Back to Basics

I know I already wrote a post this week, but I really want my blog to be about more than running. I had some pretty incredible breakthroughs the last few weeks with my running, but I have also struggled recently in other aspects in my weight loss journey and wanted to write about those as well.

And, it's my blog, so I will post whenever I want. ;)

***

The last few weeks, I have not been focused. I have been reverting to old habits that will not help me on this weight loss journey. I have been eating more processed food than I have in many months. I have not been following the Good Health Guidelines, which are like a checklist from Weight Watchers to maintain a healthy and balanced way of life. And most importantly, I have not been keeping track of the foods I have been eating or my activity I am performing.

Eliminating the processed foods is something I have the most control of. I currently live alone, so if I simply don’t buy it, it is not in the house. If it is not in the house, then I can’t eat it. They weren’t awful, but they didn’t provide much nutrition wither. Items such as Trader Joe’s fruit bars and Whole Wheat Lavash chips are not terrible, but when you can’t control how much you are eating of them, it might as well be five gallons of ice cream. So, why was I buying these items? I think I wanted to test my control for these foods. I have tested myself and I realize I cannot control myself around these foods. At least for now, they are on the banned from my apartment list.

I usually don’t have problems following the Good Health Guidelines and will stress less over how many points I am consuming in a day and focus more on the GHG’s. The guidelines, which are eating at least five servings of fruits and veggies a day, having two servings of low fat or fat free dairy, a few servings of low fat protein, two servings of healthy oils, doing at least 30 minutes of activity, amongst others, are usually no brainers for me.

So why have I been struggling to fulfill some of these guidelines? I’m pretty certain it started because I wasn’t tracking what I was eating. I have always had a love/hate relationship with the tracker. I don’t enjoy doing it. I know some people who love it and can’t wait to enter each morsel or drink in their mouth in their app on their phone or write it in their journal. I am not one of them. I resisted tracking for years (going all the way back to the last time I was on Weight Watchers, over 15 years ago). I don’t like it, but I know that if I want to be successful, then I must find a way to just do it. At different points during this journey, I have used both paper and electronic trackers. I also have a two fellow WW peeps that we all text message pictures of our food to each other as a way of tracking and keeping accountable.

I haven’t consistently tracked for more than a month and the results on the scale show. When I don’t track, it is like what I am eating doesn’t count. It might not be in a format where I can re-read it, but my body certainly is tracking it. I usually track electronically, but for some reason this is not working for me right now, so I have gone old school. I have pulled out my pad and pen and am carrying this pad around with me. It is a physical reminder of what I need to do and it always there whenever I have revisions or additions.

Why did this click in now after several weeks of just doing “whatever”? Well, I can say it is partly because of the weekly meetings I attend. I have been fortunate to find an AMAZING leader, Melanie, who is part energizer bunny, part cheerleader, and part psychologist. While Melanie is fantastic, the fellow members I see every week are so inspiring and supportive. Some of whom, such as Carin and Tamra, have also become some of my closest friends.

Tamra, myself and Carin. We're the Three WW Musketeers!

The BEST WW Leader EVER Melanie (at least I think so) running Carin and I to the finish line of a 4-mile race in July.

I also need to thank a friend and former colleague of mine who started her own weight loss journey this week (she knows who she is). She simply told me this week that I was her inspiration. I was so taken aback and humbled to read those simple yet powerful words. She took that first (and usually the hardest step) and in return has inspired me to get back to what I know works.  

Another Race in the Record Books

I ran another race this past Saturday. It was a 4-mile race in Central Park. Since last year, I believe I have run about a half dozen four mile races. They are all essentially the same, starting on the east side of the park, turning at 102^nd Street, and then finishing the last half of the race on the west side.

This sounds easy enough, right? But people who are unfamiliar with Central Park have never experienced climbing up Cat Hill within the first mile of the course, which can make even the best and most seasoned runner winded. These same runners may hit a wall when they are confronted with a trio of rolling hills, starting shortly after the second mile marker and continuing for the duration of the course.

