NaBloPoMo Day 2: This and That

It's only day 2 of nablopomo and I already don't want to blog, but that has more to do with having a frustrating day and just wanting to come home and relax. I still need to post my report from Sunday's race (here's a sneak peek) and my October recap, but I'm not in the mood to blog about either of those right now. So you get a random bullet list post instead :)

• Running a race on Halloween is so much fun. Everyone was in costume and I can't wait to see the official race photos. In the meantime, check out the photos.

• I'm still very sore from Sunday's half marathon (my quads hurt as if bruised when I touch them), which is rather unusual for me, and I didn't even run that fast. I guess that's what happens when you don't run for 2 weeks and then attempt to run 13.1 miles. Needless to say, I've not exercised since except for walking to the bus stop. I really need to get back into a workout routine before I slip further into this funk.

• I'm focusing on eating healthier this month because I ate way too much crap (read candy) in October, so I will try to eat only real food in November. 
• I didn't get off to a great start having to eat out for lunch and dinner yesterday, but I'm proud of the choices I made. 
• I improvised today and made some quinoa in the microwave at work, then warmed up some canned black beans and frozen corn and mixed them together with some curry powder, salt, and pepper. It turned out delicious! 
• We had aloo matar for dinner and homemade honey cinnamon ice cream for dessert. Yum!

• Jason and I will be participating in Urban Dare Orlando this Saturday. We figured out our team costume last night, and I can't wait! It should go a lot better this time now that we are more familiar with Downtown Orlando and I'm in better shape.

MBE: Miss While Training

Monday Brain Exchange (MBE) is sponsored by Jill, who blogs at Finishing Is Winning.

Question: What do you miss most when you are in the heat of training or gearing up for a race? Do you skip late nights out? Do you give up goodies and alcohol? What is the first thing you crave when training is over?

What I usually miss the most is staying up late Friday nights or sleeping in Saturday mornings. However, my body has adjusted and I rarely wake up past 8 am even on days when I try to sleep late. I try to eat healthy all the time, so I don't have to make a huge adjustment when I'm in the heat of training. I do go through waves when I seem to indulge in a lot of candy, but I find that the more active I am the less I crave sweets. I gave up alcohol when I started eating healthier to lose weight, and rarely crave it anymore. I drink the occasional frozen mudslide, usually when I'm celebrating, but I like it for the taste more than the alcohol in it. I have a weakness for milkshakes, so I'll usually crave and will indulge in one after a race.

Ask Me Anything! for NaBloPoMo

I'm not going to try to write a novel for NaNoWriMo this year. I want to focus on running consistently again and reestablishing a balanced workout routine now that I am healed. I've been slacking on the healthy eating (read eating lots of halloween candy and comfort foods while sick), so I will make it a priority to eat real food and avoid sugar/fried foods to keep my weight from creeping up too much.

I'm going to participate in NaBloPoMo - National Blog Posting Month instead. I'll blog every day in November to breath some life into this blog. They provide daily prompts I can use if I want, so that will help when I get stuck, and I have a chance to win prizes! I don't want to go off topic too much just to blog daily, so I'll only use prompts that fit the "lifestyle chance" theme of this blog or I may add them at the bottom of a regular post and you can feel free to comment with your answers too. 

Ask Me Anything!

I've blogged for 30 days before, and it wasn't too bad, so I know I can do it again. A little help wouldn't hurt, so that's where you come in. I'm taking a page from many other bloggers I follow that have been struggling with inspiration for content too. This is your chance to get to know me and ask me anything you want (within reason). Just comment with your questions and I'll answer them in upcoming posts. You can ask me something specific about my lifestyle change, running, healthy eating, green living, bike commuting, life without a car, or life in general; or you can just give me a general topic you'd like me to write about. So ask away! 

Today's nablopomo prompt: "What toy from your childhood do you still have in your possession?" The answer should be obvious: LEGOS! :) I still have one of the original lego buckets I had as a child, including many of the instructions. I've grown my collection as an adult, because they are still my favorite toy. You can see some of my lego creations on flickr. 

