Change is gonna come
Hello blogger world! I am on hiatus no more and am getting back into the blogging groove! Also, going to change things up a bit here in my little corner of the cyber world. This blog is no longer my fat story, it’s my happy story 
. Basically I’m changing my outlook on what I wanted this blog to be, which is in part to why I fell of the wagon. Topics will not be restricted to diet, exercise and running. There is more to leading a happy, healthy, balanced life and that is what I’m talking about! Hope you’ll stick around to see what unfolds!
Thanks for stopping by!!
Dirty Laundry
Happy Thursday! So lately I’ve been on a bit of a running gear craze and me thinks me might need an intervention. Or at least that is what my wallet thinks. It all started around my birthday. Charles took me shopping to pick out a gift and I got these:
Under Armour Compression Heat Gear capris I LOVE LOVE LOVE them!! They are so light and so comfortable! Would really love to get a pair in black to wear for my half-marathon in November.
Then, right after payday, a week or so later I splurged and bought some Champion gear seen here:
1. Sprint Wind Jacket – TOO SMALL, very disappointed. I was so excited to get this bright jacket to wear this Fall but that ain’t happenin’! Even if I lost weight I couldn’t wear this b/c the shoulders aren’t broad enough. This is a Large & my Mom couldn’t even wear it (she’s shorter & smaller than me). I need to exchange it and would love to get the XL but am not sure if that would even fit.
2. Shape Fitted Women’s Smoothing Knee Pants – These are okay. Also got them in a Large and they were a little snug up top but nothing a little run wouldn’t stretch out. The material is thicker than what I imagined and not very soft. I just like these capris, nothing to write home about.
3. Double Dry Spot Comfort Max-Support Sports Bra (Purple) – LOVE this! Very comfortable, sweat wicking, NO BOUNCE! Also very comfy around the shoulder area. Just saw they have it in solid white now so I’ll be getting one of those sometime soon Christmas maybe.
4. Double Dry Spot Comfort High-Support Sports Bra (Guava) – DITTO! This isn’t max so there is a little more bounce but still great control on the ladies!
My most recent order was from Running Warehouse.
A new/different pair of Injinji toe socks and a handheld water bottle by Amphipod. I wore the socks this morning on my 4 miler and they seemed just A-OK. The real test will be on Sunday when we run our 9 miler. The only problem I’ve really been having with these is a tiny blister/irritation on the side of the big toe. They have helped with my other toe rubbing issues. Sure wish Balega made a toe sock! I can use their Hidden Comfort socks for my short runs and they are so comfy! I have yet to use the amphipod but it seems quite comfortable just testing it out around the house. I am looking forward to is on Sunday.
I purchased all of this gear myself and decided to write this review post for the benefit of my readers. I am constantly looking for new items to try and love reading reviews and thought it would be helpful if I did a review post of my own.
What is some of your favorite gear?
8 MILES
Saturday was our long run day and we pushed through it! We were supposed to run a full 8 but ended up only doing 7.81 b/c of a minor mishap but all is well. This is my longest run to date and boy did I feel it! Note to self do Jillian Michael’s video regularly or not at all (preferably option 1). Although I did her 30 day shred video on Thursday my body was still feeling it Saturday. The first 2 miles were excruciating, I thought my legs were going to collapse! After mile 2 I was getting into the groove & by 4 or 5 I was ready to rock! After a slow start I finished in 1:28:53, pace 11:22.
Not too shabby but I’d like to keep my pace under 11:00 for my first half-marathon. So Jillian we’re going to have to get on better schedule! This weekend we’ll be doing 9 MILES! <- Scary stuff right there! <- This is also why I think I struggled Saturday b/c I was so scared starting out on my longest run to date and just couldn’t get with it mentally! Just need to keep reminding myself “What’s 1 more mile? You just did 8!!”
Post run my legs were feeling weird fo’sho! It wasn’t really pain, adrenaline maybe? Once I got home my knees started feeling eh (I had some issues with my left knee earlier this year). I try to both after each run, especially the longer ones. Well Saturday I decided I would give an ice bath a try. It was more like a baby ice bath so I could get a tiny feel for what it was like. I took whatever ice we had on hand in the freezer and dumped it in and to my surprise it was quite nice and my legs felt loads better afterwards! Maybe this weekend I’ll buy a bag after my 9 miler! I don’t know what the qualifiers are for using ice baths but I thought it was called for and will be from now on after long runs. I’ve tried googling the topic but there are no real guidelines as to when to use them other than after a hard work out or a “long run”.
Does anyone have any advice on this?
