Training Tuesday 6.25.13

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This link-up is just a way to talk about training [in any way, for anything] to help hold ourselves accountable and possibly brag a bit. I mean, you ran 1 mile without stopping – you totally deserve a chance to brag about it! That shit is hard. You did 10 push-ups in a row, HOLLLEERRR.

My Training

For some reason I didn’t document my workouts last week on dailymile. Weird. Basically I have no recollection of exactly what I did. I know I worked out on Wednesday & Thursday because I was stupid sore on Friday and on Saturday for the 5k I ran.

5k spoiler alert: I did not PR. But even if I did, I wouldn’t know since the race administrators forgot to put our timing chip in our race bag, so yeah. We weren’t timed. I was going to upload what my Garmin says but apparently it’s dead and I don’t have the cord to charge it. It was somewhere around 37:22 I think.

I’m all out of shape for Training Tuesday. Ha. Out-of-shape. I kill me.

 

I did feel super adorable though in my running skirt. So I caved and bought another one. Different brand, so fingers crossed it works just as well!

I’ll post a review of the race soon – even though I have limited pictures (uh, pretty much just the one you’re seeing above) Bad blogger award goes to meeee.

Training Tuesday 6.18.13

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This link-up is just a way to talk about training [in any way, for anything] to help hold ourselves accountable and possibly brag a bit. I mean, you ran 1 mile without stopping – you totally deserve a chance to brag about it! That shit is hard. You did 10 push-ups in a row, HOLLLEERRR.

My Training

6/12 – 3 miles. I don’t know what got into me but this was a beast of a run for me. I did interval training where I actually got up to a 9 minute pace (hey, it was only for a minute, but it counts!) I never would have even attempted that this time last year. I have high hopes for maybe one day actually being able to run a single digit mile. Oh, the dreams of a runner.

6/13 – 2 workouts in one day! I woke up early and did Jillian Michaels Killer Abs DVD at home. Killer abs is definitely an appropriate name. At lunch I created my own circuit training with 50 seconds on, 10 seconds off. Push-ups, Rope Pull, Burpees, Bicep Curls, Sit-ups, Dips, Plank, High Knees and then a Freebie where I chose a machine at random in the gym. I kind of felt like a badass.

6/14 through 6/16 – I was off in the boonies riding four wheelers, so technically I didn’t work out. HOWEVER, I was still stupid sore from it. Probably because we created our own mud run & beat the crap out of each other for fun. Totally worth it.

6/17 – 1.1 miles on the treadmill followed by 1.5 miles on the recumbent bike. I wanted to run longer but I have a nice, fancy gash on my toe from our ‘mud run’ over the weekend and it was throbbing like a mofo, so it was cut short.

I have a 5k this weekend. I’m excited to test out my chub rub loophole outside in the open air, but I am not excited that it’s going to be 80 degrees by the time we start to run. I’d love to PR again (I’m on a roll with the 5k!) but if I don’t, I’m okay with it. Considering I’ll be sweating before we even take off, I’m just going to go into it with my normal hopes – not pooping myself & not being last.

I’m a high-achiever.

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Other things going on with me.

I’ve joined Meg from You’re Meaghan Me Crazy (seriously LOVE this girl) for the 7 Day Slim Down challenge from the Tone it Up girls. We started yesterday…it’s going, eh okay. It gives you exactly what to eat for 7 days (where are the freaking Oreos on this damn thing!) and with my increase in activity I’m  hoping it will just be at the very least a nice jumpstart into working on my portion sizes again.

I talked about starting a challenge with DietBet last week and after a few conversations here & there, I set one up!

Starting July 1st through July 28th with a bet of $25 you need to lose 4% of your starting body weight to win.  If there are multiple winners the pot will be split and monies will be sent to your account. At that point you can either use that money to credit and play another game OR you can cash out and get the money in pocket.

To join our group, Fluff-Be-Gone, please click here - http://diet.bt/14yPq5I

How it will work: 48 hours before the beginning of the game, you will be notified of a ‘code word’. This word will need to be written on an index card and placed in a picture with you and the scale to verify your beginning weight. That photo will be sent to DietBet but will NOT be posted (unless you want to post it yourself). Once DietBet can verify you’re legitimately a sexy beast, you’re IN.

The only other time you will need to send a photo in is at the end of the game. Once everyone submits their photos DietBet declares a winner and money is distributed. There is a game board for us all to communicate and cheer each other on. You’re weight will NOT be posted unless you want it too. The only thing we will see is your percentage lost and where we (other members) stand against you.

If I sent you an email invite, it wasn’t because I think you need to lose weight (let’s be honest, I’d totally tap dat ass) but because the more people involved the higher the potential pot. And the higher the possibility that I actually lose weight.

