Catching up

It's been awhile! Between difficult classes, work, and normal day-to-day stuff, this semester has really gotten away from me. I hit the halfway point a couple of weeks ago and I can't even believe that the year is almost over. But, I do intend to be more intentional about updating this little corner of my world. 

Not too much has changed. I love love love my new job at the Career Center. I get to talk to people all day, which is pretty awesome. This includes talking to students that are just as confused about what direction to go in their life as I was when I changed majors a year and a half ago. Plus I work with some pretty fun people. I also got to work at my job back home during Spring Break. Boy did I miss everyone! 

And of course there's the insane amount of schoolwork I feel like I'm always doing and time set aside for friends. It's been really fun, but I have definitely missed blogging and keeping ya'll in the loop on life.


I have kept up with my running, working more on speed than distance as I prepare for my first 5K (!!!) two weeks from this weekend. I'm really excited about it! I wanted to wait until it was a little warmer out because of how my lungs reacted at the last race. So, April 6 I will be running the Point of Honor 5K. It's all about raising awareness for organ donation and that is something I really believe in because it has affected multiple generations of my family. My friend Deana has been training with the Couch to 5K program and is going to run the race as well! It's all super exciting stuff and I can't wait!

At my dad's surprise party over break

Spring Break was definitely a test on eating balanced at home. Aside from various surprise parties, it was mostly how normal day-to-day life will be this summer so I wanted to try to eat how I would eat then. Of course I ate way more junk than I was planning on (namely, donuts) but that's okay. It's a learning process. I made smoothies for breakfast like I do here, experimented with muffin recipes, put spinach on my pizza (not half bad!) and was intentional about picking a lower calorie meal that tastes good and will fill me up when eating out. When I weighed myself in after break, I was about the same as before so I am feeling more confident in how this summer will play out.  

And that brings me to maintenance mode. I can proudly say I have maintained the same weight (aside from some normal fluctuations here and there) since January 23rd! Almost 2 months! I have a "healthy range" for maintenance but honestly I haven't even had to depend on that because for whatever reason I can eat as much or little as I want and not gain/lose anything. I'm not complaining though! Sure I haven't made it to "goal" but I'm only a couple of pounds off, so I am content. And so incredibly proud. I see some of my friends making changes because of me and at the end of the day, that's what makes me the happiest: helping others realize their goals as well. 

Resolution Run Race Report

Hi all! As I said, this weekend was a little on the crazy side on top of the race! This is the first time I have been able to sit down and relax and it's just long enough to write this post. Gotta love college life though! :)

So, race day recap!
I decided to run a few errands in the early afternoon so I could get a good idea of what the weather was like since it's been so wacky lately. It was cold but not freezing so I laid out a tshirt and running capris for the race with a zip-up hoodie for the drive over. Well that was not the best of ideas because it dropped a good ten degrees between then and when I left for the race! It even started snowing on the drive downtown, ugh.

Car photo shoot!

My brother and roomie came to support me which was awesome! My mom told me the other day that her and my sister were planning on coming down to surprise me but it ended up not working out since it was an afternoon race. But oh well, I'll be seeing them in just over a month (how crazy is that?!) for Spring Break so it's all good. :)

My face just screams "What am I about to do?!"

I definitely got to the race WAY too early but I wanted to be on the safe side. It was 2:15 when we pulled in and the race didn't start til 3 so we just kind of hung around the Boys and Girl's Club until people started going outside at around 2:45. Of course there was a lot more families there than college students but I was there to have fun, even if I stuck out like a sore thumb a little bit! :) 

I go outside and do some "stretching" for the camera and they start lining people up! By this point I was extremely nervous and it was freezing, snowing, and I had to take my jacket off because the metal zipper doesn't work well with the race chip. Sweet life. I tried to pick towards the middle of the pack since I'm not a super fast runner but I didn't plan on walking either. I should of been further forward though because I dodged little kids and some people who got exhausted early for the first half mile or so. I tried. But I was talking to people in line and of course I got asked about my shoes. My running shoes are those toe-separated shoes. They are so comfortable (and I don't have to wear socks!) but they aren't quite like the 5-finger shoes where you can feel every little thing you step on, just some things. So I am used to all of the questions by now haha.

Again, I am terrible at hiding how nervous I am

"OMG I'm cold!"

Waiting for the gun to go off was the most nerve-wracking thing ever and once it did I just did what I normally do, I didn't even feel the pressure of it being a race because I was just there to have fun--and I did! When I registered, I looked at where the race course was and since I know the area, I knew how crazy it was going to be. Lynchburg it known as "Hill City" and I was very thankful for running outdoors around campus and running with an incline on the treadmill. 

The first half of the race was entirely downhill. Not even kidding. I hate how my face jiggles when I run downhill too, it's just so weird! So you go down a few streets and end up alongside the James River on a trail and do about a quarter mile on the trail before turning around. There was a clock at the turn around point that gives you an idea of your pace. Mine was 8:45! I was not joking about those hills for sure! Since it was  a turnaround route though, the entire second half was uphill. Steep hills, really low temperatures, and snow (moisture) is the opposite of what my lungs like. So I died and fought back tears during every single hill. No doubt did I feel defeated before I rounded the last corner. My vision was going blurry and my lungs felt so tight. Then I saw Joshua and Kelsey, slapped on a smile and waved to the camera. I knew
I had to finish strong and it gave me just the right push to finish. I may of been a wreck after I crossed the line but it was SO worth it! 

