A dozen bananas and a marathon a day

Posted by random olio

Here it is the third day of January, and most people are thinking about what they are going to do in 2014, but I want to talk about accomplishments for 2013. Not my accomplishments, though. Two individuals much more admirable. Janette Murray-Wakelin (age 64), a breast cancer survivor who was told she had six months to live and Alan Murray (age 68) fall into this category. They just completed their 366th consecutive marathon on New Year’s Day, their first for 2014, and their 365th for 2013 (365 marathons in 365 days). Both completed a marathon a day, and ran entirely around Australia for charity while also sticking to a raw and vegan diet.

While I have no plans to emulate their current life, I can be inspired and push myself from their example. While the internet mentions them as an elderly couple at 64 and 68, I would have to disagree. I would say they are still young in life. This article states that they also eat a dozen bananas a day, along with their green smoothie. My kind of people! I am always impressed with what individuals are capable of and what inspires and drives them.

So it makes me think, what are you not doing that you want to be doing? What are you afraid of doing because you think you are not capable? Or are you not doing it because you think you do not have time? I always think that is an interesting excuse. We find time to watch hours of our DVR, surf the Internet, and yet some of the things that are the best for us (exercise and eating healthy) are low on the list. It used to be low on my list too, and something shifted in my life and now I look at eating + exercise in an entirely new way.

Take a few minutes to explore their website, they have an amazing story. Hopefully their life has inspired you to know that whatever you set out to do tomorrow, this month, and this year, a lot is possible. You are capable of way more than you realize.

Strive, run, cheer for greatness

Posted by random olio

I love, love, love this LeBron James spot. Yes, it is an ad for LeBron, and the LeBron 11 shoe, but there is something that gets to you. You want to be part of it. You want to be included in his community, with the other bikers, run with him, swim with him. You cheer and wait for him while he practices, as he “strives for greatness.” There is something endearing about it. There is something that makes you want to strive for greatness.

Whether that is the runner in you, the climber, the biker, or basketball player, you see this amazing athlete work hard to strive to be great, and you want a little bit of it to rub off on you. Ah, greatness. Bring it, own it, want it.

She remembered.

Posted by random olio

We all want to be remembered. We want to know we matter. Sometimes we are remembered and we are in awe of the individual that remembered us. I often have blog posts about customer service, the good, the bad, and sometimes the ugly. I still have wide eyes after this experience, and yet you might consider it mundane.

At the end of last week, I went by a Nike store to return a few items. The last time I had been at this location was in mid-September when a good friend was in town. We had spent a bit of time there looking for clothes and shoes for her, her husband, little baby girl, and step-son. During that visit I had a shift of thought. Nothing ground breaking, but a shift nonetheless. You see, I can sometimes get addicted to something and not want to try something new. I mean that in the form of the running shoes I wear. I’ll tell you what happened.

My friend and I started looking at running shoes. She asked me what were the best for the different kinds of needs of a runner (over pronation, flat foot, under pronation). While discussing each potential option for her, the sales associate (Nike calls them Athletes) asked if she could help us. We asked her a few questions, and she asked me what I run in. I told her the LunarGlide 3 and that I had a stash of them in my closet because once I find something I like I want to make sure I can keep using them. This is a tough thing to uphold when you wear a Nike running shoe, as they innovate so fast. The Athlete said to just on the LunarGlide 5’s for her. I resisted for a while, and she persisted. Finally, I grumbled, and gave in. I tried them and I was hooked immediately. I bought a pair (as did my friend). I began running in them the next day, and have not once touched my 3’s.

Fast forward to the end of last week (remember, I was returning a few items). I am quickly scanning men’s shoes with Chris to see if there was anything new, and this Athlete looks at me and says, “How are the LunarGlide 5’s?” I was flabbergasted. I stared at her a minute, as a zillion things crossed my thought. “She remembered me. Wow. That is amazing. That was over a month ago. I only met her once. How did she do that?” I slowly regained my focus in the present and said, “I love them. I recently purchased a second pair.” I pointed down to my feet. As I walked away to find Chris and tell him what happened. It was not until I was home that I thought to get her name. I should have. She made me think about the power of remembering, of caring. If only we treated everyone that way.

#sheremembered

Never stop running…

Posted by random olio

Yesterday I was running on the treadmill after work. It was a tough run. I was exhausted after my weekend, and I just wanted to crawl into bed. Yet, because I felt like I should keep at it and stay focused on what is important to me, I changed into my running clothes and got onto the treadmill. Why you might ask? Why do I push myself so hard, when maybe I should have changed into pajamas and snuggled onto the couch?

My answer would be dedication. If I gave in, than tomorrow it would be that much easier to give in, and the next day and the day after that. Yes, I definitely take days off from running, but they are few. Usually my off days are when my brain can barely utter a word, or I feel like complete ass, and can barely stay awake, otherwise my butt is dressed and ready to run, and usually…usually I am better for it. The run gets me out of myself, out of my day, what I still have left to do, and allows me to breathe in and out, and let it all go.

Running is my therapy. Some of you might already know, but I usually run on the treadmill and read books while I run. I read and enter the world of another individual’s life through a memoir, or the world of make-believe through a novel. It means 50 minutes to an hour a day that is not about what happened that day, or what is left on my to-do list, it is just about my feet going, the sweat dripping, and the characters that are spelled out before my eyes.

Yesterday though was tough. I was struggling to continue, I wanted to run upstairs and jump into a steaming hot bath, relax, and close my eyes. The thoughts that kept coming to me were: “This is hard.” “You have had a long day and weekend, just quit.” And then I realized, these are just thoughts. You are not a quitter. You are dedicated. You get on that treadmill each day because it inspires you, it feels good, and your thought is clear afterwards. Often you find that solutions to problems come to you when you run and you were not even focusing on them.

I hope I can continue my dedication to running as I grow older, when pregnant, with a newborn, and with aching knees, because it grounds me. It makes the world right. It invigorates, inspires, and fuels me. What fuels you?

The weeks just fly by…

Posted by random olio

I can hardly believe it is the beginning of October. Time just keeps flying by.

Each weekend goes by with a flurry of items that need to be checked off the list, happy hours, getting together with friends, yard work, the list is endless. By Sunday night I just want another day off. Life is good, it is full, and there is so much happening. There is also so much to be grateful for each day. I find that in random moments through the day I have visions of something I want to bake, a book I cannot wait to curl up with, or a television show I am behind in and want to know what happens next.

I am happy. I am enjoying life to the fullest. So if I am happy does it matter that I am filling up each day to the brim? Is that a good thing? Or, should I endeavor to carve out chunks of downtime where I do nothing at all? I find that one day spills over into the next, and before I know it my bedtime hour is upon me and I still have so many things left that I want to do. As I crawl into bed, and my head nestles itself into my pillow I quickly fall into la la land, only to find just a few hours later I start all over again. There is definitely never a dull moment.

Now that October is upon us, all things pumpkin come to mind. I want to make pumpkin bread, try our a new chocolate chess pie recipe, decide if I am going to run another 1/2 marathon this fall, work on the painting I started a month ago, and hopefully enjoy a few more sunny days if there are any left in this Portland Fall. Those are the non-task items. The task items like balancing your checkbook, paying bills, cleaning house are the not so fun ones. The list of life to-dos seems to be never-ending. Not all are enjoyable tasks, but they serve a purpose.

What do you want to do now that it is October and Fall is here? Are you living your days to the fullest?