Week 3, Day 3 - Rant against Popeye's and pre-mature Memory loss

Let's just jump into it, shall we?

Running:
Today I was not a rock star or a champion....Before I even left the house, I knew it was going to be a tough day for me.  I drank too much coffee, hadn't eaten a good breakfast (just the scraps of Ari's breakfast), and was just feeling a little sluggish.   Lilah on the other hand was a rock star AND a champion in the stroller today.  She had a little fuss in the beginning, but then sat back to enjoy the rest of the ride.  She was all tucked in with blankets, had some yummy juice and a snack thing filled with Pirate's Booty which seemed to keep her occupied.  The genius of these snack cup things is that it's actually HARD to actually get the snack out...I mean it's seriously hard for me, let alone a toddler!  In fact, it requires such a fete of dexterity, the kids can only really take out one piece food at a time, so it really keeps them occupied for a nice long while :)

SO, back to the run....Right out of the gates I had a little bit of knee pain and it kind of freaked me out.  Maybe it was b/c I already felt sluggy, but I got nervous my slight knee pain would instantly turn into patellofemoral pain syndrome (runner's knee) and I would maimed for life.  I was mad at myself for getting last year's $100 shoes on sale for $60 instead of splurging for the Portland Running Company recommended $135 shoes and now I was developing a major knee injury which was eventually going to require surgery, not to mention I was obviously going to have to drop out of the damned Marathon training only 3 weeks in!! ARGHHH!!!!!!  Luckily, it resolved itself in less than a block....so, crisis averted this time :)

SO, back to the run....Once my knee felt better, I suddenly had to pee.  To stop or not to stop?... that was the question!  The Quick Stop? Biscuits? Fred Meyer's? McDonald's? Squat behind a bush?   I really didn't want to stop because it would basically ruin the sanctity of the 3 mile run.  In the end, I figured it would be easier to suck it up (or 'hold it in'?) than try to negotiate a public restroom with Lilah in the stroller and not buy something.

SO... back to the run...There I was trotting down the road feelin' sluggy and holding in pee, when I approached the Popeye's...  I hate the flippin Popeye's.  Somehow when I'm planning my route, I always seem to forget about it and then..... I.... SMELL....IT.... and part of me wants to wretch.  I have no idea what kind of oil they use at Popeye's but I swear you can smell it from 1/2 mile away and it smells putrid!  The unmistakable wafting scent of Popeye's conjures images of trying to eat some delicious chicken only to have the taste of never-changed-deep-fryer-oil in my mouth and oily disgustingness dripping down my chin.  Not that I was ever a huge Popeye's fan (I'm more of a KFC girl), but now I'm convinced Popeye's is a serious afront to chicken lovers everywhere.  I seriously have been unable to eat Popeye's since the first time I ran past it a long, long time ago.  Maybe it has something to do with running in the fresh air one second and being olfactorily assaulted by the smell of deep fry out of nowhere a moment later???  Maybe today it was so much worse because it was actually sunny and there was no rain to drown out the smell??  I don't know... but I also pass a Subway, IHOP and McDonald's, and none of them have the horrible oil/fry smell of Popeye's.  Ickers...

SO, back to the run.... I managed to finally get away from the Popeye's stench and was about half way through my 3 miles when I realized I might have forgotten to turn off the stove!!  I like to eat a hard boiled egg when I get home from my runs, so I put the egg on the stove, bring it to a boil, then turn the burner off to let the egg cook while I'm gone.  Today, I remembered the pot boiling, but I couldn't remember turning the burner off..... CRAP.  So I took off like a speeding bullet down the road as fast as I could, only to burn myself out within 1/4 mile.  I spent the whole last 1/2 of my run alternating between sprinting and power-walking.  I'm glad I didn't give Lilah whiplash.  On the bright side, I technically ran/walked more than 3 miles because I was so fearful over the stupid eggs that I didn't actually 'cool down'... oh... and I had turned the eggs off afterall. 

SO, there's my detailed report on my whopping 3 miles of running today.

In other news, I realized I accidentally skipped a week on the calendar when I was creating my training schedule!  DOUBLE CRAP!  Really I should have started my training on 11/21 rather than 11/14 and I should only be in Week 2 right now.  Sigh.... So I guess I'll just do this week of training again next week and I'll be training for 31 weeks.  Are you convinced I'm losing my mind yet?

and lastly:
Food:
I kept up my food journal until around 2pm when it all fell apart.  I'm embarrased to even tell how many cookies I ate today :(  They're just SOOOO good!  Lucky for me, tomorrow is another day :)

Week 3, Day 2

Had another rough night due to Lilah being up crying ALL night.  We think her new medication is hurting her tummy, so after 4 whole days we'll be discontinuing the new stuff until we see her Neurologist next week. 

