I have to say, this week went better than the last, but it was also a planned easy week. Instead of a super long run on Saturday, I ran a quick 4 miles with one of those miles at the magic mile pace. What is the magic mile? Well, to be completely honest, I don’t understand all that well and I’m sure I’m not doing it correctly. I’m following a training plan by Jeff Galloway, and he uses the magic mile to predict what your race pace should be for each distance (5k, 10k, half marathon, full marathon, etc.). He has a method for finding out your magic mile using a track. I do have access to a track now that the junior high up the road is closed for the summer, but I haven’t made it up there to figure out what my magic mile is. So I improvised by just running hard for that one mile (something a little less than a sprint). It actually felt really great, and I was able to run the remaining miles without pain or struggle. I do feel like I’m getting stronger, and slightly faster, so that’s encouraging.
My mid-week runs went well also. My right knee still feels a teensy bit aggravated, so I’m keeping an eye on that. I borrowed a different kind of knee brace from a friend and I’m going to see if it helps any more than the one I’ve been using. I’m also doing a lot of squats and step exercises to try to get those muscles stronger.
This training plan is a little different than the one I followed in 2021 for my first marathon. The mid-week runs are based on time, not distance, so I’m actually running more miles during the week than last time, and I kind of like that. I feel like it is more of a gradual build-up of miles this way, and I think that may be a safer way for these legs of mine to build the necessary endurance.
This week I saw a total of 6 bunnies on my runs: one on Tuesday, one on Saturday, and 4 on Thursday! Also, while I was out chasing rabbits I managed to log 13.33 miles, leaving me with 72.28 total training miles (or 265.28 if you’re including my half marathon training). Next week I’ll be running 15 miles on Saturday so wish me luck! I’m super nervous but I’m going to do my best to trust the training and just enjoy myself out there.
Week 4 did not go as planned. Thankfully, I’m stil early in my training and can make adjustments as they are needed. Tuesday’s short run turned out to be a long walk, because I was having some abdominal cramping. Thursday’s run was relocated to the treadmill due to the high AQI (Air Quality Index) in our area. Canada is still battling wildfires and the smoke has been so far reaching it’s affected much of Michigan. So I stayed indoors to be safe, but when I got on the treadmill I was having a really hard time getting my legs going, so I ended up walking the bulk of the time just like Tuesday. These long walks didn’t exactly set me up well for Saturday’s planned 13 mile run.
I watched the AQI closely all day Friday, and I was reluctantly prepared to run 13 miles on the treadmill. However, when I woke up Saturday morning, the AQI had fallen to a safe level so I happily filled my hydration vest and headed out the door!
It took me about 3 or 4 miles to really wrap my head and heart around this run. My legs were feeling clunky and sluggish, but I persisted. I think it was at the end of my 4th mile when I really felt like I was moving smoothly and I was actually enjoying myself. I was especially happy that the trail as it goes under the highway was not flooded, which gained me access to the bridge (pictured below) and of course more scenic trail to run.
I reached my turnaround point at 6.5 miles and paused for a selfie (below). Can you see I’m still smiling? I had shared smiles with a lot of passing bikers and dog walkers by this point and was feeling pretty great.
A little farther down the trail after my halfway point I was still feeling good! I was not worried about my time, and I made a point to stop and get these pictures of the beautiful spots along the way. In the past I’ve been so driven with my training runs I was not stopping much to enjoy the scenery. I’m glad I did this day because I have them as a reminder that the long run was *mostly* good.
But then, after I hit 9ish miles I started to slow down. I noticed a sharp pain forming on the inside of my left knee. Being cautious, I walked for awhile, hoping it would calm down. It did not calm down. As I walked I weighed my options. I could walk the 3 miles home, taking shortcuts where I could, or I could call and have my husband pick me up. By 10 miles I decided I didn’t want to risk permanent injury, and I called my husband. I hate doing this. My pride hurt almost worse than my knee did.
