Marathon sponsors?

Sooo, I have a tiny problem on my hands. I officially ADORED the Pittsburgh Marathon and I am itching to sign up for another FULL marathon...SOON!

But they are so dang freaking expensive!!

Even the "cheap" ones are around $75, running up to $100 or more. Just for the entry fee! Not including the gas to drive there (not that big of a deal) and the motel room! I realized today that I'd have to pay for two nights at a hotel because well, I'd be somewhere around mile 19 when check out time rolled around!

Crap.

So this is my official announcement that hopefully falls into awesome hands via the power of the interwebz. I need a marathon sponsor. Badly. Hey, I could take pictures of and review the course and the four people who read my blog could learn ALL about it! What's not to love?! Seriously, we could be a dream match! Email me at: dietsbite@gmail.com. That's my real address.

Or, more realistically, I could just start saving money and pay for the damn thing myself.

Have you run any marathons or half marathons? Which ones do you love? Which ones have you heard good things about?

Thanks. I'm going to go back to drooling over Columbus Marathon, Marine Corps Marathon (sold out! the nerve of it!), Grand Rapids Marathon (helloooo, visit to my sister as well as having moral support on course), Akron Marathon, Air Force Marathon, and Philadelphia Marathon.

And maybe cry in the corner a little bit in jealousy of all who are running in them.

I DID IT!!

I ran the Pittsburgh Marathon in 5 hours, 14 minutes, and about 30 seconds!! I AM THRILLED!! I almost started crying as I crossed the finish line! It was truly an exhilaration like nothing I've ever experienced!

It is so strange to think that something I worked so hard for is over! These past 5 months were hard. I was juggling working, taking an Intermediate Algebra class (that was study-intensive!) and still making the time to train for the marathon. I turned down many social hangouts in order to run or study or sleep. And it was all worth it!! I can't help but compare the marathon to real life: sometimes like around mile 18 it just seems so hard and hopeless, but you just have to keep going. You can't give up just because you don't feel like doing anymore. And for me specifically, I am hoping my career change will bring the same sense of satisfaction. I am NOT giving up on it, even though it's hard and may appear foolish to many people. (I am "wasting" so much time and money on classes!)

I am almost unsore and I am ITCHING to sign up for another marathon! Right now running seems like the small beacon of hope in my currently semi-depressing life. Not to be all Debbie-downer, but I am extremely discontented with my life. Of course, that's why I'm working to change that, but it will be several years before I've even completed the pre-requisites. And I'm hoping that running marathons and half marathons will provide me things to look forward to and to break up the monotony of every day life. This is another reason I run.

Have a great Wednesday! And tell me:

What's the hardest thing you've accomplished in your life? And what thing are you the most proud of?

Why I Run

Why do I run?

It's a question I think about a lot. Almost every day, really. I run because it's hard for me. Every single mile I complete is a challenge both physically and mentally. Without fail, I'm usually ready to stop running after about 1/2 mile. But there is a kind and determined voice inside of me that says "Keep trying. You can do it. Don't give up." And this is extremely significant because for the first 23 years of my life, that same voice was a malicious, self-loathing one that only told me multiple times each day how ugly, fat, stupid and worthless I was. Where the change happened, I'm not exactly sure. Yes, it was definitely after the several year struggle with anorexia, then bulimia, along with chewing and spitting, binge eating, and restriction for years. But after I was recovered from harmful eating habits, I was still plagued by just-as-harmful thoughts toward myself and others. I hated myself and my body this time not because of what I weighed, but because of the fact that I "couldn't" run. I directed my self-hate to getting better at running. Although I did improve at running, my mentality was still extremely punishing and I only drove myself to shin splints and a stress fracture. It looked good on the surface ("Running is healthy!") but I was still tearing myself apart emotionally.

