Veni Vidi Vici

We came, we saw, we conquered!

Alright people, that was incredible. We did so well, all of us.

Michelle - we kicked ass, it was awesome. If anyone wants to check their time they can go here.

One thing that occurred to me as I was finishing the race was that next time I really want to do it for time, not just to finish. I got the fever! Not cause I care about beating other people, but cause I really want to see how well I can do when I shoot for my BEST. It was funny, I totally pulled out a crazy long strided sprint at the end and I was hauling ass across the finish line. I passed two people too. Hahahaha - that was wrong, I practically pushed them out of the way... I just remembered that...

Running in a big race is tricky that way - making sure you don't run people over, getting through the walkers, avoiding getting run over. One of the annoying parts of the experience was the bathroom problem - between flying the day before and waking up so early, my body just kept having to pee constantly. The port-o-potties were way crowded and I waited a solid 10 minutes for the first one, and then over 5 minutes for the next 4. I NEVER have to pee that much. WTF?!? And because it was so cold, I think Tom's theory is right - we weren't really able to sweat all the excess fluid out the way we do here. I wonder if there are tips and tricks for this kind of thing. My chip time would have been almost 20 minutes FASTER if that hadn't been an issue. Hmmm.... Depends?

But live and learn. I want to continue to keep my running up to a 6 mile long run each weekend just to stay in shape, and then I think the next half marathon we should all do should be the San Jose Rock and Roll 1/2 Marathon next October!!! That's 10 months away and I know we can ALL do it.

And lastly, Lisa, sorry about not being able to get ahold of you before you left yesterday - I got a horrible case of food poisoning that I am still experiencing today. Let me tell you, flying and food poisoning is not a pleasant experience. I'm weak like a kitten today and am focusing on trying to take in some food for the first time in 24 hours. Apparently a LOT of people got diarrhea, at least from my informal auditory survey in Vegas' bathrooms yesterday. I think I should probably report it to someone, but regardless, it was great to see you and Rachel after the race and I'm sorry I wasn't feeling more up to hanging out and dancing! See you in 2 weeks though, WHEN YOU MOVE UP HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :-)

Love to everybody and I'm looking forward to doing a training run in a couple of weekends on West Cliff with all of you. - AMY

PS - Ideas on the future of this blog? I was contemplating archiving all the Las Vegas 1/2 Marathon entries in one area, and then starting a new section - what do you all think? And what are your fitness goals coming up? Anybody else ready to start bikini madness?

PPS - Ok, maybe this is a little kooky, but how about we do this for 2008: http://www.eliteracing.com/heavy_medals.html Takers? Anyone? Everyone? C'mon, it'll be a blast!!!

Beat your personal best: the right way to make speedy gains

Hi all,

I'm an avid reader of Shape Magazine and I came across an good article (by Sara Bodnar) I wanted to share. I found this especially timely since we just ran a long run yesterday. Here it goes:

While simply finishing a race is an achievement, imagine how great you'd feel if you one-upped your own speed record. Here's how to do it: Two weeks before he big day (that would starting today ya'll), cut back your weekly mileage by 40-60 percent, but cover the distance in the same number of workouts and at your usual pace (i.e., if you usually run 20 miles a week over four days, do 8 to 12 mils over four days). Researchers at the University of Montreal analyzed 27 studies and found that using this tapering strategy - as opposed to running fewer days or at a lower intensity - can improve your time by 2 percent. "It lets you maintain your fitness level yet still gives your body a rest," says study author Laurent Bosquet, Ph.D. Try it and found out what you're really capable of.

So I'm going to try this out since I would like to run the half marathon in 2.5 hours (less than 12 minutes miles). I feel like our run yesterday wasn't a good indicator of my pacing as I was just completely out of my element. I felt like I was all over the place.

Anyway, I'm glad that I was able to get together and finish our long run yesterday. I've been drinking lots of water and my body feels great. My muscles feel like how they would after an intense weight training session, so I think my main deal yesterday was lack of water.

