About a million things...

Do you ever find yourself thinking about something and say to yourself: "I really need to write that down!" I find myself doing that so often. I work best off of lists, I am a talented writer and sometimes writing something is the only way I can really figure out how I feel about it.

I have had the feeling of "needing to write it down" several times this week... So, this blog may skip around a bit.

The first thing that happened this week that made me want to write actually induced a feeling of frustration and anger - feelings for me that rarely happen. I am actually pretty laid back (especially in my personal life) and to get really irritated by something usually indicates I should write it out.

SO, what got me upset? This:

So, I totally understand her face looks funny, so people are making fun of her, but the other thing they are making fun of is her being so fit. As if, having muscles and being in shape is disgusting. I constantly see women posting pictures of obese plus size models saying "oh, this is beautiful... anorexic is not beautiful...." and I always secretly feel like those women are trying to make themselves feel better for being obese, themselves. There are many beautiful, gorgeous, wonderful plus sized models... but they are not healthy. There are many beautiful, gorgeous, wonderful tiny models and many of them aren't healthy either.

Beyonce comes out at half-time and the first thing I said to JT was "wow, she looks amazing! Fit, healthy and beautiful! ANd she just had a baby a year ago" I was proud of Beyonce for being a great role model to women - she is clearly not too small, but she is obviously very healthy too. Then these damn meme's come out where everyone is making fun of her and changing her body out with the Hulk and olympic lifters. Why? I wish I could understand people. I have put on muscle since starting crossfit again, while still holding on to a layer of fat - in fact, i've put on about 10 lbs (of muscle Ill guess) and not lost fat... BUT, I do not look bulky or disgusting and I am SO FREAKING STRONG and FIT and feel so great. Why is that wrong?

I am assuming the reason I have not lost weight is because my eating just isn't good enough. JT and I have been grain free for more than 4 months and I haven't lost an ounce. My boss went gluten free about 1.5 weeks after me and she's down like 25 lbs. Im going to guess we've been eating too many calories to actually lose weight, though. So, we've decided instead of focusing on restricting ourselves and completely cutting out things from our diet, we need to focus on clean eating. (Seriously, how many times have I written this over the last couple years?) haha. I love it though. I love the fact that I am in the position to do whatever it is I want in terms of eating. I still feel very strongly that eating whole, clean foods is important - but for now, we're going to reincorporate gluten and cut down a hair on sugar and fat. I hope that will help us turn the corner. I am going to compete in festivus this year and I know i can do even better than last year.

Last but not least, Ive thought a lot about life this week. My Grandmother died 12 years ago this past Wednesday and it was a time for reflection for me. I thought about life, death and what I am doing to not only make an impact in this world, but also how I am enjoying the life I have. I do absolutely love my life, and I feel so lucky - but Ive decided I need to do more. Im not quite sure what that looks like yet, but I am going to start doing more with my time that I enjoy. I am going to work out even more (because I love it) go on more adventures and most definitely love more.

THanks for listening to the ramblings. :) Glad I wrote it out today! :)

Kickin' the dumps

Happy Sunday.

I have decided that is what today is going to be; happy.

I have caught myself feeling odd for a couple of weeks and can only attribute it to having a lot of crazy changes going on in my life and having a lot of friends who are struggling right now in life. I also feel like it has something to do with me not specifically taking the time to share happiness and optimism with others, be it on facebook or in person. Today, I found a couple of really cool things to share, read some very uplifting posts from a couple of friends and I am feeling great!

Isn't it amazing how our friends and the people we keep around have a profound affect on how we feel? Isn't that why we like some people and hang out with them and determine other people aren't the best mix for us? Facebook is an interesting beast, I find that there are many people I love on my feed every day, but some of those people I don't like very much. I don't like their attitude, their constant spewing of uneducated opinions and it frustrates me! So, today is the day I am going to go through and hide some people - that will be the start. I am also going to continue to do my best to only post positive things. I also think some of my issue is that even though I wasn't feeling like myself, I didn't take the time to focus on it and change it. So, my next goal is to purposely focus on how I feel and make the decision to be positive, happy and to approach every situation with a good attitude.

Attitude is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than what other people think or say or do. It is more than appearance, giftedness, or skill. It will make or break a company, a church, a home. The remarkable thing is, we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change the past. We cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play the one string we have, and that is our attitude.
Chuck Swindoll 

 On a different note, I had an amazing day at the gym yesterday. One of the things I LOVE about crossfit is when I am doing a workout and I just FEEL strong. Yesterday was one of those days. We did a team WOD  - 2 rds of 150 KB swings, 75 calorie row, 50 box jump, 75 burpies, 150 squats. That was broken up between 3 people in each group, which was chosen randomly with a "count off." I really got a great team too, all three of us were excited and ready to tackle the work ahead. As we started going we were all really pulling our weight and were in the lead and really gelling. As we got to the end of round 1 though, my teammates started to struggle a bit. The girl in my group was very new to CF and she was getting tired and hurting and the guy in my group was struggling due to a shin injury. That left me to pick up the slack - and I did. It felt so great. They were very encouraging and even though they were having a hard time they were giving 100%, which motivated me even more. Every time I have a workout like that, it makes me really want to get my shit together, because if I would just buckle down and lose my extra weight and get my weak movements down, I could be amazing. If I can do this well with 30 extra lbs. I can only imagine how good I could be without them. 

