Eye Guey

Sorry, the Mexican in me demanded that title. So my eye is still annoying me. The infection is gone, and the weird bump along with it. I walked around for one week with my glasses, and had to avoid the pool altogether as well.

Stupid eye. I curse it! I even went to Vegas with my glasses on! Partied at the Palms and the Wynn...in mah glasses! I'll show you pictures if you want.

Frustration

As the semester winds down, I'm looking back at my 30 lap swim, and assessing how well/terribly I did. On one hand, I actually got into the pool (which was something I would not have done without the added incentive of school work). On the other hand, I ended up not being able to do 30 laps. I'm at 20 right now, and I get out gasping for air. It is really tough!!

Right now, I'm dealing with yet another eye infection. I don't know what is going on, but this semester has really been kicking health in the gutter! I feel like all my eye woes are stemming from the pool, but I can't give it up just yet!! So this week, I'm sad to say, I've only gone once before the eye problems came back in full force.

SO hopefully, this eye thing clears up by the end of the week, and I can continue my lap swimming. Also, I'm going to LAS VEGAS this weekend, and refuse to go to a club in glasses. Been there, done that, it was not fun. And also. I hate driving in my glasses. Or just living in general in my glasses! Random story: I went to Wal-Mart today to buy groceries (in my glasses) and ran into my Grandpa! Too bad I didn't even recognize him from far away! My eyesight is worse than an 86 year old mans. So sad.

Tough week

I've had some rough family stuff go down this week. I can't remember if I've stated it here, but I live with my Grandpa Sundays through Thursdays, going back to my parents house on Friday and Saturday nights. My Grandpa is 86 and super super stubborn, and also clinically depressed. He's a diabetic, has heart disease, and arthritis. He still drives, despite not having a drivers license. He eats a load of crap (I'm not joking, I've found bags of chicken wings from the Mexican market down the street), despite being a diabetic. And last week while I was in class on Wednesday, my aunt noticed he had these really hideous ulcerated wounds on his legs.

Well, she made an appointment for him for the doctor for Thursday morning, which I took him to since he can't speak English. He had friggin gangrene on his toe. I was so furious, furious with myself for not realizing that disgusting smell coming from his room was in fact a gangrene toe, furious with him for not telling us his damned toe was black, and furious at my aunts and uncles, his kids, for not giving a damn and checking up on their father.

Needles to say, I didn't get to the pool much while taking care of my Grandpa. Or, at all for that matter. I did go hiking Thursday afternoon to blow off steam, and ran yesterday. Then I stepped on some glass when I got back to my Grandpa's house, because he dropped a glass and wasn't aware there was still glass on the floor.

Stressful week!!!

Seal Beach 5k

So Mom and I did the Seal Beach 5k Saturday. It was fun! I was hoping we'd be closer along the beach, like right up on the beach sidewalk, but I guess one block away is good enough. There were a good amount of people, probably around 1,000 or so. Lots of people with their super cute dogs. I don't think I've ever mentioned it here, but my Mom has this pug that she absolutely adores. No joke, our pug is 5 years old, and has been on his death bed twice, and Mom treats him like one of her children. We call him our brother, since it's just me and my sister, and we've never had a brother. He's also diabetic, and has to receive insulin shots twice a day. Like I said...like one of the family. Anyways, we were all excited to be surrounded by so many doggies.

Went to swim twice so far this week. Still can barely get to 15 each time, and I have to really push myself to get to 20. I have never done anything so physically difficult in my life. But it's totally worth it. Lost 2 lbs this week! Though, I think that might be from also not eating out this week as funds are dwindling as of late.

This week is our presentation! I'm really excited to share Ballet Folklorico with the class, and have a surprise or two for you all!

Update and some websites

I cannot believe we are already at week 12 (13?) of Spring semester! Jeez, time flies when you're having fun! And on that note, swimming has been ultra tough these past few weeks! I went to the wayside during Spring Break, and am totally paying for it now. Even 15 laps is tough. But at least that's 1/2 way to 30!

And in other fitness news, I'm going to be doing the Seal Beach 5/10k Run/Walk with my Mom. We're both looking forward to it! I hope it's not too cold. We went to the beach on Sunday afternoon, and it was FREEZING! My mom wanted to go to walk along the beach, and I took my reader to get some homework done, thinking it would be so nice to sit on the beach and listen to the waves while doing my homework. We took my 14 yr old and 21 yr old sisters too. My 14yr old sister and I sat and did homeworks while Mom and my other sister walked. Man, 20 min into our homework session, we were dying. We went back to the car, where I fell asleep like an old lady.

Here are a few websites I'm loving right now:
http://thisiswhyyourefat.com/
http://www.foodporn.com/index.html
http://www.mothernature.com/Library/Bookshelf/Books/43/39.cfm (yes, I realize this is aimed towards men...so what?)

