I have been going to body pump 2-3 times a week since September 6th when I just so happened to show up at the gym at about 9:30 and the nice guy that is always behind the desk said he thought I might like it as diversion from my elliptical/watching movies routine/rut. In short I am hooked and have started adding more weight this week, hard but not unattainable. I am actually starting to see some oblique muscle tone. (Would I ever be in heaven if I actually had abs instead of extra flesh - is a tummy tuck in my future well maybe if a year or two of this does not produce the results I am looking for.) I have also started going to Zumba once a week I love this class even though I am terribly uncoordinated. So for now my workout schedule looks like this:
Monday: Gym X2 - Elliptical before tops and after Boy Scouts
Tuesday: Walk to Gym 3.5 miles - Body Pump - Walk Home 2.0 miles
Wednesday: Walk 6-8 miles
Thursday: Walk to Gym 3.5 miles - Body Pump - Walk Home 2.0 miles
Friday: Gym Elliptical 1 hour usually in the afternoon
Saturday: Walk 10 miles or Body Pump if I have a race on Sunday
Sunday: Body Pump, Zumba after Church
This equals 29 miles of walking, 3 hours of body pump, about 2 1/2 hours of Elliptical, and 1 hour of Zumba.
My biggest fitness goal I am thinking of is a 2 1/2 hour half marathon and being able to roll over and touch my toes to the floor over my head I am not sure what this move is called but it involves a lot of flexibility.
Monday, October 17, 2011
Monday, February 7, 2011
My 2010 and ITP
Dear Friends and Family,
I am not sure if you all know what has been going on with me and I really need extra prayers for Friday Morning, when I am having my spleen removed with a danerously low platelet count. I thought I would try to catch everyone up.
Over the last 2 1/2 years I have lost about 67 lbs. (I weighed myself today.) I was at my high weight in April 2008. I lost most of the weight in 2010. In December 2009, Chris got the crazy idea to run a marathon a month in 2010 and thought I could do the halfs so we could do something together, for Chris this was truly romantic. I had done a 4 mile leg in the White Rock Marathon but I was so out of shape and fat I thought I would die but I agreed to his scheme. In January I had a breakdown at one of my Take Off Pounds Sensibly (TOPS) meetings because I just kept yo-yoing frustrated that I had been going for a year and had only lost 8 pounds, so I was down 13 from my high weight. I had also found out that a good friend had lost 100 pounds on Medifast. That is when I CHANGED EVERYTHING. I got serious I changed my diet, I started following a fabulous book called the Sugar Solution that I found at the thrift store for a couple of bucks (Chris would not pay for Medifast) and training for the Mardi Gras Half Marathon that was in February. It all started taking shape I lost 5 lbs the first week following the book exactly.
Our #1 was the Mississippi Blues in Jackson, MS - 1/9/10. I registered when we got there going back and forth trying to decided if I could do it or not since my longest was 8 miles up to then. It was 16o when I started an hour before everyone else because I was afaid I would't finish in time to get my medal. It was a chilling cold. Some of the water at the aid stations was frozen. People had icicles in their hair. Brrr. I finished in 3:59:18 and I was hooked.
#2 was the Miracle Match in Waco, TX - 1/31/10. Hilly and very cold - definitely the best food. I did much better 3:31:57 and the weight was starting to fly off.
#3 the one I thought I had really been training for was the Rock & Roll Mardi Gras in New Orleans, LA - 2/28/10. It was warm, I enjoyed all the people, the beautiful architecture, the beads in the trees. This is my favorite medal of the year. On a sad side my suitcase was stolen of our driveway when we got home and never recovered although someone sent me my drivers license back. - 3:25:37
#4 - Seabrook Lucky Trail in Seabrook, TX - 3/21/19. Two loops on a trail, very nicely run, much colder than we had expected. We brought all the kids with us and they got to volunteer. This race had the best swag bag: a drawstring backpack, nice socks, technical shirt, embroidered hat, and other stuff. A great race! 3:24:01
#5 - Hogeye in Fayetteville, AR - 4/11/10. Very Hilly but nicely done. Pretty ugly shirts. 3:20:02
#6 - Heels and Hills in Irving, TX - 5/2/10. Very nicely run, 90% women, no awards for men, people complained about the parking but I didn't have any trouble except that a Hummer got stuck trying to go up the ramp in front of me. I bet that left a big scratch on their car. I had a great race. 3:09:07
#7 - Andy Payne in Oklahoma City, OK - 5/30/10. We took the boys with us it was fun having them cheer for me. Horrible race, not enough water stops, cheezy cotton shirt, even cheezier plastic looking medal. The best thing about this trip was that we got to have lunch with my high school friend Brenda Wheelock and her husband David. 3:12:02
#8 - Wounded Warrior in Irving, TX - 6/13/10. The thing that bothered me about this race is that the shirt did not match the medal or brochure which were both amazing and the shirt was just ugly. It was run on the same course as Heels and Hills so that was nice. It was hot. 3:20:25
#9 - Niagara Ultra (I only did the half) in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada - 6/19/10. The best race of the year all around. It was beautiful! Niagara Falls is so romantic. The race was well run. We got wonderful red hoodie sweatshirts that Chris and I both love. What a wonderful way to spend our 21st anniversary. 3:04:53
I started ramping my milage up to start training for the Chicago Marathon.
