Motivation in the Form of Music

So I have been thinking lately about how important music has been in my life. I am not musically talented, I have never played an instrument, and you DO NOT want me to sing in public. But there is a huge place in my heart for music of all kinds. Rock, rap, pop, classical, country, bluegrass...doesn't matter, I love it all.  It can change my mood, my outlook or my day with just one song. So naturally, when I decided to start running, music had to be right there with me, literally, every step of the way.

Currently, I have a large play list that you can see part of on my "Running Playlist" page. It does consist of a lot of rap, pop and rock songs that are fast and upbeat. Most days I just hit shuffle and enjoy whatever comes up.

Then there are the days when I am so unmotivated, or not feeling positive about me or my workout. Those are the days that I have to play those super motivating, upbeat songs that can totally change my mood and the direction of my workout. Here are a few songs and the lyrics I hold dear to my heart on those yucky days that I don't want to run:

1. Lose Yourself - Eminem

"Here I go, It's my shot, feet fail me not, this may be the only opportunity that I got..."

"Lose yourself in the music, the moment, you OWN it! You better never let it go! You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow!"

"You can do anything you set your mind to, man"

That last line is at the end of the song and at that point, I'm always pumped and running as hard as I can. I know a lot of people don't like Eminem, for whatever reason, and that's understandable. But this is my favorite song to run to, especially in a race. No doubt it's super motivating.

2. Dog Days Are Over - Florence and the Machine

"Run fast for your mother run fast for your father
Run for your children for your sisters and brothers
Leave all your love and your longing behind you
Can't carry it with you if you want to survive"

I really like hearing that line in the middle of the song. The song gets really fast at this point and it energizes me to run faster every time it repeats.

Those two are my top 2 "go to" songs when I need a good kick in the butt to get going. I never get tired of hearing them because I love to hear those lyrics egging me on. There are other songs that really keep me moving, but don't necessarily have the lyrics that pertain to running or pushing yourself or working hard.

Songs about accepting yourself, perseverance and overcoming obstacles:

1. Airplanes (part 2) - B.O.B. featuring Hayley Williams and Eminem 

2. Move Along - All-American Rejects

3. Live Your Life - T.I. featuring Rihanna

4. Firework - Katy Perry

Feel-good, make you wanna dance songs:

1. I Got A Feeling - Black Eyed Peas

2. The Time (Dirty Bit) - Black Eyed Peas

3. My Hero - Foo Fighters

4. Hot 'n' Cold - Katy Perry

5. Poker Face - Lady Gaga

6. Animal - Neon Trees

7. Bottoms Up - Trey Songz (featuring Nicki Minaj)

8. D.J. Got Us Falling In Love - Usher (featuring Pitbull)

9. Pretty Girl Rock - Keri Hilson

10. So What - Pink

11. Tik Tok - Ke$ha

12. Your Love is My Drug - Ke$ha

13. Days Go By - Keith Urban

*Most of these songs have explicit lyrics and I apologize if this offends anyone. To each his own...

There's something about angry rap songs that just pushes me when I run...

One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain. 

Bob Marley  

Without music, life would be a mistake.
Friedrich Nietzsche

Music doesn't lie. If there is something to be changed in this world, then it can only happen through music.
Jimi Hendrix

What's your favorite song to run to, workout to or just dance to? What music motivates you?

OH. MY. GOD.

OMG! I just (finally) registered for the half-marathon I have been pondering over for the last month! Ahhhhhh! No turning back now. My heart feels like it is going to jump out of my chest! I guess because I had a good run this morning I felt moved to 'just do it'! Wow, I'm still in shock!

www.lscmarathon.com

 Now comes the hard part...training for this race starts at the end of July. The actual race is on November 12th. So essentially, I have 4 months to get myself used to running longer distances at a reasonable pace...piece of cake, right??? God, help me...

In other exciting news, Fit Crafty English Teacher is giving away a pair of Auria Earphones. She tested them out herself and had great things to say about them. If you are like me, earphones are very important because music is what keeps me going during those long workouts! Head over to Megan's blog, the giveaway ends on Friday, July 8th. I just realized that because I am sharing the news of this giveaway, it really lessens the chance that I will win...in that case, stay away!!!!!! (Just kidding, Megan!)

