Monday, July 27, 2015

.Booked

After being back the running train for a week now, I'm feeling pretty good. I ran 15.2KM in 1:53 with the help of my bestie & pace car Krissie who runs a lot faster than me and it felt pretty good! Although I do like running on my own, for my long runs it's nice to have company and someone to lead the way to keep my pace up! I think that's why I always run faster during races because it's almost like I'm chasing people!

During my runs I almost find that I've been tuning out my music because I've been listening to the same songs over and over again. I have so many pictures on my phone (mostly of my adorable son) that I don't have space for a lot of music, and haven't made myself a new playlist since I started running again back in June. I'm considering trying out Spotify Premium to try out some new playlists. Right now they have a special where you get three months for 99 cents. This way I'd be able to download playlists to listen to and with the new upgrade it actually hooks up to the Nike Running app as well. An added bonus is that I'll have access to a ton of music for our trip to Australia - which by the way we officially BOOKED this week! I am so excited to see my sister and brother in law and visit a place I've never been, and excited for Kendrick to meet his auntie and uncle! Our first stop is Vancouver where I'll be running the Vancouver Rock N Roll Half Marathon (and hoping to get a personal best wearing my Oilers hat) and that night we'll be taking a direct flight to Sydney! 15 hours on a plane with an eight month old may prove to be a challenge but hopefully he'll be good like he was on the flights to and from Vegas! After three days in Sydney we'll hop on a plane to Adelaide where we'll spend the majority of the next three weeks visiting. So EXCITED! And so much planning yet to do...

During my 8KM run today I had a lot of things going through my mind. I find that I do a lot of reflection and thinking when I run. This is part of the reason why I quite enjoy running outside. It's very much multi-tasking as my brain is going a million miles a minute listening to music, watching where I'm going, planning my route, and brainstorming random things. Today for example as I was running through the river valley, I wondered how I would look if I dyed the tips of my hair blue and turquoise. I'm not usually one to go with fads, but I thought it would be something interesting and while I'm on mat leave is the perfect time to experiment with this kind of thing. Then I thought about how funny it would be to take a picture of Kendrick, Brian and I so you could see the back of our heads; Brian's hair is longer than normal, mine would have funky coloured tips, and Kendrick has a bald spot in the back of his head. Ha! I don't know why this came to mind but these are the random kinds of things I think about during long runs.

I'd like to start doing stairs with November Project on Wednesdays and hills on Fridays! Once I get my sleep figured out I'm going to try and make it out once a week. I'm so terrible at hills that I think this will definitely help my endurance.

Kendrick hit a couple of milestones this week. On Monday he rolled from his back to his front, so now he can roll both ways! Now that he's figured out how to do that he doesn't stay on his back for long. Friday night we put him in the crib for the first time for the night. He's been sleeping in a bassinet in our room and has been sleeping really well so we finally decided to make the move. He's been doing good, however now he moves like crazy during the night and we usually find him facing the opposite direction on his stomach in the morning! He also attended his very first Edmonton Eskimos game on Saturday night. Our little dude is growing up.


xo
-Dianne

PS: I'm also happy to report I'm 20lbs away from my goal weight, 4.5 months postpartum. I still only have a couple pairs of pants that fit besides my running gear, but I'm starting to slowly feel much more comfortable in my own skin. YAY.

PPS: After speaking to the nurse at the health clinic today I was also told to make an appointment with my doctor ASAP in regards to my sleep issues, so I'm heading in on Friday. I'm hoping for some clarity and hopefully some natural remedies to help me sleep and take advantage of the fact that Kendrick sleeps so well at night! I'm tired of being tired all day and not being able to fall asleep at night. I can't wait to get my Fitbit to really track my sleeping patterns and see how much I'm actually sleeping at night. I hope the orange & blue ones come out soon!
Tuesday, July 21, 2015

.Yawn

I realized that it's been a lot longer than I thought since I ran last; nine days ago yesterday to be exact. Oopsie. I didn't mean to take a nine day break but between being busy, preparing for our trip, and being flat out tired it just didn't happen. I'm still learning to juggle life with a baby!

We just got back from Vegas on Saturday from Stella & Dot's national conference (Hoopla) and it went really well. Not only was the conference really good and very informative, but Kendrick was an absolute rock star. On the flight there I took people's advice and had his soother in for landing and take off and he didn't fuss at all. He just sat in my lap and stared at me! :) On the way home he was a little fussier as the flight was during his bed time (will try not to make that mistake again), but when he went to asleep he stayed asleep and we managed to get him home and in bed without him fully waking up! During the sessions he either slept or played with his toys, and when he got fussy and I picked him up, the people behind me made faces at him and he giggled and smiled. I couldn't have asked for a more well-behaved baby and now it's given me a lot of food for thought for when we travel to Australia in the fall!

So after doing a bunch of research I have decided that I'm going to purchase a Fitbit. I had one of the very first ones that clipped onto your pants and to be honest I didn't like it. But that was quite a few years ago and I think I'm ready to give it another chance. That being said, I'm not sure which one to buy! I thought I was pretty set on the Fitbit Charge HR however now I'm considering the Fitbit Surge. I really wanted something that has a heart rate monitor built right in, but that also tracks my sleep (for the past year or so, even before I got pregnant, I have been having problems sleeping for long periods of time). The big differences between the two are that you can get text messages on the Surge (doesn't really matter to me), change a song on your music (good, but really not a big deal to me), track multiple sports and the big one: GPS. As much as I love my Nike running app, it's not really meant for walking so when I use it for walks it brings down my average pace. It's not the end of the world, but I use that pace to figure out approximate KMs when I'm on a time limit. It would also be beneficial when I'm on vacation or running outside of Canada. The Nike app would cost me a lot to use data and I wouldn't be using it on hikes or other walks. Of course, there's also the $120 price difference ($179.99 VS $299.99). So many decisions! I still have some time to think about it as in either case I would want the blue or tangerine colors (basic black is way too boring) which haven't been released yet. Feel free to comment below if you have a preference one way or another, I'd love to hear feedback!

