//Took selfies when no one was lookinghere. Must document a good eye makeup day.
//Had a cold and hilly, but also sunny morning run here.
//Most importantly though, I watched a lot of this. I heart Benedict Cumberbatch. Sherlock could come solve my crime any day. Now it is off to google image Benedict all morning... I mean get some work done. I wish I was British.
A) she plays draws with friends or draw something, whatever the hell it's called.
B) she drew a picture of a wedgie that I was able to figure out
C) she then proceeded to call and congratulate me after I got it!
D) we're cool, you don't have to judge us
Speaking of butts.... How bout that beach body?! See what I did there? Nice, transition, Brooke... Pats self on back.
I have been trying to ramp up the workouts again and it is mostly going well. Minus last night when I had an unnecessary breakdown for no good reason at all. Kind of like this oneI posted about a few months ago. This doesn't happen very often, but when it does I just feel pathetic and I get really negative. Brad gets annoyed, frustrated, concerned, because he says negativity does not look good on me and I agree. After my little breakdown once the run was finished I realized Brad told me I just need to remind myself there are a lot of great things I have going on when it comes to fitness. I need to focus on the positive things, like the fact that I was able to knock out over 6 miles during 2 different runs yesterday after bettering my time in this hard workoutthe day before. Fran, you're hard, but I finished you in 5mins30secs and I am kind of happy with that time. As opposed to taking the route I did, which was only focus on how sore my legs were, how out of shape I felt, how long the run was, how slow I felt, and how I was slowing Brad down... basically every negative thing I could think of.
Live and learn, people. Live and learn.
Then this morning I came across this blog post and it really resonated with me. Especially this line:
"I became a more capable, energetic, independent, and mentally focused person once my focus shifted from what my body looks like to what my body can do"
Anyway, enough about what I can't do. Let's talk about things I want to do... maybe? Do I dare? How many times can I use the word 'do'!?
Bear Complex looks hard in a good way.
And since we're talking about bears. I went all sorts of carnivorethe other night and made this meat on meat on meat dish.
Lastly, and this has nothing to do with fitness, but you should totally download the A Beautiful Mess app for your iPhone photos. It's awesome. The end.
First off - We have a winner from my very first giveaway!!!!!!
I used this Random Number Creator to pick the winner. See guys, I don't play favorites!
Which means the lovely, sleep deprived, new mommy (aka Anne) has a Starbucks gift card coming her way :) Once I actually get around to buying and sending it. Feel free to send me mean text messages if you don't see it by the end of next week, Annie.
Secondly - of course the day I pack lunchtime run clothes it rains, while yesterday was nice and sunny. Thanks a lot, Oregon.
Even with the rain and cold today, I got excited when I saw hints of spring.
I spy with my little eye, Spring.
And this is my excited to see cherry blossoms even though it's raining and I am running face.
And now in music news, since it's Tunesday and all: I wanna go to SXSW...one might debate it is the best music and film festival around! Since actually attending the event this year is a no-go, I decided to feature some artists that will be there. Enjoy! Also if you want even more SXSW music, check out this playlist or this list of artists to watch out for.
Wildcat wildcat :: Mr. Quiche
Yeah, he is wearing a cat mask. Don't ask questions, just enjoy the song. Maybe dance a bit.
Social Studies :: Terracur
This video is a little weird, but give it a chance, the song is worth it. Plus, it definitely covers the whole 'strip away everything to start another life' thing.
James Blake :: Retrograde
This is JB's latest single. It is definitely token James Blake, but it seems like he has grown up a little since his first album, which is not a bad thing. These lyrics are my fave: I'll wait/ So show me why you're strong/ Ignore everybody else/ We're alone now
Bastille :: Pompeil
This song is quite catchy. Here is also the Mahogany Session if you're into that acoustic sort of thing. His voice is super lovely.
Kitten :: Cut It Out
The lead singer of this band is young, like 17 young. That's impressive.
HAIM :: Forever
In case you were wondering: it's pronounced /haɪm/ to rhyme with "rhyme". Three sisters help make up the majority of the band. I don't know if I could work that closely with my sibs, but then again we would make horribly sounding music. None of us can sing....
alt-J :: Tessellate
Who knew that the name alt-J was from the delta symbol that is made when you hit alt and j on your keyboard: ∆. #nerds the more you know.
The Lone Bellow :: Tiny Desk Concert
I have blogged about this band a few times, about how they are one of the top bands to watch for 2013 and this TDC shows why!!!!
I could add so many more, but I will stop there. Now just close your eyes and let's pretend we are in Austin together :) I hear it's sunny there this time of year...
Do you ever have one of those runs or workouts that are just defeating? The kind where you have such good intentions of working hard and getting a good, quality workout in, only to have your body and mind do the complete opposite. The kind where partway through the run you just want to sit down on the side of the road and cry and then hitch hike home, because you're too defeated to even crawl back. No? Just me? Cool.
