Fitty on the West Coast

Oh yeah, I've been tagged!

2007-02-08T21:35:00.000-08:00

What a great time for me to get tagged! I've been a little down since this injury and have been second guessing whether or not I can train for the half ironman and the STP (200 mile bike ride from Seattle to Portland) this year. Partly because training takes up a lot of time. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE the women I train with! But I also miss my friends whose idea of training is going to happy hour 3 nights a week to prepare for the big night out on Saturday night.

I really want to experience the best of everything this year. Training, travel, work, friends, family and yes, even some drinking and dancing on the town. Can I do this, get over this injury, base train and then ramp up to the half IM and STP? Typical Aleks, putting on the pressure instead of enjoying the journey.

So I'm going to put it out of my head and just go with the flow, enjoy myself and the company around me. I'll keep doing what I'm doing as long as it's fun! So as a reminder, I'm going to answer the tag from Jess.

P.S. Training has been good this week, but I've been a little low on energy. But I'm sticking to the plan, with lots of strength training. Oh, and PT kicked my butt this week! Holy they work you hard... I'm hoping this pays off in nipping this injury and getting me back to running! I had NO idea they'd have me doing a workout during my sessions! So much for an nice little massage and electrode stimulation! Now I know why they call it "the Shelly love"! ;-)

Now the tag (keep in mind I have only done one tri):

1. Describe a memory from your first triathlon ever.
Spending a FULL day at the expo, racking bikes and dinner with the Princesses. That was one of my favorite memories of all time.

2. Describe a memory from your most recent triathlon.
This!

3. What's the most embarrassing thing that has ever happened to you in a tri?
The girls convinced me that I was a strong swimmer and that I would be ok without a wetsuit. Danielle also managed to convince me that I should stick a little closer to the front because Danskin was full of newbies that would drown me from the back. So I positioned myself close to the front and when the gun went off, I nearly drown. I swam too fast to get out front. The water was super choppy and I took it way too much water. Had to revert to the great backstroke! :)

4. What's the most thrilling thing that's happened to you in a tri?
Beating my goal! Surprising myself on the bike, and even with major aches on the run, still beating my goal time.

5. What is something you discovered about yourself by doing triathlons?
That I can do it?!?!? :)

6. What is The Big Goal that you're working towards?
Hmmmm... TBD? Half IM and STP!

Ok, off to sleep... gotta get up in less than 7 hours to meet Jess and Regan for Danielle's spin class!

Night night!

Monday

2007-02-05T21:05:00.000-08:00

See, like I never skipped a beat. ;-) Ok, one week beat to be exact! And it's not that I didn't exercise last week, but between getting up early to go to the gym, being swamped at work and crashing super early from jet lag, blogging was voted off the island. But after hearing my mom complain 4 days in a row now that I haven't blogged, I figured it was time to be an adult and stay up past 8 pm and get caught up! Plus, I missed you all and had questions like about Wes' job hunt and Jess' boot!

So, I have caught up on some (but not all) of your blogs yet (but I will)! It's 9:20 and I'm fighting to keep my eyes open, so I just wanted to say that I'm alive. I'm getting up early tomorrow to do some cardio and weights. I also have a PT appointment tomorrow so I'm hoping she'll have some good news about my progress and an ETA on running. I have major running withdrawal, it's so weird.

Jess also tagged me on Thursday (this is how out of the loop I am) so I'll get on that tomorrow. For now, all I can think of is sleep. Like I said, I don't normally get jet lag and I can't imagine that it's still remnants of the trip to London. But they say it takes a day to recover for every hour in time difference. That would make today the last recovery day... maybe my body is trying to fight off something that I picked up on the plane? I don't know, whatever it is, my body called, it wants it's energy back. Wow, you know you're tired when you're throwing out really tragic one liners.

P.S. I am a little depressed. Yesterday was both the best and worst day of the year. I love Superbowl Sunday for all of the fun and excitement that it brings, but it also marks the end of the best sports season. Now all I have to look forward to is March Madness and Hockey Night in Canada.

Heading home!

2007-01-28T02:14:00.000-08:00

What a great trip! I can't remember the last time I had such a great business trip followed by quality family time! However, I am ready to go home... and be back on a normal schedule and back at the gym.

I am waiting at Heathrow for my flight home through Copenhagen. My flight is delayed and the last time this happened I missed my connection and my bags were lost. I hope I'll have better luck this time!

While I wait I thought I'd jot some things down about the rest of my trip and my week ahead so I don't hesitate to get back on track. I had a couple of wonderful days with my brother (P) and sister-in-law (A). Yesterday we spent the day in Windsor, followed by an amazing dinner at home and a night in watching movies (You, Me and Dupree, An Inconvenient Truth and Cars). It was the perfect way to end a busy week!

Here's what I'm planning for this upcoming week to get my body detoxed of this British food and booze!

Monday - 6 am cycling and weight training (hopefully I get some sleep at home tonight!)
Tuesday - Swimming (and maybe yoga?)
Wednesday - 60 minutes of cardio and weight training
Thursday - Swimming (and maybe yoga?)
Friday - Danielle's cycling class and weight training
Saturday - Something fun that is easy on the legs

Still no running... not while I'm still feeling knee pain just walking around. I hope this doesn't last. Jess is also out from running for a while so it's a *little* easier to stay away from running.

This week I'm also going to return to eating similar foods to what I ate at my parent's place in Canada... no calorie counting, just wholesome foods that worked well. Oatmeal and berries, fish, lean meats, whole grains, vegetables, LOTS OF WATER and nuts, apples with peanut butter and flax. And no alcohol... I have been on a bit of a bender since Jan 7th which is a long time for me. Besides the extra calories, I don't get enough water in and I now feel completely dehydrated (good time to get on a plane, NOT!) :)

Here are some pics of the three of us yesterday, see you all soon!

P and A at the gates of Windsor Castle. I can't properly describe how gigantic this place was.

Mmmmmm... beer. Ewwww... Guiness. Taken for effect only, and for the beer mustache. :)

Me and P...

Me and A... the reflective tape on my running gloves lit up half of the pictures taken yesterday. :)

A... 13 weeks pregnant. She's going to kill me for posting this, but I had to... I wish I looked this good pregant!

Bender

2007-01-26T07:09:00.000-08:00

Last I posted I was fighting the effects of jetlag here in the UK. I don't usually get it, but Tuesday night it happened again. I slept from 10 pm to 1 am and that was it. I tried everything, bed, couch, floor, pacing, eating, working, reading and watching TV. Nothing, it was like a bad joke and I was getting more and more stressed about the day ahead. Finally I just got up out of bed at 6 am and went down to the gym.

We had a full day of meetings Wednesday and I was fighting to stay awake in the afternoon but we had a great day of sessions! That night we went out for a night of drinking... boy can the English drink! And when all good things collide, good friends, good atmosphere and good music, I can hold my own too. We had an amazing time, bar hopping and dancing the night away! There are few things in life I enjoy more than cutting a rug... and singing so loud that I can't talk the next day. No matter how bad the hangover is. :)

I woke up the next day and felt great! Why? Because I finally slept! Apparently that was the cure for the jetlag, drink so much you pass out! Not the healthiest solution but I needed every minute of the 7 hours I got! :) Another afternoon of meetings followed by another evening out! When in Rome, do as! My friends finally put me in a cab and I got to my brother's place at 11:30.

I love my brother and sister in law, I feel so blessed to be able to come here for work and get to spend time with them too. I wouldn't see them nearly as much if it weren't for the trips for work, so this makes the hard work so worth it! We got to sleep last night around 1 am, and I didn't get up until 12:30. I haven't slept that long in months, I obviously needed it! But I feel polluted, the drinking and crappy eating makes me feel gross. My two day bender is going to quickly turn into a detox here shortly... but I am not going to fuss about it while I'm here. For now, I'm going to enjoy every single minute of my time with my family.

Spending time overseas collaborating with the other MS subs ignites that feeling of wanting to spend a couple of years working for a smaller sub in Europe. There are some really smart folks here and when you have limited resources, you are forced to be much more creative to get things done. The work coming out of Europe is so fresh and exciting! It's a little like working in the Canadian sub, but with many more accents!

Ok, I'm off to enjoy a little bit of this wonderful city! Hope you're all having a great week, can't wait to get home and see the girls. I promise to update you princesses on the boy drama... do I have a sign on my forehead that says "PLEASE mess with my head?" First Canada, then Seattle last week and now here in the UK? Exactly why I'm not dating, who has the time to deal with this crap? When it rains it pours... I'm going to hide permanently in a hole to stay dry. :)

Hello from London!!!

2007-01-23T01:25:00.000-08:00

I left the house Sunday at 4:30 pm Seattle time and we arrived at the hotel last night (Monday) at 7 pm London time. I was hoping to get in 30 minutes of cardio but our flight was 1.5 hours delayed and I just wanted to shower, eat and sleep!

I can't complain about jet lag, my coworkers usually suffer more than I do. The tough part about this trip is that you're tired around 10 pm (Seattle afternoon nap time), pass out and wake up at 2 am bright eyed and bushy tailed. Then you're in meetings "bobbing for apples" all afternoon, fighting the urge to fall asleep. :)

I forgot my melatonin at home so took a couple of Advils hoping that it would help me sleep through 8 am. I know, who was I kidding... 10 pm to 8 am? I woke up at 2 am thinking, HEEEEELLLL NO and forced myself back to sleep! I woke up every hour after that, and finally giving in at 5:30. An hour to kill before the fitness center at the hotel opened... giving me time to unpack and get organized for the day.

I made my way down to the gym which was nice and big. It is right next to the pool area so it was pretty humid in there and watching people swim made me regret having forgotten my swimsuit! It was nice though, I was the only woman surrounded by about a dozen men... mmmmm... some were darn cute!

I ran on the treadmill for 30 minutes and was feeling "that pain" right away. I want to focus on healing so I'm going to spend time cross training and stop running altogether for a couple of weeks. I followed up the treadmill with 30 minutes on the bike (pain free!) and then 30 minutes of strength training. I officially began base training today and didn't let my heart rate go over 155, except when I wasn't paying attention at some point lifting weights and managed to get up to 173. Oooops, I'll keep a closer eye on that next time. It was obvious to me that I've been away from the weight room for 2+ weeks, so it will be good to get back to a consistent program. It felt so great getting back to the gym today, I'm jazzed to get my day going!

I showered and ordered some breakfast since we're not meeting until noon today. Oh, something is up with the water here. My hair feels yucky, like I didn't wash it at all... almost greasy. It smells good so hopefully people don't think I skipped the morning shower altogether! :)

I haven't ventured outside yet, so you'll have to settle for pictures of the hotel room this morning! Here you go!

Who's this? Chris McCormack in my bed? Lucky me!

Random rooms pics... followed by breakfast and morning coffee. Poached eggs on wheat toast, kiwi, grapefruit, banana, cereal... I have to hide the fruit and cereal so housekeeping doesn't take it away while I'm at the office!

Cheers, Starbucks and McDonald's outside my hotel?

Working from London

2007-01-20T22:41:00.000-08:00

I'm excited, I am leaving for London on Sunday night! Normally I don't look forward to traveling for work but my brother lives in the UK so I actually get to see him while I'm over there! Our meetings run through Wednesday and I'll be staying with him Thursday through Sunday. It's not a lot of time but I'll take all I can get! His wife if pregnant and I'm looking forward to seeing her and sharing in their good news.

I'll be blogging to track my workouts and to keep the diet under control while traveling. I'm not sure when I'll post my first (probably Monday night), so here are a few half marathon pics to fill the time. Oh, one more thing... Tosha tipped me off to the RSS feeds in Outlook. I have been really busy and haven't had time to catch up on your blogs... NOT ANYMORE! They are now all downloaded to my RSS folders so I can read them on the 16 hour trip to the UK!

No Running?!?!?!

2007-01-18T14:47:00.000-08:00

I received some tough news after my first visit with the physical therapist yesterday. I cannot under any circumstances run for longer than 20-30 minutes for the foreseeable future. No, not even if I’m say… running from a predator to save my life!

She is going to treat the injuries to my hip, hamstring and knee. She is also going to have me work on exercises to strengthen the hip muscles to prevent this from happening in the future. ETA on being back on the long distance “circuit” is Vancouver in May (Mercer Island in late March if all stars align). That being said, I won’t mess with success. My PT is a 34 year old, 2:42 PR marathoner who is trying to qualify for the Olympic Trials. SHE owns me. She has come highly recommended by a number of my friends so if she says jump, I will ask how high. I won’t sacrifice my long term goals and well being to satisfy my immediate desire to run and have fun with my friends. Do I sound like I’m trying to convince myself? Probably cause I am. I guess I’ll have to do with cycling, some cardio equipment work and strength training. Sounds ideal for base training now that I think of it… the upside of being injured if there is one!

Not that I wasn’t amazed by Michelle before, but I am now in greater awe of her ability to remain injury free as a marathon maniac! By the way, I was looking at what it takes to be one and Jess, you qualify based on your 3 marathons in 2 months gig! I hope you’ve applied for your official membership!

So I have been a little down because the injury combined with travel and impossible work schedule has kept me out of the gym. Isn’t it amazing how not being able to workout impacts your life! I used to have to force myself to get out and run, these days I feel this weird “blah-ness” when I don’t get out to do something! I’m sure you know what I mean.

Maybe I’ll do some pilates at home tonight to combat not being able to get to the gym. Anyone can spare 20 minutes for Mari Winsor on DVD right?!?!?!

A different version of TMI Tuesday

2007-01-16T15:13:00.000-08:00

Since I’m recovering from the half marathon, trapped at home (YET AGAIN) due to inclement weather conditions on the West coast, I figured this was the time to talk about resolutions for this year.

I had somewhat of a quarter life crisis when I went home for Christmas. I have now been on the West coast for a year and 8 months. Just a few short months ago I would have told anyone that I was going to stay on the West coast forever, that this is where I would eventually find a husband, have kids, continue my life as a triathlete/runner and work until retirement. Then I went home for almost a month… and I started to think about (for lack of a better description), the meaning of life.

Spending a few weeks with my family always brings up feelings of how much I love being able to see them anytime I want. My parents are amazing and I want them involved in my kids’ lives. So I’m still single and kids are not even on the radar for another 5+ years, but I’m a planner. For the first time since I broke up with my boyfriend of six years (in July 2005) I am starting to feel anxious about not knowing what my life will look like next year, two years from now, five years from now. I STILL don’t feel like I’m ready to date, but I’m stressed about the big question marks lying on the road ahead. Including, is “the one” here or back home?

The original plan was to start the process of buying a home in the Seattle area in September, 2007. The plan is now a little different. The resolution, come September, will be to either continue to put a stake in the ground here and start house hunting, or to start exploring the process of moving home. Moving home will be a big deal, relocating AGAIN… but more importantly having to find a career path that presents as many opportunities as the one I am in here. It also means facing the tough questions of what I will have to give up if I move home. Being able to spend time and train with my wonderful friends is a great blessing. Having to leave them would be heartbreaking for me. Moving home I’d be closer to family and other great friends. But I would also be moving to SUPER cold winters and brutally hot and HUMID summers that make maintaining a healthy, balanced and active lifestyle almost impossible and much less enjoyable. I hope it doesn’t seem like I’m basing a huge decision on “weather conditions”, rather the quality of life that comes with it.

Net net is that I still have no idea what my life will look like down the road. I’ll take comfort in knowing that no matter where I end up I’ll be near people that I love and that bring so much happiness into my life. And at the end of the day, no matter where I am, I can put on a pair of running shoes (with more or less layers of clothing) and go.

Phoenix Rock 'N' Roll Half Marathon Report

2007-01-14T22:23:00.000-08:00

*** Warning: If you do not want to read a less than upbeat post, come back when I’m back to my cheery self… especially since this is a REALLY long race report ***

What was all that crap I talked about yesterday? Bonding with women over something that we share and love? Blah, blah, blah. Today was awful, ok… great, but awful all at the same time!
We got up bright and early at 5 am (after a sleepless night). We’re in Phoenix, and I check out the weather. Yup, a balmy 26°F and I can see my breath in the dark morning air. So there wasn’t much thinking about what to wear. Capris, fitted tank, long sleeve shirt, long sleeve turtle neck, jacket, running hat and gloves. I also wore long pants over the capris for the trip to the start.
We drove to the parking lots at the finish line and got in line for the buses to take us to the start. It was so cold out, all we could think of was “didn’t we pick a warm and flat run on purpose”? What happened to the warm part? We waited for 45 minutes for a bus, only to find out that people at other parking lots got right on without waiting. Luck of the draw.

We got to the start and got in line for the porta potties. We waiting for about 30 minutes in line and near the front we heard people coming out saying “no toilet paper”. NO TP?!?! Oh no, this can’t be! A girl we befriended in line turns to me and kindly hands me a piece of Kleenex from her pocket. I accept it with a gracious “thank you” and smile on my face all the while thinking “what the HELL am I going to do with ONE piece of Kleenex”? Don’t these people know that I had a HUGE carbo load dinner last night, followed by a Starbucks coffee this morning and that this was my first nervous trip to a potty post coffee? Beggers can’t be choosers but OMG.

Needless to say the Kleenex was less than sufficient. Though I can’t complain, one of the women in our group (let’s call her Lola to protect her identity) chose to use her 8x10 race envelope to wipe! Special addition, she just told me that she tore it up before making use of it!

After the potty, I took off my long pants and put on (yup) a pink skirt over my capris. We checked our gear bags and got in corral 14 at the start. The race was being delayed by a few minutes to accommodate the late buses. We are also really far back and our predicted cross time was 30 minutes after the official race start. I noticed 6 potties without a lineup right next to the corral so I decided to go for it. For one last visit before the run and to (TMI) get a hold of some more TP!
Soon after that we were off. It was amazing, I have never participated in such a HUGE and well organized race. We were surrounded by people, 12,000 to be exact (27,000 ran the full marathon as it’s a great Boston qualifier). Nancy set off with Jodi and I ran with Tosha, her twin sister and mom. Tosha is a veteran but her mom and sister were running their first half marathon! So exciting!

I knew I had problems when mile 0 felt like mile 21 of the full marathon. My right hip is rotated forward which shortens my right leg a little relative to my left. As a result, my gate is off which causes the shooting pain in my knee, hamstring and hip flexor. It also results in blood blisters on my right foot if I run for longer distances. I know a lot of you feel the effects for offset gates (and pronation) and it sucks! Normally this can be controlled by a little massage where the therapist tugs on my right leg to lengthen it and works on the hips to rotate it back into place. Yes, my bad for not taking care of myself.

The sun came up and I quickly tied my jacket around my waist. By mile 3 I knew I had to make a decision. I didn’t think I could cover 13.1 miles feeling like that and if I did, was I going to cause more damage and hurt my tri season? Here’s where I hate those wonderful women I talked about in my post last night. Tosha (who herself has a sprained ankle) turned to me and gave me the glaring “now I know DNF if not in your vocabulary” look. After some discussion, she convinced me that it would suck, but I likely wouldn’t cause much more damage than was already done.

So that thought behind me, I started focusing on how I was going to make it another 10 miles to the finish line. The pain really ranked a close second to the marathon pain and I wondered if it was worth it. Why am I not in bed and heading down to the spa instead of suffering through this crap? Then a series of events occurred that really changed the course of my run. First, I ran by 2 groups with Canadian flags all dressed in red which always affects me. I gave my usual “GO CANADA” shout out and forgot all about everything for a little while. But then the kicker. I have seen this so many times before and I don’t know why this one particular woman impacted me so much. She was running with a picture of her son pinned to her back. He was wearing army fatigues in this picture and just above the picture the words “I’m running in memory of”. You quickly think about what real pain is and it makes you feel ashamed and selfish for fretting over a sore leg.

Around mile 7 I took a couple of Motrin that Tosha was carrying and stopped at the potty. A six minute wait for two of us to use the bathroom. We weren’t out to set any records today but 6 minutes of standing around in the cold is not the best use of time in a half marathon. I stretched a lot in line and then focused on lengthening my stride while running. This got me through to mile 9.

At mile 9, Tosha’s sister started to bonk badly. She has bad knees and was feeling a lot of pain. She also hadn’t taken in enough calories during the run and needed some fuel. Tosha’s mom was feeling great and we wanted her to keep moving. They moved up ahead and I hung back with Tosha’s sister. This was a blessing in disguise because instead of feeling sorry for myself, I started to remember what my friends did for me to get me through my first half and full marathons. I tried to channel this to her and stopped thinking about whatever I was feeling. She got in some Gu and Nuun water I was carrying on the run. I ran up ahead to Tosha to get some Motrin for her to take as well. I think this helped a bit and she was moving well again (some rough patches) but was motivated by the thought of finishing her first half marathon!

Eventually we caught up with the others who hung back to wait for us. The thousands of volunteers, spectators, bands, cheerleaders, dancers and beautiful sunshine carried us through the finish. I have never seen such a large, well run race in my life! The tough part about Seattle was the lack of spectators. Not here, they were everywhere and despite the cold, the sun was shining brightly on us and we were all smiling! I’m sure the finish line photo will have the four of us, crossing together with big grins on our faces. Oh, I guess I should say something about finish times… with our 6 minute potty break, we crossed the line around 2:35. The one big positive was that my HR was very much under control, averaging 158 over the 13.1 miles. Come to think of it, 158 may be a little high for 11ish minute miles… hmmmm… base training here I finally come!

Nancy was as strong as ever, and she ran with Jodi the entire way. I think she could have easily broken her Seattle time but enjoyed the company over pushing a PR. Kathy in her first half had the fastest finish and really killed her A race for the year. Sandra, experienced some bad cramping from the Accelerade being served on the course and still had a speedy run. And Wendy, with 2 broken ribs, not able to run too fast and breathe too hard, actually made it through the finish and in great time. Jess, I hope you appreciate this 2 minute round up… you’ll have to get everyone’s full download when you get back!

So there are a few big take aways from today. No matter what the obstacle, mind over matter will carry you through almost anything. Sun, friends, strangers and Rock ‘N’ Roll can make you go from rock bottom to mile high in seconds. If you don’t take care of the nagging injuries they will wreak havoc at the most inopportune times. And for Pete’s sake, eat less the night before a race and stop with the coffee cause you never know when you’ll run out of TP!!!

I had really hoped to run the half marathon at the end of February back in my hometown in Canada. A friend of mine who is training for a 30 km race will be running her first half and I would love nothing more than to run with her that day. I know what it meant to me to have my friends support me this year, I would love to be there to share in her first half marathon experience. It is a crazy tough race that has over the years seen sun and 15°C as well as 2 feet of snow and -30°C weather. If I’m going to be of any use to her on this run, I am going to spend this week seeing the people I need to see to get my body back on track for success this year.

One more thing, is anyone annoyed about the NFL playoffs this year? NE and Indy won this weekend basically eliminating any chance I had of winning the football pool this year. Last year I lost for placing my bets on them, this year I’ll lose because I failed to realize they’d actually pull it out against SD and BAL. I’m such a sore loser!!! The only good thing that came out of the unusually cold Phoenix weather was that there was no shortage of football to take us through the weekend!

The Gift of Running

2007-01-13T21:06:00.001-08:00

The night before the P.F. Chang’s Phoenix Half Marathon, a little summary:

Tosha – Sprained ankle.
Wendy – Broken rib (likely 2 broken ribs).
Aleks – 2 outdoor runs since the marathon (November 26th). Right hamstring problems. Has not exercised since LAST SATURDAY!

So I can’t help but think, what was I thinking? On top of everything, not getting out to exercise all week?!?!? The race will be tough for most of us, factor in the 32 degree weather we’ll be getting in the morning (and that’s actually Fahrenheit, not Celsius). But as I looked around at our dinner tonight, I couldn’t help but smile and think about how blessed I am, about the gifts that running has brought into my life.

Two years ago I was in University and the extent of the diversity in my life was a bunch of Polish family members and the large Asian population that I went to school with at Waterloo. Today I looked around the dinner table and was surrounded by 9 beautiful women of different ages, races, religious beliefs and backgrounds. Mothers, daughters, sisters and friends, we are so different, and have all overcome so many obstacles in our lives. It has been such a treat to listen to where these women have come from, and what their daily lives are like. So tomorrow, nothing else will matter. Not the aches, not the lack of training, not the cold… only us, doing something we love, as a group.

At the end of the day, I still can’t help but feel how lucky I am that last year at this time a half marathon was just a dream. Now I believe, that no matter how I feel, I can cover 13.1 miles with the support of my friends. This seems to be a recurring theme in my posts eh?!?!?!?

Goodnight all, I will post a race report tomorrow. Oh, I use the word “race” lightly… when I signed up 3 months ago I wanted to just make sure I kept running after the marathon. My estimated finish time when I signed up was 2:25 (much different from the 1:57 I ran at my first half in June). Speed was never the goal for this run, but keeping active through a busy holiday season and not giving up on a sport that has given and taught me more than I could have ever asked for.

Back on the West Coast

2007-01-09T20:56:00.000-08:00

I'm baaaack! Well, I was back late Sunday but have been swamped trying to get back into the swing of work. After working out all but 3 days over the 3+ weeks that I was home, I haven't worked out now for... 3 days in a row (GASP)! I know!

Sunday was a travel day and didn't get to bed until 12:30. Monday morning I slept in and I watched the BCS game at night. Today, I had no excuse. I am still a little jet lagged and the mornings just aren't happening. Then come 5 pm, I am too lazy to battle the "New Year's Resolution" crowds at the gym. Tomorrow isn't looking so good either, mainly because I'm making up excuses not to go to workout (my car really will be in the shop tomorrow and we are really expecting a big snow storm). I guess that wouldn't stop me from... running outside?

So here's the thing. The half marathon is on Sunday and I have run ONCE outside in the last month! Actually, I think I have only run outside twice in total since the marathon. I know indoor workouts are no substitution for the real thing, but I have really enjoyed the break from the pressure of training for the marathon and have needed the recovery time. That being said, I'm still Sc%@#%. :)

What do I do? It's too late to get any real training in, and I should be tapering. I guess not working out for 3 days is quite the taper. I'm just going to zen (as Regan would say). Life happens, I knew it would be difficult to run a half marathon 6 weeks after my first marathon (don't you need 6 weeks to recover from a marathon)? I wasn't expecting to PR in Phoenix, but can I even cover that distance? Zennnnnn... I can do anything in a pink skirt right? :)

I still haven't gotten to the New Year's Resolutions so I will definitely do that soon. First, I have been tagged by Jodi. So here I go.

1. Find the nearest book.

2. Name the book & the author.
The China Study - Startling Implications For Diet, Weight Loss and Long-Term Health (which happens to have been recommended to me by Jodi)

3. Turn to page 123.

4. Go to the fifth sentence on the page. Copy out the next three sentences and post to your blog.
In other words, while we don't die as much from heart disease, we still get it as often as often as we used to. It seems that we simply have gotten slightly better at postponing death from heart disease, but we have done nothing to stop the rate at which our hearts become diseased. The mechanical interventions that we use in this country are much less effective than most people realize.

5. Tag three more folks.
Wes
Kate
Michelle

If you blog it, you will run...

