For the month of October, I committed to the Unprocessed Challenge and by doing so, I swore off processed foods.  Basically, participants had to refrain from eating foods they couldn’t reproduce, bake or cook themselves, such as foods that can only be produced in a factory.   Thankfully, store-bought beer and wine were acceptable.

Seriously?  In October?  What was I thinking?  I freaking love candy corn and other Halloween candy.  I think I ate even more of it because I knew I couldn’t on account of the challenge.  It was tough and I think I lasted (at most) two weeks.  And then I devoured some Tyson hot wings.

For November, I’m participating in the 30 Day Giving Challenge for the third year.  I love this challenge, but I’m not going to lie.  It’s hard, even when I plan out all my gifts for the month, because schedules change, kids gets sick and sometimes things just don’t always go according to plan.  I’ve done well though and I’ve given 15 gifts and then some in 15 days so far.

Speaking of gifts, my t-shirt giveaway didn’t attract as many people as other giveaways have in the past.  I tweeted, Facebooked, linked up at giveaway blog hops but still only 4 people entered the contest, including my SIL, Kirsten and my friend, Chrissy, who won as a result to all her entries.  Obviously, she had the best chance, which is what you hope for when hosting a giveaway.

Has anyone else noticed a drop in giveaway participants?

I had this whole 12 Days of Christmas giveaway plan in the works, but after this giveaway, I’m rethinking the idea.  It’s a lot of work and if it doesn’t generate a response, I’ll be disappointed.  Oh well.  But I’ve got other fun bloggie Christmas plans in the works, like a blogger ornament exchange and a virtual cookie recipe swap!  Stay tuned for more details!

This Sunday, as part of my giving challenge, I’m volunteering at the Women’s Half Marathon water stations with Suncoast Running.  I’m so excited to give back to a sport that has given me so much.  I’m looking forward to cheering and encouraging all the runners while handing them a cup of cold water with a smile.  It will mean the world to each participant, whether it’s their first half marathon or the fiftieth.

Do you remember that almost 21 miler I did a couple of weeks ago with little to no pain?  I even survived walking around Universal Studios the next day (minus a hamstring pull from 25 pound toddler squats all day).  Then, I didn’t run for two days to rest.  I ran about 3 miles on Tuesday and then on Wednesday, I ran almost 10 miles.  And that’s when it all went downhill.

I had some serious heel pain, like my heel was being stabbed with a knife.  I’ve never had this pain before, but I knew it wasn’t good.  I researched about heel pain and learned that I have heel spurs possibly as a result from increasing miles too quickly or running in old shoes (shoes without support). I’m inclined to believe it’s the latter because I’ve been pretty careful to not push myself too far too quickly.

As for healing my heel, everything I’ve read recommends taking a week off from running.  But, my marathon is in 12 days.  12 DAYS!  And I can’t run or even taper!

So now, I need new shoes.  But new shoes need to be broken in before I attempt to run 26.2 miles in them.  Plus, I don’t have any extra cash at the moment and I was really hoping Santa would bring me some new running shoes.  My friends over at Suncoast Running told me that they will have some great Black Friday specials. But I’m still nervous about running a marathon in new shoes.

Tomorrow (Wednesday) will be a week since I last ran and it still hurts to walk or put any pressure on my right heel.  I tried some light hiking when we went camping over the holiday weekend and the pain would gradually increase.  I’ve read that I can do alternate work-outs like cycling or very low impact aerobics, but I don’t think my heel could handle any impact.  Plus, I’m still scared to get back on my bike.  So resting and yoga is the plan for a few more days until I get some new shoes.  It seems my running plans have become a footnote and I’m not liking it all.

Oh and there’s this other nagging other issue I keep forgetting to do.  I haven’t booked a hotel room for the race yet.  I know. I know.  What am I waiting for?  I was waiting until I registered, which was delayed until I knew I could come close to a marathon distance again post-baby number 3.  Well, I’m officially registered (as of October 22) for the Space Coast Marathon and now I can’t find an available room.  But it doesn’t matter really because it appears that I will have to buy shoes instead of a securing a hotel room.  Looks like I’ll be sleeping in my car the night before the marathon. Yay.

As you can see, lots of challenges lie ahead this month.

*Proudly submitted to Stacy Uncorked, because when I blog about my training, it’s usually pretty random.*