fitness

The story behind my thinking glasses. (The Tifosi Vogel Chronicles)

| cheriarmour

Right by our desks at work is a Tifosi sunglass display.  And I’ve been known to, when I’m having a little trouble focusing on things at work, pluck one particular lens off the display, the Vogel, and continue my work.  The glasses have been known to improve my focus, help my dance moves, and least important of all of these, shield my eyes from the sun when it starts to blind us from reflecting off the cars.  So imagine my shock and horror, when, after the lenses hadn’t sold for a few months, the Tifosi representative came to take them and ship them back to Tifosi.  I nearly cried, until he gave me the glasses as long as I promised to hustle some Tifosi.

So today was the latest in the morning I’ve run in about a month, and look at what sort of weather we’re having!

weatha

Purrfect! Meow, I like it!  Except, about 5 miles in, I had to hang a loop back to my apartment to fetch the thinking glasses because I was squinting so hard in the gorgeous weather.

Vogel

Is that Jennifer Lopez?

Nope. It’s me!  (And I look completely naked from this angle, but I promise I’m not).  So the important stuff.  What is the difference between an expensive pair of running/cycling sunglasses like these ones and a big cool pair from Target?  Something from Target may look super cool, but a lens from the twirly thing in Target is missing some key elements that you need from a running/cycling pair, like this Tifosi one.  First, it’s not going to hug your face.  If you’re going to be active, you need a lens that sort of wraps around, the way a race car driver’s would.  Second, this lens has hydrophillic rubber at the temple and at the nose that prevents the lens from slipping and sliding all over the place.  I’m pretty sure those parts are adjustable too, but I’m not that handy, and I don’t feel like breaking a tool out.  It feels fine to me!  But when you run in a regular lens, they generally won’t have that piece, and they’ll slide down your nose and flop all over your ears.  Third, this lens will block the wind, which is pretty important for you lucky ducks with regular eyes. For those of you with contacts and allergies like me, wind blockage is key to prevent dry contact syndrome in the middle of your run.  And finally, these lenses are vented. In regular people terms, that means that they won’t fog up, which is a biggie, especially when you’re sweating and breathing all heavy.

The best part about all of this?  You can find a pair that doesn’t look dumb.  So save the cute Ray-Bans and the cheap Target glasses for the beach, and hit your runs (or cycles) with one of these sturdy pairs!

Post-pregnancy rant.

| cheriarmour
KK
Hey, I’ll give her kudos on the fact that they didn’t retouch this photo. But I love you Kourt, don’t contribute to the pressure some new moms to feel to drop the weight in like 4 weeks.

I logged onto Perez (my guilty pleasure) and saw my girl, Kourtney on the top of the page.  I read the headline, and my face fell.

Let’s back it up.  I have never been pregnant.  I’m something of a late bloomer and kids are not yet on the horizon.  Maybe some day.  But my favorite friends are starting to have babies and from this, some issues have arisen.  Of course, the normal kid stuff (not sleeping, bickering with your spouse, adjusting to kid life), but the body confidence stuff that comes with a changing body seems to be a really prevalent one.

It’s already not easy being a girl.  Boys are allowed to be a lit bit chubby growing up and still get really pretty girls and have friends.  If you’re a chubby lady, people are absolutely ruthless.  And it doesn’t stop if you work in fitness, like I do.  I’m pretty fit and healthy, but I work around bunches of gorgeous and fit men and women.  It’s easy to fall into the trap of comparing yourself to everyone around you, especially when, as a woman, the pressure to be thin (not too thin) yet muscular (but not too muscular), is huge.  And it seems to multiply 10-fold once you get pregnant.

So now that all the teen hearthrobs have grown up and are pregnant with families and kids, Hollywood has started to do this absolutely bizarre thing where they put this insurmountable pressure on new moms by publishing this…

JSOr this…

Mariah

 

Or this…

Kendra

::sigh:: She’s still holding like a newborn in this one.  That nugget looks like he was born 10 seconds ago.

I’m not saying that after a reasonable amount of time, a strong, healthy body isn’t attainable after kids.  (Look at P!nk, or Mel B!  They took some time, and they’re not stick thin, but they’re strong and healthy!)  But posting some of these pictures with these absolutely sensational headlines puts an unreal amount of pressure on new moms.  And it’s not fair.  Your confidence may already be a little thin as a new mom.  You’re not getting enough sleep, you may be nursing, you’re still incontinent, you feel like you don’t even have time to shower, and you’re expected to magically drop the baby weight before you’re even cleared to exercise?  That’s not right.

