Making plans and catching up

This past weekend I spent down in Virginia visiting my brother and his family. It was a long weekend but a lot of fun. It was for my niece’s birthday. She is now three! I can't believe it. I took a bunch of pictures but haven't had a chance yet to put them on my computer.

I am glad I made the trip down. I really didn't want to make that drive down in the summer. Going south in the summer around here is like the kiss of death. Horrible traffic. I forced my mother to wake up at 5am on Saturday so we could get a head start. It paid off because we made awesome time and got to spend that much more time with my family.

It was a really nice day. Got caught up with everyone and then had a little BBQ for Abby's birthday. It had started off crummy in the morning but was beautiful by the afternoon which worked out nicely. I was so tired by the time everyone left though. My brother, SIL and I were going to go out for some drinks afterwards but we all were just too spent.

Sunday we got up early again (although I barely slept at all anyway) and then met up with them for breakfast before hitting the road. It was a quick weekend and a whole lot of driving, but worth it. I'm also really excited because in July we will be taking my niece for the week. I cannot wait! I know it'll be a ton of work, but I don't get to see her that often so I'll take what I can.

I'm just trying to fill my days and weekends with fun activities in order to make the time go by a little faster. It really feels like time is standing still at work, so I am making plans so I have something to look forward to.

I am running a race this weekend and going to a BBQ on Sunday. And I actually joined a Softball league that starts next Tuesday. I am so excited!! I played when I was younger but haven't played in years. It's a laid back league though so I'm not worried about being a superstar. But it's something to help break up my week and something new and different!

There's also things on my bucket list that I always do in the summer. It's a must! Going to the boardwalk for dippin dots and all sorts of good food. Going to hurricane harbor or Six Flags for the day and being a kid. To name a few. What are some things that you feel isn't summer until you do them?

My first half marathon!

I did it!!!

I ran my very first half marathon!

yay!!!! I am still in shock that I actually did it!

I can't even tell you how nervous I was for this race!! I was a wreck all weekend. Barely sleeping and feeling sick. I knew I can do it, but I wanted to run at a decent time and this is something I've been working toward for so long. I almost couldn't believe it was finally here.

Sunday morning I woke up bright and early (4:30am) to head on over to the race. The half started at 6:45am and because it's such a big race we had to get there early to beat the traffic. I didn't mind the early time though, I couldn't sleep very much anyway that night. That early it was COLD. I knew it was going to warm up though so I wore shorts and a tank. Blue to support Boston. It was a little scary at the race because security was amped up big time, but it also helped you feel safe.

Here I am with my friends waiting inside.

After hanging out inside in the warm heat it was time to get ready for the race to start. It is unreal the amount of people running the half. I'm not sure I've ever ran such a huge race before. It took a good 5 minutes waiting in our corral before we began. I had planned on staying with my friend the whole race. Unfortunately her knee was killing her, by mile 3 she ended up dropping out of the race.

I was all alone. For 13.1 miles. Which I was surprisingly okay with. I had a good pace going for almost the whole race. Seeing all the spectators with signs cheering us on is one of the greatest feelings in the world. I even had a friend who lived along the course, make me a sign! Which was so fun to see. I was doing really well til about mile 9. Then I started to slow down. Not too much but I was starting to hurt.

At mile 11 I started to get weepy. I couldn't believe I was so close and that I was actually doing this. Everything hurt but I was crying tears of joy.

The last mile is right along the beach. So beautiful and the perfect way for this Jersey girl to end a race.

I finished in 2 hours and 22 minutes!! I had wanted to finish in 2:30, so I am over the moon about that time!

Here I am minutes after finishing!

I can honestly say I have no need to ever try and run a marathon, but I will absolutely run another half marathon!! It was a great day and even though I'm still sore, I'm smiling from ear to ear.

Weekend Trip and Race in Boston

Time really is flying by. I can't believe it's Turkey day in two days!! It is by far my favorite holiday and I cannot wait to see my family. Since the hurricane things are slowly getting back to normal. There is no more gas problem here thankfully and we are starting to rebuild. It feels good to be getting back into a routine again.

