May 31 Recovery Workout

This morning Adam and I took a nice and easy walk around the block in our new shoes! Charlotte rode along in the stroller, leaning forward and smiling at everything. My left calf feels much better. I can tell that the new arch support insoles are making a difference in how much my left foot rolls in.

May 30th Workout

Today was my first Team training. We met at Road Runner Sports in Costa Mesa and learned a little bit about why the correct shoe is important for preventing injury. Then we went out on a 3.25 mile course. I soon learned a little bit about the inadequacy of my cheap Target shoes that I've had for a while as my left foot began rolling in just enough to start a twinge in my inside calf muscle that felt like a cramp that wouldn't go away. After about two blocks, I switched to walking and finished out the course at a steady pace within 50 minutes.

After the run I learned some simple cool down stretches. I decided to return to the store later to get my personal shoe fitting because I had an appointment to get to at 10:00 and there was a long line ahead of me.

Adam, Charlotte and I went back to the store about 4:30 in the afternoon, and left when they closed at 6:00 with shoes and socks for each of us and high arch support insoles for me. The pressure test showed that my arches are extremely high and the treadmill video showed that my left ankle rolls in quite a bit as I walk/run. My new shoes are pink and white Nikes and they feel awesome!

15.5%!

Wow! Thanks to my friend Candice and my husband's aunts Anne and Jane, I have now raised $775, 15.5% of my $5000 goal!!

Anne runs a convenience store and years ago began raising money for LLS through coin cards. At some point they stopped sending the materials she needed to collect and send in the money, so she gave me what she had collected plus a personal donation from her and Jane because it all goes to the same cause.

In other related news, I have another personal honoree. I will write more about Arlene in another post.

Edited to correct the total because I can't add.

May 28 Workout

I woke up feeling congested. I went out for the workout anyway, but after about two minutes of running with my chest burning I gave it up and started walking. I walked about one mile in the 20 minutes I had available for my workout before I had to go back to get ready for our day trip to the Reagan Library.

May 26 workout

On Monday I did a 20 minute hike up to a waterfall near the resort for my cross training. On Tuesday morning I went out for a 20 minute workout. I ran for a much greater portion of the time than in the past, including 5 minutes straight. I felt good afterward, but did have a leg ache in the evening. Today I feel great.

ETA: I believe the workout on Tuesday was a little over one mile.

Recovery workout - May 24

Sunday morning I woke up early again and decided to do a recovery workout to help my muscles feel less sore after Saturday's run/walk. I walked down to the corner of Alisal and 246 and back. Did a lot of other miscellaneous walking yesterday too as we explored Solvang and also drove out to Pismo Beach for the afternoon and had to walk from our far away parking spot to the pier. It was beautiful there but WINDY which made it feel very cool. I got a souvenir sweatshirt to keep warm. Charlotte also had her first experience with sand and surf, which was adorable to watch.

May 23rd Workout

This morning I woke up  at 6:00 a.m. in a condo in Solvang.  I tried to roll over and go back to sleep, but light streaming through the blinds triggered my internal clock and made it impossible.  After nursing Charlotte back to sleep, I got up and squeezed myself some orange juice and had a bowl of Cheerios with soy milk in order to get the requisite 300 calorie breakfast 30-60 minutes before exercising.  Although I couldn't join the team at Heritage Park in Irvine this morning while on vacation, I was determined to complete the two mile workout just the same.  

Around 7 I headed out the door in workout gear, leaving Adam and Charlotte sleeping peacefully.  

I stopped at the front desk to pick up a map to the grocery store which I had read is 1 mile from our resort.   In addition to the map, I also carried a bottle of water and a stop watch so I could time my progress.  I did 5 minutes of stretches and slow walking, and then began at a slow jog up the block from the resort to the corner of Alisal andHwy 246 (it took about 4.5 minutes according to my timer).  At the corner I switched to a brisk walk, and turned right to walk past Old Mission Santa Ines.  There the sidewalk ended just about the time my timer hit 7:00.    I jogged up an inclined grassy hill along the side of the road, crossing to the other side of the street at Pine.  I continued on 246 up to Alamo Pintado at a brisk walk, crossing the street, turning left and walking through the parking lot of the Nielsen Center to Nielsen's market.  I did a quick turn through the store at about 16:00 and headed back.  I continued at a brisk walking pace all the way back to the resort.  All told, the trip took me about 35:00.  

