Oooo Ooooo Look At Me!

I am posting. Holy moly! I have missed you guys and keeping you all up to date on my life. I have tons going on right now, so let's play a little game of catch up!

• With my parent's divorce still going on the holidays are much different. Now, instead of mom and dad's on thanksgiving day and grandma's house the following Saturday. It would be dad's house on Thanksgiving, mom's house on Thanksgiving AND grandma's house the Saturday after. This year, we said you know...we aren't going to do that. So, we cooked at home. Just  Babe and I! It was sooo nice. We never do the holiday season by ourselves and I loved having dinner just the 2 of us. We did also go to my Grandma's house for a little while on Saturday. 
• I am currently working 2 jobs(well have been for a year). Which is about 14-18 hours a week more than just the 40. So, by the time I get home, I am EXHAUSTED!
• Babe and I do our own Christmas shopping. He is so picky that just about everything I have ever bought for him, he has returned. So now, he just buys his own and I buy my own. So, our Christmas shopping is almost done...minus ONE MORE BIG EXCITING GIFT TO FIND. More on that later in this post.
• I have recently reconnected with a friend from high school and have been hanging out with her and her family quite often and it's been great.
• My friend Jenn planned/hosted a party for our friend Ashley and oh my word...was it fun!! My girlfriends really make my life better! They are so goofy and we have fun talking about every subject! 
• We have SO MUCH SNOW here in SLC! The blizzard we were suppose to get was all talk no action, but that is fine by me.

 So, I have to admit. I have NOT been weighing or paying too much attention to what I am eating/drinking and that has got to stop. I feel so terrible. I don't really care what the number on the scale says. It doesn't make me feel nearly as bad as my body is feeling about the way I have been treating it. Not enough fruits/veggies. Plenty of alcohol, sweets, carbs and no exercise. BOO!

I am on a mission. I have some goals in mind and I am bound and determined to get to where I want to be.

I promise myself that I will....

...re-incorporate more fruits and veggies into my diet!
...cut out unnecessary carbs from my diet!
...NOT drink a beer(or 2) every night!
...get back on the running bandwagon!
...get some new workout DVDs(Hi Jillian Michael 6 pack ab challenge)!
...get to goal in 2011!

I really wanted to hit my goal in 2010, but I haven't given it my all! No excuses, I just haven't made the time to eat right and exercise. So, I am obviously not going to reap the rewards. However, I want the rewards and will do anything to get them!

The first step is to eat better. I haven't gone overboard, but I have let a few things "slide". I haven't eaten enough fruits/veggies and my body can tell a difference. I am already on top of this one. So, I just have to keep working to tighten it up some more.

The second step is to get back to running! I miss running so much. Sometimes I feel like a part of me is missing and I know it is the daily runs that are lacking! Which brings me to my EXCITING CHRISTMAS GIFT! I am getting a treadmill! Woohoo!! Love and I are going to start shopping tonight. I am probably going to buy one used, but that is fine by me. It just has to last me a couple of years. My ultimate goal is to have a spin bike, eliptical, rowing machine and treadmill. For now though, the treadmill will barely fit in my house and I am okay with that :)

I am very out of shape right now, but I do plan on fulfilling my 11 half marathons and 1 full in 2011. Even if I have to walk all of January's. I am looking forward to the SLC half this year though. I did it in exactly 2:16:00 last year and this coming year, I would just like to beat that time by 1 second or 20 minutes, I don't care!!

I am ready to push myself to the limits!!

I have been reading blogs still, but have had no time to comment! Thanks for all of the love and support you have offered me :)

11 In 2011....

Hi Guys and Dolls....

So, I hopped on the scale Monday and about cried. I saw 130.4. I vowed to never be in the 130's again after fighting for a solid 4 or 5 months to get outta them. Although, it was a wake up call that I needed very much. So, thank you scale :) Today, I weighed 129.8 which makes me feel a tad better, but still shows I have A LOT of work to do.

