!0 miler

Today was the day that I have been waiting for. Actually, it was the week that I have been waiting for. The high mileage. It's not that I didn't dread today, it's more like I actually feel like I am marathon training now. Doing a marathon is extreme so, I felt like I needed to run more. Now, I am.

I had to work all day today so I couldn't just run while I was at work like I have been doing. I woke up at 4 AM and drove out to a paved bike way. I want to say that it is 7.5 miles long. I will be able to use that road for awhile and I have another that I have in mind for my 20 milers that are coming in the few weeks.

I had been thinking about this run for a few days now because I had to wake up super early and also because I had to run in the dark. It's something that I haven't done before on my own. I ran the Disney Wine and Dine but, it was lit and a half marathon so I felt safe. Well, even though I was scared I prepared. My husband had a head lamp that I used and where I ran had some lighting and that was enough to get me through.

When I first started put on the run, I almost dreaded it because I felt ridiculous until I got about a mile in and I noticed that all of the fishermen had headlamps on too but I was the only one running. All I could think to myself was OH the joys of training for a marathon ha ha. I listened to my Dave Ramsey podcast and just kept thinking about keeping my mind right and running and getting out of debt. It was really weird running with the headlamp, it kept tripping me out. I am sure it will not be the last time that I use it so I am keeping things in my mind that will help me to make my run just a bit more comfortable next time.

After my first 5 miles I turned on the music and when I turned around I was facing the horizon and the sun was rising. I can't explain to you how beautiful it was to just look at the sky change it's colors. Colors that are so deep, and that are never quite the same. That pretty much held my attention for the rest of the run. Oceans came on my iPod and I just started smiling and enjoying everything around me. I saw the shadows of the fishermen trying to get their catch and I saw the canal come to life with more bikers and walkers getting their morning walks in. I wish I would have brought my phone with me but I brought my iPod because I brought my water bottle in hand, I have a gigantic iPhone 6 plus ughhhhh seriously great phone but that is not really meant for runners LOL.

Overall my run went great. I made it to work on time, I am really tired as I am writing this but I can't go to bed until 10......duty calls. I feel great. My legs feel a little bit worn out but that is normal as it has been a REALLY long time since I have run anything over the 9 miles I ran a week or so ago. I booked my hotel tonight and I have to stay a little but aways from the race but it's only 20 minutes so I am mentally planning now how and when I am going to get to the race without getting in tons of traffic. It looks like it will be a 5 AM wake up for us.

It's a pretty crazy thing to say but I am enjoying the journey that running is taking me on. I am getting to be at peace with myself and think things through, it's a truly wonderful feeling. Until next week with another running update.

Revisiting getting out of debt.

Debt......

Well all have it or had it at one time and well, it sucks! 

I am getting anxiety over being debt free and I am getting serious about it. It is one of those things that you wish you could just get rid of in a day and you can't. It takes time, patience, and a way of living that many of us are probably not comfortable with right? I mean that's why we ignore it ha ha! 

I have been researching ways to pay debt and I have always known about Dave Ramsey but the thing about him was that I could not wrap my mind around the fact that I had to save $1000 before paying off my bills. Now, I am to the point where I am desperate to get rid of this garbage so I am ready to start my little nest egg and get my debt paid off. 

Another mistake that I make consistently is the fact that I give myself an allowance but I don't tell my allowance where to go and I leave it up in the air all the time. The problem with that is that I don't tell my money where to go and when I need to make a big purchase or I have to service my car I don't take it into account because I don't save for it and well, now that I am actually ready to tackle this thing I am totally ready to commit and do it the very smart Dave Ramsey says to do it. 

Dave Ramsey has 6 baby steps. I don't think it is appropriately named though. The thing is, saving $1000.00 and paying off all your debt (the first two steps) are not baby by any means. Those are the hardest ones to accomplish! So I am just going to call them steps.....I don't know why just let me do my thing here LOL. 

So. This month I begin saving 1,000.00 for my emergency fund. I am not quite ready to disclose how much debt I am in but it is enough for me to FREAK out. The do include my car payment, credit cards, and student loans. I will be going after the credit cards, student loans, then my car. It is not going to be easy and I couldn't tell you for the life of me when I am going to get done. I would love for it to be by the end of next year but I think that it is big bite to chew......I am going to think about a total end date but I will say that I am giving myself until the end of next year to be credit card debt free. THAT I know I can do. 

We are in the process of getting ready to move again so our income is going to change and we are not quite sure what our rent, utilities, among other things are going to be so I would like to be conservative for right now in judging how fast I can pay it off. 

I will be keeping accountability updates on my blog for me so that I can go back and look at this journey much like my marathon journey. Wish me luck! 

Back on track with training!

Whew! Labor Day weekend came and went didn’t it. I had such a blast with my cousin  and son that I would just like to go back and do it all over again. 

I don't usually do my makeup or hair so I am documenting the moment.

I went to New Jersey where my cousin had planned a big bash with all of my cousins but I unfortunately was the only one that showed but I made it worth their while. I ate a lot and we danced, laughed, and talked the night away. Let’s just say that marathon training was not on my mind that weekend and I knew that would be the case because when I am with my family it becomes about being with my family. I am sure many of you would agree. I really think that there are times where you just have to live life to the fullest and then get back on track. Honestly it helps me stay sane!

I knew that I would be going to my cousins house so I adjusted my schedule at work and I did my 9 mile run in the morning. I drank my Generation UCAN and out the door I went 30 or so minutes later. I always go out on my run and think WOAH lady how are you going to do 9 MILES! Even though it is not the furthest my little feet have taken me, I have not run that far in a VERY long time. I also took my water bottle with me and let me tell you what a pain in the rear that is! It was pretty annoying to carry a fanny pack for my gigantic phone, and my water bottle. I was a mess to say the least and very uncomfortable. I digress……I started my run thinking how I was going to finish it and that it was going to take forever (for those of you that aren’t runners the first mile is always negative talk). Around mile 2-3 is when my bra strap unattached itself and when my little fanny pack and water bottle started irritating my life. I can say that the beginning of this run was not going how I wanted it to so I put on some music in order to change my mindset and BAM that was the magic that I needed. 

