Exercising and Running

My goal is to exercise 6 days a week with a double workout on Thursdays. This entire summer, I have failed at this. All Winter, I was fine except the week of Christmas and the week of Thanksgiving.  There were even other days I did 2 workouts.  I think it had to do with being busy, it being too hot to run at lunch or after work, and starting 9/80.

Since May 24, I have averaged 4.87 workouts per week. I guess that isn't that bad but a lot of my workouts are shorter than my desire too.  Some weeks are better than others. I only hit my goal twice.  Below are what I actually did each day with the exception of a few days where I didn't mark it down and I was going from memory.

I need to get back on the wagon here and snap into shape. I'd say that in April at least twice a week, I did spinning or pump in the morning and then I did pump or run after work.

I have made training plans. I then update them. I still don't follow them enough. I should be running 8 miles on my Sunday run. I also should be running 5 at least one other time during the week.  I know my revised (read as easier) training plan has me running at 18 or more miles a week, I hope to do 15. I am rarely close to that.

I just created a weekly mileage summary table for 2010. It is really depressing.  It's a wonder I can even run the half marathon November 1. I really need to buckle down.

Wow I'm even failing at preparing for a 10k. Last year I was even low compared to the 10k training plan.   This post keeps making me more and more depressed.  I'm also pretty sure I ran the week of the Great Race and I just didn't mark it down.  Last year I had my "week" end on a Saturday but now I make them end on Sundays.  It should still be comparable.

To make it even worse if you compare how far into a training plan for a November 1 half form what I ran last time, I am way way off. 

Someone needs to snap me out of this run.  I need to quit having so much other stuff to do. 

One thing is I've gone to cardio fusion once and body combat 3 times in the past month or so but back in February, March, and April I didn't go at all. That's still a workout but isn't a run.

Does anyone want to go for runs with me? 

PS I have more data; I just didn't post it all. I love data. I hate when data shows how much of a slacker I am though.

So everyone doesn't end up as depressed as me, here's a picture of Poly to end this post.

I moved the coffee maker

I have been very annoyed with so many things on the counter. To the right of the sink especially annoyed me.  The coffee maker, coffees, and toaster all sat out.   We only use the coffee maker when we have company and they want coffee. We also rarely use the toaster. Too bad there isn't enough cabinet space to hide the toaster when we aren't using it.  (Pardon the before picture. I just did a bunch of dishes from when we had company and a few things that were on the stove and thus weren't washed before.) Seeing all the dishes there kind of shows how little room there is.

Well I moved the coffee maker to the left of the sink. I was going to move the toaster but then realized the coffee mugs are right above the new home for the coffee maker so that made the most sense.  At first I had the coffees to the right of the maker but then the hose from the faucet didn't reach the maker to fill the water container so I swapped them and it just barely reaches.  I see this going badly when we have a lot of dirty dishes piled up. When we have company usually people want coffee with dessert and that means all the dinner plates will be over in this area.  We'll see if I can handle it.  

If I can handle it, to the right of the sink is so much nicer. I don't know why I want the counter space but I do with a passion. I would love it if the toaster would be put away. My husband probably wants the blender thing on the counter now that I made room. 

I think I put the can opener in a cabinet. Almost all cans that we use have the pull off top. If we need it, we'll get it out. Plus the can opener was purchased in college and was the cheapest one Walmart sells. 

I felt very accomplished after making this change. I have wanted to make room on the right there for probably more than a year. Do you ever have something that you just want to change in your house/apartment and it takes you over a year to make the change?

(Before pictures taken September 4 and after pictures taken September 6.)

Photo of the Day - Poly

Poly slept almost the entire night at the foot of the bed.  At one point, I noticed I needed the comforter. I covered her with it too. She didn't mind and still stayed there.  I of course then grabbed my camera from my nightstand and took a few pictures of her.

