January 7-13

Today's weight: 177.0.

Workouts:
Monday: 3.5 miles on the elliptical
Tuesday: 2.5 miles on the elliptical
Wednesday: Off
Thursday: Ran 3.1 miles
Friday: Ran 2 miles
Saturday and Sunday: Off

Food:
The pace of my job has picked up tenfold. I haven't been eating lunches regularly, and often wolf something down after work, before the gym. No good. Tonight I bought some fruit and vegetables (mostly for juicing) and some yogurt and granola bars for work. If I can't take lunch, I can at least something healthy.

Overall:
I felt a little down at the start of the year. Getting another cold didn't help. The gym being closed most days before January 4 didn't help, either.

But, I'm feeling better. Got four easy workouts in last week. Fitness classes at my gym started up again this week, and they've added a new spin class. I'm looking forward to working out again. And feeling proud that I managed to run a 5K without stopping. That's probably the first time I've done that in a while. I have a month and a half to get up to five miles, but I think it will be fine.

In other healthy news, I went to the doctor today to get a flu shot and bloodwork done, since I've low iron even before I gave up meat, and I've had a pretty poor diet for the last year. Now it's off to the dentist, and then to finally relax at my best friend's house. Feeling OK. Feeling like I'm taking care of myself.

Goals:

• Make smoothies or juices this week to use up the fruits and veggies I bought. I've given up trying to cook for now -- my job and my other plans are too time-consuming and I'm too dumb to figure it out for real. So, juicing it is -- for now.
• Keep flossing (finally). 
• Go to back-to-back strength training and spin classes this week.

 I think this is going to be a good year.

Move/make: Hiatus

Ongoing illness means I haven't been working out much these last weeks, and won't be able to work out for at least another week.

I'm not going to sweat it too much (for once). My birthday is coming up soon, and I want to enjoy the things I have accomplished. I know when I'm able, I'll work out. But right now, I physically cannot.

When I can (and when my new running shoes have arrived in the mail), I want to:

• Keep running, but make sure it's always enjoyable. I was training for a 10K that would have been this last week, but sickness kept me out of it. I was starting to get burned out, too -- feeling the pressure to meet a deadline my body was probably not ready for anyway. The next 10K is in October, so I have a couple of months to go at a more sustainable pace.
• Because I don't have to push distance running so hard, I want to mix in interval training and hill work, to help my speed and coordination when I run. 
• Do upper-body work. I was good at this last fall, but let it go to focus only on running. I know I've started to plateau anyway, and strengthening my upper body is imperative if I'm going to run a mud 5K next summer.

I'm using this down time to check in with myself, and make sure that working out doesn't lose the enjoyment it has always had.

I'm also finally cooking for myself.

Think/act: Little things

I'm well into my third week of job training. The days are 9- to 10- hours long, with short lunch breaks. I'm tired. I'm behind on the rest of my life. I'm worried about what my future holds. I've only had a day off here and there.

Tonight, I finally went grocery shopping after more than two weeks without any decent food in the house. I was going to go for a bike ride after, but decided to take the night off. I had a productive day -- I managed to get a lot of things done on top of my 10 hours of training -- so I thought I'd finally relax. I don't think I've done that since April, literally.

I made a veggie "chicken" sandwich with spinach and tomato on top, and ate it with sweet tea and salted caramel gelato (so good). I watched two episodes of Treme. Now, I'm listening to Centro-matic's last album while cleaning up.

If there's one good thing that's come out of this frustrating job, it's that I appreciate these kinds of things in a way I probably haven't in a while. A decent meal, an excellent TV show, and an amazing album.
 

 

The opening of Treme. If you've watched The Wire, the style will look familiar. One of the best new shows I've seen. It manages to be frustrating and heartbreaking and exuberant, all at once.

Move/make: Week 6

Today's weight: 176.4 pounds.

Workouts:
Monday: Bike 5 miles, walk 1.5 hours
Tuesday: Bike 3 miles, walk 1 hour
Wednesday: Bike 26 miles
Thursday: Off
Friday: Bike 12 miles
Saturday: Off
Sunday: Off

Thoughts on food:
I only went out to eat twice, which is one more time than my goal, but still better than before. My eating habits have been better overall, minus a junk-food binge yesterday that ended with food poisoning. Needless to say, I am cured of my junk-food cravings for now. I can't even think about food.

Overall reflections:
My foot is still numb. I got sick of staying off of it, and went for a couple of long walks at the beginning of the week. I plan on staying off of it until my doctor's appointment this coming Friday, though, since I really need it to get better before I don't have insurance. My summer job also requires me to be on my feet a lot. Hooray.

My long bike ride on Wednesday was incredible; I'm looking forward to more of those as soon as I'm feeling better. Reading Born to Run hasn't been helping my running restlessness, though. I see people running while out on my bike, and I get a pang. I've even been dreaming about running. I know it's already doing a number on my joints and foot, but I still miss the way it feels. I'm so desperate to fix my foot, I've been considering these abominations. These shoes bum me out whenever I see them on someone, but if they work, who knows?

Goals:
I ended up using my car quite a bit last week, because it rained off and on almost every day. I did get a long bike ride in, like I wanted to.

For this week, I just need to survive finals. My goals are to eat healthy, get a lot of rest, and go on at least a couple of shorter rides. But my focus now is writing papers, grading papers, and graduating (!).

Move/make: Week 4

Weight (as of Wednesday evening): 184.0.

