Getting back to it

Amanda and I after 5 miles in the rain!!

Had a great time visiting with my niece Amanda for the last few days. She lives in Reno and we don't get to see each other that often. She is the one who took me on my first 1 mile torture run back in June!!

Since we have decided together to run the Santa Cruz 1/2 Marathon on April 10, 2011, we took this chance to go for a run yesterday. In the rain. It was SO hard to wake up, knowing that I was running on too little sleep, it was raining, and it was my only day with nothing really planned. Having two people waiting for you pushes you to get your ass out of bed! If it were up to me, I would have turned off the alarm and gone back to sleep. Well, I am glad I didn't do that!

First thing on my mind was that I have no winter running gear. Nada. Even my pants are capris. So I need to scrape up some $$ and buy something. Steph brought along her water resistant jacket for me. Harumph! yeah right. That thing didn't resist anything. Thank goodness I wore my hat - it kept the wind and rain off my eyes so I could see. I don't know how Amanda did it, wearing big sweat pants that probably added 20 pounds to her by the time we were finished!

I was wary of running, as I had not for exactly 3 weeks since the race. And the night before, I was up coughing and throwing up AGAIN. Think I now have to go have that chest x-ray this week because while the cough is better, and the vomiting hadn't happened for a week, it still lingers and so I need to figure out what is going on with me.

Had to walk a bit more than I wanted, and the sleeting rain and wind made it tough at times, but it was FUN FUN FUN to run in the RAIN!! Felt like I was doing something I wasn't supposed to! I was sore, so was Steph, because of Body Pump and Kickboxing the day before, but it wasn't till afterward that I really felt it!

After we finished our 5 miles, hit Starbucks (of course), then I had to take Amanda back to mom's, vacuumed her house for her, took Alexander and picked up his friend Carlos and took them both to  the field for the tournament the team was running, then I finally got to go home and shower - 1-1/2 hours later!!! It's a wonder I didn't catch pneumonia!! That hot shower, was the BEST I HAVE EVER HAD IN MY LIFE!!

The rest of the day was spent under a blanket, watching Halloween movies with Cassie, napping, texting and FaceBooking, and just resting. Felt so good to not have to do anything the rest of the day!

As far as my next goal is concerned, I have been talking to a friend in Germany, got some great tips and information, and am going to take it slow. I have a ways to go fitness wise before I feel strong enough physically to pursue what I want, and I am in no rush. I have a desire to reach out and help others with their journeys, share my experience, and need to figure out what exactly that looks like and what my next steps are. I wish there were a way to share with people what I have gone through, counsel them with what worked for me, share experiences and inspire them.  A fellow teacher told me today that a parent of hers was sharing with her how she is struggling with her weight and diet and this teacher told her about me and now this parent wants to schedule an appointment with me!! Huh?? What am I supposed to do with that?

Having the Santa Cruz 1/2 to train for will help. I just will not give up my BP classes for this - I missed it too much and I will find a way to cross train more effectively this time, do more yoga, more strength, run and become a more well rounded "athlete".

I am blessed to have so many family and friends, both in the fitness realm and out, that are willing to support me with advice and love. If I don't respond immediately to your wonderful emails, please know that they are all being read and I just need time to sit and compose a response that does your emails justice!!

You all contribute to my happiness more than you know.....and I hope you all know how much I love you!!!