Yesterday was a special day (Nov. 24th)

My very good friend, Mark, became a new dad to a beautiful baby girl yesterday! When I went to the Running Room "Learn to Run" clinic last night, we ran by his Aunt and Uncle's home. It made me smile and think of Mark and how happy I am for him and his family. He lives far away, so I won't get to see him or his daughter for quite some time.

Mark and I - Halloween 1998

I also thought about how much he has inspired me - and felt today was a good day to acknowledge him! I've known Mark for about 13 years (can you believe it Mark?). We were in college together, worked together for a couple years, now we live provinces apart, but through it all have kept our friendship alive. A few years ago, Mark decided he needed to shed some weight - he was always ready with a big bear hug and made everyone laugh with his quick wit and impersonations (Cartman was the best!), but his future health was at risk and he knew he needed to make a change. And boy did he ever change!  He started out eating better and going to the gym on his lunch break. Within a year he was a very slim version of the Mark I met back in college - and he looked great! But most important of all, he was healthy, and had taken the 'smart' path to healthy. And now he's a runner! If you would have told Mark or me when we became friends that he would be running 10km races in 10 years, you would have had to peel us both off the floor from laughter.  Now, years later, he's still the 'new and improved' version of Mark and I'm so proud to call him my friend!

Mark & I Halloween in Halifax, 2004 - We had a BLAST that night

Mark, you have inspired me with your commitment to your health and fitness. Last night, I realized if you can run 10km races, then so can I!  I've decided to run the 10km in the Bluenose here in Halifax in May.  I'm pretty sure my other good friend, Michelle, is going to be running in it also. It'd be pretty awesome if we could all run it together! The funniest part is you two would probably leave me in your collective dust - and I'm the one that's played sports my whole life - Go figure! I've got some training to do...

Enjoy every precious moment with your baby girl, Mark, and be proud of your accomplishments and the future you are going to have with your family. You're an amazing, awesome, adventurous dad!!

I did it!

Never thought I would see the sun rise this morning!  That was a nice bonus to getting up at 6:30. I was in bed at midnight last night (earlier than usual!) but had a very restless sleep, knowing my alarm was set to go off at 6:15. I remember tossing and turning, looking at the clock at 6:08...  My husband can verify that I LOVE my bed in the morning - it takes a LOT for me to decide to crawl out of it on a regular day!  This morning took about 12min of pep talking myself before I left the comfy warmth of my covers. Even though I was over-heating (was wearing winter-weight PJs), I could have easily just gone back to sleep, especially since I was tossing and turning all night. I was really tired!

Now it's 9am - I've done a 30min intense workout, ate breakfast, sent my son and hubby off for the day,  listening to some tunes while catching up on email, twitter and updating my blog. Wow!  I don't think I've ever gotten that much accomplished by 9am!! Once I'm done this post, I'll grab a quick shower and get my youngest son up for the day (he likes to sleep in like his momma).  Talk about feeling ahead of the game!  Love it!

Before and after photos from this morning. (finally - notice the time below the TV - 6:32 and 7:12)

I must remember this great feeling of accomplishment the next time I want to get up early for a workout!


Before signing off, a brief update on this week's activities:
Monday - schedule conflict - I'll go swimming on Wednesday instead
Tuesday - Kathy Smith 30min workout, running 20min with Running Room clinic
Wednesday - swimming 45min followed by soccer 1hr
Thursday - maybe bellyfit 1hr...  I must say, I sweat a TON more during the 30min KS workout this morning that I have in any of the bellyfit classes...
Friday - Kathy Smith in the morning again?  Maybe.... It's my son's birthday - still have to plan his party and now I've got the rest of today to do just that!

physical challenge

As mentioned yesterday, I volunteer at the Running Room clinic with my friend Michelle. Well, I had completely forgotten until I was crawling into bed last night that she put out a challenge to us last week. She wanted each of us to do something outside our comfort zone - something we've never done, and/or thought would be insane, etc. that would push us to the limits of our physical ability - sometime over the course of the week.  She even wants before and after pics if we can manage it...

So, since I've only got one day to do this, I've decided I'm going to get up tomorrow morning and do one of my workout videos that has been collecting dust on the shelf. The real challenge part of this will be getting up before the rest of my family!!  I'm always the last one up in the morning and last one to bed at night...

This one's for you Michelle!  I say that now, but I know I'll be proud of *my* accomplishment when I'm sweating along with Kathy Smith tomorrow morning.  I'll be taking a photo of the clock to prove it! :-)

I better get off to bed! 'night.

Swimming, Running, Soccer and Bellyfit!

Just how much can one fit into a week? This week will be the true test. I have swimming on Monday night, running on Tuesday, soccer on Wednesday and bellyfit on Thursday!

Bellyfit will likely be a no-show. I haven't been for the past two weeks and this will be the last day. I haven't written at all about this class. Must say I was quite disappointed. It was toted as being a cross between belly-dancing and pilates. Unfortunately, they didn't mention it was aimed at the VERY LOW impact aerobic crowd. I have yet to break a sweat and therefore decided I have better things to do during that hour on Thursday evenings.

I'm thrilled to be running again!  I've been helping out my good friend Michelle as she leads the 'Learn to Run' clinic at the Running Room in Halifax. She only started running last year and has made phenominal changes to her weight, her health and her lifestyle. You can read about all of it on her blog. So when she put out requests for help with the clinic - no one can be left behind and the group can be as large as 20 runners, someone is bound to be much slower - I volunteered. Not to mention I get to see Michelle more, get to take the clinic for free (neither Michelle or I had ever done a Running Room clinic before!) and it gets me out running again!  So even though we only run for 20 min, and sometimes I'm walking more than running to keep the last woman back from being alone, it feels great to be out running again.  I've even signed up for the Santa Shuffle on Dec. 5th!  Care to join me??

I've got a long way to go...

... to get back to my speedy swim times from June! Last night was my second swim lesson and we did time trials - these are supposed to be benchmarks to see how much we improve over the 12 weeks. Unfortunately for me, my times were at least as bad as when I started last September, or at least that's how it felt. Definitely worse than at the end of June. I'm almost too embarrassed to post the new times...

