Well shit.

Well, I made it 3 minutes. I've now ordered an IT band strap that's supposed to stabilize it and stop it from getting so irritated. We shall see...

Happy New Year!

Okay, so it's not *quite* the new year yet...we still have about 11 hours to go. But Steve and I are getting a head start on things. In about an hour we're going to try and run a bit. We'll see how it goes...my knee was hurting yesterday even though I hadn't done anything! We're only going to do 4 minutes at a time...two, maybe three intervals depending on how we feel. It's frustrating to have fallen back that far, but I just hope to do it with no pain in my knee.  It rained all night, and it's in the 40s, so the sidewalks should be free of ice and snow now. I have no illusions we'll be able to run consistently through the winter, but anytime we get lucky like this we'll take advantage of it...gotta remind our bodies what it feels like!

Looking forward to celebrating tonight. For the second year in a row we're going to Great Oaks for a dinner/open bar/DJ NYE party. It's a really fun time, and not too far from home! Bring it on, 2011!!

New Year, Better Knee?

Let's hope so anyway. Today it's been over 2 weeks since I ran...I ran one more time after my last post. We did 7-minute intervals times 6...but I only did 3 and 1/2 of those intervals, if I remember correctly. Steve on the other hand, did all of it and then some without many breaks.  He then proceeded to run on his own & do 4 miles, then 6 miles...without any walking whatsoever.

Then the snow descended upon us! So Steve hasn't run for 2 weeks either. The timing worked out pretty well since I was just nearing the crazy end of the semester, in addition to my holiday concert with Illumination. Now that things are winding down, I created a cross-training plan for now to strengthen my everything and keep me in shape. Once it's decent enough to run again, we'll have quite a setback but hopefully I'll still have maintained some semblance of fitness.  I'm alternating days of arms, legs & yoga/abs...once I add running back in, it'll go on the same days as yoga/abs, because that doesn't work the legs too much.

I'm just desperately clinging to the hope that once I get back to running my knee will be stronger and looser and I won't have pain. If I do, I guess I'll just have to become a yoga addict lol. But seriously, nothing was as inspiring and as exciting as the thought of running in races & running farther every week & just being in such great shape. That is my goal & I will do whatever it takes to get my knee to the place it needs to be to do that!

Ugh.

I could not be more depressed right now. Our 10-minute run on Wednesday was fine. My knee felt pretty good...toward the very end I started feeling like if I had gone much further it might have started hurting, but it didn't hurt from 10 minutes. We didn't get to do our 15-minute run on Friday because we decided last-minute to take a trip to Cincy to see Steve's grandma, because she probably won't be with us much longer. So we did our 15-minute run today (Saturday). Just as I had suspected on Wednesday, those 5 minutes past 10 started to hurt. It wasn't excruciating pain like last week when I first felt it, just a real ache. So when we got home I did a good amount of stretching for the IT band, and did some strengthening exercises too. No good...the more I walk around on it the more it's hurting. I just went to the basement for something and felt the same old pain doing the stairs. There's no way I can do 7-minute intervals x 6 tomorrow.

I'm so frustrated I want to cry. In fact, I have been crying. Times are really tough for us right now, and running is the one thing I have to look forward to and to feel good about. I just want to feel sorry for myself that the one thing that brings me joy right now may be taken from me. I don't know what to do...

Fingers crossed!!

Well, I'm placing my trust in Internet information! Lol. I am 95% positive the issue with my knee was coming from the iliotibial band, which is a big band of fibers that runs from your butt down the outside of your thigh & attaches just below the knee to the tibia.  The symptoms described were mine to a T: pain on the outside of the knee, especially when going up & down stairs. Anyway, we decided to push our runs this week to Wed Fri Sun to give my knee a few days off to heal. In the meantime I've also been learning stretching & strengthening exercisese to prevent that from happening again. So...fingers crossed that solves the problem!  I have no pain at all anymore & I've been doing the stretching. I'm also going to improve our warmup before we run.  Up to now we've just been walking a couple blocks to a certain point & then starting to run...I'm going to start doing a good little stretching & calisthenics-type warmup before we leave the house so my legs are more ready to go. Then I'm going to stretch really well when we get home. No more half-assing the non-running stuff!

So tomorrow we run 10 minutes straight...shouldn't be bad as long as my knee behaves. Gotta fit the workout in amidst a flurry of house cleaning to prepare for Thanksgiving! I am so excited to have my family over!! It's going to be a great day :)

Well shit...

