It's official... I've clearly lost my mind.

First off, my apologies. I have been a shitty blogger for the past month. October was nuts... work deadlines, the Bourbon Chase, a spontaneous Chicago trip and a trip to Tuscaloosa in which I don't think I'd ever tailgated in such windy, freezing temperatures. Pictures for proof:

I am standing inside our shanty. Basically, we rolled into Tuscaloosa around 11am and the sun was shining. We put up our tent... got everything out of the car and ready and as soon as we sat down the sun went away and in it's place was a 35 mph north wind. We spent the next 4 hours adding anything and everything that we could find in my car to try and block the wind. Which is why our tent looks like a circus of rednecks got hit by a tornado. We fashioned "walls" with plastic ponchos and fastened them together with safety pins, badminton net stakes, and duct tape (all of which I had lying around in my car).

You're thinking... wow, Amy's put on some weight. And while I did put on like 5 pounds in October (don't worry, I've already lost it! hooray!), I look like the Michelin man because I seriously had on 16 layers of clothing. Two long sleeves shirts (one being an underarmour shirt), one short sleeve Carolina shirt (that no one ever saw), a fleece jacket and an offensively yellow rain coat. I couldn't move. But, I wasn't the only one in our crew who was bundled up.
Notice the use of duct tape to hold the "walls" together. Have you ever had to get into your car in the middle of a tailgate to warm up, so that you could drink a beer? I swear, I would have never made it at a Big 10 school.

This is obviously before the eventual loss to Alabama that we would endure in about 6 hours, here we were still optimistic dumbasses who thought we might actually beat the #2 team in the country:
So, anyway... October was busy. And it wasn't busy with running. I only managed to run 153 miles in October. My lightest month the ENTIRE YEAR. But guess what? I'm back now, bitches. Operation Hardcore Amy is in full effect. Here is what you can be expecting from me in the coming months...

November 22-- Harpeth Hills Flying Monkey Marathon (WhatwasIthinking???OMG)

December 12-- Rocket City Marathon in Huntsville, AL

January 17-- Swampstomper 50k (OMGThereisnowayImgoingtosurvivethis)

And... by Jan 28th (the kickoff of my 30th birthday extravaganza in New Orleans) I will be 30 pounds lighter than I am right now.

DAMN. Just putting all that in writing is intimidating.

Up until this weekend, I was confident about all this. Last Monday marked my return to hardcore Amy and I was feeling good, I logged over 50 miles for the week, I got in some strength training that I hadn't done in months. And then I ran 16 miles out at Percy Warner Park this weekend... I walked a 4.5 mile trail on Sunday... And then I got into work this morning and I read the mile by mile description of the Monkey Marathon and now I'm completely FREAKING OUT.

Like, WTF was I thinking? Who do I think I am? First of all... Hills kick my ass. Which means the Monkey... is going to hurt. Badly. I may roll up to Thanksgiving dinner in a wheelchair, for heaven's sake. And then... a few weeks later... I'm running ANOTHER marathon (which, I originally wanted to PR in. Now, I'm not sure I'm ready for that attempt).

And then... my craziest idea yet... running a 50k in January. And not just a 50k, but a TRAIL 50k. I mean... yeah, that sounds reasonable... a trail half marathon back in May left me a bleeding, crying, exhausted, hot mess... I'm sure 31 miles on a trail will be easy.

For once in my running life... I'm actually intimidated. Usually, I'm too dumb naive to be intimidated, but, this time... I'm freaking out. And my only hope is the fact that I'm freaking out, will just cause me to train harder and be as prepared as possible. My plan is map out my runs and strength training at the beginning of each week. Having a set plan seems to make me work a little harder, than just running for the sake of running. Aside from running and strenth training (particularly core work), I'm also going to spend as much time on the trails as possible. Whether it's running or hiking. I feel like the more time my feet, eyes, and brain have on the trails, the better I'll be in January.

So, keep me on task people... I'm going to need your help, support, and good mojo for the upcoming months. It's not going to be easy... but I have a feeling it will be worth it.

Back on track...

So, I realize it's been a little quiet lately from the Nashville side, lately. That's what happens when a friend comes into town for a week, you get drunk every day of said week, yet still have to drag your hungover ass to work every morning because there is a huge deadline looming (I may or may not have thrown up at work and spent a good two hours bit of time with my head on my desk one of those mornings). And then last week, I spent my time wrapping up for the deadline and catching up on other things at work, as well as detoxing (most importantly). I've been running though! It's just not really been anything noteworthy.