Almost... We did a different trial this time 'round. Instead of 50m, 100m, 200m - we started with 3 separate 100m, followed by 3 x 50m - with a 1min+ rest in between each. I don't remember all the times, so here is what I do remember:

1st 100m - 1:53; 2nd 100m - 1:57; 3rd 100m - 2:03 (just kept getting worse, ugh!)

1st 50m - 0:53 - I think, and I honestly don't remember the last 2. I think I ended up over a minute on the last one...

The 50m were hardest because my thoughts were along the lines of "oh, it's such a short distance, I can just give my all - I survived hard labour, med-free, for 3hrs; I can do ANYTHING for 1 minute!" Yeah, well, even contractions don't last that long before getting a break (except when you don't get the break)... For all three 50m trials, the first 25m up felt amazing, then about 1/2 way back my arms felt like dead-weights and I could barely swing them around for the next stroke. It was an incredibly frustrating feeling. Almost as though my arms had popped out of the socket! Thinking about it now, I can still sense the feeling. Reminds me that I've got a long way to go to get back to my previous, speedy form! Problem is, this time I'm only going once a week. I'll post my end-trial results in about 10 weeks!

Back at it... and lovin' it!

Over the past 72hrs I've participated in my 4 favourite activities - softball, dancing, soccer and swimming - in that order. Talk about shock to the system! Surprisingly, my body feels great, apart from a slightly sore back that I think came from playing 3 softball games on Saturday - nothing that a trip to the chiropractor can't fix.

After a pretty sedentary summer, apart from the weekly soccer game and the odd stroll with my family, I was afraid my body might go on strike! Anyone that plays softball knows it doesn't count as 'exercise' - especially in a coed beer league... We drink more calories than we burn! lol!

Fortunately there is only a brief overlap between activity seasons, so after next weekend, the only scheduled activity in my life will be swimming and a bellyfit aerobics class I signed up for. Our first class was supposed to be last week, but am I ever glad it was postponed! Not sure my body would have ever forgiven me if I had included that in the mix, in the span of 5 days!

Swimming was great. It had been so long since I swam laps (I went once all summer) that I could feel the muscles in my shoulders and hips after the first 500m. Fortunately the instructor went easy on us and let us set our own pace for the first day. 1500m total distance in the first class is still impressive and I hope to have my cardio strength back up to 2km+ distances soon.

I hit a home run!

Last night was the last softball game of the regular season. I was 0 for 3 at bats and approached the plate with 2 outs ahead of me... Just moments before I had listened to my teammate as he coached another player about waiting just two counts (one, two) before swinging the bat. I knew this rule and had used it successfully in the past. So when I went to bat this time, I waited the extra 2 seconds and when I hit that ball, it went soaring into the outfield, over the fielder's head and I got my first home run in many years! WHAT A FABULOUS FEELING!!

Even when we're experienced players, or runners, or parents, or partners, sometimes listening to that extra bit of 'coaching' can make a world of difference in our game, time, children and relationships.

Who can you be coached by today?

Cool new tool!

Okay, so it's been a while since my last post... The summer can throw off anyone's routine and I'm no exception.

I stumbled upon this really cool little application for Facebook bloggers today! It automatically writes an update on the author's FB wall whenever they post a new note on their blog. How cool is that? Michelle, if you're reading this, you HAVE to check it out - www.networkedblogs.com. You can set it up to update FB automatically every post, or you choose when you create the post. There's a great tutorial to set it all up, linked from the NetworkedBlogs home page, on a blog of course!

So all my FB friends, when you read this post, click on the "Follow this blog" button in the box on your left and you'll get automatic updates whenever I post a note. In fact I think anyone on Facebook can use that button to follow this blog, not just my FB friends, and receive updates.

More frequent posts to come in the 'new year', a.k.a. September! I've got a great little book "Walking for weightloss" - looking forward to putting it to use and telling you all about it - plus my reason for 'walking' instead of 'running' - and no, I'm not pregnant!!

Enjoy the rest of your summer!

Changing priorities

I've played team sports my entire life - volleyball and soccer in grade school, volleyball and softball during high school and volleyball, soccer and softball post-college to present-day. In fact the only time I didn't play sports was during college, other than the odd intramural.

There are a few things I love about team sports:

• the games are scheduled - I have always been the type that schedules my life around my games - they are priority #1 (not all team players can say this and I've experienced the frustration of having more than one on many teams...)
• the competition is invigorating - although I don't like to lose, I'm usually happy just to get out and play and do my best
• doing my best is usually pretty good - I'm not an Olympian by any stretch, and there are always one or two teammates more skilled than me, but I'm usually one of the better players on the team.
• my self-confidence is strong - My friends would see a very different side of me if they played on a team with me. Honestly, I only truly feel like 'myself' when I'm participating in a sports team. That's not an easy thing to admit - motherhood has taken it's toll on my confidence in general (as it does for a lot of mothers!) and playing sports is my release from the doubts and guilt - when I'm on the field I know exactly what I should or shouldn't be doing. Even when I screw up, I'm able to shrug it off and try harder next time.
• of course, the EXERCISE! - almost as a side-affect, the cardio benefit from soccer has been, until recently, the only thing that has kept my weight in-check.

If you've been following my blog, you'll know I recently added swimming and running to the mix - they aren't team sports - and lately I've been finding it harder to make them a priority. I haven't gone swimming since my classes ended and I haven't gone running in weeks... I've *thought* about doing both almost daily though!

A couple weeks ago I finally found my way to the YMCA to meet with a personal trainer (as part of my Y-Champion commitment, I was allowed 2 sessions). I haven't worked out in a gym since before having children - 5+ years now! It was great to use free-weights again, not so great to be doing so in front of strangers and all those mirrors... Alison, my trainer and fellow Y-Champion who ran the 1/2 marathon in the Blue Nose, put me through my paces and developed a simple free-weight routine I can do in 1/2hr at home. "Perfect", I thought. "I'll just schedule it into my days, twice a week." Well that was over two weeks ago and I've done the workout once!

Holding myself accountable has never been my strength. I can create the perfect schedules for all kinds of things like housework, workouts, meal-planning, etc. but when it comes time to follow-through, I tend to fall off the wagon within days or weeks, sometimes even within hours of creating another one of my TimePoster masterpieces!

