March Madness...

... and I am not talking about college hoops.

This month has been a month from hell, and I thought that February was bad. Remember how I said I was so excited to see February done and over with, hoping for the best with training and such in March?

There is nothing you can do when you are dealing with the unexpected. This month's workouts (or lack there of) were affected by: parent/teacher conferences, an increase in the usual paperwork/meetings, 2 winter storm days, pool closed for a week, 6 days away from work in regards to the Red River flood issue and the entire gym closed for an additional week because of this...


Here are March's totals:

• Swim - 5,600M.....................7,250M in February
• Bike - 65.91 miles.............35.94 miles in February
• Run - 24.00 miles..............21.10 miles in February

I am pretty pleased with my numbers. Especially since I am slowly recovering with this knee issue. Yes, I am still having some tightness in my right knee after 3 miles of running, but I am working out the kinks.

I started the month off with a band with Jillian's 30-Day Shred video, doing the first 10 days back to back, and then all went downhill. I am thinking about starting over tomorrow, and doing it straight through this time.

I was also hoping to start my Tri Power book in April, but that might have to wait until May. Things are just not back to routine yet, and I don't want to start something I can't be consistent with right now. Not until a routine is back in place.

April is going to be better.

It has to be.

More Snow?

I am still in Bismarck at my parents. As much as I am unhappy about being away from my daily routine, it's kind of a nice retreat. Even if I am living out of an oversized suitcase.

The Red River in Fargo appears to be going down, but we are still playing the waiting game, hoping and praying that the dikes will hold.

I am still planning on trying to head back to Fargo Wednesday, weather depending. There's a winter storm system going through the region and we received 11 inches overnight here in Bismarck. Many more inches are expected to fall over the next day or so. I know that Fargo is expected to get some snow as well, but I don't know how much.

With all the snowfall, many businesses and offices are closed. Getting to the gym is not an option and running outdoors is out of the question! I guess I am just going to have to do some shoveling to get the heart pumping!

This winter is getting old. I am so over it.


On a running note, I have made the decision to NOT do the Fargo Half Marathon. I am just not ready. I still have an occasional 3 mile run that is hard on my knee, so I am going to focus on the 5K only, maybe working to improve it over the next 6 weeks. Now, I just need to decide if I am going to pay the $15 to change from the HM to the 5K , or just wear my original bib and do the 5k..... any thoughts?

Playing the Waiting Game

I don't have too much to report today. Yesterday morning my Dad called 3 times, the third time I was on my way to fill sandbags with a handful of friends. We dropped a couple off and three of us went home, packed and headed out of town. I got home to my parents yesterday, late afternoon.

This past week has been crazy insane. It was hard to leave Fargo, knowing that I wouldn't be able to help from Bismarck, but I also wanted to avoid potential chaos if the city were to evacuate.

It sounds like the water levels have dropped a bit today, but we aren't expected the Red River to crest until tomorrow evening. And... the water is expected to stay above record levels through the rest of the week. Only time will tell if the dikes will be able to hold.

School has been cancelled through the week. I haven't decided how long I will be in Bismarck, but will make that decision in the next day or so, I presume. There's another winter storm rolling into our region tomorrow night and into Monday, so the earliest I would probably leave is Tuesday. We'll see.

I am going to leave you with a few videos.... It's amazing to see how many people came together to help with this, through the rain, cold temps, and snow covered grounds... I am truly blessed to be surrounded by such a wonderful community full of humble human beings.

Rising Waters

The Fargo/Moorhead area is scrambling to make sure things are ready for the River to Crest this weekend... tomorrow I presume, at about 42 feet.

Let me give you a little info.... The Red River usually sits at 14 feet, but it might reach 43 feet. It has currently reached over 40 feet this morning (the 100 year flood mark). So, that is a lot of water for the dikes to hold.

I have moved all my "valuables" upstairs and plan to head to the dome hear shortly to sand bag for as long as I can. I will go all day if I have to. I need to pack a few bags, just in case I need to flee, per parent request.