To all my pregs that read, or my new moms.  Chill.  You’re not getting any pressure from over here, in my corner. You work out when you can work out.  You eat as well as possible and you continue exercising during pregnancy.  And when you feel ready, and not a second before, is when you ease back into the groove.  You will wear those jeans. You will wear that suit.  But only when you’re ready to.  And one last words of advice, hot pregnant and recently post-pregnant mamas.  Don’t view your fitness progress (after you’ve been cleared of course) as getting your old body back.  Just look forward.  Keep looking forward, don’t look at those nasty magazines, and you will be feeling great in no time!

Let’s talk about poop, baybee! Running makes you move!

| cheriarmour

I’m not talking about some chub jiggling.  I’m not talking about the booty bouncing.  I’m talking about p-o-o-p.  I don’t want to say it, so we just have to spell it.  (My mom reads this blog, so we can’t get too graphic, because she will call me and yell.

If you run any sort of distance you know what I’m talking about.  You’re in the groove, and all of a sudden, the urge hits you.  The urge to ::ahem:: evacuate the dance floor, if you will, hits you.  There can be a number of reasons for this.  1, if you’re running in the morning, it’s part of the natural cycle of waking up and getting yourself together.  2, if you eat a little breakfast before you head out, your body wants to move things along!  It’s natural.  3, if you’re completing a long run and you’re taking gels, the combination of sugars and/or caffeine can give you a kick in the gut.  And finally, 4, if you’re racing, sometimes nerves can get the best of you, and set your stuff aflame.

So what do you do when you’re running, and all of a sudden, it hits you?

-In a race?  Hit the port-a-johns. Avoid looking down, make sure your quads are strong, and HOVER. Just hover.  Douse yourself in Purell, and keep on your way.

-My least advisable option is to take an Immodium before a big race. I’m not too big a fan of this option because it freaks me out to artificially plug things up.  Unless you catch the stomach flu and are severely dehydrated before a race, I’d skip this one.

-Before a long run or a race? Hit the throne so you can clean house before you find yourself 15 miles from home with a bewildered look on your face.  Skip the super fibrous veggies just before and clean house in the days leading up to a race or a long run.  Don’t eat weird or exotic (to you) foods just before a long run.

-If you really find yourself upset often, try switching to a non-caffeinated gel.

– Trees. If you’ve ever run a long race, people will regularly leave the course on the nature-y parts.  Don’t look at what they’re doing.  You know what they’re doing.  Don’t peek.  That’s weird.  You can do it too if you find yourself in a pickle.

-Finally. Finally. Finally. Map out the bidnesses in the area that will allow you to use their facilities. Some places (understandably) won’t let you use their restrooms, presumably because they don’t want folks getting dressed/having relations/using Listerine/getting drunk and throwing up in their places.  It’s happened to them before, so they not with it. Coffee shops that you frequent in real life, the YMCA, sandwich shops, or places that you worked in high school usually will be nice about the bathroom stops.  Use them.  Thank the folks who let you use them.  And make sure you frequent and patronize these bidnesses when you’re not running as well so you build a lovely rapport with these owners.

For those of you who live in Raleigh?  I’m working on a database to store those bidness (business) owners who are willing to let us use their facilities, and who might even spare a cup of water on a good day.  Look out for the info!

Boobs!

| cheriarmour

Made you look!

Now I’m not sure, how in all of my posting about running, I managed to overlook the important topic of support!  (Sorry fellows, if you’ve continued reading, you may want to bow out here.  I don’t think I can offer you anything in this post.  Sorry!)  But I received a message the other day from an old friend of mine, Sam Zelin, asking me to post a little more in-depth about the topic of support.  Thanks, Sam!  Let’s do it!

Ladies, let’s chat about boobs.  If you’re going to be active – whether it’s running, Turbokick, Yoga, or Zumba, and whether you’re small-chested, or not, you need support.  Not having adequate support is not an excuse to not get active, especially when there are options for every lady out there.  And there is absolutely nothing more painful than when you’re driving down the street.  You look to your right and there’s a girl running.  And her breasts look like they’re fully prepared to give her black eyes.  That’s not good at all.

