Weigh in Wednesday #3

It's Thursday, I know.  Why am I posting my "Weigh in Wednesday" post on Thursday??  Two reasons.

1.  My Wednesday was crazy, and ended with a horrific headache I could not shake.  In my delirium, my mind wandered about and the thought passed through that maybe I had a brain tumor, but I would be fine, because I could call Dr. Derek Shepard.  But then I remembered that he is dead, and I lost all hope.  Seriously, though, it was a hard Wednesday.

2.  I don't have a good weigh in to report.  That one little number, after a pretty good week, was not a loss.  I wanted to hide.  I was embarrassed.  I was frustrated.  I was discouraged.  I didn't want to publicly admit that I had failed.  But, as I promised when I returned to blogging, this is an HONEST look at weight loss and running, and honest I should be.

So, here's how the last week went:

Wednesday, 4/22 - 1631 calories - 2 mile walk

Thursday, 4/23 - 1356 calories - 2 mile run

Friday, 4/24 - 2449 calories - rest

Saturday, 4/25 - 1775 calories - Half Marathon - 3:17:03

Sunday, 4/26 - 1340 calories - rest

Monday, 4/27 - 3075 calories - 2 mile walk

Tuesday, 4/28 - 1222 calories - rest

I had a good week tracking wise, and stayed on track with my targets, except for Monday, where I went way over, which I instantly regretted.  I admit that I have let major stress from work affect my eating (this past Monday, and then yesterday as well).  Not proud, but honest.

And the actual weigh in...

Last week 4/22 - 145.2

Today 4/29 - 146.6

Net loss this week:  +1.4

Loss since restart:  -0.4 pounds

Total loss since November, 2011:  45.6 pounds

Since I'm only weighing in once a week, I'm not sure if the gain is only due to my overeating on Monday, or possibly can be attributed to monthly water weight gain, or a combo of both.  Rather than getting discouraged, I'm going to keep moving on, and hope to see a loss next week.

On a positive, yet completely frightening, note, I am now registered to run my first MARATHON!!!  I signed up on Tuesday to run the Disney Marathon in January, 2016.  

I'm excited, but scared to death as well.  

Here's to a better week ahead!  Hope you all have a great week as well!

How is your training going?  Are you working on weight loss or maintenance?

The Weekly Chase #26

I can't believe it's Monday again!  The weekend went by super fast.  On Saturday, I ran the Country Music Half Marathon in Nashville with my daughter, and my husband ran the full marathon.  We were hoping the rain would stay away, and it did!  Of course, it was a little more humid than I would have liked, but overall was a great race.

Now it's the time of the week when I look back at last week's goals to reflect on how I did, in addition to setting goals for the week ahead, and I'm linking up with Mindy at Road Runner Girl for The Weekly Chase.

Here's a recap of last week's goals:

1.  Log all of my food with My Fitness Pal. YES!  I did a good job logging all of my food this week!

2.  10,000 steps a day + stick with my training plan 5/7  I intentionally rested on Friday in preparation for my half on Saturday.  I had planned for a quick recovery run on Sunday, but my daughter caught a stomach bug and we were up all night Saturday, and I just didn't fit my run in.  I'm okay with that though - my babies come first!

3.  Hydrate properly for my half marathon on Saturday. YES.  I feel as though I was well-hydrated prior to my half on Saturday.  I wasn't expecting the humidity to be so high, but I am glad I drank so much water and Nuun in the days leading up to the race, because I'm sure it helped me get through the race.

And here are my goals for this week:

1.  Continue to log all of my food with My Fitness Pal.

2.  Follow my training plan, and average 10,000 steps a day.  (I'm trying a new training plan for my June half, and I really want to stick with it this time.  It will definitely be a challenge until school is out for the summer, because my time is very limited.  In fact, this week, I have two evening meetings in addition to my regular workday, which greatly limits my training time.  But I want to make it work regardless.)

3.  Finalize my lesson plans for the rest of the year.  (In three weeks, I'll be chaperoning a class trip for the whole week, and I will have a sub finishing up the final week of classes for me.  I want to get everything ready so that I'm not scrambling at the last minute.)

Time for a busy week ahead!  I hope it's a great one for you, and that you reach all of your goals!

Weigh In Wednesday #2

Happy Wednesday everyone!  The week is flying by!  I'm excited that my 16th half marathon is scheduled for Saturday, and I get to go to the expo tomorrow!  The only cause for concern is the rain in Saturday's forecast.  

I'm hoping that Mother Nature cooperates and we have clear skies (or at least not thunderstorms and/or pouring rain).  

My daughter is working to qualify for Half Fanatics, and this is race #2 for her (she's attempting to qualify with three races in 90 days), so I hope it goes well for that reason too.  This would have actually been her third and final race, but our March 7 half was cancelled due to weather, and she was really disappointed (me too!).  

