It was so beautiful outside yesterday after work :) I went for a walk with a friend of mine right away and was able to enjoy the sun for a little while. It was wonderful! I hope it is that nice next week when I am on vacation. We didn't really walk with too much effort, just a nice relaxing saunter through the neighborhood so we could chat about just about everything and anything.

When I got back home, I jumped on the stationary bike to do my cross-training. I made it 10k in about 23 minutes, a nice easy pace. I was sweating a little bit when I was done, but not so much that you'd think i'd run a marathon or anything. I will eventually have to work up my cross training so that it is a workout, but for now I like to take things slow and easy!! It's all about the endurance!

When my boyfriend got home we ate quickly then took the dogs for a walk - another nice, relaxing walk. All in all it was a pretty relaxing day, although there was constant movement. I'm hoping for a little less constant movement today!!

The plan is to run today - 4k or 30 minutes, whichever comes first (I really hope it's the 4k)...

Wow, what a whirlwind of a weekend. I think i'm almost glad it's over, but I sure would enjoy some time off!! Well, I just have to get through this week of work and then i'll have a week of vacation. Not planning on going anywhere, but the break from work will still be nice.

It was a very long day on Saturday - my boyfriend and I travelled for 5&1/2 hours today to attend a funeral. It meant we were up and out of the house by 6:30am. We got back home around 5pm, where I proceeded to zonk out on the couch for about half an hour. I then made myself get up, changed into my sweats, and went for a run. I was able to make it 4k in 31:33, so I think i'm getting a little quicker which is sort of exciting :). It started to rain on the way back and I got thoroughly soaked from head to foot. Took a quick shower then headed out to a friend's birthday party until about 11pm when my boyfriend and I decided we needed to go to sleep.

Woke up early again on Sunday because my boyfriend was in a fastball tournament. Most of the day was spent sitting around and watching fastball. I also had a two-hour nap in the afternoon!!! :):) Did some laundry and then went to bed - it was another long day spent outside and I was totally beat!

Today I am supposed to be doing some cross-training so I think I will work on the stationary bike and then go for a walk with a friend.

I would have run last night, but it rained.

Okay, the story doesn't quite go like that. It was drizzling when I got home for work and I wondered if it would be nice enough outside to go for a run when my boyfriend got home. We ate supper quickly, then suited up the dogs and headed out. It had stopped raining during this time, so I thought we would have no problems with our run. But, when we got onto our regular route though, I quickly changed my mind. Everyone and their dog was out on this road last night! There was NO WAY I was gonna run in FRONT of them! Are you kidding me?!! So then I wanted to head back home right away and go out to the spillway to run there instead, but the dogs were having a ball and it smelled so good with the newly fallen rain, and there were no bugs or wind....etc, etc. so we ended up staying put and enjoyed a nice relaxing walk with the dogs instead.

I was going to get up early this morning and go for a run, but that didn't happen either. I think I hit the snooze button about 45 times this morning and lay in bed wide awake instead.

My boyfriend has a fastball game tonight, so I will be going with a friend to watch him play - that probably means no run tonight either. I'm on a roll! Let the procrastinator in me rejoice as it is in the lead!

Not much new to report - yesterday slo-pitch was cancelled because it was raining fairly hard, so my boyfriend and I spent the night indoors watching t.v. At one point I left the house in search of a running magazine but after scouring our small town I came home empty-handed. Well, actually I picked up In Touch instead and read all about the star-studded beach bodies of today. I just wanted something to read while I took a bath anyways, who cares what it is?!

Eating is good, i'm not keeping track (and I should be), but i'm concentrating on getting outside and running right now, so the diet comes in second place for now and probably until the race is over in August.

Things got a little tense for me this morning at the office - but then I remembered to try and let things go, and I feel much better now. It actually works. I hate to say it, but I think i'm finally realizing that everything comes with hard work and effort and FOCUS.

So go on and FOCUS out there - and be your best today!

I managed to make it outside yesterday to run. Of my 4k in 30 minutes goal, I made the last half - the 30 minutes. I actually made it 3.5k in 30 minutes, and that was along with a whole lot of heavy wheezing and limping from severe calf pain. Fortunately, the calf pain went away during my run, but the wheezing did not. Oh, right, i'm out of shape. I forgot...

My boyfriend tried to pace me after the turnaround point of the run, and while I managed to match him stride for stride, it only lasted about 60 seconds. And, he bounces a LOT more than I do, so his strides are slower yet he moves further with each stride. I don't know, I guess I can't explain it because what I just said doesn't really sound right, but whatever. Anyways, I have this really funky-cool stopwatch that shows me what my pace is at all times. I couldn't check it while I was matching strides because I was using every ounce of energy I had just to put one foot in front of the other, but I checked it out on the computer once I got home. We were running at a pace of 4:41 minutes per kilometer. I'm sort of glad that I only made it for 60 seconds, because if I would have kept going at that pace, I would surely have ended up in the hospital...

Slo-pitch tonight, if weather permits.

Someday, if weather and the confines of my body permits, i'm going to just run and run and run. For like, 32 minutes or something CcRrAaZzYy like that.

