The Future Freaks Me Out

Hello!

I have twelve more days in Virginia then I am home in Portland for a while before I head to…

Okinawa, Japan!

No joke. I am going to Japan for, like, two years for my first tour of the Marine Corps.

I’m excited actually. Of course I have some remorse about leaving home and being so far away from home, but I think it will be a great experience.

I know I haven’t updated in a while so let me give a quick little recap of what’s been going on…

I have been reading a lot.

My mom sends me a book or a magazine practically every day.

Currently I am reading…

And…

This book is so amazing! Yeah, it’s a graphic, out-there book, but I cannot put it down. It’s really good.  Check it out.

March 30^th – May 6^th

I ran every day I believe except for Wednesday since that is our cleaning day and Ihave no liberty. I ran a total of 56.60 miles in that week.

This week, however, I did not run Tuesday due to some pain/tenderness in my lower back and left side of my ass. It hurts enough where I was limping so I just didn’t run. It still hurts, but not like it was in the beginning of the week. I ran nine miles yesterday and I just take a lot of pain killers just in case. I know, it’s wrong and I should just rest or do something else, but I don’t have a nice gym like I do at home. I don’t have an option of spin class or a lot of free weights. There’s only so much I can do.

Luckily, I’m home in twelve days! I feel so refreshed knowing I am going home.

I cannot wait to tan again, see friends, see my old coworkers, and go to my gym. My doggies and kitties probably miss me so much, if they remember be. I have been gone since February.

It bothers me when I read on Facebook that my friends have to wake up at eight for classes. Boo hoo.

Here is my schedule:

0445 AM: Wake up to be outside by 5 AM
0530 AM: Do a lame, easy, boring workout
0620: Shower
0650: Head to chow
0745: Classes/cooking
1100: Lunch
1300: Classes/cooking
1500: Hopefully done with classes
1630: Liberty starts
1700: Run/work out for about two hours or less
1900: Order Chinese
2030: Liberty secured
2200: Bed, if I can fall asleep

I get close to seven hours of sleep if I am fortunate and can actually sleep. I have a difficult time falling asleep because I just ate and worked out. I’m so wound up that I can’t sleep.

My day is nonstop. I go nonstop. I have been getting out of class at three or later so I can take a nap, but it’s tough.

On top of that, I struggle with the gosh darn eating disorder. I’m hungry every hour and I just don’t want to eat. Then, I eat and I feel terrible. I hate myself for it.

But here is what I have been eating…

I’m hoping that when I get to Japan, things will get better and that I’ll have some more freedom. I don’t know what to expect.

The future freaks me out.

Well, enjoy your weekend. I’m heading to Busch Gardens tomorrow. Woo.

Funnel Cakes and Deep Fried Oreo’s

Hello!

I wish I could update daily, but it’s really difficult to fit in with four hours of liberty. During my time off after school, I work out, eat, call my mom, and get ready for the next day. I could easily update every day, but that would take away from my six hours of sleep.

My point is, I’m updating now so that is what truly matters, right? (:

My week went by fairly quick and it was actually a good week.

I finished up the baking section this week of my schooling. We baked chocolate chip cookies, cinnamon rolls (so good), sweet potato pie, apple pie, cake, and much more sweets that would guarantee pack on a few pounds. All my products received an above average or an outstanding grade. With my written test, I got a 100%.

Now I’m onto more classes and Tuesday I cook again, but with larger quantities. I’m nervous because we have a small class, which means more work for us.

My week ended with a trip to Kings Dominion. It’s an amusement park in Virginia. I had a lot of fun! I went on every roller coaster about twice. Every roller coaster went upside down and after the second time through, my head was pounding. This didn’t help…

Yeah, it’s a funnel cake. But come on! How often do I eat funnel cakes? Like everyday. I also tried a deep fried Oreo. Oh my gosh. It was delicious, but that’s like  a once and a life time treat. Never again. 

Besides eating funnel cakes and redneck food, I eat a lot of Chinese food. I order Chinese food like every night.

