FitMom v2.0

Here we go again, folks.

I’m really not terribly out of shape, but I took 9 months off from running and lifting, so it’s time to kick some ass! While pregnant with Fiona, I did the elliptical almost every day but with zero resistance to protect my stupid hips. I stayed svelte! It was great. I also did light arm weights, but I have always hated free weights as well as weight machines, so it totally sucked for me. Fast forward to my little baggadonuts being born…PPA. Big time struggle. I couldn’t move, I ate like shit, I drank a lot, I smoked too many cigarettes. Rocketed up to 150 lbs. Got on meds, wahoo! All is good now, but I’m fed up with my body. I’m at about 145 I think.

So here we are! What’s the plan? I’m building my run distance back up, slow and safe. I’m actually taking this week off because I tweaked something in my foot and I’d like to play it safe. I’m doing body weight exercises almost every day using the Streaks Workout app on our Apple TV. I’m going to start a few Blogilates challenges for July to see how the help…I’m thinking arms and inner thighs. I’ll take before and after pics for July, too.

It’s a struggle but I’m ready to get back there. Bonus reasoning: we are spending all of September abroad and I want to eat eat eat to my heart’s content (with some running thrown in there, too!). I’m not really comfortable with posting the details of our trip(s) until after we take them, given all the mess that’s been happening over here…but rest assured, I will have updates after the fact.

Speaking of food…am I dieting? HELL NO. I don’t believe in low carb or low fat or low cal or any of that bullshit. I believe in the science of CICO (calories in calories out) and eating to meet your needs (higher carbs when I need to feed my longer runs! Real sugar and real fats! Protein and fiber and rounded nutrition, oh my!). I hold myself accountable for what I eat, I keep track of it all (tracking is the key for me), and I eat to match my activity levels. I refuse to compromise that and I will NOT be trying your bullshit MLM pills, shakes, wraps, and the like, nor will I be trying a “detox”, “flush”, no carb, paleo, whole food BS diet plan. Is incorporating paleo or whole food recipes into my food repertoire fun? Yup, of course! But following something unsustainable in order to lose weight is not something that I have any interest in. Similarly, if I hear “gluten free” from somebody without Celiac’s disease, I will scream. You either have Celiac’s or you don’t. Phew. Glad to have gotten that out of the way. YAY FOOD! ALL FOOD! FOOD FOOD FOOD!

So that’s that! Staying in shape while overseas with a 4 year old and a 7 month old is going to be a struggle, but I’m confident that I can do it. I’m excited to blog about it, as well. It was fun to keep track via the blog last time, but I was already in shape when I started. So this time, it’ll chronicle a bit of the journey to getting back to where I was. I’m not terribly far off, but I’ve got some real work ahead of me. Cheers to getting back in shape and staying accountable!

What Am I Reading and How Am I Doing?

STILL reading Outlander. I’m officially way ahead of the tv series, but it’s a really long book and I’m short on reading time. I think it’s fabulous, albeit problematic in a few areas. I’m never really made uncomfortable by things in books, but I’ve had a few moments while reading Outlander where I’ve actually found myself thinking “WAIT, I have to forgive him for this?? I’m supposed to keep swooning? Well…I mean…I guess I can try…” and having to walk away for a day or so. I really think “problematic” is the best term. I also understand that a.) this is the author’s fantasy, clearly and b.) she’s writing about an entirely different time and trying to “fix” that time by having the heroine “correct” the problematic behaviors. Doesn’t make it ok, but makes it easier to swallow. The book is really well written and the history in it is fascinating. I think that’s the saving grace. So yes, I’m enjoying reading it immensely but I’m struggling to get past certain aspects of it. I’m hesitating to go into further detail just because I really don’t want to spoil it for anybody who might stumble across this blog.

So now onto the “how am I doing?” part of this entry. I’m doing…ok. My sinuses are in their own personal Hell, but it’s not too bad. It’s hard because I can’t figure out the trigger. I think it’s something in the trees here, but it’s hard to pinpoint exactly what’s making things so bad.

I’m also still struggling with nicotine. Nicotine is the devil. How can I have come this far only to slip up and fall back again time after time after time? I feel like a failure, but I know that’s not the case. I know these things happen and I know I can beat it.

