Lazy W Marie

Carpeing all the diems in semi-rural Oklahoma...xoxo

You are here: Home / Archives for thelazyw

1st of 7 simple improvements to my running lately

Howdy and a very happy Motivation Monday to you!

I have been reflecting a bit on what changes recently have made the biggest improvements to my running and overall well-being.

After doing lots (and I mean LOTS) of reading and podcast stalking as well as quizzing my running friends about their habits then experimenting with all of this information in my own ways, I have felt better and better. These past few months have been a delicious learning curve for which I am so thankful, despite a couple of injuries and missed races.

Looking at all of this I see seven distinct changes or additions to my routine, seven things I think will stick around a long time. Five of these are outward or straight up physical; two are more in my head or even… spiritual.

I am a sucker for lists and reflections like this from other people, so hopefully you’ll find this interesting. My plan is to write a separate post about each one, beginning tonight with the first, dynamic warm ups.

7 Simple Improvements to Running

  1. Dynamic Warm Ups before every single run, no matter what.
  2. Tweaks in Running Form (thanks again Mickey!)
  3. Longer, more mindful stretching cool-downs
  4. Abs, Glutes, & Hips! Actually all sorts of cross training, but especially core work.
  5. Diet Improvements, especially migrating toward the “Queen-Princess-Pauper” pattern.
  6. Intuitive Living, all the things we do daily to re-learn how to trust our own bodies
  7. Attitude and Outlook! Gratitude every day, for every mile, no matter what.

 

Dynamic Warm Ups:

The very first event I ever ran was in the autumn of 2012, a 5k Zombie Bolt, which I convinced my then brand-new friend Trisha to run also. It was SUCH fun and definitely had a lot to do with me getting hooked on running, on races, just all of it. I also got a bit hooked on Trisha. She is a spectacular human being.

This day was also my first introduction to dynamic warm ups, though I didn’t know they were called that: As we walked around before the actual run, I noticed two men dressed head to toe in neon running gear, performing these wild leg swings and exaggerated high knee kicks, plus a series of other bizarre activities that were completely foreign to me. “Umm, what the heck? Do they think this is the Olympics? That’s so dumb.”

I sort of thought it was dumb and was also secretly fascinated. I assumed they were just very serious runners and was happy that we were just there for some zombies and silliness.

With Trisha in 2012. We had so much fun that day!!
A zombie scared me and I ran off course.

The moment stuck with me, and five years later I finally understand what the heck they were doing: They were giving their bodies a simple dynamic warm up to prevent injury. Because YES even a quick little 3-mile run has the potential to do some damage to a cold, stiff body, and injuries can plant you on the couch quickly. No runner, whether serious or not, likes to be kept from running.

In recent weeks I have discovered that most runner neglect this to their own peril. I have also learned that had I been doing more warming up I might have avoided some ligament strains.

My warm up routine is based on one I found by Kara Goucher:

  • Leg swings
  • Lateral twisting squats
  • Butt kicks
  • High knees
  • Fire hydrants
  • etc.

It only takes a few minutes. And besides waking up my joints and large muscles, this ritual also helps me feel excited for the run. I check in with my body overall (injuries, energy level, gratitude for a million healthy things) then mentally set my intention for whatever miles are planned (am I angry, sad, happy, do I have a decision to make and pray about, a party or menu to plan, did I dream something weird last night that needs to be sorted out, etc), and I get my music going. These pre-run minutes have become wonderfully fruitful.

Do I actually feel different while running after doing this? YES! Much looser and sort of… yummy. Even my upper body feels more relaxed. Another measurable benefit is that after that injury I was able to inch back into a sturdy weekly mileage using these warm ups. A mile or two the first day, then more and more, steadily, comfortably. It was like heaven. Right now I am running maybe 33-40 miles per week, always warming up first, and feel great.

Okay, confession: If I am at a public trail or in a parking lot, sometimes I feel goofy doing the warm up, like maybe someone will notice and regard me the way I regarded those guys five years ago, “GAH! Does she think she’s in the Olympics? That’s so dumb!” But oh well. I would rather look silly to a stranger than be sad on the couch, nursing a preventable injury.

