Thursday, October 4, 2012

Nothing New

My doctor appointment went as expected today, nothing new really.  The doctor was very nice and is going to have me try a new medication.

They did an EKG, everything looked great, I've lost 10 pounds since I was there in July, blood pressure and pulse were good.  THANKFULLY there is no need for another tilt table test, that was how they diagnosed me with syncope back when I was 18 years old.  The medication I will be on should help to keep my blood pressure a little bit higher.

Continue working out, running is great for my heart, drink lots of water and gaterade, eat a lot of salt and get plenty of sleep.  I like the sleep part, I feel like I sleep a lot and yet there are days where I feel just exhausted all the time, apparently that is normal for me.  I was happy to let Kyle know that my sleeping in on the weekends is required for my health ;)

Today I finally feel "normal", it took me four days to recover from that damn fainting spell, again apparently that is about how long it should take.  I should outgrow this condition, but the new doctor is thinking that since I've had recent fainting spells I probably wouldn't outgrow it for another 10 - 15 years.

At least I have severe symptoms before I faint, that way I can always make sure I'm at least close to the ground before I hit it :)

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Who Can Say This.....

First off I'm posting this on my workout blog because this issue is affecting my working out, no run tonight!

I fainted in the bathroom stall of a restaurant and no it was not due to a high consumption of alcohol!

Seriously, so, so embarrassing, I mean thankfully, THANKFULLY no one came in to see my super cute shoes sticking out from under the bathroom stall door.  I'm sure an ambulance would have been called and me explaining my sycope and how it is "normal" for me, would have turned into a visit to the ER and made the night even worse.

Saturday night I went to dinner for my cousin Stacy's birthday.  We went to a restaurant I've been to before, I ordered the same thing I had last time and yes I had a margarita, but these margaritas are much tamer than the ones I had two weeks ago for David's birthday.

After I ate my delicious chimichangas my tummy was feeling upset.  I headed for the restroom, everything was fine, got back to the table and sat down.  Started feeling worse, back to the restroom, I'm sorry this could be TMI but, well I had to hurry the hell up because I started sweating profusely, feeling nauseous and knew I was going to faint.  I got my pants pulled up just in time and woke up on the floor of the stall in a puddle of sweat.

Now it is awful when I wake from a fainting spell, I feel like I just ran a marathon or something, I feel like I'm going to throw up and I really have no energy.  I got myself cleaned up, headed back to the table and everyone looked at me in shock.  I just told them all that Larry (my little brother) had to take me home because I fainted.  Everyone was freaking out, telling me that I looked white as a ghost and was still sweating.

My wonderful brother took me home and I missed out on celebrating Stacy :(  Sunday I slept literally the entire day, but I did get up to play volleyball at 6pm, it was the last night of sand volleyball and I just couldn't miss it.

Kyle hounded me like crazy about calling my cardiologist, yes the man that tells me I will outgrow the syncope.  I decided to just call him and he could mark it on my chart that I had the fainting spell.  Lisa (my nurse there) was awesome and took it all down.  Then she called me yesterday and I will be seeing a specialist on Thursday morning.  I guess my cardiologist is tired of telling me I will outgrow this and thinks it needs to be checked out further.

So no running this week until I feel 100% better, I really wanted to run tonight but even sitting at my desk I feel light headed.  No run equals tackling the living room with my crazy, wipe everything down cleaning, that should burn some calories :)


Friday, September 28, 2012

Naughty, Naughty

So we all know I enjoy my runs, getting back in shape and all that jazz.  We also all know how much I LOVE disgusting, greasy, horrid for you fast food.

Seriously, I know what this crap is made of, I know it can sit out on a counter for days on end and still look like it did the day you bought it.  What kind of food lasts like that????  I know it has thousands of bad calories, far too much fat, loads of sodium and yet I still eat it.

I've done very well though, I hadn't had any for a few weeks and then stupid McDonald's started their silly Monopoly game.  Please tell me I'm not the only one that thinks getting McDonald's maybe once a week during this time could truly mean I will win the million dollars.  I mean I got my first meal on the first day and right away I got Park Place, Boardwalk could be just one sandwich away!!! Look, I don't spend money on lottery tickets at least I'm getting some food out of this, right?

So then last night when I got home (after deep cleaning my Aunt's apartment for 2 1/2 hours, hey that was my workout) I see a Wendy's ad sitting on the table.  Kyle knows of my horrible want for this greasy food, he knows one of my FAVORITE burgers of all time was the Wendy's cheddar mushroom melt (which they haven't offered for a couple of years and yes I'm pathetic and would occasionally search it out hoping they brought it back) on the front of the ad is this:



OMG, not just a cheddar mushroom melt, a BACON and PORTABELLA mushroom melt, holy crap someone pinch me, am I dreaming???  Kyle saw my face when I saw that photo and he knew it was inevitable, we would be having Wendy's this weekend.

So tonight I will be thoroughly enjoying this awful, disgustingly bad for you sandwich and then tomorrow morning I will be going for a nice run.  Get some healthy groceries for some delicious healthy meals and try not to feel too badly for the bad, bad, naughty, naughty food I will be enjoying tonight :)

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Run!

Last night Kyle and I ran for 22 minutes and got 2.09 miles, a bit faster than our run on Monday :)  It felt great, although about two minutes in I got a side ache that stuck with me the entire run.

My legs were pretty sore, did plenty of stretching and an ice massage on my IT band last night, today I feel awesome!

Tonight instead of working out I will be cleaning one of my Aunt's apartments.  She has severe back problems so I do her deep cleaning about every two months.  So mopping, dusting, vacuuming, window cleaning, all that will help me burn some calories.

I forgot to mention that I had weighed myself on Sunday, I was surprised I'm at 141.  I know some of that is due to the fact that I hadn't been working out so my body fat is probably higher, but the number was a pleasant surprise.

Now I just have to kind of ignore the number as I get back in shape, especially once I start weight lifting.  I always like to have a starting point though!

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

I'm Back!

