Spreading the (link) love

Hi there!

First things first (otherwise they wouldn’t be first!), this was supposed to have been posted yesterday.

But, I’m a procrastinator (procrastinate (verb): to be slow or late about doing something that should be done : to delay doing something until a later time because you do not want to do it, because you are lazy, etc.) was out Christmas shopping and it didn’t happen.

I also had to take Thing 2 to urgent care because she tried to slice off her fingertip. *sigh* A mother’s work is never done.

Okay, so I didn’t HAVE to take her to urgent care.  Well, I mean, she definitely needed to go but she totally could have taken herself because she’s old enough (and moved out!) but I got to play mom and I wasn’t complaining one little bit! 🙂

And, because I was so busy, I didn’t food prep either.

Okay, I actually didn’t even plan on food prepping because I only have to work 2 days this week and I’ll be doing all the pre-Christmas dinner cooking on Wednesday anyway.

So, maybe it’s perfect that I didn’t post this yesterday as planned. Gives me something to post today. 🙂

And now, without further ado, yesterday’s unpublished post…..

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You guys probably don’t even realize how many blogs I actually read.

Seriously, sometimes there’s just not enough time in the day to get all my reading done. I mean, that whole work business really gets in the way. 🙂

Anyway, I figured it was about time I started sharing some of what I’ve read. I mean, it’s pretty selfish of me to keep it all to myself. It is the season of giving, after all. 😉

So, from now on, every Sunday, I’ll be spreading the link love. Enjoy!

For Your Tummy

Skinny Peppermint Bark Fudge – Amy’s Healthy Baking

Egg Nog Smoothie – The Law Student’s Wife

A Better Egg Muffin Sandwich – Green Lite Bites

6 Ways to Bake with Avocados – California Avocado Commission

Slow Cooker Apple Cranberry Sauce – The Lemon Bowl

6 Fast Healthy Dinners for Busy Nights – Mommy Run Fast

Baked Apple Oatmeal Protein Bombs – Lean Lena

For Your Body

Why Time is Screwing Up Your Workout – Lifting Revolution.com

Move Better With the Push-Up Plus – Hello to Fit

5 Tips for Staying Fit During the Holidays – Blonde Ponytail

Winter Running Guide: How to Run Faster by Spring – Life by Daily Burn

Beyond Fitness: What it Really Means to be “Healthy” – Strength Running

For Life

This Is the Brutally Honest Body Image Lesson That Should Be Taught in School – Greatist

Sharing my Story – Breastfeeding is Hard – The Lean Green Bean

10 Ways to Relieve Stress During the Holidays! (Time for Yourself!) – Hungry Hobby

Why Motivation is Overrated (and What You Actually Need to Accomplish Your Goals) – She’s Wicked Healthy

For Blogging

Household Items to Improve Your Food Photography – Healthy Seasonal Recipes

How to Make Money Blogging – Create a Stellar Media Kit – OK Social Media

Back to Blog School: 10 Facebook Tips for Bloggers – Poofy Cheeks

Talk to me: What have you read lately?

– jennifer

Weekly workout recap – running and squatting and rope climbs, oh my!

Hello!!

Happy Saturday!! 🙂

It’s definitely been a tough week as far as workouts are concerned but I did get some running in so I’m not complaining.

My big news of the week is that I registered for a 10k on November 23rd!

I’m super excited – it’ll be my first race since my injury and I definitely have time to get ready. Plus, it’s local and I don’t have to drive very far to get there! #bonus

I’ve got about one more week of easing back into the running and then, I think I’m going to start back with CrossFit Endurance.

I mean, I’ll still slowly add mileage because that’s the safe thing to do but I won’t necessarily have to run just 3 days a week, taking at least a day break between runs.

I’m totally looking forward to getting back to a set schedule and making gains and improvements. 🙂

Monday

AM run

Wow, that’s so nice to say that!

I had planned on running at least 2 ½ miles. I know I ran over 2 but I don’t know exactly how far because …. My knuckle lights were really dim, I encountered an unknown “something” in the middle of the road in the dark area between street lights and I quietly backed up and went the other direction and, at some point during this event, I hit a button on my Garmin and it stopped recording my run.