 Photos taken September 9, 2010

A Day's Worth of Twitter

08:56:45 AM - I'm one of those people I hate. I'm scheduling a meeting at 12:30 (which should be lunch time)
06:58:44 PM - Giant eagle has cases of pepsi on sale. Why didn't I see this until I already paid.
06:59:56 PM - Look down and see a huge runner in my pantyhose. Ugh.
07:31:35 PM - I got my stupid heel caught in the vent cover. Ruined the shoe. They were nice blue shoes.
07:56:26 PM - I ate cheese, a hoagie 3 slices of pumpkin roll, and more cheese for dinner.
08:06:11 PM - Watching tv & the phone rings. If it was for me id have to get off the phone bc we are watching TV. It was for Dave & he's been talking long
08:11:35 PM - I forgot to put laundry in

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

Photo of the Day - Beach

When I was in 9th grade, my family went to New York City to visit NYU and then we went to the Ocean in New Jersey on our way home. These photos were taken September 19, 1999.   I really liked the picture for some reason. I scanned it so now I can have it electronically.  I scanned 3 out of about 20 pictures that were taken that long weekend.  I had those pants clothes for a very long time. The pants weren't that loose when I wore them in college though.  We did not go to a resort or a main beach it was just something in northern New Jersey.  We went to one beach first but it seemed too ghetto so we went to this one. I did take off my shoes and roll up my pants so that I went into the water up to my ankles.  That was the one and only time I was ever at an ocean.

This was almost 11 years ago.  That's a long time.

Earlier that day we took a "family picture."  My mom wasn't in it since she took it.  We look miserable.

Random Questions

So Ashley from Ashley Getting Dressed had a giveaway that consisted of people posting questions and then she'd answer them in later posts. I didn't think of anything at the time, then I read her blog and liked the questions. I decided to answer some here. (PS I love her blog. You should check it out.  She takes her pictures outside and it makes me jealous.)

So here are a few questions that I thought I'd answer.

What made you want to start blogging?

I started a livejournal in April 2003. That was just a journal about my day or how I felt.  I tried really hard to post daily. Some of my posts were one line long so my husband told me to get a twitter. I did that after awhile. In February of this year, I started to detail my days a lot more and discovered that I could easily put in pictures that I took that day since I got a new memory card that automatically uploads to my computer and to picasa. That meant the pictures were right there ready when I was talking about them.  I started using a lot of pictures and it just evolved from there.  I think the pictures make posts a lot better.  Now I really hate to make a post without a picture of some sort. Early in this summer, LiveJournal became blocked at work. I didn't post at work but if anyone commented, I liked to reply while at work.  Then my husband convinced me to switch to blogger.  I said I only would if he could get my archive over. He did and so I made the switch. This summer was when I first discovered that there were "fashion" blogs and I was already putting my daily picture on my blog so why not write where I got the stuff.  I  tend to remember dates and prices too so I thought I'd put it there.  Then I started seeing everyone else's and now I spend a ton of time reading blogs. I used to only read blogs/journals for the few people I knew that had journals/blogs.

How do you transition your clothes from summer into fall? What are some of your tips?

My closet is big enough that I don't have to do much. Sometimes if I'm short on drawer space I move my sweaters out in the Summer.  I notice I actually wear more camis in the winter under all shirts than I do in the summer.  I have some tank tops I keep in my spare room in the winter but then I have to remember to get them and I did not do that this year.
My tip is to use a portion of your close for the summer and a portion for the winter stuff. Keep it all there.  Use hangers that hook off one another so you can get a lot more clothes in your closet. I started buying these hangers in 9th grade. They used to be found at the Dollar Tree 6 for $1, Walmart, or Target. Now Walmart and Target still have them. They are approximately $2 for 6 now. You can have your clothes go down 6 hangers worth. One trick I used was the bottom hanger didn't need to be this fancy kind so then I could go a lot further with the hangers that I already had.

The turquoise shirt is on the Dollar Tree/Walmart style and the green shirt is the Target style. The target ones are a little thicker and can even hold my pants with ease.  They also have the hangers for skirts. The target skirt hangers have the hook on the wrong side and I hate it. It would be OK if the skirts were on the left side of my closet but they aren't.
(Looking at my pictures I realized the Loft tag is upside down. ha)

What is on the top of your wishlist right now?

New running shoes, a few colorful cardigans, replacement black heels.
I always want a lot but I'm fairly picky. In the fall and winter, I have a lot harder time finding things that fit. My arms and legs are too long for most stores' clothes.
I also have difficulty finding shoes that work for me. I have plantar fasciitis and am flat footed.  Many flats are painful. I have orthotics but they don't usually fit in dress shoes. They do not fit in the ballet flats w/o my shoes popping out. I have slim fit ones that would work in dress shoes but it's hard to find ones that do.  I have orthotics for my running shoes and still it is hard to find shoes that the orthotic can fit on top of the insole and doesn't make my heel feel like it will come out of the shoe.
I know I'm just full of complaints.  I make due and still find lots of things that work for me. I just have to try on a few more things before something works.

