Team Europe!

The other day I mentioned my husband comparing himself to Tommy Europe of The Last 10 Pounds Bootcamp during our morning run.

Well ... now I have Team Europe in my house!

Last night I went down and did a couple of fast miles on the treadmill plus some weights & such.  Then came upstairs, watched Miss Joannie Rochette skate a beautiful routine and bring home a Bronze medal for Canada.  I was getting settled in on the couch with a blanket and the laptop.  It was a busy day at work yesterday and I didn't get a chance to write a blog there.

Just as I settled in, my daughter came bounding in, begging me to come down to the gym and workout with her.  She was lonely and wanted company.  I SOOO did not want to go.  I was really tired and my plan was to write a short blog and go to bed. 

But my daughter is VERY persistent and she would not let up.  I even sicced her on her Dad in the hopes that she'd leave me alone.  Instead she roped him in AND still demanded that I come along.

Next thing I know the whole family is down there.  So now I have Tommy Europe (aka my husband) and Tina Europe (aka my daughter).

Then, as I'm doing sit-ups my son comes over with the fitness ball and starts repeatedly dropping it on my stomach.  Sure it's not heavy, but you can't help but to tightly cunch those abs as it drops.  As I beg him to stop the drill sargeant in him comes out - and now I have Timmy Europe.

Team Europe attacks!

It was kinda fun though.  As much as I didn't want an additional workout last night, I couldn't exactly pass up exercising with the whole family.

Not sure if I'll get to a post over the weekend.  Tomorrow is my baby girl's 14th birthday and the Sunday is our next trail race (8Km) and we're planning to run home after that (another 10-11Km).

Have a great weekend!

Heidi

♥♥♥♥♥

Sabotage and Encouragement

Sometimes I hear people say that it's hard for them to lose weight because (insert person of choice) sabotages them.  Maybe their Mom or friend insists on serving unhealthy foods.  Or maybe their husband just is not interested in eating better or exercising.  Or their husband/sibling/roommate, etc. insists on having junk food in the house.

Yes - those are challenges!  But it's up to us to make the right decisions.  Ultimately we are the one's who decides what goes in our mouth.  We are the person who chooses to exercise.

In a perfect world everyone around us would eat healthy, nutritious foods and we would never be tempted to eat things that aren't so good for us.  This is NOT a perfect world - get over it!

My husband is 100% supportive of my healthy lifestyle.  He frequently exercises with me (as much as his schedule allows).  He never tries to talk me out of a workout.  He actually enjoys eating healthier foods and other than veggie hamburgers or tofu, he's pretty much game to try anything.  If he wants pizza and I tell him that I want stir fry instead, he's always game.

But ... he's got a sweet tooth!  He ♥loves♥ his candies.  And he loves a good sale after a holiday (Christmas, Valentine's, Easter).

I had to ask him yesterday if he suddenly has a motive to sabotage me.  This is PART of what he has brought home in the last week (all 75% off - yaaaaa - NOT!)

oh, and a 40 pack of Timbits...

There was also a large tub of ice cream (which the kids made into frosty's), another large heart of the most decadent Lindor chocolate, some smarties ....

Do you know how hard all this is to resist? 

Of course you do, pretty much anyone would struggle with this.

But, it's up to me to decide and choose what I need.  Can I say that I've not touched even one of these treats?  No, I can't.  Can I say that I've had a bit in limited moderation?  YES - most definitely!  Can I say that by having recently set obtainable goals looming in my head have kept me from overindulging in this sick overabundance of treats?  AB-SO-FRICKING-LUTELY!!!!!!

If it wasn't for the goals I've set and that I review them on a daily basis I would have had SO much more of this crap than I've had.

And hmmmmm .... how's that little project going?

Weekly loss GOAL  - 0.8 lbs

ACTUAL weekly loss - 2.2 lbs

Yes - 2 point 2 POUNDS!!!!!!!

OK, just a little happy with that!

So while my husband may be the most likely in my life to sabotage me (with his ever present candy addiction) he is also the most likely to encourage me and push me to reach my goals.  Kind of my own personal devil on one shoulder, angel on the other.

Last night he said, "Set the alarm early and we'll go out for a run in the morning."

So we did!  This morning we woke up to a drizzly, dark morning and headed out for an 8 mile run.  The start was horrid and I questioned my sanity frequently in the first two miles.  I was so slow and could not get it into gear.  Can you believe that he actually compared himself to Tommy Europe at one point?  He was trying to get me to pick up my pace and I barked at him to leave me alone.  He said Tommy Europe doesn't back off and he's my personal Tommy Europe (ohhhh gooodiiieeeee - remember this from Scar in The Lion King? - what a great movie). 

I told him last night about my plans to run home after the race this weekend (which he is racing too).  He said "and how do I get home?"  I said, "You can drive."  He was upset that I hadn't included him.  I think we'll see if one of his parents can give us a lift there and then we'll jog home together - if time allows for him.  But either way, I think I'm going to go for it.  It will be a good test for me.  It should make the half easy by comparison.

Have a great day!

Heidi

♥♥♥♥♥

A race AND a long run?

Yesterday I mentioned that I ran with my husband on Sunday.  That wasn't what was in the plans.  I was supposed to go out and do 4-5 miles on my own, then meet up with my running ladies and do another 7-8 - for a total of 12. 

Unfortunately one by one, the ladies cancelled and I was left on my own.  So I was happy that hubby decided to come along.  Except .... he had work to do and only wanted to go out for about an hour.  I should have taken a seperate vehicle and ran on my own after he left.

And I guess alternatively I should have continued my run after we got back home.  But once I stop, I have a really hard time getting going again.  I need to get past that.  We did run pretty fast for the last half of our run though and I didn't have it in me to do more that day.

I had wanted to do 2 long runs between this past weekend and the half (which is now 2 1/2 weeks away).  But this coming weekend I have a trail race (8Km/5miles) so I don't want to do a long run the day before that, and then darn work gets in the way.

