March Madness!

Please excuse the lapse in posts.  There are several reasonable excuses to give, but the honest truth is it really hasn’t been high on the priority list the past two months.

The other honest truth is that I, and those around me, have strayed a bit from the wellness path during that time.  After the coldest winter in at least ten years combined with weeks on end of no sun, I am just now digging myself out of a mini-depression that resulted in 7 extra pounds, a complete plateau in the running department, and just overall slothness.

Leave it to NCAA basketball to get me back on track.  For those of you that at least cut on your tv during these three weeks, you cannot help but run across coverage of March Madness.  The all-out battle to move from the outskirts of the bracket to the inner sanctum is intense, emotional, and highly contagious.  There’s always a 12/5 upset and often a 14/3 upset.  This year, a number 1, 2, and 3 seeded team all got knocked off in the first weekend!

What in the hell, you might be asking yourself, does this have to do with wellness?  Not much, probably, other than an opportunity to use the adrenaline rush as a substitute for exercise.  But bear with me. The thing I love most about March Madness is that at the beginning of the tournament, everyone’s equal.  Despite the rankings, every team has at least a chance, no matter how statistically infinitesmal, to reach the center of the bracket and all teams, no matter how elite, must fight their way to the winner’s circle.  March Madness reminds me that there are times in our wellness journey where all things again become equal, and we must recommit to fighting our way towards our health goals.

It’s time to battle back, so put your game face on and get out there! (Virtual butt slapping and chest bumping!!!)

Whole Food Fabulous

Well, I completed the whole foods cleanse plan last Thursday and, frankly, I feel whole food fabulous!  This morning, despite not having the restriction of no caffeine, I woke up with no desire for it.  I actually craved my protein shake and all natural granola instead.  (If you knew me at all, you would understand why that proves that either the diet has been effective at altering my body’s cravings or that I have been possessed by aliens.)

While I have to admit to going back to my wine as early as Friday at 5:00pm, I’ve had little interest in consuming any other pre-packaged, processed, or preserved foods despite the fact that I am not technically bound by my “diet” anymore.  I count this as a success!  Since my brain is often the only party not willing to participate in the wellness journey, training it to actually desire healthy, real food instead of crap is a huge hurdle.  This diet has curbed my crash and burn eating habits and gotten me back on track just as I’d hoped.  I’ve lost some of my holiday binge weight, worked out four days last week, and feel far less like a beached beluga.

Needless to say, if you are looking for something to force your brain (and that evil temptation fairy) to get on board with your healthy eating goals for 2010, I encourage you to try this plan.  You, too, can feel whole food fabulous in just 11 days!  Now, if that’s not a shameless plug, I don’t know what is.

New Year, New Goals

Happy New Year everyone!  While I loathe New Years resolutions not because I don’t keep them but because I am such a rule follower I tend to keep them at any cost, I do try and put together a list of “life improvements” I’d like to work on in the new year.  For 2010, one of these is to continue to tweak my diet by becoming more conscious of what I eat (and to actually care).

The first step in this process is ridding my body of the utter crap I have ingested over the Christmas holiday.  It’s amazing how much fried, processed, full fat, butter-laden food one can put away in just two short weeks.  And the results are readily apparent.  Not only have I put on about 4 pounds, but my attempts at running have been laughable at best.

Have you ever looked at what you eat during the day and asked yourself “how much of that was real food”?  Of course, all of it is edible, and I would guess most quite palatable, but how much of it has real food as its primary ingredient?  If you’re like me, over the last few weeks, very little.  Enter the whole foods diet.  This “diet” isn’t really a diet in that its intention is not to help you shed pounds, reduce cholesterol, or manage blood pressure.  It’s intent is to reintroduce your body to real food, whole food and, in the process, cleanse the body of all of the other stuff we put in it without even thinking about it.  Now, chances are you will lose weight on the diet, reduce your grocery bill, and potentially even lower your blood pressure.  But, more importantly, you won’t feel like a beached beluga whale after a fish fry.

The whole foods diet, in principle, is really rather simple.  For 9 days, you eat nothing but whole foods.  That means nothing processed, preserved, or pre-prepared.   There are cleanse days and recovery days, each of which have their own suggested meal plan, but the overall theme remains the same throughout.  It requires quite a bit of planning, a significant dose of fortitude, and the willingness to give up caffeine and alcohol for nine days (my least favorite part of the plan), but all in all, it’s really not that bad.

