The Lion King, painful but sorta short term, Downton Abbey

What. A. Week.  It is such a blur.  A blur of school, pain and stress.  Gah.  Glad that week is over!!! 

 

Before I pull out some happiness, some updates.

 

Workouts.  Even though it was (and is) painful to breath I had some quality workouts.

Sun: 10 mile run at 8:22 pace

Monday: 20 mins water jogging, 50 min suuuuper easy elip complete with Women’s Health Mag, 15 mins arms

Tuesday: 5 mile tempo run, 20 min elip, 15 min legs

Wednesday: 7 mile untracked run with running group, 15 min abs

Thursday: 30 minutes stair mill (with 15 mins Tabata intervals), 30 mins elip, 15 mins arms

Friday: 7 mile run, 15 mins abs:

Sat: 55 min spin class

 

I also stretch for about 5 mins after each workout and foam roll at night for a couple mins.

Pretty good for having pain while breathing! But none of my workouts made my chest pain any worse.  It was a mental relief and a really good distraction.  It was such a stressful week and my workouts made me look forward to the day.  So I did them.  

 

I finally went to the doctor yesterday.  Back up to Sunday.  I dry swallowed a pill and have had chest pain ever since.  Mostly when I breath deeply, move my upper body in certain ways, sneeze and cough.  Well, come Friday I wanted to crack this pain wide open.  Turns out it isn’t from my questionable pill swallowing habits.  I have costochondritis.  It basically is the swelling of the cartilage between the ribs and breastbone.  I have no idea what caused it.  It is super painful (and I’ve got a nasty case) and can last for a couple of weeks.  Well that’s cool.  

So I have to admit I hate going to the doctor, besides my primary care doctor in Minneapolis.  Let me explain.  I don’t have a primary care doctor here in Seattle because I see anyone who can see me at the student health center.  So these doctors don’t know me at all.  I have a medical record from the last couple years but, really, they don’t know me.  So each time I go to the doctor we have to do this sing-and-dance where the doctor is pretty certain every ailment is a direct effect from a long run.  Nope.  Rarely.  Ever.  For example, when I was at the doctor this time she asked what I had done on Sunday before the pain started.  I said ran 10 miles.  She looked like I was crazy and told me that was why I have this costochondritis thing.  I assured her that this was a normal long run (actually in the grand scheme of things a short long run) but we still had to go over the process for the doctor to agree this was not from running.  I really don’t know how I got this costochondritis thing but I’m certain it is not from running.  Probably from carrying my groceries home on Saturday.  Whatever.  The doctor was also concerned about my low pulse rate.  Note:  my pulse rate is normal for me.  So I had an EKG to prove that my heart is healthy and pulsing just fine.  I just feel like doctors make certain assumptions about me because I’m a runner that are totally counterproductive to any healthcare.  She was also surprised to find out I have a healthy BMI and am not on a diet.  Shocking.  I know.  It’s just frustrating. Rant over.

 

Here’s some good things:

1.  The Lion King.  The Lion King was on ABC family while I was doing some cleaning.  You’ll be happy to know that I still know MOST of the words to the movie and ALL of the words to the songs.  Such a GREAT movie.  I sang a long.  I’m not sure what my favorite old school Disney movie is.  Lion King is up there with Aladdin (on ABC right now!!), Little Mermaid, Peter Pan and Cinderella.

2. Painful but sorta short-term.  So my chest pain in painful, but short-term.  The doctor told me I have a remarkable ability to take pain.  Yup I have a high pain tolerance.  I take that as a compliment! I am so happy it isn’t something more serious.  2-3 weeks of chronic pain is enough!! I am such a lucky girl really.  And the doctor said I can continue my workouts if I can handle the pain.  Sure baby, I can handle the pain.  It really isn’t that bad once I get moving (hello endorphins) but talking and breathing is pretty bad.  Bottom line is that running won’t make anything worse, and, for me, will make it better.  

3. Downton Abbey.  I was pretty exhausted from my stressful week so I closed my books at 7:30 last night, made myself some dinner, and watched some TV (by TV I mean streaming online).  I watched an episode of Downtown Abbey last night.  I LOVED it!!! Totally my kind of show.  Historical (check), accents (check), about rich people (check), drama (check).  LOVE!!! 

