I have officially ordered my first fitness themed top:
Until last month, I had not been regularly doing dead lifts. I have now seen the light. I’m still slowly adding weight. Today, I dead lifted my body weight (for the first time!) PLUS 25 pounds for 5 reps. I was so excited! If my legs could have moved, I would have danced. Since I couldn’t dance, I got this shirt instead.
I don’t ever wear tank tops, but working out is a bit different. As Bro Science says, wearing a tank top on shoulder day may be my only chance to look diesel. He also says:
“What you wear to the gym is just as important as what you lift at the gym. If not more important, which it is. Albert Einstein said it best, ‘When you look big, you get big.’ Simple math.”
I mean I’m scaring people there any way – no matter what I wear.
I ordered the shirt from the Ripped Goddesses site which consistently cracks me up. Today, they posted this picture with the caption
“I prefer the terms Diesel, Power House and Brang the Thunder.”
 I’m a Diesel on top but muh bottom half really brings the thunder.
1. The Savage race was back in Georgia last weekend:
When I ran it in October, this slide was the most fun part of the entire race. And the Colossus (the back part of the slide) was the least fun part.
While it was good that we did not sign up for it this past weekend (I still can’t run and Ben is really sick), I still felt a pang of jealousy toward those who could.
2. However, my envy has been assuaged since I *just* registered for one at the end of this September. I am THIS excited:
(Note: I never have enough energy for something like this at the end of a race. Otherwise, I might be in trouble of Ben disowning me.)
3. I have five months to train, and my main goal is to be able to do pullups by race day. I don’t know exactly how realistic my goal is, but I don’t think it’s too far fetched.
I will destroy that Sawtooth! Or at least get past the first bar before falling pathetically into the water – hahahasigh.
Also, I’m hoping my speed and endurance will be significantly better than last year. In fact, that is what I’m most excited about – being able to compare a year’s progress by running the same event. I think the difference should be pretty drastic, and I can’t wait to see how much better my performance is after a year of hard work.
4. I FINALLY went to the doctor about my injury. And it is as I thought – just a strained muscle. (I would like my doctorate, please.) I started seeing a local sports chiropractor, and that has been incredibly helpful. According to her, my hip alignment was off. Whether that was caused by the strained adductor muscle or caused it, she can’t say (although she’s guessing that was the cause, rather than a side effect.)
I’ve been to her three times, and the results have been AMAZING. The biggest thing is that I can now squat. After almost two years at the gym, reading countless articles and trying every “improve your squat” exercise known to man, I can now actually get down past parallel. That was physically impossible for me before so I’m kind of amazed at myself now.
I might be the only person on the face of the planet to get giddy about doing “ass to the grass” squats, but I am. My legs & glutes are my lagging body parts so I’m aiming to throw myself full force into training them twice a week now that I can do it properly.
5. This was the first time I’ve been to a chiropractor, and I have to say that I was in no way prepared for it. Those sessions need to come with a warning label, especially for those of us who aren’t comfortable with being touched. I realize I have a groin injury so treatment of it is going to be a bit intense, but I have never been man handled so much in my life.
Normally, I don’t have a preference over the gender of my doctor. However, I’m glad my chiropractor is a lady or I might have had to walk out midway through the first session. Although, I do feel as if I should have bought her dinner – or at the very least a drink – first.
Dios mío, man!
I know, right?
Tough. This is for my future reference so feel free to move along as I stumble along here trying to figure it all out. The eating clean was great, and I felt so much better! Until, I didn’t. I thought I would just need to tweak things after I got used to eating that way. However, two weekends ago, I ended up completely overhauling my diet.
I watched this and BOOM! my mind was blown:
The delivery is obnoxious, but the content is worth putting up with it ESPECIALLY if you’ve been tracking your food, know that you’re hitting your caloric goals, and can’t figure out why you’re not losing weight. I have a scale and I thought I had been diligently measuring ALL THE THINGS. However, it didn’t occur to me to weigh what I was using a cup measure for (like oatmeal or egg whites or peanut butter or SO MUCH STUFF.) I tested it out and it was all off. Even the pitas I eat. The package says that one pita is 37 grams but the last one I weighed was 10+ more grams than that. Pitas: why do you hate me?
