[Riestrella]

Hey guys!

Not much is up with me - it's snowed here in Colorado and since Christmas is no longer here it's rather annoying! I wanted to go on runs outside .

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NNS - It makes sense then that you're doing longer distances, have you heard of tempo runs? I've seen a 5K training program where it interchanges sprints with tempo runs each week. Forgive me if you already know this, but for tempo runs you run for 30-40 minutes (starts at 30, increases to 35, 40 then decreases to 30 on week 8) and for the first third of the run you run at a steady pace, then for the middle section of your run you increase your speed to the race pace you desire, then for the final third you slow that race pace down slightly before finishing. I think the idea is to get your body used to running "race pace" for longer periods of time vs. short sprints that you'd do for HIIT training.
I always recommend blogilates (Youtube channel) to people who want some sort of strength workout in their life but don't have equipment. At most you'll need dumbbells, but even then I think it's all body weight. Not sure if you've heard of it or not! For Yoga, I like the Youtube channel "Yoga with Adrienne" she's really cool and is definitely knowledgeable about Yoga without being too serious about it. Her videos can be 15-40 minutes, so even if you do it once a week before bed it'll be enough. I'm pretty sure there's a yoga video for runners on her channel. I can't stress enough how important a good stretch is (not to say you don't know this already, just thinking out loud!) my BF's dad has always been in shape, but never stretched properly ever and he ended up bursting both his calf muscles. Flexibility will increase your performance immensely.
Guh, tell me about it, I made eye contact with her and smiled because I'm a nice person and we're both suffering over here and she just looked away. ALRIGHT, LADY. I think you've seen the water bottle before? It's this one! I posted about it a while ago.

rainbow - That's sweet your BF gives you the time in the house to do the workout! I'm actually more likely to work out if the BF is around vs. not. Like if he sees me be lazy all day that makes me feel bad so I do it in front of him to prove something?! It's nuts. I have a good feeling about the next challenge, I'm not going to speak too soon but I think I'll at least lose a couple of pounds with the next one!! Japanese food is the best, it always comes in such small portions so by the time you wait in between each dish you're more likely to be full. I hear ya on the eating out woes, I always think I can tackle a 3 course meal (which I could, but I would be extremely sick!) when really 1 course is enough for me! Or a light course + dessert. Aww have fun at the concert, I saw that being advertised in Denver! At least you can recognise this time around any triggers that will cause you to sabotage your health because you've experienced it before - I think this time around you'll do much better with the big event! Practice makes perfect .

katiam - Eliminating those foods will definitely do it! I bet you'll lose loads of weight. I just couldn't live without some of those foods, I'd be miserable so I commend anyone who has the willpower to do it.

[kahaney]

Hey all! I'm 27 and 5'1". I was on here and doing well about nine months ago! I did two of the challenges you had posted, I lost 20 pounds and was feeling great. I took a break from here when i started a new job, and then found out my boyfriend cheated on me and I fell into a big ol depression hole and gained 19 lbs of that back. So! I'm starting over! I'm at 156 lbs and would love to eventually get down to 110-115! Nice to see a few of you I recognize from a while ago and nice to meet the rest of you! I love the support here!

[runthecontinent]

Hey kahaney, welcome back! Glad you managed to climb your way out of that hole, cheating boyfriends are so not worth it.

I just got back from a the Grand Canyon and Zion with my sister. It was such a great holiday. We hiked a lot and I felt really strong climbing, which means at least I'm relatively fit. I did eat so much though! I didn't count calories at all because it wasn't convenient.

I'm happy to join the chat here and get back on track with the weight loss!

[kahaney]

Thank you!! It's nice to be back! The main habit I have to break is snacking at night! I do so well during the day, but I got in a habit of snacking before bed which I know is SO BAD, and I really need to stop, hahah. So cool about the Grand Canyon!!

[Riestrella]

Hey guys!

The last couple of days have been up and down in terms of health. I'll do well in one area only to forget to drink water. However I now have my 10K training written up in a table, since I need to be sure to stay on it to ensure I train enough before race day. I'm up to date so far, did an Insanity workout today as Cross training. I was worried since my weak knee had been giving me trouble the last couple of days, but I did fine in the workout. Tomorrow is a 3 mile run, I was going to do it today but apparently the weather is supposed to be really nice tomorrow so I did a switch.

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kahaney - Welcome back! I remember that awesome profile pic . Though I am sorry to hear what happened to you, I can't imagine how you feel. I think cheating on someone is the greatest sign of weakness, so you can pull through this as stronger than ever. Good luck on the journey ahead, we'll be here to help!

runthec - Glad to hear you had a fun holiday with your sister, isn't it amazing when you do an activity and feel strong? At my heaviest I came here on a holiday and all my BF's friends wanted to go on a hike in the mountains, I basically convinced my BF not to go because I was so worried I would lag behind everyone. Last summer I did a 9 mile hike and managed to keep up . That's the best thing about this journey, is that it's not just about that number on the scale or what clothes you can fit into - it's so you can go out and explore the world and feel comfortable doing so!

