6 Miles!

Tonight I stuck to my plan and did my first 6 mile run! I feel great now. I spent the whole drive to my running spot trying to talk myself out of it, knowing the whole time I was going to force myself to do it no matter what. I am a little sore now, but feel like I could have done 6 more miles. Runner's high?

This morning my weight was back down 1 lb lower than before I left (YESSS)! We'll see where it is for my official weigh in on Sunday *fingers crossed*

I saw this picture on Pinterest and it made me think of something funny that happened last week. My boss and I were running while in Georgia when a huge storm came out of no where. It drenched us in rain (which I actually love while running). Well, I was concerned about my beloved Garmin getting soaked so I made him put it in his pocket. Twice we had to stop (once we had to take shelter because the lightning was a little too close and once for me to fix my shoe). Both times I yelled for him to "PAUSE THE GARMIN!" so our pace didn't get messed up. haha...

Georgia

I'm back! The trip was GREAT! My airplane seatbelt fit around me with about 6 inches to spare! When my boss and I arrived Sunday afternoon there was a slight wait on my room to be done, but after waiting 1 hr, I ended up getting put in a big suite! With this view:

HAHA! This was one lonely palm tree, but it made me happy!



I had to work long hours, but felt very accomplished in my work and think this was great for my career. I made sure to get in all my training and my boss joined me for my 3 runs. It was fun! We would work 12 hrs, run 4-5 miles, grab dinner and then work more. I was up at 5 am everyday and relied heavily on coffee and tried to eat as healthy as possible. On our last day there, we were taken to lunch to this small restaurant that was set up with big bowls of food on the table that you pass to whoever is sitting near you (like a big southern thanksgiving). The food was loaded with salt, butter and deliciousness. I did my best to pick thru it and focused mainly on the veggies, but even that was loaded with goodness butter and salt. Sadly, I came home with my first weekly gain. It was 5 lbs, but now that the sodium has worked it's way out, it's 1 lb. I can handle that and it will be off as soon as possible. 

I love Georgia! I would move there in a heartbeat!

On our last day there I went shopping. Amy is getting married next month and I was looking for a dress to wear to her pig roast reception. Recently, I've graduated from Old Navy plus size to their regular xxl. I was surprised to see that I was fitting into all their xl dresses. YAY!! 

I didn't buy the dress because I wasn't 100% sure I liked it and didn't really want to have to pack it to bring home when there are about 4 old navy's near my house.

Braylon had a great time with his dad and our reunion was full of tears (from me). He hugged me very tight. I spent all day yesterday hanging out with him and we went to the park and took a long walk. 


Today's 6-mile run is going to postponed until tomorrow because I don't have a sitter today. Braylon barely made it 4 miles a couple weeks ago so I'm not going to attempt 6 today. I will do cross training today. So my runs this week will be Mon, Wed and Fri and then will resume next Sunday as normal.

I'm going to get my hair done today. It's soooo long and I'm tired of it. I am thinking about getting some crazy highlights, but I normally chicken out when i try to do that. Then meeting friends for dinner. Off to get a work out in and finish laundry--have a great Sunday!

Don't text and run!

During my 4 mile run the other day, my stupid self looked down at my phone when I heard a text message come in. Somehow my foot ended up on the shoulder of the road, twisted and down to the ground I went. I had that embarrassing moment where you immediately look around to see if anyone saw what you just did. If they did, they acted like they didn't which was good enough for me. When I finally got up, I realized it was hurting so I started to limp home. Luckily after walking for a few it stopped hurting so I was able to finish my 4 miles!


Last night I signed Braylon up for soccer with some of our friends. Last year he played T-Ball and that was pretty much a disaster, so hopefully soccer will go better. Then we had a cookout with friends. The weather here lately has been amazing!

Tomorrow I am off to Atlanta for the week, so I have been suffocating Braylon with Mommy time all day. We went on a hike this morning and had fun... 

He is yelling cheese here. Once we got to the top of these stairs, he was bummed that there was no slide on the other side. I love the way the minds of little ones work! I sure am going to miss that lil face all week!


I guess it's time to start packing. Hope everyone is having a great St. Patrick's Day!


**Happy thoughts that my plane seat belt fits around me!**

My favorite running buddy...

This week was my first week since September that I didn't have a loss on the scale. The good news is that I didn't have a gain either. I weighed in on Sunday and was at the same weight as last Sunday: 266. Ugh...I was down to 264 earlier last week. Saturday night I got a little too celebratory and had a cheeseburger and fries. It was good, but I felt like crap afterwards (either from the grease or the regret). I'm probably just dealing with water weight, but it makes me sad not to have a loss to report. Regardless, I kept on moving. Sunday morning I got up and did 40 minutes of elliptical at the gym and then went for a slow 2 mile run. Last night I did my 30-day shred because I only had "stretch and strengthen" on my half marathon training schedule. (I've been doing that randomly on my non-run days and am almost ready to move to level 2.)