What is your favorite color and why?

Purple. I have no idea. I don't even wear purple a lot. I don't know how to match it as well as I do other colors.

What is your go-to store and why?

It all depends on for what I'm looking for.  Overall I would guess Express. 

For Pants it would be Express. If I could figure out what the material is for pants and washing instructions at VS, then that would be my favorite but it seems I only love 1 out of 2 pairs of pants I order through them.  Their fit is the best.
Skirts: Ann Taylor Loft (or Express)
Short Sleeve Shirts (Ann Taylor Loft (or express)
Dresses: Kohl's (or VS even though I only have 1 dress from VS)
Long Sleeve shirts: Express or VS

Who is your fashion inspiration(s)?

I almost didn't pick this one but then I thought I would share that it is nobody. I don't follow celebrities. I don't follow designers to see what they are wearing. Heck most of the time I don't even know what a designer brand is.  In May I bought an AE (Armani Exchange) at the mall near DC. I didn't even know what the place was. I show it to my husband and he asks why I'm shopping there. He even heard of it before. He looked it up on his iPhone to tell me about it. I am not a brand whore at all.  I probably buy "copy cat" type stuff and I don't even know it because I don't pay attention to the real thing. I don't read ads. 

A Day's Worth of Twitter

12:08:41 AM - Poly was waiting for me to cone to bed. I how up. She jumps down and back up with a present door me. A ponytail holder. Cute.
10:34:34 AM - I ran less than half my plan today. What else is new. 2.25 mikes in 19:57.
10:44:36 AM - ran 2.28 mi on 9/6/2010 at 10:05 AM http://go.nike.com/6d4qq97
11:48:34 AM - I keep eating because the food never satisfies me.
03:04:18 PM - I just got rid of spiders, webs, and eggs (or whatever they are) in the basement. I have done tons of cleaning and organizing today.
04:20:31 PM - The outside of my left knee hurts.
08:55:06 PM - She's cute. RT @_Poly_Kitty: I sit up while I watch Big Brother. http://yfrog.com/n4bavuj
08:56:22 PM - RT @_Poly_Kitty: I got bored with it http://yfrog.com/6tphjuj
11:08:03 PM - @_Poly_Kitty will play fetch with @polahbea but when I throw she just stares at me and quits playing.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

Sunday Long Run = 5.1 mi (instead of 8)

(Click on photo to enlarge and get more details about runs.)

I went much slower than I had been going. I had adjusted my goal time because I had been running slow lately.  At least I finished a 5 mile run. I can do 6 mi next week and 7 the following. Then third week from now is the Great Race. I was really hoping I had more longer runs in.  A half marathon on October 16 is not looking good. I wonder if I could revamp and do it November 1. eek. I'm awful at running anymore.

Calorie burn during the run

My Nike+ reset since I stopped to stretch for too long. Also the battery was dead and then I sat in the car to charge it a little. It was near dead at 2.75 miles so then shortly after I just stopped it so I'd at least get part of the run. 

Senior Pictures

Yesterday, when I tried 2 things I tried on, I mentioned I had worn them in my senior pictures.  Well I just realized I had those senior pictures scanned in. Here they are. I wore the jean outfit to the actual photographer but what is scanned is the one my mom took after. Actually she took both pictures.  The one in the dray was the day of the top 20 luncheon.

There is more than an 8 year difference between the then and now.

I put the current pictures in here now too.

Photo of the Day - May 22, 1998

In 8th grade, I was in Drama Club. We did Cinderella. I was "Citizen #2" and that was almost what it said in the program but then they had let the "dancers" have names so why would they make it out like the my part was worse when I had lines and was in a few scenes.  I forget what my name was exactly but it had Daisy in the name.

This picture was taken May 22, 1998.  I scanned it in today along with a few others.  About half of the females were in my grade and the other half were in 7th grade. All the guys were in 7th grade.  I should put this on facebook and tag the people I'm friends with.  I wonder if they'd like it.