Yesterday was a cross-training day, so I did The Biggest Loser's Cardio Max DVD. Let's just say bending over, getting dressed and reaching for things has not been fun today. Very sore. But it's a good, "hey, where did those muscles come from" kind of sore. Bob never fails to kick my butt. I do this video at least once every 2 weeks and I have stuck to level one because I felt like level 2 and 3 were easier than level 1, and they are also 10 minutes shorter.

Today I had a good 2 mile run and I had a PR for that distance! As I've said before, my PR is slower than most people speed walk, but that's okay, I'm slowly shaving time off. I am cutting out the walk breaks and when I do take them they are very short. Hopefully by November, I won't get passed by speed walkers in the half-marathon.  If I do, I'll just yell obscenities, turn my iPod up louder and keep running. I'll get to that finish line, slowly but surely...

Thankful Tuesday (couldn't wait until Thursday!)

Feeling really thankful today, here's why:

A beautiful day with my toes in the water,

even if it is just in the baby pool in my backyard,

with a little helper to keep my legs cool,

and then a dinner project,

with that sweet little helper,

 a delicious homemade dinner,

made with love,

and a cute little pizza for her,

that was fun to make and healthy,

and cute too!

Let it go and move on

I have realized that I have to accept some things, like them or not, and move on.

For example, I have to accept that June is almost over. For those of you that work year round, I apologize, but for those of us who have a break in the summer (a.k.a. teachers) know what I'm talking about. I love my job and couldn't imagine doing anything else, but it is a high stress, high energy job that I don't think I could do year round without some kind of counseling! Seriously though, I am a little disturbed that June is almost gone because I have gotten nothing done that I had plan to do...other than starting this blog. My house is a mess, my scrapbooks are years behind and my plans to make some extra $$ by having a yard sale have not panned out yet. Oh well, there's always July...

Another example of something I need to accept is that I cannot run 3 days in a row or 5 out of 7 days a week. My body cannot handle it at this point in my "running life".

I have to find other ways to make myself stronger and burn off all the fat that I inhale at every meal. That's where I have fallen short. My bike has flat tires, so I haven't ridden it in forever. My elliptical is a piece of garbage that squeaks and has no resistance (we bought it really cheap years and years ago). So I jump on old faithful the dreadmill and run. Occasionally I walk. Once a week I do a CardioMax DVD. But I'm still putting stress on the same muscles and joints.

So I am learning to accept that running a mile or two 5 days a week is not going to give me that strength I want, or make me faster. Cross-training will.

I also need to accept that it's okay to not run outside at this point in the year. I have been running on the treadmill for the last month because I am such a wuss. I guess because I've never ran outside in the heat before, I'm afraid to even try. Today's forecast is not horrible, but it is humid (shocking, I know):

Looks to me like it is going to gradually get hotter, so now would be the best time to just get out there and do it. But who am I kidding. Unless I go out to run at 9 pm, it's not going to happen, at least not outside.

Another thing I am struggling to forgive myself for is the way I have been eating the last few days. I have had some major stomach/lower intestinal issues for over a week now and salads and fruits have not been my friend. But it's okay to listen to my body and eat some "comfort" foods every once in a while, especially when I am sick. As long as I don't get back into the habit of eating that way all day every day, it's not the end of the world.

So my question to you is, what are you struggling to accept or forgive yourself for?

What if...?

I have yet to register for the half-marathon that I would like to run in November. I've gone to the page several times and stopped myself before I get to the part where you pay. $65 is not a huge amount of money, but parting with it still kind of scares me. There are no refunds. What if no one else I know is running it? What if I get injured during training (happened before)? or get sick and can't run ( I have been feeling icky all week...what if I have some crazy disease)? I keep coming up with all these "what if" questions and they seem to be preventing me from just doing it. There was even a code to get $10 off registration last Wednesday, I didn't even attempt to register. Major fail on my part...

On a more positive note, I had a great day. Went to church, had lunch with the in-laws. My MIL is the best cook. She makes lunch for us after church almost every Sunday. Sundays have to be my indulgence days because of her wonderful not-so-fat-free cooking! Today she had made an awesome raspberry torte.

 Sorry for the horrible iPhone picture, I was carrying it down the stairs as I took it.

This afternoon I got to take a long, much needed nap. Then the hubs cooked a wonderful dinner of grilled asparagus, brown rice and some kind of cajun grilled fish. I'm not a lover of fish (just a little too "fishy" tasting for me), but it was rather delish.

