Thin Starts in the Kitchen

Today I ran just over eight miles!  I am so happy because I am on my way to beating that train in my 10-miler coming up.

Now that I am increasing my mileage, I am starting to feel the soreness of the legs that comes from the long run.  When I got home today, I did my favorite recovery pose:  Legs up the Wall.





Rodney Yee and Colleen Saidman are my heroes.

Tomorrow I will do some recovery yoga, courtesy of Rodney Yee.

Ooooh.  Stretch it, baby!

One thing that ticks me off about yoga (and this is perhaps the only thing) is that I can't get more calories than a hundred or so on Myfitnesspal.com.  Do you know about My Fitness Pal?  It is a calorie and exercise-tracking website, completely free.  I joined it when I joined a subset of The Ohio Runners Network.  Our goal is to lose five percent of our group's bodyweight.  

I do a great job with exercise:  running, dancing, Zumba, kickboxing, light weights, and yoga.  My problem is my mouth, and this time I'm not talking about how I run my mouth.  I'm talking about what I put IN my mouth, which is anything edible.  All the time.  

Ten years ago I dropped forty pounds, and I did it by logging everything I put in my mouth.  It was hard.  It was painful.  I hated it.  

I'm doing it again.

My Fitness Pal lets me set a goal, and it gives me a number of calories every day to reach that goal.  If I exercise, I get more calories, but the problem is that the REAL calories come from cardio.  I love cardio, but I'm smart enough to know that I've got to do the other stuff, too.  This is where I hate My Fitness Pal.  It gives me very few calories for yoga, and it gives me NO calories for strength training.  Boo.

Nevertheless, yoga is what I must do on recovery day, and strength training is very necessary to maintain good muscles and a strong core, so I will suck-it-up-Buttercup and eat less tomorrow to maintain my calorie goal.

But I won't like it.

Do you use My Fitness Pal?  How do you deal with hunger?

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First 6 in 6!

Yesterday, I wined and dined with my husband at a FABULOUS restaurant, Thyme2.  We feasted on duck confit strudel, and we toasted our nineteen years of marriage with a nice Bordeaux.  While eating a pork chop the size of my head, I was contemplating my morning run.

Six miles.  Can I do it?

Weather:  Fresh snow.  25 degrees F, feels like 15 degrees F

Route:  Towpath.  Relatively flat.

Time:  7:30 am

Company:  Three lovely running peeps:  Debi, Deidre, and Amy

I was a little bit apprehensive because I obviously wasn't taking seriously my responsibility to the long run.  I know I should be eating healthfully, not drinking wine.  I know I should go to bed early.  I didn't do any of those things, and I have been having a difficult time getting back my stamina, so I wondered if I actually COULD do those miles.

Guess what?  Mission accomplished!  Not only did I run those miles, I ran them well, and I ran them without music.  A year ago I would not have thought this was a big deal, but after no running or aerobic activity for six months, I wasn't sure I would be able to go this far. . .but I did.  

#truth

I feel really good; the runner's high is back!  Click here to read about my experiences with runner's high.

After my post-run hot chocolate and shower, I taught my daughter to do the Legs-up-the-Wall yoga pose for recovery and relaxation.  Try it!

What do you do to recover from a long run?  If you have had to come back from an injury, how long did it take you to get back to your former fitness level?  Is anyone else craving margaritas, chips, and guacamole right now?  No?  Just me?

Use It or Lose It.

Things I am learning in my Phoenix-like comeback:

This is EXACTLY how I look when I rise from the ashes of a broken foot.

1.  No cardio for five months is a killer.  It doesn't matter how many sit-ups or pushups I can do (and I can do a lot!); I have not increased my heartbeat or struggled through a breathing challenge, and that makes a huge difference.  A few days ago I did four miles on a hilly path, and it kicked my butt.  My pace was over two minutes more per mile than I'm used to.  When I tried it again yesterday, I looked for any excuse to walk some of the hills.  I kept thinking, "Wow, when I used to run at this pace, I barely even broke a sweat!  What is happening to me?"  It took a little bit of reflection and diving into my selective memory to figure out that I used to struggle on those hills just going two miles.  In fact, I once bonked hard on that path, and it scared me so badly that I thought I'd never be able to run again.

This is EXACTLY how I look when I bonk.

2.  ANY cardio is good cardio.  When I wasn't a runner, I was doing kickboxing, walking, biking, and dancing as exercise.  I need to get back to doing other forms of cardio to balance out my running.  I tried some simple exercises on the Wii Fit yesterday, and it kicked my butt.  Like everything else, apparently.

