I get by with a little help from my friends ~

Team Captain Cindy Rulon of "Team Madison" pictured with her two children. Madison, the girl on the left is the team honoree afflicted by NF1.

I must confess that I am TOTALLY not a morning workout person and most definitely not an early runner except to do an event. I generally procrastinate the run all day and typically get out an hour to a half hour before dark. But team captain Cindy Rulon on the NF endurance team arranged the first team run for Saturday morning IN the town I live outside of. So I really did not have a good excuse to NOT go! Rather than a hindrance, I think the sharp spastic muscle cramp in my calf at 7:20 yesterday morning was God's way of ensuring I did not sleep through the alarm again!

Reminiscing back to my team in training days in 2006, I was missing the "team" spririt and motivation which accompanies being part of a group working towards a common goal. With the exception of my dogs, I have been running on my own for quite some time now. The will to run was starting to peter out on me this week so something scheduled involving other people is exactly the strucure I needed.

Unfortunately nobody else turned up but this ended up being a bonus for me as the team captain ran along side me the entire way! It was a especially unique to sort of focused attention because she is a full marathoner who I know has a much faster running pace. But kindly she ran along side and encouraged me the entire way by giving me a thumbs up at each mile.

Although it took some adjustment to learn to run with someone and was a little distracting, it sure was nice to have someone at my side cheering me on and supporting me the whole way. Being a Saturday morning on a popular trail in town, there were LOTS of other runners. There were also LOTS of people passing me which was discouraging. But with Cindy next to me the whole way, the feelings of discouragement were momentary as her presence kept me focused on the goal....3 miles, 3.5 miles, 4 miles, 4.5 miles, and finishing at 5.

I could have went for 6 as the training schedule I am on called for in week 3. However, I started the 10 week training 2 weeks early anticipating any need for injury, illness, or cutting back to recover. My training runs this week were very difficult/miserable and my body so fatigued. To start out I had no idea how it was going to go and just had it in mind to finish at least 3. As we ran along, I chose to go a little further. When I reached 5 I was satisfied to not overdo it in hopes that I would be recovered for a good week of training runs in the days ahead.

We ran 3 miles out from Marymoor Park which gave us a nice 1 mile cool down on the route back. Aside from allowing my body a good recovery walk, it gave Cindy and I some time to get to know each other (another bonus of being able to do a training workout with the team captain). Of course I am deaf and unfortunately conversations out in the elements are not exactly a 2 way street. Therefore, I ended up doing all of the talking and had the opportunity to share my NF story of being afflicted with NF2 (Cindy's daughter Madison has been diagnosed at a very young age with the other form of the disorder known as NF1).

It was a great way to end a tough week/road block in my training. A third added bonus is that Cindy reminded me that it was still morning and that I could rest, relax, or do whatever I want for the rest of the day! What a terrific weight to have off my chest and how freeing!

Thanks Cindy for the run and your encouragement! It was exactly the shot of motivation and inspiration I needed this week! :D

My Weakness

So yeah.....so much for my South Beach success and my dream of 17% body fat composition - the starting range of an athlete! LOL Two months later and I regained the 10 lbs I lost. So I need to start over. I confess after Valentine's day I went nuts! There were all the post Valentine's day chocolates and then the stores stocked the shelves with the Easter surplus. I took all of our easter candy and put it into a big tin and used a step ladder to stash it away in the far upper recesses of the bedroom closet. I have wishful thinking/hopes that maybe my terrible short term memory will forget about it.

So now I am back to square one. I started abstaining from candy and processed sugars Monday but then I had some glazed pecans I bought Wednesday and some M&Ms and a recess egg and bunny today when I pulled out the tin to empty more AFTER easter stock.

This time due to the nutritional demands of my training, I will not be cutting out carbs completely. I am suffering from fatigue which we figure is a side effect of my post NIH trip/Big Climb illness. Now that I am in full swing of the half marathon training and hiking weekly, I need to consume complex carbs for endurance energy.

Hopefully I will gain some will power and not dig into "the stash" or have a shopping breakdown.

The picture above is from the last day my mother-in-law, Cheryl, visited to accompany me on my NIH followup appointments last month. One of my favorite restaurants is the Desert Fire in Redmond which offers a Sunday brunch we had never been to. We decided that it would be fun to take her there for her last day. Wouldn't you know they had HUGE platters of chocolate chip cookies and really good Mexican cocoa.

Now how can one resist that temptation? Yes. I am very weak! ;-)

Got your Spirulina?

Argh. It was a tough long run this evening (5 miles according to the schedule but I forgot my watch and failed to start where the mileage markers start. So I just ran what distance seemed sufficient which could be 4.5 miles or could be 6.). Actually it was a tough training week all together. It did not help matters that Aunt Flo stopped for a visit nearly sapping the life out me (that is a joke by the way which originated off the Cosby show in the 80s for you youngins). :-)

Even with a full day of rest on Sunday and Tuesday, I still had inadequate recovery following the 50 minute run last Saturday. I was trying to catch up all week and it just did not happen. When I got back into it Wednesday I threw too many things into one day with a 4.2 mile hike with a 1200 foot elevation gain, one hour of weights on the legs, and a 40 minute run. Thursday I had to run again but was so relieved that the mileage for the day was 3 miles instead of 4!

