Just drained.

It's close to the end of my semester and I'm just drained.

Mentally - I have 3 exams still to take, 1 PPP to put the finishing touches on and 2 reflections to write.  In one week.  Ugh.

Physically - The dang scale isn't doing what I was hoping it would do, and so I reluctantly started looking through some of my old Weight Watchers stuff.  I'm still running 2-3 times a week, but I know I need more.

Financially - Ugh.  Just ugh.  Kid activities are tough on the wallet.  This month is registration for cheer, football x2, and summer swim team x3.  Not to mention a while new batch of books for the upcoming new semester.

Emotionally - I can't help but dread Good Friday coming up.  That will mark one year since my mother passed away from her Neuro-Endocrine Tumor.

I'm taking my vitamins, and drinking my water.  I'm aiming to get about 8 hours sleep a day or night, but it isn't all at the same time.  But my diet is likely a problem.  Too many foods with barcodes on them.

This week, I've been juicing more.  Primarily because I may have gone overboard on some of the fruits and veggies.  But also because it gives me a better burst of energy than coffee does.  As I think about my mother's health, it makes me think harder about how I am treating my body.  I've been reading alot about Alkaline Foods, and have been trying to work more of those into my diet.

Source: Google Images

So, I'm trying to create more of an alkaline environment for all of the health benefits that come along with kicking crap out of one's diet.  

There is a lot of interesting information about Alkaline foods here . 

Motivation

I need some motivation if anyone has any extra laying around.

It's 2pm and I haven't showered, yet, today.

I have a huge paper due this weekend.

That is all. 

12 Miles a Week

That's my goal.  That's what I'm going for.  12 miles a week.  Even if I have to drag my sorry self around the park.  And you know what?  It's been easier than I thought.  

Yesterday - 3 miles - done

Today - 3 miles - done

Tomorrow - 3 miles - planned 

Thursday - 3 miles with a friend already on the calendar

That leaves me just Friday or Saturday to pull out another 3 miles.  

I hate getting started but I love getting finished.  Looking at the time and calories on my HR monitor is so rewarding.  I'm not signing up for any other races until Mid-March.  I really want to focus on getting back to running the full 5K without looking/feeling like I'm sucking wind the whole time.  

Lady Track Shack 5K

This morning, I participated in the Lady Track Shack 5K with Megan (8 years old).  It was cold and I was not feeling well.  In fact, I ended up in a local doc-in-the-box place for a strep test just a few hours later and am now on the couch full of night time cold medicine, so forgive me if my thoughts ramble.  

We ended up walking the whole thing for a miserable 18 minute mile and 56 minute finishing time.  Ouch.  Really, I wish I felt good enough to run it, since it's easier to cover 3 miles in about 35 minutes than it is to do it in an hour. 

The trail for the run was mostly cobblestone roads through wealthy neighborhoods on closed streets through "old" Winter Park, near the high school.  

The post-race booths were spectacular with a Planet Smoothie sample and Kind bars.  

No-Spend Week

This time last year, my mom was sick.  Real sick.  Like, multiple doctor appointments weekly sick.  Which meant that I spent much of my time on the road between my house and hers and then to doctor's visits with her and back to her house to translate it all out for her.  I cherish that time I got to spend with her, because she passed away after a very short battle with cancer.

During that time, my family at home began to rely on quick meals.  Maybe Taco Bell here or there, or a $5 pizza from Little Caesars, or deli sandwiches from Publix.  

You know what adds up?

Well, the obvious answer is calories - as evidenced by the weight I have to lose, piled on to more weight I had to lose before this happened.

But really, what adds up, is the cost of our food budget.  Ouch!

Now that we have slowed-down and spend more time at home, we were still spoiled by the bevy of hot/fresh/now deliciousness just a few streets away.  This week, I put my foot down dramatically.  I emptied our main checking account (the one we keep the debit cards to for every day spending) leaving a nominal amount of money in there for anything seriously urgent.  Flipped money over into savings and dropped the bomb on the family.  From last Friday to this Friday - I declared a no-spend week.  Sure, Sunday through Saturday would have been fine, too, but I knew I would be getting paid this Friday and thus doing things like grocery shopping, putting gas in the minivan, and other pay-day chores.

The result:
Well, some tough conversations with the hubby about needs vs wants.  Really, I know those shorts I picked up for him at Costco are nice and comfy but really, is it necessary for me to go back and pick up 2 more pairs?  Really?  Because you have a huge drawer full of shorts.  The compromise is that he'll go through and donate all the shorts that don't actually fit, but are taking up space in his drawer indicating that he has way too many clothes.

