Journey of a Thirty Something trying to balance Life and Fitness...

Half Marathon Training Week One Day One

2011-01-03T18:00:00.001-05:00

So let the Half Marathon Training begin!

I downloaded this awesome 12 week training schedule from the interwebs - my first day was today here is a break down:
Where I ran: Treadmill (sucks but I am a newbie runner and I am NOT running in these winter temps)
Warm Up: 5 min at 3mph
Total Time: 30 min
Total Distance: 2 Miles (2 min runs at 5mph followed by 1 min recovery walk at 3mph until two miles was completed)

Overall I felt this run went well. I woke up at 5:15am and was on the treadmill by 5:45am. I definitely need to improve my getting out of bed time. Sadly waking up isn't the problem - I get up with no problems - it's actually getting out of my bed that's a problem! I mean hey - it's winter time and I usually have two cats cuddled up with me - you would find it hard to get out of bed too! I was a little sore because yesterday was our first ski trip of the season..Skiing = amazing leg workout FYI!

This first week is a four day training week with my next run being a 2.5 mile run with the same intervals..I can't wait!

As a side note - I downloaded this awesome running app onto my Droid - RunKeeper Pro - it tracks distance, give audible cues that you can customize and it works with GPS so you can track your routes! It's awesome!!! And a big plus - It's FREE to download on iPhone and Droids but only until the end of January so HURRY! Just click HERE for instructions!

Happy Running!

Welcome 2011!

2011-01-03T14:03:00.001-05:00

Wow another year has come and gone..Can you believe it?
The start of a new year always gets me energized. You can leave all the bad things from the previous year behind and start off with a clean slate. Every year everyone makes resolutions most of them are always the same:

Lose Weight

Eat Healthy

Spend more time with Family and Friends

Now don't get me wrong all of these are excellent resolutions and I admit that these are mine as well..BUT shouldn't these be things we do EVERY day? We shouldn't need to include these in our "resolutions" we should do them because well...I don't know the exact reason why - they just seem like these are things we should always do!
Now on that note - I have added a "goal" to 2011. A "goal" that I am going to try REALLY hard to reach not only for me but to prove my husband wrong cause well that is ALWAYS fun to do!
My goal for 2011 is....drum roll please.....

Yes, folks that is right - thanks to my friend Coleen and her big mouth (lol), I am signing up to run the Cleveland HALF Marathon on May 15th. I am crazy enough to run 13.1 miles but definitely not crazy enough to run 26.2 miles. Wish me luck! All you runners reading this feel free to drop any advice you have, lord knows I need it, as for those of you that aren't - What are your GOALS for 2011?

Thanksgiving Weight Gain...Tis the Season

2010-11-29T14:36:00.000-05:00

Hello Fellow Followers!!!!! I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Mine was wonderful - Spent a few days in Dallas Texas visiting with my husband's family...Not just the family but the weather as well...80 degrees two of the four days we were there - makes coming home to Ohio not so fun.

I am happy to report that I managed to come out of Thanksgiving unscathed!!! No weight gain for me!!!! YES!

But I didn't lose any either =(

Who wants to work out when you are on vacation??? Now I can only hope the same goes for Christmas..See Christmas is a little trickier because instead of one day of eating horrible for you yet - delicious food - you have 25! More if you count starting now.

So here is my plan starting tonight when I get home so I can enjoy some of the deliciousness of the holiday - I am restarting...

Crazy - why yes I am! Last time I did this I only lasted a little over a week...It's that tough! I plan on doing the "Lean" program as I am not looking to get BUFF - but LEAN! I hope to keep y'all (as they say in Texas) posted on my progress! Wish me luck!!!!

What are your plans for keeping the weight from creeping up on you during the holiday's?

Take that Mr. Treadmill...

2010-11-10T09:50:00.001-05:00

Happy Wednesday!

"The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a person's determination. - Tommy Lasorda"

I am in an unusually good mood this morning. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I was able to get up and make it two days in a row on the treadmill!

Take that Treadmill - you thought you wouldn't get used! =)

People say that when you work out you feel better..now that I have gotten on the treadmill two days in a row...I kinda do feel better! Do I feel skinny and sexy? No, that will come with time (and about a 25lb weight loss). But I do feel..accomplished - which is a GREAT feeling.

My workout wasn't a "hard" one today as I really want to ease back into things to avoid injury. Now to avoid the bad things - Candy, sugar - CRAP food! I am normally not a bad eater at all, but I go through stages where I can't get enough junk food (as do all women I am sure)! So today when I get the urge to eat that candy bar at 2pm I am going to drink a nice cold glass of water and wait...If I still want that candy bar after that then I will have just a bite and throw the rest away.

What do you do to avoid the cravings that you encounter throughout the day? Any tricks you would like to share?

