To Paleo or not?

About two weeks ago I started reading a lot about the "Paleo" diet craze that seems to have taken over the dieting world.  The basic premise as I understand it is to focus on non-starchy vegetables (carbs), fats (good ones), and protein (organic, local meat).

I'm generally pretty good at eating vegetables and meat when I focus on them, and I do know that in the past I've felt a lot better when I do this.  I think it's because I don't eat nearly us much sugar (usually in the form of chocolate).  So I thought I would give this a shot again.

The past two weeks have been great.  I've felt good, slept well, and my workouts have been fantastic.  I haven't been snacking as much, and if I am I have tried to focus on vegetables and protein.  This may be too much information, but my digestion has definitely improved as well.  I've also been able to really notice when something doesn't "sit well" with my system.  For example, I can definitely tell that onions are not my friend as I become pretty gassy.  So, as much as I love onions I really need to make sure I eat them in moderation. I think the same thing goes for eggs, but this one requires a few more days without and then try it again.  As I didn't separate them from the onions for some meals.

This weekend I've fallen "off the Paleo" wagon a lot.  And by "a lot" I mean, I've eaten almost an entire container of Oreos (with chocolate icing I added to them), alcohol, nachos, and  homemade chocolate chip cookies.  I've definitely noticed a difference in how I feel.  It's made me feel slightly ill, and I actually feel the urge to eat vegetables just to see if that will make me feel better.  I've decided that I really need to make sure I remember this feeling the next time I want to over indulge in sweets and refined carbs.  This is definitely not the best feeling, and I much prefer how I was feeling earlier in the week to this.

Trying to focus on vegetables, good fats, and protein started out as an experiment to see how I would feel, not expecting to feel as good as I have and definitely not expecting to want to continue a diet based around those main types of foods.  The most surprising thing about this is that it hasn't been that hard, even when eating out I've been able to focus on vegetables and protein (and I expected they were cooked in some kind of fat).  I haven't "craved" sweets, but made the conscious decision to indulge.  My new goal will be to remember the icky feeling when I ended up over-indulging and make the conscious decision not to indulge or to do so in a more controlled and defined way.  Definitely a challenge during this month, but one that I'm definitely willing to try, as I think that if I can make it through this month - I can make it through any month.  No excuses!!

Habits

I recently finished reading The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg, and I highly recommend it.  The book explores how habits are created, the impact they have on each individual, business, and society, and concludes with practical suggestions for becoming aware of your habits and changing them.

What I learned from the book that I can apply to my own development, was that every habit consists of three parts:

Cue
Something that triggers the habit.  It could be a time, a previous action, a person, location, or event (the cues are endless).

Action
The thing you do that in order to obtain the reward, and is probably the thing you become aware of when looking at your habits.  For example, biting nails, pressing snooze on the alarm, eating a snack/meal, watching a specific program, going to the gym (or not) et cetera.

Reward
What you get out from the habit.  This could be emotional, physical, psychological et cetera.

The first step in changing an action is to become aware of it.  We are surrounded by our habits and by their very nature don't realize we're doing them.  For example, I know in my morning routine I get up, go to the washroom (whether I need to or not), put in my contact lenses, brush my hair, get dress, pack lunch/snacks, have breakfast, brush my teeth, fix my hair, and leave for work.  The only change to this routine (aka "habit") is some mornings I go to the gym first.  What makes these actions habits?  I do them every morning without really thinking about it, and I rarely miss a step.

Now, if one of those habits was something I wanted to change, according to Duhigg I'd have to:

1. Identify the action (become aware of the habit)
2. Explore the cues (by process of elimination figure out what happens prior to the action that acts as the trigger)
3. Understand the reward I'm experiencing from the action
4. Determine a different action that will give me the same reward (this is assuming you want to change the habit of course)

What's my number one habit that I want to change?  Pressing the snooze button for 30 or 40 minutes.  I'm pretty sure I know the reward - more sleep!  But I haven't figured out the cue yet, and not sure what the replacement action will be (but something tells me it might be "go to sleep earlier" or "move the alarm clock across the room, so I have to get up to turn it off")

Do you have habits you'd like to change?

Market Day!

My plan this morning - 45 minute spin class followed by a quick trip to the market to pick up a couple dozen apples and three pie pumpkins before all the "Oktoberfesters" were awake and moving about the city.

