Here is a quick list of the books I've read (semi recently) and roughly the order that I read them in, probably.
The Eat Clean Diet Recharged by Tosca Reno (this is where it all started, got me interested in WHAT I eat)
The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan (pretty fascinating)
In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan (loved this book)
Racing Weight by Matt Fitzgerald (really more for athletes who work our A LOT, lots of talk about nutrient timing...ehhh)
The China Study by T. Colin Campbell (excellent read for the most part, very scientific)
Eat to Live by Dr. Joel Fuhrman (more like The China Study in application for everyone)
The Thrive Diet by Brendan Brazier (currently reading)
There you have it. Have you read any of these? If so, what are your thoughts?
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
menu
Several people have been asking what exactly it is, that I am eating. So here is a recap of the last two days. Don't worry, I won't do this all the time, but at least you'll get an idea of where I'm starting.
Sunday:
Breakfast: fruit/health optimizer smoothie
1/2 frozen banana (peel and slice ripe banana in half, wrap in foil and throw in freezer for at least 24 hours)
3-4 whole frozen strawberries,
small handful frozen blueberries,
1 fresh kiwi (if I happen to have some),
2-3oz simply orange juice,
5-6oz cold water,
1 heaping scoop Vega Health Optimizer (created by Vegan Pro-Iron Man Triathlete Brendan Brazier, this provides protein, fiber, nutrients, enzymes, etc in a whole food blender drink),
2 heaping Tbsp ground flax seed.
(this is actually something I have been doing for breakfast for a while now. I love it. It is such an energizing and filling way to do breakfast, especially since nothing usually sounds "good" but I know I need to eat.)
Snack: (if hungry) usually a veggie. I particularly like a can of french cut green beans heated on the stove top
Lunch: LARGE salad
mixed baby greens,
baby spinach
green and red bell peppers
purple onion
cherry tomatoes
cucumbers
carrots
3/4-1C lentils
salsa
Snack: large apple and handful of raw almonds, 1 piece of valentine's day chocolate
Dinner:
brown rice (with soy sauce sometimes)
ton of steamed broccoli
half of apple (that Addison didn't eat)
(After the kids went to bed, I did drink the last glass of wine I had, you know, so as not to waste... )
MONDAY:
Breakfast- fruit/health optimizer smoothie
no snack, was busy at play group
Lunch- LARGE salad with lentils, PLUS 1 slice of homemade whole wheat bread, with homemade pizza sauce and chopped white onion, red and green bell pepper baked at 425 for 10ish minutes
Snack- apple and almonds, 1 piece of valentine's chocolate
Dinner- brown rice, broccoli, TON of steamed green beans
There you have it. I'm definitely not starving. I do get hungry, but not too bad and if I am hungry I eat a snack. I just make sure it is either a fruit or a veggie. Also, I drink water all day, when I feel thirsty.
Sunday:
Breakfast: fruit/health optimizer smoothie
1/2 frozen banana (peel and slice ripe banana in half, wrap in foil and throw in freezer for at least 24 hours)
3-4 whole frozen strawberries,
small handful frozen blueberries,
1 fresh kiwi (if I happen to have some),
2-3oz simply orange juice,
5-6oz cold water,
1 heaping scoop Vega Health Optimizer (created by Vegan Pro-Iron Man Triathlete Brendan Brazier, this provides protein, fiber, nutrients, enzymes, etc in a whole food blender drink),
2 heaping Tbsp ground flax seed.
(this is actually something I have been doing for breakfast for a while now. I love it. It is such an energizing and filling way to do breakfast, especially since nothing usually sounds "good" but I know I need to eat.)
Snack: (if hungry) usually a veggie. I particularly like a can of french cut green beans heated on the stove top
Lunch: LARGE salad
mixed baby greens,
baby spinach
green and red bell peppers
purple onion
cherry tomatoes
cucumbers
carrots
3/4-1C lentils
salsa
Snack: large apple and handful of raw almonds, 1 piece of valentine's day chocolate
Dinner:
brown rice (with soy sauce sometimes)
ton of steamed broccoli
half of apple (that Addison didn't eat)
(After the kids went to bed, I did drink the last glass of wine I had, you know, so as not to waste... )
MONDAY:
Breakfast- fruit/health optimizer smoothie
no snack, was busy at play group
Lunch- LARGE salad with lentils, PLUS 1 slice of homemade whole wheat bread, with homemade pizza sauce and chopped white onion, red and green bell pepper baked at 425 for 10ish minutes
Snack- apple and almonds, 1 piece of valentine's chocolate
Dinner- brown rice, broccoli, TON of steamed green beans
There you have it. I'm definitely not starving. I do get hungry, but not too bad and if I am hungry I eat a snack. I just make sure it is either a fruit or a veggie. Also, I drink water all day, when I feel thirsty.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
recalculating...
