Weighty Matters

I will not be applying to be a Victoria’s Secret model this year.

There’s no need to hire a photographer to airbrush me into perfection for a $5000 portfolio.  I don’t need to get waxed, plucked, pinched and tucked, because I am going to pass on that application process.

Yes, yes, I’m marathon training and toning up beautifully. And without sounding like an arrogant a**, I would even go so far as to say that I am beautiful.  I glow, especially when I smile, but I will never be rail thin.

I’m hovering around my ideal weight, at least, according to my dietician, and despite that glorious truth, I am way too lush to ever be considered skinny.

Yes, another year has come and gone, and I will not be applying to be a Victoria’s Secret model this year.

At some time in my teen life, I looked at the pictures of magazine models and thought if I starved myself, had surgery, worked out, prayed to God, or was struck by lightening that there was a chance I would be that thin.

But I’m always lush, always have been, always will be.  Even when I’m at my version of skinny, I’m still lush.

Which right now, I am my version of lean.  The cookie and wine “belly” from Graduation is fading into nothing.

No, no one will ever describe me as thin, but they might say I’m fit, and that will do.  I think fit is hot.

Despite feeling pretty good about my body at the moment, I was recently at a Company Wide Health Fair where they casually informed me that I am borderline-obese and I should probably work out more.

(gulp)

I thought that I was at least fit enough to be considered healthy and that I would slide under the Biometric Measurement Radar, but alas, the sirens went off as soon as my BMI was calculated.  Then came the Body Fat Measurement tool, and within minutes, I was marked as a fatty.

The buff 20something year old standing in front of me blinked hard right before he read his screen aloud and said, “Your body fat percentile is (SERIOUSLY THAT IS A REAL NUMBER?)”.

Ok ok.  He said the actual number.  It was really high considering that about 1/3 of my clothes are too big for me lately.  Now to be fair, that also means that 1/3 of my clothes are too small and the other 1/3 are older than at least one of my kids.  I digress.

“You’re pretty close to the line though,” He added helpfully during my Health and Wellness Coaching Session.  “You could lose a few pounds and get out of the Very-Over Weight category and be in the Over Weight category.  Maybe... have you considered an exercise program?  You could try working out 3X a week.”

I sat there with my resting heart rate of 56, with my cycling quads and my running hamstrings and looked at Buff Boy for a long minute.  I thought of 800 comebacks to his suggestion that I work out, and ultimately, I bit my tongue. 

I smiled my emptiest smile and looked at the clueless but earnest face staring back at me. 

“Yes, that is a very good idea.  I have been thinking about taking up a sport.  I will try working out 3 X a week for the 2014-2015 fiscal year to see what fitness gains I can achieve before next year’s Health Screen.”

I said that, knowing full well that the odds of my achieving Buff Boy’s recommended “thin-ness” would not happen by next May, or next June, or next Century.

So, no, I will not be applying for a job as a Victoria’s Secret model this year.  I will, however, be running 30-40 miles a week from now until October. 

And let’s get serious, one of those things is way more impressive than the other, because I don’t have be anorexic, or starving myself, or 20 years old, or blessed with freakishly perfect assets, or surgically enhanced to accomplish that feat.

I can just go out, work hard, and do it.

And this week, I knocked back a blistering 85 degree 20 mile run in full sun.  

Now, I could be wrong, but I think that should help me meet the requirements for working out enough.  I mean, that seems like a legit "workout"

Also maybe, if I exercise a little more, the next 20 won't be quite as "long" as this one.

~savor the run~

No Cows Please

Anemic Runner seeks Iron Rich Foods to Share Long Runs on the Road, Improved Hgb Counts, and lots and lots of FLAVOR on a hardwood dinner table. Must be Easy on the Budget and Hips. 

No Cows Please.

In the last week I have eaten meat at one meal and fish twice. This was a radical change in my eating habits, I assure you... the most fun day on the menu was the day I randomly went Vegan for the day on Monday. I think I might try to go Vegan Monday & Tuesday this week. 

