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Taper Twitch...

Yep I think I got it. {twitch... twitch...}
I am so used to working out on Wednesdays, but today was a rest day. Rest... during the week?
Also, I think I'm getting to that point where I'm ready to just get the marathon done. The anticipation is getting to me. It always does. People are wishing me well. I get antsy.

Although today's weather wasn't very inspirational for running anyways..... low 50's and rainy.

But some yummy oats made it all better this morning.

BREAKFAST
-oats made with milk, almond butter, ground flax, Kashi Vanilla Island cereal & few walnuts


Unfortunately my oats couldn't hold me till lunch. I had some ww toast w/PB.

Lunch time I went to an actual Rotary meeting. Yesterday I went to an info session. It as interesting. Everyone was very welcoming.

Although when I meet new people like that, I get a bit nervous and don't eat much.
I just had some salad, small piece of haddock and some succotash.
When I got back to work I was still a bit hungry, so I had some green tea and a cookie. :-)

After work I headed home to walk Reggie. Then I waited for the hubby to get home, as we had a small art opening to go to downtown.

While I waited I admired my lovely hydrangeas I cut from my garden.
Aren't they pretty?


The art opening was great! It was a great collection of photo essays depicting local trades that are disappearing.... dairy farming, fishing, etc.

We yapped way too long with friends though. Got home around 8:30 and had to figure out dinner. When we did our Trader Joe's run over the weekend the hubby had grabbed some steak burritos, so he suggested we do those. We could have microwaved them, but I just figured that would result in mushy burritos. So in the oven they went and it took a bit longer. But by a little after 9 we finally had dinner.

I doctored mine up with some salsa & plain greek yogurt, oh and a little cheese.
Not too shabby.
I'm hoping the weather improves tomorrow.
Looking forward to getting out for a 5 mile run, see how the legs feel. Today they were a bit sore from Monday's kettlebell class. Good thing I decided to just do one kettlebell class this week, figure doing more than that would do more harm than good.

I'm putting me and my taper twitchy legs to bed early tonight.

Do you get anxious before big events/races? How do you calm yourself down?

Have a great night!!

Britt

Jar Oats and 8 year old marathoners?

Count down is on..... 5 days till NYC!!!!

Um... yep, I'm a tad nervous. You just never know what the day will bring. I just hope to enjoy the run though. I don't think I'm in PR-setting shape unfortunately..... I just hope to keep it under 3:40.

I have been enjoying sleeping in till 6:30 lately...... and well, I did it again. I really have no desire to run in the pitch dark this close to the marathon. Tripping would not be pretty.

Instead I headed to work a bit early and had a fabulous wonderful treat........

JAR OATS!!!!

Who knew I could ever be so happy about an almost empty jar of almond butter?

BREAKFAST
-oats made with milk
-1T pumpkin butter, ground flax & walnuts
-almond butter jar remnants

At lunch time today I went to a information session put on by our local rotary. A friend of ours invited me to go, so I went. I do a lot of volunteer work in the community so it seems like a bit of a no brainer for me to join. I just LOVED hearing about how supportive the group is and how ACTIVE they are in the community. Our local Rotary has done some amazing projects and has some fabulous on going programs that do so much for those less fortunate.

Plus they get stuff DONE!
(that is huge, ideas are great but action and follow through is where it is at)

So hopefully soon I'll be a Rotarian. :-)

As for the lunch portion. I didn't do photos.... felt kinda rude snapping a picture with folks talking.

Nothing fancy... they provided lunch.
Turkey on a bulkie w/ lettuce & tomato. I skipped the chips and had a cookie. :-)

Later back at work I needed a snack. I had a post work run planned and needed a little something more to keep me going.

Pita Chips.


After work I headed home and got ready for an easy 3 mile run.
I was good and iced my plantar fascia before heading out. I really do think that helps.

I had to wear my florescent long sleeved Boston Marathon shirt, the sun was starting to set and darkness was creeping in. Amazing how quickly that daylight fades away once fall sets in. Pretty soon I'll be wearing my headlamp!

My run was suppose to be an easy one...... but I felt good and was tempted to pick the pace up a bit. I did for a little bit. Just to feel a little speed. It wasn't a sprint, just a little comfortable speed.

I re-used some leftovers.

DINNER
-field greens w/ tomatoes, gorganzola, leftover salmon and some TJ's balsamic vinaigrette

I'm chilling once again with Reggie. The hubby has night two of the same work function as last night.

