Nothing like a little pink to drive the blues away . . .

Grumpy Gus

It's weird, I'm not a moody person, but every so often something clicks and I feel terribly grumpy. Today happens to be one of those days, and I'm struggling with everything, from food to training to motivation in general. I really just want to curl up with a good book or movie, a big box of something salty and fatty, and hide (OK, I may take a rest day - I haven't had one yet this week, and I may read or watch a movie this afternoon but I'm NOT giving in on the food part. I'm JUST NOT).

Anyway, my planned post on "Conscious Eating" is posponed until tomorrow. Hopefully I'll be in a better mood, and feel like less of a fraud.

Cute! And scarily accurate . . .

. . . how did it know I love green tea, and mostly drink coffee when well, see below. How about the rest of you?

You Are a Soy Latte

At your best, you are: free spirited, down to earth, and relaxed At your worst, you are: dogmatic and picky You drink coffee when: you need a pick me up, and green tea isn't cutting it Your caffeine addiction level: medium

What Kind of Coffee Are You?

Confessions of a Blogging Slacker

Life is certainly full of hills and valleys (as I learn, every time I get out on my bike). And while there are no major changes in my life from the end of last year, I've definitely been hiding out in the Valleys the last couple of weeks.. Oh, I've been around, but definitely keeping my head low, not just in blogging land, but in other areas of my life. Maybe I just needed the quiet time to let some ideas percolate, to rethink some strategies, to find my energy and motivation.

I think I've found my path again, so here are a few things I'm working on:

1). I'm back to counting WW points. Why mess with success, and I haven't been too terribly hungry. I'm eating my activity points, and my flex points, and will listen to my body, if I feel like I'm starving. I'm also logging my food into fitday, to make sure I'm eating the proper ratios. I really really needed to cut back my fat intake, and so far, so good. I've got one "red star day" already this week (red being the highest level of achievement in my heirarchy), and several more stars in the last week. What are the stars for? Staying within my points, eating within the goal ratios (50/25/25, with the 25% fat or less being the driving goal for now), making my scheduled workouts, and eating consciously. Red means I got all four, and I need a week of red-starred days in my journal!

2). Eating consciously. Several years ago I came to grips with the fact that I'm an emotional eater, and I resort to food too much, when times get tough. I learned some techniques to move away from eating for comfort, and I'm still learning to be a conscious eater. All thats gone on lately has contributed to some serious backsliding, so now I'm evaluating every bite I place into my mouth. I have to ask, wny am I eating, when am I eating, and where am I eating. I'm also imposing two rules: no eating after 8 PM, and eating only in once place in my house - the dining room table. All of this goes into my mantra for the year "My Body IS A Temple."

3). Training, training, training. I posted that ambitious schedule for 2006, and now I've got to make sure I achieve it. My first race, the Hyannis 10K is on 2/26, a month away. I can manage the distance, but I'd love to take a few minutes off my previous 10K time!

4). Taking control of my professional life. I'm working on a plan to start my own boutique environmental practice. More on that later. I'm also doing volunteer legal work for one of my favorite environmental non-profits, which is incredibly rewarding.

5). Establishing some regular schedule for my writing. Both blogging and the creative stuff I miss doing.


So that's where I've been, and I expect to be around much more often. It will probably take me the rest of the week to get caught up with the rest of you, and your blogs, but look for me :-)

Oh, and I'm reinstituting word verifcation for comments. Please PLEASE don't let it stop you from saying hello. It take 10 seconds to type in those funny letters, and saves me from deleting and being annoyed by spam. Half of the comments on my last post were spam -- some multiple posts from the same spammer. Sorry Bolder . . . .

Here comes 2006!

Ahhh, a new year and my first *full* racing year. This is what I've got planned so far (with the exception of an Oly distance tri, which I have yet to decide upon) to keep me motivated, energized, fit, and dropping pounds:

Feb: Hyannis (MA) Marathon 10K
Mar: Run to Remember 5 Miler (Boston)
Jun: Webster Lake (MA) Sprint
Jul: Hingham (MA) 4th 8K
Jul: Musselman Mini Mussel (Geneva, NY)
Aug: Timberman Sprint (NH)
Sep: Hyannis (MA) Sprint II
Oct: Tufts 10K (Boston)
Oct: Baltimore (MD) or Portland (ME) Half Mary
Nov: Thanksgiving Turkey Trot (CT)
Dec: Jingle Bell Run 10K (Boston)
Dec: Olde Magoon's Sleigh Ride Brunch Run (MA)

In 2005 I raced six times, so 2006 will double my racing efforts in both tris and road races, plus increase my distances in each. Should be a fun year!