Anecdotal, Fitness, Inspirational, Nutrition, Personal, Running

Live long and prosper

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Looking good for an old lady!

Yesterday, April 23, 2013, I turned the BIG 33. (Notice my super amazing hand signals to tell you that) I remember when 33 seemed very old. I remember when 33 seemed very far away. Now, I’m living it and embracing it! I absolutely was transformed when I truly got the revelation that life happens in seasons and you better stop, smell the roses, and enjoy each season as it comes because eventually that season will fade away. The 30’s have been very good to me and have truly been some of the most life transforming, God honoring years and seasons that I have ever walked in. Watch out world because Jessica hasn’t changed an ounce. I still am full of optimism, vitality, spunk, the Holy Ghost, and now I’ve got all of these things combined with a teeny tiny bit of maturity 🙂

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My day started out amazing with 3 homemade cards. Ok. This actually is a lie. In the interest of truth-telling while trying to maintain a vestige of privacy for my family all I will say is that at 3 AM someone came in our room and invited us to a party at their crib. Only their crib was a bunk bed and the party was the fact the bunk bed, sheets, blankets, mattress, pillows, and stuffed animals were covered in urine. Yes folks, I partied my birthday in with some fun PJ changing, sheet washing, febreeze spraying, laundry washing, and frustrated rambling.

Back to the cards……..Everyone of my boys made me a card, including my 31-year-old boy. This meant the world to me! My main man wrote me a love note with 33 reasons why he loves me and my 2 little men showed me their love with a Football themed card (literally EVERY woman’s dream) and a poem about playing games and naming names and how much fun that will be in repetition. I also had a gift that I love. It is the cutest little 26.2 marathon charm for my key chain or rear view mirror or any other place that I choose to show my love and adoration for the self flagellation and torture known as long distance running. The . for the .2 on the charm is a little tennis shoe. My men know me.

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The goodness of the day just kept coming. I got my free Starbuck’s Rewards birthday drink. It was a triple grande extra hot skinny peppermint mocha of which I drank outside on the patio at Starbuck’s because God showed me favor by giving me a day in the 70’s and sunny, of which we have seen maybe 2 such days in the entirety of 2013. I know God loves me more than he loves you if your birthday is today, because it is back in the 30’s and rainy today. Sorry, I’m just that amazing.

Also, that afternoon I got a call on my phone from Edible Arrangements that my neighbor had signed for a delivery for me. I was so pumped and told myself that I would have to put a serious smack down on my neighbor if she even looked at my arrangement with lust in her heart. That puppy was mine! I was super shocked and excited and couldn’t wait to get home and check it out. Turns out that my Bridge Church family, the greatest people in the world, chose to honor up, down, and all around by sending that amazing bouquet to my house and celebrate my big day. I also got countless cards, texts, Emails, and words of encouragement from these dear friends of mine. I am so #blessed!!! Every single comment meant the world to me.

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Before I could go on my birthday celebration run, I had to deliver my little men to school. I walked Reese to the bus stop and as soon as the driver pulled up, the entire bus stood up and sang “Happy Birthday” to me. My heart melted. Little Reese looked on with his friend Josh in delight because he had pulled off the surprise of the decade!

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My most handsome lunch date. Also at Melt with me were my husband and our church planting and strategy friend. Lunch was a church strategy meeting. I can’t think of anything else I’d rather do on my birthday than discuss soul winning while elbow deep in french fries. God is good to me.

After taking the boys to school, returning home and running 6 miles/walking 1 mile for a total of 7, I showered and raced to get Gentry from school so he could go to my business lunch with me. Usually on a day that I know is going to be incredibly hectic and fast paced, I like to get up at 5 AM and get my run done before the morning madness and ahead of the day’s tasks. However, my sweatband twin hubby had an equally as hectic, if not insanely more hectic day on the docket than I did. Because of that I let him have the honor of the pre-dawn run while I tried to snooze an extra 2 minutes.

Nothing says LIVE LONG AND PROSPER like a deep-fried Monte Cristo sandwich and 78 pounds of fresh-cut fries. Folks, that is what I had.  If you are ever in the Cleveland area, you must eat at “Melt Bar and Grilled”. It will change your life once you recover from the triple bypass surgery you need from eating there.

