My 7 Links!

Special thanks to Lindsey over at A Running Tale for tagging me in the 7 links post! As a fairly new blogger, I'm excited to play along :-)

Most Beautiful

So far my most "beautiful" post to date, has been a birthday tribute to my then fiance, 27.  I think it's the most beautiful because I put it all out there, he read it & got teary eyed.

Most Popular-My recent bar method review has hands down been my most popular post.  Thanks to a tweet by Bar Method and a facebook post, that one post got almost 500 views.  I love the Bar Method because it works!!

 Most controversial-My post about strippers @ bachelor parties. I knew LC would be having one, I didn't haven't a problem with it, but I knew some of the GF's of the guys did and I just wanted to see what everyone's opinions were.

Most Helpful-I'm going to go with my honeymoon recaps. Part 1-Arriving to San Fran.  Part 2-Big Wineries & Lodging.  Part 3-Small Wineries & Restaurants. I want to go back to Napa!

Surprise Success-My wedding shower post! haha! I didn't think that many people cared :-) It was a bit long a huge picture overload, but I had so much to say & I didn't want to forget anything.

Not Enough Attention-When I decided to withdraw from the Chicago Marathon I thought more people would comment.  It was a big decision (and HUGE disapointment) for me and a lot of different factors went into it.  Spraining my ankle has almost been a blessing in disguise.  It has taught me A)listen to my body, it knows its limits B)Not take exercise or simple things such as walking for granted C)forced me to try different things besides running (I got turbofire in the mail yesterday! Trying it out tomorrow!!)

Most Proud Of- My first 1/2 marathon with my sister :-) Something I never thought I'd be able to do.  I miss you MissE Childs :-)

And now I pass the 7 links torch onto:

Elvi@ Life.Wedding.Nonsense

Legally Fabulous

Jill @ Life After College

Meesh@ Postively Meesh

Okay, I'm off to bed...being a spectator at Tough Mudder is exhausting in itself!  I will be back tomorrow with an update of LC's race.  It will be a dirty one ;-)

FF to Marathon Training Day #3-My Triathalon

Today is day #3 of Chicago Marathon training.  Monday was a rest day, which I did.  Exercise wise anyway.  Tuesday I was supposed to run 3 miles but opted for Bar Method  instead only because it was too hot to run outside & my ankle is not loving the treadmill these days.  Something is better than nothing and I think the thigh work in Bar Method is helping the patella femoral syndrome that I was diagnosed with last summer.  

Today, I made sure to wake up extra early to get a 3 miler in.  The heat was still a killer, but I managed to get a pretty decent run in.  I definitely had to push myself when I wanted to start walking.  The beginning of runs are definitely the roughest part.  My ankle was a bit tender and for a good 1/2 mile I was questioning myself on whether or not I'd be able to complete the whole training successfully for the marathon on October 9th.  So maybe mentally I'm not as prepared as I should be.


After my run, I went on with my day and headed to work.  After the day was over, I went to Bar Method with my co-worker, Hollie.  She introduced me to the class and for that I am grateful to her.  She's a good bar buddy and keeps me motivated.  When Bar Method ended, we changed out of yoga pants and into volleyball shorts and headed to North Avenue beach to play on our Wednesday V-ball team.  It actually started last week, but I was just too exhausted to play.  It was a lot of fun to be back out there after not playing for two years.  I was a bit rusty, but I'll get it worked out.   Our team overall is not too shabby.  Tonight, we won 2 of 3 games.

While I was waiting for the bus on the I saw the police chase down a kid and pull their gun out him.  In Lincoln Park, which is a really nice part of Chicago.  I think next Wednesday I'll be riding my bike!


I'm off to spend some much needed couch time with LC ;-)

When Real Life Happens

You dont' have time to blog for two weeks...Oops!  Well I'm back just in time for the first day of marathon training, which should be interesting because my ankle still hurts from time to time.  My PT friend said that I should still be icing it since it's still a little swollen (two months later).  I'm going to give it a go and just see what happens.  There's always next year... 

So what's been going on in my world the past two weeks? 

26 days until the wedding, so lots of waiting around for response cards at this point and tying up a few loose ends.  Waiting is the worst.  We still have about 25 response cards outstanding and they're supposed to RSVP by this Friday, so I'm just a little bit annoyed.  More so at the people who we know are coming (bridesmaids & groomsmen). We need to know what to feed you people!    

I completed my training for The Bar Method front desk job & last Friday morning was my first day.  The training definitely took a lot out of me.  The job itself isn't hard, it's the waking up at 4:30am that's the tough part.  Training was about 2 weeks long and it completely exhausted all last week.  Thankfully, the 5:30am part is one day a week and right before my weekend off.