Another contributor to my fatigue is my inability for the past couple weeks to get consistent and quality sleep. It is common for me to be interupted within 2 to 4 hours of sleep by having to use the bathroom - sometimes as often as 3 times within a night of trying to get a solid 5 - 6 hours of sleep. I have started taking melatonin but can only seem to pull off about 5 straight hours of sleep. So I am definitely going to have to work on that to get into a biorhythmn schedule.

Aside from the sleep, seriously though I am feeling drained. Of course I have to remember that it has only been 5.5 months since I had a MAJOR brain surgery on 4 tumors unlike when I was training last spring with the advantage of 1.5 years post surgery. So you have to wonder if perhaps that has something to do with my fatigue.

Anyone out there run a half marathon so soon after surgery?

I am desperate to increase my energy levels and efficiency. I felt the drag on the big climb this year when I thought for certain I would do well. Being sick I felt played a big part in hindering my performance but now I am starting to wonder if something else is at play here. I think I am in definite need of exploring additional supplementation and endurance sports nutrition to get waken those energy levels I once had.

It took the following article to prompt me to recall that I was using Green Vibrance last year with Spirulina (not the tastiest but it certainly helped!). So this evening I unburied it out of the back of the refridgerator and added a nice healthy scoop to some spicy V8. Hopefully that will do the trick! I am also considering investing in a book on endurance sports nutrition to attain better efficiency but I am a little undecided on which to get.

Any suggestions?

Now for the article - Got your greens lately? ;-)


Sports Science Update: New Superfood Enhances Running Performance
by Matt Fitzgerald
January 06, 2010
Comments
Algae superfood is shown to increase fat burning and antioxidant protection during prolonged running.


Spirulina is microalgae, powdery and brilliantly green, that is touted as a “superfood” because of its nutrient profile, which includes a lot of protein, vitamin B-12, the essential fatty acid GLA, beta-carotene, iron, and other vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals. It is sold in powder and capsule forms as a nutritional supplement to be added to smoothies and such.

While it is not often claimed that spirulina affects exercise performance, a team of Greek researchers went ahead and investigated the effects of spirulina on running performance. Nine moderately trained male subjects received either supplemental spirulina or placebo daily for four weeks. Before and after this intervention, all of the subjects ran on a treadmill at 70-75 percent VO2max for two hours and then at 95 percent VO2max to failure. The whole experiment was then repeated with subject who received spirulina the first time receiving placebo the second time and vice versa.

On average, subjects were able to run more than 30 percent longer after spirulina supplementation (about two minutes and 40 seconds with spirulina versus 2:03 without). Researchers also found that spirulina supplementation increased fat oxidation and reduced carbohydrate oxidation during the two-hour run and reduced oxidative stress and increased antioxidant activity after exercise.

It is possible that spirulina supplementation enhanced performance in the high-intensity portion of the workout by reducing carbohydrate use and thus leaving more carbohydrate available. But spirulina’s antioxidant affects may also have played a role in boosting endurance at 95 percent VO2max, as free radical build-up in the muscles during exercise is an underappreciated cause of fatigue.

The study was published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise.



Read more: http://running.competitor.com/2010/01/features/sports-science-update-new-superfood-enhances-running-performance_7682#ixzz0klz6majD

10 week half marathon training schedule +2

"This beginner half marathon training program assumes you have been running
consistently for at least 4-6 weeks and can run for at least thirty minutes without stopping before beginning the program. Do not run more than two consecutive days when
following this schedule." - MarathonRookie.com

10-Week Half Marathon Training Schedule
Week Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Total
1 3 Rest 3 3 Rest 4 Rest 13
2 3 Rest 4 3 Rest 5 Rest 15
3 3 Rest 4 3 Rest 6 Rest 16
4 3 Rest 5 3 Rest 8 Rest 19
5 3 Rest 5 3 Rest 10 Rest 21
6 4 Rest 5 4 Rest 11 Rest 24
7 4 Rest 6 4 Rest 12 Rest 26
8 4 Rest 5 4 Rest 9 Rest 22
9 3 Rest 4 3 Rest 8 Rest 18
10 3 Rest 3 Walk 2 Rest 13.1 Rest 21.1

Once again, I am following the 10 week training schedule as outlined by Brad Boughman on his marathon rookie website www.marathonrookie.com.

Prior to the Seattle Big Climb event, I had been running weekly increasing the # of running days to 3 and reached 6 and 6.5 miles. Unfortunately, I was foolish in rushing the longer runs and did not stretch out adequately afterward (and did so 2 days in a row!). As a result, I have subcome to a nagging glute muscle injury which keeps getting aggravated during/after each run, even following days to a week off from running. To remedy it in between runs, I have been religiously massaging the glute muscle/hip using the foam rollers at the gym and doing long 30 second stretches of the muscle.

For the most part, I either run on a trail with mileage markers or have a general idea of the distance I am running based on time. Last Saturday I ran on a new trail in Oregon which claimed to be 2 miles in length one way. I finished the 4 miles in under 40 minutes and was skeptical of the length so I ran further down the other side of the trail to total 50 minutes.

When I am uncertain of the exact mileage, I estimate a 10 minute per mile pace and run 10 minutes for every mile according to the schedule. Yes, it is possible that I am running greater mileage per run (especially on paved runs) but that is great come event day! As I discovered last spring, my race pace resulted in a better time than I had anticipated in practice (I mostly train on gravel paths).