All of that has been adding up so I was inadvertently consuming a LOT more calories than I thought I was (at least over a 100-250 calories more a day.) Of course, that’s why I started to weigh things in the first place. Because I wanted to find out why I wasn’t making as much progress as I thought I should be. I knew something was off, and I think this was it.
The other change I made is that I upped the fat in my diet by a considerable amount. In March, I was not purposefully going low fat – it was just a side effect of trying to get as much food in as possible while not going over my caloric limit. Fat is the most calories per gram, and so it was the first to go. It wasn’t a priority and I wasn’t paying attention to it. Somehow, it slipped so that just 13% of my diet was from fat. It was causing all sorts of problems: digestively, with my moods, etc. Now, my goal is 33% each day and I’ve been getting close to this number. (I multiplied my weight by .4 to get the exact grams of fat a day I should be eating.) I cannot believe how much better I feel with the increase, and I seem to be back to making progress again.
I can only handle so many change ups and restrictions at a time so I’ve changed my diet to about 99% clean (1% = cool whip.) Actually, it’s probably more 80/20 because of the pitas. Is that why you hate me, pitas? Because I need to spray you down with windex before consuming you?
Anyway, here is a picture of what I ate yesterday:
 Still a lot of food! I’m slightly above 1,700 calories a day.
Breakfast (far left): Cottage Cheese Pancakes* with half a banana 1/8 cup of sugar free syrup and 2 slices of bacon. How much do I love that I get to eat bacon and still lose weight? SO MUCH!
*I have been on a MISSION to find a low carb pancake recipe that is good. So far, this is the best one. I tweaked it a bit as I use MRM vanilla whey protein powder instead of flour. Half of this recipe is one serving for me.
Lunch (bottom): Buffalo Chicken on a low carb pita with a tablespoon of greek yogurt and a shredded blend of broccoli, carrots, and red cabbage.
Supper (top middle): Chicken pizzas inspired by Natalie Hodson made on a low carb pita with low carb pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese, and blue cheese crumbles.
Dessert (top right): Homemade Protein Peanut Butter Cups with a tablespoon of cool whip on top.
Snack (not pictured): Greek yogurt with a Halo mandarin orange and 2 packets of truvia.
Other (not pictured): As a side with either lunch or supper, I eat another serving of vegetables or 4 ounces of sweet potatoes.
This is just my second week on this so I’m still experimenting. I will definitely be adding more variety in, and switching things up. (It takes me a long time to find a recipe I can use that sounds palatable so if you have anything you love – please send the recipe my way.)
I’m not exactly an erudite reader at the best times. When I get overwhelmed with work, I get even more pedestrian with my choices. So, don’t expect to be wowed by this list. However, I have found them all to be fun escapes over these past few months:
1. Night Film by Marisha Pessl (who is from Asheville)
This one is a suspense which reminds me of House of Leaves, even though I’ve never read House of Leaves. It’s a bit mindless (if I were to focus too much I think I may not enjoy the book), but I’ve enjoyed it. Plus, when I pick it up before bedtime I enjoy singing, “Reading my Night Film” just like Tina Fey sings, “Working on my Night Cheese”:
2. Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
A couple of Sundays ago, I saw Jayward post this picture on ye olde’ Facebook with the caption, “Stuff White People Like”
And I thought, “That’s what I forgot to blog about!”
Then, I read the comments where a bunch of ladies my age raved about loving it after being disappointed by Tartt’s previous effort “The Little Friend.” So, at least I fit my demographic well because this is the best book I have read in a while. I found myself reading slower than normal (and slower than I really wanted to) just to stretch the experience out. The book is over 750 pages so wishing it was even lengthier is quite the statement, especially since I also found the book to be an emotional workout. The characters frustrated me to such extremes that I found myself so tired after some chapters that I just had to put the book down to recalibrate. I just wanted to shake the main character (SHAKE HIM LIKE A BRITISH NANNY.)
