August 2017 Wrap Up

I know it’s a day early, but I’m trying to stick to my M-W-F blog posting schedule, so just roll with it!

CrossFit
All I can say is, YAAAAAAAY. Since Dogfight wrapped up early this month, I have been going to class three times a week. The first two weeks were a tough adjustment, and I was sore pretty much all the time, but now I’m feeling great. I will be wrapping up this month with eleven total classes, which I believe is the highest number since I started.

I’m already seeing some noticeable gains since getting to class more consistently, and I’m excited to see where it continues to take me. My friend Cat recently commented that my arms were looking amazing, which made me feel SO GOOD, because I’ve always been self conscious about my arms.

I’m also delighted to report that although I’ve only lost about three pounds since I started CF in January, my overall measurements are almost back to where I was three years ago. So basically, I’m becoming more muscular and slimming down a bit, which is good enough for me. I actually need to buy some new jeans because mine are a officially too big! I spent all night at Ben’s birthday party pulling them up over my butt.

Running
If I complete tomorrow’s scheduled run, I will finish out August with 7 runs for a total of 31 miles in August. Considering that fitting running in alongside CrossFit continues to be a challenge, I’ll take it. CrossFit takes priority for me because the membership is so expensive, so with three days a week already spoken for, squeezing in the runs is harder. This is compounded by the fact that just waking up early in the morning and running from my house is simply not doable due STEEP (seriously) hills and busy roads with no shoulder. This means after work and lunch breaks are my only options for mid-week runs, and depending on the weather and my schedule, it just doesn’t happen as often as I’d like.

I’m still on the fence about running the Charlotte Covered Bridges Half on September 9. I haven’t run long in two weeks due to my right foot niggles, but otherwise, I feel good, and pretty well trained. My heart is telling me to go for a PR attempt, but my budget is telling me that the $50 registration fee would be much better spent elsewhere. I’m toying with the idea of putting it off another month and finding a race in October, but I know myself well enough to know that I would have the same wishy-washy feelings then as I’m having now. Only time will tell whether or not this fall holds a half marathon for me.

Theatre
Oh my, am I LOVING this break right now. I continue to have FOMO over fall shows, but I just keep reminding myself how amazing it is not to have rehearsal or shows four times a week. I’m trying to just soak up all the relaxation I can, because I rarely allow myself to have down time, and I know it’s only a matter of time before I cram in something else.

Highlight
BEN CAME HOME! This was not the first time we’ve spent an extended period of time apart – we spent four months apart while he did a study abroad program when we’d only been dating for about four months – but him being away nearly the entire summer was still challenging for both of us.

The good news is, the saying “absence makes the heart grow fonder” is definitely true. I feel like we’ve been so much more appreciative of each other, and spending a lot more time together since he got home. We’re also planning a weekend getaway to Toronto for October. Even though we travel a lot, we’ve actually NEVER taken a vacation together just the two of us. We’re always staying with/visiting other people. It will be nice to have some “us” time before we (hopefully) get pregnant in the next few months.

Lowlight
Our eye-opening appointment with the mortgage broker. We’re definitely not giving up by any means, but we’re expanding our options. We’re looking at potentially buying land and building a small house with the option to add on later, considering staying with his folks for another year or two, and lots of other possibilities. But yeah, seeing the bottom line numbers was scary and stressful for sure.

August Goals
As a refresher, my goals for August were:

• Stick to “no booze and no treats Monday-Thursday” rule–mostly yes
• Go to CF at least twice a week, preferably three–mostly yes
• Run at least twice a week–mostly yes

So, the caveat with all of these goals is that I’m counting “August” as post-Dogfight. Once the show wrapped up on August 5, I did really, really well with getting to CrossFit three times a week, and running once or twice a week, with only a few exceptions (mostly due to my ouchie right foot). The no booze/no treats rule was messed up a few times due to special events like friends visiting from out of town, but for the most part I stuck with it, and it’s becoming the new normal. So much so that I’m not even making it a September goal!

September Goals

• Go to CF 12 times (the max allowed with my membership) – no excuses!
• Complete a 10+ mile long run
• Plan a long weekend trip with Ben

Do you have any goals for September?