One of my favorite things about Fresh Market is their selection of specialty chocolate bars. I don't shop there often, so when I do, I usually pick up a goodie for each family member. Yesterday I had 5 assorted chocolate bars in my cart, and I headed for the checkout. I thought about how much I love my husband and three children and I enjoy being nice by bringing them a treat.
Then something occurred to me. I flipped my husband's bar over. It's 2.5 servings in a bar at 190 calories per serving. Now, these are rather large bars and he probably would eat it in 2-3 servings. However, he recently got back from a 2-week backpacking trip where he lost a good inch on his waist, and he has mentioned that he would like to keep it that way.
I realized that maybe it wasn't so "nice" of me to bring him this candy bar with an extra 475 junk calories that he didn't need in his weekly diet.
So I said to myself, "I probably shouldn't be quite so 'nice' to my husband." I put our two candy bars back, and instead bought a little single-wrapped peppermint patty for him and a dark chocolate salted caramel for myself. The calorie count for that serving was much lower than the chocolate bar. Plus, once it's gone, it's gone. No leftovers to tempt us.
I know I could have bought nothing for all of us, but as I said, I don't shop at Fresh Market often, and neither my husband nor I believe in total denial.
In many cultures, providing lots of yummy food for consumption is a sign of love. However, there are plenty of other ways to love and support our family and friends - including simply providing a little less food! I'm glad I was able to step back and realize that what I initially thought of as being a "nice thing" to do would really only sabotage my husband's goal. Hopefully he'll keep his belt on its new notch and I will continue to think twice when choosing treats to bring home.
Wednesday, July 19, 2017
Monday, July 17, 2017
My Little Portion
If you ever want to feel your blood pressure go down, just spend some time talking to a Franciscan.
A young woman from our church entered the religious life several years ago, and every summer when she comes home for a visit with her parents, I am struck by how calm and happy and worry-free she is. I've met several Franciscan nuns and friars since then, and they've all got the same serenity. Last summer, my husband and I spent a few days at a Franciscan retreat center and it was very life-giving.
I'm not unhappy. I'm happy, but it can be a tense kind of happiness at times. I guess that's mainly because I'm quite busy. I've always got stuff going on in the back of my mind, thinking about what needs to be done and also what I'd simply like to do. I'm sure many others are the same way.
Today Sister said something to the congregation that I have pondered all day. When you're feeling stressed out, just follow the example of Saint Francis and see what is your "little portion." You don't have to do everything. What is the little portion that you are called to do?
I could expound more upon this, but then I think I'd be going beyond my little portion.
So I think I'm simply going to throw this out there and share it in a simple way.
Don't try to do everything. Let others help. What's your little portion?
A young woman from our church entered the religious life several years ago, and every summer when she comes home for a visit with her parents, I am struck by how calm and happy and worry-free she is. I've met several Franciscan nuns and friars since then, and they've all got the same serenity. Last summer, my husband and I spent a few days at a Franciscan retreat center and it was very life-giving.
I'm not unhappy. I'm happy, but it can be a tense kind of happiness at times. I guess that's mainly because I'm quite busy. I've always got stuff going on in the back of my mind, thinking about what needs to be done and also what I'd simply like to do. I'm sure many others are the same way.
Today Sister said something to the congregation that I have pondered all day. When you're feeling stressed out, just follow the example of Saint Francis and see what is your "little portion." You don't have to do everything. What is the little portion that you are called to do?
I could expound more upon this, but then I think I'd be going beyond my little portion.
So I think I'm simply going to throw this out there and share it in a simple way.
Don't try to do everything. Let others help. What's your little portion?
Tuesday, July 11, 2017
"And Up" - I'm nearly there???
A few weeks ago, I took a Praxis exam to see if I had specific knowledge and expertise to add another endorsement to my teaching certificate.
After I received my (passing) score via email, I got a second email asking me to take a brief online survey to evaluate my Praxis experience.
I finally got around to taking the survey today, as I sit at home, sick. When I got to the final question, it asked my age. There was a pull-down arrow, and I expected to see age "groups" - like 20-29, 30-39, and so forth.
I was surprised that the pull-down generated a list of individual numbers. I had to scroll a while to get to 47. When I did, I was surprised by what followed.
48
49
50 and up
50 and up?
As someone who hopes to be a lifelong learner, I was a bit taken aback, like... do so few people over 50 take these tests that they just lump them all together? Why? Are we over the hill, intellectually?
Of course, that's not what it means. I suppose by the time most people hit the age of 50, they're not looking at career changes. Therefore, there are probably not many people that age who need to take these tests, and you might as well lump them all together in one category. But still, it was kind of a shocker to see an age so close to my own being listed as "and up."
My mother and I have run races together for the past two decades. I'm now in the age group she was in when we did our first one together. So we've been slowly moving up through the age groups over the years. This weekend, if I'm well enough, we will do another 5K race together. I'm in the 45-49 age group and she is, for the first time in her life, in the "70 and up" category. It's a strange feeling, knowing that she's part of such a small group of people that they lump them all together as "and up."
If you look at my mom, you sure don't see some feeble old woman on the decline. If you look at any of the local 65-69 ladies in these races, they look just as good. I try to remember how many women were racing 20+ years ago in my current 45-49 age group. Maybe there weren't as many, and I bet they weren't as fast as the women in that group today. Did the top age group used to be 60 and up? It may have been, as I know my mother once won an award years and years ago for being the oldest woman in the race. She must have been around 60.
There is a saying now that "50 is the new 30." I think there's something to that. I remember my grandparents at 70 and they were nowhere near as active as my parents. Maybe if we all stay active as long as we can, mentally and physically, we can keep moving that "and up" category further out.
A quick Google image search yielded this book, so apparently the "Dummy" people believe there's enough of a market to publish a book on changing careers later in life. Never stop learning and growing, forever onward and UPward!!
After I received my (passing) score via email, I got a second email asking me to take a brief online survey to evaluate my Praxis experience.
I finally got around to taking the survey today, as I sit at home, sick. When I got to the final question, it asked my age. There was a pull-down arrow, and I expected to see age "groups" - like 20-29, 30-39, and so forth.
I was surprised that the pull-down generated a list of individual numbers. I had to scroll a while to get to 47. When I did, I was surprised by what followed.
48
49
50 and up
50 and up?
As someone who hopes to be a lifelong learner, I was a bit taken aback, like... do so few people over 50 take these tests that they just lump them all together? Why? Are we over the hill, intellectually?
Of course, that's not what it means. I suppose by the time most people hit the age of 50, they're not looking at career changes. Therefore, there are probably not many people that age who need to take these tests, and you might as well lump them all together in one category. But still, it was kind of a shocker to see an age so close to my own being listed as "and up."
My mother and I have run races together for the past two decades. I'm now in the age group she was in when we did our first one together. So we've been slowly moving up through the age groups over the years. This weekend, if I'm well enough, we will do another 5K race together. I'm in the 45-49 age group and she is, for the first time in her life, in the "70 and up" category. It's a strange feeling, knowing that she's part of such a small group of people that they lump them all together as "and up."
If you look at my mom, you sure don't see some feeble old woman on the decline. If you look at any of the local 65-69 ladies in these races, they look just as good. I try to remember how many women were racing 20+ years ago in my current 45-49 age group. Maybe there weren't as many, and I bet they weren't as fast as the women in that group today. Did the top age group used to be 60 and up? It may have been, as I know my mother once won an award years and years ago for being the oldest woman in the race. She must have been around 60.
There is a saying now that "50 is the new 30." I think there's something to that. I remember my grandparents at 70 and they were nowhere near as active as my parents. Maybe if we all stay active as long as we can, mentally and physically, we can keep moving that "and up" category further out.
A quick Google image search yielded this book, so apparently the "Dummy" people believe there's enough of a market to publish a book on changing careers later in life. Never stop learning and growing, forever onward and UPward!!
Monday, July 10, 2017
The Hardest Work of All... REST.
A few weeks ago, on the morning of the semi-finals of the Boston competition, I woke up with a horrible, itchy rash all over me from the neck down to the mid-thigh. Here's a small sample of what it looked like.
Fortunately, many amateur pianists are also doctors. They thought it looked like contact dermatitis, and I *had* been using a different soap for the past three days, so it seemed logical that that was all it was. However, there was also this problem, which looked like something completely unrelated:
Long story short: I was given prescriptions for prednisone and Augmentin. I figured in a few days, I'd be fine.
Well, now it's over two weeks later. The rash has faded quite a lot but is still there, and still itchy (although the itchiness might be a little better each day.) The things that looked like infected bites on my arm are also faded somewhat, but still there.
One possibility is that I contracted some virus that caused my rash. However, throughout all of this, I have felt fine... until this past Friday. I woke up not feeling right, like I was fighting a bug. I couldn't really put my finger on it, and I wondered if maybe it was just anxiety, worrying about why my rash wouldn't go away. I didn't run that morning. I just walked instead. Saturday, I felt better. I did a shorter run of only 4 miles. Then by Sunday afternoon I was not feeling well again, and this time I had some stuffiness/runniness in the left side of my nose.
I woke up at 3 AM today with a stuffy/runny nose and a headache, and now here I sit at the computer.
What's the first thing I think of? My exercise. I've been doing really well this spring and summer, getting back into shape. I've got a SparkPeople "streak" going. I don't want to break my streak. I'm doing the local fitness challenge and I don't want to see my mileage stand still. I've got a 5K this Saturday (the 6th race in a 7-race series), and I want to continue to work toward my goal of running every race in the series as hard as I can.
The logical part of my brain tells me, "Girl. Stay home from work today and rest. Call the doctor. Go in and get some tests done so they can figure out what's going on."
The goal-driven part of my brain tells me, "It's still probably something totally non-serious that they can't do anything about, anyway. You probably just caught a cold on top of whatever you have. You'll be fine. Go for an easy run. You always feel better when you run. You have obligations at work today and for your volunteer gigs tomorrow. You've bothered your doctor enough. Don't be such a wimp. You are Wonder Woman!"
