Thursday, March 24, 2011

What's been eating me, lately...

Just wanted to write a little catch up post. I feel like I haven't written anything here in weeks.

I am thrilled that Spring has finally arrived in Ohio...though as I type this the temperature outside is at 38 degrees. It was 74 yesterday...go figure. Maybe this will be the last cold blast.

As usual, I have been busy at work. Things are getting better. Remember how anxious I was last October/November? Remember how pissed off I was about having to move out of the office I had co-opted? Since then, I've gotten a few more big projects under my belt, and hopefully, gained a measure of respect from TPTB. At any rate, our "department" was moved to a different floor in the main building and, in the move, I was given an office...thanks to my boss! We were give two offices and one big room with 4 cubes...so she took one office, told me to take the other and we put our new hire in the big room. It's possible we'll be adding two more people to our department this year, so the other three cubes won't go un-used. It's pretty awesome to be part of this change...can you imagine, going from a one person department (me!) to 5? But even with the new person, believe it or not, I'm still crazy busy.

Home...Cathy had the kitchen painted. We cleared it out completely, then the painter came in and painted it (and the butler's pantry) a beautiful, 'barely there' sage. We put everything back with a couple of changes in pantry storage. I think it looks great. One thing I want to do this year...clean out the basement storage area. I started on it in January but need to get cracking! I still have a shit-ton of rubbermaid storage containers to go through. I also want to pull the futon out of the basement office and situate it in the gym area and turn that space in the office into a place for massage and energy work. I want to put my massage table down there so that it's ready to go. Cathy and I could do more bodywork on each other and it would be ready to go for massage (I still set up a few appointments now and then!) and energy work (Emily and I have started trading reiki treatments and it's something that I would like to do more of).

Family...I don't see my family as much as I would like to. I wanted to get down to Florida to see my Dad this spring but it hasn't worked out that way. I had my ticket booked but didn't get Cathy's...just couldn't find a direct flight...seriously, they were booked for March/April or were $500 round trip. So it looks like it might be August or Sept. before we can get there.

I haven't seen my brother in a long time and so rarely talk with him...it's a source of sadness for me but I don't really know what to do about that. I email him occasionally but he doesn't seem to really want to have a relationship with any of us.

My sister is dealing with a lot of demons/clowns and I worry that she's not winning (not Sheen winning!)...I wish that she could find some measure of peace but short of nagging her to find a hobby/meditate/do yoga...I don't know what else to do. It's really her journey...her path and her karma to live through.

My mother is still not at 100%...but is trying to get there. We want to get her to Cinci at some point this summer but am not sure her work schedule will allow it. I know mine won't allow me to go down to Memphis anytime soon. I wish she had a job where she could take a good 6 weeks...come up here and live and get a little temporary job and hang here for awhile.

I wish I would win the lottery.

Don't we all?

Oprah says that money doesn't buy happiness. I call bullshit on that. Rich people always try to tell us that.

I haven't lost much weight lately. My total since January is 16 pounds. I lost 10-11 of those by the end of January. So for the past 6 weeks, I've lost 5-6 pounds. Not awful, of course...averaging a little less than a pound a week...but this is the part that always derails me. I've had some success but the constant effort of not eating this or that and getting out of bed when I'm too tired to exercise...and seeing barely there results on the scale is just wearing me down. It's wearing down my motivation and resolve to reach my goal.

I think I need an injection of determination or something.

I wanted to come home last night and take a zumba class at the gym down the street. I got home about 10 mins before the class started. Not really enough time to make it over there. I ended up talking myself out of going. I gotta tell you...I am super nervous about taking a class like that. On the one hand, I think I would really like it, but on the other...I think the first few are going to be painful because (a) I don't know anyone and (b) I don't want to look like a fat/clutzy middle-aged woman and...well, I guess that's it. I just don't want to look stupid. Or feel stupid. It's a problem, I know. I need to just buck up and go...I know, after two or three classes, I will be fine but getting there seems insurmountable.

The Flying Pig is only about 5 weeks away. This week's long walk is a little over 6 miles. I need to plot my course. I am not giving up on the Pig...it's what is going to get me through this time of low motivation.

I feel like I haven't been quite as diligent as I could be with my food...like I'm consuming about 200-300 more calories a day than I should. And I know I need to be more into my workouts...instead of 4-5 workouts a week, I really need to be at 6 cardio workouts a week. I feel like I should be doing more yoga too. And more journaling...