After my lungs had a moment to calm down...

My goal for the race was to finish in under 21 minutes and I finished in 19:32! Also, I came in 2nd place in my age/gender category! Not a huge deal since that only contained about 20 people, but I still am so proud of all that I have accomplished these past few months. If I can do it, I'm certain that anyone can. It was such a great experience and I'm already looking forward to the next race, a 5K (when it's a little warmer and not so wet out hopefully...)!

Some more pictures to enjoy... 

So there's my exciting first race, one last shout out to Joshua for being a champ and coming, Kelsey for listening to me go on and on and on about how nervous I was and for taking pictures and of course to my wonderful family and friends for being so supportive on this journey. I love you all. 

And I'll just leave you with this wonderful video of me crossing the finish line that Kelsey took...again I'm terrible at hiding my emotions but I did want to share my moment on here. 

My lucky number

 Tomorrow is the big day! I'm getting super excited and also really nervous. There's just so much I'm unsure of because I've never run a race so of course I'll be eager to update you all tomorrow night...or Sunday or Monday. Really I'm right out straight all weekend and Monday but I promise to write out a post the second I get a chance to sit down at my computer! :)

After what felt like ages in construction traffic, I got to pick up my packet! I called my sister the second I was in my car because my race number is 6! It's weird but I have always thought of 6 as my "lucky number." My birthday is 6/6 and there's been other stuff in my life that corresponds to that number as well. Needless to say, I was a little tickled. 

Hurray race bib!

I did my final pre-race run this morning. 2.25 miles around campus in the ice and snow! I was up and at 'em before they salted the sidewalks so I definitely ran in place a few times but no falling! Of course I did fall when I left the dorm for real later on after the salt had already been put on, so obviously I'm much more graceful when I run. The cold was what killed me though. My weather app read 30 degrees when I woke up but it was so much colder than that! It was way too cold out for my lungs to handle and I started to wheeze after the first mile and a half or so, love my lungs. I took my inhaler and it was immediate relief, just gotta roll with the punches I guess.

I did finish the first two miles in 20:29 this morning and the overall run in 23 minutes flat. For weather conditions like the one I was fighting, I'll take it!

Then I warmed up with a big bowl of oatmeal with peanut butter and freeze dried banana slices mixed in. SO good! The freeze dried bananas gave it such a nice crunch while the peanut butter is just perfect as always. I was going to eat a Clif bar tomorrow morning but I just love this combo way too much to give it up yet (until I get sick of it). 

First ever race shirt!

I'm sure all of you are probably annoyed with my constant talking about running, races, food and such. I know my friends probably are by now at least. But it truly helps keep my accountable by announcing that I am going to do something. If I didn't announce it or talk about it then it would be so much easier for me to quit or skip a run without others knowing. So thank you all for taking time to read my ramblings, I truly appreciate it. Thanks everyone!

30!

Well, yesterday morning was weigh-in and I was sooo nervous. Last Wednesday I weighed and I was up 1 pound and while that's not a huge deal, it was slightly devastating in my meladramatic mind. I do think I was holding on to a lot of water weight and that gain was probably because I hadn't run in a week or so and muscle stores water when you start a new workout routine (or something like that).

So, I decided to not weigh myself again until yesterday (even though my normal weigh-in day was Saturday morning). It was awful to resist, but I did it. I was nervous though because I ate like crap a good 50% of the week. I had cookies, chocolate, lots of Chinese food, and a donut from Dunkin' on Tuesday afternoon. I sucked it up and did it anyways and I lost 3.7 pounds! SAYYY what?! Of course some of it was losing that water weight, but it was still very exciting to see! I'm officially at 30 pounds lost and less than 2.5 from goal! It feels so good.

Tomorrow I am going to attempt to run a 5K distance on the treadmill for the first time ever. I can run 2.75 miles at a steady pace and a 5K is 3.1 so it'll be just a few extra minutes of running. I'm due for an increase in distance anyways. The reason why I picked the last day of my "workout week" to increase distance (usually that's done at the beginning) is because this blogger I follow, Katie at Runs For Cookies, (check out her blog, she's super inspirational) is hosting a "Virtual 5K" for her birthday. It's pretty awesome that it fell right in time with me being near hitting a 5K distance so I decided to do it! 

This will be my "unofficial" first 5K (hopefully my real first one will be soon!), which is awesome because it's still way too cold out for me to participate in an outdoors race and not get super sick again thanks to my sweet lungs. Am I crazy? Probably. Am I excited? You know it!

