And just like that, it’s July. I think we can all agree that the first half of the year felt like the longest and worst experience of our lives. While 2020 seemed to start out fine, that boat sunk faster than the Titanic and the iceberg we hit was a worldwide pandemic. I remember when they said this would be gone by Easter. They said it’d be gone when summer came because viruses die in warmer weather. As a medical professional, I can tell you that is so far from the truth. Here in Arizona, we’ve started to shut down things for a second time. Our governor released an executive order to close bars, gyms, water parks, pools, and tubing (you know, floating on a river) for the next 30 days, right before a big holiday weekend. No gatherings of more than 50 people can go on. The first day of school has been pushed back two weeks. If you want my honest opinion, with looking at our recent data and the very upward trajectory we are on, we should be in another stay-at-home order. Why close bars but not restaurants? Whatever. I don’t run the show. I’ll just sit here, safe in my home, and continue to pray.
Maybe you’re like me and you’ve dealt with a rise of anxiety or some sort of unrest due to everything that has been happening. I talked about this in a previous post but we’ll touch base on it again for today’s entry. Along with using the Headspace app for daily meditation, I’ve dove more into my yoga practice. Let’s talk about my history with yoga.
I used to hate yoga, like really hate it. How could you hate yoga? Well, I thought it was boring. I used to be in the mindset that if I wasn’t drenched in sweat after a workout, it was useless. I couldn’t ever focus long enough to complete a full practice. I tried to do it at least once a week because I saw a lot of runners doing it but I wrote it off for a long time. Fast forward to last year, I suppose when we moved here and I decided to open my mind more about my thoughts of the practice and tried to see the real benefits of it, for my mental health. I found myself meeting up with Adriene more and more. I challenged myself in poses I never thought I could do. I even attended a few classes in a studio, mostly gentle yoga. Fast forward to this year and I can’t live without it. I’ve found it hard to juggle strength training with running. I took a step back and asked myself, “Do I really need to be doing all of this?” Spending time in the gym was becoming more of a chore and not an enjoyment. My friend, who is a yoga instructor, suggested I check out power yoga. She said I’d be surprised how much strength I could build from those types of classes. Boy, was she right. I’ve been wanting to do one of Adriene’s month long challenges. I would tend to start one and then only get like four days in and quit. I was determined this time.
‘Courage’ was the theme. She gives each month its own word. When I read the post about this, she (Adriene) told us to prepare to sweat and work but learn to move with our breath. I’ve spent the entire last 30 days doing just this. I haven’t lifted one weight. I’ve used my body and moved in ways I haven’t. My arms have developed definition, my core feels stronger, and more importantly, my mind is becoming clearer. I actually feel stronger now than I ever have even with my past in Olympic lifting. To have that mind body connection in flow together feels so great. I took a picture of myself every day with a specific pose from that day’s practice. Here are some of my favorites:
Starting out, I had trouble keeping my foot pointing down and keeping my hips squared.
Chaturanga to up-dog practice became almost a daily goal of mine.
The mighty flamingo!
Peaceful warrior. I love going into this post from warrior 2.
The lovely triangle pose. After a few weeks, I was able to not hold any momentum against my leg.
Down dog split! This is about when I finally saw progress in melting my heart in and keeping my foot flexed.
This was literally one of the best stretches I had ever felt.
Balance practice becomes that much harder when on carpet. This move was actually a series of three, all balancing on one foot. I felt so strong!
Today, I start July’s theme of “Shift”. I don’t know how long I’ll keep up daily practice but it’s been such a blessing in disguise both for my mind and my running. If you’ve been on the fence about trying yoga, I encourage you to dive in and give it a try. My favorite thing about practicing yoga is that there is literally no right or wrong way to do it. You try your best and if you feel like challenging yourself one day over the previous, go for it! There are people who are amazing at yoga and can do some crazy, complicated moves and that’s awesome! Don’t compare yourself to anyone but who you look at in the mirror. Check out Adriene on YouTube. She has tons of free resources and a great beginner series. If your one who needs to be in an actual classroom setting, find a class that’s some type of foundation setting or a slow flow. Yin yoga is great for relaxing while a power or energize yoga will test your body and make you work a bit!
What the h....but not what you think. It's actually h for health. 'What the Health' was a documentary I watched last night that was rather mind-blowing. But we'll get into that in a minute.
This is actually a real-time photo. Like, I literally just took this as I'm writing this.
