NRDgirl I'm glad you were able to run through that calf pain but I hope you can figure out what the cause is. Get some rest this weekend.

CKLindsay Your new roomie sounds like she is a great motivator! Scary about those pigs...when I lived in Texas, the wild boar were pretty scary critters.

mkayc Wow, I agree...that is a marathon response! Good for you in taking the time to write it. I'm SO glad you are taking time off to heal, you are a smart gal. I agree, this group is the best and I feel grateful to be a part as well.

jmsab23 Thanks, Jon! Re: the article. I'm glad you like the cardinal, it's one of my favorite little paintings. Yep. 15 degrees is chilly. Good job on your TD run!

dilljeffrey Wow, you are just "kickin' it"!! Great job on getting some long-hard runs in. Hey, thanks for that super sweet comment. **blush blush** So you're from the Berkshires? Very cool!

Old Coyote Bummer about your job. My hubby just got laid ff too. But, he got a really good severance pay and it was time for a change. The next job for him needs to be much less stressful and much more fun!  Beautiful pic!!

Mary Kay-  A 10K 4 days after your HM-wow!  I noticed you hedged a little on resting until you're recovered from the chest cold.  You have a habit of doing that!  You know what they say, cold below the neck, no running.  Above the neck, go ahead.  Take it easy lady, you've earned a rest.

OC- sorry about the job situation, will be praying for a new job for you.  I can't imagine running those elevations like you do.  And it IS beautiful.

Melody- Great article in the magazine, though I agree, should have been longer!

Sloooooooow on the TM this week, then 5.3 miles outside today.  Cloudy & 45, perfect for running. 

Run strong and safe friends.

8.6 miles  1 hr 7 min  ran the last 1.7 miles up ecco mt in 15min. Its a 600'climb.  I don't think I have ever run it that fast. 

I got a stone bruise in the ball of my left foot. Swelling is down. Wrapped in in vet tape and took off.

org great news on the knee.

frances I remember my mom taking me to all those swim meets.

ckl-mel  I was in the hill country in TX.  I was showing a newbe how we trapped the wild pigs and a Russian boar went after us,  I took off running and to my surprise the newbe was right beside me. I could not believe how fast he went. We ran three miles rock to rock all the way back to camp. I knew the pig would only run 200 yds. just wanted to see if he could make it.

MelodyLea - thanks

Francessmom - nice run to the river. Mrs C was from Deptford Twp, NJ - She'd be jealous if she knew you were running there!

justrundan - Thanks, again. And glad you got some good weather!

Ogr44 - nice reset on the knee. Careful now.

NHLA - nice time on a good grade!

Speaking of grades, I'm NOT smarter than a 5th grader. The hill I walked yesterday was not 6%; it was 1 in 6, or about 16%.

Race day - 4.5 miles at Denver's running icon - Washington Park. Rocky Mountain Road Runners' last race of the year; beautiful weather for December. Quite chilly for set up, but after a hard warmup I stripped off my jacket and pants and ran in shorts/short sleeves. The sun came out for the start.

RMRR races are handicapped according to previous results, so there is a staggered start, and then in theory everyone finishes at pretty much the same time. My predicted time was 36:01, I finished in 35:01, so with my hcp I ended up 8th overall . First mile was 7:19, so I went out too fast. Slowed it down to a more reasonable ~8 minute pace for the next 3, then kicked hard the last 1/2 mile (3:40), 7:47 pace overall. A nice, fast road course for my (probably) last race of 2012. And I got a job offer from a fellow runner.

Run free!

Wash Park

18 miles 2 hr 36 min.  Ecco to Stoney Mt. and back.  There is a 370 degree curve on the top of Stoney. You can see a panorama of the county in a few hundred yds.

OC  looks like the park is flat. 1st flat pic I have seen you post. Great run. Good luck on finding new job.

Deb my left calf gets tight so I only strech one leg.

frances nice pace.

I don't have Wifi at home so I've been at the local bookstore 5 hr. reading etc. I am now through reading all your posts. I know I didn't have to; I wanted to.

Rinkreb - we are about the same size and started racing about the same time. I've been putting my race bibs into a binder and because of that looking at the times. My first 5k in 8/11 was 59 min. It was a trail run but still, the first street race time was around 49 min. I started at 158 and haven't lost much weight. worked hard to get my 5k under 40 min and am nowhere near running a 5k under 30 min. Great going!!!

Deb, helping up a fellow runner. Big Win! Runners are the nicest people!! Running in wind chill, ugh!! Don't beat yourself up over sleeping in a little. It takes work to be as fantastic as you are.  Awesome runs, lady!

NRDGirl, Great HM time and an awesome race!! You know how to have a great time! From your Nov. 30 run post, it looks like you're out of your slump. YAY!! Odd how the blahs happen. (10k on 12/1)

Degregarious, congrats on braving the weather for 10+ on black tights Friday!

OC, black shorts Friday? ahhahahaha! Target was my go-to place for all running gear the first year bc I was thinking I'd be wearing a different size the next year. HAHAHA! I'm still wearing the tights I bought there. $29 vs $59. Yes!! Thanks for the schooling that there's a rule to help out a runner!  Re Sizes, they have definitely gotte much bigger - ten years ago!! I guess women notice these things sooner. I have to buy a size 8 today. In 1979, I weighed thirty pounds less and squeezed into a size 8. Saving money is a good thing any time you can do it. 25 degrees? Is there a limit to when you will run outside? Re running every day, your day off paid off?