Running: 
After being up all night followed by the continuing Lilah still being really fussy all morning, I was understandably hesitant about taking her out for a run.  However, once she woke up from her afternoon nap she was in a much better mood and I decided to chance it and put her in the stroller.  I figured it would only be a 1.5 mile loop around my neighborhood and I would have no fewer than 5 oportunities to cut it short if necessary.  Luckily, Lilah did great again :)  I'm really hoping she's getting used to the jogging stroller and I'll really be able to take her on my longer runs!!

Also, since I was so nervous about Lilah, I decided to run as fast as I could!  I know it may not be overly impressive, but I was really proud of myself for running in just under 15 minutes :) I think running a steady 6 mph while pushing 24 lbs of Lilah plus 25 lbs of stroller is pretty darn tootin good!

Food:
I was pleasantly suprised with the scale this morning and only gained 0.6 lbs through the whole Thanksgiving weekend :)  I was cetainly better with my eating today (despite the cookies!), but haven't written anything down in a few days.  I'll start again tomorrow and hopefully start seeing the scale sneaking downwards again.

Week 2, Day 4 - Week 3, Day 1: It's been one hell of a week

I know I haven't posted in 5 whole days, but as you may have guessed from the title, it's been one hell of a week.  Last Thursday, after we cleaned up from Thanksgiving dinner (right as I finished my first/last beer and was about to start blogging) we heard a little cry from Lilah and when we went up to check on her she was in the midst of a nasty seizure.  It was a terribly scary experience which resulted in a full night stay at the hospital, followed by several days of recover for all of us.  So, unfortunately, my blogging fell by the waist side for a few days.... however, luckily my training didn't:

Running -
Week 2, Day 4: Despite it being Thanksgiving Day with us hosting I still managed to get out for my run :)  After an evening and morning of non-stop cooking, I decided to take a breather and go for a leisurely 1.5 mile run in the early afternoon. It was a nice little calm before the storm, but upon approaching my house, I realized 5 of our 8 guests had arrived while I was gone!!!  OOPS!  They were all super cool and actually congratulated me on making time for running which made me feel really great and even more committed :)

Week 2, Day 5: A rest day - THANK THE LORD ABOVE!!!! Due to Lilah's seizure, we ended up being admitted to the hospital in order to stay overnight for observation.  Lawrence went home around midnight to look after Ari and I stayed with Lilah (Much thanks to Kelly and Lenin for leaving their own Thanksgiving dinner early so both Lawrence and I could go to the hospital).  The chair/bed contraption in Lilah's hospital room was not only broken and terribly uncomfortable and I was only able to get about 2 1/2 hours of sleep.  So, I was very thankful for an emotional and physical rest day. 

Week 2, Day 6:  I was still pretty tired and shaken from the events of the previous days, but nonetheless decided to keep with my training schedule and get out for a 3.5 miler.  I promised myself not to overdo it and to stop if needed, but ultimately I felt pretty good throughout the run and managed to do the entire length without pausing.  It felt really wonderful to get out of the house, away from the pressures and anxieties, and just watch my feet fly across the pavement. It really helped clear my head and recharge my batteries. 

Week 2, Day 7: Once again, I skipped my "35 minute walk."  I can't help it... I feel like walking is kind of superfluous.  I barely sit for most of my days, and I really don't see how forcing the kids into the stroller for a 35 minute 'walking adventure' is going to make a dent in my marathon pipe dream.  Next week I'll make more concerted effort .... really...

Week 3, Day 1: Today was another rest day, but once again, I hardly did any real resting.  Lilah is still a little out of sorts and up at 5am, Lawrence was sick and spent most of the day working from the bed, and I was running (figuratively) like crazy all day getting the kids up, Ari fed & to school, cleaning all the bathrooms, fixing up the house from a crazy long weekend, hanging up our new "video baby monitor," taking Lilah to the Ophthalmologist, cooking dinner, and now finally sitting down to write the blog... I'm tired! I'm still a little nervous about tomorrow's run with Lilah, but I'm hoping she'll just be a trooper and enjoy it.... we'll see.....

