When Life Gets to be Too Much

You may or may not have noticed my lack of blogging lately.  With the exception of race recaps I’ve really not blogged anything since the New Year.  Even before that I was not consistent.  You may have even assumed by now that I’m not blogging anymore, this is just a dead blog.

In some ways that would be a completely fair assumption, since I really haven’t blogged much.  But, my intention has been to continue this blog all along.  You see, I started this blog to write about “the Good, the Bad and the Ugly of my life with a little humor mixed in”.  So, this blog has been, all along, about my life, with the intention of helping others who may have similar things going on in their life paths at the time.  Through the years, we’ve chronicled my children growing up, our foster/adoption experience, you’ve listened to me cry over my mother and our broken relationship, you know that marriage is one of my hot buttons, and you’ve read as I was healed from an 18 year affliction with Rheumatoid Arthritis.  You know I struggled with the decision to homeschool, and you know how important my faith is to me, you have cheered me on as I began my journey as a runner, and you know that being a Police Officer’s wife isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

So, I ask you to consider that my absence these past few months has also been a chronicle of events in my life, because it is the very evidence of just how busy this past year has been.  Having teenagers and toddlers at the same time is it’s own animal, and one I don’t recommend.  It has been a tough school year.  Over the past several months I have barely had any time to sit, let alone think.  Auston will graduate next year (2014), so his High School schedule really picked up this year.  He joined choir, which had us out of the house every Tuesday afternoon/evening, which was quite a challenge.  It effectively took several hours out of my already busy week.  There is definitely a tipping point where you find yourself on the downhill side of being too busy, and I think we found that this year. 

Our schedule this year looked something like this:

Sunday: Church, Youth Group
Monday: Shea to Therapy, Boy Scouts
Tuesday: Tuesdays with Mom, Choir
Wednesday: Youth Group
Thursday: Bagel Run, Bible Study, HIS Classes, Date Night
Friday: Sports Day

You can see this put one of the adults in this house out every evening, with some Fridays and Saturdays home.  I have had many people tell me to just hang on, it is a season….  And, that is honestly what got me through the year, but really, it was too much.

This week is the first week off of the majority of our activities, Youth Group will continue until the middle of June, but the bulk of them are done, so I’ve found myself this week taking a look around my filthy house and beginning to take stock of where I need to focus now that I have some time.  I’ve written out a new weekly cleaning plan, and started to catch up on all of the things that haven’t been done….  It will take me a few weeks to get a handle on this monster…

Through all of this craziness I maintained my running, sometimes better than others.  Last week I only got two runs in because the boys were gone on a camp out for 3 days, but this week has been an oddity.  I find myself at Wednesday and haven’t run a mile yet for the week.  I have been getting in activity each day, I started participating in a plank challenge with my MRTT chapter, and I’ve been doing some leg work and some push ups, but I haven’t RUN.  My main excuse is that the babies have been getting up early lately, and I am nervous about being gone and them getting up.  Normally I would just get one of the boys to come to the living room, but they’ve been just as busy as I have, so I’m trying to give them a week or two to rest too.  So, this morning I thought to myself, is it really THAT big of a deal that I haven’t run in 6 days?  In some ways it is, because you loose some endurance, but I don’t really have that much to begin with LOL…  But really, is it a bad thing for me to take a couple of days off?  I mean, my life has been so crazy these last several months, I think it really IS ok to take a few days, even a week or two, and regroup.  It hasn’t even been an option for so long.  And really, my next big race isn’t until the end of July, and even that one I can take down from a half if I need to, so if I’m going to take a breather, now is the time to do it, before I have to get training hard for my fall racing schedule.

So, I’ll go to the Bagel run in the morning, because I really, really do enjoy it.  But I’m giving myself permission to run my long run this week or not.  And next week I’ll be camping, so I’ll probably only get a couple of miles in then too.  I’ll take this time to work on some strength training that I’m generally worried about doing because I don’t want to be too sore to run LOL.  I really need strength training, and my lack of muscle really affects my run, so I need to get over that… (which is why I joined the plank challenge), and then once we get back from camping I’ll hit the roads hard again.  I just want to make sure that my training doesn’t become such a burden that I don’t enjoy running.  THAT would be REALLY bad, since it is like the one thing I do for myself… 

What do you think?  Have you ever taken a breather from something without dropping it entirely?