I know what I need to do, but I'm finding it really hard to do it. I'm sure I'll get support from the SparkPeople community in the comment section, and that will help. My guess is my mother will be one of the first to chime in!
Wednesday, July 5, 2017
BHAGs
This past Saturday I ran the fifth race in our summer race series. Only ten hours earlier, I had arrived home on a train from a 10-day trip to Boston and New York City, so I was tired. The sticky heat of Virginia seemed oppressive. And here I was, standing at the starting line of a 5-miler in the early morning, remembering my goal: to run all seven races in the series and to run them hard, to the best of my ability.
As I stood there trying to muster up enthusiasm, I couldn't help thinking, "You know, I couldn't have simply decided to DO the series? I had to say I'd race it hard, too? I had to set that extra hard goal??"
It took a lot of self-discipline, but I ran as hard as I could and thus, stayed on track to achieve my long-term summer goal. I ran a 40:05, for an average 8:01/mile pace, and I am proud of how hard I worked for it.
Today as I practiced piano, I set a new summer goal for myself: to learn all the notes of Liszt's B minor Sonata by the end of July. I think it's an attainable goal, but it's not an easy piece and I will have to be very disciplined to get it done... just like with the race series.
After I finished practicing for the day, I posted my latest goal on Facebook. One of my pianist friends made a comment about my BHAG and wished me good luck. I had never heard this acronym before, so I googled it. BHAG stands for Big Hairy Audacious Goal. It's "a long-term goal that changes the very nature of a business' existence."
I think SparkPeople might just be the largest online community of BHAG-setting people. As I peruse the community feed or member blogs, I am struck by how many people have made or are in the process of making huge changes in their lives. Some people are trying to lose a lot of weight. Others are trying to cut out a bad dietary habit. Others, like me, are trying to raise their fitness level. Even though we all have different goals of varying degree, there's one thing that's all the same. We're trying to change for the better the very nature of our existence.
Let's all embrace our BHAGs! We can do it!
As I stood there trying to muster up enthusiasm, I couldn't help thinking, "You know, I couldn't have simply decided to DO the series? I had to say I'd race it hard, too? I had to set that extra hard goal??"
It took a lot of self-discipline, but I ran as hard as I could and thus, stayed on track to achieve my long-term summer goal. I ran a 40:05, for an average 8:01/mile pace, and I am proud of how hard I worked for it.
Today as I practiced piano, I set a new summer goal for myself: to learn all the notes of Liszt's B minor Sonata by the end of July. I think it's an attainable goal, but it's not an easy piece and I will have to be very disciplined to get it done... just like with the race series.
After I finished practicing for the day, I posted my latest goal on Facebook. One of my pianist friends made a comment about my BHAG and wished me good luck. I had never heard this acronym before, so I googled it. BHAG stands for Big Hairy Audacious Goal. It's "a long-term goal that changes the very nature of a business' existence."
I think SparkPeople might just be the largest online community of BHAG-setting people. As I peruse the community feed or member blogs, I am struck by how many people have made or are in the process of making huge changes in their lives. Some people are trying to lose a lot of weight. Others are trying to cut out a bad dietary habit. Others, like me, are trying to raise their fitness level. Even though we all have different goals of varying degree, there's one thing that's all the same. We're trying to change for the better the very nature of our existence.
Let's all embrace our BHAGs! We can do it!
Tuesday, June 27, 2017
Lightening My Load
A little over a year ago, I started having problems with pain in my right elbow and arm. It was so bad at times that I couldn't play the piano or pick up my backpack. Several things were causing this, but today I'd like to talk about one thing in particular... something that was rather easy to change.
After the physical therapist had given her diagnosis, I thanked her, stood up, and slung my purse over my shoulder. She cocked her head with a "hmm" kind of look on her face, and asked, "Do you always carry that purse like that?"
I have carried a purse since I was in the 8th grade. My purses have held all kinds of things that I think I might need during a typical day. Of course there's the obvious things, like the wallet, cell phone, and keys, but also other things - an assortment of OTC meds (Benadryl, Sudafed, Ibuprofen, & Immodium), cough drops, allergy eye drops, contact lens solution, nail clippers, lip balm, hand lotion, hairbrush, hairbands, etc. I remember once cleaning out my purse and I even had a clean pair of socks in there. What the heck was I carrying those for everywhere I went?
The PT's question caused me to remember something my daughter once asked me when she was in preschool. We were shopping for summer shorts for her. She asked, "Mommy, why don't girls' shorts have good pockets?" She was used to seeing her dad and brothers wear cargo shorts. I thought a moment and responded, "I guess because they want us to buy purses, too." Just like our personal possessions seem to expand to fill the available space in our homes, so it was with my purse.
It wasn't really all THAT heavy, but the way I wore it on my shoulder caused me to tense that shoulder and back muscle the entire time I carried it. This particular purse also had regular handles in addition to the shoulder strap, so I decided to try two different things - carrying it by the shoulder strap across my body (instead of hung on the right shoulder) or carrying it by the handles instead.
That change (plus massage to help loosen my tight muscles) did help, but then one day I thought, "Why AM I carrying all these things around on my person? When is the last time I really needed most of these things immediately?" I realized I've probably only used my hand lotion once in 5 years.
I pulled every last thing out of my purse for evaluation. I asked myself, "If I were traveling, which of these things might I need at a moment's notice that I couldn't go back to the car to get or that I couldn't buy at a nearby store?" When it came down to it, the only things that made the cut were my driver's license, credit card, health & car insurance cards, AAA card, and cash - pretty much what my husband carries with him in a wallet in his pocket. HE doesn't carry all that extra stuff. Why did I?
I decided to try carrying only a wallet. Fortunately, my cell phone fits in most of my pants pockets, so I figured I'd buy a small wallet and carry it in my other pocket. However, the first ones I saw were considerably bigger and thicker than my phone, and when I tried stuffing one in my pocket, it wouldn't go in. (I'm sure Kohl's security was probably watching me closely at this point.)
Then I found some wallets with long shoulder straps. Eureka! I bought two. Here's the one I carry with me on trips (because it zips up in addition to snapping shut.)
When I leave the house now, I generally still put my old purse in the trunk of the car with all those little "possible necessities" inside, but that's where it stays - in the trunk. Upon exiting the car, I only carry my wallet, which weighs mere ounces, strapped across my body. If I'm traveling by plane or train, I completely leave at home the old purse with all its contents, except the OTC meds, which go in my luggage.
Since making this change many months ago, there have been a few occasions where I had to buy a small package of Ibuprofen or Benadryl while sightseeing, but not many. Ditching the big purse has turned out not to be a disruption to my life.
If you Google "purse causing shoulder pain," you will find all kinds of articles about how it can tense up those muscles in your shoulder and back. So if you're carrying a heavy one - or even a moderately heavy one - I'd encourage you to take a step back and see what you really need and see how you might carry it differently. To be clear, I'm not saying you need to carry as little as I do, as everyone's needs and situations are different.
And who knows... could I start a fashion revolution and start demanding better pockets for women?
Since I'm not known for my fashion sense (I'm carrying a black wallet in June, after all) and you never see me on the red carpet, probably not. So we'll just have make do with the options we've got. I have been pain-free since lightening the daily load on my shoulder.
After the physical therapist had given her diagnosis, I thanked her, stood up, and slung my purse over my shoulder. She cocked her head with a "hmm" kind of look on her face, and asked, "Do you always carry that purse like that?"
I have carried a purse since I was in the 8th grade. My purses have held all kinds of things that I think I might need during a typical day. Of course there's the obvious things, like the wallet, cell phone, and keys, but also other things - an assortment of OTC meds (Benadryl, Sudafed, Ibuprofen, & Immodium), cough drops, allergy eye drops, contact lens solution, nail clippers, lip balm, hand lotion, hairbrush, hairbands, etc. I remember once cleaning out my purse and I even had a clean pair of socks in there. What the heck was I carrying those for everywhere I went?
The PT's question caused me to remember something my daughter once asked me when she was in preschool. We were shopping for summer shorts for her. She asked, "Mommy, why don't girls' shorts have good pockets?" She was used to seeing her dad and brothers wear cargo shorts. I thought a moment and responded, "I guess because they want us to buy purses, too." Just like our personal possessions seem to expand to fill the available space in our homes, so it was with my purse.
It wasn't really all THAT heavy, but the way I wore it on my shoulder caused me to tense that shoulder and back muscle the entire time I carried it. This particular purse also had regular handles in addition to the shoulder strap, so I decided to try two different things - carrying it by the shoulder strap across my body (instead of hung on the right shoulder) or carrying it by the handles instead.
That change (plus massage to help loosen my tight muscles) did help, but then one day I thought, "Why AM I carrying all these things around on my person? When is the last time I really needed most of these things immediately?" I realized I've probably only used my hand lotion once in 5 years.
I pulled every last thing out of my purse for evaluation. I asked myself, "If I were traveling, which of these things might I need at a moment's notice that I couldn't go back to the car to get or that I couldn't buy at a nearby store?" When it came down to it, the only things that made the cut were my driver's license, credit card, health & car insurance cards, AAA card, and cash - pretty much what my husband carries with him in a wallet in his pocket. HE doesn't carry all that extra stuff. Why did I?
I decided to try carrying only a wallet. Fortunately, my cell phone fits in most of my pants pockets, so I figured I'd buy a small wallet and carry it in my other pocket. However, the first ones I saw were considerably bigger and thicker than my phone, and when I tried stuffing one in my pocket, it wouldn't go in. (I'm sure Kohl's security was probably watching me closely at this point.)
Then I found some wallets with long shoulder straps. Eureka! I bought two. Here's the one I carry with me on trips (because it zips up in addition to snapping shut.)
