Finally, A Treadmill Recap in Race Report Fashion

Well here it is, my treadmill in the middle of the mall! The wonderful people over at Lifestyle Family Fitness delivered it, set it up and the Westfield Countryside Mall people roped it off and set up the table for me and this is what I walked into the mall and found at 8: 30 a.m!!

You always picture things going wrong and something not working or going according to plan, but not here! Not at all. It was perfect.

Then my dad and I started setting up and my nerves were a complete wreck. All night the night before, all morning, my nerves were just a complete wreck. It was a little better when I got to the mall, but not much. The fact that I was about to become a spectacle for 10-11 hours in the mall was really starting to sink in. (Whose idea was this again? Why did I think it was such a great idea again??)

Anyway, what went on the table: lots of stuff to bribe people to come on over, like purple beads, Hershey's dark chocolate kisses that are wrapped in purple and other purple yummies. And coupons for free massages by Hydromassage (they were AWESOME!) I had also made a big "science fair project" looking backboard with the information about myself, my team, Team In Training, LLS, the whole shabang. I had a "schedule" of what I would wear and when, along with a list of the raffle prizes, and my 1993 prom dress all laid out and ready to wear should someone come along and donate $200 (which they didn't, and honestly, I don't really mind. It's one thing being able to fit my prom dress from 1993 (hurrah!) but it's another thing to have to suck in and squeeze and tuck and breathe in real deep just to zip it up. Then walking on the treadmill on it.. yeah, not sure it was in the cards.

I had a bevvy of hats and attire and "costume" changes, like my fluffy purple pimp hat, a clown hat, some antennae, a cape, and a feather boa (which completes any occasion, including shoveling a sandwich in my face on a treadmill at the mall!)

Then there was my 80's wear, complete with leg warmers and stirrup pants (which were $4, but the getup=priceless!)

And then there was my 8  mile training run, which was in a word, painful. However, I will say, that the people-watching involved in being on a treadmill at the mall kept me distracted enough to gut my way through it. The aftermath was pretty rough though, I was nauseous for a while after that.

And then it was time for the green swim cap to come out. Which as you can see was the hottest outfit of the day. Brought to you by the Tri-Warriors, my tri-group that won the auction with their high donation a couple of weeks ago. That's hotness right there.

Hi, Tri-Warriors!!!

Honestly, not much embarrasses me anymore. I was one with the green swim cap.

And then the tv guy showed up! Hooray! (Post-green swim cap.)

And then the crowds started to thin out, (I had Chick-Fil-A on the treadmill and got scerred when I dropped a bite of sandwich on the treadmill but was relieved when it just flew off the back!) and it started getting dark out and I was running out of steam.

My legs started to revolt and I put on my sombrero (my husband poo-pooed the mustache) and I started getting all teary-eyed. I didn't want to give up, but it looked like things were ending.

It was getting toward 8 o'clock, my legs hurt so bad I was holding my body up on the treadmill handles to take most of the weight off my legs, and we were just past $1400. Not all the way to goal, but I had been there 10 hours. And then right after I put on my sombrero, my phone died. (Another sign...)


My husband turned to me and told me how proud he was of me. And said that it was ok to call it a day. Which we did.

And boy did sitting feel nice.

The great moments: seeing all my friends come out to support me. From my tri-group, to my softball team, to parents and teachers at my son's school, to my husband, my children and my daddy -- and my mom who was there in spirit cheering me on from Facebook because she was at the tail-end of a horrible flare-up.  

This hilarity right here:

My Twitter buddies and Facebook friends who were literally ON the treadmill with me cheering me on from my phone like Pubsgal and Lissa who tweeted me pictures!!!! All the people who donated and supported me (the one guy who was milling around, only to pull out three $50 bills and put them at the bottom of the bucket and walk away...) or the little girls who took a hershey's kiss and dug into their tiny 7 year old purses to donate their change. The maintenance men talking about how we'll do it again "next year..."

I don't know why or how 10 hours passed so quickly and that it only really started to hurt at the very, very end, only to say that I was meant to be there. I was meant to stand on that treadmill and raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and I was meant to be there to see all the people who would help me rally around fighting cancer. I would never have pictured this for myself but it was an experience I will have forever. I have a video I'm going to edit together and put up soon too. My only wish in hindsight was that I wish I took more pictures of my husband and dad! (Also, if you missed it on the news, the link is HERE.)

