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Hello everybody! Welcome to Weigh-In Wednesday!

Please go check out my sweet co-hosts & make sure to say hi!

Bailey @ Being Bailey J

Ash @ A Step in the Right Direction

(Amy is taking a break from WIW)

I'm not sure where to start with WIW today. Blogging has been the furtherest thing from my mind lately (you can read WHY here). 

Last week I ended up having about a 5 lb GAIN which I largely attribute to that time of the month/water weight since I weighed in today and was back at my post-cleanse weight. Still 16 lbs down in total but no additional loss. And the plateau continues...

A lot of celebrating but I have been working out! (I have to play catch up from Friday since I didn't post about my workouts.) 

Last Wednesday (after I woke up really frustrated from the gain) I made myself go for a nice, long run. I didn't really have a distance in mind - I was just follow the C210K app which said to run 20 minutes. Because my music was going and I was pretty pissed off with myself, I ended up doing 4.3 miles and running 4 miles straight! 4 MILES! Me??? The girl who couldn't/wouldn't even run a mile at the beginning of the summer. I felt awesome!

I want to do MORE! I've been talking with a few other bloggers about running a 10K and then shooting for a half marathon next spring! I'm hoping to run Fort 4 Fitness 10K in September in Fort Wayne, IN and the Thanksgiving Day Race 10K in Cincinnati, OH with Marcy @ The Mustache Diaries! I'll announce the half marathon dates soon!

I also did something I haven't done in 5 years when I was in Germany - I went for a bike ride! I rented a silly little cruiser bike and took it out on the Loveland Bike Trail for a ride. I have no clue what a good pace is or anything but it felt like a good workout. Those cruisers don't go very fast!

Lastly, I've been kicking butt at boot camp! Last Wednesday I was the only one who attended so I got my own personal boot camp, including doing these darn tire flips! 

At least if I'm celebrating, I'm doing well on workouts. And I've been making smaller changes with eating, just working my way back up to clean eating. I have to break through my plateau this week! I only have 4 months to get dress shopping ready! 

***Don't forget, Ash and I have 50% off all ad space for linking up today!*** Code = WIW50

What was your favorite workout you did this week?

Do you have any upcoming races?

How did you get into wedding shape?

Thank you for all the social media love and comments on my announcement this weekend! You all are the best :)

It's time for our engagement story! Here we go!  

Nick and I had plans to go to dinner with his parents on Friday night at a brewery in downtown Cincinnati, so I met him at their house after he got off work.

My outfit - The one time my hair is straight and I hated it! UGH

We sat around for a little while enjoying some appetizers and talking before it was time to go to dinner. Nick's mom suggested we stopped at a fundraiser for Honor Flight on the way downtown because their family knows the band playing and she's a big fan. 

The fundraiser was being held at a bar that Nick and I had never been to but have passed by A LOT in the past six years driving to each other's houses. Once we arrived, we ordered more appetizers and drinks. Soon more members of Nick's family and friends started showing up. I didn't suspect anything out of the ordinary partly because I thought Nick's mom had invited them to join us since she liked the band. I'm also completely oblivious half the time. (I was also in a not so great mood for reasons I'm not going to disclose. To say the least, my mind was elsewhere but I was trying to have fun.)

We continued talking and hanging out, enjoying the choregraphed line dancing going on on the dance floor (how did they all know the same dance?) - it wasn't even line dance music. I digress. 

Nick said his dad had put our names in for raffle prizes so we had to stay later. Again, I didn't think anything of it. We had looked at the raffle prizes early but nothing struck my eye and neither of us had cash with us - how nice of him! 

Later on the fundraiser helpers (IDK what to call them?) said they were going to start choosing raffle prize winners. Well guess what? They called my name! 

So I walked to the stage to get my prize. I hadn't been listening to what the prize was so I was a little puzzled as I was walking up. When I got to the stage the woman announcing the prize winners said, "Actually I don't have your prize, but I think Nick does."

That's when I turned around and Nick was behind me with a ring box, on his knee, and asked he me to MARRY him! 

