Thứ Hai, 17 tháng 5, 2010
running update
I am slowly but successfully working my way through a nice gentle training program (courtesy of Jeff Galloway) to complete my first 10K race, which is happening on Saturday, May 29.
Overall, I am actually enjoying the act of running (or run-walk-running, in my case). This enjoyment is a true surprise to me. In an earlier blog post I wrote about how running beyond a moderate exertion threshold actually used to cause me to break out in freakish red welts - exercise-induced urticaria, according to my doctor. This was very convenient for me as it got me a bona fide excuse from running in high school PE class. There was only happiness, no sadness, in this for me. Running in general did not make me feel good - quite the opposite. In retrospect, I think I was just trying to go too far or too fast.
In college, I picked up jogging again after reading my dad's book about aerobic exercise by Kenneth Cooper. (Dad ran a few marathons, but he was also crazy in other ways and I didn't really feel inspired to imitate him at that point. He did advise me to take walk breaks, but like a true know-it-all teenager, I blew him off. Now of course I realize he was right!) Although I jogged on and off for several years in my 20s, my main motivation was to be reasonably healthy and burn off calories so I could eat desserts. Running was just a convenient and cheap means to that end. I didn't ever think much about the actual physical experience, except when it became painful. Which didn't take long, because I had no idea what I was doing. I knew zero about training or form. I just thought some people were made to run, and some weren't, and I was not. It was OK with me. As long as I put in the then-recommended 30 minutes three times a week, I was fulfilling my duty to my puny body with its puny little cardiovascular system, and that was good enough. It was like brushing my teeth to prevent cavities - necessary, but not particularly enjoyable or fulfilling. Just a chore.
Somewhere in my mid-30s my knee starting hurting slightly when I ran. Around that same time, I got the impression (in med school/residency) that runners wear down their cartilage and hasten the onset of osteoarthritis, requiring joint replacements as they got older. I decided running was best left to those under 35 and quit. (I have recently seen research that suggests the above is false - that is, runners are no more likely than non-runners to develop osteoarthritis.) I found other ways to stay fit. Then, this year around my birthday, some weird inexplicable urge to run seized hold of me and I have been in its grip ever since. For some reason I wondered how far I could run and how fast, and now I have to find out.
So I gradually eased into it, and a couple weeks ago I ran my farthest distance ever - 7 miles - without pain and actually felt good at the end. Good enough to eat a whole berry sundae from Costco, in fact. But even without the sundae, it would have been worth it. Last weekend, I left my GPS and heart monitor at home and just ran for 50 minutes (still pausing for walk breaks every 4-5 min) and it was one of the most joyful runs I have ever had. I felt awesome. I didn't need to know how far or how fast I was going. I was just loving it.
Then I changed my routine from afternoon to morning. I went running this morning - at 6 a.m. - and oof! my body did not run the same at 6 am as it does at 4 pm. I felt sluggish the whole time, and hungry, and kept wondering when I could stop and go eat breakfast. I am wondering if I will get used to early morning running. Hope I won't feel like I did today on the morning of the race, because I was struggling to do 3 miles, let alone 6.
Oh well. The nice thing about running your first race of any new distance is that, whatever your time, you get an automatic PR (personal record). I am actually not too concerned about time - I like what a friend told me about meditation. She said, "If you feel good while you're doing it, you're doing it right." My goal for this race is to feel good and - as Galloway says - to finish 1) in the upright position, 2) with a smile on my face, 3) wanting to do it again.
Overall, I am actually enjoying the act of running (or run-walk-running, in my case). This enjoyment is a true surprise to me. In an earlier blog post I wrote about how running beyond a moderate exertion threshold actually used to cause me to break out in freakish red welts - exercise-induced urticaria, according to my doctor. This was very convenient for me as it got me a bona fide excuse from running in high school PE class. There was only happiness, no sadness, in this for me. Running in general did not make me feel good - quite the opposite. In retrospect, I think I was just trying to go too far or too fast.
In college, I picked up jogging again after reading my dad's book about aerobic exercise by Kenneth Cooper. (Dad ran a few marathons, but he was also crazy in other ways and I didn't really feel inspired to imitate him at that point. He did advise me to take walk breaks, but like a true know-it-all teenager, I blew him off. Now of course I realize he was right!) Although I jogged on and off for several years in my 20s, my main motivation was to be reasonably healthy and burn off calories so I could eat desserts. Running was just a convenient and cheap means to that end. I didn't ever think much about the actual physical experience, except when it became painful. Which didn't take long, because I had no idea what I was doing. I knew zero about training or form. I just thought some people were made to run, and some weren't, and I was not. It was OK with me. As long as I put in the then-recommended 30 minutes three times a week, I was fulfilling my duty to my puny body with its puny little cardiovascular system, and that was good enough. It was like brushing my teeth to prevent cavities - necessary, but not particularly enjoyable or fulfilling. Just a chore.