Things don't always go as planned.  The spin class ended up being a 90 minute class, which I normally look forward to, but not this morning.  My legs were pretty tired from yesterday's class, I'm fighting a cold, and I still have a pulled muscle in my left leg.  Not ideal for a long class!

I made my shower super quick so I could head straight to the market before my poor legs seized up!  I was there by 10:00 which was perfect.  It was starting to get busy, but since I stuck to the veggies outside and didn't venture inside any of the buildings I was done in about 20 minutes.  I managed a few photos before my hands were too full to take any more.


 

There were peppers all over the place at the market.  I didn't buy any, but there were people buying bags of them.  Not sure what they are planning to do with them - I should have asked they guy carrying two large bags of red peppers!  Not quite sure how I resisted buying them.  They all looked so good.

My first purchase...brussel sprouts (oops!).  Not exactly on the list or the menu for this week, but they looked so green and fresh (and they roasted up nicely for dinner tonight and went well with my potato and leek soup).

My original plan was to purchase three pie pumpkins and at most two dozen apples, probably MacIntosh and Honey Crisp.  I did stick to the three pie pumpkins, but went a bit overboard on the apples.  I ended up with a bushel of MacIntosh apples, and about 24 Honey Crisp apples.




The unplanned definitely happened at the market...1 bushel of MacIntosh apples, 24 Honey Crisp apples, a basket of brussel sprouts, 3 pie pumpkins, and 2 butternut squashes that jumped in to my bag.

The rest of my day was spent roasting pumpkin, pumpkin seeds, and brussel sprouts.  Jamming apples in to every nook and cranny of my fridge, and hoping that I'll manage to eat them all before they start to go soft.

The plan for tomorrow is to make a pumpkin and pear loaf, wash all the dishes, and makes plans for some of those apples!

Getting Back on Track

A little fall colour in my garden.  A calendula plant that I'm hoping will re-seed itself in my garden and not all over my lawn!

I unofficially took the month of September off from intense workouts.  It wasn't really planned, but since I think I may have averaged one and a half trips to the gym a week, I'm saying it was a break.  (And I definitely haven't been running).  The break appears to have been good for me, and I'm really hoping that the muscle pull in my inner thigh is better because of it.  (Doesn't hurt to walk/run, but definitely notice it when doing weights/yoga).

October is definitely a good month to get back in to the routine of working out.
Here's the plan for this week:

• Today - 5K run on the roads around my parent's place (done, although it was a bit frosty, and there was a guy out hunting!)
• Tuesday - BodyPump
• Wednesday - RPM
• Thursday - BodyPump
• Friday - RPM
• Saturday - RPM
• Sunday - Rest and plan my own weight workouts for next week.

Usually I skip the BodyPump classes and do my own thing, but I think to get myself back in to the "wake up early, in the dark" routine I need to have something that starts at a specific time.  Next week I'm hoping that I can sub out one of the weight classes to do my own thing, but we'll see how the mornings are going.  I'm going to try building in a better cue, other than the alarm going off, as it doesn't really get me out of bed that fast.  I'm going to make sure the last thing I do before climbing in to bed to read at night is get out my workout gear.
I know in the past, this "cue" has worked for me, and of course I'll stick to my reward of amazing endorphins and feeling great for the rest of the day.  (Can you tell I'm reading The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg?  I'm only half way through, but I highly recommend it!)

Up Close and Personal

I've been looking back over the beginning of this blog and realized I've strayed from my original intention.  I had originally planned to blog about fitness, food, and photography.  I've definitely blogged about my running and my love of weights, but even that has been missing these past few weeks.

So I've decided - enough with my relationship woes - back to building a blog around three things I love!  (I'll keep the relationship stuff for my journal and discussions with my girl friends - I promise, from this day forward).

To start things off - a few photos.  Here are three from my trip to the Toronto Zoo at the beginning of June with  good friends, their spouses, and kids.

I love taking close up pictures, and really like seeing the details in the animals.

Their wrinkly, grey skin, and their wise looking eyes.











Their beautiful, colourful feathers.  My favourite shade of blue.

Their regal posture, and soft looking fur.

Muscle Soreness

I'm by no means an expert at working out, and this post is just going to reinforce this!

I haven't done any weight training in almost two months.  A combination of dating the indecisive guy, heat, and focusing on running my 5K didn't give me much time or desire to get in to the gym.  Lots of "reasons", but I have enjoyed the break and chance to do some different things with my time.

