How I'm Fitting in Running Now That School's Back in Session

So hard to wake them up when they are sleeping so soundly!

 Yeah, so I'm a little late on the "back to school" post, but I would wager that most of us are still getting back in the swing of things. I have to admit, its nice having a routine again. But sometimes this routine is a little grueling. I can't wait for Thanksgiving, just to get the long weekend (even though we just had one for Labor Day) because I am going to be burned out by then!

So, in my school district, the kids start at 7:45 am, which seems insanely early to me. I don't know who is in charge of making up these hours, but to wake up my 6 year old Monkey at 6:15 am every day is hard sometimes even for ME! He's my grumpier child in the morning, and very difficult to get out of bed and get going. Maybe because I live in a small-ish town, everybody goes to bed early because there is not a lot going on at night, the school board must figure we all pop right out of bed before the rooster says cock-a-doodle-doo. Fortunately the Buddha's preschool doesn't start til 8:30. In my younger days, I never would have believed I would be grateful for an 8:30 start.

Me and Scrappy Mama on the move! Blair Witch looking!

I still have to get my runs in.  And now, its not just in the morning before I have to leave for work, its got to be done before I even wake Monkey up. I have got to really hand it to my running buddy, Scrappy Mama. She does the 10-minute drive to my house to arrive by 5:30 am so we can crank out 4+ miles before I have to get back and get the kids morning routine started. If I had to physically get up and leave my house and be at her house by 5:30 am I think I'd fail miserably. There are so many non-running days that my alarm goes off at 5 am and I decide I am too tired and turn it off. I wish it were different, but I'd truly be lost without my running buddy. She is pretty reliable, and there are times when we have to flake for various reasons but we always have running on the brain. If we have to cancel today, can we make it work tomorrow? We both want to be healthy and fit, for ourselves and our families. We meet up at least 3 mornings a week. On Saturday we typically do a longer run (as our childrens' sports schedules permit) and don't have to get up at so ungodly of an hour. 2 other days out of the week I do yoga or another cross-training type DVD, plus have my YMCA membership for Sunday morning TRX.

 It's all good!

--Yawn.

Wordless Wednesday: Happy National Running Day

Review: Mini-Flexball Workout by Stott Pilates and Foam Roller/DVD Challenge Giveaway!!

I don't know what it is about stability ball workouts, but for some reason I always go into them thinking they are going to be easy. Once I do them I'm surprised at how challenged I was; this time was no exception. The folks at Stott Pilates, a premier brand of Merrithew Health & Fitness, sent me this Mini-Flexball Workout DVD, a mini stability ball and mat for review.  I was pleased with the items sent over. The cloth mat is soft, in a neutral green tone and a non-skid surface bottom. The mini ball was easy to blow up with the plastic tube provided.

 While getting the workout queued up to go, I was impressed with how much information is included on the DVD in addition to just the 41 minute workout. Many DVD's just include an introduction, the work out and maybe a bonus workout option but this DVD provided much more. 5 Principles of Pilates - breathing, pelvic placement, rib cage placement scapular movement & stabilization, and head & cervical placement were each covered separately and in a decent amount of detail. This is information typically covered only in a live class or within the body of a DVD and I found it very useful that these principles were demonstrated individually and separate from the workout. There was also a bonus workout - the next level - a "meet the Master Instructor" section, information on Pilates education, equipment and other DVD's available.

 Led by Moira Merrithew and demonstrated by a pupil, the instruction was given very thoroughly with a lot of explanation. Throughout each exercise (26 in all) she offered modifiers, and explained what body area each exercise was working and how I should be feeling. I really liked this because I can think of many classes I have been in where I am wondering if I'm even doing it right or what the purpose of the exercise is. I also liked that the workout did not get monotonous. With 26 exercises in 41 minutes, I was constantly moving on to the next thing before I had a chance to get bored. 