Anyway, that was me this weekend. Sunday afternoon Bradley and I set out to do a solid 30-45 min run, but about 5 mins more like seconds into it I knew it was going to be an uphill battle the entire route. Now, I don't claim to be a great runner, but this run was one of the worst I have had in quite some time. Looking back on the week it makes sense that it was not a quality performance. My body and mind were worn down from some pretty solid workouts and I might have had more than one piece of Brad's birthday cake throughout the weekend. At the time though all I could think about was how frustrated I was for not being better at this thing they call running. I was only focusing on negative things: how my quads were sore, how I was slowing Brad down, how cold out it was, how my knee was sore, etc. I then proceeded to beat myself up for it, which made the run even harder and feel like it lasted even longer. For as often as I workout I except to be a better runner than I am. However, this is definitely the wrong mindset to have. Yes, I workout often, but I don't run everyday, so I can't expect to always have quality runs.
Brad kindly reminded me, the only way I am truly going to get where I want to be when it comes to running is to well, keep running. This means I may need a new plan of attack for what I want to accomplish with my workouts, whether it be doing cardio in the mornings and then our Crossfit style workouts after work, or replacing a few of the workouts with longer (anything over 30 mins is long for me) runs each week instead.
After a nice long stretch, foam rolling, and a bubble bath I had a little better perspective. I realized it's not the end of the world and I need to remind myself to stay positive (remember your resolutions, girl!). One of my fitness goals for 2013 is to get a little more toned and leaner by incorporating more cardio along with my workouts, but in order to be successful I need to have a more positive mindset and put my body in a position where I will not set it up for failure. Treat your body like a temple, Brooke, duh.
Last night while catching up on the latest season of the Biggest Loser, Jillian got me thinking. (she is crazy in a good way, ps). She told one of the contestants: "It's got to be for you. It's got to be because the desire to change is outweighing the pain and fear. You have to dig deep and make a choice." which really hit home for me. I often talk big about wanting to run more, or wanting to get leaner, or wanting to cut sugar out of my diet, but I still haven't made the choice to fully commit to any of those things yet. Luckily, I live a pretty active lifestyle compared to most, but I am still not where I want to be. Good news is there is always room for improvement and there is no better time to start than now! Wish me luck or feel free to join me.
Sooooooo it's almost halfway through #Govember and I figured I would share some lowlights highlights.
When it comes to my workouts I try to maintain a good balance of cardio and strength training. Whether that be with running, elliptical, body weight exercises, or actual weights, I like to mix up what I am doing so I never get bored.
#Govember!
Here are a few of my favorite workouts I have done so far this month.
Brad and I did this one last night at home, since it it did not require any extra gadgets.
We were Brad was feeling really adventurous and decided to double the workout and added an additional exercise of bent over dumbbell flies. The workout took me about 26 mins. I split mine up by doing 2 sets of 10-->1, whereas Brad went 10-->1 and then back up 1-->10. I, personally, like to get the worst out of the way, so I opted not to count back up. I'm lazy like that.
Now I have mentioned before, that I am not a hardcore Crossfitter, but I do enjoy some of their workouts and like to incorporate them with other things I am doing.
Here is another Crossfit workout I have done during #Govember. It's the workout they call Fran. She is kind of a BZ. This video gives you a little taste of what it is and not many people would call her fun. I used a 65lbs bar for the thrusters and am happy to say I have knocked off over a min and 20 secs from my time since the last attempt a few months ago. 7:02 is by no means fast in the world of Crossfit, but I am not complaining since I do not follow the sport like a religion.
The last workout I wanted to share is hard and I hate it, but Brad loves it, so I find myself doing it more often than I would care to.
Here is the rundown.
::Grab a deck of cards
::Assign each suit a movement: (you can assign whatever you'd like, but here is one we often use)
-Hearts: burpees - Brad says hearts always have to be burpees, because it's all heart to get through them. Then he pounds his chest and gets all into it and I proceed to laugh at him... Have I mentioned he is a nerd? :)
-Diamonds: squats
-Clubs: dumbbell punches
-Spades: situps
-Jokers: Man-Makers (for the jokers - since there are only 2, we make them a harder exercise and do it 20 times)
::Each card you draw is the number of times you'll do the exercise. King =13, Queen = 12, Jack = 11, 10 = 10 and so on down the line.
::Example: Draw King of Hearts - do 13 burpees, no rest between cards, draw again 7 of Spades - do 7 situps and so on... Simple! Until you realize by the time you have finished the deck you have done each movement 91 times. UGH! Plus the 40 Jokers and let me tell you, Man-Makers are no joke.
My finished product looked like this:
yum.
For today's workout I have to get a lunch run in since I am getting my hair did after work! let's hope the rain holds off !
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