Amber's Apology

Back in the day when the Via Running Club was running mob deep, Amber and I sat across from each other at work. She witnessed my hair falling out as I attempted to train for the Portland Marathon and plan my wedding. It was a great time, actually. Too bad I didn't realize it at that point.

Anyway, one day Amber mentioned that she had made her own soda the night before. I jumped on that like a wolf on a dead carcass. "Are you a hippy?!! You're such a hippy!?" I exclaimed with joy. And truth be told, she is a hippy. But a nice smart hippy who runs and writes really well. She, of course, thought I was nuts because really, to make your own soda, you add flavoring to sparkling water.

They way I reacted you'd thought she was using disposable menstrual rags. NOT THAT THERE'S ANYTHING WRONG WITH THAT, of course. But you catch my drift.

So, here it is. I am sorry I called you a dirty hippy for making your own soda. Because, behold....



Those are alfalfa sprouts that I GREW my own damn self on my kitchen counter. And a cup of them found their way into my green smoothie (along with a pear, an apple, bee pollen, agave nectar, flax seeds and a ton of spinach). Contrary to popular belief (and when I say popular belief, I mean my own belief), sprouts are nutritious! Who knew?

And then, I made tabouli, taboulli, taboulleh, or however you spell it.


Things are weird around here, folks. Very strange.

Today's morning weigh in went great for us. Amy didn't enter the house because Oliver had the stomach flu yesterday. Michael lost 1.2 and I lost 2.1!!! I'm now 145.1. Only 35 pounds to go.

I ran three times this week and felt great. That's it from hippy central.

Take a Listen to Your Spirit, It's Crying Out Loud

The original title of this post was going to be "I Nutted Up!"

(For those of you new to the phrase "nut up," it means to "suck it up." I learned last year that men use this phrase a lot during sporting events. You can also replace "nut" with "sack." And there's your lesson for today.)

But, because I'm turning into a dirty hippy (I'm growing my own sprouts, people), I decided to go with a line from Fleetwood Mac--very quickly becoming my favorite music to run to. I really feel like this process of losing weight and getting back to running feels soulful or spiritual. God, I'm grossing myself out with this new age shit. Lord.

Anyhoo! Today's run was awesome. Mostly because I didn't want to go. I fought with myself for about 20 minutes about going. First, it's very windy and cold. Wind chill is probably making it about 37 degrees or so. Then, the inevitable dilemma about where to run. Then, I let something else make the decision for me. I got on the scale. That's always a great motivator.

So, the weigh in on Saturday was a pretty big disappointment. I only lost .6 according to Amy's scale. But my scale showed a lower weight. Michael and I were both pissed because we've been killing it during the week. Going under calories and exercising. Well, when Amy left (she lost 2.2 BTW. Bitch!) we put two 5lb bags of sugar on my scale. And it registered 10 pounds. So on my little weight keeping tool, I went with my lower weight. I'll keep Amy's weight for the competition. But to date I've lost 10.2 pounds.

So today I logged four miles. Felt pretty good. I stopped and walked a few times, but always started running within 45 seconds to a minute. The other great thing about today was the flying snot rocket.

Since I wipe Oliver's snotty nose with my hand, arm, wrist, shirt, hem or anything that's available, (I mean why don't I just lick it off like a mother tiger? It has the same effect--me getting sick) I too have a snotty nose. So when you're running into the wind, you can really let those suckers fly. A LOT. Pretty sweet.

And that's it from here. Right now, 3.5 hours from the run, I'm feeling tired. But happy it's over.

p.s. Cat Stevens' song that didn't jive with my mood--Father and Son. First lyrics I hear as I'm sucking wind: "It's not time for a change. Just relax, take it easy." Thanks Cat. You suck.

In Stereo

Today I struggled with where to run. Should I drive up to the zoo and run on the trail? Do I stay in the neighborhood and risk people seeing my FAF (Fat Ass Frame) as they're driving on Scholls Ferry Road? I decided driving up to the zoo was a waste of time, so I ran my neighborhood loop instead of my usual route that takes me across Scholls Ferry--the life line of SW Portland.

I also decided to run with music. This is a BIG deal. Because I NEVER run with music. My first and only running Coach taught me that running with headphones on could be dangerous--you can't hear cars coming up behind you, German Shepherds trying to kill you, etc. I agreed because I wanted to be a purist. I didn't want a crutch to help me run better.

That went out the window today, and I loved it! Holy cow. I didn't have to hear my labored breath as my FAF went up a hill, I could burp to my heart's content (even though I do enjoy hearing how loud I can get sometimes).

What's funny about the music today was that I used my iPod Mini circa 2002/2003. I used this little guy while I was training for the Portland Marathon that I dropped out off. (Loser! Loser!) It had some good songs on it! Granted I had to fast forward through Morning has Broken by Cat Stevens, some lullaby by Enya and Drums (gag) by the Dead.

But I also got to hear Second Hand News by Fleetwood Mac, Reckless Life by Guns 'N Roses (totally!), Everyday People by Sly and the Family Stone, and Last Dance by Donna Summer. Good times.

