Can I run a 15k?

So I have been pondering running a 15k in March.

I know, it sounds crazy.  I have only done 5k's up until this point so why triple that lenght?

Well, the Shamrock Run is is in March of 2012 and they offer 3 lengths: 5k (which I did last year), 8k, and 15k.

I could do an 8k with only moderate effort.  Adding a few miles would be some work, but totally doable.

However, a 15k would be a MAJOR stretch for me and a SUPER challenge.  PLUS, finishers of the 15k get a medal!  (Yea, I want the medal...I am a sucker for shiney things...)

For the last few days I have been staring at an Excel spreadsheet calendar that I created and have been stressing about how to add training to my routine without having to sacrifice fun/school/work/sleep.

I would love some feedback from experience runners on if this is doable (and feedback from non-runners too wouldn't be a terrible thing either). 

Open Letter to Jesse the Personal Trainer

Dear Jesse the Personal Trainer (Hereafter to be known as Asshat),

First let me thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to meet with me for the free personal training session that came with my brand spanking new gym membership.  While I appreciate your effort and understand that it is your job to sell me additional personal training sessions, you crossed the line several times and I would like to take a moment to mock you publicly for it so I can move on.

I understand you are young and trying to make a good impression at your new job, but constantly repeating that you are 25, just recently promoted to Director of Training after only 4 months with the company and that the first thing you did in your new role is fire two people, makes you sound like a total Asshat.  (Hence, why that is your new nickname.)

I also understand that it is your job to sell me additional personal training sessions, however, telling a potential client...

1) She will not achieve her fitness goals with out you
2) She should spend less money on shoes and more money on her physical fitness
3) She is a "skinny fat person"
4) That not only do you have multiple degrees, minored in Psychology, were in the Navy, but you also drew and designed all your tattoos, including the one written completely in Latin
5) You have turned away at least 100 paying customers because you felt they wouldn't be dedicated to your program enough
6) You are the #2 sales person in the entire company and if you really wanted to you could turn on the charm and make me buy 100 sessions with him but you won't because that isn't how you roll

...makes you a total and complete Asshat.

Now, you mentioned several times that you found me very funny, admired my dedication to losing weight and even commented on how obviously stubborn I am. Which means it will come to no surprise to you that I think you are an Asshat and I want to punch you in the face numerous times.  I won't be punching you in the face though, for several reasons.  Mostly because I have never punched anyone and I doubt I can do it with the amount of damage I am hoping for, but also because I have a better form of revenge planned for you.

Because you told me I couldn't do it and because you noticed that I am a stubborn bitch, I will now be making it my goal to prove you fucking wrong.  I will be working me ass of in the gym at least 3 days a week until I am in the exact shape I want to be in.  I will lose the last 12 vanity pounds I am struggling with.  I will run a 10k.  I will tighten up my ass so that it looks even better than it currently does in my expensive 5-inch platform stilettos.  And then, I will saunter over to your desk, politely ask you to retest my body fat percentage with your little gadget thingy.  Once you have recovered from the shock of seeing my results, I will rip the gadget from your hands and beat you over the head with it.  (Okay, maybe not...that would be Assault, which is illegal.)

I am pretty sure you will be fired soon from your job as the company you work for might not like it if you continually talk to your potential clients like you do as well as turn away business.  However, if you could just keep it long enough for me to prove my point, I would be grateful!

Have a wonderful day!

Sincerely,

Rizzle

I'm Struggling...

I have been writing this post in my head for a while now.  I just haven't had the guts to actually write it and announce that I am struggling. (Hence why I haven't posted since April either.)

A lot has happened in the last few months which has led up to my current struggles.

School kept me really busy, but I managed straight A's.  

My birthday was the end of May and I turned....30...ugh.  

I bought myself a fancy running nerd-bag to hold water bottles and my inhaler, and my husband got my a fancy Garmin 305.  I spent a lot of June outside running, but didn't improve my time or distance so I got discouraged and haven't gone on a serious run in weeks.

