Tower of Terror Training: Sucking Wind

As I mentioned in my last post, my husband and I signed up for the Tower of Terror 10-Miler October 5th. Now, I haven’t been doing much running lately, but I’m really looking forward to getting back to it. I’m going to try and keep things easy and not push myself too much, as I don’t want to end up injured. That being said, my cardiovascular system has been given a lot of slack over the past year and a half, so getting back into running is definitely challenging.

The Tower of Terror training plan that I’ll be following doesn’t officially start until June 4th, but I figured it would be good to get my feet and body moving beforehand. Yesterday was a beautiful, if windy, day here in Saskatoon and since I had an extended lunch due to a patient canceling, I threw on my running gear and headed out.

The training plan recommends a 13-15 minute warm-up and then a 30 minute run every Tuesday and Thursday, so that’s what I did. A few weeks ago, I went from running 1 min/walking 1 min to running 3 min/walking 3 min. I figured run/walking 2min/2min would be okay. Um…not so much. It was SO HARD! My heart rate through the running intervals was through the roof and there may have been excessive gasping, too. I’ve been here before, though, so I know that it will get better. My legs felt tired but okay afterward. Really, my heart and lungs seemed to take the brunt of the workout. I plan to run again tomorrow and I know that it will feel (at least a little bit) easier than yesterday’s run/walk.

I’ve also been contemplating whether or not to put together some sort of costume for this race. It is Disney, after all. If you have any suggestions, through them my way!

 

A Kick in the Pants: Tower of Terror 10-Miler

I haven’t been blogging much lately. I haven’t felt particularly inspired and have been focusing on other things, like decluttering my house (baby steps on that front), sleeping, and a fantastic Hawaiian vacation (to celebrate our 15th anniversary).

Not blogging is not necessarily reflective of how my life is going, though. My work schedule is steady and more manageable than it was when I first started working, the kids started a new school after the Easter Break and are doing really well, I’m getting home from work at a reasonable time most days, though I’m still pretty tired at the end of the day. For a while, my workout motivation was high and I was fitting strength training and cardio in. And then I went on vacation.

Strangely enough, I worked out almost everyday while we were in Hawaii. We often got up early to go for a walk/run (I’m still having left hip issues, but I think it’s more from sitting at work everyday than from running), went for a few hikes, and hit the gym a couple of times. After we got back from vacation, though, I had a hard time getting back into a routine, what with catching up with work, catching up on home stuff, and dealing with jet lag.

Enough is enough, though. I needed a kick in the pants, so I’ve signed up for a race: The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror 10-Miler. In fact, with very little sweet-talking, my husband also decided to sign up, and my kids are both running the 1 mile kids’ race. The nice thing about Disney races is that they have  training plans on their website, so my husband and I will be following a plan for beginning runners that you can find here.  As long as you can maintain a 16 minute mile pace, you’re good to go. I figure that if I have any problems with my left hip/IT band, I can always walk it…and I’m pretty sure I could walk a 16 minute per mile pace if I went out and did it today, without training. My biggest concern is the potential heat and humidity, since I’m used to much cooler temps in October. Heck, the snow we received last October didn’t disappear until early this month. A whole lot different than Orlando’s weather, that’s for sure. Regardless of the weather, I’m sure it’ll still be a lot of fun.

Do you have any race plans for 2013?

 

 

On Beginning

I often have so many things running through my head that I have a hard time relaxing. I realize that this relates to the fact that I am rather Type A, and also to the fact that, like so many people I know, I am balancing multiple roles: mom, wife, dentist/health care provider, business owner, sister, daughter, friend, boss, etc.  It feels like a lot to sort out and I often feel completely overwhelmed by my to-do list, especially since I want to do everything and do it really well, though that is a completely unrealistic expectation. I recognize that I can’t have it all – no one can, though some may seem to. Rather, I have to choose what my priorities are and learn to let go of the rest.

This is often easier said than done, unfortunately, but in order for me to manage my stress, I’m going to have to be realistic about what I can tackle, especially over a short time frame. At the same time, when I have a arm’s-length to-do list, I feel bad about myself if I don’t at least make some progress in crossing items off. What’s a girl to do?

