Tough Mudder #2

First I want to say another Happy Father’s Day to my amazing dad! I didn’t get to spend any of the weekend with him but mom treated him right and we will celebrate properly later this week. It sounds like all of you out there also have pretty remarkable dads. That makes me happy.

This weekend was Tough Mudder #2 for me and it was fun to drag Dan along – even if it meant having to watch the DVR version of the US Open when we got home.

Brooke was awesome and drove us East to the city of Fossil where we witnessed the other side of Oregon that those of us from the city often forget about. Fossil, OR is a place where there’s no cell service and a simpler way of life on the ranch.

Or way of life on the ranch was anything but ‘simple‘, but at least we had a fun stay!

Quick Hits – then I’m hitting the pillow!

• Last year I only made it over 3 of 4 walls, this year I made it over all 4 (with 2 slanted toward us!)
• Last year I fell multiple times on Everest and never made it up (I quit) and this year I made it up the first time!
• Having Dan there was the extra boost I needed to get me through ❤
• Dan was a sweetheart and crashed into the water on the monkey bars before me, just to make it less embarrassing when I fell in on the first rung
• Arctic Enema was actually a welcome relief from the warm temperatures
• I had a ‘Brain Reboot” (blacked out) for a moment through Electric Eel. I opened my eyes, heard white noise and just kept crawling.

Sorry for not many photos, my iPhone was stored in our bag pretty quick once we made it to the venue – you’ll have to wait for the official race photos!

Thanks for a fun weekend, friends!

And yes, this was me on the monkey bars.

Weekend Links: Tough Mudder Style

Tuesday morning those of us who are participating in the 2013 Oregon Tough Mudder received this photo with a friendly reminder to not worry because “if you’re scared…… you can pee yourself. Everyone knows you can’t see pee in the mud.”

Thanks Big Mudder!

This will be my second Tough Mudder event and I’ll be joining my wonderful friends Brooke and her man friend Brad, while dragging Dan along for the torture fun!

In the words of Big Mudder, the vents are “hardcore 10-12 mile obstacle courses designed by British Special Forces to test your all around strength, stamina, mental grit, and camaraderie.”

I will promise to do my best, but can see something like this happening when I go to grab the monkey bars.

Last time Brooke went Beast-Mode on the same monkey bars and I am looking forward to being inspired by her once again.

Enough from me, here’s the links!

• Tough Mudder is for Crazy People
• How other Tough Mudder’s Train
• Okay, no, here’s the actual training plan
• The “Torture to Expect“
• Tough Mudder Supports the Wounded Warrior Project
• Interested? Sign Up for your own event!

Wish us luck, last time I came home bruised from head to toe!

 

Morning Routine

Do you remember this month’s goal #1: Early work only 5 times this month?

Sorry, how early is early?

For two months I was waking up at 4:15am and showing up to the office bright-eyed and bushy-tailed at 6am, which was as soon as I was allowed access into the building.

A new month and a new me.

Rather than allow myself to fall into the snooze button trap, I decided to use my familiarity with an early alarm and make the most out of it. 

Long ago on the blog I wrote a post about the Benefits of Morning Exercise, and much of how I felt in October of 2012 still holds true today. Working out in the morning is amazing.

There’s so much that it can bring to your day!

• Adrenaline
• Accomplishment
• Less worry about when to fit a workout in
• A need for an earlier bedtime
• Incentive to hydrate in the evening
• Feelings of hunger for a whole and balanced breakfast
• Cool air to breathe
• Calm environment to focus
• ZERO stress about what to wear and whether your outfit matches (as long as it’s street-visible!)
• You’ve now earned your shower

So, for the time being, 4:15 – 5:15 is run time and self improvement time rather than the sleep time I’d originally intended to reclaim.

Now if I could just get Dan on the same schedule we’d be quite the pair!

My newest running buddies are 3lb hand weights that honestly do make my arms burn after an hour run. Aside from the burn, the added bonus is that people who see me running with hand weights believe that I’m that much more intense / intimidating / out for my own self-defense.

Who else loves to work out in the morning? What are the reasons you do it {or don’t do it!}?

P.S. I’ve only gone in early 3 times this month – looking forward to no more if I can help it!

April Summary

Whoa – reality check, it’s still technically April? I think we’ve got some confusion around here, the weather has been gorgeous in Portland and that’s not normally until June July if we’re lucky.

Really though, with the change of seasons, my work focus being on the month of May and all that has gone on in my world it’s difficult to face that tomorrow is the 1st of May. No complaints, just level setting with my mind because so much has happened this month.

