Trade-Offs

Oh, yeah baby!

posted by Melissa Baumgart
"When all else fails, go to yoga!"
This should be my life's motto.

Today was day three of being back to Bikram.  It is shitty, and hard and I whine internally at myself throughout most of class.  But I love it.  WTF is up with that?  Can anyone explain that phenomenon to me?  I guess it is like I realized in the past with this yoga, it kicks my ass into shape on more than the physical level.  You are mentally, emotionally and spiritually training as well.  And there is something deeply satisfying about that.

Still not running.  Isn't 90 minutes of sweating my ass off a good trade-off for running one mile a day?

Time to Reboot.
I was getting out of control with my eating habits.  Even after realizing that I had gained back weight, I ate more.  I consumed bread, chips, cheese, popcorn, pizza, fries, pasta...all like each day was my last.  I know there is something to be said for living in the present, and living like there is no tomorrow.  But maybe, just in case there is, I might need to not have fries and mayonnaise every day.  I might want to look in my fridge and say, "What's fresh today?" once in a while, instead of the usual, "What can I eat that involves mayonnaise?"

Somehow Bikram yoga "re-boots" by system.  One of my teachers put it that way to me today and it really made sense.  Maybe for other people it is running.  Or swimming.  Or playing a sport.  Whatever it is for you, I hope you are blessed to have found it.  And if not,get out there and start trying new things!  Without this blog, I don't know if I ever would have found yoga.

I just hope I have the willpower to stick with it again.

-Melissa

One-Liners, not One-Miles

posted by Melissa Baumgart
Well, would you look at that!  It's a quote taken from a silly you tube video, that I didn't even like at first.  In fact, I never watched it again.  But what I have done is repeat that phrase time and time again for comedic effect in my own life.  I have lots of things I share with those around me that we get from pop culture (or even real life culture), little one-liners that make us laugh til we snort.

9+hrs & $8.52/jar: You what that is?  That's Bullshit!

Here are some others you might be able to place:

"Rude!"
"What's up with that?"
"You know what that is?  That's Bullshit!"
"Girl, yes I did."
"Nothing at all, nothing at all, nothing at all."
"Calmer than you."


So, have a distracted you enough to perhaps think this month isn't about running?  Did you forget you came here to see how the running was going?  Seems like I have.  After we went running in the dark this past Saturday night, I haven't run at all.  I know, What's up with that?

I did start back to yoga though.  I feel like how when I was a kid and I would recite whole portions of a funny show, like the Simpsons, and now I am reduced to simple one-liners that other people might not even get.  In class, I can barely stand there the whole time, and I feel accomplished just by getting through pranayama breathing.  I think the people in class are glancing over to my mat thinking, "Wow, look at the new chubby girl, poor thing doesn't know what hit her."  Rude!  In the past I could go through the entire series day after day.

And that's how it goes.  Sometimes, we pick a winner.  It is inspiring and motivating, and maybe we even love it so much that we fall down in joyful exhaustion from it all (Urban Homesteading anyone?)
And sometimes we pick a dud.

You never know which choice is going to be a winner or a dud.  I sure wasn't looking forward to Memorizing a Classic Poem, when Amy picked that one.  But I loved it.  I totally got into poetry and memorizing.  And I thought I would love running every day, a small, but attainable goal.  Forget about it.  How is it that twice I have done a 30-day Challenge with Bikram yoga (1 hour and 30 minute class every day) and yet, I couldn't squeeze in 15 minutes a day.  As much as I preached we all could back at the beginning of the month!  

Just look at that!  Life brings so many possibilities and opportunities; we make of them what we will.  Therein lies the choice: do you choose to feel guilty about what you made of it, or do you move on peacefully, with a little more insight into yourself and humanity.  I do feel good about what I spent my energy working on for the past week or so.  I say focus on the positive, look at what you have done and say to the world, "Girl, yes I did!"

So, next time you feel like you've been doing nothing at all, choose your perspective wisely.  Look at what you have done.  Even if it is simply resting, cultivating your inner self, wading through your own darkness.  Even if it is going for it, head-on, with reckless abandon through light and inspiration.