Anyway, I’m keeping up with my running despite the smoking. At least I have that. It’s affecting me, though…I get short of breath more easily now. That makes the decision to stop easier, as far as conscious decisions go.

Other than all of that, I am loving Germany so much. I wish I wasn’t constantly sick or having allergy issues so that I could get out and experience more, though! My only big hope is that I feel healthy (and beat the cigarettes) for Bavaria in a few weeks. I really want to be able to enjoy one of our trips without a migraine or worrying about smoking. I want to run with the Alps in the background and feel GOOD.

Fingers crossed, all good things!

Back in the Saddle

It’s been a few weeks now, but I’m finally running again. Wasn’t down and out from an injury…just the plague. I swear to you, I’ve never had sinus issues the way I do here! I am just hoping that I adjust to these new allergens as the years go by. I’ve started doing the neti pot after every run and walk and it seems to help out a lot, so that’s good news.

I’m slowly trying to build my distance back up. I can still do 3-4 miles easily. I haven’t tested farther distances because frankly I’m not sure what route to take! I’ll need to sit down on mapmyrun and figure it out at some point. Anyway, I run 2 miles a day and then push 3-4 miles once a week, maybe twice if my legs are feeling good. On the 2 mile days, I take Sookie for an additional mile slow jog after my cooldown. It’s been a lot of fun taking her out on the trail and seeing her get into shape! Mommy and doghter, running together at last 😉

The beginning of my run this morning…rolling fog and bright sunlight! Crisp and cold and lovely.

I’m in the midst of switching out my shoes, and it’s sort of been a mess. My mizunos are totally worn out but the latest incarnation of my show (the Wave Inspire) are getting really crappy reviews. So I ordered some Brooks Transcends and they are way too big on my foot (even by running shoe standards) and they are just SO BULKY. That’s when I remembered that I was fitted for my shoes when I was like 160-170 lbs, with post partum swollen feet. I don’t need stability plus shoes anymore! D’OH! I’m making the switch to neutral shoes and going back to Mizuno with the Wave Rider 18. Hoping for great success. I’ve done ALL of this through roadrunnersports.com, an amazing company based out of NJ. They ship to APO! And they’re fast! And you really can’t beat the fact that you get SO MUCH TIME to run in the shoes before you bite the bullet and refund or exchange them. Sorry, had to plug them because they are AMAZING.

So I’m officially back in the saddle, feeling fit and good again. I know I have some pounds to lose before I’m back where I was when we left Kansas, but I’m not weighing myself until Halloween. I’m going to learn to stay active while still enjoying food and beer and wine and Germany.

Speaking of Germany!!! We are having such fun. Sookie is finally here with us; I’ll make a post about that another time. It was a really long, interesting, and stressful process but it’s finally FINALLY done! She’s settled in and comfy and loving every bit of being back. Teddy is in seventh heaven and loving up on her 24/7.

Sookie Sook hanging out in our room!

We have a trip to Bavaria planned for October, right after Eric’s birthday. We’ll be staying at Edelweiss and travelling to Munich, Salzburg, the Ludwig castles, and the Black Forest! We’ll be spending a night in Triberg on the way back and picking up a cuckoo clock. I’m so excited to spend time in the Alps; I really can’t wait to run! This will be my first test of staying healthy on vacation. I want to drink a bit but I want to run while there. So we shall see!

So that’s the basic gist of what’s going on here right now. It’s a pretty boring update, I know, but there’s still a lot more to come. We’re in the middle of potty training and other Teddy adventures so I’m sure I’ll have a post about that pretty soon!

Hashtag Homeless

We are officially homeless. The house in Derby is no longer our problem, and we are now hotel-dwellers until we choose a house in Germany! It’s a weird feeling, for sure. I really loathe sharing a room with Teddy; he wakes at every little sound lately and I have to pee a million times a night because I’m old. I can’t wait to get him back into his very own room. Good Lord.