April to me meant change, maturity and responsibility at work. It brought overwhelming success and pride that I’ll never forget. It propelled me into overshooting my running goal of 100 miles by 16 miles – which is unheard of during such a busy month. 

I’m looking back to my April’s Eight Great Goals and I seriously missed the mark on 6 of 8. I didn’t think reasonably what craziness the month would bring and sadly there were a few things that were out of my control and even out of my scope of importance. Where we did have amazing success was with limiting latte intake – I am looking forward to keeping that in mind in the months that follow.

Even though I’m managing through falling under the line, we still had a great month and plenty of wonderful memories to show for it!

Yummy Eats

So much amazing food was enjoyed this month from date nights to weekend food prep:

Torta-Landia

Sweet Potato + Quinoa Stir Fry

Saburo’s

Work Related

I realize that I talked a lot about work this month, and really because I spend most of my day living and breathing my work with so many positive things to show for it.

I’ve promised Dan and everyone in my life that the craziness will be over starting once the fourth quarter is over – which means another month!

Still there were some good posts that came out of the craziness and want a collection of them here:

Under the Bridge

How High?

Desk Love

Keep Running

Running Love

I got after so many miles this month and it really impacted my happiness.

I knew that running was more than just about meeting my goal when I was lacing up after 8pm at night, or logging ten milers even after hitting my goal. The weather has been so warm I’ve even been breaking a sweat early on in the run, and there’s no better feeling.

Running for Days

30 Mile Weekend

Countdown: Tough Mudder

My Handsome Daniel

The one person who got the least of me this month was my wonderful boyfriend. We stopped carpooling due to my schedule, we only went on two runs together, he had a golf tournament that I didn’t make it to and he did nothing but try to fix the world and make things easier on my life. He’s my everything and I’m so thankful he’s in love with me.

Week 14 Cohabitation

Week 15 Cohabitation

Today in History – 4.24.2000

Hello everyone!

There’s so many things we could chat about, like the weather, the new clothes I’ve bought lately {on sale!}, my job, what motivates me, my man, etc.

It almost crept past me but something reminded me of a decision I made 13 years ago that has significantly improved my life and my health.

Today, April 24th, marks 13 years since I’ve drank soda.

I could harp and harp on why soda is bad for you, here and here for example – but instead I’ll talk about what pushed me to the decision and the many reasons I’ve stuck to it over the past 13 years.

I was in Seventh grade, 12 years old and incredibly focused on softball and the things that I could do to improve my game. As a team, we were working on the ‘mental game’ to strengthen our minds and work out our discipline, so we were encouraged to choose something to give up for a week. Instantly I knew what I wanted to give up, but would have to enlist some help from teammates and my very own family.

See, my brother had given up soda a year prior and had always boasted about it – and being the competitive little sister I decided to lead follow my own path. I also was not such a light consumer of the sugary beverage. We would go to fast food restaurants for convenience after practices + games and I would consistently order the biggest Dr. Pepper or Root Beer I could get my hands on. No fault of anyone’s, just the health concerns of high soda consumption weren’t public knowledge as they are today – so it was more about the bubbly bite I’d experience from an ice cold soda rather than the taste of it.

I recall the ‘last supper’ like it was yesterday. My dad and I left the practice in Beaverton and headed to the East side, but not before a pit stop at McDonald’s to order a #2 (Two cheeseburgers) No Cheese, Ketchup Only with a Dr. Pepper to drink. I remember slowly sipping out of the straw, calculating what I was putting into my body and ultimately feeling sick as a result. The cup sat overnight on my nightstand, half full and eventually poured down the kitchen sink.

Realizing that I didn’t want to finish my last one, I knew I had an easy road ahead to look forward to both with this commitment and many others that followed.

Weeks passed, months passed. I noticed myself feeling better, my teenage pores were clearing up kind of and I was full of healthy hydration {water} like I’d never been before. Soon it was six months later and there was no way I was going back – I’d come too far to ever put a drop to my lips again.

Since giving up soda I have:

• Saved a lot of $$
• Avoided a lot of extra and worthless calories
• Encouraged others to quit/limit their bad habits
• Found the will to give up French Fries (going on 12 years)
• Nodded my head to every health conscious reason to give up soda
• Much less fast food dining
• …Saved a lot of $$

I don’t nag or judge those who drink soda now, but I sure am happy that I don’t crave the stuff.

I know that I’m a happier person because of this commitment and the endless personal strength I gained in experiencing success will serve me well for a lifetime.

Like I said, happy:

Just try it for a week, see how much better you feel!