I know. Who am I eating white rice?

I must say that I eat really well here. For breakfast, my meal usually consists of: melon, banana, an apple, some cottage cheese, and maybe raisins. 

For lunch I have a salad, lots of veggies, a pear, and cottage cheese.

Then for dinner it’s more of this:

The thing with Chinese food is that it fills me up quickly to the point where I’m like, “Oh boy, I’m stuffed.” I feel like I eat so much, but when I look back at my day, I barely have enough calories for breakfast and lunch. I still beat myself up after every meal no matter what I eat. I feel guilty with everything I eat. I don’t even understand.

I bought a scale too. I keep weighing myself. So far, I lost a pound this week versus the two I lost week so it’s a total of three pounds. I want to go back to my ‘normal’ weight, whatever I think that may be. However, I know that I won’t be happy with it. I back in that cycle of wanting perfection, yet I can’t have it. I cannot achieve it because perfection obviously doesn’t exist. I work my ass off to be ‘perfect’. I get frustrated when I cannot run or when I run slowly or I’m hurting. All my emotions here in Virginia are at an amplified level. I feel like I do not have control of my life whatsoever. 

I feel selfish, not in control, hopeless, and arrogant.

I’ll talk more about this later when I have my thoughts gathered. All I can say is for the several bloggers who challenged themselves by not working out for a week or so, good for you! That’s an accomplishment for someone who loves to exercise. Sounds silly, but in all honesty, it’s an accomplimsent.

Of course, I didn’t take part of that challenge. My week looked like this:

Monday: Two miles on the treadmill + 7.56 miles outside @ 7:05 + weights + elliptical
Tuesday: 8:69 miles @ 7:16 pace + elliptical
Wednesday: Field Day
Thursday: 8.69 miles @ 7:12 pace + elliptical
Friday: 9 miles @ 7:03 pace  + elliptical
Saturday: 9.12 miles @ 6:55 pace  + elliptical
Sunday: 10.65 miles @ 7:08  + weights

Total mileage: 55.71

I wish I could have gotten a longer run, but this morning my legs felt dead. I ran last night at six/seven PM and ran this morning at eleven. I don’t think that was enough time for my legs to refresh themselves. This week will be better.

I just keep telling myself to think positive and good things will happen.

What do you tell yourself to get through rough patches? 

“I was born to be a runner. I simply love to run. It’s almost like the faster I go, the easier it becomes.”
-Mary Decker Slaney

Fuel Me Up

Happy Saturday!

I started my day off with 15 minutes on the elliptical, an hour spin class, and a five-mile run. I felt fast so hopefully my pace was up there. It will be my last run until God knows when.

Well, I am riding 45 miles tomorrow.

I have never rode my bike that far. I think the furthest I have gone on bike is 30 something miles. I’m rather excited to ride 45 miles in the lovely city of Portland.

Being away from Portland for three months made me realize how much I love Portland. I seriously could live here my whole life I think. As long as I get to travel, I’ll be fine with living in Portland and the weirdo’s.

Enough of my love for Portland.

As I was saying, I am beyond pumped for tomorrow except I have no idea how to fuel myself before riding 45 miles. I know on bike rides you can eat more and not have to worry about stomach issues. Fueling for a bike ride is different from fueling for a long run.

If you guys have any suggestions on what to eat before a long bike ride, hit me up. I don’t think I’m going to have a bagel or anything to carby. Maybe just my usual breakfast of cereal, cottage cheese, and a banana? I’ll be bringing gels and fruit with me on my ride. Also, there will be plenty of rest stops with food from local food places so if I get hungry, I’ll be okay.

In all honesty, I hate fueling during a long run/bike ride. I never do it. Even during two-hour runs, I don’t eat or drink anything (unless it is water). I know that’s wrong and not healthy for training purposes, but I never get hungry on my runs. However, I do eat immediately after I work out.

