End of Year Weight Loss Challenge Update

I have been m.i.a. and I apologize!  Life has been really busy lately and to be perfectly honest, I really have not felt like myself.  I'm burning the candle at both ends and I'm downright exhausted.  I've stayed up very late much of the past week working on our Halloween costumes and that, combined with the fact that Jack still isn't sleeping through the night, has meant that I've been more tired than usual.  I didn't realize how tired I was though, until I hit a wall last week.  I have anxiety issues that are triggered by lack of sleep and while I typically experience this only in my postpartum days, I clearly haven't been getting the rest I need lately, as my anxiety reared its ugly head.  So I have been trying to go to bed earlier so that I feel more human, thus the lack of blog posts this weekend.

We had our annual Halloween party this weekend and it was a pretty low-key affair, which was really nice.  I will post some pictures later this week once I upload them from our camera.  We also went up to the college where I work yesterday for their annual Boo Fest, which was a lot of fun.  It's an annual Halloween festival geared towards children with diabetes, so it's a sugar-free event with lots of games, fun activities, and bounce houses.  It's always a great time! 

It's about time for my update on my end of the year weight loss challenge, The Final Nut of 2013.  Since I last checked in at the end of September, I've lost .7 lbs.  Kind of underwhelming, but a loss is a loss, I say. I've lost 8.7 lbs total since August 25th, so I'm moving in the right direction.  

I have decided to re-state my goal for this challenge, though. I originally set out to lose 24 lbs between the end of August and December 31st and while I'm not one to back down from a challenge, I feel like I need to set a more attainable goal.  I really pushed myself this summer to meet my birthday challenge, but I did so in ways that aren't sustainable for me in the long run.  For example, I worked out 4-5 days a week on my lunch break plus one day during the weekend.  Guess what, though?  I really like having a lunch break, so after the birthday challenge, I treated myself to having my lunch break back and have had a hard time getting back in a groove.  I'm going to try to give myself some balance by working out 2-3 days a week on my lunch break and letting myself enjoy my break the other days.  So with that in mind, I want to set myself up for success and re-think my goal.  

My revised goal for The Final Nut of 2013 is to lose 18.7 lbs total by December 31st, so I have another 10 lbs to go.  I think losing another 10 lbs by the end of the year is still challenging, particularly this time of year, but it's also a reasonable goal.  

If there is anyone who would like to join me on The Final Nut of 2013 challenge, let me know in the comments below.  Your goal doesn't have be to lose 10 lbs in the next two months; it can be whatever goal you set for yourself.  Maybe you want to try to walk three times a week or perhaps you want to run a 5K by the end of the year.  Whatever your goal is for the next two months, let me know below and we can hold each other accountable!

Great quote below that I need to commit to memory!

"You are far too smart to be the only thing standing in your way." 

Badass Mother Runners Unite

Tonight was a really amazing, wonderful night and it was good for my soul! I have been looking forward to this evening for a couple of months and it didn't disappoint.  I got to meet two women who have truly inspired me and I was definitely starstruck.

One of the first running related blogs that I found early in my running career (ahem, like 6 months ago) was the Another Mother Runner website (http://anothermotherrunner.com/) and I've been hooked ever since.  The creators of the blog, Sarah Bowen Shea (@SBSOnTheRun) and Dimity McDowell (@Dimityontherun) are authors of two (soon to be 3!) books geared towards mother runners and creators of the podcasts that I love to run to.  They frequently refer to themselves as Badass Mother Runners and I love that nickname.  It's so fitting because there is nothing quite as badass as working up a sweat and pounding the pavement.

In addition to their blog, books, and podcasts, Sarah and Dimity also travel a few times a year to various cities to participate in races and expos.  They host Mother Runner parties in a few cities and we were fortunate enough to welcome them to St. Louis tonight, as they are in town for the Rock 'n' Roll St. Louis marathon.

