Stephany Writes

Categories: Healthy Living

Race Recap: X-Country 5K Trail Run

I’m not going to lie, I was nervous about this race. I’ve never done a trail run before and I normally run on pretty flat paths. The last hilly race I ran took me 50 minutes to complete. I was hoping to do good and push through the pain, even though I had a few bad runs leading up to this day.

My mom was running the half-marathon, which started a half-hour before mine, so I had to say goodbye to her and wait in anxious anticipation for my race to start. I was incredibly nervous about disappointing myself.

My goals to begin the race were:

  • Run in under 40 minutes
  • Run each mile, letting myself have 2-3 minute breaks in between
  • Enjoy the course and scenery
I’m sad to report, I made none of these goals. I didn’t have a good race and didn’t enjoy myself in the least. I hated the trail. I had to dodge roots, uneven terrain, and horse poop. For a good mile, I was shuffling hay under my feet. And due to the fact the race didn’t start until 8:30am and I had no food in my body, I became weak almost instantly. I really need to work on fueling and hydrating better for my runs, especially on race day. I was also still dealing with some chest congestion, which meant a lot of yucky coughing and clearing my throat.
The first mile of the race was relatively easy. It was on a flat road and while most of the runners were ahead of me, I felt like I had a good pace. As much as I wanted to catch up to the other runners, I know I had to keep my own pace. I have this competitive nature that doesn’t really match up to my running ability. It’s a problem.
I took a break once I got past the first mile, but then we started running on the trail and it was tough. My ankles began hurting immediately, due to the uneven terrain and having to watch my step for overgrown roots and horse poop. I never feel like I got my groove back after that.
It was a tough race and I’m trying to find solace in the fact that it was my first trail run and there were a lot of serious runners. I’m talking zero body fat, running 6-minute-mile-marathon serious runners. It was the first time I had ever felt intimidated at a race. I’m used to fun races like the Turkey Trot with more first-time runners and lots of walkers. I was out of my league at this race, shown with the fact I was quickly at the back of the pack within the first 15 seconds.
I started running again probably half a mile towards the end and really started hauling when I turned a corner and saw just 44:00 on the clock. It was a horrible, awful, miserable race but I WAS GOING TO PR! I was scared to look at my iPod Touch to see the time so I waited until I hit the finish line. My final time was 44:13, which is a good 41 seconds ahead of my previous PR. It makes me wonder what damage I could do to my PR on a flat, easy course. (Also, this course was more like 3.3 miles.)
I’m probably never going to do a trail run again. I didn’t enjoy the trail at all, and couldn’t even take in the scenery because I was so annoyed with all the mess. I know it was partly because I had never even walked on a trail like this and partly because I hadn’t fueled correctly. Trail running is hard. And it’s not for everyone.
My next race is on Thanksgiving, which will be my fifth Turkey Trot. Originally, we weren’t going to do it but we have a sentimental value tied to this race. It’s a nice way to get some activity in before a day of gorging. And I know the course by heart. I know that it’s well-organized, with each mile marked, and plenty of spectator support (they even have bands playing through the course!). I never realized how much I love spectator support until the past few races I’ve run which has had barely any. And since I managed to PR on my first trail run, I’m pretty determined to hit below the 40-minute mark on this next one.
Have you ever run a trail run? If you have, did you like it? If not, would you ever (after my scary recap!)?
Categories: Healthy Living

Exercising While Sick

Yesterday, I woke up feeling pretty crummy. I had a swollen throat (which is different from a scratchy throat, an egg throat, or a swallowing-feels-like-knives-slicing-my-throat. You know what I mean.) Shortness of breath, which is something I’ve been dealing with more and more, convincing me I have congenital heart failure. Or something like that. And a terrible, hacking couch that makes me sound like a smoker with a two-pack-a-day habit. The cough also makes my chest feel like it’s going to explode. And a low-grade temperature, although I never really took my temperature but trust me, I felt hot.

I felt a little bit better after taking a hot shower and moving around, but I was still functioning at 75%. And I spent the entire day wondering whether or not I should exercise.

You see, I’m not addicted to exercise. (Yet?) I can make up a million excuses of why I can’t exercise. I’m tired. I have too much homework. I’m sick. I’m having women problems. I need to spend some quality time with my dog. Anything and everything.

