My MFP Birthday

One  year ago (on Saturday, May 17) I joined My Fitness Pal. There on MFP, it keeps track of your "streak" ... how many days you have checked in and logged.

Since I started ... 

I haven't missed a day.

When I originally lost weight (eight years ago) I tried to track food. For a short time, I wrote down what I was eating in a notebook. Then I tried on online program (My Calorie Counter) and did that for a little bit. It didn't really stick. I wasn't sure if it was food logging in general, or just the program that was the problem. I'd spent quite a bit of time adding manual entries, and learning how it worked, so I wasn't sure I wanted to change and try something else. For several years, I just keep exercising, trying not to eat everything, and I did okay. But as I've mentioned, the weight slowly crept back on. A year ago, I decided I needed to try food tracking again. Looking at the various options, I decided to give MFP a chance.

I'm so glad I did!  MFP is SO easy... Let me clarify. MFP makes recording and tracking food easy. The actual EATING choices, keeping calories in check ... THAT is hard. SO hard! I really don't know if I'll ever master the eating. But the food logging? I've got that down. That is second nature to me now. NOT logging ... that would be hard for me.

 Many people keep their food diary public for friends to see. I don't. I keep mine private. Sometimes I don't really WANT to put everything down in black and white, but I do like having the record. I can look back on any day in the past year and know what I ate. It's a food journal, but the food tells a bit of a story too. Just looking at the entries can often trigger memories of the day as a whole.

Food logging isn't for everyone, I know.  People who are eating healthy and clean are probably keeping calories in check, and counting every calorie isn't required. For some I'm sure it would be a negative experience, a chore. I'm not sure if I plan on doing this every day for the rest of my life ... but you know, maybe I will. I AM the kind of person who revels in records, who likes numbers and graphs, who looks at my food journal as more than just a journal for food, but for memories as well.

It motivates me. As I started MFP, I lost 15 pounds pretty quick. Over the next several months, I lost another 15. I'm no longer in the overweight category. I'd like to lose a little more, but I'm not unhappy with where I'm at or how far I've come. And I give MFP most of the credit for that.

So Happy MFP Birthday to me!

No - I didn't celebrate it with cake.

**Weekend Recap**
Linking up with MIMM.

• Friday ... had a decent day workout wise. I did get my jog and weights in. A little less elliptical, a little more bike as I wanted to finish my book (I have a new one I'm excited to read waiting for me). Food wise ... not great.
• Saturday ... I went to the last basketball game of the season (for #3). I didn't bother video taping it, as we thought it was going to be a blow-out (our boys ended up with the win!) and I still have clips from two previous games I haven't done anything with. That left me free to "walk" during the game. Then I had a soccer game for #5 later in the day (I did man the video camera for that one, but still got a bit of walking in). Hubby got my burb brakes looked at (they had been sounding awful) and got the car registered ... so glad to have that done (still have issues with #1's truck hanging over us). 
• Sunday ... there was some housecleaning, ping pong and walking to/from church twice. It's not far, but enough to get a little blip on my daily Fitbit. Only got in 40minutes on the elliptical for "official" exercise both Saturday and Sunday, but these other activities added up. I was pleasantly surprised by my numbers.  You can see my stats in my Day to Day Doings.  Still need to work on the eating though, especially on the weekends!

Have you tried food logging? MFP or otherwise?

What motivates you?
Join the Motivation Monday Link Up!

WWI#44 & My "Pissed-Off Playlist"

It's Friday. I don't say that with the same glee most of you do. I prefer the Mon-Thurs routine. I just do better with eating and exercise during the week. But Friday is time for my weekly weigh-in and Friday Five post. I do like checking in each week ...

Sunday was Mother's Day ... food and fitness were NOT good on Mother's Day. Ate too much and didn't exercise. So it was no surprise when the scale bumped up Monday morning. Then as I got into my Monday-Thursday routine, the numbers went down ... one pound by Tuesday, another pound down by Wednesday, another Thursday. Not that I actually gained/lost three pounds, but I was happy to at least see the scale moving in the right direction. Still nothing under 150 ... maybe I can get back to that this week!