We closed out week 4 of training with roughly 28 miles ran and also, 28 miles road. I had two big highlights during this past week. I had an awesome long run with a faster finish and didn't lose my breathing technique like I tend to sometimes do when I speed play. I also survived my first double workout. My coach prescribed my typical Friday recovery ride but also threw in the option of doing a short run. Of course, I was going to go for it because I wanted to see how it felt. I hopped on the bike, road steadily for 45 minutes, keeping my RPMs between 85-90. Afterward, I set out for a 20-minute run. Is this what it feels like to do the beginning of a duathlon? One day I'll know what it feels like to train for that. Either way, I was happy how my body responded despite the run being in the mid-80s. My legs felt slightly tired at the beginning of my long run but quickly got into their proper form. I'm really thankful to be in a mindset where I appreciate my performance for what it is. Is every workout perfect? Absolutely not. But, I don't dwell on it anymore like I used to. I used to be so hard on myself for not hitting specific paces or whatever. I see so many people on Strava or whatever platform they share their stuff on throwing up a million excuses as to why the run they did wasn't what they wanted it to be. Maybe instead of creating an excuse, just accept how it went. You went out there and you did the dang thing. Be thankful your legs still turn over. One day, they might not. Positive mental attitude. On to week 5 and it looks like we're getting spicy with tomorrow's speed work.
Okay, so back to what I began with. I'm a little behind on watching the documentary (it came out in 2017), 'What The Health'. I'm on a free trial with Netflix right now (just to have access to one show, lol), and it popped up on there. I'm all about watching documentaries in general, especially if it involves supporting plant-based diets. Going vegan was the best decision I've ever made. My husband and I just got our yearly blood work done and his cholesterol numbers dropped dramatically. I highlighted this in my Instagram stories but, my protein level is perfect. You know where all protein comes from? PLANTS. Sometimes I just want to slap every vegan hater in the face and tell them to go read up on science. Anyway, the documentary.
I'm pretty bad at summing up films but I'm going to do my best here. Of course, this film is criticized for "cherry-picking" specific information to make it look like the food industry is terrible and vegans rule the world in health. Maybe we don't rule the world BUT the food industry is indeed horrible. I didn't need a film to tell me that. However, the amount of detail poured into this film was intense. Kip Anderson basically goes on this hunt to talk with all of the major organizations and just simply wants to know why they promote eating specific foods that have direct links to causing cancer and other diseases. Dairy alone has been proven to cause breast cancer yet the Susan G. Komen Foundation has a sponsorship with Yoplait. WHAT THE H. Komen also receives sponsorship from Kentucky Fried Chicken, for Christ's sake. How does that even make sense? The American Cancer Society is sponsored by Tyson Foods, one of the largest corporations that produce poultry products, yet there is also scientific data linked to eating meat and poultry to specific cancers and disease. Shoot, even the American Heart Association is linked with the Texas Beef Council yet we're told not to eat red meat because it could cause HEART disease. I was seriously mind-blown by the end of this. My husband still eats eggs every once in a while but he must have said multiple times "I'm never touching eggs again". I wish I took notes or something to show the specific data that was presented. Even the interview between Kip and the American Diabetes Association ended with the chairman walking out because he couldn't talk about how their promotion of specific diet changes actually doesn't help mitigate diabetes at all. It's all a vicious circle, right? I've never been a fan of the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Do I think they've done a lot of good for breast cancer and raising awareness? Yes. However, organizations like this shouldn't be paying their board members millions of dollars every year. If everyone decided to adopt a plant-based diet then there would be less sickness in the world, fewer cancers, and less chronic illness. But then, fewer visits to doctors and hospitals which in return means fewer prescriptions. Heaven forbid the drug companies don't get paid. Then the government....oh the government. It's all a crooked scheme. Anyone that comes to me thinking about adopting a plant-based diet, I automatically tell them to read "How Not to Die" or "The China Study". Both books are huge and super long but full of specific scientific data proving that this way of eating works. Maybe I'm just up on my vegan high-horse but in reality, I just want people to be healthier. The next time you put a hot dog in your mouth, you probably should light up a cigarette too while you're at it. Both are in the same category and labeled as carcinogens. For the record, I don't think you're a jerk if you eat meat. I don't think of you any less. However, I would hope you would drop the stigma of how we vegans are crazy and don't know what we're doing with our lives. Clearly, we're on to something.
Phew, that was a doozy. I'm still pretty fired up about it. I even put a hold on "How Not to Die" from the library to read it a second time.
I know I haven't shared a recipe in like forever and today, you aren't getting one but I will share something I made! My husband was saying how his yoga mat wasn't smelled the greatest. I also realized that mine was getting rather dirty. You know tile floors and living in the desert means your floors are NEVER really that clean. My friend, who is an RYT 200, told me you shouldn't clean a normal mat with just water and soap. It actually can make the mat deteriorate quicker. I did some searching around and long and behold, my yoga guide, Adriene, had made a video on how to make homemade yoga mat spray! I already had all of the ingredients, minus the little spray bottles.
