3 Goals Before 30

With my 30^th birthday less than 3 years away, I thought it’d be fun to set 3 long-term fitness goals that I’d love to achieve before the big day.

There is quite a bit of time to achieve and to change my mind but here they are as of right…..now!

1) Run a sub 2 hour half-marathon. My best (and only) time is 2:00 and at that time, it was really easy. Now? Not so much so I have some serious work cut out for me.

2) Bike a half century. Who am I?! To do this I’ll probably need to upgrade from the Huffy I currently ride (yes, and race in) so thank goodness for having some time to save money. I’m also going to use my friend Lou’s 365 mile goal – for every mile she runs, and her goal is 365 in a year, she puts a dollar in a jar – so for every mile I bike, I’m going to put a dollar in a jar. I better get cranking because bikes are expensive!

3) Hold a yoga handstand. I know this is ridiculously easy for some, but I’ve never been able to do it. I can’t even do a cartwheel. To achieve this, I’ll need to start attending yoga frequently and build that strength!

And that’s my plan, Stan!

Ohh Hi There...

Remember me?

Yeah...I wouldn't remember me either. It's been a LONG time. It's definitely not how I planned my triumphant return to blogging, but it's how it worked out. Things continue to be crazy busy (I'm in the UK for the second time in 6 weeks, with a couple US trips thrown in between), and I continue to have zero great stories about health and fitness, so there never really seemed like a good time to blog.

Remember how I said I would run 365 miles this year?

Yeah...I've run like 4. Not a great start seeing as it's a week into May. I've walked or walk/run quite a few more than that, but totally running without stopping and counting them, not so much. This might have to be shortened to a 6 month goal of 182.5 miles.

Remember how I wanted to strength train?

Yeah...well as soon as my TRX class (which I totally loved, btw) ended, I stopped anything remotely close to strength training. I have not so much as picked up a weight in that time.

I am clearly amazing.

Sometimes we set goals for ourselves, and even with the best of intentions, we don't meet them. But, as with most things in life, I can give it another try. I can start tracking miles now. And why not count the ones I'm walking? Those should count too because with those, I might even make to 365 from this point to the end of the year (and moving any number of miles is something over nothing). I can start lifting now. I have weights at home and most hotel gyms have SOMETHING heavy to pick up.

It's never too late to start. It's never too late to try again. And it's never worth throwing in the towel just because it took you longer than you wanted to get into shape, or back to goal weight, or to start a healthy habit.

I mostly say this as a reminder to myself, and so I'm not so hard on myself. It's life. You've got to live it, and sometimes, it means failing at things. And I have to be ok with it. It's not over. I still have time to get back up on the horse and try again.

So here's to trying again...and being a little more serious this time...

Cheers.

Plans for 2013

I'm not really big into resolutions, but I'm willing to say there are things I want to change. I'm determined to make 2013 a good year. That being said, there are some things I'm willing to commit to, and hopefully will be able to stick with them for the next 12 months.

1. Get back into running and track my miles. Although I used to post about my runs here, I never really kept track of how far I went each week. I know I can go back and load all the info from my Garmin, but at this point that's just past miles. From now on, I'm going to keep track of what I do. My awesome friend, Lou, is doing a really cool thing that I also decided to take part in. 365 miles in 365. I know there are people out there who aim for 1000 miles a year, so this might seem like small peanuts, but for me, 365 miles will be a great showing. Not only that, but each mile comes with a dollar attached to it.  I'm going to have a pretty jar that will get a dollar per mile, so by the end of the year, I'll have $365 saved up just for running. Sounds like a win win to me!

2. Strength Training. One of the things that disappoints me most about having fallen off the fitness wagon is my lack of muscles. Before I changed jobs, I would go to a strength class twice a week. I loved the class and I love how strong I left. These days, I feel extra jiggly because I have NO more muscles. I'm not really good at weight training on my own, so I know the class will be ridiculously important to getting some guns again. Luckily, I rejoined my favorite gym (it's worth the money to love my gym and have access to classes). Not only will I be able to take the strength class once a week, I've also signed up for a TRX class. My first class was last night and all I have to say is OUCH. I loved it, but in the hurt so good kind of way. It was VERY evident that I've got a long way to go to get back to where I was, but at least I'm on my way there!