I'm sort of considering running home after the race this weekend.  It's 7.8 miles from the race location to home, so this would give me a total of 12.8 miles (unless the race is slightly longer than posted, which is probable).

Is this too much to fit in a day after running a race?  I will be running this race as hard as I can as it is the last one in the series and I think I can get a pretty good time on this trail.  If I do do it, I will be sure to take it VERY easy on the run home and even walk if needed.  The more I think about it, the more I think I can do this, if I do it smart.

Right now I'm planning to fit in my last long run on the Friday of the weekend before the half - 9 days before the race.  I don't really have any experience in tapering and all that and am flying by the seat of my pants.  I've reveiwed various training plans and have built my plans around those and my personal schedule.  For the races I've done so far (5-10K) I usually try to do about a 4-5K easy paced run two days before the race, then complete rest the day before.  That seems to leave my legs fairly rested without leaving me feeling sluggish.

All I know is I have to do the best I can with the time I have available, and not waste a moment!

Oh, and here's a little recipe I threw together the other day.  We had leftover plain spaghetti so I took one cup, chopped it up into bite size pieces.  Sauted a bunch of broccoli and red pepper in a bit of olive oil.  Added the chopped spaghetti.  Then added 1 tsp. soy sauce, 1/4 tsp sugar & 1/2 tsp sesame seeds.  It was SOO good.  Some shrimp or chopped chicken would make this the perfect meal.  It was quick, easy and a good way to use up a bit of leftovers.

Hope everyone had a great day!

Heidi

♥♥♥♥♥

Weekend Recap

Successful Weekend!

Ahhhh ... I can so feel it right now.  Every time my hand wanders to something it shouldn't, my brain kicks in and I remember my goals.  I'm gonna get there, I can feel it!

Friday I went out for a road run.  My little dog Tia came along and was off and on - sometimes I was dragging her, other times she was ahead - makes for a very interesting run.  On my 4th mile I decided to do some fartleks.  Real runners won't laugh when they read that .... OK guess I'm not a real runner - hhahaha.  Come on, can there not be a better word for those?  I picked out a power pole and kicked it into high gear until the next pole (sometimes I did two poles), then slowed the pace for the next couple poles.  I did this for a mile.

Then the fifth mile I tried to run steady hard for the whole mile.  The last mile was painful, as in annoying.  I reached the driveway at 5.2 miles so decided to run past home to get in that last mile.  However Tia KNOWS where we live and she wanted to go home - I didn't.  She loves to go out and she loves to go home.  So for the next mile she kept putting on the brakes.  Her collar came off FOUR times in half a mile - GRRR!  But then we turned around and she was all for sprinting home.

Here's my splits:

• mile 1 - 8:29
• mile 2 - 8:46
• mile 3 - 8:55 (big hill)
• mile 4 - 8:16 (fartleks)
• mile 5 - 8:14
• mile 6 - 8:23
• last 0.2 - 1:28 - 7:13 pace

Distance - 6.2 miles
Time - 52:34
Average Pace - 8:28

I'm pretty happy with that!

Right after that I had a quick shower then my MIL treated me to a nice pedicure.  The woman who did it was awesome!  I was there for about an hour and a half and she worked on me the whole time - for $35. 

I got pretty HOT pink polish!

Yes, I have Flintstone feet (thanks Dad),

but they DO carry me on my runs so I don't hate them.

I also went down to the running store this weekend and REGISTERED FOR MY FIRST HALF MARATHON!!!!  YAY!!!!  March 13th!  It finally feels real.  I can't wait.

While there I bought myself a couple little goodies.

When I ran on Friday it was pretty warm and I wore a tank top (I LOVE this winter!).  Got a little rub on one arm, which I remember getting last year quite often.  So I finally got me some Glide.  I haven't tried it yet.

On Sunday my husband and I went out for another run together.  We took along the Sharkies and I put the Ultima Orange into my water.

The Ultima was great.  I don't know that I noticed any difference from it, but it tasted good and wasn't sweet.  It just has a very slight flavour to it.  I want to try some other products, but so far this gets the thumbs up.

The Sharkies ... hmmmm!  They taste awesome!  We had a couple before we left and it was hard not to eat the whole bag.  Around 6 miles into our run I figured we'd have a couple more and see what we thought.  The verdict ... a little annoying!  Maybe it takes some practice and skill but chewing while running is awkward and it seemed to take forever to get them down.  They kind of gum up in your mouth.  We both thought the same thing.  The search continues ....

When we started out it was 2°C/35°F and there was a thin layer of ice on the ditch water.  We've been having highs of 15°C/59°F, so this feels pretty cold.  I felt frozen!  The sun was also shining and it was promising to be quite warm, so I had dressed light (by the end it was up near the projected high and I'd stripped down to my tank).  The first couple of miles I felt like a running popsicle and it showed in my pace.  But then it warmed up and my husband started pushing me.  I think our 10K time was just over 53 minutes.

I'm quite excited to do a 10K road race this year .. though I don't know when my next one will be.

All in all a successful weekend and I feel great!

Hope everyone had a good weekend too!

Heidi

♥♥♥♥♥

Goals Set!

Welcome new followers.  How exciting!  I'll be off checking out your blogs very soon.

As I've mentioned a few times, I've been floundering with my weight the last few months.  I just haven't been 100% focused on it.  This realization began with my Belly Blast post last week.

But even after posting that, I didn't have all the tools quite in place to start the necessary changes.  For months I see the scale moving down and then a couple days later it pops right back up again. 

A few days ago I had a long bath and let myself just think.  What have I done before that got me past these humps?  What have I done that really kept me on track and focused on the big picture?

Sure I've had this goal for quite a while now to get down under 140 lbs .... but I realized that it was just one of those "one day" things.  You know ... I'd like to (blank) ... one day!  I realized that I need to set a concrete goal.

Then I remembered last year, before summer.  We made vacation plans and I told my husband that I would NOT go on holidays unless I was under 150 lbs.  I had been flirting between 151 and 155 for about 6 months and it was enough already. 

