New Race... finally

www.colormerad.com

So it has been awhile since I have signed up to run in anything but a coworker and jogging buddy mentioned Color Me Rad.  And once I looked at the site I had to sign up.  The premise of the race is simple.  You wear a white shirt, you run, and you prepare to be color bombed along the way :)  So it pretty much sounds awesome and I think everyone should sign up.  If nothing else, you can sign up to be the color bombers...

www.colormerad.com/races/columbia.html

Trying to be wheat free

Treats left on my desk for the group

Three weeks!  Yesterday made week three of wheat free for me… minus cross contamination I’m sure.  As I don’t have to be wheat free I am not (as of right now) giving up food that may have been cooked in the same location as items with wheat.  In reading up on wheat in tolerances and wheat allergies I have enough of the symptoms that I figured I would try and cut it out of my diet and see if made a difference.  I know self-diagnosis of anything is bad, blah, blah, blah, but I know enough people who went years waiting on actual diagnoses, tests came back negative, and were eventually just put on elimination diets so I am just cutting right to the chase and trying to see if my allergies and other issues get better.  And you know what?  They have.  I am going to try for two full months to see if what I am feeling is sustained or if I am just tricking myself into the feeling better.  But if nothing else I don’t CRAVE foods anymore (ex. cake and donuts left on my desk- which is the communal spot for goods to be deposited- see picture).  Don’t get me wrong, I still love sweets (see next sentence and photo) but I can look at it and say eh whereas before…

Yummy, delicious, and I can eat them!

So, yesterday I celebrated with a gluten free cupcake.  A local shop, Cupcake, sells a gluten free chocolate chip/vanilla cupcake with chocolate icing on Tuesdays and it was really good (again I’m not being vigilant about the cross contamination because let’s face it… it’s a bakery that sells baked goods so, you know, there is a fair chance of a little flour getting on the tray or something).  Though if I do keep up with this I realized that Thanksgiving is going to suck.  I will have my choice of turkey, turkey, or turkey.  Ok, and green beans. :) 

But you know what doesn’t suck?

www.tasterie.com

This new company I found called Tasterie.  This company sends out a box of goods, either signature (meal options) or snack, that meet your diet needs that have been vetted for specific allergens and offer several allergy combinations.  I ordered the top 8 signature box as I figured that would be the toughest test at least taste wise (since it means no dairy, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, soy, or wheat) and see what kind of treats they send.  Also, neat is that they include menu ideas and recipe cards for that month’s products.  And for those people who have food allergies this is a genius idea because they have gone through all the work to make sure that the companies meet your needs and because it gives you a chance to find new foods and brands.  Because how many times have we all looked at something and then decided against it because we didn’t know if we would like it and it was too expensive to buy and then never eat?  So I ordered the box for August which will ship out on the 10^th, so I should get it midmonth and will let you know how it is.  

 

Convention 2012

This post is a little late but like most of this year I have been busy and time has just been getting away from me.


This year as part of my position as advisor I went to our National Convention in San Antonio, Tx.  Having never seen any of Texas out side of DFW Airport, which I have spent many hours in over the years, I was very excited.  But I was even more excited to see our group and I learn at the workshops, network, and of course win lots of awards (as this was the chapter's first elegable year).




Upon arrival Cindy and I saw one of many quatrefoils that are the symbol of both San Antonio and Phi Mu so this city is perfect for us!
Upon arriving at the hotel we went downstairs and picked up our  convention packets which had all the details for our non-stop activities.  I had mistakenly packed workout clothes... that was wasted space in the suitcase.  Points for me though that I managed to fit all my outfits and shoes into a carry-on. :)  But the packed had all the details for the next four days and a super comfy tee all wrapped up in a precious Lilly laptop tote.

That night we met up with Delta Zeta, who was also holding their convention in San Antonio, at a local ranch for dinner, line dancing, and my favorite part- the rodeo!  On the right you can see a picture of the opening presentation of colors.



The next day was our first full day of activities which included alumnae initiations, memorials, and a sisterhood luncheon (the first of many meals that either steak, steak, or beef short ribs), and business sessions.  Cindy had fun pointing out the appropriate white dresses... and a couple not appropriate undergarments. ;)  Really people, no one should have to tell you that A) slips are your friend- I know nobody likes them, but they serve a purpose and B) undergarments beneath a white dress should ideally be skin toned, blush, ivory, etc.  To the random girl standing before us... a black thong may not be your best choice for in the future.  



We took a few pictures with our banners.  One with the whole group and USC's banner, and one where we found my chapter's banner.


The next few days were meetings, meetings, workshops, meetings.  We got a lot of really great information and ideas to take home but it was so tiring.


We did get one free night and being in San Antonio we had to see the Alamo and the Riverwalk (both of which are amazing and not to be missed... but much smaller than one would think)


Last night there we had our carnation ball where, shockingly, there was steak served.  But also served eleven awards in total to the chapter!  The girls have worked so hard and put in so much effort I am so proud to be affiliated with this group of women!


So despite coming home exhausted, I can't wait for Boca in 2014.  This is definitely a tradition I want to start and I can't wait to see what is to come for this amazing chapter.

