Thankful Thursday

Basically every week at about 3 PM on Wednesday I either have my Thankful Thursday idea burning to get out of my fingers and onto the computer or I am thinking, "Well sh!t. What is a good Thankful Thursday topic?"

Unfortunately for you dear bloggies, this was one of those Wednesdays. That's not to say that I am ungrateful for all of the wonderful things in my life, but I like Thankful Thursday to be more than the obvious (health, family, friends, Lloyd being potty trained, etc.). I like them to make you laugh, smile, and think. (Remember the time I made you all think about bikini waxes? Ahhh. That was fun wasn't it?)

I dug deep today for what I am thankful for. What cannot I not live without? What is my passion? And then, like a shooting star right in my a$$, it was there. It was so simple and staring me in the face that I felt a little silly for not posting it before. I do this 5 days a week. No, not that. (PERV ALERT!) I started a blog about it. I obsess about it. You see where I am going here don't you? (If not you might need to hop on the short bus to your next marathon starting line.)

It keeps me in shape. It keeps me thin. It keeps me heart healthy. It's lead me to new friends. It's lead me to this wonderful blog-o-sphere. It's given me a sense of pride. It's helped me find a strength of conviction I didn't know I had. It's made me a competitor. It's shown me what real dedication is. It's shown me true athletes come in all shapes, sizes, and abilities. It has changed my life. It's made me a leader. It helped me understand what a true passion for something is. It showed me that I can do anything I set my mind (and a little training) to. It's helped me listen to others as well as my own body. It's humbled me. It's strengthened me. It's made me laugh. It's made me cry. It keeps my ego in check. It grounds me. It pushes me. It's brings me bling. It keeps me happy. It keeps me sane.

Today, I am thankful for running.

What are you thankful for today?

Rest

Good morning! Happy HUMPY Day. Heh. (Perv alert!)

Just a quick point of clarification for you all, my dear bloggy friends. When I posted The Plan yesterday a lot of you were concerned about my rest days. Fear not, two of the days that I have as recovery runs or cross training days are also optional rest days. And you can bet your sweet heiny that I'll be cashing some of those in.

It's very awesome that you all picked up on that and wanted to make sure little ole B.o.B. here made it healthily to the start line.

That my friends is why I love you all.

Go forth and prosper! Happy HUMPY DAY! (Perv alert! Again!)

Hills on mills

Last night I ran a great 5 miler on the ole 'mill. Since I had to work late on Sunday night I didn't get up early enough to take on those dang Gangster hills. I did however attempt hills on the treadmill.

Ah, the hilarity.

I basically got up to speed on the moving belt and then hit the incline button. Let me say this, running hills on a treadmill can be dangerous. On an actual hill it's much easier to just slow down. If you slow down on a treadmill you are more than likely going to bust your butt. I did not fall but there was a few moments where I thought I might. Luckily, the gym was empty. (Fatties in my complex were all at home.)

Hopefully this will be the last week that I have to do hills on the 'mill. I plan on heading out to the actual hills in the mornings from now on. It's going to be tough, but I've figured out how to get my workouts in on the days that I can't make them in the evening. Here's a quick rundown:

Mon. - AM Hills
Tues. - PM Recovery Run
Wed. - AM Tempo/Speedwork
Thurs. - AM Medium Long Run
Fri. - AM Recovery Run or Crosstrain (Optional)
Sat. - AM Long Run
Sun. - PM Recovery Run or Crosstrain

I trust that you all will help keep me honest and on it. I've got my game face on now people.

BTW, my new favorite "power" song is Bamboo Banga by M.I.A. Check it out here. It's a very different song but the tempo is good and so is the line "Road runner, road runner, going 100 miles per hour...."

Happy Tuesday folks. Git er done!

Weekend Report or Don't Hit on Strippers

Whoa what a busy weekend I had! On Friday night a few friends and I had a little baking party. I made some cookies for the Gator game on Saturday.

Yeah, we all know how that game went. Not. Happy.

Although, I did have a great time watching the game with friends and pretty much ate myself into a food coma. Prior to the game on Saturday I did a 4 mile tempo run and worked from 10AM to 2PM. Again, super busy weekend.

On Sunday, I woke up bright and early for the Brandon Half and 5K. It was a very fun event to be a part of, even if I didn't get assigned to a water station. Could that have been due to my utter fail at the Shamrock 5K last year? Possible. (In case you don't remember, no one wanted my water! Heh heh.)

I got a pleasant surprise from John Steelbuns who showed up with delish Starbucks coffee for me.

Here is a shot of a few of the BRA members post race. I'll give you line up of the cast of characters I usually mention in this blog.

From the left: Me, John Steelbuns, Speedy Jess, The Original Scott R., P-Funk, Mini-V, and I assume you all recognize Captain Nuts. (He pretty much always looks pissed like that. I kid, Mr. Nuts.)

After the race I did a little napping, a little Target shopping, and then I headed to the second job to work VIP for The Derek Trucks Band show. I'd like to make a special note on this to my male readers. If you go to a bar and the women who work there are nice to you, more than likely it's because they are paid to do so. Seriously. It's like hitting on a stripper. I don't know what was going on at this show in particular but the guys were out of control. It was an older hippy-ish crowd so maybe they were just really feeling the love. That or I just looked super hot. LOL!

Have a great Monday all. I have big running goals to meet for the week as I increase my mileage and work on that elusive marathon of my dreams.