Our morning run group celebrates my early birthday--thanks Kay! Tomorrow is my 46th birthday. I don't tell you this because I expect a boatload of gifts on my front porch come Monday morning--I tell you this because for the first time in my life I feel I can say that I don't look or feel like the BIG 5-0 is right around the corner for me. I have never felt this healthy, and despite the crazy times I have been getting up to train these days, I honestly have more energy than I have had in years.
In last week's blog I shared that I am most proud of how strong I have become over the last year--that is my biggest accomplishment. And if I had known what I know today, I think that would have been my goal over the last few years instead of focusing on weight loss. Besides, getting stronger has helped the weight come off without the laser focus on the scale.
In last week's blog I shared that I am most proud of how strong I have become over the last year--that is my biggest accomplishment. And if I had known what I know today, I think that would have been my goal over the last few years instead of focusing on weight loss. Besides, getting stronger has helped the weight come off without the laser focus on the scale.
The picture to the right is my friend Erin and me on my actual 45th birthday. My gift to myself last year was running The World Famous Mud Run at Camp Pendleton--a challenging 10K course with hills and obstacles. I thought I was pretty fit and trim last year, but the difference between last year and this one is pretty pronounced. And while I have really only lost between 15 and 20 pounds, I feel I look like a much different person this year. It is not only that I look "skinnier"--I look less squishy. What I mean by that is that when I look at my Mud Run photo, I want to poke my belly like the Pillsbury Dough Boy, and I fully expect that the old me would let out a high-pitched giggle. My finger would not go far into my belly these days.
So my gift to myself this year is to continue to increase my muscle strength in areas that are not yet firmed up. While I feel that I have gotten stronger in my legs and with my core, my arms continue to be my weakness--swimming is just not enough. I still can't even move across even one rung of the monkey bars, and five push ups is about all I can manage without my arms giving out. Once Ironman is over I really want to add some strength training into my routine, and if the byproduct of my getting stronger is that I finally hit my goal weight, I will not complain one bit.
So my gift to myself this year is to continue to increase my muscle strength in areas that are not yet firmed up. While I feel that I have gotten stronger in my legs and with my core, my arms continue to be my weakness--swimming is just not enough. I still can't even move across even one rung of the monkey bars, and five push ups is about all I can manage without my arms giving out. Once Ironman is over I really want to add some strength training into my routine, and if the byproduct of my getting stronger is that I finally hit my goal weight, I will not complain one bit.
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