When I first found out they would be in town, I am fairly certain I squealed out loud and couldn't contain my excitement.  I called my running buddy, Stacy, that same afternoon to tell her to save the date and we've been looking forward to the event all summer.  My excitement has grown over the summer, as I continue to follow their blog, listen to their podcasts, and become an even bigger fan of these women and the community of mother runners that they have built.  I listen to their podcasts so religiously that I feel like I know Sarah and Dimity personally!

Sarah and Dimity hosted tonight's Mother Runner party at one of my favorite local running stores, Big River Running Company (http://www.bigriverrunning.com/) and they had quite the crowd.  When we checked in, Dimity expressed her concern that nobody would show up due to Game 2 of the World Series (Go Cards!), but there isn't much that would have kept me away tonight and I suspect others felt the same.  We mingled for a bit, enjoyed some wine and snacks, and then we were treated to a few readings from Train Like a Mother and some awesome giveaways.  Stacy won a handheld water bottle, which is awesome!  I was also able to have Sarah and Dimity sign both of my books and I loved what they inscribed on the books, because it will provide me with continual  motivation and inspiration!

Sarah Bowen Shea (L) and Dimity McDowell (R) reading from Train Like a Mother

Dimity and I.  She is an Ironman finisher; truly badass and inspirational! 

Sarah and I.  Sarah is also a badass mother runner; marathoner and recent Ragnar Relay participant!

We each received a goody bag when we left tonight with some awesome running related products including running socks (score!), Nuun, Gu's, some Lara bars, and some great homeopathic products that I can't wait to try (sleep aid anyone?  Nerve tonic? Yes, please!).  I also picked up a shirt I've had my eye on for awhile.  It says "my pace. my peace." and the first time I saw it on their website, I wanted it. My pace is not the fastest, nor will it ever be, but it is my pace and it brings me peace and serenity.  I also loved one of the other shirts they had that said "I'm stronger than I thought" because it is so true!

Love my new long-sleeve tech shirt! 

I had such a great time meeting Sarah and Dimity and I was so inspired by the other mother runners in attendance, too.  One thing Dimity said really resonated with me and brought a tear to my eye.  She said that we need to forget the mommy guilt and get out and go for a run.  Running makes us better mothers, wives, friends, and employees and there is nothing wrong with taking care of yourself.  I think this spoke to me so much because I do experience guilt when I go for a run, but it's my "me" time and if I don't make time for me, I get really restless.  So I will try to block out the mommy guilt going forward!

One of the things we did when we signed in was we added our goal for the year to the bottom of our name tag.  My goal is to run my first 1/2 marathon in April and Stacy's is to run 40 races before her 40th birthday, which I think is an awesome goal!  

What is your goal for the year? Have you ever been a little starstruck by someone? If so, who was it?

"My pace. My peace."

Made time for a run today and it felt good

I needed a run today; I'm feeling really tired (a casualty of deciding to make your own Halloween costumes), overwhelmed and out of sorts.  I haven't run since Saturday and I figured that a good run might do this girl some good.  It did.

I was going to head out at lunch, but never quite made it, so I stopped on the way home from work and did a quick 2.35 miler.  It was quite chilly (did we just skip fall and head right into winter??) and getting dark, but I'm glad I went.  The beginning part of my run was really gorgeous; the sky was overcast and the leaves were so gorgeous against the dark sky.  However, it started getting darker and there were a lot of deer along the trail (I'm not a fan) so I took my keys out to jingle them a bit and scare the deer away.  I felt like I was pretty aware of my surroundings, but I guess I had my podcast on a bit too loud.  A fellow runner snuck up behind me and said "on your right" and scared the bejesus out of me.  I didn't hear him approach and he was about 2 feet behind me.  I'm sure I jumped a few feet in the air and I know I yelled out loud.  Yes, thank you for alerting me that you were on my right, buddy.  Maybe next time you could pass me on the correct side and announce your presence before you are on top of me.  It got my heart rate going for sure.