3.  No yoga for five months is REALLY a killer.  I couldn't do yoga because I couldn't put any weight on my broken foot.  What I've learned is that although yoga makes me feel awesome during and after the session, it really is necessary to maintain muscle tone and flexibility.  I have been waking up every day in extreme pain on my left side glute and hamstring.  It hurts so bad I sweat.  I feel better after stretching out, but it is a long process, and that never used to happen to me.  I need to better incorporate yoga and stretching into my daily routine to regain what I've lost.

Maybe if I stopped doing yoga on a surfboard, I wouldn't be so sore.

4.  For the first time ever, I may have to consider taking ibuprofen after running, and oddly enough, it has nothing to do with the fact that I am RUNNING ON A BROKEN FOOT!!!  Tell me it isn't age.  It's not, right?

Do you take pain meds?  How is the stretching going?  How do you rise like the Phoenix?

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Exercises for the Injured Runner or How I Spend My Mornings While I Can't Run

It has been eleven weeks since I broke my foot in a stupid walnut accident.  One of my greatest fears during this time was that I would gain lots of weight.  See, I have a problem with food.  My problem with food is that I love it, all of it.  Except for you, mushrooms.  I hate you.

Anyway, my orthopedist had put the nix on any type of cardio and any exercise that involved moving my foot.  This was problematic in that I still like to eat, but I don't like the idea of gaining back the forty-plus pounds I lost about eight years ago.  I looked at my arsenal of torture devices exercise equipment and I came up with a regimen.

I started with the 30-day ab challenge, but I couldn't do the planks.  No worries, there is enough pain and suffering without them.

This is EXACTLY how I look when I am doing the ab challenge.

I simultaneously completed the 30 day pushup challenge, but I did it on my knees.

What I mostly do is light lifting (five pound weights) with the exercise ball.  I found this great webpage that has pictures and explanations for the ball.  I choose two exercises per area of concentration (abs, back, shoulders, biceps, legs, triceps).  I like this option because I can watch tv while I'm doing it.  It's a lot easier to do ab exercises when Angel is on tv at five in the morning.

When the orthopedist gave me the go-ahead for swimming and aqua jogging, I did that twice a week.




Now I can do most exercises that don't involve running or slamming my foot against things (like kick boxing or dancing).  I look forward to walking, but the cold weather has kicked in, and while I feel comfortable running at 5 in the morning, I don't feel comfortable walking at that time.  The zombies can't catch me if I run, but they might catch me if I'm walking.  My walking solution is Leslie Sansone's DVDs.  Now, I HATE Leslie Sansone, but she does have walking programs with pacing times.  Right now I feel comfortable walking two miles at a time.  After that, I worry that I am hurting my foot.

This is one of the DVDs I own.  It allows me to walk in place at home.  I don't own a dreadmill.

I tried some light yoga, but I don't think the pressure is good for my foot, so when I want to do yoga, I do the 20 minute Rodney Yee session.

This is EXACTLY how I look when I do forward bends.

This DVD has five practices, and I choose #1. Power Foundation because I can practice on my back or in a sitting position, and I still get a great stretch.

I look forward to getting the all-clear from the orthopedist, but in the meantime, this is what I can do.  I have noticed that the weight lifting and exercise ball work has really helped me to maintain/gain some muscle tone, and I initially lost weight after being injured.  I hope that I can keep it off, but honestly, eating is a constant battle for me.

If you ever find yourself in a running slump, or God forbid you get injured, check out these options; they can keep you fit and healthy until you are back on track.

P.S.  Today my exercise will be traipsing around the neighborhood in the freezing cold for Trick or Treat.  Yay!  I hope the neighbors have beer. . .

P.P.S.  My daughter said to me as we were about to leave for Trick or Treat, "Maybe you can go as a drunk, bitter, injured runner."

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6 Weeks More

And there you have it.  My x-ray says that the foot is still broken, although it is slowly healing.  This time the orthopedist tried to put a positive spin on it, which I appreciate, since last time I ended up sobbing like a baby.

Thinking Positively:

1.  I don't need to go back to the boot, and the insert Bill lent me is working nicely.  (@Bill:   I told her, Bill does for me what you can't.  I don't think that came out right.)

2.  I can do any exercise that doesn't involve high impact.  This means walking, aqua jogging, swimming, and YOGA!!!!

3.  Life could be worse; I could have a stinkbug infestation.

This is EXACTLY what I don't want to see around my house.  The little buggers have been crawling into our garage entry keypad and freaking out the kids.

The Bummer:

1.  If the foot doesn't heal in six weeks, I may have to have surgery.  Doctor says that she has only had to do this twice.  With my luck. . .

2.  I was hoping to sign up for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Half Marathon, which takes place at the end of April.  I still might be able to run it, but I'll have to wait and see, and we all know what happens to prices (and open spots) when runners wait.