I was talking with a colleague earlier today about NYC.
He mentioned this article that was in the NY Times today. I found it interesting.
Back in the late 70's kids, 8 and 9 year olds, ran the NYC marathon!
And with incredible times I might add.

Of course kids that young are no longer allowed to run the marathon. Although it does mention kids as young as 12 running other marathons. Obviously there is some debate of what long term affects this would have on the child's long term health. I have friends with kids that run, however they are 8 and 9 year olds running 5K's.... not a marathon. I know one mother waited until her daughter was 9 before she could run a 5 mile race, until that age she only would let her run up to a 5K.

What do you think about kids under 10 running races? What do you think is an appropriate distance for a child that is 8 or 9 years old?

I definitely think 8 or 9 years shouldn't be running marathons.... I know how taxed my body feels after that distance, I cannot imagine what it does to such a young body. But then again, I'm not an expert. I would love for the kids I have some day to run. If they liked it and wanted to race, I would definitely consult with their doctor on what distance might be appropriate.

Hope you have a great night!

Britt

Ode To my Toes.....

(warning.... if you don't like feet, you won't like this post....well at least the beginning part)

My toes.

They are fabulous toes really.

I just expect a lot out of them and put them through a lot of abuse.

Considering what they go through they have held up amazingly well.

However, this was a rough summer for them. The Boston Marathon in April proved to be a bit much for them....although I probably should have gone up a full size instead of a half size in my sneaks. I did go see the podiatrist....it was a painful appointment though..... as I had blood blisters under both of my big toenails.

SO. FREAKIN. PAINFUL.

But then of course rather than respecting the damage I did to them, I ran another marathon in May.

By June both big toenails were gone.

So the summer of 2009 was the summer of no pedicures. Instead it was the summer of painting my toe skin to make it appear that I had toenails.

I have heard that they make fake toenails, but I could not imagine gluing a fake toenails onto my poor toes, they had already been through so much. Why make them suffer more?

However, my toenails are ALMOST back to normal. Yay!!!

My hope is that by my vacation in January I'll be able to have a pedicure once again. :)

So, here are my wonderful fabulous toes.......


They have carried me many miles.

And of course I expect them to continue to carry me many more.

Thanks guys, you are the best!


Now as for my plantars fasciitis...... get well soon. Ugh.
I'll try to remember to keep icing you and wearing my sexy blue boot to bed every night.

Now on to food. Unless I made you lose your appetite with my ode to my toes. ;-)

So I slept in this morning. Was up too late last night cheering on the Yankees.

Yes I live in NH and I am a Yankee fan.

BREAKFAST
-.5 c oats, .5c almond milk, .5c water
-toppings: almond butter, chopped walnuts, ground flax and some crumbled apple cake (mmm... good)


I ate kinda early though so I needed a little snack.
Yesterday we did a Trader Joe's run and I got the coveted PB filled pretzels.
These puppies are dangerous. Portion control is KEY.


It was a GORGEOUS day out, so I had to get outside during lunch time. So I went for a walk. Unfortunately where I work is in a boring office park, BUT it is near some conservation land so it has some pretty areas. Especially when the trees are beautiful colors in the fall!


I headed in after my walk to enjoy a tasty lunch.

LUNCH
-leftover risotto al autunno.
(which involved wonderful butternut squash which as I saw tweeted today, it scores 100 on the Nu-Val scale)

Also some left over salad of field greens, brussle sprouts, eggplant and tomatoes w/ TJ's balsamic vinaigrette.

Do you ever feel like a lumberjack the way you pack your food for the day? LOL

This was my breakfast & lunch packed for the day. I ate all of it except for some yogurt.


After work I finally got my workout in for the day. Since I missed 6:30 am kettlebell, I went to the 5:30 pm class. I'm not used to all those night time people though, I missed my early morning peeps.

WARM UP
8 minutes
2 turkish get ups each side
run around the building
repeat till time was up

WORKOUT
10 reps each side working down to 1 rep each side
-Dead Cleans
-Front Squats
-Push Press
-Snatches

I kept it somewhat light, mainly a 20lb bell. I didn't want to over due it before the marathon.

I came home and whipped up some dinner.
The hubby has a work function tonight so I'm hanging at home with Reggie.

DINNER
-spaghetti squash w/ TJ's marinara sauce


Now back to hanging with my bud, Reggie.


Have a great night!!!

Britt

Wally did it!

Wally did it! My step dad did another marathon!