Are there no true duds?  Is there always a silver lining?  Are we always in control of our perspective?  Sometimes that doesn't even seem possible.

As maddening as it all seems sometimes, I believe we can always look to someone else choosing to be in some crazy state of mind and say... "Calmer than you, dude."  And walk away.

-Melissa

Jumping head first

posted by Melissa Baumgart

Who wouldn't want to jump into the blue waters?

On again, Off again
Yesterday I did not run.  Amy and I spent the day making a flier and handout to support the Occupy Wall Street movement that is spreading in our country.  We printed out the document drafted by occupy Wall Street called the 99 Percent Declaration, in which they propose creating a National General Assembly.  The NGA will be comprised of 870 delegates, one woman and one man from each of our 435 congressional  districts across the country.  These delegates will compile a list of grievances from their constituents and present hem to the President, Congress and the Supreme Court before the 21012 election.

We also prepared ourselves for a night of sitting with those at Occupy Seattle, at Westlake park downtown.  Unfortunately, we did not spend the entire evening.  I completely support this movement, but I did not want to support the behaviors of those camping out last night at Westlake.  They were provoking and calling the cops names, and quite frankly I did not think they were upholding the proposals voted on during the 3 hour General Assembly just prior.

I hesitate to post this.  Because, one, I don't really feel this blog is a political platform.  And, two, I don't want to bad mouth this Occupy movement.  I believe in it.  I am inspired by its potential.  I just do not see how the actions of those protesters at Westlake last night are going to propel this movement positively into the future for our country.

I read a post by Naomi Wolf this morning about her recent arrest in NYC, surrounding the Occupy Wall Street protests.  She is very well versed in US history as well as our rights to protest and have our voices be heard.  I would suggest and strongly urge anyone who is interested in affecting some positive change to educate yourself.

I am going to be reading Wolf's book, Give Me Liberty - A Handbook for American Revolutionaries.  In it she sites historical references and gives tactical plans for things like staging a protest, direct-action activism, and organizing a town hall meeting.  Things we should know, as Americans that want to actively engage with our country and government.

I know, I jump head first into everything.  I bet if you look at the pattern of this blog, you would see an interesting graph line distributing the time spent toward the blog clumping together in excited magnetic propulsion.  And then, of course, the lull of doubt and contemplation about life and where I am heading with it all.

So, yes...On again, off again.  With the blog (sometimes it's all I think about!), with the Occupy Seattle protest (now doubting, thinking I just don't support what appears to be a radical anarchist takeover of the Wall Street protest), and likely, with the Kardashians (hey, I miss them, and yes, sometimes I would rather be them, swimming in the clear blue waters near the Hilton in Bora Bora)...if I am to be completely honest.  Which I tend to be.

-Melissa

Educate Yourself

posted by Melissa Baumgart
After days of sloth and anger towards the system, I am stepping out, back into the world.

I ran today and yesterday.  I feel very, very good about that.  Especially since I did not want to do that at all.  Today's run was fun, and dare I say....effortless.  OK, not effortless, but moderately easy.

There are lots of things on my mind though, lots more than just running.

Getting an Education
I mentioned before that I was forced to quit school for this quarter.  I found out today that it was completely due to the fact that I was not informed about a Worker Retraining orientation that EVERYONE in the program is required to attend.  No one ever told me about it, and there happened to be essential information about how to fund my studies while on unemployment (because I was laid off at my job).  If I had attended this orientation, I would have had the tools to make funding available for myself this quarter.  Did I mention, I was 3 weeks into my classes when I finally found all this out?  And that I have been carrying a 3.98 GPA?  But, whatever.

There were a lot of other critical points of misinformation, due to too many people giving me the information,  in regards to the lack of funding for my schooling.  But I really don't need to get into all that.  I'll just leave it with this quote from my new advisor, "I am so sorry you have had to go through all of this.  It is not OK, at all.  And I will make sure this gets back on track and you get funding for winter and spring quarter."

