Goal: be a fit mom.... what I get " you're already skinny"

My goal right now is to be a fit and healthy mom.  I've gone back to my running and am slowly increasing the mileage.  Now I have started on the 30 day beach body challenge Piyo to increase my strength.  (I hate the gym and really despise weight training...I get bored).   If I can motivate others while I am at - even better.
Recently I had a conversation with a girlfriend of mine who is also a new mom about my workouts.  She made the comment about how I'm already skinny I don't need to workout anymore.  (To be fair, she is not the only person who has said this to me.  She just happened to say it most recently).  This comment made me stop and think.  Yes I really would love to fit into my pre-pregnancy jeans and still be able to breathe and move.  But that isn't my focus right now.  My focus is to be fit and healthy, not just "skinny".  And how is it we live in a society where that is the first thing we notice when someone is really stepping up their workouts?  I have to remind myself daily that my goals are to set a good example for my family.
As far as being skinny...not a word I love because unfit unhealthy people can be skinny.  I may be thin post-baby and becoming fit.  However I am the size I am because I work hard.  I'm up running before it gets too hot pushing a baby jogger.  I do my strength training often when my daughter is on her activity mat beside me with interruptions.  This is all hard work so yes I do need to keep working out in order to stay fit.  Now if I could just master the healthy eating....

starting Piyo with my running

I said in my last post my goal is to be a fit mom and add strength to my runs.  This morning had to be a fast run (I tried to sneak out the door by myself but my daughter woke up).  I got in a 2 mile run with sub 10 minute miles for the first time since I got pregnant.  And then this afternoon I did the first workout from the Piyo workout series by Beachbody.  This workout was just the fundamentals so I know what I am doing in the other workouts...and I feel it in muscles that I never remember to stretch!  Doing the double workouts a day could go one of two ways...I become a stronger runner with more flexibility or 2 - I am no longer able to move.  I am really hoping it's 1 and I become a stronger runner adding flexibility and strength.  We will see what the next few days bring and how I am able to fit the workouts along with my daily routine in.

Changing times...

Times are changing and so is my fitness focus.  In March I gave birth to my daughter and that changes everything!!  I am still out there running and focusing on being fit however the focus is no longer just marathons.  I hope someday to return to Boston and run my 10th full marathon, and I am sure there will be more to follow after #10.  But for now my focus has become leading a fit and healthy life style.  

The one thing I've learned in the last 5 months is that Mom's are busy!!!!  I am lucky enough to be home with my daughter most of the time but still trying to fit in workouts is a challenge.  Thankfully recently we got the Bob jogging stroller and that has made my runs much easier to get in and I am more consistent getting out the door.  However trying to strength train is another challenge I have yet to overcome.  I convinced my husband to do a 30 day squat and ab challenge with me - he's not loving it.  But that is at least a start.
Hopefully blogging and joining a 30 day fitness challenge group will help me stay on track since I will now be held accountable!  

Exchanging the shoes….

November 7, 2013

Yup that's right it's time to exchange those sneakers.  So after Sunday's run I went back to the really dead old running shoes to see if I was still having pain.  And no pain with the old sneakers which confirms my concern…it was the new shoes.
I truly understand the recommendation of a less structured sneaker, however I also have always been told don't make a major change (unless you are having issues due to your current pair) when you are increasing mileage.  You either increase mileage or make a major change to your form or sneakers etc - never both.
So back to the store I went.  The shoe expert I dealt with this time was wonderful and agreed with me the sneaker was too big of a change.  In fact the new pair was NOTHING like my old pair and was probably way too big of a change combined with increasing mileage.  Of course they no longer make my sneaker but we came out with something that is considered similar.  Hopefully this will work.

Growing Pains or Something to Worry about?