I guess that's my biggest attraction to team sports, it takes the accountability bit out of my hands. Funny how I will attend every single game - unless I'm deathly ill or out of town - but try to 'attend' a 1/2hr workout in my basement is nearly impossible! And there's even less to be concerned with - I don't need to arrange for child care!

I'm going to need some help with this - help to make my OWN schedule a priority. Do you have any tips, suggestions, clues that will help? How do you fit the 'unnecessary' necessaries into your daily life - like working out, housework, life-planning, etc...??

Who inspires me?

Two weeks ago I went to visit a good friend. She was housebound, in recovery from a major operation and it had been a while since we got together to chat. As is always the case for us, we talked about business - we're both WAHMs, creating websites for clients from our home studios. But what was different this time - we talked about working out, heart-rate monitors and healthy eating - mainly how does she get her boys to eat the healthy choices she includes in her regular meals?

Michelle at my son's birthday party - 2007

My friend, Michelle, has been a huge inspiration to me from the first time we got together with our babies, over five years ago. Back then, we would steal away once a week to Starbucks, indulge in their high-fat, high-sugar, over-priced treats and teas, and talk about life, websites, clients and mostly, MOTHERHOOD and how much it transformed our lives. We only laughed about what we SHOULD be eating, or SHOULD be doing for exercise, not exactly the picture of health. The thing I admired or was inspired most about Michelle was her keen business sense and her ability to focus on her work, even amidst the ciaos that surrounded her on a daily basis (having twin boys can do that!). I am proud to call her a truly "good" friend!

Michelle NOW!

Recently, my admiration for and inspiration from Michelle has come in a completely new package, literally! She has made a huge lifestyle change in the past 2 years. Michelle is a shadow of her former self and looks absolutely fabulous. I highly recommend reading about her journey on her blog: www.uncoveringme.com. Now, I'm not surprised by her transformation - Michelle is a very determined woman - and when she decided it was time to make some changes in her life, those changes happened! She has a lot of support from her trainers, family and friends of course, and she gives them all props in her blog, but ultimately, MICHELLE was the one that made the decision and did whatever it took. And for that, Michelle, YOU deserve credit and my full admiration!

Now I find myself turning to the inspiration of Michelle for my own fitness goals. If you've been following my blog, you'll know I am quite active. I play soccer year-round, softball in the summer and recently added swimming and running to my routine. I've always been active in team sports - it's my preferred form of exercise. But lately I've noticed a shift in my thinking, and a shift in my fitness needs. Maybe it's because I recently celebrated my 35th birthday? Or maybe its because I know this body is done having babies and now belongs solely to MOI again? Stay tuned for future insights into my fitness shift...

All things change, and friendships aren't immune. You can always tell good friends from acquaintances - the good ones are still there to chat, even if it's been months or years. I have to admit, I struggle with keeping in touch with my "good" friends, and I hope if you're reading this, you will forgive me and send me an email or call! :-)

SO Excited!!

Tonight was my last swimming class until the fall... I'm not excited about that, BUT I am excited about the progress I made! At the beginning of this 12 week session, our instructor timed us on 50m, 100m and 200m swims for our benchmark to see how we improved by the end. Tonight was our 'timing' night. If I had just posted my initial times, unless you're a swimmer, you likely have no idea if they were slow or fast. But wait until you see my before and after!! (This is almost better than a before and after photo display! Although I'm sure there is some change there too, I didn't think to take photos...)

Distance	10wks AGO	TODAY	IMPROVEMENT
50m	0:51	0:46	5sec!
100m	1:55	1:40	15sec!!
200m	4:17	3:43	34sec!!!

Ahhhh... basking in the glory of having the best improvement in the class. :-)

I set a goal for myself at the beginning that I wanted to be at least as fast as the 20-something, university student/swim instructor in the class by the time we finished. I always felt so slow next to her and tonight we were paired up during our timed laps. I couldn't wait to see if I would be able to keep up. The first set, 50m, we finished exactly the same! She improved on her time by 1sec, so that means I was 1sec faster than her original time! And I would have beat her if I could do the damn flip-turn at the wall too!

Then it was our turn to swim the 100m... I focused on trying to get a faster turn at the wall and it paid off - I BEAT her by 3 seconds!! And then I learned I had beat my previous time by a full 15 seconds!! I was over-the-moon.

Finally our 200m - I didn't win this match up, but I was only 2 or 3 seconds behind and I'm pretty sure I matched her original 200m time, which is all I was looking for anyway. Plus I swam 34 seconds faster than my original time - 34 SECONDS! That's more than half a minute in a sub-4 min distance!! MAJOR improvement!!

It's funny how when I SET A GOAL, a specific, measurable goal, I reach it. I can't think of one goal, one that I REALLY wanted, that meant something to me, that I've set and didn't reach. WOW! That's powerful stuff... Have you set any goals lately?

P.S. I've recently fixed the comment option so name/anonymous posts work now - leave a comment below with your goals!

Life gets in the way...

Happy belated Father's Day to all my 'dad' readers. Summer is upon us - although you wouldn't know based on the weather forecast for this week...

It's been almost three weeks since my last post... I wasn't kidnapped or struck with a case of carpel tunnel - sometimes life just gets in the way.

Honestly, I haven't had much to write about because I haven't been out running *GASP* - apart from one time... Last weekend I participated in the Lunenburg 5km "Muffin Run", along with over 500 other runners including my running partner Jill and her hubby Ryan pushing their bambino in the stroller. We weren't able to find a jogger to borrow, so my hubby watched our boys so I could run - what a sweety. This was the first time Jill and I ran together since the Bluenose! Hard to believe. Jill did awesome once again - improved on her Bluenose time by 4sec! I'm sure it would have been more if I hadn't been holding her back... I improved my Bluenose time by 1sec and thought I was going to vomit at the end. Sprinting the last 200m was a bit much for my training-deprived body I'm afraid!

The weather was so bizarre that day. When we were running at 9:30-10am it must have been around 30 degrees C, not a cloud in the sky, and I was wearing black yoga pants! That could have been a contributing factor to the feeling of nausea at the end. By 11am the wind shifted, clouds rolled in and it felt like the temp dropped at least 8 degrees! Why couldn't the race have been at that time!?