This reminds me about a lesson I learned of achieving efficiency. I recall learning to become a scuba diver in the frigid water of Lake Superior in fall 1991. The air and water temps were so cold that we had to pour hot water from 2 liter bottles down our neoprene wetsuits to keep warm between dives. At times I could not feel my feet or my hands. Within a few minutes of dipping my hands into the hot water, they tingled and ached as if being pelted by a million needles. "What on Earth am I doing here?" I wondered.

Sensing our discomfort, our dive instructor touted that learning to become proficient at cold water diving makes you a better diver overall. In essence, it was our training so that later on we can have a more pleasant experience. And I have to say he was right! Following 10 years of cold water diving, I finally was introduced to warm water diving while on our honeymoon in central America. Coming from an environmental requiring lots of exposure gear and technical skill, warm water diving is like diving naked (in a good way)! We enjoyed 28 dives during our stay and this past August we savored 30 dives within 11 day stay in Cozumel.

I must tell you that due to the complications of NF2, diving in cold water is not as easy for me anymore and I am not as skilled. In fact, with the problems centered around my balance and the brainstem compression, I had to take 4 and a half years off of diving. When I started again and transferred from the pool to the real environment, it was MUCH more challenging sometimes resulting in tears and anguish with questions of whether I could dive in the NW anymore.

But........we kept at it and viewed our coldwater diving as "training" so that we could be prepared and enjoy ourselves on warm water vacations. I now consider myself a "handicapped diver". Yet, when we stepped into that clear blue warm water, I felt very comfortable and back in my niche.

So back to my training.....running a little further or on terrain more difficult helps to make the paved 13.1 miles of the half marathon a go a little smoother. That is why often training recommends a "tempo run" day where you run up and down hills to build your endurance. Earlier in the year I had started doing that but have held off since the glute injury as running up hills can make the injury worse. Plus, I engage in elevation hiking at least once a week.

What is the +2? I consider that my buffer zone. I like to allow a couple extra weeks to either ease more slowly into the training depending on how I feel OR reserve those extra weeks for recovery time in case of injury (which I did need to use last year due to an IT band problem).

So that's the plan. I have been keeping up in my second week of training with a 35 minute run Monday, 40 minute run Wednesday, 3-3.5 mile run Thursday, and today I am due for a 5 miler.

Happy Training! :D

Happy Easter! - Taking a break from training

More Eggcellent Fun!

Pictured are some of the eggs we hid for the scavanger hunt. We each hid about 47-50 eggs (my sister and I) for a total of 100. She hides the real eggs and the other half were fake eggs that she put clues inside. Then I wake up and go hunting. When I am finished finding all mine, I write up the clues I have created the night before onto little slips of paper that I put inside each egg. Then I hide all fake eggs with clues in each egg hinting to the location of the next with the grand finale being the hidden location of each family member's easter basket.

Note the teal blue (the NF2 color) Kili egg with Harley's name - he is the founder of the Help Stop NF2 nonprofit and also the coordinator of the Kilimanjaro expedition for 10-10-10. The picture of Mt Kilimanjaro looked kind of sad so we don't see that part. LOL The bright green egg with purple butterflies is the NF2 egg.

Egg Coloring Extravaganza

Easter egg coloring/decorating and hiding/hunting is a family tradition my sister and I GREATLY look forward to. Her hands are very steady compared to mine so she is much more skilled than I at creating beautiful eggs! Every year we try to come up with something unique. Notice the yellow NF Endurance egg and the Climb for NF2 egg I made!. The writing on the blue Kili egg is pretty sloppy but it was a white crayon and I could not see what I was writing and just hoped for the best. On the back of the egg I painted Harley's name and drew a sketch of the mountain. The dye on the NF endurance egg ran because I wrote the name on the egg with a blue marker before dying it yellow. On the next post you will see how I painted purple butterflies on the bright green egg (the color representing NF Inc. and butterflies which is the NF2 mascot).

Back On The Trail Finally! - Hike #10

After a 3 week abstinence from hiking due to travel to the NIH, resting up for the big climb, and a week with a chest and head cold, I have FINALLY had the opportunity to return to the trail! By the way, it has also been pouring alot here too which has attempted to hamper me from my half marathon training I started this week.

So Saturday the sun came out and it was simply too lovely to pass up even though I had some minor remnants of chest and nasal congestion (still lingering). My gluteus and outer thigh muscles were sore from my thursday night session with my trainer which was an hour this time. Therefore, I sort of took it a little easier and reached the summit in an hour and 6 minutes as opposed to an hour.

Although it was warm down at sea level, when we reached the top there was a wind and it became cloudy making it quite a bit nippy out. We did not stay long and as soon as we cleared the first half mile from the summit (actually for the first time in 7 years I took a shortcut down the steep and rocky cable line WITHOUT POLES), we jogged/ran the rest of the way down for 2 and a half more miles.

I would love to write more but right now I gotta go and get out there - It is not pouring out there and sun breaks combined with light rain. I am behind by 2 hikes for the year (my goal is at least 1 a week).

Catch ya later!