NUMBERS: Weight is down .8 from last Friday's weigh-in, although my weekly average was up just a bit. High was Monday morning at 154.8. Low was yesterday at 151.2.  I had a weekly deficit, but only -1312.  I really thought I had done better eating/exercise wise this week, but I guess my bad Sunday threw the averages off. Average intake 2214. Average burn 2691.

I'm linking up with Fitness Friday and Fantastic Friday and a late Weigh-In Wednesday.  

 Time for my 

Friday Five

Courtney at Eat, Pray Run shared Five Reasons To Run Without Music in her blog post today.  But ... I NEED music, it really motivates me. I've collected a grundle of songs with a BPM of 160, which is my perfect pace (just 5mph for me). Songs where my footfalls match the beat of the music. I've shared a couple playlists before (TopPopHits and FavoriteInspirations) and still have more that I'm organizing into categories. Today, I thought I'd share my...

 "Pissed Off Playlist" 
My FIVE favorite songs when I'm a little ornery or off ... or even when I'm not.

These five songs are great for when you're feeling a little angry and just want to pound the pavement (or treadmill, in my case). When you've got things bottled up and you want to let them out. If there is a certain person you might be thinking about as you sing along. Even if I'm NOT ornery, I still get a kick out of some of these tunes.These can't help but get my heart pounding and ironically, put me in a better mood!

 

• Shut Up: The title pretty much says it all.
• What The Hell: Actually, there are a FEW of Avril's songs that could make this list, but this one is my favorite. I can identify with the statement "All my life I've been good but now ... what the hell!" This is just a tad slower (BMP of 150) but I can still make it match the 5mph setting on the treadmill, I just take slightly larger steps or something. La la la la la ....
• Everyday I Love You Less and Less:  This song was in the movie "Run Fatboy Run" which is pretty funny if you haven't seen it. Something about this song just struck me, it's hilarious really. I'm happily married ... but I feel like this would be a great breakup song!
• Leave Me Alone: This song doesn't feel as "hard" as the others, but still has the same angry message. Perfect for any day someone makes you feel like you can't do this weight-loss thing ... just listen to this song! This has been a favorite jogging song of mine for years.
• Awake and Alive: When my hubby first heard this song, he looked at me and asked "YOU like this?" ... yes, yes I do. I really do! "I'm awake I'm alive, now I know what I believe inside. Now is my time, I'll do what I want 'cause this is my life! I'm awake and I'm alive!" It's got such a strong beat and a strong message.

But Jen ... you are so nice and so sweet. Ok, usually I am, but EVERYONE has those moments when they just feel like screaming and shouting a bit, right? In truth, I usually don't listen to all five of these songs back to back (unless I'm REALLY in a bad mood), but I do enjoy having them in my main playlist mix. Just thought I'd share them with you! 

Linking up with my Friday Five Favs ... (in addition to the DC Bloggers), Five on Friday at Hello Happiness, Friday Favorites at Running4Cupcakes, Friday Favorites at Housewife Glamour, High Five Friday at LaurenElizabeth and Five Things Friday at Fitting It All In.

Basketball Butt

 Sometimes I get a bit bored waiting for the game to start ...

Thus basketball mom selfies :)

The past several months, I've spent many hours in the car running boys to practices and games. There has been quite a bit of time sitting on the bleachers watching the boys play basketball. Although I do often try to get some walking in, or stand during games ... it's easy to get "basketball butt" from so much sitting! Spring season is finally finishing up, and while there will be some camps, I don't think we have any basketball games in the coming summer months. I'm not sure if that makes me happy or sad ... just Thinking Out Loud about basketball and my boys this Thursday.

Last Saturday I watched (and captured video highlights) of three basketball games. Then there was a game on Monday, on Tuesday and the championships yesterday (for my #2, the 15-year old). They came in 2nd, as they did in their last three tournaments.  So close! He has his last "open gym" tonight, and #3 (the 13-year old) had his final practice last night, and has his final game on Saturday.

I'm a pretty laid back basketball mom. Even though I've watched more games than I can count, I don't consider myself much of a judge when it comes to the refs calls. I'm pretty quiet ... no so for so many of the parents. There have been some frustrating and disappointing shows of unsportsmanlike behavior ... much more on the parts of parents than from the boys!  My #3 does struggle with it a bit, and I've told him THAT is more important to me than basketball skills.  So many times, a negative moment during or after the game can just spoil the whole thing.  It makes me sad. But for the most part, I do love watching the boys play!