Being a runner, this type of workout is a great compliment to my weekly mileage. I always welcome ways to improve my core strength. Utilizing the mini ball adds just a bit more challenge to maintaining balance during the exercises. My lats, back, glutes and hamstrings all felt the work during this DVD. The instructor recommends at the end of the workout to do this DVD about 3 times a week. With the stretching in the beginning and the moves to combat the hunching-over I do all week at my desk, I feel that this workout is a great benefit for me personally. According to the package the Mini-Flexball workout is a "2 out of 5" in intensity. While nearly all of the workout was doable for me, there was one exercise I simply could not do without modification. The move required going from a position laying on your back with bent knees and rolling the ball from your thighs to your knees and over to your shins essentially bringing you to a full upright seated position. This DVD was pretty much a wake up call that my ab strength needs some improvement. I look forward to working toward successfully completing this exercise!

Giveaway! Stott Pilates has provided me with a Foam Roller Challenge DVD and an accompanying Foam Roller to give away to one lucky person! Complete the entry information below. Winner will be announced next Saturday June 9, 2012. Must be in the U.S. to win.

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Rebounding from Illness

Welcome to my world!

I hate being sick. Honestly, no one really likes being under the weather but some of us may handle it better than others. My problem is, I am generally in good health so when I get sick - usually a cold - it's a pretty bad one! Not only that, I think that illness tends to sideline me more than it may other people. Not that I'm special, I just have a lot going on in general and strive to be pretty active. Working out, social life, working full time and of course the non-stop action that is required to be a Mother. Seriously. Just THE busiest job of all.

What is the best way to recover from illness? Everyone probably has their own method. Since I am starting to feel among the living again, there are things I'm not just going to run out and do. Like what, you ask? Well, exercise for one. I know some of my fellow running mamas that run while they are sick and if they do take some time off, put their running shoes on before their nose is even dry. Me? No can do. I've still got a little congestion going and I'm not going to prolong anything by hitting the trails too soon.

What else? Cocktails with the girls. Or even a drink after work. I haven't had any alcoholic drinks in exactly one week. Why bother? My tastebuds are still not fully back, so why waste the calories? I'm still not feeling 100%, so believe it or not a little "buzz" doesn't even sound remotely appealing. That is how you know I MUST be sick.

Until further notice I'm going to get up, go to work, spend time with my family, and feed and bathe my children and go to bed early. I truly hope this doesn't last long because I will probably start to go stir crazy. I would imagine by next weekend I will be back in the saddle again. My sister's wedding is in 30 days and I plan to kick my workouts and eating plan into high gear!

Happy Thursday Hungripeeps!

On Fire This Week!

The Boys and their late-night light saber shenanigans

I start my new job tomorrow. I am beyond excited. I was very fortunate to have a week + off between jobs, and I really took advantage of it. I am always seeing small projects around my house that need to be done but never get to them with the hustle and bustle of every day life. Whenever I take time off from work, its usually because we have something planned and there is no time for getting around to projects then either. Holidays here and there are days I fully cherish and look forward to, so no catching up on any nagging items then. Of course, that's my choice. Instead of enjoying myself on the weekend I could commit to...cleaning out my closet or something of that nature but, nope. I'd rather not.

Well, I didn't make it to cleaning my closet this time around either, but I did take time to think about what kind of accessories I need. I am trying to get rid of a large dresser in my room so that I can put a small writing desk in its place, and need to make room in my closet to incorporate the clothes in the dresser. Part of that means cleaning out the top drawer which is filled with a combination of jewelry and important papers. That type of project would probably take me a full day because I'd have to go through each and every paper and item of jewelry to determine what I can get rid of. When I stop by Target this week and get the items I need for my closet, I'll empty out the dresser (easy) and put the contents of the top drawer in a box which will some how make the task seem smaller.

Let's hear about all the great things I accomplished:

Found a place to donate my business suits. I have been saying for a while now I was hoping to find a good place to send my business clothes that I hope I will never have to wear again. I found a great charity called Dress For Success that is exactly what I'm looking for. Really easy, quick search on the internet, but for some reason just never go to it!