CONFESSIONS
1. I ate Mexican 3 times last week (Sunday, Thursday, & Saturday)
2. I am totally addicted to looking at & buying running gear! Think it’s time for an intervention! Obsess much? I’m trying to get my shit together and post some reviews on stuff I’ve purchased. I love reading product reviews from fellow bloggers!
3. I’ve been blog lazy since I got off schedule the other weekend and I apologize!
4. I would like to volunteer for something but am not sure what yet.
5. I hate very much dislike our current residence! Counting down the days till our lease is up (186 days)! We just moved here in March and I MISS MISS MISS our old place (lived there 3+ years). So whether we’re buying our first home (fingers crossed) or renting yet another place, we’re getting the hizell up out of this place!!!!
What are some of your confessions today?
Blog Hiatus
Many apologies for falling off the face of the blogger world during the last week. So lets jump right back into it!
My Mom was in town over the weekend for her birthday and we made a trip to Bed Bath and Beyond, love that store! Low and behold what did I find? Pumpkin Spice K-Cups by Green Mountain. JACKPOT!!
(Source)
It definitely exceeded my expectations!! It’s a light roast so it take two for me but still so delicious!! It really hit the spot during the cool, fall like, weekend we just had! So much so that I pulled out my small Fall decor collection. One more day to go now!!! I’m so ready for it. With the exception of shorter days, it’s the only thing I dislike about Fall and Winter.
Since the weather was so cool we decided to open up some windows and Kelso didn’t know what to do. Guess he was flustered with excitement from getting closer to the outside world.
After pacing the window sill in this exact pose for 5 minutes, he jumped up and crept from one to the other. Ah how I would love to have the life a cat
Saturday morning I headed out for our long run of the week, 7 miles. It was cool, breezy, and wet. The rain (more like a heavy mist) became steady by mile 2 but we kept on. In August when we ran our 8k race (during the skirts of Irene) a man directing runners said “You ain’t training unless it’s raining”. That made me chuckle then and this past weekend. The run went really well considering! The first 6 miles were at the same pace (1:05:25) as the previous week but I slowed down considerably during mile 7 because it was very hilly. Honestly it was the first hill because it’s a long one! I finished up with 1:17:00 and I was pleased with that!!
Somewhere between mile 5 & 6 I almost got emotional as I was thinking about all that I’ve accomplished! Who would ever have thought that I’d be running, much less 7 miles! Now, this Saturday, in 2 days I’ll be running 8 miles! HOLY SHIZ! SO yeah, I’m pretty sure I’ll be balling at some point on the day of my half-marathon. Which by the way is 6 short weeks, 5 long runs away! 
When I first started to run back in November I surely didn’t think I would make it this far. So here are some lessons learned and tips/advice for new runners:
1. Start out SLOW! Don’t worry about time!
2. Take it 1/4 of a mile at time, SERIOUSLY! I could barely make it 1 block when I started.
3. EVERYBODY has a bad run.
4. Running is running no matter your speed or pace or time completed or whatever! Never let anyone tell you otherwise!
5. STRETCH, no excuses just do it.
6. Cross train. For me this really helped with the cardio side since I was already out of shape. It’s also good for the body to do some low or no impact activities (swimming, biking, strength training).
7. Don’t over do it / Take rest days!
8. Fuel properly.
9. Don’t eat yogurt before a race! Yeah, STUPID stupid me did this on the day of my first 5k ever. Let’s just say the last mile & 1/2 felt like an eternity! I felt so bad for the guy who cut the chip off my shoe b/c I was a biotch with one thing on my mind. . . BATHROOM
10. This is kind of a repeat but let’s go with it. Strength Train! This really helps prevent injury as well (in addition to other things)! Running is hard on the body so having strong muscles to support it helps.
11. DON’T GIVE UP!!
So there you have it! My personal words of wisdom (not professional).
Signing off with cuteness Yes she has her own pillow pet! Honestly, I didn’t know what it was when I bought it. Just thought it was cute b/c ‘monkey’ is her nickname.
Are you a runner, new to running, or aspire to run? What brings you to it? Any additional advice for us newbies?
It’s That Time Again
GOAL TALK
So I’m trying to be diligent and continuously review & renew my goals. I must say that posting them on this little blog of mine is truly helping! I’ve put way more thought into my goals since I started this blog last month. So here we go:
1. Get my ace outta bed & to the gym/out for a run early in the AM. SUCCESS! Last week was the most awesome week, this week is been a little bit of a struggle but I’m still doing much better.