Today really kicked my butt! We were all set to do 6 intervals of 6 minutes each...I got through the first 4 no problem. In the 5th, my right knee started to hurt a bit & then got so bad I wasn't even able to finish that interval. Had to stop with 1:40 left, then walk through the 1-minute walk break. I tried to start running again at the beginning of the 6th interval but only made it about 30 seconds. After walking for several minutes, Steve got me going again just long enough to make up the time I missed. It hurt pretty badly just walking the cooldown back to the house. 

Steve, on the other hand, kicked ASS today!!! He only did the first 2 walk breaks, then ran through the rest PLUS ran an extra 6 minutes with me at the end. So he ended up running 33 minutes without stopping!! He could have run a 5k race today!! He was awesome! :)

Monday we only have to do a 10-minute straight run, and then a 15-minute run on Wednesday, so I'm hoping that'll be easy enough on my knee that I'll be back in good shape by next Saturday's run. It is way too early in the game to be having this kind of problem, damn it!

Well, short post today because we've gotta hop in the shower & get our Christmas tree up!! w00t!!

BIG dreams!

So, on Saturday we ran 7 intervals of 5 minutes each. Steve did so great!! He decided to skip the last 3 walk breaks...so he ran for 18 minutes straight. I followed suit for the last 2 walk breaks, so for me it was 12 straight. It was raining the entire time, and by the time we got home we were drenched through every layer of clothes! Not to mention the several times I stepped right into puddles, so my feet were squishing in my shoes. But it was still wonderful! We ran the equivalent of more than a 5k, only with a few walk breaks...so now we know we can do it!

We are both so proud & envious of our friends who ran a half marathon the same day in Valpo. Next year we will be there too!! But we have a LONG way to go before then. We just got home from driving a 10k route around town (6.2 miles), and that's really far...and a half marathon is over twice that distance. So we're dreaming really big right now. But that's good...it's our motivation to keep going & to keep pushing & to stay committed.

We decided to host our family Thanksgiving this year & I'm SOOO excited about it! I think it'll be a really fun time and I'm excited for Uncle Tom and Aunt Jayne and the boys to see our house & meet the puppies. Steve's making 3 different types of stuffing, and I'm making green bean casserole and an eclair dessert...not to mention a bunch of appetizers, most of which are not Thanksgiving-y at all LOL (nacho cheese dip & hot seafood dip, for example!) It's gonna be awesome!

Well....back to work. One of my professors has asked me if she can put an activity I designed on the website to share with the other TAs, so I have to format an instruction sheet for it. How exciting! (no, seriously!) Steve calls me the Marco Rubio of the French department...he's an up-and-coming Republican politician. Grampa would be proud :)

Building up, slowly but surely!

None of these fonts are girly enough for me right now ;) 

Gosh it feels good to get in shape! Today we ran 5 intervals of 5 min running/1 min walking. I love discovering new things together, like how your legs feel really heavy at the beginning of the run but they get lighter as you go.  We're starting to get to the point where we doubt the necessity of the 1 minute of walking in between intervals, because it seems like it would be easier to just keep the momentum going. But it's easy to see how the schedule builds you up gradually to running it all without stopping...and that means it's important now to take the breaks & let the schedule work to build our endurance. It's pretty ingenious.

I had a sleepover at Gramma's house last night, that was fun :)  I went there for supper when I got done with school for the day and we got to visit for a couple hours before I had my first rehearsal for Illumination, which is the ensemble I'm singing in with the LaPorte County Symphony Orchestra, from 8-10.  It was really great to see some familiar faces from back when I took voice lessons & to get to sing in an ensemble again. I'm excited about the concert! Then I went back to Gramma's and we chatted a little bit, but it wasn't long before I was yawning so we hit the hay.

School's going pretty well...I'm finally caught up on all my grading, which is a relief. Of course, now they're taking a test Friday so there goes not having any grading to do! I'm doing really well in my 3 classes...pretty sure I have As in all of them. The best part is that the finals for each of them are projects that I turn in or present the last week of class. So the only thing I have to do finals week is give the final to my 202 classes & finish grading.

Our anniversary is going to be a short but sweet affair this year. The night before it I have my LCSO concert & the day after Steve has his final exam for his tax prep class. Oh well!  We're still going to head into the city & have an expensive dinner at a steakhouse....haven't decided which one yet, though.

Back to work!  This Saturday, we're running 7 intervals of 5 minutes each. That means 35 minutes of running, which is about how long it should take us at the end of this to run a whole 5k!! I can see the light at the end of the tunnel....oh wait! We already picked out a training schedule for a 10k to start as soon as we get to the 5k level :) :) Man are we crazy!