This past weekend I went up to Boston with some friends from the gym. We had an amazing opportunity to do a Spartan Race inside Fenway Park. It was one of the coolest things I've ever did. The race was awesome and I did pretty well in it too. I finished in the top 30% of all racers! Not too shabby.

About to Start!

Fenway!

Climbing over a wall! All by myself for once

Climbing up a ladder over rafters

Carrying concrete

Down a cargo net

Box jumps

All my gym buddies inside the dugout

Spartan Finishers!

On the field!

This was an experience I'll never forget. A lot of the obstacles I was able to do all on my own for the first time. Which was amazing for me to be able to do. Now I only have two days left of work before the long weekend. I can't wait to relax, eat awesome food and do some serious shopping. Followed by my first 9 mile race on Sunday!! EEK!!

I am a Tough mudder! Pics

This past weekend I did a Tough Mudder. A 12 mile obstacle course here in NJ. It's one of the best mud events out there. Also something that I truly never thought I could do. About 2 years ago I remember watching friends complete this and thinking to myself I could NEVER. Really. I was still so very overweight and couldn't imagine running 12 miles, let alone doing the obstacle that there were doing.

Yet this past weekend, there I was, doing my very own tough mudder! It was so surreal the whole time I was doing it. I kept thinking to myself how impossible I used to think this would be. Yet there I was, with four friend, totally rocking it. We finished in about 3 and a half hours! Unlike the Spartan Race I did a few weeks ago, this was so much FUN!!! It was hard and I am very bruised, but the whole time we were just laughing and having a great time.

This is such a wonderful event because everyone is helping you. Not just your friends, but strangers helping you up hills and facing your fears. There was a part where I totally freaked out. The part were you have to run through electric wires. I was standing there freaking out. A girl came up to me, grabbed my hand, and we ran through it together. And then shared a giant hug afterwards. I didn't know who she was and yet she was there for me. That's what these events are all about. Teamwork.

There are signs posted everywhere about how tough you are and how this isn't a race but a challenge. And that is exactly what it is. It's not even timed officially. It's all about completing it to the best of your ability. I will absolutely do this race again next year! It was a blast and I only hope to do that much better next year.

Here is my team and I about to start. We are so nice and clean!

Not so muddy yet!

Lots and lots of mud!!! But still smiling! Oh and if you notice I'm bleeding down my leg. lol. It didn't hurt though! Promise

Finishers!!!!!!

Love my gym family. We killed it!



Time is Flying

Things have been crazy lately. I haven't had a moment to myself. Work is crazy busy, and my outside life is crazy busy as well. My gym is having their annual team challenge and I somehow became a captain again! I really didn't want to, its a lot of work, but I was voted in!

Thankfully my co-captains are awesome and are a huge help! We've already had a shirts made, and a team picture done. Now it's just time to concentrate on the daily challenges we have to do. I'm hoping this challenge will help me get back on track and lose this last 20 pounds that just doesn't want to go away!

Other things in my life are brewing. Hopefully new opportunties on the horizon. I can't say anything yet, but keep your fingers crossed for me!!

I am a Spartan (aka the most difficult event I have EVER accomplished)

This past weekend I did a Spartan Race. A super spartan race to be exact. It is a mud run type obstacle course. Only this was in an actual mountain and Spartan races are considered the hardest events in the whole mud racing world. It puts Tough Mudder to shame apparently.

Going into the race, it was supposed to be 8 miles long. I knew it would be difficult but I felt prepared. I was running up to 7 miles at a clip so I felt confident. I was hoping to finish around 2 hours. We get there and I knew this wasn't going to be like the other races. You are going up the mountain almost the entire time. 3000 feet elevations. There was no running, it was way too steep for that. My anxiety kicked in. I was freaking out. Then the worse news, the race was actually 11 miles long!! I was not prepared for that distance!!!