Needless to say, my eating has been total garbage.  I am out of control.  If I see it, I eat it.  ALL OF IT.  In the beginning of June my weight hit my "Scary Number" so I signed back up for Weight Watchers E-Tools so I can track my eating.  Since then, I have been excellent at tracking Monday thru Thursday.  Then Friday hits....and....all Hell breaks loose.  I am not kidding.  Two weeks ago, I tracked on Monday the damage I did over the weekend and ended up being 67 Points Plus in the whole.  I haven't tracked what I ate this weekend, but let me tell you, it wasn't good.  (Friday night was a BAG of Milano cookies, a JAR of salsa with chips, and HALF of a Family Sized Papa Murphy's D-lite pizza.)

 

The Red line is my "Happy Weight", the Green line is my "In My Dreams" Weight.  My current weight is 0.6lbs over my "Goal" weight.

I am miserable right now.  I don't know what my problem is and I don't know how to fix it.  I used to be the queen of not putting things in my mouth I didn't have the points for.  And now it doesn't even seem o matter to me.  My pants are tight.  I feel gross.  And yet, I can't stop myself.  

I don't know what to do.  

I am scared.

I am struggling.

I need help.

 

#100factsaboutme

I started this on Twitter, but it got annoying and I kept forgetting which number I was on so I quit.  (Yea, typical oif me, quit when it gets hard or annoying.)

So here goes, 100 useless pieces of information about me;

