Training Update

I have several events that I am training for right now. Next month I will be completing a 100 mile bike ride (my first century!), Olympic distance triathlon (raising money for As Our Own!), and running the Bix. I may be doing another triathlon in August. And I will definitely be running in the Quad City Half Marathon in September.

I have been training as hard as I can in the mornings and then occasionally getting a little extra running done in the evenings. I log my workouts using dailymile.org. They have fun ways of keeping track of your miles and calories burned.

Here are some of their stats-

Total miles in 2011-1,535

Total miles running in 2011-312.37

Total miles biking in 2011- 1138.24

Total miles swimming in 2011-80.37

Pounds burned-38

Donuts Burned- 722.20

My new favorite running song-

You Win Some, You Lose Some

That is the hardest thing for me to wrap my mind around. I have never allowed anyone to tell me what I can and cannot do. In fact, the quickest way to get me to try something is tell me that you don't think I can. I am not sure where I picked up this mindset but it has served me well over the years. I never give up and I give everything I do; all that I have.

In high school and college I was determined to get A's, just so I could prove to myself and everyone else that I was smart. Studying was something that I enjoyed and I liked to see the results. Making the Dean's List was something that only fueled my desire. This was something that I had control over. I knew that if I studied hard, I would do well.

I have carried this mindset into my physical aspirations. If I work hard then I will perform well. Makes sense doesn't it? In the last three years I have competed in three triathlons, at least five 5K's and two 50 mile bike rides. In each event I improved in some way on my last attempt. That is one of the reasons I love to compete. I have control over my results. Or do I...

This morning I ran a 5K in 31 minutes. That is awful! My 5K time from last weekend (which I ran after a 600m swim and a 13 mile bike ride) was 30 minutes. And my last 5K time (not in a triathlon) was 27:50. So you can see that my performance this morning was horrendous. There are many reasons for my poor performance-

-I had the flu for three days prior to the race

-Due to the above situation I did not drink any water this morning

-I was overdressed for the weather

-At mile two I began to feel faint and dizzy, precursors to my tendency to faint in the heat

-I suffer from restless legs and did not sleep much last night or the night before

-It was VERY hot and humid (making me even more dehydrated)

I could go on and on and make a long list of excuses. But that is all it would be, a list of excuses. I have got to let this race fall by the wayside and learn my lessons.

Lesson #1- I do not have control over everything. I cannot control that fact that I was sick, have restless legs, and the weather was hot and humid.

Lesson #2- Remember what I do have control over and make sure I get those things done (HYDRATION, dressing appropriately)

Lesson #3- In the grand scheme of my life how I performed in any race has little to no value in God's eyes. Sure I can have a Godly mindset with those around me. But really, am I sharing the gospel during my run? Am I pursuing the plan that God has set out before me? Am I doing all that I can to bring God glory? No, I am pursuing my goals and my ambitions.

So when I have a bad race day I will endeavor to remember those three lessons, especially #3. Racing is fun, but it is not important. I have learned in my life that the truly important things in life cannot be attained by my strength, but by God's loving hand.

Training Update

I have many activities on my schedule this summer.

June- triathlon, 5K

July-Century bike ride, triathlon, the Bix

September- 1/2 marathon, 30 mile bike ride with Aaron

I have been training pretty strictly for some time. I have been listening to my body and all the aches and pains that go along with pushing yourself. As a result I have backed off when I needed to and have been injury free!! This is my training schedule..

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Sunday- rest

Monday- 1 hour of weights

Tuesday- 16-20 mile bike ride followed by a short run

Wednesday- 1 hour of weights

Thursday- 16-20 mile bike ride followed by a short run

Friday- 1 hour swim

Saturday- 5 mile run

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In the afternoons the kids and I have been going on bike rides. I am pulling about 60-70 pounds for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Two or three evenings a week I do a quick 2 mile run after dinner.

I have been running 10 miles every couple of weeks. But I want to make sure that my knees are in good shape for my triathlons. My longest distance will be 5 miles until July. At that point I will go back to 10-13 mile long runs.

