I made gravy today....and that made me feel like a grown-up. Which is funny because just yesterday I had bagel chips for dinner and that decisively made me fell like I was not a grown up.
I sat on the couch after finishing the bag and contemplated my life. I'm been in a slump over the last couple of months, with an inability to get things done. One key point I contemplated was I'm constantly amazed but what I'll "live with". The thing is I hate my house, my life, etc when I let things go and just live with it. I blame my parents for my unnatural ability to live with things that should be dealt with, because they saw "living with" things as a virtue. They honestly thought it made them better people to have the ability to live with it. My tenancy to "live with" things half done, half put away, etc is one of my key barriers to having the life I want. I look around and I see a coffee table that has had stuff to review for goodwill donations, etc - and its been sitting to the side of the living room since mid August! I don't think a "normal" person would with that.
Another key barrier is perfectionism - it's not the standard perfectionism -- I don't feel that things have to be perfect .... I feel things have to be perfectly efficient. And when they are not efficient, then I don't get things done. I've had a built-in efficiency monitor that goes loco when things, people, and/or processes are not efficient and do things the hard way. Drives me CRAZY. And it makes me procrastinate and not get some of the day-to-day stuff done because I'm looking for a different way to make it more efficient or more routine. Its probably worse in my personal life because in my professional life at IBM there is a TON of inefficiency that I can not control, so I try to control even more in my own life. Aughh
The third barrier is frugality - another trait I learned from my parents. I have this trait to an extreme. I'm looking around my computer as I write this and see several used napkins and tissues - used but they still have the ability to be used again. It really does bother me to throw these out when I can still see life left in them. Auggghhh. I love to "use things up". I actually do get a feeling of happiness when I finish a box of crackers or cereal, or finish the last piece of paper in a notebook. Speaking of notebooks, I'm using one now that has pages that dated from 2003 - yes, 7 years ago I was using this same 70 page notebook. And I've moved at least once (and maybe more times) since I purchased it for about 10 cents - I wonder how much my moving cost was for all these old notebooks with "a few good blank pages in them"? How can I think that's worth it to keep things like old notebooks that still have 10 sides of blank pages? I have too much stuff that doesn't bring me pleasure or happiness but that I have a hard time throwing away because they still can be used. The tissues and napkins are an extreme example but there is much in my house that fits this bill.
So what do I do to get over this?... just do it. Take the old Nike slogan and try to apply it to my house. Just do it, even if its inefficient and they are better ways to do it, just get it done doing whatever it takes (or retakes) Getting my house to be something I'm proud of will make a big difference for my attitude. I did a change over to clean up piles of stuff that was left in the kitchen, and the clean up made me feel soooo much better about the kitchen. I need to take that same approach throughout the house. Its a nice house - I do love it - but for the last few weeks I would have been embarrassed if anyone came in beyond the doorways.
So this weekend will be a big push to get it done. The priority will be the "public areas" of the house - I'll let the bedrooms slide to another time. I'm going to get the Family room, living room, dining areas, mud room, and entry areas looking how I want them to look. Trust me - this is a big task. But its going to happen. I have the motivation to get it done. Now I just need to find the time.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Monday, October 11, 2010
Building confidence to match capability
I had not run in 2 weeks - it started because of the cold but continued because of fear. Fear of finding out how much I had lost with that break, of how hard it would feel, and of how long it would take to get back to where I was with cardio and endurance.
It's true.. the only think you have to fear is fear itself.
Saturday I ran for about 5 miles on the Scuppernong Trail. I still had the tail end of my cold and had to carry water because my throat needed it constantly throughout the run (our sag wagon had water at around the 3 mile point), but overall it was fine. If I had not had the trail running program, there is no way I would have gotten out and ran that morning. No way. But I did have the program, and I did run, and it was fine. No, better than fine; it was GOOD. I felt good, and I felt capable. I'm grateful I had the insight to sign up for the trail running program - to be fully honest I was a bit intimidated by the concept and wasn't confident that I was capable of trail running - but it's been good, first and foremost it has kept me running and increased my distances. Saturda's 5 miles was the longest I've run since 2007 when I completed the Green Bay Half Marathon.
We have 2 more outings for the Trail Program - and the last one could be a 9 miler for me. There is a 6 mile loop and a 9 mile loop. Marty (our leader) thinks I can (and should) to the 9 miler. Once again, I'm not confident...but considering the scuppernong run...I'm beginning to believe I'm capable of it. What I need I to do is to bump up my running over these next two weeks to prove to myself that I can do the 9 mile run.
As a side note, this post started in my mind with frustration at waking up with a very soar neck today. It had started yesterday with waking up with a mild soar neck - it hurt a little and had some limited mobility on the left side. I'm positive the trail running did not help it any. The neck continued to mildly hurt throughout the day and impacted my sleep. This morning it was painful - there is no other words to describe it. And I thought for sure this would keep me from pilates class tonight and probably limiting my additional running this week. Well a heating pad session, a few alieve, some simple stretching and it's feeling much better. I'm confident that I'll be able to participate in pilates and that the stretching and movement from tonight's class will improve the neck - confident that I'm capable. And I'm feeling like I'll be able to add those morning runs in this week to make Saturday's trail running go smooth. It really is very nice and empowering to have a core belief that I'm confident in my capabilities.
It's true.. the only think you have to fear is fear itself.
