Consistency is Key!!!!

I have been so hit and miss on posting to this blog. I have to admit that my workouts have been more miss than hit! I had to have a drain put in where my rectum and anus wasremoved, because it hadn't healed properly and kept getting infected. The day after it was put in I was able to go walking, but haven't been out again until today. I have been way too sore. Some days it has even been to painful to do much more than lay down. Walking, sitting and driving have been very uncomfortable to say the least.

With my walk coming up this Saturday, I knew that I needed to get some exercise in this week, so that I would have more stamina. This morning I went out with Ginny and we both felt the consequences of not working out for a week! We were only able to do one interval of jogging and ended up walking the rest of the way. In total we were able to go the full 5  miles in about an hour and 15 min.

It felt great to be back out exercising, and I want to keep it up! Today I meet with my surgeon to see what the next steps are going to be for my recovery. I am seriously praying that I can get the drain out, and that things are healed enough, that we can be done. I have a fear that I will end up with a wound vac. Let's keep our fingers crossed that I will be healed enough....

I feel like I am not building up endurance and stamina as much as I would like to. Obviously consistency would help, but I really want to be able to go farther, faster, and be stronger. I think that I will see what happens today at the Doctors. If they go well, then I am going to be making so serious exercise goals for what I want to accomplish over the summer.

Turn up the heat!!!!

I love warm weather, I don't love running in it! This week has been a little tricky with the weather being so warm. Ginny and I have certainly slowed our pace up so we don't pass out. We really want to make sure that we are getting in 3-4 work outs a week, but don't want to make ourselves sick with the heat. I am really looking forward summer break which is only a week and a half away! We will be able to workout early, before it's too hot, and have a whole day left afterwards!

I ended up having to go in for a C.T. scan today. I have been having some weird problems on the scar where my anus was removed. I needed to drink contrast for the scan, and it has left me feeling really queasy. Needless to say, our workout today was very slow!

We are still averaging about 5 miles a day and are loving the interval program. Some days are better than others, but each day I get out, I feel great that I did!!
I realize that I have waited a long time to post my other blog, and really wanted to share it before now. I have finally finished writing it, and am now editing it. I really want to add pictures, and hopefully will be able to post it soon. My hopes were to share these two blogs and help people to understand what it is like living with crohn's disease. I really want to raise money for the run I am doing in June, and hoped that adding a personal element would make it more "real." The walk is just a few weeks away and I think I have taken too long. If you read this, and are able, I would love if you could support the foundation I am running for and donate to my team. It is really simple and is a wonderful cause. You can log onto the website ccfa.org click on "Taking Steps, Changing Lives" and find my team "Gut's Who???" ANY donation, from $1 up will be such a blessing, and it is tax deductible! Sorry to turn my blog into a fundraiser, I just feel like I needed to get the word out!

WOW!!!!

I have been working on another blog since I started this one. It is the story of living with my disease for the past twelve years. I started it because with the walk I am doing for crohn's and colitis they keep saying to share my story and help people become more aware of what life is like with these diseases. I was a little nervous at first, because this is a really personal story to me. I have been scared to share it, thinking that I would sound like I was complaining or look weak and I didn't want anyone to think less of me. I know that sounds silly but it is true. There are days where I have written for hours, then gotten to a especially emotional part, and not been able to return to writing for days. I didn't expect the journey of writing this to be so emotional, but it really has been. I still have a little more to write, and I have decided to add pictures. Not all of these pictures will be pretty, but this hasn't been a pretty disease. I hope you will all read my blog when I post it, which will probably next week.

 The point of this is that as I have been writing this other blog, I have realized that it has been a REALLY long time since I have felt as healthy as I do now. I had thought that these past three years had been rough because of all of my surgeries. Now as I look back, I see that it has been much longer than that. I am so thankful to be where I am today. I am thankful I can run after my children and actually keep up with them. I can park far away and not feel too weak to walk all the way into the store. I don't take for granted each day of life that I have and I feel so blessed to be where I am. I wouldn't change my journey, it has helped me to cherish each day. Every day of life that I have is a gift. Every day that I am able to get out and exercise is a huge accomplishment. I know that there have been times that I have felt frustrated that I haven't made more progress faster. I have been discouraged. But I have come to appreciate where I have come from, where I am now, and where I want to be in the future. These past few months have helped to boost my self esteem. I feel stronger, healthier, and more capable. I know this probably sounds super cheesy, but I really wanted to express how grateful I am for where I am today. I appreciate all the love and support I get from all of you.

Yesterday David and I decided to go on a nice Sunday walk as a family. I told David I would really like to show him where Ginny and I walk. We decided that we would go as far as the children could and then return home. I was so impressed with my cute children. They certianly got tired at different points in the walk, but they all went the whole way. We clocked it at and was 5.3 miles!!! It was very fun and leisurly.

Today I felt whimpy. As Ginny and I started our walk/jog I was having a hard time with my breathing. I felt weak. We walk/jogged for 2.5 miles then I needed to walk. I am not sure why I felt so worn out. We decided to just finish walking. We are pretty fast walkers, and it felt really good to be out. As we were approching my house, we were almost at 5.5 miles. We decided to continue on a little longer. We went until we had gone 6 miles and thought it was really funny that in walking most of the time we went a mile farther, and finished in 5 minutes less time!!!

Time out: 1hr. 24 min.
Distance covered: 6 miles

Bright and early

Yesterday was a beautiful day for walking! It was the day of our program that Ginny and I are suppose to do an easy walk. We felt good and decided to walk our full route which is 5 miles. We were able to keep a really great steady pace and the whole walk felt wonderful.

This morning we met at 7 (yes 7:00 Saturday morning!) and only had to go 2.5 miles. It was really cold when we started and the cold air immediately affected my lungs. Luckily it warmed up pretty quickly and it wasn't too long before I felt just fine. I was a beautiful morning and I was really happy to be up enjoying it. We walk/jogged for 2.5 miles then walked another mile to cool down. Afterward our muscles were stiff  which I attributed to the cold weather.