5 months post surgery - Hitting the Wall

I have actually had a remarkable recovery, in the best shape of my life probably, and was looking forward to my best performance yet at the big climb this year (where I would race up 69 flights of 1,311 stairs with an elevation gain of 788 feet).

The first 2 years I chose to be in the untimed climbing division because I feared I might get knocked down or have a more difficult time with my poorer balance. However, it proved to be pretty safe and I felt incredibly great after my 2007 and 2008 climbs where I timed myself with a watch. Further, I had a great run and felt strong on the climb just 5 and a half months following my 2007 surgery. I seemed to just keep getting better and on a roll. Therefore, I figured it was time to step it up and join the ranks of the more serious climbers racing and timed.

That worked great and I felt I did even better last year but I goofed up on using the timing chip and crossed back over the finish line before turning in my chip to wait at the top of the stairs for my husband. Of course that messed up the results of my time exponentially! So this year I was all set with how to properly use the chip.

I trained on the stairmaster for a certain pace with the goal to finish in 11-12 minutes. In practice, the stairmaster is easier with no elevation gain so I was able to finish 69 floors in under 10 minutes. To get my lungs adjusted to the elevation gain I had been doing some hikes of a local mountain since January.

Then the unthinkable happened......I got sick 2 days before the event. :( The week prior, my mother-in-law and I had been out to the National Institutes of Health where she picked up some bug which she thought at the time was allergies. She left last Monday and at home she got worse coming down with laringitis. So she seemed to catch something going around which was more than allergies.

I thought I lucked out but then friday afternoon I became exhausted which later developed into a sore throat and body aches that evening. I started pumping zipfizz, airborne, and theraflu cold and sore throat combined with rest to try to be well enough for Sunday afternoon.

I awoke Sunday dizzy but felt ok on the ride over. Yet I just walking the block up the hill to get into the building embarassingly left me a little out of breath. LOl I was wondering if our team member David had noticed and if he was thinking "My God! This lady is already pooped out hiking up a city block. How in the heck does she think she is going to run up 69 flights of stairs?"

Anyhow, when it was time to line up to go to the start, I grabbed a couple swigs of water. By the time we took the escalator down to the first floor, I already had cotton mouth with no water nearby to relieve it until I reached the 10th or 20th floor.

I was the first person on the team to start and within the 1st 10 floors all 3 trainers had passed me. Team members David (the top finisher on our team with a time of 12:05) and Brett had passed me by but I cannot recall exactly where. At floor 10 I was reminding myself to settle down and just keep in the pace that I practiced - easier said than done. I just did not feel right at all. It was kind of like when you take off on a 20 mile journey before you see the next gas station and you realize the needle is below empty. So you just hope that the gas in your reserve tank is enough you to the next station.

No matter how hard I tried, I just felt slower and not as strong as I had in previous events - did not feel on top of my game. I was already pretty depleted by the time I reached 35 floors. My lungs burned and my muscles felt like lead. I had to grab water at 3 of the stops and my body taunted me to stop and rest. At that point I seemed to not care anymore about my time but just wanted to finish. I did not stop but only slowed enough to grab a dixie cup of water and toss is in the trash a few steps up.

In previous climbs I would be hooting and hollaring to pump people up as we reached the half way point, 20 floors, 10 floors, and then the last flight. Not this time! I needed to conserve every ounce of energy to just breathe and move my legs. There were a couple ladies I was with in the end. I believe one passed me and I honestly cannot remember if I passed the other on the very last flight. There was no last dash of energy for a sprint to the finish. I was spent! I had already hit the wall by the 49th floor and tried desperately to hang in there for 22-23 more floors. It was a relief when I saw the sign posted 10 more floors, 5 more floors, and then last flight.

Exhausted and gasping when I crossed the finish line pad, I haunched over trying to catch my breath. It was probably about a minute that I remained like that until I recovered enough to pull myself back up to standing, got a bottle of water, and then pulled out my camera to catch the rest of the team.

My time was disappointingly much slower than what I anticipated (14:54) but it was fun nonetheless. I had a great time on a fantastic team with a wonderful bunch of people and a very meaningful cause. Further, I think this experience was really good for me to go through as I am preparing to climb Kilimanjaro this year. That total feeling of hitting the wall I could not exactly emulate when going for a run. It is hard to explain. I know from watching movies of climbing and reading stories of climbing expeditions and even talking to climbing friends that they reach that hitting the wall feeling where it becomes very mental to keep yourself going. I wanted to know what it is like to reach that threshold and have an idea of what it will take to get past it. Now of course this is a very poor simulation where a few minutes in a hot stairwell cannot even compare to hours out in the cold and probable wind at altitudes the human body was just not meant for. But at least I got a tiny taste of what I will need to condition my lungs and muscles to push past.

All in all, I suppose that is not too bad of an accomplishment exactly 5 months to the day post a major brain surgery on 4 tumors. Now my next event to tackle is to run the Seattle half marathon in June. I am a little discouraged and antsy to delay training as the bug blossomed into a full borne head/chest cold. Yesterday and today were incredibly beautiful days. I took the dogs for a 5 and a half mile walk last night. But today I woke up with a sore throat, sore back nasal passage, chest congestion, leaking eye, runny nose, and I am just wiped out! I will even have to miss water aerobics and another strength training session at the gym. :( So I am taking the day off to hopefully heal fast. I would love to be recovered and back on the trail this weekend.