"Thank you," I replied.  "It totally was not OK."

Before this meeting, I was in a place of not wanting to blame.  I was willing to accept total (well, kinda) responsibility for my lack of funding.  Today's meeting left me feeling better about myself and worse about the system, and it's lack of cohesiveness.

Getting an Education: Part II
Today I went to my first protest.  I joined the Occupy Seattle movement at Westlake.  I also attended the General Assembly (GA) this evening at 6:30pm.

It had a sense of cohesiveness for some time, and then it went off-topic.  We voted Yes on the proposal to not have any other proposals on the table for the rest of the meeting. We voted to spend the rest of the GA focused on an open-ended discussion as to where the people that were committed to sleeping in tents would sleep at night.  (There seems to be a lot of opinions about where to set up the permanent Occupy site of tents etc.)

After numerous announcements by the various working groups, some late-comers (the People of Color Caucus) chose to shift the GA to a conversation about racism and police presence.  It was difficult for me to take it all in, and to feel safe with my 6 year old in tow, as the comments grew more and more passionate.

Getting an Education: Part III
Tomorrow I will rejoin the Occupy Seattle movement.  During the day, my kids are in school, and I am not in school or working.  So, I can stay home and clean my house, or I can get out there and fight for something that affects myself and so many others I love.

I am in the process of learning more about the history behind what is happening in our country.  I admit, I am not one that has kept up with economics and government.  But I also know, inherently, that I feel something is not right.  I have felt it for a long time.  And maybe, just maybe, the powers that be had me dropped out of school to support this cause.  Not to sit on my couch and watch the Kardashians.

But, seriously, let me get real for a minute.  How is it that I can fall in love with Keeping up with the Kardashians in two episodes and still feel tied with my heartstrings to this Occupy movement?  The 1% is SO seductive!  They want us to love them; they survive off of us loving them and wanting to be them.  BE YOURSELF!  As much as I love you, Kardashians, I quit you.  Forever.

I am going to create my own fun family and enjoy my life.

Rant officially over,
Melissa

Running a mile a day...to keep the doctor away?

By Amy Baranski

Since my last update I've run a mile almost every day. I did skip a day.

I spent the majority of my work week prepping training materials for a workshop that my client will deliver in Istanbul next week. I've been managing content for a couple PowerPoint presentations and updating web content and SharePoint lists. It's the kind of job that requires a dedicated set of three to four hours to one task. When you have two or more tasks to finish in a day you end up working from 6am-6pm and hopefully with a 30 minute lunch break.

This can, and often, translates to sitting down for 9 plus hours all day. And sitting can kill you.

Running a mile a day is a small (read: achievable) challenge that will hopefully inspire a broader lifestyle change (like running more than a mile, or acquiring a standing desk for the it-pays-the-bills job). Interestingly, in their recommendations for adult exercise, the Center for Disease Control does not mention the recent study that sitting down all day poorly affects your heath. For maintenance or "important health benefits" they recommend only getting "two hours and thirty minutes of moderate intensity aerobic activity a week." That's 150 minutes each week, and it doesn't seem like much.

The federal guidelines also do not take into consideration this study, published in the March 24/31 edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2010 on the amount of exercise women need to simply maintain their weight let alone gain greater health benefits. This study garnered a lot of press. I remember the headlines feeding into a kind of frenzy that an hour a day wasn't good enough to shed the pounds.

Encouragingly, the CDC site does state: "If you haven't been very active lately, increase your activity level slowly." A mile-a-day for a month should do the trick. But, there has to be something more to this monthly routine, especially considering that next month's challenge is Trapeze and Aerial class, an inspiration of Melissa's. I don't have particularly good upper body strength, so I'm skeptical that I'll even be allowed to participate in the class...so maybe along with this mile running there should be a push-up challenge as well.

I just stepped away from the computer to try a push-up test. I did two and then collapsed. I think I can do ten today.

A challenge, in and of itself

What u talkin bout?

posted by Melissa Baumgart
How's the running going, everyone?

