This inspiration is brought to you by expensive women's athletic apparel

Call me shallow if you want, but the clothes at Lululemon inspire me! I walked past the Lululemon store and into my gym up in Evanston last night, knowing that by this time next year I will be showing off my shoulders in one of those shirts. Not wishing. Not hoping. Knowing. And then I had a kickass chest + triceps workout, with bonus reps for my legs and shoulders. (Bonus because they're weren't on my schedule for the day.) But it's not just Lululemon, but Athleta and Title Nine, too.

Look at this cute tank top!

And this one!

And you can't beat these reusable bags. This is where Lululemon beats out Athleta and Title Nine, all day everyday.

Anyway. Find inspiration wherever you can. You might need it when the going gets tough. I'll have to re-read this at some point. Or walk by Lululemon, meander thru the aisles at Athleta, or sift through a Title Nine catalog.

Speaking of which, Lou, why don't we sign up for the Title Nine 9k? I ran it last year (and wrote about it here) and the swag bag is pretty sweet (and earned a separate blog post found here. Chicks only, let's do it!

Your 2013 Chicago Marathon...

...will be held on Sunday October 13. (2013, of course.) So saith the Chicago Marathon website, which I sort of obsessively check. Obsessive in a way that the event is 11 months away and I check the website once every 10 days or so. So, not exactly stalker obsessive but probably still way too much.

p.s. Uh, on another note I got an email about the Shamrock Shuffle registration beginning on December 3rd. Somebody's smoking crack. For years this has been my January 1st traditional rundown:

1. Shitty Rose Parade,

2. Boring college football,

3. Everyone's cranky from staying up too late,

4. Nobody feels like cooking,

5. That one random store you wanted to go to is actually CLOSED on NYDay,

6. Vacation is almost over,

7. Sign up for Shamrock on Day One of Registration!!!

I wonder if that means they'll move the marathon registration back to Jan 1 instead of Feb? Why am I obsessing about these irrelevant details? I don't know, except that I don't like change.

Dear Bank of America,

It's called the SHAMROCK SHUFFLE because it's supposed to be around or near St. Patrick's Day. But for the second time in the last few years, it's in April. Lame! Hmmm, debating if I will do this or not. See for yourself here. I don't know why this bothers me so much, but it does.

Sincerely,

Some random chick whose opinion doesn't matter anyway, I suppose

time traveler: back to a time when race goodie bags were called GOODIE BAGS for a reason!

so i went to pick up my race packet today for the Title 9K...and this dandy array is what i was treated with:

(I don't know WHY I CAN'T GET THIS TO POST HORIZONTAL....turn your head sideways, if need be.)

now honestly, i don't quite know when i stopped calling them goodie bags and began calling them for what they were--race packets. but Title 9 outdid themselves. THESE were the kind of goodie bags i recall in the late 90's early 2000's. nowadays you might get one or two samples (usually coffee and maybe some vegetable oil--yes...numerous times i've gotten vegetable oil--or some energy bar or something), and then a craptacular load of papers for this upcoming race and that upcoming race, and $10 off if you spend $50 at some random sports store. but this here? this is nice. i already know i'll be registering again next year.

the schwag includes:

-an awesome bag

-coffee (don't drink it but i hear this brand is decent)

-sweet potato tortilla chips

-Cascadian Farms cereal

-an issue of Women's Running Magazine

-a Larabar

-a Luna protein bar

-not one but TWO gu energy gels

-a sunbutter sample (HOLY MOLY!!! sunflower seed butter????? dayam!!!!!)

-a sample of sleepytime tea for kids (oh! my! gawsh! these people must know me!)

-biofreeze sample (i get these so much i'll never buy it. HA!)

-a title nine catalog

-some Mary Kay samples

-a super cute and comfy race shirt in pink

-my race bib. HOLY CRAP, #17???? i must have registered pretty early. i did, i found about the inaugural run only days after it happened last year and vowed to participate this year. loves me some Title 9, on the same level as i loves me some Athleta. anyway, i feel compelled to kick ass this sunday with that low of a number.

and here's the flip side of the bag.

how could you not love a bag like this? SWOON!! i believe in goodie bags again, y'all. if THEY can do it, why can't the rest of these race directors get it together??!!

