Posts by floataway

Original Post by cpa_pfs:

As to weight loss  ...  do it early.  Do it now.  Surprisingly, it is hard to lose much weight when you train hard for a marathon.  Especially when you have long runs. 

 Listen to this.  You are already asking a lot from your body from training and you will NOT have the energy for long runs if you are not eating enough. 

Also just because you are fit it does not mean you will be good at running and can't just jump in and start running hard, you will hurt yourself.  You body needs time to adjust to running, as hard as it might be START SLOW. 

Take it slow and don't assume that just because you have gotten good at biking you will be good at running at first. That and have fun!

I am also a beginnger runner and I run between 4-6 miles right now training to finish a 20k.  I run 3-4 days a week always with a day of rest between runs.  I feel like this makes a HUGE difference and I can run longer and feel better if I rest.  I only run outside and I think running inside vs. outside and the terrain you run all make a huge difference. 

I run in the woods and there are a lot of things that make it more difficult: soft ground/sand, tall thick grass, uneven ground/roots/pinecone, hills, heat and humidity.  When I get a chance to run on a level paved surface it is a BREEZE and I feel like I could run forever. 

My point is, don't feel bad for slowing down when you go outside, it IS harder.  I think it would benefit any runner to run outside sometimes especially if you are going to run a race.  Plus when you are outside you have to learn to control your pace instead of the treadmill doing it for you. 

Original Post by jturnerx:

I'll second what fitnessgirll said about developing an allergy to something you never had a reaction to before. I had this happen to me with Neosporin. I had put it on a minor kitchen burn like I'd done a million times before for cuts and stuff. Only this time I ended up with 3 doctor visits and a week out of work because of a terrible, terrible allergic reaction to it. I'm deathly afraid of Neosporin now.

I'd keep an eye on the reaction. It could get progressively worse or go away.

 I totally understand how dangerous it can be.  Next time it happens if it seems like it is any worse I am just going to go to the doctor.  It seemed a little worse this time then last and I'm afraid of what might happen next time.  I was mainly just wondering if anyone knew if being exposed while exerting oneself could make things dramatically worse.

I had hives over my whole body, feet/knees/thighs/stomach/arms/scalp and they came on FAST.  I am generally not a very allergy prone person, I had bad hay-fever when I was a kid and am allergic to rabbits (came on in my late teens) but that is it. From what I have read if you generally don't have bad reactions and then suddenly something makes you have one it's not a good sign.

My mom's + others solution: stop running.  Not going to happen.

Edit: I took a couple childrens benadryl and went to bed and woke up feeling totally normal, no more hives.

I think I need to invest in some benadryl and take it right when I get home if I get the itchy palms warning sign.  Hopefully that will stop it from getting so bad.  We haven't had any on hand so it was 30-60 minutes before I took any the last two times.

cc31:  Isn't it amazing what will stick to you when you are sweating?  I got out a little too late in the evening the other day and came back with a bunch of tiny dead gnats stuck all over my sweaty chest/neck/arm.  Yum.

Original Post by fitnessgirll:

Sounds more like an allergic reaction to the insect. Do you know what type of fly it was?

 I don't know, I didn't even see the one last night and I didn't really pay any attention to the first one since I get chased/annoyed by bugs constantly here (Florida).  I know I have been bitten by yellow flies here and deer/black flies in other states and have never reacted to them. 

Original Post by jules817:

you really need to get something down before you take the pain meds they give you. i didn't eat enough before taking them and they made me sick to my stomach.

i would't eat oatmeal the first day, cause it'll get stuck in your stiches and stuff.

applesauce, mashed potatoes made thin, and cream of wheat were also easy for me to eat.

 Great tips! Thanks.

Sorry to side-track the topic but I have started getting serious about running in the last few months and am up to about 6 miles on my long run.  I run about 3-4 times a week and am planning on doing a 20k this fall.  I have had my running shoes for....years.  Mind you they have gone long stretches without being used at all and I used them as my all around workout shoes for a while (on ellipticals and such).

