Will Run For Ice Cream

Back in February, I began the #LJFitChallenge ( Let The Fun Begin ), and I got a little derailed in March with the hamstring being tender. And I've had to skip some of the squats and jumps to let the hamstring recover. In other words, I've modified the workouts to meet my needs - which I think is super important to do with any workout. I always tried to do workouts in challenges like this one exactly as they are instructed, but I know from past experience that listening to my body is important. (On a side note, when working with a trainer ( as I am ) or doing any type of exercise on your own or a group class, it's always wise to listen to your body. With my trainer, this week I told her my knee was sore, and she immediately modified the exercise to relieve the pain. I could have continued to perform the exercise as instructed, and in the past I would have, but I've learned through this injury. Instead, I stopped, and we modified. She was able to get the same results -

Today's #TuesdayTidbit is late today because it's about cherishing the moment, and that's exactly what I did today. It's easy to get caught up in 'life' and to-do lists, when sometimes what I personally need to do is just stop and cherish the moment. This morning I took Lil Man out for a run in the jogger.

I know that everyone is expecting a race report from the 5K that I had previously said that I was going to swallow my pride and run. ( When Pride Rears Its Ugly Head ) But that's a race report that I cannot write, because I didn't run. Let me rewind ...

I When I was restricting calories, the scale became my unit of measure to determine 'progress'. And it became a thorn in my side.  I would do everything 'right' when it came to working  out and eating my calorie allotment - to step on the scale and I would have gained a pound. After hard workouts or long runs the weight would always be up, and it could take a couple of days before I would see it drop. It was constant fluctuation. And that fluctuation made me obsessed with the number on the scale.  It was time to break up. And that's exactly what I have done.  Truthfully, each day is a challenge with becoming a healthier person. Some days I feel good about my progress; others I feel that I bombed. But the reality is that 'this' isn't a quick fix. I don't want the pills, potions or fads. I want to live a healthier life and it's one small step at a time. 

Full Disclosure: I received products free of charge for the purpose of providing a review. My opinions are completely my own based on my experience. When I was younger, I hated to read. Seriously, if you asked me about reading I would say no way - not happening. But then I got the book When Calls the Heart by Janette Oke. I was hooked from the first page and couldn't put it down. This book was the entire reason that I fell in love with Christian Fiction, and what started my love for reading. Seriously! Did you know that the Hallmark channel has an original series called When Calls The Heart? It's inspired by the books by Janette Oke. It tells the story of Elizabeth Thatcher (played by Erin Krakow) who gets her first classroom assignment in Coal Valley, a small coal mining town. If she wishes to survive and thrive on her own, she has to learn the ways of the frontier. And this Saturday, April 25, season 2 airs on the Hallmark Channel! 

This week's #TuesdayTidbit is Run Naked - and I'm not talking about running without clothing. :) Although there are some organized races here that are clothing optional. But I'm referring to ditching the watch, running without being a slave to time, distance, and pace. On more than one occasion, I've hit a running rut - and usually that happens when I'm allowing myself to be consumed by the watch. Instead of feeling great that I went and ran 3 miles, I felt defeated because they were so 'slow'. This hamstring injury hasn't been a short lived injury - instead it's lasted longer than any injury that I've ever had. And, I'm still not 100% well. But as I'm able to run more, lately I've felt discouraged at my lack of speed and overall running ability. And comparing myself to my former non-injured self has been detrimental. And because of this I've decided that it's time that I started running naked for awhile. I want to

Full Disclosure: I received products free of charge for the purpose of providing a review. My opinions are completely my own based on my experience. In addition to running and fitness, one of my other hobbies is reading. I love to read. However, lately it's hard for me to find the time to read between my schedule, Lil Man and Hubby. I think this is one reason why I really like the Love Inspired Series so much. These books are quick enjoyable reads. The Love Inspired series are faith-based books which demonstrate great life lessons with faith, forgiveness and hope. And I always love a good love story! I was given 6 books to review. Choosing which book to read first wasn't easy :)

