New goal. New blog. December 28, 2008

I know it is so cliche.  New year, new resolutions. But there is a reason for the cliche.  A new year offers a rare chance to have a fresh start – to be the you of 2008, only better.

For me, that means running a marathon – faster.  And to do that, I desperately need to shed 20 pounds off of my 167 pound body.  In January of 2008, I weighed 148. Yep, 19 pounds ago.  The bad news is the 19 pounds.  The good news is that I know how to loose it.  And I’ve done it before.

The marathon I’ve chosen to run is the Bayshore Marathon up in Traverse City.  I ran it in 2006 in 4:45. I was happy w/my time and happy with the experience overall.  But I have dreams of finishing stronger (and in less pain!).

So, I decided that this blog will be the tracking of my travels toward 26.2 and 148 again. I need to be accountable somewhere – even if it just to my own blog.  Tomorrow is the big day – the kickoff.  I figure, why wait for January 1st? Do you know how much more calorie damage I can do in 4 more days?  No, we start tomorrow.  And we start w/24 weight watchers points and 6 miles.

Game on.

Day 1 – Holding fast November 11, 2008

So day 1 was actually a semi-success.  Forget the fact that I woke up at 161.9 pounds and am at 163.3 now right before bed.  But it wasn’t because of a bad day – rather still being punished for 12 months of bad days.

Today I started off the day with one of my favorite running buddies – Tracy.  I always find myself talking to her as if she were my therapist.  She is such a good listener and so very unsightful.  A side benefit is that it sure makes the running go by faster.  I just hope I listen half as good as she does and I don’t talk her ear off completely!

Food today was fair:  2 eggs with toast and low sugar grape jelly, a lowfat raspberry yogurt, spaghetti (w/whole wheat noodles and low fat sauce) for lunch, caramel corn, grapefruit and strawberries for snack, wrap up with a big salad and a bowl of cereal for dinner.  I know.  Odd dinner combination.  Oh!  And a glass of wine (yummy!).  In case you are wondering, I am perfectly aware of the wrongness of caramel corn on a diet.

My pts for the day (weight watcher pts) ended right on target: 22 pts plus eating 5 exercise points for the 40 minute run.

Tomorrow will be a bit tougher.  I have an all day meeting – which means no snacking.  And I may be eating who knows what for lunch.  Plus, I can’t work out until evening while watching the Biggest Loser.  I’m thinking lots of treadmill walking plus a revised version of P90x chest and back. I can’t do the whole thing right now anyway since my shoulder is still bothering me when I do pushups or fly.

Bye Bye Porky. November 9, 2008

I have gaine 15 pounds in a year.  There, I said it.  In January, I weighed 148. Now, I weigh 163.  Oh. My. Goodness.  I can’t believe it has actually happened.  I hung around 155 for along time – which was comfortable.  Clothes still fit, but I knew I had to start being more intentional about my eating.

Yeah, didn’t happen.

Case in point.  We had bruschetta tonight (w/fresh mozarella!), asparagus w/balsamic viniagrette and olive oil, tenderloin w/a honey dijon sauce and a baked potato w/light I can’t believe it’s not better.  Sounds pretty good, huh?  But then we add in the two Bud Light Limes (Hey, it was a long day) and a pint of Ben & Jerry’s.  Yes, you read that right.  I ate the whole fricken’ pint.  And now my stomach eerily reminds of my mother’s as she got older.

Combine my less than stellar eating habits with a blatant lack of running (um, 3 times since my half-marathon!) and it is a recipe for disaster.  Now, I’m doing P90x w/my husband – so I am exercising almost every day for an hour.  But it just isn’t the same as the running.

So, I’ve decided I’ve had enough.  Beginning right now (not tomorrow, tonight), I am eating right and running more.  Running will be a priority before P90x.  I will go back to weight watchers (on my own) and actually stick to it.  Why?  Because I am sick of feeling like this.

How do I feel?  I feel like my skin is touching skin.  I feel round and flabby.  I feel like I have wobbly bits (to steal a phrase from the eloquent Bridget Jones).  I am lethargic, my skin is pasty and my self confidence is waning.  I think that is more from a lack of control than actual weight issues.  I simply feel bad when I am out of control like this.

So, what will I eat tomorrow?

Breakfast:  4 eggwhites, 1 piece of toast w/sugar free jam (4 pts)

Snack:  Banana (2 pts)

Lunch: Potatoe w/I can’t believe its not butter, tenderloin, veggies, (7 pts)

Snack:  Fruit & string cheese (3)

Dinner:  Salad w/tenderloin (6)

Snack:  Pepper strips, diet root beer w/ice cream (5)

Run: 45 minutes 5 pts

Total: 27-5: 22 pts.

Let the games begin.  I feel better already knowing I have a plan.

Hot & Humid 10-miler August 23, 2008

Just finished my first 10-miler in about two years.  I started at 6 a.m. from the church parking lot.  I planned to run 6 miles and then meet up with three other friends to do four miles – and church was close to our meeting spot.

