Jill: Summer of Suck

I had plans this summer.  Big plans.  Like training for a 10K and losing some more baby weight.  This is essentially how it has gone:

I'd like to give a specific shout out to the following factors that have helped contribute to the summer of suck:

Ridiculous Heat Waves

Recurring Calf Injury

Baby-Induced Sleep Deprivation

Still Scattered Post Partum & Breastfeeding Hormones

Motivation That Waxes and Wanes with the Moon

A YMCA Child Care Schedule that is Completely Opposite of my Children's Naps

Take that 110 degree temperatures

Steph: The Summer of Skinny Scares Me!!!

So, I am going to miss my pregnant/breast feeding buddy Jill who would eat all of the dessert except for the 2-3 bites that I snuck because she needs all the calories for her baby.  She has declared this "The Summer of Skinny" and is determined to loose all of her baby weight.

In my head that means no more of this:

And a lot more of these:

And ... we have increased our workouts/runs to 5 days a week instead of 3.  My doctor is going to love JILL!!!  Me, on the other hand, we will see?????

Steph: I am the Slug

I have been struggling for the last 3 weeks with my running and I thought it was about time that I admitted it to myself and the entire world.

I have continued to hate running throughout this process.  That never changed.  But I could feel progress.  I was seeing my waist shrink.  I went down a dress/pant size.  I went from XL shirts to L shirts.  I was less out of breath when doing chores around the house.  I could walk around my neighborhood downtown with ease.  I was able to run a little more each week.  Don't get me wrong .... I still HATED running ... but I was LOVING what it was doing for me!

Then the plateau hit.  And it hit hard.  About 2 months ago, I stopped losing weight.  No more inches went missing, I stayed in the same size.  It was discouraging.  I felt robbed that I was doing the same things and nothing was happening.  I talked with my husband, my running buddy Jill, and even my doctor.  They all had the same advice.  Up the exercise.  Then I got mad.  No one told me when I started this that I would have to work out 5-7 days a week to continue the progress.  I was just getting used to the 3 days a week adjustment from the 0 days a week. 

But I tried to do it.  I added in an extra workout a week (up to 4) and when possible got in a 5th.  But it was hard.  I don't know how people do it while working.  There are days that I just do NOT have the time to get in that 5th, 6th, and 7th workout.  There are days after teaching when I can not possibly imagine doing anything at all besides dinner and bed.  It is just plain hard.  But I was still plugging along.  Hating it all the way.  But doing it just the same.

Then 3 weeks ago all HELL broke out in my body.  I feel like I am at war with myself.  My mind says ... you MUST get in at LEAST your 3 days of running a week.  My body and soul is saying ... you need to run NONE at all.  And my husband ... who has been so amazingly supportive since the 2nd week of this process ... has been getting frustrated with me.  Like it is something that I am purposefully doing.  I am not.  I wish that I still had that "go get um" attitude that I had for the first 5 months.  But I don't.  It is gone.

I have kept running these last 3 weeks mainly due to the persistence of my husband.  But they have been crappy runs ... slow runs ... short runs .... runs that make me feel like the first time that I ran for 3 straight minutes back in November.  A run that makes me feel like a slug that is trying to be a tortoise.  It makes each time that I am getting ready to run again even harder.  My brain feels completely defeated and I am currently only going through the running motions for Mike.  Not for myself like I was for the first 5 months. 

I don't know what I need to break through this mental block.  But it feels physical too.  Like every step weighs 500 pounds.  I am floundering in this sea of running.  I need to find my way.  In 3 weeks school gets out.  I will try to re-motivate then.  But for now, motivation seems like something so far out of reach that I will never get to it.

Steph: Jill has reached new levels ...

Apparently I am in need of some tough love right now ...

Jill decided that I have NO choice but to up my running to 2 straight miles starting next week...

She said that I am holding onto that walk in between miles like a security blanket ...

Tough ...

But much needed kick in the a** ...

Thanks Jill ... :)

Steph: Running still SUCKS! But I feel better after!

