Still Hanging On

I have been getting more exercise than I was. Not every day. I'm becoming more frequently out of breath, but resting and then continuing on is what I do. I've been using my Christmas Shopping outings as my cardio exercise. And the bags I bring in are my weight training sessions. (Costco helps with this one a whole lot) Cleaning the house has kept me moving.

I think I've been getting heart burn a whole lot. Anyone else get that? I wake up with it and it doesn't go away, EVER.

What did you do when you were pregnant and you had heart burn?
Any foods that helped? Any to stay away from?

And Again.

So, I worked out once a couple of weeks ago.

Last week, I worked out twice. It's an improvement.

This week, the GOAL: to work out three times. This might be a challenge because of Thanksgiving and the family activities, but I can do it.

I can do it. I can do it. I can do it.

I DID IT!

I exercised today! It felt wonderful. I worked my legs and arms. Basically everything around the mid-section. I feel good.

I WILL do it again tomorrow.

You know your body hates you when. . .

...you start dreaming about running and you have Bob and Jillian there screaming at you the whole way up the hill.

Where Do I find. . . .????

Does anyone know where to find a belly support? I don't know where to get one. I can't walk (or even think about jogging) without one.

HELP.

I thought I was supposed to be Constipated!

So, I'm not. I thought I was supposed to be when pregnant. Especially nearing the third trimester.

Does anyone know any foods that plug up this problem? I just don't feel like taking any medications.


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I'm trying to get motivated. Two years ago I got myself off my fat ass and lost all the weight I have currently put back on. (ya ya I know, I'm supposed to. blah blah blah) I'm just not able to motivate myself to get out of the house to go walking or do yoga, or swimming, or anything else that would be healthy for baby.

I had a goal to be that pregnant woman who ran past me in the 5K Freedom Run in 2008. I have NOT kept up my running and can probably not just begin now.

What motivated you to get out while you were pregnant? What motivates you even if you're not?

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Sorry. My ranting is over. Frustration with my lack of excitement is just getting to me.

Sickness Lurking Around

It is officially what my body has to deal with. I have to be sick while pregnant. I have now had the flu TWICE, a head cold TWICE (this always follows the flu), AND I received the Flu Shot this year. I just don't get it.

This is my first pregnancy and I just can't help but be nervous about the sickness. I don't want baby to be sick if I'm sick. Is the baby sick when I'm sick? I don't want the medication to affect the baby. (I don't like to take medication very often anyway) I would go a week with a headache, just to let my body try to fix it itself. (I did do this once) I'm nervous about a healthy baby. My hubby just says that children are resilient and our baby will be just fine.

I hope so.

Dear Body,

Okay, I know that I have been lax on my discipline with you. You have gotten what you wanted to eat when you want it, and you have slept when you wanted. I know that there is a tiny little parasite growing inside, but it will be gone sooner than you think. I know you are uncomfortable, you are ALWAYS running to the bathroom, REALLY hungry most of the time, BUT that doesn't mean you need to lash out when I do try to get you doing healthy things.

Eating nutrient rich foods is good for you.

Exercise is good for you and can make the excretion of the parasite easier.

Please let me do these two things for you. Please give me back the use of the neck. Please let me take care of you. It will help with recovery when the parasite has left.

Loves,
Phannie

It Has Begun Again

The Biggest Loser started again this week. I wasn't so impressed last season with all of the selfish players and backbiting. But this year looks so much more promising.

I cry during this show anyway, but being pregnant and the stories that come along with this seasons players is brutal on my tear ducts. I thought I was going to run out of tears.

Anyway, I'm really excited about this season. I hope you enjoy it as well.

Stupid Flu Shot

I spent the whole day on my back with chills and being soooo tired. All I did was get a flu shot on Wednesday. I guess it's supposed to be a good thing, it will probably help protect me (if they chose the right strain of flu this year). But I sure don't like days that have me feeling crappy.

So, far I feel better today. Back to exercising my body. I should do yoga today. What do you think?

Couch Potato No More

Hi, my name is Phannie. I was a couch potato. This is my first day on my journey to recovery.

I have eaten.
Turned off the TV.
Been cleaning.
Exercised (power 90 cardio intervals).
Reading.
I will study new things.
I will find more joy in life.
There will be good habits formed when the baby comes.

Promise!

NO Motivation

I get up in the morning and want to Run. Half way through the day I want to do p90x. I feel so lazy. I want to eat better. But all I seem to do is quilt and read and watch movies. These things are all things that I enjoy, but I just can't find the motivation to get out on my own and do the things that I love. I know I will do them later when I'm not pregnant, but why can't it be now? I just don't understand myself sometimes.

