Some of my family and I have committed to running a 10k in September so the training begins! Today was the first day of training and it was NOT FUN. I only needed to run 2 miles, but my feet felt like lead, and my chicken fajita dinner came back to haunt me in the form of an excruciating side ache (okay not that bad, but it wasn't a good feeling). When I'm running I like to picture myself on the cover of this magazine:
I hope to someday run like this, but I am afraid to admit I look more along the lines of this:
I didn't go too slow, but I know I can improve! I will try to keep updated on the progress and will definitely post pictures when we complete our first ever 10k!
In other news - Jake did get a new truck. He loves it, which is all that matters. I am glad he found a good thing out of a not so fun situation. An image for your viewing pleasure:
We have been doing alot of fun things lately - we went fishing for my first time ever! Jake has gone before so he helped me figure out how to throw the fishing line out and sit there until a fish comes. I didn't catch anything, but I did get some bites on my bait which was equally exciting. I screamed when it bit my line, which probably scared it away. I am excited to go again - and maybe catch something. Of course I will not touch the fish or eat it - i will give Jake that pleasure. Jake wasn't able to catch anything either, but our friends did catch some small fish.We went camping a couple weekends ago and had fun with some friends. We went up Provo Canyon and stayed at a campsite with a camp host who wore a kilt. We did all the fun camping stuff - sitting in front of the fire for hours and eating nonstop (hot dogs, smores, roasted starbursts, etc), playing games in the tent, and then hiking in the morning. I LOVE living in Utah. You can drive 20 minutes and be in the mountains to hike or camp, whatever you choose. It is great!
This past weekend our nephew was baptized. My parents flew out, and my sister came down with her family and it was wonderful! We also had another nephew have his baby blessing and were able to see Jake's family. It was great to spend time with both of our families! Nothing is better than hanging out with family. We are off to go boating and camping this weekend with some of Jake's family, and we are excited to be out on the lake. I'll be sure to take pictures!
In other news - I planted my very first garden! I planted carrots, green peppers, squash, watermelon, corn, cucumbers, peas, tomatoes, and lots of lettuce. I am hoping we get at least one piece of fruit or vegetable. I will be happy with just one piece! I decided to start some seeds inside first, and after planting them I only have three seedlings left alive outside. I am guessing i wasn't doing things right because we had a neighbor come over and explain to me how i needed to soak the base of the plants with water, rather than shower them with water. We'll see how it goes!
Our friend Elisa with her prize fish!
Jake getting ready to fish!
Maureen, Austin and me before our 5k "Race for the Cure"
Cutie McKell riding a horse at Thanksgiving Point
Cutie Tyler
Cutie Austin
Grandma and Ellie watching the horses
I knew you were wondering - YES this horse is wearing sunglasses because MAN it was sunny!
4 comments:
SUnglasses were the least of the problems with that horse! :)
It was fun yesterday.
Good luck on the Homer Simpson running!
Homer,
Try donuts. it will help with running.
I loved your post, especially about the fish and the horse!!
In case you are wondering, Utah is wayyy overrated. Washington DC is awesome. You can drive 20 minutes and STILL see homeless people!
Love
Vic
Hmmm... roasted Starbursts... sounds interesting! It sounds like you guys have been having lots of fun! Sure love you two!
Wow. This post is a very random burst of information. Mostly I want to comment on the running, though (seeing as I'm an expert on the subject—I actually did it once).
First, I think you look surprisingly like the girl on your magazine, for what it's worth.
Second, I recently learned about the so-called Kenyan running style, which apparently has been studied and found to be the next-best thing to donuts (err, but good for running in the way that donuts are good for eating?).
I have neither the space here nor the brain power to tell you everything that I was taught, but these are the basic ideas:
- stand up straight, lean slight forward when you run
- keep you chest open, shoulders back
- contact the ground with the middle of your foot each time
- flick your foot back behind you with each step, like your riding a kid's scooter
- keep your elbows sharply bent, your thumbs just in front of your armpits.
They sound kind of crazy, but here are the basic reasons:
- you end up using your strong leg muscles (quads and calves) to push forward and kind of fall forward (in contrast with leaning back, where you use your weaker muscles (hamstrings and the ones by your shins) to pull yourself forward)
- you breathe better, and it keeps your arms moving correctly
- you reduce the shock of landing on your heels, redirecting the impact to the stronger parts of your feet
- pushing off and kicking back behind you (almost kicking yourself) is like following through when you throw a football
- having your arms tight keeps them from swinging broadly at your sides or back-and-forth in front of you; apparently, your arms and legs move in conjunction with each other, so moving your arms more nimbly keeps your legs moving faster, too!
Anyway, if you want the full schpiel, there's a guy named Hawk that works at the Runner's Corner in Orem, and he'd be happy to talk your ear off as well as sell you running shoes that are actually right for you.
Sorry for the novel! Good luck with all your running!
(P.S. I'm glad Jake got a Ford.)
Post a Comment