He and Eric leave for NJ tomorrow to see our families and to go to my nephew Jack’s christening in DC. I’m sad that I won’t be seeing everyone, but SO EXCITED to be alone for a week. Do you know the last time I spent a night away from Teddy?? BEFORE I WAS PREGNANT WITH HIM. This will be amazing. I know a lot of mothers are traumatized by this and are probably thinking I’m some sort of monster, but I have been through TWO DEPLOYMENTS ALONE with this child and I am more than ready to get some “me” time. If any of you out there are judging my excitement, you’d better have spent two separate 6 month stretches alone with your kid(s). And no, being within a 2-3 hour radius of immediate family does NOT count. I was 1500 miles from home. I seriously can’t wait to sleep til noon, to stay up in bed past midnight watching tv, to run whenever I want!

On Monday I’ll be moving myself and the cat out of Staybridge and back into TLF on base for the final stretch of time in the USA. Sookie is going with Eric and Teddy back east and will stay with my in laws until we’re in a house in Germany. It’s a long story, and far from what I really wanted to do, but it’s for the best.  I’m looking forward to getting back on base for the running path alone; it’s really convenient and a nice run even with the stroller. The way I go takes me 1.65 miles per “lap”. Two laps and I’ve done a 5k! Easy peasy. Now if only the weather would hold out and stay somewhat mild.

Anyway, I’m sure this is the most boring update ever but I wanted to put SOMETHING here for now. I need to sit down and go through photos and make a post about our activities of late and our plans for Germany. I’ll probably do it while the boys are in Jersey, since I’ll have more time! 🙂

WOOT. Leaving on a jet plane!

WE LEAVE JUNE 21!!! Finally, FINALLY, we have a date and flights…actual booked flights!!! There were some hiccups in planning and I definitely spent a lot of time curled up in a ball crying before it all got worked out, but here we are. We fly out of Wichita at 6am and into ATL, and then depart ATL at 4:40ish, to arrive in Frankfurt at 8am! It’s going to be insane. Sookie is flying into NJ with Eric and Teddy next month for the christening, and his parents will ship her to us when we arrive…there was no other way to work it. I’m still nervous about it. Buster will be flying as carry on with us…no other way to work that, either. We’re flying commercial since the Patriot Express had NO room for ANY pets.

I can’t believe it’s all real now. The TMO contractors called Eric yesterday, so that means we should be fine with everything on this end as well. We were nervous that we’d have to extend our lease instead of moving into TLF at the end of the month. Now all we have to do is sit down and make some lists: things we want on hand in our luggage/carryons for the month in TLF stateside as well as TLF in Germany, things we want in our 500 lbs of unaccompanied stuff, things we want put into storage back here, things we want to get rid of, and then naturally the rest being the things that will get packed up and shipped over.

I’m actually really excited to move out of this house into TLF. Sure, it’ll be cramped, but the time will fly by at that point. We’ll have the WiiU and a blu ray player with us to give us things to do, and I’ll be able to run and use the gym for a bit longer.

Speaking of that, I’ve been doing great with running outside. I do 5k outside. I even did it today in the heat and noon sun! I have slacked off so bad on my distance runs, though. I’m going to try for distance on Tuesday I believe, and see if I can still handle 6-7 miles. If not, I’ll need to seriously work on it again. I also took a week off from yoga to heal up my foot, so I’ll be heading back into that this week as well! Except for Wednesday, because we have a dinner to see off the Major. I get to wear two pretty things this week; once for that dinner and again the next night for ALS graduation! 🙂 I never dress up. Might as well rock the body I’ve worked for, though, right?

Tuesday is Teddy’s last day at MDO. Hard to believe an entire school year has passed! It was an awesome way to wade into the preschool pool, for sure, and I’m glad I did it. ESPECIALLY since I’ll be putting Teddy into kindergarten when we arrive in Germany. I think I’d be totally freaking out if I hadn’t have done MDO and gotten used to dropping him off and spending time away! Teddy’s been interesting lately. He’s teething the last of the molars, so his sleep is strange. Up super early, fighting naps, etc. Luckily, he isn’t fighting bedtime (which he did for the last molar), so it isn’t quite AS bad as it could be. He’s in a great mood, otherwise, and he’s learning so much every day. He repeats just about any word you throw at him now, and he has names for all of his toys. He’s big on dancing now! And drinking out of a normal cup, with no lid! He’s also a new fan of buttery noodles (cold!), which he affectionately calls “doodles”.