3. Take my vitamins and floss. Although unrelated to fitness, it is related to overall health, and that's always a good plan. Since I was traveling so much, I was out of my regular morning routine, and I stopped taking my vitamins. I didn't notice the difference too much, but that doesn't mean I shouldn't take them. I usually feel VERY dependent on my iron vitamins. Just a week without them and I'd be covered in bruises and could barely stay awake some days. Now, I don't feel that way. I am still pretty bruised, but I don't feel tired, and I think it's mostly because of the gluten-free eating. It's been suggested that a gluten free diet will increase energy levels, and I'm definitely feeling those positive effects. But the reality is, the iron levels in my blood are low, and gluten or not, sleepy or not, I need to make sure to get those levels up. And who doesn't love a good floss or a Flintstones multivitamin daily?

4. Be more involved. This one actually has two sides to it.
First, I want to be more involved in "extracurricular" activities. I want to volunteer more. I want to join a rec league of some kind (which might require me to be good at a sport, but we'll see). I want to raise money for a race I'm signed up for, not just run it. I want to just DO more. I work a lot and some days I work really long hours. But that doesn't mean that at the end of the day I should just go home and park my butt on the couch. I need to get out there. I need to meet new people. And I need to have fun activities on my calendar.
Second, I want to be more involved in the lives of the people I'm with. I need to respond to emails more. I need to schedule coffee dates. I need to make sure my little cousin who just started middle school know that I'm here for her if she needs someone to talk to. I want people to know that I care about them, I'm interested in what they do, and I'm not "too busy" to do things. I'll attend concerts and show of my friends. I will visit my Gramma more. And I'll send birthday cards. Get psyched.

So that's that. I'm sorry for yet another post with no pictures, but here are the goals. They're set in stone (kinda) so I'm hoping that I can stick to them!

And I promise the next post will have awkward sweaty pictures! (Just what you've all been missing, I'm sure!)

April Showers

Well there haven't really been any April showers...it's been very un-rainy, which is just fine with me...but that's really not really how the saying goes now is it? (Caution: wordy post to follow).

Unfortunately, there haven't really been any April posts either. Zero to be exact. How did that happen? Well I went to Chicago, and then it was Mari's birthday, and then it was my birthday, and it was Easter, and I had a huge presentation I was working on for work...and now we're here.

Here is a very interesting place for me right now. Over the last year, I've definitely lost a lot of focus in my food and fitness life. I know I've discussed it before, so it's probably like a broken record from me, but the truth is, shit got hard. Once you start to slip up and lose the drive and dedication you once had, it's SO hard to get it back. I've basically taken an entire year off from weight loss and general healthiness, and it's gotten me a whole lot of no where. I'm not happy with my fitness level, my habits, or my body.

But sometimes we have to fall off to be able to pick ourselves back up again, and see where we need to be stronger. These girls admit their struggles all the time, and I admire them for it. I am channeling them as inspiration to get it back together and focus.

As I said, this is obviously not the first time I've mentioned a need to refocus. My motivation waivers and I get comfortable where I am. But now, I am not comfortable. I ran 6 miles without stopping last weekend. It's a first for me. I've never done more than a 5k without stopping. This was double that. So I should be extremely proud. But I am not. Because I realized that even though that run was good (albeit slow), I am by no means taking care of myself. And that run could have been better. And I want to feel 100% proud of myself, not just of one run.

The pace of my runs has slowed, my clothes are a little tighter, and my muscle definition is gone. This is NOT how I pictured myself to be as I turn 27.

So I'm doing something about it. I've enlisted the hubs for help (I'm around him the most, so he's a good place to start) and I've taken a vow of willpower. I have done this before, I most definitely know I can do it again. The half marathon is 6 weeks from today. I am feeling so scared and almost wish I hasn't signed up for it. But I don't want to feel that way. I want to get to the starting line on race day and feel excited and ready.

The next 6 weeks are going to be rough, I know that. And I know it's going to take far more than 6 weeks to get me where I want to be. BUT. I have to start somewhere. And I need to have a short term goal to kick start the process.

So I admitted my problems. Step one. Step two, create a plan of action. Check. Step three, find a way to hold yourself to that plan and be accountable. I have most definitely lost all accountability in this process, so here is where I know I'll struggle most. I'm hoping this blog can help me in that process...I plan on doing weekly check-ins after my long runs, and post my daily eat during the week. I don't intend for this to become a food journal, but for 6 weeks, it's going to have to be.

I hope I've not gotten myself too far off course, and that a kick in the pants is all I need. I've thought I could get it back on track several times in the last year, and obviously I haven't, but I do feel as though I've found a new rock bottom, and I'd like to get out of here, as soon as possible.