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I am definitely getting in more than enough activity:)

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Now for some cute pictures of my kids...this cat is well loved..and very patient :)

Fun Run!!

Every year Aaron's employer hosts a Fun Run. Aaron and I love getting the kids involved in this activity. It shows them the importance of exercise not only for children but for adults as well. We want our little ones to grow up with a love for being active and for taking care of the bodies God gave them. Below are some pictures of our morning...

I ran the 5K again this year. Last year my time was 30 minutes. This year I finished in 27!

Aaron and Joshua ran the 1 mile. They did awesome!

Asher and dad running in the fun run :) He did great!

What happens when they run out of cups...

Family picture taken by a friend (thanks Jessica!!!)Elliana will be ready to run with us next year. She kept saying "I want to run!"

A big old ramble :)

I LOVE SUMMER!!! It has been a great two weeks of no school and lots of sunshine. The kids start asking to go outside before 8 am everyday. We are all getting a little tan :) I love sitting in the driveway watching the kids play in our cul-de-sac. They do this for hours, no kidding, really..for hours. You would think they would get bored. We have wonderful neighbors and it has been so nice to be able to sit and chat with them.

Summer prayer meeting at church started this week and it was awesome! I just love spending time in prayer. Whenever I take time out of my schedule for a good long prayer time I always think "Why don't I do this all the time?" As a stay at home mom of three very active children I find myself praying for guidance, assistance and strength often. But taking the time to just sit, read the Word and wait on God rather than expecting Him to wait on me, is just wonderful.

In tri- land things are going great. I achieved my all time longest running distance last week. I ran 10 miles :) WOOHOO! I was pretty excited (and tired too). Swimming and biking are also going well. My activities this summer are pretty much set in place. I have a 5K in June. Aaron and I are doing a 67 mile bike ride in July. And I also have a triathlon and the Bix in July. I will end my post with a song that I love to listen to while I run (The Climb by Miley Cyrus-no I am not a Hannah Montana fan, the song is just awesome) and verse that I just love.



Psalm 17:8
Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings.

Little Update..

Joshua started karate last week and he LOVES it. He is also progressing very nicely in his piano lessons. His next recital is May 23rd. He will be playing a piece from Lord of the Rings (he is VERY excited to play this piece). With all the lessons and school to accomplish we have been very busy. But we always manage to make time to goof around and have fun. Here are some photos from our latest silliness..

Elliana and Daddy hang out together

Nana and Papa came over for a visit. There was some nice quiet book reading and talking. And then of course the wrestling starts...

Little Tri-training update:

I have been training about 7 1/2 hours/week. I am focusing on my running. I am not a good runner. Which is why I am trying to improve. This past week I ran 7 miles without stopping. It was an awesome accomplishment for me :) My swim training is going great. I swim 1 1/2 hours two times/week. As soon as it warms up I will be hitting the country roads for some nice long bike rides :) Only 3 months until my next tri :)

Check me out on God Speaks Today...

"I can't"

It is so easy to say "I can't". We put up all these roadblocks in our life because we simply say "I can't". This defeatist attitude robs us of attaining our goals and showing ourselves all that we are and all that we really can accomplish. Lots of times we fear failure and so it is just easier on our egos to refuse to try.

I am not immune to this self defeating behavior. I say "I can't" to lots of things. For example, I can't be the mom I want to be. So I settle for the mom I am today. And I can't be the wife I dream of because I am just too busy. So I settle for the wife I am. You know as well as I do that "settling" does not make you feel all that great. We desire to be better than we are. We want to surpass all of our greatest expectations. We want to "wow" ourselves. We long to be the woman that God desires us to be.

It doesn't matter in the least what anyone else thinks or tells us. We can hear all day that we are great mothers, wives, friends, sisters. But we know in our hearts that we are failing. We say "I can't" to changing our behavior and our attitudes because that would be too hard. We want the easy way out. We don't want to work for anything. Just as we all know that "settling" feels bad, we also know that working hard for something feels great. The end result, whatever it may be, is awesome.

