Life On The Balance Ball (Redux)

Four months into my return to Corporate America and I think I am figuring out the ellusive balance beast -- I still collapse into bed at 10 PM every night, exhausted, but usually that exhaustion is because I've managed to squeeze in a workout, keep the house clean, the lawn mowed, and craft 3 square meals (and 2 snacks!) a day. How do you working moms do it? I seriously do not understand how it would even be possible to add kids to this mix -- one of my coworkers has 4 and a 5th on the way... and I couldn't even handle my dog!

But I'm figuring it out, day by day. My days of training for marathons are long gone -- but I have managed to figure out how to get out of bed early at least 3 days a week and exercise before heading into the office. Last week, I managed to burn a significant chunk of calories almost everyday. One of those days was mowing the lawn and doing a million loads of laundry, and another was walking around the state fair for 4 hours, but it was movement nonetheless.

The downside? My poor feet / ankles were so incredibly sore (after cramming them into heels everyday last week), that I was miserable by days end. So on Friday after work, I indulged in a little shoe-fetishism.... and believe me, these are not the CUTEST of shoes, but my feet have never been happier -- a far cry from my "big city girl" heels, they have the same insole as a running shoe. I nearly cried from happiness (and the relase of tension), when the Nordstrom guy put them on my feet. SOLD.

It's an unseasonably cool Minnesota summer, particularly for August. The typical dog days of humidity and heat have given way to cooler temps, which is HEAVEN to me. It makes for perfect weather for early-morning runs and dusk-time walks -- The Magic Hour, as we called it when I was working in the TV Production industry.

I love fall -- it is my absolute favorite time of year -- but I'm not ready for the brutal Minnesota winter. Not only is there the typical MN-winter type stuff to deal with, but for the first winter as a homeowner, despite having been one for over 5 years, I'm going to have to contend with shoveling snow and salting the ice before heading out in the mornings. YUCK. I am not excited about that, it's enough to make me crave apartment living again!

Oh well, I guess that's just another way to work more "Muvement" into my day --

And on that topic. I had a computer virus, thus was "gruve-less" for a while, and really missed that little reminder, encourating me to get off my butt and "muve" every 42 minutes. Last week, with the Gruve strapped to my waist, I successfully made it to Green almost everyday -- a reminder that all the little steps throughout the day add up!

It's Sunday night after a weekend filled with fun, family, food, and lots of laughter. I normally find myself dreading Monday mornings, but today I feel prepared to conquer the week head-on. I have a fridge filled with healthy food, a meal plan, and an exercise agenda. Unlike past weekends, I don't feel like I'm starting off having to "un-do" a lot of damage -- I managed to stay very in control of my calories this weekend, despite a Saturday trip to the MN state fair, where you can pretty much find anything you want, fried and on a stick. ;-)

I won't be working out before work tomorrow or on Tuesday -- but I'm already excited for that Wednesday morning run.

Happy Jess, happy feet, happy weather.

My goal is to get some exercise BEFORE work on Tuesday and Wednesday -- and after work on Monday, Thursday, and Friday. I have a treadmill in my basement, in front of a TV, so I really have no excuses, despite the confines of a deskjob. Combine that with some healthy eating and lots of water, and I should see a nice loss of pounds this week.

What are your goals for the week?

Off and running,
Jessica