I ran today, and I kicked up the speed a notch.  Yep, that's right, I ran my fastest mile yet.  I made it under eight and a half minutes at 8:27, a speed of 7.1 mph.  That is a 2.89% increase (I challenge you to check my math to see if it is correct.) over my previous best of 6.9 mph.

I have to admit, though, that I did not run yesterday.  I let all those excuses I mentioned in my previous post get the best of me.  I flopped my body on the couch for the entire second half of the day and watched television.  I really missed that during Homesteading month.

I have said it before, and I'll say it again: Living up to my own expectations is one of the hardest parts of this blog.  One one hand, I completely agree that being OK with having a down day is acceptable and can even be inspiring for another person to read about.  It might make it more real and less like I am some perfect Super-Mom (totally am not!) that does everything I set out to do.  Within that framework, other people may find solace and comfort in knowing we all fall short sometimes.  And that we can pick ourselves up and start all over again, maybe even faster and better.

On the other hand, I hate not following through with a challenge.  I want to be someone that does what I said I would do, no matter how tired I am, no matter how many things stack up against me.  No one gets anywhere in life sitting on the couch for 8 hours a day watching TV!

That's life.  It's a dichotomy, a puzzle, a challenge in and of itself.  It seems it can be so hard to find our own inner voice without falling prey to the negative self talk.  That voice can be so seductive.  So pervasive.  Maybe that should be a month for the blog; journaling the internal negative voice, and burning every last scrap of those papers.

But I do believe that there is a future for us all, in which we are humble enough to acknowledge that everyone has these vulnerabilities and yet, self-possesed enough to know where to draw the line between our true selves and the false assumption that there is a part of us that is never good enough.  Maybe it comes with age, maybe it comes with self exploration.  Or maybe it just is there, always waiting for us to witness it.

peace,
Melissa

Take It Easy

Easy Breezy.

posted by Melissa Baumgart
Why running a mile every day is not easy.  
I mostly do not want to go out and run this week.  I have lots of excuses as to why that is.  I have had allergies.  My throat feels like its tight and tickly all the time, and so it's hard to breathe.  I got kicked out of school because I lost the funding I was counting on...so I feel cranky.  And to top it off, I  have been eating like the Great Depression is upon us and I need to store up as much fat as I can.  You know, so when my glucose levels drop, my body can start converting lipids to glucose through gluconeogensis.  I miss school already.

Why running a mile every day is easy.
When I do go out every day and run a mile, it's not as hard as I think it will be.  Yesterday, while running with Amy and Lily, I was able to talk the whole time.  The first day, that was impossible.  In regards to the ChiRunning, I am trying to pay a bit of attention to things like my stride and what part of my foot is hitting the sidewalk.  But I find it somewhat challenging to pay attention to all 10 things that were on the list I posted the other day.

How to make the rest of the month easier.

1. Do core strengthening exercises.  I found this video on the ChiRunning site.  Oh my!  If my kids had a hard time with my slow walking, imagine what their response may be to this Butt Walking!  I can just see me Butt Walking down the hallway, kids yelling and pushing me over.
2. Eat less.  This will be hard.  I have talked about this before, many times.  And as much as I hate to say this, because I know it isn't wise to put off what's good for you, I will start this eating less thing tomorrow.  I know, so wrong, but we are going to Baguette Box today.  Truffle fries, people.  
3. Hot yoga?  I have been toying with the idea of going back to Bikram.  If I am not in school and the kids are, I should take advantage of that and get some detox and fitness in my life.  I feel like Bikram totally gave me a new start before.  Maybe I should try again.
4. Get to sleep earlier.  More sleep has to be good for you.  It just has to be.  I know that if I get to bed early and read for a bit, I feel better in the morning.  And I just started re-reading The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood.  I completely love this book.  Anyone want to read it along with me?