Boobs!
This is a well-supported pair. This particular bra is the Vixen, which supports without creating the uniboob effect that so many of us seem to hate.

So the first step? Identify where you fall. Are you small-chested? Middle-of-the-road? Larger chested? Breastfeeding? Just had a baby? Once you identify this, get a real bra fitting to get your actual size. Not the size you think you are. About 80% of women are wearing the wrong bra size. Sometimes, me included, because I can’t seem to let go of some old bras. But get a real fitting for a real bra. THEN take yourself down to the local running specialty store (Fleet Feet ain’t a bad start!) and let the uber-qualified ladies meet your needs.  Whatever you do absolutely DO NOT, do not, DO NOT run down to Target, or worse, Wal-Mart, and grab one of those nasty Champion/Danskin bras off their bra table.  What will happen is your boobs will flop around everywhere as you exercise, unless you put two on.  Which is stupid.  You should not have to layer bras to get a sweet exercise situation poppin off.  At any rate, here’s a little guide to help you when you get down for your first official sports bra fitting.

  Bra
Small Breasts You actually can get away with one of those Champions, but it’s not the best option.   Try Moving Comfort’s Alexis, Phoebe, Vixen, or Charity for a little bit of compression, as well as some high-impact support.
Medium Breasts You may need a little more support than some of our smaller-chested friends.  Try Moving Comfort’s Vixen, Juno, Fiona, or Jubralee.   
Large Breasts This is where I fall.  I was always convinced that there wasn’t a bra out there for me, but there is!  For us ladies, try Moving Comfort’s Fiona, Maia, or Juno.
REALLY Large Breasts Ladies, don’t fret.  There is definitely a bra out there for you.  For you ladies (bless you!) try Moving Comfort’s Maia.  Also Enell makes a great bra called the Enell Sport. It’s not pretty, by any means, but it will do the job.

Honorable mentions: Nike makes a super decent sports bra with adequate compression and shape, so that’s not a bad route to go. If you’re looking for something cute? Check out your favorite running sneaker company, and look at their apparel. Usually they’ll have a decent bra to match whatever new outfit you have.

Now this list is by no means exhaustive, however, Moving Comfort really changed my approach to working out. Instead of having to put two bras on, one Fiona got me through countless summers teaching fitness to teens at camp. In addition, spend money on your bras! If you pay $14 for a bra, what the heck do you expect your boobs to do?

I am not superwoman!

| cheriarmour

I would like to pretend I am.  I go nonstop.  I teach classes, I go to work, I go for a run, I shower, and do it again and again and again.  Part of the reason for that is that one of my deepest fears related to working out is that if I skip a few days, that I will start to hate working out, and I will just sit on the couch all day and drink cokes and forget all about taking care of myself.  I know that’s not reasonable, or rational, but I just think about how I was in college (watching America’s Next Top Model Marathons for days on end while drinking a huge coke), and my blood runs cold.

“I’m young,” I tell myself, “I can slow down when my body won’t let me do this anymore!”  But this sort of thinking can lead to overtraining, injuries, lengthier recovery times, and general malaise.  But not to me, right, because I’m superwoman?  (Not so).

All of last week was absolutely brutal, as far as the weather was concerned.  Morning temperatures were regularly below freezing, and in the span of about a week, good old North Carolina got not one, but two big(ish) weather events.  I was also nursing a lingering cold throughout the week that wasn’t quite enough to actually be classified as sickness, but enough for me to pop a few daytime cold medications containing guaifenesin and pseudoephedrine.  Relieved my congestion, but didn’t do a whole lot for that general, energy-sucked feeling I had.  (Also, for you fitness folks, those colds meds dehydrate you, so be careful when you’re taking those).

But the show must go on!  I ran, I taught Zumba, and did my thing for the week.  Finally, on Saturday, it caught up with me.  I ate a teeny bit of something before I went to teach Zumba (probably not quite enough), and went down the the gym.  Throughout class, I just kept getting hotter and hotter.  I rolled my pant legs up, and removed a layer from the top.  Still sweating like a  pig.  Hm. Oh well!  Continued dancing.  The second to last song starts, and all of a sudden, it hit me.  I’m going to faint in front of this entire class.  And my nose may bleed when I hit my head in front of the entire class.  And planes will crash, and the electronic grid will shut down, and Beyonce will lip synch at the Superbowl.  I’m making this a tad more dramatic than it is, but if you know me, that’s not completely shocking.  But my thought is, “I’m going to fall in front of the class, and we can’t let that happen.”  So I eased myself to the ground, and THEN passed out.  Luckily, there was a doctor in the class, who sent someone for some gum and some Gatorade, checked my pulse, and sat with me until I was able to shake off the deep-seated embarrassment I was now feeling.