Well I'm finally back at it and ready to blog about once again, getting in shape :)  I haven't been completely lazy, still playing sand volleyball on Sunday nights (the season is over in two weeks), plus I've played in some tournaments.

The last tournament I played in was a 4's tournament I played with my brothers Larry and John plus John's girlfriend Liz.  We won!!!!  We got long sleeved t-shirts and some money :)  It was quite the night of volleyball, we started at 6:30 pm and were finally done at about 12:45am.  The last few games my IT band was KILLING me!!!!  Saturday morning I had to lift my leg with my arms to get out of bed, it was awful.  That morning I also had a two mile walk, it was a fundraiser to raise money to buy hay for the horse group I volunteer for.  The walk helped a bit, Bella and my dad did it with me and Bella made it the whole two miles with no problem :)

That night I did an ice massage on my left leg and Sunday my IT band felt all better, the secret is lots of stretching and ice massages!

So Kyle and I decided on Sunday it was time to make more time for each other, we never go on dates.  I know we have no excuse really, well we need some extra cash for dinner dates so those are out ;)  We decided to start running together, it has been since June that I've ran and Kyle is just starting.  We ran 20 minutes last night, quite the slow pace, but we did it.  We ran 1.8 miles and it felt amazing, now to just keep at it, but I know we can do it!!!  I'm running the relay marathon in St. Louis in April so it's time to get ready for that, four girls running 7 miles each, much better than 13.2 miles ;)

Again eating really well is kind of hard for me, but I'm doing better.  I found a recipe to make homemade protein bars, thank you Pinterest!  They are super yummy, a bit sticky but I just leave them in the plastic wrap I put them in after I cut them up while I eat it so they don't get my fingers all sticky.

Here's to getting back in shape and hopefully staying that way, I've got more than a year to prepare for next years fitness show.  Trying to get in the mindset that nothing will stand in my way this time around :)

Friday, August 24, 2012

Core Synergistics

Last night I did Core Synergistics, I'm happy I can finally really do the "banana".  It still feels kind of awkward like the small of my back shouldn't be so hard to keep on the floor, but yay I was happy :)

I will never be able to express how much I truly, truly LOVE this workout.  I got my hair done last night and David thought I'd been lifting for longer than three days, the definition in my shoulders is already looking pretty nice.

But my main focus here is my abs, the damn abs.  They aren't horrible, but again not in shape enough for me to feel comfortable baring my belly for all to see.  Soon, hopefully soon, I will get to that comfort level.

I'm doing amazing with my eating though, dinners are usually my downfall but my appetite hasn't been too bad so I've at least not devoured my entire dinner.  It is so easy to eat really well during the day at work when the only food I get to eat is what I have at work :)

Loading up on protein with every snack and meal, trying to keep away from the "bad" carbs.  Now I just have to keep it up!!!

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Ab Ripper X & Zumba

I did good yesterday, I had the day off for Bella's first day of Kindergarten (how can she be in Kindergarten already?!?).  I told myself to work out right away in the morning but the evening consisted of me barely sleeping as I wondered how Bella would do on her first day.

I managed to get my workout in that afternoon though, Ab Ripper X (which Bella did most of it with me, I'm not kidding) and then a Zumba workout.

I felt great, I was amazed at how sore I was from Core Synergistics on Monday, I didn't feel like I got a great workout that day but obviously I did!

Ab Ripper X is a love/hate type of workout, it is so HARD, but only 16 minutes and honestly it just flies by.  Zumba is just plain FUN, all in all a great workout yesterday :)

Monday, August 20, 2012

Back At It

I'm back into working out normally again, woo hoo!!!!  Using P90X for my lifting, Zumba for cardio and plan on running again starting in September.  I've been having some pain on my right side in the IT band area, still have pain on left side with my IT band.  Needless to say, it is frustrating, but fixable.

I have a wonderful friend from high school that is a physical therapist so I got some great tips from her.  I must stop my laziness with stretching and make sure I stretch every single night, use the foam roller on both sides, plus do ice massages.  I must do all this so I can continue to comfortably work out, she did promise me that the issue with completely go away eventually if I do this routine nightly.

Today was my first real day back to doing P90X.  I forgot that we have a dvd player here at work so I decided to try doing it on my lunch hour.  Well the tv is located in our Conference Room, all I did the entire time was of course work out, but I constantly kept hearing people coming in our main door and was freaking out that someone would come in the Conference Room (even though it was locked) and see me all crazy and sweating like mad.

On top of that I've started taking some pills, I really haven't taken anything to help me working out wise for YEARS.  Now back in the day when I worked at 24 Hour Fitness I was taking Hydroxycut, the Hydroxycut that was full of Ephedra.  The pill taking schedule then had me taking 5-6 pills a day, I was never hungry, worked out daily and got so skinny I looked like a crack head.  You know, I'm a curvy, muscly woman, it was weird to see myself with hardly any curves and little muscle, not attractive.

So anyway I had told Kyle I wanted a little something to help me get started, give me some energy, just get me going.  He is having me take Methyldrene 25, it contains Ephedra.  I couldn't believe it, I mean I thought Ephedra was banned, but it is a small amount and Kyle is great with me taking them.

I take one in the morning and then one late morning, well today was the first day I worked out on my lunch hour after taking two pills in the am.  BAD idea, holy crap I felt like I was going to faint, plus the panicking that someone would come in and see me doing my workout, it was just awful.  I got to our little bathroom with the shower afterwards and just layed on the tile floor trying to stay cool and not pass out.

Needless to say I will not be doing the P90X on my lunch hour, it's too stressful to workout in the Conference Room and apparently, at this point anyway, my body can't handle two pills in the am if I am going to work out on my lunch hour.

BUT I did get Core Synergistics done today, woo hoo!!!!  Now someone please help this non morning person get her butt up at 5am so I can do P90X in the mornings and just do my cardio on my lunch hour, that would be awesome.

All this getting back into working out so much is all for Halloween, that's right.  I'm going as Queen of the Damned, and I'll be damned if I'm baring my upper body besides my boobs for all to see and not have my core in amazing shape!!!

Monday, August 6, 2012

Sleeeeepy....