-Melissa

Running + Tai Chi

Running + Tai Chi = ChiRunning
You feel my Chi?

posted by Melissa Baumgart
The running 1 mile every day is still going strong.  Well, actually, I don't know if strong is a good word to describe it.  I'll just say it is still going.  And for the past couple days, the fact that I have simply run at all seems to be enough.  I haven't tried to run faster.  I have settled into keeping a pace that doesn't provoke the intense, deep, fast breathing that has created a spasmodic cough.  The cough makes me feel like I am going to not be able to breathe, and I hack loudly and scare people in public.

I was perusing Facebook today (i.e. not studying, but hey, 3 week into the quarter and I don't even know if I am going to be funded to stay in school, so maybe it doesn't matter) and saw that a friend had mentioned ChiRunning.  He was wondering if anyone out there knew about it, or had tried it.

Since we are all running this month, I felt compelled to check it out.  The name almost turned me off completely, and the website didn't immediately soothe those apprehensions.  With quotes like: "In Chi Running, Chi Walking and Chi Living (ChiLiving?!  Really??) we encourage all movement, all action, all choices to come from this center, that deep place in yourself that is home to your greatest potential and power" and a promise of a Money-Back Guarantee!

But, being an avid infomercial viewer,  I continued on.

I found an article called "10 Components of Good Running Technique".  Their (adapted) list is as follows:

1. Flexibility   Flexibility doesn't just happen, you have to work at it. Even stretching a few minutes a day is enough for most people to maintain a good range of motion and decrease their chances of injury due to muscle pulls.
2. Good posture  The more you slump, the more your body's muscles need to work to hold you upright. Poor posture not only restricts the circulation of blood to your muscles and organs but also inhibits the oxygen supply to your brain, which is not good, especially when you try to do something like thinking or running.
3. Good leg motion  Having too long of a stride, or "over-striding," is a huge cause of both hamstring and knee injuries. 
4. Cadence  Most people have too slow of a cadence.  (That surprised me.)  When you run you want to spend the least amount of time on your legs as possible. The longer you take with each stride, the more time your foot spends on the ground, and the more energy your legs have to expend to support your body weight. 
5. Body Sensing  You must develop a good ability to monitor and sense all of the major muscle groups of your body and to be able to sense tension or tightness in your muscles. Then you need to combine this with the ability to relax isolated muscle groups. This will help you to develop your strengths and make changes in the weak areas of your running technique.
6. Good mental focus  When you've felt, through Body Sensing, what adjustments you need to make to your running technique, you can then use your mental focus to tell your body what to do, until it has learned the new technique and your body does it naturally.
7. Good upper body/lower body coordination  When your upper body and lower body are working in unison rather than against each other it spreads the work of running over the whole body and takes the load off of any single muscle group.
8. Good breathing habits  Watch a baby breathing sometime. You won't see his chest rise and fall with each breath. Instead you'll see his abdominal area expand and contract like a someone breathing in and out of a balloon. This is how we should breathe and it's how you are taught to breathe in any yoga class. It's called "belly breathing" and it's how we should all be breathing all the time.  (Perhaps why my throat hurts, maybe I am not "belly breathing")
9. Proper bend in your knees and elbows  The less you bend your arms and legs, the more work your muscles have to do when you're running. 
10. Staying relaxed  This includes having a good sense of humor (No problem!) and having the ability to observe what is going on within you and around you and responding wisely to those observations.

I spent some more time looking through the website and I found it to be inspiring.  I feel like even I could run a marathon if I buy their books, DVD and metronome.  

Seriously though, I think it is worth trying to find a copy or seeing if the library has one I can borrow.  Even though I do have a problem returning books and it could end up costing me $100 in the end anyway.

-Melissa

The way home

By Amy Baranski

I'm somewhere between Centralia and Olympia Washington. Mode of travel: Amtrak. I'm heading back to Seattle from visiting family--an activity that will increase (and with joy) in the coming months.

I've been absent from this blog lately, and I still owe you a recap of the Urban Homesteading month adventure. I'm still homesteading; at this moment in fact. I've mentally designed a computer which is partially powered by finger typing movements. Not as brilliant, but still worth mentioning, there are two balls of yarn in my backpack. This is a feat for me. I would never, upon request, been able to produce two perfectly perfect balls of yarn. Two other balls would be easier to come by. I never thought I'd be that person. (The person with the yarn, not the balls).

