Wheat Free diet?

So, I've been researching wheat free diets and I've learned some things.  I never knew that our wheat is being laden with chemicals.  That makes me very nervous!  I never realized how many chemicals are in our every day lives, until I got sick.  No wonder I'm freakin' fat!!!  I'm also looking into clean eating, but again, what the hell are our fruits and vegetables being sprayed with to keep the bugs off.  I'm really beginning to think that there is a distinct possibility that we all can begin to grow tails at any moment.  Wait, I think I feel one now.  No, that was only my muffin top and tight unders.  I ordered a book on eating wheat free and a friend of mine says that she feels so much better eating this way. It's supposed to help with bloating, cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes and lethargy.  I tend to get a little paranoid taking any medication, because when I had the transplant, I had graft verses host in my liver.  That's also the reason I don't touch alcohol. All that stuff gets processed through the liver, so I try to protect it.  I did send an email to my Dr. to get her opinion and see if I can try one more thing to avoid cholesterol medication.

On a different note, I've been very busy.  I am in the middle of planning the fifth annual "Walk of Honor" and this year we are adding a Walk of Honor Warrior Award.  I've sent out press releases to our local media, to have people nominate a veteran who has served in a combat zone.  Hopefully, the press puts this info. out and we get a good response.  I think it's very important that all our military knows that we are behind them one hundred percent and we are grateful for all of their sacrifices.

Have any of you ever seen the Maury show?  I love how the people say that they are two hundred percent positive that they know who their baby's daddy is and yet they are very often wrong.  Actually, my point is....one hundred percent is as high as you can get you dumb heads!  Maybe that's why they keep getting pregnant, they don't know their percentages.  I just thought of that because I said one hundred percent and then proceeded on a tangent.  That was a very small look into how my crazy brain works.  Sometimes, it's hard to focus.

I Took a Short Break

I know it's been a long time since I posted and I could say I was really busy, but the truth is, I just didn't feel like it.  After the 5K, I ran some high fevers and got sick again and then I was feeling a little let down.  You know the feeling, the one you get on December 26th.  Same thing and I haven't known what to do with myself.  I came to the realization that, running isn't the best thing for me.  I don't know if my age has taken over or just the ramifications of the transplant, but it isn't working for me.  It's a shame because I really enjoyed the training and I'm sad that it is over.  I have friends who are runners and they are doing awesome things, so I'll live vicariously through them.....and be really jealous.  Run Forrest Run!  Sorry, I just couldn't resist.

I may change the name of the blog, but I haven't decided yet.  I really hope that anyone who is following me, will continue to stay tuned.  I'm sure I have more adventures ahead of me, so together we can see where life takes me from here.  I think I'm in a transitional time in my life again and I'm looking forward to something new.  Hmmm, this could be interesting.  Maybe I'll finally figure out what I want to be when I grow up.  We know Olympic athlete is out, so on to the next. Sports bra sales person?  Trash hauler?  Teen pregnancy counselor?  For those of you reading this blog for the first time, you need to read previous posts to get the inside jokes. 

Here's what I'm up to now:

Helping my friend Michael with his college groups' fundraiser.  It's going to be a brunch and we had a good time planning it last year so I'm sure it will be fun again.

I'm part of a committee who are putting together a fundraising event for Be the Match, which is the national bone marrow registry.  People don't realize that it costs money to go into the registry, so we are going to do our best to get tons of money so more lives are saved.  More details will follow about the event in the near future.  We have a meeting tomorrow.

Next week, I will begin the planning for the 5th annual Walk of Honor.  This is an event, that my husband and I put together, to honor all veterans, past, present and future, for their service.  If you want to see what it's all about you can visit, www.walkofhonor.us , and there are videos of previous years.  It will hold a special significance this year because our son is deploying. Please keep all of our service members in your prayers.  Oops, I'm getting teary, so time to change the subject..

Hopefully I will stop being lazy and I will be posting more frequently.  The road may still be bumpy and like I said in the past, I'm going to be as real as possible, so buckle up.

I did it!

Yesterday morning I woke up at 4:00am because I was so excited.  I left the house about 6 to make the hour drive to the 5K at the beach.  It was absolutely beautiful at Jennings beach!  I was really freaked out by all the people, because I have been training alone.  I am used to just doing my own thing and talking the the dogs I encounter or saying hi to neighbors.  This was much different.  These people know what they are doing and that was extremely intimidating.  I do need to say that the running community is, by far, the nicest group of people I've ever met.  People I had never set eyes on before, were giving me hugs for good luck and there wasn't a stranger in the crowd.  I'm not just talking about the group I was with, I'm talking about the entire 1,000 or so people.  A woman who realized that I am a cancer survivor, looked for me at the starting line just to give me a good luck knuckle pound.  Unbelievable!  Also, Carlee, one of the TNT coaches, who is 8 months pregnant, stayed with me the whole time.  By the way, the sweat was pouring off of me and she was cool as a cucumber.  I can't thank her enough for watching out for me. 

I need to give you the bottom line here now, because I'm heading out the door.  I will give more details later today.  I did finish the race!  I was also the last person to cross the finish line.  I was kind of mad when I found that out, but my son said, "what the hell Mom, you finished a 5k and you're a cancer survivor.  There are army guys who couldn't do that."  I felt a hundred percent better. 

Three more days

Wow is the 5K really in three days!! Time has been flying by lately and I didn't even realize how long it had been since I blogged, until I checked it today. I did a practice walk/run on Saturday and suffice it to say, it went OK. I'm trying to mentally prepare for Saturday morning and the possibility of it being very hot. I'm not a huge fan of the heat and although some people would attribute this to my weight or age, they are wrong, I just don't like the heat. Sorry about that, I'm still a little bitter about the butt-holes and their ignorant comments.