Westside Monte Cristo Grilled Cheese

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My night ended with a 2 hour church staff/strategic team meeting and one of the most adorable birthday cakes I had ever seen. Thanks to my mom for having them design an avatar on the cake that looked exactly like me. Hopefully since the icing girl was running hard, she ran all the calories right off of it before we dove in.

Full disclosure:

I know you are thinking I look crazy in all of my birthday pictures. I really did want to fix my hair nice and look good on my birthday, but I’ve found that maintaining a consistent exercise regime (read #runstreak, of which I celebrated Day 526 on my birthday and 527 this morning, strength training, and marathon training) while church planting, raising 2 kids, and saving the world takes a lot of time. I’m just grateful to have clean hair and smell like body wash and not sweat.

Disclosure:

Is there anyone else that eats horrible for a whole week around your birthday? I’m starting to feel the digestive negative side effects. The part-time vegetarian/want to be clean eater that is also embracing without remorse her love for ice cream as long as it is balanced with the reality of my terrible FAT GENES is coming back out swinging today. I’ll update you on that soon.

Does anyone else have it determined in their heart to embrace life, getting older, and to enjoy every season of life making each one amazing for what they offer?

Have you ever eaten at Melt Bar and Grill (It has been featured on the travel channel and Food Paradise. I’m not going to lie, it is my favorite Cleveland institution)? What do you order there?  http://meltbarandgrilled.com/

Anecdotal, Fitness, Inspirational, Nutrition, Personal, Running, Spiritual, The Bridge Church, Uncategorized

Hail Mary, full of grace……Again!

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Seeding and Leading (Set up at the Bridge Church)

As you can see, it’s been a full year since I’ve “wo-manned” my blog. I have started and stopped blogging consistently on several occasions, but I have  said my obligatory “Hail Mary’s”, I am confessing to you now, and on your part, it is time for the grace to flow, yet again.  I have always valued and enjoyed writing, and I am a prolific reader of numerous blogs. I just can’t in good conscience let the world exist without the deep insights that I have to share with it.

You can read some details in the “About” section, but in summary, my life consists of these components:

SEED. LEAD. RUN. EAT. REPEAT

In the vast resources of my brain, I will share with you all of these segments of my life. Here is my solemn, sacred vow:

1) I will blog consistently (In fact, I pledge to fall into a blog routine and a predictable schedule/habit of blogging that you can follow even if you aren’t on amphetamines. This schedule is going to organically take route and I will keep you informed of it once the voices tell me to.)

2) I will talk about running

3) I will talk about eating

4) I will talk about my family

5) I will talk about people

6) I will talk about God

7) I will talk about leadership

8) I will talk about health

9) I will vigilantly and adamantly contend for the fact that YOU/I are/am Mind, Soul, and Body and NONE of these items operate independently.

10) I will NEVER post pictures about cats with a caption stating affection or in any way claiming they are lovable/cute

I transported in all of my old posts from my old blog. If you are bored, scared, fighting insomnia, intrigued, or otherwise have no life, please feel free to scroll through these blogs and comment on them. You will find evidence of my on again/off again relationship with blogging and my need for public confession about it.

What about you………………..

Have you ever loved something but had trouble staying consistent with it?

Do you have an affinity to post pictures about cats and how adorable you think they are?

