Ironman spectating and the end of running. For now.

Picking up where I left off last post puts us outside of damp Houston for Jeremy's Ironman. The rain was forecasted for every day we were there, which I know is common for this time of year anywhere near the coast. But that one day, Saturday, had the highest temps and least chance of rain, and it made racing completely miserable for those who melt, like yours truly. Jeremy's race was not what we knew he could do. I was so disappointed for him, after all his training and dedication to this race. But as I am the queen of meltdowns, I completely understood what was going on. My hope was that he would not be affected by what my car was telling me was 93F at the beginning of the run. On the bright side, if it had been me out there, it would have been much, much worse. My meltdowns involve things like lying on the side of the road and self-diagnosing a heart attack, unlike Jeremy, whose run was still faster than almost everyone's bike split. 

The best part of the day was Hunter running with Jeremy along the course. He was so excited, it was all he talked about. We got several chances to see him, which turned into the cutest and sweetest moments as Hunter ran faster than Daddy, just like he said he would. 

 I love this picture! H is like, Daddy, I've been waiting a long time for you.

 Now I must outrun you.

This little guy is going to have some great memories of the "horse house" that we stayed in outside of Cypress. With horses, ducks making their rounds, chickens laying eggs, pigs, yippy little dogs, zip lines, and Mammo to explore it all with, it was a 3-year-old's dream. We are so lucky to be able to go on trips like this with him. 

I didn't do much running while down there since it was either raining or I was doing lots of spectating, although I ran along with a few friends during the race to chat until I slowed them down and had to stop. When we got back home, I went for a standard run in the neighborhood, but had to walk early on from posterior pelvic pain, near my SI joint, and I haven't been walking even the uphills until then. I pushed through 4.5ish miles averaging 13 min pace running and walking. I could barely walk for the rest of the night, and the next day, and so on and on this new pain goes still, over a week later. I always thought if I needed to stop running during pregnancy it would be a tough decision, and I would wonder if maybe I could push through another week or two. That is so not the case here. There is no question in my mind about the possibility of running, since simply walking and standing throughout the day goes from painful to excruciating. Just when I was finding relief from the anterior pain too. 

I keep wondering what I did wrong (running too much?) or what I didn't do (specific strength training?) that caused this. There are so many possible answers and combinations of factors involved that there is no way to answer that, but I truly believe a big part is luck. I was talking with my super fast friend Caroline about it, and she had the same thing happen just as suddenly toward the end of her pregnancy. This made me feel so much better about the whole thing, knowing that a strong fast runner like she is could even be debilitated from this. 

It's onto the trainer more often I go for now, which I happily alternate with swimming. My vaccination-induced shoulder bursitis has subsided unless I do backstroke, which I completely dislike now, especially in the outdoor pool with the bright sun and no guidance to keep me from smashing into the ropes. I'm floating well, but so is baby girl, who floats right up into my stomach and ribs more than ever.  I still don't understand when pregnant women loooove swimming. I find it mostly uncomfortable. But relative to weight bearing, it's wonderful. 

Our family reunion was last weekend, and we loved getting to go to Ethelyn's house in Senatobia, where so many summer hours were spent when I was younger. Hunter and cousin Annie had such a great time all weekend, it was hard to come back home.

The game is Annie feeding Hunter various grasses and leaves, and Hunter never refusing. SO hilarious.

  

 Sweet little cousins!

Tomorrow we leave for the beach! One last trip before we are four.