The Biggest Loser

A presentation/a paper and a test today.  One more tomorrow.  One next week.  Exciting!

We had our Holiday Party at DG tonight, which was awesome--yummy turkey, mashed potatoes, salad, cranberry sauce, stuffing.  So much goodness from Toojays!  And homemade brownies and cookies...oh my goodness!  

And tonight was the Biggest Loser finale--which I love!!  It's always so super inspiring--not just because of all the weight all of the contestants have lost, but because of how much they're able to accomplish and how much they've learned about themselves in the process.  They all always say that they never thought they could do anything like this, but they did.  That really inspires me to keep training and preparing for the half-marathon.  I never even imagined that I would someday run a half-marathon, and now I'm running one so soon!  Honestly, I don't know that I even ever wanted to run one, but now I do.  And I don't want this to be the one and only one I run.  I want to keep pushing myself to do more and more!

Speaking of which, I think I'm going to do a 5k on campus Saturday morning!

I did go to the gym today, just a quick, 30 minute elliptical workout post-Biggest Loser.  

I've been using Pandora to work out, which is great because I get a really awesome new variety of music, except I can't write things down to remember what songs to make a race playlist from!  I have to get that together!

Bedtime now though, test tomorrow--Night!!

Brick Walls

"Brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want something badly enough. They are there to keep out the other people."  --Randy Pausch

I'm all about the positivity (and the quotes!) right now.  Except that I've been at the library for 11, that's right, count them, ELEVEN hours today.  I'm starting to hit that brick wall.

I've been trying to split my time between the presentation/paper I have tomorrow, the test I have tomorrow and the test I have Wednesday.  Not working so well.  We've been working on the presentation since 3:30.  Okay, lies.  Presentation is done.  We've been working on the final draft of the paper since about then.  I did get to flex my creative muscle a bit and make a rockin' (if I do say so myself) cover page for our project.  Woo!

I also had a delicious lunch that I've been craving since yesterday (Tijuana Flats power-lite chicken burrito!) and 2 teas (one hot, one iced) from Starbucks--but not both during lunch! :)

I want to go to the gym, but I still have a ton of reading to do, and I don't know if I'm up for the workout I was yesterday.  I'm just tired!  I hoping this is because I haven't eaten in a while (Starbucks at the library ran out of food sandwiches/salads!) and I just need an energy boost.

Anyway, I'm working real hard to get over this brick wall...

By the way, I find it ironic that the chapter I'm trying to read in my advertising book is on CREATIVITY and it's probably among the more boring ones I've had to read. 

Multitasking

"Multitasking is the art of distracting yourself from two things you’d rather not be doing by doing them simultaneously."

Like I mentioned in the last entry, things are a bit hectic here in Gainesville.  Friday was a nasty, rainy day and I saw Brothers with Alison in the afternoon.  It was very different than I anticipated, but really good nonetheless, and if you need another reason to be in love with Jake Gyllenhaal, see it for sure.  (But really, who needs more reasons?!)  Anyway, I wanted to do something Friday evening that wasn't sitting in my apartment or going to the bars, so we went to Gator Nights, which is a free event on Friday nights at the Union on campus for students.  We went with the intent to bowl, which we thought was free but wasn't, and ended up walking around and getting some free popcorn and soda.  Still worth it.  On the way home, we decided on game night!  We picked up Apples to Apples from Ali and Tracy's sorority house and had a lovely, hilarious evening playing--once we got more people than the three of us that is.

Saturday was the SEC Championship game in Atlanta with the Gators playing the Alabama Crimson Tide.  All that needs to be said is that it did not end well.  But as our alma mater says, "Neath the Orange and Blue victorious, our love shall never fail.  There's no other name so glorious, all hail, FLORIDA, hail."  Yes, I'm cheesy--get over it!  :)  I will always love them GATORS!

Lisa's parents are in town this weekend for her dance show so we went out to breakfast this morning (Sunday) at Peach Valley and I had a delicious egg white-spinach-tomato omelet.  Yum-sauce!  After that, and a few errands, I made my way to the library for the next few hours to read a few chapters for my advertising test on Tuesday.  At 4, I had an orientation for my upcoming trip to Israel (Dec 22-Jan1, I am soooo excited!!).  I then went back to the library to switch gears to my public relations project/presentation, also on Tuesday.  My PR group met at 7 and at 7:45, Ali and Tracy picked me up for Lisa's 8pm dance show.  After the show, which was so good--I love seeing Lisa dance--I got some quick dinner, came home, ate, digested, and headed to the gym far too late--around 12:15.  Yikes.