You may wonder why in the world I am rambling this morning. Today was a running day at the gym. At mile five I started to question if I should go any further. I was having a mental battle about the real purpose in attaining that mile six that I was after. I was in a lot of pain, I was feeling nauseous and I just wanted to stop. But I knew if I stopped I would be saying "I can't". Did I really feel that way? Or was I just "settling"? Was I willing to come home and tell Aaron I just couldn't do that last mile? The answer was a very determined "No". I knew in my heart that regardless of how I was feeling physically, I could attain my goal.

And so I kept running. After running for an hour and 15 minutes I was able to collapse on the gym floor knowing I had accomplished what I came to do. Sure I felt horrible. But mentally I felt wonderful. I did not settle.

Now I just need to spend some time in prayer. And then begin to work on all those other areas of my life where I am "settling" for less than what God wants me to be.

WOOHOO!!! Time to PARTY!!!

I ran a 5k in June and my time was 36 minutes. This was a good time for me. Today I am jumping up and down for joy because I completed the Jingle Bell Run. It was about 35 degrees outside and as a result it was a hard run. I was so proud when I finished and I was very happy to get in my warm van and head for home. I thought I had finished in about 33 minutes. But I didn’t check my watch for the time when I started so I was not positive about my time. Well, I checked later and I did so much better than I thought I did!! I ran the entire 5 K in 29 minutes and 12 seconds!!! I was number 31 out of 82 for my age group. I beat 51 people!!! WOOOOHOOO!

little update on us

I can’t believe it has been a week since I last updated everyone. Time is going by way to fast. We are in our 9th week of school and I have found something else to occupy two or three hours of my week (which is a lot considering how busy we already are these days).

I have been struggling to get my running in every week (for my tri training). I was spending 5 hours a week at the gym (in the mornings) and I just could not see where I could fit in two or three more hours to work on my running. (For those of you freaking out over five hours in the gym, in tri- world that is NOTHING.)

Anyway, I figured out a way to get my running in during the day after school is done. So I am a very happy camper. My training hours are now 7 to 8 hours/week (WooHoo!).

If that is not enough, we are also throwing together a garage sale to get rid of all the extra “stuff” around the house. Including….gulp….the crib. Yes it is going away, never to enter this house again. One would think I would be sad about such a loss. But actually I am ecstatic!! I have been blessed with three healthy, wonderful children and I am DONE! I think my body would have a heart attack if I even thought about housing another little one in my rather stocky mid-section. I mean really, human skin can only be stretched so much before it just gives up (you all know how GIGANTIC I get).

Anyway, enough rambling, my students are waiting.

Something to remember today....

God doesn't call the qualified, He qualifies the called.

A Great Day for a Run

Today our family participated in the annual State Farm Fun Run. This was our fourth year running in this event. I ran the 5K and the boys had a blast running in the fun run.

Imagine a large group of people huddled around a starting line preparing to take off on a 3.3 mile run. Everyone is talking, it almost sounds like bees buzzing. Then the gun is fired and everyone takes off running. Some are fast and just zoom ahead, others burn out quickly. Still others are cut off as you will yourself to get ahead of them...

They swarmed around me like bees, but they died out as quickly as burning thorns; in the name of the Lord I cut them off. - Psalms 118:12

OK, I don't really think this verse is referring to the race today. But it was wonderful when I opened my bible to the Psalms this morning and my eyes fell upon this verse. Funny how God works sometimes :)

The last time I ran the 5K was three years ago. I have no idea what my time was then but I do know that I came in last, due to a knee injury (behind a walking grandma!). So I was very pleased to come in at 29:51 this year. I was in the middle of the pack :) And I was able to "cut off" some runners too :)

This is a picture of dad teaching the boys how to stretch their muscles in preparation for the fun run.

Here is Joshua running towards the finish line! (no time for waving there is a race to win!)

Dad ran with Asher...The Nelson boys after the fun run:)

It was a lot of fun and we look forward to next year :)