Fried Rice

FRIED RICE

1 box Uncle Ben's instant brown rice
1 lg or 2 sm veggie bouillon cubes
4 chopped green onions
1 can (8 oz) water chestnuts
~ 1/2 c. chopped bell pepper
Olive oil
Garlic powder
Reduced-sodium soy sauce

Cook rice according to package directions, adding bouillon with water.

Heat oil in large skillet. Fry green onions. Remove to big bowl. Fry water chestnuts. Remove to big bowl. Fry bell pepper. Remove to big bowl. Fry rice in batches. Add to veggie mixture. Season to taste with garlic powder, soy sauce, and salt if necessary.

Monday's Food

"Breakfast" - 1/2 cup coffee w/usual (boys woke up early and I was exhausted and the thought of food made me nauseous!)
Lunch - chicken breast in usual salad; Ghirardelli square
Before supper - small piece of french bread (plain)
Supper - carrots w/butter and salt; fried rice; double chocolate muffin

I bought a 2 lb bag of organic carrots today and that's what I cooked tonight. They were so sweet! I had bought some organic baby carrots (REAL baby carrots) a while back and cooked them for the boys and they were sweet too! That's why I tried the regular ones. I'll definitely be buying them again :) Curious to see if they're sweeter as a general rule...

C25k - Day 6

Today was the warmest weather I've worked out in so far - hovering right around 70. The track was pretty busy! Guess everyone wanted to enjoy the warm sun before the cold front and rain tomorrow.

I still went out a little hard the first 3 intervals but not too bad. I didn't feel like I had fully caught my breath by the time my next jog started. Despite that, I found it easier to get through the jogs. I can feel myself getting stronger :) My hamstrings and butt didn't start burning till the 7th jogging rep, and they didn't at all on the 8th, even though I wasn't going any slower. And... I finished the course in 23 minutes! I still had 30 sec of my last jog plus my last walk left when I got back to the beginning! And I wasn't struggling!

2 interesting things to note from today's workout:

1. Well... You know how I look at everyone's shoes. I saw my first pair of vff's :) A guy passed me going pretty fast on the side of the track and I noticed he was wearing kso's. He passed me, then went right down the grassy incline leading to the pond, then back up the other side. Perfect footing the whole time! He looked just as if he was running on flat ground.

2. Right as I got back to the beginning of the track (jogging), there was an older, overweight guy coming the opposite direction. He saw me and gave a friendly smile. I smiled back. As I passed him he said, "Good for you!" I replied, "THANK YOU!" in a surprised tone. Because I WAS surprised! And encouraged :) Yep, the fat girl is actually jogging LOL

Plan is to get 2 more workouts of Week 1 in this week, then move on to Week 2 next week.

I'm looking for a used double jogging stroller. Much harder workout pushing a stroller, but I would be able to go more often since I wouldn't have to rely on Jesse to watch the boys. New double joggers start at approx $200...

A Sunday of The Usual

Breakfast - coffee w/usual; apple
Lupper (later than usual, even for Sunday!) - homestyle buffet

Gonna be a busy week...

Saturday's Food

Thankfully it was much calmer today!

Breakfast - nothing (didn't wake up till 10, got milk/vitamins for the boys and me, fed Gabriel his bottle, then it was almost time to fix lunch!)
Lunch - tuna salad salad; Ghirardelli square
Snack - Annie's chocolate bunny grahams
Supper - pumpkin smashed taters; green beans (frozen) w/salt and drizzle of olive oil; double chocolate muffin

Bad Bad Day...

1/2 cup coffee w/usual
No breakfast
Lunch - chicken breast in usual salad; Ghirardelli square
Before supper - plain potato chips (a few)
Supper - Chili's - mushroom swiss burger on sesame bun (forgot to ask for wheat bun) w/mayo, lettuce, tomato - ended up w/double cheese, double shrooms; slice of Hershey's pie

C25k - Day 5

I have been really frustrated at not being able to work out more often. I even started pricing double jogging strollers so I could bring the boys with me.