2. Eat breakfast at home, before work. SUCCESS! I have not ate breakfast at work in over a week & a half! It is so nice to sit at home and enjoy breakfast at the table.
3. Lose 10lbs or more by Nov. 6 (half-marathon). I have not weighed myself, yet again. This week is actually b/c it’s my girly time (sorry if that’s TMI) and I never weight myself then.
4. Get into a blogging schedule. This is going okay. The weekends always seem to throw me off. I have sat down recently and planned out some topics I’d like to touch on. Not every post is a serious, thought out post and I’m okay with that.
5. Cease all negative talk/thoughts about myself. You guys, unfortunately, I am super bad about this and most especially when looking at pictures with me in them. I often become oblivious to the rest of the picture and nit pick my faults (or what I fell are my faults).This is a work in progress and will not happen over night but I am working on it! Yup No change here. I did read somewhere that every morning you should compliment yourself when looking in the mirror. Think I’ll try that!
6. Read more, watch TV less. Well, I have been watching less. For some reason though the only time I want to read is right before bed and that usually puts me to sleep. I really want to finish my current read so I can move on to the next!
7. Cut back on the carbs. WHAT! Sorry bread & pasta!! Last week was a success in cutting back on the carbs with the exception of birthday affiliated food/outings. Yesterday was a total blow out but no worries I’m back to the groove today. This is going well! I’m still eating carbs but have cut back and try to only eat one or two carbs a day. Recently my carbs include oatmeal/cereal at breakfast & some type of carb at dinner (not always). I know carbs aren’t bad but I’m trying to moderate my carb intake to help me shed some weight.
8. Cook at home more! This has become a huge problem since we moved to S. Raleigh at the end of March to be closer to our jobs. The kitchen here is small & not open to the living space, which I am hating more than I ever thought I would. This got better, then worse, then better! We did a shopping trip Monday so it should be good! I just need to keep up with #9 and that makes #8 go much smoother!
9. Plan meals out. This will help with goal 8! See #8.
10. Do something good for someone or something else! It’s not all about me! This department is a little slack. I want to look into GOTR or something along those lines.
11. Increase (low impact) cardio workouts! This is a success, to a degree. I started riding my bicycle to work. Well so far I’ve done it twice and plan on doing it 2 to 3 times a week (2 minimum). Friday was my first time and I think it really helped me with my run on Saturday but that could just be a mental thing. I’ve found some suggestions on treadmill/elliptical pyramid routines I’d like to give a go too. I need to focus on strength too!
That about sums it up. I don’t think I have any new goals for this round, just gonna focus on what I’ve got.
So, yesterday they began doing some work on our office windows. Today they made it to the break room and it was great! I’m voting we turn it into a patio/balcony area! What’cha say!?!?! Yes, No, Yes, NO 
What is your ideal work environment?
Funday Monday, Oh wait. . .
It’s only Tuesday! It was a busy weekend and I’m ready for another one!
Saturday I got up bright and shiny at 6:15! I had to drop my car off at the shop to get serviced, so Sarah picked me up and then we met up with Sydney to complete our 6 mile run. We actually ran the first 6 miles of the half-marathon course (which is the plan for each of our long runs here on out)! This coming weekend we’ll be tackling the mile 6 to mile 7 hill! It looks so fierce. Nevertheless, our run on Saturday was phenomenal! It felt so good and I finished in 1:05:25!! Woo Woo to a 10:54 pace!! This was my first run below 11:00 since I got back into the groove, post wedding! So proud! I could’ve done better had I taken along some liquid to quench my thirst. I’m a thirsty girl!
After our run we headed over to Tropical Smoothie Cafe for a refreshing breakfast.
Don’t mind my gimpy eye, it was probably twitching from the cold, refreshing smoothie! A banana went along with that smoothie. The rest of my day spent waiting on my car and then vegging out relaxing at home while becoming engrossed in a Scrubs marathon. My legs felt quite tired just lying around but were good as gold when moving around. It could be they were tired because I rode my bicycle to work on Friday! Proud moment #2, I did not chicken out! Riding in the city on the road scares me but no more! It was so much fun and I think that is why my run went so well Saturday! It’s about 8 miles, give or take, round trip to my office. I’m going to try and ride at least twice a week to work!
Dinner Saturday was a treat, THAI! I love Thai!
After dinner we hit up Kohls & Target in search of wallets and then headed home to enjoy the move “Rio”. It was so cute!