This one, as I explained before, was a bit different as he has been through a lot in the past year and half. Between a head injury, recovering from that and then being diagnosed with multiple myeloma, recovering again and then having seizures. But Wally is a determined guy. He puts his mind to something, he will get it done.

While this year's Marine Corps Marathon is probably his slowest ever at close to 6 hours (did same marathon in 2006 in 4:39), it probably is one that will mean the most to him. Despite all these challenges he did not let that stop him from being the runner he is. He loves running. He loves training. He loves setting goals and achieving them.

Here is Wally in action at a race before his accident and later diagnosis.


Walter & my mom are huge inspirations for me. Walter is 63 and my mom is 64. They both are very dedicated runners, training for marathons and racing often. It is because of all that they do that I sometimes don't think what I do is all that big of a deal..... after all, they are twice my age!

I still need to remember that not every 30 year old does what I do. ;-)

But then again not every 30 year old has Wally & my mom to inspire them and motivate them.


Do you have someone amazing that motivates you?

Hope you had a fabulous weekend!!

Britt

Tracking Wally....

I'm not used to this following from home stuff. Either I'm running the marathon as well or there to cheer someone.

I signed up for texted messages, but that doesn't seem to be working, so I'm using the Marine Corps Marathon to track Walter's progress. If you're swinging by for the first time, my step dad is running the Marine Corps Marathon today! Here is the back story on some set backs he has had, which make his run even more amazing!

All of this marathon tracking works up an appetite, so the hubby and I whipped up some breakfast.

BREAKFAST
-scramble of eggs, spinach & garlic chicken sausage, provolone
-sauteed potatoes, onions & herbs

Also enjoying some coffee with milk & agave nectar.

Wally is almost to the half way point. I'm happy to see that he is taking his time. Around a 12:30 pace. It will take him about 5 and half hours, which to be out there that long is very taxing. I know from experience from running with my mom when she had a bad marathon day.... we originally had hoped to get her qualified for Boston at that race, but it just wasn't her day.

I'm also following a friend of ours who is running his first marathon. He was rocking it up till about the half and then slowed down a bit, still he is going to finish WELL under 4 hours. Maybe under 3:40.

All of this marathon excitement has me looking forward to NYC next weekend! :-)

Since I'll be out of town next weekend we caught up with some friends last night. Our wonderful friends Glenn & Aviva. They are great people and great cooks!

We were in charge of salad, so I whipped up this lovely salad......

The salad included....
-herbed spring mix of greens
-grape tomatoes
-roasted brussel sprouts & eggplant
-gorganzola cheese
-I brought some TJ's balsamic vinaigrette to go with it

I must say it was quite tasty.

Here was a fabulous dinner.

DINNER
-pan roasted halibut
-green beans
-a fabulous fennel with cream sauce & bacon.... so good.
-some un-photographed risotto that went incredibly well with the fennel sauce
SO SO SO good. What a great dinner.
We also had some yummy wine. Happy tummy.

Alright now back to tracking Wally. :-)

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!!!!

Britt

Rainy 5K....

Dreary day....

But I had a 5k to run! It is party of a road race series I'm doing. I had one race more to do and this was the last one, so I HAD to go if I wanted to complete the series and get my jacket.

The weather wasn't all that motivating... it was about 48 degrees and raining, at least the trees were beautiful. Ran into a little traffic while waiting to park.

I planned to just take it easy during the race. I got a nasty calf cramp while sleeping last night, so that was still a bit sore. With the rain I really didn't get much of a warm up in.

I lined up about mid-pack hoping that would force me to start out slow.

It kinda worked. I started out slow.... but then I gradually picked up the pace.

I don't know I hate taking it super easy at races. I did the first mile in about 7 minutes. At that point I figured I'd just run based on how I felt. I felt fairly well, my calf didn't like going uphill so I took it easy on those but kept on plugging. I finished in 22:07. Not too shabby. Annoying part was that I got beat out for 3rd in my age group by 4 seconds. Arg. Oh well. If I didn't have the marathon in the back of my mind I probably would have done better. Some day I'll get back to working on my goal of breaking 20 minutes, although I seem to be getting further away from that lately.

The finish was about a mile from the start. They had a shuttle but it wasn't running yet, so I just ran back to my car.

A self portrait back at the car.

I hadn't really eaten before the race. I did have some hot apple cider at the finish area and some cantaloupe. I was very happy to get home and make a warm breakfast.

