Mom Works It Out by Angela Gillis

Angela April 14, 2014

You can’t win them all

I started thinking about my running and the entire journey to this point. There are many battles along the way and the truth is I didn’t win them all. It’s hard to set out on a path and have everything mapped out and things don’t go the way we planned. It’s hard to come to terms with it. Sometimes things come out better than the plan but sometimes it just completely tanks. That battle is lost but you’re still a winner. I’ve been searching my soul on something to blog about for today besides my race recaps. I don’t want…

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Angela April 11, 2014

What I studied, how I worked out and …

All this traveling has gotten me off my routine. We’re getting so close to China and I realize we’re prepared but not prepared. I’ve been training for the The Great Wall of China Marathon but the weather is getting a little hotter and it’s starting to affect my running. It’s that time again. So when I need a break from the running, I practice my Mandarin Chinese. Let me tell you folks, it’s not easy learning this stuff. It’s hard work! I just need to know enough to get by and to make some notecards. This week has been really…

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Angela April 11, 2014

Seven Habits That Need To Be Broken

This week I’ve been focused on being positive because I’ve had a little dark cloud following me around for a couple of weeks. Positiveness really works because this week has been so much better than the weeks that have passed. I’m smiling, I’m happy and I’m looking forward to what the future brings…and I’ve just started to look at things differently. And then I saw this floating around Facebook the other day from Chris Freytag! I know that if I work on these areas my life with head in a positive direction everyday. All of these things are things I…

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Angela April 8, 2014

Race Recap: Irving Marathon

On Saturday, I ran my 5th marathon of the year! On Friday, I didn’t want to run the marathon. Saturday morning, I was a feeling a little better around running the marathon, but I still didn’t want to do it. To be honest, I didn’t want to run another marathon until China. A half marathon would be fine, but no fulls. Physically I’m capable of doing it, but there is a huge mental toll the marathon puts on you and I’ve just been too busy which left me mentally tired. I sucked it up though because the race directors were…

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Angela April 8, 2014

My Workout Watches

If you didn’t know, I’m obsessed with watches so it’s only natural that it translates into my workouts too. I do pick out my watches before I get dressed in the morning, but for my workout it, it’s a little different. I’m a huge numbers gal. I want to know what’s going every minute of my workout. If I don’t have it I feel lost. I wish I was more zen, but I’m not. When I’m not running I use the Polar FT40! This is probably the best heart rate monitor I’ve had. I used many but this one satisfied…

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Angela April 7, 2014

Keeping it positive

A positive attitude can take you many different places. A positive attitude will take from the darkest day to the brightest star in the sky. It’s sometimes hard to get to that positive point when things are down in the dump. But everything is achievable, including a great attitude on the worst day. I love this quote. You can download the wallpaper at byrdbaggett.com I’ve been dealing with some stressful things lately, but I haven’t really let it keep me down. I’ve been a little absent from the blog because of these issues but I was trying to keep myself…

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Angela April 4, 2014

Playing catch up during a stressful week

Been wondering where I disappeared to this week? I could tell you a lot of different things, but I’ll tell you the truth. I’ve just been tired and stressed about some life things going on. I’ve literally have just been working out, teaching my cycle classes and working my butt off. I wish blogging was my full time job and paid all the bills, but it doesn’t. Sometimes the blog gets put on the back burner when life gets in the way. So here are just a few things I’ve been up to this week: This week everyone seemed to…

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Angela April 1, 2014

Race Recap: The Texas Independence Relay

I’m sorry I disappeared off the face of the earth because I was too tired to function. I think we all greatly underestimate our need to sleep. Running + friends + no sleeping + no real food = Texas Independence Relay! I will admit my happy emotions cup runneth over and there’s no way I will ever be able to put into words how I felt this weekend. I can’t express to you the greatness in the relationships I formed this weekend, the respect built for my team mates and the joy and misery in my heart! I’m not even…

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Angela March 28, 2014

Happy Friday! I’m relaying this weekend.

It’s Friday! I’m excited for the weekend and have a new experience. This year I was invited to join a Texas Independence Relay team and I’m really excited for the experience. It’s 200 miles with my friends. We’re either going to love or hate each other by the time it’s all done! We have 11 people on our team and two drivers. Willie volunteered to drive on this little adventure and I’m so grateful for his support on this one! We start tomorrow morning at 9:28 am and will run from Gonzales, TX to the San Jacinto Monument! 200 freakin’…

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Angela March 27, 2014

Travel Thursday: It’s all uphill from here

And I mean that literally! All the business is behind us. On Tuesday, I went back to the consulate to see if we got approved for our visas and to pick them up! Luckily we were approved and that was the last big hurdle for us going to China! Going to China is a very big deal and they really like to know why you’re going and what you’re doing when you get there. It may seem like a hassle having to fill out the paper work, but at the same time it makes me feel a little safer too.…

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Angela March 26, 2014

I’m battling the insecurity

I like to think I’m ok with it, but I know I’m not. I haven’t been bashing my body image but I’ve been more conscious of it lately. Maybe it’s because I’ve been out of town lately and really settled into my usual pattern, but I’ve been noticing. I talk about my legs way too much. I even mentioned it last week in a blog post. I am self conscious about my thighs. Funny thing is, it used to be my arms but now it’s my thighs. You will see the evolution of the shorts in this post. Maybe I…

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