I will start eating properly for training purposes when I finally settle down at wherever the military places me. When I arrive in Virginia, I plan on finding a marathon to train for. I know I am ready for marathons. Before, I was just physically ready for a marathon, but now I know I am mentally ready for a marathon. I am fully prepared and I want to start training for a race.

I also plan on stricter eating habits. I do eat sweets daily (at night), but I want to cut that out once I settle down. I want to go on the Paleo diet too. I ordered The Paleo Diet for Athletes, written by Dr. Loren Cordain and Joe Frie off of amazon.com. I won’t get it until I come back from MCT. I have been reading a lot on the paleo diet and I like a lot of the aspects of it. I read about it in Triathlete magazine. A lot of athletes follow it. As much as I would like to be vegan, I need dairy. Without dairy, my body suffers. It suffered enough while I was in boot camp because I wasn’t getting enough iron. I had a clump of hair fall out. Disgusting. Anyway, once I settle down wherever I am, I am going to start training hardcore and eating like a professional athlete. All and all, if I want to be one, I have to act like one.

What are you views on the Paleo Diet? If you didn’t know, the paleo diet is based on lean meats, seafood, fresh fruits, and fresh vegetables, which can promote peak athletic performance. Obviously I would not be eating any meat. No meat for me.

I hope everything goes smoothly for me on the Worst Day of Year Ride. It will be my last day in Portland. I’ll get a post in tomorrow too before I take off. I think I may do a vlog because I got my laptop! It has a webcam and all that cool stuff all the cool kids have.

I leave you with my recent eats:

Eggplant, Indian rice, onion rings, asparagus, crab cake
Crab and shrimp

Have a wonderful weekend!

Pacing

Hi! What’s up, ya’ll?

I’m such an awful blogger. Not only do I leave for three months, I come back and I don’t even bother blogging. Truth be told, I don’t know what to say! That’s a lie. I could talk about running… and I will.

The thing that sucked about boot camp was the most we ran was three miles. We barely worked out. For me personally, that messed with my head big time. However, that’s a whole different blog post I have planned. Anyway, I love running. Obviously.

 I run despite my mood, the weather, the pain, and the voice in my head that tells to stop.

I have a billion and one running photos on my computer…

Not running for three months was terrible. I feel like now I have to make it all in this single week before I leave for North Carolina.

Already on Saturday I ran 16 miles @ 7:29 pace.

The rest of the week, so far, has looked like this:

Monday: 9.84 miles @ 7:25
Tuesday: 8.94 @7:16
Wednesday: 12.06 miles @ 7:29

Tuesday I did a speed workout that consisted of…

• 1 progressing mile @ 6:07
• 3 500′s @ 1:40
• 3 400′s @ 1:20

My pacing is totally off! I just keep thinking if my calves weren’t so sore and I have been running consistently, I could being doing a mile in less than six minutes. It’s crazy. My long runs are messing with me mentally. I was doing 14 miles at a 6:59 three months ago. I don’t know when I’ll get back to that.

Whateva, whateva.

Yesterday was my birthday! I’m 19, ladies and gents.

My mother ordered me a Dell laptop, which I should receieve on Friday. Unfortunately, I cannot take it to MCT, but I can take it to my MOS school. I can continue to blog then as well as stay in touch. By the way, my blog needs serious updating. I am aware. Moving on…

Also, for my birthday, I celebrated by going to a restaurant called Zeppo. It’s an Italian restaurant and it is delicious.  I got…

with

fresh salmon thin crust pizza that had garlic, goat cheese, spinach, and capers. It was amazing. I seriously ate the whole thing then went to Coldstone.

With food, I am just enjoying myself although it is a struggle for me to not step on the scale in the morning. I’m starving all the time though. I came home from boot camp and I just want to eat. My stomach is a pit I think.

It will be even more so since I signed up for the Worst Day of the Year Ride.

It’s a bike ride in Portland. There is an 18 mile course and a 45 mile one. Guess which one I did?  The 45 mile one. I may kill my legs. Oh well. I’m excited despite the guilt my mom placed on me for leaving her by herself all day. It’s the day before I leave for North Carolina too. I feel somewhat bad about it, but I don’t know if I will have another opportunity.