Food:
Between Thanksgiving food goodness and being an emotional eater, I know I've done some serious damage and haven't even looked at the scale in days.  I guess tomorrow I'll bite the bullet and jump on the scale.  Hopefully, it won't be too disappointing.

And now a quick shot from our T-day.  At one point we realized all the Dads were holding their beautiful little girls and it was adorable, so we managed to get an actual picture of it for posterity (not to mention an Ari running in the background trying to steal a lollipop out of grandma's purse!)

Week 2, Day 3 - We like all KINDS of music

Holy Mama, what a day. I've been running(figuratively) since the second I woke up this morning and I'm exhausted. Family visits, schlepping cross town, picking up stuff from friends, visiting with out of town guests, and 2 pumpkin pies, 3 challahs and the stuffing.   I'm going to attempt to make this short and sweet... we'll see how that goes.

Running:
I didn't get a chance to run until after 4pm this afternoon and worried about how I would feel so late in an already hectic day.  Since Lawrence was home this afternoon, I had the good fortune of being able to run all 3 miles alone in the rain and it felt grrrrreat.  Because I was alone, I was able to bring my MP3 player along for the run for the first time in a long time.... man I LOVE running to music!! Also, I didn't really time myself, but I think it only took me about 30-ish minutes which I'm proud of.  I felt like I ran really strong and hard with the pavement flying under my feet.   I think the music helped me along... here's my playlist (minus a few skips):
1) Nina Simone - Funkier than a mosquito's tweeter (5:19)
2) Moxy Fruvous - Spiderman (2:37)
3) Cake - I will survive  (5:19) - Twice :)
4) White stripes - Black Math (3:04)
5) Dire Straits - Sulton of Swing (4:24)

Food:
The scale was down another 0.6 lbs this morning which made me really happy, but after checking the scale, I barely had a moment to breathe!  I was so busy today, it felt like I aredly ate and when I did I didn't make the best choices.  My healthy choices were a hard boiled egg, tomato soup, a bowl of salsa, 2 apples and a banana, but I my unhealthy choices included 2 mini muffins, tomato soup (I had 4 bowls and made it with 2% milk!), the tostitos which went with the salsa, AAAND a Carl's Jr. Single Steakhouse burger (hold the cheese please!). Not to mention the non-boxed glass of wine sitting next to me while I type.... oh well. 

I'm going to

Week 2, Day 2 - Yesterday Take 2

Running:
Today was AWESOME!!   For years, people have been telling me that one day I'll start to enjoy running, but I always thought they were complete lunatics. But lo & behold, I do believe I've finally started to love running :) I re-ran my 1.5 miles from yesterday and had a really great time doing it.  The rain was pounding all night long and all I could think about was how miserable Lilah would be in the stroller in the pouring rain. So as soon as we were all officially awake, I threw on my running gear and ran out the door (thereby leaving the kids at home with Husband).  It was practically a monsoon outside and it was raining so hard and my shoes were soaked before I even finished with my warm-up.  Lucky for me I like running in the cold rain :)  I think it speaks to the kid inside me who still loves jumping in puddles, not to mention it made be feel so bonifide to be out running in that kind of weather. 
Since I didn't have to run with Lilah, I really felt like I could ramp up the speed. Every time I started slowing down, I said to myself, "KNOCK IT OFF! I have no kids with me and therefore no excuse to run slowly, so STOP messing around and RUN FASTER!" At one point I saw another runner along the way and I was like, "YEAH!! WE'RE SO AWESOME FOR BEING OUT HERE IN THE RAIN!!" but, she just nodded and looked at me like I was a crazy person.  
It also helped me to run during rush hour b/c my route is on a pretty high traffic area and I always feel like such a loser if some one sees me walking.  I have been guilty on several runs of only actually running when a car was near, then stopping to walk as soon as they passed me :(  Today there wasn't a single break in the onslaught of cars and therefore not even an opportunity to stop.  Sometimes, I thought I could just hear all the people in their cars looking at me and thinking, "Wow.... look at that totally committed runner who is running so fast in this monsoon like downpour!  She must be a really bonifide running person... YOU GO GIRL!" 

Food:
As expected, my weight was down another pound today putting me back to pre-weekend weight.....stupid salt. Grrrrr. I started the day pretty well with eating, but I seem to have this mid-afternoon need to eat.  I keep reading all these studies which say people report losing more weight when they eat a small meal every three hours.  I've had success doing this in the past, but then I always seem to fall right back into the pattern of grazing all afternoon until I finally binge on something fattening b/c I had never actually satiated my hunger. Tomorrow I'll attempt to combat my afternoon snacking with a yogurt or maybe some Tostitos and salsa. So there!