P.S.

I totally want to run in Disney's Wine & Dine Half Marathon next Sep 30-Oct 1!! WE CAN DO IT!!

Running is an investment in our health...yeah, that's right...

Phew! We just got home from Fleet Feet Sports in Schererville, and I will not talk about how much money we just spent on running gear...Steve got new shoes (which he needed so badly!) and a pair of gloves, and I got a new sports bra (which I needed so badly!) and a long sleeved shirt & gloves. We definitely need to look at this as an investment in our health and future, because invest we did! But I'm so excited to run tomorrow, and it's mostly because I can't wait to see how Steve's shins do with better shoes!! He's going to be feeling so much better I think. Maybe one day I'll be able to get some shoes...but for now the ones I have are perfectly fine. They're very new still, since I just bought them for the Avon Walk in June and didn't really do much with them since then until we started training 6 weeks ago. Even though they're walking shoes, I haven't had the least bit of pain or discomfort. Maybe for Christmas... :)

On the weight loss side of things, I got measured for my new sports bra & and I'm a 34 D! Who knew?? A while back I was told I was a 36 DD, which was probably true at the time, but having lost 20 pounds things have certainly changed. But Lordy, it's hard finding bras in that size...they assume that just because you're a bigger cup size you are also bigger around...so to match a 34 with a D can be tough. But what a problem to have! :)

Steve is making hungarian goulash tonight...it's simmering away in the kitchen right now & it smells yummy! We're pairing it with either whole grain pasta or brown rice...think I'll do the rice myself. Yay for getting in shape and eating yummy healthy things!!

Team Becker, kickin' ass!

w00t!!!! On Wednesday we ran 10 minutes straight, and today we ran 15 minutes straight! That might not sound like much, but we are super stoked! The 10 minutes seemed almost too easy...I even remarked afterward that I felt like we hadn't done enough that day. However! Today, it was tough enough getting to 10, let alone 15! It was a tough run, and I learned a good lesson about taking it easy in the beginning so I can finish strong. It didn't feel like I was pushing too hard, but around 9 minutes I had a hard time imagining 6 more! Then I hung back at a slower pace for a few minutes, and was able to resume my pace for the last couple minutes.

On a life note, Steve drove down to Purdue with me & we had dinner at Blue Nile, then went shopping for a while when we got home. I got a nice new dress for my event with the LaPorte County Symphony Orchestra in December & a new pair of running pants! Great day :)

We're gettin' there!

We're getting there!! We just got back from running 6 sets of 4-minute intervals, phew! I'm really surprised that I have no trouble breathing...I don't really have any pain either, knock on wood. There's a slight twinge in my right knee from time to time, but we sort of slacked on our glucosamine last week w/everything that was going on so we're just now getting back on track there.  Not that I have any idea whether that really helps or not, but from a few other people's experiences I've read about online, they never really knew whether it was helping until for some reason they stopped taking it for a while and saw a difference. So we figure better safe than sorry. As far as I can tell there aren't any reasons not to take it...no health issues.  I'm really excited for (or dreading, I can't tell) Wednesday. It'll be our first what I call "experimental run," where instead of doing intervals we try to run steadily for 10 minutes! I think we can do it!

Otherwise, things are all right...slowly but surely getting back on track. I got a good chunk of my grading done this weekend, and as long as I'm diligent about doing the rest next weekend, I should be doing great school-wise.  Gotta take tonight to get a couple homework assignments done while Steve's at his tax class, one of which is writing a test for my level.  Man does that suck. I already did one draft of it, but I've been told I took too much stuff from the past semesters' exams...so I guess I have to go back & change some more.  It's so silly; all the prior tests look exactly the same just with different character names & slightly different sentences. But whatever!

Anywho! Next post I'll be blogging about how our 10-minute run went :)  Wish us luck!!!

Running to heal the soul...

Well it's been a few days since I last blogged. It's been a really tough 10 days. On Thursday the 21st my Grampa B went to the emergency room because he was feeling so weak he couldn't get out of bed. He had just recently finished chemo treatments for cancer in his brain, lungs & back...he'd felt weak the whole time, but it had gotten to a point he felt was urgent. So after running some tests they figured out that he had pneumonia. Steve & I went and saw him that night in the ER, and we went back to visit him on Saturday in his room on the oncology unit. He was obviously very weak, but overall he didn't seem too bad, especially after he got a roommate who was in the process of passing away. I came away that day thinking Grampa didn't look too bad compared to that guy!