2007-01-03T19:06:00.000-08:00

I did it, I blogged about running last night and I did. It was a beautiful morning, super sunny! Unfortunately, it was cold (2 C/36 F) and very windy with frost still on the ground when I went out. I also didn't pick the easiest route so it was a workout! It was pretty slippery and it took some effort to grip the road and not slide around... but it made for a nice challenge.

I haven't been base training and my heart rate is constantly high. I can't help it. I workout in gyms and feel the need to run faster and work harder than everyone else in there. Plus I'm a sucker for burning more calories. But it's out of control. Today I couldn't get my heart rate below 160. In fact, on the run I averaged 168 and maxed at 184. I think the lowest I saw was 155 on a steep downhill. And I'm still feeling some significant pain in my right knee and hamstring, especially on the downhills!

Anyways, I felt like I was moving at a turtle's pace and cut the last bit off the run because I was worried about really hurting my knee. I ended up running 5.7 miles in 55 minutes which is around the 10 min/miles we usually run. Yesterday I did a 60 minute cycling class followed by 30 minutes on the treadmill. I am really hoping that workout, combined with working out for 7 days in a row now contributed to the perceived difficulty of the run today... I HOPE! The high heart rate is making me feel like I'm in worse shape than when I started almost a year ago!

So that was this morning. After work I still wanted to get into the weight room so I went to the gym with my mom. I move quickly through the exercises so that I get a good sweat on when I lift. Averaged 128 and maxed at 161... which I think is OK, some lifting can get you pretty worked up right?

So the big question... given that I want to do a half IM in the June/July time frame, is it too late to base train? I promise I'll really do it... promise. But is there enough time?

Tomorrow I'm going to go to the gym and ride the bike. It should be a day off so I'm going to go just to move my legs and let the lactic acid flush out. No matter how many people are there, I will keep my heart rate low. Yes, I can do this. Hmmm... maybe I should go for a walk instead... :)

If I could stop talking about running I would get to the resolutions... so more on that tomorrow!

A much needed break...

2007-01-02T19:08:00.000-08:00

What did I do over my holidays? Going into the break I resolved to stay away from work email and I did, by staying away from the PC altogether. No personal email, no blogging, no surfing the net, and reading the newspaper... wait for it... in PRINT! That's right! For the last 2+ weeks, I have essentially been in work detox, and wow does it feel great! So what did I do to fill my time in this small town?

Well, one thing I didn't do over Christmas that I have done every Christmas for as long as I can remember is gain weight. Believe it or not, even with plenty of time to eat I managed to beat the bulge this year by working out almost every day (twice in one day on a couple of occasions) and watching what I ate. I combated the bigger holiday dinners by not drinking, watching my portions and just not going overboard on deserts. They will all be there tomorrow was the motto. This really isn't me, but maybe this is the new me? :)

Enough about that, what else didn't I do? Though I've been working out a lot, I haven't run outside once since I've been home. I kinda like doing cardio indoors (who likes cardio indoors?) and/or lifting weights. Two other things, I like people watching when working out AND Canada offers endless hockey highlights on the TVs at the gym. Mostly though, I'm scared to run outside again. Like I don't think I'll be able to do it, I won't be able to run the 6 miles that used to be our short run. Just over a month ago I ran a marathon and now I'm scared to venture out around the block.

Fortunately, I have to force myself back on the horse. I'll be running a half marathon in Phoenix in less than two weeks. If that's not motivation to get running outside I don't know what is! So I'm going to take it slow, get outside tomorrow, run at a comfortable pace and enjoy the beautiful and unusually warm weather we've had in Ontario. After reading Wes' inspirational post, I have planned a route that will take me through some of the more memorable areas of town. Hopefully this will get me out the door tomorrow morning.

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday! Tomorrow I'll be posting about the "New Year's Resolutions" and other events of the last couple of weeks. Today it was necessary to blog about the run... if you blog it, it will get done. Confession tomorrow...

My version of backsliding...

2006-12-21T16:54:00.000-08:00

The magic number + holidays + time with friends and family = backsliding!

I don't know WHAT it is, but I swear I have this magic number that I can't seem to get below. Two years ago I was cracking into the high 130s and these days, I see 150 on that scale and I am stuck. The combination of finally relaxing and spending time with my friends and family, around wine and food, can be disastrous. I may be exaggerating. I do think that my idea of overeating (and healthy eating) is much different from what it was in years past. I am more controlled, I have a breaking point that comes much sooner than it used to and there are limits to the amount of alcohol, second helpings and desert I will consume. When all else fails, I just walk away...

Still, because it's so different from the way I eat when I'm on a normal schedule, I worry about the outcome. I am definitely paranoid... you know that feeling when you lose weight that at any moment it can all come back? That's how I feel now. Instead of 3 glasses of wine and a plate full of desert tonight I had one glass of wine and one small desert. But I feel like I ate the entire table for dinner. Imagine that, exercising and finally practicing eating in moderation and still worrying about gaining the dreaded holiday weight?!?!?!

Like everything in life, I over analyze everything to death. The solution when I do this is to refocus on training. So here it is... today was a great day at the gym (and by great I mean I hate Kirk). We went in early again and Kirk planned for 60 minutes on the Stepmill. I have never done the Stepmill so I thought I would give it a shot. I ran for 30 minutes and joined him for the last 24 on the Stepmills. Holy crap! Talk about a workout... my legs and butt are going to be so sore tomorrow! I had to keep it slow to keep my heartrate in check, but I was sweating like a madman... that is SO much harder than the treadmill at that heartrate. I hated it but I think I'm hooked! Why do we like the things that make us hurt? I guess we love the fruits of the labor...

Tomorrow I'm going to join an early 45 minute cycling class at one gym and then head to the other gym for some more cardio and strength training.

Hola!!!

2006-12-20T10:56:00.000-08:00

Yes, I'm still alive and can't believe that I haven't posted since December 8th. To be honest, it's just been so hectic. I left for my 3 glorious weeks at home (Ontario, Canada) on Friday morning. The last week at work was just insanely busy, and the nights were filled with Christmas parties and shopping and preparing for my long trip home!

Jessi said it best, I'm just tired. I have been working out but not the 6 days/week that I'm used to. I decided that it was more important to get sleep and eat really well... and as a result, I'm feeling much better and am down 11 lbs since the marathon! I'm back to eating balanced meals, and am going to spend most of my holiday time trying out all of the recipes from Jodi's recipe blog! I LOVE TIME OFF WORK!!!

Ok, I say that, but I have a hard time really taking time off work. For one, I worry about what shit might hit the fan while I'm out of the office. Secondly, I'm now in Peterborough. Don't get me wrong, I love Peterborough, but there are only so many things you can do here. Yes, we are the home of the highest hydraulic lift locks in the world... but we also have more senior citizens per capita than all but one other city in Canada! Not a lot to do around here and you can only go down to THE MALL in town so often!

I love spending time with my parents... but I'm here for over 3 weeks! The panic started to set in a little over the weekend, OMG, what AM I going to do for 3 weeks without my friends from Seattle?!?! The answer came to me this morning. Today I met Kirk at the gym. I am linking to his blog in hopes that this will pressure him to post (sorry my friend). Kirk and his wife Ange are my favorite people in Ptbo. They are just a lot of fun... it's non-stop laughs when we hang out! They are both very active people and love sports! Tonight I'm going to their indoor co-ed soccer game!

After the gym we went back to their house to have breakfast and catch up. Thank God for them! Side note, they have the cutest kid I have ever seen... 8 months old, teething, wakes up from a nap and is all smiles. I pick her up and she says "hi". No crying for mom, no after nap grumpiness... just a big smile and "hi". So we're planning on doing the morning gym thing most days while I'm here, I really hope they don't get sick of me! They will keep me sane!

So that's all for now... more on what I plan to do while I'm in Ontario tomorrow. :) For now, I must create my shopping list for those recipes...

Turkey and Swiss?!?!?!

2006-12-08T16:29:00.000-08:00

Quick summary of foods consumed at last night’s outing:

1 and 2/3 glasses of red wine
Lots of water and chamomile tea
1 jumbo shrimp
1 skewer with a chilled scallop, salmon and olive
1 small crab cake (I know deep fried was off the list but this was pan fried and wasn’t your typical heavy mayo crap cake… and it was small I swear!)
NO BREAD
NO FRIED CALAMARI
Mussels (shared with my boss)
King crab legs
Fruit for desert (I know I also said no desert but they brought out huge desert platter so it was fruit or bust)

After dinner, all the drunkies in the group wanted to go out. Since I was the DD, I got to escort them to a bar where I proceeded to drink water. All in all, could have been much worse last night! The crappy part was that I was feeling worse as the night progressed, and having gotten home after 1 am I didn’t think it was a good idea to get up at 5 am to workout. Had I gone to bed at 9 pm I probably would have, which actually would have been a mistake given how sick I feel today. All of the marathoners warned me that this would happen after the event, and I tried to do the right things to prevent it. C’est la vie.

One thing I have to vent about before I sign off for the weekend. I went down to the cafeteria today to get a turkey burger patty to eat with my shake for lunch. I clearly ordered “a grilled turkey burger patty ONLY, NO BUN”. 15 minutes later they call out “turkey burger with Swiss”. After 2 minutes of no takers, I was like… really, could they have gotten it that wrong? So I tell the guy that I ordered a turkey burger patty only, no bun and definitely no cheese. He looks at me and is like “oh no”. Takes it to the woman at the grill and they consult about it (keep in mind, it’s all open… no secrets that we can all see what’s going on and she looks so irritated). She turns around, takes my burger to the garbage… throws out the bun and picks the cheese off the burger! NOT A WORD OF A LIE. What if I had some bad allergy or whatever… isn’t that just wrong? She didn’t get all of the cheese off either. Anyways, it didn’t kill me but I thought that had to be against some policies or something. Here’s the best part… I heard them telling another guy that they were both leaving to open a restaurant, guess they don’t care who they piss off on their way out.

Water Consumption

2006-12-06T13:14:00.000-08:00

Some days it goes down soooo easy, other days it does not. Today, I’m struggling to meet the water quota. My cute, purple 1 liter Nalgene bottle is looking at me saying… green tea, though it suppresses your appetite, is NOT a substitute for H20. And why is it well after lunch time and you haven’t downed one of me yet?

I think I have a theory for the poor water consumption performance today. I drank A LOT at the gym this morning. I did a cycling class (side note, most boring class ever… endurance ride with… BRUTAL MUSIC)! The only good thing about the class was the eye candy! :) Back to water, I drank about 1.5 liters of it in that class. Then I did some strength training and before leaving for work I finished another liter. Right now, I’m struggling… but I’ll play the mind/body game in honor of Jodi and Wes.

Mind (while Body is staring at the water): Drink your water!

Body: But I don’t waaaaannnnnaaaaa…

Mind: But you have to!

Body: No I don’t!

Mind: Yes you do!

Body: No, I’m hungry!

Mind: You JUST ate your lunch. You’ve eaten enough, you just think you’re hungry because you’re dehydrated. Drink up!

Body: I’m not rational, I’m all about my “gut” feeling.

Mind: That’s why you have me… to tell you that you’re on track and you’re going to stay on track. Key number one, stick to the food plan. Key number two, stick to the hydration plan. Even you thought you were looking sexier in the mirror lifting weights this morning! Don’t give up! Jess says don’t slide!

Body: Blah, I hate it when you’re right! Gulp, gulp, gulp…

On that note, I have emptied the Nalgene in the time it has taken me to write this post. Off to the water cooler for a fill up… pit stop, washroom.

What a difference a good sleep makes!

2006-12-05T13:38:00.000-08:00

I did the math, 10 glorious hours of sleep… I was out like a light last night! I would say I would average about 6-7 hours of sleep a night. So when I can sleep in, my body wakes me up early because that’s just what it’s used to. This morning, not the case! Normally I look at the alarm clock 2-3 times in a night, I don’t even remember turning over last night. No cold medicine before bed, I really just needed the sleep… obviously!

So today I feel great! Well, much better than yesterday! I’m still feeling cold-like symptoms, low energy, achiness, stuffiness, sneezing… but I’m not sleepy. Does that make sense to anyone? Not having a lot of energy, but not actually being sleepy? I may not be able to run a solid 10 miles right now, but at least I haven’t done a face plant on my keyboard this afternoon (yet)!

It was really a treat to sleep in and not run outside this morning. Some days you just need a warm bed and to work out indoors. I’m going to leave work after my meetings at 3 pm and hit the gym. That way I’m not fighting the after work crowds. I think I’ll aim for 60 minutes of cardio (elliptical, stair climber) at a lower heart rate and maybe some core strength training.

Diet update, still going strong! It’s so nice to feel the slow release energy, gradual and healthy hunger rather than the ups and downs of the high sugar diet. I feel like I’m running an experiment these days... part of me wants to eat a leftover cookie from the party on Saturday, not because I’m craving it, but just to see if I notice a big change in how I feel. But I know better, if I eat that cookie now, I’ll eat the bunch and polish of the ice cream in the freezer to boot! Not going there! This morning I was at 153.6 lbs… I can’t wait to dip into the 140s, haven’t seen those since March of this year!

Weekend Recap... and Day 6

2006-12-04T21:35:00.000-08:00

What a busy holiday weekend! Friday I stayed in and worked most of the night... and got some sleep before the Diva Dash! It was a great team of woman that came out and we had a very cold but fun time. We ran the race at a very comfortable pace... and I loved every minute of it! I was (and am still) recovering from the marathon... combined with the carb cutting I was in the perfect zone on Saturday. Two things everyone said before/right after the marathon:

1 - It will take 6 weeks to recover. You'll have weird aches and you'll be out of breath just climbing stairs. CHECK! Is this ever amazing... my boss and I were coming back up the stairs at work this week and he looked at me and said smiling "what's the matter with you, didn't you just run a marathon?"

2 - You have to get lots of sleep and take Airborne or Emergen-C after the marathon because you'll get sick. CHECK?!?!? Started to set in today around 11 am... I hope with sleep tonight I can kick it! I was going to run outside with Tosha tomorrow morning but I'm going to sleep instead, and hit the gym indoors in the afternoon tomorrow.

The diet is going very well. Six full days and I haven't cheated yet! My roommates and I went to this White Elephant Christmas/Engagement party on Saturday night that was actually a desert party. They had 5 different types of cheesecake, 3 other types of cake, 4 types of homemade cookies, chocolates, and a number of other bars and goodies that I didn't even look at! I ate right before going so that I would avoid the food and alcohol. I sipped water all night and did not touch a single desert! I know, moderation is key... but with sugar, I take one bite and it's over.

After 5 hours I gave in and ate the carrots, celery and tomatoes from the veggie tray. That I would consider a huge win for me because I'm such a sucker for desert... so even though I'm not on veggies yet, I didn't care one bit. I weighed myself the morning after the party, and it must have been the first time after a holiday party that I actually LOST weight! So far, so good! I'm feeling like I might get back to my old self again... and I can start back on a well balanced diet soon. Finally try out some of Jodi's vegan treats! :)

This morning I did spinning and weights with the girls. I don't have the energy back yet but I'm working on it... most of the soreness is gone, except for some aching in the back of my knee. Nothing to write home about, just this weak feeling I get after long runs. Because we run and cycle so much, weights are always centered around upper body and core. I think I'm going to become much more regimented in my weight training over the next couple of months and really work on my legs too to strengthen some of the support muscles, ligaments and tendons.

It was great to catch up on all of your blogs today, I swear I have withdrawal when I can keep up over the weekends. ;-)

Day 2

2006-11-30T21:49:00.000-08:00

Day two, my life seems so blah... shake after shake after shake! I woke up with a pretty big headache... sometimes that happens because I have really low blood pressure and I tend to get them when the weather changes. Today, maybe it was the sugar detox. When the morning coffee didn't take care of it, a couple of Ibuprofen did.

I really wanted to get to the gym after work today... but instead of leaving at 5 pm like I had planned, I didn't get out of the office until 7:15. I still had a couple of hours of work ahead of me so I decided to go home, eat dinner (surprise, a shake! and chicken sausages), and get back to work.

But then I got home... and sat down, and lost all motivation. This week has been really tough and all of a sudden I just decided that the work would be there tomorrow morning, and nobody would die if I didn't get anything else done tonight. Sometimes that just happens, eventually you just need a break. So I watched The Office instead... my favorite show! Grey's Anatomy is getting TiVo'd so I can pack for tomorrow and get some sleep.

I realize that the shake thing seems pretty crazy. Four shakes a day with some protein at lunch and dinner. Truth is, I actually feel fuller longer now. I got to 4 pm today, normally a time when I'm ravenous and I had to make myself mix up a shake. I'm also noticing that I'm not experiencing the highs and lows that I got after eating sugar. It's amazing how even diet pop has that effect on my body. One other thing I'm noticing... is that the shake and the protein seems like just the right amount of food. I can't overeat, and I'm not starving. Unfortunately, there is something really comforting about eating warm food... and feeling full. There's also something comforting about coming home after a crappy day and having a glass of wine... oh the good old days.

To answer Jodi's question... I think I'm going to keep up the shake thing for 2 weeks and then start to reintroduce MODERATION, well balanced meals into my diet. Whole foods, staying away from the high sugar deserts that could set me off. These are the days I'm happy to be a whole wheat/whole grain lover.

To answer Michelle's question, the shakes are high protein shakes/powder that our gym sells. They have about 130 calories, and are (I believe), meant to help wean us off sugar. So far, so good. Side note, Michelle has run 3 marathons since October and has 5 on the loop through June! I'm in awe!!!

I want to report something exciting... I started the detox yesterday, and this morning I was down 4.4 lbs! Ok, I know... I'm such a cheater. I am obviously still losing retained water from the marathon, and (TMI) yesterday "Aunt Flo" came into town. But I'll take it... I'm feeling better already. :)

So Wes wanted to see pictures... and they aren't available yet. But, and I can't believe I'm sharing these, we have video! I'm on the left... Jess is on the right. I thought I was safe, but camera #2 caught the breakdown after the race. Now you can see what I'm like during Oprah and Grey's Anatomy. I shed a tear at the drop of a dime! Turn up your speakers!!!

Camera #1
Camera #2

Enjoy!

Keeping it short...

2006-11-29T20:42:00.000-08:00

As promised, a short one. Today I started the detox, and today I stuck to the detox. Here's what it looked like:

Breakfast
Coffee with milk (milk is cheating, but I don't care... I get one treat a day, and this is it)
20/20 shake with 1 tbsp peanut butter and 1/2 cup berries

Lunch
20/20 shake with 1/2 cup berries
1 chicken breast

Afternoon Snack
20/20 shake with 1/2 cup berries
6 cashews (a tip from Regan, to compensate from the lack of fat in the extra lean chicken breast)

Dinner
2 Iserno's Basil and Tomato Chicken Sausages (Tosha's suggestion and I LOVE THESE... 100 cals each)
20/20 shake with 1/2 cup berries

In general, I felt pretty good. The hunger wasn't bad at all, I drank lots of water and a cup of green tea which helped keep the hunger in control. No significant headaches to report... I hear day 4 is the worst. It's nice to have structure, structure has always worked for me when trying to lose weight. However, I'm certain the shakes will get boring. We'll see if I'm still happy on Saturday.

The body is feeling a little better today but walking down stairs and sitting down isn't so nice. I still haven't made it to the gym after the marathon on Sunday, mostly because of the crappy weather (been working from home) and because... I really wanted the extra hours of sleep this week. I have decided to sleep in again tomorrow, so I pledge to hit the gym after work. Saying it just to make sure I stick to it.

Wes, I promise to post pics of the marathon when they're available online. :) Then I'll post some after pics to keep me honest over the next few weeks!

Fit but Fat

2006-11-28T11:53:00.000-08:00

A few years ago, at the end of one of the U Waterloo soccer training camp sessions the Scottish coach went off on his team. He was angry about the lack of fitness in the veterans. He looked at one of the "rolly-polly" girls on the team, whose name happened to be Alex and said something along the lines of:

"You have all wasted a summer being lazy and come back to camp completely out of shape. All of you but Alex. Look at Alex. She's fit as a fiddle! She may not LOOK fit as a fiddle, but she IS fit as a fiddle."

Fit but fat... more on this later.

Just over 2 years ago while I was still in school, I lost about 12 lbs using Weight Watchers Online and was in the best "looking" shape of my life. I had run my first 10 km run, duathlon and never missed a workout in the weight room. I peeled off weight with the weight training and healthy eating, mostly because my roommates were all sticking to the WW points (except for our one roommate who had an eating disorder and it took all of our effort to help her eat at all).

When I moved here in May 2005 I gained about 7 lbs back. I played soccer a few times a week but I drank too much. The company I joined considered happy hour a daily recurring meeting request and we all know that alcohol is just empty calories. I lived alone at the time and ate really healthy at home, and didn't snack because I didn't keep bad food in the house.

Then I moved in with my roommates. :) And though we cook really healthy, we do have ice cream, peanut butter, wine, cashews and granola in the house. The hardest thing to do is eat dinner and then watch someone go for desert, or more snacks. We tend to get home after a long day, and graze through snacks and wine while making dinner. This is killing my diet. 9-5, I am rock solid... after 5, all hell can break loose. Marathon training has made things much worse, because my carb cravings are insane... I could eat all of the time, not just the day of a long run, but for days afterwards. The problem is, that even though I'm working out 6 days a week, I'm not burning as many calories as I'm taking in.

The result. I am officially 20 lbs heavier than my lightest weight 2 years ago. I can't even say the number, it hurts! I am fit but fat. Alright, maybe not fat but I hate the way I look. Pictures are hell... and I don't fit into my skinny jeans. I can make excuses and say that I have put on muscle, but not 20 lbs of it! And here's something even more scary but true that we all know. Being fit but fat can take years off your life... it's not great to be thin and out of shape either, but at least those people look good. ;-)

So I resolved to eat carbs as long as I was training for the marathon, and the 2 days post marathon. But Wednesday would be D day. Going into base building, I no longer need the amount of carbs and calories that I have over the last few months. That being said, I have some tools to help me get back on track with the weight loss.

1. Knowledge. I feel like I have learned a lot over the years about nutrition, but you can always learn more. 3 books on my to read list:
- The China Study - Recommended by Jodi... a book that contributed to her adopting a vegan lifestyle. I'm hoping this has a similar effect on me, at least help me eliminate some of the junk. I hope it doesn't backfire, Super Size Me made me run out and get a Big Mac, really.
- You: On a Diet (A follow up to You: The Owner's Manual) - As seen on Oprah.
- Binge No More - Recommended by the therapist that I met with for the first time last week.

2. Week 1 of 20/20. 20/20 is a weight loss program at the Pro Club. Week 1 is meant to kill the refined sugar cravings in the body (that's my take). The first week you're drinking mainly shakes with the following nutritional breakdown:

130 cals
1 g fat
17 g carbs
1 g dietary fiber
15 g sugar
14 g protein

And the daily food intake breaks down like this:

Breakfast
20/20 shake with 1 tbsp peanut butter and 1/2 cup berries

Lunch
20/20 shake with 1/2 cup berries
1 serving lean protein

Afternoon Snack
20/20 shake with 1/2 cup berries

Dinner
20/20 shake with 1/2 cup berries
1 serving lean protein

Note - A cup of cashews does not fall within the guidelines of the 20/20 program. Come to think of it, cherry jubilee ice cream with cashews doesn't either. Same for red wine. ;-)

3. The support of my friends!

Of course you can't expect to keep up the level of training that we're used to when you've cut out so many calories and carbs. So after I recover from the marathon, I will resume this schedule. At least until I figure out if I want to stick with the yoga. Also, cardio will be done at a much lower heart rate for a few weeks.

Monday - 60 minutes of cardio, weight training
Tuesday - Yoga
Wednesday - 60 minutes of cardio, weight training
Thursday - Yoga
Friday - Danielle's cycling class, weight training
Saturday - WHATEVER I WANT! Something active but fun!
Sunday - OFF

Wow, that was a long blog post! I promise to keep them lighter in the near future. I should have summed that one up with "I'm sick of no longer having the weight loss motivation, and I have a plan to get it back". Oh, if I seem a little grumpy tomorrow, please blame the sugar detox headaches...

Off to read your blogs... sitting by a nice fire, with one of my last glasses of red wine for a while...

The Day After

2006-11-27T21:41:00.000-08:00

Yup, I woke up this morning with no intentions of running... for a while. Unlike my friends, I couldn't muster the strength to go to work today. In fact, I barely moved at all today... working from home and getting up just to eat and let the dog play in the snow. I pondered the following today:

1 - What is the perfect combination of Ibuprofen and wine that will take away this pain and still keep me conscious for my conference calls?

2 - How long can I delay a trip to the kitchen before I starve to death? How badly do I need to refuel after that marathon, is it worth moving from my current position? How much food can I carry back from a trip to the kitchen and how long will it last me before I have to move again?

3 - Was it worth the pain I felt in the race, and the pain I feel today? Heck YES!

4 - If delayed onset muscle soreness is supposed to be the worst 48-72 hours after an event, will I get out of bed at all tomorrow?

5 - I now have a baseball sized bruise below the big knot I had in my calf yesterday. It looks a little bit like the bruise I got one time after a soccer injury. The impact on my shin caused a bunch of swelling and the next day, all of the blood started draining down through my shin and ankle... sweet bruising. At that time, I was proud of the battle scars. Today, in combination with the bruising on my foot, I'm taking it as a sign to pay more attention to the pain early in a race.

6 - Yes, I have completed my first marathon... so why do I look chubbier in the post race photos than I have in the last 2 years? Swelling cannot account for all of that chubbiness!

7 - One more day of replenishing glycogen stores, and I will hit this crazy thing they call week 1 of the 20/20 diet. No matter what it takes, I will detox from this carb dependency that I have built up during marathon training.

One more thing... I am the WORST best friend in the world. I have been so completely engulfed in marathon training and the stress associated with marathon day, that I forgot my best friend's birthday last week! No joke... I can't believe I did that. I was talking to her today and when she mentioned something about presents I finally clued in. She EVEN sent me pictures of flowers her boyfriend had sent her last week! I didn't stop to think why she was getting flowers and a teddy bear. How awful am I? This leads me to #8.

8 - Back to priorities. I need to separate myself enough from training and work to remember my friends and family. Forgetting a best friend's birthday is unacceptable. How do you ever make up for forgetting your best friend's birthday?!?! :-(

Hope you all had wonderful post-Thanksgiving Mondays! I am so very proud of all of my friends that ran the 1/2 and full marathons this weekend!

Seattle Marathon Race Report

2006-11-26T22:20:00.000-08:00

It’s Sunday night, the night of my first marathon, 8:13 pm. I am just getting myself to sit down and write a race report. I don’t know what it is, but I am never inspired to write a race report the day of the race. Whether it’s because I’m too tired to actually organize the millions of things that went through my head or because I need a good sleep to gain some perspective on the day, I can’t motivate myself to do it. But I am, because I can’t wait to tell all of you, that without your support, I wouldn’t have made it through the race today. I will try to make sense of the day, but I have to apologize in advance for this incredibly long post as things will just pour out of me. If only I could remember all of the details…

After a wonderful carbo load dinner last night at Jess’, I came home and blogged about the 26 reasons to run. At that time, I didn’t know what surprises were ahead of me today, but boy did those 26 reasons hit home during the race. More on that later!

