What am I doing Here?

 

Wow. Look at this. We're back. And I don't mean for now. I mean maybe I will make this a regular thing. It may not all be about nutrition and food as you have discovered by now, but hey, not like you're reading this in its entirety anyway. We have been here long enough to realize this blog is really a stream of consciousness for me. 

You know what I have also been doing lately besides thinking about writing again? Running. Pretty sure I haven't mentioned it on this blog, but I gave up running for a while. Mostly because I realized I am almost 40 and my body cannot take much of that impact anymore, but also because my back was being dumb and I could not physically run without pain. Chalk it up to my previous pregnancies, carrying 3 babies on my hip at once, or all of my crazy dance moves, but something causing degenerative disc.  This has been ongoing for about 3 years. 

About 3 months ago I was talking to a couple of friends about how running has been difficult, but I am trying to get back into it and yada, yada, yada... and somehow the conversations escalated into beginning to train for a half-marathon. And I must have been drinking or something because I thought that sounded like a great idea. At the time I had been running with a friend 2-3 miles 2-3 times per week, but only on a soft, springy track which was all my back could handle. Luckily she is a really good friend and triathlete, and is also crazy, so she was totally up for increasing mileage and following a 12-week 1/2 marathon training plan. So here we are - down to 5 weeks left. Our longest run has been 8 miles, still 5 miles less than the race distance. But the crazy part is that my back doesn't hurt. I am calling it a win. They say with arthritis, it actually helps to just keep moving, and the more you move, the better you feel. This has a few exceptions of course as most things do, but overall it has helped me tremendously. I do not wake up with a stiff back every single day anymore and I can actually run on sidewalks again - realizing how much faster I am on a soft, springy track. 

Instead of rambling on about my back troubles, I will ramble on about how running has helped me mentally. The last month has had it's challenges emotionally, so I have also been running on sleep deprivation, alcohol, and  adrenaline. If I can train this way, I am sure to be able to complete this 1/2 marathon! I mean, you can ask me about nutrition, but not about the healthiest way to train for a race. This past month a significant, meaningful event has hit my family and it makes everyday mundane stuff seem trivial. Life is short. But somehow running and training for something make it a bit more exciting. I have mentioned before that running is like therapy to me. I do not get that experience with any other exercise. This month, my running friend, and the running itself have been a constant and something I have leaned on for support more than I realized. 

Find something like that. Find an exercise that brings you more joy than pain, and that is something you look forward to doing and can bring new challenges. It can be dancing, swimming, jumping on a trampoline, etc. 

This 1/2 marathon will be interesting - I am 9 years older and wiser than the last one. That also means my body has been through 2 pregnancies, 3 kids, and through the ringer since the last one. Here goes nothing.