Another likely contributing factor to my ill fated ending was my lack of hydration before the race. You can most likely relate to my thought process as I was preparing for that Sunday morning... A friend had warned me the day before about the lineups at the 'loo' before this race last year and since we were leaving later than I had hoped (all my friends reading this are laughing right now - I'm compulsively late - go ahead, have your laugh) I knew there wouldn't be time to 'go' when we got there, so I decided not to have anything to drink that morning. Did I mention Lunenburg was a 1hr 10min drive from our home? Let me tell you, I learned a valuable lesson on the importance of proper hydration! By the end of the race my legs felt like dead-weights. I had been sweating so much from the heat and too much clothing I doubt there was an extra drop of fluid left to feed my muscles what they needed to finish the race.

I am going to make a pledge right now to always arrive at least 30min before start time for any future races so that I have time to go to the ladies room and be well hydrated!

P.S. If you attempted to leave a comment in the past, please check below - I tweaked the settings so now anyone can comment - not just registered users! I'd love to hear from you! Thanks.

I really dislike running solo - help!

My running partner, Jill, has been away for more than two weeks now and I hadn't been for a run since our triumphant experience together at the Blue Nose event - that is until last night...

OK, here's the scenario - I had hoped to go running on the weekend but it didn't happen. So last night (Tues.) was my only evening this week that was free. So I decided after my hubby returned from his run (his only chance too!) that I would go out. My plan was to run 3-4 laps around the neighbourhood because it would be dark by the time I got out. I had driven around with the car earlier and knew exactly how far I was going.

I decided last-minute to search out my MP3 player to bring along. I knew I had upbeat Madonna's "Confessions on a Dance Floor" tunes on it, just needed a battery and I was good to go. (we always have batteries around for the boys' toys!) I headed out at 9:43pm, MP3 player in hand, bud-phones in the ears... First tune was "Hung Up" with a decent beat so I thought, "Great start!". Finish my warm-up walk and about to begin running when the song changes to Enya. If you're not familiar - she has really mellow, almost classical sounding music.  "Crap! How do I change the song?" I had just finished tucking the player down my sleeve and fed the bud-phones up through my top so they wouldn't fall out of my ears. I have a hard time keeping bud phones in when I'm sitting still, never mind when I'm running!  So I yank everything out, while going up the killer hill in our neighbourhood I've complained about before, and figure out how to advance the song - only to discover it's on RANDOM PLAY!!  Randomly selecting between Enya, ABBA and Madonna was horrible...  Plus my bud phones kept falling out of my ears, my shorts (not running style) were riding up between my thighs and by the third lap up that dreaded hill, I felt like I was going to vomit, seriously. I've never had that feeling before...

All-in-all, the worst experience I've had.  Almost makes me want to give it up... Almost!

Tonight I'm working on my revised play list - my library is limited, and I'm going to show my age here, but I used to workout to the VengaBoys - "The Party Album!", in the late 90's - perfect workout CD because all the songs sound the same! lol.  I was surprised that not ONE of the Madonna songs worked for me - I usually love dancing to her tunes.  Maybe I'm just getting old...  Michelle, I need your help with this one!!

I've tasked my hubby with finding me 'running' headphones that don't rely on sticking in the ear for my belated birthday gift. He was going to get me a new heart-rate monitor (HRM), but discovered that the kind that would work while I was swimming is sketchy at best - so we're sticking with the one we have for now. It has enough features - Sports Instruments - has worked well since I got it in 1998 - apart from the chest strap losing it's elasticity - but it still fits.

The only thing left to improve on so this disaster doesn't happen again is proper running attire... Before, I have always worn my yoga pants with long spandex shorts under to keep my thighs from cramping (I learned this the hard way with soccer - never go to a game without them!) It's probably not as important with running because it's consistent motion - not start-stop like in soccer, but after last night, I now know why I will continue to wear them for running as well - they help prevent my shorts from riding up between my thighs.  If you're a woman runner, chances are you've had this experience too (some men too)!  Probably the most uncomfortable feeling while running, next to cramping.  I may have to resort to wearing pants all summer if the spandex doesn't save me!

Have you ever experienced any of these problems? If so, how did you overcome them, or did you give up because of them??  Eventually, I'll need to WANT to run solo, so please, any words of wisdom/encouragement are appreciated!!

Strangest experience...

Halifax Commons ball park where the tournament took place.

This past weekend was my softball league's ice-breaker fun tournament. We do this every year where all the players in the league show up and are randomly divided into teams - no more than 3 or 4 players from the same 'team' are together. It's great fun and this year was no exception. One of the best things about this day is of course the BEER!  Did I mention I play in a beer league? Sponsored by Labatt no less.  

You're probably wondering why I'm writing about a softball league on a runner's blog...?  Well I had the strangest experience at this ice-breaker, my first day of ball since I've started 'running'. After the first game I realized the closest bank machine was 2 blocks away. I didn't stop at one on the way to the tournament and I needed $$ for beer and lunch.  So, for probably the first time in my life, I thought "I could RUN to the bank machine!" - not because I was pressed for time, but because I WANTED to!!  So sure enough, I started off running across the ball field and down the sidewalk for 2 blocks...  After what was probably 3min of running, (felt like 15) I asked myself "Why am I running? This does not feel good at all!"  Soccer clets on pavement is not the ideal running gear, but then another strange thing happened - I kept running!  I didn't stop until I was short of breath (induced earlier than normal mostly due to the fact that I had already had one beer at this point...) and only steps from the store where the bank machine was.

It felt strangely rewarding to have done something that was so OUTSIDE my comfort zone! Another side effect of all this running, similar to my soccer game, I felt full of energy all day - jogging on and off the field between innings, even though we lost every game...

If you're reading this and have never been much of a runner - it's totally worth a try if you want more energy and enjoyment out of life!  Check with your doctor first of course - not that I did though, but I've been involved in sports my whole adult life without checking first...  Right there is another "Ah-Ha" - I've been involved in sports my whole adult life, but never felt so full of energy as I do now after running regularly!!  I encourage you to give it a try - what have you got to lose?

Just a quick hello - in VIDEO!

Check out my short video I filmed yesterday (Thursday) from the trail around Lake Banook. You'll notice I'm wearing my YMCA Strong Kids hat and my Blue Nose Marathon shirt from last year. I was wearing sandals and pushing my son in the stroller, hence the reason I *couldn't* run - even though I wanted to!