 

That’s all for now folks.  So tell me: runners-do you feel like doctors blame running on really random ailments?  My favorite was when my eye doctor tried to blame a torn cornea on running.  Nope. Have you watched Downton Abbey?  Favorite Disney movie??

 

xoxo,

Emily

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What I ate Sunday

Howdy ho.  {Whining voice} my esophagus hurts.  Still.  It is a little bit better.  I did do an awesome treadmill tempo run (1 mile warm up, 4 miles around 7:50 min/mil) and, yes, it hurt to breath.  But the endorphins covered that up.  And my legs felt great.  I cooled down on the elip and did some legs strength stuff.  

 

So something a little different today.  I took pictures of almost everything I ate on Sunday.  People ask what I eat when I run 10 miles in a day.  The reality is that I don’t eat that much different when I run 10 miles because I’m pretty active everyday.  I might dip into the peanut butter jar more.  I’m not that much more hungry after 10 miles so I just make sure I’m eating often or my hunger catches up to me and I start not feeling so hot.  If I run over 13ish miles I make sure I add extra snacks.  Anyway.  Here you go:

 

Pre 10-miler coffee and banana wrapped in a whole wheat lavash wrap (TJs!) and grilled on my beloved Georgie. Yes I grill at 6:30 am

Post run: Tea, 1/2 cup oatmeal, 1/2 cup nonfat plain yogurt, 1/2 cup unsweetened soy milk, 1/2 cup water, sprinkle of Vega Protein Powder, scoop of almond butter

Lunch:Drippy egg in toast (1 egg + 1 egg white) topped with avocado, nutritional yeast, hummus with red pepper/green beans/carrots on the side

Unpictured:Grapes

Snack: Apple, about 1/4 cup cottage cheese + about 1 tablespoon cashew butter and Health Valley Amaranth Graham Crackers (these are good!)

Dinner: An Emilyesk meal. Brown rice, ground turkey (from the depth of my freezer, I had a craving), tons of roasted veggies (egg-plant, broc, kale, asparagus, spinach), canned tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, and roasted butternut squash on the side. Oh and skim milk. 

Unpictured: 1/2 cup plain non fat yogurt + little bit of Vega protein powder + large peanut butter scoop on the side (x 2)

I also drink LOTS of water and tea all day.

 

There you have it.

 

How do you fuel??

 

Emily

 

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Lessons learned, The New York Times, FedEx

How was everyone’s Monday???  Was it part of the weekend or the start of the work week???  When I lived in MN and WI I never got days off like President’s Day.  Washington State loves holidays.  I’ll take it.  I’ve had a tiring day so I’m going to make this a fly-by but with some very important knowledge spreading.

 

#1.  Lessons learned.  Getting smarter makes me happy.  Learning the hard way… not so much.  So I have this habit of taking large vitamins and pills without water.  I used to pride myself on this ability.  Well, that all changed yesterday.  I was taking my cod liver oil supplement that I sometimes take when I remember… without water.  And bam.  Wedged in throat.  Not like choking but def. there.  This happened before but usually it goes done without any real harm.  Turns out that this can scratch your esophagus.  Note, I have not seen the doctor so basically I have diagnosed myself with google and the peds nurse that works in my mom’s office half way across the country.  Basically, I’ve spent the day suffering pain when I breathe, cough, bend over… I haven’t sneezed but my guess that would be painful.  Man, I breathe a lot.  It is like heart burn with acute pain when breathing.  But I think it’s getting better.  I learned a lot about the esophagus today.  It is a muscle.  Huh.  So fingers crossed that it really is a scratch esophagus and not a tear.  This also made me realize how freaking lucky I am to not have any chronic lung problems.  So this is my favor to you: DRIVE WATER WHEN TAKING PILLS!!!  The ability to down pills without water is NOT a SKILL!! Lesson learned. This might put a damper on my usual speed drill Tuesday run… usually that requires breathing.  Blah.

