Come One, Come All!

Can you feel the energy building?  I'm actually really excited about the new year for some bizarre reason.  Normally it goes by without much fanfare in my life but this year just feels different.  I'm looking forward to getting leaner and stronger in the new year.  Doesn't mean I want to lose weight necessarily, but I do want to gain more muscle and lose fat.  More on that in my resolution post.  Anyway, the fitness energy is building and I can feel it.

Unfortunately, there's usually a party-pooper in the crowd and lately I've heard grumbles about the resolutioners coming. You know, those people who vow to start fresh with the New Year and flood the gym in January.  But I'm here to say BRING IT ON! I want to see them, I want to cheer them on, I want them to STAY. Come one, come all - my gym is ready for you, and I, for one, will be there with a smile to greet you.  More importantly, I hope you stay.   

I can attest to how good life feels when you're in shape and moving your body.  So if you're starting the new year with a plan to have 2013 be your year to find that out - get moving!  And be sure your plan includes a way to deal with the inevitable dip in motivation so you don't fall off the wagon 3-6 months down the road like half the people will.  Don't be that 50%. 

So no workout today, Saturday is rest.  Things went a bit different than I planned.  We took Marek over to a friend's house to play and Miguel and I took Myra to the mall. I had a few things to exchange.  I ended up in The Gap and found a couple tops I liked.  So of course I had to take pictures to share.  First is a simple workout t-shirt.  All my workout tops are pretty big on me so it will be fun to have one that fits a bit better.  Sorry for the crappy pictures. 

Gap workout T-shirt with old workout tights.

The other thing I got was a tank top.  Yep!  And I swore to myself I'll wear it on the first really nice day for an outside run.  I doubt I'd ever wear it to the gym, a little too up close and personal for me, but an outside run I could do.  I didn't realize how much my sports bra would show at the top but I guess I'll survive.

Gap exercise tank.

New workout clothes are a fun little way to boost your gym mood.  Of course for years I was part of the over-sized clothes crowd.  I started wearing shorts this past year to the gym, which was so weird at first, I felt half naked.  Now I'm used to wearing them and actually feel really hot if I wear the loose pants that I used to wear. 

Shifting gears...I've not written about this yet but I've been reading running books lately.  It started when Meb Keflezighi's memoir, Run to Overcome, was on sale for .99 for the kindle.  It was interesting to read about his high-level training, his disappointments and injuries, and also his personal history.  He's an extremely positive person (even more than me I think!), which of course I like.  He's also very religious and mixes in a lot of bible verses and often refers to his motivation and trust in god, so if that would put you off you might want to skip it.

I finished that and recently purchased Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen by Christopher McDougall. I'm really enjoying this one too. Books have been a fun way to motivate myself.  In the beginning I read a lot about food, primarily about the evolution of our American diet, the food industry, marketing of foods, etc. Books like The Omnivore's Dilemma and Fast Food Nation.  I watched a lot of food related documentaries too, Super Size Me, King Corn, and Food, Inc. I have a few on Netflix I'm needing to watch - Forks Over Knives comes to mind.  Oh, and this year I watched Weight of the Nation from HBO - if you get a chance I'd watch that for some heavy hitting, even  fear-based, motivation.  The relationship between obesity and dementia alone should scare you straight!

My whole triathlon endeavor started by my reading Slow Fat Triathlete, by Jayne Williams.  I never even imagined doing one before that.  Unfortunately Jayne has gained a fair amount of weight and is now moved into the Fat Advocate world.  I say unfortunately but she doesn't see it that way.  Anyway, I then read Your First Triathlon by Joe Friel, a really helpful book. 

Which reminds me of some of the more cognitive focused books I've read on this whole thing.  The one that I related to the most was The Beck Diet Solution: Train Your Brain to Think Like a Thin Person by Judith Beck.  By the time I'd read it I had already incorporated much of what she espouses on my own through trial and error.  But the book still resonated with me and gave me even more focus as to the way I want to think and behave. I should also pay homage to Body for Life: 12 Weeks to Mental and Physical Strength by Bill Phillips. I did the 12 week program in 2005 and lost 30+ pounds of fat during those 12 weeks. And despite falling off the wagon, hard, after the 12 weeks were over I know I learned a lot during that time about diet and fitness that helped me when I got back on the wagon two years later.

I guess this has turned into a post about books and movies. Maybe I should do a permanent page on recommended books and movies (Update: I made a Books & Movies page!). I'm currently working on a "What I Eat" page because I get asked that a lot. So maybe after I finish that. 

Anyway, I have a long run on the agenda for tomorrow. Catherine and I will be running together in the afternoon. We haven't picked a route yet. I better go charge my garmin.  Hope you're having a great weekend!

Oh, I almost forgot. This is a big milestone day. A gross milestone, but a milestone nonetheless. Lost my first toenail due to running. After the Livermore Grape Stomp my toenail started changing colors. And today it finally gave way. Now I'm short one big toenail. Good thing is, it doesn't hurt. If there was any doubt that I'm a "real" runner, it's gone now!

Lost Toenail from Running (sorry if this grosses you out!).

p.s.  I updated the Where My Journey Began page if you're interested in checking it out.