Of course I said YES!!!!! and then the band started playing. I wish I remembered the song but I have no clue what it was. I was too excited and surprised! We danced and talked and cried. I couldn't have been happier! I didn't even notice the ring until we got back to our friends and family.

The ring. It's gorgeous! It wasn't at all what I had pictured (or pinned on Pinterest) but I love it wayyyy more than anything I had in mind. I could tell that Nick was really thoughtful in his choice and had picked something so unique and beautiful. The band is amazing with beaded detail - absolute perfection!

Our first engaged couple kiss!

The rest of the night was a blur of hugs and congratulations. Nick's mom even bought a veil and tiara for me to wear which was the icing on the cake! (I'm a princess, duh). We never ended up going to dinner that night but it was still a blast! I was so happy to be surrounded by family and friends. Everyone he was going to propose (including some of my friends, my mom, and all my family)!  

So here we are...a few days later and I'm still so incredibly excited and filled with love. Who would've thought that two 16 year olds would end up getting married one day? I knew early on that I wanted to get married to Nick but I  never thought the day would ever come. I thought we'd be dating FOREVER!

I am the luckiest girl in the world! And I want my money back from the psychic that told me I would be getting engaged in October. (We got engaged a day later...RUDE)

As for planning, that will have to wait a bit. I want to get adjusted with school and our new living arrangement. I'm not at all looking forward to moving further away from Nick but I have no doubt that things will work out just fine. 

For now I'm going to continue to do research and work on the more vague parts of planning. We know we want a full Catholic Mass and I have pretty much narrowed down the ceremony site (provided we can get it!). I also want to shoot for a fall wedding but I won't be able to figure that out until I get my year 2 schedule at orientation next week! Any med students out there married during the fall/not in the summer? 

The most important detail for me right now is getting in dress shopping shape! I'm planning to try on dresses over Thanksgiving Break (also when I'll be running my first or second 10K) so that gives me four months to continue to get lean and mean! If ever I need motivation to eat clean and train hard, all I have to do is look at my left hand. :) 

I'm excited for what the future holds for us! It's been a wild 6+ years and I can't wait for AT LEAST 60 more!

Thank you all for your support and congratulations! I can't wait to share our journey with you!

**Make sure you check out my guest post on College.Crazy.Life. about What I Learned In College! I still have vivid memories of football tailgates, grabbing lunch in the dining hall, and dancing in gross fraternity basements. WHEW! **

Good Morning and Happy Monday!

This is going to be a short and sweet weekend wrap up. Things have been a little busy and very exciting the past few days which is why I have been MIA. If you follow me on Twitter or Instagram, you probably already know my news.

I'm getting married to my best friend!

My heart is so full of love and I couldn't be more excited! I promise I will have the story up soon! 

I plan on sharing the whole planning process on here so get ready for a wedding! It's going to be stressful with school starting and being two hours away from Cincinnnati but we'll make it work. Let's hear your advice! 

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Hello everybody! Welcome to Weigh-In Wednesday!

Please go check out my sweet co-hosts & make sure to say hi!

Amy @ Write This Down

Bailey @ Being Bailey J

Ash @ A Step in the Right Direction

What an interesting few days it's been. I'm currently stuck in my own head right now - I told you the anxiety was setting in about school - and today is all about me working on getting out. 

I haven't weighed myself today (yet), quite frankly I know what I'm going to see. Plateau. Or gain. I could see a loss at this point but I would still feel ill inside.

I'm a big believer in a holistic approach to health and that most things going on mentally find a way to manifest physically. By extension these mental inconsistencies manifest in my environment in ways like the cleanliness of my room and whether my hair stays in a top knot for three days or not (it did.) 

I'll be honest. After my last trip of the summer and last time spending time with friends for awhile, things have changed. The realization that I'm leaving Nick, his family, and my family soon is very real. My excitement for school has utterly melted away and has been replaced by a lot of anxiety, fear, and a little depression. How am I coping right now? I'm retreating.  

Why is that the toughest part of this journey comes right after significant success? I was doing SO well. Why is it so hard to continue to ride the waves right on down to my goal? There always has to be a setback or plateau.

I guess if it were easy, everyone would do it. But it's also what makes victory so sweet.

