Wordless Wednesday: 3 Months and 4 Days

Till I am living here for the week....

With this as my view....

And just in case the beach gets old, you can find me here...

In exactly 3 months and 4 days...



Take it Off Monday: A New "Mile"stone

Last week was a blur... work was crazy and I had some other plans that separated me from the blog. On Tuesday nights, I usually post my Wordless Wednesday post, but I planted myself in my favorite chair, eyes bleary, muscles aching, and stomach satisfied from a delicious Valentine's Day meal and I couldn't make myself do it... so I'll try to do better this week!

What I didn't neglect was my fitness! On Tuesday I ran 3.2 miles and on Thursday I ran 3.5 miles all by myself, in the cold, at 5am... by Thursday, I really had to use some self-motivation skills to pluck myself from my soft, warm bed! "You're just going to make that 4 miler on Saturday that much easier" I told myself as I splashed frigid water from the tap on my face! Once I was out an moving everything was just fine, I settled into a good rythm and by then end of 3.5 I felt as though I could've gone further - that's a good sign! Thursday was also my last run in my Nike's. I had purchased them to walk in about two years ago - they have gotten some use, but I knew I would need something new, especially for running, something like...

These! What better way to embark on my 4 mile milestone than with a fresh pair of Asics! As soon as I slipped them on I knew I had made the right choice. I could instantly feel support in my high arches and on the pads of my foot!

On Saturday morning, I had to coax myself out of bed!More motivational self-talk "The coaches said the the majority of people lose motivation this week, don't be one of them!" I arrived to meet the group just as everyone was gathering for stretches! The 4 miles were long and toward the end we passed right by a Starbucks and a McDonald's - I carried on and just as I felt as though I was hitting a mental blobk where I could go any further... a training coach came out of nowhere and motivated me forward! I finished about 4.2 miles in 1 hour even! Success!

I also noticed some changes on the scale!!

Weight: Between -13 and -15lbs depending on the day. I can definitely see a difference in my thighs and hips and may need to start looking for smaller pants soon!

Mood: Great!

Energy: Pretty exhausted most of the time, hoping to adjust my schedule a little bit for some more rest.

Highs for the week: Running into a friend I hadn't seen in a couple of weeks and her telling me she could see a difference in my appearance! It's sooo encouraging! Dinner out with my girlfriends on Friday night and Coffee and catch-up with my friend after running 4 miles on Saturday!!!

Lows: Just the feeling of being exhausted all.the.time

This Week: Cross train on Monday and Wednesday (pilates, abs, arms), 3 miles on Tuesday, 4 miles on Thursday, and then maybe 4.5 on Saturday - we haven't gotten the email that tells us the Saturday route yet!

Have a fit week, friends!!

Take it Off Monday: Getting Physical

This past week has been one of my best weeks, physically, that is! On Tuesday morning, I overslept a bit for my 5:30am start time.. as in, I woke up at about 5:45am which is when I'd normally be heading out the door! I tried to use my lateness as an accelerant to get my 2.5 miler done in 30 minutes, it sort of worked as I came in with a time of 35:20. Not too shabby!

On Wednesday, I was going to meet a friend at the gym, but decided to spend the evening with my little family and then got in some beginner's Pilates and did some strength training with weights after the little ones went to bed. Gotta love fitness On Demand!

On Thursday, I repeated the same route and felt pretty great as I did it, but my time was about 2 minutes slower. Thursday runs are always a little slow for me. I think it's because it's the end of a work week and my body is tired.

With this in mind, I tried a little experiment as my Saturday runs have seemed to suffer from the same "end of week exhaustion" as the Thursday runs. My experiment was to go to bed earlier (more rest) and increase my water intake throughout the week. I was hoping it could boost my endurance. I'd say it was successful because come Saturday, and the challenge of my 3.6 mile group run, I was able to run the entire distance without walking! I didn't even walk up the ginormous hill between mile 1 and 2! I took a picture of that damn hill, but my phone forgot to save it...it's better this way!

Anyway, I was on a pretty big high from all of this physical fitness, that I was sure the scale would be looking nice too.... not so much... stuck on the same number. At first I was just plain mad, but then I thought to myself "Do not let this machine diminish your achievements!" and then I threw it at the wall... not really, but I thought about it!

So anyhow, there's not anything exciting to post! Still down 10lbs, still running, and feeling great! I even braved trying on some old jeans and an old top I found in the back of my closet and...

They fit! Yay! Take that scale!

So, this week I have 3 miles on Tuesday, 3.5 on Thursday, and then I'll attempt 4 miles on Saturday! Yikes!!!

Have a fit week, friends!