Hello my old friend.

"Even if you are on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there." - Will Rogers

So I've finally recovered from vacation.  Funny how the thing that is meant to be relaxing, requires a period of "getting back to normal."  Being such a creature of habit, it feels good to get back into my routine.  Although, being summer the term "routine" is used quite loosely.

One that I've been struggling with is finding ways to still keep in shape while Bertha and I become best friends.  Sitting around waiting to heal just wasn't an option.  I decided to get back to the gym, knowing that once I got there I would make myself workout.  So for the past few mornings I've gotten up early and done something for an hour.

It isn't replacing my previous activities by any means. It's lonely and quite boring, but it is a whole lot better than doing nothing.

I've spent the time on the bike or elliptical finding ways to entertain myself.  Here is what I've come up with so far:

-A good, entertaining running app.  A good friend of mine got me into Zombies, Run!.  As silly as it sounds, I've gotten quite involved in the story line and look forward to my new mission each morning.  The story cuts into my music, cutting apart the monotony of staying in one place.  Plus, it will work regardless of whether I am running outside or staying stationary. 

-Intervals. I've tried to spice up my sessions by using my music as a pacer for different intervals.  One song I'll try to go as fast as possible while during another song I'll slow it down and maybe focus on my core. It keeps the activity a little different and helps and hour go by a little faster.

-The TV.  I hate that I now work out in front of the TV, but at least I'm not just sitting there.  I've learned that my choice of program can be pretty influential on how my workout goes.  First, I put the TV on mute and put on the closed captioning.  Between my music and the Zombies, I don't need another noise to add to all that is going on. Plus, I see it as me improving my reading skills while keeping up with the closed captioning (there is the teacher in me).  I've also learned to keep away from any show I'm extremely involved in.  For instance, I'm a huge Big Brother fan (guilty pleasure).  I get too into the show to get a workout in, so I've learned to save that for another time.  The best shows have been either reruns I've seen before or the news. Nothing I'm entirely vested in, but enough to help pass the time.

Do you have any other ways of entertaining yourself when you're stuck exercising indoors?

What the South taught me

“Every person needs to take one day away.  A day in which one consciously separates the past from the future.  Jobs, family, employers, and friends can exist one day without any one of us, and if our egos permit us to confess, they could exist eternally in our absence.  Each person deserves a day away in which no problems are confronted, no solutions searched for.  Each of us needs to withdraw from the cares which will not withdraw from us.”  ― Maya Angelou, Wouldn't Take Nothing for My Journey Now

When I last wrote I will admit I wasn't in a very good place.  My foot injury came at quite possibly the worst time.  Between grad school, the impending school year, and many other stressors, I had begun to rely on running and exercise to help manage my stress (it did a pretty awesome job).  Take that away, and I was just a ball of nerves.

Call it perfect timing (or not), but all of this happened just in time for vacation.  Earlier in the year M and I had agreed to join my parents in a trek down to Durham to visit my sister, followed by several days in Asheville for a music festival.  Overall I was looking forward to the time away.  Still, I tend see vacations (especially those with my family) as more of a stressor than anything else. 

Our first few days in Durham provided a mish-mash of miscellaneous activities.  Shopping with the family (always an interesting venture) helped to highlight some of the vast differences the South provided.  Everyone was so much nicer.  Store clerks said hello, not just because they had to, and inquired about the boot (now lovingly known as Bertha).  We were in one store that provided free balloon animals and face painting for M (she still says it is one of the highlights of her trip).

We were planning on attending a Durham Bulls baseball game, however soon realized that with a 3-month-old and a 3 year old that may not be the best idea.  Instead, my sister directed us toward the restaurant that was located on the far wall of the stadium.  Here we were able to pay attention to the game, and eat some wonderful food all at the same time.  Plus, when the kiddos were ready to go, we could easily leave without feeling guilty for spending money on tickets.  This was especially nice, since we ended up seeing only an inning and a half of baseball.  Through this experience I got to try both fried green tomatoes and hoppin' john, two southern staples I had never tried before.

Monday and Tuesday of our vacation were pretty laid back.  Both my sister and her husband had to work, so we were staying home with their daughter.  My mom had that job taken care of, so M and I decided to use those afternoons for some quality bonding time.  Our first afternoon consisted of a lunch date to Red Robin, another first for both of us.  It was nothing spectacular, although M is still raving about the delicious milkshakes.  Our second afternoon had me venturing to Chapel Hill to the KidzU Children's Museum.  Although small, M had a blast!  For me, just the drive into Chapel Hill was an adventure.  I don't do well with directions, and have been known to get lost even with a GPS.  So I was pretty proud of my self for navigating the 5 lane highways of Durham.