Three Things Thursday: Health, Running, Weekend

1) Health: I'm feeling much better. I still have residual tooth ache, but nothing a little ibuprofen can't handle. The runny nose is non-existant. I cough every so often, but it's not chronic and mostly a dry cough. I'm certainly on the mend. Yay! :)

2) Running: I still have not run since the 12 miles on 10/16, and I'll be running a half marathon in 3 days. Surprisingly, I'm not anxious at all about the race. I know I've trained enough to finish without injury. I also know I have not trained enough to PR, and I am prepared for a PW and just have fun, but I'm afraid of a relapse if I run before then. So instead of running after work yesterday, I made excuses why I couldn't -- its too hot, I'm still coughing, my tooth hurts, I need to help make dinner, I think my tummy aches -- LAME! 

The reality is I think I have a mental block. After not running for this long due to illness, I'm almost afraid to try for fear of getting sick again or it sucking. I keep telling myself that nothing I do this week will affect my performance on Sunday, and that it's probably better to rest up and ensure my health is 100% for the race. This sounds like another excuse, but I'll be more upset if I run and then am too sick to even try the race. I'd like to try at least a short run to remind my legs they can still run and prepare myself mentally, but I'm somehow more at peace with just resting until race day.  

3) Weekend Plans: The race is in Miami, so we originally planned to drive down with my parents Saturday morning and returning on Monday. It looks like I have to work on Monday, so we'll likely be driving by ourselves Friday night, then driving back on Sunday shortly after the race. I don't mind coming back early, but I was really looking forward to a massage on Monday. I may just schedule it after work or when we get back into town Sunday. Is it too soon to have a massage the afternoon after a morning race?

The State of Kitzzy

It still holds true that my motivation to blog is directly related to how well my running is going. I guess I like blogging about my accomplishments instead of dwelling on the negatives. So here's a brief summary of what's been happening and what lies ahead, in bullet form because I was even boring myself writing this out =P

• Week 40 (Oct 4-10): 124 miles
• Week 41 (Oct 11-17): 61 miles
• biked to work once
• ran 18 miles over 3 runs, with my last long run of 12 miles on 10/16. 
• began feeling sick on 10/14, but wasn't too bad until Sunday night when I was absolutely miserable
• Week 42 (Oct 18-24): 
• Sick all week with a nasty cold = Zero exercise
• other than walking to the bus stop and dinner occasionally
• Sun, Oct 24: 
• sinus issues and tooth ache
• went to the doctor and got antibiotics
• Mon, Oct 25: 
• went to dentist for a check up and the tooth ache
• 1 small cavity and aching tooth may need root canal :(
• apparently sinus symptoms related to tooth ache 

And that brings us to today. I went back to the dentist this morning for a cleaning, a cavity filling, and to fix the aching tooth. Thankfully I did not need root canal! :) The tooth was cracked under the filling, so he fixed it and put on a temporary crown; I go back for a permanent crown in 3 weeks. I LOVE this dentist at Greenberg Dental. I was there for less than 2 hours, and they truly do cater to cowards. He explained what he was doing every step of the way and put me completely at ease, and he performed the fastest cavity filling I've ever had done in less than 10 minutes.

Coming Up ...

