you wanted to know, questions 21-25

When I had my 1,000 mile giveaway, a requirement for entry was to ask me a question. Any question. And I promised to answer them in a series of posts. Here are questions 21-25 ...

Angie Bishop asked, "What do you typically eat during a day to stay fueled up for all these miles?"

Food. Lots of it. I am a big believer in keeping your calorie intake consistent from day to day. So, I try to eat about the same amount of calories each day, regardless of how far I run. For me, the happy number that keeps my weight from changing is somewhere from 2,200 - 2,800 calories (I weigh 150 pounds).

On a typical day, I eat 3 meals, 2 snacks and dessert. I almost never skip dessert. Breakfast is either two servings of cereal with skim milk or a fiber one bar and a chobani. Lunch is some sort of sandwich (PB and Banana, Turkey and Cheese, etc) and a fruit or veggie. Dinner is usually something involving black beans (burgers, burritos, chili). For dinner, we usually have vegetarian options. As a whole, we rarely eat red meat and have chicken/pork/fish/turkey about once a week.

Snacks include but are not limited to pretzels, popcorn, pita chips with hummus, veggies, fruit, cereal, Fiber One bars, and Clif Bars. And dessert - well, there are no rules about dessert.

But all joking aside, I try to eat cleanly. Simply put, food is fuel and I try to get the best I can without being obsessive about it. We don't eat very much meat. Most of my protein comes from beans and dairy sources. I don't do fried foods. I try to limit the amount of processed items. But I NEVER SAY NO to ANYTHING. Moderation is the key.

Angela asked, "Have any of your girls completed in any fun mile runs and if so, did you complete the run with them?"

Once. Dizzle ran a quarter-mile fun run when she was 3. It was so cute to watch and she started so fast that she quickly crashed. I do hope that they will all run more races in the future. But, honestly, I need to sacrifice my race schedule a little to make that happen for them. At this point though, they are consumed by ballet and soccer and have little concern for running. They all tell me that they will run when they are "older."

Pam asked, "I've seen you mention before that you don't ever stretch. a.) Why not? b.) How do you keep from getting injured?"

Um, yeah. About the stretching. It is true that I don't stretch. I just never have in the entire 25 years I have been an athlete. And if I am being frank here, I don't feel the need to stretch. Yes, it might be beneficial to some people, but not stretching does not increase your chance of injury. In fact, stretching improperly can cause injury. So, for me, I just don't see the point.

Personally, I keep from getting injured by listening to my body. If you catch the subtle signs that your body gives you, injuries can often be minimized.

Janet asked, "How do you find the motivation to stick to your running?"

When I initially started running, I found motivation by signing up for a race. I knew that I had to stick to the training because I did not want to be embarrassed on race day. It worked and over time, my pride started to give me the push I needed. I liked to be able to say that I ran a certain distance or finished in a certain time.

Once I realized that the end result was what I was seeking, my motivation became internalized. I have always been a self motivator. I just needed to figure out how to apply that to my running. Basically, I don't like to let people down, including myself. So, I set a goal and find a way to accomplish it. It's a system that works for me, but I'm sure it wouldn't work for everyone.

destinationathlete asked, "What's next? I mean, now that you've hit 1000 miles (which I believe was your goal for the year), what are you going to aim for next?"

The sky's the limit, right? Mileage wise, I will be happy with whatever I finish the year with. I have already hit my goal and now I am just looking to set a mark to beat next year. On the racing front, I am hoping to set PRs in the 8K, the half marathon and the marathon, by the end of the year. I'm feeling strong and I believe that I can do that.