LC and I found a tenant for our condo in Milwaukee.  HOORAY! My sister's been living there for the past three years and has been an exceptional tenant.  It's been nice having her there because we knew there would be no problems and it was always nice having a place to stay when I went to visit.  I don't think the new tenant would appreciate me crashing on her couch for the weekend...My sister is going to Texas for some training and will be gone through November.  I will miss her dearly :-(  So for the first time, we are now officially "real" landlords.  Definitely not by choice, but the condo market is what it is right now.

I celebrated my last single night out with all of my ladies this past Saturday.  I had a blast & my sister definitely went above and beyond yet again :-) 



My wonderful bridal party & I

We started out in the community room in my apartment building.  We sipped on some cocktails, played some games & ate some Chicago style pizza :-) Perfect pre-drinking food.  After that, the trolley picked us up at around 9:30, we drove around the city, took some more pictures, went to Kit Kat Lounge & hopped back into the trolley.  Drove around some more & ended up at The Hange Uppe.  It was my version of a perfect bachelorette party. 

As far as marathon training day #2 goes, I'm supposed to run 3 miles today BUT with a heat index of 100 degrees, I maybe running it on the treadmill or going to Bar Method tonight.  For sure, waking up super early to run tomorrow.  Also, getting back on track with week with healthy cooking! We've been so busy that the past two weeks have been quick, packaged meals :-( I can't wait to cook something this week that does come from a frozen bag!!!  Good news is, I'm about 8lbs away from my 1st goal weight/wedding goal weight. I know that I won't lose that in 3 1/2 weeks but hopefully I'll come close. 

Closest thing I'll ever get to Winning the Lottery

Sooo I got some good news today.  I got a new job!  I interviewed for it yesterday and the owner e-mailed me and offered me the front desk position this morning.  It's very part-time.  It's actually only one day a week for 3 1/2 hours on Friday mornings.  From 5:30am-9am.  And it doesn't pay.  But I couldn't be more excited for this job because.....I get FREE Bar Method classes!!!! WAHHHOOOOOOO! 

As of right now, I pay $120 for unlimited classes.  The price isn't bad compared to what a personal trainer cost at my old gym.  And you still get that one-on-one attention that you would get with a trainer.  I was worried that once the 6 month bridal package was over, I wouldn't be able to attend classes anymore because it wouldn't be within our budget (I was getting them at a discount & as part of a special).  But now I can & I'm super thrilled about this.  I worked out a few times with a trainer before joining The Bar Method, and would definitely choose Bar Method over personal training any day.  That's just my opinion and based off of my experience.   

The studio is 5 minutes away from my regular 9-5, so this works out perfectly.  I start training next Monday.  

Say it, Do it!

Now that I'm somewhat mobile, it's time to hop back on the workout wagon!!  Jess at Fit Chick in the City, suggested blogging about her weekly workout plan to keep herself accountable.  If I put it out there that this is what I'm doing, I'm more likely to stick with it.  The same concept as setting dates with your BFF, Jim (gym).  Friends don't break plans with other friends :-)

Monday: Bar Method-check!(I think this might be helping my ankle!!)

Tuesday: 30 minutes on the elliptical DONE!

Wednesday: Bar Method, hopefully (as of now I'm on the wait-list) Cleared the waitlist!
Thursday: 45 on the elliptical
Friday: Rest

Saturday: Bar method with my sister & shop for a dress for my first shower! (that counts as cardio)

Sunday: Rest

Nothing too crazy.  I want to ease back into it this week and maybe next week we'll amp it up a bit more. I go for my first dress fitting on next Friday!

I need a Nap-a!

With the wedding getting closer, all the small details are finally starting to consume my life.  This weekend, my mom, sister, and I worked on the invitations...

Assembled the menus...

And LC & I finalized our honeymoon plans...

photo c/o 

While we were figuring out our wedding budget, and figuring out where we wanted to spend our money, we decided that stationary is where we wanted to cut back.  I didn't want to spend a ton of money on something that's only going to get thrown away.  Let's be real, the only person that will probably save our wedding invites are our parents and grandparents.  So we ended up with 4 boxes from Michael's.  Each box contains 30 invite sets for about $40.  Add in your Michael's coupons, and save almost 50%.  The last box I bought cost me $16.  Not too shabby.  They were pretty simple to do too.  Just load up the template, insert your text and print away.

