2015 Inaugural Ride

All evidence to the contrary, I enjoy working out.  I like the physical effects of the exercise.  I feel energized.  I feel like I have accomplished something.  I enjoy the camaraderie that you find at the gym and on the running trail. 

So why do I have such a love-hate relationship with exercise?  Because before, during, and after a workout I have one thought going through my mind:  Will I get a migraine?

I am currently trying to combat this by changing my diet.  Other than that I have two options.  I either workout or I don't.  I don't like the second option, so I am tentatively pushing forward.  

I have had good luck in the past not getting migraines after a cycling class.  So my first day back to exercise, I opted for an indoor cycling class.

It turns out my local YMCA replaced their bikes when they remodeled the facility.  Yep.  The Real Ryder moves side to side as you ride.  It's supposed to work your core more.  I can see the benefit of the realism. Today, it just made me feel off kilter. 

Today's ride was an hour long work out.  My goals were to stay on the bike for the entire class and to (fingers crossed) not get a migraine.  I wasn't going all out during the ride, but I stayed on the bike. As for the second part, so far, so good.

Day Two of no carb/no sugar is going well.  Egg salad lettuce wraps for lunch. Yum.

Now What?

I was feeling really good about starting a healthier 2015.  On January 1st we participated in the state parks' First Day Hikes.  We took a 4 mile hike through the snow at Chatfield State Park.  Then from January 2nd to January 4th we spent our time at Snow Mountain Ranch where we went tubing, ice skating, and cross-country skiing.  I was feeling a bit smug.  That's a lot of activity without a migraine.  I came home from our trip and added all of the BodyPump and Indoor Cycling classes from the Y that could fit into my schedule.  I figured it they showed up on my calendar (in bright yellow), I would be less likely to schedule over them and more likely to get to a few of the classes every week.  I spent yesterday, January 5th, running a few errands, getting a manicure/pedicure, and getting set for the kids to go back to school on the 6th.

January 5th, 3:17 pm:  Migraine Aura.  Are you kidding me?  What brought this one on? Six hours later, I started to be able to function again, but I just ate some chicken noodle soup and went to bed.

Now what?  Well, today I am dealing with my migraine hangover.  If you get migraines, you know what I am talking about.  If you don't, it's just like it sounds.

I am also not removing the bright yellow squares from my calendar.  I just won't be making the yoga class tonight.

On a more proactive front, I have to change my diet.  Diet and trigger foods have long been linked to migraines.  I did a lot of reading about the connection last year. Here's what I have concluded:

1.  According to books such as, The Migraine Miracle, Grain Brain, and Against All Grain, there is a link between carbs, sugar, and migraines.  There is a lot of evidence to support these claims.  I am especially referring to how it was laid out in The Migraine Miracle.
2. From my own experience (looking back over this training blog) I have found the link to be true as well.  When I was running frequently with out headaches, I was also following the South Beach Diet.  This diet cuts out carbs and sugars.  I was running without migraines.  As I added more and more of the grains and sugars back into my diet (also known as quitting), I continued to run.  Bam! Migraines! I attributed them to a lot of different factors.  I didn't make the connection to the carbs and sugars.  Now, I can clearly see the link.

So.  Yeah.  Good-bye carbs and sugars. Hello, Gym.

I will be chronicling how this all plays out here on The Sometimes Runner.  

Who knows?  I might even get back to running.  Surprisingly, I miss it.

New Year's Eve Day

My Facebook feed is full of Resolution Do's and Don'ts.  They run the gamut from make huge, big picture resolutions so you can change the world to make incremental changes in your daily routine so you can change yourself. My favorite was the Resolutions for lazy people. Yes, I read them all.

Still, resolutions are just a "thing".  Most people make them, most people don't keep them.

So what are you supposed to do?  If you look back over this Training Blog, 2014 was not a great year for me. After I completed the Make Your Way Across America Challenge,  I didn't spend a lot of time in the gym.  Or focusing on making myself better.  And as I look back, I can't see that I did much of anything in 2014 but hold on.

2014 definitely wasn't the year of Me.  Maybe in 2014, I was who I actually am.  But I wasn't who I want to be.

So bring on 2015!  And resolutions that aren't really resolutions.  Changes that aren't upheavals.  

See you next year!