Saturday I ran for about 5 miles on the Scuppernong Trail. I still had the tail end of my cold and had to carry water because my throat needed it constantly throughout the run (our sag wagon had water at around the 3 mile point), but overall it was fine. If I had not had the trail running program, there is no way I would have gotten out and ran that morning. No way. But I did have the program, and I did run, and it was fine. No, better than fine; it was GOOD. I felt good, and I felt capable. I'm grateful I had the insight to sign up for the trail running program - to be fully honest I was a bit intimidated by the concept and wasn't confident that I was capable of trail running - but it's been good, first and foremost it has kept me running and increased my distances. Saturda's 5 miles was the longest I've run since 2007 when I completed the Green Bay Half Marathon.
We have 2 more outings for the Trail Program - and the last one could be a 9 miler for me. There is a 6 mile loop and a 9 mile loop. Marty (our leader) thinks I can (and should) to the 9 miler. Once again, I'm not confident...but considering the scuppernong run...I'm beginning to believe I'm capable of it. What I need I to do is to bump up my running over these next two weeks to prove to myself that I can do the 9 mile run.
As a side note, this post started in my mind with frustration at waking up with a very soar neck today. It had started yesterday with waking up with a mild soar neck - it hurt a little and had some limited mobility on the left side. I'm positive the trail running did not help it any. The neck continued to mildly hurt throughout the day and impacted my sleep. This morning it was painful - there is no other words to describe it. And I thought for sure this would keep me from pilates class tonight and probably limiting my additional running this week. Well a heating pad session, a few alieve, some simple stretching and it's feeling much better. I'm confident that I'll be able to participate in pilates and that the stretching and movement from tonight's class will improve the neck - confident that I'm capable. And I'm feeling like I'll be able to add those morning runs in this week to make Saturday's trail running go smooth. It really is very nice and empowering to have a core belief that I'm confident in my capabilities.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Set backs
I really felt like I was in the groove for picking up running again. I looked forward to the outings and felt steady improvements. The only concern I had was picking the right clothes - I often dressed too warm. I figured that was relatively minor and would figure itself out the more I ran and the cooler fall weather came into play.
Well, I'm out of the groove and wondering how I can get back into it. I got sick - the server cold and with sour throat that hurts to swallow, the stuffy nose where you can't breath through at least one of the nostrils at all times, achy and tired. Over all a miserable condition and there was no way I was going outside to get in any sort of run. This lasted just over a week.
I'm now feeling better - still have the cough that I can't fully shake and the throat is not fully back to normal but I feel 100% better than I did last week.
So its back to finding a way to exercise - specifically getting back to running. Monday night I worked out with my pilates mat class. This is the second day I've dressed in sweats with the plan / hope / desire to get in a run throughout the day. Wish me luck (and focus)
Well, I'm out of the groove and wondering how I can get back into it. I got sick - the server cold and with sour throat that hurts to swallow, the stuffy nose where you can't breath through at least one of the nostrils at all times, achy and tired. Over all a miserable condition and there was no way I was going outside to get in any sort of run. This lasted just over a week.
I'm now feeling better - still have the cough that I can't fully shake and the throat is not fully back to normal but I feel 100% better than I did last week.
So its back to finding a way to exercise - specifically getting back to running. Monday night I worked out with my pilates mat class. This is the second day I've dressed in sweats with the plan / hope / desire to get in a run throughout the day. Wish me luck (and focus)
Friday, September 24, 2010
Running History
I've been really pleased with the running this time around. I've been a "runner" on and off a few times in my life.
The first time was back in college - I regularly ran 5Ks and one of the first CrazyLegs 5 mile race. At this time, I wasn't really a runner - I was an in-shape college kid that could run multiple miles without too much effort.
The next time was when I lived on a beautiful lake in Minneapolis - Lake Harriet (1994-ish). It was a nice suburban lake with a paved path just short of 3 miles circling it - and with side options of a very nice rose garden, floating bridge through man-high cattails (very cool route), and a bird sanctuary (not as cool as I would have thought). I started slow and steady with my own running program. I started with running from my apartment to the band shell, which is probably less than half a mile. I did that minimal route for weeks - running that short distance about every other day. Once I was comfortable with that distance I then ran past it to the rose garden entrance and back; and again I did that distance for weeks. Once I was comfortable with that I moved on to the next landmark and ran to it and back. I'm sure for a while I was running more than the circumference of the lake because my landmark milestone (canoe dock) was more than half way around the lake from my apartment - so the there and back was more than 3 miles. But it was not as satisfying as the day I ran straight through all the way around the lake - it felt awesome. And I was so proud of myself. This running continued for about a year until I switched jobs, moved to Schaumburg, IL. The Chicago apartment complex was on a busy street and there just was not anything near as nice as running around Lake Harriet. As the winter came, I stopped all running and did not pick up again for a few years.
