July 30, 2011 by tanner348

A Quick Trip

Friday afternoon Paul and I loaded up and went to Davenport, IA….we had no groups coming to camp this weekend, so it was a “free weekend” (and by weekend, I really mean just Friday night/Saturday, because Paul resumes his camp responsibilities on Sunday mornings at 9:00)….

If you can remember, I LOVE Chick-Fil-A!!

My love is found here and here and here….., so our original reason for going to the “Quad Cities” was to eat at Chick-Fil-A. So, since we wanted to drive an hour and 45 minutes to eat, we decided just to make it a trip, complete with a night in the hotel, swimming, a little “hot tubin”, shopping, going to the movies, and eating out! It was a great “trip” and we had a wonderful time together….

Friday night we went to Thunder Bay Grille right outside our hotel, off of I-80. It was so yummy!! I would totally recommend it if you’re in the Davenport area.

Super Yummy....

Cute pic outside of the restaurant

On recommendation from my friend, Kristal, we went to The Machine Shed, also in Davenport. It reminded me of a Cracker Barrel….the food was good, but I think, overall, we liked Thunder Bay Grille better -just the atmosphere was a little “swankier”-(I think they are both owned by the same people). And….East Peoria is getting a Thunder Bay Grille in 2012!!

The Machine Shed

Paul wanted me to take a picture of him by the pig outside….

Paul with the pig outside of The Machine Shed

After lunch we shopped for a little bit (Old Navy, Borders and Target)….we then decided to go to the movies….

Paul went to see Transformers….I went and saw Harry Potter, again…(don’t worry, we do it all the time….). While waiting for the movies to start, I took a couple of pictures.

I asked Paul to smile. This is what I got!

My wonderful husband!!

This is better!

Much better!

Then Paul took my picture. I thought it was funny b/c the blue flourescent lights around the movie posters (hanging on the wall) reflected off of my glasses….

weird reflections on my glasses (and a VERY close-up of my face)!

OK, let me just get this out there for the world to hear:

Here is popcorn etitquette for the movies….Do NOT chew popcorn during the quiet parts of the movie!!! The bag rustles around with your hand in it and you just chew TOO loud!!

Either eat all your popcorn before the movie starts OR just be conscious about the people around you who are trying to watch the movie and don’t appreciate you chewing!! (I had to put ear plugs in b/c the lady behind me was chewing so loud)!!

Anyway….

Here’s the reason for our trip!!

Chick-Fil-A!

So, overall, a GREAT short little mini-vaca!! 🙂

Thanks, Paul, I love you!!

July 28, 2011 by tanner348

5K Training Update

Life has a funny way of making you smile….

If you remember yesterday, I was very “down” about life in general….just one of those “eat a lot of chocolate, watch a girly movie, and cry” type of days (although I didn’t do any of those things)….

Anyway, tonight was much better!

Here’s an update:

On June 20th I did a timed mile on my first day of 5K Training…you can read about it here.

Three weeks ago, on July 7th, we did another timed mile…you can read about it here.

Tonight we did another one.

I ran it in 9:45…I shaved off 15 seconds, despite my hard week of my knees hurting and just feeling “down in the dumps.”

And, then we turned around and ran another mile (but Amanda didn’t time that one)…(but, I’d like to say I did it in about the same time and I beat the fastest girl in our group)!

July 27, 2011 by tanner348

I Feel….

Not to be a “Debbie Downer” but because this is life and this is real….

I feel defeated.

I feel let down.

I feel betrayed.

I feel discouraged.

I feel confusion.

I feel anger.

I feel frustration.

I feel unexplainable.

My body has left me defeated.

My body has let me down.

My body has betrayed me.

My body makes me feel discouraged.

My heart is confused.

My body/my heart are angry.

My body/my heart are frustrated.

I just can’t explain it.

I have gained weight this past week. Failure.

My knees have been bothering me since Sunday. Frustrated.

I couldn’t run on Monday or Tuesday (and it even hurt to walk at times). Betrayed.

I had a H-U-G-E fight with Paul today. Angry.