Wish me luck.

That Sh*t Cray

Hi. My name is Maddie, and I think I've lost my mind.

On Saturday I ran four. No just four miles, but four miles in the snow.

Yup. It wasn't terribly cold, but it was wet and snowy. They were some decent miles though.

sweaty and snowy. #hot

This made me feel like I rock, so I decided to sign up for a half marathon. Yeah. Me. The girl who has never run more than 6 miles (and that barely counts because it was a terrible run). The girls who has confessed to not love running completely. It definitely seems like I've lost it.

Well. A lot went into me deciding on a half marathon, actually. First, I've been in need of a goal. I am planning on doing a tri again, but probably not until September. And I cannot for the life of me do the NROLFW...it's just not happening.

So I've been thinking about it for a while. But I never really was set on it. I had a possible half marathon goal for the May 2013 Zoo Run when my running friend Lou is back in the states, but even that was only a pipe dream. Until this weekend.

On Friday I had dinner with my awesome friend Emma. She's signed up to run the Chicago marathon in October! We talked about how training is crazy, but it's exciting. And it got me thinking some more about my own running plans. And the on Saturday I ended up wearing my sister's old BAA 1/2 Marathon shirt around my gma's house all day because I was doing my own laundry. And then at family dinner on Saturday night I mentioned to my sister that I was thinking about doing a half marathon. She said she wouldn't suggest the BAA because it's hilly, but that the Run to Remember was around the city and in May.

And that was it. I signed up.

So now I've worked out a training plan...and it leaves room for my crazy travel schedule coming this spring, and basically it will get me through so I can finish the race. I am going to work on goals for it eventually....but right now I'm still kind of in shock that I'm even signed up. I needed to be able to push myself and I'm actually really excited about this, so I think it's going to be just what I need.

We'll see in a couple of weeks though when I have to run more than 4 miles at a time...

2012 (Just a Little Late)

So I know I said last week that I'd be back with an update, and here I am! It just took me a little longer than I anticipated. But what can you expect around here, right? I'm a self-proclaimed slacker. Oh well.

Thus far, 2012 has been a pretty good year. I know we're only 9 days into it, but why not enjoy those good 9 days, right?

I started the year by drinking too much (again, no big surprise here) and then going to the zoo. Yes, I am 26 years old and on my day off from work, I went to the zoo. No big deal. It was awesome. A friend of mine and I really needed an adventure, so off we went! The weather was nice, and Rhode Island is close enough, but far enough, so we spent the day at the Roger Williams Park Zoo. I made a new friend too.

This weekend I went home to see my gma. I had to get some work done on my car (the one thing making 2012 NOT so great), and so the hubs, the siblings, and I piled into the car and drove down. My uncles came down on Saturday night for dinner too, and we played a few rounds of Scattergories. All I have to say is, HILARIOUS. My 9 year old cousin was there, so it stayed pretty clean, but it was still so funny.

Sunday, my brother and sister and I took advantage of YET ANOTHER weekend with awesome weather (keep 'em coming, universe) and went for a walk around our hometown, which is on the water and gorgeous. It was a nice brisk walk, and we chatted about old memories the whole time. And my brother is quite possibly the funniest person alive, so I pretty much laughed the entire time. Great ab workout.

Last night we also all went to a BU hockey game. It was really fun! They played the US Men's Under 18 team, and it was a great game. It ended in a tie, which is fine by me, because how do you really root against a national team?

That's what I've been doing so far in 2012. I've also been working (duh), getting workouts in, and tracking my eating.

2011 turned out to be a pretty rough year for me mentally...adjusting to my new job and the changes it brought to my everyday life, and the last 6 months have not been what I wanted them to be on my journey to a healthier life. I don't generally like New Years Resolutions, but this year I took the changing of the calendar as a new start. I do actually KNOW how to live a healthy life and lose weight, but I wasn't doing it. So now, I'm working back to that. Did I take a couple steps back in my habits and what the scale says? Yes. More than I care to admit (especially on the scale part). But it ends now. I know how to do this, and I am going to. The end.

And to that point...this is supposed to be a blog about eating better food and being fit. So I should probably start doing that. In 2012 I plan to blog A LOT more about my workouts and hopefully a lot more about food. I am NOT a cook by any means, and I don't plan on documenting everything I eat, but hopefully I'll have some good recipes and tips to share!

