Happy New Year - Recap

I think last year I said I would blog more, so naturally I blogged less...

2014 was a HUGE year for me. 

kicked it off with trapeze class, Hawaii, pancakes and booze art show, opened my etsy shop, started my website, presented at RAW, ran a half marathon, art shows throughout the summer, a camping trip in the Redwoods, a solo weekend trip to Portland, new job, new art, new adventures. It was an amazing year!!!! 

This year is already off to a great start. I'm leaving for Hawaii again in 4 days! I can't believe it been a year already! 

I finally started a series of art on wood panels (I've been meaning to really dive in and explore this for over a year now) and when I get back from Hawaii I'll be showing for two months at the Fremont Art Walk. 

I think one of the things I'm most excited about this year is my new fitness plans... I've decided to run a mile a day as my new years resolution and so far go good, granted we're only 2 weeks in... but I'm going strong and as I expected, it's forcing me to put my health and fitness at the forefront of my day and ultimately everything finds its place after that... I've had more energy, more balance, and a greater sense of accomplishment than I've been able to maintain for some time now. This year is the year I plan to line it all up so to speak.... I've spent the last few years developing these tools to sculpt my life into what I want it to be, and maybe I'm speaking too soon but I feel like this is the year it all starts to come together. 

Just wanted to pop in and say hello again, let you know that I'm still here, still working, and still excited to share with whoever this blog falls upon.  

Pancakes and Booze - Take 2!

Hey I know all things art (and I in general) have been off the radar. I've had some fun this summer and done some shows here and there and am currently gearing up for the Pancakes and Booze show again this coming weekend! I really loved doing this event last time, it was such a great intro to the displaying-art world.

Something that will be a bit interesting about this go around will be that I'm not showing a complete set. The last few months  my work has been transitioning from melted wax as my base medium to acrylic paints. I've dabbled with drip paintings, basic acrylic techniques, watercolors (again), pastels, wood burning, even some portrait drawing... I honestly really struggled the last few months with figuring out where or how to take the next step in my art, how to stay true to what I personally want to explore and how to maintain my style in the process of learning.  Its been a trip and I'm really excited to share some of the things I've done, even if sharing an incomplete, mismatched, set is a bit outside my perfectionist comfort zone. This is the REAL stuff... the experiments, the new growth!

I tossed in a couple of my drip paintings... I'm having a hard time deciding which to hang... there's a giraffe that I think is trying to make a debut... I just got my elephant and goldfish prints up in my etsy shop. The goldfish original was one of my first to sell in this set...S/he got shipped off to California last month sometime. :)

Stay tuned for an update on the show!!

October 2014 Workout Plan

Okay here it is guys... Sorry it's a little late, I took on a new job and it's kept me on my toes while I get into the swing of my new routine.

Last night was my first night of Hot Yoga at this awesome little studio in Renton. I got one of those living social deals for 1 month unlimited yoga sessions! WOOHOO. This month's plan is designed to use it to the fullest. SOOOO if you're hankering for some Hot Yoga, or regular yoga, or any other class for that matter now is the time to go for it!!! Feel free to edit as you see fit, remember these plans are just MY base, make your workout fit YOU!

Double Throwback - See Jane Run Half Marathon

 Okay I just have to say this was an AWESOME event - except for the fact that it was in the middle of July... can you say hot snot?!

So this was my second half marathon... I had completed the one back in January and set out on my training with the goal of beating my previous time - 2hours and 58 minutes... I was originally shooting to shave 10 minutes off my time. I would really like to finish my half marathons in 2:30-2:45 but the heat was killer and my training had kind of piddled out at the end of it all... I realized I need to adjust training to about 14 weeks instead of 12 or 16... NEXT TIME! Anyway, long story short I set out on one of the hottest days of the summer to run all the way around lake union and I managed to beat my last time by 6 minutes! its not a HUGE improvement but its that much closer to the 2:45 time I'm working toward! My favorite part was these giant chalk boards where people could write what they run for, oh and the awesome champagne glasses - real glass! when you're used to getting a red solo cup of beer after a run, the fancy glass seems like a huge upgrade!

I've taken a break from the distance running to focus on yoga and strength training but this will always be a huge part of my life (as long as my body allows). I never thought I'd be a runner but here I am, two half marathons, a tough mudder, and a handful of 5ks under my belt and I don't see anything stopping me anytime soon.

Throwback Thursday! - Summer Art Shows

 Its been a little while since I've posted anything art related, which is kind of funny considering how much I've been doing with it recently.

