Wendy’s BodyBlog

Ok, so today is not quite over yet, but seeing as how I just cheated (within my 600 calorie limit!), I don’t think I’m likely to cheat again. The first few days of Last Man Standing were fine, but then around Monday, things got harder…and harder…and harder. It started on Monday after my long run with John, when I wanted a big plate of pasta. Then Tuesday I was alright. Yesterday all I could think about was ice cream, and today it was a double chocolate muffin (which I haven’t even eaten in MONTHS, so I don’t know where that came from!).

So, typical me, then I became philosophical about the whole thing and began to question pleasure vs denial, what a "normal" diet looks like (which, btw, I don’t think we have  a definition for, as a culture… It’s either super strict like what we are doing OR it’s eat everything in sight. As a country, we are OBSESSED with food and weight). SOOO finally today I decided to succumb to my body and my need for pleasure and made myself a grilled cheese sandwich with pepper jack cheese. And I had a small handful of peanuts mixed with raisins for some extra sugar (which is eating clean!) Mmmmm. It was either that or driving to My Favorite Muffin for a double chocolate muffin, which is, at least according to one internet site, 606 calories–6 calories over my quota! And I was not about to drop out of the challenge for 6 measly calories! For now, I think I am going to stick with where my calories are now, and give it another week to see where I am a week from now.

Baby Got Back is also going well. I am not sure I will be able to fit in 2 high intensity workouts this week. I was planning on doing one today, but woke up with a sore throat and major DOMS in my glutes and quads from weights yesterday. For my second day of working on pullups, I did as many as I could (not many!) then did  bunch of negative pullups then did some lat pulldowns, going VERRRY slowly with the pulldown bit. Was also very sore from that! I am also following the triceps workout that was featured in the Sept Oxygen, but instead of the tricep dips off a bench, I am doing full body weight dips… I will post my measurements again next week…

Oh! And one more thing. Yesterday I did a 9 mile run/hike that increased around 2000 vertical feet in about 6 miles or so, and I am feeling much more confident about pacing John. I think my sluggishness from my last trail run was most likely due to dehydration and lack of nutrients.

I managed the first 6 miles at a pace of 4 MPH. I ran some of it, but a lot of it was NOT runnable, as it was VERY steep in sections as well as sandy AND rocky! Then the last 3 miles were just switchbacks down a mountain, so that didn’t take me very long at all… I still have several more hard hike/runs to do before August 16, but at least now I know I am on the right track!

Holy moly! I ran with John today for about 3 hours (10.5 miles for me) on the Tahoe Rim Trail, and it HURT! Granted, I ran out of water, and I was hungry halfway through with no food in sight. Still, I was dead. It should have been a sign to me when I realized that I had forgotten my carefully packed CamelBak at home! We stopped by the grocery store on the way up. I got a one-liter bottle of water and a pack of the Power Bar gel (which I really liked, by the way! I don’t normally like sports drinks and sport gels…they are usually too sweet for me). I should have at least gotten two packets of the gel. I would still have been hungry, but at least that sugar and electrolyte rush would have helped push me through. The water was about gone when I decided that maybe I should turn back… At that point, I had 5 miles left. I knew I would make it back, as I have run out of water before with more than 5 miles and at a higher temperature than it was today, but it’s still uncomfortable.
I thought I was training pretty hard with the uphill climbs on the treadmill at 4 MPH and the StairMaster but apparently not! The last 2 miles were just painful. I certainly have my work cut out for me over the next couple weeks to be in decent enough shape to pace John for about 20 miles. All this being said, I do think he is ready for the 100-miler. He complained of his legs hurting (no doubt due to the 50 last weekend), but was still going strong. I really do think that the only thing that will stop him from finishing the race at this point is his stomach, which, if it is bad during the 100 miler like it was during the 50, he will have to drop due to too much weight loss. And yes there are other things that can happen on the day of the run, but I remain optimistic.

Today I REALLY wanted to cheat with Last Man Standing. That probably would have made me the first person out! It is just really hard not to eat a bunch of pasta after a day like today. I did have my chocolate milk protein shake (trainer approved!), but that did not seem to really satisfy my carb craving. Oh well…

So this week, probably Wednesday, I will do a local 9 mile hike/run that increases about 2000 feet in elevation, then on Sunday, I will most likely hike/run Mt Rose, which is a KILLER! And this time I will be much better prepared! I will bring food (probably a Cliff Bar, some beef jerky) and gels AND have my Camel Bak, which carries 2 liters of water! I will be prepared!

