stooodent

so it feels a little bit more official now. i actually have a UT student id and i have some idea about the classes that i am going to be taking. Yeah! it won't feel totally official until i have registered but it's a start...ok it might feel official when i have to pay my first tuition bill! i met with my adviser today, he was totally nice and knowledgeable about the nutrition program and what it is going take to get me a degree. it's looking like six semesters but i think i can do it in 5ish. i have to sit down and make a spreadsheet to really get the details down. oh i am excited already. even just talking about classes got me riled up. there is food science lab! OMG!

well off to get ready for quality workout with Team A-M-E. we are doing 1200 in the park at 5k and 10k paces. not really sure how many etc but we will see. recovery week was nice last week but today it feels like i haven't been running in a while...even though that is not true i ran yesterday...but i think i am in need of a hard w/o...did i just say that...i hope coach amy doesn't read this before we meet up she might just kick my butt

decker race this weekend. i need to be thinking about fueling during the run when, how much etc. since i didn't really get a chance to practice my fueling during the LAB this is a good time to try things out. i am thinking twice since breakfast will be a few hours before the race and we have a pretty good warm-up . i could get a gel in around mile 4or5 and again around 8 or so. hmm more thinking required...

IronBear!?

i just registered for ironman arizona 11.23.08 wow!

Turkey Trotting and Whatnot

the chilly morning temperatures did not deter me or 10,000 of my closest friends in austin from running in the turkey trot according to my watch i ran the course in 40.41...i was happy with that and was feeling good after the race...hanging out with paul watching chuck, john, amy, liz, jeff, and a few others cross the finish line until the wind picked up...yikes!...then spent a really great afternoon with j cooking up a storm...setting my first thanksgiving table (most of them have been buffet style in past years) and feeling cozy in our little house here...hosted 5 others for dinner and everyone seemed to have a great time...after our share of tasty foods...there were a few heated rounds of guitar hero on the wii....amy will soon be a guitar legend...i can't say the same about me...so the turkey stock is bubbling away, i have already had my first round of leftovers and will not buy a thing today...i love thanksgiving :)

only in austin

this morning around 7am on my way home from running at barton springs there was a man putting gas in his beamer on barton springs road...in his bathrobe...and slippers...

a few days ago in my yard i found a piece of notebook paper...written on the paper in green marker was "free hugs"

i love this town

sunday and the lab

had the "lab" this sunday up north in the brentwood neighborhood...i had been relatively nervous about this training run since i saw it on the schedule...not the nice easy pace that we have been maintaining during our normal sunday long runs...no this was 4 miles of warm-up 8 miles at marathon goal pace (MGP)and 2 miles of cool down...it was called the lab because we were to simulate race day behaviors...that is practice drinking and eating (gels etc) while on the go and practice the feeling of MGP...practice our nutrition pre and post run...all of that good stuff...we were sent out in groups of pace times...i am in the 4 hr group with several of my training buddies...so this is all well and good...but all day saturday i felt like absolute crap...from when i woke around 7am to bed at _blush_ 8.30pm the only things that i felt at all like ingesting were tea...a cup of soy pudding...and about a cup of plain rice...yeah not great nutrition for the day before a big run...it is very frustrating to have stomach issues even if you are not a runner or someone with an serious passion ok borderline obsession with food and its preparation...so...the lab was not great...warm-up was so-so...i knew the rest of it was not going to make me happy...the 10 minute mile pace was feeling not so easy and my MGP is 9 mm...ught...made the warm-up and first MGP lap with ed and the gang but was starting to struggle and really had to keep up the mental banter...there was a lot of "you can make it another half mile then you only have a mile and a half to the water stop"..."hit the next cone...one more lap...run a little faster it will make you feel better"...did the dreaded swallow a few times...and lost ed and the gang on the second lap...was glad to be alone and not having to chat with people...to try and get my head in the game and get this thing done...tried some nutrition about mile 10...hmm yeah not feeling that...gatorade wasn't even working for my tummy...so my pace gang finished about 1/4 mile ahead of me...but i finished the MGP section and just sandbagged the hell out of my cool down...got some water in me and then headed directly...with a slight diversion for gas at the 7-11 :) (they didn't have those in GA)...for the restorative waters of barton springs...due to my shivers...which i guess were caused by mild dehydration (i had a bottled of water in hand as i was soaking...and another in the car for the dive home...don't worry) i could only get half way up my thighs...even that felt good...chatted with a few other runners soaking as well...one ran 23 that day...he looked good...was his last long run before dallas...skipped breakfast with the group and went home to curl up in bed and try to get myself feeling better...illness and a bad run are not a good combo for a feel good sunday...j was still in bed when i got home...10am!!...he deserved it...so the bed was extra cozy...i was still cold...he got up and heated some tomato soup and toasted a mini bagel and made me eat...tummy was protesting but i needed something to help me recover...it worked wonders...thanks bear!...about an hour later i was feeling a little better...not 100% but better enough to do some of my post run stuff...like us my TP rollers and drink some recovery stuff...and an hour after that i was feeling so much better i had forgotten (almost) about my crappy run...and best of all i made the dark chocolate crackle cookies that coach gave me a recipe for...OMG ! they are amazing...and some mac and soy cheese with farm broccoli for dinner...not bad...so even with all that it turned out to be a not so bad sunday...there is always the next lab...right?...