I hope your Sunday is happy, restful and full of recover.

Are you Ready?

Quote of the Day

Well, they're really lyrics, but Dolly Parton is such a wise woman I had to share. She's another inspiration of mine.

DOLLY PARTON - Better Get To Livin'

People always comin' up to me and askin' "Dolly, what's your secret? With all you do, your attitude Just seems to be so good How do you keep it?" Well, I'm not the Dalai Lama, but I'll try To offer up a few words of advice. Chorus: You better get to livin', givin' Don't forget to throw in a little forgivin' And lovin' on the way You better get to knowin', showin' A little bit more concerned about where you're goin' Just a word unto the wise You better get to livin'. A girlfriend came to my house Started cryin' on my shoulder Sunday evening She was spinnin' such a sad tale I could not believe the yarn that she was weavin' So negative the words she had to say I said if I had a violin I'd play. I said you'd better get to livin', givin' Be willing and forgivin' Cause all healing has to start with you You better stop whining, pining Get your dreams in line And then just shine, design, refine Until they come true And you better get to livin'. Your life's a wreck, your house is mess And your wardrobe way outdated All your plans just keep on falling through Overweight and under paid, under appreciated I'm no guru, but I'll tell you This I know is true. You better get to livin', givin' A little more thought about bein' A little more willin' to make a better way Don't sweat the small stuff Keep your chin up Just hang tough And if it gets too rough Fall on your knees and pray And do that everyday Then you'll get to livin'. The day we're born we start to die Don't waste one minute of this life Get to livin' Share your dreams and share your laughter Make some points for the great hereafter. Better start carin' Better start sharin' Better start tryin' Better start smiling And you better get to livin'...

My current personal fitness hero

Aside from all of you, cause I'm so inspired by you guy and gals too... but outside of our blogspot, my personal fitness hero is Kae Whang on The Biggest Loser. She inspires me because of her consistent focus and determination and her personal integrity. She just keeps chugging along (she's lost 28% of her bodyweight in 9 weeks) and works hard and never whines and doesn't act like an idiot because she's on national tv and she just has so much integrity. I heart her and I think she is a wonderful role model. Oh yeah, and she's Korean American! Holla...

Costumes and Training

As promised, I have some Halloween pictures to show. They aren't as raunchy and fun as the one's Amy posted, but what can you do? San Diego just doesn't party as hard as you guys do!

I present Keg and non-alcohol St. Pauli Girl:


The hostess, Mrs. Claus served jell-0 and test tube shots in addition to the 4 kegs (5 including Kevin). And yes, that's a French maid with saw through her middle!


And lastly, non-alcoholic St. Pauli Girl touching the San Onofre Powerplant:


To go along with Teresa's post, we had an amazing 8 mile run (9 miles if you include our warm up and cool down). We both kept the spirits up and felt really good afterwards. I am totally psyched up for Vegas now. I know that 8 miles isn't 13, but I feel so much stronger and confident that I'll finish after doing the 8.

Eating is going well. I've been having a salad everyday. It's really adding the fiber that I needed in my diet. I haven't started the Weight Watcher's thing yet. I'm procrastinating and I know it.

This is my last week at work. I start my new Scotts Valley job on Monday. I am super nervous and excited. Tom & Amy, I am counting on a 12 miler the weekend before Thanksgiving!

I am totally hooked on....

Bikini Destinations. I'm not kidding - its like taking a cotton candy covered valium AND its motivating seeing all these beautiful women in bikinis all over the world. That might sound weird - but I totally find it inspiring not intimidating. Every time I watch it I end up doing walking and crunches and calisthenics. I highly recommend. Plus its really soothing - beaches and waves and fun adventure sports and bikinis. Here's the Vegas edition in honor of our trip in a month. :-)

Weekend Survival Guide

I have been struggling with weekend eating. I get regular emails fro Spark People and thought that it really hit home for me.