Being a person who is neurotic about her food (seriously, please show me one girl who is NOT), I was worried about my increase in calories in the Last Man Standing challenge. Before, I was on a diet that rotated calories 1350/1450/1550, and I decided that it was not enough, so for the challenge, I upped them to 1500/1600/1700. With Last Man Standing there are no cheats (at least that is how I plan on being Last Woman Standing…yeah, I said it!), however. Today I calculated out how many calories I would eat in one week based on both of these plans. And what do you know! Because I am NOT cheating, I will actually be consuming fewer calories than if I were back on my old rotation and cheating. Yes, my cheats are quite elaborate. I usually have a good idea at least several days in advance what I want and when. Usually, it was pizza (I could eat a whole medium, thin-crust store-bought pizza by myself), AND my bf, and I would split a pint of ice cream. That is AT LEAST 1500 calories. Sometimes we would order pizza, and that always has more calories! And sometimes I would eat Cold Stone after that, so that is probably around 2500 calories or so.

Anyway, enough about that. I thought it was interesting, though, because I realized today that had I chosen not to have cheats, I could have eaten more EVERY DAY AND not be hungry AND still lose weight!!!

Today was shoulders in the gym. My right shoulder has been giving me a ton of grief, so I decided today that I would just go and do what I can. I did manage to get out some Arnold raises and actually set a personal record with that! Haha! I tried upright shrugs, but I knew it would be a bad idea to finish them. Then I did front plate raises, which didn’t hurt at all. I did end up modifying some of the exercises. I did lateral raises on a machine (after I squeezed out some with light dumbbells), as well as rear delts on a machine, and that seemed to help because it stabilized my body. I am also not lifting as heavy with shoulders as I know I can (except for the Arnold raises, apparently!), but that’s ok. Also, a few days ago, I did bicep curls with dumbbells, and THAT bothered my shoulder as well. Today I tried doing curls with a straight bar, and I had no problems. Did not even try the dumbbells, and won’t anytime soon.  SOOO I guess this is how it’s going to be for a while until my shoulder gets better. As long as I can maintain what I have, I will be fine.

I am REALLY excited about the two challenges Last Man Standing and Baby Got Back! Should be fun and what I need to get me back on track with eating clean, seeing as how I have taken over a week off and have been indulging myself! It was fun while it lasted, but now it’s back to hard work!

Sooo…after the excitement of the 50 mile run, John and I decided to do one together. Tahoe Rim Trail 50 next year! I am not even thinking about it yet, really, because I still have my show to worry about, but it is definitely something to look forward to. We are a little competitive with each other when it comes to running. My 50 mile run time was over an hour faster than his times (granted, it was a different course), and the one marathon we ran together, I came in 45 minutes earlier than he did…. SO of course, I joke about how I am the faster runner, and the 50 we will do together will prove that once and for all! Haaaahaaaa! I LOVE saying stuff like that because it gets him every time–and watch, he will probably fly by my hiney in that run! (Hey, it’s my job to give him a ton of crap!) I am really excited about it…It should be fun to train for it together and run it together. I will still lift heavy in the gym, and actually probably won’t do a TON of running, per se, except for the back to back long runs. I will spend a lot of time doing cardio, just not running all the time. Hopefully that will save my knees…

It’s funny how watching one race has motivated me to do another 50. In fact, as we were driving up to the run, I told him that I was happy that I was not the one who was doing it because I remember how painful it is. He agreed with me, that while we remember the pain, we still want to do more… makes us sick in some way, right?