I'm still trying to decide my fitness goals for the year. I know I want to do at least one tri this year (I think I'll be doing the same one I did last year because my mom is going to do it too!), but I'm thinking a second tri, a 10k, and maybe a 10 miler? It's still in the works because I feel pretty out of shape right now, but as it comes together, it will get posted here!

Here's to a new year, a new attitude, and lots and lots of fun!! :)

5 Mile Recap

On Friday, as you know, I ran five miles. And I survived. And I kind of liked it, even though nothing really went as planned. But let's start from the beginning.

A few weeks ago, I declared that I would run five miles on Thanksgiving. Obviously, Friday was not Thanksgiving. Explanation? My family was beginning their celebration in Connecticut at 1pm. To get up, run 5 miles, get ready in nice clothes, sit in traffic on the Mass Pike, AND make it to my grandparents on time would have required an extremely early wake-up call, and no offense to running and goals, but it wasn't going to happen. So I pushed it to Friday. It was actually a fantastic idea too because I didn't drink nearly as much as I would have if I'd not had to get up.

So Friday, I got up bright and early (we have to leave for VT by 9am, so I still had to get up early, but not AS early) for a solo 5 miles. Remember how my sister was going to run with me? Well that didn't happen either. She wasn't feeling well, but I knew I couldn't use her as an excuse, so I suited up and headed out the door. But without my iPod, since it was dead. And I only got as far as my front steps when my Garmin died. Poor planning, Maddie. I'd mapped the route before hand, so I didn't really need my Garmin for distance, so I ditched it and grabbed my phone instead. The phone would serve as a safety measure, music and picture device.

But, it takes crappy pictures, like this one.

Crappy picture or not, that view definitely got me pumped up. It was so still and quiet in the city, and it felt so good to be pounding the pavement instead of nursing a hang over (not that I don't do that my fair share...it just wasn't the case on Friday.

As I said, I'd mapped out the miles already, and it was broken up pretty nicely. The first mile and a little took me along the river, and I'd round out mile two after crossing the Mass Ave bridge. It's kind of a beast (although nothing compared to the Longfellow), but I tackled it once last week so I knew I could handle it.

I felt great through mile two, and was happy to round into mile three. Mile three and four were my old running route I used to do almost daily last summer from my old apartment. One mile to the Public Garden. One mile back. I miss that route a lot because it's SO pretty, and I actually love running on the brick sidewalks. I've yet to eat it, although I'm sure some day I will.

When I got to the garden, I stopped for about three minutes. At this point, I had not actually had any music for about two miles. My phone was being really annoying and was not streaming music. Fail number 6234 for the morning. I hadn't wanted to stop before, being afraid that I'd throw myself off my game, but I really knew I needed music to power through the last two miles, despite the gorgeous scenery.

The music lasted for all of like 4 minutes before it wouldn't stream again, but I just wanted to be done. Mile 4-4.5ish was rough. Like I was going a snails pace rough. But I hadn't walked yet, and I wasn't about it. So I busted it out and finished! Mile 4.5-5 was awesome. I was on cloud 9. I still wasn't going fast, BUT I was doing it! And I did it! It took me few minutes long than I'd hoped for, but like I said, I am just so proud of myself! I did stop to stretch my legs 4 different times (about 30 seconds each time, except for the big stop near the garden), but I didn't walk once. I ran all five of those miles. Boo. Yah.

I know that lots of people run 5 miles all the time. Or more than 5 miles all the time. But this was a big one for me. Mentally, I wasn't sure I could do it, but now it doesn't seem so bad. I've done it once, and I didn't even come close to dying, so I know I can do it again. I'm ready for a 10k on Saturday, and I'm just hoping I feel as good...and I'll have a full charged Garmin and iPod before I even think about leaving the house...

A New Month!

This post is so so long overdue. I actually started it a couple times already, but I've been so busy that I never got finished and never made it up.

First, I was going to post about how it snowed on Halloween and how I dressed up like Johnny.

Then I was going to post about how I got coupons in the mail for Target, and how I used the coupon to buy a large bag of apple, which I baked in the Crock Pot and how I used them for breakfast and dessert the next day.

AND THEN, I was going to post about how I went to Pittsburgh this weekend with my sister and my gma. And how was toured the city and my gma showed us all the places she used to live and told us wonderful stories about her life (which was not easy at all, by the way). We took her for her birthday present. We wanted to have a trip with my gma while she's healthy and able (and 81).