This week I got back to it, and while I only completed weights two times, my body is feeling it.  The biggest lesson I've learned this week - If you haven't done weights in almost two months, you will not be as strong as you were and if you decide to lift the same weight that you did before your break, it will be hard and you will be really, really sore!

This may be too much info, but the sorest muscles are my gluteus maximus (aka my bum).  Which is both good (if it lifts and rounds out my flat bum), and bad (I sit all day at work).

I decided to do a bit of research for some tips on reducing muscle soreness.  Here's what I've found (love Wikipedia!):

1. Muscle soreness should be gone within 72 hours
2. Increase blood flow to the muscles through low intensity work, massage (yes please!), hot baths, or sauna
3. Cool or icy water may help

I've always thought I felt better if I exercised again.  Apparently exercise increases your pain tolerance temporarily and suppresses the soreness.  This would definitely explain why I seem to be able to push through a second workout and then I'm super sore afterwards.

So, next time I'm super sore, I'll have to make sure I relax in the sauna for a bit, and maybe I can convince indecisive guy to give me a massage (maybe I should focus on my back muscles, rather than the gluteus maximus for that - Ha Ha).

Highland Yard 5K Recap

I finished the Highland Yard 5K on Sunday.  My goal was to run as much as possible and complete the race in under 30 minutes.  Drum roll.....I finished in 32:24.  So not under 30 minutes, but still a PR.
What did I learn from this race?

1. Some races have a lot of fast runners!  I was 12th out of 14 in my age/gender category.  People shot out of the starting and not many people took walking breaks.
2. I need to stick to my training plan, in spite of the ridiculous heat leading up to the race.  I'm sure my endurance would have been much better and I wouldn't have required so many walking breaks.
3. Eating and proper hydration the day before definitely helps with the side cramps.  I only had a minor one and I think that was more from pushing myself more than I was ready to be pushed.
4. You can't count on the weather!  No rain for weeks, and of course we have a major storm the night before the race.  Luckily the heavy rain stopped as we drove to the race.
5. Having my parent's there was great!  But my mom's photo skills need a bit of work (see the only picture of me actually racing below - but I love that she tried!)
6. Your spectators should really stop at Timmies pre-race start.  Dad drove to Timmies after I started running.  Not realizing that so would every other spectator!

I'm in the yellow top - and won't be wearing capris next time (too hot!)



Dad drove to Timmies after I started my run, but was back to see what a sweaty mess I was crossing the finish.





Race Day Prep

This week's post for Running & Reading Long is about what we need to do to prepare for race day.  Since my race is a 5K, it's not too complicated in terms of fueling.  However, I did learn a couple things from my first race that I need to keep in mind this time.

1. Have all the clothes out the night before, including water bottles and snacks for after the race.  This was really helpful the morning of my first race as I wasn't in my own home, and it will be the same this time.
2. Don't eat "junk food" the night before the race!  With my first race I went to the drive-in the night before and ate things I wouldn't normally eat like nachos and cheese.
3. Drink lots of water the day before the race.  Refer to #2, nachos and cheese plus other salty foods and not a lot of water the day before the race meant I ended up with a stitch in my side.  I'm guessing that this is what caused the stitch and that by following #2 and #3 I can avoid it (or at least minimize it) this time around
4. Take your heart rate monitor and watch.  I want to pace myself this time, as my goal is to complete the race in under 30 minutes.

I think those are the key things for me this time around.  Of course, I expect I'll learn something new this time and will just keep adding to my growing "running" knowledge.

My focus this week and next is running.  I've put my cross-training on hold, and I'm really trying to get out for my runs.  Which is a bit tough with dates and work getting in the way and/or making me very, very tired.  At least the heat is breaking a bit today, so that will help with my run tonight.  And with these runs I'm trying to extend the time spent running, and walking less frequently.  I think this will help build my endurance for August 5th!

This race is going to be fun, and I'm a bit nervous as I'm not 100% sure I'll make it in under 30 minutes and my Mom is planning on coming to watch too.

