1.11

In Israel (and many other countries) when writing out the date, they write the day first and then the month. I kind of like it... the 1st day of a new month is emphasized a little bit more.

A few weeks ago, I started a running list of things I want to work on in November. The list is random and ranges from topics like 'wear my retainer to bed each night' and 'find ways that I can use more natural products versus chemicals.'

I've also had this recurring voice in my head whispering that I need to find ways to start curbing my social media/phone time.

Here goes Kait writing another goal-setting post.

Naw, not quite.

I actually don't remember the last time that I wrote a first of the month post. And it hasn't been the lack of time that's made my writing more sporadic, or not having topics to write about. I told myself that when we moved to Israel last summer and I started writing again that I would write for myself, when I wanted to and about whatever I wanted to.

Yet I find myself hesitant to write about certain things, share thoughts, or even share blog posts at all once they're published. I can almost feel people reading this and rolling their eyes. And I'm kind of over tip-toeing around my posts, because honestly half of it them turn out to be horseshit, excuse my French.

I love social media from the aspect that I can see pictures of my friends/family, have interesting articles shared with me, stay easily connected, etc. But as this year has gone on, I've started to find that social media also brings me a good amount of anxiety and irritation.

And I get it, there's always going to be someone who disagrees with you or see things differently, there's always going to be someone who is somehow offended by something. But what makes it a little bit worse with social media is that people can hide behind their keyboards and be extra mean.


This post is already longer than I wanted it to be.


I'm retiring my blog. It doesn't feel relevant anymore, I'm not maximizing my time with it. I've sat on it for awhile and would rather write on the website Medium instead. The platform is clean, it's for writers, and I can choose to very simply write on topics and share - or not share at all.

(I also have the upcoming privilege of helping to run a soon to-be-launched blog with the company I work for, so I'll transition to considering that 'my baby', as all new blogs need love and nurturing.)

I've sat here with my hands on the keyboard for a few minutes now, not sure how to end the post. I found myself thinking this morning, "is the world getting shittier, or are we just overexposed to every single detail of what's going on?" I don't know, I don't have the answers and I'm not sure how to get back to finding joy through social media instead of pissy-ness, for lack of a better word.

However as a sidenote I did thoroughly enjoy all of the baby and pet Halloween pics yesterday.

So to start knocking November goals off my list this very first morning, I'm signing off good ole' Blogger. The platform is pretty outdated and crappy to be honest. If you haven't heard of Medium, check it out here.

Two months left of 2017 my friends. Make goals, be aspirational, do good things. Love someone well today. Don't just resign to the upcoming holidays and accept that you're going into hibernation and likely to put on a few lbs. That's way too easy.

Do something hard.

Cheers - 

Kait

Hump Day Confessions - Official Part I

Welp, we're in that that awkward mid-week place again when we all can’t decide if we should start getting excited that the weekend is coming, or feel defeated that we are only halfway through.

I don’t have an answer to that, but I do have some Hump Day Confessions that may help distract from your confusion.

Vodka & Soda

When first moving into my lovely Baltimore house with my two other roommates, our landlords hooked us up by arranging a cleaning service to come every other month.

Confession: I LOVE WHEN THEY COME. Nothing makes me happier then walking into a sparkly – smelling house, and a perfectly made bed. It makes me feel like I'm living in a hotel... until I wake up the next morning and I've torn my bed to shreds once more.

Confession: I don’t have an opinion on crunchy versus creamy nut butter. None. I like both evenly. Is that some kind of sin?

Confession: I rarely ever ‘do’ my hair anymore. It’s long and curly and I don’t even own a straightener right now. Most days = throwing together some kind of sloppy braid and hoping for the best.

beautiful, just gorgeous.

Confession: I hate bras. I guess this isn’t really a confession...  what girl LOVES bras? I think they are annoying and the highlight of most days is when I can put on my sports bra instead.

Confession: I love group texts. Maybe too much. I’m kind of a group text slut, and any chance I get to start one, I do. Any friends reading are welllll aware of this one already.

Confession: More recently, I’ve become a fan of splitting my daily workout in halves. For example, yesterday I woke up and rode my bike for 40 minutes before work, then after work I went to hot yoga.  It seems I just find more joy in the occasional split up.. it’s kind of like, ‘Nice, I cleared out two chunks of time today to do something I enjoy instead of one.’