As I mentioned on Monday, we had a really good trip to my alma mater over the weekend.  It brought back a lot of great memories and it was great to show the boys a part of their Mama's young adult life.  One of the Homecoming activities was a family 5K Run/Walk.  It was a fairly inexpensive race, which was nice, and we got a pretty sweet shirt for the occasion.  It was a small race and while I was running for fun and not for time necessarily, I knew I wanted to try for a sub-40:00 race and I didn't want to be last.

I knew I was in for an interesting race, though, when the woman came on the bullhorn and said "Welcome to the 28th annual Bulldog 5K.  We'd like to welcome back our track and cross-country alumni."  Oh crap.  In case you are wondering, I am not a part of that group.  Thoughts running through my head at that point included: Please don't let me be last.  Ok, well I might be able to beat those people over there.  Oh good, I think those women in the back said they were going to walk.

The race started and those folks in the front of the pack took off.  More power to you, track and cross-country alumni.  I pushed a little hard in the beginning, but I knew I couldn't keep up so I resigned myself to the fact that I needed to stay in the back of the pack.  This was my first race where the roads weren't closed, but luckily they had student volunteers on the cross streets directing traffic.  I was very appreciative of the fact that these students were out in the cold (it was like 35 degrees at the start of the race, brr!) bright and early on a Saturday morning and I made sure to thank each student when I came to the cross streets. 13 years prior, this grumpy gal was startled awake on a Saturday morning by the marching bands in the Homecoming parade and was not a happy camper (funnily enough, my roommate remembered this vividly, so I really must have made a stink about it.) so I appreciated very much the fact that those students were helping with the race.

I was in the back of the race nearly the entire time, but I was enjoying the run through town and seeing how it had changed.  I was also listening, appropriately enough, to a cold-weather running themed podcast, which helped since it was so bitingly cold during the race.  I ran the entire race, even up the hills (and there were quite a few of them) and was proud of myself for doing so given the fact that I was getting over being sick and it was so cold and windy for the race.  I ended up passing 3 ladies before the finish, so I was selfishly glad not to finish last.  As I came to the last 1/4 mile, I saw Mom and the boys, so Nick ran the last little bit of the race with me, which was so sweet!

I wanted to finish under 40 minutes and my Run4Good app said I finished in 40:31, but I also forgot to turn it off right at the finish line.  I saw the posted race results on-line and I finished 101 out of 107 (I'll take it; I wasn't last) and my official finish time was 39:56!  I am so excited to have a sub-40:00 5K!  PR for this girl!

I had hoped to do a little more sewing tonight (my costume and Nick's are finished, but I still have Matt's and Jack's to finish), but I feel like sleep is calling my name.

What is the smallest race you have participated in?  What is the coldest weather you have run in?

"The more I run, the more I love my body. Not because it's perfect, far from it. But because with every mile, it's proving to me that I am capable of more than I ever thought possible"  

Weekend Getaway

I had a really great weekend, which involved returning to my alma matter for Homecoming festivities.  It has been 10 years since I graduated college and time has flown by!

Mom, the boys and I headed out of town on Friday and made the trip to Truman State University in northeast Missouri.  It was so great to see the University today and reminisce about my time there.

I want to share more about my trip (and the 5K that I participated in) and I will definitely do so in the next few days, but for now, there are some Halloween costumes that aren't going to sew themselves.

I apologize in advance for what are probably going to be brief posts this week.  I have to finish up three Incredibles costumes by Thursday hopefully, but for sure by Saturday.  I can't wait to post pictures of the completed Incredibles family, though!

Did anyone race this weekend?  Or do you have any other accomplishments to share?  

Down for the count

Sadly, whatever little bug Jack had took its toll on nearly the entire rest of the family.  I think I have the worst of it, which I would prefer, because it is so heartbreaking when the boys are sick.  I felt so bad for Nick last night, but I was glad that he didn't feel as badly as I did.  Luckily, knock on wood, Matt has avoided it thus far and I hoping it stays that way.

I have a busy weekend, so I won't be able to post again until late Sunday night, but in the meantime, I am going to re-evaluate my goal for the end of the year and I hope you all have a great weekend!