Be Golden

Gold's Gym Big Climb team "Be Golden" at the Big Climb event of the Columbia tower in Seattle, WA. Sunday in partnership with Gold's Gym eastside (Bothell, Redmond, and Issaquah), I led a team of gym employees, members, family, and friends up 69 flights of stairs in the tallest tower in the city to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

Our team theme, "Be Golden", was inspired by the memory of my dear friend Skip Sand who passed away from a long struggle with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia in October, just a week before my brain surgery.

Visit our team website Be Golden With Gold's Gym to read the wonderful summary my sister wrote describing our team theme and tribute to the life of Skip and our grandfather taken by the blood cancer Myeloma in 2006.

Congratulations to everyone who made it to the top and thank you for helping us to improve the lives of those affected by this disease!

Click Be Golden at Big Climb 2010 to see more photos of our team at the event!

Back to the NIH

To catch any new readers up to speed, I am a participant in a natural history study of NF2 at the Nation Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland (United States). I will be closely watched and followed medically to monitor/observe the growth of my numerous brain and spinal tumors to study their growth rate and possible triggers. Knowledge of such information can help reseachers to problem solve a solution to slowing down or stopping tumor growth.

The study will last 5 years where I and several othr NF2 patients in the country will be followed up every 6 months with MRIs, blood samples, eye exams, swallowing tests, gait analysis, and other possible tests related to symtoms and side effects of the tumors or treatments.

My first visit was last August and so now I am back again. We flew all day yesterday (leaving Seattle at 8:30 am and arriving WADC at about 4:30 pm). Then we waited for the NIH shuttle ro take us into Maryland - and had to sift thu tush hour traffic.

This morning bright and early was mt first appoiuntment at phlebotomy/ TY`It was the absolute fastest and best blood draw I have ever had which includes 17 years of constant pokes due to the cancer and then NF2 diagnosis. No numbing of my hand, heating of my arms, nor anesthesiologist was neededec.

I am at the eye clinic now waiting for my eyes to dialate so the doctor cn look at my cataracts. So I apologize for any typows and spelling errors as I cannot see right now. I can just barely read the lettters on the keys. I definitelt am unable to read what I am typing. Therefore, I am going to sign off before this is just a post of unreadabler garble gook.

4 Months Post Brain Surgery

Optimism Meets Opportunity

A pessimist is one who makes difficulties of his opportunities and an optimist is one who makes opportunities of his difficulties.

Harry Truman

Wednesday I spent a sizable portion of the day trying again and again to deliver a message with important event info to my team for the Big Climb next month. Each attempt and change frustratingly produced an error message as undeliverable. Then when I thought I could not be anymore annoyed, my session timed out and the message I spent so long composing disappeared from the screen entirely. Mentally exhausted, I complained in an email to my sister and sort of to the event coordinator.

I got an immediate response as to the source of the problem which gave me relief, I accepted, and I determined to use a better way of communication.

My sister also wrote back shortly and reminded me that important messages I should compose in a word file which can be saved (and which I really should have known better from losing countless emails in the past!). It was a good lesson of a productive habit I have gotten very lazy at which is crucial to being an efficient leader, areas in which I would like to develop. Further, I agreed that it was useful for me to learn these little glitches myself so that I can assist anyone else on the team who may encounter the same frustrations.

Later, I went for a 5 mile run with the dogs before my weekly personal training session. I was so tired on Tuesday from the 6.5 mile run on Monday that I had to completely take a rest day off missing water aerbics. I forced myself to get out during a late afternoon sun break Wednesday to run with the dogs. The challenge created an opportunity to warm my body up and get it ready for training in another couple hours.

Still fatigued from consecutive long runs and elevation hikes in a row, I reminded myself that the burn in my muscles was an excellent simulation for preparing to climb Kilimanjaro at an altitude where the lower oxygen levels will exhaust my legs quickly. Further, the longer I ran would condition my lungs for the cardiovascular strain of oxygen deprivation which occurs when exerting oneself at high altitude.

On the 2.5 miles heading back to the truck it started to rain. A groan initially played in my mind as it was a cold 46 degree NW rain. However, the sun was still shining and we were enveloped by the most dazzlingly array of color in the surroundings - surreal. Then the most brilliant rainbow I have seen in a long while shadowed by a fainter second blazed across the sky accompanying us on our entire return trip!

What an opportunity rewarded me for pushing through the challenges of the day!

Working Hard for the NF Community

These pictures of course are from last summer with my shorts and running singlet on. It has been nice and sunny with the absence of snow at the lower elevations. However, the weather is not that warm that I am running around sleeveless and baring my legs.

So Sunday I officially registered for the Seattle Rock and Roll 1/2 marathon to take place on June 26th. I am honored to announce that I will be running as part of the mighty NF Endurance team raising research money to end Neurofibromatosis. My fundraising page is to come soon and I will happily wear ribbons in memory and honor of my sponsors and their loved ones. (last year in the Eugene marathon, I wore ribbons with people's names on the back of my jersey and later made keepsake bookmarks that I sent them for Christmas; ah correction - I did the running and my sister and mother did the creating. I am not that crafty and now fumble with my fingers. I did pick out the quote though and helped do some stamping. :-) )

It was a very short recovery period following surgery and after 39 days I was back in action walking the Seattle half marathon with my sister. Thank you to my sponsors who donated seed money for our brand new nonprofit for NF2 awareness and research - the Help Stop NF2 foundation.

