We're Moving!

Finally, I am moving over to my new blog, Healthy Persistence!  Please join me there and excuse any technical glitches that may occur as I complete the move.

A Little Sweat Won't Kill Me

It's Olympics time!  I could not be more excited.  I absolutely love the Olympics.  I always think that seeing all these amazing individuals compete at the highest level is so inspiring.  I sometimes wish I could be one of those people, but, let's face facts.  I am clutzy, have no eye-hand coordination, am slow, and am gettin' old.  Oh well!  That doesn't mean that I can't strive for my own version of physical excellence.

Weekly workout roundup:

Sunday:  Rest
Monday:  4.75 mile run
Tuesday:  Ripped in 30 - levels 2 & 4 (~60 mins)
Wednesday:  Rest
Thursday:  4 mile run
Friday:  Ripped in 30 - level 4 (~30 mins)
Saturday:  9.1 mile run (7.55 miles running, rest walking; 98 mins)

Total weekly hours working out:  ~4.43
Miles:  17.85

Yeehaw.  Okay, not my best week ever, but I am happy with what I was able to accomplish.  Some weeks are just more of a struggle than others.  I am shocked by my training run this morning.  I ran the first six miles straight - the longest I have gone thus far without stopping (60 minutes).  And you know what?  It really wasn't that bad.  The first mile was rough - and I felt slow throughout the run but who cares?  I did it!  Not too shabby for a girl that couldn't run the mile in school!

What I have been really struggling with is eating too much.  I'm not eating poorly and am still focusing on whole foods.  I have just been really hungry and eating a lot.  Calorie-wise, I am eating an amount that should maintain my weight so I am not stressed about this but I would like to get a little more control back.  Is it the running?  Stress of a new job?  Who knows.  I hope to adjust soon!

Random Topic of the Week:  If you look pretty when you are done working out, you didn't do it right

I give credit to my friend Renee for thought!

So, I typically work out in the morning.  I get up at a ridiculous hour (between 4:45 and 4:55am), wash my face, change, and get my butt either on the road or down in my basement for a workout.  I like working out this early for several reasons:

1. I feel better all day.

2. I don't have to think about an impending workout while I go throughout my day.

3. I am more likely to skip an evening workout than a morning workout.

4. It's so quiet and peaceful out at that time in the morning.  The only people I see on an early morning run are other morning exercisers, who are typically always super friendly and I'm starting to recognize the faces I've been seeing more often.
5. (and most importantly) I get to shower and go from looking like a crazy, sweaty, curly-haired mess to being a normal, professional person.

I see other people running when I'm on the road in the morning and they always look powder fresh.  HOW do they do this?  I just do not understand how you can be working out and not even break a sweat or mess up your hair.  Do they just not sweat?  I feel like if I don't have to shower when I come home, I didn't get a workout in.  I mean, this is what I look like after only a 38 minute run (imagine what I look like after my 9.1 miler this morning!):

Soaked through clothes, red in the face, puffy eyes (though this might be because it was 6am), headphones all askew, crazy look on my face.  Ah yes, this is what I should look like after a workout!



I used to feel so uncomfortable with this feeling and looking this way and didn't want to be in public like this.  What I have realized is that sweat is a badge of honor of sorts.  I worked hard for that and am proud of my commitment to my health no matter what I look like!  Now when people drive by and stare at me, I don't care and like to imagine that they are just jealous of my awesomeness (and dream about my impending shower).  :)

Back to the Olympics! 

The Second Time Around...Maybe

Happy weekend!  It's been a good but busy week and Saturday.  I, once again, met the majority of workout goals (5 days per week, 3 work mornings and 2 work evenings; I only missed one evening workout but I'm cool with that):

Sunday:  Ripped in 30, level 3 (30 mins) + 20 mins elliptical
Monday:  Travel for work (i.e. "rest")
Tuesday:  AM - 39 min run
Wednesday:  AM - Shed and Shred Levels 1&2 (cut slightly short due to lack of time; 65 mins); PM - Ripped in 30, level 4 (30 mins) - FYI this combo made my thigh muscles twitch for 2 days!
Thursday:  Rest
Friday:  AM - 43 min run/walk (mostly walk)
Saturday:  8.2 miles (91 mins; broken into 6 miles running, 2.2 miles walking)
5.8 hours working out total this week

What I realized this week is that I really, really, reeaaaalllly miss my half marathon training.  I miss the focus on something other than work craziness.  I miss working towards something challenging in my personal life.  I miss being that athletic and fit.  I miss that time to myself when I'm outside doing something productive.

Now, I am only 2 weeks into my new job and all signs point to things getting very, very busy come mid-August or so.  So am I crazy to think about doing another half marathon on September 23rd?  Probably. 

I have been worried about spending the money, especially since I'll likely need new shoes again in the near future.  But, I've decided not to join a gym in my new town and I justify the cost that I would spend on a bigger race based on the fact that I don't really have any other money-costing hobbies right now.

I've also been looking at my weight fluctuations.  I have been bouncing around with the same 5 pounds or so for the past 2 months and I'm sick of it.  With what I lost this week, I am only 12 pounds away from a healthy weight for my height and I am at a point where I need to kick my butt back into gear.  I am thisclose and I seem to have lost some of my steam. 