Wednesday we left for Asheville.  A three car caravan, led by my dad, seemed like a good idea at the time.  Still I soon realized that I much rather driving on my own that following others.  As we approached Hendersonville (where our cabin was located), we were quickly reminded of the mountains surrounding us.  We left the highway only to be greeted with winding mountain roads with steep cliffs to one side.  Definitely not ideal if you are afraid of heights.  As we approached the road for our cabin, we first were greeted with a sign indicating that only four-wheel drive vehicles were recommended.  Seeing as my parents were in their mini-van, this was going to be interesting.

Turns out, the road up to our cabin was a mile and a half of winding dirt road going up the side of the mountain.  I think my sister said that our cabin was at 2800 feet. The driveway to the cabin itself was even more daunting at just about 45 degrees!  Luckily, we all made it and were greeted with a gorgeous cabin.  We spent the rest of the afternoon just enjoying the accommodations.  Although I'm not "into nature" I definitely enjoyed spending time out on the deck, just me and the trees (and M singing another one of her made-up songs).

Thursday we decided to venture out to get some BBQ.  My brother-in-law had gotten a recommendation from a buddy of his, so we ventured down the mountain and into Hendersonville to 12 Bones Smokehouse.  Talk about some of the best bar-b-que ever!  I enjoyed the pulled pork sandwich (yes I know it isn't sugar free but it was TOTALLY worth it!) while others in the group tried the ribs and the brisket.  No one had anything negative to say.  Even M loved the mac and cheese.  I loved it so much that I had to get the T-Shirt. 

Friday was the first day of the Bele Chere music festival.  My dad is a music fanatic, and is always looking for new bands and places to hear good music.  Finding this festival helped to solidify the Asheville portion of the trip for us.  I will admit I was a little worried about taking M.  It was a lot of walking, in the sun, with some pretty sketchy characters.  But, we had a good time.  Once again, I was amazed by the food selection.  You could get everything from fried candy bars to fried rice, BBQ to seafood to vegan fare.  Just choosing what to get for lunch was a daunting task.  I chose the crab cake sandwich from a local restaurant (Yes, I am aware this is again not sugar-free.  I was on vacation, give me a break!).  It was delectable.  M had some freshly made chips with some ice cream.  I learned that I was quite fond of the food in the South.

Just the people watching was entertainment.  You had all walks of life including hippies, the street corner preachers, and the occasional girl walking around topless (apparently you can do that in Asheville).  We spent a lot of time looking at all the different vendors selling just about anything imaginable.  The festival had a children's center that took up the entire floor of the civic arena.  M got to enjoy several bounce houses and slides, a tea-cup-like ride, and even bumper cars.  This was all on top of enjoying the live music.

Our original plan was to stay through Sunday.  However, over a week without daddy was proving to be difficult for both M and I (and I think daddy was a little lonely too).  Friday we found out he would be going back to work the following week, so the decision was made to leave a day early.

Waking up to rain Saturday morning, I was happy that I made that decision.  The rain would make it pretty hard to enjoy anything outside, and that is what most of our plans consisted of.  So I packed up the car and M and I were on our way.  Back down the treacherous hill and through four states.  I will say, the low clouds laced through the mountains made for some spectacular sights along the way home.

Going into the vacation I was in a rut.  Partially depressed because my "stress reliever" had been taken away, I needed a change of pace.  The South provided just that.  I learned a lot from the South.  It taught me to slow down a bit, enjoy the moment and enjoy some good food.  Be kind to one another and have confidence in yourself.  I learned that riding in the middle seat in the back of my parents van is a recipe for nausea.  Sometimes it is the simple things in life that are most valued, like sharing a milkshake with your daughter on a random afternoon.

Challenges

"Difficulties are meant to rouse, not discourage. The human spirit is to grow strong by conflict." - William Ellery Channing

I had that feeling in the pit of my stomach walking into the doctor's office.  That feeling of impending doom that something bad was about to happen.  The pain in my foot had gotten progressively in the last three weeks; so bad, that after a short 3 mile run Monday morning I could put no pressure on it at all.  I had known something was wrong, and I ignored the problem until I no longer could.

The X-rays confirmed what I was already sensing was wrong.  A stress fracture.