I am really liking this training program. Ginny and I agree that it makes workouts very do-able. In fact we were talking about how 3 miles were now a no brainer, and were realizing how far we had come in these past few months. I love the addition of biking  and am thinking I really want to add some abdominal work in. That is the physical area I need the most work, and since I am doing cardio 6 times a week, maybe abdominal workouts would actually work!!! I do get a little nervous that I am going to do something weird to my stoma, but Dr. Kim has given me the go ahead, so I might as well try.

I'm Back!!!!!

I realize it has been a really long time since I last posted. Our home computer totally crashed and I just never made it to another computer to update. Our computer has been restored!!!

A lot has happened since I last posted. Ginny and I trained with "Couch to 5K" until it had us running 25 min. each day and then we changed programs. We are now doing interval training. I am certainly not the speediest runner and average 11-12 minute miles, but I feel so much stronger. I have come to understand my body a lot better and know that I can't eat too close to jogging because that is what causes my stomach cramping. I now know that I do a lot better with interval running than I do with distance running. I have built up leg muscles and am never as sore as when I started. I am pleased to announce that I have built up some cute little leg muscles too!!! I have really enjoyed the fact that I feel more healthy. I have more energy and ability to run around and play with my children. I really feel great!!

Two weeks ago my stake held a 5k and I participated. I ran my first 5k in 35min. I felt great afterwards!! Our new interval program has us running 4 days a week. On Monday and Wednesday Ginny and I will jog/walk for about 3 miles. Then we cool off with walking 2-4 more miles. Then on Friday we walk 3 miles at an easy pace and Saturday the program has us change the distance we go. Last week it was 5 miles walk/jogging, this week it is only 3 miles, next week 6miles. We are building up our distance and strength. We started at a pace of a 12 min. mile which meant we would jog 2 min. walk 1, jog 2 walk 1. We decided to try for a steady 11 minute mile and now alternate 2.5 min. jog with 1 min walk. I really am liking this program so far.

I haven't gotten to the place where running is my favorite, but I really enjoy the changes I am seeing in my ability and health. Last week my brother Jacob ran his first half marathon. Just being there to support him, really inspired me. I really want to work myself up to that kind of distance. I think it is a HUGE accomplishment and want to work towards that.

I also found out that the walk for Crohn's and Colitis is not a 5k, but a simple one miler. I am not sure where my confusion came in, but I have to say I am really happy that I thought it was a 5k, because I don't know if I would have started the training I did otherwise. I look back to where I started and am so thankful I started. A 5k now seems like something simple that I know I can do! I like that feeling!!!

Ginny and I have also added biking into our workout routine. We bike on Tuesday and Thursday. I have to tell you that biking definitely comes much more naturally to me, In just a few bike rides I am up to 20- mile rides each time we go out! I love biking. It has been really fun to cross-train with something I feel  that I am better at.

I am looking at marathons that I might like to do. I thought maybe I could move up to a 10k then a half marathon. I don't know, I am still thinking about it.

I get by with a little help from my friends!!!!

My brother Benjamin decides to post that he started running and even though it has been a long time since he has exercised he went from  jogging 3/4 mile to 1.5 miles in one week. I can't help but think,"What is wrong with me?" Why am I still struggling so much? I am 6 weeks in and can't seem to keep consistent on times or speed. I felt a little discouraged. I really should be farther along than I am and I'm not sure what the problem is. For two days I keep thinking this to myself and decide that today I will push myself no matter how I feel.

I was fortunate for many reasons today and ended up feeling really good about my jog. The first thing that I had  working in my favor was the fact that the weather was absolutely beautiful! It was a perfect day for exercising outdoors! I  realized today that I can do a lot more if the air isn't cutting away at my lungs and burning my chest. I was able to push myself a lot harder simply because the air was so much easier on my lungs. I still struggle with weakness in my lungs and had a burning in my chest about half way through, but it was a different kind of burn and I could deal with it. The really great  thing that helped today was my brother Jacob. He was off work today and decided to come running with us. As I started my pre-workout stretch he decided to come help me stretch out. Jacob is a excellent massage therapist and man did his stretches feel good!!! He had me lay down  and he would move my leg and ankle this way and hold it there and then move it that way and hold it there. I felt really good! I told him he was hired and I needed him everyday at 1:00!!!! He has also started running and has been running with a marathon runner. He was able to share a lot of his running tips as we were on our jog. It was wonderful!! We were able to keep at a slow -medium jogging pace the WHOLE way!!! I didn't have to bum out once!!! YAY!!!! It was great! When we came home and were stretching I was way more flexible than I have ever been! Good things are happening, even if I feel like it is slow going. I feel really good today. I am really hoping good weather will stay and that I can keep in mind the things Jacob taught me, and work on my endurance.

Time out:37 min.

Distance covered: 2.9 miles

Brrrrrrrrrrr!!!!

Week five begins as a bust. Well a partial bust. The gym in closed this week for remodeling and today is really cold! We started out and quickly realized that it was uncomfortably cold and windy. We decided to use the Jordan Parkway and started out just fine. The warm up went fine but 2 minutes into jogging, I felt my muscles begin to really tense up. I wasn't sure if I was tense because it was so cold or because I hadn't stretched out before we started. I tried to ignore it but I was having a hard time moving. The cold wind was also taking a toll on my lungs. Right from the beginning I was winded and my lungs were starting to burn. Things didn't look too good. We slowed down and then paused to stretch, because of the cold and wind we decided to just try a quick walk. We really enjoyed the pretty scenery, but were really frozen!

I am not even counting today as day one of week 5. I feel like I need a better start for it to actually count. We did walk the 30 minutes though and that is why it wasn't a full bust. Something is better than nothing, right?

Time out: 30 (shivering) min.

Distance covered: 1.5 miles

The good news, is that I can only progress from here! Here's to hoping Wednesday is warmer, and I am stronger. Anyone have tips on how to fix my breathing problems? I really could use some help.

Little by Little......

