Training for two: week 31

Here are the workout details from week 31...
The themes this week: flier miles, fitness miles, and parenting advice
Congratulations to my blog buddy Alma, who had her baby last week!



Friday: I'm leaving... on a jet plane!
I flew out of DCA, met friends in Boston, lunched on pizza and ice cream in the South End, hopped on a commuter train to Providence, and spent the evening catching up with family.
Total miles traveled: 490+
Total miles run: 0

Saturday: Baby shower!

It was wonderful to see family and friends but the marathon festival (12 hours and counting) of catching up didn't exactly count as a workout for anything other than my vocal chords...

Sunday: 4 mile walk

Monday: 60 minutes on the stationary bike

Tuesday: 2 mile walk

Wednesday: 3 mile walk

Thursday: 2 mile walk


THE TALLY:
11 miles walked  + 0 miles run + 60 minutes on the bike and... NO yoga! *sniff / sob *
...but lots of (and probably my last) frequent flier miles for many months!


WHAT I LOVED READING THIS WEEK:

Over breakfast on Saturday morning, a good friend of mine recommended Bringing Up Bebe: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting by Pamela Druckerman.

For the first time in many months, I'm starting to believe it's possible to have a child who's not a total train wreck of tantrums and sleepless nights. Don't misunderstand -- I'm not delusional. ALL children have an occasional meltdown. But in this era of competitive American parenting, Bringing Up Bebe is a refreshing counterpoint.

By imposing some limits, allowing considerable freedom in many things, and by not making infants the ONLY thing that matters, French parents seem to have achieved an excellent balance between great parenting (read: excellent education and health among their children -- far better than in the U.S.) AND household/family sanity.

What surprises me is that, given the U.S. reputation for rugged individualism and self-reliance, we need to study French social norms to give our children some independence.



Public Service Message from Captain Obvious: These posts are not intended to be a set of week-by-week pregnancy workout guidelines. Every woman needs to do what's right for her and her baby, with a doctor's guidance, of course. I'd just like to keep y'all up to date on how things are going in my little world.

Am I still a runner?

Last Sunday, I went for a 5 mile walk along the Mount Vernon bike path. The weather was gorgeous, but when Hubby and I pulled into the parking lot and I saw runner after runner glide by, I was suddenly hit by a wave of sadness.

I haven't run in weeks. I won't be able to run until Christmas.

The reason, of course, is an excellent one.
I'm training for a baby, not a race.

But still.
I miss running.
Terribly.

Some days I wonder if I can even still call myself a runner?

But sulking wouldn't solve anything, and walking is better than not moving forward at all. So I started walking.

And then, halfway through my walk, two women ran up to me and asked if I could take their picture. One handed over her phone while the other explained that they had just finished their first 10-miler.

High fives all around!

I asked what race they were training for. They told me they were going to run the Divas Half Marathon. I congratulated them both and wished them good luck on their race.

Just before they turned away to finish their cool-down, one of the women said: "And congratulations to you, too! Good for you for still run... er... walking."

"Thank you. I ran until 26 weeks, but my hips just can't take it anymore. I miss it!"
(What I didn't say was "And thank you for noticing that I am/was/am a runner, too! Even though I'm waddling... and I don't feel much like a runner these days...")

She congratulated me on getting that far.

And, for the first time in weeks...

I felt like a runner.
Even as I waddled.
I felt like a runner.

So. To the ladies who just finished their first 10-miler.
Congrats. Again.
And THANK YOU.