After my 10-hour day, the only thing I wanted to do was go home, cuddle with my dog, and take a nap. I was exhausted, my eyes were burning (which made me believe the culprit for this sickness was allergies. Yay.), and just felt crummy. But I researched about it and came to a disappointing conclusion: it is OK to exercise while sick, while if you’re suffering from pain in your muscles or your back you can also get help from marrickville physio which specialize in this.

I knew beforehand that the rule of thumb is anything involving the head means you can exercise. Anything involving the chest means no. (And yes, you can exercise when you have cramps. But I never do. Because cramps hurt and make you feel horrible. The end.) And since I was feeling slightly better, and perhaps because I wanted to write a blog post on exercising while sick, I went for a run. (Side note: it’s also important to tone down the intensity when exercising while sick. Since my runs have the intensity of a knitting class, I decided to do a regular workout.)

I completed Week 6, Day 1 of Couch to 5K which was a horrible run. I got a side stitch almost immediately and only finished the intervals because my mom was running with me and giving me pep talks, such as “Unless you faint, puke, or die, keep running,” and “Stand up and finish what you started!” It took a lot for me not to punch her in the face.

The result was a fairly awful run which made me doubt that I will ever have a natural love for the sport, as I do for napping. (Which is a sport, because you burn calories while doing so. Fact.) I was happy I finished it, but it really made me feel worse. I think I pushed myself too much and I’ll probably do something much less strenuous tomorrow. (Like napping.)

What about you? What’s your rule of thumb for exercising while sick?


Sources: x and x

Categories: Healthy Living

Living Healthy

Healthy living has become the biggest part of my life lately. I’m on a constant tug-of-war with my weight, never hitting my happy weight nor coming to a place where I feel I am at my healthiest.

Hello, my name is Stephany, and I’m a yo-yo dieter.

Oh, those shoulders!

I would say I was at my “healthiest” (using that term loosely) in the Spring-Summer of 2007. I was living on my own at college, going to the gym most mornings, and using Sparkpeople to plug in my calories. My college had a Subway on campus and I would usually head on over there after spending a morning working out at the gym. By the time May rolled around, I was down 10 pounds. And by August, I was a svelte 125 pounds. I still felt like I had about ten more pounds to lose but then Fall came. It was my first time working while having a full load of classes. I also had my first teaching experience, working one day a week in a first-grade classroom. Needless to say, healthy living took a back burner to life. I didn’t gain a lot, but also didn’t lose anything.

2008 was the year it all fell apart. I started another teaching experience (twice a week in a fourth-grade class) that was hell, ended up quitting my job in March, and gained almost all my weight back. It was a rough year for me, especially since I was realizing I was pretty awful at this teaching thing. It wasn’t a great year for me and I think gaining my weight back (and slipping back into old patterns) was just the icing on the cake.

2009 was a year of new beginnings for me: new job, new major, and a new way of living. Yet the weight stayed on. Every once in a while, I’d rejoin Weight Watchers and lose some weight, but fall back to old habits and gain it all back. It’s been a constant cycle for the past two years.

Sometimes, I think to myself, “Maybe I’m just not ready. I haven’t hit rock bottom yet.” My mom? She was ready. She had a medical scare and realized she needed to do something quickly before she was put on medication because of her weight. So she did. She lost 80 pounds and has kept it off for over two years. While I don’t feel like I have hit rock bottom yet or gotten a health scare that snaps my butt into gear, that is such a scary statement to make. What do I mean by “I’m not ready”? When will I be ready? When I have a heart attack? When I can only fit into plus-sized clothing? When I get put on diabetes medication?

If I start now, I only have 35 pounds to lose. I can turn my life around when I’m young and not wind up 200+ pounds at age 25. (And for someone who’s five-foot-two, that’s a lot of weight to lug around.) It doesn’t matter whether or not I’m “ready”, it matters that I start fighting for my health now.

Completely changing your life is not easy and for me, I’m holding onto my old life with tight fists. It’s a little terrifying to think of how much my life needs to change and there’s a big part of me that doesn’t think I can do it. And that’s the part that’s holding me back the most: that little voice inside my head, telling me I’ll always be fat. And while I’m trying to accept myself as I am (i.e., being skinny will not solve all of my problems), I know that finding my happy weight and living a healthy lifestyle will do wonders for my self-esteem, confidence, and overall outlook on life.