How Much is Too Much?

I am just a few weeks shy of my Runnerversary, and in the middle of my Run Streak, so running is pretty much all over my mind right now.  I am also reprogramming my body to run continuously, which is proving a little more difficult than I would like it to be after my months of training for the Marathon.  I really trained my body well to walk every 3 minutes!  But, it’s ok…  It’s all movement.

One of the reasons I decided to do my Run Streak is because I found myself not wanting to run just to run.  Or run less than 3 miles.  I was finding that I was talking myself out of any run that would not net at least 3 miles and in the end I was starting to be less and less consistent.  I saw on the horizon that this was leading to a bad direction….  Time to reset the plumb line…

Over the course of this past year as I’ve taken up running I’ve had many people encourage me and some people have even taken up running with me.  It’s been so inspiring to me.  The thought that I inspired anyone at all is humbling.  And I hope I do inspire others.

One thing that I’m finding at this point, though is that I’ve been running long enough to accomplish some larger tasks, so people are less inspired because they feel like they are so far behind where I am physically that they’ll never get there.

There is nothing farther from the truth.  Remember, the first time I ran I ran less than 3 minutes and needed a nap afterwards.  I’m totally not exaggerating.  Then I decided I would just start small and commit to a small piece.  Once I accomplished that I would see where to go next.

Let me say that again, because it’s so important…

I decided I would start small and commit to a small piece.  Once I accomplished that I would see where to go next.

The reason I repeat this is because it is the thing that got me going.  I stopped being frustrated with where I wasn’t and found a way to be happy where I was.  I never in a million years imagined I would ever run more than 3 miles….  But when I was ready I did.  I was talking to a friend this week and we discussed how easy it is to do/expect too much and then end up throwing in the towel.

Now, as I’m finding a way to make peace with this concept in my running I know that I need to start finding the next goal when I get close to the completion of one.  I’m working now on running continuously and my goal is to run the Hot Chocolate Continuous and then the next week the Run 4 the Children (4 miles) continuous.  After that I will work on training up for a 10 miler.  I am allowing myself flexibility on the training, if I get in to it and find that these distances are too much for my body continuously then I’ll adjust.

As I look over the next year and think about my other goals I’m finding more and more my thoughts toward running and training apply in other areas of my life. 

As for my weight loss (the whole reason I started running, remember?) I think I need to take a similar approach.  I’ve decided to take a month at a time and chose a goal for that month.  When the month is over it’s a new month and I’m on to a new goal.  Towards the end of the year last year I was eating WAY too much fast food.  So, for the month of January I’ve committed to no fast food.  So far so good!  It’s hard.  It’s not easy.  I literally sat in the parking lot at McDonalds yesterday for about 20 minutes.  But I didn’t drive through, didn’t go in, didn’t have any food from there.

I think I have a tendency to do too much in nutrition too.  I say I’m not going to eat any more fast food, no more bread, no more sugar, stay in my points/calorie range every day, etc.  Then I find myself frustrated when I struggle and give up.  In the end that is so much worse because then there’s reckless abandon.  So, as January comes to a close I’m thinking about what to do on the nutrition front for February……  I’ll let you know …

So, the question I posed at the beginning of this post…  How much is too much?  Well, the answer to that is if it brings you to a place that you don’t want to continue, it’s too much.  Allow yourself time.  Don’t do too much too fast.  You risk injury, and worse, you risk quitting….