I feel much better today. Saturday's half just kicked my trash. I couldn't walk up and down stairs well at all until today. I ran around for a few minutes at work and I feel great. I need to get more training underway because I have a HUGE goal for 2011.........

11 Half Marathons in 11 months(1 per month)....AND

1 Full Marathon in Las Vegas in December!!

If I complete my goal of 11 half's in 11 months, I have spoken to Love and he says we can budget for a little Vegas getaway for me to run my full marathon! I have given a lot of thought to this goal and I think it is totally doable. I just need to stay focused, committed and enough dinero for new shoes/running gear! I have faith in myself to do this and faith that I can chronical this journey here! 

I am sooo excited for 2011!!!!!

Tell me your goal for 2011!

Maintaining....

Well, today I had a maintain and I am happy about that. It would have been a loss, except Love bought some delicious chocolate shell sauce(you know the stuff that hardens when you put it on ice cream) and I had 2 huge bowls of it on Sunday. Did no sweets for a week and celebrated like that? Ummmm.....looks like I will be continuing the no sweets thing. So, between now and next Tuesday AM I will not have dessert. I have 3 huge tupperwares full of watermelon, so I should be set ;)

As mentioned above, I maintained. I really need to get a good losing streak going. I am sooo ready to be under 120. I have lost my motivation to get up and go to the gym. I remember when I did it everyday at 5AM and now, I am like eh..screw it. I will do it later and then never do. Mark my words though....tonight I will take my dog out for a 3 mile run. I am going to start training him to be a running dog. He is a border collie/blue heeler mix, so they are made to run(and herd cattle, but who is counting?).

Anyways, food blogging will continue today.

Goals for this week:
1. 100+ oz. of water everyday including weekends.
2. Workout to the 30 day shred everyday beginning today.
3. No dessert.
4. Eat correct portions and types of foods.
5. Run 3 days and 3 miles each time.

On another note, I got a "NOOK" last night! We went to Barnes and Noble last night and I had mentioned to Love that I had been thinking that I wanted a Nook and after talking to the manager of the store, he sold us on it. I went in to buy the Chelsea Handler book(she is hysterical) and was going to spend more than $30 anyway. So, Love told me to just get the nook. It will save us money in the long run and I am so excited to get back to reading again :)

How do you find your motivation when you are in a slump? Do you have a Nook? What do you think of it?

My Amazing Return............

.....to scheduled running began today. I am aiming for running 4 miles 4-5 days this week. Next week will be 5 miles with a 7 or 8 miler on the weekend. I am making up my own half marathon training schedule, as I have some personal goals I would like to reach. The first being able to run 6 miles 5-6 days a week. Next, to do it in under 1 hour every day. This afternoon I ran 4 miles in 39:31. I have never run that many miles in that amount of time. The half had me at 10:22/mile. I would like to do the half in July below a 10:00/ mile. We will see. I am just so determined to meet that goal AND get to MY GOAL WEIGHT!!

Last Wednesday I was 123.8. This Wednesday I would love to see 122. I haven't hit 20 pounds lost yet, but it is time to kick it up a notch(or 5) haha. I go back and forth about what I want my goal weight to be at. I love wearing the size 4, but I am not feeling the "bikini bod" yet. I will eventually, but it will take a little longer. I really need to put some focus on strength training(focus being abs) during the half marathon training. I do notice when I strength train, I do better with running. So, we will see.

I will be starting a getting to goal post after I post this and will share it tomorrow along with my weigh in!

Goals and Future Plans....

As far as the weight loss journey goes, I am still just maintaining. I weigh in tomorrow and don't know where exactly I am, but I still feel like I am 124-125. I have had very little exercise since the half marathon. I went from running and cross training 5-6 days a week to working  out maybe 1-3 times a week. I haven't felt driven to exercise and I lost my gym card. Excuses, excuses! I KNOW! However, I have maintained a lot of the clean eating I have been practicing and I don't just veg out all day like I did before my journey began. I have been constantly go go go since the half marathon. Now that things are slowing down, I have some goals and some future racing to look forward to and train for.

