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Saturday, June 26, 2010

Freedom Run 2010 and Kigo

I just got home from this years Freedom Run. I had signed up for the 10K but chickened out at the last minute and went for the 2 miler again this year. My goal was to get a sub 20 minute 2 miler. I almost reached my goal. My finish time was 20:14, and I wore my new kigo star's :)
I'm not talking about shoes at the beginning though, this is dedicated to the volunteers for the race first. I love to run races. I don't stand a chance of winning any with a 10ish minute mile pace but I love the atmosphere and I can completely race myself. I did a LOT better than last year. It was easy to run the whole thing without a single walk break. What is it that makes a race what it is? What separates it from an ordinary run? It's the spectators, the other participants, the volunteers, and the organizers. It's amazing to see a race all put together and coming off so smoothly. I bet it doesn't seem smooth to the organizers when they are putting it together but they really got this Freedom Run down pat. I love it. I want to publicly thank anyone who has ever volunteered at a race for all you have done. You may see it as just holding a cup of water but if you weren't there holding that cup of water for me then I wouldn't be able to be running this race. You may think you are just standing around to be sure runners and walkers don't get obstructed by traffic but you keep us focused and whenever we see one of you our energy soars. THANK YOU.


Now on to my Kigos. I've been wearing them around the house for a bit over the past week. The first 2 days I was unsure if I was going to keep them. I ordered a size 7 as all the reviews I've read said that they tend to run small. I normally wear either a 6 or 6.5 shoe, depending on the make. Since they don't have half sizes I decided 7 would probably be best. They are loose. I have to keep the inserts inside them, which I did not plan to do, and I have to wear some light socks with them, which I also didn't plan to do. I had a difficult time finding some acceptable socks to go with them.
I ordered the stars because they are open on top of the foot and I want my feet to breathe as much as possible. I HATE SWEATY FEET! I like the mary jane style as it secures the shoe to my foot. These shoes arrived within 2 days of my order. They were shipped the very night that I had ordered. After I ordered I read a review that gave a discount and I contacted customer support asking about it and they had no problem applying the discount to my order, even though I ordered before knowing of the discount. They were super nice.
I took the shoe out of the box and first thing I noticed was that silly hook at the top of it. I read the instructions and learned that it was for storage purposes, and easy carrying. Well I did fold the shoes in half and play with the hooks but to be honest I won't be using them except maybe if I happen to decide to travel without wearing them I'll hook them together so the pair stays together. I honestly plan to wear these for everything I wear shoes for though.
I then noticed the biodegradable storage bag, how innovative!! I was impressed and wondered why they aren't used more often instead of those throw away plastic bags. Thanks kigo for thinking of the world we live in and being a responsible manufacturer.
Even with the inserts my arches don't feel overly supported and obstructed. My feet can breathe and they really made my 2 miler a breeze. I really do want to try a size 6 but I'm still afraid they may be too small. Though maybe someday if they are offered in a store I can get to at least I'll be able to try them on.
These shoes soles are super flexible and they seem very durable. I am going away to the beach this weekend, and to the mountains next. We will be strolling the beach together and hiking some trails together and of course doing some running at both places!!! My new kigos and I will be doing a lot together over the next several months. After our travels we will be training for our first half marathon together :)

Monday, June 21, 2010

new pic


I'm finally adding a new pic. I don't look too thrilled but hey, it's no fun taking a picture of yourself. Though I do want to show that I really am still on the healthy path in my life :) Nothing speaks louder than a picture online.

I got my new shoes and hope to wear them for my 10K on Saturday. Gotta try them out with running today or tomorrow first. I just may be wearing my Nike's for one more race.
I love loafing around in the new ones. They are a mary jane style kigo and so airy compared to a sneaker. I'm just not sure about the size of them. They are great for loafing around in so I am keeping them. They may be too loose for running. I wanted to take the inserts out for my running but I can't do that. I have to keep the inserts AND wear a sock. I may eventually get a size smaller so I can take out the insoles and not wear socks for my running. I really hate having my feet covered and tampered with.

I am NOT ready for this 10K race on Saturday. I will push myself as hard as I can go and hope to run the whole thing but I think I will be doing a run/walk routine by the end. I'm still excited though. I really did think that for my 1 yr running anny race I'd be ready for 10K. I didn't anticipate taking several months off from running.

Thursday, June 17, 2010

June 17, 2010

I've been doing horrible this past week.
Terrible carb cravings. This always happens before shopping time because most of my healthy options are gone so I go for the frozen chicken nuggets, then the pop tarts, then it's all downhill!!!
Today I vow once again to restart my healthy eating. I haven't eaten yet. Breakfast plan is to actually cut up my cantaloupe that is hanging out in the fridge. I need a no bread product few days. I always have to do this to kick my carb cravings. I will miss my burritos for the next 3 days or so but will do what I must to get back on track :)
My weight is hanging out at 111 lbs since the soup diet. Yep I gained back one pound but I'm still OK with it especially considering how I have been eating the past week!!
I need to be careful though. I am good at maintaining my weight now because I have learned how to be careful.
I'm still not committed enough to make myself lose this last little bit of weight which does irritate me but my feelings are always changing. I am now not at the very high end of the healthy weight range but more middle ground. Is the low end actually desirable????? I don't know, maybe it's excessive. I don't want to be one of those people who thinks I'm overweight when I'm clearly not. I think part of my struggle is the way I saw my mom. She NEVER went over 107 lbs. She usually was around 100 lbs and was always trying to gain weight. When she lost her health was when she gained weight. When she passed away she was weighing in at 115 and looked horrible. She was bloated and just overall not good. I am built like my mother, except I have a chest where she didn't...I inherited that gift from my dads family lol. BUT I always feel that I also should weigh 107 at my highest point. I shouldn't think like that. I really AM my own person!!!! I am not EXACTLY like my mother. It should be great for me to weigh 111 lbs.
Now that I had this pep talk with myself maybe I can concentrate more on my fitness because I have been neglecting that too much lately too. Right now I'm training for a 10K race. I want to run the whole thing. Because of that I am not weight training for the next two weeks. Weight training makes me too tired to run at my best. I know I shouldn't skip it but I am and am really trying to not feel the guilties over it.
THAT is hard with the motivated mamas lol. We are all about all around health and when a piece of the segment gets neglected we let each other know it.

