Race Bling

I am impressed.  My Turkey Trot medal came in the mail a couple of days ago and its quality far exceeded what I expected!  It's heavy, solid and quite snazzy lookin'.  At least, I think so.  Here, my medal and I bond while we take a selfie (duo-ie?  Together-ie?) together (please ignore the trash can and dog house in the background):

The front of the medal:

The back: 

I claimed a corner of our mudroom as my Race Wall.  I've got two of my Mt. Marathon bibs hanging up (I've lost the other two, unfortunately), and the bib from a 5K I ran in August.  Plus, the medal from the same 5K and my Turkey Trot medal.  Eventually, I want that wall plastered in bibs and medals!

In one month, I'll have another medal and bib for my wall.  I'll be in Riverside, California, running this (half-marathon) race: Citrus Heritage Run.  I'm really, really looking forward to it!  Besides it being my first half-marathon race, my best friend from Alaska will be running it with me.  I haven't seen her in SIX LONG months and I've missed her desperately!  It will be an epic Girls' Weekend.  :)

My run yesterday was a slow 4 miles.  It felt wonderful.  I felt light and energetic and it was so warm outside!  About 50 degrees!  At 6 a.m.!  I am NOT missing Alaskan temperatures.  Or the snow.

Today I rode my stationary bike while I watched "House Hunters" episodes on Netflix.  A good way to start the day, I'd say.

I hope you're all having a fantastic day!  Get out and run!  Or at least work up a good sweat, somehow.  :)

Jillian Michaels made fun of me...

A few days ago, I decided to give Level 2 of my Jillian Michaels DVD a try...

...and it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be.  At least, not at first.  Then I woke up the next morning (and the next morning!) and my legs and arms felt rather heavy.  And a bit sore.  I was ecstatic!  I love knowing that I'm stronger than I was!  I had to do the modified version of a couple of the exercises, but it was a great workout and I'm excited to get to the point where I can do Level 2 completely unmodified and not wake up sore the next morning.  

A couple of times during the workout, when the moves were especially challenging, Jillian said things like, "You wanted to do Level 2!  Alright, then, here's Level 2!"  I enjoyed her friendly trash-talk.  :)  

I didn't go on a long run yesterday.  I missed it.  I think running four times in a row in Idaho Falls last week was a little hard on my hip and right foot, since I haven't been running that many days per week in a really long time.  I've got a slight case of plantar fasciitis in my right foot, but I have found a stretch that seems to be healing it!  It's called Toes Pose.  Check it out if you're similarly pained!  

I felt so tired and sluggish last week, for some reason.  After taking an extra rest day and not running as much as usual, I'm looking forward to some good, hard workouts this next week.  

I hope you're all enjoying the Christmas season!  

Our dog, Olly, and our Christmas tree.  

Resolutions and Races

I am a fan of making New Year's resolutions.  I love the "clean slate" feeling that a new year brings.  I feel the same sense of possibility at the beginning of each month.  It certainly appeals to the rampant perfectionist in me: "Well, last month didn't go as I'd planned, but this month, watch out!"    Part of me honestly believes that eventually, I'll achieve a "perfect" month.  Perfect, for me, is based on arbitrary standards that I've somehow formulated in my mind over the years.  It's nonsense, mostly, and just one of the many Jess quirks I'm learning how to deal with.

Regardless of how I sometimes twist reality, I believe that setting goals is important.  There is something in us that yearns to progress.  To become better.  So, I set New Year's resolutions.  But there is one resolution that I am sick of setting.  Every year, I think: "This year, I will finally lose the extra weight on my body!"  I did in 2008.  It was awesome.  And not because finally reaching my goal size made all my problems disappear or my life easier, but because I wasn't, for once, wishing I was a smaller size.  I wasn't spending time thinking about how I could/should lose weight.  It really surprised me how it opened me up to focusing on other much more important things.  And while I truly believe that we need to love ourselves and our bodies now, in order to attain anything resembling true joy, I think there is a lot to be said for feeling and looking your best.  And when I say "best", I mean the weight at which you are healthy (not Victoria Secret model skinny!), at which you feel energized and at peace in your skin.  You can be happy in your body, whatever your size or shape, but I believe that when you truly love your body, you naturally take better care of it and you will eventually land at your healthy weight.  I could go on and on...but I'll spare you.

(http://www.womenshealthmag.com/files/wh6_uploads/images/diet-exercise-wl-art.jpg)

The point of my weight-related ramblings is that I decided a couple of months ago that I would arrive at January 1st having already lost some weight.  That I would hit that date having already begun treating my body better.  That I would make it through the holidays without gaining a pound and actually lose a bit 'o weight.  And that I would use that momentum to carry me through the dreary days of January and onward to my goals.  And I have!  Only about four pounds, but I'm thrilled with that.  I care far more about how my clothes fit than the number on the scale and that's slowly improving, too.  Through the help of a few like-minded friends with the same goal, I'm making steady forward progress.

How am I doing this?  Well, besides Halloween, I didn't eat any desserts/treats/candy, etc. from Oct. 27 - Nov. 27 (I am not saying that this is what you should do!  I am only sharing what has been working for me).  I allowed myself to eat whatever I wanted on Thanksgiving (and for three days afterwards - oops), but once December came, I was back on the proverbial bandwagon.  December is a difficult month for me to abstain from joy.  I mean, treats.  :)  December 11th is Tyler's birthday; December 20th is Tess' birthday;  December 22nd is our anniversary; and then, of course, there's the usual celebrations and the feasting that accompanies them.  So, for now, I'm abstaining until Tyler's birthday.  While many would counsel not taking such a black-and-white approach to eating, it works for me.  I've tried simply being moderate and I end up eating waaaayyy more than I even want to.  My perfectionist personality does well with this kind of a program.