On a good note, my parents were able to get back into their house yesterday afternoon. Good news, NO WATER in the house! The yard is one huge ice rink, however! Yay!

Even when the water crests this weekend, this mess is far from over. Keep the prayers and well wishes coming our way. Boy do we need them now more than ever.

I hope to be posting some pictures in the near future.

I am out!

It's Crunch Time

A Code Red Alert was sent out this morning because they had an extreme drop in volunteers for sand bagging. Many teachers were frustrated that we had school today. But, nothing we can do about that now.


I just got home from work and will be heading out to sand bag here shortly. It might be a late night. When I return, I plan to move some of my valuables up from my basement, just in case.


An announcement was made today that we will not have school tomorrow. So, I will be out sand bagging again.


I read in the Bismarck Tribune that they are going to start letting people back into my parents neighborhood this afternoon. I am waiting to hear from my parents as to what the war zone looks like. Hopefully there isn't too much damage. But, like my Mom said today, it's just things.


Thanks again for all the positive thoughts and prayers sent our way. It is amazing to see all the people coming together to help. Not just our community, but our region. This truly shows the midwestern spirit.


It's crunch time.


My posts might be short and sporadic... but I will try my best to keep you all up to date on what's going on around here.

More Flood Related Info

School is cancelled the rest of the week in Fargo to prepare to use the schools as an evacuation place, if necessary. They should have a better idea tomorrow whether or not people need to be evacuated from their homes. Should being the operative word.

I don't teach in Fargo, so we don't know if we have school tomorrow yet. As of right now, we do. So many teachers minds are going to be preoccupied with bigger issues, and many will be gone as they live right along the river.

I am starting to think that I should be worried about my house, but I am almost in West Fargo, as far away from the river while still being in Fargo. I will probably run out and get some supplies tomorrow, just in case. And, start moving some valuables to the second level as well. If I do need to leave my house, it will be interesting to figure out where I will go. Parts of the interstate has been closed due to flooding elsewhere.

I talked to both my parents tonight in regards to how Bismarck is fairing. They shut down the dam up north to keep the water from running down through the Missouri. This should have been done as soon as they knew about the ice jams, but wasn't. And they finally blew up the ice jams this afternoon with the help of a guy from NE that specializes in this. Who knew that was a specialty?!

I will leave you with this video. It is a video of my parents neighborhood from yesterday afternoon and along with a couple neighbors frustrations. If you play close attention, our house is about 28 seconds into the video (yellow with 3 big evergreen trees out front)... and they show it a few times. It's just so sad to see such disturbing video of your home, and not be able to do a thing about it.

I can't wait until I can start posting about sore muscles and 100M splits again. Sorry, but this flooding stuff is consuming my mind every waking and sleeping hour.

Race against the River

First and foremost, I would like to thank each and every one of you who have sent your well wishes and prayers our way! Thank you all!




Monday night we dealt with a heavy rain storm, thunder and lightening included. Yesterday my yard was clean and free of snow piles. The grass actually looked pretty green. Today, there was a heavy dusting of snow on the ground. This sure puts a damper on sandbagging. Today is pretty much our last day to get it done. The Red River is currently at 35.24 feet, up almost 6 feet from yesterday morning.





School was cancelled this morning. Don't know if it was due to the excessive snowfall overnight or the fact that we need to get as much sandbagging done today as possible. I was already ready for work when I found out, so I went in anyway and spent a few hours completing paperwork for students who will be attending summer school.





I still don't know what my parents house looks like in Bismarck. My Dad said this morning that the Missouri River was going back down, but the ice jams are still present. They hope to be "blowing" them up today with explosives!





Evacuations have begun in some areas up and down the Red River Valley. A dike broke not too far south of Fargo at 3am this morning and some families have been evacuated. Many roads that are covered with water have been closed up and down the valley.