A lot of things don't make sense when I'm this stressed and anxious about the future like my propensity to push people away and isolate myself when I'm about to experience major change. I internalize or lash out. I did it with college, now I'm doing it with medical school. The thing is, a lot has changed in 5 years so there's no reason to keep repeating this destructive behavior.

So what's next? Well, I'm getting up early and going for a run because I'm not going to let myself be a miserable person for the next two weeks. I'm not going  talk myself back into the old ways of doing things - using food for comfort, reverting back to an introvert, or skipping workouts - because the old ways sucked. They sucked up all my energy, my happiness, and my progress. Sure it's comfortable but it's not happening again.

I realize this post is a change from my usual upbeat & positive outlook but I said from the beginning that I was going to be open and honest about this journey. 

I knew if I posted something about rainbows and happy-bright-things I would be "talking the talk" but not "walking the walk." I'm not going to do that. I'm going to whole-heartedly admit that I've failed this week. I've skipped workouts, I've eaten crap, and even QUIT in the middle of a run. Just quit and went to my car, drove home, and never looked back. On top of that, I've been pretty damn rude and dismissive to a few select people (that I know can take it) and it feels awful.

Turning over a new leaf starting NOW. I appreciate this time to vent and now I'm looking forward to a successful rest of the week. Unlike in the past, I have a whole community to draw inspiration and support from so for that, I thank you.

On a positive note, I have revamped my sponsorship options. I still have swaps available, but only for a limited time! Ash and I are offering 50% off all paid sponsorship ads for those who link up for Weigh In Wednesday. (Obviously it needs to be a relevant post. We will be checking!) MY promo code is: WIW50. Just check out the Sponsor tab and Passionfruit will do the rest!

Now let's get to linking up, shall we?

My name is Heather and I'm a food waster. 

"Hi, Heather"

For breakfast this morning I decided I wanted some juicy peaches in my oatmeal. When I went looking in the fridge, I realized that the peaches I bought had gone mushy and gross. Well, that sucks. Then I went rummaging around further fridge only to discover that someone had put produce in my beer crisper and almost all the fruits and vegetables were soft and unfit for eating (at least to me...I don't eat wrinkly tomatoes). 

That's when it hit me. I'm a produce hoarder & a food waster. 

Via

Granted I've been going on lots of trips lately and I'm not home most weekends. It's still not ok. I threw away a garbage bag worth of produce and dinner leftovers today which is MY (limited) money and energy down the drain.

But I'm not alone. In the US 40% of our food goes to waste which amounts to about $165 billion dollars, according to this article on CNN. This figure includes waste from all points of the food supply chain including stores, restaurants, farms, etc. Just think of the people we could feed with all that wasted food! The article mentions that with just a 15% reduction in food losses, we could feed 25 million Americans! 

Via

On top of just losing money, throwing away food has a tremendous impact on the environment. Wasted food means wasted energy. Someone had to plant, harvest, refine, pack, ship, display, and sell our food unless we grow it ourselves. All of those processes require energy whether it's energy from the sun, manual labor, or mechanization.  

There are a lot of reasons food waste has increased 50% since 1970's - we can produce food more cheaply, portions have ballooned, stores want to project an air of abundance, conveinence through ready-to-eat meals, and more. There has to be a way to combat these problems.

Via

One of my biggest problems I create for myself is that in my effort to get healthy, I want to buy A LOT of items like produce at one time. I have visions of huge salads and plates of crudites with hummus and big bowls of fruit salad but it almost never pans out. I'm only one person but I buy for a family of four half the time. 

This issue needs to be remedied quickly; both on a personal level and in our country. Soon I'm going to be living on a pretty tight budget so I cannot afford to waste so much healthy food! Here are several ways you and I can be better consumers and reduce our wastefulness:

1. Buy Smaller Quantities

If you're like me and you buy for just one or two people, buy less food at a time. The Europeans have it right! Not only is their food just plain healthier and fresher, but they go to the grocery store several times a week. Some of the best food I ever had was when I stayed with my host family in Germany. The fruit was small, ripe, and natural. The meats were free from preservatives and sodium. The bread was still warm from the bakery. We may not be able to emulate their lifestyle completely but learning to buy less at a time is a great step.