Full Disclosure: I received products free of charge for the purpose of providing a review. My opinions are completely my own based on my experience. If you've been following me #OnTheBlog or on Facebook ( Today's Words Of Glass ) then you know that I've been dabbling in some trail running. If you haven't been following me - then shame on you :) No seriously, happy to have you here if you are new. It still amazes me that people (hi Mom) will take the time to read what I write. But recently, I've had the desire to hit the trail - and yes a time or two I've literally hit the trail . Ouch! But trail running has been a great experience. In fact, I see more trail running in my future. Along with new experiences, new aches have come along with it. My hamstring actually (f or the most part ) enjoys trail running since I shorten my stride. However, on the flip side, the inclines and descents have also really worked the muscle. I turned my ankle over on a ro

#FitFridayConfessions - I'm An Emotional Eater  - there.. I said it... cause it's true. I can pretend that it's not, but it is. I eat when I'm stressed (I don't eat if I'm SUPER stressed). I eat when I'm happy. I eat when I'm bored. I eat 'just because'. So yeah, that pretty much makes me an emotional eater. So what am I doing about it? Well.... I'm trying to make some changes and not beat myself up if I slip back into old habits. I know that I'm not going to change overnight, and I'm trying to be gentle with myself. I'm drinking lots of water, and I'm trying to have healthier munchies within reach (grapes, apples, celery, carrots - you get the idea) for those times that I'm munching. When I *must* have chocolate my goal is to reach for a piece of dark chocolate over the regular chocolate ( notice I said that was my goal - not always a reality ). But this post is #FitFridayConfessions , and I'm just keeping it r

This past weekend was NOT what I had in mind. I was supposed to run a 10K on Saturday. I won’t go into details, but you can read more about it here ( It’s Your Run – Make It Your Own ). Instead, my family took a couple of day trips. I’d never been to Philadelphia or Washington, DC. And it was my husband’s idea for us to take a family day and check out the cities. We went to Philly on Saturday, and D.C. on Sunday. We spent hours walking around both cities. It was a very enjoyable trip although we were very worn out at the end of both days. Yep, he passed out on the floor as I was getting his things to give him a bath. But around the bend is a 5k - it's the one that I placed last year (for the first time ever) in an overall category. ( My First Time Placing In An Overall Category ) It was my PR race - my only race last year that was a 'success' And for the last couple of days I've struggled

I don't know about you, but I am my own worse critic. I wouldn't say to others: You are way too slow to consider running that race. You might as well go ahead and eat that donut because you aren't going to lose the weight anyway. Girl please - you don't stand a chance of lifting that much weight. I wouldn't say those things to others, but I've said things like that ( and worse) to myself. I let what others say (or how they treat me) bother me, and yet, I don't always treat myself the way that I should be treated. So today's #TuesdayTidbit is simply show yourself some kindness - extend a little grace - and love you for who you are. 

This is something that I needed to remind myself. Often times I let myself get caught up in what others are doing. ( For example - signing up for races because others are doing it ). I did that recently. I signed up for a race because friends were running it. Plans changed and I found myself ( for the most part ) solo. My hamstring wasn't 100% happy with me ( feeling some pain with walking ), my feelings were hurt that what I thought was going to be a day with friends was turning out to be a day of me being 'alone' at a race I could really care less about running. I had hoped packet pickup would spark some excitement - instead it was more dread - getting up super early - standing around solo while waiting for the race to start or the vain attempt that I'll be able to find people I know - dealing with traffic after the race. So for the first time ever, I decided to bail on a race 'just because'. And hopefully it will be a lesson learned that running is

#FitFridayConfessions - Eat The Rainbow I admit, I tend to get stuck in a rut with eating the same foods over and over. As I was driving Lil Man to school this week, I heard an announcement on the radio about eating 7 different colors of food every day. That's when I realized, I really need to expand my family's food. I've been focusing on trying to cut out processed food - that's going so so. Holidays are really hard aren't they? I can't seem to get this Easter Candy out of this house ( other than eating it which isn't exactly helping me reach my goal - nor do I want Lil Man eating it all ). So I think it might just 'disappear' soon, and I hope that it's just forgotten. But I'm shifting focus a little and trying

