Proud owner of an iPhone

I finally did it. I took the plunge, took a deep breath, handed over my Blackberry and was presented with a shiny, new iPhone 5s, which I promptly put in a case, because I am a klutz and I want to avoid the smashed screen I’ve seen so many people with.

If you are asking what a Blackberry is … don’t worry about it, it’s a Canadian thing and if you asked anyone I worked with, it belonged in an antiquity museum alongside the rotary dial phone.

The biggest learning curve for me has been texting and writing emails without a key pad. I have to use the screen. I might as well be using my elbows to try and hit the buttons I miss type so often. It’s frustrating – I type die instead of for … which is not good when I’m saying I’ll do something for you.

But, I have also been introduced to the world of apps and I am like a child with a video game. I cannot keep my eyes off the screen. I have an app that tells me how far I’ve walked, one that I record everything I eat, one that lets me create my own music, another that plays sounds of rain to help me get to sleep. If I’m curious about how I’ve slept, I have an app for that. The upcoming conference I’m attending has an app.

I. Am. So. Excited.

And being able to record what I’ve eaten and how much I should eat with a few simple pushes of a button, or scan of a barcode has helped me lose some weight already. And yes, today is Day 6 of the ab challenge!

 

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The ongoing battle with appearance

I’ve gained weight (again).

In some ways, I’d like to blame having a boyfriend – staying in bed with him all lazy in the morning, beats dragging myself up for a run.

In some ways, I’d like to blame work – I’m not happy and the stress drives me to eat, a lot.

But I know there is only one thing to hold accountable: me.

It’s frustrating knowing that the decisions I make, are causing the weight gain – did I really need to eat that appetizer before dinner. And I know I should make those decisions, but I do, over and over again.

So for (what seems like the) thousandth time I am recommitting myself to health eating, and working out regularly – because honestly that is all there is left. This week has been good for working out – every day since Monday. I’ve made health eating choices for two days now.

And I’m going to kick off the 30 day ab challenge on July 1.

This time it will stick (I have to believe that).

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Completing another 10K

I ran a 10K about a week ago and I’m still a little disappointed with my time. It wasn’t a good race for me, my legs hurt from about the 2K mark all the way to the end.

But it was the same course that I ran last year (my first 10K event ever) and I added five minutes to my time. It’s the first time I’ve run something slower than a time I’ve set previously.

It’s not hard to see why, I didn’t do the same prep work – I haven’t found the time or had the energy to do long runs yet this year. Until recently the weather hasn’t been co-operating – either way to cold or raining.

One of the problems with falling in love with running outside, is it’s nearly impossible to convince yourself to get any distance done on the treadmill. What do you think is motivation?

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Eating clean for a week

One of the to do’s on my 101 in 1001 list, is to eat clean for a week.

According to my googling that means high vegetables, ultra lean protein, low carb and no booze (or caffeine). Well I finally did it and so did boyfriend (in what he now says was an unfortunate show of solidarity).

We did it in the last week of May (or what I am now referring to as the longest week of my life). Hindsight being 20/20, I probably could have guessed I wouldn’t feel amazing two days after turning my entire diet upside down. And with that tiny bit of knowledge I probably wouldn’t have picked the biggest week of meetings that I have in a year at work – that culminates in a massive two-day workshop that goes into the weekend.

However I had best case scenario in mind and started with high hopes as I roasted chicken, steamed kale, cooked quinoa and prepped overnight oats with yogurt and chia. By day five I was a little tired, by day 7, I was borderline cranky.

Day 8 (or the last day of the workshop), I snapped and drank half a bottle of red wine before going out for steak, fried mushrooms and garlic mashed potatoes.

Now before you all think what a waste, it was actually really good. I do have an appreciate for kale now, and I’m looking to less carb and more veggies in my diet – keeping in mind less carb doesn’t mean low or no carb, I’m part Italian, that just doesn’t work. The carbs are whole grains and nutrient rich.

It was a good kick off to healthier, cleaner eating overall.

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Final weigh in

So I have not won the work-based Biggest Loser Challenge and I realized why.

Not because I didn’t lose weight, I did – nearly six per cent of my body weight – and not because I didn’t get smaller – I did, I nearly dropped an entire size and I think I look much better- but because I wasn’t in it to win the money.

When the challenge started I used it as a chance to kick off some lifestyle changes I procrastinated making – back to running more often, choosing some not-so-carb-heavy-cheese-covered lunches and drinking more water.