For comparison purposes, I lost 22.8 pounds during the four months of training for the GB Half (5.7 pounds/month average) and have lost 5 pounds in the last two months (2.5 pounds/month).  Yes, I lose slow and yes, this type of training is more intense than what most people probably want to do.  I enjoy it (otherwise, I wouldn't do it).  I'm not worried about meeting my weight loss goals during this training and I don't think it will happen but I do need a kick in the butt to get my calorie burn up a little higher.

So, am I going to do it?  Maybe and most likely.  I plan to train as though I am going to complete the half in September but I am going to wait to spend the money on signing up until I know for sure I can get my body into shape in 9-ish weeks.  I completed 8.2 miles this morning and feel very good today so maybe I'm not as out of running/walking shape as I thought I was!  The jump from 8 to 13 is a big one though! 

There are several things that I will be doing differently this time around, including:

1. Being smarter about my nutritional choices
2. Being smarter about hydration - I dehydrated (and thus got very sick) a couple of times during my last training.  I would think I would be fine but really, I was not.  Water, water, water!
3. Much more cross training - I can easily bust out 30-35 miles per week but it results in overuse pain in my right foot, a loss of upper body strength, and major workout burn out.
4. Including running into training - I will not be running the entire half as my knees would never go for it but I would like to include more running as long as I am enjoying it.  If I stop enjoying it, I will walk.  No shame in walking the race! :)  BTW - I have been finding that running is much easier than walking at a clip of ~4.7 or higher for longer distances.  I have yet to figure out why this is.
5. Never training (specifically running) two days in a row.  This wasn't as big of a deal when I walked but my joints cannot handle intense running two days in a row.  This also forces #3 to happen.
6. I will not be setting any time goals - I might wear a watch during training runs but I am not going to be putting an emphasis on time.  I will be wearing a watch during morning runs as I need to be sure I get to work on time!  Why am I doing this?  I care less about being super speedy than I do about being healthy.  Being worried about time takes the fun out of it.
7. Less training time - 4 months vs 2 months, enough said
8. Listening to my body - if I start burning out between training and work, I will pull the plan and go back to basics and not run the race.  No big deal.  The goal is to be healthy not put so much stress on myself that I start faltering in other areas of my life.

So, here we go again.  We'll see how this goes!

A Little Something Different

Last week was rough.  But good.  And now it's over.  I'm happy about this.  My least favorite part about starting a new job (or a new semester when I was a student) is the first week.  Remember the stress of figuring out where you were supposed to be and what you are supposed to be doing?  I hate that.  Unfortunately, it looks like it will be another few weeks of that.  My new work is renovating a room for my new job and my office is not finished yet.  Hopefully it will be soon so I don't spend all my time this summer walking across campus in the 90F+ heat everyday.  I cannot wait to get settled in...and to have a coffee maker in my office.  Oh, yes, coffee will be needed mid-day with this job!

For the most part, I met my fitness goals for last week.  To recap, go here.  Here's what actually happened:

Sunday:  6.38 mile walk

Monday:  Level 1 (38mins) of Jillian Michael's Extreme Shed and Shred (AM)

Tuesday:  Rest

Wednesday:  Levels 1 & 2 (80 mins) Shed and Shred (AM); 3 mile walk (PM)

Thursday:  Rest

Friday:  Levels 1 & 2 (80 mins) Shed and Shred (AM)

Saturday:  Rest

That adds up to exceeding my morning workout goals (min of 30 minutes, three mornings), falling short of my evening workout goal (2 nights), and not quite meeting my total workouts goal (5 days/week).  I'm going to cut myself a little slack on this one.  I'm actually surprised and very proud that I accomplished what I did.  Let's face it, I actually got up at 4:45am three mornings to workout on my first week of work.  Of course, I was ready for bed at 7:30pm every night.  I was not expecting to be so tired at night.  I think 'non-functional' would have been a good description for how I felt at night and on Saturday.

I'm still dragging today but I need to get things done.  I need to clean and get a good workout in because I feel like it's important to start my week out strong.  I'm going to leave my workout goals the same for this week.  I'll likely refine this schedule as I start getting a better feel for how my weeks will go as time goes on but this works for now.  I need to cook today too! 

This morning, I made this egg bake.  I need something different in the morning.  I am a little burnt out on oatmeal and yogurt for breakfast, so eggs were on the menu.  I made a four-serving egg bake to cover this morning and three breakfasts during the week.  It's very low in calories, so I can add in a fruit or pumpkin smoothie to round out the meal.  I wasn't quite sure what to expect with this bake but it was very, very good.  Next time, I might add a couple extra eggs (I only had 6 on hand).  I would think that adding cheese would be very good but I have a hard time digesting eggs and cheese together.  Kalamata olives and feta would be excellent add ins!