If you’ve been inactive don’t feel bad about making a goal to walk for 10 minutes.  OWN it.  I struggle with this too, as I’m now surrounded by many, many people who are faster/stronger/better than me.  Some days I feel dumb making a goal to run a mile when I have friends who run 5+ a day.  I feel dumb setting a goal to get my pace under 12 min/mile when I have friends in the 8-9 range.  But it’s where I am.  If where you are is walking 10 minutes a day, then that’s where you are, and you deserve to be proud of what you’re doing.  In a year’s time you’ll be doing WAY more than walking 10 minutes a day…  In fact, you’ll likely be doing WAY more than you imagined you would….  Remember me…  in less than a year I went from not being able to run 3 minutes to running 2 half marathons…..  Did I think I would do that?  NO!  Did I go out day one and try to go 13 miles?  No.  I went one MINUTE at a time.  Literally…..

 

RUN STREAK!

It’s here!  It’s here!!
I don’t know whether to be nervous or excited LOL!!
(Note:  I’ve extended the sign up for the Run Streak until January 7, but you must start running January 1…  Just want everyone to have a chance to sign up!)
I decided to host this run streak in November when I was getting to the end of my training for my Half Marathon and was getting weary.   I have learned that the best way to keep running consistently is to constantly have a goal that I’m working towards.  I have learned that if I don’t start formulating that goal as I near the completion of the current goal it is that much harder to remain consistent.  So, as I was growing tired and weary with all of the long runs etc., as my body was beginning to constantly ache, as the thrill of just “getting out there” was beginning to waiver (I think these are all normal things to happen at the end of a tough training program) I knew I would need to do something.  I also know that I don’t like cold.  If I could get away with it I would never leave my house if the temperature was below 50.  Seriously.  I just want to hibernate when it’s cold LOL
So, with January approaching, and even Houston get’s cold in January, and the completion of my half marathon in December, I knew I’d pretty much take the rest of December off after the half…
Now the time has come to get back out there!
Some of my goals for this Run Streak are:

• Get running again
• Let go of the need to run 3 miles every time (thereby giving myself an excuse when I don’t have enough time for that)
• Increase my endurance for consistent running (I’ve gotten really good at stopping every 3 minutes to walk!)
• Improve my 5K time (I’ve got my first 5K of the year scheduled for the 9th of February)
• Inspire others to run!

What if I’m new to running? someone might ask…..
It is not necessary to be a seasoned runner!  There is no distance requirement.  The goal is to lace up your shoes every day and run!  I discovered this past week that twice around my block is just over 1/2 mile.  Good to know for a day when I have ZERO time (or motivation)….  I’m sure you’ll see a workout or two with that route this coming month….
If you’re just starting to run this is perfect for you!  You can determine to run maybe 1 or 2 minutes consistently the first week and build up! 
I’m running a marathon (or other big race) this month…  what about rest days?
If you’re running a big race, or in the middle of a tough training schedule that calls for rest days you can use your own judgment on whether to run.  I would say walking on a rest day for a short period of time is ok.  Do remember, though, that distance is not an issue on this, so you could easily run to the mailbox and back to make it count…
Here are some things some of our other runners have said they want to accomplish:

“To get at least a mile in each day.”

“I need motivation”

“I've been slacking. 3 half marathons coming up so that SHOULD be enough motivation, but alas....”

“Run 10K no walking”

All great goals!  Together we can motivate and inspire each other to do great things!

Here are the sign up pages-

Run Streak Medal Version

Run Streak Free Version

Don’t forget to Like Nailing Jello on Facebook!  That’s where we’ll inspire each other and check in to say, yes, it’s fine, we ran today

January RUN STREAK Sign Up Starts NOW! (Free Level)

It’s time!!!
We’ve had our fill of turkey, pie, potatoes, etc.  Now it’s time to start thinking about our goals for 2013, and what better way to start the New Year off than with a bang!
This page is to be used to sign up for the FREE Level for the RUN STREAK.  No prizes will be sent, but I hope that you will join in on facebook to give and receive encouragement!  If you’re looking for the Medal Level Click Here.

The Rules are simple:

1. Sign up between November 23 and January 7 (but you must start running every day beginning January 1) using the forms provided, and pay (If participating in the Medal Level)
2. Share with your friends, running groups etc. The more people playing the more fun we’ll have
3. Like my page on Facebook to get all of the updates and encourage each other to make it the full month!
4. Get Ready to RUN!
5. Beginning January 1, you must RUN every single day.
6. Walking does not count for this challenge.
7. There is no required mileage, or time. If you run around your block you run around your block. If you run 5 miles you run 5 miles. If you run 5 minutes you run 5 minutes. The challenge is to RUN EVERY DAY.