I feel like I have so much to do all the time...so many things that I can't get to. And so much of the stuff that I put off is soul-filling for me...it's what gives me that joie de vivre...that oooomph of energy and determination that gets me there.

I need Spring...I need it now...I need sunny days, bill-less mailboxes and happy phone calls. I am that little seed that is trying so hard to push her head up through the soil and turn her face to the sun.

I think I'll get there...

Saturday, March 19, 2011

52 Donuts - And the winner is...

Well, I had to pick a name because I reached (passed) 50 donuts today with my 5 mile walk...Rebecca said, "the ides of march" and Bobbi said, "the 23rd"...the 19th is smack in the middle. Felt like the fair thing to do was to flip a coin for it. Rebecca tails, Bobbi heads...and the winner is...tails, Rebecca!

Congratulations Rebecca! You win 3 Biggest Loser books. Email your shipping address and I'll send them to you next week!

Thanks for entering my first ever blog give-away! You three helped keep me motivated to reach 50 donuts! :)

Friday, March 18, 2011

P!nk

You are fuckin' perfect! Have you heard this song? I was driving to work the other day and finally heard the lyrics...whoa...wow...I've always liked P!nk a lot...now I really dig her.

Fuckin' Perfect by Pink

Made a wrong turn, once or twice


Dug my way out, blood and fire

Bad decisions, that's alright

Welcome to my silly life

Mistreated, misplaced, misunderstood

Miss 'No way, it's all good', it didn't slow me down

Mistaken, always second guessing, underestimated

Look, I'm still around


Pretty pretty please, don't you ever ever feel

Like you're less than f*ckin' perfect

Pretty pretty please, if you ever ever feel like you're nothing

You're f*ckin' perfect to me!


You're so mean, when you talk about yourself, you were wrong

Change the voices in your head, make them like you instead

So complicated, look happy, you'll make it!

Filled with so much hatred...such a tired game

It's enough! I've done all I can think of

Chased down all my demons, I've seen you do the same


Oh, pretty pretty please, don't you ever ever feel

Like you're less than f*ckin' perfect

Pretty pretty please, if you ever ever feel like you're nothing

You're f*ckin' perfect to me
 
The whole world's scared so I swallow the fear


The only thing I should be drinking is an ice cold beer

So cool in line, and we try try try, but we try too hard and it's a waste of my time

Done looking for the critics, cause they're everywhere

They dont like my jeans, they don't get my hair

Exchange ourselves, and we do it all the time

Why do we do that? Why do I do that?


Why do I do that..?


Yeah, oh, oh baby, pretty baby..!

Pretty pretty please, don't you ever ever feel

Like you're less than f*ckin' perfect

Pretty pretty please, if you ever ever feel

Like you're nothing, you're f*cking perfect to me

You're perfect, you're perfect!

Pretty pretty please, don't you ever ever feel

Like you're less than f*ckin' perfect

Pretty please, if you ever feel like you're nothing

You are perfect to me....

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Resource Reviews

I am always on the lookout for great resources. On the one hand, I hate to be supportive of the "Diet Industry"...on the other, there are some really great resources out there and I've been helped by more than a few. I wanted to share them here. In the interest of full disclosure, I recieve no free products or have never been approached to do paid reviews for any products/websites/etc.

(However, if BMW would like for me to write a whole post about how fantastic their cars are and how they can make any woman feel like celebrity by just driving down the street...I'm happy to oblige!)

Crazy Sexy Diet by Kris Carr, author of Crazy Sexy Cancer Survivor. Okay, I admit...I haven't bought this book and I have not read it. It looks great and I have read a few excerpts...I like Carr's voice and her attitude. I would buy this book but I read somewhere that she relies on soy for a lot of her recipes. She is also a big juicer. I am a fan of neither. :( I don't think that women should be eating a lot of soy. And I'd rather not drink my calories (in the form of juice)...I would rather have the fiber that comes with the whole food. Kris is vegan so this book is likely to appeal to a few! There was an excerpt of the book in this month's Natural Health if you'd like to check it out.