I have come to see a pattern in my exercising. I will feel good, push hard, then struggle the next time I am out. Today I woke up feeling a little weak, but wanted to exercise anyway. We met at the church and as soon as we started I could tell I was not feeling as strong as I had yesterday. My chest quickly started burning and the intervals were more difficult today. I was not as happy with the speed I was able to go, but had to listen to my body. At one point I started having a lot of  intestinal pain and really had to slow down. While these things frustrate me I have to realize that I at least finished and there is always another day. I really want to be strong all the time, and I am hoping that will come. I plan to stay consistent and hope I will become stronger.

Time out: 30 min.

Distance covered: 1.60 miles

Next week the program progresses each time you go out. I am really hoping for a great week where I can keep up with the program!!!

Feeling GREAT!!!

Yesterday I woke up feeling really dehydrated after a long night of a lot of output. I wanted to exercise but after I went downstairs to put in a load of laundry and came upstairs out of breath, I thought I better not. I decided to rest yesterday and exercise today. We met over at the church to run inside. This week has been much better for me physically. I feel like I did before where breathing was the only thing that slowed me down.

Today since my body was feeling strong I decided to really push myself. For our fist two intervals we jogged at a really good quick pace. I felt so good. We kept up the pace during the 5 minute interval but my chest started burning. On the third interval we were going at a slow jog while I calmed my breathing down and then we finished off the fourth interval with a steady medium speed pace. It felt REALLY good to push myself for the first half then slow down some the last half. We were able to cover more distance than we ever had!!! In fact as I was recording what we had accomplished, I told Ginny that we had done 3.3 miles in 33 minutes. She said, "Hey isn't that a 5k?" I was so excited! I jumped for joy and high fived Ginny! YAY!!! I walk/jogged a 5k in 33 minutes and feel great afterwards!!!! This makes me feel so happy!

I am really thankful that my body has been stronger this week. I am hopeful that my training will be able to progress more steadily now, and this excites me!!!!

Time out: 33 min.

Distance covered: 3.30 miles!!!!!!!

I have been looking over the half marathons. There are a lot to choose from. I like the idea of the Legacy Hwy. run. It is in Aug. which gives me more time to train, and is at night, so it wont be too hot. Does anyone have any suggestions on any other half marathons that they like? I could use some direction!!!!

Pushing a little harder.

So, I am getting a little behind on my posts. I have to be honest with you, sometimes I feel a little silly writing these posts. I always have the thought at the back of my mind of, who really cares what I am doing daily? I just can't imagine that what I am saying is really very interesting. However, I do enjoy posting and for this reason I will continue!

Last week overall was not the best week so far. I felt like my body was not wanting to cooperate with what I wanted it to do. My right knee and back ankle areas have just been causing me so many problems. It was a little discouraging. I moved so slooooowwww, that a normal walker was faster than I was. I am so thankful for a running partner who is so flexible and kind about my wimpiness. I wasn't sure what was causing the difference and felt really bad about my progress. For this reason, I decided to train at week 4 again for this week. I want to really feel good about what I am doing before I move on to the next weeks workout. I don't want to just push through at a really minimal level. I want to feel like I "passed" that workout off, before I move to the next.

My children are on spring break this week, and I decided I wanted to exercise with a group of amazing ladies from church.They go out every weekday morning. We met at 9:30 and decided since the weather was gorgeous, that we would go around the neighborhood.We only had one more friend than usual, but it made it really fun! We weren't especially speedy, but I feel really good the whole time I was out. I feel really good now too! I was able to push myself harder than last week, but didn't go to the point that I was miserable. I am really  hopeful that this week will go really well, and that I will feel strong again.

My good friend sent me a link to  a lot of different half marathons taking place in Utah. I have already had a few friends saying they would be willing to participate in one of them with me. I am constantly amazed at what an incredible circle of support I have!!! Thank you everyone!!!! I will check out the website today and figure out what half I want to do.

Today Ginny and I walked to the church and back, we also went around the outside of the church a few times while we waited for more people to show up. I only calculated the 30 min. we were doing the program, but with everything added up, I think we did about 3 miles!

Time out: 30 min. (timed)

Distance covered: 2.43 miles

A new goal!

All day long I keep thinking about this half marathon. It is such a big goal, that I know I want to do it! Then this practical voice in my head tells me, "There is no need to worry yourself with fundraising, just find a local half marathon and it is the same thing." But, I think, this one is for a really good cause. Back and forth back and forth are my thoughts on this. I am the type of person who relies on how I feel about things to guide me. I need to feel clear and confident about the decision I am making. Even if it is scary  and seems out of reach, that is okay, as long as I have confirmation that it is right. I talk to David about it, and while he will support anything, he is more cautious about the financial responsibility attached to signing up.

Several hours later, I see a post my wonderful friend Ginny has made about the race. It will be held on a Sunday......BOOOO!

Needless to say, my decision has been made for me, and in a way I feel relieved. Not because I don't want to run a half marathon, but because I know that it is not something I am suppose to be doing with Team Challenge at this time.

Here is my thought process now.......

My brother Jacob signed up to run a half marathon right here in Utah. It was a simple entry fee. I know I won't be ready for the one he is doing because it is in April. Yet this makes me think, there has to be more options out there for marathon running right? I have decided I will run a half marathon. I want it to be in July-September time frame. This way I can train and prepare. I am not sure how to go about finding half marathons to run in, and that is where I am hoping to get some help from you wonderful friends. If you know of any or know of a way to find out when some will be, will you please let me know? I also really would love friends to run with me. I really enjoy the support, it fuels me and keeps me going. Are any of you interested??? Please let me know. It would be an honor to do this together. This is a really big deal to me. I want to be able to set this goal, that right now seems sooooo far away, and make the little weekly goals to make it happen. Running this 5k is a great opportunity for me to challenge myself. A half marathon would be an incredible accomplishment that would make me feel like I took it one step higher. When I picture having health, I picture having the ability to accomplish these types of goals. I am really excited!

