Midweek Mashup

I got out on the trail for a five-miler yesterday because this morning I have a mammogram scheduled- UGH!  I don’t want to have a mammogram!  However, last year at this time my sister was diagnosed with colon cancer.  She’s cancer-free now, but it wasn’t a fun year for her.  I got a colonoscopy in July (my first one- it actually wasn’t that bad) and am now going for my overdue mammogram.  Early detection!!!!  Very important. After last week’s post where I showed some EYE-OPENING photos of my poor running form, I’ve been focusing on running tall and not crossing over my midline.  However, I know that often what I think I’m doing doesn’t correspond to what’s actually happening, so I read some articles about different drills you can do.  Some ideas include finding a white line (on a road, or preferably a track) to use as a guideline, and stepping on the outside edge of the line with each foot rather than the middle, and also increasing your cadence- the idea being that if you’re moving your legs faster, there’s less time for extraneous movements. (By the way, you shouldn’t try to do any of these things for your entire run- just short segments.  You’re activating some new muscles and need time to get used to it.)  This article had some good tips and exercises. Who else has read The Push?  I finished it last week and can’t stop thinking about it- which to me is a sign of a good book.  But sad- so many layers of sadness in this book.  You know how, as a mom, you have moments where you wish you had done or said things differently? Reading this book reassured me that, actually, I’m doing a pretty good job!  But what about the ending?  I didn’t like it.  I wish it had remained ambiguous, OR, if the story continues with what you think has happened, I wanted to hear more about it.  I wanted either more, or less.  Anyone else feel that way? Last but not least, WAFFLES!  I made these maple teff waffles on my birthday.  Yum!  You can see presents in the background… the most exciting one was a NEW PHONE!!!!  My last was one about five years old… so we can finally expect some decent pictures around here!  Ha ha… we’ll see about that. Are you good or bad about getting regularly scheduled screenings like mammograms?  (I’ve been bad in the past but am changing my ways!) If you read The Push, what did you think of it?  Is there another book you read recently that was good?