Winter Birds

Apr 24, 2010 Posted by Sarah on Apr 24, 2010 in Heart, Marathon, Nutrition, Queen, Reading, faith, health | 1 comment

Some totally true things about Sarah that have happened in the last 10 days:

1) Thanks to a dear generous friend I will be going on my very first flight for my very first trip to Washington D.C., traveling for the first time all by myself, to run the 35th Annual Marine Corps Marathon on October 31 in honor of my grandpa. Yes, I realize I said I wasn’t doing any full marathons this year. Rules are meant to be broken, right? I. Am. So. Stoked. Every other day I pull up the website for the race and get all giddy all over again.

2) I started reading the book In Defense of Food; An Eaters Manifesto by Michael Pollan. This book has completely changed the way I think about our food industry. If anything it has made me desire to be an even cleaner eater. Pollan pretty much sums up

the book in his first paragraph, “Eat food. Not too much. And mostly plants.” He wants you to eat real food. Not edible food substitutes that you find in the store. It has made me question everything we’ve ever read or heard from nutrition scientists about what our body “needs.” If you care anything at all about your health, not necessarily weight loss, but general health, I would recommend this book. You probably won’t look at foods the same when you walk through the grocery store.

3) I ran the Go! St. Louis Half Marathon back on April 11 with my running partner du jour Ashley. We had a super time that weekend. The day before the race we went up to St. Louis, went to the expo and wandered around downtown by the Arch. It was a gorgeous day to be out. She took me to Whole Foods for my very first time there. Wow. I love that store. I think I could have happily stayed there for many enjoyable hours. The race itself was pretty swell too. The weather was perfect, if not a little on the warm side. There were LOTS of people. If you’ve run any kind of race before you know that the first mile or two is pretty crowded and clogged up with people. You expend a lot of effort and energy dodging people. Unfortunately, in this race we never got “unclogged.” It was full the entire time. Most of the time it was ok, but some miles were pretty annoying trying to find holes to run through. Like traffic in a car, accidents happen when the folks in front of you just stop. Immediately. Anyway, Ash and I just chugged right along at a pretty snappy pace for two gals who haven’t run longer than 7 miles since January. However, around mile 10 the strangest thing

We wanted that cart!

happened to me. It was as if my hip just popped right out of socket. It was pretty darn painful. Once I got running again it was ok for a bit but we had to take frequent walk breaks for those last 3 miles. Nevertheless, Ash and I finished with an official time of 2:12. Not our best but not our worst. Its a little sad because we were under 2 hours before my hip went kaput. After we got back I went to the chiropractor and my hip was still in place, but I severely strained my IT Band. New shoes, therapy, stretching, ice, rest, and no heels for a couple weeks…I’m almost good as new.

6) I officially to signed up to work, in some capacity, with The Caring People. It is amazing to me to see God work and move in my heart. I am thoroughly excited and can’t wait to get involved. I am attending a whole day of leadership training this coming Saturday. Please pray that God leads me exactly where I need to go with this group.

5) It was time again to go see Dr. C, my cardiologist, for another check-up appointment. Can you believe it was time for that again? Anyway, it went well. The medicine I’m on seems to be doing it’s job. Because it does manipulate my blood pressure she’ll have to see me more often (have to keep an eye on it) so I’ll be seeing her again in 6 months. Right before I go to D.C.! She’s anxious to see how I handle the summer, as the warm months are my worst. I’m still allowed to exercise but I’m to know my limits and not go past them. And if I’m going to run long (I didn’t tell her I signed up to run another marathon) I have to rest when I need it. And drink even MORE water. Yikes.

6) I planted my very first garden. Sitting in my backyard in 4 pretty planters are tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers. I am anxiously anticipating some yummy vegetables out of these things. Let’s hope all the gardening knowledge that my boss attempted to pass me will pay off in my produce. I also planted 4 pots of flowers that are on my front stoop/porch. They are so pretty! It is dark now or I would attach a picture. Orange lilies that are blooming like crazy and some crazy deep purple flowers brighten my doorway. It’s a nice surprise (and instant gratification) to see the pretty blossoms. Those will keep me occupied until my garden has some magic in it.

For a few other totally random things about me that have recently happened (or are going to happen):

7) I am going to make my own laundry detergent and deodorant.

8 ) I painted my fingernails black again. This is the second time in my life that I’ve done this and I feel so goth.

9) I’ve started DVRing Days of Our Lives again. Geesh, how do I get sucked into these stupid soap operas? I stopped watching this show when I was in high school. Now that I’ve kind of picked it up again not much has changed. I could think of 1,000 better uses of my time but I still watch. I’m a sucker.

10) Speaking of television…I want to start watching The Office. From the beginning. I need to find time for that. Goodness, I keep catching re-runs on TBS and that show is hilarious.

TODAY I LOVE: Chick-Fil-A sweet tea and lazy rainy Saturdays

SONG OF THE DAY: “Winter Birds” by Ray LaMontagne

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