Back to blogging!

So I've been neglecting my poor little blog. I've been busy traveling, going out with friends and working too much to pay attention to my little blog but now I'm back!

I went running today for the first time in about three(ish?) weeks and IT WAS ROUGH. I ran a very slow 4 miles along the East River. It started pouring while I was out there so I ran back to my apartment to ditch my iPhone and then headed back out for the last two miles.

Before I went home I stopped for an Italian ice....possibly the best part of my day.

Even the run was super slow and a little painful, it felt really great to be outside and actually moving again. I've been so busy the past few weeks and it's definitely showing. I don't own a scale but I can tell that I've gained a few pounds by the way my clothes fit. I need to get back on track with healthy living. More exercise, more salads, less junk food, blah blah blah. Starting tomorrow I'm committing to living a healthier lifestyle!

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Confession Time

So, it's confession time:  I've been pretty unmotivated lately.  I haven't been running, I haven't been working out, I haven't been eating well, I haven't been going out; I haven't been doing anything lately.  I don't know what's wrong with me, but lately I just haven't had the energy to do anything.

Rather than just whine about it, I'm actually going to try and change something, so here's the game plan:

• Eat better.  I'm not really into the whole "diet" thing, but I do need to eat healthier.  More fruits and veggies, less candy and pastries.  It's as simple at that.  Then maybe my clothes will fit again.

This is my sad fridge.  Maybe I should start buying groceries instead of eating out every meal?  Yes, add that to the plan.

 

 

• Exercise more.  This doesn't necessarily have to be running.  It can be anything: bodypump, spinning, dancing, yoga.  I feel better when I get a good sweat in during the day and I need to make it a priority.

I ran today!  Also, these shorts are weird and baggy.  I think I need to go shopping.

• Socialize more.  Lately I've been turning down invites to have dinner or go out with friends.  And it's not always because I'm busy.  Sometimes it's just because I'm lazy.  I love my friends to death and I should put more of an effort into seeing them.

That's about it.  I'm thinking the problem is mostly in my diet so hopefully after a few days of healthy foods I'll be back to my normal, happy self. 

Running in the Rain

Sometimes this makes me feel hardcore. And sometimes I just feel like a jackass.

Tonight was definitely the latter. I had a long, stressful day and when I got home all I wanted to do was run. So that's what I did. Three miles in the cold, pouring rain. Oh, and in the dark. On a secluded path. The same Obviously not very smart. I've seen way too many episodes of Criminal Minds/Law and Order/Dateline and my imagination gets carried away. All I could think about was being kidnapped or pushed over the rai,ing into the East River and no one would know where I was. I know, super dramatic.

Also, my hair turns into a giant rats nest in the rain. Fun times.

 

 






 

Running Adventures: Roosevelt Island

I woke up today and decided I wanted to try running somewhere new.  There's a tiny island between Manhattan and Queens that I've never been to so I figured I would give it a shot.

I ran over the Queensboro Bridge....

past some sleeping taxis and inspirational graffiti in Long Island City....

across the Roosevelt Island Bridge and onto Roosevelt Island!

Roosevelt Island isn't very big(only about 2 miles long) but it has a lot of history.  There was a penitentary(Mae West, Boss Tweed and Billie Holiday all served time there), a lunatic asylum, and a smallpox hospital(ruins below).

After exploring a bit(and taking a ton of photos!) I decided to take the sky tram back.  I ran about 6 miles and my legs were too tired to run or walk back.  Honestly, the tram was probably the most fun part - I felt like I was on a ride!

My legs are pretty beat now but I'm so happy I did this today.  I've lived in NYC for almost five years and there are still SO many things that I haven't seen or done.  I feel like I should make a list of all of the stuff I want to see here and try to cross some things off the list this summer.

Date Night @ The Smith

Today was a perfect day in NYC. I went on a walk through the park so I could have lunch at Trader Joe's. I don't think ever seen Sheeps Meadow empty! Normally it's packed with people laying out, playing frisbee, doing yoga, etc, but I guess it was closed or something today.

I managed to squeeze in a short three mile run along the east river before my date night. I wanted to run more, I just didn't have enough time. I only had about eight minutes to shower and get ready, but I made it. Washing your hair is overrated.

I had a wonderful date night at The Smith. I really love the East Village location so I was happy to try the new midtown one.

The food was pretty good but the place was packed and loud.

Now I'm off to bed full of bacon-wrapped-apricots and champagne. Goodnight!

National Running Day!

Dear Central Park Reservoir,

I know that sometimes I whine about the crowds of tourists taking photos or the women who walk in groups of four, making it impossible to pass them, but none of those things are your fault. You are wonderful and beautiful, and every time we spend a few miles together I leave in a much better mood.