Somewhere in my mid-30s my knee starting hurting slightly when I ran. Around that same time, I got the impression (in med school/residency) that runners wear down their cartilage and hasten the onset of osteoarthritis, requiring joint replacements as they got older. I decided running was best left to those under 35 and quit. (I have recently seen research that suggests the above is false - that is, runners are no more likely than non-runners to develop osteoarthritis.) I found other ways to stay fit. Then, this year around my birthday, some weird inexplicable urge to run seized hold of me and I have been in its grip ever since. For some reason I wondered how far I could run and how fast, and now I have to find out.
So I gradually eased into it, and a couple weeks ago I ran my farthest distance ever - 7 miles - without pain and actually felt good at the end. Good enough to eat a whole berry sundae from Costco, in fact. But even without the sundae, it would have been worth it. Last weekend, I left my GPS and heart monitor at home and just ran for 50 minutes (still pausing for walk breaks every 4-5 min) and it was one of the most joyful runs I have ever had. I felt awesome. I didn't need to know how far or how fast I was going. I was just loving it.
Then I changed my routine from afternoon to morning. I went running this morning - at 6 a.m. - and oof! my body did not run the same at 6 am as it does at 4 pm. I felt sluggish the whole time, and hungry, and kept wondering when I could stop and go eat breakfast. I am wondering if I will get used to early morning running. Hope I won't feel like I did today on the morning of the race, because I was struggling to do 3 miles, let alone 6.
Oh well. The nice thing about running your first race of any new distance is that, whatever your time, you get an automatic PR (personal record). I am actually not too concerned about time - I like what a friend told me about meditation. She said, "If you feel good while you're doing it, you're doing it right." My goal for this race is to feel good and - as Galloway says - to finish 1) in the upright position, 2) with a smile on my face, 3) wanting to do it again.
Thứ Hai, 12 tháng 4, 2010
Four
I can't believe my baby is turning FOUR.
Tonight he let me hold him and snuggle him. I cherish these times. He is truly "blessed from above" as his Korean name indicates. His latest fortune cookie fortune read: "People admire you for being such a charmer." I would say that is Apt. Grateful today - again - for his Korean mother and wishing her every happiness.
Thứ Bảy, 10 tháng 4, 2010
5 miler
Today I ran 5 miles!
Well, really I alternated running (3 min) and walking (1 min) but I did the entire 5 miles in a little under an hour and felt good at the end of it. Yay! I have not run that far in at least 10 years.
Treated myself to a gelato with a friend afterwards. Feeling happy.
Well, really I alternated running (3 min) and walking (1 min) but I did the entire 5 miles in a little under an hour and felt good at the end of it. Yay! I have not run that far in at least 10 years.
Treated myself to a gelato with a friend afterwards. Feeling happy.
Thứ Hai, 29 tháng 3, 2010
a new world record
I think Alex set a new world record today.
Does anyone else have a child that can make a 30-minute piano practice last for 85 minutes?
Didn't think so!
Does anyone else have a child that can make a 30-minute piano practice last for 85 minutes?
Didn't think so!
Hallelujah! I can see again!
The saga began one year ago. I was having some issues with my 5-year-old contacts (rigid gas permeable) and so I began the process of getting new ones. Little did I know what I was in for. I've been wearing the same type of contacts for 30 years (!) and NEVER had these issues.
Our health insurance offers a "vision benefit" that we signed up for so I called around to see who provides the services. After an hour or more of searching and calling, I found ONE provider who can both do the eye exam and provide the appropriate lenses. My prior eye doctor has since retired, and was not on this plan anyway.
So I went to get the new prescription. But the new eye Dr. said my lenses had flattened and the shape of my cornea had changed, and when I got the new lenses the world was blurry. I went back to the old lenses but they were starting to get uncomfortable and collect protein deposits and I knew it was only a matter of time...so I waited a year (so the insurance would cover the new lenses again) and tried again.
Wore my glasses for a month to allow my corneas to "round" back to their natural shape. Got the new Rx and the right eye was OK but the left was still blurry. Went back and they changed the power of the left lens, but now it was only in focus if I stared straight ahead. If my eye slightly moved in any direction - up, down, right, left - everything was blurry. Grr. I drove around not being able to see the road signs, etc. very well for another month...went back to the Dr...they gave me a new lens last week, and ...
HALLELUJAH - I CAN SEE AGAIN! :-)
I know - I am being a bit whiny compared to people who really can't see. But after months of a blurry world, it is SO GREAT to see a nice sharp crisp world again!! Yayyyyy!!!!