I have been thinking I want to do another half soon. So, I have decided on a local Utah canyon to canyon 1/2 marathon on July 10. It is in 8 weeks and I feel if I kick it up a notch I can PR this race. Although, there are plenty of rolling hills so I can't wait to get outside and train on some of the hills in my area. Practice makes perfect, right? ;) Oh, and did I mention the entry fee is $25. Unbelievable!

I will also be running a 10k with my bestie in October. It is a women's love your body 10k. I love my body now and it will be just 14 months into when my journey started, so why not?

Onto some of my personal goals:
Goal #1: Get this here blog designed all sorts of beautiful and BLOG more. I have been truly slacking, but I love writing so I need to get it into my routine again!
Goal #2: Get my booty to goal! I want to weigh 110. Mind you, I am 4'11'' tall. I carry all of my weight in my lower abs/lovehandles. So, I just need to work on that area a little more.
Goal #3: Use the yoga videos on my Netflix. There are tons and on my stretch & strengthen days, I am going to  start doing the yoga videos!
Goal #4: Exercise at least 5 days a week.
Goal #5: Get a Personal Record in my next half marathon. Shooting for under 2 hours and 15 minutes. Just over a minute faster.

Next I need to have a plan to follow through with these. I am still working on it, but will go into more detail on that another day :)

I hope you are all having a great week so far! Happy Hump Day!!

Wow!

A whole week without a post!? Geesh, who am I?

This past week has been a revealing kind of week. I have had some weak moments. In-N-Out burger, 2 deserts, 2 times the proportion sizes...it was awful. On the one side, I did run 8 miles that day and needed the fuel. On the other, I could have fueled more properly.

I have decided to stick to a 1200 calorie diet on days I do just cardio.
I will eat 1600(plus 200 for powerade) on the days I run long distances.
I will track in a notebook all 7 days of the week.
I will start weighing 1 time a week, Wednesdays are the chosen days.
I will drink 120 oz of water everyday.
I will work on getting lots of fruits and veggies in every day.

My birthday is next Friday and I WILL be 122 if it kills me :)

I have no clue what I weigh right now. I really hope to still be at 124. Or even 123. We shall see in 2 days!

It is kind of a big deal....

So, I have some really fun events coming up.

First, my 25th birthday is 4 weeks away from today. I am so excited for my birthday this year, mainly because I am finally excited about life! I don't live the unhappy way I used to. I have noticed a lot of different changes in myself in the past 2 weeks(haven't been blogging much, taking short breaks to focus on me). I will talk more on that later.

Second, I am still hoping for the half marathon one week after my 25th birthday. I have ran a couple of days this week and my knees feel strong. Going to try to get in a 6 mile run Saturday after I hit up the running store. I need to kick the workouts up a notch, I have been slacking slightly, although the intensity has increased.

Third, my friend since childhood is getting married. I am excited for the wedding, but I will be seeing a few people who really don't like me. The reasoning behind them not liking me, I do not know and that is in all honesty. At this wedding, I will also be seeing many people that I absolutely adore and have known since I was just a kid. They knew me as a chubby kid, and as an anorexic preteen-teen and then grow into a fat young adult. They haven't seen me this far into my journey and I really want to show them who I am on the inside and just how much I have changed!

Now, let's talk a little about the changes I have gone through recently. I will do these in bullet form.

