Month: January 2016

Well, hi!

I was |thisclose| to ending my streak today, but I’m not going to do that because I know that writing is what I am supposed to be doing right now. I feel like I am being called to write. It is something that the Lord has really placed on my heart.

Writing is bringing me a sense of fulfillment and purpose that I can’t quite describe. Every day that I post something, no matter how trivial or insignificant it may seem at the time, is a chance that someone out there could read something that speaks to them and makes them come back for more. Then maybe, just maybe, they will read something that truly impacts their life.

Without further ado, let me tell you about my Wednesday! It was #workoutwednesday. After all, this is a running blog and at least some of the people that come here want to hear about training and running … so today, that’s what we will cover.

My schedule called for 3 X 2 mile lactate threshold repeats at 6:15 to 6:25 pace. If you read my post Sunday, you know that I just ran a 10K at 6:09 average pace. The idea of 6 more miles at pretty close to that same pace seemed quite rich, but I figured I would give it a whirl. If you have been following along for a little while, you probably know that I typically do my workouts on the treadmill.

Not this morning! Daniel decided that he wanted to do the workout with me, which I was so grateful for. It’s definitely more challenging to get outside and do the workout on the roads, dealing with darkness, weather, rolling hills, etc., but we don’t race on the treadmill so occasionally it is good for me to conquer these obstacles. Actually, it would be best if I could do that the majority of the time and save the treadmill for the occasional workout, but that’s not where I am right now. Baby steps.

We did and 2 mile warm up and then started the workout. Daniel’s splits were a little bit different than mine, but they were pretty close. When we do workouts together we have a pretty good balance of competition and encouragement. The first two miles were very dark and so I tried to run by feel, instead of constantly stalking my watch to check the pace. The result was an average pace of 6:36. Not exactly where I was supposed to be, but definitely respectable.

We got a little bit more warmed up after the first repeat and averaged 6:21 for the second two miles. I was pretty spent at this point, but knew that I needed to at least attempt the last repeat, which I ended up averaging 6:31 on. Whew. That workout was not easy! I am so glad that I got out there and did it though. My legs were still a little fatigued from the 10K, so it makes sense that I wouldn’t quite be able to hit the paces that I was supposed to. Every workout will not be perfect, but every time you get out there and put in the work, you will reap the benefits.

I’ve been dealing with a stubborn case of plantar fasciitis in my right foot and a tender spot on top of my left foot, so I made sure to ice my feetsies when I got home. We even upgraded from the bag of peas to actual ice packs! Moving on up.

When I got to work today, the office was decorated for Mardi Gras. We are so festive lately! I’m not really big on Mardi Gras personally, but it’s pretty big in our area. I thought this picture was so cute!

At our staff meeting this morning, we got Starbucks gifts cards! Such a fun surprise. Last week at our meeting we pretty much dissected the Starbucks pricing model and so that was the story behind the gift cards. Poor Starbucks, if they only knew the things we said about them. I had to include my Coffee Loft cup in the picture, just so we are clear where my true allegiances lie. I also had to include my space heater in the picture, just so you know what keeps me warm and toasty all day.

After work I headed over to Rebecca’s for a few more miles of our #runlovechallenge. We got in 6 easy miles this evening and are now 65 miles into our goal of 214 by 2/14.

I came home, ate dinner and Daniel and I finally finished the last episode of White Collar. I was a mess after that. I wasn’t happy with the ending at all. I was so upset because the main character made a purposeful decision to go off to live a life apart from all of the people that he really cares about and that care about him in return. That really hit me in the feels. It made me thankful to be spending life with the folks that I love though, so I guess that was something beneficial that came from it.

My mom texted me this picture of Debs today …

I have never met a cat that likes to ride on the boat and walk on the beach. Debs is definitely one of a kind. I don’t think I’ve told y’all much about Miss Debits (Debs for short). She was my cat originally. I got her my first year out of school (aka my first tax season). She was “on sale.” The lady explained to me that it was because the economy was so bad. Seemed pretty legit to me, so I got me a discount kitty.