I am also trying to eat more slowly and to actually taste what I'm putting in my mouth.  Allowing myself to experience the food, to pay attention to it, makes me feel much less deprived.

I'm also trying to find other sources of joy, besides food.  I turn to food when I want to celebrate, when I'm sad, bored, lonely, unhappy, happy, breathing, sitting down, standing up, etc.  And it's so immediate!  And I am not a patient person.

One way I'm keeping myself motivated in the exercise department is with races.  There is another virtual race coming up, if anyone out there is interested in running it.  This Resolution Run might help you, too, if you're looking for a way to exercise more or to keep yourself focused during the holiday season.  Plus, you can "race" me!  :)

Hopefully, I haven't bored any of you that actually read this entire post to tears.  This is a topic that I feel passionate about and it's hard for me to only say a little bit about it.  Maybe I need to do a series of posts?  Or at least one about how it's SO much harder to lose weight after three kids, when you're 35, as opposed to after only two kids and you're 27.  I don't know.  I thought that if any of you struggle like I do, perhaps it helps to hear that you're not alone.  That you can achieve your goals.  Truly.

10K Turkey Trot

On Thanksgiving morning, I ran a rather unconventional Turkey Trot on my in-laws' treadmill.  It was a virtual race, organized by Vacation Races.  On their website, www.vacationraces.com, it explains exactly what a virtual race is and allows you to register for upcoming events.  They also host non-virtual races, like the Zion Half Marathon I'm running in March.  

I registered for the Turkey Trot on-line, choosing the 10K distance (the other option was a 5K).  They sent me a t-shirt about a week before the race and I should be getting my finisher's medal in the mail in a week or two, now that I've reported my race results.  No, they don't ask you to prove or verify your time.  'Tis simply assumed that you will be honorable.  

Initially, I wanted to run the 6.2 miles in 60 minutes or less.  Once I realized that I wouldn't be able to manage that at 4700 ft. above sea level, my goal became anything under an 11-minute-per-mile pace.  And I did it!  Barely.  :)  My time was 66:23.  I distracted myself while I ran with re-runs of "Say Yes to the Dress" and was a sweaty mess by the end.  Tyler and Tess came to cheer me on at one point and Tyler took this lovely picture of me (I'm resisting the very strong urge to point out all my "flaws"):

I ran in my father-in-law's "man cave".  He was a colonel in the Air Force when he retired after 27 years of service, hence the Air Force/America-themed quilts (my mother-in-law is a crazy-talented quilter!).  On the other side of the room was a gun safe and the spot where he does...gun stuff.  I think it has something to do with reloading.  :)  

After my race, some walking to cool down, stretching, and a much-needed shower, I donned my Turkey Trot shirt and got ready to eat!  Don't worry...I wore pants, too.  

I enjoyed this "race" experience, but I realize that I much prefer the real thing.  Having people around me to chase/race lights my competitive fire much more effectively than a clock.  Plus, I love being at a race and feeling like I am part of a big, happy, supportive running community.  It's energizing and inspiring.  

Altitude is Everything!

For Thanksgiving, we drove from our home in Olympia, Washington to Idaho Falls, Idaho.  And back again.  822 miles in a car.  Each way.  With three children.  And I survived!  Honestly, my girlies are great travelers.  There was only a minimum of whining, an expected amount of bickering and I only remember cursing three times.  Not too shabby.  Mother of the Year award, here I come!  Ha.  Though the time in the car eventually made me feel like this...

...it was well worth it!  We thoroughly enjoyed relaxing and catching up with our friends and family and eating waaaayyyy too much very delicious food.

We stayed at Tyler's parents' house and they graciously let me run on their treadmill.  Running outside in the wintertime in Idaho Falls is a cold and windy prospect and Olympia has already softened me.  Barely six months out of Alaska and my blood seems to already be thinning.  But I digress.

On Wednesday, I hopped on their treadmill, ready to pound out an easy four miles.  I thought I'd keep the pace around eleven minutes per mile.  I was going to be running a virtual 10K Turkey Trot the next morning (more on that later), so I didn't want to push myself too hard.  About half a mile into my run, I was DYING!  It felt so hard!  I only had the incline at 2.5 %, so I couldn't figure out why I was struggling so much.  Finally, a mile or so later, it occurred to me.  The elevation of Idaho Falls: 4700 ft.  Elevation of Olympia: 187 feet.  Well, duh.  And just like that, my time goal for the aforementioned 10K went up dramatically.  It also made me realize that I'm going to have to lower my expectations for a half marathon that I'll be running in March near Zion National Park.  Elevation of Zion National Park: 4000 ft.  Dangit.  But it's a good reminder that what really matters when it comes to my runs is not how fast I finish them, but that I do them at all.  That even though my "easy" four-mile-run was much harder than I had thought it would be, I didn't give up.  I powered through it.  I got stronger.  And yes, I could've slowed down, but my pride didn't let me that day.  Regardless of my speed, each of my runs is an accomplishment in and of itself.  And they each help minimize the damage inflicted by too many pieces of pumpkin pie.  And apple pie.  And, and, and, etc.  :)

This is not to say that I won't soon be googling, "How to prepare for high-altitude races when you're stuck training at sea level"...anyone out there have any good advice?