Ice age Trail

This weekend we went hiking on the Ice Age Trail. It was cool and cloudy- perfect weather for a walk.
The older kids loved running up and down all of the rolling hills. They also got to look for the yellow paint on posts and trees that marks the trail. There was even a hand-pump operated drinking fountain along the trail. We brought plenty of water, but it was just extra fun to pump your own water. Even though , according to Maddie "it tastes like a penny".

This is a great place to hike with kids. I love that we have lived here for three years, and we are still finding new fun places to explore.

Valerie's Running Update

I have been training for a marathon October 30th, but I tried to register and it was already full. However I do not care because my training is going great. On Friday I ran 18 miles and I felt great.

I have been running pretty well recently, but it is easy to get off track. To train for this race (which I am not doing) I am running 50 miles a week, and that was difficult at first, but now I am 3 weeks in and I can actually see improvement. Amazingly, regular training results in better running.

To run quickly a person must incorporate speed workouts, hills, and long fast runs. I will probably do that eventually but right now I want to cover distance and the formula for that is simple; Run lots of miles.

I am not doing any intentional speed or resistance runs right now, but I run with my double stroller a lot, and I think that the extra effort counts as something. I have awesome ankles. They are virtually untwistable. Kind of like that special metal in eyeglasses that can be twisted around and not break.

So, this is my little fitness update.