You are my favorite spot in Central Park and I wouldn't want to celebrate National Running Day anywhere else.


Love,

Me

 

Bloody Toes

I had a great run today! Love it when that happens.

Three easy and peaceful miles along the East River. It was cloudy and looked like it was about to rain, which actually encouraged me to run a bit faster.

Two years ago I could easily run five or six miles at a respectable pace and now I'm struggling to run at a 10 min/mile pace. Today was the first time it felt like running was getting easier. Granted I was still working way too hard, but I'm finally feel like I'm getting somewhere.

And then I got home and there was this.....

You would think that if I was bleeding enough to soak through my sock I would have felt something, but no. I must have been too busy focusing on how happy I was to be running outside or something. Oh well, time to buy new socks. :)

Least Responsible Runner EVER

I ran the NYRR Israel 4-Mile race this weekend and it was a disaster.  I'm officially the least responsible runner(slow jogger?) EVER.  I swear I tried to be responsible.  I was going out to dinner with friends, I had plans to drink water and maybe one cocktail and somehow the night just got out of control.

Sober and responsible before dinner. 

One glass of sangria turned into a few margartias which turned into pickle-back shots.  Serious disaster.

Tequila is delicious.  Also, I REALLY need a haircut.

I really did try to make good choices.  I drank SO many glasses of water....but I guess when they're in between shots of whiskey that doesn't really count as a "good decision."  I tried to undo the alcohol by eating a clif bar(chocolate coconut!  yum!) and chugging a liter of water on my way home at 3am, which probably helped a lot.

I somehow managed to wake up on time and I seriously considered not running.  But then I felt like a jerk.  I signed up and paid for it and I live SO close to the starting line...I couldn't NOT go, no matter how terrible I felt.  So I got dressed and dragged myself to the start about ten minutes before the race started.

I had a PINK bib!  I usually have an
ugly brown bib because I'm the slowest
 runner ever.  That's actually probably
 the real reason I decided to run.

In the end, I was so tired and so slow, but I'm happy I went.  I ran, grabbed some snacks at the finish, walked home and crawled back into bed for a three hour nap. 

Lesson learned:  don't go out the night before a race!  I would have been fine if I had just gone to dinner and had a drink or two; I didn't need to stay out until 3am.  I'm definitely happy I got to spend time with my friends but I could have done without the five million drinks and late night dancing.

First Time Yogi

I went to my first yoga class yesterday! It was a slow paced, candle-light class that was designed to be relaxing. I told the instructor that I was completely new to yoga and she assured me I would be fine, but I pretty much struggled to keep up the entire class. I'm nowhere near as flexible as I used to be and today my legs are aching from feeling over stretched but I can't wait to go back and try again. They also offer a roof top yoga class, which I'm pretty excited to try.

 

Brooklyn Half Marathon

I ran 13.1 miles and didn't die!  Actually I didn't quite run the whole thing.  I ran the first half and then ran/walked the last half....but still!

The race started at 7am near Prospect Park and getting there was a disaster for me.  Living so close to Central Park has completely spoiled me and today I learned that commuting to a race isn't really all that fun.  NYRR recommended that we arrive by 6am since the baggage check closed at 6:20am.  I left my apartment a few minutes after 5am so I could take the subway with plenty of time to spare.  This wouldn't have been an issue but after getting off the subway at recommended stop it took TWENTY MINUTES to get above ground.  There were SO many people and only one exit.  Anyway, I made it right as the baggage check was closing so everything worked out fine but being stuck on the subway platform with a huge crowd made me way too anxious.  If I run this race next year I'm going to get off a stop before and just walk the extra distance.

Anyway, the course the beautiful and it was a perfect day for running.  It was about 60 degrees, a little breezy and very sunny.

Running down Ocean Parkway.

I'm still recovering from an achilles injury so I didn't want to push it too much.  I figured I would keep running as long as I wasn't in pain.  Turns out that was only about 7 miles.  After the 10k mark I started alternating walking with running.  I used to hate walking in races(I felt like a slacker or something) but I'm starting to be okay with it.  It's not worth injuring myself just to shave a few minutes off my time.  The bottom line is that I'm just happy I finished! 

UAE Healthy Kidney 10K

I ran(okay, more like ran/walked) a 10k on Saturday!  This was my first 10k and it was really tough for me.  I just started running about 3 weeks ago and I'm still really out of shape.  I ran SO slowly and I had to take a few walking breaks but I'm happy I finished.  The park so, so gorgeous on Saturday and there were so many people out - definitely exciting!  I already can't wait until the next race.

First Post!

Welcome to my little piece of the internet, Sparkles and Sweat!  I've been stalking healthy living blogs for awhile now so I figured it was finally time to start my own.  I'll be talking about my life in NYC, my attempt to get back in shape and sharing my love for all things sparkly.