Today was my visit to one of my doctors to check my blood pressure and cholesterol. She explained to me that people in training don't lose weight and many end up gaining. I stayed the same, thank goodness. What the hell! Still hoping it's muscle. She also told me that I need to eat a slice of toast with peanut butter before the race. I normally don't like to eat a thing before I hit the road, but I will listen to my Dr. and she reads this blog sometimes, so I had better say that. Anything for a little more energy. I'll have to leave my house about 6am on Saturday to get to Fairfield about 7 and some wiggle room on the time just in case I get lost. There won't be anyone at the finish line for me and I have to admit, that makes me kind of sad. My husband will be with our son at a military thing. My son told me to do the race and so I will.

On my way home from the Dr., I remembered that I wanted to get a purple feather in my hair for the 5K and I was passing by the hair salon, so I stopped in to see if they had time tomorrow to do it for me. When I walked in the door, my hairdresser was sitting right there and although she had an appointment coming in, another person offered to put it in for me today. She heard me talking about the 5K and that I'm a survivor etc... and she put the purple feathers in my hair "on her". It was so nice and I really love my feathers.

One last thing for today. Since my 5K is almost here and this training is coming to an end, do you people want me to continue my blog writing about random things? I will be continuing going on my walks and I might start yoga. I'm sure there are many more amusing things to share in my future. Oh yeah, and should I change the name of my blog? Any suggestions? I will try to blog Saturday afternoon to let you all know how it went. That is if I can still move my body. I will do my best.

Just Venting

Here it goes.  Last night after a meeting, a person I know asked how my training was going.  I sent out emails begging every single person I know for money for this LLS fundraiser and he happened to be  in my email.  I told him it was going pretty well, but there have been some bumps in the road.  He then looks at me and asked how my joints are because people who are a little overweight like me and him can have a lot of trouble with their knees, hips and ankles.  He said that is why he doesn't run, because he has some extra weight too.  I think he doesn't run because his neck can't hold up his damn head full of rocks.  Once the shock of what this dumbass had said to me wore off, I told him my joints were fine.  Then he gave me another strange look and said incredulously, "oh, so you're able to do stretching?".  All I was able to muster up in response was a yes.  I may have had a bone marrow transplant and there are some minor limits in my life now, but some people can use a brain transplant.  In what universe is it EVER alright to talk to a woman about her weight?  And how about a simple good for you for doing this for charity, or even saying nothing would have been good.  People need to learn that the things they say to each other can have lasting affects that aren't always good.  Now, I feel very self conscience about how I look and I cried about it today.  I wasn't even able to put on my running clothes and go out today, because I think people are looking at me wondering what the fat girl is doing running.  I'm sure I'll feel better tomorrow about myself, but today I'm kind of feeling crappy.  I won't let him get the best me and won't he be surprised when I complete the 5K in two weeks.  What a jerk! Starting right now, only positive thoughts and I'll hit the road in the morning, with my new deodorant.

Wow, has it been two weeks?

I think I have a lot of updating to do today.  Yes, I got my treadmill and it isn't broken, but it kind of sucks.  It's a manual treadmill and much harder to walk on then anticipated. I'm still going to try to conquer the annoying machine and I'm going to show it who's boss...I hope.  The incline on the treadmill makes a huge difference and I thought I was going to have a damn heart attack the first time I tried to walk/run on it.  I'll get there.

I didn't run in the Memorial Day 5K, because when I went to register online, it said registration was closed.  It originally said you could register up until race day, but maybe they changed their minds. It all worked out though, because it was hot and humid as hell that morning. Hot I can somewhat handle, but humidity seriously kicks my hiney.  My chest gets tight and I feel like an 80 yr. old, who just mowed their lawn while dragging around a walker, and pressing on a life alert necklace.   It's just really not a pretty sight!

My training has been going OK.  I will be doing the June 23rd 5K for LLS after all.  My son said that he wanted me to do the race, so that's what I'll do.  I honestly wonder if he fears that I'll embarrass him in front of his superiors.  FYI, I wouldn't do that...on purpose.  I'll admit I did tell his Drill Sgt., when he was away at boot camp, that I am his Mom so I out rank all of them.  Oops, that may have cost my son a few push -ups.  Well, he was pissing me off and he wouldn't tell me how my son was doing after he was sent to the hospital.  I think I may have even pulled out the recovering from a bone marrow transplant card.  It eventually worked, because I did get another call saying he was doing alright.  I really wouldn't embarrass him, I have too much respect for my son and what he's doing to ever make him feel icky.  He has also been very supportive of me doing the 5K and when I don't think I've accomplished enough, he tells me I'm doing good and to keep going.

Here is my last update.  When did I start smelling so bad?  On Thursday, it was a little humid when I did my training in the morning.  I got home and took off my running shirt, to the most rancid smell coming off of my body.  It smelled even worse then chemo sweat.  You need to understand that I thought every bodily function smelled way worse while on chemo and I thought I smelled gross all the time.  Anyway, I thought I would never get the scent out of my running shirt again.  Then it happened two more times after training.  Absolutely disgusting.  Now I know why neighbors were keeping their distance while saying hello to me. I need to find the hard stuff.  I'm contemplating visiting a construction sight and asking those dudes what deodorants they use.  I think I need something industrial strength.  No more flowery or fruity scents for me. I hope people bear with me if in the future I smell a little like musk, Old Spice or Mitchum Sport.  I never want to experience bad armpit smell on myself again.  PU.

Lots of news

First of all the treadmill is set up and not broken!!! Yay!  The part I'm still a little hesitant about is, is that it has a slight incline and that bothers my knee so I hope it doesn't become a problem.  It amazes me that a little thing like that can make the workout much harder, but I'm hoping that ultimately it helps with my conditioning.  I remember Coach Alan telling me that when you work on an incline, it can help with running on a flat surface.  Time will tell.  I will still be making up stories, even while training inside.  I'll just turn the TV on something like Maury or Jerry Springer and that can make for some very interesting posts.  When the weather permits, I still love training outside.  Holy cow, did those words just come out of my fingers!  So odd how my views on things have changed, I just wish there weren't any bugs out there that enjoy biting me.

