Tag: running

Be Careful When You Tease the Dog…

This last week has been interesting, to say the least. Some good, some not so much…

We finished harvesting our crops exactly one week ago. It was an overcast, windy day like today. I was anticipating the finish, and getting back to a more normal schedule. I received a phone call with just a few hundred yards to the end. I mentioned in that call that I was watching three raccoons running in and out of the rows, going slower than I wanted to make sure they wouldn’t get run over.  Cue the foreshadowing music…  Apparently my combine is not only good for rock picking, but it is also handy for coon hunting. I’ll leave the details for those who want to hear the story in person. Let me just say… “Ewww.”

My huge rock I picked up on the bean head…it was so dusty I couldn’t see it until I picked it up. The biggest one I’ve picked up so far!

 

Now that harvest is done, we are hitting the tillage pretty hard. We have had so many offers from friends to help, which is such a blessing. Jonathan has taught my niece, Katie, how to drive tractors and use air tools. She has been loving the lifestyle so far.

Katie and her tractor

 

With so many people helping, I was able to concentrate on getting our guestroom ready for Jonathan’s sister, Anita and her husband, Charles. They will be staying with us for a couple of months while they visit churches in the United States that sponsor their mission work. They are splitting their home assignment time between Charles’ family in Canada, and Anita’s family here.  Anita and Charles arrived last Thursday evening, which gave me Wednesday and Thursday morning to have their rooms ready.

Thursday morning arrived, and I had just a few things left to do in the basement. I played with the dog every now and then when he was inside, occasionally teasing him by hiding his favorite toy in my pocket, and squeezing it to make it squeak every now and then. It drives him crazy when he can’t find it, which we find really funny. Cue the foreshadowing music…

Thursday afternoon was so beautiful, and I hadn’t had a chance to run in so long. I thought a quick sprint to the mailbox and back would be just what I needed to keep the cleaning motivation going.  The dog was out in the yard with Jonathan, who was working on the plow before heading back out to the field. I hopped down the two steps outside the door, and accelerated as I started to round the corner of the house. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of the dog in a dead run towards me. He usually runs beside me when I am walking/running laps around the yard, but this time he went right in between my legs. Not good.

Do you remember when you were little, and when you fell while playing, it sometimes seemed like it was in slow motion? That was me. I remember thinking, as I see the gravel driveway rising up to smack me, “this is going to hurt!”  It did.  I rolled onto my back on the driveway, sobbing and bleeding. Limbs were in the air…kinda like a dead bug. Jonathan came over, assessed the situation, and offered a hand to help me up. I hobbled into the house, still crying, and started to clean the gravel out of my hands, right knee, and right elbow. This is the same knee that I bruised super bad 17 months ago. I was determined not to be on crutches again, so I haven’t gone in to the dr. Sorry mom.
I have spent the last few days feeling super lazy as I elevate and ice.  Things are not so swollen today, but the colors are very pretty. I always did like purple.

So, the moral of my story…I am very thankful for the people who have asked to come and help out by driving a tractor for a few hours, and I am thankful that Anita loves to do dishes. Oh, and don’t tease the dog.

15 pounds of energy and destruction…but yet so cute

Nutrition – Only a Part of the Whole Picture

While I no longer have kids in high school, the school lunch issue has my attention. I can’t help but think that the new directives that have come down from the USDA is missing the mark.

We all need to pay attention to the calories we take in on any given day. The quality of those calories must also be taken into account. If I were to eat a 500 calorie meal of Twinkies and soda, I don’t think I would feel as good as if I ate a 500 calorie meal of meat, potatoes, vegetables, and milk.  Our bodies were designed to require nutrients found in the foods we eat. Our bodies were also designed to move.

I have been wearing an electronic pedometer for the past few weeks. I thought that I was being fairly active, but I have had many days where I cannot seem to reach the 10,000 step goal for the day. I don’t work in an office where I have to walk from a parking lot, into the building, and up a couple flights of stairs to my desk.  My computer is 14 steps from my bed, three steps from the kitchen table, and five steps to the meal prep area. Not a lot of calorie burning going on in my mornings. I have to be very deliberate to get exercise in, or I will gain weight.