Quick! Re-read the title of this post out loud in your very best GPS computer lady voice! No really! That's totally what I did while typing it!
Recalculate. Reboot. Recalibrate. Call it whatever you'd like, but the idea remains the same. A good old fashioned back yard do-over.
As my knowledge of food and nutrition continues to expand, it seems that I am in need of a little recalculating. The last 29.5 years of my life have probably, as a whole generalization, been tantamount to self inflicted abuse and I really want to hit 30 this summer in not only great shape but optimal health. So how do I get there? The stock answer is: 'eat sensibly and exercise', right? What the heck does that even mean? Sensible. My eating sensibility, if I am to believe one third of the recent books I've read is about as sensible as playing chicken on the highway at night with a broken leg while also wearing an eye patch...and just for kicks, make it approximately half an hour after popping a couple sleepy time Advil....
Seriously.
I had no idea. Of course, all this is based on the assumption that these books are based on solid science and fact. You'll have to decide that for yourself. (I'll list the books I've read in the past year or so in an upcoming post.) I think, for the most part the books make sense and seem pretty grounded. Sure, I disagree with some of the books, but as a whole? Good food for thought. (HA!!)
Okay, so back to the reboot. Starting today (Februrary 13) I am going to do what I will call a 6 Week Reboot. The goal is to do my best to rid my body of the gross stuff, feed it what it needs and let it heal and repair itself. Meanwhile, I also want to just put the authors of those books I've been reading to the test. Do I feel better like they purport? or worse? Do I have more energy? Improved mood? The whole bit.
So. How do I reboot? What should I eat? Or not eat? When? Where? Wearing which socks? Should I switch to brushing my teeth with my left hand? Maybe. Like I mentioned in yesterday's post, I've been mulling this for a while, and as such sort of half started last week. I quit all caffeine and processed sugar (except for my beloved wine) last week. This week alcohol and animal products are hitting the no-no list. So really, the plan of action is a WHOLE FOODS, PLANT BASED DIET.
Of course, I don't expect to be PERFECT at this for 6 weeks. Heck, it's day 1 and I caved and ate one piece of chocolate out of the box that the Hubs gave me for Valentines Day. But, I'm going to stick as close as possible to it. One thing going for me in this little [half]crazy experiment is that I don't have a lot of outside temptation way out here on the Rez. There isn't anywhere worth eating out at and as long as I continue to exercise a reasonable measure of self control at the grocery store, I should be good.
Now before you start typing your angry anti-vegan comment, chew your hamburger and wait. I'm not advocating this diet (yet). I'm TRYING it. The one recurring argument I keep hearing from the friends I have mentioned this to (hypothetically of course) is:
"Well sure MB, it probably is great and a lot healthier, but it's just to hard/unrealistic/impossible/unsustainable for people to really do, you know, in real life."
Maybe it is. That's one of the things I'd really like to know. Is something like this doable for the average person in the US? (I won't go into the fact that what we ARE doing diet wise in the US is obviously not working for us; see our obesity and disease rates. I'll save that for another day.) And really, almost all that I have read says that animal consumption can be as high as 10% of total calories and not seriously begin to affect your risk factors for disease. I mean, come on. I don't know that I'd even want to think about going ALL summer without a hamburger off the grill!! But, for 6 weeks? Okay. I'll give it a shot.
So there it is. A 6 Week Reboot. I plan on scheduling a full physical for after (sorry, can't do two to see any differences, I doubt our insurance would cover that) and will share the results. I will spare you the daily "what I ate today" posts, but may occasionally share. I will write a post this week about what I do plan on eating everyday. Don't worry. I am not jumping into this without having done some research. Besides, I am doing this to IMPROVE my overall health, not hurt it, so if I think the opposite is happening I will jump ship. Promise.
