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What do you do when you are having a bad day? How do you change your attitude to make it a good one?

Here are my top five ways to get me on the path to happy?

1. Take a few deep breaths – sometimes taking a minute or two to just breathe can help to clear your mind and put you into the right frame of mind.
2. Take a walk – for when a few deep breaths just aren’t cutting it. A walk puts you out in nature and doing something physical. I always take at least one 15 minute walk break at work, even if I am busy. It helps me get center again and step away from whatever issue is frustrating me at the moment.
3. Yoga – who doesn’t love getting all bendy to clear your mind? I do all my meditation during yoga. I try to not think and just do. And I always try to challenge my body, push myself a bit further.
4. Intense cardio – typically I run but every now and then I need a good boxing or fight workout. Either way I am taking out my aggression and upping my endorphins. It’s a win-win.
5. Read – I love reading. It relaxes me. I will pick up a book to transport me to a different world or if I want something mindless, a magazine. After work I like to read magazines because my brain is tired and magazines are easier to process. Reading helps me forget about what else has been going on.

I could probably think of a few more things (and not all of them the healthiest!) but for me these are the best and surest ways to get me back on the right path. What do you do to changed a bad day to good?

Summer is just around the corner or in my case it is pretty much here already. Phoenix has been having some higher than usual temperatures but now that I have the ac on at home I can’t complain. I honestly don’t mind the heat most of the time. I hate being too cold or too hot but if I have the chance I would definitely take a warm summer day over a cold winter one any time.

Summer means longer days which to mean means margaritas! Who doesn’t like to sit outside on a hot summer night and sip an ice-cold margarita. Sunset is the best time of day any time of the year but it is magical during the summer. If I am not out running at sunset (which happens a few week nights) I want to be on the patio sipping that margarita. The sun goes down, the stars come out and bugs start their evening songs.

Summer also means bbq. There is nothing else like a thick, juicy steak done on the grill. Yes, you can grill any time but as above there is just something about the summer that makes food on the grill taste better. I love putting some potatoes in tinfoil with butter and seasoning to go with that steak. And of course corn on the cob. For some reason food is just better with grill marks on them.

I also love running outdoors in the summer. On weekends I get up early and run. I am almost always alone out there. I can just go and not be interrupted by others on the side-walk or worrying about cars. I also enjoy running by the carnicerias. I run by two on my long runs and they are just putting the carne asada on the grill. It smells so great but thankfully I am not hungry or I would have to grab some as I run by.

On weekdays I run at sunset. The sun and the temperature go down and I go out. I thoroughly enjoy watching the sunset and the sky change colors. The evening just brings a peacefulness I can’t fully describe.

I also enjoy running in the summer because I become drenched in sweat. There is nothing like getting in a good workout and sweating it out. It is refreshing in a weird way.

What do you look forward to come summer?

 

 

If I had to give my celiac disease a tagline I guess it would be:

Abstain from gluten, from tasty cakes and delectable brownies. Put down the savory bread and pasta too. Although divine on the tongue, gluten is wicked on your digestive system.

 

Yah, I know this is pretty bad but I have never thought about a tagline. I think it is a bit long and cheesy but sometimes I run-on and get a bit cheesy. It’s why people love me. 😉

Today’s prompt:

Give yourself, or your patient experience a tagline. Grab attention with your slogan. Make sure it’s catchy!

What would your tagline be?

Today’s prompt is pretty self-explanatory, “I feel best when…” and my answer is relatively simple and short.

I feel best when… I finish a race, especially a half marathon.

There is nothing like crossing that finish line and knowing you’ve completed something amazing. There is a rush of adrenaline. There are crowds cheering. You feel like you’ve truly won (even if you are 1,873 out of 3,917). But you have won. You completed something that not everyone has done. You put in the time and the training.

For me I think the feeling of accomplishment comes because there is always part of the race that feels hard. There is the physical aspect, maybe your legs are tired that day but there is also the mental aspect. If you read my blog on the 9th, Challenger, you know that I struggle with the mental aspect. I have to tell myself I can do it.

Crossing the finish line means I defeated the mental aspect of running. I may be dead tired but I feel like I can accomplish anything after a half marathon. I get a smaller version of this feeling after a tough training run.  I feel like nothing can get in my way. I can achieve my dreams. I try to carry this feeling forward in my day-to-day life. I am working towards owning my own business and I try to keep moving forward and banish the deprecating self talk. I reach into those reserves from a half marathon and tell myself I can do it.

Reader: When do you feel best?

Today’s prompt is slightly more difficult for me to write. My celiac disease diagnosis isn’t even a month old yet. I have only felt marginalized or stigmatized a couple of times. However, I do feel more like I am a burden when I go out to eat or I feel left out at work when food is brought in and I can’t have any.