# 10 - University of Okoboji - Okoboji, IA - 7/17/10. The boys and I drove in my newish Honda Fit to Minneapolis, MN. We stopped at as many National Parks as possible and ate a lot of Dairy Queen ice cream. Chris met us in Minneapolis and we went to Mall of America and some other touristy stuff with him. We then drove to Iowa to one of the worst races of the year. We camped near the start and I walked the mile to the start so I would have 14 miles for the day. It was already really warm out when we started, I was so thirsty in some places that when I would see a water bottle on the ground I thought about picking it up and drinking the water. Some people were using water hoses but I dont really like to be sprayed. It was just to hot. Even more disappointingly they did not have a finishers medal for the half marathon. Chris won a medal in his age group so he gave me one of his - my hero! 3:23:15
#11 - Fitness for America Sports Festival - Hoffman Estates, IL - 7/24/10. Since Okoboji was so bad I wanted another chance to make it a good race vacation. The boys and I spent the week between Okoboji and Chicago. Camping and we went to Wisconsin Dells home of Noahs Ark the largest waterpark in North America. We went to Mt. Olympus one day and were going to go to Noahs ark the next when the hugest deluge ever started. We packed faster than we had ever packed before throwing everything into the Fit and headed for Chicago. We got there a day early so we went to Indiana to see the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. It wasn't that great. At 3:00am the alarm was going off at my motel, it was raining cats and dogs, and the race was in 4 hours! When I got there they delayed the start an hour so it was just lightly raining but some how after the first loop I got lost I finally met up with two others Tammmy and Michel who were going my same pace and also lost. After running 13 miles without knowing exactly where we were going we all crossed the finish line together. Poorly run race maybe because of all the rain. But now I have 2 new friends so it wasn't all bad. 3:25:23. After 3000+ miles in the Honda Fit, 9 states, 8 National parks, 2 half marathons, and one all nighter from Chicago to Dallas (so we could get home and spend some time with Ellen before she left for 3 months)--The boys and I made it home.
#12 - The Hottest Half in Dallas, TX - 8/15/10. I started the race 30 minutes early because I need to go 15 miles and I had decided to add in the extra 2 miles in the middle. It was a balmy 112o heat index they ran out of cups and water at several of the aid stations. I found a cup on the ground and started using it at the water fountains. I also picked up a sad gummy bear off the ground and ate it. No finish time maybe because I started early.
#13 - Santa Rosa in Santa Rosa, CA - 8/28/10. What a great vacation for our 25th anniversary of when we started dating. We flew into San Jose then drove down Hwy 1 through Monterey, around 17 mile drive through Pebble Beach, Carmel-by-the-Sea, Big Sur, San Simeon, Morro Bay onto Santa Barbara where we were married. We didn't get to stay at the Simpson House which has obviously much more special than it was when we stayed there on our wedding night and 1st Anniversary. We got to run to Devereaux Point on the trails and beach near the love shack in Isla Vista. Onto Ventura to see Chris' mom, the next day went Fillmore to the Crawford Family Reunion. It was great to see everyone and I was looking great and had a nice time. We left at about 3 to drive up to Santa Rosa, the next morning was the race. I started 45 minutes early because I wanted to go 16 miles so I worked it out where I could add my 3 extra miles in the middle. It was the most enjoyable 16 miles ever, great weather, course and post race party. After the race we drove to San Francisco and had lunch with Chris' brother, Matt his wife Clare and my neice and new nephew Amanda Jo and Cameron. We nearly missed our plan back to Dallas. 3:15:15 plus an extra 45 minutes.
#14 - Heels and Hills and Him in Irving, TX - 9/26/10. I made this into a 20 mile run. I went 7 before it started and then added the half, it was perfect. I was as ready as I was going to be for Chicago. 3:19:12
The Chicago Marathon - 10/10/10. Chris and I had been planning this one for several years after having sold out entries in 2008 we were very excited to be part of this one on 10/10/10. Upon arriving in Chicago we went to the Field Museum, the Shedd Aquarium, Museum of Science and Industry, the Stained Glass Museum, and I went to the Willis Tower (formally the Sears Tower) I guess Chris is afraid of heights. We rode the El and went to Rosebuds. As for the race the crowds were incredible not only runners but spectators, they had plenty of well stocked aid staitions, people with water hoses and people just handing out snacks and support. The only problem was when I was at about mile 18 I saw a bank with the temp it was 85o I think it just zapped me. At 23 I thought I couldn't finish so I called Chris and talked to me for the last 3 miles. I was exhausted but accomplished. They were giving out free ice cream at Dairy Queen. I have decided the half is for me. It was a great vacation. 6:55:29
#15 - The Mission Run in Riverside, CA - 11/14/10. Since I had flown to California to bring Chris' mom to our house for thanksgiving I thought how much fun it would be to run a race in California. I picked the Mission Run which was one of my favorite of the year it was not that pretty of a course and very windy but the people were friendly and it was well run. 2:55:58
Driving home with Chris' mom and dog was the most trying experience of my life.
#16 - La Porte By the Bay in La Porte, TX - 12/5/10. A weekend get away with my mom. We had a wonderful time we did some Christmas shopping, had mexican food, the race was wonderfully run and went over a beautiful suspension bridge. The only things I didn't like were the medal was a bottle opener and the shirt was white.