Workouts:
Monday: Off day
Tuesday: Off day
Wednesday: Walk 2 miles
Thursday: Walk 2.5 miles, run 35 minutes
Friday: Run 50 minutes
Saturday: Off day
Sunday: Off day

Thoughts on food:
Things still haven't been great. I went to a two-day conference that had excellent, if not rich, food. I ate way too much of it. My eating habits at home have been pretty shoddy -- case in point: tonight I had Diet Coke and gummy candy for dinner. I feel miserable. I'm bloated.

Overall reflections:
I normally weigh-in on Sunday mornings. I have to admit, this number was disheartening. I thought about not writing at all, but I want to be honest with myself. I've been tired. I pinched a nerve in my foot, so I've been trying not to run on it, but I've also been unmotivated to go to the gym and do low-impact workouts in the mean time. Seeing my weight and the few workouts I managed to do makes me realize that I felt so much better when I first started this blog, and was working out nearly every day.

I had a great, relaxing time at the conference I attended last week, which helped pick up my spirits. But I also barely finished everything I needed to, and as a result, my workouts and eating were not the best. I did get great feedback at both my conference and my teaching observation. I also got great reviews from the students I tutor. So, at least professionally, things have been going well. I had someone important me hurt me in a pretty serious way last weekend, though, which also threw me for a loop. I'm still recovering.

Goals:
Now that I'm more caught up with grading and work, I want to get back on track. Like last week, I don't feel well, physically or mentally. I've also learned I'm bad at following through with vague goals, so here are some specific ones for what remains of this week:

- Go to the gym or for a bike ride Thursday and Friday
- Go for a long bike ride with a friend Saturday
- Go for a run with a friend on Sunday
- Have a protein shake and/or vegetarian sandwich each day for at least one meal, if not two

I'm also training for a 10K this May, so I need to see a doctor about my foot either Thursday or Friday.

We'll see how I do come Sunday. This time of the semester is always insane -- even more so because I'm graduating. But I have to take care of myself, especially considering how poorly I've been feeling lately.

I have to remember how good it feels to work out and eat well. I was feeling wonderful when I started the blog. I know there will be good and bad weeks. I know I have to move forward, to let go of the things that exhausted me last week and this week.

Move/make: Week 3

As of Sunday, I was at 174 pounds.

Workouts:
Monday: Ran 23 minutes
Tuesday: Off
Wednesday: Off
Thursday: Off
Friday: Ran 45 minutes
Saturday: Ran 45 minutes
Sunday: Off

Thoughts on food:
I was sick for the better part of last week, which made my diet and workouts pretty lackluster. Between not feeling well and a crazy week at work, everything went by in a blur. I went out to eat a couple of times, and ate my first holiday family meal as a vegetarian. My best friend came to visit with her son, and I managed to eat a healthy dinner out with them. Not my best week, food-wise, but not my worst, either.

Overall reflections:
My goals from last week didn't happen, thanks to my cold. I think I needed some days off, though. I was able to run 45 minutes without feeling winded or sore TWO days in a row. It felt amazing. I think I actually smiled through part of my run. I'm sure I looked like a fool, but I just felt so good.

Goals:
Survive this week. I'm giving a paper at a conference, substitute teaching, having my own teaching observed, grading two rounds of assignments, and doing all-day training for a new job.

So far, I haven't worked out at all this week. I tried to run yesterday (Monday), but my running tights were falling down and I felt all-around miserable. My allergies have been terrible, and I've been sleep-deprived, malnourished and cranky. I'll be happy to survive. I always told myself I wouldn't run if it made me angry -- running is my escape, the thing that makes me feel calm. I'm looking forward to my first run of the week on Thursday, when I return from the conference.

This weekend and next week, I want to get back to healthy eating, biking and working out. I feel terrible, not only because of allergies, but also because of a lack of healthy, fresh food.

Move/make: Week 2

Today I'm at 177.6 pounds, so maybe last week wasn't so far off.

Workouts:
Monday: Ran 37 minutes
Tuesday: Biked six miles
Wednesday: Biked three miles, ran 27 minutes
Thursday: Walked one hour, biked 4.5 miles
Friday: Ran 20 minutes
Saturday: Ran a 5K in just under 35 minutes, about two minutes under my previous time
Sunday: Recovery day

Thoughts on food:
Except for a few snacks at school, I stuck with my goal of not going out to eat unless it was with someone. Though I went out for dinner four times this week, I was lucky enough to share food with some wonderful people, and I wouldn't trade that for anything -- especially since I don't get to see many of those friends as often as I'd like.

I've been getting better at not eating junk, though my long days with no lunch breaks are making it hard to avoid the vending machines on campus. I bought some healthier snacks that I can carry in my bag and eat in the short breaks I do get between teaching and tutoring. I feel better and happier when I have something decent to eat.

Overall reflections:
I tapered my runs this week so that I wouldn't be worn out for the race on Saturday. I've been very sore this week, but I feel good about the race on Saturday. I noticed I'm able to run faster than before, and I beat my old time by two minutes. I ran with one of my very good friends, and we've got plans to work up to a 10K over the summer.

I've continued to have more energy and have been feeling much happier overall. The end-of-semester crunch is happening -- and is doubly stressful because of the job hunt I also need to start. I want to make sure I continue running and biking, at the very least, because it keeps me calm.

As for my goals from last week, I ran a full 5K distance before my original goal of Thursday. I didn't do much cooking for myself, and I didn't make it to the gym.

Goals:
This week, I'd like to actually make it to the gym at least once, and work on weight-training. I also want to ride my bike to campus four days this week.