A new day

Yesterday went pretty well. I was still having a lot of ankle and knee pain, so I decided to take ibuprofen about 40 min.before we were scheduled to exercise. I was happy that my pain was down quite a bit before I started to workout. I was very determined to push harder today. I have realized that I need to make small day to day goals, so I don't get discouraged at myself when there are times that I haven't done as well as I had wanted to. Yesterday my goal was to keep jogging and not give up before our time was up. There have been a few times that I have stopped jogging and started walking before it was time. This time I wanted to keep going even if it was a struggle. My pace was really slow, but I was able to keep a good pace and my walk/jog intervals were very steady. Once again, our GPS froze and stopped calculating for the last half of our routine. I have figured out that inside is not the best place to run a GPS!!!!

I have been struggling with my breathing again, which is frustrating because we have mainly been inside. I am not sure what to do. I guess maybe I should talk less? I just really enjoy the conversations Ginny and I have!!! I am really hoping that as I consistently workout, my breathing, ankle and knee will become stronger and I will be able to work harder.

Yesterday I went to the TEAM CHALLENGE meeting for the ccfa.org half marathon which takes place this July. It was a really neat experience. I was able to meet with people who have done the half marathon before. It was very inspiring! Most of the people in attendance were there in honor of someone they know who has crohn's or colitis. That was really amazing for me to see!!! I really REALLY want to do this. They train you and provide a HUGE amount of  support to make sure each participant succeeds. There is a big fundraising goal to be able to attend, but more than 75% of it goes towards finding a cure for these diseases. It would be such an honor to participate in something so meaningful. Anyone want to join me? It is in July. Training starts in 3 weeks. It is $75 to join and then you fund raise for the rest of the amount. It takes place in Napa Valley California and sounds BEAUTIFUL!!!!! I am really thinking I want to make big goal to do this and not only to do it, but to run the whole way!!!!

Chugging along

Sometimes I get a little annoyed when my body doesn't think I should be the boss. I have been having problems with my ankle and heel area when I exercise and  for awhile afterwards. Today I was soooooo slow! My ankles felt so tight and sore it was hard for me to jog well at all. I also think that being sick yesterday had me a little more worn out than I thought I would be also. Needless to say today's workout wasn't as successful as I had wanted it to be. Luckily, I have an exercise partner who is so supportive and really let me go at my own pace. It is week four of the couch to 5k program that I am doing. This week the program goes as follows

5 min. brisk walk
3 min. jog
90 sec. walk:
 5 min. jog
2 1/2 min. walk
3 min. jog
90 sec. walk
5 min. jog

In 15 min, this is suppose to equal 1 3/4 mile. Well including our warm up and cool down times we only went a 2 miles.

Time out: 34 min. 
Distance covered: 2 miles 


I definitely felt a little discouraged at first. I know that I should be able to do more. Of course Ginny always makes me feel better and tells me to realize how far I have come in just 1 month! She is great! I just really wish I was able to have steady consistent workouts. I want to be strong. I guess sometimes I want the end result now. I need to realize that it will take time and things won't always be perfect. This is a lesson I seem to need to learn many times over.

Technical Difficulties

I am sorry I haven't posted for awhile. I have had a lot of traffic at my house and haven't had any computer time.

Ginny and I are still trying to figure out our "smart" phones and their apps. On Friday we walked over to the gym. It was really windy so we wanted to be inside. We also had 8 kids who wanted to come with us. When we reached the gym we found that is was already taken for basketball. We decided to walk back home, drop of some of the extra kids and try walking outside. I decided to try putting a scarf around my mouth to keep the cold air out. This seemed to help my lungs which was great!!! I know that our time wasn't as awesome as it has been because it was cold and I kept having to slow down. But I know we did do well. The problem was that we still haven't figured out how Ginny's phone is calculating things and my phone totally froze making it so we couldn't see how far we had gone. I know we at least went a mile and a half because I had seen it on my phone before it froze!!!

I don't LOVE running yet. However, I find myself wanting to go out daily, and hold myself back because the program says to. I think I just need to build up my endurance and fix my breathing, then maybe I will start loving this!!! I hope so. I really want to love running. I really want to have the ability to ruuuunnnnnn. I know I have to keep working at it, so we will see!

As a side note, I have a strange infection on my scar where my anus was removed. It has been going on for awhile and I just didn't know what it was. It was getting worse and worse so I decided to call my surgeon to see what is going on. This whole while I keep thinking, if there is something wrong and I have to go back in for surgery....... I am wondering if a stitch got left in or something. I hope it is simple. I am enjoying being well. I am not ready for big set backs. I had a small one yesterday. I had a stomach bug and was too worn out  to go running. I will be heading out in just a few minutes though. Wish me luck!!!!!

Feelin' good about my progress!!!

The weather outside is frightful, but jogging can be so delightful......

Today was a blustery cold day. Fortunately we were able to jog in the gym. Do you notice how I have upgraded they type of exercise I am doing from walking to jogging? I still alternate walking and jogging, but I feel like my pace is more strong and is closer to being considered a jog. I LOVE that I feel myself making progress! It is a wonderful feeling to be able to celebrate these small accomplishments week by week.

I am going to be honest with you, I hands down prefer working out inside the gym. I feel like I can push myself more and I have more control over my breathing. I have to keep reminding myself, that I really do want to love running outside and that in the long run (no pun intended) I will be a stronger runner when I am as capable outside as I am inside.

Ginny and I are still trying to figure out the best way to track our progress on the days that we are in the gym.We both have downloaded phone apps. to help keep track. Mine totally lost GPS signal Monday, and I don't have a lot of faith in it. Ginny actually downloaded the app. that goes along with the "couch to 5k" program we are doing. We started off and I decided to run my app. along with Ginny's so that we could compare results and see if they were trustworthy. As we were moving along Ginny received a phone call, so I ended up being glad I was tracking our time as well, so that we would know when to change pace. Ginny's app. seems way cooler, but for some reason at one point  during our jog it paused and restarted the workout. I was happy to have kept mine running because it kept us on pace. I actually remembered what the program was suppose to be this time, and I really like the way it is run. It really builds you up to going more and more distance each week.

