happy holidays and a move

Hi all - Thought it was about time for a short update.  I moved cross country to the East coast!  It's not permanent - it's a year to two year long rotation, but I'm really excited about the change.  I finally am getting settled in after the tedious moving process and I found a cute little condo for rent and have been finding some new friends, doing a little hiking, etc.  Unfortunately, yesterday I came down with some kind of cold so now I'm laid up at home from work today.  Hoping to kick this to the curb ASAP.  Here's a pic of my new place (you can still see some boxes lying around... :o)

Other than that, life has been going well.  I got to spend some time with my parents over Thanksgiving and have been visiting with old friends.  I had a killer shopping day on Black Friday which ended in a few new sets of outfits for the new job and a lighter wallet.  I don't usually ever buy clothes, but this really felt good.  New location, new job, new clothes - seems to go together.  On the weight front, I've been hanging pretty steady around 125, or maybe a little under.  I'm really happy with where I'm at.

update - overdue but better late than never

Hi again.  I'm not really "back" - just wanting to post to give a brief update on life.  I'm back to a weight not too dissimilar to when I started this blog (back in 2006?  2007?) - but ironically thought I've been down and I've been up, I've mostly come full circle to where I've been and where I started.  I'm in a pretty good place with respect to weight.  I think the past couple of years have taught me more about extremes and how -- YES -- I can lose the weight if I do certain things (eat smaller portions, snack less, eat more veggies and fruit and less ice cream and brownies), and YES, I WILL gain it back if I change the behaviors.  The all-or-nothing approach was also not a great one, but one that I employed at certain times.  Would I like to lose "the last 5 lbs"?  Yes.  Am I actively trying to do so?  No.  So things have changed.

As far as meals and meal planning, I'm doing some, and I subscribed to the local CSA (community supported agriculture), so now I have no excuse not to eat more veggies/fruit -- and worse if I don't, I have to throw away really nice looking produce.  So far it has been working out pretty well.  I've also found that this produce tastes better even with little prep./marination time than some of the stuff I get at the store.  At the same time, I'm still enjoying some non-negligible  amount of eating out and work travel is ever-present.  I did make scones last weekend, too.  Ultimately, balance is key -- but it is a journey and I am taking my own path.

On the personal front, since my last post I ran another 1/2 marathon - the Rock n Roll Seattle - again with the running group -- back in late June.  Highly recommend this race -- it was fun!  It did not cater to women the way the Nike Women's in SF does so sadly no Tiffany's necklaces to speak of...  but fun in its own way and a good way to see a new city.  Since then I have taken a break from running and saddled up to biking and just finished a 50 mile "tour" (it's not called a race) last Sunday.  Really enjoying the riding.  I've also been getting to do some of the riding with my new (well, not that new, but new to you EPers) boyfriend (agh! I said it!) who is not long-distance (finally).  I was also the maid of honor in the first wedding I've ever been in, which took a lot of time and energy -- but excited for my friend and her new life!  There is a lot of change going on in my life as well right now, but I'm at a happy place.  I hope you all (if you are still around, lurking) are doing really well... and... I know you all wanted to see my smiling face, so... :D

nike women's recap in pictures

I completed the Nike Women's 1/2 Marathon last Sunday along with 3 of my friends and Shelley from EP and 20,000+ other women as well!  Unfortunately there are no official times posted, but overall I totally kicked my goal's ass.  The course was absolutely beautiful, the weather was perfect, and really the only thing I could complain about was getting up before the sun in order to queue up.  Oh, and the crowds.  The crowds also were not fun.  However, I'm getting ahead of myself.  I arrived in San Fran and immediately went to the race expo (after checking in at the Diva Hotel, of course).  The sign above greeted us.  "Run like a girl" seemed to be a central theme running through the weekend.  Immediately we could tell that Union Square seemed saturated with women.  Mobbed might be a more apropos word.  Niketown, which was right across the street, was also totally mobbed.  I was able to meet up with a few of my friends who live in the Bay Area now (one from high school, her bf, and then one of my friends from college) and enjoyed a nice Italian dinner with them.