Please read the article. I even printed out the little Weekend Survival Guide to stick in my purse.

Also, I am starting to go to Weight Watchers meetings. I've reached a lifetime goal with Weight Watchers before and I really feel like I need something to push me along.

Changing the Focus (this is a long one, but I hope you read it)

Hello all,

First a check-in - where's everyone at? I didn't work out Monday or Tuesday morning but then Tom poked me into getting on the treadmill last night while we watched The Biggest Loser, so I ended up walking for 51 minutes, which was great. This morning we went to the gym (its been really hard to motivate myself to wake up in the morning recently - but I made myself turn on the light when the alarm went off which helped) and I did a super-hard, super-fast upper body workout BodyForLife style and walked 15 minutes on the treadmill. It felt really good to push myself and reminded me of why I started this whole process in the first place - to feel better!

My goal for this week is to lose 4 lbs. That sounds like a lot, but when I weighed in Sunday at 153.5 I hadn't been drinking enough water for 2 days, so I was retaining a lot. So I'm positive that with accountability, eating well and exercising I can achieve my goal of 149(.5?) by next Monday.

Which brings me to my next item of business - it sounds like we have ALL been struggling with our motivation and bodies recently. I know Michelle has been feeling like she has to completely get out of the process, and I know Teresa has been battling several colds, Tom and I have been feeling poopy and stressed and Lisa has been traveling.... so........ I want to put out a clarification on what I would like this blog to be.

I don't see this blog as only for the Las Vegas Half Marathon training. The whole reason I decided I needed an event-specific goal at all was for motivation to get off my ass and lose weight and get active again. That to me is THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THIS!!! For me, having you all to hash out some of this stuff with (my frustrations with myself and my lack of motivation/ability to wake up in the morning or desire to proceed or body limitations/injuries) is really helpful. I'm wondering if maybe some of you think that you shouldn't post if you aren't training (Tom and me last week) or like Michelle, feel like you can't participate in the LV 1/2 marathon. I think the idea of doing this resonated with all of us because we were all feeling like we wanted to get healthy and in shape and lose extra weight and feel better in our bodies. So... I would like to open up the blog to expand the posts to include WHEREVER we are in our own personal journey of health and wellness. And yes, I want to know about your training. And I also want to know if you realize you can't run but that you CAN do weight workouts and yoga. What is your process like? I also want to encourage all of us to re-examine and share our personal fitness and health goals. Its really helpful to get BACK in touch with WHY we want to do any of this in order to keep up the momentum. I know for me its imperative.

If this is just annoying to you and I'm really pissing you off with all this, you could put that up too. Well, I hope everyone knows I'm not trying to piss them off, but if you are having a strong reaction to this maybe there's something to look at. Personally, I'm noticing that I have been building up this resistance to change the closer it comes - the more I train, the more effect my choices have on my abilities to do the training and the more resistant I've become. For example - not going to bed early, drinking etc., not eating enough food during the day, eating the wrong kind of foods, not drinking water, etc. ad nauseum... Tom was mentioning this feeling that comes up for him whenever he starts to lose belly fat - a deep desire to overstuff himself with food, liquor, drugs, whatever. Its these boundaries that we hold that keep us where we are all at - and changing our actions and bodies brings all of these things to the forefront. And it can be UNCOMFORTABLE when these emotions come up - obviously, I didn't want to address these feelings before, that's why I freaking swallowed them, hello! So I'm trying to be really soft and compassionate with myself on this emotionally by acknowledging that I don't suck because I don't want to get up and work out, that its a part of my emotional process that I can look at and move through if I realize that I really DO want to change. All the while persevering through my internal kicking and screaming to make myself get out there and do SOMETHING even when I don't want to. Maybe its not a fast run or even a run, but its doing SOMETHING to shift my energy, to move my physical body and therefore to move myself forward emotionally.

