My History of Running

Once upon a time, I was actually a pretty good runner.  Nothing amazing, mind you, but I learned that I could run distance and was good at keeping a pace.  Running was something I kind of fell into in college when I was really struggling with my weight.  I was on a few different anti-convulsants and seizure meds throughout college and one of the major side effects was that I put on some weight that I could not get off no matter how hard I tried.  I ran to just burn calories and try to maintain if not lose some weight.  The summer before my senior year I worked as a nanny and got into the habit of running every morning before I went to work.  I eventually had a base of four miles and was able to lose some weight. 

Once I graduated, I moved to a new town and rented a house with a childhood friend and some other Christian girls.  Two of those girls had serious running backgrounds, so it was easy to stay motivated when I saw my housemates running quite frequently.  I had a relapse with my seizure disorder and running became a major outlet for stress for me. I did not have control over my work or career situation, was back on seizure meds and felt like my life was completely adrift but running was something I could have control over.

I finally ran my first race in 2006, the Camp Pendleton Mud Run.  My ambition and desire was to run a full marathon.  I had seen numerous mailers for Team in Training and loved the idea of running to raise money for cancer research.  I had no idea how prophetic that desire would be when my own father was diagnosed with a form of blood cancer.  I had motivation like I never had before in running.  I was really proud of my training in that period and had a strong goal of finishing my marathon in under five hours.  Despite hitting the wall badly at mile 22 and having to finish most of the race from that point on walking, I finished the San Diego Rock n' Roll Marathon at 4:44:46 (chip time).  I ran the Camp Pendleton Mud Run again that summer.  My relationship with Eric was in the early stages and after that summer running was not as big of a priority.  I was also having health issues that I now know were linked to my adrenal insufficiency.  I did not have the energy or ability to be running.

2007 Mud Run- Snagged this from my friend's Facebook account.  I am the muddy girl with the hat on.

Then life continues to goes on. In spring of 2008, Eric and I were planning our wedding and I was involved in a hit and run accident.  I was rear ended and the person that hit me fled the scene. Fast forward about six months and I was a newlywed living in a new state and still trying to recover from the injuries from the car accident when I was rear ended again in a chain reaction during icy road conditions.  The first car fled the scene so it was considered another uninsured motorist/hit and run accident.  Fortunately there have not been anymore accidents but it took a long time with physical therapy and chiropractic care to even think about running again. At one point, my pain control/orthopedic doctor told me to seriously think about not being able to run again.  That was hard for me and I really had to surrender that to the Lord and give up my ambitions.  The ambition itself was not bad but it had a place in my heart where it meant more than it should have, hence it was an idol.

Getting ready to line up.  Power gel and my Camelbak.

I am laughing that I actually posed all proudly with my medal with a Coca-Cola sign.

In spring of 2010, I was slowly making progress and was starting on short runs of 2 miles.  Then we got pregnant with the twins that summer and no high impact exercise was allowed.  After that I was recovering from birth and all the moms reading this know what that can be like.  Once I was staying  home with the boys, I tried taking lots of walks and eventually got them loaded up into the jogging stroller. I was really out of shape and was able to run a mile at most without stopping for a walk break.  I used the MapMyRun app on my phone and kept just trying to plug away.  Then I finally hit the wall again in terms of my adrenal insufficiency.  I started taking hydrocortisone again and within a couple weeks I was already feeling so much better. I just kept chipping away at the running and was running 2.0-2.5 miles without stopping.  Mind you, this is with pushing about 50 lbs. of toddler plus the weight of the jogging stroller.  I am an incredibly goal oriented person. Without clear goals or deadlines, I can totally procrastinate or fall into lazy behavior.  I knew that if I was really going to improve with this running thing again that I was going to have to sign up for a race.  I also had an unofficial New Year's resolution that I was going to run a race before 2012 was over.  Originally I was aspiring to run a 5K back in June but then I started having the really bad fatigue and muscle pain and most of my summer was then trying to get healthy again.  I looked into local events and saw that the Nevada Day 8K was at the end of October.  That met the 2012 cut off that I was looking for.