This was an impromptu take - the sound quality isn't great because of the wind over the mic and the cars in the background, so you may need to turn your volume up! One of the other Y-Champions had video on his blog and I thought it was too cool - wanted to try it out myself. Let me know what you think below!

What's next?

Two days since the Blue Nose Marathon event and I'm looking for the next event to participate in! My running partner is away for almost 3 weeks, but we have tentative plans to run in the local "Muffin Run" in Lunenburg, NS on June 14th. It's a 5km run around the historic National Park. Sounds intriguing. Plus our hubbys would be joining us, so hopefully we can find a jogging stroller that will hold our two boys (5yrs & 18mons) to borrow.  Anyone reading this in the HRM willing to offer, we would be very thankful!

Meanwhile, I'm going to try and get together for a run with my good friend Michelle (read about her running and weight-loss journey here). We've never ran together before, so I'm really looking forward to the new, shared experience!

As for my other activities - spring soccer has ended. We had our last game Sunday evening and we won 1-0!  One thing I've really noticed since this training is my increase in energy and speed when playing soccer. I love it!  My teammates jokingly say I should run 5k every game day!  I think summer season starts in a couple weeks.

Swimming is still going great. I can feel changes in my stroke that are bringing my form more streamlined and powerful. I really get a rush off the feeling of pulling my body through the water. I wonder, is there a "swimmer's high"?  With an average of 1800-2200m per night, two nights per week, I'm getting some serious cardio and strength benefits that I'm sure are spilling over to my running and soccer.  

Did I mention I play softball too?  That season starts with an ice-breaker fun tournament this Saturday!  I wonder if maybe I'm trying to do too much?  What do you think?

THANKS! And I did it!!

Thanks to all my supporters - I reached my $1,000 goal in support of the YMCA Strong Kids! Click on the link: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2103855 to see the fireworks!!

My race time this morning was 32:50 (gun) and 30:15 (chip - actual time) and I placed in the top 25% for my age/gender group (45/187)!! You can see more details on the SportsStats website - www.sportstats.ca - search for "Blue Nose Marathon 5km"  and "Rake" as the surname to see how I did!  Jill and I shaved a whole 6min off our training run from last weekend!  And I can't say enough how awesome Jill did - she pushed her 8-month-old DS for the FIRST time and it was all I could to do keep up!  She was like the Energizer Bunny.  Jill, YOU ROCK!  Thanks for being such an awesome running partner.

Thanks again for all your support! Can't wait to do it again next year!
Corinna

P.S. In case you were following along - I DID get up at 7am to go running with Jill Friday morning. We had a great final training run, finishing our 7+km route in 56min!

14% left to raise and 3 days to go!

The COUNT-DOWN is ON!! 

Less than 4 days until the big race!  Jill and I plan on taking a brisk walk tomorrow afternoon around the neighbourhood with the babies and then one last training run Friday morning - early! I'm feeling pretty good. Had my knee checked out tonight - Thanks Dr. Ellefsen!  He said it was sore from over-working it - so Saturday I'll be taking it easy to make sure I'm good for the race - no stairs or running for me!

Reflecting on this whole experience, I'm surprised at how my whole attitude about running AND fund-raising has changed... matured even. The two best things I've gained from this process are:

1. Steps towards overcoming my axiety of asking people to help support something I believe in. Thanks to all who have contributed, you have given the YMCA Strong Kids program a great boost and the kids will be the benefactors of all your support. If you haven't contributed yet, PLEASE help me reach my goal (only 14% to go!) and DONATE NOW. Remember, every $10 brings me 1% closer.

2. Enjoying, and actually looking forward to/finding ways to go running!  I never would have thought I would be willing to get up at 7:00am (believe me - this is a HUGE deal!) to go running like I will this Friday with Jill.  Of course my hubby is skeptical that I will get up, but in my mind, there is no question.  I guess Friday at 7am when my alarm goes off will be the true test!  

Do you think I'll pass the test and get up when my alarm sounds on Friday morning?  Leave a comment below!

You can help me reach my goal in support of the YMCA Strong Kids by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2103855

Thanks for your support!
Corinna

Race route - what a breeze!

Today Jill (she's back - yay!) and I went over to Halifax with the families - left the boys (daddies included) to fend for themselves at the Commons playground - and picked up the official Blue Nose Marathon 5km race route at Cogswell and Ahern. Jill has the baby jogging stroller now, so she wanted to practice with it, empty for the first run.  It was a perfect day - about 15 degrees, overcast and a cool breeze.

We started out at our usual pace. The first part was a long, gradual incline. We made it to Bloomfield and down to Gottingen in our first 10min interval - WOW! We couldn't believe it because we figured it was at least 1/3 of the route by that point. We walked 2min then jogged another 10min which brought to just before the hill where the 'finish line' will be next weekend. Again, we felt amazed at how little we had left to go! Past the finish line and around Citadel Hill, we were running along Ahern towards Cogswell with 3:30min left on our - could it be? - LAST 10min interval!  With a final burst of long strides at the end, we finished with 1min left in our interval, and a total time of 36:30!!  YAY US!  We're so PUMPED for next week's run now!

FYI - after we got home, I entered our training route around Lake Banook on MapMyRun.com and discovered that we have been training on a 7+km route - so double-YAY for us! It makes the 5km seem so short.  It also explains why our time today was so drastically short compared to our "happy if we finish in an hour" times from training.  :-)

You can help me reach my goal in support of the YMCA Strong Kids by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2103855

Thanks for your support!
Corinna

YMCA Strong Kids program - what's it all about anyway?

First, Thank You for the generous donations in support of the YMCA Strong Kids program as I continue this journey towards raising $1,000.  Currently my total raised is just over 53%, with only 7 days to go!  Every $10 donation brings me 1% closer to my goal. If you haven't already contributed, please consider what you can give and use the link below, or I can arrange to pick up cash or cheque (made out to The YMCA of Greater Halifax/Dartmouth) from you within the HRM.

Here are some interesting facts on how your donation is used:

A gift of $35 will help a 3 to 5-year old develop strong bones and muscles through a preschool program session while learning to share with others.

A gift of $100 will help youth 6-12 years of age learn skills at camp such as canoeing, swimming, camp craft, environmental studies, and at the same time developing social skills to work in a team environment.