1.  I collect Eiffel Towers. Never been there, and have no plans to go any time soon, I just love the way the tower looks.  Some of my favorites include a cookie cutter, earrings, sink stopper, wine topper, and a sewing box.  I plan on getting an Eiffel tower tattoo one day when I decide on a location and design. 
2. I have a 3rd nipple.  No one ever believes me when I tell them as it doesn't look like a traditional nipple, but it was confirmed by a doctor. 
3.  I am terrified of Jello. I can't be in the same room with it or even watch people eat it.  My fear stems from a dream I had as a kid where I drowned in it.  I am also afraid of drowning due to this as well.
4. I love candles that smell like food, and hate ones that smell like flowers.
5.  I have a terrible sense of direction. I get lost just about every day.
6. I have lived in 6 states:  NH, MA, OH, SC, OR, and WA! Wait...7? Did I live in MD too? Can't remember.
7.  I only knew my husband a month before we got engaged.
8. I put mascara on with my mouth closed. 
9. I cry every time I watch the movie Julie&Julia and I have no idea why.
10. It annoys me when people leave time on the microwave. If you take it out early, hit Clear!!
11. I freak out when people leave cabinet doors or drawers open.  My family loves to tease me about it and they think it is a big joke, but it really really bugs me.
12. When I was a kid I fell ice skating and split open my chin.  I haven't ice skated since.
13. My parents divorced when I was around 5.  I only have one memory of them together. 
14. My first car was a 1996 Dodge Neon and I loved it.  I was obsessed with Neon's as soon as they came out and just had to have one.  It was their awesome advertising that did it. 
15. My freshman year of college I went to Tiffin University in Tiffin, Ohio on a Vocal Jazz scholarship.  I dropped out of school after a year and haven't sung on stage since.
16. I hate the way toothpaste tastes. 
17. As a kid I collected pencils.  I kept them in a Tupperware bin in my closet and refused to sharpen any of them.  I have no clue what happened to that collection. 
18. I have never seen a Star Wars movie from beginning to end.  I have seen bits and pieces of them, but never the whole thing.  I always fall asleep.  (Same goes for The Lord of the Rings)
19. I signed up to audition for a musical in high school, but never showed up.  I have always regretted that.
20. I lie about my age.  I do this for many reasons but mostly because I am terrified of growing old and the inevitability of death.  It hurts my feelings when people announce my real age.
21. I chose to go to Tiffin University not because of the scholarship but because no one else from my high school was going there.  That's how much I disliked the people I went to school with.
22. I have 8 piercings and 3 tattoos.  I am done getting things pierced but would like 2 more tattoos in the near future. 
23. I love bacon.  Love love love bacon.  My favorite is thick cut peppered bacon.  I also love to eat bacon between two slices of wheat toast with crunchy peanut butter.  Yes, peanut butter and bacon sandwiches.  Try it, you will like it, I promise.  If not, I will finish it for you.  So go make one.  Now.  Please. 
24. I cannot burp.  Just physically can't do it.  I make a funny gurgling noise instead.  I can, however, fart like a champ.  No joke, I could win a farting contest.
25. I wanted to grow up to be 6 feet tall.  I am glad I didn't but would like to be little taller than my current 5'5
26. I smoked for over 10 years and only quit because I didn't want anyone I worked with to know I was a smoker. 
27. I enjoy playing golf in theory but not in practice.  I am terrible at it and I get frustrated quickly and end up storming off half way through a game.  However, I am always willing to go play and own my own clubs.
28. I attended church just about every Sunday for 15 years, and yet I haven't been to church in over 5 years. 
29. I spent almost a month in a mental hospital when I was a teenager.
30. I was a Girl Scout for 12 years.  When I was in 4th grade all of the girls in my troop quit and made their own troop because they didn't like my mother (she was our troop leader).  I have never forgiven those girls, and still remember each of their names.  I went without a troop for the next 8 years, earning every merit badge and completing my Silver Award before quitting.  (Silver is the 2nd highest award you can earn.  I quit halfway into my project for my Gold Award.)
31. I quit gymnastics when I was in 8th grade because the cheerleaders at my Jr High started a rumor I had an eating disorder.  I ate constantly but was stick thin due to the amount of physical activity I was doing every day at practice.  The rumors got so bad that I was pulled into the office to talk to someone about it.
32. Not only was my mom my Girl Scout troop leader and my brothers Cub Scout/Boy Scout troop leader, she was also our Bowling coach for several years. 
33. I love the smell of old books.
34. I got alcohol poisoning off of Goldschlager when I was 19 and haven't been able to tolerate the smell or taste of artificial cinnamon since.  I love real cinnamon though.  Especially in coffee or chocolate.
35. I love Disney movies and can recite word for word just about every one made before 1999.  My top 5 in no particular order would be:  The Little Mermaid, Alice in Wonderland, Beauty and the Beast, Toy Story, and Monsters Inc.
36. Red wine gives me a headache.
37. I hate having my face wet.  I save washing my face for last when I shower so I can quickly dry it off.
38. My first concert was Amy Grant.  My second was Savage Garden.
39. I love ketsup.  But only Heinz.  I won't eat generic brand.  (Okay, that's not true, I will eat it, but I will bitch about it while I do it.)
40. I judge my life based on characters in Romantic Comedies.  One day I will figure out that my life isn't a movie.
41. My knockers used to be my favorite thing about my body.  Now they are my least favorite. 
42. I hate the smell of tomato juice and tomato soup.  It sets off my gag reflex.  However, I love tomatoes, ketsup, spaghetti sauce, and Bloody Mary's.
43. I love grocery shopping.  I love making grocery lists.  I love clipping coupons.  I love putting groceries away.  If I could make grocery shopping a career, I would.
44. Until I was in 5th grade I thought that we got the Monday off of school for Memorial Day because of my birthday.  (May 27th)
45. I hate driving.  I am terrible at it and it terrifies me.  However, I love my commute every day.  Being stuck in traffic for upwards of 45 minutes gives me time to myself to sit with my thoughts and unwind.
46. I dream about writing a novel one day.  I don't know what I will write about.  But I know that one day inspiration will hit me.
47. I have never had to have surgery, but I have a list of several surgeries I would like to have.  (Mostly plastic.)
48. I have a semi-rare blood type so I donate blood as often as I can. 
49. I am completely enamored with my wedding ring.  Sometimes I just sit and stare at it.  If I had to do it all over again, I would choose the same exact ring.
