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MPLSKEN's Recent Blog Entries
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Sunday, January 29, 2012
Today I finished SparkPeople's Official January Jumpstart Workout Challenge!
Finishing any challenge always feels great, but for some reason this one feels especially gratifying. Maybe it's because I got one of those shiny trophy icons as a reward. Or, maybe it's because I know I stuck with it even while out of town on a combination business trip and mini-vacation in Las Vegas. Or, it could also be that this challenge took me quite a bit out of my comfort zone as far as exercises go. None of them were really difficult, although the very first one was quite a beast the first time I did it!!! But, a lot of them were new exercises to me and stuff like that always takes me a little time to get used to. I definitely learned that I'm not as coordinated as I thought I was, although I improved over the course of the 4 week challenge.
Unfortunately, this month has also been very hectic and a lot of my forum and team participation waned. Between fitting in a lot of new exercise and a crazy amount of work stuff, something had to get cut. TV time and the more social aspects of SparkPeople both went on the chopping block. And, I definitely missed my SparkPeeps more than the TV!
Anyhow, my big challenge is over and work should be getting more manageable in the next week, so things will be back to normal for me soon.
p.s. I'm getting SUPER close to reaching my 80 lbs lost milestone! I suspect this Monday or the following Monday I'll be celebrating!!!
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Right now I'm in Las Vegas and don't have a lot of extra time to write, so this post is going to be a little different than my others. In fact, I'm probably going to edit it with more info later, but I wanted to get a couple things jotted down here. My partner and I used to go to Vegas quite a bit, but this is actually the first time we have been here in about six years. It's a short work-related trip, but we are also here with friends. Anyway, I have quickly learned and/or remembered a few things:
1) I LOVE LAS VEGAS!!! I absolutely LOVE it!
2) A medium Fatburger and peanut butter shake contain 1,540 calories and are worth every single one of them!!! Granted, this should probably be on a once or twice yearly schedule.
3) If you wait long enough, most cravings will pass. I had ordered some sort of delicious-sounding smores ice cream sundae somewhere. Over 30 minutes later, we hadn't been served and my craving was gone. I canceled my order and probably saved myself well over 1,000 calories. In the past, I would have probably waited and ate it even though I was no longer craving it. So, very happy about this!
4) As much as I love Las Vegas, my skin does not. I'm chalking this up to the hotel detergent, but I'm sure the smoke and desert air could also have something to do with it.
5) You can get a LOT of walking in here. A lot! My feet actually hurt, which is rare for me these days.
6) A run around 5pm can literally give you a new lease on the day. After walking around the Consumer Electronics Show all day on Friday, I was pretty tired. In the past, I might have taken a nap. This time around, I ran for 4 miles in the hotel gym. I think this is the first time I've ever used a hotel gym. It completely woke me up! I showered and felt like a million bucks and lasted until 2:45am yesterday night! Woohoo!
7) It's not whether you win or lose, it's how you play the game. Although, winning is a nice bonus!
8) Time in Vegas goes very, very fast.
- more to come, gotta run -
Saturday, December 31, 2011
My premonition of today's stress came true. The last official working day of the year came. And, it went. It was definitely crazy, hectic and every other word there is for sheer madness. But, at the end of the day (literally, it's 11:58pm!), it was just another day. I successfully negotiated some deadlines into the weekend and next week just as I had hoped I would, although I think several of those negotiations might have been with myself (in my head). I also followed through with positive thoughts and my action plan when times got tough. I did get through it (as I told myself I would MANY times throughout the day). I did ask for more help. I did accept more help when it was offered (even though it was hard at times). And, I did let some things go; make that a LOT of things.
Friday, December 30, 2011
I thought I got all of my whining out in yesterday's post. But, I'm still caught up in the whirlwind of end-of-year-crazy at work. Tomorrow is the last "working" day of the year, although I'm going to try to negotiate some deadlines into the weekend and hopefully into next week. If I'm lucky, this will help a little. The bad thing is that this will prolong the madness. But, I think I can suffer a little longer to relieve some of my stress tomorrow. Although, this strategy might have landed me in this mess in the first place! Somehow, through all of this, I need to try to focus on the positives. My work situation could be worse. There are no lives on the line here. And, at least I have my health and my family. Some people might be upset with me, but in the long run this stressful moment will be nothing more than a little blip on a timeline. I can get through this. I need to ask for more help. I need to accept help when it's offered to me. And, I need to let some things go.
Thursday, December 29, 2011
I'm in the middle of what feels like the most stressful week of the year for me. Although, just as the grass always seems greener on the other side of the fence, a stressful week always seems like THE MOST stressful week ever. So, who knows? In any case, I'm coming off of the natural "high" from the holidays, which makes me a little sad. We bundle so many get-togethers and events leading up to Christmas. It's crazy and hectic, but also very fun and magical. Then, afterwards, I'm dumped into my "End of Year" craziness at work. However, unlike the holidays, with work there is no hectic/magical balance at the end of the year; just busy, hectic, crazy and more hectic. Everyone wants this or that done before the year-end, and unfortunately I'm still as behind as I was all year long, so these deadlines are impossible. And, I'm not talking the "I'm Possible" kind of impossible; I mean impossible impossible. Some stuff will get done and unfortunately a lot will not. So, I will probably spend most of the week just stressing out. At least now I have exercise to quell some of the stress rather than the go-to tub of ice cream I've used in so many past years. Anyway, this is just a quick "poor me" post to get it off my chest. Maybe a cup of herbal tea and a good night of sleep will have me singing a different tune tomorrow morning... I can always hope!
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Member Comments About This Blog Post:
We will be waiting to celebrate the big 80 with you!
