Those are the words that kept going through my mind for the FULL 2 MILES I JUST RAN NON-STOP!!! HOORAY FOR ME! Goals are good. I've been walking and walking and walking for the past 10 weeks and honestly, walking was getting pretty damn boring. Around and Around and Around I go... not really going anywhere. I thought Mary was going to kick my ass into shape this past weekend and get my little tail moving some more because, well, my exercise regime has become a little routine and monotonous. Now, don't get me wrong, I really really REALLY like walking now, but sometimes you need to switch it up in life and NOW is the time. Well, it seemed like Mary was looking for a little more vacation than I was looking to get my butt in gear so we really just walked on Saturday and Sunday (and secretly, I really didn't want her to kick my arss).
Tiff has been pushing me (well actually gently nudging me) to start running and has been talking about doing 5K road races starting in August. Well... the idea of running 3.125 miles sounds really good, that is IF you are somewhat of an experience runner, and that's a big IF. I do have to admit that when I first moved down here to the dirty dirty I was so bored from the lack of friends and work that I was running on a daily basis anywhere from 2 - 5 miles and I was LOVING it, but as soon as I got a J-O-B there suddenly wasn't any time for running (funny how that happens). I know I can do it, but I'm also a ton heavier than I was 6 years ago and it takes a lot more energy and strength to move this body. Well, I was determined to break out of the exercise mold and made up my mind on my way home from work that I would attempt to jog today. I didn't set a goal in terms of length, rather just confirmed to myself that after walking for the last 10 weeks that surely I have built up enough strength and stamina to jog at least a little bit. Now again, I admit that I'm no expert when it comes to jogging, in fact, I'm such an analytical person that I googled the proper way to jog, watched an informative video paying close attention to how the foot should land and the position of the torso while taking strides - NO, I'M NOT JOKING, learned that jogging on a cement sidewalk is terrible for jogging because of the hardness of the ground, and headed off to Boiling Park where I hear there is a gravel path that you can run.
I got to the park and after going over what seemed like an endless amount of speed bumps I came to a parking area where I could only image was the gravel path. Fortunately enough an older couple was getting into their car and I politely asked if this was where the path was. They were kind enough to point me over the small bridge and explained that there are markers along the path for the 1/4, 1/2, 3/4 and 1 mile points. I thanked them, headed over the bridge and started to stretch out those rusty muscles. I started out walking for the first 1/8th of the mile and then got my jog on... I started jogging and before I knew it... I was all the way back around to the starting point... the devil in my head said... "YAY, the mile is over, now we can stop and go home" while the angel in my head said... "That was the easiest mile EVER... do another" good prevailed over evil and on I went to circle back around. The second mile was a little harder towards the end, in fact I had slowed down to a snails pace and the two gentlemen who were about a 1/2 mile behind me at the start of the 2nd mile had actually begun to lap me... but who was I racing? Them? NO! Myself? NO! Just the sense of accomplishment was more than a HUGE WIN for me! HOORAY FOR ME! I Rocked it!
Now I'll be super comfortable when I can keep up my running for the rest of July and get all trained an toned for the Road Race (and yes.. there will be a bunch of pictures of me crossing the finish line, if I have to drag my husband’s butt out of bed at 7am on a Saturday morning myself).
Sorry for the long dry spell in posts, been busy with work and my new "Active Lifestyle". Talk to you all later gators!
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Monday, June 23, 2008
The World of Liz... (guest post by Mary)
This past weekend I flew down to Atlanta to visit our dearest Liz. See, when she first told me about her blog and her mission I promised her that when she made progress I'd come visit her- as a reward for us both. And there she went and lost 5.4lbs on week 1!! So I bought me a ticket to Hotlanta.....
This was the weekend. I must mention that when she says she's a busy bee she means it. I got to live in the life of Liz from Friday to Sunday and what fun it was!!! First let me start by saying that she looks absolutely fabulous. (She has always looked fab but she looks even more fab now if that is even possible). So after she picked me up at the airport we went and grabbed a quick bite to eat and then went over to her friend's house to enjoy the company of Tiff and her friends. I can see why she loves Tiff so much- she's an amazing gal. It was a high energy night with great company, great food, some cards and a little tequila for me- oops. Here's a couple tequila photos for y'all.
On Saturday we got up and walked our little butts off in the park, did a few errands and hopped back to Tiff's house and hung at the poolside (oh what a gorgeous pool). Then we went to the food store where Liz can look at just about any item and know the WW point value. We were walking and all I hear are random shouts of 3! 7! only 1 point- can you believe that?! 2! 2 again! What a waste of 3 points! So we headed back to the house, ate our salads and fruit and played some Wii (my arms are still sore). Then we relaxed and watched a movie.
On Sunday we walked again and then headed to the airport. It was a great weekend for the both of us and we both left with a warm and fuzzy feeling. Love you Liz!!!!!!
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Summertime and the livin' is easy...