That’s really all in terms of updates. I haven’t weighed myself in a little bit because I was freaking out. I’m still scared to weigh in on Monday, but I need to get over it. I need to be accountable for the food and fitness choices I make; instead of being scared of the results, I need to own them and learn from them and move on. I can do it, I know I can, but it’s going to take some time to get there.

Turtle! Turtle!

I really should bring my camera with me on my outdoor runs, hm? The phone is too tricky…attached to my arm, mid-Zombies, Run!, snug in my iGadgitz arm band. Too annoying to take out. But my camera? Should have had it on hand for sure.

I only managed 2.68. I definitely could have gone farther and I honestly thought that I did, but the stroller really REALLY eats at my pace.  It wasn’t awful, though! My hands got gross and I think they might blister a bit and then callus up, but it could have been worse. We did a warm up walk through the neighborhood, then ran the park loop 3 or 4 times (I honestly can’t remember) and then I ran back through the neighborhood, but the long way. The mission finished and so I started walking. I didn’t realize how far we HADN’T gone, so I walked us another mile or two through the neighborhood, around the lake, and back up our street. It was a GORGEOUS day for it. I really wish I had taken my camera because the lake was FULL of turtles…turtles everywhere! Popping their little heads in and out of the water near the shoreline and around the ducks, sliding off the rocks into the water; it was awesome. The heron was there, too. Same gray heron every single time, and he’s easily spooked but cool to see. There’s something weirdly prehistoric about herons, in my opinion. Something strange, can’t really put my finger on it but it’s there.

Anyway, I’m calling this a success. I dealt with wind, hills, a cranky teething toddler, and intense sunlight. Will this work every time? Probably not, because Teddy is unpredictable. But it felt good enough for me to keep trying!

Against the Wind…

I HATE OUTDOOR RUNNING. But only for one reason…wind. I hate wind. My nose drips like a damn faucet without wind…with it? Niagara freaking Falls.

That being said, I’m trying to get into it because running outdoors in Germany will probably be how I get the majority of my workouts in. I’ll need to buy real gear for the winter and fall, so if I’m going to spend that kind of money I need to start working on my wind tolerance. I can handle elevation; learned that last weekend when I went on a test run of the neighborhood. I think it’s because I use high resistance on my elliptical workouts and also walk the hills with Teddy whenever I can. So yay for unintentionally cross training!

Anyway, what that means is that I’m going to start doing some short runs in the neighborhood and build up my tolerance of, well, nature. I’m also trying to up my running each week…I’ve already gone from two runs to three (I cross train with the elliptical). I’d like to run five days a week, with at least two of those being short half hour runs. So we’ll see!

Wish me luck! 😀

Oh My Aching Tootsies :(

Somehow I managed to screw up my foot. I think, honestly, that I just tied the left shoe’s laces a bit too tightly before my run and then somehow fucked it up. It’s starting to heal up, but I had to skip my run this morning and it hurts my heart a bit to do it. 😦 That being said, I did my elliptical AND went on a walk with Eric and Sookie while Teddy was at MDO! So I got up to 12,000 steps already and I still have hot yoga tonight…feeling confident about having skipped the run. I think I’ll be doing a weigh-in on Saturday morning for the first time in 2 or 3 weeks, which should be interesting. Normally I weigh on Mondays, but Jessie will be arriving Saturday late afternoon/early evening and we might eat out, which means sodium, which means I will bloat like a balloon. So Saturday morning it is! I’ll just be happy to not see a gain; I’ve been eating at the top of my ranges this week and then the beginning of last week was a blur of ice cream and mac and cheese, courtesy of my wisdom teeth. We’ll see.

Speaking of teeth, little Prince Tedwardo is drooling something fierce…I’m guessing another molar is cutting through. At least we’ll be done with this soon! Thank God. A few years off from teething sounds really great to me! I’d like to have a few years off from dealing with anything having to do with ANY teeth, haha. What a dental whirlwind this month has been! My mouth is feeling pretty good. The top gums are just about completely healed, but the bottom one is so awkward; it always feels like something is in there, but nothing is. So annoying. But at least the pain is pretty much gone! I’m getting used to my new fillings, as well…my bite felt off for a few days there, but it’s better now. Still a bit sensitive, but not awful.