Also, you might have noticed I started a Twitter account yesterday. (@halfcrazyrunner) I will use that as an outlet for the what I ate vs. what I WANT to eat, diet, all things blog outlet and keep my facebook to personal, family, kids, type stuff. So follow me on Twitter to laugh with/at my daily challenges as my system (hopefully) reboots!
Happy (vegetable) eating!
Recalculate. Reboot. Recalibrate. Call it whatever you'd like, but the idea remains the same. A good old fashioned back yard do-over.
As my knowledge of food and nutrition continues to expand, it seems that I am in need of a little recalculating. The last 29.5 years of my life have probably, as a whole generalization, been tantamount to self inflicted abuse and I really want to hit 30 this summer in not only great shape but optimal health. So how do I get there? The stock answer is: 'eat sensibly and exercise', right? What the heck does that even mean? Sensible. My eating sensibility, if I am to believe one third of the recent books I've read is about as sensible as playing chicken on the highway at night with a broken leg while also wearing an eye patch...and just for kicks, make it approximately half an hour after popping a couple sleepy time Advil....
Seriously.
I had no idea. Of course, all this is based on the assumption that these books are based on solid science and fact. You'll have to decide that for yourself. (I'll list the books I've read in the past year or so in an upcoming post.) I think, for the most part the books make sense and seem pretty grounded. Sure, I disagree with some of the books, but as a whole? Good food for thought. (HA!!)
Okay, so back to the reboot. Starting today (Februrary 13) I am going to do what I will call a 6 Week Reboot. The goal is to do my best to rid my body of the gross stuff, feed it what it needs and let it heal and repair itself. Meanwhile, I also want to just put the authors of those books I've been reading to the test. Do I feel better like they purport? or worse? Do I have more energy? Improved mood? The whole bit.
So. How do I reboot? What should I eat? Or not eat? When? Where? Wearing which socks? Should I switch to brushing my teeth with my left hand? Maybe. Like I mentioned in yesterday's post, I've been mulling this for a while, and as such sort of half started last week. I quit all caffeine and processed sugar (except for my beloved wine) last week. This week alcohol and animal products are hitting the no-no list. So really, the plan of action is a WHOLE FOODS, PLANT BASED DIET.
Of course, I don't expect to be PERFECT at this for 6 weeks. Heck, it's day 1 and I caved and ate one piece of chocolate out of the box that the Hubs gave me for Valentines Day. But, I'm going to stick as close as possible to it. One thing going for me in this little [half]crazy experiment is that I don't have a lot of outside temptation way out here on the Rez. There isn't anywhere worth eating out at and as long as I continue to exercise a reasonable measure of self control at the grocery store, I should be good.
Now before you start typing your angry anti-vegan comment, chew your hamburger and wait. I'm not advocating this diet (yet). I'm TRYING it. The one recurring argument I keep hearing from the friends I have mentioned this to (hypothetically of course) is:
"Well sure MB, it probably is great and a lot healthier, but it's just to hard/unrealistic/impossible/unsustainable for people to really do, you know, in real life."
Maybe it is. That's one of the things I'd really like to know. Is something like this doable for the average person in the US? (I won't go into the fact that what we ARE doing diet wise in the US is obviously not working for us; see our obesity and disease rates. I'll save that for another day.) And really, almost all that I have read says that animal consumption can be as high as 10% of total calories and not seriously begin to affect your risk factors for disease. I mean, come on. I don't know that I'd even want to think about going ALL summer without a hamburger off the grill!! But, for 6 weeks? Okay. I'll give it a shot.
So there it is. A 6 Week Reboot. I plan on scheduling a full physical for after (sorry, can't do two to see any differences, I doubt our insurance would cover that) and will share the results. I will spare you the daily "what I ate today" posts, but may occasionally share. I will write a post this week about what I do plan on eating everyday. Don't worry. I am not jumping into this without having done some research. Besides, I am doing this to IMPROVE my overall health, not hurt it, so if I think the opposite is happening I will jump ship. Promise.
Also, you might have noticed I started a Twitter account yesterday. (@halfcrazyrunner) I will use that as an outlet for the what I ate vs. what I WANT to eat, diet, all things blog outlet and keep my facebook to personal, family, kids, type stuff. So follow me on Twitter to laugh with/at my daily challenges as my system (hopefully) reboots!