Tomorrow I'll hopefully get to do my 3 miler alone!  Husband will be coming home around noonish to watch the kiddos so I can start cooking for T-day.... but there ain't nothing wrong with throwing a 3 mile run in there :)  I think I'll also spend part of tomorrow working on my Thanksgiving diet game plan.  There will be lots and lots of yummy food and I don't want to deprive myself, but I also don't want to gorge myself. 

Week 2, Day 1 - Getting Ahead of Myself for a Change

Running:
I woke up this morning in a grouchy mood.  I don't know why exactly..... I didn't feel rested from my night's sleep, I knew the scale would be up from last week, Husband had an early meeting so I'd be on my own to get the kids up & Ari to school.  So when it came time to go running, I just plain didn't feel like it - especially in the cold cold rain.  However, I made a commitment to do this running thing and I just couldn't bail on the first day of the second week - especially on a measly 1.5 miler.  So, I dressed Lilah really warm, threw her in the stroller and went anyway.  Then, about 1/2 way through my run, I realized that today is Monday and therefore a rest day?!?!?  GWWWARR....WTF - I think I'm definitely losing my mind....you know, as opposed to normal when I simply can't remember anything...
At first I was annoyed at myself for making such a dumb mistake and figured I should just stop where I was and walk home the quick way.  Part of me was a little worried about running more than what was on my training schedule and accidently injuring myself.  But, then logic kicked in and I realized running an extra 1.5 measly miles literally won't hurt me.  I also realized how Lilah was sitting so happily in the stroller AND I was feeling really strong and powerful on my run - it would be silly to stop!!!   In the end, I'm really glad I finished my measly 1.5 miles because it really turned my whole day around. After all, "Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don't shoot their husbands."  RIIGHT?!?!?? (Don't worry husband, I have no plans to shoot you!) So, I'm looking forward to picking up again tomorrow and getting right back on schedule.

Food:
As expected, I was up .6 pounds from last week :(  But I really do think it was all the salt.  I did pretty well today with the food.  I almost blew it by eating an entire bag of popcorn this afternoon, but at least it was the Weight Watchers popcorn so there wasn't too much damage. Of my 32 allotted points for the day, I've used approximately 31.5 :)  Hopefully tomorrow's scale will be nicer to me.

Finally, I want to give a shout out to my niece Miranda who completed the Brooklyn Marathon yesterday in an amazing 4:07!  I'm SOOOOOO proud of you!  Got any tips for your dear old Auntie?

Week 1, Day 6 - Can I get a Mulligan?

Today was a null day.... no running and barely dieting. 

Running: Not a running day, but it wasn't supposed to be a rest day either.  I was supposed to "walk" for 30 minutes...... Does walking around Costco for about 30 minutes count?.... I'm not so sure.  Alas, one of the reasons I've elected to do the 30 week training program is because I'm a busy lady with two little kids and if I miss a 30 minute walk here and there, I don't believe it will be the end of the world. Tomorrow is another 1.5 miler with Miss Lilah and I'm hoping it goes well.  I realized the loop I had been running was actually a little short of 1.5, which was dissapointing :(  So, tomorrow will be the real deal. 

Food:
If you can believe it, I was 2.5 pounds UP this morning!?!?!?!?!??! How does one gain 2.5 pounds overnight you may ask?  Well, I have no F-ing idea. I'm hoping that due to the very salty steak on Friday and the Corned Beef yesterday, it's simply an issue of retaining water from too much salt and all the water will leave my body very soon.  I know tomorrow's scale will probably go up from last week which really dissapoints me.  So, instead of jumping back on the horse immediately, I'm having a glass of 'non-boxed-&-not-so-terrible' wine :)  Don't worry... I'm not throwing in the towel, I'm just taking a day.  Next week will be better - right?

Week 1, Day 6 - Tired.

I'm going to start this off by saying I'm tired.... very, very tired.  Last night the husband and I decided to stream some movies in bed.  Movie #1 was "You Kill Me" which was cute.  Movie #2 was "Shelter Island" which was the kind of movie I HATE - suspenseful and violent with an incredibly sad twist at the end :(  So we didn't end up going to bed until after 1am and then I laid there in the dark thinking about the stupid movie, even though I knew perfectly well I had to wake up early to run. So here I am writing and tired......

