Nothing to see here, folks...

Well, if it were a contest to see who could drink the most beer or eat the worst food... I would have won for the weekend. No guilt - we had a blast. Baseball game, music festival and friends. Can't really ask for too much more than that! Back on track on this wonderful Monday morning. 

Planning a nice run for my lunch break and then maybe a spin class after work. Can't decide if I want to spin or swim. I also have yoga this evening so I could spin at 6:30 and then yoga at 8. Decisions, Decisions... 

I've been working a lot on my overall mental state as far as working out and eating go. I've been trying to equalize them and make them into one rational thought as oppose to a total explosion of guilt and guilt eating. I think it's coming along well. Slowly but surely, I suppose. Yes, I continued with my smoothie for this morning. Excited that I've gotten my money's worth out of the nutribullet and that I'm taking in more natural vitamins and nutrients. 

I promise I'll have something much more exciting to update about at some point but for now I will leave you with how much I LOVE the show Boundless. It's amazing. If you don't know what I'm talking about... go google it. I'll do a review here at some point... 

Keeping it Simple

I've been spending a lot of time lately trying to keep things simple. I'm constantly guilty of over complicating things. And when I say things I really mean everything. Specifically when it comes to weight loss, exercise, running etc. I over think, over analyze and end up spiraling into a giant pool of crazy.

This past week I've kept up with my morning veggie/fruit smoothies. Simple. Come downstairs after getting ready for work, throw a bunch of stuff in my Nutribullet, blend and go! Lots of nutrients, low calorie and a good choice to start the day. Simple.

I've lowered the amount of time that I'm spending at the gym. I'm running fewer miles and making each mile worth it. Starting over, so to speak. I can run longer distances but I'm attempting to change the way my brain thinks about running and tackle my expectations. Hobbies are supposed to be fun. Running became something I resented. Running easy miles and rebuilding my confidence is helping it become fun again. Simple.

I joined two training programs that actually start one right after the other. The simple runs for the 10k are going to help me make more running friends and help me feel like I may not be the worst athlete in the world. I'll go to a specific meet up place, work with coaches and have fun while running. Simple.

I am making good, simple choices to lead me to where I want to be. I'm trying to decompress my brain and remember how fun this all used to be. Eating right, doing great things for my body and becoming a great athlete.

And now... some pictures. You should probably just follow me on Instagram so you can see them in real time :-)

I'm a vitamin whore. 

Mother Nature has given us some AWESOME weather this week!

I wanted to eat every single bag of this. Don't worry - none of it made it into my cart.

Group Runs

Well, I've done it now. I've made myself accountable via money. I've done something that I've always really and truly avoided - I signed up for a group training program. Two, actually. One for the Peachtree Road Race and one for the Atlanta Marathon. I know that I can run a 10k. The problem is that I'm clearly doing something wrong. I don't see real improvement. I'll have one really great run and then I'll be right back to almost a minute slower pace for several weeks then another great run will happen and the cycle continues. I've clearly got something wrong with how my body trains and I think that this will be a great opportunity for me to learn some new things. I want to not just run the Peachtree but RUN it. Looking for a killer run and I'm hoping that the coaches and motivation from my group will be helpful.

I don't run with people for a really ridiculous reason. I get super embarrassed. Like...really bad. I'm my own worst enemy and hopefully these group runs will help! And if not...well. The money wasn't that bad and I know that I will have had tried.

Let's see....in other news. HOLY BOSTON, BATMAN! So proud of everyone who ran today! I got chills watching MEB cross the finish line. Finally, an American win! USA! Home of the brave, y'all! One day maybe I'll be there running with the other 30,000 people.

Still going strong with my morning smoothies. Starting to get use to the taste/texture. Juicing has its perks but I'm hoping that this takes my nutrition to a different level.

Alright - off to get ready for bed. Early wake up call for some fitness types of things :) Have a great week, y'all!

NutriBullet Day 3 and a Kick in the Butt

I wish I could post pictures from the computer I’m at so that I can verify day 3 of my NutriBullet use! I forgot to stop and get Almond milk to add to it so I’ll have to do that today if I have time. This morning it was….one each of the following: carrot, apple, pear. A giant handful of spinach. And a chunk of pineapple. It’s so much easier to throw all the stuff into the cup, put it on the blender, take the cup off and place the lid on and GO! I won’t stop juicing all together – I paid a lot of money for that juicer and there’s nothing better than watermelon-vodka-tonics in the summer…amiright? But for the mornings when I’ve barely got my mascara on and I need to make a quick exit while still treating my body to something wonderful and nutritious – this is totally the way to go.

