August 14, 2014

Thinking Out Loud Thursday 8/14/14

Lots of randomness in my brain today so I was happy to link up for Thinking Out Loud Thursdays

1.  HOLY MOLY. Hood to Coast is less than a week away now. I'm not packed, literally ordered my headlamp off Amazon yesterday, and am not feeling ready to run almost 16 miles in 24 hours. Also it's been a few years since I've been on such a long flight, and I've never travelled so far completely alone. However, I'm beyond excited to make a bunch of Nuun friends and see the Pacific Northwest. I also flipped out when I read on the itinerary we'd be touring the new Brooks Headquarters in Seattle! Crossing my fingers for some free shoes...or a job offer-one can dream! And yes I'm still holding out that Kara Goucher drops by.

2. My quads are SO sore today from the November Project workout yesterday. I don't know why but lunges always kill my legs. I didn't foamroll last night either, whoops

NovemberProject(BAL)
Good lucking sweaty group of people on Wednesday morning

Teams of 4 split a ladder workout of 500 mountain climbers, 400 squats. 300 lunges, 200 push ups, 150 burpees, and 100 box jumps plus running stairs in between each one. My team only made it past the push ups, but don't worry, it was still a killer workout!



3. Where has the summer gone? I've only been to the beach once (in Florida) and feel like I still need to soak up a bunch of fabulous summer things like wearing flip flops more, barbecues, eating more ice cream, and spending time outside in the sunshine. It's been a really mild summer weather-wise, and I'm not ready for another cold, snowy winter.

4. Yesterday I was having a bad self-love day. My pants have been tighter, and I had to hop on the scale at the doctor's office last week and saw a small gain. Add me nitpicking my photos yesterday from the 12 miler last weekend, and alas I felt like a big pile of crap.  

I've had lots of visitors and trips which means lots of eating out, adult beverages, and fun, but it's frustrating trying to balance everything. I'm training for a marathon and felt like I got my workout routine back after a few months of being all over the place, and yet it never seems I can get to where I want. I need fuel for marathon training so I'm just focusing on trying to add more veggies and water to my diet while focusing on the positive.

A lot of people I know one day feel awesome about themselves and the next feel like they are huge or gross or awful. It's terrible that especially us ladies feel that way about their weight or size. 

Numbers do not control your life. Pity party over.

Chuck12
Focusing on that BIG smile covered up by the watermark, not how big I think I look!

5. I haven't had coffee yet this week. I'm don't need coffee in the mornings, but I just love it and the taste. I've been making a quick cup of tea in the morning which is nice. Alex of CogniTea sent me some tea to try. CogniTea is a healthier, all-natural replacement to coffee or energy drinks that increases energy without giving you the jitters or crashing. The tea has a nice minty flavor and subtle energy boost which I didn't notice until I didn't drink a cup this morning!

That being said, I will probably get an americano this afternoon because it's not Friday yet.


6. Life is pretty much non-stop until the mid October which is getting pretty stressful. Breathe, Lauren.

How do you deal with bad days? Do you drink coffee or tea everyday?


Disclaimer:  I received a complimentary pack of teabags from CogniTea but received no other compensation. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own. 

29 comments:

  1. i drink coffee every day (black) and love it :) i'm also wondering where the heck summer went! and don't be so hard on yourself... you seriously look fabulous

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    1. Yay for black coffee-that's how I mostly drink it. And thanks for the compliment!

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  2. Ummm so about how I literally couldn't get out of bed this morning. As in, I had to roll off of it (it is an air mattress so at least I didn't fall out of bed...) because my entire lower body feels like I got run over by a truck. I'm going to blame it on the 100 squats and 75 lunges. I'm literally limping around the office today. As for the scale, those numbers mean nothing. You look awesome in that picture and you are a running machine- but we all have those days where we feel kind of down on ourselves. I haven't been weighed in about 2 years and I think it will be hard for me when I finally am. We're girls- it's normal to feel kind of blah about the number on the scale even if deep down we know it doesn't matter.

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  3. I am super hard on myself and always have been. It used to be I pushed and obsessed over school now I obsess over my fitness level and if I think I look fit. Part of the reason I think I have been harder on myself this marathon training cycle is because I don't feel like I'm improving, rather I feel like I am getting slower. In an effort to overcome this,I am really just taking it day by day. It is really hard to put a stop to the negative thinking! I must continue to remind myself that this is only my second season of marathon training and that my first marathon wasn't even that long ago (RNR USA in March). So really I just need to chill...

    Also I drink both coffee and tea! Lately it's been coffee, but after studying abroad in Edinburgh in 2006, I have special place in my heart for black tea.