I tracked the mileage with the car later in the morning when we went back to Nielsen's for a grorcery run, and it was almost exactly 1 mile away, maybe 1.1 miles if I add the distance in the parking lot and through the store.  

I felt GREAT!  It was quite a bit easier to jog without pushing the stroller ... which makes sense.  Charlotte weighs almost 17 pounds now, plus however much the empty stroller weighs!

Vacation

Starting today I'll be on vacation in Solvang. There is internet access at the resort, so I'll probably post an update or two while we're out of town.

Enjoy the holiday weekend!

May 21st Workout

Today I was unexpectedly home with my baby girl (my mom was sick with a migraine so I was without childcare), so I squeezed in today's workout while running a few errands that will help us get out of town for our vacation sooner.

After filling up the car with gas, I took it to get the tires rotated and balanced. It was about 2:10 and the guy said it would be ready in about an hour. While we were waiting, I put Charlotte in the stroller and proceeded at a brisk walk down to the corner of Grand and 17th Street. I crossed the street and walked through the CVS/Food4Less shopping center there that takes up the whole block from 17th to 21st. I walked down 21st to Hathaway and then made a U-turn and retraced most of my steps. It was hot and I didn't feel up to running, so I kept up the brisk walking pace throughout.

Then, the Goodwill's airconditioning called to me, and I thought I could pass the rest of the time browsing. I let Charlotte play with some of the baby toys they had on display: a push-toy airplane, and an activity table. Then we looked through the books and I picked up two novels to read on vacation: one by Amy Tan (I remember liking Joy Luck Club so thought I'd give her another try), and another one that is a retelling of the Robin Hood story from Maid Marian's perspective. Finally, we hunted through the racks of kids' clothes for summery outfits in Charlotte's size. I found a green gingham seersucker dress, a green and pink seersucker pantsuit and a little pink romper. Altogether, our purchases set me back $13. I love Goodwill!

I checked the mileage of my route with Google Maps' walking directions -- just about 1 mile. Unfortunately, no timer or watch so I have no idea what my pace was. It was 3:30 by the time we crossed the street and got back to the tire store though.

8%!

I've reached a new milestone in fundraising! The generosity of my coworkers humbles me. Thanks so much to Jerome Gerber!

New Honored Teammate

My coworker Sharon just made a donation in honor of her father who has CLL and is not doing very well right now. She asked me to add her father as an additional Honored Teammate. She walked the Phoenix Rock 'N Roll Half Marathon in his honor a couple of years ago and I am priveleged to train in his honor now.

5%!

Thanks to my old high school chum Jason Wang, I've now reached 5% of my fundraising goal!

He had these encouraging words to say:

Be strong and dedicated to training and the journey will be much
easier. Its all in your mind. I did the 2004 l.a. marathon and
if i can do it, i know you can. Good Luck and thank you for caring for others.

Thanks so much, Jason!

May 19th Workout

I did it! My first 20 minute workout is complete.

I got home after picking up Charlotte from my mom and put her straight in the stroller. After quickly changing into workout clothes, I grabbed a timer, put Andy on a leash and headed out the door.

Here's what I did minute by minute:

0:00 - 2:00 Stretches using the stroller and a nearby bench for balance
2:00 - 3:00 Easy walk to Wellington
3:00 - 3:45 Jog down Wellington toward Tustin Avenue
3:45 - 4:00 Stop to walk so I didn't trip over two large dogs charging for Andy
4:00 - 6:15 Jog down Wellington toward Tustin Avenue
6:15 - 7:00 Brisk walk
7:00 - 8:45 Jog (at 8:45 I had made it to the corner of Wellington and Tustin)
8:45 - 11:00 Brisk walk north on Tustin Avenue
11:00 - 11:45 Jog to driveway of Center on 17th shopping center
11:45 - 12:00 Stop because Andy's legs are starting to drag
12:00 - 12:30 Put Andy in the basket below the stroller and secure the mesh cover
12:30 - 18:00 Brisk walk past Baja Fresh, an empty store, Ross, PetSmart, Staples and Albertsons
18:00 - 18:45 Jog down Williams; cross street to Monterey Villas
18:45 - 20:00 Brisk walk down Williams and through Monterey Villas
20:00 - 23:00 Easy walk through Monterey Villas
23:00 - 25:00 Stretches at the bench closest to my front door

According to Google Maps, I covered about 1.2 miles.

