Hello Pregnancy Brain!

It’s official. Pregnancy brain has taken over.  Today was a series of blunders that left me laughing.

I went to work today with one goal in mind – have a full successful day. I started off good. I head right out to one of my rec centers.  As I was leaving the center, I realized I had locked my keys in my work car.  On a normal day, it wouldn’t be a big deal. I’d call work. Someone would rescue me. Today I was the only person working in my office. There was no one to call.  Fortunately my mom lives right around the corner. She came to my rescue. As soon as I got in her car, I started to panic. I couldn’t find my sunglasses. Ummm….they were on my face!

At dinner tonight, I couldn’t even follow a simple question Christian’s dad was asking me. It took at least 3 rephrasing for me to understand his question. Holy smokes. Where is my brain?

Oh how I wish I loved the treadmill

In between my absent-mindedness that wont’ go away, I did tackle something new today.  I ran on the treadmill today after work.  I think the last time I ran on a treadmill was over a year ago. I’m not exactly a graceful treadmill runner. I can’t figure out my stride. My pace is always 2 minutes slower than my pace outside.  One of these days I’ll figure it out.  Today wasn’t that day.  Once again, I ran even slower than my current pregnancy pace.  On the road, I’m averaging about an 11:30 minute mile pace when running. On the treadmill, I struggled to run a 13:30 minute mile pace. Oh tread mill – we are not best friends. Maybe one day I will love you. My absent-minded brain is easily distracted. I find myself staring at the little dots on the track hoping they will disappear faster.  The only good thing I got out of my treadmill run today was the ability to monitor my heart rate the entire time.  I stayed right around 125.  Perfect for me right now. I’ve got some room to push a little harder on race day, but I’m quite happy sitting comfortably at my 13:30 minute mile on the tread mill.  Love it or hate it, the treadmill allowed me to knock out a 5k today while avoiding the 100 degree temperatures. It’s going to be hot all week, so I will be back to continue my kind of like/hate relationship with the treadmill.  (Maybe postbaby, I can find some love for the treadmill when I start interval training.)

Post Run Glow

And a funny side note to make you laugh – Cole is very intrigued about the arrival of Maute Moo. Yesterday he wanted to make sure he wouldn’t have to be in the room when I was dealing with all the “pressure”. Today he said, “Let’s just hope this is a Maute Moo and not a Maute Moo Moo because then you will have to have double pressure.” Crazy kid! I’d love to know how he came up with his definition of labor!

Off to do family yoga with Cole. He’s been begging to do yoga with me for 2 days. I guess I should say yes! After all, it is good for both of us!

Creating Ripples in the Blog World

I know the blogging world can be viewed as self-indulgent. It can be viewed as a waste of time. Self-indulgent or not, I love it! I love my blog. I love the connections that I’ve made through blogging. I love the people who come here day after day to read my blog. We all have something positive to offer the world. Why not share it? Why not put ourselves out there so we can maybe, just maybe, have a positive impact on someone else’s life.  Happiness is contagious. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read a blog that has spoken to me on that given day. I’ve found reassurance in other blogs. I’ve found compassion.  I’ve found motivation. I’ve found a tiny little bubble that feels like community to me.

Since Maute Moo has made his/her home in my belly, I’ve been craving kinship with other pregnant runners.  Guess where I found them? The big blog world. (Have you noticed the growing Blog Roll on the right side of my page?)  Below are a few of the pregnant mama runners I’ve come to enjoy over the past few weeks.

On the Road Again – Megan is due in January, and she just PR’ed a 10K this weekend!!! Who does that while they are pregnant? Besides being a runner and a soon to be mommy, she is also an English teacher. No wonder I like her? (I really should have used my teaching licenses!)

The Concrete Runner – Kristen is 28 weeks pregnant and still running strong. She gives me hope that I will be able to complete my half marathon at 24 weeks pregnant! This girl is fast! When I first found her blog, I had to ignore her running times so I wouldn’t become depressed.  Post-baby I can find some speed in my running!

