Lose It

Lose It!

Ok all you iPhone and iPod Touch users, I’ve found an app that I can’t live without! And I think you won’t be able to either! It’s called “Lose It” and it’s a free (yup that’s right, I said FREE) application available at iTunes. Why is it so great? Well, it helps you Lose It…weight that is! You set it up with a few simple questions about your current weight, and your goals whether it be to lose, gain or maintain. From this information, Lose It sets up a per day calorie intake goal. Then, when you eat you simply enter it into the app. They’ve made it really easy, because they have databases with the most popular name brands and restaurants. Can’t find your favorite Tofutti Fudge Bar? No worries, you can enter it in from the nutrition info on the box. Have a special recipe, but don’t know how many calories or fat grams… it’s OK, because you can add it. Adding a new food or recipe is a breeze!

Now comes the best part!!! It also tracks your calories burned through exercise. And I don’t mean just those burned through aerobics, spinning or running. It also counts calories burned through house cleaning, vacuuming and (whisper) sex!  I know….it is SOOO COOL!!! So, imagine you have made it through dinner and you’re at your limit for the day, but you’re still a little hungry. You forgot that you actually cleaned the house and vacuumed the carpet. Enter those in and BOOM…you have another 150 or so calories you can eat!! It actually makes you want to exercise and clean!

Well, I originally started this back in February and did great tracking for a while, then went on vacation and let it lapse for a week or two. Then, I started again a couple of weeks ago, and have been diligent about logging everything! AND, I have lost…drumroll please….5 pounds! Whooooohoooo!

So if you have an iPhone or iTouch, I highly recommend this application!

Eye to Eye…with a beast!!!

If you read my training page you probably already heard about my encounter…but if not, let me recap the experience for you!

I procrastinated yesterday, and before I realized, it was 10:00PM and I still had to get my 1 mile run in! So, I laced up my shoes and grabbed my ipod and started out the door. But, my husband, sweety that he is, said he would come out with me and walk while I ran my normal route. He is the sweetest man…EVER!!! I hate running in the darkness of night by myself!  The darkness of morning, I am fine with…go figure!

So, we set off and I ran ahead, tunes cranked, thinking about world peace and tomorrow’s dinner menu. As I came around the bend in our street, not even 200 yards from our house, I saw a shadowy figure hunched over a pile of tree branches. I immediately thought that it was one of the wild, or shall I say homeless, cats that live in our neighborhood. But after a double, triple and quadruple take, I realized that this “CAT” was HUGE!!! If it was a homeless cat, then it must have eaten its home and everything in it! Suddenly it looked up and locked eyes with me! I didn’t know what to do! What’s the protocol when running into a homeless cat? Don’t make eye contact…do make eye contact…act dominant…act subservient? I couldn’t think!

It’s yellow beady eyes stayed on me as it slowly crossed the street in front of me. It stopped at the curb and raised up onto its back legs, showing its full size! YIKES!!! It really was HUGE!!! But I could tell, now, that it was a raccoon, a very well fed raccoon! This thing was twice the size of my overweight cocker spaniel! Obviously, it was not afraid of me! I figured that the sound of my feet hitting the pavement would scare it away, but… uh… no!  It just stayed there, raised up on his haunches watching me as if he were critiquing my technique! Again my brain froze and I couldn’t think of what I should do. Normally, my brain would scream “RUN!!”…but I was already running…just in the wrong direction! Finally, it clicked, and I abruptly turned around!

My husband, not knowing what was going on, looked puzzled as he chuckled at me sprinting back towards him, with a look of terror on my face.  I explained what had happened and we continued on towards the raccoon. I  was hiding behind him as we approached the beast again! Evidently, we looked a little more daunting, because the beast sauntered off into the bushes, without even looking back.

I continued my run, but I couldn’t help but think about the family of dumpster-diving black bears that live near our neighborhood, too. Needless to say, I ran my fastest mile…EVER!!

Injury! :(

Florida Rain

Well, the weather today in FL is very wet and dreary, which fits with my mood. You see, I may have an injury. I’m not sure, but my big toe on my left foot is a little suspect. It is a little pink around the nail bed and every once in a while I can feel it throbbing. I’m hoping that it is just a passing thing, but it may actually be a toe nail injury, which would really stink! While it isn’t hurting all the time, it has made itself known in the wee hours of the morning, by waking me. Yet, it doesn’t hurt when I run! Go figure! My toes have plenty of room in my running shoes, so it isn’t like they are jamming into the end with every step. But there is something going on, that’s for sure!

