Staying Focused

Eye on the prize, going the distance, keeping the stride - you get the idea.  What keeps you focused on your goals?  We all have roadblocks, good days and bad, but something is different for me this time around, and I'm trying to identify exactly what that is.   I have realized that each time I start to question if what I'm doing is working something huge will happen, like suddenly all the clothes in my closet are too darn big and if I want something that fits properly, I'll have to find it from a source other that my own closet.  ha!  What a great problem to have!   Circumstances like these are the kind of thing that give you the momentum to stay on your A game and keep the workouts and awesome eating sessions coming. 

I've been at it for about 225 days now & I think the most important aspect for me has been feeling better.  My digestion is vastly improved with exercise and that makes a world of difference for me.  I have a much better, more positive outlook on life and enhanced mental clarity. 

Keeping up with this blog, I'm finding it very difficult to do though.  I want to post daily, I want to post pictures, I want to inspire others to take charge of their health.   My days are full of food preparation, loving my children, exercise, grocery store expeditions and the occasional playdate.  It may not sound like much, but believe me, it keeps me busy.   At the end of the day, I find that reading a book does more to help me fall asleep then sitting at a computer.  Maybe I should try the computer in the morning and see where that takes me. 

The Joy of Running!

Last Thursday's run inspired the previous post and obviously this one, because I'm going to tell you all about it!

It all starts with a conversation between me and my good friend Uzma.  She was telling me about all the benefits of running and how she loves it so much.  I asked her about her Vibram running shoes and whether or not she liked them.  She told me that when we run as wear are meant to (on the balls of our feet) it works totally different muscles and it's a different experience altogether.  I listened with great interest.  Even though I have recently made a drastic improvement in my running ability, I knew that I wasn't running quite this way, and I was wondering why.  I was thinking maybe it was the shoes I wear, they are not special shoes, just regular non-fancy running shoes.

So fast forward to Thursday evening.  I'm pushing the double stroller and feeling great.  A young girl passes me and she has a great stride, a primal stride, running on the balls of her feet maybe even her tip toes for all I know.  I check out her footwear and she is running in a pair of TOMS!!    After she is several feet ahead of us, I decide to mimic her running style, and wow, I finally KNEW that I WAS DOING IT!  I was so happy and excited, it felt very different that the way I had been running.  I was GIDDY and I ran by her as she was walking and told her she had a great stride and I thanked her and told her that she had helped me improve mine.  She was super nice and thankfully didn't think that I was a weirdo.

On Friday I felt that my calf muscles were worked out extremely well and Uzma was SO RIGHT - there was soreness in places that I have never felt it before.

What a great think I learned while running.  I know there will be many more great things to come! 

A Healthy Perception of Ones Self - A New Habit

Would you believe that I was once (not long ago) convinced that I wasn't capable of running?

I started to think about why this was.  I also thought about why this recently changed.   There is no one single thing that sparked the change.  It's a very complex series of events and I feel the need to hash them out right here in the hopes that it will help someone else in some way.

(If you know me well, you know that I'm a big picture person.  I think of ALL of what most would consider minute details.)  Let's just say, I loved Macro Economics but could not stand Micro.  

I played soccer in an urban area where I lived in my youth - I always enjoyed it, the other kids on my team were nice, I have no bad memories of this time.  I don't remember if we lost or won & I had no lack of self esteem this was from age 5-7.    When I was in the third grade we moved to the country, soccer was a new thing to our school and I played from age 9-12, we lost every game we played but I never was too upset, I look back and think that learning to be a good loser was really important, even though it felt bad to never win a game I still don't think my self esteem was all that low- my team mates were fairly nice kids.  When I got into Jr High, I played basketball in a CYC League, even though my Dad helped coach my team some of the kids were really mean and I ended up hating sports but kept playing just to make my Dad happy.   Because mean things were said to me you can guess, my lack of self esteem became evident.  I wasn't as good of a player as I could have been because I was constantly nervous and frazzled and upset.  I made the freshman basketball team in high school, and being on that team was among the worst experiences of my life.  That was the end of my athletic training - until this year.  Now sprinkled in with these formal sports experiences, I had people tell me that I ran funny, walked funny, looked stupid when I ran, you get the idea.  So what did I do?  I believed them.

Ok, writing that really is a downer for me.  I'm over it, I harbor no more anger towards the people involved, I forgive and I really forget most of it.  So, it's with great joy that I write the next paragraph.

I can't remember when, but sometime within the last year or two I was reading a magazine about Chi Running.   In it, the founder said that ALL HUMAN BEINGS were made to run.   We don't need to take a class on it, it's in our genes.   He was talking about barefoot running and how much better it is for our bodies.  I was interested and immediately searched online for all the information I could find about Barefoot Running, Chi Running and the like.  I thought that maybe there was a chance for me to be a runner after all.  I thought the shoes were cool, but I still lacked the faith in myself.

