Pulpapalooza!!!

Needless to say, me and Mr. Fun have some weight to lose.  Seeing ourselves in pictures, not fitting into certain clothes and don't make me talk about looking in the mirror - argg.

Recently, I joined Good Life Fitness and arranged to get some personal training.  I was so lucky to be matched with a trainer named Sonita who is awesome.  Turns out we know each other from a long time ago when Lennie and I used to work at the London Blues Fest and she was in charge of Belemire Farms pub - small world. 

Anyways, she has got us pretty pumped about changing our eating habits and told us to watch a documentary entitled Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead http://www.fatsickandnearlydead.com/ about a guy who was overweight and needing to make a big change in his life.  It focuses on eating habits and the benefits of eating fruits and vegetables - something not too popular in our house - at least not a balance of them.  We do have a great vegetable garden each year but really it's just tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, peppers, celery, and jalapenos - not totally balanced.

So, Sonita encouraged us to buy a juicer.  Since they are a tad expensive we ordered one through Air Miles account and got it for free - including shipping.  It arrived this week and we are eager to try it out as a way to incorporate more fruits and vegetables.

Last night Lennie and I hosted 8 people for drinks, appetizers and games.  When I was cleaning up and telling people to take home the stuff they brought our friend Scotty said, "Why don't you keep it and juice this stuff." in a mocking tone, but really it was brilliant, and that is exactly what I will do.

So, I got up this morning after Lennie left for hockey, opened the juicer, read the manual, cleaned it, set it up, and got to work on making my first juice.   I had no idea how easy, fun, and the amount of pulp that fruits and vegetables generate - more on pulpapalooza later.

I literally threw all the leftover stuff in the juicer; broccoli, celery, cauliflower, apple, pineapple, cantaloupe, watermelon, grapes, carrots, limes.  I did get hit in the head with a flying apple and a rogue broccoli floret but I needed to learn to get the presser thing on the stuff fast or it comes flying out of the throat part. 

I was thrilled when juice actually started to come out the bottom.

Wow, imagine if we drink this, the amount of healthy vitamins and minerals we will be getting.

Normally, most of this stuff would have gone to waste - except the watermelon as that is my favourite thing in the whole world.  But the broccoli might have made it to a soup, the carrots would have shivered up and been tossed and the cantaloupe, well, who likes cantaloupe.

All that stuff turned into a little over a litre of juice - amazing really.  So, tried it and I love it, it tastes delicious and it is so filling.  I realize that it has a lot of fruit in it so it is pretty sweet but I can totally see myself being able to throw spinach, kale and other yucky stuff in there and not even tasting it.

But the best part is the pulp that we got in the collector part.  I ran to the back yard (in the pouring rain) and dumped the stuff in my garden - imagine the mulch we are going to get and be able to use - it is coming full circle now.   Clean up was not too bad - if you have ever used a food processor it is about the same amount of work so I would make sure I make a big batch of juice to save time.

The funny part was when came back in from the garden after dumping the pulp I took the machine apart and found a TON more pulp all in the machine - literally twice as much.  So I learned to take the machine apart and scrap the pulp into the collector - nothing will go to waste.

So, the big question is....did Lennie drink the juice and like it when he got home from hockey?  He has said that he wants to get his weight down and eat better.  Will juicing help?  Will he get off his Diet Coke, peanut butter, and ketchup diet? 

We took some before pictures of ourselves in workout clothes but they are so extremely embarrassing they will never see the light of day. 

Do you juice?  Have you seen this documentary?  Do you have a personal trainer that rocks?

NYC - I saw the signs

So, last winter I applied to run the 2012 NYC Marathon. 

I had run the Chicago Marathon twice and heard that in order to run NYC you must apply and get your name pulled through a lottery process.  My running bud Lish told me that if we apply for 3 years and do not get our names pulled that you are guaranteed a spot the next year, so we applied to start that process.  Little did I know that my luck would kick in April when they did the lottery and my name was pulled. 

I was actually very upset but didn't tell anyone.  I had plans to run the Chicago Marathon with the REACT thyroid foundation charity on October 7th and this one was going to be a month later on November 4th - that would be too much for me and I would enjoy neither race.  Lish said not too worry because I could take it easy in Chicago and use it as a training run for NYC. 

What everyone did not know was that I was sick and had not run yet in 2012.  How could I run Chicago without any base training let alone a 2nd one 4 weeks later? 