I have been aching to get back to running and yet the procrastinator in me has decided that now is just not the time. Why? No reason, really. I took back my stationary bike on the weekend from my Dad because he doesn't have space for it anymore, so last night I set it up in the living room and jumped on for a quick 5k. At least I did something, right?!! And it wasn't all that incredibly quick, since I haven't been on a bike for a long time and it worked some muscles that still hurt today. Anyways, I needed to incorporate some cross-training into my schedule, so here it is! Today it is MANDATORY that I get outside and run (jog :p) so I plan on grabbing an energy bar after work and just doing it. That's right NIKE, Just Do It...

I will plan on 4k in under 30 minutes. That really isn't all that great, but whatever. I need to start somewhere. My stopwatch misses me and so do my runners. And my lungs? Well, they weren't liking the running thing all that much in the first place, so they'll just have to learn to suck it up. Literally.

Run, fatgirl, Run!!!!

The 5k walk was a lot of fun, even though the weather did not really cooperate with us. However, it WAS a nice cool day for the dogs which meant they did not overheat. We may have to work on Chewy's social skills a little more. He needs to learn that he doesn't have to go up and sniff EVERY dog that passes him, and he doesn't have to bark at them when he can't reach them!!! Quite a few times people passing us were looking just a little apprehensive when Chewy would bark and growl at their dogs. It's a constant learning process...

We all went for brunch after the walk, which ended around 11:30am for us. We could have stayed at the park and had hot dogs, but we were all craving breakfast, so hit up a buffet in the city. I ate way too much! We drove home, then had take-out for supper, followed by ice cream for dessert! I think I overdid it, just a tiny bit!!! I feel really bloated today - I need to remember this feeling so that it will stop me from bingeing like that again.

Chewy was angry with me on Friday because I took our other dog to get a haircut and didn't bring him with us. So, to get back at me he decided to eat a whole bag of whole wheat bagels I had sitting on the kitchen counter. I think that i'm angry with him because he ate a whole bunch of food that I could have eaten... in probably the same amount of time as he...

I'm feeling much better and have delegated the day to cleaning since it is raining and dreary outside. I thought the saying was "April showers brings May flowers" but it's more like "May showers show a weary heart". I wish it would smarten up out there, but i'll practice patience and see where that gets me...

My seminar on Thursday was fairly smooth, considering I hadn't prepared for it as well as I did the first seminar. Only one more to go, then i'll have completed my certificate in Management Competencies. What fun. I learn more about myself with each passing day, but these seminars bring out the best in me. I really like the comraderie that comes with people from all walks of life coming together and pushing out our thoughts and opinions, making the world *hopefully* a better place. I wonder sometimes if I wouldn't do well in a facilitating position, opening people up and drawing out their strengths. In the third competency course some writing is required, and I am very excited about this. I love to write but struggle with making it a priority in my life, so i'm glad that I will be forced into it!

We are driving to the city tomorrow to partake in a Diabetes Walk with my Dad and his family. It's a 5k walk, gathering pledges and donations for the Diabetes Foundation, and since my Dad has been diagnosed with the disease, it is very meaningful to me. Another grand thing is that we will be able to take our dogs with us on the walk. How they will love that! Just another opportunity to socialize them with other dogs and give them another path to sniff out!

My boyfriend and I drove the 5k run that we will be participating in in August. I am amazed at how well I did last year, without divulging the length of time it took me! I actually made it a great distance without even once having to stop! I hope I will do just as well this year, even better with my boyfriend there to cheer me on. But I need to get my butt in gear healthwise and really start to focus on my goals. All it takes is a little determination.

I am at work today, a feat only possible through the administration of Advil at critical increments during a 24-hour period. I feel pretty bland, to be honest with you, but i'm here and working and that's what counts. Although, i'm in a really katty mood and people would probably rather I stayed at home.

Gosh, I just feel so crusty I can't even think about anything else to write about.

I didn't run yesterday. This is probably adding up to the reason why I feel so crusty today - period, no running... but I just couldn't bring myself to go. It was raining outside last night and all I felt like doing was laying on the couch. I am supposed to be playing ball today, but it's still sort of dreary-looking outside so I think it might be cancelled. Tomorrow, I have a seminar in the city all day. Friday I am off work (thank the Lord) and am hoping to feel much better by then and be able to go for a nice long run. I will have much to make up for.

So I ended up staying at home yesterday, even while my boyfriend RAN without me... I tell 'ya, that was hard for me. But I managed to do nothing at all besides sleep. When I got home from work, all I wanted to do was lay my head down and start dreaming of better places. I guess I have WAY more energy in the morning than I do in the afternoon, because I was so gung-ho about running when I wrote my last entry but once I was home running wasn't even a word in my vocabulary. I felt a slight jealous shock to my system when my boyfriend decided to run, although I don't think he did as much as he would've if i'd been with him. For some reason, that makes me feel better. Imagine that, him not doing as well without me makes me feel better about myself... how selfish can I get?!!

So I got a whole lot of sleep last night.

A whole lot.

I woke up this morning with my period and immediately took two Advil. I've been monitoring my Advil intake all day, and will continue to take it over the next couple of days until I am feeling better. I think I caught it right before it started, so i'm hoping the Advil will take effect and not give up on me - I will even continue taking it during the night, waking myself up every few hours to take some more. Believe me, this is the only thing getting me through these times of the month.

My boyfriend has a fastball game tonight, but I won't be watching him so I might try to get my butt off the couch and onto the track, but I can't and won't guarantee that. I wouldn't want to disappoint myself, but these things happen and I have to let it all go sometimes.