One thing about heaven that I look forward to (with my new perfect body) is having perfect eyesight. That, and a beautiful singing voice. :-)
Our health insurance offers a "vision benefit" that we signed up for so I called around to see who provides the services. After an hour or more of searching and calling, I found ONE provider who can both do the eye exam and provide the appropriate lenses. My prior eye doctor has since retired, and was not on this plan anyway.
So I went to get the new prescription. But the new eye Dr. said my lenses had flattened and the shape of my cornea had changed, and when I got the new lenses the world was blurry. I went back to the old lenses but they were starting to get uncomfortable and collect protein deposits and I knew it was only a matter of time...so I waited a year (so the insurance would cover the new lenses again) and tried again.
Wore my glasses for a month to allow my corneas to "round" back to their natural shape. Got the new Rx and the right eye was OK but the left was still blurry. Went back and they changed the power of the left lens, but now it was only in focus if I stared straight ahead. If my eye slightly moved in any direction - up, down, right, left - everything was blurry. Grr. I drove around not being able to see the road signs, etc. very well for another month...went back to the Dr...they gave me a new lens last week, and ...
HALLELUJAH - I CAN SEE AGAIN! :-)
I know - I am being a bit whiny compared to people who really can't see. But after months of a blurry world, it is SO GREAT to see a nice sharp crisp world again!! Yayyyyy!!!!
One thing about heaven that I look forward to (with my new perfect body) is having perfect eyesight. That, and a beautiful singing voice. :-)
Thứ Bảy, 27 tháng 3, 2010
spring training
This week Tammy found a 10K race on May 29 and we are going to register! Yahoo!
I can't believe I'm actually excited about this. Me, turning into a runner? I was literally allergic to running in high school. I got hives - excercise-induced urticaria - but these somehow subsided several years ago. I never would have expected to be bitten by the running bug (but partly can blame genetics since my dad and several siblings have been or are runners).
Today I did 4 miles in 60 minutes, alternating running 2 min. with walking 2. A nice comfortable pace. The best part was, a couple of new running buddies were willing to come along and run/walk with me on the Jordan River Parkway. It's amazing how good company makes the time fly by.
I can't believe I'm actually excited about this. Me, turning into a runner? I was literally allergic to running in high school. I got hives - excercise-induced urticaria - but these somehow subsided several years ago. I never would have expected to be bitten by the running bug (but partly can blame genetics since my dad and several siblings have been or are runners).
Today I did 4 miles in 60 minutes, alternating running 2 min. with walking 2. A nice comfortable pace. The best part was, a couple of new running buddies were willing to come along and run/walk with me on the Jordan River Parkway. It's amazing how good company makes the time fly by.
Thứ Hai, 22 tháng 3, 2010
not the best day
Well, today I have managed to lose my Blackberry (government issue) and lock my keys in my car.
I had the BB with me yesterday on the Jordan River trail with the kids. Unfortunately I don't know how it got separated from my person, but I surmise it could have been when the kids got tired and I was carrying them - maybe they bumped it off? Or else it fell off while I was assisting them with peeing in the bushes since there were no available restroom facilities. Thought about going back to look for it but decided my chances of success weren't very high. So I am going through the government process for reporting it lost/stolen, which required about 5 phone calls so far to 4 different people, about 5 e-mails, and so far only filling out one form (and then answering more e-mails questioning whether I had filled out the form) . The real work will come if and when they issue me a replacement - re-programming all the stuff back onto it. Well - it's my fault.
Wasn't too happy about locking my keys in the car either, but at least I managed to do it on a Monday when Bryan could come to my rescue. My knight in shining armor came through - yay!
And now, my workday is through and I'm heading out for a run, hoping I won't get struck by lightning or step in a hole. I've had enough self-imposed misfortune for one day.
I had the BB with me yesterday on the Jordan River trail with the kids. Unfortunately I don't know how it got separated from my person, but I surmise it could have been when the kids got tired and I was carrying them - maybe they bumped it off? Or else it fell off while I was assisting them with peeing in the bushes since there were no available restroom facilities. Thought about going back to look for it but decided my chances of success weren't very high. So I am going through the government process for reporting it lost/stolen, which required about 5 phone calls so far to 4 different people, about 5 e-mails, and so far only filling out one form (and then answering more e-mails questioning whether I had filled out the form) . The real work will come if and when they issue me a replacement - re-programming all the stuff back onto it. Well - it's my fault.
Wasn't too happy about locking my keys in the car either, but at least I managed to do it on a Monday when Bryan could come to my rescue. My knight in shining armor came through - yay!
And now, my workday is through and I'm heading out for a run, hoping I won't get struck by lightning or step in a hole. I've had enough self-imposed misfortune for one day.