Just have to remember...

I am sort of plateauing when it comes to my weight.  I feel stuck in a rut...but I'm determined to push through.  I am getting to the gym 4-5 times per week, and I am continuing to make smart food choices.  I know it will eventually catch up with me and the weight will finally budge again.  I think the biggest thing I've been learning during my weight-loss journey is that is actually about way more than losing weight.  I guess I have always known it's important to focus on the bigger picture, but I never wanted to accept anything other than the number on the scale.  I am SO over that...in fact, my scale is hidden right now!  I can do this, without the positive (or negative) reinforcement from the scale.  

Healthiness isn't a size and happiness isn't a weight.

Weekend Recap July 8-10

I love summer weekends.  I love the activities, I love the clothes (haha), I love being outside...even on really hot days.  I don't know, as per usual, I'm pretty sure this summer is flying by wayyyyy to fast!  This past weekend was filled with mostly local activities, and a lot of fun.  Not so much relaxing, which would explain why I was SO TIRED Monday morning.  Here's the breakdown:

Friday

Girls night!  My friend Brandy is moving to Missouri as soon as she finds a job, so we had to designate a night out before time got away from us.  Ashley, Brandy, and I met up at Brandy's for some drinks before hitting up karaoke where our friend Jaqui was DJing.  It was a wonderful time, we sang some great songs, including "Wannabe," "Zombie," "Toucha Toucha Toucha Me," and I serenaded Ashley with "The Way I Am" :)

Saturday

I started Saturday off at 7:30 with a couple hours of work :( So of course it could only get better.  Ryan and I spent the afternoon at the John Deere Classic and had a great time.  It was a lot of walking, especially up and down hills, so I was getting really nervous for my race Saturday night because I was already so tired!  What race you ask? Why the Moonlight Chase of course.  The Moonlight Chase is a 4-mile night-time race out in Eldridge, IA (where I grew up) and the course is wonderful! You walk/run through town and there are people lining the entire course cheering you on.  It was hot and hilly, but I'm so glad I did it!!  You can find the results here, yes that's me in 1,280th place! =) And I couldn't be prouder, so take that!  My goal is just to continue improving.  I already improved my mile pace just in the one week since my 5K, so just gotta keep going!

Nervous before the race

Sunday

I picked up my lil' bro and we drove up to Cedar Rapids to see my sister's new house!  It was a VERY hot day, so we spent the majority of it inside, but was a great day.  They have a cute house, and I'm so glad they are out of the apartment with all the college kids!  When  we got back from C.R. later that evening, Ryan and I had to clean up and go grocery shopping for his little birthday dinner that we had with his family last night (Monday night).  

I was SOO tired Monday morning, I didn't want to work.  But it's already Tuesday, and I cannot wait until Thursday! Why am I so excited for Thursday?! HARRY POTTER AT MIDNIGHT!!!  And then I have Friday off and Ashley L is coming to town for the weekend...it's going to be quite stellar!  Happy Tuesday everyone!

A Fantastic and Relaxing Weekend

This past weekend, Ryan and I went to visit Ashley and Andy in Omaha!  We left on Friday after work and got to their place around 10:00. Honestly, there is not too much to describe because we spent a lot of time in, which was exactly what we needed!  We played a lot of Euchre in which Ashley and I kicked some butt and I am now anxiously awaiting my homemade strawberry pie.  Ashley and I babysat the cutest little boy on Saturday night and went for a walk.  On Sunday morning, Ashley and I ran a 5k in the middle of a thunderstorm that was just passing through.  We caught about 2 miles of rain, and then it lightened up for the last part of the race, which made it feel way sticky and muggy...BLAH!  But it was my first 5K and I'm so glad I did it, I'm already looking forward to another, now that I know I won't be in last place, haha!  I'm saving my favorite part of our Omaha trip for last, but here a couple pictures so far:

WAIT! What is that bear doing there?!  That would be from the amazing Safari Park in Omaha!  So there is this park, which feels very much like Jurassic Park when you pass through it's different gates, that you pay to drive through and the wildlife is right outside your window.  Well, most of it runs free, not the bears or wolves.  There was a spot in the middle of the park where you parked your car and walked to the bear, wolf, and eagle enclosures.  It was so awesome, the bears were RIGHT there, so much closer than they are at the zoo.  It was probably one of my favorite things we have done in Omaha so far, besides the actual zoo since it's amazing.  When we got to the bison area, we were stopped for a little while because those massive creatures do what they want and were standing in the road.  Enjoy these pics and be jealous, you know you want to go!

