Weigh-In

Last Week: 167.8
This Week: 160.0
Week's Loss: 7.8 lb.
Week's %: 4.60%

Total Loss: 73 lb.
Total %: 31.33%

Current BMI: 26.6
Total BMI Change: 12.2

I SO badly want to be excited about this week's weigh-in, but yesterday morning, I stepped on the scale real quick and it was 167.2.  I find it hard to believe that it would change that much overnight.  Even water weight.  Weeeeeird.  But!  I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts.  I got on the scale 5 times in a row this morning to double check, lol.  I walked Lucy, got back on, and it was 159.8.  Then after I did my hair, I got on again and it was 160 even again.  I haven't done anything to the scale, haven't moved it, got it wet.. whatever.  Is this really possible?

1/2 Marathon Training: Week 3 Recap

Tuesday:Scheduled: Easy Run - 2 mi @ 14:45 pace
Completed: 3.11 miles @ 16:53 pace
Don't take that pace too seriously.  M. and I went out on the trail and ended up stopping in some places to take in the sights and I didn't stop my tracker.  Good run in the rain!

Thursday:
Scheduled: Tempo Run - 5 mi - Warm; 3 mi. @ 13:08; Cool
Completed: 5.09 miles @ 14:32 pace (on Saturday)
Legs were bothering me something AWFUL Thursday.  Decided to take the night off, hoping I'd feel better the next day.  Legs were still painful on Friday, so I decided to wait until Saturday morning to walk the 5.  Ran the first mile, walked the middle three, and ran the last.  Not too unhappy with my time considering more than half of that was walked.  That means that even if I walk some of the 1/2 in July, I should be able to finish in under 3 hours.

Sunday:
Scheduled: Long Run - 7 mi @ 14:45 pace
Completed: Nothing...
So, the leg issues are continuing.  It's my knees and my ankles.  I'm getting terrible shin splints, especially when I wake up in the morning, and my left knee is painful, even when I'm sitting down driving.  I could have walked the 7, but I feel like listening to my body is more important than the miles right now.  I'd rather be unprepared for the 1/2 and complete it in over 3 hours than injured and not able to complete it at all.

Overall, I'm pretty annoyed with the setback this week.  I'm happy that my weight is maintaining though, but I hate missing training days.  I'm promising myself that I am going to push through these next seven weeks, even if the miles need to be walked.  I know I can do this. :)

Scheduled mileage: 14
Completed mileage: 8.20
49 days to go!

Why Do I...

...teach Zumba? 

So I can make faces like this and get paid for it:

And because I look this when I'm running:

Guess which one I enjoy more... hahahaha.

1/2 Marathon Training: Week 2 Recap

Tuesday:
Scheduled: Long run - 6 mi. @ 14:45 pace
Completed: 6 mi @ 13:33 pace
Decided to reverse training this week because of a busy weekend.  Headed to the gym for this one, ran the first 2 miles straight, then did 1/4 mile walking and 3/4 mile jogging intervals for the last 4.  I'm thinking that this is a good way to make my long runs more managable for me... short walking intervals combined with running.

Thursday:
Scheduled: Speedwork - 5 mi - Warm; 2x1600 in 12:24 w/ 800 jogs; Cool
Completed: 5 mi. + @ 20:00 pace
Didn't have the energy to bang this out very fast.  I went with Amie and Michelle and we walked most of it.  I raced Amie's son for a few quick sprints, the Michelle and I jogged a solid mile near the end.  It was more about getting the miles in than killing them for me.  We did jog without music and talked while we did it, which was a nice change and sign of progress for me! :)

Friday:
Scheduled: Easy run - 2 mi @ 14:45 pace
Completed: 2.15 mi @ 9:00 pace
SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO happy with my time!  I hit the front door and looked at my Garmin and it was at 19:33.  I could have fainted.  I really thought I might have been hallucinating, lol.  Very proud of myself with this run!

Scheduled mileage: 13
Completed mileage: 13.15

Two weeks down and I'm not dead yet.  This week will be a challenge because Tuesday is a late night at school and I have another Zumbathon on Saturday.  I might toss out a day on the schedule or I might have  a late gym night on Tuesday.  We'll see how I can make it work.

Two Great Things

I just read this post on Daily Spark by a guy named Bruce Corwin.  After finishing off a 1/2 cup of ice cream (hello, portion control.. haha), nothing's ever made so much sense:

"There are two great things about paying the price for weight loss and health. One, you never regret it the next day. You may regret not having bought that nice pair of shoes at a store you were at 30 miles away yesterday, but if you're trying to lose weight, you won't regret not having ordered Chocolate Brownie Explosion for dessert the night before. You'll be proud you didn't.

Two, you realize that when you're paying the price, you're actually paying yourself – transferring currency from your interest-free, status-quo account to your personal responsibility account, which pays interest and dividends. So when you pay the price, you're the one who gets enriched.

If you don't pay the price now, you may pay a dear price later that you and your loved ones won't like at all.

When we commit ourselves to paying the price, we're doing more than just improving our health and reaching for other goals. We're saying "No" on principle to mediocrity, lethargy, blame, shame, excuses, disappointment, self-loathing and, saddest of all, squandered potential. And we're saying "Yes" to enthusiasm, performance, purpose, striving, integrity, character and life."

You can read the rest of the article here.

It's so true!  You never regret passing on dessert, skipping seconds, not going back to the buffet one last time... but you do regret that extra bowl of ice cream, just one Pepsi, or an extra slice of pizza.  It's making that transition in your mind happen that's the hard part.  I know that for me, I'm the type of person who will scarf down tons of food at a potluck just because I never know when I'm going to have that food again and then I regret it the next day... or even hours later.  I need to learn to let it go.  Yes, that crab dip is amazing, but I'm sure you'll find it again someday, self, you know you'll regret it if you eat another plate of it.

