Finding the Culprint

My belly has not been happy lately. Painful cramps, uneasiness ...and a slew of fun things that we are just going to skip over ;)... I've had to resort to medicines more often than I should.

I know this is not how I was created to live life although I can't seem to pinpoint the cause of all the stomach upset. I suspect a few causes but have no proof.

So I am thinking of spending the next several weeks after I am officially moved in playing around with my diet to find the culprit.
It would go something like this:

Each week I will maintain my normal diet while eliminating one aspect. If that week is pain-free, I'll be closer to figuring out what is causing my problems. Easy enough.

I currently follow a vegetarian diet.

Week 1: Dairy

Week 2: Soy

Week 3: Added sugar

Week 4: Gluten

Week 5: Artificial sweeteners

Week 6: Processed foods

I'm open to suggestions- do you have nay ideas? Do you have any food allergies or food aversions? How did you find out about them?

Do you TV?

Most people know watching TV can lead to higher weight.

"In a study of 26 to 36-year-olds, those watching more than three hours of TV daily were more likely to have excess waist fat than those watching an hour or less. Elsewhere, middle-aged adults who watched more than four hours of TV daily showed waists averaging over an inch larger than those watching less than two hours daily; their percent body fat and body mass index were also higher."

Sure, we know that. But this is what I found surprising:

"It’s easy to assume that the television-overweight link occurs when TV replaces physical activity. For many people, this does hold true. But even when TV doesn’t displace physical activity, research shows that we move around less and burn fewer calories when watching TV than when participating in other sedentary activities like playing board games, writing, reading or sewing."
Some nights I will get a good work out in, sit by the TV for a minute... and be sucked in for hours!

I do enjoy relaxing and watching my favorite shows (hello, Grey's!) once or twice a week, but some nights I waste on total crap! I'd rather spend my crap-TV-time on something more productive... like cooking or reading.

*TIP: If you want to watch TV but still keep active, try to foam roll, stretch or lift weights while watching!

What are your TV habits like? Do you ever get sucked in? Do you think TV hinders your active lifestyle? Talk to me!

source

Icing My Running Obsession

I received some great comments and suggestions on my last post about shin splints. Check them out if you missed it!

In case you've never been graced with shin splints yourself, I'd describe the pain as more of a "broken bone" type of pain more than just "sore muscle." It hurts! All of yesterday and today I've iced my shins and kept my legs elevated. Needless to say, I also took the day off from exercise. I didn't even go out for a walk because it hurt so much! Tonight I am going to yoga. I will also try a few minutes on the bike.

I've decided I'm not ready to give up my half marathon next Sunday. I'd like to spoil my shins over the weekend, fix my form, re-introduce myself into running next week- and hopefully run the race injury free.

I know this doesn't sound smart. I'm going to listen to my body... but I also really want to run this race.

I didn't realize how big of a part of my life running had become until it was suddenly taken away from me. Some days I spend two hours running... and when I'm not running I'm thinking about my next one! I plan schedules and plan nutrition around my runs. Running makes me happy... and finishing a run makes me feel good.

And to just stop (and surrender your half) is tough!

I'll keep you posted :)

In the meantime this article has some great information, stretches and advice on shin splints!

Uh Oh. Calling All Runners

Runners, I need your help!

I've had this persistent pain in my shins that has kept me from running- or at least from running well or running long distances. This pain flares up anytime I use my calves- even when I simply squat down to tie my shoe. Any time something touches it or the muscles are activated I feel pain as if a stick is dispelling pain straight through my shin. And it hurts.

I thought it could be shoes, but I’ve tried two other pairs from my regulars and it didn’t help. I even have special inserts.

I’ve tried foam rolling. Nothing.

I stretch.

When I run a long distance I run only a little the day before and almost always take the next day off, so I don’t think it’s overuse. My mileage is also the same as it has been for the past two months.

So something hit me and I looked up shin splints (what an idea, right?!). This photo shows the exact place I'm having pain. Uh-oh.
About Shin Splints

"The term "shin splints" refers to pain along the shinbone (tibia) — the large bone in the front of your lower leg. The pain is caused by an overload on the shinbone and the connective tissues that attach your muscles to the bone.

The risk of shin splints is no reason to give up your morning jog or afternoon aerobics class. Most cases of shin splints can be treated with rest, ice and other self-care measures — and wearing proper footwear and modifying your exercise routine can help prevent shin splints from recurring."

Running downhill is listed as a cause. My half marathon last month was all bridges. Hmmm...

Treatments for Shin Splints

1. Rest

2. Ice the affected area

3. Reduce swelling

4. Take an OTC pain reliever if necessary

5. Wear proper shoes

6. Consider arch supports

Have you dealt with shin splints? PLEASE share with me experiences you’ve had or any ideas that pop into your head. Two weeks before my second half marathon, this is not the time to have part of my body just fail on me.