When I leave the house now, I generally still put my old purse in the trunk of the car with all those little "possible necessities" inside, but that's where it stays - in the trunk. Upon exiting the car, I only carry my wallet, which weighs mere ounces, strapped across my body. If I'm traveling by plane or train, I completely leave at home the old purse with all its contents, except the OTC meds, which go in my luggage.
Since making this change many months ago, there have been a few occasions where I had to buy a small package of Ibuprofen or Benadryl while sightseeing, but not many. Ditching the big purse has turned out not to be a disruption to my life.
If you Google "purse causing shoulder pain," you will find all kinds of articles about how it can tense up those muscles in your shoulder and back. So if you're carrying a heavy one - or even a moderately heavy one - I'd encourage you to take a step back and see what you really need and see how you might carry it differently. To be clear, I'm not saying you need to carry as little as I do, as everyone's needs and situations are different.
And who knows... could I start a fashion revolution and start demanding better pockets for women?
Since I'm not known for my fashion sense (I'm carrying a black wallet in June, after all) and you never see me on the red carpet, probably not. So we'll just have make do with the options we've got. I have been pain-free since lightening the daily load on my shoulder.
Sunday, June 25, 2017
Two Homers!
I write a lot of blogs about the struggle to push onward and try my best in all things. It's hard to do when failure is one of the possible outcomes. Who relishes the idea of putting in hard work, only to have a disappointing result? Of course, we know the victory is in the preparation, in building our skills and/or changing our lives, but still, the specter of possible failure looms over us.
I performed in the semi-final round of the Boston International Piano Competition. If anybody watched, I want to thank you for your support. I got many lovely comments on Facebook and in messages, and I can tell my performance made you happy. That's the most important thing for me - to make you happy, and I especially need to remember that right now.
The reason is... the reality is... I did not play well at all. Please don't think I'm putting down your perception of my performance, because unless you're a trained pianist yourself, you might not know when anyone playing virtuoso repertoire has a bad day. The music itself is very impressive.
However, I was in a judged situation. I knew as soon as I had finished that I wasn't going to advance.
My daughter was in the audience, and of course SHE knew how I typically play and she knew I was upset even before we reunited in the hall (where I confess I cried a little bit.) I felt I had let down my audience, my family, and my teachers.
All evening, I pondered the nervousness I feel in the hours leading up to a performance and onstage. Those hours are not fun. They can be downright torturous. Fortunately, most of the time, I manage to deliver a good - or at least a decent - performance that I can be proud of, and just like with childbirth, as soon as it's over, I instantly forget all the bad feelings.
But that good result did not happen yesterday, and the bad feelings, coupled with the feeling of failure, linger. I awoke in the wee hours of the morning and this quote by Homer Simpson came to my mind:
Well, that's pretty tempting, actually. Would the world miss me if I never played in public again? Probably not.
However, I realize two things:
1. I have to remember that by practicing and learning new music to share with people, I'm adding something of beauty and value to my tiny part of the world.
2. I have to try to focus on how my performance made the audience feel instead of how it made ME feel.
I have to look to another, wiser Homer for inspiration.
I performed in the semi-final round of the Boston International Piano Competition. If anybody watched, I want to thank you for your support. I got many lovely comments on Facebook and in messages, and I can tell my performance made you happy. That's the most important thing for me - to make you happy, and I especially need to remember that right now.
The reason is... the reality is... I did not play well at all. Please don't think I'm putting down your perception of my performance, because unless you're a trained pianist yourself, you might not know when anyone playing virtuoso repertoire has a bad day. The music itself is very impressive.
However, I was in a judged situation. I knew as soon as I had finished that I wasn't going to advance.
My daughter was in the audience, and of course SHE knew how I typically play and she knew I was upset even before we reunited in the hall (where I confess I cried a little bit.) I felt I had let down my audience, my family, and my teachers.
All evening, I pondered the nervousness I feel in the hours leading up to a performance and onstage. Those hours are not fun. They can be downright torturous. Fortunately, most of the time, I manage to deliver a good - or at least a decent - performance that I can be proud of, and just like with childbirth, as soon as it's over, I instantly forget all the bad feelings.
But that good result did not happen yesterday, and the bad feelings, coupled with the feeling of failure, linger. I awoke in the wee hours of the morning and this quote by Homer Simpson came to my mind:
Well, that's pretty tempting, actually. Would the world miss me if I never played in public again? Probably not.
However, I realize two things:
1. I have to remember that by practicing and learning new music to share with people, I'm adding something of beauty and value to my tiny part of the world.
2. I have to try to focus on how my performance made the audience feel instead of how it made ME feel.
I have to look to another, wiser Homer for inspiration.
Adversity and failure are realities of life. May we all continue to persevere to achieve our goals and share our talents with the world around us.
Saturday, June 17, 2017
Why Am I Doing This to Myself?
This morning I ran the fourth race in my running club's local summer race series. It's a very hilly 5K. Brutal. Here's the elevation chart, taken from my RunKeeper. Notice it starts AND finishes uphill. Does that count as "uphill both ways?" Ha ha.
My main goal with this series has been to run my very best each time. I want to feel like I pushed myself.
It was already 70 degrees at the start of the race and it was very humid. That, coupled with the hills, made it - well - not the most pleasant of conditions.
I'll spare you the details of the race, but by mile 2, I was not feeling all that great. I kept thinking, "Why am I doing this to myself?" I thought about slowing down or even walking, since it's not like I was doing it to get an award or praise.
Then I realized why I was doing it. I was doing it to prove to myself that I have the strength to keep pushing, even when I want to quit. I knew that if I did quit, I'd get sympathy and understanding - after all, it's not like I *have* to attain my goal. However, I thought about how much better it would feel if I could just continue pushing for that last 1.1 mile and be able to report that I did it; that I gave it my all.
The final hill of the race, I was so tired. With the finish line in sight, a younger woman trotted by me at a sprightly pace. I said, "Good job!" and she responded, "Thanks! You, too!" I couldn't help chuckling inwardly at the thought of what my good job probably looked like at that point. I was anything but sprightly. Just before the finish line, I mustered up what little energy I had left and crossed with a little bit of pep in my step. Goal achieved.
I ended up being the 7th female finisher, the 2nd female master (over age 40), and I won my age group (45-49). My official time was 24:33, or a 7:55 pace. I can't remember the last time I ran under an 8:00 mile in a race, so I am physically continuing to improve with each race in the series.
I'm also continuing to improve, mentally. Conditions were very tough today, and it was tempting to bag it and coast in, comfortably.
However, life isn't always comfortable. Sometimes we have no choice but to get through something the best we can. By training our minds as well as our bodies, we can fall back on that mental strength to persevere through whatever comes our way.
Here I am with my friend who won her age group, too!
It was already 70 degrees at the start of the race and it was very humid. That, coupled with the hills, made it - well - not the most pleasant of conditions.
I'll spare you the details of the race, but by mile 2, I was not feeling all that great. I kept thinking, "Why am I doing this to myself?" I thought about slowing down or even walking, since it's not like I was doing it to get an award or praise.
Then I realized why I was doing it. I was doing it to prove to myself that I have the strength to keep pushing, even when I want to quit. I knew that if I did quit, I'd get sympathy and understanding - after all, it's not like I *have* to attain my goal. However, I thought about how much better it would feel if I could just continue pushing for that last 1.1 mile and be able to report that I did it; that I gave it my all.
The final hill of the race, I was so tired. With the finish line in sight, a younger woman trotted by me at a sprightly pace. I said, "Good job!" and she responded, "Thanks! You, too!" I couldn't help chuckling inwardly at the thought of what my good job probably looked like at that point. I was anything but sprightly. Just before the finish line, I mustered up what little energy I had left and crossed with a little bit of pep in my step. Goal achieved.
I ended up being the 7th female finisher, the 2nd female master (over age 40), and I won my age group (45-49). My official time was 24:33, or a 7:55 pace. I can't remember the last time I ran under an 8:00 mile in a race, so I am physically continuing to improve with each race in the series.
I'm also continuing to improve, mentally. Conditions were very tough today, and it was tempting to bag it and coast in, comfortably.
However, life isn't always comfortable. Sometimes we have no choice but to get through something the best we can. By training our minds as well as our bodies, we can fall back on that mental strength to persevere through whatever comes our way.
Here I am with my friend who won her age group, too!
Friday, June 16, 2017
Inconvenience, Reflection, Realization
A few nights ago, my husband went to take his bedtime shower. He had just gotten wet when the water cut off. (Fortunately, he hadn't soaped up yet.)
Troubleshooting in the basement revealed that there was power going to the well pump. Unfortunately, this meant the problem was with the well pump itself, 400 feet in the ground. It's not something we can fix, and since it was 9:00 at night, there was no one to call until the morning.
We've lived in the rural countryside for our 25 years of marriage. For the first 10 years or so, losing power (and thus, water) was something that happened on a fairly regular basis. Often we'd be among the last to get power back. You know when you hear on the news, "Appalachian Power says 200 customers are still without power"? Well, that would always be us. Since we camped fairly regularly, we'd break out the camping stove and the grill, fill some coolers with ice, buy water, and make do. Twice, we went without power for 7 days.
So, losing only water, while an inconvenience, does not seem so bad. My daughter and I went to Kroger and bought a gallon of water for each bathroom and 2 gallons for the kitchen. We bought a case of bottled water as well.
That night and for most of the next day, we carefully rationed out those gallons of water every time we washed our hands or brushed our teeth. We'd pour out just enough of the water to get our hands or toothbrush wet, scrub, and then rinse with only what we needed. My son put a little water in the sink basin for shaving. In case you're wondering about flushing, we have a hot tub. We got a big bucket and scooped water out every time a toilet - um - *needed* flushing. We took our showers at the gym a mile up the road.