Categories: Healthy Living

Couch to 5K: Week 1

I restarted Couch to 5K last Friday. This will be my fourth attempt since I usually ditch the plan after Week 4 or 5, thinking I can do it on my own. This is true, I probably could, but I think the C25K plan is one of the best training plans I’ve seen. And since I’m still struggling to make it past 1 mile, I really want to see this to completion.

On Friday, I made the decision to just run. My plan was to run 3/4ths of a mile, walk to the 1-mile marker, and then run the 2nd mile. That didn’t happen. Instead, I made it a little past 1/2 a mile before stopping. My legs were on fire. And I was really disappointed in myself, thinking running was “not for me” and a stupid decision. Then I thought of C25K and how it really eases you into the running game. I’m going to make it work this time.

I think my mind is getting warped by all the marathon posts I’ve been reading. Folks, one mile is a long way to run. That’s 1,760 yards. Twelve whole minutes of running. (Well, more if you’re like me.) While I may not be running a marathon, or even a 10K, in the near future, I need to focus more on the process.

The C25K plan has you running 3 days a week, doing the same interval pattern on these days. It ups the intensity each week. For Week 1, I started with a 5-minute warm-up and then began the intervals of jogging for 60 seconds, then walking for 90 seconds, for 20 minutes. The program ends with a 5-minute cool-down. This would usually take me 1 and 3/4 miles, and I would walk an extra 1.25 miles to round my miles out to 3.

Friday, my run went so smoothly. I felt great, my pace was awesome, and I really felt like I was making a great decision to restart this program. (I also went for the run at 6pm.) On Saturday, I went to the park around noon and struggled a little bit more this time. It was a lot hotter and I had only eaten breakfast at that point, which I think had something to do with it. Tuesday was my last day in Week 1. I ran at 6pm and it was cool. I felt a cool breeze while I was running! It felt great, although I dealt with weird pain at the top of my right foot which made it harder. While it didn’t hurt while I was running, it was awful pain when I started walking.

For the first 2 weeks, I’ll be following the C25K app I have on my iTouch and then using the plan I found on Cool Running to run for distance, instead of time. The app only does time. My mom and I have been running at a park about a half hour away because it’s safe and the trail is marked perfectly. It’s a 1-mile or 2-mile trail with markers for every quarter-mile. I’ve yet to find a better trail in my city.

I’ve been disappointed with my shoes thus far. I am still dealing with arch pain, although it’s not as intense as before. And I’m once again dealing with shin splints. Again, they aren’t as painful and I’m usually fine once I stop running. And on Tuesday, I began experiencing pain on the top of my right foot up to my ankle. I tightened my shoes, hoping it would help which it somewhat did. My only problem with keeping my shoes tight is that it makes my feet go numb, which I’m guessing isn’t a good thing. I’m not sure how much longer I should give them before returning them for another pair. These shoes (with custom insoles) cost me over $200, so I kind of want them to be gold on my feet. The fact that I’m still experiencing a whole lot of pain is starting to annoy me.

How did you get started with running? Have you ever used Couch to 5K?

Categories: Healthy Living

A Change

For the past 2 months, I haven’t been going to Weight Watcher meetings, counting points, or writing down every morsel of food that goes into my mouth. I haven’t been eating as healthy as I know how to, but I haven’t been going crazy either. Instead, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking. I’ve been thinking about my eating habits, my unhealthy behaviors, and why I am the way I am.

Why am I fat? is the question I’ve been asking myself over and over again. Why am I sabotaging myself every chance I get? Why do I still not get it? The only answer I can come up with is that I don’t feel I have a right to be skinny. I don’t have the strength to do this. I’m forever destined to be the chubby, quiet girl who feels awkward and out of place because that’s the way I was made.

And those are all lies. They are lies that are so ingrained deep in my heart that it’s taken me years to get to the root of it. If you’ve been reading my blog for any amount of time, I’m sure you know who the liar is. If not, it’s my father. My father, whose best nickname for me used to be Poochie-Poo, sent me a letter from prison when I was a senior telling me I needed to lose weight after I sent him my senior picture, and who constantly and consistently made me feel as if I was worthless.