I made myself a chart and set reasonable weekly goals.  Then I also charted my weight, WW points and activity points DAILY as well.  I met my goal the day before we left!  Nothing like leaving it to the last minute, eh??  But I did get under and stay under there.  Now I'm at this next place where I'm stuck flirting within a few pound range and I need to push it to get over this hump.

The difference was I had something real to set my sights on.  When I look back on my posts from that time there were times when I could have strayed from plan, but because I had a real goal in mind, I remembered what I really wanted and I passed up those things.  Lately I haven't had anything to reach for and therefore had been letting myself have those little extras.  I haven't been tracking my food very well at all. 

The other night I created my a sheet with my weekly goals and am doing all the tracking like I did before.

So far it's working well.  We were watching TV last night and my MIL pulled out the potato chips.  Normally I would have had just a couple, not much, but we all know they add up over time.  But I remembered that I had goals to reach and those couple chips wouldn't help me get there.  I stayed OUT of that bag!

I'd like to set something contingent upon me reaching my goal weight, but I haven't figured that part out yet.  I'd love for it to be another trip, but the next trip we have planned (and can reasonably do) isn't until June.  Honestly I want to reach this goal long before then, but I'm putting it out there that I WILL be under 140 lbs by May 2010 at the latest, let's say May 31st for an absolutely deadline.

I leave you with a little sign of spring on the West Coast .... these really shouldn't be up until late April

(my apologies to all of those still blanketed in snow)

I'm off to get a bit of housekeeping done, a run in the beautiful sunshine ... then my MIL just booked me a pedicure for this afternoon.  Ahhhh, it's a wonderful day!

Have a great weekend everyone and good luck to those running races!

Heidi

♥♥♥♥♥

Blogland Giveaways

One More Mile shirt @ I Run Beacause ... I Can - this is some seriously funny clothing!!  I've seen this site a few times and really need to order something from there.  Hmmmm ... present idea if anyone out there loves me enough (hahahaha)

Chamion Shorts @ The Happy Runner

My buddy Syl is giving away an adorable shirt @ Live Smile Run - but don't bother to enter because I'm getting the shirt anyway - hahhaha

Early Morning Run

What a morning!

 

First, to back it up, last night my husband decided he wanted to run with me in the evening.  But, I had a few errands to do and wasn't going to fit in a track session.  By the time I got home he was curled up on the couch with the fire on, wrapped in a blanket with the dog, and watching TV.  That just looked WAY too inviting.

 

So ... I suggested we get up early today and go out for a trail run!

 

Last night that sounded awesome .... when the alarm went off and it was still dark out this morning, it didn't sound quite as good.

 

Plus - for the first time in a LONG time, it was below freezing (-1°C / 30°F) and a good layer of frost covered the ground.  I know that's not super cold, but for what we've had around here lately it was cold.  If you've been following the Olympics you are well aware of the warm weather we've been having here.  I heard yesterday they had to cancel 20,000 spectator tickets at the local mountain due to lack of snow in the viewing area making it unsafe to stand on!!

 

I'm not much of a morning exerciser, but I wanted to make sure I got a good run in for sure today and didn't want to leave it to chance.  We have things on the agenda tonight and I can't be 100% certain of fitting in a workout then (though I will try to get in a 2nd one if I can).

 

Down by the water it was SUPER foggy.  I would NOT have wanted to be out on that trail alone this morning - spooky!  Plus, for what is normally a very busy trail, we passed only one other couple all morning.  But we got to take the dog along with us, which she loved.  It was nice to let her run off leash the whole time without worrying about her getting in the way of others.

 

Only ran 5 miles ... would have liked to have gone further, but had to get home to get the kids off to school.  I think as the sun starts rising earlier I'd like to do this more often, but earlier.  I sure love my job, I can show up late as I feel and they don't care in the least.

 

I kinda wish I'd gotten a pic after the run.  My hair was soaked from the fog and partially frozen.  It was a sight I tell ya!

 

Yesterday I was tagged by ajh at Age Groups Rock with the beautiful Sunshine Award.  THANKS♥ ajh, I really appreciate you thinking of me!

 

That's got to be one of the prettiest bloggy awards I've seen!

I need to pass this along to 12 bloggers who bring sunshine to my life.  If you haven't visited these blogs check them out. Definitely a bunch on sunshiny people who bring lots of inspiration and support to my life.  Some of these are blogs that I've recently discovered and really wanna share with others who may not have had the pleasure of coming across them yet. 

• Tamara @ One Last Kick at the Cat
• Missy @ The Ups & Downs of Losing Weight
• Syl @ Live, Smile, Run
• Jen @ Prior Fat Girl
• Marcelle @ South African from Cape Town Now Living in Germany
• Susan @ All Things in Moderation
• Sarah @ Looking for Serendipity
• Katie @ One Run at a Time
• Nikki @ Slow is the New Fast
• Alicia @ Alicia Runs
• Ashlee @ Ash is Fit
• Angela @ Cherry Blossom Runs

Pass this along as you feel.

Special shout out to my Momma who is about 1/3 of the way through her radiation treatments.  You're almost done Momma and I'm so happy you're OK.  Love ya!

Hope everyone is having an absolute WONDERFUL day!

Heidi

♥♥♥♥♥

Favourite Trail

First off, a shout out for Canada winning their first ever Gold medal on Canadian land!!  WOOOHOOOO.  Pretty exciting to watch.

Moguls skier Alex Bilodeau wins Canada's first gold

Saturday night it absolutely POURED rain here.  I had scheduled to meet up with my running buddies and listening to the rain over night left me feeling almost sick to my stomach.  I don't mind getting a bit wet, but this was like having a water hose poured on you at full volume.

But ..... the weather gods were on my side and moments before I walked out the door the rain stopped.

I got there before everyone else as I wanted to get a long run in today.  When I started out it was pretty darn foggy.

another group heading out (this is a pretty popular trail)

Stopped to take a pic of me in front of the pond.  There are often a few horses out in this field and they stand at the fence to await treats from passersby.  But unfortunately they weren't out today.

