Sick and afflicted

So, last week I picked up a little cold and I was confident that I could just push through and work through it.  I have been mostly successful, but today took me clean out.  I got up for spin, had a wonderful time, went to ethics class - and then I was pretty much done for the day.  Being the ridiculous grad student that I am, I went and found a bathroom that had a couch in one corner (pretty sure they are meant for nursing mothers) and I went to sleep for two hours. I woke up, took a test, went to swim, had a less than impressive workout, and then went home to sleep for two more hours. Half a container of orange juice and one very lazy evening later, I am wondering if I will even be able to sleep tonight. :|

Blergh. I guess that is really all I have to say.

BTW, one of my lanemates in swim today asked if I was ok. When I told him that I was sick he said, "You know, I was thinking about it, you have had a really rough semester. There has been something constantly going on for...for a long time now!"  He was right! Surgery to remove skin cancer, a sprained ankle, and now this crazy cold. I think it has been at least a month straight that something has been trying to get me down.  Luckily, I don't feel at all behind on my training.  I am so glad that I started when I did so I would have some leeway. Heaven knows that life tends to get in the way sometimes! But then it all works out in the end. 5 weeks to Disney!

Do you still workout when you are sick?  It depends for me. I thought it was a good idea this time, but now I am not so sure. I think I will just take it a little bit easier.

Thankful thought for the day:

November is almost over and that means that I am almost done with my second to last semester of grad school! I can't believe I am almost done with this. I honestly never thought I would do it, and once I started, I never thought I would survive! And here I am! Hooray for me!

Spin. Swim. Run.

Monday. Oh, Monday. It always comes in the worst way after a break. I got up this morning to go to spin and felt like I had been hit by a truck. Usually the thought of rocking it out on a spin bike is enough to get me out of bed. Today it was the thought that I can have no more than 5 absences or I won't pass my pass/fail fitness class. Of course, I felt great when I got there. I don't know what I am going to do for the almost month long Christmas break...I might actually have to buy a gym pass. Yikes. But then, I signed up for two sections of spin next semester. Hmm....

Anyway, Mondays, Wednesdays are spin and swim.  We did butterfly drills in swim today. It totally killed me, but butterfly also makes me feel super strong, so I won't complain. After swim I went to the last session of  our Negotiations class.  I can't believe how close the end of the semester is! We gave out awards today and I won "Most Persistent Negotiator."  I think that is a good thing.  Our teachers also gave us cards (I think they are bribing us for good reviews, as it is the first time they have taught this class -more on that in a minute).  The cards were personalized and my teachers praised my grit and my determination to improve with each passing week.  It is interesting to hear what your teachers see in you when you just assume that you were lost in the crowd during the semester.  I really did love that class. It taught me to be more confident and to communicate more clearly, and to better understand those that I communicate with.  Grad school is funny because I feel like I have learned so much more about myself than I have about Public Administration - and it is totally worth it.

At the end of class our teacher gave each of us a bag of chocolate covered cinnamon bears (what did I say about bribery?). I got two because one of my classmates somehow doesn't think that they are the greatest treat ever to be made and gave me her bag as well. At about the same time my friend texted me to see if I wanted to run with her.  At this point I decided that chocolate covered cinnamon bears would double well as running fuel. We got home and headed out for our run.  It was an easy three miles, and I felt great.  Spin, swim, and a run?  It was a big day.  I tell you, it is really weird to be a girl and be worrying about getting in enough calories. Usually we focus so much on restricting, it is so liberating to focus on properly fueling and packing in good calories.

I ended the day at my friend's house. He had just finished putting the finishing touches on his Christmas decorations and so we put a virtual fire on the tv and sat and enjoyed the Christmas lights, decorations, and tree. I love this season. I can't believe December is almost here...then it will be the new year...and then I will be in Florida running at DisneyWorld....then I will be back here in my last semester of grad school. Whoa.  I need to stop thinking about this. I think I am going to go eat a couple of chocolate covered cinnamon bears.

Small Business Saturday

Today was Small Business Saturday. Thanks to my handy-dandy AmEx, I had $25 to spend at a local small business. Thanks for being supportive American Express! All I had to do was make a qualifying purchase and AmEx would credit my account $25.  Who could say no?  I looked up the small businesses in the area and was thrilled to find that both of my favorite local running stores qualified!  I ended up at Runner's Corner in Orem.  I felt like a kid in a candy store!  I was in the store for at least 30 minutes trying to decide what I wanted.  I kept going back and forth between something sensible, like new socks to something a little more fun, like neon arm warmers. I decided to go for something that, as the guy who checked me out said, was sensible and fun:

I bought The Stick.