Unfortunately, for reasons I guess we'll never know, he got progressively worse by that evening, to the point that we never got to speak to him again. He had so much trouble breathing they put an oxygen mask on him, and he was only semi-conscious. We spent pretty much the entire day at the hospital with him on Sunday...he was able to occasionally indicate yes or no to certain questions by nodding (I think), but for the most part he lay there asleep.

Monday morning, my mom called to let me know that the doctor found out the top of Grampa's right lung had collapsed, and suggested taking him off the oxygen. Everybody came to the hospital who could, and once we were all there they took him off the oxygen. My Gramma, mom & 2 uncles stayed in the room with Grampa while the rest of us waited next door. It didn't take more than 20 minutes before he passed away.

Since then we've had a lot of good family time together...and isn't it sad that it takes someone dying for that to happen? But I'm glad we could all be together to help Gramma get through these past few days. We've been able to laugh a lot together at how prepared Grampa was for his own death...he left Gramma very specific instructions on how to do everything. He even picked out his own pallbearers & typed up a sheet with bullet points of what to include in his obituary. He created his own slide show of pictures to show at the visitation and burned it onto a CD, along with burning a CD of the version of Amazing Grace he wanted us to play at the end of his funeral service. He was an amazing man.

There was so much going on this week that it was hard to get our runs in, but we've managed to somehow stay on schedule. We ran what we should have run on Monday on Wednesday...then switched our Wednesday run to today...etc etc so that by the week after next we'll be back to running on the days we're supposed to, without having skipped any. I know Grampa would want me to keep up with it, because he was a man who did what he said he was going to do. And he was so happy to see me looking so healthy & trim, as he just said a week ago in the hospital. 

I'm so behind with my school work right now, and have so many things that I have to get done...it's easy to get overwhelmed. And I was feeling very overwhelmed before we ran today...it's amazing how much better I feel after getting that exercise. Running is good therapy, and it makes me feel better body & soul. Not to mention how much I need it after all the crap I ate this past week!!  It's amazing all the food people bring when a loved one has passed away.  And I don't think any of it really fit the parameters of the Belly Fat Cure, lol.

I LOVE YOU, GRAMPA!!

Happy happy girl :)

Kickass discovery today! After we got home from our run, while I was taking my shower I realized that my quad muscles are starting to be defined! My thighs look shapely, rather than just lumps of muscle & fat. w00t!

As for the run itself, holy Lord (as Doris W would say)! It was a toughie. We're on 3 minute intervals this week, and we did 6 of them today. We were certainly ready to be done by the end of it. On the upside, Steve's shins didn't hurt as badly as they did on Monday. We keep looking ahead on the schedule, and marvelling at what we're going to have to do soon! Next week is 4 minutes intervals, but the week after that we have to run for 10 minutes straight, eek!  But I'm sure once we get there it'll be easier than it seems now.

I'm a bit overwhelmed with schoolwork lately. And the homework isn't even what's tough. It's doing all the grading for the 2 classes I teach. Right now, I've got a pile of compositions and short paragraphs and quizzes to grade. I'll have to spend the whole weekend on it to get out from under it. Gotta catch back up before we near the end of the semester, because then I'll have final projects to do!  Blech.

But! Today was a gorgeous fall day, and I got to run with my hubby. And my mom is doing the Belly Fat Cure now, and she's already lost 4 pounds in just a couple days!! She's doing awesome :) Good stuff!

Not much time to blog...probably going to spend the next 5 hours grading, eek!

We just got back from our first run doing 3 minutes straight...5 intervals of 3/1. It really wasn't too bad! Steve is having problems with his shins/calves though...we're researching how to prevent and treat shin splints. Most of the info says it's usually due to pushing too hard, but I highly doubt that's the case. I think he really needs new shoes...alas, $100 for running shoes is really not in the cards right now. So he's gonna have to concentrate on strengthening his shin muscles, and stretching them.

As for me, I did really great today I think. I'm surprised by how little trouble I have breathing...I'm sure it's because our intervals are so short thus far, but still! I think I'm keeping a good pace, and my body is adjusting really well. I'm very happy with my progress :)

All right, back to the grading! w00t!