My feet feel into stride and I began finding my pace, breathing, and started thinking about life. I always tend pick apart my days, solve problems, and come up with my most creative ideas and it started happening and my run became better. I forgot about the discomforts and just kept going for it. 

I did start thinking about Brandon this time which I CRIED during my run but only for a second and then I put a stop to that! I started visualizing myself running to Brandon and that the end was finally there. The end, being him being 18 and both of us not being held back by what a stupid piece of paper, a judge ordered, or the control of when we can and can’t see each other is finished. I thought about all of it being done and him coming to live with me and wanting to hang out with me and see what living with me was like and then BOOP I started to cry and smile and cry some more. 

I thought about the journey that we are going through and the journey that we still have left and the bittersweet moment that I want things to go by so fast but I don’t. Being me is weird and confusing sometimes but I feel into the emotion and let it sit there for awhile because I can’t…..I can’t be who I am when I am alone all the time. I can’t be weak all the time. I have to  be strong so Brandon can be strong and so that people don’t pity me because that’s not what I want. I had the moment and I think back to it and now I smile because I just let myself be me. 

My Monday Morning Run

I think that is why I like running so much. It is that time when I can be by myself and feel the things that I need to and pray when I need to because if you are a Mom, wife, and you work full time there is never enough time in a day and when can you really be by yourself? I am always surrounded by people. I am always thankful of the fact that I get to run a few times a week and truly be me if just only for 30-60 minutes at a time in a place other than the rest room! ;)

Monday morning run

Today I put on my shoes ready my She Reads Truth Bible in one year reading and got out the door. I stood in front of my garage waiting for my GPS watch to connect and I breathed in a big inhale of humidity. I was wondering where in the world Saturdays weather (79 with little humidity) went. I am not that big of a fan no....let me be honest here I hate winter like, A LOT, but the runner in me is craving air that isn't so thick and temperatures that are cooler. I started my run and it was much like a typical Monday morning for anyone else. I had to tie my shoes twice before getting them just right for me feet to feel balanced and good and I was sweating literally 2 minutes into my run. Despite these little annoyances I was SO happy to be out there running. I decided early on that I was going to ignore my watch and wait for it to beep to tell me my miles as they passed by because I was extending my current 4 mile route another mile. 2 miles in my curiosity got the best of me and I looked. My pace was excellent. I was not in easy run pace but I just wanted to let myself go and run, I just wanted to be free to think about what I wanted and my legs to just GO! I knew my lungs would carry me, those babies are trained! 

I was listening to my music versus podcasts so I could get lost in the beat and in my mind and it was simply perfect. Tenth Avenue North came on and I was praising Jesus.....hand up and everything I might add all while singing some of the chorus. It was simply beautiful because as I made my way around the school parking lot this sun was rising and a new day was coming. The sky was filled with orange and magenta with a pale blue in the background. I thanked Jesus for the beautiful morning and felt kind of bad for complaining about the humidity. I then thought about how awesome God is and how lucky I am to be running the race that I am running in honor of Ellie Mae. I thought about how truly awesome it is to be able to give to someone else. I looked down at my watch and realized that I was still holding my pace and something came over me.....just the thought that I do this well and a feeling like I am doing the right thing in running and being able to right about it and also use it as a way to give to others. 

I think that listening to music is in a way more my deal because I get so in tune with myself and with God. I feel better running and praying versus sitting and reading. Don't get me wrong I enjoy reading the word and getting all into it but I enjoy running and being in the moment it feels like with God better than reading it's like He's there with me sending chills down my back letting me know that I am good and He is with me. 

Marathon Training Week 4

WOW I can't believe I am a month into marathon training! That's pretty exciting but, the road ahead is a long one theoretically and seriously!

I feel like I am still trying to catch my groove with cross training, running, and nutrition. Its such a tricky balance overall I need to eat more so I am giving myself a chance to get used to eating again since I have ramped up the calorie burn. I have been getting pretty bored with food lately so I will be making some changes to our grocery list soon! I have to be more blog minded so I can share things other than recaps!

Cross training is changing once again! I am going to do Les Mills Pump. It is the program that I wanted to use to begin with but I thought my husband was using our barbell but alas he is not SO I am super excited to start because Les Mills is really only meant to be used 3 times a week so it's a win and it keeps me from working out 5 times a week for an extra 30 minutes. My plan is to do Les Mills Tuesday and Thursday and calm yoga on Sunday to stretch from my runs.

SO how did my training go this week?

It went pretty well! My husband took off with the kids to see his family so I had the house to myself and it enabled me to make a schedule that I wanted for running SO it was nice not to worry about family time and running. The only problem with that was that I was wanting to run more because I had all the time in the world and I wanted to keep busy but I didn't. I stayed right on schedule.

My husband was able to see Ellie Mae while he was visiting with family. She wasn't doing to well and was getting treatment while they were there but she was able to ride tricycles and play with the kids so I am sure that lifted her spirits!

Ellie and her Dad riding bikes together

Yesterday I did my long run right before I picked up my husband and kids from the airport. I was so excited about picking them up that it was hard to maintain the 10:05 minute pace that I was supposed to run. I settled in at 9:55 because it was kind of hurting to run that slow after awhile. I ran 10:20 for a few miles and that felt ok but I felt like I was forcing it so either I have to discipline myself more or I have to speed it up just a tad but we'll see as the weeks go on. This was my first time actually trying to slow down my pace, when I did my 6 and 7 mile run I was running at 9:07. I think I might have to do a mile test or something to really gauge where I am at......speaking of I need to get my hands on a track LOL.

This week was pretty good and I can say that another week is down and thank God I am injury free. It was nice to have a break from my family obligations and just be me for a little while but I am glad that they are home.

In the week that they have been gone I realized that I love giving to my family and loving them. I missed the little things like bringing my daughter to bed with me to hang out in the mornings and to actually cook for more than just me. I have to say that a few weeks before they left I was thinking that I was selfish for wanting to read a book and just relax and the tables turned and I actually missed doing things for them. My life is full and I am grateful for the craziness that is my life.

I am so happy she is home! Can you tell?

Morning cuddles with Momma!

She always eats my strawberries so I gave her some of her own.