This afternoon Jesse said it was too pretty of a day for me not to go run so I went :)

The temperature was hovering in the upper 50s with an intermittent cold wind. I wore my cool weather gear for the first time - cotton leggings and a fleece zip-up jacket (no hood). I unzipped my jacket for my last couple intervals and took it off completely after my last jog. But I was really glad I had it! I wasn't really hot at the end, but I was getting warm and knew I'd be okay without it.

With my stomach being upset and painful this morning (MSG reaction), I decided to take it real easy. And surprisingly, it only took me about 1 minute longer to finish the course! I ran it today like I'm supposed to. I just have such a hard time with feeling really good and going out strong for the first couple instead of pacing myself. I'm trying to find the line between pushing myself and overdoing the beginning to the point where I'm struggling bad at the end.

So here's my confession... I people-watch on the track. But I'm watching the other people who are on the track. And I'm pretty much just looking at their shoes :P I have yet to see anyone else wearing VFF's. But an acquaintance told me last weekend that she knows people who have them, and sees them a lot at the health club she goes to. I've been thinking that if anyone wears them on the track I use, they probably are the more serious, early-morning runners.

I did have something interesting happen today while at the track. I noticed a guy at the stretch-bars about midway through my workout. He looked to be in his 50s, overweight, wearing regular running shoes, but that's about all I noticed about him. Apparently he noticed me though. About a minute after I passed him, I was walking when I heard someone coming behind me at a slow jog. It was the guy I had seen. He caught up with me, looked toward my shoes and asked how I liked them. I told him, "Love them!" He said, "Love them?!" I repeated, "LOVE them! I've never been able to run before these!" He flashed a big smile and continued past me. That's the first time anyone's asked me about them out there. I wonder if I'm the only freak who looks to see what shoes everyone else is wearing LOL

Stupid Doritos

I started with an MSG reaction last night and it hit full force this morning. While I was wearing Gabriel in the Moby Wrap grocery shopping at Walmart... Ugh. I felt like my stomach would handle carbs better at lunch after it being upset (instead of protein which is harder to digest) so I switched my meals. I did fine with the carb meal at lunch and so far so good with supper :)

Breakfast - apple
Lunch - McDonald's fries; leftover peas w/butter; double chocolate muffin
Supper - 93/7 ground beef (Greek-seasoned) cooked w/onion; roasted butternut squash; Ghirardelli square

Tonight was the first time I've eaten or cooked a roasted butternut. I've had them cooked other ways, but OH. MY. GOODNESS!!! It was soooo good! I told Jesse I hope he liked it because I AM going to start cooking it that way more :)

Wednesday's Food

Breakfast - slice of dried pineapple (was in a hurry and it was convenient!)
Lunch - tuna salad salad; Ghirardelli square
Before supper - Doritos; Ghirardelli square - dark w/caramel
Supper (later) - battered mushrooms w/ranch; Cal veggies w/butter; double chocolate muffin

Past Few Days

Sunday started out fairly normal. Well, short of only getting 4 1/2 hours of broken sleep Saturday night :( Usual Sunday morning breakfast - fruit (apple) and 1/2 cup coffee w/ usual. Then out for lunch (Italian buffet). I wasn't hungry for supper so I didn't eat. And then...

I got a call from my mom. Long story short, she had a kitchen accident and ended up in the ER. Gabriel and I were there with her all night. By the time I brought her back home, it was after 5:30am. I was STARVING... I didn't want to eat a mixed food and the only drive-thru open was Burger King. So I got a large order of hash browns. I intended to save some of them for Jesse but ended up eating the whole thing. I went to bed soon after that and had no indigestion from them! Guess my stomach really was empty :P

Monday morning I got some broken sleep and then we went out to eat. Again :( I was so out of it from sleeping so little in two days that I could barely function. My one meal for the day was homestyle buffet.

Monday night was another night of broken sleep. I had to bring Mom to PT this morning and didn't have time to make coffee and really needed the caffeine! So the boys and I went to the donut shop by her PT place. At least I ate carbs only, and a full meal's time passed before lunch.