Here's one of the highlight videos I made ...

My #2 IS #2 (that's helpful, right?)

#2 wears a Fitbit ... I like to track how much activity he gets from his practices and games. I can still usually beat him in steps, but if this summer is anything like the last, I know there are days he'll give me a run for my money. I love having active kids! I'd love to strap a Fitbit on each one, and see what kind of numbers they get. 

With actual games behind me ... I need to catch up on my Basketball Blog and finish up some of the videos from this last season!  Ah ... basketball. The NBA is finishing up their season too. Basketball is a huge part of our family.  Does basketball play a role in YOUR everyday?  And per the selfies at the start of the post ... you know that is actually an NSV! In the past, I NEVER would have stopped and snapped a picture of myself!

Committing to Fruits/Veggies

My little eight year old came home from boy scouts the other day. For one of the requirements, they needed to draw some foods that are good for you. This was his picture *Ü*

I've mentioned it before ... I'm a picky eater (Eating Issues). I have actually eaten and liked all the foods drawn above (well, I didn't care for the pomegranate, but I did try it!). I'll eat pineapple, pears and clementines too. But most of the other fruits? Peaches, honeydew/cantaloupe, all the berries ... I don't eat them. The fruits I do eat, I only eat plain, not in smoothies, or cooked/combined or processed in any way (well, I'll eat banana bread and blueberry muffins ... but not any fruit pie). 

Vegetables? I'm even worse!
I've never had a salad of any kind.

Last month I talked a little about the PACT program. Formally "GymPact" ... you could sign up, commit to working out during the week and get rewarded if you completed your pact, and pay up if you didn't. Pact then expanded past just workouts, to motivate people to log their meals (via MFP) and to eat their fruits and vegetables.  I went ahead and signed up for the "gym" and the "food logging" pacts, committing to six days a week. I haven't had to pay out anything yet, and I've earned over $50.

I have not tried the Veggie Pact.  I'm just not sure I can keep that commitment. I KNOW, that's the point of the pact. To motivate you, to encourage you. But still, I'm just not sure I'm ready to commit to that. You can commit to five fruits/veggies a day.  I've been thinking about it ... perhaps I would try six per week. The OCD in me would like the match up with my gym & food logging pacts and wouldn't be a huge commitment. That should be doable, right?

The gym and food logging pacts get logged automatically for me. Once I hit 10,000 steps on my Fitbit, that counts as a workout (there are other ways to log a workout if you don't have a Fitbit). Once you log at least three meals and 1200 calories on My Fitness Pal, your food logging pact is complete for the day (some days I haven't eaten too much in the morning and I think "I may not hit 1200 calories today." Ha ha ha ha ha ... I always end up hitting 1200 and more. Luckily we are not penalized for going over, just having the minimum and logging).

The veggie pact works differently. It's not automatic. You have to take a picture of your fruit/veggie using the Pact app. The picture is then uploaded to the Pact Community for voting. Other people will vote on whether or not your picture qualifies. You must receive six up votes to get verified. Three down votes will disqualify the entry and it won't count.

Besides not being great at remembering to take a picture and hoping there are no network issues while it uploads, there are some issues with the voting process. Two main reasons for downvoting an entry are "not a full serving" (which can be a little arbitrary) and "can't tell it's being eaten" ... which has resulted in some disgusting openmouth chewing selfies ...

Then there is the the questions, what SHOULD count as a fruit/veggie? Do corn and potatoes count? Some people vote yes, others downvote them saying "they are a starch, not a vegetable". What about juice? What about beans? Iceberg lettuce? Dried fruit? What about a fruit or veggie with so much other unhealthy stuff included with it ... does that negate the entry?  One person said he didn't think ANYTHING other than fresh (not canned/frozen/processed) should count. I think that is taking it a bit far! There are no hard and fast rules which makes it hard ... Pact actually put forth a blog post about it (here). 

How do you think YOU would vote?