Fortunately for us, the plumber came out in the mid-afternoon. He installed a new well pump, and by 4 PM, we had running water again. All in all, we were only without running water about 19 hours, and for 7-8 of those hours, we were asleep. So I'd say it amounted to about 12 hours of inconvenience.
Inconvenience can be an opportunity for reflection. As I carefully used those gallons of water, I realized how much I take clean, running water for granted, and how much I use on a daily basis. You don't realize how little water you really need until you don't have it.
We can all give examples of times we've had to do without one thing or another. This fall, I'll be undergoing some changes in my professional life that will leave me with a lot less TIME. Because of this, I am now keenly aware of just how much free time I currently have. This is time that I use to run errands for my family, cook, clean, practice piano, and exercise.
I suppose a person doesn't really *need* all the free time I currently enjoy. It's nice to have, but I won't have this luxury anymore. I'll have to make do with my new schedule and prioritize. I got to thinking: How much time do I really need to do certain things? I will most likely have 2 hours of free time a day for piano and exercise, and that really should be enough.
We really don't need *that* much time to do something good for ourselves every day. I think sometimes the biggest challenge is keeping our minds on the goals we have for our mind, body, and spirit.
Just like being without water for a day reminded me to re-evaluate how I use that resource, let us all take a step back from time to time and evaluate how we use our precious time.
Troubleshooting in the basement revealed that there was power going to the well pump. Unfortunately, this meant the problem was with the well pump itself, 400 feet in the ground. It's not something we can fix, and since it was 9:00 at night, there was no one to call until the morning.
We've lived in the rural countryside for our 25 years of marriage. For the first 10 years or so, losing power (and thus, water) was something that happened on a fairly regular basis. Often we'd be among the last to get power back. You know when you hear on the news, "Appalachian Power says 200 customers are still without power"? Well, that would always be us. Since we camped fairly regularly, we'd break out the camping stove and the grill, fill some coolers with ice, buy water, and make do. Twice, we went without power for 7 days.
So, losing only water, while an inconvenience, does not seem so bad. My daughter and I went to Kroger and bought a gallon of water for each bathroom and 2 gallons for the kitchen. We bought a case of bottled water as well.
That night and for most of the next day, we carefully rationed out those gallons of water every time we washed our hands or brushed our teeth. We'd pour out just enough of the water to get our hands or toothbrush wet, scrub, and then rinse with only what we needed. My son put a little water in the sink basin for shaving. In case you're wondering about flushing, we have a hot tub. We got a big bucket and scooped water out every time a toilet - um - *needed* flushing. We took our showers at the gym a mile up the road.
Fortunately for us, the plumber came out in the mid-afternoon. He installed a new well pump, and by 4 PM, we had running water again. All in all, we were only without running water about 19 hours, and for 7-8 of those hours, we were asleep. So I'd say it amounted to about 12 hours of inconvenience.
Inconvenience can be an opportunity for reflection. As I carefully used those gallons of water, I realized how much I take clean, running water for granted, and how much I use on a daily basis. You don't realize how little water you really need until you don't have it.
We can all give examples of times we've had to do without one thing or another. This fall, I'll be undergoing some changes in my professional life that will leave me with a lot less TIME. Because of this, I am now keenly aware of just how much free time I currently have. This is time that I use to run errands for my family, cook, clean, practice piano, and exercise.
I suppose a person doesn't really *need* all the free time I currently enjoy. It's nice to have, but I won't have this luxury anymore. I'll have to make do with my new schedule and prioritize. I got to thinking: How much time do I really need to do certain things? I will most likely have 2 hours of free time a day for piano and exercise, and that really should be enough.
We really don't need *that* much time to do something good for ourselves every day. I think sometimes the biggest challenge is keeping our minds on the goals we have for our mind, body, and spirit.
Just like being without water for a day reminded me to re-evaluate how I use that resource, let us all take a step back from time to time and evaluate how we use our precious time.
Monday, June 12, 2017
Sharing Our Talents
Saturday, my husband and I assisted at a funeral Mass and burial. I was the pianist & vocalist, and he, as an ordained deacon, gave the sermon and later performed the graveside service.
My husband doesn't assist at every funeral, but he did this one because years ago, he worked with the deceased. He was a young engineer just out of college, and this man (21 years our senior) was well-established in the field. He was a hard-working engineer: responsible, dependable, and a mentor to the younger ones. Therefore, my husband chose to preach on the parable of the talents - where the first servant took his five talents and doubled them, earning his master's praise.
I'm sure when he met this man 26 years ago, he could never have imagined he'd be preaching at his funeral, offering words of comfort to this family, and ultimately placing the man's cremains in his final resting place.
As I watched my husband do all this, I realized that in these 26 years together, he has taken his own talents and shared them many times over. By doing so, he has enriched not only the lives of everyone he touches, but his own life as well. It's not always easy or convenient to nurture and share your talent. We might not even realize we have them to share, but we do.
It occurred to me on Sunday night that sharing our talents can have a direct impact on our health and fitness. First of all - physically - when I spend time developing my talent, I'm not bored and fighting the mindless snacking urge. Second - mentally - when I share my talent and serve others, it feels good. Third - spiritually - these are the gifts that God gave me. Someday I want to hear him say, "Well done, my good and faithful servant."
Now it is 6:30 AM. Before I go to work, I'm going to post my blog, and get out there and run. I hope my thoughts this morning inspire someone else to also make the most of their day and their talents.
My husband doesn't assist at every funeral, but he did this one because years ago, he worked with the deceased. He was a young engineer just out of college, and this man (21 years our senior) was well-established in the field. He was a hard-working engineer: responsible, dependable, and a mentor to the younger ones. Therefore, my husband chose to preach on the parable of the talents - where the first servant took his five talents and doubled them, earning his master's praise.
I'm sure when he met this man 26 years ago, he could never have imagined he'd be preaching at his funeral, offering words of comfort to this family, and ultimately placing the man's cremains in his final resting place.
As I watched my husband do all this, I realized that in these 26 years together, he has taken his own talents and shared them many times over. By doing so, he has enriched not only the lives of everyone he touches, but his own life as well. It's not always easy or convenient to nurture and share your talent. We might not even realize we have them to share, but we do.
It occurred to me on Sunday night that sharing our talents can have a direct impact on our health and fitness. First of all - physically - when I spend time developing my talent, I'm not bored and fighting the mindless snacking urge. Second - mentally - when I share my talent and serve others, it feels good. Third - spiritually - these are the gifts that God gave me. Someday I want to hear him say, "Well done, my good and faithful servant."
Now it is 6:30 AM. Before I go to work, I'm going to post my blog, and get out there and run. I hope my thoughts this morning inspire someone else to also make the most of their day and their talents.
Wednesday, June 7, 2017
Inspiration from Rashad Jennings
If you are an NFL or Dancing with the Stars fan, you probably know who Rashad Jennings is. He is an NFL running back, most recently playing for the NY Giants. Then a couple of weeks ago, he won the mirrorball trophy on Dancing with the Stars. He was absolutely terrific.
Some of you may know that Rashad is from Forest, Virginia. This is where I live, and I was Rashad's elementary school music teacher from grades 2 through 4.
Some of you may know that Rashad is from Forest, Virginia. This is where I live, and I was Rashad's elementary school music teacher from grades 2 through 4.
I wish I could take credit for his dancing ability ("I taught him to sway in time to Row, Row, Row Your Boat!!") but I really can't. However, I can say that he was a fine boy who always worked hard in music class to play those Orff instruments the best he could. He was quite good.
I would never have guessed that the little boy sitting on the floor of my music classroom would become a celebrity. I bet he could not have guessed, either. If you read his story, you will see his secret to success is his faith, his work ethic, and his kind and generous heart.
At the end of the last NFL season, he was unfortunately let go by the Giants. He could have despaired and moped around, but he didn't. He decided to take a risk and try something brand new. Ballroom dancing. And on television in front of millions of people. The result was that America fell in love with Rashad Jennings. Now he can serve as an inspiration to even more people than he did before.
It's good to get out of our comfort zone and try something new or even a little scary. Lets look to Rashad's example and believe in ourselves. We can bring joy and serve people we would never have met before.
Let's explore our own potential and reach for the stars!
Tuesday, June 6, 2017
Whoever Thought to Do THAT?
My daughter and her best friend brought home some Oreos from the store today, but they weren't regular old Oreos. They were "Fireworks" Oreos. Someone got the idea to mix generic "Pop Rocks" candies into the creamy white filling. They were interesting and tasted good, although I think I still prefer good old Double-Stuf.
This got me to thinking about how many times I've thought, "Whoever thought of doing THAT?"
Here are a few others that immediately come to mind:
Lobster. I always say it must have been a very hungry person who took a look at that creature and thought, "I wonder what THAT tastes like!"
Snow Downhill Mountain Biking. Every time I see this extreme sport, I wonder how it evolved. Was a mountain biker no longer challenged by plain, steep trails or slopes?
Ribbon Acrobatics. I love watching these incredible athletes/artists as much as anyone. Still, who got the idea "let's tie a ribbon really high up there and tie the other end to me and I'll see what I can do!"
Chili/Dark Chocolate bars (yummy, BTW)
Hot sauce or ketchup on scrambled eggs (I now always eat my eggs with hot sauce!)
Freestyle skiing (This I will never do)
American Ninja Warrior (Nor this)
We also see all kinds of examples of "whatever made someone think to do that" that didn't turn out so well. The pictures and videos go viral and people get a big laugh out of them (although it's never funny if someone got seriously hurt.)
It would never have occurred to me to put Pop Rocks into Oreo stuffing. My lack of vision may be the reason I am not an entrepreneur or a multi-millionaire. (However, it could also be one reason I am still alive.)
Have you ever wondered what made someone think to do a particular thing? Please share, if you like!
May we all make good food and exercise choices today, whether conventional, unusual, or extreme. (No Firework Oreos or Ribbon Acrobatics are in my plan today.)
