April 2013
1 post
3 tags
Coming Back
I spent some time re-reading this blog tonight. I’ve gained a lot of weight. I feel terrible. I’m about to run a half undertrained. Just in a terrible place. I signed up for a full marathon though. Things are going to turn around. And it starts with getting this up again.
April 2011
1 post
Maximum Swearing
This is kind of an inappropriate post, so if certain four letter words offend you, I would stop reading now.
I have made no secret to everyone concerned with my illness that it’s been a tough road, especially since I had to discontinue my half marathon training for awhile. When I finally did get back running, I struggled and my runs were spotty. Mind you, I was trying to run with a...
March 2011
2 posts
Illness
On Tuesday, March 1st, I was sitting on my bed talking to Mike the Boyfriend as I waited for my phone to charge for my run. Suddenly, I had a sharp pain in my head. I told the Boyfriend that the run was going to have to wait and I was going to have to rest.
Today is March 27th and I’m still in pain. It’s more severe, despite a rather long list of medications I’ve been on to deal...
Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder, Right?
Life has been rough. That’s putting it mildly. February was a mess of busy and March was a mess of illness. At least with busy, I can still run, but with illness, I was stuck flat on my back. I’m going to write more about my illness in a separate post. However, I want y’all to know that I’m back posting. Betsy’s going to run and Betsy’s going to rock it.
February 2011
0 posts
January's Health Month
So now we enter into the obvious question: Did Health Month do anything to improve my health and my quality of life? Well, let’s go through the rules one by one and see.
1. Take a multivitamin every day - There is some debate over whether this is what made me sick. Since I have been taking it at night instead of the morning, I have been feeling better. So this is a wash as to whether it...
January 2011
36 posts
Weight training session #2
I had a lot of energy today. Like a lot a lot. Because I couldn’t run, I decided that a walk was in order. It was easy and slow. It was also four miles. That was probably stupid, but it felt good and I talked myself into the fact that it was okay.
When I got home, I faced the inevitable weight training. It wasn’t as bad as the last round, but it still wasn’t fun....
5 miles!
Yup, I got in 5 whole miles yesterday and it wasn’t too bad. I ran with the quicker run/walk group and we did 5 minutes running and 1 walking. I will admit joining this group was not the smoothest of transitions…
I got to the high school that we meet up at and was told to go to the gym. Once there, we were told that it was picture day. Just what I wanted to hear. Everyone wants...
New Blog!
This is kind of premature and we’re still working out some kinks, but I’m writing for new blog! It’s with my friend Heather and is focusing on vegetarian eating. I’m a veg and she’s veg-friendly. I’m beyond excited about this project and am full of ideas for what I’ll be talking about.
I’m going off any kind of calorie restrictive diets as of...
Weight training
Tonight, I gave weight training another go. Verdict? I still hate it, but I’m going to keep it up anyways. It’s good for me and will only improve my running. Yup, that’s what I’ll keep telling myself.
I can exercise again!
Do you hear that?? That’s the sound of me woo hooing really, really loud.
Today, I woke up less grumpy and less sleepy. Did I still want to stay in bed? Hell yeah. But that was okay because today was my first mid-week group run. That means night running. So Betsy gets a little more sleepy time, which let’s face it, Betsy likey.
I packed up my gear and headed off for work....
Doctor
I got the phone call from the doctor today. All test results are normal, so I’m just left with feeling sick and no answers. More resting and cuddling with the kitten seems like the only real cure…
Set backs & successes
I can’t workout right now, which means that I’m losing Health Month life points like crazy. And because I’m sick, I can’t really go out and meet up with a friend, so there are more life points. Argh.
So I’m having a major set back right now. There’s not much that I can do about it, but sit here and rest. My illness and the accompanying medication are making...
Downright sick
Today, I finally went to the doctor. It took a lot for me to go, and I pretty much had a panic attack on the way there.
I stupidly took a wrong turn, and it became apparent that I was going to get there right at the time of the appointment rather than the fifteen minutes before that they had requested. I felt like an ass and was scared that they weren’t going to let me see the doctor....
A sense of entitlement
Today, I weighed in at 152.8. I’m getting further and further away from that starting number of 161.5, which is amazing.
But then there’s the dark side of getting these good numbers. Yesterday, there were some cookies and juice hanging out in our office. They waved at me. I scurried away. When I walked back by them, they said, “But… but… don’t you want...
Ben Does Life.: A view from the sidelines. →
This is how I feel every time I’ve been too sick to workout in the last few weeks. Really hoping that Friday’s appointment sheds some light on what’s going on.
bendoeslife:
I sit here in my familiar restaurant, in front of my familiar bowl of soup. With my familiar (and spectacular) waitresses who keep my drink refilled. My pen lies on my notebook and my fingers rest on the...
