The Runners Holiday Wish List

I want Christmas gift ideas!!!!

Who has some good ones for healthy living people in their lives?

I have a few ideas of my own and I will share them here:

- Nuun, I love it and drink it when I am on runs. I love the no sugar but still tasting good and giving me electrolytes things about it ;) And psst they have free shipping until December 9!

- Arctic Ease, it is the best way to recover after a hard speed session or race! I have been able to run the next day after races thanks to this product. Cold compression, need I say more? psst they are having a holiday sale too!

- Epsom Salt, this is my favorite way to relax after a long run, take a nice warm bath in scented epsom salt. My local CVS has a vanilla scented bag that I love.

- A heart rate monitor, I love my Polar and also my Garmin and both have the heart rate attachment. The polar is great for working out in general and the Garmin is more focused on running.

- Clothing! I do not know a person who works out that does not get excited for a new dri-fit shirt or pants etc. Personally I am not picky with brands I workout in the Target line a lot it is affordable and I have found it works fine for me! And I have been working out in it since day 1, they come in plus sizes! Which is hard to find.

- Books. There are so many great ones out there for running, inspiration, motivation etc! If you know what the person is interested in then it will not be too hard to make them happy with a nice book.

- A medal rack! Everyone needs a place to hang up their race bling ;)

- An anti chafing stick. There are 2 good kinds Body Glide and  Ever Stride I prefer ever stride's but everyone I know uses one of them! It is just a must to prevent pain when working out ;)

- A Bondi Band I am a big fan of these head bands to keep my hair away from my face and sweat out of my eyes ;) 

So tell me tell me what is on your Christmas ideas list?

Why I Need to Get Back to Basics

Well yes I ran a marathon. Everyone keeps reminding me ;) And believe me I am grateful for my running thus far and I appreciate how far I have come this past year.

But I am not talking about my running today. Today my friends I am talking about Weight Watchers and why I so clearly need to follow the plan in my life. I knew I had packed on a few extra pounds. That is the thing, when you hit  your goal weight you feel great, clothes feel great and you get used to the new body you are living in. But I settled in and then the past 2 months I let old habits come back in too.

I have no one to blame but myself. I am not going to sit here and say oh I was training hard, oh I have been doing xyz I do not get it. No I get it, I have been lazy with my habits. I stopped weighing my meat and portions and guesstimating things. I would track most days and skip days and not worry about it. I would have extra things I normally would not allow myself here and there and tell myself 'I will run it off tomorrow'. But see when you are doing xyz it adds up to a few extra pounds over time.

So that is why I walked into a Weight Watchers meeting yesterday and faced the ever truthful Scale. I know some hate it, I know some say throw it away go by how you feel. But if you really think about it, the scale does not lie. I wonder sometimes if this is why we hate it so much. If you put on a few extra pounds you may not feel it at first. But I bet if you pack on an extra 10 you notice it in your clothes. The scale tells the truth. I hate the scale when I have gained, but I love it when I have lost. So I must say, the scale is a part of my life, one I need and will use as a tool to keep me in check. To keep me grounded.

So I met the scale yesterday with a heavy heart. I gained 8 pounds since my physical and deciding on a goal weight with my doctor 2 months ago... Now I weigh 165 pounds. I know it may not sound like a lot, but to a girl who has lost so much it feels like it. I start to think about how hard it was to lose 120 pounds and I cringe. I know I will never allow myself to fall that far behind ever again. It is simply too much work to get back here. But I also know that I am not happy at this 165 either. I feel it in my clothes, they are snug. I see it in my face.

So I am saying enough is enough. I am claiming my healthy habits back and getting back to basics right now. I refuse to let this slip to a 10, 20 30 pound gain. I refuse to go back there. I will not. That is why I am participating in the Back 2 Basics Challenge with all my friends this month! Check it out and come join us if you want ;) And if you are feeling especially inspired and motivated you can do 2 challenges this month 30 for 60 is going on here!

How do you handle setbacks on your journey?

Back 2 Basics Challenge

It all started with a random idea when I posted about getting back to basics.

We have come together! I was inspired almost instantly when many of my virtual friends began joining me in the fight.

We have decided  that we will reclaim our healthy habits in December and not succumb to the usual holiday excuses. For whatever has gotten you off track lately, this is the chance to come together and get back on it. For some of us it is healthier eating, for some it may be increasing activity, for others it may be mental road blocks. The point is whatever is holding you back, causing you to feel like you are off that track, work on it starting December 1 and make it a priority to stay on that track all month long.