Running
Much to my happiness, the "Running Mamas" people were NOT axe murderers and our 'group run' was really fun!  There was only the group organizer and her sister who was visiting for Thanksgiving, but 3 was definitely good company.  Both ladies were really fit (which was obvious because they were wearing those running shoes that look like feet), but they were super cool and we ran and chatted with ease.  I know they were definitely slowing down their pace for me (b/c I'm well aware I run like molasses), but they pretended very politely.  When I run on my own, I generally feel like I'm gasping for air and wouldn't be able to shout for help if someone jumped out at me.  However, when I was actually faced with being forced to converse with other people, I was completely able to.  In fact, I guess I was so nervous about running with other people that I started doing that rambling thing I do where I go on and on about G-d knows what topics until I end up feeling stupid for talking so darned tootin much!  There's even a slight chance they now think I'm an axe-murderer..... oh well. 

Food:

Despite my valiant battle against the cheap boxed wine last night, the scale was up 0.5 lbs :(  I was bummed, but I shook it off, made some coffee, ran and ate really well until about 1:30pm, then it all went to hell.  We ended up going to my MILs this afternoon and she made a little feast: Corned beef & cabbage w/potatoes, Chicken & noodles w/peanut sauce, peanut brittle, and an awesome Swedish blueberry cake thing with whipped cream.  I tried really hard not to overeat, but I'm only human and ended up gorging myself :(  I didn't even try to capture my points :(  So...... It's now 7:45 pm and I've had nothing to eat for a few hours.  I think I'm going to put the little man to bed, have a glass of cheap boxed wine, and go to sleep myself.  I'm scared of what the scale will read tomorrow, but hopefully it will all work out. 

I feel myself getting into that too tired to write zone which is what produced the "awesome" statement the other night.  So before I create yet another 'Nomi-ism,'  I think I'm going to sign off for the night. 

Week 1, Day 5 - I think I'm being watched.....

Running:
No running today!  Today was a very nice rest day which was much needed :) 

I've never experienced Internet dating, but I did something with I think is pretty similar... I went on Meetup.com to find a running group.  It turns out we have a group in the Portland Metro-area called "Running Mamas" which is apparently just a group of moms like myself looking for other moms like myself to run with.  Some want to run with kids and some without, but they're from all over town including out here in Beaverton. So, tomorrow I'm going to my first 'Meet-up' with other running moms sans kiddos!!  I'm filled with all the same questions and insecurities I would probably have going on my first internet date.....Are these people ax murderers?  Am I a big loser because I can't seem to find people to do stuff with on my own? Am I fit enough to run with other people? Well, maybe not the last one, but you get my jist which is that I'm kind of nervous about tomorrow..... not to mention they're meeting at 8am, which I think is slightly ridiculously early.  Also, it doesn't help that the cheap boxed wine is sitting 2 feet away and taunting me with it's non-delicious alcoholic goodness :(

Food:
I was down another 0.2 lbs this morning which makes me happy!  My friend Sarah (Hi Sarah!!) came over this morning and we made friggin delicious challah.  I was SO good about my eating all day until Lawrence came home and broke into the amazingly delicious challah.  The two of us pretty much devoured an entire loaf long before we actually sat down for shabbos dinner. So here it is now 7:36 and I've already used up 34 of my 32 points for the day which means I'm 2 points over.  Also, it doesn't help that the cheap boxed wine is sitting 2 feet away and taunting me with it's non-delicious alcoholic goodness :( Did I mention it?

DUN, DUN DUUUUUUUUUUUUUUNNNNNNN........ To be continued.....

Week 1, Day 4 and some random thoughts

Running:
Today was my first official day with both the kids.  Luckily, Ari actually likes going on runs with me and he does wonders to help keep Lilah under control.  I sincerely think that kids are like puppies and you really do need two so they can entertain each other.  Oney-way.... It was a nice fall day and while it was a still cold and damp outside, thankfully it wasn't raining.  The run was only 1.5 miles, but it was really tough pushing both kids in the stroller.  I did really well for the first mile, but then ran out of steam and had to run/walk the last 1/2 mile.  I think I need to do some more research about how to change up a marathon training if you're doing it while pushing 2 kids in a stroller.