16 half marathons and one full for the year - not bad. I lost 53 pounds in 2010 and have a good hold on a healthy sustainable diet. I am thinner and in better shape than I was in High School. I feel amazing, happy, proud, accomplished and fit. To start off 2011 I ran the New Years Day Half in Allen,TX -1/1/11 it was freezing but great and very well run. 2:51:39
I had a cold sore on my nose that wouldn't go away it was embarrassing and I tried to cover it up with make up for Church on 1/2, then on 1/8 I had some bloody looking cold sores in my mouth. I ended up going to the doctor on 1/10 because I didn't want to be sick for our trip to Arizona. My doctor thought they were some kind of herpes virus, maybe my shingles coming back to haunt me and gave me some meds and sent me on my way. On Wed 1/12 I noticed I was breaking out in bruises and a rash but thought it was a reaction to the meds, on Thursday it was worse. On Friday 1/14 I called the Doctor who thought it might be something serious called Stevens Johnson Syndrome and that I should go immediately to my dermotologist. He said it was not the SJS but he didn't know either but I should definitely get a blood test to see what was going on before I left for Phoenix the next morning. My parents were already here to stay with Will & Ben so my mom had gone with me to the Dermotologists. After finally convincing Chris the only place I could have the blood test done and find out if we could go to Arizona was the ER. Once the blood test came back I found out my platelets were only 3,000 where normal is 150,000 to 450,000. They admitted me to the hospital did a CT Scan, XRays, pumped me with platelets and steriods and I got to go home on Sunday. What I had is called ITP, Idiopathic (no known cause) Thrombocytopenia (low platelets) Purpura (bruises). We missed our trip to Arizona. I felt good and could not believe I was so sick. My doctor said I could exercise just not fall so on Mon, Tues, & Wednesday I went to the gym and did the elliptical. Wednesday afternoon, 1/19, I had to follow up with the hemotologist, Dr. Perkins, then the reality, my platelets were back down to 1,000-2,000. I immediately had bone marrow biopsy and re-admitted to the hospital. Upon admission my heart rate was scaring the Drs because it was in the 30's consistantly so they moved me to MICU which is a very scary place. They did a bunch of tests on my heart but didn't find anything. They just didn't know what great shape I am in. I stayed in Telemetry which is where they continuously monitor your heart rate for a week & 2 days. During that time they were trying everything they could think of to get my platelets to go up. A Chemo drug called Rituxan, N-Plate, IVIG, Winrho, Platelets, and Steroids. I was having horrible nose bleeds and felt as if my brain was exploding from within. Wednesday, 1/26, was my 46th birthday and I had the worst nurse ever who seemed more concered about everything but how I felt which was horrible. The best part was that Ellen and her boyfriend Chris came to see me and we played cards and I won. On Friday Night, 1/28, they moved me to a new room it is less invasive. I have been waiting 2 weeks and 2 days for my platelets to bounce but for the most part they have been lingering around 5,000. Today, 2/3, they were up to 10,000. Tomorrow is my surgery to remove my spleen. I hope I have learned all God has been trying to tell me, maybe not all but enough.
I am not sure if you all know what has been going on with me and I really need extra prayers for Friday Morning, when I am having my spleen removed with a danerously low platelet count. I thought I would try to catch everyone up.
Over the last 2 1/2 years I have lost about 67 lbs. (I weighed myself today.) I was at my high weight in April 2008. I lost most of the weight in 2010. In December 2009, Chris got the crazy idea to run a marathon a month in 2010 and thought I could do the halfs so we could do something together, for Chris this was truly romantic. I had done a 4 mile leg in the White Rock Marathon but I was so out of shape and fat I thought I would die but I agreed to his scheme. In January I had a breakdown at one of my Take Off Pounds Sensibly (TOPS) meetings because I just kept yo-yoing frustrated that I had been going for a year and had only lost 8 pounds, so I was down 13 from my high weight. I had also found out that a good friend had lost 100 pounds on Medifast. That is when I CHANGED EVERYTHING. I got serious I changed my diet, I started following a fabulous book called the Sugar Solution that I found at the thrift store for a couple of bucks (Chris would not pay for Medifast) and training for the Mardi Gras Half Marathon that was in February. It all started taking shape I lost 5 lbs the first week following the book exactly.
Our #1 was the Mississippi Blues in Jackson, MS - 1/9/10. I registered when we got there going back and forth trying to decided if I could do it or not since my longest was 8 miles up to then. It was 16o when I started an hour before everyone else because I was afaid I would't finish in time to get my medal. It was a chilling cold. Some of the water at the aid stations was frozen. People had icicles in their hair. Brrr. I finished in 3:59:18 and I was hooked.
#2 was the Miracle Match in Waco, TX - 1/31/10. Hilly and very cold - definitely the best food. I did much better 3:31:57 and the weight was starting to fly off.