Well, I hope all of you are doing well. Share anything you like with me because I’m very lazy/busy/tired to stalk your blogs.

I’ll leave with you some past eats…

 

“Common sense is necessary … more so than high tech. Race to the
finish not race from the start, pace yourself, run your own race and
don’t get sucked into someone else’s, walk when you need too, run when
you can, eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we will hurt.”
- Kevin Sayers

A Little Blurry

There is so much to say about my experience at boot camp and there is a football game on that i would like to watch as well. Honestly, I don’t remember much about the beginning of boot camp. Receiving and forming week or whatever else those weeks are called are such a blur to me.

Here is what I recall:

The first two days I did not sleep. No one slept. I was up for two days straight. I remember being thirsty, scared, homesick, and just plain frightened. When we did get water, we also go box chow. Box chow is the worst food ever. In the box is a terrible meat sandwich, chips, cookies, raisins, an apple, granola bar, and powder Gatorade. The drill instructor was screaming at me to eat the meat sandwich so I did. What was I going to say? “Um, excuse me. I’m vegetarian.” That was the only time I ate meat though.

Those first few days of no sleep and barely any food, I lost three pounds. In total, I lost 13 pounds surprisingly.

During phase one of boot camp you do martial arts. For me, I despised martial arts. It was repetive. In addition, I swear everything at boot camp had the fun sucked out of it. Martial arts could have been a blast, but it wasn’t. There was swim qualifications were during phase one too. I thought we would learn to swim so I was excited. However, the qualification for swimming was for you to know how to stay afloat. I passed the first day.

I can’t recall any more from phase one. There was initial PFT testing. That involves flexed arm hang, crunches, and a 1.5 mile run. I did 70 seconds for the flex arm hang, 144 crunches, and I came in first in the run. In all the runs, I came in first. The runs only went up to 3 miles though. For the final PFT test, I ran three miles in 18:04. That combined with my flex arm hang of 1:29 and my crunches, which were 149. My score of the PFT combined with my CFT score. With that, I won Ironwoman. I was the most physically fit of my company. Do you know how much that means to me? That’s like the only thing I remember of boot camp.

Phase 2? Well, we were at the rifle range. I remember that because I loved shooting. I got sharpshooter.

As for phase three, still a blur. I only remember Liberty Sunday, Family Day, and leaving the damn island. The Crucible went by rapidly that I don’t remember all the details.

I don’t know what was in the water, but it made my memory disappear. All I can is that I am so happy to be home although I leave February 13th for MCT school for 29 days. Booooo. I am not looking forward to it at all.

To conclude what I have to say, Marine boot camp is 90% mental and drill. It’s not physical whatsoever. I was challenged. I am a new person now. I would take a bullet for any girl in my platoon. I would fight for any American’s freedom. I still have barely any confidence, but I am a new person. I feel different. The experience was worth it.

As for now, I just want to get back to normal blogging where I talk about running constantly. I want to comment and read your blogs again, but I can’t seem to find the time.

Anyway, when I arrived home Saturday, I ran 16 miles. My pace was awful so I am not even going to say it. What can I expect? I haven’t ran that far in three months. In the end of my run, my calves were killing. However, the run itself was great. I did not turn on music for the first hour. Amazing run.

Today I returned to the gym.

I was expecting people to be like, “Hey, Christy. Where have you been for three months?” Instead, they were like, “Hey.” I get to go to my gym for free though. That’s rather awesome. My spin class was killer. My body is sore. See, I was not physical challenged at boot camp. Now I feel so behind. I know MCT school will kick my ass though.

My shirt kicks ass though.

Well, I apologize for how choppy this post is. I just wanted to get something on here. I’ll answer any questions you guys have about boot camp. Just let me know.