I finally got to bed around 11 pm last night. I had packed anything and everything last night, and laid out 3 different clothing options based on the weather I would wake up to today. I woke up last night at 12:30, 3:30, 4:30 and finally to my alarm at 5 am. Think I was a little anxious? When I woke up, it looked cold outside and the streets were wet, but no rain or snow. I checked the forecast and it called for rain, but so far so good. I took a very hot shower to loosen up, got dressed and made some breakfast. Toasted sesame seed bagel (they were out of my favorite whole wheat sesame) with peanut butter and jam. I tied up my shoes, thinking I got them too tight with the orthodics in the wrong position, but also thinking I would readjust when I got to the race.

I stepped out the front door to… snow. Seriously? I have lived in Seattle now for a year and seven months, and in that ENTIRE time, I have seen snow ONCE. One hour of snow, that stuck to the ground for a whole 15 minutes. I gave it the old, please, I’m from Ontario, Canada! This is nothing… and got in my car. I picked up Jess at 6:45 am and we swung by Starbucks.

So two things to note. You know how they say don’t do anything new on marathon day? Well I did.

1 – I wore new running capris because it was too cold for shorts but I just didn’t want to wear full running tights. Though they were pretty good overall, they kept slipping off my waist throughout the race so I kept pulling them up. I did do ONE thing right… I cracked open a package of body glide that I have yet to use and lubed up… along my heart rate monitor, under my arms along the bra line and on the inside of my thighs in case the stitching on the capris bothered me. Greatest thing I did today, NO CHAFFING! I little redness under the heart rate monitor line but that is normal for me.

2 – I was getting really paranoid that the nerves hadn’t set in yet and that I hadn’t cleared the system. Despite knowing better, I decided to have a coffee to get things moving along before the race began. I’m debating whether this hurt or helped me more. Hopefully it’s not TMI but more on that later!

We got to the race and found $2 parking near the event. We walked up to the porta potties. The coffee did the trick. We decided to head inside to get warm since we still had 30 minutes to race time. We got warm and decided to make one last trip to the indoor bathrooms. Coffee did the trick, again. We popped a couple of Tylenol 8-Hour caplets and headed to the start line.

I had brought a couple of garbage bags for Jess and I and we were wearing them the entire time before the race. It was cold and rainy… and we didn’t part with the bags until the Star-Spangled Banner was being sung before the race. Finally the race got underway! I noticed right away that I was not feeling right. I had a big knot in my right calf muscle and shooting pain in the arch of my left foot. I forgot to readjust in my orthodics and loosen my laces. I didn’t want to stop though because it was early in the race and I was hoping that I was just tight.

We climbed our way up the long, slow uphill to the I-90 bridge. By the time you get to the bridge, you can see the leading male mararthoners finishing the out and back. Basically we’re at 4.5 miles and they’re already done 8. Wow are they ever moving, it gives you a lift in your step. It kept raining and it was cold all day… with only a short break in the rain for about an hour through Seward Park. I swear I even saw a few snowflakes out there. It was interesting to run the entire race with water logged shoes. “Interesting”.

We got to mile 7 in the race and Jess reaches into her pocket and pulls out a piece of paper… the first of a series of wonderful surprises today. Can I tell you how spoiled I felt today. First, I had Jess for every step of the 26.2 miles that we covered today. Secondly, every mile from mile 7 to 24, my wonderful friends left inspiring and funny words to keep me moving along the way. Not only did my roommates and running friends write, but also Wes, Kate and Jessi! What an amazing feeling, knowing that there are people near and far that care enough to want to support you on such a hard journey. And Jess, having run 3 marathons in 2 months, read each and every one to me along the way… even the long ones!

So we got to mile 6.5 and the coffee was starting to haunt me again! I knew that the overindulging over the holiday and the carbo load dinner would come back to get me! Sorry for the TMI… but if I can help anyone on their training, no matter how tempting it is, don’t overdo the eating before a marathon. I feel like all I have done in training for the marathon is eat, and eat, and eat carbs. I really should have been a little better these last few days as well. The next marathon, I am going to take the nutrition much more seriously.

Coming in the I-90 I got a call from Tosha! She had just passed us on the bridge and said we were looking strong! This meant so much to me, she has run 4 marathons and knows a thing or two about what it takes. This was her first time being a spectator, and she was there the entire way!

Finally around mile 9 we saw porta potties without lineups and I dashed in quickly. 2 minutes wasted but c’est la vie. At 10.5, we saw Tosha in her bright green toque (sorry, that’s Canadian for winter hat, beanie, not sure what Americans call them). She ran a few steps with us and just kept telling us how strong we looked! It meant so much to have her there! I was feeling good but there were a few things that were concerning me:

1 – I wasn’t able to get my heart rate below 165 and was spending most of the time in the 169-171 range.
2 – The pain in my calf was getting much worse, and it was stiffening my stride which always leads to groin pulls.
3 – The pain in the arch of my left foot was moving to the outside of the foot and getting much, much worse. I kept hoping it would go away, but to no avail.

We looped Seward Park, a nice flat part of the race and I was preparing for the hell to come. I took my last annoyed potty break at 15.5 all the while swearing off coffee before a race again. Just past that part, we saw Tosha again. I took a quick second to try to stretch my calf but I just couldn’t shake the feeling.

Jess swears she hates miles 14-18 the most because you’re running back from Seward Park along a road you’ve already come down. That is when she broke it out… an mp3 player with portable speakers! She had shown me earlier but thought she forgot the cord to hook up the player to the speakers. So at 10.5 she handed it off to Tosha instead of carrying for the race. However, in the Seward Park she found the cord and recovered the player with speakers in our second pass past Tosha. The mp3 player had my favorite music on it, plus some surprises from Jess and Danielle!

Oh, one more thing I wanted to mention… Jess and I wore our matching pink jackets today. It was nice to get a lot of support from the crowds, I can’t count how many times we heard “Go Pink Ladies!

So here comes the bad part… we get out of the park and start heading for the last 6 miles. The pain in my foot is pretty unbearable at this point and all I can think is one hour to go. I also know, that that hour is the worst hour of this marathon. It’s like a cruel joke really. The last 6 miles feel like a constant uphill climb. It starts with the famous Galer-Madison climb ending at the 21 mile marker. My goal today was to not succumb to this hill, to not let myself walk it. That’s a tough goal at the 20 mile mark but we did it! We did not get passed by anyone on that hill, and passed a number of people who were forced to walk. I could never blame them… it’s hell.

After the 21 mile marker, you get a tiny bit of relief before climbing again through the arboretum and Interlaken. At this point I just want to quit… I hate myself for not letting myself walk, and Jess who made sure I didn’t walk! I wonder why the F did I think that Seattle would be a good first marathon to run? No wait, why did I think that 26.2 miles was a distance that should be covered on foot? I think the only thing that kept me going was knowing that the fastest way to get back to my car was to carry myself there. So I kept channeling the good thoughts and support of my friends, and kept moving. I thought, one foot in front of the other… which backfired a little since it was my foot that hurt most! I counted down the miles and kept thinking… I have run this distance hundreds of times, I can do it today. I knew that 4:30 was out of reach, but it didn’t matter. I was in so much pain, my one remaining goal, was to finish without walking. I really didn’t know that I could finish at all.

With about 5km to go, we got a call from Wendy! She told us to keep up the great work and to remember that that was all… another 5 km and we would be home. We hit the dirtiest part of the course, looping around the I-5 with a painful downhill on Republican and then climb to the finish. On the downhill I said to Jess, “the downhill is so much worse, it hurts more than the uphill”. At this point we can see the stadium with of course, hills standing in our way. We get to the hill and I turn to Jess and say “I was wrong, the hills hurt more”. The best reply… she says “let’s face it, at this point, it all hurts a lot”. And this was so true… with under half a mile to go, I thought I had nothing left and I might not make it. This was the hardest thing I have done in my entire life. I knew, that if I made it to the end without walking, I would be able to tackle whatever life would throw at me next.

We finally made our way into the final 0.2 miles and (when I was sure there was nothing left in the tank), we broke into an all out sprint. Being a huge football fan, I was so pumped by running down a football turf to the finish line! I heard someone in the crowd (or maybe the announcer) say “Ladies in pink, finishing strong”! And with one last push, we turned it up one more massive notch and ran through the finish line. 4:39:19.

When we crossed the line all I wanted to do was cry. I tried to make it past the photographer so he wouldn’t catch me in the act, but didn’t make it… I bent over about 10 feet in front of him and broke down. I just sobbed. Somehow, through the pain and the cold, we made it… Jess never leaving my side. People rushed over asking Jess if I was ok and she just smiled and said “Oh yeah, she’s just really happy”. I hugged Jess and cried more and more… not being able to get a grip at all. It didn’t matter… I could hear complete strangers around us, moved by us finishing together, followed by the breakdown and our hug. I meant what I said that I wouldn’t have run a marathon this year if it weren’t for Jess, and today I can say, that I don’t know if I could have done it if it weren’t for her support. Another photographer came by and wanted to get a picture of us together after the finish, tears still streaming down my face with a huge smile, I was more than willing to capture that moment together.

Tosha joined us shortly afterwards! Along with her support, the notes from my friends, we had also received and placed a number of calls from/to Danielle, Nancy, Regan, Wendy, Sarah and… my mom and dad. After the race, we headed over to Wendy’s to celebrate with an amazing brunch that her and Eric organized. It was so nice to get warm and to eat some great food after the race. Wendy has this amazing ability to make you feel so great about what you have just accomplished… I was on cloud nine. Jess’ family was also there, Gabriel and Camille made the most precious “Go Aleks Go” signs for the race. How can I help but feel that I don’t have a family away from my family out here?

Tonight, I am feeling the effects of the race. My right groin is pretty sore, and my calf is still tight. What worries me most is the bruise I have on the outside of my left foot… leading me to believe that I might have a sprain in my foot/lower ankle. I can’t really walk on that foot, I’m hoping tomorrow will be a little better. In the off season, I will see the podiatrist again about my orthodics. Tonight I’ll take some Advil.

I will be honest, though I do want to run another marathon, I can honestly say I have no intention of doing it before next fall. I am so looking forward to sleeping in on weekends rather than planning for long runs. I can’t wait to spend more time in the pool and on the bike, in the weight room and in yoga. I can’t wait to focus on nutrition that isn’t carb based. But for now, at least until Tuesday, I will sleep. Rest, ice, soak in the hot tubs, and think about what 26.2 really means.

I can’t thank you all enough, from the bottom of my heart, for being here for me. Without you, I wouldn’t be able to say that I took down Galer-Madison and finished 26.2.

Time – 4:39:19
Average heart rate – 168 (so high!)
Maximum heart rate – 184 (Galer-Madison)
Calories burned – 2969 (not that this matters, but an interesting fact)
Gu consumed – 6 * 100 calories = 600 calories (Miles 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, 23)
Water consumed – One cup at every water station, plus 8 ounces with Nuun on my fuel belt. And a sip out of Jess’ bottle at mile 25… when I thought we weren’t getting another station after mile 23.5 and we couldn’t see the 25.5 mile aid station.
Time to write this post – 2 hours… almost half the time it took me to run the race today!

Aleks' Inspiration

2006-11-26T20:02:00.000-08:00

Named after the word document which lists all of the encouraging words my friends left for me today, "Aleks' Inspiration" kept me moving when all I wanted to do was stop.

Mile 6:
Knock-Knock jokes: Pat – Pat me on the back, I’m running a marathon! Kenya – Kenya believe I’m running a marathon?- Jessica

Mile 7:
At Rex Kwan Do, we use the buddy system! No more flying solo! - Jessica

Mile 8: Why are gorilla's nostrils so big? Because they have big fingers! - Sarah

Mile 9: I'll be thinking of you as I run, inspired by your commitment to 26+ miles. You're getting me through my 13.1 and I hope that knowing how hard the Princesses are are rooting for you is helping you get through your 26.2." – Nancy

Mile 10: “The wind at your back, the sun in front of you, and your friends by your side.”
You have 9 or 10 miles under your belt. Settle into your pace and enjoy the miles, the company, and keep pushing along. - Latosha

Mile 11:
Having not known you for very long, you've packed quite a punch so far. You are so awesome and inspiring, knowing you came from where I am now, and seeing where you've taken yourself. Getting to know you these past few months has been so great and I can't wait to hang out with you more (even at 5:15 a.m.). Your journey helps me acheive my goal of finishing the half marathon and finishing the full one next year. You're doing awesome and you ARE AWESOME! - Sarah

Mile 12:
I keep this pass-it-on card in my wallet and try to keep the message close to me: "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, nothing will be impossible for you."
Have faith Aleks- in yourself, your training, your friends. There are people all over the world cheering for you today!Have fun, run strong! – Kate

Mile 13: It’s mile 13 and you’re 50% done. But you’re still 100% Canadian. Take off, hoser! - John

Mile 14:
Dear Aleks,I am sitting here trying to come up with something interesting, or at the very least amusing, to help you get through 26.2 miles of running.Something that would either enlighten or otherwise inspire you to continue on this journey today. Something that would make you think of yourself or the world in a slightly different way. At the very least something that would distract you. Hmmmmmm. I got nothin'. Sheet.Okay, so hear's what I would do if I were in your position: use the tools at hand. Eat all the food you're supposed to eat. Drink your water. Give yourself pep talks. Then, when things are at their direst, turn to that short brunnette running next to you and ask her for a "Pep" talk. Seriously.Don't give me that raised eyebrow. Hear me out. I've put a lot of thought into this.See, I know she thinks she has a reputation for pissing people off with her "Pep" talks. Balderdash in my opinion, but if you think about it, this is a Win-Win situation! There's only two things that could happen:Scenario A: She peps you up. Your adrenaline kicks in. You run faster. You bust through your marathon and kick it through the finish line with minutes to spare. You love Jessica! You swear to buy her a big Christmas present! She accepts, but swears you'll get a bigger one! A Win-Win situation!Scenario B: She pisses you off. Your adrenaline kicks in. You run faster to get away from her. You make it up that nasty hill and feel fabulous! So fabulous that you feel guilty about wanting to pull her hair and gouge out an eye or two. You love Jessica! You swear to buy her a big Christmas present. She accepts and swears to buy you an even bigger Christmas present! You do this over and over again, at each hill, and by the end of the marathon you're both buying each other pink Mercedes with sun-roofs! A Win-Win!See? No downside. Unless it's possibly the pink mercedes with the sun-roofs. I hear they're a bitch for upkeep. Lucky for you, you know a good mechanic! :)See you at the finish line! - Regan
Mile 15: Knock-knock joke: Icy – Icy no reason you won’t finish this marathon. - Jessica

Mile 16:
I’m so proud of you! Keep up all of the good work, I know you can do it. You are a strong woman and despite the fact that T-man makes you weak, you can do anything. - Kristina

Mile 17:
Are you enjoying your marathon? I sure hope so. You have trained so hard to get where you are!
Today, you will complete a journey that few people will ever dare to begin. You will enter an elite group of people that can look at their To-Do List of Life and check off the line: “Complete a marathon someday”. Yes, Alecks! Your “Someday” is today! Congratulate yourself for having that rare breath of courage in your heart to speak the words aloud, “I am going to complete a marathon.” Congratulate yourself for being so bold as to dare to dream that you too, could cross that finish line, no matter what! Take a look around you: all the people cheering you on the sidelines are watching you live out their hopes and dreams. They are cheering you because what you are accomplishing today is truly amazing! Smile at them, wave to them, and inspire them to be as brave as you are. Inspire them to speak the words, “I can do this!” That they might too be so bold as to imagine one day that they might overcome fear, overcome doubt and overcome pain, to arrive one step closer to being the very best person they can imagine being. Congratulations, Alecks. I am so very proud of you, and I am so very proud to be your friend. Love, Danielle

Mile 18:
Dear Aleks:
OK. Now you've gotten pretty far into the race. And I hope it's going really really well.
Remember - you've trained really hard for this - in rain, sun, monsoons, and everything in between.
Today you should run the race you can - run the best you can do today.
You've had the good fortune to train with a great group of women - all of whom are here supporting you today.
Draw on that experience if the going gets tough. You've helped all of us in our training and this is our time to give back to you. I remember the long run to the ProClub and back when you said you weren't feeling so well at the end - but to me you looked SO STRONG. You have that type of spirit - you can do this.
Enjoy today - it's your first marathon and you won't have another first one.
Enjoy the accomplishment. Only a small fraction of people can say they've been able to do this.
Finish strong.
Brunch and lots of good wishes are waiting for you at the end. We don't care about your finish time. We're proud of you for having the courage to take this on - and to succeed.
I'm glad we met and were able to become friends during all the hours of training that led up to this day. Hopefully there will be many more runs to come.
Congrats! -- Wendy

Mile 19:Just wanted to throw in my words of encouragement. You can definitely do this - I've been reading your blog since I met you at Danskin, and I know how hard you've trained and how strong you are. I can't wait to read all about your success. In the words of the overly cheerful but still inspiring Sally Edwards: YOU GO GIRL! :) – Jessi

Mile 20: Mile 20 in Boston is Heartbreak Hill. Keep kickin' ass for the East Coast! - Fritz

Mile 21: "Your toughness is made up of equal parts persistence and experience. You don't so much outrun your opponents as outlast and outsmart them, and the toughest opponent of all is the one inside your head." - Joe Henderson
Wow, the hard part is over now. Less than an hour of running to go and you have continued to push along. Keep looking fabulous and remember to keep a smile on your face because you’ll persevere. The finish line is around the corner. - Latosha

Mile 22: Aleks - you can do it :-) It doesn't matter how long or how short the run - the fact that you're out here running is what counts. YOU ARE A RUNNER!" - Nancy

Mile 23: Hey cool chicka! You are living our dream. Be strong. Finish strong!Know our thoughts and strength are with you till the end. - Wes

Mile 24:
"Most people run a race to see who is fastest. I run a race to see who has the most guts." - Steve Prefontaine
"It hurts up to a point and then it doesn't get any worse." - Ann Trason (courtesy of Latosha)

One more sleep... 26 reasons to run!

2006-11-25T21:31:00.000-08:00

Wow, what an action packed pre-race weekend. It was filled with lots and lots of Thanksgiving and non-Thanksgiving food, pre-race events, some down time and quality time with close friends.

Friday Nancy, Wendy and I went to the race expo to pick up our race packets. I looked around at all of the people in the marathon line and couldn't help but feel like I just didn't fit in. I looked at these "real runners" with their "real runner bodies", in their "real runner" clothes and all I wanted to do was turn around and go home. But then I stopped and thought about all of the wonderful words of advice and inspiration and support that my friends, families and even strangers have been sending me over the last few days. If I'm not mistaken, I was the one that trained for months to prepare for this race! I was the one that ran a number of 16+ mile runs to get to this point! I was the one that killed more than one pair of running shoes along the way! I was the one that ran through lost toenails, blood blisters, achy muscles, cold, dark, and rain to make it here. I have earned my marathon bib!

I got my race packet, toured the expo which was great and headed home. The goody bag included one of those peel and stick bracelets in it that had the numbers 1-26 printed on it with space to write beside each number. The idea is to write something that inspires you or that makes you feel strong beside each number. This took mee back to the varsity soccer days where we would write a few words that inspired us on medical tape wrapped around our wrists. I couldn't resist... 26 reasons to run.

1 - Luigi - My ex boyfriend of six years, that I broke up with just a couple of months after moving here. I know it may seem strange to include him, but without him, I would never be here today.
2 - Seattle - The west coast. If I had never moved here, I would still be dreaming about running a half marathon, let alone be running a full marathon.
3 - Claudia - My best friend who lives in NY.
4 - Laura - A close friend of mine, and a single mom.
5 - The Roommates - A reason to come home after a long day, my family away from my family.
6 - Marek - My cousin, born on the same day as me. Closer than a brother.
7 - Weronika - My little cousin, who needs support more than anyone these days.
8 - Pawel - My brother who lives in England. The farthest from my family and friends, who I miss more than anyone.
9 - The Truemans- My cousin, her husband and their son.
10 - The Gaskells- My friends Ange, Kirk and their daughter. The type of friends and genuine people that I can say I'm blessed to know. Possibly the dressed athletes I know too! ;-)
11 - The Sinclairs - My boss and friend, his wife and their two children. Misplaced Canadians like myself, who always understand what it's like to live away from "home".
12 - Jen Kattula - A close friend of mine from MS, who reminds me that at the end of the day, there is more to life than work.
13 - Trevor - A great friend who reads me like a book. For all of the things I think I can't do, he knows that I can. A total hottie and classic drunk dialer! ;-)
The Princesses... who have stuck with me through the hardest of running and non-running times. Friends that have not judged me in my worst condition. Friends that I can call family. Each one with her own gifts and strengths and beauty.
14 - Nancy - At 50, running her first half marathon tomorrow! Really! And for those who don't know, the woman who got me running way back in February. Her warmth just told me that it was ok to approach her and ask her if I could join her run group. Without a second of hesitation, she said... the more the merrier. That is so Nancy.
15 - Wendy - Who ran NY 3 weeks ago, running the half tomorrow with bronchitis! And hosting the after party... as if she doesn't have enough to think about, Wendy asked me 3 times what she could get for me tomorrow. It's more than enough just to see her after the race tomorrow. :)
16 - Regan - Running her first half marathon tomorrow, having just moved, struggling with knee pain and now the flu. Her strength moves me.
17 - Tosha - A 4 time marathoner, close friend and completely unselfish individual. Tosha gives more to me in her friendship in one day than I can give back in my lifetime. She will be on the course to support us tomorrow... in the cold and the snow!
18 - Danielle - Who doesn't want to be Danielle? Her smile warms every room she walks into... and her voice makes you feel like you're just going to be ok. She was the last person to talk to me before my first triathlon, and I'll take those words with me to every event I do. Tomorrow included.
19 - The strangers and non-strangers that have followed my random posts, and have encouraged me to make it to tomorrow. It is amazing how much strength you can get from knowing that you're not alone in the race we call life.
20 - Jodi - Who I consider to be one of the strongest women I know. MD and PhD student, home owner (at 28!!!), genuinely kind and caring individual, and future Iron Woman.
21 - Wes and Dee Dee - Both incredible individuals, as a family they remind me that true love is still possible. Their 18 year partnership is to be admired and respected.
22 - My dad - The most important man in my life. All I can do when I think about my dad is smile.
23 - My mom - Seriously, who calls their mom EVERY DAY? I DO! Damn straight... besides the fact that I love my mom with all of my heart, she is like my morning coffee. I just can't live without talking to my mom in the morning. 5-10 minutes on my way to work is all it takes to shrink the 2500 mile distance between us to the mom next door. No matter how stressful things are at home, my mom puts the focus on me and making sure that I am alright. She is the classiest and most giving woman I know. I want to be just like mom. :)
24 - Jess - You thought I forgot her in the Princess list didn't you? I can sum up Jess' friendship in one fact... she ran the NY marathon just 3 weeks ago, and she's running the marathon tomorrow to support me. I can almost certainly say, that if it weren't for Jess, I would not be running my first marathon tomorrow. Her friendship, guidance, support, and determination kept me going when I thought I couldn't go any more. This may sound weird, but I really want to make her proud tomorrow.
25 - Myself - For the woman I am and the woman I want to be, I am running this race for me. Once and for all, I am going to shut down that little voice that says... you can't do it. YES I CAN!
26 - Living Legacy Foundation - The Seattle marathon is run in support of this organization, that saves lives through organ and tissue donation. I'm blessed to be healthy enough to make it to mile 26.2. What's better is that I have numbers 1-25 above to thank for it.

Weather forecast is calling for cold, rain and possibly snow. Bring... it... on!

5 days and counting...

2006-11-21T21:29:00.001-08:00

This morning we got together for a nice, short 4 mile run. It was dark, cold and raining (you don't say!) and all I could think about was, please God, don't let it be like this on Sunday!

Now that it's officially out in the open, I can tell you that Jess is running the marathon with me on Sunday! In her post today, Jess mentions a few things that ring true and not so true.

I am afraid. I am afraid not that my friends won't like me if I don't meet a certain time goal, but that I will be disappointed with myself if I don't meet my time goal. TRUE.
That I have trained well for the marathon and that I am ready. 1/2 TRUE? A few of my friends (Tosha, Wendy and Danielle) have all said this, but for some reason I just don't feel ready. Maybe you just never feel ready for your first marathon? Any marathon? Any 1/2 ironman? Any ironman? Note to self, keep working on that confidence cause I'm not about to stop at the marathon!
That I am a stronger runner than she is. COMPLETELY FALSE. I am always the first person to be ready to turn back on a run... whether I say it out loud or not. Jess seems like she could stay out there forever!

Are you all sick of hearing out the marathon already? Me too, I'm going to psych myself out! The solution to keeping the nerves in check has been to do the right things for my body this week. Today I made enough trips to the water cooler to fill up the humps of a camel. I also had a deep tissue massage, I needed it but do I ever hurt now! Good thing I have 5 days to recover from the massage. :) I also picked up some Gatorade Endurance. Since I haven't been training with it and it's going to be provided on the course, I figured I better start sipping on it to get my body used to it. Oh, and I'm getting some good sleep!

That's it for now, I appreciate all of your support this last week! Just think, come next week you don't have to hear another word about the marathon... until next year!

6 days and counting...

2006-11-20T20:06:00.000-08:00

For the last few months I’ve been obsessing about the marathon.

What is my training plan?
What is my longest run?
What weeks should I back down the distance?
How do I taper?
What do I wear?
What do I eat?
What if it’s cold and raining on race day?
What is my goal? My stretch goal?
What if I disappoint my friends?

In general, I set very high expectations for myself. I ran my first half marathon in June in 1:57, 9 minute miles over 13.1 miles. I had a goal of 2 hours, and though it was nice to beat that goal, I missed the experience of the run. My only focus was the time, and I didn’t enjoy the full experience. When I signed up for the marathon a few months ago, I set a goal of 4:22, 10 minute miles over 26.2 miles. Seriously? Why? Will anyone think less of me if I run 5:30? Will my friends think I’m less of an athlete if I don’t break the 4:30 barrier?

About a month ago I decided that my goal for the race would be to truly experience my FIRST MARATHON. I know it will be tough, and that it will hurt. But I refuse to let the run go by without having fun. I’m going to appreciate each step I am able to take on the 26.2 mile trip and all of the spectators that will be there supporting their friends, and complete strangers. Rather than focusing on time, I am going to reflect on all of the individuals that have gotten me here. My running partners, my friends, family and of course, the online community. You have supported me through a hectic travel and work schedule, my long runs, some painful recoveries and even the personal dramas. Without all of you, I wouldn’t be here today.

Saturday night we drove the marathon route and had dinner downtown. Jess described the painfully long stretches, areas where there would be lots of spectator support and where you can enjoy a nice breather. The route really is beautiful, and I just can’t wait for the full run… not just the finish line.