Water usage in Moorhead (our sister city across the river in MN) has been asked to be conserved. I haven't heard anything about conserving water in Fargo yet. The less water used, the less pressure it will have on the plants, and the less chance of water/sewage ending up in peoples basements.





Tonight, officials hope to know whether or not we are prepared enough for this, or if some people need to be mandated to evacuate from their homes for safety purposes. The picture below is of the Red River from downtown Fargo this morning. The river should be running behind the group of trees in the middle of what now looks like a lake.



The National Weather Service has just made an update to the Red River... it should reach it's crest of 41 feet by Saturday.


Soon, I hope to be reporting good news, but as of right now, things are still looking pretty grim across the state. I am sure many of you have heard that President Obama has declared the state of ND a disaster area.

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On a workout note... I know, it's been a while .... I hope to be posting a product review in the near future! Check back for that!

Statewide Flooding Continues

Growing up in western North Dakota I have never really had experienced flooding. The Missouri River, as long as I have known, was always lower, and never a real threat.



That has changed. Mandatory evacuations were put into place at 3pm this afternoon for a portion of South Bismarck, right where my parents live. About 6 inches of SNOW had fallen in the morning and afternoon hours today. The Missouri River was high and ice jams were causing overland flooding. I received a brief email from my Dad this afternoon saying that they did some sandbagging and there was a lot of water in the yard already. I found a link to the Bismarck Tribune that had a video of my parents neighborhood this afternoon. This is so scary. Not knowing the outcome is the worst feeling ever.

Things have been going pretty good in Fargo today, considering. There were more volunteers helping with sandbagging then they expected, or were ready for. The filling and distributing of sandbags has gone on for 24 hours a day for the past few days. Many local university students (as well as UND students traveling from an hour north of here) have volunteered their time.

Supposedly 1.5 million bags have been filled. The plan is to fill 2 million. All man-made dikes need to be built to 42 feet, as the river should max out at 41. We have about another 24 hours to prepare for this flood. Then, the temps are going to drop below freezing and you can not pile frozen sandbags; it just doesn't work.

People are being advised to go home and rest tonight. Throughout the night, the dikes will be measured and made sure they are up to par. If there is just one part that isn't the right height or width, it can cause a good portion of the dike to go down.


There is so much flooding going on across the state of ND and portions of Western MN. This weather is truly insane and rediculous. And we all are ready for it to be done and over with.

Just Updating

If you haven't caught my last couple of posts, you are probably unaware of the conditions we are dealing with up here in North Dakota. Unless you have caught a bit on national news. Feel free to check out my last couple of posts down below. A lot has been going on around here.



The Red River is up to 29.68 feet right now. 1997 flood was around 39 feet, and we expect to reach 41 feet by Thursday evening.


As of right now, the 8-10 inches of snow predicted in the Cass (ND)/Clay (MN) Counties has been decreased to 1-2 inches today, and maybe an accumulation of 1 inch tomorrow. Very good news.


Many people have been driving along the river, "checking things out". Both Sheriff's from Cass and Clay county threatened those gawkers to stay away, or they will either make you stop and sandbag, or send you to jail.


Tetanus shots are being recommended for those who will possibly come in contact with flood waters. As of right now, I am going to say no to this one.


And, I am still dealing with that stupid noise above my house. I was awake almost every hour last night. Tonight I might just sleep on the couch in the basement.

Looking a Bit Ominous

Let me just clarify that the weather we have been receiving in the past couple weeks is atypical North Dakota winter/spring weather. I have lived in ND for the last 28 years, my whole life, and have never seen weather like this before.

Last night, we received a couple inches of rain with 40-50mph wind gusts. At 3am I was shaken from a deep slumber due to a rattling noise coming from the top of my house. I thought it was possibly a loose gutter, but as far as I can see, everything is still intact. The noise is still present, but not as bad as it was this morning.