Workout:
Treadmill - A quick run to get my heart rate going - 1.25 miles in 15 minutes (sadly that is a personal record for me)
Weights - 20 reps at 10lbs of various bicep work
Total work out time - 30 min.
Estimated Calories burned = 231

Daylight Savings Time = Fitness Blessing?

2010-11-09T15:46:00.000-05:00

Hello folks!! I have totally been MIA and I wish I could say it was because I was so busy busting ass at the gym..But let's be realistic...I wasn't!

BUT....

I did run on the treadmill this morning so YAY ME!

Most people like Daylight Savings for one reason - one extra hour of sleep. Well my body doesn't work that way. I wish I could say I take advantage of that extra hour by sleeping but I just can't! My body wakes up at the same time everyday regardless. So for me this has actually been a benefit, I am up so why not hit the gym? Now I have only taken advantage of this once and that was this morning. Hopefully I will keep it up. I don't see why I wouldn't, like I said in other posts I pretty much have a full gym in my basement! Take a look for yourselves...

Take note at the lovely TV I *made* my husband put up so I would work out more.


More than enough free weighs and even a Smith Machine

As you can see my basement if more than equipped for me to get in the best physical shape possible. I am hoping that extra hour will help get me motivated!

So on that note - I am off to drink some more water and work out a fitness plan - What have all you lovely people been up to? Running, weight lifting, eating (don't worry I won't judge!) Hopefully everyone has been good about staying out of the Halloween candy! I wish I could say I have been but I have dipped into it once...or twice!

Happy Tuesday Folks!

Life - 1 Fitness - 0!

2010-10-21T10:59:00.000-04:00

Life scores one!

Well lets see this week I think I'm gonna have to let life win out! It has been such a crazy week that I haven't gotten home until close to 9pm almost every night!

Is this an excuse?

Well yes...and no!

Yes, because well frankly after working all day coming home fixing dinner (which by the way I didn't have time to eat myself - I rock as a wife!) and then leaving again I just didn't feel like working out!

No, because my alarm IS set for 5:45am every morning in hopes that I would get out of bed head down to the gym (which is conveniently located in my basement no less) and get my lazy butt on the treadmill...As you can tell by the title of this blog - that didn't happen.

How sad is it that the alarm goes off and I wake up (for the most part) and yet I still don't walk the thirty steps into my basement? I am so lucky to basically have a fully equipped gym in my basement and I don't use it? WHY??? Well the answer to that my friends is easy - and it's why I am so "fluffy" - I am LAZY!

So my dear blog readers - This is where I need help from all of you - help me get motivated and stay motivated! I definitely need to change my outlook from the above picture to this:

On a positive note - I did make it to my hour long Yoga class on Wednesday night - because one - I had a dear friends waiting for me and I have stood her up a few times now and two - because I stood up said friend a few times the instructor called me out on it in class!

So my fellow followers - What do you do to stay motivated? Or in my case get started???

Help me tie up this little match of Life and Fitness!

Remember Me....

2010-10-18T14:34:00.000-04:00

Well well well, it looks like it's been several months since I last wrote on my blog. Opps! Sorry about that! So due to me being inconsistent with my blogging..let me catch you up on a few things....

Since I last wrote I did run in my second (this year) third (overall) 5k in September.

Right after I crossed the finish line

My cousin was awesome enough to run in the Oktoberfest Bier Run with me..While I really hoped I would have done better - I didn't but I am happy that I at least completed it!

Coming to the finish line

My cousin did great! I was really hoping to keep pace with her but alas the fact that I had not been training really showed! It's amazing how training really does help! Now we are halfway through October and all the goals I have set for myself have been non existent. We have several trips planned in the coming months and I really wanted to drop a few LB's before them...Those trips have now come up faster than I expected them to =( So that brings me to the here and now! So I am back to blogging and tracking everything in hopes that this will help keep me accountable. I am going to post some stats on my blog to also help me with my progress...So yes, I am going to do the unthinkable...Probably because I don't think anyone is actually reading this blog...I am going to post my weight out there for the whole interwebs to see! GASP!!! This can lead to one of two things - I am completely embarrassed cause everyone knows my weight OR I will do something to change it so I can redeem myself. I haven't taken measurements so we will leave those off for now. Soooo here goes nothing -
Starting weight - 145lbs *hangs my head in shame*

Plans for tonight -
Cook the family a healthy meal (NO FAST FOOD)
Spend some quality time with my friend - The Treadmill
Drink lots of water

Feel free to post your current weight (although you can do it anonymously) and lets take this journey together - shall we?

Almost Gave Up...