3. I WANT TO RUN, DAMMIT!!!!!

In the meantime, I will continue to be the cheerful, grin-and-bear-it, uplifting blogger you have grown to know and love. . .as long as the booze holds out.

Summer Solstice = Buff Arms

Today, I greeted the dawn with 54 Sun Salutations in a meadow with about fifty other people.  It was incredible.

This is EXACTLY how I look when I do Sun Salutations.  It's amazing how I change color at each step.

Today is the Summer Solstice, and many yogis believe that the proper way to greet this day is with 108 Sun Salutations.  Why 108?  Why would anyone do this?  Look here for some pretty good reasons.

I registered for the session (which was free) at 5:30 in the morning in Howe Meadow in Merriman Valley.  The morning was cool, and the grass was wet.  A lady (who looked as hesitant as I felt) greeted me with a stick of burning sage to wave around and then pass on to another nervous novice, and I spread my mat in the wet grass next to the other people.

At 6:00 we started some Ohm chanting.  Keep in mind, please, that I have NEVER done yoga outside of my living room.  To chant with fifty other people was a little intimidating.  Once the Sun Salutations began, however, I forgot about the people around me, and I just tried to focus on my breathing.  As I followed along with three sets of eighteen sun salutations, with stretching breaks in between each set, the sun rose slowly through the trees, and I could feel it on my face as I turned my heart upward in Cobra position.  At that moment I felt so in tune with nature and aware of my connection to it.

Why am I writing about yoga, you ask?  Well, that connection I felt is the same connection I feel when I run outside.  I feel more spiritual when pushing my body to its limits, and I feel one with the Universe when I can see, hear, feel, taste, and smell the trees, grass, and life around me.  During these moments, I know there is a Purpose, and I know that I have a part in it.

I had to leave after the first three sets because I had to get home to my son before my husband left for work.  I would have loved to stay.  I will DEFINITELY do this next year.  Maybe by then my arms will stop trembling.

Have you ever done yoga?  Have you done 108 Sun Salutations?

When do you feel a connection to Nature?

Yoga Take 2--Rodney Yee

I missed my yoga on Monday.  I have no good excuse; it was my own damned fault that I stayed up too late, got only four hours sleep, and couldn't bring myself to do any yoga at all.  I suffered for it, too.  ALWAYS do your yoga after your long run!

 Today's review is of Rodney Yee's DVD:

Rodney Yee's Ultimate Power Yoga


This DVD consists of five different routines; four of them are twenty minutes each, and the fifth is fifteen minutes long.  I like this DVD because I can choose my workout based on how I feel.  If I feel particularly tight (having run ten or more miles on the Sunday-Funday run), I choose the floor routine (lots of stretching while sitting or on my back) in combination with the power restoration (lots of forward bends to stretch those calves and hamstrings).  If I feel the need to sweat, I choose the sun salutes with anything else.

One possible drawback to this DVD is the back bends routine.  Back bends hurt.  They especially hurt when I am trying to do Camel's Pose.  I am learning that modification is a good thing.  Rodney Yee is a yogi.  He can do full Camel's Pose and Bow Pose.  I am. . . not a yogi, so I should not do these poses if they hurt me.

This is EXACTLY how I look when I do sitting forward bends.

I'm still debating about signing up for the Shamrock 15k.  Despite my recent success in running without music, I don't want to race without music.  I'll probably keep debating until I get locked out of it.

Yoga--Yes, You Should.

I have always been a cardio-junky, but even before I was a runner, I knew that I had to balance the cardio with yoga.  I like yoga because it combines stretching and flexibility with strength training.  The breathing really helps me to calm my mind and focus; it's a great way to start the day.

I've got lots of Yoga DVD's (I've never taken a class, unfortunately), but I've really got two go-to programs:  Yoga Works and Rodney Yee.

This is how I look when I do yoga.

Yoga Works Body Slim is a good balance between cardio and strength training.  It's excellent for the core.  The lesson starts with ab work--crunches.  Then you go to the cardio part, which the instructor splits into three sessions alternating with what she calls "slow burn" sessions.  The cardio consists of sun salutations in increasingly challenging sets.  I love sun salutations because they help me to stretch my hamstrings and tone my arms (my arms are pathetic).  By the end of each set of sun salutations, I am a sweaty, trembling mess.  In between each set is a "slow burn" session, which basically consists of warrior sequences and forward falls (again, great for stretching the legs).

I like this DVD because it's a challenge every time I do it.  I like the way I feel when I finish; I feel that I really did a workout instead of just some light stretching.

In the next post, I will review Rodney Yee's  Power Yoga collections.