Speaking of losing weight - we had a pretty good week in terms of eating and working out consistently. We've also finally completely broken our monster addictions! :) Then, yesterday, we received our Beetnik Foods paleo tasting menu we bought from living social a few weeks back, so we're going to do even better this week. 

As we try the food, Ill make sure to write a post about it! :)

Thanks for reading! Here's to a GREAT week and a GREAT attitude.  

 

Feeling my best

One of my goals this year was to write more, so today, when the nagging feeling of needing to share wouldn't go away, I decided to actually do it! :)

Today was a great day. I was actually quite irritated and stressed all day - but I am proud about how I handled myself and how I approached my frustration. Ill spare you the details of the causes for my  frustration, but I will tell you that it is an on-going issue that I've addressed again and again (at work) that hasn't changed and NEVER will, despite my best efforts. That being said, my goal is always to approach situations as positively as I can and let things play out how they will.

The day started to turn around when a colleague of mine from another area of the City shot me a positive and complementary email. It is rare to get emails from people who have nice things to say, so I appreciated it a lot. That is the FIRST thing I wanted to share today. If you THINK something positive about someone - no matter what it might be (you like someone's hair, necklace, outfit, smile, attitude etc...) take the time to tell them. None of us hear good things about ourselves enough. It feels good to be noticed and recognized for our hard work and efforts and all it takes to make someone feel that way is by making the effort to actually say it out-loud.

The rest of my work day went on without a hitch and when I got home, JT and went straight to crossfit. It wasn't a particularly difficult workout today - but it was awesome to see new friends, encourage the new box members and just get moving. That is the SECOND thing I wanted to share. GET MOVING. It feels so good and no matter how much or how little you do, you'll feel great afterward for making the effort.

After crossfit we headed home and I made dinner. It was DELICIOUS. (LINKED HERE) It took a little time and I had never had spaghetti squash before, but it turned out great! We were out of sausage so I used bacon and chicken. :) THIRD point today - take the time to eat HEALTHY. It is so easy to grab a pre-made meal or just eat chips etc... but it feels SO good to put the right type of fuel in your body. The small amount of effort was worth it because it was delicious, healthy and makes packing my lunch for tomorrow that much easier. :)

The best part of the evening came while I was sitting on the couch next to JT and my sweet bulldogges, drinking wine, eating my delicious dinner creation and listening to music. The feeling of complete contentment and joy. It feels good to eat well, workout, be a good person, stay positive and be with the people we love the most. It is not always easy - in fact, many days I just want to sit on my butt and relax... but I never feel as good and as accomplished as I do, when I make an effort to do the things I know I should be doing. 

Here's to another amazing day tomorrow!! :)

Here's to a Happy and Fulfilling New Year!

Wow, what a year 2012 was. It is crazy as you grow older how many huge, life changing things you pack into each year. It really is incredible.

Of course I failed at one of my first goals from last year's January 1 (link to), blog! Blogging more consistently. In fact, I haven't blogged since early April when I started Crossfit! Oh well. :) Ive still had plenty of fun adventures, I just didn't take the time to write them down. Sorry about that! :) It is a goal again this year. I mean, I've been writing this blog for YEARS - so more than 50 times in the year would be a good goal. Also, it was so awesome to go back and read last year's recap of 2011. I am a strong person for sure.

Time to reflect on all of the awesome stuff that happened in 2012!
Here were the goals I set for 2012 and what I accomplished:

Goals 2012

Be more organized (This ONE is on the list for 2013 again... im just not very good at it!)

Learn to crochet (and make an awesome scarf!) (This one is on the list again too!)

Do something active most days (ACCOMPLISHED)

Work out most days (and try new workouts) (ACCOMPLISHED - started Crossfit and zumba)

Start and WIN work weight-loss challenge (and get a free week of PTO) (Finished and organized but didn't win!)

Hit goal weight/body fat % and maintain it (by april 4, 2012) (On the list again!)

Get personal trainer certification (I am now a certified Zumba instructor - not exactly what I meant, but still a huge accomplishment! And I am helping people change their lives!)

Volunteer  to help others (people/animals)  at least once a month (I don't know that I did this every month, but I did A LOT of volunteer work this year. A LOT.)