 

#2.  The New York Times.  Maybe another reason why someone should give me a job in NYC is that I’ve read several articles daily from the NY Times since I’ve been ooooh about 18.  Before that it wasn’t online….eeeer it took too long to upload on dialup. Anyway.  I love the NY Times.  They know me so well, notice two articles from today: “Really?  The Claim: An Ice Bath Can Sooth Sore Muscles” and “Workouts May Not Be  The Best Time for a Snack.”  Worth a read and two things I am split on.  

 

#3.  FedEx.  FedEx made my life very easy today.  I had to mail an old work computer back to the company.  Getting a computer to FedEx is quite impossible if you are away from your house 10+ hours a day and don’t have a car.  But they were open today (no classes and low-key short workouts = lots of flex time) and got my computer all settled.  YES.  

 

Anyone else get a pill stuck in their throat??  Did I diagnose myself correctly? I really REALLY hope it isn’t something more serious.  Gah.

 

xoxo,

Emily

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Double digit run, coffee dates, blooming flowers

Hi, hi, hi.  Who has a three-day weekend?  While I’m not doing anything that qualifies as weekend (aka, relaxing) I don’t have classes tomorrow.  But that also means the gym on campus doesn’t open ’til 11.  Grrrr.  And it means I have no social interaction except for when I call my mom about more cover letters she proofed.  Oh and at the gym.  There are people there.  I digress… my life isn’t soooo lonely.  Or I’m used to it.  Graduate school is rather lonely for me.

That was depressing… oops.  That was not the intention.  So let’s shift gears to talk about some gooood things. Hmmk?

 

#1 Double digit run.  This is the first double-digit run I’ve done since the half marathon I ran in November.  It was slightly awesome.  It wasn’t raining so I decided today was the day for 10 miles.  Yup, yup, yup.  I felt good but tired out by the end.  That is my goal for long-runs.  Feel good but exhausted when I’m done.  Such a satisfying feeling.  I say, “Em, you done good.”  My legs are tired and my hip is sore (??? new pain???) so I’m going to monitor that.  I’m not even sure what I thought about on this run.  People wonder what I think about when running for over an hour.  I should add that I am ALWAYS doing a million things… except for when I run.  When I run I run, think and listen to music.  I do know I saw TWO baby golden retrievers and I was thirsty.  That last mile makes me happy.  

 

#2.  Coffee dates.  I met a friend for coffee this morning.  She isn’t a runner and didn’t quite believe me that I had already run 10 miles by 10 am.  No problem.  She knows I’m a morning person and I love running… what else would she expect?  We went to Forza Coffee Company.  They just opened a new location near Green Lake in Seattle.  Right by my house.  I very much enjoyed my decaf Americano.  Too late in the day for caf for me! I also enjoyed the company.  

 

#3.  Blooming flowers.  Yup the flowers are being planted in Seattle.  It’s neat.

 

This is random but the guy I rent from, who also lives above me, is being SOOOOO loud!!! He has hard wood flours to just him walking around is loud but why is he jumping around and throwing things at the floor???  WTF!!! He walks soooooooo loudly.  I have to wear ear plugs every.single.night.  Geeez I am looking forward to a new apt…. assuming I get a job sometime.  

 

Runners… what the heck do you think about on long runs??  It’s so funny how I never can remember… unless something is really on my mind.  

 

xoxo,

Emily

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Return of energy, ode to Uggs, built environment

Why hello there Friday.  Welcome to my life!!! As mentioned before, I don’t get weekends.  No relaxing for this girl.  School, school, school.  I am going to treat myself to watching Glee while I eat dinner tonight.  Or Gossip Girl.  Hmmm.  What a decision.  

 

So I bring you some happiness.

 

1. Return of energy.  Yesterday, I was DRAGGING.  And crabby.  It was awful.  I just felt yuck.  I did 30 mins of Tabataish stair mill stuff + 30 min elip + arms.  I thought a workout would at least get my mind off how tired I felt.  It did for a while but around 2 pm yesterday I was ready to call.it.a.day.  Alas, I had class until 6 pm last night.  Usually class energizes me but yesterday was just blah, blah, blah.  Today was MUCH better.  Even though it was soooo dark and rainy.  But I wrote two cover letters, applied for three jobs, had a productive group meeting and a good lecture.  I also bought stamps.  Buying stamps is a huge accomplishment because I’ve been meaning to for weeks.  SCORE! I also had an awesome run at 5:30 am this morning.  Woozers.  Can I toot my own horn?  My legs did NOT feel fresh.  I am not really a fast runner.  But those mile splits look nice.  Sometimes things just work.