On race day morning, before the gun went off, my race group got together and grabbed this candid shot.  It's a little blurry because there was no light (as I said, it was definitely not even the crack of dawn...) and we were jumping into the air.  That's me second from right :D

Anyway, I decided to line up in the timing group with the rest of my team, which was one heat behind the one I would have started in had I been without them.  Because of the large number of women running, we didn't cross the start line until over 20 minutes after the gun went off!  Craziness!  The first four miles for me was difficult because I was dodging various walkers and slower runners, trying not to step on heels, and weaving through traffic.  By the time I hit mile 6, I was thinking I could go on forever.  That's when the hills started.  Whew!  Those hills were not a joke.  Up, down, up, down, up down.  I was having text messages sent to my friend's fiance's phone (he was following us through the race with a camera) and I was embarassed I might have a very positive split.  Luckily, I think training at elevation (random fact: Abq is as high or higher than Denver) saved me and counteracted the hills.

However, the race was really well-supported and anything it lacked because of the sheer masses of participants was made up for by thoughtful organization and planning.  There were water, gatorade, Luna Moons, Luna Bars, fruit, and even Ghiradelli chocolate(!) stops along the race course.  There was a bag check pre-race.  There was a gospel choir and a full on bag-pipes troupe cheering us on at specific mile markers.  And of course there was the beautiful Bay Area scenery.  Between all of that and my iPod, I was cruising along and the race actually ended a little too soon!  Of course, meeting up with my friends again at the end was nightmarish and I didn't get to meet Shelley, which was disappointing.  However.... as I crossed the finish line, this man handed me a little blue box with a white ribbon...

...and after that everything was just fine!   Except for my quads of course, which took a definite pounding going down some of those hills.  My quads are still shouting expletives for putting them through the hills.  However, I did it and I also beat my most recent 1/2 marathon time by over a minute per mile!  (I think!  If they would only post our times...) 

All in all it was a great experience for me and I'd do it again, making some changes of course.  For example, I think I'd start perhaps even two heats ahead of where I started this time, and I'd definitely arrange for a ride after the race (back to the hotel) instead of using the "shuttle bus" service.  I leave you with a final tribute to the race: the finishers "medal".  I love my Tiffany's necklace!  My first item from Tiffany's...

 

Cheers!

the best laid plans of mice and men

In the words of Steinbeck, "the best laid plans of mice and men often go astray."  Let me start with a little bit of humor.  The following is a real picture I took last weekend and it sets the tone perfectly:



I'm getting ahead of myself though.  As a reminder, this past weekend I redeemed a free flight to/cheapo return from (unfortunately not at all direct) Colorado so I could go visit E.  Right.  So, E had made a bunch of fun plans for us, including a long hike and wandering around town.  However, when I got to CO, I arrived to the land of cold temperatures and copious amounts of snow!  Murphy's Law strikes again.  Let's just say that since this is still supposedly a blog about healthy habits, there was absolutely too little movement all weekend.  Luckily, it was still an incredibly fun time all around.

When I arrived in CO it was about 50 degrees.  We didn't do too much that day other than go out to eat at a Pho shop (mmm soup) and later, had a fish taco each.  Food will be the central recurring theme in this post, because we didn't do a lot else.  Luckily, the portions were kept in check.  The following day the temperature dropped down to 21.  Yes.  Cold.  Luckily I had my favorite winter peacoat and scarf with me, but it was still frigid.  We ended up watching some a Bollywood film, chatting a bunch, and I even saw his parents wedding video.  Super cute.  We also ate out at a Japanese noodle shop for lunch and an awesome Lebanese place for dinner (shared a combination plate with hummus, babbaganoush (sp?), gyro meat, tabbouli, pita bread, and falafel).  We got a little walking in, stumbling in and out of cute shops in the downtown/old town which was very quaint and endearing (besides the temperature).  Can you tell I'm not the biggest fan of cold?  Then it was time for me to return home!

