A Weekend to Remember

What a weekend it has been, and the best part is I still have one more day since our offices are closed tomorrow! On Friday night, Kyle and I went out with our friends AJ and Lindsay for some sushi. I had some of the best sushi, and we even ventured to eat the edible orchids on the plate. It tasted like a flower. Nothing special, but hey it's worth trying once.

Kyle was the first to try the Orchid.

On Saturday, I woke up and kicked my butt with an interval and strength training workout. Usually I will do my run all at once then strength train, but I was up for a little change up.

Needless to say, it was a butt kicker because I was constantly challenging the muscles and took no breaks. After the workout we drove to Indianapolis to watch my Butler Bulldogs take on Gonzaga with some of my best friends from college! For those of you who missed the game, go to ESPN now and watch the last 5 seconds. What a game! I have no voice today, but it was totally worth it!

 
Well, it has been quite the weekend. Now I need to go study and make dinner! Have a great night everyone!

Big Announcements!

Happy Monday! I had one of the most relaxing weekends in a long time. Unfortunately it was so relaxing because I was taking care of my sick husband, but it gave me plenty of time to catch up on some reading and to take down my Christmas decorations.

I hope your week is off to a good start. Like the rest of the world, I usually hate Mondays, but today I jumped out of bed with no second thoughts. I think it's because I knew that I got to wear my new Lululemon shirt to the gym (confessions of a gym rat). That Lulu shirt also motivated me to run an extra timed mile at the end of workout just for fun. Who knew a new workout shirt could do so much?

I have some pretty exciting news for you guys!! Drum roll please....

1. I am now the Chicago ambassador for Claim Your Journey. CYJ is an amazing running initiative that started in Louisiana. The whole goal of the organization is to get people of all shapes, sizes, and athletic abilities to run! I know that running can be intimidating, but my goal is to help get you over your fears and to continue to grow the Chicago running community.

CYJ is doing an Instagram contest right now. Head over to their website to see how you can win a pair of Brooks Running shoes and other great prizes!

2. Another big announcement! I just ordered all of my study materials through ACE to become a certified health coach. I have been praying a lot about whether or not I should take this path, and I feel as though God finally opened the door today. At this point in time my future with it is unclear, but I am excited to study and learn (I'm a huge nerd like that).

Leave it to my sister to ask if I was pregnant via Twitter. Gosh she makes me laugh. 

Well, I'd say this Monday is off to a good start. An Irish win would be icing on the cake! Cheers to a healthy week!

Cheers to a New Year!

I'm back!! Sorry for my silence the past couple of weeks. I was in Napa, California enjoying wine country with my family. I cannot even begin to explain how much I love that place! I will give a full recap in  a future blog post, but first things first, Happy New Year!

I hope 2013 is treating you well so far. It greeted me with a little stomach bug/food poisoning (not sure which one it is) . That made the plane ride home from Cali a little rough. Yep, even got to use the barf bag on the plan....embarrassing... I'm still recovering today, but hopefully I'll feel better soon.

What are you 2013 goals? I've done some thinking, and here are my goals for the upcoming year:

Fitness Goals

• Run at least two 10 miler races (Lakefront 10 and Soldier Field 10)
• Run at least two half marathons 
• Beat my half marathon PR
• Run the Chicago Marathon
• Work on listening to my body more

Personal Goals

• Spend more time in the Word everyday with Kyle 
• Strive to find the bright side in every situation
• Pick up my phone more to call my friends rather than just rely on text messaging them all the time 
• Start to volunteer more
• Indulge in She Reads Truth devotionals everyday

I'm sure I'll be adding to that list as the year goes on, but for now I think I am off to a good start. Remember, keeping your New Years goals is all about baby steps. You can't expect to become the healthiest person alive in a week. It takes time, but in that time you will progress along the way. Cheers to a new year!