Today as I ran I looked down at the ground a lot. I do this now that I’ve found some money on my runs – $10 here, $5 there.

Today what did I find? A $20! It was great, especially since I used up almost all of my cash this weekend buying the kids some junk at the swap meet.

In fact, maybe I’ll stop for a Starbucks today with my newfound money, and get the baby a vanilla milk.

I worked abs, arms and legs today. I think I’ll do this on Mondays and Wednesdays since Tues and Thurs have turned into gym day, at least until we move.

The problem is my youngest daughter. She is sick, again. This time just a stuffy nose but kids + stuffy noses + sleep don’t mix.

She woke at 6 as soon as I got back from my run, so I had to entertain her while I worked out after getting back. It wasn’t bad, she’s an easy kid and she loves to color, but still, it’s nicer when I have that time to myself. Since work out time IS my alone time, I really prefer to do it alone :0)

Thought about trying an ab class at the gym today but with her snotty nose we’ll pass. Hopefully her nose is better by tomorrow so I can do my swim.

Monday’s Exercise: Frog Squat
Have you done the frog squat yet? This is my favorite of squats. Works the legs and the butt. You can modify it if you have any knee issues, but I’ve found it to be easy on my knees as long a I don’t go down too far.

Check it out here, and try it if you dare! Hold it for a while for a REAL burn (if you DARE!)!!

Today was my long run – 11 miles. It really went well. I remembered as I was running that during the last training 11 miles was my favorite length to go. It gave me plenty of time in but didn’t require too much time. If I get out at 5:30 I’m generally back around the time the rest of the family wakes for the day.

Generally.

As in, not today.

Apparently today I left at 5:15 and the baby started crying 15 minutes later. Seems she had a poopy diaper, which of course meant my husband had to get up at 5:30 to change it.

Okay, here’s the thing: I’m the one that gets up throughout the night and in the early morning when the kids wake. Do I love doing this? No. However, my husband is one who doesn’t do well on limited sleep. I do okay on limited sleep, at least for a few days. (Then I turn into a madwoman, who enjoys breaking down in fits of tears and/or rage, sometimes at the same time, until I put in a full night’s rest – which at this age is only 7 hours!)

Anyway, so I had this great run. I got a lot of things thought out. I didn’t even use my Ipod today; instead, I spent the entire 11 miles musing about life and running and whatever else floated into and then out of my head.

I came back feeling GOOD. You know, like only a GOOD run can make you feel.

Until I walked in the front door.

Everyone was grumbly.

And me? I just felt guilty.

It is not anything that the family puts on me: It is what I, as a mother who wants time to herself, puts on herself.

I think part of it is working from home. I am here all of the time, day and night. I don’t leave the house alone unless I am running. To me, running time IS alone time. I have learned to adjust to this.

I don’t:

go out with friends

go to the movies

get my nails done

Instead, I run.

I love to run, so this is okay with me. Those long morning runs, that is quiet time. That is time when I can think without anyone grabbing my leg or screaming, “GIVE ME THAT BARBIE!”

So when I come home and everyone is in a bad mood because no one got to sleep in, I feel guilty. I feel like I should have been here. Even though I know, deep down, that running on Saturday mornings is something that I have to do for ME.

Yet I recovered quickly. I got up from the table, from where three residents in my home (all but me) were kind of brooding while silently eating their cereal, and I got in the shower. As I stood under the hot water I realized that like an 11 mile run, this was just something that I had to get mental about.

For Allbusiness I write a lot about working mother’s guilt. We feel guilty when we aren’t spending ALL of our time with out children and family.

Truth is, we have to have alone time, in whatever form makes us happy.

Some of my friends scrapbook.

Some of my friends go out with girlfriends for dinner one time a month.

Some of my friends play cards one night a month.

I run.

Running is all I really need to make me feel better. In fact, I’m a better mother, a better person, on mornings when I run, because i have had that time to unwind and be alone with my own thoughts.

It is getting over the guilt that is the hardest thing to do, but I will do it. Eventually.

When the kids are in college.

The run itself was great. I can’t seem to drink as much as I am supposed to. I was down a pound and a half when I got home. I took two 17 oz bottles of Gatorade but could only get through one and about a third of the other. It felt like the Gatorade was sloshing around in my stomach most of the time, though. I’m sure there has to be a technique to all of this liquid consuming during the run. I used to do fine when I didn’t feel the need to drink as much. Now it is harder.

I also ate a tiger milk bar during the run. I know they say you shouldn’t need to eat unless you go out more than three hours, but I do. I get too hungry. I ate half a peanut butter sandwich this morning before I left and then the bar throughout the run. I was still famished when I got home and ate a bowl of oatmeal after the shower and before the coffee, which rarely happens (I usually do the coffee first).

We are off today to run a bunch of errands, check out story time, and get some pictures printed so we can work on a school project for my oldest daughter.

I love Thursdays. We get to just do some relaxing things like heading to the park after the gym. Both girls are home, so we color and play Barbies and really just relax.