What's next after I hit the goal I've been set on since October? I'm not sure yet. Originally, I was just running and eating better so I could hit this goal but I'm finding that I like it a lot better than being lazy and the way I feel after I eat a lot of junk. Maybe I'll just modify it to be at more of a "maintenance" level. I am going to attempt to run further/faster (first I'm focused on further though!). Also, I want to try toning a little better. I am terrified of using weights (not for any rational reason, I just don't like going into weight rooms) so I'm going to attempt some non-weight stuff for the time being then maybe buy some small ones or get over my fear. Who knows. 

Those are the goals I want to focus on 2.3 pounds from now. It's good to have short-term realistic goals because they keep you motivated.

What are your goals?

Inspired by Others

When I take time to stop and think about it I realize how crazy it is that as the self-proclaimed "least athletic person" I am now running 5x/week. Honestly, it's pretty insane how I started out just exercising more to accompany eating right and now I'm pretty much addicting to running. It's kind of funny actually.

 What's awesome though is the number of friends of mine that have started becoming more active and even starting the Couch to 5K program because of little old me! Four of my friends have told me in past weeks that they have started as a result of my efforts and that just blows me away. Two of them will be running this intense race with me over the summer. :) And of course my family got gym memberships while I was home and I went to the gym with my parents a few times a week! The hard work of others is definitely motivating me to keep moving as well.

Yes, my cereal bowl does include a drinking straw

Anyways, I've become a big supporter of breakfast. I've always known breakfast was important but I'd just kind of eat it because it's bad to have coffee on an empty stomach (duh). But it's SO important to have breakfast or else your body goes into this crazy fat-storing starvation mode and nobody wants that.

My breakfast is becoming predictable though. 80% of the time I'll have oatmeal mixed with fruit and a very little bit of peanut butter. YUM. And the other 20% of the time I have Greek yogurt (It would be more if it wasn't so darn expensive!) or a fried egg on toast. Or both. All that is just to say that breakfast can be splendid and it really starts your day (and your metabolism!) off on the right foot.

The condition this treadmill was in made me miss the YMCA

Today I continued my interval running and I'm actually starting to notice a difference. When I started running for distance, I cut off all interval runs. That was okay, but it seemed to take a while to improve my distance without feeling like death. I've noticed a difference since adding intervals though and that was just last week! Yesterday's distance run went so much better than even shorter ones that I have done before. Also, I had to push the incline during today's run to get to the right level of nasty gross nobody-dare-look-at-me mess that I just love. All this to say, intervals really do help. Now only for it to get warm enough to do the non-interval runs outside! UGH.

On a completely random note: today I discovered Cold Turkey and I'm thinking it'll help cut my procrastinating back this semester...maybe? Time to go put it to use!

Determined to Succeed

I have been back at school since Saturday afternoon and I didn't realize how much I missed it here until I was back. But I'm going to be completely honest, I pushed off this blog post because I was ashamed in myself. And it's silly. I know most people won't get the way that I think but those who know me well for the most part understand. I am my worst critic and that is something I have been struggling with as far as I can remember. I automatically stress when I don't go above and beyond, it can be such a roadblock in my life. 

Anyways, that brings me to this week. I get back to school and I have met most of my goals. SO awesome. The only goal that I didn't meet was going to the gym 3 times/week because I was sick the last week I was home and it got to the point it was affecting my asthma. When I started running I made the commitment that I was not going to put my health on the line, so I rested until I could sit on the couch without wheezing and feeling like there was no air in my lungs. Real sweet feeling. 

I met all of my other goals. I should be happy, right? Not the case. I spent the beginning of this week beating myself up over so many things. Looking back I feel foolish but it's just my mentality. I hate my asthma and I was freaking out about how hard it has been for me to add distance. In perspective, many asthmatic people don't even attempt to run, so it should be something to be proud of. But I was just having such a hard time with that. Also, I'm five pounds from goal, which means I lost 3-4 pounds in the month I was home. That's fantastic for the time of year where most people are worried about putting on weight. But I was bummed that I didn't lose more and bummed because I feel like these last five pounds are going to take forever. How dumb is that? I've already lost close to 30 pounds but I'm beating myself up over 5??! In all honesty though, that's just the way my mind works. Putting it into perspective, I feel much better. 

All that to say--today I ran 2.5 miles straight! And to think a month ago I had never ran more than a mile straight! That was definitely the confidence boost I needed and put me right back on track. I've got this. Soon I'll hit 5K length then maybe I'll add more distance. I've also been working on speed again this week by adding in interval workouts, so fingers crossed that those help a little bit. I'm going to be realistic with speed because of my asthma, but it would be nice to be able to do a 5K in under 30 minutes. 

Yesterday's interval run! I didn't get a pic of today's 2.5, ugh!

Hopefully I'll have some exciting news soon! And to those of you that began school this week like me--happy first week back! 

Running in the Snow

Well yesterday I started doing something that I have been terrified to do since Day 1 of this whole working-towards-a-race thing: I ran OUTSIDE! And it felt so dang good!

I've been terrified for multiple reasons:
1. My asthma--this time of year the cold really quirks with my lungs and it's been super cold.
2. Dogs---I've read lots of stories about people being bit by dogs while running so I was a little terrified. 
3. Pavement---Okay I'm not really scared of pavement, but I've read how bad it is on your knees. I have researched some trails but I don't want to venture too far from home right away.

