This is The Face

Kindergarten smile.

This. Right Here. Is the face of a very happy girl who has lost 10 lbs so far in 2012.

And yes, yes I know I've been slacking on my Miles of Motivation posts! BUT I haven't been slacking on my miles (entirely at least).

I'll write more tonight after I run a 5K at the gym tonight.

Much love,
Ashley

Grow Happiness Under Your Feet

"The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his feet."

All to often, we say we will be happy when we will get somewhere else. 

WHEN I lose 10 more lbs. 

WHEN I get a new job. 

WHEN I travel to this new place. 

WHEN I meet the perfect partner. 

WHEN I graduate from college. 

WHEN I leave this town.

But- that is the wrong theory.

Be happy where you are today.

My dad taught me at an early age that life is about the journey, not the destination. 

Much love,

Ashley

Miles of Motivation: 6-7

The gym was worse than Black Friday shopping tonight. It was busy. Stressful. So many sweating people, desperately looking for an open machine.

 I'm ready for it to slow down any day now...but, until then - I will continue to walk around for 10 minutes looking for an open treadmill. I will continue to be harassed by a tiny Asian woman who watched me run until my "sign-up" time was over.

But more importantly, I will continue to run my miles of motivation!!

Tonight, I did miles 6 and 7 for two beautiful ladies who not only share the same name, but the same initials!!!

Mile 6 was for Jen Royer. When I think of our friendship, these two words pop into my head: MSN Chat. Seriously, I lived on MSN Chat in middle and high school. Jen and I would talk ALL of the time on MSN Chat. Mostly about boys. Other times about losing weight. A few other times about mean girls. But mainly, about boys. I would do anything to dig up some of our old conversations...they would make good material for my book one day for sure. Jen never failed to make me laugh or smile, not matter what kind of mood I was in! :)

Recently, Jen started working out, eating healthier meals and watching her portions. She is now down 20 lbs!!!!! How amazing!!! She wants to lose 40 more lbs. I'm so stinking proud of her- she looks fantastic and she is well on her way to reaching her goals! Keep it up, Jen!!! Never stop believing in yourself!

Mile 7 was for Jen Regnier. I went to Ball State with Jen- we shared the same major (Public Relations)! In fact, I think we were both at Orientation Day at Ball State together. What a small world...Even though we are the same age, she graduated a year ahead of me because I changed my major 43 times. Sorry I wanted want to save the world and felt I had way too many options to do so! :)

Anyway, I digress.

Jen is an AMAZING runner. She can literally run a FULL marathon in about the same time that I run a half marathon. She is an inspiration to so many other runners. When I first started running, Jen gave me really great advice,"Just take it one mile at a time. Don't think about how much you have to run in total, just focus on every step. Every mile." I love it. I remind myself of this conversation EVERY single long run I have during my training.

Jen is currently training for the Boston Marathon, which you must qualifier for in order to run! Jen, you will ROCK at the Boston Marathon! I'll be cheering you on all the way from Indy.

A Boston Qualifier! :)
What an accomplishment, Jen!

So, Jen & Jen - thank you very much for being so inspirational to me and those around you. Whether it's weight loss or running, you remind me to take it one lb / mile at a time. The best and healthy way for me to meet my goals and grow.

Update: 88 people have now liked my status! 81 more miles to go!!

Much love,

Ashley

Super Bass

I'm getting pretty legit at rapping "Super Bass" by the beautiful Nicki Minaj. I'll make my video debut when I feel ready....

Who knows, I might just end up on The Ellen Show singing with this adorable little girl.

Much love,
Ashley

Goals

"Goals determine what you're going to be."

Miles of Motivation: 3-5

First and foremost, I'm proud to report that I've lost 7.5 lbs so far in 2012.

4 lbs this week alone!!! :) :) :)

While we are talking numbers...as of tonight I have 85 miles to complete for my friends and family who liked my status the other night. I am completely blown away at my amazing support system! (THANK YOU ALL!)

So, tonight after work I went to a happy hour...I had an IPA and an Alabama shooter. I don't recommend drinking before working out, but I didn't want to skip another day at the gym.

I came home.

Ate dinner (baked fried chicken - it was AMAZING!).

Let my tummy settle for about 15 minutes.

Bundled up.

Left for the gym with Justin.

Because the gym was a mad house and I had a full stomach, I decided running probably wasn't my best option! SO, I opted for the 3 miles on the elliptical.

My first mile tonight was for my friend Trevor Logan! Trevor is my good friend Sabrina's younger brother. The last time I saw him, he was holding his newly born nephew, Bryar Leland Skramstad:

When I was talking to Trevor that night, he mentioned during boot camp he ran a mile in a super fast pace...I can't remember what exactly it was... Maybe 6 minutes and some change...either way, I was inspired. I thought about going to boot camp for millisecond and then decided it was best to give him a "HIGH FIVE" and move on with my thoughts. So Trevor, I didn't do a mile in 6, 7, 8 or even 9 minutes...but I sure hope I made you proud. Otherwise, "you can get this audience out of here!"

My second mile was for Darlene Rodriguez. She is married to one of Justin's best friends from high school, Harry. While I was pushing through mile two, I thought of how hard Darlene is becoming healthy this year by working out and eating better. And let me tell you, that is the "secret" to weight loss. No diet pill or magical drink...simply devote time to working out hard and eating a balanced diet- I should write a book. Anyway, I am beyond proud of her and I even saw a post today that she found swimsuits for her upcoming vacation! :) So exciting!! My hope is that she continues to believe in herself and work hard this year. Her positive attitude and outlook will certainly come in handy!

