Reasons why I am NOT applying for Nuun’s Hood to Coast Team

2011 was a great year for me.  I accomplished many goals that I have had for years. I started my fitness business, I qualified for Boston and I ran the Hood to Coast Relay.  The Hood to Coast Relay was an incredible, memorable experience with some unbelievably awesome women. It not only introduced me to those fabulous people, but to a fantastic company.  I am honored to be a Nuun Ambassador and am loyal to this great product.

It was such an epic experience that it took six blog posts to say everything I wanted to say. I am sure there was more I could have said. It was one of those once-in-a lifetime experiences that will never be replicated.

So when Nuun announced that they were going to host teams again in 2012, I was beyond excited. We had been talking about running it again since we finished our last legs. I was eager to get my creative juices flowing and submit a kick ass application.  I was looking forward to joining my new friends again for a fun-filled weekend.

Here is a little taste of our weekend:

Nuun | Hood to Coast from eric becker on Vimeo.

Here it is, the day of the application deadline and I have nothing to submit. I thought long and hard over this decision and decided NOT to submit an application. I am sad, but at peace about it.  I know that when Nuun announces the 2012 teams, I will be sad again.

You must be asking why are you NOT re-applying for this incredible opportunity that is right up your running alley????


Here are the top reasons WHY I am not applying for Hood to Coast this year:

1) Fear of rejection—I am not too proud to admit that this year I am a little nervous about getting rejected.  Normally, I do fine with rejection.  Lately, however, I have been a bit more sensitive. I have a lot going on in my life and I find it harder to let things go. I feel like all my friends and running buddies have other friends and I am nobody’s first choice lately, so I am not up for not being Nuun’s first (or 36th) choice. Last year I had nothing to lose. If I didn’t make the team, I could look at all the fabulous bloggers and know why they chose those women over me.  This year, knowing that 2011 team members are not guaranteed a spot, I was a bit nervous. In fact, to make it fair to everyone, Nuun has told us that only a percentage of us would be chosen again. If I don’t make it this year, I know I will question myself even more. It will take me back to those feelings I had in middle school. I will wonder if I didn’t make the team because I was lacking in some way. Did I talk too much?  Did I not talk enough? Did they not like me? Is my blog not popular or witty enough? Am I not good enough? 

2) My social media presence has been appalling lately—Other than Facebook for personal updates etc., I have been pretty absent from the social media world. My blog hasn’t been updated in weeks. I can’t remember my last tweet. I hope my followers don’t unfollow me!  I have only glanced at Pinterest and, frankly, don’t get it. I know that Nuun wants a big social media push from their team. If they check my stats, they will be disappointed.

There are several reasons for my lack of internet activity. First, my computer died a few weeks ago. I went back and forth with the manufacturer (it is still under warranty) and they still have it! It is difficult to get anything done on my phone. I finally plugged in my old computer, but there was a reason I replaced it—it is painfully slow!

Second, between clients and working in my kids’ school, I have been very busy lately. I hate spending my free time at the computer (although that does seem to happen). I have always been pretty busy, but lately it has made me feel overwhelmed.

3) I'm running Southern California Ragnar in two weeks—As much as I would like to run several relays a year, it does put added pressure on my family. My husband has to take a day(s) off work and/or I have to find friends to pick up my kids from school etc. Mommy being gone gets complicated.  My husband is great with this and very supportive, but I don’t want to push my luck and do it too often. I am also planning on running St. George again, which is another Mommy day off. 

In addition, with Ragnar looming, it is difficult to think about another relay in a few short months.  I know I would love doing both and becoming a relay “expert” like fellow Hood to Coast alum, Lauren. I just don’t think this is the year.