This is one of my favourite spots on the trail.  So peaceful.  There are some steps going down to the water there and in the summer you often see people sitting there reading or writing.  Apparently I'm not the only person who finds it inspirational.

Some of our Canadian friends have come back to town.  Sure sign that spring is on it's way (along with a whole lot of goose poop!)

And one of the best things about the trail is there is a few of these strategically placed along the way. 

I ran 10.1 miles at a nice easy pace and it felt amazing.  About three-quarters of it I ran alone and it was quite peaceful, listening to the birds and the quietness of the morning.  Then I met up with one of my running friends and we ran back together which was nice to catch up.

This was definitely a day of running that reminds me why I love it so much!

Hope you are having a great day!

Heidi

♥♥♥♥♥

Belly Blast Begins

OMG!  Today I found my measuring tape (it's been missing as my house is turned completely upside down these days with the renovation).

The good news ...  there has been no increase in the following areas:

• hips
• thighs
• bust
• upper waist (the narrowest part)
• arms
• even my weight is the same (147ish)

The bad news ....  HOLY CRAP .... 2" increase on my waist!

SERIOUSLY???!!!!

I had felt like my waist was a bit softer lately than it had been, but really had no idea it was that much bigger.  When I'm sitting down I can feel that belly spillage.  And my waist/belly has always been my weakest point.  It already was the body part that needed reducing last time I did measurements.

I could feel it too, especially while running.  My pants would slip down a bit, my tops would raise up a bit.  My belly would sometimes slip out over the waist band and have that awful jiggle that makes you want to crawl under the closest rock.  Very distracting!

So, here it is for the world (or the few people who are kind enough to tolerate my ramblings and read my blog) to see:

I soooooooo do NOT want to post these pictures.  But I need to be accountable.  I am determined to come back here and post updated AND improved pictures soon!

Ready .......

UGH!  Note ... I am NOT pushing it out so that I can have a super change for my update pics.  Sadly that is me just standing there completely relaxed.  It's all belly baby!

My measurements are an unhealthy combination of 37-35-37. 

I'm getting serious about this and that middle number is coming DOWN!

Last night I had a great workout.  Did 3 miles easy run on the treadmill (taking that focus off of always having to run faster) and I did a lower body and abs workout.

I think today I'll do some fat burning intervals!

I'm also thinking that I need to be paying more attention to sodium in my diet.  Lately I've been feeling a bit like (to quote one of my favourite comedy CDs) a "water retaining sea cow".  I don't typically add salt to my food, but have noticed that some of the things I've been eating have been fairly high in sodium.  Surely that can't help.

Well, I'm off to make a healthy (low sodium) lunch.

Hope you are having a great day and enjoy your weekend !

(long weekend for Americans)!

Heidi

♥♥♥♥♥

Reality Check!

Reality Check .... I'm NOT super woman AND I don't have to be! 

I went out for a run last night and just let my mind wander and think.  Probably helped that I didn't recharge my Garmin and the battery died right before I started, so I couldn't monitor my pace by that.  Why on earth do I set myself up with these expectations?  Who am I trying to prove myself to?  When will I learn to just be proud of myself?

Then I came home and saw these comments that really made it all sink in:

from Syl ... "Do you think that 175 person you use to be was concerned about time."

from Marcelle ... "so stop asking hubby and belief in yourself.  ////////  I wonder if we ever get to the stage where we happy with ourselves."

from ajh .... "Give yourself credit for the weight you have lost, the exercise you do, the way you put yourself out there."


There it is ... I'm not happy with myself.  But partly because I'm putting huge expectations on me, maybe more than I may ever be capable of.  Rather than face that reality, I just get disappointed and I don't try enough to just be the best ME I can be.

And talk about reality check!  Would the 175 lbs person I used to be be concerned about time?  Absolutely not!  When I started running (a mere 2 yrs ago) it was a victory to run for a minute.  When I got to 5 minutes I thought I was amazing.  And when I managed to run longer than 10 minutes I felt invincible!!!

Yet here I am now, fully expecting to break a PR every single time I run, and not by a little bit, I want to blow it out of the water.  Like Syl said today on her post "The only thing I am wary of now is my body catching up to my mind, because my mind tells me that I can run the "boston marathon" but my body is saying "hold on Syl, you are getting ahead of yourself" :-)"

So here is me saying, "Hold on Heidi, you are getting ahead of yourself!"

I need to start viewing myself as I view others.  For everyone else I'm jumping in joy over every little victory they accomplish.  If someone just finishes a race or stays on plan with their eating for the day I'm super happy for them.  I need to do the same for me.


My weight loss however is another matter and I have been sweeping it under a rug and trying not to think about it.  The running is the easy part and the results come at this point.  I'm struggling to lose (not gain) and so I'm just not talking about it.  Not a good approach!  I'm not putting near enough effort into it and I don't quite know why.  I know that in a few short months it will be warm weather and I want to be comfortable wearing summer clothes.  No, I want to look and feel even better than I did last year.  I don't want to think about that damn belly roll anymore!  I want it GONE!!!  I work so hard at my running and my initial reason to start running was to lose fat. 

I need to make ALOT more effort in my eating habits and ALOT more effort in true and actual weight loss.  I'm going to redo my measurements (which I haven't done in quite some time) and start doing much better record keeping than this half-ass attempt I've been doing for some time now.

Now ... to find the measuring tape ... hhmmmmmmm!!!!!

Hope you're having a great day!

Heidi

♥♥♥♥♥

Turtle Vs. The Hare

As I mentioned the other day, at our race this weekend the 5K runners started before us and were about 3-5 minutes into their run by the time they passed the 10K start line.

As they went by I tried to picture in my head where I might fit in with the field (the things I do when I'm bored eh?).  I have absolutely no perception of what I look like when I run.  After about 3/4s of the runners went by I noticed the runners were alot slower looking and I leaned over to my husband and asked quietly "Do I look that slow when I run?". 