 Notice the pretty foliage which is NOT typical of a normal Oregon fall

Food:
My weight was down another 0.2 lbs this morning which was nice, but considering how I struggled to eat all my points yesterday, I was a bit surprised my weight wasn't actually less. Today was much less of a struggle to each my points, so we'll see what happens tomorrow.  It felt like I spent all afternoon getting snacks for the kids and then eating the snacks when the kids decided they didn't want it... .that's how I ended up wasting 5 of my points on a peanut butter granola bar and 1 1/2 chicken McNuggets :(  But I failed to plan, so I planned to fail - as Lawrence (and the Army) says.  I had an unexpected errand across town that I had to run out for and forgot to pack a few low-cal snacks for myself.  Tomorrow starts the weekend again and I'm hoping my motivation won't wain with freshly baked challah and some decent non-boxed wine.

Random Thoughts by Naomi Handy:
1) Why am I blogging every day? 
I'm the kind of person, who if you make tentative plans to make tentative plans, you'll never see me again, but if we set a date and time for 3 years in advance, I'll show up.  I'm a list making, calendar keeping, organizationally minded person and when I attempt to engage in an activity which requires participation only when the mood hits me..... I'll never ever get hit. So, to answer my own question: I blog every day, because knowing I have to blog every day makes me more accountable to myself to follow through on my goals.  As I found out over my last summer blog which I was going to blog every week, my motivation and my blog fell apart before my second blog.

2) Why don't I just embrace my post baby curves?
If it was simply an issue of curves, I wouldn't be doing this.  I like the fact that I don't like like a 13 year old boy.  I've always had curves and it doesn't scare me..... However, the extra fat around my belly, thighs and arms is what I'm not happy with.  The truth is that my BMI is 27.63 which means I am decided overweight.  I need to lose 16 pounds just to be in the "Normal" weight category!!  My goal is to lose 24 pounds, but really I would be happy to lose 17 and be a 'normal' and healthy weight again.  The last time I was at that weight was only 4 1/2 years ago and I see no reason why I can't get that back.

3) How did I get so awesome?
I'm not really sure how I got to be this awesome.  I think it's an issue of genetics loading the gun and environment pulling the trigger.

Week 1, Day 3 - Darn! Time to eat again :(

Training:
Last week when I tried my 3 mile run, Lilah wasn't having it and screamed the whole last mile home.  Well despite the wind, rain and 39 degree temperature, Lilah and I made it through ALL 3 miles!!  My stroller (technically Brook's stroller) has a rain guard, but Lilah REALLY didn't like it, so finally I just took it down and covered her with layers of blankets and she was pretty happy for most of the ride. 

I also felt really good on my run, thus highlighting the difference between today and last Saturday when I ran after drinking too much boxed wine.  At about the 2.5 mile mark, I did have to stop and walk for just a little, but I would say it was less than 1/10 mile walking.  I actually timed myself and ran the whole 3 miles in 32 minutes which drops my speed to less than 11 minutes/mile.... definitely an improvement :)

Diet:
Despite my awesome Indian buffet lunch, I was still down an additional 0.4 lbs this morning.  HOORAH!!    I've also noticed a definite decrease in my appetite which is awesome.  Usually, I would eat a huge meal, then be hungry 2 hours later.  However, after my big lunch yesterday, I didn't even want dinner!  I actually had to force myself to eat dinner and later a snack b/c I hadn't eaten enough points.

Today, I'm also struggling to eat enough points.  It's really strange to not want to eat, or only want to eat fruits and have to stop to say to myself, "No... I gotta eat some cheese or something b/c I need more points before I go to bed!"  And BELIEVE me... I'm hardly starving myself!  Today I've had 2 coffees, 2 bananas, 2 apples, 2 eggs, Pot roast weight watchers lunch, corned beef sandwich, challah, a chicken strip AND a granola bar.... yet I still have another 10 points to eat!?!?!?!  Maybe I'll eat ice cream with chocolate sauce and whipped cream???  although I'd still have to eat more. 

Week 1, Day 2

Running: 
Today was my first official day of running and it went really well.  Lilah had been pretty fussy in the morning, so I was kind of worried, but it was all for naught, since she sat so happily and quietly in the stroller that I have to admit there were moment I forgot she was there :)  It was only 1.5 miles, but it felt good.  Tomorrow will be a 3 miler which I'm also nervous about since her stroller limit seems to be 2 miles so far. I'll just have to say a little prayer and hope she sits as happy tomorrow as she was today.