Jillian Michaels podcasts! Jillian Michaels is back...a year or more ago, Jillian had a radio show on KCFI every Sunday morning (for two years). I could download her podcasts onto my iPod and I used to listen to them on my walks around the neighborhood. When she stopped doing the radio show, her fans were devistated. Well, she got the message and brought it back...now it's just a podcast, I believe, but vintage Jillian! And guess what? Her podcasts are free! If you don't already have it, download iTunes (it's free) and then do a search at the iTunes store for Jillian Michaels podcasts...you'll find her.


Daily Challenge at Me You Health. This is a nifty little site. You can find all the support you need to make small changes in your life. And, essentially, this is what the whole site is all about. All of the small changes add up to a healthier you! I'm on...if you want to join me, shoot me an email and I'll send you an invite.


Walking/Running Shoes. If you are a walker or runner, proper shoes are a must. Seriously. You can really hurt yourself by not wearing the right shoes for your workout. Most towns have a special running store...you can go there and have them assess your foot/gait for free. You can do it yourself too. Just get a brown paper bag, lay it out flat outside of your shower/bathtub. Wet your feet and step onto the paper. Quickly, before it dries completely, take a photo or just look at your foot prints. You can assess them here. I have a normal arch...though I tend to pronate my right foot and supinate my left foot. You can also get a lot of information just by inspecting a pair or your well worn shoes. This Fitness Walking website is another good resource for figuring out what shoe is best for you.


Speaking of exercise...you may already know...I'm a huge fan of the Daily Mile website. This is such a great way to connect with folks who exercise in your area, find races/events in your area and track your workouts. If you want to join me there, just let me know and I'll send you an invite. The Daily Mile is FREE!

Hey, spring is coming! So excited to start moving some of my workouts outdoors! Hope you're having a great weekend!

Sunday, March 6, 2011

New Day, New Dawn...

...new life, for me...

I feel like something has changed. I feel new, somehow. Like a switch was flipped and now, now I get it.

Why this 5k? I mean, it wasn't my first rodeo...I have done many 5ks in my life. But this one changed me. What was different? No ipod. No one at my side to talk to. It was just me and my breath. Just me, pickin' 'em up and puttin' 'em down.

Since January, it was all I could do to maintain a 15:00 min pace on the treadmill. I can look back on my training log (thank you Daily Mile!) and see exactly how many times I was able to maintain that pace...but, then, yesterday...the gun fired...took 34 seconds to cross the start line and...I automatically started going...full speed ahead. I was on my own within a minute of the race.

Conditions were perfect. My shoes, my clothes, my jacket and my hat...perfect for the weather. I'd gotten good sleep and I hadn't been on the treadmill for two days. Those first 5-10 minutes weren't easy...I could feel the pavement through my shins...my legs were all, "hey, what the?" but I just acknowledged the slight discomfort and kept moving.

Before I knew it, I was at the 1 mile marker and heard, "14:38" as I motored past...my heart lept! Awesome...if I could maintain this pace, I should make it in under 50 minutes. But, the next mile was all uphill.

Somehow, I ended up smack in the middle of two groups of runners/walkers. These groups had timers that would tell them to run, then walk, run, then walk...and I kept up with them because during the walking portion, they would slow way down. But it was good for me, I just kept on pace. Just kept thinking, "I gotta maintain this pace up this hill..."

Then I got to the top of the hill and practically had to hold myself back from breaking into a run...so I turned on the speed all the way down and got to mile marker two and heard, "28:20"...Whoo!

And then, I think, I just kept up that fast pace from the downhill and ended up putting in a great last mile (1.2).

Will this describe my weight loss journey?

I mean, getting to the race was a feat in itself...and perhaps that is how I think of the last 6 years...I was just trying to get to the race. I finally got there and started hard but, damned uncomfortable...and then I hit the uphill. I think that's where I am right now...just gotta maintain my pace.

Saturday, March 5, 2011

First 5k of 2011 done!

Thank you, Jen, for encouraging me NOT to stay home and do the run on my treadmill...that little bit of rain didn't melt me. I'm so glad we did it!

I surprised myself by clocking a great time. 13:37 minute miles. That is so much better than I thought I could do. I love it when I surpass my own expectations. This was one of those turning point moments for me on this journey.

I registered for the Flying Pig half yesterday (as a walker). I'd love to be at a 13 min pace for it. Which would put me at about 3:21 mins...something to think about!

To goals!