Getting caught up!!

I'm back (somewhat sadly) from sunny warm Miami! It was definitely wonderful to get out of the cold, exceptionally windy Mid-Atlantic region and into the warm sunny perfection that is South-Floridian weather.  I will be posting a few blog-entries that I wanted to post while traveling, but I didn't have time, so stay tuned....

Java Head: Site of Dinner last Sunday. Beautiful.

I am happy to report that I did not do [too] badly diet-wise in Florida. There were some caloric indiscretions, but I think for the most part, they were thoughtful, balanced and usually worth every calorie. (Yes, there were Peanut-Butter Easter Egg M&M's involved, but, they were utterly amazing.  The egg shape means more peanut butter in the PB-to-Chocolate ratio, and they are, in my opinion, absolute candy perfection. I can't help myself!)  Otherwise, during my trip, I had a small protein shake for breakfast most days, a larger lunch (no alcohol at lunch for me, thanks!) and usually a small and/or carb-free dinner of salad and fish. I did indulge in 1-2 glasses of wine at dinner, but that was it.  And with an hour of cocktails before dinner, it's hard to not have anything.  The only exception was the staff party on the last night in town--that involved more drinking and eating, less sleep and lots of much-needed rowdiness.

Exercise, on the other hand, was a different story entirely--non-existent, unless you count the 16 hours I spent on my feet each day.  (That has to be burning something, right?)  I might also include calories burned by the ridiculously heavy laptop I had to lug to several events....I thought it was going to pull my shoulder out of its socket! It made an ipad is sound more and more appealing...

Now, I'm realizing that I only have 23 days left to prepare for the National Marathon (EEK!) and I need to crack down and work on my strength and speed, so I don't get swept off the course before the finish!  I did 1.5 hours of weight training yesterday (Body Pump and 30min of Abs-of-Steel) and also a quick 1.5 miles run on the treadmill to get my body back into the swing of things.  This morning I did a different, more strenuous ab workout, and I'd love to be able to go on a longer run this evening, but I completely forgot I said I'd be my girlfriend's "plus-one" to her office party tonight, so I won't have time for any cardio.  I will also have to be careful not to over indulge tonight.  The clock is ticking....with the exception of tonight and possibly St. Patrick's Day, I will have to be exceptionally diligent for the rest of this month.  Cross your fingers, we are counting down!!