This will not end well for David and I...

Y'all may have to send out a search party out for me and David if he orders this game from ThinkGeek.  Like you will find our mummified bodies sitting at the table... Help.

Making lunch fun

So, I have been trying to do better with my eating habits.  Last semester was CRAZY.  I could probably count on my fingers and toes how many at home made/cooked meals I ate from January-April. Yeah.  Not so great (for my waistline or wallet).  This summer (or May to those whose worlds don't revolve around an academic schedule) I have been trying to be really good about taking lunch to work especially and admit that I am actively bribing myself to eat in more and exercise regularly again (as, sadly, that suffered too).
And so, dork that I am, I have created a daily check list where I get a point if I don't go out for meals and a point if I get a workout of some sort in.  This month I will be treating myself to a pedicure and a new Lilly agenda, next month I have a massage as my big treat.  It doesn't hurt that my lunch box is super cute either.  It's got little alligators on it.  And they will bite you if you touch my food in the office fridge...  Just putting that out there.

Two Weeks Until Convention

Just two weeks 'til national convention and I can't wait!  It's my first one and I am super excited.  There is a lot of new information coming out this year including a revamping of our new members program and I am really excited to see all the changes.  There are several collegiate members from our chapter going and another advisor/Columbia Alumnae President is going too.  Which is good because there are so many workshops that I want to go to I was going to need to figure out how to clone myself...

And because I am super neurotic I also set up my calendar of events already.  And my time is booked!   I will keep looking to see when I can fit a run in, which right now is right after arrival and the day we check out (not shown) but...  I am still going to bring my shoes and I am sure I will entertain my roommate by using my little yoga app I have downloaded 'cause I know I will need a little relaxation with this schedule and my overall excitement.  Plus, yoga can be in my room (aka air-conditioning) and despite being from SC, I can't imagine running is TX in July will be something super fun.

I am sure I will be posting a lot after this event. What is everyone else getting up to this summer?    

10:27

Metabolic Stress test- Not me :)

In the bubble and still not me

 That is evidently how long I last on a metabolic stress test.  I was horrified... I mean I am fairly active and yet I tapped out at 10+ minutes.  So yes, I was horrified, until I went home and googled 'average time on a stress test' and found that most people last from 8 to 12 minutes so I was right in the middle.  Which made me feel slightly better, but not by much.  And for those of you unfamiliar with a metabolic stress test it involves wearing a mask to measure breathing, an EKG, and a treadmill that where the incline and speed increase at a steady rate until you feel you can't go any farther.

Why am I taking a stress test you might ask?  Well, I am participating in a study at the local university.  And I like to participate in studies.  You get to learn more about yourself and you help further other peoples education and research.  And you get to do some interesting stuff.   And you get to do this interesting stuff for free!  And with this one, in addition to the cool tests, I am also getting a stipend which is just icing on the cake.

Body Scanner

Still not me- this is dude

But anyway, this time one of the schools at the university is doing a comprehensive calorie in calorie out profile.  And so far I have participated in four things.  The first was the stress test, which measures calories expended while exercising.  The second was a resting metabolic test which as I am sure you have guessed, measures my resting metabolism.  These two tests gives them an accurate representation of my metabolism.   The third test scans the body and shows your body fat and gives them an extremely detailed pictures of body fat composition. And for the fourth, I am now wearing sensors two sensors for the next week one which measures the activity I am doing and another which measures when I am sitting and standing.

So I am really exited to see all of the results at the end and find out more about myself.  And if any of you live near a large university please look on their websites and see what is going on.  There is some really cool stuff out their.

I'm still here. Promise :)

I have been really busy lately, but I will get back to posting soon.  With the car accident (the car issues were minimized thanks to my awesome parents) and a crazy schedule I just haven't been writing anything up.  But I hope to start back up soon, especially since I have a lot of stuff going on right now.  Lots of good stuff, but it I definitely am getting a workout in time management.  I was approved by Nationals as Chapter Advisor for my local sorority chapter (I am working with an amazing group of girls), getting ready to move in with a friend (good news is we have already worked out the thermostat settings, everything else is negotable :) ), class (I'm taking Roman Art this semester), and starting to go to races again  (just did one last weekend through USC).
(And I am sure that my gratuitous use of parenthesis has driven at least a couple of you crazy)(But I love all of you)(And one more... just cause)

Bye, Bye Baby

 Over the holidays my car, aka Baby, bit the dust.  This really hurt for a few reasons.  Baby was my first car, we were hit (duh that tends to hurt)... and she was paid off (that might have hurt most of all).  We were rear ended and the damage totaled more than the other insurance was willing to pay, not to mention the frame had been bent.  Which you can kind of see in the top picture, but they found more damage as they pulled the car apart and that tipped it.  So I spent most of my break on good drugs on the couch.  It was good that if I had to be in an accident that it occurred while I was on my break.  It was bad because I had a lot of plans which due to the good drugs I skipped.
So now I am just dealing with the insurance company, and new car (new to me) stuff, DMV, etc.  Things have gone well and the two Nationwide agents I have dealt with have been amazing (my insurance agent was good, too).  But it's still a ton of stuff to deal with.