Gone Bananas For Running ~ Alana Kelly : Reflections and Moving Forward....'

By now, you should have read my previous blog and will know my story up to this point.

The last blog ended on a good point but unfortunately everything kind of went to pot after it! I ended up getting a cold which led to my chest getting bad again, I keep getting left with phlegm at the back of my throat. I’ve had this since last November and slowly its getting better. The doctors tried to help but the sprays they gave me did nothing. So I'm just letting my body get rid of it as well as trying hard not to catch any more colds which has been tricky the last few weeks.

I finally got over that and I decided I was going to try really hard getting back into exercise and following the slimming world plan. I was so proud of myself, I can honestly say I stuck to the plan 99% and exercised practically every day. I was using my mio Fuse to track my workouts on the bike and started T25 again. Who doesn't love some Shaun T in their life, right? One night i even decided to set myself a challenge to cycle through out a whole film. We put on Dracula untold and i knew it was 92 mins long. Chris (Hubby) then decided to tell me it was the extended version and would be on for longer. I carried on regardless and at times it was hard, mainly cos my bum kept going numb haha! The film finished at 82 mins… Huh! I was geared up for an hour and half cycling so i carried on and finished just after 92 mins. We also had a leaving meal that week, at an indian, my favourite! I choose chicken Tikka, plain rice and salad. I even avoided the naan bread despite being asked several times. I did everything I could that week and I was feeling great… then came weigh in day, I was so excited! Bamn half a pound on. What the !!!!! I cant tell you how gutted I was. It was like somebody punched me in the face. I left weigh in deflated and wondering why I had tried so hard and thinking I should have had naan bread at the indian.

Looking back i should have carried on with good intentions and let the scale catch me up later on in the weeks to come. I knew there were other things at be that didn't help and no im talking about the visitor us women get, just other things that would be too much info. Anyway Instead i self sabotaged myself. I’ve now gained 6lb because of doing this. I missed class one week when I should have gone and it most probably would have got me back to feeling in the zone much sooner. But it is what it is and i have to move on and do what i can to shift it. I won't let it phase me this time! As well as putting on weight this past couple of weeks i have learnt two lessons. Stop living in the past and live in the now and love yourself. I realised after gaining weight since last may all i have thought about is getting back to where i was this time last year. Not where I am now and focusing on the little steps it takes to get back there. which has only lead to disappointment. We had a bbq at the weekend and it ended up being a Kelly mini reunion as loads of family on Chris’ side could make it. Lots of pics where taken on our camera. They were posted to FB and I didn't once think Urgh! God I like awful! I actually thought, wow we had such a fab day and doesn't she look nice, I think the make up helped ;) seriously though I felt comfortable in my own skin, something I hadn't felt in a long time. The coming days I felt happier, this helped me get back to class and find some sort of focus again. And I’ve taken that 6lb gain on the chin and know I’ve lost it before I can do it again. I also realised a couple of days later when I could actually feel the effects of the weight gain. I dont want to be FAT anymore! Not because its good for my health or because I just want to be back where I was last year but because of all the things I feel when I have lost weight, even if its only a few pounds. I feel good about myself, I can hold my head up high knowing I’m doing something about it. I go running and feel free flying along the roads. Well not quite flying but toddling along, which is faster than a walk, I hope ;) I feel more energized and ready to conquer the world.

When I started my weight loss journey I also started running to help me lose weight. Eventually it turned into wanting to lose weight to be able to run. I hated running to begin with but the feeling of self achievement kept me going. Now it looks like it has turned full circle again and I sure as hell know which side I’d rather be on. Running isn't something I want to give up on. One day i want to run a marathon or an ultra on a nice trail. Grow old walking and running with my husband, when i can catch him that is, and he isn’t going slow for me ;) I can imagine myself being one of those crazy old people who are still running at the age of 86, bringing hope to anyone that you can be a runner or just thinking I’m crazy!

Tomorrow (Saturday 11th) I’m going for a run. I have a 10k race in two weeks and I haven't done much in the last couple. I plan on covering 4 miles, If i feel good maybe more. I’m going to set my Mio fuse to track my HR and send it to my garmin. My garmin will be set up with a run / walk ratio. Possibly 2mins run and 1 min walk. I just need to make sure the walking part is a bit faster as I tend to then lagg on them and walk slow. I'm excited to see how I do. I know my muscles have been feeling tight again but taking it easy should help everything, my breathing, heart rate and legs :D

I went out for the run and it didn’t go well at all. I spent two miles in pain, my ankles and calf muscles were really playing up. I ran / walked as per my garmin and even stopped to stretch a couple of times. Usually it helps but not today. I got to 2 miles and was thinking i just cant go on like this i will do some real damage so a slow .83 mile walk home. Quicker to run it but i didn't want to cause more issues. The pain subsided slightly as i was walking back and it gave me time to think. Is it my legs or my shoes??