Food:
The scale was exactly the same today as it was yesterday, which was kind of dissapointing, but I suppose staying the same is better than going up.  I had given myself 34 points for today and I think I used only 31.  Thank goodness I started the day good, because I pretty much blew all my points on lunch. 
Today, my awesome mother took me for a belated birthday present of a Pedicure followed by Indian buffet lunch :) While it was DELICIOUS, I have no idea how many points it was.  I started off by filling 1/2 my plate with cucumbers and tomatoes, then guesstimated every tablespoon I ate was about 1 point, the two pieces of tandoori chicken were 4 points each, and totally ballparked the chai tea as 2 points.  So in the end, I'm thinking my lunch cost me 20 points!?!?  OY VA VOY!  So, I took it easy for dinner making a salad with 2 tablesppons of FF italian dressing and 2 falafel balls crumbled.  Which brought me up to 28 points, then a bag of popcorn (which I gave most of to Lawrence & Ari) which brought me up to approximately 31 points depending on how accurate my lunch guessing was.

Other:
For anyone who read my over the summer blog, you know I had worked really hard to close my Diastasis Recti.  Basically, my pregnancies broke my stomach muscles which made me look forever pregnant.  I was really happy with my results by the end of the summer, but I've laxed on the exercises and my tummy has gone back to looking prego :(  So, in addition to my Marathoning and Dieting goals, I'm also going to add back in my Diastasis goals.  I'm gonna keep it simple and just do the basic exercises, but 10x per day. 


So my weekly goal is as follows:

Week 1 11/14	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun
Runs	Rest	1.5 m run	3.0m run	1.5 m run	Rest	3 m run	30 min walk
Points	32	34	36	34	32	36	34
Diastasis	10	10	10	10	10	10	10

Week 1, Day 1 - The First One is Always Free...

Today was FINALLY the first day of training... WAHOO!!!!!  So what seriously intense exercise did I do?????  Big, fat nothing, nada, kloom.  Mondays are rest days!  On one hand, it was anti-climactic, but on the other hand, it ended up being a crazy day b/c I forgot about Lilah's Occupational Therapy appointment this morning, so I guess it was all for the best.  

Training for the week looks like this:

Week	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun
1 – 11/14	Rest	1.5 m run	3.0m run	1.5 m run	Rest	3 m run	30 min walk

I'll also being adjusting my points for the days I run.  It ends up being an extra point for every additional 5 minutes I exercise at "high intensity."  Since I'm still pretty out of shape, I will be categorizing every moment running as high intensity. 

Point goals for the week will be:



Week	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun
1 – 11/14	32	36	36	36	32	36	34

So away we go!!!.... Tomorrow :)

Wish me luck.

Training minus 1 day...kind of.

Last night's avoidance of the wine worked and for I was down some more weight this morning :)  It's really gratifying to see the number on the scale finally starting going down.... but now I have to stick with it!!

Today I was supposed to go for a 30 minute walk, but it was a pretty crazy day and I just couldn't seem to find 30 minutes to get outside and walk.  That being said, I DID get walk around the grocery store for at least a 1/2 hour.... I'm not sure if that counts, but I think it should count for something. 

Tomorrow is technically my first day of training, but good old Hal made the first training a rest day... which I think is unfortunately anti-climactic, but I'll take it and relish my last day before being officially in training. 

Ixn-ay the Oxedwine-bay

Last night I learned a valuable lesson about drinking cheap boxed wine while dieting and training:

1) Dieting: Immediately after publishing my post last night, I had a glass of wine, which led to two pieces of chicken, which led to 2 more glasses of wine.  Remember last night when I said I was sticking to 35 points per day?  Well, due to the wine and the wine induced chicken, I ended up with 44 points..... conservatively :(  I guess once I have some wine in my system, I lose all ability to resist temptation!!!  Luckily the scale only went  up 0.6 pounds, which will hopefully comes off tonight when I abstain from the cheap boxed wine.  Alas... I suppose I'll be in big trouble if the husband ever brings home good wine :P

2) Training: I woke up this morning with a headache, purple lips and feeling generally mmmehhh. After 4 cups of strong coffee, I decided to go for my pre-training run anyway.  The first mile was painful and I literally felt like I was sweating cheap boxed wine.  Luckily, I was able to rally for mile 2 &3, but I know it wasn't my best.  Since I believe it's unsafe to listed to music if I have the kids with me, it was nice to be able to listen to my own music and zone out a bit :) I know this coming week will be better.

So, it looks like I'll be adding #12 to my "Things I've Learned About Running" page:

Do not drink wine (especially cheap boxed wine) the night before a run.

The culprit - Winco's finest:

I stole the above image off the Internet and have no idea why the person is aerating this crap!