I’m not sure the lack of distance really matters because my heart rate increased substantially after I backtracked from the “something” and a bird decided to freak out in a wooded area and, thus, freaked me out! Pretty sure all that adrenaline burned some extra calories. And, I’m pretty sure I looked ridiculous as I was trying to “sneak away” from whatever was in the road (honestly, it could have been a trash can but because my knuckle lights were lacking in power, I’ll never know) while simultaneously trying to get away from the crazy bird in the woods. The only thing that would have been more perfect would be if I’d run through a spider web at some point. Picture that craziness. Yep.

Tuesday

6pm CrossFit

Man, oh man, I did NOT eat enough today.

I felt okay throughout the day but I discovered I was really hungry on the way to CrossFit and my protein bar didn’t quite cut it.

I made it through the warm-up and had to grab a Chia bar from my purse. That’s NOT a good sign.

This is what we had on the schedule today:

It was a really big class – surprising for a Tuesday at 6pm – and my group didn’t make it through all the push jerks. I did 65# (10x) – 75# (10x) – 85# (8x) – 95# (8x) … we didn’t do the 6 – 6.

I finished up the 85# and Coach came over to talk about my form and I realized that I was absolutely STARVING. I mean, I was literally shaking. I grabbed some almonds from my purse and tried not to inhale those.

I never eat at CrossFit and now I’ve just eaten twice?! In less than an hour?! So not good.

I managed the 95# but was thankful we ran out of time because I knew I didn’t have the energy to do more and then try to do the WOD.

For the WOD, I scaled the weight down to 65#. Normally, I would have had that at about 80-85# but I knew my body wasn’t fueled enough for all that. I also grabbed the 12 inch box because I’m still getting back into this jumping business and I knew I’d never make it over a 20 inch box. Not even if I was fueled properly.

I managed 5 rounds (don’t ask me how) and felt like I was going to die the entire time. I was so thankful to be done!

I went home and had 2 bowls of chili (thank goodness for crockpots!!) and made plans to NOT eat too little during the day. I’m not sure what happened. Generally, I make sure to eat enough.

Wednesday

6pm CrossFit

Got to the gym and was signing myself in and one of the Coaches was heading to the grocery store. He asked the other coaches if they needed anything – they said no. He made his way to leave and then came back and asked me if I needed anything. LOL! I told him I ate plenty today so I was all good. I’m glad he asked, though. That was really cool. 🙂

I was sort of looking forward to this workout because it had running but I was also a little nervous about this workout because of the rope climbs and the pistols.

I didn’t realize that I needed to be nervous about the warm-up!

Coach had us do 3 rounds, not for time, of run 200m, 10 leg raises, and 10 kick outs.

Those leg raises. Not toes to bar but leg raises. We basically hung from the pull-up bars with the vertical bar at our back to prevent swinging. Then, we had to lift our legs to parallel with the ground. So NOT easy.

This isn’t exactly it but it’s the closest video representation I could find.

Then, the kick outs. Basically, we got into the bottom of a squat and then we were to alternate legs and kick out to a pistol squat. Coach wanted us to do them without holding on to anything. Yeah, right! I had to hold onto the bar otherwise I would just be sitting. Haha

For the WOD, it was supposed to be a 400m sprint but I just ran. I’m not quite at the point of sprinting yet so I didn’t want to push it. Of course, I was the last one to finish but I don’t care. 🙂 For the pistols, I had to use box assistance because it’s been so long since I’ve done them that I lost the little progress I had made.

Basically like these except I used a 24” box and went into a full pistol. The goal was to not touch the floor.

And then, the rope climbs. Ugh. It’s also been some time since I climbed the ropes – a little hard to do that in a boot. 😉

I completed everything in the first 2 rounds with barely any time to rest. I was definitely the last one climbing. Then, the last 2 rounds, I only managed 1 in the 3^rd round and 1 ½ in the 4^th round. I was trying!

Thursday

I thought briefly about getting up and running but decided against it because of the running last night and tonight’s WOD also had running.

I didn’t want to push it with my foot.

And, I don’t know what it was but my shoulders were SORE from yesterday! I think it was those leg raises combined with the rope climbs. Even woke me up when I shifted in my sleep!

6pm CrossFit

I was actually pretty stoked about this workout!

It’s been a while since I was able to do heavy back squats because of the boot. I was looking forward to throwing on some weight and seeing what I could do!

