A post that starts with spicy Indian food and ends with a discussion on pooping. Go figure.
The big excitement of the day was a baby doctor appointment. Just the ‘normal’ stuff – got weighed and measured; listened to the heartbeat. All is well. Hurrah! And, although I was pretty sure this was the case based on belly mapping, we got confirmation that the head is down (AKA optimal birthing position).
The midwife taught me how to feel the baby’s head through my stomach – you give it a really hard squeeze! It was kind of weird to hold the baby’s head in between my fingers… it was about the size of a small orange.
Right before the appointment, I had a Think Thin protein bar and watermelon with vinegar crisps (and epic combination, indeed).
And per our tradition, the Husband and I headed to get Indian food after our appointment. Soon, we’ll be going to an appointment every week, so I guess we’ll be eating a LOT of Indian food.
Vegetable korma:
And a side of soup.
Okay, on to fun topics…
How to Make Yourself ‘Go’
One of my most popular posts is, without a doubt, How to Handle 5 Running Gross-Outs, which tackles lovely topics like blisters, chafing, pooping, and more. If you run, you know what a big deal pooping can be (the jostling motion triggers a lot of people’s bowels). Did you poop before your run? Did you just eat something that’s going to make you poop in the middle of a run? What if you have to poop and there’s no bathrooms nearby?! I’ve said it once, and I’ll say it again… Everyone poops. But runners like to talk about it with each other.
I recently received this comment on the post from a reader named Anna, and I thought this would be an EXCELLENT comment to open up to everyone for discussion.
I keep reading about how important it is to poop in the morning before a race. How can I make sure my body will be ready to do this in the morning (anyway besides caffeine/coffee)? I don’t know if this makes sense but I am so worried that I wont be able to and then I’ll have to go during the race!
My thought is that the actual running is just one part of training for a race. There’s a lot of other ‘stuff’ that goes into training, too – figuring out what to wear, what and when to drink, what and when to eat, and – yes – how to ensure you poop in the morning. Waking up and doing a long run every Saturday or Sunday for weeks on end helps you figure out how, exactly, to make yourself go before a run.
Here’s what works for me on race morning. First of all, I eat something bland and basic the night before the race – something I know I can digest by morning and usually a dinner that I’ve had prior to my other long runs. The night before a race is perhaps NOT the best night to go get Indian food, mmkay? Secondly, I wake up with plenty of time to spare. Even if the race is three miles from my front door, I’m awake at least an hour before I need to leave to give everything time to ‘work.’ Next, I eat a pre-race breakfast, which usually consists of a peanut butter sandwich and a banana. I know this is an ideal pre-race breakfast for me because I’ll eat it before every single long run. Perhaps bananas make you constipated or there’s simply too much fiber in that meal for your digestive system. It’s all about experimentation. And lastly, I don’t get too worked up about going. Pooping is definitely one of those things that you can psych yourself out of doing. I assume I’m going to go, so I do. A few times, I’ve had to wait until arrival at the race, but you know – when you’ve gotta go, you’ll go. Port-a-potties and all.
Now that I’ve shared perhaps far too much information about my pre-race bathroom habits, I’d love for you to overshare, too. Any tips for Anna on making yourself go? Any pooping horror stories to share? You can read my horror stories (which, awesomely enough, involve peeing myself mid-race) on the original Gross-Out post.
I cant wait for watermelon season in NY we eat 1 in 1 day, yes that is a lot of watermelon, but I just love it! I am glad the baby is fine and in the right position 🙂