I got to meet the owner of Spartan Races right beforehand. One of the girls from the gym is actually really good friends with him. As soon as I shake his hand, he says "You know your gonna get hurt right?". W T F. Even on the papers when we get our bibs it says, there is a very real possibility you will die today.....

I shake it off. Figure he's just trying to scare me. We all line up and start to get fired up about the race. Then it begins. And you start literally running up the mountain. For about a mile. Maybe longer. I started running but soon me and everyone else was walking. I was already hurting but then I found out that this is just the first of many inclines we will be doing that day.

The first 3 miles I felt good, I was killing the obstacles and even with the inclines I felt fine. Then all hell broke loose. It got insanely hard. We were going back down the mountain. Which is just as hard as going up hill. It kills your knees and hips. We go to this cliff where we are supposed to jump from 24 feet into a pool. I get there and looked down and decided to skip it. I was way too scared. It was the first obstacle of the day I wouldn't be able to complete. Which meant I had to do 30 burpees. Oh yeah, with this race any obstacle you can't complete you have a penalty and have to do burpees. Awesome.

After the cliff jump there was the highest incline we would be doing. It was at least 2 miles and at some points was crazy steep. It took forever and I was starting to hurt really badly. We do that and then do some obstacles including flipping tires and carrying a sandbag up a quarter mile hill and back down. And then it was back to climbing the mountain. We get to what I think is the top, and was sadly mistaken. There is a huge cliffs that I have to climb up.

That was just the beginning. The top you see in the picture? Well it's lying to you. It just keeps on going!!! This was the most difficult part of the race. It never ended. I got to what I thought would be the top and saw how much more there was to go and I lost it. I completely broke down and started to cry hysterically. I was in so much pain and this was the most mentally difficult thing I have ever done. There were people scattered all over just laying there not being able to move anymore. It wasn't just me. Everyone was hurting. I was crying so badly and finally the nicest man came over to me and helped me up the rest of the way.

He never left me and if it wasn't for him. I would probably still be on the mountain. When we finally actually got to the top, we still had another 4 miles to go. It really just never wanted to end. I started to get upset again, but I just kept on pushing. Thankfully one of my gym friends was with me almost the entire time. If it wasn't for her I would have quit. I know it.

Finally after more horrible obstacles we were in the mile stretch. That's when the obstacles really started to pile up. I was completely delirious at this point. I was mentally broken. And then the final obstacle was a barb wire that you had to crawl/roll under for almost a quarter mile. And it was mostly rocks and mud. It took what felt like forever and it hurt so bad. I pushed through though. I was so close I could taste it.

I saw the finish line. There were two guys there with those giant qtip thingys that you can beat people with? Ready to pummel me. I walked right up to them, and screamed NO! I think they knew I was serious cause they stepped aside and let me pass. I crossed the finish line, saw my trainer smile and I started to cry again. I actually finished.

It took me 4 and half hours but I completed it. Only 1/3 of the people that day actually finished it. That says a lot about how difficult this actually was. It really took a toll on me though. Not only was I crazy sore, but mentally I was out of it. For days. I never wanted to work out again, I felt broken. No one can truly understand what I went through that day, besides the people that were there. I am finally starting to feel back to normal again and starting to grasp at what exactly I accomplished. I not only was able to finish, but I finished in the top 50% overall and 30% in my age group.

As difficult as it was, it really showed me how much I am capable of. Even when I was breaking down, quiting never even crossed my mind. I pushed through and finished it. I am no quitter and I know that better now than I have ever before!

Here is my gym crew before hand. All smiles and ready to go!

Me and my trainer after the race. Exhausted but happy to have finished.

I really am crazy, because I went out that night. I think I was on a high still because I went crazy that night. But paid dearly for it the next day! I couldn't move. I was so out of it, I felt like I was drunk. But this was a weekend I will never ever forget!