Fun Runs

I have some seriously fun runs scheduled for this year, and just signed up for another one...it's on my birthday (7/26) and the insanity of the race made me do it: The Chicago Undie Dash will be on a Thursday evening in Chicago's Lincoln Park and people are encouraged to run in their underwear. I, for one, will NOT, but I will run amongst those who do! The race itself is for a charity.

In June, I'm doing The Color Run (5K) for which every 1K, I get doused in some colorful non-paint/non-toxic, paint-like stuff. It's like running meets Nickelodeon's award show or something.

Also in June, I'm doing the Glow in the Dark (6K) run, it's downtown in Grant Park on a Saturday night, and we'll all be running with glow sticks. And it's a 6K because "six" is better at night. (ba-dunk-dunk!)

Not your average run-of-the-mill short races, eh?

All the race links can be found over on the side column under upcoming races. Enjoy!

Check me out!

Check that last race on my list of races to do this year, over on the right.

:)

CTRL-ALT-DEL

According to Wikipedia, Control-Alt-Delete (often abbreviated to Ctrl-Alt-Del, also known as the "three-finger salute")[1][2][3][4][5] is a computer keyboard command on IBM PC compatible systems that can be used to reboot the computer, and summon the task manager or Windows Security in more recent versions of the Microsoft Windows operating system. It is invoked by pressing the Delete key while holding the Control and Alt keys: Ctrl+Alt+Delete. It forces a soft reboot, brings up the task manager (on Windows and BeOS) or a jump to ROM monitor. In most X desktops it brings up the Logout dialog. These keys are sometimes referred to in computer manuals as interrupt keys, since they are often used to interrupt the operation of a malfunctioning program.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

So you might have been wondering where I've been. Ok, maybe not since I'm not sure who is actually paying attention to this blog anymore since I barely do. You might also think that those two recent WW weigh-ins could not be possible. Believe me...it's possible, and they're TRUE. FOR. FUCKING. SHAME.

See what had happened wuzzzzzz...
-continued work stress
-no vacation even though I had one scheduled in late December that never happened, due to said stressors.
-no working out at all (b/c I was ggetting up at 4am to work before GOING to work, then working all day, then coming home and collapsing into a heap after fixing dinner.

Then one blessed Friday night work finally eased up, and the girls and dude went off to Champaign for 24 hours. I should have gone to the gym. I should have gone to WW at the ass-crack of dawn that next morning (please excuse my language, or do yourself a favor and just stop reading my blog.) But no. I rented 3 movies. I watched them. I slept in. Then I went to the movies and saw 2 more movies.

Overall, I did not work out for 14 days in January. (still have somehow managed to get in 50+ miles, a minor miracle.) And before now, I never understood those weirdos at WW meetings who rave "OHMYGAWD I just LOOOOOOOOOOVE peanut buter." I was always like "yeah, whatever. why can't you just put it down?" Then all of the sudden my girls started liking PB&J sandwiches (remember that new year's resolution to start packing our lunches 4 out of 5 days? yeah, well we tried new things.) And goodness gracious, St. Ignatius, if that Skippy Creamy PB isn't the best stuff ever?!?! I've since put it down, but I've had more PB&J sandwiches and all out spoonfulls of PB in the past month than I've had in probably my entire life. Ok, well maybe not THAT many, but definitely a lot.

So last Monday night when my co-worker asked if I could drop her off at her WW meeting I decided, ya know, it's time to see what the damage. I argued with myself that it wouldn't be so bad. It would be this strategic way of getting back on the wagon. What, with having eaten crazily, going to weigh in at the END of the day (we all know that can account for an additional 3 to 5 pounds), wearing regular clothes instead of my standard "weigh-in outfit, well it wouldn't be my true weight, and that the next time I weighed in, it would be a loss no matter what. (Yes. I have a sick, sick mind.) The idea was that since I wouldn't be able to weigh in on Saturday at my usual meeting, I'd wait until the NEXT Saturday. So I weighed in and saw 206.2. I rationalized that maybe I was really around 203 or 202. That was more palatable, and to be honest, not knowing for sure made it easier. (I'm a sick one, eh?)

