I love honey bees.

The L.A. marathon was today! I had hoped to go, but I couldn't get over in time. I wanted to cheer for people at the finish line :( Oh well. Next time. Today hasn't been an "amazing" day, but was alright. 

My husband and I drove over to Fillmore to look at the orchards and browse the fruit stands. I love them! They're so cool! We also went to a honey farm and tasted all kinds of honey. I adore honey bees! I'm serious. It used to be my dream to have a honey bee farm; I've been catching bees in my hands since I was 18 months old. Although, it took a lot of stings and about six years for me to perfect the practice. Poor bees. When my mom asked what I did to the bees that stung me, I'd always answer that I punished them by tearing their wings off so they'd have to walk everywhere the rest of their lives, which is short as it is since stinging something is a death sentence. How hideous was I?! I haven't been stung in about 16 years, but I still catch 'em and play every chance I get. The secret is to cup them in your hands, but be very careful not to squish them. If you do it that way, they never sting. 

I'm putting together a small package for my sister, and I think it turned out quite well. I bought a cheapo mug, some fresh ginger from a fruit stand and Eucalyptus honey from the honey farm. I'm wrapping it up all pretty; then, I'll put instruction on how to make fresh ginger tea. She feels a little sick from time to time, and ginger tea is awesome for nausea and circulation! 

Anyhow, I think I got dehydrated today. I didn't drink much water until late afternoon, and by the time I realized I was thirsty I was in the kitchen guzzling it by the gallon. Dang. When I'm thirsty, I. Am. Thirsty! Not too long after that, I started to feel sluggish and swollen all over. Eh, not a good feeling. I won't be doing this again any time soon. lol

We had an earthquake today, which is a HUGE deal for me! I'm so happy I slept through it; if I'd been awake, I would have had a category 5 melt down. I'm sure I'll experience one sooner or later.....hopefully, later. Its still scary to this Texan. All I have to say is...yes. A hurricane is no picnic, but at least you can trust the ground you're running away on. I miss Texas and my family.  

My Texas home. http://lma-artisan.blogspot.com/

Operation breakthrough-executed. Outcome = I. ♥. Running.

Yeah...running is still hard and painful, but something....has changed. Oh my heck! I love running so! It's such a free, rewarding feeling. I get so excited that I can't wait to run again on my running days. I've had a couple of breakthroughs during my last few runs. I'm so thankful to have the guidance of Runner's World magazine; I find so many useful and inspiring ideas and stories from there. So, I've changed things up a little with both my diet and my work out.

Workout:

• Monday-Run 2 miles
• Tuesday-Yoga X training
• Wednesday-Run 1.5 miles
• Thursday-Yoga X training
• Friday-speedwork = repeats and drills
• Saturday-Long/Easy run = total miles through out the week
• Sunday-Recovery day

*I change my programs week to week depending on what needs to be altered

With my running, I've changed my perspective completely. I used to push myself really hard until running was a dreaded chore, and when I didn't perform well, which I NEVER performed "well", I'd feel guilty and worthless. Then, I'd skip running for at least a few days. I blared my music loud to drown out the pain and negative thoughts constantly running through me, and I wouldn't eat before or after runs. Finally, I never warmed up before running or stretched afterwards. What an idiot! I couldn't have been more wrong about how to run successfully; I set myself up for a fall.

I never knew running could feel how it does to me right now! I will go so far as to say that I had the best run of my life today, just from small, simple changes over the last week. First, I eat a small snack with carbs to get some energy, whole wheat bread and almond butter today. Then, I did a light 10 minute warm up session with butt kicks, legs swings, walking lunges and some other movements, NOT stretches mind you. I also warmed up with a brisk 5 minute walk. I ditched my watch and concentrated solely on my body and what it was telling me. AND I left my Ipod at home; that decision made a HUGE difference for me. Regardless of the fact that I'm a music freak and love it dearly, I found that music was distracting me to the point that I was missing vital cues my body was sending me. For the first time ever, I did what my body asked, and guess what? It knows what it's doing. 

Today, I ran longer, with more energy and more breath than I ever have. My husband noticed the drastic difference within the first 5 minutes of running. If I got winded to the point that I couldn't speak to him comfortably, I held back some until I got my breath back. Also, when I felt the need to walk, I would kick it into hire gear for thirty seconds or so. After which, I did NOT allow myself to stop and gasp; I kept my breath as even as possible and lightly walked until I was relatively comfortable again. After awhile, my body adapted to the speed bursts and it wasn't so hard. Finally, when I finished my run, I stretched out really well and ate a piece of whole wheat toast with peanut butter and banana slices on top. Delish! And I feel wonderful! Not like I want to peel my clothes off and die, which is a HUGE turn around for me. I'm so excited! Thank you Runner's World! Also, I swapped out my Friday run day for speed training at the track, usually with repeats and drills.