Now, to be honest, I kinda expected ... hoped ... that he'd give me an immediate "No!  Are you kidding?  You're much faster than that".  Probably alot of husbands/friends would give that reply, even if it weren't true.  But, if you haven't met my hubby, let me tell you he is a straight-up-whether-you-really-want-to-hear-it-or-not kind of guy.  If you've ever met him, you would already know this.  Don't EVER fish for a compliment because it may or may not come.  On the flip side, he is very open and forthcoming with his praise as well.  He always makes a point of telling me when I look good or that he's proud of me (which he often does both of).  You ALWAYS know where you stand.

Instead of the response I was hoping for, he kind of cocked his head to the side, raised his brows, and squished up his lips - and pondered!  Then said, "No, not quite, you're a little bit faster than that, but pretty similar".  He doesn't say this to make me feel bad, he's giving me his honest response.

It kind of threw me for a loop though.  Cuz seriously, when I'm out there (especially racing) I feel fast & light.  Kinda like this guy... (yeah OK, I don't really think I look like that ... probably a good thing too)

But, apparently it's a bit more like this....

And my finish times too would confirm that I'm not super speedy gonzalez.  I'm happy with my times, but let's face it, they're good for me at the stage I'm at, they're not ever going into any kind of record book.

As I think about my life, I realize that this lack of perception is a common theme for me and I beat myself up over it.  It's supposed to be a good thing when you can visual yourself accomplishing things.  A trick I've often heard is to think of someone who is really good at what you do, and visual yourself as them, aim to imitate their form/style.  Maybe I'm too good at that visualization, because I get in my head one thing, and when I see proof of what I really am, I'm left feeling disappointed.

A number of years ago I was riding horses and doing some show jumping.  I was doing fairly well at the local level, working hard and feeling pretty good.  So I had a friend drop over to take some pictures.  They were pretty horrid.  My position was all over the place and we didn't look anything like I thought we did.  Then a couple months later I saw a video of my riding and this completely confirmed it.  I was OK, barely, but nowhere near the image I had built up in my head.

I have the same problem with body image too.  Most of the time I feel pretty darn good about myself.  For so long I've had an aversion to being photographed because I hated how I looked.  But now, I'm mostly OK with it because I'm pretty happy with what I see in the mirror.  Yet, pretty much every time, what I see in the mirror is NOT what I see in pictures or on video.  Yet - it must be the camera or the photgrapher, because I don't look like that.  Sometimes it's even the mirror (must be the lighting).

I think this may be something that holds me back from putting in enough effort to lose more weight.  Yet, I still REALLY want to be thinner and I'm NOT content to stay where I am.  I know that I am right there at the top of my BMI (24) and probably more importantly, I know that I still have a layer of fat around my middle.  I'm definitely prone to the unhealthy apple shape.  When you plug in the whole waist-to-hip ration thing my numbers are too high.

Sorry for the downer post.  It just kind of snowballed and I've been rolling it around in my head all day (and debating whether or not I should actually push "PUBLISH POST").  Though, since you're reading this I guess I've come to the conclusion to be open and honest about my thoughts ....

Hope everyone is having a great day!

Heidi

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Giveaways to mention

Just ignore this post (ahhahaha - I wanna win).

A few wicked giveaways in bloggy land....

• Champion Sports Wear @ Happy Runner
• Running Skirts @ Endurance Isn't Only Physical
• Sophia's Gourmet Dressings @ I Run Because .... I Can (I would TOTALLY enter this contest if I was a US resident)
• More Champion Sports Wear @ Shut Up & Run

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Race Aftermath

First off ... yesterday the Olympic torch came through our town.  The Olympics are being held here this year and while I'm not exactly wrapped up in the whole Olympics thing, the torch relay came right down the street in front of my office yesterday afternoon.  So you can't really miss out on something like that.

We went outside to watch it go by and things were fairly quiet compared to some of the other areas it goes through.  This was nice as we got to be quite up close to the whole thing.

A bunch of Olympic vehicles went by, including a big Coke truck.  They were handing out special bottles of Coke Zero.  While I was taking this pic, my boss grabbed a bottle.  Then I grabbed a flag. 

Afterwards I was bugging him about not getting me a bottle too, so he gave me his (he really likes me).  When we got back to the office I drank it and he was like WHAT????  Those are special.  Turns out you can easily get the offiicial Olympic Coke bottles, but the Coke Zero is near impossible to get and people are seeking them out.  Oops!  Oh well, I was thirsty!

Then he suggested I get my picture taken with the torch bearer as he was waiting for the pass off.  At first I thought it was kind of corny so I took my bosses picture with him. 

But then I decided to do it too....

 (my boss is fired as a photographer, he got me yakking with the guy).

Turns out the torch bearer was a tv personality (Jeff Hutcheson from Canada AM) and the clip they showed on the TV this morning there was a glimpse of me.  Hey, a moment of fame!

The flame pass off was kind of cool!

So ... on to the aftermath of Sunday's race!

Often after a race I am just spent.  My usual routine is to have a good breakfast/meal and a hot shower and then a couple hours later it is not unusual for me to need a little nap.  I guess that proves I put everything I have into it.

But this race I could already feel the need to nap as we were driving home.  However, my husband needed help putting up drywall so I had to put it off. 

A couple hours after the race I started getting a massive headache and I felt a bit queasy.  I figured maybe I was a bit dehydrated so I chugged as much water as I could, then continued to drink water frequently through the afternoon.

By dinnertime I thought my brains were going to burst.  I was preparing dinner for the kids and every noise and smell was sending me over the edge.  To top it off I seriously thought I was going to hurl.  My stomach was churning and rising over and over.  Finally I MADE the opportunity to go lie down for a while and I literally laid there praying I wouldn't get sick on the couch.  Eventually I fell asleep and about half an hour later when I woke up, I felt 100% (well...OK...maybe 98%).

I've never been hit like that after a run.  And I can only think that it was associated with the run, I really don't think it was anything I ate.