Last but not least, my current favorite phrase is ‘I am the champion.’ It can be used pretty much anytime and anywhere you want – ‘I had Chipotle for lunch today because I am the champion’, ‘That guy has badass shoes on, he is the champion’,  ‘Didn’t wear makeup today, I am the champion.’

It sounds dumb but it’s catchy and I can’t stop (like the song). Because I am the champion.

How’s that for some confessions? Give me some of your own, will ya? And remember -

Jetting to Dallas tomorrow morning, it may be a few days until you hear from me again...
If I haven't posted by Sunday night, someone phone the authorities.
(KIDDING)

Cheers –

Kait

I wanted to tell you guys

Do any other bloggers out there keep a weird running list of things they want to blog about?

Or even if you're not a blogger,  maybe a list of things you want to remember to tell people?

(I do that a lot with my boyfriend, not gonna lie)

Normally I either keep track by taking pictures, or keeping a list of random phrases in my ‘notes’ app in my phone that would make absolutely no sense to anyone but me.

Oh yeah, I wanted to tell you guys about….

How I’ve been doing Kettlebell swings wrong for the past year. Figured that one out at Crossfit on Wednesday night.

Apparently it’s all in the hips. I’m sore today everywhere, and it’s glorious.

I wanted to tell you guys about…

The fact that I reach a point every morning where my body basically rejects coffee. I would say that I average about 1 – 1.5 mugs of coffee per morning. My mug is big – maybe about two-ish measurable cups? Anyways, usually a few sips into my second mug my body is like ‘ok I’m awake, switch to water.’ It sounds weird, but I swear I feel it daily.

I wanted to ask you guys…

If I need this scarf from Target? Maybe? Probably not, because apparently Target sucks lately.

I wanted to bitch cry to you guys about…

yesterday....

The weather. (YA COOL KAIT YOU AND EVERYONE ELSE)

But seriously, enough is enough winter. Go home.

Pretty sure wind chills were in the teens this morning.  I wore a scarf to work. I literally cannot wait until all I wear to work is a short-sleeved shirt and I’m sweating through it.

Oh, and I wanted to rave about how my favorite TV show lately is House of Cards. I started season 1 a few weeks ago with my one month Netflix trial, and am hooked. So intriguing. Love watching it while I pedal away on my bike.

HAPPY FRIDAY!! You made it! Today is Jeans Day at work, Sunday is the start of March Madness, and Monday is St. Patrick’s Day!

PUMPED.

Linking up again for #Backthatazzup Friday - how 'bout a little fun.?

Am I the only one who struggled with KB swings? Anyone else excited for some March Madness action?

Cheers - 

K

Linkin'

Happy Saturday!! Lazy Saturday morning's have quickly become one of my all-time favorites, as I can take the time to make the breakfast of my liking, brew some Dunkin Donuts coffee, and just write away.

chicken sausage/spinach scramble

IF we are being honest, I had wanted to write this post yesterday and link up with my pal Brooke as she is always full of awesome links on Friday. Yesterday was no different, and she even stuck Jennifer Lawrence in her post who I continue to fall deeply in love with as she continues to be awesome in the public eye.

I actually thought of her when I saw this on Pinterest. 

Other links... I jumped on the 'Elf for Health 2013' train this past week, and the challenge starts on Monday. Basically you get paired up with another blogger, and for four weeks follow an assortment of challenges while supporting and motivating the blogger you are paired with. You can check out details here, and the calendar of challenges is below.

Speaking of challenges, I challenged Andrew to a race that I REALLY want to do this upcoming February. There is a Cupid's Undies Run in Baltimore on Saturday, February 15th, which raises money for the Children's Tumor Foundation. It looks like an absolute blast, and is offered in several different cities across the country (cough cough, Chicago & Denver too, cough cough).

Thanks to the other Baltimore Kaitlyn for making me aware of this :)

Last link of the day. Jess over at Blonde Pony Tail wrote a great post about abs, and what you need to do in particular to see definition. In short, she reiterates the common phrase that abs are made in the kitchen. This topic always fires me up, because too many people - girls in particular - have this notion that if they want to have a leaner stomach, they simply have to rip out some more sit-ups.