3. After Goldfinch, it took me a few days to pick up another book. I moved on to Helen Oyeyemi’s “Mr. Fox.” (She has a new one that’s just out, “Boy, Snow, Bird” but I figured I would start with this one first.) It is good, but kind of insane. The storyline is so crazy I’m worried about the fragility of my mental state once I have endured the entire book. But the cover is pretty awesome:
4. Next up on my list is Gabrielle Zevin’s, “Storied Life of AJ Fikry” which I am super excited about.
5. I’m open to suggestions for more! Anything you have read recently that you just adored?
1. I posted my first picture to Instagram this week:
 Biking with Ben in scenic Greenville. The sausage biscuit is indigenous to South Carolina. (Gas station biscuits! Yum!) I’m always up on the latest thing. Maybe next week I can figure out how to use Tumblr.
2. Quote of the Week
This comes from my sister (L-Sizzle!) and her boyfriend, Eric. She had just weighed herself and thought she may have lost a few pounds but wasn’t sure. She asked Eric, “What did the scale say the other day?”
Eric’s reply: “Only 1 at a time, please.”
Thankfully, L-Sizzle has a sense of humor.
Eric then said that for him the scale said, “Parties of 8 more will be charged a 15% gratuity.”
3. Speaking of weight, I have officially started the Jamie Eason’s 3 month LiveFit Trainer again.
 This time I’m starting from the very beginning, because the workouts are shorter in phase 1 which will correspond well with being so busy with work. This program is the one that I did last summer which got me in good enough shape that I was able to start directly into running. I’m hoping that it will get me in good enough shape to keep me through not running while injured. (I have already scheduled my doctor’s appointment for the first morning my first day off after tax season.)
4. Breathe Right Strips
Ben has been using these and they have been working really well. However, now he sleeps so soundly it’s almost impossible to wake him.
5. My grandmother’s pacemaker surgery went well, and she is going to go home next week. As in home – home, instead of the nursing home she’s been in during this process. I am so happy that my 91 year old grandmother is able to return to her house. It completely made my week as I hated the idea of her having to live in a nursing home. (She still has all her wits about her and is in good health.)
1. On Thursday, I did my first pullups using resistance bands. It was awesome.
Of course, when my trainer showed me what I was to do my face was frozen in fear since it looked like a death trap.
First, the resistance band looked like a noose made from a rubber band.
Secondly, he had tied it to the pullup bar by the monkey bars so it was REALLY high in the air (as in there was no way I could jump up from the ground to grab the bar.) Thus, I had to stand on a platform (that cannot be moved) which was to the left side of the bar and then swing my right leg over and up. (This normally wouldn’t have been a concern but because of the groin injury I was worried it might aggravate it.)
But, this is why I continue to have a trainer because I am pushed to do things I really want to do but that are out of my comfort zone. So, I grabbed the bar, put my right foot in the band, and then slowly – with great trepidation – stepped my left foot off the platform and
WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
The band swung me forward so agressively I almost bowled my trainer down. (He hopped out of the way just in time). It was actually a lot of fun. But then I stopped swinging, and had to get to work. The band helps you for the bottom half of the pullup, but by the time you’re at the bar it’s all you. I was able to do about 5-6 sets of 10 pullups. It was incredible! Later that night, my forearms started to ache. By the next day my lats were on fire. I hurt in ways I have never felt in either doing lat pulldowns OR the assisted pullup machine OR any other movement. (This is a good thing.) Since pullups are a goal, I am definitely going to add this to my workouts. (Along with the other tips mentioned in this article.)