Tomorrow begins my daily commitment to running a mile. I thought I had started October 1st, but the fact is I haven't donned a track suit in a few days. I just haven't had the steam. And I haven't been beating myself up for it. So this is it. The last day without running a mile. I know all you marathon runners out there are probably unimpressed with this mile-a-day business. But hey, you do you. And I'll do me.

Okay my battery's on the homestretch and I've got to type out this finger-powered-computer code before it fades.

XOA

Priorities Happen!

My Homestretch.

posted by Melissa Baumgart
I know, I know, so many books, magazine articles and "life coaches" have said this before.  Make yourself a PRIORITY!  I have found, and I admit there is likely an element of timing and fate at hand, but nonetheless when I make something that benefits me a priority, it happens.  I usually have to make some major commitment, like announcing to the world that I am doing Bikram yoga for 30 days straight, or like this month, running a mile every day.  But when I do that, it does happen.  The time seems to appear, even if it is squeezed between errands and meetings and kids (and leads to less sleep!).

When I don't do that, it doesn't. When I don't commit to yoga or running (or whatever you find to be your thing) by letting my family know my intention so they can help me and support me, I find that days go by where I didn't make it to the studio.  Everything seems to be stacking up against me, taking my time and making me to tired to go.  Those months where I don't make myself priority, I cannot fathom how I found the time to do so during other months.  It seems literally impossible.

What can you do for yourself every day?  It takes me at the most 15 minutes to get my running clothes and shoes on, stretch, run a mile, and cool off.  And even if I hate every minute of the run, I feel better for doing it.  (How weird is that?)  What will you do for yourself this month for 15 minutes a day?  You could run with us.  Or you could meditate.  Or you could draw.  Or take a bubble bath after your kids go to sleep.  Anything.

I did run today, but I did not time myself.  I can get a little obsessive about that kind of thing, so I thought it wise to take a day off from "beating my time."

I would be interested to see, with the intention to do something for yourself...something beneficial...how we all feel at the end of October.  Do you think it will make a difference?  Could it be that spark to ignite a light through the dark months to come?  (Hey, I live in Seattle, it starts getting dark at 4:30pm in the winter)  Or will everything be the same?

I am going to take the chance and see what happens.  What do I have to lose?

But what I don't want to do is make anyone who doesn't make the time, or just can't for any reason, feel bad.  I simply want to share my experience and hope to inspire at least one person along the way, OK, maybe two.  Three.  But really, be where you are.  It is such a tricky thing, to expect the best in yourself, and yet have compassion for those times that you aren't up to it.  I struggle with that regularly.

On that note; I am very, very happy to say that I have heard from at least three women and one husband, that they have also taken on the running one mile a day challenge!  You can do it!!!

-Melissa

It's getting better all the time

 Here's to you and your mile!

posted by Melissa Baumgart
My son, Levi, ran with me today.  He was kind and chilled his pace down a bit to stay back with me.  What a kid!  He did finish about 10 seconds ahead of me, and I was happy for him.  Until he called me fat a half hour later.  I weighed myself today and my suspicions were correct, I have gained back 2/3 (20 pounds!!!!) of what I lost a year and a half ago.

How did this happen?  I know...I love poutine, I love pizza, I love burgers and fries.  And I lost my yoga practice when I started school.

I seriously hope that running one mile  day does kick start my love for being fit.  I know it felt good to be fit.  But so does going out for a yummy burger.  I just cannot seem to find a way to be in balance with it all.  I swing from one extreme to another.  Perhaps this small and reasonable goal will be a shot of temperance in my otherwise turbulent life.

That being said, I did add in another element.  How could I not?  I wouldn't be me if I didn't.  But I am keeping it simple as well!  I am doing 20 crunches a day and starting at 5 push-ups a day.  I hope to work up to 50 of each.  Next month is Trapeze Month for christ sake, I better work on my core and upper body strength if I want to have any fun at all in November!