No.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge advocate of core strength and work it into my workouts almost daily. But the times my abs have 'looked' the best and had the best definition have absolutely 100% been linked to my diet - like during the 21-Day Detox - and now, when I stick closer to a paleo-style diet.

Which didn't happen last night, when I got distracted by sushi and wine and movie night with the roomie. It was my first time ever trying seaweed salad, and I am now a huge fan.

Side note - Asahi Sushi in Fells Point has incredible sushi for incredible prices, for any of you Baltimore sushi lovers out there.

As soon as I hit publish on this bad boy I'm grocery-store bound. All I currently have left in the fridge is eggs, and that butternut squash needs to be whipped up into some delicious chili since that recipe was the unanimous winner. The name is the game today is productivity, as tomorrow my day will be consumed with this:

I scored a few of those as a 'thanks for working hard this week' gift from the boss. Definitely well worth the blindness that was slowly brought on by spreadsheets.

I hope you all have a fantastic weekend, I'm sure going to try. It's my last one flying solo before my better half gets back, and to say I'm excited is an extreme understatement.

Make it great, cheers -

K

Less is more

First thing's first:

Couldn't go on without acknowledging today and what it means to us as Americans.

I need a haircut. I hate them, but I really need one, it’s out of control. I mean, check out that MANE:

Also why do I look like a giant in this pic from last weekend?

When it comes to haircuts, less is more. If you take off more than two inches, I’m probably going to snatch your scissors out of your hands and come at you. Kidding, but seriously.

I’ve actually been thinking about that concept a lot lately; less is more. I put it in the same category as quality versus quantity.

Once upon a time, I ran as much as I wanted, wherever I wanted, whenever I wanted to. I pounded the trails all over the city of Fort Collins, Colorado, finding dusty paths outside of city limits, and it was beautiful. A love affair with running, if you will. My body showed me grace for my 50+ mile weeks throughout the entire summer and fall of 2011, for whatever reason. Maybe it was the lack of a desk job, maybe it was the still-newness to running, I don’t know. But it was lovely.

Have I mentioned recently that I miss it?

Sidenote – for all of you  Colorado/mountain runners, do me a favor and never take that sh*t for granted. I would kill for quick access to dirt trails over pavement, and for my Garmin to be reading a couple thousand feet above altitude instead of negative numbers.  That’s right, my runs next to the harbor are literally BELOW sea level. Cool?

Clearly my running has changed since then, as I've collected enough injuries the past year for a family of six. So when it comes to marathon training, the quality of my runs are much more important than the quantity. The same concept actually goes for racing. If you didn’t pick up on it in my last post, I'm hyper-competitive. Possibly a bit too competitive when it comes to racing, but really I’m not sorry. I don't like doing things without reason behind it. I like to have intention, and I like to beat people and finish strongly.

What’s your point kait, get off your high-horse.

source

The point,  I guess, is that the Marine Corps Marathon is now 46 days away. I’m entering a high-mileage point in my training, and have 19 miles on the docket for this weekend. I’m a little nervous to see how my body responds, but I’m also starting to get excited as the race day is actually starting to become more of a reality.

Call me crazy, but unless I feel confident that I can run the race, enjoy it, and PR, I’m not sure I want to run 26.2 just for the heck of it. It goes back to the competitor in me – I want to do well, I don’t want to just run it to run it. I already know that I can complete a marathon, two of them actually. There’s a time and a place to try something just to try it, but marathons are no longer in that category for me. 

Quality over quantity. I try to do it on this blog – I don’t post just to post. I have slowly evolved to take this approach with my runs, with my work, with relationships in my life. Even with cupcakes.

vanilla almond cupcakes my coworker brought in today. so. good.

Just felt the need to share my current mindset; a weird little peek into my brain, if you will. Please don't misinterpret as me sternly declaring that there is not point in a leisurely run; I'm all for them, and still enjoy them. I just can't as much as I used to.

  

I’m off to a happy hour. Should be a perfect little outing to get over the hump this week!

Cheers!