I’m enjoying a nice taper period, really taking it easy going into this last week. I am looking forward to switching my focus to the weight room and cross training… just ONE LONG RUN TO GO, 6 days and counting…

It's coming... the marathon...

2006-11-16T10:51:00.000-08:00

Today officially begins the true taper period going into next weekend’s marathon. We ran our last “longish” run this morning to accommodate the early Michigan v OSU game on Saturday (M GO BLUE)!!! We ran about 8.5 miles, and my body was thanking me for taking the last two days off from training!

When I came into work I read an email on the SBR alias that seemed to have good timing. Someone had posted about what to eat before a 6 am marathon that they’ll be running in Vegas in December. The answer was somewhat surprising, and scared me a little. :) Disregarding the fluid intake part of the email, here is the gist of the food intake for the morning of the race.

3-4 hours before the race – 500-1000 calorie meal (200 grams of carbs)
2 hours before the race – High carb snack, bagel, bar, etc. (15-75 grams of carbs)
Race – 150-200 calories per hour

I have been having a bagel with either cream cheese or peanut butter before our long runs. It seems to be sufficient, and I normally start to feel hungry around the 3.5 hour mark in our runs. During the run I usually have one Gu every 40 minutes or so. I think what I have been doing generally lines up with the plan above, minus the 500-1000 calorie MEAL 3-4 hours prior to the race!!!

The marathon start time is 8:15 am so this should be the sequence of events on marathon morning. These are the days that getting up to run at 4:30 am really comes in handy!

4:30 am – Get up, and by some grace of God, try to down between 500 and 1000 calories (200 grams of carbs). Do any of you have suggestions on what this could be (other than a bagel that I plan to eat 2 hours before the race)? And what about caffeine (coffee/pop)?
6:15 am – Bagel. Any suggestions on best toppings… I do love peanut butter! :)
Race – Same plan, 1 Gu every 40 minutes.

Any suggestions for race day/prior to race day are greatly appreciated! Especially around the 4:30 am feast that I’m supposed to down. :)

Girl, Diva, Princess Power

2006-11-15T21:53:00.000-08:00

I have to say, I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off my chest. In a life where there are so many priorities, it's nice to take one off the list and be able to focus on all of the other important things in life.

So now that I don't have to worry about "finding the one", I am happy to continue finding "the one" in me. Nothing gives me more pleasure than interacting with so many great women and men through training. Whether it's outdoors running and cycling, indoors at the gym or through the blogs, these connections just make me happy. We're all so different, different backgrounds, different stages in our training, different challenges, and yet we all relate.

Nothing represents this more than the 14 women that have already joined the Diva Dash team and the others than have committed to registering. The team roster brings together a very diverse group of women. Ranging from ages 3 to 50, kids size to plus size, iron women to walkers, single, married, mothers, daughters, sisters and grandmothers, we are coming together to just enjoy each other and the sport. One thing is for sure, all of these women are absolutely beautiful in their own unique way.

I'm counting down the days to the dash, stay tuned as I'll post lots of pictures!

Laying it out...

2006-11-14T22:42:00.000-08:00

There are a few big priorities in my life these days. Here is the general order of importance in my mind:

1 - Family, friends and roommates
2 - Training and healthy living/eating
3 - Work
4 - Alone time for rest, relaxation and reflection
5 - Dating

Here is how I feel my weeks are filling up:

1 - Dating
2 - Training (and healthy living/eating - not really happening)
3 - Work
4 - Family, friends and roommates
5 - Alone time for rest, relaxation and reflection (what alone time?!?!?!)

There are a few things that have come out of this. For one, I am finding that I'm already tired of volume dating. I look at my friends that are so happy spending multiple days a week on dates with different men and I just don't get it. Why am I less than thrilled replying to match.com emails and going on dates? Why do I come home from a date and feel like it was just a big waste of time?

The answer is becoming clearer with each date. First, I'm just not ready. I thought that getting over "the ex" and pushing "the rebound" out of my mind meant that I could start dating. But it's not enough. At some point, you have to be at peace and love yourself before you can love someone else. I thought I had this nailed too but I'm still struggling. Struggling with body image and self confidence. I'm constantly putting myself down, and making comments about being "chubby". I'm 26 and have tried so many things to improve my self esteem. At some point you realize that losing weight alone will not fix your problems.

The other thing that is screaming "you're not ready" is that I'm much more interested in spending time with my friends and time training than I am dating. Don't get me wrong, there are so many nice things about being in a relationship. But honestly, I'm just not that interested these days. Tonight I actually said to my roommates "oh damn, I wish I could get out of my date tomorrow to have dinner at home with you guys". I'm also irritated when I waste calories eating out and drinking wine on bad dates. I know that may seem stupid, but the worse the date is, the more I drink! And this impacts everything... impacts how much I eat, what I eat, and the morning training. Oh, and none of the men understand the training! They just don't understand why I would like to get home at a certain time and why I like to get up and train early in the morning.

I really have to thank Jodi for giving me some perspective around all of this. For some strange reason, I was thinking that a few months *should* be enough time to get back on the dating train... when there really is no set timeline for this at all. One day, I'll be ready because I know I'm ready, not because a group of my friends thought it was time for me to get back on the wagon.

So I'm going on dating hiatus and refocusing my priorities a little. Here's the new plan:

1 - Family, friends and roommates
2 - Training and healthy living/eating
3 - Alone time for rest, relaxation and reflection
4 - Work

And I have done something that I have wanted to do for a long time... I booked an apt with a therapist. The girls have been very open about the benefits of seeing 20/20 therapists on their journeys. I figured, who would be better at helping me work through the body image and food issues that I have? I think this is the most I have opened up about this on my blog, and I have to admit that I'm feeling a little vulnerable. I'm lucky to have such supportive friends that won't judge me based on what I have said.

I'm really looking forward... forward to running the marathon, and refocusing some of the long training hours on myself and my friends. And of course, base building for the triathlon season to come...

Saturday, Sunday, Monday Recap

2006-11-13T21:33:00.000-08:00

Where to start? :) Saturday morning we ran the Pineapple Classic. It was a 5 km run with 6 obstacles... Jess has a good recap of the race which I'm sure many of you have already checked out! :) It was a really fun day, I loved every minute of participating in the run. My team consisted of Regan, Danielle, Tosha and myself. Jess ran it with her husband John, Wendy and Wendy's husband Eric. It really reminded me of how thankful I am for having such a wonderful group of friends.

Sunday I began the official taper period before the marathon. Our run was down to 12 miles (ended up being about 12.8). I met Nancy at the carpool in Kirkland and drove down to Mercer Island where we joined Jess and Danielle. It was a very early (for a weekend run), cold and rainy morning. Nancy and I stopped at Starbucks because we were early and contemplated just staying there. I have to confess... part of what got me out the door was that I had downed a bagel with cream cheese and jam in preparation for the run and I wanted to burn off the calories.

So off we went. The Mercer Island route is fairly hilly. After running 18 and 20 miles the last couple of weekends, I was hoping it would be a walk in the park. Not so much. It had to have been one of the worst runs I have had in a long time. It was day 7 in a row of working out and my body was rebelling. Nothing felt right... Danielle read me like a book. She ran with me the last few miles, and typical of Danielle's completely unselfish nature, she talked me through making it to the end. We walked through the taper period, marathon day and recovery. Just a week ago she had done a marathon and was no doubt feeling her own pain, but was there keeping me positive as I entered the last two weeks prior to my marathon.

Needless to say, I was happy to find myself back in the car. I tucked away the crappy feeling I felt on the run to pull out when I'm feeling it on the marathon... a reminder that I can make it and that I have a wonderful group of friends cheering me along my way to my first marathon.

I woke up sore this morning and didn't work out in preparation for a soccer double header tonight. It was tough... my right hamstring, left quad and back were all acting up and I felt really slow. We were up in the first game and ended up losing 5-3 (to a team we should have dominated). We managed to squeak out a 7-3 victory in game two, but the team wasn't very strong. I pocketed a decent goal, and managed to play some good defense in the second game... despite feeling that out of shape, chubby jiggly feeling running up and down the field. I hate that feeling!

On my way home I called Nancy and told her I wouldn't make it to the run tomorrow morning. Tomorrow would be 9 days without rest and I need to start listening to my body if I'm going to taper properly. So I'm going to take tomorrow off, hydrate well and try to get some time in the hot tubs at the gym. Get back at it Wednesday morning.

Hope you're all doing well... looking forward to catching up on all of your blogs! :)

"Rest Day"

2006-11-10T10:55:00.000-08:00

I can’t count how many times I have said that I would take it easy in Danielle’s Friday spinning class to allow myself to recover before a long run on the weekend. Well today, I really did it… it killed me, but I did it! I took Sunday off after the 20-miler last weekend but I won’t be able to take another day off until Wednesday of next week! That meant that if I wanted to be in class today, I really would have to take it easy.

It was HARD to do! Danielle makes indoor cycling so much fun! Yesterday I left a CD at the club for her to incorporate into class, so it also meant that a lot of my current favorite songs were played during today’s ride. And guess what, in an entire hour of a strength ride, I didn’t get out of the saddle once! The only times I stood up was to stretch my legs… I leisurely spun my legs for the entire 60 minutes… no drills, no real sprinting, nothing! To prove it, rather than burning the usual 500+ calories I only burned 389! I even resisted the temptation to keep up with the other male triathletes in the class.

I’m hoping this beginning of the marathon taper really pays off on the run! I want to feel rested, fresh and I don’t want one bit of a hamstring issue coming back to haunt me!

By the way, it’s raining again today. Are any of you surprised? This is date day… not as much fun in the rain… or maybe it is? ;)

Today’s data:

110 calorie Pria bar (110 cals)

60 minutes spinning (389 cals)

20/20 shake (290 cals)

Turkey burger (450 cals)

Total (850 cals)

Second Annual Diva Dash!

2006-11-09T14:06:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone!

I am so happy to announce that we have registered a team for the 2006 Diva Dash! What is the Diva Dash?

The Diva Dash is a 5km walk/fun run and 1km little diva dash. It is held in Seattle on December 2nd and all proceeds from the event go to Girls on the Run! I participated in this wonderful event in it’s inaugural year last year, and had a great time! Women and girls of all fitness levels, shapes, sizes and ages participated in the event. The smiles were huge and the costumes were beautiful! I especially loved the young girls participating in the 1 km little diva dash… what a way to get girls involved in sports early in their lives.

Our team name is, what else, Princess Power! I invite all of the women in the area (whether or not you have ever walked/run 5 km) to sign up and if you’d like, join our team. The more the merrier, we will get “Queen Treatment” at the event for being part of a team. I can’t stress enough that this is a fun event! We will walk, run, skip and dance across the finish line in celebration of the wonderful friendships we have created through running.

I would love for anyone and everyone to join us on that day! If you’re interested, leave a comment on the blog and I will email you the team password to join. J

In other news, this morning was the first run we had in a long time where it didn’t pour on us. It’s sprinkled a little, but nothing to write home about. And it was a nice short one, 4 miles!

Data for today:

20/20 shake (290 cals)
Coffee in milk (30 cals)

20/20 southwest chicken salad (380 cals)

Non-fat latte (115 cals)
1/2 cup low fat yogurt (100 cals)

8 oz chicken noodle soup (100 cals)
20/20 chicken penne pasta (390 cals)
Side veggies (50 cals)

Total (1455 cals)

Blogging for motivation!

2006-11-08T15:02:00.000-08:00

Since I wasn’t meeting anyone at the gym this morning (I know, gasp! Working out alone?!?!?), I stayed up late last night downloading music from iTunes for my iPod. I couldn’t stand the thought of riding a bike at the gym and doing weights without some good tunes to pump me up. So, I decided to sleep in this morning and fit my workout in later in the day.

What’s my point? I have the after lunch ZZZZZZZs and I know that if I blog about going to the gym at 3 pm (15 minutes from now), I will go to the gym at 3 pm! I’m working at my vendor’s office today and they have a small little gym downstairs (one treadmill, one elliptical trainer, one bike and some weights). Apparently it stays pretty empty so I’m looking forward to a quiet workout with my new tunes… very different from the busy Pro Club!

We went out for a team lunch today and I proposed sushi… people love sushi so it went over well. Went over well with me because it meant that I could easily control the calorie intake… sashimi! Here’s the data for today:

20/20 shake (290 cals)
Milk in coffee (30 cals)

Sashimi (350 cals)

6 cashews (50 cals)

Made it to the gym... wanted to take it easy on the legs so I rode the bike for 30 minutes (200 cals) and then did upper body and core strenght training (125 cals)

low fat cottage cheese (75 cals)
2 low fat string cheese (120 cals)

Crackers with cheese (100 cals)

Brown rice with shrimp and pesto (450 cals)

Total (1465 cals)

When it rains, it pours...

2006-11-07T13:49:00.000-08:00

Every morning I wake up to the dark, the cold and the rain. I bury my face in my pillow when the alarm goes off and think to myself, can I get out of getting up right now? I negotiate with myself, here’s how it usually goes:

If I go back to sleep now I can get an extra X hours of sleep.
After all, I only got X hours of sleep last night.
But if I don’t get up, I will miss my chance to work out today… or can I get in a workout after work?
Oh, but the ladies are waiting, it’s so much more fun working out with them.
Think of the feeling 20 minutes into your workout when you always say to yourself, I’m so happy I got up to workout.
Think of playing your music in the car on the way to work after exercising… singing and moving in the car, your workout done with a beautiful day ahead of you.

This is what went through my mind this morning. First, I have to admit that I skipped soccer last night, a 9:30 pm game so that I would get up to run this morning. I was going to go, but the late games are such a pain… you’ve gotten home from work, eaten dinner, watched the end of Monday night football and you just want to go to bed. But instead, you have to change into soccer clothes, go out in the cold, get home after 11 pm, shower and fight that “wide awake” feeling that you get after you exercise. And since I was introducing a new girl to our run group this morning, I knew that I couldn’t miss the 5:45 am run! So I flaked, totally skipped soccer.

But, that was an additional factor to the negotiation this morning.

I have to introduce Sarah to the group and this was the sole reason for skipping soccer last night!

So off I went. We ran about 5.5 miles today in the rain again. :) Have you heard about the insane amounts of rain we are getting? Yesterday we got more rain in 5 minutes than in the entire month of August! Yesterday we also beat our November average for rain only 6 days into the month! They are even trying to evacuate people from some areas!

I have to agree with Jess, the hardest part about running in November is not knowing what to wear. I was wearing shorts, a sleeveless shirt, a long sleeved shirt, a jacket, a running hat and gloves. Two minutes into the run, the gloves came off. 15 minutes into the run, the long sleeve shirt came off. Then it was just a lot of wetness to the finish line… but true to form, all I could think was how great the rain felt on my skin. For this I am thankful.

Data for today:

5.5 mile run (570 cals)

20/20 muffin (200 cals)
½ cup low fat cottage cheese (100 cals)
Milk in coffee (30 cals)

1.5 cups veggies (150 cals)
¼ cabbage with tomato broth (75 cals)
2/3 of a chicken breast (150 cals)

Apple (75 cals)

Bread (60 cals)
20/20 Chicken Sausage Penne Pasta (390 cals)

Total (1230 cals)

A little busy! ;)

2006-11-06T13:28:00.000-08:00

2 important notes first!

Jess, Wendy and Danielle completed the NYC marathon - Full report here!
Wes has created a 1/2 marathon virtual training team - Details available here! Smoe, I think you would love this virtual team! After all, you are now a 10ker and you're working up to the 30ker... the 1/2 marathon is the next logical step. :)

Where have I been?

Thursday - Team offsite ALL day!
Friday - Back to back meetings all day, followed by a date night!
Saturday - 20 mile run, followed by lunch, shopping and then out cold lounging and sleeping! Side note, this was the last long run before the taper, it's all downhill from here!
Sunday - Out of the house from 9:30 am to 11 pm!

Is today Monday? I believe it is. :) Regan and I met at the gym this morning for Josh's 6 am cycling class. It was tough! Set a new record for calories burned in a spinning class, 579 big ones! Then I changed my shorts and we went down to do some weights. Total burned for the day was 820 cals.

I'm starting my 3 week taper period, and someone please let me know if this is a bad idea... but what I want to do is really stick to the weights 3x per week during this period. I'm also going to really cut back the carbs since I won't need them so much for the running (except for the week of the race). Carbs (even the good 100% whole wheat kind) set off a long chain of eating for me. It leads to peanut butter and a lot of candy/wine. The protein really keeps me satisfied longer and I don't get the sugar highs and lows. Anyways, let me know if this seems like bad timing for the marathon.

Quick food data for today:

Powerbar (130 cals)

Spinning and weights (820 cals)

20/20 shake (290 cals)
Milk in coffee (30 cals)

Nancy's HOMEMADE Caribbean pumpkin soup... very delicious I have to add (250 cals)

Non-fat latte (115 cals)
Apple (75 cals)

Crackers (65 cals)
1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese (100 cals)

3/4 cup brown rice (165 cals)
1.5 cups pork vegetable stir fry (300 cals)

Total (1520 cals)

0°C... might as well be running in Ontario!

2006-11-01T13:28:00.000-08:00

After telling all of these brave stories about running in -20Â°C weather, in face masks and 4 layers of clothing I wasembarrassedd that I had such a hard time getting out of bed for our run this morning.

Truth is, I was tired, it was freezing out and I had eaten too much junk and Halloween candy last night. More truth, it was the candy guilt that got me out of bed this morning... sorry ladies, for once it was not the thought of seeing your beautiful faces on the run this morning. :)

It took a while to warm up but by the end it was such a beautiful (but still cold) morning. The sun was shining so brightly it just made me appreciate meeting the ladies for the run, cause I wouldn't have been there without them! I went home and showered, and on my way to work was rockin' out to some great music. I had to smile because I know that if I hadn't gotten up to run, I wouldn't have felt nearly this great today!

Data for today:

Toast with cream cheese and jam (100 cals)

4 mile run (400 cals)

Egg beateromelete (50 cals)
1/2 piece of toast (70 cals)
1/2 cup cottage cheese (100 cals)
fruit (130 cals)
Milk in coffee (30 cals)

Salad (400 cals)

Asian pear (75 cals)

Cheesestick (60 cals)

Total (1015 cals)

A hint of a soccer blinder!

2006-10-31T10:27:00.000-08:00

Blinder = A fantastic performance where one displays both skill, strength, speed, determination and leadership
Shocker = An utterly disappointing and embarrassing performance where one should consider hanging up the boots for good

Two terms that had been introduced to me by a Scottish soccer coach in university. Last night, after taking Wes' advice and being patient in my pursuit to find my old soccer self, I had a hint of a blinder. I felt like I was finally starting to keep up a fast pace, run off the ball, push forward and come back. Don't get me wrong, I'm still sucking some serious wind and at times left "picking up my shorts" after getting schooled by much faster and stronger guys with ball skills. But overall, it just feels good! We won a close one last night, 14-12... I netted 2 and had 3 assists! More imprinted, I played some solid defense and had a lot of fun!

I may have also had "words" with another player, ending with him getting thrown out of the arena, but we don't need to focus on that... Kirk, just thought you'd like to know that I still have the passion! POLSKA!!!

Ok, ok... enough reliving the glory days. I took this morning off running because I can't get to sleep after a late soccer game and 4 hours of sleep/recovery is not enough to get me through a run and the long day ahead. I'm going to try to get out on a run today at some point, may be a little tough with meetings and trick or treating. In the meantime, gotta stay away from the baskets of Halloween chocolate stationed every 3 offices in my building!

Data for today:

20/20 shake (290 cals)
Coffee with milk (30 cals)

Non-fat latte (115 cals)

Chicken breast strips with bamboo shoots (200 cals)
1.5 cups veggie medley (200 cals)

Total (835 cals)

Dating 101

2006-10-30T10:21:00.000-08:00

Urgh, is it Monday already? I feel like we didn't even have a weekend and we gained an hour on Saturday. Quick weekend recap... I got a good night's sleep on Friday night to get ready for the 18 miler on Saturday. The run was wonderful! Nancy ran the first half with me, and the second half was with Jess, her son Gabriel and Wendy! Danielle joined us for the last couple of miles and we all headed out to brunch... families, husbands and children! Tosha and Regan also joined for brunch, so there was a huge group of us!

So as the youngest (not by much) member of our group of friends, I am the only single one in the bunch. I love spending time with the girls and their husbands and families because I am reminded of the amount of love and support these women get from their families.

When I moved here in May 2005, I had been dating someone for 6 years. We met in soccer training camp my first year at University and hit it off immediately. There were a number of bumps in the road but when I moved here I was convinced that we would eventually be married. Then something happened when I got here... I started to open my eyes to what a real loving relationship was supposed to be. I had for a long time known that he didn't treat me the way I deserved to be treated, or the way I saw other men treat their significant others. So I finally decided that 6 years was not a waste of time or effort, but that I was still better off being single at 25 than being unhappy with him. That was about 16 months ago.

I decided to take some time off dating... I did the rebound thing and the get hurt thing first, and realized that if I wasn't happy with myself, I would never be happy with anyone else. I spent almost a year taking the time to find my way on the West coast, and training with the girls was a huge part of finding what makes me happy and what keeps me strong. I finally agreed, after lots of convincing from friends, that I would join match.com.

I would say that I have truly connected with 3 men in my life, and with each it was SOOOO easy. Almost instantaneous sparks, no effort connection. And no, I'm obviously not with any of then now for a number of reasons or unfortunate circumstances. :) But this dating thing is not so easy... what happened to the no effort connection? I'm not expecting to find "the one" on a first date, but I would love a hint of the sparks, the butterflies or the can't wait to see you again feeling. Nothing. Even when I thought there could be some potential it quickly turned south.

I can't help but wonder if I'm going to be like some of my single friends... starting down the volume dating road where I kiss (or don't come close to kissing) a lot of toads before I find my prince? An online profile can be very accurate, or frighteningly deceiving, and you don't really know if there will be a connection until you meet. So the game plan is do stick with it... volume date, meet lots of people so that when I do meet that special someone, I will have filtered through a lot of crap and know what really matters to me. I gave it a fair shot this weekend... both Saturday and Sunday night. Saturday was not so bad, and I think we'll be going out again soon... Sunday, not nearly so good. But I think that's the point, learn from the good and the bad dates, don't give up and don't get discouraged. Let's hope that "connection" is just around the corner!

Back to business... soccer tonight, stats for today:

Egg beater sandwich (245 cals)
Apple (75 cals)
Coffee in milk (30 cals)

Smart Ones Lasagna (290 cals)
Broccoli (30 cals)

20/20 shake (290 cals)

1/2 cup pearl barley (100 cals)
1/2 cup corn (60 cals)
3 oz stuffed salmon (300 cals)

Total (1420 cals)

Taking the day off!

2006-10-27T10:05:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago I did Danielle's Friday morning cycling class the day before a long run. As usual, I fully participated rather than spinning my legs as planned. I paid for it in the long run the next day. So after soccer on Monday and Danielle's spinning on Tuesday, my hamstrings and IT bands were tight... and I am still feeling the pulling in my hamstring. So today, rather than doing Danielle's class which I know I would not do at a leisurely pace, I booked a Shiatsu appointment at the club.

Skipping cycling killed me because last night we went to happy hour with my team to celebrate my manager's paternity leave, and I didn't exactly stick to plan. Or not at all. We were at a pub, and being the human that I am, I couldn't resist sampling the shared calamari, nachos, chicken fingers, potato skins (I don't even like potato skins), wine and chocolate cake! It gets worse, I can't believe I'm fessing up to this... I drove my manager home to see his wife who has a C-section scheduled for Saturday morning. They are both good friends of mine and when she knows I'm coming over, she always has food ready! She, 2 days from delivering a baby, baked me an apple strawberry cobbler! I always tell people that their friends will understand when you turn down food... but I just couldn't do it! First, I just can't say no to someone who has gone to all that trouble for me, especially since she is about to deliver a baby! Secondly, it smelled so good, fresh out of the oven and she served it up with vanilla bean ice cream and tea. Gaaaah! New day today, got to get back on the train... how often do I say that? :( That was really painful to write down... I wish I had spinning this morning to work off the additional calories consumed last night!

Back to Shiatsu. Jess has raved for a long time about the benefits of Shiatsu, so I thought... maybe this will work! Little did I know what Shiatsu entailed... Japanese for "finger pressure", this is THE most painful form of massage I have ever had. And I have had plenty of painful massages, but this took it to a new level! It's supposed to improve your circulation promoting healing and overall better motion. I have to admit, I walked out a little straighter, and feeling a lot looser. The real test will be the next few days, and definitely the long run tomorrow! I will report back with the results of course!

So in an effort to get back on track today, here are the details:

Banana (100 cals)
Coffee in milk (30 cals)
Egg beater sandwich (195 cals)

Tomato soup (100 cals)
Tuna sandwich with fat free mayo (175)
Apple (75 cals)

Cheese string (60 cals)
Soup (100 cals)
Cheese puffs (150 cals)

Total (985 cals)

Temptation

2006-10-26T11:46:00.000-07:00

This morning I met Nancy, Jess and Kathy for a 6 mile run. Wow, my legs are still super tight from soccer and cycling… but I want to make sure I keep the miles up. I do want to prevent injury, but this close to taper time I just want to keep running!

So on to the topic of my blog today… temptation. My team has been working really, really hard so I wanted to do something nice and brought them a box of bagels, cream cheese, danishes, muffins and cinnamon buns. Oh, and I also brought them a big box of chocolates from Paris! I would love to eat a bagel but I know that it would last about 2 hours before I got hungry again. So I had my usual morning coffee and 20/20 shake today to hold me over until lunch.

I’m at work now and my team is streaming in and picking up some goodies. The box is within arms reach, and smells soooooo good! I can smell the cinnamon and apple and berry. I read in a book that just looking at and smelling food CAN actually make you gain weight. The idea being that it releases some sort of hormone that makes you want to eat… everything in sight. Solution, MOVE THE BOX ALREADY!!!

Done, box is now in the kitchen where I can’t see it and don’t have to walk by it. Safe and sound. Here are the details for today:

Bread with PB and J (100 cals)

6 mile run (610 cals)

20/20 shake (290 cals)
Milk in coffee (30 cals)

Sashimi (450 cals)

Non-fat latte (115 cals)

Total (985 cals)

Truly Blessed

2006-10-25T10:09:00.000-07:00

I know I have mentioned this so many times before, but I have to say it again. I am blessed with having the best friends and most motivating training partners a girl could ever have. Jess, Wendy and Danielle are now tapering for the NYC marathon. I am still climbing since the Seattle marathon is 3 weeks after NYC. That being said, I have 20 miles on the schedule this week, and the ladies have about 6.