So, you know, I have this new challenge to run at least a mile everyday! Well, I am wondering if this injury isn’t a result of that. Could the excess running be causing the injury? Maybe…but then why doesn’t it hurt when I run? I will keep you posted! But I will run!!

Thursday!

So I haven’t written in a while! Not because I didn’t want to! I have been trying to work a little, you know…bring home some bacon… earn my keep… rake in some dough. That paired with my training schedule leaves me no time for blogging. Not to mention, keeping up with Facebook, Twitter and just regular emails…I have NO TIME!!! But today my bike ride got delayed slightly, so I thought I would try to shoot out a quick Thursday morning howdy-ho! Sup? NM, U?

So today is a tri day! I already went for my morning 5k run, my bike ride is within the hour, and I’m swimming tonight! I do love the days that I can actually do all three events at their full length! I feel that if I can do all three spaced out throughout the day, I should definitely be able to do them back to back the day of! Well, that’s what I’m hoping anyway!

Fast Forward…doooododoooo dodooodooddooooo

OK, so I just got back from my bike ride and I went a tad over the 12 miles, that I have to ride in the Danskin Tri. I actually did 20 miles!! Huh, go figure! Now if I just need to keep a float for 1/2 mile swim tonight! I am sooooo hungry! I am finding out that the diet of an athlete is totally different than the diet of a non athlete. I am hungry all the time!!! And not just hungry…STARVING…FAMISHED!!!! I started looking at what I eat in a day and what I should eat in a day. Yeah, I don’t eat enough! Nice problem to have, right? Not really! Let me explain!

I am a vegetarian. More specifically, I like to call myself a pescetarian, since I eat fish. But, I also eat dairy and eggs, so I have many ways to get my protein. I’m also now trying to eat more fresh foods and pulling away from the processed and manufactured foods. If it has an ingredient that I can’t say, I won’t eat it. I just feel better when I keep to the real food! The problem is trying to come up with an on the road, mid-workout snack that is packed with carbs and proteins. My standby is a baggie filled with almonds and craisins, but that gets a little old after a while! I would love a power bar, but again, there’s a lot of junk in those bars and they actually tend to be as bad for you as a candy bar. I tried making a power bar, but the ones I made are gooey and just don’t travel well! So a lot of times I go off for a long run or bike ride without a snack. That’s not healthy, and it makes it really difficult to get the calories I need for the day!

So according to my computations, with all the exercise I did today, I should take in 2500 calories to sustain me. And this will allow me to lose 1 pound this week. Don’t get me wrong, I can’t eat 2500 calories everyday, unless I am working out like I did today! My base calorie intake should be around 1400. Then, when I add exercise, I can add calories. It makes you aware of how your body works and what it needs in terms of fuel. I didn’t reach my 2500 calories today! I am soooo tired I can’t stay awake! I have to go to bed….RIGHT NOW!!!!

GOODNIGHT!!!

The Morning After…

Can you find me? Hint...I'm the sweaty one!

OK, I had a TERRIFIC weekend!!!! I spent 3 sun-filled days at the beach with my girlfriends, enjoying the sun & surf! We ate lots of junk food and drank…a lot!!! I did, however, get my runs in!!!! I even ran what I am calling my Girls’ Gone Wild 10K! In case you haven’t been following the blog…I was suppose to run in a 10K race with my nieces, but decided that a weekend with my girlfriends was more important for my sanity! But, since I had already agreed to run a 10K, I decided to run it on my own! And I did! Even after a late night of adult beverages and junk food! Not to mention running on the beach, that, while it sounds amazing, is actually quite difficult!! (My legs are still sore!) The proof is in the picture! I’m the sweaty one!! Poor Jen and Kay had to stand beside me! They really ARE good friends!!!

The run on Sunday was actually harder for me than the 10K! You see we were out carousing until 4:00AM and I woke up at 8:00AM for no apparent reason! 4 hours of sleep and a few Stella’s make for a very grumpy ME!! I did not run at the beach as I had planned! I decided to wait until I was home. But I was sooo tired when I got home around 4:30PM that I went for a nap instead! After a 2 hour nap, I tried again to muster some energy! Finally at 9:30PM I laced up my shoes and did the bare minimum! 1 meesley mile and I was DONE!!!