Monday was one of the hardest runs I have had in a while. I decided to do 3 -1/2 mile runs for a fourth time because my body was still not adjusting and I found them so freaking hard. Well, my body didn't like that. I have learned to listen to what my body is telling me from my running buddy Jill and my body was saying  "Hey stupid. I don't like stopping and starting so many times anymore. I feel better after I am allowed to warm up and then just keep going."

So Thursday, I listened to my body, and Mike and I decided to try the 2 - 3/4 mile segments. And I did it ... and again I didn't die (to my amazement). And I actually felt better while running. Mike and I had to count to 19 and 1/2 laps on our Hamster wheel at the downtown YMCA. We laughed a lot as we both lost track at different times. The longer I have to run, the harder it is to keep counting. Apparently, the two don't go together very well. Amazingly, I even felt pretty good about running afterward.

So this morning, Jill and I head to Mt. Airy forest to do the 2 - 3/4 mile segments for the second time. OK, I can do this again. I did it with Mike 2 days ago, right??? Well no such luck. Mt. Airy forest has hills. I can honestly say I hate f***ing hills. Like a lot. I even had to stop once to walk the rest of the way up a hill and then resume running. They are crazy harder than my little hamster wheel at the YMCA.

But I finished. And shortly after finishing I felt pretty good about having accomplished the run (even though I felt like I was going to die during the run!!). And Jill, she is still a little better of a running buddy than my husband (you are doing great honey!) because she talks to me non-stop about stupid things or funny things or things I can't even remember once we are done. This is SUPER helpful to keeping my mind off of the dreadful, painful, snot filled, tears running, outdoor running we are doing.

So thank you Jill ... I don't think that I could continue to do this without you!

P.S. All you run club BETCHES!!! I am challenging you to a wager added to our Cheviot Run/Crawl. Anyone who can't run the entire 3 miles has to buy the rest of us a round of drinks! Any takers ?????

Steph: I have been grounded!!!

I have spent the last 3 days in and out of Dr. offices and hospitals in an attempt to get an out of control blood pressure in order. One that I didn't even really know was that bad until a routine check-up Monday night.

The worst part of the whole experience : my doctor put a STOP to all running activities until the blood pressure is regulated. Hopefully, that is just until Monday when I have my follow up visit to see how the current medication is reacting in my body. She didn't even want me walking, but I convinced her to let me walk for 3 miles at least 3 times by Monday so I didn't lose my forward momentum (which was already at a crawling pace!). She agreed as long as I don't speed walk and I don't walk fast enough to sweat. Now we are talking the kind of excercise that I really enjoy. Leisurely walks in the park that don't actually feel like excercise. Well, at least until Monday that is.

So, I have been grounded. Hopefully, I am given a green light on Monday. We will see :)

Jill: Wind and Whine

Today's run at the school track was good for several reasons.

1. I got to run with True and Abby who have been kicking butt together since this club started.

2. I got to push my pace which I needed. I always work harder when I'm running with others than alone.

3. I found last minute child care so no stroller to push. Yay!

However, I am going to whine about one thing. It was windy. The entire run felt like this:

Steph: This is why we run with club members

Okay, so Monday Jill and I jog/walked on a track for my second experience, not bad ... I can still do this!

Right, well today, I walked/jogged around downtown with Mike. NOT so sure I can do this anymore. He either worked me harder than Jill without my knowledge, or I am in less shape than when I started?????

Our deal: you run the timer, I set the pace. But I am not sure that actually happened. He may have set the pace too. By the fourth time he said jog, I felt like DYING. Was it the hills involved? Was it the city streets? Was it the fact that Mike doesn't keep talking to me like Jill so I was more aware of the running? I don't know, but I don't feel as confident anymore.

We finished. I did it, but I feel like SHIT!!! But, I am still going. I am not giving up. I will meet Jill at 9:30 Saturday morning.

