Stillness and Waiting

When you are writing a blog about running, there isn't much to say when you aren't running very often. I've thought several times about doing some kind of update, but the words just don't sort themselves out when I sit down to write. There is something about being out for a run that helps me organize my thoughts and hear more clearly what God is speaking into my life. Lately, he has been directing my mind to the concept of stillness and waiting. For the past couple of years, Luke and I have lived out some of the most joyful moments, filled with laughter and love, but like many others, the year 2020 ushered in anxiety, depression, questioning, loss of community, and it has been difficult to pull ourselves out of that space. 

Lately, as God shows me the importance of stillness and waiting, I'm trying to become less impatient in getting my life to be or look a certain way. I'm also trying to prioritize what is important to me and get rid of the things that aren't. 

One of those priorities is moving my body- by running, bike riding, yoga, Pilates. I decided to make a schedule so I would be more likely to stick to (and remember) what I want to be doing. If you're reading this and want to start running or need a workout guide to follow, this would be a great one. I've made things pretty easy for myself! 

1- RUN 3 days a week. I've chosen Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday but I will move a day up or down if I need to. My starting point is 2 miles. I try to do that distance each time, but I did not start running that entire distance right away and how my body feels during each run determines how much running vs walking I will do that day. I'm a firm believer in the run/walk. It's just easier and there isn't any benefit to non-stop running. For me, I always feel like the first mile is really hard and then once I walk a little and start running again, it isn't too bad. 

2- I'm doing workout videos at home. And by workout videos I mean 10-20 minute (tops) yoga or easy core and stretching videos in the morning or evenings. This is low intensity, easy, fun, and quick! The key is that they are short which means I will actually fit them in and get it done. I'd like to do this every day but I'm trying to do one most days. (Dr. Bri's Vibrant Pelvic Health and Yoga with Adriene are my go-to videos on youtube)

3- I'm trying to walk about 20 minutes every day. This is also a "most" days happening and I was doing much better when the weather was nicer, but I'm still determined to do this as much as possible. 

4- I'm going to start swimming! I signed up for a sprint triathlon in May and swimming is definitely the event I'm most concerned about. We are planning to go swimming at the YMCA on Sunday afternoons so the boys can get some swim time and Luke and I can take turns swimming some laps. 

5- We typically ride our bikes as a family pretty often when the weather is nice. I'll take a break over the winter, but will hopefully get back to it in the spring. I even have a brand new Trek mountain bike to make this even more fun! 

My goal with running is to get the 2 miles down to a point where I don't feel like I'm going to die, and then start running just a little faster. When I started back running, it was at a 12 minute pace and I'm slowly getting a bit faster, but I'd like to get to a 10 minute pace and then hopefully an 8-9 minute pace. Once I get to a 10 minute pace, I would like to start adding a mile to my Saturday runs. 

I hesitate to say this out loud...but I'm looking at my marathon in Fall 2024. I've learned my lesson in making plans though, so I will wait and see what happens. Stillness and Waiting, but in that waiting there is preparing.  

All or Nothing?

It's hard to keep up with a blog about running a marathon when I haven't been doing much running. 
My body just physically does not want to run very far or very fast or very often. I still have the desire to get out there, I'm just moving much more slowly than I would like.

Running isn't the only thing in my life that I'm only doing part of the way right now. I've gone back and forth about whether I need to give up those things completely. If I can't do them 100%, should I be attempting to do them at all? One of the things that motivates me to run is to set goals to run faster and farther than the last time. Doesn't that also motivate us in life? To move forward, make gains, and feel like we are achieving something?

So what happens when we are stagnant? When we aren't really achieving anything and maybe we even feel like we're moving backwards instead of forwards? Should we quit? Should it be all or nothing?

I went back and forth about this with running. I went out for a run and ended up walking a lot and running a little. When I stopped to walk I thought about giving up on running completely. Why continue if I'm just going to have to stop and walk? After walking a bit I felt like running again and made up my mind that it doesn't really matter how much I walk or how much I run. I love to run, and I'm going to keep doing it as long as I'm still enjoying it and my body is physically capable of doing it!

Luke and I going for a run on Global Running Day

I don't think it is all or nothing. God has me where I am for a reason. I have times in my life when I can jump into things with both feet and give it everything I've got, and I have other times when I have to scale back and just do what I am able to do. There may be times when I need to quit, when something is taking up space that shouldn't be taking my time and energy, but there are other times when I quit things that maybe I am supposed to hold onto a little longer. Even though I am not making the progress I would like or getting the results I think I should, it doesn't mean it is over.