That was probably the first official day I started running again some distance. I didn't really mean to but it became necessary in order for me to catch up after all the bathroom and picture stops! I will write another post with the photos. So since, I have been running weekly 2-4 times a week. I have also started hiking season early (5 hikes and 2 snowshoe adventures) in preparation for our climb of Kilimanjaro in October for NF2 awareness (more later in another post).

I am also preparing and gathering a team to climb the Columbia Tower in Seattle for blood cancer next month. So between hiking and running, I have been trying to balance gym workouts and stair climbing. Phew!

Last week I dropped down to 2 days running (5.5 - 6 miles) and fit in a leisure hike to a lower elevation with Harley. This week an afternoon of snowshoeing, a record hike of 1 hour 1 minute to 2522 feet, a 3.5 mile run tuesday, a 5.5 run wednesday night, training and weights at the gym yesterday, and tonight I fit in another 5.5 mile run that I am in need of stretching for.

When I say I am working for you, I really am! I felt fatigued last night and did an easy 30 minute walk uphill with the dogs and was not as efficient nor accomplished as much as I would have liked to last night at the gym (oh but I did reach my desired 9 minute 30-40 second stairclimb to 69 floors!).

This morning I slept really late and my head and neck ached. I assume I am having a drug withdrawal from the eye medication I take to lessen double vision. After awhile, the medicine has bad side effects such as depression or moodiness or just causing me to easily stress over small matters. I do not like that and I was also running low on my prescription. So I tried taking less and less which seemed to go well for a few days but hit me hard today. I took IB profen before the run and still had a headache. After my run, pain throbbed all around my eyes and forehead. Interestingly, while I was running my head was not that bad - just the double vision I always get. Maybe it was because while thinking, I was trying not to concentrate on my tired legs or that fact that I felt like I was going to crap my pants for over 3 miles! (little tip - on running day do not eat cereal with 10 grams of fiber for breakfast; I thought that would be ok by the evening but apparently not!!!!).

Luckily 1.5 miles from my vehicle, the poop desire faded but was replaced by an acid reflux of the spicy thai food I ate for a late lunch! So there I was working hard for you to get in my run and finish despite a lingering headache, double vision, an incredible urge to poop, and continually regurgitating a nice wash of 32 oz FRS drink with leftover stomach contents of spicy ground chicken and cabbage. LOL I got on the trail after 5 pm and finished right at dark - just after 6 pm. What a way to endure, eh? ;-)

Danger of the Lack of Quality Sleep

Another great article by Dr. Mercola and of paricular interest to those fighting cancer, illness, and with tumors such as NF2. Lack of sleep can affect tumor growth and your immune system needed to fight them.

Lost Sleep Can Never Be Made Up

Researchers, however, will tell you that a sleep deficit can have serious, far-reaching effects on your health. Among them:

•A single night of sleeping only four to six hours can impact your ability to think clearly the next day.

•Good sleepers and poor sleepers experience about the same number of daily minor stressful events, but good sleepers are less disturbed by them. Poor sleepers experience life events as being more negative than do those who sleep well.

•Sleep deprivation can cause changes in your brain activity similar to those experienced by people with psychiatric disorders.

•Sleep deprivation puts your body into a pre-diabetic state, and makes you feel hungry, even if you’ve already eaten.

•Interrupted sleep can dramatically weaken your immune system

•Tumors grow two to three times faster in laboratory animals with severe sleep dysfunctions.

Click the title "Lost Sleep Can Never Be Made Up" link above to read the full article by Dr. Mercola and to learn what to do to get better quality rest.

Reversing Memory Loss

I know this will grab a lot of you with NF2 and other brain tumors or head injuries as memory loss and disruption in cognitive function is a very common side effect of these disorders. The following was taken by Dr. Mercola's newsletter today. I have included the link to read his full article if you are interested. Aside from the physcial health benefits, regular exerise is also good for your mind (especially the lot of us with brain disorders already).

Moderate physical activity performed in midlife or later appears to be associated with a reduced risk of mild cognitive impairment -- and a six-month high-intensity aerobic exercise program can improve cognitive function in individuals who already have the condition.

Each year, 10 percent to 15 percent of individuals with mild cognitive impairment will develop dementia, as compared with 1 percent to 2 percent of the general population.

Physical exercise may protect against mild cognitive impairment by means of the production of nerve-protecting compounds, greater blood flow to the brain, improved development and survival of neurons and the decreased risk of heart and blood vessel diseases.

Sources:

Eurekalert January 11, 2010


Archives of Neurology January 2010;67(1):71-9


Archives of Neurology January 2010;67(1):80-6

Click here to read Dr. Mercola's article discussing the connection between exercise and cognitive function.

Winner! Winner! Chicken Dinner!

Actually, chicken salad and bamboo ginger soup for dinner and that was not my reward. Yesterday, I reached day 15 on the South Beach program and passed the 2 week tough phase 1 elimiating carbs (including fruit) and sugar. In 2006 when Harley introduced me to the diet, I was skeptical. I tried it slightly but was never able to follow it all the way. Finally, I finished reading the book this year and took it more seriously. The science makes sense and I am not a fool so I thought I would give it a fair shot. My cravings for sugar and blood sugar fluctuations were getting out of hand and I needed some sort of control. The South Beach program seemed to be the ticket for me to invest in.