My Favorite Breakfast

This is my FAVORITE breakfast, especially since I'm pregnant. I love it. What could be better than Hashbrowns, eggs, and turkey bacon? NOTHING.

YUMMMMMM!

I Think I Can. . . I Think I Can. . .

I have become very comfortable inside my little apartment. I eat, sit, crochet, eat, sew, watch a movie, eat, read, sew more, and eat more.

I swear the eating never ends. I am starving ALL the time. But this is not what I was going to focus on.

I Can get out of the house at least once a day. I do not have to have the car to do this.

I Can go walking and work up to jogging. This means at least 30 mins.

I Can be active. Do the things that I want to do. Part of my bucket list is to be that pregnant lady that ran right past me a year ago in the Freedom Run. I don't have to do a marathon, but I want to keep my waddling body moving.

I Can jog in the Turkey Trot this year. I know I Can. . . I know I Can. . .

Out of Wack

Okay, I feel completely out of wack. My body is getting fatter. I want to do things and can't. I want to eat healthy, but my body thinks that food tastes gross. I don't want to force feed myself because I don't want to hate the good food when the pregnancy is over.

It's no secret that the mind/spirit is the real animal we are all trying to understand and tame, but when I'm struggling to control the body as well, I feel like I am riding a roller coaster. One that has gone up, up and is not going down and I can't see the end. Screaming. Lots of Screaming.

Body Changes

I should be excited about the little baby bump that is growing. My hubby tells me that it is cute. He likes it. But when I have spent my whole life fighting to stay a normal size it's really hard to look past the "fatness."



I know in my head that I should get bigger and gain weight because I am pregnant, but that doesn't override the programming that I have spent years developing. I just can't get past the out of control, growing body that I have. I wish that I could.

Thank you

I am so excited. My body is feeling better. I can get around my house without wanting to keel over and throw up. It's a great feeling.

DEAR BODY,

The days are getting better and better. I can eat more, get out more, enjoy activities. It's beautiful. AND it's summer.

HOT FUN IN THE SUMMER TIME!!

Thank you thank you,
Phannie

Swimming

This weekend was wonderful. I got to go swimming. It was wonderful to be able to do a little bit of exercise.

I woke this morning yearning to run. I don't know that I dare though. Oh, but I want to more than anything. I will be able to soon.

I got out

I did it. I got out of the house. Of course, it was for a vacation that was already paid for and I couldn't pass up going to the West Coast Beaches. (I've never been before)


Anyway, I didn't realize that walking on the sand after sitting on my butt for four weeks would be so hard. My calves are soooo tight. In ways I've never felt them tight before. But it was all so worth it. I got out. Got a little bit of exercise through all the walking that we did. It felt so great.

pregnant exercises

I'm feeling a little better this week. I am not going to start running yet. I will start walking again. I'll see how that goes. I need exercise! I am going through withdrawals.

Anyone else been pregnant that NEEDED exercise as much as I do? What things did you do? Were you sick? Did it help keep the nausea down? I need ideas.

Dear Body

I am so glad that you decided to let me get up today. I don't feel as weak and nauseated. Thanks. It's hard. I find myself wishing to just have my life back. Everyone says it will be worth it. I'm not sure anything is worth being sick all the time. Throwing up is never wonderful. But you haven't had me doing that too often.

I just hope this passes soon. Thanks for the better day.

PHannie

Dear Body

I know you are exhausted. Nausea is just not very fun. And not being able to eat much is horrible too. But we have to seriously discuss this. . .

We have a race scheduled in two weeks. Is it realistically possible? We haven't been able to run for a week. We have been spending all our time on the couch. I'm not sure that 36 hours in a moving vehicle is the best idea right now. How do we tell Konni? You know what, I think she will understand. I hope she understands. She better understand.

Body, can you cut me a break just for a bit? It would help me out a lot. I know you're under stress, but couldn't you just be tired? NO nausea. PLEASE. Consider it. I will continue to take care of you even if you don't change.

Feel better,

The Mind

I spend a lot of time talking about my body and the improvements I hope to make. The struggles I have. The aches and pains. The curves. But I haven't spent much time talking about the mind. It is a key element to the SOUL. I thouht I would mention it.

A couple of days ago while running, I kept telling myself that running wasn't a physical sport. It was a mental one. I was going to get my miles/time in. (I don't really keep track while running) But my body has to feel like I got it in. I kept repeating to myself that I could do it. That I had time. That it was easy. Reminding myself that the scene around me is beautiful. (distraction for a tough run) And then I remembered a run I did while in High School.