The questions I received so far are:

- Was the food good? Well, as a vegetarian, I did not eat much. Breakfast I would eat fruit, eggs, and cottage cheese. Lunch was spinach and veggies. Dinner was more spinach, veggies, and maybe rice. I got lucky if there was fish, egg salad, or tuna. Otherwise, I did not eat much. Eating now at home is making my stomach weary. I feel sick, but extremely hungry. I think I was in starvation mode because I cannot stop eating. I still weigh 111 though. I really suffered mentally with eating. I feel like my eating disorder re-kicked in and now it’s on my mind 24/7.

- Were there scheduled eating times or snacks allowed? We had scheduled time for chow. Breakfast was around 4:30 am, lunch was around 11:30, and dinner was at five. There were no snacks except for at The Crucible, since that is 54 hours long with hiking. We received MRE’s there (meals ready to eat). Those were good and we could snack on them throughout the day when there was time.

- How much running was there or any form of cardio? Not much. We did not run much at all.

- Best and worst memory? Like I said, my memory is awful. My worst memory is something I don’t even want to mention on here. My best is graduating.

- Daily routine? Chow, drill, classes maybe, PT maybe, chow, more drill, more classes maybe, chow, free time, letters, bed. My day started at 4:00 and ended at 8:00.

- Friendships? I made so many friends. Most of the girls I got along with where in their 20′s. Throughout my whole life I always got along with people who were older than me. Anyway, there was 54 girls in my platoon. Some girls I could not stand, but I would take a bullet for them.

I’ll end this post with recent eats and other eats from, like, November. Enjoy.

Jalapeno poppers
Mushroom pot pie
Flatbread w/ salad
Tofu sandwich w/ salad

That’s all, folks!  

Let’s Talk About Shoes

Hey there!

What is it now? Like three days until I leave?

Man, I better my eyebrows waxed.

Forget my legs. It’s No Shave November, if you didn’t know that already.

I wish I wasn’t.

Anyway…

Thursday I made myself do a recovery run after my 12.55 miles on the trail at an 8:30 pace. Do you know how fast that is for a trail run? Some people can’t even do that pace on pavement.

So, Thursday I ran 8.36 miles on the treadmill at @ 7:30 pace or so. I would speed up every now and then when I felt good.

Friday, I did a track workout, which was awesome. 

I warmed up with some 800′s, drills, then did one mile in 6:02. So close to breaking that six-minute mile! Damn it.

After that, Amy and I went to this wood chip trail that is about the size of a track (but with some inclines) and I did four 400 meter repeats in 1:30-1:27. I’m not even done. After that, I did four hill repeats that lasted from 28 seconds to 26. I got faster each time I did them.

All and all, that was 4.76 miles worth of speed work @ 6.59 pace (including warm up and cool down).

Boo yeah. 

I did 3 miles by myself on the treadmill making it 7.76 miles for the day.

I probably got a total of 41.33 miles in for the week if I don’t plan on running tomorrow or Sunday. I don’t know. That’s pretty good though. Who knows how many miles a week I’ll be running at boot camp! Probably like a billion; at least I hope.

———————————————————————————————

I totally wanted to a do little post on running shoes. I like to think I’m an expert because I have so many and have gone through so many pairs in the past two years.

My current rotation of running shoes include:

 Adidas adiZero Tempo 4

I love these shoes. I know they don’t look like much, but simple is better.

I use to buy only Nike shoes based on the price (expensive = better I thought), color, appearance, and how new they were on the market. Turns out, you shouldn’t do that. Obviously.

I ruined my feet because I would buy shoes that weren’t based on the my feet specifically. I went to Portland Running Co. and the guy got my fit fitted to shoes that I liked and felt good on my feet.

I’m also not a fan of heavy running shoes. These Adidas shoes are 8.6 ounces and are considered performance stability. You don’t know even know they are on your feet after a long run.

They go for usually $99.

Adidas adiZero Mana 6

I bought these because I like to think I’m rich and can buy every shoe I like. They were only $68, but I put myself, like, three dollars in my bank account.