I will not lie to you. Following the program precisely is not easy! There is sugar in virtually EVERYTHING! It is hard to find dressings, condiments, marinades, any food put into a package, that does not contain some sort of sugar. It is really hard to eliminate it all together and thus there were some things here and there with 1-3 grams of sugar per serving but I tried my best to keep it at a minimun. Therefore, you will find that you need to do mostly all of your meal preparation. Even at Trader Joe's I found a nice convienent bag in the frozen isle of mixed approved chopped vegetables not acceptable. Upon reading the nutritional label, I discovered that a sauce or marinade was added which had added sugar and fat. Make it on your own and you can control what is being on your vegetables. It is also healthier to use fresh vegetables. Thus, I end up constant chopping, cooking, cleaning, and measuring out portions as Harley counts calories with his challenge program at the gym.

I also found it hard and limiting going out to eat anywhere on phase 1 because you really do not know what is being put into the food. How many grams of sugar are in that dressing? Is there sugar in the marinade for the meat? If teriyaki, you bet your bottom it is loaded with sugar. While it is possible, your choices are severely limited. We went out for Thai one day and I ordered a soup and a curry vegetable and chicken dish with no coconut milk added. Generally thai dishes with coconut milk add sugar in the recipe. I only know that from cooking it myself. It is often difficult to find an entre with both meat and vegetables. Often the choice is one or the other and vegetarian dishes almost always are loaded with carbs used to replace meat. :(

So back to my reward for a job well done.......

I probably over did it a little yesterday with the addition of carbs in phase 2 (steel cut oatmeal and a cup soy milk for breakfast, meatloaf for lunch which has either oatmeal or bread in it, sugar free chocolate pudding for a snack, a little too much lite cool whip, and an overabundant handful of dried apricots and another of dried blueberries, cherries, and craisens with peanuts). I was just so excited to make it through the 2 weeks and lose exactly what it tells you will happen (8-10 lbs or more in phase 1). I started out at 131.8 and yesterday morning (start of day 15, day 1 of phase 2) I weighed in at 121.8! :D Last Wednesday I had an electronic body fat composition done which was 20% at a weight between 124-125. This morning I gained a little back, weighing in at 122.6. But that is probably accounting for water weight which I had been expecting. No harm done though. I probably needed a little break day before getting back on track again.

So now at phase 2, I can add back in certain carbs again slowly. I can also reintoduce dairy items such as milk and yogurt. In phase 2, you lose only 1-2 lbs a week but the idea is to start getting your body used to a more normal healthful eatting cycle now that your insulin levels are regulated. You continue on this phase until you reach your goal weight with the objective to maintain that weight. The maintainence phase is phase 3 which you stay on for life and if you slide away to overindulge, you just shift back to phase 1 for awhile.

My goal is 123-125 which is the healthy range I have determined to be at. When a surgery or treatment comes up, that weight provides me a safe "cushion zone" of 10 lbs to gain or lose as the result of recovery (115-135). Thus, it is always my aim to stay within this range and maintain that magic number which I have for over 3 years. I will stay within phase 2 until I reach 120 which gives me a safe + or - 5 buffer to keep within the 123-125 range.

I decided posting my daily menu plan was kind of monotonous and boring as well as time consuming. Please write a comment if you would like me to post a couple days of the phase 2 so you get an idea of what it looks like.

I do want to tell you that it has been fun and I have learned to explore more healthy food options and try new recipes.

I never before ate edamame (soy beans) or radishes but discovered a very tasty and filling edamame salad. And I made the Chicken Larb Gai recipe I posted earlier with a little modification (cilantro). It was FANTASTIC and even better than at the restaurant! Harley loved it and it was all gone the day after I cooked it.

Other recipes I ventured with and enjoyed:

Oven roasted veggies with italian dressing (green, red, orange, yellow pepper, mushroom, frozen artichoke hearts - TraderJoe's, and either asparagas, zuchini, or red onion).
spinach stuffed mushroom caps
oriental cabbage salad
rosemary broiled king salmon
brocoli slaw/spinach mushroom baked eggs
lime marinated baked tillapi fish

"Running Low, Running on Empty" -Jackson Browne 1978

Whew! I made through a week of phase 1 South Beach so far and NO CHEATING! Do you know how remarkably amazing it is that I have had no sugar? Perhaps that is why my head is loaded and I have been a very proficient "tumor farmer" in my lifetime. Maybe they all spawned off of the constant and large volumes of sugar I fed them over the years. (Cancer previously and later innumerable brain and spinal tumors; trying to find a way to make them starve now and shut down the growth)

Anyhow, back to "running low"......

On day 4 I woke up with an incredible urge for sugar! I assume it was triggered from my intense hike push the afternoon before where the stockpiles of glucose in my muscles had not been replenished.

After the friday hike I was pretty starved but brought myself a bag of celery and some cottage cheese as snacks. The intent was to eat the cottage cheese when on the mountain but I wanted to make it down before dark. Therefore, I shoved a couple spoonfulls in my mouth, packed up, and headed back down.