Breakfast - glazed donuts; cup of coffee w/sugar and liquid Coffee-Mate
Lunch - rotisserie chicken breast in usual salad; Ghirardelli square
Supper - leftover blackeyed veggie dip w/fries; double chocolate muffins (homemade, 100% oat flour)

Hoping to get some decent sleep tonight! Some people can function on little sleep but I can only do it for one day...

Pumpkin Smashed Taters

PUMPKIN SMASHED TATERS

~2 lbs red potatoes, unpeeled, cubed
1 can pumpkin
Butter
Salt
Cream
Parsley flakes
Green onions

Boil potatoes until tender. Drain. Mash with pumpkin, butter, salt, cream and parsley. Top servings with green onions.

Saturday's Food

Breakfast - apple
Lunch - grilled chicken breast (frozen) in usual salad; Ghirardelli square
Before supper - couple bites donut
Supper - Pumpkin Smashed Taters; small slice french bread w/butter; oatmeal chocolate chip cookies

SLEEP!

I haven't had a decent night's sleep in a week. When I got up this morning, I was EXHAUSTED. Dizzy, lightheaded, weak muscles, nauseous. So Jesse took the boys and let me go back to bed. I didn't wake up till after 1:30pm! Guess I needed it... Circumstances being as they were, I only ate one meal and didn't have time to get my run in.

5ish - lentils w/brown rice, celery, mozzarella, colby-jack, and round steak
Later - little bit of Nutella, chocolate chips, coconut, Reddi-Wip

Blackeyed Veggie Dip

I threw this together from leftover veggies in the fridge

BLACKEYED VEGGIE DIP

~6-7 oz mushrooms, sliced or chopped coarse
~3/4 red bell pepper, chopped
Butter
9 cherry tomatoes
2 green onions, sliced
1 can blackeyed peas, drained
Mayo
Chili powder
Salt

Saute mushrooms and bell pepper in butter. Place tomatoes, onions, and peas in food processor. Add sauteed veggies. Process until desired texture. Add rest of ingredients to taste and pulse to mix.

Serve with oven fries.

Thursday

Breakfast - apple
Lunch - chicken breast in usual salad w/grated carrots; Ghirardelli square
Supper - fries (frozen, cooked in oven) w/blackeyed veggie dip
Later - bittersweet ganache

C25k - Day 4 (Wednesday)

I decided to do Week 1 again since it had been a week and a half since my last workout. So glad I did! I may only get 2 in this week, but I'm okay with that.

I didn't feel energetic when I started but I didn't feel devoid of energy either. I did the same route I had been.

The first hiccup came when I looked down during my first running interval to see how long I had left... and the watch was still set from timing my 5-minute warm-up walk :( I had forgotten to switch it to the interval timer. So I ran 30-40 seconds (I'm guessing), realized my mistake, walked for the brief time it took me to reset the watch, then went straight into running the first interval. That may have had something to do with the struggle I had completing the workout, but it could also have been being gone all day Tuesday, ending with a 2-hour Walmart trip. Or not sleeping good the night before, and only getting about 5 hours the night before that...

I started struggling the 4th or 5th interval. And my hamstrings BURNED! But only for that interval. After that, I took it real slow. I was so tempted to walk the rest of the course but I completed all the intervals! The last few jogs were slower than my walks I think but I did them :p I couldn't have done too badly though - I still finished the 1 1/4 mile before the last interval finished :)

I took my usual 5-10 minutes to stretch after (it really does help my soreness later!) and I was still a bit out of breath when I got home. Even with taking those last intervals so slowly.

It was a bit discouraging to struggle that much, but I'm encouraged that I stuck with it!

Next run planned for Friday...