Mediterranean Egg Bake

Serves 4; 140 calories per serving

Ingredients:
3 large leaves of kale, chopped
5 portabella mushrooms, chopped
2 scallions, sliced
2 medium tomatoes, sliced
6 eggs
1/2 cup milk of choice (soy, cow, almond, coconut, etc.)
1 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper

On the stovetop, sweat out the kale, mushrooms, and scallions until slightly wilted.  Add in 1/4 cup of water and continue cooking until the water evaporates (note: this helps reduce the bitterness of the kale); let this mixture cool for about 5 minutes.  In a large bowl, mix the eggs, milk, and spices until well combined.  When the kale mixture has cooled, add it to the eggs and stir to combine.  Transfer to a small baking dish.  Top the eggs with the slices of tomatoes and add a small amount of salt to the top of the tomatoes.  Bake at 350F for 35 minutes.  Let cool for 5 minutes, slice, and serve!

Healthy Intentions for a New Chapter

The move as a whole has been going very well and I finally feel like I am settling into my new home!  My cat has adjusted very well to the new house.  I figured it would be many sleepless nights with her as she tends to freak out at night in a new place.  She only flipped out from about 2:30am-10am on her second day here.  Everything is good now though.  She's begging for her morning pumpkin (yes, we eat pumpkin in July in my house), has claimed a spot in the middle of the kitchen floor, and has found the bird feeder I put out for her.

Sorry for the crappy photo quality - I have been using my cell phone, which is horrible. 
I think it's time to break out the good camera.

Tomorrow, I will embark on a new chapter in my life - my new job!  I'm getting very excited and nervous, but above all, I keep getting the nagging feeling that I won't have the time or energy to stay healthy as this job will be pretty demanding.  I am only 15 pounds from a "normal" weight and about 20-25 lbs from my goal weight (depends on how I feel when I get there).  The last thing I want to do is reverse that!

Since my schedule has been based on semesters for most of the past 10 years, I have found patterns in my health.  Specifically, if I don't start a semester out with exercise, healthy foods, and a good mindset, I will backslide significantly and, for me, getting back on track is so hard.  Not good.  My new job is a 12 month, full time job in which I will occasionally teach but will not be doing so this fall.  So, I know I need to apply this principle going into the next 6-7 months.

I've been prepping a bit for this.  I have an exercise area set up in my (new!) basement that includes multitudes of workout videos, hand weights, a tv/vcr/dvd, and an elliptical that finally doesn't squeak obnoxiously.  I am also working on finding a couple of great walking/running routes around my new city.  So far, so good.

I hope to get my butt out of bed at least three mornings a week for a minimum of a 30 minute workout before work and then workout two-three evenings a week (+ weekends).  I'm not saying they are going to be the hardest workouts ever, but I really want to keep the habit up during the work week!  I am just starting to come out of a fibro flareup that I believe was caused by a lack of formal exercise when I was moving, too much caffeine, stress, and lack of sleep.  Deadly combo for fibro!  No bueno.

I also have am prepping food for this week.  I plan to buy lunch at work tomorrow simply because I don't know what's going to be up for the day and I won't have access to my office right away.  I do not want to be the dork carrying around a lunch box all day (even if it is cute).  I am going to make tomato-dill soup today for lunch and leftovers and another dish that will reheat well for supper.  I also have three servings of oatmeal that I made yesterday morning that are chilling out in the fridge, waiting for breakfast for the week.  The other two days will likely be eggs or yogurt+granola.



Alrighty, time for a long walk before it gets too hot out, a little (emphasis on little) cleaning, cooking, ironing, and prepping for tomorrow.  Wish me luck! :)

Home Sweet Condo

When you start thinking about buying your first home, you get a lot of advice.  I heard everything from “So, what’s the big deal?  It’s easy!” to “Buying your first house is the hardest thing you will ever do.”  I would say that my experience buying my first home equated best with the latter. 

First, a little background as to how I even decided to buy a home.  I have always rented and saved every penny I could.  People call me frugal and tell me to “splurge” on myself but I knew that I worked hard for my money and didn’t want to spend it on silly things that I wouldn’t ever use.  Once I graduated grad school, I gave myself 2.25 years to pay off all of my student loans and my car and I made it happen.  After that, all that money that I was paying towards loans went into savings.

My previous job that I just finished was definitely not a career; it was more of an awesome stepping stone so I rented for the three years at that job.  When I received a job offer for my dream job on March 22^nd (the day after I turned 30 – it was a remarkable week!), I had to start thinking about moving.  My new job is two hours away from where my old job was.  I immediately started looking at rentals because that’s what I always do.  But, my new job is located in a college town and to rent anything decent and not in the middle of the student district, you had to pay upwards of $800-950 a month.  Ouch.

My parents suggested I start looking at houses to buy.  It is after all a “buyer’s market” and “when else are interest rates and home prices ever going to be this low?”  It took me quite a while to warm to the idea as I am a single girl and it seemed like a lot of responsibility.  However, my new job is what I hope my career will be for a very long time and I am ready to put roots down.  So, I started looking.

I only looked at three condos and one house.  I decided that buying a condo is the best choice for me as I am frequently out of town and I hate spending full days of lawn care (though I don’t mind shoveling that much).  I did a ton of research.  I researched everything from who my neighbors were to who the seller was, the community, home prices, the HOA, sidewalk availability, property taxes, how much the seller paid for the condo five years earlier, how much other people had paid, etc., etc., etc.  I was ready and made an offer a few days after looking at a condo that I loved and, after a little negotiation, I reached a really great deal.  I contacted my banker who preapproved my mortgage and sent all the documents and loan initiation paperwork to the bank.