15 down 45 more to go! I’m beginning to learn the importance of goals. Goals keep you on track, give you success markers and eventually give you something to celebrate once you reach those goals. I know it sounds like a HUGE number, but my goal is 60lbs by the end of the year and it feels very like a very daunting task. But when you break that number down, it’s not so bad. For instance: I’m already ¼ of the way to my December goal; it only took me 7 weeks to complete ¼ of my goal so if I keep it up, I should be able to complete the other ¾ in 21 weeks… that puts me at mid October ! Likewise, I look at this summer and staying on goal, there are 15 weeks between Memorial Day and Labor Day, if I keep up dropping 2lbs a week I will lose 30 lbs just over the summer – Pretty crazy when you think about it that way.
The past few weeks have been difficult when it comes to writing down my meals. I’ve been keeping a mental tally, but it really isn’t the same. I use the same excuse as to why I haven’t been updating my blog so often, but the reality is that it’s just an excuse. I do want you all to have a little insight into my work day and maybe you’ll understand. I only sit at my desk for about 1 – 2 hours total a day (if I’m lucky) and it’s usually broken into 15 – 20 minute blocks. I need to utilize that time to take care of any computer work that I have while I can. I know that I can then come home and blog, but I was talking to Sandi a week or so ago and she was telling me that she tries her darndest to stay as busy as she can after work so she’s not just sitting on her behind, and so I’ve tried to adapt that lifestyle. I’ve been walking, having dinner, or shopping (although not really spending money) so that I’m not home and eating.
Tiff and I always talk about adapting the “Active Lifestyle” which includes a lot of what I’ve been doing lately, such as going and whacking golf balls with Greg, walking a lot, “shopping”, and finding other activities. Mom is coming to town this Thursday and on Saturday afternoon we are going to do Salsa lessons. How fun does that sound?!?!?
I went walking yesterday morning with Tiff and I learned a valuable lesson... we met up around 10am at the park and began our walk. We were yakking and yakking away and just kept going around and around in a circle for an hour and a half. Well, before I left the house I washed my face and put on my lotion, but didn't even think about sun screen - OUCH! I went over to her place after to hang out at the pool and and lubed up with about an inch of SPF40 before being in the sun, but it was too late. You can see the burn marks around where my tank-top was for our walk and it's burning pretty bad. We usually don't walk for more than an hour at most and I didn't even think that I would get burnt, but here I am. Lesson Learned. I do have to admit that it's nice sitting by the pool and relaxing after an hour and a half walk. Ahhhhh... Summer!
Good news is that I’ve been getting a lot of comments lately; people that I’ve only worked with for 3 weeks have started to ask if I’m losing weight and I’m actually beginning to see and feel the results. It’s a great feeling getting compliments and encouragement from those who don’t really know you and there are a few people that I work with that look forward to Friday mornings and finding out how my weigh-in went the night before. It’s nice to be held accountable from so many people.
The past few weeks have been difficult when it comes to writing down my meals. I’ve been keeping a mental tally, but it really isn’t the same. I use the same excuse as to why I haven’t been updating my blog so often, but the reality is that it’s just an excuse. I do want you all to have a little insight into my work day and maybe you’ll understand. I only sit at my desk for about 1 – 2 hours total a day (if I’m lucky) and it’s usually broken into 15 – 20 minute blocks. I need to utilize that time to take care of any computer work that I have while I can. I know that I can then come home and blog, but I was talking to Sandi a week or so ago and she was telling me that she tries her darndest to stay as busy as she can after work so she’s not just sitting on her behind, and so I’ve tried to adapt that lifestyle. I’ve been walking, having dinner, or shopping (although not really spending money) so that I’m not home and eating.
Tiff and I always talk about adapting the “Active Lifestyle” which includes a lot of what I’ve been doing lately, such as going and whacking golf balls with Greg, walking a lot, “shopping”, and finding other activities. Mom is coming to town this Thursday and on Saturday afternoon we are going to do Salsa lessons. How fun does that sound?!?!?
I went walking yesterday morning with Tiff and I learned a valuable lesson... we met up around 10am at the park and began our walk. We were yakking and yakking away and just kept going around and around in a circle for an hour and a half. Well, before I left the house I washed my face and put on my lotion, but didn't even think about sun screen - OUCH! I went over to her place after to hang out at the pool and and lubed up with about an inch of SPF40 before being in the sun, but it was too late. You can see the burn marks around where my tank-top was for our walk and it's burning pretty bad. We usually don't walk for more than an hour at most and I didn't even think that I would get burnt, but here I am. Lesson Learned. I do have to admit that it's nice sitting by the pool and relaxing after an hour and a half walk. Ahhhhh... Summer!
Good news is that I’ve been getting a lot of comments lately; people that I’ve only worked with for 3 weeks have started to ask if I’m losing weight and I’m actually beginning to see and feel the results. It’s a great feeling getting compliments and encouragement from those who don’t really know you and there are a few people that I work with that look forward to Friday mornings and finding out how my weigh-in went the night before. It’s nice to be held accountable from so many people.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)