It is a tough course and not for someone looking for a nice, easy run. I have never run the entirety of these races, but I know I am making progress. My first 4-miler last year, I barely ran a quarter of the race. The last one before this Saturday, I ran most of the first half until the heat and humidity overcame me and I had to walk the last mile.

However, I have made tremendous progress in the last few weeks regarding my running and I tried to apply what I’ve learned so far to this race. Because I am a slow runner, I am always in the last corral, which is fine with me. However, unlike previous races, I waited until about 2 minutes before the race to get in line so there would be fewer people behind me.

I started the race slower than in past races, hoping to conserve my energy, as I knew the hills that were to come. First came the famous Cat Hill. I took my time getting up the hill. My breathing was labored, but as I was running up that hill, I watched as many people behind me stopped to walk up the hill. I kept going until I reached the top. I felt really good, not just getting up the hill without walking, but that I was now able to run down (my favorite part of getting to the top). Next I saw the 1-mile marker. My time was slower than in past races, but I really didn’t care. I was there to accomplish something no matter the time.

Then came the 2-mile marker. About a half hour after I crossed over the starting line, I was still running. It also helped that I had my new running water bottle with me, so I didn’t need to slow down or walk to get water and was able to have water when I needed it.

Shortly after the 2-mile marker came the first of the three hills on the second leg of the course. I started running up the hill, but I became winded half way up, so I walked the rest to catch my breath. When I reached near the top, I started running again. I began to feel a little pain on the side of my right knee, but I kept going as it usually stops hurting after a few minutes.

I ran up the second hill. It was hard and I was breathing heavy, but I made it up. I started to run up the third hill (past the third-mile marker), but I got a cramp in my side which then moved to my back. These cramps, when I get them, are so painful and literally take my breath away. I had to stop to walk for a few minutes until the pain subsided. I wish I knew why I get them during races, so I can do what I need to prevent them. Anyway, after a few minutes and the pain was gone, I picked up my pace and started running again. I felt good again and fully intended to run to the finish. When a volunteer said, “Quarter mile to go! Almost there!,” I was so excited, I think I started to sprint (at least my version, which still is SLLLOOOWWW).

I was straining to see the finish when I heard my name being yelled from the left side of the course. My Man was there cheering his face off for me. I couldn’t hear much of what he said, but smiled, waved and continued to the finish.

I always get very emotional when I run these races. I always get flashbacks of where I was before I started running. I look back at my very first 5k and how I could only run about 10 minutes of the entire course. Then I see all of these people, strangers, cheering for me. I literally got all choked up and started to cry. Of course I had to stop myself because (1) I can’t run if I can’t breathe, and (2) I don’t want to be splotchy or teary when in my finish line pictures (yes, it does matter). If I get so emotional now after a 4-miler, I can just imagine how I would be after running a marathon, which is my ultimate goal. I’m such a sap.

Anyway, I stopped choking up and focused on the last several feet to the finish line. I finished just shy of an hour. It was not my best time, but I really had a different goal for this race than I had for the others. In past races, I always wanted to PR, but I would always run fast (for me) and then tire out and need to walk. I really do think I am a faster walker than runner. This race, however, I wanted to see HOW MUCH of the race I could run. I ran at least three-quarters of the race, which is definitely more than I’ve run in any race to date.

I know on paper, it doesn’t seem like much, but I accomplished quite a bit in this race: I tackled Cat Hill, I ran more and farther in any race so far, and I still managed to finish in under an hour and a sub 15-minute mile. My next goal is to run the entire 4-miler. This may take a while as I don’t think there are any 4-milers available for a while. But I will just keep training so I can be ready for those hills next time.

One Step Back, One Giant Leap Forward

Sometimes I think you need to take a few steps back so you can take a giant leap forward.

I started running about a year and a half ago. My first race was a 5K in Flushing Meadows Park in Queens. I ran about 10 minutes of the approximately 52 minutes it took me to cross the finish line. I always loved how I felt after running (if you want to call it that. I have been and still am very slow). I love that feeling of completion, not the mention that high you get after some intense exercise. However, I feel as if I am always fighting to just put on my running gear and just go. Even though my goal forever has been to run an entire 5K without stopping to walk, it just wasn’t motivation enough to get out there and just do it.