When this sort of thing happens I panic a bit. I am 45 years old with M.S. I have only been running for 8 years. What am I thinking? Am I pushing my body past what it is capable of doing? Am I going to break myself beyond repair and have to drop out of the marathon, or worse, never be able to run again? I don’t have good answers to these questions, but I am not quitting. Not even close. I am stubborn as hell, and I will continue working towards my goal until I am forced to stop. So I’m taking this week not as a failure, but as a learning lesson. What can I do different in my training? What can I change up in my strategy that allows me to build endurance more safely? My brother suggested breaking up my long runs into two shorter runs on the same day, and I may try that on the next one. I’m researching all things “marathon training” and am eager to learn more. (If you have knowledge and suggestions, I’m all ears!)
What I wanted to share was a thought I had after passing that 4 mile mark. It’s hard to describe without sounding corny, but miles 5 through 9 felt like bliss. I felt so free and comfortable in my body, which is no small miracle. Ever since losing my hearing and vision, I have had to accept the general unease I feel on a constant basis. Not hearing well, not seeing well, this is a difficult state to be living in. It causes me a great deal of anxiety and frustration and I still struggle with that daily. So to feel so *comfortable* out on the trails, after having run that many miles, was amazing. I felt as if I was exactly where I belonged. And to think that I hated running prior to 2016, and I really only started as a “what if I could?” experiment. Running has been such a gift and miracle in my life and I hope to keep at it as long as my legs keep allowing me to.
So to recap, I ran (and/or walked) 16.49 miles this week for a grand total (including my half marathon training and race) of 251.95 miles. Week 4 is complete and I have 15 weeks to go! Stay tuned folks, and we’ll be back next week for another update from Marathon Mel 🙂
Yesterday was a weird day. We had attended our nephew’s wedding the night before, and thoroughly exhausted, I slept in until 10 am. Not to mention, my monthly infusion is coming up on Thursday, so I’m already battling fatigue. Yet, I had a growing urge to purge some things that by early afternoon I was unable to ignore. My bedroom doubles as my office, until the kids are grown and move out. In the corner I have this old secretary hutch that I use as a desk. Until yesterday, the shelves were filled with my favorite books. I haven’t been able to read normal books since I lost my vision in 2013. Ten years ago. At that time, I went through a major purge of our old house and got rid of most of my books. The survivors have been staring at me night and day from this hutch’s shelves. Yesterday I was feeling an overwhelming urge to finally say goodbye.
This turned out to be a lot more difficult than I expected. Grieving has no expiration date.
As I dusted off each book I flipped through the pages, remembering the stories, but it was more than that. These were not literary classics. John Grisham, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Gilda Radner. An eclectic mix, for sure. It wasn’t the stories that I was grieving. It was the life I had pre-disability. Which is not to say I’m ungrateful for my life now. My disabilities have brought surprising blessings, and I am grateful for all of it. But you can feel more than one feeling at a time, it turns out. You can be grateful but also sad.
So that’s what yesterday was. It was a day to feel sad. I finished packing up my books and I repurposed the hutch’s shelving. I cleaned up the mess I had created and once I had everything put in order I laid down on my bed and let myself cry. That sadness had been building all afternoon and I just had to let it out. Sometimes you have to give yourself permission to feel those ugly unpleasant feelings. Process, move them through, then move on.
And I did. When I had finished crying I got up, took a deep breath, and started making dinner for my family. So now it’s tomorrow and I’m so happy with my updated office area. It looks fantastic, and it’s a nice clean space now for me to work and write. I look forward to using it every day. My vision loss is permanent, and I don’t believe I’ll ever be 100% done with grieving the loss of it, but I’m thankful that these moments come less and less often, and that I can still wake up and find joy in what I do have. Peace, my friends. Shalom.
Okay, true story, I slacked on the days in between (cross training, walking, etc.) but I got my base runs and my long run in. Saturday’s run was not actually that long, but that’s because the plan I’m on only increases the miles every other week, to give the legs time to rest and recover I guess. So this week I ran a total of 11.51 miles for a grand total of 42.46. If you add in the 193 miles I ran training for and running the Bayshore half marathon, you have a real grand total of 235.46. WOWZA.
