A Very Different December

I am my father's daughter. He and I are quite alike in many ways. We share a love of literature, black coffee, writing, movies, the same or a similar sense of humour, love of nature etc.. For most of my life we have been pretty much the same except for the fact that he loved running and I did not. Growing up I have vivid memories of him coming in from the cold after running 15 miles or 21 miles or just a light 6 miles.. and me thinking.. "He's crazy!" 

Last year as I was in Japan learning to run 5K.. he was in Canada preparing for brain surgery. He had grown a tumour on his pituitary gland and it needed to be removed. He had the surgery the day I finished Couch to 5K and I flew home the next day to be with him and my family. Last Christmas was hard on us. He had the surgery and then complications which resulted in a second surgery which had their own set of complications during which we nearly lost him. It was terrifying. He survived the experience, is now tumour free and has spent the last year trying to get his strength back. When I was home in the summer he was still very weak and unable to run much more than a mile without his legs giving out. He has been slowly recovering and has finally started running again.

This morning, for the first time ever, my dad and I went for a 7 mile run together! It was amazing being out on the beautiful country roads with him, keeping pace and talking while we ran together. Considering how this past year went I am so grateful to not only have my dad alive but to be able to run with him. 

And now there is yet another thing we have in common.  

In Which I Yammer On About Running... again

I completed C25K exactly one year ago and so in honour of that, I started thinking about my relationship with running over the past year. 

Now, as in these days, I seem to be able to say that it's just what I do.. but that wasn't always the case. 

When I started C25K a year ago.. I was forcing myself to learn to run because I didn't want to join the gym. My relationship with gyms is a long torrid affair that perhaps I'll expose you to some other time. Anyway running was mainly a means to weightloss and that was about it. I slugged my way around the park three mornings a week and didn't really think much more about it. I ran, I burned calories, I logged it, I lost weight. Running was still somewhat painful and not all that fun but it was a means to an end and the end meant I'd hopefully wind up fit and skinny. 

After I finished C25K, I looked for another challenge and learned to run a 10K. I even signed up for a race and ran it in May. I must be honest and say.. I did not enjoy that experience very much. It hurt. Running was a chore. I'll admit that there were moments when I felt quite good and days where I felt almost like a runner but still.. it was something I had to force myself to do. I am quite good at playing tricks on myself and so yes, I downloaded lots of fun songs and bought lots of cute running clothes and faked liking the whole experience. Sometimes I believed my tricks.. somedays I did not. But I clearly remember running that 10K and hating a lot of it... feeling rather heavy and tired and out of energy. 

Sometime this fall, a year after I started this whole running business, something just clicked. I can't really explain it except to say that during one random morning run, I suddenly realized that I was happy that I was running. It felt good! No, it felt great! The connection between my body and my mind seemed to cement and suddenly.. I was a runner. 

I ran a long distance race a couple weeks ago and for the most part, it was excellent.. just running along with thousands of other people.. being tired but not too tired, pushing myself but not feeling like dying.. I liked it. Yes, I liked it! At the beginning of the month I ran a 10K at the same site where my first 10K was and man! what a different experience. I actually... enjoyed myself. My friends were there and some of us ran together and I could laugh and talk while I ran and still make good time! What a change!

This morning was a cold morning.. the kind of morning where it actually took some amount of discipline to pull myself out from under my two duvets.. I had to work overtime cuing all my lines.. "You'll feel better all day.. Do hard things..You can relax later... You'll hate yourself if you miss it... Go be great..You are tough...Think of the calories!"  It was terrible trying to put on my running tights while shivering in my cold bedroom. I put my shoes on and headed outside.. It wasn't pleasant but I knew that eventually it would get better. And you know what? It did.. the right song came on, my feet found their rhythm, my body started to warm up and off I went. I ran and it ended up being a good run. I came home chilled but happy. 

I actually do like running and when I'm not running.. sometimes I find myself thinking about running. It could end up becoming a bit of an obsession. I can feel it going that way... and I'm fine with that. 

Somewhere along the line I fell in love with running and now it's just what I do. 

Mini Crunch Time

I'll be flying home to Canada for Christmas in 10 days.. I'm crazy excited! I also know that when I'm home, I'm around a lot of really good food... and so I want to be as disciplined and as careful and as hardcore as possible between now and then. 

However, now that my 2 big weekend races are over and it's getting colder outside and darker earlier in the evenings, I'm feeling less and less excited about working out. I'm also feeling more and more excited about melted cheese and all things comfort food. Treats keep popping up at work and I'm finding it hard to be controlled. It's sooo close to Christmas... one, two, five little candies won't hurt...I know that I'm at a dangerous place in my mind and I really dont want to cave at this point in the game. It would be so easy to just get into the holiday frame of mind and eat with wreckless abandon. I can feel myself leaning toward that and it scares me. I don't want to gain a few pounds back between now and Home Time and then have to tell people.. "Yeah well I had actually lost more weight than this but last week I got reaaallllyyyy hungry..." 

So I have given myself a little talking to and decided that I need to finish this year strong, on a high note! True, I'm most likely not going to be able to say no to every little treat but I can drag myself away from my fuzzy blanket and put on my running shoes. It's all about making the right and best choices. 

Between now and my "date of departure" I plan to get in as many workouts as possible, drink a lot of water, eat well for the most part (keeping in mind that there are parties that must be attended) and work as hard as I can to stay motivated. 

It's not gonna be easy, it may not be fun but I know.. it'll definitely be worth it! 

Let Them Eat Cake

I did not eat birthday cake this year. (There are several reasons for that.. the main one being that cake in Japan just isn't that good.)