Before and After Picture

I had a friend of mine put this picture together to celebrate my gym's 3rd year anniversary. It's so easy for me to forget sometimes just how far I've come in just two short years. This helped put the fire back under me to get moving again and to finally hit my goal weight!

My Second Mud Run (aka I'm addicted!)

Last Saturday I did the Rugged Maniac 5K in NJ. It was a blast!!!! I love these races. It really pushes you to your limits but it also makes you feel like a kid again! Even though your covering a lot of miles you don't really feel it because of the obstacles.


I am officially hooked!

This run was a whole lot dirtier than the last one. I was crawling though the mud, going down a huge slide into muddy water, and climbing countless walls. I finished in 50 minutes. Not too bad for a 5K. If I would have ran it on my own I would have come in a lot faster. But I ran with my gym buddies so I made sure to stay with them. That's what these races are all about. Team work. It's not about the time, it's about helping each other out. And conquering things you never though you could do.

There was a tunnel with a rope that I had to climb up. Looking at it, I thought I would have to skip it. I didn't think I had the upper body strength to pull myself up like that. But my friend was right there cheering me on. I couldn't believe that I was able to do it and that it was so easy! It's insane sometimes. How different I am now.

Even though my eating hasn't been great and I'm up a couple of pounds in weight, I was still able to rock this mud run. I know I will never be the person I used to be. That I will never let myself get off track. Sure there will be detours but nothing I can't easily bounce back from.

My next mud run will be in September. This one is 8 miles!! EEK!!! It's going to be tough, and the distance scares me, but I know I will be able to conquer it with my friends.

Here is a picture of some of us after the race, enjoying our free beer. I'm the one all the way on the left, with no shoes on. lol

Week Long Celebration (pictures)

I turned 28 on June 28 last week. It was my golden birthday so to speak. Since it was such a big day, I packed my week full of fun activities! I was a little too ambitious and I'm still exhausted from all my celebrating.

Last Wednesday I went to see the Beach Boys in concert. I love love love the Beach Boys. I've seen them in concert at least 6 times. They were my first concert ever and I've been hooked since. The place was packed. We got lawn seats but even on the lawn we have to squeeze into a spot. They look terrible, but they still sound AMAZING. Seriously I can't even believe how awesome they were. It was one of the better concerts I've ever been too.

Here I am at the concert with my friends.

Then on my Birthday I had to go to work. However after work a bunch of my friends from work we all went out for drinks at this local dive. I drank way too much. I don't know what got into me but I went to town.

Here we are doing a shot in my honor.

Me using a pool cue as a microphone....

It was so much fun, we were there for a really long time. I got pretty sick once I got home too. What's worse was I had to go to work in the morning. That was not fun. Then that night on Friday, for my birthday my friend got my concert tickets to see Badfish on a boat that went around NYC. It was beautiful out but really hot.

I thought it would be cooler on the water but it was really hot out. Everyone on that boat was a sweaty mess. It was still a lot of fun though. The band was awesome, they sound just like Sublime. And it was gorgeous being on the water. It was a great birthday gift.

Here I am on the ship

My friends and I next to the Statue of Liberty

Then to wrap it up on Saturday I went out with my gym family. We went to a resturant that looks right onto the ocean. It was a lot cooler on Saturday thankfully so we were able to sit outside and enjoy the night. It was a great way to wrap up my week long birthday celebration!

My trainers

Enjoying the night out!

I had a great Birthday. I know a lot of people dread getting older and getting closer to 30, but I'm in the best place right now. I am looking forward to what 28 will bring me. I have a feeling it's going to be a wonderful year. If it's even half as good as 27 treated me, then I know it'll be amazing.



My first mudrun! With lots of pictures

It finally happened. I did a mud run! A crazy 5 mile obstacle course that was one of the hardest things I've ever done. I can barely move my body today, but I had a blast!! And I can't wait to do the next one!

There was a ton of people from my gym who did the race. We all took a giant yellow school bus down to the stadium. We had such a large group, we won a contest at race and got an obstacle named after us!

