07/31/2011
Scenery for today
Today a friend and I are running a 10-mile race … Marsh Creek Raptor Run. The above saying will be my mantra. I can easily run 1 mile … so I’m running 1 mile 10 times.
Happy Sunday to you!
07/28/2011
Recently I wrote about some of the lasting benefits from Fitbloggin’. Another bonus of Fitbloggin’ was the various sponsors who gave away products to review. One thing that I picked up at the expo was an EatSmart Scale bathroom scale (I haven’t owned a scale in ages)
For some people, weighing regularly can be discouraging and be unhealthy … both to their diet and to their self-worth.
For other people, regular weighing is a tool they use to monitor how their eating habits are affecting their body.
I think each of us needs to find what works for us … by asking ourselves some honest questions and then making the decision that is best for ourselves.
Does weighing regularly benefit me? Does it help me treat my body better or worse? Is it something I do to take care of myself or is it a compulsion? Can I separate my self-worth from my weight? Can I be content at a weight that is healthy for me even if it’s not the ‘ideal’ weight that some chart somewhere says I should weigh? Or am I not weighing because I’m living in denial about the health of my body?
I’m sure there are more questions we could ask ourselves … (leave any I missed in the comments) Once you’ve honestly thought about yourself, a bathroom scale and your health … then you probably know the answer as to whether or not you need a bathroom scale.
If it’s a good thing for your health, then …
The EatSmart scale looks great and fits into my bathroom perfectly. Plus, it’s so easy to use. You just step on it and it turns on. After a few seconds of different numbers lighting up (add music and you almost have a dramatic Biggest Loser weigh-in) your weight lights up.
As I said I haven’t had a scale in ages, for years I lived in a semi-denial state. I went by how my clothes fit to determine if I was at a good weight, but most times I carried some extra weight, but I didn’t really want to deal with it. But since being injured, I’ve been more concerned about keeping my weight low because it’s best for my legs. They don’t need additional stress. Plus as I age (trying to grow into a fine wine) I’ve realized living in denial about anything doesn’t help.
So having a scale recently has been helpful. I weigh two or three times a week. I don’t drive myself crazy about the number, instead I use it as a measuring tool for my health. And I’m happy to have lost five pounds since May.
Thank you EatSmart for making a great product and for giving me one at Fitbloggin’. I plan to use it as a tool for my health for many years to come.
You’ll find more info about all the EatSmart products at their website and/or on Amazon. Also connect with them on Twitter … @EatSmartScales and Facebook at EatSmart Products
07/26/2011
I’ve been sad since hearing about the tragedy in Norway. I cannot imagine the loss, pain and trauma many are dealing with. Wanting to learn more about the victims and the attacker … I clicked through some news sites this morning.
How does one deal with seeing the pictures of the victims? Or reading how teens lay for hours on or under the dead bodies of their friends to protect themselves? How will those teens cope with that in the years ahead?
Reading about the attacker is also heart-breaking. Seeing pictures of his parents is hard … I cannot imagine their pain. What pushes someone to such an extreme viewpoint? A viewpoint that hurts others is never correct … but yet he is convinced it was correct and necessary, even after seeing the immense pain he caused.
So now I know more … and I am even sadder and not sure what to do with the pain I feel. Yet I know my sadness is minor compared to what the people affected are feeling. How do they even breathe these days?
Not reading about the tragedy feels almost callous to me … like I don’t care about them. Yet is having more information a good thing? Does it help me connect with the pain and loss they are feeling? Would it be better to not know as many details about the situation?
What does knowing more details help me … I really can’t do anything to help them anyhow.
For so many today, life looks different than they ever dreamed it would … so it almost feels callous to say this, but running helps me deal with life, so I’m going for a run …
Hope each suffering person can do something today that will help them cope.
07/25/2011
To accomplish projects or goals, we usually need some type of schedule, otherwise days go by and we don’t get closer to our goal. Charting our expectations on a schedule is good … until it isn’t.
That switch from good to not good happens when the schedule moves from being a healthy structure to a source of stress. Stress is unhealthy and most of it is unnecessary. Most of what we stress about on any given day will not matter in a year from now.
