The Agony of De' Feet!

Everything is not the same as it was in training last year. My body is just responding differently and my feet are kind of freaking out. I'm walking faster than I did last year, walking in the heat much more than I did last year, and my feet are swelling much sooner than they did last year. I'm trying to stay patient and figure out what will work this year. So far, it seems to be nightly ice baths and sleeping in compression socks that keep my feet from being the stay-puff marshmallow feet! Yep, I'm sporting some sexy compression socks this year. Check them out!



I am still getting the same blisters this year. Go figure.

T Shirts, Get Your T Shirts!

Last year after closing ceremonies, my parents and I stopped for Mexican food and they immediately started talking about "what we are going to do next year." LOL, no rest for the weary! One of the things they talked about most was having a team t-shirt. We also talked about team names and as the months went by, we concluded that the 2009 team should be named "Team Jil" in honor of my aunt. And even though pink is considered "the" color for breast cancer awareness, we decided the shirts should be green.



So after months of discussion, we are proud to officially announce that we will be selling Team Jil shirts. They will be offered in green (in a unisex, regular t-shirt style) and white (available in ladies sizes only with a scoop neck) with pink lettering. The front will be simple. A breast cancer ribbon and our team name. On the back, we are selling advertising space for corporate sponsors. Team Jil T-shirts will sell for $20 a shirt.

I can't tell you what it meant to see the same, faithful cheerleaders out, every day, time after time, cheering us on. The "TAG team", "Hakuna Ma Tata's" (with their 'free hugs' and "Body By Three Day" girls were special stand outs. I know that Team Jil will go along way in encouraging weary walkers with their eye catching shirts and crazy cheers. I can't wait to see Team Jil out there in our matching team shirts!

Hot, Hot, Hot!

It has been HOT HOT HOT in San Diego County these past few weeks. Summer took a little while to come but now we're all living for air conditioning! Last summer, I was not as good about training in the elements. If it got too hot, I just headed for the gym. And I avoided rain at all costs.

The weekend before the three day last year, it was freakishly hot. In the 90's, I believe. Had it been that hot the next weekend, I would have been in trouble. Even though I slow down in the heat, I'm trying to carefully make headway in my walking habits. I join Boob Camp Bekki's group even if it hasn't cooled off by our 6:00 PM call time. Bekki is very careful and keeps us from doing too much (going too long, doing too many hills) in the heat, but even what she plans for us is more than I tried last year.

As for training while walking in the rain, well. It might be awhile before I have to worry that! In the meantime, I know how to keep hydrated (plenty of water plus Gatorade to replenish electrolytes) and it never hurts to pick up a slurpee help cool off after a walk! 7-11's now offer Crystal Light flavored slurpees, all that icy goodness sans the sugar and calories. Woohoo, now THAT is a treat!

Thanks for your support!

Thank you so much to everyone who came out and gave their support Thursday at Fuddruckers! It was a blast to reconnect with old friends. A group of Sandburg PTA moms made it for lunch and then people trickled in and out the rest of the day and evening. I got to see friends from high school and some of the youth I used to work with when I was involved with youth ministry...all grown up now.






Fuddruckers' staff were amazing! Even the regional manager made it out to our event. His boss, one of the VP's, had heard about our fundraiser while surfing online. WOW, did we get the word out! We raised just over $100 in ribbon and raffle ticket sales. Fuddruckers had contributed two VIP meals for two--very nice! I hope we can make our Fuddrucker's fundraiser a yearly tradition!


I enjoyed taking the weekend off of fundraising planning to have some fun, but I kept up with my training all week and weekend like a good 3 day walker! Now it's time to spread the word about our Pat and Oscar's fundraiser coming up in three weeks and our team garage sale that we are holding at the end of August. We're also still working out the details on the team T-shirts. And walking...walking, walking, walking! 3 Day walking is not for the faint of heart!

T Shirts, Garage Sales, Breadsticks and Burgers, Oh My

Whew, there's a lot going on these days with fundraising efforts and now training is starting to kick it up a few notches. Kim and I still finalizing plans for the spaces we'll offer on the back of our team t-shirts (and I'm waffling...should the shirt color be green, or pink, or white?). "Screen Print Guy" (aka the awesome Tom of Precision Screen Prints) wants us to make more box-like shapes than the rectangle shapes I'd originally came up with. I'm starting to plan the "One Woman's Trash is Another Woman's Mammogram" Garage Sale (we're looking for donations!). Pat and Oscars is on for August 13th--Kim is the restaurant-fundraising-contacting QUEEN. There's a lot going on and I'm looking forward to just hanging out tomorrow night, making the rounds through Fuddruckers, thanking everyone who can make it. Will I see you there???

Fuddruckers Rocks!!!

Fuddruckers Rocks!

Kim has been working hard to line up fundraising events at local area restaurants. We are set for our FIRST fundraiser, taking place THIS Thursday 7/16 at the Fuddruckers in Mira Mesa. "Fudds" (as my family affectionately refers to it as) has gone out of their way to accommodate our wishes and requests. They are allowing us to post signs, set up a display board, sell pink ribbons and even donated two VIP meals for 2 for our raffle! You can't beat that for support! Check below for details and hope to see you there!

Raffle tickets for 2 chances to win a VIP Meal for 2 at Fuddruckers Mira Mesa!

Cost: $1 donation to the Breast Cancer 3-Day or free when you buy a pink ribbon pin

Sales location: Back room at Fuddruckers on July 16th at the Team Jil display table

Sales times: Approximately 11:30am-1:00pm and 5pm-7pm

Raffle times: Drawings will be held at about 1:00pm and 7:00pm.

No need to be present to win; we will contact you!

Buy as many raffle tickets as you wish.

Team Shirts! Advertising on the Go!

My family brought up the idea last year of having matching shirts for the cheerleading team. Kim was inspired when someone suggested selling advertising space on the back of team shirts. So we are giving it a go! Team Jil shirts will soon be for pre-sale (we won't have them made until right before the Race for the Cure 5K, which is November 1). She's working on a letter and I've been talking to a local screen print shop willing to give us a deal about the costs and layout options. I can't wait to see how it all comes together and who will sponsor our team. Stay tuned for more information on advertising space and Team Jil shirts to purchase!

New Gear!

I got some new gear this weekend! My feet have been hurting more than they should be and I figured it was because I really needed some new shoes. They run about $100 a pair, yikes! It was time to head over SD Running Institute on Friday. Woohoo, I even got to 'see' Dr. Runco! With much happiness, I found out that they still carry both pairs that I found last summer. Yes! I don't have to try them out, waiting to see how many blisters I sprout! I will get the second pair next month.

The three day recommends that we have two pairs of shoes and suggests that we buy different brands/makes/models. The idea for two is that the shoe takes a beating after a long walk. Giving it time to recover by not walking in it the next day extended the life of the shoe. Also, another type of shoe is going to work your foot slightly differently, hopefully giving the over-worked parts of your feet a little break. I've never done it any differently, but it works for me. I find that I need an insert and I'm very picky about that. It's a very large men's insert cut down. It gives a me a little more support and it kind of...curves around the inside of the heel of my foot where I get blisters the most and I don't seem to blister as badly there. I found a set of them on clearance at SDRI--$10!! That is my kind of deal...especially because I'm going to need to get more of my $7 a pair socks coming up fairly soon.

And it was time to replace my "non-fanny" pack. I saw some at Target...I picked the one I liked the best and will give it a try. It is not as wide as my last pack which will make it harder to reach back to grab the bottles so we'll see what I think after this week's training walks. Happy walking!