Officially, this was my secomd 5K since I did Race For the Cure back in May but it didn't quite count since I couldn't do any running. No such restrictions for the 5K on the 4th of July and 25 lbs lighter this time around! It was a timed event and divided into divisions – based on age, lucky me! *wry grin* The race started at 6:15 am – it wasn't even light outside when we left! – and the weather was beautiful! I was able to run probably halfway with fast walking in between. I turned in an official time of 51:09 and was 21st in my division. I was trailing right behind the last of the runners and staying ahead of the fastest walkers which for me felt pretty damn good. Already planning another one for August with tons of time in between for training to increase my distance. Allergy season is kicking my ass but I am not letting that stop me. I heart running!!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
Author Archives: terraluft
About terraluft
Another 5K
Social Experiments
Ever wonder just how far and fast news travels? I have some fairly major news of a personal nature and I was initially trying to “keep a lid” on it, so to speak. While that worked when I hadn’t told a single soul, the minute I spilled the beans to even the most trusted people, the news started spreading like wild fire. Of course, my control-freak nature was screaming that me and me alone should be the one to disseminate this very personal information to every single person who inevitably would learn of it. When that didn’t happen, my social animal nature decided instead to turn it into a social experiment. I am now keeping the same news to myself but am watching with major interest to see the patterns of how and where (and how far) it spreads. I will post the news – as well as the results of the pseudo-experiment which could really just be called an observation in human nature – in a couple of weeks. In the meantime, it is pretty entertaining stuff! Stay tuned… and if you are one of those who happen to fit into the category of a reader of this blog AND already know what’s up with me, please don’t spoil the fun by posting comments that could give it away? Again, there’s my control freak nature rearing its ugly little head…
Breakthrough… Finally!
I did it-something at the start of this crazy running journey I thought I would never be able to do. I stretched and psych'ed myself up and walked out my front door, dog in tow, and started running. Fifteen minutes and a mile later I stopped running. Holy shit it felt good and truth be told I could probably have pushed myself and gone further but was on a time schedule. It was true what 'they' say: working up to being able to run the first mile straight is tough, but here's hoping the next one isn't quite as long to get under my belt. Who knows, maybe I'll do more running than walking in my next 5K on the 4th of July next weekend.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
Personal bests
Sometimes I think maybe I should just get out of my own head and quit worrying about stuff! I felt like a wuss for a week taking it easy on the training while suffering pretty severely from allergies and then Thursday night was out with my walking/running partner. Because I still was pretty stuffed up we did a brisk two-mile walk and were catching up on where we are at with our manuscripts – very enjoyable. When we met up with a fellow jogger at the beginning of mile 3, she decides she’s going to jog (which is fine because I can power walk almost as fast as they were going to be jogging) and they set off and pulled a little ahead. Without having any time to psych myself out, I just said “what the hell” and started jogging with them. 3/4 of a mile later, I was still pushing myself and keeping up with their pace. Oh GOD did it feel good! And my first mile run is lurking around the corner, waiting for me next week or the week after-I just know it. The best part is that because I’ve actually taken it easy for the last week, my foot didn’t hurt the next day and I think the plantar fasciitis is now at bay as long as I train smart. It is funny how this love affair with running works but I wouldn’t trade it for anything!
In other news, I just submitted the first 6 chapters of my manuscript to my writing group for feedback. I’ve been working feverishly the last few weeks after finally working through many holes in the plot line and re-writing EVERYTHING I had written prior to January. At this rate, I might even have a completed manuscript by the end of the year.