A gift of $240 will assist two siblings in getting physically "active" 7 days a week through an annual health and wellness membership.

A gift of $500 will provide a child or young adult with an “experience that lasts a lifetime”—a week at Canada’s oldest residental camp, Big Cove YMCA Camp.

A gift of $1,000 will ensure that boys and girls can be safe and well cared for in a structured environment while their parents are working away from home.  

You can help me reach my goal in support of the YMCA Strong Kids by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2103855

Thanks for your support!
Corinna

Runner's High - does it exist?

Saturday morning I was supposed to go running with my friend Michelle on the boardwalk in Fisherman's cove. I was looking forward to sharing with her and the other ladies in the joys of training (really? well, not quite... Mostly I wanted company and Michelle has made some major life changes that include running regularly - I was looking forward to learning from her and sharing the experience - a thought that never would have crossed either our minds 2+ yrs ago!)  Well, the weather didn't cooperate, so the run was cancelled. It was probably for the best as I had stayed up ALL night Thurs. trying to get my taxes done and my parents & niece arrived for a 4-day visit Friday night. Needless to say I was worn out, exhausted, felt like I was coming down with something and just wanted NEEDED to sleep.

As Saturday wore on, a funny thing happened - I had the urge to run! So much, in fact, that I decided I would take advantage of my parent's presence to watch the kids and join my hubby and Ryan on their run Sunday morning - at least until I couldn't keep up - which I knew wouldn't be long!!

We headed out around 10:30am after a large breakfast (don't recommend) and as per their usual routine, Will and Ryan start running right away - straight up the steep hill on the way out of our neighbourhood... Jill and I always WALK to the top and start our running time on a more level place.  I noticed the gap increasing as I fell behind more and more towards the top - 3min into the run, at the top of the hill, I was DONE!  I waved them off "have a nice run" and started my first walk interval, very slowly, by myself again (Jill, I'm not liking the solo runs! Can't wait until you're back...)  Surprisingly, my heart rate wasn't over 150, but my chest was heavy and my legs felt like they weighed about a ton each. For the next 5min I seriously debated turning around and just doing the 1km loop in my neighbourhood.  

Somehow I convinced myself to keep going - I thought about the Strong Kids and how this all started - I thought about how badly I want to be able to run the entire 5km on race day, no walking - and a LOT about the fact that I had a soccer game later that evening, so why did I need to do this whole run? (I definitely need some tunes next time I go solo - too many thoughts in the brain...) By the time I reached the lake, I had run a total of 13 min, walked for 7min and had a whole, two-sided conversation with myself. 20min to the lake was the same as with Jill - which surprised me, but also encouraged me that I hadn't lost time to all the walking it felt like I was doing.

One thing I'm really focussing on is keeping my pace up when I'm walking, to keep the heart pumping. I managed to run for 5min - walk for 2min for the rest of the lake and up the first little hill. Surprisingly, even with less running, my overall time was showing improvement. I guess the speed walking was helping! So much so, that by the time I had speed-walked my way to the top of the dreaded hill by the mall, I was at least 5min ahead of past runs! As I rounded the last corner to begin my descent down the steep hill in my neighbourhood, the same hill that nearly finished me earlier, my time was 52min. I desperately wanted to finish in less than an hour this time. I kept my pace in the steep part, then towards the bottom, where it flattens out for a block before a more gradual downhill, something happened...   All of a sudden my stride became longer, my legs started to seemingly 'float', my arms pumped harder, and I felt like I could go on like that for another hour!!  Which brings me to the title question - is there really a "runner's high". Is that what it feels like?  If so, I think I might be hooked!!  

Oh, and my final time was 56min!!  WAHOO!!  :-)

You can help me reach my goal in support of the YMCA Strong Kids by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2103855

Thanks for your support!
Corinna

FUN-draising...

One of my biggest fears as a girl was asking people for money. I distinctly recall having severe anxiety while my mother drove me from house to house (we lived in the country) to sell Girl Guide Cookies. In high school my parents couldn't afford the full tuition for a volleyball skills camp I desperately wanted to go to, so the school generously provided enough funds so I could attend. The following year I was requested to participate in the athletic department raffle-ticket fundraising, but I was so fearful of asking people, especially family that I knew didn't have extra funds available, that I didn't sell one single ticket. Needless to say my coach was not impressed and I felt about 2 inches tall...

Our annual Canada Day street party, 2008. We like that all the houses look the same. :-)

Skip ahead 10 years (ok, 18 yrs...) to present day. Last night I began my door-to-door campaign on our street. We live on a wonderful street where everyone knows each other by name. So fortunately I did not have any anxiety about knocking on their doors. The one mistake I should have seen coming was bringing my very active 5-year-old with me.  Our neighbours are so gracious that when we were invited in while they prepared a donation, my son made himself quite at home, even to the point of moving items around on the fridge door!  Needless to say, he will not be joining me the next time...  I love him to bits of course, but some tasks are better done alone.

We only got around 1/2 the street, so if you're my neighbour reading this and you didn't see me last night, I'll be around again this evening - without my dear son.

Thanks to all those who donated last night: Keera, Cheri, Elizabeth, Markus, Adam, Kelli, Sean, Carla and Michelle!

You can help me reach my goal in support of the YMCA Strong Kids by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2103855

Thanks for your support!
Corinna

Could I actually be turning into a 'runner'??

When I began this journey 4 weeks ago, it was with the intention to go out, train, run the 5km on race day (May 17th) and be done with running for another year.   That's how it went last year (except for the training part LOL!), so why should this year be any different?

This isn't me - I would never wear a green suit like that! ha ha ha

Today I went running, BY MYSELF, for the first time in my life.  Well, apart from the Bluenose last year, but that was part of a team, it was a solo run, but I knew others were waiting for me to finish as I had waited and cheered for them. I've always been more of a team player - gotta have a common purpose, and I really, truly like to cheer and support others in their efforts.  That's my 'high', encouraging others.  Interesting, I've never looked at it like that before - I just had an "AHA" moment!! 
(I'll have to come back to that - it wasn't my planned topic for today...  Check back later this week for more on my AHA - after I've given it more thought!)