So, what about just controlling the amount of calories in? I tried that. I was thinner, but I wasn’t healthier. My triglyceride levels were still higher than my doctor wanted them, and I was borderline anemic. I was also a wimp. I couldn’t run as much as I wanted to because I didn’t have the stamina or muscle tone to endure a good workout. When I started exercising with the calorie control, I felt so much better.

This is where I feel the nutrition guidelines are missing the mark. We need to encourage healthy eating, but we also need to be encouraging physical movement.  There is a great program, called Fuel Up to Play 60, which is sponsored by the National Dairy Council and the NFL.  Click here to see what they are about. This program encourages healthy eating, and 60 minutes of exercise a day.  They teach nutrition – the why of eating healthy – and make exercise fun. To see what makes them different, click here.  This is a program model that I think would be a better way to address the childhood obesity issue than the nutrition standards that the schools are dealing with now.

There is one more area where I think we should focus on. Our school district has 175 student contact days.  That leaves 190 days when the students are at home. For the students that eat both breakfast and lunch at school, they will eat 350 meals with calorie restrictions. Those same students will be eating 745 meals outside of school. We are sorely mistaken if we think that calorie restrictions at school are going to solve the obesity issue.

I loved running around my neighborhood when I was a kid. I grew up in the suburbs of Minneapolis in the ’70’s and ’80’s. We played outside all summer, riding our banana seat bikes, playing H-O-R-S-E, and playing various forms of tag….along with tormenting the siblings then running like crazy to escape the wrath.  We didn’t have home video games then. Is it any wonder that obesity rates have increased after the home video games and computers became household objects? We need to move. We need to make exercise a lifelong habit, starting at a young age…and as parents, we need to be setting a good example.

I’ll leave you with one of my favorite workout songs on my iPod….

Reading Between the Articles…

I was reading a women’s health & fitness magazine this morning while drinking my coffee. Most issues of this magazine have typical headlines on losing 10-15 pounds this month, or getting the body you want by (insert holiday here). The healthy cooking sections are touting the latest research in fat burning meals, or which fruits and veggies give you the best anti-aging antioxidents. Then I looked at the ad right before their big motivational section. It was for Tonalin…a pill you can take for reducing body fat and increasing lean muscle mass.

Wait a minute. This followed an article about fat fighting foods. Isn’t that sending mixed messages? So I started looking a little more closely at all the ads in this mag. There were also full page ads for Fastin (a fat mobilizer) and SlimQuick Razor (America’s Stongest Female Fat Burner). Interspersed were ads for Centrum vitamins and supplements, a coulple of NY Road Runner’s sponsored events, and prescription meds.

I looked at a competing magazine, they were even worse. They had the same SlimQuick Razor ad, but they also had ads for Zantrex-3 (ooh, Snookie was “caught” with a bottle!), Fit stack (a 3 supplement series), Lichi 9 (lose 25 lbs in weeks), 2-Week Boot Camp Extreme Diet (contains bottles of Fat Burner, Colon Flush, Carb Blocker, and Bloat-Less), and Super Antioxident Chews from jealousblueberry.

I moved on to the latest issue of Runner’s World.  I was curious, since I hadn’t paid that much attention to all the little ads in the back. There was one quarter page ad for Alphastra. That was it. However, if you are looking for a race or a car, they have an ad for that.

While I don’t always agree with the nutritional advice in any given magazine (I don’t believe in cutting out any one particular food group, especially the Meatless Monday thing, but that is a whole blog in itself), I enjoy the recipes and like to hear about the latest in nutritional trends. I also like the different workout suggestions for cross-training.

I appreciate that RW doesn’t blast us with the next quick fix, but encourages us to push our bodies harder to get the results we are looking for.  That is what will work in the long run. (Pun intended?) If you want results – weight loss, Personal Records at races, or just overall fitness – you have to work for it. You have to put in the blood, sweat, and at times the tears.

