Thursday, July 28, 2011

You scared me!

Last night I think I startled Ben.... It all came about last night when I got home from my salon appointment. Normally it would be a hair appointment, but my stylist informed me that she would no longer be cutting my hair, at least until the wedding. As she put it, you are going to hate life, because of how long your bangs are going to get, but I promise you it will all be worth it in the end.

Instead I got my nails done and had my eyebrows waxed. Still got to get pampered, that is all that counts in my book!

We also had a chance to discuss wedding day and hair and make up. And how things were going to flow. We scheduled the remaining appointments I needed for trials and coloring. When she mentioned that it probably would be a good idea to take some pre-natal vitamins to help promote hair and nail growth!

When I mentioned that nugget to Ben he seemed startled. Poor guy.

Also in talking to other women and my doctor, everyone seems to agree that it's ok to be taking pre-natal vitamins before you are planning on getting pregnant, that really it wouldn't do a woman any harm, if anything it just makes you all the more ready when you DO want to have children.

So if I can find some, I guess I'll start taking them. Just seems so crazy to think that my wedding is right around the corner and then in no time, we'll be starting to have a family!

In other news, in the local weight loss challenge, I am actually faring well, I've lost at least 5 pounds in the first week. Probably mostly water weight, but I am ok with that, a loss is a loss, it's nice to see the scale going in the right direction, now just have to keep up the momentum. Cash is always a great motivator!

Sunday, July 24, 2011

Heat Wave

Unless you've been living under a cool rock, pretty much the entire country has been in a heat wave, with New England having the worst of it the last 2-3 days. Thankfully, it's forecasted to be less humid and not as hot tomorrow. Which would be a welcomed relief. 


Thursday, my best friend came over and we went for a couch to 5K training run, it was the first day of the heat wave. Ben decided to join in our "fun" and come with us. 


I started doubting myself from the moment I saw 90 degrees plus in the forecast. I said, well I'll go, but I may only end up walking, I didn't want to push myself too hard and end up hurting myself. I stayed hydrated the whole day, drinking lots of water. 


When I got to the track, I wanted to at least try running. After my warm up walk, I hit the first run interval, and as I sucked in hot and humid air, I picked up my feet and ran. It was like having a heater blast your face the entire time. But I ran, and continued to run at every interval. I did cut 2-3 intervals short by a few seconds, but I still ran. 


And at the end, I was so proud of myself for not giving into the excuses and taking the "easy" way out. Not that it was an excuse, it was hot enough that any activity outside would have been a challenge. 


As I got back into my car, I started it up and noticed the temperature gauge, it read 93*, I couldn't believe that I had just ran in 93* weather. I was dripping in sweat. Getting back home and after taking a shower I still was sweating and had to stand in front of our A/C unit for a good 5 minutes before I could stop sweating. 


But I did it. In a heat wave. Goes to show you that you shouldn't let anything get you down, that you can accomplish anything if you set your mind to it. 


Mind you now two days later, and my knee is still bothering me, I haven't been able to walk far (let alone run) I am hoping that by tomorrow night my knee will be feeling better, I am hopeful to get a gym session in. 


I am proud and accomplished. 

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Tomorrow...it begins

Tomorrow I am competing in a weight loss challenge, this one is for money. I could really use the extra cash for the wedding/honeymoon, and extra motivation to look my best on my big day! This competition is only for 5 weeks, but I am hoping that the routine and enthusiasm can carry me through to my wedding. 


I am still working on my Awesome by August challenge, and it's really been a challenge, and I've been letting the excuses get to me.  My Strong for 23 calender isn't looking so good for the month of July, I've been letting the heat and humid be my excuse. 


No more, I have a gym membership for a reason... I have goals that I am looking to accomplish, my 5K with Creating Kayla is a little over a month and a half away and I am STUCK on week 2 of couch to 5K training... I haven't moved off week 2 since restarting the program a month ago. Although I am doing well on week 2, it's not getting any easier, and I don't feel like I can move on to week 3. I need to be more consistent  and get my training runs in (3 times a week) and start moving back up in the progression.