My current playlist

I really love looking at other runners playlists for a few reasons and I am sure they are all obvious

1. I am nosy and want to know what kind of music you are into.
2. I need ideas because I play out all of my music like a kid learning a new thing.


I am pretty excited to share mine. I go through many moods while I am running so most times I won't listen to my playlist straight through and I will just skip songs because I am just not feeling them that day. I don't know what mood I am going to be in but hip hop always makes my day and Dave Guetta "Mama" is the song that currently gets me in step. If I am upset than "Photographs" and "Cold Case Love" by Rihanna are drumming in my ear......see it all depends because I am a woman with a million emotions and I no idea which mood is going to come out to play. With that said before I share my playlist and my podcast library I do know that many people go through many emotions while they are running so I am preparing for ALL of them because I know I am going to cry, want to quit, and want to dance all in the same few hours and maybe in the same few miles!

I kind of listen to everything so it keeps me happy especially since my playlist is eclectic. It's just a snapshot of what it is that I listen to but hopefully you can gain some ideas. I truly am listening to podcasts right now and trying to soak up all of the marathon knowledge that I can and it has been helping me with my mindset to not over do it because I am a kind of a more is better person. Today I was a bit down for the count with a sinus gunk thing. I don't know where it came from but I didn't do my cross training. I am finally starting to feel better, we will see how that goes in the morning. I hope I can get my 8 miles in so I can get it over with and rest and be done with week 4 of training. 2 more weeks and I get into and stay in the double digit long runs! AH!

Until next time!

Marathon Training Week 3:

I can't believe that I am going onto Week 4 of training. Unreal that I have been running and loving it for a month and by that I mean training.

I have been mixing it up a bunch so I think it is keeping everything fresh and not boring. I am still not high up in the mileage, I am going to do 8 this week but it's not until next week that I go to 9 and then from there it gets a bit crazy with double digit training runs and they don't go back to the single digits until after race day when I reverse taper.

I have been waking up early (around 5) and getting my runs in because the humidity here in New England it a bit ridiculous! I did my long run on Friday because I had to take my family to the airport on Saturday and I thought it was going to rain all day but it did that today......Anyway I had gotten it done and ran my 3 miles on Saturday evening.

My husband is actually going to visit Ellie at St Jude tomorrow with my kids. She is there for a whole month receiving treatment. I am excited for her because she will get to meet Molly and hang out with Cristian for a bit so I hope that lifts her spirits! I am really excited to hear about how she is doing! Hopefully it is as good of news as you can get.

This week I did 4 runs and 4 days of cross training. I ran 4 miles on Monday and Wednesday and 7 miles on Friday and 3 on Saturday. Monday- Wednesday I did 21 Day Fix workouts  Thursday I rested Friday I only ran and yesterday I did some yoga and my 3 mile run.

It's almost hard to believe that I am going to run a marathon because "training" only feels like a workout for now but I am going to ramp up my training in the next few weeks.

I suppose that it was pretty uneventful I am just getting it done week by week. I still feel super motivated because I feel that I am giving to another by raising money and running for the cause. I get why people do it now. While I don't have to fundraise for St. Jude I am doing it because I feel called and compelled to since this seriously hits close to home.

Until next week!

Will you help me?

I want to do more than run — I want to help run St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. 

This is Ellie Mae.

 

 My niece Ellie Mae has been diagnosed with Lymphoblastic Lymphoma last December. She is currently in remission but still receiving treatments at St. Jude and will be for the next two years. Ellie and her family has been fortunate enough not have to pay bills for treatment and running this marathon would be my way of paying it forward and saying THANK YOU to St. Jude for helping my family out in their time of need! The road that Ellie Mae is on is long and this marathon is symbolic of what she is going through and how we all know and pray will end in pure JOY!



It costs $2 million a day to operate St. Jude. Did you know that 70% of the funds come from the public? That means your donation, no matter what the size, will help!


Thanks to donors like you, no family ever receives a bill for treatment, travel, housing or food — because all a family should worry about is helping their child live.


Thank you for helping me run St. Jude!

You can make a donation here! 

How I get ready for a workout!

I was graciously inspired by the Team at ETB FIT to write a post on how I get ready and fuel for a workout! They are a legit company that provides fitness supplements for atheletes! When I was asked to write the post I was super excited because the topic of getting ready for a workout is right up my alley!

I am asked often how I get ready to workout especially when I don't really want to and how I stay so motivated to continue to workout. My answer may sound a little vain but after living for 10 years in a body I didn't like and being so comfortable in my skin now, I would not have it any other way. I am pretty accustomed to working out now, that it is simply, just a part of my day now.

To get started with my workout days on the weekend, I usually have a grain free and dairy free protein shake and if I am working out in the morning I wait an hour and then I do whatever workout I have planned for the day. During the week I have my protein shake and eat my breakfast around 9:30 at my desk and wait until my lunch break at 11:30 to workout. Now that I am training for a marathon I am running at 5 in the morning and doing some cross training 4 times a week. I am doing the 21 Day Fix Extreme and yoga on the weekends.

My typical breakfast

During my workouts if I am running I am a big fan of podcasts unless I am over listening to people talk, then I'll listen to dance and techno music on my iPod I usually find that keeping to a beat keeps me in cadence and I zone out on the music and focus on my form and steps which assists me in not being so tired. Music and podcasts keep my mind focused on other things rather than simply running. I know there will be times where I am on a long run especially at the beginning of my run where my mind likes to go to negative places and asks me why I am running so far ha ha ha.

 I am a firm believer in cross training. I don't think anyone should one trick pony anything. It keeps everything fresh and new which is why I incorporated strength training and yoga to my daily routine. I have been doing that for about a month now and I am still eager to get out and run just as much as I am to strength train and I am finding that I am recovering if at all from my longs runs by the next day, so there is something seriously to be said about that.

After my workouts I usually wait about half an hour and then go on about eating for my day. I don't take any recovery supplements at the moment. If it is during the week I will just grab my lunch and eat that after my workout and if it is during the weekend I tend to have a small snack or eat my next meal depending on how hungry I am.

St. Jude Marathon Week 2

 Week 2 is complete. I finished it today as a matter of fact with a 7 mile run. I was reading on Facebook yesterday how Ellie Mae is back at St. Jude for treatment. She will have to keep going back for treatment for a few years even though she is in remission. The more that I am following in her journey the more I realize that cancer sucks even more than I initially thought.