I know they’re lies. I know I am a pretty awesome individual. I’m smart, I’m funny, I’m a great friend, and a compassionate listener. I have a variety of interests and skills. And I have worth. I am worth it. I can’t go on letting his lies infiltrate my mind and captivate my heart. I have so many other people in my life telling me I am worth it. I have my mom, my brother, my grandparents, friends, classmates, strangers, and you guys. There are days when I don’t know what I would do without the friendships I have made through blogging.

I’m glad I came to this realization, though. It has made me realize what I’m doing to myself, not just through my body but to my heart. And I know nothing in the world could make me more proud of myself than to make a big change to my lifestyle. I want to stop playing the victim and start playing the victor.

And so, I’ve come up with a list of my 5 most unhealthy behaviors. My plan is to take control of these five areas of my life and then I can start cracking away at other areas where I eat moderately healthy, but I could still use a little work. (Mainly, my lunch and dinners are pretty healthy and we usually eat the correct portions.)

1. Soda
Soda is my drink of choice. If I’m having a bad day, it’s soda I want, not any kind of alcohol. It tastes delicious and releases chemicals into my brain that signal everything is going to be OK. (Well, maybe not, but that’s how it feels.) On an average day, I would drink 2-3 cans. Two weeks ago, I began working to cut it out of my diet. While I will still have soda when I go out to eat and on Sundays, I don’t want it to be an everyday habit. I managed to go two days each week without any soda. I don’t want to quit cold turkey because the caffeine headaches I get are enough to make me think I can never do this. For this upcoming week, I’m looking to go 3 days without a soda and so on until I stop depending on it so much. This has been my main goal and I feel like I’m doing pretty well at achieving it.

 

2. Exercise 
After over 3 years of trying to lose weight, exercise still hasn’t become something I enjoy. While I have found certain types of exercise that I tolerate, it’s never been something that I’ve craved. Craving exercise? Really? There are people out there like this? But I want to. I want it to be more enjoyable and something I don’t dread with every fiber of my being. (And no, I’m not being dramatic. OK. Maybe I am.) I want to like exercise, I really do! For this goal, I want to commit to 4 days of exercise a week. It can get really complicated with my schedule (especially since I can’t exercise in the morning unless I want to wake up at 4am.), but I know I can do this. I just have to stop being so lazy.

 

3. Snacking
Oh, snacking! This is my weakness. I have fallen prey to portion control and 100-calorie snack packs which do nothing to fuel you, but do taste so very good! I want to drastically change what I consider a snack and make it something that really does perk me up and fuel me, and less about something heavy on fat and sugar. I want fruits and veggies, almonds and nuts, peanut butter and smoothies. This is an area that needs a lot of work, and it scares me a little to think about how many calories/points I waste on snacks.

 

4. Breakfast
My job makes breakfast very hard. First of all, I have to be there early so eating beforehand isn’t an option. Secondly, even if I do bring a satisfying, filling breakfast, I’m also the “Breakfast Girl”, as my boss likes to call me and I’m the one making and delivering breakfasts to all the kiddos. Sometimes, it’s something as simple as cereal and juice. And sometimes it’s French toast, or blueberry muffins, or my personal favorite, sausage biscuits. (Do you know what it’s like to cook FORTY sausage biscuits and not eat even one? Um, well, neither do I.) It’s hard. I bring breakfast, yes, but I also think I could make it a lot healthier. I have a hard time finding a super healthy breakfast since I hate oatmeal and can only handle yogurt in small doses. But I’m up for the challenge!

 

5. Situational Eating
I am really bad at eating, depending on the situation. I’m sad! I’m happy! Something terrible has just happened! Let’s celebrate! It’s Friday! I have the Monday morning blues! I’m a professional at justifying why I’m eating badly. I want to stop eating just because of a certain emotion or event. I want to be able to be sad and find another way to get a handle on my emotions. I want to be able to celebrate something good happening without blowing my diet out of the water. I need to find other ways to deal with my emotions. I think it’s a problem most people have with their eating habits and once that gets under control, controlling your eating becomes much easier.

So there you have it. For now, I’m working on the first two because I know if I can cut out the majority of my soda intake and ramp up my exercise, I’ll see weight loss and just feel better. And that’s my main goal. I want to feel good and know I’m treating my body the best way possible. I’m still eating healthy and still maintaining a healthy lifestyle, but I find that I’m less tempted to cheat and feel like the whole day or week is a loss with this attitude.

What would you say is your most unhealthy habit?


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