Then ... there are the CHEATERS. As I haven't joined the VeggiePact yet, and my stuff syncs automatically, I don't really check out the community feed. I've never voted on a picture myself. I've joined a Facebook group for Pact users though, and I've seen many a post come across pointing out cheating (especially on Sunday nights, as the Pact comes to a close). Pictures of pictures ... often from cookbooks. The same fruit/veggie presented in different views. Obviously uneaten (sometimes even unpurchased ... still at the supermarket in the background). Then there are the silly entries ... a bowl of "Fruit" Loops, fruit snacks, beer/wine, etc. 

I'm still debating trying it ... it does seem like quite a bit of bother to earn about $1 (which might be my return on a commitment of six per week, it does vary week to week). But if it did get me to eat more fruits/veggies ... to be more conscious of it (I wouldn't want to pay $5 for a missed commitment, the "punishment" would be more motivation than the payment). 

A while back (last November) ... I posted that Hubby was on board. That he was wanting to get back to the eating and exercise. Well, for the first time in his many ups and downs ... it didn't happen. Every other time the Hubs has decided to get on track, he has had immediate success. Not this time. It just didn't click. We'll, he's recommitting again now. I've tried to fill the fridge with healthy choices. I need to get back to prepping him a lunch to take to work. To make healthy dinners. To allow him time to exercise. To be supportive without being pushy. Already (it's just been a couple of days) I can see my mental attitude change a bit in what I'm doing myself ... thus my thoughts about joining veggie pact.

So ... even though I'm NOT getting any official credit for it. Guess what I ate this Wednesday? A banana.  Yea me!   Linking up with What I Ate Wednesday ... maybe in a future WIAW post I'll have a week's worth of fruit/veggies to share, and an update on my Pact experience. Also linking up with the Wednesday Hump Day blog hop at FitnessBlondie and the Wednesday Linkup At Fit FoodieRuns. 

Snack Bags & Amazon Prime

We just celebrated Mother's Day. A few years ago, hubby got me a great Mother's Day gift ... an Amazon Prime subscription. We've loved having the two-day shipping, although two days is still WAY to long to wait when my boys (hubby included) are anxiously awaiting an item. Can you say impatient? *Ü*

There has been a little bit in the press last month about Amazon raising the rates for Prime. For me ... it's just something I'll have to deal with because I'm not giving up my prime. In addition to the shipping, I can borrow a book from the Kindle lending library each month (I'm currently reading "The Frost Chronicles" ... read book one in April, book two in May, and as soon as June hits I'll be reading book 3). I do like all the movies and tv shows available to stream through Amazon Prime too. In a previous post (Amazon and Exercise) I pointed out all the workouts available (Jillian, Denise Austin and more).

I love Amazon ... it's great for reviews, and the prices are often the best (not always, but often. It's still good to shop around!)  I've been impressed with Amazon's customer service and return policy.

I'm not even an Amazon affiliate, I just like them.

I thought out point out a deal I found on snack bags.

I don't know about you, but we go through a TON of these little bags. They are the perfect size for so many things. I have five boys in school and I'm packing lunches from home almost every morning. Their sandwich goes in one, pre-sliced apples in another, some pretzels and then a snack in a couple more. x5.   These little bags are great for portion control too, or pre-packing serving sizes you can just grab and go. 

I remember grabbing a pack of 50 snack bags at the dollar store and thinking that was a decent deal. It actually is, as they are often $2 in most stores. On Amazon, in this multi-pack, it comes out to just over $2 for more than double that (for 120 bags). The current price for this pack is $8.30, I know it can change at any time but I've been watching and buying these for a while now and it seems to stay pretty consistent.

***UPDATE*** the price has gone up to over $20! Yikes! It WAS a good deal! I have found a similar package at Sam'sClub for a comparable price - but things are always changing there too!

These don't automatically ship free with Prime, they are part of the "add-on" program, so the shipping will be free with a $25 prime purchase, or free with a $35 non-prime.

So if you need some snack bags, just for kid's lunches, or for your own pre-packaging ... I hope this deal might help you out!

Are you an Amazon shopper?