Countdown: Tough Mudder

Today marks 2 months to the day until we embark on another Tough Mudder adventure.

Tough Mudder events are 10-12 mile obstacle courses designed by British Special Forces that test your strength and stamina while forcing you to work together as a team and to finish strong, despite electric shock, freezing cold water and plenty of mud to go around.

Last year Brooke, Brad and I headed up to the Whistler Olympic Park in June to experience our first event and somehow we felt foolish enough to sign up and pay again to participate in a venue closer to home – Fossil, OR. This time around we were able to sucker Dan and a few other poor souls into facing the certain blood, sweat and tears waiting for us in Fossil this summer.

To give you a taste of what we’re up against, watch the latest hype video shared on Tough Mudder’s Facebook Page.

Quoting the site, we are supposed to “expect a hefty dose of mud, ice, fire, and electric shocks to test whether or not we’re tough enough to earn the coveted orange headband and an ice cold Dos Equis at the finish line.”

So far we’ve been doing the usual training, including long runs, body weight workouts and a #dirtyhairdontcare attitude, but this training schedule will ramp up significantly to prep for the next 60 days.

I guess first we need to find a hotel, don’t we?

If you want to check out my take-aways from last year, visit one of the very first posts ever written on this site.

Wish us luck with the rest of training!

30 Miles + Many Smiles

Another weekend come and gone, and everything about it was time well spent!

Flowers are blooming, birds are chirping and my mister was home all weekend – not working, not playing golf and not sleeping in. Bliss.

{Credit to my neighbors, beautiful flowers!}

More Running for Days

If you remember that last weekend I ran 20 miles you’d call me crazy for the goal I set for myself this weekend.

20 miles in two days was a worthy challenge, so I decided to shoot for 30 from Friday – Sunday to put myself where I need to be for the month.

• Friday 7:20 pm – 7 Miles
• Saturday 8:40 am – 11 Miles
• Sunday 9:20 am – 12 Miles

 Why would I set my goal at 30 miles in three days?

1. It reaffirms that I can do anything I set my mind to.

2. I’ve been worthless at getting mileage during the week and I see that trend continuing through the end of May.

3. Why not?

Eats

After my Saturday morning run, this is what I had waiting for me on the counter, piping hot:

{Eggs + Avocados + Jalapenos + Mozzarella}

{Poor Man’s Mimosa: Light or Wheat beer topped off with Orange Juice}

Dan is becoming quite the contributor to the magic made in the kitchen and I couldn’t be happier. The rumors are that he’s been known to live off of Mac n’ Hot Dogs – which proves that he’s had to really step up his game to keep the woman in his life happy. Thanks, dear!

Special Visitor

We had a special visit from Tanna (Happy Birthday week!) and Olive on Saturday and they were happy to meet Dan for the first time. It wasn’t the usual girl-chatty catch up sessions Tanna and I are used to, but we are looking forward to some warmer weather where we can get take walks in the park and take adorable photos of miss Olive feeding ducks at the pond.

Onto the Next

Sorry, Tiger Woods – you didn’t reclaim the green jacket but I hear you’ve still got years and years ahead of you before you retire. Next time. We’re still happy to have a son named after you.

Is it weird that I was excited to get to my desk this morning? I have a suspicious feeling that this is going to be another quality week for myself and my team.

Running for Days

Happy Monday, you weekend warriors!

I seriously enjoyed this weekend not because it was lazy, but because I got things done. I was so productive and accomplished much of what was on my growing To Do list. I guess the hurry up and get work done week carried over into the weekend. I’m not even mad.

Let’s start with how things looked running-wise, since I spent nearly 4 hours at it –

• Saturday 8:45 am – 10 Miles
• Saturday 3pm – 5 Miles with Dan
• Sunday 12:30pm – 5 Miles

I know you’re thinking two-a-days on Saturday is a little overkill, but it was much needed after the prior 6 days of only logging three speed-work miles. My mind needs those long runs to hash out thoughts, ideas, rants and creativity. To make everything better, the weather was clear and sun even poked through the clouds! Sure I’m a little sore, but Dan is the best at working out the kinks and I’m looking forward to a full day of standing at my desk today.

The remainder of Saturday was delightful as I was able to read the 148 blogs that were lingering from the week, enjoy two extra entertainingly competitive NCAA men’s games, and spend the afternoon with a weary and overworked Dan.

For the evening he was invited to a Timber’s game, so I made the most of my evening as a bachelorette and enjoyed brews in bed.

I think I know which one I would have enjoyed more!

