Life & Pavement

Life really sucks some days!

The good news is that the pavement doesn't care what you've done wrong...
it unfolds itself in front of you and hangs out until you feel better!!

Disturbingly Fun!

Remember a couple of days ago I was mumbling (okay, whining) about a sore throat et al.? Well, fast forward to this morning and what can only be described as a sinus infection in the making! Dammitjim! I’m not willing to claim defeat yet… I had LOTS of sinus issues last year, but there were a few times where I suspected one on the attack but it never transpired. I’m quite certain that will be the case with this one! Just certain!

So, while I’m at work, trying to ignore the burning pain, the sinus pressure, and the mid-afternoon exhaustion, I’m really, REALLY wishing I hadn’t said “hey, let’s go run hills tonight… no I promise I won’t cancel for anything…” What was I thinking? Ugh!

I met up with my friend for a slow warm up jog and I’m huffing and puffing almost immediately… oh my, this isn’t gonna be good! We get to the base of the first hill and it doesn’t look so bad. Our first lap up the hill is as slow as you can go. Now I’ve been warned that the slowest lap is the hardest, but I’m a slow person so I really didn’t buy into the hype. Well… about 3/4ths up the hill my legs were BURNING. I made mention of this to my friend and she says “YEP”… gee, thanks for that! We made our way down the hill and did it again, this time at a nice comfortable pace (if such a thing exists when one is running UP a hill). For the third lap we take the hill just a bit faster. As I’m running up and down this hill in front of people’s houses (some of which were out in their yards and undeniably aware of our presence) I wonder how crazy they think I am? Then I laugh to myself that they probably think my friend is even crazier, because she comes back every week and does the same routine. Wait… now she has a following of crazy people running in circles in front of strangers houses. Yep, I decided they’d find her to be the crazier of the two of us. Yes, I’m proud that I can form actual thoughts while huffing and puffing up and down this damn hill. My friend on the other hand – chatting up a storm as if this is nothing! Don’t dare ask me to answer any questions right now… I would have to give up breathing to talk… and quite frankly CPR is not on my agenda today!

Then there is hill #2. It’s a slightly longer hill but not so steep. Same routine… 3 laps, slow, medium, medium-fast. Huff and puff and puff and huff! This. Is. Not. Easy. There was a time or two that I slowed to a walk but only for 2 or 3 steps and then I pushed thru. Dang! Not easy! BTW - Dang was NOT the word that fell from my lips, but we’ll go with it for now ;) Bring on hill #3… at first glance I was ready to run the opposite direction. This one was steeper than the first. Ugh! Up I go, feeling the burn… Up I go, wanting to quit 3/4ths of the way in… Up I go, cursing, slowing, but being encouraged and coached to keep moving. DONE! Three laps on three hills. Yay! Wait. Remember the warm up jog… yep, still some pavement to pound to get back to my car. Dang! Final verdict on my first set of hills… it wasn’t easy, but it didn’t suck, in fact it was kinda fun! Many, many thanks to my friend for keeping me company, cheering me on, and being there for yet another milestone!

Checking in… Fast food – doing great! Actually sounds awful, with the exception of just one place. So far so good! Eh hem, I do have to admit that I’ve not done quite as good as I had hoped on choosing healthier foods at home. A work in progress though! I did stop to check out a website suggested by a friend - www.ourbestbites.com – there are some YUMMY recipes there I can’t wait to try! …2 lb a week challenge – see previous note about not-so-healthy foods :( Still maintaining, no gain or loss… Making all my training runs – well, I missed two last week, but had a 5k walk on Saturday, soooo at least I got something in. Just lost track of time more than anything else. Will keep working on this one too!

The TSC Alliance has a slogan this year that I just love! It absolutely fits their mission, but I think it could be applied in so many ways in life… “We will give everything. But up.” This should be how everyone approaches their own life! I love it! I will use it to motivate me… tomorrow! Good night moon :)

...but I don't wanna!!!!!!

“I don’t wanna go run seven miles!!” I'm all stuffy, my throat hurts, my ears hurt and my body is aching from two days doing little but sitting in a car, eating, and sleeping. I just wanna stay in bed!

I eventually got my whiny butt out of bed and had some breakfast, complete with zyrtec and ibuprofen! I did everything I could to put off getting ready to run, but it was nearly 10 and I was supposed to meet the girls at noon, so I needed to get a move on. Easier said than done! I couldn’t find my favorite pants :( If I was gonna go “trudge” thru seven miles, I was at least going to be wearing my favorite pants! I did my hair, gathered my things, all without pants. Dammitjim, I wanted my pants! Getting grumpier by the minute, I finally found them in the dryer. Apparently I knew days ago that I was going to want my pants this morning. Properly dressed, I looked in the mirror and realised my shirt made me look too fat, so I grabbed a baggy ole t-shirt and called it good enough. I don’t care if it starts pouring down rain, I was gonna hide my fat and wear my favorite pants. It’s the least a grumpy girl can do!