4) I have recently taken on new responsibilities—Some of my online friends and I have started a new website, theRUNiverse.com. This is a group-edited blog featuring articles about our favorite sport, running.  The site is a mixture of original content and reposted articles.  I don’t want to let these people down and I try to meet my deadlines to help keep our content fresh.  Check out theRUNiverse.com as well as our Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest pages! [LOL…shameless plug]

5) We are relocating to Colorado in June or July—My husband’s job and the tough Southern California economy has us relocating to Fort Collins, Colorado. This last reason is probably the deciding factor in not applying. Details of our move are still up in the air. Our target move date is July 1, but we haven’t found a place yet. It will be a big transition for my children (and for me). School in Fort Collins starts in late August and I would have to miss a few of their first days of school. Switching schools is a big deal and I don’t know how much they will need Mommy in those first few days. Last year, I missed picking up my daughter for her first day of Kindergarten because I was at Hood to Coast, I am not sure I can do that this year. 

I don’t know what our routines will be. I don’t know how flexible my husband’s workload will be (although it is the same company, but his workload changes based on various circumstances). I don’t know if I will have any friends to help pick up the slack when I am gone. All these unknowns make it difficult to make plans to be gone for three or four days. 

I am both excited and scared about this move. I think this impending life change is one of the reasons I am feeling sensitive, overwhelmed and not very creative. I am sure as I get back into my blogging, I will write more about my feelings about this new chapter of our lives.

So there you have it.  While so many women are posting their Nuun Hood to Coast applications today, I am feeling a bit wistful. I just hope that my teammates and Nuun don’t take it as a reflection on them. I plan on starting my application for 2013 as soon as I get settled!  :-)

Good luck to my blogger friends who are applying.  To those of you I shared a van with, I hope you miss me—at least a little. I will be following you all eagerly and cheering you on. 

Happy Running

Tough Chik Tuesday: Jolene

Remember once upon a time when I started "Tough Chick Tuesday"?  Yeah...it is a memory for me too.  Well, better late than never, right?  Here is the next installment of "Tough Chik Tuesday."  Enjoy!

  So when I first saw the post on Team Tough Chik by Tonia from Racing With Babes I glanced over it and moved on.  I mean really, me tough, I think not.  So I contemplated on it for a few days.  There was a part of me that really wanted to join.  I wanted the opportunity to meet other women who run, cycle, and much more.  Perhaps even the opportunity to meet other moms like me.  I live in a smaller town where the population of moms who run is pretty low and I also have a crazy schedule and am often unable to get out there and join others on runs.  So the question came to be, am I tough?

     So I had a Stuart Smalley moment, remember him from the Saturday Night Live days?  If not check him out on You Tube.  It is priceless.  My moment did not take place staring in a mirror though.  It took place sitting on a bed looking at my many journal entries through the years.  The answer finally came to me that I was indeed tough.  You see I am a survivor.  Running was introduced to me in my late-teens after a traumatic experience in my life.  That moment alone would take a whole two blog entries.  A counsellor I saw introduced me to running as a therapy for my depression and post traumatic stress disorder.  It is truly amazing how running can literally lift your spirits up and clear your thoughts.  I would run and my mind would open up.  Fast forward many years through 3 suicide attempts, marriage, two children, and then the final moment........the loss of my father to an aggressive primary brain cancer in 2007.  I had 210 pounds sitting on my 5 foot 4 frame and I had stopped taking my anti-depressant medicine because I wanted to be able to fight the battle without it.  My husband was my biggest supporter in all of this.  He has stayed by my side through every tough moment and never told me I could not do it.  He believed in me before I believed in myself.  The loss of my father changed me.  It was a change I needed though.  

     For many years I had stopped running, but when my father passed away I knew that had to change.  I was overweight and I have the lovely genetic gift of high blood pressure from my mother and father.  I knew I had to run again, but that I had to take the journey on my own or it would not stick.  So one day I threw on my running shoes and went out the door.  My first run I literally did two miles of walking and running intervals.  I felt awful.  I kept thinking there was no way I could keep doing it, but I did.  Then I signed up for the 2010 Disney Princess 1/2 Marathon with a friend of mine.  That was the big kick in the butt for me.  I had a goal and I was going to do it.  I was going to beat that little voice in my head telling me I was not good enough or that I was too fat.  When the race came around I ran it proudly.  My time was not wonderful, but I did not care.  All that I cared about was the fact I had been out there on my own and had trained myself to fight against the little voice.  I crossed that finish line with my arms in the air and an enormous amount of pride.  At that time I weighed 180 pounds.  