So, I am contemplating doing the Memorial Day 5K in Danbury.  There won't be a ton of running, but there will be some.  I really want to do it because the funds go to the Wounded Warrior Project and for those of you who don't know, my son is in the Army National Guard.  He really holds the Wounded Warrior Project near and dear to his heart and if it's that important to him, then it's that important to me.  I think I'll ask him if he'll do the run with me.  I sent out an email asking if slow pokes were welcome at this race.  If my son does run with me, I'm sure he will mock me quite a bit, but I also know he'll be very proud of me.  He knows I'm always proud of him! This race takes place just before the parade so there will be many people lining the roads.  I guess my constituents and friends will see me with no makeup on, all sweaty, with a baseball cap on and being kind of gross.  I also hope no one gets too close to me when I'm all sweaty and smelly.  I'm getting excited to do it now that I'm writing about it.

One more thing, it looks like I may be doing the Fairfield 5K in June.  More to come soon on this subject.

New reasons for training

Do you ever have one of those weeks where you don't want to answer the phone anymore, in fear of more bad news?  Well, that's what it has been like at my home for the past few days.  A good friend of mine needed an angioplasty over the weekend, but she is doing very well and already back at work.  Another very close friend of mine, Clare, called to say her sister, Mary's cancer may have returned.  Mary and I were sick around the same time and kind of formed a bond, so this news has been difficult.  Clare and I have been on the phone about three times today waiting to hear the results of the latest tests.  Monday night was the most shocking phone call of all.  My nephews' wife,Tonja, has a brain tumor.  Once you marry into my family, you are not considered a spouse, you are considered a niece, nephew, cousin or whatever because now you are blood.  So yes, my niece has a brain tumor and we don't have much information about it right now.  Like my nephew said to me, " she is a very strong lady."  So positive thoughts, lots of prayers and love being sent all around.

Today when I ventured out on my walk/run, I decided this is for them.  My race will be in honor of Mary and Tonja.  Two incredible women who I have no doubt, will overcome their illnesses.  Every step I take is a little prayer for them.

Still No Treadmill

I thought I would tell you today about the treadmill saga.  Tuesday, May 1st, treadmill #1 was sent to Sears, where we went to pick it up.  The box was wide open with items falling out, so we refused the shipment.  My husband re-ordered the same treadmill, but this time, had it delivered to our house. I was so excited when it showed up Friday evening.  My excitement didn't last long when we realized that box was also not secured.  My husband decided to put it together and maybe all the parts would still be in the box.  The parts were all there, but there was a rip in the belt and one of the roller wheels were out of place.  No matter how hard we tried, we just couldn't fix the stupid wheel.  So my husband headed back to Sears to return the second treadmill.  Yesterday, we went out to look at treadmills and we found one we thought might work out OK.  Guess what?  The floor model was the only one left and it was worn out and icky.  I'm beginning to think someone might be trying to tell me to not run a 5K.  It really has been one obstacle after another.  Anyway, we came home and Lee ordered yet another treadmill, this time from Walmart.  I'm hoping this blasted thing comes in with everything in place and it's just what I need.  Before placing the order, I was reminded (on Mother's Day),  that there is a weight limit on these things.

I already know that I'm pleasantly plump, being reminded of it only makes me sad and feel like dookie. Just like the woman at the flea market who felt the need to tell me that she sells plus sizes.  Yeah, thanks for that beotch. There was also the guy who gave me a T-shirt that was like 2 sizes bigger than I am, but it made me realize how people see me. Obviously, everyone thinks I'm really fat. I never thought of myself as being that bad, but lately, more and more people have been reminding me that I'm overweight.  Hey, at least I'm trying to do something about it.  I'm working on my weight and I don't think those insensitive people are working on their stupidity or just shutting the #@*$ up.  Sorry, I didn't expect this blog entry to take me somewhere yukky, but it's all a part of this process. I'll let you know about the newest treadmill purchase when it arrives.

I'm Back!!

Yesterday I began my training again.  It was a bit of a rough start and the walk/run made me very tired quickly.  I was hoping to just jump right back in where I left off, but that didn't happen.  I did a little under a mile and that was all I could muster up.  Today, on the other hand, was a different story.  I hit the streets early for a walk and I tried a different route.  It was invigorating!  I walked 2.27 miles in 50 minutes and some of it was a little hilly.  I'm tired and my feet are sore, but I keep telling myself that it is good tired. 

I'm sure you are all waiting to here about my newest trash discoveries.  Well, maybe you're not, but I'm going to tell you anyway.  My walk/run yesterday was my old route, so you know some of the stuff I've encountered has been weird.  There was a pair of glasses.  Really a pair of glasses?  Did this person not know they were throwing their glasses out the window?  I guess it's possible that someone dropped them walking or they were drunk.  My bet is drunk considering how many alcohol bottles we pick up.  Then I saw a First Response pregnancy test box.  Someone was definitely trying to get rid of the evidence.  Again, alcohol may have been involved.  My new route was very clean, but when I hit the old route, it was pretty much the same as yesterday except for the car bumper.  Okay, how do you not pick up your car bumper......unless of course......you are a drunk driver!  I don't listen to music or anything while I'm training, I just make up stories for all the roadside items I encounter. 

Here's my story from today:
Early April: A couple is joy riding with some tequila and has "relations" in their car and the condom breaks.  Out of frustration, the dude throws it out the window, along with the tequila bottle, and his T-shirt.  Fast forward to Thursday night.  The young woman takes a pregnancy test, but doesn't want her family to know, so she gets rid of the test.  She was wearing her glasses when she read the test and became so distraught, she also throws her glasses out.  She meets up with her boyfriend and they share a couple of those big Coors light cans, while she is trying to get some liquid courage.   She tells her boyfriend that they are expecting a bundle of joy and he veers off the road toward a small stone wall and leaves behind his car bumper. He doesn't return for the bumper because he is in shock and...drunk!
To be continued.