The bank told me they were on it and they were on board with closing on June 15^th.  We had a home inspection that went wonderfully – only a few very minor issues with the condo.  A few weeks later, my relator contacted me saying that the bank had yet to contact anyone about the appraisal, which had to be done in a week to meet the appraisal contingency of my contract.

I was in the middle of the last week of the spring semester and packing to move out of my old apartment and was stressed to the max to begin with.  When I contacted the bank I was “working” with, they said they had never received any of my materials via e-mail (even after my mortgage person sent a reply e-mail confirming that he received the documents) or the loan initiation paperwork, which I FedEx’ed twice, and which included all my credit card numbers, social security numbers, and other very important person information.  After a major freak out (as you can imagine), my mortgage guy told me to resend everything, not tell my relator about the mix up, and just push back closing until July.

Obviously, this was not the path I was willing to take.  Any banker who loses all my information and acts like it’s no big deal is not someone I want to deal with.  I contacted my relator immediately and she got me in contact with a new banker who was absolutely amazing.  I had four days to get my entire mortgage together before my half marathon and embarking on my three week work trip. 

There were a few hold ups during those four days, like my previous bank not actually confirming that my new condo was able to accept FHA loans (which they were not).  This meant that I needed to put more money down.  I also learned that interest rates on condos were higher than single family homes.  Interesting, huh?

After filling out an amazing amount of paperwork (some of it for the third and fourth time due to the problems with my previous bank), signing my name a bazillion times, scanning hundreds of pages, and a whole lot of phone calls and e-mails, my new banker had my mortgage off to the underwriters and everything was good to go before I left for my field course.

I left on the trip and only had a few small things to deal with – namely sending off the financing commitment from the banker to the seller.  When I got home, I had one week until closing.  It was at this point that I found out that the seller (who is living in South Korea) was mailing paperwork and it would take an extra week to close on the condo.  Closing at that point was pushed back to June 22^nd.

During that week, I found out that my HOA did not send all of their financial documents showing their reserves.  This meant that if the HOA didn’t have enough reserves, I had to put down about twice as much money to cover the risk that the HOA posed on me.  Luckily, the HOA came through a day before closing and this didn’t happen.

Finally, on June 22^nd, I was able to close!  I am officially a homeowner.  It was a very stressful process and my left eye twitched about every five minutes for five full weeks (I wish this was an exaggeration!).  I love and owe so much to my banker!  And my relator.  And my parents who were so much help and let me vent no matter how annoying I got.

Opening my door for the first time!

Between the end of the semester, moving twice, my half, the three week field course, buying my condo, and getting ready to start my new job, it has been quite a crazy 1.5 months, which is why I have been MIA lately.  Now, my condo is painted, I am all moved in and settled with only a few things left to do, and I am starting my new job on Monday.  I am very, very much looking forward to being settled and back into a routine!

My health goals for the past few months were to maintain my weight and keep up with my workouts and I’m happy to report that I have done just that.  I have been bouncing around with three to five pounds, but I am okay with that.  I have started running as my joints have been doing well and can now run 5 miles straight and ran a 5k yesterday in under 30 minutes.  I am working on weight training, which is something that I let fall by the wayside while training for my half.  I am out of town for the 4^th of July but officially get back to my condo and move my cat in on Thursday so I will be planning to start attacking the last 20-25 pounds I need to get off.

There are a few things that aren’t going so great, namely my sugar addiction.  Oh ice cream and frozen yogurt, you are my nemesis!  These will not reside in my condo as I have no self-control!  Also, I am a little sad as I have had to cancel my plans to sign up and complete another half marathon this year.  With putting more money down on my condo, it’s just not the time.  That doesn’t mean that I can’t stay fit and perhaps do a couple of smaller races that are cheaper (assuming I have time with my new job).

With that long-winded story, I will leave you to enjoy your 4^th of July!  Have a great holiday!  J

Traveling the West Part II

And, after much delay (for a good reason - more on that to come), here is Part II of my 3-week teaching trip out west.  If you missed the first Part (days 1-5ish), click here.  I left my notes/schedule elsewhere so I'm going to do my best to recall days/hike lengths.

I left off with day 5 - leaving Zion National Park.  After leaving Zion, we headed through Vegas to end the day in Sequoia and King's Canyon National Park.  Let me cover Vegas first.  Vegas is not my thing and I was NOT looking forward to going.  The stop was more or less a quick trip through to see the strip and have lunch.  It was fine.  I had no plans to ever go back (more on that later too).

We camped in King's Canyon in a pretty nice NP campground, though the lack of lights in the bathroom at the campsite was challenging at night!  I hiked to Mist Falls, which was a nice easy hike, about 9-10 miles.