I'm still trying to get myself back into hardcore mode. It's not been as easy as I thought it would be... but, I am on my way. This week should be a week of high mileage. Aside from my regular morning runs... I'm doing a 2-a-day (today and possibly wednesday, too), running a 15k race on Saturday and then a 21 mile training run on Sunday (my favorite training run!). It should be a good week and I'm pumped. I've missed having running-centered weekends.

Aside from my running... I'm also back to counting calories. Vandy-Montana and I's Weight Loss Challenge #2 ends in a couple of weeks, and I've got some catching up to do. But I'm not worried. I know I'll be ready for the weigh-in.

Also, a quick shout out to my best friend, Steph, who ran her first 5k this weekend! Congrats! So, when's your first marathon? :)

Book Review: Born to Run

Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Super Athletes, and The Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen. By Christopher McDougall

The whole review should just be: GO OUT AND BUY THIS BOOK, OR CHECK IT OUT AT THE LIBRARY, NOW. But, I feel like some of you might need some persuading, because honestly... the book title and image didn't really do it for me initially, either.

A couple of months ago, Vandy-Montana told me he was reading a book about running and that it was really good. I was intrigued... until I started to get e-mails and phone calls from him wherein he discussed such things as...

--Some kind of funky ass tribe down in Mexico
--Barefoot Running
--Vegetarianism/Veganism and how it can pertain to running.

Do what? Are you freaking kidding me? What a snooze and hippie-fest, I thought. When he told me that I had to read it myself and that he would let me borrow it when I got to Montana, I was less than thrilled.

He handed me the book and I went in with LOW expectations. I expected to be totally bored (a tribe in Mexico?? Not my thing to read about) and totally skeptical (barefoot running? come on). But, from the minute I started the book, I was hooked. It reads like a novel and is one of the most fascinating books I've ever read.

First of all, this might be a little incoherent as a book review, but it's only because the book is so good that it's hard to really condense it down into something easily understandable (and I'm just so damn excited about it, that I have a hard time getting my thoughts lined up). Now, this review should be taken with a wee bit of salt (or, if you're like me and apparently have high blood pressure now, take some Ms. Dash with the review), because at the time of reading it...

• I was embarking on my biggest running feat yet, the back to back marathons (in case I haven't bragged about that enough yet)
• I was also noticing that my feet (which are usually the only thing that give me any trouble these days) were feeling mighty awesome lately despite high mileage weeks and over 800 miles on my shoes
• I have been constantly running into really fast runners who were vegetarians, vegans, or raw foodies... so much so, that I had started cutting back a little on meat and incorporating a few raw meals into my diet a week, just to see if I could tell any difference in my running (easy to do in the summer with all the summer veggies available).
  

I don't really want to reveal a whole lot about the book, because I want you to read it and go into with a clean slate... but I'd like to talk a little bit about my favorite things about the book...

• I loved the sections about ultrarunning and the Leadville 100. I had no prior knowledge of that race or of it's participants like the amazing Ann Trason. I was fascinated reading through those sections of the book and it made me dream of ONE day, maybe doing something LIKE the Leadville 100.
  
• Speaking of ultras and trail running and amazing people... all the characters in the book (do you call real people like, Scott Jurek, a character when they're in a book?) are so interesting and so talented and so inspiring. Although, I must admit... I feel a little more akin to Jenn Shelton (an amazing ultrarunner) who seems to exist on this lifestyle of partying hard and running hard. She can drink all night and pop up the next day ready to tackle miles and miles of trails. I heart Jenn Shelton and I want to be just like her when I grow up. (Well, I won't be as fast as her, plus, I'm not really the fighting drunk type).
  