Sensible - for my tight muscles. And fun - the package says that it is like "A toothbrush for your muscles". How is that not fun? My calf muscles are pretty much always tight, no matter how much a stretch (but I will admit that I am not always the best at stretching) So, hopefully using The Stick to keep up on my "muscle hygiene" (like dental hygiene...the whole toothbrush thing...get it?) will help my little calf muscles to chill out. I will let you know how it goes. 

To celebrate, we also went to Yogurtland! I had the good fortune of guessing the correct flavor that they will have on the first day of their 12 Days of Christmas.  Honestly, I have just been dreaming about them having an eggnog flavor during the holidays and I lucked out that it was also the correct answer to their twitter contest. So it was free day extraordinaire! Free $25! Free Yogurt!  I never even knew that Small Business Saturday existed, and now it is one of my favorite days of the year!

Thankful thought for the day:

I am thankful for FROYO! I may have a problem. I love it. A lot. But we won't talk about that. Let's just say I am thankful for it.

Best Day Ever, Turkey Trotting, AND A PR!

So, my last post was all about my tragic day. My very tragic day. It was very tragic, and frankly, it was much too tragic for my liking.  I decided that I needed a new day. So I sent an email to my friends who were still in town for the holiday and told them I would appreciate the opportunity of scheduling their evening for them.

Yup, I am a geek. If, after reading that, you do not have Sponge Bob's  best day ever song stuck in your head, allow me to remedy that.

So, with this song running through my head I picked myself up, cleaned my house, did some homework, and put in a couple more miles on my hattoris. Then, we made the magic happen. The best day ever consisted of me and three of my very best friends piling into QueenKate's swagger wagon and heading to the mall for dinner at Red Robin and then off to the movies to see the new Muppets flick.  Let me tell you, there is nothing quite like best friends, bottomless fries, and some muppets to make a bad day better. If you are ever in the middle of a pity party anytime soon, take my advice and plan a real party STAT!

The best night ever led to the best morning ever. I woke up at the crack of dawn and suited up for the American Fork Fleet Feet Turkey Trot. Last year HRH and I ran this one together and this year we recruited a couple of friends and a bunch of HRH's family to come run with us.  I LOVE TURKEY TROTS! I love being up before the world and knowing that I have done something great to combat my usual turkey coma that most of the world submits to on Thanksgiving. Oh, AND it was was whole 30 DEGREES warmer than it was last year.  We ran at a balmy 39 degrees this year instead of the freezing 9 that we ran in last year.

I ran with one of my best friends who is in from out of town. He has been a big part of my running journey, helping me to realize that the only thing holding me back was me. We broke away from out little pack pretty early on in the race, unable to fight the temptation for a little more speed.

I will tell you the nice thing about running with a boy: not only are they usually a little (or a lot) faster, but they also make me feel like I have something to prove, so I push myself more than I usually would. And even though I have been battling a really nasty head cold, I pushed through it and we came in just under 30 minutes. While I have run a sub 30 5k before, this was the first time I have done it officially.  Hooray for me! The rest of our crew did a bang-up job and crossed the finish line a couple of minutes later.  We celebrated and then all went our separate ways for major turkey consumption.

My first stop was actually the movie theater.  I had planned to meet my mom and sister at the theater just after the race and I made it in just as the previews were starting.  Yup, we went to a 9:00am showing of Breaking Dawn. Honestly, the whole Twilight thing isn't really my thing, but my mom and sister LOVE it and it was so much fun to see this movie with them. There is just nothing quite like family. I spent the rest of the day at home with said incredible family.  I hosted a dance party in the kitchen with my nieces and nephew, and overall, we had an amazing day.  I love Thanksgiving. How cool is it that there is a whole day set aside just to be thankful for what you have in life?

Thankful thought for the day:

My family. They are everything I could ever hope for. It is rare to find such awesome examples of unconditional love and support. I love them.  Oh, and I am grateful for crappy Vampire movies.  I haven't laughed that hard in a long time.

SERUNITY NOW!

This week so far has been one of the hardest I have had in a while. And by a while, I mean A VERY LONG TIME. I got some bad news the other day that completely turned my world upside down. I am having a really hard time trying to make sense of it all and have realized that this isn't going to be reconciled any time soon. It is messy and complicated and pretty much devastating.

