Guess What I'm Wearing?

Good Monday, bloggers! At least I hope you are all having a good Monday. I am.
What am I wearing, you ask? I am wearing a new outfit I bought for the fall since fall is just around the corner. It seems like fall decided to make an early appearance today and it is a bit chillier here than is normal. Anyway, I am wearing long pants and a long sleeve shirt today. Guess what size the pants are? Guess! If you guessed a size 12, you are correct! That is right I am wearing my first size 12's in a few years. It feels great. I have been trying on the 12's in my closet and I can get them on, but they are just a bit too tight for me to feel comfortable wearing out. When I went to buy some new clothes, I decided to buy 12's since I knew I would be there soon. This particular pair just happens to fit right now! Hopefully, I can say the same once I wash them the first time.

I had a great weekend. I can now say my birthday (Aug. 16th) is officially over. On Saturday, we celebrated one last time. This is how we celebrated:



My hubby and I took our girls to see "The Lion King" Broadway show. No, not in New York. We went to the travelling show in our capitol city. When I found out it was coming here, I said that is what I wanted to do for my birthday. I have long wanted to go to this particular show and it did not disappoint. The costumes were amazing! I'm grateful for a generous husband, who bought us great seats. We have had the tickets since February, so it was long anticipated. Now, it is kind of a bummer that it is over. It is always nice to have things to look forward to.

Today I worked out on the dreadmill....I mean the treadmill. The weather was lightening and raining this morning so we didn't go on our early morning walk. I put on my workout clothes then anyway, but didn't actually work out until 11:00 a.m. And believe me, my friends, it was a close call. I almost didn't do it.

But I talked myself into getting on the treadmill. I tried to run on the treadmill at the same pace as I do outside, but couldn't sustain it for very long. But I did run for 27 minutes and two miles straight, which is a treadmill distance record for me. I ended up doing a 5K at an okay time. Then I hopped on the exercise bike for 30 minutes. I must say, I felt much better after than I would have had I not done it.

I figure, I better get used to the treadmill again since winter is approaching. Today was a practice run. Hopefully, I still have a good 2-3 months left before I have to make a daily date with Mr. Dred.

I hope you are all well. I promise to catch up on some blogs tonight and tomorrow.

Well, I hope you are all well out there. I promise to read some blogs later tonight and tomorrow.

Weigh-In-Wednesday (a day late)

Well hello, everybody. I just can't seem to get back into the blogging groove. The kiddos have been back at school now for 10 days and I am enjoying my alone time very much. It just seems that I haven't gotten the blogging bug back. It may have something to do with the fact that I am being very conscious about how much time I am spending on the computer during my alone time. I could spend A LOT of time on here, so I am watching it closely. :)



I just wanted to check in and account for yesterday's weigh-in. I weighed in at 168.5 for a loss of 2.5 pounds. Woo hoo! This brings my August net loss to 1 pound. Not very good, but I feel good about having kept off the great losses of July. And there still about another week of August left so I just may have lost a little more by then. :) Yeah, I survived my birthday week/month without too much damage!



I hope to catch up on some blogs today. I hope all of you are well out there!

Maintenance-mode 15 pounds too soon

Hello, everybody. As you can tell by my post title, things could be better around here. Let me just tell you that I seem to be in maintenance mode the past couple of weeks (all of August actually). My exercise is what is keeping me in this game, folks. Hooray for exercise! Did I really just say "hooray for exercise"!? My eating is what is keeping me from losing the last 15 pounds I need to lose to reach my 2010 goal.

The other day I was talking to a friend. She shared with me a story about another friends of hers who had lost a lot of weight by running and such, but then gained it all back because she got tired of running all the time. Do you hear the sirens going off in my head?

I have been thinking about this since she told me it. What if I injured myself running and couldn't run for awhile or what will happen when the snow comes and the weather is crummy and I am banished to treadmill workouts?

So this is me saying that I really need to get back on the "stick to the eating plan" train! For me that means, no more than 1500 calories a day and eating plenty of fruits and vegetables. It also means that I will/can go over my calories one day per week. Just not 3 or 4, as has probably been the case this month. I've said this before and not followed through, but the best way for me to stick to my eating plan is by tracking my calories. Sparkpeople here I come, for real this time! I used sparkpeople in the beginning, but have gotten cocky a bit and figure I know it all now and can just kind of keep track of my calories mentally.

On the good news front, I had another 5K PR today. This morning I ran a 5K in 34:24. And I had my longest straight run of 2.6 miles. Hooray for exercise!

Have a great weekend everybody!