• "If it feels like work, you're working too hard." So. Freaking. True. One of the main themes in the book is that running should be enjoyed. If you're running just to burn off calories or just to PR in a race, then you're not really tapping into what running really can be. If you're running because it makes you happy, and you find yourself grinning from ear to ear randomly after running 15 miles (this happens to me around mile 15 of just about every marathon), if you're truly enjoying yourself, then that's when running is magical. I mean, you have to admit... we're all guilty of going out for a run on a rest day, because we feel fat. And think about it... are those runs EVER enjoyable? No. (My runs like that ALWAYS suck total ass).
• Shoes. I don't really want to get into a whole big thing here about shoes... but, as a runner wearing a pair of shoes that are getting ready to break the 1000 mile mark, I am a true believer in the idea that for most of us... shoes should be basic and neutral. I was guilty of spending $125 bucks on a new pair of shoes every 400 miles... super cushioned ones, too. But, through my last training period, I seriously had the least amount of aches and pains that I had ever had. Why wouldn't shoe companies want you to change shoes more often than you should? They definitely make more money that way. And the runners back in the 70s and 80s had very little shoe options, and way less injuries (sure, more people are running now...). There are arguments for both sides, but just read the book and make up your own mind. I'm not saying I'm going to go all barefoot all the time or anything. But, I am going to do some experimenting with barefoot running and I'm going to stick with my old pairs of shoes, and then when they're too hole-y, I'll move onto some cheap, neutral shoes.
  
• Animal vs. Man. Why humans really are born to run... and born to run long distances... Soooo fascinating. Really, I know it sounds totally boring. But, it's not.
• Diet. This book talks some about diet and running. From the Tarahumara tribe and their brewed alcoholic beverages and corn-based diets, to the vegetarians and vegans who eat a big salad for breakfast. But it's never done in a preachy way. It's more just weaved into the story (for the most part. Now, the author/narrator does touch a little on his own diet changes, but still... not in a preachy, holier-than-thou way).
  

This book really has helped to change my perspective on running. It's made me realize that the end of the run or race isn't the goal. Running isn't just about burning calories and winning races. The ends are not better than the means. Running itself is what makes me happy. Particularly when I'm not stressing myself out to run faster or harder.

Now I find myself boring people talking about vegetarianism and performance, barefoot running, and a crazy- awesome- fast running tribe in Mexico. And you will be too, after you read this book. (Btw, this book would make an excellent movie. Reads just like one).

Hello, Allow me to introduce myself.

After what seems like a lifetime of debauchery, booze, late nights, early mornings, cheeseburgers, french fries, milkshakes, hangovers, marathons, and traveling... my life is settling back into normal, boring-Amy mode.

Halle--freaking--lujah.

As much I as LOVE partying and vacationing... a girl needs a break. Particularly a girl who is trying to get into the the shape of her life by the time she is 30 and only has about 23 weeks to do so. (SHIT! That sounds like far too little time!).

So, the Montana vacation, the one week limbo period between it and The 7th Annual Drink-fest is officially over. (In case you're wondering... Drink-fest (as it was fittingly first named back in 2002, is a yearly event where some friends from college and I get together to drink, visit, play badminton, beer pong, and poker. Sadly, over the years... it's turning more and more into a pansy-fest as some of us can't hold our booze like we used to (and by 'some of us' I mean... everyone except me, of course)). I subsisted this entire weekend on sugar and beer. Seriously. I treated it as a kind of last hurrah. And boy... did I go out with a bang. I am mortified of what my sugar count is going to be tomorrow at the doctor's office when I show up for my yearly exam (with a new resident, ugh). You think he'll believe me when I say... I promise, Doc, normally my liver is fine and normally I don't eat meals that consist entirely of sugar? I've just been in vacation mode for the past 3 weeks! Doubtful.

Anyway... so now it's time to get serious. The double marathon experience, coupled with the reading of a book that I will review later in the week has changed my focus on my running and my body. Basically... if you thought I was obsessed with running before... well, you ain't seen nothing yet. I've got a new outlook on running. And it's not so much about my speed (although, frankly, it's never been too much about speed for me... y'all know how much I struggle with speed workouts, etc), it's more about my mileage and my endurance, and I also want to start training on trails more.

Ultimately, I want to become an ultrarunner. I want to run hard trails and long distances. So, it's time to start thinking about food as fuel for my body and it's time to start running longer, running more trails, incorporating more hills, and toning my body into a lean, mean, running MACHINE. This has kind of been my goal all along, but this time around, I feel more focused. I'm hoping to find an ultra race sometime in the early spring to tackle (as I'm already attached to too many races this fall to fit one in). As cheesy as it might sound... I feel like right now is my time. Now is the time to push my body, and see how far it can take me. I have the time, the desire, and the focus. And I'm bringing it, baby.