Right now I am planning on running my first race this spring and the weather was supposed to hit the 30's this week (SO warm compared to the negative numbers last week!) so I figured why the heck not.

Of course, yesterday's run was my worst nightmare as far as a first run goes though. I was antsy to go for a run before work but didn't have enough time to drive all the way to the gym and back and shower before I had to leave again for work.

Issue #1: My Nike+iPod app sucks. Seriously. I was planning on running around my neighborhood since it is a quiet loop and figured it was a quarter of a mile. I did a warm up walk once around and the app kept saying to walk around to activate my sensor. After the warm up lap it hadn't activated so I turned it off and put on my music to run with instead. So annoying.

Since I figured out each lap was about a quarter of a mile, I figured 4 laps would be one and I would see how I was feeling after that. I ended up doing 5 or 6 then decided to run on this other quiet road next to my loop to finish off the run. 

Issue #2: Big Dog. I was halfway down the road when this massive dog starts running down the road after me. AWESOME. So I screamed like a thirteen year old and kept going. 

Issue #3: Busy roads. I didn't want my first run to be on a busy road at all. I hit the end of the road and the road next to it is significantly busier. But there was no way around the dog. So I sprinted down that road, turned and sprinted on the next busy-ish road and was back into my development. What a workout!

If my app had been running, I'm almost convinced it would of read 3 miles especially after I learned how long my loop really is today. 

I downloaded this app: MapMyRun and it was perfect! Today was significantly colder but I decided to give the app a try and see how far I could go. I was able to set it to do half mile splits. After each mile a voice would come over my phone telling me I had run a mile, how much time had passed, and what my pace was. Since it was via GPS I trust what the distance was and it told me that each lap around the block was .35 miles! So I definitely had to of run 3 miles yesterday, woohoo!

Today's run was so much better than yesterday's! I ran 2.25 miles despite the cold and definitely could of done 3 if I wanted to push it. But I didn't, not yet at least. 

So yeah, there's a long boring post about running outside. I hope everyone's break is going well! I'm starting to get pumped to leave for school this weekend.

Setting Goals

As a direct result of Sunday's fiasco, I decided to take this week a little slower and I repeated Day One yesterday. Today (Tuesday) I was feeling much more confident so I moved onto Day Two and it wasn't as bad as I was expecting! I still felt like a gooey mess after, but it's progress. Day 3 is supposed to be running 2 miles straight. I don't know if I will do that or do 1.5 miles for a couple of days, then 2. I'm just not a fan of it suddenly going from 2 different 3/4 mile intervals to nearly doubling. We'll see though because I'm definitely going to repeat Day Two another time or two first.

Tomorrow I leave for Christmas Break! Woohoo! I'm a little excited that the semester is over. I really think being as active as I have been helped me endure finals week. Sitting still for hours on end builds up so much energy that I use to get distracted on the computer. Taking a break to run relieved some of that. Fantastic. 

My advice for getting through break without falling off the horse is to set some goals. Write them down and put them where you can see them every day, like your mirror. And tell others about the goals you are setting too, that way you are less likely to avoid them. It's just another way of keeping yourself accountable. :)

If you don't like running outdoors then researching a gym back home might be a good idea as well. I found some back home that I'm interested in that have student discounts and memberships that you only need to get for a month. It's perfect for my situation and I plan on becoming a member by Friday. Boom, goal.

So here are my goals between now and January 13:

1. Go to the gym at least 3 times/week
Since I will be paying for a gym membership (something I'm not used to) I don't think it will be difficult to at least guilt myself  into going, I'm pretty frugal. It will be nice to stick to a routine though, which is the whole purpose of this goal, keeping to a form of routine. 

2. Be within 5 pounds of goal weight
Right now, I'm about 8 or so pounds from goal weight. I originally had to lose 5 pounds over break. That would be awesome but I'm just not so sure about that happening. Being within five pounds would make me very happy though because then I could (hopefully) hit goal next semester! It would be a great way to start 2013.  

3. Run OUTSIDE
I'm terrified of running outside, especially if it is cold out. I just think I look so dumb which is why I don't want to be running around others as much as possible. But it's something I need to get over and my neighborhood is quiet and has a nice loop to run around. So, I want to pick a nice day to run around the neighborhood. If I do get comfortable with that then I can save some money this summer on another gym membership! (fingers crossed!)

4. Run for 2 miles straight
I am so close to accomplishing this goal! Being able to run for 2 miles would not only be the furthest that I have run (as far as I'm aware at least) but it would mean that I'm towards the end of this Couch to 5K business and can start working on speed! I'm a little excited because having to slow down during my workouts (as a result of adding distance) has really bummed me out because I feel so S-L-O-W compared to how I was running with intervals. 

5. Indulge in some treats, but have a plan of attack
All this basically means is that I am going to be a-okay with enjoying myself at parties and get-togethers with some yummy food. But, I want to keep it under control and not just eat because there is food in front of me. If I go into a social situation while keeping in mind that I am trying not to be excessive, then I will enjoy the party more and not go home with regrets later on. This really might be my hardest goal because I love sweets so much which is why I'm going to indulge a little.