That’s it! Why are we doing this? Well, for several reasons.

• We want to kick the New Year off right!
• To say we did it!
• To know we can!
• To set an attainable goal and accomplish it!
• To break down the walls that keep us from running (Not enough time, it’s too cold, I need a rest day, insert your favorite excuse here)

So often I talk myself out of running because I don’t have time to do the mileage I want. Why? This challenge is about encouraging the new runner and the seasoned runner alike. We’re running for the love of running. If you’re doing another race in January, great! That counts. If your participating in another virtual race you just got double duty! If you just need to remember why you loved running before you started that grueling training plan, this is for you! Don’t delay, sign up now while you’re thinking about it!
If you’re looking for the Medal Level Click Here.

On January 1 we’ll kick off our streak with sharing pictures of us running New Years Day.  Some of you have talked about running at Midnight!  I’d love to see pictures, and get an account of how you started your 2013 journey!
Thanks again for joining in with me on this crazy idea

January RUN STREAK Starts NOW!!! (Medal Level of Commitment)

It’s time!!!  We’ve had our fill of turkey, pie and potatoes, and now it’s time to start focusing on 2013 and our goals for the coming year.  I can’t think of a better way to kick off the New Year than a Run Streak, so we’re going to do it together!  There are two levels of commitment for this Run Streak, the Free level and the Medal Level.

This page is for the Medal Level, if you’re looking for the free level click here.
The Rules are simple:

1. Sign up between November 23 and January 7 (you must have run every day in January even if you sign up between the 1st and the 7th) using the forms provided, and pay (If participating in the Medal Level)
2. Share with your friends, running groups etc.  The more people playing the more fun we’ll have
3. Like my page on Facebook to get all of the updates and encourage each other to make it the full month!
4. Get Ready to RUN!
5. Beginning January 1, you must RUN every single day.
6. Walking does not count for this challenge.
7. There is no required mileage, or time.  If you run around your block you run around your block.  If you run 5 miles you run 5 miles.  If you run 5 minutes you run 5 minutes.  The challenge is to RUN EVERY DAY.

That’s it!  Why are we doing this?  Well, for several reasons.

• We want to kick the New Year off right!
• To say we did it!
• To know we can!
• To set an attainable goal and accomplish it!
• To break down the walls that keep us from running (Not enough time, it’s too cold, I need a rest day, insert your favorite excuse here)

So often I talk myself out of running because I don’t have time to do the mileage I want.  Why?  This challenge is about encouraging the new runner and the seasoned runner alike.  We’re running for the love of running.  If you’re doing another race in January, great!  That counts.  If your participating in another virtual race you just got double duty!  If you just need to remember why you loved running before you started that grueling training plan, this is for you!  Don’t delay, sign up now while you’re thinking about it! 
How to get started:
Pay for your medal here:  The price is $10.

Please Enter Your Full Name

MRTT Members check with your leader for a discounted price!
Then fill out the form.  This will be matched up with your payment, so I can send out your medal.  Medals will be shipped by the middle of January, so you will have them by the end of the month.  If I have them earlier I’ll ship them earlier.  I will post on Facebook when they start shipping so you know when to be on the lookout!

Now that you’ve paid and filled out the form, we’re ready!  Some of you have said you will start your RUN STREAK off by running at Midnight.  Some will go in the morning, some will make it a family event.  Whatever you do, please post to Facebook and post pictures if possible!  Let’s get everyone excited!
Again, Thanks for joining with me on this crazy idea of mine!

January RUN STREAK MRTT PAGE

This page is for Moms Run This Town members ONLY!  If you do not belong to a chapter, click here to find one
It’s time!!! We’ve had our fill of turkey, pie and potatoes, and now it’s time to start focusing on 2013 and our goals for the coming year. I can’t think of a better way to kick off the New Year than a Run Streak, so we’re going to do it together! There are two levels of commitment for this Run Streak, the Free level and the Medal Level.