I got home and decided i would try my trail shoes as that's all i had. Luckily they are ones i can use for slight road use. I put them on, walked down the street then off i went. WOW! No Pain i couldn't believe it! Especially as even though the pain had subsided it was still very painful when i got home even more so when i took my shoes off. 1 mile ran without pain and my lungs gave in before my feet did. 3.83 miles reached :D I let my legs rest over the rest of the day but on a walk with my friend i used my road shoes gain. It wasn’t till the end of the walk i started to feel some niggles. I stupidly then used the same shoes to go for a walk down town on my hunt for some quark, ( a naturally low fat soft cheese made from skimmed milk) the trainers really started to wear thin on me. Thankfully hubby was coming home and picked me up :D Yay!

While out with my friend we went to a new place i’d never been. It was a gorgeous route with some fair incline but peaceful. Its one of our local woodlands and the track is perfect for running on. Chris came downstairs later that night and said do you want to go for a run. My foot was hurting but i was so eager to show him this route i said yes. Put my trail shoes on and off we went. no pain for the whole way round and we both agreed it was a fab route to train on.

Because of the road shoes issues we decided to pull out of the race we had booked at the end of April. its the best decision we made. Chris hasn’t ran in weeks, although we know he can do it easily, we both want to but in better shape for the Killearn 10K in June, it’s a beautiful trail race I’ve ran but Chris couldn't last year due to his shoulder. Plus there is a beer festival on afterwards ;) So we will train most of the time on this new route now.

Fast forward a week and we have been for our first run on this beautiful route today. I didn’t quite think how tough it would be at times as the trail does have some good incline to it. I set my garmin up on one arm and my Mio fuse on the other so i could see my HR and keep it below the max i wanted to reach. We headed off up the hill, 2 mins run and 1 min walk was how we started. I was surprised at how much i ran, even at times we missed the walk part and just carried on. There was only two big inclines i walked up instead as my HR had been getting high and i wanted to bring it down again and rest my legs. The loop was 3.10 miles (garmin) from where i started my watch all the way back to the car. We completed it in 52mins. Chris did a wee bit extra at the end as he looped back and did a section again. I’m loving this new trail and Can’t wait to see how i get on with it over the next 7 weeks. I'm hoping to be feeling stronger than today :D

The other big thing that happened this week was me finally getting my head into it, mainly due to the things mentioned before in the blog earlier on. This lead to me giving the SP section of slimming world, you basically eat Speed foods and Protein plus your healthy extras, A (calcium milk or cheese) and 2 B options while you are doing SP, this can be from whole meal bread to soup or nuts or even dried fruit, you decide. The only foods you're really eliminating is starchy carbs, Pasta, potato, rice etc and you're not allowed some fruits and vegetables. but its not many. There is loads that are an S and P food like pulses and baked beans etc along with all of the above so you're still getting all you need.

If I’m honest i really didn't think i would do well on this, i thought i would miss having some rice or pasta but the changes for me personally have outweighed it and i haven't once craved them. Only things i did is pineapple and banana. I had some pineapple after my weigh in and that curbed the craving. The changes i have experienced this past week and half have been great, i feel full of energy, even Monday after walking 8 miles over the course of Sunday, I'm sleeping better, my belly hasn’t been sore at all, my body is functioning as it should be processing the food. I generally am feeling great! My friend thinks i may have a slight gluten intolerance as i was having problems before which i went to the doctors about and was put on medication for when i needed to use it but i haven't had to use it once since forgetting i hadn’t taken it and doing sp. I will go back and see them in the next few weeks to see if they can maybe test it or at least discuss it. Any way it was weigh in on Wednesday and I lost 4.5lb!!! Yay! Cos i had put 6lb on the previous week and feel great getting the majority of this last week. I'm excited for weigh in again, I will be pleased to lose 1lb and keep losing steadily as the benefits of doing SP have really helped me. You can also do the normal plan and i think even when i do that i will still eliminate starchy carbs in favour of more veg instead and see how i get one :D

Things are looking up and I hope they stay this way. Nothing is ever easy but in the end its worth it!

Egg Muffins, Filled with wafer thin ham, eggs and peppers.