6. Enjoy time with family and friends
That's what the whole point of being home is for! I am so excited to see everyone for a whole month and I am going to really treasure this time and relax. 

So those are my goals! I will definitely share about them as I keep going. I will definitely post as much as I can over break. Safe travels everyone.

Week 5

Finals week really got the best of me, which is why I haven't posted in a good five days. But I'm on the other end of that madness now, just one last assignment to do for an online class. Thank goodness!

I had this really well put together post planned out for this evening, but I just got back from the gym a while ago and since I am trying to be as real with you guys as possible, I thought maybe I'd write about that and maybe cover that topic tomorrow or something. 

Tonight I began "Day 1" of Week 5 on the Couch to 5K program. I had read on another blog that Week 4 was the worst one and I really didn't have too many issues with that last week. So, I was super confident going in to tonight's run. Let me tell you, they lied. I completely died on that treadmill tonight, no joke. Towards the end of my run tonight, I was breathing the hardest I have in months. I felt like I was for real going to have an asthma attack and of course tonight was also the first time I have ever forgotten my inhaler. Sweet deal. But there was no asthma attack, I'll just have to take Week 5 a little slower than planned. Needless to say, I came home and took a long shower and did a facial and just relaxed. I feel like tonight's run was some sort of accomplishment and I really am proud that I stuck with it and just kept going. That's not something I would normally say about exercise so it was a big moment.

Over the weekend, I had my first "real" soda in a good 2-3 months (besides the gingerale I had when I was sick). For me, one soda is normally a trigger to have about 2 more so I have been avoiding them all together. I couldn't even finish the whole one the other night and I haven't felt tempted to get another. That was some definite progress. 

By the end of this week I am supposed to be able to run 2 miles straight, the longest I have ever run. I am very excited, even if I will have to go pretty slow at first!

Catching up from Thanksgiving: A Variety of Thoughts

Thanksgiving break caused me to accidentally take a break from blogging. I would love to say I did it on purpose because I was eating so terribly, but that's only a half truth. ;) I did do really well for the most part though, more on that later.

I weighed in Friday morning before I went out for breakfast. I made a point because I was at the exact one month mark from when I began being more intentional about what I eat. And in that month I lost 11 pounds! So crazy! And I can definitely tell too, I really just feel much better than before. It's hard to explain, but it is a really good feeling.

Traveling home, I was really good about what I ate. And it got downright painful because of an awful toothache that made me want something soft like a burger and milkshake instead of the Chickfila salad I stopped for and carrots to snack on. Not a good time to be me. But I packed my little box of fruits and veggies and just munched on that while I drove and drank water and some lightly sweetened iced coffee. Besides my mouth yelling at me, it was a very good experience. I think I will pack ahead for the remainder of my trips because I was less tempted to get a candy bar when there was perfectly good (and more nutritious) food waiting for me in the car. The only thing I would change would be to put the apples in a different container than the grapes and carrots. Everything tasted like apple. Poor grapes.

And then I got home. The whole gym situation was difficult because I did not want to pay for a day pass at the Y and it was cold out. Honestly, I was just making excuses for myself. I did my core workout for a few days during break, so that was pretty good. Christmas break will be different because I can buy a month membership to a gym close to home that I researched over this break.

And food. Again, only myself to blame. I went grocery shopping with my mom so I was there to pick food out. As a result of this toothache, I am on some fun antibiotics that mess with my stomach. So, it was suggested that I have yogurt to combat that. Which is how I discovered Greek yogurt. So good. And healthy. The beginning of the week was very healthy for me, smart choices for lunch by me and my parents have been attempting to eat healthy too so overall I didn't mess up at all.

The second part of the week was crazier. My whole fam traveled a couple hours north so it was fast food and then we were baking for Thanksgiving so there were some sundaes (My first ice cream in a long time!) and some pizza. Not a shining moment. Thanksgiving itself was good. I got smaller portions than I usually do for Thanksgiving dinner and only filled my plate once. It wasn't even that intentional, I just get full faster now. Of course, I did have a little of everything, it was so good! I still have not had soda, which was incredibly tempting over break. I think the most sugary drink I had was a cappuccino, otherwise it was water or coffee.

I did get some clothes shopping in on Saturday with my mom! We were waiting in Albany for a friend of mine to arrive, so I got to hit up the mall. I'm down to a size 5 in pants, which is incredible. I have never been smaller than a 7/8. So that was a really good moment for me, especially because I have been wearing these size 10 A&F jeans that are huge on me (originally I could not fit into them only a few months ago, so weird to think about now). And all the tops I got were a good deal smaller than normal too. I'm happy to have clothes that fit me now! And yes, that picture to the left is of me in the fitting room being excited that I'm finally a "5" haha.

I did go back to the gym today-no more excuses. I did continue on the path my routine was going which involved pushing myself a little harder. I hadn't run in a week and a half so I'm pretty sore tonight. But oh well, back on track for me!