This flood was the topic of conversation all over work today. Many teachers were absent, dealing with flood issues around their own homes as some of them live close to the Red River. Many people were discussing whether or not it was going to be as bad as or worse than the 97 flood. The way I look at it, a lot of preparedness has taken place and it's just a race against the clock now.

This afternoon I played with my sump pump a little, trying to see if it worked. I filled the whole with water, well over the sump pump, and knew something wasn't right. I then asked my uncle in town if he would be willing to come take a look at it. He determined it was dead, helped me pick out a new one, and installed it for me. I will sleep better tonight knowing that my sump pump works. I am truly grateful for his help.


Currently, the entire state of ND is under a Flood Warning. On top of that, a snow storm bringing a possible 8-10 inches is expected to hit in in the next day or so.


The Missouri River, that runs through Bismarck, is also increasing at a rapid pace. My parents, who live not too far off the river just south of Bismarck, chose to stay in town with relatives tonight. A voluntary evacuation was given to those who live in that area. Supposedly the canal that runs just south of their house had water levels about a foot from the road, which is extremely unusual.

This weather on top of these conditions is looking a bit ominous. It's pouring rain again right now. And, I hear thunder.

I am not liking this weather. one. bit.

Preparing for a Flood

Blizzard one week, serious flood threats the next. Does anyone remember hearing about the Flood of '97? With our snowfall this year, and rapid melt this past week, flooding has already begun, much earlier than expected or usual. And, they project it to be as bad as '97. With that in mind, I canned my Saturday run and volunteered most of my afternoon to help do some much needed sand-bagging at a friend's parents house, southeast of town.

There's still lots of snow in some areas, and then lots of standing water in ditches and fields. It's horrible.

Where I live, I shouldn't be affected by the Red River flooding. However, some localized flooding in the streets and yards are most likely going to happen, due to all the heavy snowfall this year, still frozen grounds, fast melting, and rain to come.

And now, their is heavy rain on it's way. It should be here later this afternoon. The river is currently at 21.53 feet, and should crest to 39-41 feet by Friday, a day earlier than predicted 2 days ago. This flood is going to happen, whether people are ready for it or not. I feel like I should be out sand bagging today.

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Does anyone else feel completely out of whack when you fall out of routine for a handful of days? That is the way I felt last week. Even though I got in a couple good runs, most of my days consisted of no workouts, and no Jillian.

But, have no fear I am back. Ha!

I was hoping to go out for a run today in the 50 degree weather, but the wind is horrible. I traded an outdoor run for 20 minutes with Jillian, a short run on the treadmill, followed by a nice ride on the bike. I haven't done much of Jillian in the past week, and I really contemplated starting the 30-day shred challenge over, but I don't know if I could do another 30 days, consistently. So, I am just going to pick up where I left off and see how it goes.

Today's Workout:

Jillian - Day 14

Run - 1.55 miles, 16:05, 10:22/mile avg.

Bike - 12.82 miles, 35:00, 21.98mph avg.

Dancing Bison

They didn't beat Kansas, but I think they kept up with the Jayhawks pretty well....

way to go Bison...

Catching Up

I am in the process of trying to get back into a routine. I think that blizzard last week really through me for a loop...

Running has been minimal, but present none-the-less.
Swimming hasn't happened since Saturday...
...pool has been closed all week.
I am itching to start training for a tri.
Evening parent teacher conferences wiped me off my feet.
assessments/paperwork/meetings have left me feeling brain dead...
...thus tossing and turning at night,
constantly going through the to-do-list.
...getting less than 6 hours of sleep,
which is serious sleep deprivation for me.
Jillian has been pushed asside due to lack of sleep and time and energy.
Eating out too much
drinking too much coffee
and soda (blech)
must cleanse the body.
and don't even get me started on the dating...
what the hell is wrong with the men around here?

I am looking forward to the weekend. Friday night we are going out for a co-workers going away party, and boy and am I ready for a night out. I am hoping we hit up a local cover band... Johnny Holm, anyone? So much fun...