C’est la vie. More soon.

Sleep Regression Versus Teething…Oops

Chewing on waffles…a tiny teether’s favorite pastime.

In the grand tradition of every mother who came before me, I made a mistake and ignored the obvious when it came to my poor child. I thought the last month had been a sleep regression. He seemed happy enough! There were some crankier moments, but nothing out of the ordinary. He was fighting his naps SO hard…normally I’d put him down just after noon and then he’d be out by 1 at the latest. During the last month, he’d been fighting sleep until nearly 3pm every single day. Bedtime was the same sad song. All the same, his attitude was great. He was happy! He’d wake up at like 6am and quietly play. I really, really thought it was a sleep regression! About a week or two ago, I noticed he had a two year molar protruding from the gum. Turns out two have popped and two more are just under the surface of the gums. I still didn’t think that was it…he seemed so happy and teething really hasn’t ever made his sleep patterns change.

Fast forward to yesterday morning; I think Teddy reached his breaking point with the pain from the teeth. He started flinging his breakfast out of frustration. I could see it in his face. Then came the tears. He walked away from the table and to the counter where the children’s Tylenol and Advil bottles were and for the first time EVER, he pointed at them, crying and looking at me. He ASKED for painkillers. It hit me at that point; it all made sense. So I cycled him on Advil and Tylenol yesterday and he fell asleep for his nap before 1pm. He went to bed early…couldn’t keep his eyes open. Suddenly I realized that it must be the first time in a month that he’d been pain free, and was THAT exhausted. I felt like such a failure in that moment. How could I miss that? How could I let him continue on in so much pain every single day? How could I chalk it all up to a regression when he’d never regressed before?

We’re on day 2 of the Tylenol/Advil cycle and his sleep schedule is normalizing. He slept til 8am this morning! And he went down for his nap by 12:30. I can’t beat myself up for missing the limited signs that I was given. I can’t! I mean really, he’s a saint and wasn’t showing me that he was in pain. All that changed was his sleeping. Can’t sit here and pretend like there was more to go on just because I want to feel bad for myself. The most important thing is that Teddy’s not in pain anymore; I know how to help him now! And now maybe he and I can both start getting sleep again.

Passport picture day…check out those rings under my eyes. No amount of concealer can hide how exhausted I’ve been lately.

The lack of sleep was getting to me in a few ways. The most obvious being my running…I still persevered and did my runs but lately I just hadn’t been looking forward to them. Another strange thing has been happening: my breathing is way more labored than it usually is. I have no idea if this is actually tied to my poor sleeping or not, but it seems to coincide so I’m taking note. I really hope to be back in fighting form this coming week. I will probably only run twice next week because of the wisdom tooth extraction. I’m going to switch stuff around; I’ll run and do yoga Monday, elliptical and hot yoga Tuesday, elliptical and hot yoga wednesday, run Thursday, off Friday. I mean I COULD run two days in a row, but I don’t want to hurt my legs. Maybe I’ll do a 5k on wednesday morning instead of elliptical. I think I’ll wait and see how I’m feeling.

I have SO MUCH CLEANING TO DO OMG. I know I can knock it out in a single day, so I think I’ll do it tomorrow and just try my hardest to maintain it throughout the week.  Shouldn’t be too bad. Can’t believe it’s almost over! And then Germany…and three blessed years without a deployment! THREE!!!

Speaking of Germany, I’m starting to get really REALLY excited about everything we’re going to get to see and do. Even aside from day trips and small trips out of the area, just in the general vicinity of wherever our home will be! I want to find a local place to go to by myself or with Teddy while Eric’s at work, I want to ride my bike all over the place, I want to go for long walks and runs around my neighborhood. I want to know where my neighborhood is! I’m a planner, so the level of unknown in this situation is driving me nuts.

Nuts, I tell ya!

Perhaps this delicious Riesling from my future home will make me feel a bit less coo coo bananas.