For those of you that don't know because I don't think that I have shared; last December my niece Ellie Mae was diagnosed with Lymphoma. There are two types of Lymphoma and they found that she has both of them which shouldn't have happened. Most, well up until her I believe she is one of the only or few that has gotten both types. She has been in and out of hospitals since she got a diagnosis.

I got into running the St. Jude marathon because I was actually training for a half marathon at Disney World and I downloaded a bunch of podcasts and heard a lady talking about her experience at the marathon and I looked it up and saw that the race was this December and I thought that I wasn't going to be ready for the race. I left it alone and wrote it down on my race bucket list that I made.

When my oldest son went back home with his father I started looking at races and I wanted to do the Puerto Rice marathon but we thought that it wasn't a smart financial decision so I went and looked up St. Jude and we can just say that the stars aligned LOL. I signed up for the race that day and that was that.

So now that you have the back story as to why I am running and who Ellie is, I will tell you about Week 2.

This week I dropped the PiYo and I started doing the 21 Day Fix Extreme workouts. I don't want to lose the strength that I do have so I opted to try this instead and every Sunday do some yoga so tomorrow I will see how that fairs for me. I am doing Upper Fix, Lower Fix, Cardio, and Plyo. Friday I rest before my long run so I am running 4 days and doing strength for 4 days and yoga for 1 day. We will see how it goes so far so good.

My biggest problem is toning it down and keeping myself from running so my runs were all over the place. One run was at a 10 min pace and 1 was at 8:59, another I was at 9:07 and another at 9:12. I don't really know what I want my pace to be! I guess this is a reason well, one of the many that training is so long so I can figure it out. I do not have any speed drills or anything on my training plan they are all easy runs and my long run. I think that I am going to make my marathon pace somewhere between 9:00-9:30 and then keep my long runs and easy runs at a 10:00 pace?? We will see what I come up with.

I am still really motivated and still feel all the excitement of running a marathon because it is so far away still but I have had a few moments where I freaked the hell out asking myself how in the WORLD am I going to get 26.2 miles done! HA HA HA HA! I keep to my motto that God will be there with me and Ellie Mae will be there in my thoughts and while she is battling this disgusting cancer I will be running for her. While she is in bed and should be playing and running with her brothers and friends I will be running with her in mind and take her with me :)

Marathon training Week 1 rundown

I am so excited to be blogging again. I am keeping a personal journal of my training experience as suggested by the Non-runners Guide To Marathon Training. I am really enjoying that process so I decided to just blog it as well so I can share with everyone because it is true you have different emotions every day and people only tend to see the outcome of the labor and not the process and I am all about that process. It's what gets you there to that point you know? All the bad days and the monumental breakthrough days, they all get you to that one singular point where you reach your goal. It's all encompassing. 

So anyway, back to the point. I am using a training plan from Myheartracesblog.com and it is going pretty well. She has a 16 week plan so I am doing week 1 and 2 and then doing it again since I started with 18 weeks until the marathon. Yesterday was my long run day I had 6 miles.

It was cloudy when I woke up and I was trying to hurry and get going before it started to rain but it had started right before I got to where I was going to start my run and I almost turned around to wait it out but I stopped myself from going home because when I did the Wine and Dine it rained the whole way so I know that I needed to train in all conditions because I don't know what I will be getting myself into come race day so out I went. I turned my Garmin inward and my phone in my clothes and went at it. I decided to run a bit faster but comfortable rather than try to hold myself back. I had the energy and I just went for it. I ended up running a 9:10 average pace which I thought was good so I am going to try and aim for that pace for my marathon. We will see what happens from here until then and if I can maintain that pace but for right now that is my goal. 

Overall the week went well I ran 4 times last week and I felt like I could have run more which is hinting that I am not over training by any means but that I am right on course. I have been doing PiYo and that was pretty good I really enjoyed the stretch but I think I am going to add some weight training twice a week. A big mistake that I noticed when I trained for my half marathons and what I have been researching is that I dropped everything and almost had to build muscle again because I wasn't cross training SO with that said 2-3 times a week I am going to strength train and once a week rock a yoga workout so that I am working on everything; strength, flexibility, and my runs. Maybe this will keep me at the pace that I need to be for that marathon and of course if I get too tired than I will be backing off some and incorporating more yoga to my life.

I plan on posting my favorite podcasts, books, and running gear that I am into! Until next time!


XO Jeannettte

A marathon and a story about a girl

I have been hit by the running bug again and I have now scheduled myself for a marathon in December. I will be running the St. Jude Marathon in Tenn. I am really excited about running this race and I am honestly pretty scared at the same time!

My son went back home, his summer vacation with me is over and I decided that instead of crying that I would do something bold and sign up for a marathon. I had my heart set on Puerto Rico but my husband got the best of me so St. Jude it is. Now that I am registered and all that I am very happy with my first marathon ever choice.

This race is important to me because my niece had the unfortunate news of having cancer. She was admitted last December and she is now thanks to the team at St. Jude in remission. I am so happy that she is in remission but she still has a long road ahead of her. I had heard about this marathon on a podcast and researched it and when I first did I was just scared that I wouldn't be able to do it so I clicked off the registration page. You could say that my son gave me the courage to run this race.

St. Jude is an amazing organization! My family has not had to pay for the hosiptal visit and have incurred no cost to them as far as her stay goes. Donations from those generous people like you and I pay the bill so that the kids can get their treatment. I think that in itself is an amazing gift to those children and families that may not be able to pay for treatment. The longer that my niece is under their care and the more I learn about St. Jude over time the happier I am that God placed this race on my heart to run.

I am running this one for Ellie Mae. I am running because if she can go through all this treatment with a smile on her face then I can run this and suffer through with her. Even if just for a moment being that it is not even the same. Every time I run I take a minute to think of her and it gives me the motivation to keep running in addition to Hebrews 12:1

This will be the race that will let me know that I want to pursue running marathons more often and it will give me that sense of accomplishment towards a goal. I know that this is going to be mentally, emotionally and physically demanding. I am thankful to my husband who is going to be helping with the kids on my long run days and for his backing on this whole adventure. He gets the pay off of getting a mini vacation so it's a win win right?