• Had I been the old me when my parents told me of their divorce, I would have worried, cried, and dwell on it all day all the time. The new me, I have dealt with it. I am moving on and as I told my daddy-o last night, they can do whatever they want and I am just done with it. I don't really see or speak to them anymore. I love them, but there is a lot of tension and I don't want that to be in my life right now. 
• I feel so determined. I have never had this feeling before. I want to take on anything and everything. The "fear to ask for fry sauce" as my momma would say, is gone. I don't fear looking stupid in front of people. I have so much in me to offer and I am ready to give it! Have I mentioned I am 15 pounds from my goal weight!!!!!!!! I weigh 125!!  It has everything to do with my determination. I was up and down in my weight for so long(about 2 months or so), but now my nose is to the grindstone and I will be at goal by summer!!
• I have self confidence. I am excited to go shopping for clothes, specifically for a dress for the wedding I was talking about. I want to always look as gorgeous as I feel inside :) and I do! I have naturally curly hair(like super curly, I will post pics, I promise!) and I don't feel self concious letting it do it's thing. I feel like even when I first wake up, I look damn good. My body is changing and it looks good. I may have a little coming out party this weekend.....on the blog. Maybe get up some befores and afters :)
• I have goals. I have hobbies(2 actually now) Miss Nicole @ let them eat lettuce inspired me to do something. We have a koi pond in the back yard right now and because of the time consumption of the salt water tank inside, it has been neglected and it doesn't look good. So, I had been thinking about what to do in that area. Originally, I was just going to fill the hole back up with dirt and grow grass, but wouldn't a veggie/fruit garden be more awesome! Yes, Nicole posted about it right around the same time I was considering it and last night, we bought the supplies. I will be starting the garden indoor tomorrow and when I am ready to move it outside, I am going with Love's dad(whose garden rocks) to the local nursery to pick up a few more plants :) Awe, bonding time. 

 I have so much more to talk about, but I am going to leave you to digest this for now :) Thanks for reading!!

I have been reading up on your blogs when I can, but the comments are resuming promptly! I really care about you so much and I really hope you know that :)

Weekends, What?

First things first, Annie is hosting a wonderful giveaway! Her blog is inspiring and amazing, so go check her out!

Zero...the number of times I worked out!
Two...the number of decent healthy meals I had!
Half...the number of pints of beer I had at a concert!

This weekend, it wasn't great diet/exercise wise. I discovered I am a week ahead on my training schedule for the half and instead of using it as an advantage to train a little more, I decided taking all weekend off from exercise would do the trick! Now, I did do plenty of things for the remodel. Think painting, sanding cabinets, lifting and moving boxes. So, I did get some calorie burning going.

We went and saw Dessa, Grieves, and P.O.S last night! They are amazing musicians and you really should check them out! The show was supposed to start at 9:00, but like every other time, it didn't start until 10! The show ended at around 1 or so! Today, I am TIRED!! Got a nice big coffee(with a touch of creamer). Seeing them(this was the first time I saw Dessa and she was AMAZING!) was so worth the exhausting day I am sure to have.

Breakfast: Cinnamon Raisin english muffin with Peanut Butter
AM Snack Yogurt with Cinnamon Raisin granola
Lunch: Cup of Corn Chowder and a 6'' turkey sub
Afternoon Snack: Honey crisp apple
Dinner: TBD

Exercise planned for today: 3.5 mile run and Level 2 of the 30 Day Shred(my favorite level so far!).

Goals for this week:
1. Drink 128 oz of water a day.
2. Eat between 1400 and 1600 calories.
3. Track calories.
4. Stick to training plan!

Goal for February:
Be at 125 by February 28! Only weighing once a month!

Can't wait to catch up and find out how your weekends went :)

3 Things....

The Redhead just put up this list and it really brightened my day to think about goals, so I am going to go ahead and post my goals here!

What are three things that you want to accomplish or do before you die?

1. Qualify for the Boston Marathon! I didn't realize how much I really wanted to run a half marathon let alone a full until about 2 years ago!

2. Graduate from college! The first step is getting back into school! I will be going for accounting and business management.

3. Write a book! I have always toyed with the idea of being a serious writer, and I know I am capable. I just have to find a starting point and a subject! I have always written poetry, which has been a wonderful outlet for me. I do believe writing is a great outlet for me as well. Hence the fact that I have and LOVE blogging!

Preparations for a New Year

I have never been one to believe in "New Year Resolutions", per se. Instead, I look at the past year....the good, bad AND ugly. This year, however, I am going to make some goals for myself of what I would really like to do to improve myself and my life.

This past year, I have accomplished so many awesome things:

• I began a lifestyle change and actually stuck to it! This has made me so proud of myself!
  