Wednesday's Food

Can I blame it on Jesse?! First, if he hadn't left the TV on ESPN I never would've seen the commercial. Then when I told him about it, he told me to get the kids dressed and let's go! :p

Breakfast - grapes
Lunch - tuna salad salad; Ghirardelli square
Supper - IHOP - over-easy eggs, hash browns, all-you-can-eat pancakes w/strawberry-flavored syrup
Later - decaf coffee w/almond milk, demarara, Reddi-Wip

Tuesday

Ended up being gone all day between bringing Mom to PT, lunch, and running errands. So no run :(

Breakfast - apple
Lunch - Italian buffet (Ethan's choice)
Supper - french bread w/butter; double dipped pretzel

Food Lately

Friday we went to my in-laws for supper. Ate on plan except for supper.

Saturday was a very emotional day and I spent most of the day nauseous. Ate grapes for breakfast, then we ordered in a cheat meal for supper.

Sunday we didn't make it to church. Late lunch of homemade (fairly healthy) pizzas. Bread and butter for supper.

Monday (today)
Breakfast - grapes
Lunch - grilled chicken breast (Tyson strips) in usual salad; Ghirardelli square
Supper - whole grain banana pancakes

Brrr...

The wind chill has hovered around 32 all day today. We were in the 70s last week, and will be in the 60s next week. I may go for a run if it's warmer tomorrow, but it was just too cold today :(

Weird Food Day

Except for a quick bottle, the boys and I slept till after 12! Then we all stayed in bed playing till almost 1. We were starving so we ended up going out to eat. By the time we got ready and got there and started eating, it was 3. It's after 9 now and I'm still full! I didn't stuff myself but I definitely didn't leave hungry :p

3pm - homestyle buffet

Wednesday Meals

Breakfast - grapes
Lunch - ground beef cooked w/onions and Essence in usual salad; Ghirardelli square
Supper - battered mushrooms w/ranch dressing; leftover crescent rolls
Later - pretzel rods dipped in Ghirardelli white and bittersweet chocolate

C25k

I was supposed to start Week 2 yesterday. But Jesse and the boys were sick and I couldn't. So I was going to start today after my haircut. But a friend had an emergency and needed help and I didn't get home in time :-(

Now my plan is to get whatever workouts in I can this week, repeating Week 1. We'll be going out of town soon for a funeral (expecting a call anytime) so my workouts will be messed up anyway.

Next week I'll start Week 2. Depending on how things go with being out of town, I may end up repeating it too.

My focus right now is on getting the workouts in consistently versus spending 7 calendar days on each Week. Trying to not be discouraged...

No Workout Today :(

Jesse and both boys were sick :(

Breakfast - banana
Lunch - chicken breast in usual salad; Ghirardelli square
Supper - Leftovers smorgasbord - creamy pumpkin pasta; peas (frozen, w/salt); fries (real ones) w/mayo and ketchup; better than crunch

Mom's Night Out!

Breakfast - apple
Lunch - tuna salad salad; Ghirardelli square
Later - Ghirardelli Espresso Escape square
Supper - Greek - fried kibbi w/dip; wheat pitas w/dip, hummus, yellow rice, gyro meat; 1 Jordan almond
Later - candy - dark chocolate w/caramel and sea salt; coffee - decaf w/chocolate and whipped cream

Sunday's Food

Jesse was sick, and it was windy, cold, and rainy. So we didn't make it to church. It ended up working out because the boys aren't feeling good either. They were both fussy and clingy. We ordered in for lunch and it took 4 phone calls and a lot of time. What a fiasco! It wasn't healthy but it was yummy ;-)

Noonish - coffee w/usual
4ish - fried seafood platter - catfish, shrimp, oysters, stuffed shrimp, stuffed crab, french bread, few fries, tartar sauce, ketchup
Little later - Ghirardelli squares w/peanut butter sauce (PB, powdered sugar, cream)
Later - apple cake

About Thursday's "Sickness"

I had an Aha! moment Thursday night when I realized what was going on... I was in a detox! I hadn't been eating on plan consistently the past few weeks but Sunday, Monday, Tuesday I ate out. Tuesday was on plan but it was still not food I cooked. Tuesday I worked out (outside), then Wednesday I ate on plan. And my body decided it was a good time for a detox day :-P

Once I realized that's what my "sickness" was, the way I was feeling made perfect sense!

