Well, life certainly has been busy. Between work, working out, pesky adult responsibilities, a hurricane, three dogs, and life in general, blogging has taken a backseat.
I miss it, there are happenings that I want to share. But, by the time I’m done with my day (which starts at 4am), I am literally DONE.
I just can’t seem to let this little space of mine on the interwebs go away, though. It’s been a part of me for almost seven years now. I’ve shared so much and it’s like a good friend. So, I’m going to get back to it. It won’t be everyday, but it will be more often than the once a month I was doing.
A few highlights from the last couple of months….
My family came to visit us and we had a wonderful visit. I miss my brother Nick, sister-in-law Jenna, and Autumn so very much. Much fun was had over the few days they were here.
I am still doing bootcamp twice a week and working out a couple days a week on top of that. I love our time on the gym, taking care of us. I have goals and will continue to be a work in progress. One thing I do miss is running regularly, so I need to make that happen.
My eating took a hit with Hurricane Irma. There was stress eating in the anticipation of it and also after when we went without power for 6 days. It’s hard to get back to the healthy eating I was doing so well before, but I am trying my best.
I’ve been at my job for just about 7 months now and I am still loving it and the people I work with. Getting up at 4am is not always easy but loving my job helps that immensely. I get to be inspired and motivated daily at work and that is a wonderful thing.
Fall is here! I am excited for the weather to hopefully cool down soon. I am happy about fall TV shows. Season two of This Is Us is upon us and I have my Kleenex ready.
Our anniversary is next week. No mini-vacation this year BUT we are going to Halloween Horror Nights this Friday night. I’m ready to scream ridiculously at every little thing that scares me. And I cannot wait to go in The Shining haunted house. It is my most favorite horror movie ever so it has a lot to live up to.
Life is busy but having this guy by my side makes it all worth it….
Clearwater girl that I am, I am very excited about Iron Girl Clearwater. I’ve run this event several years now, both the half marathon and the 5k. I love that it’s so close to home for me and easy to get to race morning. This year I am running the 5k. Just for fun, I have 5 reasons you should run Iron Girl Clearwater!
The View…. If you love running by the water, the view is gorgeous. You can see Sand Key and Belleair in the distance. The water is pretty. And when the sun comes up over downtown Clearwater, it is just beautiful.
The Course… Starting at Coachman Park, you run the library, City Hall, and the courthouse and then you approach the bridge. If you run the 5k, you run about half of the causeway before you turn around and head back. If you run the half marathon, you will also get to run the Sand Key Bridge. The bridges are my favorite part!
The Medals… Iron Girl does a great job with the medals and I love that the last few years it has had the bridge on it. The bridges are part of the challenge and it’s nice to have that on the medal as a reminder than you tackled them like a beast!
The Expo… Saturday and Sunday morning, you can visit the Expo for your packet and to check out all the vendors an fun products. From clothing to jewelry, fitness gear, and more, it’s always fun to walk around. And after the race! They have some pretty amazing food.
Photo courtesy of Iron Girl Clearwater Facebook page
The Girl Power… I love events that empower women and this one is top of the list. Iron Girl “aspires to bring women of all ages together as a community by offering a supportive, energetic and empowering environment for females pursuing a healthy and active lifestyle.” Need I say more? I am all about this!
Week 1 of our challenge went fast! We kept up the pace with our second week which started with a walk over Belleair Causeway Monday morning, we had 3 bootcamps, I did at least a plank every day (multiple on bootcamp days), and we walked 4 miles over to the beach for sunset Friday evening. Kudos to hubby for that idea, I can’t think of a better way to end a work week.
Bootcamp during the week is with Greg. He pushes us hard while he cheers us on. It’s really a fun group to be in. On Saturday, bootcamp is with Ila who has a military style background. After two cardio-intense bootcamps during the week, Saturday’s bootcamp with Ila had a foundation and back focus with a lot of stretching. It was not as intense as Greg’s bootcamps, but I still felt every minute of it in my body when we finished. It hurts so good!
I am loving our time in the gym, whether it’s bootcamp or working out solo. I try to do cardio and weights on the nights we don’t have bootcamp. I also try and get at least two evenings a week in the sauna. It feels great on my tired muscles.