50. I check my phone about 100 times a day to see if I missed any messages.  I feel lost if I don't have my phone on me.
51. I don't like the way regular soda tastes.  I switched to diet soda so long ago, that regular is just too sweet for me.
52. My favorite condiments on a burger would either be mushrooms and Swiss cheese, or bacon and guacamole. 
53. I never cried at weddings until I got married.  I didn't think I would cry at my own wedding, but I sobbed through the whole thing. Now I cry when I see a wedding on TV.
54.  When I was a kid my mom forced me to wear slippers in the house and I hated it.  I now wear pink fuzzy slippers all the time.  I love them and my feet miss them when we are apart.
55. I have to remind myself daily to not try so hard for people to like me.  I always forget that I don't like most people I know, and yet I am always trying to impress them.
56. I see the number combination 527 all the time and I think it is lucky when I see a clock turn 5:27.
57. I have a matching tattoo with someone I am no longer friends with.  I hate it but I will never have it removed.  I use it now as a reminder as to how fickle friendships really are. 
58. I want to own ducks and chickens as pets.
59. I don't like any sports and do not own a single sports jersey.  I do love going to baseball games though. 
60. I am a messy eater.  I get food on my shirt every day.  Sometimes I find food in my cleavage without even knowing how it got there.
61. I have never been arrested, but I have a feeling that I will be one day.  Not sure for what yet, I am still deciding.
62. I have never been in a limo. 
63. I miss dark meat chicken nuggets from McDonald's. 
64. The first boy I kissed was my neighbor and it was on accident.  We were in 5rd grade and boyfriend/girlfriend.  He went to kiss me on the cheek, I turned my head, and whoops!  It shocked us both so much that he ran and hid for the rest of the day. 
65. If I ever told my mom who I lost my virginity to she would kill me.  That is, if the story of me losing my virginity didn't kill her first!
66. My favorite flower is lilac.
67. I had a pet mouse named Winter in elementary school.  I wanted her to be in the Guinness Book of World Records for oldest living mouse. 
68. I never thought I had a biological clock or that it would ever start ticking.  But I do, and it has.  And that makes my husband uncomfortable.
69. I consider myself the "black sheep" of my family.  I am confident that most of my relatives don't like me. 
70. I am terrible about getting haircuts.  I always say I need to get one, but rarely ever do.  Like twice a year, at the most.
71. When I was a junior in high school I wore a junior size 9.  At my current age (of 27!!) I wear a junior size 7 (Adult size 6).  Far cry from the size 18 I should have been wearing 3 years ago.
72. I fell in love with my husband on our first date.  He took me to the aquarium.
73. I keep a $1 bill in my glove box for emergencies.  (The emergency being my need for an ice cream cone from McDonald's at random times.)
74. I hate leaving the house without earrings in.  I will leave the house in pajamas with no make up on, and I will put earrings in before I go.
75. I spell the same words wrong constantly.  (Awnser, thier, convienance, sopose,  begining)
76. I remember the day I achieved Lifetime the same way a person in AA remembers how many days sober they have. (July 19th, 2010)
77. In the last 14 months, I have lost 4 people in  my life.  Up until 14 months ago, I had only lost 3.
78. When I first wake up in the morning, the first thing I do is check to see if I can still feel my hip bones.  Seriously.  I do it without even thinking about it. 
79. I have a lot of freckles.  Dark random ones.  I haven't counted them all in a while, but for reference on my left arm I have 53 and my right I have 33.
80. One of my favorite women in history is Josephine Bonaparte.  She was an amazing woman.  For a year, I read nothing but books about her. 
81. I tell people that I can't swim, even though I can.  I lie because I am terrified of water/drowning and it is easier than explaining how many ways a human can die in water.
82. I love Mexican food, and I love it spicy. Mexican/spicy food does not love me. I eat it anyways.
83. I spend roughly 10 hours a week in my car.
84. I hate eggplant. I have tried it a bunch of times and have yet to find any form of eggplant that I like.
85. I served in the Army for 6 months. I broke both my legs in Basic Training and was discharged after they didn't heal properly. I was told I wouldn't be able to run again after that injury, which is why I was against doing any activity for a long time. I have not had one single pain from my Army injury since I started running. (Knock on wood)
86. I can read German pretty well, and can speak it really slowly. People at my work think I am better at German than I really am. I am just a pro at Google Translate. (I work for a German company where we have to deal with correspondence written in German pretty often.)
87. I find pirates very sexy.
88. I love shoes. Especially heels. The higher, and tackier the better. My current shoe collection includes glitter, buckles, rhinestones, bows, and hot pink.
89. I suffer from insomnia. I have one of the odd forms of it though. Once I am asleep, I can stay asleep for days. It is getting to sleep that is the problem. I am usually up until 2 AM on most days.
90. I never check my voicemail.  In fact, my voicemail message states that leaving a message is pointless as I don't check it.  (At least I think it does, I really have no idea.)
91. I never had a nickname as a kid.  My mom calls me "Munch" which is short for Munchkin, but she is the only one that does it.  My online screen name of "Rizzle" was invented by my roommate and no one in the real world calls me that or even knows that I use it.
92. There are days where I am mentally unable to get out of bed.  I used to have weeks where I couldn't get out of bed, so having it down to just a day is an accomplishment.
93. I love to cook.  Just being in my kitchen relaxes me.  When I am sad or stressed I will open up my favorite cook book and make whatever I have the ingredients for. 
94. I went 7 years without speaking to my mom, and 7 years without speaking to my father.  I have mended both of those relationships, but it wasn't easy. 
95. I am insanely jealous of my brothers relationship with my father and always have been.  I know my father loves me, I just wish we had more in common like he does with my brother. 
96. I think my husband it is a total nerd.  He loves video games, RC cars, and other nerd-like activities.  He is also one of the smartest and funniest people I know.  He can fix just about anything, and makes me laugh every day.
97. I hate camping.  I used to do it a lot as a kid, but now I refuse.  
98. For a long time I equated love with sex.  I was a total hoebag, but only because I was desperate for someone to like me.  Looking back, it would have been easier for them to like me if I actually had liked myself.

