Kristy’s Marathon Training

Post- 10 mile run w/B

I have just finished week 4 of training for the Denver Rock N’ Roll Marathon. The event takes place on October 20th and will be my first full marathon. I was a bit hesitant to train for the full because I didn’t want to take the time away from the girls, but I’ve come up with a plan that works well for everyone – Tuesday afternoons I get in a run at the gym while the girls play, Wednesday nights Bill puts the girls to sleep while I head out for a run at 7pm, Friday mornings I do a recovery run at the gym while L is at school and R plays and has music class, and Sunday mornings I do my long run while the girls have some time alone with Bill.

So far the longer the run has been, the easier it has been for me (although I don’t expect this to always be the case). I haven’t needed much time to recover and seem to have finally figured out a nutrition plan that works for me on the long runs. My heart rate hasn’t been spiking like it used to on the climbs and the 25 minutes of strengthening exercises that Bob Cranny (Altitude Physical Therapy – best in the business) has me doing 5 days a week is really making a difference!

Only 9 more weeks to go!

Pike’s Peak Ascent

Bill and Mike at the start

Bill and Mike at the start

Yesterday Bill completed the Pike’s Peak Ascent, a 13.32 mile ‘run’ up to the top of Pike’s Peak at 14,112 feet with an elevation gain of over 7,000 feet. He met up with his co-worker Mike and with very little training (aside from the Ironman) was doing great until the altitude hit him at 12,000 feet. He made it to the top of his first 14er in 5 hours, and I don’t think he plans on doing this race again for several years :).

For the complete set of photos, click here.

From Catterpiller to Butterfly

Lilly is quite the budding scientist. In group settings she is easily distracted but when working one on one with an individual or something she is interested in she soars. The latest example is her caterpillar/butterfly tent that Nana bought her for her birthday. From the moment the caterpillars arrived she was an exceptional caretaker and very interested in details. After two weeks our caterpillars emerged as butterflies and L was very excited to watch the process – she stayed in her room for over an hour watching and caring for the butterflies and we immediately hopped in the bike trailer to pick wildflowers for them. She even drew pictures to record the detail in her nature journal from Thorne Nature Camp. So adorable!

Lilly is an IronKid

For the complete set of photos, click here.

After watching IronKids last year and watching her Daddy compete in several triathlons, Lilly was excited to participate in the IronKids (ages 3-5) event this Summer. It was a beautiful day for the event and the kids were all so adorable in their swim caps. Bill was able to run along next to her and it was heart warming to see how hard she was trying. Unfortunately we forgot to bring her helmet along so she had to wait a bit to start the bike ride, but she had a strong finish with the run! We didn’t push it at all but afterwards Lilly asked if she could do “another triathlon tomorrow”. Maybe next year, kid! 🙂

Head, Thorax, Abdomen

Bugs, bugs, bugs. Lilly loves bugs. And she knows all of their body parts. Check out this adorable video: