Category Archives: RANDOMly Me

The Climb of My Life

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On January 7, 2005, at the age of 80, my father died of Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS). This was brought on by pneumonia. He spent the last few days of his life on a ventilator. My father also suffered from Parkinson’s Disease which unfortunately hindered his ability to walk for the last few years of his life. Soooo…. I have officially registered for the Philadelphia Fight For Air Climb! I’ll be climbing 50 flights of stairs to raise money and awareness for lung disease. Yes, you read that correctly- 50 FLIGHTS of stairs. Clearly, I don’t have enough excitement in my life. Clearly. But I’m exercising my lungs and my legs in memory of my Dad. 🙂

Here’s a clip from the 2011 Climb:

I haven’t committed to doing any physically demanding feats since I finished the Philly Marathon back in 2004. That was brutal! But I’m ready to get back into the swing of things (a little). This Climb should whip me back into shape (and prayerfully, it will be far less damaging to my knees than the Marathon, and it certainly shouldn’t take me a lifetime to finish)! The competition is on Saturday, 3/24/2012 which gives me exactly 11 weeks to get my butt (and legs and lungs) prepared. And I must say, I’m more excited about running up 50 flights of stairs than I am about training to run up 50 flights of stairs. Check out the training program I got from Coach Reymond of The Healthy Push:

“Begin every workout with a hip mobility drill and a dynamic warmup… Switch days in/out of the gym by spending 2-3 days working that lower half with weighted lunges, air squats, and presses at a high intensity effort for 20 minutes non-stop. Back it up on a steep treadmill climb/walk/run or stair-master for another 20 minutes. Spend the other 2-3 days running stadiums, climbing stairs, and doing fast paced hill sprints (all exercises with a weighted backpack) for 20-30 minute sessions at a 175 bpm heart rate effort (hard effort).”

Heaven help me.

I’m no math major, but that’s 4-6 days of training per week! Have I mentioned that I don’t work out in the Winter? I freeze my gym membership from November through March. Yes, I plan my slackability. 😛

I did manage to run up the Art Museum steps this morning as a kick off to my climbing endeavor. Had myself a little Rocky moment. 😀

According to Coach, I’ll have buns of steel and legs like a stallion when all is said and done. So, that of course makes the preparation worth the pain. 🙂

Aside from vain glory, and in memory of my Dad, I will climb:

    • To become a better steward of my Temple. When it comes to working out, I’m rather lazy. If I don’t have a goal to work towards, I’ll just hang out in my lazy little comfort zone- neglecting to properly care for the body God entrusted to me. Have I mentioned that I hate working out? With a passion, I might add. So, this Stair Climb is a great way for me to get in shape, take better care of myself, and be proactive about my personal fitness.
    • To raise money and awareness for really good causes: lung disease (lung cancer, asthma, COPD, ARDS, etc.), fight against pollution, smoking cessation programs,etc.
    • Because a dear friend of mine died last year of lung cancer- at the age of 36.
    • For those who can’t breathe on their own.
    • Because I can.

Lung health and awareness is so incredibly important because:

    • Lung disease is the 3rd leading cause of death in the U.S. and it’s responsible for one in seven deaths.
    • Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S.
    • COPD currently affects 10.2 million Americans.
    • Air Pollution poisons the lungs of over 60% of Americans each day. How scary is that?
    • ARDS affects approximately 190,000 Americans annually and up to 30% of cases can be fatal (like my Dad’s).

That’s why this is the climb of my life- and maybe even yours. The fundraising goal for the  2012 Philadelphia Fight for Air Climb is $135,000. Each participant is required to raise at least $100. I want to raise at least $500. If you would like to help me reach my goal and join the fight for air, please make your tax-deductible donation via my personal page on The American Lung Association’s website. I’m listed under Daddy’s Girl. Anything you give is greatly appreciated. Together, we can help others breathe a little easier. 🙂

Practically Yours,

~ The Practical Chick

P.S. Call (800) LUNG-USA or check out www.lungusa.org for great resources to help you quit smoking, understand the warning signs of lung disease, learn how to protect your lungs, and more! And hey, why not check to see if there’s a Stair Climb in your area? 😉

Run for Your Life

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Dear Fellow Runaways,

During a friendly game of tag in 3rd grade, I was tripped by a boy named Keith. There were a gazillion kids chasing each other in the school yard that day, and I was the one person who managed to fall. Wearing a cute little dress and my favorite Winter coat (khaki-colored with creme trim… I loved that lil coat!), I fell face down on the concrete. My big Urkel-like glasses flew off my little face and landed a few feet away. I could hear a swarm of kids circling around me, and my best friend, Julie, came running to my side. My head hurt and my knees were sore, but I was OK… or so I thought. As I was being helped up, I couldn’t help but notice my blood hugging the cement. Julie picked up my glasses and screamed “part of your brain fell out!!!” I looked at my ginormous glasses and saw something green and bloody smashed on one of the lenses. That’s when I lost it. I began crying uncontrollably and was escorted to the nurse’s office. My cute little coat was now khaki and crimson. My dad picked me up from school and took me to the hospital where the hole in my forehead was stitched shut (and I’m pretty sure they didn’t use anesthesia… it hurt so bad the doctors had to strap me down!!). We caught the bus- yes, public transportation- back home and I went to school for the next week with my forehead bandaged like an Egyptian mummy. Go ahead, you can laugh.