My encouragement for you and for myself right now is not to give up when you can't do it all. It just matters that we are doing something. No matter how big or small it seems to be. Keep doing it.

I'll leave you with a yoga website to check out. Yoga has been something I can always fall back on and do even when other workouts seem out of reach.

Yoga for Runners

Keep that Youthful Spirit

I was listening to a song by Band of Horses in my car this week and when it was over I had a moment of sadness (that the song was over), then I hesitated for a moment before I pushed the back button and started the song over again. It's one of my favorite songs, I was alone in the car, so why not play it over again? and again, and again?

Here is the song for you to enjoy as many times as you would like:

When I was younger I used to play a song over and over again until I had it memorized. My poor parents! This week had me thinking that there are several things I used to do that made me happy that I don't really do anymore. Maybe it is because I am older and wiser. For instance, I used to be fearless. I didn't worry about what I ate or drank (more chocolate cake and cherry coke please!), I listened to whatever I wanted, watched scary movies, and walked around cities like Atlanta or New York by myself without a care in the world.

Top of the hill

It's hard to tell from the picture but this was one of the hills at my elementary school that we would ride our bikes down, trying to avoid the trees to get to the big field at the bottom. I landed in the bushes a few times. The telephone pole helps show the steepness. 

When I was 10 or 11 I would regularly put my bike at the top of the tallest, steepest hill I could find in our neighborhood and then sail down it as fast as I could. Sometimes I would crash and sometimes I wouldn't. I went home with bumps and bruises and perhaps a little more caution? Today, I will squeak the breaks all the way down a hill. I don't want to go too fast! Some of that caution I've learned is a good thing, but I think there are several things I need to revive from my childhood to make my life a little more fun, silly, and fulfilling.

 Here are some of the things I thought of:

• Writing down my hopes and dreams on a regular basis. I kept a journal from the age of 8 through college but stopped writing after I got married. 
• Singing and Dancing. All the time, every chance I could get. 

Doing the locomotion at one of our "dessert theater" productions for the neighbors

• Spending hours upon hours with my friends. It helped that we were in school all day together, but then we wanted to spend as much time together as possible after school. I remember walking my friend Ruth home and then she would walk me halfway back to my house. 
• Praying uninhibited. This is one where I think I've matured in my prayer life in a lot of ways because I'm more intentional, I don't just ask for what I want all the time, and I've grown to have a closer relationship with God. However, when I was younger I would just pray about whatever, whenever, and I never worried what I said or how I said it. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing.
• Getting bored. Ok, I don't think I've ever been bored in my life, but when I was younger I had time on my hands to just sit and contemplate the meaning of life, or the color of my walls, or the color of my crush's eyes. ;)
• Laughing as much as possible. My friends and I were always laughing and being silly. We would quote something funny and laugh hysterically. My friend Sarah was the best at this. She had a quote for every situation. Actually, I don't think it mattered if it fit the situation, we would still laugh. Here is my favorite Sarah quote that I still use today: Sarah was at a restaurant (Shoney's maybe?) and was coming out of the bathroom as a woman was entering and ran into her. The woman said, "Uh oh, Cooz me baby!" It's really better when it's said with some attitude. It'll make me laugh even though I wasn't even there when it happened! That also just shows that Sarah is a good story teller. 

The girls I went to Elementary School with

I'm sure the girls I went to school with will be very happy to see the pictures I've chosen to share of them! ;) It just portrays the silliness and fun we had together.

The girls I went to High School with

So, in the effort to share more fun and silliness here are two videos that will bring out your youthful spirit. The first one is from FemFusion Fitness and is about 8 minutes long. It is a great stretch to make you feel good and put a smile on your face.

 The next one combines my love of yoga and Harry Potter. This is a great one to get kids interested in yoga, but also is just a fun way to bring some magic into your day! She has several videos with other themes (Star Wars, Frozen, etc.)

Finally, Meet Meddy Teddy! With the intention to teach kids about yoga and mindfulness, this adorable bear will bend and stretch into every yoga pose imaginable. You know you want one!

