Gobble, Gobble, Gobble!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! Most years we head to Utah to spend this holiday in Park City and instead of the big family get together it's just Bill, Alex and I. Bill's parents spend their holiday in Mexico every year and my family is so tiny they don't even bother doing anything. This Thanksgiving we decided to stay home and celebrate the day with our friends and their families. The idea came while having dinner with the McCarthy's and when they said they were just staying home we thought it would be fun to join together with our other friends and celebrate.

There's no better way to start off the day than with a Turkey Trot. Bill, Tom and I did the 4 mile ORRC Turkey Trot that starts at the Portland Zoo and takes you 2 miles downhill then a sharp turn around a cone and 2 miles back up hill ending at the zoo. This is a fun run with over 2000 people including walkers but this was not going to be trot for us, it was a race. I planned on giving this a big effort running as fast as I could. After a good 30 minute warm-up on the trails near the zoo we lined up near the front of the pack. Knowing most folks were just out for a cruise it was best to get up with fast runners. Bill and Tom said they were going after an average of a 9 minute mile while I was going for and average of an 8 minute mile. Off we go and after a quick uphill we headed down hill like rockets giving me a 6:12 min. pace for the first 2 miles. I was working hard pushing my heart rate near threshold on the downhill! At the turn I looked for Tom and Bill but saw only Bill....hmmmm must of missed Tom in the crowd. The climb begins and my legs feel like they are filling with lactic acid and I have to back off as my lungs can't push any harder. I am getting passed and I don't like it! I thought I would have the advantage on the uphill but nope!......I pushed and then I hear, "Good job Ronda" I turn and it's Tom! Uhgggggggg....how could this be....I work, I push, I use my arms and he just gets farther away as he runs uphill which appears to be effortless for him. Mile 3 goes by and the road begins to flatten, I take advantage of the short lived flat reeling Tom in but then the second hill comes. My legs are working but they feel tired, my heart rate is reading 174-178 and I know I am riding a fine line. We finally crest the last hill for the .5 miles remaining. I am gaining on Tom and I use every amount of gravity I could find to close the gap, I think I have him but I am going to wait to pass until I know I can hold the lead. I put it into gear and run by him like the wind, he sees me and sprints so I sprint and we cross the line but he was 3 seconds faster! I feel sick, I look at my HR and it reads 181, Tom is bent over and looks like he's going to be sick, both of us so spent we can't even say good job until the puking feeling subsides. We start to laugh in delerium and I think about kicking him but refrain, there was a lot of banter back and forth but I was pleased and shocked that he took me down. He was pretty happy with himself for doing sub 7:30's! We make our way back to finish banner and Bill comes blazing in at sub 9 minute miles. He is happy and swears by his training method.....DON'T TRAIN! :).

We rush back home to begin party preparations! Friends came, cooked, drank, ate, laughed and talked all day yesterday. It was one of the best Thanksgiving we have had. I have never cooked a turkey so thankfully Lisa came over at 10:00 a.m. and she got the bird prepared and made wonderful stuffing to pack inside. By the mid day I was promoted to Sui Chef! Once the bird was in the oven Lisa rushed home and left me turkey care instructions but soon the bird was rescued by Lisa M.! Micheal, Lisa and the kids came over early to cook the potatoes, hang out and mostly make sure I didn't set the bird on fire. Jim arrived just in time for the first Champagne toast. It was so good to see him and quite a shock to see the beard he grew... wow! Soon the rest of the gang arrived, the Maurer's, the Swanson's, Kris, the Gifford's and Steve stopped by. The turkey was taking so much longer than expected but no one seemed to care as they munched on all the wonderful appetizers, tasted wines and just got caught up. Everyone brought something to contribute to the dinner so the food was yummy! What a great day! We talked about the bismal odds of the lottery next weekend and traditionally we have all gone for a run then catch the results at the end, we called this the WS100 run but this year Micheal re-named it to the Bighorn run! :)
The rest of this week is filled with workouts. Today was a nice 90min. recovery run on the Wildwood with Darin and Tom. Of course Tom and I hashed out our Trot and decided we both ran much faster because Tom turned it into a challenge. He was really satisfied with his effort and how strong he felt. Tomorrow is a 90 min. run with strides. Kris, Tom and I will hit the trails for a nice loop. Sunday is 2.5 hour Z3 run. The miles are creeping up and it feels good.

Mark was sick last Friday for my "pinch-in" so I was pinched, measured and weighed on Wednesday. I lost nearly 1 pound and 1 % loss in body fat with a tiny gain in lean muscle. I was stoked and he said it's almost textbook fat reduction so the plan is working. He is implementing phase 2 and about mid-December we will do away with the 1965 cal days and the base will be 2645 for 4 day's a week and higher for the other 3. The food choices will include more stuff but fruits will be controlled and eaten purposely to promote nutrient absorption. I am excited about the fat loss but even more pleased with the additional strength and quicker recovery.