Might have to postpone 5K

Believe it or not there is a possiblity that I may have to do the fundraising 5K for LLS in September.  That's not to say I plan on stopping my training or blogging.  I have a family thing, that I can explain better in the future, but suffice it to say, it involves my son.  There is always a chance that the June 23rd date will happen and I should know definitely in a week or so what the outcome will be and I'll keep you all informed. I cried when I realized I may not be able to do the race in June, but my son comes first.

This morning I went to the Reional Hospice breakfast and I sat with Fr. Luke.  He told me that his church is doing a 5K in August for Healing Hearts, which is a bereavement place for primarily children. He is sending me all the information, so I guess I'm going to be hitting the 5K circuit.  There are so many good causes out there, it's hard not to try to do everything.  I'm not going to do everything, but I would love to.  Hopefully my treadmill will be here today.  I just got really excited!  It's so hard to believe that I'm excited about running and it's not even for public office.  :) 

My Letter to the Editor

http://www.newstimes.com/news/article/Urges-walking-the-walk-when-it-comes-to-trash-3535477.php

Above is the address for the letter I wrote to the Editor of our local newspaper and it appeared in today's paper, if anyone would like to read it.  My husband, Lee, and I did another 1 mile trash walk today and I have decided to now call yesterday, May 5th, cinco de throw all of your ca ca out of your car window.  We have never picked up so many Corona bottles, assorted other liquor bottles, and a McDonald's cup with some unknown nasty substance inside.  I'm all for having a good time on Cinco de Mayo.  I made 20 baked empanadas for my family and they only lasted a few hours.  Did you notice I said baked not fried?  They are just as yummy baked.  My issue is, that people need to stop throwing their crap in other peoples yards.  It's disgusting and honestly, it's really starting to piss me off.

Now for my good news and more about training.  Lee and I hit the flea market circuit again this morning.  We didn't purchase anything, but this is the first time since I was sick that I was able to make it up and down every isle and see the whole flea market. It's the largest flea market in New England. I'm getting a little teary writing this, because I was giving up hope that I would ever have enough energy to do that.  Then, to top it all off, I had even more energy and I was able to do the 1 mile trash walk, all in one day!!!!!  I didn't lose all the training I did before the friggin cough, which by the way, I think might be allergies.  I'm very excited and rejuvenated.  I really think I'm going to be able to do this 5K.  I'm even thinking I might give the Memorial Day 5K a shot.  OK, I won't get ahead of myself, but it would be kind of cool.

Treadmill

So here is my update.  The weather here in Danbury has been crappy and I still have remnants of the friggin cough.  I haven't been able to hit the road again, but Lee did order me a treadmill for Mother's Day.  Yippee!  It should be here in about a week and it is a manual treadmill with great reviews.  I hope this does the trick for helping with my weather dilemma and breathing in air that is too cold.  Holy mole, all this stuff is starting to get to me.  I'm trying desperately to keep my spirits up, but it's getting difficult.  I have new fancy sneakers that I've only worn once, because of this stupid cough.  I did walk around the mall with my friend yesterday, so I'm trying to do something, but it's not the same.  Team training started on April 30th, so I'm falling behind now.  I hope I can catch up.

Ok, enough of my wah, wah, wah bullcrap.  It's time to put on my big girl panties and stop feeling bad.  I'm going to put on some real clothes (not my robe), do some band exercises and drink a cup of shut the hell up about the cough and weather.  I need to remember all the kids who are diagnosed every day and all the kids who don't make it and draw my strength from them.  They all need our help.  Please, if you are reading this post, consider a small donation to LLS. There is a donation box on this blog.  I'm just reminding everyone that I am doing this for a fundraiser and even though the goal is $500.00, I would love to seriously surpass that number.  Words of encouragement would also be appreciated.  Thanks! :) 

One more thing.  Why is the sports bra post the most read post on the blog?

Walked around a flea market

Well, on Friday, my cough came back with a vengeance so my Dr. put me on antibiotics....yuk.  The good news is that the cough is finally going away...yippee!  Since I was told to take it slow, Lee and I went to the Stormville Flea Market and walked around for a couple of hours.  So far the cough is doing OK today.  Tomorrow, will be another walk around the neighborhood to check out the trash situation, and hopefully on Tuesday I try a brief walk/run.  I've been very sad about falling so far behind in my training and I don't want to let anyone who has donated to LLS down.  I wonder if it's possible to take it easy and push hard at the same time? I guess I'll find out.

While at the flea market we saw a t-shirt with an Italian flag and the words, IT'S NOT SAUCE, IT'S GRAVY.  Let's get this straight.  Sauce goes on pasta, eggplant parm, chicken parm, etc.. and gravy goes on turkey, roast beef and many other kinds of meat.  In my opinion, IT'S NOT GRAVY, IT'S SAUCE!!!! And that is my thought for today.

Sorry for my absence

I know it's been a long time since I've posted, but this cough has kicked my hiney.  Good news is, I went to the Doctor today and my blood pressure is better.  I will know more about my cholesterol once the blood work comes back and my weight has stayed the same.  Crap!  Here's my mantra, muscle weighs more than fat, muscle weighs more than fat, hopefully, I lost fat.  The bad news is, I'm on an inhaler and I need to wait until the weekend to hit the road again and even then it needs to be done slowly.  I have been trying to keep up with some strength training so I don't turn into a complete blob and have to start from the beginning again.  I have been very frustrated and these are the times I get pissed about having been sick.  BL (before leukemia) this would have been a fairly easy thing for me to do, but now I need to think of it as another challenge.  I'm going to do it and that's all there is to it!