 Here we all are before the race began.

 That's me climbing up a hill

 Helping my friends over a wall

That's me climbing over the wall!

It hurt a lot coming down. My face says it all

Here we are getting out of those tubes. There were half filled with water! One of my friends said it was like the scene in Shawshank Redemption, but without the poop. lol

Here I am running through the electrical wires, trying to not get zapped.

 Didn't work. I got zapped a few times and went down when one hit my knee. lol

We are about a half a mile from the finish line and still have a smile on our faces!

I finished in one hour and 23 minutes!! I am so crazy proud of myself!

Not that muddy after the water but pretty gross all the same. Couldn't wait to get changed!

This is something I'll never forget. There were so many obstacles that I thought for sure I wouldn't be able to do. Like climbing over those walls or up and over a cargo net!! But I did them all (expect for the monkey bars!) and finished strong! Even this time last year I could have never imagined doing something like this. I hadn't even run my first 5K yet and here I am doing a 5 mile obstacle course! Amazing!

A really awesome weekend (with some pictures)

For months I've been freaking out over the fact that I could not fit into my bridesmaid dress. I had ordered a size smaller, thinking I would be able to fit into in no time, and would probably need it to be altered. Then my weight loss all but stopped and the wedding kept on inching closer and closer. Two weeks ago I had tried putting on my dress. It fit better than last time but still would not zip up all the way. I had a big gap at the top.

I started to really freak out and wonder if I should just cave and get the dress in the bigger size. I put my head down and really crunched down. I lost 6 pounds in 2 weeks! On Friday I held my breath as I put the dress back on. And it freaking zipped!!!!! granted it's still very tight but at least that thing zips up all the way!!! You have no idea how relieved I am. I just need to lose a few more pounds and this baby will be perfect. The wedding is 2 months from today!! Now I can get really excited and happy about it knowing the dress fits.

Since the dress fit, it gave me the courage to try on my size 10 jeans that I bought a while back. And those fit too!!! Yay no longer a size 12!!!!

Also on Saturday was my gym party where they announced the winner of the team challenge!! I am happy to say my team WON!!! Yippee!!! All that hard work and effort paid off! The score was so freaking close. We just barely won, but a win is a win!! We got our names on a plaque and mine was up top for being a captain! The party itself was a lot of fun. I drank way too much and ate way too much. lol. But it was worth it and so much fun.

For winning I got a bucket filled with goodies. including that giant whistle! I love it.

Here I am in my size 10 jeans!! I felt awesome that night.

On Sunday I went shopping with some friends from work. I spent a whole lot of money on new smaller clothes! It was awesome!

Made my 5K goal finally!!!

For my team challenge most of us signed up to do a 5K on Saturday. Little did we know that the weather was going to be TERRIBLE.

That morning when I woke up to gray skies I knew it wasn't going to be a good race. It was freezing out and misting all morning. If it wasn't for the team challenge I probably wouldn't have ran. The race had over 2,000 runners signed up initially, only 400 actually ended up running it. That's how bad out it was.

I am so happy I have proper running gear though. My compression shirt really helped me stay warm. I forgot to bring gloves though and thought I would never get them warm again! We sat in the car until about 10 minutes before the race to try and stay warm. Standing at the starting line was pure torture. I just wanted the race to start so I can move my body and warm up a little.

Before the race, I really wanted to get under 30 minutes. I've been working toward this goal forever. My first 5K I ever ran (May 2011), I did it in just under 40 minutes. I knew then that eventually I wanted to get under 30. I was getting close. I wanted to hit it badly.

Once the day of the race came and it was raining, freezing and WINDY I figured I would hit it the next race. Too many elements to contend with I figured. The race finally started and I was already miserable. My face was soaking wet and freezing. My shoe lace became slightly untied. UGH. I was never going to hit it.

Then I got to mile 1 and the guy standing there said I was only 8:44 in. WHAT?!?!! I've never ran under a 9 min mile before!! I kept running along. Eventually my tie came completely undone. I had to stop and fix it. Since I thought I wouldn't hit under 30 I wasn't too upset.