Plague House, Part Deux

Little sickies, playing Farm Heroes Saga on my iPad. Poor kiddo.

Teddy has some sort of stomach bug and it’s gnarly. He threw up all over me at dinner the other night when we went out for Kigoi, and ever since then has had just awful acidic liquid diarrhea. He’s in such a good mood, but it’s still hard to deal with the diapers of doom. Initially I thought it was rotavirus because that first icky diaper smelled like a dead body (I’m just guessing, here…*shifty eyes*), but the rest have been standard issue diarrhea stench.

I gave him pedialyte a few times yesterday, and now I’m wondering if it might have made the diarrhea issue worse…this is the kid who doesn’t even drink juice. I gave him one serving of it this morning after his giant morning diarrhea adventure of doom (seriously…the morning one is the absolute worst), and from now on it’s water for him. He had plain old toast this morning and is now gnawing on a pretzel rod. I’m thinking plain cheerios for lunch and toast again for dinner. He’ll hate it and won’t eat the dinner, but I’m not risking anything.

This of course may mean that I miss my run AND yoga tomorrow, but there’s still a chance that his tummy will clear up. He has no fever and hasn’t vomited since that first night, so as long as his diapers solidify and his mood and temp stay the same, I’d feel completely comfortable sending him in tomorrow. I guess I’ll prep my running gear tonight as usual and put it on in the morning and then if he has a poopsplosion I will just change my shoes and do the elliptical while he naps. I’ll be able to run at some point this week, at least.

Tomorrow is a weigh in! Yay! I’m really not that excited…I had two glasses of wine on Friday night (red, of course, so it’s gonna stick), and Mexican on Tuesday (yes, chicken enchiladas…and yes it could have been worse as I could have had more cheese, guac, and sour cream. BUT I ATE SO MUCH QUESO OMG.), and I’ve been grazing pretty heavily all week. So…we shall see. I’d LOVE to see 119 on that scale, but I’m not holding my breath. Today I’ll drink a lot of water to dry and work out the wine bloat, and I’ll avoid frozen foods. My lunch will be heavy, but the rest not so much. Fingers crossed! I still can’t believe that I have officially reached 120. God, when was the last time I weighed 120 lbs? Probably freshman year of college, Fall semester. How ODD.

120 lbs! Looking like death immediately after a 6.6 mile run.

Onto the fun stuff…GERMANY!!! I’m still in shock. We’re moving there in four months. FOUR MONTHS. I’ve ordered two books on amazon already; one is a general travel guide to Germany and the other is a book of 60 day trips in Germany. I figure the day trips will be good for Jen and I, and Eric on a quick weekend jaunt. I want to make a Germany Bucket List of things that I want to see and do over the course of our three years there. If you have any suggestions, please let me know! We are hoping to travel all over Europe with a bunch of long weekends so we are open to everything! We are also really hoping to get to India (Goa, at least) at some point. That would be amazing.

The tough part of this is figuring out everything that we need to get done in preparation for the move. It’s a bit trickier since Eric is still gone (BUT HE WILL BE HOME SO SOON OH MY GOD OH MY GOD), so I can’t do *much* on my own. I can do some basic things, though. Tomorrow I’ll call the med group to schedule my physical as well as Teddy’s. Some time this week (if the plague subsides), I’ll take us to Walgreens to get our passport photos done. I’ll try to print out the passport paperwork (can you even do that? I’m being a bit optimistic here.) and fill it out. I need to get my KS driver’s license done, since my NJ one expires in May. I’m debating doing that now instead of waiting for Eric to get home. I’m sure I can pull it off with Teddy in tow…shouldn’t be too bad. I have to do some research on what I’ll need for it, though.

I feel like I have so much time, but you know that time will fly by. ESPECIALLY June. I’m glad we’ll be able to do the Color Me Rad run, at least! It’s the last weekend in May. Excited to find some runs in Germany. I looked up half marathons a while ago just to see, and it looks like they had a TON. I’m going to need to run a lot if I plan to indulge in all of the amazing food in the region. 😉

Cochem!

On a parting note, this is Cochem! It is directly in the area of where we will be. How gorgeous is this? I’m going to see castles all the time. CASTLES. Somebody pinch me.