99. I have 3 dogs that annoy the hell out of me but I love them dearly.  Oskar Meier is the oldest at almost 10, Riley Scott is 5, and Twiggy Marley is 4.  They all have middle names and nationalities.  Oskar is German, Riley is Irish, and Twiggy is Russian. 

Riley

Twiggy

Oskar

100.  Until I started my journey with Weight Watchers I thought I hated bananas.  Turns out, I love them and eat one every day now!







I am impressed that you stuck with me and read through all of that!  I hope you enjoyed it!  Did you learn anything?  Want more detail?  Feel free to comment and I will clarify for you!

As soon as I can, I will get a post up about my latest race, and a status on how my Lifetime is going as with KT's WLJ.  School is keeping me super busy so blog writing has been moved to the back burner for now!  (It took me almost 2 weeks to write this post!)

xoxox

popchips Giveaway Winner!!

Thanks all of you who entered!

Meaning,...Our winner is....

@stacey_knapp

What's poppin'? (...a giveaway, thats what!)

Now, I have been a fan of popchips for almost a year, so when they asked me to do a giveaway on my blog, I jumped at the opportunity!

I had my first experience with popchips on the party bus on my way to see Train at Maryhill Winery's Amphitheatre.  I won the tickets on the radio and that day is in the top 10 best days of my life!  I love Train with a passion, and to see them up close and personal was an amazing and unforgettable experience.  popchips had given the radio station a bunch of cases of different flavors for us to eat on the bus and it was an all you can eat madhouse.  Since I didn't pack any food for the trip, which was dumb on my part, to have a healthy snack to soak up the large amounts of wine I was inhaling it was a major plus!  The concert took place just a few weeks before I reached Lifetime, so I really needed to have healthy options in front of me to keep me out of trouble!

 

The day I came back from the concert I immediately started following popchips on both Twitter and Facebook.  (Which you need to do as well, but we will get to that part.)  One of the great things about popchips social networking is that they have localized groups to follow.  I follow the main @popchips, but also @popchipsPDX and @popchipsSeattle to get the scoop on what is going on in my area.  (Plus they do LOTS of local giveaways, which I love!)  When I became the 50th follower of @popchipsSeattle they sent me this amazing gift basket with a month's supply of popchips!  (And guess what?  You could win one too!  Keep reading to find out how!)

