Cry me a river.....

Thanks for all the support on my flip turn post yesterday.  I even flip turned at Masters today- IronDave was impressed....I think I smiled underwater!

I ran a 4 mile tempo run yesterday - Here was the plan:

Mile 1 - warm up
Mile 2 - begin to build pace slightly to 80% until 2.5; 2.5-3 gradually increase to 85%
Mile 3 - 3.5 - decrease to 75%
Mile 3.5 - 4 - very easy cooldown.

Here's how it ended up:

Mile 1 - 11:00min/mile - warm up
Mile 2 - 10:13/mile - pushing the pace a little (for me) but not terribly uncomfortable
Mile 3 - 9:40/mile - thought I was going to die
Mile 4 - 10:30/mile - gradually brought my heart rate down and then cried when I was done.

I'm a crier.

I cry when I'm happy, I cry when I'm sad, I cry when I'm mad, I cry when I finish a race and apparently I cry when I finish a tempo run.  Hey, it happens....what can I say - I'm a chick and I have emotions.  God help us when and if I ever have babies.  It could be a long nine  months.... with my infant size tear ducts and toddler size bladder Bill could be in for it.

Not that you care about my tear ducts or my bladder.

Speaking of bladders....

I finished The Long Run by Matt Long in a little under 2 days. The first day I read 14 something chapters.  You should go pick it up.  It is awesome. (or you can still enter to win it over at Running with Whit).  I'll save my review for when I win this giveaway... I'm determined to win at some point...... I just want to re-gift it to you!

I picked up my race packet for the 15K which I've become increasingly more nervous about over the last few days.  Yesterday the 4-miler went great but that pesky pain I had in my calf while I was training for the 1/2 has crept up again.  I need to look at my mileage on my shoes....may be time for a new pair...and practice that KT tape again - that sure helped during White Rock. 

Other than that I'm feeling great.  I swam 2000 yds at Master's today and have a 45 min. tempo ride tonight on the trainer.  I plan to catch up on the bachelor during the ride....don't judge me.

One of the three dogs has had diarrhea for the last week.  It's really starting to piss me off.  I don't think it's Lyla - pretty sure it's one of the others.  I need them to stop though b/c I'm getting tired of cleaning up shit all around the house.  Scratch that - Bill is tired of cleaning it up and I'm tired of following behind with 409 and whatever else I can get my hands on to sanitize said area. 

So ....

Dear Shakes and/or Deuce,

If you are reading this while Daddy and I are at work - PLEASE STOP SHITTING.... you are really starting to wear on me.  You are not very cute when you are pooping all over the new flooring in the downstairs.  Nor are you cute when you are farting up a storm - so much so that I had to hide behind my snuggie all last night while on the couch AND have two candles burning.  Your ass odor is foul - and I suggest you fix it - QUICK!

thanks and gig 'em,
your human mommy

If this doesn't get better by Friday - I'm calling the vet.  Do they have doggie diarrhea medicine?  If so, they are all three getting it!

Enough talk about bodily functions from me and my dogs.... hope you have a wonderful hump day!

Neti Pot......

That's not some Indian name for the wacky tobacc-y....

Have you ever used a neti pot?  A sinus wash?  Is this already a disgusting post?

I'm still sick as a d-o-g but am at work because I'm taking all of next week off on vacation and I'll be dammed if I do any work.  So I'm sitting here bathing in hand sanitizer as to make sure I don't spread my illness to everyone.  Good thing they put me in a corner..... almost at the 24 hour mark of the antibiotic so hopefully I'm not infecting anyone.... If I do, and you read this, I'm sorry.

My boss just called - I said "This is Allison" and he laughed..... he said he couldn't even understand me.  AWESOME.....

Anyways - have you ever used a neti pot?  I'm pretty sure they are the best thing ever.....

Over the last two days I've become seriously congested and it's moving into my chest which is never good.  Bill had a neti pot from the last time he was sick and told me I should use it.  I love him therefore it didn't bother me at all that I was inserting something into my nose that he had previously had in his.  No worries - I scrubbed it down before hand.....

Anyways - the neti pot looks like this....

You fill it with warm water and saline (ours came with saline packets - if you don't have that salt is just fine)

And then do this....

FYI - It's kind of disturbing how many pictures there are online of people using these things.......

It has the potential to be rather disgusting..... I hit that potential like no one's business. It was like a cascading waterfall of sinus gunk...... I pretty sure Bill was turned on...I kid, I kid.

Anyway - I did it twice on Sunday, once yesterday, and today in a steamy hot shower.  Nothing like a steamy shower to get the congestion out.

So I still feel like crap - hoping that it clears up by Friday - I hate missing workouts, I hate that I'm sick the week of Christmas, and I also hate that it is going to be 80 degrees here today.  December 21 and it's 80 degrees.......such is Texas.....

In other news:

Training/Races/Challenges:

Lesley and Sherry are hosting a new fun challenge in 2011 - RUN FOR THE BLING OF IT!

Go visit Sherry and read her post with the details... I've already signed up - Will you???????  I think I've said it before that I only do these athletic events for the shirts and medals anyway :)

If you don't follow Jeff, you should, - go visit him and watch the Ironman Videos from 2010... I watched them all last night laying in bed and I cried - the whole time.  Maybe I actually do have inkling of interest in a full Ironman one day......

Giveaway:

Don't forget to enter my key chain/Starbucks giveaway here

Random:

My friend Della is a sixth grade math teacher - she had her students work in groups to prepare a graph.  This particular group graphed the historical temperatures during June in Bryan, Texas.... notice anything funny?

I'm battling being sick today.  It all started yesterday at lunch.  I went to have a nice lunch with a co-worker, after almost killing every STUPID driver on the road , uh, I mean, pulling my hair out because of every STUPID driver on the road, seriously the traffic was terrible going to lunch, we made it to the restaurant.  I was ready to chow - I was hungry - as in ready to eat a cow hungry.  Swimming early in the morning gets me going..... not only like AWAKE going, but the hunger monster going too.... I eat two breakfasts on M/W/F - one light breakfast before swim and something else afterwards.  By 11am I'm hungry AGAIN and it's off to lunch.  ANYWAY - I've deviated.....

We made it to lunch and I ordered a water (with lemon - yum-o) I took a big swaller' and what do you know.... it hurt like hell.  I kept drinking the water thinking the cold ice water would numb (and subsequently kill) whatever was happening in the back of my throat.   It didn't work at lunch; but I was SURE that a few glasses of wine would certainly take out the pain.

At our holiday party I had a nice time.  I was able to catch up with some industry folks I hadn't seen in  awhile and met some new people that can potentially bring me some business. All - in - all it was a good event.  The wine didn't help the annoying pain in my throat......

I got home and was exhausted - ready to pass out - and that's just what I did.  This morning I woke up and there's still a lingering pain in my throat but now my eyes are all scratchy and I kinda hurt all over. Now.Is.NOT.the.time.to.be.sick.

I'm hoping for a calm evening tonight - catch up on the boob tube and have a nice relaxing night with Bill.... we are having tilapia and veggies for dinner...yum............

I was supposed to go shopping with my mom - but I'm skipping that in order to get to bed early . I'm supposed to have a 4 mile run but depending on how I feel when I leave here will determine if that run takes place.

Happy Thursday!