#3 the one I thought I had really been training for was the Rock & Roll Mardi Gras in New Orleans, LA - 2/28/10. It was warm, I enjoyed all the people, the beautiful architecture, the beads in the trees. This is my favorite medal of the year. On a sad side my suitcase was stolen of our driveway when we got home and never recovered although someone sent me my drivers license back. - 3:25:37
#4 - Seabrook Lucky Trail in Seabrook, TX - 3/21/19. Two loops on a trail, very nicely run, much colder than we had expected. We brought all the kids with us and they got to volunteer. This race had the best swag bag: a drawstring backpack, nice socks, technical shirt, embroidered hat, and other stuff. A great race! 3:24:01
#5 - Hogeye in Fayetteville, AR - 4/11/10. Very Hilly but nicely done. Pretty ugly shirts. 3:20:02
#6 - Heels and Hills in Irving, TX - 5/2/10. Very nicely run, 90% women, no awards for men, people complained about the parking but I didn't have any trouble except that a Hummer got stuck trying to go up the ramp in front of me. I bet that left a big scratch on their car. I had a great race. 3:09:07
#7 - Andy Payne in Oklahoma City, OK - 5/30/10. We took the boys with us it was fun having them cheer for me. Horrible race, not enough water stops, cheezy cotton shirt, even cheezier plastic looking medal. The best thing about this trip was that we got to have lunch with my high school friend Brenda Wheelock and her husband David. 3:12:02
#8 - Wounded Warrior in Irving, TX - 6/13/10. The thing that bothered me about this race is that the shirt did not match the medal or brochure which were both amazing and the shirt was just ugly. It was run on the same course as Heels and Hills so that was nice. It was hot. 3:20:25
#9 - Niagara Ultra (I only did the half) in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada - 6/19/10. The best race of the year all around. It was beautiful! Niagara Falls is so romantic. The race was well run. We got wonderful red hoodie sweatshirts that Chris and I both love. What a wonderful way to spend our 21st anniversary. 3:04:53
I started ramping my milage up to start training for the Chicago Marathon.
# 10 - University of Okoboji - Okoboji, IA - 7/17/10. The boys and I drove in my newish Honda Fit to Minneapolis, MN. We stopped at as many National Parks as possible and ate a lot of Dairy Queen ice cream. Chris met us in Minneapolis and we went to Mall of America and some other touristy stuff with him. We then drove to Iowa to one of the worst races of the year. We camped near the start and I walked the mile to the start so I would have 14 miles for the day. It was already really warm out when we started, I was so thirsty in some places that when I would see a water bottle on the ground I thought about picking it up and drinking the water. Some people were using water hoses but I dont really like to be sprayed. It was just to hot. Even more disappointingly they did not have a finishers medal for the half marathon. Chris won a medal in his age group so he gave me one of his - my hero! 3:23:15
#11 - Fitness for America Sports Festival - Hoffman Estates, IL - 7/24/10. Since Okoboji was so bad I wanted another chance to make it a good race vacation. The boys and I spent the week between Okoboji and Chicago. Camping and we went to Wisconsin Dells home of Noahs Ark the largest waterpark in North America. We went to Mt. Olympus one day and were going to go to Noahs ark the next when the hugest deluge ever started. We packed faster than we had ever packed before throwing everything into the Fit and headed for Chicago. We got there a day early so we went to Indiana to see the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. It wasn't that great. At 3:00am the alarm was going off at my motel, it was raining cats and dogs, and the race was in 4 hours! When I got there they delayed the start an hour so it was just lightly raining but some how after the first loop I got lost I finally met up with two others Tammmy and Michel who were going my same pace and also lost. After running 13 miles without knowing exactly where we were going we all crossed the finish line together. Poorly run race maybe because of all the rain. But now I have 2 new friends so it wasn't all bad. 3:25:23. After 3000+ miles in the Honda Fit, 9 states, 8 National parks, 2 half marathons, and one all nighter from Chicago to Dallas (so we could get home and spend some time with Ellen before she left for 3 months)--The boys and I made it home.
#12 - The Hottest Half in Dallas, TX - 8/15/10. I started the race 30 minutes early because I need to go 15 miles and I had decided to add in the extra 2 miles in the middle. It was a balmy 112o heat index they ran out of cups and water at several of the aid stations. I found a cup on the ground and started using it at the water fountains. I also picked up a sad gummy bear off the ground and ate it. No finish time maybe because I started early.
#13 - Santa Rosa in Santa Rosa, CA - 8/28/10. What a great vacation for our 25th anniversary of when we started dating. We flew into San Jose then drove down Hwy 1 through Monterey, around 17 mile drive through Pebble Beach, Carmel-by-the-Sea, Big Sur, San Simeon, Morro Bay onto Santa Barbara where we were married. We didn't get to stay at the Simpson House which has obviously much more special than it was when we stayed there on our wedding night and 1st Anniversary. We got to run to Devereaux Point on the trails and beach near the love shack in Isla Vista. Onto Ventura to see Chris' mom, the next day went Fillmore to the Crawford Family Reunion. It was great to see everyone and I was looking great and had a nice time. We left at about 3 to drive up to Santa Rosa, the next morning was the race. I started 45 minutes early because I wanted to go 16 miles so I worked it out where I could add my 3 extra miles in the middle. It was the most enjoyable 16 miles ever, great weather, course and post race party. After the race we drove to San Francisco and had lunch with Chris' brother, Matt his wife Clare and my neice and new nephew Amanda Jo and Cameron. We nearly missed our plan back to Dallas. 3:15:15 plus an extra 45 minutes.