I warmed up with just the bar (10 squats), then we threw 85# on there. Knocked out 5 of those and got down to business. I was sharing a rack with 2 other people and we were all at different levels so we kept pulling plates off and putting plates on. I did 3 at 105# and then did 3 at 115#. I know I could probably go higher but we ran out of time. I’m cool with 115# though – especially since I was so beat up from yesterday’s WOD.

Then, it was time for the WOD. I was definitely looking forward to the running but not the 200 air squats. Finished in 16:31 on jello legs. 🙂

Friday

REST DAY!!!!!

Saturday

Running!!!

I’m up to 3 miles in my rebuilding so I decided to knock out a 5k.

It felt so good to be out running and my miles got progressively faster – 9:29, 8:58, 8:40.

For some reason, my Garmin didn’t record the run.

This isn’t the first time that it’s failed me and I’m starting to get really frustrated by it. I just don’t get it. It’s not like it’s a new watch and I don’t know how to use it.

And, it’s not like the data bank is full because, once it reaches so many runs recorded, it starts deleting the oldest when you save a new one. There’s no way for me to erase all recorded runs without doing them one by one and I just don’t have the time for that.

Regardless, it was a beautiful morning and I got to watch the sun rise. #winning

 

Talk to me: How was your week of workouts? Did you do anything new or difficult? Did you remember to fuel yourself properly?

– jennifer

Thursday Thoughts – personality tests & self-judgment

Hi there!

Have you seen that quiz that’s been circling around on Facebook? The one where you find your personality type?

(If you haven’t or if, for some reason you’re not on Facebook, here are a couple of links to similar quizzes: Jung Typology Test™ and 16Personalities.)

Well, that quiz is based off the Myers-Briggs assessment and is surprisingly accurate for just a few questions.

I’ve taken the full Myers-Briggs assessment before – it was actually a requirement and part of orientation at a previous place of employment – at least twice and I score the same each time. I scored the same with this quiz.

Basically, you’re asked a bunch of questions that you are supposed to answer honestly – and no, this isn’t like those “Which Disney Princess are you?” quizzes where you have to pick an answer regardless of whether or not it’s true and “none of the above” is not an option. I hate those. It’s more “which do you prefer?” or “how does this situation make you feel?” type questions.

Then, you’re given a 4 letter “type” based off your answers.

The first letter is either an I or an E: Introvert or Extrovert.

If you don’t know, an introvert is the quiet, reserved person who probably is perfectly happy staying home reading a book or sitting silently in a meeting and the extrovert is the one who has no problems speaking, maybe getting up and singing karaoke, loves attention, etc.

The second letter is either an S or an N: Sensing or iNtuition.

This letter refers to how you process information or how you perceive things. A “sensing” person is usually pretty realistic, practical, and detail oriented. An “intuitive” person is usually innovative, forward-thinking, and imaginative.

The third letter is either a T or an F: Thinking or Feeling.

This basically refers to how you prefer to make decisions. This is also the trait that can, in my personal experience, cause heads to butt (Seriously, that’s just a funny thing to say! Haha! Okay, I’m done being a 12 year old boy.). A thinker is more analytical, objective, and rational, while a feeler tends to be sensitive, compassionate, and empathetic. Thinkers tend to leave their feelings out of the decision-making process and go for facts and feelers go with their gut and pay little attention to data charts, etc. Makes for an interesting meeting, to say the least.

The final letter is either a P or a J: Perception or Judgment.

This is basically how you handle or organize your life. A “judger” is often conscientious, loyal, and dedicated and a “perceiver” is often more flexible, accepting, tolerant, and open-minded.

source

I’m an ISTJ.

According to Myers-Briggs, that means I’m “quietly systematic, factual, organized, logical, detailed, conscientious, analytical, responsible, pragmatic, critical, conservative, decisive, stable, concrete, efficient.”

According to truity.com, “Popular hobbies for the ISTJ include concentration games like chess and Trivial Pursuit, playing computer games, watching sporting events, pursuing physical fitness, and playing solitary sports such as golf.”

Hmmm…..pursuing physical fitness…..interesting…..

Still with me? Good. I have a point, I promise. 🙂

Let’s talk about my final letter – the J. Judgment. The letter that leads to the descriptive adjective: critical.