Sequoia National Park



Sequoia National Park

King's Canyon National Park



Hike to Mist Falls in King's Canyon



Mist Falls, King's Canyon



Bear on the Mist Falls trail

After a couple of days in King's Canyon/Sequoia, we headed to California and stayed in Santa Paula for three nights.  Our first day in the area, we took a boat out to the Santa Cruz (part of the Channel Islands), where we went on a guided hike on Nature Conservancy land (estimated 3-4 miles).  The topic of the hike was mostly biogeographic in nature, which was awesome since that is my specialty!  Very interesting!  One downfall of the hike is that there were loose rocks on steeper slopes and I slipped.  And fell.  And hit my tailbone hard enough to knock all the air out of my lungs.  And gashed my arm pretty good (I have a very nice scar).  It took me 10 minutes just to sit up in my tent the next morning.  If you've hit your tailbone before, you know that it is an injury that is hard to come back quickly from!  It took nearly 4 weeks for my tailbone to stop aching constantly.  Never-the-less, the Channel Islands are very cool:

The next day, we headed for LA.  I drove a 15 passenger van in which the breaks were dying while attempting to follow four other vehicles.  It was awesome (note the sarcasm).  We hit the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Chinese Theater, and other such touristy places, a conservatory, and Venice Beach.  To express how I felt about LA, I will share exactly how many pictures I took over two days.  I took 16 photos.  Can you tell how much I loved it?  Hah. 

I love White Christmas!  :)

After a few days in the LA area, we headed out through Needles, CA to the Grand Canyon.  After three days of driving said van through LA traffic (which I am not used to - I was living in a town of 10,000 for the past three years and I drive a Versa hatchback - not the same thing!), I was tired.  And then one of our big 15-passanger vans broke down with "total catastrophic failure". 

I made a trip back to Vegas (where I had said I would never go back to about a week earlier and about 100 miles one way) to pick up a new rental van, then drove the 100 miles back to where the van broke down to gather the items that couldn't fit in the vans that headed straight to the GC, and then to the Grand Canyon.  We were held up by a major accident on Highway 40 in northern Arizona and by the time we were driving north to the Grand Canyon, it was around 2am (I had driven from 8am-about 11:00pm with about a three hour break for lunch/van checkup) and the elk were out in insane numbers.  We ended up driving 20-30mph for about 60 miles and made it to the campsite around 4am.

I was up at about 6am and then needed to drive a student to Williams on the first day in the GC.  The second (and last) day in the GC, I needed to drive to Flagstaff.  I had a couple of hours at the end of the second day, and since I was working on about 4 hours of sleep total in three days and had yet to see the GC yet (though I've been there before), a few awesome students went on the shuttle with me.

So, my goal of hiking the Grand Canyon did not happen.  I had been training for my half on hills to get ready to hike the GC (though I don't know if I could have ever trained for that type of hike!).  There was no way it was going to happen on this trip with so little time and sleep and so much stress!  It's okay though, there was a lot going on that was more important.  I'll get back one day and do it. 

After the Grand Canyon, we headed towards the four corners area, New Mexico, Great Sand Dunes, and then back through Kansas to head home.  After all that went on over the week before this, I was exhausted and not really taking many photos.  I was still getting up early to go for walks.  I was glutened in California and then again in New Mexico and Kansas so I was feeling awful and everything I did felt like a lot of work.  Let's just say that when you are glutened with Celiac, life is pretty rough for a while (still dealing with the effects).

Border of New Mexico and Colorado

Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado - so much fun to climb!

So that's it!  Three weeks of awesomeness!  It really was a great trip and I'm very happy I went.

While I was gone, I was also attempting to close on my new home (which was supposed to happen 1 week after I returned home from the trip but was pushed back a week after I got back)!  Talk about adding a little stress to the mix!  I will be working on a post on my whole home buying process because it was insane.

Catching Up and Traveling the West Part I

Good afternoon!  It's been a crazy three weeks since I was last able to post!  Lots going on!  Let's start with a photo of my mom and I from my half (recap is here).

Putting on a happy face though I was pretty upset that the race got pulled.

Following the race, I boarded a plane and flew to Colorado to join a field course that I was coteaching.  My goal for the field course was to hike as much as I could and to maintain my weight as it was going to be impossible to count calories or have much control over what I was eating (beyond gluten free of course).  There were 26 students and 2 faculty members (including myself) on this trip, so being extremely picky about what I was doing or eating was really not an option.

Never-the-less, on Day 1, I got my butt out of my sleeping bag and went out for a walk.  I knew that after my half on Sunday, I would be quite stiff if I did nothing but sit in a van all day.  I only had time for a quick 35-minute walk + ~10 minutes of pushups and abs but it was definitely worth the effort!  Day one involved driving from Lakewood, CO to Moab, UT.  A few photos of the trip:



Vail Pass, Colorado



North of Moab



North of Moab

 Day 2 was spent hiking in Arches National Park.  I hiked up to Delicate Arch and then hiked Devil's Garden to Double O Arch (about 8 miles total).  While I love hiking, the hike to Double O Arch was...not worth the effort.  It really wasn't cool enough for the amount of rock climbing that was involved.  I did get to walk around on the top of the fins though, so there was a silver lining!


Delicate Arch



Delicate Arch with me in it for scale (I'm the little pink and black blobie).



Delicate Arch



Hike to Double O Arch in the Devil's Garden area

 Day 3 was driving from Arches to Zion, hitting Capital Reef National Park and Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument (awesome!) along the way.


Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument

 Day 4 was hiking in Zion National Park!  Up until this point in the trip, I had been to all of the places were were hitting.  I had never been to Zion and I would dare to say that the hiking day at Zion was perhaps my favorite day of the whole trip.  I hiked 5.4 miles up to Angels Landing and followed that with 1-2 miles in the Narrows (no photos because I was worried about getting my camera wet - you are just walking through the Virgin River between rock cliffs - cool but tiring!).

Angel's Landing is perhaps the best hike I have ever done.  You climb up about 1500 feet, using chains to pull yourself up for the last mile, and you end up at the top of a cliff overlooking most of the park.  Very, very cool!  Very worthy of lots of photos!  :)


First look of the morning of the "oh crap, that's where we are going?" sight at the trail head.  Angel's Landing is the very highest point in the photo above.



A look back at the beginning of the trail



A look back at "Walter's Wiggles", the zig zagging portion of the trail



A look forward to the chain climb up the cliff to Angel's Landing (people in front for scale)



View from the top of Angel's Landing



View from the top of Angel's Landing



Days 5 and 6 involved driving from Zion to Sequoia and King's Canyon National Park, which is where I'll leave off for the day!  More to come!

Cellcom Half Marathon Recap

When I set my race goals on Friday, I mentioned that I hoped I would have time to post how the Green Bay Cellcom Half Marathon went.  Well, I have time after all.  The race was stopped due to excessive heat.

So, here's how things went down this morning:  we got up SUPER early (3:30am), showered, ate, and booked it up to Green Bay.  By the time we parked, we had about 45 minutes to hang out and wait for the race to start.  And then we were off! 

I had been hydrating like no other for the past few days (especially yesterday) because I knew the forecast called for sun and heat.  Still, the first water station came up about a half mile too late - I was thirsty!  I was moving along at a great pace though - I was at about 26.5 minutes for the first 2 miles.

I hit my stride earlier than normal (normal = ~4-5 miles in, today = ~2.5-3 miles in) and was feeling great - warm but great!  I was cruising along, stopping and hydrating at every water station (side note - Gatorade makes me sick).  Miles 1-7 just flew by.  It went so fast!

I had a hard time during mile 8, though I'm not sure why.  I was back at my goal pace by mile 9 and continued to speed up from there.

Then mile 11 came up.  Several police and all the volunteers were yelling at us to stop and head back to the last water station (about 2 blocks back).  The race was being called due to excessive heat.  The police told us that hundreds of people had collapsed and there were no ambulances left nor was there room at the emergency room.

We were 2.1 miles from the finish line and we had no choice but to stop and not finish.  I was feeling so good that I really wasn't feeling the heat that much and I knew I could finish the race - and finish it under my #3 reach goal of 2 hours and 55 minutes.

Having no choice, we were told that we should wait for a shuttle to take us back to Lambeau (where the start/finish lines were), but most of us chose to walk back because we were only 5-6 blocks away.  I ended up actually crossing the finish line but it wasn't real as I didn't actually finish the race.

I think what was so frustrating about this situation, even though I understand why the decision had to be made, is that I had worked so hard and was doing so well.  I trained for nearly five months.  I did 6 training workouts that were 11+ miles (two 13.15's).  I had to plan around this date for traveling for work.  It was definitely not the result I was looking for and I was mad.

I'm calming down now and starting to realize that, all along, I was in this for the training, not the race itself.  The race was just my celebration of working so hard.  It's a victory lap.  I know I'm capable of completing a half marathon.  There are several this fall in Wisconsin and I hope to sign up and train for another one.  I've been told that training the second time around is not as big of a deal and won't take nearly as long (though, I really didn't need nearly 5 months this time around).  I'm glad I did this and am happy with what I was able to accomplish. 

So, with all that being said, I was able to get some race stats.  I had 2 mid-race updates sent to me via my timing chip and I also wore a watch that I hit start on when I crossed the start line.  So, here's as much as I know about my stats/splits:

Mile 2 (unofficial):  26:30 (average of 13.25 min/mile, pace of 4.56 mph)

Mile 5:  1:03:56 (average of 12.786 min/mile, pace of 4.69 mph)

Mile 10:  2:09:05 (average of 12.9 min/mile, pace of 4.65 mph)

Mile 11 (unofficial):  2:20:13 (average of 12.75 min/mile, pace of 4.7 mph)

Yes, you read that right - Mile 11 was 11 mins, 8 seconds, walking!  I was booking it and feeling good!  If I were to have continued at the average pace listed at mile 11, and I likely would have, I would have finished the half marathon in 2:45:45.  Nice!  I'm very happy with my pace, I have never reached this speed in training and my 5-mile Turkey Trot pace was only 4.6 mph, which was really pushing it at the time.

I wish I could post a photo, but my mom left with her camera and won't be back before I leave.  I will post one when I get back to town and will ask her to post one to Facebook for those who are friends with either one of us. 

I have to hit the shower and then I'm off for three weeks!  I'll hopefully have lots of (good) hiking stories and great photos when I'm back!

Half Marathon Goals

Happy Friday!

Summer seems to be here to stay.  I am very excited about this.  In the past week, I have dealt with major drama (will be discussed in more detail in June), finishing my regular job, and moving.  It's been a busy and stressful week but everything seems on track.  Next up: half marathon on Sunday!