Update…my nieces did run in the 10K race and they did GREAT!!!! Congrats Lisa and Desta! Your aunt is very proud of you!!! And you even came to the beach after! You guys rock!!!

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So this morning I actually got myself out the door for a run before the sun was up! Way before the sun was up!!! It was a great morning for a run! 65°F which is the absolute perfect temperature! It’s not so cold that you have to wear a jacket, and not so hot and humid that you can’t breathe! (Ahhhh, Florida humidity, you’ve got to love it! NOT!!) And since the sun wasn’t out it wasn’t blinding me as it came across the lake!  It was really quiet, in fact, I only had to muster the energy to say “good morning” to 1 person! NICE!

I really am puzzled as to why I don’t run in the mornings. I am up at 5:30AM and have plenty of time to squeeze in a run if I would just get out there! I really enjoy the feel of the morning run! There is something exhilarating about going from sleep to 6 mph. There’s nothing better than the feeling of the endorphin rush while everyone else is still in bed! And, of course, there’s the whole getting the run out of the way! My day is free now! I LOVE THE MORNING RUN!!

So, now it is 8:54AM and I’ve already run, showered, dressed, eaten, and guzzled my coffee! Oh and don’t forget the 2 lunches I packed and 3 breakfasts I made…all at different times mind you!  So now what do I do? I’ll  be done with all my “chores” by 10:00AM and the rest of my day is empty!!! Hmmm… what to do…OH I know!!! I’ll go shopping!!! I haven’t done that in a while! (Monday) I really do have a few things that I NEED! So I’ll go stimulate the economy, while edging the family ever closer to needing a bail-out! Wish me luck!

Progress

In my last post I made a pledge. A promise to myself, and, as I now know, all of you who follow my silly little blog! I didn’t really think much about this promise, until I started hearing from some of my followers, (huh, followers? Really?) telling me that they are looking forward to hearing about my progress. Really? You care about me? About whether I get off my duff and run a mile or more? Wow! That’s exciting, and actually quite motivating! You see, now it’s not just me hoping that I can do this! There are witnesses and that means the pressure is on!! I kind of like it!

These last few days have been interesting! I wake up thinking about when I’m going to fit my run into my “mom” schedule. Wondering how far I should run and how to fit my triathlon training in, too! I’ve had to be a little creative! Running at times that I normally wouldn’t! And even using the dreaded treadmill! You see, I loath the treadmill! I feel like a caged rat exercising for someone else’s entertainment! Being that I live in sunny Florida, I have the luxury of running outside year round. But there are days when I have to use the dreadmill, and today is one of those! UGHHHH! I feel my rat tail growing as we speak!

So, what I’ve noticed is that I start out my run, thinking that I will just run a couple miles. But after I get running, I keep running. It’s nice knowing that I can run just one mile if I want and it will still count towards my goal! But I can’t stop after just a mile! I never thought I would see that day! Take Sunday…I went for a swim and decided to go for the whole 1/2 mile…36 laps. I took A LOT of wall breaks, mind you!  I came home and started out on my run, thinking I would go for a mile and then turn around. But once I got my pace I couldn’t turn around. I kept thinking of the triathlon and how I would be swimming 1/2 mile, biking 12 miles and then running 5K. I could surely complete 2 with no problem, right? Well, again I was exhausted for the rest of the evening! And I still am! OK it could have something to do with losing an hour of sleep! But I am just wiped out!

So while I am continuing to keep my promise to run everyday, I feel as though my body will never get use to all this activity! I mean, I am just mom! Right?

How much is too much?

I just read an article on Runner’s World about a man who has run everyday for the  last 38 years…EVERYDAY…38 YEARS!!!!  Are you KIDDING ME? And this article was actually published 2 years ago!!!! So he’s now run at least 1 mile a day for more than 14,000 consecutive days!!!! I AM AMAZED!!!!! What an accomplishment!!!

Well, come to think of it, it does sound a little compulsive, doesn’t it? Maybe I’m just jealous that I can’t beat this record! I mean, even if I start now (and I’m no spring chicken), he isn’t going to stop any time soon, so I really don’t see me surpassing him…ever!!! And you know, even if I had started way back when, it wouldn’t have happened! You see I would have had to run through PMS, the red headed cousin’s monthly visits, morning sickness, childbirth…twice, breastfeeding (that’s quite a visual, huh?)…4 hurricanes, and I could go on and on!!! OK, he ran on a broken foot while on a cruise ship during a tropical storm (I actually think that these were 2 separate incidents)…so what!!! This does not impress me!! Well, it does kind of impress me. OK, IT DOES  impress me! DARN IT!!!  Seriously, though, is this a healthy goal? How much is too much? Do you think that too much of a good thing could actually be bad?