Effectively running late for my run, I texted a friend that I was going to park at her house and run from there, but that I was grumpy so I would talk to her after I had run off my bad mood. She responded that she was in the same boat. I felt a little better knowing I wasn’t alone! I took off and my first few steps felt great! Mind, body, and soul needed this! I hadn’t really planned my long run (which I ALWAYS do), and I didn’t really want to run, so I decided today I would play! I turned down random streets and saw different views and just had fun with it. My brain kicked into high gear and I thought about everything! As I passed a school I noticed the kids’ projects hanging in all of the windows. Remember when doing our daily tasks earned us a spot on the window/wall/refrigerator?

My motivation and energy was still a bit low, so walking was frequent, but life was good. Just about mile two I came across a woman I had met through friends of friends who are all runners. She walked with me for a few and chatted about how she was having a rough go of it today and she was scheduled to do 13 miles. Dang! As she took off to run again I said “have fun” to which she replied “NOT”! Double Dang! I watched her do a run/walk routine that was quite similar to my own and once again felt comfort in knowing I wasn’t alone. Misery loves company, right?

I stopped back at my car for some water and grabbed my favorite little four-legged running buddy and headed back out for 2.5 more miles. I was pretty tired and ready to be done, but the little one was having a blast. She’d run and run and run and then… DOG… run, run, run… BIRD… run, DOG, run DOG, run… she does great in businessy areas or on trails, but dogs in their yards are just too much for her. She becomes the poster child for puppy adhd! She definitely kept me entertained! I’m not sure which one of us was smiling more at the end of our little run!!

Generally the girls and I meet up after our long run to celebrate… as it turns out today we all woke up saying “I don’t wanna run seven miles!” Once again, glad to know I wasn’t alone! However, I’m quite grateful I got my hiney out there and got it done! Now, I want chocolate and a nap… since I don’t keep chocolate in my house, I guess I will have to settle for a well deserved nap :)

A Necessary Evil...

I hate food! I mean, I loooooovvvvveee food, but heck I struggle with food more than anything else!

I was raised on hamburger. It was cheap when times were tough and Dad liked it, so we ate a lot of it. As soon as I had my own job and some wheels, I was eating anything BUT hamburger! I started an affair with fast food, which I'm certain was laced with crack so I would keep going back for more! It's no surprise that, even though I have eaten my share of crap, I was disgusted when I read the headline "Man eats 25,000th Big Mac, 39 years after his 1st." I couldn't even bring myself to read the article at first, but as I considered writing this blog I decided I needed to know this man's story. He bought himself a car 39 years ago and celebrated with 3 Big Mac's. He loved them so much that he went back and got six more that day. For 39 years he has averaged 2 Big Mac's a day, commenting that he had only gone 8 days without one in all that time. It says something about our culture that such an article would be front page worthy. How sad.

So why do I eat crap? Well, it's easy! It's not cheap, it's not as good as homemade food, but it's ready in just a couple of minutes and I can eat it in my car as I'm rushing to wherever. Great selling points, eh? I do know how to cook, without making anyone sick even! The problem is I get bored with the same ole foods very quickly and I'm not creative in the least, so I struggle to come up with a new food or recipe. My friends have been a great help with this, I now know dozens of ways to prepare chicken! Hands down, chicken is my favorite food. Make it spicy and I'm in heaven!

About two weeks ago I was challenged by a friend to avoid all fast food until my next half marathon. I love me a good challenge! The first week was difficult, but once I actually went to the grocery store things got much easier! For the most part I'm eating proper portion sizes of healthier foods, prepared in my own home without any crack additives. I still have some vices, but I'm getting better. The problem is I am hungry. All the time! I have increased my water consumption, so that helps, but I still need to find more filling foods. I've run twice this week and done a Jillian work out once and during all three activities I was plagued by hunger pangs. As if trying to keep from tripping over my own feet isn't enough, now I'm trying ignore my tummy at the same time :( Anyone else notice that the tummy is right between the brain and the feet? Can messages safely travel that route with the big bad angry tummy in the way?

Once again, I have to laugh. While typing away on this blog; a friend came in and started talking about a local fast food restaurant. He went searching for information about it on the internet, trying to determine if it was a chain or not and proceeded to tell us all about what he and his wife had for lunch (in detail). Thank goodness they had hamburgers - I lost my appetite ;)

... and thus it begins again!!

Well, after a well deserved week of laziness, half marathon training began again this morning!! In all honesty I should have started yesterday, but as it turns out Gin + Tonic + Dee = Disaster... a fun disaster, but a dehydrated disaster. So, I earned myself six soggy, windy, sloooooowwwww miles today! After a week off, my muscles needed a gentle reminder that this is what we do, so I hit the centennial trail for some rolling hills. Yep, I walked a lot. Yep, I'm good with that!