As a somewhat hysterical side note, it was close to the end of class, and when I regained my senses, I was still wearing the mic I wear to teach class.  So I turned my head, which was now resting comfortably on the floor, and announced to the class, “I’m sorry!  I’ve had a cold this week and I’m a little dehydrated!  But I will see you ladies same time next week!” ::insert 40 pairs of horrified/terrified eyes staring back on me here.

So the moral of the story is: chill out!  And I’m the first one who could benefit from that advice.  Yoga Kerri advised me, saying that you’re allowed to miss a long run and not have it mess up your entire marathon/life.  I’m not quite there yet, but I’m getting there, especially after that scary little blip on the radar.  I’ve been afforded the energy where generally, I can just go and go and go, but Saturday reminded me, that I’m a human, and that rest, especially on an off week where you’re sick and not feeling great, is not against the law.

Is working out for White people? (hint:nope)

| cheriarmour

What a lucky week!  We have not one, but two guest bloggers this week!  Let me start by introducing our topic.  ::sips Crystal Lite:: Ahem.

I’m training for a marathon (number 27 of the list of “Stuff White People Like”).  And I get mostly encouragement from my friends and family, but I get the occasional hate from folks, and a whole heck of a lot from other black women.  Saying I’m crazy, saying I work out too much, and that I’m too thin.  But for doing a seemingly good and healthy thing for myself, I’m getting a lot of discouragement.  So the past few weeks on the road, on the treadmill, and in the studio, I’m looking around, and I seem to be in the minority in these places.  And according to stats on obesity, it looks like I’m right, we (black women) are not doing a whole lot of working out.  So I asked Facebook, I asked Huffington Post, and I asked my pretty friend Theresa what the deal is.  Why are we (black women) in the minority at the gym and in races?  Why is the gym so white?  Why don’t black women work out?

Helmer Graduation

T: “I’m not sure how many times I’ve heard/read that black women don’t work out. Countless times I’m sure.  But I’ve never really understood it because for me personally, and all the black ladies I know, this isn’t necessarily a reality.

After reading an article from Huffington Post, (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/06/black-women-exercise-hair-bronner-brothers_n_1747535.html),  and seeing a few threads on reddit

(http://www.reddit.com/r/blackgirls/comments/140cp8/workouts_fitness_classeswhat_do_you_recommend/

http://www.reddit.com/r/blackgirls/comments/13hbjk/do_black_girls_work_out/

http://www.reddit.com/r/blackladies/comments/16ndkm/exercise_and_hair_where_do_you_fall_in_this/)

I wanted to say my piece:

This whole ‘black women don’t do exercise because of their hair’ is a tired narrative, y’all.  I mean I get it, our hair requires a different kind of maintenance and products than advertised in our society, therefore people think we have the short end of the stick in the appearance and hair department (we don’t, IMO).  I don’t want to go on a hair rant because I’m here to talk about my experience and observation as a black lady who exercises.  I started swimming in the 1st grade and did so competitively until 10th grade.  During this time (3rd grade-10thgrade) I was getting my hair chemically straightened and I would blow dry my hair and straighten it every time I swam.  It’s honestly a wonder I even had a hair on my head with all that chemical damage, but I digress.  After I quit swimming, I took up working out at the gym.  Nothing deterred me because I viewed physical fitness as part of my life and something that everyone in my family was always interested in.

After reading through those reddit posts, it seems that many women are interested in exercising whether it is running, classes, or sports.  The main thread throughout is like I said above, exercising isn’t viewed as a priority.  And until it is, I feel we’ll still be here spinning our wheels and waiting for some different result (that really won’t happen unless there’s some sort of grassroots effort).