Re-evaluating my goals

Quick post tonight, as I'm going to try to work on Halloween costumes a little bit before I hit the hay.  I had a sick little fella today, so I stayed home and took care of him.  We did go for a walk this afternoon, which was really nice.  We haven't been to our favorite trail in several weeks and I think we've all been missing our walks.  I figured Jack could use a little fresh air and I was itching to do some sort of exercise.  I didn't quite feel up to a run, so I figured a walk would do.  We did 2.5 miles and enjoyed hearing the birds and crickets and watching the deer.  Apparently, the time we chose to go for a walk was the time when the deer practice fighting one another.  We came across an open field, where we typically see the deer grazing at dusk, and saw two sets of deer locking antlers with one another.  One of the pairs were younger deer, so they were really just locking nubbins, but the other two deer were older and had pretty gnarly antlers, so it was interesting to watch them play fight.

I've been giving some serious thought to re-evaluating my goals for my end of the year challenge, The Final Nut of 2013.  I haven't totally fallen off the bandwagon, but I'm hanging on by the spokes.  I worked so hard to meet and exceed the birthday challenge and I think when it was over, I gave myself a pass to relax a little bit.  There isn't anything wrong with that, I'm just wondering if I need to re-adjust my plans so that it's more sustainable.  My goal for The Final Nut of 2013 was to lose 24 lbs by December 31st and I'm considering lowering that goal a bit.

Am I setting my sights too high? Or maybe I just need to kick myself in gear again and get back in the habit of working out at lunch 4 days a week.  Although, it has been really nice having my lunch breaks back again.  Nobody ever said this was going to be easy, though, so maybe I need to stop giving myself a pass.  In any case, I'm going to mull this over for a few more days and I'll give an update next week.

What would you do? Would you push yourself hard for the rest of the year to meet the original, somewhat challenging goal?  Or would you re-evaluate and set a more achievable goal?  

I've always loved the below quote and it seems rather fitting at the moment.

"Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars." 

Believing in yourself

One of the added bonuses of becoming a runner has been a huge boost in my self confidence and it has never been more apparent than the past few days (post-10K).  I'm aware that I have been a little insufferable lately; I'm beaming with pride, talking a lot about my race and yes, my medal is still in my purse in case you'd like to see it.  I can't help it.  I accomplished something that I never thought I could and honestly, when I look again at the course map, I still can't believe that I ran that far.  It's still a little surreal, but I am so freaking proud of myself and I just want to revel in it for a bit.  

I struggle with self-confidence in all areas of my life and running has provided me with a surge of confidence and the belief that I can do anything I put my mind to, no matter how far-fetched it may seem initially.  On Sunday, there was a serious battle of wills going on in my head though, between the voice saying I couldn't do it and the other voice saying I could.  Crossing the finish line was exhilarating for so many reasons, not the least of which was silencing that voice inside saying I couldn't do it.  

I should note that the pessimism in my head was my own doing, because I have truly amazing and supportive family and friends.  Over the past 10 months, I have been blown away by the encouragement I've received from everyone and I am so grateful.  Having so many people who support me and believe in me, why was it so hard for me to believe in myself?

I'm sure I'm not the only one who struggles with this, so I guess the point of my rather scatter-brained post is to say that you can do anything you put your mind to.  It sounds contrite, but I really do believe that, more so than ever.  No matter what your journey is; to lose weight, to become a runner, to write a book, to change your career path, whatever it may be, listen to the voice inside that says you can and silence the one that says you can't.  Believe in yourself and know that anything is possible.  No journey is easy, there will always be bad days (weeks, months...), but just keep repeating "I got this" because you do.  

I'm seriously considering making a t-shirt that says "I got this" on the front.  It's become my mantra and I said it repeatedly on Sunday. 

I wish I had discovered the below quote prior to Sunday, but I saw it yesterday on Facebook and it's definitely going up on my quote wall!

"Clear your mind of can't."