From that day forth, I vowed to never run again. I ran away from my fear instead of facing it. I was truly traumatized by that fall! I hated running. Didn’t even like running for the bus! Didn’t even want my nose to run (LOL). I was probably suffering from PTSD or something. It was pretty pathetic. As silly as it sounds, I was scared to death to run! So, what did I do? One day, many years later, I decided to start training for a marathon (’cause that’s what any rational person would do, right? :-D).

My girl, Denine, and I both signed up and started training in May 2004. Our endurance was negligible at best. Being one of the world’s most non-athletic individuals, I could barely run a quarter of a mile at that point. But I committed to the training program, running alone 3 days per week and with the training group every Saturday- rain or shine! We completed the Philadelphia Distance Run (a half marathon, which is 13.1 miles) in September 2004. I managed to run 10 miles straight without stopping… only because I had to go to the bathroom really bad, and all the port-a-potties I passed were disgusting. So I kept running, hoping to find a half-way decent “facility” (never found one, by the way). By the time I reached the 10th mile, I gave myself a break and started walking (HUGE mistake! It’s hard to start back up once you stop. Momentum is key!). I thought my legs were going to fall off and I’m pretty sure that would have been far less painful… but I managed to cross that finish line anyway. Two months later (November 21, 2004), Denine and I ran the Philly Marathon (the full 26.2 miles). It took me nearly the entire 6 hours allotted to complete the race, but I did it. And Denine recently finished her 2nd half-marathon. God bless her!!

There are some folks who run marathons on a regular basis. They can finish a full marathon in less time than it took me to finish the 1/2 marathon. Shoot, there were folks who walked the entire race, and still finished before me! There was even a woman- 7 1/2 months pregnant- who finished before I did!  I tip my hat off to them all. My goal was not to win the race (as evidenced by the way I began slacking with my training as the days grew shorter and the weather waxed colder)… I just wanted to face my fears and finish the race.

I can not begin to express the sheer excitement, pride, joy, and ultimate satisfaction I felt when I finally crossed that finish line. It is a feeling like no other. To keep pressing forward in spite of your fears, in spite of your pain, and in spite of your flesh begging you to give up ….it was exhilarating (SIDE NOTE: don’t keep going if your heart tells you to stop. I mean that literally and metaphorically. Running a race that’s killing you is not worth it!). And to cross that finish line, knowing that you gave it your all and you finally reached your goal… that’s a blessing in and of itself!

When is the last time you faced your fears and challenged yourself beyond your perceived limitations? What fear has paralyzed you from doing more, having more, or being more than you are today? What’s that  “one thing” you’ve always wanted to try? What race have you started but failed to finish because the road was too long or too tough?  It’s normal to want to give up when times get hard. Your flesh will attempt to dissuade you every time. But when you set your mind to something, train properly, and commit to reaching your goal, then you, too, can cross that finish line of victory. It’s not too late. Have you started 2011 with a list of goals that you have yet to reach? Pick up where you left off, change your thinking (that’s where the training comes in), and start running again. The better you train, the less likely you are to suffer injury when the going gets tough. You can do it with God’s help. “God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” (2 Timothy 1:7). You already have the tools you need to run the race. You just have to put your faith (and your feet) in motion.

The marathon aggravated a prior knee injury, so no more long distance running for me. But I’m so proud to say that I am one of only 1% of the world’s population that has completed a marathon. I have faced many tests and trials since 2004, and I can now look back and remind myself that I finished those races in spite of literally wanting to quit with every step I took. If I survived that grueling (albeit self-imposed) conquest, surely I can get through anything! In March 2012,  I’ll be participating in the Philadelphia Stair Climb (climbing 50 flights of stairs to raise money for The American Lung Association… less damaging to my knees than a marathon, but challenging nonetheless!). It’s been a while since I really provoked myself physically and I’m ready to get it IN. Physical training is much more of an emotional and mental feat than anything else. Challenges stimulate growth which is necessary for life… Anything that isn’t growing is dead. I’m too young to die and so are you. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, change your thinking and get to stepping. You have an abundant life to live. Get out your comfort zone. Try something new. Stretch beyond your circumstances. Face your fears and finish your race victoriously. With all due respect, get a life… and run for it! 😉

Practically Yours,

~The Practical Chick

P.S. Although some may beg to differ, my brain didn’t fall out when I fell in 3rd grade. That bloody green thing stuck to my glasses was a piece of shrub. Just goes to show: when you’re in the midst of a traumatic experience, everything looks worse than it is. Don’t believe the hype… believe the Hope! 🙂