Vacations

I love being on vacation - getting away from work, and away from my normal surroundings.  Last week I was on vacation and had a fantastic week.
Started off on Saturday in Burlington at the Country, Blues and BBQ.  Not a fan of country music, so was a bit disappointed there weren't more Blues bands.  However, the company was great.  My good friend Elizabeth, her husband Keith and their daughter Daisy (10 months old and super sweet!).  And the boy joined us as well.  Yes, he is still around, and I'm feeling more certain and a little less uncertain as the weeks have been going by.
Sunday I packed up and headed to my parent's place.  Always enjoy my time there.  Swimming, kayaking, hiking, day trips to Peterborough and North Bay.  Saturday I went in to Peterborough to meet the boy and one of his friends for dinner/drinks, and a movie (Dark Knight Rising - which was good and I understood what was going on inspite of not seeing the two movies before it).  Sunday we met his friend for a very late breakfast (or in my case lunch as I had a burger and fries), and checked out the Peterborough zoo.

A zoo that's free!  Not huge, but they have a splash pad for the kids and regular play equipment, lots of park area to hang out in, plus animals of course.  We were there in lots of time to see the otter feeding which was fun, and inspite of the heat the animals were out.  I'd definitely recommend the zoo as a great outing for a family.  It's small enough that no one gets bored or too tired, and lots of space for kids to run around.

Back to work this week (boo!), but looking forward to an extra long, long weekend at the beginning of August.

A Life Changer

This week's post for Running and Reading Long, is about overcoming big challenges, life changing challenges.  I'm not sure what to write about.  I've had a couple major challenges in my life, or at least ones I felt were challenges, but I'm not 100% sure that I actually want to share either of them.
Big, deep, breath - here we go:

One of my biggest challenges came in the middle of high school.  I was overweight (by a lot), unhappy, and the people I thought were my friends really weren't.  I was so unhappy that I seriously considered what life would be like for my family if I just wasn't around anymore.  Luckily, I think a lot before I do anything and like to gather lots of information too.  And as a typical teenager I watched a lot of television.
One day I was unhappy, and bumming around on the couch watching talk shows.  I can't remember which talk show it was, but they were talking about "Choice Theory".  The basic premise of which is that everything is a choice, even if the circumstances are out of your control you can still choose how you react to them and deal with them (or not!).
From that moment on "Choice Theory" has played a huge role in my life.  I started being conscious of the choices I was making on a daily basis, big and small.  I started to try and make choices that I thought would make me happy.  Some were small, like choosing what to listen to or wear, to big things like telling my "friends" that if they didn't want me around I wasn't going to bother with them anymore.

Since that day, I've looked at everything as a choice, and I strongly believe that my choices should be things that make me happy, or at least make me less unhappy.  This has led to some incredible experiences like travelling to Manila, Philippines for work three times, weight training with an amazing trainer and loosing almost 100 lbs, going to lovely warm weather destinations with girl friends and having a blast.  Dating is a bit tougher, as I can choose which guys I want to date, but I don't have as much control there :)  But I do my best to control my reactions to what they decide to do/not do, and so far I've been relatively happy with those choices.
I can't think of any choice I've made since that fateful day that I've regretted.  It's amazing to live a life knowing that I'm capable of making choices that I won't regret, and that make my life that much better.  I still have those sad moments, and do give in to not great choices at those times (usually sugar/chocolate related), but they are few and far between.

We finished reading Matt Long's Long Run this week, and I would definitely recommend this book to everyone!  My favourite part matches my belief in choice theory, and I found it so inspiring.  The day he finally decided to stop moping around, and took control of how he was reacting to his injuries and recovery.  I felt so great for him when I read that section of the book.  He proved that how I live my life can be applied to even the most devastating/tough circumstances.

As for my running - the heat has finally broken, and I'm back on track to be able to run the 5K in under 30 minutes the first weekend in August.  Although I've come to the realization of the past three weeks that hot weather plus dating does not equal great nights of sleep.  And lack of sleep means I'm not willing to get up for the early morning workouts.  So this week my schedule has changes to after work workouts followed by a late and very light dinner.

Hope everyone else enjoyed Matt's book and the running is going really well!

Pre-Birthday Day post

I've been debating all day - do I write a birthday post and admit I'm getting older.  I'm tempted to re-cap all the things that have gone on in my 33rd year, but then I realized that some of those things are really part of my New Years goals.
So in honour of my 34th birthday tomorrow, I've decided to post a condensed (I have a lot of goals) New Year's goals update.  Hopefully I've made some progress!