I am pretty sure I know which magazines I will continue to support, and which ones I will let go.

This was taken after the Long Grove Turkey Trot in 2010.  Yes, I look like a dork!  BIL Paul is right behind me. He was nice enough to run with Christina and me instead of running at his much faster pace. Christina beat her mommy to the finish line, but stuck with me until the sprint at the end.

A Yoga Review…Of Sorts

I have heard from many runners about the benefits of yoga. I have dealt with alignment issues starting in my hips, and messing up my knees for years. I figured I’d give it a shot.

I purchased a beginners DVD set, that (according to the package) started with the basics. You could choose to do one of the four workouts on the first DVD, or you could do them all! Sounded good to me!

I got my mat all ready, popped in the DVD, and sat in anticipation while the hostess droned on and on about the benefits of yoga, and what she hoped to accomplish with this series. Finally, it was time to begin.

She had me sitting on my heels just like she was to begin. We started with breathing exercises, which she explained pretty well. Then we stood. Okay, she wanted me to do a pose…what was it she called it? Shoot. Missed it. I just tried to copy what she was doing, because the only thing she explained was when to breath.

We moved into downward facing dog. Oohh! I know that one! We were then supposed to bring our left foot up in between our hands. What? No way that was gonna happen! By the time I had my feet in position, she was on the other leg. Nuts.

She then went into about three more poses in rapid succession, without really explaining what we were doing…except for breathing. I gave up…

Found a different beginners yoga DVD that I had gotten for Anna. This one was for the lower body. Cool! I popped that one in.

After listening to her drone on and on about the benefits of yoga, we were ready to go.

We did some poses that I still don’t know what their names are, but we looked like trees and mountains, I think.  And the downward facing dog…. I swear we did about 100 of those! Old shoulder issues cropped up by the end of the session. Nutserdoodles.

At least I got some of the poses. Except the ones where we went from a plank, jumping to put our back feet in between our hands. Right. Obviously, I have had more muffins in my life than she has. They are displayed around my center to remind me of their presence every day.  Some day, I would like them to go visit someone else, but for now, they hang around here.

My hamstrings are also probably a little tighter than most. I think you could play a tune on them at times. Just strum along!

Uff da. I think I will need to figure out a different way to stretch, because I am not this flexible!

Sunny Saturday…

Today I helped Jonathan put the star up on the windmill. Okay, help may be too strong of a word. Let’s just say I handed the star to him after he got to the top of the ladder, then walked away. I hate watching him climb up the windmill! I pretty much pace back and forth, with phone in hand in case I have to call 911.

It was such a beautiful day out today! Mid 40’s, sunshine, little wind. I would normally be happy about that, but I love snow. It looks so brown and dreary outside. Not very Christmas like.

I did go for a little run/walk for about 1/2 hour. The first running I’ve done since the goat chasing incident.  It felt really good!  When I got done with my stretching afterwards, Jonathan was baking up the Belgian cookies I had mixed up earlier in the day.

I still have Peanut Blossoms and Russian Tea Cakes to make before the night is done. They are heading for a bake sale at church tomorrow. Extras will go in the freezer for our Christmas celebrations.

Tomorrow we’ll light the third candle in our Advent Wreath! Have a blessed day!

Injury by Goat?

I have been nursing a sore foot the past couple of weeks after doing a little running again. It isn’t like anything I’ve had before…not like plantar fasciitis, but a pain in the back of the heel and outside of my left foot. I have started icing, and continuing the stretching for my calves and ankles. It has been helping a lot, to the point where I was pretty much walking without pain today! I had been feeling sluggish today, but mustered up the energy this afternoon to go 25 minutes at a jogging pace on the elliptical. I had just finished my cool down when my father-in-law came in the house looking for whoever was home. I made my way out of the basement, only to see our semi wild fainting goat buck running through the yard. Crap.