Mana 6 are considered a racing flat to a certain degree. They are 7.5 oz. I use them for my track workouts and not really during long runs. I did once and they killed my feet. I did again, and it was alright.

They are rather sweet shoes though. They’re cool looking if that’s your thing. On top of that, they are another stability shoe great for a daily trainer.

Newton “Distancia U=Distance U” 

Oh my gosh, these shoes are incredible! They may be $155, but they are so worth every penny.

These shoes are 7.2 ounces and wear like a glove.

According to Newton’s website, “The Distance U is engineered for the Natural Running gait with a level-to-the-ground profile and ourAction/Reaction Technology™. This lightweight, high mileage trainer is perfect for everyday training, or racing any distance, from a 5K to an ultramarathon. Universal posting will accommodate a neutral or pronating foot.”

I really only wore these twice, but I love them. They are not your average running shoe. They will take time to get use to if you don’t wear light weight or Vibrams already.

Fantastic shoes I have to say.

And they go with my outfit…

I actually just wanted to show off my new pants.

Finding a great pair of running shoes is difficult. I say once you find a pair you like, buy several. You need to rotate your shoes anyway.

Have a good Friday, everyone!

Running with the Stars

Hi ya’ll!

I have some exciting news. Yes, it has to with running. What else would it be about?

Last week I covered 49+ miles. Or maybe it was 47. All I know is that I am slowly coming out of my running rut. I almost did 50 miles in  week, dude. I’m happy even though some of the mileage was done on a treadmill. Good times, man.

I ran yesterday in my Newton’s (review coming up) and Tuesday I had a blast doing a track workout.

Guess who I ran with? I’ll give you a hint…

I’m not done yet.

I’m not saying we were just on the same track, but we did a few laps together. I don’t know how it even happened, but the girl I was running with (Amy), started talking to Kara. It was strange, but so awesome. I felt so intimated and extremely slow while I did my workout and they went on to do their’s.

Ahhh. Anyway, my workout looked like this:

- Warm-up drills
- One 800 (2:30 pace or something like that)
- Seven 400′s (1:20 ish)
- Two 100′s
- Running barefoot in ice-cold grass

I’m actually sore from that. I’m not use to speed work. I did that workout with my pal Amy and some other women.

Afterwards, Amy pulled me aside and asked me if I was interested in triathlons. Of course I am. She told me there is no reason I couldn’t become pro or elite. She said, “I’m slower than you and I make money racing. You aren’t even in your prime years yet.”

Knock on wood. Seriously. I can’t even imagine or put it into words how much I want that. I want so badly.

You know, every time I have a little running rut, I always begin running again and fall in love with it in a completely new way. It’s incredible.

If only my pace would kick back up. It will. I always say that. It’s odd because I ran the same path Monday as I did last week, but at a 7:17 pace verses at 6:59. Maybe it’s because I ran ten miles the day before? I don’t know.

If loving running is a sin, send me to hell.

And for all of you who believe I am an ‘exercise addict‘, you may very well kiss my…

…except my ass didn’t make the picture. Oh well. You get my point.

In case you haven’t realized, my title is obviously a reference to Dancing with the Stars. I love that show and I really wish I could dance.

I took a dance class senior year and I loved it. My teacher was a real bitch witch who put me in the back because she hated me. No really. She despised me probably because I told her off and left too many times to pee.

Anyway.

Is anyone watching it? If you do not watch Dancing with the Stars, do it just for this man: Tristan MacManus.

He’s Nancy’s partner and I find his to be gorgeous. Nancy is my favorite by the way. Don’t hate her. 

Anyway, I hope all of you are doing well. Catch me up on your lives! 

You guys are great. Enjoy my honorable eats.

 I go through two tubs a week
Mushroom + onion sandwich

“Number one is to just gain a passion for running.  To love the morning, to love the trail, to love the pace on the track.  And if some kid gets really good at it, that’s cool too.”
–Pat Tyson 

No, Seriously

Who am I? Seriously.

I am not a lazy blogger. I think about blogging a lot, but unfortunately the majority of my day is spent at work behind a bakery case or an espresso machine.