Hopefully all of your breaks were well and you didn't hit too many troubles on the way home. That picture on the right was one my brother took in southern New York yesterday afternoon. My drive was kinda crazy as it was quiet and snowy for the first couple of hours, then full of traffic with much less snow for nearly the whole rest of the drive. It was pretty though!

Until next time-keep positive and take action! Don't use the excuse of "I'll get healthy after the holidays." Start now, you'll be surprised how much you can accomplish between now and Christmas.

Progress Update and Interval Workouts

       So I did my weigh in on Saturday and I was down another 3 pounds, which puts me on the other side of the halfway point of my weight loss goal! I know this last half is going to be harder than the first half, but I’m gonna stay positive and power through it.

        Today I want to share some good workouts and what I have benefited from up to this point. Starting out, I wasn’t really sure what to do. As a result, I kinda fumbled through my first few workouts until I really learned what was best in pursuing my goal. Hopefully my experience will save you some of that effort.

        I started off trying the Couch to 5K program. Several of my friends have used it and it’s worked well for them, plus I really want to become a longer distance runner. At the moment, my goal is to be in my first 5K during the spring semester. Here’s hoping!

     At the end of week 2 of the program, I was in bad shape. I’ve had really bad asthma since I could remember and I did have a few small attacks at the end of some of my workouts. So, I had to slow it down and repeat week one several times. I began increasing the speed and the incline on the treadmill as I was working out and eventually increased the length of the runs and length of the overall workout too. What I didn’t realize was that I was training myself using interval workouts. And once I read up on them, I became a strong believer. Here’s why:

       

         1. No asthma attacks! The break in between jogs gives my lungs a chance to catch up, so short bursts of intensity seem to be better for them than longer runs. Granted, over time it is getting better as I increase the length of my interval, but it has been better for my lungs to slowly become stronger in this way.

         

        2. They are so beneficial! I have read several studies that say that interval workouts burn 2-3 times more calories after the workout because of an “afterburn” effect that your body experiences. And I totally believe it because I am usually dripping with sweat by the end of interval 2 and I can normally feel some of the effects for a couple hours afterwards. It's intense.

Here’s a link to an interval workout, although I really just modify week 1 of the Couch to 5K program to an intensity that works for me. So modify and find out what works best for you! Especially if you're a beginner runner, start out slow and add intensity as you get better. I do this about 3 or 4 times a week and another couple of days are spent doing another modified interval workout on either a bicycle or elliptical. I like to keep workouts interesting so I do change it up quite a lot.

Also, I was pretty bad about toning as I lost weight. So, I buckled down these past couple weeks and began toning my stomach muscles so that I won’t look silly. I found this workout over the summer and I did it sporadically. Now I’m doing it about 3x/week and I’m noticing a difference! It isn't too difficult, really works my abs, and it doesn’t only target one area.

Hopefully these exercises will be helpful to you! Like I’ve said before- I really don’t spend much time at the gym because I can’t afford that much time out of my day. I only spend 25-40 minutes on cardio and the ab workout really only takes 15-20 minutes at the very most. All of this gives really good results as cardio is what is always suggested for weightloss, followed by some exercises to tone as well. As I start toning my legs, etc… I'll post workouts that I find beneficial.

That’s just some stuff I’ve learned and has helped so far, I’m sure my knowledge will increase on this stuff as I become more experienced, but this is a wonderful place for anyone to start in an effort for a healthier lifestyle. 

Eating Right

While getting exercise is a good idea when losing weight, eating right is even more important. What really made the difference for me was when I realized that I could not just eat whatever I wanted and expect to lose weight because of 30 minutes spent at the gym. 

Such a silly thought, but it’s a very common one.

So, how do you eat right on a college meal plan? I'll give you a run down of what has been working for me.

Breakfast

For breakfast, I typically have a piece of fruit and a piece of toast or oatmeal. The natural sugar in a piece of fruit in the morning really helps curb sugar cravings throughout the day. And of course fruit is good for you too. I also only stick to whole wheat bread and have a piece of toast in the morning. It stores energy and that’s useful for long days that are common in college. Or I’ll sometimes have one serving of oatmeal with my piece of fruit mixed in. And only real oatmeal, not the prepackaged stuff that’s full of sugar. And of course my cup of coffee—gotta have it!

If you don’t want to be lazy like me and buy all of this so that you can eat it in the quiet of your room in the morning, most dining halls do offer fruit and whole wheat options as well. But don’t skip breakfast! Skipping breakfast causes your body to think that you are not going to feed it, and it stores fat just in case. Not a good plan.

Lunch

I love vegetables. I can eat a bag of carrots the same way I can eat a bag of chips. So, it just clicked for me to make most of my meals vegetable based. Not all places on campus have good tasting vegetables; it really takes an effort to figure out where they cook them well and where they don’t so much. A lot of my lunches incorporate my main entrée as a salad with a little bit of oil as a dressing. Of course, protein is important too so I normally include some grilled chicken or almonds in the salad as well. Lean meat is definitely a good choice when trying to eat right. Most dining halls have salad options and I definitely am blessed to be at a school that has delicious salads at most of the dining locations.