So, not only did I get all I could eat of popchips on the party bus, and a months supply sent to my front door, popchips also sponsored me to do the Muddy Buddy last summer!  I posted a lengthy blog about it here. 

I will pause, while you click the link and read about my super awesome dirty race...

....

...

Done?  Good.  Let's continue.

So far we have covered all the pop-tastic fun that being a follower of popchips can bring, but now we need to talk about the most important part of popchips and why I am such a devout fan of them.

They are healthy.  And delicious.  And low in Points Plus.  And delicious. 

How are they healthy?  Simple.  They aren't fried.  Heck, they aren't even baked.  They are air popped. 



http://www.popchips.com/potato-chips/original-potato-chips.html



They come in a ton of flavors like original, barbecue, cheddar, sea salt & vinegar, salt & pepper, sour cream & onion, and Parmesan garlic.  You can get them just about anywhere but if you are having any trouble finding them in your area, just check out their store locater on their website.  Or you can skip all that hassle, and just order them from their website and have them delivered directly to your couch.  (http://www.popchips.com/ )

Okay, so now to the fun part!  The GIVEAWAY!!

popchips has agreed to give one of my loyal blog readers a one month supply of popchips!  (And by one month supply, they mean 31 individual bags, not as many as you can eat in a month.  I was disappointed to learn that little tidbit myself, but hey, don't look a gift horse in the mouth.)

How can you win this boxful of crunchy deliciousness?  Simple.

1.  Follow popchips on Twitter OR Like them on Facebook. 

2.  Tell them who sent you.  ("@SuperERizzle's blog sent me!)

3.  Comment below telling me where you posted your comment so I can verify that you aren't a cheater and a liar. 

4.  Tell me how pretty, funny, smart, awesome I am so that I can verify you actually read my blog and aren't just here for the free stuff!  (HA!  Caught you!)

5.  Make sure you put some way for me to contact you if you win!  (Like your twitter screen name, or a link to your blog.)

I am limiting this to one entry per form of social media per person.  So if you follow them on Twitter AND like them on Facebook, you get TWO entries!  (Please comment twice though, so I can see you did both.)

Contest will stay open until Friday, March 26th at midnight.  Saturday morning (or afternoon, depending on when I get up) I will randomly choose a winner! 

GOOD LUCK!!

Shamrock Run 2011 Recap

As those of you who follow me on either Twitter or Facebook know already, I participated in Portland's Shamrock run on Sunday with KT.

I had originally planned on doing the Shamrock in 2010 but unfortunately my father-in-law passed away the day before the race so running a 5k wasn't really a priority.  I had intended for it to be my first 5k experience, but since I missed it the Starlight Run in May of 2010 ended up being my first.  And I hated it.  I walked most of it with a time around 45 minutes.  I hadn't done a 5k since due to that dismal failure. 

With KT now totally rocking the WW program and working on being more active, I invited her to join me for the 5k since it was a run/walk.  She immediately jumped on the idea and I signed us both up.  I trained semi-hard for the run up until 2 weeks before when I got sick and school started to get overwhelming.  I finally got on the treadmill and went for a pre-race run 2 days before and was slow as hell.  I just resigned myself to walking most of the race and dealing with it later. 

I stayed up until about midnight working on a homework assignment, then crawled into bed where I stared at the ceiling until 2, which immediately turned to 3.  (Ever stayed up to watch Daylight Savings Time happen?  Yea, not as fun as New Years.)  My alarm went off at 6, so with 3 hours of sleep under my belt I grabbed a banana and a plastic spoon full of peanut butter and headed out the door.  (Note:  My last few events, I forgot to eat first.  Big mistake.  I remembered this time...but forgot to mention it to KT as something she needed to do.)

Took some pre-race photos before I left of my awesome outfit too.

I have decided that striped knee socks are my new signature race attire.  I wore them on the Starlight Run, and on the Muddy Buddy, so third time makes it an official tradition!  I have every intention of getting a new pair for each of my future races!

KT and I made plans to meet at a Max station halfway between our houses (since we live 50 miles from each other) and rode into downtown Portland together.