I also want to do Women’s Tri Fitness. I think I am going to buy or make a 20" box to practice my jumps on pretty soon. Granted, I don’t plan on doing WTF until 2009/10, but it’s never too early to practice, right? Today I "practiced" my bench presses. With WTF, the point, I think, is to do as much as possible benching 60% of your body weight.  So today, I put on 10 pound plates onto each end of the 45 pound barbell. I stretched my arms overhead. I was ready to go! I positioned my hands above my shoulders, re-adjusted, then lifted the bar off the rack…

I was surprised at the ease I felt as I pumped that bar from my chest to a couple feet overhead. Maybe I was getting stronger after all! But then, come rep 6, I felt the pressure in my chest. By rep 8, I knew that would be my last for that set. 8 Reps, that was all that I managed to pump out. (sigh) But I persevered and did four more sets of eight, my arms and chest getting weaker with each set. It was a good start but I will have a long way to go, never mind the fact that, at 130 pounds, 60% of my weight is 78 pounds, NOT 65… Even at my show weight of 120, the weight would be 72 pounds, 7 more than the weight I was benching today…
Yes, maybe it is a good thing to start early, after all!

Yay!  I am excited for the start of these two challenges!!! Seeing as how I am not prepping for a contest now, for Last Man Standing, I will rotate my calories every three days, 1500, 1600, 1700. Of course it will be hard to be spot on, but I think plus or minus 50 calories should be ok. I will also follow a 40/40/20 diet with plus or minus 10. I will ALSO try not to cheat AT ALL during the entire three week period! Haha! We will see how that goes! BUT I have NEVER eaten 100% clean for that long, so it will really be like an experiment to see how my body will react.

AND because I will not be cheating, I also reserve the right to increase my caloric intake by 100 calories each day after the first week if I find that I am STARVING day after day. I can deal with a little hunger, but if I find I am still hungry AFTER a meal, then I know it is time to increase the calories. I don’t think that will be the case, though. I was starving preparing for my last contest (since canceled), but my caloric intake then was 1350/1450/1550. I also plan on continuing with eating clean (maybe with a cheat added in) for the last 3 weeks of Baby Got Back.
I would really like to work on my glutes, triceps, back, and calves for the Baby Got Back Challenge (actually, I think that about covers my entire back area, haha! Oh, wait, that doesn’t include the hammies…). I think a half inch to one inch decrease of my glutes would be nice. Regarding my back, I want to increase the number of pull ups I can do–right now, the most I can do continuously is three. Even doing 5 continuously would be really nice. To that end, I will work on pull ups twice per week (as opposed to once, which is what I am doing now). I will also work on my triceps twice per week (again, as opposed to once per week) and will aim for 2 exercises per triceps session–don’t want those suckers to overpower my guns, haha! Same with calves–work them twice per week (opposed to once per week), one exercise each session.

In addition to eating clean 100% of the time for three weeks, I will continue lifting 4-5 times per week. My current schedule calls for my lifting 5 days, but sometimes I just add in the chest and ab day to other days. I will also do cardio 5-6 times per week, 45 minutes each session, with at least two high intensity cardio sessions per week. This will be done throughout the entire 6 weeks. I think that should about cover it.

I don’t think I will be able to take pics, since I don’t have a digital camera. But I did take my measurements. I took my own, so I don’t know if I took them in the "right" places or not. I rounded off to the nearest 1/2" or 1", did not do 1/4"
Hips-taken at the widest part: 37"

Waist-taken at narrowest part: 27"

Chest-taken under armpits with arms relaxed–this one was super tricky: 35.5"

Thigh-taken at widest area (this is NOT the spot where my trainer took this measurement a couple months ago, but it will do for me): 22.5"

A good 1/2" to 1" off of all areas would be nice–oh, except the chest, of course! I would like that to stay where it is!

So it seems that the California show has now been rescheduled to October 4 which is 10 weeks out from Saturday. I am so frustrated at this point that I am tempted just to do the nationals November 21-22. Did I mention that I am REALLY FRUSTRATED?!?!! WTF?! Deep breaths. In the grand scheme of things, this is not a big deal, but I do find it ridiculous that Fitness America keeps switching dates around. To me, that’s just poor business. Does anyone know if NPC has a more regular schedule? It might be worth switching federations just for sanity’s sake.

Because I was planning on an Oct 18 show, I went off of the diet, so I really would be starting out all over again should I choose to do that show. I am going to think about it, but at this point, I really just feel like doing the nationals. At any rate, I am doing the Last Man Standing and Baby Got Back Challenges, so I will be watching my diet pretty closely anyway if I change my mind.