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    1. UGH I am experiencing the same thing, where I feel like I'm slower than I used to be but then I have races like this that show me maybe I'm just not any faster but stronger. I'm running my second marathon too and I ran the RNR USA half! Ah I visited Edinburgh when my friend was studying abroad in Scotland-loved it! So much in common! Thanks for stopping by!

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  4. I definitely feel great about myself one day and horrible the next. It sucks but you are not alone!

    And for what it's worth, I think you look fabulous!

    The summer has gone by WAY too fast! Fall is my favorite season but I am not ready for it yet!

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    1. Thanks so much dear! I'm already hearing about pumpkin everything and refuse to speed up summer!

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  5. Check out Erica's post today at EricaDHouse.com. You know why when you see it. On another note, you NP people are crazy sauce. that is all ;D

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    1. I checked out the post-thanks! Definitely echoed some of the thoughts I hinted at in my post!

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  6. Super common to gain weight while training for a marathon! I wouldn't worry about it. Just fuel up.

    http://www.runnersworld.com/weight-loss/why-do-i-gain-weight-during-marathon-training

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    1. Thanks Nick! I actually wrote a post about it last year when I gained a few pounds, but it's always a good reminder that it's not all fat.

      http://www.breathedeeplyandsmile.com/2013/08/marathon-training-and-weight-gain-say.html

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  7. I am definitely a daily coffee drinker. I automatically feel better and just more awake after my cup of coffee! :0)

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    1. I agree with you, as I just got my first coffee of the day :)

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  8. I was having a super hard-on-myself morning. I take a beginner hotyoga class on Thursday mornings and ms. I'm-definitely-not-a-beginner was heavily breathing beside me. Was feeling real shitty, and honestly, I probably will all day, but a long sleep always makes me feel better in the morning.

    you know my feelings on coffee :) Don't need it, but love it, so I have 1 cup every morning.

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    1. Haha, yes we feel the same about coffee. Way to take it day by day. I agree that sometimes sleeping and having a fresh morning is a good reset for bad thoughts!

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  10. Love your C12 pic! I live on coffee most mornings and I drink decaf tea pretty much every night. Sipping hot tea has kept me from doing too much mindless snacking.

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    1. Thanks so much! I agree, I love hot tea at night especially to shut down my sweet tooth snacky self!

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  11. I think you look great in that pic and so so so happy! :D I know exactly what you mean though. While going through this thing with my foot I definitely lost some of my fitness and have had some moments of feeling pretty gross about myself. I stopped getting on the scale. That number does not control me!

    I have been thinking of coming down to check out November Project one of these Wednesdays! (I'll have to do the really early one though so it's all a matter of dragging my lazy butt out of bed.)

    I hope you have a great time at Hood to Coast! SO jealous of that Brooks tour!

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    1. Thanks so much-that's why I couldn't ignore that running happy smile! Do come to November Project! You can say hi to me (because honestly I'm not awake when I get there haha) and I'll give you a hug and make you welcomed to get your sweat on with a bunch of fabulous people!

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  12. The irony of your sentiments is that every time you've posted a pic where you're rocking a tank, I think, dang girl! You look good! Such tone and definition in them shoulders! But it's all about perspective!
    And as far as how to deal with bad days, I try to embrace the good days to balance it. Kinda like when I'm sick, i think "man this sucks, I need to remember how terrible I feel now so I can appreciate a normal, healthy day more." So when you have a good hair day, awesome outfit, etc, take a moment to soak it in and call upon it when you feel less than your usual stellar self :)

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    1. THANK YOU. That is so sweet! I've actually come to like my shoulders now and like wearing tank tops even though I used to hate it. I'm still a little self conscious of how big my arms look when I'm not flexing or have my hand on my hip, haha. Great advice about soaking in the good days :)

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  13. Lauren! So excited that you are doing Hood-to-Coast; that is amazing! You're going to do great. I struggle with self-image issues all the time because I'm "not where I want to be;" we're so hard on ourselves, aren't we? Jeez! I'm learning to be kinder to myself, but it's a process; on bad days, I just tell myself that, like training for a marathon, it's a process...each day is different, and I need to focus on the big picture, not each individual day. You ROCK!

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    1. Thanks so much for the positive words! I feel like the cool thing is we never get to "where we want to be" because when we get somewhere we always think we can get better! I'm hard on myself but am trying to love myself more, clearly.

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  14. AH!!!! HTC is going to be so amazing, I'm sure! I so want to do this at some point. You and all of our Nuunie buddies are going to kick some major bootie!!! Can't wait to hear all about it!

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    1. Thanks so much, clearly I'm super excited! I'm sure there will be plenty to recap!

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  15. Coffee! Everyday! Summer has gone by way too fast.

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    1. TOO fast. Especially now that everybody is all excited for fall-too soon!

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