Doctor's appointment
It’s scheduled for 11:30 am on Friday with a new doctor. I’m hoping to get to the bottom of this mystery illness that is plaguing me lately…
Being Selfish
Selfishness is a trait that I need to develop more. I hate disappointing others. I hate not delivering more than they expect. I am loyal to a fault and it’s really killing me in every part of my life.
It’s not that I really care what other’s think. I don’t. My social awkwardness doesn’t allow for that or else I would be way more upset with how I come off on...
What 5 miles means to me
It’s Tuesday and I have yet to tell you guys about my run on Saturday. My only excuse is that I was still sorting out what I felt about it.
My group (all 600 of us) meet up in a high school thirty minutes away from my house, so it’s always an early Saturday morning for me. I was the most apprehensive about this run because I just wasn’t happy with my four mile run. I’m...
Rewards
It took me a couple of weeks to get my reward for last month’s Health Month, but yesterday, I finally got my butt out and got a new pair of shoes. I gotta say, I had trouble with this.
To say that I love shoes would be an understatement. I have a collection that makes me smile when I think about them. There is something so empowering and awesome about a fantastic pair of heels. And...
Coming out of the closet
I am ready to let my geek flag fly big time. I’ve discovered two old loves and it’s all thanks to Health Month.
The first is kind of understandable. I have absolutely no problem fulfilling the reading rule. I decided this month to re-read The Sisters: The Saga of the Mitford Family by Mary Lovell. It is full of these wonderful characters that just invite you into a world of secret...
Random thoughts
I’m feeling much better today. I was able to knock out a whole hour’s worth of cardio! Of course, I thought I was going to throw up again after that, but whatever. I got the workout in.
As far as how bad the damage was yesterday, I went back up to 155.4. Not cool. That needs to go away like now.
I’ve been sitting here thinking about my workout and I’m in the midst...
Sigh...
I’m frustrated. I’ve been trying hard to stay on task. And then the weather gets bad. And then I hurt my ankle. And then I get a head cold. And then I start randomly throwing up. It’s all adding up and taking it’s toll.
I try to be tough. I try to pretend that I’m not frustrated as all hell. But I am. Especially right now.
I got up and was ready to get...
This one goes out to everyone who sucks at yoga
There are many things that I can say that I’ve never done in yoga… a handstand, a headstand, vomiting, etc. One of those things got taken off the list last night. I now have intentionally hit someone while doing yoga. The sentence itself is funny and is so the opposite of what should happen in a yoga class. This is why I love this story so.
The class started off rocky. I got to...
Life goes on
Well, despite the bad start to my day, I kind of rocked everything else. I refuse to continue the rest of this month as a quitter. One way or another, every single workout is going to get done. This is my month where I have the most wiggle room on my diet and cross training and I don’t want it to go to waste.
With that said, I got in an hour and a half workout. I pushed it hard and am...
The Difference Between Me & Normal People
Normal people: If a normal person throws up, he/she sees that as a sign to stop. With that in mind, he/she rests for the rest of the day.
Betsy: I throw up and pop back up to get through the rest of my daily activities. I may move slightly slower, but I refuse to let something so stupid to make me stop.
On a related note, I was wondering if this meant that I could eat more today. I threw up...
4 miles!
I got out this morning and despite the snow and the wind, I got in 4 miles. Was it easy? Hell no. Was this really what I wanted to do this morning? Not even in the least. Was I happy that I did it at the end? So HAPPY!
What did I get out of this morning’s run? First off, I found out that I’m happier in the run/walk pace group. I end up being faster in this group and am going...
Trudging through these rules
What I’ve been discovering with my journey with Health Month is that I’m traveling along with one more rule than I thought I had. That rule is to be able to accept failure and keep moving. I think I’m doing it better than I ever have.
Yesterday, I woke up late and didn’t work out first thing. This is finally convincing me that I have to do something about the alarm...
Digging myself out
First things first… My weigh in today was awesome. I’m at 157, which is a loss of 4.5 lbs. Just a half pound away from being halfway through my goal of losing 10 pounds this month.
I badly needed some positive news. Yesterday, I was just disappointed in myself. As part of my depression, I usually set unrealistically high standards for myself and when I fail to live up to them....
I suck.
Obviously, I want into a bad head space today. Usually, I would hide it. I would re-double my efforts and/or focus positive vibes on others so that I get re-inspired. Today, I admitted it. I put it out there on Facebook group. I put it out there on Twitter. I blogged about it. I put it out into the universe that I do in fact suck today.
I got the expected messages of support, but then I...
Hell Day
Today I weighed in at 158.1 which means that I have lost 3.4 lbs so far this month. Serious progress.
Unfortunately, I’m wiped from everything I fit into yesterday. I can tell you that if it hadn’t been for Health Month, I probably would have just stayed in bed and be sick. Not sure if that might have been better for me.
I got up at 4:30 am. I did my weigh in, knocked out my run...