I’m currently on day 4.  I’ve already lost two pounds.  I have slept through the night the past two nights without issue.  I have more nighttime energy (I’m usually dead by 9:30), and despite the caffeine-withdrawal headaches, zero side effects.  I’ll post again at the end of this journey to let you know the end result, but so far, so good.

Cleanse, diet, nutritional program, whatever you want to call it, I think this is the perfect metaphor for how to start the new year.  Free yourself of all of the extras and return to the essentials.  Rid yourself of the things in your life that make you feel tired, cranky, bloated, or just downright fat and replace it with things that fuel your energy, renew your spirit, and prevent any added baggage.  I doubt this diet will accomplish all of that in my life, but it’s gotten me thinking, and other changes are bound to follow.

Happy New Year!

P.S.  If you are interested in learning more about the whole foods diet, please email me at jessica@whyknot-massage.com, and I’ll be happy to send you additional info.

Metals in Hand

It is finished.  The journey that began back in September has ended.  We are now, officially, half marathon runners!!! (cue dramatic music)

With much anticipation and, at least in my case, mounting dread, we arose on race day with one goal in mind – get across the finish line.  We each ate our tried and true pre-race meal (hard boiled eggs and a Luna bar for me, Goo for the Massage Goddess – YUCK!).   The weather was perfect – four degrees above freezing, sunny skies, and zero humidity.  The lack of feeling in my legs and rear end was much appreciated for the first eight miles of the run.  The race started before we knew it (literally, people just started running, and we so we did too), and then we were running…and running…and running.  My God, 13.1 miles is a long freakin way!!

I felt like a champ until about mile 10, but with only three miles left to go, I happily plodded along.  And then, I hit mile 11, at which point my entire lower half began to throb and my body went in to rebellion mode.  I made it through the 11th mile by relying on an internal littany of four-letter words.  I stopped to walk at the water station at mile 12.  With another hill staring me in the face, I was really afraid my last mile might be reduced to a barely upright shuffle.  Fortunately, good music, and the incredibly enticing knowledge that the finish line was rapidly approaching pushed me through.  Two hours, 14 min, and 28 sec after my chip crossed the starting line, I plowed through the finish and claimed my medal.

There is much to be learned from this experience.  I mean, there has to be any time you spend more than two hours entertaining yourself while enduring physical torture.  Lesson 1 – Lemon-lime Powerade is actually quite yummy.  Lesson 2 – When you sweat non-stop for two hours, you get this white filmy stuff all over your face.  It’s quite gross but apparently dogs love it.  Lesson 3 – People will be mad at you if you’re the one that talked them in to this and they’re pretty quick to tell you that they will never do it again.  Lesson 4 – Nothing is quite as sweet as setting a goal for yourself and then working your ass off to achieve it.  Lesson 5 – Energy is not finite.  It comes from some unknown place inside oneself.  Harnessing that energy and being able to access it at will is an amazing skill, and one that takes far more than 10 weeks to master.  Lesson 6 – Achievement is not defined by a medal.  It is the smiles, tears, pride, and grudging admiration on the faces of the fans at the finish line and the ability to go to sleep at night knowing you left it all out on the pavement.

While my 13.1 will most likely never become a 26.2, for one moment in my non-athletic life, I was a runner.  That’s worth something to me.  And the cool thing is, after experiencing the hype of race day, my whole family is running the Turkey Trot with me on Thanksgiving morning.  And in the moment they cross the finish line, they will be runners along with me.  So, a big thanks to all of the other runners out there who have been and continue to be the inspiration for the weeble wobbles of WhyKnot Massage.  Run on, my friends, run on!

One week and counting…

D-Day fast approaches.  We are now officially one week away from the half marathon.  In the past few weeks, I have learned a few very important lessons.  I imagine these things are not universal, but should you ever decide to train for a half marathon, perhaps these tidbits may be of some assistance to you.

1) Running more than 10 miles hurts.  Doesn’t matter what you do to prepare, how much you stretch, what temperature it is, etc.  It’s going to be painful, period. 

2) Chocolate milk is a fantastic recovery drink!  Sounds odd, I know, but the combination of healthy fats and protein plus the liquid medium resets my equilibrium in about 15 min.  Get the 1% kind, though.  Tried the 2% kind, not a good thing for the tummy.

3) It is extremely difficult to swallow without choking oneself while running.  While I love my Luna Moons, I have had several near misses with airway blockage while attempting to get them down my esophagus.  On the plus side, it does take your mind off of running for a few harrowing seconds.