We put on the performance 2 different nights and then once during the day for the entire school.  Maybe it was twice during the school day. I can't remember if the 6th graders saw a separate performance or not.  In 7th grade, we did the Wizard of Oz and we had a separate performance for the 6th graders.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

12:04:01 AM - Sewing Machine ordered. It will arrive September 9.
12:51:12 AM - I'm thirsty. I wish @_Poly_Kitty could go and get me a drink so I didn't have to get up.
01:35:56 AM - Poly just rand and hid behind my craft room door. She came out and attacked a ponytail holder.
01:52:20 AM - naps ruin going to sleep. then that ruins waking up. then I need a nap. and repeat. ugh. Also I'm still thirsty.
09:27:42 AM - @TENroaches i never heard of ninja cheerleaders or cheerleader ninjas.
10:08:07 AM - Get out to run and iPod battery is dead. I wonder how long I have to sit in the car with it charging for it to last an hour.
11:27:21 AM - the first 3/4 mi of my run were good. then the stupid sun was out and made it so hot.
11:29:15 AM - ran 2.08 mi on 9/5/2010 at 10:22 AM http://go.nike.com/03tobmcu
11:31:15 AM - if you add my previous 3 weeks of running totals together it is still less that what I want to run in 1 week.
01:15:42 PM - At houlihans sunday brunch. Yummy so far.
01:46:22 PM - How many calories are in a big bagel with cream cheese and 12 slices of bacon?
05:22:58 PM - Why is that the worst day of your life? RT @TENroaches: Worst day of my life. http://yfrog.com/myckaej http://yfrog.com/nfbppicj
05:23:56 PM - I used my camera remote. I read the instructions and it worked. go me. Then I took like 30 pics of me for no reason using it.
07:15:16 PM - not wearing shoes = cold feet
07:45:51 PM - I tried on clothes. 1 keep. 3 not sure. 5 to goodwill so far.
08:57:05 PM - Watching surrogate.
09:27:11 PM - It is the season where PB freezes me out.
09:46:17 PM - @TENroaches why do you buy something that sucks.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

Old Clothes in my Closet - Take 1

I did not get very far because it was dinner time.

Blue dress = wore to the top 20 luncheon in 2002 and also one of the outfits for my senior picture. Both times I wore a silver cardigan that I still have.  I have not worn this since 2002.  I'm indecisive about keeping it. It fits great actually but it's short.

Tan sweater = purchased at Old Navy 2 years ago. I believe I wore it once.  I think the color is too close to my skin tone to look good. I look washed out or something. If I can figure out something to do to make this not suck then I'll keep it. Any suggestions?

Burgundy Corduroy pants and light khaki pants (upper right corner) are both too shot. I wore the khaki ones this year (and last year) and hated them because they were too shot. Both of these are in the goodwill pile. I'm not sure if I like the khaki enough to keep them and turn them into shorts or something now that I have a sewing machine on the way. February 26 of last year they did not fit.

Khaki pants that aren't buttoned.  Can't button them. Going to get rid of them.  In 2006, they became too tight for my thighs. The thighs seem to fit now. Actually I wore these pants about a year ago.

Light colored floral dress. I bought in Philly in early July 2003 and then I wore it to a July 4 picnic that Dave's grandmom was having. I have not worn it since.  --- Going to goodwill. I think the color is too light.

Dark Jean Jacket - I have not worn since high school. Not even sure if I really wore it then. It is really big and bulky in the shoulders. -- Going to goodwill.

Light jean jacket - I wore this in my senior picture and not sure how much else I wore it. I used to love it. I actually really like that the sleeves are long enough. Now a jacket would be more form fitting though. It is from Express.  I was indecisive about getting rid of these one even though I have not worn it in 8 years! I probably just need to be convinced to get rid of it or told to.

The khaki's in the bottom row I know I at least wore in 2008. They are a little higher waisted than I liked at the time but now there are a lot more higher waisted things coming into style and I'm being forced to buy them so maybe it's OK and I should keep them.

So what do you think of what I tried on today?  Should I get rid of what I haven't worn since high school?  See if I would have done that I would have gotten rid of my black dress and I wore that this summer before the 30 for 30 challenge.

Last February I tried on a lot of clothes and got rid of a lot. I kept a lot and some of what I kept, I haven't even worn.  There are more pictures of today's clothes on my picasa. Hopefully tomorrow I can go through 2 feet of my closet on the side that has clothes I don't even wear to work.

Overall 30 for 30 Summary

Above is 1 place where you can view all 30 of my outfits.

I have specific posts about how I wore the shoes, shirts, cardigans, dresses, and pants and skirts.

What other combinations should I have worn?

What accessories should have shown up more?  I know most days I totally forgot to put on accessories and I know they can make an outfit awesome and I still forget.