My brother Jacob decided to join us today and I was really happy to  have him with us. As soon as we finished our 5 min. warm up Jacob took off and pretty much did a billion laps for every one that we did!!! This was motivation for me to push just a little more! I do have to admit that I am a little sloppier with my breathing when I am inside. I think that I let myself become a little lazy because the consequences aren't as painful when I am inside. I am working on disciplining myself to be more strict on this matter!!!!

Today I knew we were making really good time. I was SO excited when we had finished and I read that we had gone 2.56 miles!!!!! Just think my first day 3 weeks ago I only got around 3/4 of a mile! I am really ecstatic about my progress!!! I know that everyday my workout may not be this productive, but the fact that I now know I can do it is such great motivation to always push a little harder!!!

I still haven't added anything new to my workouts. My favorite workouts have always been abdominal workouts and I have plenty of videos to choose from to work them. My surgeon said I am free to do abdominal workouts as longs as I don't use weights, and as long as I keep an eye on my stoma to make sure I am not causing it to herniate. He also said I could bike ride, but to really use A LOT of caution and to make sure I have a really comfy bike seat. Overall I think I am pretty clear to do anything within reason. I may start adding things in soon....maybe!!!!

Time out: 30 min.
Distance covered: 2.56 miles!!!!!! YAHOO!!!!

Week 3

Today began week three of my training for the 5k. It was a blustery day outside so Ginny and I decided to workout in the gym. I was really happy about this choice because I wanted to have the best chance of keeping up with this weeks new program. This week the program is to start with a 5 minute brisk walk, then do two of the each of the following repetitions.
*Jog 90 sec.
*Walk 90 sec.
*Jog 3 min.
*Walk 3 min.
Repeat.

We got to the gym started working out and we both were feeling really good. I had downloaded an app. to help keep track of our distance and time. I was feeling great  physically. It helped that my lungs weren't on fire from cold air. We were moving really quickly and keeping a good pace. About 14 minutes in, I realized that I had totally forgotten what the workout routine was suppose to be. I had us jogging 90 sec., walking 90 sec. alternating the whole time. Finally I realized what I was doing and we changed  the routine to what it was suppose to be. We finished up with jogging 3 min, walking 3 min. jogging 3 min. then we had our 5 min. cool down walk. Unfortunately the GPS on my phone froze and we don't have an accurate idea of the distance we covered. Both Ginny and I agree, it was our best time yet and we covered at least a mile and a half, but probably did closer to 2 miles. So much for "smart" phones.

I was winded by the end of the workout, but my lungs weren't on fire. I did start having abdominal pain in the last 6 minutes of the workout, but just keep going. I feel stronger when I am indoors because I can move a lot quicker and my lungs don't burn. I still plan on training outside most of the time, because I know it will make me a stronger runner overall. As soon as I had cooled down and stretched, I told Ginny I felt so good I could do it all again. I LOVE that feeling!!! I don't know if I can ever adequately express how incredibly thankful I am to have a body that is much stronger than I thought it was. It is a really big deal to me to know that I can push myself and my body will be able to take it. I know that this must sound so silly, but after being sick for so long, recovering from surgery for so long, I honestly didn't have much faith in what I could do physically, so this is a really big realization for me!!!

Two weeks down 7 to go!!!!

I have been training for two weeks now. I have realized that everyday brings something new. Today as Ginny and I went out, I started having abdominal and back pains pretty early on in our walk/jog routine. I had eaten lunch right before we went out, and I am thinking maybe that wasn't such a good idea. While figuring these things out isn't always pleasant, I have really come to appreciate what it means to understand and listen to my body. I am so grateful for an exercise partner who is so kind and willing to go at whatever pace I can.

Because of the pain we went a little slower and covered less area. I was able to got the whole 30 minutes though, and I am happy about that. Next week the program changes up again. I am hoping for warmer weather. My breathing is a lot more steady when it is not too cold outside. I am still really enjoying this program. It is very do-able.

Time out: 30 min.
Distance covered: 1 mile


My goals for next week: I really want to stick to the original plan of exercising Mon, Wed. Fri. I would like to increase my speed and gain more control over my breathing. If any of you have any advice on this next part, please post a response. I would like to try to add small work outs of abdominal, Pilate's, or other videos I have at home. Do you think it is a good idea, or should I wait until I am solid with the running? Oh, and if you are reading my posts, it would be a great boost if you became a follower, or posted!!! Thank you!!!!

Changing it up a bit!

This week has been so random. One day I am feeling fantastic, the next, not so great. Tuesday night I was really thirsty so I took a big drink of water and a big drink of o.j. Suddenly I was having  intense pain in my upper abdomen and back. I tried to eat dinner, but it was difficult. I had similar things happen to me right after my surgery, but wasn't sure why I was having problems again. The next morning (yesterday) I had the same pains. I had a really hard time standing for more than 5 minutes because it just hurt too badly. As I was teaching my 3rd grade phonics class the pain was getting worse and I had to sit down and teach. Luckily the class is super small and the students super great, they didn't think anything of it. Then as I was teaching math of my sweetest students kept asking me if I was okay. I thought I was acting normal, and when he asked me the fourth time, I asked why he kept asking me that. He replied that I looked sad or like something was wrong. Man, I LOVE the children I get to be around each day!!! I decided that since I wasn't able to stand for very long, that it might not be a good idea to go out and exercise. Thank goodness for flexibility!!! Later that afternoon I started feeling fine.

Today I woke up and felt normal, which made me really  happy. Not too long after I got to school I started having the pains again. I felt really perplexed. The pain is very similar to when my intestines twist together, yet I have plenty of output so I know it is not a blockage, and it doesn't get worse and worse. Food doesn't seem to affect it. It hurts whether or not I eat! After about an hour and a half I felt good again. This is so strange! I figure if there is something really wrong, it will get worse right? So I will just wait and see what happens.