#14 - Heels and Hills and Him in Irving, TX - 9/26/10. I made this into a 20 mile run. I went 7 before it started and then added the half, it was perfect. I was as ready as I was going to be for Chicago. 3:19:12
The Chicago Marathon - 10/10/10. Chris and I had been planning this one for several years after having sold out entries in 2008 we were very excited to be part of this one on 10/10/10. Upon arriving in Chicago we went to the Field Museum, the Shedd Aquarium, Museum of Science and Industry, the Stained Glass Museum, and I went to the Willis Tower (formally the Sears Tower) I guess Chris is afraid of heights. We rode the El and went to Rosebuds. As for the race the crowds were incredible not only runners but spectators, they had plenty of well stocked aid staitions, people with water hoses and people just handing out snacks and support. The only problem was when I was at about mile 18 I saw a bank with the temp it was 85o I think it just zapped me. At 23 I thought I couldn't finish so I called Chris and talked to me for the last 3 miles. I was exhausted but accomplished. They were giving out free ice cream at Dairy Queen. I have decided the half is for me. It was a great vacation. 6:55:29
#15 - The Mission Run in Riverside, CA - 11/14/10. Since I had flown to California to bring Chris' mom to our house for thanksgiving I thought how much fun it would be to run a race in California. I picked the Mission Run which was one of my favorite of the year it was not that pretty of a course and very windy but the people were friendly and it was well run. 2:55:58
Driving home with Chris' mom and dog was the most trying experience of my life.
#16 - La Porte By the Bay in La Porte, TX - 12/5/10. A weekend get away with my mom. We had a wonderful time we did some Christmas shopping, had mexican food, the race was wonderfully run and went over a beautiful suspension bridge. The only things I didn't like were the medal was a bottle opener and the shirt was white.
16 half marathons and one full for the year - not bad. I lost 53 pounds in 2010 and have a good hold on a healthy sustainable diet. I am thinner and in better shape than I was in High School. I feel amazing, happy, proud, accomplished and fit. To start off 2011 I ran the New Years Day Half in Allen,TX -1/1/11 it was freezing but great and very well run. 2:51:39
I had a cold sore on my nose that wouldn't go away it was embarrassing and I tried to cover it up with make up for Church on 1/2, then on 1/8 I had some bloody looking cold sores in my mouth. I ended up going to the doctor on 1/10 because I didn't want to be sick for our trip to Arizona. My doctor thought they were some kind of herpes virus, maybe my shingles coming back to haunt me and gave me some meds and sent me on my way. On Wed 1/12 I noticed I was breaking out in bruises and a rash but thought it was a reaction to the meds, on Thursday it was worse. On Friday 1/14 I called the Doctor who thought it might be something serious called Stevens Johnson Syndrome and that I should go immediately to my dermotologist. He said it was not the SJS but he didn't know either but I should definitely get a blood test to see what was going on before I left for Phoenix the next morning. My parents were already here to stay with Will & Ben so my mom had gone with me to the Dermotologists. After finally convincing Chris the only place I could have the blood test done and find out if we could go to Arizona was the ER. Once the blood test came back I found out my platelets were only 3,000 where normal is 150,000 to 450,000. They admitted me to the hospital did a CT Scan, XRays, pumped me with platelets and steriods and I got to go home on Sunday. What I had is called ITP, Idiopathic (no known cause) Thrombocytopenia (low platelets) Purpura (bruises). We missed our trip to Arizona. I felt good and could not believe I was so sick. My doctor said I could exercise just not fall so on Mon, Tues, & Wednesday I went to the gym and did the elliptical. Wednesday afternoon, 1/19, I had to follow up with the hemotologist, Dr. Perkins, then the reality, my platelets were back down to 1,000-2,000. I immediately had bone marrow biopsy and re-admitted to the hospital. Upon admission my heart rate was scaring the Drs because it was in the 30's consistantly so they moved me to MICU which is a very scary place. They did a bunch of tests on my heart but didn't find anything. They just didn't know what great shape I am in. I stayed in Telemetry which is where they continuously monitor your heart rate for a week & 2 days. During that time they were trying everything they could think of to get my platelets to go up. A Chemo drug called Rituxan, N-Plate, IVIG, Winrho, Platelets, and Steroids. I was having horrible nose bleeds and felt as if my brain was exploding from within. Wednesday, 1/26, was my 46th birthday and I had the worst nurse ever who seemed more concered about everything but how I felt which was horrible. The best part was that Ellen and her boyfriend Chris came to see me and we played cards and I won. On Friday Night, 1/28, they moved me to a new room it is less invasive. I have been waiting 2 weeks and 2 days for my platelets to bounce but for the most part they have been lingering around 5,000. Today, 2/3, they were up to 10,000. Tomorrow is my surgery to remove my spleen. I hope I have learned all God has been trying to tell me, maybe not all but enough.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Heels and Hills and Him and 1/4 Pound to My Goal!