Financial - Without getting in to too much detail the goal is to pay off debts.  I'm doing okay at this goal.  The most exciting part is that I've already arranged things for my mortgage renewal date of August 1st.  I'm switching to a Manulife One account, which is going to save me a ton of interest (over $20,000), and if I stick to my current budget, can have my debt totally paid off by the time I'm 40!  (As long as I don't go on too many trips, or find a guy who wants to stick around!)

Family Relationships - This one is basically a bunch of goals that include connecting with family members each week.  And I'm doing a good job of this.  I've even managed to visit my Grandmother a couple times, which has been really good as she hasn't been feeling 100% (doctor is playing with her blood pressure medication).  The biggest goal in this category was to attend my sister's wedding in England and then travel to Marrakech with my parents, brother, and (his now ex) girlfriend).  This one was a lot of fun and has been completed since February.  This goal also included riding a camel (did it in the Sahara) and visiting the markets (did this several times).


Mom and her girls

Friend Relationships - This one is very similar to the family goal, to connect with my friends on a regular basis.  I'm doing well on the e-mails and texts, and not too badly on the in-person.  Want to do the in-person a bit more, but that's subject to their schedules with husbands/kids.

Boyfriend Relationships - Do I post this?  Bleh, sure why not:)  I've been doing the on-line dating thing, and my goal was to send messages/winks which I've been doing.  Plus I wanted to average 2 dates per month.  This was definitely a stretch goal for me, and I'm surprising myself with how well I'm actually doing.  While I'm not actually at the 2 per month average, I'm not far off, and if things go well in the next few months I could actually reach this goal.  I have never dated a lot, so with the dates I've been on I'm a lot closer than I was a year ago.
Part of this goal was to try one new activity/event each month to get myself out of the house.  This has been good, and I've combined it a bit with seeing friends, as well as volunteer work.  So I feel really good about the progress on this one.
Oh yeah - I'm still single!  But the point of this goal was to date, and have fun, not to put pressure on myself to be in a serious relationship (that would just be a bonus).

Professional/Personal Development - I've fallen a bit flat on this one.  I'm suppose to figuring out what I want to do next professionally, but haven't done any of the things on my list.  Personally I've started a blog, and am almost averaging my one post a week goal.  And I'm definitely well on my way to having read 40 books by the end of the year (helps that I don't have cable!)

Physical - I've run my first 5K (yeah!), but other than that I haven't reached my other goals.  I am still making progress though.  I'm much stronger than I was at the beginning of the year, and I'm working out consistently.

There we go - my almost mid-year, sort of birthday update on my New Year's goals for 2012.  I have definitely made some progress on a few of them, and looking forward to the rest of the year to see what happens.  Happy 34th Birthday to me!

Up and running again!

My internet has been down (fried modum) since last Wednesday!  Very hard to blog from a Blackberry and definitely not something I want to start doing while at work.  Since I don't have a personal laptop going to a cafe wasn't an option.

So I missed out on last week's Running and Reading Long post, but am going to take part this week!

We have been reading Second Wind by Cami Ostman.  I'm going to admit right away that this isn't my favourite book of the ones we've been asked to read.  In fact, it might just be the one I liked the least.  It's definitely an interesting book, but I found I couldn't relate to it as much as the other books.  It felt very self reflective, and since I haven't experienced the break up of a marriage and that kind of struggle I found it hard to get through.  With that said, I would like to move on to what we are suppose to talk about this week for this book and think about all the great places Cami travelled!

For each marathon she participates in we're to talk about the big take-away for her (or us).  So here's my list:

Europe - Sometimes mistakes are made, but the achievement still counts!

Australia - This was her first official marathon and turned in to a challenge as she faced herself, her own thoughts, past, and current situation.  We need to take time for ourselves, to grow and develop, even when we are in the midst of a relationship or anything else life throws our way.

North America - I felt this chapter for me was about facing fears and dealing with them, rather than letting the fear dictate your actions (in this case running the same "safe" route all the time).

Asia - This was the chapter I liked the best, but I think that's because I've been to Japan and visited Mount Fuji.  It made me want to visit again, although I have lots of new places to visit before I revisit places I've been.  I felt this chapter was about remembering good times, recognizing growth in yourself (the Warrior Woman).

Africa - Besides running a marathon when she was sick, I think this chapter was more about recognizing our human history.  Including our biases, and our racism (past and current).