The next day, my legs hurt and my stomach was in tangles and I had a lot of Pepto Bismol, but it all cleared up and I feel fabulous now!
The biggest news is that I met my minimum fundraising goal!! (Hooray!!) And THANK YOU!!!

What a crazy, crazy fun ride this has been.

* * *

The fight's not over, and we are still very much raising money for cancer, so if you haven't donated you still can, either to me or my team and those links are  HERE. I'll even give you a present! (Check it out and read about who I'm running for HERE!)

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Finally, A Treadmill Recap in Race Report Fashion

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The Hangover

OK so I'm a little sore.

My legs are hung over. They partied like rockstars yesterday.

I'm pretty sure they're pissed.

I went home last night and sat in a cold bathtub, which felt good on my legs, but not on the rest of me. I am wondering if one takes an ice bath, if you can wear a parka up top? What do people normally do? Because sitting in a cold bathtub is paradise for my legs, but torturous on the rest of me!

Anyway, my husband was sweet enough to let me sleep in until 10. And this morning I woke up 2 pounds lighter, literally. Awesome. (I totally ate Chick-Fil-A fries on the treadmill, too, just like Coach Joe said I could. It felt weird shoveling food into my piehole on the treadmill, especially fries.)

Right now it's 6pm and I'm still in my pajamas. It's been raining out all day and I'm thinking today's a perfect day to go from one pair of pajamas to another.

I had spent night and day on this fundraiser leading up to yesterday, so it is so nice that I can and will literally do nothing today. When I'm less lazy, I'll upload more pictures, but here's the link to the news story! They didn't get me on my good side (should've told him to swing around to the other side!) but oh well!
http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/dpp/news/local/pinellas/treadmill-fundraiser-032810

Thank you so much to everyone who supported me! I will e-mail you separately anyway, but if you contributed more than $20, please pick out a necklace HERE and e-mail me your choice! mailto:christieo_7@msn.com). (And Ps. the necklace offer still stands any time you donate, so you still have time!) And seriously, thank God for inventing Twitter, because what would I have done all day without you all keeping me company???!!!!

* * *

And if you still want to help me fight cancer, you can do so by donating HERE.

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The Hangover

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Humbled.

I will have a complete "Treadmill at the Mall" report a little later, complete with pics and probably video.

But my final tally was: Hours run/walked: 10. Miles run/walked: 26. $$ raised: $1435, between the folks at the mall and the people who donated online while I was on the treadmill, because I sent live updates to Twitter all day and some of you took pity on me supported me 100%!

I am so humbled by the long list of people who supported me in doing this, from my family to all the wonderful friends who came to the mall to support me, to the wonderful group of friends I have online who kept me going with their encouraging words and the pictures they took of themselves supporting me (Pubsgal, Lissa and children!) I'm also humbled by the stories I heard from the strangers who supported my mall adventure and all the names that went on my shirt. I am humbled by the mall staff and the gym staff who shook my hand and cheered me on the whole entire day (and to the Regis salon who let me borrow their "facilities" and cheered me on from inside the salon). And the little girl who reached into her tiny pocket and dropped her change in my bucket. And the people who stopped by in the morning and came back later just to see if I was still there. And the one kid who kept passing me asking, "Are you still the same lady?"

Thank you. I might not have reached my $2,000 goal at the mall, but I have reached my $2,900 Team In Training goal. I'm there. Because of you.




Psst! Become a fan of Christie On a Treadmill At the Mall on Facebook!

Please help me fight cancer by donating HERE. I'll even give you a present! Check it out and read about who I'm running for HERE!

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Humbled.

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OK, This is It. Don't Get Scared Now.

At this time tomorrow, I'll be on a treadmill in the middle of my mall, Westfield Countryside, from 10 a.m. until closing. I'm sure you're probably glad it'll be over so I can stop talking about it! :) Me too. I'm nervous.

Here is my itinerary (subject to change):

10 a.m. GO!
11 a.m. Hat hour (I have a sombrero, Uncle Sam hat, some leprechaun ones, a furry pimp hat, etc etc etc.)
11:30    Lunch on a treadmill (Coach Joe from Team In Training says I can eat fries. But that just seems so wrong.)
12p:   Training run, 8 miles!!!!! Yikes. Talk about not a pretty sight. Oh well!!
1:30p, cool down, possible crazy hat, 1st prize drawing.
2pm: Tri-Warrior hour! Which means bright green swimcap, goggles and other tri decor.
3pm: Retro-throwback hour round 1!!
Just before 4: 2nd prize drawing
4pm. Memorial Hour (please email me or comment below with the name of someone you want me to run for, I will put their name on my shirt.)
5p.m. Dinner on a treadmill
6p.m. Retro throwback hour round II.
Will I still be on here at this time? Please say no.
Hats are making a second appearance, if so.