Happy (vegetable) eating!
Saturday, February 12, 2011
whoops
Hi. Long time no talk, huh? Well, for a short recap here you go:
My running/training pretty well mirrored my blogging leading up to the P.F. Chang's Rock n Roll Half Marathon in Phoenix. Little to none, to be exact. I think I ran maybe 6 times since my last post here. Yikes. Fortunately, I had all the elements in my favor on race day. (Yes, I was [half]crazy enough to still attempt to run a half marathon.) The weather was BEAUTIFUL, I ran in shorts and a t-shirt in January(!), I dropped from 5,600 feet altitude here in Chinle to around 1,100 feet in PHX. This one change probably was what honestly helped the most. And third, I had run 9 miles once and when I finished that I run, I KNEW that I could do 13.1. Friends, it sounds cliche and trite perhaps, but distance running is really truly 75% mental. If you can develop the mental fortitude and discipline to just keep moving, your body will learn to adapt.
I DID IT! Along with several great friends who live here on the compound, I RAN (no walking) my very first half marathon in 2:27:47! I am thrilled and humbled and totally hooked. It was a blast. I have plans laid for more races and hope to continue to share my journey with you. Even more exciting, is that my hubs has said he will run a Half with me in November! I am very much looking forward to sharing that experience with him.
There are lots of posts that I have "written" in my head for you that life has not allowed me to type and publish. So many lessons learned. I apologize for not being more diligent in both my training and in my writing. I do really enjoy sharing this with you. I have only run once since the race and it was a brutal 3 miles. I have many reasons (excuses) as to why I haven't been running or writing, but really what it boils down to is that neither has been a priority lately. I hope to change that, at least as much as is feasible as our lives gear up for another (hopefully) cross country move, back home.
I do want to shift gears and broaden the perspective a bit now that my first goal has been accomplished. I will continue to share my training and running stories with you, but I'd also like to expand this forum to include the nutritional and health journey I'm on. I have been doing lots of reading and my views on nutrition and optimum health have been shaken to the core. I am at a cross roads of sorts and need to decide the path I am going to take. If you'll have me, I'd like to return to "half crazy runner" and hopefully inform and perhaps even entertain you a little as I share glimpses into my half crazy life.
Happy Running!
My running/training pretty well mirrored my blogging leading up to the P.F. Chang's Rock n Roll Half Marathon in Phoenix. Little to none, to be exact. I think I ran maybe 6 times since my last post here. Yikes. Fortunately, I had all the elements in my favor on race day. (Yes, I was [half]crazy enough to still attempt to run a half marathon.) The weather was BEAUTIFUL, I ran in shorts and a t-shirt in January(!), I dropped from 5,600 feet altitude here in Chinle to around 1,100 feet in PHX. This one change probably was what honestly helped the most. And third, I had run 9 miles once and when I finished that I run, I KNEW that I could do 13.1. Friends, it sounds cliche and trite perhaps, but distance running is really truly 75% mental. If you can develop the mental fortitude and discipline to just keep moving, your body will learn to adapt.
I DID IT! Along with several great friends who live here on the compound, I RAN (no walking) my very first half marathon in 2:27:47! I am thrilled and humbled and totally hooked. It was a blast. I have plans laid for more races and hope to continue to share my journey with you. Even more exciting, is that my hubs has said he will run a Half with me in November! I am very much looking forward to sharing that experience with him.
There are lots of posts that I have "written" in my head for you that life has not allowed me to type and publish. So many lessons learned. I apologize for not being more diligent in both my training and in my writing. I do really enjoy sharing this with you. I have only run once since the race and it was a brutal 3 miles. I have many reasons (excuses) as to why I haven't been running or writing, but really what it boils down to is that neither has been a priority lately. I hope to change that, at least as much as is feasible as our lives gear up for another (hopefully) cross country move, back home.
I do want to shift gears and broaden the perspective a bit now that my first goal has been accomplished. I will continue to share my training and running stories with you, but I'd also like to expand this forum to include the nutritional and health journey I'm on. I have been doing lots of reading and my views on nutrition and optimum health have been shaken to the core. I am at a cross roads of sorts and need to decide the path I am going to take. If you'll have me, I'd like to return to "half crazy runner" and hopefully inform and perhaps even entertain you a little as I share glimpses into my half crazy life.