I felt good enough to exercise today, but wasn't looking forward to being out in the super cold weather. Luckily Ginny and I were able to use the gym. I have to tell you, it felt really good to be inside! My biggest struggle is with my breathing. My chest will just burn and burn. This time being inside we were able to push harder and yet my lungs didn't burn. I feel really really good!! I don't want to totally give up training outside, though I am tempted too. I know being outside will make me a stronger runner. I do think that if I do some training inside that my lungs will strengthen and when the weather warms up I might fair better outside then I do now. I think the outside air is what has been making my lungs have a hard time. Ginny and I weren't able to keep track of how many times we went around the gym. Physically though, we pushed harder than we have yet, and it felt really great!!! I think I will try to download a tracker app. on my phone, it would make things a bit more simple!!!

Yay for a new day!!!!

Today I was feeling much better. I was really happy about that! I was still a little nervous that maybe I wouldn't be up to where I needed to be to get out and give it my all, but I sure was going to try.
I always begin with a 5 min. brisk walk. As Ginny and I were briskly walking, I noticed that we were covering more distance than we usually do in the 5 min. warm up. This made me feel really good! We kept a really good pace and with the new intervals of 90sec. jog, 2 min rest, we covered more distance altogether!!! I felt really good. I had a little bit of trouble remembering the new pattern I was following and sometimes jogged too long and sometimes walked too long. Overall though I kept us on pretty good time. My breathing was not the best today, but I was able to keep myself feeling okay.

As we finished up our time, I realized I felt really good! I still had a lot of energy, and we added a fourth of a mile to our cool down! When we counted it all up in 38 min. We did 7 laps around the blocks we walk. In the first 30 min. we covered 1 1/2 miles!!! WAAHHHOOO!!! This was such a boost! We got in another half mile in the same time that we had been doing 1 mile! I love this kind of progress! And the best part? I had the strength to go and felt good doing it.

Time out: 38 min.
Distance covered 1 3/4 mile!


Lesson of the day:
I realized that I do have to listen to my body when it is telling me I need to rest! This doesn't mean I am "falling off" my routine, it doesn't mean I am not accomplishing what I want to when I want to. What is important is that I listen to my body when it is telling me to slow down, and then give it my all when I can!!! Yay for learning!

Two Steps Forward, One Step Back.....

Before I began my real post, I need to fill you in on a little Mariah-lingo.
I have a permanant ileostomy. Picture a straw, well a really soft straw. Now picture you take the end of the straw and push your fingers under the brim and fold it outward. This is in a sense what was done with my small intestine. The end of it was folded out and made into cuff called a stoma. This stoma sticks out of my stomach close to my belly button. It is where my stool comes out. That is what it means to have an ileostomy. The stool that comes out of my stoma because of my crohn's disease and shortend small bowel is what most people call diarrhea. Sorry if I am grossing you out, but remember, I warned this would get a little  too "real" at times. I call what comes out of my stoma "output." Now that you are familiar with my lingo, I will begain my blogging!!!

Today was a sort of bust for me. Last night I had a wonderful dinner at my mom's house. Almost immediatly I started having an increase of output. This happens quite often and I didn't think a whole lot of it. As the night wore on I realized I was needing to go to the bathroom and empty my "bag" every hour. I was even up several times during the night. The problem with this happening, is that once all my food has run through me, I start losing my fluids. I tend to get dehydrated very quickly. This morning when I woke up I realized that my increase in output had left me dehydrated. My body has tell tell signs of moderate dehydration. I have very labored breathing, my ears are plugged and I feel quite worn out. Unfortunatly I had all of these symptoms this morning. I kept thinking I should call Ginny and reschedule our run. I really didn't want to though. I wanted to be there no matter what. So, I ate a high protien breakfast and snack, and drank a lot of water. I was hoping this would get me back to "normal."

When Ginny arrived I felt slightly better. I was hopeful. Let's just say it didn't take too long to figure out, that my body wasn't going to have it. It wasn't going to let me be the boss today. I was week, had very labored breathing and before long had really intense pains in my guts. BOOOO, I was so frustrated! Ginny was so great to agree to stop, and try again tomorrow. She is the best!

I came home after being out 15 min. and was really worn out. I was very light headed and week. I sat down until I caught my breath, then I layed down and let the world spin, until it calmed down. I felt really annoyed at the realitization that I can't always be in control. Sometimes things just happen. I then thought about how happy I am that I am doing a program with such flexability. I only need to go out 3 days a week and there just happens to be 7 days in each week. This does give me some room. I just needed to convince myself that it really was okay.

Time out: 15 min.
Distance covered: 1/2 mile.

And there you go. It doesn't matter how many times you fall off, it only matters how many times you get back up. I am eating well today and plan to be back out tomorrow!!!

p.s. I coudn't get my spell checker to work, and as you can tell I am not the greatest speller. Sorry!

One week down, 8 more to go!

Saturday was day three of my exercise program. I woke up feeling really excited to get outside and work! I had had a dream (I am dreaming about running now!) about running a 5k. All of you guys were there in the run with me. It was some crazy maze type run and was just silly, but I remember running and feeling really good  the whole time. I awoke thinking, that is really what I want out of this. I want to have the physical capability to  run this 5k, and I want to feel good the whole run, and afterwards. And I am so excited so many of my friends will be there! I keep envisioning myself in the future (nearer now than ever before) running, and loving it. I picture myself strong and quick and just plain ole' happy! I don't love running, I am not a runner, but I am so motivated to make this happen, that I know it will happen.

Yesterday was a lovely day and since David was off work he came with me. I was really excited but a little nervous to have him come with me. David is a really strong runner and I wanted our stroll not to bore him. He was so kind and complemented me the whole time. He is such a great support.

Every time I am out, I really pay attention to how my body feels doing these exercises. It always makes me so happy to realize that physically my body is stronger than I thought it was!  My biggest struggle is my breathing. I really work on keeping my breathing under control, slow and steady. It is not something that comes naturally.  Each day I have gone out, I find that I do have better control. The less I talk the better control I have!

Time out: 30 min.
Total distance: 1 mile

I am looking forward to this new week. The program has me changing the times I Jog from 60 seconds to 90 seconds. The rest periods are longer as well. I am excited to see how I do with this.