Got this set on Amazon for like $6. Three glass bottles with sprayers and a little funnel!
Three simple ingredients. Yes, it says facial mist but it's fine.
Boom! Homemade spray!
Tee tree oil smells so good and clean. I learned it has anti-fungal properties in it, too. I sprayed down both our mats and used a microfiber towel to wipe them down. I highly suggest this easy combo.
So, remember last week, when I said things were going well? They were until they weren't.
I set out for three easy runs last week. Monday felt fine, Wednesday felt alright with some slight pain, and Thursday, well let's just say that afternoon, it felt like someone hit my knee with a sledgehammer. Like many, I try to defer going to the doctor unless I believe there's a real problem or the problem persists. Don't be like me. Go at the first sign of pain. I even worked in the medical field so you'd think I'm a picture-perfect patient. Thursday, I threw the towel in and called to make an appointment for that following morning. Now, the pain in my knee wasn't really worse really but it definitely wasn't better. You could notice swelling compared to my left and the pain area was definitely easier to identify because it seemed to have built a home on the interior part. After some exercises, adjusting certain ways, and the other fancy crap, she determined that my meniscus is fine (oh good, there's a positive) but I indeed have some really bad tendonitis. So bad, the swelling pushed my patella slightly out of place. I left with a physical therapy script and a warning of "no impact activities for at least the next month" and to wait until I was evaluated by therapy. Now, this isn't my first dance around the room with PT. I'm actually a huge advocate for it. But, with traveling the next three-ish weeks, I can't start until October. After chatting with my coach and deciding to be the bigger person, I've decided to withdraw from my fall half marathon. That was really hard to swallow. Lots of tears were shed. Lots of WHY ME. Lots of why do I even still run. This is my third injury in a year in a half. But, alas, we will come through. I still have plans for a winter race that I will eventually be discussing later on in November. For now, I'll be mastering my yogi-self, building strength, and trying to learn how to swim better.
After sulking basically all weekend, it's a new week. New, fun things are ahead. I've accepted the fact that I won't be running for quite some time. Can't lie and say I get sad scrolling through Instagram seeing all of my amazing running friends accomplishing great goals but 'comparison is the thief of joy'. Don't worry, I'm still super happy for all of you.
OKAY. Now that the world's worst update is done. I do have new food to share. Ta-da:
So, think of your typical summer noodle salad but put an Asian twist on it. The only thing that requires cooking is the noodles unless you decide to add tofu like I did. Nothing wrong with extra protein! It's refreshing, hits the tongue with some spice, and is super easy to make with leftovers for the next day. Sam, you did me right again. You can click here to get the recipe!
That's it for this week, folks. I will probably take a break from updating as I will be out of town for most of September but you can always follow me on the 'gram (is that how they say it?) to keep in touch with my whereabouts: @britanyg :)
Alright, let's first address the elephant in the room that is week 9 of training.
What do you see a lot of? Crossing out. Well, that's always a bad sign. If you read last week's entry, you should know, going into this one, we'd talk some sadness. So I've been dealing with some knee pain. As runners, even with the slightest bought of pain we have two feelings: 'oh my god my career is over' and 'it's just a little pain, I'll be fine'. 2018 brought me two injuries and since then, any type of discomfort makes me think the worst. I've had tendonitis for quite a few years. However, it hasn't flared up in forever. I guess God decided to strike me down and said, "HAHA SLOW DOWN". After my long run last Saturday (12 miles), I decided enough was enough and waved my white flag of surrender. Not to the end of the training, but to take a week off of pounding the pavement. So yes, as we look at my training log for this week, it's very....abstract. I mimicked a speed workout on the bike on Monday which made my ass hurt for the next two days, prompting me to move to the elliptical on Wednesday. My knee did not like that. I basically felt like a failure all week. I did, however, find a whole new love of yoga. It literally saved me from losing my mind. I know normal day-to-day people think "oh a week is nothing" but let me tell you, as a runner, a week feels like a lifetime. But, I remained patient with myself and my body. Though I felt like my fitness level was a -1000, I knew it was best. I did some rehab, mobility, and flexibility work. I practiced yoga every day. Instead of challenging myself out on a run, I challenged myself to new poses I haven't done yet. My knee is cooperating and we will test the waters next week with some base building. I'll give you a hint: it's Monday and things are going well so far.
Speaking of yoga, I've decided to take a 30-day journey and practice every day through the month of September. When I practice at home, I'm always hanging with my homegirl, Adriene. If you've never heard of her and are interested in doing yoga, even if you've never attempted it, she is the bomb! It's all free, too. I'll link her channel here. I am not affiliated with her by any means, just love spreading the joy of yoga. Namaste!