The Olympics are keeping me up tonight, I LOVE track and field, they amaze me.

Tomorrow morning I'm supposed to get up and start my morning workouts. Not gonna lie, I'm tired and sore from water volleyball on Saturday and sand volleyball Sunday, so much fun but so, so sore!

Kyle finally got us more protein, I really am ready to start weightlifting and getting more defined. He is having me take some new pills to help with energy to get me started. They are called Methyldrene, hopefully they will help with energy.

So my workout in the morning will be P90X Core Synergistics, at least it is a workout I truly love, man I hope I can get my butt up!

See you in the morning Tony.....

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Stress = Heart Flutters = Exhuastion

I talked to my wonderful cardiologist yesterday, he is awesome and gave me the results over the phone rather than making me go in and pay a co-pay for our chat :)

The good news is that my mitral valve will be good for years to come and I don't have to quit any physical activities!  I did have some extremely high heart rate spikes during sand volleyball but he said they coincided with the activity I was doing and the extreme heat/humidity.  It's up to me if I want to feel miserable for an hour during volleyball ;)  The only changes we made are my appointments, instead of seeing him every two years I will see him every year to keep an eye on the mitral valve.

I did have some flutters that were recorded, I kept a record for myself of when the flutters occurred and if anything was going on in my life at the time.  They did happen during "higher stress" situations and that was it.  He told me to stay away from high stress, that's the only way to help with the flutters.  I had to laugh out loud a bit at that, although I've been doing very well at keeping my stress level down and will continue to do so.  The flutters are what wear out my heart and me, I've had great energy and have been feeling good and plan on continuing keeping on this path.

As for my am workouts, haven't started them yet, oops.  We ended up playing nine games of volleyball Sunday, it was a cool 85 degrees and cloudy.  As my brother said, I was playing the best volleyball of my life on Sunday.  I had five kills, FIVE!!!!  Too bad we only get one more Sunday to play together, at least we'll go out on a really good note and I finally have my confidence back to be the great hitter I always was :)

Needless to say I was extremely sore Monday morning so I wasn't wanting to work out and last night I stayed up way too late glued to the tv watching the Olympics and so I just slept this morning :)

Friday, July 27, 2012

I'm Free!!!

Today I got to put my heart monitor back in it's box and ship it off, woo hoo!!!!!  A month of wearing that thing was a long time, but I am so, so happy they had me wear it for so long.

Sunday night doubles volleyball in 100+ heat sucked, the pads just melted and the only thing holding them on was my sports bra.  But man did that monitor beep like crazy while we played so I know it was getting some hits.  The past two days wearing it I had some big flutters too, I was thrilled.  That may sound weird but I was worried I wouldn't have any flutters while wearing it and that was one thing I really wanted recorded.

There were some things that had me stressed out quite a bit and that was when I had the flutters, it just proves that high stress situations are something I need to try my hardest to stay away from.  Time to be selfish in this life and make sure my biggest worries are about myself and my own little family.  Of course I'm always there for anyone that needs me, absolutely, but I won't throw myself into others situations 100% anymore.

Started back slowly with exercise, Ab Ripper X is mainly what I've done, plus volleyball of course and I count the nights of scooping horse poop as a workout.  It is HORRID doing that in 100+ heat, seriously, it is so a workout! :)

Kyle and I will be starting AM workouts next week, I may not be doing a fitness show this year but my Halloween idea requires me to be very fit and it will be nice to get in great shape so next year it won't be too hard to get ready for the show when I really do it!!!!!!

Monday, July 2, 2012

Monitoring...

I've got the heart monitor and will be wearing it until July 27, that is a long time!  I'm glad though, this way they will be watching me for a month during all activity and see if anything pops up.

Last night for volleyball it was about 97 degrees and HUMID!  It was so hot the sand burned my feet and gave me some blisters.  It was good though, the heart monitor stayed clipped to my shorts really well, the connectors however did not stay on my body very well.  I'm a very, very sweaty girl when I work out, with that kind of weather it was horrid.  The gel on the pads literally melted off and the only thing holding the pads to my skin was my sports bra.

I'm still feeling the same, tired, but working through it.  Maybe it is just some phase I am going through, who knows.  There will for sure be no fitness show for me this year, even without having to have heart surgery, Kyle doesn't want to train me for the one in October, he is too worried still.

But I'm back to normal workouts I did Ab Ripper X on Saturday and then Zumba.  It has been so long since I've done Zumba, I'm still in love with it :)

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Stress Test....Grrrrr.....

I had my stress echocardiogram this morning, the ultrasound tech and the nurse were AMAZING, I love, love, loved them!  My cardiologist wasn't in yet so I had another cardiologist in the room with me, not a fan, not a fan of him AT ALL.

He came in the room, looked at me and said, why are you here?  You are way too young and certainly far too fit to have any heart problems, if you had issues you wouldn't be able to exercise like you do.

I was baffled, just baffled, I've had my heart condition for 10 years, 10 freaking years and you walk in take one damn look at me and say crap like that to me?  I was so pissed but thankfully the idiot then left the room during the actual test.

It was not fun, on a treadmill at an incline, it would get faster and be at a higher incline as we progressed.  I was on that thing for 17 minutes before my heart rate finally got high enough.  Lying there all sweaty, breathing heavily, I felt so bad for the ultrasound tech!  She just laughed and told me not to worry, I was a cute sweaty girl ;)

The cardiologist was in the room then looking at the ultrasound, he proceeded to tell me everything looked fine.  I was shocked so I asked him if the mitral valve was perfectly fine.  He told me he hadn't even looked at that, well geez you freaking idiot that's why I'm here!!!  He checked that and told me he could see a leak but in his opinion it was nothing to worry about.  I didn't say anything and he just left the room and told me he would send everything to my cardiologist and I should hear from them by this afternoon or tomorrow.

I must say that damn doctor rattled me, what if I am just plain ass crazy thinking I'm having heart issues?  Kyle is angry I had a doctor like that and keeps reminding me of how concerned my actual cardiologist was at my appointment on Tuesday when he simply listened to my heart.