K

Five for August

Ohhhh August, you snuck up on me like a creepy, semi-aggressive cat.

via

Currently, I’m feeling a little brain dead. It’s Friday so that’s awesome of course. But I have a lot going on in my head as well as my heart and haven’t quite been able to force it out of my fingers into written words yet. So that will have to wait, but I would expect something a little heavy coming soon.

Lucky for you all, my Portland blogger friend over at Babbling Brookelyn tagged me in a fun post, so I’m going to play along.

But first, things you should know about August:

I’m going to be following this ab routine on a daily basis for the month of August; I found it in an email that Active.com sent me. It's simple enough, and the plank will be progressive, so hopefully I can have my time back up near the 4-5 minute mark by the end of the month.

 

via

I’m going to be following the 21-day sugar detox starting this Monday, August 5^th. The detox is appealing to me for a variety of different reasons, but the bottom-line is that I’m looking to feel better, and sleep better

On to the main event....

FIVE things I have a passion for:

•  Mornings. 2 years ago I wouldn’t have said this. But mornings are growing on me so hard – I     love getting up, being productive, soaking in a sunrise, with a cup of coffee in hand.
•  Health. This is a broad category, and as I continue to get older the definition continues to       change for me. It goes far beyond bettering your body, and getting that cardio/weights in. What are you fueling your precious body with? What are you doing to recover after you tear your muscles to shreds? And are you taking the time off physically, mentally, and emotionally; something you sometimes need more than anything else?
• Joy. It’s a beautiful word, and a beautiful emotion. Again, it has a broad range of what it may mean to other people. Yet one of my ‘mid-year’ self goals is to speak more of joy than darkness. There’s also a strong chance the word will end up tattooed on my foot at some point this year…sorry mom.
•  My friends. I like to encompass my family in this category, because of course my family are my friends. I want to clarify something… the song ‘I get by with a little help from my friends’ couldn’t ring truer. I would NOT get by without my friends – now, more than ever. I have amazing, beautiful, gracious, patient, loving friends all over the country, and it brings me so much joy.
• Music. I think the below picture pretty much sums it up. Music has the ability to bring me to tears, or put a stupid ass smile on my face, within minutes. It’s more than just music.

FIVE things I want to do before I die:

• Start a family, and raise them well.
• Own a dog. Hopefully that happens sooner rather than later.
• Have a home gym. I’m not talking like a gaudy, over the top gym, but just something reasonable.
• Travel more. This is vague, and I don’t have specific countries nailed down, but I will admit that the only time I’ve left the country is to do the typical Cancun trip. I really want to eat gelato in Italy.
• Run the Chicago marathon.

FIVE books or magazines I’ve read lately:

This is bad guys. I’m not sure I can come up with five. I read a lot of blogs, and online articles, but as far as books/magazines…

•     I’m prety sure I’ve read Andrew’s most recent copy of the ESPN magazine.
•     I’m still reading the Happiness Project. AKA I have barely been reading at all.
•     I WANT to read a Million Miles in a Thousand Years
•     I’m starting to read the book Strengths Finder 2.0 for work….
•     OK OK I promise I will read more. Gosh I’m a sucky English Major.

FIVE Favorite Movies:

I’ll save you all from having to read some thrown together, horrific list. I’m not a movie guru – I hardly ever watch movies due to my severe inability to sit still. I know this is probably breaking my movie buff friend’s (Kyle) heart, but I don’t have five favorite movies. I’ll leave you with this – I’m still obsessed with the movie Silver Linings Playbook. It will probably be a forever favorite.

FIVE Places I would Love to travel to:

-Ireland

-Italy

-Brazil

-Greece

-South Africa

I just pulled those countries out of my butt.

I think this is the part where I’m supposed to tag other bloggers to play… but sadly I’m not sure what bloggers consistently read my blog, so I will hold off on that. However, if you feel like playing along and writing a post about this, then tag you’re it!

Hope you enjoyed these fun little facts. I also hope you enjoy your weekend. Mine will be full of swimming, biking, running, and hopefully a little bit of sunshine.

Just how I like it.

Cheers!

B'more Blogger Meetup

I did something last night that was a bit outside of my comfort zone. I think it’s important to occasionally do things that make you a little scared, as you normally end up walking away saying, “I’m so glad that I did that.”

I know that I did.

