Live.Learn. Run. Repeat.

I have not updated my run times for quite some time so it is very much updated here. If you do take a look at it – there is some filling in that I have to do. So we will start with May 8^th – the treadmill.  I will go ahead and tell you now that I’m not sure me and the treadmill are friends.  When I first got it I was super excited, a friend of mine noted how much I was hating on the heat for my run at the Chelsey’s 5K, he then told me he had a treadmill if I was interested in it for hot days (every day from now until Mid-October will more than likely be a hot day) and I said yes! Turns out the only thing I hate more than running in Houston heat is running on the treadmill. HA!

I don’t have a Garmin foot Pod thingy to sink to my watch when I run, so I just went by the numbers on the machine AND according to it, it slowed my time way down! It took my forever to get to three miles and I wanted to kill the treadmill afterward AND even though I was inside with the fan on I was drenched – someone might as well have dumped a bucket of water on me.  I know some of you are thinking – good, sweat is good! BUT it is different than sweating outside.  Having the air flow around you when you are running sort of dries you off as you go and yes there is that feeling of being out in the open and just being free to go anywhere you want.

The aftermath of running on the treadmill, has left me with the other option of running outside in the evenings. Before my husband was running in the evenings and I was running right after work, our solution for avoiding the sun and heat - we are running together! The first time I ran with my hubby was way back in February, before I could run even a mile straight. Then I was still doing the couch25k, we did a run/walk and it was torture! He wanted to hold a full on conversation and I wasn't able to keep up because I would be out of breath! I was hesitant running with him again but its easier than of having one of us going out every evening - I don't know about you but it's hard to work in dinner and cleaning and washing and homework and what ever else might pop up on the daily plus the added bonus of going for a run twice a week (once on the weekend). Any way after much thought and no choice we headed out together.


The turn out was pretty good, first of all he helps me by pushing me to go a little bit faster. Second, Jose had been struggling to run 3miles, he had managed to run 2 1/2 miles but had hit that brick wall when it came to pushing him self further. With me of course he slowed him self down a little bit and by our second run we hit our 5k distance. I remember making it to driveway and I turned and told him "There! 3.1 miles - you did it!!" Funny thing when you first run those daunting 3miles, it opens a door you didn't think could be open... It opens the door to running 4miles :)

Speaking about 4miles, last Sunday I was supposed to run 4miles. I set out on my course around my neighborhood and about half way through I got a funky pain in my side :( and no matter how much I slowed down it just did not work out. I was so bummed out in my third mile I had to throw in the towel and I walked the rest of the way home. I was so upset about my run and disappointed, I really had to talk my self into understanding that, bad runs happen...they just do. Plus I have to be thankful that there is always next weekend :)

This week I was invited to join my friend Cindy to join her for a run on Wednesday at the Sugar Land Memorial Park. I was excited to join her, I had been looking for a way to get out to that park and run its track. There was a 5k there this Saturday but I couldn't join this one, so I took Wednesday as my chance to get out there. We met up and it was pretty awesome! I really liked the park it was nice gravel trail and it has wet lands all around - and it had lots of other runners on the trail, that's one one thing I miss because running in the neighborhood there is rarely other runners out there. It has a pretty cool play ground too, we went as family and Jose and Hailey hung out and played while we ran.

While I missed the 5k today I got up nice and early, with the plan to run my 4miles, once I got out there I decided that I would try and up it to 4.25 because according to my plan that's where I should be and I told my self that even though I didn't have a good run last weekend I wouldn't let it set me back. So I was determined to see if I could make it happen, once I got to 4miles I knew I could push my self the extra quarter and once I reached that point I ran it till the end of the street that I was on at the time, rounding it off at 4.3 miles. I was happy with that!! I am having trouble with getting faster but I'm okay with that for now. I'm making it my goal to push harder this coming week. After all there is that little voice telling me I can do it :)

Things learned - running on the treadmill vs running outside waaaayyy different. Running on gravel vs pavement way different too but I can see how it helps you build stamina. It's getting some serious kind of hot out there and the humidity makes it thick! Also here is a heads up, the mosquitos are making a come back AND keep your eyes peeled because I've come across a couple of snakes too!

