A Christmas light bike ride

Last night, Willie and I went on a Christmas light bike ride.  We wanted to do it last year but we didn’t.  I don’t remember why but it probably had something to do with the social aspect of ride.  We just didn’t know anyone and it never occurred to us to just go out there to meet people.  This year we were all game for it though.  So yesterday I taught my 4:30 cycle class and then we headed out after for the 9 mile bike ride to see the Christmas lights.

Decorating my bike for tonight! #christmas #bike #christmaslights #rolling

You know what I loved about it? 1. There were so many people riding their bikes lit up with Christmas lights. Some people really went all out. 2. I got to put Christmas lights on my bike. I wish I would have had more time to decorate my bike though. 3. The holidays are associated with family and friends AND gaining weight and being less active. I love that this combined being active and some holiday spirit.

Our first year doing the #christmas light #bike ride and it was SO fun! Thanks for the good times my friends and of course a big thanks to Amie James!

We had a great time. Our friend Jeremy put a huge speaker on the back of his bike and played music the entire ride. And it was just fun to talk with everyone while we looked at the lights. I’ll be honest, I was too busy running my mouth and didn’t pay too much attention to the lights. I did see some of them though. He made a video with his GoPro, this is just the trailer.

Untitled

Towards the end we stopped off at a bakery. I shouldn’t have gone in but I was thirsty and I forgot my water bottle. I came out with THE BEST GINGERBREAD COOKIE EVER and a caramel empanada (it was good but the cookie was the star of the show). I think Willie and I were going to go to blows over that gingerbread cookie. Remember it’s about moderation folks…and a shoving match over who gets the last bite of the cookie we were supposed to be sharing. All in Christmas spirit!

Dancing santas on the bike ride! #christmas

But it was a great time and it was nice just to get out to ride the bike with friends and just chat. It was also cool that the community supported the ride. A local dance studio had dancing Santas for us to enjoy. So many people came out to way and to say happy holidays. It was just a great feel good moment and promoted being active which is what we’re all about!

Have you gone out to look at the Christmas lights? Have you seen anything really spectacular?

More than just about weight loss

More than just about weight loss

We wanted to lose the weight to improve our quality of life and we did it! I’m here to tell losing weight was only the FIRST step in improving our quality of life. I learned in hindsight that the weight was holding us back from not just being physically active but also socially active. Don’t get me wrong, we both have a GREAT set of BEST friends in our life but all but one set live out of state.  The in state people don’t even live in our city.  Willie and I spent a LOT of time sitting at home,…

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Dealing with maintenance mode

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Sunday Run down

Sunday Run down

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Eggless Eggnog for the holidays

Eggless Eggnog for the holidays

I don’t know about you, but I love(d) eggnog. I never really paid attention to the calories or fat in this delicious holiday drink though. When I became a little bit more health conscious I had to step away from my favorite holiday drink because it just didn’t fit into my “I can make that work” factor. (FYI: I am a person who doesn’t really like to drink their calories, but I know everyone is different.) Christmas cookies and eggnog were always something I enjoyed on Christmas Eve but it’s just something I couldn’t do anymore. I may not feel…

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After the marathon…

After the marathon…

You know what?  It’s super hard for me not to run.  I know I needed to take the days off but I really just wanted to run and I had already built up this serious running thing.  I had to take a few days off which is fine because I still had to teach my cycle classes. I need to take it easy and not hurt myself. I think people always forget about recovery! After the marathon I thought I would be hurting but I’m not.  I’m having a little ache in my knees but that’s due to not stretching…

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The deal with our body image

The deal with our body image

Excuse me as I give myself a pep talk about body image. Some of you may have the same problem as me and others may not, but I do have a problem. In the car on the way back from Memphis, I was reading the news and I found this clip of Jennifer Lawrence telling us to “screw those people” who want to make us into someone else. It was actually a refreshing moment to watch and made me love this woman so much more. How can you not love the psychotic girl from Silver Linings Playbook or Katniss Everdeen?…

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I Can Be Active Check-in #2

I Can Be Active Check-in #2

It’s time for the second check-in for the I Can Be Active Challenge. Please share with me how you’ve been active over the second time period. You can gain extra entries by doing the things below. I guess you want to know what the first prize is, right? This rounds prize will be a gift card to Target! Why Target? Because I love the workout clothes from there and it was the place where I got my new running vest that I love so much! a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Not the marathon post I planned. St. Jude …

Not the marathon post I planned. St. Jude Marathon was canceled.

This was supposed to be an exciting weekend for us because we had been in training for Willie’s “knock it out of the park” half marathon and my first marathon. But then a little winter storm came into our lives. We probably should have taken the hint when our flight was canceled but we didn’t. We just got in the car to drive to Memphis. Race officials said things were still ago and we didn’t want to miss out on the race. We arrived in Memphis at 1:30 am before the ice storm hit. Friday morning we woke up to…

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The importance of being you

The importance of being you

I guess today is a little inspirational post. Over the course of my marathon training, I’ve struggled with doing things for myself. I’m sure a lot of you struggle with this too, especially when others who are dependent on you. I don’t have any children but I’ve been left to task of caring for my mother as she battled cancer along with many other responsibilities. I declared this time in my life as a time to do something for myself…and I got flack for it. The most important thing to realize is that NO ONE is going to be 100%…

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Marathon mind

Marathon mind

Excuse me as I take a break from talking about anything else that’s going on in life because I can’t think about anything EXCEPT the marathon.  Yesterday I was in tears because I feared the race would be canceled. NO ONE even mentioned the possible cancellation, it was just one of those things I didn’t even want to occur. Why would they cancel you might ask?  Winter weather! I intended on the weather being on the chilly side back in February, even though Willie said it wouldn’t happen like that. I didn’t expect a winter storm to literally snow on…

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