Meditate (On the list again, although I did do it.)

Reflect more (didn't do this as much as I would have liked.)

Do yoga (Started Yoga in Jan. of last year and did it a couple of times. On the list again.)

Play LOTS of disc golf! (We did play a lot sporadically.)

Support JT in any way possible to help him succeed in finishing the death race (Although JT did not finish, I feel like I did the best I could to support him, before, during and after. It was an amazing experience that I will never ever forget.)
Be the best crew-mate EVER! (I did the best I could, but no one was a better set of crew than James and Amanda!)

Be an even better wife (Definitely accomplished this.)

Be an even better friend (Definitely accomplished this.)

Be an even better person (Definitely accomplished this.)
Be a better daughter (Hope I accomplished this.)
Be a better daughter-in-law (Hope I accomplished this.)

Run a half marathon (Will be on the list again - but the stakes will be higher!)

Complete and be competitive in a Tri (which means GET A BIKE!) (Did not accomplish and decided Im not interested in this right now.)

Go to Ohio to visit my wonderful family (ACCOMPLISHED!!!)

Go on cruise with my girls! (Carolyn, Vicky and Jenn! their families and JT) (This, sadly, did not work out :( )

Explore more of Texas (Didn't do this)

Notice others and be more aware of my surroundings (so many people are rude and oblivious!) (Definitely made an effort to do this.)

Complete Girls’ new year challenge (Did this.)

Smile as much as possible (ACCOMPLISHED got many positive compliments this year about how positive, optimistic and upbeat I am. Definitely the best compliment I have received!)

Make a difference (I really tried hard to make a difference every day in every interaction.)

Start personal training part time (Although it wasn't my exact goal, I am doing this twice a week with Zumba.)

Do a couple of adventure races (Didn't accomplish this.)

Go camping (a lot) (Did this, but want to do even more in 2013!!)

Work on high kick (and continue total domination in house-hold high kick competitions) (haha, I won many high-kick contests this year. Easy when you're competing against the most inflexible person ever. :))

Do lots of fun dancing (and make up new songs and dances) (Did a lot of this! JT made up some awesome dances too!)
Hang out with JTs parents more (Accomplished)

Read more (Semi-accomplished. Read several books, but need to read even more.)
Visit Dottie (JTs grandma) more!(Accomplished)

Train dogs (obedience) give them more baths! (um... failed at this! haha)
Enjoy my BFF more than ever! (Love you Toad!) (ACCOMPLISHED)

Continue to cook and get even better (ACCOMPLISHED)

Blog more consistently (get more exposure) (this one was also a miserable fail :))

Send more cards, letters etc… (Really need to do even more of this!)

See GINA! (Tony and Sara and kids, Andrea and boys) (Didn't get to see any of these people)

Try to stop biting nails (ACCOMPLISHED!)

Go to a concert or two (This is on the list again.)

Be more appreciative and grateful (MOST Successful ACCOMPLISHMENT)

Figure out how to turn the mouse pad on my laptop off so it stops driving me insane! (ACCOMPLISHED!)

ENJOY DOING ALL OF THIS!!!! (DEFINITELY ACCOMPLISHED)

Wow, what a fun year of accomplishments. Some of the highlights not on the list:

-Played "Lily Belle" in the Curious Savage and met some AMAZING people! (Hannah, Jill, JP, Dan, Patsy, Tyler, Hunter, Robin, Marisol, LeeAnna and Jennifer just to name a few... there were so many other amazing people that were part of the play!)

- Received two promotions at work!

- Started Crossfit. I have never felt so strong and accomplished in anything else I've done. Also met too many amazing people to name.

- Traveled to Ohio and Vermont (And drove through BEAUTIFUL New York). There are no words for how awesome and amazing the trip was. Seeing my family was wonderful! I also got to see Jenn, Vicky, Carolyn and Johnny. I met James, Amanda, Seth, Alex (truly AWESOME people) and so many others.) We fell in love with Vermont and tried to hatch a plan to move there! :) Such an awesome experience and time. And I can't say enough about the connection I feel to Johnny and Amanda, the two of them and James are three of the most amazing people I have ever met. <3 br="br">

- Stopped being vegetarian and became Paleo! :)

- Started participating in a local Co-Op (Awesome!)

- Participated and ROCKED Festivus (National Crossfit Competition) I got 11th out of 33 in the novice category and JT got 3 out of about 30 in novice! IT was amazing!

- Before festivus, got my Pullups!

- got One-handed handstand!

- Participated on the City's "Fire Combat Challenge Team" and won a bet against the local newspaper. 

- Started teaching Zumba as part of my job. 

- Had a WONDERFUL Christmas season.

Im sure there are 100 things I am forgetting, but overall it was such a great year. They seem to just keep getting better and better too. 

