Time flies when you are having fun!

Wow! I can't believe that it has been almost a month since I made a blog entry. Crazy busy and worn out...I have just not had a moment to sit down and complete a thought without falling asleep. Over the course of the last 3 weeks, I have traveled from coast to coast by plane, aged another year, ran another 5K race, and managed to log about 80 more miles on foot. Rather than giving you the blow by blow, I will simply share a few picture memories and then move on to the best part of this week...the endurance Saturday morning workout.

My stats for today's workout


My last post was following my trip to the CMSA conference in San Francisco. Well, I returned to Nashville for 1 day and then hopped a plane to Orlando for 4 more days of travel. June 21st-24th...I spent those 4 days burning the candle at both ends but made the final days of "39" most memorable. From Thursday til Sunday...Orlando took my breath away...or more like my sleep away. Self-induced sleep deprivation mixed with way too much good food and drinks equals a 39 year old woman that felt more like retirement age. I can only imagine what I would have felt like had I spent even 1 more day away from home.

Four days spent with patients that struggle to complete the simple task on the day to day such as breathing freely at rest...now that would humble anyone but especially a nurse. Spending time with several of our patients from Vandy was especially rewarding for this tender heart. Nine of the hundreds of people that attended the conference were patients at our PH Center in Nashville. That topped the all time record for attendance from what I hear. I tried to make a special effort to love on each and every one of them; they each deserve recognition for the sacrifice that each of them made with traveling hundreds of miles away to gain a better understanding of their illness and network with folks that share the same fears of living with a chronic disease.  

Part of our PH team from Vandy

Along with the learning opportunities provided with the "Scientific Sessions", I had a little down time to hang out with some of my dearest friends. From nice dinners out at local restaurants (Moonfish and Timpano) to dancing the night away at The Blue Martini, we  laughed until our heads pounded and bellies ached. Perhaps the laughter shouldn't take sole credit for my symptoms since the amazing margaritas and green apple martinis played into the day and evening festivities. I prefer to refer to them as "Fluid and Electrolyte Conferences" since we seemed to learn a little more about one another with each session that we attended :) Since many of the attendees of these said "Conferences" have sworn me to secrecy, I won't detail too many incriminating moments. Just know that we will all returned home to our families with a warm heart and fond memories of our fellow sisters that work in the trenches with treating PH across the country.



GNO at the Blue Martini



Monday, June 25th marked my "40" years here on earth. So thankful to be home...I spent the majority of the day in my comfy bed. Seriously, I slept almost 8 hours in the middle of the day. Exhausted doesn't begin to describe how my body felt after a week away. I managed to pull myself away from the pillows and blankets in time for dinner at my mom's house.

My sis-in-law decorated the house and mom prepared a FANTASTIC meal for us all to enjoy.



Loved my Birthday coconut cake topped with a floating candle...hehehe



Moving forward to July 4th....We (David and I) celebrated our 1 year anniversary of participating in 5K races by signing up and completing the Firecracker 5K again for the 2nd time. We definitely beat our previous times from the year prior...but David ROCKED his time with a 38:53 as compared to his 51:06 minutes previously. My numbers weren't as impressive with 38:23 compared to 46:11 but I will take it :)

Skipping on to yesterday (Friday, July 13th)...After working all day from home, I spent the evening purging my closet of all the outdated, over sized clothes and junk that needed to find a new home. Realizing that I could have been on the next episode of TLCs Hoarding: Buried Alive, I had to make time to make space.

3 plus hours later...the end results were favorable. And yes...these bags lined up below are only from the closet stash of clothes and shoes. I had already worked on my dresser drawers about 3 months ago.



9 bags of clothes and 1 bag of shoes...heading to the Goodwill



54 pairs of shoes...Is this too many?

Minimized and Organized...If it doesn't fit me today, then it is not in this closet!

Today...July 14th...endurance Saturday morning!



  

A couple of the Secret Scale Society Gals, me, and David managed to make our way to the Springfield Greenway at 5:30am today. We have gotten a bit smarter in these record high temps by starting early to prevent the sun from baking us to a well-done before we finish the mileage.

 8 miles before 8am...now that's the way to do it!

The geese were on their morning walk as well.



