I know I have been pretty quiet on the blog lately but man,
has life been crazy. I am in the thick of finals for my two summer courses and
am trying my best not to stress over it. This past Sunday and Wednesday I turned
in my last assignments and all that remains is one final and one paper. Once
August 9th rolls around I will be finished with summer classes and I’ll
have two whole weeks off before the fall term starts. I plan on celebrating
with a nighttime tour of the Pensacola lighthouse, a sailing excursion, taking
the Pensacola pedal trolley pub tour, classic movie night at the Saenger
(American Graffiti) and then a weekend trip to New Orleans. I am pretty excited
about all the fun stuff we have planned for August. I am even taking a break
from finals to go kayaking this Saturday. Which will be my second active
adventure and I will be able to cross that goal off my 4 week challenge chart.
Yippee! In case you were wondering,
walking/exploring/climbing around Ft Pickens was active adventure number one.
Oh and as far as my four week challenge goes, I am on day 17
of 28. I have hit my daily goals (8K steps, tracking, stick to meal plan, 25 minutes
of activity) all but one day. I have hit all of my weekly goals (4 or less
meals out, run three times, weigh myself only once a week, and drinkend only)
with the exception being I missed on running three times once. Last week I only
ran twice. Eh, it happens. And for my
monthly goals I have gotten one of two active adventures knocked out but have yet
to get in any bike rides. Hopefully this weekend I will be able to get in one
of each. With 11 days left in the challenge I think I am doing great and
hopefully will be rewarding myself with a new dress from Anthropologie when I
go to NOLA.
Hmmmm, what else? I am still meeting with the personal
trainer twice a week. We do one day upper body and another day lower body. We
do a little cardio but that is mostly during warm up and cool down. For the
most part we stick to strength/weight training. I love it. It’s always a
challenge. He pushes me and that’s what I need when it comes to strength
training. If it was just me by myself I would kind of wander around aimlessly
and lift less weight for fewer reps, I’m sure. So it’s nice to have guidance
but also someone to push me. And of course, someone to make sure I have proper
form and posture and help me prevent injuring myself. Once I start training for
my fall half marathon I will continue on with seeing him twice a week but both
will be upper body days. I was thinking about going down to just one day a week but I enjoy it
too much (and because it’s through the university it’s pretty cheap,
comparatively) so I decided to stick with twice a week for the time being.
Today I ran outside for the first time in months- it’s been
since probably March or April I would guess. I had been running after work with
E but once it got too hot, I am in Florida so that heat comes early, we moved
to the indoor track and/or treadmill for our runs. But we luckily happened to
get that random cold front in yesterday and I just knew I needed to get outside
and run. I miss it so. There is such a better feeling, IMHO, from running
outside vs running inside. The fresh air, the scenery, it’s just so peaceful. And
not only was this my first outdoor run in months but it was also my very first
run from my house around the neighborhood as E and I usually run up at the
university where we both work. Oh, and it was also my first outdoor run in the
Newtons. I just bought them last weekend and was excited to test them out on
the road. I am not in love with them the way I love the Brooks PureDrift I
currently run in but I think it may just take time. They are a bit higher in
the drop and they have way more cushion (not to add lugs) and I think (hope) my
feet will adjust and I will end up liking them more. If not, I will probably exchange
them for the Saucony Kinvaras or maybe some Altras (even though I was told they
didn’t have any in my size the last time around) or maybe stick with the Brooks
I currently have and just get a new GPS watch. We’ll see. I am planning on getting in another
run tomorrow morning as the high will only be 71 when I head out. Not sure how
long this cool morning weather will last but regardless I plan on sticking to
running outside in the morning through the half marathon training and leave my
evenings from my trainer, T25, and in the fall hopefully some fun group fitness
classes.
And speaking of group fitness….Pensacola is getting a Pure
Barre studio! In case you’ve been reading my blogs for a while you know that
when I lived in San Antonio I attended classes at the Pure Barre studio there
and LOVED it. I just so happened to be taking classes while training for the
two half marathons I ran while living there. Then I moved to Pensacola where
the closest studio was an hour away so no more barre for me. Then last year,
back in June of 2013, a Pilates Barre studio opened in Pensacola and I attended
classes there. For about four months. It was good. Not the same as pure barre
at all. In my opinion, the Pure Barre
classes are much more difficult/challenging and much faster paced. But I
liked it enough to stay for several months and fork over a hefty sum of money
for what was available, what was kind of close enough to pure barre, until I
just couldn’t rationalize the cost anymore. The yoga studio was way, wayyyyy
cheaper for the unlimited classes pack so started going there instead. Then you
know life got in the way and I stopped yoga and pilates and only did group
fitness at the university (free, because I was down to only my income), then I
had surgery and stopped everything for a while. Needless to say, I am beyond
excited this studio is opening up. And during the last two weeks in October,
before the grand opening in November, classes will be FREE! I know I won’t be
able to take classes at this studio at the frequency or at the cost I did in
San Antonio (military discount) but I am super excited that at least I have the
opportunity to take them when I want. It’s a really great way to cross-train
and I really enjoyed the classes when I used to go.
I have really been enjoying my summer at home, getting back
into a workout routine, getting settled into the new house, and exploring
Pensacola. Almost every weekend we have spent in Pensacola this summer has been
spent doing amazing local activities. It has been a lot of fun and it really
has made me fall in love with Pensacola even more than I did before, which I
wasn’t sure was even possible. For me, living here is kind of like living in
paradise. I am thankful every day that this is where I live.
Not that I don’t think other places are great, too.
Pensacola just feels like home to me.
I guess that’s because it is J
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Love and hugs
Dacia
xoxoxox
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