It must've helped. The next day when I worked out is when I really pushed myself during those jogs and did fine with them :-)

C25k - Day 3

I got to the track about 2:30. I was COLD. It wasn't the temperature (60) so much as the gusts of cold wind! I put on my light jacket and zipped it up. Much better :)

I didn't start as strong as yesterday, but faster than Tuesday. The pace of my jogs was somewhere between the two. After the first interval, I unzipped my jacket. It was harder to run the way, but I was still a bit chilly. I started struggling during the third interval. During the third 90-second walk, I took off my jacket and tied it around my waist. I had warmed up a good bit and thought the cool air might invigorate me. It worked somewhat ;) After that 3rd interval I took the jogs pretty slow. It was the only way I was going to complete the session.

Some of the spots that were roped off on the track yesterday had fresh cement today. Some had dry cement. I wonder if they're doing pieces of the track at a time, changing it to all cement? I like running on the rocks but Jesse's told me that after a good rain, the track is really messed up for days. Maybe they're trying to make it more weather-friendly?

I felt like I did the course a lot slower today but I completed it in 24 minutes :) Not as good as yesterday, but still faster than Tuesday!

I think a lot of the reason I struggled some today was that it had been less than 24 hours since my workout yesterday. Less than 24 hours since I had pushed myself. I think my body just needed more time to recover. But it will be raining all day tomorrow, turning to sleet later in the day. Plus tomorrow is church and then lunch out. It's the day I totally don't eat on plan so not a good day to workout ;)

My right calf did okay before my workout. I felt it briefly once when I picked up Gabriel and put him on the changing table.

During my jogging intervals I felt my calves! They just seemed tight. Don't know what I could've done about that... Again, I think it was the lack of a full day's rest that did it. I made sure to stretch them extra good after and they've been fine since.

Saturday's Food

I wanted a cup of coffee this morning, just for taste. It's been almost a week since I had any! I didn't want to chance it affecting my run so I decided to wait till after supper and have decaf is I still wanted it. But supper was so yummy I didn't want it! You better believe I'll have a cup in the morning though ;)

Breakfast - apple
Lunch - Greek-seasoned ground beef in usual salad; Ghirardelli square
Before supper - 1/2 whole wheat bagel w/butter, salt, onion powder (was hungry shortly after my run)
Supper - pumpkin waffles w/sauce (made it with cane syrup instead of maple); 2 M&M's (not 2 packs, 2 individual ones LOL)

C25k - Day 2

After not being able to run Wednesday (too late when I got home, but I had planned on not running till Thursday anyway) or Thursday ("sick" - will explain in another post), I was looking forward to working out today! Mom's PT ran late, we all came here to eat, had to feed everyone, change diapers, give Gabriel a bottle... And Mom had a couple places she needed me to bring her on the way home. So while we were home, I changed into my workout clothes and brought my watch and water bottle. After I brought her home, I dropped the boys off here with Jesse and went to the park.

I finally made it there about 4pm! Much later than I had planned but better late than never, right?! I decided to start the course at the "beginning." It eliminated the walk to the track, I had a parking spot next to it, and there were good places to stretch after.

I started my timer and started walking. My feet felt so heavy! I had to really push through the warm-up. I kept thinking that if I could get to my first jogging interval, I'd be okay. I was a bit cold too, but I had decided that I probably wouldn't need my jacket once I got going. I regretted that decision for about 5 minutes but that's it LOL

I hit my first jogging interval and took off! Tuesday I purposely took it super easy. But since I got through that workout with no problems during and very little soreness after, I figured I could take this one harder. I felt like I NEEDED to. I don't know why. Maybe to prove to myself that I could do it. Anyway, my plan was to start at a fairly fast pace and slow down a bit when I needed to. So that's what I did. The first 30 seconds were fairly easy. I pushed through the last 30. When it came time to walk, I was breathing pretty heavy but recovered well within the 90 second walk. And I had been right! After that first jogging interval, I was fine :) Hard to believe the warm-up walk was the hardest part of today LOL

I took the first 4 jogging intervals a lot faster than Tuesday. A lot faster than I thought I could. And I did it! I made it through each one! By the time my 60 was almost over, I was jogging slowly. But I was still jogging!

