Festivus 5k for the rest of us! Results and photos

It was a little deceiving with the nice bright sun out but everyone survived the chilly winds and made our first ever Festivus 5k for the rest of us a success!  We had so much fun and loved seeing all the smiling faces out there!  I hope we get to turn this into a yearly tradition.  Lots of runners with lots of heart and of course great costumes :-)  We might have to change the location of the course to allow more people but I hope to keep the same theme with even more quotes to inspire you and a special shirt or cap with a festivus themed logo!  Ok so what you have all really been waiting for results and photos.  The full set of photos from the finish and water stop can be found on the facebook page here:  https://www.facebook.com/CautiouslyAudacious There are hundreds of them!! A special thanks to Miriam and Jerry Sutherlin who donated their photography skills and time to help us kick off this event right!  You can see some of their awesome work here: Luna Group  http://www.lunagroup.biz/dnn/   Gwen I couldn't have done it without you and all our volunteers and of course our favorite volunteers our husbands!! :-)  Of course thank you to Bosque Running shop for the generous donations and help!





















Results

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4Lh3WsdF4PQVTlLTFYwaTl4YTA/edit?usp=sharing

This one's for Mark!

Brrrrr.....  This weekend was just a little bit chilly but the kicker was the ridiculous gusts of wind that accompanied it.  As I was feeling a little sad that my first week back at work was a little less than stellar as far as work outs went I REALLY didn't want to miss another workout.  But I was coming up with every excuse you could think of, I shouldn't take the little guy out in this wind, I'm really busy getting stuff done around the house and tomorrow we're having guests, I'm tired, blah, blah, blah.  Then when hubs got home from an errand we both said to each other "We're going for that run!"  He had seen what he thought was one of our friends running in this weather and was motivated and I heard from another one of our friends that a mutual running buddy of ours was going through some pretty intense physical therapy.  So we got out there and did 3 miles in the windy chill and we were so happy we did it!  We may have looked a little silly and sealed our fate as the crazy ones on the block but as the dog chased leaves, the little guy took a nap snugly protected in his covered stroller, and hubs and I took turns pushing the stroller I had the biggest smile hidden under my face mask!!

Mark you are an awesome running buddy and we have had some really fun runs together, beer run, midnight relay, long marathon training runs, and I know you will be back at it soon!  You are one tough guy and relentless I have faith that you will have a SUPER Speedy recovery!  You are in our thoughts and even though you don't live in this lovely city with us anymore we still think about you and can't wait to see you on DM again!

Doggie Dash My first 5k back

What a great weekend!!  I had my first night out since A was born went to see Pacific Mambo Orchestra Friday night with my brother while hubs stayed home with A.  It was great although it felt kind of weird and I was tired since my bed time lately has been 9pm and I didn't get in bed until 11pm!!! :-)

Saturday we went to the doggie dash and hubs and Aiden were cheering me on while I ran with our crazy dog!  Got to see lots of my running friends, it was good to be back on the scene!  I ran it in 27:31 which I am SOOOOO happy with considering I had only put in 3 weeks of training and it's been 2 months since A was born.  We had to make two stops because my poor little dog got some stickers in her paw.  She was pulling me as usual and getting a little distracted when I couldn't keep up but we did great.  As I was nearing the finish someone was yelling great job Aiden!  I thought how do they know my sons name and I don't have him with me.  Turns out the little guy that just passed me (about 8-10 years old) was named Aiden too!  I thought is this a sign of things to come!!! :-) 

Another thing that happened there was we saw another heeler mix that looked exactly like our dog and had the same mannerisms and was just as fast of a runner.  So we started talking to the owners and they adopted their dog the same month from the same Animal Humane shelter and their dog was part of a litter too and was about 2 months old when they adopted him!!  So long lost brother and sister reunited!!  Unfortunately they didn't get along very well :-( we had to hold them to take this pic or they would have gone after each other snarled teeth and all!  Maybe that's how Lexi got the little nick in her ear she's had since we adopted her, a rough litter!  Glad we got to meet them and if they got along we could have all gone on runs together!

