30 Day Challenge (Day 1): Abs, Butts, and Arms

Plank: 20 seconds (0)

Squats: 30 (0)

Push-Ups: 3 (2-it was really hard to keep proper form...man I'm weak!)

May 30 Day Challenges

I've decided to jump on the 30 Day Challenge bandwagon for lots of reasons:

1. I'm trying to get my body as strong as possible so as to avoid injuries like the one I enjoyed endured in November.
2. I want to be fitter as least as fit as I was BB (before baby...maybe it should be BT for before toddler???).
3. My mom is kicking ass in the workout department and my competitive side is not to be shown up.
4. The 30 day challenges are organized in a way that makes sense to me.
5. I like how it takes just a little effort to see results in strength.
6. The challenges will take mere minutes each day, can be done anywhere, and I can bang them out while Kellen is sleeping or playing (theoretically).
7. It's probably a better use of time than Facebook creeping...

So, here's what I'm working on this month:

Week 1, Day 2~ Doggy Style

Get your head out of the gutter!  I brought my canine son along for the run today.  It turns out he's about 6 pounds overweight and in need of a bit more cardio.  So, I figured he might benefit from a little Couch to 5K action, as well.  He did pretty well, despite getting tangled in the stroller wheel once and a nervous encounter with a hound during a potty break.  Anywho, I think it was a success all in all!  Here are the stats:

My back was a bit tight, so I'm giving today's run a 3.  The running was ok, but I didn't feel 100%.

I'm Back! (Week 1, Day 1...Again...)

So, it's been a while since I've posted about running because, well, there hasn't been any running.  After my totally sucky back injury in November, I have been sidelined.  It's been a slow recovery, to say the least.  I'm finally starting to feel stronger, so I decided today was as good a day as any to get back in the game.

Since we've been enjoying temps in the high 60s, I was itching to lace up my kicks and hit the streets.  My ever concerned PT husband has warned me to ease very slowly back into running. It's been a good 6 months and I am coming back from a pretty significant injury, so I decided to start the Couch to 5K program from the beginning again.  I figured it worked before, and it would definitely force me not to push myself too hard.

In addition to being antsy to get back to running, I was also excited to try out my new Garmin watch that Scotty-Boy got me for Christmas.  This nifty little gadget keeps track of all sorts of running data that I hope someday will make sense to me.  Here's a run-down of my "run:"

As you can tell, I was blazing fast (rolling eyes).  It's all good though, because the most important thing to me is that I was out there, doing my thing.  Plus, I had a really cute little buddy along for the ride!

Pay no attention to my gooch-eye...I may or may not have Bell's Palsy!

Today's run gets a 2.  I was slow as hell, but I felt pretty good all things considered.  Fingers crossed I'm not wracked with pain tomorrow!

Witch City Chick

Sunday I ran the Witch City 5K in Salem, MA.  I didn't have any ambitious goals for this race considering that the three weeks since my last 5K have been full of rain and stomach flu.  Needless to say, running hasn't been high on my list of priorities.  I basically wanted to finish without stopping to walk.

This race was a lot of fun because it was located in the heart of Halloween-Salem.  People were encouraged to dress in costume, and most did.  I was a costume minimalist.  I figured that I didn't need anything that could potentially slow me down.  I ran with my friend Maddy, and she just so happened to have a tutu in her trunk (obviously), so I slipped it over my running shorts and called it a day.

The course was relatively flat, with only a couple gentle hills.  I felt great, much to my surprise.  I expected to huff and puff and basically die (remember sickness and non-running for three weeks?).  I wasn't lightning fast, but I kept a pretty steady pace and didn't stop once.  Goal achieved!


Here are the stats:

Place No.  Name                Div/Tot  Div   Ag S City              St Nettime Guntime Pace

291 4416 Lindsay Kasmarcik     56/126  F3039  30 F Georgetown        MA   30:57   31:11 10:03

There were 529 total runners, so I was pretty pleased with my finish (291st).  While I ran this race 20 seconds slower than my previous 5K time, I was happy with my performance overall.  More importantly, I was happy with how I felt throughout the race.  Yippee!

Here We Go Again

I registered for another 5K!  On October 21st, I'll be running the Witch City 5K in Salem (costumes required).  Salem is always fun and crazy in October, so I can't wait to see what a costume run brings to the city.  Hopefully, Scotty-Boy and my little goblin will be joining me for the race.  This competition thing is a little addictive...

Apple Harvest 5K

On a rainy Sunday, the day after Kellen's first birthday, Scott and I ran the Apple Harvest 5K.  The weather was so disgusting, we hemmed and hawed about whether we should run or not.  I decided that I had paid and trained for this run so I was going to do it, downpour and all.

We had originally planned to bring Kellen along in the jogger, but we made a game time decision to have Grandma (Scott's mom) and Grammy (my mom) hang out with him on the sidelines.  

There were 228 runners in the 5K race.

The course was super hilly.  I wasn't anticipating that, but luckily I had been running hills over the past two weeks.  While the hills were challenging, it was nice to be able to coast on the downhills.

My goals for this race was to run the entire thing, without walking, and beat my last 5K time.  I achieved both goals!  Woo hoo!  My official time was 30:28, and I averaged 9:49/mile.  I finished 124th out of 228 runners.  I was 54/130 women and 12th (out of 31) in my division.  Overall, I finished 3:28 faster than I did in my last race.  I'm pretty proud of myself!

Scott has run with me maybe a couple times over the past month.  He definitely hasn't "trained" regularly for the race.  So, it stands to reason that he would kick my ass, right?!  Harumph!

Scotty-Boy finished in 25:13.  He averaged 8:07/mile, and was 38th out of 228 runners!  Scott was 32nd out of 98 men, and 5th in his age division.  

I'm glad that we were able to run together, even though "together" meant Scott was 5 minutes ahead of me.  At one point on course, there was a hairpin turn on the last hill.  I passed Scotty while I was trudging up the hill and he was cruising down.  I think we may have done a cheesy little smile and high five thing when we saw each other.  Nonetheless, it was fun to be active and working toward a goal (of finishing) together.  Here's hoping we run another 5K soon!