Weirdo cut the tops off the asparagus!

Then I did my supposed-to-be "long" run for the week. It was supposed to be 3 miles, but I have not been feeling myself this past week, especially this weekend, so I only did 2. But I did get my fastest time per mile so far. It's still slower than most people walk, so I will not post my time. One day I will get there...

Almost forgot to mention...I'm now on Twitter. You can follow me @SanitynSweetTea if you're a Twitterererer....you know what I mean!

Here's hoping this week will bring more energy, motivation and healthy eating...

Facelift and a Good Run

I changed the header to add a little bit of more of me. My running shoes (sanity-Brooks Ariel) and obviously, my sweet tea. I started to change the background, colors, etc. but decided to let it be for now. You will find that I like to change things up from time to time. I'm still experimenting with this whole blogging thing, so please bare with me!

I got a good 2 mile run in tonight. I tried to work on keeping the same pace as long as I could and not taking so many walk breaks or "stop and stretch" breaks. It went really well and I felt good after the first mile. Why is it the first mile is always the hardest?? So that was my sanity for the day...

As for the sweet tea, I did indulge in a gargantuan small sweet tea from Chick-fil-a. I should be a spokesperson for Chick-fil-a and McAllister's, as much as I talk about their food and sweet tea! Classy, I know, but when you live on a budget, you take what you can get!! Maybe one day when all the debts are paid off, hubby and I can begin to enjoy some finer dining experiences. Our city does have some great local restaurants. We just don't spend a lot of our money eating out. Hense, the weekly Chick-fil-a and McAllister's visits! At least both places have healthier choices for those of us that choose to order them (ahem...most of the time, me, but less often, the hubby).

Where is your favorite "cheap" place to eat healthy?

Procrastination At It's Best

I realized sitting here in front of the computer for over an hour this morning that I have been devoting too much time to blogging. Reading blogs, writing my own and uploading and editing pictures to use in my blog. There are so many good, funny and interesting blogs out there to read, I'm getting sucked in a little more every day. There's something addicting about sneaking into other peoples' lives. Some of the blogs I read, I honestly feel like I know the person, even though I've never met them and they are hundreds or thousands of miles away. I spend more time reading blogs than I do reading actual books. It's crazy, but true.

I think it's just because I'm on vacation and it's easy to get caught up in something for hours at a time. I wonder how much blogging I will get done once school starts back in August...

There are so many things I could be doing instead of blogging or reading other people's thoughts:

1. Cleaning my always messy, dirtball of a house.

2. Running, cross training or some other form of much needed exercise. Half-marathon training starts in almost 4 weeks!

3. Playing with the little one...although this morning time is her much coveted T.V. time!

4. Yard work. My landscaping needs some serious TLC. Would love to pay someone to do it, it's almost more than I can handle.

5. Working on July's budget, coupon clipping or some other financially smart activity.

6. Reading and thinking about the new Common Core Standards for elementary students (this is job related. This school year we are beginning to teach with new standards that are no longer state specific, but now the same for most of the U.S.) This is going to have to be done soon. The new binder of standards is 3 inches thick!

7. Reading an actual book. The current book I am reading is The Shack by William P. Young. I'm like 2 years behind on my reading. I'm having a hard time sticking with it. It has a lot to do with spirituality and trusting God in the face of horrible tragedy. Spirituality has always been a difficult subject for me, but I heard this was a great, life changing book, so I'm going to stick with it.

Speaking of reading actual books, what are you reading now? What do you recommend I add to my summer reading list?

Thursday's Thrills

Thanks to last night's 2 hours of tornadoes and almost 3 inches of rain, today turned out to be a cooler, windy day with almost no humidity. So the little one and I went to play at the park and enjoyed an early dinner at my favorite sweet tea "brewery" as I like to call them.

We also had a few games of Hi-Hi Cherry-O going while she had to wear her eye patch. She has Amblyopia, otherwise known as lazy eye. She is supposed to be wearing the patch for 6 hours a day! That is no easy feat with a 4 year old! I have to get creative and keep her entertained as much as I can.

