Training has commenced...

And I am serious. Which is why I'm going to bed now. 2 miles of cross
training are on the schedule for tomorrow...

Stasis

I'm not even sure that's a word outside of the science fiction world,
but that's how I've been feeling. I'm between. On the verge. In
suspended animation. It's not that nothing's going on; it's that I
have so many options, so many things I could dedicate myself to. And
these are passions I see becoming careers or ways of life. But at this
stage they're so fragile, I don't even want to speak of them.

But know that in the deep of winter, as things hibernate, I am
working, planning, tinkering. So that when the seasons change I will
be ready to unleash a barrage of my potential.

Sent from my iPhone

And miles to go...

Well, it's here. The 09 training season. And I got it started right, with a 10k this morning. And let me tell you, after two Broad Street Runs and various 5k's and 5 miles, this was my hardest race ever. It was nothing but hills, up one, down another. A few miles were just uphill. And there was cars on the road. I guess they couldn't close the roads off since we ran through a residential area. But my girl, N, and I pulled through and finished happily. That is until I got to the finishers' tent and found that all they had left was beer. Yes, beer. Not one, but two kinds of beer at that. I did get a great shirt, though (Brooks long sleeve technical), so I may still do it again, hiccups and all.

I'm glad to know I have six (albeit slow) miles in me. And after last week, I have the kick in the pants I need to keep my ass in the gym for the next eight weeks. That's when the squad is taking a little R&R to Boston and I plan on doing my first clothes shopping in about 4 months. Can we say single digit sizes? Maybe even cutting previous sizes in half? Yes we can...

Oops...

Wow, I didn't realize it had been over a month since my last blog post. Let's see, I've been working out like I'm being paid for it, and as a result, eating like a man. I finally ordered a bottle of Sun Warrior Protein. It's a bit chalky, but eons better than the E3 Live stuff I tried first. I'll probably mix the two together until I finish the nasty stuff.

Other than that, I've been really focused on greening and streamlining my life: inside my home, my finances, and my career. On that note, I'll leave you with my favorite song of the moment. It's what gets me pumped up in morning...

How many is too many?

Clementines, that is. Usually, I'm not much of a citrus person. I use
lemons when juicing and may have an occasional ruby red grapefruit,
but that's about it. But when I found out that clementines were
actually a winter fruit, I decided to add them to my diet. And over
the past two days, I have eaten 7. Yes, today I had three at work,
then another after dinner. It's like I'm craving them or something. Oh
well, anything that keeps me on my raw...

I know, I know...

I'm behind on my posts. I still have to do my birthday/Thanks-taking update, which is a doozy. What's important is that for the second week in a row, I've stayed committed to my morning workouts and two personal training sessions a week, which are tres painful! I've been pretty raw, thanks in part to Michelle at Living Sun Foods. For some reason, my kryptonite is lunch with coworkers. Once a week or so, we venture to a place called Hymie's which has absolutely nothing raw, and barely anything vegan (I always have to alter the menu), but they make a mean veggie burger. And I love to go, and hang with the work crew, so this Wednesday, I went and had my usual. It went down pretty well, which I'm sure is because my system was pretty clear from my raw and my workouts, but I still felt guilty. And you know how I roll: if it makes me feel guilty, I don't need to be doing it! I just need to figure out how to stay raw at Hymie's (or find another lunch spot that's just as wonderful for everyone).

Have a mentioned that my hormones have kicked in this week? Yeah. So Wednesday (pattern here?), I got to the gym but could barely keep myself on a machine. I started on the treadmill and was like, forget this. Then I moved on to the elliptical and hit the cardio button. I promptly muttered "What the eff?" and ditched the program for a simple quick start. Even then, I could barely keep it above 5 with no resistance. Yeah, it was one of those days, but I trudged along until I did 30 minutes. Usually after persevering in such a manner, I congratulate myself, but this time I was just bitter. I was saying 'what the eff' to myself. What can you do? I chalked it up to me being a girl and the subsequent chemical imbalance. I had like one off day. Okay 2 off days. But before going raw, I would have had an off week, so I'm not complaining.

This weekend I have a girls' night. I think I'll succumb slightly to the desire for junk food and get a tomato pie from Tony Roni's. And maybe make some raw hummus. Because the munchies are always so tempting.

And would the crazy discount coupons stop!?! A sister is on a budget here and resisting all these sales is not easy!

Who's Keeping Count?

So I've been seriously raw vegan for almost six months now, but my
journey started a year ago when I tried Natalia Rose's Raw Food Detox
Diet. The biggest casualty, after my wardrobe, seems to be the dead
blenders I leave in my wake. I'm up to number 3 this year alone.

Now I know my fellow raw foodies will say "Duh, just get a Vita-Mix".
To which I reply "Duh, just give me $400", because that's the going
price, even used. So until I can afford that commercial grade blending
wonder, I'm sticking to the budget and doing a little consumer
research at the same time.

My last Oster blender (which I chose because of the Amazon reviews)
did me pretty good. It lasted 6 months. The motor never died, although
it got pretty hot and it blended everything I threw into it, big or
small. It did sound like a mac truck barreling through my kitchen, but
whatevs.

So I decided to try another Oster, but a little further up the food
chain at $70 ($60 on sale). The pitcher is a little bigger and it has
more settings so I don't spend all night scraping 3 tablespoons of
dressing off the inside.

We'll see how it holds up to my green smoothie making, but for now I'm
at least in strong like of my newest addition...

Hi, I'm Smoni and I'm an Emotional Eater...

*Waits for salutations*

Yes, I can admit that now, although it took going raw to realize it. I eat when extreme emotions strike. Usually, its hormonal, so when it's that time of the month, I let myself indulge a little. But this time is different. I'm just lonely. And frustrated. But not necessarily in the same way. Lonely because I'm loosing friends, which I know is just the way life is at this stage. But also because I can't figure out if that's good or bad. Friends can be there to comfort you but friends can also get you into trouble. And the same can be said about husbands, so I'm really not sure I want one of those either. Especially when so many people I know are having major issues with guys they thought were great a couple weeks ago.

And I don't even like anyone. No one sparks my interest. I don't dream of spending time with anyone. I went to a pleasure party tonight, and I left feeling bitter. Like, boo on these women that know what love is. And have a job they love. So off I go to bed. Because I have nothing else to do and my house is so raw vegan I can't even drown my sorrows in junk food. Is that irony, or just plain sad?

My Bad!

Almost a whole month between blog posts. Oops, didn't notice. SO! The biggest news of my day is that that middle number of my poundage has dropped once again! Yes, my third drop in five months! I'm so excited. If my last drop put me into territory that I couldn't recall, then this drop is defintely foreign. I don't remember ever being this small. I was feeling so powerful, I went and ran four miles. And I can't stop singing. And I even told both of my parents (very rare).

Last night at dinner, the Broad Street Run came up and it looks like not only do I have a squad, but I also have a finish line cheerleader. The idea of an out of town race was also introduced and you know how I love to travel, not to mention how I love Colorado. And there's a 5 mile Turkey Trot a few days after my birthday that's calling my name.

The moral of this month's story is that last year may not have been that fruitful, but there's a new one right around the corner. I can redo all the things that didn't go my way last year. And I'll give myself a few weeks to continue to reflect, but after that it's back to living my life to the fullest, embracing the possibilities.

And as a treat, here's the song I've been humming to myself for the past few days: 'I'm Yours' by my fellow raw vegan, Jason Mraz...