Turns out, she had a major case of ring worm, which in turn meant that I came down with a serious case of ring worm. I had to wear band aids all over my face to work during my first tax season. Yeah, fun times. To get rid of the ring worm, Debs had to be shaved and then every square inch of the house had to be disinfected every day. I simply didn’t have the time to do this, as I was working close to 70 hours a week. My parents graciously adopted Debs from me and now they are inseparable. I’m pretty sure I am the second favorite “child” at this point.

Any other only children out there get overtaken by your parents’ pets after you left home?

That’s all I’ve got for today! Good night!

Hello, hello! Time for some Tuesday tangents.

You may or may not have heard, but Alabama won the National Championship last night! I am not a huge football fan, but my husband and parents, well that’s a whole ‘nother story.

Speaking of being the champions … I am singing Queen’s “We are the Champions” in my head now. That song make me the of the Mighty Ducks. I haven’t thought about those movies in forever. I was totally into roller hockey when those movies were out. Ducks fly together!

Speaking of ducks … We had ducks as pets growing up and so I absolutely refuse to eat duck. Ever. If you are ever out to dinner with me, please for goodness sake, don’t order duck. A little part of me will die inside if you do.

For goodness sake … I just googled that phrase to determine if I was using it correctly from a grammatical standpoint (nerd alert). Apparently, there is some controversy as to the placement or non-placement of an apostrophe and whether or not sake is plural. Google directed my search to “for goodness sake I got the hippy hippy shakes.” So now I have another song stuck in my head!

Speaking of shakes … I had this protein shake the other day and it was really good. I am always trying out new brands of protein shakes. They are perfect for snacks or post-workout recovery.

Speaking of recovery … my legs were so sore today! I think I had a little bit of delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) going on. DOMS is the gradually increasing discomfort that occurs between 24 and 48 hours after activity that stresses the muscle tissue beyond what it is accustomed to. I’m pretty sure my legs are stressed out.

Speaking of stressed out …

Yeah, never mind. Brooks doesn’t know what stressed out means.

Speaking of Brooks … one of my friends texted me last weekend while she was out shopping for running shoes and asked if Brooks’ name was inspired by our running shoes. Indeed it was! Daniel and I both love Brooks running shoes (we also just really liked the name in general).

Now, I am going to follow suit and see if I can’t get my stress levels to match little Brookser’s here. See ya tomorrow! Thanks for listening to the randomness in my head today. It’s a crazy place up there sometimes y’all.

Hey friends! I hope that Monday treated you kindly.

We woke up to a very chilly morning, the coldest morning we’ve had yet this winter in fact. The actual temperature was 30, but the feels like temperature was 27 when we woke up. I had 4 – 6 recovery miles to get in and so Daniel and I bundled up and headed out early this morning. It really wasn’t as cold as I was expecting, but I was definitely dressed to handle whatever we encountered. I always think of the Friends episode where Joey wears all of Chandler’s clothes when I get bundled up. Could I *be* wearing any more clothes?

I wore tights with a tennis skirt over them. That’s my trademark, it’s really cold out, technique. I figure that since tennis skirts have shorts built in under the skirt, you’re really adding two layers to your bottom half. I wore a long-sleeved shirt and the warmest jacket that I own. It’s a Nike jacket that I’ve had since college. That’s also my trademark, it’s really cold out, jacket. I only wear it a few times each year. Add some gloves and a toboggan into the mix and I was set. We did 5 easy miles and I was even getting toasty by the end.

Random rant for the day … I’m on a mission to make my Fitbit read more accurately. Apparently you have to manually adjust your stride length in the settings in order to make the distance accurate. If you don’t adjust the settings, it calculates based on your gender and height. Unfortunately, it doesn’t show you what the default stride length is. It just shows as 0 ft. 0 in. if you don’t manually calculate it.

Mine has pretty consistently been reading 4.4 miles for our regular 5 mile route. I have a tendency to get geeked out over equations and formulas, so I am determined to get this figured out. Here is what I have come up with:

63,360 * number of miles run / number of steps counted per Fitbit = average stride in inches.