I’m sure there are a few books out there that I could read about stress management, time management, and work/life balance, and I might get to a few someday, but today, I was inspired by the poster to the left, which is available as a free download from Paper Coterie here. It was created by Angie Warren and it gets to to heart of what I’m feeling these days. I need to stop overthinking everything and start doing what I feel is important.

Spring is a really great time for me to start living and feeling rather than letting the same thoughts run through my mind over and over. My mind has been crowded by “send out birthday invitations” and “buy paper plates” and “rent a car for Hawaii” and “book a bikini wax.” I want to start getting organized rather than just thinking about getting organized. I can make all of the lists I want to, but if I lose those lists or spend hours worrying that I should start by organizing the basement storage room rather than the office, then what’s the point?

As part of this desire to focus on living and feeling, I’ve recently started a new blog over at www.mfmhappinessproject.wordpress.com. I was inspired by the book The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin, though I’m putting my own spin on it so that it doesn’t feel overwhelming. In a couple of days, I’m putting together 5 resolutions for April 13th-May 12th, and organizing will be part of that, but I think 1 of my resolutions will have to relate to Being Myself and letting go of the pressure I put on myself to do everything.

You’re probably wondering why on earth I would create another blog when I’m not exactly blogging regularly here. Isn’t that just another item to add to my pile of to-dos? Honestly, I blog for myself, mostly as on online journal, though I enjoy reading the comments I get and love some of the suggestions I’ve received from readers. In addition, writing helps be sort out my thoughts and the blog format allows me to store everything online rather than cluttering up my space with paper (I have enough of that already). I may not blog frequently, but I do enjoy the time I spend mulling over my life as I put together a post.

Have you read The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin? How do you de-stress?

P.S. Yesterday, I ate really well, ran/walked over lunch, lifted weights in the evening, and got a short yoga sesh in. Feeling sore and tired today, but in a good way, and I feel really proud of myself for having a great day yesterday.

Falling Off the Wagon

I was doing really well with eating and working out for a couple of weeks, and then halfway through last week, I hit a wall. I couldn’t seem to dig deep enough to convince myself to workout and I ate way too much (and way too much sugar) over the weekend. I’ve been beating myself up about it and decided I needed to LET IT GO.

While I’m willing to let it go and move forward, I do recognize that lack of consistency is a big thing for me. As in, it’s consistently a problem for me (see the irony there?). I have been struggling with it for years…actually, a couple of decades, if I’m perfectly honest. I guess the good thing is that I haven’t completely given up on trying to be healthier; I just happen to fall off the wagon a lot. I did get back on today and went outside for a short walk/run. To be clear, I’ve still got nagging ITB and SI issues, but despite the snow and cold that we’re still living with around here, I needed to get out into the sunshine and get running, because running makes me a happier person.

Tonight, I’m lifting weights and getting some yoga in. Tomorrow, I’m planning to do some cardio and yoga. Thursday, it’ll be the weights, yoga, and intervals. Friday = cardio. Saturday will be weights, cardio, and yoga. Sunday, I plan to take it easy and maybe do some yoga.

If anyone has a strategy for maintaining motivation long-term, I’m all ears! Note: I’m probably not talking to you if you’ve always found it easy to be active and eat healthfully, as I’m totally jealous of you

Beach Reads

In less than a month, my husband and I will be celebrating our 15th wedding anniversary, which seems…completely crazy to me, because surely I’m not old enough to have been married for 15 years. (I’m also sure I’m not old enough to have a son turning 9 and my own dental clinic.) In any case, we’re celebrating our anniversary by going to Hawaii – specifically, Oahu – and I’m lining up some books to read on the plane over and on the beach, naturally. So far, I’ve come up with the following list, which has mostly been put together by googling “best beach reads” and “best beach reads hawaii.” I was not wanting anything too heavy, because I don’t want to think too much.