Okay, onto what I titled this entry after...
The real Brittany
I headed to the theatre this past weekend to catch a showing of 'Brittany Runs A Marathon', a movie based on a true story. I had to see this movie for three reasons: it has my name in the title, it's about running, and Jillian Bell is hilarious. This movie honestly hit home more than I thought it would. I'll try and explain some things without going into too much detail. Brittany is your typical 20-something year old. Loves to party, stay out late, and eat crap food. She knows a lot of people but still feels super secluded. She does a lot of dumb things to make up for her feeling like she has no direction in life. It's crazy to think that was me. I used to frequent the bar scene 5-6 nights a week. I used to know a lot of people but didn't have any real, true friends. I also did a lot of dumb things that we won't go into detail about. She goes through a weight loss journey and becomes obsessed with her weight. I also went through this. I remember when I used to weigh myself twice a day every single day and be pissed off if I didn't weigh less than the previous day. I have thrown away my scale since then. A lot of people will say, "but that's part of growing up and finding yourself!". But is it? Anywho, fast forward through her becoming friends with her neighbor, who is already a runner, a house-sitting job where she'll meet her next love interest, and a whole lot of marathon training, I found myself in tears at the end. "Can't go out tonight, I have to run in the morning". I mean raise your hand if you've said that *raises hand*. I encountered those people (and still do) that will never understand why we do this. Marathon training is a full-time job that you don't get paid for (unless you're a super pro). There were so many feels at the end from the start line to getting to the point where you think you're going to die. In the end, I'd go back and see this movie 10 more times.
That's all I have for this week. I know, where's the food part? I'm trying two new recipes this week and if they turn out looking like Martha Stewart was there, I'll share next time. Cheers!
Honestly, is it just me, or has this year already gone by fast? Here we are, accomplishing week 2 of training. My goal this week was to set out earlier for my runs. Back in Michigan, I would be the crazy one running the streets of Clawson at 4:00 AM while the rest of the world was still sleeping. While I won't be doing any runs that early (yet, at least), I do prefer the quietness of the night, less traffic, and well, it's just fun to run in my Tracer 360 vest (use my discount code BRITTERS for 35% off). Who doesn't want to be a running rave party? I do think I need to get a headlamp with more lumens because let me tell you, it is dark as dark can get around here. We live in an "International Dark Sky Community". Yep, it's a thing. Google it! Great for seeing some epic skies filled with stars. Let's take a glance at this week's numbers:
Monday - Easy pace w/Strides
Wednesday - More easy miles w/Strides
Thursday - Straight easy miles
Saturday - Easy miles with a faster finish
Clearly, I didn't feel like getting fancy with graphics this week. Still keeping the pace light and slowly building speed. Speed is a word we'll touch base on next week once I face my first Fartlek run in over 5 months. That 5:07 AM start for Thursday made me so happy. I set out very early that morning because I had planned to make a new breakfast dish for my husband and I that involved quinoa. Quinoa for breakfast? Crazy right? I had the quinoa cereal at Tempe Public Market Cafe and it blew my mind away. Naturally, I hit up my favorite website for a recipe that was similar (click here if you're curious for it). I highly suggest trying it.
Strawberry Quinoa breakfast bowl
One thing I did new this week? I went to a yoga class. The type of class I had to get in my car and drive to instead of pressing play on YouTube in my living room. I was nervous because Lord knows I don't know many yoga moves nor am I comfortable doing something I'm not familiar with in a room full of people who are complete strangers. I consulted with my friend and fellow blogger, Stephiee Cowan, who also happens to have her RYT and teaches at Bliss Yoga back in the Mitten, to see what would be best or if this class was worth trying. While I was probably more than half of anyone's age in that room (snowbird city), it was exhilarating and felt so good. It was a Gentle Yoga class that lasted 45 minutes and included meditation toward the end. Nicole, the instructor, was very easy going and so nice to speak with afterward. I definitely plan on making this a new habit and incorporate it into my weekly training schedule. Namaste, my people!
Last but not least and slightly not running related, at least this next part anyway: I got a new library card! Honestly, I'm probably more excited than most about this. Do you still know how to search for books using the dewy decimal system? While I love the feeling of holding an actual book in my hand, I do dabble with the feature of digitally checking books out via OneDrive on my iPad. While I'm transitioning into the plant-based life and always wanting to learn more about running and performance, I've started diving into Eat & Run by Scott Jurek, American ultramarathoner. I mean, why wouldn't I read a book that has my two favorite activities in the title? I also hope to gain some inspiration for my future ultra marathon dreams.
That's all I have for this Tuesday's segment. Bring on week 3!