I’ve been taking notes of the average steps per mile on several of my easy runs recently (I’ve calculated it on a 10 mile run and on two 5 mile runs). I am basically taking 1,600 steps per mile, which is calculating to a stride length of 39.6 inches (or 3 ft. 3.6 in.). Once you figure this out, you just go to your dashboard in Fitbit and edit your settings. You need to do it for both walking and running to make it the most accurate. I haven’t calculated my walking steps yet. Running is more important (obviously). I just now, as we speak type, adjusted my settings and so I haven’t actually tested this theory yet. I will report back with the results soon!

I have a few other things to share with you today. First, this picture.

Stop it. Savannah (the artist formerly known as Squishy) has grown up so much! This one year ago today picture popped up on timehop today and the “now” picture was after our relay yesterday. She is the cutest little thing!

Second is a wonderful post by Jen Hatmaker. Here is what she writes …

“I have a counseling appointment this afternoon. Three members of my family are currently in counseling with more to come.

May I send a bit of love and encouragement to everyone who steps into counseling or therapeutic space for your own soul, marriage, family, or healing? Ditto to those of you sending your hurt kids? Whether you go for preventative maintenance or because you are hanging on by a thread, I’ve always said that when Scripture describes “gifts of healing,” I believe counselors are a part of that group. They help us heal. They give us tools. They walk us through recovery. They remind us of our hope.

There is NOTHING weak about being in the care of a counselor. That is STRONG. That tells me that you are not passively waiting for your strength, your healing. You are DOING THE WORK, poking the bear. You are actively working with God and making good use of the gifts He has given someone else to develop us into stronger, healthier people.

Bravo, I say! May we grab onto any tool possible as we pursue healthy marriages, healthy kids, and healthy souls. To abuse and suffering and loss and grief and pain and a horrible enemy: I say, COME AT US, BRO. We’re not going to take this stuff lying down.”

I highly encourage anyone out there who is contemplating therapy to do it. It will change you. It will make you see yourself and other people differently (in a good way). I have seen therapists and counselors along this journey called life at various points and am currently still seeing one. I haven’t shared much about that, probably because in my mind I saw it as a weakness. I didn’t want to be viewed as *that girl* who isn’t fixed yet and still needs therapy. But um hello, isn’t that the message I am trying to convey with this blog? I don’t have it all figured out and I am not perfect, nor will I ever be. But, I am taking steps (dare we say strides) to strengthen myself spiritually, physically and emotionally.

Let’s just all agree to do something worthwhile (for ourselves and/or for someone else) every day. That seems like a good goal right?!

I’ll leave you with this pretty sunset picture from this evening. That is definitely one benefit of the colder air … the sunsets are even more beautiful than normal.

Alabama is playing in the National Championship Game here in a minute, so it’s time for me to sign off and watch at least a little bit of football (before I fall asleep at my normal mee-maw time). Roll tide!

Happy Weekend! How is everyone doing? We have lots to catch up on! How is that possible, you ask … I have no clue, but it’s true.

Rebecca and I have been slowly plowing away at our #runlovechallenge mileage. We’ve gotten in 3 runs together this week and will be running the First Light Marathon relay tomorrow. We ran 6 miles Tuesday at the Running Wild group run. We were planning to run Thursday evening, but had to change that to Friday evening because we got rained out.

We tried to step up our picture taking game Friday. We stopped for a few minutes to play around with the phone timer photos. Everyone else is majorly showing us up with their Instagram photos, so we tried to take it up a notch. We did better, but still not great. It doesn’t help that the majority of our runs are in the dark, which is not really the ideal lighting for pretty picture taking.

The good news is that I survived the first week of tax season. Ha. It wasn’t a bad week at all, but I was definitely worn out Friday evening. This happened …

I have gotten into a really bad habit of falling asleep on the couch (under a big pile of pillows and a large dog no less). It happens pretty much every night. It’s just so cozy and I get so sleepy. I woke up just after midnight last night. The struggle is real.

Speaking of cozy … These pants (by good hYOUman) are absolutely amazing. They are made out of what has to be the softest fabric ever. I got these when we went to Watercolor a few weeks ago and I have pretty much lived in them since. They kind of remind me of a really unfortunate (bright red) Aladdin dance costume that I had when I was about 7. Thankfully, I am able to put away those tragic memories and enjoy my cozy pants.