Yesterday (Saturday), Jill and I went for our regular run, but because of other commitments during the day, we left at 8am. Our usual 9am start has always been closer to 9:15 because I'm NOT a morning person!  So imagine me suggesting we start at 8am instead! Jill IS a morning person, so she had no problem with the earlier start.  So off we went, 8:05am, for our first timed interval run. I figured we could do the whole 5k in 5 sets of 10-1, for a total of 55min. That would shave a full 10-20min off our past times.  The first 10min was great, we didn't want to stop as it was still downhill, but we did. The next 10 we really had to push to make it, but we did, and it felt rewarding!  The 3rd 10 was the hardest, and we had a steep incline up from the lakeshore at the 3-5min mark. We decided if we made it to the intersection at the top, we would walk after. That put us at 5min.  We were amazed at how much faster we got around the lake and our total time was 1:02!  We were so pleased and felt fabulous!

It was a beautiful day on top of it all - sun was shining and warm!  We got together for a BBQ later in the day and decided we wanted to go out again today (Sunday) - Jill was leaving for 10 days so we wanted to get one more run in before she left.  The plan was to go at 9am so our hubbies could go out after we got back for their run.

Well, morning arrived and Ryan has been fighting a cold all week - woke up really sick and unable to care for the baby - so neither of them were able to get out for the planned runs. I was already dressed to go and debated for about 10min - did I really want to go by myself?

It was a weird feeling - the first 5min seemed so much harder! But once I got in the rhythm, it wasn't bad. I felt my pace was a bit faster than with Jill and so I told myself to slow down so I didn't burn-out too soon.  I decided to try 12min intervals to see if I could shave even more time off the total. That wasn't a good idea. The first 12 was fine, but I couldn't go 12 again after that! Plus my left hip-flexor was really starting to hurt.  So next time I'll stick with the 10-1.  

I forgot my camera again - this isn't 'the' hill, but that's about how steep it looks!

Another thing I really missed of course was the conversation - when Jill and I run, we're chatting the whole time. It really helps the run pass.  My total time was exactly 1hr and it sure felt like it!

One of the other things I did differently - decided to try speed walking up the big hill by the mall (we usually stroll along).  And boy, what a difference! My heart-rate was in the 160s, which is where I like it - optimal fat-burning - and where it usually sits when I'm running along flat.  That's something we'll have to do from now on Jill - until we're able to actually run up it that is!  :-)

OK, so I went running by myself, does that make me a 'runner'?  What do you think?

You can help me reach my goal in support of the YMCA Strong Kids by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2103855

Thanks for your support!
Corinna

follow-up to last week's post - MY OH MY!

I forgot to write about how I felt last week after doing all those activities... Amazingly, I felt great!  Today (Sunday) however, is a different story! I ran yesterday and today as noted in my post above - PLUS I played a full hour of soccer this evening!  My left knee is really sore going up the stairs tonight - I hope it feels better before I go swimming tomorrow night...  

Running and Soccer and Swimming - My Oh My!!  Will this old body hold out for 3 more weeks?

You can help me reach my goal in support of the YMCA Strong Kids by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link:http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2103855

Thanks for your support!
Corinna

Running and Soccer and Swimming... OH MY!

Those of you who know me know that I've kept myself active by being involved in team sports nearly my entire adult life. Well, in the last 36hrs I was involved in all three of my current activities...  

RUNNING

Lake Banook - next time I'm going to bring my camera for my own pic, but this is pretty much how it looked

Yesterday morning was a gorgeous spring day - the sun was shining, there was no wind and the air was crisp and fresh.  Jill and I started out on our run at around 9:30am. With pants, T-shirt and light jacket, I felt the coolness of the air just enough to tell my body "get moving legs so we'll warm up!" And warm up we did! It was our best time yet. I forgot to map out a new route with less hills, but it was probably for the best - we know this route, where the hills are and when we can push ourselves. So I timed us while we were running, but forgot to time the walk part - I'll get it right soon enough! (I don't know the total time with walking because I forgot to stop my watch, but it was somewhere between 1:05:00 and 1:15:00) But, I do know we ran a total of 0:26:36  and the last big push was up the hill from the lake to the intersection by the mall. We both felt the burn and our heart-rates were in the 105% range - so it was good. Next week I'll get it right and plan for a 10min run, 1min walk - I think we're ready, right Jill?

SOCCER

Turf fields at Dalhousie U where we play spring soccer

Ahhhh.... spring soccer has begun. As mentioned above, it was a perfect spring day - so UNLIKE the weather we usually have for spring soccer - I'll take it!!  It was definitely cooler by the 6pm start, but a long-sleeve shirt under my jersey was all I needed by the end.  We won this game, 1-0 which is a fantastic way to start the season. I was exhausted by the end, but loved the feeling of being on the turf, playing with the team again. Boy are my abs hurting today though!  I do a lot of the throw-ins from the side and you probably wouldn't think abs are involved, but TRUST ME - they are the hardest working muscle group. My abs always remind me they're still there after our first outdoor game. Already looking forward to next week's game. Go BANSHEES! :-)

SWIMMING

The pool at the Dartmouth Sportsplex where I go swimming twice a week.

Tonight's workout was extra hard on the aforementioned abs - I'll pay for this tomorrow! But I love it. A good friend of mine writes about her training experiences and how she is realizing that she loves to push herself - I couldn't agree more. I have always loved the feeling of muscle pain after I've pushed myself. (a bit sadistic, I know) Even better is when, like in soccer, I do it without even realizing it.  (Although to be honest, I do try to get the ball further into the field with every throw - my teammates can attest to that!) At swimming tonight we practised our streamline - aka lots of dolphin kicking under the water. Before taking these lessons, dolphin kicking to me was from the knees down... As I've learned, it's much more about the ... you guessed it... ABS!  I wonder if I'll be able to get out of bed tomorrow...

Check back to see how I'm feeling later this week! Until then, be sure to sponsor me if you haven't already!  THANKS!

You can help me reach my goal in support of the YMCA Strong Kids by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2103855

Thanks for your support!
Corinna

Hoppy Easter!

