The 40th Hour

Hopefully my life will get back to normal soon. The legislative session must adjourn on Monday as stipulated in the State Constitution. The Legislature and the Governor must pass a 2 year state budget and there were big questions about whether not that would happen because none of the parties could agree on how to solve our $4 billion budget deficit. Well, the Governor took the ball to his side of field yesterday by claiming that he would not call a special session if the Legislature did not agree to a budget solution and instead he would line item veto budget bills sent to him and use a process called unalottment which is available to him July 1st to balance the budget.

This has been an exceptionally long session for me with a lot more hours put in than I expected. I feel like I'm in the 40th hour of a 48 hour bike race. I think it's hard for most of my family and friends to understand what this time of year is like for me. in case you were wondering.....I work all the time. I looked at my calendar and I've worked every Saturday for the last 4 weeks and for the last 3 weeks I haven't really had a day off. And, the crazy thing about this I never know from one hour to the next what my schedule is like. Last Saturday I went to the Capitol at 9:30 am and left on Sunday at 6:00 am and the last several weeks I've been at the Capitol until 1:00 am a lot. To my friends and family who ask me to do things this time of year, thanks for putting up with my common refrain "I can't, I'm working."

Session is a lot like an endurance bike race, only the stakes are much higher -- you have a chance to do good things for people. You prepare for months, your work hard and tough out the rough spots, become very weary at the end and can't imagine how you will be able to finish. Afterwards your swear you'll never do it again. A few days later, when you are rested, you look back at what was accomplished and think to yourself "that was worth it."

Was it worth it?

Today is the last day of my detox/cleanse. Was it worth it? Totally! I feel so much better and can see the positive benefits. I lost 6 pounds, got rid of some bad cravings and began the first steps on kicking some bad habits. The biggest benefit was that it has really made me think about what I eat and drink and the impact that it has on my well-being and performance.

Look out world!

Spring Clean Up

Last week I decided to do a detox and cleansing diet. I've read about this before and was curious about the benefits. So, I looked into it, talked to my friend Janet who's done it before and decided to make the leap. Janet's is doing it with me. She's committed for 14 days...I'm in for 7 because I don't want it to impact my training.

Why do it? I've want to get rid of a few bad habits and kick start some weight loss for race season (I've managed to not gain some weight during session but want to lose some more). Plus, I generally want to feel better about myself and make healthy choices.


I've chosen a plan that is based on fruits, vegetables, whole grains (not wheat), and lean meats. It also means no processed foods, sugar, caffeine, wheat, dairy or alcohol. It is not a liquid or fasting detox plans.

A few things I've learned so far:

I should have tried to wean myself off caffeine BEFORE trying this. I've had a raging headache for the last two days and am hoping that it goes away soon.

Plan meals before you start this. I decided to do it at a time that worked best for my training schedule but did not give myself enough time to plan meals accordingly. As a result, I was in some serious nutrition deficit yesterday by not having enough carbs from something other than fruit (i.e. rice, quinoa).

Find alternatives for breakfast. I often eat cereal or yogurt for breakfast and those are both off-limits this week. I've struggled to find the right fit. I've tried brown rice, which I normally like, but the texture first thing in the morning is hard for me to stomach. Today I had scrambled eggs and they were delish.

Yesterday I felt like crap - mostly because I was at work very late the night before, had little sleep and didn't give myself enough time to plan the food for today.

Today I feel great and am noticing the positives of the process, except for the headache!