We'll see what we find out, maybe I'm just a big baby and need to suck it up with the fatigue and move forward.  If they call me and say I'm fine then I'm right back to where I started but I will just move forward, continue volleyball and get back to training for the show.

All that would make me very happy, although I would still be tired daily I'm sure and still have no clue as to why.

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Mitral Valve Regurgitation

I'm very glad I had my appointment with my cardiologist yesterday, he was hopeful I would be an easy one for him and he could figure out a simple issue going on.

Not the case, it is for sure the mitral valve regurgitation and I have to have a stress echocardiogram tomorrow morning.  They will take a picture of my heart, put me on a treadmill, take another picture after that and hopefully we will have the results Thursday afternoon or Friday.

My constant fatigue is due to this issue and the scenarios my cardiologist thinks of are all bad.  I'm pretty sure I am going to have to have heart surgery.  He is a bit worried about the chance of heart failure so no more exercise at this point, no stress and I need a lot of sleep so my heart can rest.

It seems as though life is wanting to throw as many curve balls as it can our way, we will get through this and I will be able to get back to exercise again once I am better.  If I do have heart surgery it will be a long recovery and a slow return to exercise.  That means no figure competition this year, looks like I will be waiting yet another year to complete that big goal.

Kyle is being very protective right now, I appreciate it greatly, he is the best daddy and is even more phenomenal now.  Taking care of dinners, bath time, bed time, all so I can rest at home and go to bed by about 7pm each night, how sad I go to bed that early because I am truly so exhausted from the day.

Looking forward to the test tomorrow and getting the results so we know what our next step is.

Monday, June 18, 2012

Volleyball & Inhaler

So this weekend was full of sand volleyball, Friday night I played in a doubles tournament with my brother Larry and we had our regular games on Sunday.

Friday I used my inhaler, it did nothing for me.  Thankfully it wasn't as hot as they predicted and it clouded up, so the heat wasn't too horrible.  I was just tired and had the same "heavy" feeling in my chest.  Saturday I spent the day outdoors and walking around, I woke up Sunday completely exhausted again.

Sunday night volleyball I tried the inhaler again and again it did nothing for me.  I woke up today exhausted and my chest feeling "heavy" and tight.  I called my doctor's office this morning to let them know and they got me in right away with my cardiologist tomorrow, I will have an ultrasound done on my heart at 3pm.

I'm a little nervous, many thoughts are going through my head, what if they don't find anything at all, am I just plain crazy?  What if the valve is bad and I need heart surgery?

On one hand I hope it is a bad valve and that surgery would fix it, if that is what is truly causing my constant exhaustion it would be amazing to get it fixed and feel better every day.  Otherwise I just don't know, as a pretty healthy 31 year old woman I just don't think I should be feeling this way daily or that exercise should cause me to feel so crappy.

The downside of this of course would be my goals, they would be put on the back burner.  If I have to wait another year to do a figure competition so be it, but I won't lie I would be disappointed!!!!

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Inhaler Please Help Me

Today was my appointment with my amazing doctor, seriously I love this woman.  She first asks me how Kyle is, which new job did he go with and has Bella fully recovered from her strep throat :)  I just love that she knows us all so well, she really feels like a great friend and a doctor, we are lucky!

Now onto the appointment, she is hopeful that my issues may be allergy/asthma related.  I will be picking up an inhaler tonight to use before volleyball this weekend, we have a doubles tournament on Friday and our regular Sunday night games.  If the inhaler doesn't work this weekend I have to let my doctor know next week.

After that she would contact my cardiologist, let him know what is going on and what steps we have taken to get me feeling better.  Then I would have to have an ultrasound of my heart so they can check on my "bad" valve.  I have mitral valve regurgitation along with the syncope, I shouldn't read things online because it usually scares me, but I did.  The only thing that worries me is that my symptoms seem to be right on with the valve getting worse.  That scenario would require open heart surgery, so obviously I am beyond hopeful that this weekend the inhaler does the trick.

Last night I was still feeling crappy so my trainer let me just plant the flowers he had gotten me for Mother's Day in our huge flower garden.  It was beautiful out last night, 72 and not humid!

Looking forward to actually working out today after I go take care of my beauties May and River, aka the sweet horses that still need a couple of amazing families to adopt them! :)

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Photos & Tired

Angie, myself and Larry, ready to run!

Hehe, Larry making his sister happy by posing silly with me :)

Bella being all cute waiting for mommy to run by.

Here we come!

Yay, I finished, damn my IT band hurt.  Glad I did it and looking forward to my break from running.

 Love teaching her about a healthy lifestyle and giving her good examples, she is ready to be a runner :)

Tomorrow I am heading to the doctor, kind of starting over with my heat/humidity issues.  I'm tired of the cardiologist I've had for the past 12 years telling me I will outgrow the "condition" he calls Syncope.  Yes I do have that, but after this weekend today I am still feeling crappy.  Tight chest, it just feels like there is a heaviness in my chest, I am exhausted, light headed constantly.  

Again drinking as much fluids as I possibly can and taking my medication, but nothing is helping.  I'll be seeing my family doctor, I've never seen her for this condition so we'll see what she thinks about it and how we can go about possibly figuring out a better solution or if there is something else going on.

This won't hinder my weight lifting, not sure what Kyle has in store for me tonight, at least I will be working out in our nicely air conditioned house :)

Monday, June 11, 2012

Run the Flood Race

Well I did it, ran the race with only one week of runs prior to it and IT band syndrome.

That meant I ran the run 26 minutes slower than the last time I did it, but I ran the race with my cousin Angie and we had a great time!  It was hot, of course, super sunny and not much shade, the water stops consisted of me just dumping the cups of water over my head.  Thank god for my hydration belt (thank you trainer for making me wear it :)), I used two goo packs and drank all my Gaterade.

Afterwards we went to a bar, had some Summer Shandy and greasy food, that was the best part ;)  I will have photos to post once I get them uploaded.

Don't be shocked, but I was totally dehydrated after the race and my IT band was like a bone.  Kyle massaged it on a super comfy wooden bench, that helped a little bit, I'm just ready for this thing to get better and feel like it never will.