South America - Be comfortable with yourself and specifically your body.  We are often too critical of what our bodies do (or don't) and how they look (or don't).

Antartica - No matter what the obstacles in your way you can achieve your goals, even if the goal is slightly modified from your original plan.

Training Update:
Things are going slowly.  I'm having more fun with my weight training than I am with my running.  I took a few days off from runnning due to a sore leg, but feeling better now.  The good news is my heart is getting more and more efficient all the time.  I train with a heart rate monitor and it's getting tougher and tougher during weight training and spin classes to get my heart rate up to the 80-90% max.  This also caused some concern at my physical when my resting heart rate was 44 bpm (sound really good, but part of it is hereditary.  Even when I was 260 lbs, my resting heart rate was 52 bpm).
So this coming week, my goal is to increase my speed to see if I can run 5K in less than 30 minutes by July 15th.  If I can do that, then I should be able to do that at my race on the August long weekend.

Pacing your Running

Wow!  When I chose "pacing" as a topic to explore for Running & Reading Long I didn't think it would be as tough as it has been to find basic information.  What I was looking for was how to figure out my pace as I'm running without using any fancy GPS watches.  What I found was:

• Lots of reviews of GPS watches
• Suggestions to be aware of your breathing and how your muscles feel and adjust your pace according to that
• A lot of suggestions for how to pace the various race distances to maximize your energy and get the best results

While interesting, none of these things really help me figure out what pace I need to aim for to run my 5K in under 30 minutes in August.

Based on the information I did read, and what I've figured out on my own.  My understanding is that pacing is really about how fast (or slow) you run each kilometer during your run.  And a "split" is the time at each kilometer mark.  Or if your in the US - for each mile.  I did find a very neat calculator, that I have found useful for calculating splits at Cool Running.

Calculating splits for a tempo run is pretty straight forward, and easy to manually monitor if you use a stop watch, your heart rate monitor, or the clock while on the treadmill.  During a race, you can manually monitor your splits as long as there are kilometer markers.

Things get trickier if you're running on your own outside.  This takes a bit more thought and preparation.  I haven't tried this yet, but I think I'd have to plan my run and then use a mapping program to figure out where each kilometer mark would be.
Running on a track would help alleviate this issue, but I barely like running the same route twice let alone in circles on a track!

So for my 5K in under 30 minutes, if I run at the same speed for the entire race my splits would have to look like this:

        Kilometer 1 - 6:00

        Kilometer 2 - 12:00

        Kilometer 3 - 18:00

        Kilometer 4 - 24:00

        Kilometer 5 - 30:00

My goal for next week's runs, will obviously be to try and reach these splits for one of my runs.  First I need to actually track where I'm starting!
Closer to the actual race I'll have to figure out a plan - should I go out slower and speed up, or go out faster in case I slow down at the end?

Running Update

How is my running going?

Well, I've stuck to my plan with the tempo runs.  This week I have one hill run and one Fartlek run to complete, which I'm sure I will.

I ran outside on Sunday again, which I've discovered I really enjoy.  However, I defnitely can't run the same path twice.  I wear my Ipod and check out the scenery, but it's not as distracting as being able to read the latest issue of Women's Health and look up at the TVs.

Even with the warmer weather, the outside runs have been great.  Luckily I live in a city with a lot of community trails and parks that make great running destinations.

Next week I start the 5K training plan, which will definitely help me focus on getting my running in under the 30 minutes.

Taking Little Chances

I was in my Google Reader today, and one of the blogs mentioned doing things that are out of character, and suggested that doing this makes you grow as a person.  This wasn't really the point of the post, but it's what stuck with me and got me thinking about how I live my life.

I have two main "beliefs" when it comes to how I live my life.

1. Life is about choices, and the choices you make should make you happy.  Even things you can't control (like illness, or other people) still have an element of choice because you choose how you deal (or don't) with the situation or person.
2. Life is about experiences, not the things we own.  Whether it's an experience you have by yourself (like reading a great book, wandering around a market, or travelling), or with your family or friends.  Experiences are the things you remember at the end of the day/month/year/life.

I think these two things go hand-in-hand.  We definitely choose what experiences we have, and the decisions we make every moment, every day have an impact on our happiness.  This is part of the reason I feel so strongly about supporting organizations like Children's Wish Foundation, and supporting my friend's in everything they choose to do in their life (as long as it doesn't harm them or others).