4) Cross training goes out the window when you start to run 15+ miles a week.  There’s just no time.  At best, I can manage about 25 min of yoga and one walk with the dog on top of running.  At worst, I do everything in my power to move as little as possible when I’m not actually running.

5) Proper running gear is essential.  I thought running was a cheap sport.  Not so, my friends.  I finally caved and bought a $65 running outfit, a $17 water bottle I can “hold” while I run, an $8 container of Glide (critical for my lady friends whose thighs still touch), an $80 pair of running shoes (thank you Omega for the $20 sale and 20% discount), and a whole host of various electrolyte replacement gummies, gels, powders, etc. 

6) There is absolutely no replacement for being stubbornly committed to a goal way beyond your physical limits. 

As race day speeds toward us, I cannot say that I am “ready”.  I cannot say that I feel confident in my training and preparation.  In fact, the only thing I am comfortable saying is that I will cross the finish line, and, at least for me, that’s enough.

Yoga On Demand

I frequently find that I am WELL behind the curve when it comes to learning the fascinations of today’s technology.  Case in point, just yesterday I disovered Yoga On Demand.  Who knew that tucked inside my cable box was a wealth of exercise classes just waiting for me?  I have scoured the local yoga studios looking for a class that fits my schedule and suits my needs – no go.  And here it was, all along, just a menu away.  Who woulda thunk?

I spent a thoroughly enjoyable 47 minutes following along with my on-screen yogi right in the comfort of my own bedroom.  I am used to this set-up with my exercise DVD’s, but that requires the use of my laptop and Windows Media Player which, let’s face it, doesn’t really set the stage for relaxation. 

Now that we are deep in to our half marathon training routine, and 5 miles is considered a “light day”, my poor body is rebelling.  It reminds me daily that I did not consult it before embarking on this suicide mission, and while it has gamely played along up until now, all bets are off at this point.  Hence, the return of yoga to my exercise routine.  While I would much prefer to go to a yoga class, I have to say this Yoga On Demand thing is quite a nice alternative.  I’m going to try to get in at least one session per week and see how it impacts my running.  Today, my obliques are sore, which I can’t quite figure out, but I’m thinking all of those plank poses are to blame. 

In addition to the physical benefits, I’ve always found yoga to be cleansing for my mental sludge as well.  I have heard several explanations of the meaning of “Namaste”, the traditional ending to any yoga session, but my favorite is “The light in me salutes the same light in you.”  While it is difficult to “salute” my television screen,  I enjoy ending my workout with a reminder to seek out the light in others and the light in myself.

I imagine this service is available beyond the monopoly that is TimeWarnerCable, so if you have it, and especially if you’re an On Demand exercise veteran, I’d love to hear feedback on your favorite workout.  Any other suggestions for at-home yoga would be much appreciated as well.

The Forerunner – God’s gift to the Type A runner

Last night, our running group tackled our first 6-mile run.  Shockingly, we managed 6.5 in an hour and seven minutes!  Not Boston qualifying by any means, but pretty damn good for us weeble wobbles.  Now, this could have been because we way underestimated the amount of daylight left and found ourselves running the last two miles through an extremely dark, heavily wooded path.  While I choose to believe I was just in the groove, I can’t help but wonder if visions of a CSI crime scene didn’t have me bookin it a little.  Anyways, after sprinting the last 100 yards, I immediately looked down at my Forerunner to check the run stats.  I scrolled through all of the screens, checking our fastest pace, our average pace, the total mileage, and finally, the JACKPOT!  We burned 844 calories!!!  My God, I love that watch.

What, might you ask, is the Forerunner?  The Forerunner is made by Garmin and is a GPS-enabled training device with unbelieveable bells and whistles.  Garmin makes several iterations of the Forerunner, including a water-resistant model (310XT) that’s waterproof up to a depth of 50m (I don’t do the whole swimming thing, so I haven’t tested the validity of this.  Anyone have one and can comment?).  I have the clunkier 305 (see below) which allows me to calculate all of my critical running stats in addition to tracking my progress over time with a nifty computer program.  The Forerunner syncs up to the computer with minimal effort and quickly downloads all of my running stats in to the program where I can then manipulate them any way I choose.  It’s truly God’s gift to the Type A runner.  And there is no motivation quite as great as seeing the number of calories I burned flash on to the screen.  That alone is worth the cost of the watch.

