This past week was a good week for meeting goals. On Thursday, my weight hit 143.8 lbs., which doesn't sound incredibly awesome except for the fact that I've now lost 60 lbs. I was pretty ecstatic Thursday because it's taken me a very long time to go from losing 50 lbs. to losing 60 lbs. I'm also now within a healthy weight range for my height. I think the last time that happened I was probably 8 years old. Now I've got 20 lbs. to go and it will probably take a long time to get there, but so be it! I'm not 100% sure yet if 125 lbs. (technically, 124.4 lbs.) will be my final resting place. Because I'm now concentrating so much on becoming a strong runner, I know that the lighter (and stronger) I am, the faster I'll be able to go. Distance running chicks are super thin (I've started following a lot of different women's running blogs, so now I'm getting a sense of what I really need to do to improve.) Truly, I think 115 lbs. would probably be an ideal running weight for my height. So, I guess we'll just have to see. My plan is to get to 124.4 lbs. and then reevaluate.
Today, I decided to "woman-up," go outside, and brave the ice and snow. We got between 5-6 inches at our house with the top layer being a very solid sheet of ice and today was an absolutely gorgeous day. Not a cloud in the sky. It was cold, but because of all the snow it was so bright that it didn't feel too bad. There was also very little wind! So, I decided to head out and do this weekend's long run. I had spent all week being really annoyed that my run was going to messed up by the weather. Friday night as I was laying in bed with the snow swirling outside, I decided that I was going to do everything I possibly could to do my run on Sunday. I mean, really, people in Boston and Michigan and Denver and Minnesota still run when there's snow, and I am not one to be outdone by a bunch of non-Southerners!
So, I woke up this morning, ate my bowl of steel-cut oatmeal (with Craisins and pecans) and my bowl of Boston Creme Pie Yoplait and then let it digest for an hour and a half. Then around 11:30, I put on my layers, laced up my shoes, and headed out into the elements for my 9.5 miles. Surprisingly, the run was pretty easy. It didn't get bad until the last mile when parts of the road were getting really slushy. I left our 'hood and headed east on Old Faison Road, turned south on Bethlehem Road, then eventually took a right on Grasshopper Road, then a left on Poole Road, and then a right on Hodge Road, which took me back to Old Faison Road. I also had to run a little bit on Clifton Road (a deadend off of Old Faison) and then a little bit past our house to get my 9.5 miles in, but I did it, I didn't stop, I didn't fall, and I didn't die! (Here's the Garmin map of the run: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/23652581). It was by no means fast (1:55:33 at 12:09 min/mile), but I'm OK with that since I was on a sheet of snow and ice the entire time and I was purposely being cautious because I absolutely didn't want to fall. I'm just super proud of myself that I did it! (My dad and Clay also had long, cold, windy runs today. Dad did 10 miles from Morehead City to Fort Macon and back and Clay rocked out 8.5 miles at a 7:39/pace!! I am so proud of them!)
My legs felt so funny when I stopped running. It was like they had formed a memory of the running movement and it was hard getting my brain to tell them to walk. So weird. When I came back in, I had a granola bar and a huge glass of soymilk and then stretched for a long, long time! After a shower, lots of water, and a Zone bar (~200 calorie lunch-type bar), I laid down on the bed for a long time and just stretched out my legs. It felt SO good. Brian and I ventured out for a super early dinner and I had a hearty portion of salmon with creamed spinach on the side and a yummy salad. I was under no impression that the creamed spinach was good for me, but it tasted SO good! :-)
Speaking of exciting running news, Brian just figured out that our hotel in Queens this weekend is super close (one block away!) to Flushing Meadows Corona Park, which is a really nice and HUGE (1255 acres) park that hosted the 1939 and 1964 World's Fairs. Here is the ABSOLUTE BEST PART about it. The park was built over an old swamp and ash heap site that was what Fitzgerald called "The Valley of the Ashes" in The Great Gatsby. I am SO excited to be able to run in the Valley of the Ashes!!! Brian and I always joke about it and Dr. T.J. Eckleburg, so to be able to go there is a dream come true for this English major!!
And to bring this post full circle, I've also set a new goal for myself. I've been really frustrated with myself and my lack of reading lately and I've always been annoyed that I haven't read too many classics. So, my new goal is to complete the BBC Top 100 Book List in the next few years. I've read some of the books before, but I think I am going to reread most of them again because I'm really bad at remembering them! I'm starting my list off with The Catcher in the Rye in honor of J.D. Salinger's death. Here's the complete list: http://www.gribblenation.com/personal/laura/BBC_Book_List.pdf
The ones in bold I'm not going to reread because I've read them pretty recently and remember them (Lord of the Rings series; Harry Potter series; The Great Gatsby; The DaVinci Code; The Handmaid's Tale; Lolita; Memoirs of a Geisha; and The Lovely Bones). I am really excited to have good, diverse book list to conquer. I plan to blog a little bit about each book and what I thought of it. Some of them will be a challenge (Complete Works of Shakespeare and the Bible?)! Should be fun!! Oh yeah, and I'm not reading them in any order!
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