Mommy To Marathoner

Back in the U.S.A.!!

2006-08-04T10:45:00.000-07:00

We made it back to the U.S. in mid-June, after an unbelievable trip down under - the highlight of which was snorkeling at the Great Barrier Reef, but there were many other wonderful adventures. I was able to keep up a good three-day-a-week running schedule (with increasing long runs on the weekends), plus did lots of walking and hiking. I lost a total of about 8 pounds, and have managed to keep it off since we've been back. And I ran in a 5K in the city we were living in (Wollongong, about an hour south of Sydney). I had hoped to break 30:00, but with two long hills and a wicked head wind in the last mile (which was right along the beach), I just missed, and had to settle for 30:33. But it was still a lot of fun!
The running schedule I'd been following was from Galloway's book, Running: A Year Round Plan. Its main components for the most basic schedule, which I followed, are walking breaks during all runs; and running 3 days a week - a cadence workout for 30 minutes one day; a hill workout for 30 minutes another day; and a long run on the weekend. This worked extremely well for my schedule with work and kids, and I felt like the walking breaks made even the long runs not take a huge toll on my body.
So, I started training for the Adirondack Half-Marathon, which is in mid-September. A couple of weeks ago I did a 10.5-mile long run that was WONDERFUL, so I was feeling great about how the training was going. Unfortunately, a couple of days later, I started feeling a pain at the top of my foot, just behind the middle and fourth toes. Having had a stress fracture once when I was in graduate school, I suspected that's what it was, and stopped running until I could get checked out. This Wednesday I got an X-ray and saw a podiatrist. He also thinks it is probably a stress fracture, although it is not showing up on X-ray yet. So, no running until I see him again in 3 weeks (we leave for vacation on Tuesday for 2 weeks). Which means my half-marathon hopes are probably shot. But at least I can bike! I'll just have to pick another goal in the more distant future for the running. And I need to re-evaluate the Galloway schedule. My podiatrist thinks it would be better for me to run more days a week (4), do a long run every week (Galloway has you switch to every other week once you get above 7 or 8 miles), and not increase the long runs by as much (Galloway has you increase by 1.5 miles once you get above 7-8).
At least I've got a lot of time to think about such things during my 2-week, non-running vacation...
Hope the rest of you are managing to stay injury-free!

Running Upside Down

2006-02-06T01:18:00.000-08:00

The family and I made it safely to Australia - been here almost two weeks now! - and it is AWESOME! In addition to the jet lag, the weather has been quite a lot to adjust to - today it was 88 degrees and humid, and that's not atypical for what we've been experiencing here.
But let me tell you, things around here are SOOO conducive to exercising and eating right! Tons of paths for biking and running, and fresh, whole foods everywhere you look. And portion sizes at restaurants are actually reasonable, instead of 4 times what a healthy person should eat. Every weekday morning I've been running or walking in the Botanic Gardens that are just around the corner from our house. On the weekends, I take a longer run on an awesome path I found that is packed sand, shaded, and runs between a lagoon and the beach. And I'm eating fresh fruits, vegetables, fish, etc. - hardly any processed foods since we've been here. If I don't get fitter and lose some weight while we're here, it will be no one's fault but my own!
My husband and I are doing a blog of our adventures here for friends and family back home (lots of personal details, so I'm not linking to it here), so that's where most of my blogging time is going right now. But I'm trying to check on all of you when I get the chance. Hopefully that will happen more often in the days to come!
G-day!

Stating the Obvious

2005-12-13T10:15:00.000-08:00

I seem to be taking a break from blogging. With the holidays going on, preparations for our Australia trip, etc., I have found myself with precious little time to blog or comment on blogs, though I still read them when I get the chance.
I also have gone through a period of low motivation - for both eating right and exercising. I have been doing both, but sporadically. Something about this time of year, with the cold weather, dark days, and no races immediately on the horizon = I can't find my friend Mo. It has been heartening to see that others are going through the same thing, and encouraging to read the blogs of those who have managed to overcome this natural decline.
So the last few days I've been better about eating and exercising, and am hoping to keep it up through the holidays (including the cookie exchange I'm going to on Sunday, for which I need to bake 6 dozen cookies - yikes!). We leave for Australia on January 22nd, and suddenly I'll need to be in shorts (including running shorts!) and bathing suits again (for the beach!). Now if that isn't motivation, what is?!
Happy holidays to my fellow bloggers!

Yes, I'm a Slacker

2005-09-28T10:17:00.000-07:00

I’ve been terrible about keeping up this blog lately, in part because I feel like I don’t have anything new to say and in part because I haven’t had enough time to do much reading and commenting on others’ blogs. But I thought I’d check in and count myself among the living.
I feel like such a slacker with so many other bloggers taking on new races and challenges at this time of year – Lara’s half-marathon, Susan training for one, Jon training for a marathon, Jack running his second, Mia keeping up a running schedule with a freakin’ NEWBORN?! The list goes on…And I have dropped any racing plans, and am just focusing on exercising for fitness and enjoyment – including some running, but also walk/jog workouts and hiking – with the family, with friends, etc. I am really enjoying myself, and finding it easier to keep in control of my eating than when I’m ramped up on a pre-race running schedule. The racing bug will no doubt hit again, and I fully expect to be starting a more formal training program for running in the spring, but for now I’m treating my running as a good friend that understands if I only call a few times a week instead of almost every day. ;-)
I mentioned in my last post that we’re going to Australia in February – my husband is leading a study group there, and we’ll be living right on the coast in New South Wales for 4-1/2 months. So we’ll be leaving the dead of winter in central New York and going to a place where it will be summer. Should be a great adventure! And I’ve already learned of a running club there, called the Kembla Joggers, that sounds like a great group and also sponsors some races, training runs, etc. So that is enough to keep me motivated to at least maintain a semblance of running conditioning without actually training for a race in the near future.
Happy running and racing to everyone! I’m enjoying the vicarious experience of reading about all your training and racing adventures.

Back to the routine...

2005-09-09T09:50:00.000-07:00

The kids, hubby, and I are all back to our normal school/work schedules, and things are busy but going well. We've been having some unbelievably beautiful weather around here, and fall - my favorite season in central NY - is in the air.
I have decided that the half-marathon ain't gonna happen for me, and I'm okay with that. In the last couple weeks before school started, we had tons of family activities together, and lots of other things going on, and I was starting to get super-stressed about trying to get my long runs in (I had gone up to 8 miles). Then I realized that it made no sense for my RECREATION to become yet another source of stress for me! In addition to the fact that I wanted to spend as much time as possible with the kiddos before they headed back to their full school schedules. Those long runs, and recovery from them, sure do take up a good chunk of a day, at least for me! And I realize I could still run the race, and probably still finish even with what I've done so far, but I don't have any need to prove that to myself, and I'd rather run a race like that when it can seem like a real achievement rather than just something to struggle through so I can say I did it. When I ran a half-marathon before getting pregnant with my daughter, I had really trained well for it over a period of months and was in excellent physical condition, and I felt so great about it - I want to feel the same way the next time I run one!
Part of what threw off my running schedule over the last couple of months was the fact that, since my daughter switched to her "big girl" bed, she comes in to get me in the middle of the night and wants me to sleep the rest of the night with her (luckily, we got her a full-size bed!). I know I should be a hard-ass about it, and make her sleep by herself, but damn, I know how fast their growing up goes by, and it won't be too long before she doesn't want to be seen with me, let alone have me sleep half the night with her! So my early-morning runs went by the wayside for awhile, but I am now able to sneak out early without waking her up and still get them in. Those early-morning runs really help me keep consistent with my schedule, so I'm very psyched to be getting back to them.
I'm re-evaluating what I should be doing with my running at this point. Despite doing a lot more running this year, my weight has stayed roughly the same, so I'm at the point of wanting to use my running more as a fitness/weight loss tool instead of just an end in itself. I'm considering heart-rate monitor training toward this goal, as well as walking breaks during my long runs and walking on days I don't run. If I find that all doesn't keep me focused enough, I'll pick a race somewhere out in the distance and start training for it. And I hope by this time next year to be training for at least a half-marathon, if not a marathon! We head to Australia in February for 4-1/2 months, so I'll have a short winter this year!
Loved reading about the New Haven RBF meetup on various blogs - sounds like a blast!

Still here...

2005-08-21T21:05:00.000-07:00

But still finding little time to blog read or post. In the past 2-3 weeks I've had 2 trips to D.C. for work (I ran on the mall - my old stomping grounds! - during the second trip), a family camping trip, and many other work- and family-related things going on. We're off on another short camping trip this week, then my husband and I start teaching for the semester the following week (he's a full-time prof., I teach one course per semester as an adjunct prof. in addition to my other part-time telecommuting job), then the kiddos are back to their normal preschool/school schedule the week after Labor Day. I am not getting in all the runs that I'd like to for my half-marathon training, but still trying to keep up a semblance of a running schedule. The next couple of weeks will tell whether it's realistic for me to do the HM or not. I hope so!

Last-Minute 5-Mile Race

2005-08-03T13:23:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, almost on the spur of the moment, I decided to run in a 5-mile race here in my hometown. I had originally planned not to do it, since I'd been having calf tightness problems, in addition to the fact that I felt self-conscious about running in front of people I actually KNOW. But the weather was so beautiful heading into the weekend, and my calf was feeling much better after a few days of going down to the track for flat runs, so I said what the heck, and decided to go for it.
As Lara has described in her blog, it was a rolling course, particularly after the first mile. I live in a hillier part of town than this race was on, so the hills were not too bad for me, but I'm sure they were very noticeable to anyone who trains primarily on the flats. Anyway, I went out feeling pretty strong, waving to friends as we went through town, and was a little worried when that first flat mile went by in 10:25 - a sinking fear that I had started out too fast! Somehow, though, it just turned out to be one of those days when I was feeling pretty comfortable, so I was able to keep pushing it for the rest of the race. It was a LOONG straight shot to the finish line at the end of mile 5, and I was completely by myself at that point, but then towards the very end I saw and heard my family and some friends cheering for me, and that helped me finish with a bit of a kick. Overall time was 53:10. I can't seem to find a pace chart that goes higher than 10 minutes per mile pace, and I'm too lazy to do the math, so I'm not sure exactly what that works out to, but overall I was pleased. And my kids were excited to see me do it, and were having races with each other for the rest of the day, so it was nice to see that, too!
It's funny the things non-runners say to you, though. I was wandering around the farmers' market with my family after the race, and had a couple of people come up and ask weird things about the race. The strangest was one older guy who came up and said, "Well, did you win or lose?" I told him I certainly didn't win, and he said, "Well, what place did you come in?" I said I had no idea, that I had just run it for fun, and he looked at me like I was crazy and seemed a bit exasperated. I mean, sheesh! Oh, and speaking of winning and losing, my fast neighbor's husband (otherwise known as my REALLY fast neighbor) finished among the top 5 while pushing their twin toddlers in a babyjogger! He averaged sub-7-min. miles, including retracing his steps once or twice to retrieve one of the boys' dropped water bottles! Some people...
I haven't run since then (trip to D.C. yesterday for work got in the way) but will get out again tomorrow. And tonight or tomorrow I hope to spare a few minutes to catch up on blog-reading!