Random fact - the Huetter rest area is just over 3 miles from my house. Really something I never needed to know :) At one point on my way back I found myself in a deep little valley. It was full of lush greenery and quite gorgeous! I wondered if I had "checked out" when I went thru this area the first time. I could see the sign saying Coeur d'Alene next 5 exits, so I knew I was headed the right way, but this little valley just looked so new to me. I took a second to turn around and see what was behind me... and ahead of me... and behind me... wow! Standing the same spot seeing two very different views... I think they call that perspective! I hope I can remember that moment next time I need it!

I made some decisions on this run. First of all I am joining M in the 2 lbs a week challenge. That girl inspires me SO much! I'm excited to emulate her success in this area! Also, I'm going to avoid alcohol until June 12th. That's my next double digit run! There are many celebrations between now and then, but they are all for people under the legal drinking age, so I think this should be a piece of cake!

While writing this, I got the most awesome text! My best friend had a dream that I became a gym junkie, got super skinny, and so hot! Well dammitjim - I always want my friends dreams to come true! Guess I'll have to see what I can do about this one :)

What I learned in 13.1 miles…

I can run 13.1 miles!! That’s a long way! That’s from the state line to the hospital and around the parking lot a few times! WOW! I can do it! I can have fun doing it! I can feel great doing it! I can do it AGAIN! Days after completing my first half marathon, I’m still on cloud 9! It wasn’t easy getting there though!

My biggest road block… my own mind! I over-thought EVERYTHING! Every rough day at work left me mentally exhausted and thus I allowed my brain to sabotage my run. I did this a lot. Dang! Every ache and pain freaked me out! I worried that I was doing permanent damage to my body! Yes, I thought that by exercising I was harming myself. Seems a bit silly now!

My biggest mistake… I missed runs! My shorter runs were often difficult. I just didn’t want to go. I missed many. In retrospect, I wish I hadn’t. I rarely had good reason to do so. I mean heck, if I can run 13.1 miles, I can run 5 miles! I am proud to say I only missed one long run—I didn’t want to—I was dressed and ready to go, but I was sick and needed the day off!

My best run… my turning point, my moment of knowing I was going to succeed – my 9 mile run. From Ironwood Plaza down Government Way along Sherman/Front/Mullan and Coeur d’Alene Lake Drive. I ran 4.5 miles to use an outhouse! Then I had to get back to my car! This was the first time my miles had melted away! I worked through SO many thoughts. For days when someone would bring up a subject I would say, oh yes I thought about that on my run and this is my suggestion!

My roughest moment… mile 8 of my 10 mile run. I was nearly in tears. I was looking to hail a cab. I was done. Fortunately, I was on 7th street, which isn’t highly populated with taxi cabs! So onward I continued. Met the gang at Subway for a quick bite to eat and life went on.

My proudest moment… flying up and down the stairs at the Kennedy school in Portland hours after completing the half marathon. Apparently I was supposed to be experiencing more pain and stiffness. Guess I had trained well ;)

My race day anxiety… perhaps I should say race week anxiety! The whole “taper week” concept messed with my head! I mean, I followed it. I put my faith in it. Thousands of others had succeeded using it, so would I – I hoped! Oh did I hope! It didn’t help that I spent taper week in Phoenix where the temperatures were in the high 90’s, requiring me to wake up at 5 am to get my run completed. Anyone who knows me knows 5 am is closer to bed time than to rise and shine time! Plus, I was alone. My friends, my support, they were all at home, running in 40 degree weather. Oddly, I was jealous of them!

My biggest support… my sports bra! Just kidding, sort of… but really, my friends are freaking awesome! I had just started the Couch-to-5k program when a friend encouraged me to do my first 5k. Okay! Makes sense! I mean, now I have an actual goal 5k away from my couch! Hooray! This same friend lassoed up a few other friends to join in on half marathon training! How great it was to have a seasoned runner to talk to and, at times, push me! How great it was to have other newbie runners to talk to and inspire me! I couldn’t have asked for better training buddies!

My lessons learned… I’m gonna hurt. Sometimes the hurt will go away before the run is over, sometimes the hurt is going to last a while. I can do it. Be it 3 or 5 or 13 miles, there is no valid excuse for not getting my tush out there and getting it done! Shoes can make or break me. Having proper shoes, in good condition is absolutely imperative!

My goals… well, the next 13.1 is in 60 days! It’s hilly! Majorly hilly! I get to tweak my training plan to incorporate hills! I’m not a fan of hills. We will be best friends when this is all over and done. I want to complete every training run, as well as add in some cross training. The sun is out! I want to hike and bike and kayak and swim! This morning I caught myself wondering if I could run 20 miles… see if I could run 20 miles, I could run 26.2 and complete a mara… oh, now that is just insane!!