I have had a lot of people tell me they are not runners or that they are waiting for the weather to get better, or this or that to start running. I have to tell you, I am NOT a runner, I am week, out of shape and haven't even exercised in about 2 1/2 years. But, who cares? We all have to begin somewhere, right? And there never will be the "perfect" time to start.Something will always come up, and frankly life happens! So, why not take charge now? Start somewhere. I would love to have you join me 3 times a week as I take charge of my health! Or just start because what can you lose for trying? It feels so amazing to be the one setting your limits and challenging yourself to do just a little bit more!!!

Yay for good news!!!

This post will be a little out of chronological order, but the great news must come first. I received a call from the pediatricians office today, and ALL of Lilliah's test came back normal. I am SO happy and relieved!!! She is just a scrawny kid! I can deal with that. As long as she is healthy, I am happy!!!!!

This morning As I was trying to wake up and get ready for the day, I realized how much relief I felt knowing today was a day I didn't workout. I really love the do-ability of this program!! As this beautiful day had progressed, I keep finding myself thinking, I would really like to go jogging today! I love that! I love that I am wanting to do this! I also love that the program says not to do more than the 3 days a week. I really feel that even though I want to go out today, that if I didn't give myself the off days, I might not feel so excited about the whole thing.

Another side effect I am already noticing, is that since I am kind of exercising now, I also want to eat better. I like soda every now and then, but haven't wanted one at all this week! In fact orange juice has taken its place. I like where I feel this program is taking me mentally. The real program doesn't call for any sort of eating change, but for me it just feels right. In fact I in general have an overall sense of direction. I love having a goal! Being in Mary Kay really reinforced setting small goals that lead to bigger goals. I am totally applying those same principals to my working out.

When I was talking to my surgeon last night, he told me that he had "thrown the kitchen sink at me." With my last surgery, What this means, is that we don't have a lot of options if my stoma has problems like it has 6 times now. For whatever reason I have just decided that I am going to make it work, that I am not going to allow my body to have those problems again. Of course, this is not really a control I can have, but I am taking it anyway!!!

I want you all to know how much I love your feedback. I REALLY keeps me motivated to keep writing. I feel silly writing these simple things about me and often wonder who really wants to know my simple day to day activities. It really makes me happy that you are reading and leaving feedback. You all are amazing!!!

Tomorrow will be my third exercising day. I am looking forward to getting outside and moving! I do need some good stretches for my legs, calves more specifically. So if anyone has some great advice, please share.

Day two of my program!

I am loving the flexibility of this work out program! I had planned to make my three "running" days Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Yesterday Lilliah had her 11 year well child check up, and the plan was to exercise when we were home from the appointment. Unfortunately, Lilliah's doctor appointment took a lot longer than expected. At her appointment last year we noticed that Lilliah was moving off of the growth chart in weight. Instead of moving up, her percentage was moving down. This was concerning, because her height was going up, so it made the fact that her weight was dropping even more obvious. Now, David and I aren't particularly big people and we may just have thin children. However it worried both the doctor and I that she was losing weight and percentile. At the time the doctor ordered some labs checking for colitis, and crohn's. They came back normal and we have really tried to get her weight up this year. This year her check up showed that she is still the same weight that she was at 9. This further drops her percentile down. I have also noticed an increase in how often she has to use the bathroom. Naturally my mind takes me to the place where I fear I have passed my crohn's onto her. The thought just breaks my heart. But then I reflect on the great advice of my husband. He always tells me not to spend time worrying about things, you don't know if you even need to worry about. With that I am waiting to hear results before I dwell too much on the what if's.The pediatrician ordered several labs and we hopefully find out tomorrow what they results show. Needless to say, Our appointment ran over 3 hours and when I got home it was dinner time.

I was discouraged at first, thinking that I was already off schedule with my exercise. But then I realized that I could go out Thursday and again Saturday, then I would be back on target for Monday!! I love this!!! This program is so do able. Working out 3 out of  7 days, is just very realistic for me!

I knew today would be a busy day and wanted to make sure I gave time to go out and walk/jog. A few days ago my wonderful friend Ginny volunteered to come exercise with me. I have such great friends!!! I have to admit, I was a little nervous,(we all know that I am not in shape at all! I was worried that Ginny would see how ridiculous I am and not want to join me again!). The weather was a little bit more chilly today and my calves were still quite sore! But NOTHING was going to stop me! I was pumped and ready to see how I would feel today. I know that I held Ginny back, but the great news?? I paced myself a lot better. I didn't feel like I was going to throw up afterward and my breathing was decent! I did have some strange intestinal pain towards the end, but was able to finish up, and as soon as I sat down, I was good! I like that these small accomplishments are realistic. If I can do it anyone can!!!

Today I was out for 30 min. I followed the same routine. I started with a 5 minute brisk walk ( a little less brisk than my first day), then I alternated 60 sec, jogging with 90 seconds of walking. Then I cooled down for 5 minutes.  Overall my pace was more steady and physically I felt good afterwords.

Time: 30 min.Distance: 1 mile

I am HAPPY!! I feel improvement with only having this be my second time out!! I realize it wont always move at this pace, but I am really happy. In fact I felt so good  that just a short while after I went out, I wanted to go again! Me! The lady who DOESN'T run!! (okay, I haven't started running yet, but I am looking at the bright side here!)

I feel good! I feel more and more drive to keep this up.And Ginny wants to keep coming with me! I would love for any of you to join us as well. Mon, Wed. Fri. at 1:00!  I also have news that made me very happy. Every third Thursday of each month I attend an ostomy support group. Tonight my surgeon just happened to be the guest speaker. I hand't even thought to consult him about my running plans, because I just feel so dang good. There were many loving friends of mine, who thought it would probably be a very good idea to make sure my surgeon approved of  my plans. Tonight, I slipped in the question, and was very pleased when he gave me the O.K.!!! YAY!!!!!!

I'm slowly chugging along and am really enjoying the start!

My first try...

