I know it has been a while since I posted last. I did not realize how long until I just checked. Sorry. Things took a little while to get better but I think(knock on wood) that I may be finally come out on the other side.
After we got Mac better, I started to get back on track. I went to the gym and was feeling alright. The pollen was becoming a nightmare and I felt a little scratchiness in my throat but I hoped it would go away. Then I ended up getting food poisoning. It took me a little more time to recover than when Mac had it and once I did, I realized the sinus issues I had been having, moved into my chest. I had a HORRIBLE cough. I went to the gym once the stomach was better but I was coughing like crazy. My trainer agreed to take out the cardio so I could just focus on strength training during our sessions until I was better. She was really great about it and very surprised that I had continued to come in even though I was not feeling great. It took a little longer than I wanted but my chest cleared up. I still feel it a little if she pushes the cardio a little too hard so she watches me and dials it back if I need it.
As much as food poisoning sucked, it helped get me out of the funk I was in with my weight loss. It is definitely not something I recommend to anyone but I had been stuck for so long and it helped me through that. Of course I lost several pounds when I was sick and put some back on when I was better, but I started seeing the numbers move down again even once I was feeling better and eating normally again. I've been trying to make better choices and work on my food more since I was sick.
Saturday, I ran a 10K. It's the first real long run I have done since Star Wars and I wanted to see where I was. I have been doing some shorter runs and speed work as well as working out at the gym and I was wondering if it had helped improve my pace any. I have been looking at races in the area a lot over the past month and I knew there was a 10K in Port St Joe along the coast. It was only $30 and I love the area so I decided it would be a good one to use as a gauge for where I am and what I need to do before Memorial Day to get a good finish time at that 10K to use as my new proof of time.
It was a fun little race. There were only 77 total racers with 48 doing the 5K and 29 running the 10K. We started near the beach and ran around to a walking/running path that curved along between the beach and the beach houses in the area. Then we headed into a small private community before heading back to the finish area. The course was very nice and the volunteers were great but there were a few issues. They had to change the course the night before due to an event nearby that would cause us to cross traffic. They thought that meant the 10K was going to be a little long. In fact, it was a little short. Once I got home, I uploaded the info from my gps and checked the map to make sure it was right and found out that my pace was still better than I expected even though my finish time was not a good as I thought when I passed the clock(since the course was short). I have not run over 3 miles in a while so I was very happy even though I was annoyed by the short course. All of the cross training has definitely paid off. I really hope that over the next six weeks, I can continue to improve and get a good time at my next race.
I am a little sad that once again, there is a race result online that looks way better than what I actually did. I want my numbers to be real. I want what looks like a PR to really be a PR, not just luck because someone incorrectly measured a course. My goal once again is to get a true time that is as good as or better than the one that came from an error.
This has also been a good week because I have been able to see a difference when I put on clothes. I was happier with how my body looks. I know I still have a long way to go, but it is nice when you can see a difference, even if it is small. This weekend, may have undone some of that but I will work to get it back on track. (We had several friends come visit and there was lots of food and games.)
I finally feel like maybe I am seeing the light on the other side of that tough spot. I know I will go through more during this journey but I hope that one is behind me and I have a few months of good roads at least. I'm not 100% sure if I am going to be able to hold out until Wine and Dine without doing another half but that is still my big goal race that I am working towards. I will hopefully be doing more 5Ks and 10Ks between now and then to help pass the time.