Temps will be in the 50's Saturday and I hope to get in a nice run! Other than that, I will be doing some things around the house, catching some much desired MARCH MADNESS (go TAR HEELS!), and maybe making some changes to the ol blog. Time to catch up on you all as well!

Peace!

Today's Workout:
Run - 2.25 miles (outdoors)

P.S. I can't believe I am saying this, let alone typing it (being a UND grad and all)... but I want to send positive vibes to our NDSU Bison as they go up ahead Kansas tomorrow! Wahoo!
(Ben Woodside pictured below)

Life

This time of year, things are crazy busy with work. The past couple of weeks I have been overwhelmed with multiple assessments, student referrals for special education, conferences, and trying to do paperwork for students who will be attending the special education summer school program.

With that in mind, I have been sleeping horribly, waking multiple times a night, feeling like I am in a fog, and no energy or motivation to go to the gym. It doesn't help that the pool is closed this week and I have no desire to go TO the gym after a couple nice runs outside last week. And... I am behind my my 30-day shred challenge. grrr...

But, I will be back. Just give me some time to get caught up on work and life, and I will be checking in on you all soon!

It's Melting

After doing 20 minutes of shredding with Jillian this morning, I ventured outdoors for another run. It was 40 degrees, the snow was melting, and the fresh air felt wonderful. I jumped over snow banks, ran through puddles, and only almost biffed it on a hidden icy patch once. I caught myself, gracefully.

Yesterday Jill and I did a swim/bike brick. My arms were a bit sore from shoveling the snow bank out my front door Friday night (note pics in last post). All considered, swimming loosened up those muscles a bit. I wasn't too impressed with the spin instructor and I didn't want to aggrevate my knee so I just sat on the bike, adjusting the tension here and there, and rode in aero position every once and a while.


As for the rest of the day, I watched the Tar Heels get beat by Florida State University and almost cried. Fo reals. Then I went with a couple friends to the State basketball tournament. We caught the second half of the girls first place game. The Bismarck Demons, my high school, took first! And, I realized one of the girls on the team was a girl I babysat when I was in middle school. Feelin' a bit old here. Then, we cheered on our West Fargo Boys, but they got beat. It was still a good game and fun basketball.




Some of you asked about the snow bank out my front door and if I was able to get out or how I got out .... I also have another entrance through the garage, from my basement. No worries! However, shoveling it a couple days later was a pain in the ars. It had shrunk about a foot, as it was melting... and heavier then cow pie.

Another made comment how I was running outdoors just a couple days after the blizzard.... For those of you not from the Midwest, let me educate you a bit: This is probably the most frustrating part about living here this time of year. As we progress into "so-called-Spring" we get all kinds of weather: Blizzards, rain, melting snow, temps below freezing, temps 20-30 degrees above freezing, snow, slush, ice, etc. So even though I was out running in 40 degrees this morning, and temps are supposed to stay in the 40's all week, that doesn't mean we are done with snow, or ice, or slush. I have lived here long enough to not get my hopes up, but to take advantage of these nice days!


I am off to take my bike into get a spring tune-up! The temps are rising, and us ND cyclists are anxious to get out there and ride!

***Please head over to Steve's blog and check out the Tales of the Virgin Althete Contest!!! There are some great stories there!***

Yesterday's Workout:
Swim/Bike Brick
Swim 1600M, 33:00, 2:03/100M
Bike 22.31 miles, 57:00, 23.48mph

Today's Workout:
Jillian's 30-day Shred (Day 12 - Level 2)
Run - 3.3 miles, outdoors, no time

Today's Song:
Eminem - Crack a Bottle (ft. Dr. Dre and 50 Cent)
....I secretly HEART Eminem

What a week....

First and foremost, I am currently typing this post from my brand-spankin-new-computer! I am so pumped! I can finally get itunes up and running and update my music, rather than listening to the same 100 songs I had on my ipod for the past 6 months!