Jeff Galloway Method

Today I was going to rest but I felt great when I woke up at 5:30 this morning with my trouble that I decided to do my run. I am not going to be able to run on Saturday so that will be my rest day so tomorrow will be a short run. I just switched out my long run and short one.

So yesterday I was listening to the podcast The Running Lifestyle and I heard an interview with Jeff Galloway and since I am doing the Disney race this November I thought it would be cool to try out his method. I must say that while listening to him yesterday I was a bit intrigued.

If you don't know about his method than what it is, is a style of running that over time will improve your time and decrease the chances of injury. For me, well. Sign me up! I was a bit hesitant at first because the prospect of walking had me instantly thinking that I was a failure for even stopping runners run not walk. Thinking like that isn't going to get anyone anywhere so this morning I thought....well Jeannette why not? I mean you have nothing to lose.

I got out this morning and set my Runkeeper app at intervals with 3 minutes of running and 30 seconds of walking for 15 intervals. I thought that would take me at about an hour but I misjudged it by about 4 minutes but that's ok I just ended my run running for a few more minutes. My goal today was to try the run walk run method for 6 miles.

I can tell ya that the first few intervals I was like WHAT. THE. HECK. I just started and I am walking but instantly I stopped those negative thoughts and thought that I just had to trust the process. It wasn't until about half way through my run that I realized the magic in this method! I felt no pain and now 4 hours after my run I am not feeling cramped up or even like I am going to be sore tomorrow. I kept my pace at 9:30 the whole time which I was good with and felt great doing it. Through the end of the run I decided that I would stride a bit longer to go a bit faster and that helped keep me motivated to run until the end. I would totally recommend this style of running especially when you are trying to get used to running and you want to keep going on long runs. I think that I am going to stick to straight runs for anything that is under 5 miles and use the run walk run method for my longer runs and see how I like that.

I have to say that it would be beneficial to set up the intervals on your phone and not look at your watch to time your intervals because then it would probably be super annoying and not helpful. The Runkeeper app just beeped and the sweet lady told me that my interval had started again. I wasn't really paying attention to the intervals after awhile just enjoying my podcast on my run.

I think everyone should give it a try and see if it is for them and if not well hey you had nothing to lose and you tried something new to see if it was a good fit.

Here is a pic of my splits for the run and some of my intervals.

One of these days I will take those cool stills of me running........

3 mile run and Kayla

Today was probably the most beautiful day all week. It is going to be a short post because I am eager to get back out there and read for a little while before lunch time!

My daughter woke us up at 5:30 this morning and MAN I was tired when I woke up but I took my probiotic, L-Glutamine and protein shake and waited out the hour and a half before I could take her to daycare. I was a little bit not happy with her as she slept like a champ yesterday....it must be her teeth? Who knows with kids. This one for sure I call trouble because that is what she causes LOL. I mean it in all good fun.

I was reading my Marathon book yesterday and I got about 120 pages into it and she had these awesome journal entries that she added into the book and I think that I might do the same. I am not sure I can keep up all these blogging days but I can commit to once a week sitting down and blogging about my training experience. It's something that I haven't done before so for me to remember what this is all like I plan to do it. Plus, I really liked reading her story and the blogs of others so maybe I can offer up some motivation and be able to look back at my life one day?

So anyway, I got off track. I dropped the baby off this morning and I seriously just wanted to close my eyes and take it all in because seriously it feels that great out here. It's like 70 degrees a nice breeze and that humidity that I had been fighting was gone. I was a little sore but I went for it, I had three miles in my mind so that is what I set out to do. I got started and crazy enough I was able to keep my pace all along which was about a 9 minute mile. I am pretty stoked about that and I aimed to keep it there because it was such a short run so why not push. As I was almost done I caught a groin cramp that I am still trying to release but it dulled down almost as soon as it started. I am totally taking that as a sign that tomorrow is probably going to be a walk day for me. I was almost done and the pain had went away so I decided that I would try to see if I could PR on a 5K which I think my fastest was 29 minutes I don't know I don't really keep track of that but today I finished in 28:30 which was super cool! I was so excited.

Through out my run I was listening to a podcast call The Running Lifestyle and she had Jeff Galloway on her show and I was totally intrigued by the run walk run method. SO much so that I am going to try it out on my 6 mile long run to see what exactly this is all about. I am going to do more research on it, I think that I have to do a thing called a magic mile where I run a mile as fast as I can and then I will be able to gauge where I am at in addition to see what my run walk run splits are......This sounds pretty exciting but we'll see if I am into it or not. I am not really training for anything right now so it's not going to be a loss.

UGH I did the Kayla workout Week 5 Wednesday......it was upper and core and those are pretty much my weak spots......I probably should have waited until this evening or this afternoon to do it because my performance pretty much sucked. I am just going to leave it at that and just go with the fact that every workout isn't going to be 100% and sometimes you just have off days and today was one of them. I'll get it next time :)

My sister is driving up to visit me and she will be here tomorrow. I really can't wait until she comes! I have been spoiled this summer with my parents coming home to help me out with the kids and my sister coming up with my niece and nephew and her hubby. The house is going to be packed but it is going to be such a great time. I will have to fill you all in on that adventure after she has gone.

Until next time!

5 miles why not?

Today my daughter let us sleep until 7:30 which is seriously a blessing. I have my son home for the summer and she is now sleeping in our room and I love my kids to pieces but I can't wait until she can have her room back!

So anyway, I woke up at 7:30 this morning and got ready for my run and got my daughter ready for daycare. We got there around 8 and by 8:15 I was off running. I didn't really know how far I was going to run but I knew I wanted it to be close to an hour so I just went with the flow and went as far as I could. 5 miles was how far I went.

My run was pretty flat which is just what I needed because yesterday I started week 5 of the Kayla Itsines workout and let me tell you my legs felt a little bit heavy. Today's run was pretty good, I started off a bit fast I have to keep in mind to keep my pace through it's just that I go and well.....yeah I get a bit tired. You can see from my splits that I stayed steady after mile 1 which was a 9:07 mile.