Weigh-In-Wednesday

Good morning, bloggers! Thank you for all the birthday wishes. It was a great day, even though I binged on German Chocolate cake with my mom's homemade frosting. Actually, that probably made it a better day! I felt a little guilty and a bit disappointed that I chose to eat at a Mexican restaurant for my birthday dinner out. I just couldn't help myself. It was my birthday after all! We all know that there are no healthy choices at a traditional Mexican restaurant. But it was my birthday and it only comes one day a year so I enjoyed it all for the most part.

Despite all that, my scale results this morning were okay. I weighed in at 171 for a loss of .5. I still need to get back the 1.5 pounds I gained two weeks ago, but am glad to erase last week's gain! And I'm very glad that I can enjoy my birthday one day a year without disastrous scale results. :)

Yesterday, was my first day in 10 years of having the whole day to myself here at home. Dropping my 1st grader off at school was harder than I thought it would be. I thought I would be doing a little dance of joy, but instead I had to hold back tears. 1st grade with my girls was hard for me, but I thought it would be different with him because he really can be challenging sometimes.

So here I am a stay at home mom without any kids to stay home with during the day. What to do? With my kid's year-round school schedule, getting a job is a bit difficult. It would have to be VERY flexible. Yesterday, I was able to go to my strength class in the morning and then after the kids went to school I was able to go on a walk outside and do the exercise bike, too. Then I showered and I still had a lot of the day left! That was weird. But very nice, too! I plan on reading more (without feeling guilty about ignoring my kids), exercising a little more, offering up more church service, refining my housekeeping and cooking skills and having real grown-up lunches with friends. I think I can get used to this new life! And I'm sure just as soon as I do, it will be time for my kids to go on their first three week break from school and we'll have to find a whole new routine.

So what do you all choose to do when you have free time? And I would love to hear input from any of you more seasoned moms about how you adjusted to having all your kids in school all day.

Race Results

Hello, everybody out there! Thank you for all who are still checking in on me even though I have been pretty sporadic with my posting and commenting lately. I promise things are about to get back to normal. My girls started school today and my son starts tomorrow.

As most of you know, I ran a 5K on Saturday. It was a great event! It was put on by and for the Utah National Guard with all proceeds going to help families of National Guard members. The event started with a moment of silence for fallen soldiers and a flag ceremony. I loved this.




The race started with a cannon being fired. It was sooooo loud and startled most of us runners. I wasn't sure what kind of crowd to expect and was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't too big. I think I heard someone say there were about 500 runners. A far cry from the thousands at the Race for the Cure. I knew I should be able to get a good time with not much gridlock at the beginning of the race. And here is a picture of me running across the finish line, where my family was waiting for me:

Do you see that time!? It says 32:40. Now, that is a FABULOUS time for me! Too bad it is not a 5K time and only a 2.8 miles time. That's right, the route I ran was not 3.1 miles. At the mile 2 marker I noticed that Leo, my Garmin wasn't showing 2 miles and it was off. Hmmmm...I wondered. Then when I was finishing it only said 2.8 miles. Hmmmm...I wondered some more. Later on, I asked a man wearing a Garmin what his had recorded and he told me it was about 2.8. Then he told me that the timing truck had made a wrong turn somewhere and the runners in front had followed it and so went the pack. Bummer! I still feel good about the time. My pace was right on what I have been running my 5K in the neighborhood at just under 11 minutes. I know I ran for about 2.1 miles (according to Leo and not the race markers) before stopping to walk and then ran the last .11 miles and some in between as well. Overall, I am happy.

Yet, I am bummed I wasn't able to get a time for an official 5K race. I think I could have had a new PR. The next 5K I am doing in September is more of a fun/run fundraiser for a local school so I'm not sure how official it will be. I guess it will still be a race with other people and I will have Leo so I can time myself then.

Tomorrow I plan on adding 1-2 miles to my normal run/walk schedule. I hope doing this a couple of times a week will help condition me more and jump start my weight-loss again. The scale has been moving in the wrong direction this month!

And finally, today is my birthday! I am 37 years old. The 5K on Saturday was kind of a birthday present to myself. I feel like the way I have been living the past 8 months has been a gift to me and I will continue to get better and better (thanks Kyle) the older I get. I don't know how much

the number on the scale factors into one's overall fitness level, but if you take my number out of the equation I can honestly say I am the best shape of my life. I am exercising more and eating healthier than I ever have. The scale number may not be as low as at other times in my life, but
everything else is better. Now that is something this birthday girl can celebrate!