Realized as we met up that purple was the color of the day...The Three Stooges



Since I haven't blogged in a few weeks...I haven't had a chance to unveil my latest numbers from the scale. I will say that over the course of the last 3 weeks or so, I have burned over 9,000 calories according to my Garmin. However, the scales don't reveal numbers nearly as impressive. I have this little problem with bending my elbow too much. You know...the fork and hand or the glass and hand to the mouth routine. I seem to lose a pound and find 3/4 pound. Yesterday's (Friday Weigh Day) number landed at 191.6 on the Tanita Scale. According to the posts, I have left 0.8 pounds behind since June 15th weigh in. Honestly, I think I have the exercise in check but my eating is quite chaotic. Perhaps my act of purging the closet yesterday will help motivate me for the next 10 lb loss. We are only about 2-3 weeks away from starting to train for the Hard Rock Cafe 1/2 Marathon in November so I need to get busy losing this blubber so I am lighter on my feet. Here's to another good week ahead! Thanks for reading :)

To the West Coast and Back in 36 hours

This week has started out a bit chaotic as expected. Starting off with Monday and a 3 hour flight delay to San Francisco from Nashville was not my idea of a great beginning. However, the trip out west and back in less than 24 hours was pretty painless overall. Staying in the Westin St. Francis was a nice venue for a good night's sleep not to mention the workout facility there on site was nicer than expected. In fact, I managed to workout while enjoying the benefits of a sauna because the air in my room was a nice, comfy 68 degrees but the temperature in the fitness center was more like 75. Therefore, the first 10 minutes of my workout was comfortable...the next 50 minutes seemed to condition me more for the Sahara Desert. Either way...I managed to knock out 1 hour of cardio on Day 1 of my travels. 

As far as the CMSA Lunch Symposium presentation went...I enjoyed the opportunity to share a little piece of what I do on a daily basis at Vandy with a group (150-200) of knowledge hungry case managers from across the country.

Now...let's talk about consumption. Spending hours on airplanes and in airports doesn't allow for great nutrition.

Last night's dinner ended up being a slice of chicken pizza from the local Pizzeria followed by a cup of goodness...aka Pistachio Gelato. I don't ever remember having gelato but I can say...I WANT MORE just like that small cup that I indulged in along the streets of San Francisco. I had intended to have a nice dinner at the highly recommended Mexican restaurant, Calibrio, but the host (aka...ass) refused to offer me a seat in the dining room since I was a party of 1. He said that I would need to watch the bar for an opening since the "larger tables were more for parties of 2 or more." After waiting about 30 minutes for an open barstool, I ended up walking out and down a few doors to the pizzeria. Great customer service there, I must add. 

So this morning's breakfast consisted of a Starbucks latte, an egg and cheese on English muffin, and a banana. Lunch consisted of a quick, on-the-go sandwich and fries. On the first leg of my trip home, I threw in a Snickers bar for comfort food.

A quick side note for you...I chose the front seat of the plane next to a very pleasant fella as we boarded in San Fran. I can't even share his name because I didn't even ask it despite non-stop conversation with him for the 2 1/2 hour flight. He and I realized that we were both from Nashville, and that seemed to be a good conversation starter. We commenced sharing stories of the importance of "making memories". He explained that he had recently lost his mother due to lung disease and his father had passed away a couple of years ago. He said that he realized thru these losses that he needed to make memories while he was healthy enough. He had spent the last 2 years caring for his mother before her demise so he decided to take the last 10 days to travel to San Fran to visit his sister. Our conversation continued to roll into talking about weight loss some how. I think it started with him asking me what time I woke up and what I was doing up so early on "my day off". I explained that nearly all of my days start with the alarm sounding at 3:45am with my determination to start each day by burning a few calories so I could eat more gelato if given another opportunity. As I sat next to him in the front row, we shared 3 seats between the 2 of us. I was seated securely and comfortably in my aisle seat (which is much different than the last flight that I took to San Fran about 18 months ago) as his elbow lacked about 6 inches from touching my armrest. Yes, his size cost him a double airfare.  I was able to share a portion of my weight loss journey with him as we discussed our typical day. As he spoke of finding his niche in life with being a realtor, he mentioned that he was eager to lose weight so that he could live long enough to enjoy 32 better years. I chimed in with how purging the old habits seemed to be the only fighting chance that I had with losing weight and keeping it off. Realizing that I was unhappy with myself and absolutely needing to make a change was only the beginning of the challenge that I had avoided for years. Long story short, my decision to pick the seat beside him was no mistake. Many others had passed him by since I was toward the end of "B" boarding and he had been able to pre-board. I saw opportunity for great conversation with this robust fella blessed with a great smile and great salt/pepper hair (as he had obviously greyed a bit prematurely).