Spring training schedule for my running buddies and I
I run for my health and because it balances me. (Plus it’s healthier then other vices I could resort to) For motivation and fun, I’ve zeroed in on some goals that I want to achieve with running … a few half-marathons this year, a full marathon next year and then who knows what’s next. I’ve found putting a race on the calendar a few months out and then constructing a schedule to train for it helps me stay on track.
I’ve also found that holding my schedule with a tight fist is a sure recipe for discouragement and stress.
When the temps are reasonable, like between 70 and 80, I love summer. But we’ve been in a heat dome for the past zillion days with temps around 90 or 100. Obviously, this has affected my running. I despise the dreadmill, so I’m still running outside, but I’m going out earlier, slowing down and shortening my distance. And since walking is the new cool, somedays I’ve walked instead of running.
With a September half-marathon on my calendar, I found myself getting anxious about my lack of long runs.
Then I paused and looked at the big picture. I’m not going to turn into a couch potato with some adjustments to my schedule for a week or two. Walking briskly is not near as hard in high temps as running, but it is still a good workout. With some adjustments, I won’t be exhausted from the heat and my legs will be more rested and therefore stronger when I again do a long run at my normal pace.
As Jeff Galloway says in Running Until You’re 100,
Some runners get too obsessed about getting their run in or running at a specific pace. This adds stress to your life. Relax and let your run diffuse some of the other tensions in your life … take an easy jog! You should be in charge – not some training schedule.
This morning’s temps were slightly better than last week … instead of high 80s at 6AM it was a comfortable 75. A running buddy and I headed out and ending up doing* almost 8 miles (which is the long run distance on my schedule this week.) I felt great through all of it and could have gone farther.
A few adjustments last week didn’t kill my running, but instead I felt rested and strong today. This made me pause and wonder if there’s other areas of life where I’m holding my expectations with a tight fist and therefore causing myself stress.
So this week I plan to …
.
*I do Jeff Galloway’s walking break plan … I alternate running 4 or 5 minutes with walking 1 minute.
07/24/2011
I like his response. I hope that it is true. I like to think that if everyone was given an understanding of respecting others, the world would be a safer place … and things like the tragedy that happened in Norway this week would not happen again.
07/22/2011
Sometime this past spring the Fitbloggin’11 Conference came across my radar screen. I was curious about it. The name told me that it included two things I care about … fitness and blogging.
I wondered if I would fit the desired attendee. I’m not exactly a fitness blogger … sure I blog about some things related to fitness and healthy eating and some of my own journey about being fit, but I also blog about guilt on Mother’s Day, Dr. Oz’s Commencement Address, street corner preachers, giving love not reasons, not being a jerk and I do book reviews.
But I found myself back on the Fitbloggin’11 site more than once, looking over the schedule of great classes and workshops.
Then one happy day I came across Attune Foods website and they were giving away a ticket to Fitbloggin’ plus $500 to use toward travel expenses. I wrote a short essay about my story and a few days later I checked their blog and found this …
Drumroll, please …
A number of happy dances followed and in May, I headed to the beautiful city of Baltimore. I saw, I learned, I made friends, I ran a 5K and I learned about both fitness and about blogging. I discovered new ways for both my body and my blog to develop more muscle. Thanks to Matt from No Meat Athlete I’m finally understanding terms like SEO and anchor text. And there was no need to worry about whether or not Fitbloggin’ was for me … I loved everything about it.
With many conferences, I come home and forget too much of what I’ve learned, but there was something about Fitbloggin’ that was different. I’m benefiting longterm more from Fitbloggin’ than I do from most conferences.
Today I’m happy to share some positive chances since Fitbloggin’ in a …
Head over there to read it and then poke around on their site for some great information about health/diet/digestion and to see what products they have to assist you in eating well. (which includes healthy chocolate bars!)
Other guest posts I have done: Painful but Possible: A Story of Perseverance at Jeff Goins Word by Word at Shawn Smucker It all Started with a Book, a Blanket and a Flashlight at Andi lit07/20/2011
Most of the US is suffering from a heat wave right now. Our bodies are amazing, but they are affected by the heat and those of us that workout outdoors have to modify our plans for our own good. In years past, during extreme heat, I’ve had two reactions … all or nothing. I’d either can all my workouts or I’d continue with the schedule I had because I was sure I was tough enough to handle it.