This got me to thinking about how many times I've thought, "Whoever thought of doing THAT?"
Here are a few others that immediately come to mind:
Lobster. I always say it must have been a very hungry person who took a look at that creature and thought, "I wonder what THAT tastes like!"
Snow Downhill Mountain Biking. Every time I see this extreme sport, I wonder how it evolved. Was a mountain biker no longer challenged by plain, steep trails or slopes?
Ribbon Acrobatics. I love watching these incredible athletes/artists as much as anyone. Still, who got the idea "let's tie a ribbon really high up there and tie the other end to me and I'll see what I can do!"
Chili/Dark Chocolate bars (yummy, BTW)
Hot sauce or ketchup on scrambled eggs (I now always eat my eggs with hot sauce!)
Freestyle skiing (This I will never do)
American Ninja Warrior (Nor this)
We also see all kinds of examples of "whatever made someone think to do that" that didn't turn out so well. The pictures and videos go viral and people get a big laugh out of them (although it's never funny if someone got seriously hurt.)
It would never have occurred to me to put Pop Rocks into Oreo stuffing. My lack of vision may be the reason I am not an entrepreneur or a multi-millionaire. (However, it could also be one reason I am still alive.)
Have you ever wondered what made someone think to do a particular thing? Please share, if you like!
May we all make good food and exercise choices today, whether conventional, unusual, or extreme. (No Firework Oreos or Ribbon Acrobatics are in my plan today.)
Thursday, June 1, 2017
"Champions Don't Have Time to Procrastinate"
It's 3 PM and I'm sitting in line at the DMV waiting to register the car we just bought last night. I work in town so I actually came around lunchtime first, on my lunch hour. The line just to get a number was 8 people out the door! I've been in crowded DMVs before, but that was a first.
Then I remembered it's the last day of the month. I bet a lot of people have waited until the last minute to renew their tags and their licenses. So I headed back to work. After work, I came back to see what it was like. At least now the line to get my number at the information window was only about 6 people long, and all inside the building.
So here I sit, waiting for my number to be called, pondering the phenomenon of procrastination.
I guess it's a form of denial. "If I pretend this doesn't need to happen, maybe it will go away."
I'd say that most of the time, whatever it is doesn't just magically go away.
(My number was called here, and I finished the rest of my blog today - the morning after.)
I'm pretty good at not procrastinating when it comes to my responsibilities, but I'm not always the greatest about non-critical things - like weeding the garden. If I'm tired, it's easy to dismiss it and say, "I'll get to it later."
However, when I do get to those things later, often they're even harder to deal with than if I had just done it in the first place. The weeds didn't stop growing while I rested and pretended they weren't there.
It's the same with our health. When we're tired, it's easy to just grab fast food or skip a workout, figuring we'll get back on track later. But of course, the decision to procrastinate only makes things harder for us in the long run.
On that note, I suppose I better put on my running clothes and get out the door, even though it would be much more cozy to curl up here on the sofa with my laptop and a cup of coffee. Whatever your plan for the day, just do it! Spark on, everyone.
Then I remembered it's the last day of the month. I bet a lot of people have waited until the last minute to renew their tags and their licenses. So I headed back to work. After work, I came back to see what it was like. At least now the line to get my number at the information window was only about 6 people long, and all inside the building.
So here I sit, waiting for my number to be called, pondering the phenomenon of procrastination.
I guess it's a form of denial. "If I pretend this doesn't need to happen, maybe it will go away."
I'd say that most of the time, whatever it is doesn't just magically go away.
(My number was called here, and I finished the rest of my blog today - the morning after.)
I'm pretty good at not procrastinating when it comes to my responsibilities, but I'm not always the greatest about non-critical things - like weeding the garden. If I'm tired, it's easy to dismiss it and say, "I'll get to it later."
However, when I do get to those things later, often they're even harder to deal with than if I had just done it in the first place. The weeds didn't stop growing while I rested and pretended they weren't there.
It's the same with our health. When we're tired, it's easy to just grab fast food or skip a workout, figuring we'll get back on track later. But of course, the decision to procrastinate only makes things harder for us in the long run.
On that note, I suppose I better put on my running clothes and get out the door, even though it would be much more cozy to curl up here on the sofa with my laptop and a cup of coffee. Whatever your plan for the day, just do it! Spark on, everyone.
Wednesday, May 31, 2017
Last Woman Standing
The twelve Cliburn semifinalists have been announced. One woman, Rachel Cheung from Hong Kong, remains. She has been my favorite woman since the preliminaries, so I'm very glad I get a chance to hear her again.
In this round, each contestant plays twice: a 60-minute recital and a full Mozart Concerto with the Fort Worth Symphony.
For her recital, she's playing Schumann's Kreisleriana (not one of my favorite pieces, but I will listen with an open mind - yet again - maybe she'll be the one to finally make me like it!) and Prokofiev's 6th Sonata. For the concerto, she will play my favorite Mozart - K. 466 in D minor. I posted a video of 12-year-old me few weeks ago, playing the first movement in 1982, accompanied by Jorge Bolet. If you have ever watched the movie "Amadeus," this concerto is featured quite a lot throughout the movie. The ending credits roll to the 2nd movement opening theme.
I got to thinking about being the last one standing in terms of health and fitness. When you look at the number of entrants in a race, once you start getting to the 60+ age group, there are not too many people. Sometimes, if you just show up and finish vertically, you will win an award, and I think that's absolutely fine! As my mother, Brooklyn Born, has reminded us at times - 80% of success in life is just showing up. She has said before that she intends to keep doing this as long as she can... which just might mean at some point she winds up being the last woman (or at least the oldest woman) still standing at that starting line.
I'm proud of Rachel Cheung and proud of all people - men and women - who stick it out to pursue their lifelong goals and dreams. Let's all continue to put our best foot forward as long as we are able.
In case you're interested, you can see Rachel's semifinal round online at http://cliburn.org/
Her recital will be Sunday, June 4, at 4:50 Eastern Time.
Her concerto will be Monday, June 5. The concerto concert begins at 8:30 Eastern Time. She is the 4th contestant, so I'd estimate she'll probably begin to play between 10-10:30 PM.
Go, Rachel! Go for the gold!
In this round, each contestant plays twice: a 60-minute recital and a full Mozart Concerto with the Fort Worth Symphony.
For her recital, she's playing Schumann's Kreisleriana (not one of my favorite pieces, but I will listen with an open mind - yet again - maybe she'll be the one to finally make me like it!) and Prokofiev's 6th Sonata. For the concerto, she will play my favorite Mozart - K. 466 in D minor. I posted a video of 12-year-old me few weeks ago, playing the first movement in 1982, accompanied by Jorge Bolet. If you have ever watched the movie "Amadeus," this concerto is featured quite a lot throughout the movie. The ending credits roll to the 2nd movement opening theme.
I got to thinking about being the last one standing in terms of health and fitness. When you look at the number of entrants in a race, once you start getting to the 60+ age group, there are not too many people. Sometimes, if you just show up and finish vertically, you will win an award, and I think that's absolutely fine! As my mother, Brooklyn Born, has reminded us at times - 80% of success in life is just showing up. She has said before that she intends to keep doing this as long as she can... which just might mean at some point she winds up being the last woman (or at least the oldest woman) still standing at that starting line.
I'm proud of Rachel Cheung and proud of all people - men and women - who stick it out to pursue their lifelong goals and dreams. Let's all continue to put our best foot forward as long as we are able.
In case you're interested, you can see Rachel's semifinal round online at http://cliburn.org/
Her recital will be Sunday, June 4, at 4:50 Eastern Time.
Her concerto will be Monday, June 5. The concerto concert begins at 8:30 Eastern Time. She is the 4th contestant, so I'd estimate she'll probably begin to play between 10-10:30 PM.
Go, Rachel! Go for the gold!
Tuesday, May 30, 2017
I Feel Good?
I just looked up the results from yesterday's 10K. One neat thing the local running shop (which times the events) does now is provide a link to video footage of your finish. It links directly to the time you come in, so you don't even have to search for yourself. Here I am:
Jeanne's 10K finish
Notice the song playing? James Brown's "I Feel Good."
I said in my blog yesterday how hard I had to work to keep that 8:02-minute mile pace for 6+ miles. As I approached the finish line, I remember laughing silently to myself, thinking, "This is the wrong song for me! I don't feel good!" I was very glad to cross that finish line.
What you can't see from the race finish footage is what we look like after leaving the chip mat finish area. I stopped, bent over, and just BREATHED. I took deep breaths and blew them out slowly and my heart rate came down. Within 20-30 seconds, I felt much better and started looking around for other people I know.
The fact that I was able to recover so quickly from my exertion means that, even at the very finish, I didn't feel bad. I often ask myself when I'm working hard, "Do I feel bad or do I just feel tired?" It's okay to feel tired! But there's a "good" tired and a "bad" tired.
Some things I assess when I'm running:
Do I have a side stitch? (If yes - slow down or walk a while)
Do I have goosebumps when I'm hot? (If yes - slow down a LOT, walk, drink fluids, dump water on yourself - you could have heat exhaustion and be on your way to something worse)
Am I lightheaded or dizzy? (If yes - stop and rest!!)
There are probably more things to consider that I hope you will share in the comments.
Here's a "before" and "after" picture. I'm sure you can tell which is which, but what strikes me is that in both of them, I look like I FEEL GOOD!!!! (da na na na na na na!)
Jeanne's 10K finish
Notice the song playing? James Brown's "I Feel Good."
I said in my blog yesterday how hard I had to work to keep that 8:02-minute mile pace for 6+ miles. As I approached the finish line, I remember laughing silently to myself, thinking, "This is the wrong song for me! I don't feel good!" I was very glad to cross that finish line.