This has been a fabulous week. On Sunday I completed my 14th half marathon this year. It was the Heels and Hills and Him in Irving, Texas. It was by far one of my favorites this year. They had long sleeve tech shirts with a nice big picture unlike Santa Rosa. Colorful medals unlike Andy Payne and even worse Okojiboji which did not even give out medals to the Half Marathon finishers. You can really tell when women are in charge of a race verses men everything is better and more planned out. They had water and gatorade at every aid station and plenty of it unlike the Hottest Half which ran out completely, Okojiboji, and Andy Payne. I got to the race start at 5:30 just as they began to set up. I was glad not to be the only one there. I was going to go 7 miles before the race started at 7:30, so I could get my last long run of 20 miles in before the Chicago Marathon on 10/10/10. The 7 miles in the dark went fast and uneventful. I thought I had plenty of time to use the rest room and get a drink when I got back. The race ended up starting 4 minutes early, so I skipped the drink which ended up being not the best idea. I was overly thirsty by the time I got to the first aid station. I love that course. It was my 3rd race there this year, I like to know just how much farther it is until it is time to turn around and go back and then I especially like it being shorter than going out. My time was nothing to write home about about 3 hours and 20 minutes but considering it ended up being over 20 miles I was happy. Chicago is only 2 weeks away and I feel great. I did 9 miles today and was not sore at all.
Yesterday at TOPS I was only a 1/4 pound from my goal of 131 pounds. I am still smiling from ear to ear. :)
Yesterday at TOPS I was only a 1/4 pound from my goal of 131 pounds. I am still smiling from ear to ear. :)
Monday, September 27, 2010
Thursday, September 2, 2010
My Marvelous Monday Interview
1. Introduce yourself: ie, first name, married +family life, profession
Lauran Crawford age 45, Married to Chris (a hard core runner he has done 91 marathons and run over 67,000 miles since I've known him and we are still married) for 21 years, 3 Children Ellen-19 dropped out of college and is currently working on a cruise ship in Maine, Will-15 Sophmore in HS Swimmer and in the Culinary magnet, Ben-almost 11 in 6th Grade loves soccer and literature. I am a stay at home mom and I sell stuff on eBay so we can travel to Hawaii during the Summer.
2. Can you give a brief history of your running life? When you started etc, and why?
First of all I don't think I have ever really run I mostly at best jog and it is practically a slog. Started running in HS in Duncan, OK the guy that lived across the street was a runner and he had a great body and I had always been a little chunky so I tried it I immediately hurt my right knee which has been giving me fits ever since. I took it back up my freshman year in college in Abilene, TX to lose the freshman 20, again my knee hurt and I quit, I moved to Fullerton, California and started running more, when I met Chris just before Junior year at CSUF he had just done the San Francisco Marathon and at that point I had never even heard of a marathon or met anyone that had actually done one, so I started jogging more. We moved to Santa Barbara (actually Isla Vista) in 1987, which in my opinion is the best, most beautiful, perfect place to run it is heaven, I guess my 1st race ever was the Lompoc Half Marathon in 1988. I was so proud of that medal (I still have it). After we got married in 1989 we moved to New Jersey and I ran and walked off and on, Ellen was born in 1991, still ran off and on, Moved to Hawaii in 1993 and ran off and on, Will was born in 1995 and shockingly after he was born the weight did not just come off after a year I still weighed 163 so I joined TOPS (Take of Pounds Sensibly) and started walking & jogging, I lost 39 pounds, although I didn't know it then I was too thin, I did the Honolulu Marathon in 1996 & 1997 and I aslo did the Windward Half Marathon, KoleKole Pass Half Marathon, the Great Aloha Run a number of times and many shorter races. We were very active members of the road runners club there. I think I would have just stayed thin and fit in Hawaii because like Isla Vista it was perfect. We moved to Dallas, TX in 1998, one of the hottest summers on record, I tried to get out but felt like I was frying I gradually was gaining back all the weight I had lost. Then I got pregnant and had Ben in Sept. 1999 and like Will the weight did not just come off after a year I still weighed 170 so I joined TOPS again and started walking & jogging, I lost 34 pounds, I did the Anchorage Mayor's Midnight Sun Marathon in 2001 and the Myrtle Beach Marathon in 2002, which was slow and painful and I was not very commited. I guess I had a lot going on with my children and did not do enough for myself mostly because I really hate living in Dallas, because I stopped running and walking as much and gained all the weight plus more back. In April 2008, I weighed my all time high of 196 and I wasn't even pregnant. It took me awhile to find myself again. At 191 pounds I rejoined TOPS in January 2009, but only lost 8 pounds in a year. In December Chris asked me if I would like to do leg of the White Rock Marathon, only 4 miles. I was in such bad shape that I honestly thought I was going to die. Then he got the big idea to do a marathon month for 2010 and that maybe if I trained I could do the half marathons and it would give us some quality together time. I started training, eating right I follow a book called "the sugar solution", and as of today I have done 13 half marathons this year alone and have lost 62 1/4 pounds. I FEEL GREAT! Most days my knee and ankle don't hurt and when they do I listen and instead of pounding the pavement I go to the gym and do the elliptical. Plus I have a great chiropractor now. Listen to your body.
3. How many races have you done this year?
This year I have done 13 half marathons: Mississippi Blues, Jackson, MS; Waco Miracle Match, Waco, TX; Mardi Gras, New Orleans, LA; Lucky Trails, Seabrook, TX; Hogeye, Jacksonville, AR; Hills & Heels, Irving, TX; Andy Payne, Oklahoma City, OK; Wounded Warrior, Los Colinas, TX; Niagara, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada; University of Okoboji, Okoboji, IA; Fitness for America Sports Festival, Hoffman Estates, IL (where I met Michel & Tammy); The Hottest Half, Dallas, TX; Santa Rosa, Santa Rosa, CA
I have also done a couple of 5K's but the Half Marathon is my favorite distance.