It’s either I am making a 400 calorie drink for someone or burning 400 calories by running.

I’m still in my running rut, but I feel better about it. I no longer feel like dying during my runs, but I prefer the treadmill over the outdoors. Who am I?

I’m also listening to music while running outside. Again, who am I? Before this rut, I would have never put music on while running or even step on a treadmill.

I’m cray cray.

Due to my craziness, I’m going to cover this week’s workouts.

So, Monday…

I don’t even remember that day. I don’t know if I ran or what so let’s just skip that day. Oh wait, now I remember.

I did run. I ran 5.30 miles @ 7:07 pace.

I didn’t even look at my watch the whole time. Go me.

Tuesday: I rode my bike to the gym (7.21 miles) where I did a track workout with a girl at my gym who does Ironman’s and all that crazy stuff I want to do. Her fiance is sponsored by Newton (stay tuned for more Newton news).  I just want to be her.

Anyway, we did two laps as a warmup followed by a mile that was supposed to get faster as we went along. I think I did the mile in 6:03. Next, we did two 400′s, which I did in 1:30. The last thing we did was 6 x 200. All of this totaled out to 4.25 miles.

I can’t tell you the last time I did a track workout. It was awesome.

After that, I went on the elliptical for 11 minutes and lifted some weights before I rode my bike home (9.80 miles).

Wednesday: Another run! I thought I was going so slow, but it turns out I did 8.83 miles @ 6:49 pace. I’m a little shocked.

Thursday: I ran for an hour on the treadmill, probably covering 8 ish miles between 7:03 – 7:13 pace.

Who am I running on a treadmill?

So much butt sweat.

Friday: I rode my bike to the gym (7.23 miles), ran on the treadmill for an hour covering 8 ish miles, lifting for 15 minutes, and then riding my bike back home (9.77 miles).

I did lift some weights on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, but otherwise I was lacking in the weight lifting department. It’s like, yeah, I’m still in this running rut, but if I can handle running on a treadmill, why not do it? 

Running miles: 34+ miles 
Biking miles: 34.1 miles

I definitely want to bring up those running miles to like… 200 miles. Seriously.

In other news, I bought some bike shoes. 

I love it. I’m such a hardcore biker now. Man. Now I just need some stickers on my bike that say “Keep Portland Weird” or “Drink More Beer” and I will fit right in with the Portland crowd.

I got another pair of running shoes (more on that later).

I got acupuncture done again at this new place. My quad has been killing me so I’m hoping some needles will help. My mom came with. Awesome time.

Let’s see. I haven’t been up to much. I’m going to have a post tomorrow on Newton running shoes and a book review. 

Well, let’s wrap this up with honorable eats. Boooyeah.

   Candy cane mocha
 

“Even if you fall flat on your face at least you are moving forward”
–Sue Luke

Get Use to It

You guys should really get use to me being gone all the time. In a few weeks I will be gone for three months.

Sorry to disappoint you. I know how much you all (maybe like two people) love me and my bitchiness.

It’s all good though. It’s all good.

Anyway…

Heyo!

Today included me riding my bike to the gym,

 My awesome bike shorts that give me a butt

sweating on the elliptical, lifting weights, running a mile, and then going to the Marine’s office.

There I did 100 sit ups. Killed it.

Did a flex arm hang for 70 seconds. Died.

Then, my recruiter drove me to the track where we had a tea party where I ran two miles in 18:04. Don’t laugh. I know I fail at running now. I did do my first mile in 6:28. That’s something considering I pulled something in my quad and it hurts like a bitch.

I haven’t run in… a few weeks. Seriously at least. I run at least a mile or two daily, but other than that, I have no desire to run so why force it, you know?

This happened before though except for not that long. I just biked instead everyday. Whatever. I better like running soon since I will be doing it all the time at boot camp.

Aye, I got results and photos from Race the Reaper that I did October 1st.

I game in 5th place in my heap, 51 place overall, and 6th female overall. I feel like I could have definitely done better. Whatever.