2. Less Variety

I've been "re-trying" foods I didn't like as a kid which is great but I don't need to re-try them all in one week. Sometimes I get over zealous and buy too many different things at once. It's overwhelming! 

This week I bought bell peppers instead of buying bell peppers, brussel sprouts, lima beans, and chicken liver (ok, that's NEVER happening). Take things slow.

3. Plan Ahead

This is where I fail, big time! Meal prepping is not something I've mastered yet. Heck, I barely know how to cook more than eggs and toast. But in order to prevent food waste, you have to plan ahead. Go to the store with meal plans already in mind, make a list, and stick to it! No grabbing 10 Chobani yogurts just because they are 10 for 10. 

4. Stick To The Plan

Something that happens a lot to me are impromptu dinners out. My mom and I have a horrible habit of going to "get a salad" after Boot Camp because we're both too tired lazy to make anything when we get home. First of all, if I actually end up getting a salad, that's just a waste of what I have at home. If I don't then I probably shouldn't be eating what I picked - it's laden with added sugar, sodium, fat, etc. that I could avoid by eating at home. Just don't do it.

5. Buy Local/Organic

The reasons are endless to buy from your local farmers market - sustainability, support small business, fresher products, etc. One of the biggest reasons for me is that local produce lasts longer. Think about it - less travel time to get to the consumer which means less energy, less packaging, fewer preservatives, etc. I think local and organic food products taste better as well.

6. Start A Garden/Compost

I won't be able to do this anytime soon while living in an apartment but what's better than fresh tomatoes, peppers, corn, and herbs straight from your backyard? Not only is it great for you but you can get a little activity in through maintaining your patch of earth! 

As for compost, it's natural fertilizer for your plants and garden. It's much better than sending it to a landfill to rot.

7. Be Smart When Buying In Bulk

Buying in bulk isn't all bad! Things that are less perishable like spices are great purchases at those big clubs like Costco. With produce, you can always freeze or can items for later. Sometimes if I don't eat bananas quick enough, I freeze them for Green Monster smoothies later during the week. I've also done this with gazpacho, homemade applesauce, and smoothies. 

I hope these tips help! I used them when I went to the farmer's market and grocery store today. I also have a few new recipes to try this week so look for those soon! My goal this week is to severely reduce my food waste which also means limiting eating out and cleaning up my diet again. Will you join me?

How do you prevent food waste?

With almost three months of blogging under my belt, I've been doing a lot of thinking about this blog and where I see it all going. I've made so many amazing connections and blog friends in such a short time. I'm so glad that I FINALLY followed through on something that I've always wanted to do. Yay for going out on a limb!

The problem is that once classes start my priorities are going to shift in a dramatic way. School is going to be my highest priority and there will probably be an adjustment period where I can't blog as much.  I need to hit the ground running with my studying and acclimation to school. 

At the same time, I think blogging is going to be a great way for me to keep in touch with my loved ones and with this community that we are building here. I need this space for accountability, catharsis, and stress relief. I need to read about your lives and your personal journeys. My life doesn't need to completely center around studying medicine. There needs to be a balance. 

Part of this balance is going to be making sure that I'm taking care of myself and my personal needs. Maybe that's why I'm so excited to start medical school - I get to be unapologetically selfish (I'm an only child so I'm pretty good at it). In order to be the best student possible I have to make sure I'm getting my workouts in (for health and for personal sanity) and getting enough sleep and eating healthy so I have the energy and stamina to study my butt off.

I guess my point in all this is that things are going to change around here. I've been trying to keep up with what everyone else is doing and I haven't been focusing on why I started to blog. To add to the confusion, I haven't even really established what kind of blogger I am. Am I a "twenty-something blogger" or a "healthy living blogger? Am I a "medical student blogger" or a "lifestyle blogger"? I'm not really sure which is why things seem to be all over the place right now.