What you can't see from the race finish footage is what we look like after leaving the chip mat finish area. I stopped, bent over, and just BREATHED. I took deep breaths and blew them out slowly and my heart rate came down. Within 20-30 seconds, I felt much better and started looking around for other people I know.
The fact that I was able to recover so quickly from my exertion means that, even at the very finish, I didn't feel bad. I often ask myself when I'm working hard, "Do I feel bad or do I just feel tired?" It's okay to feel tired! But there's a "good" tired and a "bad" tired.
Some things I assess when I'm running:
Do I have a side stitch? (If yes - slow down or walk a while)
Do I have goosebumps when I'm hot? (If yes - slow down a LOT, walk, drink fluids, dump water on yourself - you could have heat exhaustion and be on your way to something worse)
Am I lightheaded or dizzy? (If yes - stop and rest!!)
There are probably more things to consider that I hope you will share in the comments.
Here's a "before" and "after" picture. I'm sure you can tell which is which, but what strikes me is that in both of them, I look like I FEEL GOOD!!!! (da na na na na na na!)
Monday, May 29, 2017
Just Try!
This morning, I was messaging back and forth with my good friend, a pianist, in Ireland (using WhatsApp). I met her at the Charlotte airport when we were both en route to the 2016 Cliburn Amateur Competition. During the course of the competition, we became good friends and have met a few times since - at the Washington D.C. competition and again when we each played recitals at the Gasteig in Munich.
At all of these competitions and recitals, one thing we couldn't help noticing was the disproportionate number of women. Women make up roughly 50% of the population. Yet at the Amateur Cliburn, about 1/3 of the starting field was female. By the semifinals (top 12), only 3 of us were women. Then all 3 of us were eliminated for the finals (top 6). In Washington, D.C., we fared better, with my friend and I both making the top 6. She won a couple special awards and I won 2nd overall. In Munich, there were 11 recitals. She and I were the only women.
The "real" Cliburn began this past Thursday. This is for pianists ages 18-30 who are shooting for concert careers. A win at the Cliburn can indeed launch a superstar career. It's the Olympics of piano competitions and an absolutely grueling test of nerves and endurance over 4 rounds spanning 2.5 weeks. Each contestant prepares roughly 4 hours worth of memorized repertoire.
290 people applied and 30 were ultimately accepted. 9 were women. So, again, roughly 1/3 of the field. I watched live online last night as they announced the 20 quarterfinalists. 17 men. 3 women. Of the 10 eliminated after the preliminary round, 6 were female.
Now, let me set the record straight, just in case you think I am complaining or saying it's unfair. I'm not. I believe the best should advance and the jury (male and female members) know what they're doing. However, I can't help noticing a pattern here... that piano competition is a very male-dominated field. I am not sure why that is. Is it due to our physical differences? In general, women are not as big and we don't have as large a hand span. It's harder for us to play big chords and with as big a sound. Do the men generate more dynamic contrast and more excitement, and does that give them an edge? I found myself feeling dismayed that the majority of these women had worked so hard to be eliminated early on.
I thought about this all today while I ran the third race in our local summer race series - the Memorial Day 10K.
In sports, we compete separately due to the general physical differences between genders. As I ran this out and back course, I was able to count the women ahead of me. When the faster women started going by me after the turn-around, I counted them as they came at me. I was 9th.
I was working really hard, holding roughly an 8-minute mile pace. Many times, I felt like packing it in and slowing down, thinking, "What does it matter, really? I'm never going to be the best. Why am I doing this to myself?" Then I thought of those women at the professional Cliburn. I thought of the women who compete in the amateur ranks. Looking at results of past competitions, we really have our work cut out for us. However, IF WE DON'T AT LEAST TRY, we are defeated before we've even begun.
So I resolved to keep up the intensity, to keep trying to distract myself with pleasant thoughts and memories, to JUST KEEP TRYING HARD.
I stayed in 9th place until the end, and you know what else, the man on my heels for the last 2 miles never did catch me, either.
The local women in my 45-49 age group are quite fast, as a group. Three of us were in the top 10. My time (49:47, or an 8:02/mile pace) was good enough for 2nd place in my age group today. I even won a door prize of a hanging basket of petunias.
I'm watching the quarterfinals of the Cliburn as I type this blog. (An Italian guy just finished Rachmaninoff's Variations on a Theme of Chopin, Op. 22, to a standing ovation and whoops and hollers.) Everyone in this competition is trying hard; hoping to change their life. I'm sure those three women in the quarterfinals are not thinking about the fact that so few of them made it. Perhaps the men have an edge, but if they do, I'm sure the women are instead focusing on controlling what they can control and doing what they can do.
We won't all be top prizewinners on a world stage, but that shouldn't matter. We have to believe in ourselves and make every effort to be our best, giving everything we've got.
Wednesday, May 24, 2017
Breakfast Inspiration at SparkPeople
90% of the time, I log in to SparkPeople using my laptop, rather than the app on my phone. Usually I ignore the videos playing in the sidebar, but yesterday a recipe video from Eggland's Best caught my eye. I'm glad I watched it because I can't find the video anywhere - at SP or on the EB site. Even though I don't remember the exact amounts to use, I remembered the ingredients. Here ya go:
One mini naan bread (which I found in the bakery breads section at Kroger)
Cream cheese (I used whipped cream cheese/greek yogurt)
grape tomatoes (cut in half)
fresh mozzarella (cut up)
fresh basil leaves (I tore them into smaller pieces)
salt/pepper (a few sprinkles)
1 egg
Preheat the oven to 400* (I think). Spread the cream cheese on the bread. Top with tomatoes, mozzarella, basil. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. Break an egg over the top of it. Bake until the egg is cooked.
Here's a picture:
One mini naan bread (which I found in the bakery breads section at Kroger)
Cream cheese (I used whipped cream cheese/greek yogurt)
grape tomatoes (cut in half)
fresh mozzarella (cut up)
fresh basil leaves (I tore them into smaller pieces)
salt/pepper (a few sprinkles)
1 egg
Preheat the oven to 400* (I think). Spread the cream cheese on the bread. Top with tomatoes, mozzarella, basil. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. Break an egg over the top of it. Bake until the egg is cooked.
Here's a picture:
It really is quite good and it wasn't much trouble to make. More importantly, it's also not any trouble to clean up, as I just have to scrape the baking stone clean.
Some notes from my first attempt:
I wasn't sure if the video had said 350* or 400*, so I did 375*. One thing I *did* remember, however, is that it said to bake it for 10 minutes. 10 minutes at 375 was not enough - the egg was not cooked at all. So I turned up the heat to 400* and baked it another 4 minutes. It still didn't look quite done. I wound up going another 2 minutes. Not sure. So another 2 minutes. I think it actually might have been ready 2 minutes prior to that, but it still tasted just fine.
Nutritional Information:
The mini naan bread has 150 calories.
The egg has 70 calories.
1 ounce of mozzarella has 80 calories.
2 Tablespoons of whipped cream cheese/greek yogurt has 45 calories.
Basil & tomato calories are quite minimal.
So overall, this seems like a pretty good breakfast to me. It has a little bit of everything and the protein/fat/carb ratio (at my estimation) seems like a good balance.
Thursday, May 18, 2017
Finding What Works... Rolling Along
On January 1st of this year, I had the humbling
realization that I weighed only 3 pounds less than when I checked into the
hospital to have my first baby 21 years ago.
I hadn’t been able to fit into most of my dress pants for well over a
year, and I was tired of having to wear the same few pants over and over. I refused to spend money on bigger clothes
and have to figure out where to store the old ones. At 16 pounds over my pre-pregnancy weight, I
set a goal to lose 12.
I lost about 5 pounds rather quickly simply by tracking my
food intake. I know people say it doesn’t
take a lot of time to track, but to me, it does take too much time – even with
the SP food tracker. And frankly, I just
don’t want to do it. So of course, I
didn’t stick with it.
The result was I stayed at that weight, more or less, for
the next 2+ months. At least I wasn’t
gaining, though.
Since I know I won’t track my food… at least, not long-term,
I needed to find something else. So I
set a new exercise goal for myself – something I enjoy. I decided to enter a summer race series to
see if it might motivate me to train again.
There are seven races and you earn points based on your finish
placement. At the end of the series,
they award top 3 overall, top master, and top 3 in each age group.
At the first race, a 5K, I won a surprising 3rd
place in my age group. I knew if I made
an effort to train a little more, I’d be able to run even faster the next
time. So I made sure to run at least 4
days a week and do a little hill training, too.
At the second race, a 4-miler, I came in ahead of the woman
who had won 1st place in my age group at the previous race. In fact, I wound up winning the 1st
place female master award (meaning out of all women over the age of 40). The most satisfying thing, however, was that
my overall pace was faster than the 5K just 3 weeks prior. My training was working.
Then to my surprise, the running club posted the first
ranking of the people in the race series.
My name was at the top for female master. Seeing my name there motivated me to do what
I can to stay there, which means to continue to run as well or better. To do that, I really need to drop those
extra, unneeded pounds and get to my goal.
The general rule of thumb in running is that for every pound you lose,
at a certain level of exertion, you can run approximately 2 seconds per mile
faster. 7 pounds less… 14 seconds per mile faster… that was a great incentive.
Knowing that I won’t track my food, I decided on the “just
don’t buy it” method, combined with the “keep busy” method. Luckily, there’s a lot going on in my life
right now – good things – to keep me busy and away from the TV (a trigger for
me). That, combined with better training,
has led to another 3-pound drop in the last month. I hope I will reach my goal weight by
mid-July.
I always tell people who are starting to exercise: you have to find what you enjoy. If you don’t have time for it or dislike it,
you’re not going to stick with it. We each
have to find what works for us and is sustainable, long-term. I have found that getting that ball rolling
is the hardest part, but once it starts rolling, it almost feels like a
downhill with the finish line in sight.
