hot.  Plus we were running on country roads without much shade.  This race starts and ends at our local high school and winds its way a block from my house! Beautiful neighborhood if I do say so myself!  I wasn't sure if I would PR for this race as it was a Friday and I had trained hills the night before.  But I went in with an open mind using this race as a training run for my next half marathon.  I met some fun people along the course and paced with them for a bit.  I took it easy and still managed a...

Oh June!!! My new favorite month, racing my new favorite distance---13.1!!! Whitewater Run for the Soul 5K June 1, 2014 I ran this race last year and loved it so much! It's un-timed and basically just to enjoy the love of running and being healthy.  Plus you get some awesome Schwag!!!  This year instead of t-shirts we received a gym bag filled with goodies!!! So nice!! I really like this race!  The course is through a beautiful area in Whitewater that follows a trail past 2 lakes.  It's peaceful and serene!  Until you get to the cheerleaders!!! I love this race because it is non-competitive and shows people the love of running and being fit!  It is great that there are so many cheerleaders along the course to encourage you.  Even a more experienced racer like myself truly enjoys the cheering!!  It makes me push myself even harder!  The only downfall to the race this year was the lack of marking on...

I absolutely love the month of MAY!!!  I pretty much run in a race every weekend!! Perfect weather for most of the month was fuel for these races and my half marathon training.   Edgerton Lion's 2nd Annual Dash Against Diabetes 5K and Kids Fun Run May 3, 2014 I ran this race last year and I loved it!  It's a nice course and the organization is incredibly friendly.  The kids fun run is free which is not typical for races (hopefully it stays this way) and my babes received a medal as they crossed the finish line!!  They love their race bling as much as their Momma does!!  I may have started an addiction for them!! They had a blast and that was all that really mattered!  My goal for this race was to redeem my 5K time after last month's awful time during the Pace for Parkinson's 5K where my calves locked up.  I did and I pushed myself to run the whole time with no walking breaks.  I finished in 29:57 which is not a PR for a 5K for ...

So I have been so consumed with 1/2 Marathon Training since April that I have totally neglected this blog and I apologize immensely for that.  I am still getting the hang of this blogger thing and I really want to be more open with my running and fitness struggles so with that being said this is probably going to be a long post.  APRIL April began with signing up for the Boston Marathon World Run where you could pledge money and miles for a number of charities.  I chose The One Fund Boston as my charity.  I ended up pledging and running 50.44 miles between April 13 to 21. I enjoyed running during this week and remembering those that were touched by the tragedy that occurred during last years' Boston Marathon.  I am going to admit it here also that I was totally consumed with the Boston Marathon on Monday April 21.  I walked around classrooms with my Ipad all day watching the finishers....

So I have been so focused on running long distances this winter on my treadmill that I have totally neglected my blogging.  I have not actually run that many races so far this year.  But here's a quick recap of January, February, and so far in March. January started out with the Boston Strong 10K Virtual run which I completed on my treadmill.  I wasn't going for a PR or anything, I just wanted to run the miles.  I mean it felt really good to run for such an awesome cause and my medal is fabulous.  It has to be one of my favorite medals.   My obsession in January and February was to see how many miles I could run on the treadmill.  I started off with 10 miles, since I could do 6 or 7, why not 10.  Once I hit that mark it was, let's go for a half marathon (13.1).  It only continued to 15 miles but that is beastly on a treadmill.  I became totally obsessed with increasing my total mileage each week, that it was all that thought abou...

Normally I wouldn't say I like running in winter!  Last year at this time I would be solely using the dreadmill in my basement.  Don't get me wrong, I am very thankful for my Nordic Track Treadmill.  It's a nice one, let me tell you!  Last year I would have said, "It's too cold!" "I don't have the right clothes." "What if I slip and fall?"  Now I can't wait to run outside.  Throughout this month I have acquired the appropriate clothing and foot attire to make running outside so completely enjoyable, that I don't understand why I didn't just make these purchases in the first place!  I now have Yak Trax for my shoes, Mizuno winter running tights that heat up as you sweat, and a saucony face mask to protect my face.  My hubs even bought me texting gloves for Christmas so I can use my Runkeeper app and not have to take off my gloves!  Yeah Me!!! My first race of December was the Santa Hustle 5K in Milwaukee.  This is the sec...