Monday, June 30, 2008

Misc.

Well some progress has been made on my living situation. Even though my credit score is pretty good,I've got a little too much debt(who doesn't these days) for the amount of income I have & that's what's providing to be challenge in getting me pre-approved. My lender has been trying to work on a plan to reduce that(because in the long run regardless if I rent or try to own I need to have this monkey off my back).

But I am exploring lease-w/ the option to buy. It would get my foot in the door in terms of the housing market while working on getting a down payment. The way it works is that part of the rent would be put into an account to build up over the course of a year or more to be put towards closing costs if I chose to buy the place that I'm renting. Of course,I would need to chose a place that I really like so it give me motivation to buy. So I have looked at a couple of condos in my area & just waiting to hear what my lender says in terms of financing for me.

On the running front,I have signed up for my yearly 3-5k race series coming up this Monday(as you can see from sidebar). They are held for 3 consecutive Mondays in July in subdivision w/ lots of cul-de-sacs(hence the name). The races start at 7pm so hopefully it would be a smidge cooler,but I doubt it. Last year it was still in the low 90's by the time the race started but good thing was,there were a lot of homeowners out there w/ hoses & sprinklers drenching us during the course of the race. So let's hope they are generous w/ their water again!..until next time...

Monday, June 23, 2008

Still here...

Yeah I'm still alive. Been groovin' on the road,getting my speed up(slowly) & rockin' the x-training. Playing the waiting the game w/ my living situation. Working on getting my financial house in order so I can,Lord-willing, buy my own place. Got a little over 2 months to make this happen otherwise I'm going to be renting for a year or 2(it's way too expensive to do month-to-month). But wanted to pop in & give ya'll an update,cause I know that you're just waiting on the edge of your seat for a post from me..;-) ((Hugs))

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Miss me?

I know,it's been a minute since I last posted(or commented on your blogs-my deepest apologies). Lots of things going on. Some I hinted to here. Let's just say I've started the process. Running has been going good. Did speed work on Friday & had my 4miler yesterday.

Got a chance to try out my gym in its new location. Other than the fact that they switched the cardio area to the ground floor(made sense since you tend to get more heated doing cardio & heat rises & all that) & put the weight machines on the 2nd floor,I can work wit' it. But get this,they have some weight machines out of order already! They've only been opened a few days. Doesn't look too good when they touring w/ prospective members but oh well. At least when they were in the old building,they had the excuse of we're moving to brand new place w/ all new equipment..umm yeah.

Posting might be sparse here over the next few days but know that I'm trying to get my life in order & I'm makin' moves...Later

Thursday, June 12, 2008

Movin' on

So the heat,where my gym is currently located & even me are moving. First the heat. Looks like we're going to be in the low 90's tomorrow(instead of the furnace that we had earlier this week) which should be a little better for my speed work.

Next my gym is moving about a couple of miles of where it is currently. They have built a spankin' brand new-bigger(supposed to be around a 100,000 sq. feet) than all the other gyms in the area. All I know is they will have an indoor track(sweet but too bad they couldn't have been opened on Monday or tomorrow-they won't be opened for business until Sat.).

Finally me. My lease is currently coming up for a renewal & I need to get into a cheaper place. Plus I'll have my Dad moving in w/ me for a bit. I know everyone is getting into buying a house but I have to admit that I'm kinda(read a lot) apprehensive about the financial commitment. I grew up in apartments & was never told about how important it is to own. But of course now that I have been on my own for nearly a decade everybody & their mother is trying to get me to buy. I don't have any money saved up & I know that can help greatly towards lowering the final amount. But I don't want to be one of the many who are right now going thru foreclosure in a few years cause I can't keep up w/ the payments. If anyone has any advise,clue me in.

Until next time...

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

The heat...

Ok,I'm certifiable. I..am..completely..INSANE. Wanna know why? I ran yesterday. 100 degrees/heat index 105. 4 miles in 39:21/avg. pace 9:49. Lawdy hav' mercy. Even the devil wasn't laughing yesterday. I think he was passed out from the heat! Funny thing there were times when I thought- Maybe I should walk,you know bring me heart rate down out of "heart attack" zone. But then I thought I'll just be out here longer than I really want. So I pushed thru to the end. I know,I don't have/use the good sense God gave me.

But there maybe some relief soon. Weatherman predicting the east coast heat wave will HOPEFULLY be easing up tomorrow. But of course I have swimming tomorrow so it would be cooler tomorrow. Until then....