To be quite honest, I don't know exactly the moment where the change happened. But I suspect it happened after I realized I was running myself into the ground, not based on 100 mile weeks, but on my attitude. It likely happened when I realized I literally drove my boyfriend away from me due to this new, slightly more creative form of disordered eating/mentality. It definitely happened when I renewed my promise to be kind to myself, in part due to the wonderful fitness blogs out there. (healthytippingpoint.com, operationbeautiful.com, ohsheglows.com, among others.) And it happened when I realized that harming myself and making running an idol is a sin. And it happened in so many little things. It happened when I accomplished my goal of running a 5K without any walking breaks. And when I was forced to take last summer off because standing, much less running hurt so much due to the stress fracture. Ironically it happened when I had some "WTF are you doing?" moments while running. And it happened when I heard "I Run for Life" by Melissa Etheridge.

In other words, I now run because it makes my soul happy. Running keeps me healthy, physically and more importantly, mentally. Running forces me to be kind to myself, especially if I am to complete my goal of the Pittsburgh Marathon this Sunday! Running gives me an outlet for stress relief and provides me something that I can be proud of in my life. Every single time I complete one more mile, I am thankful for who running has helped me become. I consider it a blessing that it was and still is hard for me, because I never take it for granted. I want to inspire others to be kind to themselves, whether it is through running, or nutritious eating, or learning to voice their opinions, or learning that it's OK to say no, or that it's not selfish to get all nine hours of sleep that your body may require. I run because I can and I want to.

And that's why I'm running 26.2 this Sunday!

Be kind to yourselves!

The perfect egg sandwich

Yay, time for food pictures! I've been on an egg and cheese sandwich for...months now! Seriously, the combinations are endless as too what kind of cheese to use, on what type of bread, spinach or arugula, and spices to put on the eggs! Which of course has given me the oh-so-perfect excuse to try a bunch of different cheeses from Whole Foods and my local grocery store (they actually have a good selection!) Here are a few I've tried:

(Ignore the price per pound! I actually didn't know it was that much! Oh well; it's delicious! It has a coffee crust --brilliant!-- and lavender in it! Talk about gourmet...best thing about buying food for only one person is that I doesn't get that expensive overall. And by the way, this cheese is SOOOO flavorful! Almost too spicy/sharp but in a good way. I don't know how to describe it better than that!)

And another kind:


Also very tasty!

So the perfect egg sandwich "recipe" is:

1) Cook an egg stove top with whatever spices you want. I'm partial to garlic pepper, cumin, curry powder, and/or dried basil.

2) Put ketchup (organic obviously) on the bread/english muffin/whatever, along with your vegetable of choice. I use spinach and/or arugula and AVOCADO when I have it!!, but sliced tomato would probably be good as would sauteed kale/collard greens/chard.

3) Flip the egg over, add cheese of choice, turn heat down and let it finish cooking + let the cheese melt.

4) Transfer the egg to the sandwich and enjoy!

This is what the finished product looks like:


Or this:

Yeah, they're that good. (That's the coffee crusted cheese above!)

Other eats included two turkey burgers (on different days!). I got the pre-made ones from Whole Foods and this one included sun dried tomatoes and gorgonzola cheese. Somehow I trust meat from Whole Foods way more than I do from any other store. And honestly, I'm trying to get myself to eat -a little- more meat (health/nutrition reasons-I honestly believe we are omnivores and meat is a good source of so many nutrients!), so this was a good way to do it.


My trusty arugula again, and sweet potato fries on the side! YUM. This was my immediate post-22 miler run food!

Followed by these:

And this mixed into a bottle of water:

Later I ate a package of my favorite frozen veggies:


And most recently, I've been enjoying hugely decadent bowls of oat bran!

This was also after running 22 miles--I can eat whatever I want! :) And it's actually pretty healthy! This is strawberries with P B and hazelnut butter and a few raisins and chocolate chips. Totally nutritious...but there may or may not have been moaning while eating this! :)

And this bowl is toned down a bit, but still delicious! Same two kinds of nut butter, and SO DELICIOUS coconut milk ice cream! I'm going to patent that idea or adding it to oat bran. But in the mean time, you're welcome to steal my idea!