I have no idea where I’ll end up in the final rankings of
the race series, but in the end, that particular result doesn’t really
matter. The victory will be to keep
rolling along until I reach my goal weight and the successful completion of the
race series.
Saturday, May 13, 2017
Making the Grade
With school ending for many people at this time of year, you might think that's what this blog is about. But it's not. It's a continuation of my Heavy Breathing post. HILLS!
Yesterday, I ran my hilly route again - this time I did 5 out-n-backs for a total of 8.4 miles, with 10 hill climbs. I checked RunKeeper this morning to see my splits. I looked at the elevation profile and wondered what % grade the hills are, as one hill is shorter & quite steep, and the other hill is longer but not as steep.
The long hill (0.5 mile) has about 150 feet of elevation change.
The short hill (0.3 mile) has about 90 feet of elevation change.
The grade of a road is the road's steepness, meaning: "rise over run." So this means to find the % grade, you divide the elevation change by the distance. Of course, they need to be in the same units (feet, in this case), so you have to convert the miles to feet.
There are 5280 feet in a mile.
(0.5)(5280) = 2640
(0.3)(5280) = 1584
Now to find the grade:
Long Hill: 150 divided by 2640 = 0.05681818
Short Hill: 90 divided by 1584 = 0.05681818
What??? They're exactly the same grade!!
Written as a percent, that means both of these hills have a steepness grade of 5.68%, which is a pretty decent slope.
I was shocked when I got this result. It is EXACTLY the same... I mean, super duper unbelievably exactly the same. I could swear the shorter hill feels harder and steeper. Shouldn't the longer hill, of the same grade, feel harder? Because of this, I wondered if I calculated incorrectly. So I double- and triple-checked my math. You are welcome to quadruple check it for me and confirm it, but I'm quite sure I'm right.
This was quite a revelation this morning and I'm not sure what it means for my future hill runs. Either the short hill won't seem quite as difficult or the long hill will now seem longer & more difficult. I'm hoping for the former, since I try to think positively when I exercise.
If you use a fitness app that tracks elevation, this is a fun way to see just how hard you're working in various parts of your walks, hikes, runs, or bike rides. If you need any help with the calculations, you can always ask Google "how to calculate the grade of a hill" and find a nice description, complete with a picture. It's just one more tool to measure our individual progress and "make the grade!"
Yesterday, I ran my hilly route again - this time I did 5 out-n-backs for a total of 8.4 miles, with 10 hill climbs. I checked RunKeeper this morning to see my splits. I looked at the elevation profile and wondered what % grade the hills are, as one hill is shorter & quite steep, and the other hill is longer but not as steep.
The long hill (0.5 mile) has about 150 feet of elevation change.
The short hill (0.3 mile) has about 90 feet of elevation change.
The grade of a road is the road's steepness, meaning: "rise over run." So this means to find the % grade, you divide the elevation change by the distance. Of course, they need to be in the same units (feet, in this case), so you have to convert the miles to feet.
There are 5280 feet in a mile.
(0.5)(5280) = 2640
(0.3)(5280) = 1584
Now to find the grade:
Long Hill: 150 divided by 2640 = 0.05681818
Short Hill: 90 divided by 1584 = 0.05681818
What??? They're exactly the same grade!!
Written as a percent, that means both of these hills have a steepness grade of 5.68%, which is a pretty decent slope.
I was shocked when I got this result. It is EXACTLY the same... I mean, super duper unbelievably exactly the same. I could swear the shorter hill feels harder and steeper. Shouldn't the longer hill, of the same grade, feel harder? Because of this, I wondered if I calculated incorrectly. So I double- and triple-checked my math. You are welcome to quadruple check it for me and confirm it, but I'm quite sure I'm right.
This was quite a revelation this morning and I'm not sure what it means for my future hill runs. Either the short hill won't seem quite as difficult or the long hill will now seem longer & more difficult. I'm hoping for the former, since I try to think positively when I exercise.
If you use a fitness app that tracks elevation, this is a fun way to see just how hard you're working in various parts of your walks, hikes, runs, or bike rides. If you need any help with the calculations, you can always ask Google "how to calculate the grade of a hill" and find a nice description, complete with a picture. It's just one more tool to measure our individual progress and "make the grade!"
Thursday, May 11, 2017
The Hills Are Alive with the Sound of... Heavy Breathing!
Did that title get your attention?
I live in rural Virginia. Hills are everywhere! About a week ago, I did 6.8 miles with 8 substantial climbs. The whole run was four out-n-backs. A long down followed by a not-as-long climb... then turn around for a not-as-long down, and a looong climb. I tried to make the most of it by working myself hard and running at a pretty good clip.
At one point, I marveled at the beautiful scenery, and heard in my mind Julie Andrews singing, "The hills are aliiiiiiive with the sound of" and then I realized I was breathing quite loudly through my mouth. Hence, the funny title of my blog today.
Hill workouts are quite the challenge and they are very effective in burning calories, building muscle, and improving cardiovascular performance.
One result I especially like that comes from running in a hilly area is that when you run on flat terrain, it feels easy. When I run at the beach, everything feels downhill... and my breathing is nice and quiet!
I live in rural Virginia. Hills are everywhere! About a week ago, I did 6.8 miles with 8 substantial climbs. The whole run was four out-n-backs. A long down followed by a not-as-long climb... then turn around for a not-as-long down, and a looong climb. I tried to make the most of it by working myself hard and running at a pretty good clip.
At one point, I marveled at the beautiful scenery, and heard in my mind Julie Andrews singing, "The hills are aliiiiiiive with the sound of" and then I realized I was breathing quite loudly through my mouth. Hence, the funny title of my blog today.
Hill workouts are quite the challenge and they are very effective in burning calories, building muscle, and improving cardiovascular performance.
One result I especially like that comes from running in a hilly area is that when you run on flat terrain, it feels easy. When I run at the beach, everything feels downhill... and my breathing is nice and quiet!
Tuesday, May 9, 2017
With an Oink Oink Here and an Oink Oink There
I went to walk at the track with my daughter after dinner yesterday evening. As we approached the elementary school, I remarked, "Oh great, there's a dog on the loose." As soon as I said the word "dog," I realized it was NOT a dog. It was a large pig, complete with tusks.
There's a farm next door to the elementary school, and my daughter informed me that now and then, different animals get loose and crash their marching band practices. (They rehearse on the field inside the track.) I remember when I taught in a classroom trailer at that school 20 years ago, I'd periodically have to chase animals away, too. I once looked up to find a goat standing in the open doorway of my music classroom.
Having lived in a rural area for 25 years, I've gotten used to assisting animals back home. Several cows. A miniature horse. A regular horse. I even helped an owner get her bull back in her pasture once. (That one was a little scary.)
The pig headed toward the rather busy road in front of the school, so we ran after it, picked up long sticks, and headed it off. I had my RunKeeper app going, so it recorded the whole crazy route as we tried to herd it back home... with an oink oink here and and oink oink there. Eventually it crawled under its owner's fence in the woods. Last we saw, it was happily munching grass at home.
And here you have the crazy route.
There's a farm next door to the elementary school, and my daughter informed me that now and then, different animals get loose and crash their marching band practices. (They rehearse on the field inside the track.) I remember when I taught in a classroom trailer at that school 20 years ago, I'd periodically have to chase animals away, too. I once looked up to find a goat standing in the open doorway of my music classroom.
Having lived in a rural area for 25 years, I've gotten used to assisting animals back home. Several cows. A miniature horse. A regular horse. I even helped an owner get her bull back in her pasture once. (That one was a little scary.)
The pig headed toward the rather busy road in front of the school, so we ran after it, picked up long sticks, and headed it off. I had my RunKeeper app going, so it recorded the whole crazy route as we tried to herd it back home... with an oink oink here and and oink oink there. Eventually it crawled under its owner's fence in the woods. Last we saw, it was happily munching grass at home.
And here you have the crazy route.
Thursday, April 27, 2017
Mindless Eating - at a Whole New Level
We've talked about mindless eating and how we should be careful not to do it. This morning I blogged about resolving to make good choices, and so I have. All day. However, I did mindlessly eat once. Keep reading.
I was at work, finishing up the latest schedule for liturgical ministers. It was my first time using this particular software and it's not very user-friendly. I had to really concentrate. It was lunchtime and I got two peeled, hard-boiled eggs out of my lunch bag. I ate one while I worked.
Then a church member came in and started talking to me. I conversed with him while continuing to work.
After he left, I reached for the second egg. It was gone! What?
Talk about mindless eating... I have absolutely NO recollection of picking up that egg and eating it. It's like I was in the Twilight zone.
At least it was planned and nutritious, but it's a reminder of just how easy it is to put food in one's mouth without thinking about it. Whatever is our plan for the day, it's probably a good idea to portion it out so we don't accidentally wind up eating more. I wonder what else I might have consumed had it been sitting in front of me during my conversation. I'm glad it was just a single egg!
I was at work, finishing up the latest schedule for liturgical ministers. It was my first time using this particular software and it's not very user-friendly. I had to really concentrate. It was lunchtime and I got two peeled, hard-boiled eggs out of my lunch bag. I ate one while I worked.
Then a church member came in and started talking to me. I conversed with him while continuing to work.
After he left, I reached for the second egg. It was gone! What?
Talk about mindless eating... I have absolutely NO recollection of picking up that egg and eating it. It's like I was in the Twilight zone.
At least it was planned and nutritious, but it's a reminder of just how easy it is to put food in one's mouth without thinking about it. Whatever is our plan for the day, it's probably a good idea to portion it out so we don't accidentally wind up eating more. I wonder what else I might have consumed had it been sitting in front of me during my conversation. I'm glad it was just a single egg!
Wednesday, April 26, 2017
The Power of One Decision
Yesterday I was looking through the SparkPeople Community Feed and there was a post from a 20-something woman who has lost 201 pounds in 15 months. I looked at her SparkPage where she suggests checking out her YouTube channel which details her weight loss journey.