I run outside, always.  I never run on paved surfaces and am constantly going over roots and sticks and pinecones and up and down steep slopes.  I run through sand and grass and dirt and mud.  My feet NEVER hurt, nor do my ankles.  I feel like I have pretty strong feet and ankles and I don't want a shoes that doesn't let me FEEL what I am running on or elses I am likely to hurt myself or wipeout.

Any suggestions for a more light weight and less cushioned shoe that can stand up to the elements?  Should I look for shoes that are made specifically for trail/outdoor running?  Do I even need new shoes if I have no problem running in my old beat up ones?

So I took a day off and ate my maintenence calories and then yesterday I ran my first five miles and it was AWESOME.  It was easier and more pleasurable than my last couple runs which were only 3 and 4 miles.  My legs were rested and instead of listening to my same old playlist I listeneed to NPR on my mp3 player which kept my attention but allowed me to hear my breathing and keep my pace better.

YAY! 

Thanks guys your input.  I think I might scale down the cross training that involes leg work to once or twice a week.  I was just getting so frustrated because I was progressing so well then BAM...I seemed to regress.

I guess I should just listen to my body, huh?

Eating raw can be healthy but you do have to do your homework and can't just eat a bunch of fruits an veggies.  You really should eat lots of raw fruits/ vegetables/nuts and seeds/sprouted grains and beans/sea vegetables some even inclue raw dairy/eggs and fish.

You have to know your stuff.

I worked with a woman who has a lot of digestive issues and the only thing that helped was eating all raw.

I tried it and took away a lot of wonderful things like green smoothies, hemp seeds, coconut oil and I eat more raw veggies an fruits and whole food than I did before, but 100% raw was not for me.

That being said what you are doing is not eating raw.

Before I was on birth control I had the same problems.  Not as much nausea, but I felt like I had to go to the bathroom constantly the first coupledays.  I also would get shaky and have cold sweats (along with cramps yada yada).  The only recommendation that I can make is STOP taking the midol.  It has caffeine in it and that can make your symptoms worse.  If you don't get bloated you can just take a regular pain killer for the cramps. Once I realised this and stopped it helped me out a lot!

Good luck.

I almost had a hippy name, my mom wanted to name me Jewel ( I am 24 now) but my dad didn't like it and she settled on Jessica.

While I don't mind my name there were always like four Jessicas in all my classes and I wish I had been named Jewel.

My parent's were/are total hippies.

Original Post by pdxkittn:

I have this problem with my boyfriend's parents. We've been together for over 8 years and his family knows I'm a pescatarian (only meat I eat is fish/seafood) but for holiday dinners they always serve nothing but meat. Even the veggie side dishes have some form of bacon or chicken broth or something. I'm pretty sure that even though she is nice and welcoming on the surface that his mom is trying to make me feel unwelcome passive-aggressively. I think it may be because we haven't yet provided her with a grandchild and have have no plans to do so, despite her (over-the-top obnoxious) pleading. I usually deal with it by sitting at the dinner table with everyone else with basically nothing on my plate, make small talk, etc and leave ASAP to get something to eat elsewhere. Yeah not really a great solution, and needless to say we don't see much of his family. I think next time he can just go by himself, or I might try bringing a side dish to share. Not sure how well that'll go over as his mom's a little territorial with the food/kitchen.

 That is a huge bummer!  I totally feel for you.

Original Post by ds1973:

 Is your boyfriend also a vegetarian?  Do you think he'll become one?  I may be wrong on this, but you may have a rough road ahead if you decide to become a stricter vegetarian and your boyfriend doesn't.  I would never have given up meat for a girlfriend, but that's just me.  That's a topic for a different thread.

 

 He is not but I cook and we have several meals a week that either have venison (which I will eat- but not more than 1-2 a week) or that can be made both veg. and with meat plus some all veggie meals.  He isn't a HUGE meat lover to begin with and I don't expect him to give it up.

Thank goodness these aren't his parents, who do all they can to make me feel welcome, but his cousins family.  I am beginning to think it's more on the rude side.  They will also manage to strand me in the house watching the kids (6, 2 and 8 mo.) while they all go outside to drink and smoke almost everytime I come over. Good thing the kids are cute.