I think we all are finally coming out of a funk from this week's blizzard. What did we get, 10-14 inches of snow? Somewhere in there. yuck. Here are a few more pictures from Wednesday, when I was finally able to leave my house!

Yesterday we had a long day with evening conferences. It is so hard to unwind after a day like that. But, I shouldn't complain because it is nothing compared to my sis' busy season. I was really tired this morning and afraid I wasn't going to get in a workout at all today.

However, the temperatures are finally above zero again, and will be above freezing for the next week, so we are hoping for a nice, slow, melt. When I left school at 4pm, I knew that I had to take advantage of the warmer temps and bright sunshine! It's 30 degrees out, man! That's a 60 degree difference from yesterday morning!

Today's Workout:

Run - 2.25 miles (outdoors!) .... knee felt a little quirky.

Shoveling - note picture obove of snow outside front door...

Gone Stir Crazy

Yesterday I slept in, caught the Today show, watched the drifts grow, listened to the wind howl, finished reading Eclipse and started Breaking Dawn.

I took a mid-afternoon nap and then proceeded to do some canvas painting. My sister and brother-in-law got me some fancy new paintbrushes, acrylics, and canvas' for Christmas and I couldn't wait to dive in!

I didn't have anything in mind but just started playing around with colors. It's been a while. It's no where near done, and who knows, I might paint right over it, rather than building from it. I stopped when I lost the natural daylight.

And yes, sometimes I paint with my fingers.

I was excited to spend my evening watching tv, since I spent most of the afternoon reading, napping, and painting. I caught the beginning of American Idol and then lost cable and internet. I thought I was going to lose it. Fortunately it returned about an hour later. I caught the end of AI, as well as a basketball game. Turns out, NDSU (my college's rival) made it into the NCAA tournment tonight. It's kind of exciting to have a ND team in the tournament, but I still hate the Bison.

I have been locked in my house since 4pm Monday afternoon. I have not been able to get to the gym, leaving me with only a few sessions of Jillian's 30-day Shred. School starts 2 hours late today. They say most side roads will probably not be cleaned and I worry that I won't be able to get out of my neighborhood.

Here are a couple pics I took around 530 yesterday evening....

Drifts higher than fences?

That's not right.

You can see a tiny bit of daylight...
peeking through the top of that window...

That's not right.
Good thing that's not my ONLY entrance to my house.

Even if the roads get plowed, I am going to have snow drifts to remove in my driveway as well as the crap they leave behind at the end of my driveway.

Update: We have switched from a LATE START today, to school being CANCELLED... again. I have heard snow plows since 11pm last night, and woke up to the sound of snow blowers at 4am.

I am getting out of my house. I have a gym date with a friend at 11ish, and then lunch with some others to follow....

Making the most of it

The storm is here and at full force. I know that the winds are gusting 35-45 miles per hour, as it sounds like my roof is being ripped off my house. The snow is still falling and blowing. I have huge drifts against the south side of my house again. This storm is so bad that they even closed the colleges and universities. I don't think UND has been shut down since 2000!


I slept in, trying to catch up on lost sleep from the time change. I thought about hitting the gym before the storm got really bad, but unfortunately the system came through faster than the weathermen "expected"... and I didn't want to venture out. Instead, I just did Day 10 of Jillian's 30-Day Shred video; the 2nd day at level 2. And, I must say the cardio portion is kicking my ars! Geez!

I am going to finish Eclipse (3rd book in Twilight series) with a warm cup of coffee in hand. Then, I hope to get up some inspiration to do some canvas painting. I have a few projects in mind to get done for Christmas "gifts" next year, but am always looking for more ideas or inspirations! Feel free to send some my way!

Happy Tuesday, y'all!

Warning Warning Warning....UPDATED

... a dangerous storm is heading our way.

What the?