Finally, since we didn't hit up any fireworks in Omaha, Ryan and I went to Bettendorf's fireworks back home.  They were amazing and it was such a beautiful night, and it was kind of nice to spend that time together, alone.  Happy Belated 4th of July everyone!

Nervous as Heck...

I signed up for my first 5K this Sunday.  Yup, there is no denying it..I am nervous!  Partly because I probably have not dedicated enough time to training for it, and partly because I'm terrified of finishing last.  I even emailed to coordinators of the race to make sure that there will be walkers there, it's not just a race for runners.  They assured me there are always plenty of walkers, but I still don't know if I believe them.  Oh, and I haven't trained as much as I would have liked to because I am also training for RAGBRAI, so I spend many workouts biking instead of walking/jogging.  Or if the weather is crap, I've been doing ZUMBA and other cardio indoors.  So yeah, the race is 60 hours from now and I think I'm in a panic mode...can I even finish?! AHH! I think that is my goal and I will be proud, just to finish the 5K, even if my time is slow, who cares?  I did something good for myself and accomplished a goal.  Wish me luck!

And She Runs...

So this post is actually about running, but let's start off with a fun jogging song by Tim Halperin called "She Runs."  Check it out:

So why pick this song for this post? Well, it does have some relevance, but only in the actual running sense.  I have been thinking about how I am trying to become a runner, or at least more athletic, which to me, includes running.  But here's the deal; I really, really try to run for extended amounts of time, and it KICKS MY *SS!  I think there are some people who are runners and some who are not.  It's hard to try to become a runner when you really never have been.  I remember DREADING "The Mile" day in elementary because I hated running.  And I wasn't a fat kid, I danced, I rode my bike, I just hated running.  And even to this day, the idea of running sounds great, but when I actually get out there and do it, I don't love it, my knees hurt, I turn bright red, I huff and puff and I can't wait until I stop.  Haha.  So why do I do it to myself?
I think I have convinced myself that this struggle is a mental block and I can psychologically get over this hatred towards running.  I think that is partially true, but I have tried to push myself harder, or farther, but eventually, my physical exhaustion catches up with me.  
But here's the cold hard truth, fact of the matter is, I think I slowly, VERY SLOWLY, am training my body to accept running as an exercise! 
When I started out on my venture to become a runner, about 5 weeks ago, I could only run for like 30 second spurts at a time until my chest tightened and I need to catch my breath.  And at that point, it was even hard to keep walking at my preferred, very brisk pace (ideal calorie burning).  In the time that has passed since, I suppose you could say I have made some progress, so maybe it will continue to get easier?  Just yesterday, I went on a walk/run and I can now run for about 5 minutes straight before return to walking (still briskly!) for about 10 minutes and then I run another 5 minutes.  It is still totally kicking my butt, and I know 5 minutes of running is a total joke to most people. But this is no small feat for me; when I first did it close to that length without stopping, I was pretty damned proud of myself.  This is the song that gets me through my first 5 minute run of each workout:

I am running (well mostly walking, I'm sure) a 5k in Omaha on the 4th of July, two weeks from today!  But even if I can run 10 minutes of it, I can't wait to celebrate my accomplishment with my friend Ashley, who will inevitably make me eat her dust! :)

Sarah is expecting?

OK, I don't know if I can bring myself to actually post pictures of it in my own blog...but somewhere, someone is looking at picture of me and must think I am pregnant!! So I know half of the time, it can be the clothes I'm wearing, but let's be honest, I have a major food baby and it needs to go bye-bye!
I have been slacking in Weight Watchers.  I have apparently decided I think I can get by without actually tracking the food I eat.  What was I thinking? I've gained like two pounds back in two weeks.  I feel like I'm back at square one today.  And though I am a little (or a lot) disheartened by this, I am convinced to look at it as a fresh start, ready to kick some major WW butt this week!
I have been working out a lot more this week, but I've been overcompensating for "points earned." However, I have enjoyed my early morning walks a couple times this week and should make that a habit.  I have also gone for walk/jogs after work a couple times and I just love being outside, so I just need to keep it going.
But back to this nasty "baby" bump! I think I am in need of some truly amazing core work-outs that you can feel in your abs.  Anyone have any good suggestions?  I would prefer something relatively short in time, something I could get up a do for twenty-minutes in the morning.  Something that has a bit of a routine, but also makes me WANT to do it.  Am I asking for an ideal workout here?! Have any of you had any success with workouts lately? Fill me in!!