Anecdotal, Fitness, Inspirational, Personal, Running

Passing the "Century" Mark

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Me and My honey at the finish line of the Capital City Half Marathon in Columbus, Ohio 2011
“Everyone is an athlete. The only difference is some of us are in training, some are not”. 
Dr George Sheehan
#runstreak Day 150 in the books. Gearing up to PR hopefully at 1:59:59 at my May Half Marathon Race.
This week while running I was hot, cold, tired, energized, sweaty, revived, inspired, focused, ready to quit, ready to run, and ready to rule the world…………..all at the same time.
2012 in review (1st Quarter):
January:                        117.89 Miles Run at a 6.2 MPH Average Pace Burning 12,088 Calories
February:                     124.20 Miles Run at a 6.3 MPH Average Pace Burning 14,811 Calories
March:                         146.37 Miles Run at a 6.5 MPH Average Pace Burning 17,365 Calories
April (Up until 4/11/12):  55.56 Miles Run at a 6.5 MPH Average Pace Burning 6,711 Calories
Total (Up until 4/11/12): I have run 444.02 miles– Burnt 50,975 calories– and Averaged a 6.3 MPH pace Running
I’m 44% of the way to my goal of 1,000 miles run in 2012, only 556 miles left to run. I’m thinking of reassessing my goal because we are only 1/4 of the way through the year and I’m almost 1/2 of the way to my goal. I want to always keep a challenge before my eyes.

My average pace increased from 6.2 MPH Average Pace to 6.5 MPH Average Pace due to speed drills and strength training. Plus, the difference between running in the dead of winter and nicer weather is significant, at least for me. My shorter runs have sometimes been as fast as an 8:23/mile average pace, but those faster times are balanced out by my longer slow endurance building runs.
 
In running, there are no time outs, half times, substitutions, or designated hitters. Running is the only true sport. It is up to you and you alone to perform and your greatest competitor is yourself. Ruminating on these facts brings me a great sense of pride. I’ve gotten to the point that I no longer really care if anyone else knows about my running, it is my own private little paradise.I’m carrying around a huge secret everywhere that I go. One of my favorite kid’s shirts says “My mom ran a marathon this morning. What did your mom do?” Now, the fact that I’m blogging about it seems to contradict the fact that it’s my secret and my private paradise, but there is a great sense of accountability that comes with linking up with other runners in the blogosphere, on twitter, and in private Facebook groups. Without the accountability of other’s, there are definitely days that I could have convinced myself to take a day off here and there, but at this point, the #runstreak owns me and it brings me great pleasure. Once you have run well over 100 days and are nearing the 6 month mark of running everyday with no break, you are intrinsically motivated to continue. Sometimes envisioning the race day crowds holding “Chuck Norris has never run a marathon” or “My sport is your sports punishment” signs can make even the most routine and mundane of runs a complete adrenaline booster. Whatever mantra gets you through the run can be the key to your success, and the great thing is no mantra is better than another. It’s whatever makes you run harder, faster, and longer, so start memorizing some energizing “pick me up” lines.

Endurance running is an indescribable experience for me. I’m the girl that would literally about pass out in elementary school during the Phys Ed President’s Physical Fitness test. I dreaded every year that we had to run a mile to be scored for some statistical analysis of the general American public. I especially dreaded running laps in Freshman and Sophomore gym class because there were always cute boys there, and I’m not one of the perfumed up honey’s that you see at the local Urban Active Fitness. When I run, I look like I’m running. I sweat. I breathe heavy, and sometimes I wear Kinesio tape on my leg to support my Achilles Tendon. In light of my physical fitness history, you can imagine why I constantly tweet about my running and blog about it and the beautiful thing is, if it annoys you, no one is forcing you to read it. I’m the king of the world! (It is Titanic celebration week so humor me.)

I’m celebrating the review of my 2012 running so far. Since the end of the 1st quarter of the year is upon us, I wanted to assess my goals and review them and share them with you. I’m hoping to inspire those who are just starting out to know that you can do it and show those that are way beyond me where they use to be so they can maintain perspective of the work it takes to make significant improvements in both speed and endurance with running. The “century” mark celebration refers to a distance of 100. Whenever the term century is used in sports, it’s used to speak about going 100 or more miles. I remember when I was as big as a house pregnant for Gentry, my husband rode his bike on his first century bike tour, then turned around and rode another century the next morning. I really thought he was nuts. Who wants to ride their bike 200 miles in 2 days? Of course, I was jealous that he was getting buff on his bike while I expanded to Martian proportions baking a bun in my oven, but I had not gotten the heart of an athlete yet. Now, I have found a whole sub group of people who run 100 plus miles at a time. These people are called Ultra Marathoners and Ultra Endurance Athletes.Believe it or not, these people know intrigue me. Instead of it being shocking for me to hear about people running 50 marathons in 50 states in 50 days, I dream about doing it one day. I doubt it will happen because I don’t have the celebrity of an endorsed athlete to pull it off, but every month, every year, and every decade I can add miles and speed to my repertoire and no one can take that away from me.
Start training today. Find the athlete within. Strong is the new skinny. Running gear is the new “little black dress”.
Anecdotal, Inspirational, Personal

Own up to It

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Some people drift through their entire life. They do it one day at a time, one week at a time, one month at a time. It happens so gradually they are unaware of how their lives are slipping away until it’s too late.