Since this is my first half marathon/long distance "race", I wanted to set a few goals.  One that I will be happy with no matter what and a few that I hope to accomplish but won't be heartbroken if I don't.  First, let's talk weather.  The forecast has been going back and forth between lots of rain or no rain during the race.  It's also supposed to be warmer than I prefer.  Nothing to worry about I think though.  I should be done by ~10am so it won't be too hot yet (hopefully!).

So my goals are:

#1.  To finish the full 13.1 miles and cross the finish line in one way or another (walking, skipping, crying, crawling, on a stretcher...whatever!) and be proud of all that I've accomplished.  I gave myself 5 months to train for this and successfully got through by myself so I want to celebrate all the work I've done.

#2.  To finish under 3 hours.  Since I'm walking, obviously it will take longer than most runners out there.  I finished one of my training 13.15 milers at 2 hours + 55 mins + 30 seconds so I know it's a good possibility that I will meet this goal.  The last 13.15 miler I did was just over the three hour mark (major headwind for 3/4 of it).

#3.  To finish under 2 hours, 55 mins.  This is reaching for me due to the heat (most of my training has been in the temperature range of 35-60F) and potential for rain (and my current stress levels), but I'd love to meet this goal!  If I don't, oh well!  I've come a long way no matter what!

Wish me luck!  I hope to post an update after the race but I can't guarantee I'll have time to do so before catching my flight.  If not, I'll post when I get back in town in three weeks! 

Triple Digits

Today's a big day.  I'd like to say that seeing a certain number on the scale doesn't matter because it's health that matters.  Health does matter, it is the most important thing.  I usually don't get excited when I change weight "decades".  I didn't get that excited when I entered "one-derland".  (Note: anyone who has been trying for a very long time to lose weight will likely know how important these milestones are in weight loss.)

I have been struggling with 2 pounds for about three weeks now (this was a mental struggle, not a physical one).  Finally, this past week, I got really sick of counting calories and not losing so I decided to just focus on healthy eating and proper serving sizes.  5 servings of veggies.  3 servings of fruit.  2 proteins.  2 milks.  2 whole grains.  Vitamins.  Every day.  And, what happened?

The last couple of pounds fell off and I've officially lost 100.2 lbs!

I was feeling tired and stressed and really didn't want to even try my last "long" (13+ mile) training walk today (t-14 days until half marathon!).  Let's just say that this has added a little motivation.  After breakfast.  And some coffee. 

And a little celebration dance.

The Power of Positive Thinking

Happy Friday!

About five-ish months ago, I was in my hometown visiting family.  I met up with a friend who I hadn't seen since high school (looking at you Keah!) and a very close friend (looking at you Sara!) and realized how positive they were about everything.  Somewhere along the line, I slipped into a deep hole of negative thinking.  Let's be honest, negative thinking brings you down in every single way.  It affects your home life, your mental health, your work, your health, the people around you...everything. 

I have been working over the past 5 months to turn my negativity around.  While, yes, I am human and I still fall into the negative thinking worm hole from time to time, I have been finding positivity to be my go-to attitude now.  I literally faked it until I made it.  (Side note - I never though you could actually 'fake it until you made it.'  You actually can!)

I am not an expert on the subject (I'm a geographer, not a psychologist), but there were several tricks that I used to lessen the grasp that negative thinking had on me.  I highly recommend trying these out if you are looking to change your attitude towards your life and situation:

1.  When something negative, unhappy, or unpleasant happens to you, stop, think, and then write yourself a list of why this negative thing can be a blessing in disguise.  If you are unable to do this in the moment (this is a hard switch to make), come back to it later.  What good can come out of the situation?  What is the silver lining?  Doing this everytime anything negative happens leads, over time, to this action becoming second nature.

2.  If you feel as though you've reacted poorly (or just not how you would have liked to have reacted) in a situation and are thus having negative and weighing thoughts, do your best to correct the situation and then give yourself permission to move beyond it.  If you apologize or correct yourself, you have done the best you can and that is all you can do.

3.  Spend 5 minutes in bed right when you wake up in the morning thinking positive mantras like:

  -  My day is going to be awesome.
  -  I am incredibly blessed.
  -  I am a hard-working, beautiful woman (or man!).
  -  No matter what others think of me, I do everything I can to be the person I want to be.
  -  No matter what situation arises today, I will handle it with grace and thankfulness.

I always thought positive thinking mantras were a little "granola", but really, they affirm positive thinking and really calm me down.

4.  Stop and think at some point every day about how your life is incredible, whether you have the support of your family and friends, a furry sidekick, a great job (or just a job in general), a significant other, and/or great health.  All these things are likely something that someone else would kill for.  Don't take them for granted.

5.  If you find yourself jealous of someone else, remember that Life is Not a Supermarket.  Just because someone else has what you want, doesn't mean that you cannot achieve the same thing.  There is not a limited amount of happiness to go around.  Go find yours!  It is important to support and be happy for those around you.  That genuine happiness will carry over into your life.