Our conversation slowed after my not-so-great experience with turbulence on the decent into Las Vegas. After I spent a minute (or twenty) in the bathroom in the airport, I decided to visit the Starbucks once I made it to the gate for the next departure. A cold, skinny White Chocolate Mocha Frap sure cooled this 'ole gal off after I had broken three kinds of sweat in my attempts to keep from puking up the fries and ham/swiss sandwich from lunch.

The 2nd leg of my flight was not nearly as fun since the aisle seat on the front row sitting next to my newest acquaintance was already taken as I boarded. I will close by saying that we met up again at the conveyor belt as we were picking up our checked baggage. As we shook hands and prepared to go our separate ways, he introduced himself as "Kelley"...a name of true Irish decent he added. I had worried that I had talked his ear off on the flight and obligated him to talking about getting fit, etc. However, to my surprise, he relieved my worries without even knowing it as he thanked me for the conversation and the inspiration to "get busy with change" soon. As far as "making memories"...I definitely can say that a made a few this trip but the most fond memory will be remembering the opportunity to make a new friend.

This morning...I jumped on the scale just for giggles. I am currently down about 1 pound since last Friday so looks like I haven't lost all control thus far. Fingers crossed for a few more good days :) A little sleep deprived but holding strong. All of that with a side of peanuts and you have Monday and Tuesday in a nutshell.

Surviving the Challenge

Challenges have clouded this week from beginning to end and will continue to roll into next week like a storm. From lunch at PF Changs last Monday with my girls to dinner meetings last Wednesday (Stoney River) and Thursday (Chuy's), I can say that I managed them as best as I could without totally killing the caloric count given the calories I earned/burned with exercise. If I think of the calories that I ate on those eating out days, they probably totalled 2000-2300 per day. On the upside, I have logged 26.51 miles on the road since last Saturday with the total calories burn equalling 3005. I managed to make it to the curb Monday thru Friday this week with the exception of Wednesday.

Weigh Day Friday with the Secret Scale Society revealed not so great results on the old WW scale with the gals but the good news is that the Tanita scale was much nicer to me for the week of chaotic eating. For the blogging purpose, I plan to use the Tanita as the official...be it good, bad, or indifferent. For the Secret Scale Society...Angie and Danielle rocked it!

     My total weight loss this week: 1.2 pounds

    This week's (June 15th) weight= 192.4, Total body fat % 39.3, Total body water % 42.5

June 8th Last Friday's Weight: 193.6, (Fat % 39.9, H20 % 43.1)

The road less traveled...1st time to do 7 miles in Springfield

Saturday goes down in history as the best team building Saturday morning endurance training thus far. A couple of the Secret Scale Society members (Angie and Kellie) rode with me and David to The Springfield Greenway about 7am. We planned to knock out 6 miles but ended up making it more like 7.11 miles by the time we made it back around to the Jeep. As we started to make the last turn to the 5th Avenue hill, David tossed up the idea of walking a little further up Memorial Blvd. I have to giggle as I think back to the tone of conversation during that morning. When we started out, David and the girls were snickering that my walk was equivalent to their jog. By the end, the girls were growling under their breath at their "trainer". That trainer happened to be David by about the 5 1/2 mile mark :) He was as determined as I have ever seen him be...and I loved it! We had stayed on the greenway for the first 3 miles or so then took off down the back roads of Springfield and up thru town.

Not sure I wanted to share this one since David and I agreed that we have looked "less round" in other pics

I can't complain about the extra mileage since I knew I was paying my dues for all of the eating out this past week. All in all, this week has been busy but productive. I am a bit nervous about this next week. I will be out of town starting tomorrow mid-day until the following Sunday. Monday and Tuesday will be spent in San Francisco at a business venture with speaking to a group of case managers at the CMSA conference, and Thursday thru the following Sunday will be in Orlando at a work conference. I am already trying to calculate how I can eat right and fit in some exercise as I travel coast to coast. My action plan will be to keep all food in moderation and make it to the hotel gyms on Tuesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday mornings. My flight doesn't take off until 12:30pm tomorrow (Monday) so I can meet at the curb with my bestest 4:30 team for a last chance workout before I head to the airport.

Saturday's Totals...from steady to leisure walking

Last but not least...wanted to show the world that this gal can be as gross as the next blogger. Remember that I mentioned my toenails has served as a sacrifice during the 1/2 marathon back in April? Well, the biggest of the sacrifices decided to cut the rope and bail out. Alls I can say is YUCK! Guess this officially makes me a member of the "lost toenails" club. Those next 2 toenails are soon to be bailing out as well. Until they get tired of hanging on, I will keep them painted. But....this will definitely be a NO SANDALS SUMMER.

Who needs toenails?