I was running at night with a friend who was in better shape than I was. She was almost irritated that I couldn't keep up. Anyway, I remember praying in my head that I would be able to make it through the run. And singing "I'll go where you want me to go." I know it's not the same, but at that moment I would have done anything and gone anywhere to just get through the run that was killing me.

I got through it.

Every run I go out on I know that at some point in the run I will have to call upon me, God, or the running buddy I have with me that day to get me through the run. It's different every time, but it works. If you need something extra to pull you through. Use it. There is no shame in pulling from an outer power to accomplish a goal. The added strength is nice.

Run with it.

And it came crashing down. . .

I broke through. The wall has fallen. I ran 5.38 miles! Officially the farthest I have ever ran. It feels great.

The Next Race

Ragnar Relay Wasatch Back
It is coming. I was asked to run in the 188 mile relay from Logan to Park City. I am a little nervous and SO excited. I have never run more than 3.1 miles in a race before. I will be running a total of 13.1 miles in a 24 hour period.

I still have a really had time pushing past the 4.5 mile wall I've got going. My longest leg will be 5.1 miles and it's the first leg.

I WILL DO IT.

I CAN DO IT.

Legs and Back

So, it's Sunday and I still can't get up and down from a seat without moaning from my workout on Friday. I did legs and back. Oh man, it's a killer. Kicks my ass-literally. But I love it. I had just forgotten how hard it was. Can't wait for next Friday.

Yoga X

Sweat! sweat! sweat! It's wonderful. Burning legs. Falling over occasionally. Getting back up. Doing it again. Being able to do more every week. Love it.

The Run Yesterday

WOW! Yesterday was soo HOT. 90 degrees! And I left my run until 630 in the evening with the blazing sun on me. (mostly I just wanted a running buddy and waited for the hubby to get home from work) Anyway, my body was feeling great. I knew this run was to be the longer run of my week so I was prepping myself all day long. Making sure I got extra water, sufficiently nurished, and mentally psyched. I ran slower than I usually do, but I got all my miles in. Wonderful. I felt so good afterwards.

Poach-Roast Salmon with Yogurt and Dill Sauce

This dinner was soooo good. I got the recipe out of The Volumetrics Eating Plan. One can eat a ton of food in 1/2 the Calories the dish would usually have. I love it. I was a little skeptical about the whole yogurt mixed with dill thing, but it's officially my favorite way to cook salmon.

AND my whole meal was under 650 calories!





Salad 68 Calories + dressing 60 Calories = 128 Calories
Salmon 225 Calories + Sauce 15 Calories = 240 Calories
Rice (plain)= 240 Calories

TOTAL = 608 Calories

Maybe 608 Calories sounds like a lot, but with all that food I'm glad it wasn't more like 1500.

p90x again.

My day off from running was Wednesday. On my day off I usually do p90x. I love it. I didn't want to feel lazy so I decided I would give it a go. I used lighter weights than usual, which was hard to do, but good. Now I know which exercises it was good to drop weight for and which I can continue using my normal. I did the whole workout. Slower, but I still did the whole thing.

First Run after Accident

It's been a week since the accident and I was really struggling to not workout. I wanted to give my body the time that it needed to recoupe from the jostling it received, but it was SOO HARD. I was so jealous of people who were out running. But today I joined in. I decided that I would take it easy and just run enough to feel good. Not push my body too hard/far.

I didn't wear a watch.
I didn't measure how far (until afterwards).
I walked when I needed to.
I stopped when it was time.

The run felt good. My body felt really heavy. Kind of like I was beginning to run after months/years of not running. I got through it. I felt good after. My body did tell me to be done before I wanted it to, but I stopped anyway. Walking the rest of the way was a great cool down.

Again

I am going to start again, but slow. I am still a little tight, but it feels mostly like the aches after a good workout.

I promise to listen to my body and stop if I need to.

I promise to ice.

I promise to stretch.

I promise to get massages. (tali?)

I promise to fuel my body sufficiently.

Racing Chips

Mrs. B. asked me what the race chip time was and so I thought I would tell just in case she is not the only one wondering. (I sure didn't know when I started racing, which was not very long ago)

These are mine and my hubby's chips from the Salt Lake Marathon 5K.


They were given to us by the race when we picked up our shirts and numbers. The "goodie bag."