• I still plan to run the Miami Beach Halloween Half Marathon this Sunday, but I have set low expectations due to all the recent setbacks. I'm still going to try my best, but listen to my body and just have fun running in costume. Maybe I'll take it super easy and just take lots of photos of all the other costumes. 
• Monday Brain Exchange is back! I've been looking forward to it's return, and I'm hoping it will help motivate me to blog more, at least once a week :) 
• I'm participating in National Novel Writing Month, so this may mean I blog even less in November as I attempt to write at least 50,000 words in 30 days. I have a vague idea for the plot, well the setting really, so I'm not sure how successful this will be, but the focus is on quantity not quality :) I'll probably just start writing on Monday and see where it leads. 
• I originally planned to participate in National Blog Posting Month, but that may be too much for one month. I may still try, but I'm not going to commit to it. I may just post some excerpts of the novel as I go on here from time to time. 
• Jason and I registered for Urban Dare Orlando at the beginning of the year, but they have since changed the date to 11/6. This works out better because there are all kinds of races I want to do on the weekend of 11/13, but we're trying to get our money back since they changed the date after we registered. 
• I'm toying with the idea of either running the Baldwin Park Half Marathon on 11/13 (and thus become a half fanatic) or do the Founder's Day Distance Dare (10k + 5K). I've not run either race before, so we'll see. There is also the possibility of Beach Palooza on 11/13 or just going out of town for a mini 4-day vacation. Thoughts? 
• I'm very tempted to do the OUC Half Marathon, but I've done it 2 years in a row and the medal never changes and I kinda just want to do new races for the rest of the year. However, the start is one block from my apartment so it's very convenient. I may just volunteer at the finish line and cheer on all my friends who are running it.

124 Miles! (Week 40 Recap)

This was an amazing week. I logged a total of 124 miles, and finally got back into a well-rounded exercise routine. The weather has been amazing, so I've been biking to work a lot. It's still hard to bike every single day, and specially on days when I run, so I've been biking in the mornings and taking the bus home for at least part of the way. This has proved to be a good compromised that lets me enjoy the awesome weather but not destroy my legs so I can still run. I know all the cycling helps my running too, as long as I don't get hurt or over do it.

I ran 5 times this week (twice in one day), for a total of 23 miles, including a 10 mile run! I'm really excited! I also kept up with my push ups, started doing core workouts, and did lots of yoga. I think this is why I've been feeling so strong during my runs and had no pain. The plantar fasciitis is still there, but the discomfort is minimal and very manageable.

Last night I finally figured out what I'll wear for the Miami Beach Halloween Half Marathon in 3 weeks (still need to get a few pieces, but the idea is fully formed in my head), so now I'm really looking forward to that race. I can't even remember the last time I ran a race, so it feels good to be back into the groove.

Week Totals (rounded)

• run - 23 miles (5x)
• walk - 3 miles 
• bike - 98 miles (7x)
• strength/core - 85 push ups - week 2 of challenge + 15 min FitDeck core workout
• yoga - 3+ hours (8x)
• total - 124 miles / 17.5 hours

I know this makes me look like an exercised crazed person, but keep in mind that 80% of these miles were from my work commute. While that is still exercise, the purpose of those is to get from point A to point B, so I don't push the pace if I don't want to.

Workout Summary

See details on Dailymile. 

• Monday 
• ran 2.5 miles; 
• biked 24 miles (work commute)
• 26 push ups
• Tuesday
• biked 31 miles (work commute)
• 23m yoga
• Wednesday 
• ran 6.5 miles in am
• 19m yoga 
• ran 2 miles in pm
• Thursday 
• biked 25 miles (work commute)
• 29 push ups
• 15m core
• 20m yoga
• Friday 
• 18m yoga (on the bus)
• ran 2 miles
• walked 1 mile
• 10m post-run yoga stretches 
• Saturday 
• 1.5 hr yoga (2 sessions)
• biked 17 miles (errands)
• walked 2 miles (sak) 
• 30 push ups
• Sunday
• ran 10 miles
• 19m yoga

Three Things Thursday: Running, Push Ups, Bike Bus

Sunrise during morning run
on Research Parkway

1) I had a great run this morning, which  let me enjoy the cool weather and see the sunrise! I usually do not have time or enough sunlight to run before catching the bus to work, so I got creative :) I took an earlier bus (which meant leaving my apartment just after 6 am), then got off on Alafaya and ran 3 miles to work. Running down Alafaya is not the best, but running into the sunrise on Research Parkway and the nice morning breeze was well worth it. It was good enough to make me run a little faster and have negative splits: 11:55 -11:51 - 11:29.