Others started to lose weight with their eye on the money at the end. The person that one looks like they’ve been starving themselves, 15 per cent of their weight and they were not very big to begin with. His first goal? Is to gain weight back.

Now, I don’t think he broke the rules (nor am I made because I should I have one – I think I was 8^th overall), but I feel like that wasn’t the point. The point was a health challenge. I guess that has been people’s argument with the show, The Biggest Loser, also.

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Giving my body a chance to catch up

For the first time in a long time I took a break. This week I went four days (in a row) without a workout.

Monday and Tuesday were full of headaches and just generally not feeling great. I managed to run 2 K on Tuesday afternoon my with each step my head pounded louder. It was not a good plan.

So I took Wednesday off, I didn’t even feel bad about it. Then something came up at work Thursday, I didn’t get a chance to run – it nearly made me hysterical. I realized that probably was not a good response, especially considering I still wasn’t feeling great.

Friday something else came up and I had that initial moment of panic – nearly decided to blow off a many-hundreds-of-dollars-a-ticket fundraiser I was supposed to attend.

Then I made my peace, I realized that every once and a while your body needs a break. I didn’t do anything today either (save for a pedicure) and I’m okay with it. Saturdays are usually a rest day for me and that’s what it was. I’ll start tomorrow strong and go from there.

So if you feel like you need a break, it’s okay to give yourself permission to do it.

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No pain, no gain: another barre session wraps up

“The shaking is good ladies.”

That is what our barre teacher tells us as our muscles twitch as we wrap up a particularly long and difficult set of squats.

It’s actually incredible how much your legs can shake as you get exhausted. It’s almost funny, as we are supposed to be squeezing a ball between our thighs – my legs are so busy doing the funky chicken it really looks like I might be controlling those squeezes, I’m not.

Sometimes I find myself wondering why I am doing this to myself. Then I set on the scale or look at the definition slowly appearing in my legs and I remember.

Also motivating, our teacher looks like she stepped off a fitspo blog and the other day I overheard her tell someone that she runs ultra-marathons, for fun.

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Productivity – diagrammed

Productivity is a funny thing, I feel like I never have enough time to productive or is it because I am not productive I don’t have enough time.

Arianna Huffington recently told a group of women at a graduation ceremony to sleep their way to the top. She didn’t mean have sex, but rather make sure they were well rested. Our creativity, ingenuity, confidence, leadership, and decision-making can all be enhanced simply by getting enough sleep.

It means we are not better because we put in more hours or work longer, but because we work smarter and better.

Interesting.

Below is one image of how to make productivity easier.

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Running makes you happy, right?

I love working out and going to the gym.

Don’t get me wrong, I sometimes struggle with getting going and whine about a long run, but when I get going I love it. I’ve never wrapped up a run or time at the gym feeling like, “oh I wish I didn’t do that.”

With this in mind, I figure everyone at the gym is happy. You remember that line from Legally Blond, “Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don’t shoot their husbands, they just don’t.”

Apparently I am wrong. Today I’m working on 10K, I’m just wrapping up my sixth kilometer and I realize there are two women glaring at me and the woman on the treadmill next to me. They tell me, rather rudely, they’ve signed up.

Now I know I have booked myself an hour on the treadmill, but I start thinking okay, maybe I put my name up on the wrong times.

Mostly I’m cranky that I can’t finish, especially seeing the other four treadmills in the place are empty, and there isn’t another four people (okay slight exaggeration) in the gym at 8 a.m. on a Sunday morning. But, I surrender mine, because they are nasty, nasty people. I hop to the next one and crank up the speed again.

They start and walk for about 20 minutes, with their iPods in so they aren’t even talking (so I don’t know why they needed to be next to each other).

I wrap up and check the board. Sure enough my name isn’t there; someone helpfully erased everything from the board. So I’m not as frustrated. But, who is so catty and mean in the gym on a Sunday morning especially with so many other treadmills.

It was contagious. But now I’m home and I’m going to appreciate the rest of my day.

And hey! I just ran another 10K in only a little over an hour – not bad for the start of the season!

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Running restarts: The ice bath

I’m sorry I’ve been so absent.

I decided to pick a up couple of courses to do in my spare time (which I didn’t really have to being with), so every spare second is spent studying.

But I thought I would quickly pop on to celebrate my first post-run ice bath of the season. I survived. Tip: ice baths are not for the faint of heart.

My toes are cold.

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