Running and Writing. And Writing and Running. And…
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzz….*SNORT* Huh? Oh… I must have dozed off for a second. Sorry. I suddenly have an excessive amount of hobbies and it’s taking all the energy I can muster just to keep up with them this week. I keep telling myself I can absolutely maintain this pace if I just try a little harder, but I’ve recently determined I’m a pathological liar. Although I haven’t figured out what to do with the information yet, so on I press.
Pros of this week:
1. I ran 10.5 miles. Not in one shot, of course. And really, ‘ran’ is probably too strong of a word. I probably should have said, “I covered the distance of 10.5 miles using only my feet as a mode of transportation.”
But my ankle, which was suffering from some kind of over-use or general stupidity injury after the Hybrid Adventure games, seems to be holding up. My hip was a little sore after this morning’s run, but nothing seems to be totally debilitating.
I have officially joined a team and registered for RAGNAR at the end of February and I registered for The Warrior Dash at the end of April. I’m about 75% committed to doing a Rim to Rim hike with my Dad and various other family members next October (this one scares me, though). I also really want to do this race Jason found and sent me (it’s nice to know I married a man who’s willing to indulge and support my insanity rather that have me committed) called The Color Run, in January. Apparently you wear a white tshirt and people spray paint at you as you run three miles. How awesome does that sound? It’s like combining art with exercise. LOVE. It also benefits Cardon Children’s Hospital, which is unfortunately, a place we know well. So even though that’s a ridiculous amount of events I’ve committed myself to, I’m probably gonna add that one too.
2. I’ve written 9,500 words for NaNoWriMo this week. And of course plenty of others for blogs and emails and stuff like that. I’m suddenly so conscious of every word that I type. I feel like I should get credit for them all.
I’m totally enjoying NNWM (no one calls it that). Not every second of it, of course. There were several hours this week when I really just wanted to ‘accidentally’ spill a diet coke into my laptop so that Jason would have to take it apart and clean it out and fix it and I would be forced to watch my shows I’ve been missing and drink my wine I’ve been abstaining from while I write (<-BLATANT LIE. I’ve totally been sipping my Chardonnay as I write at night. See? Pathological.).
But the point is, over all I already feel like I’ve learned SO MUCH about the process of writing long form and the stamina it takes to do it. It really is so much like running. It’s kind of awful at points while you’re doing it and you just have to keep telling yourself to put one foot in front of the other, and then you’ll get in a groove and time and the world will speed by. Plus, when you’re done with either you feel really proud that you’ve actually done it.
But, you know, still 32,500 words to go. And I don’t get any credit for the 545 I’ve just written here. Lame.
Cons of this week:
1. Not one of the SEVEN shortsales I’m currently waiting to have approved or at least responded to, made any progress this week. Dude. Can a bank please throw a girl a bone here?
2. I went to visit my Endocrinologist this week for a check up (not to just hang out and talk shit about our husbands or anything). I have a genetic auto-immune thyroid disease called Hashimotos (which is really a lot less of a big deal than all of those words make it sound) that I have to take medication for daily and blood taken once a year to make sure I’m correctly medicated.
So the con part is that when I got weighed, the scale was definitely sporting a number I hadn’t seen since freshman year in college when I lived next door to the student union and regularly ate four meals a day, for no other reason except to socialize.
When I sat down with the doctor to go over my lab results and how I’ve been doing, this is how it went:
Me – I’m feeling fine and everything. But my weight is up, huh?
Doctor – Let me check. Uh… yeah. You’re up about 6 lbs from your last visit and 9 total from when you started seeing me in 2009.
Me – NINE POUNDS? In two and a half years? Don’t tell my mother, OK? She’s your patient too. There’s an oath you took that says you can’t tell anyone about that, right?
Doctor – The Hippocratic Oath is about not doing harm. But no, I won’t tell your mother. It’s not that big of a deal. You’re still within an acceptable range for your height.
Me – Ugh, but I’ve always been pretty stable without having to work much at it. Is my thyroid medication off?
Doctor – Well, no, actually. Your levels are totally good. It’s not your thyroid.
Me – I’ve recently started exercising. Do you think it could be that I’ve gained muscle?
Doctor – Have you been doing heavy duty lifting and weight training?
Me – No… running 3 miles three times a week and taking ballet once or twice a week.
Doctor – No. You have not gained 9 lbs in muscle from a small amount of running and dance over two months.
Me – Well, I mean, I guess it must be my age. My metabolism is starting to slow down, right?
Doctor – You’re 33. Metabolism doesn’t start to slow down until people reach early 40s. This is not about your age.
Me – So what you’re saying is that I’m just eating crappy? And that if I keep it up in 10 years I’m going to be super fat?
Doctor – I don’t think I actually said any of those things. But I wouldn’t disagree with that statement.
So yeah. Gonna have to work a little harder on that. You know, in addition to the stuff I’m already this close to failing at. I can totally lose 10 lbs. <- LIAR.