This page is for the Medal Level, if you’re looking for the free level click here.
The Rules are simple:

1. Sign up between November 23 and January 7 (but you must start running January 1) using the forms provided, and pay (If participating in the Medal Level)
2. Share with your friends, running groups etc. The more people playing the more fun we’ll have
3. Like my page on Facebook to get all of the updates and encourage each other to make it the full month!
4. Get Ready to RUN!
5. Beginning January 1, you must RUN every single day.
6. Walking does not count for this challenge.
7. There is no required mileage, or time. If you run around your block you run around your block. If you run 5 miles you run 5 miles. If you run 5 minutes you run 5 minutes. The challenge is to RUN EVERY DAY.

That’s it! Why are we doing this? Well, for several reasons.

• We want to kick the New Year off right!
• To say we did it!
• To know we can!
• To set an attainable goal and accomplish it!
• To break down the walls that keep us from running (Not enough time, it’s too cold, I need a rest day, insert your favorite excuse here)

So often I talk myself out of running because I don’t have time to do the mileage I want. Why? This challenge is about encouraging the new runner and the seasoned runner alike. We’re running for the love of running. If you’re doing another race in January, great! That counts. If your participating in another virtual race you just got double duty! If you just need to remember why you loved running before you started that grueling training plan, this is for you! Don’t delay, sign up now while you’re thinking about it!
How to get started:
Pay for your medal here: The price is $9 each or less for higher quantities

Be sure to chose the right option for the quantity you order!

1-5 $9.00 USD 5-10 $8.00 USD 10-19 $7.00 USD 20+ $6.00 USD

Please Enter Your Full Name

This Page is for MRTT Members only
Then fill out the form. This will be matched up with your payment, so I can send out your medal. Medals will be shipped by the middle of January, so you will have them by the end of the month. If I have them earlier I’ll ship them earlier. I will post on Facebook when they start shipping so you know when to be on the lookout!

Now that you’ve paid and filled out the form, we’re ready! Some of you have said you will start your RUN STREAK off by running at Midnight. Some will go in the morning, some will make it a family event. Whatever you do, please post to Facebook and post pictures if possible! Let’s get everyone excited!
Again, Thanks for joining with me on this crazy idea of mine!

G.O.H.A.R.D. and a Run Streak….

 

Do you know what today is?  It is “Globally Organized Hug A Runner Day”!  or G.O.H.A.R.D for short…. To some, this may sound silly.  To others it means something.  I’m one of those people.

I started running at the beginning of this year.  I’ve blogged quite a bit about it, it has been quite the journey.  I actually started running to lose weight.  I’d like to say I’ve lost 100 pounds since then, but, I have very successfully eaten ALL of the calories I’ve burned LOL…  Apparently you can’t out run a bad diet and I REALLY REALLY love food.    So, WHY in the WORLD am I still running?

Easy.  I like Runners.

Runners are some of the happiest, friendliest people I’ve ever met.

Runners are very good at encouraging each other.

Runners are not normal.

Runners tend to do weird stuff like have color thrown on them and crawl through mud for fun.

Runners compete and compete hard.  But, they are competing against themselves, and so are still able to encourage their fellow competitors

Runners like to live outside the box.

These are my people….

Has running gotten easier?  Yes.  Am I as far in my training as I’d like to be?  No.  Are there days when I want to throw the whole towel in and never run again?  Yes.  Am I glad when I force myself out the door and go for a run?  Yes!

When I began this journey at the beginning of the year I had no idea if I would even become a runner.  I committed to a 3 week program.  That was it.  I decided if I couldn’t do that program I would let it go.  If I did complete the program I’d decide where to go from there.  As I write this my 2012 mileage is 357 miles!!!!  I am in awe of that number and really beginning to think on my goals for 2013.  I’m also in the end stages of training for my second Half Marathon.  As my body becomes weary from the training I know I have to begin formulating my next goal.

Here it is:

JANUARY RUN STREAK 2013!!!!!