After several doctors appt. and fixing some "chick stuff" plus Crohns disease stuff I was finally running again on June 10, 2012.  Problem was that I was way behind the plan.  I had no energy and my joints ached more than normal.  Turns out that I now have arthritis and it sucks.  I needed to take it easy, slow down and take a lot more rest days.  Leading up to Chicago I was feeling good but knew I didn't have the same stamina I had in the previous years.  I ran Chicago on my 44th birthday - October 7th and we all saw how that went - went out too fast and had no energy to push myself at anytime. Finished but it sucked.

So, I came home from Chicago devastated and embarrassed, joined Good Life Fitness so I could continue to train indoors and use the treadmill to get my pace back.  I spoke to a nutritionist and was feeling great about NYC.  I had never been to NYC and was a tad nervous about the size of the race (47,000 runners) and the city itself.  My mom would come with me and help me get through it all.

I made a shirt and checked the weather daily.  Things were looking good until about a week before the race a hurricane struck the east coast and cause severe damage to the state of New Jersey and New York City. 

Little did we know the extent of the damage and the widespread problems that water, sand, and winds caused to this area.  We watched the news and weather reports and on Tuesday October 30th an announcement was made that the race was still on.

Friday morning mom and I got to the Buffalo airport and our flight had arrived to take us to NYC - a good sign. 

We had a great flight as it is not very far to NYC where I saw the city for the first time ever and was so thrilled to catch a glimpse of the skyline of Manhattan. 

We did not know about the problems with the gas shortage or widespread electricity issues but my brother John did and because he was so worried about us he arranged for a car service to get us to our hotel.  I have never had a driver hold a sign up with our name on it let alone ride in a Mercedes SUV - we were pimped out. 

Right away the driver explained to us the problems in the city and about all the gas/electricity issues.  As we drove we saw the long line ups at the gas stations, no traffic lights and people walking to get home without any public transportation.  He got us to the hotel in 1 piece and we were able to check in - another good sign. 

We immediately went to the expo and I got my bid and started shopping for cool race gear.  And then, out of no, where I saw him...Ryan Hall my favourite runner at a booth signing autographs.  He signed my bib last year in Chicago and I got a personal best time - I wonder if he signed it again this year if NYC would be where I break 6 hours.  I was so thrilled to see him again and we chatted it up.  Another good sign..

We left and went out for dinner and grabbed a coffee when I received several texts and messages that people were sorry to hear the marathon was cancelled.  I thought everyone was kidding until we got back to the hotel and watched the live broadcast of the cancellation.   I was fine with the decision as it did not feel right.  How could I be running when no one was able to celebrate when they had lost so much.  It was a sign...a sign to stop and appreciate what we have, and a chance to come back next year, faster and stronger when everyone could celebrate.

Saturday morning we headed back to the expo as we had arranged a bus trip called Marathon Route in a Coach tour.  A four hour tour of the marathon route and city.  This was the best thing as we learned everything there is to learn about NYC, saw all of NYC, and I was able to see how difficult of a marathon route it is.  I think this was a good sign...  I need to be much lighter, faster, and stronger if I want to finish this race well - it is sooo hilly.  One of the most wonderful sites on our tour was seeing ground zero and the construction of the Freedom Tower.  It rises about the city and it is like a beacon of survival and hope. 

We saw all the boroughs, all the sites but was sadden to see such sorrow for so many.  the gas lines were so long and the lack of power left many people freezing.  We saw houses and cars wreaked by the winds, water, and rain. 

We finished the tour and got back in time to see the Lion King - I cried as soon as the curtains open, the singing started, and the elephants came down the aisles.   We went out for dinner that night to a wonderful Italian restaurant after a very full day. 

I forgot that for lunch I even got to eat really NYC style pizza in our favourite part of the city; Williamsburg which is in Brooklyn and the marathon runs right past a street of amazing shops, cafes and pizza places. Next year I look forward to seeing this part of NYC again with all the people out to cheer us on.

 

Sunday morning we woke up and heard that many of the marathon runners were in Staten Island helping all the people there with bringing supplies to those in need.  Another 1/3 of the runners went home, ran other races or didn't come and the other 1/3 were in Central Park.  I put on my NYC marathon shirt and we hit the park with thousands of other runners running laps and celebrating a makeshift marathon.  We cheered for an hour as people ran by and then we joined in the fun.  Many people had come to cheer the runners on from all over the world.  Mom and I could not believe the countries represented.  I would need to make a better shirt next year with the "Canada" letters much bigger.   