Lastly I had to go shopping, I say HAD to because with only 2 weeks left until I have to go back to work I figured I better go buy some work pants that actually fit comfortably until I get back to where I was.  :-)  I can't believe I only have 2 weeks left!!!!! It's going to be hard being away!

Happy Monday!

Look at his little belly!! :-)

What a fiasco!

We love saying that around our house, "What a fiasco!"  We said it once and noticed our dog's head turned to one side and her ears perked.  Every time we'd repeat it her head would turn a little more and we'd laugh hysterically so now it's a running joke!

Well this fiasco involved a second dog one that my husband took to calling JP (juan pedro) not sure why.  He was on his way out the door when he said there was a really nice dog outside with no tags.  We took him in to get wanded and no chip either.  So we put an ad on Craig's list and Animal Humane.  Finally the "owner" emailed hubs 3 times changing her story every time from saying she was fostering it to she just can't pick him up or take him back.  We were devastated that we were going to have to take him in to the shelter he was so sweet and cute and had sprained his paw getting away from his last place.  So as my husband tried to take him out to the car we just couldn't do it.  We said we'd keep him until we found him a home.  The two dogs got along all right and by the end of the third day our dog was sharing her picnic table (her favorite spot to sit and watch her domain) with JP.  This is a time I was
very thankful to social media because we were able to get the word out quickly.  Long story short with the help of friends we were able to find him an AWESOME home and he may even get to visit from time to time because it's not too far away from us.  Two of our awesome friends who also happen to be runners took him in!  Thank you so much to everyone that helped!!!  We couldn't be happier to have such a great ending to this story.  So yes, that was a fiasco! :-)  We made sure and called the city and had that person who had abandoned him put on the "no adopt" list so she can't do that again!

Exercise update:  I've been working out for three weeks now and each week I've added a mile to my running so I'm up to three miles.  Still slow compared to before but feeling great!  I still have 15 pounds left to lose but I'm concentrating more on building my endurance back up.  I'm lifting weights and getting some tone back which is exciting.  I've done a few spin session that left my legs feeling like J-E-L-L-O and haven't managed to make it back in the pool yet.  I'm happy for my progress!

On another exciting note a friend and I have decided to put on our first 5k fun run, Festivus 5k for the Rest of Us!  It's on December 14 and we are excited to try this out.  If this goes well we hope to try it again!  If you happen to be in the area check it out!  http://www.active.com/albuquerque-nm/running/distance-running/festivus-5k-for-the-rest-of-us-2013

HAPPY TRAINING!

Quick Dog Story or two...

So I get my workouts in when ever I can now a days.  Last Wed. I knew hubs had to head to campus for some extra work and I was already up to feed the little guy at 4:30 am and new he'd just keep me up grunting the last few hours before sunrise like he enjoys doing every morning so I decided to head to the gym.  After the gym I came home and took my dog for a 2 mile jog.  It was so early that she wasn't creating all her normal ruckus because all the usual suspects (aka "killer" "mr. mcgoo" and her other dog friends) were asleep in their homes.  I thought this will be an easy run for once!

Nope!  At the turn around I saw her limping so I thought I better get that goat head (sticker) out of her paw.  As I kneeled down to get it I noticed it was already gone but she decided it'd be a good idea to knock me to the ground and proceed to have a lick fest on my face in the middle of the road, way too early in the morning!  I quickly got up and recovered and started running.  Well she then decided to pull on the running leash that has about 8 feet of bungee give to it.  And I wear it kind of lose around my waste so she thought I was playing tug of war with her and ran circles around me tugging on the leash.  It took about 3 tries of stop and go and yelling at her to sit before she gave up on the tug of war!  Needless to say this run was  a little slower than the others.  Poor thing has been feeling neglected since A came along but I promise I run or walk her practically every single day.  She does need a bath and an ear cleaning though!  :-( 

On another doggy note I have managed to successfully go for a walk with both the dog and the baby in the stroller without my dog going absolutely nuts or knocking the stroller or myself over.  If I combine the waist part of my running leash with the regular leash so it doesn't have any give, she has to walk right next to us and my waist is a lot stronger than my arm so she can't pull us to one side try as much as she does when she goes by one of her doggy friends' houses!  I might even try jogging with both of them soon!!  That would be awesome instead of having to take multiple walks a day on top of trying to fit in a gym workout!