Happy Running!
Thursday, November 25, 2010
technically could have been worse
Do you remember that t-shirt brand that was popular in the mid 90's "No Fear". Each shirt had a different sports themed slogan about winning and playing with NO FEAR. Well, the company hit the height of its popularity when I was in middle school and I LOVED it. I had several different shirts, but my absolute favorite (my Dad can vouch for this) was the one that simply said:
SECOND PLACE IS THE FIRST LOSER.
NO FEAR!
This pretty much sums up how I feel about all competition. Seriously. It doesn't matter whether it is soccer, or baseball or tic tac toe...I want to win. So keeping that little tidbit of personal information in mind, let me tell you a little story..............
Once upon a time, in a land far far away from anything remotely resembling civilization, there lived a girl. This girl was a good, nice girl. She loved her husband and followed him to this place, she loved her children beyond measure, she even shared the bed with her dogs.
One day, this girl got the hair-brained idea to train and run further than she had ever dreamed of. This girl liked the challenge. So as soon as the doctors gave her clearance (she had just given birth and had suffered some medical issues post partum), she began her journey. She ran. And ran. And ran.
The weather began getting cooler. The holidays began creeping up. As Thanksgiving approached some of this girl's friends suggested they all participate in the local Turkey Trot 5K on Thanksgiving morning. She agreed.
The morning of the "Trot" arrived and the girl logged on to the Internet to check the weather.
3 degrees.
That is what the computer told her. It was 3 degrees, and that didn't include the wind chill which was well below zero. Immediately, the girl wanted to turn around and go back to bed...but she didn't. No, she dutifully put on all the warm clothes she could find and went to the race.
It was miserably cold. The race didn't exactly start on time (not that that mattered too much) and by the time it did the poor girl's feet were frozen. They felt like clubs crudely stapled to her ankles.
All of the girl's grandiose ideas of finishing under the 30 minute mark froze along with the snot on her face. She kept moving. People passed her. Her friends were so far ahead, she couldn't even see them. Suddenly it occurred to this poor, frozen, nice girl to look behind her.
Gulp. One person. One. Just one rather portly person trudged behind our wayward heroin. She tried desperately to pick up the pace. Her body barely responded to the plea for speed. Thankfully the finish line came into view.
35:31. Second to LAST. 20 or so seconds ahead of the jolly jogger bringing up the rear.
Relief, frustration, and a small measure of shame washed over her. Bleck. Not the way she had envisioned this little event. The girl went home. Disappointed and...just disappointed. She thawed out, took a shower, and blogged about it.
The only solace she could muster was...well, technically, it could have been worse. I could have been dead last.
The next local race is on December 21. A "Jingle Bells" run. The girl went and hung the flyer on the fridge and vowed to work harder and faster. Our heroin may never win, but she sure as heck isn't coming in last or second to last EVER AGAIN.
Happy Thanksgiving.
SECOND PLACE IS THE FIRST LOSER.
NO FEAR!
This pretty much sums up how I feel about all competition. Seriously. It doesn't matter whether it is soccer, or baseball or tic tac toe...I want to win. So keeping that little tidbit of personal information in mind, let me tell you a little story..............
Once upon a time, in a land far far away from anything remotely resembling civilization, there lived a girl. This girl was a good, nice girl. She loved her husband and followed him to this place, she loved her children beyond measure, she even shared the bed with her dogs.
One day, this girl got the hair-brained idea to train and run further than she had ever dreamed of. This girl liked the challenge. So as soon as the doctors gave her clearance (she had just given birth and had suffered some medical issues post partum), she began her journey. She ran. And ran. And ran.
The weather began getting cooler. The holidays began creeping up. As Thanksgiving approached some of this girl's friends suggested they all participate in the local Turkey Trot 5K on Thanksgiving morning. She agreed.
The morning of the "Trot" arrived and the girl logged on to the Internet to check the weather.
3 degrees.
That is what the computer told her. It was 3 degrees, and that didn't include the wind chill which was well below zero. Immediately, the girl wanted to turn around and go back to bed...but she didn't. No, she dutifully put on all the warm clothes she could find and went to the race.
It was miserably cold. The race didn't exactly start on time (not that that mattered too much) and by the time it did the poor girl's feet were frozen. They felt like clubs crudely stapled to her ankles.