I was going to post about how my uncles joined us (as a surprise to my gma) and how we went to church on Sunday at St. Andrew's...the same church where my gma was married to my father's father 59 years ago). And I was going to post about how we went to Fallingwater, the Frank Lloyd Wright house outside of the city.

But instead, I'll post about my gym efforts this week.

I signed up to take part in Pile on the Miles. It's headed up by Monica, over at Run Eat Repeat. The goal is to pile on the miles during the holiday season instead of the pounds. Since I've been doing a little bit of the pound piling myself, I figured this was a great way to stay on track. The first week was only three days, and probably the three busiest days of my life, so I didn't get my five miles in, but THIS WEEK. This week, I'm golden. It's only Tuesday (the week starts Friday at 8am), and I've already finished my required five miles!

I went to the gym in Pittsburgh with my sister (after attempting a run, but failing to find a good route and getting too cold), and last night I WENT FOR A RUN. This is a big deal because a) it's been a while. Like way too long. And 2) I did it after work and in the dark! I'm really not good at getting back out the door once I get home, but when the weather was still 60 degrees, I knew I had to take advantage! It actually wasn't terrible either.

Which leads me to my five miles goal...I'm definitely not any closer right now, so the goal is Thanksgiving. I thought I'd be able to do it before that, but I've got to be realistic. SO folks, you heard it here first. On Thanksgiving 2011, I will run 5 miles. (yikes!)

Fantastic Friday

Fridays are always fantastic, but today is extra special because I have the day off! WOO! I love days off (who doesn't, right?), but this day off is special because today I'm headed up to Maine for a wedding! I love weddings too, so double win!

I took advantage of my day off and slept in a little bit. The hubs still had to go to work for a half day, so I was still up early, but not 5:30am, which was a treat. I have a ton of errands to do this morning, so I fit in a quick workout using an OnDemand workout video.

It was a pretty decent kickboxing video that got me nice and sweaty. I chose not to do the jumping quite as intensely as the lady in the video because I have downstairs neighbors and it was 7am. But I still looked a hot mess afterward. It's pretty sticky here these days thanks to random rainstorms, so my hair looked FRIZZY.

Now I'm watching Biggest Loser from Tuesday night and having my pb&j breakfast, yogurt bowl style. Delicious!

Now I'm running really late for my errands (got to get my nails done and pick out shoes for the hubs), but I have two things! Fun things.

1. I am going to run 5 miles. Remember when I agreed to do it back in April? Well obviously it never happened. And I did a half-assed job training for my tri. So now it's game time. 5 miles. When? I'm not sure yet. I'm thinking the first weekend in November. I wanted to say Thanksgiving, but that's way too far away. I KNOW I can do it before that. When I pick the date, I'll let you know.

2. I bought The New Rules of Lifting for Women. It seems like a bit of a bandwagon thing to do, but I need to strength train. And I can no longer go to my awesome body building class, and I need some direction. A lot of people have had success with it, so we'll see how it goes! It should arrive today!

source

Ok...now I'm REALLY late!

September Goals

Greetings!

I can't believe that it is already September! I think I spent so much time training, I kind of let the summer just go by. My goals this month are to (again) post an entry at least twice a week and to begin training for a half-marathon. I'm going to take this rebuilding of distance training very slowly. I haven't picked out a race yet and won't until I'm more comfortable running anything past 3 miles (something I haven't done since the ankle injury).

In the spirit of getting excited to start training for a race, I worked up a new treadmill workout. Here it is, enjoy!

Minutes 0-5 Warm Up
Minutes 5-10 Jog
Minute 10-11 Increase Speed by Any Increment & Hold for this Minute
Minute 11-12 Increase Incline by Any Increment & Hold for this Minute
Minute 12-13 Increase Speed Again/Hold
Minute 13-14 Increase Incline Again/Hold
Minute 14-15 Increase Speed Again/Hold
Minutes 15-20 Jog
Minutes 20-30 45second Sprints with 15 Second Recovery in Between Each Sprint
Minutes 30-35 Jog
Minutes 35-40 Repeat Minutes 10-15
Minutes 40-45 Cool Down

Vacay Recap

For being unemployed I sure haven't posted very much! I actually didn't realize how little I've posted until I read the BFF's post and she mentioned that we posted 7 times in July!

