Cold Weather Running

As a sworn autumn-lover, and a life-long summer heat hater, I never thought I’d say this, but I really wish it would warm up just a bit!  I love chilly weather, and I adore test driving the fireplace in our new house, but when it comes to running outside, I am definitely a fair weather runner.  I don’t like too hot, and I don’t like too cold!

Living in the south, I definitely fight the heat more than the cold.  We’ve had freeze warnings the past two evenings, though, and even without that, it’s just been too uncomfortable outside for my liking.

I planned a run outside last night, but it’s dark before I get home from work and get ready for a run. Cold AND dark?  C’mon!  That’s too much.  So I went to the gym and managed 5 miles on the Boring Treadmill of Death before I called it a day and headed home to my crackling fireplace.

I have no idea what I was thinking, signing up for a half marathon in February.  Of course my training was going to have to be in the cold!  All I was thinking at the time was “Well, it won’t be hot in February.”

I really want the medal, so I don’t want to wimp out.  Evening runs in the dark probably aren’t going to happen, though.  On Saturday morning I will go for a (hopefully) long run during the late morning, so the sun warms me up at least a little, and I am off on Monday and will run that day as well.  I have covered the 13.1 mile distance twice, but I slacked off over the past month and want to be sure I can still do it without the overwhelming urge to die.

This morning I mentioned to my boyfriend that I could feel every pound I have gained while I was running.  He said “You can’t see it”, which was super sweet but also a total lie.  I can see the fullness in my face and can feel how much tighter my pants are.  Those extra 10 pounds are going to feel like a ton during a 13.1 mile run, so I need to get to work, get more running in, and get back on track toward my goal!

Wedding Dress Shopping

On New Year’s Eve, my boyfriend surprised me with an engagement ring.  My stepkids were home, and right after midnight, just after we toasted with our sparkling grape juice, my boyfriend and the kids dropped to one knee and popped the question.  I was so happy he included the kids in it.  We have been together over nine years, and I have watched the kids grow up, so them being a part of it just seemed right.

Oh, and I said yes 🙂

The holidays, moving, and the kids being home have really thrown me on my butt.  I’ve gained at least 10 pounds since the end of November.  I did nothing but gain in December.  And now that I can get back to a more normal routine, I feel stuck.  I’m struggling and just keep sliding right back off the wagon.

This morning, I looked around the bedroom as I was getting ready for work, and I thought to myself, there are so many happy and exciting things happening right now.  We just bought our first house, we just got engaged.  I can’t do this to myself right now.  I can’t blacken this by continuing to gain weight.  Wouldn’t it be awesome to continue the happy streak by losing this weight, once and for all, and still reach my goal weight before my birthday in April?

And besides…I have wedding dress shopping to do now!

Three More Pounds and a Video Camera

I love having days off for the holidays, but being out of a routine is really killing me!  I weighed in on Saturday to another gain, this time three pounds.  Yes, you read that right: three pounds!  Who gains three pounds in one week? Well, someone who eats like there is no tomorrow and skims by on non-challenging workouts, that’s who!

I’m not waiting for the new year to start over.  Three weeks of gains is more than enough.  If I have any hope of reaching my goal weight by my birthday in April, I need to get my act together now.

The kids are with us this week, which makes it hard because we are cooking more, snacking more, and I feel guilty sneaking away for a workout.  I need to make my workouts non-negotiable again, no matter who is home.  Nothing is stopping me from getting up early for a workout before they are even awake!

I have a semi-funny (and semi-sad) story.  This is the first time the kids have been with us after Psycho, my fiance’s ex and my stalker, was informed about our move.  She is an intensely jealous person, and I knew she would be salivating to get information about our new home.  If she hasn’t already driven by our house, I’d be shocked.

When the kids were dropped off over the weekend, my older stepdaughter showed up…with a video camera!  I nearly burst out laughing.  Psycho’s obvious attempt to gain access to our new home was so glaring, it was pathetic.  I told the kids they can have as much fun with the video camera as they like…outside!  I asked that the camera not be turned on inside the house and told them we have a right to privacy.

When my boyfriend and I shared our new address for a past move, the kids told us later that Psycho loaded them up in the car, came over to our place while we were at work, walked around the yard, and took pictures of our house.  She told them, “What happens in Mama’s car, stays in Mama’s car”, as if not telling anyone about it would make it the least bit sane.

So I’m not surprised that now that we have bought a home, she is chomping at the bit to find out as much as she can.  I can save her the time and tell her it’s the most beautiful house in the world!  I adore it.  I don’t blame her for wanting to be inside it so damn bad 🙂

Our New Home!

I can finally tell you why I have been so off-track and out of routine lately!  My boyfriend and I finally bought a house. We’ve been looking for a long time, and we never even hinted to the kids that we were shopping. We wanted it to be a complete surprise.

I didn’t want to write about it here because I am not 100% convinced my stalker, Psycho, doesn’t secretly read this blog, or doesn’t have someone else read it for her.  It’s the kind of ploy and strategy she has relied upon in the past, and I don’t put it past her to do the same now.  I didn’t want anything to ruin the surprise for the kids, so I just didn’t talk about the house on facebook, my blog, anywhere that Psycho might be camped out, starving for a tidbit of information.

It paid off: when we picked up the kids on Friday, we made up a story about having to stop by someone’s house.  It was so exciting, waiting to see when they would catch on!  My younger stepson commented that these people had the same flag that we did, and I smiled.  Suddenly he stopped and said “Wait a minute…”

When they put two and two together, they were so excited and happy.  They ran around the house, checking out the rooms, laughing and calling to each other as they discovered their own bathroom, the fireplace, the huge back yard.  My youngest stepdaughter actually screamed when she saw her bedroom and the purple canopy over her bed!

Finding the house, going through the inspections and negotiations, the hold-ups and delays, were all stressful and aggravating.  Living among boxes and chaos was stressful.  I couldn’t work out at home at the old place because of all of the boxes, and it took some time to get the new place set up for me to work out.  I didn’t want to work out in the living room because of the gorgeous wood floors.  I pictured weights banging against the floor, or sweat dripping on it, or my step scuffing the floor. Nope!  Not happening.

But this past weekend, we finally set up the desk and computer in the office/workout room, and it’s not 100% finished but it’s functional as my workout room.  This evening after work, I will do my first workout in there.

It’s been a long journey to get to this point.  I won’t bore anyone with details, but my boyfriend and I have struggled and been through a lot.

We love our new house, and the kids loved it too.  I’m sure when they went back to Psycho on Sunday evening, they got in trouble for saying anything nice about our house, and it’s a shame she won’t care how excited they were all weekend about our new home.  All she will care about is voicing her jealousy and pettiness.  But I can’t fix what is wrong with that woman, and I sure as hell won’t let it ruin the joy and excitement of our first house!

Still Shaky

This week has been shaky, but I’m trying to make progress and get back on track.  I didn’t want to work out yesterday at all, but I thought to myself “Tough, now go do it”.  I changed clothes and headed to the gym.  This weight isn’t going to lose itself, right?

Today was our office Christmas lunch, and I can’t say I chose steamed vegetables and carrot sticks.  But I didn’t scarf all of it, at least, and have a box to take home for later.  That should (hopefully) be my last major hurdle, since we don’t really do a big Christmas celebration or a huge meal.  The days off will mean needing the discipline to set a workout schedule and not stray into vacation eating, though.

I got a bonus check during our Christmas lunch today, which is great.  I might get a workout-related splurge with part of it, before my practical side puts the rest into savings.  Wireless headphones? New running shoes?  Leopard print workout pants? (You simply can’t have too many of those!)

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