Worked out hard every day. No lie. This is how I would live if I didn't work. I was in pure heaven. I did a fitness center/circuit training/treadmill work out, a Body Pump class, a Body Sculpt class, yoga, and TRX. I also managed to get a couple outdoor runs in as well. I am totally sore but I feel amazing.

On a machine at the gym, workin' it!

Had fun with the kids. I got to pick them up from school each day. We went fun places for lunch, I took them to the indoor pool at the Y that has an indoor water slide, we had ice cream, we saw The Lorax, I took Buddha to an open play session at a gymnastics academy while Monkey was in school. We had play dates, we played outside in the court and they rode their scooters, skateboard, rollerblades. I know typically the kids don't get to do these things during the week as their caregivers are more comfortable keeping the kids confined to the house and backyard. So to the boys, this was definitely special!

Lunch time smiles!

Finished The Hunger Games Series. For some reason, I struggled with the last book. But I finally finished. I really enjoyed the first two and tore right through them, and had a hard time getting into the last one until towards the end. The funny thing is I usually read at night in bed and with all this extra working out I've been doing I kept falling asleep when I would attempt to read.

This book was awesome. Couldn't put it down.

Ate well with no regrets. Ok, I usually do this anyway. But this time around I honestly felt I earned everything I ate. We had a great dinner out with our neighborhood friends at a fabulous Vietnamese restaurant  here in town and indulged in dessert too. We took the kids out to a sushi feast at our favorite local joint. I ate ice cream with the kids. I drank some wine. I had a Skinnygirl Margarita or two in the evenings. We had some great meals at home as well - salmon, asparagus and roasted potatoes...pork chops another night...pasta a few times I was alone with the kids....I fit in my requisite green smoothies a few times of course to balance it all out. I'm sure I'm forgetting something, but I can assure you it was good!

Nothing Bundt Cakes, mmmmmmmmm!

Filled a photo album with a backlog of pictures. That's right. All of 2011, with the exception of our Disneyland trip in December, fit into one album. So now I'm just going to get one small album just for the Disneyland photos...not nearly as daunting as having a box full of Snapfish envelopes staring at me for months on end.

This bad boy holds 500 photos. It's now full.

Took my baby gear to a new consignment store here in town.  I have been giving away the baby and toddler clothes over time as the kids grow out of things. I kept hanging on to the bigger things: Pack n' Play, co-sleeper, double stroller, and various others *just in case*. Well, I think that ship has sailed. Part of me really wants another child, but I am kind of starting to enjoy the phase my boys are in right now and can't fathom starting over with another baby. If only I was younger and could afford to wait a few years. You know, rest, recover, otherwise known as forgetting how friggin' hard it is to have a baby. But I'm over 4-0 (just a little) and I guess its time to move on.

Reduced a large pile of "important" papers to nearly nothing. I swear, the longer I hang on to stuff that I think I need, the funnier it is when I go through the stack and realize I can now throw it away because its irrelevant. I have the hardest time with the art work the kids bring home. I've started taking photos of most of it because you just can't keep it all.

Picked out new bedding. I've really been needing something new. Something to brighten up my room especially since spring, and eventually summer, are coming. Everything in our room is brown. The walls, our bed frame is black but has a brown suede headboard, our current duvet is white with a dense brown paisley pattern, and our sheets are solid brown. West Elm sent me an email about one of their sales, and I got suckered a great deal on a duvet and sham set that I had been eyeing. Its totally different than what we have and is just the change we need. Now I just need to get new sheets, but that's the easy part.

Dreamy isn't it? Adds some color to our brown room.

Pampered myself. I went with a friend to get pedis and also got my very first shellac on my nails. This is fantastic. It lasts until it grows out and doesn't need to be drilled or filled. I can see myself doing this again for sure! I usually don't get polish on my nails because with small kids my hands constantly seem to be in water and regular polish seems pointless.