And on the 3rd day before official training starts, we rest...

My training for the marathon technically starts on Monday, but for this past week, I've been doing the first week of training.  It's the first time in a long time I've run with any regularity, but I have to say I truly enjoyed every run I took this week.  The hardest was my Wednesday 3 miler with Lilah.  She seemed really happy for the 1st two miles, but ended up screaming the whole way home :( 

Today was a rest day, although I have to admit that between baking challah, 6 loads of laundry, a Dentist appointment and the two kids, I didn't exactly sit on the couch watching soap operas eating Bon Bons.  Speaking of laundry, I've noticed my increased running has lead to practically a whole other load of laundry a week! 

Here's a picture of the pretty challah I made this morning:

Tomorrow will be my first run this week w/o the kids and I'm excited to see if I've gained strength or speed by pushing the extra 50-100 lbs of kid & stroller.  I actually like running in cold & rainy weather, so for this, Oregon winter is actually perfect running weather!

My diet is also going well for the moment.  The weight watchers plan gives me 29 points to play with per day with an additional 40ish points to spread through the week. Additionally, I get points for my workouts which fluctuate depending on duration and intensity of my work out.  I find the extra weekly points to be annoying, so I've just gone ahead and made my daily goal 34 points per day plus whatever activity points I've earned.  As of this morning, my weight is down over 5 lbs in the last two weeks which is awesome, but the weekend is upon me and that's what usually kills me.  I'm hoping with my extra blog accountability I'll be able to control myself tonight :)

So.... as most of you already know, I've decided to something wild and crazy!!!!...  I registered for the Vancouver, Washington Marathon to take place on June 17, 2012.  SHA-ZAAM!!! I'm super excited about it and am really looking forward to starting training :)

Most Marathon training programs are about 18 weeks, but I've decided to do Hal Higdon's Novice Supreme training which is 30 weeks: http://www.halhigdon.com/beginrunner/novicesupreme.htm.  Why you ask?  Mostly because I'm terrified of getting injured!!!  You see, my husband qualifies for sabbatical (8 weeks of paid vacation!!!!) that same June, so the week after the Marathon, I need to be able to get on an airplane so I can hang out on a sunny beach without pain.  From what I've read, the more progressive your training program is, the less likelihood of injury.  

However.... there are several issues that will be slowing me down on my run to the finish line:

KIDS
I have two adorable little munchkins who will be accompanying me on many of my training runs.  I'll be running on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday.  My mother will watch the kids on Wednesdays and my husband will watch the kids on Saturdays (He'll also be watching Premiership Soccer), so hopefully I'll only have Lilah with me on Tuesdays (Ari is in Preschool) and I'll have both kids running with me on Thursdays.  Following?

Sounds like I have it all figured out - right?  Well.... as you might imagine, attempting to jog with kids is kind of like Russian Roulette: you never know when someone will be hungry, thirsty, have to go potty, want his bagel, want her puffs, or just decide they're done and start screaming bloody murder.  It can make trying to stick to a running schedule pretty difficult. 

The other problem with running with kids is the extra work involved.  My single jogger is 28 lbs, my double jogger is 38 lbs, my daughter is 23 lbs, my son is 34 lbs.  If I run with just Lilah, I'm pushing an extra 51 lbs and if I'm running with both kids it's an extra 95 pounds!!  It's really tough to push that much weight and I know I may not be able run the whole distance I'm supposed to :(

WEIGHT
I've managed to gain back all the weight I lost over the summer :(  I'm still 13 pounds over my Lilah pre-baby weight and 23 pounds over my wedding weight.  All the extra weight still stress my joints as I run thus increasing my susceptibility to injury.  I'm hoping to lose about 1 pound per week (totally reasonable!!!) to get to my goal weight by the end of my training.  I've started doing Weight Watchers on my own again two weeks ago (lost 3 pounds) and have been doing really well through the week, but I completely fall apart over the weekend. Part of the reason I'm starting my blog early is to give myself a kick-start over the weekend on my diet. I'm hoping by the end of the training, I'll be down to my goal weight :) 

WEATHER
I'm going to have to train during the winter, which in Oregon means lots and lots of rain. It's going to give training with the kids a whole new level of craziness!! 

Aiit.... here it is.  I'm getting tired now as you can tell from the paragraphs getting smaller and smaller :) I'll be posting daily to keep myself honest.... so get ready for 214 posts coming your way!  BAAM!