Motivational Monday After Mother's Day

It was Mother's Day yesterday. I had a lazy day ... didn't even hit 3000 steps on my Fitbit (didn't even bother putting my Omron on). My younger kids had told me I needed to stay in bed, and then the youngest dressed up in his Sunday suit to come take my order. Breakfast in bed is a Mother's Day tradition at our house. Even with the tray, eating in bed is a bit tricky! This is actually pretty standard fare for our Sunday mornings, but this time it wasn't ME making it, and that was a nice break.

I really could have got a workout in ... I considered it. Then I decided to take a rest day and lazed around and read my book.  After church we headed out to the inlaws for more food and family. 

There were rolls, mashed potatoes and a smoked pork loin. For dessert, my brother-in-law made homemade donuts for a base for strawberry shortcake. I don't like strawberries myself, but I did indulge in a donut. We didn't make it out to my mom's. I'll need to connect more with her this week.

So ... eating and exercise for the day were quite bad! Intake was high, burn was low. The scale this morning DID reflect the day. So I need to get motivated this Monday, get back to the routine. I know from reading many of your blogs, that your kids/family are one of the main reasons you want to be fit and healthy. I wasn't blogging last year at this time (well, I had  my family blog but not this one). I had just started MFP. I'm 25-30 pounds down from last year. Overall, I feel better about myself, but still a bit discouraged lately. And no matter how nice Mother's Day is ... I always get the Mother's Day Blues. Does that happen to anyone else out there? Seeing all the posts about mothers just makes me feel inadequate; like everyone else does it better... wife/mother/daughter. Blah! Mother's Day blues :(  Gotta shake it off ...

Let's celebrate Mother's Day by getting MOTIVATED! 

Join the link-up below, share your Mother's Day and your motivation! 

Link Up with Us.
Also linking up with MIMM at Healthy Diva Eats

WWI #43 & Five Fitness Truths

This is several weeks in a row with these types of numbers ... pretty much where I was at the end of 2013 (not including the drop from my  Flux2 Diet) and up just a bit from a bit of success at the first of the year (I actually had an entire week under 150 at the end of March).  I'm just SO CLOSE yet it feels so far. Frustrating. As I think "this week I'm going to do better with my eating" ... it just doesn't happen. I am recording everything, and trying to control my calories. Because I don't make good food choices, it adds up so quickly.  It's easy to see how I gained weight in the past looking at how high my calorie count can get even when I am tracking and being conscious of calories. I'm actually a bit surprised I topped out where I did (just over 200 I think ... I didn't weigh myself back then).  Linking up late with Weigh-In Wednesday. 

NUMBERS: Weight is down one ounce from last week's weigh-in, but the average is up .39. Low for the week was 151.3, High was yesterday, at 154.0. I didn't have a deficit this week. Over by 679. Oops. Average intake 2179, Average burn 2789. Movie treat indulgences on Saturday, Slow Sunday and dragging on Wednesday. I missed my mile jog several days this week, and didn't read and ride the past couple days... even though I've been quite into the book I'm reading (GoodReads). I did have a couple 3000 burn days, and a 30K step day yesterday. I think the bump up on the scale Thursday morning got me to kick my butt in gear for that day at least. You can get the details of every day in my Day to Day Doings.

Another "HallWalk" between basketball games.

Got me to 30K for the day.

I really like my Friday Weigh-In and weekly update. It forces me to make sure all my numbers are input and up to date in my excel file (actually, I've switched to a GoogleDrive spreadsheet after a computer glitch), and that my Day to Day Doings are current. I really try to keep up with everything ... inputting my workouts on DailyMile and Walker Tracker (ok, I put the link in there, but don't go check it out because I AM behind there!) and this weekly blog update is a good motivator to make sure I'm keeping things current. That I'm following through, if not on my actual exercise and eating, at least my recording of it all. I'm linking up with Follow Through Friday, Fitness Friday and Fantastic Friday (even though this week wasn't exactly fantastic!) 

And with the weekly weigh-in and recap wrapped up, it's time to move on to the Friday Five! There are several Friday Five Linkups... 

Five on Friday at Hello Happiness, Friday Favorites at Running4Cupcakes, Friday Favorites at Housewife Glamour, High Five Friday at LaurenElizabeth and Five Things Friday at Fitting It All In.

