I took a day off yesterday due to the previous day's marathon (i.e. 2 miles). Isn't a real marathon 26 miles? I'm 1/14th there!

Seriously though, I don't want to run a marathon.

Even more seriously though, taking a day off made me feel like a lump.

So today I was back in the woods and it sucked pretty hard. I felt stiff and sore and miserable out there, plodding along in what felt like a sauna but was really only the upper 70s. I ran for 20 minutes and hated it. Also I saw a snake, which is a backyard first. Since it was slithering away from me, it was more startling than anything. I ran faster as a result, though, so... yay?

I hope to feel better tomorrow. Today, I'm going to track how many calories it takes to be a grump.

I worked out today:
20 minute run (1.28 miles)

It was cool this morning. 68 degrees feels amazing compared to the 80s I've been running in this week. The humidity is still pretty high, but I can deal with humidity if there aren't bajillion degree temps behind it.

I'm REALLY enjoying running to my playlist. Today's best song was Gwen Stefani's "What You Waiting For?", which had a beat that matched my pace exactly. I've also noticed that the music helps distract me from the task at hand (which is to say, running whilst trying not to die).

Anyway, today's cool weather combined with today's fun playlist selections = a new personal best. I'm really proud of myself. When I started this endeavor, I couldn't run 1/7th of a mile. I couldn't run for more than 1 minute.

I worked out today:
38 minute run totaling 2.06 miles

Here's proof from the new app I'm using. RunKeeper shorted me on distance AGAIN today, but thankfully I had my husband's phone with the new app in my pocket as well. I downloaded the new app (iSmoothRun) on my own phone, and will now rely on it instead of SuckKeeperMcNotAccurate.

Woohoo! 

New Goals:

1. Run 3 miles

2. Run 1 mile in less than 13 minutes 

I ran for a long time today. 10 laps (7 laps = 1 mile). It took me 26 minutes, but whatever. It's the longest distance I've run, and the longest time I've run without stopping. Unfortunately, RunKeeper shorted my distance by a whole lap (I'm 99% sure about this), so tomorrow I'm trying a new app that logs steps and GPS. That way, when the GPS fails (as I'm guessing it did with RunKeeper today), there's still another measurement of how far I've gone.

I added lots more music to my playlist last night, which made for new and exciting listening today. Franz Ferdinand's "Michael" and Le Tigre's "My, My Metrocard" were especially fun to run to.

I worked out today:
25:55 run - 1.28 miles (which I'm certain is more like 1.38, but whatever)

There are blisters forming on the insides of my feet, right below the ball. My husband says they're a result of either
A. my shoelaces not being tied tight enough, or
B. trying to push myself forward instead of lifting and dropping my feet.

But I contend that if I wasn't trying to push myself forward, I would just be lifting and dropping my feet in one spot in the woods, and I'd look even more awkward. Just standing in the woods, lifting and dropping my feet. Weird.

Anyway, last night I was able to get my iPhone to synch correctly, so today I was able to run with my specially designed supercool playlist. Putting "Public Service Announcement" towards the end was a fabulous idea. See that last spike? That's me shouting "ALLOW ME TO REINTRODUCE MYSELF" and then running as fast as I possibly could.

Maybe not shouting. Mouthing? Yes. Still weird.

I worked out today:
16:25 run (1 mile)

I really wanted to try running to music today. Normally I just enjoy the sounds of the forest, combined with the sound of my desperate panting. Since I'm trying to improve my mile time, however, I figured a good beat might help. And I really wanted to make a special playlist, on my phone, so I could run AND have RunKeeper track my progress.

Unfortunately my phone, or laptop, or whatever didn't cooperate. I spent thirty minutes synching and resynching to no avail, and finally gave up and listened to Girl Talk (that was already on my phone).

Why? Why are these tracks gray and unplayable?  Also, don't laugh at my music choices.

I *did* improve my time, so I guess that's a plus. Today I ran in 10 minutes what I ran yesterday in 12.

I worked out today:
13:49 run (.87 miles)
15 sit ups x3
10 squats x3

Back at it.

While it felt wonderful to be back, running in my own woods, I could absolutely tell I had taken a break from my regular workout routine. I ran for 12 minutes today, which only got me .62 miles. Last week, in VT, I was able to run a bit over a mile in 14.5 minutes. So... I've obviously got some catching up to do.

Seriously though, I love my little wooded trail. I can be really sweaty and slow and bad at running and there aren't other people around to look at me. I don't mind being awkward in front of squirrels and bees.

I worked out today: 

12 minute run (.62 miles)

And nothing else, because that run took it out of me. 