4. What was your last big race?
Last big race was The Santa Rosa Half Marathon in Santa Rosa, CA on August 29th. It was perfect. I started early because I needed 16 miles for my training for Chicago and we were going to have lunch with my brother in law in San Francisco. The race finally caught up to me at about mile 3-4, at mile 6 when we were suposed to turn I continued to straight to add in my extra 3 miles, the caught up with exactly where I should have been if I had started at the start. I jogged and walked 1 minute intervals the whole way. I felt great. The weather was perfect. My time was my best this year. Yea!
5. What advice can you give others who might not know where to start?
Well my advice to me would be don't listen to your husband he's crazy. The internet is a great place, there are a lot of great training schedules - I actually love Jeff Galloway and if you google him there is so much information on his run/walk training methods. Get a good watch I have a Garmin 205 and Love It, if I get lost it always gets me back to start. I also like to alternate between several pairs of shoes. Mostly start slow, but have a plan such as picking a race to do and paying for it immediately so you don't back out.
6. What was your best race?
My best race recently time wise would have to be Santa Rosa, but my overall favorite races ever would be a 3 way tie between the KoleKole Pass Half Marathon, The Honolulu Marathon, and The Midnight Sun Marathon.
7. How has running affected your life in general?
I think running keeps me sane. I always feel better when I do it and can't figure out why I stopped so many times. I love the way I look now and now that I am older and hopefully wiser, I hope to keep it up as long as my body will let me.
8. What advice can you give a newbie runner?
My advice would be walk before you run, if you need to weight lose some weight before you start jogging because the more you weigh the more damage it does to your body, mostly listen to your body and if your like me and injure something go immediately to a chiropractor. They are awesome.
9. Running gear you can't live without?
Gear I can't live without would be my Garmin watch, Asics running shoes, my fuel belt on hot days here in Texas, my amphipod belt for races and not so hot days, my phone that also is my mp3 player and on race days Avril Lavigne singing "Alice" from Alice in Wonderland over and over and over and over again in my head.
Tripping out
Spinning around
I'm underground, I fell down
yeah, I fell down
I'm freaking out
Where am I now?
Upside down
And I can't stop it now
You can't stop me now
I, I'll get by
I, I'll survive
When the world's crashing down
When I fall and hit the ground
I will turn myself around
Don't you try to stop it
I, I won't cry
I found myself in Wonderland
Get back on my feet again
Is this real?
Is it pretend?
I'll take a stand until the end
I, I'll get by
I, I'll survive
When the world's crashing down
When I fall and hit the ground
I will turn myself around
Don't you try to stop me
I, I won't cry
I, I'll get by
I, I'll survive
When the world's crashing down
When I fall and hit the ground
I will turn myself around
Don't you try to stop me
I, and I won't cry
10. What are your plans for your training future?
I am currently training for the Chicago Marathon on 10/10/10 after that I am not sure but maybe Hawaii in December!
Lauran Crawford age 45, Married to Chris (a hard core runner he has done 91 marathons and run over 67,000 miles since I've known him and we are still married) for 21 years, 3 Children Ellen-19 dropped out of college and is currently working on a cruise ship in Maine, Will-15 Sophmore in HS Swimmer and in the Culinary magnet, Ben-almost 11 in 6th Grade loves soccer and literature. I am a stay at home mom and I sell stuff on eBay so we can travel to Hawaii during the Summer.
2. Can you give a brief history of your running life? When you started etc, and why?
First of all I don't think I have ever really run I mostly at best jog and it is practically a slog. Started running in HS in Duncan, OK the guy that lived across the street was a runner and he had a great body and I had always been a little chunky so I tried it I immediately hurt my right knee which has been giving me fits ever since. I took it back up my freshman year in college in Abilene, TX to lose the freshman 20, again my knee hurt and I quit, I moved to Fullerton, California and started running more, when I met Chris just before Junior year at CSUF he had just done the San Francisco Marathon and at that point I had never even heard of a marathon or met anyone that had actually done one, so I started jogging more. We moved to Santa Barbara (actually Isla Vista) in 1987, which in my opinion is the best, most beautiful, perfect place to run it is heaven, I guess my 1st race ever was the Lompoc Half Marathon in 1988. I was so proud of that medal (I still have it). After we got married in 1989 we moved to New Jersey and I ran and walked off and on, Ellen was born in 1991, still ran off and on, Moved to Hawaii in 1993 and ran off and on, Will was born in 1995 and shockingly after he was born the weight did not just come off after a year I still weighed 163 so I joined TOPS (Take of Pounds Sensibly) and started walking & jogging, I lost 39 pounds, although I didn't know it then I was too thin, I did the Honolulu Marathon in 1996 & 1997 and I aslo did the Windward Half Marathon, KoleKole Pass Half Marathon, the Great Aloha Run a number of times and many shorter races. We were very active members of the road runners club there. I think I would have just stayed thin and fit in Hawaii because like Isla Vista it was perfect. We moved to Dallas, TX in 1998, one of the hottest summers on record, I tried to get out but felt like I was frying I gradually was gaining back all the weight I had lost. Then I got pregnant and had Ben in Sept. 1999 and like Will the weight did not just come off after a year I still weighed 170 so I joined TOPS again and started walking & jogging, I lost 34 pounds, I did the Anchorage Mayor's Midnight Sun Marathon in 2001 and the Myrtle Beach Marathon in 2002, which was slow and painful and I was not very commited. I guess I had a lot going on with my children and did not do enough for myself mostly because I really hate living in Dallas, because I stopped running and walking as much and gained all the weight plus more back. In April 2008, I weighed my all time high of 196 and I wasn't even pregnant. It took me awhile to find myself again. At 191 pounds I rejoined TOPS in January 2009, but only lost 8 pounds in a year. In December Chris asked me if I would like to do leg of the White Rock Marathon, only 4 miles. I was in such bad shape that I honestly thought I was going to die. Then he got the big idea to do a marathon month for 2010 and that maybe if I trained I could do the half marathons and it would give us some quality together time. I started training, eating right I follow a book called "the sugar solution", and as of today I have done 13 half marathons this year alone and have lost 62 1/4 pounds. I FEEL GREAT! Most days my knee and ankle don't hurt and when they do I listen and instead of pounding the pavement I go to the gym and do the elliptical. Plus I have a great chiropractor now. Listen to your body.