Fast forward to now, I run with my kids 5 days a week in a double jogging stroller in triple digit heat.  Before I had the double jogger I walked with 1 kid in a stroller and the other one in a Boba Carrier.  It would take me approximately 50 minutes to walk 1.5 miles, now with the double stroller I jog just over 3 miles in 45 minutes.  I have been at this now for only a month and a half, and not only does it feel good to run, it feels good to know that I CAN DO IT!   Perhaps having two natural births helped me realize that I'm strong enough to run.  Maybe it was the weight training that helped tone me up?   Maybe it was the need to find an activity that would get my kids outdoors in this heat without having them sweat bullets?  Maybe it's because running helps my digestive system so much that I now constantly crave the run?  Maybe it's because I learned that the primal diet works for me, so why not primal exercise?

It certainly is a combination of experiences that led to my becoming an athlete & runner.  The most important thing that I did though, is forgive & forget other peoples perceptions of me.    I now have a healthy perception of myself, and when I look at something that I (at one time) never thought possible, now I know that IT IS possible.  Such a shift has changed me completely, and makes life so much more fun!

Post Pregnancy Weight Loss Theory

So, there are these times that even when I feel like I bust my arse to lose more weight that I don't notice much change (yes, hello, I am a scale addict!).  But, I came up with a theory that so far, for me has proven to be true.  Here it goes:  Every three months post partum one's body can fluctuate - allowing for some weight loss if one has been eating well and expending calories.   I have noticed a considerable downward fluctuation on my scale at 3 months, 6 months, 9 months and now, I'm eagerly anticipating my baby's 1st birthday for a variety of reasons.  I'm still nursing my baby, I'm going to follow baby led weaning, we will see where that takes us.  It's more calories burned for me, great nutrition for him, and reducing my chance of breast cancer so it's win/win all around.  So to say it simply, every three months my body decides its okay to let go of some extra weight.  I'm sure I can't be the only one experiencing this!

Obviously, my weight loss theory is just that, a theory.  It probably doesn't work this way for everyone.  With my first child, I had undiagnosed Hashimotos and Celiac Disease and I literally did not lose a single pound until I got on the right thyroid RX which was around 10 or 11 months post partum (and where I happen to be at this exact moment).  My first born had colic and was in constant pain (wondering if this could be due to gluten antibodies or something associated with Celiac).  It was the most trying time in my life, and I realized not long ago that I forgot about how difficult it was until I started chatting with people that are still suffering with Hashimotos and are not on the right RX yet, or on no RX at all.

It is my hope that if you are a new Mom and you are struggling with post partum weight loss that you will keep this in mind.  Here is my advice:

1.  Take it easy the first 3 months - focus on eating really well for you and your baby - take walks on nice days, cuddle and love your baby as much as you can and relax whenever you are able.  Accept all the help that if offered to you!

2.  If you are ready at 3 months, try a quick exercise routine, step up your pace on walks, join a gym or go back if you are able, keep eating well- focus on nutrition.

3.  At 6 months, keep up with step #2 but keep pushing yourself to do more, take it to the next level, try running, biking, any activity that will challenge you.

(I think you get the picture!)  I also cannot stress enough how great weight lifting has been for me.  I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!  If you want results and you want them quick, weight training is the ticket!!  Also, if you like to run/jog - the BOB Jogging stroller is worth it's weight in gold.  I can't believe what a great training tool it has been for me, and it keeps my kids so happy.   My daughter is like a coach, when I stop jogging to take a breather she says "Run Mama, I want to Run!"  I also like that I am setting a good example by showing my kids how I exercise.  I tell my daughter "Exercise makes Mama Happy".   That is the truth :)

Owning Up To My Bad Habits

One of the main advantages of eating well, exercising daily and living a healthy lifestyle is that I certainly FEEL IT when I don't.  I recently had the pleasure of visiting family in New Orleans and for the most part, I did pretty well, but there was one night in particular when I ate WAY too much, and I felt it for the next two days.  It made me think - WHY did I do that?  How did I lose control?  I believe that it was emotional eating- and that I ordered too much and was very greedy.  When something is good I tend to want a WHOLE lot of it, rather than just ordering a small amount.    I am going to try my best to be less greedy and to share more with others and also order smaller amounts of things.

It was the most fun I've had in a long time.  I am so thankful to my babies for sleeping and letting me go out at night and to my family who watched them for me so that I could enjoy the time out.   Despite my large plates at dinner I did manage to go to the gym 2 days out of 4.  I know that really helped my mood & motivation.

Traveling can be a challenge if you have dietary restrictions and a constant need for exercise.  It also throws me off my "routine".    It helps to stay with family though, a family with a large kitchen :)