From MeddyTeddy.com

Exercise should be fun. It shouldn't be boring, stressful, or something you have to drag yourself out of bed to do. It should push you and challenge you, but it should also motivate you, relieve stress, and have you feeling renewed and refreshed! I'm going to refuse to let exercise be a chore, but allow myself to enjoy it, have fun, and let go of my inhibitions.

Can we do that in life as well? Let go of anything that is holding you back and make time for what really matters! What's on your list of things that will help you revive that youthful spirit?

Running back and forth to Nashville

Taken from Results Physiotherapy website: The girl in the picture looks like she just finished a run! :)

I started Physical Therapy three weeks ago at Results Physiotherapy in Nashville. They have a pelvic health specialty clinic there, and while I'm truly thankful it is nearby, running back and forth to Nashville three times a week is not the kind of running I would like to be doing!

My very awesome physical therapist, Beth, is not allowing me to run at this point. I still say she is awesome because the woman is working magic in helping me. I confess that I really enjoy physical therapy. It is worth the 53 minute drive. My main issue is that most of my muscles are very tense and tight from the trauma of surgery. This means that the majority of my PT consists of massage, stretches, applying heat and some kind of awesome electric "Stim" pulses on my ab and back muscles, and basically learning to relax and take deep breaths. Sounds awful, huh?   

Yesterday, Beth told me I can finally start doing yoga again! I can do "restorative" yoga twice a week. Here is my go-to yoga gal: 

 

Yoga with Adriene Adriene doesn't take herself too seriously. She knows what she's doing and keeps things fun. Plus she's from Austin, so she's weird and awesome. She has great instructional videos for individual poses, plus different challenges, such as 30 days of yoga. If you are looking for something specific, she probably has a video for it. Go to her YouTube site at the link above and search for any topic you're looking for: back pain, for bedtime, for runners, relaxation, stress relief, tired legs, morning sequence, strength and focus, the list goes on...
 

Lots of walks with this guy

Right now the exercises I'm doing are nice and easy. I'm going on walks, which makes Cody very happy, but I'm not doing anything too strenuous. The goal is to reduce pain. I've been thinking about our bodies natural reaction to avoid pain. It is probably what keeps many people from sticking with exercise programs. Exercise is difficult, sometimes it hurts, and we have to push ourselves through feelings that we don't really enjoy. I'm a strong believer in finding exercise that you love and enjoy, but any time you are working your muscles, there is going to be some level of discomfort involved. Your muscles are basically being injured while you exercise, they are ripping apart and then, when you rest, are being built back together, to become even stronger. 



The same thing happens when we encounter a difficult situation in life. We do our best to avoid the discomfort. For me, I avoid things that I am afraid will be too much responsibility. I think it is a natural thing to do, but it isn't what God tells us to do as Christians. He often asks us to go into situations outside of our comfort zone. 

"And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands." 2 John 1:6

When Luke and I were considering becoming foster parents we experienced this natural inclination in our human nature of self preservation. We weren't sure what we were getting into and we knew it wouldn't be easy. We avoided it and made excuses, but eventually we were convicted to be obedient to what God was asking when we heard a sermon by Josh Phillips, our pastor at Community Life Church. The message in this particular sermon was to Be Faithful, Not Fearful. 

During our foster parent training we learned that 1 in 4 girls have been sexually abused. Not 1 in 4 girls in foster care, but 1 in 4 girls, period. Many children in foster care have experienced some kind of abuse, have emotional disturbances, behavioral difficulties, and have been in the juvenile justice system. The more we learned, the more there was to fear. 

The encouragement to Be Faithful, Not Fearful, stuck with us. At a similar time we also read a blog post by Jason Johnson. There was a kid out there living in hell and we could be a safe place for them. The cost to them if we chose not to do foster care, far outweighed what it would cost us to take them in. It put our fear, inconvenience, and selfishness into perspective. 

Maybe there is something you know God is asking of you, and it scares you, or just makes you feel uncomfortable. Our human nature will try to persuade us to stay on the easy path, but let me encourage you (and myself) that putting ourselves out there in those uncomfortable situations will bless us far more than staying where things are nice and easy.

"We know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us." Romans 5:3-5

Just as our muscles are strengthened and built through physical exercise, God molds us, refines us, toughens us, and makes us into new creatures through our obedience to him. It's worth the struggle. 

What is God asking of you that makes you uncomfortable or fearful? 

Hold onto his promises and step out in obedience.