I have been meaning to share this wonderful snippet from Anne Lamott for a little while and the cozy pants reminded me …

“Can you put the scale away for a week? Okay, then how about 4 days? I have been addicted to the scale, too, which is like needing Dick Cheney to weigh in every morning on my value as a human being. Can you put away your tight pants? Wear forgiving pants. The world is too hard as it is, without letting your pants have an opinion on how you are doing. I struggle with enough esteem issues without letting my jeans get in on the act, with random thoughts about my butt.”

Love it! Now that I have completely gotten side tracked, let’s get back in line here. I was telling you about our #runlovechallenge miles. This morning we ran 8 miles with Daniel and some of his buddies. We are 52 miles into our goal of 214 miles by 2/14. It’s been fun running together more, but it’s definitely a challenge to schedule it (especially because we are trying to match at least some of our clothing at each run). Last night we pretty much went through Rebecca’s entire running wardrobe, so now I am up to speed on what our options are for matching! We might be in over our heads here.

We got home from our run this morning and I was planning to walk with my mom. We have a pretty set Saturday walk date set if she is in town. But of course, it was raining again … so. much. rain. One of my friends at work told me that she heard a saying, “What if whip nae nae is a rain dance and we brought this all upon ourselves?” How funny is that?! 

Since it was raining my mom and I decided to go the gym (where we could walk together on the treadmills instead). Speaking of treadmills, I forgot to tell y’all, but our treadmill is sick. Daniel was able to revive her for a little bit, but I think she might be on her last leg. I’ll keep you posted. So mom and I headed to the gym, a place that I must admit, I haven’t seen in quite some time.

It was such a weird experience for me. I used to pretty much live at the gym. I was there probably 6 days per week, but after Daniel and I met, I “quit the gym” (remember that Friends episode …). We just ran, so I didn’t really use the gym membership anymore. Of course it is the first week of January and so we walk in and the place is packed out. There weren’t even two treadmills together at first, which forced me onto this contraption.

The ellipticals of the olden days are no more and this machine was a little bit intimidating at first. It didn’t help that as I get up there and try to figure out what program I want to try to do, I tried to set my phone in the cup holder (which didn’t have a solid bottom) and it went crashing down, causing a really loud noise and lots of stares in my direction. I felt like such a newbie!

That really took me back … I used to dread the first week of January with all the resolutioners there, taking up all the machines and crowding the gym. How dare they? Well, my perspective on that has definitely changed now. It takes a lot of courage to decide that you want to start a workout program and get healthy. Good for you! Keep it up.

At some point in the last week, I got my January StitchFix box and I forgot to tell y’all about it. I kept one top and one pair of pants. The rest of the stuff was cute, but just so, so. I decided I could do without it.

Apparently January 9th is a big day. I really love the timehop app! It reminded me today that 6 years ago today, Daniel and I got engaged!

It also reminded me that 5 years ago today, I ran my first marathon!

Today was a little bit less exciting than those days, but it was still a good day. We ended the day by grilling out and sitting by the fire. I was pretty proud of our dinner. We followed the MyPlate guidelines (see previous post) pretty well.

Daniel is all about the s’mores. Ooey gooey s’mores. He saved some for later!

That’s all I’ve got for now. I’m planning to get a good night’s rest, so that I will be ready for our relay in the morning. The weather is supposed to be great and I am running the really flat, (hopefully) fast 10K leg. I’m really excited!

Hey guys!

I’m linking up with the DC area bloggers Mar at Mar on the Run, Cynthia at You Signed Up For What?! and Courtney at Eat Pray Run DC for the Friday Five linkup. This week’s topic is “food and drink.”

The USDA released the new nutritional guidelines this week (they are updated every 5 years), so I figured that I use the new recommendations as a way to categorize the Friday Five post. MyPlate illustrates five food groups (how convenient, right?!) that are the building blocks for a healthy diet.