2010-03-17T21:49:00.000-04:00

Yes, you read that right folks. Today I almost gave up my hopes of running in a 5k this May. I kept telling myself that I am not a runner - what was I thinking? I went out for my first run outside today and let's just say it did not go as planned! Yesterday I ran a little over 2 miles on the treadmill and I pushed really hard running at a pace over 5.0mph. Well I think I pushed to much because today the shin splints are BAD! I mean can't move off the couch bad! BUT I thought maybe I just need to suck it up and go out. So off I went to do some laps around my neighborhood....My laps (plural) turned into a lap (singular). I just couldn't fight through the pain. So as I was sitting here icing my shins

and catching up on how some virtual friends are doing on Sparkpeople, I came across a blog written by a very motivational girl named Erin, (you can check out her blog post here Erin's Blog), she blew me away! In the past two years she has lost over 80lbs just by changing her diet and getting off the couch. No crazy diet pills or fads, just plain ole common sense! Not only that, she is currently training to run in a half marathon!

I wish! - I think I will stick to trying to tackle a 5k first.

So, thanks to Erin, my motivation is back. I mean I know it's tough and I know I hurt but so does everyone else when they train. Isn't that why we have to train? Back on track it is 5k or BUST!

As far as my nemesis the scale

- It hasn't moved all that much - so we are still not on speaking terms! We hope to become friends really soon but it is just being very stubborn!

Hope everyone had a safe and fun Saint Patrick's Day!

Not enough Time -

2010-03-11T07:17:00.000-05:00

Yes I know this is the top excuse of every fat unhealthy person in America - There is just not enough time in any day to fit in work, social life, home life, and working out! I was on such a great path - Ran 2.25 miles on Tuesday - Yay Me! Certainly not at a 5k yet but I am getting close. It helps when you have Biggest Loser on and you think to yourself these people are 4x my size and they are bustin ass pulling a semi-truck! Damn it 2 miles is NOTHING!

Then it all went downhill - life took over - birthday's (which came complete with DQ ice cream cake and dinner out) which is certainly not part of my "skinny bitch" diet for sure! And of course my will power is so high I turned down a slice of cake - HA! Right totally just kidding - I NEVER turn down a piece of cake hence why I am writing this very blog. So no working out yesterday - I could have woke up at 5:30am and ran on the treadmill but I didn't (not Yay Me!)

Tonight we have a Baseball Fundraiser - which translates to - Fatty bar food and beer with proceeds of what you buy going to some little kids summer baseball team.

How can I deny a child his baseball team?

So again another night of deliciously yummy tasting not so good for you food. I hope to get home early enough tonight to have a date with my treadmill (don't tell my husband) - but only time will tell!

So my question to anyone reading this - How do YOU make time for life, work and the dreaded Working out????

Yoga Is Evil!

2010-03-08T21:55:00.000-05:00

Okay so today I started my journey full force. This past weekend the hubs and I decided to go skiing so I am a little cramped and sore (this was only my second time ever)! My brilliant idea was to take a Yoga class thinking it would be relaxing and a good way to stretch out my muscles.

Boy oh boy - whoever said Yoga was relaxing, well they LIED!

I mean don't get me wrong I think it is definitely something I could really enjoy. But don't let all those "ohmmms" fool you, your first Yoga experience will not be relaxing and it will actually kinda hurt. I mean who would have thought my back muscles would hurt from Yoga? Certainly not me!

So there you have it - Yoga experienced and completed! Yay me! Let's hope the next time it is a bit easier on this aging body!!! (32 is NOT a spring chicken anymore)

Today's Stats:

Stayed within my Calorie Range according to The Daily Plate - if your not using anything to track calories - I highly recommend this site - it's free and very easy to use.
Experienced Yoga and will definitely be working that into my weekly routine
Drank 24oz of water - definitely not enough but more than usual
Finally started and posted on this blog I have been wanting to do for weeks!

Here is to an awesome and hopefully easy week!

From Fat to Fab - The start

2010-03-08T21:39:00.000-05:00

Hello! I am glad you decided to follow me on what is sure to be a roller coaster ride to being a happier, healthier, skinnier me! I decided to start this blog to help keep me accountable for my day to day actions. I figure if people are actually out there reading about my weight loss - maybe, just maybe I will accomplish this goal.

Let me start with a little background about me. As I stated before I am a former "skinny bitch" I mean - at one point in life I was abnormally skinny as witness here by my prom picture in which I am pretty sure my hair is bigger than my waist.

(The identity of my date of course has been concealed as well I don't want to get sued by anyone!)

So, on to 2010, I am happily married and about 25 pounds heavier than I was when I met my husband. YIKES! Why does happiness and love make us fat? So my goals are as follows -

* Run a 5k and possibly even a 10k this summer (signed up for the Hy-5 IN May)

*Loose those 25lbs - I mean I understand I didn't gain them over night but wouldn't it be nice to lose them over night???

*Strive to be a happier, healthier, more positive person. I mean I know this is kind of a whole lot grouped into one but I think they go hand in hand right?

* Eat Healthier and eat out less. I love to cook but there is not enough time in the day to work, workout, clean and cook - what am I super woman?

So there you have it - I don't think that is to much to ask for is it? So join me on my journey to a new and improved ME!