Yesterday a Blizzard Watch was put into affect.
This morning it was raining.
Then the rain turned to snow.
The first of TWO storms made it's appearance today.
It has snowed all day.
The temperatures have been dropping.
The wind picked up this afternoon.
I had to take a longer route home,
to avoid large snow piles at the corners of side streets.
I had to gun-it into my driveway.
I have 4-6 foot drifts on the south side of my house.
I currently hear snow plows,
which means I will have a good pile at the end of my driveway.
Now, we are under a Blizzard warning.


And tomorrow?

That's when the real storm is supposed to hit us.
Not until noon, though.
7-14 inches of snow expected.
Winds will be picking up,
gusts up to 40mph.
Windchills are expected to drop temperatures to 30-40 below zero.

I am thinking we will be staying home from school tomorrow,
making it up on Friday, and
making up Tuesday's conferences a week from tomorrow.
We should know by later this evening.

UPDATE: Interstate-94 closed at 7pm from Jamestown to Fargo,
about 120 miles west of here,
and school was cancelled at 9pm,
This never happens the night before.

What will I do with myself tomorrow?
No work... probably not able to get to a gym...
I guess I will do some reading and try to do some painting on a canvas...



The flip side?

My neighbors are currently blowing the snow
from my sidewalk and driveway.
Time to bake more cookies for them.

And...temps should get to above freezing this weekend...
...so this chica will be running outdoors Saturday or Sunday!

A Weekend Away

I just returned from a nice relaxing weekend in the twin cities with my sister. It was great to spend some time with her... even if we spent most of Saturday in lounging clothes. We did a little shopping, took the pup for a brisk walk in 30-something temps, played some guitar hero, and grabbed dinner at a Sports Bar that showed the Sioux/Wisconsin hockey game... unfortunately the Sioux didn't play so well that night.

This morning I took a big leap and hopped on her treadmill to test out the knee. I hadn't run since my painful 2 miler last Saturday and was a little leary. But, with all this strength training and almost a week of Jillian's 30-day Shred under my belt, I was ready to test it out.

I was able to run a glorious 3 miler with no pain what-so-ever!! I probably could have gone further, but didn't want to push my luck. I really focused on my running form, and where my feet were landing. Afterwards, I tested out Steph's 30-minute BOSU Ball workout....now that was fun and challenging! I still need to do day 7 of the Shred this evening...

...after the Tar Heel's beat Duke...

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. The week ahead is going to be quite busy with conferences late into Tuesday and Thursday evening. Thankfully, we get compensated for it... getting Friday off.

Today's Workout:
Run - 3.28 miles (pain free)
BOSU Ball - 30 min.

Starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel?!

This morning I had my second physical therapy appointment. Second, and maybe final?

He asked me how the exercises were going. I told him I was getting used to them, doing them two times a day and actually increasing the reps from 10 to 15. He seemed shocked and I couldn't tell if he was surprised to hear that I was actually doing them twice a day or shocked that I had increased the reps. Would I do any less than what was expected? No.

He then proceeded to show me a couple more exercises to try out and then had me get on the eliptical for 15 minutes. He seemed pretty optimistic, and thinks that this "injury" is just the result of weak muscles, especially since the pain isn't there when I ride bike, do the eliptical, walk or go up and down the stairs. Good news.

He gave me some options. He said he could show me how to tape my knee cap in place, but said that he usually only tapes when pain is present doing the exercises. That's not the case for me and he doesn't think it's necessary in this case. He also said that we could do an ultrasound. But, since there is no pain walking he doesn't recommend it. He said I could make an appointment to check back in a week or just keep doing my exercises for the next 4-5 weeks, slowly adding some running into my routine, and give him a call if I have any questions or concerns.

What did I choose? To keep up with my exercises and to slowly get back to running. Very. Slowly.

He said to pay close attention to my running form and make sure that I am stepping more on the outside of my feet, as he is thinking that I might be stepping on the inside more, with my knees going in, causing all these problems.