Nancy and Sarah are training for the Seattle half marathon and they have about 8 miles on the schedule this week. Tosha who has run 4 marathons is just joining us for long runs cause she enjoys running. So given that I have at least 12 more miles on the agenda than anyone else, you'd think I'd be running alone. But no! My supportive friends have figured out a way to run with me for all but the first 2 miles of the run (some running longer than planned)! How you say? Here is the amazing plan that Jess put together:

8 a.m.: Aleks leaves the Starbucks on Alki for 20 minutes of solo running wherever she wants
8:20 a.m.: Nancy meets Aleks back at the Starbucks and they run the first half of the gmap route way below
9:50 a.m.: Aleks and Nancy return to Starbucks; Jess, Danielle, and Wendy leave with Aleks for the second half of the gmap route
10:10 a.m.: Hey! There’s Latosha, at Emma Schmitz Memorial Overlook! She joins in the fun
11:20 a.m.: We’re back at Latosha’s car. She drives over to the brunch place and waits for us.
11:40 a.m.: All done running!
Noon: Brunch (this gives us a little buffer)

I think some are going to stray from pieces of this plan, but this is the general idea. 20 miles of running with wonderful women followed by brunch! HOW LUCKY AM I?!?!?!

This morning I met with Wendy and ran about 6 miles. It was tough! I was totally feeling the pain for soccer on Monday followed by spinning with Danielle. My hamstrings were tight! I’m definitely going to spent some time in the hot tub and stretching at the club before the long run on Saturday!

Bread with PB and jam (100 cals)

6 mile run (610 cals)

20/20 pro club shake (290 cals)
Milk in coffee (30 cals)

Sandwich (400 cals)

Non-fat latte (115 cals)

Total (935 cals)

I used to be able to play soccer! :)

2006-10-24T10:33:00.000-07:00

What happened to me? It's so sad... I used to be a decent soccer player! It's amazing what 6 months off can do! Not only have I lost that quick step and pace and ability to run off the ball, but my touch is way off! Moving off the ball is practically more important than what you do when you have the ball! I know WES knows what I'm talking about! All the more reason to stick to it, improvement is coming but I feel so slow these days! Oh well, we won our game last night, even if it was a little ugly. A win is a win is a win!

This morning I got up to do Danielle's cycling class... I was a little slow from last night, but managed to get up to speed! I think I burned more calories in the last 3 songs than I did all class! Just when I thought I was dead tired, she started an amazing 3 song set beginning with Green Day and it just rocked! She just has this way of putting us in the zone!

I'm hoping the rain holds off today... I'm planning on meeting Tosha for a run after work. 6 miles, no route planned yet! Looking forward to seeing her! She's been battling a cold so I haven't seen her since before Paris... I have withdrawal! Speaking of withdrawal, I have some serious Regan withdrawal! Countdown is on to Friday spinning! :)

Here's the data for today:

Pria bar (170 cals)
60 minutes of spinning (515 cals)

Egg sandwich (250 cals)
Milk in tea (30 cals)

Sandwich (400 cals)
Non-fat latte (115 cals)

Chicken noodle soup (100 cals)
20/20 chicken sausage penne pasta (390 cals)

Total (1455 cals)

Back to Redmond

2006-10-23T14:16:00.000-07:00

So after an extremely long flight home, I'm finally back to the grind on the West coast. This morning I got up at 5 am for the 6 am spinning class. I made the mistake of checking work email when I got up, which is never a good idea. I ended up going in to work at 6 am to put out fires before Monday meeting hell started at 8:30. Sometimes life happens I guess...

The good news is that I have soccer tonight so at least I'll be exercising today! We don't have any women subs for tonight's game so it will be a full 50 minutes of interval type running. Here is the data for today:

yogurt (100 cals)
oatmeal (170 cals)
coffee with milk (30 cals)

sandwich (350 cals)
8 oz garden vegetable soup (50 cals)
latte (100 cals)

crackers and cheese (105 cals)

whole wheat pasta with homemade tomato sauce (500 cals)

total (1405 cals)

Meal Tracking in Paris

2006-10-19T04:45:00.000-07:00

Today I didn’t have the luxury of sleeping in and running late. I was meeting my team at 8:15 am which meant I had to get running by 6 am. Unfortunately, these days it’s dark until about 7:30 am in Paris, and I just wasn’t comfortable running alone at that time. Maybe I’m just chicken, but what if???

So I’m hoping to get a chance to run after meetings, before dinner. My guess though is that I might not be that lucky. If I can’t do that, I will at least do my hotel workout (strength workout) after dinner… it may not be running but it’s better than nothing!

Tracking meals while being in Paris is making me much more careful about what I’m putting in my mouth. I know I have to be accountable to you all, and you’re keeping me honest! Here is what my last couple of trips to Paris looked like:

Morning at the hotel before arriving at meetings:
Cereal with milk
Bun with meats and cheese
Yogurt
Coffee with milk
Morning meetings:
Plain and chocolate croissants
Coffee with milk
Followed by 3-4 course lunch and dinners… couldn’t even list the sabotage there!

So here is what my day is like so far... now that I'm meal tracking and blogging about it:

Cereal with milk (250 cals)
Coffee with milk (50 cals)
1 piece of lean ham (30 cals)
1 small piece of cheese (80 cals)
I have strategically place myself as far away from the croissants at the meeting as possible. Staying away from these today… even though I can smell the goodness from across the table.

Grilled veggies (75 cals)
Beef slices (200 cals)
Potato (50 cals)
Green beans (15 cals)
Brie cheese (100 cals)
Bun (100 cals)
Skipped the Crème Brulee and Chocolates for desert! Have to move them out of arm’s reach. And thank goodness for that, 400 calories for a ½ cup of crème brulee!

Total (950 cals)

Solo Running Tour of Paris

2006-10-18T06:29:00.000-07:00

I got to bed at a great time last night... 11 pm. Set my alarm for 7 am, thinking I'd get out for a nice early run. Unfortunately my clock isn't quite set yet and I woke up at 3:30. I was wide awake so I took a melatonin supplement and caught up on work email until 5 am. I didn't drag myself out of bed until almost 10 am this morning, and had absolutely no motivation to go running alone. I decided to combine two run routes and motivate myself by the scenery along the way. I got dressed and got out the door.

I get it, compared to the US, it is less common to see a woman running in Europe. When I was in Poland for my brother's wedding, I expected the stares from the locals. But Paris is a BIG city! In total, I saw 4 runners on today's run... an entire 7 mile loop along the Seine, past the Notre Dame, the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower.... 4 runners! Why can the french all eat and drink, not exercise and still look the way they do?

Anyways, I was wearing my pink running shorts and a light purple long sleeve top... I have never gotten so many stares and comments and whistles in my life! This just doesn't happen to me in Seattle... well, except when I'm running with 4 other women. :)

So the run was ok, but I am still having that high heart rate problem when I run alone. There are no hill climbs in the area, the biggest rollers are the bridges across the Seine. Somehow, my highest heart rate was 177 and I averaged 164. I can't seem to slow myself down when I run alone, I think it's because I'm self conscious... and when people look, I just try to run faster to get by them. I need to stop that. :)

Total distance was about 7.1 miles, 70 minutes including all of the lights.

Today's route!

Ok, I managed to get away with eating well for breakfast/lunch today... so I just have to keep that motivation at dinner tonight!

1/2 pria bar (85 cals)

7.1 mile run (760 cals)

Cottage cheese (182 cals)
banana (100 cals)
Yummy french steamed milk in coffee (50 cals)

1/2 pria bar (85 cals)
orange (60 cals)

2 glasses of red wine (260 cals)
Small greek salad, light on dressing, 1/2 feta given away (200 cals)
Arrabbiata Penne... skipped the creamy pasta or fish sauce! (400 cals)
Tiny butt end of a baguette... almost non-existent, and I sat beside the bread basket! (30 cals)
Espresso (0 cals)
Apple crisp... 4 bites (150 cals)

Total (1602 cals)

The cottage cheese really is better in Paris!

2006-10-17T11:35:00.000-07:00

I'm finally here, and it feels like it's been forever since I saw the girls at the club... but I guess it was just over 24 hours ago! How do I have withdrawal already?!?!?! :)

The flight over was great! I slept for 6 hours on the Seattle to Copenhagen flight and napped on the connection to Paris. I just read Dean Karnazes' book that Jess leant me... and I am so excited to run! We got off the plane at 5 pm local time, but we didn't make it through traffic to the hotel until 7 pm. By then, I'd lost the buzz cause of the long travel and just wanted to grab dinner from the grocery store across the street.

I could spend my entire life eating baguettes, cheese, tomatoes and wine! Instead, I grabbed some dark wheat bread, cottage cheese, couscous salad, carrot salad and lean ham slices from the grocery store. I have said it before, but the cottage cheese in Europe is too good to be true. It seems like it must be higher in calories but it really isn't that bad. It's so creamy and delicious... about a cup and a half for 182 calories!

So I'm catching up on email and going to get some sleep... it's 9:15 pm here. Since we don't start meetings until 3 pm tomorrow I can sleep in (which I'm sure will be 7 am for me) and go for a nice long run! Inspired by Dean, I'm going to leave the iPod in the hotel and just listen to my breathing and footsteps... placing one foot in front of the other. This should help me run a steady pace and catch some of this beautiful view too! Can't wait to update you all tomorrow! :)

The Monday After

2006-10-16T08:57:00.000-07:00

After feeling pretty sore on Saturday, Sunday wasn't all that bad. Surprisingly the 22 mile soreness had all but completely worn off by this morning! Jess and I planned on doing a spinning class followed by weights. At first I was feeling lazy, just a case of the Mondays. :) But I quickly keyed it up because this was my last workout before leaving for Paris later today. So I worked really hard and sweat my butt off! The music was great and my heart rate peaked at 182 beat/minute. I think that sets my record for a spinning class!

We met Latosha and headed downstairs for an upper body and ab workout. Typical of working out with Jess, it was a pretty tough workout and we'll be hating each other today. I also decided to go up in weights for some sets today, so I'm hoping I feel the pain tomorrow! Seriously, who wants to hurt? We are all suckers for punishment aren't we?

Ok, so have a great week everyone! I'll be updating the blog while I'm there, just at unusual times. :) I am of course planning on working out and I'm going to fight the urge to drink French wine and eat lots of bread and cheese.

Today's data:

1/2 pria bar (85 cals)

Spin class and weights (760 cals)

20/20 shake (290 cals)
Milk in coffee (30 cals)

Whole wheat pasta (455 cals)
Sample Clif Bar (100 cals)

Total (960 cals)

22 miles... who's idea was that?!?!?!?

2006-10-14T14:52:00.000-07:00

T-6 weeks to the marathon! So far, I have had 3 runs in the 15-16 mile range including last week's 16 mile run with the girls. I had planned 18 miles today, ramping down to 12 next week and then doing 20 and 22 the following 2 weeks before tapering.

Not exactly how it worked out. :) Jess, Wendy and Danielle had planned to do 20 miles today as their last long run before NY. The plan was to run from Mercer Island to the Pro Club in Seattle and back. 10 miles each way. So I was a little concerned that it was a big jump to go from 16 to 20 miles, but decided to try it and if all else failed, I could walk in the last 2 miles.

Let's back up to yesterday. The cycling class that Danielle teaches on Friday mornings is a strength class. So lots and lots of climbing. I always tell myself that I will just spin my legs and take it easy because I don't want to really work my hamstrings and glutes before a long run. Never happens. Yesterday, just like every other Friday, I was motivated by the great music and all of the strong people in the room. Note to self, STOP PURPOSELY sitting next to Brian G... I like to sit next to him to push myself to try to keep up, but I always pay for it... who tries to keep up with that guy?

So today on the run, the first few miles were rough and I wondered if I was going to make the first 10 miles. I finally settled into the run and felt great the first half. Turns out it was more like 11 miles each way, but I felt great when we stopped in at the club to use the washrooms and fill up our water. At that point, I felt a little soreness in my right hamstring that I have had for weeks now, but overall felt like I could run the 11 miles back to the car. I did know that I would hit "that 18 mile wall" though, the wall that I hadn't yet experienced. The course had quite a few hills today, and yup... I hit it alright. Except I hit it at about mile 15... and just kept running into it. I even had to walk 2 of the hills on the run! My hamstrings and glutes just couldn't take it!

But I am lucky, I was running with 3 amazing women that were right there... encouraging me through my longest run yet. I just kept taking in the Gu at the designated times, and finally ended made it back to the cars. :) I have never been so happy to finish a run... a whole 22 miles! Ok, not so smart to go from 16 to 22 miles in one week, but I'm happy to have a hard run under my belt. I wanted to know what I was capable of doing when faced with the wall. Boy, I'm sore now... hamstrings, glutes and back! Can't wait to sit in some hot tubs tomorrow!

The treat at the end of the tunnel? Noah's whole wheat sesame seed bagel with peanut butter and banana! :)

I know, I know... LONG post but I have to send a shout out! My girl SMOE is running her first 10 km race tomorrow, DURING "OKTOBERFEST" IN WATERLOO, ONTARIO!!! Waterloo is in the top 5 Oktoberfest outside of Munich... it's party central all month! I am so proud of that girl! She is another weight watcher success story, I'm so proud of her. When I met her over 2 years ago she wouldn't even consider doing this... and here she is, running 10 km and planning on the Hamilton 30 km race in April. I know she's going to do it!

Here's the data for today:

Whole wheat bagel with light cream cheese and jam (350 cals)
4 Gu (400 cals)

22 mile run (2350 cals)

Whole wheat sesame bagel with peanut butter and banana (600 cals)
1 blueberry pancake with blueberries and light syrup (125 cals)

Total (1475 cals)

Friday the 13th Weigh In

2006-10-13T11:39:00.000-07:00

Today I faced the scary truth. I haven’t weighed myself in three weeks, before the wedding week actually. So here’s the scary truth part… up 3.4 lbs to 155. I would like to blame it on the wedding, on being sick and on having an insane job with lots of travel and stress. But really, I still make time to workout 6 days a week… why am I wasting all of the effort? Why do I weigh 10 lbs more than last summer when I only played soccer a couple of times a week and drank like a fish? I can only blame some of this on muscle gain!

There is a lot of motivation for me to get back to goal weight… the beautiful women I work out with, my skinny jeans, my skinny tops, and the biggest motivator… the marathon. I want to have a strong run and have fun while I’m at it. I want to be at 145 come marathon time… that is about 6 weeks away. 140 by the time I go home for Christmas. Tough goals… did I mention that I’m in Paris for work next week? The capital of food and drink? Jet lag, all day meetings, agency dinners, no sleep. But I can’t forget… is there a more beautiful place on earth to run? Two routes that keep me sane in Paris:

Notre Dame (5.5 miles)

Louvre (6.1 miles)

Baby steps right? Start right… have a plan for Paris. Yes, I will start with the Paris plan this weekend. Then I’ll go from there.

Hope you’re all having wondering Fridays! Here's the data for today:

½ pria bar (85 cals)

60 minutes spinning and weights with Jess (650 cals)

20/20 shake (290 cals)
Coffee in milk (30 cals)

Sandwich (450 cals)

1/2 apple (40 cals)
Oatmeal (170 cals)

Quarter chicken, leg quarters, no skin (190 cals)
1/2 cup spanish rice (140 cals)
3/4 cup broccoli salad (115 cals)
3/4 cup greek salad (45 cals)

Total (1555 cals)

Swamped!

2006-10-12T12:11:00.000-07:00

Swamped at work the last couple of days, going from one meeting to the next. Haven't had a chance to blog... but I will for sure tonight! :) I will also have time to catch up on all of your blogs, I feel so out of the loop and it's only been a couple of days!

Now if I can only stay away from the junk food... the stress is getting to me! Actually, I'm kinda nauseous from the anxiety... not really in the mood to eat. That's even worse!

Soccer Monday

2006-10-10T10:42:00.000-07:00

For as long as I can remember, I have played soccer. Grade school, soccer. High school, soccer. University, soccer. So when I moved here in May 2005 I did what I knew would allow me to meet people and stay fit all while doing something that I loved. I immediately joined 3 soccer teams and fell in love with the idea of being able to play both indoor and outdoor soccer year round. Not exactly possible in the harsh Ontario winters! :)

Then I swung my focus to running and triathlon training. I no longer enjoyed the 10 pm games when followed by a 5 am run. Traveling for work also put a damper on soccer. So by March 2006 I have pretty much stopped playing altogether.

We are now running later (7 am) on Tuesday mornings so last night I decided to play a late soccer game. I wore my heart rate monitor for the first time in a soccer game, hoping I would get away with wearing the watch. Wow... I knew soccer was a great workout (indoor last night) but it was a shock to the body! It's like an interval or tempo workout on drugs. Fast starts and stops and lots of shorter and longer sprints down and up the field. I had forgotten how different it was from a long 10 mile/min run. My heart rate was up in the 175 range within the first 30 seconds of the game. That's like a solid hill climb heart rate! Then it happened... the ref told me to take off my watch. Oh well, I was hoping to find out how many calories I burn in a typical soccer game but it wasn't meant to be.

The team was really aggressive and my upper body is actually sore today from pushing off the opposing team players. Oh, and for the first time in my soccer life, I got a bloody nose in last night's game. It was coed and I got a nice forearm to the nose and teeth. I look funny today... like I'm really blotchy or sick... but it's just a shiner in development. :) I tried to cover it up with makeup, I hope it worked!

So I'm still going stick to the regular workout routines, including Monday mornings. But, I'm going to add the soccer on Monday nights. I was a little sad at the speed I had lost in the months off of soccer and I think it is just the perfect cross training that I'm looking for. Last night I committed to playing the next season which starts next week. I'm going to try the heart rate monitor again, but strap the watch to my bra. :) I just have to know at least once what the effort really is! I know Jess would side with me on this.

This morning we met for a run at the club... 65 minutes with almost no lights, it was great! Some off road fun with some good hill climbs. Great workout! But seriously, my butt was so sore! Additional benefit to playing soccer!

Here's the data for today:

1/2 Pria bar (85 cals)
20/20 shake (290 cals)
Milk in coffee (30 cals)

1 cup light cottage cheese (200 cals)
1 cheese string (80 cals)
1/2 Pria bar (85 cals)
Apple (75 cals)

Oatmeal (170 cals)
Plum (30 cals)

65 minute run (680 cals)

Total (1045 cals)

Thanksgiving Monday!

2006-10-09T18:07:00.000-07:00

Quick weekend recap! Saturday was a long run day (16 miles) and it went really well. I think wearing flats on Friday may have helped and I haven’t worn heels since! I ran with Jess, Tosha and Wendy along a beautiful route which made the time go by so quickly! And of course, Jess’ son Gabriel was our bike escort! :) Sunday I went to the club with Tosha just to ride the bike (very leisurely) and sit in the hot tub with the salts for 20 minutes. It was all about recovery.

I was out very late last night at a Canadian gathering in Bellevue, WA. Why you ask?!?!? Canadian Thanksgiving of course! :) Needless to say there was no shortage of food but I kept it under control for once! I may be 4000 km away from my parents but there was something really comforting about spending the night last night with 9 other misplaced Canadians.

So I slept in today because I knew I needed more than 4 hours of sleep to go into this hectic Monday. I also have a soccer game tonight at 9:30 pm so I knew I’d be getting cardio in at some point. Thank goodness I did! I came in and got hit with 3 of the worst possible fires I could fight… all in one day! Couldn’t have been worse… before one was put out, another came up! Not so unusual for MS but boy, did it take it’s toll. The great news?!?!?!?! I didn’t do the freak out and eat thing! That is a first… normally I reach for junk food. Today, I just kept walking back to the kitchen to fill up my water bottle instead.

I’ll be stuck at work for a while still and just ate a banana. I have a pria bar and oatmeal on hand so I don’t have to worry about hitting a drive through on my way home before the game tonight!

20/20 shake (290 cals)
Coffee in milk (30 cals)
Sandwich (450 cals)
Banana (100 cals)
1/2 Pria bar (85 cals)
Egg beater sandwich (180 cals)
Corn on the cob (100 cals)
Rice Krisps (60 cals)
Crackers with jam (180 cals)

Total (1475 cals)

The things you'll give up: Part 2

2006-10-06T10:03:00.000-07:00

So here it is... I'm addicted to high heels. But how can you NOT be? They're so pretty and come in so many beautiful styles and colors. And they make you look SO GOOD. I am convinced that I look 5-10 lbs lighter when I wear heels. Something about the high heel just gives you that long leg and sexy hot walk!

But let's face it... not so good for runners. For one, orthodics and heels just don't go together. The other, everyone and their mother warns against wearing heels especially if you pronate (which I do). I know, it's not good for me and today I took the first step and wore flats to work. I want to pull a Jess and say "but they're sooooo cuuuuute" but this is one battle that I wouldn't even win with her. So I'll work on it... it will require hemming jeans that are meant for heels, but it's the right thing to do. I will also have to alter my preferences and shop in the flat section of the shoe store and hope I can bypass the sexy heel zone. But I will make a concerted effort!

I have a long run planned for tomorrow (16 miles) and should have probably taken it a little easy at the gym today. Not so much. I went to Danielle's spin class and no matter how much I tell myself that I will take it easy and just spin to get ready for tomorrow, it never happens. Danielle just pumps me up. Her music, her attitude and her smile. You can't beat it... not any instructor has pushed me as hard as she does!

Then Jess and I headed down to the weight room to work on our wannabe hot upper body and arms. I hate her. I'm going to hate her more tomorrow when I'm trying to run and my chest is burning with every bouncy step. One thing is for sure though, I will hate her a little less when I start to lose the fat and see the definition I've been searching for! I hope for her sake. ;)

Here are the stats for today:

1/2 Pria bar (85 cals)
20/20 ProClub shake (290 cals)
1/2 banana (50 cals)
Coffee with milk (30 cals) - I REALLY wanted a latte but decided to save myself the extra 80 cals, it took a lot!

Au Bon Pain Vegetarian Minestrone soup with added chicken (245 cals)
Non fat latte with 1 pump sugarfree vanilla (125 cals)
Pria Bar (170 cals)

1 hour spin class and upper body (700 cals)

Total (995 cals)

The things you'll give up: Part 1

2006-10-05T14:56:00.000-07:00

Earlier this year I gave up drinking completely for a month and a half during Lent leading up to my brother's wedding. It was less of a commitment to Catholicism (I have never really stuck to giving something up for Lent), rather a commitment to looking better in my bridesmaid's dress. Done and done... it was tough for the first few days and there were difficult moments (eg. during my first trip to Paris when I didn't have a sip of wine), but overall not that hard.

After last week's wedding binge I decided to give up drinking until the marathon. Then we went to dinner last night with my team after a very inspiring 10 hour offsite and I needed a drink! I realize that sounds like I may need to attend an AA meeting, but seriously, sometimes you just want a glass of wine. They had a fantastic wine list and not one person in the group of 30 didn't have a drink. So I gave in. Two glasses of wine for 3.5 hour dinner.

The bad news is that they had a fixed menu and the choices weren't what you would call low calorie. So I stuck to portion control (even though I so could have downed all of the goodness they offered) and had half of a desert.

The question is... to drink or not to drink. I am going to be heading back to Paris again in a couple of weeks for work. Is it realistic for me, a wine lover, in a job where I am always traveling or eating out with our teams, to not drink at all? Why did I manage the 45 days through March? Was there more motivation back then?

Yes, there was. I really, really wanted to look good at my brother's wedding. :) And the truth is, drinking a glass of wine with dinner once or twice a week isn't going to hurt me in my marathon training. Getting absolutely hammered, eating junk and missing the next morning's workout will absolutely hurt my marathon training. But this is not the kind of drinking I'm talking about. So new resolution... drinking wine with dinner ON OCCASION is acceptable. Done.

So today. Jess, Tosha and I went out for a 6 mile run. Followed up by strength training. Total calories burned with the time between the run and the strength training was about 850 cals. So far, the eating has also been good today. Going to aim for the 1300 calorie mark today.

1/2 Pria bar (85 cals)
20/20 ProClub shake (290 cals)
Coffee with milk (30 cals)
20/20 Chicken sausage penne pasta (390 cals)
1/4 chicken without skin (190 cals)
Salad (40 cals)
Egg beater on toast (180 cals)
Apple (75 cals)

6 mile run + strength training (850 cals)

Total (1280 cals)

Wednesday

2006-10-03T23:35:00.000-07:00

I'm at an all day offsite from 8 am to 6 pm on Wednesday for work. This is followed by a team dinner. So my Wednesday update will be late, but I know I'll have to blog all of the goodies I might want to get into tomorrow (including wine) so I'll just use that as motivation to stay away!

Stay tuned... a little bit of a test for me! :)

Hope you all have wonderful days!!!

Keep fit and have fun! ;)

Bonus points for anyone that can identify the couple behind that motto. Hint, they're Canadian. And remember, searching online is cheating. :) Answer will be revealed in my Wednesday wrap up.

-----------
Quick update from the offsite... thank goodness I am held to reporting to you because typcical of MS offsites, it's all about food here. So I had breakfast before coming and stuck to plan at lunch. Afternoon treat time and dinner will be the next big challenges. :)

20/20 Pro Club shake (290 cals)
Non-fat latte (110 cals)

Salad/Veggies (100 cals)
Salmon (300 cals)
Fruit and 2 bites of desert (200 cals)

Total (1000 cals)

What's in a routine?

2006-10-03T10:59:00.000-07:00

There really is something about being on a schedule and having a set routine. Whether it’s the support of my training partners or knowing what the daily plan is, it never fails to get me back on track after a bad day/weekend/week.

I got a decent night’s sleep last night and met Jess and Kathy at the gym for a 5:30 run this morning. Have I mentioned before that summer is over and it’s really dark and chilly in the mornings? ;) Jess and I were sporting our new reflective running bibs (pink of course... see hyperlinks if you're interested). We were out for 6 miles and back in about 1:06. About 10 minute miles taking into account that we were stuck at some lights. We got back to the club at 6:30 and the sun hadn’t even peaked it’s head yet!

I have pledged that I will dedicate more time to the all important weight training so Jess and I followed up the run with an upper body and core workout. I haven’t done weights in a few weeks so I know I’ll be cursing her tomorrow (and the day after no doubt)!

Here’s the data so far. Tonight is a date night (yes, same match.com guy we talked about a month ago). I have given up alcohol altogether after last week’s wedding bender. Not one sip of alcohol until after the marathon on Thanksgiving weekend. Good thing date guy isn’t a drinker! :) We’re also cooking tonight so I don’t have to stress about taking a huge hit on the calorie count.

Pria bar (170 cals)
Pro Club shake (290 cals)

Rainbow roll (350 cals)

Chicken (150 cals), grilled veggies (100 cals) and salad with dressing (80 cals)

Grapes (50 cals)

Total (1190 cals)

6 mile run and 30 minutes of weight training (925 cals)

Wedding season is officially OVER, but it was costly!

2006-10-02T18:02:00.000-07:00

The last post I had was my super inspired, going to go out and conquer the world post after the crappy running article I read on Tuesday morning. And I was inspired! I got to enjoy one of Westminister's beautiful parks (Mundy) and had a great run. Then I went to bed.

It seems as though the traveling and lack of sleep finally caught up with me. I woke up with a sore throat on Wednesday morning and that pretty much put a damper on the rest of the week. It quickly got to the coughing, sneezing, no energy, drippy nose stage. I thought I could take a day off and get right back at it but I was so wrong. The wedding events coupled with sleeping on random couches, futons, blow up mattresses with different family and friends made for a long recovery period. When the wedding rolled around on Saturday and we were taking pictures in our tube top short dresses I knew I was doing myself in.

