November 17, 2013

My rite of passage

We had some very strange weather in Michigan today. This morning, it was 60 degrees when I woke up! (In the evening, we ended up having a tornado watch, and the temp was in the high 60s). I actually wore capris and and a t-shirt to run. I only planned to do 4 miles today--same route as yesterday, only a little faster so that I could see what that did to all my numbers on my new Garmin. I've actually been looking forward to running each day so that I can learn something new about the watch!

Yesterday, I discovered that I could transfer my actual personal records from the computer to the watch, so that when it tells me I did my "Fastest mile" or "Fastest 10K" or whatever, it will actually be true; not just my fastest since getting the new Garmin.

One of the things I love about the new watch is that it picks up satellite signals super fast. I used to go outside and stand in my driveway for a minute or two, waiting... waiting... and then finally it would find satellites. The 620 has some sort of technology in it that it "remembers" where the satellites are when you shut it off, so when you turn it on again, it picks them up right away. I counted how long it took from the second I pushed the power button until the satellites were found, and it was 15-20 seconds each time; that was when I was standing in my house! I didn't even have time to make it outside to wait for the satellites.

It was really overcast this morning, so it seemed kind of dark for being 7:30 in the morning. There were lots of shotgun blasts on my left the whole way out on my out-and-back route. I just hope that the hunters obey the laws and don't get too close to the road! I usually hear a couple of shots, but today there were a ton.

After I turned around to head back, it started raining. The rain got heavier the farther I ran, and combined with the wind, it was pretty loud. I came up behind a couple of hunters carrying rifles on the side of the road--not something I come across every day. I made sure to announce myself, so I didn't get shot ;)

By the time I got home, I was really wet from the rain, but it was a good run.






I took a hot shower, and when I got out, I was drying my feet, and noticed my toenail was still looking strange. After the Chicago Marathon, my toenail (on the toe with the tattoo) developed a blister underneath it. I popped the blister right away, but ever since then, the nail seemed like it was sticking up farther than it should have. Whenever I got out of the shower, I'd press on it to make sure I wouldn't lose the nail. I'd never lost a toenail before, and even though it's really common among runners, I was scared to death of losing one!

So today, the edge of the nail looked strange and upon further inspection, I noticed it was loose! (I shudder just thinking of that). I gave it a gentle lift on that side, expecting to feel a searing pain like when you pull off a hang nail. It didn't feel like anything. And then the nail came off completely! My entire toenail came right off, and it didn't even feel like anything.

It wasn't at all what I expected. When I think of a toenail coming off, I pictured horrible pain, and raw skin, and blood... but it honestly looked like there was still a toenail on there. If it hadn't come off in my hand, I probably wouldn't have noticed. Losing a toenail is like a rite of passage for runners, and now I'm in the club! hahaha


I know a lot of runners just paint over it like they would a toenail, but I'm too freaked out to touch it, let alone paint it. So it'll just look like that for a while until I get a new nail, I guess!


It seems wrong to post about food after sharing way too much information about my toes. Anyway, yesterday my mom brought over a big container of cookies for Jerry to bring to work. They are probably my favorite cookies ever, but I've been doing really well staying on track, so I didn't want to eat any (I estimate them at 5 PointsPlus each, maybe even 6; and I can't eat just one!).


Almost as soon as my mom dropped them off, they were beckoning me. I couldn't stop thinking about them, so I finally decided to take them out to Jerry's car. That worked really well! Once they were in his car, I actually forgot about them for most of the day. If they had been in my kitchen, I surely would have dug into them.

This morning, Noah asked me if we could go to Panera for lunch. I suggested dinner, instead, so that Jerry could go with us. I love that my kids love Panera! It's pretty expensive to take the whole family there, so we don't do it often, but it's so good when we go. I had been planning to get Broccoli Cheddar soup, but when I got there, I saw that they had Country Style Mushroom with Truffle soup, which sounded really good, and was only 10 calories more than the Broccoli Cheddar. The woman working there offered to let me taste it, and after tasting it, I was sold on it. I love mushrooms! I got a bowl of the soup with a whole grain baguette.


The soup was 9 PointsPlus, and the baguette was 4 PP. It was really filling, and totally worth it!

Jerry and I are going up to Ann Arbor tomorrow, and I've been trying all week long to save up a few PointsPlus here and there so that I can get a brownie at Whole Foods. Remember the orgasmic Turtle Brownie I got with Jessica? I rarely go to Ann Arbor, but when I do, I always think of that brownie! I estimate that it's about 20 PointsPlus, so I may end up getting that tomorrow. If not that, then definitely some sort of treat. I haven't been to Whole Foods in probably a year or more. I'm mostly looking forward to spending the day with Jerry!


Don't forget, tomorrow is Motivational Monday! If you've accomplished something brag-worthy this week, feel free to e-mail me a picture and a brief description to SlimKatie (at) runsforcookies (dot) com, with the subject "Motivational Monday"; I may include it in tomorrow's post!

10 comments:

  1. What kind of cookies are those? They look delicious! Great job resisting, I wouldn't have been able to.

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  2. Forget whole foods! Zingerman's brownies all the way!

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  3. Congrats on the toenail ;-)

    Our whole family just took a trip to Whole Foods today. (We went to the one further west off 94 in Ann Arbor). We drooled over the dessert case. Enjoy your brownie :)

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  4. I LOVE Panera, especially their soups. They are always so filling. I once read somewhere that Panera is considered the healthiest of the fast food industry.

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  5. Aw, your poor little piggie. I lost a toenail (the big toe) due to fungus caught at a mani-pedi shop, I'll never visit another one again after reading about all the icky-bad things that a person can catch. It took about a year for that toenail to grow back, and even now it's not quite right but each year it gets a little better. I hope your little toenail grows back fast for you :)

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  6. Losing toe nails is no big deal!!! :) I hiked Half Dome in Yosemite ( a 17.5 mile trail from Glacier Point, mostly flat on the way up/over, and very very steep going down the mist trail) and I lost the toe nail on the second toe on both feet- same toe as you! They turned brused and black and I went to the doctor, and she said don't worry about it- had me put a band aid over them. But that just seemed to make it worse and when I took one band aid off it just basically fell off. I waited for the other and it fell off too after a few more days. (Took maybe a month after the "trauma" of the hike). If you do get brave enough to touch it, it kind of has this nail like stuff on there already so your toey is protected, so you really can paint it, it's just not as smooth as a regular nail. And then it will grow back in just perfect. I had forgotten I had ever lost mine until I started reading about your toe!!!! lol

    I'd really like to know how to estimate points for things. You seem so confident. Could you write about that? I estimate calories in things as best I can, but I'm sure I'm not spot on.

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  7. For Brownies in Ann Arbor, Black Magic brownies from Zingerman's Bake House are the best there is!! Nothing like them!

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  8. I've had so many foot problems since running! I've had tendons clipped, found out I had arthritis AND have had parts of toenails removed! They do grow back, very slowly, and I do paint the toe where the nail used to be. People can't even tell that I'm missing parts of some! :)

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  9. The toenail underneath has already grown in, which is why the toenail fell off. It's just a little thin right now -- it will thicken up fast now that the other toenail is gone.

    I am embarrassed to admit this, but I always thought that was a giant mole on your toe.

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  10. I lost a toenail after my first marathon attempt. It was bizarre. I don't know any other way to explain it!

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