With my diet, the progress is much more slow, but it's there. And I can feel it. Here are a couple of articles that I found insightful by Mark Bittman:

• http://www.runnersworld.com/article/1,7124,s6-242-303--13283-0,00.html
• http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-242-300--13284-0,00.html

I have decided to cut back on animal products some and consume more plants and fruits, while still avoiding sugar, processed food and white breads and pastas like the plague. I've been concentrating on getting more of my protein through veggies, nuts and beans. I have so much more energy, and I feel great! Also, I drink water, water, WATER!' Then, I drink more water.

Yoga is also going well. In addition to Runner's World, I also subscribe to Yoga Journal, which is very insightful and useful tabout how  to make my Yoga practices more personal and molded to my needs. Overall, things are going great. My knee ached some in the beginning of my run today, but it wore off after a few minutes. I love this new relationship with running...its...amazing! The difference is crazy, and it shows in my personality and day to day life. Before breaking my barrier, I shut myself in this little bubble of self doubt, criticism and anger. I forced myself into a mold that just wouldn't fit. Running is still painful and still a major challenge. But I'm loving the feeling of working hard and finding my barriers and smashing them. Through the changes I've made so far, I now feel....free. Happy, content, blissed out...being in my head is no longer a bad place to be when I'm running. How lovely! Thank you body! I so appreciate you!

A Good Day of Troubles and Victories...

Today was filled with torture....and sweet success! I fought and conquered a myriad of troubles today. I was faced with opposition and turmoil at every turn while in my patient's house. She has a junk food/sweet tooth, and every drawer, nook and cranny is crammed with devilish little morsels from Hell that tempt and tease me. Usually, I surrender without much of a fight on my part, but...today? Today...was different.

I did not cave once! I feel great! It was cake after the first couple of hours. This is what I had today:

• 7:15 AM vitamin shake
• 9:15 AM 1 cheese stick
• 11:15 AM 1 sliced cucumber with olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper, 1 sliced avocado and half a tuna salad sandwich on toasted whole grain bread
• 1:15 PM 6 almonds
• 3:15 PM 1/2 whiskey river bbq chicken spinach wrap with cantelope 
• 6:30 PM 1 VERY small portion of chilli with 2 Lite Grahm crackers and milk

No crap food like I usually succumb to. Although, I did have a five minute stare down with my spinach wrap before I finally decided to put half of it in a To-Go box for Will. I didn't falter; that's the main point...not to say I wasn't tempted. I never used to be a glutton or a sweet tooth whore, but somewhere a long the way, food has begun to fill a void.☺I feel a change taking place in me, a shift; it feels good and invigorating. I went running with Will when I came home from work. I wore my knee brace, but it still ached for the first few minutes of jogging. Overall, it was a great run! I feel stronger and more resilient. I also noticed that I tackled my hill with out nearly as much exertion and fatigue as usual.  

After my run, I got to talk to my best friend from home, she told me about the jogging class she's  taking and her running. I hope she decides to run the marathon with me. What a fantabulous day! I'm ready for a much lusted after night of sleep. Later!

Lazy Days

I put my running, yoga and blogging on hold for the last 2 weeks to recover from an injury. Shortly after I began running on a regular basis, I started to notice my knee and ankle aching. It was getting progressively worse with longer periods of pain; so, I decided to take a short break in order to let it heal. I also invested in a knee brace and ankle brace for when I run. I think this is happening because my tendons and ligaments are not strong enough to support my weight when I run since I gained it all so fast. They have not had the chance to build  up.

It was very frustrating to have to stop so soon after starting; however, I feel that it was the right thing to do. My knee is slowly improving; so, I will start my regular 5K and Yoga regimen again tomorrow. I will also post my weight and food guidelines as well.  

 I went to the beach with Will last Friday and it was wonderful! Very overcast, but gorgeous anyway. I was inspired because I saw so many runners on the beach. I can't wait to be at that point when my relationship with running is a happy one, when every step doesn't hurt and ache. Well, I'm sure this is the first of many hurtles. Yay for endurance!

These are pictures I took at the Beach. If you'd like to see more, you can go to my website @ http://lma-artisan.blogspot.com/