Mary Kay Ash

 

Knowing that most New Years Resolutions are over by Valentines, I figured now that not only Valentine’s is gone, but St. Patrick’s Day and Easter, it was time to put my year and my rear back in gear: Game on! See, I haven’t strayed from the major boundaries of my 2012 resolutions, but it’s a few small things that I promised myself would change that have slipped. Often, it’s the small holes in a boat that cause it to capsize, not always the major storms that hit. I have a print out by my computer and a list in my phone that highlight my goals and resolutions for 2012. I know that in order to achieve goals, you must revisit them daily, and oftentimes, several times throughout the course of any day. The resolution that I have slipped on the most is my BLOG, as if I have to inform you of that. I’m borderline humiliated to see that my last post was in February. I must have caused extreme duress for all 1.25 fans out there that follow what I have to say not hearing from me for so long 🙂 It’s time for me to quit drifting in this area of my life and have a comeback.

This blog is important to me for many reasons:

1) I have been on a journey and am still traveling that journey and feel like my experiences and honesty can help you in your quest to get fit, stay healthy, and whip yourself into shape.
2) The blog helps hold me accountable to my health and fitness goals. Thankfully, my #runstreak twitter feed and countless running friends on twitter have held me accountable when I was slacking on my blog.
3) The blog causes me to think through situations in life and think of stories and scenarios for everything. In essence, the blog makes life even more fun and interesting. Life is just one great story to be lived out, and the blog helps me see the plot highs, lows, resolutions, and sequels.
4) I love to write. I identify myself as a writer. I am going to write something great one day and the way to be identified as an author and as a writer, is just simply to put words down and slowly build an audience. Truth be told though, even if no one reads or likes what I say, the fact I said it makes me a writer.
5) I get great pleasure in relaying pertinent information to people and drawing people together toward common ground. When I share my experiences in cyber space, I’m making myself available to people as an information resource and friend.

This list could go on forever, but the main goal of this post is to own up to the fact that I haven’t been faithful and consistent in my blog, and therefore, I haven’t been faithful to myself. Sure, I have lots and lots of very valid excuses for why I haven’t been on here. They are all legitimate and genuine, but great people do not build their lives on excuses, even the most well-founded life altering excuses. Even the Bible tells us that the race isn’t for the swift, but for those that endure. The prize is given to those that don’t make excuses, but keep producing and moving forward.

In closing, let this confession be a reminder to you to get back on track in 2012. We are only 1/3 of the way through. Picture the person you want to be on January 1, 2013 and start working on that person today. You still have 2/3 of a year left to do it. I’m happy to report that with the exception of the blog, my 2012 resolutions are progressing quite nicely. God is proving my scripture of the year that he gave to me, Romans 3:4 “Let God be true and every man a liar.” He has moved in amazing ways in my life and the life of the Bridge Church. I have continued my #runstreak and I am focusing on communicating, challenging myself and others, and connecting. Most of all, I am growing as an individual and growth is my word and theme of the year. Even dropping the blog portion of my communication resolution has helped me grow. Go get what you want out of 2012………………..NOW, NO EXCUSES!

Fitness, Inspirational, Nutrition, Running

Run with Passion

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I like to revisit these pictures often to show myself I can do it, I have done it, and I can do it even better next time!I don’t think this is the most flattering pose I have, but I’m doing it.

Verse Lyrics from “Chosen Generation” by Chris Tomlin
(This song goes through my mind continuously every time I run. I love the opportunity for quiet meditation that running affords me.)