Coming up:

Stump Jump 11 mile race- Oct 3 (They have a 50k that I would LOVE to do, but I feel like that's a bad idea because the very next weekend I'm running...)
Bourbon Chase 200 mile Relay- Oct 9-10.
Harpeth Hills Flying Monkey Marathon- November 22. (Done deal, already signed up).
Rocket City Marathon- Dec 12 (about 99% sure about this race. This will likely be a PR attempt)

Other possible races...
Oct 24th: Half-Marathon in Cookeville, TN
Nov 7th: 20k Race in State Park.
Nov 14th: Half Marathon in Nashville.
Dec 5th: St. Jude Memphis Half Marathon.

Good-bye regular ole recreational runner Amy... Hello, Hardcore Training Amy.

This is going to be fun. :)

See ya.

Well, y'all... only 48 hours and I'm outta here for 10 days!!! It's the first real vacation I've had in over a year and I am so freaking ready. Saturday afternoon (after running a 5k in the morning and picking up my prize for 3rd in the Grand Prix in my Age Division for the last year, Holla!) I'll be boarding a plane that will take me to Montana. Home of Grizzly Bears, Cheap beers (take note other states...this is how you lure me), and Vandy-Montana (don't even bother clicking that, he hasn't updated in like 6 weeks or some shit. Slacker).

All this hardwork... all the miles, all the early mornings, all the lean protein and the strict no sugar and no alcohol diet is going completely out the window as soon as I step foot in Montana. (Okay, okay, you're right. The chances of me hitting up an airport bar during my layover in Detroit are VERY GOOD).

Aside from the Marathon on August 1, I anticipate lots of hiking, lots of running, and an assload of drinking. None of these activities bode particularly well for my marathon finish time. But, honestly... I'm just hoping to avoid getting eaten by a bear, bitten by a rattlesnake or dying from alcohol poisoning while I'm out there.

Speaking of my strict diet... here's what I've accomplished since the middle of May, when I started this whole... "Get Fit for my 30th Birthday" thing:

I've only lost 7 pounds. But, I've lost 2.5 inches in my waist and about 2 inches in my hips. Which, I can totally tell in my clothes (I mean, when you can tell in your clothes, who really cares if you can't tell on the scale, right???)!!! The pictures don't really reveal much, unfortunately:

Before:

Today:

I can tell though (who cares if y'all can't). And that makes me happy. I feel like I've adopted some good habits that I can continue (well... once I get back from vacation, that is). I do worry a little about all the calories I will be consuming whilst inhaling beer, nachos, fair food, beer, pancakes, cheeseburgers, etc... these next 10 days. Oh well. Hopefully, the hiking and running and puking after all the drinking will offset it.

I'm sure I'll be tweeting (cause I always am when I'm drinking a lot), so you can keep track of my shenanigans that way. And MAYBE I'll figure out how to post from my phone (although, I seriously doubt it).

Later.

Taper Time

Officially... I'm tapering.

Unofficially... it just feels like I'm being kinda lazy. Normally when I'm tapering, I'm all batshit crazy and stuff, but this time around... I'm pretty cool (so far). The hardest thing for this time around, I think, will not be tapering my miles... but tapering my appetite. I've already given up Sugar and Alcohol (Sugar and alcohol free since July 4th! thankyouverymuch), and I've been eating really healthy, but, it's time to cut back on the actual amount of food I've gotten accustomed to eating. Cutting my mileage in half, means I need to cut my diet in half, too. Bloody hell.

And now, let's review Amy's Marathon Training for the Grizzly Marathon.

Marathon Training kicked off on May 4th.

Weekly Mileages:
May 4th: 40.9 miles
May 11th: 47.3 miles
May 18th: 54.1 miles
May 25th: 60.2 miles
June 1st: 62.4 miles
June 8th: 69.0 miles
June 15th: 48.6 miles
June 22nd: 71.6 miles
June 29th: 49.2
July 6th: 62 miles
July 13th: 60.1

Long runs of:
14, 14, 14, 15, 15, 16, 16, 17.25, 18

(Nope, no 20 miler. Damn heat and lack of discipline).

So, I'm actually fine without the 20 miler. I feel like my high mileage weeks and the long runs I did do will be enough to finish the Grizzly alive.

Weight loss: (Will report on that later this week, along with some pics*)

*Of course I'm not starving myself for the next couple of days so that I can add a couple more pounds to the grand total lost. I wouldn't dream of doing that.

Things I've learned while training for my 6th marathon.