Here is my weigh in pick for this week - and me and Mr. Treadmill are trying to make nice, I'm walking on it whenever I have a chance, so far things are going ok :)



25lbs Down!! Here I come 30lbs ready or not!!



On losing weight...

     I am not an expert on weight loss but I can tell you that I have been dealing with being overweight for most of my life minus a few years till I was about 6years old. Around this time my parents got divorced and although I don't remember binge eating or being overly lazy, I gained weight and from then on I have been "chubby" and that my friends, is putting it nicely. 

    The first time I remember trying to lose weight is when I started High School. When it was about being popular and being invited to parties and having a boyfriend. (Was this just me in high school??) Sad but true, that is what at that time motivated me to do something about it. That was short lived but it started that yoyo for going up and down, sometimes I would care and then for what ever reason I just let things be again. When I was  21 I took a trip to New Mexico and when I got back and my friends developed the pictures and I was shocked. My weight had gone a little crazy - I was about a size 16/18 and I don't even remember what I actually weighed but if I had to guess I think I was about 220-230lbs. Again I managed to lose weight get back to what felt normal and again over the years it has snuck back on I've fought it back off a little here and then back up again. 

    What is different about things this time? I don't know where to start...health, family and because I feel like its possible. It's torture but it is possible. I will have to write about my health issues and family in another blog because each of those are important in too many ways that they would take up there own space. 

    Now I want to talk about that crazy thing called weight. It drives you nuts and it is dependent on so many things. How much water you drink, how much salt you eat, what time of the month it is and is it a full moon out!? You decide to go on a diet and you buy a scale and you jump on it one day - Hurray!! - find out that you lost two pounds! Sweet! The weekend is here you have your free day and then a few days later you get back on the scale and you've gained three pounds! It's a vicious cycle. Some days you want curse your scale and others you want to clean it and make it look new again because its so super awesome. Ever been there? 

    Here is where I'm at today - I've only lost 23 pounds and its been hard. The first place I started losing weight was in my fingers, yes my fingers. I kept telling my friends "I'm going to be the chubby girl with skinny fingers what the heck?!!" I have even lost weight in places no girl ever want to lose weight in. My feet have lost weight, yes the chubby feet you see in the pictures when I weigh in, they were chubbier! But it's ok at least I know, me as a whole is losing the weight somewhere somehow. 

    There weeks that scale does not move, and when I feel fat and like I'm twenty pounds heavier again someone will ask me or say "have you lost weight??" "Wow you look good keep it up!"  Some days I run a few seconds faster or maybe a quarter mile longer. And that's how I'll make it another day.Little by little I stay on track or get back on track because I'm not perfect and there are times when I am waaaaay off track. So far I run three times a week and have not missed one yet. But I can't say that there aren't days when I slow down or cut my three miles short. It sounds like I'm a recovering addict of some sort, right? I just think that to make something into a lifestyle and not just another random diet it takes a lot of work, it took me some 27 years to be overweight - I don't know if there will ever be a time when I'm not. Even more so I don't know if there will ever be a time when I don't feel like I am. 

    You have to take responsibility for how you eat, make changes and find something that works for you. I do better when I count calories others find it easier to follow a plan or eat cleaner. It's amazing to me how many calories are in everyday things I would never bat an eye at. You've heard the term that muscle weighs more than fat and I feel that's true, for a almost a month I didn't see that wonderful scale move but by the end of the month I fit into jeans that didn't fit before. During that same month more people noticed my weight loss than before. Some times you have to ask the scale to forgive you but you just can't visit with it every day. I guess what I'm trying to say is that if you really want to make a change then you have to be determined because even when you don't feel like it, when you don't see a change, when you feel fat or when the scale does not move - well you keep at and when you least expect it things change and the scale finally moves - down in the right direction. 

