Easter Run and The Dreaded BEFORE Pictures

I never took any!

Before we get to that, let's back up to that morning. The weather was gorgeous, so I decided that instead of being cooped up in my bedroom on the treadmill, I'd actually GO OUTSIDE!

I put on my spiffy new compression capris and the teal top. The capris were actually ALMOST one size too big!  The waist was a bit loose, and I had to use the interior drawstring to tighten it a bit. That was weird!  The tee was just about perfect (I'm still retaining a Volkswagen, so I've bloated out to almost a full size bigger...) I tucked my cell phone into the little pocket in the back and headed out the door for an 'out and back' from my house to a major road about a mile away, giving me a total of 2 miles.

The day was gorgeous, not too hot, but after I got 3 or 4 blocks down the road, I realized that perhaps I shouldn't be doing this today - the winds changed direction and smoke from local wildfires began blowing my way!

The Caribbean, Olive and 8Mile are the local wildfires

It wasn't too bad, so I kept going. I would run 'from this pole to that pole' or 'this mailbox to that sign' until I was running about as much as I was walking. Running outside is very different from running on a treadmill!  I'm going to have to make sure I practice outside as much as possible, if I want to be ready for running in the Princess.

Anyway, by the time I make it to Waldo Rd (the big road and my turn around point), I looked at my watch and saw that about 16 minutes had passed. I must have not started the stopwatch correctly, that seemed wrong.  I turned around and headed home, missing a red light and having to stop for about a minute or two, which I took advantage of and stretched my legs.

When I got home, I looked at my stop watch, which said 34 minutes.  I looked at the microwave and it jibed up with my watch.  I DID 2 MILES IN 34 MINUTES!!!  That is a 17-minute mile, people!  1 minute off the race-required 16-minute mile!  I was stoked, so happy! I was also sweaty, tired and thirsty.  I grabbed a huge cup of water and headed to my bedroom to change.

When I got into my room, a though dawned on me.  I never took before photos when I started this journey. I've since had two separate people (who don't know each other in the least) tell me that I've 'got it goin on!' and that I've 'lost a fuck-ton of weight'.  My husband says he sees it, but for me - once a fat girl, always a fat girl.  It's very hard for me to see it. I decided that, before I got changed, I'd take some photos.

I have to be very clear on one thing:  In my before photo, I was sucking it in. In my current photos, I had to deliberately NOT suck it in, to get an accurate reflection of what my body looks like. As a woman, it is so hard to not suck it in!

December 2011 - About 225 Pounds

I don't know why I didn't smile.

I could fly away with those wings!

Side view - much smaller gut

 

Run Disney tech tee I recently bought

Back of Run Disney tech tee

SOON

I have a dilemma regarding this RunDisney tee. I bought it to train in.  It doesn't fit (it's so much scarier in person!).  Should I return it to get a men's version (that will fit my boobs and gut) or should I hang it on my closet (like in the 'soon' photo) and use it as motivation? If I hang it, I probably won't fit into it for at least 2 months. If I get the men's version, I can wear it NOW.  I'm so torn!  If I could find an extra $30, I could have both :)  Maybe I'll think about that a bit....






 So anyway, that was my Sunday. It was the first Sunday since I started (I think) that I ran. I'll keep it up as long as weather permits, but in Florida, summer comes early and it brings disgusting humidity.