Starting over

Well, it has been a long time since I have been around.  A lot has changed in a relatively short time. 

My weight is higher than it has been in almost 3 years; in the low 140's.  There are a lot of factors  going into that but mostly I just feel like I have given up.  I have stopped using the band as the tool I need it to be.  I think a lot of it is panic from the aspiration pneumonia cause from my band being too tight.  I get a fill and inevitably I have to have some taken out a short time later.  Last fill I got I wasn't even able to swallow saliva.  I am pretty sure it is a panic reaction to the restriction.  I haven't really talked to the doctor about it because he is so busy when I go in I feel like I am just taking up way too much time.

There has also been some stuff going on in my work and home life that has caused me to just throw my hands up and admit defeat.  We lost our little 15 year-old dog Sidney to renal failure in September and it was excruciating to watch.  We had to make the hard decision to have him put down.  That is the hardest thing I have ever had to do but I know it was the right decision.  I am grateful that one of my running friends is a vet at an emergency clinic and was able to help us out.  Those boys were my life for so long it is hard to be without them.  I still have the girls but it isn't the same relationship. 

I have a new boss that I hate.  I have been trying to find a job in another department or in another state but I have not had any luck.  I get on the selection list but don't make the final cut.  The bosses nickname is T-Rex because he has a huge belly and we have all questioned how he can reach past his belly to take care of any necessary business....  He has ran off my co-lead in less than 6 months.  For the first time ever I am on xanax to keep me from losing my shit.  I don't take it often but when I do I think it has probably saved my ass.  This is not a good way to live at all.

To add to the stress I had knee surgery November 6; lateral retinaculum release.  Pretty much my kneecap was tilted and causing severe pain, so the doctor cut the tendon that was pulling my kneecap off center.  I had 4 weeks of PT and was released on Friday.  I started the C25K over again, going in slow.  I will have to have the other knee done if this works out on the right knee.

Things aren't all doom and gloom.  I ran 5 half marathons and 2 25k's this year.  The last one was the Nike Women's Half in San Francisco!!  I can't believe I got drawn in to run this the first time I put in.  I put my knee surgery off a month so I could run this one last half.  It was excruciating but the most beautiful course I have ever ran.  One of my good friends was supposed to go with me but she broke her foot days before we were supposed to leave and she couldn't go.  I had the plane ticket bought, the registration fee paid, and she was going to use her hotel points for the luxury hotel a few blocks from the starting line.  She insisted that I still go and let her use the points for the room.  How could I say no?  So I went to SF by myself and had a blast.  There were a few awkward moments but I could do what I wanted when I wanted and it was amazing.  I was worried that I wouldn't be able to finish with the knee but I made it through and got my Tiffany necklace at the finish line.  I didn't think I would ever be able to make it back to the hotel though.  I was beat. 

We have a new foster dog named Truman.  I found him at the animal shelter and got the rescue I work with to pull him.  He was a mess when we got him, very underweight, caked in filth, horrible teeth.  We though he may have distemper but after 3 rounds of antibiotics he is finally getting better; the continuous snotty nose is finally drying up and his cough is almost gone.  He has also gone from 11.5 pounds to over 14 pounds. 

 

 

He is fitting right in as you can see.  The girls are getting used to him.  It is starting to look like he might not make it to the adoptable website, he was hours from the needle and now is the center of attention.  He's a stinker.

 

 

Oh, I also took up aerial yoga between my running break and my knee surgery.  I only did one month but it was so much fun.  I will sign up again after Christmas.  They have a special for $1,000 you get unlimited classes for a year.  I'm need to look over the schedule and see if that will work out since I am going to be unable to do any big runs this year. 

 

I probably won't be back before Christmas so I hope everyone has a great holiday.  I will be back on here this year as I feel like I need the support of fellow bandsters. 

 

Hope everyone has a great holiday!!

 

Hey strangers!

So I haven't posted since October. Looks like a lot of the people I followed have left or have taken a hiatus as well. Not sure why I haven't blogged here.

Since I saw you guys last my weight has stayed pretty steady at the 120 range. I would like to be closer to 110 but my body seems to be comfortable here and I don't want to get my band so tight I give myself pneumonia again. Sometimes you gotta listen to your body. I do have about 4 cc in my band, which is very low compared to last year at this time. I still have some bad food days when I have trouble eating. Until that rectifies itself I will not get another fill. I know a lot of that is stress but I don't want to risk it.

I'm still running...kinda. Right now I am a little burned out. I have been training through e-coaching with Jeff Galloway. My goal was to do Little Rock half marathon in under 3 hours. That was March 2 and the weather turned horrible. It started out in the mid 50's but dropped 15 degrees with strong winds, storms, torrential down pours, sleet, the works. I finished in 3:11. I am lucky to have finished at all in those conditions. I also did a 25K (15.4 miles) as a training run at the end of January and the Snake Trail Run - 14.6 miles weekend before last. I have a half marathon this weekend, the OKC half April 27, and Run Like a Diva half in Branson May 4. After that I am taking a break from running. Maybe do some yoga? I am going to be in a wedding in July so I need to get my upper body looking good in a sleeveless dress. My legs hate me guess it's time my arms join in on the bandwagon.

Last week I got bit by dog while I was running through the neighborhood. Almost got into a fist fight with the dog owner because she acted like it was my fault. I seriously thought I was going to have to call the cops. Being the dog lover I am I couldn't punish the dog because the lady was a bitch. She finally gave me her name and I verified the dog's vaccination history through the shelter. I know if I run now I will just run back and forth by her house so I haven't ran since the incident, lol. 

I am getting plenty of exercise with the kiddos.  After the boys died I was pretty sure I wouldn't be able to get another dog (granted I still had a house full).  I saw a post on FB in November looking for a foster home for a border collie named Marty.  He was heartworm positive and risked being put to sleep at the animal shelter.  Mountain Pet Rescue out of Colorado pulls dogs from overcrowded high kill shelters in OK TX and MO and transports them to homes in the CO area.  Something about Marty caught my eye and we decided to foster him.  We only had him for a week before he found a home and lives happily ever after in Boulder.  In January one of the founders contacted me and asked if I wanted to foster another dog named Cookie.  This on was a special case.  She had been pulled about the same time as Marty.  She too had heartworms and was on the list to be put to sleep.  Her current foster home wasn't working out because they said she was too big.  She had been shuffled around to three different fosters and they were looking for someone who would be able to stick with her until she was healthy and adopted.  I told Dennis about her and he said she deserved some stability.  So, we have Cookie Bear.

She is indeed a big girl, 98+ pound when she was pulled from the shelter.  She had been diagnosed with spondylosis which is a spine degeneration disease.  We take her to hydrotherapy once or twice a week.

and she has acupuncture as needed. We also take her on daily walks now that the heartworms are gone. We had her down to 89 pounds and she was looking good. Then we took her in to have a broken tooth pulled and she had gained 7 pounds in a month :-0 They did a thyroid check and it appears she may have low thyroid so we also have her on medication for that.

Now that all of my money and spare time is going to the dogs again, my life feels like it is back to normal. We love that girl. I'm not 100% sure she will be going to Colorado. It would take someone extra special to meet our approval. I found out later that the rescue group wanted us to keep her all along, they are evil geniuses. She is still listed on the adoption site but we will see.

I have a lot of catching up to do.