Dash here, dash there

Yes, I survived the Warrior Dash.....and I do mean SURVIVED!!  They weren't lying, it's 3.2 miles of hell.  Actually, the part I was the most nervous about, the obstacles themselves, weren't that intimidating at all.  What WAS hard was that the running part was mostly trail running.  TRAIL RUNNING IS HARD, PEOPLE!  There's a whole different training method for trail running as opposed to just plain running.  And, with my (un)gracefulness and lack of normal balance, trail running is probably not for me.  I was looking down the entire time, making sure I wasn't going to trip over a rock or branch or something.

And, oh the pictures.....again, further proof of my beautiful lack of grace.

Okay, and in honor of the Warrior Dash, here's a quick list of 3 ways to get the most out of a workout (and make it fun):

1. Kick up the cardio.  Kind of a no-brainer, huh?  Get the heart rate up = burn more calories = better workout.  There are other ways to get in cardio besides just the treadmill too (just plain ole' running gets really boring for me after a while); Jumping jacks, mountain climbers, bear crawls, ski jumps, and one I just recently learned that also will work your arms and shoulders at the same time: Get in a pushup position and jump your feet from side to side, keeping feet together and "jumping" the feet as high as you can each time.

2. Confuse your body.  Switch up your workouts. Doing one thing over and over (isn't this also the definition of insanity?) will slow results and sometimes, if your body gets too used to it, you'll stop seeing results and stay in one place.  When you switch it up, you're making your body continually adapt and change, so you're, in a sense, keeping it confused.  So, do cardio one day, strength training the next, or go play tennis, do a zumba class, try pilates or yoga, spin class, or kickboxing (personal favorite)

3. This is my jam!!!  Find 5 new, upbeat, fast-paced songs to add your iTunes workout playlist.  Or they can be oldies ("Groove Is In the Heart", anyone?)  One of my favorites, oddly, is Limp Bizkit's "Rollin'"....yeah, I know, my music taste no longer counts....but there's a great list here (Tone It Up blog)

A quick pic from right before the Warrior Dash!

Competitive Drive - Shut Up and Run

I like to think it's because I'm such an easy-going and laid back person, but I'm not incredibly competitive when it comes to sports....of any kind really. (It could also have a tiny bit to do with that whole "lack of balance and torn ligaments in my knee" thing)  In fact, I'm fairly certain my best friend, when we were in high school, totally jumped at the chance to never ever have to be my tennis partner again after about 2 matches (And for good reason. She's super competitive and a natural born athlete).  I was the kid who "played" softball in 5th grade and stood out in the outfield picking weeds flowers out of the grass.  Yeah, I think we've established me and sports-related comptetition don't mix (yes, I'm tall. yes, I played basketball in high school)

Now, don't go thinkin' I have no competitive drive whatsoever.  You would be sorely mistaken.  When it comes to school and clubs and leadership roles, be prepared to lose, Mr. AnyOneWhoDaresGoAgainstMe.  Seriously, just try writing a better research paper, because mine has zero spelling mistakes, minimal "be verbs", God-forbid ever a fragmented sentence, and my first draft is most likely the final draft. Boom. Consider yourself "schooled". (I believe the word you're looking for here is "awesome")

And now everyone knows what a big nerd I am.

I've recently also become very competitive when it comes to fitness.  And, fortunately for my own benefit I'm mostly competitive with myself.  I joined a really awesome boot camp I found out about through a LivingSocial deal.  It was only for a month but, if I was going to have access to a kick-ass trainer for a month I was going to make the most of it.  In less than a month I lost over 5% body fat and said to my month-ago-self "Booyah! Take that...myself!!"  So, now that I'm on my own, I have goals set for the next month (the first of which is continue to get up every morning at 5:30 of my own accord.) so that I win against myself again and again and again.

Oh, and speaking of competitiveness, check out this race  obstacle course 3.5 miles of hell I'm doing this weekend!  Warrior Dash - Oklahoma Course!

And here's a pic of one of the obstacles....for your entertainment

I'm baaaaaack!!!!.....hopefully

Okay kids, I'm back at blogging.  I can't seem to get the look and feel that I want, which could have something do to with not being quite as tech-savvy (or as patient) as I need to be to get it there.  So, if anyone would like to offer up their services, I would be much appreciative.  What's that you ask? Don't I work for a software company and thus should know what the heck I'm doing?  Oh you're so funny. Don't be ridiculous.

So, with that said, I'm revamping a little bit so that I can blog about more stuff, and (hopefully) more often. So, not only will I be adding fitness and nutrition, but there will be lots more on working patience (which I need endless lessons on) and hopefully some other fun stuff as I get back into the swing of things. As always, I would LOVE feedback, especially if I EVER get super complainy, or if you'd just like to tell me "be funnier".  My life at work is seriously like an episode of "The Office" so there will no doubt be some fun stories there.

With that said, I'm heading into some new, exciting (to me anyway) changes in life, including a mission trip to Guatemala, moving, and going back to school full time (yikes!) so any words of advice are gladly accepted!  Thanks and please be patient with me while I work on mine....