Fast forward to a few years later when that company I worked for while living in Schaumburg was purchased/merged with another paper company in Dayton, OH. We spend many months traveling to Dayton and along with that many, many dinners out. And I've always found that when your on expenses and someone else is paying the dinners tend to be bigger, fattier, and include appetizers, drinks, and desserts - which leads to weight gain. A bunch of us started walking to help counteract the impact of our dinners. We walked around the parking lot of our hotels and corporate apartments most mornings. This also lead me to switch jobs as I had very little desire to relocate to Dayton, OH. At the new job I was immediately traveling again but this time I had a good friend on the same assignment and he was a marathon runner. When I would go out in the morning to walk the parking lot of our hotel, I would see him running through the same parking lots. He often trained in office parking lots because there was little to no traffic at the early time we were running and we could connect parking lots to make a large loop of about a mile. I started the running again - this time making it more of a time based ramp up program for myself. I did this parking lot running for several project assignments and what really got me going was when I started running at home. At that time I lived in the Chicago Gold Coast neighborhood. My condo was directly across from the south end of Lincoln Park and about a half mile through it to the zoo. I absolutely loved my home running route - I started through the park and ran a loop through the zoo - my zoo path ran pass the monkeys, lions, tigers, elephants and (my favor) the polar bear; then through more of lincoln park gardens, through the marina, and along Chicago's famous the lake shore path. Total distance was 4 miles and it made me feel soooo good to complete that run. At that time I got into running 5Ks most weekends, and did a couple 10Ks. But then I had a minor ankle twist on the Gargoyle Gallop 5K - twisted my foot when running from the street onto the curb; nothing major just landed wrong as I stepped up and by the time the run finished my ankle was twice its size. The next running mishap was the Run for the Zoo 10K which was poorly managed that year. The heat index was very high and the TV weather people were advising not to go outside and do not exert yourself - but still we all went to the 10K. The problem was the run officials knew about the heat and were encouraging everyone to drink as much water as possible as we were waiting to start - but that created a problem that multiple water stops along the 10K had run out of water by the time the 10 minute mile runners (me) came through. No water on a long run (10K was long for me) on a blistering hot day does not make for a good run at all. Follow that up with a move to Wisconsin and again having a new neighborhood without a near as nice running option and I once again fall off the running bandwagon.
The next time I was a runner was a half heart effort. I took Marty's Adult Beginner Running Program and started running regularly but with no real program. Most weeks I made the BLS fun runs. I was getting in better shape and my friend Niki from the gym wanted someone to run a half marathon with her. Not sure why she really had the goal for herself, but I've always had a personal goal to finish a marathon so this seamed like a good step for me. The training went surprising well. I enjoyed our long runs together and had no trouble keeping up the shorter training runs during the weeks. Our half marathon was not that satisfying or me. The day was awful - cold (40F) and lightly raining at the start. It did warm up as we went but around the 8 mile mark Niki's feet starting hurting and she couldn't run. At first we just did walk breaks between running but by mile 10 she couldn't run at all and needed to walk. She offered me the option of leaving her behind and running but I felt the right thing for me to do was to stay and walk with her. We finished but our time as much longer than I expected or hoped for. It wasn't a good milestone for me because I know I could have done so much better (faster). Shortly after the Half, I ran into my own foot problem with planters fasciitis on my left foot. I ended up in physical therapy and never really restarted the running - I did the occasional 5K and usually felt awful about my decreasing time which made me want to run even less.
Now I've restarted again. I retook Marty's class and ran my first 5K in over a year and a half. This time I'm using his running program of X mins run followed by Y mins walk. The progress is slow. I feel slow, and don't like what the walk breaks do to my pace per mile. I'm running about 2.5 miles now for most of my runs. And really there are times when I don't need/want those walking breaks - but I've still been taking those breaks. I'm trying very hard to stay faithful to this program and start slow since that's when I've seen my best results and longest periods of running. Last week I started his Trail Running class; which I hope adds some variety and fun into my running. My current goal is to RAW - Run All Winter. I hope to find a spring half marathon and really compete for myself at it. I'd like to train with people but I need to set the expectation that we would be running alone for the Half. I don't want to feel the obligation to stop running because of someone else. I hate how selfish this plan sounds, but for myself I need to get one half marathon completed well.
The first time was back in college - I regularly ran 5Ks and one of the first CrazyLegs 5 mile race. At this time, I wasn't really a runner - I was an in-shape college kid that could run multiple miles without too much effort.
The next time was when I lived on a beautiful lake in Minneapolis - Lake Harriet (1994-ish). It was a nice suburban lake with a paved path just short of 3 miles circling it - and with side options of a very nice rose garden, floating bridge through man-high cattails (very cool route), and a bird sanctuary (not as cool as I would have thought). I started slow and steady with my own running program. I started with running from my apartment to the band shell, which is probably less than half a mile. I did that minimal route for weeks - running that short distance about every other day. Once I was comfortable with that distance I then ran past it to the rose garden entrance and back; and again I did that distance for weeks. Once I was comfortable with that I moved on to the next landmark and ran to it and back. I'm sure for a while I was running more than the circumference of the lake because my landmark milestone (canoe dock) was more than half way around the lake from my apartment - so the there and back was more than 3 miles. But it was not as satisfying as the day I ran straight through all the way around the lake - it felt awesome. And I was so proud of myself. This running continued for about a year until I switched jobs, moved to Schaumburg, IL. The Chicago apartment complex was on a busy street and there just was not anything near as nice as running around Lake Harriet. As the winter came, I stopped all running and did not pick up again for a few years.