Love this!

And lastly, I had my blog header re-done.  What do you think? My fabulous friend Tracey did it. I love it.

So I feel like I made the most of my time off. I am thrilled that I managed to accomplish things I've needed to do, as well as enjoy myself and my family. I am totally ready for my first day at my new job tomorrow. BRING IT!

If Someone Offers Help, Say Yes!

My husband has always been incredibly supportive of my interest in fitness. While he's not always on board with my adventures in healthy cooking (he draws the line at meatless meals) he will never criticize me for wanting to run or work out. Even though it seems he's never home, when he is he will watch the kids if I want to work out. I'll admit, if he is actually home in the evening I typically will forgo working out so we can have family time. But if he's home in the morning and I know he's had a decent amount of sleep, I will leave the kids behind and get my sweat on. At the very least, he never complains.

Dreadmill. Better than Nada.

I made a sacrifice this week. Driving my son to school and walking to class with him is my favorite part of the day. However, my husband's schedule had him home at a reasonable hour the last few nights. Usually I let him sleep in and try to get my kids ready in the morning as quietly as possible so as not to disturb him. But this week I think I am feeling the after-effects of the Halloween candy and just felt I needed to step things up a notch. He offered to drive Monkey to school the last two mornings and I jumped at the chance to use the treadmill that is not quite a lovely decorative feature in our bedroom. Earlier in the week, Monkey stayed home sick from school so I took advantage of the time I would normally spend driving him and went for an icy-cold outdoor run.  That means, my friends, I exercised 3 times this week before work. And I plan to fit in a work out tomorrow morning too! I feel happy about it and its just what I needed...but realistically I know this won't happen every week.

On Tomorrow's Agenda

My husband has offered several times, even during weeks where he wasn't home early, to drive Monkey to school once a week so that I can go for a run. I usually feel guilty and just let him sleep. It doesn't help that Monkey always tells me he'd rather that I take him to school. But I'm starting to think I should take him up on the offer. Maybe on a Tuesday or Wednesday, since I typically work out Friday through Sunday. He wouldn't be offering if he really didn't want to do it.

Do you ever have a hard time accepting help? I remember being like this after my babies were born too. I have a natural tendency to try to "do it all."

iMapMyRun is Keeping Me Honest

Since school has started for my kids I have had a heck of a time getting into a solid fitness routine but I am slowly but surely working on it. Thanks to my iPhone, I have been able to help make the little things count. I started using iMapMyRun to track my runs, and I love how the GPS tracker shows me where I'm going because I have been known to just start running if I have some time and don't have a route mapped out. The program tracks your time, your pace, and you can save your workouts. You can even share them on Twitter and Facebook.

The first time I used it I was squeezing in a run between dropping my son off at school at 7:45, and volunteering in his class at 8:30. I had a finite period of time to run, and had never spent a lot of time around his school to know what it was like to run around there. I started tracking my route, and thanks to the GPS I could see ahead of time potential streets to turn down, as well as the distance back to my starting point and how much time I had left. Now I have several different routes I have saved and rotate through them on Fridays when I volunteer at school.

You don't have to be running to use iMapMyRun. You can use it when cycling or walking or other workouts too. You can even see the elevation during your workout. This program has been a lifesaver for me. With increased demands on my time, I've had to start fitting in little things like walking at lunch and have calculated that a direct walk to Whole Foods  from my office is 1/4 mile, but if I go the long way I can stretch it to 1/2 mile. The Target going the opposite direction is even just a tad further, and I feel awesome knowing that I got off my butt and also spared the air and saved money on gas. I have also calculated avoiding the clusterf*ck drop-off loop at my son's school and parking far away gets me another 1/4 mile in while walking to his classroom. So now I am approaching exercise from the opposite direction, to track small walks and see how much distance I can get. Yeah, I'm a dork like that but this is pretty awesome. 

Have you tried iMapMyRun or a similar program? How do you track your workouts? 