Today I increased my run time again.  We ran a mile in 8 minutes 38 seconds, a speed of 6.9 miles per hour!  The best part was that I didn't hate it as much as the day before.  And what I want you all to know is that I squeezed it in between bringing my kids home from school at 3:20pm and leaving to take Talullah to her soccer game at 3:45pm.

I repeat me new mantra, "You Can Do It!!!"  Even with limited time, even if you walk, even if you go slow...you can fit this in!!!

Here's to us!
Melissa

You can do it!

posted by Melissa Baumgart
We did the run today and here are the results:
Pace 8:54/mile -   Speed 6.7 mi/h
It was super hard.  Amy ran with me today, and it left both of us swearing and pacing, holding our sides.  It hurt, bad.

My throat hurt for at least an hour afterwards and I was wheezing all through the meeting I went to at the kid's school.  No, not the one with the principal and school counselor and Levi's teacher and me and Jamie.  No, that fun meeting will be this Friday (I know, "Good luck with that!").  This was a light-hearted meeting for the first grade parents about the curriculum.  Tallulah is doing just fine.  Actually, better than fine.

We know you can do it!
So, don't mess with us.

Now, three hours after the run, I feel satisfied and pleased with myself for doing it at all.  And for beating my time I had yesterday by 27 seconds!  I doubt I can keep up that increase because if I did I think my final time would be a negative number.   And seriously, I am just hoping that tomorrow isn't as hard as today (without slowing down).  I tend to find the second day of anything physical is always the most challenging.

Did anyone else out there run today?????

It's only one mile....you can do it!!!!  (my running mantra)

Melissa

Run, Fat Girl, Run!

posted by Melissa Baumgart

Change is the only constant.
I think someone famous once said that.  (I looked it up, it was Heraclitus, A Greek)  For Good Luck With That, it seems we change one topic every year so far.  Somehow, as it gets closer there is one month that just doesn't make sense.  And as much as I like to stand by my word, I also gravitate toward spontaneity.

I mentioned in my last post some of the reasons why we were thinking of not doing "Make our Own Wine and Beer" for October.  A brief recap includes, but is not limited to:  costs too much, too much drinking all month to do school/work/life, too similar to Urban Homesteading, and requires going out a lot to tastings (more money and loss of sleep.)  So, we decided to switch it up, and work on something simple and cheap.

The New October!
After lots of brainstorming, we settled on the idea of running one mile every day for 30 days.  We had thought of doing a half marathon for one month, or even a marathon at one point...so this is a simplified version of that dream.  I tend to dream big, and this month will be a practice in being realistic and kind to myself.  In some ways, the biggest challenge for me will be to keep it to one mile.  Like I said, I have a tendency to want to outdo myself.

Do you do that?  Are you competitive?  I actually don't think there is anything wrong with being competitive.  I think it adds an element of fun and excitement to life.  But I do know there are a lot of people that, just by the way they say the word "competitive", definitely think there is something wrong with being this way.  Like it inherently is bad or mean spirited.

Since I can't add on mile, my friend Matt had a brilliant suggestion (My guess is he likes a little competition himself).  He said I should work on making my time better and better.  Compete with myself, and still keep it one simple mile.  I love it!

So, today I started the challenge, and on day one my mile was 9 minutes 21 seconds.  Amy suggested a goal of 5 minutes by the month's end.  I think she is crazy!  Maybe, just maybe, I can get it down to 7 minutes.  I have some extra pounds to carry, so the speed might not come that easily.

That's the other thing.  Since my days of hot yoga, I have put on at least 2/3 of the weight I had lost.  And to top it off, Urban Homesteading month was filled with homemade decadence like poutine and lasagna.  I don't know why, but I just crave all that heavy, salty food.  ALL THE TIME.  Maybe this month will be a little wake up call to spark some healthier habits once again.

I invite you, one and all, to join us one this simple challenge.  It doesn't take much time, it doesn't cost anything (if you have a pair of shoes), and it is totally doable for almost anyone (even if you start out by walking.)

Who's in?
Melissa