I also had volleyball last night, doubles at 5pm and fours at 6pm, it was 98 degrees, sunny and humid.  I felt like CRAP, I drank over 200 oz. of Powerade plus a ton of water and my pills that seem to do nothing for me at this point.  I played awful in doubles, I felt bad for Larry but we still had fun, fours was alright but I was still completely exhausted.

Feeling a tad bit better today but guess what, still DEHYDRATED!!!  Seriously when I finally see my cardiologist on July 31st, I just might smack him if he goes into his "you will grow out of this" talk, it's been 13 years and seems to be getting worse.

Enough complaining, I will continue to drink as much as I can today and hopefully stay hydrated for a bit :)

Friday, June 8, 2012

Oops....

My wonderful trainer gave me clear instructions to do the P90X Chest & Back workout before my run last night.  Only do the first half of it, about a half hour and then run.....

Oops, I did the Chest, Back & Tricep workout instead, lifted for about 45 minutes as my trainer (aka awesome hubby) walked in and asked, "why the heck are you doing ball tosses??".  I then realized my mix up and the fact that I lifted way more than I was supposed to.

Then my "little" brother shows up and is ready for our 45 minute run in the 84 degree and HUMID weather.  I told him I might, just might have some issues on the run.  After 20 minutes of running I was covered in goose bumps, no longer sweating and cold.  NOT A GOOD SIGN.  Obviously I was completely dehydrated, I was super smart and decided NOT to wear my hydration pack.  So the way back was a run/walk for me, my brother is amazing though he would run ahead, turn around and come back to me.  He said he wouldn't leave me, even though I told him he could, because he knew if he did 1. he would be in trouble showing up at my house without me, and 2. he just wouldn't do that anyway, the thought of me passed out on the side of the road by myself was a bit much for him ;)

I have been taking my medication to help me retain fluids plus drinking lots of water, I admit I could be drinking more Gaterade so I am doing that today in preparation for tomorrow.  I have an appointment with my cardiologist on July 31st, I'm so looking forward to it and hearing him tell me that I will outgrow this, even though I've had my condition for 13 YEARS.  Sense the sarcasm please, we're thinking I need to maybe go see a different cardiologist if he tells me yet again this year I should outgrow it.

So no lifting for me tonight as I have my 7 mile race in the morning.  I'm hoping for a coolish morning and I will look so awesome with my super sweet hydration pack on tomorrow ;)  Tonight we'll be picking up our race packets and stuffing our faces with awesome pasta from Zio Johno's, I truly can't wait for that tonight!

After this race the true break from running will be happening.  I'm glad because after just these two runs this week my IT band is killing me again, obviously that didn't totally heal in the time I've taken off from running so far!  I'll only be doing sprint work to help get my legs in perfect form for the show :)

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Horse Night

Every Wednesday night I go out to a farm to care for two rescue horses.

Its totally glamorous, me with my rolled up jeans, poopy shoes and gloves.  I scoop out two large stalls, the horses like to poop in both of them, darn them anyway ;)

I also brush them down and just spend time with them, it is relaxing for me, besides the poop scooping and hauling, I still enjoy it though!

I was pleasantly surprised when I got home as my trainer told me I didn't have to lift since I had scooped poop, but not to get used to it.  He doesn't want me too worn down for the race on Saturday, what a great trainer :)

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Ab Ripper X and a Run

Last night my workout was P90X's Ab Ripper X and then a 30 minute run with my brother Larry.  I left work a bit late, picked up Bella, stopped at Target and rushed home to get the Ab Ripper X done before the run.

Of course Larry shows up while I'm finishing Ab Ripper X, so I knew it would be a tough run.  I must say out of any ab workout, Ab Ripper X is my FAVORITE.  It is so hard, honestly, but it goes so fast and you do over 300 ab moves.  I didn't even try to do the V-Ups though, the only set I skipped!

So then it was time to run, I realized Kyle had my car with my iPod in it so we had to wait for him to get home. He gets there, I have my chip plugged into the iPod, can't find my headphones so I had to use an old pair.

Larry and I start out on our run, I realize I put the wrong chip in my iPod, so no Nike+ for us, but we were running based on times not miles so I wasn't too upset, although I do like to know my pace so I was irritated.  Then I hit play for the music and the headphones didn't work!

It was a pretty quiet run for me, Larry and I chatted a bit by my abs were so sore from the workout that just running without the chatting was enough for me :)  It had been about three weeks since I've ran and I felt amazing, it was a great run.  I did start to get covered in goosebumps right at the end, so obviously I was dehydrated after 30 minutes, the heat and humidity here in the summer is what kills me on runs.

My IT band felt great on the run, then it was pretty sore afterwards.  I have another run scheduled for Thursday night and then the Run the Flood race on Saturday, my last run for quite a while.

Today I'm pretty damn sore, my abs are like OWWWWWW, but in a good way.  I haven't started the full on dieting yet but I am making sure I have a protein shake in the mornings, this weekends grocery shopping will be me stocking up on my fuel foods and starting the entire process.

I got Kyle set up with the website promoting the show, we now have all the rules and regulations.  It is crazy, this is a natural show so I will have to do a polygraph test and a urinalysis to prove I haven't taken any enhancers.  Seeing the photos of previous shows helped me out a lot, I'm super excited and think that I will do well with this and can't wait to see the changes with my body.

Monday, June 4, 2012

Second huge goal.....

Well I completed a half marathon in April, now my training has officially began for the body fitness competition in October.

I'm so lucky to have my own trainer living with me, he even has been given permission to get mean with me and make sure I'm eating right, doing all my workouts and also having fun.

Tonight we took photos of me in a bikini, scary, not quite as bad as I thought it would be, did measurements and body fat.  I had a thought in my head of what I thought my body fat would be, I was pleasantly surprised :)

My body fat starting this journey is 19%!!!!  Woo hoo, I was expecting it to be at least 25%.