(Right about here is where I would insert a picture of KT that I took at the Max station, but the bitch deleted it without my knowing.  Don't worry, she will pay for her insolence.  With a black eye.)


After a 30 minute ride on the max we walked the short distance to Waterfront Park where the race was starting from.  I had chugged a good amount of water in the car, so I had to hit the Port o'potty pretty bad.  This is where tragedy struck for KT.  She HATES Port o'pottys with a vengeance.  Seriously, it was a big deal for her to have to use one.  The "dirty air" just about killed her and she has sworn off public urination for life. 
 
 

 
We stood and watched the 15k racers start, then I handed her my 'nerd bag' to carry, shoved my phone in my bra, and went off on my own to get into the "Slow-ass Runners" like also known as the "10+ min mile" group.  I stretched while I waited for my turn in the sea of 32,000 other racers in the cold rain. 
 
 

 

(Please excuse the quality of the pictures as KT had the camera and is obviously too pretty to understand how to use the 'anti-shake' function.  All of these pictures are from her walking the same race route that I was running with a half hour head start.)

 

The first mile was a little tough and I took a few quick breaks to walk.  After the 2nd of 3 signs advertising mile 2, I saw a big hill on the horizon and decided to walk up that. 
 
 

I went right back to running the downhills and started to get into a really good pace.  Chugged a cup of water at one of the water stations, which I shouldn't have done.  I never drink while running.

I think KT has the hots for this guy...

 

KT's feet as she walks.  Not sure if she meant to take this or not...

Walkway at the PSU Campus.



The best picture of the Finish Line that KT took.  I am signing her up for Photography classes.

 I started to pass more and more people and I was loving that feeling.  And then in the distance at the bottom of a small hill, was the finish line!  I immediately burst into tears and started running as fast as my body would go.  I told myself I wouldn't stop until I crossed and I didn't.  Stepped over the finish line, stopped moving, turned my head to cough and....
 
...tossed the water I had just drank.  I choked back most of it as I was in a crowd of people and I didn't want to embarrass myself.  I don't know if anyone saw, and I only semi-care if they did.  I pushed myself to the limit, worked hard, and yakked in public.  Nothing wrong with that. 
 
I pushed through the crowd and grabbed an armload of waters and headed back to the finish line to wait for KT to cross. 
 
I ran into an old customer from the restaurant I used to work at and made him take a picture of me. 
 

I loved watching all the people cross the finish line.  You could tell who the old pros were and which were the first timers.  Some of them just crossed the line, and checked their stats on their Polar-fancy-pants watches and strolled off.  Others had friends/family/strangers take their picture in various silly poses to mark the occasion.  It was great fun!
 
Then, I saw KT cross!  She looked so happy!  I am not sure how she felt at this moment but I know I was feeling pretty great FOR her!  Not only was she rocking in my awesome pink 'nerd-bag' she was wearing a size of exercise pants that she chose to brag about on Twitter.  (Hooray for not having an XXL or an XL ass any more!)

We made a random stranger take our picture in front of the Finish Line.  (Which for fun, I put next to a picture of KT and I back in 2008.)

Does any one need more proof that WW works?

We hit a few of the booths for some free samples, thought about standing in the line to get our free beer, but decided against it.  We were soaked.  And cold.  And tired.  So we hauled ass back to the Max to get our cold wet asses into hot showers and get some lunch!

Overall it was an amazing day for both KT and myself!  We totally rocked that 5k!  In fact, we rocked it so much that we are already signed up for 2 more races, with another 7 penciled into the calendar!  (Once a month until December!)

OH, and the BEST part of the event...MY TIME!!!

37:03!!!!!!!!

AND, I made our Leader give us both 5k charms at our meeting on Monday!

And for those of you who made it all the way to the bottom of this post, I have a secret to tell you....shhhh....

My next post will be a GIVEAWAY!!  So stay tuned!!

Lifetime Update: Week ending 2/13/2011

Let me begin by saying...I have had a half a bottle of champagne...but it took the semi-drunk me to realize that my last 2 posts had the wrong year on the subject line. 