Yesterday was the start of my journey to get back my health. I am a Monday starter. If I ever am going to do something significant, I like to start on Monday. It just feels more orderly! After lunch, kids homework, and clean up, I decided it was time. I put on some "exercise" clothes, asked if any of my children would like to exercise with me. I and stretched out and read the day one guidlines for the program. My sweet 6 yr. old son Gabriel said he would go with me. Since he runs in everything he does, I felt it would be no problem to have him come along.

The day was beautiful! I couldn't have asked for better, more perfect weather. The program called for 5 minutes of brisk walking followed by intervals of 60 seconds jogging, 90 seconds walking. I decided to make the workout 30 min. total. I did the 5 min. brisk walk, and felt good. I tried to focus on my muscles warming up and being strong. When it was time for my first 60 sec. of jogging, I think I may have been overly excited! I took off running and even though I was careful about my breathing, it wasn't long before my chest was on fire! I tried to focus on the fact that while my upper body hurt, my legs were able to go as I wanted them too. I began alternating jogging and walking, this time modifying my jog to a jog! I am not going to lie, even though this sounds easy, I had to push myself. I went for 20 min. alternating as the program says. The last 5 min. my jog was slower and my walk really mellow. When my alarm signified time was up, I took a 5 min. cool down, ssslllooowww, walk.

Gabriel was with me the whole way. He was cheering my on anytime he wasn't being distracted by cool leaves, or sticks! As I was doing the cool down he asked if we could walk around a different block. At this time, my chest was on fire and my calves aching. I had a sick feeling that I was going to throw up. "No", I answered him, out of breath.
"Please, I love going around this other block."
 Trying to slow my breathing and feeling incredibly sick, I didn't want to answer."No." was all I managed to get out.
"Pllleeeaaasse!"
 With each step I felt more and more nauseous. "Gabe, I feel like I am going to throw up."
We immediately turned around. The cool down minutes were up so we sat down and stretched.

Total time out: 30 minutes.
Total distance covered: 3/4 mile.

Not incredibly impressive, but a start! I came inside and sat. Overall I  felt good because I had started. This was the first official day of getting my health back. I am excited! I decide to post on face book. The feedback was incredible! I have the most unbelievable support group! My excitement grew and grew! I decide to register and start a team for the walk. I decide to start a blog! I feel like I can't be stopped! As my body settles down, my mood soars, I feel really REALLY good!!!

My take on the training so far. I don't particularly enjoy the jogging, but I LOVE how I feel afterwards. The natural high that comes with exercise. That alone is worth it. Yeah yeah, day one isn't much to judge by. However as I see it, it is a start and it will only get better from here. I want to love running. I want to feel my body grow stronger and stronger. I want the distance I can go increase. And I am going to do just that!!!

Thank you for your support. Thank you for your feedback. It fuels my fire and I love it! I would love to have you join my team to walk for crohn's and colits. Go to ccfo.org. Our team name is "Guts Who??"

Why didn't Mariah cross the road??? She didn't have guts!!!

Welcome to my blog! I have never written a blog before, in fact, I have never been interested in the whole idea of blogging. The only blog I have ever read was of my friend Jeanie and her journey with brain cancer. I am not sure what a blog is suppose to be, so I am just going to write what comes. I tend to be very open and sometimes blunt, so I apologize in advance for how "real" this might get!

There is a whole pre-chapter of this blog that will need to be written. I think I may write it at the same time, but not post it until the whole thing is completed. It will tell my story of my journey from  first getting sick,up until this point, where I have decided to take my health back!

I have a wonderful friend named Amy Parsons. Our paths crossed about seven months ago. Through ostomy support group and bonding through similar challenges, we have grown really close. Amy was the one who brought up the idea to create a team and walk in support of the "Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America." I had been feeling the need to do something like this for awhile. I wanted to give myself a big goal and get back to feeling great. I had been thinking of different things I could do, when Amy suggested the walk for CCFA, I immediately felt like this was what I had been looking for!

I finally decided to take advantage of the resources that have always been available to me. I logged onto ccfa.org to get more info. I was really excited when I read about the walk that they do each year. I felt the excitement began to grow! I explored the web page and found out that there is also a half marathon for the CCFA and instantly became intrigued. You see I am and "all or nothing" kind of gal. When I dream, I dream big. It doesn't matter that I haven't really exercised for 3 years right? If I want to do it, I will!!!
 So, here is what my dream is. I want to run the 5k, and feel really good doing it. I plan on training using the program, "couch to 5k." This sounds so simple, but here is the reality, I am NOT a runner! I haven't been a runner since I was 10. I have been diagnosed with a week heart muscle and because of this running just plain ole stinks! I cough, my chest burns, I have a hard time breathing, and I don't feel well for along time afterwards. But guess what? I am taking charge! I am not going to let things get in my way this time! Yes, I will be careful and not do more than is healthy, but I am going to build my body up, I am going to work and make myself strong.

There is a beautiful lady I go to church with. She has 4 young children and is an avid runner, swimmer, biker, do everythinger. Every time I look at her, I think, "She is what good health means to me. The ability to move, exercise, push yourself to the limits, and then go some more." For the last few years I have pictured myself doing those things she does. I want that!

I do realize that this is going to take a lot of work, but I am willing to do it. My ultimate short term goals are to run the 5k and feel good, and then go on to doing (run/jog/walk) the half marathon. I love the whole idea that while I am stretching and reaching for my physical goals, that I will be doing these things in honor of a foundation that I am tied to in so many ways.

Why does all this give me reason to write a blog?

Well...As I sat dreaming on day of my goals, I just couldn't contain my excitement! I wanted to share my adventure with the world! I am also aware that not everyone wants to hear my story or follow my progress. So I thought, a blog would be a great way for me to share my excitement, emotions, struggles and accomplishments. And if not even one single person read this blog, at least I would have it out there!
I also have to admit that I do really well when I tell people my goals. If I say I am going to do it, I do it!!!
So if your reading, thank you! I hope you enjoy the adventure. If your not, I am here any way!
I would love for comments and feed back. Thank you!