Today was pretty humid and hot especially since I started out at around 8:20 so it only got hotter from there. The humidity almost felt like I had something over my face keeping it a bit hard to breathe. Maybe, it is just me getting used to pounding the pavement again who knows?

I have loosely been thinking about running a marathon so I started reading this book. I do get that I am not a beginner runner but I will be if I do decide to run a marathon a beginner marathoner. I have only read the introduction as it came in the mail today and already I am liking the ease and humor that the author has. I feel like it is going to be a light and easy read and that I will learn a bunch from it. 

I will share the things that I have learned with reading the book :)

After I came home from my run I ate breakfast and I showered and I took the kids to the movies. We went and saw Inside Out. It was a really good movie, we all really enjoyed it. I probably wouldn't get it on DVD or anything but it was nice to relax and enjoy some time with my kids and listening to them laugh at the same things that I did and then others they didn't LOL I love how movies an a few adult jokes in there to keep the parent occupied and entertained. I would recommend it though if you are looking for something to do with your kids.

I am kind of running out of ideas of things to do with the kids other than the big plans I have for them to go and visit The Flume in New Hampshire and to go to the Childrens Museum in Boston but who knows what I come up with? What do you like to do with your kids during these long summer days?

I am a runner

Any time that something has defined me with the exception of the military I have silently walked away from it and moved on. In the past I have run two half marathons and running has really been my therapy over the years. My love for running has really started in Alaska, there was nothing else really to so and I saw that other people had lose weight with running so that is where I started my initial journey. I did run in the Army but there is something about it being part of your job where you just do it. You just run. I prided myself in getting faster but when I got out of the Army in 2002 I just let it all go. So back to Alaska, I started running there and joined all the races that the Island promoted, like the 5K's and 10K's. 

I was ALL into it I got running shoes and bought running clothes and even got the subscription to Runners World. Yeah......I was a runner then. Then came the winters and I stopped running. I liked to call myself the running Diva but let's get real running in an Alaska winter isn't for the faint of heart and I had only been running for a few months. I waited until the summer came and then picked up running again. I remember seeing an ad for the Disney Princess Half marathon and I remember telling my husband right in our garage that I was going to run that run one day and when we moved to Mass that is what I did. I signed up for the race and geared up for my first half marathon. I didn't train well for it because well......winter came. LOL Yeah I didn't run in that ish! ha ha! So my training did go so well but I finished the thing in 2:13. I kept running after that but then I got pregnant and I had to slow it down and I signed up for the Disney Wine and Dine half and after I had the baby, around this time last year I started training for that. That training was a lot better and I was able to run the whole thing in 2:12 but I recovered a TON faster because I actually followed the training plan that I found on the internet. 

Winter came again and again I stopped running, this year I am singed up to do the half marathon at Disney again in November so I am going to start running again along with doing the Kayla Itsines workout plan to keep up with strength training because I believe that is something that you should never give up. 

I am excited to be running again and I really need to do a ton of research on winter running and the gear for that and get off my butt in the winter and run. This time I am going to keep up with it and truly make running a big part of my life again. 

I don't know what training plan I am going to follow this time I have 2 that I have my eye on but we shall see what happens. 15 weeks out so I have a week or two to decide what it is that I want to do. I can't wait and I am so excited to be able to run again. Now if I could only give as much time to blogging as I do exercising I guess I would be in better shape! 


Happy running. 

Getting my eating in check.

Summer time is here and I am slowly falling off the healthy wagon. It happens every summer doesn't it? I am ready to get back on the train though so that I can feel better about myself. Of course I am going to make the best choices that I can but IT IS the 4th of July holiday weekend and that calls for a few drinks! I have been working like crazy 2 overnight days this week which is really stressing me out because my son is here on vacation and has been since Sunday but I feel almost as if I have not been home at all. Not to mention he plays with his brother all the time so it makes it a bit like we are never in the same place at the same time. I am READY to be home.

We have plans to go to the beach and to watch fireworks here in town (traffic permitting) I can so anxious to be able to get out of work and to actually spend some quality time with my family as I feel like I have been working non stop. I think I have seriously been at work more than I have been home this week.

So needless to say I have a little bit of time on my hands so I have made a meal plan for myself for the next two weeks. Keep in mind that I don't mind eating the same thing every day and I am probably going to change things around in the dinner department because my mother is home and she cooks dinner so I will be more than happy to accept the break and REALLY jump on the train when she leaves.

Without further ado here is my meal plan.

I plan on attempting to take pictures of what all I am eating so that you can see but I am not that great at remembering stuff like that ha ha. I just am so hungry and ready to eat that well........I just eat it.

Soon I will be updating you all on what workouts I am doing. I am really excited to share and to be doing something different even though it makes me rather nervous to do something out of my comfort zone that I know works.

Why it's so easy

I am reading this book Rhinestone Jesus and something just came across my mind.

I am at a part in the book where a woman who was saved by the grace of God and was able to have a healthy baby after being in severe poverty could just walk in the light of the Lord why can't I?

I get so trivial about following God. I give myself these rules and things that I need to work on to be "perfect" or to be more like Him but I feel that daily I fail and that I am maybe trying too hard to get in good with him.......

Isn't that something? I am not saying that God hasn't put on my heart to do certain things like stop gossiping and cleaning up my language because my mouth is a serious problem but why can't I just accept His grace and move on with it? Kind of like this woman who has seen His grace and just does it because life is just so much better with Him in it? Do I even understand His goodness? I don't. I am sure of it because His goodness is bigger than I could ever imagine but I get glimpses here and there.

I am reading about these women over in Kenya and I have a Bible study friend that is in Mount Kilaminjaro right now taking care of lepers and she helps the people in the community there. This lady in my Bible study group quit her job so that she could go take care of her people because God had called her to do it! I mean, isn't that simply amazing?

If you are in "this world" it's really easy to fall into the trap of this world but it's not what is around us that is a problem. We are the entitled ones.....the ones that maybe need to give somethings away and receive less than..........

It's not often that my eyes are opened like this and where I get motivated by things that I read. My thoughts peak for sure but isn't there more that we could do for others instead of only thinking of ourselves? Can we just walk alongside God and do what he wants us to do? I mean, I am not saying that we all need to go to Africa to walk alongside God but maybe there is more to it than I was thinking in regards to it all being about "me" because clearly it isn't. It's all about Him.  Sometimes I know that I could be doing more if I only take the time to step out of my bubble and into His grace.