So while I didn't eat cake, I did run a 10K on my birthday. If you had told me a year ago that a running event was something I would actually look forward to participating in.. especially one held on my birthday, I'd call you absolutely crazy yet there I was on December 1st.. ready to Run for the Cure. I had a group of friends with me (that's dedication.. to either breast cancer, running or.. me?) and we were ready to take on the challenge. It was mentioned at one point that maybe we should have just gone for pancakes but overall, it was a really fun time. Happily, I beat my secret goal of running a 10K in less than an hour.. so happy birthday to me! It was a good good morning and it was cool to do something active with my friends. 

Starting off the next year of my life in such a healthy way sets the tone for the kind of year I want to have. It also gives me hope for the year ahead on a physical level and otherwise. I like running now and I'm getting better at it. I can actually have fun at athletic events! This is new and this is good. This is also something I plan to do regularly in the coming year. 

So bring on the running, bring on the healthy choices, bring on the races! I have a feeling that this is going to be one of my best years yet! 

Stay tuned... 

p.s. Before you feel too sorry for me and my lack of cake.. rest assured that what lacked in cake was made up for in champagne...

And Now it is "A Year From Now"

When I first joined MyFitnessPal and started to get serious about fitness and weight loss I remember reading the quote: "A year from now you'll wish you'd started today.."That really hit me because how often have I been at some social function and wished I'd stopped eating cake a few months earlier? How often have I been in a bathing-suit-required situation and wished that I'd worked out a little longer? How often have I regretted lack of activity and too much overeating right before a big moment (that almost always included photographic opportunities)? 

The answer is SO OFTEN! 

That was before. Now it's different. A year ago I started. And now, one year later, I am so glad I did! 

Today I sit here, 30 pounds lighter, sipping tea and actually smiling at the soreness in my legs. You see, on Sunday I ran a 17.2km race around Lake Kawaguchiko near Mt Fuji. 17.2km! It felt amazing (well most of the time) and I was happy because I beat the time goal I had set for myself. I was out there, with 23,000+ other runners and I kept up with them...well not all of them but you know what I mean. I ran and ran and finished without puking, fainting or dying. 

As I have mentioned before, this time last year, I had just downloaded C25K and was dreaming of being able to run a 5km distance. Now I finished my longest run and I'm researching half marathons and other running events I can sign up for. I'm not writing this to "toot my own horn" but to remember the fact that yes, a year later, I am here and I am so glad I started that day.. that day a year ago. 

I have not yet reached my ultimate fitness and weight goals but I am getting there. I know I can do it and more importantly, I know that I will do it. I know I have it in me to reach those final goals.. to run long distances and to keep doing hard things, day after day, because if I feel this amazing one year later, I can't wait to see how even better things will be next year! 

 

Power of Perseverance

I have always taken my sweet time learning certain lessons. I'm not really sure why I take so long to clue into relatively simple concepts. You know the whole idea of sticking with something? Doing something all the time and hanging in there even when it gets tough? Well I have never really hung in long enough to see any good come of the hanging in.. nice sentence right? 

Until just recently. You see.. I think I have accidentally become a runner! And how has this happened? Well basically I put my running shoes on every Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning and sometimes on weekends and then I make myself run for 30-60 minutes. Crazy right? It wasn't glamourous, it wasn't quick but it started to get easier and now.. it's somewhat pleasant. 

This time last year I was in the very early weeks of C25K, just dreaming of the day that I might be able to run 10 minutes without stopping and maybe, if I could force myself to finish, run 5K. 

This past Sunday I ran 16km (10 miles) for the first time ever and I didn't die or cry or puke. It was pretty great actually. 

Next Sunday I will run a race around a lake by Mt Fuji... it's 17.2 km and I actually think I might be ready for it. 

Yesterday when I was doing a regular morning run, I had the shocking realization that I was actually kind of fast and pretty much enjoying myself. 

So yeah, it's taken me about a year to become a runner and many many mornings of forcing myself out of bed but what-do-you-know? Do something long enough and it becomes a habit... We can teach our bodies to do really cool things and it's amazing because with enough time and persistence and perseverance.. we learn! 

Now what else can I teach myself to do? 

Long Run - Take 2

In two weeks I will be running in the 1st Annual Mount Fuji Marathon.. except that I'm not doing the actual marathon, more like a 17.2km race around a pretty lake. So almost a half marathon but not quite. I have never been much of a runner and this time last year I was in the early weeks of Couch to 5K.. today I ran 10 miles.. that's 16 kilometres! That's the longest run I've ever done!

Overall it felt pretty good although it's amazing what a love/hate kind of relationship goes on during a long run. Initially I started off feeling very good. Then I started to get tired and realized that I was still so very early on in the experience that I had no right to feel anything but awake, alive, alert etc etc. Then I start to daydream about future races I might want to run and start to wonder how long an ultra marathon is.. then I get a grip and remind myself that I haven't even run 5km yet. And it goes on an on and on. I learn to play games in my head. I let myself think about certain things after a certain amount of miles and tell myself other things on a loop. I drive myself a little crazy I think.

Today there was a half marathon in my neighbourhood (I wish I'd known how to sign up for it... curses!) and it ended in the stadium that is in the park where I run so I was able to see all the finishers as I was slogging along. There is something rather emotional about watching runners race toward the finish line. I started to get a little choked up and teary.. until I realized it was affecting my breathing so I tried to think about other things. Anyway it made for a nice distraction and something different to look at.

I feel good about November 25th and more ready than I thought I'd be. Now to make sure I'm stretching, eating properly, resting properly and not doing anything stupid for the next two weeks!