Sunday was not real fun, we spent the WHOLE day cleaning and rearranging. I vacuumed our downstairs from top to bottom! It did feel good to get that done since Kelso got his haircut and hasn’t been shedding as much. It also felt good to rearrange out spare room b/c it had gotten so cluttered with wedding stuff and we never liked the layout because they made it look worse. So done & done! A days hard work called for MEXICAN!
Arriba! Arriba!!
Lucky for the husband I’m the sharing kind and let him enjoy my leftovers for lunch on Monday. Aren’t I a nice wife?! Hehe
Looking back, Saturday really wasn’t that busy. I was just that lazy. The 6 mile must’ve messed with my head b/c there isn’t much I really remember after that until it was time for dinner LOL. Brain fart I guess.
This was just a quick fun recap. I’ve got some more serious posts planned. One includes a review of some sports bras and the other discusses comparisons. Stay tuned!
What are some of your guilty pleasures?
Obviously ours is dining out twice this weekend! But you know what, it was worth it. Both meals were delicious! I could eat mexican food EVERYDAY. Sadly my biggest fear is that when the time comes for me to carry a child that I will not crave Mexican or Ice Cream and that the sight/thought of it would disgust me. Wouldn’t that be devastating!!!!
Soup, Soup Ba Doup
Can anyone guess where I spun off today’s post title?
Dinner last night was my first dip into what Fall means to me! Sultry soup, Rustic Italian Tortellini Soup to be more specific! I grabbed this recipe from one of my favorite recipe sites, Spark Recipes. It surpassed my expectations and I’m so glad we had lots of leftovers for me to devour!
Oh & the slice you see with it came in our CSA box yesterday. It had that chewy crust which I so love.
I followed this recipe to a T, with a few exceptions (see recipe ->here<-). I used 4 Butterball Hot Turkey Sausages with casings, 1 medium sweet onion chunkly chopped, dried basil instead of fresh, and the real kicker that I just found is this gem:
Oh yeah, you are reading right UNSALTED! I’m a stickler for keeping my sodium down, ever since the whole high cholesterol bit. Which actually turned out to be a healthy habit. Any who, it was love at first sight! I don’t know if this is a new product and my grocer has been holding out but it’s new to me, so don’t rain on my parade! In one cup of the lower sodium broth (broth & stock are one in the same people, I know this b/c I just asked my Mom ) there is approximately 570mg of sodium – shot gun BANG, what’s up with that thang! In 1 cup of this gem:
Crazy bidness! Oh and this container was like 1/2 a cup shy of 4 cups so I just added water to make up the difference. It tasted just as wonderful to Charles & I without all the sodium. So folks we have a keeper, this recipe will be showing up in our kitchen again!
In other news. . . Tomorrow is Friday and I have decided to ride my bicycle to work! Now I just hope that I don’t chicken out because riding on the road scares me! Haven’t done it since I was a teenager living in small town NC. This is big town NC and people are CRAZIER. I’ve mapped out a route to keep me off main roads so it shouldn’t be too bad. The only downside is I have not purchased this yet:
(Source)
So that means Olivia will not be able to make her Friday cubicle rounds (Shhhh I haven’t told her yet). I don’t think I’ve mentioned this but Olivia comes to work with me every Friday, they LOVE her!! One of the owners calls her Friday and will also introduce her as such to outsiders.
She has duties like supervising things, “Who should I visit first?”.
And of course she has paperwork (this is my old desk).
Often times Sydney & Olivia will debate building code standards.
Since I am writing this post from work I don’t have access to a lot of my pictures. This means I only have pictures of her “naked” at work b/c usually she is dressed accordingly. In due time you will see until then enjoy her nudity!
Did you figure out the title? Are you crazy about your pet or is it just me?
Tell It
- I have been super lazy since Sunday.
- That changed this morning, up at 5:30 ,in gym by 6:00!
- Yesterday I ate entirely TOO much.
- I am scared of my first half-marathon.
- My pants are getting tight.
- I LOVE crime dramas so much, it scares my husband.
- My Dad is in India for 6 months (work related) and it makes me sad b/c my Mom is by herself.
- Olivia, my dog, is a fart sniffer.
- Reality TV needs to become a thing of the past.
- I stunk so bad when I got home from the gym this morning that I began to worry that others could smell me at the gym.
- I do not have a fingernail on my left index finger b/c I slammed it in the car door in June & it finally fell off. It used to be purple (yes, even on my wedding day) from the dried blood under the nail. Fortunately for you, I am not going to post a picture of this and if you see a pic of my left hand my finger will likely be strategically placed so you can’t see it.
- The day after #11 happened my finger looked like a penis from the swelling.