BREAKFAST

-.5c oats, .5c almond milk, .5c water

-1T almond butter, 1T ground flax, some maple granola

After fueling back up I wasn't sure what I wanted to do on a rainy day. But now that my dad is gone I figured I'd enjoy a little me time and just go shopping. :-) Window shopped more than anything else though, but it was nice to just be alone for a bit and not have it involve running.

A few hours later I finally made my way home and had an appetite again. I needed something quick and easy so I heated my leftovers from Thursday night. Yum.

Now I'm catch up on a little Tivo. Desperate Housewives, Brothers & Sisters, Biggest Loser, etc. Another good rainy day activity. I think I need some tea now though, as it is a bit chilly.

I think we are going to head to our friends house for dinner tonight. At least I hope we are. They always make such great food!!!

Enjoy the rest of your Saturday!!

Britt

Not the suggested pre-race kinda night.....

Ahhh...... Friday!

I love the weekend, although it is sad to sometimes wish the week away. BUT I'm going to try and be more positive about things. I started reading The Secret.... we will see how well positive thinking works for me. ;-)

Any how... I slept in the morning. I figured I would take the day off from kettlebell, a little less cross training and weights as I get closer to NYC. I think I might just go once next week.

I had a tasty treat to look forward to this morning.... an almost empty jar of honey peanut butter. Mmmm......

BREAKFAST

-1/2c oats with almond milk & water, left over PB

-ground flax & Kashi Vanilla Island for toppings

Lunch time came around and I went for a run. I had to sign something at the hubby's office, so I ran there. I love when I can actually RUN an errand. So round trip it was about 5 miles. Also one of my good friends work's at his office so I got to gab with her for a bit.

Then it was back to work, to shower up and have lunch.

LUNCH

-spinach wrap w/ chicken salad and loaded with veggies

-side of carrot sticks, brussel sprouts and broccoli

After work I picked up my dad to take him out for a drink. The hubby joined us as well. We met up with some random friends that just happened to stop by.

Also on the way home I picked up some ingredients for dinner.

DINNER

- maple glazed salmon

- risotto al autumno (I'll post the recipe tomorrow)

-roasted eggplant & brussel sprouts

I do risotto the old fashioned way.... ie. lots of stirring.

But its made less tedious when you have a glass of wine in hand.

Dinner is served.....

With wine of course. :-)

While dining we had my dad's photos from his trip to northern Canada on his computer. He went on a paddling trip in the northwest territories.

Now we are just chilling and relaxing. I have a 5K tomorrow morning. Normally I wouldn't be doing one right before a marathon, but its part of a series I'm doing. I have to do one more race and this just happens to be the LAST one. So gotta do it.

I think I might actually be in the top 5 for women. Woo hoo! Kinda sad too though, as one of the races I did with a bad hangover.... yes sometimes I am NOT the picture of health. Never said I was perfect.

Hope your weekend is off to a great start!

Any races this weekend? Or trying anything new for activities?

Have a great night!

Britt

Beer, Baseball & Bruins

Um... I was doing great today till after work. Let's recap.

BREAKFAST

-oats made with water & almond milk

-topped with almond butter, walnuts, ground flax & maple granola

-side of STRONG green tea

I started to get hungry by 10:30. But I had no food in my desk and no money for the cafeteria. Then someone had food at their desk by 11am. So I headed to the gym.

WORKOUT

Today was a speed workout day. 5 miles with 3 miles at a 7 minute pace.

I was doing well, 1 mile warm up and then running a 7 minute pace on the treadmill.

However, I ran into a guy I knowing from my running club. He is talker.

So me trying to run a 7 minute pace and trying not to be rude.... not pretty.

He is also a fast runner, so to him a 7 minute pace is nothing.

When he finally left I had done 2 miles at that pace. I had to bring it down for the last mile, 7:15 pace. Then cooled down with a relaxing last mile.

I'm not sure if it was the talking or what, but those 7 minute miles whooped me.

Oh and then after cooling down & stretching out I hit the locker room.....sweaty gross me....... and then realized I had no towel.

Fabulous.

Made do with paper towels and a long sleeved fleece that was in my gym bag.

I was happy to finally get to eat my lunch though.

LUNCH

-spaghetti squash w/ marinara and left over veggies (broccoli & turnips)

I really should have brought an afternoon snack. By the end of the day I was starving.

I headed home to the dad & the dog. The dad wanted to go out and who was I to go against the patient's wish. He wanted his first post-op beer.