1. I can get 750+ miles on my ASICS.
2. When I run 70 miles in a week, I will work that into conversation as many freaking times as I can. Bag boy at Harris Teeter? “Yes! You can take my groceries out for me, cause I ran 70 miles last week thankyouverymuch.”
3. Even after wearing a pair of running shorts probably 400 times (including during a marathon), they can still randomly go ninja on you one day and chafe the helloutofya, leaving you with a less than attractive red ring around your waist.
4. I can, in fact, get sick of Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, and the Black Keys.
5. Running a 20 mile training run is impossible for me to do solo.
6. Running 2-a-days makes me feel like a bad ass.
7. Running in 95 degree weather at 97% humidity makes an ice cold Budweiser taste like the nectar of the gods.
8. More protein, less carbs.
9. Marathon training is not necessarily made easier by drinking less. (Ha! I KNEW it!)
10. To lose weight, I have to omit two out of the three things in life that I get out of bed for in the morning: Sugar and Alcohol.
11. Hard liquor is better for dieting than beer.
12. Skipping track workouts makes me a happier person.
13. Being drunk and happy and a little overweight might in fact be better than being skinny, bitchy, and boring. (I’ll let you know, if once I’m ever actually skinny) (see #10).
14. The first month of training is always the honeymoon period. You’re fast and fresh.
15. The last month of training is always the worst. Your runs are shitty and slow.
16. Training is way more fun when you're training with someone who is running the same race as you.
17. I don't need gu or shot blox, just some gatorade and water.
18. Running in the the heat is 10x more exhausting than running in regular temperatures.
19. Everyone is faster than me.
20. I sweat more than any other human on earth.
21. Always throw a towel in my car for the ride home from a long run (see #19).
22. I can and will use the heat as an excuse for my slow ass runs as many times as I want.
23. Marathon training never gets old.

On Track

Here's a question for you... Why do track workouts suck ass? Granted, I know there are some of you out there that love going to the track. But, clearly, you are not well in the head. Because track workouts are the devil. I mean, how can the idea of... ohhhh let's go out and push ourselves to the point of feeling that simultaneously our legs are going to burst into flames and we're going to puke our guts up... be fun? That's effed up. I pray for you sick, twisted people. I really do.

Furthermore... it's the summer. So, not only do you have to run fast, but you have to run fast with no shade or breeze with heat just radiating up from the paved track. Awesome. I'm not entirely sure, but I think this describes Dante's 9th circle of hell.

So, I think in this whole I wanna focus on mileage, not pace summer of Amy 2009 thing I got going on... I've essentially just been trying to avoid speed workouts at all costs and I use the mileage as a sort of justification for that. But, just like you... I'm not really buying it. I know I need speedwork. Regardless of how many miles I'm running. If I wanna get faster, I gotta train to get faster. Bloody hell.

Today the humidity was only 76%, so, it was the perfect day to torture myself! I headed to the track. I had no idea how I'd fare. The last time I was at the track, I was preparing for the St. Louis Marathon and was doing Yasso 800s in 3:59. That didn't seem all that realistic to me now... in the heat... with all the miles on my legs lately, etc. So, I figured I'd hopefully get some 800s in around 4:10 or so.

The first 800... not so bad. I ran it in exactly 3:59. Which, made me a little cocky. Well, well... Miss Amy, looks like you still got it (yes, sometimes I talk to myself in the 3rd person). But, by about 100 meters into the second interval, the honeymoon was over. I felt like shit. I had decided that I didn't need no stinking track workouts and that when I finished this lap, I was heading back out to the streets. When I finished the interval and saw that my time was 3:59 again, I decided to take a recovery jog around the track before quitting.

But... by the time the recovery jog was over, I thought to myself... awww... what the hell... I can do one more. So, I started another one and immediately regretted the decision. Ugh, running faster just sucks so bad. The third interval? You guessed it. 3:59. WTF? At least I'm consistent.

So, at this point, I decided that I could go ahead and do a 4th and last interval. I finished that one in 4:01. Not too shabby. The run home wasn't so much fun. I had a major case of jelly legs. I know I need to consistently get to the track, but damn it's just so hard. Especially since my track partner is gone. I hated those Tuesday track sessions, but at least I didn't bail out early because I knew I'd catch shit from him if I did.