I had said in one of my earlier posts that I would explain my issue with the color pink.  Well actually, I love the color pink, I just don't like being a female cancer survivor, who wears pink and it is assumed I had breast cancer.  I can't tell you how many people came into my hospital room at Danbury Hospital, and asked me when my surgery was for breast cancer.  Women get other cancers damn it!!  I know that if I wore my survivor t-shirt and my pink army mom baseball cap, everyone would think I was a breast cancer survivor.  Also, I'm a huge fan of Swarovski crystal jewelry and I saw a pink ribbon charm in one of the stores.  I asked the sales person if I could order it in orange (the leukemia color) and she said "no we only make it in pink."  GRRRRR!  Of course you only make it in pink, that is the only color I can usually find awareness items in. Don't get me wrong, I'm a true believer in breast cancer awareness and I have a few friends who have battled the disease.  I also wear a breast cancer bracelet during their awareness time, but damn, give the other cancers or illnesses a chance to raise awareness.  All we want as survivors is an equal shot. I believe that the campaign for breast cancer awareness has been so successful that they have taken over everything and other awareness campaigns have suffered.  Many other people feel this way also, I just have the nerve to say it.  End of rant.

I've been feeling icky

I know it's been a few days, but I haven't been feeling very well.  I did have a good walk/run on Wednesday, 1.31 miles in 28:29 minutes.  I think it's actually getting better and my new fancy sneakers felt good. Have you noticed that I always call them fancy sneakers?  I took Marks advice and had a small Gatorade about an hour before hitting the streets and then a nice gulp just before I left and it helped with the cramping.  Thank you Mark and Joe!  I did let my ego get in the way a little bit on my last run though.  I was doing my final 30/40 sec. spurt, when two cop cars were coming up the street toward me.  Oh, I guess I need to tell you that my husband is a retired police officer and my son is military police and my step daughter and her husband are also police officers (not in my city), but still my life is surrounded by the cop attitude...........in a good way.  Anyway, there was no way in hell that I was going to stop running with Danbury's finest looking at me.  Maybe they weren't looking at me and maybe these police officers had no idea who I was, but just in case, I kept running until they were out of sight and it felt awesome!  See I'm not just a stay at home bon bon inhaler, so ha.  Hmmm, maybe they'll donate to our cause, I think I'll ask.

A couple hours after I finished my run, I started feeling yukky.  Scratchy throat and a cough.  I HATE coughs!  In December, I had a bad cough that did something very painful to my ribs and then turned into pneumonia.  It sucked, I almost missed Christmas.  For those of you who don't know, when someone like me, who's had the big C, a cold and cough are never just a cold and cough.  They require x-rays and sometimes even CAT scans and it's really friggin annoying.  It's really friggin scary!  So now you know why I've had to take some time off from the running circuit.  The cold air and heavy breathing will only make me worse.  Crapola!!  I hope all my weeks of training aren't being lost.  I do plan on getting back out there ASAP, plus I'm feeling like a load.  I think this training stuff might be addictive.  If my cough is better tomorrow, I think I'll try to head out for a little walk.  I see the doctor on Wednesday, so please say a little prayer that my lungs are clear and this cough goes away quickly. 

On to fundraising.  I suck at fundraising!  I did have one idea that may work.  There is a restaurant/bar around the corner from where I live.  As a matter of fact, it is the place that I had my 5 year bone marrow -aversary party.  I was going to talk to the owner about selling alcohol enhanced cupcakes, that I make, at the bar.  I could make Bailey's, white Russian, red wine, pina colada, and margarita cupcakes and they could sell them on weekend nights.  What do you think?  I also learned that you can make non-alcohol versions by using those flavored creamers you can get in the grocery store.  I'm definitely having a hard time getting my friends and family to donate. Plying people with alcohol could do the trick.  Honestly, most of the alcohol gets cooked off, but the perception could work.

My dopey knee

My knee is still bothering me a little so I've decided to take a couple days off from running.  Yesterday, I did go for a walk with my husband and we decided to bring a garbage bag and a pooper scooper along for the ride.  The pooper scooper wasn't for poop, it was for picking up all of the trash we saw along the way and FYI it worked great!  OK, so here is the garbage count for yesterday.  Ciroc bottle, cigarette packs, again with the red solo cups, random paper, someones take-out lunch plastic fork and all, Henessey bottle, many mini bottles of Jose Cuervo, a towel, two t-shirts, three socks, and the weirdest item of the day.....the sole of a mans dress shoe. We filled up a thirteen gallon trash bag and I worked out my upper body at the same time carrying such a heavy bag.  I bet Dr. Seuss could have written an awesome book with those items.  Why did we find two t-shirts in a one mile walk?  Don't people notice their clothes missing or could it have been a part of the nasty condom sighting?  I don't think I want to know.  Yuk!  So, because of our escapade yesterday, we are going to try to find a way to encourage people who go out for their walks, to bring a trash bag with them and keep our city streets clean.  I hope this catches on.  It was kind of fun and disgusting at the same time.

Today I went and visited Mark and the crew at Kilometers, because I was still having some issues with my feet bothering me.  It sucks to get old, just saying.  I was fitted for a new pair of fancy sneakers and I was told to hydrate more.  I definitely agree that I am not handling the hydration issue correctly.  I will be hiding Gatorade in my bedroom so my family doesn't drink it all on me.  I wonder if I could possible hide it in my underwear drawer, because I know that's one place they won't go near.  I really hope these things help my issues and I can continue walk/running.  I don't know where couch potato Mary went, but I'm glad she's not around as often.  There are times when I'm just very tired and that is all a part of having had the bone marrow transplant.   The difference now is, I try to work through the tired.  The other unusual thing I do is, stopping in the middle of the street to feel the wind on my face.  Ever since I spent months in hospital rooms without any fresh air, I have this thing about the wind and I love the feeling on my face. So if you see a crazy lady in the middle of the street, looking up in the sky,enjoying a breeze, do not fear, it's only me.

Do people with smaller legs walk further?

I was up and out by 8:30 this morning, hitting the streets in all my running glory.  Amanda from LLS sent me a couple dri fit shirts with the Team in Training logo so I looked quite official today.  The most amazing thing is that one of the shirts fit!!!!  I was so excited and I knew I would do fairly well today.  1.49 miles in 30 min. and most of my jogging spurts were 40 sec. instead of 30 sec. and this time it wasn't because I was being flaky.  I'm also beginning to think that I do more then people with long legs.  Two of my steps can equal one of theirs and I may be working twice as hard.  Any thoughts?  I've been using a pedometer, and I'm wondering how off the mileage accuracy might be.  Tuesday, I'm going to try to figure out the GPS on my phone and use that too. 