As you can see, I was pissed. What’s new?

So, I have been meaning to talk about my acupuncture appointments. I have had three acupuncture appointments and all of them were great. The first time I did it, I had a Groupon.

I did have a problem with my right foot again. After the appointment, my foot did feel better. Then, I went to a new acupuncture place that my mom paid for and, afterwards, my foot felt brand new. It helped so much and I was able to run better immediately. Of course, I still iced my foot, wore compression socks, and toe separater(?) socks to increase my recovery.

Even though I didn’t feel like running, I ran to test out my foot and to see if the acupunture indeed helped. It did in my opinion.

Acupuncture isn’t even painful. Basically, you get very fine point needles put wherever you feel some type of pain. The needles sit there for, like, 30 minutes while you sleep.

“Acupuncture, the treatment of pain and injury using thin, disposable needles, has a history dating back thousands of years in China. Although its practice and theory have evolved since being introduced to Japan, both styles share a similar focus: reducing pain and muscle imbalances by treating specific points of the body. Russ Stram, a New York-based licensed acupuncturist at Brill Physical Therapy, practices a mixed style. “Acupuncture follows Chinese medicine theory with the philosophy of restoring balance to the body,” he explains. “A practitioner takes a thorough history and examines the body for tight and painful areas, choosing points based on the meridian point system.” (Source.)

If you are a runner and are experience some muscle soreness or another type of injury, I recommend acupuncture instead of seeing a doctor who will just tell you to stop running.

“But more than recovery from injury, acupuncture’s greatest potential may come in injury prevention. According to Stram, “Running and training hard, whether it is fast acceleration sprints or long distance, takes a toll on the body. This is especially true of problem areas such as the back, hips and legs, which are most affected by running. Acupuncture needles can get directly to deep muscle bands to maximize the treatment effect. ” (Source.)

I loved acupuncture and will be going back once more before I leave in November.

Also, don’t be afraid to try a few different acupuncture specialists until you find one you like. My first experience with acupuncture was just okay so I tried it again and found someone better who knew what they were talking about. It was fantastic. Don’t be afraid of needles either. You literally feel nothing.

So, I’m going to wrap this up with some honorable eats:

 Tamale w/ tofu

Black bean burger

Not that great tasting, but I like that it’s crunchy
 I just started eating this bread. Love it.

Since I’ve been gone…

Heya.

Since I’ve been gone…

I grew a mustache.

Since I’ve been gone…

I shaved it.

Since I’ve been gone…

I was called cute by one of my (male) coworkers after I shaved my mustache.

Holla.

Since I’ve been gone…

I ran, like, maybe sixish miles. I’m still in a hell of a running rut.

Since I’ve been gone…

I biked 52 miles.

Since I’ve been gone…

I have not been able to put down this book:

Seriously. It amazing.  I will definitely do a review on this. Thanks, Barbara Walters, for recommending this on The View.

Also, since I’ve been gone, I bought the ESPN Body Issue.

Look at those legs. Holy moly.

I think they could crush a walnut.

The ESPN Body Issue actually made me feel better about myself. I may have big thighs, but they are all muscle. I may be a size zero/one, but I’m strong. I’m buff. My dentist told me that. Nevermind my teeth. Who cares?

Gretchen Bleiler, Olympic snowboarder, proclaimed, “This is not about being sexy but about being strong and powerful and showing girls it’s OK to have muscles.”

Today, while working out, I actually liked my body for once. I’m not a stick. I’m not just a bone. I have gained muscle and weight, and guess what? I’m still a size one just like I was when I was 105 or 103.

I don’t weigh myself anymore. I’m not doing all this cardio like I was (thanks to my running rut). Guess what? I’m fine. I may not be 100% confident with myself, but I feel better about myself.

That’s a start.

“It’s very hard in the beginning to understand that the whole idea is not to beat the other runners.  Eventually you learn that the competition is against the little voice inside you that wants to quit.”
 –George Sheehan