So far, the choices I've made and the experiences I've had have generally been pretty safe.  Things that I was comfortable doing and didn't push me too much out of my comfort zone.  I decided that this year that had to change a bit, and my new years resolutions reflect this.  I'm not one of the people that make resolutions, and a month later forget about them.  I didn't concsiously set out to add resolutions that would force me to do things that were out of character, and make me grow as a person, but that has been the result.

Two of my resolutions definitely fit in to the doing things that are out of character and my life is more interesting because of it.

The first is to be open to every date invitation, whether it's a guy from an on-line dating site, a guy I meet somewhere, or a set up by a friend.  (There was on caveat to this - If I had the "gut feel" that the guy was a creep or dangerous I would definitely say no).  So far being open to all date requests has gone well.  I'm still single, but I've met a few good guys this way, and did enjoy the time I dated the "heart guy".  I've definitely learned a couple things about what I like/don't like/want/don't want.  And new things about myself as well.

The second is to try at least one new thing every month that gets me out of the house.  This is the "doing something out of character" a bit more than accepting all date offers.  This one requires a bit more thought and planning, and I've managed to do a couple things on my bucket list too.  By doing things I wouldn't normally do, like riding a camel in the Sahara, and going to see the Harlem Globetrotters on my own, training and running in a 5K, I've had some great experiences.  I've become more comfortable with doing things that I never thought I'd do, and more comfortable with doing things on my own.  I've also picked up new hobbies (Hello Running!). 

A side benefit to doing new things every month, is that it helps with dating.  Not that I've met any guys doing any of these things, but I have a few new stories to share on dates.  Plus, I'm always excited about the next thing I'm going to do and I think that comes across in conversations with guys, my friends, and family.

I would highly recommend trying small things, taking little chances, every month.  It makes life a little more exciting.

I like doing something out of character once a month.  It isn't too often that I'm uncomfortable all the time, but it's often enough that I feel like I am growing as a person and my life is richer because of it.

Life List - Run a 5K

I did it!  I completed my first 5K run on Sunday and it couldn't have been a better day.  The sun was shining, and the weather wasn't too hot or too cold.  I definitely want to run the Chocolate Race again next year, and my cheerleader has said she will join me next year.  Although my mini-cheerleader might not be quite ready for it yet.

Here are the pics:

My mini-cheerleader wasn't quite ready to go

But I was ready!

Happy to cross the finish line

One of us was enjoying a chocolate martini

 

I was so glad to have two supportive people cheering me on.  Elizabeth acted as photographer, and her baby, Daisy, was definitely an attention grabber.  She woke up when we arrived at the race, and didn't fall asleep again until we left.  So many people to look at and smile for!

Here are the official stats for my first race:

Finishing time was 34:35

In my age category (Female 30-39) I placed 33rd out of 97

In the 5K I was the 102nd female to finish

My pace was 6:55/km

I'm already planning my next race, and want to finish under 30 minutes.  Which might be more of a challenge as the next one will be the August long weekend.  It will be much warmer!

Blogging Genius and Chocolate Run

Maybe "blogging genius" is a bit of an exaggeration, since I took almost 20 minutes to figure out how to add an image and link to the blog.  But I did it!  All on my own, so I now have a link to the "Running & Reading Long" course that I'm super excited to be taking part in.

My hope is it will keep me going and excited after I complete my first 5K run on Sunday.  Less than a week to go and a bit scary to say the least.  However, my run yesterday went well and I rested for the rest of the day as my shins were not feeling quite right.  Hopefully the three runs I have in my plan to complete this week won't aggravate them too much.  I may forgo my normal weights/yoga routine as last week my feet were cramping like crazy and it was after a run and yoga that the shins started to complain.

Or maybe I'll just play it by ear and see how my legs feel on Wednesday night.  Which normally means I'll probably end up doing the core class and yoga, rather than resting.

I figure this is my first of many races, so why not try things out and see what works/doesn't work.

My two goals for the race on Sunday:

1. Finish it in less than an hour (I think realistically I should manage it in under 45 minutes)
2. Enjoy lots of chocolate after with my cheering squad composed of my friend Elizabeth and her baby Daisy

What could possibly go wrong at the Chocolate Race? Run out of choclate maybe, which might be devastating!  I'm super excited to be able to cross off another "Life List" item.