I feel great!

3%!

Thanks to my additional donors Christine Moore (my wonderful auntie) and Kathy Fritsch! Now I'm 3% to my fundraising goal!

Tomorrow is the first official day of my training schedule. I'll be going out for 20 minutes total, combining running with brisk walking as needed.

I'll report back on my performance. Stay tuned ...

First Donation!

Congratulations and THANK YOU to Judy Evans, my first supporter! It's so encouraging to get such an immediate response.

2% of the way to my goal ...

Pumped up by the Kickoff!

This morning was the Team in Training kickoff and I am more excited than ever about my training and fundraising.

Hearing the stories of the Honored Teammates and their families about how blood cancers have affected their lives was very moving.

I'm inspired by their stories to set a new fundraising goal: $5000.

I was also encouraged by the training plan. It will start off nice and easy. Twenty minutes on Tuesday, twenty minutes on Thursday (which is about what I have been doing). During the first team training on Saturday, they will cover two miles. I'll be doing that on my own since we will be on vacation in Solvang!

My plan is to continue with interval running/walking, likely 2/2's, 2/1's and 3/2's to start.

Got to start somewhere

I ran for the first time today. Official training has yet to begin, but the coach's note posted on the team Yahoo group suggested that rusty runners try running 3/1 intervals (3 minutes running and 1 minute walking) to get started and get a sense of where we are starting from.

I didn't even run for three minutes straight. I stopped after 2:25 feeling like my lungs were full of smog. I took a two minutes of fast walking to give myself a break and then started back to a slow jog. The second time I stopped after 2:40 because I was feeling seriously nauseous (I unwisely had just eaten dinner!).

I then continued to walk briskly around our complex for 20 minutes. I actually felt like I was going faster and using energy more efficiently in my walk. Hopefully I'll pick up some tips on proper running technique during the Saturday trainings and will get to where I feel just as comfortable running or jogging as I do power walking. Or, maybe walking is my thing? Too early to call.

Still, I'm proud of myself for getting out there. I'll try again tomorrow, BEFORE dinner instead!

Question to experienced runners: Is there anything I can do (other than regularly hocking loogies) to prevent the unpleasant sensation of mucus gagging me as I run? I suffer from mild allergies and post-nasal drip that seems to be exacerbated by running. Hmmm...

We've Only Just Begun

Welcome to my blog, where I'll be charting my progress in facing two of my biggest fears: fear of hard work and fear of failure.

The only way to conquer fears is to face them head on. I'm doing that in a big way by training to run the Long Beach Marathon with Team in Training. They will provide coaching, comraderie and pre- and post-race celebrations. In return, I will raise $2100.

Success will require plenty of hard work. And failure is a possibility on several fronts. I might get injured. I might get lazy. The economy might get in the way of people's generosity.

With my old ways, I would have given up already because the work seemed too overwhelmingly hard and failure was too likely.


I've repented of that cowardice and asked God for courage.


The old has gone, and the new has come!

I'm going to take this one day at a time. Follow the instructions of my coaches and mentors when it comes to both physical training and fundraising strategies. Practice every bit of cognitive therapy I've internalized. Use the FlyLady routines to keep my household on track. Practice meditation and other spiritual disciplines so God can continue to fill me with His courage. I can do everything through Him who strengthens me!

Yes, in five months, if I stick to the training and follow the fundraising instructions without giving up, one thing is certain: I'll be a stronger, healthier person on my birthday than I am now.

And that's the best birthday present I could give myself.