• I ran my first 5k! I did it in 32:21, which was less than the 33:00 time I had hoped(on the inside) for!
  
• I worked on building my relationship and growing stronger with Love! Our relationship is better than it ever has been and I am thankful that we grew together, rather than apart!
  
• I learned to cope with one of the hardest experiences! I talked about it, instead of throwing it to the wayside and pretending everything was fine.
• I learned to ask questions...even if they seemed stupid! A first in my life!
  
• I worked through my self esteem issues and can honestly say that I love WHO and WHAT I am and have become!

For the upcoming year:

• I have purchased a pocket size day planner and WILL use it to note my workouts, water count, dates with friends, reminders, and noting things I learn from day to day!
• I am definitely going to work on my writing skills and maybe turn my other blog into more of a creative writing/life experience type of blog.
• I WILL REACH MY HEALTH GOALS BY THE SUMMER!! I have 110 in my mind as the weight I would like to be, but I can't logically depend on the number alone. I will make it more about HOW I feel, not what I look like!
• I will be a better friend/bloggy buddy!

I will definitely be adding to this list, but now, it is sleepy time!

So, tell me. What are some of your goals for the New Year? How do you feel you did in 2009?

Ummm....I suck!

I have been the worst blogger and blogger buddy, as of late! My apologies! I've gotten a little off track in some areas and am trying to get back on. Some bullet points and new goals to follow....

• I started a second job for the holiday season(i've done it every year minus one for the past 5 years). So, now my exercise schedule has another competitor. Although I put my health first. Somedays it's really hard to work in a workout. I'm still trying to figure out the balance.
• I am no longer in contact with my mother, which is hard, but she is sucking the life out of me with her lies. So, i'm moving forward in my life and letting go of the drama. I should have done this a long time ago, but I feel bad hurting her feelings, but my unconditional love has been drowned out by the lies and i'm exhausted. 
• Eating is still pretty good. It's the running that i've gotten off track with. I will start my 10k training program over again on Monday. I will start my half marathon training in January! 
• I AM GOING TO RUN THE "SLC HALF MARATHON" and i'm so excited to do so!! I believe it is April 10th. 

Back to running....
I am THE SLOWEST runner. I know that I have to get back to it and really push myself after 2 weeks of next to NO exercise. I am excited to start the speed work. I know it will be a challenge, but I know that I can do it. I'll be alternating between tempo runs and sprints on Wednesday's for the next 6 weeks. I'm really hoping to get my speed to 10:00 miles or less. Right now i'm at about 11:45.

Goals for this week:
1. Weigh Sunday.
2. Continue eating healthy.
3. Run everyday of my 10k training schedule.
4. Smile and be happy!!

I hope everyone is doing well. I promise to be a better bloggy buddy!

Changing It Up A Bit....

Continuous Changes will now be my blog about the lifestyle changes I have been making. I will now be blogging about my everyday life Rockin' Worlds Since 1985! So, if you'd like to know about my everyday life, please feel free to swing on by.

I have realized during these past couple of weeks that goals are extremely important. However, for myself, it is the baby step goals that keep me going strong. I do have a few long term goals, but I don't put those into my mind as strongly as I do the short term, because I do not want to get myself discouraged when I don't reach those goals in 4 days. I will set monthly goals until achieving the long term. I expect to meet the long term goals before next summer.

Short Term-To be achieved and consistent by Sept. 27:
1. Drink more than 100 ounces of water daily.
2. Take my vitamins daily.
3. Introduce and eat more veggies and fruits.
4. Follow the running program I found online.
5. Get into my first pair of "goal jeans" comfortably.

Long Term:
1. Continue with the healthy lifestyle changes.
2. Run a full marathon.
3. Wear size 4 pants, maybe 2.
4. Weigh and maintain a weight of 115.

I weighed myself 2 nights ago at "My Loves" brothers house. The scale read 138.2. At the doctor 2 weeks ago, I was 142. So, i've lost almost 4 pounds. So, i'd like to lose about 23 more pounds.