Tonights workout was the P90X Core Synergistics, love, love that workout, such a great one for me to start with.  My strength is so bad though, I can do 7 stacked foot, staggered arm push ups though, that made me happy, now when I can post that I did 7 prison cell push ups, I'll be super duper happy!

The biggest challenge for me with this will be the dieting, I LOVE food, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE food, especially greasy, deep fried food.  I will get to eat a lot of food just mainly, chicken, fish, some red meat and veggies, eggs, pretty much consuming protein in nearly every bite I take.

Thankful for the support I have around me while I embark on this huge goal, this is something I know I am made for, literally.  I love weight training and my body does too, just so, so happy to be getting this really started and working my butt off to try to place in the top 5 for my first show :)

Sand Volleyball - Training Time!

Finally, finally Larry and I have meshed perfectly and we won all three of our doubles games last night.  It felt good to play so well and have all my confidence back, I even had a couple of good spikes!

Still wish I could magically grow at least a couple of inches taller, but I can still get above the net :)

Tonight is my first official night of training for the figure competition in October.  I'm so ready for it!  Stress, stress, and more stress caused a weight loss of 11 pounds, not in a good way obviously but at least I'm not needing to lose any weight now I just need to get my muscles and lines perfected :)

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

I'm Not Missing

I'm still here, playing sand volleyball on Sundays and making myself painfully get through runs.  I now have Iliotibial band syndrome pretty badly on my left side, the right side isn't as bad but it has started.

It is just my luck, as I get into great running shape, run a half marathon that about kills me and now I have this.  Sadly there isn't anything you can do for it, so I'm still training for the Run the Flood race here in Cedar Rapids, it is a 7 mile race and is June 9th.  I'll suffer through the training and the ice massages, ick, I've always hated those.  They do help though, poor Kyle having to give me ice massages after every run and having to massage my hips and butt ;)

Once the race is over I will be taking a break from running, thankfully there are a ton of other cardio options for me, including the P90X cardio.  I haven't "officially" began my weight training for the body fitness show but hopefully that will begin next week, woo hoo!

Monday, April 23, 2012

Sand Volleyball!

Sand volleyball started up again last night, woo hoo!!!!!!  Currently I am playing doubles with my little brother Larry and starting May 7th we'll also be playing 4's with our friend Chris and my little sister Mindy.

We were a bit rusty last night, five months off isn't a great thing!  We were pretty close in all three games, although we lost them all, but there's always next weekend :)

I managed to pull a muscle in the first game, I just knew it was my quad, until I woke up this morning to an ugly bruise and a very, very sore hip flexor.  Looks like I will be icing it tonight and not working out, grrrrrrrrr.

I'm getting very irritated with my body, partly my own fault I obviously need to be stretching a heck of a lot more.  I was supposed to start training for the body fitness show today, oh well at least I should be able to do some ab work.  I HATE abs, but I really need to get working on them :)

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

I Did It!

Goal number one for this fitness year is completed, I did the St. Louis Half Marathon!!!  Thanks to one of my bestest friends Shalae for motivating me to do this with her :)

I trained for about three months and wish I would have trained longer.  It was an amazing experience and a very painful one.  The first half of the race was wonderful, the second half wasn't bad until about mile 12, that was when every single muscle in both of my legs cramped up.  I must say that pain was unlike anything else and feeling like I couldn't move my legs was hell.

The thoughts running through my head as I half ass jogged and walked that last mile were, holy shit this is the longest mile of my life, my cardiologist was right my body can't handle this, and last but certainly not least because this thought made me run the last part was Zach.  Seriously Zach went through boot camp for weeks, he helped me finish running at the end :)

It sucked having to get in the car for the five hour drive home.  When Mindy and I got to her house I could barely get out of the car to help her get her stuff inside and of course say hello to my beautiful niece Evey :)  Once I got home it was straight into a hot bath for me.  I have a massive bruise on the outside of my right thigh, not sure where that came from but I didn't have it before the race!

Again, I'm happy to have accomplished this goal, I will not be running a half marathon ever again.  Although next year Shalae, myself, our friend Becca and someone else will be doing the relay marathon, that I can handle :)  After resting all day yesterday, drinking massive amounts of water and gaterade, a couple hot baths and finally being able to stretch, I'm feeling pretty good today!

Proud of myself for this accomplishment, I do wish I would have made it under 10 minute miles, but my final time was 2 hours and 17 minutes.  That last mile killed my under 10 minute miles, oh well!

Now time to start training for the fitness show in October :)

Friday, March 30, 2012

4 Mile Run

Another great run done :)  It was CRAZY windy, 32 mph winds and only 58 degrees but very sunny.  My brother has become my savior, I'm truly enjoying our runs together which makes my long runs a bit harder since he can't do those with me.

We ran the 4 miles at a 9:08 per mile pace, Larry finished ahead of me, he always does :)  I was surprised because I actually felt like we were going super slow and my legs were pretty tight, so it was a nice surprise when we were done.

Today I went to the chiro again, seriously he works magic and I wish I would have started going much sooner. My hips were way out of whack of course and I had a horrible kink in my neck.  Neck cracking always freaks me out, but my chiro totally distracts me like he's doing something else and then does it.  I got to have an ultra sound treatment with some Biofreeze.  Now I'm just enjoying the hot, tingly feeling on my neck and the somewhat release of the tight muscles.

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

5 Mile Run and a Lecture

Well last night I did a five mile run with Larry and it was wonderful! The past few runs have sucked, I've really been struggling with the long runs. I did go to the chiro on Friday my hips were totally out of place and my back was pretty bad. I also got some electric stim therapy, so wonderful :)

It made a world of difference getting adjusted! I go back today and will go twice a week up until the race. I also made a call to my cardiologist, I was dreading it but I needed more meds to help me retain fluids. My cardiologist was not happy about me running a half marathon, refilled my meds, doubled up my dose and told me good luck but after this race no half marathon ever again. Keep it under 10 miles and my body and heart should be able to handle that without all the extra meds.