I am proud of myself for not bailing after the second interval. Because, that's totally an Amy move (a pre-summer of 2009 Amy move, that is). And because an awful track workout in the morning just wasn't enough for me... I plan on doing my two-a-day today. My Thursday night running pal had to bail on me this week, so, I think I'll just go ahead and get it over with this afternoon. Fun times, I tell ya.

Increasing my sexy with a recipe.

I actually cooked! Something other than a sandwich or a scrambled egg. Truth be told, I've been cooking a lot more over the course of the last 6 months or so. But it's usually some kind of lean protein and a veggie. Nothing fancy or time consuming because I'm lazy. But I like eating at home, because it's so much easier to eat healthy when you cook something at home. (I'm always suspicious of dining out... you order a side of steamed veggies to be healthy and it comes to the table drowning in butter... Ummm.. yeah, shoulda just ordered the onion rings, thanks).

And... while I do try to eat healthier just to be healthy, let's be honest... what really drives me to eat healthy is vanity. I know that by eating a diet low in fat and calories will help me "increase my sexy" (as my friend Jeff and I call it. Anything that we do to look more attractive is deemed as "increasing our sexy." For instance... the ass workout I did on sunday? Yeah, solely to increase my sexy).

I've had this picture cut out from a Victoria's Secret catalog plastered onto my refrigerator for about 3 months now.I want this bikini. I want to be able to wear a freaking bikini. And everytime I open my fridge thinking that I want a cup of yogurt or an apple, I see this bikini and am reminded... dude, you're trying to increase your sexy so you can wear this bikini. (Nevermind the fact that about a month ago, Chic Runner posted pics of her in Hawaii rocking this bikini. Ugh. Bitch*).

Okay, digressing here. The thing is... I'm pretty lazy when it comes to food and eating. I love trying new things, etc... as long as I don't have to cook them. The exception is baking (obviously) which certainly decreases my sexy. So, something has to really knock me off my socks for me to actually cook on a weeknight.

I found this recipe awhile back and FINALLY got around to buying some lite coconut milk so I could make it. It turned out really well! I assumed that I'd have to add some of my favorite hot sauce to it, but it has it's own subtle late burn.

It looks like yellow crap on a plate in the photo, but I assure you, it's very tasty, full of flavor and healthy!

Oh, but don't make it if you're expecting visitors for the next week or so. Cause your house and everything in it is going to smell like curry for DAYS. Small price to pay.

*Chicrunner, you know I love you and that I'm just jealous.

.

Curried Cauliflower & Chickpea Stew

Original recipe from May 2009 Bon Appetit, I stole it from Spork and Foon.

So, here's the deal... I made some healthier adjustments to the original recipe. Also, I pretty much halved the original recipe. My version would feed 3-4 people as a side dish and 2 people as an entire meal. I wished I wasn't trying to watch my calories while I was eating it, because I kept imagining how tasty it would be over rice. Yum!

This entire recipe has about 765 calories. So, if you divide that into 4 portions... you get a hearty side for less than 200 calories (I know, I'm a genius at math).

Ingredients

1 tbsp canola oil

1 medium onion, chopped

3 tbsp curry powder

3 cups cauliflower florets

1 15 oz can of chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained

1 10 oz can of Rotel (or diced tomatoes with green chiles) *I used hot!

1/2 cup of lite coconut milk

1/2 cup of skim milk

1/2 cup of cilantro* gag! I skipped this

Black pepper and salt to taste

Heat oil in a large skillet (and I mean the biggest freaking skillet you got) over high heat. Add onions and saute until golden brown, about 8 minutes (fyi, I had to supplement the small about of oil with cooking spray... it worked fine). Add curry powder and stir 20 seconds. Add cauliflower and chickpeas; stir 1 minute. Add diced tomatoes with chiles, then the coconut milk and the skim milk (now you'll thank for telling you to pull out the big ass skillet). Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover (which, I didnt have a cover for my big skillet, so I just used a cookie sheet), and boil gently until cauliflower is tender and liquid thickens slightly, stirring occasionally, about 16 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in cilantro gag; serve.

Done and Done.

I'm happy to report that yesterday's mileage extravangza was not a puke-a-palooza like I anticipated it to be.

The morning 12 miles went by quick and were painless. I kept the pace fairly snail-like and while the weather was pretty humid, it was also overcast which made the run fairly comfortable.