Fast forward to a few years later when that company I worked for while living in Schaumburg was purchased/merged with another paper company in Dayton, OH. We spend many months traveling to Dayton and along with that many, many dinners out. And I've always found that when your on expenses and someone else is paying the dinners tend to be bigger, fattier, and include appetizers, drinks, and desserts - which leads to weight gain. A bunch of us started walking to help counteract the impact of our dinners. We walked around the parking lot of our hotels and corporate apartments most mornings. This also lead me to switch jobs as I had very little desire to relocate to Dayton, OH. At the new job I was immediately traveling again but this time I had a good friend on the same assignment and he was a marathon runner. When I would go out in the morning to walk the parking lot of our hotel, I would see him running through the same parking lots. He often trained in office parking lots because there was little to no traffic at the early time we were running and we could connect parking lots to make a large loop of about a mile. I started the running again - this time making it more of a time based ramp up program for myself. I did this parking lot running for several project assignments and what really got me going was when I started running at home. At that time I lived in the Chicago Gold Coast neighborhood. My condo was directly across from the south end of Lincoln Park and about a half mile through it to the zoo. I absolutely loved my home running route - I started through the park and ran a loop through the zoo - my zoo path ran pass the monkeys, lions, tigers, elephants and (my favor) the polar bear; then through more of lincoln park gardens, through the marina, and along Chicago's famous the lake shore path. Total distance was 4 miles and it made me feel soooo good to complete that run. At that time I got into running 5Ks most weekends, and did a couple 10Ks. But then I had a minor ankle twist on the Gargoyle Gallop 5K - twisted my foot when running from the street onto the curb; nothing major just landed wrong as I stepped up and by the time the run finished my ankle was twice its size. The next running mishap was the Run for the Zoo 10K which was poorly managed that year. The heat index was very high and the TV weather people were advising not to go outside and do not exert yourself - but still we all went to the 10K. The problem was the run officials knew about the heat and were encouraging everyone to drink as much water as possible as we were waiting to start - but that created a problem that multiple water stops along the 10K had run out of water by the time the 10 minute mile runners (me) came through. No water on a long run (10K was long for me) on a blistering hot day does not make for a good run at all. Follow that up with a move to Wisconsin and again having a new neighborhood without a near as nice running option and I once again fall off the running bandwagon.
The next time I was a runner was a half heart effort. I took Marty's Adult Beginner Running Program and started running regularly but with no real program. Most weeks I made the BLS fun runs. I was getting in better shape and my friend Niki from the gym wanted someone to run a half marathon with her. Not sure why she really had the goal for herself, but I've always had a personal goal to finish a marathon so this seamed like a good step for me. The training went surprising well. I enjoyed our long runs together and had no trouble keeping up the shorter training runs during the weeks. Our half marathon was not that satisfying or me. The day was awful - cold (40F) and lightly raining at the start. It did warm up as we went but around the 8 mile mark Niki's feet starting hurting and she couldn't run. At first we just did walk breaks between running but by mile 10 she couldn't run at all and needed to walk. She offered me the option of leaving her behind and running but I felt the right thing for me to do was to stay and walk with her. We finished but our time as much longer than I expected or hoped for. It wasn't a good milestone for me because I know I could have done so much better (faster). Shortly after the Half, I ran into my own foot problem with planters fasciitis on my left foot. I ended up in physical therapy and never really restarted the running - I did the occasional 5K and usually felt awful about my decreasing time which made me want to run even less.
Now I've restarted again. I retook Marty's class and ran my first 5K in over a year and a half. This time I'm using his running program of X mins run followed by Y mins walk. The progress is slow. I feel slow, and don't like what the walk breaks do to my pace per mile. I'm running about 2.5 miles now for most of my runs. And really there are times when I don't need/want those walking breaks - but I've still been taking those breaks. I'm trying very hard to stay faithful to this program and start slow since that's when I've seen my best results and longest periods of running. Last week I started his Trail Running class; which I hope adds some variety and fun into my running. My current goal is to RAW - Run All Winter. I hope to find a spring half marathon and really compete for myself at it. I'd like to train with people but I need to set the expectation that we would be running alone for the Half. I don't want to feel the obligation to stop running because of someone else. I hate how selfish this plan sounds, but for myself I need to get one half marathon completed well.
Monday, September 20, 2010
I'm baacccckkkk
I'm back -- from Vegas and more importantly I'm back from the funk that I had when I got back home.
I'm not sure what overcame me but I was really out of sorts. My eating was awful - chips by the bagful and high fat / high calorie choices. My sleeping was off; the running continued (thank God) but the pace felt slow and sluggish. My to-do list kept growing and my done list never seamed to change.
God I am glad to be back to normal now!!!
I completed the Tosa Fest 5K run - a bit slower than I would have liked but overall I'm pleased with my ability to keep a program going and be back to active running. Since the 5K and the completion of Marty's running program I've stayed on the program and have joined his trail running program. Tonight I start my park and rec Pilates Mat class. Net result - physical activity is back on track and feeling good about it.
My eating is getting better - smaller portions and healthier choices. Today I has a kohlrabi while my spaghetti squash cooked for lunch and an apple for desert. Yesterday's breakfast was an apple with nut butter and raw oatmeal. Much healthier choices than I was making last week!
My to-do list is finally shrinking again - although to be fully honest is staying about the same because as soon as I finish tasks I'm adding new ones to it. I have a lot of work to get done for the yard before winter and throughout the house. And before when I was in my funk I wasn't even able to see all the possibilities and opportunities that are now on my to-do list. I'm on my way.
I owe some updates from previous points -- look for that shortly!
I'm not sure what overcame me but I was really out of sorts. My eating was awful - chips by the bagful and high fat / high calorie choices. My sleeping was off; the running continued (thank God) but the pace felt slow and sluggish. My to-do list kept growing and my done list never seamed to change.
God I am glad to be back to normal now!!!
I completed the Tosa Fest 5K run - a bit slower than I would have liked but overall I'm pleased with my ability to keep a program going and be back to active running. Since the 5K and the completion of Marty's running program I've stayed on the program and have joined his trail running program. Tonight I start my park and rec Pilates Mat class. Net result - physical activity is back on track and feeling good about it.
My eating is getting better - smaller portions and healthier choices. Today I has a kohlrabi while my spaghetti squash cooked for lunch and an apple for desert. Yesterday's breakfast was an apple with nut butter and raw oatmeal. Much healthier choices than I was making last week!