I’m still narrowing down my list, but here’s what I’ve got so far:

• Shark Dialogues by Kiana Davenport
• House of Many Gods: A Novel by Kiana Davenport
• Haole Wood by Dee DeTarsio
• Murder in Waikiki by Fred Zackel
• The Last Aloha by Gaellen Quinn
• Honolulu by Alan Brennert
• Where’d You Go, Bernadette: A Novel by Maria Semple
• Wife 22: A Novel by Melanie Gideon
• The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker

FYI – The first 6 novels listed are based in Hawaii.

With the beach vacay looming, I’ve been feeling motivated to workout again. It’s been a week-and-a-half since I’ve really started getting back into it and I’ve been lifting weights, stationary biking, and doing yoga. I feel great that I’m getting my workouts in and I’ve already seen strength gains. I bought The Women’s Health Big Book of Exercises by Adam Campbell and have been following The Get Your Body Back Workout (Phase 1). It’s basic, doable, and covers the important stuff.

Healthy eating is still going pretty well, even with it being Easter this past weekend. I restricted my chocolate ingestion to Sunday only, so I’m feeling pretty impressed with myself.

Back to Working Out

Hockey is officially over for the season and I’ve taken advantage of the room in my schedule to get some great workouts in this week. Did yoga a few times, lifted weights a few times, and rode my stationary bike a few times. In addition to my suddenly lighter schedule, the weather is finally improving and we got above freezing late this week, which has really helped to boost my mood. It’s totally sloppy outside, though, since we got the most snow we’ve had in years this winter, so my workouts are still restricted to my basement, but it’s sure easier to feel happy when it’s not snowing – again – and it’s light out before 8:30am.

On the eating front, I’ve been using the Lose It app for a few weeks now and have lost about 4 lbs. My fruit and veggie consumption is much improved and treats have been few. I feel pretty good about my eating, though I know there’s still room for improvement. This weekend is challenging, what with the Easter Bunny leaving treats tomorrow and visiting my parents for a couple of days, where I tend to want to snack on whatever happens to be lying around and end up consuming way too much. So far, though, I’ve been doing quite well avoiding the cheese and crackers and ice cream. Tomorrow will be trickier, with it being Easter and my mom planning a big meal, but I’m allowing myself 2 treats tomorrow and will be tracking my food. Food journaling helps keep me honest.

Adding to the motivation is the fact that my husband and I are celebrating our 15th anniversary in a month and we’re heading to Hawaii (thanks to reward points from our credit cards) for a week. Nothing like knowing you’re going to be in a bathing suit to give yourself a little kick in the butt to workout harder and eat better.

I’ve never been to Hawaii before. Have you? We’re going to Oahu, which is totally not my vacation style – I usually like more laidback. Any recommendations on things to see and do? Pearl Harbour is definitely on our list, but we don’t really have anything planned beyond that.

March Madness

My kids’ hockey seasons are wrapping up in the next couple of weeks, I’m happy to report, and my son’s soccer winds up this weekend. Looking forward to less driving and more time at home. If I’m totally honest, though, my husband has been shouldering the bulk of the running around for the kids’ activities, so I’m sure he’s going to be ecstatic come March 24th.

Workouts have not been happening for a couple of weeks. I have been totally exhausted (work has been really busy) and have tended to choose more sleep over workouts. On the other hand, my eating has been pretty good, and last week I started using the Lose It app (loseit.com) and totally love it. I had previously resisted my dietitian’s attempts to get me to food track electronically because I’ve always found anything online to be a pain in the ass (PITA), but this app allows you to scan food labels into your phone and then tracks the nutritional data, to enter your own recipes easily, and is, according to my dietitian, fairly accurate in calorie counts vs. other apps out there. I was already food journaling, but using this tool helped me I was eating plain ol’ too much, even though the food I was eating was generally good for me.

Still making my way through The Book of New Family Traditions (Revised and Updated): How to Create Great Rituals for Holidays and Every Day and have started Sundae Mondays for the kids. Basically, I’m putting together breakfast sundaes for them every Monday morning so that they have something to look forward to that day. Mondays suck for pretty much everyone, and I’ve definitely noticed that it boosts their moods at the beginning of the week to start out with something fun.

Off to do some yoga before bed. Today was a long, tough day at work and my back needs to decompress.

What are your favourite apps?