Vacation is over. While it was fun and relaxing, I'm now concerned about how much of my hard work I've undone. I'm not going to step on the scale until school starts again, and I'm getting my daily routine back in order as of tomorrow.

Note to self: Learn to vacation without eating pie.

Running in hot, muggy weather is no fun. Sitting around all day feeling like the blob, thinking "I should have worked out", is worse.

I worked out today:

I ran a mile again today. Actually, I ran to where our road curves, then back again, and when I looked at RunKeeper it said I had only run .97 miles. So, I threw up my hands in expasperation and continued to jog around our yard until I had reached 1 mile. I only know I threw up my hands because I did so in front of two people walking their dogs, and then later thought about how ridiculous I must have looked.

Also I was wearing a weird tanktop with too-long straps. I call this Awkward Workout for a reason.

Vacation eating has been really difficult. I ate 1,100 more calories yesterday than I was supposed to.

To blame:
hard cider
doughnuts
sausage with maple syrup for lunch
whiskey
avocado

My current plan involves continuing to work out without caring about daily calories (as long as I actually track them). What I'm now worrying about, however, is that I'll gain back all the weight I lost in July and that I'll hate myself for it.

Blerf. Vacation ain't what it used to be.

I worked out today:
15 minute (1 mile) jog
10 minute kayak

Working out on vacation is difficult. My mind says, "Lay down and read a book! Eat some pie and drink a beer!" My body says, "Do what the mind says! Also have a sandwich!"

My family's vacation (more specifically, my father's vacation) has always revolved around eating a ridiculous amount of junk food. Pie, doughnuts, little chocolate chip cookies, chips and dip, peanut M&Ms, Ben and Jerry's, lather, rinse, repeat. Bored? Eat something. Not bored? You should still probably eat something, because all this pie will go bad.

Seriously though, I'm pretty sure normal vacations aren't this junk food-dependent. It's going to take a few years before I can break myself of the "time at the cabin means time to eat all the foods" mindset. I did buy a pie. And six doughnuts. But no ice cream! Progress.

I worked out yesterday:
12 minute run

I worked out today:
13 minute run

I didn't *technically* work out today, but this has been another day of running errands/cleaning/preparing for vacation until my feet feel like they're about to fall off. I don't feel bad about not working out when I know my morning, afternoon, and evening will be nothing but on-my-feet work.

I did weigh in this morning, however. I am now down to 271.8, which means I've lost 9.2lbs since I started three weeks ago tomorrow. Hooray!

For the next ten days, I will be vacationing in my home away from home. While I'm still going to work out and count calories, I'm not going to restrict my alcohol consumption. As such, I will likely not weigh in again for awhile. We'll see.

I'm really happy with the progress I've made so far. I went from not being able to run around the track even once (I made it about 3/4 of the way the first time I tried) to running around 7 times in a row. I can run a mile, which is something I've never been able to say ever. AND, I've lost nearly 10lbs. I picked up a 10lb weight today just to see how it felt, and it's nice to know that that weight is out of my body for good.

Now it's time for vacation. Stay tuned to find out how many calories are in a slice of pie.

It has been an incredibly busy day. I woke up at 7:45, ran, and then proceeded to stay on my feet all day running errands and preparing for an upcoming vacation. I didn't do anything workout-wise after running, but I'm pretty sure a day-full of errands burns enough calories to make up for it.

I worked out today:
15 minute run

Here's where I run. When it isn't ten bajillion degrees, it's lovely. I'm grateful to have such an awesome back yard. 

And what's this, you ask? This is a screenshot of RunKeeper after I ran one mile. Goal = accomplished!

I worked out today:
18 minute run (one mile)
12 minutes of various exercises, including P90 "xWork" and punching, 75 sit ups, 30 kettle bell swings, 12 arm raises, 30 bicep curls, and 20 squats

The heat wave will supposedly break tomorrow, and I couldn't be happier. I woke up at 9:45 this morning, and my weather app said it already felt like 98 degrees outside. Yesterday, when I ran in the low 90s, the heat was far more exhausting than the actual physical activity. Today, I didn't even try. I'll run tomorrow, and it might be in the 70s, and it'll be awesome.

I worked out today:
P90 cardio (minus the "power yoga", which I still cannot really do thanks to a lack of upper body strength)
20 sit ups x3

After examining my eating habits and calorie intake for the last week, I've decided that alcohol may be to blame for the lack of weight loss. While I wasn't going over my limit calorie-wise, I learned that alcohol turns to acetate in the body, which produces something that slows fat burning. Like, dramatically slows fat burning. 