I then asked mom if we could hit all the spots and do all the things I have ever wanted to do in NYC.  She was game and had her running shoes on so we walked to Bloomingdale's, shopped (I knew I needed to get Megan something from here) and we had lunch.  Went to the Empire State Building which is so gorgeous and walked back to Times Square for photos and to see if we could get tickets to another show.  No tickets were available so we found a great place for dinner (Mexican our favourite), a way to donate my clothes to charity and saw the NYFD on 8th Avenue to say thank you and see their memorial wall to their fallen firefighters. 

I know we did soooo much more but am forgetting a ton.  It was an amazing 4 days.  Thank you to everyone for your care and thoughts while I tried to complete this race this year.  I promise you that this was not a waste of time, it was the best thing for me.  I love doing stuff with my mom and we haven't had a trip together since San Antonio in 2006 plus it showed me that I need to work harder next year to train for this race.  I know the city will bounce back and the people will overcome all of this..they always do.  I am excited to return to celebrate in true NYC style with the people that deserve to be happy.

 

My favourite part of the trip was when I was saying goodbye to Lennie in the parking lot on Thursday night to head to Buffalo.  He asked me to hold out my hand and he placed his most prized possession on my finger...his dad's dog tag.  He told me to wear it in good health and for good luck.  I tied it to my shoe and was hoping that I wouldn't lose it - I tied it 3 times to my laces and under the tongue part so it wouldn't fall off.  I wore it everywhere it was a good sign...

The 10 Year Letter Irony

I love it when good things happen to good people.  "Nice guys finish first", and in this case...5th.

We all know that I am a teacher right - actually I am an elementary school Principal now but once a teacher, always a teacher, no matter what your role.

In 2000, I left a corporate HR job in Toronto to move back to London to be a French/Phys-ed teacher at a school called Sir John A MacDonald PS.  I had no idea what I was doing but had a great admin team and colleagues to help me survive that first year. 

In 2001, I was asked to teach grade 7.  I once again had no idea what I was doing but really tried hard to focus on the kids and what they needed.  I spent a lot of time teaching French and Phys-ed since I knew how to do that and had my dad come a couple of times to do art lessons but the rest, I kind of sucked at.  It was an interesting year as 911 happened, the winter Olympics and a great deal of changes were happening at the school and in the community.  I had a tough but awesome group of students who pretty well ended up teaching me more than I taught them.

In January 2002, I had my class do an activity called the "10 Year Letter".  I had them write a letter to themselves that I would collect, keep, and then mail to them in the year 2012.  I had no idea if it would work or not but the kids did their best thinking about what they might be doing in 10 years.  I collected the letters and placed them safely in my basement where they remain to this day - a little covered in dust from our basement reno but still sealed and intact.

Well, guess what?  It has been 10 years so I must mail out the letters to the kids.  I went to my basement and retrieved the letters and was worried that the students might have moved and the letters would get lost in the mail.  So, I spent a great deal of time on the Internet, Twitter, and Facebook to track them down to ask for an updated address so I could send them their letters.  I got some wonderful responses and comments made about their memories of grade 7, our class, and me. 

One letter stood out though. 

It was written by a student in my class named Damian Warner.  He was the sweetest most quiet student I had ever taught.  He also was exceptionally athletic and won all the events at our annual track and field days plus came from a wonderful family. 

The reason why this letter stood out was because he had just recently returned from the summer Olympics in London.  Not as a spectator but as a competitor.  He had finished 5th in the decathlon and become a champion to all of Canada.  I could not believe that I had his letter and this was the year to send it to him.

Damian and our class celebrating the
2002 Winter Olympics - prediction or what!!

I shared my discovery with my friend Chris who is still a teacher at Sir John A who told me that they were going to have Damian come and speak to the school at an assembly.  Chris thought it would be a cool idea if I came and presented Damien's letter directly too him as a surprise.  Oh man, what a great idea, I was in!

I got Damian's letter ready and found some old photos from the class and then located the class yearbook.  I made a yearbook every year for my class and one of the things I would do is predict what I thought they would end up being as an adult.  Some people I predicted would be actors, writers or owners of motorcycles, but for Damian I predicted he would be a professional athlete - I thought a wrestler because in grade 7 he weight about 100 pounds but still, I knew he would fabulous!!  I also noticed that I had all the kids signed my copy of the year book so I laughed out loud to my husband saying I had the first Damian Warner autograph.