I must have been going at a good pace. I finished about 2 minutes faster than last time! I did the 1.25 miles in approximately 24 minutes :D Parts of the track were closed (looked like maintenance-in-progress) but I was able to jog/walk on the side of it.

Some observations about today:

1. My Transitions lenses on my eyeglasses were extremely helpful today! Parts of the course were shady, parts were very sunny. My glasses self-adjusted accordingly and it was so nice!

2. Because I was running a bit harder, I noticed a big difference between how it felt on the sidewalk parts of the track versus the parts with rocks. The cement was easier to run on, but I think the rocks were easier on my body. The rock sections didn't seem to jar me as much.

3. My ankles let me know they were there a couple times, but nothing major.

4. It felt like my right calf was getting ready to cramp when I finished. I made sure to stretch it out good after. It stayed tight for a while after I got home but eventually loosened up.

All I can think of for now... If I add any more about today's workout, it will be below this paragraph.

Friday Food

The boys and I ran some errands while Mom did her PT then stayed in the car till she was done. Unfortunately, she was running late, and the parking lot faces the donut shop! Sigh... But I knew I would be running today and wanted to make sure I was fueled with good foods beforehand. Good thing, or we would've had donuts for breakfast ;)

Breakfast - banana
Lunch - rotisserie chicken breast in usual salad; Ghirardelli square
Supper - baked (nuked) red potato w/butter, salt, pepper; broccoli w/butter, salt; battered mushrooms w/ranch; better than crunch

Creamy Pumpkin Pasta

CREAMY PUMPKIN PASTA

12-16 oz whole wheat penne
4 c. rice milk
1/2 cornstarch
1 cup canned pumpkin
Cream (1/3-1/2 c?)
Salt

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and return to pot.

While pasta is cooking, make sauce. Heat 3 cups of rice milk over medium heat until hot. Mix cornstarch into remaining rice milk, whisking until smooth. Slowly whisk cornstarch mixture into hot rice milk. Cook over medium heat until thickened. Add pumpkin and cream and salt to taste. Heat.

Mix sauce into pasta.

*It looks like macaroni and cheese, and the texture is very similar!

Still Not Feeling Real Good

But better than this morning at least!

Breakfast - juice; Ritz wheat crackers
Lunch - tuna salad salad; Ghirardelli square
Supper - Creamy Pumpkin Pasta; crescent rolls; Better Than Crunch

No Run Today :-(

I'm still not feeling real good and despite wanting to do it, I don't think it would be a good idea. It's 3pm and I'm tired, still shaky, and slightly congested. I will probably be okay after a good night's sleep. I hope...

So the plan is to run Fri and Sat so I can get my 3 days in and start Week 2 on Monday.

I'm disappointed but I won't let it discourage me!

Update

It's a little after 11 now. I ended up eating about 6 or 7 crackers and have felt progressively better. Right now I'm hungry and my stomach is growling! Definitely good signs :-)

Tuna for lunch. I'm still shaky so I don't know that I'm confident using the stove :-P Plus there's a good bit of fat in the tuna salad (I use full-fat mayo). I need to give myself the best chance of feeling all better so I can get my workout in!

Thursday Morning

I guess my blood sugar's low this morning. Nauseous, dizzy, a bit disoriented, legs shaky and don't want to hold me up. Thinking maybe I didn't eat enough yesterday. The times this has happened, looking back at what I ate the day before, I probably didn't eat enough calories or fat. I think that's the case this time too.

I drank 10 oz juice to see if it would help. It did a bit. Usually I have to dilute that particular juice a lot because it's just so sweet. Today I drank it full strength and it didn't even taste overly sweet. Guess because my body needed it.