I hope you find this helpful and that it encourages you to connect with yourself and your community here. I love you all and I really want ALL of us to be successful with EVERYTHING we want to achieve. And I definitely know that this physical energy is one manifestation of our whole lives - one that we actually do have some concrete control over. That can be hugely empowering - and by remembering that, maybe it can help with other areas of your life that you don't feel so empowered by. Ok?

This Video Is Totally AWESOME

A little long, but so worth it. I love her and such a good point for all of us, obese or not. We are multi-dimensional and perfect!

Recommitting to the Goal

Hello all,
First off, I have been lurking and reading posts, but this last week I was going through a tough time with my motivation and progress. I was feeling a bit lost and disconnected and I had to do some soul searching and reminding myself of why I got started on this to begin with. Tom and I both realized we needed to get back on track with the training program and get more consistent with our running workouts and get started again! So we went on a 5 mile run on Saturday and then (despite being hungover Sunday morning) went for a very strenuous 6+ mile hike Sunday. It felt really good to loosen those muscles up again and as it turns out, it was the perfect cure for a hangover.

Which reminds me - after taking a month off of drinking, I got buzzed on Friday and drunk on Saturday night - it doesn't take much especially after not drinking for a while, but I completely overdid it Saturday night. I'm ready however to go back on a low to no-drinking habit again as I could see the effects in my skin, my mood and my weight. Oy. So in the interests of achieving my bikini body by January goal and my 1/2 marathon by December goal, I'm back off the sauce I think until Halloween. Occasional social sips notwithstanding... ;-)

My goals for this week are to run twice during the week, do weights 3 times, and do a long run next Saturday. I will not drink any alcohol during the week, and I will eat cleanly during the week. I would like to lose 2 lbs this week. And I will check in with my progress on this blog several times this week and read and respond as appropriate to your blogs.

Also, I wanted to put an idea out there for all of us - Lisa is going to be coming up for a visit on Sunday September 30th in the morning (her flight gets in at around 9am) and I thought it would be cool if we all got together for our long run and possibly lunch after. I think it would be a good opportunity for us all to connect as a group and talk about what we're going through. And we can do an out-and-back route to make it so that we can all go at our own pace while still doing it as a group. If this seems like something you would be interested in doing, we can meet at Tom's and my house maybe at 10 on Sunday the 30th and go to the beginning of the Los Gatos Creek Trail near our house. No pressure on time or pace, just go out and have fun and run. Let me know if this sounds like something you'd like to do and we can make a plan of it.

Love you all, I look forward to reconnecting with you and with my training in the week to come. AMY

3-day weekend

I'm happy that I get three days off and I hope you are happy as well. I know for me that three day weekends = food, lounging and being comfy cozy at home. I plan on doing that this weekend, but want to spice it up a bit and integrate some movement and healthy energy.

My ideas for breaking up the fatassness:

• Take a yoga class on Sunday and do some rowing.
  
• Coming up with 3 new healthy meal ideas for the following week
• Spend some time “cleaning house." This is intended to be both literal and figurative. My house has started to become a cluttered mess, it’s impossible to function well. Ditto for my work and school schedule too.
• Re-evaluate and stock up my healthy snack options at home, in the car and at work. I'm way more likely to eat healthy snacks when I don't have to choose healthy versus non-healthy.
  
• No sleeping in. I want to see how many hours my body actually needs so that I can go to bed and wake up at the same time, regardless of what day of the week it is.

I know that I don't want to overindulge in "bad" food, so to keep things balanced I will allow myself some goodies. I have been trying to not beat myself up over eating certain foods. This type of mentality isn't good for maintaining a healthy lifestyle. I've been trying to be more in tune with how eating certain foods make my body feel (full, gassy, bloated, sluggish, energized, etc.). This has helped me over the last few weeks to train my mind to think about food differently, but to still enjoy it.

