Still Going....

The fundraising thermometer is still going up! If you count the pledges and the check from a family member that I've been carrying around for a month (sorry, I promise I'll send it this week!), I only have $270 left until my goal! Of course surpassing the goal of $2200 would be great, too. Thanks, everyone.

I walked 10 miles on Saturday! It was pretty tiring, but happily my feet felt pretty good afterwards. Yesterday we went to Busch Gardens so that involved some walking, but I don't know how much.

According to the weather.com, the average high in Atlanta in October 20-22 is 72 and the average low is 51. RECORD high, however, is 88. Let's all hope that we don't have record highs. Average would be nice. Not bad, 72 degrees.

Wow, check that out! And it's even better than it appears. This thermometer is only accounting for donations actually received. But there have been donations pledged, so I'm actually at 85%! Very exciting!

Sorry for the lack of posts. Lots going on these days.

In other news, we went to a nearby state park on Sunday and walked for a couple of hours. Walking outside is different than using a tredmill. Largely because you don't go downhill on a treadmill. When you go downhill your feet slide in your shoes and you learn how they really fit! We also confirmed that Daisy (the dog), although thin and pretty, is out of shape.

I'm hoping they'll post the Atlanta course map soon. They said it'd be posted about 6 weeks before the event. I'll be there in mid-September and would love to drive the route to get a sense of it. Especially to understand what hills we'll be dealing with.

Walk On

I think I've walked twice since I last posted. I thought I'd be good at this blogging thing, but I'm not too faithful at posting, am I?

Thursday after work I walked. I meant to walk 5 miles, but it was kind of an odd one. When I got to the gym I realized that I had a cramp in the bottom of my foot. I stretched it out and started slowly and it worked itself out, as anticipated. So I sped up the treadmill, at which point the cramp came back and migrated. The back of my ankle cramped, then my calf, then my hamstring. I stopped the machine and stretched, but the cramps wouldn't go. So I achieved merely 3.5 miles on Thursday.

What does that mean? I should eat more bananas? Isn't potassium supposed to be good for that?

Saturday we were in Blacksburg, VA, so I got to walk outside in the lovely Blacksburg August weather. It was only 70 or 75 degrees in the morning. I got drizzled on a little, but it wasn't distracting. Perfect weather for walking, and I got to do hills, which I know I'll face in Atlanta.

Something to think about: Have you checked to see if your company will match your contribution to the Breast Cancer 3-Day?

Slacker

Yes, I am a slacker. But at least I'm not slacking on training, only on the blog! Tuesday I walked 3+ miles on the treadmill at the apartment complex, and yesterday was a cross-training day so I did 30 minutes on the elliptical. Today is a 5 mile day. Didn't really do anything exercise-related this weekend as we were out of town for a family reunion and it was approximately 130 degrees out. That's the best I can estimate.

This coming weekend we will be out of town again, but the weather should be better. Saturday is 5 miles and Sunday is 6 miles. I'll let you know.

Lots going on in the Life of Ellen lately.

Now, to the Help Wanted: I'm collecting ideas for clever fundraising efforts. Anything you've seen nonprofits, other individuals, or churches do, lay 'em on me! Any crazy ideas from left field that you can think of, let me have 'em! Thank you in advance!

Keep Walking

The hardest part of all of this is the long walks. Not so much because of keeping your heart rate up, because the long walks aren't fast. Not so much because of physical stamina either, although blisters are a major threat. But just because of the time committment and boredom. This Saturday I'm supposed to walk 10 miles. Even if I average a little over 3 mph, that's still over 3 hours!

In other news, I didn't walk at work today. I waited until I got home and used the apartment complex gym. They've bought all new equipment! I wish I'd known that earlier. Now all the cardio machines have their own TV. Just plug in your headphones and you can watch whatever you want. Today was a 3-mile today.

OH! You've been waiting to hear about the exercise ball. It was fine. I don't think it was much exercise, but it was a lovely stretch, and used my muscles a bit.