Your tangent for today: yesterday I went to Costco. I bought a digital scale. I've been on it 1,432 times already. I don't believe the number. Also, I put a hot/cold laminator in my cart because I REALLY WANT ONE. I want to laminate things. I want to laminate the boys' art work, I want to laminate recipes, I'm dying for this thing. But, I knew Michael would make fun of me and I'd probably use it once. So I put it back. So sad.

That's it for today. Run on peeps!

Official Weigh In Results

The official results are in. After dreaming all night that I was weighing in with the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills on a faulty scale, I'm happy to report that all three participants of the Great Weight Challenge of 2011 lost weight!

The results:

Michael: Down 5.4 pounds for an overall loss of 12.8 pounds!

Amy: Down 0.8 pounds for an overall loss of 2.2 pounds!

Sarah: Down 2.8 pounds for an overall loss of 8.4 pounds!

Sweeeeeeeeeeeet.

Now, it's just time to run.

Dr. Feelgood

I wish this post was about drugs, but alas.

The sprain was a bit worse than I thought. The day after the sprain I noticed a lot of tenderness, so I went to my doctor for a quickie wrap. He advised using an aircast and doing the prerequisite RICE-ing, which I'm fine with, except for the "R" part. Especially since I had just had an awesome run and was feeling back to my runnery self (gross).

Here's a bad iPhone pic, but you can see the lovely bruising setting in:

(tangent: what's the deal with new Droid users who are all up in your face about how the Droid is the best phone on the planet, and any one who uses an iPhone is a big fucking idiot, and yadda yadda yadda. Newsflash: 1) We're talking about phones, and 2) I can't even make a call on my iPhone anyway, so what's the diff?! Gahwd)


So even though I didn't believe my doctor when he said I should rest it for a minimum of a week, it's now been a week. And I haven't run. I've starved myself, but no running. I'd rather starve myself and at least have an endorphin rush, ya know?

Anyhoo, going to try and go out on Saturday at the earliest.

Yours in not running greatness...

Sloppy Seconds

So last night I decided I would drop the boys off this morning and go directly to the trail to run, no matter what the weather was. Driving to school, it didn't seem too rainy, just a light drizzle. By the time I got to the trail, it was really raining. But, by my calculations, I would be under trees, a perfect canopy and stay pretty dry.

Nice. In reality, the trees, when combined with wind, create MORE rain and a very sloppy trail. I decided not to try and save my fancy pants pink running shoes, but instead hit every puddle. A few times the puddles tried to suck off my shoes, but I plowed on.

As compared to my previous two train runs, this one was awesome. I felt like the ol' me (plus 40 pounds...that's right! I lost almost five pounds last week. Michael? Nine!). For those of you who know that zoo route, my first goal was to not stop running until I made the bench. Done.

On the back stretch, I marveled at how I hadn't run into any other people (tangent: ever notice when you're on the trail and a runner is coming towards you, they always say a greeting that's like three syllables? Like "good morning!"? The last time I ran, I passed four people. Every one said good morning. I was sucking wind SO HARD I could only say "hi." It was more like "huh." Anyhoo...)

So there I am, feeling like the old Runner World and all of a sudden! Twist my ankle and let out a scream. Because it hurt. But, not as bad as the sprain during my rookie year of running. I managed to swirl it around and finish the run. It hurt more when I got home, but a little ice and elevation, and it'll be fine in a couple of days.

I really had a good run. Woo hoo!

Shoes would probably disagree.

This One Goes Out To the Elf

OK, OK. Enough hiding.

I'm fat. 45 pounds overweight (I AM NOT LYING).

Here's how you'll know I'm not lying.

Ever felt your stomach hit the top of your thighs when you sit down? I now can say I have.

Or, can you actually pick up your stomach with both hands and wave goodbye to your sons? I can.

It hurts now, but while I was living large with my chocolate chips, asagio cheese, Pizza Fridays, vodka lemonades, vodka cranberry lemonades, vodka tonics with lime, vodka 7-ups it felt soooooooooooooooooooooo good.

But enough is enough. Not even going to call it a comeback. Just calling it an attempt. I'm working in partnership with my friend Amy, who just had an adorable baby, weighs 130 lbs and wants to lose 10lbs. Yes, total bitch, right? But she's totally motivated and will keep me on track.

So far this week:

1. The boys have started Montessori school and hated it. I cried two days after dropping them off.
2. Ate under 1400 calories every day.
3. Ran three times (once for 23 minutes, once for 13 minutes, and once for 31 minutes). Strike that. More like shuffled, walked, panted, stopped, cursed chocolate chips, and then continued.
   
4. Contemplated putting the Goose down (she's not well).
5. Marveled at how much gas two dogs can produce.
6. Watched a ton of raw food videos after stumbling on runningraw.com. Seriously, check this guy out. He's awesome. I'd totally be his friend.
   
7. Ate one green smoothie.
   

Not bad, right?

So, the goal is to not drink for 40 days (Michael's homage to the Lenten season ), and train for the Race for the Roses 1/2 marathon in April. We'll see.

Starting weight as of last Sunday.....wait for it....157 pounds. You're probably thinking, wait! Sarah! But you're only five feet tall. And to that I say fucking right.