Family Friendly Runs

Trail runs offer a special kind of freedom to runners, and the kids who come out to cheer them on. My dance with dirt at the Afton 50K  Trail Run on Saturday was intense. With over 8,700 feet of ascending and descending, it wasn’t easy. But knowing my kids were out exploring and having fun meant I wasn’t worrying about them being bored or getting into trouble. And best of all, my kids didn’t just get to cross the finish line with me, they were dancing on it when I got there. My oldest even put the medal around my neck. After 6+ hours of running, it was the best finish line I could imagine!

What’s your favorite event for the family? What makes it so special for you or the other members of your clan?
-Laurie

Giveaway: Be happy in the (this) saddle

Friend or foe?

There is a special freedom found only on a bike. It’s one of those rare thrills we feel at every age and ability. Whether it’s your first wobbly ride off training wheels or your umpteenth century (100 mile) ride of the season, cycling makes us feel independent, strong and happy.

Except when it doesn’t.

For some of us, particularly women, climbing onto the saddle causes more than just a little discomfort “down there.” And until you find a saddle that fits just right (and take off your panties!), biking will never make you feel like a kid again. Instead, it will make you feel like you’ve just had one—right there on the bike.

I have vivid memories of a long ride with my husband back when were first married that resulted in him winning the Heisman Award for a good week. Tears streamed down my cheeks as I pushed through the pain, fleshy one minute and boney the next. Didn’t matter how I sat, I was uncomfortable. Not strong. Not happy.

I went through a few saddles before I fell in love (or should I say, my crotch fell in love) with the Terry Butterfly Ti saddle. It’s lightweight and designed just for “her” by folks who specialize in ladies cycling. The guys like it too since it eliminates the Heisman phenomena–at least as it relates to the bike, anyway. (Come on, riding really shouldn’t be a pre-coital excuse!).

Having saddle issues? Got that “not so fresh feeling”? Just want to try something new? I wanna hear from Hot (Sweaty) Mamas like you about why you like to ride, or about your favorite two-wheeled adventure. I’ll draw one winner from the entrants here and at hotsweatymamas.com and post the winner on Friday. Good luck!
–Laurie

Running in Circles

My friend Greg once told me he likes to draw an imaginary circle around himself and every person with whom he has a relationship—his wife, kids, friends, co-workers (you get the idea). As often as he remembers, he takes a little inventory of his life to make sure he’s keeping all the right stuff inside each of those circles. He reminded me that everything we do within a given circle has the potential to strengthen the relationship therein. And sometimes when we leave things out of certain circles we ultimately make them weaker.

Thinking about all this made me realize how important health and fitness are to my overall wellbeing, not just my physical health. How they’ve helped me establish and deepen a number of relationships in my life. When my husband and I met, we shared a passion for the outdoors and a passion for running; and each year our marriage grows through some shared physical activity including these things (i.e., running the Grand Canyon, sailing trips, camping).

Many of my closest friends are also running partners, riding buddies or fellow gym rats. Those that don’t share my passion at least appear enthusiastic about my goals and accomplishments. And it’s okay if they’re just faking interest, to share a circle with me means to share my interests no matter what. And I share the things that make them tick, too (even when I don’t find them interesting).

I’ve had a couple of friendships that haven’t fared so well over the years; there have been times I’ve let fitness get in the way of a relationship by simply not sharing it with someone else. Greg got me thinking that maybe I can use my passion for fitness as a means to rekindle those old friendships, repair relationships that might need tending to or strengthen an already strong bond with a loved one. It even works with people who don’t quite “get it,” who don’t understand that it’s fun to work up a good stinky, sweat.

I can keep circles intact by sharing what it feels like to be me, and that doesn’t necessarily mean running a marathon (though it’s always nice to have some company). There are plenty of other options—a short walk with an aging parent, a leisurely bike ride with my kids, a lake swim with a friend who usually hits the beach for a tan. If fitness is a big part of your life, find some way to share it with those people who are most important to you. Let it bring you together instead of tear you apart.

