Frosting.

So, yeah. Things have been happening. I didn't think it was possible to be hurting more than I already was, but then some stuff happened, and I said to myself, "Self, your life is ridiculous sometimes."

I'll handle it. I'm pretty good at handling ridiculousness.

Anyway, that leads to my lack of posting lately. I started taking yoga at this place near my house, and discovered that I am hilarious when attempting to bend in ways that my body does not want to bend. The instructor doesn't seem to find it as funny, but I like her because she constantly makes me try different poses even when I'm scared. I'm doing a trial membership right now, and plan to take advantage of trial memberships all over town to see which yoga studio I like best. I think it might be a good thing to pursue when it's cold and snowing outside.

I ran a local 5K, and while it wasn't my best time ever, it also wasn't my worst. I was proud of myself because I sprinted the last little bit and passed a couple people. I did the best that I could, and that makes me happy.

Hood to Coast = ridiculous. If only I felt like publicizing to the Internet the goings on of my life, you would probably all say to me that I'm silly for running Hood to Coast when I had so much going on, but it was a really good distraction. I spent two days locked in a van (with some close friends, but also some strangers). I ran 17 miles in less than 24 hours. I slept in a field because that's what people do... It was an odd 197 miles. Kind of like what I imagine Woodstock was like, but with a bunch of crazy runners instead of drugs, nudity, and music. So really not like Woodstock at all.

My favorite leg was the middle leg. The first one was hot, flat, and boring for 6 miles. The last leg was hot, hilly, and sucked cause I was exhausted and was ready to be done. The middle leg was 7 miles, and I ran them at 3 a.m. through the middle of a pitch black forest. Particularly creepy because all that I had was a head lamp, reflective vest, and flashy lights on either side and at times I was the only person on the road and no vans were passing by. I also tripped in a pothole, nearly fell off the road into the ditch, and was very close to being hit by a car which I suspect was being driven by a drunk driver. Luckily I am excellent at regaining my balance due to my habit of falling down a lot. Also, a handsome man grabbed me out of the way of the drunk driver (if you're reading this, cute guy that runs faster than me, you should call me. We could go out to dinner and not get hit by cars together. Sounds magical, right?) and I did not die.

Some photo goodness:





Hood to Coast people have this habit of calling people "roadkill" when they pass them, and keeping track of their "roadkill count" and let me just tell you... I was roadkill a lot. Those Hood to Coast people don't mess around. We're talking 7 minute miles. On my middle of the night leg, there was a clearing where people were gathered to cheer on their teams, and when I arrived at that point the teams started chanting, "Kill her! Kill her!" as the girl behind me was trying to pass me. I totally hauled ass and avoided her... until we got past the clearing and no one could see us. Holy hell, she was fast.

So, yes, I did not die. Also, recently Shawna and I went on a road trip to Tour de Fat in Boise and I went out in public looking like this:



Luckily it was a drunken bicycle parade, so people didn't really care. And yes, I rode a bicycle wearing that. What?

For some reason, when I am as down as I have been the past couple days, baking makes me feel better. So yesterday I made gingerbread cupcakes with buttercream frosting and tiny gingerbread men on top. I didn't really want to eat them, I just wanted to make something. And frosting makes me happy, in all it's fluffy glory.

I'm pretty convinced that all of life's problems can be solved with frosting.

Resolution fail.

The results of my February resolutions are as follows:

1. To exercise at least 30 minutes/day. Oops--fail. I blame part of this on catching the plague, and part of it on sheer laziness. Seriously, I have a really hard time staying motivated in the winter, and for some reason this winter was particularly bad. The good news is that I plan to turn this around for March, and so far I have. I realize it is only March 2, but come on!

2. Drink 64 ounces of water per day. Mostly, this went okay.

3. Cut back on spending in order to save for impending vacations. This one went pretty well, I think.

4. Eat at least 5 servings of fruit/veggies per day. I did pretty well here, but I think I can do better. I struggle mostly on weekends with remember to eat well, drink water, and not sit on the couch so much.

5. Run a 15k and participate in Polar Plunge--check, and check. Not an official 15k, but I did run over a 15k once so I count that. Polar Plunge was a success!

I also wanted to do 30 day of the 30 Day Shred, but that didn't work out--also due to the plague. I have high hopes for March though!!!

I have no idea why I have such a difficult time with sticking with healthy habits in winter. During spring and summer, I think I do awesome at this. I read pre-marathon that a lot of times people will gain weight and struggle after their first marathon and I thought, "Pshaw, that won't happen to me." Well, guess what, it has. I am currently not friends with the scale, and for some reason have lately been sort of "blah." The sunshine is coming back, which is helping, and I think I'll get my mojo back...but sometimes I just have a hard time and I can't really explain why. It's difficult having lost a lot of weight and then gaining it back--I worry that I'll see family I haven't seen in awhile and they'll judge me, or that someone will tell me I'm getting fat again, or that people won't love me as much. Which is stupid, and I would yell at me if I were my friend. It's apparently always going to be a battle to keep weight off, and be healthy, but it is a battle I plan to win.

I haven't been able to figure out what is keeping me from putting on my running shoes lately, and not eating as healthy, and just generally struggling. I know that I should, because it improves my mood and overall mental well-being, but I just let myself get too overwhelmed with stress and sadness for no apparent reason.

I did receive some exciting news today that I think will help: an old friend has a Hood to Coast Relay team, and had a runner drop out, so they asked me to join! It is at the end of August and I need to improve my running time to a 9:30 mile or better--I think I can do this. I also think it will give me something to work towards. Once I conquered the marathon, I wasn't as interested in doing distance races... I had already done them and know that I can. Speed is always a challenge for me, so I'm planning to get back into the swing of things and add some tempo/interval runs. I'm really excited!

So, this August, I'll be joining Team Speedy Turtles and running a few legs from the top of Mt. Hood to the Pacific Ocean. Jealous?



It's a multi-day event, and called "the mother of all relays." I never back down from a challenge...

So suck it February--here are my March resolutions:

1. Run regularly, and as much as I want to. Work on improving speed.

2. Eat mostly healthy, but don't beat myself up if I don't.

3. Enjoy the sunshine.

4. Avoid getting stressed out by work and other life factors.

5. Be happy.