The holiday season brings along many chances for derailment. Some will be busy and focused on others and forget to take time for themselves. Others may have too many holiday parties to navigate through. Some may just not like being out in the cold ;) Whatever the excuses are we can work on them together and over come it!

I am so grateful and inspired by you all joining me that I have decided I will pick a 'winner' at the end of the month and send them a special gift! Of course we will all be winners at the end of December because we will have reclaimed our healthy habits that normally may have eluded us through the toughest month of the year ;) But one special winner will get an extra prize!

I am not a fan of having a million things to do for a contest so I am keeping it simple. Let me know in a comment, on twitter, or facebook that you are in and check in with us once in awhile and let us know how its going. If you see us on twitter give a shout out of encouragment we will be using the hash tag #back2basics and if you want, blog about it and check in let us know how its going :) I will ask everyone who took part to comment or tweet and pick a winner from there on December 31st!

Thank you for helping me get back to basics! I will share my goals for the month tomorrow :)

Getting Back to Basics

So we all have moments of weakness. Moments of I'm tired I do not want to do this today. It seems all it takes is one small event to happen and poof weeks go by without you even realized your train has been derailed.

Weight loss was hard. But maintenance can be even harder. It's especially tough if you splurge once in awhile. It can be easy to fall back into old habits. It's easier to eat unhealthy than it is to eat healthy. Yes I said it. You know what, its in fact a pain in the ass.

When I was unhealthy I was caught up on all my tv shows. Yes every night dinner would be something quick and then couch time for the night existed. When I was unhealthy my alarm went off, I woke up and went to work. When I was unhealthy grocery shopping never took more than 30 minutes.

You get the idea...

Now I spend my evenings cooking, packing lunches, and washing containers from all the lunches that day. I wake up early in the morning and run, and if I don't make it up then I workout at night before or after all that housework. I have double the laundry to do because I wear 2 outfits every day. I have to stop and write down what I ate ans keep track of points.

It is so easy to slack off. It is too easy sometimes. You make excuses at first its just one here and there, then 2 and maybe 3. So before you know it all those tiny slips and excuses add up to one big derailment.

What I want to say is this: its ok. It's normal to fall off the wagon once in awhile its ok. But what I will also say is this: hop back on right away! We are waiting for you :)

So will you join me in getting back2basics this month? I figure December is a great time to do it. Thursday kicks off the new month! I know we may have gotten detailed in November by marathons, thanksgiving, etc. And it may be easy to say eff it Christmas and Hanukkah are coming I might as well wait for the new year....

So let's get back on track. Maybe you need to get in your workouts, or maybe nail your nutrition. Whatever is holding you back let it go :)

Do not wait. Let's get back on track and #back2basics now and not feel guilty later ;)

What Is Next?

So you train hard for 5 months.

You eat, breathe, sleep, dream of the big event. It arrives and whisks you into its greatness and for a whole day you become the very person you dreamt about all those nights. A marathoner.

You wear that medal with pride around for days, you rock that jacket. You even wear the tech shirt to thanksgiving day dinner:

But seriously what happens when all the 'I became a marathoner' stuff ends....

I spent a lot of time wondering about that this weekend. I spent a lot of time debating on what obstacle to tackle next. You see my fear is this, I feel myself wanting to relax. I feel my eating habits want to slip into unfogivable territory. I can feel my body getting a little lazy. I know I know, its only been 1 week I need to recover and blah blah blah ;)

But this is my way. My journey, My life. I know what happens when I slack off, I get lazy, I eat more, and I will gain weight. It is just the way I am right now. I would like to say in the future I will be ok, would like to tell you I have been healed. But the truth is, that girl that weighed 272 pounds and was addicted to food is still here. She is just in this marathoners body.

I am determined to keep that girl away for the rest of this girl's life. To do this successfully right now, I need a race. I need a goal, I need a light at the end of the tunnel.

So I found 2 so far :)

I am signed up to run a 5K on December 11 here. There is tons of fellow bloggers, twitter pals, and real friends going so I am super excited!

And the other thing? I will run my first 50K!!!!!!!!!!! It is down the cape, as we say ;) The Frozen Fat Ass, best race name ever? I think maybe hehe

SO there you have it. I will run a 5k and enjoy it and then in 2 months I hope to finish my first ultra marathon a 50k which is roughly 31 miles :)

Do you have any races planned for the winter? Do you find yourself needing a race to have a reason to train and stay on the healthy wagon?