Transition: Working It Out

The only thing that is constant is change. I don't know who the first person was who said that but man, they weren't kidding. Monkey goes back to school on Thursday. He's going to be in shock, starting at 7:45 and all. The poor kid is going to have to get up at 6:15 am, a full hour earlier than he had to get up for preschool. And for the first time, he'll be going to school every day. I have been trying to put him to bed earlier the last several days, but that's not going so hot. I guess he will eventually self-adjust.

And what about poor Mama? I had been working out and running in the mornings before my kids get up. I have been dedicated for the last several months, but I just don't see myself getting up at 5 am. I will have to work out, get ready for work, get the kids ready for school, drop them off and go straight to work. I shouldn't knock it until I've tried it but I have never been much of  morning person and that just seems like it would be pushing it. Just a little.

I am also contemplating going to work in walking clothes, doing a power walk for 30 minutes around my office complex and changing before I head into work. There is also an onsite gym but I don't know if I will have time to get a decent work out, shower and walk into the office before 9am. My 45 minute commute unfortunately eats into any good chunk of time I would have to be productive. bleh. It will be a work in progress, stay tuned.

All Play and No Work Makes...My Butt Fat

Me and my besties. As one said, "We are wearing dirt instead of makeup."

I wish I was a kid again and had summer "vacation". Instead, I work every weekday, unless I have specified time off...a holiday or a planned trip. Last week, I had 5 straight days off of work and enjoyed every bit of it. I drank beer and ate food that wasn't the healthiest (s'mores, anyone?) but it it was nice to have no restrictions or worries except for having fun and enjoying the company of my friends and family.

Me and Buddha.

Monkey had a huge smile the whole trip

 I went back to work this past Monday, but I am having a major struggle snapping back into my routine.  I didn't even set my alarm in the morning the first two days I was back to work, so work outs didn't happen.  I really think I was subconsciously rebelling against the end of my time off. Since I wasn't up early and was trying to fit in a bit of laundry in the morning before I had to leave, I didn't have time to make my lunch either except for one day. Our office moved while I was off, so I was also a little out of sorts and have had some network problems that have interfered with my productivity.  The only truly good thing I have done since I've been back is blended up green smoothies for myself 3 mornings this week. I haven't had a true "work out" in over a week! gasp!

His current potty fave is "Hand Hand Fingers Thumb"

Also, we are working on potty training the Buddha, with hit-or-miss success, so that tacks on another 15 minutes in the morning that I spend sitting with him and reading, etc. I definitely need to start getting up earlier next week!

I am all about sharing my imperfections, to balance out the times I toot my own horn for being awesome (toot toot) and rising at 5:30 a.m. to run. This morning I met up with my running buddy for a 5 miler and hope that will kick me back into gear.  I am looking ahead to a nice weekend of being home, catching up on home-related chores and important errands such as stocking up on greens and fruit at the Farmer's Market!

What do you have planned this weekend? Happy Friday!

Fitness Plan +

Me and Monkey at the lake in 2008. Buddha is inside my belly.

My oldest and dearest friends and all of our families are going to Lake Don Pedro for several days of boating and camping on July 20th.  One of our friends has been panicking a wee bit about her body in anticipation of this trip. The last time we did this trip with the same group, I was almost 7 months pregnant with Buddha. I was the lucky one who had a nice excuse for being a little plump. I had an adorable maternity bathing suit and didn't even have to worry about how I looked. I've got to say, it was nice.

At this point, I don't try to compete with 25 year olds. I'm a mother of two, I do my best to stay fit and healthy, and that is all I can ask for. At this stage in my life I am hearing about more friends of friends battling breast cancer, husbands keeling over from heart attacks unexpectedly and other horrible health related news. Believe me, I can be as vain as the next woman and want to feel good about my appearance. I just feel that I am doing what is manageable for me in the fitness department and have better things to do than obsess. While I am not a MILF, I enjoy what I eat and drink in moderation, and believe that I am pretty healthy. I'm not aiming for skinny.