Laying Low for Awhile

2005-07-19T13:08:00.000-07:00

We had a great weekend camping, but I have come to the conclusion that, with the kids home a lot during the summer and some pressing work projects going on - not to mention trying to keep up a running schedule! - I have precious little time to blog and, more distressing, to read and comment on others' blogs. I am trying to fit in the reading when I can, but my time for that is very sporadic. So I think I'm going to be blogging pretty infrequently between at least now and the fall, though hopefully I can pick back up again more regularly then.
I'm working hard on the healthy eating side of things, and also planning out a training schedule for my fall half-marathon. My main obstacle these days is my daughter, who's been waking up by 5:30 or so every morning, making my early morning exercise very difficult to get in! We're experimenting with later bedtimes for her, etc., since I have found that the early morning workouts are what enable me to keep up a running schedule.
Well, the kids are shouting for me again - gotta go!

Goin' Camping

2005-07-14T20:30:00.000-07:00

We're headed off tomorrow to camp with 5 other families for the weekend at a beautiful state park near the Finger Lakes. Don't know how the schedule will pan out, but I'm definitely packing the running clothes - might be my only moments alone! Hope everyone has a great running/racing weekend.

Onward and Downward

2005-07-13T07:44:00.000-07:00

So, this morning I sent in my registration for this half-marathon! It's supposed to be absolutely beautiful, and the family is up for spending a weekend in the Adirondacks - who wouldn't be?! The full marathon course is supposedly wickedly hilly, but the half-marathon is mostly flat with a few hill sections (which I like!).
My main focus now, in addition to the training, is shedding some weight (hence the "downward" part of my title). Inspired in part by wanting to run a bit faster! I'm convinced I'll never be a super-fast runner - I think I have 100% slow-twitch muscles - but I would like to test my limits and find out just how fast I CAN run. I like the idea of pushing myself to my own limits and seeing what I can make my body do.
I have been feeling great since the Boilermaker - no soreness, no extra fatigue - so I don't think I need to wait too long before picking up again in earnest on a training schedule. My first post-race run was scheduled for this morning, but was thwarted by both my early-waking 3-year-old and some wicked thunderstorms that came through. But either later today or tomorrow morning I'll be out there again!

What a Blast!

2005-07-11T11:08:00.000-07:00

If I had to use one word to sum up my Boilermaker experience, it would be: FUN!!! Lots of spectators, lots of great music, enjoying the challenging course, finishing comfortably, and sharing the experience with friends.
My husband stayed home with the kids since we figured things would be too crazy to bring them. As I mentioned in a previous post, I had hoped to see both Lara and another friend of mine from high school who was running the race. As I was driving there EARLY Sunday morning, I started worrying that maybe I wouldn't find either of them, and would be doing the whole thing by myself. But, remarkably, I ran into both of them before the race - it was great to see some friendly faces!
Lara and I were in the same starting corral (the last one!) and chatted while we were waiting for the beginning of the race. She seemed cool as a cucumber - I, on the other hand, was a bit of a Chatty Cathy, so I was hoping I wasn't bothering her too much! I jogged around a little, since I was worried about my tight left calf, but it seemed okay. Once the cannon was fired for the start of the race, it took us a little over 10 minutes to get to the start line. It was funny to be shuffling along towards the start and hear the announcers say the leaders were at mile 1, mile 2...(the winner finished in just over 43 minutes!).
The first few miles just felt like a relaxed training run. That part of the course wasn't too hilly, but there was a very strong headwind - it felt great from the cooling aspect, but definitely slowed down the pace; those miles were all right around 12 minutes for me.
After that, we headed into the hillier 4th mile. When I got on the hills, I really felt like it was worth it to have done so much hill training around where I live - I felt strong, and passed quite a few people. I was conservative on the long downhill in the 5th mile, since I think cruising down that one on the development run is what spanked my calves in the first place. After that, we came down on to more major streets with lots of spectators as well as some sprinklers and showers - those felt SOOO good! There were lots of funny signs that people were holding up, many of them having to do with how many miles were left until FREE BEER. I felt really happy during miles 6-8, and even raised up my hands and waved them back and forth when we passed a radio station truck playing "Celebration," and encouraging everyone to do that.
The 9th full mile was LOOONG, with the sun blazing on us and a long gradual uphill, and that's where I saw a number of people off on the side being treated by medical personnel. But once I got to the last .3, it was downhill from there (both literally and figuratively), and I knew I had done it!
Now, here's the best part: Lara and I had been running together on and off during the race, and alternating who was in front at different times. I had lost track of her for awhile during that last 2 miles or so. Just as I got to about a tenth of a mile from the finish, she pulled up next to me and said something along the lines of "Let's rock and roll!" So we turned it on and went across the finish line together! What an awesome way to end it!
Afterward, I got to meet her husband and son, and her husband took some pictures of us. He is the friendliest guy in the world, and cute, too! I also met up with my high school friend, and we got to spend some time during the post-race party getting caught up on things and discussing the race.
My only complaint about the post-race party was that it was VERY beer-oriented. I like a refreshing beer as much as the next person, but after 9+ miles of running and with my stomach being a tad queasy from the effort, after a few sips of beer I really wanted to find some water. My friend and I walked all around the party area, passing about 15 beer tables, and I could NOT find water! I ended up getting some lemon-lime soda, but it wasn't the same.
Anyway, I came home, took a shower and a rest, and then my family and I went to a neighbors' house for a cookout and volleyball party. A lot of my neighbors were asking me about the race, so that was fun.
I'll plan to be back next year for it! And Lara and I discussed the fact that we knew the RBF-er's were with us, so THANKS!!!

2:00:15:21 and counting!

2005-07-09T07:43:00.000-07:00

The Boilermaker web page has a clock counting down to race start time, and I just copied the time it was showing into my title - it's getting close!
I am feeling okay about things, except that my left calf is a little tight, which I discovered when I went out for a slow 2-mile run early yesterday morning. My calves were VERY tight for a few days after that 10K development run I did a week and a half ago - I think I didn't walk enough when I was done. And the tightness seems to be lingering. So I will be doing some walking and gentle stretching today, and hope that my slow 15-20-minute journey to the start line tomorrow will help loosen things up enough that it won't bother me during the race.
I decided not to really set any time goals for this race; finishing should be enough! And I keep reminding myself that 9.3 MILES IS A LONG WAY! - i.e., I need to be very conservative until well past the first half of the race. And if my calves are yelling at me, I'll be conservative throughout the race, since I want to be able to keep up a running schedule even after it's over!
One thing that's cool is that I'm sharing this experience with one of my oldest friends (one I've known since high school, who lives out of the country but is back in the area for a visit and decided to run the Boilermaker) and one of my newest friends (Lara!). I hope the crowds will allow for me to see both of them at some point!
Best of luck to anyone else racing this weekend!

I've Been Tagged!

2005-07-07T14:25:00.000-07:00

I've been tagged by both Jack and Lara on this one:

1. What is your favorite long run pace?
Somewhere in the 11:30-12 minute per mile range.

2. What is your favorite (or typical) pre-run meal?
Depending on how long I'm going, either a banana or a whole-wheat bagel with natural peanut butter. And coffee, of course.

3. What was the distance of your first ever, official race? (This isn't a
contest, I'm just curious).
5K. And the thing my husband shakes his head about to this day is that I "hardwared" in that race. There were only 3 women in my age group, and I came in second and got a trophy!

4. Do you typically run in groups or run alone?
Alone.

5. Name one or two NEW running experiences (occurring within the past year),
that you have grown the most from.
1) Early morning running - one of those "nevers" that I'm now enjoying! 2) Writing this blog and using it and other blogs as inspiration for running!

6. What is your least favorite structure to run on/over?
Probably gravel-covered hills.

And since almost everyone I would probably think to tag has already been tagged, I'll leave it at that!

Whole Lotta Tapering Goin' On

2005-07-06T09:44:00.000-07:00

Well, I've run exactly once (on Saturday, the 3-mile hilly loop from my house) since the 10K development run last Wednesday. I was planning to run this morning, but was thwarted by my 3-year-old, who just recently moved into her "big girl bed", so can now do things like come into our room at 5 a.m. saying she can't sleep. Luckily, we got her a full-size bed, so I just brought her back to her room and we both fell back asleep. But no run.
My head is still sort of spinning from having that unexpected week out of town, followed by hosting family at our house over the 4th of July weekend (lots of fun, but also lots of planning, cooking, entertaining, etc.). I feel like I'm barely keeping my head above water in terms of catching up on day-to-day work and other responsibilities, so I don't want to push things too much with the running.
I was going to worry about it, by my husband was pointing out to me last night that there's really nothing I can do this week that would improve my performance in the Boilermaker, but I COULD screw things up by trying to do too much and being exhausted and/or sick by Sunday. Sounded logical to me! So I'll probably try to get just one more easy run in between now and then, to remind my legs how to move.
In the meantime, I'm trying to figure out a post-Boilermaker training schedule. I like the idea of trying to run a half-marathon in the fall some time, but first want to have some recovery and focus more on the eating side of things. So I'm not sure exactly how to plan my running.
What do YOU do between races?
Happy running!

Running with Lara!

2005-06-30T13:24:00.000-07:00

I had a wonderful time last night, meeting Lara and running with her in the 10K development run in Utica! She is just as wonderful and easy to talk to as you would imagine by reading her blog. And we ran the whole way together, which was great and gave us a chance to talk (although, by unspoken agreement, we did have a few "no conversation zones" when we were working hard!). Let me tell you, that girl can FLY on the flats and downhills, and has an amazing finishing kick!
The run itself was just what I was hoping for in terms of Boilermaker prep. The hills were not as steep as what I train on around my house, but they were plentiful and long. And the atmosphere was like that of a race, with lots of people, water stops, mile markers, etc. Since I haven't raced in ages, it was good to get the feel for that again. The weather was wickedly humid - I almost think the first 1/4 mile was the hardest for me, just getting into the groove and getting a good sweat going.
We averaged an 11:38 pace, including a 9:41 pace for the last full mile - we passed quite a number of people in the last mile and a half, and didn't get passed by anyone, so it was really nice to have such a strong finish.
I feel much more confident about the Boilermaker now, and am very much looking forward to seeing and running with Lara again!

Been Away for Awhile...

2005-06-29T15:49:00.000-07:00

From blogging, blog-reading, and basically everything else due to a death in my husband's family (his aunt), for which we drove to Iowa and back for the services. Two days in the car with 2 kids, 3 days in Iowa, 2 days again in the car. We are glad we went, and saw lots of family, but it certainly was exhausting! Luckily I was able to squeeze in both a 5-mile and 10-mile run in the sweltering heat and humidity, so I'm not TOO far off my Boilermaker schedule. And tonight I meet up with Lara to try the 10K development run that covers some of the Boilermaker course. I'm looking forward to lots of fun, lots of hills, and lots of sweat!
I'll be back to my regularly-scheduled blogging and blog-reading as soon as I can convince someone to take my kids for a week... ;-)

Good Running, Bad Eating

2005-06-20T09:10:00.000-07:00

I ran a total of 19 miles last week, and everything went well. After my Big Hill Run on Wednesday, I took two days off. Yesterday I did a really fun 5-mile run near my Mom's house (we visited her for the weekend). The roads near her house are flat, shaded, and low-traffic, and they connect to a great running/biking trail. I clipped off those 5 miles at an average pace of 10:41, and it didn't feel hard at all. Now, if I could only flatten out the Boilermaker route...
On the down side, I'm still struggling with trying to eat lightly enough to lose any weight. I splurged too much over the weekend at my Mom's, which always happens - she keeps lots of sweets around! It's disheartening to see how little the scale has budged since the beginning of the year, even though I am exercising a LOT more regularly. I just need to keep the eating aspect under control - I understand that I'm building muscle, and that accounts somewhat for not losing weight, but I feel my healthiest and best when I'm about 20 pounds lighter than I am now, so I'd really like to start heading in that direction. I think after the Boilermaker, I'll focus on weight loss a bit more for a month or so, just keeping my running at a good maintenance level, before picking another race to shoot for. Hopefully, once I establish the good habits, I can keep them up even when my mileage increases.
Hope everyone had a good running weekend!

