I've been at my current university for three years now, which has given me plenty of time to get some Dr. Kiki groupies. You know those kids... the ones who take every single class you offer because they think you're 1) cool, 2) easy, or 3) both. I had my first groupie group during my first and second year here, and yesterday, one of these groupies came to visit me. This young man ended up sitting in my office for close to an hour shooting the breeze (it was a Friday, and quite honestly, all I had to do on my list was grading, and I was avoiding it as much as he was avoiding his work). E stopped by before she was heading home, and asked if we were still on for hiking tomorrow. After I said "definitely!", my groupie turned to me with a big smile on his face and said, "Really? You don't seem like the hiking type."
Granted, I was sitting in the office in my blue cashmere sweater, black pencil skirt and heels (yes, it was Friday, but I had lunch with the dean earlier in the day... be thankful that I didn't wear my pearls, which I whip out for ALL career related moments). Stylewise, I like to think of myself as someone like Charlotte out of Sex and the City, classic but chic. Seriously, when I reach my goal weight, I'm going on a shopping spree at Ann Taylor and Talbots. I love that stuff. And yes, I wouldn't be caught dead in public without my hair flat ironed. Or makeup. Or earrings. And a bracelet. And my favorite ring. But does that make me prissy? Does that make me a non-hiker?
The answer to that question is a big old Whitney Houston "hell to the no". Just because I like hiking and running outdoors doesn't mean that I need to be granola crunchy 24/7. It means that I can shop at Ann Taylor for cashmere (yay! nothing makes me happier!) AND Target for cheapo sports bras. I can wear four inch heels AND Asics. I can flat iron my hair AND pull it back under a cap for a run. Don't judge a book by its cover :)
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Friday, October 17, 2008
Weekly Weigh In: A Pink Post
This month is Breast Cancer Awareness month, and a ton of my favorite bloggers have already talked about it. Breast cancer has touched my life in more ways than I'd like to think about. My aunt is a survivor. My mom has had a few biopsies to see if her lumps are or are not cancer. I have friends whose moms, sisters, aunts are dealing with the disease. I'm an avid GMA watcher and love Robin Roberts (and her funky hair!)... people, the disease is everywhere. Take care of yourself. Check your boobies for lumps. Buy a fun lunchbag that supports breast cancer awareness (I've had one since last year, it's insulated and it rocks!). Participate in one of the many breast cancer walks or runs that go on this month or in the spring. DO SOMETHING.
On the other hand, I gained a bit this week, just about 1.5 pounds. Ugh. I'm getting so sick of this plateau/maintaining/whatever awful name we want to give it. I think part of it is that I've become active again after not doing much for two weeks, plus, it's that TOM. Lovely. I'm sure next week will be MUCH better.
Have a good weekend! Enjoy the lovely fall weather!
On the other hand, I gained a bit this week, just about 1.5 pounds. Ugh. I'm getting so sick of this plateau/maintaining/whatever awful name we want to give it. I think part of it is that I've become active again after not doing much for two weeks, plus, it's that TOM. Lovely. I'm sure next week will be MUCH better.
Have a good weekend! Enjoy the lovely fall weather!
Thursday, October 16, 2008
In the Cold (WV) Rain
I had a really stressful day at school today. Between advising and dealing with a problem student, I needed to get out of there. So, I came home, changed, and went for a run. Today's C25K interval was a 10 minute run, a 3 minute walk, and then another 10 minute run. Been there, done that! I was so proud of myself of pounding it out. I also noticed that I feel like a better runner when I go in the afternoon. Maybe I'm just not a morning person all around? I'm not awake enough to actually run in the morning? Maybe I just have a lot of aggression after work? Who knows?
Anyway, I've been tagged by RooBabs to tell y'all 6 random things about me. Hold on, let me get my water bottle before I start....okay, now I'm set!
1. I love tap dancing. I mentioned this before, but seriously, I looooooooooooooove it. I tapped from age 5 until age 17, and then quit when I was in college. I was involved in a competition group for five years, and it made me love it that much more. We danced a lot to swing and big band music, and once in a while, I'll bust out a little move in my kitchen, just to see if I still have it in me.
2. I wanted to be a screenwriter for as long as I can remember. Okay, that's a lie. I *still* want to be a screenwriter. My dream was to go to NYU film school, but my family didn't have much money, and my mom convinced me to do something more realistic, something that I could actually make a living off of (I'm not blaming her for any of my choices in live... my life is pretty darn good as a professor). Anywho, I took a creative writing class in college, and was slogging through with Bs, until it was time to write a small play. I thought this was my big test, to see if my prof thought that I could actually write something that I wanted to make a living off of. And I got an A+. And a note from my professor telling me that she thought it was one of the best student plays she read (and she's an Iowa MFA if that means anything to you). So, I still have that play... and I would like to turn it into something. Some day. After tenure.