Getting the Right Perspective

I am going to have to get better at staying on top of these posts...recapping last Friday and Saturday..sorry for the delay.

Last Friday morning started off with the routine 4:30am workout and weigh in (as mentioned in the last blog post) but continued to be an awesome day shared with my sweetie as we rode topless in the Jeep most all day. I had the day off from the real job, and David was scheduled to work all day but not in the usual fashion. We were set to participate in Convergint Day so we headed to his office by about 7am. Convergint Day is a day that is set aside by the company management on a day each year so individual offices across the country can commit to giving back to their community. David's manager chose for his group to volunteer at the Church of Christ Disaster Relief Center just outside of Nashville. The day seemed to go quickly as we labeled and constructed boxes then packed them with cans of Vienna Sausages. We took a lunch break  then wrapped up the day about 3:30pm. You might ask, "What does "WGIBTU?" stand for on our shirts?" It means...Whose Got It Better Than Us?  Just underneath it reads "Nobody". These are the T-Shirts that the company provided for the employees and their family members to wear on the designated day.

After we finished hanging out with the Convergint crew, we headed to pick up our race packets for the Hell or High Water 2012 race set for Saturday morning.

Saturday morning finally rolled around as we have been planning for a few weeks now. David and I awoke to the alarm as it sounded about 5am. Getting ready on Race Day never seems to get easier, because I always have a moderate level of anxiety despite trying to remain cool, calm, and collected. Really...why am I even the least bit nervous? With these races, I am not shooting to win them. I just want to support a good cause with a modest donation/entry fee (average $25) and finish the race in a decent time (which equates to at least the same or better time as the race prior). Oh, almost forgot to mention that the other important piece is getting that T-shirt that they promise you :) I have big plans for my race T-shirts once I get several more so I like to participate in the races that provide that little "carrot" for signing up.

I was able to set a new personal best for this 10K..Not because I was like a wild rabbit out there...more because it was my first 10K race. Before I share my results, I have to say that I had a major mind boggling revelation about 3 miles into the 6.25 that morning. As I thought about the reasons that I am working to lose weight and get fit, I came to realize that it is totally for ME and in my own time and my own fashion. Meaning...for the first time in my life, I have taken ownership of my problem with being obese and unfit and have made my own way in sorting it out. Before, I was always looking for that quick fix or that step-by-step hand holding that Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, etc. provide. If I missed a week for weigh in, I would find reasons why it was ok to just skip another and then another until I was back on the carefree, binge eating again. Since October of 2010, I have been steadily figuring out what makes me truly happy and what I need in my life on a daily basis to feel fulfilled. As the months have passed, I have figured out that FOOD is necessary but is NOT necessarily what brings me the MOST happiness. The essential ingredient in my "happiness" recipe is the exercise. But...even more so...sharing these moments of activity with my friends and family. The morning routines with my friends help each day start with a positive twist no matter how tired I am. And..the races are just not the same unless I have my sweetheart or kids with me. Signing up for those challenges is only the first step in making me work hard in between race days.

Along this out and back course in Metro Center for this 10K, I saw those runners that were set to finish the race in a fraction of my time. As I faced them head on along the out and back route, I made eye contact and realized just how focused many of them were on the competition of the race. Very few of them even made eye contact much less smiled and cheered their fellow participants as they passed by. So...as I made it to the turn around (approx 3.4 miles into the course), I realized that finishing the race was important and being able to say I beat my last pace would have been really cool. But...the idea of crossing that finish line side by side with my sweetheart seemed freakin' awesome. Can you guess what happened next?  Yep, I found a nice shade tree about 4 1/2 miles into the course, trotted to a stop, and paused the timer on my watch. Yes, I stopped my watch dead in its tracks and stood in the shade in the middle of a race. Knowing that it was a timed race, I was aware that the "official" finish time would be what was reported as I crossed the finish line but I really didn't even care. David was about 3 people behind me....or about 7 minutes. The other two ladies that were following closely behind me looked quite puzzled as they passed by me just standing on the side of the road. One even asked, "Are you ok?"  I stood patiently and waited for him to come closer...one foot in front of the other steady as ever. I didn't expect what happened next! As he approached, he was quite angry with me for waiting up. He knew that I was shooting for a good finish time, and he was upset that I had waited behind for him. As he came jogging by me giving me "down the road", I restarted the Garmin timer again and continued on. My heart rate was still in the 130s despite resting for almost 7 minutes. I was hyped up to say the least :) Not to bore you with details, I'll just say that after about 30-45 seconds of him venting, I ran ahead of him by about 50 yards so that I didn't have to listen to him harp on why I shouldn't have waited up. :)  I crossed the finish line next to last at 1 hour 20 minutes (according to the Garmin). There were just under a 100 (92 to be exact) that participated in the 10K and the best time was 40 minutes (pace 6:31sec per mile). David crossed within a minute of my time. Personally, I figure finishing "almost" last is still not bad since my average pace was 12:55 per mile for my first 10K. You will be relieved to know that David and I started speaking again by the time we made it thru the banana and water station and back to the Jeep. :)



The moral to the story..."Never lose sight of what you hope to gain from the race. Personal success is not always gauged by who crosses the finish line first."