All of the girl's grandiose ideas of finishing under the 30 minute mark froze along with the snot on her face. She kept moving. People passed her. Her friends were so far ahead, she couldn't even see them. Suddenly it occurred to this poor, frozen, nice girl to look behind her.
Gulp. One person. One. Just one rather portly person trudged behind our wayward heroin. She tried desperately to pick up the pace. Her body barely responded to the plea for speed. Thankfully the finish line came into view.
35:31. Second to LAST. 20 or so seconds ahead of the jolly jogger bringing up the rear.
Relief, frustration, and a small measure of shame washed over her. Bleck. Not the way she had envisioned this little event. The girl went home. Disappointed and...just disappointed. She thawed out, took a shower, and blogged about it.
The only solace she could muster was...well, technically, it could have been worse. I could have been dead last.
The next local race is on December 21. A "Jingle Bells" run. The girl went and hung the flyer on the fridge and vowed to work harder and faster. Our heroin may never win, but she sure as heck isn't coming in last or second to last EVER AGAIN.
Happy Thanksgiving.
Monday, November 22, 2010
find a way/shout out
One of my favorite quotes is, "If you really want it, you'll find a way. If you don't, you'll find an excuse." (I have no idea who to attribute this to, if you happen to know, please leave me a comment)
The weather here on the good ol' Rez has been less than ideal. That, coupled with the fact I had to go in to the doctor Friday and get an antibiotic for a sinus infection and have my allergy medicine adjusted, has meant that running outside in freezing rain and sustained winds over 15mph isn't really a bright idea.
Thankfully I have a very generous neighbor across the street, who just HAPPENS to have been a personal trainer in another life and owns a veritable home gym, treadmill included. So yesterday when going out doors for my long run wasn't an option because we were under a winter storm warning I hit the treadmill instead.
For 8 miles.
I am so thankful to have found a way to get the miles in. I had originally decided to ride my bike trainer and at least get in a hard cardio session when I remembered her offer to let me use the treadmill anytime. So a couple of texts and a hour later I was bouncing along as I watched some TV.
Torture. That is what running 8 miles on a treadmill is tantamount to. Torture. The TV helped, but I cannot help but STARE at the little red numbers on the distance read-out that are moving WAY too slow. I tried covering it with my towel, but the towel kept slipping off and I twice had to do a pseudo-ninja leap off to one side as the towel hit the belt and went zipping by.
Wouldn't that have been spectacular? To find myself splattered against my neighbors wall in all my sweaty glory after shooting off the back of a treadmill? Awesome visual, I know. Thankfully I avoided said embarrassment this time.
Anyway, 92 long minutes later (beat last week's 8 miler by 1 minute!) I had 8 miles behind me and was a sweaty mess dying to get outside into the freezing temps to cool off. I had forgotten what it is like to sweat like that since it has pretty much been cool/cold since I started on this journey. It felt good.
So let me encourage you for a minute, if I may. Whatever you are working towards, whatever goal you have set for yourself, FIND A WAY. If it means being a little creative or asking others for help. Do it. It is worth it. I promise. When you come out the other side knowing you found a way and didn't make any excuses you can claim a victory, even if it is a small one.
Speaking of VICTORIES and finding a way, not an excuse, I need to congratulate one of my dearest friends HEATHER! She ran her very first half marathon yesterday and ROCKED it!! (I will post her time after I check with her and make sure that is alright.) I am so stinkin' proud and happy for her. If you are keeping track, Heather is the friend who I ran my first 5K with a couple of years back. She had wanted to run with us in Phoenix, but because of her husband's new and exciting work adventure, it wasn't going to work out. So, she kicked butt and got ready EARLY and ran the Route 66 Half in Tulsa this past weekend! WAY TO GO HEATHER!! (And Heather, May 1, 2011 OKC Memorial Half...you and me girlfriend!)
No excuses people. Not if you REALLY want it. Happy (frigid) Running.
The weather here on the good ol' Rez has been less than ideal. That, coupled with the fact I had to go in to the doctor Friday and get an antibiotic for a sinus infection and have my allergy medicine adjusted, has meant that running outside in freezing rain and sustained winds over 15mph isn't really a bright idea.