I got home from picking the girls up that evening, packed their lunches, laid out their clothes, my clothes, AND my workout clothes. And at 4:30am on Tuesday thru Friday, I made my way to the gym, hitting the elliptical and treadmill. Yes, I could workout on my treadmill at home, but there's something to be said for "peace of mind" and realizing that no little 5 year old is going to come tugging at my sleeve to interrupt. Plus the bright lights of the gym make me feel like I'm supposed to be there, not the dull, lifeless atmosphere in my basement. Shhhhh! Shhhhhh! You'll wake someone!! On Thursday I went all out, and ran 3 miles STRAIGHT, which I can't even recall the last time I did that. It's been awhile. I went to the gym again yesterday (but at 8am, much more reasonable), skipping my usual 6:30am WW meeting because I was tired.) I generally stayed on points, although in something totally new, I pretty much ate every activity point I earned..I was SO hungry at night.

But last night (Saturday night), I could feel myself slipping. That self-destructive thinking that sounds a little like this: "Oh, go ahead and order some pizza. You can eat the whole damn thing, you don't have weigh-in until next Saturday." I needed some kind of meeting. Maybe I should weigh in. So this morning, I snuck out of the house while the cherubs and dude slept, and went to WW. 198.8, down 7.4, but still up a bit from my lowest. That's ok. I'm cool. And after weighing in, I went grocery shopping, and came home and made a points friendly breakfast. GASP. And then walked on the treadmill (easy, light day) for a nice 4 mile walk. GASP. The GASPing is because I've gotten into the habit of eating a bunch of my flex points after weigh-in. Starting with a sausage mcmuffin in the drive thru a mile or so from my WW homebase center...for the love of all that is greasy and fattening, WHY ARE THOSE SO GOOD?! And $1.10 from the 99 cents value meal and Cook County taxation. A bargain! Not today though.

So...I think I'm on track. I feel good. I went back and looked at some of the meals that I like and realized I'd stopped eating: my 4 point turkey sandwich snack that was so awesomely filling. And cottage cheese (dude, it's friggin HIGH in protein!) My after-workout protein shake. Weird how you skip buying something once or twice at the store, and it's like it becomes erased from your brain. ??? I'm back at the gym tomorow morning, and may not even be able to go midweek if we get the snow they're talking about...but whatever...one day at a time. right?

Sigh. I think in my "former life" I wouldn't even catch this. I would go all the way back to start, so I'm feeling ok. Minor bump in the road. Next up? 195.0, the 30 pound mark.

p.s. My race season is shaping up. I'm feeling good about this year and not the sense of dread that I had last year (in which I ended up doing NOTHING.) I've signed up for a few half marathons. I am still unsure (and maybe that means no) for the 2011 Chicago Marathon. I did enter into the NYC lottery awhile back, so we'll see what happens with that. I kind of like the idea of letting fate decide...I'll keep you posted. Of course all of this could change when 2011 Chicago Marathon registration opens on Tuesday, which they will send me 100 reminders before then.

Happy almost 2nd month of the new year.

And in other running news...

Yesterday the NYC Marathon people had this Marathon Monday Mania contest. Sign up for their registration lottery before 3pm EST, take a picture of yourself doing sponsor-related things, paste it to their FB page, and be one of 50 selected winners (possibly) chosen today at 12 noon EST. I'm happy to report that while I'm NOT a winner, I will be entered into the general lottery for April.

LAME Alert!!!

They've posted the date for the 2011 Shamrock Shuffle, my favorite race. I'm sorry. It's bad enough that it's rarely on St. Patrick's Day (hence the Shamrock moniker.) Ahhh, dig the date. Not to mention, I may be out of town that weekend at a conference.

Do You Know What Today Is?????

July 2! (duh)

No, but really...1 month until the inaugural run of the Rock-n-Roll Chicago Half Marathon! And you all may recall how annoyed I was when the Chicago Distance Classic (which was bought out by RnR) changed their course last year. Well looks like they realized they screwed up a good thing, b/c the unofficial course map is out and it has us back to the course of old...starting out just like the marathon, running through downtown streets, under the cover of shade-bringing skyscrapers, similar to the Shamrock Shuffle course, HOORAY!!!! And then some 5 miles in, we hit Lake Shore Drive. HOORAY!!!!

Anyway, let the countdown begin!