Tackling the Hills

2005-06-16T20:04:00.000-07:00

As part of my Boilermaker training, I've been doing quite a bit of hill work, along with some long runs that had built to 8 miles as of last weekend. However, I wanted to have a run that combined distance and lots of hills, just to know I could do it. So I had scheduled a 9-mile hilly run for this weekend, but changed it to this morning since we've decided to go out of town this weekend.
Since I really wanted to focus on distance and hills and not worry too much about pace, I decided to walk for one minute after each mile (good prep for starting running again after walking at water stops, too!). And when I was running up the hills, I just switched the screen on my Garmin to show the grade of the hill but not my pace. Let me say I definitely picked some wicked hills for this one. The hardest was at about the 2 mile point - a hill almost half a mile long (.43 according to the Garmin), and quite steep almost the whole time. Whew! And the worst part was that, just as the real climbing began, the road changed from asphalt to sloppy gravel (it was raining at the time). Luckily it changed back to asphalt before I got to the top, and finishing it on asphalt was MUCH easier; I was surprised at the difference it made. Around the 3-mile point, it started POURING rain, which actually felt good! I headed down a dirt road that goes along some beautiful wooded areas for about half a mile, then turned around. That part was really more like a trail run, since the road was basically mud and rocks. Then I looped around back down the other side of the hill I had come up, went on rolling hills for awhile, and finally up another monster hill back to the area of my house, where I rounded out the run to 9 miles in my neighborhood. Total time was around 1 hr. 56 min. (12:56 average pace).
Though it was a very challenging run, and I'm plenty fatigued now, I really felt TOUGH out there, scrambling up those hills in the pouring rain. Bring it on, I say!
One thing the last two long runs have taught me: I probably need to take in some more nutrition during those runs (and the race). For each, I've only consumed 24 oz. of Gatorade during the run, and I've had a few times when I felt like my leg muscles, especially calves and hamstrings, were on the verge of cramping up. I got some Power Gels today, and will try one of them on my next long one.

Deerflies Are The Enemy

2005-06-13T12:05:00.000-07:00

The weather has been unbelievably humid the last few days, so I've gotten a couple of runs in that should be good Boilermaker Prep - 2.5 miles on Saturday morning (11:47 pace, including hills), and 8 miles yesterday (Sunday) morning (11:38 pace, mostly flat).
During my long run, it was in the 80's and 97% humidity. The only saving grace was that it was overcast for most of the run, so I didn't have the hot sun beating directly down on me. But even in the first half mile or so, I was feeling like I was running with a wet washcloth over my face! And around mile 3, when I was on a road that runs alongside a canal, I got swarmed by several deerflies, which was a huge pain in the neck. Luckily I had a hat on, since the head area is what they tend to go for, but it's just a hassle to hear them buzzing around and see them fly in front of you each time they circle around. I went past a field that normally has grazing cows, hoping I'd lose the flies there, but, alas, NO COWS. So I was basically the only fly bait for miles around. It got a little better after about 15 minutes of this, but then I stopped to pick up the large Gatorade bottle (with squirt top) that I had stashed along the side of the road before I began my run. After I took a few sips and started up again, I realized what a genius I was - hey, why don't I slow down and carry a bottle of sugared water, surely THAT will keep the flies away - NOT! I stashed the bottle again (for later pickup) after drinking most of its 24 oz. over the course of a mile, and didn't have too many fly problems after that.
The sun came out during the last couple of miles of the run, and I have to admit I had thoughts along the lines of: 1) What sadist running club schedules a 15K race for JULY?; and 2) what masochist registers for said race?
Overall, though, I'm happy to have that run under my belt, and feel like my training's going reasonably well. During the next few weeks, I'm going to experiment with the best things to wear and eat during the race - nothing new for race day!
Congrats to this weekend's racers!

Yay for Fresh Produce!

2005-06-08T10:14:00.000-07:00

I've been doing a little better keeping the appetite monster under control this week. One thing that helps is all the fresh and delicious (and healthy!) produce around this time of year. My husband and I bought a subscription this year to get weekly produce during the growing season from a local organic farm. It started last week, and we got a box of asparagus, mesclun mix, spinach, carrots, etc. - all delicious. And I get to pick up another box today!
I'm still chugging along on my running schedule, and I really look forward now to my early morning runs. I'm also starting to wear a pedometer during the day, trying to get more than 10,000 steps a day, in addition to my 5 runs/week. I haven't had to really work to get over the 10,000, but it does make me more conscious of decisions like where to park at the grocery store, etc.
One of my good friends is going to become our next-door neighbor (along with her family), in a matter of weeks, so I'm excited about that. She was telling me yesterday that she went out and ran a mile on the local track the other day, because she'd like to be able to go out and walk or run with me sometimes, but doesn't want to bite the dust after a quarter mile. It's funny, because she's quite slim, and if you looked at the two of us, you would probably not guess that I am the one in better physical condition. I need these reminders sometimes that it's more important to focus on fitness than weight!

HHHH Long Run

2005-06-05T17:19:00.000-07:00

Hot, humid, hazy, and (somewhat) hilly. Pretty much sums up my 7-mile long run this morning. As I hoped, it did serve the purpose of probably being good prep for the Boilermaker. But boy, was it hot!
Normally when I do my morning long runs, I head to a nearby town where it is almost perfectly flat, and I go early in the morning. I couldn't do either of those today - the nearby town was having a major antiques festival, meaning lots of traffic, and my husband had an ambulance call this morning (he's a volunteer medic) with a one-hour transport each way to a trauma center, so I didn't get to start my run until right about 10:30. So, I just headed into the village that I live outside of, which is relatively flat, but on the outskirts has some medium hills. Since it was so hot and humid, I decided to choose a course that would allow me to pass by my car a couple of times for water.
Overall, the run went fine, but I probably went a bit too fast. The problem was that I started right in the village, where there were lots of people around heading to church (I'm sure they thought I was a heathen - hey, another H!), and in this town the odds of not seeing someone you know in that situation are almost zero. And for some reason I always run a little faster when I see people I know, or think I'm going to (am I the only one who does this?). Sure enough, I passed by my son's first grade teacher heading to church within about the first 2 minutes. I was feeling strong, and did my first 2 miles at a sub-11:00 pace, which is fast for me. Encountering hills along the way, including a killer one (about 12% grade) at about the half-way point, slowed me down a bit, but I still ended up averaging 11:22 pace for the whole run (just under 1:20 total time). I felt pretty zonked during the last couple of miles, but luckily recovered pretty quickly with some water and a banana I'd brought in the car. But while I was out there, it was hard to imagine pressing even harder, and for longer, in a month for the Boilermaker. I am definitely hoping that 1) I get more used to heat and humidity between now and then; and 2) the crowd support makes a big difference!

I'm official!

2005-06-03T11:09:00.000-07:00

It took a long time (like 10 days) for the Boilermaker folks to update their registration list from those who mailed it in, but I'm finally on the list! Somehow I find that motivating, like if I don't do the race now, it will be embarrassing to have my name as registered but not among the finishers (since I know so many people are tracking my name between the two lists - yeah, right!).
I've been keeping up fine with my schedule for this week - 2 miles on Tuesday (12:15 pace), 3 hilly miles Wednesday (12:31 pace), 2 miles yesterday (11:27 pace). It's supposed to be very hot and humid this weekend, which will be good for my 7-mile long run on Sunday, since apparently conditions for the Boilermaker are often hot and humid. So when I'm suffering out there on Sunday, I'll just keep telling myself it's good prep for the race...
Happy weekend running!

Good weekend, stiff muscles

2005-05-31T08:51:00.000-07:00

We had a nice weekend just at home, and all 4 of us (me, hubby, 2 kids) spent a lot of time outside weeding and mulching the landscaped area in front of our house. It looks great now, but I must say gardening uses muscles that are a lot different than running! I had a great 6-mile run on the flats on Sunday (11:31 pace), but when I went out for my 2-mile run this morning, my leg muscles were definitely stiff, especially the calf and hamstring areas of my left leg. So I took it slowly (12:15 pace), and did some walking and gentle stretching afterward. I will make sure I'm very attuned to those muscles over the next few days- I do not want to be reckless and get injured!
I've been very happy with the running schedule I've been keeping up lately, but I must say it is also driving my appetite up. I don't want to "diet" in the strict sense of the term while also preparing for a 15K race, but I do need to pay more attention to what I'm consuming - mainly portion size, since most of what I eat is pretty healthy. Back to tracking calories on dietwatch for a few days, just to remind myself of a reasonable intake level...

Unplanned Pace Workout

2005-05-25T08:37:00.000-07:00

This morning I set out to do the 3-mile hilly route on the roads near my house. Just as I was finishing the first mile, which ends up a long but somewhat gradual hill, I saw my neighbor - the "real runner" - coming down her driveway about to start her run. As soon as she saw me, she said, "Do you want to run together?" I started telling her I'm very slow and didn't want to slow her down, but she just said, "Well, let's try it, and we can always split up." So I proceeded to do the last 2 miles of my run with her. While I'm sure it was a slow run for her, it was a significantly faster pace than I usually have on that route. Last week I did the same route at a 12:53 pace, and this morning, including a slow first mile, my average pace was 11:38, including some pretty challenging hills! I figure that, while I wouldn't want to do it every day, a run like that is good prep for the Boilermaker, which has quite the hilly first half.
And I must say, it was fun to have someone to chat with, and made the run go by even faster. I don't live close enough to a running club to do scheduled group runs. There were a couple of times going up hills that I was feeling quite winded, but she would be in the middle of telling me a story, and I didn't want to be rude and drop off, so I stuck with it! She has run the Boilermaker several times, so was able to fill me in on some things about that, too - she said it's pretty crowded, but the support along the way from spectators is great, and the second half of the race feels really good after lots of climbs in the first half.
So overall, running with her was a good experience! It also inspired me more about losing weight - I realized that if I had strapped a 25-lb. backpack on her back, she might have been having the same difficulty on the hills that I was. I won't ever have the type of runner's body that she does, but I know from experience that it certainly is easier to run with a little less extra weight on board!

Lost Long Run

2005-05-23T10:54:00.000-07:00

Well, I completed 4 out of 5 of my scheduled runs for my first week of Boilermaker training, but unfortunately the one I missed was my long run scheduled for yesterday (6 miles). We had a busy weekend, with my in-laws visiting and a party for my husband on Friday afternoon, which I had spent a lot of time planning and worrying about, since it was a surprise (luckily, everything went well!). In the middle of the night on Saturday (actually 3 a.m. Sunday), my 3-year-old daughter, who had had mild cold symptoms for a couple of days, woke up having severe difficulty breathing. My husband and I rushed her to the local ER, where she was diagnosed with croup. They gave her a dose of steroids and told us to crack her window open for the rest of the night. She is doing fine now, but between that and getting the in-laws to the airport, my long run fell by the wayside yesterday (at least I made up for it by eating lots of empty calories =:-( - darn sleep deprivation!).
I thought about how to handle missing that run, and decided to just chalk it up to one of those "life intervenes" moments, spend today getting back on track with eating, and proceed with my schedule for the week, culminating in a 6-mile run this coming Sunday. I should still be able to get in the mileage I need for my training schedule.
So my plan is to continue running 5 days a week -including 3 early morning runs on weekdays and a long run on Sundays - with the understanding that sometimes, because of incidents like this, it will be 4 days instead of 5.
I am really starting to look forward to the Boilermaker! I even get to meet a fellow blogger! Keeping my fingers crossed to not get injured in the meantime...