We all know that good relationships can be the best, most challenging endurance events out there. And as a mom, having a good support network is a sanity saver. So when you think the finish line is in sight, loop back and keep going. Sometimes running (or walking, biking, swimming, etc.) in circles can be a very good thing. 

An active lifestyle keeps me physically and mentally fit, better able to handle the demands of motherhood. How about you? Does fitness keep you strong in more ways than one?

How Much is Enough?

Spring cleaning... Which ones do I keep?

In the twelve years my husband and I have owned our home, we’ve toyed with the idea of moving into a bigger house quite a bit. While it would be nice to have a little more space, we’re confident a bigger home would not translate into less clutter. Staying in our current home has required constant examination of what we need versus what we have.


We try to teach our kids that more isn’t better by suggesting they donate the things they are no longer interested in.  For the most part it has worked (with the exception of the brothel of Barbies bursting out of the toy bin across the room from me). At five, our youngest doesn’t quite get it yet. But our oldest (who will turn nine next week) seems to understand. She actually agreed to a nice gift from Mom and Dad instead of having presents at her party.

Accumulate less. Donate more.

Over the years I’ve gotten better at eliminating excess, too. I finally got rid of my wedding shoes and I no longer hold on to every piece of artwork my kids create. I’ve recovered from my need to keep every cotton race finisher’s shirt; a problem solved by creating a quilt (who knew I could be crafty?).

I’ve learned to live leaner, except when it comes to my running shirts. There are too many to reasonable wear in any one season. I'll admit to some odd emotional attachment. There's the shirt I wore running the Grand Canyon, the one from the first marathon my parents came to see, my very first long sleeved wicking shirt. I’m not sure why I keep them all; I still pick my favorites when I hit the gym or lace up for a run.

I know someone who makes sure her kids have only enough seasonally appropriate clothes to get them through a week. Kept her laundry to a minimum and the clutter down. Not sure I can go that far, but I’m looking for an ideal number. Enough to cover a weeks worth of runs and workouts? Only my favorites? What do you do?

Off 'N Running (in Chi-Town)

My co-author Kara Thom and I heading out early tomorrow morning for the first push of our book tour, promoting our new book, Hot (Sweaty) Mamas: Five Secrets to Life as a Fit Mom... We're headed for Chi-Town for a hot (sweaty) weekend that begins at the Empower! Fusion Fitness Celebration at the Donald E. Stevens Convention Center in Rosemount, IL. Our presentation, "What a Mom Wants (at the Gym)," is geared toward fitness professionals who want to learn more about making your experience at the gym better. Comforting to know we're recognized for what we do, isn't it?

If you're in the Chicago area and looking to get your sweat on, check out one of three classes that are open to the public at 5:30 p.m. (promise they'll provide equal parts motivation and energy!):

• More than Just Core with Holly Krohn (She's small but mighty and will make you feel like you can do more than you thought possible!)
• G-Force Reunion: Ultimate Cardio Party with Patrick Goudreau, Darrin Grove and Rob Glick (Might just be more fun than Zumba!)
• Warrior Sculpt with Nick Bez and Katie Haggerty (I've been to this one and it's guaranteed to leave you both smiling and sore!)

Sunday's events include a 9:30 a.m. Mama Spin class at the Schaumberg Life Time Fitness. I've got a great lineup of songs picked especially for the mom-set and some great video for accompaniment.
Lot's of great giveaways, some good grub, and even better girl-talk.

Before heading back to the Twin Cities, Kara and I will stop in at the Barnes and Noble in Oak Brook for a 2-3 p.m. book signing. If you already have a book, stop in and talk with us. If you don't have a book yet, there will be plenty on hand. Either way, we'd love to see you and hear about your life as a Hot (Sweaty) Mama!