3. How many races have you done this year?
This year I have done 13 half marathons: Mississippi Blues, Jackson, MS; Waco Miracle Match, Waco, TX; Mardi Gras, New Orleans, LA; Lucky Trails, Seabrook, TX; Hogeye, Jacksonville, AR; Hills & Heels, Irving, TX; Andy Payne, Oklahoma City, OK; Wounded Warrior, Los Colinas, TX; Niagara, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada; University of Okoboji, Okoboji, IA; Fitness for America Sports Festival, Hoffman Estates, IL (where I met Michel & Tammy); The Hottest Half, Dallas, TX; Santa Rosa, Santa Rosa, CA
I have also done a couple of 5K's but the Half Marathon is my favorite distance.
4. What was your last big race?
Last big race was The Santa Rosa Half Marathon in Santa Rosa, CA on August 29th. It was perfect. I started early because I needed 16 miles for my training for Chicago and we were going to have lunch with my brother in law in San Francisco. The race finally caught up to me at about mile 3-4, at mile 6 when we were suposed to turn I continued to straight to add in my extra 3 miles, the caught up with exactly where I should have been if I had started at the start. I jogged and walked 1 minute intervals the whole way. I felt great. The weather was perfect. My time was my best this year. Yea!
5. What advice can you give others who might not know where to start?
Well my advice to me would be don't listen to your husband he's crazy. The internet is a great place, there are a lot of great training schedules - I actually love Jeff Galloway and if you google him there is so much information on his run/walk training methods. Get a good watch I have a Garmin 205 and Love It, if I get lost it always gets me back to start. I also like to alternate between several pairs of shoes. Mostly start slow, but have a plan such as picking a race to do and paying for it immediately so you don't back out.
6. What was your best race?
My best race recently time wise would have to be Santa Rosa, but my overall favorite races ever would be a 3 way tie between the KoleKole Pass Half Marathon, The Honolulu Marathon, and The Midnight Sun Marathon.
7. How has running affected your life in general?
I think running keeps me sane. I always feel better when I do it and can't figure out why I stopped so many times. I love the way I look now and now that I am older and hopefully wiser, I hope to keep it up as long as my body will let me.
8. What advice can you give a newbie runner?
My advice would be walk before you run, if you need to weight lose some weight before you start jogging because the more you weigh the more damage it does to your body, mostly listen to your body and if your like me and injure something go immediately to a chiropractor. They are awesome.
9. Running gear you can't live without?
Gear I can't live without would be my Garmin watch, Asics running shoes, my fuel belt on hot days here in Texas, my amphipod belt for races and not so hot days, my phone that also is my mp3 player and on race days Avril Lavigne singing "Alice" from Alice in Wonderland over and over and over and over again in my head.
Tripping out
Spinning around
I'm underground, I fell down
yeah, I fell down
I'm freaking out
Where am I now?
Upside down
And I can't stop it now
You can't stop me now
I, I'll get by
I, I'll survive
When the world's crashing down
When I fall and hit the ground
I will turn myself around
Don't you try to stop it
I, I won't cry
I found myself in Wonderland
Get back on my feet again
Is this real?
Is it pretend?
I'll take a stand until the end
I, I'll get by
I, I'll survive
When the world's crashing down
When I fall and hit the ground
I will turn myself around
Don't you try to stop me
I, I won't cry
I, I'll get by
I, I'll survive
When the world's crashing down
When I fall and hit the ground
I will turn myself around
Don't you try to stop me
I, and I won't cry
10. What are your plans for your training future?
I am currently training for the Chicago Marathon on 10/10/10 after that I am not sure but maybe Hawaii in December!
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Goal Weight
After 8 months of losing weight week after week, for a total of 62.25 lbs I think I am finally just about at my goal weight oh yeah I would like to lose about 10 more pounds but it might take a while for now I am happy. I enjoy shopping for new clothes just about every Monday after TOPS. I am pretty much a perfect size 8 which is not a double size digit and that also was a goal. I got my tragus pierced 2 weeks ago, I had always wanted done but decided when I got to my goal weight I would have it done. Will thinks it is dumb but I like it. So what if I am 45.Friday, April 9, 2010
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