My to-do list is finally shrinking again - although to be fully honest is staying about the same because as soon as I finish tasks I'm adding new ones to it. I have a lot of work to get done for the yard before winter and throughout the house. And before when I was in my funk I wasn't even able to see all the possibilities and opportunities that are now on my to-do list. I'm on my way.
I owe some updates from previous points -- look for that shortly!
Friday, September 3, 2010
You don't have to be well adjusted, you just have to adjust well.
It should not be a surprise to me. I like to walk and can tolerate the heat much more than the average person. Yesterday we went to the Vegas Strip to pick up our Badger Bash tickets and hang out on the strip. We drove to TI (Treasure Island) and from there walked down to Harrah's and did a little drinking, a little gambling (I won $90), and little walking around between the various casinos, and watched part of the Mirage volcano explosion and the TI pirate show (which by the way is no longer family friendly). I thought it was fun but would have enjoyed walking a bit more and spending less time in the casinos. And wouldn't you know it, as the group was discussing the day almost all said something about how we walked too much and had to plan better so that we didn't have to walk as much over the rest of the weekend...aughhh. Oh well at least I'm still getting in my running program runs.
And not only is the walking a difference between what I envisions and the group's plans/desires... instead of wanting to go anywhere the group mainly wants to do the pool and then eat big. My friend Barb told me the group was renting a car so that we could get off the strip and do stuff - candidates were going to some of the parks for a hike, hoover dam, or lake mead. Does not sound like any of that will happen. And I've traveled enough with groups that I was expecting that nothing like that would happen unless we picked a day for it before we left....of course we did not pick a day. I'm agreeable to the pool :-) but the 'eating big' is going to be a problem for me. First I am trying to be healthier and second I am such a mindless eater that I will match the volume and poor choices of the group without even realizing I'm doing that - and our group eats large volumes and most of it deep fried. It's fun and I enjoy it while I'm doing it but I end up with eaters regret. What am I doing about it? well I'm trying to control my breakfast and lunch choices to keep them lower calorie and healthier to help balance out the overall calories and fat for the day. Dinner time? I know I'm eating too much - it's part of the vegas influence - but I'm also realizing I'm eating less volume and less deep fried than my group. It's a small step but every step helps.
I want to point out I am having fun and will continue to have fun - this post may give you a different idea but it's message is to point out that change happens, expectations may need to be adjusted, and as long as you have a plan and adjust as needed then things will work out. You don't have to be well adjusted, you just have to adjust well.
And not only is the walking a difference between what I envisions and the group's plans/desires... instead of wanting to go anywhere the group mainly wants to do the pool and then eat big. My friend Barb told me the group was renting a car so that we could get off the strip and do stuff - candidates were going to some of the parks for a hike, hoover dam, or lake mead. Does not sound like any of that will happen. And I've traveled enough with groups that I was expecting that nothing like that would happen unless we picked a day for it before we left....of course we did not pick a day. I'm agreeable to the pool :-) but the 'eating big' is going to be a problem for me. First I am trying to be healthier and second I am such a mindless eater that I will match the volume and poor choices of the group without even realizing I'm doing that - and our group eats large volumes and most of it deep fried. It's fun and I enjoy it while I'm doing it but I end up with eaters regret. What am I doing about it? well I'm trying to control my breakfast and lunch choices to keep them lower calorie and healthier to help balance out the overall calories and fat for the day. Dinner time? I know I'm eating too much - it's part of the vegas influence - but I'm also realizing I'm eating less volume and less deep fried than my group. It's a small step but every step helps.
I want to point out I am having fun and will continue to have fun - this post may give you a different idea but it's message is to point out that change happens, expectations may need to be adjusted, and as long as you have a plan and adjust as needed then things will work out. You don't have to be well adjusted, you just have to adjust well.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Vegas baby
I'm in Vegas for the long Labor Day weekend to see the Badgers play football against UNLV and have a relaxing weekend to end the summer.
I really hope to make it relaxing but to be honest it always hard for me to be away from home for anything more than a couple of days. And this is 6 days in Vegas - and Vegas days are like dog years where they count as more than a regular vacation day.
Today I made it out for a run before 9:30 am. The earlier you go the better as today is supposed to get over 100F. The plan is spend the majority of the day at the hotel pool -- and my frugal side hopes I can also squeeze in a trip to a grocery store or Walgreens to pick up some Gatoraid and water for the room. The hotel room water tastes awful. In fact it's hard to rise the mouth after brushing the teeth - it's that bad tasting. I did bring snacks - baked cheetoes, pretzel sticks, mentos and cola gummies (my travel favorites) . These snacks help and it helps my mental state to have purchased these at home at regular non-inflated costs.
Vegas is never easy to eat healthy - there is much too much of late night food and no veggies. But I'm going to make an effort to keep it reasonable - that means enjoying myself and with the group but keeping the excess to a minimum (and again Vegas has a different definition of excess compared to home). So far doing OK - at the airport everyone was eating and had already eaten a small dinner at home and wasn't really hungry but I got the sandwich anyway. And to be fair it was a healthy sandwich - we were at an organic deli. I justified it knowing that I would not have a chance to have anything (healthy or not) for the next several hours. And overall I think that choice was good because after we got settled into the hotel rooms the group wanted to eat and I chose not to order anything. I had a few fries and a chicken wing that people shared with me, but that was much less calories, fat, and money than if I had ordered something for myself.
I need to find a way to get some decent breakfast food (my next challenge?!!) that I can start my day with while the rest of the group is still sleeping. I'm hoping we get to a grocery store and I get a bag of apples and some granola-type bars.
