Unintended Consequences

This morning began as one hiccup after another. I went out for a short run at a snail's pace and nursed my achy joints and avoided any stomach catastrophe. After dropping the boy off at daycare (two days this week of ME time!), I took out my bike planning to ride through swim practice. Fifteen minutes in I decided that the tires were just too low on air and came home to take care of them. By the time I got them sufficiently inflated, I had another fifteen minutes before swim was over and needed to be at the pool to check in with the girl. After giving her instruction, I got on the bike again ready to head out for a good, long ride. On a whim I decided to veer off the street and head towards a nearby lake. Ten minutes into this ride, I came across an elderly woman from my neighborhood sitting on the side of a trail in the woods with her dog leash, no dog, and a sad look on her face. I stopped to chat and ended up getting off the bike entirely and sat on the ground next to her for quite a while. Our chat started in the usual way - how our families were doing and how we miss the loved ones we've lost.

I need to be honest. She is a very lovely lady and has always been incredibly nice to me. She knew my mother and says the sweetest things about my mother's kindness and beauty. AND, she can chat for a long, LONG time. There was the briefest moment that I thought to myself, "I am NEVER going to get in a good workout today!" And then, I decided to accept that, chuck my worries about heart rates and distances, and just enjoy her company on a beautiful morning. At one point I shared with her my goal of getting healthier, the fear of my trajectory towards neuropathy and diabetes, and the blog that I've started. I couldn't have found a more supportive listener. After explaining much of my last post to her, I realized that what initially looked like the end of my good workout, gave me a stepping stone to a great one. I told her my thoughts about Weight Watchers and so many other programs that seem to prey on people's weaknesses and focus on their pitfalls rather than embrace their successes, and explained the idea that every step is a good step. In talking with her, I was able to articulate that losing weight has never been a goal of mine. Sure, at times it has been a wish, but realistically I have never created nor stuck to any plan of action to get me towards a real goal of weightloss. By focusing instead on moving just a bit more, on what I can do instead of what I am not doing, the weightloss has been a delightful byproduct.

After a while we ended our conversation. Her dog reappeared, and I headed in a different direction to once again start my ride. Over the next forty minutes, I replayed the things we said to each other in my mind. I smiled as I thought about what a special woman she is, and I came home feeling uplifted and happy. I hadn't anticipated needing to pump my tires, and I hadn't intended to head towardss the lake. I wasn't expecting to find her on the path, and I planned to stop to talk for as long as I did. Whether it's the weightloss, the new friendships or the fluke of good timing, today I plan to be thankful for the little unintended consequences that bring me to a good place.

Me to We

In January I started this blog as a public committment - I was going to spend the year trying to become a healthier person. I'm working on it, and I know that slowly I am evolving into one. A few weeks later I came across the SwimBikeMom.com blog, and took comfort in reading one woman's process from sedentary, working mom, to olympic triathlete. Through the spring season of Girls on the Run program, I found myself internalizing the lessons and thinking that a similar program needed to be created for grown women - a group experience that celebrates the individual, encourages healthy relationships, and contributes to a productive community. By working with other women on that program, and by extending my "get healthy" conversations with other friends and co-workers, I gradually saw that type of community already existing in front of me - I'd just never realized it was there before.

These days, everywhere I go, I get to hear successes. I know a woman who has been very overweight her entire life who just joined Weight Watchers and finished her first 5K. She walked it, and maybe someday she'll run one, but she has now tried it and can visualize herself as part of a world that she never thought she could belong to before. My SBM inspiration not only rocked her olympic triathlon, but she's training for a half-iron. At the pool other swim team parents share their daily activities, my colleagues are flocking to zumba and starting to run. It's awesome.

In the past few days I have made a Facebook page for MGM and have been working on figuring out all of the required paths to get what is here there, etc. I want to pull all of these amazing people together. I want to say "we can do this" to all of them. When I started, I thought I was working to overcome the laziness inside. I thought I'd be the same person but hopefully a few pounds lighter and without the guilt at the doctor's office. I'd forgotten that I'm a happier person when I exercise, but what I'd really forgotten was that I am a much happier person, and frankly, a better person, when I'm part of a team.

Thank you again to everyone who is joining me.

2 Weeks

Every step is a good step. Every step is a good step. I was out this morning after taking over a week hiatus from the early routine. I didn't go far, and I ended up walking quite a bit to bring my heart rate down, but I was out, and right now that's all that counts.

