As January comes to an end, let’s look at the good and the bad things that have happened:
Good- I’ve been mostly sticking to my resolutions. I’ve been tracking what I’m eating on the MyPlate app from Livestrong, and I’m learning some interesting things about what I eat, when I eat, and how to make changes. For the most part I just need to eat more protein.
Bad- See this guy? With his sweet little face?
Turns out he’s actually a very bad kitty. On Sunday, I caught him PEEING IN MY LAUNDRY HAMPER…ALL OVER MY CLOTHES…RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME!!! I had to shell out $300 to take him to the vet to see if there’s anything actually wrong with him, or if he just enjoys peeing on people’s things. I’ll keep you updated on that one.
Good- See this girl?
This is Gin Wigmore and she’s awesome. And I saw her in concert for $12. And it was AWESOME! Booyah.
More Good/Bad- I hate strength training, but I know that it’s been working. I have a routine that I do 20-30 minutes two or three times a week. I feel stronger and stretchier. I guess I should keep it up.
Bad- I’m a klutz. Being a klutz I walked right into my coffee table. I think I hurt myself pretty bad. I must have got it right in between my toes because that’s where it’s the most purple. My foot is pretty swollen and lots of interesting colors. Needless to say, I don’t think I’ll be running for a while. I’m pretty sure it’s not broken, but to be on the safe side I’m going to lay off the running for at least 4 to 6 weeks. I’m trying to look on the bright side, so at least I was a klutz while not training for anything. And it’s been cold anyway. I was kind of looking for an excuse to not run.
So that was January. Let’s hope that February is more good than bad!
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
I’ve had a kind of surreal weekend. A friend of mine very suddenly lost her fiancé. He was playing basketball, went to get some water, and collapsed. He was 30 years old. I can’t even imagine how utterly devastated she is right now. I would be completely broken. One minute you’re planning your wedding and your life and the next it’s completely taken away. I wish there was something I could do or say for her to make it better, but there’s not. I didn’t know him very well. I met him just once before Christmas, but I saw all the kind and amazing notes written by friends on his facebook page. I’m hoping the family can find solace in the fact that he seems to have touched many lives with his spirit. Hopefully his spirit can live on in others by inspiring them to live better lives. And I think all of us should use this as a reminder that you never know what’s going to happen. Never miss an opportunity to give someone a hug or tell them how much you love them, because you just never know.
Let me start by saying this: Strength training hurts. It makes me sad how much it hurts. You would think that I would be stronger by now, but I’m not. Sad. I signed up for a free strength training class at JackRabbit on the Upper Westside. I thought it wasn’t going to be a REAL class. I thought it would be mostly talking. But no. This was a real class. There were planks, bridges, squats, clamshells- even plyometrics. Needless to say, today I hurt. The good news about all this is I don’t do a ton of strength training mostly because I don’t know exactly what to do. Well now I have no excuse. I know exactly what to do and how to do it. So I will be adding these workouts to my routine. All except for the plyometrics. Jumping up and down makes me angry.
Monday, January 14, 2013
So much for my attempt to do doubles. I went to class this Sunday morning, and a few minutes into my class, I felt like I was really going to throw up. I stood really still and hoped that if I didn't move, I wouldn't spew. So I just did one class, which I sat through most of. It was a little rough. Today I'm still at home because I still felt icky. With all this flu nonsense, I figure it's better just to get home, just in case.
So in better news, I really wanted to share this with you guys. These are the people I run with. We're like a little running family who encourages each other to do stupid things, like run more marathons. If you're looking to sign up for any endurance races, I would really I love these guys, and now you can follow all our adventures on a brand new blog! I recommend you do. There's guaranteed to be shenanigans!
One last note, who watched the Golden Globes last night? I usually don't watch the whole awards show because, let's face it, they're a little boring. I only tuned in because of Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. I was not disappointed.
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Look! I'm on a committee!
Not sure if I mentioned this before but this year I'm the DetermiNation committee chair for recruitment. I'm a little nervous. It seems like a lot of responsibility but I'm gonna do my best. I love this team more than I ever imagined I would and I would do just about anything for them. Even head up a committee :) So if anyone is thinking about doing an endurance event, talk to me. I can get you in with the best team ever.
I think my new year is getting off to a good start. I kicked off the Spring training season with DetermiNation this weekend. I’m not training for anything, but it’s good to have my running family back. I even went for my first winter run ever. Winter running is so strange. I’m kinda cold, but kinda sweaty, then I’m warm again. I think I need to buy warmer running clothes, but running clothes are expect it, and honestly, my goal for winter is to run just once a week for 30ish minutes. So I don’t know if all the fancy clothing would be worth it.
I also celebrated my 3 year yoga-versary. My actual yoga-versary was at the end of December, but I usually celebrate with a 30 day challenge in January. A 30 day challenge is when you do yoga once a day for 30 days. But this year, I didn’t have the time, and really, I just don’t want to. So I’m making another sort of challenge for myself. I’m going to do a double once a week during January. I was a little nervous because I had never done a double before and it’s literally 3 hours of hot sweaty yoga. The first class wasn’t too sweaty and I was holding back a little. I started thinking, Hey, this might be easier than I thought. Then came the second class. My legs were shaking just from standing. Every time I raised my arms, they would quiver. I thought I was going to fall down for most of the standing portion of the class. But I have never felt so amazing. Usually I have pain in my hip and a lot of postures hurt quite a bit. But in the second class, I didn’t feel it. Everything was open and my whole body felt like butter. I think I’m going to like doing doubles.
And finally, because I wouldn’t be me if we didn’t talk about cats, I have a kitty update. Every now and then I check back at the rescue group website to see how the tiny little kitten I found is doing. Remember him? Well here he is now.
He’s healthy looking and super cute and I’m hoping he finds a good home soon. I can’t wait until the day when I check the site and he’s no longer there.
I know. I’ve been a bad blogger recently. With all the holidays and running around and seeing family, I’ve been a bit busy. Now that’s all done and life can get back to normal. So here are the highlights:
First stop, Southern California. We went to Disneyland where there were no lines. We went to Crystal Cove and saw an octopus (and other critters) in the tide pools. We ate LOTS of yummy Mexican food, did lots of driving and saw lots of family. And there was lots of sun.
Back to New York for a few days then off to Virginia for Christmas. We again at lots of yummy food (there was goose and bread dumplings!). We drank lots of wine. And I saw a fox! It was not a white Christmas, but it did snow the day after, so I’m going to say that counts.
Honestly, at this point I was feeling like a giant beach ball after two weeks of food and alcohol and my body was yelling at me for not going to yoga or doing anything physical for two whole weeks. One of the first things I did when I got back into the city was head to yoga. I felt a little like the tin man and I needed my oil can. Feeling much better now.
Then it was time for New Year’s. Luckily we didn’t have to travel anywhere for this. We just had to avoid the crowds in Times Square, but it wasn’t as bad as I thought. We rang in the New Year with friends and champagne, so I had no complaints.
So what are my plans for the New Year?
Run a half marathon in under 2 hours. This means I’ll have to work hard and actually try to run faster.
Weight train at least twice a week. Gotta work on my guns.
Save up enough money to visit MiMi in Japan in October or November. This is going to be quite a bit of money so donations are welcome :)
Make more money! This could be finding another job (though pickings are slim), working freelance jobs on the side, or just getting a raise. I think I might have to go with option number 2.
Learn something new. I’m signing up for a free online class on the Greek Hero. I’m thinking about learning more about graphic design as well but I'm just doing research on that now. That might be a 2014 goal.