All that to say that I am running the Nevada Day 8K on Saturday.  I am nervous but the good kind of nervous.  I am excited and I am looking forward to having my hubby there.  He has never seen me race so this is a big deal for me. Running is getting back to me, a part of me, that I have not prioritized or not been able to do because of health issues and investing myself into my family.  I want to set a good example for my kids and for my husband that health and fitness is important.  I cannot wait to update you all on how I do!  I have a time goal but I am telling myself to just be proud that I am able to run again.  It has been a long journey back and I am grateful for the lessons I have learned about life along the way. 

Random Friday

First off, Happy First Day of Fall and Happy Friday! That's a great combination, isn't it?

-The boys are the biggest bundle of sweetness in the morning. After they wake up and I nurse them, they coo and smile and touch my face while cuddling with me. It's awesome.
-They also slept 9.5 hours straight last night without so much as a peep. Enough said.
-I love my husband. Marriage gets better and better.
-I have been thinking about doing a post on post-partum health and fitness as a way of motivating myself to get serious about getting those last pounds and inches off. Hmmm, I guess I have to now that I wrote that. Hold me to it.
-Our little photo shoot last week actually went pretty well and the prints were better than I expected. We have some family photos to hang up now and that makes me happy.

And because photos always make a post more interesting and because I am ridiculously proud of my boys:



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Random Friday

It's Friday! Here's to (hopefully) sleeping in this weekend.

Part of the jumble in my head:

-Our baby boys are three months old today. I am feeling sad that they are leaving the newborn stage but loving how expressive they are becoming.
- The boys are having a bit of a setback in the sleeping department. Abraham is still doing really well and will typically do one feeding during the night and go right back down to sleep. Winston wakes up, feeds and sometimes thinks it's time to play. It's okay because I know they are able to sleep longer periods and it makes me feel encouraged. The main thing is that they are healthy and growing and it just may be they have to nurse at night for a while longer.
- Eric bought a BOB double jogging stroller for only $40 at our local thrift store. I used to be a runner but life events have removed me from an activity I really enjoy. Hopefully this summer I can start getting back into it. First, I need to work on rebuilding my core before I start more strenuous exercise. I have abdominal muscle separation (diastasis recti) from my twin pregnancy and I don't want to risk a hernia.
- I really want my house to be organized. And decorated. Did I mention organized? We have been in our new house for three months and we still have boxes to unpack and a garage to clean out. Time, energy and money are scarce resources around here and exactly the things needed to get that stuff accomplished. I think it has taught me patience. It will eventually happen and all the more gratifying when it does.
- Work has been going really well. I have been working on lots of documentation for the EPA. It's good to be busy and to feel good about my work. It's hard to be gone from the boys during the day but it makes me thankful that I can excel at work and help provide for my family.
-After taking a sabbatical for the last few months, Eric is back teaching the Youth Bible Study on Wed. nights. Also Riverside Youth Conference, a big kick off to our usual summer schedule, is right around the corner. I will be staying home with the boys this time around.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Summer Recap

The Guddats at Riverside Youth Conference 2009

Well a lot has happened in the last months so I will just lay it all out:

• Our summer basically got off to a really fun start when my best friend Kathy and her husband Dave came to visit us for Memorial Day weekend. We had a great time together which involved seeing Tahoe, Virginia City, getting awesome Basque food and them teaching us how to mix a mean margarita. Kathy and I have been friends since 9th grade and what makes our friendship so special is that there is no pretense. If we don't talk for weeks or months at a time we fall right back into place.
  
• June was busy. My childhood friend Case came to visit (he grew up on the dairy next door to my dad's dairy). Our good friend Dave married a lovely lady named Tiffanie. Dave's family was able to stay with us during the week and the next day after the wedding we headed down south for the Riverside Youth Conference. For those of you in the know, Eric and I met in 2007 through this event when we were both chaperones. This year we had 35 kids attend from Grace Community! Now that is quite awesome. It was a bit interesting getting the caravan down there but I think DH did a great job executing all the plans, details and cracking the whip (kidding with the last part). Stephen Gambill from Nashville, TN was the speaker and he addressed the kids on "Living Christianly in All of Life." It was pertinent and convicting to all.
• July was visitor month. We had my mom, stepdad and little bro come up 4th of July weekend. More driving around Tahoe and Virginia City with Truckee in the mix. We had a BBQ on Sunday night with Jeff, Harmony and Alicia. We utilized our fire pit a lot over the summer to make s'mores...mmmmmh. We made an incredible 36 hour trip to So Cal for our friend Cameron and Joy's wedding. Adam came with us and it was so much fun. Our friends Dave and Robyn put us up for the two nights while we were there. The wedding was a lot of fun and it was wonderful getting to see our friends down there. Later that month my dad and stepmom came up. Virginia City again, no Tahoe. We went shooting (but unfortunately not long enough). Lots of margaritas (I made sure to put that after the shooting).
  