The DC Area Bloggers link up offered up a THEME for this Friday ... Five Fitness Truths. So after a moment of contemplation and checking out what some of the others have offered up, here are mine:

• You can't out cardio your calories ... believe me, I have put this one to the test and I continually keep pressing the issue. If I workout a lot, can't I just eat whatever I want as long as I keep my total calorie intake under my burn? It really doesn't seem to work. I need to eat better. Bother!
• Everything is an estimate ... I burned "this" many calories, that bowl of cereal is "this" many calories. No matter how hard you try to be accurate, it's all an estimation. So even when you crunch the numbers and have a weekly deficit of 3500 calories yet no one pound weight loss ... it's just hard to know if how close your estimations are to being correct.
• It all adds up ... at times I'll get in a solid hour of exercise, but sometimes I don't have a big block of time. I'll do 20 minutes here, 20 minutes there. Sneak in a walk while I'm waiting (see above). I'll try to park further in the parking lot, take the stairs ... it all adds up. Love my Fitbit for keeping track of it all, and I love it when I hit a 30k day.
• Just start ... usually getting going is the biggest hurdle. I don't feel like doing weights, so I tell myself I only have to do a short 20 minute workout. I usually end up at the full hour. Just commit to a mile, and maybe once you are going you'll feel like going further.
• It's not all about the cardio ... I'm a pedometer person, I like getting my "steps" in and cardio does that a lot better than weights, yoga, etc. But ... I do believe in the importance of strength training. I've slacked off a little these past couple weeks, but I always make sure I get in at least one full-body weight workout every week. 

What five fitness facts have you found to be true in your experience?

Hats and Hair

Yesterday I talked about outfitting the base of my body (my feet ... Shoe and Tell). Today, I thought I'd talk about what to wear at the tip top ...

I've seen the hats, caps and visors that many wear while exercising. I guess outdoors, they can keep the sun out of your eyes. They can soak up some of the sweat. Personally, I just think they look cute! On all of YOU that is! A hat/cap is something I love the look of, but was just never sure I could pull it off.

I'm a ponytail person ...that's how I wear my hair almost all day. If I go out, then I'll try wearing it down, but for working out, I like it up and out of the way. I also have bangs. I see all you with your cute headbands and such, but they just don't seem to work with bangs at all.

I wondered if maybe I could pull off wearing a cap. If it would work well with my ponytail and bangs. I saw an inexpensive one at the store and decided to pick it up. I wove my pony through the back, left my bangs squished down ... but I liked it. I thought I looked kind of cute in fact. Just a different look than my usual. 

Enter the 8-year old. He stopped short, looked at me with a confused look on his face and asked "Why do YOU have a hat on?"   Mind you, HE had a hat on while he asked this! From each of the additional four boys I received a second look and a quick comment. Nothing negative ... just surprise. I'd expressed a little exasperation as to why this was such an unusual thing, as one of my good friends who the kids know well always wore a hat (and always looks SO cute!).  Women can wear hats! Then we heard Daddy pull up. My oldest son and I looked at each other expectantly and even made bets on what his reaction would be.  Hubs walked in, looked at me, pulled out his phone to take a picture saying "this needs to go on the Facebooks." He then started calling me "hat lady" and did tease me a bit (it happened to be a breast cancer awareness hat, with the pink symbol on the front. He calls it my "save the ta-tas" hat). The brim does get in the way a little while trying to sneak a smooch.

Well ... I still think I like it! I'm counting it as an NSV too, as it really was quite the challenge for me. Can you believe something so simple as putting on a hat pushes me out of my comfort zone? I'm not sure if I'll wear it that often. I picked up a Nike dri-fit hat to try too. While my original hat doesn't leave horrid hat hair, the Nike one does! If I start the day wearing it, I'll be wearing it all day. I've worn it to Zumba a time or two (which poses a bit of a problem, as our classes are church related and start with prayer. Does a woman need to remove her hat for prayer?)

Are YOU a hat person?

Shoe and Tell

Shoes ... I hate them. I really do. Looking at the picture above, and seeing several pairs of sneakers one might think I like shoes, as I have so many. But it's not true. They are a necessary evil for running, or other workouts. Having a home gym, I can actually get away with wearing slippers for my elliptical and stationary bike. I ONLY wear sneakers during a workout. If I'm jogging at the gym, I'll often bring my sneakers with me and put them on right before I run, taking them off the moment I'm done. My boys do this with their basketball shoes ... they do it because they want to protect the shoes, not wearing them outside on the street. I do it so my poor little feet can breathe! There are many reasons why I will never run a marathon ... but one reason is because I can't keep shoes on my feet for over an hour. Any race I run will have to be completed in 60 minutes or less!