 

2. Ode to Uggs.  Okay.  So the Uggs thing gets a lot of haters.  But they are SO warm and comfy.  I might have two pairs.  One pair is six years old and the other pair is four years old.  They were both gifts.  But wanna know what??? I wear them A LOT.  Like everyday.  Wanna know something else??  The LAST forever! One more thing.  They keep my feet freakishly dry even in the rainy Seattle crap.  Just waterproof them and your golden!!!  They make me happy! See??  That is a really old picture…

 

3. Built environment.  I love the intersection of public health, policy, and urban design.  Aka how we design cities to promote health.  I had a lecture today about the built environment.  I’ve taken a couple of classes as a graduate student on the subject too.  It makes my policy/nerd/public health/urban planning self giddy.  Here is something to think about.  Placement of schools and childhood obesity.  So in the last decades the rates of childhood obesity has grown, like a lot.  Also schools now tend to be on the outskirts of suburbs (because land is cheaper and the space is larger) so kids can’t walk to schools.  Most parents drive their kids to schools because there are major highways that separate the schools from the neighborhoods where the kids live.  I’ve got a lot more info where that came from but I’ll leave it at that.

 

Your turn: what are you looking forward to this weekend? What do you do to regain your energy?  Uggs… love ‘em or hate ‘em?  And just curious… how walkable is your community???  

 

Xoxo,

Emily

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Cover letter proofer, purple tights, group runs

Happy Wednesday! 

 

3 little bits ‘o happiness comin atcha.

 

1.  Cover letter proofer.  I have a secret to my job application madness.  My mom proofs all my cover letters.  True story.  She’s really good at making sure I have commas and that I don’t get lazy after writing so many.  She knows nothing about applying for jobs.  That lucky duck never really had to apply for jobs… well I suppose she did when she was about 25.  But it was very different then!  I have given her 20 years (aka all my years in education) to get REALLY good at proofing stuff.  She’s an expert.  Plus she really wants to avoid me needing to move home.  My mom, dad, and I have come to terms that moving back home would just really really suck for everyone involved.  I love my mommy!

 

2. Purple tights.  Today I wore my purple tights! They make me so happy.  They were ooooh about 4 bucks at Target so they are cheap cheap cheap! Winner tights! I go way back with purple leg wear.  When I was five I had a total melt down on a family road trip in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.  Mind you this was the FIRST morning of a week-long road trip.  Anyway, I NEEDED purple pants for my outfit.  I’m not sure where this need popped into my five-year-old brain.  Up to that point I never owned purple pants.  Apparently I had the PERFECT outfit planned out and it was not complete without purple pants.  I needed to make a good impression on that loooog car ride.  My mom loved me.  Well 20 years later I bought some purple tights!

No, there is not a Christmas tree in my tiny apartment.  However, I wore the same outfit today as I did for Christmas.  I just love those purple tights!

 

3. Group runs.  I met my running group for a run at 5:30 am this morning.  It was a little bit slower than I normally run but that is okay.  My goal on the group runs is really to meet new people and be social.  And I chatted the entire 7 miles! I averaged 9:02 minute miles…so actually it was a lot slower than usual! I probably needed a slower run though.  

 

Tuesday I did a speed workout on the tread mill on the gym.  It went down like this:

1 mile warm up (starting at 9:30 min/min and increasing to 8:30)

3/4 mile @ 7:15 min/min + 1/4 mile @ 8:57 min/mile x 4

Total: 5 miles at a 8:00 min/mil average + 20 mins on the elip while I caught up with my homeboyz at the Today Show + 15 min legs

 

This speed workout was really good.  YES!

 

What made YOU happy today??

