March Runfessions- Deep Thoughts
First of all, how in the world is it already the end of March? What’s going on? Time is just flying by. As always on the last Friday of the month, I’m linking up with Marcia and her “runfessional.” Since I haven’t been running as much lately, I’ve had extra time to ponder some Great Truths. I know… you wish I would stick to my usual topics of the weather and digestive issues. Well, this time we’re going deep- let’s get started! So… I have to runfess that I’ve been feeling pretty down lately. I blamed it on not being able to do my birthday long run, but I think the problem is bigger than that. Running is how I experience the outdoors. I always love my long runs because they’re my weekly adventures. While I’m grateful that I’m able to run at all, three mile runs around my neighborhood- in the early morning darkness- aren’t very exciting. The chapter I just finished in Pema Chodron’s Welcoming the Unwelcome is called “Beyond the Comfort Zone.” She shows this model describing the process of growth: We’re naturally drawn to the Comfort Zone. The Learning/Challenge Zone is where growth occurs, and the Excessive Risk Zone is to be avoided as too risky to encourage growth. I started thinking: “When was the last time I got out of my comfort zone?” As a matter of fact, I can’t remember the last time I did much of anything at all, other than the usual work, runs, and Peloton classes. This past weekend was spent binge watching old episodes of Spring Baking Championship on Discovery Plus, while sitting on the couch with a huge bowl of popcorn. The funny thing is, the whole point of the comfort zone is to make you feel better, but the longer you stay there, the worse you feel. I decided I needed to do something, anything to get myself out of this rut. So I searched up races, and picked the weirdest one I could find. It’s a 5K trail run to benefit the Solid Waste Authority. It was a little hard to convince my husband- I think it sounded like we were going to be running through a huge garbage dump or something- but I signed us both up. According to the website, “The Run AWAY 5K is a unique race that takes participants AWAY through cabbage palms, cypress hammocks, marshes and lush pine flat woods, with glimpses of Grassy Waters Preserve and the Renewable Energy Park.” That sounds pretty good! I hope we get a t-shirt that says “Solid Waste Authority” on it. The race is April 3rd, and- to make it further outside my comfort zone- it’s over an hour away and starts at 7:30 am. Neither one of us is in shape to actually race a 5K- I haven’t done any real speedwork in about two years- but it will be a new experience. I’m feeling better already! Hopefully my foot will hold up to some faster running… I’ll find out. But I can’t just continue to sit around and wait for my foot to be 100% healed before I can enjoy life again. I have to get out there and do what I can with the limitations I have right now. The “Run Away” 5K is a perfect start. What do you take refuge in for your comfort zone? – We all need to be in our comfort zone sometimes. If you find yourself in a rut, how do you get out of your comfort zone?
It’s My Party and I’ll Cry If I Want To
Okay, I didn’t really cry on my birthday. But I did sulk a little bit leading up to it- I was bummed about not being able to do a birthday long run. But you only get to turn 56 once, right? I snapped myself out of it just in time to enjoy the day. And it was pretty great! I started my birthday the way all birthdays should begin- with a run. Kim had the idea to run 3.21 miles, and also do a 3.21 minute plank. I did the run, happily, but the plank… well, last year I did a 3.14 minute plank on pi day (aka Kim’s birthday) but that last minute was pretty brutal. And that was when I was in better planking shape. I probably could have held a 3.21 minute plank, but it would have taken David Goggins yelling in my ear to get me through that last minute. He’s someone I do NOT want at my birthday party… that really might make me cry. I did the plank, but with a couple breaks. It looks like Kim did the full 3.21 though- go Kim! Monday birthdays shouldn’t be allowed. But… after work I opened presents, and my sister sent me these Harry Potter socks! This will make getting dressed in the morning a lot more fun. My husband made a delicious dinner- vegan baked ziti, salad, and garlic bread. I had to smile a little at his presentation- I would have put the bread in a bread basket. But I’m not complaining! It was all delicious. For dessert, I made this keto mug cake. Obviously I don’t follow a ketogenic diet (see above dinner) but since I don’t eat sugar, sometimes I’ll make myself a keto dessert. Everyone should have cake on their birthday! For my birthday wish… well, I would sound like a selfish jerk if I wished for anything for myself, considering everything that’s going on in the world. So I wish for peace on earth. If I could have a second wish, I would wish for a healthy foot. It’s not too much to ask for two birthday wishes… is it? What would be your favorite birthday dinner What would be your ideal way to spend your birthday?- Last year’s birthday was pretty great- it fell on a Sunday and I ran ten miles to the beach!
