5K..say whaaaaaaaaaaaaat???!!!!????

That's right friends, I have signed up for my very first (er, second) 5K. I did a 5K waaaaaay back in the day when I was approximately 11, 12 or 13 years old. I can't even remember it's been so long!

On July 15th, I will be heading to Fifth Third Field and joining thousands of other runners, walkers and "get healthy" enthusiasts along with this guy

                        

When I registered, I thought I was just going to be able to cross "finish a 5K" off my bucket list, but apparently you also score an awesome goodie bag that includes vouchers for FREE FRESH FIT subs from Subway, a custom Subway Dragons 5k dri-fit shirt, a Subway refillable jug, a Dragons hat, tickets to a Dragons game and more!

Not only do I get to run/walk this 5K with my best friend and significant other, but I also get to do it with a co-worker.

I've come a long way since April 24, the day I decided to take back my life. I've managed to push myself harder than I ever had, strengthen my lungs, and look and feel lighter - 13.6 pounds lighter, that is.

What more could a girl want...besides to shed some more pounds???!!!!???

This week started a new challenge for me. I accepted the challenge as a BzzAgent to Live Below the Line.

Live Below the Line is a campaign that challenges individuals and communities to eat and drink on just $1.50 per day for 5 days. By exposing participants to a glimpse of some of the daily difficulties experienced by the 1.4 billion people who live in extreme poverty every day, for everything, the campaign provides a unique window into understanding the realities of life for so many.
Through the insights gained over the 5 days, Live Below the Line is assembling a movement of people passionate about eradicating extreme poverty. Through partnerships with various charities, the campaign raises both awareness and critical funds.

This seemed perfect for me since I work for a non-profit organization and part of our mission statement is "...to eliminate the causes and conditions of poverty...".

I encourage you all to check out Live Below the Line and to actually live on $1.50 a day.

On Monday, for dinner I had sauteed onions and green peppers, a medley of frozen vegetables on Tuesday and tonight I had a veggie sandwich.

I think it's really important that each one of us put ourselves in the shoes of poverty to really get a glimpse of what those 1.4 billion people in poverty go through each and everyday.

Working with low income, poverty stricken families has really taught me to never take what I have for granted and to truly be appreciative of whatever I do have.

I encourage all of you to take the challenge with me and to Live Below the Line until May 11th. Even if you don't think you can take the challenge this week, I hope you try it out for a week in the very near future.

And in case you are looking for a good, but cheap meal, try this recipe:

Pasta with Shredded Onions, Carrots and Garlic:

1 package of bow-tie pasta

1 tablespoon salt

3 carrots

1 tablespoon pepper

1 onion

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 cup canola oil

Peel the onion and finely chop. Peel the carrots and chop into half-inch long sections. Separate half a cup of canola oil and heat over high flame. Put onions into the oiled pan. After a minute, add chopped carrots. Let cook in covered pan until carrots are soft. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Cook pasta until al dente. Once pasta is cooked, add the other half cup of canola oil until pasta is coated. Add carrot and onion mix. Add garlic powder to taste.

I'll be eating this for dinner tomorrow but with GF penne pasta instead.

And if nothing else, thanks for the support!!!!! 

running

I'm not one to normally exercise...consistently, however, I am seeing results and loving it! In just NINE days I have lost 9.6 pounds. I thought it was longer than that, but I didn't start counting calories and really exercising until April 24! I keep pushing myself each and every time and I love challenging myself, feeling healthy, and looking thinnier. Working out does help that I now have some cute workout clothes and shoes to go along with it. I switch days between these two snazzy pairs of running shoes...

...and I love my workout clothes but just because I look cute when I start does NOT mean I look anything close to cute when I finish. I'm normally a hot, sweaty mess.

This past weekend, while Mark and I were out shopping for some new workout clothes, I picked up a pair of jean shorts that were a size smaller than what I normally wear. It may only be one size, but I think that's quite an accomplishment for being so new to the game.

I'm excited about my new journey!!

Ch-ch-ch-changes

Awhile back, and I mean awhile back, I posted about some changes that were going to be coming and well, those changes are here!!!

I've always known that I had a love/hate relationship with food and exercise. I loved food, it hated me. I hated exercise and exercise would love me. I didn't want to compromise. Until now. I've come to a point in my life where I actually WANT to do something about it. When I spoke the words, "I KNOW I NEED TO CHANGE, it sounded great, but physically and mentally I didn't want to do anything about it. I just didn't want it bad enough. I was at the point where I accepted the way that I was and I was comfortable being there.

