I have been running for about a year and a half. I ran for almost two years and gave it up for a year before taking it up again. Never in my life did I think I could be 'a runner'. I used to look at people who ran and think, 'How can they run?' And then silently, 'I could never do that...' And here we are several years later, and I'm running. Whoa.
If you read my blog, you might know that I workout but I'm often dragging my butt to the gym (or to the streets) to get my fitness on. It's not that I don't like being active, I do, I love being in shape and being healthy but I also suffer from that thing most people do: I love to sit on the couch and veg out. Ha. However, I love treats and dessert and all those delicious things so to feel less guilty about it all, working out is a compromise, I suppose.
For me, working out has always been an evening thing. After work, head to the gym, do a class or get on a cardio machine, put in my time and go home. However, since the weather has become nice, the idea of running on my lunch hour popped into my head.
Okay. I know what you're thinking: who works out on their lunch hour?!
Well, that's certainly how I was thinking before. It's rushed. You get all sweaty. There isn't enough time.
Well guess what?
It is a little rushed. And you do get pretty sweaty. And you certainly don't look as good as you did in the morning. But. There are showers. And hair dryers. And if you pack accordingly, it can work out (get it? Work. Out... 'eh? 'Eh?!)
That said, I knew going by myself wouldn't last long, so I asked one of my best friends if she'd be down to go running once a week on our lunch break. And get this: she was totes down. So we started running on our lunch break. Several times per week.
We just finished our fourth week of running-on-lunch and average anywhere from three to five lunch hour runs per week! Crazy, right? But it feels so good! We try to aim for 5km and even did a 6km one day (that ones a little tight to get out and back within an hour). We are consistently bringing our time down (we are around a 32 minute 5km) and keeping each other company. It's pretty nice. Minus the hardcore-ness of it all.
So the other day, after weeks of carrying a water bottle during runs (before I always ran indoors, on a treadmill with those handy water bottle holders), I suggested we maybe check out 'those geeky looking running belts,' because it's annoying carrying a bottle while running and to be honest, I cannot run without water (not. even. an option.). My girlfriend laughed but was totally down and so we took a little trip to MEC. Sure enough, they had several to choose from, and being the great friends we are, we bought the same one. Twinsies!
We took out our #handsfreehydration belts for the first time today and are both instantly converted. 'What a luxury!' she cooed as we ran our 5km today, and it's true. Totally hands free, you barely notice it and we only paid about $20 for our belts. Score. Who are the geeky ones now?!
(BTW, I love using the free app RunKeeper to track our distance, speed, time, and pace. You can change your settings to whatever you want; I have a voice come on every 5 minutes to tell us how long we've been running, the distance thus far, our current speed and our average speed. At the end, there is a section to write any comments you may want to include about your run, for instance, 'That was death,' or, 'I'm never going to run again'.)
Outfit deets: F21 sports bra, Garage tank, La Senza yoga pants (that I cut into shorts), Suzy sunglasses, Nike shoes, eBay iPhone arm band & MEC running belt.
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Outfit deets:
* American Eagle cardigan (new!), I saw this sweater about a month ago while shopping with the BFF but passed on it. After giving it some though, I should have purchased it and made an impromptu decision to call them and see if, by chance, they still had it (it was already on sale a month ago) and they still had one in medium! I rushed to the store and picked it up in purple as well for $14 each. Score (plus another neon item to add to my collection).
* Winners top that I bought over a year ago and wear quite frequently.
* Jacob skirt (old) and seen in one of my first outfit photos with a big orange necklace from India and nude fishnets.
* Christian Louboutin wedges.
* Accessories: vintage necklace, Auslini bangle & Suzy ring.
I'm getting my hair done this Saturday.
Conversation with someone went something like this:
Someone: (looking at a picture of me) "Wow, you're not really blonde anymore!"
Me: (looking at my roots, cinging) "What? Yes I am, I just need to get my hair done... and having my car impounded and ticketed recently has left me with lack of funds."
Fast forward one day later & I have book an appointment for this weekend.
Okay then.
But in reality, it really is time to get these roots touched up. I always wait till I'm at the I-can't-stand-this-any-longer point, where even my fresh, clean hair looks greasy due to mousey roots and/or I look as if I'm coppin' a half-way-to-ombre look, when in reality, I'm not.
And I mean... it was February when I got it last done. If that's not getting your money's worth, I don't know what is.