     Forward to present day.  Running has given me the greatest gift and that is the ability to stop that voice in my head that likes to bring me down.  I have finally been able to see the person that those closest to me have seen for years and I believe in that person.  I am now in school full-time working towards my dream of becoming a Family Nurse Practitioner.  After over 13 years as a Registered Nurse I finally believe in myself enough to attain this dream.  I also found my reason for running.  In honor of my father and the children with cancer I have cared for in the past I now run to raise money for Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation.  In fact in October I am running my first post-children full marathon and running it for the foundation.  I will be running the Marine Corp Marathon with my husband who has experience with it as he ran it in 2010.  I was given the most amazing gift with running and I intend to open it every day that I can.  I am never going to be the one out there trying to win, but I am going to be the one out there trying to bring a difference to the world with my running.  

     So am I tough?  Yes, I believe I am.  I juggle being a mom, wife, runner, full-time student, and full-time RN.  I now weigh 128 pounds and feel the best I have ever felt. I am a survivor in many ways.  I stand proudly because of the women I have become.  This life is amazing and I intend to embrace it with every inch of tough blood that runs through my veins.  I look forward to meeting the many amazing women out there who represent Team Tough Chik.  We all have a story that makes us the women we are and we stand proud.

Wow!  Thanks, Jolene, for a wonderfully inspiring post!!  Check out Jolene's blog at Journey of a Canuck Mom on the Run.

A Bad Blogger…

I really should think of this blog as a job.  But I don’t. It has opened up a world for me –the world of running and the wonderful online running community. But yet, it sits here…lonely…without an update for weeks. I receive fantastic opportunities from this blog (i.e. Fitfluential, Nuun, etc.) and to those companies I apologize for my recent lack of stimulating content.

I started this blog four years ago as a way to document my journey of training for my first marathon. It was my journal, my account of becoming a runner. As I started getting followers and started learning more and more about running and fitness, I tried to add helpful posts like reviews, workouts etc. I tried to make my posts something that other people would want to read. But ultimately, it always came back to my own thoughts and feelings. I am not as good at seeing myself as an expert as I am at seeing myself as a runner…trying to find the right balance in life.

Lately, I have been feeling a little overwhelmed.  I am no busier than anyone else.*  I lead a typical life of a mom with a part-time job. Ironically, I can keep up with my turns on Words with Friends, but I struggle to keep up with expiring Groupons, blog posts and the laundry.  I know great bloggers who balance motherhood, full-time jobs and other responsibilities and still add interesting and informative content almost every day.**   It is not that I don’t have ideas…I have a half dozen unfinished posts in my draft folder. I just lack the focus and inspiration to get them done! I only seem to do what is most pressing at the time, letting other things in my life fall by the wayside.

My husband asked me once how I could have the dedication to run a mile every day, but I can’t seem to put away a load of laundry. I think running helps me escape (much like Words with Friends—LOL) and for those few minutes a day, I don’t feel overwhelmed. Sometimes it seems like there is so much to do, so I don’t even start. Then I am behind and it spirals into chaos.

How do I get things back on track?

What do you do to keep your life from falling into chaos? 

 

 

*Although recently I have been pretty consumed with organizing the jog-a-thon at my kids’ school, which took a LOT of time and energy.

**I do suspect, however, that some of those with full-time jobs manage to do a few blog posts from work.

Fitfluential Friday—A Father’s Influence

I am excited to introduce Pavement Runner, one of the few male Fitfluential Ambassadors. I talk a lot on this blog about motherhood, moms etc., but rarely explore a dad’s perspective. I really enjoyed his post and I hope you do too.