The only downside to living in Marietta now is that I don’t have access to a farmers market. There will be a local one that is hosted Saturday mornings starting in May though!. Can’t freaking wait. This is only about 10 minutes from my house and we all know how much I love supporting the local economy. Nothing beats fresh fruits and veggies grown in the rich southern soil and sun!

Today I woke up and weighed myself. I can’t decide if it was a mistake or just the motivation I needed for the morning to reconnect with my goals. Not looking for a number but the number was a reminder that I haven’t been doing as well as I should. So, as I’m writing this post and drinking my green smoothie I’m planning out my meals for the rest of the day and praying nothing happens in between to get me off track. Not going to lie – I have a goal weight for my birthday. I won’t share it. It’s nothing extreme. But it’s doable and something I’d like to prove to myself that I can do and do it right this time. I’ve been on a much better path as far as my relationship with food had gone. Now instead of maintaining I need to push myself to lose the weight and keep with my new found healthy habits of nutrition and not yoyo. Fingers Crossed! (Meanwhile we are celebrating a coworker’s birthday today and there are muffins AND cupcakes AND cake. FML.)

So excited for everyone who made it into the Chicago Marathon! Can’t wait to see you all succeed!! Maybe next year I’ll try to do it, also! For this year we’re going to keep it local. Best of luck, y’all!

**NutriBullet didn’t pay me any money….still.

What is your biggest bridge to cross when it comes to weight loss?

Do you have a game plan for your summer race series?

Feelin' kinda photo heavy!

Oh my god it's so nice to be able to update from my regular laptop. The other computer I've been using does NOT like the compose feature and makes me update using HTML - meaning, I have to enter all my own codes. ARGH. Because of that, I haven't been including any pictures either. And that's just boring.

Anywhoo - an update in pictures!

First up are my new Nufoot mary jane slippers that I wear for barre. They're super cute, inexpensive and have tiny anti-slip grippers on the bottom that help keep me from falling all over the place during barre. Definitely a great buy! I'd pay attention to the sizing chart next time though...I got a small (which fit but are snug) instead of a medium. So far the only thing I don't really like about them is my feet get super sweaty in them. So far it hasn't been an issue but I definitely notice that they sweat more in these rather than normal socks with anti slips on the bottom.

I typically juice fruits and veggies. It can be really frustrating though - it takes a lot of effort (mostly because of the cleaning afterwords!) and I just don't always have time. As a result, I don't do it as a frequently as I should or want to. I finally took the plunge and got a magic nutribullet. I didn't prepare by shopping for veggies first so all I had were carrots, apples, pears and spinach. I added a table spoon of Chia seeds and some ice cubes to chill the mix. 

Overall, it was pretty good. The ice cubes made it into more of a slushy than a drink which was kinda weird. Definitely a great refreshing drink post barre and run, though! So far so good. Clean up was a snap. I LOVED that I blended in the same cup I drank from. Fewer dishes to wash = happy Shauna. I'm definitely going to make sure I have berries and pineapple on hand. The only downfall is that I can't use FROZEN berries with this. It specifically says not to. Womp womp womp. 

Next is my Sports authority splurge with coupons and reward points - under $20 for the total haul! WIN! 

Annnd finally, today I spent my afternoon laying in my bikini in this handy fold up hammock - and when I got a sunburn (about an hour later. omg so white) we went to the square for amazing strawberry ice cream! That was the kid's cone -_- Way too much but it sure was yum! 

I hope everyone had a FANTASTIC Saturday!! Tomorrow promises to be just as gorgeous outside so I'll be paying a visit to that hammock again as well as getting my fitness in via Yoga and a run! Wahoo! 

**As usual, no one paid me to review any products mentioned here. All ideas and opinions are my own. 

How are you spending your weekend?

Do you have a fun new workout routine that is helping you get through a plateau? 