Tomorrow it begins, it's a new day... and I will succeed!

Monday, July 18, 2011

Summer Luvin'

Well, as usual the weekends fly by. Now my schedule rotates so my days off are sometimes during the week and sometimes during the weekend, I really enjoy my weekend days off, because it usually means that Ben and I can do stuff together. For the last 2-3 months, it's all been wedding related stuff. This weekend was no exception. 


Our meeting with the minister, went well. It was great to talk about our relationship and how we fell in love, what we loved about the other, talking about family and children, and where we saw our lives in 5 and 10 years. It was nice because we had already talked about most of the stuff we discussed. The minister had told us that not every couple was the same way. I was amazed at that. How does one enter into a serious relationship or even marriage without discussing things like future plans, goals, ideas... it just boggled my mind. No wonder the divorce rate is so high!


Apparently we will have two more meetings with the minister, the next one we will be discussing our individual family trees, and our family dynamics. I think that will prove to be an interesting topic of discussion for us both, since we are both  very much family oriented individuals and families play an important role in our lives. The last meeting will be discussing the actual wedding and the ceremony. 


I am excited that we are going through this experience, I think it will be beneficial for us both. 


After our meeting we made the quick drive over to the Best Man's house! Since we were in the area, we thought we'd stop in. We stayed for dinner and had a lovely time. 


Sunday Ben went off to a benefit car show and I went to my family's lake house to visit with some more of my extended family. And then afterwards to visit with some friends who lived close by. It was a perfect summer afternoon, got to visit with family and also friends, we went swimming and just had a blast. I am so excited that I am enjoying my summer. It's truly wonderful. 


Today is a new week, I've got a local weight loss challenge that I am joining in for, this is piggy backing on Awesome By August, so I am happy for that. My plan is to hit the gym after work tonight. It's going to be a good week! The weather is looking great, we've had a lovely stretch of weather recently. 


It's days like these, that make the long and cold winters all worth it! 

Friday, July 15, 2011

Wedding Season!

Not only am I busy planning my own wedding, but we have other weddings (and showers) to attend this summer as well. The first one is tonight. The wedding of my co-worker, in the fire service, co-workers are more like family than any other job I've ever had. I am very excited for my friend and his bride! They are wonderful people. 


Tomorrow, Ben and I will be heading down to Rhode Island to meet up with the minister who will be marrying us. He is the former minister from my home church and agreed to marry us, I couldn't be any happier, that man had a profound impact on my life. It turns out that he also lives about 15 minutes from the Best Man. So we anticipate on meeting up with the Best Man and his wife while we are down there as well. 


I had an awkward wedding moment (I am sure more are coming) but a friend of mine asked me when the "Save the Dates" were going out. Mind you we are less than 3 months away from the wedding, and the STD's went out in December. I said, that they had gone out in December, he then proceeded to ask his wife if she lost the save the date, because he didn't recall it. My heart was in my throat, it was SO awkward. I then said that unfortunately they were not invited to the wedding. I said that we were at our max for the space and really it is already cramped, at that number. He quickly hurried off the phone with me. I felt so bad for the situation. I think they are excited and happy for me but I just can't invite everyone. I hope they understand. 


Ugh, as a bride, has any of you been put in this position? I've always been under the assumption that you should NEVER assume you are invited to the wedding until you get an invitation (or Save the Date). You can talk about the wedding and details about it, but never assume such things! NOW I know why. And let's just say I won't be making that mistake for any of my friends who are future brides (or grooms).

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Awesome by August

As I said in my last post, I am looking forward to a few things that are coming up. One of which is Awesome by Augusta weight loss/health and wellness competition. The goal is to encourage healthy weight loss through the month of July as well as other healthy goals.


On the facebook page for Awesome by August we had to comment with our starting weight. I weighed in yesterday morning at 308.4, a one pound gain over my last weigh in. 