That's pretty much what I got. Suggestions still being taken.
Follow me on Twitter, @christieo all day long for live updates! Hashtag #treadmillatthemall

* * *

Psst! Become a fan of Christie On a Treadmill At the Mall on Facebook!

Please help me fight cancer by donating HERE. I'll even give you a present! Check it out and read about who I'm running for HERE!

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OK, This is It. Don't Get Scared Now.

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THIS is What It's all About. Thank you.

When I posted about three things about the Sisterhood today, what I really wanted to show was sort of the backstory. What's really going on when we fundraise and when we train. Because it's hard. And it's not pretty either. Because we've had injuries and toenials fallin off, we've sent a zillion e-mails and snail mails and some days it feels like there are crickets in my inbox or email box, and sometimes people you're talking to about your cause just simply aren't very nice about saying "no." And I don't have thick skin. I pout after someone's mean to me.

But then there are the other days. When people you don't even know show their support. When someone leaves you a comment about who they are donating for and how special that person was or is to them. Or tells you how much what you're doing means to them. Or says, "Yes! I will let you put a treadmill in the mall so you can make a spectacle of yourself for a good cause!"

You find inspiration. You find people who believe in you. You find that even though you come across some negativity -- I mean, after all, it's a tough time for a lot of people! I know that! And after all, we're just another cause that is asking for donations -- there are still people with so much *good* inside them that it makes me cry and it makes my heart melt.

The other day I went to go ride on the spin bike for a while because I missed my rides on account of the Fitbloggin. Spin class was wrapping up, so I popped onto a bike and started talking to the spin class teacher. We ended up talking for a good 40 minutes about pretty much everything and finally got to talking about my treadmill fundraiser and she shared the story of her uncle, a Marine, who died of Leukemia in his 20's, leaving behind a 3 month old daughter he never met.

She had tears in her eyes talking about it, and for some very random reason, she had his picture in her car and we walked out together and she showed me his beautiful face. Taken so very young.

My heart broke.

I believe that God brings people into my life and I into theirs for a reason. That on that day, we were supposed to meet. That on that day, He wanted to remind me about who I was doing this for in the first place and why.

Because it's not easy. But it's not supposed to be. Nothing worth fighting for is ever easy. That's the beauty of the fight. It's hard when you're doing it, but it's amazing when you've won.



Over the weekend, as you know, a bunch of us from the Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans went to Fitbloggin. Above is the view from our hotel room (gorgeous!) and me showing the number "6" because we were up to 6 miles last week! I ran it on the treadmill on Sunday and boy it was not pretty. My face is all red, there was no air conditioning in the gym and there is mascara running down my face. But hey! It's done! It's in the bank!

Because this weekend, I have to run 8 MILES! And on a treadmill no less! And with tons of people watching me! (Gah!) Because I can't have an 8 mile run on the schedule, be on a treadmill all day long and not do my training run. Right? So I am in the process of building my itinerary for the day. It will consist of the following ( and take note of the bright green swim cap.)


The outfit that my lovely friends from the Tri-Warriors have picked out for me! Remember how they won the online auction I was having?? Well, I will be running for an hour, wearing a bright green swim cap, goggles, their t-shirt and they will have a million magnets for me to put all over the treadmill. I am not a pretty swim-cap wearer. But I'll make the best of it! Of course they had to pick the bright green one. But I do want to thank them from the bottom of my heart for donating.  It makes my embarrassing myself totally worth it! And I'm not even being sarcastic!

I'll also do a "Retro Throwback Hour" where I will wear my 70's-wear, some 80's and maybe even finish that off with the prom dress my parents have been bugging me about. It's as 80's as you can possibly get. Although I think technically it's early 90's but you wouldn't really know that because of the degree of puffiness. I will also be having a "hat hour." I have a sombrero, a pimp hat, an uncle sam hat, a couple of Irish-y leprechaun ones, a big clown hat, and of course my Team In Training ball cap. I will also have an hour dedicated to running for people who have been touched by blood cancers or any cancers for that matter. I have a t-shirt and I am writing down all of the names of the family members that people donated to me in honor of on my shirt, and anyone who visits the mall that day, they can write the name of the person they're donating in honor of, and I will wear it and run for all of them. Do you have someone you want me to run for? Please leave it in the comments or email me: christieo_7@msn.com.