Next on the "race" list is the 1 year anniversary of our participation in 5Ks. We are registered for the YMCA Maryland Farms Firecracker 5K on July 4th. I will definitely run this race for my best time (no stops). In fact, I am shooting for running the entire 3.125 miles for the first time ever in under 40 minutes.

The Secret Scale Society

I apologize in advance for the length of this post...I feel like it has been forever since we have talked :)

Spending early Saturday mornings watching the sunrise and walking "the ribbon" is one of the most wholesome parts of my week. So...I did just that this past Saturday with my hubby and some of my favorite women on this earth. As we do many mornings, we all met out at the curb at 4:30am and set out on our journey thru the neighborhood. Now, I won't lie...the favorite women that I speak of would rather refer to "the ribbon" as about as much fun as a pap smear, mammogram, or root canal. It is quite an adventure. I like the endurance training of this course since you can really get your heart rate up without feeling nearly dead by the top of the hills. They would tell me, "Speak for yourself."

The builders and architects that designed this neighborhood about 7 years ago said that the side walks created a "ribbon-like" appearance throughout the subdivision. So, that's where we got the idea of "the ribbon". I hope you can visualize "the ribbon" as you imagine side walks on both sides of the streets pictured here. When I look at the picture, it looks more like a jumbled up piece of yarn..hahaha. Either way, it kicks butt with the nice hills and valleys for about 4.5 miles.

These last 2 weeks have slipped by ever so quickly. My usual day to day is quite busy but looking at the calendar from the past 2 weeks seems quite overwhelming in retrospect. Some days I wonder how I make it thru a month without forgetting the important things like taking a deep breath and enjoying the fresh morning air. Speaking of that...I need to admit a little something. I have NOT been making it to the gym daily or even at all in the last 2 weeks. Why?..you ask. Well, I have found a better place to be at 4:30am every Monday thru Friday and it's not in bed with my hubby and dog snuggled up tight.




Kelly, me, Angie, and Danielle...the beginning of the team

 

I have been fortunate enough to find other crazy people in my little town that are as short on extra time in the day for exercise and need the accountability much like I do. Our little group started with just 4 of us gals a week ago on Memorial Day and has blossomed to 7 of us by this AM (not even 2 weeks later). We have been "friends" for a few years thanks to 24 Church but never really gathered in the same group all together at the same time. This new found sisterhood is just what I needed to keep my workout interesting. Different paces with varied intervals of run/walk, longer legs and shorter strides, varying goal weights...but all headed in the direction of putting fitness back in our daily routine. Now, we have a couple of guys that have infiltrated our little group...one being my hubby and the other being Danielle's sweetheart, Tony. Neither of the guys are crazy enough to make it to the curb every morning at 4:30am but they are goal directed just the same.

In fact, Tony about killed me dead this past Monday. Being all new to running these silly intervals (as recommended by David..."the researcher"), I decided to step up the quantity of intervals rather than the increasing the interval time on Monday. I set my Garmin to 12 sets of 2:1...2 minute of jogging with 1 minute of walking..instead of 10 sets like last week. Shoes laced up and all ready to hit the curb, I opened the front door to find that Tony had tagged along with Danielle to test out our new found group. Rumor is that Tony doesn't run much...he usually just does strength training. Well, that rumor is a flat out LIE! We started out running in the road along the curb lining the side walk since the blacktop is a little more giving to the knees and hips. We finished those first 10 sets with the average feeling of being tired by the end and then the "kill me now" session began. Tony must have found that little cup of energy that he was holding on to and downed it in one big gulp because he started setting a new pace. A pace that made me feel like my lungs and heart were no longer working in sync. It was more like a boxing match between my heart, lungs, and legs. Long story short, I have met my challenge! Tony ROCKED my world. I will admit that the Wednesday following (yesterday to be more exact), intervals at my old pace seemed much easier overall.




Check out that heart rate...crazy up in the 180 bpm area.