My third and final mile was for Gina Raymond. Oh Gina. I love Gina so much. Gina is Brittany Raymond's mother, and the last time I saw her was at the softball benefit we had in memory of Brittany.

The softball benefit was in June and when I was doing my mile, I realized that is simply unacceptable. I need to see her and the rest of Britt's family soon! I keep up with her on Facebook often, but there is just something about her smile and voice that isn't captured in pictures. She is lovely. I look up to her in many ways. She is an English teacher, and I've always dreamed of becoming a teacher, especially in English and Journalism! Gina is a very inspiring and loving woman who would do absolutely anything for anyone. I'm truly honored to know such a strong and beautiful woman like Gina.

Thank you Trevor, Darlene and Gina for your love and support!

80 more times to go....

Much love,
Ashley

Miles of Motivation: 1-2

"If you don't use it, you lose it."

I've learned this lesson the hard way. The holidays came...and so did the weight gain. The vacation started...and so did the laziness. I was really good at working out for the first two days, but then I got sick. I could barely breathe and sleeping became the activity of choice.

And much to my surprise, by New Year's Eve...I was topping the scales. The EXACT SAME WEIGHT that I started at the year before...

I spent 3 solid minutes in the bathroom crying. Listening to people say, "Where is Ashley?"

Bawling my eyes out...that is where...I busted my ass and threw it all away at the end.

I stepped on the scale and then off again.

The number was the same.

That damn haunting number was the same...

236...

So, I came out of the bathroom bummed. I walked up to Justin and said, "I'm so upset...the scale said I weigh 236 again."

He looked me straight in the eyes and told me what I've known all along, "Only you can change that.."

Sure, I was bloated.

Sure, I was drinking.

Sure, it was the end of the day.

But that is still unacceptable.

I literally just threw all my hardwork out the window and let December defeat me.

For this reason, I did not post a before and after picture from Jan. 1, 2011 to Jan. 1, 2012. What would be different? What is so inspirational about zero pounds?

So I was depressed.

Sad.

Pissed.

So, I didn't know what to write about..didn't know what pictures to post..and didn't know how to admit to everyone how I royally bombed.

But did I bomb?

Did I really consider 2011 a failure?

I did 2 half marathons, 3 5K races and countless other miles. I hiked up a mountain with Justin and tried to run up a mountain top on our vacation.

I lost inches.

I fit into new sizes- going from a size 16 (almost 18) to a SIZE 12-14!!!!!

I joined a gym.

I ran my fastest mile at 9:51.

I did not fail in 2011. I just wasn't committed. I wasn't motivated to transform my diet...because at the end of the day, it doesn't matter how many miles I run if I am shoving high fat & high carb meals in my face every single day.

I made a decision on Saturday to stop letting food control my life.

I made a decision to keep a food journal.

Track everything.

And have a goal....last year, I just wanted to get healthy. This year, I don't want to obsess over a number, but I do want to lose 50 lbs. I want to weigh 185 lbs again.

Our first picture together. 50 lbs ago.
She will be back this year.

But it's not just about changing the number on the scale, it's about changing my life. It's about living longer so I can see my future children grow old...and I mean- I really do want to be that awesome grandma running races and doing triathlons with her grandkids.

So in order to kick off 2012, I decided to let YOU all inspire me. Motivate me. Encourage me. And more importantly, keep me accountable!

I posted this Facebook status last night: "I need some motivation so I am stealing this idea from my friend, Jenny. "Like" my status and I will complete a mile in your honor in the next 30 days + give you a shout out on my blog when I complete it! :)"

77 "Likes" later...I'm overwhelmed with the amount of people who love, support and believe in me!

My first two miles tonight were for my friends Annette Chmieleski and Daniel Malinski.

When doing my first mile, I was  thinking of the first time I met Annette. She was wearing a tutu. Obviously, I loved her from the beginning. It was Halloween. I wasn't sure who she was supposed to be, but she was very friendly and we kicked it off right away. She told me that she had previously read my blog and thought it was really inspiring. What? Me? How cool...we then began to share running stories.


Half way through my mile, I started thinking about my hopes for her this year; I'm very positive  2012 will be a great year for Annette. She is a beautiful and intelligent woman and I am thrilled that she was the first person to like the status. Who knows, we might even do a race together in 2012!


My second mile was dedicated to my Twitter friend Dan aka @cubicledad - we connected on Twitter and I was instantly impressed with his running story. When I was running, The Biggest Loser was on the TV. But instead of watching the show, I was blocking out the sound. And instead of focusing on the timer...I kept repeating this number in my head...


100.


100.


100.


He lost 100 lbs in one year by training for the Chicago Marathon. HOW AMAZING is that!?! Even more inspiring, he is a member of the Start! Running Team through the American Heart Association- and raised an amazing amount of money last year- nearly $12,000. He was running for his health...and also his daughter. You can read about Dan and his story on his blog: http://cubicledadruns.com/


Thank you Annette and Dan for pushing me to kick off this goal. And for the other 75 of you, I'm coming after you...one mile at a time!


Much love,
Ashley