Overall, I am already feeling stronger. I look forward to each workout and I’m remembering why it is so good to track my foods. The My Fitness Pal app on my phone makes it very easy to track and stay on target. Smoothie King is also helping me stay healthy when I am on the road.
Two weeks down, ten to go!
Challenge Week 2
Weigh-In – 186.8 (4.2 pounds lost)
Activity:
Monday – 3 mile walk in morning, bootcamp at night (full body)
Tuesday – 20 minute treadmill run, leg press / leg curls / leg extensions (3 sets of each / 12 reps), 9 minute walk on treadmill, crunches, plank
Wednesday – 11 minutes on elliptical, bootcamp (full body), 10 minutes on bike plank
Thursday – plank
Friday – 4.20 mile walk to beach, plank
Saturday – bootcamp (foundation and back focus), plank
Sunday – 2 mile run on the treadmill, upper body weights (bicep curls, tricep kickbacks, shoulder shrugs, chest press), sauna (15 minutes), crunches, plank
Food:
Tracked my food every day this week and stayed within my calories all except one. I have been eating several small meals a day rather than 3 regular meals. Dinner has been the best as far as protein and veggies. Twice this week, I had a Smoothie King meal replacement for lunch which I find very filling.
In my 2017 intentions post, I shared that fitness is high on my list this year. I’ve pretty much spent the last year slacking off. I ran some, but not nearly as much as in years before. I basically became lazy, also not caring about what I was eating or drinking.
Hubby and I both knew it was time for us to get back in shape. We’ve spent too much time eating poorly and not being active enough. So, we joined Gold’s Gym! It’s been awhile since we both went to a gym and I have to say that after being there just a couple times, I realize how much I have missed it.
[Tweet “The one where I joined a gym AND a bootcamp. #ggchallenge2017 #contest”]
For me, going to the gym is about structure. Going with hubby means accountability. I cannot workout at home and get the same thing out of it. I’m too close to everything I need to get done around the house or work on my desk. It’s too easy to not give 100%. I love going to the gym with hubby in the evening. We don’t work out together at the gym as we do our own thing, but we are there for each other.
The gym will never replace running. I love running too much to do away with it. But the strength training I do at the gym will be very beneficial to my running and will help it. That’s icing on the cake since I would love to focus on my 5K time this year and get it down.
We joined the gym a few days before New Years Day. Last week, we took it a step further and decided to sign up for the 2017 Golds Gym Challenge as even more structure and accountability. We had a formal weigh-in with body measurements and body fat analysis. This. Was. Terrifying.I am at my heaviest ever in all the 44 years (almost 45) I’ve been on this earth. They took before photos of my in shorts and a sports bra. As tormenting as that was, it was also huge incentive to get my butt in gear. We will do the same thing at the end of 12 weeks to see what are results are.
Scenes from the gym this past week…
But the best part of the challenge? Besides actually getting in shape and feeling better AND the possibility of winning money? It includes 3 bootcamps a week for the 12 weeks. This alone made it worth it. I’ve never done a bootcamp style class before but hubby has and always did well with it and enjoyed it.
Last Wednesday was out first one and the good news is, I didn’t die. Our trainer Greg is great, he pushed us! We did 9 circuits 3 times, focusing on upper body and core. Me being brilliant, or so I thought, did my plank when we first got to the gym that night not even considering we might do some during bootcamp. By the end of the night I had done 4 planks. My arms and abs were jello.
Some of my planks from the week…
I will never be that 126 pound girl I was back in 2006 after working hard on Weight Watchers and working out twice a day. My metabolism is not what it was then and my body has changed drastically since our fertility treatments. Even if I could get back down to that weight, I could never maintain it. I don’t want to be unrealistic in my goals. I want to be healthy and comfortable in my skin. I want to run better and faster.And I want to feel good. If I can do that at 145 pounds, than that will make me happy. No… It would make me ecstatic.
Because I am such an all-or-nothing girl, I also immediately dove back into eating healthy the second we signed up for the 12 week challenge. I downloaded the My Fitness Pal app on my phone and started tracking my food based on the calories it suggested for me at my current weight and activity. I already love My Fitness Pal because it works in conjunction with FitBit and the Endomondo app I use when I run.
So, for the next 12 weeks, I am going to document my journey here. I plan to weigh myself once a week, each Monday. It’s more for me than anyone else, but I always feel like if someone is inspired by what I’m doing, then that’s even better. Here’s the thing… It really stinks to start over. But, you don’t have to be unhappy in your skin. You can always do something about it.