This Runners Trials – Jen is about 2 weeks ahead of me in her pregnancy. Her honesty about running and pregnancy is so refreshing.  She doesn’t sugar coat her truth, but she isn’t offensive. I love her blog. (oh my – if you’ve already read this I had a big old typo here! Sorry Jen!)

21 Days – Jess is the mom to a brand new baby boy and a 2-year-old little girl. She is also a runner. Reading her journey into motherhood of 2 is both inspiring and scary! She’s just been cleared to run again, so it’s a good reality check as to where I will be post-baby.

While I love my pregnant mom blogs right now, I’ve also found a few fun blogs about running (with out a baby in the belly!)

Runner-n-Spice – Jayme is exactly where I want to be post-baby in terms of running. I wish she lived closer (Canada is too far away). I think she would be the perfect running buddy. She just started tackling some interval training that I will be borrowing in 2012.

And then there are the surprise bloggers! I started my blog because I was inspired by JT at Smile with your Heart. If you haven’t been to her blog yet, go there right now. She is an amazing girl.  You can’t help but smile when you read her blog. She’s doing big things and truly lives a life worth living.  I found her blog the day I found out I had stress fracture in my femur. It was exactly what I needed on that day. She saved me from a few tears, and she changed my focus. It was these few sentences that made me quit feeling sorry for myself and made me look forward.

Sometimes when I’m going through a rough patch, I will literally picture myself smiling and waving back at myself with a grin, knowing that life’s going to be alright.  To remember to lose the idea that there is a final destination, because it’s all about the journey that counts.

Instead of crying about my missed marathon, I started thinking about the rest of the year. I had no idea that March 2, 2012 would be so amazing. Who knew I’d have a baby in my arms! Running can be known to decrease fertility in some woman.  Who knows? Maybe I was one of them. The stress fracture caused 12 weeks of no running. During that time, we conceived Maute Moo without even trying!

Although I am truly inspired by JT, I never thought I might have the same effect on anyone else.  Surprise! Thanks to my blog, I’ve received so many emails, so many words of encouragement, and I’ve even sparked the desire in a few friends to blog too.  While all of them have said thank you to me, I feel like I owe them a HUGE THANK YOU! There is nothing better in life than feeling validated. Young or old, we all want to know we have value.  Their emails, their blogs, and all the comments I receive give value to what I am doing.They’ve given me motivation to keep going.

Life of Mo – Morgan was the first to join me in my 40 day goal challenge.  Her ambition is huge, and she has been the driving force behind all of our house projects! I think she likes lists more than I do – and I love them!

Learning to Love Running – Tasha and I went to high school together. Today she sent me an email saying she started her own blog too! YAY! I went straight to her page and feel in love already. Her blog is definitely going to be one to keep an eye on.  She is also tackling a 40 day goal challenge and is also attempting to falling in love with running.  Tasha – it will always be a love/hate relationship, but it definitely gives more than it takes!

So for those of you who think blogging is self-indulgent and a waste of time, I think we will all stand up and argue against it. Blogging creates these wonderful ripples across our world that spreads positive energy and happiness to those who are lucky enough to be caught in the path.

Please share your favorite blogs? Any must adds to my list?

Place your Magnet

As a runner, I often use the idea of placing magnets along a race or a run.  I find a runner that is ahead of me or a mail box or a light post, and I place a mental magnet on that person or item.  I imagine that there is a magnetic force pulling me towards my item of choice.  This pulls me along in my runs, and it makes me push harder. When I reach that item, I pick up magnet and find a new a new target.

Placing magnets along my course is so much bigger than running. My 40 day goal challenge and my life vision are my way of placing magnets along my life course. Right now I have three very large magnets place on 3 mile markers in my life: the Rock n Roll finish line, Maute Moo’s arrival date, and a full marathon in 2012. I admit that I can get caught up in my goals.  It’s good to take a step back and refocus. My training plan can’t become more important than my birthing plan.  I can’t allow planning for both of these items to suffocate my desire to be an active encouraging wife and mother.  A happy healthy household is much more important than completing a race.  It’s good to assess whether we are getting pulled in the right direction.