Today I finished up a huge project I was working on – writing a handbook for those becoming a notary in my state. It was a great project and I really enjoyed it. I always believed I liked writing articles the best, but honestly this was a lot of fun, and I learned something in the process!

Now that the project is done I get to kind of take it easy the rest of the week, as long as nothing new comes along between now and Sunday!

(Edited: A new job did come in! It’s funny how these things work. A client called a while ago about doing some continual blog writing about real estate; she got busy and didn’t call back until today-this was a few months ago! I’m looking forward to branching out into real estate. I write for Buy Owner from time to time, and I enjoy it a lot. I hope that this works out well too.)

So, today I did a mini-triathlon. I ran in the early morning, at 5, since the baby woke me up at . . . 4:15! It took me until five to get her back to sleep, and since I usually wake at 5 I couldn’t get myself back to sleep.

I did a 20 minute run, a 10 minute bike at the gym about an hour later, and after the bike a 30 minute swim. So, I split up the running from the rest of it.

The run was great. I worked on doing an all out effort, as fast as I could go for the entirety. I have not worked on speed since our trip to Georgia and I can tell. My times are slower. Today was great; I really felt like I was pushing myself during the run. I didn’t hook up my Garmin tonight so I don’t know my time but I do know it was a great run.

The bike, well, it was at the gym and boring. I need to get out on my own bike, and ride around town. I know I would enjoy this; but fitting it into my day has not worked up to this point. The one worry I have is a flat tire. I have no idea what to do if I get a flat. Guess I should figure that out! I figure once we get moved I will ride on Tuesdays in the morning around our community, since I’m afraid to run before the sun comes up (those gators, you know!)

The swim was great. Again, I just love swimming. It is so quiet in the water. Just like running, I am all alone and can focus on the things I want to focus on. As I swam today I really focused on strengthening my swim stride. I could feel the stretch in my obliques. I also worked on keeping up a steady pace, one that was a little fast but not all out.

I ate a lot today as well, I’m sure being hungry from all of the cardio. I don’t know that I tracked it all. I am a grazer, and have a tendency to, say, cut up a cantaloupe and throughout the day eat the entire fruit, munching here and there. Same thing with nuts; I can grab a few here, a few there, and have no idea how many I eat per day.

So, calories burned:
Run (according to Garmin): 215
Bike (according to bike): 75
Swim (according to Best Health ): 245

Total: 535

Calories consumed (I’m too tired to type out my menu tonight!): 2,712

Minus the calories expended I took in about 2500 calories today.

Tomorrow I get to sleep in. I want to do some pilates; it has been a while. Tonight, off to do some yoga and to read my magazine in bed!

I’m excited about tonight’s recipe. I got it from the Rachel Ray magazine. It’s a honey dijon chicken. She said to grill it, but I put it on top of the stove instead in a heated pan with some spray and it turned out so tender and delicious! I also got some orange cauliflower at Henry’s this week. I’d never had it before but thought it would be fun to eat for my older daughter, who looked at it with disgust and said, “It’s orange.” LOL!

I did a 5 mile run this morning, then abs and arms. The run went well. I thought it would be a tough one. I woke up hungry and tired, after getting up at 4 because my oldest daughter was telling me, “Someone is in bed and he keeps kicking me.” She insisted today, even after I told her it was a dream, that someone was there. But the wee one slept through the night. She scared me at five, waking and crying out, but went right back to sleep. I thought I might not get to run if she woke, but once I knew she was back out I headed out the door.

I’m too tired to type much more than my meals, and I hope I have the energy to get to Spark People tonight. Tomorrow I’m going to do a twenty minute run and then head to the gym for a half hour swim. I’m hoping to add the bike in when we get moved. It’s just too busy here to ride it that early in the morning; I”m afraid I might get hit by a car if I head out before the sun breaks!

So, here goes:

Breakfast:
oatmeal, honey, banana
toast with peanut butter
cup of coffee

Snack:
cheese and pretzels

Lunch:
Pita wrap, avocado, turkey, cheese
banana with peanut butter

Snack:
apple
few bites of pear
about half a cup of almonds, raw, unsalted

Dinner:
honey Dijon chicken
potatoes, roasted with some olive oil, cooking spray, parsley
orange cauliflower!

Here’s a picture of dinner tonight:

If you want the basic recipe: 2 TBS spicy mustard, 2 tbs olive oil, 2 TBS honey, juice of a lime
Marinate for twenty minutes.
Saute with cooking spray in a hot pan and some for the sauce

If you want the real recipe, check out the magazine!

Okay, according to the Garmin I burned 539 calories on my run.
According to Spark People I ate 2,057 calories today.
So, my caloric intake minus my exercise leaves me at about 1500 calories for the day.

And I’m hungry, so I’m going to go grab some grapes and cheese for dessert before I hit the bed.

It is interesting to add up these calories and my exercise routine. If it says my goal is 1800 to sustain my weight, then I’m right about there on most days, but some days way over, like today. However, that five mile run leaves me famished, and on the days I go longer, I eat even more! If I want to gain, I’m going to have to add another 500 calories per week to my diet so that my intake is more around the 2300 range or so. I like Spark People, but I do think it is off in some ways, plus you can’t add in certain items, like the yogurt pretzels I snack on each day (at least four!)