Ok that was not as quick of a story as I thought!

Countdown to comeback and training plan

Four more days and counting!  Now that my foot is feeling better and the midwife is about to give me the ok to start regular exercise I am excited and nervous!!!  But first a farewell to walking...

Dear Walking,

I hope these two become best friends and I'll have 2 running partners!

You have been there for me the past few months and I wanted to let you know how much I appreciate that.  You helped me get through the worst of it and keep my anxiety at bay.  As much as I wanted to pick up that foot just a little bit quicker I knew that you were there to keep me safe and healthy.  I might have lost any semblance of sanity and muscle if it wasn't for you.  But alas, it is time to part ways.  Don't worry I won't forget about you completely I still need to walk my dog and my son every day and when I go back to work you are there for me on my breaks and lunch to help me relieve stress and get some vitamin D.  Thank you!

Now the question is what will my first workout be?!??  I know it will include a 1 mile jog for sure so I plan on that being my warm up!  Then do I want to work on endurance and maybe do some spin or do I want to try and get some of my muscle tone back and do some weight lifting and or plyos?  Or do I take advantage of not being back at work yet and try out one of the aerobics classes at the gym that I never get to do?  I'm so excited to plan out my upcoming workouts that I don't even know where to start!  What is your favorite workout?  If you have to take a break how do you ease yourself back into exercise?

I'm also a little bit nervous thinking what if I never get back into the shape I was in?  What if I can't run the 5k I signed up for just 3 weeks after getting back to exercise?  Yes, I signed up for the Doggie Dash that benefits Animal Humane as my first race and hope that my dog will pull me most of the way because I want to try and not have to walk any of it!  But coming from only walking for the last 2 1/2 months and only having 3 weeks to train for it might be too much to ask of my body?  What if the extra flab around the belly never fully goes away no matter how many sit-ups I do?  Ok in reality I will put all these nervous thoughts at the back of my head and run them all away!  I'm super excited to get that first endorphin rush that I haven't had in a while.  I can't wait until little A can hold his own head up and I can take him with me in the jogging stroller!  It will be a new world of working out for me and I can't wait to see what my future holds!

P.S. I might have gotten a sneak peek, I mean I can't help it if my dog wants to run on our walks....

Running on Campus....

Since I work at a University I spend a lot of time on campus and it ends up being where I get some of my workouts in.  My 5k class is for staff but we run at the field just outside of the campus gym, it's perfect because it's well lit at night (luckily with daylight savings this weekend that won't be a problem anymore) and it's 1/2 mile each time around.  Well I usually get there before my class because I get off work earlier and I do my own run while I'm waiting.  The other day I had to laugh as I was running because I so often fool myself into thinking I could still pass for a college student then it's times like this I'm reminded, nope probably not!

 

As the college girl passes me smelling all fresh and clean and like she actually bathed just to go for a run, wearing perfectly matching outfit that even matches her shoes, full makeup, shorts so short I'm pretty sure you can't wear underwear with them, and a perky ponytail (did you think I was going to say something else?) that bounces with every step.....

I think I remember those days when I actually use to "get ready" to go workout! :-)  Now it's been about 10 years since I've been out of college, I'm not single, and to top it all off I'm now pregnant.  So I consider myself "put together" if I manage to find a shirt that doesn't make my eyes water when I sniff the armpits, and have matching socks and my shoes on the right foot.  My ponytail is usually falling to the side before I even get one lap in and I'm wearing wind pants that I've owned for over 10 years!  Remember when Adidas first came out with the 3 stripe wind pants?  Yup those!

Dear Hubs, I promise I'll put more effort back into how I look in about 9 months 2-3 years?  Ok so I still make an effort sometimes.  :-)

What's your favorite running item?  Do you have matching outfits or do you grab whatever is available?  Was going to the gym ever a social event for you?

Womens' 5k

I helped out with the Albuquerque Road Runner's Woman's Distance Festival (5k)  this weekend.  There is a training program associated with this that I think is a great asset to our running community and gets a lot of women involved in running in a fun and supportive environment.  This year they had a Kid's K fun run and it was the cutest thing ever!  Check this video out I think she was the youngest running it and thought it was funny that they would draw green arrows on the ground!