I’ve got some pretty heavy stuff to think about. Confused.

Yesterday and today, I have kept running through thorns, looking for the roses. I kept reaching for the next rung on the ladder but the one that holds me foot keeps breaking. I kept treading water but I feel like I’m drowning.

What a week…

But, because I am trying….

I am thankful that Paul had the night off last night and we were able to go out to eat and to a movie. (Of course, that was after my weigh-in at WW, so I wasn’t very good company, but nonetheless, it was nice).
This Friday night we are going to Davenport, IA to spend the night in a hotel and go eat at Chick-Fil-A (and yes, I’ve already figured out what I can eat within my point range).

So, despite the rain, those are my blessings.

(And, before my mother freaks out, Paul and I are fine. Just a fight. We got over it.)

July 27, 2011 by tanner348

Weight Watchers Update

Even thought I really DON’T want to blog about this, I’ve got to keep up the updates….so, here it goes….

Last night was my 9th Weight Watcher’s meeting….

The 1st night (May 31st) I joined and weighed….

The 2nd night (June 7th) I lost 5.4 lbs.

The 3rd night (June 14th) I lost 3.0 lbs.

The 4th night (June 21st) I lost 1.8 lbs.

The 5th night (June 28th) I lost 1.4 lbs.

The 6th night (July 5th) I lost 1.8 lbs.

The 7th night (July 12th) I lost 1.4 lbs.

The 8th night (July 19th) I lost 1.2 lbs.

Tonight (I’m so ashamed to admit this) I gained .8 lbs.

Please don’t ask why or how, I have no idea…..I was devastated. I just started crying standing at the weigh-in table. I couldn’t say anything, I was crying so hard. I just walked away and walked straight back out the front door and to the car. It was horrible….

What a let down….I just feel crushed and defeated….my body let me down….(More on that later)…..

July 23, 2011 by tanner348

5K Training Update

Today I ran 3.5 miles in 39 minutes. That’s roughly an 11:11 mile. Not too bad, considering I can do one mile in 10 minutes….

So…..if I can shave a minute off of 11:11, then I can probably do 3.2 miles in about 34 minutes….

And, to top it off, I did it at 2:30 in the afternoon when the heat index was about 100!!

July 21, 2011 by tanner348

Losing Inches

On June 4, 2011, my friend, Amanda, measured me….

Roughly 6 1/2 weeks later, she measured me again (today).

Here are the results….

Chest: lost 1 inch
Abs: lost 3.75 inches
Upper Arm: lost 1.25 inches Hips: lost 3.25 inches
Thigh: lost .2 inches

So, not too bad for about 6 1/2 weeks! I was hoping to lose a little more on the thighs, but I also know I started running, too, so that is building up muscle….

July 20, 2011 by tanner348

Weight Watchers Update

Last night was my 8th Weight Watcher’s meeting….

The 1st night (May 31st) I joined and weighed….

The 2nd night (June 7th) I lost 5.4 lbs.

The 3rd night (June 14th) I lost 3.0 lbs.

The 4th night (June 21st) I lost 1.8 lbs.

The 5th night (June 28th) I lost 1.4 lbs.

The 6th night (July 5th) I lost 1.8 lbs.

The 7th night (July 12th) I lost 1.4 lbs.

Last night (July 19th) I lost 1.2 lbs.

So, exactly 16 pounds so far….which is my 10% goal! I’m still working towards about 8-9 more, but I’ll get there, I’m sure….

July 15, 2011 by tanner348

I Am….

(A very long post….just words…no pictures….)

As you probably know I have been training for a 5K (you can read about it here and here)….

Since we have lived here our friend, Amanda, who owns the local fitness center, has done two or three 5K trainings (along with 10K, etc)….in the back of my mind I’ve always wanted to do them. But, I have always found one excuse or the other NOT to participate. Well, this summer I had no excuse. So, I’m doing it.

I had training with the whole group again last night (Thursday). As I was leaving, I began to think. Am I now a runner? When do you become a runner?