Well, off to teach! While I'm gone, let me know

What meals/creations are you currently loving?

Long run: done

I completed that 22 mile last long run this past Thursday! I'm not going to lie...it hurt and I'm pretty nervous about the full marathon. Oh, and I run SLOWLY...and take lots of walking breaks. But I did it and I'm confident that I can at least complete the marathon, which is my only goal!

Anyway, time to study. More food pictures to come!

Blessed and Happy Easter to All!

This is what a bad run looks like

So, I'm still training for the Pittsburgh marathon. The whole thing! As in 26.2 miles.

I'm not sure why I thought it was a good idea when I signed up, but the Runner's World Quote of the Day today was something to the effect of "Running a marathon gives average runners the chance to be more than average." And I liked it! It's certainly true! I am a sllllow runner, I never ran in high school or growing up, I take lots of walking breaks and it's still hard for me, but dammit I'm out there and doing it.

Anyway, I am planning to do my last long training run off 22 miles this Thursday. Holy crap...22 miles?!? But, I've completed one 18 mile training run, and also a half marathon. (2:25:xx in absolutely wretched conditions...4 hours of sleep, legs were sore from gymnastics, and it was 20 degrees outside. Oh, and I got lost on the way back to my car and ended up walking another 3 to 4 miles to find the darn thing.) Anyway, after that, unfortunately I had to take the past two weeks off due to some strange but intense pain in the bottom of my foot. It feels better now (*knock on wood*) and I've done 2 short runs in the past week.

Today, I ran four miles and am taking tomorrow and Wednesday off. (For me, running every day or even every other day isn't really an option...just not how my body works.) Anyway, the point of this post is to list all the ways in which today's run sucked and how I can learn from it to help other runs (coughThursday22milercough) be better. Or you could also consider this your list of things NOT to do before a run:

1) Sleep only 6-7 hours a night for the week before. Especially when you know your body requires 9-10.

2) Unintentionally eat way too little food the day before. (Stupid work-related busyness.)

3) Wear clothing that you realized was too warm for conditions, thus allowing major dehydration by the end of said 4 miles. Hello swollen fingers. Not good.

4) This is totally TMI but I really needed to poop by the end. Uhh, yeah.

OK, got it. I'm going to REALLY try to sleep a lot this week! And obviously keep eating like I normally do (read: a lot). Yesterday really was just an off day but I was surprised by how much it affected me today.

And now, back to studying Algebra. If you're the praying type, please pray for me on Thursday. I'm honestly a little scared of the distance but I want to do this so badly.

Classes, rain, life, blahblahblah

It's a rainy, gloomy day here. I'm trying to study, but too tired to be very productive. And I'm playing a symphony concert tonight. It's the last one I'll be playing for a long time most likely, as I'm stepping down from it in order to concentrate on teaching (which pays way better!) and my classes!! I am now registered for Sociology 101 for the first summer session. (I can't believe I never took that in undergrad! I did about a bazillion other General Ed classes, but somehow that slipped through the cracks.) And for the second summer session I'm taking Biology 1. (The real one, for science majors as opposed to the wussy Biology class I took as a music major!) It's going to be like 8-3pm Mondays and Wednesdays, but then it will be done. I'm grateful for community colleges that allow me to do all the pre-reqs I'm going to need! But unfortunately, I was looking at said pre-reqs list and I will be taking classes for a long time. I am determined to keep working for it though. No one said it would be easy, but I have a really strong feeling that it will be worth it.

In other news, I've been trying to cook more. I mean like actually cook, not just keep throwing together random (albeit delicious) bachelorette style meals for one. So I tried making Indian butter chicken and it turned out great! I eat very little meat, but I think my body actually prefers it, so I bought some organic chicken breasts (about a pound) and used a spice packet, butter and water to cook. If I can do it, anyone can!


Served over quinoa (by far my favorite grain or pseudo-grain!) with sauteed greens. And Magic Hat beer, obviously.

I should study for the next hour. Darn it.