We turned a corner and I was running against the wind! Ugh. It was horrible. I felt like I was barely moving. My fingers were completely numb. I just wanted this thing to be over!

Finally I turned a corner and saw the finish line!!! I started to sprint. That's when I saw the clock. What?? There was no way!!

I crossed the finish line in 27:44!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHHH!!! I cannot believe I got under 30!! And that much under 30!! I shaved 4 minutes off my last 5K time!! Apparently really crappy weather makes me run super fast. ;)

I still can't believe my pace with under 9 min mile. With my shoe being undone, the wind, rain and everything, I really thought I wasn't going to hit it. I can't wait until the next 5K, I feel like I'll be even faster without those elements to slow me down!

It's also surreal to me to run 5Ks now because I'm right in the thick of it. There are tons of runners all around me. In the past when I was all the way in the back, there was hardly any other people. Now I really feel like a runner with everyone all around me.



After the race with my trainer. Soaked but so happy!



My other co-captain for our gym team challenge.

Alive

It's been a while since I've blogged. It's been crazy the last few weeks. Work is really really busy for me right now and this gym challenge is taking up the rest of my time. It's hard being a captain. Organizing everything, listening to people bitch all day long. It's exhausting. This past week alone, I've had to start bringing in my cellphone charger to work because my phone is dying so quickly. I get emails upon emails every hour from people at my gym, and texts and calls.

It's fun but I'm tired. Plus the challenge itself is TOUGH. My body is so freaking sore, and has been since this thing started. Which is a good thing in the end. It means I'm really starting to push myself and will hopefully bust through this plateau soon!!

I'm looking forward to the weekend. There is a St Patty's day parade in a town right near me. I can't wait to go and see friends. Because of all my travel and I was sick last weekend, I haven't gone out in NJ in over a month. I can't wait! Then on Sunday I'm going to see the Hunger Games. The books were so good. I read all three in 5 days. I just couldn't stop reading!

The trailer looks like it'll follow closely with the books and I think the casting is pretty spot on. With the exception of who they picked for Peeta. I am just looking forward to being home and going out with friends.

Finally Home

I am finally back as on late Saturday night from my business trip. It was great and I learned a lot. Plus being in tampa and enjoying 80 degree weather was pretty awesome too. However I am so happy to be back home. I am over traveling and I'm happy that I have no plans to go anywhere for a while.

I'm trying to get back into my normal routine and really trying to kickstart my weight loss again. I've been in this plateau for MONTHS and I'm really starting to get sick of it. I am ready to be at my goal weight already. My gym just started a team challenge and I was actually voted to be my team's captain!!

I'm hoping this will give me the push to start losing again and hit my goal weight by the summer! It's kinda weird being a leader though... It's daunting at times. So many people are looking up to me! I hope I won't let them down!

Happy Halloween!!!

I am trying to not stuff myself with candy all day!

Because of the snow this weekend, I didn't get to go to Fright Fest at Six Flags like I had planned. Which really bummed me out. I did however go see Paranormal Activity 3. While it was suspensful and scared me, the ending made no sense! I was furious with that ending!! NOTHING was explained. So annoying.

I hope you had better halloween plans! Did any of you dess up and go out?

I took a break from eating right and working out last week and I felt like total crap. It's crazy how my body craves working out and clean food now. I literally cannot go back to my old lifestyle.

Which is a good thing, but I miss being able to pig out sometimes. Although when I got on the scale I was not happy. At all. UGHH

Hopefully the few pounds I gained will quickly come off. Next week my gym is having a individual challenge. The person who loses the most weight over 6 weeks, and completes certain tasks wins $1,000!!! I am going to try my hardest to win!

I decided for the almost 6 weeks of the challenge I will not have any cheat meals, besides Thanksgiving. I really think I can do this! Wish me luck!

Didn't get muddy this weekend...