I really hope to make it relaxing but to be honest it always hard for me to be away from home for anything more than a couple of days. And this is 6 days in Vegas - and Vegas days are like dog years where they count as more than a regular vacation day.
Today I made it out for a run before 9:30 am. The earlier you go the better as today is supposed to get over 100F. The plan is spend the majority of the day at the hotel pool -- and my frugal side hopes I can also squeeze in a trip to a grocery store or Walgreens to pick up some Gatoraid and water for the room. The hotel room water tastes awful. In fact it's hard to rise the mouth after brushing the teeth - it's that bad tasting. I did bring snacks - baked cheetoes, pretzel sticks, mentos and cola gummies (my travel favorites) . These snacks help and it helps my mental state to have purchased these at home at regular non-inflated costs.
Vegas is never easy to eat healthy - there is much too much of late night food and no veggies. But I'm going to make an effort to keep it reasonable - that means enjoying myself and with the group but keeping the excess to a minimum (and again Vegas has a different definition of excess compared to home). So far doing OK - at the airport everyone was eating and had already eaten a small dinner at home and wasn't really hungry but I got the sandwich anyway. And to be fair it was a healthy sandwich - we were at an organic deli. I justified it knowing that I would not have a chance to have anything (healthy or not) for the next several hours. And overall I think that choice was good because after we got settled into the hotel rooms the group wanted to eat and I chose not to order anything. I had a few fries and a chicken wing that people shared with me, but that was much less calories, fat, and money than if I had ordered something for myself.
I need to find a way to get some decent breakfast food (my next challenge?!!) that I can start my day with while the rest of the group is still sleeping. I'm hoping we get to a grocery store and I get a bag of apples and some granola-type bars.
Friday, August 27, 2010
Christmas Planning 2010
Yeah its early for this but I find if I don't figure things out now then I tend to miss out on some neat opportunities. Fr Dave would be appalled - he thinks people start celebrating the season too early and miss out on celebrating the actual feast days (his view stretches beyond just the Christmas season).
So here is the consolidated list of possible activities and events for me for December
Sat, Dec 4 - 2010 Jingle Bell Run/Walk - (only $17 compared to $30+ at Milwaukee Zoo and Madison's runs)
Racine Lutheran High School
http://jbrracine.kintera.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=426504
Sat, Dec 4 - Madison Hoofers Ski Resale -http://hoofersns.org/resale
9:00am to 5:00pm (can't do Sunday - reserved for cookie bake)
Sat, Dec 4/5 - need to make it to one of St Dom's mass - they have special Sun 10:30 am mass with the Archbishop to dedicate the new renovated spaces- and have "gifts" for all at all the masses - I will miss the special mass due to cookie bake
Sun, Dec 5 locked in for annual Cookie bake
Thrs, Dec 9 @ 7:30 pm - It's a Wonderful Life at the Sunset Playhouse - BJD has 3 tickets
http://sunsetplayhouse.com/onstage/show.php?id=27
Sat, Dec 11, 1:30 pm - Badgers Basketball at Marquette (Bradley Center)
Sat 18/ Sun 19 - Model Trains at Discovery World - http://programs.discoveryworld.org/archives/1591
try to combine with a winter lakefront walk?, holiday lights?, tea?, etc
Dates not yet set:
Chicago Botantical Garden - Winter Wonderland
http://www.chicagobotanic.org/wonderland/
Christmas Express Train at Elegant Farmer - December 4, 5, 11, & 12 from 11 am - 3 pm
www.elegantfarmer.com
Milwaukee Holiday Lights - walk thru or take the jingle bus
http://www.milwaukeedowntown.com/categories/14-holidaylightsfestival
High Tea - a couple of options
Pfister 23rd floor - every Fri - Sun from 3 - 4:30 during Nov and Dec - link
George Watts tea shop - http://www.wattsteashop.com/index.html
M&I Holiday Display - quick walkthru when you're already down town
http://www.micorp.com/mibank/solutions.cfm?ObjectID=00095BA4-9D4A-1F70-901180C8FE5A0000&
Dropped items - keep on list for review/consideration for next year
Bel Canto -- Christmas in the Basilica - Sat, Dec 4, 7:30 pm ;Sun, Dec 5, 3pm
Basilica of St. Josaphat
http://www.belcanto.org/dnav/6/page.htm
Mannheim Steamroller at the Bradley Center - only Tue, Dec 22 & Wed, Dec 23
http://shop.mannheimsteamroller.com/content/Tour.htm Dropped - missed ticket sale and resale price is out of controll
So here is the consolidated list of possible activities and events for me for December
Sat, Dec 4 - 2010 Jingle Bell Run/Walk - (only $17 compared to $30+ at Milwaukee Zoo and Madison's runs)
Racine Lutheran High School
http://jbrracine.kintera.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=426504
Sat, Dec 4 - Madison Hoofers Ski Resale -http://hoofersns.org/resale
9:00am to 5:00pm (can't do Sunday - reserved for cookie bake)
Sat, Dec 4/5 - need to make it to one of St Dom's mass - they have special Sun 10:30 am mass with the Archbishop to dedicate the new renovated spaces- and have "gifts" for all at all the masses - I will miss the special mass due to cookie bake
Sun, Dec 5 locked in for annual Cookie bake
Thrs, Dec 9 @ 7:30 pm - It's a Wonderful Life at the Sunset Playhouse - BJD has 3 tickets
http://sunsetplayhouse.com/onstage/show.php?id=27
Sat, Dec 11, 1:30 pm - Badgers Basketball at Marquette (Bradley Center)
Sat 18/ Sun 19 - Model Trains at Discovery World - http://programs.discoveryworld.org/archives/1591
try to combine with a winter lakefront walk?, holiday lights?, tea?, etc
Dates not yet set:
Chicago Botantical Garden - Winter Wonderland
http://www.chicagobotanic.org/wonderland/
Christmas Express Train at Elegant Farmer - December 4, 5, 11, & 12 from 11 am - 3 pm
www.elegantfarmer.com
Milwaukee Holiday Lights - walk thru or take the jingle bus
http://www.milwaukeedowntown.com/categories/14-holidaylightsfestival
High Tea - a couple of options
Pfister 23rd floor - every Fri - Sun from 3 - 4:30 during Nov and Dec - link
George Watts tea shop - http://www.wattsteashop.com/index.html
M&I Holiday Display - quick walkthru when you're already down town
http://www.micorp.com/mibank/solutions.cfm?ObjectID=00095BA4-9D4A-1F70-901180C8FE5A0000&
Dropped items - keep on list for review/consideration for next year
Bel Canto -- Christmas in the Basilica - Sat, Dec 4, 7:30 pm ;
Basilica of St. Josaphat
http://www.belcanto.org/dnav/6/page.htm
New Challenge - pre and travel challenges
This week's salad challenge was highly successful - I had a salad every day for lunch and more importantly if I had not given myself this salad challenge I would not have had salad every day this week. So the challenge does really work well to change my behavior. I'm a very self-competitive person...which means I like to do things just to find out if I could do it.