Weekly Rundown- Twists and Turns
One good thing about turning the clocks ahead is that some of us got a “full moon” run in the morning! Other than that I’m not a fan of DST- but what’s done is done. My daughter had spring break this week so we were able to sleep a little later, so that helped. I’m linking up as always with that lovely pair, Kim and Deborah for this rundown. There were some twists this week- just the universe keeping life interesting! Let’s get to it. Sunday This was a weird morning. We turned the clocks ahead, I had to get up hella-early to get my son ready for his flight back to school, and we had a one-day cold front blow through. After my husband and son left for the airport (thank you for driving, husband!) I went for a five mile run. Yes, it was 50 degrees and I wore a hat and gloves. I don’t care what anyone says! It was dark and windy when I started, and I needed them. Everything felt completely fine on this run, but later in the day I went to do some side planks, and found that my left hip was super sore. What the…??? This sore left hip became the theme of the week. Monday Yoga is what I need! I did a 45 minute yoga class with my Peloton bff, Denis Morton. This class felt great, but my hip was just cranky all day long. Sigh! Tuesday Three mile run! Phew- running didn’t hurt my hip, but I was afraid to do any strength training- even core. I was cautious of anything that might strain that hip flexor. Later in the day I did another yoga class. Wednesday Lately I’ve been pairing a strength class with a shorter- 20 or 30 minute- yoga class. But since I was focusing more on yoga this week, I picked longer classes. I also had been avoiding classes with pigeon pose because I’m not good at it (ha ha! How stupid is that? I obviously need it!) I bit the bullet, chose this class and I LOVED it! We did my two favorite poses- warrior 3 AND half moon- with some great stretches at the end, including the dreaded pigeon. It wasn’t so bad. I also decided I couldn’t continue to avoid core, so I made my own core “class.” I set my timer for ten minutes and just did every move I could think of from the recent Crush Your Core program, that didn’t involve hip flexors. Voila- a hip-friendly core class. Thursday Another three mile run, and this one felt inexplicably… great! It definitely wasn’t the weather- it was 71 degrees and muggy at 7 am. But it was one of those runs where you feel like you’re flying along effortlessly. Love those runs. After the run I did my own core “class” again, and then later in the day I did pull-ups (or I should specify, my pre-pull-up work) and some lower body strength- I didn’t want to risk aggravating my hip, which was still bothering me, so I did my own thing with no weights. It worked and my hip was okay. Friday Another 45 minute yoga flow, and 10 minutes of core. Instead of avoiding pigeon pose, I’m embracing it and guess what? It’s getting easier. Who knew? Saturday An early morning five mile run! Followed by ten minutes of core. In other news, it might be time to seriously re-think my sleep schedule. Normally I don’t have an issue being tired at work, because my job is pretty active. But today I had a client who wanted the last 20 minutes of his massage on his scalp and face. I was sitting down at this point, the room was dark, the music was slow and soothing…. my client fell asleep… oh, that’s good, he must really need to relax… it’s warm in here… I’m starting to get hungry… oatmeal would be good… that bowl of oatmeal looks good… I think I’ll introduce myself to it… WAIT- WHAT???. Did I just fall asleep while giving a massage and have a dream about introducing myself to a bowl of oatmeal? Yes…. I did. Luckily my client didn’t notice, since he was sleeping himself. You might think this little nap would have pepped me up, but it left me feeling groggy and disoriented. I only had one more massage after that one, which was a good thing. After work I came home and ate- what else- a bowl of oatmeal! And then took a nap on the couch- the CORRECT location for a nap. Sunday On tap for today- an hour yoga class and some strength training. It’s my Birthday Eve! I see some lasagna and a glass of wine in my future. Have you ever fallen asleep at work, or in another inappropriate place? Any strange dreams lately? If you do yoga, what’s your favorite pose?
So How’d That Go, Anyway?
Hello again! In my last post I talked about a few things going on this week- why not have a quick update? One thing I talked about was… St Patrick’s Day Dinner I planned to make soda bread and a vegan Irish stew. I had my grocery list made, and I was looking it over dubiously. I needed one bottle of Guiness- I hope the store sells single bottles. I don’t want a six pack. Seitan… does my grocery store carry it? And vegan worsteshire sauce… hmmm. At that moment my husband said, “by the way, we have three ripe avocados.” Oh, screw it… let’s just have enchiladas. As my husband said, “We’re not Irish.” Well, we’re not Mexican either. But that’s beside the point! The point is, we had a delicious dinner, and I had my “pop” instead of a beer. Yum! The Trip to El Paso Ha… the odds of this actually happening are slim to none. There’s a chance we’ll be in San Antonio at the beginning of June (there’s a trumpet conference my son would like to attend) but the drive from San Antonio to El Paso is over seven hours. I can just imagine herding my confused family into the car for that trip- “Wait, WHY are we going to El Paso again, Mom?” However, I’m still enjoying fantasizing about it. I went to Barnes and Noble and sat in the cafe for a while, reading a Texas travel book. Yeah… summer probably isn’t the ideal time to go, but I still find it fascinating that the same state contains drastically different cities- Austin, Waco, Dallas, El Paso… there’s a small possibility that my Mexican-themed St. Patrick’s Day dinner was subconsciously inspired by dreams of Texas. Reading The reason I was at Barnes and Noble was to get this book. Although we have different tastes in fiction, I’m starting to think that for nonfiction, Nicole should just assign me a reading list. She wrote about this book in her last post and I knew I had to read it! I read another book by Pema Chodron a while ago and loved it- this is her latest. Has anyone else noticed that it’s IMPOSSIBLE to find what you’re looking for at Barnes and Noble? I knew from their website that a copy of this book was available at my store, but finding it was an adventure. You have to know what category the book fits into- religion? personal growth?- and then there are subsections in each category. I put on my sleuthing cap, but eventually needed a bookseller to help me find it, in the “Eastern religion” section. Someday I will complete my quest to actually find a book on my own in this store! In other reading news, my library hold of The Maid came in, finally! I have a fun weekend of reading ahead of me. My left hip continues to be a little wonky this week. It doesn’t hurt while I run, but it’s uncomfortable other times during the day, and it’s hard to find a good sleeping position. In addition to running I’ve been doing lots of yoga this week, which I’m enjoying. So that’s it! How’s your week going? Do you get your books from the library? Amazon? A bookstore? – I get most of mine from the library, sometimes Amazon, but I love going to Barnes and Noble every once in a while. Did you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day?