Well, at least that takes care of some worries I was having about pacing John for distance and maintaining muscle while dieting. AND my shoulder can heal properly without my having to really continue pushing myself because of a looming show date. Ok, am feeling better… Thanks for listening to the rant!

As promised, here is an account of John’s 50 mile run. Ok, really this is just two emails we sent out during and after the race. The first one, I wrote after we saw John at the halfway point. John wrote part two… Part Three are my final thoughts on the race. You can also find this on JohnA1978 (minus part 3). I will post pics later…

Part 1 

We had an early start this morning, 3 AM, and were on the road by 4 AM. Unfortunately,
John did not sleep well last night, thanks to his being on nights at Amazon, but he did manage to get about four hours or so. This morning, John also was not feeling well, but this was expected, as he usually experiences a case of the nerves and upset stomach the day before and the day of ultra.

John reported feeling like he was going to hurl, and as far as we know, he did not.
We hope that after his body has time to absorb the nutrients that he will be in fighting shape once again… And, as ultra runners well know, too, things don’t always get worse… They have to get better at some point. You just have to keep moving, and that is exactly what we know John is doing right now out there on the course.

Part 2

I knew I was having hydration problems but did not realize how bad.  I lost over 10 pounds during the course of the race.  If this happens during the 100 miler I will be forced to drop (they weigh you at the aid stations).  Over the next month
I’ll be dialing in my hydration plan and my pace plan to finish “The Race Across the Sky”.

Part 3 

I should add in here, too, that Emily and I awaited very anxiously for John as the finish. We got there 10 hours into the race, which we knew was early, but we still held hope for his finishing the race at his goal time of 11 hours. When 11 hours came and went, we discussed the possibility of John finishing at 11:30. I was sure that John would run the second half faster than the first. But 11:30 came and went, and I walked up the trail about a 1/4 mile to see if I could get a better view of the trail. No such luck. After waiting for about 45 minutes and after a quick pit stop in the brush, I began to walk the trail in the opposite direction of the runners. By 12:15, I had an awful feeling that something was wrong. Last year, John had finished the race in 12:12, and since he has a trainer this year, I felt certain that he would at least finish faster than last year. I walked maybe a 1/2 mile up the trail and decided to turn back.

Unfortunately, I was wearing sandals, as I had switched from my running shoes to sandals several hours earlier. I wish I hadn’t done that, so that I could run further up the trail, meet up with John, and run back with him. But since running in sandals wasn’t an option, I walked back to where Emily still was, at the finish line. I told her that maybe we should ask a race official how to go about finding out who has dropped from the race. I was really worried, as I had been for well over an hour. What if he was hurt? What if was severely dehydrated? What if he was waiting for us to find him?

And just when I told Emily maybe we should find out who has dropped the race, Emily saw John in the distance. As he approached, he did the running man (classic John!). Emily took his picture while I ran with him… He didn’t look good, but he had finished. I don’t think I have ever been so happy to see my boy.

AUGH!!! I just realized that I have about 3.5 weeks to get in decent enough shape to pace John in his 100 mile run on August 16. I guess it didn’t really sink in until after his 50 was over. The most I have run as of late is 7 miles. Granted, most of the pacing will be walking at a brisk pace (around 4 MPH) AND at elevation. I have been walking on the treadmill at 4 MPH anywhere between 8-15% incline, but I know the treadmill isn’t preparing me the way I need to be prepared to pace. I am nervous, too, because Leadville STARTS at around 10,000 feet and maxes out around 12,000+. Oh, and BTW - if anyone has experience doing this sort of thing I would appreciate any advice or comments on any aspect from training to pacing itself.
Generally, pacers run with the runners beginning at the halfway point, so for this race, at the 50 mile mark. I figure that I can probably do between 20-30 miles, so long as it is not all at once (which is doable). I do think that I am mentally able to power through a lot of difficult terrain as well as a lot of pain (which is what I did for well over 20 miles in my own 50-mile run), but I really don’t want that to be the case. My worst nightmare about pacing is to be the one who is SLOWING John down, hahahaaa! I doubt that will be the case, but without the right preparation, you never know.