I’m going to include my 5 favorites of each of the 5 categories. P.S. I really love the number 5 anyway, so I’m really digging all of these fives. Nerd alert!

1. Protein
   1. Chicken
   2. Tuna
   3. Salmon
   4. Almond butter
   5. Nuts (almonds, cashews, pecans, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, etc.
2. Grains
   1. Quinoa
   2. Oatmeal
   3. Whole wheat bread
   4. Granola
   5. Wheat berries
3. Fruits
   1. Raspberries
   2. Grapes
   3. Bananas
   4. Honeydew
   5. Strawberries
4. Vegetables
   1. SWEET POTATOES
   2. Bell peppers
   3. Mushrooms
   4. Cauliflower
   5. Squash
5. Dairy
   1. Greek yogurt
   2. Australian yogurt
   3. Frozen yogurt
   4. Cottage cheese
   5. Soy milk (non-dairy calcium alternative)

I have always been pretty interested in nutrition and I actually think that the new guidelines are very reasonable and easy to understand. It’s so important to keep each meal balanced!

Hello and Happy Thursday! You know what Thursday means, right? It’s time to link up with Amanda for some thinking out loud!

I alluded to it in my previous post, but now that we are thinking out loud, I want to expound a little bit about something that I did this week. It was a big step! I gave up my “control” over my training schedule. You might even say that I “let it go.” Cue Elsa and Anna and feel free to sing at the top of your lungs if you so desire. Anyone else get that urge every time you hear the phrase “let it go?” No? Just me. Perfect.

I haven’t ever really followed a set training plan until recently, because I just flat couldn’t do it. I would print training plans online and I even had a coach write me a plan at one point several years ago, but it didn’t matter what the dang schedule told me to do, I wasn’t going to do it. How dare that piece of paper tell me how far or how fast I should run? I wanted to decide that on my own!

This confuses me a little bit because usually I am typically a very by the book, play by the rules type of person, so you would think that I would follow the schedule to a T. But, no. Apparently my rebellious side manifests itself in strange ways. The need to control things obviously applies to a lot of other areas in my life as well, but the running schedule issue is just a good illustration and after all, this is a running blog.

I am fairly certain that my need to control things is likely rooted in fear, which is interestingly enough what our sermon series at church is currently discussing. Faith lies in the absence of control and the absense of (worldly) fear. When we trust that we’re okay no matter what circumstances come our way, we don’t need to micro-manage things. We can simply let. it. go. In order to let go, you have to have the self-awareness to realize that 1) you are entering “control mode” and 2) making a conscious and deliberate choice to make a change. I like to think that I am pretty self-aware at this point. Although maybe it’s just really easy because I find myself needing to control things a lot.

What I am unsure of is the actual root of the issue that makes me feel the need to control things in the first place. I know that part of it is likely rooted in the trauma. When things happen in our lives that we can’t control, it feeds the desire to control all the things that we possibly can. I can’t say that I didn’t have the need to control and contain my world prior to the trauma though, because I most definitely did. The trauma just magnified those feelings.

Back to the training schedule example … up until this week, my training plan was pretty open ended. My coach gave me the workouts that I was to do for the week, but it was up to me to decide what days I did what. He also gives me a range for most days. For example, 3 days a week I am supposed to run between 8 and 10 miles, which gives me a decent amount of flexibility. I pretty much asked to have it this way, because I didn’t think I would do what he told me to do otherwise. The fact that I am even doing the workouts are scheduled is showing progress. I still needed to make the decisions about what days and exactly how far I went … or so I thought.

For whatever reason, I had this epiphany that I really didn’t want to have the pressure of deciding when to do my workouts and how to schedule them throughout the week. My coach is the expert. I trust that he knows what he is doing. Why was I not letting him do his job? Oh that’s right, because I wanted to be in control. Not anymore! I’ve officially turned over the reins and now my schedule is set. Obviously I will be smart and listen to my body, but I plan to do what he tells me to do when he tells me to do it.

It’ll be interesting to see if I am able to handle it, right?! Stay tuned.

Any other control freaks out there? What do you try to control?

