I’ve been sitting on the couch for about an hour now with my iPad on my lap and a million ideas galloping around in my head about what to write about, but I keep not writing! Ha! I at least need to write about our run today. My goal was seven miles, in prep for my half marathon, but it just started feeling like I was running forever and ever. I realized that it’s not so much the running that’s a challenge, it’s the boredom and monotony of running that gets to me after a while. I feel awesome and powerful after I finish, but the duration can be killer. I may not be worth more than six miles… But then again, that’s fear talking me out of trying and going for it. I suppose that’s what’s good about having signed up for the half marathon: it’s do or die time and come October 11th I have no choice. I’ll be running 13.1 miles! Or at least I’ll be ambulating in some capacity over 13.1 miles. I would love to run the whole thing, and I’m definitely going to try, but I’m allowing myself the forgiveness to walk parts if that’s what my body needs to do.
The story behind these pictures is that I bought that shirt when I first started working out on the hard core. It was my effort toward that rule I have of looking the part and buying the gear to go with the exercise. I’ve only worn the shirt a handful of times because I hated the way my belly poked out, but every once in a while it made its way to the track. Last fall I remembered the ‘before’ picture from this set that I had at my disposal, so I put the shirt on, snapped some pictures and made a side-by-side comparison with the intent of sharing it on my website, but I was shocked to see that it looked hardly different at all! The bust and shoulders fit different, but the belly was still sticking out there like the prow of a ship. I thought I had changed more than that… I quietly tucked the picture away and didn’t think about it until today. After being so disappointed the last time I put it on, I actually pulled it out today intent on donating the disappointing relic, but I decided to put it on one last time. I was shocked. LOOK AT WHAT ZUMBA DID. Zumba gave me a waist and finally toned up that belly a bit! I know ‘they’ say that you can’t work out a target area, but you sure can lose a little bit of fat (about 12 pounds) while also toning the muscle under it and make a huge difference in your womanly curves over five months! Hello, hourglass! I feel so proud, looking at these pictures. I never expected this. I’m literally moved to tears tonight at my own story, as self involved and ridiculous as that is. 31 year old, 340 pound me wished and hoped that I could do this, but I never actually dreamed I would. I’m so grateful to myself for the hard decisions I made, the dedication I’ve put in and the amazing life I get to lead because of it. Who knew? Certainly not me.
Which brings me, lastly, to skinnymeg. This is not me. This is is skinnymeg, AKA Megan from skinnymeg.com. I’ve talked about her before, but over this weekend things got very real for Megan and me. She posted this picture (legs n booty) to her Instagram in recognition of her 1 year anniversary of her commitment to building muscle, and look at her. Simply amaaaaaazing. And then after I got all obsessive on her and started digging deep into her blog I found this:
And I was all like, wow. That top planking one is like my twin with all the sagging skin. The bottom is her now, after she started weight training. So I’m a little more interested… A little more inspired by this woman. A mom. A boutique owner and decorator of the home I would like to inhabit exactly as it is…
And then I saw this stomach picture and decided that whatever she’s doing in the gym is exactly what I need to be doing. Because, damn. Know what? I kinda want that and I kinda think I might be able to do it. At least I want to try. We will see. Megan eats pretty clean and spends a lot of time lifting. I’m not sure I have her level of dedication, but at the eve of 42 it’s kind of go time if I want to give it a try. I did the orange shirt, maybe I can do this too.
🙂
I’m going to Zumba tomorrow morning at 9:00 at a gym I’ve never gone to! Kinda excited!!!