My daughter turned 23 this morning. It made me think back to the excitement of 1987 when we first welcomed this little girl into our lives and I became a mother. Let me tell you – being a mother is the greatest occupation and avocation in the world and I am so blessed to have two wonderful kids. Jennifer and Kevin – I love you both so much.
I am doing a big run tomorrow. And I mean BIG. One I have only done once before and doing it unsupported. I am hoping to leave between 4-5 in the morning and run down to my Dad's house in Provo. This is a 35 mile run and it is going to be a hot day, so I want to get out as early as possible.
I am looking forward to the challenge of that many miles on my feet and all alone. At the same time I am really scared about that big of a run. It will be an interesting day!
I had Lasik surgery on my eyes in 2006 and was very happy to be able to go without glasses. Especially since I had worn them (or contacts) full time since I was eight years old. Starting about two years ago, I began to have to struggle to read smaller text and figured it was just because I was getting older and needing reading glasses. I've been using magnifying glasses off and on as needed and found the last few months that they don't seem to help as much as they used to.
I finally broke down and had a vision exam yesterday. The 'good news' is that my vision is still 20/20. The 'bad news' is that my astigmatism has come back and my up close vision is blurry from that. I ended up ordering some bifocals for computer/reading and will be using them. They will hopefully reduce the eye strain I am experiencing at work. And – no need for glasses for driving, running, distance work, etc.
Some good news on the BodyBUGG front. On Monday I called Customer Support back and asked to speak to a manager. The woman that I spoke with was much more willing to listen and respond than the one I dealt with on Friday. Especially when she heard it had only been three weeks. She spoke with the manager and on Tuesday I got the good news that I will be getting a replacement BodyBUGG. Yay!
I have been wanted to purchase a BodyBUGG from 24 Hour Fitness for quite some time after hearing about them on The Biggest Loser. Let's face it – I'm a running/workout technology geek. I like my running toys.
About a month ago, one of my co-workers told me that he had purchase a BodyBUGG and that the BB itself and the display watch were on sale for $250. I liked the discounted price and took the leap. I needed to lose a little weight and it only seems like I get the motivation when it hurts me financially.
Unfortunately, my new 'toys' arrived the day I left on a business trip to Michigan, so I had to wait an entire week to get my grubby hands on them.
From the beginning, I loved my new BodyBUGG. I liked checking the calorie burn on my computer and seeing how many calories I had burned and how many steps I had taken. I really liked that I lost 9.4 pounds in the first three weeks by focusing on exercise and diet.
Was I recommending the BodyBUGG to everyone? You bet. It was the greatest thing since sliced bread. Until this week….
I was back in Michigan again this week for some more testing of our new application at work. Wednesday night I went out for a late evening run to avoid the worst of the heat and humidity. The sky was overcast when I left, but did not look like rain. The weather channel did not predict rain. I knew the BodyBUGG was not supposed to get wet. 5 miles into my 7 mile run, guess what happened? Yep. It rained. Not just sprinkles, but a drenching downpour. I worried about both the BodyBUGG and iPhone I had on me, but I was on a path alongside the freeway with nowhere to seek cover and no way to protect my electronics. As soon as possible, I got back to the hotel and dried off my BodyBUGG and iPhone.
Thursday morning, I strapped the BodyBUGG on. No sound. A few beeps a little later. I decided to charge the BB at work. After a little while, all lights indicated they were green and happy. Still no response when I strapped on the BB. I sent off an email to their support team and got no response. (It turns out this is fairly common). Today I called the Technical Support line. After several attempts to reboot the instrument, put new firmware on the instrument, etc, etc, etc, I was told that I was out of luck because getting the BodyBUGG wet had voided the warranty. I politely complained and she spoke with her manager and came back with the same response. She directed me to customer service, where I was told the same thing. No offers of a replacement, no offers of reduced pricing on a replacement, nada.
This was a hard lesson to learn At $25 a pound of weight loss, I no longer recommend the BodyBUGG. I will sing loud and clear that Apex Fitness is a rip-off and has lousy customer support. And, several people that were considering a BodyBUGG are now jumping off that bandwagon.
All I can say is: "Shame on you BodyBUGG."
This is the certificate I made up for the 'Virgin' half marathon finishers:
2nd Annual Red Hot Pink Chicks Half Marathon
Diamonds & Titanium Edition
Virgin Half Certification*
Provo, Utah July 10, 2010
Congratulations on completing your
Virgin Half Marathon run!
*Possession of this certificate verifies that the owner is no longer a virgin
I can't believe I haven't posted for an entire month. I really should be ashamed of myself. But – I have to admit I just haven't been all that motivated.
The running training has gone well. I am lifting weights 2-3 times a week to get my muscles well balanced and increase my metabolism. I am running regularly and more consistently than in the past. In June I tried to have 3 or 4 of my regular runs be 6 miles or more in length. This week I upped that to 7 miles for my daily runs. I will probably hold at 7 miles until the beginning of September and then determine if I want to go up to 8 miles at a time. It seems like it was somewhere in the 7-8 mile range that I started pushing injuries last year and I want to avoid that problem this year.
The ankle is feeling pretty darn good. I get some twinges when I walk in flats or barefoot for too long, but no pain at all during runs. I think I want to start throwing more trail running in and get my ankles even stronger from the proprioception increases my legs get running on uneven surfaces.
I will be posting several updates this weekend and then want to get back to averaging at least one fitness posting each week.