3. I'm allergic to all pets. Never had one. Woe is me.
4. I didn't eat pistachios for over a decade. I used to love them, but I was at a family party when I was 10 and ate a WHOLE bunch of them. That night, I got violently ill, with an awful stomach flu. I blamed the pistachios. Only recently have I had some pistachio gelato and really enjoyed it. I guess I'm over my pistachio stomach flu blame.
5. I'm not a true girly girl (I wouldn't say that I'm a complete tomboy either... I fall somewhere in between there), but I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE the color pink. Sorry. I denied it for years. Now I buy everything in pink. It's almost disgusting :)
6. I have an addiction to stationary. Seriously, when I'm in a city and there's a Papyrus or a Paper Source or a Crane's stationary store... I need to go in. I need to buy something. And yes, I still send letters to my friends. One of my best friends from college and I send each other weekly letters. It makes me feel very Jane Austen/Elizabeth Bennet. Love it!
I won't tag anyone, mainly because they've been tagged already, but if you want to join the fun, please do so!!!!
Anyway, I've been tagged by RooBabs to tell y'all 6 random things about me. Hold on, let me get my water bottle before I start....okay, now I'm set!
1. I love tap dancing. I mentioned this before, but seriously, I looooooooooooooove it. I tapped from age 5 until age 17, and then quit when I was in college. I was involved in a competition group for five years, and it made me love it that much more. We danced a lot to swing and big band music, and once in a while, I'll bust out a little move in my kitchen, just to see if I still have it in me.
2. I wanted to be a screenwriter for as long as I can remember. Okay, that's a lie. I *still* want to be a screenwriter. My dream was to go to NYU film school, but my family didn't have much money, and my mom convinced me to do something more realistic, something that I could actually make a living off of (I'm not blaming her for any of my choices in live... my life is pretty darn good as a professor). Anywho, I took a creative writing class in college, and was slogging through with Bs, until it was time to write a small play. I thought this was my big test, to see if my prof thought that I could actually write something that I wanted to make a living off of. And I got an A+. And a note from my professor telling me that she thought it was one of the best student plays she read (and she's an Iowa MFA if that means anything to you). So, I still have that play... and I would like to turn it into something. Some day. After tenure.
3. I'm allergic to all pets. Never had one. Woe is me.
4. I didn't eat pistachios for over a decade. I used to love them, but I was at a family party when I was 10 and ate a WHOLE bunch of them. That night, I got violently ill, with an awful stomach flu. I blamed the pistachios. Only recently have I had some pistachio gelato and really enjoyed it. I guess I'm over my pistachio stomach flu blame.
5. I'm not a true girly girl (I wouldn't say that I'm a complete tomboy either... I fall somewhere in between there), but I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE the color pink. Sorry. I denied it for years. Now I buy everything in pink. It's almost disgusting :)
6. I have an addiction to stationary. Seriously, when I'm in a city and there's a Papyrus or a Paper Source or a Crane's stationary store... I need to go in. I need to buy something. And yes, I still send letters to my friends. One of my best friends from college and I send each other weekly letters. It makes me feel very Jane Austen/Elizabeth Bennet. Love it!
I won't tag anyone, mainly because they've been tagged already, but if you want to join the fun, please do so!!!!
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Sore Loser
The soreness refers to me, the loser bit, obviously Biggest Loser, which was on last night. But let's talk about me first. Sorry about the lag in blog posts... this is a pretty busy time of year at work, when we advise undergrads as to what they should be taking next year. Basically, it takes a big bite out of my research time, so I've been spending some extra time at the office. However, it doesn't mean that I haven't been working out. Yesterday, I got up and went for a run. I'm still on week 6 of C25K, which meant that I redid that weird interval (5 min walk, 5 min run, 3 min walk, 8 min run, 5 min walk, 5 min run, 5 min walk) and again, I kicked its butt. Time to move on. I've decided to continue on Level 1 of Jillian's 30 Day Shred, mainly because I was so sore after Monday's workout... I'll reevaluate what I want to do at the end of the week. Move on before the ten days are up? Stay, rinse and repeat?
And y'all will be so proud of me (especially you Miz!)... I got up at 6:30 this morning. 6:30!!! Granted it was completely dark outside, but I got up, put my clothes on and went to the gym. I can't believe that I had my workout in for the day before 8:30AM!!! I rock :) And I think I'm going to keep doing it, because, in all honesty, it wasn't that bad.