You can follow him at Pavement Runner or @pavementrunner on Twitter.  Send him some love!

In all the landmark moments that have happened in my life —  from kissing a girl, to graduating college, to buying my first home — becoming a father makes those seem like small stepping stones whose sole purpose was to bring me to this single moment. This one opportunity to take everything that I have learned in my (insert number here) years of life and positively influence this beautiful little girl that my wife and I have been blessed with.


I have always been in shape. Sometimes that shape is a little more round than I would like, but I have typically always been at or within 10-15 pounds of a healthy weight, given my age and height. But something strange triggered when our daughter was born, I felt the need to improve my health and fitness. I guess at the root of this inclination was that I need to be healthier not just for me, but for her. That daddy needs to be around to see his daughter grow and to set a good example of what a healthy lifestyle is like.


My influence is being put to the test and it will help shape the life of a little girl. At who she will see as a male figure in her life growing up. How she will or will not depend on a man as she gets older. As a father, making my daughter feel safe and confident seems like one of the most important things I can do.


In the early months, finding time to squeeze in a few miles was difficult. If I wanted to learn how much of my personal time has to be sacrificed to fill the needs of starting a family, it was made clear early on. Although a mother's role typically demands more, being a part of the day-to-day routine was important to me. Making sure that mom and baby rested when possible required odd hours of maintaining the household: laundry, dishes, grocery shopping, etc.


But remember that strange feeling I mentioned two paragraphs ago? It was remembering that I needed to wanted to lead a healthier lifestyle that helped me make the decisions to put on my running shoes and head out the door when possible. It's also the reason that even with the reduced hours of sleep and fewer miles I was able to become a faster runner after she was born.


I wanted to be a better person for her. I wanted to be a stronger person for her. I wanted to show her through example, what it is like to lead a healthy lifestyle and to place value in fitness. I don't think I'm one of those parents that will force their children to partake in the activities that I enjoy. I won't force her to get up at 5 a.m. and run 10 miles before work or school. But at the same time, I don't want that to be considered strange if that is what she wants to do. I don't want it to be weird for her to have vegetables at dinner instead of french fries.

Becoming a father changed almost everything about my life. Things that I placed so much emphasis on before, were reevaluated and adjusted to fit the needs of the little one. But the thing is, it's good. It's changes that I wanted to make. People have commented that because I have a blog or run lots of miles that I influence others or motivate them to give running another try... but in all honesty, this tiny little beautiful girl has influenced me more, without saying a word, tweet or status update.


Sincerely, an influenced father.





Also, don’t forget to check out last week’s Fitfluential Ambassador. Please send Ashleigh some love at her blog, Waking Up in Vegas or on Twitter, @ashlovebash.

Have a great weekend and Happy Running…

Giveaway Winners!!

The four winners of the “Favorite Things” giveaway are:

Entry #87  Michelle B.—iFitness Double Neoprene Belt

Entry #30 Toni C.—Nuun—bottle and tube

Entry #91 Aubrey L.—Jamba Juice gift card

Entry #19 Jen N.—Arbonne Lip Saver

Congratulations to the winners!  Stay tuned for another giveaway soon.

First real “runner’s high” in a while—Los Angeles 13.1 Race Report

Have you ever had a race/run where out of nowhere it gave you an incredible runner’s high? The run you weren’t really looking forward to, but did it anyway because you made the commitment?

That was what happened to me last Sunday. I won an entry to the Los Angeles 13.1 Half Marathon from RoadBunner. This race is about an hour from my house and as it approached I wasn’t too excited about doing it by myself.  My friends didn’t want to do it and I didn’t push the issue since it was a $100 race. I was further un-excited when I had to drive an hour to pick up my packet.*

So without any taper [10 hard, hilly miles the week before; normal runs during the week; 8.5 miles the day before; 44-day run streak leading up to it] I decided to run without a solid plan.