By the afternoon, the weather was even better! The humidity had lessened and the temperature had fallen a couple of degrees. It was a good omen. One of the nice things about running with Speedy Anonymous Commenter is that I get a good tempo run in for the week. It works out perfect because it's about 1.5 miles for me to get to the meeting place and then we run 4 miles at a faster pace than I usually run and then I get a 1.5 mile cool down on my way home. I kept the pace a little more comfortable this week than last (at this point... his running dominance over me has been established. I'm still hoping to pull out some dominance of my own on the golf course, though). And the fact that I was actually able to conversate fairly coherently this week made for a much quicker run.

All in all I ended up with a 19 mile day. Not too shabby, eh?

As far as running goes this weekend... I'm going to try to get in 16-18 tomorrow morning and then a short recovery run at some point on Sunday. Outside of running, I'm hoping for a little drunkenness this weekend. No real plans yet to accomplish this drunkenness, but I'm sure I can come up with something. (If running has taught me anything it's that if there's a will, there's a way.)

Have a good weekend!

(BTW, no real reason for the Someecard graphic above... except that I love them and am always looking for a reason to send someone one. Oh, and because I obviously do enjoy getting drunk on patios).

Carmen Electra: 1, Amy: 0

Growing up, I didn't take dance lessons. I took gymnastics and then moved onto cheerleading and when I say cheerleading, I mean my parents paid a bunch of money for me to get outfitted in some cheesy little kids cheerleading uniform and then they paid a bunch more money for me to go to stupid competitions, etc... All this could be saved if they had just bought me that Vanderbilt Little Girl Cheerleading Uniform that I wanted when I was 5. Sigh.

Anyway... so, I didn't take dance and I just wasn't born with any natural rhythm. It's sad, really. Sure, I dance around my place all the time, but in public? That's reserved for when I'm really drunk at weddings. And... fyi, it's not a pretty sight. Think... Elaine's "Little Kicks" Dance Moves, except instead of the little kicks I kind of do a sort of peg leg/jump around on one leg move and then for whatever reason I incorporate a leprechaun/irish jig/pirate arm thing. Trust me, it's sick.

Last night, after my ab workout, I was scrolling around the OnDemand fitness and exercise tab and I found Carmen Electra's Strip Tease workout. I read the description and then scrolled around to look at some other workouts, but... I ended up going back to the Strip Tease workout and started it. Now, it's supposed to be like a 12 minute workout. She shows you each of the dance moves separately and then slowly incorporates them all together.

The first move... was a little tricky. I'm not going to lie, I had to rewind and re-try it about 4 times before I finally got it somewhat down pat. There's lots of hip shaking, booty thrusting, thigh slapping, and body rubbing. And by the 4th dance move... I was done. I mean... how are you supposed to pop your hip up, smush your boobs together, and stick your booty out all at the same time??? I've never given those strippers the credit they deserve. Those moves take some serious concentration and coordination.

I do have to say though... I didn't find this workout to be particularly taxing at all. I mean... I was no where near breaking a sweat and my heart rate was about as high as it would be if I were pacing around and talking on the telephone.

After I gave up on the strip tease for the day, I felt defeated. I decided that I would keep trying a little bit of the dance moves every day, until I could get them down pat. I realize, this could take all summer, but whatev. Well played, Carmen. You won this one... but I'll win one eventually.

Anyway, it was then that I noticed another Carmen Electra workout called... "InBdrm." I didn't really pay much attention to the title, but I went ahead and started it to see what it was all about. The "workout" starts and Carmen is on a bed. Weird start to a workout video, huh? And instead of her talking... you hear her in a voice-over... "Okay, let's begin. Start by getting down on all fours. That's right. Good. Now, lean forward on your elbows and stick your butt way up in the air."

That's when I sat down on my coffee table and paused the workout. I was torn. I didn't want to do the workout... but... I gotta admit... I was kind of curious where the rest of the workout was headed... I ended up turning it off. In the end, it was the voice-over that made me turn it off. I mean... that just made me feel like a total perv.

I did end up watching Dirty Dancing which was on tv last night, though... Some weird signs the universe is giving me.

Upping the Ante

Honestly? I knew it was only a matter of time before I jumped onto the bandwagon, drank the kool-aid, (insert your own cheesy cliche here) or whatev. But here I am. All about racking up the mileage in an effort to become a better runner. And what better time than the Summer of Amy 2009?

