Day 5

You know what I realized? It's much easier to say no to something when you have a reason for it or a goal in mind. It's been fairly easy to say no I don't want that piece or cake or no I don't want those rice krispy treats because then I just say, "I'm not eating sweets in January." With that goal in mind saying no is much easier than if I'm just like oh I shouldn't eat that. I'm not eating it vs. I shouldn't eat that is a huge difference.

So I'm about to go to sleep on day 5 and have easily said no to hot chocolate, peanut M&Ms, a milkshake, birthday cake and peppermint ice cream, rice krispy treats, and tootsie rolls.

Almost one week down.

Day 2 and Workout Reward Ideas

Going well so far...it's 8PM and I've only thought about sweets once or twice while I was shopping at Whole Foods. Update- it's now 9:20, and I still haven't thought about them again.

And for a few minutes while I was trying to come up with an idea for our workout competition monthly prize. So I don't have to come up with these ideas again every month, I decided to write them down for once. Here's what I've come up with so far for rewards that are $10-$25. I tried to stay away from any food related rewards since that kind of defeats the purpose... but thought of a couple that were kind of fun.

• Manicure/pedicure gift certificate ($15-25)
• Magazine subscription ($15-20)
• iTunes gift card (any amount)
• Target gift card (any amount)
• Sports Authority gift certificate for new workout gear (any amount)
• Amazon gift certificate for anything really (any amount)
• Cookbook ($15-$25)
• Movie tickets ($15)
• Mall gift certificate (any amount)
• Workout DVDs
• Baking stuff (mixing bowls, baking sheets, cupcake tins, silicone mat)
• Bath and Body Gift Certificate
• Candles/aromatherapy type stuff
• Fresh flowers
• Gift card to Etsy
• Homemade dinner gift cards
• Nice waterbottle/water pack for runners
• Yoga mat and bands
• Workout bag
• Exercise ball (the big ones), medicine balls, kettlebells, dumbbells, etc.
• Pedometer
• Gift card to shoe store (DSW, Payless, Off Broadway, etc.)
• iPod accessories (cover, headphones, gift card, speakers, running armband)
• Online personal training program (Designed for the recipient)
• Paying for a race registration

And then I thought that doing some type of themed gift basket would be kind of a fun reward as well. Here are some of the ideas I came up with.

• Healthy treats- chocolate milk, fruit, baby carrots, string cheese, yogurt, granola
• Homemade dinner - rolls, salad, main dish, dessert
• Homemade goodies - cinnamon rolls, cookies, cupcakes, muffins
• Night off #1: Movie Night - Blockbuster/Netflix/Redbox gift card, popcorn, movie candy, drinks, snuggie or fleece blanket
• Night off #2: Game night - pizza place gift certificate, gummy bears, playing cards, any board games, written out instructions for games like mafia, Chex Mix/snack food, drinks
• Night off #3 - good book, snuggie or fleece blanket, hot chocolate, goodies/chocolate
• Breakfast in Bed - cute vase, breakfast tray, breakfast recipes, muffin tin/mix, juice, fruit
• Pamper yourself/Girl's Night - chick flick, bubble bath, nail polish, foot lotion, face mask
• Spa Day - massage lotion, candles, neck wrap,
• Workout - water bottle, towel, workout DVD, CD of workout songs, magazine
• Yoga - yoga mat, yoga socks, resistance bands, yoga balls, yoga DVD/cards
• Baking - silicone spatulas, cupcake tins, mixing bowls, measuring cups, apron
• Sweet and Salty Treats - Chocolate covered pretzels, trail mix, popcorn with M&Ms, chocolate/yogurt covered nuts or sunflower seeds, granola bars
• iPod gift basket- iTunes gift card, iPod cover, headphones, speakers, armband, etc.

No Sweets Day 1

I did it. I made it through day one, and it wasn't too bad. It probably helped that I didn't leave the house until around eight and spent the day working out (dancing, running, and playing RockBand). When I'm running chocolate and candy are the last thing on my mind. And I wasn't even tempted to eat the peanut M&Ms Ryan had during our game night.

And now on to day two.

8 Weeks

I've got eight weeks until the Phoenix half-marathon, and I've run a total of four times in the past month. I've got a tough 55 days ahead of me.

Running

I ran two miles tonight (in the middle of a 80 minute cardio session) and ran one of those miles in 9:20, which is pretty good for me. I'm going to continue to try and run short runs just a little bit faster each time. And I'm going to try and get the long runs in for real. I've got a ways to go with this half training for Phoenix, but I'll make it.

Day 2

Food
I didn't eat any candy at work today, which is much better than yesterday's six pieces and two cupcakes. But I did make my MIL's Kuaui Krunch Kake, which is definitely not healthy and had a good serving of that plus a small slice of pie at the wellness night. A granola bar for breakfast, pizza (it was free and hard to pass up) for lunch, and pasta for dinner (just a little) with the krunch kake. Overall I felt like it was a good day and good decisions made.

Fitness
We had a church activity tonight that was a panel of four medical specialists- a family practioner, a midwife, a wellness coach/nutritionist, and a personal trainer. I didn't workout today, but I did get motivated to start working out again and I'm going to start a workout competition with a bunch of my friends. The doctor told Richie that he had to start working out again and hopefully that would flush the sickness out of his body, which means that we are going to start exercising together. Hopefully all of these things combined will get me moving.

Workout Log

Hello running blog. It's been a while. Way too long really. And other than a handful of random workouts between then and now, it's been almost that long since I've had a good workout. That stops today. They say that it's a good idea to track what you eat and your workouts to get into the routine, so once again I'm going to try and keep a real workout log. I'm going to see my family in three weeks from tomorrow and then the rest of my family a month after that so it's time to get serious and back in shape. I've got six pounds to lose (2 lbs a week) and three weeks to do it in.

So here goes.

Food:
I've been struggling lately to eat anything for breakfast other than cereal, which takes time that I don't have. I normally eat a lot of fruit smoothies but Richie has been sick and can't have smoothies so really I've just been skipping breakfast. Today I had about half an apple and half a thing of yogurt (oh and some corn flakes). Definitely not the best start. And I just can't seem to walk past the cupcakes in the office kitchen without eating one. Tomorrow I'll walk by. So I had two cupcakes and a couple of pieces of candy. Fail. For dinner Richie made a broccoli cheese chicken that was delicious, and I actually ate a good portion size (not too much).

Workout:
I did a 45-minute combination weights/cardio DVD called Total Body- Time Crunch. Normally I love it, but I just felt like I was going through the movements today without having any power behind any of them. I still felt great at the end and was sweating like crazy (might be our hot apartment). I just need to remember that feeling the next time I don't want to workout. Success.