And here I am back in the sunny, warm desert-like climate that is the American Southwest.  We both decided we want to see each other again, but due to travel schedules, it's not going to happen for a minimun of several weeks.  I'm trying to get him to get Skype in the meantime.  I'm heading up to San Fran this weekend for my race, finally!  I missed my weekend run this past weekend due to being in CO, but on Monday I ran 3 miles.  I'm pretty much tapering at this point.  I'm super excited to meet up with Shelley and have a great time this weekend at the Nike Women's 1/2 Marathon!
 
I want to leave you all with a smile since I've been smiling ever since I got back.  Here is a clip from the Bollywood film we watched :-)

posted later

To my wonderful blog friends -- thanks for checking in on me even when I'm not posting.  I composed the following post almost a week ago (6 days to be exact) on my work computer when I had no internet connection, and then I went out of town before I got the chance to post it online!  So this is old news, and I know it will leave you all hanging (since everyone is going to wonder how my trip to CO went!!), but I promise I'll get another post up soon.  A girl can build some suspense, can't she?   Here goes... keep in mind this was written a week ago:

My big race that I've been training all summer for is all of a sudden less than 2 weeks away.  I've had a round of work travel though lately and feel like I'm always on the road again.  Right now I'm chilling at the airport, which is always a good place to get a few minutes to write a blog update. 

Last weekend I did my last "long" run before the big event.  We went 11.5 miles, it was a slow day, but I was feeling strong and my legs felt strong the whole time.  Last week I was in Tuscon for work and it was a lot of fun -- never been there before this.  It was a strange combination of California (palm trees everywhere) and Albuquerque (lots of cacti and other desert fauna).  This weekend, I'm hitting the road to Denver, to meet up with E.  That's right!

The visit with him (couple hours during his layover in Abq) ended up going well and we both agreed that we wanted to see each other again.  We have been emailing each other everyday and seem to have quite a bit in common -- still.  So... I decided to be crazy and go up and visit him.  I have reserved an Econolodge close to his house and I have set times to check in with friends, so I'm definitely getting the "safety" issues ironed out in advance.  However, mostly I'm excited.  We are definitely not "in a relationship" or even "dating" yet, but just having fun getting to know each other better.  I'm looking forward to the trip!

A few fun facts about E:
- once was a radio announcer
- med school dropout
- likes working on cars

Haha, just realized that I am none of those things.  Oh well!  We still have a lot in common, and I'm excited because it sounds like he is excited too and we have a lot of fun things planned for the weekend (planning mostly done by him).

adventures in dating

Fair warning:  This post is not EP related.
Hi friends!  I'm feeling pretty excited about someone I met online.  So far, we have not met, and he lives in CO, which is the next state over, but we've been conversing for long enough (ok, only 2 weeks) that it seems like sparks are flying through the interwebs    I'm pretty happy because it's been a long time since I've been excited about anyone.  This guy seems very similar to me in beliefs/values/sense of humor and when we talked on the phone, the conversation wouldn't have ended except my stomach started complaining to the point that I was about to eat my hand.   

So...we're planning to each drive 1/2 way this Saturday for a little meetup!  Don't worry, I will bring a chaperone and/or meet in a public place so as to make sure it's safe.  Funny thing is I feel like I trust him already.  It's nice to be no longer lamenting about B.  This guy's name is E.  I really really hope that we get along as well in person as we do on the tubes and phone.  Wish me luck!  And also wish me luck for the 50 mile bike race I'll be riding on Sunday.

Take care, fair friends!  Monday is OVA'!!

practice 1/2

1/2 what?  1/2 marathon!  completed it in approximately 2:30 (my watch was slightly faster than the chip because of the start delay).  this of course was not my best time ever, but I was very happy with it!  i'm trying to get to sleep, but wanted to post this before doing so.