[dayoneagain]

Hey all! I was thrilled to get my badge in the last challenge and just wanted to say thanks to everyone for keeping the chat interesting and motivating! Completing the challenge really helped kick start my year.

Unfortunately, and I'm a bit gutted as I type this, I have hella fallen off the wagon since the end of the challenge due to a lot of time with friends, various birthdays weddings etc and I have made some really stupid, greedy choices. I'm not sure exactly how much I've put back on, but am picking myself back up today to say enough is enough! Going to weigh in tomorrow and see where I'm at. I suppose that is life, but it makes me feel like a bit of a fraud displaying my badge.

Rie/NNS - I have signed up to a run later in the year too. I'm not sure if I'm crazy, stupid or ambitious, but it's a half marathon and I need to get my *** in gear and start training alongside you guys. I've done a couple of 10ks before but never a further distance. It's not til September, but I need to start now to get myself ready - I'm hoping it will help me to be a bit more consistent with my exercise rather than going through spells of nothing.

rainbowstripe - I know what you mean about occasional treats starting to become a weekly or daily occurrence!! This is something I need to put a stop to from today because chocolate has started to form part of most days in the last couple of weeks! I'm going to take treats out altogether for one week to try and reset my thinking.

zucena - how do you know when a scale is broken? I'm tempted to buy a new one as mine seems to be a bit unreliable at times. I usually weigh myself three times in the morning to make sure I'm getting a consistent reading. Mostly the three readings are the same but sometimes one will be totally out of whack.

peaceandlove - sorry to read about what you've been going through, it sounds really horrible. Well done for getting through it and being so supportive for your other half.

[nonameslob]

Hey ladies! Hope everyone had an awesome weekend. I was super active! Yay! Friday night I left work early so we could head up to the mountains. It was snowy and the roads were kind of scary so I was very glad when we made it to the parking lot. They had SO much fresh snow that snowshoeing up to the cabin was very slow going, but I maintained a nice steady pace and didn't get out of breath! I usually push myself too fast and then have to stop and rest, so that was a nice change. Saturday we came back down, and I guess going down I was putting a LOT of weight on my arms using my hiking poles, because my arms were really sore. Sunday I went on a run - my plan said 2.5 but I ended up doing 2.75 miles, my longest run in a long time! I'm happy to see the distance coming back quickly, but I will definitely need to work on my speed quite a bit.

As far as food, not quite so good. I have still been RAVENOUS from increasing my activity and I've been feeding that appetite no questions asked. I did a good bit of meal prep and shopping this weekend which should help me keep that better in check this week. I've got a very busy week ahead so I need to make sure I stay on track!

Rie - Thank you so much for explaining the tempo run! I had heard of it but was having a hard time grasping it. I definitely want to incorporate it into my routine at some point. As for yoga, a friend of mine teaches a class every other Monday so I put that on my calendar and I will check out the link you posted. I just have SUCH limited space inside my apartment so knowing me I just won't do it to avoid moving everything around lol.

runthecontinent - Wow I bet that was an amazing trip! What was the weather like while you were there?

kahaney -Welcome back!

dayoneagain - No reason to be gutted, just pick yourself up and dust yourself off. You've got this! Sounds like it is time for you to make your own training plan for your race!

[xopeaceandlovexo]

LAME!! I just responded to everyone and lost it for some reason. Must have been instant Karma for being on here instead of actually getting work done (boss is off today) I will be back later to re-post and I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend!!!!

[kahaney]

Ohhh, I had missed all of you! The support on here is unlike anything else I've experienced! Thanks for remembering my picture! I can't wait to get back to that point! Nice work, ladies!! You're all great!

[Riestrella]

Happy Monday everyone!

I went on my 3 mile run today, the weather was perfect! Warm with a cool breeze. I had a 12 min/mi pace which is 1 whole minute faster than my previous run - though I'm not surprised at that since I sucked hardcore on my first run of training. It's been an interesting experience disassociating my run times from the ones I was doing in 2011/2012, I've had to think like I've never been a runner before and I'm starting all over again. I'll be doing plenty of 3 mile runs leading up to the 10K so I'm interested to see how I progress.

After my run I was incredibly hungry!! The run stirred up some crazy hunger in me. I had dinner at 4:30pm since I was starting to feel sick from hunger. I didn't make good choices with food, lots of carbs since there's nothing healthy in the house. One step at a time, huh?

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dayoneagain - Despite your recent health hiccup, it sounds like you've been enjoying life and having a great time! I'd much rather gain back weight from having fun vs. just sitting around doing nothing. Woah, mad props on entering a half! You've got loads of time to train, I'd suggest training for a 10K in the meantime before hitting the half marathon training 3 months before race day. I really want to do a half someday!