Full Disclosure: I received products free of charge for the purpose of providing a review. My opinions are completely my own based on my experience. Let me tell you, injuries do a number on you when it comes to muscle imbalances. I knew that my body was 'off', but I didn't realize how 'off' until I started working with a trainer. ( When It's Time for Professional Help ). We are doing a lot of balance work, and I'm making sure that I do more yoga. And when your muscles are shaking, it's easy to slip ( ahem, I may or may not be speaking from experience ). Check out the PurSabina Toeless Yoga Socks . These socks are awesome. There are little 'grippers' on the bottom that help with traction, and to my surprise, it didn't feel awkward standing on them. 

Full Disclosure: I received products free of charge for the purpose of providing a review. My opinions are completely my own based on my experience. As you know, Lil Man and I love to read. We read to him since he was a newborn. In fact, I think I read to him before he was born. So when I heard about The Adventures of Pajama Girl and the Coronation of the Cupcake Queen , I was eager to read it to Lil Man. It's a cute book about a little girl whose pajamas take her to a land of cupcakes and sweets where she and her sister learn a valuable life lesson. Lil Man was hooked from the beginning, and the book held his attention to the very end where he asked me to read it again. He loves the colors and the story-line. I too enjoyed it, and I loved the message behind the cute story. And I am happy that I am able to give one of you your own copy! 

Full Disclosure: I received products free of charge for the purpose of providing a review. My opinions are completely my own based on my experience. Ok, so I used to laugh when I saw people wearing 'tape'. I mean, come on, it's just tape, what can it really do? And then I had the opportunity to try Kinesiology tape from Poetic Health  and provide a  giveaway.   Even as I was applying it I was skeptical. I did mess up the first piece, but after a couple of tries I was getting pretty good at how much stretch that I wanted for support. Check out this video of my first time trying the tape.

( As I type this I'm currently icing my ankle ). See, I'm running a 10K road race this weekend, and I felt the familiar anxiety creep it, the schedule stalking (what days I can run, what days would be mandatory rest, can I do strength training this day, what pace should I shoot for)... I think you get the point. But see, this is not what I want. This is what I did last year. I got so caught up in paces/miles/training that I lost sight of the real reason I wanted to run. I got so into my marathon training that I missed several other races that I wanted to do, but I was afraid I'd get injured. I didn't get in one trail run last year (that I remember anyway ). And you know what, I wound up getting injured, didn't run hardly any races, missed the marathon, even the half that I changed to and finished up the year defeated and hurting ( literally ). So I'm trying to make it a point to be different this year

#FitFridayConfessions - Size matters..... as Easter is just around the corner, I decided I needed to face the reality of what I was going to wear. While Lil Man was occupied, I decided to take a look into the closet. The skirt that I tried wouldn't slide over my thighs. Sigh. I found a dress that looked like it might work. I got into it ( this might work ), but as I began to zip it, it got stuck ( maybe if I can just get past this buldge it will zip up ). So I pulled it up a little farther ( oh lawd, I think I'm stuck. I can't breathe. I can't breathe ). How am I going to try to instruct my 4 year old on how to help me get out of this thing? After a lot of jumping, wiggling and jiggling I was able to get myself free. As I stared at the closet I though, maybe I could do a cleanse? You know, one of those 3 day things, a broth and grapefruit diet, something like that just so I can fit into something. Stop! Stop! Stop! The reality is I've gained weight. I'm n

Full Disclosure: I received products free of charge for the purpose of providing a review. My opinions are completely my own based on my experience. As you know, I won't run without my phone. I usually run alone, and even when I don't, I usually always run with my phone for safety in case my family needs me or if there is an issue on my run. So when I'm looking for a running belt, the first thing I check is to see if my iPhone will fit. The BeSportWise Running belt not only had enough room for my phone, but for other personal items, and a separate zippered compartment for my key (or money). I can't express just how thrilled I am with the extra zippered compartment. If I'm pulling out my phone, or fuel, I don't have to worry about my key (or money) falling out since I can place it in the smaller zippered compartment. Oh, and as an added bonus,