Neither of these approaches is good.
Totally canning all workouts is like not doing laundry for two weeks, you then have to play catchup the following week. But staying with your regular workouts is like driving at normal speeds in a snowstorm.
So what’s the happy medium? How can you respect your body in this heat? What is healthy if you don’t want to crank up the AC and undust the treadmill?.
It will not kill you … seriously it won’t. Yes, you might have to go to bed earlier the night before … but avoiding the additional degrees of heat will be worth it. And you might see a scene like this.
Mornings are beautiful ....... Hopewell Furnace - Janet Oberholtzer
You can not expect your body to maintain the same workout pace as usual … it is working harder to breath (especially if there’s humidity) to keep vital organs cool and to get oxygen to important places, like your brain. (I prefer to give my brain all the help I can)
.Whether you are running or biking … cut your planned distance by a third or even a half. The heat will make your body work harder, so only going half the distance will still give you a good workout.
.Walking is great exercise … and even in heat your body can keep up with your energy demands much easier than any other type of exercise. I recently heard Dan Buettner speak and he says, “Walking is not only good for our bodies, but also our brains and “walking is the best activity for longevity.”
Since hearing that, I value walking more and have enjoyed walks/hikes through a local state forest that I hadn’t explored before. I also make use of a treadmill desk which means I can walk while working in my comfortable temperature-controlled house.
And many others are also recognizing the value of walking…
Walking gets the feet moving, the blood moving, the mind moving. And movement is life. ~Terri Guillemets
People say that losing weight is no walk in the park. When I hear that I think, yeah, that’s the problem. ~Chris Adams
In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks. ~John Muir
And for Harry Potter fans: Nothing like a nighttime stroll to give you ideas. ~J.K. Rowling (spoken by the character Mad-Eye Moody)
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With these adjustments, drinking gallons of water and hopefully some AC during the rest of the day, you can survive this heat wave. Then whenever the weather normalizes … your body won’t have reverted to a couch potato, plus you won’t be physically and mentally exhausted from pushing yourself too hard through the heat.
With these adjustments, your body and mind will be ready to tackle your normal routine … with more energy than if you’d have taken the all or nothing approach.
07/18/2011
Are you concerned about the next generation? About kids now-a-days? Do you think they are unkind, lazy or disrespectful? I’m here to tell you that is not true. Or at least not true for the 18 kids I spent 3 days with recently.
When it comes to gift-giving, I’d rather give an experience than things. So for my son Jon’s highschool graduation gift and party, we rented our friend’s bay house and told Jon he can invite some friends. The house comfortably holds about 14, so we discussed inviting around 12. Jon can be a social butterfly and he doesn’t want anyone to feel left out, so when the final tally was done, there were 18 teens joining the fun. (thankfully they don’t mind sleeping on the floor and sharing bathrooms)
The bay teens (minus one who had to leave early)
I wondered how it would all work out, but there was no need to worry … all went well. If these kids are any example of the next generation, the world is going to be just fine. Before you assume I was with a ‘perfect’ segment of kids that all come from ‘perfect’ homes and situations … I wasn’t. But they are all kids that I will watch as they move forward in life, because I’m impressed.
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1. Willingness to help
Each teen paid a nominal fee for the trip, then I supplied all the food with help from my friend Deb (mother to one of Jon’s friends) No one had to bring food, but some of the girls volunteered, so I suggested baked goods. I was blown away at all the food they brought … delicious brownies (chocolate cream cheese, apple carmel and more) and loaves of pumpkin, chocolate chip and banana bread. (Yes, I tried them all)
Most of the group arrived at the same time and the kids were anxious to explore the dock and the water front. I asked if they could come back in ten minutes to help unload (you can imagine how many bags and coolers of food we had) My expectations for how many kids would return was low … but my pleasant surprises continued. Every kid returned and grabbed whatever Jerry handed to them. All I had to do was stand inside the door directing the flow of supplies and after a few minutes we were finished.