Fashion and PR

So, there's a whole lot to cover like my first 10K (I did it!), a bunch of new readers (heya! thanks for stopping by!), my upcoming trip (itinerary to come!)- oh, and those Smoothie King winners since the contest ends tonight... but right now I need fashion help!

Tomorrow I have a Spotlight Gala at my university for a big public relations campaign my team and other teams in my graduating class did for non-profits. We dress up and get together all the non-profit people, school faculty and friends and family and throw a party!- and then give our well-rehearsed presentations.

I'm trying to pull together an outfit that will stand out, but we have to wear black and white (I'm hoping gray won't ruffle anyone's feathers!).

I'm thinking of this: A gray suit dress (thrift store, $3!!), a black skinny belt, patterned black tights and ankle-strap black heels (thrift store, $2.50!). Please let me know if it works! Please be critical!

Speaking of my graduating class, here are all the great people I've been able to spend the past 1.5 years with in PR classes. Aren't they a great looking bunch?!

And here is my individual team below. These people are great. We've been close since the start so we knew we wanted to work together when we created teams from our class. Matt and I live a block away from each other and have taken quite a few runs!

Here are the PSA's I created:

Roaches Take Over the Kitchen!!!!!

I need your help. Bad. Roaches have taken over my kitchen. I have no clue why, but the problem is growing. During the first month in my new apartment I found one dead roach in the corner. When one month later I opened my cupboard to find a roach crawling behind my box of oatmeal, I freaked out. I quickly bought and laid several roach traps.

Last week I stood in the hallway and watched the largest roach in the world crawl under my stove.... around the kitchen... The thing was HUGE. I laid more traps and some roach-killing pellets.

Now.. NOW... this morning I open my cupboard and see a roach. Just now I opened it and saw three running around my cupboard! Do you know what three roaches look like?!? I screamed. Loud. Then, I banged on the cupboard to scare them away (I need something from the cupboard!). When I opened it again, I saw one again!

I am so grossed out. My kitchen is clean and there's never any open food or crumbs left out. My apartment is part of a big old house... so maybe that has something to do with it. I'm going to the store right now to buy some serious spray to raid them with. I'm calling my landlord first thing in the morning. Ugh!!

Any tips? I never want to see a roach again!!!!

Daughters Are Always Right!

Remember my Mom? She was having some trouble with, um.. eating. You all gave her such great inspiration and advice that she's snapping into shape! I had to follow through with directions when I received this in my inbox today!:

SUBJECT: Tell your BLOG group this!

Today, so far, I had :

BFAST: 2 egg whites, a piece of ww toast with touch of canola/butter spread and a glass of o.j. & coffee w/little cream, no sugar

SNACK: FF plain yogurt, 1/2 scoop protein powder, 1 tspn flaxseed, blueberries

LUNCH: Salad with lettuce, corn, black beans, shredded carrots, onions, cuc's, tom's and sauteed chix breast w/ FF balsamic viniagrette

SNACK: small amount of FF plain yogurt with 1 scoop of protein powder

DINNER: making a stirfry with brown rice, broccoli, carrots and talapia fish :)) YUM!

I have been following the 6 small meals a day and Sandy (a healthy friend of hers) gave me a list of foods and which groups to eat with which to follow. I have been doing this the whole week. It is a lot of prep and $$ but I am getting used to it and liking all of the eating!!! :) Thought you'd be proud of me!

If you have people who refuse to exercise or eat right, don't give up on them! They won't put through the effort until they are ready, but you can try many things to help them see what works for them. Thanks for all of your comments before!

helpful tips

Often I face a battle between healthy, happy me and habit, junky me. I posted about this before and got some great tips that some readers use when they are faced with a tempting situation. I love real-world tips, so here's what they had to say:

- writing down everything you eat gives you time to think when you're tempted

-sometimes we don't feel the fulness right away. "Feel the fullness and take the time to adjust. Respect your body so it respects you back."

-ask yourself: "is it really worth it for x number of calories when I can have all these other healthier foods for less calories & more satiety..."

-sometimes just remembering: "eat the crap, FEEL LIKE CRAP"

-wait and go do something else. If you still want it after 20 min then go ahead.

-always remember tomorrow is a new day. Don't beat yourself up about it.

-when possible, keep "bad" food out of the house. "I am pretty sure that one day I will be able to have it around and not be so tempted, but for now I just don't."

-repetition helps some: "I try to eat the exact same thing for breakfast just about every morning, because if I don't have it planned out then I'd likely start to eat something and then think "ooh, but I've got ____ in the fridge- that'd be tasty!", and I'll end up eating 2 breakfasts instead of 1"

-sometimes a binge can happen when your body is lacking in something.

-Linds says reading French Women Don't Get Fat help her with her eating habits. Worth a try?

Thanks for all of the great tips. We all face those "oh, just eat it!" moments... followed by the "ugh! I will NEVER eat ______ again!" moments, so every tip helps. Lets make decisions that allow us to feel, look and be our best.