For my Saturday run I had been feeling some tightness in my left calf before I left, so I was a little concerned that I would pull a muscle halfway through and have to hobble home. However, I just took it easy and nothing ever came of it. An important piece of training for long races is avoiding injury. You have to be really careful, because anything can happen when you are pushing your body’s physical limits, and an injury will put a halt to everything. So you have to find that balance between pushing yourself, and backing off when your body is sending you warning messages.
Also, this week I picked up a buddy for some of my training runs! One of my dearest friends decided she wants to train for a 5k so she’s joining me on my Tuesday runs. She’s a total badass and just completed a year long Live Hard challenge, but she’s always hated running so this is a new challenge for her. It was really great to run with her and chat along the way. I’m excited to have the company. I enjoy running alone, but it gets dull after awhile so it’s great to mix it up and have someone to chat with. We were so focused on the running we did not get a selfie together, but maybe next time. 🙂
Next week’s long run is 13 miles which means that I’ll be back out running on the paved trails! I always look forward to those longer distances because it’s new scenery and on Saturdays there tends to be a lot of friendly people out walking their dogs. So until next time, folks, stay cool!
Week 2 is a wrap! I forgot to report last week that I had run a total of 12.48 miles, so there you go. This week I had two midweek runs and today’s long run of 11 miles, for a weekly total of 18.47 miles and a grand total of 30.95. We’re not counting the training I did for the half marathon, which is actually kind of relevant so I may go back and tally those miles. It’s important to understand that you don’t typically start a marathon training plan running this many miles. It really depends on your fitness level. This particular plan I’m following, I jumped in at week 8, because I had just completed the Bayshore half marathon and knew it wouldn’t be much of a stretch for me.
I had no issues with my midweek runs, and none with the 11 mile run either. But I’ll talk about my long run anyway, because isn’t that why you’re still here reading? One of the things I’ve really been struggling with is to slow down. All my reading and research from the experts says to train slow. Jeff Galloway says to run at a pace two minutes slower than usual, and that’s been challenging! Its so counter-intuitive, but running slower builds up the same endurance as running faster, but without the added risk of injury. There’s so much science behind this method so I’m doing my best to follow it.
I started this run not really wanting to. My legs in particular needed a lot of warming up, and I needed some encouragement. It was in the first quarter mile that I saw a birdie standing in my path. Then, as I approached, he hopped to a nearby rock, and then another rock, and then a branch, each time looking back at me as if to say “Let’s go! Are you coming? I know you can do this.” And then, a few seconds later, I saw a bunny cross the path right in front of me to hide under a tree. I freaking love bunnies, and we have a lot of them living in our neighborhood. Every time I see one while I’m out running, I smile and thank Jesus for that gift. So that was a nice start to my run, and in moments of boredom along the way, I thought back to my birdie and bunny friends and it helped keep me going.
When I approached 8 miles I was starting to feel fatigued, but my legs still felt strong. When the weather gets hotter, running gets harder so you just have to stay properly hydrated and slow down a bit more. Let go of those expectations and just keep moving. I was equipped with my hydration backpack, so I just kept sipping that at every walk break.
When I had two miles left to go I was really starting to struggle. I had been talking to myself since mile 8, telling myself I could do this, I wasn’t giving up, one step at a time, etc. etc. but after mile 9 my legs were starting to tell me they were done. I trudged along, not discouraged because I knew I was still building endurance no matter how slow I was going. For safety reasons, I walked most of the 11th mile. There was a lot of uneven sidewalk and I knew my legs and feet weren’t going to lift the way they needed to navigate those obstacles. So to avoid tripping and falling, I just walked. And then when I was back on the street with fewer cracks and holes, I ran again. That was reassuring to see how my legs responded to the rest (walking). A little time to rest and they were ready to get back to work!
I’m still enjoying running, especially in the early miles of these long runs, and in the later miles I have ways of keeping myself motivated. I remind myself of how far I’ve come, how much God has blessed me through this running journey. And down the road when the miles are adding up and I’m wanting to quit, I’ll read some inspirational stories and watch some Rocky movies to remind me to never give up.
I need to find a shorter title for these because what I have here is gonna get old real quick. Anyhoo, last week kicked off my official training for the marathon I’m signed up for in October. The GR is for Grand Rapids, Michigan, which is the location of the race. I’m excited about the location because I’m hoping it will be a little more accessible to my friends and family who may want to come cheer me on. Also, it’s a race my family members have run before and have nothing but good things to say about. It’s a flat, smooth course and should be perfect for my fitness level and physical challenges.
