If you're lucky enough to be in the mountains, you are lucky enough.

When something bad happens, you have three choices: let it define you, let it destroy you, or let it strengthen you.

Monday, March 10, 2014

Anybody is still out there?

Well, I didn't think so either.

Anyway, the Dead Blog World you are, here is a blurb (that is not an awesome-race-related or destination-vacation-related).

Since my Mt. Mitchel power-hike didn't take out of me in terms of muscle recovery, I was back in the gym on Monday, however, I had an aversion to running for the whole week, but that was mental. I just hated the idea of it so much. But volunteering at Nueces trail races (photos) was fun as usual (where,  by the way, one of young gals came to thanks me for "helping out so much at every Tejas trail race, and how do you know so much valuable info??"), Larry ran a 50k, and his son Harrison did his first 10k, and we all enjoyed out time out with friends (as I mentioned in my previous post, this is how you curb your appetite for community, right?".



After eating crap while working an AS (I know, I know, I have no time to prepare stuff, my weeks with 2 jobs and exercise routine are killing me!), I started on past Monday my "veggie detox" (as in "strict Whole30", when first 2 days I didn't even eat proteins at all, and in general had no fruits and no starchy veggies). I think I am totally disgusted with myself enough - and, oh, my God, it is taking me 2 months of working hard, and I am still not budging in terms of cardio fitness or fat level!!! (Although, as a side note, a gym's fancy fat-measuring device which is also used in aerospace program and NFL athletics measured me at 18%, and I am still claiming their machine is broken, but at least I stopped hating myself).

Anyway, last week I only worked my 2nd job on 2 days, and that allowed me to buckle down, eat super-clean, workout a lot (4 hot yoga, 4 weight lifting sessions, 2 Stairstepper sessions, 4 runs) - and dropped 4 lbs, eased into my jeans (sigh) and can actually find some upper part of a "6-pack" if look hard:)

It will be a different week now, but I am down with working hard - I don't know it any other way anyway (as Meredith Terranova put it in our coffee date and her recall of the Ultra-Man she just successfully finished - I can't live without structure). Bottom line is, I want people to know that:

a) I don't suffer when get "on a program and don't have fun" - in my life there is much crap always had been and is happening that I can't control that controlling something makes me feel safe, and I do like structure (almost military) and fewer choices in anything
b) I let myself go "more wild" when I visit friends, travel away from home and stuff like that, than regardless what my stomach accepts or what my training schedule says, all goes to hell, and I just live

It works for me.

Our bathroom renovation should start this week. I can't wait to have it clean, clear and not 50 years old style, even if still tiny.

It rained on Saturday, and I ran in a rain for 2 hrs. Despite being wiped out of low-calory-consumption-high-intensity week, I enjoyed my slog in the Oregon-like weather tremendously. It felt like home.

I miss Oregon.

I miss Black Saturdays Ronda had started, again, in the Gorge (2-3M hill repeats with 5,000+ feet of gain in a 20 miler).

I miss my grown-up, completely not-bragging-kind boys (probably as kids, not as they are now so much, and our times together, hiking, backpacking, exploring, hugging...before all the problems arrived).

Thank God Larry and I are on the same page for so many things, and I am one lucky woman to get a second chance at love in life.


9 comments:

SteveQ said...

I love that the title sounds like Russian grammar. There's definitely less action in the blog world, but I still get 200 people looking at my blog each day. Facebook's killed a lot of the interaction on blogs, but there's still a need for people to say something more than: "Finished!" and then post a photo.

Steve Pero said...

Olga...I don't blog anymore, but still read yours ;-)

Olga said...

Wow! I am conducting an experiment, not putting on FB that a blog post was written...Steve, you're right, FB over-took mindful writing. I gave up FB for three and half years exactly for that - because I refused to stop writing with my soul, and posting short tidbits was taking away from my desire to blog. Then I came back 2 years ago...and the stuff is just the same. I tend to extend my FB posts, but then always fear nobody will read it to the end, then blog, but by then I already FB-ed something or other...Thanks, guys, for reading! I have more thoughts than I can squeeze in a paragraph. Now I just need more time to express it:)

Julie said...

Like Steve, I don't really blog anymore, but still enjoy reading them. Especially yours!

Anonymous said...

I love reading your blog :-)

Anonymous said...

i love this. i yearn to write more but rarely take the time....it also can be hard to write about the stuff that's not all rainbows & bunnies (i.e. REAL LIFE!)
it's refreshing to read your honest & heartfelt words!
-erin

Alicia Hudelson said...

I still read your blog! Definitely keep it going, please:)

Emily @ My Little Lasik said...

Your blog is awesome!

ALM said...

I love reading your blog, it is real.