ABB 5k 2015 + consistency is your BFF

 go time!  i do believe this is the longest start line i've ever been in.

it took about 9 minutes just to get to the very front and start running! all that body heat kept us warm though.

 i left my house late (unsurprisingly) and with the street closures and all ended up parking pretty far.  i pretty much ran a dang 5k through downtown before the race started!  i don't ever pay for parking downtown if i can avoid it; i'd rather walk and just save a few bucks.  i was tempted this time though cause i didn't want to be late, but i made it, whew.

#atomicphotobomb & #selfiewhilerunning. the reason for that face is because i was contemplating that 24 min PR i set the night before!!!!

so i didn't find the white rabbit to follow but i DID find a black gorrilla. or whatever that was. i had to speed up to get this pic cause he was BOOKIN' IT.

stats were posted tonight and my official time was 26:41!  i did set a PR of 24, but i'm thinking if i actually take the time to train correctly then maybe i'd actually hit it or come close smh! i love the challenge and i'm up for it.

done!  grateful to cross yet another finish line. i just can't get enough of that feeling.

so Sonny has been in Nigeria all week long for work and was supposed to touch down in Houston at 5am this morning. however, his flight was canceled and he had to hop on the next available one.  i sure would have loved to see him at the finish line, but i did find two of my gorgeous Sorors there, Ayesha and Crystal.  they are both doing the full marathon tomorrow; run hard ladies and good luck!!.

last shot before heading to catch the tail end of the boot camp class i teach with Brian every saturday.

adding to my medal and t-shirt collection!

after boot camp? a leg workout with my trainer, @showtimefitness of course!

 'what seems impossible today will one day become your warmup.' yes. i remember running my very first 5k a few years ago and not moving or lifting a finger afterwards for like 3 days straight! i was crazy tired & super sore and could have easily said 'screw running'and never did another race again. one of the hardest decisions we face in life is choosing whether to walk away or try harder. well, i chose the latter! how do you get better at something? DO IT MORE! no earthly idea how many 5 and 10ks (1 half mar) i've done since then but because i refused to quit, consistency had me up in the gym post-5k yesterday beasting through an intense full body workout with my trainer @showtimefitness. and you better believe there's a full marathon on my to-do list! just keep going. don't quit. consistency is key.

i actually love being trained as much as i love to instruct the trainings with my own clients!  Brian is awesome at what he does and i always learn more than a handful of things from him.

then... i headed to Luby's for dinner to celebrate. i can ALWAYS count on a great, tasty, healthy meal from there.  i don't care that the population is 80% senior-citizen per my husband!  i have so many childhood memories from Luby's. it was a sunday, after church staple for my family growing up.  anyway i got the salmon, steamed cabbage, seasoned carrots, pickled beets & cucumbers, and...... yes. THE BEST EVER. if you don't like mac n cheese we cannot be friends!!!!!!!! i earned it and i enjoyed every single bite.

WHAT big fitness goal have you set for yourself this year?

le

because i do. Chevron Houston Marathon EXPO

we moved right on along to carrots today in the homemade baby food chronicles!

i switch new foods every 4 days or so to give any allergic reactions time to reveal themselves. we'll see what happens. i just eyeballed and simmered raw carrots + cinnamon + water until tender then puree in the Ninja. carrots are naturally sweet like sweet potatoes so they don't need any extra sugar! they also:

• slow down aging
• reduce blood pressure
• reduce risk of stroke
• helps prevent cancer
• facilitates digestion
• boosts immune system
• improve eyesight

my eyesight has been terrible for as long as i can remember.  i've worn glasses since elementary school and only need them to see far distances and to drive.  i pray the boys get Sonny's eyesight cause i am pretty much legally blind!  i hope they get his teeth too cause i went through braces, a head-gear, a retainer...the whole 9.  i'd love to get Invisialign as they are shifting again from not wearing my retainer years ago. i was so happy to be DONE with all that stuff i didn't care. but now i do. that's how it goes!

so far so good!

i've been doing solo dates once a week with Chiso for a while now and today i took him downtown to the GRB for the Chevron Houston Marathon EXPO!  i registered for the 5k while i was there and ran right into my Sorority sister and fitness expert, Crystal!  she was there to do the same thing.

only she was using the 5k for her warmup for the marathon on sunday! superwoman status!  I will be running along side her in a marathon one day, mark my words!  i have yet to do my very first full marathon, but my goal is to do a half mar sometime this year.

i can't wait until this guy can keep up and run alongside me.  i plan to put him in his first 1k this year and i am SO excited to watch him run across his first finish line.

we walked around and visited the booths for a little while,  ate Cliff Bar samples, and eventually made our way to the 'I RUN HOU BECAUSE....' wall.  i gave Chiso the marker and he started drawing shapes :D.  then i asked him, 'why do you like to run, Chiso?' and he simply looked at me and replied 'because i do.'

i didn't even ask him to explain! this time.

pose for the frame! neat idea!

then we went to Whole Foods for lunch.  we discussed his new friends in the child care center at our gym and also sports he would like to try this year.  3 is still tougher than 2 in my opinion but it has its highlights like all ages i'm sure!  i'm loving our discussions these days.  pepperoni pizza for Chi,

spring mix salad with pomegranate vinaigrette,

and a few scoops of the hot bar items for me which included: chicken fajitas w/ peppers & onions, hoke (white fish), cilantro-lime rice, and a scoop of spinach/mushroom enchiladas- they looked too good not to try!  the enchilada pan was pretty much empty and i saw why. YUM.

i got my race stuff ready as soon as i got home!  the ABB 5k shirts matched my shoes this year, how cool is that?  bib #55808 is ready to RUN! that said,

and blogging of course!  have a relaxing friday night, friends!

Q: what special things do you do for one-on-one time with your kiddos?

le