Last year, I ran that race in 1:49:08. It would be nice to run it faster than that. A 1:45 would be spectacular. So even though I didn’t think I could keep the pace, I started out hoping to run between 8 and 8:15 minutes/mile. Normally, I don’t like going out too fast; I hate hitting the wall at the end of a race.  But in this race, I didn’t really have anything to lose.

Miles 1-4—7:48, 7:48; 7:57, 7:54  Was a 1:45 possible?? Sub-8’s were feeling easier than they ever had.  I had only run that fast during a 5K and during the Fontana Half Marathon last June, which has a major downhill loss in the first half.

The course this year was SO much better than last year. We ran along the boardwalk in Venice beach and then around the bay of Marina del Rey. I have never been in Marina del Rey and it is beautiful.  There is something very peaceful about a marina.

Miles 5-7—8:04, 8:04, 8:08  My legs were starting to feel heavy. I am not sure if my fatigue was helped along by the concrete beach path. I really felt like my feet were pounding. This part of the race reminded me of the beach path during the Long Beach Marathon.  There were a lot of winding turns. Even though I tried to run the tangents, I kept losing mileage; the the halfway point of the race, I was about .1 off on the mile markers**

Miles 8-11—8:18, 8:18, 8:18, 8:19 Right before the mile 8 marker, there was a mean hill. This was a race along the ocean,so I didn’t expect hills. It is advertised as a flat course, so I didn’t expect hills.  I don’t usually mind hills, but my tired legs were NOT loving hills at this point.  Then there was another at mile 9.  This one kicked my booty pretty hard. For the first part of that mile, I was running in the 9’s.  Luckily, it flattened out and we hit the turnaround. You know what that means…we got to run back down that hill.  Yeah! Unfortunately, I was so wiped out by that time, I couldn’t take full advantage of that downhill.

The worst part of the entire course was during this section. Around mile 8.5 I smelled a horrid smell. At first there was a strong chemical smell. Then a pungent smell of sewage. I tried to breath out of my mouth as best I could, but it was really nasty. Unfortunately, this was an out-an-back course and the way back was even worse.At around mile 10.5, the smell was nearly intolerable. I definitely had to breathe exclusively through my mouth. This smell ruined the race for one runner. G(r)eek Melie felt nauseous from it and didn’t recover the rest of the race.

Miles 12-13.25—8:21, 8:06, 6:45 pace Around mile 11, I hit a serious wall. I didn’t stop, but I wanted to. I knew if I stopped to walk just once, I would not be able to finish strong or finish at all. For the first time in a long time, I was hating running right then. I just wanted it to be done. I was putting one foot in front of the other. I knew if I kept doing that, I would get done with the race. This part of the course was straight and slightly downhill. The downhill was the only thing that kept that mile respectable.

When my Garmin hit mile 12, I knew I just had a couple more songs on my iPod and I would be done. I thought of my encouraging words to my friend, Jen in Santa Barbara, “it will stop hurting when we cross that finish line and stop.” I kept telling myself that the agony would be over when I stopped. So I picked it up and basically gave it everything I had to the end. I was shocked that I could still pull out an almost 8-minute-mile being that tired.

Toward the very end, I picked it up.  Then I saw a woman ahead of me who I had seen throughout the race. I guessed she was close to my age.*** I decided that I didn’t want to be beat in my age group by a couple of seconds. I started to sprint. I ran faster than I can remember running in a race. All I wanted to do was to beat that random woman. The crowd helped me by cheering me on. I ended up beating her by three seconds. I thanked her at the end and told her good job. That last bit of the race was some of my fastest running ever. In fact, when I kicked it into that final sprint, I felt so strong! 6:45 pace? Wow…that is FAST.  Go me!

My official time was 1:46:59, which was in the top 10 of my age group. That is nine seconds faster than Fontana of 2010, making it my second fastest half marathon. My PR is 1:42:30, but that is an incredibly fast downhill course. I don’t even really count it as a PR. Sunday’s race was a more true PR.