The run is fast fun course and there were a lot of fast women out there so proud of everyone!  This a run walk event.  My running buddy who is fast herself is a crazy woman and also ran another 5k that night but I'm glad she joined me for this one too even if the warm up mile was the only part we ran together because she's too fast for me :-)

I donated what ended up being 4 packs of greeting cards as prize drawings, was going to be 2 but some of the display ones were given out too but what better group of ladies to give them too right?!? :-)

The fist lucky winner of the greeting cards!

Getting her AG award which was a pretty bracelet with a charm!  Miss Speedy!

Of course for the finish line they handed out flowers and chocolates.  This was a great way to end the weekend.  This last week wasn't so great training wise for me I woke up every day feeling tired even though I had just slept at least 8 hours.  I'd come home tired didn't want to workout, clean, cook, hangout, nothing just sleep.  And with a pounding headache to boot!  Then Sunday morning when I woke up was the first time I felt half normal again!  WooHoo!  I did this one in 25:02 which for me is is a good 5k time.  So my 5k PR I got 11 years ago at 21 mins. at what point can you decide to reset your PR?  :-)  I usually do a bike and swim along with this so that felt weird to just be done!  Happy Monday here's to a much better week of training ahead, glad that last week is done and I can move past it!

To sprint or not to sprint

Ok so when I do a running race I usually do sprint at the end just because it is ingrained in us that we need to finish strong.  But when I do a triathlon/duathlon and the swim or bike is at the finish sometimes I don't feel like I sprint to the finish.  Especially on the bike, I push as hard as possible throughout the whole course and the slowest I go is usually at the finish.  This is due to my clumsiness with clips.  It is embarrassing when you are so exhausted when you cross the finish line, forget to unclip, and just fall over.  YES this has happened to me.  :-)

But I also think it depends on the distance.  If I'm doing an IM or Marathon where I probably took several walk breaks and I feel that I am lucky to finish I feel a little silly sprinting at the finish and even when I do the finish line picture always looks like I was walking anyway.  But then who wants to cheer you on if you aren't sprinting and let's face it it's pretty awesome getting cheered to the finish!

I do remember one triathlon where I didn't do a full out sprint at the end and this one girl in my age group stayed behind me until the last shoot and passed just as we crossed the finish line.  Now I didn't react a la Lance when it happened to him :-) but I also wasn't a contender for this race.  If it had cost me a place on the podium I would have been a little irked.  So I guess my conclusion is I will try to always leave it all out there on the course no matter what and if I still have enough in me to sprint at the end I will do that also.  But if I have enough in me at the end to sprint and don't collapse after the finish then it probably means I could have pushed harder throughout.

Thoughts?  Do you always sprint at the finish no matter what?  Would you pass someone at the very last second during a race?  Is that part of your race strategy?

Stories and Winners!

First a couple of stories, then a couple of pictures some of you may have already seen on my DM & FB, then the winners of the Tribute Sport giveaway!

Pool Stories
So for those of you who have read my blog in the past you know I have been learning a lot a cool new exercises you can do in the pool just by watching those around me.  I have another new one.  I even had a conversation with him but didn't build up the courage to ask him what the exercises help with.

Pool Guy: What is that?
Me: Oh this, it's just a kick board.  It looks different because it's supposed to be ergonomic.
Pool Guy:  Oh yeah that does look aerodynamic.
Me: No like it's just made to where it's easier to grip.
Pool Guy: Yeah it looks like you could go really fast with that.
Me: Yeah you're right (I didn't have it in me to fully explain and just wanted to swim laps)

Then he proceeded to get in an open lane and alternate between walking down the length of the pool waving his hands underwater and splashing then on the way back he would hop on one foot while holding his head.  Again I'm sure there is a very valid reason for this I'm just not seeing it right away.  :-)

On my way to work this morning

This morning I saw two things on my way to work that made me go hmmmm, but I didn't attempt to take pictures.  I saw Spider Man walking towards the bus stop.  Then I saw two grown women that I see about every other day on their way to the bus stop and the thing with them is that every time I see them they are wearing matching outfits.  I'm not talking a uniform or anything just matching outfits and I don't know why but I really am curious as to the reason...  Maybe I need to ride that bus sometime.

