What's New...

Because I love bullet lists:

• NOT new - I'M FUNDRAISING!! I know, I know. People are probably getting tired of hearing about it already! For now, all I'm asking for is money, I'm not going to be doing any giveaways (that may or may not change). I'm raising money for the LAZAREX CANCER FOUNDATION. My goal is $950 and I have until mid August to get the money in, so obviously no rush, but hey, I like to proactive. You can do a tax-deductible donation HERE and I'll also have a link on my sidebar until the end of August.
• I am still NOT over the zombie bird flu plague. Coughing, congestion, fatigue... it's still all there. Going on two weeks. So fun.
• Somewhat related to the last bullet. I have been going on and on for well over a year about how I'm just in general fatigued and tired and everything is so much harder than it used to be, blah blah blah. I finally FINALLY have an appointment to see a doctor next week. Hopefully this is an easy fix and I can get back into some more intense training/running.
• Sorta related: I did not have any calf issues during my half on Sunday. That's new. What else is new is that even though I "ran" the slowest pace ever (11:2x), I am STILL sore days later in my calves. WHY WHY WHY??? It's not like I was "racing" - so annoying.
• WHY do I want to get in to more training? Well... I'm not sure if there were any actual correct guesses when I posted this picture last week, so I'll give you the spoiler. I'm going back to Moab. Not for another attempt at running 100, because that would be CRAZY. However... I did sign up for the 24 hour division. So. We'll see how much I can accomplish in 24 hours.

• I sorta have a new training program. SORTA. That means that tonight, for the first time in... oh, probably a year, I will be attempting some speed work. Don't laugh, this probably means my "speed" will be somewhere in the 9:30 min/mile range. (See above, I'm still recovering from zombie bird flu plague. I've also become the SLOWEST HUMAN EVER. My "race pace" is over 2 min/mile slower than 2 years ago. WOMP, WOMP)
• Related: I'm running a very local half marathon on Sunday. Last year, it was 7 degrees. It was cold. This year, the forecast for the ENTIRE WEEKEND is snow. And THIS is why there are NO RACES in Colorado in the winter.
• Related: I am OVER winter. (Which seems so dumb to even say since we've had the most mild winter ever. Put a little snow in the forecast and I LOSE MY MIND).
• Did you know I'm also running a marathon? Next weekend? No? Well... as under trained and sick as I've been, it should be GOOD TIMES. Anyone else going to be at IMS Arizona???
• SOMEONE HEARD ALL MY COMPLAINING LAST FALL ABOUT THE LACK OF A HALLOWEEN HALF MARATHON IN COLORADO. Just added is one VERY close to my house - called the Kooky Spooky. OMG I AM SO EXCITED. Is it too soon to start planning my costume??? 
• Blah blah blah - hunger/nutrition. I hope that after my visit to the doctor, I can get back to a more vigorous schedule that will allow me to eat as much as I'm used to. I am on a minor candy kick, which I am sure is not helping. Suggestions for better monitoring food intake? Things to consider:
• I will not count calories. I have at least three apps on my phone that are capable of doing that, and I'm fooling no one. I will not do it.
• I will not "give up" anything.
• I really like salads, but they don't seem like a super cost effective lunch. Which is a bummer, because if I had all the money, I'd go to a salad bar EVERY DAY.
• Blah blah blah - the Lazy
• I have a treadmill at home. Did you know that? I've run on it less than a dozen times in the 2+ years I have owned it. It just "feels" different than the ones at the gym, so I don't use it. My recliner FACES the treadmill. I sit in my recliner and LOOK AT MY TREADMILL.
• Should I just suck it up and start using it? For walking? Running? To hang my clothes?
• Should I sell it?
• WHY AM I SO LAZY?
• A is selling Girl Scout cookies again. Well, if by selling, you mean stacking boxes upon boxes of cookies in my hallway, then yes, she is "selling." Last year, I was out of work, and we went out almost every day. This year, I've been sick and working and we haven't gone out ONCE. I'm a jerk. She wants to sell enough to go to camp this summer. Sigh.