Last night I ventured over to the other side of the city, the Federal Hill neighborhood, for a Baltimore Healthy Living Blogger happy hour at the Rowhouse Grille. The bar opened up a room on the second floor just for us, and believe me those $4 glasses of wine definitely came in handy as an icebreaker for the initial meeting. 

It’s funny walking into a room full of girls very much like you. With a passion for fitness, writing, running, healthy eating, adventures – or in most cases, all the above. I’ve come to realize throughout the past couple of years the average person doesn’t find it quite as riveting as I do to discuss injury rehabilitation, different brands of running shoes, and my love/hate relationship with hot yoga.

Last night wasn’t the case. And it was really cool.

There I am on the right, tall and awkward as always :)

In short, my hope is that last night was the start of some new friendships. I had the opportunity to meet eight other awesome Baltimore-based girls, who all have quite the story to share. Their own blogs are listed below.

Brittany @ Barr & Table

Caitlin @ city & the cubicle 

Danielle @ Da Hart Attack

Kate @ Sunshine and the Bear

Kerry @ Adventures of Z & K

Lauren @ Breathe Deeply and Smile

Megan @ Outlaw on the Run

Jess @ Just Call Me Janks

A special thanks to Caitlin for setting the event up!

Cheers to making new friends!

Westward

Is Westward even a word? I'm not sure I care...

I realized lately that I haven’t been writing as much, and I couldn’t quite lay my finger on why. Then I realized this morning that in the midst of my busy couple weeks, I haven’t been taking as many pictures as I typically do. Pictures are what helps to remind me what I want to write about and tell you guys.

Shame on me.

To make up for it, I snapped some pictures at the gym this morning mid-workout.

I’m back up around 4 minute planks on my good days, which is nice. I strongly believe planks are a crucial part of core-work, and contribute greatly towards keeping a tight mid-section, if that's what you're looking for. I don’t really have any strong research to back this up, these are just my general feelings and observations of my own body.

Also, please check out my badass shot from the Warrior Dash that I stole:

Do not copy? Ok sorryyyyy

I’ve been running a lot on my lunch breaks. As long as it isn’t too hot, I don’t sweat much, and love being able to get in 3-4 miles mid-afternoon. It’s an awesome way to break up the day. Body spray post-run is usually necessary in order to not smell up the office...

Hey, quick question… did you know that we fly out to Colorado today? Also, did know that Monday AKA Memorial Day, is Andrew’s birthday? I got him the best birthday gift a crazy runner girl can give…

Yup, I got him a pair of Brook’s Cadences, the same beauts that I run in. Mutual Brooks love.

I had a little chat with Fort Collins and was like hey, can you give me the best weather ever this weekend? And Fort Collins was like well I love you a lot and miss having you around, so sure...

I wouldn’t expect to hear from me this weekend. It’s mountain/boyfriend/friend/family/Colorado time.

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend! Any Memorial Day plans?

Cheers to the red white & blue!

Awhile

It's been awhile. Far too long if you ask me. Don't be mad though, it was a very busy four days that I left you all for.

As mentioned, Andrew's brothers & ladies came into town for the Easter Weekend, and we gave them just about everything Maryland has to offer. At least I like to think so.

Burgers, brews and basketball in Baltimore:

this santa fe burger was so amazing it almost brought me to tears.

Lori & Katie!

Cherry Blossoms and site seeing in DC:

Yes I really took this picture. Isn't it perfect looking!?

I have to add, it was a beautiful day in DC Saturday, so warm in fact that I even took of my zip-up and rocked a tank for awhile. The sun felt amazing.

Easter Sunday was church, and then down to Annapolis for some tapas and seafood of course. Last but not least, we hit up my favorite breakfast place in the area, Eggspectation, on Monday morning before they headed out.

It was then that I tried crepes for the first time. I'm mad at all of your for not telling me how awesome they are. I ate them so fast there wasn't even time to take a picture. However, I now have a constant mind battle going on with myself as to why I cannot eat crepes multiple times per week.

I may have dreamed about them last night.

Solid, fun, action packed weekend with awesome people. It was kind of nice to get back to a bit of routine this morning at the gym. To throw in an extra burn for the thousands of extra cals I gobbled down this weekend, I hit up my favorite iPhone app to give my abs a hurtin' after work.