Never too busy to run...

w00t!! Today is a busy damn day! We have the Annual Becker Halloween Bash tonight, and in the past few weeks we have not been able to scrape together any time to get ready for it. So last night and the night before I spent a few hours after school cleaning, blech! So far this morning we've done a bunch of grocery shopping and most of the rest of the cleaning, and Steve got all the food ready. But we still have to clean the bathroom & the kitchen, and DECORATE! Phew!

Howeva :) we still made time to get our run in!! We just got back from doing 2 minute intervals x 10. Steve had some trouble in the beginning with his ankle, and I got one hell of a stitch in my right side...I made the mistake of trying to breathe really big to try & get rid of it (while I was running) and ooooh, I felt like I might die! The strange part is the pain started pretty early on...oh well, I pushed through with the help of some deep slow breathing while I ran. In the last minute of the run, I really pushed to run faster, and it felt great! My legs really enjoyed getting to stretch out & go.

Well! Gotta go eat something & finish preparing to PARTAYY! I hope we both make it through the night without falling asleep!

And our running success continues!!

w00t! We just got back from a 25-minute session...we ran 2 minutes at a time, then walked 1, and repeated that 8 times. And at the end, we pushed ourselves to run 3 minutes. We're doing great! We get tired and we start to get winded, but nothing unbearable, and we recover quickly during our 1 minutes breaks. I'm constantly amazed by how well the schedule works to build your endurance so that what seemed impossible the week before becomes almost easy once you get to it. 

I've been reading that one of the most important things in running is to eat something within an hour of your run in order to help your body recover and to replace the glycogen your body used, so I've been making sure to have a little carb/protein balanced snack when we get back. Now, I'm making sure not to eat too much, because let's be honest...I was only running for 17 minutes off and on. So I'd put on weight if I pigged out when I got home, lol.

I can't wait to get my first issue of Runner's World! It will facilitate my obsession :)

Running like a crazy...I mean, like crazy!

Hey guys!  I have never had a desire to have a blog, but Steve and I started running 2 weeks ago today, and I find myself wanting to talk and think about it...a LOT.  So, rather than annoy everybody on FB by making my every status update about running, I thought I'd start a blog. About running mostly...but also life in general.

I'm feeling fabulous lately! We started a diet, sorta randomly, back in...idk, April or May called the Belly Fat Cure. It's a really awesome diet, because it's easy. You still get to have a good amount of carbs, you just make them whole grain. And you really cut back on sugar...to the tune of 15g a day, which is a tiny amount. It's much easier to follow and much less restrictive, so you really stick to it and it works!  And there are plenty of sugar-free alternatives out there for when you get a sweet tooth. Anyway, since then I've lost about 20 pounds, and gone from size 12 to size 8!

When we started the diet (I'd rather say lifestyle really, but that sounds so cliche!), I also started creating my own little workout routine at home...I have a set of hand weights, and I bought one of those big fitness balls for situps, etc. and I just started doing my own thing. Which worked pretty well in combo w/the diet, but then came school!  I got so busy with homework & grading that the exercise sorta went out the window. That is, until Steve & I took the dogs for a walk a few weeks ago...

The dogs had so much energy that we ended up running for a few blocks at a time, which gave me the desire to change our walking to running!  So I went home and googled training schedules for a 5k...we found a nice easygoing 12-week schedule and started the next day. 

The first 2 weeks consisted of 1/1 intervals...one minute running then one minute walking. We progressed from 5 to 8 to 10 intervals the first week, and then from 10 to 12 to 15 intervals the second. Today, we upped the time to 2/1: 2 minutes running then 1 minute walking, and did that 6 times. It's a pretty ingenious system for non-runners (and that's US!)....it really develops your endurance slowly but surely.

Steve is an amazing partner in life. It was my decision to start running. Of course, I would have loved to have him do it with me, but I never asked him to. He just jumped right in, and he continues to push us just a little bit further. In our first 2 weeks, there were several times that he pushed our final interval to 2 minutes so we could finish strong. And today, for our first day at 2 min at a time, we pushed ourselves to do 3 on the last interval. He likes to give me a lot of shit about not liking to run, but I think he's just letting me be the strong one :) 

I've been doing a lot of reading about running...I even signed up for 2 free trial issues of Runner's World, which really cracked Steve up. But for me, it has to sort of become an obsession or I won't care enough to do it.  We're taking Glucosamine so our joints stay healthy, and I make Steve stretch afterward so we don't get injured.  I feel better already, physically and mentally!  I think it was helpful to get into the diet for several months first so that I was at a healthier weight and ready to take it to the next level. I feel healthier, and I feel excited about being healthy. And I'm especially excited about doing it all alongside my husband :)