A long long time ago, all the way back in April, I did the Pancakes and Booze show at El Corazon downtown. It was a great show where I met new artist friends and dipped my toes into all that is showing art... That night was a blast, I got rid of a few prints, had my face painted and got to test the water before my show in June - this was my first real event.

June came up fast but I produced a TON of new work to show. I started doing some dot work and really tried stretching my concepts; working on bigger canvas and venturing into a new realm of control for my work. It was time consuming but it paid off! The RAW show was amazing!!!! Set up went smoothly, I got rid of a ton of work and really came out of there stunned with how far this has come since I started a couple years ago! I finally felt like I had done something big! RAW has been a great platform for me. They even made this little artist interview!

I'm gearing up now for another Pancakes and Booze show in November where I'll be showing new work done on wood panels rather than canvas and I'm really excited about the new art that's been happening (I've ventured a bit from sea to land), but alas - that is for a different post!

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September Fitness Challenge

it's been SO LONG!!!

I have an unbelievable amount of things to update you on, from the finishing time of my last half maratho and the art show at Neumos, to all of my upcoming adventures! I always feel blessed that life has a way of swooping me up and getting me lost in the hustle and bustle, and then I finally find these moments to sit down and reflect on the wonderful things that have happened. These are all stories for another post though, let me not get distracted.

SO here were are... heading into the last few weeks of August (can you believe that?!) and I'm approaching my next birthday. As excited as I am, I can't help but feel this urgency to make and meet new fitness goals. Over the last few weeks I've gotten really interested in Acroyoga. If you have no idea what I'm talking about check out this video! (and then find me an equally amazing man that wants to be my partner). Needless to say I'm no where near confident enough to step into that arena of fitness but I'm not discouraged from working toward it. This September will be the start of my three month push plan.... I'll be designing my workout routine to really push myself toward the areas of fitness I've avoided for whatever reason. I'll be sharing my calendar and workout details at the end of each month so anyone that wants to join me is more than welcomed!

A little bit about the plan - you'll notice September is a bunch of two mile runs.... I struggled with only writing down two miles, but I know that I have a tendency to really push my cardio, I'm a cardio junkie, but that doesn't really line up with my strength training goals... This run+circuit plan will hopefully help me bridge that gap. You'll also notice that I've got a yoga class once a week - I'd encourage everyone to find some group class to hit, try something new kickboxing, hot yoga, crossfit...whatever you want. There's also hoop/dance sessions on my "rest" days... I know not everyone is into hula hooping (But you should be!!!!) Just consider this day to be a day for you to be playfully active. maybe that just means a walk, maybe it means blasting your jam first thing when you get up and having a full blown spazz attack... whatever it is, just have fun and keep moving! Last but not least... each month will have its own little challenge wrapped in: September we will eliminate ALL alcohol consumption and UPPPP the water intake, October we will eliminate processed sugars and make at least one day a week meatless, and in November we are going Gluten Free entirely (this is something I've already cut down to a minimum, alcohol being my major culprit, followed closely by Daves Killer Bread) I'll be putting up recipes during the October and November so you guys will know what I'm eating and I'll even be sharing my GF Thanksgiving plan!!!! WOOOHOO! SO ALL ABOARD! We're gonna finish this year in the best way possible!!!

How to Train for a Half Marathon

Okay guys, here I am for another fitness inspired post.

Let me start off by saying I AM NOT A PROFESSIONAL. I am NOT a trainer. I am an average person who figured this weight loss/exercise thing out (with lots of research and common sense) and I only want to share my experience, tips, tricks, and fumbles.

As you may know from prior posts, I ran one other 1/2 marathon and am currently 6 weeks away from my next one, I've run the Tough Mudder and a hand full or of 5ks. Also for the record, I'm not a fast runner... I'm not some super athlete and none of this came easy to me. My persistence and dedication to being healthier is what made me lose over 100lbs and undertake long distance running. A lot of people would be embarrassed about running(jogging? for those who are like "weak") at 5mp but I cant even begin to explain
how proud I feel when I finish a
9 mile run at that pace. When I first started walking/jogging, "wogging" as I called it, I would close myself up in my parents basement, get on the treadmill, turn on Eminem's "lose yourself" and try my hardest to run (at 5mph) for the entire song... it was MONTHS before I could run for the entire 5 minutes... months.... I was so out of shape!  I can now keep that pace for over 2 hours, success, I'd say.  Anyway, there you have it, that's my fitness resume/experience, take my advice at your own risk. :)

My last training plan was a bit of a struggle... I had copied one of those 12 weeks to a half marathon and it was definitely a struggle for me to keep up with, each week the long run increased by a mile, which was 1 pretty hard to do every week and 2. if you miss even ONE long run you feel like you're behind... try missing two? you're either cutting your distance or your tapper and I needed both... This training session is going so much better I had to share.