I still eat fish without any guilt at all, and I'm still not willing to say "I'm 100% giving up 'meat'".  Nor am I willing to 100% give up Chobani or cheese. I already don't drink milk because milk and I argue violently whenever we hook up.

However, this week I learned that there is plenty of deliciousness out there for eating... aaaaand I'm not sure that mammals need to be on my menu.

I have a new BFF

Those of you who know me well will understand the significance of this... but I have a new BFF. We met at the gym today, and at first I was apprehensive.

For one thing, my current BFF, prior to 10:10 a.m. Today was, in fact, Bart Yasso from Runner's World.

He & I have been pals for years.

What's funniest about that is that at first I *jokingly* blogged about how he was my BFF cos the first night we met, I held the door for him ("I carried the watermelon"). And then our online banter became such that one day I was walking down the street in San Francisco and he called me out, by name.
And then he introduced himself to my aunt as my BFF, so at that point, I realized:
I was Bart's BFF for realz. <~ anything with a Z on the end has more street cred. i'm pretty sure.

Anyway, what happened at the gym today went down like this.

I was ~kinda~ in the ladies locker room in the middle of getting dressed when I saw my new BFF. And I wanted to walk over and all that right then, but I didn't want to walk over in a state of semi-nakedness cos ~yeah~...

#tacky.

So after I pulled on my clean workout clothes, I did approached somewhat timidly.

I meandered across the room, and cautiously stepped up to my new Pal. We exchanged some looks. I glanced around to see if anyone had noticed us together.

I cringed, expecting the ABSOLUTE WORST.

And then, I realized that this was either the BEST BFF EVER or A TOTAL LIAR.

My new BFF told me with convincing honesty that I'd lost 8 pounds in 2 weeks.

Maybe my cookie eating-beer drinking-bread consuming holidays are finally behind me.

Oh, yeah, here's a picture of my Bestie's sister. I can't share one of my ACTUAL BFF, because taking a picture of you & your new BFF in the ladies locker room at the YMCA is definitely a way to get your membership revoked.

Place the blame where blame is due. aka I'm pretty sure that it's the food, not nursing school, that's making me fat

This is what I ate for Brunch the other day... er. I mean, I ate 1/2 of this after my 14 mile long run... 

and then I ate the other half the next day after my 10 miler.

Sweet potato waffle with chipotle syrup and fried chicken that melted in my mouth... mmm.

Anyway, as soon as I saw it on the menu at EAT I wanted to try it. I like trying new things. I do... but this was a bit excessive, even for me.

So...

I had *some* guilt when I finished eating this ridiculous indulgence. Partly cos I'm getting a bit chunky. And partly cos I'm not sure the chicken appreciated being my brunch/lunch/post run meal.

Did you know I used to be a vegetarian? 

Yep. True story. For several years of my life. And then I got lazy, and started relying on starches too much, and that didn't work out so well for my waistline either. I'm thinking about going back to vegetarian-ism. It's not like it's totally "new" for me. I've been there before.... and I enjoyed it.

I wasn't a runner then though, and I have a few concerns. I guess I'll deal with them as we get there.

So my plan is that I'm going to ease in... I'll start by cutting back meat to every other day. Cut out some of the raw dairy.... and get going from there. 

Basically what I'm saying is that this week I'm flying by the seat of my too tight pants, cooking whatever sounds appealing in the moment.... this is a sample from my new menu.

Tofu and Ratatouille over Pasta. 

(yes, they're elbows because it's what I had and I was too tired to shop)

LUSH vs. LEAN

In June I was invited to run with the Advanced Marathon Training Team in Richmond.  These people (Those People) are quite something.  Knocking out 7:30's on their training runs while singing Scottish Drinking Songs at the top of their lungs, not to mention doing random things like running sub 3 hour marathons...  it's sick.  And I mean that like ~ they're freaktastic ~.