My knee is still uncomfortable and my hip likes to cramp up on me, but hey, if I could go through lethal doses of chemo, this should be a cake walk.  This morning was a little warmer then it has been and I became thirsty.  Because of the bone marrow transplant,  I have some minor problems with dry mouth and eyes.  I use my eye drops before I run and I wear sunglasses to protect my eyes.  I'm going to have to start carrying a bottle of water to help with the heat.  My cheeks stay nice and rosy for quite a while and a few people have been commented about how relaxed I'm looking. 

The Sunday morning debris count was very interesting.  Lots of red solo cups and if you're a country music fan that will amuse you,  and many McDonald's bags.  Very interesting.  Tomorrow is clean up debris day with my husband.  I'll carry the garbage bag, but I'm not touching anything.  We have one of those grabby things, that I will promptly disinfect as soon as we return home.  I hope my neighbors don't think I'm a nut job for cleaning up random items along the street and maybe even on their lawns.  Then again, I'm used to people thinking I'm a little bizarre.  It's the joy of being me!

FYI

If anyone would like to read the short story I wrote about my journey with leukemia and my bone marrow transplant, leave me your email address and I'll send it to you.  It's not long, only about 6 pages, but if it can help anyone or educate someone I will be thrilled to share it.
Here's my email again mteicholz@yahoo.com

Muscle vs. Fat

Here is my question for today; How the hell did I gain 2lbs this week?  Could it be that muscle weighs more than fat or am I still eating too much?  I'm going to be honest and say that the exercise has made me a little hungrier, but 2 lbs, really?  Maybe I just hadn't pooped enough before I got on the scale.  Please remember, I'm just writing what I'm thinking and right now, I'm grasping at straws.  I need to believe that it's muscle, so I can continue with only positive thoughts.

I did my exercise with the band for my hips and I did the standing on one leg at a time and my balance seems to be improving.  Hopefully my core is getting stronger and...building more/some muscle.  That could account for half a lb, right?  My knee has been bothering me quite a bit the past 2 days, so this morning I prayed really hard that it gets better quickly. It's not swollen, just sore where I have my scar from my knee surgery.  I'm not sure if that's bad or good.   I don't know if anyone really realizes how much accomplishing this means to me.  I'm not joking about the praying, so if anyone would like to send a few prayers my way, I would greatly appreciate it.

This whole thing hasn't been easy, and I am enjoying it more then I ever imagined I would.  I remember joking and saying to my sister, "why would anyone ever want to run, yuk"?  It kind of seemed stupid to me, but I get it now.  I don't think I can put it into words.  It's a sense of being a part of everything around you and yet there is a serenity to it all.  I love being in my neighborhood and seeing people gardening or mowing their lawns.  Saying hi to strangers who are also outside or watching the progression of a project on someones home.  I also love when I'm almost home and I feel like I have a couple more streets in me to walk/run and I keep going, but not over doing it.  There is so much more to this than meets the eye.  I never in a million years thought I would shed a tear about my knee keeping me from running, but I did this morning.  The transformation of my thoughts is incredible!

Not my best day

This morning, I woke up a little earlier then usual  to get in a good walk/run before starting my day.  Unfortunately, I had a slight issue with a friend and it was difficult to get my head in the game. I really thought I might feel better once I got going, but honestly, it gave me too much time to think.  It was weird that my knee was hurting, my hip and side were cramping and I was just uncomfortable and icky.  I think not being in the right state of mind affected my progression.  I was able to do a little over a mile in 20 min. and my running "spurts" were for forty seconds instead of thirty.  This wasn't done by choice, I was just being a flake. Anyone who knows me personally, knows that my flaking out was bound to happen eventually.  I have to admit, if I had found one of those little bottles of Jim Beam on my run, I may have been tempted to take a guzzlet today.  I'm kidding, I don't drink.

If anyone out there has any advice about the cramping and my knee, please leave me a comment or email me. Also, any dietary advice is desperately needed.  Grilled chicken and salad are just not cutting it anymore.  I may even be developing a strong dislike to chicken. Mmmm cheeseburgers....enough said.  No one more thing, bacon cheeseburgers.  I know you can't see me, but I'm shaking my head yes at the thought of a bacon cheeseburger.  Damn cholesterol!

Tuesday April 10th walk/run

Sorry I'm a little behind on blogging, but things have been very busy.  I did do a walk/run on Tuesday and I did 1.32 miles in thirty minutes.  I thought this was pretty good considering the week before it took me 35 min. to walk one mile.  Also, a friend of mine taught me how to stretch out the front of my legs so they feel much better.  I was surprised that my hip starting cramping on me while walking, but as soon as I started to run, it went away.  When I got home from the walk/run, I stretched and made a protein shake with almond milk and 1/2 of a banana and I iced my knee.  I think this might also be helping muscle recovery.  By the way, I'm completely addicted to almond milk.  I love it in cereal, oatmeal, baking and shakes.  I just thought I would share that info.

Yesterday was a day off, but it was still very exciting.  I had the opportunity to meet Governor Mitt Romney and sit right next to him during what is viewed as his campaign kick-off in Connecticut.  Regardless of political affiliation, it is very cool to meet someone, who could potentially, be the next President of the United States.  I wish I had started working out sooner.  UGH!  If one camera adds 10 lbs, how many lbs. do many, many cameras add?  Holy guacamole this isn't good.

Unfortunately, today will also be a day off.  Tonight is a meeting on the portion of the budget that I am the Chairperson for, so I can't be tired and rubbing my legs.  Tomorrow, I'll be hitting the streets again and I think I'll do the 1.32 miles again.  It's funny that I keep telling people about what I'm doing and one friend started walking and another friend is going to start running again.  We'll see if this snowballs.