Life List - Harlem Globetrotters

Last week I completed another item on my "Life List"....see the Harlem Globetrotters!

Yes, after the dating escapades of the past few weeks I decided I need to do something fun on my own.  Something just for me, and it happened that the Globetrotters were in town, so I splurged on a great seat.

And they were funny, and entertaining.  Almost as entertaining as the kids around me dancing to all the music (very cute!).
I would definitely recommend seeing them, but if you can I'd suggest taking at least one kid aged 4 to 10.  I think seeing them enjoying the show would make it that much better.  If you take a kid, be prepared to shell out some serious cash for a souvenir as they can have it signed after the show.  Those famouse stripped balls were selling for $30 Cdn.  Guess who decided not to buy one!

Next up on the Life List - Complete a 5K (April 29th, as long as my body lasts through the week).

Wedding Pictures

I had such a great time in England before my sister's wedding, hanging out with my parent's, brother, and his girlfriend.  The wedding was really good.  Sister looked amazing as usual, and Batman made an appearance at the end of the night.  Yes, my new brother-in-law was dressed as Batman for part of the evening.  I can only imagine what his stag weekend was like when he was tramping around Dublin in the outfit.

Here's one of my favourite pictures that my dad took - my brother, sister, me, and mom.

We had such a great time, and it sounds like the honeymoon in Sri Lanka and the Maldives was great too!

Things I'm Proud Of

I absolutely love lists, and despite the fact that I just returned from a fantastic trip to England (for my sister's wedding) and Marrakech (to have some fun) and should blog about that - I'm going to create a list instead of blogging about that.  (Although I'm sure I'll be posting pictures at some point)

I've recently been following a lot of coaching blogs and one of the blogs I've been following for a while now is written by Jenny Blake (author of Life After College).  I just watched a short video that she posted, where she puts out the challenge to reward yourself for the things you are proud of.  Her assignment is to list the 25 things you are proud of, today, this week, last month, last year, or your entire life.

Here's my list:

1. Travelling on my own for the first time all the way to Japan to visit my sister
2. Losing 90  lbs and keeping it off
3. Being physically fit enough to realize my childhood dream of portaging in Algonquin Park with my dad
4. Developing a great reputation as a trainer at work
5. Taking the initiative to enroll in a Managment Skills certificate program in order to further my career
6. Finally being the successful candidate for a supervisor role (after many unsuccessful attempts)
7. Smiling every day
8. Signing up for my first 5K and starting the training this week
9. Being supportive of my family and friends in everything they choose to do
10. Sticking with my commitment to living a healthy lifestyle by going to the gym on a regular basis
11. My various food successes - lots of trying new recipies all the time
12. Having a strong relationship with my family, even travelling to Ottawa for a week with my mom
13. Buying my own home
14. Furnishing that same home
15. Finding joy in continuous learning
16. Travelling to Manila to work for three months - away from my family and most of my friends
17. Riding a camel in the Sahara
18. Being brave enough to ride roller coasters at Canada's Wonderland or Disney World in spite of my fear of falling
19. Speaking in front of a crowd of over 150 people and having someone I respect tell me I did a very good job
20. Continuously working to overcome my fear of speaking in a large crowd
21. Learning to drive standard (and loving it!)
22. Learning how to play the piano, and passing my Grade 9 Royal Conservatory Exam
23. Starting a blog
24. Setting specific goals in all areas of my life for 2012
25. My self awareness

Wow!  The first 10 were easy and it got progressively more difficult.  I need to do this more often and I think it would become a lot easier.  Plus, it would keep me focused on all the positive, great things I am doing in my life rather than focusing on the things that I think are missing or are incomplete.

Pictures...

Okay - so another thing I'm interested in is taking pictures and becoming better at taking pictures.  To be honest most of my pictures are landscape and architecture.  Why?  Because in general trees, rocks, and buildings don't move!  People scare me.  They get blurry and change expressions too fast.  I have a hard time capturing the moment that I want to.
People are fleeting and this is definitely something I need to try and capture more often.  As with anything I'm sure it's just a matter of practice and taking a lot of pictures.

Here's one of the pictures I took from a trip to England a couple years ago...I love doorways.  And I really like having the flower bush in the foreground to offset the brick and structured door frame.  I also like that I mixed up the composition by not having the door right in the centre.  I think it adds a bit of visual interest and a bit of a sense of depth.