My goal for the Awesome by August challenge is to be out of the 300's.... for the final time


You too can join in the challenge, you don't need to be a blogger! Just go to the facebook page and "like" it. Then find the post for the official starting weight, and enter your starting weight there. But if you are going to do it, you may want to hurry up! The starting weight in will close at 10pm EST tonight! There are going to be prizes handed out and you can get some help with focusing on your weight loss / healthy living goals. 

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Looking forward

I am looking forward to a few things coming up: 

  • Awesome by August is making a comeback this year! I participated in this challenge last year, and I am excited again to participate this year. Here is my recap post from last year. I still love the image for this challenge... 
  • An upcoming book review and possible giveaway, details soon, I promise! 
  • A real life meets blog life scenario. I pretty much keep my healthy living and blog stuff on twitter, very rarely does real life cross over into this space, but one of my facebook friends invited me into a weight loss challenge and I think it could be beneficial for me. Apparently, she also blogs too
  • Wedding plans, it's summer time, and I am enjoying the wonderful weather and being active outside, but also getting some wedding stuff done. The date is drawing closer and it's becoming more real! (Ahhhhh!)

Fourth of July Weekend Recap!

Hello! Sorry I've been a little MIA this weekend, I swear it wasn't by fault! I had a weekend jam-packed with family BBQ's and fireworks. I got a little more than I bargained for!


Friday I weighed in, I gained this week, I weighed in at 307.4, a gain of 2.6 pounds. I haven't been tracking, I've let it fall to the wayside, and I just need to get back into some good habits. I can't keep gaining and loosing the same 3-5 pounds, I need to break this cycle, and the consistency is something that I can help/change.


One thing that is working for me is the Strong for 23, which is basically committing to working out 23 times every month. I mark it on the calender next to my bed, and it is such a visual reminder for me. There have been days/evenings when I get home and all I want to do is crash, but I look at the calendar and it reminds me to get moving. My only requirements (self-imposed) is that it has to be at least 30 minutes of activity, usually it's longer, but at minimum, 30 minutes. 


Here is June: 


I've also been logging my weight on the calendar as well, just because it's easier for me to do so. This month, it was easy to get some time in, especially with Steve's marathon week challenge, it forced me to walk longer, and I found a new route that I love! It's roughly 6.2 miles, and it takes me about 2 hours to complete. I've done the route twice now, and I still enjoy it. 


Having this visual is really helping to keep me motivated with my activity levels, and being that it's summer I am trying to get out more often. It's working too, even though I use sunscreen and bug spray, I am still getting some color. I don't want to burn though! 


Saturday was supposed to be a nice family BBQ at my parents house, what it actually was, a surprise Wedding Shower! My parents with the help of some of my best friends, threw a fantastic shower for Ben and I! I was in shock. That wasn't the only surprise. Amy, my cousin and maid of honor was supposed to be Skyping with us so we could chat and catch up, but no, she was in on it too and actually flew up! She had been in New Hampshire since Tuesday! My parents had been hiding her! 


There were about 40 people there, which is surprising given the fact that it was a holiday weekend and people usually have their own plans. I felt so well loved and blessed to have some amazing people in my life. It was such a wonderful time! There was so much food, but I had just eaten, I didn't get a chance to enjoy anything! 


There are some pictures coming in on facebook, but here is one for all my bloggie readers: 


My gals! That's me in the purple!
Since Ben and I are going to Hawaii for our honeymoon, the party was Hawaiian themed.

Looking at this picture (and others) I can't see the progress I've made, and it's disturbing to me. I still see my extra flabby midsection and my large legs, I can't seem to focus on the positive. I also noticed that I am still the "big" friend... I hope that there comes a time when that is no longer the case! I am still very much a W.I.M.P.! and I am ok with that! 

The rest of the weekend was spent with my cousin Amy and having a great time with her. So sad to see her leave! But it's great knowing that October is only a few short months away! 

I stepped on the scale this morning, just to see where things were at and they were NOT good, up from Friday even! So I am going to focus on tracking my food and pushing lots of water! Hopefully I can rebound before this Friday!

How was everyone's Fourth?

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