For months I had been looking forward to my mud run. I was all set. I had my compression gear and had been training pretty intensely for it. I was beyond nervous, but also so excited to push myself to the limits.

Then Friday afternoon, at like 3:30, it's postponed.

I was PISSED!!!!! I may have also cried a little bit.

The township that the event was supposed to be held in, is apparently known for pulling stunts like this. At the last minute, the decided to change the insurance policy for the event and demanded that each runner be insured for a million dollars, and with over 1,000 runners signed up, that would mean a billion dollar policy. Something that the people holding the event couldn't do.

I understand that there has to be insurance but that's insane. Especially with the fact that every runner has to sign a waiver, that says if we get injured we can't sue!

So the event may be rescheduled for November 5th, but that's only if an agreement is reached between both parties. Which isn't looking good right now. I am so bummed out. I really wanted to do this and push myself to the limits.

There are a couple of other mud runs that are happening in the next few weeks, but most of them are sold out already. So if I am to do one, it wouldn't be for a few months or even a year! UGH! So bummed.

Fingers crossed that it gets rescheduled. Until then, I may have to make my own course. lol

12 Sleeps

In 12 days I will be doing a Mud Run!! It's getting so close!!!

Right now I'm not that nervous. The few days before the race I know I will be a nervous wreck though! It's slowly starting to sink in that I'm actually doing this.

Yesterday I met with some people running the race with me and we went to a local school. We ran up and down a crazy hill. Then practiced crawling on the ground and attempt to go across the monkey bars. Most importantly, we practiced lifting each other over the monkey bars. There will be high walls that day and I wanted to make sure someone would be able to lift me up!! It was something I was really nervous about! Even though I'm the smallest I've ever been, I still have a good bit of weight to lose!

After we practiced I felt a lot more confident about the race. I felt more comfortable knowing these women are going to stay with me the whole race.

After that, I went to get my compression clothes for the race. I needed something sleek that will keep me warm. And also be able to dry fast. Which is why I had to get compression clothes. They are the most unforgiving clothes you can imagine. They show every lump and bump!! UGH! I wish I was way smaller. However I didn't look as terrible as I thought I would. Plus I know how happy I will be that I wore these the day of the race. I'm going to get muddy and very wet. I need something that will not weigh me down and keep me going! I look crazy though. lol

I can't wait for the race to happen already! I know it will be an experience to last me forever!

5K in the morning and AC in the night! (Pictures)

This past weekend was crazy for me! It was nonstop from start to finish. And I loved every second of it!!

Saturday morning I woke up bright and early to run a 5K. It was my 4th one this year. I can't believe that I do 5Ks now like this! A bunch of people from my gym ran the race and we all showed up wearing shirts from our gym. It was a great sight to see. 70 plus people wearing shirts from one gym!!

I'm also happy to say that I beat my last 5K that was on Labor Day. I finished a full minute faster!!! I came in at 33:17!!!! Whoo Hooo!! I am so happy with how much I've improved with running. My very first 5K (which was just this past May) I finished in almost 40 minutes. Now I'm getting close to going under 30 minutes!! I cannot wait for that day!!!!!

Here is me starting the race



After the race, I hung out with some people from my gym at a local bar. I couldn't stay long though. I had to rush home, shower and pack because I was going to Atlantic City that night!! I met at my friend's parent house around noonish. We had a great lunch together to celebrate her birthday. Then we were off!

We stayed at Harrah's. We specifically wanted to go to the Pool Bar there. Turns out that night Snooki from the Jersey Shore was going to be there! lol. When we got to the hotel we hung out a little and gambled some. Sadly I did not come home a winner!

Soon it was time for us to get ready to go out! I bought a dress from the Missoni line from Target. It was very short for me! I was really stepping out of the box with my outfit, but I wanted to feel great!! And I did!!! I felt great and I knew I looked good! lol.