In Training!

2005-05-19T09:32:00.000-07:00

I think I have worked out a decent training schedule for the Boilermaker, and have started this week. I'm basically using a cross between a half-marathon schedule that I have used successfully before, and a 10K schedule. This puts me at about the right place given where I am at this point in my running, plus gives me a chance for a light (rest) week between now and the race.
So I've run three mornings in a row this week: 2 miles on Tuesday (12:17 pace), 3 miles yesterday (12:53 pace, on a hilly route and with two 1-minute walking breaks included), and 2 miles this morning (12:08 pace). I think that running on 3 mornings a week instead of two will really help me get into the early-morning exercise habit. With the weather we've been having, and the opportunity to see a gorgeous sunrise at 5:15 a.m., it hasn't been hard at all getting up this week! And it really helps to have something specific to train for. Now I just need to keep my fingers crossed and hope I don't get injured in the meantime....

Fast Run Yesterday!

2005-05-17T09:21:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I was on a horse at the time, but who's counting? As someone who loves horses, I am lucky to have a friend who has two of them and often invites me to ride with her. What a great feeling, cantering across a beautiful field on an animal for whom running is such a natural thing.
My muscles were a bit stiff this morning - riding definitely uses some different muscles than running - so it felt good to get out for an easy 2-mile run and stretch them a bit.
I bit the bullet and sent in my registration yesterday for the Boilermaker 15K in July. I've been wanting to up my training and have something to focus on to motivate me, so I'm psyched about it. It's supposedly one of the best races in the country, and not too far from where I live! Given my current level of training, I will just focus on finishing comfortably, rather than setting any time goals. But my general approach will include running more days per week and gradually spacing out the walking breaks (e.g., I didn't take any on my 2-miler this morning).
The in-laws are coming to town tomorrow, so I'd better go get some things in order...

Comparisons

2005-05-12T09:41:00.000-07:00

This morning I went out for a run around 5:30 a.m., as I've been doing twice a week for quite awhile now (plus a long run on weekends, but not that early!). It always feels good to be out there early, knowing that my neighbors and family are still sleeping - very peaceful, and I feel proud that I'm getting exercise in before most people even wake up. On a couple of occasions, including this morning, I've seen an acquaintance/neighbor of mine also out running (well, she lives about a mile away, but around here that's considered a neighbor, since there might be only 10 houses in between). I usually feel a little embarrassed when I see her, since she is one of those REALLY fit and active people - someone I think of as a REAL runner. Slimmer, faster, better than me. So I started feeling a little frumpy after we passed each other (going in opposite directions) and exchanged pleasantries.
But then I realized that I was looking at things the wrong way, and I made myself change my thought balloon. Instead of thinking "Wow, A*** is such a good runner, what am I doing out here, I'm so slow compared to her, etc." I started thinking "Hey! Maybe this is what people need to do to be so fit, and I'M DOING IT!"
Made for a much more pleasant end of my run. :-)

Mother's Day Gift

2005-05-09T08:32:00.000-07:00

I had a great Mother's Day weekend, celebrating with my mom, sister, husband, and kids. One of the highlights was a long run (7 miles) that I took yesterday morning. I took a different direction than usual, on a hillier route, so I was dealing with both major hills (some in the range of 13-15% grade) AND a wicked head wind on the way back, but it was sunny, and the panoramic views I got of farmfields, ponds, and hills in the distance were absolutely stunning. I encountered maybe 2 cars during the whole time I was out (and believe me, it was a LONG time!). These long runs are what make running worth it for me.
And yesterday afternoon we grilled out scallop kebabs and halibut (which we topped with guacomole - yum!). A delicious and reasonably healthy meal. Gotta love when grilling season gets in full swing.
Hope everyone else had a great weekend and enjoyable runs!

There's Something to this Whole Sleep Thing!

2005-05-06T10:57:00.000-07:00

I have gotten a couple of GREAT night's sleep this week by abstaining from alcohol and going to bed early (as in ASLEEP by 10). It really makes a difference in how I feel the next day, and how well I'm able to control my eating.
Last night hubby and I had some wine before and during dinner - the first evening he's been able to be home this week - and I just didn't sleep as well. Today I'm feeling tired and craving carbs. So tonight, it's early to bed again, although I can't guarantee an uninterrupted sleep since my husband is on call all night for his ambulance corps. But it's amazing to see such a clear connection between a full night's sleep and how I feel the next day.
On another note, I recently completed a questionnaire for a runner's health study that I've been participating in for something like 15 years now. They send a questionnaire every 5 years to ask about how often you're running, other health habits, and whether you've been diagnosed with anything during that time. Does anyone else out there participate in this? It's called the National Runners' Health Study, and they have some preliminary results on certain issues posted here.
It's interesting stuff, and as a researcher myself, I'm glad to be able to contribute to their response rate.
Happy weekend runs to everyone!

Focus on Progress

2005-05-02T11:38:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I've been feeling lately like I'm not making much progress. That's usually when I focus only on the scale - I've lost only a total of about 4 lbs. or so since the beginning of the year. But at least I am consistently on the lower side of 160 now.
And other things make me realize that I have in fact made progress, and the kind of progress that makes me healthier overall. In the fall, my blood pressure was hovering near a dangerous range - my lower number (systolic?) was close to 90 a couple of times. Last night my husband took my blood pressure and it was 112/74. Definitely a good change! Plus, my clothes are looser, I'm doing pretty well controlling my eating, and I've worked out at least 3 days a week every week that I can remember.
I looked back over the goals I set, and plans for how to obtain them, at the beginning of this blog. There are a few things I need to re-commit to: 1) getting a good night's sleep; I had one last night and it was AWESOME. But it meant going to bed quite early - there are no late sleepers in this house! - so I need to just start making myself do that more often. 2) lifting weights - did great on this at the beginning of the year, but have tapered off. Tank top season will be here soon! 3) frequency of alcohol consumption - I rarely have more than one glass of wine on any given day, but I need to have more days when I have none at all. It's empty calories and can potentially disrupt my sleep.
Okay, I just looked out my window, and there is something that looks like wet SNOW coming down. It's May 2nd! WTF?!
Here's hoping there's better weather where you are!

Rainy day

2005-05-01T08:08:00.000-07:00

Well, it's a rainy, dreary morning here, but I'm planning to head out for a long run soon. Came down with cold symptoms yesterday, but definitely not bad enough to miss a scheduled run.
I'm still floundering a bit in terms of what I want my running schedule to be. I do love Galloway's schedule, but feel like I need more than 2 runs, and more variety, during the week. I think it would be easier to do my early-morning runs if I did them more than once a week, too. So I might have to tweak things a bit. That will be easier now that the semester is almost over at the college where my husband is a professor and I teach one class.
I spent yesterday morning taking my son to bike shops to look for a new bike for him. He's very tall for his age (he just turned 7 and is almost 4'6"), so it's hard to find a bike that fits but isn't too overwhelming for him to handle. He has been really into hiking and biking lately, though, so we want to encourage that as much as possible.
Well, I'd better not put off my run any longer. Later today I think the husband and kids and I will go for a hike on some nearby trails that are primarily for horses and mountain bikes, but also for hiking. We should each be able to see things we'll be interested in, plus it's fun hiking as a family.
Good luck to anyone else doing a long run today!

Still Here!

2005-04-24T18:15:00.000-07:00

I've been such a bad blogger the past couple of weeks. But between a family trip out-of-town and the kids being home from school for spring break all last week, I've had precious little time to do anything non-work-related on the computer.
Thankfully, my eating and running are still going well. I'm loving this Galloway program, where during the week I just do two 30-minute runs (which I get done early morning before the kids are even up), and then a long run on the weekend that increases by a mile each week. I'm up to 7 miles on that, and it's feeling great. Long runs have always been my favorite part of a running schedule, so it's nice to have the ability to be doing decent distances on those without weekly mileage that would be hard to keep up with everything else I have going on.
The walking breaks (which I've been taking for one minute per 3 minutes of running) are making a huge difference in terms of how I feel after those long runs. I just don't feel nearly as zapped afterwards. Sometimes I feel like I'm "cheating" by doing them, but then I think about the fact that the main purpose of my running is fitness, and it seems silly to worry about taking walking breaks. And somehow my average pace seems to even out to about what it would be with continuous running.
I'm still generally eating very well - lots of fruits and veggies to fill me up - and have watched the scale drop a bit. It seems like a painfully slow process sometimes, but I guess by doing it slowly I might be more likely to keep the weight off.
I hope to get back to checking around on other blogs this week!

Wonderful Weekend

2005-04-11T09:13:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful, busy, outdoor weekend! The weather was stunning - sunny and in the 60's - as I guess it has been in a lot of places the last few days. I normally do my long run on Sunday mornings, but my husband was going to be away all day on Sunday, so instead I went on Saturday morning. What a run it was! There was still frost on the ground, but the sun was shining, the birds were singing, I saw many deer, etc. And with the 1-minute walking breaks per every 3 minutes of running, my legs did not feel trashed even after 6 miles of quite a few hills.
Saturday afternoon was my son's birthday party (he turns 7 this week), which was definitely more tiring than a 6-mile run! But the kids seemed to have fun, and were able to spend a lot of time running around outside. Then yesterday afternoon I had several friends over with their kids, and we hung out on the back deck and chatted while the kids played.
Being able to exercise in this kind of weather, especially to do a long run, definitely makes it worth all those treadmill and bad-weather runs over the winter.
Hope other runners/bloggers are feeling similarly inspired!

Making Progress!

2005-04-06T09:30:00.000-07:00

After weeks of staying in the same place on the scale, this week the numbers are dropping a bit - very encouraging! The things that seem to be working best for me are: 1) consistent exercise (morning workouts especially); 2) eating fruits or vegetables at every meal and for snacks, since they fill me up; and 3) getting used to feeling a little bit hungry much of the time. Not starving - I couldn't maintain that - but just on the edge of hunger. It's not that bad of a feeling, given what you can get in return.
I do need to get more consistent about lifting, though.
My latest marathon thoughts (yes, they change every week!) are to do a half this fall, and then a full next spring, when we will be in Australia for the study group my husband is leading. How cool would it be to have a t-shirt from an Australia marathon? And it will be fall there, so the weather should be about perfect, both for the last part of my training and the marathon itself. I need to look at some Australia web sites for possibilities...
Happy running!