Conversation with someone went something like this:
Someone: (looking at a picture of me) "Wow, you're not really blonde anymore!"
Me: (looking at my roots, cinging) "What? Yes I am, I just need to get my hair done... and having my car impounded and ticketed recently has left me with lack of funds."
Fast forward one day later & I have book an appointment for this weekend.
Okay then.
But in reality, it really is time to get these roots touched up. I always wait till I'm at the I-can't-stand-this-any-longer point, where even my fresh, clean hair looks greasy due to mousey roots and/or I look as if I'm coppin' a half-way-to-ombre look, when in reality, I'm not.
And I mean... it was February when I got it last done. If that's not getting your money's worth, I don't know what is.
Sorry for the lack of quality photos lately, my camera battery is dead and the charger is no where to be found. I figure, better something than nothing, right? Right? Say right...
Outfit deets:
* Jacob dress (thrifted) which you have seen once before with a pink cardigan (one of my favourite outfit posts, actually).
* Payless nude pumps (new!) that I picked up recently and absolutely love (and get a ton of compliments on). They also have a rubber bottom so it makes walking in them super easy. I want these next!
* eBay necklace that is no longer available but here is a similar metallic orange one and another one in turquoise (currently sold out but you can request to be notified when they re-stock it).
Dress to impress him... or yourself?
This is something I've given quite a bit of thought to lately. In my previously relationship, I didn't care what he thought, I wore what I liked and he usually liked it too. Now, I know there were certain things he wasn't a fan of (leggings) so I typically avoided those when we would be doing something together (despite my love for them), but generally, I didn't really care. My body, my style, my choice.
To this day that stays true.
This is something I've given quite a bit of thought to lately. In my previously relationship, I didn't care what he thought, I wore what I liked and he usually liked it too. Now, I know there were certain things he wasn't a fan of (leggings) so I typically avoided those when we would be doing something together (despite my love for them), but generally, I didn't really care. My body, my style, my choice.
To this day that stays true.
However.
Sometimes I know I'm wearing something kind of man repelling and certainly not for the guys (hello, it's for me
and tha ladies); but at the same time, I don't want to dress in
something someone I'm dating will find unattractive, either.
Has your style changed due to your relationship?
Who do you typically dress for (other than yourself)? Women or men?
Has your style changed due to your relationship?
Who do you typically dress for (other than yourself)? Women or men?
The drive to Wasaga Beach (rainy the whole way) | Photo upon arrival (check out the photo-bombing sister in the background)
Outfit deets: Gap cardigan, Costa Blanca dress, Sirens leggings, MK watch & Pandora bracelet
Sleepy dog in transit | First night's dinner
Sister morning run | Old school dryer that was in the guest bathroom (tee hee)
Outfit deets: Garage tank, La Senza sports bra, Walmart leggings & Nike shoes
Pretty flower pots at my grandparent's place | Their backyard
Snacks for the afternoon party | Cousins
Grandpa & me | Dinner on the second night (I forgoed the buns)
Outfit deets: Dynamite faux leather blazer, Zellers top, Bongo pants & Suzy necklace
Grandpa's famous breakfasts | New Joe Fresh pants (on super sale for $20, reg. $50!)
Homeward bound road trip lunch | Wasaga Beach
This weekend, my family and I, took a trip up to Wasaga Beach to celebrate my Grandpa's 80th birthday. We left on Friday around 9:30am and arrived at their place around 5pm (long drive!). The following day there was a party at their place with about 40 people to celebrate such an exciting birthday with coffee, cake and snacks.
In between partying and socializing with family, we ate a ton, visited and relaxed. Unfortunately, the weather was terrible and it rained all weekend except for three hours on Saturday morning where my sister and I hit the roads for a quickie run and did some shopping at the grocery store shortly after (where I scored those awesome gold pants up there).
We got back into town around 6pm on Sunday night and I spent the evening relaxing, giving myself a pedicure and winding down after a fun, family-filled, eventful weekend. Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!
* Sorry for the lack of blog post on Friday; Thursday night ended up being hectic with trying to pack and whatnot so I figured I would blog on the trip down and brought my laptop with me. Low and behold, of course, I was unable to connect into my Internet connection (via tethering with my iPhone) and thus could not blog. I thought maybe I would get a chance over the weekend but didn't want to be a hermit on my laptop blogging when I could be visiting with my family. xo
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