It started off innocently enough. I mean, I love running. The more running, in my book... the better! This past training period, I ran more than I had ever ran before. I was consistently running 50ish miles every other week and I ended up not only PRing at the marathon... but, more importantly (to me, at least) I felt AWESOME during the last 6 miles of the race or so. Something that I've never really experienced during a marathon. In the past, I've been so OVER the race by about mile 18.

I've been doing a lot of reading about high mileage lately and I think it's the way to go for me right now. I really want to take this summer and continue to build a really strong base of high mileage, not really focusing too much on speed or pace, but just getting the miles in.

Now before you bombard me with comments (and I use the term "bombard" loosely here), let me first say... I understand... high mileage isn't for everyone. Some people get awesome results from just running 3 specific workouts a week. But... I can't only run 3 times a week. I'd seriously go crazy. (You think I'm crazy now? Haha. You ain't seen nothing, friends). And time isn't really an issue for me... let's assess the situation...

Spouse? No
Kids? No
Boyfriend? No
Pets? No
Social Network? No

I mean, look at that people... I gots nothing but time on my hands!!! This is perfect for me.

So, my plan is to slowly inch up my mileage this summer. Starting with incorporating some two-a-days during the week. I am going to start with just one two-a-day a week... Tuesdays. And as I slowly ramp up that mileage, I MIGHT add another one on Thursdays.... but we'll see. Yesterday afternoon was my first official start. I ran 9.7 in the morning and Then 4.5 in the afternoon.

Now, normally... I bitch and moan about running in the afternoons, because for me... running at the end of the day BLOWS. I'm tired, hungry and grumpy after work, I hate all the extra traffic at the end of the day, It's hotter outside, etc. But, I am determined to double up some, so I just kept telling myself to take it slow and easy and it worked! I took it slow and easy. I didn't flash my middle finger to commuters who were trying to run me over. I just chillaxed and it all went by nicely.

Some people would call these added runs "junk miles." Meaning, I'm just trying to inflate my training log... which, essentially... I am. But it's not like 'junk miles" are all bad. I mean, I am burning a few extra calories and getting extra time in on my feet. As long as I do it smart and don't overdo it, I think it will help me in the long run (haha, pun not intended, but relevant nonetheless).

Redux

Yes, I lost the first weight loss challenge that Vandy-Montana and I had a few months ago. But, I've thrown down the gauntlet again and this time... I'm guaranteeing a win.

Last night was our weigh-in and I am sad to say that it appears I've gained a little weight since the results of the last challenge. As in... like everything I lost. My optimistic side says... "ohhhh you've just gained some muscle!" But the realistic side of me says... "Yeah, that's what consuming 15 beers in one night for a drinking competition will do." It's true. I haven't really been watching my diet too much since the marathon. I would be really good for like 3 days in a row and then I'd blow it on the weekends, etc. Ehhh... whatev. I'll lose it.

But, since I've already made it my mission to get my ass into gear this summer... this just coincides nicely with that as an added incentive.

I learned a lot from the last competition. Looking back... I realize that I was eating wayyyyy more carbs than was necessary. It's easy to get it into your head that if you're running 50 miles a week, it's okay for you to eat loads of oatmeal, cereal, pasta, rice, and potatoes. But, it's actually not. Sure, I need carbs, but I don't need more carbs than anything else. I need to balance my diet better.

So, the plan is... to amp up my lean protein intake. I never even thought of protein last time around, but I know that it's good for muscle recovery and I know that it will help me build more muscle. That means more fish, more egg whites and less oatmeal, less cereal. Also, I desperately need to lower my sugar intake. Which, admittedly, is the hardest thing for me. Then there's also the alcohol aspect. I'm officially off beer (well, except for a trip in June, where there will be beer consumed), so that should help some. For me, losing weight is almost entirely dependent on my diet. Sure, exercise helps... but I can exercise all day long and I still have to eat healthy to shed pounds.

As far as exercise goes... the plan is to continue running (obviously) but to slowly inch my mileage up throughout the summer. I also plan to stick with my strength training in order to tone up... with a big focus on my upper body and my core.

So, I've taken a "before" picture for this time around. I tried to pick out clothes that were a little tight on me, so that we can better gauge progress at the end. In addition to noting my weight, I've also taken measurements of various parts of my body. (Obsessed this time around, ya think?)

I hope you enjoyed that beer and cheeseburger after the St. Louis Marathon, Vandy-Montana... because the tab's on you this time, sucka.