Personal Update! Yay!
So recently I have been trying to decide what to do with my blog -- it is a bit random (I am sure most of you noticed this already). I put up a new look and feel -- although I am already thinking about the next design! And all of this change got me thinking about the content. So going forward I am essentially grouping my posts into 3 categories: personal posts (like this one), useful information (all my little "advice" writings), and "stuff I like". I am thinking that I may move the "stuff I like" category into its own page and keep it separate--since, I like a lot of stuff but typically don't post it on here because it seems so......unsubstantial. Hopefully that will improve readability and utility.
Work & Career
Have a whole lot of exciting things going on, in fact, I think I will save the details on this for its own post (or at least a later post)!
Health, Diet & Exercise
For those of you who don't know, I started marathon training. If you are curious, you can download my little training plan--it is based off of Hal Higdon's novice marathon training (and it was put together by my training partner Carin and based off of Novice 2). I have been tracking my workouts over the last 8-9 weeks here at MapMyRun.com. This weekend (Saturday) I am doing a 16 mile run, and next weekend a half marathon race. My training partner has been out of commission the last few weeks, which means running by myself. To get through these long runs I have found 3 very helpful things: my ipod shuffle (although I really think I need water proof headphones as I have short-circuited 2 pairs in the last month), a water belt, and sport beans (watermelon flavor of course)!The marathon training (which I had hoped would help me lose my last 15 or so pounds) hasn't had my desired physical effect, though. At first I gained about 7 pounds (I was seriously hungry all the time from the increased work outs). Then once I got my ravenous appetite under control (by using a food diary, and now "Lose It" on my iPhone) I was able to get back to the weight I started from (yay!). So now, I haven't really lost any weight but my body has definitely changed. I think my butt is smaller (which I actually am not that happy about because I kind of liked it the way it was) and my stomach is bigger (which makes me really mad!). This is sooo frustrating. And other than adding some lunges and squats to fix the butt problem I am not sure what I can really do about it. I am hoping that has my miles go up over the coming weeks the weight will go down accordingly. Needless to say I am not a happy camper (although generally me + camping != happy so that is probably not the best phrase).The marathon is November 29th.
Fashion and Shopping
After my recent fashion crisis, I went shopping and bought some cute flats. I went to Nordstrom Rack (I love that place) and found two cute pairs of MIA flats (in black patent and brown leather) at $40 each. They are so comfortable and I want to buy them in even more colors (but my whole "being frugal and not accumulating stuff" is preventing me from doing so). Now I won't have to resort to my ugg boots and flip flops to walk to work. I also bought running shoes but those don't count since I needed them for the marathon (just like buying office supplies don't count because they are for work).I also bought a new knit cap ($20) and scarf ($15 on sale) -- the picture above is me wearing the scarf. I had wanted a knit cap like that since I saw a very pretty girl wearing it on the ferry during our new york trip in June.Now the one thing I need is some running clothes. I have some old fleece pants but they drag when I run. I also only have one functional long sleeve athletic tee. So my next purchase will likely be some athletic gear.I have been trying to re-purpose my clothing by shopping in my closet and making the most of accessories and layers a la the Uniform Project. This is good because it saves money. I am not as into the current fashions for some reason. Maybe it is because I remember the 80s (they seem to be really "in" right now). Or maybe I just haven't found much inspiration lately. Either way it has resulted in a lot less new things.That is it for now (long enough, huh?) :) Look forward to some new site updates over the next month or so!