Last night I felt completely overwhelmed by all of it and woke up feeling much more at peace, but still completely at a loss for what to make of all of it. Luckily, I have some incredible friends who will stand by me through anything, and who were there for me so I wouldn't have to be alone.  When I checked my email this morning there was my Runner's World quote of the day. I am constantly amazed at how these quotes so often seem hand picked just for me. This was today's:

I don't know if running changed my life or if I changed my life for running, but who cares really? My feet keep moving, my arms keep pumping, and my mantra keeps rolling, "Be patient. You got this."

Valerie DiMambro

"Be patient. You got this." 

I ran 6 miles with The Blur yesterday. It was really slow because I have a cold and I am still recovering from last week's sprained ankle, but I kept thinking that as long as I kept moving, I could do this. Not very long ago I never would have dreamed that I could run even 6 miles, but now, even after being off of my ankle for a week and before that out of commission from my surgery, I knew that I was strong enough to do this run. 

I think that the same is true of my life right now. I feel like I am suffering from a major emotional injury right now, but I can do this. Because this is SO MUCH bigger than me, I just need to hand it off to God and remember that he has it all under control. All that is left for me is to do is to be patient, and to keep moving forward. I've got this. I truly believe that we are all so much stronger than we think we are.  This is just a good opportunity for that to be proven to me. 

BTW, also when I opened my email this morning I found out that I had won the nuun giveaway at I run, therefore, I am! What great news on a difficult day like today! Thanks!

 Thankful thought for the day:

Serunity.  I am so grateful for the clarity and perspective that a good run brings to my life. Whether it is working stuff out while I pound the pavement, or relying on those endorphins when I get back, I am so thankful that running is a part of my life.

Running Buddy Part 2

The Blur is in town this weekend! Tragically, I don't think we will be able to run while she is here, as I am still recovering from last week's sprained ankle.  I LOVE to run with this girl. She is an incredible runner who has participated in almost 10 half marathons and is pretty much my hero. Last year she asked if I wanted to run a half marathon with her, and I thought she was crazy. I am pretty sure that I laughed and she didn't think it was funny. That totally took me by surprise. I didn't think there was any way I could ever run a half marathon, and she didn't question my ability at all. That totally changed my world. I agreed to run, signed up for the race and started to train. Sadly, I got injured a few weeks before the race and just barely made it through the 5k event, but training for that half made all the difference for me. I fell in love with running. I love how I feel when I go. I love every time I go out and can say, "That is the furthest I have ever run.", knowing that I never thought in a million years that this was something I was capable of. It has influenced every other aspect of my life. I am capable of so much more than I ever thought I was.

I have The Blur to thank for this. We have been on fun runs and on therapy runs, we have supported each other through injury and through days when it is hard to get out the door. She always believes in me - even when I don't believe in myself, and somehow that is enough. Thanks Milla girl. You rock my world.

How did you start running? 

Is there anyone in your life you has helped you to understand that you are stronger than you think you are? 

Thankful thought for the day:

I am grateful for the unconditional love of friends that makes life such a joy to live, even through the tough times. 

BETTER THAN CHRISTMAS!

GUESS WHAT CAME IN THE MAIL TODAY?!

Just 4 short days ago Amanda at Run to the Finish tweeted that she had a pair of Saucony Hattoris that she was giving away to a good home. They were in my size, and I would be lying if I said that I didn't feel a tiny bit like Cinderella in that moment. I have been wanting to try the Hattoris for a while, but my grad student budget just wouldn't allow it. Enter twitter and the magic of the bloggy world. I asked her for the deats and she said that if they would be a good fit, I would just need to pay shipping and they would be mine! Of course I said yes!

Well, fast forward to TODAY and imagine my surprise they arrived at my door! Thank goodness for that speedy USPS! When I opened the box it was stuffed with Odwalla bars and Amanda had even tossed in a pair of flip flops for good measure!

It feels like Christmas! The shoes fit perfectly, the Odwalla bars just restocked my nearly depleted power bar box, and the flip flops are coming with me to swim class on Monday!  Amanda - you have NO IDEA how perfect this little box was today!

P.S. Amanda is running the Philly Marathon tomorrow. Let's all put some good things out in the universe for her! Best of luck!

Have any of you had any good surprises lately?

Thankful thought for the day: I am so grateful for the little things that remind us that we are truly loved by someone greater than ourselves :)