Oh, and I forgot to add that glass of white wine I enjoyed while cooking dinner tonight!

Happy Running! And don’t forget to check out Dean as he tries to break the world record for running on a treadmill. I’m sure he will do it-he seems to go and go and go!

Seems being an ultra marathon man is just not enough! Check him out! He’s trying to break the world record for treadmill running – 48 hours. So far he has done a bit over 24 or so, I think it ends tomorrow morning, and at last count I saw 133 miles. Wow! And I think a 26.2 marathon is long!!

Click on the Guinness World Record Week graphic to see him go!

Things seem to be back on track now.

We headed to the girls this morning, got there a little after eight and I did a 35 minute swim. It was a great swim. Only issue is that I had eaten my oatmeal beforehand and kept burping it up. Nothing like burping while swimming . . . not so good!

I know I have said this before but I really love swimming. lt is just me and the water, no other sounds. No impact. Nice and quiet and just womb-like, I suppose. I enjoy the stretch it gives my sides, and always feel as though I have had a good workout when I get done. I’d like to have an accurate way to count calories, just out of curiosity, to know what you really burn when you swim. I know some great formulas for figuring this out when running and walking but not with swimming. If you have one, let me know!

The girls had fun in the childcare center. I’m going to miss the gym when we move, and it is funny because I really wasn’t sure I was going to join the gym at first. I figured it would be a waste of money, but I use the membership constantly.

Afterward I took the girls to the park and we had a picnic. We ran into a friend of mine who lives a few doors down. The girls had fun, and it was great to be out of the ’sick house’ and into the sunshine for a change. We saw a few blue birds, smelled some roses, and played on the slides.

So I looked around a lot lately and realized what my blog is missing: Photos! So I thought I would start adding them to my posts. I realize that I am more attracted to blogs with photos.

I’m going to do a photo documentary of sorts. First, the things that I will miss most from here: At least those that I still have time to photograph.

Then: Our trek across the country. I thought it would be fun to show and share all of these things with readers! I hope you enjoy them.

In the meantime, I’m taking some ideas from one of my favorite blogs, Fab, Fit and 40, and incorporating some food photos for you! I figure since I’m food journaling this week, it may be fun to share what I eat. (I am addicted to food lol. I read food magazines, watch food on television, love to look at pictures of food . . . you could say it is somewhat of an obsession of mine! I enjoy the kitchen almost as much as running . . . but not quite!)

My Food Journal!
I was bad today, pigged out on the chocolate chip cookies we baked! I am not a sweets person, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE warm chocolate chip cookies! I just can’t resist! Once they cool down, I don’t eat them. But when they are warm and they are sugary and chocolaty and OH MY GOSH! So we baked some today. Want to know how they turned out?

Here they are on a plate:

And here is what my wee one thought about them! (She ran to her chair when I asked if she wanted one!)


Breakfast: (Pre Swim)
Oatmeal
Almonds
Honey
Bananas

Snack after swim:
Tiger Milk Bar
Apple

Lunch:
Pita bread, turkey, cheese, avocado, pretzels

Snack:
Half a banana with peanut butter

Two (and a half!) cookies (and some cookie dough!)

Dinner:
Fresh snapper with lemon
carrots (steamed, fresh, baby)
pierogies with sour cream (2)

According to Spark People I only ate 1700 calories today. Weird, felt like I ate more than yesterday! Maybe it was that sugar.

I swam for 35 minutes, and according to Spark People burned 210 calories for that 35 minutes.

So, total calories consumed (minus the workout) is only 1490.

Hm, maybe I should hit that cookie plate again! Nah, they are cold now . . .

Off to do some reading. The kids are both in bed, husband is home and relaxing, so maybe we can have some nice quiet time tonight.

Here’s hoping everyone sleeps all night long again!

I posted earlier about not getting enough sleep to run 7 miles this morning, and how I would have to do the jogger with wee one.

I thought this would be an issue because:

it was after I had been up for a while and I generally run first thing in the AM

i was tired

i had the jogger

In reality, it was hot, I was tired, and I had a great time per minutes per mile.

I realized, after considering this and the fact that I had good runs this weekend during the day, when I’m not used to running, that I have grown complacent with early morning runs.

It is time to switch up my routine.

I ran 9:25 minute miles. The jogger did not slow me down. The heat didn’t stop me down. In fact, when I got done I felt even stronger than I have in a while.

So, I believe my new schedule will be on Mondays running with the jogger 3-4 miles after dropping my four year old off at school. Then my daughter and I can stop at the park after the run and play. I’ll do my 5 miler on Wednesday mornings, Thursdays remain the sprint run and bike or swim and Saturdays do my long morning run early, before the family wakes up.

I’m eager to see if running with the jogger one day per week improves my times the rest of the week.

I’m also going to have to make a point of pushing myself on those other days when I’m waking early still and going.

So, what can you do to switch up your routine and stop from growing complacent in your workout?