Thinking

i am in the process of reading the omnivore's dilemma (thanks to j's mom for passing that along) and i came across an interesting passage that got me thinking..."if the sixteen million acres now being used to grow corn to feed cows in the United States became well-managed pasture, that would remove fourteen billion pounds of carbon from the atmosphere each year, equivalent of taking four million cars off the road"...here are my thoughts...cows shouldn't really be eating corn...their bodies were made with all those stomachs (my biology is not so great so no quoting me) for the purpose of digesting _grass_ not corn...but there is this huge system of corn driven agri-business that is in place that is going to be really difficult to dismantle...but think about it...taking this corn land and making it pasture would have a huge impact on what we as american's eat and a huge impact on the environment...the corn that doesn't go into animal feed gets made into corn syrup and corn derived food additives...if we got rid of all of that corn syrup our diets would undergo a drastic change for the better and might even begin to cut into the epidemic of obesity in this country...so by changing this one thing would could potentially be fixing two really big problems...but i am stuck with the how...how do we as regular folks dig into this...i know that i am doing my best to support locally produced foods as much as i can...but how can we make a bigger impact...i guess i need to do some more thinking...

Hills and Malawi

so tonight we ran hills...that is hill repeats...five okay i was peer pressured into six times...this is my first time for this sort of thing...r.e.s.t. is the goal...relax...no earings made from your shoulders...effort...exert some you _are_ running up a big hill...stride...think about it but it will shorten on its own...take the top...yeah pass the person in front of you and get back on your goal pace...sounds good right...yeah it's hard...and then for more fun...run backwards up the hill a few times too...it really is as hard as it sounds...but man was it fun...i know everyone must think i am a nut...but i love this stuff...and that is the whole point...it is no fun if you don't like the process...right...it's all about the process...also tonight our team talked about sponsoring a runner from Malawi...we would need to raise about $3000 to be able to bring that runner here to participate in the Austin marathon...this could be an amazing experience...i am totally down...and i would bake my little heart out and have my own lil bake sale to raise my share of the funds...and i know that we can do it...i might even take charge...you never can tell with me :P

At home in Austin

At the end of June j and i moved to Austin from Savannah and it seems a lot has been going on ever since then...i got a job working at Flip Happy Crepes It's in an old Avion trailer...we only make crepes...sweet and savory but only crepes...j and i adopted two cats who are sisters...they were rescued from a neighborhood close by...their names are brownie and betty...because one looks like a brownie...and the other reminds me of apple brown betty...i joined Rouge Running to train for the Austin Marathon in February...i figured out that since i started the program in September i have run about 220 miles and that is just the beginning of the program!...my coach is amazing and has inspired a group of us in the first timers program to set our sights on an Ironman...i am hoping to start training for multi-sport after the completion of the marathon...that is if Santa brings me a tri bike and a swim suit for Christmas...i applied for and got in to the UT program for Nutrition...in hopes of becoming a dietitian/nutritionist...i think it will be fun to be an undergrad all over again...uhh...j built a fence around our yard...i helped a little...ok mostly just moral support...though i did hammer a few nails...(and sang some indigo girls while i was doing it) i am very proud of his accomplishment...it is great feat for a small bear...and we have begun the tedious process of painting and painting it...so i guess for now that should catch y'all up to speed with things here in Texas...i am going to try this blogging thing out for awhile to see how i like talking to the world about me...and getting it out of my head...