 

So..just to set the record straight..I am doing MUCH better at getting to the curb by 4:30am EVERY AM for intervals on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays and a brisk cross-training walk on Tuesdays and Thursdays rather than heading to the YMCA about 3 mornings a week. We are taking Saturday mornings to start at 7:00am and do some endurance training either on "the ribbon" or "The Greenway in Springfield" for about 5-6 miles. If this keeps up the way I intend, I will be able to save myself about $100 per month by dropping the YMCA membership for the summer and fall months. I will probably rejoin in December so that I don't freeze to death on those winter mornings before sunrise :)

So, I am super excited that my sweetheart put my 1/2 marathon stickers on my Xterra this week. I had 2 really cool stickers (a 13.1 and "I run for margaritas") that I totally screwed up when I tried to put them on by myself. Thankfully, he is much better at that sort of stuff than I am so he managed to get the backup 2 that I had bought in place with no trouble.  

  




Always Earned Never Given  and 13.1

 

Wrapping it up...last Friday was indeed Weigh Day Friday and I did it! 1/2 pound down...no complaints :)

                             May 25th Friday's Weight: 194.2, (Fat % 40.2, H20 % 42.9)

                                   June 8th Last Friday's Weight: 193.6, (Fat % 39.9, H20 % 43.1)

Tomorrow kicks off a new level of accountability for the 4:30am team. We are all wanting to lose weight...some fewer than others..but we all want to shed poundage. So, we are weighing in front of one another on Friday mornings before we head out to do intervals. Of course, they are not nuts enough to post it online in a blog so you won't get the full details of individual weight loss but I will be glad to share our grand total of blubber lost each week on my blog. Angie has renamed our team...

                                    "The Secret Scale Society"

Awesome! Have I mentioned how much I love these girls?! I will try to get my next post completed on Saturday with tomorrow's Friday Weigh Day and the results of the Hell or High Water 10K that David and I are set to do Saturday AM. Excited but nervous...





Making history in the Historic District

I can start by saying that this week has been one of my best if I gauge it by my mileage, time investment, and calorie burn. In reviewing, I can see that I managed to complete 22 miles in a total of 5 workout days . According to Garmin, I had a little over 2500 calories burned. That's a stinkin' awesome return on my investment.

My new favorite snack...fresh fruit with a dollop of yum!

Today started out with a rockin' start as we had planned. David and I hooked up with our friend, Shirley, and headed to the Springfield Greenway. When we arrived to get started about 7:30am, we learned that the 5K that was being held in Springfield today happened to occupy about 3 miles of the course. We went ahead and started from our end and took our chances on getting barricaded and forced to turn around. Turns out, we made it to the other end (approx. 2.45 miles) before the race began. Once we had made it to that point, we chose to turn back but head down the back roads rather than staying on the course. By the time we reached the Jeep again, we had completed 6.2 miles..aka 10K. The primary reason for our endurance training today was to prepare us (David and I) for the upcoming Hell or High Water 10K on June 9th.  David nor Shirley had seen 6 miles prior to today. Exciting for me to be part of their first longer distance. We walked the course today but I hope to jog/walk most of the Hell or High Water 10K with 3:1 intervals if all goes as planned.  

  

A little piece of nature along the Greenway

I managed to make the most out of the walking today since I burned a few calories to use this evening as we celebrate Shirley's recent graduation from Surgical Tech school. My big plans are for plenty of salsa verde and chips accompanied with ritas (of course). I have kept it rather simple in the eats department today since I have had 1 cup of coffee with cream and Splenda before our workout and 2 **yummy** hot dogs at Sonic and a soft serve cone for lunch at Sonic. The dogs totaled 770 calories and the cone was 250 calories. I added a diet Cherry Limeaid to wash it all down. So...I managed to consume 1020 calories from Sonic...Jeez, was it worth it?! Yes, it was today :) So, that leaves me about 1800 calories that I could consume this eve and still be on target for the day. Hmmm...thinking that might be possible if I can control the chips.



Me and Shirley along the back 3 miles



 

            Today's Workout Summary (according to the Garmin)

Extra info from the workout that my Garmin site notes:
Avg Pace:	16:18 min/mi
Avg Speed:	3.7 mph
Elevation Gain:	1,198 ft

Just as we entered the last leg of our walk.

Pic of my brother''s home in Springfield.
We passed him working in the backyard along the way back to the Jeep.

  

By the end of our routine today, we had all had enough of the heat. It was nearing close to 86 degrees by about 930am. Late May weather starting like this may definitely make for a hot summer. Guess my 4:30am workouts are going to be a GREAT idea after all since I will be getting my butt moving before the sun shines. The Bondi Band that I am wearing is the shinizzle when it comes to keeping the sweat out of my eyes.

