Well, doesn't everyone get socks for Valentine's Day?

Well, it's been a week since Valentine's Day and I'm delinquent with keeping my blog up to date.  I was thinking a lot about what to write, but never got in front of the computer long enough to write it down...until now.  A week late.  Well, better late than never I suppose.

I have to give a shout-out to my mom.  Why?  Because of all the funky socks in my sock drawer...I think I have at least one pair for every holiday, thus I'm always ready to celebrate, whether you can see them or not.  I recall the days leading up to Halloween, my kids would check out my feet all the time to see which socks I put on that day - pumpkins, ghosts, black cats...I'm not sure who it was more fun for - them or me.  This past Valentines Day - I goofed and wore my red fleece the day prior - and since I don't own anything else red, I was in trouble on the 14th...until I remembered I had pink socks with red hearts AND black socks with red hearts...not one, but TWO pair to choose from!  Thank God for my mom. 

It may seem goofy - I don't put a lot into most holidays (Christmas & Easter aside), but it's fun to get into it a bit...and I have the perfect excuse with my fun socks! 

My mom has learned over the years that I'm not a person of extravagance, nor do I have a penchant for things that don't serve a functional purpose.  So, after many years of trying to buy me stuff, I think she's settled on socks (better than underwear, right?).  She can still exercise her right to buy for me (because she's my mom) and she knows I'll actually use them...and like them, too. 

So taking a bit from my brother in law's blog last week, now that I have kids of my own, I can see how trying to connect with them by providing something of importance (if even only in their own eyes) can mean so much - and everyone has their own way of trying to show they care...presents, favors, 30 second hugs...I'm trying to do a better job at recognizing when someone shows me they care - even in the smallest ways. 

Since having my own three children, I've become ever more grateful for the many nights I woke my mom up for any of the following:

a) a bad dream
b) illness (ranging from a few coughs to ear infections to...well, I won't go into it)
c) just to check in

...and received all the care and attention I needed to feel better...(THANKS, MOM - for being awesome AND all my cool socks!). 

I'm on the chemical diet.

So there I was, trying to breeze through the grocery store at 7 am Super Bowl Sunday, because as I've learned the hard way, it's crazy busy 4 times per year; Thanksgiving, Christmas, 4th of July and the Superbowl.  Quite possibly the four most gluttinous days of the year...but I digress. 

As I got to the peanut butter aisle (because kid #2 would have nothing to eat for lunch otherwise), a yellow label caught my eye:  "Calorie Free".  Huh?  Calorie-free peanut butter?  Anyone knows that peanuts and other nuts are chock-full of calories...how on earth could a jar of peanut butter be no calories at all?  Upon closer inspection, I noted that the label also said "Whipped Peanut Spread"...not peanut butter.  That was the second clue that something was odd.  So, like any curious person, I picked up the jar and read the ingredients.  Yeah, no peanuts here, per se...just a lot of "fillers", "natural roasted peanut flavor" and "peanut extract".  Ew. 

What have we come to, that we would rather eat fillers and additives to avoid the all-evil calorie, or fat, or cholesterol (or insert any "bad food component" here) rather than eat real food in moderation, and think it's ok.  There's so much information out there that points to all our advances in food science (flavorings, colorings, refinement, etc.) as a major contributor to our obesity issues now...not to mention cancer, heart disease....the list goes on. 

Long story short, I hope the "Calorie Free Peanut Spread" tanks.  And the glamour of eating something that "tastes like real food!" is realized for being as ridiculous as it truly is.  If you want to eat chicken, eat chicken.  In the mood for something fruity?  Eat some fruit!  Want a peanut butter and jelly sandwich?  Try some freshly ground peanuts - eat real food!

Rocket Turtle

I'm 11 weeks out from my first official 2012 event - the Rutgers Unite Half Marathon.  This will be my 8th half marathon...and while I feel pretty confident in what to expect,  I know I'll still have butterflies the day of.  I'll "officially" start training around 8 weeks out, so for now I'm just trying to get some regular mileage in, and keep my heart rate below 154bpm - which means I have to keep my pace slooooooow. 

It's all based in Phil Maffetone's findings that you can go faster for longer by training your body to stay in an aerobic state.  I did this a bit last winter and felt it helped a lot going into the spring.   I'm all for staying healthy - there's nothing worse than being injured or having significant aches and pains and having to sit things out for a while.  I'd also like to think I'm doing myself a favor in the long run - the less hard stress I'm putting on my muscles, ligaments, joints, etc. the better I'll be in regards to joint issues later in life.  I've known a few individuals who've had joint replacements - and while the "after" is much better than the "before" the recovery and events leading up to surgery seem to be pretty awful.  Here's to hoping, anyway.

I've got a few other events I'm eyeing for 2012...particularly my big "redemption" event...the NYC Marathon.  NYC 2000 was my first (and only for 11 years thereafter) marathon...and I did it in honor of an old HS friend through Team in Training.  Since I already wrote a bit about it already (here), I won't rehash the details...but suffice to say, I was never a fan of my time and always wanted to do better.  Enter Marine Corps Marathon 2011...I beat my time by about 40 minutes...but I still feel like I need to go back and redeem myself IN NYC...and I will now publicly state (yipes!) that my NYC 2012 Marathon finish time goal is UNDER FOUR HOURS.  Can I do it?  I guess only time will tell...I'm banking on staying healthy (c'mon Maffetone Method!) and finding the time to really put a lot into my training (all this with three very busy kids and a husband competing in Iron Man NYC in August!). 

Wish me luck!