Dinner

Again, I try to make my dinner pretty vegetable based with some protein mixed in. Sometimes it will be another salad or there’s nights like this one where I scrambled an egg and had some carrots and grapes. It’s all about finding balance and eating what your body needs. It is also important to have red meat of course so once a week I try to have some hamburg or some other red meat in place of my lean meat. 

Again, I reiterate the fact that it is never a good idea to skip meals because all that will do is confuse your body and counteract all of the work you are trying to do. From my experience, I can fully sympathize with how difficult it is to really focus and be honest with what you eat. I'd suggest keeping a food journal and writing everything down from what you ate to how much you ate. Food journals really help you evaluate where you are making bad decisions and help you stick to your commitment. 

I really hope this helped, it is good to look around and see where your school offers the best healthy options and really take advantage of those! 

Don't drink your calories!

              I live by this. Seriously. First order of business last month was to cut out soda. I know, it’s delicious and on most college campuses it’s everywhere. It is offered with pretty much any meal at any dining location on campus. But soda has absolutely zero nutritional effects. Of course, I’m sure you already knew that. It’s addicting though, so drinking seltzer water for the first couple of days to get over it isn't a terrible idea.

            

             What about the caffeine?! I know caffeine is vital to college life as it definitely still is to mine. The only thing I drink besides water is coffee or tea. And that doesn't mean coffee hyped up on sugar. Tea with some honey does have some nutritional value and coffee with a little bit of nonfat creamer isn't half bad.

            While juice does have some nutritional effects, some juices have more sugar in them than coffee. So, I try to steer clear of them too.  Occasionally I’ll have a glass of juice but it’s definitely not a habit.

            So I have water as a way of cutting out some unnecessary calories. I know water isn't everyone’s thing, but putting a lemon in water does make it extra tasty and it does help to think of the weight that it will help you lose.  

It just makes sense, cutting out unnecessary calories in what you drink alone will put you on the right track to a healthier lifestyle!

Enough with the Excuses

I was on my way to the gym today and all I could think about was how much I didn’t want to go. Real encouraging, right? My head filled with excuses:

1. “I’m tired” When I’m going on 5-6 hours of sleep, a nap is way more appealing than working out.

2. “I’m too sore” I pushed myself so hard yesterday when I went to the gym. And I was really     feeling it this morning.

3. “I’m too busy” I had a long list of stuff to do today and it’s Election Day so there was waiting in a long line to vote. That half an hour could have been used to get some of that done..

But I powered thru and went to the gym because I knew I would regret not going way more than going.

So for all of you insanely busy college students, here’s some tips for making time to be intentionally active. 

Go after class

That makes sense for me because the gym I go to is right on campus and much closer to my classes than my room. It prevents me from making the excuse later that I do not want to go all the way to the gym because I am already mostly there. I really think it is a good idea to bring your gym clothes with you to class and go right from there. That way you are taking a nice break between classes and homework.

Go at a time of day that is right for you

If for some reason right after classes does not work for you, then find a time of day that is right and commit to it. Many studies show that it is more effective to exercise in the morning and not okay to work out within four hours of going to sleep. So, go at a time of day when you will be the most motivated to go and stick to it.

Social Media

So I know by now you’re probably thinking that you simply don’t have time during the day to go between sleep, classes, homework, studying, work, group meetings, meals, and having a social life. Trust me, I’m well aware. But stop and think for a minute. How long are you on social media during the afternoon? Be honest with yourself. This includes Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc…Some college students are on any combination of social media for multiple hours a day. I’m not saying that’s wrong, but what if you took half an hour of that time to be active? Social media will still be there when you get done, but limiting how much time spent on them will really open up a block of time to be more active.

Feels more energized and more focused

Consciously making the time to be more active can also help improve your grades. Getting exercise helps you feel more energized and helps you focus more. So that little bit of time lost on going to the gym or running around campus will be made up for in productivity. Think of it as an investment in your grades.

Go for short, but intense periods

With a limited schedule, it makes sense to go for shorter periods of time. But make sure they are intense. I’m a strong believer in interval training. I feel like I have just about died afterwards and it is usually only 25-40 minutes. Also, it is more effective to do a short intense workout than a long workout at a moderate pace. Challenge yourself, but keep it within your time constraints.

Reasonable number of days per week
Do as many days as you can during the week. Starting out, just commit to every other day or something like that. I began doing three days a week until I managed my schedule to open up for more days. Everyone is different though, maybe for now you can do one day during the week and one day on the weekend, that’s completely fine. Again, be honest with yourself and don’t make excuses for how many days you can do.

Accountability

Try to find some friends to workout with you and hold you accountable. That has been when I am the most consistent. A majority of my workouts during the week are with my friends. It’s just good to have someone to go with and someone who is counting on you to be there. You are so much more likely to go if that’s the case.

Hope these little tips helped! It is definitely a lot easier said than done but it is also so incredibly worth it to commit to being more active and making room in a crazy college schedule. Also, remember that working out is only half the battle to a balanced life, eating right is also key.

