Skillz

Sometimes I wish I had come up with a really great idea for a blog. Let's face it. Themed blogs are the new blogs. The days of listing what you did hour by hour are over. Actually, horror of all horrors, those days are NOT over, which I discovered by briefly skimming through a sample of the thousands of recounts of other people's boring lives. Oh well. There are very few people who possess the writing skillz to keep me coming back for more. They do, however, exist. You just must know where to look.

Examples of some top-notch themed blogs: What Claudia Wore, Letters to Lindsay Lohan, 11th Crossfit Skill.

Mindy Kaling also keeps a pretty baller blog. That site will remain a mystery. Go forth and search, and you shall be rewarded. Anyway, these all gain my stamp of approval 10 times over. But until I personally come up with a life-changing theme that I can be an expert on, I will continue rambling about graduate school, Crossfit, fitness, and my unending love for Lululemon.

It has been pretty stressful lately. The last few weeks I've been hanging by a thread, but I am beginning to see the light. Well, a light or an oncoming train. At this point, I will welcome either, because both signal the end. Positivity simply radiates out of my bones, I know. I will work on it.

I suppose that is all.

Except for this quote: "I saw a dog sticking its head out of an SUV on my way home. For a brief second, I wanted to be that dog."

Yes, I said it. And maybe that can be the theme of my new blog. My Life as a Dog.

You know what they say.

They say you shouldn't wish your life away. But getting through the past few weeks would have been so much easier via a little time travel to the future. I've finally hit a point where I can breathe for more than 2 seconds without feeling guilty for not working, but these are also the points in which you have to keep on trucking or you find yourself back in the same exact spot of wishful desperation.

They also say too much caffeine is bad for you, but I'm in no position to give up my insane consumption.

They say you should think of others before yourself. I think this is a good general rule of thumb, but I also think that there are situations that warrant selfishness. If you don't, you end up getting run over and really, I'm not certain people fully appreciate sacrifices that are made anyway. At least not to the extent that you want them to.

Or maybe I am too cynical-slash-selfish-slash-judgmental to abide by the general rules. Always a possibility.

Regardless of what we're supposed to do or don't do, here's to a positive outlook this week. Cheers!

What the heck is a sham?

Yesterday I ran the My Sham Rox 15k. I used to be an actual runner. By that, I mean I would brave the elements all the way down to the single digits. I never missed a training run. And I had all the cool gear to reinforce the fact that I was legit.

Oh how the times have changed. Since those days of running glory, I have registered for 3 marathons and not run one of them. I was injured for STL last April. And I've bailed on KC and Houston since then. Seriously, who does that? The only running I do now is when it is built into a WOD. Or a track 6 in Attack.

I guess I still have the cool gear. That's something.

Anyway, I'm happy to announce that my love for running has been rekindled. There's something about a good long run that does something zen to a person. Even as I was cursing (literally, cursing) the hills yesterday, I would do it all again today. But only if I had my running partner with me. Haha!

I suppose that is all. All the work I've so blatantly not done while on spring break is piling up. It's going to be a long next few weeks. Luckily, with the help of the Starbucks Tribute Blend I shall survive.

Thumbs up.

This is my Vogue.

Do you ever come across something so ingenious that it pains you to think you didn't come up with it on your own? That was me when I stumbled across one particular blog last week. If you're a CrossFitter, you know there are 10 general physical skills. If you're not a CrossFitter, I'll tell you that there are 10 general physical skills. Things like stamina, strength, flexibility, power, and so on. Well, my friends, this blogger asserts that Coach Glassman has missed a key one: "a hot outfit to do the above in."

I'd like to draw some attention to this site right here.

If you didn't click on the link, shame on you. But I'll brief you on what you missed. Instead of a WOD (workout of the day), these geniuses give you an outfit of the day. All totally CrossFit inspired.

A pair of Lulu speeds, a CF affiliate tee, tall socks, and Chuck Taylors? Okay. Nike shorts, Lulu sports bra, sunglasses, and Nike Frees? Also acceptable. Wunder Unders, a Define jacket, Sauconys, and a coordinating headband? Deal.

This is fashion for the fit. Forging elite fashion. And I can't think of anymore witty alliterations.

This site is also on Facebook, and seeing as how I "like" it, I never miss an outfit. Thank goodness. Long live my own personal version of Vogue.

Old Chicago

If I could mix together the perfect city, it would be Chicago...plus warmth. This girl cannot take the snowy months of winter, and Chi-town just has too much of it for me. I saw snow on Saturday, and let me tell you, it was TOO SOON to see that again. Gross.

Despite the weather, I had a fun time over the weekend at the Les Mills Quarterly workshop. Les Mills is the international phenomenon responsible for producing awesome group fitness classes, including BODYATTACK and RPM, the two programs I teach at Ozark Fitness. It was a great experience, and I left feeling very motivated to bring back all that magic to the way I teach here in Springfield.

I also visited my first Lululemon store. The photo to the left captures the extreme bliss of being surrounded by the wonder of high-end workout gear. I swear I wasn't always like this. Really. However, once you feel the brush of luon against you, something takes over and you are never the same. So to document the experience, I took a photo opp with this lovely painted kettlebell.

I also stayed under budget, which is nothing short of a miracle.

All this brings me to Monday. It is spring break, which is happy. But the work of a grad student is never done, which is sad.

Intensive paper writing...commence.