P.S. good news ... my jiggly, wiggly butt fat didn't hurt as bad while running tonight :)

Steph: Whine, whine, and more whine

So I ventured out for my first walk/jog this morning with Jill. I made sure to whine a lot while "jogging" because I wanted to make sure to follow the rules of belonging to the club. We also talked a lot while walking (not as much while running because I was just trying to BREATH!), but I forgot to talk about my favorite subject ... CHEESE! The cheese topics I had planned, but forgot about when the pain took over (which was pretty much immediately thanks to this wiggly, jiggly fat that I have on the outside edges of my butt which feels like it is litterally slapping me every time I jog) are ... we are back to the cheese topics of course ... this new cream cheese and orange marmalade dip that you eat with crackers, a brie and spicy apricot appetizer that is absolutely delicious with apples, and of course this amazing aged gouda that I go to Findlay to "try" for the first time every single Sunday.

But anyway, back to the jog. So the first jog session of 60 seconds did not feel bad. By the fifth time that Jill told me "let's jog a little" I was struggling to breath correctly, numb in in the buttocks where my own fat had slapped me until I couldn't feel that region anymore, and I was completely aware of my calf muscles (which Jill had to name for me) and how they were on fire and going to explode at any given moment.

But at the end, I can say that we walk/jogged 1.9 miles and I made it. I didn't die. I didn't have a heart attack. I didn't pass out. It makes me wonder (for the first time ever in my life), can I actually run a 5K in 4 months time ... I don't know, but it is worth a try. Plus, Mike promised me an iPad if I did it.... which I can't tell if it is his way of motivating me or if he doesn't think it is ever going to happen so he is safe. Either way ... a motivation for sure.

First time done ... only about a million more torture "sessions" with Jill to go. She has promised me a thrilling evening run at a high school track next week. WOW that sounds fun! or not!

Jill: Morning Whine

I am not a morning person. Never have been and never will be despite choosing a profession (teaching) that requires early rising. Now that I'm living with a 2-year old and a 2-month old, it's an amazing feat to sleep past 8. So let's just say that getting up in the morning to do a run isn't exactly my idea of fun. Not even close. It's even more difficult to get out of the house on time in the mornings, so I'm not sure why on earth I would meet Steph for a run at 10 a.m. Truth be told, despite Steph being the self-proclaimed problem child of the group, I was very, very, very close to begging off because it was just waaaaay too difficult to get all of the following done before 10:

1. Had to clean up infant puke off of myself, the infant, the chair, and the carpet

2. Had to chase down Miracle Kitty to shove heart medications down his throat and apply allergy goo to his head. This required moving the baby's crib since this is where kitty has decided to hide from me.

3. Needed to feed the baby (again) which is time-consuming because I'm nursing

4. Had to pump off the extra milk in order to run without pain and without looking like I'm groping myself.

5. Somewhere in between all of this I had to scarf down a few pancakes (quick shout out to my hubby for cooking breakfast!). I think I ate them standing up.

Somehow I managed to get dressed, brush my teeth and hair, and only need an extra half an hour. Thanks to Steph for being flexible, but I think I may be rethinking the sensibility of Saturday morning runs.

SG: Since when do I pee my pants?

Well I set out with True this evening for my first post-baby run, it was about as I expected, no fun. This new body I have (4 months post-baby) just doesn't move as it used to. The larger problem with this new body isn't what is happening on the outside but more so on the inside. Like, no one told me I would feel as though I was about to wet my pant as I began this running journey. I know poppin a child out of a very small body part really takes it toll on you, but really can't I ever hold my pee again???!!?!?!?! Don't worry, I made it, for those that were concerned, but only with a few seconds to spare. Next time I will take precaution and be sure to 'empty' before I start my next run. Jill, I'll be thinking about those Keagles....who knew that would be such a large topic for the start of this running group?!

SG: Let the whining begin!

True and I are meeting for our first run tonight! Wish us luck! I'll be back later to whine :)

Jill: And so it begins...

Using the Couch to 5k training plan as a guide, I headed out Sunday for my first major exercise session since delivering my 2nd child. I did 25 minutes of walk/run intervals for a total of 1.5 miles around the local middle school track.

Here are the high/low-lights:

Body parts that sucked majorly included milk-filled boobs, saddlebag fat pockets, and the muscles that control bladder release. I hate Kegels. Body parts that didn't suck (much to my surprise) included lungs, legs, and the weird jelly-like baby belly.

The next day my quads were sore but not much else which was nice but also tells me that I probably took it a little too easy. When in doubt, too easy is the way to go.