I ate a few wheat Ritz. They don't taste good to me but hopefully they'll help. Then when I feel up to it I'll fix some real food. Think I need something more than fruit for breakfast today! Especially with Day 2 of C25k later!

Wednesday's Food

My mom had a doctor's appointment so we ate lunch early to get her there on time. Then we were gone till about 630 running errands.

Breakfast - nothing (early lunch)
Lunch - 93/7 ground beef (Greek-seasoned) in usual salad; Ghirardelli square
Later - some apple
Later - one square Ghirardelli Espresso Escape
Supper - Subway - footlong veggie on wheat (tomato, spinach, onion, bell pepper, olives, mayo, mustard); small bag honey BBQ Fritos (150 calorie size); Ghirardelli square

Better Than Crunch

Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate chips
Erewhon crispy brown rice cereal (like Rice Krispies but made with organic brown rice)
Sea salt

Melt chocolate chips. Mix in desired amount of cereal. Spread in pan (I lined it with parchment paper). Sprinkle with sea salt. Place in freezer to harden. Cut into pieces and ENJOY!

Getting Back on Track

I've gotten away from posting my food journal lately. Partly because of things being so crazy, partly because I haven't been eating on plan consistently. And the scale shows it :-( I'm up 5 lbs which I'm not happy about, but it's not as bad as it could be! And with starting to work out, I have a feeling it won't take long to lose them :-)

Breakfast - nothing (woke up late and didn't have time to grab anything before we left)
Lunch - chicken breast in usual salad; Ghirardelli square
Supper - Chili's - veggie burger w/wheat bun, mayo, mustard, lettuce, tomato; fries w/ketchup; broccoli/carrots; Better Than Crunch

C25k - Day 1

It looked like it wasn't going to happen. I had tummy issues (TMI - liquid tummy issues). I couldn't find my only sports bra. I didn't know what I was going to do with my keys. I had never been on the track at the park. It was getting late and we still hadn't been able to get me time to do it.

But I did it!!!

I went even though my stomach didn't feel so good - and had no problems with it :) Jesse told me to go buy another bra - I found mine :) I pulled out a workout shirt I had bought years ago with the best of intentions but only used a couple times - it had a zipper pocket big enough for my cell and my keys :) Jesse told me to stop and pick up supper on the way home since we were in a time crunch :)

I arrived at the park and found a parking spot near the track. I zipped my cell and keys into the shirt pocket and decided to start where the track crosses the park entrance I came in at.

The track itself is hard to describe. Almost like packed dirt with small, loose rocks on top. Some of the rocks are packed into the dirt, but most are not. There are very short stretches of sidewalk interspersed throughout but these are few and far between. Part of the reason I chose to start where I did was because there was a stretch of sidewalk there before I hit the rocks.

So I started walking. Started my timer for 5 minutes. Walked at a pretty good pace. When the timer went off, I switched the watch to interval mode and started my first jog. I had no problem with the first 40 seconds of each jogging interval, and the last 20 were not so hard that I felt like I really had to press through. Don't get me wrong - I enjoyed those walking breaks ;) About 20 seconds into each walk, I found myself taking one very deep breath. Any other time I tried to take one, it felt uncomfortable. But for some reason my body just did it at that time. It wasn't something I did consciously. Every time though it felt so good and refreshing! Like my body knew exactly when the optimum time was that it would be the most beneficial. I took the second jog a bit harder, only because it felt good to. The rest I took nice and easy. I tried not to let the other people passing me on the track intimidate me. My goal wasn't to be fast - It was to finish!

When I finished my last walking interval, I went to stopwatch mode because I was curious how long it would take me to walk the rest of the track back to where I started. I knew I needed to walk a couple more minutes to make sure I was cooled down. So I started the stopwatch. And it only took a little more than 1 minute! The track is 1.25 miles long and I completed a full lap in approximately 26 minutes. For being 185 lbs, out of shape, never having jogged before, and wearing new shoes, I think I did pretty good with my pace!