I brought the book and the letter to the school and had the opportunity to present them to Damian.  I recounted the fun times we had in grade 7, my prediction of him being in sports and then he opened the letter. 

You will not believe what it said....

Yep, you are reading correctly, he predicted he would be a "runner in the Olympics".  I started to bawl as I thought how cool that will be for his mom to see that he believed in himself and achieved such a lofty goal.  I could not be prouder of him as a Londoner, Canadian, but mostly as a graduate of Sir John A MacDonald PS.

Notice how tall he is now compared to the class photo
where I am a foot taller than him. 

This week I was thrilled when Damian was once again mentioned on our Board's web page http://www.tvdsb.ca/spotlight.cfm?sp=533 and the impact he is having by telling his story to kids all over our district.  The story mentioned his letter and my opportunity to present it to him and there were a couple of photos included.  I always wanted to make it on our Board's website Spotlight section and was really delighted with this because it was for me as a teacher. 

Not often do you get to see your students and how they are doing 10+ years later.  Watching him at the Olympics this summer and cheering him on in the decathlon was extra special.  I am so happy that a little silly lesson I did with that class so long ago could bring some joy to him and his family.  It sure makes my week.

Follow Damian and his journey to the 2016 Olympics and on Twitter @DamianWarner - he is one special guy.

Fight the Good Fight

This might be my favourite photo ever. It spoke to me the second I saw it on someone's Twitter feed. If you know where I can buy this as a poster let me know.

I feel that this picture represents how I feel often. Equipped to kick some butt but the goal is just a tad out of reach.

I imagine what happens 5 seconds after this picture is taken...

What's your favourite photo?

Chicago Marathon 2012

Yep, I did it. I ran, I mean jogged, ok walked a bit too, finishing my 3rd marathon. The time does not matter but it does suck and I didn't make the paper this time :( I had a really angry blog to post because of how the race unfolded and then adding insult to injury I didn't get a medal (they ran out at the 6:13 mark) ((the photo above is with a stranger's medal I asked to borrow for this photo)) but I realized I was feeling sorry for myself and was being a baby, so I deleted the post.

I can't blame anyone or Chicago for my race or results.

This was not an easy running season. No need for the gory details but me getting to the start line is a bit of a miracle and crossing the finish line is really even more amazing. I was running for the REACH thyroid research team and didn't want to let anyone down so plodded through the tough training cycle.

Not having run at all till June was problem #1, being more tired than normal after each run requiring more rest was problem #2 and, running every single run for 19 weeks alone except for 1 was huge problem #3.

I was sick for months and it really didn't get anything resolved until late May with a stupid GI surgery, gallstones, and a ton of tests. Having no thyroid, Crohn's disease and "chick" issues took months to deal with and took its toll.

But, I was determined to "get to the start line and cross the finish line". I did, and I can say I am a 3 time marathoner.

The expo was terrific with all the runners names written on the Nike wall again and cool social media interactive booths.

The weekend was wonderful with Kevin and the family spoiling us from Friday to Monday.

A wonderful carb load dinner was my favourite along with a surprise birthday celebration after the race for my 44th.

I also got one of my favourite photos ever of me and Mr Fun. At mile 11 he followed me, video taping me as I passed and my mom and cousins were making us laugh as I passed saying I was "almost there".

In two weeks I head to NYC for their marathon and a wonderful trip with my mom.

Best Birthday Party Ever!!!

My favourite thing came in the mail this week.  My Chicago Marathon confirmation ticket.  It always makes the event so much more real when the booklet comes with your bib number and instructions for race weekend. 

My mom and Lennie are coming with me again this year and we have all our plans set.  We will be leaving Friday so we can hit the expo Friday night, hang out Saturday, and I can run Sunday.  We will be staying at cousin Kevin's house again and we love hanging with his family in Wilmette, Illinois.