Sometimes I think when she's older she's going to hate me for putting pictures of her on a blog and on Facebook for everyone to see. I just love to share her with the world, she's my ray of sunshine!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As far as running goes, I did run a mile this morning on the treadmill. I only did a mile because it was speed work. I really need to start working on tempo runs. I have read that tempo runs are what prepare you for a half marathon more than any other running workouts. However, speed work has really helped to lower my time per mile. Even with frequent occasional walk breaks, I am still faster than I was 2 months ago!
 
I did mow the grass when we got home today. Mowing straight uphill with a push mower is really great exercise for my legs! And my yard is a huge hill...

 This is just the yard around my driveway. Only a third of what I mow.

Any recommendations for how to incorporate tempo runs into my training schedule? Or just general advice about preparing for a half-marathon?

*I'm adding some info about my upcoming training schedule for the half-marathon in November on my running page above.

 

 

Woohoo Wednesday

I thought I'd share a few of the things that make me go "WooHoo!" because I love them so much. I might make this a weekly thing. These are things that just randomly stand out right now as my favorites:

Marzetti's Pomegranate Vinaigrette

Pomegranate Raspberry Michelob Ultra. There's a theme going on here...

 And then there's this guy...

what can I say, I hate running outside in the heat.


As I'm typing this post, my dog Heidi starts going crazy. So I get up to let her out and hear tornado warning sirens. Haven't had the t.v. on all day, had no idea and couldn't hear the sirens from my office. So here's a big "WOOHOO"! for my dog Heidi. Thanks for the warning, girl! (She's typically like this, 23 hours a day)

*just a note: the tornado warning was canceled not long after I posted. All is safe now!
uh, not exactly. Tornado warnings all night...but we are safe!

What is something that makes you go "woohoo!"?

Fear is Nothing More Than a State of Mind...

In honor of Heather from "Run Faster Mommy!" I wanted to write a post about my fears. Her recent blog post had me thinking about what I fear and why. Some things on this list are simple, kind of stupid fears and some are more complex, and make me sick to even think about. Most of them are obvious fears for most people. So here goes...

1. Snakes. Any kind, any size, and any color.

2. Losing a family member. Kidnapping, death, estrangement, whatever. And most paralyzing thought of all, losing my dear sweet baby girl.

3. Car Accidents. Being in one or witnessing one. I totally have had PTSD afterwards. I still flinch when someone pulls up on a side street as I'm passing...a result of my car accident last fall where a guy pulled out of a side street hitting me on my passenger side, totaling my car. Other than some back pain, thankfully, no one was hurt.

4. Breaking a bone. Never have. Hopefully never will...

5. Running a long distance. I have yet to register for the half-marathon coming up in November because I become sick with fear just thinking about it. I'm afraid of failing, not running, not finishing, not even trying.

6. Never getting out of debt. My husband and I have been working really hard to pay off debt and never go in debt again (we're on the Dave Ramsey plan), but it has been an uphill battle with no end in sight.

And that's about it. I am not afraid of bugs or even spiders. Fire doesn't bother me, although my house burning down is a scary thought!

So my question to you is...what are you afraid of? Any similarities from my list?

Blah!

Today I feel blah!

I feel fat, bloated and tired. I think maybe Sunday's bout with the stomach "yuckies" has caught up with me energy-wise. And this past weekend's food has caught up with me on the scale.

It is storming outside right now, and that definitely does not help the mood, but I think weighing myself yesterday and today is the main culprit. I don't usually weigh myself, but lately I have been obsessed. Gotta stop!

My plan for today is to clean my dirty house and run a few miles tonight. I really have come to dread and despise running at night. I have noticed when I run or workout in the morning or early afternoon, I feel so much more energetic and less depressed for the rest of the day.

My ideal workout time would be early morning before anyone is up, but I am SO not a morning person. Really I am a night owl. I have to force myself to go to bed around 12 every night. And even though I don't have to get up at any certain time each morning, I really should try to go to bed around 10. I think I would feel 100 times better!

What time do you workout? Are you a morning person or a night owl like me?

My Day in Pictures

Here's a summary of my day in pictures:

A short run...

A light lunch, easy on the tummy...

 Cleaning up after Little Miss Messy. She loves couscous.

 Laundry

A trip to the library and grocery store that ended with a little nap, 

 
  A little reading...and no I did not get all these books at the library, that is my summer reading stash, books that I found at various places like Goodwill, my church library and our public library. I've already finished 4 in that stack!

