(Image from Google)
Working out last week was a total bust since basically the entire state of Oregon was (and still mostly is) on fire. It was literally raining ash and I was not going to work out in that. I haven’t had a gym membership for a few months so I could save money so I couldn’t go inside on a treadmill. Hopefully this week is going to be better and I can find my motivation again because it has been about 2.5 weeks since I got out there and ran.
How are your workouts going?
Shout out to my amazing grandmother!!!! Just like my amazing mom that I talked about on mother’s day my grandma is one for the books. She is the matriarch of our family in the true sense of the word, we all visit and gather around her. For someone who has been alive for 90 years she is surprisingly forward thinking, like my mother she does not judge people she only supports. It is no wonder that I have such an amazing mother when she was raised by such an amazing person.
I was lucky enough to grow up in a very warm, loving family and I think it is in most part to this wonderful woman who had a hand in raising us all, either directly or indirectly.
Remember that life is fleeting and you never know what tomorrow holds, tell the people you love how you feel, reach out to someone today and tell them that you love them.
Holy Hanna I fly to Europe in a week!!! I don’t know how I am going to sleep this week!
Things you should be doing the week before you travel:
print out all confirmations; flights, trains, boats, activities, everything. Print a copy of your itinerary.
Start the basics of your packing (if you are going on a long trip and don’t want a million suit cases you will pack and repack to find the best way to fit everything in.
How are you getting to the airport, train station, bus station, boat etc? Are you taking a cab or Uber, or do you need to make arrangements with someone to take you AND pick you up? Nail down that information now.
Also make copies of all important documents, passport, ID, insurance cards etc. Also leave a copy of each of these with someone who is not traveling with you, generally your emergency contact.
Take a deep breath and enjoy this exciting anticipation!
(Image from Google)
Goodbye August and Hello September!!
Wow August flew by.
School: My final ‘opens’ online today and closes on the 6th so lots of studying going on over here. This basically means I can take my final anytime in the next 2 days. It is online, 100 cumulative questions and I have 82 minutes to complete it. Whatever I have done will submit after 82 minutes. After that I am done for a few months! I will think of it as winter vacation hahahahaha.
Food and Fitness: In the next 2 weeks I am trying to get as much food bought, made, frozen and prepped as possible. When I get back from the cruise my budget will be even more restricted. I will by trying to save a bit to go toward my expensive CNA class come January, my BF and I are trying to find a place to move into together which will also cost money and of course I need to continue to work on paying my roommate back as she paid upfront for 95% of my Europe costs so I owe her about 2 grand still. Oh the joys of being poor. But overall in my life I can’t complain too much, my life could be so much worse, so I choose to not stress about my debt and instead slowly chip away at it.
As far as workouts go, if I get a workout in before I finish my final, great, but I am not banking on it so my goal this week is 3-4 workouts.
10 days and counting to europe!!!!!
Only 2 weeks to go!!! Are you ready?
Have you stocked up on necessary food to accommodate your diet or taken that into account when planning meals?
Have you started looking for your toiletries in travel size and getting things together?
Has your itinerary been honed down to a point that you feel comfortable with?
Do you have a plan in case of an emergency? Do your loved ones know how you will attempt to contact them in an emergency?
How will you document your trip? Cell phone camera, digital camera, film? Do you have everything you need for that?
Have you thought about electrical outlet adaptors? Chargers?
My currency arrived yesterday!!!
This is what 40 American dollars gets you in Croatian Kuna….i’m excited to see how far this gets me hahahaha
What do you do those days when you need to get a run in but are not feeling it? You’re not recovering or sore or tired or hurt but you just don’t have motivation. Here are some things I do:
I bribe myself– If you do on this run Ariana you can have a cupcake, a Starbucks, fast food…etc. Whatever I am craving I is what I bribe myself with to get me out the door.
I withhold something fun just for running– if I find a book on tape that is really interesting and I really want to listen to it, I restrict myself to only listening to it on my runs. This makes me want to get out and run so I can listen to this amazing book/podcast. Amazing might be a stretch, sometimes it is just a fun listen or something I find interesting or even something scary (have totally looked behind myself a few times when trail running and listening to something creepy)
(This is my current running only book)
Watching fit people do fit things– I watch the Dallas cowboys cheerleaders training camp or a documentary on cross fit on Netflix or a documentary about someone’s first 100 miler anything to get me in a fitness mindset so I get pumped up and want to go better myself.