I got about 4 hours of sleep on wedding night and could not sleep last night. I was hoping to get to the gym this morning but at 12:30 last night I knew that 4.5 hours of sleep wouldn't cut it and would not help me get over this cold.

Soooo... I took the extra 3 hours of sleep. I can't believe I have been sidelined since Wednesday and I'm still not feeling great. I cancelled my plans for tonight and headed straight home after work so that I can hit the sac early. I'm meeting the girls at the gym for a run at 5:30 tomorrow morning so I need to get some good sleep!

The most disappointing part of last week was that I was in beautiful Vancouver which was the perfect venue for a long run. So much for that. Sarah was nice enough to offer advice on where to run, and I was out of commission! The benefit of having family there is that I will return... and I plan on checking out the best places to run!

Now the bad news... last week was a write off when it came to diet and drinking! Some TMI... I was PMSing, sick and staying with daily pot smokers... dangerous combo! I don't smoke pot and I have nothing against the choices my cousins make, but their "munchies" did not help my cause. It's not even funny... every night... pot. Following the pot, well... I can't even talk about it. I don't know how many times I have said this, but today is a new day. And it was.

Oatmeal (160 cals)
Apple (75 cals)
Cafeteria salad (450 cals)
Pria bar (170 cals)
Hulled barley (200 cals)
Shrimp scampi (400 cals)

Total - 1455 cals

How sluggish newbies ruined the marathon?

2006-09-26T13:00:00.000-07:00

Wow. I am a believer in freedom of speech but this article, Running with Slowpokes, really got to me today. The author of the article criticizes first and one-time marathoners that are out there to "just finish the race". His basic point of view is that the marathon has been diluted by wannabee runners who are just trying to check things off their life goals list. Well SO WHAT?

Who said that the marathon needs to be for serious runners looking to finish in 3:20 instead of just crossing the finish line? What is wrong with setting a goal of completing a 26.2 mile run, even if it's in 6 hours and you have to run/walk/limp/crawl to get there? I know it's one runners opinion and I know there are many that share this point of view, but training for a marathon and completing it means so many different things to so many different people. Why can't a cancer survivor beat cancer and complete the marathon as a true testament to her strength and determination? Why can't an overweight individual make a life change and decide that the marathon will give them additional motivation to continue on their new life journey? Why can't two friends come home drunk after a night on the town and decide that they want to sign up for the marathon on a whim, just to prove to themselves they could do it?

So what does this mean for me? This article comes at a good time in my training when I haven't been able to sort out my body aches and I'm starting to really worry about whether or not I will be able to achieve my goal... based on the time I have left to train. It has made me reassess my goals and think back to why I wanted to begin this journey in the first place.

For me, it comes down to this. Since highschool, I have wanted to run the half marathon and never actually believed that I could do it. The marathon was an impossible dream that was reserved for "real runners". As I have said so many times before, these amazing women came into my life and all of a sudden, these dreams started to become reality. I ran a half marathon and loved training for and running the race. I did my first triathlon and loved training for and completing the race. The journey has been the truly amazing part of "checking things of the life goals list".

So my question again is, why can't the ups and downs of the journey, and the time spent with amazing friends be enough of a reason to train for the marathon? It can be! I feel blessed that this article came to me today, because I really needed to reevaluate why I decided to run/walk/limp/crawl the marathon in the first place. I want to do it because the journey with my friends does more for me and my self worth than crossing the finish line ever will. Yes, getting over that line is an incredible feeling, but it's the months leading up to that day that make me who I am and contribute so much to my happiness. It's an extra excuse to get up at 4:15 am on dark, cold mornings and make my way to the club to meet my favorite running partners.

As I lace up later today and walk out the door for my run I will remember this feeling and the feeling before I had the looming goals and pressure to complete the race. I want to have fun and yes, I want to complete the race. In case you are wondering, it would be nice to run a 10 minute mile and finish in 4:22. But I want my journey to my first marathon to be a great one, and I will work hard to get there. If I finish in 4:22 or I have to crawl across the line, I am only going to remember how I got there, and the beautiful friends and supporters that made it possible.

On that note, I want to thank all of my friends, family and supporters. Everyone contributes so much to this journey... even the friends that we've never met that leave comments on our blogs. Every bit of feedback means a lot and keeps us going when the going gets tough. None of you will criticize me if I cross the line in 6 hours, or if for some reason don't make it at all. You'll be there to help me get up and get moving again... as you always do! We're all at different points in our respective journeys, and I continue to gain strength from all of your big wins and from the determination you put in to hurdle the obstacles in your lives. Thank you. :)

Today's data:

Breakfast
Cereal with banana and skim milk (360 cals)
Milk in 2 coffees (60 cals)

Lunch
Grapes (75 cals)
2 whole grain dark rye crisp breads (80 cals)
Swiss cheese slice (110 cals)
Egg beaters (50 cals)
Tomato (30 cals) with low fat cottage cheese (100 cals)

Pre Workout
1/2 Pria Bar (85 cals)

Workout
Great run through trails at a beautiful park!
52 minutes
530 cals

Dinner
Veggie burger (405 cals)
Cabbage (30 cals)

Total
1385 cals

Just want to feel good...

2006-09-25T11:24:00.000-07:00

I don't get it... podiatrist, check, osteopath, check, massage therapist, check, feeling great, not check.

What is the deal?!?! I'm less than two months out from my first marathon and I just can't get in a good run. I felt pretty decent on the rainy run last week but haven't felt solid in over a month. Saturday I went out for a long run with Latosha and finished with her after 12 miles (4 miles short of the 16 I wanted to do). To be honest, I don't know I would have lasted 12 miles if it weren't for her... she had plotted the most beautiful run and she packed a seriously positive attitude and lots of great conversation! It seems that I don't get out on any runs anymore where I don't get blisters on my toes, and feel pain in my legs and back. SERIOUSLY?!?!?!?! The plan is to revisit the podiatrist and see the massage therapist again. I'm not willing to quit... so whatever it takes, I'll try it!

Friday morning I weighed in and was surprised that I lost 1.4 lbs in the first week of the challenge (not sure how that happened given the week that I had). So I was down to 151.6 lbs. I spent the weekend in Vancouver for a bachelorette weekend full of bad food and of course, too much alcohol. So today is Monday and I have a week of good habits before I try to fit into a bridesmaid dress on Saturday. Can I tell you how much I'm looking forward to the end of wedding season? Yes, wedding 4 of 4 is up this weekend... and I'm hoping to get some sort schedule back in my life. Well, except for work travel... but that just doesn't seem to go away. :)

I'm spending this week in Vancouver and away from my workout partners. Makes training a LOT less fun. But I'm blogging now, at 11:33 am to tell everyone that I'm in my running clothes and about to walk out the door for a run (so that I don't change my mind for some crazy reason)! I'll report back on the success of the run and to complete today's food log, but here's what it looks like so far.

Breakfast
Cereal with banana and skim milk (360 cals)
Milk in 2 coffees (60 cals)

Workout
I wasn't planning on hill repeats but that is what the run was like. Turns out the neighborhood here in Vancouver is a series of connected hills. I felt like I was running hill repeats on 40th by the Pro Club... but not as long of course. And what a boring run, side street after side street, I couldn't find my way to any decent road or trail. Anyways, I didn't feel strong... major pain in my feet and achilles... but to me, this means it's in the orthodics. Everything else actually felt good, so I am going to keep positive about that and book time with the podiatrist to look at the adjustments he made to my orthodics. I'm going to hope that it will make a difference and that it's a work in progress to get my body in training shape. Anyways, I planned on 60 minutes but managed to stretch it to 48 only. And why can't I get my heart rate to just be normal when I run alone? I swear running by myself adds 5-10 beats per minute and I know I'm not running faster than when I run with the girls. Like I'm extra alert or something and it elevates my heart rate.

Temperature - It was HOT today! Much warmer than my 50 F morning runs. :) Today's noon temp clocked at 75 F, with no shade in sight... a sweaty, yucky run! I have so much respect for you hot weather runners!
Time - 48 minutes
Avg Heart Rate - 163
Max Heart Rate - 182
Calories Burned - 516 cals

Lunch
3 whole grain dark rye crisp breads (120 cals)
2 with eggs (150 cals)
1 with peanut butter and jam (110 cals)
Tomato (30 cals)

Snack
Apple (80 cals)

Dinner
My aunt's homemade tomato soup with noodles :) (250 cals)
Rice (200 cals)
Ribs (400 cals)
Cabbage (50 cals)

Total
1810 cals

In case we didn't know...

2006-09-21T12:36:00.000-07:00

Summer is over. Officially. Today I met Jess, Nancy and Wendy at the club for a 90 minute run. It was about 52 degrees outside and drizzling. Not for long... we quickly got full on rain. Yup, soak through your clothes and shoes and hat, full on rain. I couldn't help but smile... it was just beyond control. Everytime a truck drove by and splashed us it didn't even matter... we were wet from head to toe and it was great! Even my body was cooperating today... I am feeling good, just a little tightness that can be taken care of with a massage which I have booked for tonight!

I wanted to go for breakfast with the girls but unfortunately work was filling up my email inbox and I couldn't get away. I'm working from home, waiting for my 1 pm meeting so I can join the girls afterwards for some shopping! Here is the food log so far.

Oh, random joke of the day...
What did the alien say to the gas pump?
.
.
.
.
Why is your finger in your ear?

Workout Food
Pria bar (170 cals)
Gu (100 cals)

Workout
90 minute run (871 cals)

Breakfast/Lunch (noon)
Cereal with peach and skim milk (350 cals)
Milk in coffee (30 cals)
A little later... veggie burger with ketchup (165 cals)

While shopping with the girls
Black bean soup (150 cals)
1/4 desert bar (125 cals)
1/2 Pria bar (85 cals)

Dinner
1 cup minestrone soup (110 cals)
Egg beater sandwich (170 cals)
Peanut butter ice cream (160 cals)

Total
1595 cals

First day under control...

2006-09-20T21:04:00.000-07:00

Ok, after falling off the wagon AGAIN yesterday I knew that I needed one good day to get back on track. Excuse after excuse, I finally got there today. Even with a trip to Red Robin with my friend and her adorable 4 year old daughter. :)

One thing, check out my horoscope for today. Since when do horoscopes comment and diet and how do they know that I have been struggling to drink enough water since it started getting really cold and rainy out???

Drink plenty of water, dear Pisces, in order to keep your system properly hydrated. Water is the most important part of your diet, and it is likely that you are not drinking nearly enough. Being a water sign means that this element is the foundation of your being, making you extremely emotional, caring, and sensitive. Make sure to distance yourself from people who try to suck this life force from you.

Pre-Workout
1/2 Pria bar (85 cals)

Workout
Warm up and 2 mile tempo run (15:33 min) (291 cals)
Spinning class (483 cals)

Breakfast
Veggie egg beater omelette (100 cals)
Toast with jam (140 cals)
Non-fat latte (100 cals)

Lunch
Sandwich bread (220 cals)
Turkey (50 cals)
Veggies (50 cals)
Mustard (20 cals)
Moroccan tomato lentil soup (120 cals)

Afternoon Snack
½ Pria bar (85 cals)

Dinner (Red Robin!)
2 chicken breasts (300 cals)
Salsa (25 cals)
Salad with tortilla strips no dressing (100 cals)
5 french fries and ranch dressing (150 cals)

Total
1545 cals

So the plan for tomorrow is to SLEEP IN!!! I'm playing hookie and skipping the company meeting. We're going to do a 9 mile run at 8:30 am followed by breakfast! I have a meeting at 1 pm that I can call into which means I get to spend the day in my sweats! I can't believe I'll be getting a full 3 extra hours of sleep tomorrow... zzzzzzz! Oh yes, and let's not forget... tomorrow I am going to stick to the eating plan. Promise. :)

Feeling Guilty

2006-09-19T09:48:00.000-07:00

I've been bad... really bad. It's no secret, I haven't been feeling up to par the last couple of weeks and the aches in my body aren't going away. I am slacking on the training and what do I do? Rather than eating really healthy and staying on plan, I spiral... way down.

Where did this downward spiral start? Somewhere between traveling, work, dating, being bummed about not feeling great, and of course, FOOTBALL SEASON. Those of you who know me know that I'm not a big drinker. Correction, not anymore. In my prime, I not only enjoyed the nightly glass of wine (or 2-3) with dinner but also the weekend boozefest with my friends. However, this all ended early this year when I decided that it was a lot more fun to workout with new friends, than it was to drink and get fat with my drinking friends.

So what is going on with me lately? Where has the motivation gone? What is my excuse? Is there an excuse, especially with The Challenge being underway? Saturday I ran 9.5 miles with Nancy followed by the cycling class with Danielle. But that was the morning... college football starts at 2 pm. College football tends to go well with alcohol and food... for 8 glorious hours. That was Saturday.

Sunday I didn't workout, I was up early to make my way to Qwest Field for the Seahawks home opener. I went down with one of my good friends, one that I always enjoyed partying with. More bad news... more drinking and more food (stadium food). Gawwwwwd!

I decided to sleep in Monday and give my body one more day to recover in hopes that I would magically wake up Tuesday morning and feel great. The diet yesterday was actually pretty good, except for the "vanilla ice cream and cinnamon & brown sugar peaches" slip up I had at 10 pm last night. 10 pm?!?!? Who the hell eats ice cream at 10 pm? Really?

Ok, so today is a new day. Offically. I got up this morning and met Jess and Nancy at the club at 5 am for a longer run. I felt decent, much better than the last few runs... but it was dark and rainy. We dropped Nancy off at the club after 4.8 miles. She's a trooper. She dilligently attends the Mon/Wed "Sculpt in 4 Weeks" class each session. Yesterday they had a killer leg workout and she still managed to do 5 miles in the crappy weather. Jess and I continued on for another 2.2 miles, 7 miles total. I felt so much better this morning after working out than on my non-workout days. Exercise really does release happy hormones. :)

I have lots of off days to make up for so today I have to stick to the nutrition plan. So here it goes.

Pre-Workout
1/2 Pria Bar (85 cals)

Breakfast
Cereal with banana and skim milk (340 cals)
Coffee (30 cals)

Lunch (aka. the downfall)
Thai... family style. Can't even determine total quantity and calories. I was going in for another helping and stopped myself, but still!

Dinner
Veggie and shrimp stir fry (no rice) (200 cals)
Whole wheat crackers with laughing cow cheese (100 cals)
And yes, vanilla ice cream with peaches and Galaxy granola

Total
???

The Challenge

2006-09-14T16:06:00.000-07:00

There has been a LOT of talk around these parts lately about weight loss. It seems as though summer is ending, a summer full of training but also full of indulgence. The weight on the scale is creeping up and none of us want to go into winter with additional pounds to deal with.

A bunch of us now have little side support groups going on. Tracking our meals, weighing in and fessing up to damage done. So inspired by Jessi, I have decided to make this into my own little challenge. Why? Well, it will give me a serious goal to shoot for. It's always hard to stay motivated when faced with temptation, and blogging for all to see is definitely more motivation.

I am also a firm believer in calories-in versus calories-out and creating the right calorie deficit is the only way to meet this challenge. Some background on my goal weight. A few years ago I started weight watchers and got down to 138 lbs (I'm 5'6 with a pretty solid frame). Though I was exercising a lot, I wasn't nearly as fit as I am today at 153 lbs. I would like to say that I will get down to 138 lbs again, but the reality is that I am carrying more muscle than I did 3 years ago. That being said, I am going to set a higher goal weight and rethink the goal when I get there.

Here are the starting stats:
Start weight: 153 lbs
Goal weight: 140-145 lbs
Goal loss per week: 1.5 lbs (which I know will be really tough the closer I get to goal)
Weigh in day: Friday

Some other info:
BMR: 1500 cals
Weekly calorie deficit to lose 1.5 lbs per week: 5250 cals
Avg daily calorie deficit to lose 1.5 lbs per week: 750 cals
Weeks to 145 lbs: 7 weeks
Weeks to 140 lbs: 10 weeks
Obstacles: Wedding #4 of 4 is coming up in a couple of weeks. That's another 9 days away from my super supportive circle of friends, in a drinking and eating environment. At least this is it for wedding season. And this other thing... dating. I haven't been in a relationship in over a year and we all know what tends to happen when you start dating. More eating out and less sleep... a diet-killing combination. I wish there was an solution for this, other than sheer determination.

The Plan:
The plan again is simple to understand, difficult to execute. Of course, exercise. 5-6 times a week for at least an hour a day. As usual, high protein and fiber diet to stay satisfied longer after I eat. Lots of water. 4 liters a day, which should help keep me off the diet pop and alcoholic beverages. Also keeps me away from snacking. And I guess I have to make the ultimate commitment, aim for 1500 calories a day and never stray past 1800.

Some pretty scary stuff and hefty goals to stick to. I do feel like I have a lot of support behind me so I'm going to stick with it! That being said, here is the data for today:

Pre-Workout
1/2 Pria carb select bar (85 cals)

Workout
1 hour run (600 cals)

Breakfast
2 hard boiled eggs and toast (320 cals)
Coffee (30 cals)

Lunch
Cafeteria salad (450 cals)

Total
885 cals

Chi Running and Osteopathy - All about aligning your body!

2006-09-14T11:21:00.000-07:00

I know, I know... I have been slacking on posting to the blog and I promise to get back into action. Today was the perfect opportunity because I have a couple of interesting things to talk about. :)

First, I had my apt with the orthodics doctor on Tuesday and he made some adjustments to the orthodics I had. I'm going to test it out and if it works well, he's going to make a new pair to replace the old ones.

Secondly, I had my apt with the doctor of osteopathy today. I used to go to an osteopath in Ontario (not actual doctors in Ontario though) and it always worked wonders for me. Osteopathy is really about aligning your body. Regular day-to-day activities and exercise can really throw your body off. I usually end up with my pelvis twisted, shortening one leg. This throws everything off and when I run I get the token pains that I am so familiar with... achilles, knees, and hips. So the osteopath normally aligns your body with different movements. They also work on your diaphram (huge for getting more air in when you run) and your head which is really the control zone for your body. Proper alignment is critical to good running mechanics and injury prevention.

Today's apt was a little different than I'm used to. I have never been to a chiropractor so have never had anything "cracked". Needless to say, I wasn't exactly prepared when he started cracking every bone in my body from the pelvis to lower and upper back, and my neck. Wow. I almost got the giggles because it was so unexpected and LOUD. I have to admit, I was a little worried because it was something I had never experienced before. Especially the neck... having someone turn your head as far as it would go and then yanking hard letting out a series of loud cracks. He said that our vertebrae twist and turn and get stuck out of alignment and the cracking puts them back in their own place. So I feel pretty good now, but the real test will be on the long run this weekend! I'll have to report back to tell you how it went.

Now, on to Chi running. Our good friend Wes has been reading the book on Chi running and on my way back from the osteopath I heard this report on NPR news. Turns out, Chi running is also "all about aligning your body and keeping it aligned for efficiency".

The timing was too coincidental... getting aligned and then a message on running in the proper alignment. If one works for me, maybe the other will too? I think it might be time to read my first running book, and it looks like Chi may be the way to go. Wes, what was that book called again? I will also have to report back and let you all know how that goes.

Now, back to just the regular blog... I got up to meet the girls for a run this morning and my roommates car didn't show up to take them to the airport. They tried for 30 minutes to reach the car company with no luck, and asked me to drive them to SeaTac. So, I missed out on the morning run with the girls and spent 1:45 minutes getting to and from SeaTac. What is going on in the Renton S curve through the Kennydale Hill? I swear the world stops in rain! I think I'll head out on my own later today for a short run just to get my legs moving and to see if I have any immediately noticeable improvements in how I feel when I run.

Food for today:

Trip back from SeaTac:
Tall non-fat latte, one pump syrup (125 cals)

Breakfast:
Cereal with peach, skim milk (325 cals)

Lunch:
Tomato soup, stoned wheat crackers (450 cals)

Somewhere between lunch and dinner:
Ham and cheese sandwich (250 cals)

Dinner
Lean Cuisine Fettucine Alfredo (270 cals)
Toast and egg (175 cals)
Yogurt (110 cals)

Total: 1705 cals

Back to the blogging world!

2006-09-11T11:11:00.000-07:00

It feels like it's been so long since I last blogged and it really has... but I'm back! Back from traveling and back to writing AND READING the blogs!

Just a quick summary of last week... after the wedding I knew that I had to start the week right and get back on track. I did! I worked out Monday through Thursday and took Friday off to recover before my long run Saturday. Happy I did! I ran for 16.5 miles (all alone in Peterborough) on Saturday. The weather was perfect... it was raining when I started out and cool, which combated the humidity Ontario normally gets. I felt great for the first 10 miles, got a little rough through 12 and the last 4.5 up a steady incline and into some strong wind was tough! But I did it!

Had you asked me before I left if I would have done 2 of the 3 long runs I had blanned and worked out for 10 of the 14 days I had planned to work out I would have thought that was generous. But other than the 4 days that I lost to being a bridesmaid, things worked out great!

The new shoes definitely helped out the long run but I'm still feeling some pain on the homestretch of the long runs. So after dragging my feet for way too long, I have finally booked an apt to see the osteopath this Thursday! I'm hoping this makes the long run this weekend feel much better. I have also booked an apt to see the podiatrist at the Pro Club tomorrow afternoon because it's time to reassess my feet and get new orthodics. There really is no fooling around any more, I have to start making time to take care of my body or I'll be out before I get close to marathon day. I'm no longer taking a back seat to work, funny how your body will make you make yourself a priority. Did that make any sense? :)

Oh, speaking of which... I didn't go on the 6:30 bike ride with Jess this morning because I had a 7 am con call instead. I had emailed the meeting organizer last week to ask him to move the time, and he insisted that it stick. He emailed out the doc for review last night at 11 pm and was a NO SHOW this morning. Ask me how p*$@(# I was! Claimed he had "laptop issues". After work today we're going straight to the Mariners game so he basically wasted my one opportunity to workout this morning. Does anyone else get bitter when this type of thing happens? The least he could have done was gotten on the phone to tell us he had problems so that we weren't all sitting there waiting! I wish people had more respect for other people's time, we had groups from the UK and France on the phone too.

Wow, I have a lot of haterade when people interrupt my regularly scheduled workout time. :)

Back to tracking this week! Challenge tonight will be to stay in control at the Mariners game tonight. The beer, not such a big problem... the hot dogs, bigger problem. :)

Breakfast
Veggie egg beater omelet (100 cals)
Brown toast with peanut butter and jam (200)
Coffee (30 cals)

Lunch
Cafeteria salad (450 cals)

Still alive I think!

2006-09-04T07:45:00.000-07:00

Ok, I have been completely MIA on the blog since Wednesday, but also MIA on the exercise and diet train. However, I have been anything but alone. In fact, other than in the shower or in the few hours I have between Wednesday and last night, I have not had a second to myself.

I had planned to get up in the mornings and run with my friend the bride leading up to the wedding. But to be honest, I just didn't have it. I got into town on Wednesday night and have not stopped moving until I got back late last night. The only thing I did stick to was being a good bridesmaid and a good time. ;)

The last four days were filled from early morning to late night with wedding errands, dress fittings (which didn't go so well), eating, drinking, dancing and visiting family and friends. I had hoped that I would magically have the energy to get up a couple of hours before the rest of the wedding party and workout in the mornings... not so easy when you're up late and know you have a long day ahead and really want the sleep.

That being said, I can't remember the last time I took 4 days off working out. It's so odd... it used to be completely normal not to workout for much longer periods of time. These days, I start to feel really uncomfortable and not at all like myself. So I thought today I would be all over working out... but wow, to my surprise, after finally getting some sleep... I'm moving slower than I thought. I guess that there is something very tiring about being on the go from the minute you wake up until you minute you go to sleep, but I just can't get motivated.

So the plan for today is this... I just downloaded a boat load of email from last week to get through today (yes, on Labor Day). I just can't go into next week this far behind. I'm then going to pack up and go to Toronto and check into the hotel. I'm meeting my friend tonight and we're going to go for a nice run along the Toronto waterfront... we like to do active things together. It's a great way to catch up and get our exercise in. :) Oh right, and today is the day I start eating normally again... and hydrating... I am SO dehydrated I feel sick.

Off to get the day going. Hope you all had a great weekend, looking forward to catching up on my blog reading this week! :)

Tiiiiiired...

2006-08-30T05:13:00.000-07:00

Ok! So the plan last night was to make the 3 hour trip to London. That didn't happen... it was a busy day of work, and I didn't get offline until about 9 EST (and I still hadn't packed yet). I decided to pack last night, get up today to workout here and then head up to London.

I made my way to the gym with my cousin at 6 am... 3 days in a row, I'm impressed with her dedication. What is it, 3 weeks makes it a habit? I will encourage her to stick with it for 3 weeks and hope that she catches "our bug".

This morning the plan was to do 30 minutes of cardio followed by the 8 essential moves for strength training. I did the responsible thing. I decided last night that if I wanted to make sure I didn't do my hamstring in, I would avoid lifting for anything below the waist. So today I did 30 minutes on the elliptical machine and some core exercises + pushups (350 cals burned). To be honest, I was beat! I haven't taken time off after the long run... ok, it's only Wednesday so I know that's not the excuse.

Here's the confession. Are you ready for it? I *may* have spent Sunday and Tuesday nights on the phone with a certain boy until a ridiculously late hour. My blog base isn't huge yet so yes, I'm ok with blogging this... the description on my blog says that I will comment on "all other random things that come to mind". So, since my friends can blog about their amazing husbands and children and how they work their training around a family life, I figure it would be ok to drop a line about the boy.

My friends are probably going "WHAT? We haven't heard about any NEW boy and WHY don't we know about NEW BOY?" Truth is, I am trying not to jinx it... which you know, now that I have blogged about it it's bound to fall apart. :) So I'm a little embarassed but when I say ridiculously late hour, I mean it... we're talking "highschool girl talking to her crush" late hour. Or, for those of us who get up at 4 am... if it weren't the end of summer, it would be "getting light outside" late hour. I'm moving on very little sleep but I'm officially on holidays so I can take it.

I can't believe I just admitted to that. The funny thing is that I am at home in my parents' house and they think I'm crazy. My mom is excited that I'm excited about new boy, but she also thinks it's nuts that I can talk to someone for over 5 hours at a time. How else are you going to get to know someone when you take off to the East coast for 2 weeks? :)

I'm sure I'll get lots of comments about this so bring it on... I'll have my Smartphone with me today and I'll be getting your comments as they come into my email inbox. Let the teasing begin! And no, you can't have a link to his match.com profile so don't even ask. :)

Kinda hurtin'

2006-08-29T08:25:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I may be hurtin' from the run on Sunday. I know I was hurtin' near the end of the run, and I know I was in pain that night and the next day... but I think it's a little more serious than I thought.