We headed to an italian place that has $2.50 drafts on Thursday.

Mmmhhh.... Sam Octoberfest.

The hubby had a function and was going to be awhile, so we ordered an appetizer.

HUGE bruschetta. Don't worry, we didn't eat it all.

Had another beer.... or two.

Then the hubby arrived with co-workers and we ordered more food.

My HUGE dish (notice a trend here)

It was a pasta dish with chicken, prosciutto, mushrooms & cheese.

Yum. I ate maybe half..... I guess I was hungry.
So dinner was eaten in the bar. With lots of TV's around us.... the Bruins were on, my dad's favorite team. The Yankees were on, my hubby's favorite team. Whenever my dad visits I am guaranteed A LOT of sports. I have watched maybe a half hour of news this week and MANY MANY hours of sports. Ack! Thank goodness for Tivo, I'll catch up on my shows this weekend.... Biggest Loser, yay!

Do you watch much tv? Do you watch much sports? I really don't watch that much. I just have a few shows I like. But typically I do marathon session and they usually result in me going to bed WAY too late. Once I start I cannot stop.

Alright. Speaking of way too late, I need to not stay up to late.... again.

Have a great night!

Britt

Turkish get ups & Cheering for Wally!

This morning..... I slept in. Ahh..... Till 6:30.

I ust could not get up at 5:30 for Kettlebell, I was up to late dealing with some technical glitches with the dang blog. So annoying.

Any how.

I wanted to make it to 4:30 Kettlebell so I went to work early.

Prepped my breakfast, while doing so I ate half a banana and then added the rest to my oats.

BREAKFAST

-banana

-oats, almond milk & water, rest of banana, almond butter, ground flax, few walnuts & some maple granola.

LUNCH

headed home to check on the dog and my dad, both were doing well. :-)

-sandwich thin, turkey, provolone, hummus and tomato

-later at work had some plain greek yogurt with almond butter

yep running a bit low on the veggies today......

After work I scooted to kettlebell. It was a doozie.

Warmup

following done twice

-run 1/4 mile

-3 pushups

-6 situps

-9 air squats

Workout

as many rounds as you could in 20 minutes

2 Turkish Get Ups per side

4 Split squats per side

12 American Swings

8 Thrusters per side

I did just over 5 rounds. OMG the Turkish Get Ups were killing me. We usually just do them during warm ups.... not as part of the actual workout. I was using 12kg bells, so about 26 lbs. I finally had to drop down to a 20lb bell for my last few get ups. I was a sweaty drippy mess by the end..... sign of a good workout. I also wasn't much of a talker during class, except to say get ups suck. :-) Aren't I a cheerful ray of sunshine. LOL

The hubby arrived home shortly after me, so we threw together a quick dinner. AND.... I forgot to take a picture. Oops. Nothing crazy.... turkey burgers on sandwich thins w/ broccoli & baby turnips on the side. YES finally I ate some veggies!

I'm working on the veggie situation as I type, I got these lovies baking in the oven.

-Spaghetti Squash & Butternut Squash

So while that cooks I'm enjoying some green tea and um... a snack size Snickers. My dad got a bag. Evil dad. ;-)

I cannot believe the marathon is only a week and a half away. Eeks!

However THIS weekend my step dad, Wally, is doing the Marine Corps Marathon!!

It will be his first marathon since a couple of major health issues set him back. He is one dedicated and determined guy though, he has a goal and he is going to achieve it! His training has been very methodical and well thought out, he has also listened to his body and accepted its limitations that it gave him at times.

Here we are in the FL Keys last winter.

He is an amazing guy.

Almost 2 years ago he fell on some ice while on a business trip, hit his head very hard and almost required brain surgery due to the swelling. It took over a month to finally get him home to NH, as he was in IL when the accident occurred and then went to MA before coming home. It was such a nightmare. He had to work with speech therapists and occupational therapists to re-learn a few things, but he made an amazing come back.

Just as he was on the upswing from that he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a cancer of the white blood cells. He started to do well with his treatment for that when he wound up in the hospital again when he collapsed during a run, they were not sure if it was due to blood pressure medicine or what. He was released but a couple months later he collapsed again, this time they realized he was having seizures due to scar tissue in his brain.

Now he is on anti-seizure medicine and hasn't had an issue since. He will be having a stem cell transplant in February of 2010 and he wanted to get another marathon in before that. Plus he loves the Marine Corps Marathon. So he is running it. It is a goal he wants to accomplish.

