Negative self-talk...

One thing I've learned as an athlete and as a mommy is that negative self-talk gets you nowhere fast! I think we all suffer from it just a little bit but the key to reaching your potential and seeing yourself as a success is silencing that nagging little voice with nothing good to say.

My dad was always the first to tell my sisters (there's 3 of us girls in the family) that "if you don't have anything good to say, don't say anything at all!"

I think these words apply to being a mommy and a runner. It's so easy to get down on yourself about things, I could go right to town starting with all the bad feelings I have about letting someone else watch my baby so I can have a career. Then I can round it out with feelings of inadequacy about my less than adequate house-keeping skills and to top it all off - I have a bad habit of letting myself walk when there's no running buddy along with me.

But what does this get me?

Nothing but feeling bad about myself.

I've found that the best thing I can do for myself is focus on the good I do - I work to provide a good life for my child, I will teach him a great work ethic, my house-keeping may suck (and it really does) but my baby has more attention than he knows what to do with (and I happen to think that's a good thing!) and I might walk a little but I'm out there putting in the miles. I try damn hard to be better than I was yesterday.

You know, I actually used that line in a job interview once and I meant it! The interviewer asked "What sets you apart from the other canidates we are interviewing?" My response was this, "What you get today is not as good as what you will have tomorrow! I am always trying to better myself."

So if you walked on your run today, walk a little less tomorrow.

And don't forget to tell yourself about all of the good things you do!

Becoming a runner

This all happened sort of accidentally for me. To be quite honest I hated running for the majority of my life so far.

I was athletic in high school - played soccer and volleyball and was generally in good shape all the time. I remember back in those days looking at the cross country runners and thinking how completely crazy they were! Sports were one thing, I saw the objective and knew what I had to do to score. But running? For the fun of it?!

Flash forward to September of last year. I was coming up on the big 6 week check-up post giving birth appointment and no feeling so hot in my new mommy bod. Lets add into that equation the exhaustion from caring for an infant, breastfeeding around the clock, adjusting to what life as a mommy and wife means, and preparing to return to work. It's a crazy time!

I guess I figured I would try to gain control of my life again somehow. I had to go back to work, the baby needs to eat, and I couldn't make him go to sleep. ;) The flab, however, seemed manageable. Exercise was on the menu.

A workout video? Nah, too easy to drop and no one would notice. (I'm not very good at holding myself accountable)
A volleyball league? I'm not sure they even exist in my area.
Gym membership? Ha!

The only thing that seemed to make sense was running. I talked my mom into training for a 5k using the Couch to 5k plan. Her ultimate goal was to run a 15k and isn't a great self motivator either so the plan worked out well for us both.

We tried our hardest to make something we knew we would hate a little bit more fun. We took a trip to the city for lunch and a real fitting for sneaks and sports bras. The day I got medical clearance at my 6 week appointment was our first run.

We walked 90 seconds and ran 60 seconds over and over. My mom tried to blame herself for holding me back that day and for nearly every run after that but my new mom body isn't very tough. I was glad for a running partner to take my mind off the struggle.

We got stronger and I felt better after we ran but I still hated the act of running. About 4 weeks into our 9 week program a co-worker recommended Born to Run by Christopher McDougall. This book changed so much for me.

I learned that my body was born to run and that running was perfect opportunity to worry about nothing more than putting one foot in front of the other. I recommend this book to everyone - even if you don't want to become a runner.

I started to like running. Kinda.

After 7 weeks of C25k we ran a Turkey Trot. It was tons of fun and though we finished in last place, I started to feel like the athlete I once was.

That's what running is for me now. Something I do for myself - to help me remain a reasonable human being and to feel like an athlete. For some reason that title "athlete" means a lot to me.

Confessions #2

If you read my post yesterday, you'll know that we're having a hard time adjusting to becoming a family of three. Running helps me keep my cool, it gives me the quiet alone time that I need so badly. Running clears my head.

Needless to say, I haven't run on a regular basis yet.

Last Saturday (after a terrible week - one death in the family and one death of a friend so close they should be family, heartbreaking layoffs at work and a teething 7 month old) I lost my $h!t. I was late for the funeral ceremony, couldn't find my black heels, and nervous about the funeral.