Back to the topic at hand - I'm "weighing in" on Wednesday, both figuratively and literally.

Here's how the last week went:

Wednesday, 4/15 - didn't count calories - 2 mile walk

Thursday, 4/16 - didn't count calories - 2 mile walk

Friday, 4/17 - 1423 calories (back on track with counting) - walking on the 5K course marking it off and getting ready for Saturday's race

Saturday, 4/18 - 1826 calories - 5K race - 37:40

Sunday, 4/19 - 1556 calories - 5 mile run

Monday, 4/20 - 2046 calories - 3 mile walk

Tuesday, 4/21 - 1716 calories - 3 mile run

Overall, it was a good week.  I got back on track and counted calories 5/7 days.  I did go over my goal on Tuesday, but I consider it a victory that I counted and didn't just say "who cares!" and eat whatever I wanted.

And the actual weigh in...

Last week 4/15 - 147.0

Today 4/22 - 145.2

Loss since restart:  1.8 pounds

Total loss since November, 2011:  47 pounds

I'm super happy with this week's loss.  Of course, 145 is the weight I can't seem to get past.  I want to break through this "plateau" of sorts, and finally get to the 130's.

I did change one thing this week - I only weighed in on Wednesday morning, instead of every morning like I've been doing for years.  I think this also kept me a little more focused on staying on track because I knew that I would want to see a good number this morning.

Fingers crossed for a great race on Saturday AND another great week of weight loss!  Hope you have a great week as well!

How is your training going?  Are you working on weight loss or maintenance?

The Weekly Chase #25

Happy Monday!  I hope you all have a great week in store!  It's a busy one for me, so keeping up with my weekly goals will be key in staying on track.  I'm linking up with Mindy at Road Runner Girl for The Weekly Chase.

Here's a recap of last week's goals:

1.  Log all of my food with My Fitness Pal.  4/7 days successful.  As I mentioned in last week's "Weigh in Wednesday" post, I had a rough couple of days last week that I didn't count my calories, but I got back on track and had a solid Friday, Saturday, and Sunday with healthy choices.

2.  Catch up on some paperwork I've fallen behind with (preferably Monday evening, so I get it over with and start the week ahead of the game!)  I didn't do this on Monday night (or any weeknight at all) but did work on it last night.

3.  Finish up the last minute details for my school's 2nd annual 5K this Saturday.  We had a fabulous 5K on Saturday!  The rain stayed away and everything went wonderfully.  It's so much work, but also a lot of fun.  I can't wait to start planning for next year!

4.  Maintain my training plan and get a minimum of 10,000 steps each day.  6/7 days successful.  Last Tuesday, I forgot to charge my Fitbit overnight, so I had to do it during the day, and I lost about a half day of steps.  I could have walked on the treadmill when I got home to make it up, but I was wallowing in my pity party (first day of not counting calories, too - sense a pattern?) and just didn't care.

And here are my goals for this week:

1.  Log all of my food with My Fitness Pal.

2.  10,000 steps a day + stick with my training plan

3.  Hydrate properly for my half marathon on Saturday.

That's all for this post!  I hope you all have a great week and reach all of your goals!

Desperately Seeking a Fabulous Running Skirt

Yes, I confess, I am in search of an amazing running skirt.  What qualities am I looking for in such a skirt?  Well...

1.  I want it to fit well.

2.  I want it to look good on me.

3.  I want it to be comfortable during runs (i.e. no chafing, riding up, falling down, or any other uncomfortable qualities such as this).

You see, I am quite pear-shaped.  There is no way I'm running in any cute running shorts, for fear that my thighs might self-combust.  So I always wear black tights, capris, or "shorts" (which are really knee length on me) to protect myself from the dreaded "chub rub."  So for pretty much every race picture, I am wearing the same black "shorts,"

(you get the idea...)

Or capris/tights...

Definitely NOT a cute look, but the least offensive look (maybe).

In an effort to cover my bottom half, I have tried a few running skirts:

I have purchased several Rock City Skirts, which do not come with shorts underneath (so the black "shorts"/capris/tights are always there.  These are the first skirts I ever purchased.

I am a big fan of Rock City Skirts.  They are affordable, well-made, and comfortable.  If I am ever in need of more sparkle for a special race, I will no doubt be shopping here again.  I guess you could call these my biggest running skirt success.

But glitter and sparkle is not needed for every run or every race.  So I went out seeking another option.

I tried several Running Skirts.  I currently have three, in three different sizes, mind you.  And I'm not in love with any of them.  The only one that I have even tried to run in is the middle size (5) of the three, but I feel as though it looks too tight, specifically in the belly/hip area.