Okay... Biggest Loser SPOILERS ahead. Stop now if you don't want to know!
I'm really starting to dislike Heba. Wah wah, my husband went home, wah wah, I really need to stay with Bob. As much as I don't like Phil, he did have a point in trying to sway the game his way. So, we start with a Temptation. Ali announces that all the teams will be dismantled, and the players will become individuals competing against each other, but forming the infamous black (Jillian) and blue (Bob) teams. The temptation is that whoever eats the most calories (in the dark) will be able to pick who goes on what team. Heba starts arguing, saying that she wants to control this because Ed is gone, and she needs this control, blah blah blah, arguing with Purple Amy, when Phil just gets up and tries to sneakily eat some PB cups. Then Heba starts eating donuts... and Purple Amy flips out and eats a brownie. Doesn't matter, because Heba at the most calories. She splits the two teams who worked against her: Red and Purple. So, Heba's on the Blue team, with Vicki and Brady, Red Amy, and Purple Amy. Jillian's Black team includes Phil, Shellay, Coleen, Michelle, and Renee. Seems pretty fair because the guys are evenly distributed on both teams (and we're obviously set up for another female Biggest Loser).
They have to participate in an all day challenge, hiking up and down a hill and taking pictures at the top and the bottom. They get a point for each person in the picture, and a bonus if the whole team is in the picture. Vicki starts complaining about her knee, and that puts the Blue team at a disadvantage. So, while the Black Team is working as a whole, getting six points a pop, the Blue Team decides to do it as individuals. The two teams all agree to take a break, and Shellay fears that someone is out there cheating. I have to agree with her. I could totally see Heba, Vicki, or Brady being completely sneaky, but we find out that she's wrong... and the Black Team won, getting a two pound advantage in the weigh in.
The weigh in was great, with the Black Team going first. Michelle (who created some drama this week about leaving because she felt she was betraying her dad by being on the ranch with Renee, but in the end, decided to stay) had the highest loss on the Black Team, and with the pass, they set the bar with 33 pounds lost (er, or 32? I can't remember). The Blue Team starts to weigh in, and by the end, Red Amy and Heba need to lose a combined 12 pounds... and they loose more!!! Red Amy lost 6, and Heba lost 8 (pays to be the heaviest woman at the ranch, no?) and so, the Black Team had to choose who on their team was going home. (Side note: NBC it was SO WRONG of you to play Heba's victory dance in slo-mo... I so didn't need to see every bit of her fat ripple as she danced. I still have issues with the men wearing shirts through the weigh in while the women have to stand there in their sports bras.) It was a dumb choice in sending Shellay home, mainly because NONE of them were playing the game. Shellay is NOT a threat for the Biggest Loser, mainly because she was already in the 180s, and she was losing slower. I did feel bad for Purple Amy though... it will be rough for her when she finds out her mom is gone. And wow-- Purple Amy is looking GREAT. I think I'm noticing a lot of changes in the women, especially, but Amy is looking good. Could she be this year's Brittany?
And y'all will be so proud of me (especially you Miz!)... I got up at 6:30 this morning. 6:30!!! Granted it was completely dark outside, but I got up, put my clothes on and went to the gym. I can't believe that I had my workout in for the day before 8:30AM!!! I rock :) And I think I'm going to keep doing it, because, in all honesty, it wasn't that bad.
Okay... Biggest Loser SPOILERS ahead. Stop now if you don't want to know!
I'm really starting to dislike Heba. Wah wah, my husband went home, wah wah, I really need to stay with Bob. As much as I don't like Phil, he did have a point in trying to sway the game his way. So, we start with a Temptation. Ali announces that all the teams will be dismantled, and the players will become individuals competing against each other, but forming the infamous black (Jillian) and blue (Bob) teams. The temptation is that whoever eats the most calories (in the dark) will be able to pick who goes on what team. Heba starts arguing, saying that she wants to control this because Ed is gone, and she needs this control, blah blah blah, arguing with Purple Amy, when Phil just gets up and tries to sneakily eat some PB cups. Then Heba starts eating donuts... and Purple Amy flips out and eats a brownie. Doesn't matter, because Heba at the most calories. She splits the two teams who worked against her: Red and Purple. So, Heba's on the Blue team, with Vicki and Brady, Red Amy, and Purple Amy. Jillian's Black team includes Phil, Shellay, Coleen, Michelle, and Renee. Seems pretty fair because the guys are evenly distributed on both teams (and we're obviously set up for another female Biggest Loser).