Spring break fail

Well, just a quick update before class tomorrow. I am ashamed to say, I did not go in the pool once this Spring Break! I instead did random things like go to Disneyland, take my Grandpa to the Indian Casinos, Hung out with friends I hadn't seen in forever, and went Outlet shopping. I did go t the gym a few times, but never to swim, just to run. So it wasn't a total Spring Break fail...just swimming laps fail!

I do have a funny story though, from before Spring Break. I went to the Y to swim the evening after our midterm, and since I've been getting that gross red eye from sensitivity to chlorine, I decided to go in my glasses. I am literally BLIND (-6 and -6.50) without my glasses or contacts in, but thought the pool wouldn't be too packed. So I walk into the pool area, and everything is super super blurry. I walk up the one of the lanes, and I see a person just hanging out waiting for the lane, and I could see a blurry blob in the same lane next to them. I ask them "Oh, are you going to be using this lane for a while" and the answer was some mumbly teenaged boy voice, so I walked away, because I had no idea what he said and couldn't see him anyways. I went back to the locker room to get my glasses because I figured I might be able to see a lane free if I had them with me. When I walked back into the pool, I was floored! EACH LANE HAD 3 PEOPLE IN IT DOING LAPS. The Y pool is NEVER that crowded! It grossed me out to see the pool so full of people (ya, I know, but I'm skeezy about germs), so I ended up just changing back into my work out clothes and running instead.

Moral of the story is: if you have terrible eyesight, make sure not to leave your glasses in the locker room. Or else you may not know how many people are actually in the pool before you jump in.

Quick update

So I swam twice last week, once 10 laps, the other 13. I think I should be at 15 by this week, I'll need to check my workout plan of action.

I can feel myself coming down with something. I went to Vegas this weekend, and woke up Sunday with no voice at all. I don't know if yelling at the slot machine did it or what, but I'm STILL voiceless. I sound terrible. I can barely get my voice above a whisper, and eve that gives me a headache. And now, I can feel a cold coming on. I think I'll wait to swim until whatever is ailing me passes.

And now, off to study for our midterm!

Challenges

So my biggest challenge through these past few weeks has been to find the time to actually go to the pool! It has such weird hours, like 5:30am-7:30am, 8:30am-10:30am, and then 7-9pm. And then after my whole eye debacle, I got kind of scared to actually go in the pool with my contacts in. So I really need to get over that, because it has definitely hindered my progress.

In terms of actual challenges swimming, I find breathing correctly a problem. I've had asthma since I was in 1st grade, and it's always been a challenge for me to do anything physically active. I always thought swimming was going to be this terrible curse upon me, but it's actually not that bad! I mean, granted, it's still challenging for me to time my breathing so that I feel like I'm not dying under water and can't breath, but I have definitely steadily improved since the beginning of this semester.

I've been really slacking off this week, and haven't even headed to the pool once since last Wednesday. I'm planning to go tonight, when the pool opens at 7:30pm.

Someone who has been really supportive

I am really blessed to have a huge network of social support. My Mom, Sisters, Dad, Grandpa, and friends all constantly tell me how proud of me they are, and always look at me wistfully when I head out the door with "Goin to the gym to swim!" (mostly my Mom, since she wants a gym membership, and Grandpa because he's 86 and wishes he could swim, I guess).

Last week when the Great Pink Eye Scare of 2009 hit, my sister (after laughing at me) told me to suck it up and go walking instead of swimming. My best friend Perez told me she would, in solidarity, wear glasses with me while we went out Friday night. She didn't (that bitch!) but she has since offered to go hiking with me, and we have a girly hiking date this Friday.

The point is, without a great support network of girlfriends and family, I don't think I'd be as apt to change as I am. I've struggled with my weight and body image my entire life. I distinctly remember being in 4th grade at my friend's pool party, and feeling totally awkward and ashamed of my body. It's totally mortifying being the "fat friend" to your prettier, thinner girl friends. I've come to realize that even the pretty, thin girls have their body issues, and often are more messed up in the head about it than you are. I think the best compliment I got the other day was from Perez. She said "Erika, you have a will made of iron". I was really flattered. This girl used to be a model, so for her to tell me that, really made an impact. And honestly, all I was doing was politely declining some Yogurtland yogurt.

My friends and family are awesome. And I love them to bits. The End.

Local upcoming 5/10k

http://www.sealbeachrun.com/index.html

Just so you guys know! My mom and I will be signing up. It's $25 pre-reg, and $30 on day of race. Happy running!

This is why you're fat

http://thisiswhyyourefat.com/

Anyone trying to lost weight needs to look at this website. It's a collection of heart-attack-inducing foods from around the world. I think I need to go take a statin now.

A barrier

So usually I would say that lack of motivation, or my swimsuit being in the wash was a barrier, but I have a really serious one this week!
I went to swim yesterday, and for some reason my goggles were not keeping water out. I have terrible vision (no joke, -6 and -6.50) so I'm constantly wearing my contact lenses. Well, apparently contact lenses+ chlorinated water= disaster! After I got home, I noticed my eye had started getting a bit red, and it only progressively got worse during the night. I woke up this morning, and my eye was PINK! So of course I assume I got some terrible water-borne infection from the YMCA pool. I made an appointment with the HSC student health center (which, btw, is awesome!) and got in this morning. Turns out, my eye had a bad reaction to the friggin chlorine! Now I can't wear my contacts for 2 days, and have to wash out my eye with a saline rinse for 10 min, 2x a day! Also, I have to walk around in my glasses, which I totally hate. Seriously, if I didn't look like Ugly Betty before with the braces and bangs, I sure as hell do now with my glasses!