Happy three days, folks! I leave you with this image for the start of a wonderful weekend:

14 Weeks Today

Hey Friends,

Today is the first day of the 14-week half marathon training. I know I've been getting my body moving and into the rhythm that is running, but I haven't really buckled down and committed myself fully to it.

Today I am committing. I have printed out the training schedule and am ready. I've started my day with a protein shake and am committed to mindfully fueling my body to the best of my ability. I've stocked up on an extra pair of running shoes and insoles. I AM READY!

How are you guys doing?

A cool new documentary in production

The website is www.inspiredthemovie.com and I liked the blog section. Plus in the media section there are some interesting interviews from the movie. Cool stuff.

I just ran 5 miles!!!

Yay!!! It's no half-marathon, but I'm super stoked. I had a little walk warm-up BEFORE I started the 5 miles. Ran 2.5, quick bathroom break or I would have kept going. Then another 2.5 miles and a little cool-down and some stretching. About 2 miles into the running I was thinking of a quick break. Just then, a man running in the opposite direction put out his hand to give me a "hi five" and said, "Keep it up girl!!!" What a boost, just when I needed it :). And I didn't even have my mp3 player which usually helps with the mental stamina of it.

I really need to get some cross training back in the mix and some weight training too. However, my weight is still dropping. I'm the lightest I've been in probably a decade, or close to it. AND, I when I put my belt on this morning, I had to go down to the next smallest hole. Whoo hoo!!!!

I still get wary about 13 miles, but I'm trying not to think about that too much. Just my next step and my next one and so on. I need new shoes though. Now that I've been doing longer runs, I've realized my shoes might not be supportive enough. How is everyone else doing? I'd be down for doing some group runs too, if anyone is interested. I know Amy and I talked about it too. Okay, a shower is in order. Hope everyone is doing great!

4 miles!!!

Hello everyone. If I don't blog about this Amy will come after me. I ran 4 MILES on Friday! Whoo hoo! That's my longest run yet. I parked, and walked a little to the "start" point, 2 miles from Natural Bridges. So I ran the 2 miles to NB and the 2 miles back. I only slowed to walk maybe 3 times and just long enough to drink some watter and catch my breath a little if I needed. But that was kept to a minimum and I'm super stoked, considering not that long ago I ran my first mile EVER.

I also managed to get in some exercise while visiting family this weekend. Which is harder than it sounds, because they aren't exactly active. My oldest nephew wanted to come with me, which was great. I just made sure he knew I wasn't going for a leisurely stroll. But I did map out a shorter route. About 1.6 miles, slightly more. We were out in the country near their house, so it was nice to run off the pavement for a change. Still got the exercise, but a little break for the knees was nice :). I went sort of slow. He walked when he needed. He'd run to catch up if I got ahead or I'd jog ahead and jog back to him. It was great. Later that day was a huge pool party for my other 2 nephews. And by huge, I mean the pool, more than the number of people. They rented the town pool where they live for a private party, so we had this HUGE nice pool all to ourselves. I even had a huge section of pool to do some laps and no one even came near me. So I got a little bit of an upper body workout that day too. So even though Sunday was kind of easy going with the exercise, it felt great to get out there and move and to have fun while getting exercise in the pool. I need to make an effort to do more active fun things. Even though I love the feeling after a good hard workout, it can really feel like a chore while you're doing it. But it's easy to forget that exercise doesn't ALWAYS have to feel like a chore. So yeah, that was my weekend. I overcame that 4 mile mark and I overcame the inactivity that so often sucks me in when I visit family.

My focus now is to keep up with the running and to get my weight training and crosstraining back into the mix. Hope everyone is having a fine Tuesday!

