High Fashion

The new Lands End fall catalogue arrived in the mail.  I did one online order last year and now magazines arrive on my doorstep every few months.  I'm not much of a shopper but I do like looking at their beautiful (and yet oh so functional) clothes.

This particular magazine had a few pages of dresses - several of which were very nice.  Simple.  Elegant. Flattering.  I have two weddings this fall and am already starting to worry about what the heck I'm going to wear.  I spend 90% of my time in jeans and runners so dress up clothes and I don't really know how to talk to each other.  They intimidate me and, as much as I'd like to have a bit more variety in my wardrobe, I tend to shy away and stick to what I know.

Back to the dresses.  I liked the look of them and actually started contemplating the colour options.   Suddenly I thought "but where would you put your pump?".

Form fitting dresses and insulin pumps do not go well together.  Dresses in general are a problem because there is no waist band to clip the pump to.  If I wear a flowy skirt, I can use a leg band that goes around my thigh and tuck the pump in there.  That wouldn't work with a tight skirt though.  It would look pretty ridiculous to see the outline of the pump on my thigh - kinda like I'm wearing a holster.

The thought that I couldn't wear a dress that, until moments ago, I didn't even know existed made me sad.

The odd time that I do dress up, my pump is always a bit of a nuisance.  It looks fine (or at least I don't notice it) when I wear jeans.  But dress pants lose their dressy edge when there is an insulin pump clipped to them.  Blouses and form-fitting tops don't flow nicely, they all bulge out at my waist line where the pump sits.

Most of the time I have a pretty good relationship with my pump.  I haven't named it nor do I refer to it as he or she.  It is what it is - a piece of technology that keeps me alive.  In many ways, it has made my life much easier than the needles ever did.  It keeps track of how much insulin is left in my system - no needle did that.  It lets me make minute adjustments when I'm running and cycling.  I have less stuff to carry with me and it's a lot more discreet in many ways than the needle was.

When it comes to clothes though - the pump has its drawbacks.  When I run, my pump is normally clipped to my running belt.  I never realized how well that worked until this summer when I started wearing lighter shorts than I had ever worn before.  The first time I ran intervals, I took off my running belt, clipped my pump to the waistband of my shorts and began my first sprint.  Within seconds I knew this was not going to work.  My pump bounced up and down like a crazed bunny and ended up migrating from my right side, around the front and to my left side during the first 800m run.  I wore my running belt for the rest of the intervals.

Doug and I took a runners yoga class last winter.  It was my first yoga class on the pump.  I clipped my pump to my pants the way I normally would and, within a few minutes, realized having it on my side wouldn't work. It got in the way every time we bent to that side during a pose.  I then had a brilliant thought. I clipped it to the back of my yoga top - out of the way.  Right on cue - as soon as I had it in position - we were told to lie on our backs.  Sigh.  No matter where I put it, it was in the way.  I learned to just keep shifting it around based on what the next pose was but it would have been nice not to have to keep readjusting.

I'm thinking about marathon day and what to do.  Doug has offered to carry my supplies so I won't have to wear my running belt.  Without my belt though, my pump has nothing rigid to clip to.  Bouncing around on my shorts would drive me batty.  If I'm wearing my Runners' Edge vest, I can put it in the back pocket but it bounces around causing my vest to twist around my waist.  My summer tank top was tight enough that tucking the pump in the back pocket worked well - but I'm thinking that it will be a little too cool for that in October.  It looks like I may be wearing my running belt anyway, just to have a place for my pump.

All this to say that I was looking at the new Lands End catalogue and they have some lovely fall clothes...

Cow Face Pose

I love Sunday mornings.  There are two different kinds in my world and they're both wonderful for completely different reasons.

Some Sundays are days of rest.  Typically, those days happen when it's pouring rain or blizzarding (I may have just invented a new word).   There are no alarm clocks and there is no pressure to do anything. Waking up and being able to luxuriate in bed is one of life's great pleasures.  When hunger finally wins out, it's down to the kitchen we go for a yummy breakfast with some classical music playing in the background.  Those Sundays are warm, peaceful and good for the soul.  

Most Sundays involve a 6:30am wakeup, a quick shower and breakfast followed by the loading of two bikes, two trainers, two yoga mats, two changes of clothes, snacks and a laptop into a very accommodating NissanVersa.  Then we head off to Runners' Edge for the Sunday morning cycling group followed by a yoga class.  

Cycling and yoga are great cross training options in an otherwise heavy running schedule.  My legs are always tight and sore from Saturday's long run but, after a stint on the bike and some crazy stretching, they feel long and limber again, if a bit wobbly.  

Yoga is a very humbling activity.  So is running, just for the record, but in a completely different way.  In yoga, we are a room full of runners trying to increase our flexibility.  Facing each other on our yoga mats, there is no place to hide. Everyone gets to watch as we struggle to find our centre of balance and to straighten our damn legs.  Thankfully, we all know each other so the room is always full of good-natured laughter and teasing.  

Most people in the class have one particular pose that they are really good at.  Doug has great balance and rocks the tree pose.  John's hockey has helped him master the bound angle pose.  I discovered that I have very flexible shoulders which means that I'm good at cow face pose.  

Yes, I did indeed say cow face pose. 

I'd prefer to excel at a pose with a prettier name but such is life. 

Today's cycling workout and yoga class were great but we had a few added twists thrown in.  Namely, several centimetres of snow.  We arrived home three hours after we left - weak in the legs and ready to eat.  But first - we had to shovel.  

Shovelling is normally one of my absolutely favourite chores.  It's outdoors, it's cold (I'm always overheating so cold is good), it's invigorating and you can immediately see the fruits of your labour.  I even shovel things I don't need to shovel just 'cause I want to. Today, I was so tired and hungry that our wee driveway and sidewalk just about did me in. 

By the time we got inside, I thought I'd exceeded my physical limit for the day and that I would have to crawl back into bed for a few hours.  

But no!  

One bagel sandwich, one homemade larabar and several glasses of water later, I'm reenergized and basking in that happy endorphin glow that follows a good workout.  

I may be sound asleep in bed by 8:30pm tonight but, for the moment, I feel fabulous!