Food choices for dinner meant we were eating at home all week, which ashamed as I am to admit it, we don't do nearly as often as we should.  Of course, if I had actually menu-planned, our meals would have been a little better, but for the most part it wasn't too bad.  I've menu planned for this coming week already and while it won't be a technically "no spend" week, I'm aiming for a mostly-at-home-meal week.

I almost broke the rule myself!  I was put "on call" Wednesday night from work.  So instead of going in from 7pm-7am, I was to hang out at home and they would call if I was needed.  Sure enough, my phone rang at 10:45pm and I was told to be come in and be ready, since I may be heading with a patient into surgery.  As crazy as it sounds, that's actually one of my favorite parts, because I think I'm pretty good at it.  After all, I had 3 c-sections myself and understand some of the disappointment that comes along with it, so I try to make it as much of a mother/baby led process as possible.  So I whipped my scrubs on and grabbed my car keys, and then paused at the door.  I turned right around and made a PB&J to eat in the minivan on the way there since I obviously wasn't going to ruin my no-spend streak by running through a drive-thru for a coffee.  I find I get the same "lift" by eating a high-protein snack, so instead of a sugary coffee (yes, I'm aware that non-sugary coffee exists, but it's gross), I'd rather some healthy fuel.

We survived and will do it again next month!! 

45 Degrees is Really COLD for Florida! Brrrr...

Hard to believe I spent the first decade of my life in New England.  Even harder to believe I spent 5 years living in remote Alaska.  However, I guess these last nearly 5 years in Florida have turned me into a sniveling little girl that puts the heat on in the minivan the second the temperature drops below 73 degrees!  

So this week, I was really proud of myself for getting out there at working out in the chilly weather.  

This week, I only logged 6 miles total.  While it's not fantastic, it's more than I would have logged if I just stayed on the couch.  Truthfully, I walked more than ran this week.  The cold weather seems to make my knees hurt something fierce, so walking it was.  And I spaced both times and forgot my HR monitor, so I have no idea what my pace was or calories burned.  

I did make it to the gym once this week, working around my crazy work/school schedule.  And tonight I allowed Jillian Michaels to beat me up just a bit with the 30 Day Shred, which is a great workout.  

Since I had a birthday this week and was not conscientious of my food intake at all, I'm giving myself a free week without looking at the scale.  I've been on a steady decline for about a month now, and I know seeing the number go up with be difficult for me mentally.  

Today, my BFF took me to see a movie and this little video came on during the 30 minutes of previews...while ordinarily loathe the Cartoon Network, I did find humor in this because my 10 year old son loves running errands with me, even if it means he has to help pick out a shirt for his little sister from Justice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wz75oAkPTPM

Baby it's Cold Outside!

I'm not sure I ever posted a recap of the Tower of Terror 10 Miler, so I'll do that sometime soon.

School keeps me busy, as well as the kids' activities and working night-shift.  I'm now officially nocturnal, as it's nearly 2am and I can't sleep.  Of course, I'm "on-call" for the hospital tonight, so it's nights like this that I can't sleep for fear of missing my phone ringing.

This week the weather has been so odd.  It started out way too hot...which meant treadmill running.  And now, as I listen to the wind howling, it's a brisk 50 degrees outside.

I've "run" 3 miles twice this week.  Not quite run non-stop, as my knee is killing me...a sure sign I may need to bite the bullet and invest in another pair of new shoes.  But anywho, I was moving forward rapidly for 3 miles in a row twice this week.  Monday night I hit the gym to run on the treadmill and strength train.  And Wednesday morning, I met my BFF at our favorite park and we did our thing for 3 miles.  We'll meet up again tomorrow morning, even though it's supposed to be quite chilly!  I've already got my clothes set out and am ready to go.

The hubby and I watched "Fat Head" this week on Netflix.  It was great to really talk about the food we are putting into our bodies.  Let's face it, with 3 kids in sports, full-time graduate school and full-time work...I don't always have the time/energy to make a real meal, and we find ourselves grabbing food on the go quite a bit.

I've also had ZERO soda this week at work.  Soda at work seems to be my weakness.  I like the caffeine/sugar rush to keep me awake when I'm getting tired at 3am.  I've been sticking to my ice water in my Patriots tervis tumbler.

Overall, it's been a pretty successful week for exercise and diet.  Tomorrow is Friday, I am planning to walk/run 3 miles in the morning and possibly hit up the gym for some strength training.  I have a date with my 7 year old son for dinner tomorrow night, and haven't quite decided where we are going.