My weekday runs weren’t exactly what I had expected. I had an outdoor run that was going beautifully until the last leg, when I had about a quarter mile to go. On a walk break, I started to have this very sharp pain in the left side of my right kneecap. It just seemed to appear out of nowhere, and grew stronger so quickly that by the time my walk break was over, I couldn’t start running because I couldn’t put any pressure on the leg. I was able to s-l-o-w-l-y walk back home, and the pain subsided. However, I’m treating that knee with kid gloves for awhile, wearing a knee brace when I run. I’m still not sure what happened, but the pain has not returned so far, and I’ve done a lot of running since then.
The other weekday run I decided to run on the treadmill because there was an air quality warning in our area due to the wildfires in Canada. I had been seeing from friends on Facebook that they were having issues with breathing so it just made sense to stay indoors.
I’m pictured below, post treadmill run in the man cave. You’ll see my hair does some funny things when I sweat. Hanging on the wall to my right are black and white photos of Tiger Stadium, and behind my head is a seatback from the old stadium. I am still not crazy about running on the treadmill, but at least I have the dogs and my husband’s sports memorabilia to keep me company. I’m smiling because I’m done.
My final run for the week, the long run, was 4 miles and I had the opportunity to run it with my son. He has wrestling camp coming up real soon and is worried he’s gotten out of shape so he’s joining me in some of my training. Teenagers are a lot more talkative when they are moving, did you know that? If you’ve got one you are wanting to connect with better, I highly recommend taking them on a walk or a run. My son has always been a talker but as he gets older the competition with cell phones and video games has become increasingly challenging. So I was really grateful to have that time with him and I hope he joins me for more runs this summer!
That’s it for week 1. I was feeling a little hesitant about this marathon immediately following the Bayshore half but my body is fully recovered and rested and I’m feeling strong and confident again. Training for and running a marathon is a really big deal even for normal runners, so it’s not lost on me what an undertaking I’ve committed myself to (again). But with all y’all’s encouragement I know I can do this, one day at a time. Remember, the only way to eat an elephant is one bite a time!
The other morning I was reading my devotional and the writer shared that in Paul’s writings to the Galatians, it was as if he was holding up a sign that said on one side: “Don’t fall from grace by living under the Law”, and on the other: “Walk in the Spirit”. This resonated with me because over these past several years I’ve been discovering this freedom in walking with the Spirit. I love this, because as we walk in the Spirit, we know we will sometimes fall flat on our face, but we also know we can get up and continue moving forward.
As I was journaling this thought, I was immediately reminded of the time I fell flat on my face while running to train for my first half marathon. It had happened so fast I wasn’t even sure how it happened. However, after I was able to stand up and assess the damage, I came to realize that I had tripped on the sidewalk, propelling me forward. I really wanted to continue that run that day, but upon seeing my reflection and my quickly swelling lip, I decided it was better to rest and pick the run back up another time. I’ve never tripped on that patch of sidewalk again, even though I’ve run that route several times since.
You see, falling is not failure. When we are walking with the Spirit, when we are looking to Him for guidance, we may still fall. We may still scrape our knees and cut open our lips, but because of His grace and mercy we have the space and time to heal. To stand up, dress our wounds, learn from our mistakes, and get back out there. Maybe in the same direction, maybe not. What I’m encouraged by is the knowledge that I am never alone in the moving forward.
So. I ran another half marathon. This is the one I was training with a friend for, only she was not able to run the race due to a foot injury. However, she was sending me cheers from home throughout the race and was surely with me in spirit! Also, the race went as well as could be expected. Would you like to hear all about it? Grab a tasty beverage and sit back.