After the zumba class two weeks ago, I woke up with an odd feeling in my right knee. By the next day I was limping, and it took almost an entire week to shake it out and feel as though I hadn't done too much damage. On top of that, my stomach has been less than pleased with me, and I haven't a clue as to why. Every time I ran for about a week and a half, my stomach would cramp up. I know this happens to marathoners, but to very slow moving moms going out for only 2-3 miles??? A month ago I was all prepped to drop gluten from my diet, and then my gastroenterologist said to try dropping lactose instead. We'll see. Rolled all together, during the past two weeks I haven't been feeling very physically active or happy with my progress. We skipped the family 5K on Father's Day. Combined with the way that I was feeling, the forecast was for thunderstorms, the jogging stroller had tire issues, and the daughter was a grump about the whole idea. I can't stand signing up for something and not seeing it through.

It isn't that I haven't done anything. I have enjoyed at least one good bike ride and a couple of good swims thankfully. I went for a run last week with a friend and made it over three miles before my stomach hurt, and went back to zumba last night and just shook a little less and cut out the turns. I'm achy for sure, and my hip is sore, but my hip is always sore so I'm okay with that. My knee feels fine, and as I said, every step is a good step as far as my mornings are concerned.

Looking both directions for past and future, the tri is two weeks away. I am so hopeful that my body is in a good place for the event. I keep reminding myself that the distances are short - 425 meter swim, 12 mile bike, 2.6 mile run; I know I can at least do it and survive, and that this race is really personal research into the whole sport of triathlon. Still, I'd rather it be a good race than a junky one.

Zumba

Last night was my first time at Zumba class. After a new studio opened and advertised where I work, Zumba has been a new hot topic and several people have gone this week to give it a try. I went with my amazingly lovely friend, Meryl, and had a great time. Or at least when it was over, I told myself that it was a great time. During the hour that we were actually zumba-ing, I’m not sure I was feeling the super-happy dance flow vibes. Thank goodness we had a lot of breaks for water. Without a doubt that was the hardest hour that I’ve had so far this year. Being me, I still wore my watch and heart rate monitor so that I could get credit in my little journal for the exercise. With a max of 178 and an average of 161, I managed to burn 401 calories. Nice. Now, I’ve said before or at least I’ve thought before if I haven’t actually said it, I’m not in this mission to count calories or even necessarily to lose weight. I’m just trying to get fit, increase my energy, and feel better. It just happens that tracking the calories on my watch is a convenient way for me to gauge my workouts. It isn’t like I’m starting to obsess. Or that I get excited for passing 200, 300, or 400…. Whatever. I guess I’ve started paying attention to calories. At least I’m not thinking about the calories going IN to my body. That would depress me.

Zumba itself was fast – no warm up, no instruction or guidance – just movement. A lot of movement. My brain was stumped just trying to figure out how to get parts of my body to move in isolation like that. Thankfully I was in the back, and the lights were off, and the strobe-type light show blurred my mistakes.

I want to go again.

Springfield 15/5 K

This morning was the second annual Run Springfield 15/5K, and for my second 5K this year, it was really good. I can't really compare the time to the last one in terms of pace progress since I was running with my daughter and had to do a lot of coaching, slowing myself, and running in place to let her catch up and stay with me. I can say that it took us as long as the one in March did, with the main difference being that it was super easy and afterwards I felt like I could do it again.

The race itself was really well organized and a great route. My husband ran the 15K in a better time than he'd hoped to, the weather was gorgeous, and we all left talking about wanting to do it again next year and invite a lot of friends to join us.

Here's a pic of the family once we got home. Notice the "Every step is a good step" t-shirt. I went ahead and had them made last week! The back says of course, "Mama Gets Moving" After keeping one for myself, I gave the others to some very special people who have exercised with me and supported me along this new path. Thanks again guys. You know who you are.

I think the best part of the day today was the friendly atmosphere. We ran in to several people that we know, and we met a few really wonderful people too.

Eeyouch!

I got in the pool last night for the first time this year and gently swam thirty lengths, and it felt pretty good. My breathing was every three strokes to make sure that I got plenty of air, and I was sure to go just fast enough to raise my heart rate but slow enough to be able to keep going and not push it on my muscles.

Apparently, that was too much. Waking up this morning was terrible! I felt like I'd been hit by a truck as I forced myself out of bed. All day today - through my run this morning and all of my activities since - I've moved gingerly and a little slower than usual. Now I know that swimming uses a lot of different muscle groups, and I knew that those groups hadn't been really active for quite a while, but clearly I did NOT know the affect those laps would have. Ugh. I think my back is crying... if that's possible.

Of course, the only way to work through this is go get back in the water, so tomorrow my plan is for another am run and a pm swim. I have five and a half weeks left to get myself ready for this race in July. The distances on their own are fine, but putting them all together still worries me. At least I know that I'm getting there.