Defining moments

I can look back onto my life and see different pieces that defined me and the person that I am today. It wasn't until I looked back at my life and searched for these moments that I finally saw them.

I remember the day that I got on the bus and went off to the Army. I had wanted to be in since I was in 8th grade and received a letter that I had to wait until I was in 11th grade to sign up for the delayed entry program and I did. I had achieved a goal that I set out to do. I was determined to be in the Army and I patiently went on with my life until the time I saw the recruiter. I think I am probably one of the few people that actually sought out a recruiter and not the other way around. So, I was on the bus and of COURSE they play Full Metal Jacket on the charter bus. We have the Marine Corp recruits on our bus and our first stop was Paris Island where they got YELLED at while they were on the bus and we jolted in our chairs knowing we had made a commitment and we had to follow through. We get off the bus at Fort Jackson and I went through the craziest 9 weeks of my life and pushed myself to INSANE limits. I did things that I never thought I would do and probably will not have the chance to do again. Looking back at my entire time in the Army I was always asked to push beyond my limits and I just did it. I didn't question whether I could or not I just followed an order and if I needed help or further instructions they were available to me.

I had a goal and I pushed forward and saw it through

I never questioned anything that I did and today I am still that way. I do a little bit more thinking now as not to be impulsive in my life because I really have a problem with that but if I want something bad enough I know that there is work to be done and I have to do it in order to get what I want. The time that I have spent in the Army is really defining in my life. There are disciplines that I still carry with me like being on time and 10 minutes early, and taking the time to respect our flag. I don't think that I would be the person that I am today without going there first. They molded the work ethic that I have and pushed me to go further than I could see for myself. 

While I am doing doing what I thought my dream job was, God had other plans for me. I think He used my time in the Army to help me to become an example to others about discipline and pushing themselves further than they may on their own. I know that He was preparing me for something better and I know that I am now experiencing that now but only recently have been opening my eyes to it which is pretty amazing. I am so thankful for all the experiences in my life and I have PLENTY, but to acknowledge the good that has come to my life because of the past is a pretty awesome thing to look back on. 

Pieces of my life lately

I have had this blog for several years now and recently I have had a feeling to write more about personal things than fitness things. It's just not really my interest anymore. I do enjoy eating healthy and I used to enjoy reading about healthy living but I feel that now that I am personally in a maintenance mode in regards to my weight my focus has gone else where. I do still enjoy my Beachbody workouts and toyed around a bit with barre and Buti Yoga and have started to do the Kayla Itsines workout too I am just in a place where fitness and nutrition isn't such a HUGE part of my life anymore it just became more like brushing my teeth therefore pretty blah to talk about.

I have taken a big focus on my family lately and getting into other hobbies that I truly enjoy partaking in. I did a photo shoot for a friend, and really just spending time with my family and reading a whole bunch of books on everything. I have just been doing me and trying to steer away from living my life online and in real life but I still feel a pressing calling to write so here I am......writing.

My daughter turned a year last week and it was so fun getting her cake and photo background all ready for her smash cake session and.....well... that didn't really happen. She was scared of the cake and my husband insisted on making her put her hand in the frosting and her hand got sticky and well it was then over because she did not like sticky on her hand LOL.

There she is looking just like her father. She is just an amazing determined baby and I love her to pieces but man, does she give us a run for our money. She pinches us and hits us when she gets frustrated so we are totally in a season with this one! I can say that she has been my most challenging baby yet for sure. She is doing well in day care and her favorite person is her brother. She has a thing for our dog and she hooks him up with food whenever he can so he totally just lets her climb all over him within reason because she sneaks him some treats here and there. I totally am in love with this little. Yesterday, for the first time she ran up to me screaming Momma Momma! I was seriously about to cry because she has refused to say Momma FOR. EVER! Needless to say she never said it again after that moment outside but it will be a pure joy when she says is consistently for me. Her Daddy is still by far THE MAN of the house everything revolves around her Daddy even though she has taken to Brother and I a bit more.

My job is going pretty well, we are up to transfer from Mass to somewhere next year and we are waiting to see if we are going to get promotions or not so we are excitedly awaiting the news on that. It's been really hard for me to lean on God lately because of all this craziness that is going to happen in our lives in the next few months. I can't remember where the idea came from but a few times I have had a faint thought about becoming a Company Commander for my job in other words a Drill Sergeant or Drill Instructor. Basically, the same thing. I am torn between this thought because I don't know if it is Gods will for me and my family so I have been praying about it a lot lately. I don't know where this life is going to take us but applying for and accepting this job is going to take me away from my family more than I would like but it would also be so rewarding and would maybe give me that extra push to become an officer which is something that is TOTALLY my end goal with my career. If you are reading this any quick prayers about direction would be great!

My parents are coming up next week too with my oldest son and that is going to be pretty amazing. I can't wait to show my parents around. They were up here last year helping me out with Molly when she was born so they really didn't get out to do much because my husband was working and I was busy healing and resting all that I could while my parents were here so now we can take walks and I can show them some lighthouses and some good food that the Cape has to offer. I am sure I will have a million more stories once they have gone and I can put together my thoughts on the whole visit. I am super excited to have Brandon up here for a month, I love waking up with the ability to see him every morning. It really makes me happy to be able to have that time with him and to see him so flawlessly just blend right into our family without an issue. It's a wonderful thing to see. I am eagerly awaiting his arrival.

Well I will leave you with some pictures from my photo shoot last weekend and hope that you enjoy them!

My Mom

My mother and I.......hmmm we do not always and historically have not always had the best of relationships. I can't tell you why, I can only think to blame it on the fact that we do not communicate and that our personalities are different yet, the same.

No matter what season of relationship we are in I love her. I love her to pieces. She is an amazing woman and I want to tell you about the woman that molded me to the woman I am today.

My Mom was born in Puerto Rico in 1952. She was pretty poor growing up and wasn't able to finish school past the 6th grade because her parents couldn't afford it. I remember her telling me that her family didn't have the money to even buy a toothbrush. When my Mom was 16 her family moved to NYC and lived in the Bronx for what I can imagine was for a better life. My mom started working in a factory and then somewhere along those lines met my father and they courted and had me. When I was born my mother took it upon herself to learn to read, write, and speak English all on her own watching TV shows like Sesame Street with me and forcing herself to read books in English.