One more thing, in case you didn't notice, there is a place on the blog to donate to LLS.  Please consider giving a few bucks. After all, I am working my hiney off........or at least I hope I am.

Beautiful Easter morning walk/run

What better day could I choose to begin my running, then a clear, crisp Easter morning.  I had gone out Saturday night to get an inexpensive sports watch to time the walking and running so I was all set to go.  Coach Alan wants me to do 10-15 minutes of walking to warm up, 30 seconds of light jogging and then 2-3 mins of walking and so on, for 30 to 45 minutes.  He wants me to do this at least 3 times this week and to take a day off in between the walk/run.  Honestly, I would have no other choice then to take those days off, my legs ache like hell.  I sound like a friggin old woman walking up stairs and trying to get out off of the couch making grunting and moaning sounds, but it feels great!  I consider it the discomfort of accomplishing something.  I was having a little trouble catching my breath a couple of times and I hope that isn't going to be an issue.  I tried slowing down and taking a few deep breaths and that seemed to help regulate my breathing.  My feet are still aching from my fancy sneakers, but my hip and knee are doing OK.  Last night I thought my knee was a little tight and puffy, but no pain, so I iced it for 20 minutes and it's fine this morning. I did a 1.18 mile in about 30 minutes.  I guess the time will eventually get better.  I'm really enjoying this whole thing.

I know you are all curious about the debris count this weekend and it wasn't good.  Many empty cigarette packs, vitamin water, a whole ashtray emptied on the side of the road, lots of broken bottles and 15 liquor bottles.  I think there may have been many people who missed Easter mass because they were praying to the porcelain gods.  Yikes!  The big news is that the condom is gone.  Probably stuck on someones tire.  That would be a shocking surprise, to find a used condom on your garage floor.  How do you explain that one? 

One more important thing.  My fundraising website will be going up today or tomorrow.  The 5k that I'm training for is a fundraiser for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and my goal set by LLS is $500.00, my goal is....a shitload of money.  Please start saving your change or skip coffee once a week and help me make lots of money for an incredible organization.  They have changed my life.

Strength training

Today is a day off from walking so I did some of the strength training Coach Alan taught me.  This morning I took out my bands and worked on my hips and knees for a little while.  I didn't over do it, because tomorrow is Easter and I needed energy to do marathon baking.  Baking has to be another form of cross training considering I was on my feet all day and I kneaded two bread doughs by hand.  Now I know why little, old, Italian women can pack such a powerful hand upside the head when you talk back.  Not that I ever talked back, but I was a witness to such events.  Okay, I know it first hand....get it , first hand.  I just cracked myself up.

Since I don't have a lot to share work out wise, I'll tell you what I've cooked so far today.  The first dough I made was for the Italian Easter pie that is filled with lots of cheese, eggs and ham.  Then I made a rice Easter pie with rice, eggs and cheese.  Then I baked the Easter bread with the eggs in the braiding.  I only baked one cake so far today.  Tomorrow after my walk/run, I will make chocolate mousse to fill the cake with and also a lemon-berry dessert that is diabetic and heart healthy.  My sister is making lasagna and meatballs for the pasta course and ham, scalloped potatoes, asparagus and carrots for the standard Easter dinner.  For those of you not of Italian heritage, yes this is a fairly typical holiday dinner.  The type of pasta and meat may change, but stretchy pants are a constant.  Tomorrow may require two walks.  Happy Easter!

Some of my beginning difficulties

As everyone can see, I took yesterday off...or maybe I didn't.  Is shopping considered a sport?  I was on my feet for a long period of time, I did a lot of walking up and down isles and opening of the wallet.  The bottom line is, I was off of the couch and on my feet!  I'm considering it cross training.

I learned on my trip to Kilometers (a running store), that I need pronation support in my running shoes.  Mark, the nice guy who sold me my sneakers, explained that my feet roll in and this running shoe will help correct the slight problem.  So I was surprised when the outside of my foot was very achy after my first walk a couple days ago.  I called Mark up as soon as I got home and he explained that it can take up to a week for everything to adjust to the proper way of walking and for things to get realigned.  I have complete faith in him, because the cramping in my hip was 90% better.  These sneakers are definitely different then anything I've ever worn before, because my legs were pretty tired that night.  I'm honestly not a complete blob and I have done a ton of door knocking and campaigning where I have walked many miles, but for some reason this just isn't the same.

This morning I received my run/walk schedule for the next week or so from Coach Alan.  I need to get a watch so I can time what I'm doing.  I tried to use my cell phone, but it's impossible to see in the sun.  I also could use something I can read without glasses on, the bolder the better.  I refuse to blame my age for my eyesight, I choose to blame all the chemo I endured.  So that's my story and I'm sticking to it!

Today is day 3 of training and yes I am considering yesterday in my count.  Again I headed out incognito, I think my husband walking with me may have given me away, and I tried a longer route.  It's weird that I get a little out of breath early on and then it just goes away.  My feet were achy on and off and I've learned that my hip doesn't cramp if I conscientiously relax my shoulders, back and hips.  I'm trying to pay attention to what my body is telling me and it felt better today.  I walked 1.13 mile in 25 minutes.  At this rate, I'll do a 5k in 1 hour 15 minutes.  I better ask my husband Lee to have lots of coffee and water at the finish line so people don't get bored waiting for me.  I should check and see what board games we can bring to the race..... just in case.

Please send some words of encouragement my way.  If anyone is having trouble commenting on the blog, here's my email address mteicholz@yahoo.com

Day 1 of training

I just returned from my first day of walking for my training.  I put on the infamous sports bra, jeans, my fancy sneakers with the appropriate socks and a LLS survivor t-shirt.  I figured people wouldn't feel inclined to run me over if they saw the word survivor written on my back.  Oh, I also put on my black adidas cap and sunglasses.  I like to be incognito while I work out. If I wore my pink cap everyone would have thought I was a breast cancer survivor and that irks me.  Women do get other cancers, but that rant is for another day.

