Laying the Smack Down!

I want to get in a quick post for today, since it has been forever since I've written (but yet it doesn't seem like that long). Thank you, thank you for all of your comments about the Ab Challenge, and a big Thank You to those that were brave enough to participate with me. I think that overall, it was a successful endeavor.

I will do a better update about the weekend when I get a chance to upload the pictures off the camera. I will just say that it was stressful, fun, crazy, and football-filled. And, all of our teams won their games- the Utes and Cougars are both 4-0 on the season (go Utah!!), and the Vikings finally won, Yippee!!!.

Okay, the reason for my title above is because I have decided to crack down on my food journal (yes, again). My weight has been creeping back up a bit, and I know it's because I haven't been as careful with my eating (it's not from a bun in the oven, just in case you were wondering). I made a half-hearted attempt to try and get 5 servings of fruits and vegetables a day, but since I wasn't really keeping track anywhere it kind of fizzled out. Plus, my water drinking has been sort of down the tubes. If I see that written documentation that I've drank a certain amount, I'm more motivated to keep it up. In my Discovery Health Food Journal, I would check off the little water glasses, but I decided to start using a regular spiral notebook, so I just make check marks for each 8 oz that I drink.

Starting today, and for the next 30 days, I am committing to tracking what I eat in my food journal (and on Fitday.com). I will make sure to get in my 72+ ounces of water a day, and I will shoot for 5 or more servings of fruits and vegetables. I won't be posting what I eat every day, because I'm sure it would bore you to tears. Instead, I'll just sporadically mention stuff the way that I have in the past. This won't be too difficult for me during the week, once I get back into the habit. However, the weekends are where I always fall off in terms of tracking. And that's always where I need the most accountability, too. So there you have it.

I don't expect to make my goal weight (124) before getting pregnant, but I would like to make a little more headway. But mainly I just want to build better habits so that I don't gain too much weight when I do get pregnant. I definitely think continuing my ab work will benefit me during pregnancy. This morning I did a quick set of crunches. I thought about running, but changed my mind because I've had a lot of pain in my calf ever since my last race. It's okay most of the time, but is tender after I run and in the mornings, too- it's in a weird spot, the very top part of my calf muscle and behind my knee. So I think I'll let it rest a bit more and work on stretching it out. I almost did an elliptical workout instead, but I figured that might aggravate it, too. Plus that extra sleep felt really good.

Today so far, I'm doing okay on my food, but much better on my water. I've downed 56 oz, and will make sure to get at least 16 more later tonight. I've only had about 2 servings of fruits and veggies (applesauce, grapes, and some carrots and celery), but dinner is leftovers from last night, which is roasted chicken, potatoes, mushrooms, red peppers and zucchini, so that will be about 2 more, and I'll add a salad to get number 5. Eventually I hope to increase my F&V goal, because 5 is the bare minimum, but I figured it was a good place to start (gotta make those goals SMART, right?). Tomorrow I'll probably try to get in a decent run of 3-4 miles, and see how my calf feels. I want to try a long run this Saturday, maybe 7 or 8 miles, so hopefully it will feel better soon.

Did everyone have a good weekend, and are you loving the fall weather? This morning it was pouring rain, and it's only 64 degrees, but it's mid-70's tomorrow, then back to the 80's. And I love the leaves changing colors. Maybe I'll take a picture of the mountains right behind my house and post it.