Back in the Saddle!

A couple things to preamble this post:

1. There are few things like musical inspiration: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIPS4LyveJs . Click the link if you're looking for a little Aerosmith inspiration to kick some butt exercising.

2. I finally made good on my debt to Chris for the 20 burpees. I did all 20 this morning, with 20 pushups as interest owed. I don't like exercising first thing in the morning, but it felt good.


So, we finally got back out there this afternoon; it felt great! Nice temperature and humidity. We did four miles in about 38 minutes. I was reminded today that our upcoming half marathons aren't going to just happen; I'm not a kid anymore (and haven't been for some time). When I was a kid, I was a fast sprinter. I was the second fastest kid in high school. Don't get me wrong: I was no Ussain Bolt, but I also was't Danny in Grease.

If Cady and I are going to make a respectable showing at these races, I'm going to need to do some hill and sprint training. I need to work on maxing out my heartrate and then running through the recovery for the next minute or so. That's the kind of endurance I need to build up to again. I did a half marathon last fall; so I know my body can do it. I just need to get a few long runs in ahead of time.

It's looking like the Ocean's Run Half Marathon (9/23) and the Amica/UnitedHealth Half Marathon (10/14) are the two we'll be doing. Both race directors have been extremely accomodating and easy to communicate with. We'll probably be running with Dave Cartwright and John Sisson, but again, we'd love company if you're interested. The CVS 5k is on 9/16 - Kelly and I will be running that together; it will be her first official race. I might let her beat me!

For today, Cady did great - no choking, no coughing, no gagging, and best of all - no spitting up. We listened to 80s music for a little while and then I switched it to a Wiggles Pandora station for her; she really liked that. A Billy Ocean song was a blast from the past - I think I was in high school when his music was popular. Once again, I told Cady to meet me at the door if she wanted to go for a run. By the time I had quickly gotten changed, whe was already hanging out the back door ready to go! I just don't think it's a coincedence -  I really believe she understands what I'm saying and that she wants to go out together.

One last thing for tonight: most of you probably didn't know this, but Cady has NEVER had a hair cut. At first, Kelly wanted it to grow long enough so that she could put it in a ponytail. And then we just never got it cut. We always just pull it back and put it in a ponytail. The problem has been that her hair, at this point down to her waist, becomes so difficult to brush, and she hates having her hair brushed. We each have our methods for brushing her hair - Kelly just muscles through it, I hold her horizontally and just brush it down towards the floor, and Deb puts her in her chair and bribes her with cartoons! So today, Kelly's friend and hairdresser came to the house to cut Cady's hair - she looks so good, and so much older - she's such a pretty little girl.

I should be posting a little more regularly; the Ocean's run is only a month away. As always, thanks for reading.