Please feel free to invite as many people as you’d like, this is an open invitation. If it goes well, I’ll set up another challenge in August for those of you who may not be able to compete this month for whatever reason.

If you have any questions, you can contact me through my email, twitter or facebook.

Chub Rub Loophole

Does the title of this post sound like a really cheesy 70s porn to you guys?

Yeah, me too.

Anyway, a while back I wrote to you about how I get the dreaded “chub-rub” which is basically my thighs making out with each other when I try to run in shorts. It can actually be pretty painful. But mostly it’s just wonderfully embarrassing to get all excited when you hear someone is doing the slow clap for you as you run only to realize it’s actually just your thighs cheering you on.

Instead of using it as an excuse, I just run in capris. Not really a big deal except for the fact that I get incredibly jealous whenever I see someone running in shorts. I mean, it’s Texas. It’s hot (hello 96 degrees today!) and shorts come in all sorts of adorable colors. Capris are charcoal, black  & slightly more black with maybe a side stitch of pink. I have a hard time bringing myself to buy another pair of black capris for $50+ dollars. Just, no.

One of my unspoken goals has been to get to the point that I can run in shorts comfortably. I don’t know if that will ever happen, I do have some lovely baby-making hips on me and it doesn’t help that my body likes to store the Oreos in my thighs & hips. I’m assuming because they look like cookie canisters.

I’ve seen running skirts on a few of the blogs I frequent and on National Running Day with a coupon in hand (or in email), I made the plunge. I bought a running skirt (or skort, whatever) that has shorts attached to it. This is the Pearl Izumi Infinity Run Skort. I ended up getting it on close-out from Sierra Trading Post with an extra 35% off, about $25. It’s a great site for a lot of things outdoors related. I’ve found some great workout gear for reasonable prices on there during sales. Hint – sign up for their emails, they send coupons out all the time.

I received it at the beginning of this week and immediately tried it on to see if it fit. It did. But Lillie kept telling me to take it off that it was Dada’s. Not sure what that was about but you don’t argue with a 2 year old. You just take off the skort, say yes sweetie and make a mental note to talk to Dada about what he does when I’m not home.

Yesterday I ran 3 miles on the ol’ treadmill. I have to say I was really nervous about it. One, because I don’t know if I’m necessarily a skirt girl and two, I didn’t want to cry when they didn’t work out since I had really high hopes about them.

But friends, THEY DID! THEY DID! I ran 3 miles without a rash one and I felt pretty adorable while doing it.

The shorts underneath had little grippies on them so they didn’t roll up at all on me where I had to keep pulling them down. They did however make my thighs resemble stuffed sausage.

Mmm. Stuffed sausage.

 

It wasn’t uncomfortable for the wear though. Just a reminder that I have a lot of Oreos still left in my cookie canisters.

So, it looks like I’ve found myself a loophole in the chub rub department (at least with this particular skort) and I couldn’t be happier. I can’t wait to wear it in my next race!

Have you ever wore a running skirt?
Do you suffer from Chub Rub?
Are you still thinking of sausage?

Training Tuesday 6.11.13

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This link-up is just a way to talk about training [in any way, for anything] to help hold ourselves accountable and possibly brag a bit. I mean, you ran 1 mile without stopping – you totally deserve a chance to brag about it! That shit is hard. You did 10 push-ups in a row, HOLLLEERRR.

As I was writing this post for Tuesday, my computer went stupid and then I went stupid and forgot to post. So, we have a Training Wednesday, or Work-Out Wednesday if we want to be all alliterate. Bloggers always appreciate an awesome alliteration, amirite?

My Training

I’ve been down in the dumps for the past couple of weeks because of this but I’m happy to say I think I’m out of the slump! I’ve started increasing my running this past week and refocusing my efforts on feeling good rather than only trying to look good (as in focusing on the scale).

Notable workout: I ran 3 miles on Monday doing the run/walk method. Ran 2:30 seconds at an 11:20 pace (5.3 mph) and then walked a minute at 15 minute pace (4.0 mph) until I hit 3 miles (this was on the treadmill). For some reason as I increased the pace for that first 2:30 run I was reminded that a little over a year ago I could barely get the treadmill up to 4.0 without feeling like I was running a full-out sprint and now, I’m speed walking that.

Kind of cool. Wanted to share.

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Anyway, have you guys heard of DietBet?

It’s a social dieting game that is designed to help you lose weight with the incentive of getting some moolah at the end of it. A game is created with a bet and lasts for a full month. During this month you must lose 4% of your starting weight.

If you lose the weight, you will win money which you can use for credits by joining another game (there are plenty of games to choose from or you can create your own) OR you can Pay Pal it out to your account. There can be multiple winners as the ‘pot’ is divided up between those.