Since there are now older iterations of the Garmin, they can be found fairly easily for less than retail on Ebay and Amazon.   If you are at all interested in training for a race, triathlon, etc. or just wanting to get a better handle on tracking your exercise progress, I strongly encourage you to check out this watch!  The Garmin site lists all of the available models (https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=142).  Commence drooling…

And it begins…

Tomorrow is the official start of our half marathon training program. (I’m just gonna let that sit out there a second to ponder the magnitude of crazy I’m about to embark on…..few more seconds…..still stunned…..AHHHHH!!!!)

On November 7th, WhyKnot Massage and friends will be running our first ever half marathon! On my run this morning (first 2.5 miles), I was super stoked.  I mean, for someone who couldn’t run a mile a few years ago, this will be an enormous feat.  And then, later in the run (the last mile, to be exact), the panic set in.  As I was huffing (while still trying to maintain my new, anti-side stitch breathing pattern), I was trying to imagine just how in the world I would physically make my body do this for 13.1 miles.   I know myself well enough to understand that if I have to crawl across the finish line, I will complete the race, but crossing upright might be a bit much to ask.

Our group is following, in general, a training plan created by the Furman Institute for Running and Scientific Training (FIRST).  It’s a unique program that encourages three days a week of running with two days of cross-training.  Each run is designed for a purpose – speed, tempo, and distance.   With five days of activity and two rest days, the program is easier to commit and stick to and assists with prevening injury and burnout.  This week’s training schedule is as follows:

Monday             3-4 miles (tempo run)

Tuesday             Rest

Wednesday       4 miles (speed intervals)

Thursday           Cross Train

Friday                 Rest

Saturday            Cross Train

Sunday               5 miles

As we embark on this incredible journey, we certainly welcome tips, warnings, words of encouragement or commiseration, etc.  You can follow along with our progress hear on the blog.  Trust me, we’ll keep you posted.

10 weeks and counting…

A Lesson from Our Children (and Dogs) About Healthcare…

I love almost everything about race day – the positive energy, the adrenaline rush, and the post-race exhaustion.  But, my absolute favorite part about race day happens before my race ever begins.  It’s the 1 mile kiddo race.  You know, the one where children one-fifth of my age run a mile at speeds I could only dream of.  And not only are they out there, usually at least a half hour earlier than the rest of us, but they are so freakin happy about it.  How cool is that?

In a country where we are bombarded with images of frighteningly thin models followed closely by constant stories about the obesity epidemic, it’s not hard to figure out that we are a messed up bunch when it comes to food and exercise.  But, on race morning, none of that matters.  The skinny kids are huffin right along with the chubs, and they’re all pounding out steps towards better health.  That’s a revolutionary health care plan right there, my friends!

Once the race begins, this infusion of youth doesn’t end.  Oh no, then the seasoned racers, the 9-year olds, get out there with their parents and power through the whole thing.  The last race I ran, I stood at the finish line for quite awhile after I was done cheering people in.  I watched this kid, maybe 8 years old, running with his dad.  The kid was red-faced and struggling, so much so that he proceeded to puke about 100 yards from the finish line.  My immediate reaction was to run over and help him, but his dad grabbed his elbow and propelled him forward across the finish line.  That’s a life lesson for you – no pain, no gain and if you’re going to put the work in, you damn well better finish the job.  Sounds a little cruel, I know, but his dad was right there with him all the way, and that kid finished a 5k at 8 years old!  What an accomplishment and a powerful message of “I CAN, and I WILL!”

I don’t have any children yet, so I took my dog running with me this morning.  I was worried she wouldn’t make the four miles I planned on, but sure enough, she panted her way right through to the end.  She even did a little sprint the last 50 yards when she saw the car.  Kids and dogs don’t make excuses. They embrace the challenge and are quite pleased with themselves when they cross the finish line.  If you ever need motivation to get moving, just watch a child play or run or ride a bike.  Watch a dog run off leash or roll around in the mud. You’ll want to join in, I promise.  It just looks like too much fun not to.

Post-Race Update

So, after applying all of my newfound knowledge about the prevention of side stitches to my race-day run, I revise my verdict to a 7 out of 10.  I ran most of the race at a faster than normal clip fairly cramp-free, but the last 1/2 mile was a b#%!h.  In all honesty, however, the last mile was essentially all up hill, and even at 8am, race day was the hottest day of the year in NC so far.  Mitigating factors that I’m sure must have factored in to the less than perfect application of the stitch-free technique.  Still a vast improvement over the wonky, semi-doubled over loping I was doing.  I’m open to any and all suggestions, so if you’ve found something that works, please enlighten me!