This particular race, Bayshore, has been kind of a dream of mine ever since I heard of its existence. The race offers 3 distances, the 10k (which I ran last year), the half marathon, and the full marathon. The races are located in Traverse City, Michigan, where my dad’s family essentially called home for many years. The small city is located in northern Michigan and is home to the Old Mission Peninsula, which is flanked by the Grand Traverse Bay. My grandfather owned property on the peninsula, on the West Bay, and my cousins and I spent a week every summer there. We have so many great childhood memories from our time “up north”. We ate cherries, we hiked, we swam, we strolled along the shore searching for Petoskey stones. My husband and I honeymooned at the cottage, sharing my childhood memories and making new ones. We’ve had family reunions there. My paternal grandparents are both now buried on the peninsula. The property my grandfather owned was eventually sold and the cottage is now gone, but a big piece of my heart still lives on Old Mission. So when I learned there was a race that actually allows you to run all over the peninsula? Sign me up! I ran the 10k last year, which was satisfying but slightly disappointing because only a small portion of the race I felt like I was ON the peninsula. The half marathon distance starts at the north end of the peninsula and follows the coastline of the east bay all the way south into town. This was the race for me.
Now I want you to understand that racing for me is terrifying at moments. Not being able to see the start from far away, being unfamiliar with the terrain. It’s not like home where I’ve memorized the potholes and cracks in the roads and sidewalks. My anxiety for this race began building several days before the race. But standing in the chute among all the other runners was somewhat calming. I was finally here. And I had trained for this, I was ready to go. Until I realized I was standing near the wrong pace group, among runners way faster than me. Not to worry, I simply shuffled back until I found my people. As I stood there waiting I checked my phone and realized I had lost my Bluetooth connection to my cochlear implants. It’s a good thing because reconnecting involves taking off my hat in order to remove my left cochlear implant, remove the battery, replace the battery to make it “discoverable”, put it back on my ear, put the hat back on, etc. So I’m glad I had that time to make sure I was connected. I rely on my music playlist to keep me going throughout these long runs.
Once I was situated and connected I got back to bouncing around to keep my legs warm and as I’m bouncing I realize there’s a strange stillness all around me. It occurs to me that everyone is looking in the same direction, some with hands on their hearts. Ah! It must be the National Anthem playing. I hope I didn’t do anything disruptive or disrespectful. It wouldn’t be the first time. No worries, carry on Mel.
I wish I could remember more of the details of this race, but I’ll share with you what I do remember. Coming up the first hill, I marveled at the vineyards stretched out on each side of me, and the East Grand Traverse Bay glistening in the morning sun ahead. The road leading me forward, filled with runners. I don’t want to forget that moment. Or later, coming around a curve to an open expanse, my view filled with brilliant blue water on my left and lush green evergreens on my right. I thought about taking a picture there because it was so freaking gorgeous but it wouldn’t have done it any justice, and it would have taken away from my enjoyment of it. I would have wasted the moment fiddling with my phone, most likely unsuccessful anyway.
I continued running, soaking in the atmosphere and the majestic scenery. All the anxiety had disappeared. I was thanking God for this experience. It was incredible. I felt strong. I was at peace. It wasn’t until I was about 6 miles into the race, that I started to really feel the burn and the soreness of my legs. I still felt strong, and my legs were moving well. That’s also about the time I started to see more and more spectators. Kids giving high fives, dogs wondering why all these people are running in the street. Posters lovingly prepared: DIG DEEP – a POWER button – WORST PARADE EVER. I love these races. You think making a poster and standing at the side of the road isn’t a big deal, but it IS. Without the spectators, it’s just a grueling training run. We NEED these people.
Around the 8th mile I was starting to really struggle because the weather had warmed up quite a bit. I decided to take my shirt off during my next walk break but with the deaf/blind vest and the sweat sticking to my shirt, it took longer than I anticipated. So by the time I got reset I was running through an aid station with a gang of onlookers to my comically awkward process. It didn’t matter. There’s no shame among runners, and these people understand and have likely seen it all. In fact, later in the race I was passed by a woman carrying her shoes, running in her socks to the next aid station. You do what you have to do. So it was a bit of a chore to get that shirt off but it was so worth it to lower my temperature a few degrees. It gave me the rejuvenation I needed to keep going.