What I've learned the past few months is this: I'm not cut out to follow the unwritten blogging rules. It stresses me out. Numbers and followers and sponsors and giveaways. From now on, I'm doing things my way. Maybe I'll have giveaways, maybe I won't. Maybe I'll keep sponsoring, maybe I won't. I'm writing my own rules. I'm hoping by embracing this notion, I'll be a more efficient blogger and writing will start to be a stress-reliever instead of a stressor (and more fun!). The status quo will  not work once I start school - and that's okay. There are so many bloggers that I look up to and admire but I can't keep comparing myself to them!

I hope you all will continue to stick around even though things might be changing. I hope you will share in my journey through medicine and gain some insight into the life of medical student. Please know that I am forever greatful for the support everyone has shown me thus far!  

Despite the changes in my time and priorities, I will make a few promises to myself and to you. 

1. I'm still going to be posting 3-4 times a week! 

2. My fitness/health journey is going to be a huge part of my writing & will continue to be honest and candid.

3. Medicine is going to take center stage in many of my posts.

4. Weigh In Wednesday is still on!

5. Soon I'm going to start vlogging to save time and just check in!

I'm really excited for the future and I can't wait to see what happens next. Keep doing what you do, blogland and I'll keep trying to keep some balance in my crazy life.

ChiCAHgo & Sunburns

What's good, blogland? First of all, if you aren't watching The Hills retromarathon on MTV because you're at work right now, I feel for ya. I really do. This show just gets better and better every time I watch it. LC is my stupid face making soulmate! And who doesn't have a Jen Bunney or Heidi in their life? In 40 years, we will call this "classic" TV that will forever be in syndication of Lifetime.

This weekend wrap up contains my last "hoorah" before the panicky feeling of moving and uprooting my life begins starts NOW. Two weeks from yesterday, I will throw all my junk in several vehicles and become a resident of Indiana for the next 4-8 years. This isn't like college where I know I'll be coming home on weekends and breaks. This could be permanent.   But I'll save all that anxiety for another post. This is supposed to be fun!

After running some errands on Friday, I started my 4.5 hours drive up to "The Region" or the part of Indiana that claims to be Chicago, much to the chagrin of anyone that is truly a resident of the city. The drive was pretty enjoyable. I went to the library and borrowed several "Now" CD's - Now 9 is pure perfection, by the way. I also got a couple books on CD - Pandemonium & Requiem by Lauren Oliver. I read the first book - Delirium - a few years ago and LOVED it so I'm finishing the series. I'm a huge fan of dystopias and the writing is beautiful. Definitely a must-read for all you fans of The Hunger Games and similar books! Yes, I still read Young Adult fiction. 

A little background - every summer (at least the last 4 years) my close group of friends gets together in someones home town for a fun weekend, usually in the middle of the summer. Now that we've joined the adult world, things are VERY complicated. Work schedules, school schedules, weddings, prior obligations - it's hard to plan anything we can all be at (three of the eight people couldn't make it!). I'm sure it only gets harder from here. 

Our first Girl's Weekend in Cincinnati!

Friday was a relaxing day. We all got acclimated and went to Mexican for margarita's and yummy food. I gave in and had a few margs -  I couldn't resist after that long drive! I also had a few chicken fajita's - yum yum! 

Saturday we packed up the cooler and headed to the Indiana Dunes on Lake Michigan for a relaxing day at the beach! The weather was perfect - low 80's, breezy, and low humidity. The water was beautiful and just the right temp! Unfortunately, I didn't do too well with the sunscreen so now my back is an angry red color. My first (and last) sunburn of the summer. Boo, hiss.

After the lake, we all got showered and dressed for dinner! We went to a cute little pizza place in her town which was perfect since we didn't eat much for lunch - just some snacks we packed for the beach.  

After dinner, we wanted to check out a brewery in our host's town. This is when things went "downhill" in a good way. First of all, the beer was good! We all ordered different things and just shared and took sips of each other's beer. I guess once you're out of college, you start to appreciate more than just Miller Lite. The best part was all the girl talk! It doesn't happen very often where we are all in one place and able to chat for as long as we want - no obligations or places to go. I will miss this like crazy in the coming months...

Sunday morning meant it was time for everyone to go home - all in different directions. The next time we'll all be together will probably be Homecoming in October, if we can even make it! Getting old sucks. Oh - and our friend's mom made us the BEST protein pancakes for breakfast made with cottage cheese and a few other ingredients. I'm totally going to find a similar recipe and try it out at home! 