I struggle with going out to eat because I can no longer go anywhere or order whatever I want. I hate the fact that I have to order special items and ask a million questions. I hate having to tell everyone that there is something wrong with me. That my body doesn’t work properly.  It gets very frustrating and sometimes I wish I had never received a diagnosis.

I have learned that I need to say I have celiac disease. We went to a restaurant that I had read was good for people with celiac disease. I asked if the chips were gluten-free and I made sure to order an item marked gluten-free. I did not tell them I had celiac disease and cross contamination could be an issue. I was about 3/4 through my meal when my digestive system was burning and I got a headache. I cannot blame the restaurant as I did not specify my need for gluten-free. Now if I were to go there again and specified celiac disease and need for careful preparation and I still got sick? Then I would blame the restaurant.

A time I felt marginalized or not really heard was when I requested a list of gluten-free items from a sports arena. I was given a list which only contained a few meals, the rest were all snack items. Of the three meals, two of them required leaving items off and I was not a fan of those two items. I went to order the third items, crispy wings (which leaves me questioning what is in the crispy wings because they are usually dredged in flour) and noticed the stand also had crispy chicken tenders. I asked if the wings and tenders were fried and the same oil. They were. I lost all trust in the rest of the items being actually gluten-free without cross contamination. I ended up not eating anything that night at the game and being miserable because I was hungry. The next game I ate dinner at 4 pm and had to eat again after because I was so hungry.

We have since contacted the team who forwarded our email to the company that does the food. They are going to revamp the menu in the off-season and add 6-10 entrees and 10-12 snacks that are gluten-free, which hopefully means there is something I can eat. I just hope they make sure there is no cross contamination and denote if items are fried in separate fryers. Cross contamination of even just a crumb can make someone with celiac disease extremely sick.

We also requested information from another sports venue but haven’t heard back. This other venue has a gluten-free stand but their menu board only had a few items. I just don’t get why I should be limited to 3-4 things, half snack items, because of something out of my control.

I also feel marginalized at work. Every Friday donuts are brought in. I can’t have donuts. They don’t purchase any gluten-free treats. They bring fruit but I eat so much fruit I’d like a freaking cookie or donut once a week. There is also a large work party being planned and I will need to bring my own food. They did not consider allergies when planning the menu and it is a buffet, which means even if there was something gluten-free there is a high possibility of cross contamination unless I am the first through the line (which isn’t going to happen). Also, while planning the idea of allergies and gluten-free was brought up but the answer was, “there  will be Mexican food”. Mexican food can be gluten-free but a lot of places here use flour over corn tortillas AND corn tortillas can contain gluten (why is beyond me). Plus, would they ask about cross contamination? Would they make sure the Mexican restaurant knows someone has celiac disease? I felt like they were far too dismissive of allergies and diseases. It did not seem like they cared. I was not at the planning committees but had a few coworkers who attempted to fight for me. I also looked up the Mexican restaurant and could not find them on any safe lists or reviews for gluten-free and celiac disease. I decided it was just best for me to not eat since I cannot guarantee no gluten and no cross contamination.

 

I didn’t ask for celiac disease and I certainly would not be on a gluten-free diet if I didn’t have to. I cannot imagine how difficult it was for people with celiac disease just a few years ago. There was almost no information and no gluten-free menus. Celiac disease affects about 1 in every 133 people. That is quite a bit and doesn’t include wheat allergies or intolerance. Not everything needs to be made with wheat/gluten. A lot of items just have gluten added for shits and giggles it seems.

I am going to struggle for a while with this because I feel so limited and I feel I cannot just go out to eat. I need to plan. I need to ask a million questions. I need to explain this is a disease not just a diet whim.

No one is going to fight for me but me. I need to accept that I have to tell people I am broken. I have to let them know my body hates itself when I have gluten. I have to be that person when it comes to eating out. It is hard and I struggle with it. I wish more people and restaurants were aware of celiac disease. I wish more people cared but they don’t.

Today’s prompt:

Tell us about a time when you felt marginalized or stigmatized by someone because of your health condition. Maybe at the time you didn’t speak up, or maybe you did – what did you say or what would you have said to take back control and let them know the were out of line?

 

It is a little funny that today’s prompt, Day of Rest, falls on my actual rest day from workouts. Although the prompt is talking more about relaxing to relieve stress and my workouts help relieve stress so not exactly the same thing. 😉

Today’s Prompt:

Kick your feet up! What is your ideal day in? When you are having a bad day, or a long week – how o you relax, recharge, and reset yourself?

