Weddings, weekends, and wine, oh my!

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Ok, so, all things considered, I am still doing pretty well. I re-Sparked on here at the beginning of September when I crested the 150 lb mark and have since been militant about clean eating and no grains and limited dairy.

Lowest weight lately (last week) was 146.5. Really want to be back on the friendly side of 145...and 140, ideally.

This past weekend one of my good friends got married,and I was a bridesmaid in the wedding. It was a great day overall, though I drank a ton of wine. I think everything evened out thought since a) I ate no grains, not even cake! and b) danced for about 3 hours straight. If Spark is to be believed, I burned off 800 calories dancing and I was definitely sore the next day.

Today was the first day I weighed myself post-wedding, and I'm 147. I also had a glass of wine last night. Grrr.

Workouts are still going well. I ran/walked 8.3 miles on Monday (since I couldn't do a long run this weekend due to the wedding) and I did my kettlebell routine last night. I think I need a 15 lb kettlebell since I'm not very sore today after using my 10 lb weight.

Not much weight loss going on but I'm feeling stronger and running better! Cheers (but not too much)!

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Solid run last night....Half Marathon Redemption Season begins!

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Still back on track...about two weeks in. I've been tracking everything, and staying in my range, and ramping up the running. All good. FINALLY saw some weight loss this morning...down a pound! Woo!

Last night I did my regular 4.7 mile loop with the big giant hill. I haven't been able to run the whole thing without walking since the spring when it was cooler. Last night, I ran ALMOST the entire thing, stopping to walk up the big hill twice, but only for a 1 minute at a time. But, it was still my fastest loop in months. Progress, progress.

Looking forward to my upcoming half marathons, Freedom's Run and Philly Half Marathon. I did both last year as part of my training for the Marine Corps Marathon and I had horrible times on both of them. Freedom's is VERY difficult with huge hills and Philly was only 3 weeks after the MCM and my legs were still shot. I'm calling this fall "Redemption Season" so I can beat my previous times on those races.

I'm not training nearly as hardcore as I was last year, but I'm ok with that. I got so frustrated with myself last year that my HMs were all so much slower than my first one (2:08). But, now I'm running them for the exercise and comraderie with my running buddy, KATEINMD, (well, and the shirt and medal!) than for anything else. If I'm anywhere under 2:30, I'm cool with that.

Happy Sparking!

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Feeling very in control today....and Purple Smoothie Bliss

Thursday, September 06, 2012

Wow. I think I just died and went to smoothie heaven. And I wasn't even a big smoothie-drinker until....well, yesterday.

In my attempt to reign my weight back in, eat cleaner, and work out more...I'm going back to the paleo-ish way of clean eating. I can't kick butter (though for the most part I use olive oil when cooking) and cheese every now and again. But otherwise, I am dairy, legume, and grain-free.

So how happy was I to discover this place called The Protein Bar that opened 7 or so blocks from my office. ( www.theproteinbar.com ) (In no way do I work for or endorse them, I just found them last week and am in love.)

They have smoothies and salads and bowls and burritos and their focus is on protein....either meat, tofu, or quinoa. In my paleo-ness, they have a ton of gluten-free salads but what I really wanted to try were the epic looking smoothies. They're even more epic because you can choose your protein (whey, soy, or egg), choose a milk (2%, skim, almond, or soy), and add an optional boost at no charge. Paleo-friendly me the chose egg protein and almond milk. Nom nom.

So, yesterday, I was feeling adventerous and I tried this one:

Capitol Cocoa
Chocolate protein, choice of milk, house-made cocoa malt, agave nectar, and banana
(20 oz: 399 calories, 6 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 254 mg sodium, 64 g carbohydrates, 2 g fiber, 45 g sugar, 28 g protein)

It didn't suck. But I also don't really care for banana. And then, genius that I am, I googled "malt" when I came back to my desk and D@MNIT it's wheat-based. Whoops.

Flash forward to today. I just tried THIS one:

The Blue Line
Vanilla protein, choice of milk, blueberries, and banana (I chose egg protein and almond milk)
20 oz: 243 calories, 1 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 135 mg sodium, 34 g carbohydrates, 4 g fiber, 25 g sugar, 26 g protein

HOLY. HECK. THIS WAS AMAZING. And I would have taken a picture for you since it was BRIGHT PURPLE, but sadly, I inhaled the whole thing on the walk back to the office. And I was actually sad when it was all gone. It's only four ingredients, so I'm going to try and recreate it at home. If successful, I'll post a recipe on Spark.

Alright back to work. But today I've managed to sleep almost 8 hours, do my weightlifting routine, and discover a killer paleo-friendly smoothie within walking distance of the office. Success!

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Weight Gain: Maintenance Struggle

Wednesday, September 05, 2012

Well this weekend I crossed the 150 lb. mark. Which sets off red sirens with flashing lights in my brain....STOP STOP STOP.

I really haven't been *that* terrible this summer....but maintenance is harder than I thought. I'm not a naturally thin or athletic person. I can't fall back into old habits, even for a month or two. I feel good about myself when I'm on the friendly side of 145 (i.e. under). I feel REALLY good about myself when I'm closer to 140. But that requires serious diligence and food-tracking every day.

This summer:

1. I've hardly run at all...save for a few 5Ks and one 10K. It's just been so hot and humid and running hasn't been enjoyable.
2. I caved to my husband and have been ordering in dinner (see: cheesesteaks/fries and beer) way too much.
3. I haven't been on Spark very much at all.

It just really sucks that if I fall off the wagon for just a few months....5-10 pounds come screaming back. I was supposed to be on the ball all summer long since I'm in a wedding in September and my brother is getting married in October. I wanted to be tan and skinny. Now I'll just settle for fitting into my dresses.

I wish I could make a list of all the things I'm going to change going forward to lose these 5-10 pounds again....but I've done that before and it doesn't seem to work.

The best I can say is:

1. I'm into a regular weight lifting schedule with a co-worker at work. No weight lost, but feeling more toned and stronger after two weeks.
2. I ran twice this week. I'm going to try and run twice more.
3. I signed up for two half-marathons this fall as training motivation.
4. I am TRYING to live a grain-free life (like I did in the Spring, to much success)...but it is hard to live so regimented. On the other hand, it definitely works.

And I will try and be better about Spark. I stopped tracking my food a year ago because it was making me crazy, but maybe I need to start again.

So that's where I am. Losing weight, running new distances, beating old race records...that part was fun. Now, I need to figure out how to continue the lifestyle.

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Spring Racing Schedule

Wednesday, February 08, 2012

So, the Spring Racing Schedule shaping up quite nicely. My Half Marathon training has kind of sucked...but, this year, I'm trying to focus more on strength-training and nutrition with a few races thrown in for fun. The longer races here will be more of a run/walk and I'm ok with that.

February 12 - Run for Your Heart 5K
March 4 - Reston 10-Miler
March 17 - Rock n' Roll Half Marathon (Washington, DC)
April 16 - St. Charles Running Festival 10-Miler
May 6 - Pittsburgh Half Marathon
May 20 - Capitol Hill Classic 10K

Races that are still TBD are the GW Parkway Classic 10-Miler (April 22nd) and the Baltimore 10-Miler (June 16). The GW Parkway Classic is (a) expensive and (b) a logistical nightmare. I can't decide if I want to deal with that again. And, well, it's going to be really hot in Baltimore in June. So....TBD.

I'm not looking for an PRs this year, just want to go out and have a good time. My current mantra is: Everyone gets the same medal.

Happy Spring Racing Season everyone!!!

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