5k YAY.

sorry, it's been awhile! the last few months have been somewhat busy for me -- gearing up for an annual volleyball tournament, traveling, entertaining family and guests, and prepping to return back for my last year of grad school! it was a fun summer and it whipped by, right before my eyes.

today I finished my first official 5k race sponsored by the Gabriel Network. I finished it in 30:42 which I was pretty surprised by. I had been training for several months, but in the last several weeks, I've been focusing on my time for this race. I was also happy to have run the whole thing without stopping! :)

watch me.

this just reintroduced the mini super woman in me. my cape is blowing if you can see it :)

free.

Just purchased myself a pair of Nike Free 7.0's and all I can say is: WOW. These shoes are so comfortable -- I felt like I was not wearing any shoes at all! These shoes are very lightweight (10 oz!) and feel incredible. I think I made a good choice even though I would never pay $85 for a pair of sneakers, but it was definitely worth it. I think these will last awhile and will also help my running performance.

kankles.

no I don't have kankles. I've started incorporating 10lb ankle weights into my workout when I do ab/leg exercises. apparently they really help with muscle toning and strengthening. how does one walk around in those? I couldn't even keep my balance while walking around the house. we had a visitor over and I told her not to mind my ankle weights. she said she didn't even know they were ankle weights and thought I just had kankles. greeeaaaat. so to clarify, if you see me walking around with chunky straps around my ankles, I surely am NOT the victim of kankles. I will admit that I fell asleep with them on and experienced the feeling of what it might be like to be chained/shackled to a wall. scary thought.

I recently downloaded a free app on my blackberry called Endomondo which helps with tracking a run. It has a gps-tracking system to monitor the duration, distance, and speed and also has cool music and trainers that give you pep talks while you run for motivation. I'm pretty excited to start using it.

time gone by.

sorry it's been awhile. I've been traveling and busy with my internship but I'm back and all is well. I can say that my exercising lately has been a bit wishy washy, but I've been doing my best to get some workouts in during the week. My eating habits could be better but I have been able to keep everything in moderation. I think it's time to start that food log again! :)


I wanted to share with you my infamous "before" and "after" photos up to this point. I guess you can say it's a work in progress. I still feel that I have a long way to go if I want to lose another 20lbs. we'll see how it goes.

before:

after:

in other news, have you heard of the workout videos by BeachBody called "Insanity?" The title is completely fitting as the videos are purely insane. By the end of the 45 minute extreme cardio workout, you feel as though you may pass out, but you probably burned a bazillion calories. My cousin introduced me to this program about a month ago and I started incorporating some of the workouts into my exercise routine as running can get mundane after awhile. Boy, did I sweat like a dog! Even Sean T (the main leader) has to stop once in awhile because of how intense it is! CRAAAZYYY!!

hello there.

you've found me. you have actually decided to join what may be one of the most scariest, craziest, disastrous, most embarrassing things I have ever done in my life. welcome aboard because it's about to be a bumpy but amazing ride. let's start right off the bat. Back in November 2008, I weighed in at a whopping 180 lbs and knew that when I weighed more than my 17-year old brother, there was a BIG problem. Over the next 2 years I would yo-yo diet back and forth, losing or gaining between 10lbs and my habits were just never good enough. I always needed a quick fix -- something I could see happen instantly overnight. Weight loss doesn't happen like that, it's a gradual process that requires small and life-changing habits that become part of your DAILY life. I lost motivation quickly only after a week of dieting/exercise and again, the weight would creep back. In the past 3 months, I went through a transformation that kept me motivated to keep a diet, healthy habits, and an active lifestyle for well over my "typical week." I began a buddy system with a close friend and began a food journal in which every single meal was logged and by the end of the week, we would swap journals to be accountable to each other. This way, we could also burst each other's bubble if we messed up one day and had that piece of chocolate or a bite of ice cream which would happen occasionally! We also promised to watch our carbs, completely cut out sugar, and put in 4-5 days of workouts into each week to accelerate our weight loss goals. To make things even better, we set a bet that whoever lost 20lbs by a certain date, that person would win some sort of prize. I don't think I have ever worked so hard in my life. I not only managed to win the bet, but I am still continuing to feel more energized and healthy. At a current 160lbs, I still have not reached my goal weight and would like to shed another 20lbs to really feel healthy. That's what this blog is for. I would like to share my ups, downs, food journals, recipes, experiences, and stories with you while I journey into the land of minus-20! Do you dare to join?! I hope it's inspiring! :)