Now it's time to recover and get to work! I have a long to-do list of things I've been neglecting until now. The biggest issue is purging all the crap from my room - I need to get rid of clothes I don't wear anymore, papers, books, etc. - basically anything that is going to make moving difficult. I want to start school refreshed and renewed! No clutter. Am I the only one who saves old tests and notes thinking I'll go back and use them one day? Probably. 

Have a great week, everyone! And don't forget to enter the Sony Cybershot Camera GIVEAWAY here!

I need a break from all the weight loss, fitness, medical related posts. Time for something random and fun. Plus, I'm in Chicago. Ain't nobody have time for seriousness.

Via 

I've always had a fascination with the "Seven Deadly Sins." I'm convinced if I found six other willing participants, it would make the perfect Halloween costume (but who would be gluttony? That's just mean!). I loved when Tyra Banks played out this concept on America's Next Top Model. I could go on. So when I found this little survey on my girl Megalin's blog My Random Lovelies, I had to try it too!  Enjoy!

Pride

seven great things about your life

1. I have a loving and supportive family.

2. I am dating my best friend.

3. I wouldn't trade my friends for anything in the world.

4. I'm pursuing my dreams of becoming a physician.

5. I have everything I need to live and thrive.

6. I'm making positive changes in my life.

7. I am getting healthier and happier everyday.

Envy

seven things you lack and covet

1. Clear skin & permanent tan

2. A full-ride scholarship

3. An engagement ring

4. Flat abs

5. Unlimited intelligence

6. A never-ending closet of clothes, shoes, makeup, etc.

7. Money

Wrath

seven things that make you angry

1. Being late

2. People who can't drive in the rain

3. Self-absorption

4. When you don't get what you pay for.

5. People who don't smile

6. Drama

7. People who tear others down

Sloth

seven things that you neglect to do

1. Brush my hair 

2. Keep my room clean

3. Flossing daily

4. Keep my car clean

5. Stay on top of blog stuff

6. Pre-plan meals

7. Return library books on time

Greed

seven worldly material desires

1. Michael Kors watch

2. Lauren Conrad's closet

3. free & unlimited gym membership

4. black on black BMW

5. a big house with a library, window seat, wrap around porch, and spray tan machine. (bahaha)

6. unlimited access to Self or Shape's apparel closet

7. the timeturner from Harry Potter

Gluttony

seven guilty pleasures

1. V-Neck tshirts in every color

2. Coke Zero

3. Nachos/Chips & Dip

4. Online shopping

5. School supplies

6. Magazines

7. Social media stalking

Lust

seven things you love about love

1. Finding your best friend

2. Laughing all the time

3. Being "understood"

4. Cuddling

5. Not paying for dinner (half kidding)

6. Adventures/Trying new things

7. If you find the right person, you bring out the best qualities in each other.

What are your seven deadly sins?

Happy Friday, everyone! I'm off for another adventure in Chicago with my sister-friends. It's my last weekend of fun plans before I move so I'm pretty darn excited! Make sure you check out my extra cool announcement below!

Five Workouts:
Workouts have been HOT this week. Let's face it, it's the middle of summer and Cincinnati is notorious for being muggy, sticky, and uncomfortable. This certainly isn't Texas with temps in the 100s but we are consistently in the 90s and the humidity makes it feel like I'm wearing an ugly Christmas sweater to workout. Whew! 

Monday: Boot Camp (45 min) 
Tuesday: 4 mile Run/Walk (50 min)
Wednesday: Hot Yoga (60 min) + Boot Camp (45 min)
Thursday: 4.5 mile Run/Walk (60 min)
Friday: TBD 

Five Thoughts:
1. Bug Bites
They just plain suck! I love being outside to run and workout but I don't love getting bit by everything. I bought some Bug Bands to wear but I keep forgetting to wear them. How do you all combat this buggy problem?