July was definitely a crazy month - training, posing, fittings, workouts, meal planning and trying to keep it all together. The good news is August is going to be a bit more relaxed and full of activities that I've been missing out on. I had read so many times before that training for one of these fitness competitions tends to affect one's social life and I wasn't sure how that would work but I was optimistic. During my experience, I did notice the impact- I no longer wanted to go out to meet with friends for drinks because a) I couldn't drink and b) I was afraid if everyone wanted to munch I would be so tempted to cheat on my strict diet so I didn't go out very often. For the same reasons, I didn't go to the movies (snacking on fish during a movie just didn't seem so appealing) or do very much because i was so afraid I'd mess up my diet. I know that a lot of people have the self control to go and do these things without affecting their diet, but I was so scared that I wouldn't be that strong so I chose to stay at home. I'm happy with results of sticking to my diet and training plan but I am so happy to being catching up with friends over New Mexican food, making plans to grab a glass of wine and scheduling a movie date with my fiance!


The San Diego trip was an overall awesome vacation. We stayed in a condo with my parents and sister just across the street from the beach (Sam Adam's Summer in a blue plastic cup accompanied me on many of these quick walks to the beach). Jay and I nicknamed our room the Butthole Bungalow simply because of this lamp...We ate great seafood, In-N-Out burgers and I finally ate the three things my diet missed so badly: cereal + milk + fruit!! It was delightful!! Clearly I had already eaten most of this serving before I remembered to take a photo.

I didn't think that I would be motivated to get back to exercising right away, surprisingly by Monday morning I was ready for a run. I think the sites had something to do with it!
We also sat on the beach, enjoyed the sunshine and played in the water. I think this sums of the great times on the beach had by all....


My goals this month are to blog at least 2-3 times each week and to do some level of exercise (running, walking, zumba, weight lifting, etc.) for 1 hour each day, with at least 1 day of rest!

Reunited and It Feels So Good

This past weekend in New Mexico was awesome. I got to see the BFF for the first time since October and I could not have been happier. She looks AMAZING and I'm so proud of her for rocking that competition. Seriously guys, my best friend could totally beat up your best friend.

Please ignore the fact that I look like Casper next to Mari..and she happens to looks like she belongs on the Jersey Shore with that spray tan...not that she doesn't usually make me look pale...

The competition was so interesting. All the women, in all the categories, clearly pushed their bodies to the limit and have been working really hard to get to this point. I'm so impressed with all of it. I could never do it! But like I said, Mari rocked it. It was SO fun to be there and cheer her on and help with the prep process! All her hard work and dedication was amazing and inspiring. So baller.

 It was a really great trip over all. We spent lots of time in competition prep, but we managed to make stops at my favorite pizza place, coffee shop, and I got awesome chips and salsa. We also we able to squeeze in a baseball game! I love the Red Sox more than any team, but Albuquerque Isotopes games are cheap and so much fun. Where else do a red chili, a green chili, a taco, and a jar of salsa race around the bases?

I came home on Sunday with my sister-in-law. She's almost 11, but this is her first big trip without her parents, so it's been exciting. We had a long lay-over in Dallas and got into Boston late, but our spirits were high!

It's good to be home and getting back to the grind, even if it's a little off now that there's an extra body in the apartment (getting three people out the door in the morning is WAY harder than two people...especially when one needs a little extra help getting ready).

To report on my goals for last week: I did 2/3. I did not exercise 5 days. With the travel and all the things that had to get done, it just didn't happen. But I'm ok with it. I drank a lot of water and I tracked all my eats, so I'm happy with it. I had a great weigh-in this morning, so I know that if I up the exercise this week, and keep it up with the water and tracking, I'll be right as rain in no time! It's amazing what a visit with the BFF can do for your mental health and motivation. :)

Not to mention, my sneakers just got tricked out.

Oh yeeahhh. That's right. I have a ID tag on my sneaks now. Safety is sexy.

Old Habits Die Hard

It's been another few days of on and off. One day I work out really well and stick to good, healthy foods, and another day I'm all over the place. It's a work in progress. I don't know what caused me to all of a sudden feel/be so out of control. I spent a looongggg time working on making good habits, and to just throw them out makes me REALLY annoyed. BUT I'm working on it...and I'm getting those good habits back. Yesterday I had a great brick workout and I've done a great job tracking my food in the last two days. I have a few mini-goals for the week, but first, I must share about my weekend!

Although it was not exercise-filled, it was really fun. I went to VT for the annual Vermont Brewers Festival. It's our third year going and it did not disappoint! We even had an extra addition to our crew this year, baby Brynn! She's so amazingly perfect and I love her. I'm so glad I finally got to meet her and hold her!