Tonight I had a scheduled 4-mile run. The weather was gorgeous so instead of running alone on the track I decided to pick up Braylon and run with him. We stopped home to get his bike and then went to the bike path. The first 2 miles he was LOVING IT!! 

 Around mile 3 he got bored and stopped to sing, "If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands."

By mile 4 he was over the bike and just wanted to walk.

And the last 1/2 mile I carried him on my back, while pushing the bike.

Not surprisingly, this was probably not going to be my best run. I barely broke a sweat so I feel bad counting this as a training run, but I did run most of it. He got off his bike to pet every dog, inspect random bugs and check out the river nearby. Our final pace was around 17:25. It was still fun to do this with him, though!

Next week I am flying to Georgia for a week for work. I have never been away from him longer than the weekends he's with his dad so I'm VERY sad. I made the choice to go because It will be good for his relationship with his dad and good for my career. I'm nervous about fitting into the airplane seat, but if I do, I'll be able to cross that off my list!

A fun St Patrick's Day 5K

7.  Run a 5K in under 40 mins - DONE! My official time for today's 5K was 38:27! I'm so excited it's not even funny!! This means I have improved my 5K time by over 6 minutes since December! This is my favorite 5K because it starts and ends at a bar. I'm not a big drinker, but I do enjoy some alcohol on occasion. We had a great day and the weather was beautiful!! Here are some before photos...

My Sham Rockin' Facial Art/Tattoo:

Amy and I had a bet with one of the guys that I would finish in under 40 minutes so she stayed back with me the entire race (at one point she literally ran circles around me) to make sure I ran fast enough. If I didn't finish in under 40, we each had to buy him a beer and if I did finish in under 40, he had to buy us each a beer. (FYI, free victory beer tastes way better than regular beer.) I was hesitant at first to "let" her run with me because I felt bad holding her back, but since she had beer riding on it, she informed me that I didn't have a choice. haha At one of my walking breaks she threatened to video record me walking if I didn't start running again. I realize she might sound mean, but it was funny and she really helped push me to keep going!

This is a pic of me right after finishing (yes, I often rock sunglasses over my regular glasses). I had just collapsed in the grass and she noticed the time on her running watch still said under 40 minutes so she took a picture. I don't exactly look thrilled by it...

Most of our group after finishing:

Afterwards, our whole group went to lunch and then spent the rest of the day hanging out in the sun. I even got a little "sham rockin" sunburn from where my face tattoo was. I'm afraid of my weigh in tomorrow after drinking today, but sometimes a little celebration is necessary!

17 to go!

Saturday afternoon, Braylon, my Grandpa and I decided to make an impromptu trip up to my Mom and Stepdad''s house (about 2.5 hours away). When we arrived my mom was making fish and sides of asparagus and brussel spouts. She knew I was serious about losing weight so I was very thankful that she cooked such a healthy meal. We spent the evening hanging out, building lego towers and playing euchre. They have a small farm and Braylon had a blast chasing and feeding the sheep:

This morning I had a 5 mile run scheduled. I chose to do it in the basement on my mom's treadmill because it was snowing outside and only 22 degrees. It kills my lungs to run in under 40 degree weather. I. Hate. Running. On. Treadmills. I was so bored and walked more than I should have. I still got a great workout in, though...

Gross, right?

We got home around 5 today so we ran to the grocery, made dinner and finished up some laundry for the week. I jumped on the scale AFTER dinner tonight and was pleasantly surprised to see I have lost 3 lbs since last Sunday! Only 17 lbs to go until I hit my 100 lb goal! I'm so close I can taste it!

Best feeling ever!

I have kept my word and haven't weighed myself since Sunday. It's easy because I've had so much sodium the last few days that I'm afraid to look at it. Seriously, I'm preparing myself for my first gain on Sunday. :( 

I was super exhausted yesterday so I switched my rest day (Fri) with my 3.5 mile run day (Thurs). I got up at 4:30 this morning, took Braylon to daycare and ran before work. I have felt great all day! I'm thinking about modifying my running schedule on the weekends that Braylon isn't with his dad. It's a pain to try to find a sitter every other Sunday and I feel guilty asking for help. I think I've worked out a schedule that will allow me to get my runs in, just on different days.

Wednesday night it was nice outside so I took Braylon to our favorite park. Last year I sat on a picnic table and watched him play with the other kids, hoping he wouldn't ask me to go down a slide or run around with him... carrying around almost 350 lbs made me ALWAYS tired! This time, I went down the slides (I fit!!!!!!) with him. and we ran all over the park! He was more interested in me being able to do this with him than playing with the other kids. We had a blast! Being able to actively play with him was the best payoff I could ask for since losing this weight!