I asked him about me doing a fitness show, my next big goal in October, because I will be slowly decreasing my fluid intake two weeks before the show to get my body fat as low as possible. Oddly enough he said that will be ok, but if I have fainting spells at all to stop and not do the show. The difference between the half marathon and the show is obviously during the half marathon I will run for about two hours and after an hour of running my body pretty much uses up whatever it has and there is no way for me to replenish the nutrients. The gu does help, but I end up extremely dehydrated and it takes a few days to get rehydrated. With the fitness show we will slowly be depriving my body over a two week period, and I also won't be doing any hard cardio in those two weeks.

So all in all, I understand what he is saying, I'm glad I'm doing the half marathon no matter what and will be happy to get one ran in this life. I'm very excited about the fitness show and getting the "ok" to go ahead with it :)

Only two and a half weeks until the half marathon, I can't believe it!!!!!

Thursday, March 22, 2012

4 Mile Run

My Tuesday four mile run wasn't the greatest, Larry and I started off way too fast and I had us go on a route that starts with a long hill and ends with a long hill. I really felt like crap and my hydration issues are out of control.

After the nine mile run Saturday I went to a cousin's house for a Patty's Day party and I consumed a lot of beer, so the run dehydrated me, I was in the sun all day and of course the beer further dehydrated me. I'm on double dose of my medication to help me retain fluids and I'm hoping I will see a difference tonight on my run. So sad that consuming over 100 oz of water and Gaterade daily just wasn't getting me rehydrated.

We ran the 4 miles in 37:04, it was very warm, sunny and windy. I can't believe how quickly the half marathon is coming up!

I'm also switching up my eating, I'm not losing any weight with all this running and frankly it was pissing me off. So I'm cutting down on the starches, me and pizza are meant to be, but sadly I have to cut that out I eat pizza far too much.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

9 Mile Run

On Saturday I did my nine mile run. I found a hydration belt to try out and I LOVE it. The first few steps it felt weird of course but then I didn't notice it, it didn't bounce around and the bottles were easy to get in and out.

I didn't wake up as early as I wanted to so I didn't start my run until about 9:15, it was super sunny and already 75 degrees. We all know how I do not do well in heat or humidity so I was a bit concerned.

It honestly wasn't too bad, I ended up running a lot of it on our nature trail and it was encouraging to cross paths with other runners once I got out of town, the small waves and smiles helped a little bit :)

I ran it just under one hour and thirty minutes, so not too bad of a pace. But I learned a hard lesson, time for me to start lubing up the arms and legs on long runs! I sweated profusely and ended up chaffing the inside of both biceps and my thighs, it was pretty bad. But I will not let that happen again!

Friday, March 16, 2012

Run, Run, Run

So I was supposed to do a 4 mile run and my "little" brother Larry is joining me on my weekly runs now. I say "little" because he is younger than me in age but about 4 inches taller than me and I swear his stride is like a gazelle!

My Nike+ sensor had a low battery so I switched it with another one, we began our run and I knew we were going at a fast pace. I pushed the button on my iPod to check our pace and the sensor wasn't working!

Talk about me being mad, but at least I just did a 4 mile run on the same route Tuesday so I pretty much knew our halfway point. It sucked not having the gal come on and tell me our halfway point or the pace we were running.

We were running faster than I normally do and it was about 78 degrees and super sunny. I was dripping sweat like crazy and had severe goosebumps about halfway through, so sad I got dehydrated that quickly.

At the end of the run my brother took off to finish the run and I sped up but couldn't keep up with him. So jealous of that guy, he can jump into running like it's nothing and I've been training for like three months and he still beats me!

Anyway, we got done and I checked our time and about crapped myself. We did the run in just over 32 minutes, way, way faster than my normal pace! But I did it and really it felt great, so glad I have him to push me and make me a better runner :)

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

4 Mile Run

I honestly was not wanting to run, I almost talked myself out of it due to a crappy day, but then I decided that a run would be perfect to make my day better and it did :)

I had a great run, it was much warmer today about 72 degrees and 12 mph winds. I felt awful for my first mile but after that I felt wonderful.

4 miles, 36:47

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

7 Mile Run

I did my 7 mile run on Saturday and it was great! Of course there was wind, it was 38 degrees, 18mph winds, so 28 degrees with the windchill.

I decided to try the gu stuff, I knew I needed something to help me on my longer runs because I was wearing down after 5 miles. My body just processes everything so fast, after about 40 minutes if I don't have something I just can't keep going.

So Kyle and I planned my halfway point would be at the house, he met me at the front door with a packet of gu and some gaterade. It made a huge difference, thankfully the gu wasn't too bad because I have an issue with eating and running, I just can't chew and run.

I ran 7 miles in 1:06:54, not too bad. I felt it was a turning point in my training, I survived my longest run of this training session and felt I could have kept going, woo hoo!!

Friday, March 9, 2012

4 Mile Run

The weather was pretty good today, except for the darn wind, 25mph again!!! I'm so, so tired of this awful wind and hope it starts to ease up, I like some wind when I run but man this is a bit much.

I ran my 4 miles in 37:02, I knew I ran it faster than normal and that made me happy :) I know for my long run tomorrow I will be slower, but I'm feeling better with the runs finally.

At the end of my run Lance Armstrong came on my iPod and said, "Congratulations Stephanie you have cleared 250 miles". That made me smile :) I've had the Nike+ stuff for a while, looking forward to tacking on many more miles.

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

5 Mile Run

This run was rough, not gonna lie.

First of all I ate a bad lunch, I didn't think I was being too bad but man did I have acid reflux issues on my run. The first two miles were full of acid like burps and feeling like acid was just being shaken around in my tummy. Not fun.

It was warm out, much warmer than it has been, it was 68 degrees!!! I didn't look at the temps but I checked the wind and it was 25mph, so I wore pants and a long sleeved shirt, so not smart. I sweated my ass off.

So it wasn't my best run, but I ran the entire 5 miles even though I wanted to stop. My biggest issue right now is getting out of my own head on my runs, seriously, it is awful. I was proud of myself for doing it though and plan on eating better and being more positive on my next run!

5 miles, it took me 49:03, and like I said 25mph winds!