My mom is flying down with him and will cheer him on with a friend of her's that lives there. My mom, Wally and I did Marine Corps in 2006. It is a great race, lots of wonderful support, amazing location, and just a lot of fun. I'll be cheering him on from home though, as well as another friend who will be running his first marathon for the Burn Foundation.

So for those of you who are overwhelmed by a marathon and don't know if you can do it.... think of my step dad. He is 63, has cancer (but under control), overcome a brain injury and is out there running. How can you not be inspired.

So join me in giving Wally a cheer on Sunday!

Have a great night!

Britt

Me 3.0

Yep, I think I could use a few upgrades and need to work on the "Me 3.0" version. ;-)

I like Me a lot, I just think I could use a few improvements and updates to help me be more productive and possibly more versatile.... maybe add a few new "apps". Cause we all know whatever the need, "there is an app for that".

In all seriousness though, my seminar today was very motivating and helfpful.

The name of the course was Time Management and Organizational Skills. However, in discussing those topics we hit on so many other areas, as time management and organization are reflective of who YOU really are. It was also one of those courses with lots of acrostics, such as

How to Set Goals SMARTER

Specific

Measureable

Agreed to

Realistic

Time Specific

Evaluated

Rewarded

As well as tips on how to create an effective To Do List, organizing your schedule, prioritizing so you are proactive instead of reactive, etc. Also this involved learning how to say "NO", which is something I have difficulty doing. But by saying "NO" to one person I'm really saying yes to all the other things I value and have committed to.... I like being reminded of that. One "NO" is really worth all those "YES's". :-)

Another item that was stressed was the importance of continuing to educate and better myself.....cause I'm worth it. I've never been one into motivational & self help books, CD's, etc. but I may change my tune. Before purchasing anything I'm going to head to the library tomorrow and see what they have on CD. Figure I'll give listening a try as opposed to reading, see if that type of learning works for me.....lately unless a book really draws me in, I fall asleep... as I usually read before bedtime. Who knows maybe I can learn on the run? Download a podcast or CD on my iPhone?

I think the first book or CD I'll look for is 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. I'm going to guess the library has it, if not I'll pick up a copy.

What personal development or motivational books have you read that you found beneficial?

The irony in all of this is that I KNOW how to accomplish goals.... but it seems to mainly work when it involves running. It is a bit more cut and dry I think.

In reality every marathon I run is a new goal. I set a specific goal to complete the marathon and in usually in a certain time range. I determine if that goal is realistic. I put together a training plan to achieve that goal. I commit to it. I track my progress. I achieve my goal. I reward myself.

Now I just need to apply that discipline & logic to the rest of my life.... huh.

Ok. Enough being deep for one night.

Sorry for the sparse pictures.....

Britt

Organization & Time Management.....

Hopefully after today I'll be improved in both areas!

I'm heading to an offsite training today, so it will be nice to get out of the office too. I actually asked my boss to go, I think I could improve in both areas..... plus it never hurts to learn some new ideas.

After walking the pooch I'm fueling up for the day.

BREAKFAST

-1/3c oats, little less than 1/4c multigrain hot cereal, 1/2c almond milk, 1/2c water

-1T almond butter

-1T ground flax

-few walnuts

-couple Kashi Vanilla Island shredded wheat things crumpled up

-side of OJ

Some snacks for the day.....

Honey Crisp Apple, Banana & Granola Bar

So last night I had a dream about those 1/2 marathon runners who passed away in Detroit over the weekend. Obviously it must be on my mind a bit. But I know it was a freak situation and its really not the norm. Runner's World also has a great question and answer section on the topic as well.

I really haven't gotten into researching the details about each runner. But I know for me.... I have trained properly for NYC, I have done multiple marathons, I see my doctor regularly, etc. I do what I can to make sure I am in the best shape I can be in. Plus I love running, I love marathons, I love the community of runners. But as that community of runners grows there will also be more occurrences like the ones this past weekend.... it is just inevitable. My heart breaks for those runners' families and friends though....... we lost a runner friend a little over a year ago. He was in his 50's and appeared perfectly healthy, but he had a massive heart attack mid way through a half marathon. Looking back now some friends believe there might have been warning signs, but our friend brushed them off.....

Definitely listen to your body and encourage those you love to do the same.

I'll report back later on my progress of learning to be better organized and manage my time better! Which actually.... eeks I gotta scoot!!

Britt