As relieved as I was to learn this was not all in my head, it was a huge blow.  Six to eight weeks in an air cast.  No running.  As the doctor sat and explained everything to me I went numb.  Thank goodness he gave me a packet with all the information, because I honestly heard nothing for the last portion of my appointment.

I held it together in the office, just shook my head and promised to come back for a follow up in three weeks.  Then, with my brand new fashionable footwear, I hobbled out the door.

It wasn't until I got home that I fell apart.  Thank goodness for Tim.  He kept calm and reassured me I was going to be fine.  Still, all I could think was that all my hard work of the past several months was about to be reversed. 

The first place I wanted to go was the TA workout I would be missing.  I felt the need to tell them in person.  Then it was on to my parents (they had air conditioning and this stupid boot is hot!).

As a couple hours went by I calmed down.  This isn't as bad as it could be, and I'm not down for the count.  I'm just going to have to change what I'm doing.  I was really bummed that I won't be able to run in the 5k while on vacation next week (love running in new places) or the Half Marathon in August (what I've been training for).  Still, if all goes well I should be able to get back to training before the Beast on the Bay, and although I won't be at my best, I can still participate.  After going through two months of change for Challenge Erie I should be a pro by now, but the thought is scary. 

So now it's time to change things up a bit.  Instead of running, I'm going to try some other forms of exercise.  I found a great deep-water running plan written for runners with injuries.  Plus, I've been saying I want to get back into swimming.  I can still bike and a friend even suggested trying rowing.  I can still work on my abs and arms.  Luckily I have some amazing support through my friends.

So what DO you eat?

One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well-Virginia Woolf

I love food.  There is no question about that.  Although as a child I was quite picky (think chicken nuggets and French fries every night for 13 years), as I have grown older, my tastes have also grown more diverse.  Unfortunately, I was eating WAY too much of all the wrong foods.  I was a sucker for sweets, addicted to salt, and even though I tried, I never knew when to quit. 

When I started Challenge Erie, I knew all of that had to change.  Lucky for me, I was given some guidance.  I decided to really step out of my comfort zone and go sugar free.  To clarify I wasn't 100% sugar free, I still allowed natural sugars.  I went sugar free in the sense that I was eating:

• No processed or refined sugars
• No artificial sugars
• No dairy
• No caffeine
• And for the first 3 weeks no alcohol (I've tried to keep the alcohol consumption to a minimum since then)

 

This was a daunting task.  I read somewhere (although I can't recall where now) that over 85% of foods at the grocery store contain some type of sugar.  On top of that, I am aware of almost 30 ways that sugar is listed on the label (and I'm sure there are probably other ways I am unaware of).  Needless to say, cutting out sugar cut out a lot of foods that I used to eat.  Now that I'm over two months in, things have gotten much easier, but the question I hear all the time is, "What DO you eat?"

My diet now consists mainly of fresh fruits and vegetables and protein. There really aren't too many processed foods that don't have sugar.  I've also noticed that I've really reduced the amount of carbs that I'm eating as well.  Eating out is tricky, so I really make an effort to make as much at home as possible.  In the coming weeks I will try and get some of my favorite recipes up so that you may use them as well. (I'm by no means a chef, so I can't promise anything spectacular...but we like them!)

So what am I eating now? 

Breakfast - typically a smoothie of some sort paired with a piece of Ezekiel toast with organic peanut butter

Lunch - Piece of fruit, peanut butter sandwich or a wrap with chicken and veggies, blue corn tortilla chips with homemade salsa

Dinner - chicken or seafood, steamed or roasted veggie, occasionally some whole wheat or brown rice pasta or quinoa

Snacks - nuts, dried fruit (really need to read labels on this one), pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds, blue corn tortilla chips with salsa

Just What I Needed

“If you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely.”  ― Roald Dahl

Anyone who knows me, knows that I am not typically a morning person.  I can sleep till noon with the best of them.  However I have noticed that with the recent heat and humidity of summer finally arriving, waiting until the afternoon to get my workout in only left me hot, tired, and drenched in sweat.  Because of this, I wasn't getting my entire workout in.  Instead, I would do what I could, and then retreat to the cooler recesses of my basement to recover.  So, when it was suggested we run in the morning, I was intrigued (although not quite excited).

I've spoken before of the amount of peer pressure that has played into my running and exercise habits.  Groups are frequently getting together to complete different runs or workouts.  Pictures and comments are always posted, and you don't want to be the person left out.  I will admit, this was part of my motivation for waking up this morning at 5:30 to go run.