Speaking of sleeping terribly, I think it's time to make a trip to the doctor and the naturopath. I am a terrible sleeper. I am tired all day but when night time comes I find it really difficult to fall asleep and I wake up multiple times a night. These are the nights I should be sleeping because Kendrick has been sleeping through the night for about two months now! It's starting to really affect me so I'm going to see if I can figure out something. What are your tips for falling asleep at night?

xo
-Dianne

PS: Product Review: Yurbuds - $27 - Sport Chek

I have been looking for new ear buds as I find regular ones don't stay in my ears and I'm constantly re-adjusting them. I had ones that went around my ears but mid-run they would start to hurt so I was in the market for some new ones. I went to Sport Chek on the weekend and was looking at some $80 fancy ear buds when one of the workers came over and told me about Yurbuds and said one of his coworkers swore by them. It says "Guaranteed to Never Fall Out" right on the box, so I thought I'd give them a shot. 


As it turns out, they are awesome! I ran with them for the first time today and they were super comfortable and honestly didn't move, even though it was quite windy. I didn't have to re-adjust them once! I am very impressed and at a $29.99 price point they were worth every penny. They also sell sets for $40 and $50 but I couldn't see much of a difference other than the accessories so I decided on these ones. They also say they are specially made for women and have two sizes. Two thumbs up!

PPS: I know a few new mommies so I wanted to post some of my tips for air travel with a baby! I was very lucky that Kendrick was so good, but there were a few things that really helped me!

- Pay extra for the "plus" seats. On Westjet they are $50 and you get extra legroom, your first & second bag checked in free, and free food and drinks. Since you'd be paying $25 anyways for your bag, this is a no-brainer. If possible, also book seats A&C or D&F so there's a chance that no one will sit in between you! That extra seat is a bonus.
- You're probably going to bring more than you need. I packed way too many diapers, outfits and formula. But you just never know and it's better to be safe than sorry!
- Feed or give baby a soother during landing and take off. It helps pop their little ears!
- If you can help it, don't fly in the evening. I had to wash bottles and pump in the airport because we checked out of our hotel at 10:30AM and didn't leave until 8:30PM! If given the choice I would fly in the morning or afternoon
- Check with your airline but you should be allowed to take a diaper bag along with your own carry on and personal item. I kept all baby stuff in the diaper bag along with extra outfits, food and diapers. You never know when there will be a delay! You are allowed to take formula and breast milk through customs, just take it out for security so they can scan it.
- I found people around me were really helpful! If he started getting fussy the people behind me or beside me would make faces at him and he'd smile and giggle. It was a big help!
- Don't be afraid to ask for help. I find that hard sometimes but people (especially the flight attendants) will be happy to hold your baby for a moment while you get organized!

Sunday, July 5, 2015

.Purge

June flew by! I don't know where the time is going. Kendrick is almost 4 months old. It feels like he's growing up so fast! He's holding his head up really well, he can roll from front to back and he can almost sit up by himself! And he's found his voice, he's constantly babbling!

Oilers Draft Party 2015
I've really started to amp up my running. I ran my first race since having Kendrick on July 1 - the Canada Day Road Race.  This is actually kind of cool because I ran the exact same race last year before I knew I was pregnant!


All things considered, I am pretty impressed that there's only a 10 minute difference between my times. It may even be a little less as either Nike was off or the course was a little off since the first year I tracked 15.2KM and this year it was 15.4KM. In any case, I was satisfied but very sore. I've noticed that since I've been pregnant if I sit for long periods of time my body just hurts. My ankles and legs get sore and my back has been bugging me (I've been going to physio and it's been helping!) - I feel like I'm 80 years old! Hopefully that's just because I'm not quite back in shape and nothing else, but I'll be asking the doc about it just in case. I've had to wear my compression sleeves in the last little while because it seems like my shin splints are acting up, and they are helping immensely! I'm looking forward to completing my first half since the baby in August!

I'm starting to feel a bit better about my body. I started to do a clothing purge yesterday and was able to clear out one giant garbage bag of clothes that will be sent for donation. It's a little hard giving stuff away not knowing exactly what size I'll end up, so I did keep most of my pants so I can see how things go. That being said, I am giving a lot away. I went through all these pieces of clothing that I wasn't even wearing before I got pregnant and not only does my closet look a lot better but I feel a lot better! I can't wait to save my pennies and have a big shopping spree just before I go back to work in March.

Looking forward to enjoying this rest day with family and continuing my running program next week.  Now to decide what to do today! :)

xo
-Dianne

PS: Who knew cravings continued after pregnancy? I guess because I'm still exclusively pumping my hormones are still all over the place. My latest craving is rootbeer. It's not healthy, and it's empty calories I know, but I can't help it. It just means I have to run and do bootcamp more so I can work it off!

PPS: Mommy & baby yoga starts up again next week and I couldn't be more excited. Such an awesome class and Kendrick seems to love the music and the baby massages. We also went swimming for the second time last week and he seems to like the water! As soon as he's old enough I'm going to put him into baby swimming lessons. I also may take a couple strollersize classes. The biggest thing that's happening this month though is that Kendrick will be going on his first airplane ride! We are headed to Vegas in 10 days for Stella & Dot Hoopla - the national sales conference. I'm both nervous and excited as this will be the first big vacation with baby and I'm going on my own. If anyone has any tips on flying with little ones I'd be all ears! My first task is to make a list so I don't forget things to pack, so I'm working on that this week!