Please leave a comment below so I know you've stopped by.  :-)

Hope you had a wonderful weekend with your families. We enjoyed a delicious turkey dinner with our neighbours (and running-mates) Jill and Ryan.  My husband Will runs with Ryan as they train for the 1/2 marathon in the Bluenose and Jill started training with me for the 5km. Both our micro-families relocated to NS from Ontario and therefore we share the unfortunate circumstance of having all our extended-family far, far away. So we decided to create our own 'family' meal and it was a huge success, even with my 5-yr-old acting out!  :-)

This morning Jill and I went for our second training run/jog/walk. It was a miserable, drizzly, cold morning and once we reached the end of Lake Banook, the strong, cold wind nearly knocked us over!  Wasn't pleasant, but we kept moving and the wind settled down a bit along the side of the lake.  Our total time wasn't any better than last week, but we did go further with our first jog, so I think we're making progress. 

I'm going to research a slightly different route for next week's run that has less steep hills. They're too hard on the knees.  Also, I'm going to come up with an interval that we can try, something like 5min jog/1min walk/5min jog/1min walk, etc. so we're more aware of how long we walk. Right now we've just been jogging/walking to whatever feels right - I think we can take it up a notch now, right Jill?  We've only got 4 more weekends before the big day!!

Spring soccer starts next weekend - I sure hope the weather cooperates! Wish us luck! Swimming was more technical this past week, which is good, I can always improve, but it doesn't get my heart-rate up as much as the pure training did. Looking forward to getting more training introduced back into it. Maybe I'll stay a bit later and do more on my own after the class...

You can help me reach my goal (now at 20%! Thanks to all who have donated so far) in support of the YMCA Strong Kids by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2103855

Thanks for your support!
Corinna

The day after...

Yesterday was the 'big day' - my first run/jog/walk towards the 5km goal. Joined by my neighbour and friend Jill, we started out with a nice brisk walk up the hill. It appears that we are a good match. She's a fairly new mom and I'm still working off my second baby-belly-bulge - and neither of us had gone running/jogging outside yet this year.  Not anymore! :-)

I felt great for the first 10min jog, then we walked/jogged the rest of the way. Each time we jogged got a little harder and a little shorter.  The whole thing took us about an hour - a time I'm sure we can greatly improve on - and we will. The nice thing about running with someone is the conversation makes the time fly by, so it certainly didn't feel like an hour. 

Today - my right hip flexor hurt, my left knee was tender going down stairs and my thighs burned a bit. The joint pain reminds me that I'm getting old and I could do without, the muscle pain tells me I'm building them, so I can live with that.  My feet hurt a bit towards the end of the run, so I'm going to have my chiro check the orthotics and shoes to make sure they're going to hold out. My running shoes are at least 9 years old - I just looked above my head and saw their box - with my wedding photos in it - so they are pre-2000!!  Maybe time for a new pair?  They still look like new though - I've never been much of a runner!  But two pregnancies later - do you think my feet might have changed?

Swimming tonight was great, as usual. It's the beginning of a new session and lots of new faces! It's great to see so many people signed up. The only down-side - it looks like I'm one of the slowest in the group, and I just completed 12 weeks of this program...  Or, I just know how to pace myself better (*you keep telling yourself that Corinna*) But it's a challenge I'm looking forward to. Look out Jill and the rest of the newcomers!

You can help me reach my goal in support of the YMCA Strong Kids by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2103855

For more information on how YOU can participate in the Scotiabank Blue Nose Marathon, please visit us at www.bluenosemarathon.com

Thanks for your support!
Corinna

The big day - training officially begins!

So tomorrow morning is the big day!  My first walk/jog of the season. So far Jill has agreed to join me. I meant to call more people but the day got away from me. Hopefully my neighbours (you know who you are!) have read the email I sent earlier this week and are able to come out. 

The route is going to be the same one we used last year - for Jill this will be new. We'll meet on our street then head to Lake Banook via Crichton Ave. Then we'll go around the lake via the trail - there were SO many people on that trail today when I was out and about - and come back home past the mall. According to www.mapmyrun.com this is about 5km.  We'll have a big hill to go up, then down, then back up and back down on the way home, but otherwise it is relatively flat.

Oh, I hope my endurance built up from swimming will translate to running! Wish me luck and an injury-free beginning...

You can help support me by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2103855

For more information on how YOU can participate in the Scotiabank Blue Nose Marathon, please visit us at www.bluenosemarathon.com

Thanks for your support!
Corinna

Swimming and soccer - hope they help with training!

Last night I had my last swimming class before the next session starts. I really get an adrenaline rush from the sprints - trying to beat my best times. On Monday I had my best 50m time at 56 seconds. Now if only I can translate that speed to my legs for this run... wait a minute, at that rate, it would take me 93 minutes to finish 5km - oh boy do I have my work cut out for me! Did I mention I hardly kick when I swim, so my legs are in for a rude awakening when I start training on Sunday. 

Spring soccer season is starting in a couple weeks. We've been off since early Feb., waiting for the season to start - and dreading it at the same time - Mother Nature tends to discourage us as we try to kick a ball around in the rain, temperature hovering just above zero and usually a brisk breeze...  Ahhhhh spring soccer, nothing like it! (picture of me with my baby boy Feb'08 at our last indoor game of the winter season - yep, I was playing soccer again just 6 weeks after he was born!)

You can help support me by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link below: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2103855

For more information on how YOU can participate in the Scotiabank Blue Nose Marathon, please visit us at www.bluenosemarathon.com

Thanks for your support!
Corinna

Welcome and please DONATE

As many of you know, I ran 1/10th of a marathon (that's 4.2km) in last year's Bluenose as part of the YMCA Strong Kids Relay on the SRC Tortoises team - made up of 10 women from my street. We had a blast, even when it started to rain. Although I wish I had trained a little harder - those 4.2km felt more like 10km to my weary, untrained legs.  I thought since I played soccer year-round, I would have no problem with that short distance. I learned my lesson!  So this year I'll be training with my neighbours once again, only I'll ACTUALLY train, not just pay lip-service to the idea.  

This past weekend I had hoped to get started and it was glorious weather, but didn't get myself organized.  Although I did manage to get in a stroll at Shubie park with my hubby and boys (5yrs and 16mons). So now I'm writing in here that I WILL get out for at least a first 5km walk this coming weekend.  Who's going to join me?  9AM on Sunday if the weather cooperates. The snow should all be melted away by then, right?

You can help support me by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2103855

For more information on how YOU can participate in the Scotiabank Blue Nose Marathon, please visit us at www.bluenosemarathon.com

Thanks for your support!