I have got to quit smiling so big...my neck looks like that turtle that we passed earlier.
Gotta love David's shirt though :)

The truth of the week...Weigh Day Friday (yesterday). I am pleased to share that I have left another little bit of blubber behind again this week. Loving the new Tanita Scale for its consistency. I can hop off and then step back on 10 minutes later...the same numbers :) Based on the numbers, it looks like I am down 1.6 pounds and up in my water % and down in the fat %...all good stuff in my book. Here's to another great week thanks to accountability.

This Friday's Weight: 194.2, (Fat % 40.2, H20 % 42.9)
Last week's verdict: 195.8 on the new Tanita Scale (41.2% Fat, 42.2% Water)

From Urology to Intervals...Nothing but the Truth

Rolling away for a week in D.C



Starting this week off by dropping my  baby girl (not so baby at 14 years old) off at the Middle School to catch the bus for Washington, D.C. was quite a crazy start to a Monday morning. Just when I was feeling a sense of relief that her sassy mouth would be gone for 5 days, I realized that I love her and her witty humor more than ever before. She forces me to step up my parenting game from day to day because she is opinionated and hard headed on most accounts. Not sure where she gets that : / hahaha. The truth is...it is Wednesday (2 days later) and I miss her bunches. Thankfully, her teacher (Ms. Fowler) has kept me spoon fed with a few pics along their travels.



Ms. Fowler (Audra) and Katie



Monday ended up being a crazy kind of day from beginning to end. After seeing Katie off at the school, I returned home and knocked out about 3 miles in the neighborhood with a run/walk. No better way to relieve stress than to leave it out there on the pavement with the morning sun beating down on you :) Working out once the sun rises is not my idea of therapeutic since I don't do HOT and STEAMY very well but I did it anyways. After my shower, Dannah and I headed out to make a day of running errands and doctor's appointments. I won't bore you with crazy details but will just say that the urology (kidney/bladder) visit with the nurse practitioner in the afternoon was freakin' awesome.

I won't deny that this nearly 40 year old bladder has been struggling. Poise pads for long runs and squeezing my knees together when I cough..yep, this has been my well kept secret for several years now. In thinking that weight loss or a little fairy would simply take it all away one day, I had continued to ignore the obvious need for help in the 'ole urinary department of this vessel that God has given me. Long story short, I am the proud owner of my very own "pessary". To save face, I will just say...it is working for now :) Ran 3 miles this AM with no "accidents". I have an appointment scheduled for a cystoscopy and urodynamic study in August. And NO, I am not looking forward to it but it is the next step in preparing me for a more permanent solution to this problem such as a sling procedure later this year. I plan to have the actual surgery following the next 1/2 marathon in November since I can't train for 6-8 weeks after the surgery. Until then, the pessary will just have to suffice. Can't believe I am really writing this for the world to see...but if you know me at all...you will know that I have very little reservation in talking about natural body functions (i.e. passing gas, pooping, or urinating). It must be a nurse thing..hahaha.

Nothing really all that special to share with the world for Tuesday. Outside of working and shopping for groceries, the day was quite uneventful. I do need to share that my hubby had a great idea for snacking last night. We worked together in the kitchen to throw together a nice bowl of fruit complete with fresh strawberries and pineapple and diced Pink Lady apples. He and I agreed that all it was really missing was grapes but we forgot to pick those up on the grocery run. Either way, we enjoyed it!

Today, Wednesday, started with my workout at the Downtown Y. I am excited to say that I managed to run 3 miles on the treadmill this morning without taking walk breaks according to the summary from the Matrix machine this AM. This was the 2nd time in the last 30 days that I managed to dedicate myself for that amount of time without getting bored on the "dreadmill". Sure wished I could do that outside! The humidity and inclines seem to slow me down to a crawl and make my heart rate tip into the high 170s. David mentioned that I should focus on interval training outside instead of running with intermittent un-timed walks. That is probably my best plan since I really want to be able to run a 5K completely in the great outdoors by the fall. So...that is my plan. My eating has been in check so far today but this week has been sort of hit and miss. I keep bending my elbow too much and too frequently. : ( I must dedicate more time to logging my food with the My Fitness Pal app. I have no good excuse other than being too lax with my dedication to calorie counting. Perhaps I will get my butt in gear this week :)

This is a snapshot of my workout this AM. I did wear my Garmin and the footpod as usual but there was a bit of discrepancy in the numbers. According to my Garmin, I didn't complete a full 3 miles...more like 2.79 miles. I think I probably ran the full 3 miles since my foot pod is calibrated with run/walk on the indoor track there. The calorie count was crazy off though. My Garmin said that I burned about 380 calories but the Matrix noted  491 when I completed the run before the cool down. Who the heck knows which is correct ?! I will error on the side of caution and say 380 is more accurate.