One thing that really sticks with me as I reflect on Those People is that they are a really fit crew.

If you come visit RVA and see a bunch of UBER fit people running around town in black shorts and no shirts (the women just wear sports bras), that's them.  And by UBER fit I mean they are lean, muscular, runner build 'type' people.  On the TYPE scale of runners, Those People are lean like Death Valley.

I guess, on the Type Scale with Death Valley (1) on one end, followed by the Grasslands of the midwest (2), in the middle we have the small tree clusters that dot the African Savanna (3), which is squeezed up next to Temperate Deciduous Forests of the Eastern Seaboard (4), ...I would fall at level (5).

The Tropical Rain Forests of South America.

I'm lush, thick, a little wild, quite dense, with a darkness tossed in there that even I haven't fully explored.

This "lushness" is really noticeable when you put me next to a runner type... like, say, my Bestie T.

There's just a lot of me.  It's good that my H doesn't seem to mind all the extra me there is these days.

After my run with Those People in June, I realized I'd moved beyond curvy and onto squish.  I had the equivalent of one of those foam can-coozies people use to keep their drinks from overheating wrapped around my midsection to stop my abs from getting hot.  er, from being hot.

What's frustrating about this is that I think under all that *coozie* there's a really good runner.  A much better runner than I am right now.  And I'm not going to mince.  I'm "good".  Am I ~like wow~ show stopping, Black Team Worthy, 7:30's for 15 miles?  No.  But I'm a solid little runner.  I get that.

I just... well, I could be better.

"I could be better..." are words I live by, sad but true.

So.  After my Black Team Student Exchange with Those People... I decided I was really selling myself short.  I have connections, and managed to get in touch with a nutritionist, Brooke.  This lead to my break up with Nutella (~sigh~) and Ray's Italian Ice & Frozen Custard.

Brooke really struggled with the runner thing.  We had to build a calorie schedule around my (lame) metabolism that also worked with my ever changing mileage, had enough Iron to meet my needs, and a lack of red meat to meet my lack of interest in eating cows*.  Her theory of "set a calorie count & only eat that count - no more, no less" got derailed once my long run hit about 10, and add in rest days and toss in some 3 milers for fun.... and we had some challenges to get the plan rolling.

For the most part I hung in there with the "trial and error-slash-mad science experiment", did what she said, and ground my teeth as the feedback on the scale was unchanging.

Then she decided I wasn't eating enough, and set me up on a new plan.  I've lost about 4 pounds since we started the new plan.  It's a far cry from where I'd like to be, but 4 pounds is measurable progress, and at this rate I'll be close to the racing weight goal I set by the time I get to my A race.  I just need to keep my focus.  I said as much in our last phone call.

And, I love Brooke for saying this...

"GBA gf?  If you put as much effort into your eating as you put into everything else, you could be at racing weight whenever you wanted.  For some reason, you don't.  It's the one area in your life that you allow yourself to be lazy.  Why would you choose this one area, of all things?  You have will power to get up at 4:30am, but not will power to avoid animal crackers?  It's selective reasoning that makes.no.sense."  
(well, that and cleaning house, I'm lazy there too, but I feel we're going off topic).  

Thanks Brooke.  I (heart) you.

I shared all this because many of you who read my blog are runners, and I know ~ some of us ~ don't run to lose weight, but would still enjoy a little less coozie and a little more hotness.  I'm going to get up now, and get back to work cleaning my house.  And yes, Brooke, I'm on track today.

Because really, today is the only day that matters.  Stop worrying about what you ate yesterday.  Stop fretting about how you're going to handle avoiding animal crackers or bunny snacks tomorrow.  Just be in the moment.

*I'm not a vegetarian, and I do eat red meat including cows, but I don't eat much, because I just don't care for it all that much.  This is not a social statement, nor is this a suggestion that you need to eat or avoid red meat.