You always hear about runners who have knee, hip and foot injuries caused by excessive running. Is this something that happens to everyone that runs too much? If exercise is a good thing, but too much is a bad thing, then how much is too much? The answer to this question will depend on the person, I assume. But how does one tell what their personal threshold is? Is this one of those philosophical questions? You know …”If a tree falls in the woods and nobody is there to hear it does it still make a sound?” “What came first, the chicken or the egg?” My answer to most of these questions is “Who cares!!!!”. But I actually want to know the answer to this one! I am intrigued! So intrigued, that I may actually try to figure this out!

I love to run! I feel free and happy with the sun on my back, the wind in my hair and my favorite song blaring in my ears!  But would I feel this way if I OD’ed on it? Would it get old? 14,000 straight days of anything would get monotonous, wouldn’t it?! But wait… we eat everyday, and I don’t EVER to get tired of eating!!! Maybe I could do this! I could run everyday! Not long distances, mind you, but 1 mile is completely doable! That would take no time at all! And how much damage can you do in 8 minutes of running?

Hear Ye, Hear Ye…I am officially announcing on this the 6th day of March in the year 2009, that I am going to run at least 1 mile everyday, rain or shine, PMS or hot flash, for as long as I can physically and mentally (I had to have an out!) stand it!! I will log my runs on the training log page if you want to follow along! Through this fete, I hope to answer that common question…Exactly how much is too much!

Got to GO RUN!!!

Biggest Loser!?

I am a big fan of the reality show “The Biggest Loser”! This is a show that takes morbidly obese people and teaches them how to be fit and healthy; what is there not to like!? Have you seen to winners? They look GREAT and they are so inspirational! There was even a guy, Dane, who, after breaking the weight loss record by losing 100 pounds in 8 weeks, just ran a marathon with his wife after returning home from the ranch. Or did he?

As it turns out, he didn’t! He did run 17 miles, but then the producers were worried that they wouldn’t make the “shot” at the finsh line. So they gave him a 3 mile ride, to get him back on pace. Then they got their finish line shot and aired it as though he had actually completed the marathon. Are you kidding me? If I were Dane, I would be extremely ticked!! I mean, to run 23 miles…23 miles!…he only had 3 more miles to go!!! He gave that up for a producer who needed a shot at the finish line. Really?

Then, when it was revealed that he didn’t actually run the whole marathon, this poor man had to take the criticism, when it was the producer that forced the issue! Why isn’t anyone calling out the producer for this bad call? I mean, come on…this man was 412 pounds when the show started. He was sprinting towards certain death! Now, he can run for 23 miles! Kudos to him! May we all learn a little something from this man!

And all you “runners” who are distressed over this false claim, put the blame where it belongs! Blame the Biggest Loser producer who forced Dane to take the ride. And give Dane a break!

My New Hobby

OK, so I think I found a way to combine my two favorite hobbies into one new one!!

I went to see “Yes Man” yesterday, you know the Jim Cary movie about the guy that says yes to everything.  I was in hysterics when the female lead, Allison, a modern day hippie chick, explains that one of her jobs is teaching  people how to take pictures while running 5 miles.  The next scene is a group of runners stretching out, with cameras around their necks. OMG, I was dying!!! Then, they started out on their run, clicking pictures as they ran past everything from trash cans to park benches.  Now you have to understand, I am a picture fanatic! I always carry a camera and am sort of known as the picture-taking queen in certain circles. And I am also a runner! I love the early morning run because of the absolutely amazing scenery. So when I saw this, I started thinking that maybe there is actually some benefit to combining these two hobbies! I mean think about it…how many times have you been out for a run and seen the most amazing sunrise/sunset, or wildlife that’s doing something wild, or scenery that is beyond beautiful! Wouldn’t it be nice to share that beauty with the non-runners? Maybe this would entice them to run! OK, I know, many of the pictures you take while running will be blurry, but maybe this blur will add to the beauty!

I don’t know, I think I might try it on my next run! Stay tuned for my blurry pictures!