Based on the sizing chart and my measurements, I thought that I would be in between the 4 and 5, so I bought one of each (they were on the sale page, so I justified the purchase).  I've never taken the tags off the size 4, and I've only worn the size 5 on a few runs since I'm so self conscious about how it looks.  I actually bought a size 6 after I got the first two, thinking that I just needed a bigger size, but it is way too big (like I could fit a watermelon inside it easily too big).

So back to the drawing board I went.  At this point, the thrifty individual I am was getting worried about spending even more money on skirts that I might not ever be able to wear.  But I took a chance on a less expensive skirt from a shop on etsy.com called tutuabell.  The skirt comes without any shorts underneath, so I could wear my trusty black "shorts," and it was in the $25 range.

I wore this for RnR Seattle last summer.

The skirt is comfortable, but I felt like it was continually riding up during the race, so I kept tugging on the back to make sure I wasn't flashing anyone from behind.  My oh-so-fashion-saavy daughter dislikes this look because my shorts are so much longer than the skirt.  So I've only worn this one on a couple of runs after this race.

I had pretty much given up on ever finding a running skirt that worked for me, and was resolved to wearing the black "shorts,"/capris/tights from now to eternity, but after seeing some of these really unflattering race photos from the last few months, I really feel like I need a bit more coverage.  And, the girl in me really wants to run in a cute outfit that looks good and doesn't include black (at least not solid black).

The cheapskate in me is hesitant to spend one more dollar on a skirt that will never get worn, but there is still that part of me that longs to not feel so self-conscious of how I look when I run.  I have also considered waiting until I lose weight to consider the running skirt again, but first of all, I've been trying to lose this last 30 pounds for 2-1/2 years with no success, and second, don't I deserve to feel good about myself at any size?

So there you have it...my quest for the perfect running skirt.  If you have suggestions on brands, sizing, or anything else running skirt related, I am all ears!

Weigh In on Wednesday #1 (a day late...)

Since I decided last Saturday to return to blogging, I've been trying to decide on a regular posting schedule.  I don't want to post just to post, but I do want to be real and share my victories AND my struggles.

I decided I wanted to do a weekly "wrap up" type post so that I could share my workouts, weight loss, and anything else that happened over the week.  I figured Wednesday was a good day for this, and contemplated my post all day yesterday.  But I didn't write it.

I didn't write it because my report would not be 100% positive.  I've been struggling with tracking my food with My Fitness Pal.  In fact, the last three days have been a total bust.  Today, in fact, I didn't count a single calorie.

For whatever reason, I get on a roll and strive to be perfect all the time.  And the moment I fall short, I consider myself a failure, and give up.

                                              I need to keep this in mind.

So in the interest of keeping it "real," I decided to share this.  I messed up.  And I let myself slide for three days.  I'm not proud, but I'm not giving up either.  

So right now, I'm fixing the flat tire, and I'm getting ready to drive down the road again.

Here's the good, the bad, and the ugly of the last week:

Wednesday, 4/8 - (my birthday! - yummy dinner out - didn't count calories, didn't workout)

Thursday, 4/9 - 1390 calories - 2 mile walk

Friday, 4/10 - 1462 calories - rest day

Saturday, 4/11 - 1495 calories - 3 mile run

Sunday, 4/12 - 1958 calories - 11 mile run

Monday, 4/13 - 1533 calories - 2.7 mile walk

Tuesday, 4/14 - didn't count - no workout either

Weight 4/8: 147.8 lbs

Weight 4/15:  147 lbs

Loss of 0.8 this week

Since I'm pretty much two days late on my Wednesday Weigh In post, I've only got 5 more days this week to turn things around.  But regardless, I promise to be honest, and not hide away if I don't get it exactly "right."  I'm far from perfect, and I think I'm finally learning that it's okay to admit that.

The Weekly Chase #24 (or # 1 again, depending how you look at it!)

Happy Monday morning!  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!  It was a busy one here as usual.  We were blessed with beautiful weather, and we celebrated my son's induction into the National Honor Society.

As I've returned to blogging, I've also decided to return to my Weekly Chase post, where I share my goals for the week, and reflect on my goals from the previous week.  I'm linking up with Mindy at Road Runner Girl, who always inspires with her weekly goals!

Since I don't have any goals to look back on, this week is just my goals for this week:

1.  Log all of my food with My Fitness Pal.

2.  Catch up on some paperwork I've fallen behind with (preferably Monday evening, so I get it over with and start the week ahead of the game!)

3.  Finish up the last minute details for my school's 2nd annual 5K this Saturday.

4.  Maintain my training plan and get a minimum of 10,000 steps each day.

I had planned to only have three goals, but I realized I needed 4! (okay, I probably need 10 goals just to get back on track, but baby steps, right?)

I hope you all have a great week and that you meet all of your goals!