Anyway, so I have decided that I will hit the Tahoe Rim Trail about 2 times per week, trying to power hike the inclines and run downhill for about 7-10 miles, and walking on the treadmill at an incline once per week. The highest point of the Tahoe Rim Trail is around 10,200 feet, I think, which is not as high as I would like, but it should get my body prepared for the base elevation of Leadville. Hmmm… I just googled Squaw Valley to see how high that goes, but it is only to about 8200 feet. I can hike Mt Rose, which climbs to about 10,600, but in terms of accessing trails at a high altitude, Mt Rose and the Tahoe Rim Trail are it.

As I’ve mentioned before, I don’t think that distance running is compatible with maintaining the muscle of a figure girl, but then again, I am doing figure for fun, not to be the next Gina Allioti. I have too many interests to be so competitive in just one sport. Speaking of which (am rambling a bit now), I think in 2009/10, I would like to do Women’s TriFitness. It’s not really feasible during this next school year. My nose will be to the grindstone, especially during the spring semester (hello extended off season!!!). I like that WTF is so well rounded in terms of athleticism… It should be a real challenge for me to get my body to the level where I can do 50 20-inch box jumps with good time, bench pressing 60% of my weight AMAP, a fitness routine, and a sub-60 second obstacle course. Funfunfun!

Ok, I need to stop fantasizing about 2009/10, and start worrying about pacing my boy in 3.5 weeks!

This weekend was crazy, as it was John’s 50 mile race (I will post more details on the race later). Saturday was an early morning start, as we woke up  at 3 AM, and our day did not end till around 8, when we got back home. Though crewing is nothing like running 50 miles, it is still a lot of work. Basically for an entire day, the crew takes care of the runner–everything from rubbing down legs to cooking to anticipate what the runner may need to driving to waiting for hours and anxiously so. Yesterday was spent laying around, waiting on John as need be, napping periodically, eating between naps then going to bed early. And I didn’t even run the race!!! But, John is doing well, and he reports that his legs feel alright today, not 100 percent yet, though, obviously.

Being out there cheering people on has inspired me to once again compete in ultras. It would be fun to run one with John. Well, in a sick sort of way! I think I would approach it differently now, though. I don’t think I would run 35 miles as my long run. I would do shorter long runs, continue lifting, and I wouldn’t eat everything in sight, like I did while training for my last 50 miler. Maybe only on the days of long runs.  It’s hard wanting to both run distances and wanting a kick-ass figure girl physique, as those are not compatible.
I did not workout at all this weekend and ate a ton of crap. I was supposed to do a shoulder workout and a high intensity cardio session, but it just did not happen. My right shoulder is SUPER sore (It’s an injury), so it is probably a good thing that I rested my shoulders. When I first started eating clean, I was told that i would eventually find the old food I used to eat repulsive, but I don’t think that is the case at all. I still really enjoy pizza, ice cream, bacon, donuts, cheese, fries, cheeseburgers, etc. I do notice its effects on my body more, but that doesn’t make me dislike it. I have been enjoying my indulgences (maybe a little too much!). Come Saturday, I will be 12 weeks out, then back to strict dieting. And I am doing the Last Man Standing challenge and the Baby Got Back challenge, so that should help me stay on course.

I am definitely doing Figure America in LA on October 18, which makes me 13 weeks out as of this Saturday. I heard from my coach today, and she also thinks it is a good idea for me to do a show before the nationals, just to get out there and know what to expect. She also put to ease my worries about "fixing" my physique between the shows and thought that I should work more on stage presentation and posing at this point.

At any rate, having a show 13 weeks out means no more of my daily indulgences! That is just as well, seeing as how I am kind of getting tired of not eating clean anyway. Now there’s something I never thought I would say. But last night on the treadmill, I felt a LOT of pressure in my hands, and it was all from bloating thanks to the extra sodium I have been consuming! Definitely don’t like that feeling.

And I know it’s crazy to say this, but even with all of the complaining I do about what I CAN’T eat, I am actually enjoying the dieting process (ok, well except the being hungry part). I like feeling like I am really working toward something. I like the changes I see in my body as a result of what I am (or am not!) doing. I also like feeling like I am in control of my food demons. I wish I weren’t one of those girls who is neurotic about food, but I am. But only because of my past history of emotional eating, which is never healthy.

Off to have chicken, broccoli and oatmeal then to the gym!!!