2. In other health news, my March Meltdown went well! (Although, I’m not finished yet. No Cheats Till Tax Day!)
My goals were to cut off all processed foods and refined sugars, to plan out and prep my weekly meals, to track what I ate, and try to loosely follow Jamie Eason’s food plan section of her LiveFit trainer. After a week, my craving for sugar went away. After two weeks, the hunger that was haunting me each evening dissipated as well. I feel fantastic. Last time, I did this I also felt fantastic. However, the reason I stopped and the reason I was so reluctant to begin again is because of the initial expenditure of energy which it requires each weekend. The planning, the shopping, the prepping. It’s exhausting! I still haven’t gotten it down to be an efficient process (although it has improved drastically.) Shifting my focus to cleaning up my diet, I went from working out 6 days a week to 5 days a week (although that could be due to tax season as well.)
However, the return on investment for all that work is definitely worth it. There is something that makes sticking to a plan easier when everything is consistent and already in place. The few nights I worked late, I had food with me at the office and was able to continue as planned. (Opposed to having to stop a little early due to starvation and grabbing Chick-fil-a on the way home.) It also helps that the food I’m eating is delicious and I feel as if I’m getting plenty to eat. I’m not going off the plan because I’m hungry or because I feel denied. I don’t even mind waking up a half an hour early, because it’s to make myself a batch of egg white pancakes. (I alternate between using blueberries and using half a banana.) Cinnamon sprinkled on top and 1/4 cup of Sugar Free syrup (with the fewest most natural ingredients I could find) and I’m in heaven.
 Until noon, when I’m ready to eat again.
3. I found a new recipe I love which is for Buffalo Chicken from Little B’s Blog. I make a lettuce wrap with the buffalo chicken and a dab of Greek Yogurt, and it is delicious. Plus, it can easily work for Ben as well. I just heat up some gluten free tortillas, (these by Udi are WAY better than regular corn tortillas) and serve with chopped up tomatoes, shredded lettuce, peppers, and salsa.
4. Last weekend, I took my 3 month progress pictures. What I’ve learned from losing weight via strength training (versus by just dieting and doing cardio) is that you HAVE TO take progress pictures instead of relying on the scale or even measurements. It’s a lesson which I’m incessantly forgetting and having to relearn.
This is my progress picture routine EVERY SINGLE TIME.
*I get in the same clothes I wore for my last pictures.
*I weigh and take measurements.
*Under the day’s date, I write my new weight and waist measurements on the white board which I haven’t used since the last time I took progress pictures (so I can see exactly where I was last time).
*I sigh heavily over the fact that I’ve made no progress. This time I had lost 5.7 and 1/2 an inch off my waist. IN THREE MONTHS. Three months where I was working out 5-6 times a week, and eating well. I work so hard for 5.7 pounds in 3 months? And it’s not as if my measurements are telling a different story either! This is so depressing that I want some damn french fries.
*I briefly consider not taking pictures since they’re going to be more like “lack of progress” pictures.
*I get over myself, and Ben very kindly takes the photos.
*I upload them and make a collage where I compare them to my last progress pictures and
*I AM SO HAPPY WITH THE PROGRESS AND THE RESULTS THAT I DANCE AROUND, DEMAND BEN TO COME LOOK AT THEM, AND THEN PRINT THEM OUT. I look as if I lost 15 pounds, especially from the back and on my side views. I am noticeably leaner and I can start to see muh muscles!
I then happily think about all the things I can do or have done now that I couldn’t do three months ago when I took the last pictures. I can now bust out 30 standard pushups. I ran my second 5k race in 27 minutes! I didn’t let my injury stop me and while I can’t run I’m now doing 5ks on the row machine several times a week. I’m doing so well, and having so much fun. Life is so great.
This happens every single time. Because I’m a remedial learner. And because dictating my weight loss progress by the scale is a built in mode of thinking which it is almost impossible for me to get past. Somehow I have let that number determine how I feel about myself rather than the scale just being another tool used to help measure the process. It’s not the only tool, and it’s not even the best tool. I’m hoping several progress pictures down the road I’ll be able to switch the routine up some. And even when I only have lost a few pounds I will know – before seeing proof – that it ain’t no thing.