The chip is clipped onto your shoe (so it's close to the ground and the little mat that will read it). And when you cross the mat at the start line the chip begins to count your time. So if you are starting in the back of the pack and it takes you three minutes to get to the start line those three minutes don't count against your time. So you know exactly how fast you were running. The chip stops timing when you cross the finish line.

I love this feature about racing because I can see the large clock ticking from gun time when I cross the finish, but I know that I ran faster than it looks because of my chip time. So I get a pleasant surprise when I look at the postings later at the event or online. Wonderful little invention.

Hiccup in the training program

I am so frustrated.

I was in a car accident on Tuesday evening (on the freeway) and am now "taking it easy". I have been walking around the neighborhoods close to my home, but it just doesn't make me feel any better. I see the people running past me or on the other side of the street and I just yearn to be doing the same. AND I had just started my p90x again. Loving it. Now I will have to wait for a couple of weeks to start up again.

Deep breaths. It's okay.

The Plan has Developed

I did it. I planned out my next three months of workouts.

p90x has begun again. I am doing the lean version this time. We will see how it goes. It focuses on the core, butt/legs, and arms; so, I should do we well. We will see.

I am also going to keep up my running. Because although I love p90x, it doesn't seem to give me the lung capacity that I desire to continue to race. (actually I feel like I'm going to die if I don't do cardio along with the program.

I am completely stoked about this workout plan. I am officially on day two and beyond tired. It will get better. I know it.

I fell victim to THE PIE

This weekend I couldn't help it. My husband was having an end of year social for a school group and they ordered from The Pie. It's soo good. If you haven't had the opportunity to eat there you should. Visit HERE.

I know that pizza isn't very healthy and doesn't fit into my dietary needs, but I know that it definitely fit into my emotional piggy bank. MMMMMhmmmmmmm. It was worth it and the run tomorrow will be worth it too.

THE Run!

I did it! I ran 23 blocks. I didn't think I could do it, but I did. And then I came home and found out that it wasn't as far as I thought and I shouldn't doubt myself. It was only 3.79 miles. Not too bad.

It was such a hot day, but I love it. Hope ya'll fun in it today.

This Weeks Fitness Endeavors

I have had to remind myself multiple times this week that hard labor out in the yard is exercise. I know my arms and legs feel it.

GOAL: Next week plan well enough to include normal workouts to keep up my endurance.

The Weekend Temptations

It's always hard after a weekend at Mom's house. Huge dinner. Three desserts (at least). Bring leftovers home. Not the healthy things in my cupboard.

I love visiting family, playing games, and enjoying meals together. However, I haven't been able to figure out how to get all the healthy choices into my body from someone elses kitchen.

Instead of trying to shove more vegi's into my moms home, I just plan on a hard workout for the next week. Usually the hardest on Monday. It tends to keep me close to the weight that I want, but it leaves me craving lucious chocolate/sweets all week long. Oh the pain.

I have been trying to find alternative desserts. Ones that are less fattening and don't leave me feeling stuffed to the brim.

Any ideas? What have you done to help you get over the failures of weekend temptations?

Dear. . .

Dear Body,

I just don't understand. What did I do? Why do I need to be punished. We had scheduled today to start our p90x program again, you love that program, and then you up and pain me all at once. You conspired with Eyes to give me a headache, and Stomach to make me feel like hurling. The Intestines are angry too, they are making me run to the bathroom every 30 mins!

What can I do to make everything better. If I offended you, I'm sorry. If I injured you, I will take care of you until it's all healed. If I have been neglecting you, I'm sorry and am planning on paying more attention starting today.

I guess for now I will have to just give you some time off, watch a movie, read a book, get some craftiness in and eat some good food.

Please forgive me.

Love,
Phannie

SLC Marathon 5K

This past weekend my hubby and I had the opportunity to run in the SLC Marathon 5K. I have only run in one other long-distance race in my whole life.



I was so excited to actually train for this one (I didn't last time). Not training is a BAD idea. Anyway, This year I entered the athena division. What this means is the "fat" division, anyone over 140 lbs. (although I would give my eye-teeth to weigh that, this division does exist)


Waiting for the race to begin.


My standings:

chip time 29:35
chip pace 9:31
Athena division 7/110 (look, top 10)
Female overall 242/1522
Overall placing 666/2388




I began running last year because in January of 2008 I had reached the dreaded 200 lbs mark. I had to do something and running was part of my attack. It's now an addiction.

What it's all about

I intend to describe my journey through life fighting the beastly plague that haunts my family, OBESITY.

My fight will involve many different kinds of outdoor activities that I regularly engage in and many that will be brand new to me. I would like to share this experience with you and hope that we can give each other tips and lots of stories.