I’m hoping you’ll join with me as we kick the new year off right….

We will use facebook to encourage each other, because that is one of the things I love the most about Runners

Here’s how it will work:

Sign up and commit to run EVERY.SINGLE.DAY in January.  January 1-31.  Every day.

It does NOT matter how far you run each day

It does NOT matter how fast you run

It does NOT matter how long you run

The ONLY thing that matters is you lace up your shoes every single day in January.

There will be two levels of commitment-  Free and Medal ($10)

I find that if I have a medal I am more committed, but some people don’t need that to keep them going.  I also really, really like bling, and I think running every day for 31 days deserves some bling

If you are new to running, or thinking about running this is perfect for you.  One of the biggest rewards of running is setting a goal and reaching it.  It doesn’t matter how big your goal is because it’s yours.  This is a goal for you.  If you are new, you might say you’re going to run around your block every day.  Or you’re going to run for 5 minutes.  Or set a goal to ultimately run 10 straight minutes.  Whatever your goal, set it and achieve it!

For me, I know that I’m coming out of a long training season, and I’ll be racing a Half Marathon December 22 and a 5K December 23, and I’ll be taking a few days off for some much deserved rest.  I will admit to you that I’m a little more excited about this rest period than I am comfortable with, and that is why I will be doing this run streak.  Come January 1 I need to get back in the game before my rest becomes a long winter’s slumber

I hope you’re as excited about this as I am.  I’m working with a supplier now to get the medals produced, and as soon as I have the work up I’ll reveal it to you!

Sign ups will begin Friday, November 23 and will run Through December 22.  Medals will be shipped by Mid January.

Let’s do this thing!

Hello, My Name is Semalee, and I’m an Addict…..

Thoughtful Thursday

Thoughtful Thursday

Thoughtful Thursday- Applause!

Thoughtful Thursday- Don’t Quit

Thoughtful Thursday

Thoughtful Thursday

Weight Loss Wednesday- Just keep going…

Last week at my weigh in I surpassed the 30 pounds lost mark.  It’s been a long journey to get there and at other times in my life I might have given up before getting there.  Ironically the topic at the meeting that week was “Motivation to Keep Going”…  This actually tied in well to where my thoughts were that day.  I was so excited to hit 30 pounds, but I was also remembering my last milestone of 25 pounds.  I was really excited then too, but quickly fell off the excitement and “took a break”.  I didn’t stop going to my meetings.  I am proud of that.  And I didn’t stop weighing in, even though, for the most part it wasn’t totally pretty.

You see, when I rejoined Weight Watchers this time I decided that no matter what quitting was not an option.  There are many mantras that keep people going, and this is one that I use.  I know that I know that I know that the minute I decide to skip my weigh in this week, or take a couple of weeks off from meetings I will be out of control with my eating.  I know this about myself. 

So, just after my 25 pound mark I saw the holiday season staring at me.  I didn’t want to feel like I wasn’t able to enjoy the season.  And, right or wrong, the holiday season is a lot about food with me.  There are certain traditions like gingerbread houses and Christmas Cookies that I really wanted to do and I didn’t want to worry about it.  So, I decided that I would try to watch what I ate when I wasn’t doing something like that, or attending a party, and made the decision to try to maintain over the holidays. I don’t regret that decision, because it kept me in my meetings and kept me from really going over the edge.  The only regret I have is that it took me so long to get back on track.  The business of the holidays spilled over into the New Year and it took me until about a month or two ago to finally start going in the down direction on the scale consistently.  I really held on to the commitment I made to myself when I joined, though, and quitting was not an option.  The reality is I know the plan works, it’s just a matter of me deciding to stay focused and on track.

So, as I got my 5 pound star and reveled in being 30 pounds lighter than I was when I walked in the door to WW, I decided that this time I will continue to stay focused, and keep the momentum going over the summer.  And, I gave myself a pat on the back for seeing it through…. 

Here’s to running my first 5K this weekend, and here’s to seeing the reality of healthier living and goals achieved…  Next stop---- 40 pounds!!!!