5. Whoever said, “It’s just like riding a bike” would definitely rethink that if they had seen me today. It was the first time I tried to ride one in over twenty-five years. I have been begging asking Ben if we could go out and use our new bikes. (We got our “new” at least 5 years ago, and I haven’t ridden once. At least I know that I didn’t make the wrong decision in going with cheap bikes at the time.) He spent hours fixing them (as they were put together at the store we bought them from and this was done incorrectly), fixing a flat, and testing them out. So, I didn’t think it would be polite to give up in the first five minutes we were out riding. But I wanted to. I fell three times. Once into a chain linked fence. When Ben looked at my bike and realized that my handlebars were crooked, I switched bikes with him and did MUCH better. But still it wasn’t pretty.
When I got home and saw this posted to my local running club’s Facebook group page, I couldn’t help but comment:
The bright side is that I learned that people on the trail are very kind. (Unfortunately, I forgot that when I’m hurt I sound mean. So I neglected to soften my voice when I said, “I’m fine” which happened to be about 100 times.) Also, a little scary. At one point I took my bike off the trail so I could practice in an empty lot. A man asked me if I needed any tools, and I said no. Which would have seemed nice, except that he then drove by people obviously fixing their bike and didn’t offer them anything. (It wasn’t obvious as I was heading off the trail that Ben was with me so I guess I looked like an easy target being a girl by myself about to head off trail.) Besides that disconcerting event and all the tumbles, it was fun. It will definitely take me several more practice rides before I can even think of keeping up with Ben – who has a confidence with these things that I can never come close to. My goal is just to be stable enough that when we go to Kiawah I can ride a bike around the island. After having run 13 miles. That shouldn’t be hard, right?
1. I happened to see this flyer in my gym and recognized myself in one of the pictures. Can I now refer to myself as a fitness model?
I may have already added it to my resume.
2. The pictures were taken at a boot camp style class I did with Ben in September of 2013. You can’t see Ben in the photo, but he’s at the very end of the rope in the tug of war picture. Sitting. While yelling, “I AM THE ANCHOR!”
He was probably worn out because earlier when it was his team’s turn to carry the tire around the gym – Ben did it mostly by himself. He held it above his head while running. It’s the one time I thought the term “beast mode” was actually applicable to what I was seeing. And not just because he turned red and veins were popping out rendering him no longer human looking. Or maybe so. At that moment, he did resemble the Freak Beast
 from the hilarious Bro-Science.
Personally, I thought it should have started out with “bromoeba.” 3. I still cannot run. It has been 7 weeks. I am doing so much better, and can do everything else. In fact, last Sunday I did my first leg day since the injury. (I had just been sticking to full body workouts until I regained normal range of motion.) I did squats, lunges, deadlifts, and leg press – oh my! I kept the weight low(ish) and the reps high. I was fine with no pain! Well, with no pain during the exercises. The next day though..
 And the day after that…
 And then the third day…
And by the fourth day I was feeling like:
One of our clients asked my boss if I had been in a car accident or how I injured myself since it was obvious something had happened because I wasn’t able to walk normally. *Sigh*
So, lesson learned: no matter how much I’m injured do not go a month and half without a leg day EVER AGAIN. Which is why I want to cry that I just did it to myself again this morning when I JUST STOPPED HURTING.
4. Anyway, my point is that I thought FOR SURE I would be able to run this weekend. Sure, I had been in pain but it wasn’t pain caused from the injury. I had the plan to do run-walk intervals around a flat loop on the college campus near where I live. I made it a quarter of a mile before I knew that the pain wasn’t just to fade away as I had hoped. Once it starts, I can’t even just walk so that was out as well. So, I’m back to resting it for another week and hoping for different results next time. If I can’t run by April, I’m going to give up the hope of doing the Bearwallow Beast in May.