I stopped off at the grocery store on the way home which takes INCREDIBLE willpower as there all sorts of inticing cheap and fast treats to tempt you. Amazingly, I did well though to keep it healthy and my treat was to buy some part skim ricotta cheese to make a South Beach phase 1 approved ricotta cream dessert that evening.

I enjoyed it so much that when I awoke the next morning, I satisfied my sugar urge by starting out the day with a vanilla ricotta cream (1/2 cup ricotta cheese mixed with a packet of sugar substitute and a 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract). My hunger/sugar craving was further satiated by 2 cups of coffee with one sugar substitute packet. No, I am not a coffee drinker at all really but just started to get me through this hard phase and to try to adhere to a consistent schedule.

Gotta get out and train again today - same mountain.

I will post my daily menu from days 4-7 when I get back. I made it to day 8 out of 14 so far! Phew! Actually it is not so bad. I am sort of having fun with it and experimenting with food creations.

Catch ya later! ;-)

Giving REAL meaning to the term "snowshoeing"

A week ago Sunday, TSNW hiking friend Sandy and I went up into the mountains in search of a snowy enough trail to play in. My plan was to snowshoe while Sandy intended to cross country ski on the groomed tracks at Cabin Creek SnoPark (a few exits east of Snoqualmie Ski Hill which is at the top of the pass). However, the silly pair we are, both of us forgot our boots! (Sandy her ski boots, and I my waterproof hiking boots I use with the snowshoes)

Well not all was at a loss. There was been such a reduced amount of snowfall this year that the trail was well groomed and compact. I estimated that we could even easily walk on the trail actually going for a "hike" in the snow.

Sandy was already wearing hiking boots and I had my semi-waterproof trail running shoes on (Salomon). So I suggested we share the snowshoes and go for a hike in the snow. I had brought my downhill ski poles which I now use for stability when snowshoeing. Wanting to give Sandy the opportunity to try out my AWESOME snowshoes which you cannot rent, I offered to let her use them while I walked with my poles. With the hard compact trail and the poles, I was confident my balance would not be an issue as well as my shoes sufficient for the activity.

The result worked out wonderfully! It was no problem for me to walk in the snow and I greatly enjoyed it. My shoes worked very well and my feet stay rather comfortable and only became slightly damp after our jaunt.

As we got further out, the snow on the trail was last compact and a little deeper causing me to slight sink an inch. I wish I had remembered to bring my yak traks to try out (a new product sold at REI and running stores which are essentially traction chains to strap on shoes for snow and ice). But alas I had not thought about it when preparing to go and I managed with the poles. On the way back we switched and I used the snowshoes while Sandy hiked.

Click on the link to see a photo documentary of our journey.

Cabin Creek Adventure

First hike of 2010 on day 3 South Beach

This year we have been quite lucky with warm weather and no snow at the lower altitudes and sea level. As a result, I am fortunate enough to start hike season WAY early!

After my fall 2007 surgery, my sister and I still encountered snow half way up this same trail on Tiger mountain in April 2008. So we did not really get in hiking very much except to go on a few lower trails in the spring. Further, my balance was no where near as good as it is now. I would not have even considered hiking alone back then. Yet friday was my 10th solo elevation hike since last summer -the first hike to 2522 feet 3 months post surgery (92 days to be exact)! Awesome!, eh?

What is even cooler is that I reached the summit in 1 hour 15 minutes even with my legs tired from a 36 minute run, 15 minute stair climb at level 10, and upper body resistance training workout the day prior. PLUS.......I had no SUGAR OR CARBS other than vegetables! Woohoo! Am I on fire or what?

I was slightly concerned about my endurance under these conditions but I just kept on pushing only stopping for a few brief seconds to take sips off my hydropack. I had no other choice really if I wanted to reach the top. For those who know me well, once I get hiking a mountain I do not want to quit before reaching the top (my reward for a job well done).

I got out late, starting up the mountain at 2:48 pm. Thus I had to keep going at a certain pace in order to get up and down the mountain by dark.

Catch me later in the day to see more photos. Happy Monday! :-)

As promised, I am doing better this week at posting the photos in a more timely fashion. Visit the following link to see more photos from the hike with descriptions. There is an option to view them in slideshow format if you rather not click on each one or scroll through.

http://picasaweb.google.com/RebeccaDufek/FirstHikeOf2010?feat=directlink

Day 3 Menu

Breakfast:

Egg beaters cooked with spinach, mushroom, ham, and reduced fat shredded cheese
(this time I tried using no salt seasoning to add more flavor without the sodium)
1 cup coffee with 1 sugar substitute packet

Snack:

Chocolate muscle milk light protein shake
28 wasabi soy almonds dispersed throughout the morning into the afternoon

Prehike energy drink:
diet FRS powder packet

Lunch:
6 fresh asparagas spears wrapped in 4 slices of lean ham lunch meat
1 slice of lean corned beef lunch meat
14oz can of V8

Snack: (on the way home from hike)

1 sandwich bag full of celery
1/2 cup 2% cottage cheese

Dinner:

1 roasted red pepper asagio chicken sausage
oven roasted veggies (artichoke, mushroom, and red, green and orange pepper)
1 cup steamed cauliflower with 2 tbsp queso salsa cheese sauce