Tips, Tricks, and Honest Facts for the Average Person Who is Also an Aspiring Long Distance Runner
(you see why the title was "how to train for a half"?)

1. Be able to jog 3 miles... if you're wogging your 5k's....13.1miles is gonna seem like forever - DOABLE but forever...

2. Realize the magnitude of your commitment - You should set aside 4 months for training.... that's right ladies and gentleman... the average joe shmoe over here would recommend FOUR (4)  months to gradually increase your runs, allow for life happenings, and ultimately lower your stress levels (maybe I'm just too high strung?)

3. It is manageable. This is a non-competitive sport; this is something where you just have to consistently show up and put in the work and you WILL be able to finish. No doubt about it. No matter how long it takes you - You are going to finish.

4. Pick your season wisely. Remember, this isn't just one race day... this is 4 months of training... 4 months of running outside. Think about your schedule, the weather, do you mind running in the dark? I didn't think about those things... Thankfully we had a beautiful fall but as we got closer to December and the days got shorter and wetter, I would have traded those crunchy leaves under my feet for an 8:00 sunset any day. This Spring training is working well for me... enjoying all the evenings as the sun started staying out... now I find myself waiting a bit longer so its not so hot after work. Anyway - THINK ABOUT IT!

5. It's okay to slow down, its not okay to stop. Don't get discouraged if you have to slow down. It's too easy to let being tired trick you into being done. Of course you're tired, you're rounding out your 8th mile and you still have two to go, and you have a blister, and the sun's too hot, and you forgot your chapstick... but I guarantee you'll regret it more if you don't finish. I bet if that long run was race day you'd finish...(because what kind of person drops out 2 miles from their goal!?)

6. Don't be afraid to be a slow runner... I used to feel like every time I got passed by someone my form was off, I felt like a turtle crawling through molasses, my chest got tight, I'd try to go faster because I should be going faster, right? WRONG. This is you time... this is about FINDing YOUR PACE. The pace that you can run at and forget you're running... It might sound like horse shit but its there... find it!

7. Salt and Water. Let me just say, I'm a sweaty mess when I run... its gross (as it should be) and when you are someone who sweats as much as I do, you are losing a couple important things, water obviously, and sodium (see I'm an average person, not some super athlete so this thought never crossed my mind, and yes I really didn't make the connection between the sodium in sports drinks until this late in life - see previous comment about not being into sports). Simple solution - hydration pack and gummy snacks. For some reason I felt like I would be a dweeb for carrying a hydration pack, yes most people don't race with them "because there are water stations" and they hand out snacks and yada yada yada. but I have control issues, I'm a sweaty, salty mess (gimme snacks now!), and I enjoy the convenience. All of that was enough to make my runs more enjoyable and thus make me say "Screw what everyone else is doing? this works perfect for me". Bottom line - listen to your body, stay hydrated and energized, even if you have to tote around a waterbottle and mini snack pack.

8. Invest in quality gear. Don't skimp yourself. Shoes are most important. Socks are right up there because there's nothing worse than blisters on weird parts of your sweaty feet. I spent a lot of time looking at the tread on my shoes to see where they were wearing down. The Nike's I wore prior to my first pair of Asics showed signs of over pronation (they were worn on the outside of the shoe). After a little research about shoes that would help cater to that and factoring in my weight and distance running I picked up a pair of Asics Kayano 19. I LOVE THEM. I don't have knee pains, my shins don't hurt and they have worn almost perfectly on the ball of the foot which means my form has DRASTICALLY improved. I'm not saying that's the shoe for everyone, I'm saying take time to get to know your feet and your form and cater to that. If you need help they have great running shops that do the work for you.

9. Its a mind game. The only thing that will stop you from not finishing is you thinking you cant. When you don't want to run, put your shoes on and just head out for one mile... during that mile think about all the reasons you enjoy running, the reasons you signed up for the race... Also whenever you reach the halfway point - is there really a reason to not finish? you've finished the hardest part. Or my favorite game - The victory mile - I always find myself struggling to finish the last mile of a long run but sure enough I get my final wind when I remind myself of race day... how that last mile will feel and how it rounds off the journey, how it makes it the end... imagine running 4 laps around a stadium with a crowd cheering... the last mile count as my "victory laps"

10. YOU ARE AN AMAZING MACHINE  - You're body will not give up on you if you work with it, if you cater to it, if you take care of it. Your legs were designed to run, your lungs to breathe. Don't be afraid to push yourself each day to the point you're struggling. YOU CAN DO IT!