Friday, June 6, 2008

Now I know what hell feels like...

Tempo run(5x/3min @9:29pace-w/ 11:11 recovery jog btwn each set)...3+ miles total...95 degrees/heat index 100...Heaven help me it was HOT!! I think at one point I saw the devil laughing at my a$$ as I tried to bang out my run. There was just enough breeze to tease(really just pissed me off) cause just when I thought there was some relief...THERE WASN'T. I know what you all are thinking. Why would I do any type of speed work in the summer? Well I got a 3 5k race series coming up in a month & I didn't realize when I was planning my running(getting my pace & distance up after my injury) that I would be doing it throughout the WHOLE summer.

Don't get me wrong,I ran last summer so it's not like I haven't done any heat training but after the fall/winter running it's easy to forget how hot your body can really feel out in that. So anyway I figure that I'll take this month to do some concentrated speed work,do my race series & then do the rest of my speed work/tempo on the mill if it's too hot.

G,the leg has been holding up well & I hope your tempo run went ok in this heat as well. Well I hope everyone stays cool(or at least be camped out in front of the A.C.) this weekend! (Toodles)

Thursday, June 5, 2008

Got to keep my balls..

Bwahahaaa...Yeah I was at the gym tonight & sent death rays to anyone who even thought about taking one of them. So my workout tonight went off w/o a hitch. Hey I was an only child. I DON'T share well..;-)

So M wondered how I dropped 48secs from Mile 1(9:55) to Mile 4(9:07) on my long run on Monday. I have to say...that...I...have...no...idea. Honestly I was haulin' bootie. Probably since it was hotter than hades I was just ready to get the run over w/ so I can get in some A.C.! I know I gotta watch that this summer if I don't want to overtax myself. Heat stroke,heck even heat exhaustion is no joke.

Speaking of heat & speed got my first speed work session(tempo run) tomorrow. Supposed to be in the mid-90's. Pray for me.

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Those beyotches stole my balls!

Let me set the scene. Imagine me at the gym. Doing my thang. Just finishing up one exercise & heading toward the stability balls. Then to my horror,these rather young things just prance(yes,they pranced..shut up) up & took them all. I just look at them & say as nicely as I can.."Hey I was just about to use one of those". They looked back at me & said in a grating, sweet voice.."We need them for a class". No compromise & say hey let's leave one for one of the many(like me) who are NOT taking a class. It's just like oh well we got to them first,sucks to be you. I tell ya I wanted to stick the balls where the sun wouldn't even think about shining! Alrighty I'm done w/ my rant.

I did manage to bang out my 4miler yesterday(kinda wish I could have run today too after I got "robbed" at the gym). Finished in 38:14/avg. pace 9:35. Check out these splits:

Mile 1: 9:55
Mile 2: 9:33
Mile 3: 9:32
Mile 4: 9:07(somebody DEFINITELY lit a fire under my a$$)

It's been a long time since I've negative splits like that. I was shocked at that last mile. Did not think I could go below & hold a 9:15pace for longer than a few hundred feet since my injury. Obviously I underestimated my legs.

I've got swimming tomorrow. At least I'm not using any balls in the pool! (Kisses)

Sunday, June 1, 2008

I'm "melting"...


How about I'm ready for the hot weather to be over w/? And it's not even officially summer yet. Did my 2miler on Friday in the nice 80 degree heat(thank goodness there was a good breeze & low humidity). Finished 19:21/avg. pace 9:37. And let me tell you,I felt like I was a puddle of sweat by the end of it(believe me,I SWEAT-no healthy glow or lightly perspiring so that's sayin' something).

Picked up a couple of nice things at Victoria's Secret at their semi-annual sale yesterday. I heart their bras even though they are a bit on the $$ side. Let's face it their undies aren't cheap either but hey,what can I say? Got champagne taste w/ a beer budget.

So looks like there's a consensus w/ me not spending the money on x-trainers & to stick w/ wearing my running kicks to the gym. I have to admit I did look at some x-trainers yesterday when I was out & about but honestly I think I'm going w/ the majority & when it's time to replace my running shoes that I use at the gym,I'm going w/ a cheapie pair from Walmart or someplace like that. Thanks so much for the advice guys!

I've got my usual long run(4miles) tomorrow but this week I start my speed work(tempo run on Fri.). Even though it does feel like I've been getting faster all along since I've started back running after my injury. I'm really looking forward to doing some concentrated speed work & also to see how far I can take this part of my training to hopefully make me a better, more efficient runner. (Toodles)