Hmmmm…. First off I would sleep in. I get up at 5 am most days and rarely get the chance to really sleep in. Even when I try to sleep in I still naturally wake up early. I want to wake up feeling refreshed and ready to go (which just may not be how my body works because I can’t recall a time that has happened).

I would have a small breakfast, probably gluten-free waffles with nut butter and a banana with a glass of water and then head out the door for at least a 5 mile run in perfect temperature, not too hot and not too cold. A longer 10 miler would be perfect. 10 miles would allow me to come home and have a second breakfast, probably eggs, bacon and chocolate milk followed by Hawaiian coffee.

I would also do a quick recovery yoga video before breakfast to make sure my muscles are stretched and hips are opened. I don’t want to be sore the next day. I may also get a massage after breakfast or maybe a nap. It would depend how tired my run makes me.

The rest of the day would probably consist of watching a movie or catch up with tv shows on the dvr, like Criminal Minds (a favorite of mine that I could watch over and over). I would also read, either books or magazines (or both depending on how I felt). I might also work a bit on the blog or my photography business. Editing photos relaxes me and time flies when I am working on them.

I may also go out for dinner. If I am relaxing I do not want to cook dinner! I can’t really say where I would go since I am in a transition to gluten-free thanks to a recent celiac disease. I haven’t found all of the places that are safe for me. Maybe PF Changs or a steakhouse. Something a bit more fancy than the usual.

I might bake a dessert. I like baking and I find it far more relaxing than cooking dinner. Maybe because I do it when I want and don’t have to do it every day. I do need to find some new recipes and new flour(s) since my celiac disease diagnosis. I haven’t baked anything since my diagnosis. This is something I plan to change once I get some gluten-free flour.

I would probably end the evening cuddling on the couch with my man and our pups. We’d probably watch a movie or dvr shows.

Readers: What would be in your day of rest?

I have two furbabies and I cannot even begin to tell you how much I love these two. They are always happy to see me. Always.

Before I was diagnosed with celiac disease I had this fog and feeling of depression. It made getting up and going to work difficult. All I would think about at work was going home and crashing. I had no desire to be at work and it made me miserable.

My two dogs are always be waiting for me to come home, with one peeking out from under the gate every day. Once I get in the door it is a full on attack. One barks and wiggles like he can’t simply contain his excitement. The other jumps and spins like a mad woman. They both fight for my attention. It helped to temporarily lift that fog from celiac disease. It made me happy to see them so happy.

Before I knew I couldn’t eat gluten I obviously ate it and then I had to eat it to be diagnosed. There were days when my digestive system seemed to be killing me from the inside out and my dogs would come and lay with me on the bed. They knew I didn’t feel well and wanted to cheer me up.

There really is nothing like the unconditional love from a dog. Yes, at times I get upset with them for barking or pulling out the garbage but I can’t stay mad at them. They just look at me with those big brown eyes and wag their tail and I just melt. They cheer me up when I’m down. They make me laugh when I want to cry.

Today’s prompt was:

Write a thank you letter to your furry, feathery, or fishy friend for always being there for you. How have they helped you cope with your health condition?

Today’s prompt is comfort food:

We’re not all 5 star chefs, but we all need to eat! Tell how to make your favorite dish. Does the recipe hold a good memory for you? Is it the act of cooking itself that brigs you joy, or the people that come together to eat it?

This prompt is hard for me. When I need comfort the last thing I want to do is cook. I want to curl up on the couch and have a McDonald’s quarter pounder and french fries. This is comfort to me.

My other comfort go to is Ghiradelli’s brownie mix. I don’t have a homemade go-to brownie recipe. When I crave comfort I crave easy, simple. I want to do as little work as possible.

I cook almost every night because I need to. I bake because I like to but I do it for enjoyment and to bring others joy. I might have a serving or two but then I give the rest away. I don’t find comfort in my meals or baking. Dinner is usually trying to reach a protein goal or fuel some kind of workout. Meals are typically utilitarian in nature.

Unfortunately I will need to find new comfort foods. With my recent celiac diagnosis I cannot eat either of my comfort foods. Not even McDonald’s fries. My diagnosis is still fresh and I would give my left arm to be able to eat McDonald’s fries when I need comfort but I can’t without risking serious illness and possible other diseases later in life. It is not worth the risk. And In and Out fries are just not the same.

Readers: What are your comfort foods?

I am late to the party by nine days but I have decided to participate in the WEGO Health Activist Writer’s Month Challenge. I plan to focus on my workouts (running) and my recent diagnosis (celiac disease). I am starting with April 9th, Challenger.

Running half marathons is always a challenge for me. It is all mental, all self-confidence. I know I can do them, even without a lot of training but for some reason when I step up to the starting line I struggle.