So that is my first improvement lately, and I am pretty happy about the results. See you soon for thoughts on running form.

“If you don’t have time for the little things,
you don’t have time for running.”
~Janae Jacobs
XOXOXOXO

 

 

 

going by feel

I had scribbled this down in my notebook a full week before it all clicked. Our friends Mickey and Kellie visited the farm on Memorial Day, and together with my sister Angela and brother Philip we all luxuriated in some pretty great conversation. As the golden hour grew purple and the honeybees were going to bed, we explored the vegetable garden together. I was pulling errant weeds, and Kellie asked how to tell the weeds from the plants. Our visit was nearing an end, so I just tried to answer briefly. You know that feeling when starting a brand new conversation would have been too much? But she and I had shared thoughtful vibrations about so many other things, how I wished to explore this with her that night!

Private note: This has both of my grandfathers wrapped up in its sentences: My paternal Grandpa Dunaway who was a sharp-witted, light-hearted writer and has always been my personal Will Rogers (also son to Papa Joe the slightly famous beekeeper), and my maternal Grandpa Rex, who you know by now was the world’s best gardening mentor and given to much puttering in exactly his own style.

bare-handed & going by feel

Assuming all basic safety from garter snakes, burrowing frogs, and other deadly creatures, the best way to pull weeds is bare-handed. After a brief re-acquaintance between the inner edge of the forefinger, the first pad of the thumb, and the exact dimensions of every upwardly mobile green thing in the garden, the task becomes commonplace, an easy old dance, even more familiar (and I will say more useful) than riding a bike.

The fuzzy, round barrel chest of a cucumber vine is easy to distinguish from the skinny weeds growing thick against it, though the weeds are also fuzzy. Another fuzzy-stemmed neighbor, the tomato plant (blunt and wounded thanks to a llama without borders) has a somewhat squared off base, and is woodier. Alpha and well rooted. Vastly different except for the green and the fuzz.

The gardener should be able to go at the task with eyes closed, flicking gingerly from one thread of life to the next, deciding which can stay and which should be plucked out. Just a swift, underhanded twist of that well informed forefinger, and the cooperating palm is filled with chlorophyll and potential energy, one tiny decision at a time.

If, in a fit of momentum, the gardener grazes too near a bed of arugula, crushing a few leaves or maybe even uprooting a thread like seedling or two, then the sharp, peppery fragrance will announce the misstep quickly. A friendly alarm to redirect, so that no more than a trace of food is lost. And even that bit of green will find its way to a happy chicken’s belly.

This is one of my favorite things about easy gardening moments. Pulling weeds bare handed and getting really up close and personal with every shape and texture, usually with my eyes closed.

And it points gently to so many Universal messages I have been receiving lately. Messages about being quiet, going about my work more privately, relaxing into the moment so much that I can keep moving with my eyes closed. Trust and steady movement, knowing that nothing is wasted. Believing that every detail in this complex life is beautiful and useful. Acknowledging that as different as I feel from people near me, we have some things in common.

Most of all, the message that it’s okay to operate by instinct once you are informed and practiced. That is exciting. 

I love you and miss you Grandpa Dunaway, I love you and miss you Grandpa Rex, and I love you too Kellie. I am so happy to know you better and better.

Go by feel and trust in Love
XOXOXOXO

,

happy birthday week to meh!

This week we mark the third year that our little farm has been made so much sweeter with the addition of the world’s most magical llama.

The world’s most kissy-face llama. Who lacks a good sense of personal space.

The llama with his mama’s caramel brown fluff and his daddy’s eyelashes. Also his daddy’s distaste for horses. Also his daddy’s penchant for stealing garden produce.

For three years we have been cuddling, smooching, throat-caressing, and listening to the siren song of Meh, so named for the sound he made incessantly for the first two years of his life.

For three years our guests have laughingly endured Meh’s unwanted (but wonderful) advances, and we act like there’s nothing we can do to help. Ha.