If you don’t lose the weight, you forfeit that money and curse the gods for making such delicious chocolate chip cookies.

You’re held accountable by posting a picture of you on the scale with a code word written on an index card (they will give you the word to use) and then that picture is approved through DietBet at the beginning. You will post a picture at the end to determine who the winner(s) is. Your weight is never published in a public setting, you’ll only see how much percentage of weight is lost compared to others in the group so you know where you’re sitting without knowing everyone’s magic number.

The more people we get to play, the bigger the pot. 

Would you guys be interested in doing this?

We can have the bets be as low as $10 or high as $500 (uh, no), I think the highest I’d be willing to go would be $25. Throw some input my way concerning the amount of cash you’d be willing to bet on yourself and I’ll start a team.

I am wanting do this for the month of July, so that would be our beginning date.

And for those of you who are not bloggers, this absolutely is open to any and all participants.

Thank You

On Friday, I posted a blog detailing a lovely incident I had with uh, not-so-nice person. It felt really good as I writing it out as if every word I typed was allowing me to let go of all the crappy thoughts/feelings I was having about myself from it. I wasn’t expecting much from it – mostly, I just needed to get that negativity away from me. I am a positive person. I like to smile. I love to laugh. I think high-fives & hugs make the world a much better place.

Don’t doubt me. They do.

And you know what else I think makes the better place?

You.

I received so many wonderful comments & emails about this. People that have “overheard” comments directed at them, people that have made those comments, but that the underlying theme seems to come to one thing – it’s nothing to do with you, and something to do with them.

Perhaps that girl was just incredibly insecure with her appearance (I never made a comment about what she looked like, but she was no model herself) and needed to say something of that nature to make herself feel better.

Maybe she caught her man eyeing my goods (I could be considered busty, especially in the top I was wearing, and add on the lovely tattoo I have on my rack that was on display it’s possible) and was reminding him to keep his eyes to himself.

(Or maybe she’s just a bitch. There’s always that.)

I really hate that I allowed her comment to break me down so much, to get into my mind, to make me think I wasn’t good enough – when I know I am. I’ve worked really hard to feel good about myself and you all reminded me that I am.

So, thank you. 

Thank you for being the type of person who brings someone up. Who cheers them on when they’re feeling down. Who internet high-fives the amazon girl from Texas whenever she rolls through another finish line.

YOU are the type of person that makes the world a better place (in addition to the hugs & high-fives, of course) and you should be proud of that. You are the person that Lillie will come across years from now when I tell her “Oh yeah, I was a blogger” that will help remind her wonderful, beautiful people are out there in the world – they are everywhere, and one negative person doesn’t define a damn thing.

Just Be Nice

 

One of the things I appreciate the most about the relationship I have with my husband is our honesty. That we have the ability (for the most part) to have conversations with each other under the pretense that we are speaking the truth from our heart, not to hurt, but to help. These conversations are never planned, they just sneak in. Sometimes it’s 3 hours longs, others as short as 5 minutes. Instead of being mad about something he (or I) may have said, we think about it, take it in and then improve in whatever area it is we’re referring too.

For example, a few years ago before I had Lillie, I was whining about my weight for the umpteenth time. I had already cried the day before because nothing fit me right and we had plans to go out. Alfred turned to me and said, “I love you. All of you. It doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks. So, please for the love of God, shut up. If you don’t like how you look, do something about it. I’m tired of hearing it. Your looks do not affect how I love you.”

After my initial reaction of “THIS MOTHER.BEEPER IS SO INSENSITIVE” I took a step back (and fine, I cried) and thought, he’s right. When it comes down to it, he’s right. There’s no point in my talking shit about myself to the man I love. Why point out what I see as flaws to him? It doesn’t do anything but bring his attention to whatever I think is my problem areas. We talked a little longer after that. It hurt to hear him say that but I knew it wasn’t coming from a place of hate. He just wanted me to be happy. Once I came to that conclusion, I stopped whining and started doing. Result: I lost 30 lbs.

Another example, he was complaining about something for (again) the umpteenth time. He usually (while complaining) will realize he is doing just that about 1/2 way through the conversation. Mostly I just listen. It helps whenever you can talk things out loud, but his judgment was clouded so I said, “It sounds like to me, you’re bitching over nothing. It’s your job. Shit or get off the pot.” His reaction? He agreed and he worked on what the problem was. Result: Happier.

We had another one of those moments show up this past weekend. Lillie was fast asleep and we were sitting outside enjoying the cool Texas air. We had a lull in the conversation, so it was quiet. Peaceful. And then out of the blue he said, “You’ve been acting really grumpy lately. Is it because you haven’t been working out? I feel like it’s that girls fault.”

