Running... and 5 things I'm loving right now!

I tend to get obsessed with something and want to do it/eat it/see it/hear it all the time... most recently it's been McAlister's Chicken Tortilla soup, Zoe's Kitchen's Pimento Cheese (yum!), smoothies with whey protein, my Group Power class, Adele and monogrammed items. So I thought I would share 5 things that I'm currently LOVING:

1. The way I felt after doing 6.5 miles yesterday: Seriously... I thought there's no way I'm going to be able to do the Cooper River Bridge Run next weekend in my goal time of 55 minutes but now I'm thinking it's possible. I felt empowered. I felt like I could keep going. I felt extraordinary. So this has my excitement sky high for Charleston with our couple friends Liz (one of my future bridesmaids) and Chris, and for my bf's first 10k. I felt super proud of him for doing 4.3 miles yesterday - that's the farthest he's ever run! I'm SO looking forward to next weekend.

2. Being a bridesmaid: now... I know I have complained about the dress and it's hefty price tag, but seriously, this is the best motivation ever! This will be the wedding of the century with 400+ guests on the invite list so I have lots of people to show of my new (and hopefully toned) arms to! I've been busting my ass running, in the gym and doing home DVDs to get in shape. Now it's not ALL for the cause of being a bridesmaid but I'm certainly motivated to rock that Lula Kate dress all night long. This week's workouts were a 2.6 mile run on Sunday, 1.6 miles on Tuesday + Group Power, Tabata Inferno on Wednesday, Group Power on Thursday and 6.5 miles on Saturday. On target for being fabulous by August 25th.

3. Having a tan: Jergens now has SPF in their sunless tanning lotion! What a break thru! Now... I will NEVER, EVER use a tanning bed, but I do spend some time outside in the summer; however, I'm totally covered in sunscreen when I'm out there (I use 100 SPF on my face) and every night I'm putting Jergens lotion on which is really where my tan comes from. If you're still fake n' baking - STOP - and read this while you're at it. You do NOT want Melanoma. Use sunscreen every day!

4. Smoothies: I found recipes on Pintrest and tried them... and fell in love. I've also been trying to find ways to bulk my boyfriend up a little so I said we could do smoothies for breakfast and I've been adding Whey protein to them. It's great because he's still eating his normal bowl of cereal + the smoothie. Mission accomplished! However, I've found that they are heavenly and I've been trying different recipes with different fruits. Today, I tried my first "Green Smoothie" which I'm doing for a challenge for 7 days. I was TERRIFIED that I was going to taste the spinach, but I didn't. All I could taste was banana to be honest. There are so many more recipes to try... tomorrow I'm going to do a swiss chard recipe with pineapple and apples! I'll post an update at the end on how it went and if I'll be incorporating vegetable smoothies into my life on a regular basis or calling it quits after the 7-day challenge. 

5. Spring! Have you been outside?! The colors, the smells, the air... it's perfectly wonderful! I love all of the blooming trees and flowers and the smells that they produce. The air temperature was perfect this weekend for running with blue skies above. I even got to wear shorts on Saturday! I bought new sandals today and a bathing suit! Totally prepared for Spring to be in full bloom so I can soak it all up. What a wonderful time of the year! Enjoy it... have a smoothie, put on your sun screen and go for a run!