Honesty is the best policy...

I have not been able to write a blog like I should have by now, but there are so many things I want to cover, so please forgive me if this is a bit sporadic.  First and foremost the real reason why I have been slacking about writing my blog… see well there was this one post here. Where I totally lied to you. I know you're shocked and in complete disbelief, well so was I when I realized what happen. You see the picture with the scale? Well of course the scale is being honest but somehow I wrote “Officially 26lbs down”  and that my friend was a lie. The truth is that really I was only 21lbs down – I’m not sure where the other 5lbs jumped on board other than wishful thinking. HA!

Actually I’m okay with the fact that was 21lbs instead of the dreamy 26lbs, that is only because I know it is steadily coming off. I don’t need big chomping numbers I just need baggy pants LOL!  I did feel bad because it was not a truth to you, then I went about trying to figure out how to clarify it, see I want this blog to be truthful about my journey with this running thing and with the weight loss.  No sugar coating it and no lies.  When I do reach 30lbs I want to – you know shout it out! I want to take that picture of the scale and be all excited and stuff, but that typo steals my thunder even before I get there. So there it is that’s the truth and although it’s not as dreamy as it initially sounded I perfectly fine with it.

Here is a scale shot of my weigh in last Friday ...


Officially 23lbs down!!

 This totally gives me a few others things to discuss about weight loss. I think I'll post something very very soon on the few quirks that I've had to deal with when it comes to losing weight! Yep that's what is coming up next :)

In the mean time I've also ordered a few things online and so through out the week I've opened a few cool packages and I want to share those with you too, so another promise post soon as well.

I've noticed that I start thinking of all sorts of thing I want to write about but at the end of the week I focus on just running - and mind you that is what I have my mind set on most of the time but it's not all that happens. I hope I don't bore you too much in the future. But for now I just got back from a run with my husband (of all people!) and it was great but I think the shower is calling me.

Turning the Corner

This week turned out to be a pretty awesome week as far as my runs went (and everything else!) I ran an interval run on Monday, which means that I walk, run and sprint. This is my way of increasing my speed on my runs, I started doing this in March and it has worked for me.  On Wednesday I did the Chelsey 5K and on Saturday I did my first long run, I call it my long run because it's the day I run the tiniest bit longer than any other day – HA! Actually  for the past month my goal has been to increase my distance little by little and I have, running 3.65 miles or 3.5 miles but just pushing my time all so that I could run 4 miles.  Saturdays will always be the day I practice my longer runs, it’s the only day my husband watches Hailey so that I can go for my run. This is the day that I don’t feel pressure about the amount of time I take, I don’t have to worry about Hailey at the daycare or about getting home to make dinner. It’s by far my favorite run day. Someday I will run 6 plus miles on this day but for now I have been training myself to run 4 miles. I even did a Google Earth map of what my four mile run would look like.  By the way did you know how awesome Google Maps is?  I got a better feel as to where the spaghetti streets in my neighborhood go and an idea of how to stretch my runs to increase my miles over time. So all along I knew that I had to make the turn in order to start my 4 miles, this turn is the one, the one that’s takes me go in a completely opposite direction of my regular route. The one that once at the end of it I would have to complete 4 miles to get back home!  

Friday I was checking out Facebook and my friend Cindy posted that she had just finish her 4 miles! That’s when it happened, the switch was flipped and my mind was made up -The next morning was going to be it for me no matter what.  This is why having friends join me on this adventure has been priceless, they help me push through when my running has sucked or when I’m feeling grumpy or lazy about running. Believe me I have a hard time classifying myself as a “runner” there are days that I don’t “feel” like running and I used to think that real runners always felt like running or they always have good runs. The past few months I have learned that it’s not true, real runners sometimes had bad runs, plain and simple. Cindy has been such an awesome cheerleader for me since way back in January when I first posted that I was preparing myself for a 5K (Color Me Rad) she joined us and started running too. We don’t run together literally but we sort-of do I always know when she is running via Facebook and she knows I’m running via my blog and this way we “Like” and post words of encouragement along the way.  Very cool stuff!