While I'm here, in this incredibly long and full post, I want to thank a few people whose *good* was really showing over the past few weeks.

I want to give my profound thanks to Kelly from Westfield Countryside Mall, for somehow picking up my e-mail, looking at it, scanning it, mulling it over and thinking that somehow this would be a good idea. I knew it was a shot in the dark, but for some reason, she believed in it enough for me to do this in her mall, and I thank her from the bottom of my heart for allowing me to do this! Thank you, Kelly!! I really have no idea what I would have done if you said no because I had no good Plan B option!! So thank you!

And thank you to Lifestyle Family Fitness for sharing your treadmill with me! There is a very good likelihood that I may have even run on that very one in my past (who knows! unless of course, they've gotten new ones and that very well could be true.) But thank you for this vehicle that will allow me to remain stationary whilst going really, really fast or really really slow for a really really long time.

Also, thank you to Hydromassage, who is providing a free massage for every person who donates! I got a chance to try it out myself and it was amazing! If I worked there, I don't think I'd be able to even help other people because I'd be too busy laying the massage bed (of course then I'd be fired...) Anyway, it's a massage bed that pulsates water against your body (it's under a lining though, you do this fully clothed, shoes and everything!), working you from head to toe while you're laying on your back. You can pause it and let it hit you in your lower back or your neck or whereever you want (like I did), you can watch movies while you do it, there is a tv screen above you, you can adjust the speed or the force, it's up to you. It's awesome.

Chick-Fil-A, StrollerFit, Moe's, IronMommies, Mia & Maxx (my favorite hair place with my favorite hair gal "Aly"),  and a British pub by me Grind House, have all provided some really great raffle prizes. THANK YOU SO MUCH!

And now I'm still runnning around making sure I've got everything and I'm nervous, but I'll just have to remember why I'm doing it in the first place. Because it's not about me anyway.

Thank you, everyone, for supporting me. I love you.

* * *

Oh! The winner of the book is Tirah! Sending it out today!!

Psst! Become a fan of Christie On a Treadmill At the Mall on Facebook!

Please help me fight cancer by donating HERE. I'll even give you a present! Check it out and read about who I'm running for HERE!

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THIS is What It's all About. Thank you.

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Weigh-In Wednesday and A Happy St. Patty's Day!

Happy St. Patty's Day!!! I'm not Irish, but my last name says I am!!! So I'm going with that...

We woke up and we had some green milk and some green eggbeaters (yum!) so we're in the spirit!

And I was totally stoked when I woke up because I was just planning on maintaining this week. But noooooo! I lost anyway!! Despite missing two workouts because the little boy was sick and eating only kind of half ok and definitely not counting points because we went to Disney last week.

I lost 2 POUNDS!

Woohoo! Thank you, body, for not listening to my diet and workout last week. I'll be good to you this coming week, I promise.

I'm sure you've seen our great big party at the Sisterhood by now, right??

If ever there was a time to get something for giving, this is it! We're giving away dozens of prizes and hundreds of dollars (yes, real cash!) for your donation. Plus, every penny that goes to our team, helps ME get off the treadmill FASTER when I go for my "Christie On a Treadmill at the Mall" fundraiser one week from Saturday. I will be on that thing from the time my mall opens to the time it closes or until I raise $2,000! So not only will you be saving me, you could win something HUGE, not to mention the great feeling that you will come away with from helping to stamp out a horrible disease which so many of us have been touched by. So what do you say... You can donate to Team Shrinking Jeans right HERE. And take a look at all the prizes here!

Have a great St. Patty's day! I am sending you all a virtual green (light) beer! Don't forget to visit all the other sisters at the Sisterhood today and support them on their journeys! Want to join us? Head on over -- it's never too late!!

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Psst! Become a fan of Christie On a Treadmill At the Mall on Facebook!

Please help me fight cancer by donating HERE. I'll even give you a present! Check it out and read about who I'm running for HERE!

Follow me on Twitter.
Subscribe to my blog.

Weigh-In Wednesday and A Happy St. Patty's Day!

https://babytealeaves.blogspot.com/2010/03/weigh-in-wednesday-and-happy-st-pattys.html?m=0