I ended up with a sunburn from the Brew Fest, despite putting sunscreen on THREE TIMES. It wasn't a bad burn, and I think it's probably because I was so sweaty the sunscreen just didn't stay on. Nevertheless, I had a great time. After the brew fest we went down to the water front to see the sunset. It was a perfect night, until the sun went down and we got eaten alive by bugs!

We made it home Sunday night after sticking around to watch the (tragic) Women's World Cup finals and battling traffic in New Hampshire (turns out there was a NASCAR race in NH this weekend and we left at the same time as all the hicks).


ANYWAY. Now that this is the longest post ever, let me get onto my mini-goals for this week. I have three. And I think they are all pretty darn do-able.

1. Track EVERYTHING I eat. No guess, no doing the math in my head (my hubs can do calculus without a calculator, but I need a pen and paper to do my simple addition. And I need to just own that and do it).

2. Exercise at least 5 days. I had a great workout last night, but it doesn't count for this week (because my weigh-ins are on Tuesdays, so life works Tuesday to Tuesday), so 5 days of great workouts.

3. Drink more water! I don't drink enough water. Ever. I drink 1 cup of coffee a day, and 1 can of diet coke. That won't change (I love diet soda, I do not care if you think it's bad for me), but I know I need to add more straight-up water to my life.

These are the small steps I'm going to take to get myself in a better place. Number 2 might be hard since I'm traveling this weekend, but I have a feeling I'll be able to stay on track since I'M GOING TO NEW MEXICO!!!!!! Wooooooo! That's right, the BFF and I will be hanging out this weekend!! We have not seen each other since October! So, for the first time ever, there will be pictures on the blog of us together! Get excited!

I'm Back and June Goals

Yesterday morning I arrived home from Chicago. It was four days of working hard and playing hard. I was on my feet more and drank more since Wednesday than I have in the last three months (well...maybe not exactly, but it sure felt like it!)

I was delayed getting in to Chicago Wednesday night because there were tornadoes in Mass! So scary. They didn't come close to Boston (or the airplane I was stuck sitting on for two hours), but it was very close to my office, so I was worried for the people at my office. The storm was nasty, and we arrive two hours late to Chi-town.

Friday morning was the only time I got any real exercise. I found out that my hotel was just a few blocks from Lake Michigan, so I made my way over to their awesome bike path. I heard about it for the first time after so many bloggers mentioned running there during the Healthy Living Summit, and I couldn't wait to check it out myself. It was amazing! So many people were out and it was a really nice path. I'm not sure exactly how far I went because I couldn't get my Garmin to pick up satelites in the city, so I ran down to the water without turning it on. Then on my way back, I had to run under the highway and that threw everything off again. I think it was just over three miles though! I also wish I had some pictures! I cannot run with things in my hands, so I need to get a fanny pack or something cool like that so that I can run with my camera.

The next few days were kind of a blur. I was at the convention center a lot. I didn't eat for hours at a time (which is NOT how I usually roll), ate really late at night, and found myself drinking the stress of the day away. It was an AMAZING learning experience and I had an great time, but I was ready to come home and get back to my normal habits...like Monday night spin class!


June Goals

In May, I posted a few goals for the month. How did I do? Well, I did great with the first one...I did eat something different everyday for breakfast! It got interesting some days, but I managed to not repeat the same breakfast two days in a row! As for the other two goals...welllllll I didn't do as well. I only went to yoga twice all month. Both classes were great, but it only happened two times. And my TV was low for a while, but has spiked again. I blame it on season finales!

So what about June?

Well, first off, I will be trying again with yoga and TV. I missed the first Sunday yoga class because I was not functioning after getting back from Chicago, but the rest of the Sundays this month, I'm going to try to get to the community class. And I'm going to try with the TV...it's WAY too nice outside to spend it inside on the couch!

And my new goal for the month? Bring back the weights! I miss my strength training class and my defined muscles so much! I know how to fix the problem of sloppy looking muscles, so I need to get at it! It's going to take A LOT more work that I used to have to put in (aka I can't make it to the weight lifting class two times a week anymore, and therefore I may have to lifts weights on my own outside of a class), but I REALLY want my muscles back and better than ever, so let's hope for the best!

Now I'm off to bed. Sorry for the lack of pictures. The only pics I have from Chicago are from the exhibits, and legally I can't post those! Oh well!