So sorry about your job!!! This sure has been a lousy couple of months for you! Is it wrong that I still found stuff in your post that made me laugh? Awesome 4.5 race time!! You are another Rock Star!! Congratulations on that and getting a job offer. Hope it works out well for your.

FrancesMon, family reunion? Lots of potential for running motivation if your family is anything like mine. Great time on your runs!! You must be feeling good! Jeesh, 60 laps? that is powerful swimming! thinking about working into doing a Tri and I believe I may be able to finish one right now without stopping and maybe 20 with stops. chuckled at your attempt to find the hill's incline. been there, done that. I love numbers, just sometimes forget how to use them. 8:39. is Rockstar speed!!

Great job on your long run, RunnerGrrrl!!

NHLA, I enjoyed the gingerbread house pix. Hope your MiL enjoyed the trip! Must have smelled great !! A friend from Ashville posted this pic. Is this where you run? Re: your daughter's campus, it's so sad kids have to worry about that now. Their lives are so much more complicated than ours were. BTW, YOU are the champ!! You ran the newbie three miles at top speed just to see if he could take it? MEN!!

az, so glad you could be with your friend to help when she needed it! Love your new *name* and I figured it out but did wonder until I read your post. The cold to the bone feeling is humidity, something az doesn't have much. HATE IT!! A TM is better than no running!! And, you can get a desk to use while you're there so you can write some of that time off as work.

Melody, so nice to see you feel strong after nursing your cold!! If snow jacket keeps out the moisture, aren't you moist from sweat? Kudos on your runs in the snow!! So glad you're enjoying them! I also worry for your daughter. It's a new world out there and I wish it were a safer one. From resting to a strong 10 miles in two weeks; that is awesome!!!

DillJeff, there's prolly a pithy quote that captures the essence of idiots who take credit for someone else's wisdom. It's their problem. Chance's are everyone around them catches on to them soon enough. Great job on the long run in the snow!! I hope that tree didn't fall during your ran! "Want to make sure people see me when I fall..." Ahahaha! Big cheers for two new PRs!! And doing it in style is priceless!

Linuscatch, amazing! Kudos to you for trying to keep running through all that travel!! Stay safe and tell us more when you land?

OshCat, glad you're feeling better and nothing feels better than strong after a long bout of weak. It's like the first drink when you are parched dry, you REALLY feel it.

jmsab, going for a 6 mm is huge! The day I tried going for a 10 mm on the TM was the day I pulled my hammy. Congrats on the 10k PR!! Wet eyes and runny noses, I am so with you on running inside. My cut-off is around 30 or in the dark or if there's wind....I am a wimp bc I don't run outside in the cold. All that aside, I never trust the time on a TM, I just use it as a guide. Your TM pricing experience was very interesting and YUCK you almost spent $125 more than you needed to spend! There's an iPhone app that allows you to read the bar code and find out prices everywhere else for an item. Wonder if it would have told you to go home and order online? Regardless, your TM mileage is wicked awesome and I smell that goal closing in!!

CK, welcome back!! You have about 8 wks between now and the end of February to train?  I feel your worry but you'll feel strong enough to move ahead in mileage quicker now from your past training. Where are you located?

Ogr, good news on the healing front! YAY!!

I see almost everyone ran Thanksgiving morning. Such a great idea!!

Reading all these posts with significantly shorter times and I am wondering what the heck is the matter with me that I am so slow and hurt so much in my chest when I try to run faster. I don't *want* to run this speed; I have run an 8-9 mm pace but if I tried doing that I'd be out of breath before one mile unless I walked and I'd never make it past 2 mi.

Taking time off to heal was the plan but the weather was 60+ yesterday so I went for a quick 3 mi but waited so long to get started that it was dark at 1.5 mi and felt really cold. Dripped all night and am coughing all day. Will try to stay home tomorrow and go back to the plan.

Dan, thank you for the feedback. After all this time I'm still a mystery to me. Good 5 m. run!!

Run strong and fierce. Stay happy!

Asheville hills??

mkayc - glad I could make you laugh. The coldest it got last year was -6 F. There was no wind and no humidity, so it wasn't too bad. I could go to -20, if there's no wind, or to about -20 wind chill. Ran in some snowstorms last year, warmer but snow and wind. I just enjoy being outside more than I like being warm, I guess. Or more than I DISLIKE being cold.

Lady, I still think if you stopped racing every week you'd give your body time to recover. I think you're suffering from overtraining and I recommend light yoga or tai chi for a week to calm your core. I know you're too type "A" to actually not excercise at all. Monitor your heart rate by taking it first thing in the morning (this doesn't work if you wake to an alarm). See if it doesn't go down a few beats after a week of REST .

Are you sleeping well? Eating well? Then don't sweat the speed. The changes in your fitness and overall health don't depend on how fast you can run a 5K, they depend on your willingness to go run gently for at least 30 minutes several times weekly, and keeping moderately active EVERY day for 30 minutes. You have it nailed, in other words.

Hang tough, but take it easy on yourself!