Monthly Archives: December 2015

2015 In Review

683848 / Pixabay

A lot of bloggers like to do a year in review, so I figured I would follow the trend.  2015 flew by, that’s for sure.

January – I ran a birthday half marathon.  I cancelled my cable subscription in January.  I can’t believe it’s been that long.  I don’t miss it except for on the days where I have to watch football on my computer.  I also chopped my hair off.  And haven’t had a haircut since.

February – This was a slow month, blog wise, but I ran one of my fastest half marathons, then went on a cruise where I ran a 5K.

March – In March, I talked about photoshopped selfies and cats.  I’m pretty sure that these two subjects comprise the entire internet.  Or like 98% of it.

April – I wrote a huge post about pace and inferiority and how it can be hard to get past the comparison trap. It’s still one of my favorite posts of the year.  And I ran the Cherry Blossom Ten Miler with Betsy and it was awesome.

May – The return to triathlon!  My first race of the season, the Kinetic Sprint was in May.  And I noticed a trend of people perhaps biting off more than they can chew when it comes to races.

June – Swim Bike Deathmarch!  Okay, not really, but I raced my first Oly of the season at Challenge WIlliamsburg.  I did a blood test with Inside Tracker.  (It’s past time to test again.  I should get on that.)  I wrote about HAES and Fatlogic.  I reviewed my Coeur Sports kit.  Still love them.

July – A lost kid appeared at my door.  His family texted me over Christmas to wish me a happy holidays and tell me that they’re praying for me.  That’s so sweet.  I raced a tri in the pouring rain.  It was way more fun than I expected.

August – The month started with the Fort Ritchie tri, and to be honest, it was awful.  Once again, Iron Girl Columbia!  It didn’t go as well as I would have hoped.  And then I bought a tri bike.  I also started decluttering my house.  I’m still pleased with the state of my closet, but I got overwhelmed by my paperwork and books and sort of gave up.  I’m going to get back to it in 2016.

September – I changed up my diet and started avoiding added sugars.  It’s going pretty well so far.  I ran the Beat the Deadline 5K and highly recommend it.  And I completed one last tri for the season.

October – Raced my 7th Army Ten Miler.  I love this race.  And I talked about losing weight.

November – I talked about lowered fitness standards for kids and ran the Space Coast half marathon.  Love that shuttle bling!

And that brings us to December, which has been insanely busy.

So there you have it.  A year in under 500 words. Have fun tonight!  But not too much fun.

Checking in on New Year’s Resolutions

condesign / Pixabay

I actually had to go back into my archives to find out if I made any New Year’s Resolutions this year.  That tells you how closely I intended to stick to them, doesn’t it.

Well, it turns out I DID make a resolution.  A few, actually.  Sort of. Let’s see how that went for me.

So my goal this year was to be honest with myself, in the hopes of losing weight, improving my fitness, and taking control of my finances.  And really, things went well on all of those areas.

After years of trying, I’ve finally figured out the key to losing weight. I’ve made a number of small changes, but I think the big one is sugar.  I’m really consuming a lot less sugar, and it seems to be helping a lot.  Of course, with the holidays, I’ve not been so great about it, but the key has to be not giving up.  Just because I had a few bad days doesn’t undo all the hard work I’ve done.  I’d like to lose another 5 pounds before triathlon season starts, because the less weight I have to haul up the hills, the better!

I’ve also been pretty solid on sticking to my training plan this year and it’s definitely showing in my race results.  A lot of it was just making the training routine.  It has also helped that I’m really focusing on biking in the winter season, which I enjoy so much more than constant treadmill runs.

My budget, well… it’s okay.  I’m being better about where my money is going, and that has helped a lot.  But I still need to tighten the purse strings.  Buying things is just so fun though!

So two for three.  Not so bad at all!  Now to decide whether or not to make 2016 resolutions…

 

Back to the real world

AlexVan / Pixabay

Over Christmas week, I was at my parents’ house, hanging out with family, which includes their herd of dogs and cats (so many cute animals to pet!).  What I wasn’t doing was spending much time on the internet.  Sure, I checked my email and looked at fun pictures on Facebook, but for the most part, I stayed pretty disconnected.

And it was awesome. While I love the internet, it’s also nice to be able to get away from it from time to time and not feel the need to stay on top of everything going on.