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

3 Mile Run

So I missed yet another long run this past Saturday, I'm really anxious for my long one coming up this Saturday, it could be rough! My back was way too tight for a run on Saturday so I decided to wait until today to run.

It was a great run, cold and wet out, but I really had a good run. It was 34 degrees with 15mph hour winds, with the windchill it was 24 degrees. Also it rained this morning so it was very wet out, I was just thankful it didn't rain during my run :)

I was pleasantly surprised with my time though, I feel like I've been stuck but today somehow I cut off about 20 seconds on my splits.

3 miles, 28:44, 9:32 min miles :)

I'm getting there, I doubt I'll be where I want to be by the time the half marathon rolls around, but I'm doing another one in October so I guess I'll just have to keep at it and continue to get faster!

Thursday, February 23, 2012

No Run Today

Last night I managed to slip on our kitchen floor and fall right on my back. Thankfully it seems to be just the muscles in my lower back that are tweaked, my spine feels fine.

It was so sweet, as I was lying on the floor in the kitchen Bella brought her colors in there and said, "I guess I have to color in here because I care about you so much."

Ahhhh, that little girl is so overly sweet, she did a good job taking care of me :)

So obviously no run for me today, but I will be doing my long run on Saturday, most likely in the snow, yippee ;)

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

3 Mile Run

WINDY!!!!!!!! Seriously, the wind can stop any day now, at least on one of the days I have a run :)

Today was a three mile run day and it was pretty dang chilly and super windy. My route I take on my lunch hour starts me off with a nice big hill, which is obviously also the end of my run. Today as I topped the hill (it is a bridge going over the interstate) the wind gusts were ridiculous! Seriously I'm glad there were no cars on the bridge while I was because I was getting blown all over the place.

Still a pretty good run though: 3 miles, 29:39 minutes, 41 degrees, 25mph winds, 32 degrees with the windchill.

Staying under 10 minute miles, that is my goal at this point.

Saturday, February 18, 2012

4 Mile Run

So today was supposed to be a 5 mile run, but I listened to my body and only ran 4 miles.

It was a chilly morning, 22 degrees with 5mph winds, so 15 degrees with the windchill. I'm so sick of layering, I wore a dry fit t-shirt a long sleeved shirt and a fleece pullover, running tights and windbreaker pants, gloves and a hat. Seriously, it sucks being so bulky, but hopefully it will warm up again soon!

The run felt good, I ate a small bowl of oatmeal before I ran, I knew I would need something for some energy to get me through it. I've slacked the past two weeks on my running, shame on me, I learned my lesson today.

At about the 3.5 mile mark I felt like I was going to faint and my legs were jelly, so I stopped at four miles, I'm glad I got them in though.

No more skipping runs and I'm starting P90X on Monday as well. I should be in great shape for the half marathon which will have me ready for sand volleyball in April, and more races this summer, all taking me to my biggest goal, competing in a fitness show :)

Thursday, February 16, 2012

2.5 Mile Run

So it was a bit windier than I thought today, so the run was slower but it felt really good. The sun was shining and my all black running gear kept me plenty warm :)

It is crazy to think that the half marathon is just two months away, it is coming up way too fast! I'm realizing that I should stop thinking about how fast I want to run it and have my goal for this first one to simply be to run the entire thing without walking :)

It was 43 degrees with 21mph winds, the temp was 34 with the windchill. I ran my 2.5 miles in 25:52, a bit slow but again it really felt great!

Thursday, February 2, 2012

2.5 Mile Run

Today I had a great run on my lunch hour! The weather was perfect, 38 degrees and only 3mph winds, it was super sunny and that sun made it feel warmer than 38 degrees.

I did my 2.5 miles in 24:07, 9:34 minute miles, a little faster than my 2 mile run. I was surprised as my route today was down a road that I have to jump up on the grass when semis pass me, those jump ups onto the grass are tiring!

I also have Zumba tonight with my sister Mindy :)

Weight check in this morning, I'm at 145!

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

2 Mile Run

I finally have my music back, woo hoo!!!!! Found my "missing" iPod Nano tucked away in a cupboard in my kitchen, over a year of searching and I found it by chance. :)

Last night was a 2 mile run, I did it in 19:48, not too bad for not running much lately. It felt amazing and I think it is a good starting pace.

Can't wait to log more miles and am really looking forward to the half marathon that is just 11 weeks away!!!

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

2 Mile Run

Yesterday was a 2 mile run day, it is quite handy that from my work's driveway to the gas station on the corner is exactly one mile. Super helpful when this lady still has no iPod to use her Nike+ awesomeness with :( I must say I don't know how much longer I can handle running without music, some people love it, but it is not for me. My thoughts are just insane, or I start to think, what should I be thinking about on my runs? I focus on my breathing mostly but yesterday the focus was also, when in the hell are you going to get Bella's bedroom finished and get your longie pant orders done???

Ok, ok, back to the run. It was AWESOME, yes even without the music and with my crazy thoughts. It was 49 degrees, can you believe it, 49 degrees in Iowa in January! I was grateful for the glorious day to run in running tights, shorts, dry fit t-shirt, and a long sleeved shirt and it was perfect :)

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Run

Today was my first "official" training run for the St. Louis half marathon on April 15th.

Not too bad other than the fact that I had NO MUSIC! My music is what gets me going and keeps me going. But since this lady has lost her engraved iPod Nano (I was HEARTBROKEN when I realized it is truly gone) and washed her iPod Shuffle, I have no music :(

Thankfully I have a hubby who knows how desperately I need my music and my Nike+ software, that software just makes the runs better knowing exactly how far I've run, how fast and the upbeat woman's voice telling me how great I'm doing helps too :)

Today was just a 2 mile run, so I ran 25 minutes. My pace when I first start running is about 10 minute miles, so hopefully I ran a bit over 2 miles today.

It was a FANTASTIC run! It was 30 degrees with 17mph hour winds, that made it feel like 18 degrees. But honestly it wasn't bad at all, very refreshing, even with the only thoughts in my head being about my breathing and wondering how my lungs would feel afterwards ;)