In general, I get pretty significant pain in my knees when I run longer distances. That goes away after a couple of days. True to form, this was also the case after the long run on Sunday. Unfortunately, the ache on the outside of my right hamstring... not going away. I'm hoping it's just residual 48 hour soreness and nothing more than that.

Last night I ended up going to the gym with my cousin and it was a great time! I am trying to ease her into the working out idea and told her that it didn't matter that she was on the East coast, we could track our workouts online and that I would offer the support through cyber space. She has no excuse, she has only 2 days of class next semester which gives her 3 days plus the weekend to get to a gym (some of us wish we could have that much spare time eh?). :)

We made plans after our gym/dinner date last night to workout again this morning... and she was here, bright and early at 6:30 am to go to the gym. Today's plan was a 5 km interval workout (1 minute on, 1 minute off). I quickly realized that it would be a tough day today... totally sore and a little worried about the hamstring. But stupid me, I did it anyways... I hope I don't pay for it in recovery time. I hope that it really is just soreness and that I didn't do anything too bad to the hamstring. TBD.

So I am going to work at my parents' place again today and make my way to London, Ontario tonight. Three days of hanging out with the bride, and I'm hoping, completely off work email. I really need to treat this as a holiday, because I am counting them as my vacation days. Email will always be there and yes I will have to catch up next week... I just hope nothing catches fire while I'm out because my two main backups will also be out. I wish I had an "off" button somedays...

Alright friends, have a great few days! I will definitely try to blog while I'm out... since I love connecting with you all and reading your blogs. I will also post a wedding pic when I return... a change from the usual ponytail and running shoes. :)

Carrot cake... good for you right?!?!?

2006-08-28T12:02:00.000-07:00

After all, it's got lots of that good orange stuff and a little bit of calcium in that cream cheese icing? Let's face it, I am well aware of the danger in the oil and sugar filled treat but boy, I LOVE IT!

Continuing the series about life on the East coast, one of my dad's friends stopped by the house today. His wife had baked me an entire 9 x 13 inch PAN of ooey, gooey carrot cake because she knows that it's my favorite. You know it, fresh out of the oven with homemade cream cheese icing on top. In highschool, I somehow managed to eat this goodness without impact to the waistline. Today, not so much. But how to resist?!?!

I gave in and had a piece... then another half piece. The only savior is that the cake was pretty flat (saving on the oil in the cake), but the icing was nice and thick. I had to stuff it back in the fridge in hopes that it wouldn't come to mind again. I have to admit, it was worth every calorie (about 400).

But the weird thing is that I am satisfied and don't feel like I need any more... I may eat these words later. :) I am getting that typical guilty feeling (Wes knows this one) where you feel like you have to eat what is on your plate or what someone else went to the trouble of making for you. Truth is, the cake won't go to waste... it's always open season at this house, so many friends stop by all the time it's bound to get eaten in the next two days.

On to exercise... today's plan was to swim for 60 minutes and then do a core workout. But the gym and swim schedules aren't that great here (we really are lucky to workout at the Pro Club back home), so I am tailoring the plan. I'm pretty sore from the run yesterday and my little cousin is visiting from University. I really want to get her hooked on fitness because she has gained weights since going away to school and it has impacted her self esteem. We're going to go to the gym today after work and bike together. I am still going to do 60 minutes, but instead of swimming I am going to ride the bike at a nice recovery pace (NOT RECOVER IN DANIELLE'S CYCLING CLASS PACE). This will also allow me to catch up with her and see if I can plant any seeds on starting a healthy lifestyle. Still going to do the core workout after the bike.

Here's the food breakdown for the day... minor blimp, carrot cake. :)

Breakfast - Cereal with a peach and 1% milk (yup, 1% in this household) and coffee (355 caulk)

Lunch - Rye bread sandwich with Swiss cheese and ham, cottage cheese and tomato salad (545 cals)
Carrot Cake... let's call it my pre-gym fuel ;) (400 cals)

Total - 1300 cals

And I still don't consider myself a runner...

2006-08-27T17:19:00.000-07:00

These days, I consider anyone who regularly runs a few miles a week to be a runner. Anyone that runs over 10 km 2-3 times a week is definitely a runner.

So today my plan was to do a 14.1 mile run. This would have been the first time I ran for more than 75 minutes on my own, and I just wasn't sure if I could do it. I slept in today (9:45 am) and drank a small cup of coffee and had a bowl of cereal with a peach for breakfast. I was getting myself fueled for the long run ahead. While I was preparing my running belt and getting my Gu and jelly beans, all I could think about was that drivers would be staring at me thinking "who is she kidding"? She isn't a REAL runner! She can't run 14.1 miles on country roads and small highways like the real runners. She can't make it all that way. Who does she think she is wearing a running belt, running hat, listening to her iPod and carrying a cell phone in case of emergency. She is going to turn back and run her usual 6 miles that she can do on her own.

I did get lots of stares, but regardless of what they were thinking, I went out there, and I ran all that way. I felt good actually. For me, a big challenge is just trying to be Zen about it (that's Regan's word). I am always rushing here and there, multitasking and thinking about work. When I'm on a run, that translates into picking up my pace and my heartrate to get the run done. I am getting much better at just relaxing into the stride, but still have to consciously tell myself that I have allocated that time for ME, and that I don't have to be anywhere doing anything else during this allocated time period.

When I do this, surprise, I find out that I actually like to run! Did I just say that? I like to run? I do! Today was great... I felt amazing as soon as I started on my way. I was carrying two bottles on the belt with water, and two with Nuun. I also packed a Gu for the 60 minute mark, and the jelly beans for the 2 hour mark. This was going to be my first try at the beans during a long run so I wanted to leave it for the end in case they didn't agree with me.

So somewhere around the 55 minute mark when I look down to get my Gu I realize that I had dropped one Nuun bottle. WHAT IS IT WITH ME AND DROPPING NUUN? I did this on the bike at Danskin and paid for it on the run. I knew that I had drank some not too far back and decided to go recover it. Not too far back ended up being about 6 minutes back down the road, and then another 6 minutes to where I had been. Urgh... now what? I don't want to increase my distance too quickly on the long runs, and I had just added about 1.2 miles to this run. Add that to the 14.1 that was planned and I'd be running 15.3 today.

I decided to do it anyways. I had time and I knew that if I felt really crappy I could call my mom to pick me up. So I kept going. When I hit the one lane (each way) highway I new I was in a little bit of trouble. I hate running on gravel and this was the fresh stuff. Still soft with lots of stones (not yet packed solid). It wasn't safe enough to run on the road because the cars were coming fast and I didn't want to risk it. So I spent most of that stetch (about an hour) running on gravel. It hurt... my ankles started to get a little sore, as did the knees. The last mile up this road is a long steep climb and my heartrate maxed at 180. There was another big hill climb at the 13 mile mark and I almost wanted to stop but knew that it was just the hill talking and that I would regain a comfortable strike on the nice downhill home. And I did! Once I turned the corner, it was smooth sailing back to the house.

So it's hard to tell but based on the added time, I think the run was about 15.5 miles in total. The total time was 2 hours, 42 minutes and I burned about 1800 calories. I wanted to stay between 140 and 160 heartrate, but averaged 167. Two reasons I think. One is that I tend to get a little nervous with lots of passing cars so I'm more alert and the heart rate naturally speeds up. Secondly, IT'S HUMID on the East coast. I forgot just how humid it gets. Today was really overcast, with some wind and not really hot... but 15 minutes into the run I was dripping wet from the humidity. It makes such a huge difference to my breathing and ability to stay cool... it just makes you work harder. We really are blessed with our amazing workout conditions on the West coast.

So that's it, a really LONG blog just to say I stuck to plan and finished the long run! I have been hydrating like crazy since the run and eating lots of good home cookin'. I have to admit, my ankles, shins and knees are a little sore... but I think that is more of a sign that I need to replace my shoes. I have worn them out completely, and they no longer have the support of their early days. Luckily, a dear friend of mine in Toronto coaches running at the Running Room in Toronto and she has my favorite shoes sitting in her home (purchased at cost)! I will be getting together with her next week so I'll have some new shoes soon! Just one more long run in these old ones...

The recovery plan for tomorrow is a nice 60 minute SLOW swim at 7 am and then a core workout. Looking forward to getting some weight off these joints. Note to self though, book an osteopath appointment the minute I get home. I have been talking about this for SO long, I just have to clear my calendar and get in there for a visit. It really is magic.
Hope you all enjoyed your weekends! :)

Not my usual blog tonight...

2006-08-26T18:33:00.000-07:00

So a good start, day one of traveling and being away from the Seattle crew and I'm still on PLAN. Ok, so today's plan was to travel, rest and take a hot bath... but I'll add the checkmark just to say that I got off to a good start. :)

I got up today at 4 am and was really hoping I could be making my way to the gym to meet the girls. Instead I got ready and made my way to the airport. I love SeaTac airport because it's never chaotic compared to other airports. This morning was very smooth and I slept through most of the flights to Toronto (connected in Minneapolis/St. Paul). My favorite travel tradition is listening to Eddie Murphy Raw and Delirious on my iPod. It totally passes the time, but I tend to get funny looks from people when I laugh out loud. I shouldn't find it funny anymore and to those that haven't seen the stand up act, you should rent it! Scrap that, we may have to have a night when I get back where we all sit down and watch it together because it's the funniest thing I have ever heard... a little R rated so we have to wait for the kids to go to bed. For those of you that have seen it... "ice cream maaaaaaan... ice cream maaaaaaan". :)

Anyways, I am getting much better at eating while traveling because I pack all of my own food. The one downside is that you can't take water on flights these days so I couldn't get enough water today. I normally pack two 1.5 liter bottles of water for each flight. Since I slept a lot, I missed the "beverage service" and only got in one little glass of water on each flight. Can we say dehydrated?!?!?

So the second I touched down in Toronto I called my parents to let them know I had arrived. The second call I made (this time from customs which is a NO CELL PHONE AREA) was to Jess to find out how she did on the race! Read the full race report here, but the girl kicked ass! It was the same course that she did earlier this year, and she beat her time by 10 minutes (unheard of). But the real deal, is that she placed 2nd... you read it right, 2nd in her age group!

I finally made it through the insanity at Pearson (over one hour after I got off the plane) and rushed to see my adorable parents at the gate. My mom looked great as usual and my dad was wearing the dress shirt I bought him for his birthday cause he's cute like that. :) I really do miss them when I'm gone, but I miss them more when I'm home. I haven't really lived at home since I left for University in 1999... so when I come home, I really think, there is no place like home. Maybe it's the familiarity of the house I grew up in, being somewhere completely safe... it could also be the home cookin' and my parents going out of their way to make sure I feel like I never left home. Whatever it is, I love it. :)

On our way home we stopped at our good friends' house for a "going away to University" party for their daughter. I remember when this girl was born, and now she is this beautiful young woman going away to school... and I'm scared! I know she will be ok (we have all survived some big jump in our lives) but all I can think about is some boy taking advantage of her. I found myself in the kitchen with her, her best friend (and roommate this upcoming year) and her guy friend, dishing out advice on how to survive first year and the dreaded freshman 15. They just seem so young and naive, were we all like that at 18? Were our parents scared to death that we would drink too much, fail out or get mixed up with the wrong crowd? They must have been, but they dealt with it so well... especially battling that terrible empty nest syndrome too! I hope that I can be that strong when I have to go through this myself, or when we watch the Princesses' kids take on the big challenges in their lives. I have a feeling we'll be sharing quite a few of these experiences over the coming years.

Back to the day, the party was amazing... I was thinking about the big run tomorrow and how much it mattered to me. I didn't drink an ounce of alcohol and tried to catch up on my water intake. I also ate... and ate, and ate. Lots and lots of amazing different salads, fish, veggies, bar-b-qued meats... and yes, homemade desert. It had been a long time since I had some "parent quality" home cooking and I took advantage of it. We all sat outside on the patio and caught up. I love the community of friends that my parents have around them. They have been around for most of my life and are all so supportive of everything that I do.

As usual, they were all so interested in the long run that is planned for tomorrow (14 miles, or to these Polish Canadians, 22.5 km). The plan was that my mom would drop me off 14 miles from home and that I would run back to town. Tonight, they all seemed to want to follow me home in the morning. :) Either by bike or by car, volunteers were popping up all over the place... mind you, volunteering when you've been drinking is different from showing up at 7:30 am on a hangover. No doubt that my mom will certainly be there, she's the number 1 fan. So now, not only do I have the blog readers to report to... but also the people at the party tonight.

Alright, I apologize for the long and somewhat sobby commentary tonight... I have begun to map the route out and decided that a circle would be better just to keep me on familiar country roads and close enough to home in case I needed to use my cell phone in an emergency. I am starting to stress a little because this is the first time I have been out this long on my own before, and the route is a little boring to say the least. A bunch of rollers on country roads and one lane highways. I think there are a couple of steep little climbs in there too and I'm just thinking about which direction I want to run in. Still TBD... I can't wait to report tomorrow. I know that the support of my friends and wanting to come home and blog "I DID IT" will push me through finishing the run tomorrow. Ater all, I have done this before right?!?!?

Ok, goodnight friends... it's 11:12 pm here in Peterborough Ontario. Chat with you soon! :)

If you blog it, they will come!

2006-08-25T22:50:00.000-07:00

Well, it's almost 11 pm and it's been a very LONG day. Had my annual review and found out our team was getting reorged all in one day. I am now going to be reporting to another manager who I get along with very well! This is great news, I had been pushing for this move to this other team for about a month... I can't believe how the cards fell out on this one. I'm sure we'll reorg again in a month (we've had many this year) and I'll be somewhere else. In the meantime, I'm going to soak this up. :)

So ANYWAYS, my new manager and I went out to celebrate after work with some others on my new team. I didn't get home until 9:30 and I still had to pack! But I made a promise, to myself and Regan, that I was going to blog my workout plan for the next two weeks. So here I am, ready to sleep but still blogging. I'm actually doing this because I know that if I write this down, I am going to have to stick to it... for myself, and because I know I'll hear it if I get lazy when I'm away from the regular workout crew.

In general, I think I will be ok with most of the workouts. My biggest challenge will be the 3 long runs I have to get ready for the marathon. To date, I have been running those with Jess, so I haven't had to deal with boredom. I even ran the 1/2 marathon with Jess and Danielle this year. But I have to get used to it. I am going to be tapering later than the girls since they're running the NY marathon 3 weeks before I run the Seattle marathon. Plus, I'll be running half of the Seattle marathon alone (bless Jess, she agreed to run the last half with me for the support).

So here is the plan, two weeks (three weekends) without the girls. After the spinning class this morning, Danielle spent some time with me layout out the training. We are so lucky that we have her as our friend. She really knows her stuff and is so generous with her time. Hmmm... I wonder if you're all going to place wagers on whether or not I'll stick to this entire plan!?!?!?!

Saturday, 8/26 - Travel and rest day (with a long soak in the jacuzzi)
Sunday, 8/27 - Boom, right off the bat. Long run, 14 miles at a lower heart rate

Monday, 8,28 - 60 minutes in the pool, core workout
Tuesday, 8/29 - 3 mile interval run outdoors (1 minute intervals)
Wednesday, 8/30 - 30 minutes cross training (aerobic), 45 minute strength training
Thursday, 8/31 - 3-4 mile tempo run on the treadmill
Friday, 9/1 - OFF (Wedding!!!)
Saturday, 9/2 - 30 minute cross training (aerobic), hotel plan strength training
Sunday, 9/3 - Long run, 14.5-15 miles at a lower heart rate

Monday, 9/4 - 60 minutes in the pool, core workout
Tuesday, 9/5 - 3 mile interval run outdoors (1 minute intervals)
Wednesday, 9/6 - 30 minutes cross training (aerobic), 45 minute strength training
Thursday, 9/7 - 3-4 mile tempo run on the treadmill
Friday, 9/8 - Rest
Saturday, 9/9 - Long run, 15-16 miles (another wedding)
Sunday, 9/10 - TBD (may have a hangover and I'm traveling back to Seattle)

Ok, so it's on the blog and now I have to stick to it! As I think about it, what I may do on the long runs is have my parents drive me out to the country and leave me out there to run home (with cell phone of course). That could work...

Have a wonderful couple of weeks eveyrone! Luckily I can blog and read all of your blogs from the East coast! :)

One sleep (even though it's only 5 hours) from seeing my mom and dad. :)

The Four Tri Princesses!!!

2006-08-24T16:36:00.000-07:00

At Danskin this past weekend! From left to right... Jess, Regan, Danielle and me! :)

The Countdown

2006-08-24T12:08:00.000-07:00

I'm officially excited... it is now Thursday and I'm flying to Toronto at the butt crack of dawn Saturday morning. I am counting the minutes until I get home to hang out with family. There is something really sad about my excitement though. It has been almost 5 weeks since I've had to travel (the longest stretch by 2 weeks since I started in January)... and I'm really looking forward to the... ready for it... flight!?!?!

With all of the drama in the air these days, I should be dreading the trip to the airport, the check in and the security lines. But the 100% honest truth is that the only place these days that I can't be reached via cell or email ( thanks to that damn Smartphone ;) ) is 30,000+ miles off the ground. I really need to disconnect more often, and I keep saying that I will when things settle down at work but the light never seems to get any closer.

I have said this all along and I will repeat it again... my morning routine with the girls is really my only vacation away from the daily grind. That is one thing I will NEVER give up, even it it means I can't go on those late night dates to find the man of my dreams. The man of my dreams is just going to have to add "morning person" to the resume! ;) Seriously though, this is my lifestyle... not a 2 month commitment I've made to lose a few pounds. These women make exercise so much fun that I don't ever want to miss out on a workout (even at 4 am in a cold and dark Seattle).

Anyways, we made our way out for a short run today nearing the end of a long week after Danskin. 4 miles loop near the Pro Club at a 10 minute pace. Nothing exciting to report except that yup, it still seems to be getting darker and darker each morning. :) Oh, one more thing... I was 5 lbs down this morning from Monday. That just goes to show that you should NEVER weigh yourself the day after a big effort like that. Getting back to meal tracking helps too! I am still 8-13 lbs off my goal... we'll see when I get to 8 if the other 5 will be necessary.

One more thing, Regan has officially posted her blog!

Pre-Workout
1/2 Pria Bar (85 cals)

Workout
4 mile run

Post-Workout
1/2 Pria Bar (85 cals)

Breakfast
20/20 Chicken Sausage Egg Wrap (250 cals)
1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese (100 cals)
Coffee (30 cals)

Lunch
Cafeteria Salad (small today) (400 cals)
Apple (100 cals)

Afternoon Snack
Banana (100 cals)

Dinner (accidentally ran into Jordan and we had another birthday dinner... more desert!)
1 glass of red wine (125 cals)
Small cup of pea soup (100 cals)
Seafood stew (400 cals)
1/3 apple crumble (250 cals)

Total - 2025 cals (again!?!?!?!?)

THE PLAN

2006-08-23T11:10:00.000-07:00

I have been so stressed about work and other peoples' weddings lately that I have had little time to think about going home this weekend! I will be heading back to the EAST COAST for two glorious weeks. That means lots and lots of family and friend time. I won't lie, this also scares me a little because it means exposure to MORE and BETTER food, and time away from my favorite workout partners.

Since I started traveling a lot for work, I have gotten much, much better at working out in less than ideal places, and also practicing portion control when I can't control the food that is put in front of me. Note: I will be attending 2 weddings when I'm back in the Toronto area which would in the past be disastrous for the diet. However, this time I refuse to succumb to the temptation of alcohol, lavish dinners, desert tables and my favorite, wedding cake.

That being said, I am prepared with a plan. I will be accountable to you, my blog readers. I am finalizing my workout schedule for my time away from Seattle, and will post this before I leave on Saturday. From there, I will have a daily checklist to keep track... did I stick to "THE PLAN", and if not, why?

Finally, it's much easier to meal track when you eat less and when you stick to things you are familiar with. Normally I skip the post altogether when I have completely sabotaged my day. This time, I will pledge to post through the good times and the bad times. I just hope my food memory isn't blurred by the amount of wine I may consume at the weddings. A good bridesmaid should drink to the happy couple, I think I'll stick to sipping and stalling over long periods of time to give the appearance of drinking. I have to side with Jess on this one, it's a good thing I can cut a rug on the dance floor without booze. I'm just a much better dancer with a good buzz. :)

One thing that I am so excited about is my parents' recent commitment to fitness. It's been over 3 weeks now so I am considering it a habit! I have been very impressed with their regular walking schedules, trips to the gym and "water aerobics" classes. This is the most dedicated I have seen them in my whole life. I can't wait to share this with both of them when I go home. First on the agenda, family trip to the Peterborough Health and Wellness Center. My mom is a regular reader so she may be getting this news for the first time. Now she knows. ;)

So that's my rant for today, here's what the day has been like. We did the usual trip around the lake today and I'm still feeling a little sluggish. I'm looking forward to flying on Saturday, a forced day off!

Pre-Workout
Pria Carb Select Bar (170 cals)

Workout
22.5 mile bike ride around the lake

Post-Workout
1/2 Clif Bar (125 cals)

Breakfast
Coffee (30 cals)
Cereal (170 cals)

Lunch
2 hard boiled eggs (150 cals)
1 veggie burger patty (150 cals)
1/2 low fat cottage cheese (100 cals)
Apple (100 cals)

Afternoon Snack
Cheese String (80 cals)

Dinner (A Friend's Birthday - I think I overcounted serving size/cals but I would rather be over than under!)
Ahi tuna (150 cals)
Red wine (125 cals)
Halibut (250 cals)
1/2 cup white rice (125 cals)
Salsa (25 cals)
1/2 whole wheat roll (50 cals)
1/3 serving chocolate molten cake with vanilla ice cream (400 cals) - Give me a break, it was a birthday!

Total - 2200 cals

The morning after... the morning after

2006-08-22T09:40:00.000-07:00

So we all know by now that the second day after a big effort we're most sore (and if anyone has seen any articles about this I would love to read them). Today we decided on a pretty flat 7.2 mile run starting at 5:15 am. It's a little sad to see the summer slipping away. It was pretty dark when we started and it's obvious that we'll soon be bundling up for our morning runs.

Anyways, it probably would have been a good idea if we had really done an "active recovery" workout yesterday instead of a "keep up with Danielle workout". Jess and I were feeling it this morning! We went out with the usual morning run crew, Nancy and Latosha. I have to give a huge shoutout to them because they are always so kind and work around our irregular workout and job schedules. Needless to say, they were extremely patient with us today because we were slackin' big time!

So we finally rolled into the club and ran into miss Regan at the front entrance. Miss Regan who's like "oh, you guys are sore?" and "I feel fiiiiine!" :) Ok really? What are you on cause I need some of that!

Oh, I mentioned to Wes that we were talking about making a trip to his hood, doing a little bike tour and eating at his two restaurants. :) He suggested that we do the "Tour de Georgia"... which looks amazing!

http://www.discoveradventures.com/tourDesc.asp?id=TDG7

Before I continue, I need to call out how I have to learn to do two things for my blog which I'm sure are simple but I have yet to explore enough to figure it out. First, it's to disguise the link with the name, as in Tour de Georgia hyperlinked to the website. And the other is to add the blogs I read to the side bar of my blog. So, that will be coming soon and if you have quick tips on doing it, please comment. :)

Back to The Tour. I know we've been talking about doing the Tour de France, but how much fun would it be to do this as a warm up? "Stay three nights, ride three days, watch three stages and head home!" AND it's family friendly?!?!? I seriously think we should consider it... now if we can only make Georgia appealing to our non-cycling company. Not to dish on Georgia, but I am originally from Ontario, Canada and my knowlegde of US sightseeing is limited to say the least.

Well, I think I have wasted enough of your days, so here's the food diary for the day.

Pre-Workout
1/2 Pria Bar (85 cals)

Workout
7.2 mile run at a less than inspired pace

Post-Workout
1/2 Pria Bar (85 cals)

Breakfast
Cereal with banana, skim milk (400 cals)
Coffee (30 cals)

Snack
1/2 of a package of cafeteria Peter Pan peanut butter... ok, I was starving before lunch and it was the only thing I had in my office. 400 calories at breakfast, I didn't think I was going to be hungy! I downed it and threw out the rest cause I knew it wouldn't last sitting in front of me. (65 cals)

Lunch
Pro Club 20/20 Chicken Sausage Pasta (yes, again... 390 cals)
And Jess reminded me that I was not drinking pop this week. :)

Afternoon Snack
Apple (100 cals)

Dinner
Everyone needs to get Cosi (www.getcosi.com)
6 oz lentil soup (119 cals)
Hummus and fresh veggies sandwich (432 cals)

Total - 1706 cals

Plan for Tomorrow
6 am bike ride around Lake Sammamish (22.5 miles)

8:19 pm... still at work...

2006-08-21T20:23:00.000-07:00

Well, it's 8:19 pm and I'm still at work... figured I would take a quick break to post my day! This morning we had planned to do Danielle's spinning class for a good, active recovery workout. Jess mentions this in her post as well, that didn't happen. With Danielle's music pumpin' and little miss Regan kicking all of our asses, I felt the need to push it. And it was fun and worth it... I love Danielle's spinning classes!

Afterwards, Danielle, Regan and Jess went off to the weight room to get in some strength training. I felt like I needed to just get in the zone today and do some weights on my own... you know how some days you just need to regroup inside yourself, and set your goals for the week? That was me this morning... headed down to the dark room and did some upper body and core circuit training. It felt good, had the iPod going and just pushed everything else out.

I'm hoping that the lack of a true active recovery doesn't kill me on the 8-9 mile run that Jess has planned for us tomorrow morning. I really do find this fun, not sure why, I just do. Plus, I want to get back into a good groove. I did nothing but workout and eat everything I wanted leading up to the race, and it's time to get back on it. I made the big mistake (according to Jess) of weighing in this morning. What a shocker! But she assured me that my muscles were soaking up a lot of water and that it was not a true indication of what I weighed. As usual, she came to the rescue with some solid advice of just hydrating a lot today and getting back to the meal tracking. So here it is:

Pre-Workout
1/2 Pria Bar (85 cals)

Workout
1 hour cycling class
25 minutes strength training

Post-Workout
1/2 Pria Bar (85 cals)

Breakfast
Cereal Mix (230 cals)
Latte (100 cals)

Lunch
Au Bon Pain Black Eyed Pea Soup (180 cals)
1 piece whole wheat bread (90 cals)
1/2 package Peter Pan peanut butter (65 cals)
Cheese String (80 cals)

Afternoon Snack
Energy Snack Bar (115 cals)

Dinner
We're working late tonight so we snuck out to grab a quick dinner at the Pro Club (LOVE THE PRO CLUB 20/20 MENU). Despite wanting a big drink, I said there would be no wine this week and I'm sticking to it. Same goes for pop... no joke.

1/2 ahi tuna appetizer (100 cals)
20/20 Chicken Sausage Penne (390 cals)

Total - 1520 cals (if only all days were on target)

It's getting late and I have said it a million times, work will not cut into my daily "holiday from life" (working out with the girls). So I'm going to head home and get some sleep... 5:15 am start tomorrow!