Still Finding My Way

2005-04-02T07:46:00.000-08:00

It's been ages since I last posted, in part because I've been busy, and in part because I'm still trying to adjust my goals and figure out the best way to approach this exercise/eating/weight loss thing - not to mention the blogging thing!
I'm still trying to decide whether to try a marathon this fall, or just keep building up my running miles with a longer-term marathon goal and some shorter races for motivation in the meantime. I'm still following Galloway's beginning marathon plan, and am VERY happy with the effects of the walk breaks. It sounds strange, but I am averaging at least as fast a pace on my runs with walking breaks as I normally would without them, and feel far less fatigued later that day and the next day. So I will definitely continue that approach regardless of my long-term goals.
I'm also happy with this Volumetrics approach to eating - just including as many fruits and vegetables as possible with meals (especially at the beginning) and snacks. I feel like I am eating so healthily, yet still not depriving myself.
Despite all of the above, my scale has barely budged since an early loss of a couple of pounds in January. This is discouraging, but I do think I'm slimming down, since several people have commented on that to me, and I find my clothes looser. When I tried on some new clothes last week, I even fit into the next-smaller size for several different pairs of pants! So I'm trying not to tie too much into the scale, but it would be nice to see the numbers move down a bit.
As for blogging - I'm still working through what kind of blog I want this to be (running/weight loss/personal journal etc.). I also find myself with very little time for commenting on others' blogs, which I know is part of what it means to be in the blogging community. I hope to have more time for all of this when the semester ends and I don't need to teach anymore.
For anyone reading, thanks! And I DO read your blogs!

Sunrise Run

2005-03-22T11:30:00.000-08:00

This morning I woke up around 5, and after realizing I wouldn't fall back asleep, I headed out for a 30-minute run on the roads near my house. It was cold out (probably high 20's), but I was able to see the sun rise and get in a good workout during a time when I would otherwise be sleeping, so that was great.
Yesterday I got the marathon books I ordered (Galloway's and Higdon's), along with the Volumetrics book by Dr. Barbara Rolls. She's an expert on eating behaviors - a friend of mine from graduate school worked with her as a post-doc - and this book is based on her research that suggests that we naturally tend to eat the same volume of foods every day, rather than the same number of calories. So if we can pick foods with high volume and low calories, we will feel satisfied on fewer calories. It's a very interesting read so far, and it helps me to know that it's all based on sound scientific research. Hopefully it will be relatively easy to implement her ideas...of course, Galloway recommends against dieting while training for a marathon, but I guess a lot depends on how you define "dieting." ;-)

Ready for a Rest Day

2005-03-20T20:26:00.000-08:00

I've now completed Week 1 of my marathon training program. I had planned to do my long run today, with a rest day yesterday, but when I saw the forecast, I changed my plans. Yesterday was beautifully sunny, and today was cloudy with drizzle and wet snow. I had a very inspiring run yesterday, and even though it was very hilly it didn't feel bad at all, especially with the short walking breaks.
We spent a LOT of time outside with the kids this weekend, which was wonderful. They have been exploring the woods on our property, making makeshift forts in fallen-over tree trunks, etc. We are very lucky to live in a situation where we are out in the country (we own 6-1/2 acres that are surrounded on 3 sides by undeveloped land), but also in a small development with other houses, so our kids have friends to play with just by walking out the front door. It's really a nice combination of rural and suburban-type lifestyles. And I have great rural roads to run on, although they are ALL hilly!
I am really liking this schedule so far, but was definitely ready for a rest today after 6 consecutive days of working out (walk, run, walk, run, Lifecycle, run).
One of these days I need to start scoping out fall marathons...

Signs of Spring

2005-03-17T20:57:00.001-08:00

Went outside for my second run of the week this morning. It was close to 40 degrees, and the air actually felt like SPRING, even though there is still snow on the ground. Saw several deer, who seem to hide in the winters around here and come out in the spring. The only real problem was that the roads are still covered with dust and sand from the sand trucks, and I got a mouthful of the dust whenever a car went by - luckily this only happened 5 times during my 30-minute run.
I've been alternating 3 minutes of running with 1 minute of walking, and it's working great. As Galloway's approach promises, I'm actually ending up with about the same overall pace that I would by running continuously, since I have more energy for the running parts. I suspect I'll get to the point where I'll do my shorter weekday runs continuously (without walking breaks), but for now I'm taking the conservative approach.
Kids are home tomorrow, so I might have to wait until Saturday to get my third walk of the week in, followed by a "long run" (only 3 miles, since this is the first week) on Sunday.

Starting a Schedule "Just in Case"

2005-03-16T09:17:00.000-08:00

Well, I started doing Galloway's "Beginner" 27-week marathon training program this week. For those of you not familiar with it, the basic principles include taking walking breaks during your runs (especially the weekly long run) and increasing your long run by a mile each week, while holding the other runs at about the same level. It's tailored to people who can't take a ton of time to do more traditional marathon training, and the walk breaks are supposed to help prevent injury. I'm still waiting to get his book I ordered to get more detail about the program (I just got the basic program off his web page), but the first week fit in well anyway with the amount of training I've been doing, so I figured it couldn't hurt to do it.
Assuming it still seems sound after I read more about it, this might actually be do-able for me. It means there would only be one day a week - probably Sunday - when I'd have to spend a significant amount of time running as I get closer to a fall marathon date. And it has me exercising 6 days a week (running on 3 days, walking or cross-training on the others), but only for 30 minutes on 5 of the days, and I think that frequency is best for health benefits anyway.
So, at this point, I'm excited. I can adjust the frequency of the walking breaks if the long runs seem to get too long too fast. Now to pick a fall marathon...

Crazy Contemplations

2005-03-14T07:32:00.000-08:00

Another day, another kid home sick from school...When is spring going to get here?!
Anyway, after saying I wasn't even going to start a 5K race training program yet, I'm now giving some thought to trying one of Galloway's 27-week marathon training programs to train for a fall marathon this year. I need to look it over some more (I've ordered both Galloway's and Higdon's marathon training books), but the starting point seems quite do-able given where I am now, so it's just a question of whether it ramps up too quickly and I would get injured. But Galloway seems pretty good about rest and injury - including walking breaks, etc. And sometimes I think that if I wait for the PERFECT time to train for a marathon, it will never happen. I've been spending so much time on supporting the rest of my family lately (crazy schedule for husband's medic class and other activities = lots of single-parent time for me with the kids) that I feel like I would really like something to focus on for myself.
I've done a half-marathon before, and finished strong (although slow). And maybe I need this kick in the pants to drop the weight and really get a regular running program established. I haven't made a final decision yet (I'm very analytical), but the thought is there and I'm doing the research...
Any advice welcome!

Forced Rest Week

2005-03-10T20:44:00.000-08:00

After finishing my 9-week running program on Saturday, with a 30-minute treadmill run, I haven't run a step since. I came down with a cold/flu-type virus on Sunday and have had almost no energy since then. This morning I woke up with pinkeye, which I was just waiting for after my daughter got diagnosed with it on Monday. So, I'm letting my body rest, and getting mentally psyched up to start a new 4 day/week running schedule this coming week. The timing is good because the college where I teach will be on spring break, so I'll have more flexibility than usual to get my runs in.
It would also help for motivation to get rid of the January-type weather we've been having! It's discouraging to look at the 7-day forecast and see snowflake symbols on EVERY SINGLE day coming up.
I've definitely been grumpy this week, and while it could be explained by being sick, being up with my sick daughter several times each night, the weather, etc., I think I'm also missing the mood lift I get from running. So I'm looking forward to a strong and steady return next week. And hopefully I'll also have time to blog and read blogs, both of which I've been too exhausted to do this week!

Lots O' Snow

2005-03-01T18:15:00.000-08:00

We got about 8" of snow last night, followed by another several inches today. The kids had a snow day, having had one day of school yesterday after being off all last week! I actually enjoyed having them home again, and spent about 2 hours outside in the snow with them this afternoon.
After looking at a few 5K race training programs, I've decided I want to hold off and build more of a foundation before starting on one of them - even though I could probably run a 5K even now, I'll enjoy it more with more training and maybe being a few pounds lighter ;-). In the past I've had times when I've ramped up my mileage too quickly, then ended up burning out before the race. So I'm going to spend a month or two just gradually increasing my mileage (~10%/week) and increasing my runs to 4 days/week instead of 3. So, after finishing 3 days of 30-minute runs this week, I'll run 4 days next week, with runs of 20, 30, 10, and 40 minutes. Then 22, 33, 11, and 44 the next week. And so on. This type of program has worked well for me in the past; it's basically based on Galloway's ideas. Those really short runs are hard to psych up for, but I can round them out to 30 minutes with walking, and they're basically placeholders to make me get used to finding time 4 days a week to run.
Off to watch the weather channel, to see if the kids are going to be home again tomorrow...if so, I'll have to be creative in figuring out how to get my run in!

On to the Next Habit...

2005-02-26T07:43:00.000-08:00

I've now finished week 8 of my 9-week Couch to 5K running plan. I've done every run on the schedule, which hasn't been too hard to do, since it's only 3 days a week. This coming week I'll run 30 minutes each time (no walking). Then, I'll find a 5K running program, preferably one that's 4 days/week (any suggestions?), pick a race a couple of months out, and go from there. I feel like I have the exercise habit pretty well re-established, so in general I should be able to keep this up.
That means it's time for me to really focus on the diet/eating side of the equation. I REALLY want to lose 20 pounds, and do it in a way that will enable me to keep it off. When I run, I think to myself how much better and easier it would feel if I were 20 pounds lighter. And when I'm overwhelmed with trying to keep up with 2 jobs, my husband's busy schedule, and taking care of our two kids, I realize I NEED the energy that comes from not only weighing less, but being a little bit hungry most of the time. I know from past experience that there's a certain heightening of the senses and extra energy that occurs when you're not feeling sated most of the time. When I think of my friends who seem to get so much done and have so much energy, I realize almost all of them are quite thin and do monitor their food intake.
So, that is my next challenge. I'm not going to write down everything I eat in this blog, since that would be interminably boring even to me, but I'll be better about monitoring and posting weight, measurements, etc. And of course I'll still keep posting about my runs.
For now, I am really just writing this blog as a way to motivate myself and make myself accountable for progress toward the goals I set. I don't really expect others to read or comment on it, especially since I am still not finding much time to comment on others' blogs (though I regularly read them, especially the ones on my blogroll). But if anyone can relate to my experiences and finds them interesting, all the better. I definitely find motivation from many of the dieting and running blogs that I read!

A Run in the Old Neighborhood...

2005-02-22T21:24:00.000-08:00

Yikes, I didn't realize until now that it's been almost a week since I last posted! Lots of reasons, including going away to my Mom's house with the kids over the weekend due to my husband's schedule tying him up for the whole weekend anyway (he's a full-time college professor, an EMT for the local volunteer ambulance corps, and currently taking a class to become a medic for the corps), having the kids off of school this week for winter break, and getting our dog back home from the animal hospital after emergency spinal surgery two weekends ago. So, my computer time continues to be limited, but life is certainly interesting.
Anyway, more to the point, I went for a run on Sunday morning while at my Mom's - she still lives in the house I lived in from about when I was 14 until I went off to college. So, I ran through the local neighborhood on a cold, quiet morning and it was very peaceful and nice. It's an older neighborhood with lots of mature trees, houses with different kinds of architecture (mostly colonial) instead of cookie-cutter developments, etc. And it was nice to reminisce as I ran - hmm, I had a friend who used to live at that house, went to a party at that other house, worked at that elementary school one summer, etc. Had I not gone for the run, I wouldn't have seen most of the neighborhood where the run took me, and I would have missed that opportunity to reminisce, see how things have changed (not much!), etc.. There are lots of things running gives us, including allowing us to see things we wouldn't otherwise have seen and just letting us get lost in our thoughts. And that was really precious time, given that every other waking moment that weekend, I had the kids with me. Not that I don't love being with them and doing things with them, but it's also important, and refreshing, to have some "me" time.
Fitting in my other two scheduled runs this week will be difficult - I took the kids to one zoo today, we're going to another one tomorrow, and then a farm show on Friday - but I'm determined to make it happen. I'm still not doing too great on tracking my food intake, but at least my weight is holding steady instead of going up. Hopefully next week I can buckle down and work more on that aspect!