Super Exciting News!!

If you don't currently stalk me on Twitter or Facebook, you may not have heard that I was one of the INKnBURN ambassadors chosen on Friday. WHAT. I feel like I won the lottery!!!

I'm so incredibly honored and excited to be part of the INKnBURN team. I can't wait to see what is in store for me this year! If you aren't already familiar with them - check out their website!! There is so much awesome there, and it is all made right here in the USA!!

INKnBURN ambassadors

With that said... being accepted as an ambassador finally seemed to "mentally" get the motivation going. I'm part of a pretty amazing group of people! And then... I came down with YET ANOTHER cold over the weekend. So instead of getting out of my lull I've been in, I was coughing and sneezing and in bed pretty much the whole weekend. Is it my imagination or does it seem like there are WAY MORE SICK PEOPLE this year??

In other random:

• I had another massage yesterday. Again, I was told I'm incredibly tight and that I should foam roll more often. WHY AM I SO LAZY ABOUT THIS?
• I'm supposed to be running a 1/2 on Sunday. I guess I'm glad it was not this weekend, since I can't even breathe right now.
• I registered for the Colfax half marathon. It is one of the bigger half marathons in Colorado, and I've never run it, so I'm pretty excited to be in town to run it this year (at the expense of NOT doing something elaborate for my birthday this year).
• Remember all the Disney madness with the Dumbo challenge selling out in less than an hour? I'll be posting my fundraising link on a pretty regular basis. This time, I'm raising money for Lazarex - you can read more about what they do on my donation page - HERE.

Three Things Thursday

1. Disney

OH. MY.

If you at all had any interest in running the new "challenge" for Disney, the Dumbo Double Dare or the Disneyland half marathon, chances are you pre-registered at WDW or Tink. Or you were sitting at your computer waiting for registration to open on Tuesday morning.

If you have no idea what I am talking about, THIS WAS PURE CHAOS.

The challenge was more than 50% pre-sold due to the ability to register at the expos. The RunDisney website got completely bogged down and many people got locked out when trying to register. Dumbo sold out IN LESS THAN AN HOUR. What.

I had been hemming and hawing about whether I was going to do it, at a $280 price tag, it was... expensive. The 10k sold out shortly after the Dumbo challenge, and the half marathon sold out in 26 hours. I did NOT get in to register. Who knew that it would sell out so fast??? However... I did want to run. So, I signed up to raise money for charity again! This time I will be fundraising for Lazarex Cancer Foundation. Please check out my fundraising page here. I have a goal of $950 (which means I have a daily goal in the $3-$5 range). Anything you can contribute, as always, would be GREATLY appreciated.

2. Calves

If I go back and scan my race recaps, I have been having the "tight calf" issue for over two years now. I cannot seem to figure out the cause of it. I *do* stretch, I am lazy about foam rolling and I definitely have been watching how much water I drink. Still can't seem to fix it.

This past weekend at Tink, they were just as bad, if not worse, than ever. Since I had a short day on Monday, I went to get a deep tissue massage. They only had time to squeeze me in for 30 minutes, so I didn't get THAT much accomplished. She did say my calves and thighs were tight, and immediately asked if I had IT band problems.

I think I need to be more diligent on this. I am scheduling a longer massage for this weekend. I don't want to have to stop running/racing because I am too lazy to get it taken care of.

3. NKOTB

I know it is not running related. But I love me some NKOTB, and they announced a new tour, The Package, on Tuesday! They will be touring with 98 Degrees and Boyz II Men. WHAT. Bummer that they are not coming to Colorado though :(

Maybe LA??? (J says I'm crazy for even CONSIDERING traveling for a concert).

Related:

A says to me last night, "Mom, there is a One Direction concert. CAN WE GO??" Yes. Yes we can.