 

x0x0,

Emily

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Valentine’s Day, Functional buses, Capstone compliments

The job tally: I’ve applied for 21 jobs, been rejected via e-mail from 4 and received 0 interviews.  The negativity creeps in.  The panic starts.  I figure I have until about mid-April before I pack up in Seattle and move back to my parents house.  And I freak out.  I love my parents but that would be bad for everyone involved.  Trust me.  I start thinking: what is wrong with me?  Are the graduate degrees in Public Health and Public Administration not going to do it?? I must have faith in my job experience and education.  I have networks.   Jobs take time.  Organizations are slow.  In the mean time I will apply to more jobs… 6-7 more this week.  Because that is all I can do.  It just hurts sometimes.  That being said… see any openings for health policy positions or health-related program manage/coordinator positions let me know!!! 

 

But I’m trying to stay positive so here is what made me happy today!

 

1.  Valentine’s Day.  I like Valentine’s Day.  I’ve always been single for Valentine’s Day so maybe I just don’t know what it feels like to have someone special so celebrate with.  But at least it isn’t a sad holiday or lonely.  I like pink and hearts.  I like romance, even if it isn’t my story.  

 

2.  Functional buses.  Guess what.  My buses were on time today.  Better yet, I was on time to the bus stop.  Running after the bus is way harder than a seven-mile run… trust me!!! Those Uggs just ain’t made for running! YYYYESSSS!

 

3.  Capstone compliments.  I turned in my capstone draft a couple of weeks ago to my committee.  A capstone is like a thesis.  Same idea but project based.  Anyway.  I got my comments back today and besides some minor changes, it is just about done!! They really liked it!!!! LOVE IT.  

 

Tell me the cutest lovey-dovey story you’ve heard today!!

 

xoxo, Emily

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A special delivery in a pretty pink box, new necklace, hardboiled eggs

Hello!! How is everyone on this Manic Monday?  Gee it feels good to get back into my routine.  Wooooo for routines! Gym/running, class, group projects, readings, job applications, job researching, network plotting, paper writing and eating.  To most that sounds bad, to me it is a sigh of relief! I’m going to get one to my happiness for the day! 

 

#1.  A special delivery in a pretty pink box.  A while ago I signed up to participate in a Valentines Day Bloggie exchange hosted by Christina over at www.hungrymeetshealthy.com.  I was pared with Rebecca over at http://missmagnoliamunches.blogspot.com/. What a sweatheart!!! We have soooo much in common!!! A fellow public health professional, runner, coffee and nut butter lover!!! Well I received a VERY special package today!!!  Seriously, how does someone I’ve never met send me the PERFECT package???  Hmmm homemade cocoa almond butter??? You’ve got to be joking!!!  And coffee???  And Creole spice!!!! I’ve never used Creole spice but I KNOW I will love it because I love creole dishes! And a really awesome straw cup.  Fun fact: I put a straw in every beverage I drink and I do not own one of those cups! Until now that is!!!  Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

 

 

#2.  New necklace.  When I got back to Seattle yesterday I had some birthday cards and a special bday present from my best friend.  It was a necklace!! I love necklaces but I rarely buy them for myself.  Dazzles up a old black sweater! Check it out: 

 

#3. Hardboiled eggs.  I love eggs.  I love portable snacks that are healthy.  Enter hardboiled egg obsession.  Perfect for meals and perfect for snacks.  So easy.  Here are my steps: 1) fill pan with eggs (I do six at a time), 2) fill pan with enough water to cover eggs, 3) uncovered, bring eggs to a rapid boil, 4) take off the heat and cover for 10 mins, 5) fill bowl with COLD water and soak for a couple mins to stop the cooking process, 6) throw in the fridge for easy access 

 

What are your favorite portable snacks??? 

 

xoxo,

Emily

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A running PR, wool socks, early arrivals

I am back in Seattle.  WOOO.  Back to routines!! I’m exhausted to this is going to be a quickie!

#1. A running PR.  So the PR is a cold PR.  I ran 4 miles at 7 am before heading to the airport in Minneapolis.  The air temp was 8 but the wind chill was -2.  Yup it felt told.  4 miles is all I feel like I could do at those temps because I didn’t have anything over my face.  The rest of my body was covered in several layers.  I ran 4 miles when I got back in Seattle.  It was 50 degrees when I ran this afternoon.  So to sum it up: 4 miles at a feel like temp of -2 and 4 miles at 50 degrees.  8 miles total.  Running in that cold is HARD! They were funny splits:

#2.  Wool socks.  So here’s the thing.  I have Reynaud’s syndrome so my hands don’t exactly handle cold well.  SO I wore two pairs of gloves plus WOOL SOCKS on my hands.  Plus those heat wrap things marketed for sore muscles.  Well guess what?  Awesome hand warmers! I highly suggest this method of keeping hands warm if you ever find yourself wondering how to run in negative temps.  