Gearing up

This week has been a fitness disaster. I went hard on Monday and for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday the only place I went was out to eat. Failboat. On the bright side, the handsome man informed me that he’s enjoyed spending more time with me in the evenings since I haven’t been at the gym for hours after I get off work. That’s a plus! Now here’s to hoping he enjoys my company with some extra pounds…

I’m still trying to find a balance. A balance that will help me obtain my goals, make me feel good about what I’m doing for my body and NOT put me into the psycho obsessed with working out category. I’m strongly considering seeking out a running coach. And not a “oh well I ran cross country in high school and I totally ran a 7:30/mile the first time I ever ran” running coach. Because I’m not that person. I want someone who started off like me. Slow but motivated. Maybe I’ll look into that this weekend.

I’m gearing up for some gorgeous weather in Atlanta this weekend. I’m pretty sure that means some early mornings runs and a barre class and a yoga class sprinkled in….the rest of the days will be spent in my hammock in the sunshine with some cold lemonade and my kindle. Perfection.

I hope everyone had a great week and is going to have a fabulous weekend!

What a WHIRLWIND

What a whirlwind of a week!

I’ve got several reviews that I need to write for y’all…Invigo Day Spa, Nufoot Mary Jane Slippers, and a bunch of Organic/All natural goodies that I’m trying in attempt to satisfy my need to snack and my need to eat clean.

While I haven’t been blogging, I have been doing a lot of writing. There’s just a lot of stuff that I don’t really think needs to be published on the internet…ha! Trust when I say I’ve been doing my best to keep up with my clean eating April challenge. It hasn’t been perfect. But I’m being conscious of the things I’m eating (even if it happens to be a lot…)

I was able to get to Barre again on Saturday. It was a sub this time and I didn’t quite like her as much. She had never taught the class before so it wasn’t as smooth as the previous week. She was gorgeous though. She was incredibly fit and toned in a pretty way – not in a “Are you a man or a woman I can’t tell” way. No offence to the ladies out there who like the super huge muscles – it’s just not my cup of tea. Anyway, due to her amazing level of fitness, I felt like she was disconnected with the athletic abilities of the class. And as a result was asking us to do things that

Yoga Sunday was pretty decent. Again, another sub. Can you tell it’s spring break for the kids where I live? These instructors are taking their kids to do fun family things leaving me in the dark for my fitness goals – GOSH! HA!

Monday was “I’m in a really terrible mood so I’m going to sweat it out” day. I wanted to do spin at 5:30 and then my BFF was on board for our Monday night yoga at 8. So, I just left work and stayed at the gym until we were done with yoga at 9pm. WOO. An hour of spin, hour of weights and an hour of yoga. Feelin’ it today in the best way. Today is, clearly, a rest day.

Here’s to hoping you all have a Terrific Tuesday!

Gorgeous Weather !

Oh my lord I feel like Mother Nature is apologizing for the horrific winter she put us through! It has been absolutely gorgeous this week. Today when I got home from my 5k (more on that later) it was a wonderful 80 degrees and sunny! I couldn't wait to get out of work, hop in my car, put the windows down and drive through the sun. Uh-mazing.

Yesterday a surprise nap got me and I did NOT get my lazy butt up to hit the pavement. Instead of going bonkers over it, I accepted it and moved on to today. I did a much better job with my clean eating and made it a point to run. I got home and immediately changed and headed out. I'm still running without looking at my Garmin. My pace during my runs is of no value to me right now. I'm running set distances but not at a set pace. I'm making sure that I can breathe and that I'm not burning myself out. Proper breathing. Good form. I want to feel good while I'm running and not kill myself. The speed and strength will come. This time around for my training I want to take it slow and steady. Training isn't a race - I'll get there.

I'm excited to have a solid mix of exercises to strengthen my running capacity. I'm definitely going to be doing Barre classes every Saturday morning. I've been making it to Yoga Sunday mornings and Monday evenings. I'm aiming to swim for cross training on Sundays. Spin on Monday and Friday mornings. Intervals with weights Monday/Wednesday/Friday mornings. I'm excited. And this time - if I'm tired, I'll rest. I'm not an olympian, I haven't been running since I was a kid. Never did track. Never ran cross country. Not everyone progresses at the same time.

I am no longer comparing myself to anyone else. This is what is going to help me reach my goals. And I'm pretty excited about that.

Did you have an awesome workout today?
Has Spring finally made an appearance where you're at?