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This morning when I woke, I didn't have a single sore muscle! This evening I rode the bike for about 30 minutes and then spent 20 minutes with Jillian. I completed day 4. I am looking forward to moving onto Step 2, but know that I am not ready. My shoulders and legs still burn like crazy when doing a couple of the exercises! I did take some measurements on my hips, waist, thighs and biceps, but am not going to post. I will post the differences (if any) at the end of the 30 days!

I am off to do my PT exercises and then some paperwork. Grr. I leave for the Twin Cities tomorrow to spend some time with my sistah, so I will catch up with y'all when I return Sunday! Don't worry, Jillian will be coming with me! Have a wonderful weekend y'all!

Today's Workout:
Eliptical - 15 minutes
Bike - 10.78 miles, 30:00, 21.56mph
Jillian's Shred - Day 4

Today's Song:
Jay-Z - Can I Get A (Careful - inappropriate lyrics - in sidebar)

In need of a massage!

I was really sore after my first day of Jillian's 30-day Shred. I was nervous to do day 2 yesterday... wondering how I was going to feel this morning.

The consensus today? Sore shoulders, calves, and bootay.

I will put money down that the calves are sore from the jumping jacks, jumping rope, and butt kicks. I am using 3 pound weights, leaving the shoulders a bit sore just because I am not used to using them, or the pushups. And the bootay? Well, let's just say between my strengthening routine two times per day and then some of jillian's lunges/squats and such (modified to protect my knees) I am super sore! However, today's sore wasn't as bad as yesterday's. Either I am getting stronger, or adjusting to the pain.

But, it's all a good sore.

Tomorrow I have my second PT session before heading off to work. I am looking forward to what he has to say and getting some more advice and exercises to do. I am trying to be very positive with all this PT stuff and hoping that it will make me stronger and able to get back to running form again!

A new month....

.... a new challenge.

With my running being pushed to the wayside, temporarily, I have bigger and better plans for March!

In hopes to strengthen my body, I will ...

• continue to follow my PT's instructions - completing each and every strengthening exercise 2 times a day and no running, until he says otherwise....
• swim and bike as much as I possibly can....
• and... I will go head-on with Jillian and do the 30-day Shred video....for the next 30 days.

I did day 1 today. Combine that with my big swim yesterday and shoveling, I am feeling it in my upper body!

Things are crazy busy with work and such as we are closing in on our 2nd trimester. Yes, we do trimesters here. I am finishing up grades and attempting to write up progress reports and complete graphs to go along with them before conferences next week!

I hope to catch up with all your blogs in the next few days!

Productive Weekend

I made the mistake of 'trying' to run yesterday. I only did 2 miles. The first mile was fine and then my knee started to bother me. I guess I was a little hopeful for a good run. I am going to stay away from running altogether until my PT says it's okay. It's just really testing my patience.

As for the rest of my day, I spent some time on the couch reading and watching my Tar Heels. After a short early afternoon nap, I peeled myself up off the couch and decided to tackle my spare bedroom. This room is going to be my office/painting/craft room and it was a disaster.

Here are the before pics.... 4 hours later, and I was able to see most of the carpet. Most of the time was spent organizing my filing cabinet and finding a home for each and every document I have saved. I went through all my cards, because yes I save them all, and actually found $10 in a card I received for my masters graduation 2 years ago! Sweet!

The room isn't finished. I need to find a nice large table for my crafts and art work, and then some crates and such to organize all my paint and scrapbooking materials. Now that I have the floor space, I am ready to do some painting! I already have a handful of requests....

Here are the after pics....

This morning I got a good start to March with a nice swim. Jill and I did a swim 500M/100M kick times 4. I got a good rhythm going and was able to complete each 500M with good speed. I came home and finished clearing the snow from my driveway. The drifts from Thursday's storm were crazy and all on my side of the driveway. I just know I am going to be sore tomorrow.

Happy March, y'all!

Yesterday's Workout:

Run - 2 miles

Today's Workout:

Swim - 2400M

swim 500M/100M kick, times 4

Today's Song:
Eric Clapton & John Mayer - Crossroads (in sidebar)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zh4n1bZi4d8