Thin crust pizza margherita and a salad with carrots, granny smith apples, olives, blue cheese, walnuts and almonds with pomegranate dressing, delish!

 

  And for dessert, warm apple slices with cinnamon while watching The Bachelorette. Great way to end the day!

Love listening to Ashley talk about how she "can't stop thinking about" Bentley. If only she knew the truth...

Goodnight all!

Some Sanity on a Monday

Well, I am feeling a little more human today, but still not 100%. Wondering if I should try out a short run on the treadmill or just rest for another day. That would be 4 rest days in a row, thanks to the weekend trip and this wonderful stomach thing that is going on. I've got to do something, maybe a slow jog or even just walking?

It is SO humid outside already, there is no way I could run outside. Even on a healthy day. So call me a wimp. Or maybe a diva. Either way, I'm not sure anyone would want to run outside in this heat and humidity.

Anyone that has ever lived in or visited the Ohio Valley in summer knows that the humidity is what kills us. It is only 80 degrees right now, but with 76% humidity and no wind it feels closer to 90. I think our heat/humidity is similar to places like Florida. I'm sorry, but I don't like to run in a sauna, just sayin'.

Now, in honor of Cely from Running off the Reece's, here is my Magnificent Men of Monday...

			Feeling better already! Kind of motivates me to go run. Enjoy!

Ugh...

I have no one to blame but myself. I am sick as a dog. All because I decided to eat healthy many months ago and then botched it up this weekend.

We traveled to Tennessee to visit my grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and such, and in the process I consumed God knows how many calories. And it's not even about the calories, it was the quality of the food. Bacon and eggs, meatloaf, mashed potatoes (soaked with butter and milk--I'm lactose intolerant), apple crisps and vanilla ice cream, cake, burgers and fries...the list goes on and on. It was all so good. Not so good now. I cannot turn down food made by family. Down there everyone eats home cooked meals made with tons of grease, butter, and salt. Like I thought I could just jump right in where I left off months ago...

So here I sit, too sick to do anything that even resembles walking, much less running. I knew this weekend was going to be hard when it came to making good choices about what I eat, but I had no idea it would make me this sick to eat like I used to for 2 or 3 days. Ugh. Try to eat healthy and it bites you in the butt...

 My new BFF

So for the next few days, I am on detox from anything that contains butter, sugar, salt or milk (with the exception of yogurt...it seems to help the stomach issues). We will see how I feel tomorrow or the next day. Hopefully this doesn't last. Ugh.

Three Thing Thursday!

I don't  have anything interesting or exciting to write about today, so I thought I'd share three random things that are in my head right now! Here goes...

1. I just finished the book "Stay" by Allie Larkin. It was a quick, easy read that I couldn't put down. Just randomly pulled it off the shelf at the library and thought I'd share.

2. Beth from Shut Up and Run is giving away a Zensah running bra. Go to her blog to read her review and enter to win!

3. I have 4 full weeks of vacation time with no work, professional development, or meetings starting tomorrow. One of the many, many reason I love my job...it's funny how people think teachers get 3 full months off. Uh, no.

 I will be out of town for 2 days. Hope to post again on Sunday! Enjoy your weekend.

One of My Inspirations

Beth from Shut Up and Run! had a blog post this week that really resonated with me. She talks about her choice to eat healthy, even though she is naturally thin and could eat just about anything, because she runs, bikes and swims like a madwoman, burning off a million calories a day:

 I may have stolen borrowed these pics off her blog.

"I believe it’s a lifestyle. It’s finding the connection between how you feel mentally, emotionally and physically and what you put into your body. There is NOTHING I eat in a given day that I eat without being completely conscious of how it is or is not contributing to the well being of my body. Awareness is key. When we get disconnected, we make poor choices."

Disconnected. That is truly how I felt the majority of my life. Disconnected from my body. Like I had no control over how my body looked, and more importantly how it felt. It has taken years of my adulthood to realize that I have a choice. I can feel good, or I can feel bad. That is one reason I started this blog: to record my journey to become connected to my body again through healthier eating habits and exercise.