Back to the Grind of Yoga
I love yoga. I have the greatest teacher every Monday night that is capable of making me stretch myself further and make me laugh while doing it. Plus, I have a fantastic friend that meets for all of these torture sessions.
Tonight was my first night back after a month. That would have been bad enough in and of itself, but I still am suffering from this cold. I couldn’t breathe through...
Day 2 of Health Month
First off, my weigh-in today kept me at 158.5, so no change. More than okay with me. A three pound change yesterday was a shock and not something to be expected everyday.
Secondly, I’ve been trying to figure out how to make this Health Month blogging less boring to everyone. So instead of going through every rule and telling you how I did on them, I’m going to focus on the 2-3...
Ankle & Cold Update
My ankle seems to be at about 90%. I’m hoping that means that it won’t bother me on my first training run of the year tomorrow morning. A lot of people have been begging me to stay off of it, but it was really just a mild injury and I think working through it is the best option. Especially since I am having no problems walking anymore.
My cold, on the other hand, is making me...
Holy Expensive, Batman
I went to the grocery FINALLY, because, you know, it would have totally made to much sense to have gone BEFORE I started this whole eating healthy thing. I grabbed a bunch of stuff to make a black bean chili and a good-for-you nacho recipe. Seriously, the amount of money I spent was just under how much I would spend on a whole month’s worth of groceries rather than just one trip. I might...
Whoa...
Here’s where I admit that I weigh myself every day. Some people are very much against this, but it has always been the key to me losing weight in the past. I’m a numbers person and I love to obsess over them.
With that in mind, I was shocked at what happened when I got on the scale today. Yesterday, my Wii told me that I weighed 161.5. Today, it said 158.5. What?! That’s a...
Anybody else making January a Health Month?
I kept thinking and rethinking the rules I was going to pick for Health Month and I’m sitting here right now not completely convinced I chose the right ones. Well, I’m committed now to them, so it’s time to work them.
My rules live here, and here’s a little bit of an explanation of why I chose them:
1. Take a multivitamin everyday: I suck at this. Being a vegetarian...
And so it begins...
Today was my first race of 2011. I chose a 5k race called the First on the First up in Westerville, OH. My running group had said that we didn’t have to do it but that they highly encouraged us to do it, since there was not going to be a formal workout today.
I woke up and made scrambled egg whites with feta cheese and toast. It’s my go-to breakfast and always makes me happy. My...
December 2010
36 posts
All Ready for 2011
A few last minute errands and I’m ready to rock 2011. I picked up my race packet for the first race of the year. I then picked up a wrap for my ankle for that race. Plus I picked up multivitamins, Larabars, a nail polish called “It’s Possible” and a Vogue (it can’t all be about fitness all the time, after all).
So yeah 2011, bring it.
Oh and 2010, I can’t...
Ankle Update
Resting and keeping ankle elevated is actually working. I can put loads more weight on my ankle and I’m only walking around with a mild limp. Here’s to not having to limp across the finish line!
Yoga!
I just signed up for my 11 class pass at Yoga on High tonight. That means that I’m back with crazy, sarcastic yoga teacher every Monday night starting January 3rd. I’m excited and a little bit nauseous.
Goal for this weekend's race
My best 5k time thus far has been 36:06. Goal for this next race is to break into the 35s. Another reason why the ankle has to get better now.
Just so you know...
Having to lay on the couch with my foot elevated is really boring. I feel like such a slacker.
And then there was Tuesday...
Because my foot had been hurting, I decided to move my run to the evening. I got home and got into all of my new gear, excited that this could at last be the run I was looking for. And it was, sort of.
On Slip #1, I felt a twinge of pain in my left ankle. But it didn’t affect my running, so I kept going. Slip #2 and I was still okay. Slip #3, where I almost wiped out, freaked me out...
Monday Night
I haven’t really talked about this much on here, but I’ve been having major shoe problems. My left foot has been in a lot of pain because of there being something wrong with my shoe. I’ve been running through it, hoping that I just needed to break in the shoes. On Monday, after limping home from my run, I finally gave in to the fact that I needed to do something about it.
I...
Inappropriate Christmas Discussions
Mike, the Boyfriend, subscribes to Muscle & Fitness. If you’re not familiar with this publication, its focus is on greased-up and overly muscular guys. On Christmas, I looked at the cover of the one that he had splayed on the bed and said that if his goal was to look like the guy on the over that I would have to find a new boyfriend.
Somehow that comment led to all kinds of oddness....
Merry Christmas, um, late.
Yesterday, I made the ultimate commitment and got up early to run with the running group on Christmas morning. Of course, it’s a little easier to do things like this because we don’t have any kids in the house, but it was still hard to get up.
I got there and it was a small group (about 20 out of the 600 in the group). I immediately had a present thrown at me, which is where...