Next Wednesday evening I travel to Las Vegas for 6 days. The impetus of the trip is to see the Wisconsin Badger football game against UNLV, but we are going down early and leaving later - never leave the travel plans for a Vegas weekend to a bunch of gamblers because the weekend up becomes a week long trip!!
So back to the challenges - yes challenges with an "s". I'm going to do a pretrip challenge and a trip challenge
Pretrip challenge
1) clear out fruit, veggies, and dairy that need to be consumed before I leave for Vegas. This may mean doing some cooking and freezing; and bringing veggies and fruit to the canoe trip and book club cookout Update - this went very well, I'm eating the last of the cottage cheese and grapes as I type this. The milk is in the freezer (first time trying to freeze milk - we'll see how it goes); I only have 2 apples and some carrots felt. Current plan it take them all in m my carry-on bag.
2nd update -- mainly success - apples were eaten with a small dinner but I forgot the carrots!! hope they are still good when I get home. Also would have been nice to finish off the orange juice.
2) Need to get the quicken/bills paid - this has been dragging on for too long and I don't want to get late fees,etc cause I didn't get to it before I left Update- well we got have way there. The bills are entered into Quicken and paid except for the Health Care bills - still hoping to get this taken care of before I leave tonight.
2nd update - did not get to the Health Care bills - will need to make that a priority; also need to work on the Mortgage refinance process - received package from wells fargo the day I left
Trip Challenge - 6 days Thursday morning to Tuesday evening
1) Continue the running program - 3x 5min run/ 1 min walk for at least 20 minutes
Update - Thursday morning ran the last of the 4 imn/1 min program. Nike ipod did not record (again), ran 23 minutes and overall felt good but slow
Friday morning ran the first of the 5 min/1 min for 5 sessions (30 mins) again felt good but also felt slow pace combined run/walk total pace was 15 min miles. I'm gonna blame a lot of the slow pace on the vegas experience and excess, plus not knowing where to go makes me slower as a I search the street or parking lot to figure out a route, and lastly the heat and running with a water bottle - just doesn't feel as natural -- but while this sounds negative I don't mean it to be, I'm actually very happy and proud that I've been able to get these workouts in and I'm positive that the runs will improve when I'm back sleeping in my own bed, going to be at a regular time, and eating veggies again. ;-)
2) Squats - 3 reps of 10 squats on each of the non-running days
3) Water exercise - hard to predefine but I'll know if I did it, should be hot enough to spend a lot of time in the water - let's make part of it a work out
4) Walk/hike at least 5 miles on at least 2 of the days - take pedometer to measure Update - we walked the strip on Thursday and I forgot the pedometer, but I'm going to guess overall mileage was between than 2 and 3 miles.
Next Wednesday evening I travel to Las Vegas for 6 days. The impetus of the trip is to see the Wisconsin Badger football game against UNLV, but we are going down early and leaving later - never leave the travel plans for a Vegas weekend to a bunch of gamblers because the weekend up becomes a week long trip!!
So back to the challenges - yes challenges with an "s". I'm going to do a pretrip challenge and a trip challenge
Pretrip challenge
1) clear out fruit, veggies, and dairy that need to be consumed before I leave for Vegas. This may mean doing some cooking and freezing; and bringing veggies and fruit to the canoe trip and book club cookout Update - this went very well, I'm eating the last of the cottage cheese and grapes as I type this. The milk is in the freezer (first time trying to freeze milk - we'll see how it goes); I only have 2 apples and some carrots felt. Current plan it take them all in m my carry-on bag.
2nd update -- mainly success - apples were eaten with a small dinner but I forgot the carrots!! hope they are still good when I get home. Also would have been nice to finish off the orange juice.
2) Need to get the quicken/bills paid - this has been dragging on for too long and I don't want to get late fees,etc cause I didn't get to it before I left Update- well we got have way there. The bills are entered into Quicken and paid except for the Health Care bills - still hoping to get this taken care of before I leave tonight.