No, I am not naturally thin, athletic or fast. And I have to work like hell to just maintain where I am physically. I have to exercise 4-5 days a week. I can't eat donuts or ice cream or pizza or even drink sweet tea 7 days a week without blowing up like a beluga whale. And believe me, I would love to drink sweet tea everyday, all day long.  But, in the end, I have to take care of my body. It is the only one I have. It can do amazing things like grow a baby, give birth, and run. Maybe not fast, but boy can I run!

Beth is an inspiration to me. Not because she is super thin, or because she is totally hilarious (which she is, you should read her blog). But because she takes care of her body by eating well (most of the time, nobody's perfect...) and consistently working to maintain and even improve her fitness level--if that's even possible. The woman's a athletic freak of nature, just sayin'...;-)

A Free Lunch

Today was the first day of a week long teacher conference that my school district has every summer. I was up bright and early, much to my dismay. The only positives about this conference thing is seeing old teacher friends from other schools and the free lunch. Who says there's no such thing as a free lunch??

We had two choices for this lunch. Chick-fil-a sandwiches with chips, cole slaw and a brownie, or some healthy junk...I couldn't even focus on what it was because the smell of Chick-fil-a filled my nostrils before I even got to the lunch line. Needless to say, I caved and had the wonderful chicken sandwich. Not the grilled chicken, the fried, high calorie, greasy, infamous Chick-fil-a chicken sandwich. I didn't take any pictures because I didn't want to look like a weirdo in front of hundreds of my coworkers...but lets just say, it wasn't around long enough for me to enjoy how it looked, much less take it's photograph!

So for dinner, I ate a light helping of my husband's creation, some kind of veggie pasta/lasagna wannabe. It was delish, but I know he snuck in lots of cheese, hamburger and other not so healthy things.

So I took it easy and paired it with a small salad, to make up for the catastrophe known as lunch. Salads are my "forgiveness" food. Eat a salad and you are fogiven everything horrible you may have consumed today. That's just one of the many lies I tell myself as I try to balance healthy eating with the occasional treat.

I am now missing The Bachelorette, so I am going to jump on the treadmill for a quick run while I yell at the t.v. every time someone says the word "amazing" or "special" or "connection". I'm sure I will be doing a lot of yelling tonight...

"The Most Important Thing About Goals is Having One" - Geoffry F. Abert

Another weekend has come and almost gone. I did not run Saturday because I was SO unbelievable sore from running 2 miles working on speed Friday and doing CardioMax (a Biggest Loser DVD) with Bob. So today, I pulled up my bootstraps, or put on my big girl panties, however you want to say it, and I ran a whopping 3 miles! This was the longest distance I have done in a long while. I've been stuck at 2 miles, working on improving speed more than distance. And apprently, it worked. I ran my fastest time per mile, or my PR! Granted, my time is so slow compared to most runners out there, for me this was a personal victory. 

Why do I always have a red face after I run? Looks like bad sunburn! Gross!

As for food, my weekend has been awesome! Lots of salad, chicken, veggies, fruits and water. A little sweet stuff and maybe some queso and tortilla chips last night...and a beer. I'm learning that having sweet stuff and cheese and alcohol in moderation is okay. I never was able to do it in moderation before. It was always all or nothing. Too much of a good thing or starve myself and feel miserable all the time. 

Today's lunch: salad with chicken, pico de gallo, cucumbers, carrots, and blue cheese. 

I forgot the pecans, so I added them to my vanilla yogurt for dessert! Yum-o!

Since I ended up reaching a short term goal today (run 3 miles at a decent speed), it had me thinking about long term goals. I've had my eye on a local half-marathon that is coming up in November, the Louisville Sports Commision Half Marathon. I'm thinking the weather mid-November is going to be perfect for a long run. This would give me something to train for starting in late July, and then I could set my sights on the 2012 KY Derby Festival Mini-marathon which happens in April of next year. This was the half-marathon I did in 2010, and I injured myself during training. I ended up walking more than I ran. So one of my long term goals has been to punch that race in the face run the whole thing.

So now that I've put it out there, here are my official short and long term running goals between now and May 2012:

1. Break a 12:00 mile. See, I told you I was slow...

2. Run in a local organized race like a 5K or 10K. And run the entire thing.

3. Train for and run the upcoming Louisville Sports Commission Half Marathon on 11/12/11.

4. Train for and run a half-marathon. Namely the same race that kicked my butt in 2010.

 Let's see how many of these I can cross off my list over the next year...

What are your short or long term fitness or healthy lifestyle goals for 2011?