My mother is smart and she passed to me the drive to move forward and be the best that I could be. My mother taught me through her stories of coming up in this world that you can't let it beat you down and you sure as heck can't take no for an answer and if you want something you need to go out there and get it because it is not coming to get you. My Mom was a stay at home mom while my father provided for our family. She raised my sister and I to be the women that we are today. My mother is also a spitfire and she will tell you how it is and but your tail in check when it needs to be. From my father I gained my wisdom and my mother the pure passion. My mother was passion everything that she did it was with passion.

I remember her getting into decorating our home. She would watch TV shows, stay on trend, and do with what most don't know how to do with little to no money at all. HA HA HA! That's how my sister and I are able to go to the Dollar Store and find and create some great treasures. My mom was a creator, she also got into painting these ceramic knick nack things and she studied how to paint an eye and would envision the colors of how she wanted to paint this thing and her pieces would look nothing short of professional. Flowers, forget it she could have been the most awesome florist but her calling was to be at home with my sister and I.

My mother was very protective of us when we were children. She was always scared that we would get hurt or in trouble if we were out of sight so yes, I was the kid that came home when the sun went down and couldn't go past the end of the road. I couldn't tell you at what age I was able to cross the street alone. The protectiveness even though it truly irritated my young life to no end I now have the same care for my children because I NOW know what kind of world that we live in and it is worse than when I was a child. My mom would take me to the bus stop ha ha ha ha ha and that was probably the only thing I didn't find embarrassing I thought it was pretty cool until I got into high school and then. well. you know. ha ha ha ha.

My mother is amazing, she is now helping to care for my son. Knowing that he is with my Mom he will be ok because at the end of the day I came out ok. I came out great. I am tearing up as I write this because sometimes I just miss her and I wish that I could take back the past because at times it has hurt us both so much. My Mom is influencing my son and showing him what she showed me and he may not see and hear all the stories that we did of my mom growing up but he will. My mother is simply amazing. She is a great cook, funny as hell, and don't cross that woman. She has a heart of gold and will show it to you if she can trust you and if she doesn't than you probably aren't a good person worthy of that trust. This woman can read people like nobodys business. She is fierce and loves that way and it's not that my mother is mean it's that you are worth the passion that she has to give and she won't waste her time.

Because of my mother I have graduated high school, have an Associates Degree, I have a Bachelors Degree, I have a career which earns me more money than I could have dreamed to make and I have a history to and a love so deep that I can now take and teach my three kids the best that my mother taught me. I can cook and I can clean a house probably just as good as Danny Tanner because of her. Going on my day to day life I didn't realize all that my mother has done for me and what all of her actions as I was growing up impacted my life. I am sitting in a room that's quiet and I can gather my thoughts for me about my life and THIS is how I feel about my Mother and I am THANKFUL that she chose to have children and that God blessed us to have each other.

Updates!

Here I am! A few days into May and boy where has the time gone? I only posted four times last month but in all reality my life in April was a bit of a whirlwind. I felt a need to step back and really focus on other parts of my life outside of the internet.

The weather has FINALLY taken a change for the better and even though I am rather reluctant to put my winter clothes away I think we are getting there. So let's see what have I been up to?

I had a really big exam that I had to study for in order to get a promotion at work so most of my free time was focused there. I spent some more time than usual in the word of God praying and getting back into my relationship with Him. I'll tell ya, it's really easy to just stray away from God. I was struggling with missing my "old" self because I felt like I couldn't have "fun" anymore or do the things that I once found "fun" needless to say the "old me" or rather the me in April drank a little bit too much and indulged in a lot of not so healthy foods ha ha ha. Hey! I own it and I am ready to move forward. 

I have not started the Whole 30 yet but now that my test is over and after Mothers Day my priority is to get my kitchen cleaned up and ready to go Monday. I am just going to take it one day at a time and see what happens. It's just a really big deal man. I am a lover of the 85/15 lifestyle that I am on but I know that my body needs some healing as well. When I say 85/15 I mean 85% Real Food 15% pizza or candy type food. I plan to chronicle my meals and what not but if I skip a day don't hate.

I have been spending a lot of time with my family! I don't know really......can I be real? So......my oldest son gets a bit jealous of the demands that my daughter has. I mean she needs us to do EVERYTHING for her and our son who is 6 going on 7 is a bit more independent and we love that.....he doesn't so I have noticed that over time I have pulled away from BOTH of my children in an effort to keep them from both being jealous or needy of me and NOW they are all about my husband. Which is a cool thing but it's not a cool thing. I have three kids and one lives away from us but we seem him often so I have 2 at home. I got used to when seeing my one son we had alone time and my middle guy had his time with us most of the time. I can tell you that it is seriously a challenge to fit in 2 kids in three hours after work, get the house all cleaned up, and spend quality time with both kids who are in obvious developmental stages. I have been working on mending my relationship with both of my children and it seems to be working wonderfully but I want it all better NOW but of course patience is a virtue.

He rarely lets me take pictures but this is our little day out!

Oh morning hair LOL

I make sure to spend a few minute with her in bed :) it's become my favorite thing to do.

My eldest and my besties daughter. My second daughter!

I completed Insanity Max 30! I did my measurements and all that jazz but I didn't get to see how much I lost but i know I lost some serious inches in the glute thigh area which makes me happy because it is seriously an issue for me. I have very slim legs with a bigger hip thigh area and if I don't take care of do some strength training it becomes an area that I feel very self conscious about. I have lost 5 pounds on the program which brings me to my happy weight range of 120-125 I am 5'3 so that is enough weight to keep me happy and confident.

I also had the pleasure of watching Mercy Me on the first of May. It was such a great show! I really enjoy their music but now that I know and understand much of where their songs came from I gained a better understanding of the band as a whole but I also fell even more in love with their music.


I am hoping to be a more active participant in my blog as I am now going to be taking it into another direction. I love fitness but I feel like I am more than that and I want you all to see more of ME with fitness AND my love for live together in one place. I hope you don't mind.