Freshman Year til Now

I decided before I get too far into this, that I should explain what I've done and how it has worked so far.

This is a picture of me about halfway thru my first semester at LU. Honestly, I did not gain the typical "freshman fifteen." . Of course, I wasn't the smallest then. I was probably somewhere around 150, and at 5'4" that's outside of the healthy weight category in most definitions. But I've always been okay with it and just wrote it off that I am just going to be who I am. I think I lost somewhere around five pounds first semester because I was walking all the time and I was going to a zumba class a couple days a week with some friends. I probably gained it all back second semester though as I became busier and things got really crazy. Sophomore year is about when I gained all the weight. And I don't mean that in an awful way, I just got super busy and there were many more takeout options available on campus that I took advantage of. I did go the gym, but it was more like once a week if I had time and I definitely did not push myself as hard as I should of. So I was eating all of this takeout food but not taking advantage of the gym we have on campus. Never a good idea. It was not a healthy and balanced life as it should be. I was stressing myself out, not sleeping as much, and eating terribly. It was not a good way to lead my life.
         I came to that realization this summer. I began attempting to diet. Unfortunately, I failed way more times than I succeeded. I would start a diet and swear to only have a salad for dinner (which was full of dressings that were doing more harm than good) but then someone would order pizza at work and of course I would have a slice or two. Or garlic knots. Or I would visit my friend on my way home at McDonalds and order a McFlurry because I knew she was closing. Just bad habits like that. Even exercising was scarce because I would not consistently leave time in my day to bike or do crunches or something to be active. Instead I would wake up, go to work, and then come home and go to bed. Again, full of bad choices for someone who was trying to lose weight. I probably lost a couple of pounds in the long run, but not as a result of consistency. The picture to the right is on my birthday this year. I probably weighed somewhere between 157 and 160 at this point. Not my proudest moment. Honestly, when I found this picture and compared it to freshman year I was wondering how the heck weight can just creep up on you like that. I didn't even notice it! But it's pretty obvious when I look at it now, my face was a lot rounder and my stomach is too a little. I'm not ashamed nor do I have a bad image of myself, I'm just saying I wish I would of taken the time to take care of myself in the midst of all that was going on with my life. It would of been the responsible thing to do. 
            So, this semester I woke up. First, it was going to the gym more consistently. I started going to the gym three times a week as a part of a competition at school. But it grew on me and became something I wanted to do instead of a part of a school-wide competition. Soon I learned I liked going to the gym, something I never thought possible. I was going 4-5 times a week. 3 days on the treadmill and 2 days on the bike (sometimes I would miss a day). After I lost about 3 or 4 pounds doing that, I realized how good I felt. So I started eating better about a month or so ago. I don't think of it as a diet, instead it is a lifestyle change. When I get to my goal, I will probably adjust a little bit while still staying quite healthy and balanced. Once I adjusted my diet the way really started just falling off. At the beginning of this semester I was between 160 and 162. I only weigh myself once a week and on Saturday morning I was somewhere around 146, which is much closer to the healthy weight range than I have been since probably the beginning of high school. Not too shabby for only a month or so of change!  And yes, that picture is from shopping over the weekend, my face is less round and my stomach has become much less noticeable. I'm all for that. I went out and bought my first ever pair of yoga pants this Saturday as a reward. I'm all about rewarding myself, but I don't feel too terrible about having cheat days either. If I slip up, it's not the end of the world. I just have to do better next time, and I do. I'm actually smaller than when I started college, which is pretty incredible for an accounting major that is constantly studying for the next test. 

I hope this post was of inspiration to people who have gone through a similar struggle as me! My next posts are going to include what I do at the gym and how I eat right on a campus meal plan. I know it's difficult for you to do, but it can be done! And of course, I'll keep posting about my progress as time goes on. 

Also: I know all three pics are mirror shots. For the first two, I did it for comparability. The third was just a coincidence. 

Leading a Healthy Life

I am a junior in at Liberty University and like most students, I have been struggling with weight over the past few years. When I finally made the serious effort to work on that this fall, I found that reading about other people's journeys really inspired me to work harder. I also realized that there are very few motivational blogs for college students. So I'm determined to fix that.

Being in college and leading a busy life does not excuse me from taking care of myself. And I honestly believe that culture has allowed college students to fall into that stigma. The "Freshman  Fifteen" is a good example of that. It is important to live a balanced life as the actions we take in college are likely to become habits in the future. 

A couple of months ago I became really serious about living a balanced life and losing weight. Since then, I have lost fifteen pounds and I feel great! Some weeks are better than others though. Some weeks I lose four pounds and then there are weeks like this one where I lost about half a pound. And it's discouraging but it is important to move on and try harder the next week.

I am a very self-motivated person and my wish is to spread this motivation to others, so that they can be uplifted and encouraged in their efforts to become more healthy.

I'm also going to include different tips to losing weight in college. It's not easy to eat right when mostly everything on campus is grab and go, so it is important to look into what is a smart option and what is the right option.

It is important to lead a healthy lifestyle so I hope you'll join this journey with me!