I admit ... I'm cheap. I've only purchased shoes from the discount big box stores (and still went with the cheap ones there). I keep reading recommendations to go to a running store to be fitted. To have my gait examined. I am thinking about it. I say to myself "but I'm not a runner" so I don't know if I should invest in expensive shoes. Bad shoe experiences COULD be one of the reasons I dislike running though. I'm just so afraid I'll go through the time and expense of trying a "good" pair of running shoes and still hate them, still dislike running. I guess I won't know until I try.

In the picture above, the blueish pair of shoes are the ones I hate the least. They are Reebok running. Quite lightweight. I actually don't know the exact style or where I picked them up. I couldn't buy them again if I wanted to. The white Sacouny shoes are also "running" shoes. I had other Sacouny shoes I liked fine in the past, but these ones never felt great. I'll wear them for my one mile run and I'm ready to take them off. Next to them ... are some Skecher Shape Ups. Remember those? Supposed to tighten and tone just by walking. I had actually picked them up after hearing people rave about them simply being comfortable. I did not find that to be the case, but I have found I like wearing them for my weight workouts. Still ... it's an hour, and then they are off.

When I'm not working out, but going out (and must wear something on my feet) ... these are my standby shoes. My plastic sandals for summer, slip on boots for winter. I do have some other shoes (different colored sandals, boots, a dress shoe or two. No heels really, just not that type of gal).  I do have some slippers I wear here and there (and on the elliptical and bike).  But at home, it's bare feet all the way! I only wear socks if I'm wearing sneakers.

It's time to head out to Zumba ...

 I guess I need to put on some shoes.

Linking up with Wednesday Wonderfulz, which is focusing on running. My shoe topic does fit in with that theme. I'd be interested to hear if any runner ever hated shoes too! I'll have to check out all those who link up and see what shoes are mentioned as favorites.  Also linking up with Workout Wednesday ... and there was a fun little shout out to ME on the blog today! Thanks!

Keeping Up In The Blogosphere

Social media sure has come a long way! I remember when we had dial-up Internet and our original email address. I was NOT one of the first ones on Facebook. I'm just getting into Instagram now and while I signed up for Twitter, I must admit I have yet to "tweet" anything or even check back in on that account.

I started my family blog a few years ago, and started this fitness blog last year. It wasn't until I was blogging myself, that I actually started to read other blogs. Now I really enjoy all the blogs out there ... but I struggle with keeping up with them. I'm not sure of the best way to follow everyone.

Over in my sidebar, I keep a list of many of the blogs I follow. I have it set up so that those updated most recently are at the top. I do check in regularly and that works pretty well for me, but it is easy to miss posts.

I have signed up to follow several blogs with Bloglovin, and I do like the daily digest sent via email. It makes it easy to check in on these blogs on my iphone ... easy to read the blogs, but not easy to comment. I always have to wait until I'm back on my computer to comment, and although I have good intentions, that doesn't always happen. Bloglovin also makes it difficult to grab the actual URL (if I want to link to a specific post or something).

I've looked into a couple other apps to help me keep up ... the RSS reader is pretty good, but a little hard to set up. I have to input the URLS manually on my iphone. I discovered digg recently, and I quite like it, both the app and web version. It's nice to be able to organize the blogs into categories ... which I then realized I could do on Bloglovin as well.

I set up a "Fitness Facebook" profile, so that I wouldn't overwhelm any family or friends with my fitness posts unless they actually signed up for that. I suppose I should have set up a "page" ... but this works for me I guess. I use this profile to follow all the health/fitness pages on Facebook too. I have an Instagram account and set up my GooglePlus profile ... although I must admit I'm still not sure exactly how that works.  I've tried to make me and my blog easy to follow if one wants ... but I'm still not sure I'm implementing all I could or should. 

So just a question for all of you ... what ways have you found to follow everyone out there?