The first mile on the dark, lamplit street was wonderful.  So still and so quiet.  But when I turned north, the slight breeze that had been whisking away the sweat suddenly stopped – it was blowing north as well.  And the overpowering humidity hit me.

At about mile 3, I checked my watch and realized I needed to pick up the pace if I wanted to meet the girls at mile 6.  So I did.  Thankfully, it coincided with a turn south and the breeze was back in my face.

The four miles with the girls went so fast.  Good company makes such a big difference!  By the time we got back to Shelly’s house, I only had a half mile left to get back to my car.  I grabbed the gatorade I had stashed there and the run was done.

Besides the sweltering heat and humidity, the run was noneventful.  And I’m very happy to have it done with for the day and its only 8 a.m.!  Plus, I feel confident the half marathon will be no problem…at least to finish!

On the Way Up – 9 miles August 16, 2008

This morning I continued my half-marathon training w/my longest run in a year.  I headed out around 6:15 a.m.  My plan was to get the majority of my run done before the sun came up strong.  It was dark and cool when I left the house.  In fact, so cool that I was afraid my shorts and t-shirt might’ve been a poor choice.

The run itself was fairly uneventful.  It was a beautiful morning though – so I enjoyed the scenery immensely.  I ran north, out into the country.  The soybeans and the corn stood tall and seemed picturesque.  The midwest at its best in late summer.

At one point, I ran out of bike path and had to run down a semi-busy country road.  There is a nice shoulder, so I wasn’t worried.  But I had a woman in a Pontiac Vibe fly by me so fast, I felt like I could’ve gone tumbling down the road in the wash of jet stream.  Crazy broad.

The last third of the run was tough.  I was getting tired.  My bones ached.  And I had to go the bathroom rather badly.  I wasn’t in an emergency situation, but it was uncomfortable enough that it was about I all I thought about – how to keep my backside squeezed together and still run fast to get home to the bathroom.

When I got home, I was pleased to see that the 9 mile run took me 90 minutes.  10 min miles.  Not particularly fast, but I felt like I ran it rather slow.  So it was encouraging to think I’d be able to be doing 9ish min miles in the marathon in a few weeks.

9 Miles down…4 more to go! July 28, 2008

My Saturday run was great this weekend.  As usual, it was my long run.  I thought I’d run to my friend Shelly’s house who lives 2.5 miles away.  Adding in a 3 mile run with her would be 8 miles – exactly what my schedules called for.  However, we ended going farther and I finished 9 miles.

The run itself was pretty good.  It was unbelievably humid when we first started out…my face was just dripping with sweat.  And I hadn’t planned for any hydration or nutrition.  My rule of thumb is – less than 10 miles, no need.  However, in extreme conditions, that rule is just plain dumb.

Thankfully, Shelly and I were pleasantly suprised by Joel and our beautiful little girls.  Leah and Maggie brought us Gatorade!  I don’t particularly like the stuff usually, but when you are parched like that, it sure hits the spot.  What a sweet husband, huh?

The run back from Shelly’s was fast and fun.  One of those times when there wasn’t much pain.  Today I’m a little sore, but nothing terrible.  This was a great confidence booster.  My half-marathon is still almost 2 months away and I’m already confident I can cover the distance.

The trick will be getting in 2 five mile runs this week…

6 Year old Running Parnter July 15, 2008

Today was a momentous occassion.  I ran 3 miles at an easy pace (per my nifty Runner’s World schedule) and my six year old daughter Leah accompanied me.  On her bike.

I’ve seen other moms do this – run while the kids ride bikes.  And I always thought it looked like the best of many worlds.  Time with the kids, getting the run in, and kids get exercise.  Win, win, win.  It helped that today was my short, easy run day and it was a sublime 78 degrees out.  Low humidity.  I’m hoping we can do this again very soon.

Tomorrow is a cross training day.  I think I should go to Spin class, but really can’t afford the lunch break.  So I will have to resort to weight lifting at home.  I think I actually like weight lifting less than I like spin.  That’s saying a lot.

Oh, one other important detail.  I officially registered for the Park 2 Park 1/2 Marathon!  It’s on Sat Sept 27.  So far, no other takers on running it with me.  But I’m okay with that.  It will help me build up nice base mileage for my marathon training this winter.

And she’s off! July 14, 2008

Running has been part of who I am for years. I’ve been running for more than half of my life. As a mother, it seems my goals are now concentrated on my children and their goals. Running is the one area where I still set goals and work toward them.

I love running because it makes me feel strong. I love running because I feel empowered. I love running because I know my girls are watching. I love running because it makes me different.

I’ve already done one marathon. 4:45:00 at Bayshore in Traverse City. Next May, I hope to race it. Sub 4:30 is my goal. This will be my story of chasing that goal. For me, for my daughtres, for my husband and hopefully glorifying God in the process.