It bothers me that I can't pinpoint what may have caused it.  I was hydrated before the race and I made sure to drink lots afterwards and throughout the day.  The water they provide at the races has an electrolyte added (which I've had before without incident).   I refueled well afterwards and with a typical meal.  I just can't figure it out and I wonder if this is normal???  Do others have this reaction?  I felt awesome during and directly after the run - but 30 minutes later the troubles began.

I said to my husband that the difference in running 10K in 59 minutes and running it in 55 minutes is night and day.  You wouldn't think that 4 minutes is a big deal, but for me it is.  59 minutes is easy running for me and I can run that any day and continue on like nothing.  Bumping it up that little bit just wipes me out completely.
Anyone encounter a situation like this?  Is it normal to be completely drained like that after a race?  Any solutions for preventing it in the future?

Hope everyone is having a great day!

Heidi

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10K Race Report

Sunday was our most recent trail run on the roster.  It was supposed to be sunny and warm-ish (10C / 50F), but instead it was drizzling and damp.  Here on the coast when it rains it's a very damp cold, it can be above freezing but feel well below freezing.

Normally when we arrive there is a long line-up for unregistered participants, and little to no line for pre-registered.  This time however it was reversed and we had to wait quite a while to get our numbers.  This didn't leave us a whole lot of time for warm-up and stretching, but we got in enough.

Thankfully though they started the 5K runners in a different area and waited until they'd all gotten out onto the trail to start the 10K group.  Plus we started on a much wider trail.  It was nice to get off to a faster start!

And a fast start it was .... my first mile was under the 8 minute mark, that's really good for me.  I look forward to the day I can sustain that kind of pace over a longer distance.

The next 3 1/2 miles were SUPER hilly.  There is a hill on this trail that is referred to the locals as "Heart Attack Hill".  At the top is a bench where people often stop to catch their breath.  It's long AND steep.  My "running" speed on this hill dropped to 3 mph, maybe even a bit less.  We had to do a loop and run this hill TWICE!  I knew it would be on this course so I expected it, but it was still super tough.  Plus, the entire loop itself had a number of respectable hills.

The second time going up that long, steep hill I wasn't sure I could hold my cookies.  I actually had to stop for about 10 seconds at the top and get everything back in order.  But I knew once that was done that there would be a slight downhill and the rest of the course was flat.  Course knowledge is a wonderful thing!

After all those hills my average pace had dropped to 9:04, which was slower than I wanted to be.  For a moment I mentally checked out thinking I couldn't reach my goal, but I worked hard to push through that and then I knew that I could make up time.  So I really pushed to pick it up in the last part of the course. 

Running in a series is neat because you see familiar faces, you tend to run with the same people.  I knew from previous races who is typically just in front of me, who typically goes out faster than me and that I can pass later on, who runs faster uphill but then levels out ....  I used this to my advantage.  There is this one guy who always passes me at about 4K, then finishes about a minute in front of me.  This time when he passed me I pushed HARD!  I stayed on his tail and when I found I had just a bit more energy I passed him and wasn't going to let him by me again.  It wasn't about beating him for the sake of beating him, it was about knowing that if I beat him then I'd have beaten myself.  I'm nowhere near the point of competing within the field, so it's all about competition with myself.

With about 1/2 mile to go I could hear someone coming up behind me.  I really wanted to finish strong.  So I picked up my pace AGAIN and saw that my average pace had gone from 9:04 min miles to 8:57.  By now my stomach was beginning to churn again but I kept up my pace.  At about 6.15 miles the guy behind me passed me and I couldn't catch him - though I also could not see the finish line which should have been in sight by then.

The distance ended up being 6.35 miles (aka 10.25 Km) and I finished in 56:28.  My average pace was 8:53 min/mile - 5:32 min/Km.

Afterwards, the guy who passed me at the end came up to me and said "WOW, good pace!".  Apparently he'd been pushing hard to pass me too.  Glad I at least offered him a challenge.

My goal for this race was 55 minutes, and if you convert the distance to an actual 10K then I finished in 55:08.  Pretty darn close! 

I think that with all these hills, I should be able to break 53-54 minutes on this distance.  Though my goal for this year is to break 52.  I definitely need to do some hill & speed training to improve my game.

Tomorrow I'll recap a few things I thought about this race (and the series) as well as how the remainder of my day went after the race.  Race recovery is tough!

Hope everyone is having a great day!

Heidi

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They WON!

Thanks for the well wishes everyone.  My son’s soccer team won their game today (3-1) which means they are guaranteed top spot in the cup final!!!  WOOO HOOOOO! 

Here’s a few action shots of my son:

Today is a rest day for me before the race tomorrow.

Eats:

Breakfast:  Oatmeal, Nutracleanse, Unsweetened Peanut Butter, Kashi Go Lean Crunch (I love this breakfast, it really sticks with me and lasts)

Lunch:  Wendy’s Mandarin Chicken Salad with 1/4 pkg dressing, 1/3 pkg almonds, 1/2 pkg crispy noodles.

Dinner: (not very hungry) – 3 oz steak & cucumber salad

Snack:  3 Tim Horton’s Timbits

 

Thanks everyone for your comments on my gym.  I absolutely love it, and my husband for building it.  Our house may be behind the times for now, but my gym is awesome.

I’ll be back with my race report either tomorrow or Monday.

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

 

Heidi

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Hoping for a Good Weekend

I'm getting so excited for my race this weekend.  My foot is feeling fantastic, my hip is feeling quite good and the weather is expected to be sunny.  And ... to top it all off it's on my absolute FAVOURITE running trail!  The footing is fantastic and it's so serene.  This is by far my favourite place to run.  I will try to remember my camera so I can take some pics to share.  Here's a few from last years series, which was VERY cold.

Eating was OK today.  I had a frozen meal left in the freezer at work so decided to have that instead of something made at home. 