NNS - Sounds like you had an awesome, active weekend! I guess we're both feeling the hunger, huh?! I think with both channels you'll need a yoga mats worth of space. I did Insanity in my tiny Japanese apartment, that was fun haha.

[katiam247]

kahaney and runthec - glad to meet you both! The camaraderie is awesome for sure. I have lost the most weight ever since joining this site.

Rie - glad your knee is doing good with your running. Glad you got to start back to it. I'm sure you'll get your eating in check when you are ready. At least you are very active and can burn some of it off!

dayoneagain - congrats on the badge! I have been the opposite with you on eating. I sort of floundered around the last couple of weeks and finally decided I needed to kick my butt in gear. I have lost 3 lbs since it ended. So, my thinking is - Why didn't I do this DURING the challenge!

NNS - congrats on having more energy for snowshoeing and exceeding your mileage on your run!

peaceandlove - I did the same thing just recently and it's very aggravating to lose your post you just typed up!

My weight is finally going in the downward trend instead of like a heartbeat. Yesterday I hit 160 and this morning 159.4!! Now, just to stay in the 150's would be great. Still going to stay away from breads and grains, but I am going to slip in a little fruit and see how it goes.

[HaveDogWillDiet]

Hi friends! It has been awhile! i have been busy busy with kitchen remodel and family and friend commitments and so my free computer time has been limited. Hope everyone is doing well! For spring goals I want to just up my activity! Nutrition wise, I need to keep tracking. It is the only thing that keeps me honest!

[Riestrella]

Hey guys!

Today was yoga day, very relaxing and now I'm farting non stop haha. Unfortunately the style of yoga that I like has mysteriously vanished from Classpass, now I only have 1 option but thankfully I still enjoy it. ClassPass also offers Corepower yoga but I feel like every time I go the pace is so fast and always the same positions. Plus the heat in the room makes my mat so slippery!

Food definitely needs work, my grain intake is far too high to the point where it's all I've been eating! I need to go to the store and get some fruit and veg to snack on. I know I've said it a million times but I can't wait to have my own kitchen stocked with healthy food and no temptations! I really do well when there is nothing in the house to tempt me. Here it's everywhere...soda, chocolate, chips . I know I should be strong but I am so weak willed with food.

Tomorrow is a rest day then Thursday is a 3.5 mile run!

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katiam - You're right, sometimes things happen when I'm ready to make a change. Congrats on your loss, I hope you find you're firmly in the 150's soon! I heard that eating fruit before 2pm is the best way to go so your body has plenty of time to process all the sugars.

HDWD - Hope the remodel is going well!

[rainbowstripe]

Hey guys, just a brief check in from me - hoping for a more detailed post, with personal responses, in a couple of days time once I'm on Easter break (5 glorious, well-deserved days). I've just eaten a pretty meagre and not very well rounded dinner of chicken breast and instant rice, and I'm probably going to be in bed before 8PM - it's that kind of week. Tomorrow, Wednesday, will be day number 10 of what will be 11 days of work with no break - hence why Easter couldn't come sooner.

I was doing great with exercise last week, but the nonstop work has really taken it's toll on my fatigue levels, and I just need to recuperate a bit. Food over the weekend was terrible as I was at an event and didn't have a lot of control - made some bad choices in the evenings as well, which have bled into this week. No excuses, I've been making bad choices and been entirely aware of them at the time!

Hoping to re-set myself after I've had some decent rest over Easter. Glad to see everyone active!

[xopeaceandlovexo]

Hello and happy hump day!!! Its going to be a crazy next few weeks so I am trying to just go with the flow. We are packing up not only our things but everything in this 2 story house, bringing some to storage and some to MILs because we are moving in with her until we find a house. Also our hot water quit on us a few weeks ago so we are showering at the neighbors or heating water up on the stove to shower with, and doing dishes the same way so I don't need to let you know I have not been cooking much haha! At least I can say my life is NEVER boring. I have been making fairly healthy choices even when eating out, most of the time I will get some kind of salad for dinner and get the BF take out.
Thank you all for your kind words and support, it helps tremendously!!!

NNS I am going to sign up for the 5k!! This is going to be a year of many firsts for me and that is one of them Plus seeing you prepare for your races will motivate me to do the same!!

dayoneagain your name says it all!! life happens and we fall off the wagon but getting back up is the important part. The only failure is giving up completely!! I found a spring to summer challenge to join because with everything that is going on right now I need something to keep me accountable.

katiam way to go, you are rocking it!!!

rainbowstripe I had a horrible eating weekend too but I enjoyed every minute of it so I am not feeling guilty. out for dinner & beers Friday night, 2 yr. olds birthday party Saturday, then Sunday was cleaning and packing and 0 good food choices lol. I always find excuses but in the end I am only doing a disservice to myself so I need to get my a$$ back in gear, I hope you have a wonderful 5 days to yourself!!!