Another glorious run

2005-02-16T09:20:00.000-08:00

Thankfully, I seem to have only gotten the Reader's Digest version of the virus that was going around, so only had muscle aches for a day and now I feel fine.
Yesterday I was crazy-busy, but the weather was SOOO nice (sunny and close to 50!) that I HAD to get out for a run. And I have no regrets - it was absolutely stunning. The hills were difficult, given that I've mostly been running on a treadmill this winter, but the last hill I go up coming back to my house provides an awesome reward at the end, in the form of an amazing panoramic view of the valley and surrounding hills just as you crest it. I always look forward to it, especially on a sunny day!
I feel bad that I have not been doing more reading of and commenting on others' blogs in the last couple of weeks. I've barely had any time on the computer when I'm not working. I hope things lighten up a bit soon so I can do more exploring and commenting. It's always so inspiring to read about others' experiences that are similar to yours!
The snow and cold weather are coming back this afternoon. But one of these times, when we get that 50-degree weather, it will be here to stay!

It's a good thing I got in a great workout this morning...

2005-02-13T18:52:00.000-08:00

Because I think I'm coming down with a virus that's been going around here that makes you feel EXHAUSTED and achy for a few days, then turns into a more normal head cold, but still with the exhaustion. My husband's had it for almost a week now, in addition to other people that I'm in contact with, and I'm just starting to feel achy and tired and wondering how I'm going to keep up with my kids over the next few days...
BUT, I got in a great outdoor run this morning again! It was something like 13 degrees out, with a wind chill of 4, but BRILLIANTLY sunny, and the sun was reflecting off the fresh powdery snow from yesterday, making it look like a bunch of diamonds out in the fields along the road. It was a challenging workout - the snow on the roads was still an inch or two deep in spots, so it felt like running in sand, even on the uphills! Luckily I was dressed properly for the weather, so didn't get cold at all.
I've got only 2 weeks left in my running program that's helping me ramp back up to regular 3-mile runs, so I'm starting to think that maybe the next thing I'll do is a 5K training program, and pick a 5K race a couple months down the line to set my sights on. I'll try to find a training program that will be a natural next step from the one I'm doing now, and try to bump up from 3 days a week to 4. I'm excited about the prospect of being able to run decent distances once the weather is consistently spring-like outside. But that's not to say the winter runs aren't great in and of themselves.
For now, though, my immediate plan is to eat some dinner, pop some ibuprofen, get to bed early, and hope I'm just imagining this virus thing...

One Habit at a Time...

2005-02-09T09:59:00.000-08:00

I am still having trouble faithfully logging my calories consumed. It does take time, and when I'm busy it's sometimes hard to squeak out that time. Today I'm determined to be good about it. And overall I'm doing okay on eating, but probably not as well as I could be doing were I tracking my calories better.
But I'm also realizing that it's difficult to change multiple habits at once. Right now the most important thing in terms of accomplishing my long-term goals is getting in a very regular exercise habit, and I AM doing that. Pretty much since I started at the end of December, I've been run/walking three days a week (can't wait to move to 4!) and lifting about every other day. So I will focus on solidifying these habits, and once I feel like they're essentially on auto-pilot, I'll focus on the eating and calorie tracking even harder. Next after that comes more decluttering and organizing of the house - there's always something!
Looks like we've got a snowstorm on the way, so it's possible I'll have the kids home for a snow day tomorrow. More incentive to get my workout in at 5:30 a.m., so they can't sabotage it! The only problem is that on the days I work out at 5:30, I also teach an 8:30 college class, and since I eat breakfast right after I work out, my stomach is sometimes growling so loud while I'm teaching that I'm sure the students in the first row can hear it! Oh well, I haven't heard them snickering yet...Did someone say Snickers? ;-)

No Dessert, Thanks

2005-02-06T09:28:00.000-08:00

Had a great time out to dinner with DH last night. I had shrimp for an appetizer, a wonderful baked salmon entree, and when the waitress asked if we wanted to see a dessert menu, I realized I was full and actually didn't order dessert. This is a new one for me - usually my level of fullness is irrelevant to whether I order dessert at a nice restaurant!
This weekend has been unbelievable in terms of weather - brilliantly sunny and in the high 30's/low 40's, which is warm for around here in February. We spent a ton of time outside yesterday - since my mom is visiting, my husband and I got out for about a 45-minute walk in the afternoon, and we were out most of the rest of the afternoon with the kids while they sledded and snowboarded on the hill in our side yard. And I just got back from doing an outside run/walk - absolutely glorious! I worried it would feel hard, since I've been running exclusively on the treadmill inside, and we live in a very hilly area, but it all felt great, even the hills. So now I am even more psyched about building up my mileage and getting ready for more of those wonderful outdoor runs - the kind where you just point your face up toward the sun and close your eyes for awhile even as you are running. Yes, I do that, and I'm lucky enough to live in a rural area where I can run with my eyes closed for short stretches and still survive!

Busy Week

2005-02-04T10:28:00.000-08:00

This week has been crazy busy for both me and my husband. I feel like this morning is the first time I've had to catch a breath in the past 3 or 4 days! I have managed to finish my scheduled runs by squeezing them in on the treadmill at 5:30 in the morning, though I've skipped a day or two of lifting, so I'm determined to do that today.
Because of my limited time, I also haven't been good at all about tracking and logging my calories, but I think overall I've done pretty well. I'm starting to establish habits that keep me from going overboard on the eating - such as waiting for 10 minutes or so if I feel a craving (which usually then goes away), and just keeping busy outside with my kids in the afternoons (my son is hooked on snowboarding now, after I picked up a $6 snowboard for him on clearance the other day). I think I'm also getting away from that "all-or-nothing" attitude, where you feel like if you eat one "bad" thing, then the whole day is shot.
I had some friends over for a lunch meeting (we're all on the preschool board) yesterday, and made a healthy lunch that we all enjoyed. One of my friends brought cookies for the dessert, but I managed to eat only one, and made her take them home when she left! (much to my husband's chagrin...) My mom's visiting this weekend, and my husband and I will get out to dinner tomorrow night - where all bets will be off in terms of counting calories! Gotta have those treats every once in awhile...
The weather is great around here these days, and on Sunday I'm planning to run OUTSIDE - it should be in the 40's and sunny, so I am really looking forward to that!

The Month in Review

2005-02-01T11:52:00.000-08:00

Monday weight: 160.2
I have been simply too busy to blog much lately, but I wanted to do a quick review of how things have gone this month in terms of my goals. Generally, I'm very pleased. I've lost 3 pounds overall, which is slow, but since I want this to be a lifestyle change that I can maintain, I think I'm just about where I want to be.
As far as eating, I'm doing quite well. I'm not tracking my calories every day, but I'm getting a sense of how much I can afford to eat, and trying to track when I feel I need it or that I might be slipping. This week will be a challenge, because my daughter turns 3 tomorrow (she was born on 02/02/02 at 22:22!), so of course we have to have cupcakes for her to bring to preschool tomorrow, cake with Grandma when she comes to visit this weekend, etc. But I feel stronger about managing these situations - and nothing is completely off limits, I just can't gorge on things.
I'm very pleased with my exercise progress. I've been faithfully doing my Couch-to-5K running program (started week 5 out of 8 this week), and am happy to see the running stretches increasing relative to the walking. I've become a morning exerciser even though I used to think I couldn't do that. And I'm looking forward to moving to a 4-day-a-week schedule for running when this program is over. I'll have to look around for a good one. Also, instead of lifting twice a week, I've been doing it almost every other day! My routine is short enough that I can do it when I'm with the kids, so that has been great. I suppose some day I'll have to make it a longer and more difficult routine, but for now, it's working well.
The weather has been great around here lately, at least for those of us who went through the sub-zero weather a couple of weeks ago. I've been outside with the kids for hours every day, and it feels great to get that fresh air and sunshine! Thirty degrees truly feels warm after what we've been through. And being outside keeps me away from the temptation to snack in the kitchen.
I'll try to post my monthly measurements, blood pressure, etc. soon. Gotta keep myself honest!

Show Me the Weigh

2005-01-27T10:48:00.000-08:00

According to my scale, I've lost a tiny bit of weight each day this week (like .2 lb. or so). I know a lot of people disagree with weighing yourself each day, but it works well for me, as I am able to use it to motivate myself almost whichever way it goes. If it reflects a little weight loss, as it is this week, I find it encouraging and it makes me want to keep doing what I'm doing. If it reflects a higher weight, I use it to remind myself to buckle down and follow my plan. By weighing every day, I can also start noticing things like monthly fluctuations, the effects of a high-sodium meal, and so on. But I absolutely realize that REAL weight loss has to take place gradually, over time, and that's really what counts.
I got up early this morning and did my run/walk routine on the treadmill at 5:30 a.m. I really like doing that on the days I teach (Tuesdays and Thursdays), as I think it makes me feel more confident and helps energize me for my 8:30 class.
And I'm convinced I MUST be burning mega-calories this week just wrangling my toddler in and out of her snow suit and other winter paraphenalia (the wind chill is 25 below today!), not to mention carrying her through the snow (she weighs 32 pounds without clothes on) or pulling her on her pull sled. Today it is simply too cold for the kids to safely play outside.
Looking forward to the heat wave next week when it might get into the 20's! Maybe I'll even do one of my runs outside...

Focus on Improvements

2005-01-24T10:18:00.000-08:00

Weekly Weigh-In: 161.4. Down from last week, and I was even further down on some days in-between (saw the southern side of 160 on Friday!).
I need to get better about tracking my calories. On weekdays, I tend to be good about keeping track of them with dietwatch, but I don't always post my dinners (I just estimate, and by tracking the rest of the day I know how many more I can afford to eat), and I'm not good about tracking them on the weekends. I know from previous experience that it's too easy to let those totals slide upward if you're not religiously recording everything you put in your mouth. Once you lose the weight and get the habits established, it doesn't need to be done on a daily basis. So my goal for this week is to be a better calorie-recorder!
On the positive side, DH took my blood pressure last night, and it was lower than it has been lately: 122/84. Hope the trend continues in that direction. I've also been doing well with my workouts, and think I am JUST starting to see a LITTLE more definition in my biceps.
Here's to measureable (if ever so slight) progress!

Treadmilling in a Winter Wonderland

2005-01-23T07:33:00.000-08:00

We got over a foot of snow overnight and now it's still coming down a bit and drifting around like crazy. Looks like I'll be working out on the treadmill today, given the wind chills are supposed to be dangerously cold. I'm starting Week 4 of the Couch to 5K running program I'm doing - it just doesn't seem like enough running for me! But I'm trying to hold back and not jump ahead. It's only 3 days a week, which is one of my problems with it, but I'm trying to do other exercise (lifting and walking or Lifecycle) on most of the other days. I'll be psyched when I'm done with this program and I can start a more rigorous, 4 day/week program, eventually building up to 5 days a week, which I've done before and enjoyed.
The kids will definitely want to go outside today and play in the huge snowpile the plow has created at the end of our driveway. Maybe if I wrap them up until they're unrecognizable, they can go out for 15-20 minutes.
I'm thinking a realistic running goal for this year might be a half-marathon in the fall, perhaps with the idea of a marathon the following fall. We'll be in Australia next spring, which should be a great place for putting in those long miles!
Hope everyone's managing to stay warm and cozy in this weather!