At our first meal, I passed around a signup list to help with cleanup after each meal. I wondered how many slots would be filled … and most were. Not only did they signup, they showed up! After each meal, 3 kids were ready to do whatever was needed. Many began cleanup without me even asking … they went ahead with washing dishes, collecting trash, etc. Most times, all I had to do was tell them what to do with the leftovers (which were minimal and usually gone by the next morning) This gave Debbie (her dog) and I time to kayak once or twice a day.
Deb and Charlie
2. Being kind
Though I told the kids they only had to help with meal cleanup (I would rather do prep work and cook) when kids who weren’t on the boat saw me prepare a meal, they often volunteered to help.
The highlight for the kids was Jerry pulling them on a wakeboard or on tubes behind our boat. It’s hard to make sure each kid has equal time, but with a little monitoring by Jerry, the kids were kind and generous with each other, making sure everyone had a turn everyday.
When I was accidently taken out nailed in the eye by a marshmallow during the marshmallow fight (what else was I going to do with a huge bag of marshmallows after I found out it was too dry to have a bonfire?) many of the kids were concerned about my eye … even asking about it the next day.
Thanks to the kids, we had time to relax
3. Hard work
Some of Jon’s friends are younger, so they will be back in highschool playing sports in the fall. Even with their coaches miles again and while their friends were boating and playing games, they followed their coaches recommendations and did their summer workouts and runs.
At first, Deb and I planned to send everyone home and the two of us clean the house after they leave … figuring it would be easier once everyone is gone. But when the last day arrived, we were tired, so I made a list of cleanup chores and passed it around. By now the kids had impressed me, but I was still skeptic about how many of the slots would be filled. Again, they signed up and showed up. At clean up time. Deb tackled the kitchen, while I handed out cleaning supplies, monitored the process and took care of odd jobs … and before long the place was sparkling.
4. Living life to the fullest: at play and at work
Many of the kids had not tubed or wakeboarded before, but all wanted to try one or both activities. Wake-boarding is difficult to learn … but many kids opted to try and they did not give up easily, even with repeated false starts, falls and face plants.
Tubing is easy, but it’s tiring, especially with Jerry driving the boat in a zig-zag fashion and/or in half-circles and two kids on two tubes playing a water version of king-on-the-mountain. By the last day, though they were exhausted, but I heard many say that they wanted go one more time before we go home.
They didn’t want to miss an opportunity to have fun.
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I came home impressed and hopeful about the future. True, teens (like adults) aren’t perfect. They stayed up later than I think is wise. (though I did the same when I was a teen) They ate lots of fruit, but not enough vegetables. I was lost with some of their jokes and slang words. There was an issue or two that had to be talked through, but overall the kids were great. So my advice is stop stressing about teens and about the future. With these kind, helpful, hard working teens-turned-into-adults in charge, the future is going to be fine.
07/17/2011
About 5 years ago, I came across the words below … today I read them again and realized again how much wisdom they contain.
“Forgiveness is a brutal mathematical transaction done with fully engaged faculties. It’s my pain instead of yours. I eat the debt. I absorb the misery I wanted to dish out on you, and you go scot-free.
Beware the forgiveness that is tendered soon after injury; be suspicious. Real forgiveness needs a time lag, for it is wrought in private agony before it ever comes to public amnesty. All true acts of courage are thus done in secret.” - Andree Seu
Your thoughts?
07/15/2011
About two months ago, I took a vlogging workshop by Jendi from Simple Vlogging Tips. She was a great teacher, I learned a lot and thought I would come home and do a vlog that week. But I kept pushing it off.
Finally this past week I forced myself to make one. I can find at least 20 things wrong with this one (even after way too many retakes) which is why I procrastinated and didn’t post it all week. But I’m going to post it, so that I can get the first vlog out of the way.
I sound and look like a robot at times, I close my eyes too much, I stumble over words, I don’t even like what I said anymore … so you may not want to watch it, but I have to post it to get over my fear of vlogs.
After watching this again, I realize that my hair and makeup does not look quite like it did a few hours earlier … my hair is flat and my makeup has disappeared, but I don’t know how to edit or cut anything out yet, so … it is what it is.