What a difference a group of amazing princesses can make!

2006-08-20T21:50:00.000-07:00

I HAVE TO APOLOGIZE IN ADVANCE FOR THE LOOOOONG BLOG POST, BUT I REALLY WANT TO DO JUSTICE TO THIS JOURNEY!!!

Early this year, I found myself working out at the Pro Clubs in the morning doing my usual indoor cycling, group fitness weight training and treadmill/elliptical trainer work. I would always see this woman (Jessica) in the cycling classes. She would be coming from a swim in the pool, and discussing the treadmill work she’d be doing after the cycling class that day.

I was in complete awe of what she was doing, and never imagined that I would be joining her workouts, let alone calling her a great friend. Six months later I found myself running a half marathon with her, and one month after that (today), my first Triathlon.

Jessica would run outdoors on some mornings with another woman from the club (Nancy). One morning I got up the courage to ask them if they’d mind if I joined them on their run. I was scared! First, these women were dedicated… never had my workout partners stuck to more than 2 weeks of morning workouts, and I had already seen these women almost every morning for over a month. Second, I was really worried that I would not be able to keep pace with women that had clearly gotten into a consistent running routine. I had gained 15 lbs very quickly after joining Microsoft, and wasn’t in as good of shape as I had been a year before.

These women were so enthusiastic about having another running partner crazy enough to join them on a regular 5 am run! I think it was an added benefit, because if one of us could not make it, the others were not stuck running along on a treadmill. Regardless, my fitness improved and self confidence skyrocketed. I bought my first heart rate monitor, and quickly fell in love with running (which I would do in the past but never REALLY enjoyed). Jess had me excited about getting a new road bike (I had left my old Miele on the East coast), and thinking about a half marathon and triathlon.

About a year before I moved to the West coast, I had done a Duathlon and my first 10 km race back home. Never did I imagine that I could actually run a half marathon! Though swimming had been my first sport and one that I naturally fell into when I was a toddler (thanks to MY MOM), I did not think I would be competing in a Triathlon! After meeting Jess and Nancy, it quickly became not if, but how soon. J

My regular workouts soon included another beautifully inspiring woman, Regan, and her coach/Jess’ good friend, Danielle. My focus quickly moved away from losing weight and fitting into those skinny jeans, to fueling my body for the next big workout, and training for that next big race. What a relief, to finally enjoy food and exercise for the joy it brings to my life, rather than the inches it would take off my body. It really was like I was waiting to exhale, and these women allowed me to do just that.

So, the four of us, the tri princesses, found ourselves at the Danskin together today. Just as my blog post from yesterday predicted, we all kicked ass! Jess had a fantastic day, crushing her PR and finishing in the top 2% in her age group! Regan, who’s goal was to finish in under 2 hours, crushed that time with a 1:51 Danskin. As for me, this is how it went… and I’ll keep it short since I blogged so much about the history behind getting to today.

Before the race, I found myself alone at the start line with Danielle for a few minutes. I started to get nervous, and like the amazing coach that she is, she walked me through my entire day. It was invaluable, I found myself listening to her voice at each step of the way. I knew what to expect, and as a result make very few mistakes.

Overall
Goal – 1:30
Actual – 1:28:06
255/3965 overall = top 6%
34/268 in my age group = top 13%

Swim (0.75 km)
Goal – 15 minutes (I don’t know why I had such an aggressive goal, especially since I planned to swim without a wetsuit in much choppier water for the first time with 100 women in the pack).
Actual – 16:27
432/3965 = top 11%

I don’t know that I’ll do another triathlon, regardless of how short the swim is, without a wetsuit. Danielle had me start at the front of the pack because I am very comfortable in the swim. What an experience though, trying to get out in front of the pack with women grabbing onto your legs, and elbowing you in the ribs and head. The swim out to the first buoy was exhausting, and it was impossible to catch a breath. Once I got around the first buoy, I rolled onto my back and was able to get some good breath in my backstroke. This was a good strategy because I was fast and passed a number of women at this point. I was finally able to get back into freestyle and into my regular breathing pattern (every 3 strokes). There were areas that got very busy and choppy where I had to get in a breath every two strokes, but I found myself passing lots and lots of women into the first transition area.

T1
Goal – 2:30
Actual – 2:59

I was expecting to get a huge head rush and leg pain coming out of the water. But I felt better than ever, and ran past tons of women on my way to my bike. Similar to Jess, we were way at the back and I think this affected my transition time. I listened to Jess and Danielle’s advice in T1, and got all of my gear on very quickly.

Bike (20 km)
Goal – 45:00
Actual – 37:30 (Crushed my bike goal!)
Ave Velocity – 19.8 miles per hour!!!
190/3965 = top 5%

I had a GREAT bike today. I had two water bottles with me, one with Nuun to replenish my sodium and potassium (to prevent cramping) and another with plain water. A minute into the bike I picked up the water with Nuun, got a drink and dropped the bottle when I was putting it back in the cage. I yelled some obscenity but kept going. I didn’t want to stop, and I did have another bottle with plain water. The bike felt great, I had never been so comfortable in my aero bars. It all just came together today.

T2
Goal – 2:30
Actual – 1:57

T2 just felt right. I got in, racked my bike and replace my helmet with my hat. I got my shoes on quick, put on my race best with race number and picked up my Gu (for Mom, this is just a gel packet that gives you energy). I got the Gu down coming out of transition and ran towards the first water station on the run course to get the Gu down.

Run (5 km)
Goal – 30:00
Actual – 29:11
9:24 min/mile
874/3965 = top 22%

The run was the most crushing part of my day. Though I beat my goal, I really felt like I could have done much better because I had the fuel in the tank. I barely felt out of breath on the entire run, but couldn’t push through the pain in my calves, feet and Achilles. A part of this I would contribute to dropping the Nuun on the bike ride and not replenishing the sodium and potassium. I think the biggest part is that my bike shoes do not have orthotics, and my running shoes do. So when I move from the bike to put on the running shoes, the pressure in the arch of my foot throws everything out of wack. I have never felt such bad pain in my lower legs, not even when it was at my worst in soccer cleats pre-orthodics. I actually had to stop at the 1 and 2 mile markers to stretch, which was even more painful than just running. And the kicker, I had to walk up part of the hill… I normally push the hills, so this was completely heartbreaking.

That being said, I was determined to come in under 1:30 and just pushed through the last part down the shoot to the finish… and it felt amazing finally crossing. The first thing I heard as I came across was Jess yelling my name, she was RIGHT THERE. It meant so much to me, and I was thrilled by her amazing finish. It felt just perfect, because of all of my workout partners, I have worked out with Jess the most. She is the one that says, “oh no, it’s not that you can do it, it’s that you WILL do it BECAUSE you can do it”. And she was right, right with the half marathon, and right with this Triathlon. She also thinks that I can do the marathon in November, and the half iron man in June. And for me, there is no going back now. Bring it on!

Twas the night before Danskin...

2006-08-19T21:54:00.000-07:00

When all through the house, not a triathlete was stirring, not even a mouse! The race belt was hung, from the door knob with care, in hopes that race day, soon would be there!

This princess was nestled all snug in her bed, while visions of T1 danced in her head. Jess in her cool shades, and Danielle in her pink hat, had just settled in, for a long summer nap. When out of the pack, there arose such a clatter, I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter.

Away to the start line I ran like a flash, I tore through the crowds and started a clash. The sun on the lake shores all full of glow, gave a luster of midday to the women below! When, what to my wandering eyes should appear, but a miniature Regan, in her sexy tri gear.

With all four tri princesses, strong and quick, I knew in a moment, this would be a kick! More rapid than elites, we four women came, we swam, biked and ran, like a blistering flame.

We arrived at the finish line, tall as can be, together we achieved, what we first couldn't see! But we knew we would make it, we knew it was clear, we would move past those crowds, all the way from the rear.

Now this is just the start, of what is to be, a beautiful friendship, and the start of PPTC!!!

Amazing what a little pressure will do!

2006-08-16T09:16:00.000-07:00

And I don't mean the pressure we put on ourselves, but the pressure we put in our tires! Last night at bike maintenance class we were replacing our tires and I realized that I was riding at about 40 PSI when I should be riding at about 120 PSI of air in my tires (even AFTER Jess has repeatedly told me to put air in my tires before each ride... she was completely right). What a difference it made this morning! Regan, Danielle and I met at Idylwood Park and rode around Lake Sammamish. We were so much faster than usual, getting around the lake in 1:25... and it was so much fun! :)

I am really getting excited for Danskin on Sunday, I can't imagine that many women (4,000 in total)! The day is going to be chaotic trying to move all of those women through a triathlon, but it will be great to share the experience with my good friends. Saturday we're planning to make a full day of the triathlon preparation! We're meeting early to get to Magnuson Park to pick up our race kits. Then we'll head over to Genesee Park to rack our bikes (put the bike in the transition zone where we'll switch from swimming, to biking and then eventually to running). We may attend the course review and first timers review, and then head to the expo to look at all of the gear they'll be selling. :) We'll top the day off with dinner at 6 pm at the OLIVE GARDEN!!! Gotta carbo load after all. ;) So a full day just to get ready for the race on Sunday, it really is a big production. So many women all trying to get to the same place and park in the same spots... just have to go with it and enjoy the experience.

You may notice the ugly addition to yesterday's post... I have added last night's dinner at Canyon restaurant. Done and done, moving on.

For today:

Pre-Workout
1 Pria Carb Select Bar (170 calories)

Workout
22 mile bike around Lake Sammamish

Post-Workout
Some wheat thins Danielle had in her truck... yum! (60 cals)

Breakfast (10 am)
Coffee (30 cals)
Don't get grossed out, but this was THE best breakfast cereal I have ever. So filling!
1 package Quaker Regular Oatmeal prepared with boiling water (100 cals of calcium and cholesterol fighting goodness) with 1 tsp brown sugar (20 cals), 1 sliced plum (30 cals), 1/2 cup Fibre One (60 cals of high fibre goodness), 1/2 cup Kashi Go Lean (70 cals of high protein goodness) = 1 really filling bowl of cereal that tasted great (280 cals)

Lunch (1 pm)
Tuna Melts: 1 can tuna (150 cals), 2 cups chopped veggies (100 cals), 2 tbsp fat free mayo (20 cals), 2 slices of whole wheat bread (90 cals), 2 slices fat free cheese (60 cals) = 420 cals
Diet Cherry Coke (0 cals)... I just can't give it up, I like this daily treat.

Afternoon Snack (4 pm)
1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese (100 cals)

Total = 1060 cals

If you put it in writing...

2006-08-15T16:20:00.000-07:00

You have no choice but to commit. So here it is, I am officially committing to participating in the 2007 Pacific Crest Half Iron Man on Saturday, June 23rd. That's right, I said it... it's in writing so I can't back out.

http://www.racecenter.com/pacificcrest/halftridu/index.htm

For my friends and family back home, this is just a "big" triathlon.

1.2 mile swim, followed by a 58 mile bike ending in a half marathon (13.1 mile) run.

Why am I doing this? Because Jess and Danielle said I can. ;) All kidding aside, this is something that I never thought I could do until I met the women I train with every day. After the half marathon this year (which I also never imagined running), I know there is nothing I can't do with the support of this group and some hard work and dedication.

The plan is to do the Danskin Triathlon this weekend, then switch the focus to marathon training for the November marathon in Seattle. After that I will move into a more "normal" workout schedule through the end of December, where I'll recover and spend most of my time planning for the upcoming year. Training for Pacific Crest will begin in early January, details to be determined.

*IF* all goes well at Pacific Crest, maybe I'll find myself doing another half iron man at Troica two months later. Oops, did I put that in writing too? Notice how I said *IF* all goes well. ;) I will of course be found at the Iron Man Canada in BC in late August cheering on Jess and Danielle!

One more thing to blog about... I'm going home! Not going to get as many holiday days as I'd like because we're in the home stretch for our launch, but I will officially be in Ontario from Saturday, August 26th to Sunday, September 10th. Most of this time will be spent working from home or at meetings in Toronto, but it will be nice to get a few days off here and there... and to just be home. :) That's a special shout out to my mom who now reads the blog religiously every morning. Love my mom!

On that note, here's the log for today... so far:

Pre-Workout
½ Pria Bar (85 cals)

Workout
60 minute run – Latosha’s new route, I really like it. It had some nice hills and included our favorite never ending downhill to 40th and then the hill climb to 148th.

Post-Workout
½ Pria Bar (85 cals)

Breakfast (8 am)
Coffee (30 cals)
Pro Club Raspberry Chocolate Muffin (200 cals, 22g of protein)

Breakfast con’t (10 am)
1 package regular Quaker oatmeal for my cholesterol problem ;) (100 cals) with 1 tsp brown sugar (20 cals) and a sliced plum (30 cals) = (150 cals)

Lunch (12 pm)
1 can salmon (125 cals) with 2 tbsp fat free mayo (20 cals) and 1 cup chopped veggies (50 cals) = (195 cals)

Lunch con’t (2 pm)
1 veggie burger pattie with one teaspoon of mustard (150 cals)

Afternoon Snack (3:15 pm)
Apple (100 cals)

Dinner before bike maintenance class (5 pm)
1 veggie burger pattie with one teaspoon of mustard (150 cals) on a piece of whole wheat bread (45 cals) = (195 cals)
Broke down on the pop... one can of Diet Coke Cherry!

Dinner after bike maintenance class (8:30 pm)… and so the day falls apart a little…
Garden salad with croutons, cheese and balsamic vinaigrette on the side... oh, Diet Coke again!
Turkey burger on a bun with ketchup and a chipotle mayo
And to top it off, half of a piece of Snickers cake (shared with Jess) and leftover apple crisp and ice cream
Total calories for dinner, lots… gotta move on.

Total = Don't want to know...

It really is hard to take a day off...

2006-08-14T16:38:00.000-07:00

So I feel like I’m going to have a boring blog post today because I *somehow* managed to take today completely off working out (without any excuse other than to let my body recover that is). Can I comment on whether or not my body feels any better? I don’t know… I will know tomorrow morning when we run at 5 am, lift weights at 6 am and swim at Idylwood at 7 am. I cancelled my 8 am meeting with the UK tomorrow morning just so I could swim. The meeting wasn’t crucial for this week, so I’ll catch up with London over email. I would much rather get in the water tomorrow to make sure I’m prepared for Danskin on Sunday anyways. :)

So that WAS the plan, just got an email from my boss who's in NY this week asking me to join a 10:30-2:30 EST work session by phone. Translation, 7:30-11:30 PST. So, I will make the call tomorrow morning on swimming or lifting when I meet up with the girls. So irritated right now!

Well, here’s the log for the day… not super exciting. The only thing I can say is that I craved pop pretty badly which goes to show that I’m getting hooked again. This week of detox should do me some good.

Breakfast (8:45 am)
Coffee (30 cals)
½ cup low fat cottage cheese (100 cals)
1 package oatmeal (100 cals)
1 plum (30 cals)

Morning Snack (10 am)
Non-fat latte (100 cals)

Lunch (12 pm)
Cafeteria Salad (450 cals)

Afternoon Snack (3:45 pm)
Cheese string (80 cals)

Dinner (6 pm)
2 cups broccoli slaw (60 cals) with 2 tbsp fat free mayo (20 calories)
1 morning star veggie burger (150 cals each) with one piece of whole wheat bread (45 cals) and ketchup (15 cals) = (210 cals)... times 2 = (410 cals)
Glass of red wine (100 cals)

Total – 1490 cals

Challenges
I think stress at work makes me want to drink pop instead of water... it's been a good substitute for something sweet after lunch too. So I was craving it today, but passed.

Big Wins
Eating under control after an out of control weekend. Not working out, when I really wanted to do something. I hope my body thanks me for it tomorrow. :)

Plan for Tomorrow
6 mile run and 30 minutes strength training OR 2/3 mile swim.
Try to keep the eating under control on a workout day, and when the stress level is through the roof.

Sun "kissed"?

2006-08-13T18:33:00.000-07:00

An added benefit of working out outdoors is the gradual buildup of the sun tan. It seems that it doesn't matter how much sunscreen you put on, when you're in the sun for 4 hours you can't help but get some sun. Today, I think I got too much... I am TIRED! It could also be a sign that I'm at the end of my workout week and I really DO need a day off. Sleeping in is an added benefit of that!

We went out to U Village for breakfast on our bikes today. I finally met Joyous (Regan's new bike), she truly is beautiful. Not to mention, Regan is a speedy little devil on her!

So we biked the 22.5 miles to the restaurant at about 16-18 mph average. We felt pretty good! It was cold in the morning but warmed up pretty quickly. We had breakfast at our favorite place (Atlas Foods), visited the bike shop and headed back the 22.5 miles. The ride home was at a slower pace, partially due to the amount of food consumed at breakfast. Also, I think I didn't have too much left today after the long run yesterday... so sitting down at breakfast stiffened the legs a bit.

Anyways, I didn't keep track today because of the exercise again. I spent 99% of my day either on a bike or away from home. I ate a lot, but I ate ok. The big splurge was on a reese peanut butter bar the Fritz made. DANGER. I have sampled, and now I have not desire to eat the rest of the tray in the fridge. I will avoid it at all cost.

Anyways, the overall feeling is that I still overate this weekend (majorly) so tomorrow I'm back in the tracking game. I'm so much better when I have a schedule. The roommates are going to be going to Boston on Wednesday for their holidays and they're taking Lucy (the dog)... less temptation to eat Kristina's amazing cooking (and Fritz' peanut butter bars). :) I'm also looking forward to some quiet time... with all of the traveling and renovation chaos, I can't wait to just unwind.

Just to sum up the plan for tomorrow. I am going to take tomorrow off working out and just let my body recover. I have an 8 am meeting tomorrow and a pretty long, stressful day. The key will be to eat really well... I'm going to go high fibre, and lots of water tomorrow. And just to prove I can do it, no pop or wine. Actually, let's say no pop for this entire week. Done and done. It makes me crave sweets and more food anyways.

Off to get caught up on some email... so much going on it's not even funny! I think it's going to be a 9 pm bedtime today after some Harry Potter which I finally started to read. Book 5 really is better than the rest and it's keeping me up way past my bedtime!

One more thing to add before I head off to bed soon... I did have one big win today. I just went downstairs to change the laundry and fill up my water bottle. I saw some of the peanut butter bar crumbs on a plate on the counter and instinctively opened the fridge to cut myself a piece of the bar. Picked up the tray, and set it back down. Filled up my Nalgene bottle and SPRINTED (did not walk) for my bedroom. ;)

Note to self...

2006-08-12T18:54:00.000-07:00

You can't eat whatever you want just because you're training for a marathon. I keep telling myself that but man, I just crave food all the time.

You'll notice that I conveniently stopped tracking my meals after my afternoon snack yesterday... Let's just call yesterday my cheat day and leave it at that. We went to Kristina's team picnic where I indulged... too much. Then we came home and had a glass of wine before going out to an amazing dinner to thank Jason and I for helping install the hardwood floors.

It wasn't exactly pretty but it was my cheat day so I went with it. Had another glass of wine, appetizer, bread, butter with olives in it and an amazing fish main course. Then we came home and ate marionberry pie with vanilla ice cream. So the entire time I'm thinking, it's ok... it's my cheat day and I'll be back on track first thing in the morning because I'll be doing the LONG run. I guess if there was a BIG win for yesterday, it was that I didn't get drunk (though I really wanted to) and didn't go out with the boys. Instead, I stopped drinking after the two glasses of wine and drank water from there... and was in bed by 11 pm.

This morning I got up at 7 am and met the girls (and Gabriel of course on his bike) at 8 am. We ran from Bellevue all the way through Mercer Island, across the I-90, touched Seattle and came all the way back. Total distance, 14.6 miles (23.5 km). Wow... it only really sinks in when I convert to km. If someone had said to me this past January that I'd be running 23.5 km fairly comfortably, I would have laughed at them. It's really amazing how a group of amazing women can impact your life. When I wake up every morning, I debate sleeping in for another 3+ hours. Then I roll myself out of bed, and think about how lucky I am to be meeting the girls at the gym. The commitment I have seen from this group is something that I just haven't seen with any other group, ever. I thought the varsity soccer team was committed, and they were... but not 4 am, every single day, rain or shine committed. And they're rarely off... you can guarantee that on 99% of the workouts, they are 100% there. It's hard not to push yourself when you're in that company!

Anyways, I still don't have my heartrate monitor, but based on my average, that's about 1400 calories burned on today's run. And my body felt it... I have wanted to eat all day.

So far, I haven't done anything completely devastating but I have been snacking every 2-3 hours or so. The roommates are making a big dinner and the neighbours are coming over. I'll probably have a glass of wine (or two), some crispy flatbread with cheese before dinner. For dinner we're having brown rice with pesto, garlic and parmesan. A big salad, and a massive sirloin steak that has been wrapped around gorgonzola cheese. :S Plan of attack, portion control. Probably a 2-bite brownie for desert. I am going to try to carbo load again today because we're going on a 45 mile bike ride tomorrow morning.

I am really trying to get used to how to eat when I'm working out for such long periods of time. It's hard... you really feel like you could eat all the time. I think it's time to start taking this marathon training more seriously now that the training has gotten more intense. I'll start with the web, and probably pick up one of those marathon runners books cause it can't hurt.

So that is today's b"log". Very different from the regular report, but it's so hard to track calories on weekends...

Signing off for now, the neighbours are coming soon and I am still cleaning my room, seems endless. Got most of the cleaning done this afternoon after the run. Oh, talked to my brother today and he thinks he can convince me to spend Christmas in Poland this year. I'm like... really? After all of the weddings I have this year, I'd like take this opportunity to save SOME money. I really want to put a much bigger dent in the debt by the end of this year, so I will resist the temptation of being with the ENTIRE family for the first time ever in Poland for Christmas. If we hadn't gone there for the wedding in April I would consider it, but I am looking forward to the quiet Christmas at home in Canada, seeing family and friends.

Cold morning in Sammamish

2006-08-11T08:26:00.000-07:00

Wow... a cold morning in Sammamish. After getting down to the lake in my tri suit, I quickly realized that wearing a wetsuit may have been a better idea. Much colder than it was after the heat wave a couple of weeks ago... but that's to be expected with the cooler temperatures we've been getting. Now that I'm done being a total wuss, I have to say that it wasn't all that bad... it warmed up pretty quickly once I started moving. The lake was pretty calm today, just one ski boat that wasn't too close to the buoys. Great swim overall. Oh, and I met Brian Gurraci... hopefully I will eventually put a face to most of the names on the SBR team alias. :)

I was hoping to see Regan at the lake this morning with Joyous. I can't wait to see that thing, but it looks like I might have to wait until the ride on Sunday. The anticipation is killing me!

Pre-Workout (5:45 am)
1/2 pria carb select bar (85 cals)

Workout (6 am)
3 loops of the buoys in Lake Sammamish (1 mile - love Jonathan Fay's calculator... I think I met him this morning too... is he the one with the yellow Lotus?)

Post-Workout (7 am)
1/2 pria carb select bar (85 cals)

Breakfast (after 8 am conference call... 9:20 am)
1 cup kashi go lean cereal with skim milk (240 cals)
Apple (100 cals)

Lunch (1 pm)
Cafeteria Salad (425 cals)
Diet Dr. Pepper (0 cals)

Total = 935 cals

The long day ahead...

2006-08-10T09:33:00.000-07:00

The alarm went off at 5 am this morning... late for our standards but it felt like I could sleep through until about noon. And it showed on the run. My legs felt like bricks, probably leftover aches from the massage on Monday night and the run/strength training Tuesday... well and of course, the day off yesterday. It's pretty lame that a day off can hurt you cause you just get stiff.

So today is a long day... 8 am con call with the UK and a 6:30 pm con call with Singapore.

Pre-Workout
1/2 Pria Bar Carb Select (85 cals)

Workout
7 mile run - With Jess' son Gabriel on his bike... I am always amazed at how a 6 year old can keep up with adults. He has been biking the long runs with us on weekends. This weekend we're doing 14 miles, he MUST be the ONLY 6 year old that can ride a hilly 14 mile route!

Post-Workout
1/2 Pria Bar Carb Select (85 cals)

Breakfast (9 am)
1 cup kashi go lean cereal (140 cals) with banana (100 cals) and skim milk (100 cals)
Coffee (30 cals)

Lunch (12:30 pm)
So here is the deal... almost every day I get the same salad unless I do the soup. So I'm just going to boiler plate it, call is the "Cafeteria Salad" and use the standard calorie count. I have estimated a little high on all portions/calories so that on days where I take a little more than usual, I have compensated in the calorie count. So here are the makings of the Cafeteria Salad:
1 cup lettuce (25 cals)
½ cup veggies (25 cals)
½ cup beans (kidney and garbanzo) (100 cals)
½ cup chicken breast (125 cals)
½ cup tofu (125 cals)
1 tsp balsamic salad dressing (25 cals)
Total for the Cafeteria Salad is 425 so let's round up to 450 for boiler plating purposes. :) Feels good to finally put a calorie count to the dish (face to the name... ok, not that funny, I'm tired).

Afternoon Snack (3:15 pm)
1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese (100 cals)

Dinner at the Pro Club (5 pm - Pre conference call with Singapore from 6:30-7:30)
Small cup of vegetable split pea soup (150 cals)
1/2 glass red wine (65 cals)
20/20 Chicken Sausage Penne (390 cals)

After Meeting Snack (8 pm)
Diet Coke (0 cals) - Second pop of the day :(
Apple (100 cals)
1/2 cup pineapple (40 cals)

Total = 1835 cals

Challenges
Just a long day, pretty tired... and I've been craving pop! Dammit.

Big Wins
Not snacking uncontrolably when I was at my desk for most of the day... almost no meetings.

Plan for Tomorrow
I have another early morning conference call at 8 am. So, I'm going to swim for 45 minutes tomorrow morning and come home. Kristina and Fritz are taking us out to dinner tomorrow to thank us for the hardwood floors. So, it will be a challenge to eat well.

Wednesday... back in the game!

2006-08-09T19:55:00.000-07:00

So this is the first official post of the SMOE REPORT!

Morning Snack (7:30 am before my bike fitting)
½ cup low fat cottage cheese (100 cals)

Breakfast (9:30 am)
1 cup kashi go lean cereal (140 cals)
Milk in cereal (100 cals)
Non-fat latte (125 cals)

Lunch (1:15 pm)
Tuna salad (100 cals)
2 veggie burgers with fat free cheese and ketchup (no bread) (400 cals)
Apple (100)

Afternoon Snack (4:15 pm)
Banana (100 cals)

Dinner (7 pm)
4 ounces of salmon (250 cals)
1 cup of whole wheat couscous with canned tomatoes (200 cals)
Broccoli salad with one tsp fat free mayo (50 cals)
Vanilla Black Cherry Diet Coke (0 cals)

Total – 1665 cals

Challenges
Wanting to keep eating crappy after the landslide over the last couple of days! Not getting a chance to workout today.

Big Wins
Getting back in the game and tracking calories.

Plan for Tomorrow
Going to get up and go running with the girls at 6 am. And of course, sticking to the eating plan.