Suddenly I’ve forgotten how hard I’ve worked and how I’ve done this several times. 13.1 miles just seems so daunting at mile zero.

For me the first two to three miles are torture; I have to tell myself to slow down and keep going because it will get better. And it always does. There have been times I struggle later in a race too. When that happens I tell myself just finish this mile or get to the aid station and you can take a walk break. I often find myself able to keep running when I hit the goal.

One of my biggest helpers is to mentally break the race down into smaller portions. It’s just two 5 mile segments. I can run 5 miles. Once I hit those two 5 mile section all that’s left is a 5k. 3.1 miles. Easy peasy.

Running is all about tricking your brain. I find it helps me of I talk myself through races. Finishing the race is so much easier if I keep telling myself how easy two miles is or how it’s less than 1.5 miles to go. I know I can complete these distances. I do them all the time. 13.1 doesn’t look so tough when you think of it as shorter runs.

Even though 13.1 can still intimidate me I have signed up for a marathon. Yes, 262 miles. I’m nervous as hell but I want to know if I can do this. I know the challenge will be convincing my brain. I haven’t figured out how to break down the distance, two halfs seems a bit much. During training I will tell myself I can do it. I will tell myself I can do 13.1 so why not 26.2? It’s only four 5 milers and a 10k. Easy peasy, right?

Today’s prompt was:

Share about a time you had to overcome a daunting challenge. What words of encouragement would you share with others who find themselves facing similar difficulty?

 

I am very passionate about running and I am not afraid to show it. I post about running on Facebook and Twitter. I do post run selfies on Instagram. But why do I love it so much? Why do I want to share my love of running with others?

I have many reasons for being so passionate about running but sometimes struggle to explain my love to others when asked. Since my motivation is so low lately I thought I would write on what running does for me to help get me out the door.

1. Weight loss – A few years ago I hit my highest weight ever. I only had a few pairs of pants that fit. And by fit I mean squeezing into. I decided that was enough. I started running and calorie counting and the weight started coming off. I am now a healthy weight and want to keep it that way and keep improving my body. Running has helped me drop weight and change my body for the positive.

2. Accomplishments – When I started running again I decided to do a 5K. I wanted to the UW-LaCrosse Turkey Trot. I have attempted to run off and on since my early 20s prior to that I hated running. When I was younger my asthma wasn’t well controlled and running was difficult; I couldn’t run a mile as a child. I hadn’t learned how to work with my asthma. I always heard about the UW-LaCrosse Turkey Trot and thought I would never be able to do it. I started running on the treadmill during college. Eventually I could do five miles but I hadn’t attempted much running outside. Life got in the way and I quit the gym and gained weight as priorities shifted. When I decided to lose weight I committed to running out doors. I made the decision to finally tackle that 5K. I did it and it was hard but I did it. It felt amazing to cross the finish line. I did a five miler next. I then started running 5Ks and other shorter distances all the time. Eventually I decided to attempt a half marathon. Another challenge. Another tough race. Another chance to prove to myself that I can do it. Another accomplishment. Racing makes me challenge myself. Can I do this distance? Can I beat my last time? I have now set my sights on a marathon in January. I cannot wait to see if I can do 26.2 miles. I am confident with the right training I can and I will finish it, just like that very first 5K.

3. Camaraderie – I used to always run alone. I never knew anyone else that ran. At first I was ok with this. I didn’t know any better. My dad ran my first 5K with me; it was nice to have someone with you. I went to a lot of races alone. It can be difficult to be alone before and after a race since it is such a social setting. A few times I was able to convince someone to do a race and being able to share the experience makes it much more enriching. Then I joined a running group. I cannot even put into words how amazing a running group can be. They are incredible encouraging and fun. They helped me shave 9 minutes off my half marathon time. We do a lot of the same races and it is just awesome to have others cheering and supporting you. I only hope I encourage them as much as they do me. My running group has become my running family and I am blessed to have found them. I love getting together with them for a run and post run breakfast!

4. Me Time – I am an introvert. I have to be “on” all day at work. When I run I can be me. I don’t have to talk to anyone. I don’t have to act like an extrovert. Running allows me to recover from work. I love putting in my headphones and just go. Running also relieves my daily stresses. My brain is constantly thinking but when I run, I don’t think. My brain finally stops spinning while I run. I don’t have to worry about anything while running. I get to relax and reduce my stress as I recharge my spirit.

There are many smaller reasons for why I run but to me these are the biggest (and I don’t want to bore you much more). Of course I run for health reasons other than just weight loss or stress. I do enjoy other workouts besides running but I do them for different reasons.

What are you passionate about and why?