I really try to set SEVERAL lofty goals each year. I don't accomplish all of them, but it is so wonderful to expect a lot out of myself and my life.

Goals for 2013:

- Travel more
- BLOG MORE!
- Learn to crochet (seriously...)
- Love more than ever (even people I find difficult to love)
- More adventure
- Run a sub-two hour half-marathon
- Do a lot of hiking
- GET MORE ORGANIZED (huge priority... I need to organize so many things)
- Get another tattoo and get my lower back tattoo fixed/covered up
- Make a difference
- Volunteer more
- Give money, time and attention to as many things as I can
- KILL my CrossFit PRs
- Meet my goals for strength, weight/bodyfat (150 or 18% BF)
- Possibly look in to getting my level 1 CF certification
- Continue to get better at cooking
- Share as much knowledge as possible
- Share ONLY postivity
- Camp more!!
- Be active most days
- Work out most days
- mediate
- do yoga
- continue to support JT in his adventure racing, goals and life decisions and be the best wife possible
- Visit my girls more (Carolyn, Jenn and Vicky!!)
- Visit friends more (Rhonda and Cesar, Johnny, Amanda, Scott, Lancer and Kryi, Stack, Nick and Marrissa, Kristy, Ashley and my other Ohio friends, Gina, Terrina, Jennifer and Eric etc...)
- Smile more
- Do better for my pups (bathe them and train them)
- Be a better friend, daughter, daughter in law, wife
- Start a family
- Send more cards, letters, surprise gifts
- See my family as much as possible!
- Help Abbs navigate Junior High and her first semester of High School
- Try new workouts
- Learn more about paleo and stick with it better
- learn more about supplements and begin taking them
- Work on getting finances under control
- Continue to be aware of others and my surroundings

That is all for now - I am hoping to add more as I go along. Thanks for reading! I hope you'll all make some goals for the year! Don't put too much pressure on yourself. Just write down everything you ever wanted to do and do your best to work toward that!

xoxoxo

"If you want to be happy, set a goal that
commands your thoughts, liberates your
energy, and inspires your hopes."
- Andrew Carnegie

Crossfit can have my babies

Seriously... Why the hell have I ever been doing anything else to get in shape?

What is crossfit do you ask?



It is amazing. It is the first time I've ever felt like my workouts have practical application in my life. JT started a month ago and has already seen VERY noticeable and favorable results. I started wednesday and although I don't see any results yet, I feel AMAZING (although, exceptionally sore! haha)

To all of you crossfitters out there who have been preaching it for a while - I am a believer and you can say I TOLD YOU so!!
Now, before any of you go out and join a random crossfit gym, I will say that the gym we found was after JT did EXTENSIVE research- He asked a friend (Johnny) who is an expert for a couple of tips and he researched what was important to us and found the perfect fit for us. Crossfit is more than a workout - it is a camaraderie that I can only compare to a VERY tight nit athletic team or the military - so if you pick the wrong gym, you pick the wrong people to be with. IN addition, some people are in it for the money rather than the fitness - crossfit can be expensive - like JT says "It is the perfect balance between having a trainer and going to the gym" so its more expensive than just going to the gym but less expensive than paying for a trainer (in some cases... some gyms charge a LOT!) So, it is important to find a gym that is well rounded and where the owners or leaders are fit and do the workouts and will scale you and work with you.

Besides crossfit the last few weeks have been crazy. I finished my play AND we finished our weight loss competition in my department (that I put together.) After all was said and done, the 24 participants who went start to finish (including myself) lost a total of 176.5 lbs. I would say that is a hell of an accomplishment. Personally, I started and ended at the exact same weight... but, as always, I can only go up from here and I am SO happy I didn't gain! (we only had TWO people who did!) We also kicked off our next challenge called "Freeze the Gain." We weighed in anyone who wanted to participate and the goal is to either maintain your current weight or lose weight in the next three months. We will have ONE weigh in on July 3 and anyone who does one of those things will be put in a drawing for some awesome prizes (rangers tickets, cowboys tickets, amusement park tickets... anything we can get our hands on basically.)

Im also in the midst of switching jobs so things have been insanely busy and crazy at work besides our challenge!  I am SO excited though and finally feel like I am going to be utilized for my talents. (and paid for them! haha)

Life is SO SO great. Are you living yours to its fullest? I sure as heck am! <3 <3 If you're not, now is a great time to start!!!

Thanks for reading - Ill try to do better about writing more! haahaha 

long, successful week.

Short post to end the week and check in. I somehow pulled off work, spending time with JT on his Spring break, hell week at play practice, losing two lbs., working out 5 times, cleaning, catching up with friends and more!!! It is amazing what we can accomplish when we just live!!
So.... see you next week, be successful!!!

Yummm!!!

midnight shopping trip!!! Healthy!!!