The last few miles of the race honestly felt like drudgery and I just wanted to be done but those spectators kept me going! The runners were still moving ahead of me and I just kept reminding myself what I came for, and that was to complete this race. And I did! I finished! I set a new personal record for myself, and I did not fall. Though after the finish I was struggling to walk. My left foot knew we had crossed the finish line and just refused to lift, so I hobbled along the fence line until I saw my husband and kids walking up, all smiles. They escorted me to the recovery area and found me a chair and some ice cream. It was an incredible moment, getting to share this accomplishment with my three favorite people in the world. I tear up just reliving it.
This was such a great race. It was so difficult, but I have to accept that reality because I’m signed up to run my 2nd full marathon in October. Yes, yes I did. I swore I wouldn’t run another one but it turns out I lied. I’m glad I already committed to the marathon, because I think I would have chickened out after this race. It was a sobering reminder of how difficult and painful it is to run a lot of miles, but it was also a good reminder of the immense joy I still find in running.
It’s serendipitous that my devotional this morning actually talked about how we can have joy and pain coinciding. We can feel both simultaneously, and that’s an incredibly mysterious fact of life. There will be pain. Expect it. But also we have in us what it takes to keep moving forward and find joy in the midst of it. I am so grateful that God has sustained me as I continue to run. That He has given me the inner strength to keep challenging myself and doing these ridiculous races that both terrify and thrill me.
Isaiah 40:29-31 ESV “He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”
Let me tell you a story. Once upon a time there was a woman named Molly. Molly was a wife and a mother, and she took great pride in the work she did to keep her home and everything in it fresh and clean. A good portion of that task involves laundry. Thankfully, Molly had a machine that did all the washing for her, and another machine to dry everything. However, her washing machine was getting up in years and needed to be replaced. Molly and her husband, Marvin, drove over to the local hardware store and looked at all the fancy washing machines for sale. They read reviews of each machine and compared prices and features. After hemming and hawing, they settled on just the right machine for their home. They made their purchase, scheduled the delivery, and went home happy.
When the day of delivery came, Molly and Marvin were ecstatic. It’s new washer day! Hurray! Marvin left for work, and Molly stayed to wait for the delivery truck to arrive with her new washing machine. Soon, the truck arrived. Two lovely gentlemen stepped out of the truck and, after confirming this was indeed what Molly had purchased, they proceeded to remove the old washing machine and replace it with the new one. It was such a quick and easy process, Molly was overjoyed. She sent the delivery men on their merry way and got to working on her inaugural load in the new machine. Since this was a larger model than the previous one, she was very interested to see how it handled washing pillows. She threw a couple in the washer and let it do its work. She was so tired from the excitement of the morning she decided to take a nap. She shut the door to the laundry room and retreated to the living room to rest.
When Molly woke from her nap she remembered right away that she had a load of laundry in her new machine. It had been about an hour and a half, so she knew it would be done by now. She bounced up the stairs to the laundry room and grabbed hold of the doorknob and turned. She pushed and immediately felt a THUD. Her son was home, he must have heard her coming and hid in the laundry room to play a trick on her. “Leonard, that isn’t funny, let me in.” She pushed on the door again. THUD. There was no give at all when she pushed. Something solid was blocking this door.
Molly’s mind raced as she contemplated what could be causing her to be locked out of her own laundry room. Panic set in. What if? What if they were never able to access this room? All the towels, bedding, purses, and not to mention the water heater! As she panicked, it dawned on her that the only thing solid enough to block the door from opening was the new washer. The new washing machine must have walked its way forward as it spun dry the pillows, blocking the door from opening inward.
Molly immediately called Marvin, explaining the predicament and ensuring he would be coming home promptly. Marvin was very handy, he would surely be able to solve this problem. When Marvin arrived home, he wasted no time getting to work. After a complete inspection of what he was dealing with, he went to the garage to grab the necessary tools. Molly stood in the kitchen, washing dishes and fiddling around to keep herself distracted while Marvin worked. He was making a lot of noise! Lots of loud banging, sporadic curses, a few trips back to the garage for tools. It felt just like the scene in A Christmas Story when the father is fixing the furnace. Eventually, Marvin was able to get the machine moved far enough back to open the door, though he had to break the feet of the machine in the process.