- After we buy a house I want to start talking babies with my husband (shhhh he doesn’t read this blog regularly).
- I am ready for Fall, especially cooler weather! I am always ready for the next season by the end of the previous. I love them all equally as they each offer something different.
- “If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude. Don’t complain.” Thank you Maya Angelou!
- I am totally addicted to this song & in love with her voice!
Long Weekend Happenings
For the long holiday weekend Charles & I headed to visit my Mom in Wilmington on Friday evening. Saturday morn started bright & shiny at 6:30 for my 5 miler which went pretty well! I finished in 56 minutes, which my pace was down at 11:12!! Progress YAY!! Afterwards Mom & I hit up Dunkin D’s for an iced coffee and pumpkin muffin to go. We enjoyed a nice morning at Fort Fisher taking in the gorgeous weather while the hubs got his beauty sleep snoozed, it was nice! Zzzzs which he needed as the rest of the day included turning this:
Into this:
My parents own a house, that they are currently trying to sell, in the New Bern area which was hit closely by Irene. They were fortunate to just have one leaning tree and just more the the norm yard debris. There were LOTS of big trees down all over. Saturated ground + crazy wind = trouble
Sunday started out just right as well! Cuteness relaxed in the cool grass
While I enjoyed breakfast:
A fried egg by Mom (I never make this at home) and a new pair of running shoes for my birthday!! YAY!! They’re Saucony and I think the same shoe which I have now just fresh . Can’t wait to wear them tomorrow morning! I LOVE LOVE these shoes! They were my first real tennis shoes that I put some $$ in and have been worth every penny!!
After lunch we headed out shopping to Eddie Bauer <3!! Where the hubs picked out some birthday attire and I bought myself a cute gray skirt!! Originally $50 and I paid $6.99 after tax!! WOO WOO!! I never get that lucky!! It was the very last one and it was my size!! It’s more like a skort but not like the old school ones. I’ll post a picture of it soon.
We cooked out for supper and it was great! You could not have asked for better weather this weekend!!
Mmmmm Sweet Potatoes!!!!!!!
The night ended with a bang! Homemade vanilla/butterfinger ice cream and it was PHENOMENAL!!! Sorry, this is the best pic I got of that. It was dark out, the lighting was bad inside, & once I began to scoop bowls all I could think about was diving into the creamy goodness
The night ended just as it began! With this cutie pie:
Unfortunately all good things must come to an end and so there went our long weekend! We packed up after lunch today and headed back home. On the way we endured quite a bit of traffic on I-40 and I was so relieved when Charles took an earlier exit to get away from the idiots! I don’t know about you but we prefer to take the good ole roads versus the interstates b/c of the scenery and quite frankly interstates scare the s#*t out me!! Fortunately this little girl doesn’t notice a thing!
Now it’s time to bid you adieu! I hear the pillow calling my name! Good Night friends!
p.s. Please check out Honey, I Shrunk the Gretchen!! She has a funny and inspiring blog that I love to follow! Oh yes, don’t let me forget to mention the giveaway as well! Check her out!!
Nighty night fo’real.
Flashback Friday
Ode to Etta
Jamesetta Hawkins, better known to many as Etta James! And if the name doesn’t ring a bell surely you are familiar with her most famous romantic ballad “At Last”. You’ll just have to google that one on your own because I think we all know it.
I fell in love with her music a several years ago. She has this jazzy, raspy, blues voice that has touched all genres of music. I think her music has greatly influenced the industry! Here are just a few of my faves:
And
If you’re interested, definitely check out her book “Rage to Survive: The Etta James Story”! You’d be amazed at the life she had and challenges she faced. She is so strong and inspiring! You’ll also learn some interesting facts about other musicians. That time period has always fascinated me. So check it out!!
(Source)
Who are some of your favorite singers/musicians?
Yesterday I completed 4 lovely miles of running! It took me a little longer than expected. In part due to the fact that I didn’t realize I ran 4 since I was only scheduled to do 3 but I forgot to recheck my map before heading out on the trail. Needless to say, breakfast was on the fly.
Usually I go straight for the strawberry-banana but this won my taste buds over and it was yummy!! I will admit that I was a little grossed out scared of the color at first but it hit the spot!
Then later in the day I got the best belated birthday present EVER!!!
This is cupcake heaven!! It was Gigi’s lemon icebox cupcake YUM, sugar overload!! Technically it was still my birthday week
YAY for a 3 day weekend! It’s almost time to get is started! On the books for this weekend are a 5 miler, grilling, yard work at the Mums, and blog topic planning!! It’s gonna be a goot one.