They have to participate in an all day challenge, hiking up and down a hill and taking pictures at the top and the bottom. They get a point for each person in the picture, and a bonus if the whole team is in the picture. Vicki starts complaining about her knee, and that puts the Blue team at a disadvantage. So, while the Black Team is working as a whole, getting six points a pop, the Blue Team decides to do it as individuals. The two teams all agree to take a break, and Shellay fears that someone is out there cheating. I have to agree with her. I could totally see Heba, Vicki, or Brady being completely sneaky, but we find out that she's wrong... and the Black Team won, getting a two pound advantage in the weigh in.
The weigh in was great, with the Black Team going first. Michelle (who created some drama this week about leaving because she felt she was betraying her dad by being on the ranch with Renee, but in the end, decided to stay) had the highest loss on the Black Team, and with the pass, they set the bar with 33 pounds lost (er, or 32? I can't remember). The Blue Team starts to weigh in, and by the end, Red Amy and Heba need to lose a combined 12 pounds... and they loose more!!! Red Amy lost 6, and Heba lost 8 (pays to be the heaviest woman at the ranch, no?) and so, the Black Team had to choose who on their team was going home. (Side note: NBC it was SO WRONG of you to play Heba's victory dance in slo-mo... I so didn't need to see every bit of her fat ripple as she danced. I still have issues with the men wearing shirts through the weigh in while the women have to stand there in their sports bras.) It was a dumb choice in sending Shellay home, mainly because NONE of them were playing the game. Shellay is NOT a threat for the Biggest Loser, mainly because she was already in the 180s, and she was losing slower. I did feel bad for Purple Amy though... it will be rough for her when she finds out her mom is gone. And wow-- Purple Amy is looking GREAT. I think I'm noticing a lot of changes in the women, especially, but Amy is looking good. Could she be this year's Brittany?
Monday, October 13, 2008
My alarm = my nemisis
I set my alarm for 6:30 this morning, and when NPR woke me up to some discussion about our financial crisis (seriously, I'm sooooo sick of the news), I hit snooze. For an hour. Finally got out of bed around 7:20, and decided that, yes, today was the day that was going to go back to the gym. I have not been to the gym since September. At first I hurt my knee, then I was sick, and then I went home for the weekend (nothing like a nice relaxing weekend at home to get you recharged!!!). So, it was back to the gym for me. A lot of you have been asking about the 30 Day Shred. That went on the shelf as well after my injury/sickness/mini-vaca. So, today, I did Level 1, because I was worried that after 10 days of not doing it if I would be able to jump back into Level 2. I could have, because even though I broke a sweat, Level 1 was not all that challenging. So, tomorrow will be Level 2 Day 1 for me, and I'll progress from there.
Hope y'all had a good weekend. Can't wait for my run tomorrow!!!!
Hope y'all had a good weekend. Can't wait for my run tomorrow!!!!
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Weekly Weigh In: A Day Late and Early
Biggest Loser last night was a bit boring. Maybe I'm just a tough customer to please today, but I feel like I'm watching the same thing, week after week. SPOILER ALERT: Ed went home. Heba is left by herself. It was close... Coleen found herself under the yellow line early, but then Ed didn't lose any weight (Heba lost 8 pounds-- you go girl!) They decided to leave Heba there, because their ultimate goal is to have children soon, and they'd like to get Heba ready for that. And in the "where are they now?" segment... wow! Ed is doing a fantastic job on his own at home. He lost somewhere close to 80 pounds. Awesome.
As for me, I lost 0.2 pounds this week. That makes me happy, because I was sick and didn't work out at all this week. So, maintaining = good. I'm going to visit my mom this weekend, which is ALWAYS a diet wrecker. My family is a big "social" eating family. Sometimes I behave, and others I don't. I'm guessing since I'm hormonal, I might not be behaving, but what I like about being home is the fact that I can go running or walking on sidewalks, not like here, where sidewalks just run out or the railtrail, which is a bit of a shady place for a girl to go running on her own. I'm going to use the weekend to ease back into my training, and then when I come back next week... as long as I am feeling well, I won't be pushing myself if I'm still in the blah category... it'll be full force. Looking forward to that makes me excited :) Have a good weekend!
As for me, I lost 0.2 pounds this week. That makes me happy, because I was sick and didn't work out at all this week. So, maintaining = good. I'm going to visit my mom this weekend, which is ALWAYS a diet wrecker. My family is a big "social" eating family. Sometimes I behave, and others I don't. I'm guessing since I'm hormonal, I might not be behaving, but what I like about being home is the fact that I can go running or walking on sidewalks, not like here, where sidewalks just run out or the railtrail, which is a bit of a shady place for a girl to go running on her own. I'm going to use the weekend to ease back into my training, and then when I come back next week... as long as I am feeling well, I won't be pushing myself if I'm still in the blah category... it'll be full force. Looking forward to that makes me excited :) Have a good weekend!