While I was rushing out the door I shouted to my Main Man, "The (breast)milk is thawing in the sink but you'll have to wash a bottle." To which I'm almost certain he replied, "I'm not washing any TRucking bottles." (except he didn't say trucking!) He claims that's not at all what he said but regardless of the situation...I flipped.

Let's just say my flip flops quickly left my feet, the keys ended up under the couch and my iPhone landed on the couch! I ended up sobbing because I was so mad at my Hubbie and so frustrated with myself and that I lost my cool.

What's the moral of my story?  

#1 - I need to run more.
#2 - I need to get my poop in a group. My online friend, Michelle, has her poop in a group - she's very zen! Check her blog out - seemommywork.wordpress.com/

Confessions #1

Going from a newly married couple (2 years anyway) to a family of three is hard work.  I envy anyone that can tell you they made the transition easily. There are all types of new arguments things to hash out discuss.

Some of our disagreements discussions center around:

• Who will change the poopy diaper?
• Who gets to help with bathtime?
• Who will warm up his food?
• Is Daddy expected to attend doctor's appointments? Which ones? 
• Who will use a sick day because Little Man is teething and miserable?
• Who will tell Grandma that Pooh is not cool?
• Who will do the dishes? If I'm watching the baby, I obviously can't...
• What time can you watch him so I can go running?
• Can't you turn that stupid movie off and focus on him?!
• When will get to have Mommy/Daddy alone time?
• Can't we please upgrade to a bigger car?
• What do you mean you can't get a bottle ready? I'm already 10 minutes late and I can't do it. You just do...

The battles seem endless and we've never had such a hard time getting along. Heck, we have a hard time remembering to be nice to one another most days.

One of my closest friends confessed to me that she wasn't sure she and her husband would make it after they had their beautiful baby girl.  She filled me in on how hard that first year was.

It really is. This has been the hardest 7 months of my life, but its getting easier. Not easy - easier - it will never be easy.  As I'm trying to type this post we're arguing - over if my blog writing is more important than Daddy's shower or not.


Did I mention that we argue so much my sister has expressed concern that we might divorce? Divorce hasn't crossed my mind though.  We'll work through this, it will make us stronger as a couple and better parents for our Little Man.  It took a long time to grow a baby and I don't expect to adjust instantly.


How did you adjust to your new life as a family of three? How did you decided who would do each job? Any tips you can offer are truly appreciated! We're a work in progress.

6 at 6 (o'clock that is...)

6 Reasons Why I Want to Run a Marathon

6. Running gives me an excuse to buy cool running clothes and nice sneakers with minimal guilt (and I suffer from a lot of guilt - read about mommy guilt here).

5. I want to be a member of the cool mommies that run club!

4. I have 10 pounds of weight to lose to reach my pre-pregnancy weight.

3. I would like size 6 jeans to make an appearance in my life again.

2. It gives me an excuse to treat myself to a little alone time - and if you're a mom who says she doesn't appreciate alone time you're also a liar.

Reason #1. I want to prove to myself - my jiggly, stretchmarked, no-longer athletic self, that I can still be an athlete.

Taking the plunge...

Well I did it! I ordered the Verizon iPhone. I'm not sure how I feel about it. I'm definitely excited about getting the 5 mp camera and the HD video to capture more of Little Man's cuteness but I'm not sure I'm excited about the extra $25 a month we'll be paying for phone service. What can you do? Cross my fingers that the recent cuts to education won't cost me my job and then we'll be really up poop creek.

Mommy Guilt

My baby is getting teeth. He is grumpy, in pain and not is normal happy self. I'm busy. I am doing grad work, trying to keep the house cleaned up, and working full-time. Right now his daddy is trying to entertain him but all he really wants is his mommy and I can't cuddle.

Does the mommy guilt ever go away?

I'm doubting it.

Welcome

Hi everyone! (or probably no one). You've stumbled upon my little blog "Mama Runs a Marathon". Here I'm hoping to share little tid-bits of my everyday life - as a new mommy, as a teacher and as a wanna-be runner.

The title that I chose refers to my life in two ways. Number 1 - since my son was born in the summer of 2010 I feel like I'm running a never-ending marathon (I think...I wouldn't know because I have never actually done it) against my laundry, dirty floors...everything. Number 2 - I actually want to run a marathon (but more on that later).

So to get started - let's get to know one another. Post a question for me in the comments section and I'll do my best to answer it for you.