La Luz #2

I ran La Luz again and the good news is my muscles weren't sore this time because I'm use to the hill the bad news is my leg hurts pretty bad from the swelling and bruising on my leg.  Note to self pick up your feet when you run downhill!

Me pretending I didn't just fall....

Sorry it's upside down I was attempting to take a picture of it myself...  This is before it started swelling and bruised...

Now what you've been waiting for the winners from the Tribute Sport Giveaway!!  One was Bitahnii  and the second was Donna G!!!!!  Email me at cautiouslyaudacious@hotmail.com with your mailing address and I'll get your cool running necklace to you as quickly as possible!  Congrats and thanks again to Tribute Sport!

Random Photo Wed

No I have not decided to make this a thing every Wed. I can't seem to stick to weekly themes on my blog but it felt like a good random photo Wed :-)

My husband sent me this, but he has come to realize now that it's not true...  He may be getting a break while he's overseas but I will be in the hardest 2 months of my IM training when he gets back so we will be getting him a road bike!

He also sent me this one and said my hummus and tabbouleh is way better :-)  I quit cooking and have started eating cereal for dinner because it makes me sad to cook for 1 but I can't wait for him to get back and I'll start cooking on a regular basis again!

While we were visiting the Getty he asked me to take a picture of this saying so we could remember it.  Later that weekend he proposed to me!  :-)

Not sure if it's real but that's brave if it is!

I really really want to go to this but can't decide if even sampling should fit into my training schedule!!

 

Can't forget the best triathlon photographer on mother's day!!!

Giveaway end Friday enter here!

Lovin' the weekend!

I'm behind on here and there are so many things I wanted to blog about lately but work has been INSANE so I haven't had the time as well as been really tired when I do.  The stress at work has been adding up over the last 3-4 weeks but this week was the worst and of course it was also taper week which meant I didn't have my normal coping mechanism available, which usually involves running like hell until all the stress (poison) is out of my system.  This is the 1st time I've truly experienced taper madness, usually I'm so tired from my training that I have to admit taper week doesn't make me go all that crazy.

So last weekend I did my first trail run/shuffle it was so fun and beautiful.  It didn't hurt after the first mile once my heart realized it wasn't really going to explode :-) having all the scenery was awesome and distracted me a lot!   We did 4.5 up then back down it was almost 1800 feet in elevation gain and a little chilly at the top.  Took me 2:10 to do it. I plan on adding some trail running to my training plan just because it was so much fun!  My legs were really hurting the next day but that was expected.

Warning if you are a guy you can skip this paragraph! :-)  This weekend is a sprint tri with my dad on Sunday and don't worry we haven't forgotten about mother's day we have something special planned, or do we?  (She likes to keep up with my blog so I'll have to be vague)  Anyway I had this whole race strategy written on my mirror with dry erase marker and then got thrown for a loop.  It's supposed be raining and I've never ridden my tri bike in the rain so it makes me a little nervous.  Also my body has been all outa whack and it decided it should be that time of month right now!!!  Let's just hope I don't have a repeat of Ironkids when I was just 12 years old.  If you happened to listen to my dad's pre race interview that I posted here you would have heard him elude to this incident.  It was traumatizing for a 12 year old girl to go through.  I was racing Ironkids nationals and when I crossed the finish line a kind woman came up and asked me where my parents were.  I said I didn't know.  She then asked me if I had a change of clothes I had to say no my parents would have it.  Then she had to point out why she was asking and I looked down to see a soaked t-shirt and bathing suite (and let's just say it wasn't from the pool water) I can't remember if I was in instant tears or not but I do remember thinking I was justified in feeling so horrible during the race!!!  But I've grown up and I've learned how to use a tampon :-) but I'm more concerned with being fatigued during the race!!!

Ok enough girly stories and more pretty pictures.  Good luck to everyone racing this weekend my race plan is simply going to be to GIVE IT H - E - double hockey sticks and not worry about what the race gods throw at me!


Don't forget about my giveaway here!