When Klaus joined the party here, Meh was only a year old, so the two have grown up together and are best buddies. BFFs forever and ever, cross their hearts and please let’s go swimming now. Meh is the only animal on the farm who can play hard enough to satisfy Klaus without hurting him, and vice-versa. Our horses are known for kicking the lesser beings, not so much frolicking. Very disappointing for two playful boys.

We certainly owe Meh’s extreme touch-ability to Handsome. From day one, he held that baby and pet him, kissed his face and touched his legs, just like you would a colt. Meh lost his mama Seraphine too young, so this bond proved to be an extra blessing.

We love you, Meh. We love your liquid black eyes and those broomy lashes. We love your irregular spots and caramel-colored fluff, your pointed hooves and straight, usually wet-from-the-pond legs. Oh my gosh that velvety mouth and soft-whiskered chin.

We love how you boss the horses around but wait until the third position to eat. We love how you tolerate Klaus then beg for him to play when he is finally tired. We love your weird ambulance screaming sounds and sweet breath. We appreciate how you never spit on us! We do not appreciate how you eat the garden veggies, but your neck is so long and bendy, and you are so sweet otherwise, how can we ever be mad?

Keep on bouncing and loping and doing that swooping, underhanded roping you do with your body. Keep on napping excessively beneath the pine trees, having rubbed our landscaped trees down to bare sticks, chewing on probably very fine baby kale. You are worth it. We are so lucky to have you here.

You are the world’s best, most beautiful, truly magical and amazing llama.

And now you are three.

Happy Birthday
XOXOXOXO

 

literary saturday may 27, 2017

Hello, and good Saturday morning to you! I am up extra early, caffienating and foam rolling before a little group run with friends in Midwest City. I have another running meet-up planned for early Sunday morning, too. Twice in one weekend? Who am I?

Besides starting two of our long-weekend days with running, my guy and I have some fun stuff coming up. Lots of sunshine-related fun stuff. Hopefully fewer wasp stings than we had yesterday (because can we all agree than one is enough). A sushi group date. A bonfire party. Some movie watching, to be sure. More sunshine. Less cerebral books than I have chosen lately.

The gardens are lush and making progress. I could be very happy spending several hours out there, “puttering” as my grandparents used to say, and adding another block of seed to the Three Sisters market garden.

In case you are up on Saturday morning with some great coffee and an appetite for reading, here are a few sweet spots on the internet:

This mini modern bohemian space in Philly, via Apartment Therapy. So nice. Plants like a jungle. Natural light. Colorful artwork. Did you see that tiny kitchen, but so neat and tidy? And the blue velvet sofa? And the interior brick wall? And the iron bracket, open shelving? It’s all a small version of my favorite aesthetics here in the farmhouse Apartment. And the smallness and coziness remind me so much of my daughter’s cabin in Colorado. Nice.

(( she has added a fridge & made some cool changes since this photo was taken ))

I am a sucker for research into and advice on how diet affects us, inside and out, physically and otherwise. This article at The Chalkboard shines some light on Omega fats and how they could impact our moods.

Nester shared a guest post by her friend Tsh titled, “When You Love to Travel & You Love Being at Home.” I thought it was written directly to me, ha. Then I read the article and was entranced by this woman’s life story. So fascinating! As different as our lives have been, she offers lots of relatable insight. I happened to read this close to some travels of our own, which was nice.

Travel is the one thing you can buy that makes you richer.

(( oh new orleans… xoxo ))

I love the Bon Appetit network of media. They pack both their website and magazine full of great ideas and gorgeous photography. And so upbeat! This article, though, especially got to me. The woman’s smile first caught my attention, then the title: “Transplanting Traditions Farm, a Place Where Refugees can Grow a Bit of Home.” Oh man. This is amazing. And inspiring. And humbling.

Have you noticed that inspiration almost always comes as a package deal with humility?

I have a still very long list of good reading to share, but the skies are brightening up a bit. Time to move on. Can we talk about S-Town, soon? Also a book called Lincoln in the Bardo? And Kite Runner? Okay thanks. I am a mess over them all.