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Cabbage soup Diet

I've been doing this for the past 3 days. Today will be my last day. I am not a fan of fad diets but this one really did have healthy foods and included all the food groups. I just planned to use it as a jump start to restart my weight loss and it has been successful :)
The recipe I used called for:
1 head cabbage, 1 bunch celery, 1 large onion, 2 green peppers, lipton onion soup mix, canned tomatoes. I also added green beans, zucchini, cayenne, and canned mexican tomatoes seasoned with green chiles but I omitted the green peppers because they are crazy expensive right now.

I'm going to copy and paste my updates from another forum here:
Day 1: Scale has moved down 2 lbs (yea this is from pre soup efforts). I should clarify that I am using the other soup recipe that was posted on this forum at the same time. The one with the cabbage and without the beef broth (I don't do beef).
I feel hungry but the soup isn't at all filling. I ate strawberries and apples today. Didn't feel like cutting the watermelon or cantaloupe. They haven't been filling either, nor is the water for that matter. So I will be going to bed a bit hungry tonight. I did end up adding more veggies to my soup and lightening up the hotness of my cayenne pepper.
I did have 3 bowls of soup, about 2 cups of strawberries, and an apple today. I just don't feel like eating because I know it isn't going to make the stomach feel better anyways.

Day 2 (Morning): Woke up not at all hungry. Getting ready to have my soup breakfast and eat some raw spinach I'm really wanting my bean tortillas this morning!!! Though alas I will wait. I can't wait until my starchy bean burger reward t'nite. I am replacing the baked potato with a black bean burger topped with salsa. I think my body is seriously craving the protein!!!
I ran 4.2 miles the day before starting the diet, I did upper and lower body strength training for 45 minutes yesterday. My BUTT muscles hurt!! I need to run another 4 miles today and just don't feel the energy there. I have read that people get an energy surge after 3 days. I sure hope this is me
All in all, I like the soup. I will make it regularly even when I'm not doing this diet. I think it's super healthy and yummy. I'll just accompany it with chicken or something.

Now for the part most people neglect to share but everyone wonders (at least I do). I have not had any stomach cramps or extra gas that have been real stinky and unbearable or unusual bowel movements. No diarrhea or constipation Day 2 has begun so we'll see as it continues.
Scale Progress: down 3 lbs.

Day 3 morning
: I did quite well yesterday but the watermelon I didn't cut on the fruit day was calling my name. I cut it open before bed and had a piece. I LOVED IT. It was so sweet and tasty and I usually don't care much for watermelon. I had my serving of beans instead of the baked potato and loved that too. It actually felt like a normal meal with my soup, sauteed yellow squash and black bean burger with chunks from the soup on top of it. I was tempted by DH's french fries but did not indulge.
Scale has me at 110 this morning. I was at 114-116 before the diet began. I was afraid that the weight wouldn't melt off me because I have so little to lose but that isn't so. I guess the fact that I've never done this diet before is working in my favor.
Still no discomforts or foul odors eminating from me
I look forward to drinking a glass of skim milk today (I've only been drinking water thus far). I need to work for 4 hrs today and will be out of the house all day so eating on day 3 will be a little challenging, so glad it's both fruits and veggies.

Day 3 bedtime: Had a successful day though ate much more fruit than veggies For our play date we brought sliced watermelon. I had to get gas and also bought my DS an ice cream. I ate strawberries while he ate ice cream. Lunch was a salad with fresh spinach leaves, lettuce, cabbage, carrots, and pineapple. My dressing was the pineapple juice. I had a sweet tooth today lol. Dinner was my soup and squash leftovers.
I think tomorrow will be my last official day on this diet. I have between 2-3 bowls of soup left and don't plan on making more. I've been looking forward to this banana and skim milk day I love both!!
The day after I will be resuming healthy eating. I will continue with the plan of the diet minus the soup. I already have plans to make a stuffed cabbage roll dinner with ground turkey and black beans, topped with onions and diced tomatoes. It won't be the stuffed cabbage rolls of my past but they will be super healthy and I hope super yummy.
I do feel that I am successful with this diet though I'm quitting early. I didn't really think I'd go all the way through anyways. I just wanted to kick start myself on losing that last 10 lbs, which I have. I'm sure I'll be down to just the last 5 after all is said and told. I am confident I will be able to keep it all off with all the healthy habits I have created even prior to going on this diet

Day 4 breakfast: I had my banana and cup of skim milk. The bananas are too ripe but they will have to suffice, they really were perfect yesterday wish I could have eaten them then. I still didn't have my soup and up to this point I started each day with a bowl of soup. DH and I ate together though and I didn't want his weird inquiries to me eating soup for breakfast.
The scale still has me at 110 so just solidifying the losses I already had :P
My concern: Bananas make me have to use the bathroom. I'm afraid I might live in the bathroom today.

My scale has me down 4 lbs for the 4 days. I will weigh again tomorrow as I won't be breaking the diet until tomorrow morning :)