I watched her one-year video entry, made in early January. A few comments jumped out at me.
"Wishing it isn't going to make it happen."
"Be the change that you want."
She asks if we believe that one year can make a difference. How about one month? How about one decision?
Right before I watched that video, I had made a poor decision, diet-wise. I was at home, studying for a test, and I suddenly craved sugar. Lunch was only 45 minutes away, at best. Instead of simply waiting for lunch and eating something healthy, I ate a toaster pastry (an organic one, but still - 200 calories of something my body didn't really need.)
I realize that when you're 357 or 558 pounds, you probably don't want to hear a 122-pound woman lament her bad choices. However, remember, it's all relative. I don't fit in my pants. Either I have to buy new pants and forget about wearing that blue dress I bought for my upcoming performance, or I have GOT to carefully consider every decision I make. Every decision adds up to have either a positive or negative effect on my body. If I don't change my ways, I'll eventually be buying bigger and bigger clothes until I've got a lot more to lose.
I need to control myself now so I don't get to a point where I have to make even more and more good decisions to reach my goal. I wrote about this very thing a couple of weeks ago in "The Long Haul." Right now, I have a short haul. A mini haul, really. Even a 5-pound loss would probably do it.
Whether you're in it for a mini, short, or long haul, let's all remember the power of each decision, and make sure the good ones outweigh the bad ones.
Here's the video that inspired me. Her Spark handle is XOAmandaDawn.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtYJMP2ItS0
I watched her one-year video entry, made in early January. A few comments jumped out at me.
"Wishing it isn't going to make it happen."
"Be the change that you want."
She asks if we believe that one year can make a difference. How about one month? How about one decision?
Right before I watched that video, I had made a poor decision, diet-wise. I was at home, studying for a test, and I suddenly craved sugar. Lunch was only 45 minutes away, at best. Instead of simply waiting for lunch and eating something healthy, I ate a toaster pastry (an organic one, but still - 200 calories of something my body didn't really need.)
I realize that when you're 357 or 558 pounds, you probably don't want to hear a 122-pound woman lament her bad choices. However, remember, it's all relative. I don't fit in my pants. Either I have to buy new pants and forget about wearing that blue dress I bought for my upcoming performance, or I have GOT to carefully consider every decision I make. Every decision adds up to have either a positive or negative effect on my body. If I don't change my ways, I'll eventually be buying bigger and bigger clothes until I've got a lot more to lose.
I need to control myself now so I don't get to a point where I have to make even more and more good decisions to reach my goal. I wrote about this very thing a couple of weeks ago in "The Long Haul." Right now, I have a short haul. A mini haul, really. Even a 5-pound loss would probably do it.
Whether you're in it for a mini, short, or long haul, let's all remember the power of each decision, and make sure the good ones outweigh the bad ones.
Here's the video that inspired me. Her Spark handle is XOAmandaDawn.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtYJMP2ItS0
Sunday, April 23, 2017
Never Give Up! A Race Report.
I've been a runner for 15 years, but in recent years I've run less and less. Even though in my head I know I'll always enjoy running just for the sake of running, it's become easier and easier to make excuses and not get out there. I realized I needed some kind of a goal to give myself new motivation. So I challenged myself to enter the local Roadrunners' Race Series. There are 7 races over the next 4 and a half months, ranging in distance from 5K to a half marathon. Runners accumulate points based on the quality of their performance and awards are given out at the end. I haven't raced much at all in the last few years, so this was a big commitment for me.
Yesterday (Saturday) was a 4-miler, the second race in the series. I had a bit of a rough week and was feeling a bit "blah" about the race. It was a gray, rainy day, and it was tempting to stay home. But in the end, I went. About 12 minutes before the start of the race, my cell phone rang and it was my mother informing me that my grandmother died that morning. For a few minutes I felt very sad. It made me wonder what I was doing there, standing around in the rain, waiting to bust my butt and run hard at my age.
However, I suddenly resolved that I was going to TURN THIS DAY AROUND. I was not going to give up. I was going to run hard like I planned and see what I could do, and whatever that turned out to be would be fine.
When I run, I tend to measure my perceived rate of exertion by my breathing, which I coordinate with my footsteps. If I breathe in 4 steps, and out 4 steps, that's a comfortable pace. If I breathe 3-3, that's a little harder, but still somewhat comfortable. If I breathe in 3 and out 2, that's what I'd call "comfortably hard." Breathing 2-2, I'm working pretty hard but I can usually hold that level of exertion for up to 10 kilometers.
Normally, I start out any race at 3-3 because it takes me some time to warm up and feel good. Today I jumped right to 2-2. A half mile in, I was running at an 8:16/mile pace. Slowly, I passed other women ahead of me. About a mile in, the route turned to a long uphill. I shortened my stride but kept the turnover rate and breathing the same. (Hint: that's the way to climb hills. Shorten your stride. It helps a lot!) At the 2 mile mark, we turned around. Yay! Downhill for all of mile 3! Downhills are my strength, as my quadriceps are freakishly strong compared to the rest of my leg muscles. Usually I can pull away from people on long downhills.
So imagine my surprise when at mile 3, I was passed by a woman I hadn't seen before. Where did she come from? As she went by, I could tell she was younger than I am, and my first instinct was, "Let her go. Give it up. You can't possibly keep up with her."
But then I thought, "Why should I give up? What if I *can* keep up with her? I may feel tired but I don't feel bad. I'm going to see how long I can hang with her."
I stayed about 10 feet behind her and then to my surprise, slowly started getting closer. With about a half mile to go, I passed her. She said something positive to me like, "You're doing great" to which I responded something like, "Thanks, I don't know if I can keep it up." She encouraged me again.
I could hear her on my heels that last half mile and with maybe less than a tenth of a mile to go, she kicked it into high gear and flew by me, crossing the finish line ahead of me. That was fine with me - I had nothing left in the tank to give and she was a great competitor. I thanked her afterward for inspiring me to try harder at the end when I was thinking of giving up. It turned out she's 22 years old - just a year older than my son. It felt pretty good to know I can still keep up with the young ones.
When they gave out awards, I got a huge surprise.
First place Masters Female (that means over the age of 40)
Yesterday (Saturday) was a 4-miler, the second race in the series. I had a bit of a rough week and was feeling a bit "blah" about the race. It was a gray, rainy day, and it was tempting to stay home. But in the end, I went. About 12 minutes before the start of the race, my cell phone rang and it was my mother informing me that my grandmother died that morning. For a few minutes I felt very sad. It made me wonder what I was doing there, standing around in the rain, waiting to bust my butt and run hard at my age.
However, I suddenly resolved that I was going to TURN THIS DAY AROUND. I was not going to give up. I was going to run hard like I planned and see what I could do, and whatever that turned out to be would be fine.
When I run, I tend to measure my perceived rate of exertion by my breathing, which I coordinate with my footsteps. If I breathe in 4 steps, and out 4 steps, that's a comfortable pace. If I breathe 3-3, that's a little harder, but still somewhat comfortable. If I breathe in 3 and out 2, that's what I'd call "comfortably hard." Breathing 2-2, I'm working pretty hard but I can usually hold that level of exertion for up to 10 kilometers.
Normally, I start out any race at 3-3 because it takes me some time to warm up and feel good. Today I jumped right to 2-2. A half mile in, I was running at an 8:16/mile pace. Slowly, I passed other women ahead of me. About a mile in, the route turned to a long uphill. I shortened my stride but kept the turnover rate and breathing the same. (Hint: that's the way to climb hills. Shorten your stride. It helps a lot!) At the 2 mile mark, we turned around. Yay! Downhill for all of mile 3! Downhills are my strength, as my quadriceps are freakishly strong compared to the rest of my leg muscles. Usually I can pull away from people on long downhills.
So imagine my surprise when at mile 3, I was passed by a woman I hadn't seen before. Where did she come from? As she went by, I could tell she was younger than I am, and my first instinct was, "Let her go. Give it up. You can't possibly keep up with her."
But then I thought, "Why should I give up? What if I *can* keep up with her? I may feel tired but I don't feel bad. I'm going to see how long I can hang with her."
I stayed about 10 feet behind her and then to my surprise, slowly started getting closer. With about a half mile to go, I passed her. She said something positive to me like, "You're doing great" to which I responded something like, "Thanks, I don't know if I can keep it up." She encouraged me again.
I could hear her on my heels that last half mile and with maybe less than a tenth of a mile to go, she kicked it into high gear and flew by me, crossing the finish line ahead of me. That was fine with me - I had nothing left in the tank to give and she was a great competitor. I thanked her afterward for inspiring me to try harder at the end when I was thinking of giving up. It turned out she's 22 years old - just a year older than my son. It felt pretty good to know I can still keep up with the young ones.
When they gave out awards, I got a huge surprise.
First place Masters Female (that means over the age of 40)
I was the 5th woman overall and 1st out of 43 women over the age of 40. I ran a 32:18, for a 8:05/mile pace. The next woman over 40 was merely 45 seconds behind me. I suppose if she had passed me, in the grand scheme of things, it would not have been a big deal. I would have been happy for her. However, I am so thankful that 22-year-old passed me and kept me focused on my goal and working to the best of my ability. Today the best of my ability was enough to win. Maybe another day it won't be, but it is always satisfying to know I gave it my all.
It's very easy to set goals from the comfort of the living room. When I decided to enter the race series, I didn't fully appreciate just how hard it was going to be. Life does all it can to get in the way, doesn't it? A busy schedule, an injury, an illness... any unforeseen circumstance can wreak havoc on our plan. And even when you're in the middle of it - like I was in the 4-miler - it's easy to just say, "Eh, what does it really matter? I can just coast along and it's fine."
I think I am going to keep this trophy where I will see it every day to remind me that no matter what I'm doing at the time, to try my best and give it my all.
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