Inspiration

I think by far the people that have inspired me to make this change are the women in my family. My mom, at age 53, has lost 50+ pounds in the past year. And I was with her every step of the way. We joined Weight Watchers in Jan of last year, and while my efforts haven't been all that great, hers have. And I was the naggy little voice that told her, "Think about eating that cookie before you eat it. You know we get weighed in tomorrow." I am just so proud of her for losing that 50 lbs, especially at her age. She was always so resigned to being an overweight woman, and taking hypertension pills for the rest of her life. A year later, she's off the pills, has her blood pressure under control, and even comes to the gym with me every once in a while! She's so inspiring, and I'm so damned proud of her, I can't even begin to put it into words.

Another inspiration is my Grandma. She passed away 4 years ago from complications of asthma and other lung issues. When my Grandma immigrated to the Unites States in the 1950s, she and my Grandpa lived in a garage. Due to the terrible conditions, she contracted TB. At the time, TB was a death sentance for someone with no resources. She ended up going through some crazy operation where they sealed her lung with some sort of oil substance, effectively stopping the TB, and leaving her with 1.5 lungs. 20 years later, that oil substance erupted, and she had to have emergency surgery to remove it. My Grandma lived from 1970 to 2005 with 1 lung. Every time I swim, climb stairs, run, or basically use my lungs, I think of how my Grandma could never have done that. And I am so greatful, and use it as my driving force.

So now you know about the incredble, awesome, inspiring women in my life, and how they drive me forward just by their actions, and presence.

Yipes! 10 laps start this week!

So this week, I have in my activity schedule to start 10 laps 3 times a week. Today will be my first try! I've been gradually going up to 7 or 8 each time I've gone in the past few weeks. But today will be my first attempt at 10 per session! Wish me luck!

2 days worth of food!

OK So I dutifully wrote down what I ate for the past 2 days. My Mom and I have been doing Weight Watchers for the past year, and it's become a habit I've picked up due to that. So! The contents of my stomach:

Wednesday:
1 chocolate chip Eggo waffle
1 yogurt parfait from Trader Joes
1 Chicken L'Orange Lean Cuisine
3 slices of cheese pizza
1 cup chicken broth with mushrooms, scallions, bok choy & 2 oz pork

Thursday:
3 homemade pancakes with 1 tbs syrup
1 Subway turkey, avocado, provolone sandwich
1 string cheese, light
1 cup Yaki Soba with broccoli
3 oz roast beef
too much Soju that I ended up barfing anyways, along with the 2 nuggets from McDonalds I ate

Mindful eating is such a great way to stop and assess what you're putting into your body. With the exception of the Soju-fiasco, I think I did pretty well at paying attention to what I ate.

My motivation for change

I have several driving factors behind this motivation for change. I've been making a conscious effort to be more active in my daily life, going to the gym several times a week, or even just running around the block with my dog. For several weeks, I had been toying with the idea of adding swim laps to my repertoire of cardio exercise, but hadn't really had the motivation to just get in the pool. I was either too intimidated or lazy to change into my bathing suit after running around the gym for an hour. This class was the perfect opportunity to finally get off the treadmill and jump in the water. I'm so happy I chose this as my goal. I hadn't been in a pool swimming laps since my childhood summer swim lessons! I can honestly say I'm not intimidated at all now!

First day of swimming!

So I just came back from swimming, and did 6 laps! I think I need to readjust my goggles, though. They kept seeping in water or fogging up. I don't think that's normal. Anyways, I'm excited for my new endeavor, and look forward to getting to 30 laps!

Describing my goal/plan of action

So my specific goal is to start swimming again, and to ultimately improve my swimming. I'm going to start out at 5 laps, 3 times a week, progressing to 30 laps 3 times a week. As this is a 16 week project, I'm going to map out a plan of action and gradual build up to that 30 laps a week.

Week 1: 5 laps
Week 2: 5 laps
Week 3: 5 laps
Week 4: 10 laps
Week 5: 10 laps
Week 6 10 laps
Week 7: 15 laps
Week 8: 15 laps
Week 9: 15 laps
Week 10: Spring Break
Week 11: 20 laps
Week 12: 20 laps
Week 13: 25 laps
Week 14: 25 laps
Week 15: 25 laps
Week 16: 30 laps!

So obviously, if I feel I can do more I will. But this will be my general training guide. Also, I'd love to be able to swim MORE than 30 per session, so that will be a secondary goal as well. I went to Big 5 and bought goggles and a stupid looking swim cap. I'm just hoping my hair does not get brassy or worse, green from chlorine!