Molly and Marvin stood outside, staring into their laundry room, collectively sighing in relief that it could have been worse. There could have been a flood! (Wink, wink) Seriously though, Molly’s propensity for home disasters is reaching epic proportions. She could benefit from some adult supervision.
The New Washer, still prone to walking when overloaded.
This folks, is a true story, though the names were changed to protect the innocent. Ha. Ha. We went that night to Lowe’s to order a replacement washer, and after a month of waiting, we finally have our new washer. The old one still washed fine with the broken feet, so it was not a hardship at all. However, even the new one has the tendency to walk if its unable to balance the load. The policy in our home is to never close the door when you are running a load in the washer. Maybe someday I’ll have a cute sign made to hang above it, I don’t know.
I hope you’ve enjoyed story time! Stay tuned, because this was fun to write and you may see more from me down the road. Shalom, my people.
I see I haven’t posted in almost a month. I keep saying I’m going to post more frequently and then… well, I guess I get caught up with life and just forget about it! I went for so long obsessing over every little detail, being hypervigilant even when it wasn’t required, and I guess you could say I’ve turned a corner. And what am I seeing around that corner? Peace. Rest. Still waters. God has freed me from the crippling anxiety I’ve suffered from for far too long. It was such a part of my life I can’t even tell you when it started. And as He has been releasing me from the anxiety, the panic, the hypervigilance, I’m having these moments where I can hardly recognize myself. I am changed. And yet, somehow, I am still ME. Praise God, thank you Jesus.
So. What was I here to chat about?
Let’s see, I’m sitting here on a Friday morning listening to the birds, enjoying my first cup of coffee. Black coffee, because I’m now an intermittent faster. I have a couple friends who are IFers, and I was curious so I read a book they recommended called “Fast, Feast, Repeat: The Comprehensive Guide to Delay, Don’t Deny” by Gin Stephens. I was so fascinated by the science behind intermittent fasting, that I decided to try it. Most people do it for the weight loss benefits, but my primary reason was to see if it did anything for my energy levels.
I’m 8 weeks into this lifestyle and I did notice a slight improvement in energy at first, but that has seemed to level back to where it was, so that may have been unrelated. My first noticeable improvement was that I had no more bloating, which has always been a huge problem for me. I would stick with this lifestyle for that reason alone, but I also love that I’m not obsessing about food all the time. What am I going to eat next, when am I going to eat, will there be food where I’m going, do I have snacks packed in case I get hungry – God forbid I get hungry!, etc. etc. All that stopped. And I love it.
Then, the icing on the cake? I’m actually getting smaller. As of my last measurements, I’ve lost almost 6 pounds and several inches all over: 1 from each thigh, 3.5 around the waist, and 2 around my chest. It’s a very slow progress but I think they say the slower it comes off the better because it’s easier to maintain. I was okay with my weight where it was, even though according to the charts I am technically overweight (don’t get me started on those stupid charts). I just know I didn’t feel good. I had gained over 15 pounds after my marathon and no matter how hard I tried, how much I ran, it wasn’t budging back down. These sound like small numbers but I’m a short woman so proportionally they make a big difference in how I feel and how my clothes fit.
Anyway, so that’s one thing that’s been going on over here. What else?
I’ve also been running. Duh. I have been training for a half marathon with my friend, and the race is two weeks away! So we are officially in taper mode, which I’m loving. She’s not even sure if she’s going to be able to run it with me however, because apparently she’s been running on a foot injury. So now that she’s getting the medical professionals involved, they are recommending lots of rest and eventually she may need surgery. So, it’s not looking good, but we are still hopeful. Because we are both overachievers and often live our lives in denial of the physical realities that attempt to hold us back. Which is one of the reasons we are such great friends, I think. When it was determined that her foot pain was something more serious, she started riding her bike along side me while I ran our long runs, and that has seemed to work out pretty well. That’s not an option for the actual race, though, so I may be running it solo. We shall see.
I could go on and on about all the books I’m reading (5 at the moment) and the podcasts that interest me, but I’m afraid I’ve already taken up all of our time today. I hope that wherever you are reading this the sun is shining and the air is fresh. Shalom, y’all.
Deaf and half-blind runner with multiple sclerosis
Little M.S. Runner 