Thankfully I have a very generous neighbor across the street, who just HAPPENS to have been a personal trainer in another life and owns a veritable home gym, treadmill included. So yesterday when going out doors for my long run wasn't an option because we were under a winter storm warning I hit the treadmill instead.
For 8 miles.
I am so thankful to have found a way to get the miles in. I had originally decided to ride my bike trainer and at least get in a hard cardio session when I remembered her offer to let me use the treadmill anytime. So a couple of texts and a hour later I was bouncing along as I watched some TV.
Torture. That is what running 8 miles on a treadmill is tantamount to. Torture. The TV helped, but I cannot help but STARE at the little red numbers on the distance read-out that are moving WAY too slow. I tried covering it with my towel, but the towel kept slipping off and I twice had to do a pseudo-ninja leap off to one side as the towel hit the belt and went zipping by.
Wouldn't that have been spectacular? To find myself splattered against my neighbors wall in all my sweaty glory after shooting off the back of a treadmill? Awesome visual, I know. Thankfully I avoided said embarrassment this time.
Anyway, 92 long minutes later (beat last week's 8 miler by 1 minute!) I had 8 miles behind me and was a sweaty mess dying to get outside into the freezing temps to cool off. I had forgotten what it is like to sweat like that since it has pretty much been cool/cold since I started on this journey. It felt good.
So let me encourage you for a minute, if I may. Whatever you are working towards, whatever goal you have set for yourself, FIND A WAY. If it means being a little creative or asking others for help. Do it. It is worth it. I promise. When you come out the other side knowing you found a way and didn't make any excuses you can claim a victory, even if it is a small one.
Speaking of VICTORIES and finding a way, not an excuse, I need to congratulate one of my dearest friends HEATHER! She ran her very first half marathon yesterday and ROCKED it!! (I will post her time after I check with her and make sure that is alright.) I am so stinkin' proud and happy for her. If you are keeping track, Heather is the friend who I ran my first 5K with a couple of years back. She had wanted to run with us in Phoenix, but because of her husband's new and exciting work adventure, it wasn't going to work out. So, she kicked butt and got ready EARLY and ran the Route 66 Half in Tulsa this past weekend! WAY TO GO HEATHER!! (And Heather, May 1, 2011 OKC Memorial Half...you and me girlfriend!)
No excuses people. Not if you REALLY want it. Happy (frigid) Running.
Monday, November 15, 2010
respect.
I owe you all a very sincere apology.
Truly. I am sorry.
I realized as I ran 8 miles yesterday (for the first time!) that I have not respected the distance I am trying to run or those who run it and especially those who run much much further. Asking ones body to run for 13.1 miles, much less 26.2, and having ones body comply is an amazing testament to the One who created us. Those 8 miles HURT. Well miles 5-7 hurt the most, to be specific.
I certainly did not mean to disrespect the feat I am attempting by my audacious goal of breaking 2 hours, but I fear I have. It is hard. Really. Hard.
Careful, however, not to take this apology as my surrender. No. I am still going to run every workout, push every muscle to work harder and faster. I'm just going to respect the distance a little more.
I will be honored, humbled and proud to finish my half marathon regardless of what the clock reads because, really, if you have ever asked your body to push beyond what you think it is capable of you have already achieved something spectacular.
So to my running friends and family, fast or slow. I salute you and stand in awe because running...running is as hard as it is rewarding.
Happy running!
Truly. I am sorry.
I realized as I ran 8 miles yesterday (for the first time!) that I have not respected the distance I am trying to run or those who run it and especially those who run much much further. Asking ones body to run for 13.1 miles, much less 26.2, and having ones body comply is an amazing testament to the One who created us. Those 8 miles HURT. Well miles 5-7 hurt the most, to be specific.
I certainly did not mean to disrespect the feat I am attempting by my audacious goal of breaking 2 hours, but I fear I have. It is hard. Really. Hard.
Careful, however, not to take this apology as my surrender. No. I am still going to run every workout, push every muscle to work harder and faster. I'm just going to respect the distance a little more.
I will be honored, humbled and proud to finish my half marathon regardless of what the clock reads because, really, if you have ever asked your body to push beyond what you think it is capable of you have already achieved something spectacular.
So to my running friends and family, fast or slow. I salute you and stand in awe because running...running is as hard as it is rewarding.
Happy running!
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