Sort of another form of bribery but on a bigger scale– like if I hit my mileage goal for the month I can buy a new top or item of clothing, something fun like that.
Have a friend meet you– I am not going to stand someone up so if I make plans to meet someone to workout I will show up.
Don’t think about it- when I wake up I put my workout clothes on and watch a TV show while I eat breakfast (all with my bathrobe on over it) have some water and/or coffee then when my show(s) are over I take the bathrobe off and run out the door. Or I relax until a set them then there is no discussion, I don’t think about it I just get up and put my workout clothes on and walk out the door.
Take it one mile at a time– I don’t think about the overall length or how long its going to take, I just focus on getting through each mile. That helps so much on my long runs.
(Image from Google)
Hello!!!!!
Things are good over here. Did good on workouts this past week. Was about 2 miles under the goal I set but that is ok, those goals are if I have the perfect week (which never really happens hahaha) but I think I am on point to hit my month mile goal. I am a little less than 5 miles from my goal and the last day of the month is Thursday……I got this. Hahahaha!
I am not losing weight as fast as I was when I was doing mostly juice….obviously but I am still toning up and the weight is slowly coming off with the running. I am letting myself splurge and indulge here and there but I am making sure that my running is matching it. I am loving watching my mileage climb. I am also loving the short quick runs where I push it to try and increase my speed. It is a chore sometimes to get myself out the door but I never regret it hahahaha.
What are your workout goals this week?
Did you set one for the month of August? Will you hit it?
Start thinking about goals for September!!!!
Here is what needs to be done by 3 weeks out from a big trip:
Set up your bill pay so you don’t miss any bills while away. If you will be in a different time zone you might miss a deadline and really you don’t want to be thinking about your bills while you are on vacation.
Go online or head to the post office and put a hold on your mail for the time you will be away. You don’t want to come home to an overflowing mailbox and wonder if anything was stolen or blew away in the wind. On this same note as a friend or neighbor to stop by a week and make sure nothing has been delivered by mistake and pick up any packages.
If you need foreign currency and have not yet ordered it get to your bank ASAP.
Plan for any kind of motion, sea, plan, train sickness and anything else. I just placed my order for non-drowsy Dramamine and pressure point bracelets, sickness is not going to ruin my vacation! I will also be getting a small bottle of Advil and maybe something for anti-nausea. If you have any prescriptions make sure you will have enough, if not head to the pharmacy and tell them you need an extra month because you are heading out of town.
Think about your diet, are you gluten free, vegetarian, vegan, lactose intolerant, in training? Will the food you need be readily and inexpensively available to you? If not think about bring some food bars just in case.
Is your itinerary all set and planned? If not get to planning, you are running out of time.
Do you have any pets? If so how are they being cared for while you are gone? Do you have enough food stocked up?
Do you have a plan of how you are going to contact love ones to let them know you are safe periodically? Does someone have your travel itinerary in the event of an emergency?
I have been on a serious sweet tooth kick over here. Made my coffee a mocha.
Always fun to study something that no one knows what it does
Salad and something with cheese has been a big lunch time ritual for me lately.
pork roast with veggies and rice. I love using the slow cooker
Artemis and I enjoyed the eclipse by going for a run. It was pretty eerie. People looking at the sun with glasses while it got dark then as a group would turn and look at us run by, very pod people-esque. I kept waiting for zombies to jump out at us.
Smoothies are still a big thing over here.
More salad and cheese.
Mmmmm breakfast sandwich from the coffee shop near work.
Life has been food, running, work and starting to freak out about Europe hahaha. Talk to you soon!!!!!
I got this recipe off pinterest.
Using some more blackberries! This was actually perfect timing because I used the last of my jam last week.
ingredients:
2 cups mashed blackberries
.75 cups sugar
juice of 1/2 a lemon
combine fruit and sugar in container or plastic bag and let the sugar break down the fruit in the fridge for 2-24 hours (mine actually sat for about 36 hours)
When ready to make the jam pour the sugared fruit into a saucepan and bring to a boil.
Let it boil and bubble until it reduces to a syrup-y substance. Stir periodically so it doesn’t burn.
When it reaches 220degrees fahrenheit remove it from the heat. (or when it has reduced down to a jam like consistency)
Add lemon juice and zest and stir.
This jam will keep in the fridge in a sealed jar for a few weeks.
SOOOOOO GOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and so easy!!! this will definitely be a thing for me from now on.
Trailing the blonde 