Oh yeah, just on a personal health/goal note: I have been focusing my thoughts whenever I can on fitness rather then weight loss. But I do get on the scale here and there to keep myself updated on where I'm at. As of this weekend, my weight is the lowest it's been in YEARS. At least 5 years, maybe as much as 8. I've got a ways to go for my ideal weight, but I'm very close to passing a huge milestone in the weight category. But this time, the numbers are going down instead of up :). Several people I saw this weekend noticed and commented on the changes as well. That was nice. I made sure to mention that I've been running and exercising. I'm all for the healthier food choices, but I wanted it to be known that activity was a part of my improving fitness. Okay, I maybe I should do some actual work now...haha.

Yesterday

I really didn't feel like running. I felt really sluggish, like my legs were made of stone. I didn't have a good run on Thursday. (see "Couragement"). Friday was swimming and Saturday hiking. Both good workouts, but not running. SO, yesterday I decided to go out and do 3 miles, running 2 & walking 1. I wasn't sure I'd be able to do it, but I even exceeded my goal. Yay. I walked .5 mile (warm-up), ran 1 mile, quick bathroom break, ran 1 more mile and decided just before I reached the end of mile 2 that I was going to go a little further...to the stop sign I saw ahead, then realized the stop sign was in the middle of a hill so I might as well keep going until it flattens out. When I got to the top, I realized I had covered another quarter mile. AND, most importantly, there was the noticeable difference that my lungs were having an easier time than usual. That was great.

I'm not experiencing "pain" in my knee, but one of them does feel like it's taking a bit more abuse than the other. I know there are things I can do as far as getting better shoes, and stretching and such. But I also wonder if anyone that used to live in this area...ahem...I guess that means most of you...would know any good places to run "off road". I want to run more often, but also want to alternate on a softer surface while my joints get more and more used to the impact. Any suggestions?

Quote of the Day

"How you do anything in your life is how you do everything in your life." - various people


What does this mean for me? As y'all know, I'm actively engaged in energy shifting - for my clients, for myself, for the world. And what I have noticed is that the same pervasive energy shows up in multiple areas of everyone's life. Now what "energy" or emotion shows up in your life may be different than mine, but pay attention to what kind of energy is showing up in YOUR life. None of us operate in a vacuum, and no one area of our lives is truly separate from the rest - every part of our lives, every action, every experience is joined by the common thread of the Self that is experiencing it. So, rather than focusing solely on the specifics of changing the immediate situation, if you find yourself in a rut, look deeper - what is the common thread that is showing up here that shows up elsewhere in your life?

And, to approach this from an affirming viewpoint, pay attention to the means by which you start changing the REST of your life when you change one area. One of the common themes of Body For Life participants that always inspired ME, is this realization that although they started the contest to win money and lose weight and get fit, the positive repercussions of setting and attaining goals spilled over to every area of their lives. The way they did one thing in their life became the way they did ALL things in their lives.

This is how we shift - one step at a time, one choice at a time, one day at a time, until we have become who we set out to be. Each mouthful is a choice, each workout is a choice, each stretch is a choice, each drug is a choice, everything we choose to focus our energy on is a choice we are making - every time. That can be overwhelming or it can be empowering. And that's also a choice! ;-)

Choosing health and salmon today. Love you all - AMY

I'll add a quote...

Here's one I like. And it's a good reminder to challenge yourself.

"The only person standing in my way is me; and I think I can beat her."
--unknown

Quote of the Day

So I dunno if we'll really do this everyday, but.... I was talking with a friend of mine about health and a book she is reading called "How We Die" and it talks about how everything we put into our body is a choice we are making to die or live. And that resonates with something I've been focusing on recently - my undetermined mortality. I've decided I don't want to get old and I don't want to die. I have no desire to be creaky, wrinkled, immobile, incontinent or in pain. I'm not buying into it any more. That's it people. Every moment, every second, every action, every inaction is a choice and I am making the choice to LIVE and LIVE WELL. So the quote today is this:

"It comes down a simple choice, really. Either get busy living, or get busy dying."
- Andy Dufresne (Shawshank Redemption)

So lets get busy living people!!!