Happy Saturday!! Tell me something you’ve been reading!

XOXOXOXO

taco bueno giveaway plus some silliness of course

I don’t do many sponsored posts, but for Tex-Mex? Ummm… That’ll be a hard yes, por favor and gracias.

Taco Bueno has a new menu item available, and they are almost as excited for everyone to sample it as I was to do said sampling. Next to perfect coffee every morning, really sweet watermelon as often as possible during watermelon season, and homemade popcorn during movies, Tex-Mex is my favorite food. I mean… salads, really. But obviously there is so much overlap there! OB-viously.

(( grilled chicken rice bowl/ salad FOR THE WIN ))

Anyway, growing up in Oklahoma and traveling a lot to Texas has made my life pleasantly nourished by excellent Tex-Mex. I crave it constantly. Taco Bueno is my favorite fast-casual place to satisfy that craving, too.

So the nice folks at Taco Bueno sent me a generous gift card to try their new menu item. For our sampling fun I knew exactly who to invite: Brad & Mer, our Taco Tuesday power couple. We love being friends with them for lots of reasons, including the facts that they LOVE to eat and they LOVE to laugh and they LOVE to dress up for all sorts of fun occasions. A couple of years ago they showed up to a Cinco de Mayo double-dinner-date wearing the best costumes ever. Brad donned the biggest straw sombrero I have ever seen (outside of a birthday song attack), and Mer, well… See for yourself. I did not even have to ask her if she would wear the Taco again. It was just an understood.

On to the food! Taco Bueno already has a pretty legit fast-casual menu. Years ago I could inhale the “B.O.B..” which stood for “big ol’ burrito.” More recently my favorite menu item has been the grilled chicken taco salad bowl (it includes black beans and cilantro rice). When we eat in rather than take out, I thoroughly enjoy their salsa and relish bar. It almost always includes fresh pico de gallo, which is my jam. Pile it on!

The new menu item is big and designed to feed either a small crowd or one perpetually hungry runner (with possible crumbs left for her husband and costume-wearing buddies). It’s called the “Wholotta Box” and it is no joke.

What you get for just $10:

  • 2 large side orders of rice (moist!)
  • 2 large side orders of refried beans (made fresh in the store)
  • 4 bags of fresh tortilla chips with SUCH great salsa
  • Your choice of a mix of 12 items, tacos and/ or burritos

The four of us opted to mix it up between tacos and burritos, plus I ordered that salad you see above (so good!), we added an order of queso, and I think there were a few small items added on, too. We had way too much food. Everyone ate plenty and enjoyed every bite. We settled in at one of those long, high tables and laughed and laughed for about an hour.

A good time was had by all, and we left with food to spare. My husband kept saying, “All of this was only ten bucks?” The Wholatta Box is, indeed, only $10. That’s a pretty great deal, friends. I feel like mentioning that we noticed several people leaving the restaurant with their own Wholatta Boxes to go, and how nice it seemed to have all that food packaged neatly in pizza-style cardboard boxes. Great for carrying home, you know? Ours was served just as neatly but in Styrofoam boxes for eating in.

As if our fun with Brad and Mer wasn’t enough, Taco Bueno wants you to go try something delicious, too! Enter to win a $25 gift card then go feast.

I have no doubt that your delicious visit to Taco Bueno will be made even better by great service like what we enjoyed from Heather, the young woman pictured above. She was patient with our antics, friendly to the max, and even posed for photos at our childish insistence. When our order was ready, she called out “TACO!” and everyone laughed.

I mean, WE laughed. The other guests in the dining room who just wanted some food, man, looked around nervously. We heard someone stage-whisper, “That’s a real live taco!” Follow that train of thought at your own peril.

So enter to win a gift card! Comment below, and just for fun tell me your favorite Tex-Mex food. I will choose a winner at random on Tuesday, May 30th. TACO TUESDAY!

I hope you go try the Wholotta Box. Bonus points if you wear a taco costume like my friend does, literally every chance she gets.

XOXOXOXO