5. I’m trying to not let this depress me, so I’ve been focusing on leaning down, working on endurance without running, and running events that are a little further out. I have found another challenge in June: the Downhill at Dawn half marathon in Ridgecrest. Running 13 miles down Old Fort at dawn? Doesn’t that sound insane lovely?
Seriously, why do I think it’s a good idea to get up at 6am to go run 13 miles? I’m not going to think that the day of. I will HATE myself the day of. But now I’m thinking, “Sounds fun!”
However, the pictures from last year’s race are sooo pretty.
  
Also, there WILL be a medal:
My only hope is that I can start running, and know for sure I can do it before the race sells out. (They’re already 3/5ths of the way there.) I know that the “downhill” part is deceiving and it makes it sound easier than it actually is. After reading several course reviews, I’ve learned that the finish line is actually on an uphill (which should be illegal), that there are several hills on the course, and that running that much downhill really kills your quads and your calves. So, while not “easy” it should be a fun course. And maybe MAYBE I will be so sleepy that it will be 7am before I even realize I’m running.
1. Tuesday was our 10th anniversary of when Ben and I started dating. To celebrate we went to see Aziz Ansari, which I have been wanting to do for years. I was definitely not disappointed. He is fantastically funny, and it was the best comedy show I’ve been to.
2. Saturday was my grandmother’s 91st birthday – woo!
 With My Grandmother
Christmas Day 2013 Unfortunately, last weekend she suffered a heart attack – boo! However, when we went to see her in the hospital she looked great. She didn’t look great for having had a heart attack. She just looked great period. Before going in the room, I had emotionally braced myself to see her not doing well. However, she was sitting up and animated in conversation.
 Happy 91st Birthday, Grandmother! When asked what my Grandmother wanted to do for this birthday (for her 90th we had a huge incredibly fun party for her), she said she just wanted us to send her cards. Um, okay. So this is what I spent my Friday night doing:
 Hubba Bubba, it’s Grandmother’s Birthday!
Oh, how we wish we had hit a Payday so we could celebrate with a trip to New York to shop on 5th Avenue and go to the Symphony or leave the Orbit completely to the ends of the Milk Way! Alas! Instead we wish you Mounds of fun on your Whopper of a birthday! Thank you for all the joy you’ve brought us.
Love,
Your Airheads
Laura, Tobi, Butterfinger Ben, Kit-Katy, & Flannery 3. While visiting her today, she touched my hair, sighed, and said, “My little look-a-like.” I know I’ve posted this before, but this is a picture of my grandmother (when she was 20) with my grandfather, my dad, and my Aunt:
I knew we looked alike in the face, but it wasn’t until this week that I noticed that I also have her hands. They are eerily similar. When I pointed it out to Ben, he gave me a hard time. However, since my mom and two sisters were in the room at the time he did concede that only my Grandmother and I have the same hands. Little as it is, I thought it was neat.
4. The third anniversary this week was on the 13th which marked five years since my dad passed away. My sister, Leslie, said something great on her Facebook and I hope she doesn’t mind me quoting her on here:
“The sweetest thing I’ve heard in a very long time was hearing my almost 91 year old Grandmother last night telling us all that, besides her husband, her son was the only other man she’s ever loved. And she will never love another man like she loved her husband. No matter how long he’s been gone, she still loves him just as much as she ever did. Two great men. One awesome wife and mother. And the very best Grandmother I could ever hope for.”
5. Non-Sentimental Quote of the week (from Ben):
“I’m not a stop on the Underground Railroad for assholes between here and Georgia.”
1. A month ago, I made the conscious decision to tell my trainer that the injury keeping me from running was a “pulled adductor muscle” – rather than the most obvious way to phrase it which would have been a “pulled groin.”
First, I hate the word “groin.” Secondy, I knew I would not be comfortable with constantly talking about it while trying to train around my injury. However, after two weeks he still didn’t quite understand how I was hurt so I finally just said it bluntly.
Two weeks later and I still regret it. Some of his phrases I have had to kept a straight face through:
“We want to be considerate of your groin.”