Once I got up and enjoyed the sunrise, it really wasn't so bad.  I was tired, but I would live.  I had a good feeling about this run, and I was looking forward to some new scenery.  I decided to stay positive, even if I really wanted to climb back into bed.

For breakfast, I kept it light.  I had eaten a lot the night before and was still feeling the after effects of my new obsession with Salt & Pepper potato chips.  I grabbed a banana and decided to try out some coconut water before the run.  My hopes were that this combo would help curb the nausea I still tend to experience after longer runs.  I had never had coconut water before, I can't say that I will ever willingly have it again.  It just wasn't for me (although I didn't get sick after running!).  With that, I was off. 

I was meeting a group of people to run around Findley Lake.  To get in some mileage we would be running around the lake twice, for a total of just over 10 miles.  Being so early in the morning, it was still cool enough that I could enjoy the run and not focus all my attention on wiping sweat out of my eyes.

The run, for the most part, felt great.  I did, however, have some issues with my left ankle and knee that kept me from finishing as strong as I would have liked.  I'm hoping that it was just a combination of less training than normal and the terrain, although I'll be keeping an eye on how they feel tomorrow.

This one is for you Eloise!  Thanks for finding my "good side"!

As always, it was the wonderful group of people that helped to make this run what it was.  I can say that there are very few people who can get me out of bed, much less exercising, before noon.  With such a positive atmosphere, it's hard not to feel good about getting out and moving on an early Sunday morning.  I will say it is something I'd be willing to try again.  The mood was contagious and spread throughout my day.

So I just wanted to say thanks ladies (and CJ), let's do it again some time!

Adventures in Life

 

"Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving." - Albert Einstein

 

It's been a while, (almost two months) but I am finally back.  The last two months have been quite busy, and also quite transformational.  During that time, I was unsure of whether I wanted to continue writing and I was unclear of the direction I wanted to go.  What originally started out as a journey towards health and fitness has instead transformed an entire being, me.  To recognize this awesome feat, I decided to change directions and focus.  Looking back, I was silly to limit myself so much in the beginning.  So now I'm starting new: new name, new look, new perspective. 

So where have I been?  What have I been up to?  I'm sure everyone is dying to know.  I haven't really gone anywhere, still in the same house on the same street.  Heck, the furthest I've driven in that period of time has been to the other side of town.  Still, in the words of Einstein, "I've been moving." 


My last post was fittingly the first day of Challenge Erie.  I can accredit this challenge for being the catalyst that started my movement.  There is far too much to go into detail but some of the highlights include:

• Sugar Free -  As part of the challenge, I decided to eliminate processed and refined sugars from my diet.  Along with this, I also eliminated all dairy and caffeine.  Until just recently, I had also eliminated alcohol.  That's a whole lot of elimination!  Daunting at first, I now think it has been one of the best decisions I've made.  I feel great.  I'm thinking clearer.  I have more energy.  And as an added bonus, I'm down almost 20 pounds.  Expect to hear a lot of about this in future posts.

 
M loves taking pictures, especially of me.  I just happened to have a picture of me on the zoo carousel at the beginning of my journey and recently, I think I look a lot happier!

• The runner in me - I've continued on with my running.  We had the big finale to the wine run series and have even moved on to running for ice cream.  To date, the furthest I've run is just under 13 miles, just shy of a half marathon. 

• Focus on me - I've always been the type to put others before myself.  There were times I would tear myself up over a project or go way over the top to make sure others were comfortable.  That perspective has changed somewhat.  I still get satisfaction from helping others, but I've also learned about the importance of helping myself.  For the first time in a very long time I've been given the chance to focus on me.  I struggled with this at first.  I felt like the more things I did for me, the more I was taking away from my friends and family.  Then I was giving others an improved version of myself when I took some time for me.  I don't feel as burnt out all the time, and find myself enjoying more of the little things in life.  I'm happy, and I can say that with 100% assurance. 

• Self-confidence - I've written about how I'm awkward and unsure.  I've never been completely confident in the decisions that I've made or things that I've done.  I constantly second guessed my worth.  Throughout this challenge that has changed.  I have done things I never imagined I could do and learned that I'm pretty awesome.  Just like everyone, I have things I can improve on.  But I've learned to celebrate the things I've done.  I'm comfortable with the fact that I am not as strong or fast as those around me.  I've come a long way, and I know that with continued effort I'll keep moving in the right direction.

So here is to a new start.  I'm excited to share this journey with you!