• We started off August by hosting Newly Marrieds at our house. We had 7 couples, the food turned our great and the discussion/fellowship was really edifiying. August also means that we have been married a year and what better way to celebrate than to hang out with family? No, seriously. My brother-in-law (for lack of a more clear term, maybe I could call him my Mike-in-law?) has been working in Reno a lot lately. He is a professional navigator for trophy truck races. The company he races for sold a truck to a racing company in Reno which means he is up here during the week a lot. Reno is still too far to see him on a regular basis (especially when I work in Bridgeport). All that to say, Mike, Zabrina and the kids decided that they were gonna be here the weekend of our anniversary. Mike was up here already so my dad and stepmom drove up with all the fam. We rented a boat on Tahoe and it was a lot of fun! We also did some more shooting this time. I shot the AR for the first time and I must say that I kind of like that. The following weekend Eric had a bachelor's weekend for his buddy Brandon. He was gone camping and fishing and I hung out with some girlfriends. I played Bunko for the first time and, went to Dawn's bridal shower, exercised, watched movies and stayed up way too late. I eventually got my special date night for our anniversary which included a nice dinner at Walley's (for those that don't live around here please don't think I am talking about Walmart) and a blingy watch as a gift. The next day we went to see G.I. Joe (I know, I love my husband) because I had already seen my girly movie choice, Julie and Julia, with my friends the weekend earlier. Later we went to Firkin & Fox and watched the UFC fights.
  
• September and Labor Day weekend mean the end of summer but apparently not our busy lives. Our friends Brandon and Dawn got married Labor Day weekend and it was a great experience with very happy bride and groom. I got better acquainted with Eric's firefighting compadres and spouses or SOs which I enjoyed. Labor Day we actually labored and went woodcutting...all day. I was sore later but it felt good at the time.
• In general, Eric is busy teaching the high school/junior high age at church on Wednesay nights. He tag teams on Sunday mornings. I have started working 4-10s which is fantastic in that I get an extra free day (I am choosing Fri.) but difficult in that 10 hour days are 13 hour days with the commute. Some days go longer and when I leave at 6 something and get back at 8 it's hard physically because the drive really takes it out of me (especially the 300+ mile field days). I am blessed to have a husband who packs my lunch, makes me my protein shake, my green tea and helps get me on the road. He really shows me how he loves me everyday. I am trying to get back into exercising after my back injury which is hard but overall I am feeling better. I had an MRI and I have a disc that potentially is damaged or it might just be degenerating. I was bummed when I was told I couldn't run because that is what I love but remembering I am blessed to be able to exercise in general. Eric's shoulder is doing pretty good. He is going to be going back to the swim center for work outs since that is good for his rotator cuff.

Check out the photos from our summer plus others at the following link from our Facebook album (and if you are on there please add us!)

Fighting the Happy Holiday Fat =-)

For weeks Eric and I have been saying that we should start going to the gym regularly now that we have settled more into a routine. It took a bit but we have started! Eric signed me up with his membership so that with the cold weather really lurking around the corner I can still get some work outs in. We both have been in good shape at different times of our lives so now it is time to get back there once again. With holiday cookies and breads soon to tempting all of us at every turn, I am determined to be a little proactive.

By the way, the pumpkin we prepared turned into really good pumpkin bread. I also made my first loaf of apple bread this last week. So I guess I am my own worst enemy but if I get my humming bird metabolism back it won't be quite an issue, right? Alas, the days of having the 20 mile runs and knowing a milk shake was not going to do a thing to my thighs =-)