2nd update - did not get to the Health Care bills - will need to make that a priority; also need to work on the Mortgage refinance process - received package from wells fargo the day I left
Trip Challenge - 6 days Thursday morning to Tuesday evening
1) Continue the running program - 3x 5min run/ 1 min walk for at least 20 minutes
Update - Thursday morning ran the last of the 4 imn/1 min program. Nike ipod did not record (again), ran 23 minutes and overall felt good but slow
Friday morning ran the first of the 5 min/1 min for 5 sessions (30 mins) again felt good but also felt slow pace combined run/walk total pace was 15 min miles. I'm gonna blame a lot of the slow pace on the vegas experience and excess, plus not knowing where to go makes me slower as a I search the street or parking lot to figure out a route, and lastly the heat and running with a water bottle - just doesn't feel as natural -- but while this sounds negative I don't mean it to be, I'm actually very happy and proud that I've been able to get these workouts in and I'm positive that the runs will improve when I'm back sleeping in my own bed, going to be at a regular time, and eating veggies again. ;-)
2) Squats - 3 reps of 10 squats on each of the non-running days
3) Water exercise - hard to predefine but I'll know if I did it, should be hot enough to spend a lot of time in the water - let's make part of it a work out
4) Walk/hike at least 5 miles on at least 2 of the days - take pedometer to measure Update - we walked the strip on Thursday and I forgot the pedometer, but I'm going to guess overall mileage was between than 2 and 3 miles.
Bad back
Woke up this morning with a sore back. Not sure what happened or when it happened. My back was a little bit tight last night during the group run. I did do more stretching than we normally do after the run, including some upper body stretching, so I would have thought it would help rather than causing any back problems.
I had an ice bag tucked into my tanktop this morning in an effort to heal the back; also took 2 Aleve which probably helped even more.
I'm hoping the back/right shoulder are fine for Saturday's canoe outing. I'm really looking forward to the day on the water.
I had an ice bag tucked into my tanktop this morning in an effort to heal the back; also took 2 Aleve which probably helped even more.
I'm hoping the back/right shoulder are fine for Saturday's canoe outing. I'm really looking forward to the day on the water.
Monday, August 23, 2010
Salad challenge
I'm going to try to add some weekly healthy challenges to keep me motivated and on the right track ... who knows some of these may become healthy habits.
This week's challenge is to have Salad for lunch every day this week (expect Saturday which will be excused because it's my canoe outing and it's really much easier to eat a sandwich in a canoe mid-river than a salad)
Results
Sunday - yes
Monday - yes
Tuesday -yes
Wednesday -yes
Thursday - yes
Friday - yes!!!
Saturday - excused due to canoe outingFri 8/27 updating that the challenge was a success!! Salads every day and most of the huge bag of romain lettuce is consumed -- its important to use this up before next week's vacation.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
I'm back ...from Healthy Living Summit
It sure has been a while since I've been back on this site. I spend the last weekend in Chicago at the Healthy Living Summit which was both good and bad for me. The good is its helping me get restarted on keeping this blog updated and helping me want to set some personal goals and challenges. The bad is I was not the target audience at all - I'm close to 20 years older than the average and close to 75 more than most, which would be ok except many of the attendees were not very welcoming of anyone that wasn't the norm.
I was excited to be in Chicago for a weekend, especially since it was the air and water show weekend. I rode the amtrak train down to Chicago in the morning and worked form the IBM offices on Wacker. That was really nice. But the best part was being able to lunch with my former co-worker Jason. It's been over a year since I had seen him and was great to get caught up. Working from the Chicago IBM office was easier than I thought it would be - the train was quick and I had access to the IBM sametime most of the train ride so it virtually like I was in my own home office. If I do this more often, I need to evaluate switching to the iphone or a different smart phone than the blackberry I have now - other phone have much easier internet and application access.
I loved walking around the city. Chicago is very nice in the summer. Its very picturesque and always has so much going on to see. Next time I need to take more control of my schedule and make sure I do the things I want to do - in some ways I felt trapped to stay near the Congress Hotel (location of the summit) and grant park. In hindsight I really wish I would have done 2 things - first go north to Lincoln Park and see my old fave spots - the zoo, the flower conservatory, and my regular running route through it and the marina, and second I wish I had taken the architectural boat tour. I would have really enjoyed the boat tour. I know I would have enjoyed both of these much more than I enjoyed the summit itself. For me the best part of the weekend was the extended walks around the city. I do love walking and I really get to do it so little.
I was excited to be in Chicago for a weekend, especially since it was the air and water show weekend. I rode the amtrak train down to Chicago in the morning and worked form the IBM offices on Wacker. That was really nice. But the best part was being able to lunch with my former co-worker Jason. It's been over a year since I had seen him and was great to get caught up. Working from the Chicago IBM office was easier than I thought it would be - the train was quick and I had access to the IBM sametime most of the train ride so it virtually like I was in my own home office. If I do this more often, I need to evaluate switching to the iphone or a different smart phone than the blackberry I have now - other phone have much easier internet and application access.
I loved walking around the city. Chicago is very nice in the summer. Its very picturesque and always has so much going on to see. Next time I need to take more control of my schedule and make sure I do the things I want to do - in some ways I felt trapped to stay near the Congress Hotel (location of the summit) and grant park. In hindsight I really wish I would have done 2 things - first go north to Lincoln Park and see my old fave spots - the zoo, the flower conservatory, and my regular running route through it and the marina, and second I wish I had taken the architectural boat tour. I would have really enjoyed the boat tour. I know I would have enjoyed both of these much more than I enjoyed the summit itself. For me the best part of the weekend was the extended walks around the city. I do love walking and I really get to do it so little.
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