6.  If you find that there are certain people in your life that bring on those negative thoughts and feelings, make you feel bad about yourself, or just do not support you or the positive changes you are making (i.e. toxic friends - friends that are likely not bad people but maybe aren't right for you at this point in your life), it might be worth it to sit back and think long and hard about why they are in your life.  Is it time to reduce the amount of time you spend with that person?  Is the situation bad enough that your "toxic" friend is affecting you so greatly that you should just gently let them go?  You get one life, live it to the fullest.

7.  Finally, take time for yourself.  It takes time to get over the guilt of walking away from everyday duties to take the time to do something for yourself.  We have all grown up learning that being selfish (as in, saying, "HEY, this is ME time!") is a bad thing.  Taking time for yourself is not selfish, though.  Taking this time (for me, I work out or read a book) makes you a happier person which will in turn lead to a positive attitude.  I have first hand learned that this time away for myself makes me a better daughter, sister, friend, and employee.  I am happier, more productive, and more supportive of those around me.  Keep in mind, the dishes, vacuuming, work, and laundry will still be there when you get back and life will not end if it gets put off for a couple hours.


All these things take time and a lot of effort to add into your life, but, trust me, it's worth it.  Mental health is just as important, if not more so, than your physical health.  Climbing my way out of the worm hole of negative thinking has been one of the most important changes I have ever made in my life (which is saying a lot being that I've lost almost 100 pounds).  The work I have done has paid off ten-fold and will likely continue to as I go throughout my life with this commitment to being a positive, happy person, no matter what my situation is.

Great quotes for this topic:

     "A positive attitude may not solve all your problems but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort."
- Herm Albright

 "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
- Winston Churchill

"Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you'll start having positive results."
- Willie Nelson

Do you have a positive thinking tips?

Happy a happy and healthy weekend!

30 During 30's List

Alrighty, so more than a month after turning 30, I have finally finished the 30 During 30's list that I promised.  To view the list, click the link above!  I'll update as I finish each item.  Note that this list is to be completed during this entire decade.  My 30's are proving be both awesome and crazy busy and there is no way I can do all this in 1 year!

New Kicks

When I started trekking longer distances back in January, I also started getting major blisters on the bottoms of my three outer toes on both feet.  At the urging of some very wise people, I went to be fitted for shoes and was told that I slightly underpronate (which means my poor outer toes are getting the major work of walking).  Since my pronation issues are not that horrible, I don't get blisters at lower mileage (and can wear regular shoes).  However, it does present enough of a problem to cause major blisters at higher mileage (8+ miles). 

I was fitted for shoes and went through a giant pile before attempting to make a decision of going between two stability shoes - New Balance 860v2 or Brooks Adrenaline.  I went with New Balance as the Brooks cut into the top of my big toe (no matter what size I tried on this happened - the toe box just doesn't work for me). 

While I have loved a lot of things about my NB training shoes - they broke in easily, I have not had one blister with them, they are lightweight and breathable, very comfortable - they broke down unbelievably fast!  I literally wore through the sole. 

Now, yes, I have been doing more miles at this point in my life than I ever have (I've completed over 30 miles  in the last 5 days), I still expected that they would have lasted longer.  I needed to replace these shoes before my half on May 20th.  I really didn't have a choice seeing as my knees and hips were starting to register the impact of wearing the worn out shoes.

I made the decision to buy one more pair of the NB 860v2 shoes simply because my half is in just over 3 weeks and I didn't think it would be a good idea to switch brands and shoes completely.  Plus, these shoes break in so quickly that I don't think it will be a problem.  I am disappointed with the current quality of New Balance though.  They used to be my go-to brand with decent arch support and quality levels but this just isn't the case anymore.  Case in point:

Shoe on the right = old trainers.  Shoe on the left = new trainers (only worn 5 miles).

Oh well, live and learn, right?  The goal of having no blisters was successfully met, so I don't have anything to complain about!  The new trainers should be fully broken in just in time for my half.  Although I like the new blue, I do kind of miss the orange.  Guess that what going to grad school at University of Tennessee and teaching at a school whose colors are blue and orange will get you...and affinity for orange.

So, while we are on the subject of new kicks and breaking in shoes, check out these bad boys:

New hikers!  I have had the same hiking shoes (Merrells) for the past 8-9 years.  They made it through countless miles of hiking, camping, field work, and crazy mud messes.  They always looked new, the tread never wore, and they were 100% water proof (my new ones are not but I will be hiking in the desert mostly).  During the last field course I worked on (1.5 years ago), I started to feel their age.  I could feel every stick, stone, and pebble through the bottoms of the shoes.

Despite the good run with those, I knew I had to get new hikers before the next field course that I start on May 20th (yes, you read that date correctly, I fly out the day of my half marathon).  I went with Merrells again since I had such a great experience the last time.  These hikers are going to take me to the bottom of the Grand Canyon (and then back up again!).  Well, that is if they are broken in on time. 

Since I will be doing so much hiking, I will likely take my old Merrells along just in case I need a switch or I start getting blisters.  I do need to pick up some pronation correcting inserts for these though. 

So with all that foot talk, I leave you to have an amazing evening!  If you have suggestions of great brands of trainers that are of fantastic quality (beyond Brooks), let me know!  I'll likely be looking for different shoes around mid-summer.