New habits

I am trying to get used to running with the Camelbak (carrying it even on runs when I don't need it), but my inability to remember the bladder is annoying. Both Friday and today, I packed the pack itself and readied the bladder - and then forgot to take the bladder with me. Gah!

I guess I won't run with the Camelbak after work tonight. (It makes no sense to go all the way home to get the bladder just to run 6 miles.)

Making new habits is hard. It's taken me a while, but this running thing is pretty much a habit (although the increased distance has pretty much eliminated morning runs; I suspect as the weather warms up, I'll get back into those morning runs). What still isn't quite habit: stretching (especially after runs), foam rolling, icing and strength-training. That's a lot.

And I'm trying to get in the habit of eating better. I'm hoping to see a correlation between what I'm eating and drinking and how well I run. I'm not sure how I want to track this - I'm kind of an electronic person, but sometimes pen and paper works better. I don't think I need to get all fancy and use Live Strong and measure everything - that's not really my goal. (Plus, I went into Live Strong today, and it pissed me off because I think the calorie counts are way too low.)

I suppose I could use this blog to log what I'm eating and how my workouts feel, but I don't know that I'll actually review it if it's online. I have to run errands at lunch, so maybe I'll buy a new notebook that I can record stuff in.

I'm always afraid of pen and paper, though - I would be so embarrassed if, say, I lost it and my coworkers or friends found it. I could keep the notebook by the bed and use it at night right before going to sleep; I could use the iPhone/iPad notes app to record things during the day. That's an idea... I'd have to make it, you know, a habit.

Another week of excuses.

I'm going to end up with fewer than 20 miles this week and no strength-training or yoga. Way fewer. I have "reasons," but they don't matter. While I'd like to get another 100-mile month, trying to do so in November or December is unrealistic (and trying to do it when I'm not actually training for anything might not be realistic either). But an 80-mile month isn't (although catching up at this point might be hard).

In any case, I think I'm still eating like I'm running a hundred miles a month, and that's ill-advised. Time to both dial back the portions and dial up (?) the running. And the strength-training. And the yoga.

Oh, the yoga. I haven't done any in forever. I am horrible at home practice, and because of GOTR, I'm missing my usual class. The fall season ends the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, so I'll be able to start back up. I'm having calf/ankle pain that I never had before, but I think it's because during my higher-mileage months, I was also getting in at least one yoga session per week.

We head out of town tonight - after running twice this week - and I hope to run once over the weekend. I'm not sure how the setup is, but I should be able to get in 3 or 4 miles. And I should be able to get in a mile with the girls tonight.

Next week, back to normal. What worked over the summer was running Monday or Tuesday morning, Wednesday night, Friday morning, and a long run on the weekend. I want to go back to that:

Monday or Tuesday morning: 4 miles
Wednesday night: 6 miles
Friday morning: 4 miles
Weekend long run: 6-8 miles (maybe more)

My mood is definitely better when I'm running more too, so those around me should appreciate that.

Have you lost weight?

This question. It baffles me.

In the past year, I've lost about 10 pounds - nothing dramatic - but apparently it's starting to be a little noticeable. This is good, right? So why do I feel so offended when people ask me if I lost weight? I can't help but think, "how bad did I look before?"

In any case, with me, it's more weight shifting, maybe better muscle to fat distribution. And it's been a really slow (and steady? and sustainable? if I keep running 20+ miles per week - which isn't unreasonable) weight loss.

And, really, if I'm honest, I need to lose another 20 pounds (and aside from the running - which really isn't that helpful for weight loss - I'm not doing much to facilitate weight loss).

When I've noticed that someone has lost weight, I try not to compliment that vague aspect. "Losing weight" isn't necessarily a good thing anyhow. What if they've lost weight because they're sick or super-stressed or something? But I do try to compliment people regularly, but focus on something specific like how toned their arms are. (Or in the case of one weight-losing friend, encouraging her to buy clothes that fit!)

I don't know. It's hard. I never want to insult people, but I do like to applaud hard work. (So congratulations, self. You've been sticking with your half-marathon plan and have been increasing your endurance - and your speed is starting to follow suit.)

Oh, and I'm NEVER going to comment on a near-stranger's weight. I'm just not. That's weird. You don't know me - I could be going through something horrific that's causing me to lose weight. Thanks for bringing it up.

But mostly I'm being overly sensitive. I know that generally people mean well and have good intentions. So thank you for noticing the changes that are coming from my hard work. I hope I can keep it up.