Naturally Thin?

2005-01-19T14:08:00.000-08:00

I was talking today to yet another person I know whom I thought was naturally very thin. I found out that, in addition to having a job that keeps her active, she works out and also she claims to have a good deal of cellulite on her legs and fat on her arms (as she said: "You won't see me in a tank top!).
I have experienced this phenomenon a number of times - i.e., I'll have friends or acquaintances whom I think are just naturally thin and don't have to work at it. Then, as I get to know them better, I realize that they, too, work out a lot and/or carefully watch what they eat (usually both). Yes, some people don't have to work as hard as the rest of us to stay thin, but I think in reality there are VERY few people who can be inactive, eat bad foods, and still be thin - not to mention they wouldn't be healthy doing that. When I have these discussions, I just end up telling myself again - there ain't no such thing as a free lunch! Instead of envying these people, I should be emulating their exercise dedication and restraint when it comes to food.
So far, I'm happy with how I've been doing on eating and exercising for the past few weeks. I haven't been perfect by any means, but I'm working out virtually every day and generally keeping my food intake in check. Just hoping that my appearance and the scale start reflecting these efforts soon!
I took a peek at some marathon training schedules today, to get myself psyched. I'm still itching to run more when I do my run/walk workouts, so I'll be very happy when the time and mileage start to build up.

Back to Reality

2005-01-17T15:37:00.000-08:00

Weekly Weigh-in: 162.2. A little up from last week, but I've had lower numbers in-between, and I've been eating and exercising well, so I'm going to try not to worry about it too much. It's clear to me, both from my own experiences and those of friends I've talked to, that losing weight just takes longer after you turn 40!
Classes started this morning at the college where DH teaches and I teach one class per semester. So, I was up in front of the class at 8:30 this morning, and will be again tomorrow. I got my first run/walk workout of the week in yesterday, and will try to get up early to do the second one tomorrow morning. This afternoon I lifted, something I am finding pretty easy to do while the kids are with me. My two-year-old lies down on the treadmill next to the weight bench that I'm on, and pretends to lift weights. And we talk about how strong we are.
Things are going to be much busier from this week forward, so I'm hoping I can stick to those early a.m. workouts! At least I got some good cholesterol news from my doctor the other day: 186. It can still go lower, though, so I'll continue to monitor it as often as my doctor can order it for me.

Saved by the Ice

2005-01-15T16:28:00.000-08:00

DH had a lot of work to do today in preparation for the semester starting on Monday (he's a college professor, and I also teach part-time), so I had a lot of time at home alone with the kids. It was one of those days when I couldn't spend two minutes away from them (e.g., checking email or getting something for one of them) without hearing one of them crying, screaming, arguing, or calling for me. I don't know how single parents do it!
After DH got home mid-afternoon, I took my son (he's 6-1/2) to open skate time at the semi-local skating rink. He took some lessons this year, but still has a lot of trepidation about the ice. I thought he'd do better going with me. However, he was thrown off by the fact that open skate was on a different rink than his lessons were on, and he just didn't feel comfortable. I, on the other hand, was having fun. I haven't skated in years, though I did it quite a lot as a kid (no formal lessons, but we had a small rink on my road that even had lights so we could skate at night). So, when he wanted to leave after about 5 minutes, I gave him some change to play video games and skated around for about 15 minutes. It felt great! And it was just what I needed after being cooped up with two whiny kids all day.
I'm also eating well today, and lifted, so I'm happy about that. And hopefully it will be a little warmer tomorrow so I can get the kids outside.
Well, my son's calling for me - I knew 5 minutes was too long to spend alone! - so I'm off to spend more kid time...

A Little Too Much Fun!

2005-01-14T11:18:00.000-08:00

DH and I had a great time out to dinner last night. We drank more wine than I'm used to, though, so I woke up after only about 2-1/2 hours of sleep and could NOT get back to sleep. Needless to say, I did not get up at 5:30 to work out! I did, though, manage to get my workout in on the treadmill a little later in the morning, so I've now completed the first two weeks of the Couch to 5K running program from coolrunning.com.
I am not feeling too great today, due to the aforementioned alcohol and lack of sleep. And, while I've been eating well in general, I did finish the half of my dessert that I saved from the restaurant last night. Ah well, I've got the rest of the day - and the rest of my life - to continue to eat well, so I'm not going to beat myself up about it!
Kids are home for a snow day today. It was 66 degrees around here at midnight, then by 5 a.m. in the low 30's and snowing. Crazy!
Off to play with the kiddos...

To Sleep, or Not to Sleep?

2005-01-12T11:21:00.000-08:00

After writing the other day that I wouldn't set an alarm to wake up early for working out, I did just that today. After looking at what my husband's and my schedules will be like starting next week (and agreeing to take on a couple of new work projects after talking with my boss yesterday), I realized that the only way I can count on getting my workouts in consistently is to do them primarily in the early mornings. So, this morning I was on the treadmill again by 5:30. As soon as I came back upstairs, around 6, both of my kids woke up. So much for relaxing with a cup of coffee after my workout...But I have heard that morning exercisers do the best at sticking with their schedules, and I've been feeling good all morning, so I'm glad I did it.
Now I just need to work on getting to bed early enough so that I'm not sleep-deprived all the time. It's so tempting to stay up late after the kids are in bed, just to have some non-kid time. But I keep reading more and more about how sleep deprivation leads to lots of health problems, including weight gain, so I've got to just commit to an earlier bedtime.

Feeling More Energy!

2005-01-11T12:07:00.000-08:00

I have had a lot more energy the past few days, and am sleeping better (and earlier) at night. I remember having a lot of energy the last time I was in great shape, but I'm already feeling it just from working out regularly and eating very healthily. My hardest time of the day is "the witching hour" (late afternoon, for those of you non-parents out there), when the kids are cranky and difficult and I'm getting hungry for dinner. I'm trying to save some healthy snacks for that time of day, and it also helps that we eat dinner pretty early, since my husband has many evening commitments and I occasionally do as well (like tonight, when I have a meeting of the preschool board of directors that I serve on).
My 2-year-old daughter loves to bake, and I'm trying to find ways to do that with her but not have lots of sweets and fattening foods around the house. So, I've found a few healthy muffin recipes and have been making those with her. Last week we made apple-oat muffins, and yesterday we made bran-blueberry muffins. It works out great, because she gets to bake, which gives us nice time together, and the muffins are reasonably healthy for both her and me.
My husband and I are planning to go out to dinner together on Thursday night - our schedules have been very hectic lately, and will get even more hectic next week when we both start teaching again. So I'm looking forward to that, and it will also be a good reward for my (and my husband's) healthy eating lately.
Off to eat a healthy lunch and pick my daughter up from preschool!

Another early workout

2005-01-10T07:07:00.000-08:00

Weight this morning: 161.8 lbs. (BMI = 26.1)
Down 1.2 pounds from last week, which is very reasonable.
I woke up before 5 a.m. again today, and got my run/walk workout in early on our basement treadmill. I really love doing that - nothing can take it away from you for the rest of the day! I won't set an alarm to do this, since sleep deprivation is a problem for my eating, but hopefully by moving my bedtime back earlier I'll wake up early on my own more and more frequently.
I can't remember the last time I set an alarm. I used to do it every day, when we lived in the D.C. area and I commuted from a Maryland suburb to Union Station on Capitol Hill (about an hour and 15 minutes each way!). Now we live in a rural area, outside a tiny college town, and at any given moment during the day, my husband, kids, and I are all within a 5-minute drive of each other (I telecommute to the same job I had in D.C., working from a home office). My husband and I waited to have kids until we were in this situation, and I'm very glad we did.
We also live in a beautiful area for outdoor exercise (though very hilly!), and I don't have to suck car exhaust when I run outside. I did enjoy my lunchtime runs along the Mall in D.C. when we lived there, but this is even better, at least for me.
I'm looking forward to a productive day with my workout behind me!

Playing in the Snow

2005-01-09T16:04:00.000-08:00

It's beautiful outside here today, with snow clinging to the trees and about 6 inches on the ground. I didn't do a formal workout, but was out with the kids in the snow for about an hour and a half, during which time I pulled my toddler daughter around on her pull-sled and did a lot of other tromping through the snow. It was amazing to watch my kids play, and just see how much energy they burn up, with sheer joy on their faces. Scaling a snowbank, jumping or rolling down, getting up (no small feat with layers of snow gear on), then repeating - probably 50 times each. No wonder they're so slim even though they both have good appetites!
We had fun at our friends' house for dinner last night. This friend of mine (the wife) has two horses and I go riding with her sometimes. She'll be a great resource if I ever get a horse myself - one of my lifelong dreams! I think it might actually happen, some time after we get back from Australia in summer 2006 (my husband, a college professor, is leading a study group there for spring 2006, and we're all going - a family adventure!). The pending Australia trip is another motivator for getting in better shape, as I'd love to do some great running and maybe even racing there.
I'm doing well on eating this weekend. Feeling hungry, but getting used to it. Tomorrow I start the second week of the "Couch to 5K" running program I'm doing, and I'm already itching to run more. It's probably a bit easy of a schedule for the shape I'm in, but I'd rather start too easy and be itching to run than do too much and burn out.
Thanks for the comments on my last post!

Hunger and Weight

2005-01-08T10:53:00.000-08:00

It's funny how you expect to weigh less if you feel hungry (or maybe that's just me). Yesterday morning, given my not-so-great previous day, I did not feel too hungry when I woke up. I ate well yesterday, and this morning I was starving when I woke up. I expected to see a drop in my weight when I climbed onto the scale - but my weight has been exactly the same for the past three days! Well, this is why I only record my weight officially once a week. There are obviously a lot of variables that go into it, and one day of being good or bad on eating and exercising is not always reflected on the scale the next morning.
I'm feeling hungry now, too, but I'm doing well today and am going to keep on track. I remember when I last got fit that one of the major realizations was that, if you're going to be at a healthy weight, you've just got to get used to feeling hungry sometimes. Go figure! It's a small price to pay for being healthy, and you do get more used to it over time, assuming you're not starving yourself.
We're going to the house of some friends for dinner tonight, but I already know the main dish is grilled salmon, so that should be fine. My friend is conscious about her weight too, and working on it, so she's certainly not going to push me to pig out.
I don't have a major workout planned for today - what with the kids home and all - but ideally I'll get some lifting in and maybe a short CV (cardiovascular) workout, like a walk or the Lifecycle. Or maybe I'll get the kids out to our sledding hill, given it's pouring down snow now and we're supposed to get 3-5" today. Walking up our sledding hill multiple times, sometimes carrying a 32-lb. toddler, counts as a workout in my book!
I'm finding some good and inspiring blogs to read, which I've now posted as links (along with a few non-fitness-related ones that I just enjoy reading). One of these days I'll break out of my shyness and start posting comments. It's nice to have a web-based community of people doing the same things you're trying to do.