There May Have Been Ice Cream...

It has been HOT! There's no other way to put it...90+ degree heat, humidity and the lack of rain have made for a miserable week. Today I decided take my little one to a "splash play area" at one of our local parks. Our city has such a great park system, and the sprinkler area at this particular park is really nice. This park is a big running/walking/biking park because of it's hills and scenic trails. I admire the people who were running, walking and biking on a day like today. By the time we left the park, my car's temperature gauge said 99 degrees. I'm sure it really wasn't that hot, but in the direct sun, it sure felt like it!

That being said, I am a wimp when it comes to extreme temperatures and running. Since I bought a treadmill last year, I have avoided going outside to run in really cold and really hot temps like I'm some kind of recluse. I have been spoiled by my temperature controlled basement, with a T.V., speakers for my iPod and a fan blowing on me as I pretend to run.

And the heat has not helped our garden out at all. This is apparently what happens to lettuce plants when it's too hot or too wet (like it was last month). They become freakishly tall and skinny. Oh, well, I really didn't want to eat any salad anyway...

As for exercise today, I ran this morning, on the treadmill (of course), 2 miles. Then tonight I did CardioMax with Bob (the trainer from The Biggest Loser). He kicked my butt, as always. I can barely walk now. Guess I won't be doing that long run until never Sunday (wink, wink). I did the double workout today because at some point there may have been ice cream. I'm not saying from where or what kind, but knowing I spent hours outside in 90 degree weather, you can't hate on me.  And anyway, lunch was very, very conservative.

couscous, carrots and veggie pasta with chicken

This is a small plate, I promise.

My lunch choices were almost as good as my dinner choices. Dinner was a turkey wrap with hummus, lettuce, tomato, Dijon mustard and crumbled blue cheese. Yum. Much better than ice cream...                                        

C'est La Vie!

Today I fell off the healthy eating wagon and had some Dairy Queen for lunch. Instead of ordering a salad (I knew I would have salad for dinner) I opted for a BBQ sandwich and some french fries. And then split a mini Reece's Blizzard with the little one. Maybe we didn't really split it, maybe I ate most of it, but still, at leas it wasn't the WHOLE thing!! Really, is it possible to eat healthy at Dairy Queen? Even their salads are covered in bacon, shredded processed cheese and high calorie dressings (I realize that's my choice, darn you honey mustard!).

Dairy Queen was our only option because we were stranded at the car dealership for several hours at lunchtime. It was the only restaurant anywhere near us. Excuses, excuses. Lack of planning on my part, should of ate lunch before we left the house, or at least got something healthier on the way there. C'est la vie!

After our long wait for the car to be fixed, we headed to a park so little one could play for a while. It was hot, but nice in the shade. I sat and watched as tons of people walked and ran past on the park's trails. I was so jealous. Should have brought my running shoes. Should have brought the jogging stroller. Again, lack of planning. It's summer vacation, what can I say...my brain shuts down as soon as school's out. So needless to say, today turned into a non-running, rest day. C'est la vie!

 Two of my main reasons for running

Finally, we stopped for dinner at a healthier place. Seriously, my favorite place to eat, and not just because of the sweet tea. McAllister's Deli is truly my saving grace some nights. Love their salads. I try to justify all the sweet tea I drink while I'm there by eating salads. I know, I know, eating a salad doesn't cancel out every bad food decision I make. A girl can dream, right?

And so begins my blogging life...

Today I am beginning my blogging life. I wondered for a while if starting a blog was a good idea or a bad idea. What the heck, right? I'm just putting myself out there for anyone to see. My thoughts, my faults, my life.

So here I am, in all my glory, for everyone (or nobody?) to see. I am starting this blog to try and keep myself accountable. Even though I love to eat healthy and exercise, it does not come naturally for me. It has taken years of trial and error to find healthy foods I like, exercise that I can be successful at, and a balance between being a wife, mom, career woman and wannabe athlete. That's right, I said "wannabe". I am in the best shape of my life, but I still don't think I'm to my full potential yet. Honestly, who is, right?

That being said, this blog is going to be a work in progress, just like me. I think I am going to focus on day to day stuff that I encounter as I try to be supermom, super healthy eater and super runner. Yeah, I already know I'm gonna fall short somewhere. But a girl can dream, can't she?