Flabby Farmwife Trains for 5K: Week 1.

Yep, that's me, the Flabby Farmwife.  In the last 6 years, this old body has been pregnant five times, delivered three children, nursed each of those children for almost a year, traveled a gojillion miles, and has been the official "go-fer" on the Wilson Farm, all of which has made keeping a schedule and committing to a working out nearly impossible.

I have reached a new low and so have some of my body parts.  I'm tired a lot and more than "stressed out tired". If I were a cow, the vet would call me "lethargic".  People still call me "thin" (God bless 'em), but I now weigh more than I have ever weighed when not pregnant.  I am still wearing my post baby "fat pants" and the "baby" turned a year old last month.

Bottom line (pun intended): I AM OUT OF SHAPE.

I recently saw a Facebook post about the North Dakota Cattlewomen hosting a 5K and I thought. Now those are MY people.  If other farming and ranching women are going to be hoofin' it (pun intended) then I can do it too. I got this new thing, you may have heard of it, it's called HOPE!

Thankfully, I'm not training alone.  I've got Mrs. D.!

Mrs. D is an old friend from my grad school days and now she ranches about 200 miles west of here.  She too has a crazy busy life and has EVEN MORE children and they're EVEN YOUNGER than mine. Bless her heart!

We're in this thing together and we're either committed or we need to be committed, lol, because it takes some sort of insanity to try to fit working out into our schedules. Through Facebook, we're sharing our training experiences and encouraging each other.

So without further adieu, welcome to a series of blog posts, tracking my progression (and let's be realistic, probably regression at some point) on the journey to the "Beefin' It Up: Fuel up for the Finish" 5K/10K"

I began "training" last week.

Here's how that went:

Day 1. Had a milkshake.

Day 2. Went on "long walk" with the kids.

Pushed baby in stroller up steep incline, while children cheered "Go Mama Go".

Had a tall glass of 1% chocolate milk. This is actually a healthy way to re-fuel after a workout.

Day 3. Went camping with family. Ate s'mores with those jumbo marshmallows. Mmmm...

Day 4. Ate an ice cream sundae with chocolate syrup.

Day 5.  Rested. This training for a 5K is really tough.

Day 6. It hit me.  This is pitiful.  This is not training.  The way I'm going I'm going to be flabbier than when I started.  Sheesh.

Day 7:  Turned over a new leaf.  Dusted off ye olde bicycle.  Aired up tires. Noticed some parts have dry rotted.  Sheesh.  Went on 2 mile bike ride.  Actually broke a sweat.  Felt I could conquer the world.  Well, not the whole world, but MY world. Yay for endorphins!

Bring on week 2! Let's do this thing!

Feel free to leave encouraging comments for Mrs. D and I below! We could really use them!

THANKS!
Sarah :)

Thankful Thursday: I sure hope that's my husband!

 
During harvest, every night, and sometimes in the wee hours of the morning, this dark figure appears in my bedroom long after I finally call it a day. He stumbles in all grubby, smelling of grease, fuel, dirt soil and whatever else he's had a run-in with that day. (Hopefully, not a skunk).  I would request that he shower, but I know he is so tired that he is capable of falling asleep standing up at this point. 

I do his laundry, so even in the dark, I know that he probably looks like he rolled around on the floor of the farm shop or was dragged behind a truck and that his pants may very well stand up on their own from being caked with mud. I also know I could likely plant a few acres with the soybeans, corn kernels, or grains of wheat that have accumulated in his pockets. Cleaning the lint filter in our clothes dryer is always interesting.

I have gotten used to this nightly routine, out of necessity.  You see, an infant will wake me long before dawn.  Soon thereafter the wee Wilson gals will stumble out of their bunk beds and expect "bekfest".  I have to try to force my brain to turn off and get some shut eye, or I will be Zombie Mama the next day, and believe me, she is NOT pretty.

As I'm lying in bed and this nearly unidentifiable creature enters my room, practically falls into bed, and puts a rough, calloused hand on my shoulder, the only thing that goes through my mind is, "I sure hope that's my husband!" :-)

After I put my hand on his, confirming that it is indeed my dear Jeremy, I say a little prayer that goes something like this: "Lord, I thank you for giving me a husband who works so hard to provide for my little family. I am so grateful you got him home safe and sound. In Jesus' name. Amen."

When harvest is complete, Jeremy and I will get a babysitter, go out to dinner, give ourselves a few hours to celebrate that another year of feeding families around the world is behind us, relish the fact that we have a lot to look forward to, and we will fall in love all over again :)