Goals for May

I said a few days ago that I would do a post about my goals in May. Well I've finally gotten around to it. I had every intention of it yesterday, but after sitting in traffic making my commute home a 2 hour one, and booking flights for 5 people all traveling to and from New Mexico on different days, AND trying to do some planning for my brother's graduation next weekend, there was definitely no blogging going to happen. But today is a new day and here we go!

I have three goals in May.

1. Eat something different for breakfast everyday. I mean I don't have to come up with a NEW breakfast everyday, but I can't eat the same thing two days in a row. I think I ate yogurt with bananas every morning in April. I like it, but I know that my body needs all different kinds of things to be healthy and happy, so I've got to keep changing! I've already done overnight oats!

2. Do yoga once every week. I do not stretch enough. AT ALL. And I know this. So I need to get myself into a yoga studio and stretch it all out. Tonight I went for a run and my legs felt horrible. I came home looking like this:

I know if I need a better job of loosening up my legs in between runs, my runs themselves would be better. None of the yoga classes at my gym work with my schedule, but there is a yoga studio with $5 community drop-in classes, so hopefully those work well for me! (and yes, my kitchen tiles are worse than my bathroom).

3. Watch less TV! Every night when I get home, I sit on the couch and blog and watch TV. We don't have a dining table in our apartment, so we sit on the couch at the coffee table and by default watch tv while we eat. We have a DVR, so even if we're not home to catch the shows we like, we always get to see them. And although I do not intend to stop watching House, Biggest Loser, America's Next Top Model, or the Office, there is no need for me to sit here and watch hockey games I don't care about, or bad reality tv. I've been reading the same book for MONTHS and I haven't finished yet because I watch to much TV. This month, it will be seriously limited!

(this is my dinner tonight on the coffee table. You can't see the TV, but it's there. I shut it off to take this picture because it was reflecting in my chocolate milk. And yes, I'm drinking it from a measuring cup...it's the easiest way to stick to portions!)

So hopefully I'll have a successful month, and hopefully these things will help push me in the right direction for other things. Most specifically, my weight loss. It has not really been any kind of loss since I started my new job, and I'm over it. Time to make positive changes and get back to seeing a smaller number on the scale every week. And little changes can make big differences, so I'm ready to see how these things help!

She's a brick....YMCA?

This morning I found myself here:

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This is the YMCA where I visited many times as a kid. I learned how to swim here, and I was even on the swim team one year. I trained for track in the off-season in high school here, and this morning I did a brick workout here!

It was raining and raining and raining here, so I decided early this morning to hit the gym. This YMCA has an indoor track, so I thought that would be more exciting that running on the treadmill. Turns out, it wasn't. The track isn't too big, so it was A LOT of going in circles. And there were kids there. I forgot what it's like to work out where kids are...and I can't say I had to much patience for it. The track did amuse me with all the motivational words on the walls. 

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Regardless of how annoying it was to run in circles, it was a pretty decent run. I don't know how far I went because I would have had to count a million laps per mile or something, so I just kept running. I did 25 minutes before I headed back to the locker room to prep for a swim.

This horrendous locker room picture was the only one I could take before my camera battery died again (hence all the outsourced pictures). I swam for another 25 minutes before I got out and dried off with the t-shirt pictured above. Apparently I'm dumb and forgot that not all gyms have a towel service and I probably should have packed my own. But I didn't. But I did have a good swim and got another awesome blackberry picture for you.

After another awesome workout (I'm feeling much better about the fitness path I'm on these days), I headed back to my Gram's to find my laundry done and all the fixings for a huge salad lunch ready and waiting for me. She's amazing.

Today I also set a huge goal for myself. To start off, I will tell you that I have never run farther than 3.1 miles. 5ks are the most I've ever ever done, but I can do it pretty regularly. This afternoon, while coloring  Easter eggs with my friend who lives in NY we were discussing this issue, and she suggested I run the yearly 5 mile road race held in my home town on 4th of July. Well I can't run the race that day because I already have plans for that weekend, BUT I did agree to run the course with her in June. YIKES! I know it probably doesn't seem like a big deal to most people, but for me that's going to be a huge deal. I'm already freaking out about it, but I know I can do it. It's not THAT much longer than a 5k, right? I said June because I need a few weeks to build up to 5 miles, but I'm actually really excited! I need to have something to push myself towards and although the tri is going to be amazing, it's still pretty far away, so this is a great goal much sooner. Hopefully I can do it!

HAPPY EASTER to all two of the BFF readers out there!!! :D