I recommend this.

I just happened to see this posted by the Marine Corps Marathon on Facebook, and I thought it was pretty swell of them:

I was a lucky one.

Have I ever mentioned how lists keep me sane? I may actually be a little obsessive compulsive about making lists, but I can think of a lot worse things to obsess over, so I'm not going to sweat it. Here's my workout list I came up for this week...

That's right, I'm heading back to Chicago Saturday night for a ten, count 'em, 10 day trip, comprised of three legs. However, let's chat when that get's a little closer. I think we should talk more about running then too, don't you?

For now, this girl has dinner calling her name.

Cheers!

A mouth full of porcelain

Once upon a time, about 5.5 years ago now, I smashed my face on the volleyball court and knocked out my front tooth. We’ve been over this before, I know. Today, a few dentist appointments, some whitening and a couple tears later, I finally have a beautiful permanent porcelain tooth to call my own:

I know you are all just as ecstatic as I am. It really brightened my week.

Another thing that brightened my week… before my dentist appointment this morning I hit the pool for some laps. The lifeguard was BLARING some awesome country jams and it made me so happy. When I did my 15 minutes of pool running at the end of the workout, I sang along and am confident that he was loving it. I mean, who doesn’t love a girl screeching along to country music in a hot pink swim cap at 6 AM?

Hmm what else… I think my foot’s getting better? I continue to not feel almost any pain, I’ve been icing it like crazy and limiting the pounding. I even hop down stairs on only my right foot. I plan to email my doctor tomorrow see what she says. Cross your fingers. 

Until then, I continue to stick to the elliptical, bike and pool. I found out earlier this week that Jane hates the elliptical (who doesn’t) and barks at it while trying to climb on it with me…

Next on the agenda. It’s been called to my attention that the random poetic post about summer earlier thisweek may have been extremely premature seeing that it isn’t even spring yet….

I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love you guys. But I write for me, I write about what I love and am feeling… that’s why I love doing it. Speaking of my mom, I think I may need to hand over my title of smoothie queen to her. She has become a pro smoothie maker over the past couple months, and our freezer at home is STOCKED with frozen fruits and veggies. I woke up Monday morning to this note:

I threw a little something together following her guidance and came up with a delicious tangy smoothie. Mar, the smoothie queen.

Saw this, love it, set it as the background of my computer:

Andrew’s off getting rich in Vegas this weekend so that he can come back and buy me cool things, so I don’t have too many crazy plans. I have committed to returning to the inferno at which they host Hot Yoga on Saturday morning, and am determined to not let it ruin my weekend. Yoga is good, yoga is good, yoga is good.

If I keep saying it maybe it will grow on me.

Happy Friday Eve. Make it awesome. Tell me something awesome. Ready Go.

Cheers!

sushi & shenanigans

I swam today, for the first time this year. I had to take my new purple speedo that my mom got me for Christmas for quick spin.

purple is fo sho my color this year.

A hard, non-impact workout was necessary today after a long night of sushi and shenanigans out in Baltimore on Friday evening. I had to crank up the heat at the gym to burn off the several rolls pieces of sushi that I housed.

Although I must admit, the hour plus spent dancing towards the end of the night got me sweating too.

My coworker Marty & me. She wanted to learn to swing dance like Andrew and I are . We got a few looks. 

A girls night has been in order for awhile, and so several of my coworkers got together to make it happen. I had a blast, and even hit brunch with my friend Meg who I stayed over with on my way out of town this morning.

4 out of 10 or so of us

After the gym today I ran to the grocery store to grab some necessary staples for the week. Wegman's was CRAZY which was pretty confusing to me, as I thought I was the only one who desired to get my grocery shopping done on Saturday nights. Apparently I was wrong?

I'm going to keep this short and sweet because I've found that the later I write on here, the crappier my writing is. I think my brain shuts down past 8 pm. I have a 6 mile race on tap tomorrow (if I can find it) and aside from that I just plan to do a lot of catch-up.

I'm also pretty excited about the post I plan to share with you all tomorrow. It's been in the making for awhile now.

That's all folks. Hope your weekends are going swimmingly.
Cheers!