I turned on my pedometer and off I went.  I gave hello waves to cars as they passed me by and I stopped briefly to googoo and gaagaa at a baby in a stroller.  What a beautiful day it is outside today!  Then my mind began to wander back to my morning filled with aggravation and a person angry with me because they think their taxes are too high.  To alleviate the stress, I decided to count the liquor bottles on the side of the road.  Here's my count for today,  5 liquor bottles, 1 Mtn dew, 1 Arizona iced tea, 1 energy drink and 1 condom.  If I wasn't such a germaphobe, I would have picked them up, all except the condom.  That's just nasty!  Maybe my husband will come for a walk with me over the weekend and we'll bring a garbage bag to get this mess cleaned up. 

Anyway,  thinking I had walked a good distance, I decided to head home.  I thought for sure I had walked off the 2 cupcakes I ate for breakfast. I know, I know, I should have had oatmeal or oat bran and that's just another thing I need to work on to succeed. I walked into my kitchen and took off the pedometer, thinking that I had to have walked at least a mile and a half.  The stupid thing said .68 miles.  Are you freaking kidding me!!  This thing must be broken or defective or something other than accurate.  Now I need to figure out another route to add more mileage.  Day one down and I need to be proud of myself for beginning this journey.  Maybe I should celebrate with a cupcake!  I'm only kidding, I'm having a protein shake.

Meeting Coach Alan

Today I met with Coach Alan and he reviewed a basic game plan for my training.  We are starting out slowly, which honestly is the only way I can start, so it works for me.  He's sending me a schedule to follow tonight and it will be a walk/run schedule.  I just learned that that means you walk for an amount of time and then you run for an amount of time and so on.  I'm a little concerned about timing myself and not turning my ankle on a pothole or a liquor bottle.  People who drive through my neighborhood love to throw bottles out of their car windows. I guess no one taught them that they shouldn't throw anything out of their car window that a bird can't make its nest out of or at least that is what my uncle always said.  Maybe he just liked to litter.

Anyway, I think I am going to wear my TNT (Team in Training) t-shirt while I'm training.  Women's running shirts just don't fit over my ample bosoms and the men's shirts are crew neck.  I have to say, most women over the age of 45, do NOT want to wear anything around their necks while working out.  We are in a perpetual state of heat hitting us at any given moment.  Do you hear me Nike, Adidas, Reebok etc..? 

Enough about my train wreck of a body.

I'm very nervous and excited about this 5k.  I want to succeed, not only for myself, but for anyone going through a crappy illness and for those of us who have survived.  I just have to do this. I'm not even starting this venture from ground level, I'm more in the bargain basement.  Holy crap!  I must be out of my mind.

Sports bras

Anyone out there who doesn't want to know anything about sports bras should just skip this post now.

I'm a well endowed girl, but I've learned that sports stores do not cater to voluptuous women.  At one store, I met a very nice sales woman who pulled out a sports bra for me, and my comment was....."that will only fit one."  Are you seeing where I'm going with this?  The sports manufacturers don't cater to the peeps who should be working out, like myself.  No, they feel the need to make items as small as possible and just mock those of us with some meat on our bones. 

Sorry, back to the story and on to the next and most humiliating part of the day.  My husband and I decided to try one more store and I found a couple of upper region garments to try on.  I decided to try on the one that looked the largest to me first.  This one happened to be a pull over your head type, not a back clasp one.  Well, it made it over my head and my arms were through and..........that was it. So this stupid bra was stuck at the top of my chest. Not even remotely covering any part of my boobs and I just wanted this thing off.  I tried to get myself out of this torture garment, but it wouldn't budge.  Then my back starting cramping up from my attempts at being a contorstionist.  I contemplated throwing my denim jacket over my bare chest, that was even larger due to the pressure from the stuck bra, to go get my husband to help me out of this thing.  I had one more idea.  If I could get one of my arms through, maybe I could pull it over my head from the side.  It worked and I was free!!!!  Braless, but free and bruised!  That was enough shopping for me that day. I have to admit, I cried a little.

The next day I was off again to find this damn bra.  I was on a mission.  I found one that covered 95% of my breasts so I bought it.  I really don't want to have to buy a bigger waist size on my pants because my boobs have drooped down so far that I need to tuck them in my pants.  I want to look and feel better at the end of all this, so one bra down and many more to go.  UGH!

I also have a message for Nike, Adidas, Reebok and any other major sporting gear brand.  MAKE BIGGER SIZES TOO!  Now, I can't find a running shirt to fit either.  Will this ever end?  Well endowed chicks want to look cute too.

Why I'm training for a 5K

I think the best place to start is at the beginning.  Five years ago I was diagnosed with leukemia and I needed a bone marrow transplant to survive. March 1st was my 5 year anniversary, so what a better way to mark the occasion then to train for a 5K.  I have been active with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society(LLS)  for about a year and they do a 5K in Fairfield, CT every year. It's called Team in Training and I'll refer to it as TNT from now on.  I was the LLS Honored Hero for the half marathon last year and that is where this journey began.  Many of the employees of LLS do the 5K and they have inspired me to join along with them.  They are the most amazing group of people you could ever meet and they are setting me up for success. 

I've spoken to Coach Alan on the phone, but we haven't met yet because I just got my sneakers on Friday.  I guess I'm in the preparing my mind for all of this phase.  Every morning when I open my eyes, I tell myself that I'm going to be able to accomplish this run and be healthy along the way.  As you can imagine, my health is my number one priority and I just pray that my knees, hips and breathing hold up through all the training.  I'm very determined or some people may say stubborn, I'm not sure which, but it got me through some nasty cancer treatments so this, I hope, will be easier. 

Tomorrow, when I have more time I will share the trials and tribulations of apparel shopping.  It's not going to be pretty and I won't hold back so be prepared, this might be a bumpy ride.
I will post a "before" picture soon.