The Pool Bar was a lot of fun! We saw Snooki for about 5 seconds there though. But it didn't matter the music was good and the company was awesome. I definitely drank too much though! Also there were so many Jersey Shore wannabes there. It was a little crazy. I was surprised at how many guys were there. Way more than girls that night.



My friends and I getting ready



We saw Snooki for like 5 seconds. She said something into a Mic, which I could not understand, and then she was rushed off to a VIP area. Not to be seen again. It's crazy because she probably got paid like $30,000 to talk for one minute there.



Here she is. I have to say, she looked terrible in person!!

The rest of the night was a blur. Finished with me chowing down on curly fries before bed. lol. I never sleep in when I drink. Me and my best friend were up at 7am. Her boyfriend and our friend were still passed out. So we decided to go get breakfast and go swimming at the pool. It was so nice during the day. Swimming was great, the hot tub was even better. It was nice to just relax on the lounges though. It was funny because there was still people there from the night before passed out on the lounges! It was a great way to end my trip in AC.

How was your weekend?

Mud Run (I think I'm crazy)

Last November, a bunch of people from my gym did a Tough Mudder. It was a 12 mile obstacle course, through water, mud, the forest and FIRE! I was no where near the shape you had to be to do such a race. But it was one of the coolest things I've ever watched! Since that day, I've known I wanted to do a mud run. An obstacle course like that! I just had to get myself strong enough to complete such a task.

Well I feel like I'm almost there! I feel confident enough that I can complete a crazy run like that. So a few friends from my gym and I signed up for a mud run on October 22!!! EEEK!!! I am so nervous already!

It's called MudmanX (they are on Facebook if you want to check it out) and it's a 5 mile obstacle course here in NJ. 5 miles is a lot. I've NEVER ran for 5 miles before. Throw in crazy obstacles and getting soaked with water and mud.... I think I need to be committed. lol.

I have a little less than 2 months to really train for this. I really do think by October, I will be able to do this! I may not be the fastest, but all I care about is finishing! I want to be one of those people who can do crazy athletic things like this. I want to maybe inspire someone to go after this, like I was when I first watched people do it.

So even though I am scared Sh*tless right now, I'm going to use that fear to push me and make me stronger!!!

I can't wait to tell you all about it in October!

I can see the finish line!

Since my birthday, I've been indulging a little too much with food than I would like. Even though I've lost a lot of weight, I'm not quite where I want to be yet. I would like to lose about another 40 pounds. It's frustrating to basically lose a whole person and still have to lose more weight!

To get myself back on track I've set up some mini goals to hit. The first is to lose 20 pounds by September 10. Me and three other women at my gym came up with this together. We figured it was a decent period of time and September 10 is the date of a local PBA beach party that we are all going to. So the party would be our reward for a job well done. Well my trainers found out about our pact and ran with it. Now there are I think 12 of us doing this 20 pound challenge. Whoever loses 20 pounds first, the gym will buy our ticket for the party! Now that's some really good motivation! Plus it actually boggles my mind that when I lose this 20 pounds, I'll be smaller than when I was a senior/junior in high school!!

I would like to hit my goal weight, by Thanksgiving. Which means if all goes according to plan, I will need to lose about 18 pounds after September 10. I know I can do this! I just need to buckle down again and stop going out so much! The past few weekends I've been going out way to much and drinking more than I should be. I've become a social butterfly since losing all this weight! lol. While I love that I have a much more active social life, I need to find a balance.

Now my only problem is I don't have a reward for when I finally reach my goal weight by Thanksgiving. I'm thinking it needs to be something big! I mean it has to be! By Thanksgiving if all goes according to plan, I'll have lost almost 140 pounds!

Here's what I've been thinking about what I should do.

1. A trip somewhere with friends. I've never been to Vegas and I'm dying to so that would be the first place I'd want to go.

2. A new tattoo. I really want to get a tattoo of a Phoenix. I love the symbolism of rising from the ashes.

3. A huge shopping spree (like $1000 worth) ala "What not to wear" style.

What do you think? Do you have any other ideas?? What would you do?