When you take the actual Myers-Briggs test, you get a chart that shows you where you place with one letter being on one side and the other being on the opposite side.

source

Please note that while those results are for an ISTJ, those are not my personal results. I was just lucky enough to find a picture of what I was describing with ISTJ as the personality type.

Anyhoo, back to my J.

I’m WAYYYYY over on the J side.

Like, I barely have any P in me. (hahahahah! 12 year old boy again. sorry.)

Okay, seriously, my point. I’m getting there.

While the J is described as “systematic, loyal, dedicated, methodical,” etc….there is some judgmental in there. Otherwise, “critical” wouldn’t be in the description.

I try not to be judgmental of others because there’s just really no need for that and it’s just wasted energy but sometimes, I just can’t help it.

Like, when a person professes to be proficient in grammar or is an English teacher, and then posts/shares/emails things that are rife with spelling and grammatical errors. Yes, it’s true, I’m totally judging them.

source

But,the person that I judge the most is me.

And I KNOW I’m not the only person in the world guilty of that.

And no, I don’t mean guilty of judging ME but guilty of judging themselves. If you’re judging me, you better stop or I’ll poke your eyes out. 😉

Yesterday, at CrossFit, I totally judged myself and my performance and not in a positive manner.

There’s this girl who is probably 15-20 years younger than me and is super tiny (both in height and weight. a stiff wind might knock her over.) and she’s also wicked strong.

The WOD was running, 10 pistol squats (alternating legs), and 2 rope climbs, every 5 minutes for 4 rounds.

Now, I’m still taking my running slowly because I don’t want to push myself too hard and reinjure my foot, and I KNOW THIS and I UNDERSTAND THIS, but when we went out the door on the run (400m sprint), I instantly felt like a slug watching her take off.

Then, she knocks out the pistols like they’re a piece of cake – which didn’t bother me, for some reason – and climbs the rope twice SUPER FAST like it’s nothing.

It takes me FOREVER to climb the ropes. Well, probably not forever, but for the first 2 rounds, I used the entire 5 minutes to knock out everything and I was the last one climbing while everyone else was resting. Then, the last 2 rounds, I could only manage 1 rope climb each time. She was still knocking out both AND still had time to rest!

And, she can do 5 strict pull ups in a row.

I’m at 3, which is actually a pretty big deal for me.

But, I was totally judging myself based on HER performance. Wtf?

I don’t usually do that. I like to take inspiration from other athletes but I don’t usually let their strengths intimidate me or make me feel like I’m lacking in any way.

Why did I turn into my own worst enemy?

Interestingly enough, that self-judgment came the same week that Renee Zellwegger is being judged for looking different. People are being overly critical about the possibility over her having plastic surgery. OMG, she’s got somebody else’s face, she looks so different, blah, blah, blah. Sheesh, people, she’s aging and she’s gorgeous and she’s HUMAN and that’s what happens to HUMANS. Good grief.

Why is it such big news?!

Yes, I’m aware she elected a career that puts her in the spotlight, in front of millions of people, but still……why can’t she age/be herself without being judged?

I feel as if I’m going to digress too much so I need to reign myself back in. I want to get to my point.

Critical of myself. Judging my abilities based on someone else’s abilities.

I need to stop doing that.

We all need to stop doing that to ourselves.

I’m strong, I’m in great shape, I can do 3 strict pull ups in a row, I can deadlift more than 200 pounds, I’ve run 8 marathons, I love to cook and can do so pretty well, I’m smart, I’m a ginger (now that’s something to be proud of!), and I’m not the best at everything and that’s okay because it gives me goals to set and work towards.

Could you imagine how exhausting it would be to be the best at EVERYTHING?

My point is (I told you I had one!!!) – don’t judge yourself, or be overly critical of yourself, based on the skills and abilities of others, whether you have a J in your personality type or not.

Just say NO to those evil voices in your head.

Work hard, be you, and appreciate who you are and what you can do.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering, I yelled at myself – may or may not have been out loud – and pulled my thoughts back to my own abilities and getting through the WOD. And then I fist-bumped the girl who kicked my butt and told her she was bad ass. 🙂

Talk to me: What’s your personality type? (um, if you didn’t take the quiz, do it now!) Have you ever caught yourself judging or being overly critical of yourself? Do you talk to yourself, sometimes out loud?

– jennifer