What makes this year sort of special is that race day is my 44th birthday.  Not only am I pleased to be running my 3rd marathon, but celebrating it in Chicago is even better.  I am proud this year to be running for a charity too.  http://reactthyroidfoundation.bbnow.org/index.php  The REACT Thyroid foundation has been wonderful to work with and if you wish to sponsor me, you can at http://act.reactthyroidfoundation.org/goto/CatherineZ

I am hoping that Kevin's kids will come to the race again this year so they can run mile 25 with me as these moments are my favourite memories from the past two years.  As I approach mile 23 Lennie and Sam meet me and push me to mile 25 where Emily and Sara are waiting to run with me as Sue snaps the photos - my favourite photos from the last 2 marathons are of me and the kids at that point in the race.  My mom even race the mile with me and that is pretty good for a 73 year old lady.  The Grump ran with me last year and he used to be a great runner and thought it was fun to join in with all the racers.

I don't want to be a party pooper but I am treating this race as a long run practice for the New York Marathon November 4th.  I have not set too many goals for this race other than to finish because "finishing is winning", but also because my 2012 goal race is NYC and I still need another 4 weeks of work if I am to try and PB my marathon. 

Chicago will be fun.  I am in the 2nd wave starting at 8:00am and in corral M - which means starting and finishing last but I do not care as I am celebrating my birthday with 45,000 runners, 3 million spectators, and "lapping everyone sitting on the couch"!  As of today, accu weather is all over the place with regards to the weather on that day - still too far out to predict but we all know the last two years of running in 30 degree Celsius weather was tough.  Please running Gods make it cloudy and cool.  Please please please!

Just to remind you of my "successes" the past 2 marathons.  Here are the stats we are trying to improve upon.  But, finishing is goal #1, finishing under 6:17 is goal #2, finishing in 6:15 would be awesome and we will get to under 6 hours in NYC!!!

2011                 2010

5K 0:39:37                    5K 0:39:12          (same)
10K 1:20:20                  10K 1:20:34        (same)
15K 2:02:22                  15K 2:02:45        (same)
20K 2:45:33                  20K 2:47:22        (down 2 minutes)
Half 2:55:51                   Half 2:57:41        (down 2 minutes)
25K 3:33:36                  25K 3:35:38       (down 2 minutes)
30K 4:20:43                  30K 4:24:30       (down 4 minutes)
35K 5:08:22                  35K 5:13:54       (down 5 minutes)
40K 5:57:28                  40K 6:07:59       (down 10 minutes)

Finish 6:17:13                Finish 6:28:41      (down 11 minutes)
34080th out of 35755    34812th out of 36088

To be really honest, I have struggled with my long runs this training cycle.  I have gotten them all in but I can't get my pace up (and we all saw what happened at my last race).  I really believe something is "off" with my nutritional component as I feel great, am not in any pain, but am so hungry and just can't get into second gear.  I am really going to make sure I eat good meals this week and next, take extra gels, have my fuzzy peaches to snack on, and take the Gatorade when offered. 

Fingers crossed for a fun, successful, and safe race.

Worst Race Ever

I am sooooo embarrassed. Today I participated in the Springbank 1/2 Marathon. I did it last year as a warm up race for Chicago and I sucked with a 2:58. I had taken it easy and treated the race like a training run vowing to return this year to do better.

Today, I had set a goal of 2:52 (not a personal best (PB) just the pace I need practice in order for a PB in Chicago. Started great, didn't get passed by the race (you do this weird loop thing to start) or the 5k racers (they passed me last year and it was embarrassing), charged up the hills, stayed with 8min pace till 8k and then BONK slowly started to die like I have never felt before. I saw so many awesome people on this out and back route and I tried to keep my head held high. But alas, there was no victory on this day.

Soon I was 9min/kms then 9:15 then 9:30 at the turn around - then I walked - I know, I WALKED!!! How crappy is that. Nothing hurt, no pain anywhere, just couldn't get going.

I finished 3rd last as they were giving out the awards. Everyone saw me finish way after 3 hours. I hung my head in shame as they gave me my medal and then drove home right away to be sad.

I must have gone out too fast but really, I was feeling amazing, taking it slow, and making great choices.

I have no idea what happened other than this route kills me with the hills so early on and I must of just pushed too hard too soon. (but really I didn't I swear - ask Lennie he was there for the first 5k)?

This is my 5th 1/2 marathon race and I have run my 2 marathons faster than this pace plus that tough 30k last summer.

Arggggggggg.

I hate you running!!!!!!!!

I guy approached me afterwards and congratulated me on not quitting. "If you had quit today, it would have made quitting tomorrow easier."

True, but I am still pissed and embarrassed.