Bridge repeats on a Thursday evening
Sunday Runday with Corinna
Challenge Week 1
Official Weigh-In and Body Fat: 191 / 45.8%
Activity:
Monday – fit test for challenge sign-up and plank
Tuesday – plank
Wednesday – bootcamp and plank
Thursday – ran bridge repeats (3.76 miles) and plank
Friday – 2 miles on treadmill (run / walk), leg press, plank, crunches, sauna
Saturday – plank
Sunday – run 4.45 miles and plank
Food:
Tracked my food every day starting Tuesday morning. Did pretty well staying within calories each day except 2. Tracking calories which is so different than points on Weight Watchers. I am keeping an eye on my calories, fat, and carbs. Water is my drink of choice. Added fruits and veggies for snacks and for the most part, lean protein and veggies for dinner. I had Smoothie King for lunch one day to replace a meal. It seems so cliche to join a gym for the New Year, but it was the perfect time for us to make changes. I am proud of us for this first week and look forward to this next week to see how hubby and I do.
12 Week Challenge Goal – 171
End of 2017 Goal – 145
Have you taken a bootcamp class before or joined a gym challenge?
I’m so excited to talk about my top ten races today because I just got the most awesome pair of running shoes ever and I hit the pavement this morning for my first run since finishing my 100 day run streak and busting my baby toe. It was so nice to get out there.
I don’t have any races planned until the spring, but I am running a fun run this weekend with hubby and bestie. It’s a small local run, pumpkins and all, so it will be a fun way to get a 5K in.
On to my top ten favorite races… Not necessarily based on how I ran, but the races themselves. Ready, set, go!
10. Tampa Bay TimesTurkey Trot 5K – Running with hubby and friends the morning of Thanksgiving just minutes from our house is a favorite tradition. And always makes me feel better baout how much yummy food I’ll eat later on.
9. Rock N’ Roll Half Marathon – My first ever half marathon was Rock N Roll in 2012 in downtown St. Pete. Such a fun course and while it was incredibly hard given that it was my first half and I was totally winging it, I loved it enough to go on to do 14 more half marathons.
8. Women’s Running Half Marathon – My second every half marathon that I mostly walked the first year due to my sciatica and then PR’d at the following year.
7. Santa’s Twilight 5K – I really wish they kept this race at Honeymoon Island in Dunedin. Running in the cool weather, at sunset by the beach, is pretty amazing. The course was off one year, it was short which through off my PR, but I still loved dressing up for it. If they moved it back to Honeymoon Island, we would do it again.
6. Iron Girl – This race makes me happy because it takes me over my favorite bridges and Clearwater Beach. It’s challenging but I love every minute of it.
5. Gasparilla Distance Classic – Pirates, Bayshore Blvd., and Tampa love makes this a fun race. I’ve done the 8K and Ultra Lime Cactus Challenge (8K and 15K). I am on the waiting list for the Ultra Challenge in 2017 to do all 4 races. It would be a HUGE challenge, but I am up for it.
4. Sarasota Half Marathon – I love this race because it takes you through St. Armand’s Circle which is my favorite part of Sarasota. This is the first half marathon I ever ran under 3 hours and it made me so happy. They also have dolphin medals which I love.
3. Best Damn Race Orlando – Starts and ends at beautiful Lake Eola in downtown Orlando, I enjoy the route for this one. It also helps that this event in 2014 was and still is my PR for a half marathon!
2. Space Coast Marathon – One and only full marathon was at Space Coast in 2014 and I loved every minute of it. The course took us back by the start at the halfway point, we saw a beautiful sunrise, great support throughout, and a lot of spectators.
1. Best Damn Race Safety Harbor – Forever and always, my favorite event because the first year was on my birthday and who doesn’t want to have a race medal with their birthday on it? I run this race every year, I’ve done the 5K, the half marathon, and the 5K / 10K challenge. Being a Best Damn Race Ambassador is pretty awesome and I have met some wonderful people because of it.
And because I want everyone to enjoy the fun that is Best Damn Race, don’t forget to use my discount code NANCIC to save $5 when you register!
What race is on your top ten list? Hop on over to Run.Chew.Sparkle to see her Top Ten list too!