The shoes... Oh. My. Goodness. That was the first time I've ever tried to jog/run and actually felt comfortable doing it! I guess regular shoes and I just don't get along LOL I was a bit concerned with how stable my ankles and knees would be on the loose rocks with no support but they did great! I felt my bad knee a couple times, just like a "hey, I'm here," but I guess my body self-corrected. I barely felt my ankle once or twice. When I ran, what I felt was my hips and butt, not my ankles and knees :) That's HUGE for me! The only issue with my shoes was that near the beginning I managed to get a rock stuck between two of my toes. Um, between two of the toe-holders I guess LOL But I realized it after only a couple strides and it came right out.

When I got back to the beginning of the track, I walked back to my car and did some stretches nearby. There was a statue of some sort that was a good height to hold onto to help stretch. I only stretched for a few minutes but I didn't feel that tight. From there I went to pick up supper.

Since I got home, my hips are a bit sore but that's it. I'll probably feel it a bit in other places tomorrow.

Overall though, I feel surprisingly good! I didn't get a runner's high (I've had them before from doing other types of exercise), but I definitely felt good :) It was a huge sense of accomplishment!!!

I GOT THEM!!!

So I started the day knowing I measured a 33-35. Tried a 34 that I couldn't even get on my foot. Drove an hour to a store that had a 35 and a 36.

I tried the 35 first. Couldn't get it on at all! Tried the 36. I got it on but it felt really tight. One of the employees came to help me. He said that it would be hard to tell if they were too tight. But that I should be able to tell when a pair was too loose. Then I could go back down from there. Next size was a 37. I tried them on and they felt so much better! My foot didn't feel cramped up at all! He checked them and said they definitely were not too big and looked to be a good fit, but that it was ultimately up to me and how they felt. And oh yeah, somewhere in here he remeasured me. Right foot measured a 34-35. BUT my left foot (that hadn't been measured) was a 36-37! No wonder I couldn't get the smaller ones on that foot!

These are the ones I got http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/products/Five-Fingers-KSO-Womens.htm Ain't they purty?! LOL I'm excited to start working out in them!

Maybe?!

None of the stores in town had KSO's that fit me :-( I measured a 33-35. I tried a pair of 34 today and with my toes all the way in, the rest of my foot was too long. So at least I know I'm bigger than a 34!

Next closest place to carry them is about an hour away. I called a while ago and they have 35 and 36! So I'm headed there shortly :-) Just gotta get the boys and I packed up and ready. My mom's coming to help with the boys while I try them on.

I have a cuddly baby sucking on a bottle in my lap right now. Soon as he's done I'll start getting us ready.

I will be really upset if I don't come home with shoes! Looks like there's little chance of that happening though :-D

Barefoot Running

This is a good article consolidating the research I found http://www.corefitnesswellington.co.nz/barefoot/this-is-your-foot-this-is-your-foot-on-drugs/

The Quest for Shoes...

I know what shoes I want. For various reasons, I decided on the Vibram Fivefingers KSO. If anyone wants to know why, leave a comment asking :)

The problem is, I'm having a hard time finding them! Stores around here are running out and haven't been able to get more in. There was a store open today that had some that were too big but I tried them on to get a feel for whether I would like them or not. They will take some getting used to, but I think they will work really well for me! I tried on a pair of the Classic style but even though the shoe itself was too big, they were too tight across the top. Didn't want them anyway LOL The store called their other location an hour away but they didn't have any in the 3-size range I measured.

There are two other stores in town that carry them. I'll be calling both tomorrow to see if they have any in my size. I may end up trying other cities (about 1 hour away in opposite directions from each other). Something I read was getting them from amazon.com and returning them if they didn't fit. I guess that would be my last choice but it may be the only one...

Jesse tried on a couple styles too. And liked them! He preferred the Sprints. So we're also looking for some in his size. We won't be getting them yet, but if he finds what size he is, we can order them when we have the money.

We did get a watch today though to time intervals - a Timex Ironman. Jesse had one years ago but it didn't "take a licking and keep on ticking" forever ;)