Breakfast - Oatmeal with Nutracleanse (see review below), Kraft unsweetened unsalted peanut butter and Kashi Go Lean Crunch

Lunch - President's Choice Spinach & Cannelloni, pear & 1/2 banana **

Dinner - Vegetable soup & grilled cheese

Dessert - 1% milk and 3 Peak Freans Lifestyle Vanilla Bean Latte cookies.

** Random thoughts here .... today I had 1/2 banana at lunch.  For most of you this may not be significant, but for me it was.  I see people eat half a banana all the time and I often wonder "What do you do with the other half?".  Seriously, doesn't it go mushy?  or brown??  I either eat the whole banana or throw the other half away (as I did today because half of it was bruised and I do NOT eat bruised bananas).  Yeah, random .. whatever!

A while ago I received some sample packs of this product called Nutracleanse.  I've been using it off and on for a while and thought I'd write up a little review.  This is made by a locally owned company so if you don't live in BC you may never have encountered it.  But if you ever do see it (locations)... you should try it!

It seems to be touted as a product for the relief of constipation, and even a bit for weight loss.  Neither of those reasons are why I personally use it.  It's got ground flax and ground psyllium in it, which we all know is good for us.  But really ... it tastes good and adds a little texture!

I love to have it sprinkled on yogurt and lately I've been mixing it with my morning oatmeal.

And ... while it is recommended for constipation I can assure you that it does help things get moving, but it doesn't keep it moving beyond what is necessary (unlike alot of more commonly known laxatives).  It does it's job and life goes on as normal. 

If everyone could keep their fingers crossed for me this weekend that would be great.  This is a race I'm hoping to do really well in and my son has an important game this weekend too.

Hope everyone is having a great day - and have a great weekend too!!!!!

Heidi

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Visit my gym

This post is brought to you by a fast 2 mile run (16 minutes) on the treadmill and a little bit of weights.

 

My, oh my ... where has my head been? Yesterday I:

1) Drove past my road and had to go around the block to get home.

2) Took my daughter to McD's and paid at the first window, then just drove off.  I had to back up to get her order.  You should have seen the look she gave me.  Of course, being 13 it's all about her and how mortified she was by my actions.  The guy in the window just laughed and said it happens all the time. and the big kicker ....

3) I realized I would have gone to the WRONG RACE this weekend!!! ACCCKKKKK - now that's a problem!

I've been sort of nagging my sister in law to join me in the race this weekend.  She is so not a runner, but she does like to exercise, especially outdoors, so I thought maybe she'd join.  It's a no-go, but she was asking me details about it.  And just to make sure I got the time right (Yeah, so not my problem here!) I double checked the website.  Only to discover I've been planning to go to the wrong race.

I have a race scheduled for this weekend (Feb 7th)  and two weeks after that (Feb 28th).  I thought this weekend was the 8K and the following was the 10K, but nooooo, I'd reversed them!  Having the distance wrong is a minor problem .. but the wrong location would have been disasterous as I never would have made it from one location to the other in time.

Phewf!  Thank goodness for finding this out in time! 

Last night I had another session with the Dr.  My ankle feels 99% and my hip is up to about 75%.  If I sit still too long the hip gets tight, but it is improving.  He said 1, maybe 2, more sessions and I should be done.  I don't really know exactly what he's doing but it seems to be working.

After that I had to go into town to drop off my daughter, so I decided to hit up the track.  I ran 4 miles in 33:45 (8:26/mile).  I'm pretty happy with that.  Hopefully I can be around this range for my race this weekend - though I expect a bit slower due to hills and terrain.

Also got my fruits & veggies so today has been a much better day nutritionally. 

Breakfast - Oatmeal with flax seed, peanut butter and Kashi Go Lean Crunch (this was an awesome addition for a little crunchy texture)

Lunch - Hummus Sandwich on whole wheat thin bread & a large container of mixed veggies with Sabra Chipotle Hummus.  YUM YUM YUM.  I have a large container of hummus I need to use up shortly, which is just fine because I love it.

Dinner - 1 c. Smart Penne Pasta, 1/4 cup jarred Alfredo sauce, 2 oz. grilled chicken, 2 cups broccoli, carrots & red pepper

Dessert - 1 square Lindt Chili Chocolate

I had planned to have a cup of milk tonight but I'm feeling quite full and really just wanted water.

Now to just keep this up.....

Hope everyone is having a great day!!!!!

Heidi

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Get Back You Nasty Bug

Ugh ... I finally caught the cold going around our house.  For a while now I've been pretty lucky (healthy???) and haven't caught a cold.  Some of the family has been sick this winter and it's bypassed me.  But this time I've got a titch, a bit of a sore throat and super tired.  I'm hoping it stays to just that.  I'm trying to get a bit of extra rest and take things easy. 

So ... no exercise for me last night.  I came home from work, made dinner (if you can call it that) and just crashed on the couch.  I felt pretty guilty and almost went downstairs for a weight workout, but just couldn't bring myself to do it.  Hopefully I have some energy back tonight so I can get a little something in.

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Got us all signed up for the Vancouver Sun Run this May too (yay for early entry fees).  My husband is going to run it with me and my mother-in-law is going to walk it.  It's such a scenic route (or so I hear, I didn't notice last year - heehee) and I think she'll enjoy going along with her camera.  What's not to enjoy about getting out for a nice walk with 50,000 plus people on Mother's Day???

It takes about an hour for everyone to just cross the START line!  Thank goodness for chip timing.

Speaking of dinner (ya I did, way up there ^), I have been so unorganized with my meals lately.  Totally slacking on making my lunches.  We haven't had a proper dinner in a while.  It's all been helter skelter!  I'm sure the kids are loving it, but it's really not healthy long term.  I really, REALLY need to buckle down and get this area of my life back in order before it snowballs.  Sure I have excuses, but they're just that and I can overcome them with a little more effort.

I don't think I've been blowing the calorie budget (though I'm not 100% certain because I haven't been tracking) but we all know how this works.  One day you're not counting calories, the next you're eating more processed foods, and the next you've gained back every pound you lost.  That's NOT going to be me!