My expert opinion? It’s really not all that serious.  People are making all these excuses for black women not exercising like hair and other appearance factors when I personally think it has everything to do with cultural indoctrination that exercising isn’t fun or it’s too hard AND that it would seem that some black women don’t have support systems encouraging health and fitness.  Without someone laying the foundation in the home, how is the idea supposed to diffuse amongst the general population?”

Theresa makes some excellent points.  As a woman who exercises, she doesn’t feel that the hair thing is a good excuse.  I’m honored to have perspective from another woman of color.

Here a few bullets from other ladies that we’ve gleaned from our research.

Black women don’t exercise because:

  • They think exercise is for white people.  Yoga, Pilates, and Zumba are perceived as being for skinny white girls. Not so, but that’s the perception.
  • Like we said before, the hair thing.  They don’t want to spend a ton of money on their hair on Saturday to sweat it out in my Zumba class on Monday. (I hope everyone recognizes that this particular line of reasoning means you’re choosing your hair over wellness)
  • Exercise isn’t viewed as being valuable.  Why go work out when you can go home and take a nap instead.
  • Exercise sucks/hurts (but you feel so good after)!
  • Black culture reveres a more curvy shape. Being thin is not necessarily considered a good thing.  And working out may cause you to lose your shape.  (You can still have a nice shape if you work out).
  • Exercise wasn’t a thing in a lot of our households! I grew up mainly in the suburbs.  But a lot of minorities and a lot of people with lower SES status live in areas without yards, sidewalks, YMCAs, and all the other good stuff that cultivates a good relationship with diet and exercise.

Long story longer, four out of five African-American women are overweight or obese. In 2010, black women were 70 percent more likely to be obese than their white counterparts, according to the US Department of Health.  That’s bad.  That’s really bad. Obesity influences rates of cancer, Type 2 Diabetes, high blood pressure, heart attack, high cholesterol, and hypertension.  All that to avoid sweating for an hour a day?  Not really worth it.

So here’s the deal.  Just…MOVE.  You don’t have to run a marathon to get the bennies and perks of working out.  Walk!  Dance!  If you like to shovel, shovel your way to fitness, I don’t know.  The point is, get moving so we’re not suffering all for the sake of a good perm.

A few things…

| cheriarmour

1. First off, congratulations are in order! I overshot my goal of 100 miles in this period by three miles today on my long run!  Yay!  I’m proud of myself!

2. Second, I bandited part of my first race today. I’m not proud of this by any means – it was a total accident.

For those of you who don’t know, to bandit a race means to run it without registering and paying for it.  Not cool by any stretch of the imagination.  Not only are you stealing from the race and race organizer, it’s not safe.  Had I fallen and, worst case, died, I would have made some significant trouble for that poor race organizer.

Let me explain myself.  I was finishing up the last leg of my long run today (12 miles, phew!) and I sort of noticed a cop standing in the middle of the traffic circle on Hillsborough (the main drag through North Carolina State University’s campus).  I thought nothing of it until I realized I was caught up in the middle of a large group of folks wearing race bibs.  So I tagged along for about a mile until I could safely dash across the course toward my home.  Totally an accident.  And not something I’ll make a practice of.

3.  The term, ‘chub rub’ is rude and a complete misnomer.  You don’t have to be overweight, or even chubby, to suffer with this serious condition.

For those of you unaware, ‘chub rub’ is the colloquial term that applies to the awful chafing that happens between your thighs when you combine moisture (like sweat), and repetitive movement.  Contrary to what this term may suggest, you do not have to be chubby in the least bit to experience the awful pain and swelling that ‘chub rub’ brings.  (Can we all agree to call it chafing from now on?)  My first half marathon, I wore my favorite Norts (Nike + shorts = the chosen uniform of college girls = Norts) and couldn’t walk or shower without some significant pain once the adrenaline of finishing wore off.

So how to combat this earth-shattering condition?  The answer isn’t to stop running, it’s Aquaphor or  something called Body Glide!  Slather either one of those babies between your thighs or anywhere where you’re prone to chafing (under the band of your sports bra, near your watch, on the back of your heel), and you should eliminate the issue.  Aquaphor gets my vote, because you don’t have to reapply as often, and it doubles as a sweet lip gloss.

Chub Rub

 

PS, isn’t running darn glamorous?  This is photo evidence of me (not very chubby) having to apply Aquaphor before my Sunday morning run date.  Beauty fades, but my class is forever!