Humidity and Humility

Last week, it was so cold, all everyone could talk about was how wonderful fall is and don’t you just love cool, crisp weather and pumpkin spice and sweaters and blah blah blah.  Well, I’ll bet they’re all singing a different tune now! :p

I ran five miles on Monday morning and it was pretty miserable.  The humidity was oppressive, and on top of that, it was foggy—so foggy, I was actually surprised the kids’ school didn’t have a two-hour delay!  The temperature was just a touch above 65° and the dewpoint was right about 65°—and that’s no fun! For those who care, the humidity is a percentage that basically divides the air temperature by the dewpoint (amount of moisture in the air); thus, the closer the two numbers are, the more humid it is.  Here’s a graphical representation of what Monday morning looked like, weather-wise:

No wonder I felt like I couldn’t breathe!  My run was pretty bad, but at least I had negative splits.

Yesterday, for the first time in pretty much forever, I took a Tuesday day off from running—and I actually DID NOT RUN!  I’ve tried “taking a day off” in the past during this training program, but I can never actually seem to do it; I always end up doing my run later that day. But in looking at the Higdon Intermediate Half-Marathon plan, I was technically supposed to do a step-back week last week, with a “15-k” race last Saturday, and therefore a rest day for me on Tuesday.  I decided that I would switch my step-back week with this week, because a) I’ll never find a 15-k race anywhere around here, and b) I have big plans this weekend that will make it tough to fit in an 11-mile run. So, with the switch, yesterday was technically a rest day. And I took it!  I really am trying to be smarter about my exercise, especially since I’ve added in the Insanity workouts twice a week, in hopes of actually being well-prepared for my half-marathon in two weeks. (Two weeks??  What? When did that happen?? I’m not ready!!)

I did take a walk in the afternoon for a little bit of exercise, but it was mostly just to clear my head.  I had kind of a mental battle going on that I was trying to overcome…an “inferiority complex,” if you will.  Without being all overly-dramatic about it, let’s just suffice it to say that I got “kicked out” of a group on the Weight Watcher’s “30-Year-Olds” message board.  I’ve been a member of that board on and off for many years (since 2004, in fact—back when I actually WAS in my 30s, ha ha!).  I used to be a regular participant on a specific recurring thread, but with the really awful situation at my previous job in the last two years, I just didn’t have the time in my day to keep up, and I fell off.

When I decided to make some changes a few weeks back, I figured that going back to the WW message board would be a good change to help keep me accountable and to also cheer others on.  In case you haven’t guessed, I’m a pretty outgoing person (ha! understate much?), and I really thrive on being a cheerleader for others in their weight loss journey.  Motivating others motivates me! Things on the board were slow, and I tried to jump-start that same thread, but there weren’t many (any) takers.

There were only two other active threads on the board, one listed as “closed” (ie, the people posting on it are having their own conversation and aren’t interested in conversing with new people), while the other was listed as “open.”  Technically, no thread is “closed,” though; it’s a public board, and no one can stop you from posting anywhere you want.  They can “report” your post, but you could just post again…and again…and again, if you wanted to be annoying about it. 😉

The members on the open thread seemed like folks I’d get along with (there seemed to be a lot of runners, which always interests me!), so I jumped in and posted.  I was welcomed and included in the ensuing conversation for the day. Things were slow on the board over the next few days, and I get to work pretty early, so the following Monday, I just went ahead and got the thread started (that’s how it always worked with the other thread I’d been a member of before).   I did that a couple more times that week, and now that I look back on it…I notice that there wasn’t much response to the threads that I started. (Sometimes, there was none.)  But I figured people were just busy, and when I posted on threads started by one of the “founding” members, they continued to include me in the conversations, so I was pretty happy, thinking I’d found a group that was a good fit for me and one to which I might be able to contribute in a positive way.

Then, yesterday when I logged in, ready to converse with my newfound friends, I discovered that one of the “founding” members had started the thread already, but she had changed the thread description to “closed,” with this text added to the first post:  “Please note new header, the longtime members have decided to stick to our original members at this time and become closed. We wish you the best of luck on your WLJ!*”

I was surprised she didn’t add “Stephanie” to the end of the last sentence. :/ Another member added: “Woo hoo! Thanks for closing the group. I was feeling sort of invaded. :)”

Well, my goodness.  🙁  I know that the Internet is full of this stuff, but it was the first time I’ve ever been singled out in such a manner, and I can’t lie—it hurt. 🙁  Yes, I’m a grown woman and this shouldn’t matter at all, but it felt an awful lot like elementary school and junior high all over again, when I was the new girl and just trying to find a friend (which happened a lot—I moved five times from 1^st through 8^th grade).

I know, I know…pity party for one. :/ I didn’t completely wallow in it, though…I went ahead and started another thread (one open to anyone) with the hope that it might generate some activity.  I took the high road, never responding to their thread, nor addressing their actions in my new thread.  However, that little snub bothered me all day, which is kind of sad really, but I guess I’m more sensitive than I should be.

During my miserable three-mile run this morning (in 96% humidity—ugh!), I thought about it quite a bit, and eventually I came to a realization: the truth is, I am an extrovert through and through, and my over-the-top personality is just not everyone’s cup of tea.   And that’s okay! Everyone doesn’t have to love my brand of “crazy.” 😉 I have tried all my life to “turn it off” and be a little less “in your face,” but I’ve discovered that it’s not in my nature to do anything less than jump right in with both feet.  I didn’t name my blog “That Loud Redhead” to showcase my shyness, after all. :p

So, while I feel a small sense of loss at the potential camaraderie I’ll miss out on with this group, I know that it’s not the end of the world, and hopefully after the holiday, some new folks will pop up, ready to get on track and get some support while doing it. And won’t they be excited to find the world’s most extroverted redhead in their corner? 😉

Now, because there aren’t many pictures on this post, and because I want to end on a positive note, how about a picture of a super-outgoing redhead on a great big Tonka Truck?

Because, seriously, how can you not smile at that? 😉

Thanks for reading!!

*WLJ = Weight Loss Journey