This is the multitasking part!  I really need to be studying, it's my first priority, but I also don't want to let my training fall to the wayside.  Before I went to the gym, I brought up the race to my friends again, but no one is up for it.  (If any of you guys are reading this, please don't think for a second that I'm venting about it--this is a really big personal decision and I completely understand and respect your decision!)  Anyway, so they all have really valid points and reasons for not wanting to do something like this, with such a large commitment, in such a short time period, but I'm really hoping that I can keep positive and do this.  It's hard to describe exactly why I feel the need to do this or what it is that's keeping me motivated, but I need to really focus on that and concentrate and just work work work until I am ready--which I will be.  It's all about POSITIVITY!  So instead of just going back to the library to read more advertising and not going to the gym because I have reading to do, I decided to take my book to the gym and read while I was on the treadmill.  In the past I've had some issues with headaches when I try to do cardio and read, but I figured if I could pace myself and not be too bouncy in the walking/jogging, I knew I could do it.  AND I DID!!  Of course, this chapter happened to be one of the longest, with the least pictures, but that's probably even better.  While reading, I split the time between 3.8 and 3.9 mph at a 2.5% grade.  I finished the 30-some-odd page chapter in about 53 minutes, after speed walking about 3.4 miles, so I decided to go for gold and finish out the four minutes.  WHICH I ALSO DID!!  All said and done, I walked/jogged 4 miles in 1:02:21, which is just over 15 mi/hr, which includes multitasking and reading a book--a textbook nonetheless.  It felt A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!  Tonight completely rejuvenated me to get ready for this race! 

Now it's 3 am and I should be sleeping, but I am in bed, updating this, and watching Love Actually.  What could be better?

Off to the library in the morning, and definitely more gym tomorrow.  

Onward and upward...or forward for running I guess....

Training in Gainesville

Now that I'm back in Gainesville and my schedule is getting crazier (it's exam time!), and finding time to update this isn't easy, hence writing this at 12:40 in the morning.  

Anyway, I did get back to the gym on Monday morning.  I woke up early before class, but not too early and didn't have adequate time to work out.  This is the reason that I prefer working out in the evening.  I always overestimate how long things take and don't work out for as long as I'd generally like to.  So Monday morning, I cut it a bit close, between working out, showering, breakfast, doing something about my crazy wet hair, getting lunch at my sorority house, working on a presentation for class and actually going to class.  I did only run for 15 minutes on the treadmill, but I managed to pull a 14:08 min mile!  Yay!  I did some weight machines also--leg press, reverse leg press, hamstrings, quads.  Not bad, not bad!  I also did a quick set of ab crunches and obliques.

Tuesday is always a longer day--more class and such.  I also had a meeting at 6, went out to dinner after (Leonardo's Pizza--one slice veggie, one spin tom--had half of both and brought home leftovers)!  Always so yummy.  I didn't make it to the gym though, sad.  

Wednesday I gave a presentation in my class and did some studying/problems for managerial economics.  The day that class is over will probably be one of the happiest days of my college career, seriously.  I went to the gym in the evening, the one on campus with nice equipment, and did 30 minutes on the Stairmaster (my favorite!) and 20 on the elliptical.  That is definitely my all time favorite combination of cardio.  Between the two, I had a calorie burn of 360, but I don't know my distance.  It felt so good to get back into that extremely familiar routine!  Glee last night was incredible, and a great post gym treat, with Alison and Matty!

Today (Thursday) was a moderately busy day.  I woke up with a sore throat, which is never a good sign.  I had a few hours of work/class this afternoon, ate the most brilliant, delicious Subway sub (6 in tuna on wheat, with american cheese, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, green pepper, pickles and oil & vinegar), and then came home and took an oddly long nap.  I knew this sore throat was not a good sign this morning!  After dinner (homemade mac and cheese from DG and a veggie burger on a wheat bun), Alison and I decided to take a walk.  The weather here has been gorgeous, so it seemed like a great idea--and it was!  We walked 3.58 miles through campus (and around) in an hour.  It was a long walk, but so nice out.  We didn't rush it but still made great time!  Something that this Florida girl still has to learn--just because it's a bit chilly out doesn't mean that you won't get warm from working out and the sweatshirt over the long sleeve shirt may be hotter than is comfortable!

I was pretty impressed with our walk though, and I hope we keep doing these walks!!

Tomorrow, Friday, I have no class (yup, it's already the weekend for me!) so I'm sure I'll get a good chance to have a nice long workout!  

Goodnight for now though!