Weigh-In-Wednesday

This will be a short post. Just five more days left until the first day of school and we are definitely making the most of the five days.....so busy, busy! I really would have rather skipped this post but know I shouldn't skip on accountability. This morning the scale read 171.5 for a .5 pound gain. That is two pounds gained in two weeks. Obviously the scale is moving in the wrong way! I can only hope to maintain this without any further gains for my next weigh-in, with this week being my birthday week and all. I promise myself and you all that after the kids are back in school and my birthday is over that I WILL get back on track. And don't think that I am already throwing in the towel this week, I will eat sensibly this week as well.

I think I may need to kick/change up my exercise in order to see the results I want. Once the kiddos get back in school, I think I'll try adding a couple of miles to my run/walks a couple of days a week. Most days I do about 3 miles so this will bring me up to 5 miles.

On a more positive note, I reached a new 5K PR. I set out yesterday to do it in less than 36 minutes. My final time was 35:54. I actually ran the first two miles without walking, which is also a first for me. It felt great! I hope I can do at least as well on Saturday for the official 5K race. I am not sure how many people to expect. If there are a lot of people, the start could be slower than usual. But I am hoping adrenaline will kick in and make up for it.

Have a great day everybody!

I'm Still Alive!

Hello to all my fellow bloggers! I have really been MIA lately, haven't I? I just wanted to check in for a quick hello just in case you all are missing me. Mostly because I am missing the blogging and am afraid it may be effecting my eating. Ahhhh! I have not done so well in the eating department as of late. I think I need to post just to remind myself what my goals are.

This week will be a challenge in the eating department. It is my birthday next Monday. My hubby calls it birthday week because my family really likes to celebrate. Although, that has toned down quite a bit. Taking three kids to restaurants was not too fun when they were little. Anyway, tomorrow is the start of celebrating. I am to have lunch with my mom and Granny Auntie. We are going to the Corner Bakery. I will scout out their website beforehand and try to make a good decision.

Later this week we have family in town and will be getting together for dinner. I think we are going to go to a local Mexican restaurant. Eeeks! And then on Sunday I will be celebrating with my parents and my in-laws. I will be enjoying a piece of my mom's German Chocolate cake with homemade coconut-pecan frosting. Yummy! The truth is, I may even enjoy a piece of it for breakfast on my actual birthday the next day! I know, I know. No judging, please.

There you have it. A challenge certainly awaits me. But I am up for the challenge. I plan on making the best possible choices when I am out and sticking to my plan when I am eating at home.

As far as exercise goes I have done well in that department. I am preparing for my 5K on Saturday. So far my best 5K time in the neighborhood is 36.12. I will run one tomorrow. I would love to get under 36 minutes! We shall see.

The kiddos go back to school in one week so life should stabilize a little then. Ha ha! Does it ever calm down? School just brings more stuff, doesn't it?

I really hope to catch up on some blogs tonight when my kids go to bed. I have missed you all and I do think about you! I hope to get back in the blogging groove after next week. Take care!

I'm Still Alive!

Weigh-In-Wedndesday

Hello, everybody! I have been kind of MIA from the blogsphere the last few days. Sorry, for not commenting on your great blogs. I have read a few here and there, but never seem to have much time for reading and commenting. Let alone posting. The kiddos start school in 10 days so things are a bit crazy around here trying to enjoy the last days of summer. I may be pretty inconsistent until they get in school.

Today was a weigh-in day so let's get to all the gory details. This morning I weighed 171 for a gain of 1.5 pounds. :( Well, the 160's were nice for the day they lasted! I knew that the great losses in July were to good to last, but I was really hoping to be able to maintain. Deep breath. It's okay. I am hoping to get back into the 160's at next week's weigh-in and then maintain it.

Last week I really wanted to have a great eating week all week long and it started out better than past weeks, but in the end I still had a couple of not-so-great eating days. And the scale proves that. This week will be better.

My strength training class started up again yesterday. We worked on lower body and boy can I feel it this morning. Taking a few weeks off is never a good idea, apparently. Unfortunately, I was too sore to get out and run this morning. Hopefully, later I will be able to get on the bike or treadmill. This month's goal will be to find balance in my workouts. Or really, to find a way to still do cardio on the days I do strength training. That is something I slacked a bit on before. I'm sure more cardio in July is what helped me have good losses so I don't want to lose that.

My next 5K is just 10 days away. I'm really excited! I am working on a couple of friends to do it with me. My running partner will be out of town so I may be doing it solo. That may not be terrible because then I could go at my own pace. We shall see.

Well, I hope everybody has a great day. I will try to catch up on some blogs today and show my support. My google reader says I am not following any blogs! Does anyone know what may have happened there? If it stays that way, I am glad I recently updated my blog list with all of my faves! I guess I'll be checking out other people's lists now to find new (and old) blogs to follow.