The Terrors of the Night

For as long as I can remember I have had this awful fear of the dark.

Most children grow out of this silly fear, but not me.

It has gotten better over the years.  I no longer sleep with a nightlight

(which I’m pretty sure I still did all through high school…embarrassing, ugh.)

I still do not like to be alone in the dark, it is what it is…

So, it makes sense that I do not run in the dark.

My marathon training schedule tells me that I must go

10 miles for my long run this week.

Which is just fine and dandy except for the fact that I am so busy this weekend

that it is impossible for me to squeeze it in.

I came to terms with the fact that I would just have to do it Friday morning before work.

Which means I would have to head out at 5:00am and it doesn’t start to get light until about 5:45am. 

45 minutes running in the dark!  Eeek!

I pushed the fear of being abducted out of my mind

and went for it!

It actually wasn’t too bad and I actually learned a few things along the way!

Here is what I learned.

1. Our town needs more street lights!  If it were up to me, the sidewalks would be lit up like a Christmas tree.

2. I am more paranoid in the dark than I had originally thought.  I almost assaulted an innocent bush with my pepper spray thinking it was a potential attacker LOL.  I’m still laughing about that!  Though, I am happy to say that I did not accidentally spray myself in the face like I had originally feared…

3.  90% humidity is no joke even if the sun is not out!  At the end of my run I resembled something close to a wet dog.  Not a good look…

4. The side walk becomes the enemy!  I once thought we were friends, but after stumbling over its rough terrain in the dark this morning, I realized it was trying to do me in!

5. I normally welcome a light spray from random sprinklers to cool me off, but when you don’t see them coming it can be quite startling.  I may have looked like I was punched in the face by an invisible fist to people driving by…

6.  I didn’t know that my town had such a plethora of active wildlife so early in the morning.  Things like bunnies darting out of nowhere at my feet, bats swooping down from the sky at me and GIANT man eating raccoons who obviously were not afraid of me.  It was like running trough a damn video game with the goal “don’t get eaten!”  One good thing though was that the geese in the park who normally harass me, were nowhere to be found!  I must have thrown them off by not going out at my usual time.  Take that geese!

7. I had no idea, but there are tons of active people in my town!  While it was still dark out I saw numerous hospital workers riding their bikes to work.  And once the sun came out, giant groups of speed walking women seemed to appear out of nowhere!  They were speed walking about as fast as I was running LOL! (shame L)  Then all the other runners appeared!  I even put my hand up to a passing lady and she responded with a high-five!  Woop woop!

8. Watching the sunrise was my favorite part.  Not just because it meant that I made it though the dark alive (which I’m not going to lie, was definitely part of it), but because it was so beautiful.  It is so peaceful watching nature wake up.  I would have taken a picture, but I was afraid if I stopped running, my legs wouldn't start up again haha.

What things have you learned from your runs?

What time of day is your favorite time to head out for a run?

My first post!

So I thought I would start this off with a little bit about myself.  I am 28 years old and currently in the best shape of my life.  This is the first time in a very long time that I can honestly say that I am happy with the way my body looks.  The bikinis that I ordered arrived the other day and the dreaded first try on of the season was upon me!  I stood in front of the mirror and for the first time I was happy with what I saw!  It was an amazing feeling!  This was not always the case though...

I come from a family of health nuts who are all physically fit people.  I am the oldest of 3 girls.  I've always referred to myself as "the big sister" ( having more meanings than one unfortunately).  My mother is a tiny woman who spends endless hours in the gym to maintain her excellent physic.  My dad remodels homes for a living and on top of that he plays hockey and water skis.  He is in excellent shape for a man of 57 years old!  Next there's my "health freak" middle sister (age 22) who just graduated with a degree in exercise science.  There is not an ounce of body fat on this child!  She could walk into a bakery full of delicious treats and order a plate of veggies and a water.  If only I had that will power!  Haha!  Lastly there is my baby sister (age 21).  She was a bit of a chubby child growing up, but has since blossomed into a super model of a woman!  She has been blessed with being naturally thin with long lean legs. Freak of nature I tell you! She could sit down to a donut feast and not gain an ounce!  I on the other hand get a whiff of a donut and 5 pounds appear on my thighs!

Here we are.  From left: Mom, baby sister, middle sister, me, Dad.

Then you have me.  I was a thin, active kid growing up.  I was always participating in some sort of sport all the way through high school.  Then college and the dreaded freshman 15+ came.  Ugh.  I liked to party, ate whatever I wanted and didn't work out.  Go figure I gained weight!  A year and a half ago I got on the scale and it read 162 and I was in a tight size 8 jeans.  I was overweight, unhealthy and unhappy.  Enough was enough.  I started exercising regularly and started using MyFitnessPal to track my calories.  I even started running!  I guess it was more like jogging at walking speed in the beginning, but hey it was something!  The pounds started to come off slowly but surely.

Since then I have lost 32 pounds and have even completed 2 half marathons!  I figured with this new body and eating well I would feel fantastic, right?!  That still was not the case.  For as long as I can remember I have had stomach issues.  I won't get into details, but let's just say I never felt good.  I finally went to the doctor and after many, many tests I have been diagnosed with Celiac Disease.  This means I cannot eat any foods containing gluten or there will be hell to pay.  I was devastated.  No more delicious baked treats like cake, bagels or donuts!  How could I possibly live?!  

Well after many slip ups I realized that my health and feeling good was more important than that donut.  And I have found there are many gluten free alternatives!  I am 1 month completely gluten free and I feel great!!!  My stomach that was always pooched out has even flattened out!

I hope this blog will help inspire others to get healthy.  Enjoy!

Halie

Here's a before and after.  Left: 162lbs. and unhealthy  Right: 134lbs. On the road to health

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