2. Sausage Fingers & A Red Face
Who else gets sausage fingers when they run? Mine swell up after about 5-10 minutes and won't go down until long after my workout. On top of that, I get big old red cheeks anytime I think of exercise & a lot of people don't. I wanted to find out why so here's a great little article that sums it all up. It's basically common sense now that I think about it - vasodilation from exercise = increased blood flow. The take away point I got from the article was a red face and swelling does NOT mean you are out of shape! It just means your regulatory reflex is more sensitive or reactive than others. Yay for homeostasis!

Darn red chubby cheekers!

3. Eating is Hit or Miss Lately
I tend to make pretty good choices until I let myself get too hungry - that's when I reach for something easy & quick. Like this morning I didn't eat breakfast at home because I have so many errands to run. I ended up stopping at Panera and getting a Mediterranean Egg White sandwich. Obviously not the worst choice but it's something I could make at home for fewer calories, less sodium, and less $. I need to break this habit! (It gets worse, I promise. Just an example.)

4. Birds (Caw Caw Caw)
My last semester of college I needed to take one last Biology lab & lecture to graduate so I chose Ornithology (birds) which included "awesome" field trips at 7 am throughout the semester. To be honest, I choose this class so I would only have classes on Tuesday and Thursday. It became a joke between my friends and I because I probably spent more time studying for that class than any of my other ones that semester. Plus it's just kind of weird. The surprising part? I actually enjoyed that class and have since grown to love birding.  Anyway I saw a Blue Heron on my run yesterday! So that's pretty cool. Another revelation? The dean of my med school is a huge birder as well as several other professors so that bird knowledge will come in handy!

5. Making Healthy Choices during Girl's Weekend
My goal is to break through the post-Advocare cleanse plateau and if I'm going to do that, I have to make smart choices this weekend. I'm so tired of gaining and losing the same three pounds from all my shenanigans the past two weeks. I work too hard to mess it up! How do you all deal with fun weekends with your girls? Suggestions? Low calorie alcoholic beverage ideas? 

And an extra special announcement:
One last thing! I'm participating in my FIRST giveaway! I never thought I would do one of these things but the opportunity presented itself and I thought it would be a great way to connect with new people! 

We're giving away a Sony Cybershot Camera. While I love my iPhone, the picture quality isn't always the best so I totally wish I could win this thing. All you wannable fashion bloggers, go check it out!

I've teamed up with a few fabulous ladies of some awesome blogs to host this giveaway!

Pretty Strong Medicine |Chatter Blossom | Lovely You | Coco in Magnolia | Perpetually CarolineRaising Reagan | Until Only Love Remains | At Home with the Hinkley's
 Just Mi! | The Accidental Military Wife | To be a Better You

The entries are simple...Bloglovin', Facebook and Twitter!
Be sure to read the Official Giveaway Rules.
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I'm linking up with Holly and Jake today! I had a post planned but I'd rather watch Netflix and pack for Chicago than finish it. Life without work is so rough!

If I had one extra hour in the day... I probably wouldn't notice because I would either be procrastinating or thinking about procrastinating. Can't say much for productivity these days.

I wish my name... didn't rhyme with "feather." Heather Feather sounds like a sick joke...not feeling too #feathery

I think anything chevron is... usually fine by me. I didn't get it at first but have since embraced diagonal lines.

My last nightmare... was about a friend from high school that is no longer my friend. Her voice was like nails on a chalkboard for the entire night. Blah.

Sometimes... I wonder what it would be like to be 5'0" and 95 lbs - one of those little tiny girls :) but I like being tall, not so much "big".

My last meal on earth would be... the doormat of nachos from Rockbottom Brewery, Pizza X pizza, wedding cake, and Miller Lite & Sangritas. 

I would much rather... go on a touristy vacation in another city or overseas than go to the beach any day. 

Mayonnaise... is something I'm getting used to not having in my life. Now tartar sauce, that's another story.

10 years ago, I didn't think... the Harry Potter books/movies would ever end and now that they have, a little piece of me has died. (Someone found my Horcrux)

Selfishly... I don't feel bad about taking the last Coke Zero, banana, or cookie. Sorry I'm not sorry.

My favorite show on TV right now... is probably Shark Tank or Wife Swap - those never get old. I gave up on trying to enjoy Pretty Little Liars and The Bachelorette.