A Less-Than-Perfect Day

2005-01-07T09:50:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I was not perfect in terms of my eating. I drank a glass of wine while cooking dinner (my husband had the kids down in the basement playroom, so I turned on some jazz music, sipped wine, and cooked - one of my favorite things to do!), sampled some of the tortellini I cooked for my son's dinner, had some extra bread with my soup, and had some more wine after dinner while DH (dear husband) and I watched a DVD. I also didn't track my calories. But you know what? It doesn't mean I have to throw this whole diet-and-exercise plan away! I'll just do better today. And the day wasn't a total loss - I ate well in the early part of the day, I lifted weights, and I took the kids out sledding (they had a snow day), which meant climbing up a hill in the snow several times. And any parent can relate to the fact that the end of a snow day is a good time to drink wine. ;-)
So, today I'm doing better, will track my calories, do my run/walk combo, etc. And I won't beat myself up about yesterday. If this is going to be a lifelong change, I can't expect every day to be perfect. I even put in my plan that one day a week I'd let myself loosen up a little. This just happened a day earlier than I expected!
I was a bit depressed the other day when I realized that when my son (who's 6-1/2) was the age my daughter is now (almost 3), I ran a half-marathon and weighed about 20 pounds less than I do now. But I need to look forward, not back, and just continue towards my goals.
It's a new day!

Early workout!

2005-01-05T09:41:00.000-08:00

For unknown reasons, I popped awake at 5 a.m. today. After a few minutes I realized I wasn't going to fall back asleep, so I got up and went down to the treadmill to get in my workout (run/walk combo for 25 minutes). I'm following the "Couch to 5K" running plan from coolrunning.com. It's geared toward beginning runners, which I am not, having run most of my adult life, but whenever I've been away from exercise for awhile, I find this a good way to break back in. Anyway, I had worked out and showered by the time the rest of my family got up, which was a good feeling!
I'm still doing quite well on the exercise and eating. I didn't completely count calories yesterday - mainly because I was having problems with dietwatch - but I think I stayed in a very reasonable range. And I had a half-glass of wine last night as I was picking up the house, but I didn't have any problem stopping at that point.
I keep thinking of other things I really want to improve on - parenting my kids (especially their diets and TV watching need to be improved), cleaning the house, etc. But I don't want to take on too many new ways of doing things at once, so right now I'm focusing on the diet/exercise, and hoping to add on other challenges as the year goes on.
I've been enjoying reading some other running and mommy-related blogs, and need to figure out how to link to them. It's fun to find people over the internet that actually have a lot in common with you! One of these days, I'll start commenting. But I'm still sort of shy about this blogger stuff...

So Far, So Good

2005-01-03T18:46:00.000-08:00

I had a good start today to my plan - worked out this morning (walk/jog combination), stayed between 1600-1700 for calories, and felt good all day. I realize this is just the beginning glow of a good fitness program, and I certainly won't be this good EVERY day, but after all, I should be making changes that I can keep up with for the rest of my life. So if I have a day when I don't/can't exercise, or don't eat as well as I should, I'll just go on to the next meal or the next day as best I can.
I have lots of other resolutions for the year - get on top of our budget, organize things better, parent my kids better, etc. Very original, I know - get fit, save money, organize, be a better parent - no one else thinks of these things! But I also remember how much energy I had and how good I felt when I was in really good shape a few years ago, and I feel as though it all comes down to fitness/healthiness, and then other goals become more easily achieved.
A little more about my fitness "a few years ago", so I can remember to inspire me...Hubby and I both got in great shape, both eating well and exercising. I trained for and ran a half-marathon, and he trained for and did some bicycle racing. These were great family outings (the races) and hopefully an inspiration for our son as well (he was around 3 at the time). During that summer, I became pregnant with our daughter and we began the process of having a new house built. The pregnancy threw us both off our good eating habits to some extent (especially me!), and the house being built really cut into our exercise time - we lived within a couple miles of the new place, so whenever we had an extra minute, we tended to pop up there and check things out - there was always SOME decision to be made, and if we weren't there, our contractor would make it for us.
But during that very fit time, which lasted for over a year, we slept better, had more energy, and were generally happier and more productive than at any other times in our lives. So I know what it feels like, and I want to get back to it!
One day at a time...

Starting Measurements

2005-01-02T18:08:00.000-08:00

Well, I got the tape measure out last night. For the record, here are my starting measurements. I hope I can get all of them to go down!

Weight: 163.6 (gained a little over the holidays - ARGHH!)
Upper Arm: 12"
Chest: 37"
Waist: 32"
Hips: 40.5"
Thigh: 25"
"Belly": 36-1/2"
(my husband and I decided this last measurement is important, even though it doesn't exactly fit in one of the typical measurements. ;-))
Blood Pressure: 130/90
Resting Heart Rate: 76

I plan to take and post these measurements once a month.
I should note here that I realize my desire to lose 25 lbs. or so pales in comparison to the problems lots of others have. Many are struggling with the need to lose much more weight, not to mention the victims of the Tsunami and others in dire circumstances. It is a luxury that this is my main problem to be dealing with at the moment. Nevertheless, I only have one body and one life, and I want to make the best of them.

Goals, Obstacles, and Plans

2005-01-01T06:55:00.000-08:00

In these first few posts I want to write down my concrete reasons, plans, and goals for getting fit, along with potential obstacles. I want to be able to re-visit these posts when my motivation lags or I hit a plateau, to remind myself of where I'm going and how I can get there.
I have successfully lost weight and gotten very fit before, and kept it off for over a year, so I plan to use many of the same strategies that worked for me then. And this time I don't plan to get pregnant or have a house built - both of which threw me off the last time!

General goals:
1. Get in good enough shape to ultimately run a marathon; after that, work on other distances or times as motivation.
2. Lose 20-25 pounds, while building muscle (gotta fight that after-40 muscle loss!).
3. Lower blood pressure to a healthy range.

Potential obstacles:
1. LACK OF SLEEP (I have a 2-year-old who still gets up in the middle of the night occasionally; I often don't go to sleep early enough; my husband takes night shifts as a volunteer EMT, and I listen to the scanner while he's on calls so I know where he is and what he's doing).
2. UNHEALTHY FOODS AROUND. Usually I'm pretty good about keeping sweets out of the house. But when we have company, or the kids have sweets, they come into the house, and my resistance to them is VERY low.
3. WEATHER NOT CONDUCIVE TO EXERCISE. I live in central NY, where the winters are very long, snowy, and cold.
4. NOT ENOUGH TIME. I telecommute P/T for a government job, teach a college class twice a week, volunteer on our nursery school's board of directors, and raise two kids (with whom I'm home in the afternoons). My husband's schedule will be extremely busy this coming semester, leaving me with lots of "single parent" time.

Plans for accomplishing goals and overcoming obstacles:
1. GO TO BED EARLIER. I will gradually move back my normal sleep time from about 10:30-11:00 to 9:30-10:00. Given that the kids are often up by 6 or 6:30, this is necessary for me to get a full night's sleep and not crave carbs the next day.
2. KEEP HEALTHY SNACKS EASILY ACCESSIBLE. In case unhealthy foods sneak into the house (which I will try to avoid), I'll keep lots of fruits, veggies, pretzels (in limited portions) around for when cravings hit. I'll also try to limit the unhealthy foods around.
3. PLAN HEALTHY BUT DELICIOUS DINNERS THAT ARE QUICK TO MAKE. I have lots of resources for this, including Cooking Light magazine. My husband and I found the last time we lost weight that it meant a lot to have a delicious dinner to look forward to. It made us feel like we weren't depriving ourselves.
4. PORTION CONTROL. Nothing needs to be completely off limits - but a small portion of the less-healthy foods needs to be enough.
5. TRACK MY CALORIES. This worked last time; it's too easy to under-estimate how much you've eaten. A log also keeps you accountable. I belong to dietwatch, and will use their calorie-tracking program to do this and also to make sure I'm getting the right proportion of different nutrients. I'll shoot for 1600-1800 calories per day, toward the lower end at the beginning to get jump-started.
6. WEIGH MYSELF FREQUENTLY. I'll weigh every day (which worked last time), but only record once a week. In this blog, I'll post my weight once a week (on Mondays), and post other stats (measurements, blood pressure, etc.) once a month.
7. RUN 3-4 TIMES A WEEK, TRY TO WALK OR DO SOMETHING ELSE ON MOST OTHER DAYS. I'm going back to a beginner's running schedule I've used before (starting with run/walk combinations), and will try to walk at least 20 minutes or so on other days. If the weather's bad, I'll use the treadmill or Lifecycle (I'm lucky enough to have both), or do step aerobics to a videotape in the basement playroom. I need to plan well to get those runs in - will try to plan them toward the early parts of the week, so I have make-up days if necessary.
8. CUT DOWN ON ALCOHOL USE. I've gotten used to having a glass of wine or two almost every night. While I enjoy it, and I don't think I abuse it, that's just empty calories. I'll start by cutting down to 3 nights a week.
9. LIFT 2 TIMES A WEEK. I definitely need to build that muscle mass, to fight off the natural loss of muscle that comes with age and increase my resting metabolism. This shouldn't be too hard, as I can usually do it even with the kids around (their playroom is in the basement, where our weight bench and weights also are). This also fits in with setting a good example for them.
10. ENCOURAGE MY HUSBAND'S FITNESS EFFORTS. We both need to get in better shape, and it will work better if we encourage each other. Even if it means having obsessive discussions about each calorie we've taken in that day. ;-) Taking a walk is also a nice way to spend time together during our busy days.
11. ALLOW MINOR SPLURGES ONE DAY A WEEK. This also worked last time. I was less obsessive about counting calories, and had a heavier dinner, usually on Fridays.

That's it for now - tomorrow I'll post my current weight and other info. - maybe a photo.
Happy New Year!

My First Post!

2004-12-31T10:54:00.000-08:00

This blog is my attempt to make myself accountable for getting in great physical shape this year, including being able to run a half-marathon or marathon by fall 2005. I've been in excellent shape before, between the births of my first and second children, so I basically know what it involves, but just need to actually DO it again. I am 41 years old, so I really can't coast along anymore and rely on my youth to keep me healthy. The following things serve as my motivations for getting in good shape:
1) I want to set a good example for my children, ages 2 and 6. They're currently slim and active, and I want them to continue that way throughout their lifetimes.
2) My father died of cancer this year after a lifetime of alcohol abuse, cigarette use, unhealthy eating, and little exercise. Having seen what he went through, I want to do all I can to avoid the same fate.
3) I know from past experience that I FEEL better, sleep better, am more confident, etc. when I am at a healthy weight and exercising regularly.
4) I can't deny that I also want to look better and be able to pick out clothes based on what I like rather than what I think will make me look slimmer. I want to be able to take my son swimming without being embarrassed about how I look in a bathing suit (although maybe that never goes away!).
5) My blood pressure has crept a little high this year after a lifetime of always being in the healthy range. I don't want to have to go on medication for this if I can help it.
6) My husband and I both seem better able to stick to our workout schedules, healthy eating, etc. if we are both trying to get fit at the same time. For all the reasons I want my fitness to be better, I feel the same way about his fitness. I want to spend a long, healthy lifetime with him!
I plan to regularly post my weight, measurements, blood pressure (my husband is an EMT, so he can take this for me whenever I want!), workouts, and perhaps photos of me in a bathing suit (if I feel brave) along with my plans, goals, and feelings as I undertake this endeavor.
Here's to new beginnings!