We seem to define ourselves by certain gifts and talents that we have. For example,

I am….a singer.
I am….a knitter.
I am…..a cyclist.
I am….a musician.
I am….a writer.

Are we those things simply because we do them?

Am I a singer simply because I sang one song when I was five?
Am I a knitter simply because I knitted one scarf when I was twelve?
Am I a cyclist simply because I own a bike and have ridden it a few times over the past two years?
Am I a musician simply because I took guitar lessons for about three months?
Am I a writer simply because I have a blog?

I think the answer is no.

Just because you sang once, doesn’t make you a singer.
Just because you knitted once, doesn’t make you a knitter.
Just because you rode a bike once, doesn’t make you a cyclist.
Just because you strummed a guitar once, doesn’t make you a musician.
Just because you wrote an essay once, doesn’t make you a writer.

So, the question is: when do you become someone?

There is an Indian mystic, guru, and spiritual teacher (think the movie, Eat, Pray, Love) who once said, “Drop the idea of becoming someone, because you are already a masterpiece. You cannot be improved. You have only to come to it, to know it, to realize it.”-Osho

Although I really do like that quote, it makes me wonder….

So, should I just stop trying to become someone? I am destined to be who I am right now? I hope not.

If I had that mentality when I was five, I never would’ve learned to roller skate (because I was destined not to).
If I had that mentality when I was nine, I never would’ve learned to ride a bike (because I was destined not to).
If I had that mentality when I was sixteen, I never would’ve learned to drive (because I was destined not to).
If I had that mentality when I was twenty-five, I never would’ve gotten married (because I was destined not to).

Therefore, my question remains:

When do you become someone?

This past Thursday night I asked myself, “Am I now a runner because I can run a mile in 10 minutes? or Am I now a runner because I can run .25 in 1:44 (which, by the way, means, at that pace, I should run a mile in 5:76) or Am I now a runner because I beat the fastest person in our group who took training last year?” When do I become a runner?

Of course being born in the 80’s I am now living in my fourth decade and only have the past 3 decades as a reference point, but I do believe that our society has conditioned us to measure ourselves all the time against something. We live in a world of comparison. We live in a world of “barely getting by.” What does it mean to “barely get by?” What’s the measurement of “barely getting by?” Who decided what was enough to “barely get by?” We have been socially conditioned to compare ourselves to others and use others as our own reference point for success or failure.

If I forgot the words to a song, would I never sing again?
If I forgot how to do a complicated stitch while knitting, would I never knit again?
If I forgot how to shift gears on my bike and crashed, would I never ride again?
If I forgot where to put my fingers to play a certain chord, would I never play the guitar again?
If I forgot how to spell a word, would I never write again?

According to society, maybe I would. We have been conditioned to put so much pressure on ourselves to accomplish something that sometimes we get stuck, feel depressed, feel put down, and eventually even “give up,” accomplishing nothing.

There is a girl in my running group that is a “large” girl. I have not officially introduced myself but I do know her name. (I’ll call her Sarah). Sarah would probably not be classified as a runner. But, do you know….she never gives up….she keeps going….and the coolest thing:

Every time I run past her (I lapped her a couple of times last night) she always says, “Good Job…” to me…

Last night when she said that to me, I got tears in my eyes. Why would she be telling me “Good Job?” Not to sound boastful, but I do run faster than her, it’s obvious. So, if anything, I should be encouraging her.

But, instead, she is encouraging me. Which makes me smile (and tear up)….she obviously has not been conditioned to be satisfied with her destiny. She is trying for something more. She is pushing herself past her destiny. And, for that, I will be sure to encourage her next Thursday when I see her.

So, when do you become someone? Am I now a runner? I asked my friend, Susanne, who is a runner. She said, “I think it just happens. One day you will find yourself saying it, pause, and think, ‘Well, I guess that’s true. I AM a runner.”

For now, I don’t think I’ll add it to my list of Activities on FB, but deep down I think I am becoming a runner….

I Am….a runner (wannbe)…. 🙂

July 12, 2011 by tanner348