That being said, my running buddy (who is also going on this trip) and I have challenged ourselves to kick it up a notch before we spend several days drinking margaritas, eating barbecue and wearing our bathing suits for all to see. I believe that our bodies get complacent if we are always doing the same thing. Running and some form of Jillian are always part of my plan. We have challenged ourselves to do crunches (100 for me, 75 for her) and pushups (20 for both plus other arm weight exercises for me) every day until we leave for our trip. Planning to do it every day is easy to keep track of. Instead of "I think I did the ab/pushup challenge 3x this week", every day it will be, either I did it or I didn't. And if I haven't yet, I better before I go to bed!

So far I am on day 2. I am really stoked about this, although laughing a bit at how my abs were literally spasming after I was done! But I can already see a difference and know that I will be very happy I did this come July 20! I would love to post more photos of the last trip, because we had so much fun. But my friends would kill me.

Have a great weekend everyone!! Summer is in full swing!

I Need a Swift Kick!

Image from Infobarrel

Feeling Sluggish
I don't know what is wrong with me lately. I've been blaming the time change but I don't know how 1 measley hour could ruin my entire week! I think that every night, it was hard for me to go to bed on time so I was staying up later than normal, and still getting up early so each day I was getting more and more behind on sleep. I did manage to run 3 mornings, (12.2 miles total), but did nothing else. And I mean NOTHING. I usually do DVD's on my off-days: pilates, yoga, or whatever. But I was just so tired. I hated waking up in the morning and having it be pitch black outside. I just wanted to stay in bed. I told myself I would do my DVD's this weekend, and so far, nothing still and its Sunday and I've just resigned to start fresh next week.

Fighting Sickness
Both of my kids had yucky coughs last week, and my husband had the dreaded flu and now has a nasty, and I mean, nasty sinus infection. How I have managed to avoid the plague so far, I don't know. But I also think that's why I was feeling lousy...it was taking all I had to fight the germies. I had a mild but annoying head ache 3 days in a row that is finally gone I think. Head aches make me want to do nothing but SLEEP too.

Looking for Inspiration
I belong to this great running group on Facebook that totally inspires me. Women of all levels, from new runners to seasoned triathletes share their triumphs, their struggles, fears -  and seek and give advice. I don't always have time to participate in the discussions but I read them all. The last few days that I haven't exercised (last day I ran was Thursday), I have run vicariously through my online friends. It helps to keep me from losing my focus, or losing sight of what I should be doing even if I am not up to it. I hope this monsoon-like rain stops soon, its supposed to be the first day of spring and I am feeling instead like I should be wrapped up in a blanket and hunkering down for the winter!

Staying In-Tune with ME
I had a big appetite this week and knew I was eating more than I was burning. (I had pizza twice). But, I think my body was telling me something. It was saying, REST. And NOURISH yourself. And I listened.

How has the time change affected you? Is it feeling like the first day of spring where you live?

The Best Laid Plans

My running buddy and I had already decided to take this morning off. I was still planning to get up and do a yoga DVD before work, but my children had other plans for me. At 2:30 Monkey came to my bedside and said, "Mommy, take me back to my room." This doesn't happen super frequently, but often enough to not be all that surprised. I decided I would just crawl into bed with him until my alarm went off at 5:30. He's got a full size bed, and I'm 5'2 so we fit well in there together! It could tell when I lay down next to him that I wasn't going to fall asleep right away. Then my mind started to wander, and I tried to get myself back on track with "sleepy" thoughts. Before I knew it, Buddha had opened his door. His room is across from Monkey's, so as soon as I heard the baby gate we have across his room rattle, I tried to act quickly but turns out Monkey was still awake and he sat up. We both went to get our little Buddha, and brought him into the bed with us. After what seemed like quite a while of listening him recite the Cat in the Hat, and singing Frosty the Snowman, he and Monkey were out. And soon, so was I. My alarm went off before I knew it, and there was no way I was getting up to do yoga. I slept for as long as possible, and quite soundly.

