Good morning! For some reason, I was so AWAKE this morning. I typically struggle every morning to wake up and stumble around in a deadly haze for the first thirty minutes or so…. but today I feel chipper and alert! :) Perhaps because it’s Thursday??
Plus, I had a special breakfast to look forward to… Tina, you would be proud!
I ordered a sample of Barney Butter and couldn’t wait to smear it all over something delish.
I made a whole wheat waffle with Hodgson’s Mills InstaBake Mix and put Barney Butter on 1/2 and maple syrup on the other 1/2. Plus a banana on the side.
The verdict? I liked it! But I’m not craaaazy about it like Tina or other bloggers. To be fair, I’m not really crazy about peanut butter, either. Nut butters just don’t "do it" for me for some reason.
Heavy Legs?
Here is a great Question and Answer from my favorite Runner’s World blog, Ask the Penguin.
Question: I’m a 51-year-old female. After years of inactivity (since I don’t think running 2 miles every few months constitutes "running"), I am determined to get in shape so I can once again run 5-K and 10-K races. My problem: halfway through a 2- or 3-mile run, my legs feel heavy, like I’m dragging weights tied to them. Why is this happening? Am I not stretching enough? I’m sure the combination of not running for three to four years and the extra weight I’ve put on has something to do with it, but is that it? Please enlighten me! – Margie
Margie, thanks for writing. And congratulations on deciding to take control of your life.
Of course, you’ve answered a part of your own question. The combination of inactivity and increased weight will certainly have an effect. But that may not be the whole answer. It may well be that your determination is both helping and hurting you. Too often, people try to get “in shape" in a matter of weeks or months even though it’s taken years to get out of shape. At 51 years old [I’m 60] the time it’s going to take you to get to where you want to be is much longer than if you were 25. It may also be that you’re not being realistic with where you want to be. The single most important element for a new – or renewed – healthy, active lifestyle is patience. It isn’t talent. It isn’t discipline. It isn’t will power or genetics or diet. Just… patience.
If your legs feel heavy it’s very likely that you’re trying to do too much, too soon. When we start people on a “learn to run” program they spend weeks doing mostly walking with a few 30-second to one-minute segments of running sprinkled in. You can’t just go out the door and try to run 2 or 3 miles.
You also have to give yourself plenty of time to recover. When you’re younger you can “recover” in 24 hours. At 51, it’s likely to take you 48 hours to recover. That means you can’t be running/walking every day. It doesn’t mean you can’t be active, but it does mean you’ll have to find something that is “active recovery," like swimming or cycling.
Finally, for everyone, strength training is very important. For a woman, it’s even more important. You’re not trying to get buff, you’re just trying to maintain muscle mass. Flexibility – not just stretching – is also an important element.
So, don’t let yourself get in your own way. Be patient. Be kind. Be gentle. You’ve got the rest of your life to get to where you want to be.
Waddle on, John
I also get the "heavy legs"! Does anyone else? Based on John’s answer, I must get it because I haven’t allowed myself enough time to recover in between runs. Very interesting and definitely good to know!
This is really interesting–I totally get heavy legs sometimes!! Thanks for the info.