The menus on the other hand were a total (and my first) DIY project and were kind of a pain to figure out the measurements, but once I did, it was smooth sailing.  The monogram was from I Do originals.  I bought 3 monograms for $9.  I used regular construction paper for the background from Broadway Paper.  Cardstock in these colors were over a buck a piece, so I bought over 200 pieces of construction paper for about $80 and I'll be able to use them for the programs as well.  The vellum paper I bought at Office Depot.  It was easy to print on (the ink didn't smear) but the paper had a tendancy to move while I was trying to cut it, so I had to be extra careful to make sure things didn't turn out crooked.  The menu cutting was done over a long period of wine nights :-) 

And finally, LC and booked our honeymoon :-)  We originally wanted to go to St. Lucia for our honeymoon.  It just looked so peaceful, romantic, and like I imagine heaven would like.  But after looking at plane ticket prices and realizing that our summers in the US are short, we decided to keep it local and revisit the St. Lucia idea during the winter months when it's freezing cold here.  So Cali, here we come!  LC and I have never been here and Napa has always been our one of my places to visit.  We both love wine & we both love food, so I can't think of a better place for us to spend our honeymoon.  We'll be lodging at The Cottages of Napa Valley which came recommended from Kate at Elefantitas Elegres.  Thanks Kate! 

We're both really excited and can't wait for the day to finally be here.  In other news, I'm back to doing Bar Method!! Yippee!  

Crazy, Sexy!

Yesterday was my grandpa's 74th Birthday.  I called to wish him a happy birthday and to see what he's up to.  He responded with, "Working. You know Maria, So many people retire and just sit. You have to stay active and work. I go to the gym every other day..."  And he continues on about how good his health is.  So for my 20-something body, there is just no excuse not to workout. Unless, I'm sick or injured. Only then, working out is generally a no-go.

So, my fitness goal for next week is to attend The Bar Method 5 days, run 3 days, and practice yoga 1 day.  I've never done 5 days of Bar in a row, but after talking with one of my favorite instructors, who is in awesome shape, I learned that when she first signed up as a client she went Monday-Friday and it helped her get better at the moves.  So that's what my goal will be.

Last night, LC and I sat down and watched a documentary from Netflix.  I really love watching documentaries.  Call me a geek, but Food, Inc. was probably one of the most interesting movies I've ever watched. Anyway, last night we watched Crazy, Sexy Cancer. It was a documentary about a woman named Kris Karr who was diagnosed with an extremely rare form of terminal cancer.  Through changing her diet and lifestyle, she was able to keep the cancer at bay.  She was diagnosed in 2003 and she's still alive today.  Her outlook on life was so inspirational.  When others would have broken down from the news of cancer, she persevered. I'm in the middle of reading her book, Crazy, Sexy, Diet right now and it's definitely one of the better "diet" books I've read.     

I really haven't been eating anything too exciting this week.  I'm really looking forward to making my St. Patrick's day meal tomorrow so check back for that recipe.  I have found that if I eat a bigger breakfast with some sort of carb, I'm usually pretty satisfied until lunch time. Last week, with working out in the AM, I was just so ravenous throughout the day and nothing would fill me up. This week I'm taking a different approach. Big breakfast and then smaller meals through the day.  It seems to be working so far. 

Tonight, I'm going to a Lululemon event with my friend, Kristine.  The Michigan Ave store, here in Chicago, is hosting a yoga and wine night.  I'm pretty pumped for it!  

Back On Track

Today, I started my morning out (4:45am) with a little run on the treadmill.  I can't wait until it starts getting nicer outside so that I can run outdoors.  Spring is coming, I can smell it in the air.  After my run, I made myself a little juice smoothie.  It consisted of an apple, blueberries, spinach, cinnamon, truvia, and a 1/2 of a grapefruit.  It was gewd!!! It was enough to make two servings, so I will be adding it into my meals at some point tomorrow. I can't do just juice breakfasts two days in a row, especially when running.  I get too hungry throughout the day.



Today for lunch, I just had some left overs from last night's Mardi Gras feast.  Just as good as it was last night!  After work, I walked over to The Bar Method.  I've been going to this class steadily for about a month now and it is one of my favorite toning classes.  I've seen some change in my arms and upper body as well as my thighs.  I took measurements the other day and I've lost inches!  I love this class because you don't use heavy weights, just a lot of repetition and exhausting your muscles.  My legs shake from holding moves for so long, and it's encouraged.  When the instructor sees your legs shaking from exhaustion, they say, "Nice shaking Maria!" So it encourages me to keep going even when I don't want to. I hate life while I'm doing thigh work but it feels oh so good afterward :-)     

For dinner tonight, I ate Alexia spicy sweet potato fries and a Mediterranean turkey burger from Whole Foods, along side a glass of wine.