I had a decent day at work, although the commute home was hell. I planned to make a quinoa recipe for dinner tonight, but discovered a box of Kamut Spirals in my pantry that were near expiration so I decided to switch things up. Kamut is a grain high in protein and minerals, but it is not gluten free.  I also made the decision to do the Kamut instead of quinioa because I have a great recipe that calls for artichokes, and I had a few artichokes that needed eating before they went bad. I am sorry I did not take photos, but I think it sounds good enough to try without seeing it!

Ingredients:
1 12 oz box kamut spirals
2 tbsp olive oil
1 lb chicken breast, cut into small chunks
4 minced garlic cloves
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 15 oz cans quartered artichokes, drained and chopped
(I substituted 2 fresh artichokes, steamed with most of the outer leaves removed)
1/2 cup or more grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheeese - my favorite on pasta
1 tsp basil

Cook pasta according to directions. While waiting, heat 2 tbsp oil in a large skillet on medium high. Saute the chicken, until browned. Add garlic and saute briefly. Then add the white wine, salt, pepper, artichokes and simmer until the sauce thickens, about 5-7 minutes. Check that the chicken is cooked. Turn the burner off and place pan on an alternate burner. Put the pasta in a large bowl, add the cheese and mix gently. Add the sauce and combine. Sprinkle with basil. (I always opt to use fresh, however I did not have any on hand).

Doesn't this sound heavenly?

Have a great night! Hope my children sleep on through so I can make my 6 a.m. running date!

I Won't Be Stopped!

I love my kids wholeheartedly, from the depths of my soul to my fingertips at the end of the arms that I wrap around them so tightly. But twice this week they each innocently tried to interfere with my morning work out! I have to say, it would have been so easy to cave in and blow it off, but I stuck to my guns (no pun intended) and made it happen, even if my fitness time was a little bit limited after negotiating for a bit with the little buggers.

I have mentioned before that I am not really a morning person. Seriously. Before I am able to speak to anyone in the morning I have coffee. I'm one of those people. My biggest challenge with trying to work out in the morning has been to get up early enough so I can be finished before my kids wake up, and ideally even shower before they wake up. I have mostly been successful, but there have been a couple times that I got sidetracked by putting a load of laundry in or something insignificant that interfered with  rolling out of bed, changing and getting to it.

One morning, silly me, I went into my little Buddha's room (he's had this nickname since he was a baby due to a big belly and no hair...which has changed but the name has stuck) to make sure it wasn't too cold since I had left the window open the night before. Big mistake. He should have been sleeping soundly at this hour, but for whatever reason he perked right up. I tried to sneak out but he wasn't having it. So I had to take him out of his crib, and back to my room and snuggle with him for a bit to see if he'd relax. Then I resorted to the "no fail" in my arsenal - the TV. I was only going to work out in my garage so it was ok for him to be in the family room watching his favorite shows. He did come out to look for me, and thank goodness I as just finishing up. Success!

This morning, my little Monkey heard me rustling around with my coffee pot (damn!) and came out of his room in a daze saying "Mama, take me back to bed." Ok, who can say no to that? The child was half asleep and I just couldn't instruct him to go back to his room. So I tried to get him cozy back in his bed, but when I started to leave he wanted to come with me. Again, I turned to the TV. Ok, I don't condone using TV as a babysitter but sometimes it really helps out when you just need to get something done. This time, my husband was home and I was really eating into my work out time here so I needed maximum bang for the buck. So I went out the door and did a short run in my neighborhood. Then I came home and did a few of Gabby's glute and core exercises (yeah, because we are on a first-name basis now) with the stability ball and medicine ball. I'm not going to sweat it, I will just kick it up a few notches this weekend. Whew. I mean business. And, how.

Hoping you find time to get your body moving this weekend! 30 minutes is better than none.

Have you had any exercise or diet challenges this week? How did you overcome them?