Life is full of magnets.  I think it is safe to say that most of them aren’t positive.  Watch TV for 5 minutes. Majority of what you see won’t have a positive affect on your life.  We can get caught up in drama, marketing campaigns, and unrealistic celebrity lifestyles. I don’t deny the entertainment value in it all, but it becomes a problem when we allow it to be a driving force in our life.

Today Cole and I made our weekly trip to the grocery store.  Everything in the grocery store is set up for bad decisions. An entire section of the grocery store was dedicated to soda. Who needs 100 soda options? Not only is there an entire aisle of cookies, there is also an aisle dedicated to snacks and chips.  To make matters worse, there is a school snack section. Guess what was missing from that section? Healthy options.  In the check out line, tabloids and celebrities photos mock you.  There was a photo of Reese Witherspoon.  The magazine was speculating that she was pregnant.  The photo they showed of her baby bump looked like every healthy girl I know in American.  No wonder so many woman have self-image issues.

While I can’t control TV commercials, grocery store marketing strategies, or American’s obsession with a fake celebrity world, I can control my life (Notice a theme lately in my blogs – Guess who has control issues?). I can make sure I place magnets on mile markers in my life that will lead me to where I want to go.  We all deserve to lead a life that is heading in a positive direction. It’s so important to think about your life mission. Create a life mission for yourself. Find milestones along the way that you can place magnets on and let them be the force that pulls you towards your dreams.

Take today to place a magnet on a goal in the future. It can be as simple as skipping the cookie aisle during grocery shopping. It can be as big as starting your own business. Your heart will tell you where it wants to go. Place a magnet along the path that will get you to that goal!

(Please feel free to share! Not only do I love knowing, it’s helpful to share to keep yourself accountable! Tell me. Tell your best friend. Post it on your bathroom mirror.)

54 seconds shy = a HUGE Positive!

Post-Run nap for Alex

After a rough pregnancy week, I had no clue what to expect this morning as I set out for my 7 mile run. I’ve been struggling with headaches, all-day sickness, sleepiness and mid-night starvation wake-ups. Maute Moo must be having a growth spurt. I haven’t run in almost 2 weeks. I desperately needed a good run for my mental sanity.

As soon as I put on my running shoes, Alex starting going nuts.  I didn’t plan on taking him with me today, but he looked so sad when I said no.  I gave in, and he joined me for the first 1/2 of my run.  I knew I would need a bathroom break, so I figured it would be a good time to drop him off back at home.

Time hasn’t been a priority on my runs since I got pregnant. I just want to keep adding distances.  When I left for my run, I thought it would be nice if I could tackle 7 miles in 1 hour 30 minutes. I finished in 1 hour 30 minutes and 54 seconds! Mark that as a win on my training plan. If I can run 7 miles in an hour and a half, I can get close to run a half marathon in 3 hours PREGNANT! While time is not my priority, old habits are hard to break.  I don’t know many runners who aren’t aware of their time when they run. Time has definitely been on my radar lately.

I ran the Rock n Roll Half Marathon last year. When I registered, I had high hopes for beating my Shamrock half-marathon results.  That didn’t happen. After a wedding, honeymoon, getting sick with shingles, and struggling through summer heat, I never ran more than 5 miles after the Shamrock. I thought about not running the Rock n Roll.  A week before the race, my aunt discovered she had cancer again. This time it was breast cancer.  How could I sit at home on my couch on race day because I hadn’t prepared properly? I was healthy. It wasn’t my first race. I could give the race my best effort on that day.  To my surprise, I ended up running the whole thing.  It was slower than shamrock, but it felt like a much bigger victory for me. I needed it emotionally.

I ran the Rock n Roll half in 2:31:49.  If I can even get close to 3 hours this year after the crazy year of physical set-backs and pregnancy, I will be one happy mama! I will be one happy mama just to finish!

Last year's race! I am still running in the shorts!

Run? Done. House cleaning? Living Room and Bathroom done. Time to float in the pool and enjoy some crab legs!