2) I did day 2 of the push up challenge last night, and managed 17 full push ups (3 + 4 + 2 + 3 + 5)! Yes! =D I almost forgot to do it. I was so sore from Sunday, that I had to take 2 rest days in between. I'm hoping that next week my muscles will start to adapt and I can do them every other day. I'm actually not too sore today. I've also been rocking the yoga and stretching every chance I get. The foot is achy from time to time, but overall it feels good more often than not. Yay! :)

3) The UCF Bike Bus is still riding strong, and we'll be representing at the One Less Car Expo this Saturday. Check out my latest Bike Bus Update at Commute Orlando.

UCF Bike Bus

One Less Car Orlando Expo

One Less Car Flyer
(click to enlarge)

Jason and I will be representing the Central Florida Bike Bus at the One Less Car Orlando Expo this Saturday, September 25, from 10 am - 4 pm. at The Center – GLBT Community Center of Central Florida located at 946 N. Mills Avenue.

ONE LESS CAR ORLANDO is a celebration of transporation alternatives like your bike, the bus, your feet, your skateboard, your scooter, carpooling, etc. The event will have two components: an expo where you can learn about the various groups and resources available to you, and a line-up of speakers called Park-n-Chats.

This is your chance to learn more about the Bike Bus and other resources available to you in the Orlando area if you want to try alternate transportation. We hope you stop by to say hi, and please spread the word!
Facebook Event

Creative Time Management

Living without a car has forced me to make creative use of my time, but it has taking some time to come to this realization. When we began commuting by bike and bus regularly almost 5 months ago, some aspects of my workout routine (yoga/core/strength) began slipping because I spent most of my time commuting--that's what I told myself anyway. Bull! That's just an excuse; I'm simply not making it a priority. Well, it ends now!

If I want to run a marathon in February, and I desperately do, then I need to take care of my body now and stop cutting corners. Even if I don't want to get up earlier to exercise before catching the bus, I can spend less time screwing around on my computer after work and use that time to do yoga or cross train. I've made this a priority this week, and I've gotten creative with how I squeeze in my workouts:

• do yoga when I get home from running or cycling, even if it's a quick 10 minute stretch. It's a lot easier to get this out of the way before I shower, while I still have endorphins motivating me to workout, than after I'm cooled off and clean and ready to chill and eat.
• do yoga before bed while I lay in bed. I've been using this routine from Chaz but I just did a quick search and found a ton of other options I may try, like this 8-minute routine. My favorite pose before bed is to lay with my legs up against the wall. 
• run to the bus stop from work. If I go one stop further, it's a full mile. I much prefer this than walking, but it sucks to then sit on the bus for an hour before running again. Since the bus is always late, I may trying running to other stops so I spend more time running and less time seating on a bench waiting for the bus.
• get off the bus early and run the rest of the way home. This maximizes my time and I don't waste any walking home first, changing, then going back out. I'm also less likely to loose motivation and stay home instead of going out for my run, and I can't cut my run short because it takes longer to walk home :) In fact, I can run further because I don't have to rush off to work. This takes a bit of planning, but I now have the routine down. If Jason is on the bus with me, he carries my stuff home. If not, I change into running clothes at work and bring my fuel belt and race ready shorts to carry the essentials: iPhone, ID/money, bus pass, water, towel.
• do yoga at the bus stop! The bus is always late, so jason half suggested when I was complaining about not having time for yoga that I do it at the bus stop. While I'm not about to do downward dog on the sidewalk, I can certainly do some of the standing poses, upper body poses (for back and shoulders), and stretch those calves and feet!
• do yoga on the bus. I don't do this often or if the bus is really crowded, but YOGAmazing has yoga on an airplane (or chair yoga/yoga with a desk) that would work well for this. Again, they are mostly seated upper body poses to stretch the back, neck and shoulders.
• stretch in the break room while heating up my lunch. Instead of just standing there watching the microwave, I'm using up this time to do some wall push ups and calf raise to stretch my legs. I often also making popcorn in the afternoons, so that's over 3 minutes I can use to stretch my calves/quads/hamstrings/feet.
• do yoga at my desk. I work at a computer all day, and my shoulders/back get tense a lot. When I got a massage on Monday, he commented on that and suggested I take breaks during the day to stretch. It only takes a few minutes, but doing a simple twist or interlacing my arms over my head and doing a backbend does wonders. I also have the office fitdeck, which I should use more often.
• I restarted the 100 push up challenge, but with full push ups this time. I started at the easiest level since it has been a while, and I am still sore from the 14 I did on Sunday. But I'm going to stick with it, even if I have to take 2 days off between workouts until I get used to it again. 

