The F*%#ing Scale

I am a chronic weigh-er. Like 3 times a day. It's a bad habit but it has carried me this far. I like to know exactly what I weigh. I make special note to hop my ass on that bitch after I run to see how dehydrated I am. I do worry about losing too much water. ok, whatever that's not the point.
This morning I get up, go to the bathroom, do my business and hop on the scale. BOING! That was the sound of the spring breaking. Yes my scale was old school, analog..dial style if you will. And that damn thing gave out on me this morning. Now 180+ pounds ago I would of thought my fat ass broke it but I know it is from over use.
After a coffee break with some friends I headed to the store to replace my old reliable scale. Standing there staring I settled on a digital, body fat, hydration level know it all scale.
Let me tell you. This expensive piece of shit is a little too honest for me. I gained a few pounds on it. It obviously doesn't respect me like my old scale did. Now I am going to have to break it in and teach it who is boss. I don't like those extra few pounds it tells me about. I really didn't like the fact that my hydration was only 39%.
The sunny side of the situation is that I got on and off that scale three times and it said the EXACT same thing. So even though it seems to have an attitude at least it is consistent.

Ahh The comfort of Weight Watchers

The ups and downs of weight loss can be mentally exhausting. A few months back I hit a plateau  and decided to shake things up a bit. I cut carbs by a LOT! Increased my protein by a LOT. At first this worked, it kinda shocked my body into losing but at the end of the day I still sat there and compared my intake to my "points". LOL, a habit I can't shake. Well lately as my allotted points have gone down I have found it harder to eat low carb and stay in points. Often I was going over and not losing like I should be. SO I am going to shake it up again and go back to high fiber, low fat. I know, I know roll your eyes.  I need to get these points back under control. I knew high protein was temporary since I am not a fan of eating meat but I needed to see where it would go. Now with 21 pounds between me and my goal I am going back to my comfort zone. A place where I know my food fuels me and lets me push myself physically.  If not then it's back to the books.

Longest Run so far :o)

I am slowly getting over the creepin' crud that I am sure my girls brought home from school. I could just see the germs on them.  I am still coughing up some questionable things but overall feeling better. I had to skip my long run on Sunday because I was so sick. I was tired, coughing and getting the sweats. I still can't taste or smell anything.  But yesterday the temperature was perfect so I decided I was headed out for a run. Walking out my front door I planned on 3 because of feeling sick but when I got to the corner I turned towards the 5 mile route. I was off. My pace wasn't great but at least I was out there. The route I chose has a couple of serious hills. The first is  .75 miles long and then the relief of the downhill, the next is after the turn onto a dirt road. The entire road is uphill until the stop sign. The next turn is worse because the road slopes severely on the shoulder so you are running like one leg is shorter than the other. Not a pretty site.
About 3 miles in I had a violent coughing fit and had to walk it off for a couple of minutes. I didn't want to walk but I knew I was stuck on a back road 3 miles from where I started in the middle of farm country. After making sure my lungs were back I ran another 1.3 miles and then walked a quarter mile home to cool down.   I ran 4.3 miles !!! And I was sick, LOL. I guess if I can do 4.3 sick then I can surely do 6.2 healthy, right?

Challenge Pictures!

Ok Week 1 picture. Please excuse the pale face, lack of makeup and bed head. I am SICK! Like train wreck sick. Anyway These are my challenge goal jeans. Levi Strauss Low Rise. Love them. I'm gonna wear them on Christmas Eve, so unless I want to walk around like a stuffed holiday hen then I need to get to business.

Sara’s Christmas Clothes Challenge

Ok, fear has now jumped into my heart. I just agreed to the unthinkable. Fellow blogger over at Sara Gets Skinny has just thrown down the gauntlet. She wants us to cram our asses into some pants that we would like to wear at Christmas. You know, the ones in your closet that only come up to mid thigh. The ones that maybe, if you really tried, and donated an organ you could pull up with Crisco and pliers....yeah those.

The challenge is to post a picture of yourself in those jeans once every two weeks with the ultimate goal to rock them for the holidays. I am in. Why not? You all may see some loose skin but damn it I earned every bit of what is hanging, dangling and jiggling. My pictures will be posted this week sometime.....so ARE YOU IN?

My trip to a 10k

First, let me get the weight loss update out of the way. Saturday morning I saw the lowest number on the scale in at least 15 years. It put me at 21 pounds to lose until "Ultimate Goal" and 6 pounds to lose until the very first fantasy number I picked out of the air. The scale hasn't stuck there but I am used to "heavy Mondays" and am sure I will see that low number again by Wednesday. Fingers and toes crossed anyway :o)

So I mentioned I made a goal to run a 10K on October 23rd. I found a training program from Runner's World and jumped right in. It was made for someone that can easily run 3 miles. Well, I can :o) The plan consists of 2 short runs and 1 long run each week and then later incorporates speed work and tempo runs. Whew, I never thought I would know this much about running. Anyway, Sunday was my long run this week.

I have never ran 4 miles. I always, always stop at 3.1 or less because my initial goal was a 5k. Mentally when I hit that 3.1.....I am DONE. It is a wall. I needed to bust through that wall. Physically I know I am fully capable of 6.2 miles, mentally not so much. Yesterday was warm but not humid so we drove to a trail head and my husband took off to run his "EASY 7" UGH! I had to use the potty and was full of self doubt, thinking there was no way I was gonna hit 4. My hip hurt, I had birthday beer, I was worn out ect...

Stepping out of the potty I stepped right on an empty pack of KOOL Cigarettes. If you are a blog reader you know my father passed away when I was 15 from his last of many heart attacks. He refused to quit smoking and KOOL's were his poison. That empty box lit a fire inside me. I decided right then and there I was going to run the hell out of that 4 miles and I DID! At 3.1 I looked down, smiled, shook my arms out and picked up my pace.

A little litter turned into a big sign for me.

Oh, what to ride, what to ride?

Sunday afternoon Jeramy and I decided to pre-ride the Tour De Donut course. It's supposed to be a fun ride with donut stops every 10 miles. The first 15 miles is fast. 22 mph fast with 2 35mph downhills. And that was with 17-20mph winds. After the first 15 miles it got bad. The wind was strong and there were some hills that I cussed out loud climbing but most of all the road condition was utter and complete SHIT! We rattled around so much on those back roads that I swear I knocked a filling loose. I was thankful for the beautiful weather and cool temperatures but was really wishing for smooth pavement. The last 15 miles is mostly compressed pebble road and combined with the wind I came home with a very sore upper body from being so tense. The first noticeable climb is 9 miles in and takes you through a housing development.  If you aren't standing, you aren't getting up this hill. I don't mind the climbing, I did however mind the new speed bumps that are now in place.  Overall, it is 30 miles and took us 1hr 45 minutes..no drafting and strong winds. BUT...........

The same day as the Tour de Donut is Speed Merchants Harvest Festival Ride. Rockford to Founders Brewing...beer drinkage and back to the Grill One Eleven Tent at Harvest Fest. I know these guys are faster than me, I know the roads are smooth, I know the beer is good and I wouldn't have to eat any gut busting donuts. I fear getting dropped, I fear being the only woman amongst the ego fest but it sounds like a good time. Ahhhh, I need to make a choice soon.