So this last week was pretty darn great for me (and for KT too!).  I got on the treadmill 3 times, going a little farther each time, except for on Sunday, because I just wasn't feeling it.  I have to confess that I was under my points during the week, several times.  I just wasn't hungry.  I tried to eat them, I really did, I just wasn't feeling it!  I even text KT asking for suggestions on ways to add some points to my dinners!  Didn't work too well.  Not because KT didn't have great tips, because she did.  I just couldn't get them into my mouth.  I even tried to guzzle booze to kill points but was unsuccessful!  Which is totally NOT like me at ALL!! 

I  made up for what I lacked during the week on the weekend though and totally scrapped my tracking and went to town with my eating.  I did just fine at school on Saturday but I went to try a new Chinese place with the Man that night and forgot that General Tso's Chicken is deep fried.  (I need to remember that it is Kung Pao that I like!)  I only ate half my portion, but it was still a big greasy 21pt+ mess of sugar and fat.  On Sunday, I needed guacamole and refried beans to soak up all of the Chinese grease lining my stomach so I made another bad decision.  It happens.  I am over it.

I saw a beautiful -1 lb loss on the scale putting me at tied with my lowest weight ever.  I am thinking that this just might be the number my body likes with my current diet and fitness level.  I am going to keep trying to get to the number I have in my head, but if I don't get there, I am fine with that too.  I don't want to have to struggle and sacrifice to just to make a number on the scale.  My current fitness level and eating habits are fine for me to maintain the number I am currently at so that is all good.  

KT had an amazing week!  She had a "baller loss" and earned herself her 2nd 5lb star!!  Her -3lb this week made up for her disappointing and inappropriate gain from last week.  She is doing so well, and I am so proud of her!  She has an amazing attitude and just won't quit!  I really think the Weight Watchers lifestyle was meant for her.  She loves to weigh and measure her food, and she pre-plans like a pro! 

I have to say though, what I am most proud of is that she is actually learning to cook while on WW!  Before this she was totally a 'quick and easy' kind of girl.  She had some fall-back recipes that she would make but wasn't too into experimenting in the kitchen.  Now, she is actually looking forward to trying new things and recipes!  I got her to taste some red and yellow peppers a few weeks ago, just so see if she liked them (which, believe me, is a step, and she didn't like them) and there is a recipe in the WW Weekly for a Mexican brown rice casserole, that contains spinach, she is really looking forward to trying!  There was some other cooking accomplishment she had this past week, but I can't think of it right now (damn champagne). 

So, today is Valentine's Day.  I am NOT a fan of the holiday.  Never really have been.  It is just a made up, Hallmark holiday, designed to make single people feel bad about themselves, and married people obligated to spend money.  This year I told the Man to not even bother.  I tell him I love him each and every day.  He does the same for me, and I don't need him to send me flowers once a year because it is required by the standards of the holiday.  For the last 3 years the Man has gotten me the same card, which I love, and we do something semi-nice for dinner.  We don't go out and we don't buy gifts.  This year, he got me a different card (because they don't carry the regular one any more) and an adapter for my iPod that I needed.  I got him a bad of candy hearts.  We had salads for dinner as we do every Monday, with the exception of the champagne.  The only reason we had champagne tonight...it was already chilled, and we were out of regular wine. 

But...for the sake of Valentine's day...and because I know he never reads this blog...may I just say, I have a pretty damn amazing husband!  He really puts up with a lot of my crap and seems to enjoy it.  I just don't understand it sometimes.  I am a major pain in the ass, and yet he loves me.  He loved me when I was fat, and he loves me now.  He knows all of my flaws and either embraces them or works with me to change them.  We have the same weird sense of humor, and on many occasions, we think the same things at the same time.  I would marry him again tomorrow.  He may be a pain in my ass, but he is MY pain in the ass, and I wouldn't trade that for anything!  Happy Valentine's Day, Love Bug!

 And just so KT doesn't feel left out...here are some pictures of HER Valentine!!  Her beautiful and smart 6 month old awesome daughter AJ!!  Let me tell you, I am not a baby person...but this baby...ugh...she has me wrapped around her chubby little finger.  Greatest baby ever made!