Getting to this point.

Thanks to some awesome parenting, I've always firmly believed in mind over matter.  That I am able to accomplish whatever goals I set for myself.  Problem is there are just some things that I've had no desire to set a goal for; case in point - running.  

Years ago, I despised running unless it somehow included a ball of some sorts - basketball, volleyball, hell - even soccer, despite the massive amounts of running in that game.  To me, running for endless miles just seemed so boring.  Perhaps part of the reason was because I had always been involved in team sports so competition was enjoyable to me.  Running against no one except myself and scoring no "points" didn't seem like fun.  

That being said, I ran when I had to off the court.  I could easily do the mile run in junior high and high school.  I didn't enjoy it but the need to finish within a 12 minute time frame added a "competitive" element.  I think I may have even ran a mile under 7:30.  I couldn't understand how other kids could run a mile in under six minutes.  At the time, that seemed insane.  At that time, three miles felt like I was running across America - so I didn't do it.  I just kept playing team sports and training when I had to. 

Until I met, Leann.  She taught with me at my first school.  Everyday about 8-10 of us would sit in the cafeteria with the students, eating our lunch together and playing the M&M game.  She was getting certified as a Personal Trainer.  One day, she tried to convince all of us to register for the Twin Cities Marathon.  I told her I HATED running, that there was no point in just running for miles and miles and running 26.2 of them seemed RIDICULOUS.  

Somehow, I decided that it would be a good idea to prove myself wrong.  I wanted to prove to myself that I could accomplish a goal even if I didn't like it. So, I signed up for the marathon, bought two pairs of running shoes and stuck to my training regime every day as outlined by Leann.  We even did cross training and hill running as part of the training and when Leann said jump I asked how high because I had this massive goal to reach.  

I lived near Lake Calhoun at the time and since it was summer break, I soon found it enjoyable to be out in the summer sun (with loads of sunscreen for my glaring white skin).  Half way through training, I realize that running wasn't so bad, after all.   Maybe it was all that Vitamin D making me happier and healthier.  I still didn't like running three miles but my body felt really good running six to twelve miles.  Odd, I know but that's what my body enjoyed the most.  

During that summer, I not only trained for the marathon but hiked about half of the Superior Hiking Trail and tried out for (and made) rollerderby.  It was a big summer and I felt on top of the world physically.  I completed the TC Marathon in Fall 2007.   I didn't make it in the time goal I had wanted due to an impending injury but I finished and the sweeper truck didn't catch me.  I finished in 5:15 - I was going for 4:30 or less.  

I went to hating to run even one mile to really enjoying 26.2 and I proved to myself that my mental fortitude can drastically impact my life.

Which brings me to why I started this blog.

Those of you who know me, know that I LOVE baking and learning.  I teach a college-articulated Baking and Pastry course to high school students.  Baking is so much of a science, it's awesome to test out theories and to identify how ingredients impacted the final product.  It's like a scientific puzzle.  Cooking is much less of a precise science so while I enjoy cooking, I find myself not AS excited about it as baking.  

In any case, every day we have fresh cookies in our house or some other baked treat.  I see this mostly as experiments for my own classroom.  I wanted to find the perfect chocolate chip cookie and I did.  As a culinary arts teacher, I am fully aware of what I should be eating and why but again - I just really find chocolate chip cookies delicious (as well as a wide assortment of baked goods!)

Lately, I've noticed that my gut starts hurting when I eat and that my eczema has flared up.  At first, I attributed this to my derby gear.  However, I wash my derby gear frequently but I can't wash my skates.  Since it's near the end of my career, spending another $200 on gear seems a little crazy.  I went to a natural doctor who helped me get back on the nutrition track with a variety of basic supplements.  My gut stopped hurting as much but the eczema is still lingering.  Yes,  I could go to the dermatologist like I have in the past and be prescribed a steroid cream.  However, that's not so great for your body over the long-term either.  I wanted to have more control (direct) over my health.

Having read a lot about how diet is one of the main contributors of eczema, I was determined to find a way to naturally rid myself of whatever the hell was causing my flare up.  Which brings me to my new challenge, probably more challenging than running a marathon: I'm going to turn my diet upside down and really focus on putting stuff in my body that's of the earth and not of a machine (processed).

I've never really been excited about vegetables but as I've gotten older, I've introduced a lot more into my diet.  Not nearly enough as I should be consuming but it's a process - much like most things in life.  I don't see this challenge as a weight-loss journey or a "dieting fad".  I see this challenge as a way for my body to reset expectations of how poorly I've treated it over the 32 years and find a new balance on how I want eat for the rest of my life.      

This challenge/goal will last 30 days and I'm hopeful both my gut and eczema will like me after that.  After the 30 days, I'll probably start re-introducing foods back into my diet to see what had adverse effects on my skin and gut.   I firmly believe that most things are okay in moderation so I'm not one to wipe out an entire genre of foods.  So I don't expect this new endeavor to be easy.  But for 30 days I will do it and I will succeed because I don't like to let myself down.  

I'll be scouring http://whole9life.com/, pinterest and talking with my very good friend Jordyn about recommendations to make this an enjoyable experience.

This blog will catalog my journey and quest to be healthier.

I've gotta start somewhere and that place is here.

“When you improve a little each day, eventually big things occur. When you improve conditioning a little each day, eventually you have a big improvement in conditioning. Not tomorrow, not the next day, but eventually a big gain is made. Don’t look for the big, quick improvement. Seek the small improvement one day at a time. That’s the only way it happens – and when it happens, it lasts.”

-- Coach John Wooden