I will plan to exercise in the wee hours of the morning tomorrow at home instead of driving in to the gym. I am going to plan to do intervals of 4 minute run with 1 minute walk for a total of 45 minutes (9 interval sets). I would love to have a running buddy at the Y that enjoyed getting outside on the city streets/sidewalks but I don't have anyone yet. Until that day comes, I will just stick to running outside at home in those early morning hours. Let's put this interval theory to the test!

Weigh Day Friday



Our neighborhood...530am

David and I decided that we would workout together this morning so the alarm sounded at about 4:45am for me to rise and shine. I have about a 30-45 minute routine that is nearly mandatory before I can get myself out the door so I needed a head start on him. I usually stumble over the cat and dog on my way to the kitchen to feed them and start the brew. Starting the morning with a cup of coffee and bathroom break seems to be priority and this morning was no different...I am a creature of habit. Am I the only person that feels more motivated after a good poop first thing in the morning? I feel lighter on my feet with less jiggle over all...guess that suggests that I am usually "full of shit"...hahaha. 

The satellite view of my workout this AM

Dressed with chest strap in place and Garmin reset...we were out the door by 530am. I like getting a little earlier start but today could be a little more relaxed since I am working from home so I could get up more on David's schedule. We started out walking the block together just for warm-up and then the real work started. Today is the day that I thought I was going to beat the man that I love and adore over the head with a large object.  I had planned to keep the same pace as he does with walking and running. My brisk walk is a bit ahead of him but his average jog is ahead of me. All in all, it usually balances out but I wanted to step up my run this morning so I planned to keep up with him with each interval (run 1 min, walk 4 min). We were doing well until we started running during the first interval. He stretched his legs out and took off in a mad sprint. Of course, he was not the nutty one. I was the idiot that tried to keep up. My lungs were screaming STOP and my legs were circling so fast...I think I saw a glimpse of smoke off of my heels :) That dash was enough to make me realize...We must run our own race! After I recovered (about 2 minutes later) as I continued to walk, I decided to do my own thing...which is quite unorganized but it seems to work for me. When I run outside, I don't try to do intervals...I just run until I feel physically taxed (around a 167-170 heart rate) and then resume the brisk walk. I try to set my sites on a point in the path that I will run again which is usually about 30 feet ahead. Overall, I averaged about a 13 1/2 minute mile by the end of the first 30 minutes. Lame, I know...but it works for me for now. Once David knocked out his 30 minutes, he headed inside to get ready for work, but I went ahead and continued on after grabbing the iPod. I ended up walking another 45 minutes or so but paid no real attention to speed.


Total Calorie Burn: 613 ; Total distance: 5.28 mi



After I returned home, I grabbed Gretchen and headed out for another 1/4 mile to walk her. She has gained a few extra pounds related to her newly diagnosed thyroid issues and general inactivity. Can't bear to see her plump and struggle at age 6 so we are going to increase her exercise daily (if possible). She enjoyed the walk as evidenced by her desire to go again, and I enjoyed the cool down :)

Well, today is Weigh Day Friday. As I had mentioned before, we have purchased a new scale for David's B-Day a couple of weeks ago. It arrived mid-week but I have waited until today to record my weight so that I could do a little comparison between the old and the new scale. David seems to have enjoyed the multi-functions of the new Tanita scale because it tracks Total Body Fat % and Total Body Water %. Of course, those numbers can vary from day to day but we are looking for trending overall.

Today's verdict: 195.8 on the new Tanita Scale (41.2% Fat, 42.2% Water)

According to the Tanita information that came with the scale, the Body Water % for females should be between 45-60% so I better get to hydrating. Body Fat % for my age is somewhere between 23-34% so I have a long way to go...but I am on my way :) Back in October 2010, I weighed in on a Tanita scale at Taylor's office where I was approx 48%  Body Fat (if I remember correctly).

In comparison, I weighed in on the old WW scale today as well. Today's weight: 194.4. So according to the old scale, this week's total loss = 1.1 pounds. I will only weigh on the new Tanita starting next week but was curious about the difference between the WW versus Tanita scales for the first Tanita weigh in.  Cheers to another successful week!