Hey guys! So yeah, I made up a word (workoutless) that pretty much sums up the current state of my training. I haven’t talked a whole lot about my NOLA training recently, and it’s time to fix that. I wrote a long email to my coach this week and I’m going to share some excerpts from our email exchange that will pretty much get you up to speed.

Here is what I told him …

Hello! Let’s chat. I’ve got nothing but random ramblings for you today.

I am currently on Season 2 of Gilmore Girls and this morning I saw Episode 15: “Lost and Found.” In this episode Jess tells Luke, “Great! Then we can hold hands and skip afterwards.”

I have been saying that for years and I didn’t know where I had come up with it. Mystery solved.

Speaking of skipping … I can’t do it. It’s as if I never learned that skill when I was younger or something. I like to think of myself as a pretty coordinated person otherwise, but there is something about the rhythm of skipping that I just can’t do. Just ask Daniel. He can vouch.

Speaking of vouching … I registered for the Big Beach half marathon today using my first-ever Groupon deal. There is a Groupon for half off of registration, so the half ended up being less than $40. If you were on the fence about registering for the half or the full, you should definitely do it! Here’s the link. It’s a pretty sweet deal!

Speaking of sweet … I came to a wonderful smell. Daniel got a dehydrator for Christmas and he is testing it out tonight with some pineapple.

Speaking of dehydrated … don’t let it happen! Drink water. Lots of water.

Speaking of water … the first miracle that Jesus performed during His earthly ministry was changing water into wine at the marriage feast in Cana. Interesting little fact.

Speaking of wine whine … I’m getting pretty hungry and sleepy. Time to eat some dinner and call it a night!

Any tangents that you’d like to share?

Hello! I survived my first day of tax season! Woo hoo.

We aren’t all that busy yet, but something about that first Monday in January that really just makes it feel official. This will be my 8th tax season. I don’t even know how that is possible. I’m getting old.

In a weird way, I am actually looking forward to tax season this year. I enjoy being busy and with my new schedule and new firm, I won’t be working near as many hours or under as much pressure, so I think it might just be the best season yet. Fingers crossed!

Colossians 3:23 is my tax season verse.

I started my day off with an easy 6 mile run on the treadmill, while watching some Gilmore Girls. I love starting my day off with a run! When I walked outside, the sunrise was really pretty. The sky looked like cotton candy.

We face West, so we have a beautiful view of the sunset (as evidenced by the many pictures that I have posted), but we don’t typically get a good view of the sunrise. This morning the entire sky was glowing though.

I have mentioned before (probably numerous times), but when it comes to food I am all about convenience. I don’t leave work for lunch, so I try to take all of my stuff with me in the morning. I am really loving the granola and these hummus and chicken on-the-go meals. So easy. So nutritious.

Daniel and I made it home around the same time and went for a run. I really cherish this time that we have to spend together. It is only recently (since Daniel graduated and started his new job) that we have had any semblance of similar work schedules. Running gives us a chance to get some fresh air and clear our heads after work, while catching up on our days.

Before you ask, yes … I run twice some days. My coach has 2 to 3 double-run days built into my schedule each week. In order to meet the goals that I have for the marathon, we feel like this is a good strategy. It is definitely not necessary for everyone though. In fact, this strategy doesn’t work well for some people. Everyone’s body is different and reacts different to different mileage and training plans. Fortunately, right now I am at a healthy, happy place with my running and I am able to tolerate the higher mileage training.

I know that there is a fine line though and I think this would be a good post for another time … how my view of working out changed from a place of disorder (in the past) to a place of enjoyment. I truly love it! Bottom line is that it is a change in the underlying intent. I’m not running with a purpose of burning calories. Obviously running burns calories, but in order to keep running at the level and intensity that I want to, I have to replace those calories. I know that would be a good topic of further discussion, but for another day for sure.

As we headed out to run, I told Daniel that there was no guarantee as to the amount of remaining brain capacity that I will have after a day of tax season. I quickly realized that was going to make it really interesting for you guys and for my blogging. I will go ahead and apologize for anything crazy that I say online from now until mid-April. Let’s go ahead and make that the end of April …

After April, I will come up with another excuse!