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
My Officially Whiny Post
Yesterday just stank. Woke up over my stomach bug... and around 1 or 2PM, felt the beginnings of a cold coming on. Seriously, folks, put me in a bubble and allow me to get sick. I have not had any full blown symptoms on ANY of this, which is really frustrating. I didn't puke my guts up, I don't have a fever, but yet, I'm miserable. So, instead of running last night, I went home, put my jammies on, and watched a few episodes of Frasier on DVD until 8PM...
Which is when the Biggest Loser started. I thought it was only going to be an hour long because of the debate (which don't even get me started on how awful and boring that was, Tom Brokaw was the most awful moderator ever), but then... nope, continued at 9PM on Wednesday. Which means I was stuck watching my least favorite portion of the show (I really just enjoy the last chance workouts and the weigh ins).
So... here's my whiny, half-watching-the-show-because-I-was-talking-to-my-mom-on-the-phone review of last night's BL. Vicky (brown witch) was complaining that she has a lot of knee injuries so she can't run. Boo hoo. And that her hubby holds her back. Boo hoo. Does that give you license to be mean to everyone else on earth??? The Purple Team was getting on Jillian's last nerve (I actually giggled when the preview before commercial said that)... it all culminated with Jillian telling purple Amy to leave the gym (which the idiot did, smirking...won't be smirking at weigh in tonight!) and making the pink team cry (they know how to turn on the waterworks, don't they?) The Red Team got to go home and see their kids, which looked pretty cool (I was busy discussing Cloris Leachman's performance on DWTS on Monday night with my mom at this point... HILARIOUS!) and then there was the challenge. They had to stand on a little trapeze like beam in water, balancing with their arms and legs on these little handles, while the water rushed out of the pool, making it harder for them to balance themselves. The prize was a care package from home. Brown Witch and Purple Amy were the last two left... and Brown Witch won. But she was a kindly Witch, and gave the Purple Team the other care package. And that's all. BO-RING. Little did I know what was to come in the debate later....
My biggest whine of the evening is that I haven't worked out since Sunday. According to my scale, I haven't gained anything, but that's probably because I've been barely eating anything either (thank you stomach bug). I just feel so lazy (and tired and stuffy, but that's another thing). Seriously, when you work out, you just feel so good about yourself. Working out makes me feel strong and hard, like nothing can stop me. Except germs, obviously. So, are my muscles any smaller or less hard because I haven't worked out in 72 hours? From my perception, they are. But that might just be me, sitting on my couch, whining.
Which is when the Biggest Loser started. I thought it was only going to be an hour long because of the debate (which don't even get me started on how awful and boring that was, Tom Brokaw was the most awful moderator ever), but then... nope, continued at 9PM on Wednesday. Which means I was stuck watching my least favorite portion of the show (I really just enjoy the last chance workouts and the weigh ins).
So... here's my whiny, half-watching-the-show-because-I-was-talking-to-my-mom-on-the-phone review of last night's BL. Vicky (brown witch) was complaining that she has a lot of knee injuries so she can't run. Boo hoo. And that her hubby holds her back. Boo hoo. Does that give you license to be mean to everyone else on earth??? The Purple Team was getting on Jillian's last nerve (I actually giggled when the preview before commercial said that)... it all culminated with Jillian telling purple Amy to leave the gym (which the idiot did, smirking...won't be smirking at weigh in tonight!) and making the pink team cry (they know how to turn on the waterworks, don't they?) The Red Team got to go home and see their kids, which looked pretty cool (I was busy discussing Cloris Leachman's performance on DWTS on Monday night with my mom at this point... HILARIOUS!) and then there was the challenge. They had to stand on a little trapeze like beam in water, balancing with their arms and legs on these little handles, while the water rushed out of the pool, making it harder for them to balance themselves. The prize was a care package from home. Brown Witch and Purple Amy were the last two left... and Brown Witch won. But she was a kindly Witch, and gave the Purple Team the other care package. And that's all. BO-RING. Little did I know what was to come in the debate later....
My biggest whine of the evening is that I haven't worked out since Sunday. According to my scale, I haven't gained anything, but that's probably because I've been barely eating anything either (thank you stomach bug). I just feel so lazy (and tired and stuffy, but that's another thing). Seriously, when you work out, you just feel so good about yourself. Working out makes me feel strong and hard, like nothing can stop me. Except germs, obviously. So, are my muscles any smaller or less hard because I haven't worked out in 72 hours? From my perception, they are. But that might just be me, sitting on my couch, whining.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)