Frustrations of Training
HCG regiment is winding down with only a week left in the stabilization period at which time I can eat starch and sugar again. I finished the injections with a total of 24lbs lost and am wearing clothes I haven’t fit into since pre-pregnancy. For the last two weeks I’ve been able to easily maintain the weight eating regularly again plus I’ve been able to run and really train. I got a fabulous new personal trainer keychain – not that I’m pimping anything but if you want info on it, check out www.nextfit.com – and went away for a long weekend to a spot where there were tons of empty dirt roads where I could run every day. Which I did, and with the help of the trainer I was able to double my endurance doing walk/jog interval training. Was feeling fabulous the first night – even ran with the hubby – did 2 miles and was on Cloud9. Went out the next day and knew it wasn’t a fluke because I was able to run longer distance in the same time allotment. Fabulous! Until the next day when I got out of bed and my foot hurt so bad I couldn’t walk on it… Apparently I am now suffering from yet another running ailment most often caused by increasing your mileage too quickly called plantar fasciitis. WTF? So, I took a few days of rest and ice – more rest than ice but, still, the resting is the hardest for me to adhere to! Went out again last night and was feeling so down afterwards! The foot felt pretty good and was only a little tender this morning. However, I was running with my long-time walking partner who on the outset was NOT excited about running. Now, with what looks to me like minimal effort, she is able to run faster and longer than I am. Of course, her long ass legs and her singer’s lungs are definitely advantages I just don’t have. We added another friend last night who also – even on HCG and cheating at the running part – is a stronger runner than me and part of my inspiration to start running in the first place. I felt no apprehension about her coming along knowing she was on HCG and “couldn’t” run. But, she is not the stickler for rules I took her to be and they both kicked my trash! We got one jog interval under our belts and I was sucking wind like a novice. Again, WTF? I had to cut the run short to get home to a sick child and then felt dejected all night because I couldn’t keep up. Thoughts orbiting my head had the semi-constant theme of finding some excuse to just run by myself from now on so I don’t have the constant reminder of “you aren’t a strong runner” right next to me. These thoughts were still there this morning when I awoke and hadn’t really faded over the morning at work. As I sat at my desk fighting to breathe through my nose and resigning myself to the fact I just might be coming down with the head cold the rest of my household has had for the last week, a light bulb went off. I was sucking wind last night because I am all stuffed up!! I was all up in my head for no good reason… I know I would miss being pushed to do my best if I gave in and ran by myself. Besides, my book would certainly suffer since the walking intervals are devoted to plot outlining and discussion with fellow writers. So, I’m still on the training circuit but won’t push myself until I’ve recovered from whatever has me all stuffed up. Ah, the frustrations of training that come in so many forms!
Almost there
I have 3 days left of HCG injections and I can’t believe it has seemed to fly by! I am happy to report I have not cheated once – NOT ONCE! It is not the easiest weight loss treatment due to the specific meals you must eat but with a bit of planning it really isn’t impossible. I haven’t been hungry, I don’t crave sweets and carbs like I did at the onset, I have a ton of energy, I feel fabulous and my clothes are literally falling off of me now! 20 days in, I’ve dropped 21 pounds. With three more days to go, I’m thinking 25 isn’t too lofty of a goal! With my first 5K under my belt (I had to walk it but I did it!) and an average of 13 miles a week of cardio, I’m ready to hit the ground RUNNING next week. It is like looking forward to a reunion with a long lost loved one you haven’t seen in months.
Just need to vent
It is no secret I loathe the location of my cubicle being on the aisle because I have zero patience when it comes to all the bullshit that happens in the hallway. Two things I overheard said as folks walked by today struck me as particularly notworthy for the way they portrayed the laziness of people I am surrounded by…
“I think we should be able to schedule naps everyday.”
“I think I am going to read a book… I brought one today!”
Come on, people, REALLY? It is called “work” for a reason and in this economy, with hundreds of unemployed waiting in the wings who would kill for your job, you should PROBABLY be doing something to earn your keep. I hear reports from all over of companies trimming fat in the form of non-performers and await they day it happens at my place of employ!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
My Wii thinks I am on crack
I jumped on the Wii Fit this morning thinking I should PROBABLY have some factual recordings for posterity of my weight loss efforts. Mostly to look back on and reinforce the NEVER AGAIN thoughts! So, it had been a while even before my first day with the HCG and truth be told I had been avoiding the little shithead with its fitness tips and questions about why my weight kept fluctuating the same damn 6 or 7 pounds. But, this morning it said ” you've lost 10 lbs since last time” with my own imagined tone of incredulity. That's about right when factoring in the 6 lbs I gained at the onset of treatments. Yep, 16 lbs lost in 10 days. I am amazed everyday… It was then time to set a new goal with the little nazi and I stated 20 lbs in the next two weeks! After all, that's what I'm averaging now so what the hell, right? I was then met with the normally wise tip of making a realistic goal. Hah you little cheerful inanimate object – that IS realistic and I won't even need crack to do it!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
Missing running
I got a wild hair up my you know where and decided since I could get it for dirt cheap I would try this famous “weight loss cure” in the form of daily HCG injections. My main thought was to quickly shed some extra weight in order to make my new running obsession easier on my body. As with most things, I just jumped in and committed. Without reading all the fine print… Like the part that said no strenuous exercise and specifically no running while undergoing the treatment. WTF? Oh well, it is only for 23 days and I can still walk as much as I want everyday. Maybe by then my naughty dog will be trained to stay by my side instead of sniffing and stopping every 2 seconds. In the meantime, 5 days into daily shots and a crazy diet of protein and veggies I have dropped 11.5 pounds. Here comes the svelte super runner!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
Notice anything?