I feel like I need to hang that article up on my fridge!

Weigh-In

Last Week: 169.2
This Week: 167.8
Week's Loss: 1.4 lb.
Week's %: .08%

Total Loss: 65.2 lb.
Total %: 27.98%

Current BMI: 27.9
Total BMI Change: 10.9

1/2 Marathon Training: Week 1 Recap

Tuesday:
Scheduled: Easy Run - 2 mi. @ 14:45
Completed: 3.24 mi @ 17:34/mi.
Went w/ Michelle and we ended up walking the majority of it, but we also went above and beyond and topped off our workout at 3.24 miles.

Thursday:
Scheduled: Tempo Run - 5 mi - Warm; 3 mi. @ 13:08; Cool
Completed: 5.38 mi @ 12:04/mi.
Felt pretty good on this run, but I was miserable trying to stretch out 5 miles in my neighborhood.  Was trying to avoid hills, but around here, it's impossible.  Hip flexor started buggering a lot, especially on my walk back home.

Saturday:
Scheduled: Long Run - 6 mi. @ 14:45 pace
Completed: 6.12 mi @ 13:53/mi.
I didn't want to run in the least bit.  I planned on running a 1/3 mi. flat loop at a local park, but my calf was killing me 1/2 mile in, to the point where my toes on my left foot were numb.  Walked almost 4 miles and was miserable the entire time, lol.  Lesson learned: hit the rail trail for long runs so I can go out halfway and have to run the rest back. 

Scheduled mileage: 13
Completed mileage: 14.74

Not a bad week.  I really need to get nutrition under control, especially the night and morning before a long run.  Here's to week 2!

Late July Organic Chips

Let me introduce you to my new favorite thing in the entire world: Late July Organic Multigrain Snack Chips, particularly in the Mild Green Mojo flavor.

Oh.

My.

God.

I never want to eat anything but these chips for the rest of my life.  Really.  And I would be okay with that.

They're delicious by themselves, just a bit of bite and a satisfying crunch... but I ate them with pico de gallo and it was even more of a delicious explosion in my mouth, lol.  Love, love, love.  The best part?  An ENTIRE bag runs you 660 calories.  THE WHOLE BAG.  They suggest 6 servings, 110 calories each, but REALLY.  You can eat THE WHOLE BAG for 660.  LOVE! 

I found them at Giant in the organic section, not sure where else they are available, but check them out at Late July Organic Snacks.

Even Lucy approves!  Exhibit A:

Exhibit B:

Race Update - 5/4/11

May 21: Running with Friends 10K Run, Quakertown, PA
June 4: MHA Ladies 5K Run, York, PA
June 25: Tiadaghton Race 10K Run, Jersey Shore, PA
July 13: Fueled by Fine Wine 1/2 Marathon, Portland, OR
July 23: Prowl the Sproul 10K Hike/Run, Hyner, PA
August 20: On the Rocks 8.3 mile Trail Run, York, PA
September 24: KMF Race for Ovarian Cancer 1/2 Marathon, Williamsport, PA
October 1: Bald Eagle Mountain Megatransect 26+ mile Hike, Lock Haven, PA

Race Against Racism.



Pre-race.. ready to roll.

 Ran the Race Against Racism in York yesterday.  This was my first 5K EVER last year.  It was such a cool feeling to wake up yesterday feeling excited about running a 5K instead of sick to my stomach.  I wasn't feeling 100% in the morning because I had a few drinks the night before at Happy Hour (lesson learned, self...), but I woke up, got myself moving, had breakfast and a bottle of Diet Coke because I'm too lazy to make coffee, picked Jenna up, and headed off to the race.

I was thrilled about the fact that there was a dark chocolate Hershey's Bliss bar in my bag, lol.  Probably more than I should have been.  Had a cup of Starbucks coffee from a vendor while waiting around for the race to start, then found our way to the beginning of the pack before the race started.

I started out slow because the first mile is a slow uphill and I knew that I would poop myself out if I took off too quickly.  My hip started to pull as soon as I started uphill, but I kept telling myself that yes, it hurt, but no, it wasn't stopping me.  After the first mile, I started downhill again, taking off as fast as I could push myself and passing quite a few people on the downhill and the following flat section.

Sweet 16... swag bag.

I was so motivated running yesterday.  I kept passing a group of high school soccer players who looked like they were dying.  It was like coming full circle for me because I quit soccer when I was younger because the new coach was going to make me run and I just wouldn't stand for that... hahaha.  The only thing that had me a little messed up was that instead of mile markers, they had placed motivational signs up at each mile.  I was glad that I knew the course because last year, that would have left me in a tizzy, not knowing how far I'd gone or how far I had left to go. 

Anyway, I ended up finishing in 33:31, my fastest 5K ever, and over 4 minutes faster than last year's time of 37:43.  I felt awesome!  It was the first race I've run where I was never by myself behind the pack.  I kept trying to spit, but I couldn't because there was always someone on either side of me.  I kept thinking to myself, so this is what it feels like to not be the slowest one. 

I'm looking forward to all of the upcoming races... can't wait. I'm thinking about registering for the 5K portion of the Bob Potts Marathon on the Rail Trail down here on the 15th just to see if I can improve my PR. 

In other news, P. and I were tick food last night.  We took Lucy to Klines Run Park for a little hike and did part of the Native Lands Heritage Trail.  Between the 3 of us, we found 8 ticks. Grosssssssss.  However, after our little War of the Ticks, we booked our flights for Portland, which is super exciting because it means that Fueled by Fine Wine is that much closer! :)