“Be careful. We don’t want to funk up your groin any.”
(Yes, he said “funk up.” I have never heard that phrase before and I never want to hear it again.)
This sucker better heal quickly because even I can handle only so much awkwardness.
2. My meal plan goals for this week were:
No processed foods: Success! I even gave up crystal light and salad dressings.
Tediously Track Everything: Success!
Eat every 3 hours: Success!
No flesh of kittens: Success!
Eat 10-11 egg whites a day: Success!
3. As a comparison, this is what my diet looked like before this week:
Morning Snack (7:30): Banana
Mid-Morning Snack (10:30): Protein Shake (Met RX Protein & Oats)
Lunch (12:30): Turkey Chili, Spinach Salad
Mid-Afternoon Snack (3:30): Greek Yogurt
After the Gym Snack (7:30): Cottage Cheese with Fruit
Dinner (8:00): Roasted Turkey (not deli meat) Sandwich on Ezekiel Bread
Evening Snack (9:00):
Hehe. See, my problem is that I can follow a plan really well until night time when the HUNGER hits. It’s not boredom. It’s hunger, and it only hits if I’ve worked out that evening. I didn’t have a plan for this and I didn’t have the patience to fix myself something so that is when I would eat things that were just there and ready.
This is my diet this week:
Morning Snack (7:30): Egg White Pancakes. (Made with 4 egg Whites & 1/2 cup of oatmeal)
Mid-Morning Snack (10:30): Carnivor Protein Shake with a spinach cup added to it
Lunch (12:30): Artichoke Rosemary Chicken, Rosemary Sweet Potatoes, Broccoli Slaw
Mid-Afternoon Snack (3:30): Greek Yogurt, Homemade Mint Protein Bar
After the Gym Snack (7:30): Cottage Cheese with Fruit
Dinner (8:00): Monster Meatloaf (made with turkey), Steamed Green Beans (or Asparagus)
Evening Snack (9:00): 5-6 Egg Whites (This recipe for Frozen Egg Whites saved me! It doesn’t look like much, but it tastes like a dessert. I just have to be sure to include the peanut butter – which I do by adding 1 tablespoon of powdered peanut butter to it.)
This is a picture of my lunch, and as you can see it’s a lot of food!
I’m still hungry at night time, but I think that’s because I’m lowering the carbs I eat at night. In a couple of weeks, I’m going to try to give carb cycling a shot. That’s the point I can start free basing peanut butter, right? Because that’s the part I’m really look forward to.
4. The Tryon Track Club has set a tentative date for the Tryon Half Marathon – November 15th. I’m already signed up for the Kiawah Half on December 13th, and I think I want to try running 2 half marathons within a month of each other again. (It only made me want to die a little the first time.) This time I plan to start my training on August 1st. I have made some goals based on my weaknesses/problems in the last races. They are:
for the Tryon Half Marathon: to finish and be able to eat some of the delicious breakfast they provide afterward.
for the Kiawah Half Marathon: to finish looking awesome and not like death. Which reminds me – I need to find a hydration belt that has a spot for a cordless hair straightener, a compact mirror, and some lip gloss.
I’ll worry about time goals later. For now, I’m focusing on my priorities (food and looking presentable).
5. To make up for boring food and running talk, this is the most hilarious thing I saw this week:
1. This is a picture of two girls doing box jumps:
 (Why they are doing this in an area that looks like a seedy back lot, I do not know. I do know there is a joke in there about “getting jumped in an alley.” However, I’m still nursing a headache from trying to find a picture on google image finder of box jumps which didn’t involve crossfit.*)
2. This is a picture of the bottom of the shoes I’ve been wearing to the gym:
3. Not pictured:
My Face.
4. Not pictured:
Ben’s face when I told him that it was a medical emergency that I buy a new pair of shoes for the gym (even though I just shelled out a pretty penny for the ones I just got.)
5. Lies I Tell Myself
(*An impossible task.)
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I’m a Diesel on top but muh bottom half really brings the thunder.