It is amazing to me how many things I am noticing about my improved fitness. I can walk faster than I used to without getting winded. I went walking outside and while my pace was sufficient to give me a good workout it wasn't like I was out of breath or even panting. Of couse I would rather have been running but that is on hold while I am doing HCG treatments for the next 3 weeks. I can walk up a flight of stairs and not even feel an increase in my heart rate where befor it would skyrocket with just a single flight. It must be the year for us to get fit since the hubby just joined a gym, too.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
A ban I can support
I was struck today on the drive home that enough has not been said about the horrors of plastic bags… at least not from my own soapbox. Why aren’t the rest of the cities of the world taking a queue from San Francisco and supporting a ban on plastic shopping bags? My opposition includes all the normal issues about how they are not biodegradable and most of them end up in the oceans where they either literally choke living things or break down into smaller pieces that totally mess with the DNA of those unlucky enough to ingest them. However, I have a much bigger beef than even that – the laziness of the average American. At this point in our history you would think we had learned SOME lessons from our recent history about re-using. During the early 19th century they had “rag and paper men” who’s job it was to go to individual houses and collect rags from sewing and paper and take them away to be reused. Why, then, a century later, are we having to reinvent this and find ways to make recycling hip again? Every other developed nation in the world (well, OK, at least in Europe where I have personal experience) expects their citizens to bring their own bags when they do their shopping. So why is it a novelty that I get bitchy looks about from folks unlucky enough to be behind me at the grocery store checkout when my bagger is struggling to load my reusable bags with my purchases? I’m sorry my efforts at saving the planet interfere with your rush to be wherever you are heading. Several years ago when Ikea first appeared in my city, I thought it novel I was charged for the plastic bags I used to carry my purchases away and it was the first time it got me really thinking about the issue. Today, I get a credit for every bag I return to the store to reuse which is a nice incentive to get people to purchase the reusable bags but I think we should go farther. It should be a requirement that you go to the store with your own bags and if you don’t you should be charged for the plastic ones you take away. Maybe if it hurt people in the only place most of us care about – the pocketbook – more people would be interested in making a difference that takes such little effort. Call me a hippie or a tree-hugger, call me a liberal fascist, just do it while you are reusing your own bags, please! I would rather see them banned altogether!
Spoke too soon
What is it with me? I swear I have been invaded by the body snatchers where they left only the shell and screwed with the programming circuits of my entire being. It is the only explanation for me dealing with the issues I currently have. What are these issues and what are they caused from, you ask? I have used my painfully acquired “Cause Mapping” skills to ascertain that I like to run more than my body can handle at this point. Anyone who knows me will attest this is insane! Even my brother asked me last week who I was and what I had done with his sister while I was gushing about running. This week I cut back to only running 3 times a week and still doing some cardio daily when I can squeeze it in. So, I walked the equivalent of a 5K on Monday night, felt good last night when I got done with all the other crap going on and got to squeeze in a late evening 1-mile run. Immediately and promptly afterwards I had painful muscles which persist today. So, apparently I am STILL – even with my efforts to cut back on specifically the running impact to my body – doing too much exercise. The insanity is that we are talking about the girl who got winded going up a flight of stairs when I started the new job in October. The girl who got winded walking to her car even! It just occurred to me I should feel embarrassed about my poor health 6 months ago and not talk about it but then I think about the progress I have made with what seems like very little effort and want to shout it to the world. I walked up the 6 flights of stairs today after lunch without getting even slightly winded. It felt amazing! Perhaps with the big 4-0 birthday looming around the proverbial corner I can consider this my midlife crisis? All I know is that I will be 40 and Fabulous by the time it hits at this rate and couldn’t be happier!
Spoiled by nice weather
I am so happy for nice weather… There is nothing better than being outside instead of banished to indoor cardio! Training continues and yesterday's run was invigorating and only mildly cold from the wind. I am slowly making measured improvements and still feel confident I will be running a full mile within the month. Amazing to think… I walked a 5K tonight with a friend and felt great doing it. I thought I would be sore but I wasn't and even the few knots in my legs are beginning to subside as my body grows accustomed to its new lifestyle. I have even talked enough about running that I have a couple of non-runners who would like to join in. I am telling you, it is contagious! The best thing I heard all day was when the hubby told me he got winded and couldn't even run a half mile after his workout at the gym. I know he is still rehabing from a new ACL a year ago but seriously I have never been in better physical shape than he has and never thought I would be. I am taking the satisfaction (and accompanying glee) where I may!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
Terra Luft - View From the Crystal Ball 