I took a month off during the summer. Until my last 5K race on August 23^rd, I really hadn’t run or jogged in four weeks. It was a very hot and humid summer in the big apple, and running in those kinds of conditions can make a fit person sick, not to mention someone with approximately 60 pounds left to lose. It really wasn’t fun for me to run this summer, as I my hands would swell and become painful after about 30 minutes running. If I continued, I would soon get a pounding in my head so hard and I would need to stop. Not to mention the severe allergy attacks and the sinus infection that put me on the sidelines and kept me there for the month.

However, I felt a change was coming. I was actually itching to get back out there. Maybe it was that the start of the new school year was right around the corner (not that I am in school or have any children), but I felt like I needed to start fresh in a way. On a whim, I took advantage of my office closing early the Friday of Labor Day weekend and bought a new pair of running shoes. There is nothing that will motivate a woman to do something than if she has new clothes or shoes to do it in.

I had to take the new shoes for a spin. The next morning, I went for a short and easy run/walk, doing no more than 2 miles. I just wanted to get a feel for them and they felt good. However, due to my schedule, I wasn’t able to run again until this past Saturday. It was right before a big storm. It was humid and windy, but I didn’t care. I had to get out there. I WANTED to go out there. I ran for 30 minutes straight without stopping. I had done this before, but not for a long time, so I was thrilled with my run. I wasn’t sore at all the as the day progressed and decided to run again Sunday morning.

I woke up at 6 am that day and started my two hour pre-run preparation (it is complicated and will get into it another time). I was excited to run on Sunday since it was significantly cooler than in the days and weeks before. As I stepped outside, it somehow felt different. Maybe it was the change in the weather or maybe it was just me.

I started with my usual 5-10 minute warm up of walking. As I started off on my run, I started off slow, even slower than usual. I didn’t want to burn out too quickly as I often do. I stayed on even terrain and even down hills for the first several minutes just to get going. It felt so good the have the wind brush against my skin. I ran down one hill so I could run up it after. In the past, I would stop to walk part of the way up the hill. On this particular day, I did not stop once.

Then I found a different hill a few blocks away. I ran down that one just to turn around and run back up. I just kept thinking, “Just get to the top. It’s not that far. You’re almost there.” At one point, I wanted to check to see how long I was running, but that would have meant stopping (I keep my cell phone in a deep pocket in the side of my skirt and I would need to stop running to dig it out), but I kept going.

During that second hill, I thought that if I could run for 45 minutes, I would be thrilled. Knowing my usual pace, 45 minutes would be at least a 5K. So I kept going. I found one more short but steep hill. I was really winded running up that hill and was feeling like I was getting tired. I made it to the top of the hill and, as a reward, ran back down.

Feeling tired, winded and sweaty, I started walking to cook down and allow my legs a few minutes to relax. I reached inside my skirt pocket to get my phone and see how long I ran for and saw that I ran for 50 minutes!! I was thrilled that I met the mid-run goal I set for myself. As I walked home, the realization of what I had accomplished hit me. Here I was walking home and alternating crying and laughing. People must have thought I was crazy but I didn’t care.

I was curious to see how far I did run. I mapped it out, and saw the mileage. 3.7 miles!!! I know people who had run 5Ks in 8 weeks, 10 weeks, 12 weeks, even 4 months. It has taken me over a year to get to this point. It wasn’t an official race. There was no one cheering for me and there was no finish line. I had no bib number. But I did it. I accomplished the one goal that has alluded me for so long.

Looking back now, I don’t think I would have run a 5K without taking the month off from running. It made me miss it. It made me want to do it again. Sometimes we become so concerned with the routine that we forget why we wanted to do it. I was not enjoying running, so I just stopped. It took not doing it to realize that I really did in fact want to run.

And now on to the next goal…