Of course, I also did not spend enough time looking at my training plan, so that did not happen, but I got in a few workouts, so I figure it’s better than nothing.

Tragically, now it’s back to real life.  Well, sort of.  I’m working this week, but the majority of my office is still out, so things are likely to be pretty quiet.  It’s a nice way to ease back in, that’s for sure.  I’ve got plenty of work to get done this week.  And fun things like paying my mortgage and booking a bike fit.  (Santa brought me a power meter because – okay, let’s be honest, my parents bought me a power meter because they are incredible and they support my crazy habit even though I’m convinced they think I’m insane.)

And now, it’s time for my workday to start.  But first?  More coffee.

 

Here Comes Santa!

skeeze / Pixabay

In the office the other day, we were talking about Santa, and I commented that if you don’t believe in Santa, you get underwear and socks for Christmas.  (Though let’s be honest, who among us couldn’t use some new underwear and socks?)  And the discussion turned to believing in Santa and when to tell your kids about Santa.

I told them I didn’t know what they were talking about.  Santa does exist!  Maybe not in the way that we think of him, as a guy flying around in a sleigh pulled by reindeer, but at least in the spirit of holiday giving.

Santa Claus evolved from Saint Nicholas (as well as other figures – I believe he is a combination of a few different gift givers, and I think his beard came from Odin).  But Nicholas was known for his generosity, leaving gifts in secret.  The most famous story is where he helped a poor man with three daughters.  For the daughters to marry, they needed dowries.  Otherwise they would never marry, and since women had no real means of making money during that time, they would have likely turned to prostitution.  So Nicholas, under cover of night, delivered dowries for the girls in the form of three purses of gold, slipping them through an open window.

So to me, the idea of Santa Claus has sort of evolved from a guy who comes in and brings awesome toys to a fun time of gift giving.  Secret gift giving can be a bit harder, but still a lot of fun to try, even if you get “caught” immediately.  (Though maybe don’t try to break into someone’s house to leave gifts.  That can end poorly.  I’m not sure that Santa can get to you in jail.)  I’ve found that I enjoy the gift giving more than the receiving.  It’s so much fun to know that you’ve found the perfect gift for someone.  And it’s not about what it costs, but it’s the meaning behind it.  Some of the best gifts I’ve given have been the most inexpensive.

So maybe, if your kid stops believing in Santa, you encourage them that Santa does exist, but more in the spirit of giving.  Because Christmas isn’t about receiving, it’s about giving and finding joy in doing for others.

Wednesday Workout Recap

Well, nothing ever comes from hiding the truth, so I figured I’d do a workout recap for last week even though it wasn’t pretty.

Monday – Monday was a tough day that I have yet to write about, but I spent the morning at my grandpa’s funeral, and was at the airport by 4 that afternoon to fly home.  I got home around 9:30 and absolutely crashed.

Tuesday – Had a run scheduled.  Instead, I rode my bike for 60 minutes.  No pushing, just an easy ride.  It was about all I could handle.

Wednesday – Back to choir rehearsals.  Concerts this weekend, so that means 7-10 rehearsals MWF (which I missed on Monday).

Thursday – Skipped swim, since I knew I would get home late and did Tuesday’s 4 mile run.

Friday – Rehearsals.

Saturday – Got up, went to the Cathedral, sang a concert, ate lunch and sat in the sun for a bit, sang another concert, came home, ate dinner, and crashed into bed.  Concerts should not be this hard on my body.

Sunday – Forced myself up for at least one workout.  I had a bike and a run scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, and opted to get in the longer workout of the two.  So I ran a sluggish 8 miles.  It actually wasn’t as bad as I feared it would be.  It probably helped that my brain was exhausted.  And then I went and sang another choir concert.

So if you’re counting, that means I got in 2.5 of the 6 workouts scheduled for the week (Tuesday’s bike counts as half, because it was something, but not the workout I needed.)  That said, I pushed the missed weekend bike into the next week, so I’m finally getting back on track.

And if you’re looking for a way to do a little something for someone else this holiday or just want to have your heart filled with joy at the kindness of others, check out The Sixth Annual James Garfield Miracle over at The Bloggess and make sure you read the comments.