I knew when I was going to bed last night that I was in some serious need of exercise.
To say I've had an off week is putting it mildly and I really haven't exercised much at all the last two weeks. I was bummed I wasn't seeing much happening on the scale for a second week, but honestly what should I expect when I'm not making the effort to exercise. I'm hitting my calorie limit (or exceeding it) almost every day and that only makes sense.
I am participating in the Heart Mini Marathon 15K next weekend and I knew I had to see how prepared I was at this point before I go off sprinting and don't make it the first block. I did surprise myself by running 4.1 miles in 58 minutes and spent 90% of the time actually jogging. Some of the hills got me and to slow my heart rate a bit I did switch to walking for a portion of the time but I was pretty darn proud of myself. I know next weekend with the excitement of the event I'll be able to keep going.
After I got home and showered Kyle and I went to Ruby Tuesdays with a coupon I had gotten in the mail and I was pleasantly surprised by the healthy choices available on the menu and for 300-400 calories including side dishes for some options. Last night we went to see Silver Linings Playbook and it started when we'd normally be eating dinner so we opted to eat afterward. We went to Champps, one of our old favorites, and I was looking up on MyFitnessPal what I would be able to eat and I was shocked to find that almost everything on the menu was over 1000 calories. There wasn't one thing I could get besides soup and salad that kept me under 700 calories for the whole meal. That's even half my day's calorie total! We used to go there every week in college for trivia night and I don't know how we didn't gain 100 pounds a piece with what we would eat there. I'm so glad I have the resources at my fingertips to make better choices.
After lunch and a quick grocery trip we watched the Buckeyes win and then Penny and I went on a nice walk and got out to enjoy the beautiful day. Kyle took a nap :)
I invested in a new gadget - the Body Media armband that the contestants on The Biggest Loser wear. It was delivered on Friday afternoon and I immediately began playing with my new toy. It's a smart little thing - it knows when I'm sleeping, how many calories I'm burning in a day, it shows how many steps I've taken and also connects with MyFitnessPal to show my total intake compared to calorie output. I love it! I can sync it wirelessly with my phone to update my totals throughout the day (as I'm an instant gratification type of girl) and see where I am with calories burned. As long as my total calories in are 1000 less than burned for the day I should stay on track of losing two pounds a week as I've been trying to do with tracking my diet alone. I feel so in control with the wealth of information it provides me and I'm loving it! Today I ate just under 1100 calories and burned just over 3000 with the running and my afternoon walk plus the normal calories burned doing daily activities and just being alive and breathing. I'm even going to treat myself to some chocolate covered almonds before bed. Yum :)
As mentioned before an opportunity presented itself to me, and as most of you know from my facebook account I accepted a new job! I was contacted a few weeks ago by a nursing recruiter at Cincinnati Children's Hospital and went in for an interview in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit. I loved what I saw and was hopeful they saw potential in me considering I've never been a "floor nurse" and my only experience out of school has been in surgery. Surgery nurses are not necessarily regarded as the most skilled or even a good place to land because once you start to lose the skills you learn from school it is difficult to move into a different position. I wanted to work in critical care when I got out of school but I was happy to take any job I was offered as a new graduate. I attempted to get into our cardiac ICU at the hospital I work at now but wasn't successful. I also have been applying to graduate schools and have been rejected by every school I've applied to for their family nurse practitioner programs. I have always been successful academically and with great reference letters I was frustrated with not getting in. Maybe with this opportunity presenting itself to me and the other programs that open up with critical care experience I will get from this new job it will lead me in the direction I am supposed to end up in for the future. I am beyond excited to care for these sick kids and learn everything I can from those around me.
Next time you hear from me I'll have another 9.3 miles under my belt. Hoping to finish in under 2:15 - here goes nothing!
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