We adopted this goat from a family that was moving, and couldn’t take him along. Most of his life to this point had been spent in the woods around their house. He came smelly and full of cocklebur’s. I talk to him every day when I feed him, but he is still pretty skittish.

The other people helping me chase this creature were my 77 year old father in law, and Nick, our part time hired help. Jonathan showed up after the fun had begun, and did what he could to help for the few minutes that he was able to be home. Soon, it was just me running around the farm yard. At this point, my heel just hurt a little after sprinting around our house, around a couple of sheds, around a couple of bins… I finally went to the house and called our Rat Terrier out. He had been locked in the house by my father in law. Pongo had gotten in trouble earlier in the day for barking and lunging at the goat through the fence, so he was a little unsure as to what I wanted him to do.

Pongo, it turns out, is a great goat herding terrier! He nipped at the heels of the goat just enough to herd him in the right direction. They didn’t make the turn into the pen, and goat took off down the driveway again. Another sprint…great. We got him turned away from the tar road, and took a little detour behind another set of buildings. Pongo kept right on him, without having to nip at this point. Nick parked the Ranger in the way so goat wouldn’t try going the driveway loop again. Pongo made one more run towards goat, and in the pen he went. Nick quick shut the gate, and put the strap on the door to lock it. Whew!

Somewhere on the last sprint, going around the semi’s that were parked in the yard, my foot started hurting so bad I could hardly walk, let alone run. So here I sit, foot elevated and resting on an ice pack, thinking that this is the most bizarre cause of re-injury I have ever had. And I am wondering…if he is a fainting goat, shouldn’t he just fall over if you scare him? Apparently, he’s missing the desirable fainting trait. Bummer!

By the way, for all of those who drove by on the county road in front of our house…I hope you at least had a little smile on your face watching a 44 year old mom dressed in capri length tech shorts and bright pink tech t-shirt running full speed around the yard after that darn goat!

Pongo, the goat herding Rat Terrier:

The Power of Bundt Cake (part 2)

Now that harvest is wrapped up, and traveling is done for awhile, I can catch up on my blogging!

A few weeks after the visit from Joe, Connie, and Jim, we received a package in the mail.  It was a box from Joe and Connie, containing gifts for Jonathan and I…and Pongo, our rat terrier.  They sent Jonathan an Hermes tie, and I received an Hermes scarf.  They also sent a thank-you note with another invitation to visit them in New York.  That really started the wheels turning in Jonathan’s head!

It is tradition in our family that the graduate gets to choose the summer family vacation destination before they head off to college.  Anna chose the Iowa Speedway for the inaugural Nationwide Series race.  (She was hoping to see Joey Logano, her favorite driver. Sadly, he was not there.) Christina wanted to go to Los Angeles or Hollywood, but I was trying to talk her into staying in the Midwest.  Then we received the second invitation to visit New York.  Christina, with Jonathan’s full support, quickly chose New York City as her family vacation destination.  The first week of July we were still trying to find an open week in our schedules.  We narrowed it down to the week of July 10 – 17. That gave us about 3 days to make all of our travel arrangements, and line up help for chores.  Not to mention our town’s celebration, and my very first 5k attempt…

Jonathan contacted Connie, who was thrilled that we would be coming.  She asked what we were planning on seeing while in the City, and gave Jonathan some ideas.  Christina really wanted to see a Broadway show, and walk in Central Park.  The girls all wanted a chance to shop a little, which was no surprise.  Connie asked which Broadway show we wanted to see, which we left up to Christina.  Wicked was sold out, so she chose Mary Poppins, since we all love the movie.

We packed up, loaded the van, and headed east.  We put in a long day on that first day, getting past Chicago.  Lessons learned…take frequent breaks to stretch and get the blood flowing, drink a lot of water, and don’t eat salty snacks.

Next up – our arrival and first day in New York City.

This is me, back home after my very first 5k at Cottonwood Coming Home Days. We left the following day for New York.