2010 Year In Review

Our 2010 Year in Review: 

January 2010:  Jared and I started off 2010 about 8,000 miles apart.  Jared was in Farah, Afghaninstan and I was staying with my family in El Paso, Texas waiting for my house to become available in Fort Bragg, NC.  

My twin sister, Celyn and I hanging out on NYE

Jared in Afghanistan, January 2010

March 2010:  Finally!  My house was ready...so I packed up all our belongings and drove for two and a half days.  A HUGE thanks to my awesome brother, David for helping me out.

April 2010:  Jared comes to our new home in NC for 14 sweet days of R&R.  We definitely lived it up, BBQ's at our house, going to the beach, and adding a new addition to our family, Colt "Good Ol' Boy" Waechter.

Carolina Beach, NC

June 2010:  My wonderful niece, Brandi spends my B-Day with me in NC.

August 2010:  He's baaaack!!!  Jared's family made the trip to NC to welcome Jared back.  

October 2010:  Living it up!... Mini Vacation to Dallas to watch Texas vs OU and the end of the regular  season Ranger's game.  It was a BLAST!

October 2010:  We added a fourth member to our family:  Vince "Little Guy" Waechter.

November 2010:  Even though we are miles away from our home state, we PROUDLY supported our home teams.  

December 2010:  We packed the boys in the back of my little car, along with luggage and Christmas presents and drove 1800 miles to spend the holidays with our family.  It was worth every mile.  

Strike a POSE.

Last weekend I was fortunate enough to attend the Pose Running Course by none other than Dr. Romanov himself!  Dr. Romanov is a two-time Olympic Coach, author, educator, and a sport scientist with over 30 years of experience specializing sport and fitness world, specifically with runners.

As soon as I got word that he was coming to CrossFit Fort Bragg, I jumped at the rare opportunity and signed up!  I was so excited to attend, not only for my own benefit of becoming a "better" runner, but also to coach others as well.

For 2 days, we learned concepts and drills, analyzed running technique, and practiced, practiced, practiced!... (Usually over a 30-50 meter distance).  

Boy, was I off in the beginning!  I had to totally forget what I thought I knew about running and be open and receptive to this "new" style of running.  

I wondered how this new found knowledge would apply and carry over into my longer distance runs.  I would like to share with you my first running experience utilizing the Pose Method.  I must admit, I was a little apprehensive about how I would feel; would I be winded, would my muscles fatigue, would I even be able to apply "pose, fall, pull" continuously for more than 30-50 meters?

I decided I would run my "usual" route and apply all that I learned from the past weekend just to answer these questions and compare the "before" and "after" as an experiment.  I did not try to run faster, I did not look at my watch.  I only tuned into my inner dialog of "1-2-3-4" and "pose, fall, pull", and off I went.  

About 1/4 mile into my run, I was pleasantly surprised to see that I was not winded like I thought I might be, (I thought that since I was doing something new, my heart rate would be higher).  So far so good.  Then into my fist mile, I noticed that I was in fact running at a faster pace with out even trying!  I was not winded, I was not fatigued in any way.  Normally, near the end of my route,  I would feel like I was struggling to maintain my pace and usually had to push myself to the end to keep the pace (especially when I was really trying to run fast).   

 

This time, it was different.  I was  shocked to find that I was running almost effortlessly.  

I am so happy to say that with out even trying to "run fast" or do anything other than focus on my technique, I finished my regular route of 2 miles a whole 2 minutes ahead of my "fast" pace with out even trying!  

I have never claimed to be a fast runner or even a great runner, I run because I really do enjoy it.  I now feel that I have the tools to become both and have a new found love for it as well.  

Thank you, Dr. Romanov for teaching me how to become better at something I already enjoy doing.  If anyone is interested on the Pose Method, please let me know, as I am now a "Pose Running Technique Specialist" and "CrossFit Running Certified".

BoohYah!!!

GOOOOoooooaaaaaaaaaalllllllllllll!!!!!!!!

Sometime around mid November, Jared and I did the "Run, Ride, Drink" in Southern Pines.  It consisted of a 5K run followed by a 15 mile bike ride then finishing off with a little booze and chili cook off.  What a great triathlon, right??? 

It had been soooo long since either one of us had been on our road bikes, but we figured why not???.... Lets just have some fun!  At the end of the race, the town block was roped off for chili tasting, live music, raffles and games. 

It was such a BLAST!  I HIGHLY recommend this event to anyone who is looking for a fairly easy course and A LOT of fun.   

This is a picture after we finished the race.  (We made cheezy matching shirts the day before...you can see the iron on letters falling off).  Hahaha!!!    

So what does this have to do with my goals???  

Well, I was reminded how much fun it is to do an event, not to mention it is such a great motivating tool!!! 

So, my goal under the first category of  "Health and Wellness" is:  I am going to pick out and sign up for an event (5K, 10K or even Sprint Triathalon) by March 1st.  I am going to look on-line starting tomorrow for local events that I am interested in and post my decision on or before that day.    

Next, category two:  "Family".  I am going to make a better effort at staying connected with my family.   Starting this week, I will call a different family member each week just to say hello.  This is a challange for be because I am soooo not a phone person.  There are times when I will go weeks with out talking to them.  We are all pretty close and we all value "family".  I want them to know that they are so important to me and that I love them dearly.  It's time I show/tell them more often.

Category three:  "Financial".  (Jared is going to be happy about this one).  For the whole month of February, I am going to save money by not purchasing anything online from Lululemon.  (I will look, but I won't click).  I though about extending this goal into March, however, according to the rules of SMART goals, they must be realistic and our anniversary is on the 7th....(hint...hint), so this goal ends 3/1.

(My typical get up: running, wearing Lululemon)...Love it!

Last but not least, category four: "Career".  It important to me to always develop personally as well as professionally.  Everyone who knows me, knows that I enjoy running.  I don't claim to be fast and I don't claim to be the best.  I do it because I like it.  

Like all things I know I can get better.  One way I can progress personally as well as professionally is to improve on my skills and to educate myself on how to become a better more efficient runner.  I am going to attend the CrossFit Pose Running certification course on February 12th and 13th.  I am really excited about this!  I know this course will help me improve on my own running technique and therefore improve my time.  I use my knowledge and skills to help others improve their running skills and technique in my profession.

Well, there you go.....and here I  GOOOOOOoooooooooo!!!!!!!