I've been keeping portion control in mind but the food has NOT been healthy (frozen pizza, chicken nuggets, cereal, canned soup....).  No doubt this doesn't help me to fight this cold.  Yet, I sit here racking my brain on what I can make tonight that is SUPER quick and healthy.  We have a total time crunch in our house tonight.  Maybe I can duck out of work a little early to at least hit up the veggie stand.

Hope everyone is having a great day!!!!!

Heidi

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January Recap

APPT FOLLOW-UP

Was back at the Dr this afternoon for a follow up.  Things are looking good.  He massaged my foot and calf and there was very little discomfort which he said is very good.  The hip was quite uncomfortable but he said it's doing what it should to heal.  He said just a couple more sessions and I should be fine.  Plus he gave me some good stretching tips, including to hold stretches for quite a long time, until you feel the muscle release.  He said 30 seconds is a bare, BARE minimum and 2+ minutes could easily be necessary - especially in a trouble area.

I should mention that this is a Chripractor/Massage Therapist in an office that has a high volume of sports related clientele.  So they really get wanting to work through issues without complete bed rest if possible.  A standard doctor would just give you a prescription and tell you to stop running.  Which is fine if that's what is necessary, but if there's a problem that needs fixing, drugs & rest alone aren't going to do it.

OUTDOOR LIVING

About a week ago my husband decided to start the renovation on our ensuite.  End of January and he takes the ceiling, walls and insulation out of the room adjoining our bedroom.  Who does that??? Let me tell ya ... that's a cold sleep!  The wind was blowing right through.  I thought my nose would fall off at times. 

So Friday I had to finish filing a tax report and when I was done I figured on mostly relaxing for the weekend. Saturday morning I went out for a couple hours and came home to everything being removed from my bedroom. 

Turns out there was a problem that lead him to have to do some framing work in the bedroom.  So EVERYTHING had to be removed from the room.  Then they tore down all the drywall and insulation - what a mess! 

The first night we slept at my in-laws next door.  But last night we set up our mattress in the front living room.  It's going to be at least a few weeks.

Today I came home and the exterior wall is gone, as is the interior wall. 

And my husband and son had framed up my walk-in closet (that'll be nice!!). 

It was SO cold when I got home from work.  But thankfully my son put up a layer of plastic to keep the cold out.  Much better now.

It's going to be an interesting time around here for a while as we have lots of renovations to do.  We've been living with this very outdated walls & carpet for a LONG time.  It'll still be a while yet til that's gone, but the progress has begun.

  JANUARY 2010
RUNNING RECAP

# of runs:  14

Distance:   ......66.3 Miles / 106.6 Kms 
Monthly Goals:  55 Miles / 88.5 Kms

Longest Distance:  10.2 Miles / 16.3 Kms  (1:32:10)
Fastest Pace:  .....7:54 min/Mile / 4:55 min/Km / 7.6 mph - on a 3.1 Mile/5K run
Average Pace: .....8:52 min/Mile / 5:31 min/Km / 6.8 mph

Summary:  I'm super happy with what I achieved in January.  I was hoping to run more often, but with the injury I took some extra rest days.  I exceeded my distance goal by 20% (which I was sort of aiming for) and I'm pretty happy with my pace.

Hope everyone is having a great day!!!!!

Heidi

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The Dr says .... RUN!

It's been a busy weekend and other than posting a few comments, I haven't had much time online. 

Friday I went to see the Dr about my foot/hip issues.  He definitely thinks they are related, but time will tell.  He thinks the issues I'm having are due to VERY tight calf muscles.  And, because my left foot slightly overpronates, the more miles I put on, the more stress I put on it. 

There is a muscle that runs along the inside of your calf, then around the back and underneath of your ankle bone and then attaches at the bottom of your foot.  This is the muscle that he says is extremely tight. 

He said if it weren't for the unbalance issue with my left foot, that I easily could have had this problem with either, or both feet.  As the muscles tighten, they pull on the bottom of my foot - and as it gets tighter, the pain continues up the inside of my leg.  If ignored, the pain will keep going higher and higher, and eventually could lead to major problems.

He did a pretty thorough massage of my foot & calf and when he pressed in the area that he said was the biggest problem it really hurt.  That night it was quite achy, felt like a bruise.

And while massaging my hip he noted that my IT Band was also VERY tight.  He was surprised that I hadn't had issues with it and said I need to pay alot more attention to that area.

He told me to definitely run this weekend and I have another appt with him today to see the affects.  And I'm to do lots of stretching after my runs and for the next while ice for a good 20 minutes afterwards if possible. 

So ... run I did!!!  And it felt great.  After a stressful, busy week and no running I couldn't wait to get out (and play with my Garmin).

Saturday I took the dog and we ran downtown.  First off ... I don't enjoy running in the city.  Sidewalks, street posts that the stupid dog runs around and gets caught, stop lights - very disruptive!  But it still felt good to get out.  I ran a very casual 4 miles/6.3 Km.  Afterwards my foot felt a bit sore but not as bas as it's been, but my hip was fairly achy.

Sunday I had grand plans of going into town early and meeting up with the running room group .. but I'd had a busy night and a so-so sleep and when the alarm went off I thought no way.  However, late in the afternoon I went out and had a great run - 3.1 miles/5K at an average pace of 8:34/mi - 5:20/km - 7 mph.  It felt awesome!  My foot is still feeling really good, but I think the hip is worse.  Guess we'll see what the Dr. says today.

I've got some pictures to post of what we were up to this weekend, and a recap of January, but I'll leave that for tomorrow - as well as an update from the Dr.

But before I leave ya ..... there is an awesome giveaway in blogland right now:

Running Skirt Giveaway at Endurance Isn't Only Physical

Unfortunately one of the conditions of this giveaway is to mention it on my blog - heeheeee.  I wish I didn't have to because I SOOOO want to win one of these skirts.  I drool over this skirt site once in a while when I'm bored at work.  So I'm really hoping to win!

Hope everyone is having a great day!!!!!

Heidi

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