And, George Zimmerman... Not going there. I'm not a legal expert and I didn't follow the case well enough to broadcast my opinion to the world. I pray for all those affected by this tragedy. 

And because every blog post needs a picture, do you like my camo IU hat? I wear it when I run, to shade my eyes & head from the sun. (That was fun).

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Hello everybody! Welcome to Weigh-In Wednesday!

Please go check out my sweet co-hosts & make sure to say hi!

Amy @ Write This Down

Bailey @ Being Bailey J

Ash @ A Step in the Right Direction

Update: I weighed in at the same weight this week. No change in two weeks. Honestly, with the wedding and Atlanta, I'm not shocked. This weekend I'm going to Chicago for a girls weekend with my friends from school. Luckily, my friend who is hosting us is a vegan so she tends to keep things pretty healthy. I'm going to do my best to not indulge too much. Plus, most of my friends are  runners so I'm sure we'll get some activity in! I will be sharing my weight very soon. I have a specific goal in mind and then I will be completely transparent. I'm just not there yet. Hate it or love it but that' what happened when I shared this blog too soon with people I know. 

I got the bright idea the other day to try a juice cleanse in order to "reset" my healthy eating - just for a day since I've never done a cleanse like this. I've read a lot about the Suja juices and others but every single cleanse is SUPER expensive. I headed to Whole Foods and bought a couple different juices. They didn't have all the ones for the Suja cleanse so I replaced the green juices with Bolthouse Farms Green Goodness juice. The schedule was as follows:

7:30 am Hot Water & Lemon

8:30 am Pineapple & Cucumber juice

10:45 am Suja Purify

1:00 pm Bolthouse Green Goodness

3:00 pm Suja Master Cleanse

4:30 Green Tea

6:00 Bolthouse Green Goodness

7:00 Suja Vanilla Cloud

+ Lots of Water

Didn't get a picture of the other two. Overall, the cleanse was AWESOME. It was just what I needed. I would drink these everyday if I could....

Ummmm...just kidding. It was awful. Let me preface by saying that I love fruits and veggies and I even love juice (although I never drink it) but these were NOT for me. This is all I could drink before I was basically gagging it down...

Obviously since I didn't even finish the juices, I wasn't getting enough calories. I made it until after my run at seven or so and then I had to eat some protein packed food. (It wasn't good from me, either. Follow me on MyFitnessPal if you want to know :) heawhita). My body was CRAVING something other than juice. I don't know if it was the particular brand, the types of juices, or that it just isn't for me but I won't be doing anything like this again.

This is the type of stuff I used to do when I was in junior high and high school when I had very unhealthy weight loss habits. I'm not saying cleanses are "bad" but I'm saying they are bad for me at this stage of the game. I'm still reforming my eating habits so something this extreme is just not good for me. 

I'm done with cleanses and quick fixes. I'm done with trying to take shortcuts. From now on, it's all about clean eating, treats in moderation, and challenging workouts. I was talking to Nick about this and he put it perfectly, "Why don't you just focus on making healthy decisions instead of worrying about cleanses and shit...or as the Cheerios bee says 'Be Happy, Be Healthy.'" Leave it to a man to give it to you straight, right? So lesson learned. Moving on.

Yesterday while I was drinking gross juice and dreaming about picnic foods, I started my Couch to 10K app that I bought. It's 14 weeks long but I'm starting at Week 5, Day 1 since I already did C25K. I'm also following the Hal Higdon plan *loosely*. The problem for both is the mileage is so low for the first few weeks (like 1.5-2 miles) and I feel like that's a waste of a workout (for me) so I end up doing my own thing. Whatever, at least I'm moving! I'll be complaining when it has me doing anything over 4 miles. (I'm still not running the whole thing but I'm getting there...it's hot!) 

I never thought I'd enjoy running but here I am! I just signed up for my first "big" 5K in Indianapolis which I'm pretty excited about. Some of my classmates are going to be running the mini and the 5K so I'll finally have some people to run with! If you're in the Indy area, check it out. Ladies only! 

Indianapolis Women's Half Marathon