Saturday morning rolled around and off I went, I kept telling myself today I am making that little turn and taking this running thing in to the next level and I did. AND it felt great! Next time I run a 5K, I will know that I can not only do that but I can do more than that – this coming for a chubby gal who couldn’t run for a minute some 4 months ago?! You got that right!

Hope - Courage - Love

6^th Annual Chelsey’s 5K – Race Report

 Last night was the Chelsey’s 5K in Santa Fe at the High School, just a little ways down from Alvin, the whole way there the only thing I could think about was how HOT is was! Yup only in Houston would we have 85 degree weather one evening and 69 degrees the next – all in the month of May! Once we got there it didn’t feel so bad and we meet up with some of my co-works and sort of felt at ease about the whole thing. The turn out for this 5K was completely different than Color Me Rad, here we had about 200ppl vs. the ummmm 5000ppl at Reliant. This made me worry a little too because I had then sudden thought “What if I come in last!” of course I knew I wouldn’t really be last because this is a run/walk 5K and lots of people were going to be walking it, again I talked my self into not freaking out.

As the time ticked on and our 6:30 start time came closer we went out to the track and took some pictures as a team. For this run I signed up as part of team and was feeling really blessed to be apart of something that had a real meaning to it. Ever since I started running I knew that I wanted to get a chance to run as a part of “Sammy’s Supporters”. I have heard about Sammy for almost a year now and his battle with leukemia, my boss has a special place in his heart for Sammy and has been helping with other runs and events to help raise money for Sammy and his family or for the Snowdrop Foundation. It was really awesome to see Sammy and to see him out and about, the last time I knew there was an event for him he was under going treatment and was too weak to get out and enjoy it. It was a comforting feeling seeing him being out and him smiling and enjoying the evening. Here are a few pictures of our team and my boss (silly tutu and all) with Sammy!

 After the pictures we all got ready behind the start line and heard a few words about Chelsey, a young lady that lost her battle with cancer. Chelsey always wanted to do something to raise money for the fight against childhood cancer; they told a story about when she asked her parents what were they going to do? The idea for Chelsey’s 5k was born and this year was the 6th annual 5K in honor of Chelsey. Suddenly the out come of my race, my run and my time didn’t really matter so much any more. No matter what happen next this was already worth it.

The bell rang and off we went, I have to admit I felt like I was slower than slow! Even when I checked my time and I was at an 11min pace! I felt embarrassed to run even slower, already I felt like most of the runners had passed me up, but I knew that if I didn’t slow down some I would wear my self out before mile 3. So reluctantly I slowed down some and just kept telling my self – slow and steady – slow and steady. I was really dreading being straight in the sun but thankfully there was plenty of shade once we were running into the neighboring streets. I have to admit to you, that my initial pacer was a woman pushing a stroller – yes a stroller! The whole time I kept thinking to myself there was no way I was letting her out of my sight, so I kept pushing forward. Eventually our half way point came up and I was feeling pretty good so I felt that I had reached that comfort zone and I was good to go. Close to the end of mile 2, stroller and mom were right in front of me and I felt like I was slowing down just to I could keep her in my sight, so I thought to my self – Hello all this time I’ve been trying to catch up to her and I now had the chance to pass her up! Duh! So finally I passed her, and around that time I felt like I was done…like I was exhausted and it was time to throw in the towel! Waaahaat! I can run three miles, so I set my eyes on a guy in front of me and decided I was going to catch up to him. I figured if I focused on something else I could make it for sure. Slowly I caught up and passed him too! By this time the end was around the corner so it was time to push through whatever was tiring me out and before I could think about it anymore the finish was there and this 5K was over my friends! For whatever reason this one felt SO hard I don’t know why and at this point you are only glad that it’s over!!

The end result? A new PR for me 38:52, an average of 12:84 per mile. Not too much of a difference but I’ll take it and call it good!