This shows how many times I wore each article of clothing listed for my 30 for 30.
I finished this competition later than others because I started it later. I also did not include weekends. Some people included weekends.  Then it took me about a week to get all my summary stuff up.  I half forget what I was going to write about for what I learned from this competition. I just wish there was more time in the day for blogging.

This challenge reiterated that you do not need a lot of clothes. You just need things that are very versatile. Accessories are awesome. I always know this but sometimes I need to be reminded.

I'm going through my closet today getting rid of crap that I don't wear. This challenge made me realize that I don't need to keep it around just in case. I can rework what I like to work for any occasion.

At first this competition was really hard. It was the hardest in the middle. I knew there were a lot of combinations left but I couldn't remember what I wore so far.  I made a collage after 20 (well 19) days and printed it out and had it on my dresser. For the next few days I wrote down what I wore on that. It helped. I really disliked being all ready for bed and having to go back to my computer to see if I wore an outfit or combination before.

I want to try to wear a wide variety of my clothes now and try to get use out of the rest of the things that I have. If I don't like it enough to wear to work (and it's dressy for work), it is going to goodwill (or the trash).

I need another challenge. Does anyone have any ideas?

If I ever do a 30 for 30 again, I will throw in a pair of jeans and sneakers and then count the weekends. I don't even need to throw in sneakers if my new flats that I bought today are comfortable enough.

I wonder if I will post less about my outfits now that 30 for 30 is over. I still always update them on my calendar site so I'm wondering if I should post them all on here too.

Maybe my next challenge should be working out instead of clothes. I fell off the wagon with my running and I have races coming up. Perhaps my mind can't focus on so many things at once.

PS I went to an all you can eat brunch today and I'm still stuffed from it. I can still taste the bacon in my mouth.

How I wore it - Pants and Skirts

This will be the last of how I wore it!

 I like Day 25 better than Day 11.  What about you?

I like Day 28 the best. What about you?

 Day 15 and Day 21 are tied for my favorite here.  What day is your favorite?

Hands down Day 26 is my favorite. What about you?

 Day 2 is my favorite.  Finally a favorite early in the competition.  Which is your favorite?

Day 23 is my favorite using the Khaki skirt but Day 30 is a close 2nd.  Which outfit is your favorite use of the khaki skirt?

Shopping this weekend

I went to the mall with Haley Saturday night.  I bought a pair of pants from the Gap and 4 necklaces from Sears.

It is extremely hard to tell in these pictures but the pants are Navy. I bought Modern Boot. 2L (for anyone taking notes that is the smallest size they have in Long but they do carry 00).  They are originally 59.50 but they were on sale at the store for $35. I hear they were only on sale online for 20% off.  I believe these do not fit the best out of all my pants but they do fit better than my other blue pants that are not meant for sitting because the rise hits me right in the gut. They are also definitely not meant to be worn while eating.

I tried on the pants with what I was wearing that day. I swapped brown pants for the blue so it isn't what I'd wear with it. I really need to take better pictures of these pants and update this.

 We then went to many stores where we bought nothing.

At Sears I hit the jackpot. I got 4 necklaces.
Pearls: originally $12 but I paid $7.20 (Covington)

Red necklace with many chains: Originally $16. half off. paid $8 (apostrophe)

Single Red Chain: originally 16, half off. (apostrophe)
Well one of the 2 red necklaces that was apostrophe rang up wrong. so one of them I only paid 4.79 for. I'm not sure which one becuase none of the numbers on the receipt match a single thing on any of the tags.

Shortest use of chain

Red necklace (came with earrings but I cannot wear them due to them not being nickel free): 9.98 (not on sale I don't think) (Multiples)

Longest use of chain

Counting tax, I spent $67.07 at the mall.

Late Saturday night I ordered a sewing machine and a case.

I had to screen shot this picture because every time I tried to add it from a site, it was a blank picture.

Brother CS6000I 60-Stitch Computerized Free-Arm Sewing Machine with multiple Stitch Functions

Sunday I went to Famous Footwear.

Red flats: Natural Soul by Naturalizer

Originally 69.99. 

On sale for 54.99

Black shoes:  Hot Kiss
Originally 49.99
on sale for 39.99
Famous Footwear Buy one get one half price = $20 off so 19.99

I now own a pair of wedges.  This was as close as I could get to flats that my foot didn't flop out of.

Total purchases  = 74.98

The only thing left was my Target trip but I did not get anything good there. Just things like soap and cat food.
I still need to buy new running shoes.