Sunday was just as wonderful with ultimately not waking up until noon. Agenda included a quick rain-on / rain-off run, Dan and I went to Costco to grab lunch samples our weekend food prep staples and knocked out some quality meal prep to be shared later this week. I was impressed by how quickly and easily Dan jumped in to help out and was thankful because it cut down on the normal time by half. Salmon burgers, chicken, quinoa, veggies, you name it – they’re all there and neatly tucked away in tupperware containers on the second shelf of the fridge.

Extra exciting was getting a visit from mom and dad last night with an invite to dinner at one of our favorites – Original Taco House!

This morning was rough getting ready for another early 6am work start especially since Dan was sleeping soundly with no plans of waking until 10am. At least he’s promised to have dinner ready and on the table for me every night this week!

Easter Weekend

This past weekend was unbelievably gorgeous in Portland and I fear that this week of spring sunshine will come and go – not to return until July like many spring/summer transitions here in the Northwest.

To kick off the weekend Dan and I joined Brad and Brooke for the Hoppity Hops 5k that circled the Willamette River along the Eastbank esplanade and back around with views of the Saturday Market and lots of puppies…45 to be exact! Dan and I like counting puppies on our runs – hate us yet?

It was probably the fastest I’ve seen Dan hustle on our runs together and I can admit that I was picking up my usual pace too. Brad was goofing off with an ‘easy’ pace for him and Brooke was right in line. Dan and I are going to have to put in some hard work to get to where we need to be for our big Tough Mudder 2013 race in June.

After the race Dan had a tee time on the West side, so he kicked me to the curb somewhere between home and the freeway by my request and wasn’t a minute late. My afternoon was a little different in that I ran the 3.4 miles home to round me out to 100.5 running miles in March. It also gave me the opportunity to count 30 more puppies and enjoy a relaxing afternoon home alone to catch up on reading blogs, watch my bracket remain in the #1 spot and begin some food prep for the week ahead.

Saturday evening we had plans to stay at mom and dad’s house and met them home at the same time as they had returned from the coast. I’ve always enjoyed how casual Easter is in my family and this was the perfect example of that fact. Lazy evening with BBQ – falling asleep on the couch – being woken up by ice cream cones and puppies. I wish every evening looked like this.

Easter morning we woke up to the sound of puppies upstairs … Okay, actually I woke up and nudged Dan for about 45 minutes telling him to listen for the puppies upstairs. They got more ZZzz’s than we did.

As soon as they shot out of their kennels they raced down the stairs outside our door and before I knew it there was a puppy pile on the bed, rays of sunlight beaming through the window and a kind of memory that won’t be going away for some time.

The rest of Easter Day we played, talked, ate and played some more. I’ll stop here and let the photos speak for me:

We had a sleepy growing sister around!

Oh, did anyone get pranked yesterday?

25 Miles Later

Good morning and happy Monday!

It was a less than eventful weekend as both Dan and I were putting in time at the office. He unfortunately had to physically be there at his desk, I was fortunate enough to be able to keep my glasses on, my coffee mug full and most importantly see what Tiger does all day long while we are normally away. He’s pretty funny.

As the story was last weekend, I laced up and hit the road. Running was the easiest thing that I did all week and more than anything it was relaxing and an opportunity to hash some work dilemmas out in my mind and come up with an action plan. Friday I ran 10 after work in the beautiful weather we had, Saturday was a “short” five mile shake-out and Sunday was another long haul where I ran 100 blocks east of my house and 100 blocks back. If you’re familiar, you know that 100 blocks in Southeast Portland can be a big change of scenery from neighborhood shopping, quaint homes, busy commercial areas, un-paved sidewalks and less than appealing apartment complexes. All the landscape differences always provide an entertaining run. Plus I don’t mind that there’s minimal elevation change – win/win!

Count it up and I’ve met one of my February Goals of four 10 miler’s for the month. Now I just have to keep up the strength training!

When I wasn’t out in the fresh air stomping the pavement, I was at Papaccino’s Coffee House enjoying the sights and sounds of the neighborhood while switching back and forth with the book I’m reading and some work I volunteered to do. I might have been better off just going into the office as well to take advantage of a large monitor and a mouse. #firstworldproblems

The great news about working on the weekend though was that when my spreadsheets were too long and taking up to 20 minutes to calculate (ugh!) I was able to clean up the 100+ blogs in my reading list that I hadn’t been able to get after yet. And found this adorably annoying kitty

Isn’t this the friendliest Dragon you’ve ever seen?

Dan also made fun of the dragon photo as being a ‘half-selfie’… I suppose!

This one is short and sweet today, come back tomorrow!

❤ JE