This article explains it a bit better than I can: http://www.elle.com/beauty/health-fitness/alcohol-calories-does-drinking-cause-weight-gain-410239

During my first week of calorie counting and exercise, I was on an antibiotic that forced me to stay clean and sober. After that week I had terrific weight loss. After last week, during which I was drinking again, I had no weight loss whatsoever. Connection? Maybe. We'll see.

In any case, while I *do* love tequila, I love the idea of weight loss even more. So, I've decided to limit drinking to weekends and holidays. I'm not sure I'm willing to limit it more than that for now, but we'll see. 

I'm going to start experimenting with non alcoholic, paleo beverages. Here's a delicious batch of lemon lime water I enjoyed yesterday. Nothing fancy, nothing caloric. 

Mmmmm... refreshing!

I worked out today:
10 minute run
20 minutes doing various activities on the Wii Fit
2 minute "X work" (via P90)
2 minute 30 second punches (via P90)
20 sit ups x4
12 bicep curls x3

Today marks day one million in this oppressive heat wave. I'm really looking forward to being able to sleep with the windows open again someday.

This morning, after sleeping until 10:30, I told myself that I would still go outside and run if the heat index was below 85. When I checked around 10:45, it was 84. Still cool enough to work out. 

The spiderwebs on the trail have gotten a bit intense, so my first lap around now consists of a fast walk in which I wave a rake up and down in front of me. It's effective, but it's one of those things where I'm really glad no one else can see back into our woods. 

For whatever reason, my mood today on the trail was really positive. I noticed that I hadn't even broken a sweat after my first lap, which is a HUGE improvement from when I started. It's nice to be able to *feel* progress. 

In any case, I met another goal: I ran for 5 laps without stopping. That's 5/7 of a mile! So much sweat and accomplishment. 

I worked out today: 

3 minute quick walk with super-awesome rake action

12 minute run

15 sit ups x3

10 bicep curls x3

10 squats x3

New goal: 

Run 7 laps without stopping. That's one mile! 

Toughen up, lady.

I will NOT let my scale get the best of me. I am working on undoing a lifetime of crappy eating habits and a bad attitude towards exercise. THIS WILL BE DIFFICULT and I have to be okay with that.

I have two choices:
1. Give up and continue being unhappy with my body.
2. Keep working and make gradual improvements that may or may not include weight loss.

I'll take option two, thanks.

After a weepy self-pity party, I worked out today:
P90 Cardio Video w/ Ab workout

Weight
275.6

Inches
Chest: 47"
Waist: 42"
Hips: 54.25"
Right Thigh: 34"
Left Thigh: 34"
Right Bicep: 17"
Left Bicep: 17"

The scale says I didn't lose anything this week. In fact, it says I gained .2lbs.

I'm really sad. I met all my calorie goals this week and worked out every day.

Why, awkward body? Why?

It's quite cloudy this morning, so I used the sun-free opportunity to map out a new route around my entire yard. Starting by the woods, running through the side yard, running through the back gate and around the back yard, then through the woods = .27 miles. Thanks, Run Keeper GPS app!

I worked out today:
10 minute walk
10 minute jog (when you go as slow as I am, saying "run" doesn't feel honest)
20 kettle bell swings x3
15 sit ups x2 (I have a strange pain in my lower right ab area that I'm in no mood to aggravate)
6 arm raises x3
10 squats x3

Tomorrow is another weigh day. If I lose 1.5lbs, I'll have met my goal. Again, I'd really rather see 2lbs gone, but we'll see what tomorrow brings...

Heavy winds plowed through our woods last night, knocking down lots of dead branches all over the place. One tree, that was previously halfway broken and hanging perilously over the trail, is now completely fallen. Nearby, a very large dead branch covered in a very living poison ivy vine now crosses the path as well. More obstacles means more calories (and possibly more rashes)!

I worked out today:
10 minute run

10 minute walk 

20 kettle bell swings x3

20 sit ups x3

10 bicep curls x3

10 squats x3

I realized tonight that house cleaning can be counted in LoseIt. An hour and a half of house cleaning burns four hundred fifty calories!

I'm not gonna lie. I want to lose 2lbs per week. 1.5 is acceptable, but I'm aiming for 2. I've worked out every day. I want results, dammit.

My hip is still a bit sore this morning. I didn't want to take an entire rest day, so I worked out with a bit less vigor than normal.

I (still) worked out today:
22 minutes brisk walking
15 sit ups x3
5 arm raises w/ 10lb weights x3
10 squats x3