We run with passion for your name we run
Freedom
you broken every chain we run
Our god will not be moved
Our god will never be shaken
We run to you we run

 Running Report (According to my Garmin and the Treadmill Computer):
Over the last 30 days I have Run: 122.69 miles at an average pace of  6.2 MPH
Burning around 14,575 running calories
Over the last 7 days I have Run: 28.62 miles at an average pace of 6.3 MPH
Burning around 3,361 running calories

We know that one pound is equal to 3,500 calories, so if I hadn’t been running the last 7 days, I’d probably be up a pound. A pound doesn’t seem too bad, until at the end of a year, when you notice you gained 20-50 pounds without even realizing it. Pounds have a way of creeping up with stealth until you have gained more than you can continue to control. This should be a great lesson to all of you that exercise matters. Every calorie torched is a calorie off your tush.

This week I’ve had 3 treadmill days. Monday and Tuesday were still snowy, icy, and slushy, so I hopped on the treadmill at the YMCA before doing my strength training routine. I will admit on Tuesday, I was pushed on to new speeds when I looked up and saw the Dr. Oz show on the YMCA TV about obese women who are paid by men to eat. It was the most bizarre thing I’ve ever seen or heard of. Apparently there is a sub-culture that is into something called “Feederism”. One 600 pound plus lady said men pay her so that they can smell her fat armpits. I couldn’t look at the screen and read the closed captioning any longer, because it was making me physically sick to watch. Don’t let people steal your dignity like that. However, it did push me on and I’m sure that haunting image will keep me out of the ice cream tub on nights I don’t have the calories banked for it.
Day 94 of my #runstreak was this week and I went 9.4 miles. (Sometimes I like to match my days and distances to entertain myself and mark my territory of accomplishment.) This is my longest distance since November, and it went well despite the extreme amount of slush, leftover snow, mud puddles, and overall wetness. The temperature was perfect for me, somewhere around 30 degrees. I’m probably the only person in Northern Ohio dreading summer. My runs are always so much stronger and more inspired in cold weather temperatures.  I am getting a blister on my little toe, from wet socks I presume, but sometimes in spring running you can’t avoid it. The same thing happened last year when I first started frequent running in the rain. I figure you can’t predict the weather in Cleveland and I’m not going to let an excuse block me. Generally I would choose outdoor running over treadmill running any day, including in rain and snow. Sometimes though, I just don’t have the mental fortitude to deal with it, and on those days, I’m thankful for the YMCA.  
I can consider myself an official runner now because I had my first real experience with chaffing. I wore my Nathan hydration belt so I could carry water, and somehow my shirt had come out from under it and the belt rubbed my stomach the entire run. I came home to a hideous area of chaffing on my stomach from it. If I had been out much longer, I think it would’ve been bleeding because it looks like little open wounds. I know that is TMI, but there are quite a few ugly realities that exist in the world of middle to long distance running that are generally topics not covered by the “polite” population. When you are around runners, pretty much every socially taboo subject is acceptable fodder. (Including discussion on bladder and bowel functionality.)  I usually take really good precautions to avoid chaffing, but I had a wardrobe malfunction. I’m gearing up for a 10 mile run next week to celebrate hitting the 100 plus days of run streaking mark. 
So far my Achilles is doing fairly well. I wore Kineseo tape on it for my long run for the first time in probably over a month and it was more of a preventative measure. I am not getting ahead of myself though and am still taking my pace, and even distances, more slowly than I normally probably would. 
The #runstreak has really been a time of growing and self exploration for me. I never in 100 years would’ve dreamed that I would be obsessed with running and/or exercise in the way that I have become. Contrary to popular belief or opinion, all of this running and working out actually takes very little time from my schedule. You may want to believe that I am spending countless hours logging miles and that you don’t have that kind of time, but in reality, you can start a fitness routine with 20-60 minutes a day. Unless I am training for a race, I almost never workout over an hour. If you watch even 1 to 2 TV shows a day, you have the time to workout. It is a matter of time management and prioritization. Get up earlier, eliminate a TV show, eliminate some social networking time, rearrange your lunch hour, and the possibilities are endless. Give up your excuses today. I gave mine up two years ago and everyday I’m improving, growing, building strength, building endurance, and just having an overall blast.

The intersection of mind, body, and spirit