The most important thing in making this change was realizing that I don't need to immediately go back to doing 30-60 minutes of additional exercise every day (on top of running/bike commuting). I was getting overwhelmed thinking about how I would do that, but just adding 10-20 minutes of yoga when I can is a step in the right direction. Pretty soon I'll remember how much I love yoga, what it does for my body and I'll start finding the time to do it more often :) Now if I could only find time for some kickboxing again. All in due time ;)

Road to Recovery & Week 37 Recap

I'm almost afraid to post this, but I think my foot is on the mends. I woke up with zero pain today, even when I took my first steps out of bed, and it's felt great all day! Every now and then I think I feel a twinge, but that's probably in my head because it feels too good to be true and I don't want to get my hopes up too soon.

It is a strange sensation to finally feel a body part healed. When you have an injury, the pain decreases both in intensity and frequency as it heals, but you still have that nagging dull ache until it's fully heals. Then all of a sudden you wake up one day and it is completely gone. You almost miss the pain because you barely remember what it was like to not have it and wonder all day if it's really gone or if stepping the wrong way will suddenly bring it back. It's a wonderful feeling!

Even though I ran 9.5 miles this weekend, I took really good care of the foot. It was bothering me a bit on the ride Friday night, but I stretched it well and taped it before the run. The taping worked wonders. Not only was I not in pain during most of the run, there was no pain after. I kept it taped most of the day while we were out, and I think that helped too. What I think really put it over the edge was that I finally did yoga and lots of stretching on Sunday.

Apparently thunderbolt pose (where you sit on your heels) is great for this, and I did that a few times without knowing it. I did yoga before bed last night, wore the splint, and was sure to stretch and flex the foot before stepping out of bed and I could not believe it when I didn't feel pain even on that first step. I'm still going to be cautiously optimistic, continue to stretch every chance I get (e.g. when waiting for my food to heat up in the break room) and do yoga regularly again in hopes that the pain stays away for good!

This makes me feel much better about the upcoming Half Marathon in 6 weeks, and that I'll be able to train for a full marathon in February! I was going to run a 15k this weekend, but decided against it earlier this weekend. I am tempted to register now, but I don't want to push it too soon, so I'm going to sleep in, go for a short(er) run and enjoy running :)

Week Totals (rounded)

• run - 17 miles
• walk - 6 miles
• bike - 39 miles
• strength/core - 14 (full) push ups (oh yeah, I'm restarting 100 push up challenge, but with full push ups this time)
• yoga - 40 min
• totals - 10 hrs / 61 miles

Workout Summary

See details on Dailymile

• Monday - 1 hr massage :)
• Tuesday - ran 3 miles; biked 1.3 miles (publix)
• Wednesday - walked 2.5 miles (bus)
• Thursday - ran 4 miles; walked 1.25 miles (bus)
• Friday - walked 2.5 miles (bus); biked 17.25 miles (ice cream)
• Saturday - ran 9.5 miles; biked 20 miles (fm, lunch, gms)
• Sunday - 40 min yoga (2 sessions); 14 (real) push ups!