Lessons for Today

Lesson #1: If you are going to work out for 2 hours, eat more than a 90 calorie piece of toast for breakfast

Man, I wanted to sleep in this morning. But, I had a session with my trainer and if I missed it, I would still have to pay...so I got up at 5:30 a.m. The latest possible time I could get up and still make it to my 6:00 a.m. session (okay, so I was a little late). Ran around the house to find clothes for work and the gym (of course, I know that I COULD pack my bag the night before, but for some reason I can never actually seem to do this--I don't know. It was save me a lot of grief. Especially on those days when my attempt to get an entire outfit into my bag fail--and that happens more often that I would like to admit). I make a piece of toast (yummy cinnamon raisin kind) and run out the door.

The workout is good. I didn't whine that much and there wasn't too much eye rolling this morning :) All signs of success!

So, after an hour with Scott the trainer, I hop into my car and head out to the gym (Scott is training me at this little gym that doesn't have good cardio equipment). I get there and start my workout around 7:30--an hour on the elliptical. At first I am feeling good, rocking through the "hills" and watching random TV. Then, my legs decide that they just want to stop. This was probably around the 25 minute mark. I convinced myself that it was just because I was on a particularly big "hill", but no, that wasn't it. The little ones were hard too. I kept pushing, but noticed that I was slower and the time seemed to be dragging on and on and on. I thought that the last 15 minutes would never end. And then the cool down. And stretching. By the time I hit the shower it was nearing 9:00 a.m, so a good 3 hours since my 90 calorie piece of toast. Then it hit me...90 calories of fuel does not equal 2 hours of output. Duh!

That leads to lesson number 2: Recovery is imperative (especially if you fail lesson #1 above). After a typical gym workout I have a routine. Hit the locker room and chug about half a bottle of this drink mix that has a good mix of carbs and protein to help my body recover from what I just did to it. I shower, and then drink the rest. If I am doing long sessions of strength and cardio, I will sometimes drink something between them, to keep the body going. Well, today, I didn't even think about my recovery drink. I am blaming it on the effects of #1.

So, I am crashing right now as I type. I need a nap. But it is 10:00 a.m., so no naps for me. I get to work instead! Hopefully my post post-workout attempts at fuel will help and I will be somewhat awake before too long. If not, at least it's Friday!

Cute new shoes

I got a cute pair of pink Converse shoes this weekend at Target (yep, Target and only $30!!). I needed a pair of shoes to wear with my pink poodle skirt, and these did the trick. Unfortunately, I didn't get a good picture of the whole outfit, so you will just have to imagine how cute I looked. I am going to see if I have any pictures to post of that...stay tuned.

But here are the shoes. I love pink :)

Happy Post

Okay, I am tired of debbie downer posts...so here is a random happy post!!

A few of my favorite things...

1)  I love white bed linens...not sure what it is, but all I want is white!  We have tried different colors, but I keep going back.  So, on my shopping list is a white duvet color and some sort of bright pillows for a bit of "punch."  I would love a room like this one from Domino.  

2)  I listen to all sorts of music. One of my guilty pleasures is hip-hop music and old school R&B.  Don't judge me.  It is fun :)

Image from Wiki.

3) I love to be creative.  I feel at peace when I am painting or writing or making something. I am not very good at any of it, but it is very good for my soul.

4)  Chocolate.  What more is there to say?

Okay...now I feel better :)

Damn Shins!

Seriously...can a girl get a break??  I tried to run today---but my shins hurt :(  I am so frustrated.  I just want to run--is that too much to ask???  Grrrrrr...

The silver lining is instead of pouting, I hopped off the treadmill (after only 10 minutes) and pounded out an hour on the elliptical.  **sigh**

Slacker

I have certainly been a blogging slacker lately...I really have just been trying to keep my head above water.  Life has been rough, but I feel like I am coming back around.  This past weekend we went to Yakima to visit my family, which is generally very difficult for me.  I did extremely well under the circumstances.  I even made it through the entire weekend without crying--which has to be some type of record for me--seriously!  It was very nice to come home on Sunday and I feel like I have been pretty productive over the past couple days, which has been good for me.  So, I will keep going, working each day, and hoping the I wake up one morning and feel like me again!

By Michael Monteiro

Finding Jenn

A friend of mine recently passed away and another friend started a knitting/crocheting project in her honor. We are knitting PICC line covers for CF patients. You can find out all of the details HERE.

This is a great excuse to use up your stash, dust off those needles, or learn a new craft :)

Thanks!