Recently, I decided that I don't want to be comfortable anymore and I've decided to make a change. A few, actually. And this BIG change comes with a lot of support of Mark. He is such a rock in my life especially since a lot of changes at once can be overwhelming but so far, I'm doing really good and I'm really proud of myself and I'm so elated to be on this journey with a man that I love!

Change One: I'm counting calories and FINALLY watching what I am eating. The myfitnesspal app on my phone is really helping me with this. I'm ashamed that I actually had the app downloaded for a long time, I just never utilized it. Better late than never, right?
Change Two: I'm exercising. This includes walking, jogging, running (slowly but surely) and hiking. And the funny thing about it - I'm actually enjoying it. It probably helps that I have some really comfortable (and awesome) running shoes, too.
Change Three: I'm drinking a looooooooooooot more water AND eating breakfast. Water is my favorite but I wasn't doing so good about consuming it. Same thing goes for breakfast.
Change Four: I'm being more positive. Overall, I'm typically an uber positive person but I'm looking at everything in a brighter light now and on a much more positive note.
Change Five: I'm not making excuses. For so long I've made excuses. And I made a LOT of them. Like a lot a lot a lot. One really consistent and major excuse that I ALWAYS, ALWAYS made was that I had asthma. While I do still have chronic asthma, I have not had to use my inhaler during ANY of the times that I have exercised. Just for that, I feel like I can do anything. No need to mention any of my other excuses, this one blows them all out of the water.

I'm normally a person that would do something one time and then not do it again if I weren't seeing any results but I had to really put it in my mind and grasp the concept that I didn't get chunky overnight so it's not going to come off overnight.

I've managed to consistently exercise, eat healthy, and consume about 1,200 calories everyday this week. I feel really good and I've managed to lose 9lbs. (don't worry though, it wasn't all in one week). Some people diet and exercise because they want a beach bod while others do it for their health. Me, I'm doing it for both!!!

If you would have asked me several months ago if I would be at this point in my life (especially exercising), I would have laughed in your face. There is something about this journey that makes me so overwhelmed with happiness and joy. I can't wait to see what lies ahead...

I'm baaaaaaaaaack!!!

Now I know I don't have too many readers but for the handful that actually do read, I'm back. I'm back thanks to Google. For some reason, I had a 2-step verification on my account and the only way to obtain it was by my phone number. One problem, I no longer had that phone number and couldn't get a verification code. So here I was trying to contact Google, filling out form after form, checking my back-up email account, filling out more forms because I was still able to check my email on my smart phone but couldn't do anything else and then that messed up my forms so I was back to filling out more forms, trying to remember when I started Blogger and when I started using Gmail and any other Google service. So here I am, back to blogging....

and it feels good!!!

missing in action

I have been MIA for awhile, on both of my blogs actually. At first, I was in a blogging funk and then we had some really big changes at work. And then those big changes became even BIGGER changes including a PROMOTION for me, which means, my time is pretty precious these days. I bring a lot of work home and even when I don't physically bring the paperwork home, I am constantly working on something. When it comes to the weekends, I want to spend as much time as I can with Mark and get caught up on my cleaning duties and maybe get a date night in. I'm so lucky that Mark does a lot for our little apartment and supports my passion for the line of work that I am in.

If I don't blog again this week...it's because I'm busy working, planning a game for a camp retreat this weekend or catching up on my sleep since I will be sleep deprived come Sunday.

Have a great week, everyone!!!

Love & Laughter,
J

Smart(erer)

A few months back, I mentioned that I was a BzzAgent. Well, I had another opportunity to test something new.

Smarterer is a platform designed to score individuals on their digital, social, and technical skills. But, the real power in Smarterer is that you can "show what you know" to the world and prove to your friends, co-workers, and just about anyone how Smart(erer) you really are. Sign up for Smarterer TODAY and take a test right now and see how you stack up! After you are finished with that, head on over to BzzAgent and sign up to test new products and services  and share your honest opinions about them with people you know.

Check out my scores below:

I think they are pretty accurate if I do say so myself. I clearly don't understand Twitter - and I don't know that I ever will.

Love & Laughter,

J