I am super proud of myself and very happy with my performance. I thought I had lost some speed. Tempo runs have been few and far between and a struggle to run under 8-minute miles. I found a new gear and overcame very tired legs.  It makes me wonder how I would do if I actually trained for a half marathon with speed work and a decent taper.

I was on an incredible high for days. I was there by myself, but found plenty of friendly runners to chat with. I shared a beer with one runner (darn, I forgot her name!), some food with others and a shuttle seat with a lovely lady named Magaly.

Oh…and the bling wasn’t either.

Next race…Tinkerbell.  I am really looking forward to dressing like a fairy and running with some great women. I will be meeting at least one online friend for the first time.

Don't forget to enter my Favorite Things giveaway!! Tomorrow is the last day!

Happy Running…

*There was no expo, just people passing out bibs.  Really?   What a waste of gas and time!  This fact became more annoying when I saw them passing out bibs the morning of the race. I kicked myself, because I should have emailed the race personnel to see if this was an option that wasn’t listed on the website.  Grrrr….
**I enjoyed the fact that there were mile markers with clocks at every mile.
***When checking the results, it looks like she was actually in the age group above me.

Fitfluential Friday

I am starting a feature every Friday called "Fitfluential Friday." I will be featuring guest bloggers to talk about various aspects of what "fitfluential" means to them. I am hoping to provide some different perspectives while highlighting some pretty incredible people.  I hope you enjoy!

Hey Everyone!
I'm Ashleigh from Waking Up In Vegas, and I'm sure as you guessed I am from Las Vegas, and I write a fitness, healthy living, and everything in between kind of blog! Feel free to pop over and say hello! I am so excited to be apart of this new Fitfluential Friday series, it is ironic i also happen to write a Fitfluential post every Friday too. =] Great minds think alike ;)


Today I decided I should share some background on myself of how I became a fitness lover!


I have been athletic for as long as I can remember, I did dance/gymnastics before i could even spell my last name! [its a true story, my last name is pretty difficult] I soon quit dance to become a full-time competitive gymnast. This meant going to the gym [as in gymnastics gym] 4-5 days a week for 4 hours a day! no joke..it was intense. I was told I was too small and needed to gain muscles but I couldn't because I wasnt intaking enough calories. I worked off way more than I ate so my muscles were thriving for more fuel! I was put on a strict diet of protein, protein, and more protein! I had to drink protein shakes before gymnastics and had to stop and have a snack halfway through practice because doctors were scared I was losing to much weight.


Insert first time I was concerned about my weight...As a gymnast you are very aware of your weight and you need to make sure that you eat healthy and stay in shape; coaches would warn you if they thought you were gaining too much. I never had this problem thankfully but you would think I did. One day I went to the doctors at the age of 11 and weighted 72 pounds. I saw the 72 and freaked out..the last time I went to the doctors I had weighted 70.  I didnt take in account that it had been a year, I didnt take in account that I was growing up..I just saw weight gain and got scared that my coaches would be mad.


Fast Forward about 5 years..age 16 hits. I am in high school weighing in about 120..I was about 5'5-5'6 at the time so this was definitely a healthy weight. I had quit gymnastics and started dancing again. I was on my high school swim team (captain to be exact ;)) and I was starting my senior year. I didnt really pay to much attention to my weight at this time, I was dancing an hour a day and then had practice for 2 hours for swim team.  Insert friends my friends were soooo insecure..and they rubbed off on me. I became very insecure. I started watching what I ate, exercising even more and looked up every single calorie i consumed. I was secretly developing a disorder.

um yah..I hated this picture because I thought I was HUGE. 