Sunday November 3, 2013

Today wasn’t a great run, in fact overall it was pretty awful.  I had to spend most of my run paying very close attention to my body trying to figure out what is going on.  Starting by mile 3 my entire right leg was cramping up.  It started in the hip and gradually the entire leg had cramped.  Of course at this point I was 3 miles from home and still had 6.5 miles to go in my run.  I did my best to stretch out at mile 3  and made my way home, managing to stay on pace.  But now came decision time – to scrap the run or keep going?  This is never an easy decision to make and you have to look at so many possibilities.  If this was the start of an injury would I be better off cutting the run short and hopefully preventing a full injury?  But what about not getting the mileage in?  How do I determine if this is an injury versus growing pains?  I mean after all there is going to be discomfort with an increase in mileage. When I got to the house to switch out my water bottle at mile 6 I decided to take time to stretch that leg out.  After 10 minutes of stretching the pain was mostly gone and I felt ready to run again.  I decided to go out and try to finish my run but if I started to hurt at all I would turn around and go home.  The run ended up going much better than expected and I think I found the culprit of my pain – my new running shoes L Time to figure that out…

Food Poisoning on Saturday….8 Mile Run on Sunday

The title say’s it all about my run this weekend.  I am exactly 12 weeks away from my 9^th marathon and for the first time in years I have time goals.  Training is starting to ramp up and I am focusing a great deal on my runs, especially my long runs.  Saturday was a day off from training and I managed to get food poisoning from leftovers.  I spent Saturday afternoon throwing up and dry heaving, Saturday night curled up on the couch with my club soda and Ritz crackers. 

Unfortunately my diet of club soda and Ritz crackers is not exactly ideal the night before an 8 mile run.  Which means I had some decisions to make.  1. Was it a good plan to go running on Sunday after throwing up on Saturday?  2.  Did I have enough reserves to get through the 8 mile run?  And if I didn’t and was really bottoming out while running would I be able to make the tough call to scrap the rest?  I decided before going to bed if I didn’t throw up again and had no other GI issues after 2 A.M. I would get up planning for my run.  When I woke up I was no longer nauseas which was a good sign and as far as I was concerned this meant the run was a go.  I took down a granola bar with some water and gave it about 30 minutes to see how my stomach handled it.  All seemed well so I got my water bottles ready and time to head out the door.  For my last few runs I have been filling my first water bottle with water and then at the halfway point my loop brings me by the house and I switch out for the water bottle filled with Gatorade.  Today I decided to fill both bottles with Gatorade so I could help make up for the lack of caloric intake on Saturday.

Overall this run went very well.  I was able to keep my scheduled pace of 11:10 min/mi without an issue.  The last mile was a struggle for me, however this was more of a mental issue than a physical one.  This is the first marathon where I do not run with anyone – ever.  I was bored and had to work hard to get over my mental block of just wanting to stop.  Above all else when it comes time for the marathon, my mental strength should be stronger than ever.

Just over 12 weeks to go?

It's been a while.  I wasn't officially training, just working out when I could.  I got married, moved across the country 3 days later and now am trying to settle in to my new life.  But within my first few weeks here I got bored and realized I needed to train again and have a focus.  So I registered for the PF Chang Rock 'n' Roll full marathon in January of 2014.  It will be convenient since it is right in Phoenix.  I hired a marathon coach (from afar) and have committed myself to a level of training I have not done in quite some time.
The runs are comfortable for now but I am finding I have new challenges.  This will be the first time I have trained all of my long runs on my own.  I have to get through the mental challenge of running 8, 10, 16 miles by myself.  And yup it can get boring.  In the long run I feel this will end up working to my advantage, I will be able to mentally get through the 26.2 miles, I will have already prepared myself to run by myself.
The other major challenge is trying to explain to my husband so that he truly understands the commitment I have undertaken.  I have not run a full marathon since we have been together.  It's explaining that it isn't always easy to just change which day my long run is on.  Or that I have to eat after my long run, not a few hours later, like within an hour.  It's trying to have him understand my training is now a huge focus in my life.  Finally I went through all of my old emails and found one from my very first marathon on team Joints In Motion with Coach Vic.  Vic wrote weekly training emails and he wrote one to the friends and family of the marathoner, something 8 years I still think parts of it are very useful and others I ignore.  I had my husband read this email hoping it would provide him with a little more insight of what this is all about.
Now that I am training again it is time to start writing about it again.  I am getting to run my 9th marathon with ankylosing spondolysis, something that every single one of my rheumatologist gets excited about.