Healthier Me: 500 miles, Getting Derailed, New Motivation

It’s been over six months since my last post mentioning anything related to my Healthier Me goals. Here’s where things currently stand…

500 miles: You may recall that I’d set out to run 500 miles in 2010. Well, I did it! I actually hit the 500 mile mark back on September 28th, but never got around to blogging about it. At the start of this pledge, I had estimated that it might take me until October or November to complete my goal, but I was able to achieve it faster by running/jogging 20-27 miles a week over the summer months. I was proud of myself for making it to the 500 mile mark in nine months, but it wasn’t actually all good news. While I was doing all of that running, I was not doing any strength training. And I was not eating all that well either (think summer… cookouts… ice cream…). I actually gained six pounds over the summer (that I still haven’t been able to shake), and while bad food habits were (and probably still are) to blame, I think a lot also had to do with being stuck in a routine. The running got easier, and I stopped pushing myself to really feel the burn of a good, strong workout. I decided that in October I would get back into my old routine of alternating cardio and strength training workouts, as well as making sure I was in the gym 4-5 nights a week.

Getting Derailed: But for the first two weeks of October, we were dealing with crib climbers. It was exhausting, and as a result, I was doing more relaxing at the end of each day, and not so much working out. In mid-October I tried getting back into a good routine of going to the gym after bedtime, but then we had more issues with night wakings and sick kids that, again, resulted in disrupted sleep and no energy to hit the gym at the end of a tiring day. I was able to consistently get to the gym on weekends during nap times (when T could be home with the kids), but night workouts during the work week just weren’t happening all that often.

New Motivation: In May I will participate as a bridesmaid in a dear college friend’s wedding. I will need to wear this dress (in kiwi), and I would prefer not to appear three months pregnant (I am not and will not be pregnant at the time of the wedding, but if I don’t get my butt in gear, one might logically make that assumption). So, I need to get back into the eat healthy, exercise often routine if I’m going to get myself to a point where I won’t feel self-conscious about how I look in that dress. I know that it’s entirely possible that the kids will be sick a few more times this winter, and we never know when night wakings may become an issue again, but I’m hoping that I can stick to a healthy diet and push myself to make it to the gym at least four times a week to get myself back into shape by mid-May. I think I can… I think I can….