Fast Forward 1 year to my first year of college. I was 17 about to turn 18, and was extremely insecure.  Thinking I looked fat in everything. I was size 3..not fat at all. I was dating someone long distance and was enjoying getting to buy my own groceries, make my own food and being in total control of EVERYTHING. No one was there to monitor me. I soon developed some really bad habits, I would eat around 700 calories a day and work out twice a day. I would walk the long way to all my classes trying to lose some extra calories. I would do this for the 3 weeks I wasnt with my ex, then when he came up we would enjoy everything and I would act as if I was eating normally. Then once he left I would have a binge day..eating everything I saw....then go back on my crazy diet.  Those freshman 15 myths never happened for me because of this. I once went on saltine diet..6 saltine crackers a day. no joke. chugging water whenever hungry. I also had a slight case of bulimia.  Right before I moved back to Vegas I ate a mini box of thin wheats with salsa...and I cried. I called my mom crying..I called my dad crying..I was slowly losing control.

see how skinny i look in these two pictures.. the one on the left..my pants are so baggy...and the one on the right..well i just look pale..my hair was so brittle.  I remember this was right when i moved back from Reno.

 [although i do love the definition in my legs]. 

My grandparents came up to help me move home, my grandma commented on how horrible I looked and that I should not lose anymore weight. I just nudged it off. When I arrived home it was late in the evening, I ate "dinner" and went to bed. What did I do the next morning? Went to the gym...at six a.m. nothing was unpacked, nothing was done; but my first priority was the gym. What didnt help is that my ex LOVED the way I looked. but everyone else hated it.


My mom threatened to send me to a therapist if i didn't stop this business. I slowly started to eat better and work out an appropriate amount of time. I started to look better and to tell you the truth, I started to feel better. I gained back some much needed weight.  After a couple of months of living at home I decided to move out with the dreaded EX, and that did not help any situations. We enjoyed "acting married" and we would make elaborate dinners and have movie nights on the couch gorging on popcorn and candy.


I gained some "love" pounds but quickly got rid of it the moment I realized my pants were much tighter than I wanted. I made the decision to end the relationship due to cheating  unrecognizable differences, and some of the pounds creeped back on. I tried crazy fad diets like HCG, and almost going anorexic [but I couldnt do it, I just love food too much.] After each failure with each diet I would binge and the weight never went anywhere, I just kept gaining.

me at my heaviest;

embarrassing! 

About a year and a half ago I met the love of my life, my boyfriend, he met me at my highest weight and fell in love with me. I realized I didn't have to be stick skinny to be loved, if he loved me at my highest he will love me even more when I lose it.  But that didnt mean I felt "sexy" or happy with my own self, and I wanted to change that.


Speed forward to present time. I have lost about 15 pounds and gained about 2 lbs in muscle. I have started running, eating right and tracking everything to make sure I am giving my body what it needs. How did I start this? Fitfluential. I read a ton of fitness/healthy living blogs and it inspired me to become healthy not only for me but for my future..my unborn babies, and my boyfriend/husband. Healthy living isn't about a diet, it isn't about working out two times a day trying to drop LBs really fast. It's about setting your life up for success, knowing that small changes in diet and exercise routine can help you in the long run. It's about giving my body the things it needs to function properly.

this is me now.

Do I still get discouraged when the scale doesnt move?..sure..in fact just the other night I wanted to cry because the numbers went up by one and not down.  But the definition I am seeing in my arms, legs and those little itty bitty abs are what make it count. The fact that I am able to run further than ever before, the fact that I can do more push-ups than before..this is what keeps me going. Without Fitfluential i dont know if my new healthy-living lifestyle would be going this strong. The support from fellow bloggers, the support from YOU, is what keeps me going!

starting to see definition.

work in progress.

With that I thank you for reading this ridiculously long post, and hopefully it shows you how far I have come in my life and why Fitfluential is so important to me.


Thanks, Ashleigh!!  Are you "fitfluential?"  Why are you "fitfluential" in your own way??

Enjoy your weekend.  Get out there and MOVE. Happy Running (or whatever your movement is...)!