Back-story: A couple weekends ago, we were at Wal-Mart, we had just been on the boat and were looking to grab something to throw on the grill when we got home. I was wearing my bikini top with a tank top (it was fitted) over it and some boo-tay shorts to cover my bottoms. I’m not even close to a size 2 but didn’t care, I mean, we had just come off the boat clearly. Lillie had a little cover-up over her swimsuit and swim-shoes on as I was carrying her into the store. She was way exhausted. Alfred & Justin had already booked it in to the store (we were splitting up to get in and out as quick as we could).

I was walking in and I saw a little family that looked much like ours walking out (little girl included). The wife/girlfriend looked me up & down as she walked past me and said (not so quietly) to her boyfriend/husband, “Please tell me I don’t look like that.”

I thought, surely, SURELY, she’s talking about someone else. I must have just jumped in at the wrong part of the conversation or something. No one is that damn rude to a complete stranger. But then, I turned around to look at them and I caught eyes with the guy who had turned around to look at me and he uttered with disgust, “No way, baby.” He turned back to his wife, put his arm around her shoulders and squeezed her into him.

I, on the other hand, squeezed Lillie a little closer and held the tears at bay.

That moment was when I started losing motivation. I hadn’t realized it until Alfred had pointed it out. I have been working so hard for the past year and a half without a care of what other people thought of me. I mean, I could run further (not really faster) than most people I associated with on a daily basis. I’m 15 lbs lighter and I have a family who supports & loves me. I have all of you that read the stuff I post on her. I am surrounded by positivity.

But it only took 20 seconds to tear that all down – and by a complete stranger. She didn’t know me or how hard I’ve worked for the past year. Where I came from. What I’ve been through.

What she did know? That I had a slight muffin top, I wasn’t wearing any make up and my hair was a giant ass frizz ball. She knew my appearance and she judged me for that.

I’ve been pulling myself out of this slump for the past week, thanks to my husband, but wanted to write about it.

To write about it as a reminder to keep your damn mouth shut if you don’t have anything nice to say. We don’t know the struggles people have been through to get to where they are, we don’t know what kind of day they’re having or if we’re about to ruin it, we.don’t.know. I just want you to think about that the next time you make an off-hand comment on someone’s appearance. Or even hear someone say something like that. Don’t encourage it.

Just be nice.

For the love of all things holy it’s not hard.

Just.
Be.
Nice.

National Running Day 2013

In honor of National Running Day I thought I’d give you a few of my “best” race photos over the past year. Here’s proof you don’t have to be no beauty queen to get the job done! All you need is a pair of shoes, a race, and not-so perfect timing.

I like to think that running with a double chin makes you faster.Remember when I chafed my ass? Yeah, me too.

I swear I have eyebrows. Just not on race day apparently.

Hosing off after my first mud run. I seriously have no idea how we have only one kid.
I am the epitome of sexy.

And, for the finale, my absolute “best” racing picture to date.

 

Happy National Running Day friends! Now get out there & move!

Training Tuesday 6.4.13

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This link-up is just a way to talk about training [in any way, for anything] to help hold ourselves accountable and possibly brag a bit. I mean, you ran 1 mile without stopping – you totally deserve a chance to brag about it! That shit is hard. You did 10 push-ups in a row, HOLLLEERRR.

My Training

Uh. Non-existent with the exception of working out pyramid style with Moj yesterday. We did an exercise – 50 seconds on, 10 seconds off – then went to the next one. There were 10 in total. But the thing was we’d do exercise 1 & 2. Then you go back and start at 1, then 2, then 3 THEN go all the way back to one. Until you made it through all 10 exercises.

The first & third exercises on the list were push-ups & burpees. Basically, I hate my life today.

I have a couple of races lined up for the end of the month, one of them is a Color Run – woohoo! If you’re near Temple, TX and want to participate here’s the link, we chose the 9:15 heat. We’d love to have you. I have a couple of girls I graduated HS with doing it too (Hi Lori & Sara!) – actually it was their idea.

Class of ‘02’ in da houuusee.

The other one is the Polish Pickle Run. You guys, I like big races, but I LOVE small ones. Firstly, it has pickle in its name – you can’t beat that shit - and the top prize is your choice of a heifer calf or $500. According to their website, people have actually taken the calf before – I’m not surprised because uh, I live in Texas and that seems normal, but for any of you that aren’t from around here – it’s legit. We like cows and also hay, since 2nd prize is either 30 bales of hay or $100.

Like I said, I love small races.

I don’t really have anything else to add to this. I’m boring in that way.

Tomorrow is National Running Day, so of course, I’ll be running. Will you?