We've been working at this project for a long time and are so thankful to all of you for helping us get this book off 'n running! Hugs, kisses and lots of sweaty love to you all!

Mama Sisyphus

You might know the story in Greek and Roman mythology about Sisyphus, the man who is punished by a king to roll a giant boulder up a hill, only to watch it roll back down, and to repeat the process for all of eternity. While making the beds this morning, I realized how much of my day is filled with those push-the-rock-up-the-hill-and-watch-it-roll-back-down-the-hill moments.

Laundry gets soiled, dishes get dirty, beds get unmade, meals get eaten.

Even fitness can feel daunting if you're not careful to take note of the overall changes that happen along the way. The changes can be physical transformations like tightening and toning, maybe even regaining bladder control after birth. But they can also be mental, like gaining the self-confidence or discipline to make big life changes.

But here's the real evidence that we don't belong in mythology:

Yep, our kids grow up.

Every little thing we do, even if it seems repetitive, makes a big mark on some very important lives. Suddenly rolling those boulders up the hill isn't such a bad thing...

Back from Disney World...

It’s my first full day back from our family vacation to Walt Disney World and I already feel like I need another vacation. Reality can be a little slap on the backside, can’t it? But before I get too steeped in the present, I wanted to share a few thoughts about our trip to visit Mickey and pals.

1. Theme parks are not as physically exhausting as you might think. Turns out nine hours of walking around Disney parks isn't quite as tiring as I anticipated, except for Grandpa who at 74 made an impressive show of endurance. Truth is, when you factor in ride time, show time, wait time, eat time, and rest time, nine hours at a park isn’t nearly nine hours of walking. According to my Polar Activity Monitor (which my daughter enthusiastically wore around her ankle to account for those times she didn’t let her arm swing--like pushing the stroller and holding the camera) it’s not much more than a typical day around the house. Our ratio of time spent in the park to time moving was something close to 3:1. That means for every three hours we spent in the park, we spent about one hour walking.  
2. Theme parks are more mentally exhausting than you think. More exhausting than nine hours of walking in the hot sun is the insufferable sales pitch of the Disney marketing monster, unmatched at Sea World or Busch Gardens. Disney has every exit covered, every corner staffed. Looking for something test to your Zen state of mind? Disney is there for you. My suggestion…  give your kids an allowance of money they can spend at the parks, then let them decide where the money goes. 
3. Our kids take their pool time as seriously as we do our runs. While the parks are fun, having a pool seemed equally important to my kids. They swam at least once a day, if not twice and registered more activity in the pool than anywhere else. Cady's almost perfected her flip turn and Maggie has a flawless "CANON BALL!”  Every early morning after every late night, my kids found a hidden reserve of energy in the pool. 
4. You DO see gators while running in Florida. Let’s just say I felt better running on the road than the sidewalk after witnessing a few beady eyes not far from my path. 
5. You can eat healthy in Disney. After our visit to Disney in 2007, we vowed to bring our own snacks on our next trip; back then we didn’t see much nutrition on the kiosks of ice cream sandwiches, popcorn, and cotton candy. This time around, however, we did see some GoGo Squeez applesauce packets in Epcot and lots of fruit in Animal Kingdom. We didn’t see many healthy options in Magic Kingdom, but luckily we’d packed out own. Turns out there are a few places you can go to get healthy food. At the Princess Dinner in Norway, I had what seemed to be a very healthy serving of salmon (though the kids options were less than friendly—hotdog and pizza). If you’re interested, check out this post on the Disney food blog for some food stops that offer healthy eating alternatives.  
6. Disney is something every kid should get to see at least once. In a perfect world every child feels special and important. In a perfect world every kid gets to smile until it hurts and yell, “I love you, Sleeping Beauty!” at the top of her lungs (yes, my little Maggie is in love). In a perfect world every kid would get at least one visit to Disney.

Share your recent Disney experience or post a question if you’re going soon. I'll be taking notes for next time.