WOO WOO!  I was very excited at this point because we had spotted friends at mile 9 who were cheering us along (my friend's husband and another girl came with horns honking :)).

question to all of my friends who've done the nike women's 1/2 or full marathon: did you carry water and if not, did you feel there were adequate water stops?  I checked the website today and it said the full has 14 water stops, which was odd to me because I thought they would have one every mile.... insight on this would be much appreciated...

happy monday over!

halloooo out there

Hey, guess what, another post and it hasn't been 6 months!  LOL.  Thanks for the comments on my last post.  =)  I've been pretty excited about my running group, if it wasn't obvious.  When we all get our shirts in, we're going to take a group photo.  Today was a 6 mile run.  It's funny how some days are faster and some slower.  Today was a slow day.  Next weekend we are doing a local 1/2 marathon, which will be the longest I've run in quite a long time.  Looking forward to it, though!

This weekend, I'm house-sitting for one of my former roommates who now has a farm.  This is not a joke.  I am taking care of 2 beagles (1 is a puppy and not yet house trained...), 2 goats, 4 sheep, 20 chicken (including egg collecting!), and a flock of guinea fowl.  Again, no, this is not a joke.  Hahahaha.  I feel like city girl just got thrown into the country.  So far, so good, though.  They invited me to throw as many parties as I'd like at their house, which I am doing to full advantage.  They also have a nice propane grill which I used last night.  This evening, I invited a couple people over to cook thai food.  One of the guys used to work at a thai restaurant, so I think this is going to be good.

Other than that, I have a leisurely mountain bike ride scheduled for tomorrow, and a day hike on Monday (yay for holidays!), and nothing else scheduled but relaxation!  I also had a very positive feeling moment last week when one of my friends commented that her husband and his best friend had seen me mountain biking last weekend and the friend (who is also married), asked if I was single and when he got a positive reply said, "Wow, I can't imagine why?  Does she have some weird family issues or something?"  I chuckled at that, but I also just felt very upbeat that someone had said that, even if he is married :D  Always can use a boost of self-confidence!

I hope everyone has a super lovely and enjoyable Labor Day weekend!

new running gear

happy weekend.  just relaxing at home -- got a lot done today starting with a 6 mile run this morning.  it was a fast one though and even though we were averaging about 10:30 miles it felt good!  too bad I would crash and burn if I had to do twice the distance   my dad came on the run too and after that we did a little laundry, ate, and I dropped him off at the airport.  it was a good visit and i'm glad we got the time to hang out... good father-daughter bonding time.

i'm starting to get really pumped for the nike women's 1/2 marathon.  ...and i'm really excited to get to meet shelley and andrea if possible!  (hint hint...)

in preparation for the event, my running group bought team outfits.  my first running skirt and a dang cute pink tee specially for the race!  my fave part is that it says "run like a girl" on the back!  <3 it!  here's a picture of it on the rack: run like a girl shirt

...and here's a picture of me sportin' the new outfit:


PUMPED.

my friends have all commented that i have the healthiest dad ever and they are so impressed that he will come with us (and not only come, but keep up!) on the runs and that he will go mountain biking (we did that yesterday) and hiking.  his response: i hope to keep my body in the best shape possible and stay healthy so that someday i can be involved in my grandchildren's lives...maybe help take care of them sometimes, take them to school, and help them with their homework.  wow!  hmm... i wonder if that was a not-so-subtle hint...

how long has it been?

3 months?  Oooops... but I have been reading, I swear!  I've been busy!  Right now, for example, my dad has been in town visiting and will be here through next Saturday.  So it's been busy, but fun.  On the exercise front, I have been kicking it into gear while training for the Nike Women's 1/2 Marathon in October.  It's going to be a blast!  Two weekends ago was our longest run, 11 miles, so far in the training, and I thought it really wasn't that bad.  Of course, we were pretty much going at a snail's pace... but who cares!  Weight-wise, I've been up and down... today the scale said 134.8, so yeah, I need to update that little weight graph again...   I have noticed that my pants are a little too snug.... just proves that exercise is 1/2 the battle... gotta work on the eating as well.  However, having dad in town definitely helps!  We have been cooking up a storm, with me as the head chef and dad as the sous chef. 

Hope you are all doing well!  And hope to post again real soon!