#3.  Early arrivals.  My delta flight was an hour early today!! The winds I guess where ‘awesome’ according to the pilot.  We did have to wait a half hour for a gate, but hey that’s cool in my book.  I got to do all my updates on my phone, something I’ve been meaning to do since for ever.  Okay Delta, I don’t HATE you TODAY.  Tomorrow I will resume my Delta hatred.  

What’s the coldest you’ve run???  Like I said, that run this morning was the coldest run I’ve ever done.  It wasn’t that bad at all!!

 

xoxo, Emily

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The MPLS, French Meadow Bakery, CHICAGO MARATHON

Greetings from the chilly tundra of Minneapolis, Minnesota.  Unlike most years, there is no snow.  But MAN I got some cold.

So back up to Monday.  I wasn’t going to come home for my grandpa’s funeral (he died last Saturday) because it is midterms week and my professors were not loving the fact that I was going to miss last week.  Oh but don’t worry, they were sorry for my loss.  See, the thing is that I don’t grieve at funerals.  I don’t really feel a connection to the funeral tradition or churches for that matter.  I know I should feel like I should be at the funeral for my dad, mom, and aunts but I just didn’t feel like I needed to.  I was home for my grandma’s funeral in June but I went for my grandpa.  Plus flying last-minute is SO expensive and student loans don’t really cover it.  Gah.  But my dad called and told me I had to come home for the funeral.  I didn’t argue of course.  So I called Delta and they were being a-holes (have I mentioned I hate Delta?) and I ended up crying in the library on campus.  Cool.  Well, I book my tickets and tried to get my school stuff in order.  This resulted in a breakdown in the bathroom and feeling so stressed out I was about dry-heaving.  Great image.  Basically one of my professors wants me to take an incomplete because I missed a group presentation.  Super not great because that class is offered once a year and I’m supposed to graduate in one month.  I also have to do a HUGE makeup assignment for another class.  Awesome.  Sigh.  

So since Delta sucks a lot I had to fly into Minneapolis Tuesday night and can’t get a flight out until tomorrow.  Okay.  It sounds like I don’t love my family.  I love my family more than anything but my grandpa is dead.  Part of it is that my sister can’t come home from Peru so I had to represent the granddaughters.  Maybe years from now when I have my Masters Degrees and an awesome job I’ll be happy I came home.  Right now I want to cry because my professors are so hardcore.  I feel like all this school stress prevented me from valuing the time with my family and celebrating my grandpa.  I hate that. 

While I was here, I went to a gym.  I knew I needed to get destressed some how and being around my family was NOT going to destress me!!!  But the gym doesn’t open early enough tomorrow so I’m going to try to run outside.

Who thinks I can run tomorrow??  5 degrees is doable but with that windchill??  I have my winter running clothes and some one-time us heat things.  

So I’ve found some thing that did make me happy during this week of crap.

1. The MPLS.  I love Minneapolis.  Yes it’s cold.  But personally I find this dry cold MUCH better than the damp cold in Seattle. It’s not that bad the cold.  And holy SUN!!! I do really like Minneapolis.  So much culture!! So many neighborhoods and great food.  And people here are so NICE!!! Growing up here I was spoiled with how nice people are.  And by people I mean strangers.  Waiting in line at the store it is totally normal to have conversations with fellow shoppers.  I LOVE that.

2.  The French Meadow Bakery.  Since my birthday was on Sunday, I convinced my parents we should go out to eat.  My parents like to go out to eat some they thought it was a great idea.  We went to The French Meadow Bakery.  Their bread is sold nationwide but they have a cafe here.  And they serve dinner.  It was AMAZING. I ate this:

REALLY good!!! If you are in Minneapolis go eat here.  K?

3.  CHICAGO MARATHON.  YUP YUP.  I’m running it.  Oct 7.  More on that one later : )

How was your week?? Any good stories to cheer a girl up?

x0x0, Emily

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