What Was I Thinkin'?

This week's lesson: WEAR SUNSCREEN! I joined a few friends at the pool earlier this week. While I enjoyed their company, I made a colossal mistake and forgot to put on sunscreen. After about three and a half hours, I had the worst sunburn I think I've ever had in my life. It has been incredibly painful, and wearing a shirt has been a struggle. It's day five of the sunburn, and I'm now completely blistered and still having a hard time sleeping because of it. This has also greatly interfered with my workouts for the week. I'm totally bummed because I felt like I was doing so well with working out most everyday and eating well.

I have now missed three consecutive days of working out. I suffered through my workouts the first two days, but I think the heat and sweat was making it worse, and now that I'm blistered, I don't want to risk them popping and scarring. I wasn't completely inactive though. On my three days off from working out I took my nephew to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science & Civic Center Eats, I attempted to go kickboxing, but the instructor didn't show up, and I then helped Eric's parents move. I'm hoping I'll be back in my workout routine by tomorrow because even though it's a lot of work, I feel good about myself for doing it.

The OG Burger Food Truck we ate off at Civic Center Eats. The BBQ Bacon Burger was awesome!

The back yard is now officially torn up. It's looking pretty pathetic and brown. I continue to be a bit nervous that we (Eric) will be able to complete it without professional help. He's planning to continue working on it over the holiday weekend coming up and is now talking about renting a Bobcat and a giant dumpster. I'm hoping he makes good progress since we will be leaving for Hawaii the week after.

Our torn up yard.

This is the start of the trench where the retaining wall and garden will go. The entire yard will need to be leveled first.

Keep it Goin'

This past week was a good week for kickboxing. Wednesday night was especially great. I was feeling much more comfortable with the combinations on the bag and was receiving a ton of positive feedback both from my trainer and the other students in the class. At one point I was told that I work out like a 21 year old. Definitely a major confidence boost! My kicks are feeling stronger and I'm punching the bag much harder.

My Wave Shape performance is also improving. Thursday's session felt really strong and I was able to make it through every exercise without modifications or resting. There is only about a week and a half left before the 30 day challenge ends. I fit in all three sessions for last week, so hopefully I'll be able to do the same for this week.

I also went rollerblading, which is such a fun and relaxing way to work out. I'm not convinced it's as good of a workout as other activities, but I enjoy it. I'm also trying to be more conscious of what I'm eating and signed up for an account on WebMD to track my nutrition. With all the working out, I've been under my calorie goal for most days in the past week. I haven't been hungry, and I've felt like I've had plenty of energy, so I figure it's not too big of a problem. I've cut out alcohol for the week, but have still been enjoying dessert. Here are two of the salads I made this week:

Salmon w/ Mango Salsa

Steak w/ Roasted Corn, Grilled Onions, & Chimichurri Sauce

Today was the start of our backyard "remodel." We are hoping to level the yard, build a retaining wall with a gardening area, and build a patio where we can grill and eat. I spent about an hour pulling all the weeds in the yard, and then another few moving rock. Yuck! I am a bit nervous that this project is bigger than we can handle, but Eric seems somewhat more confident that we can do it. There are only about three weeks before we go on vacation, and Eric has already committed to helping his parents move next weekend. I just hope we're able to finish it to an acceptable stopping point before fall. I'm counting this as my workout for today. I don't think anyone will argue with me on that one. Below are some starting pictures of our backyard.

This is where our new patio and garden will be.

This is where we will have a retaining wall to hide the electrical boxes.

We're not doing anything to our deck (yet), but look at all those weeds I pulled!

Workin' Out!

This was a big week for working out. Our Hawaii trip (and my Washington trip) is in a month, so I have a big motivator for staying on track. I'm feeling incredibly sore, but accomplished.

I started Wave Shape on the first of the month. It's designed to get you in surfer shape, so I've really been trying to stay on schedule. It's associated with Calavera Swimwear, which is another motivator. I even created an Instagram and Twitter account so I can enter the weekly contests. (Big week for social media!) I did all three workouts the first week, but I only did two this week. I figure I did enough other workouts this week to justify missing one Wave Shape.

Eric and I started a kickboxing class last Friday at 303 Training Center. We've been four times now, and twice we've been the only two in the class which is almost like having a personal trainer. The classes have been mixed between boot camp style and bag work. I'm still feeling really awkward with the bag combinations, but I'm hoping I'll improve. I think I pulled a muscle on Monday, but I'm hoping it will heal quickly and not prevent me from continuing to work out. It was really hurting during tonight's class, especially during the right side kicks and ab work. I don't want a repeat of an injury like last year, especially before we leave on vacation.

I also started riding with clip-less pedals. We went on a big ride today up Lair O' the Bear. I started off exhausted and sore, but Eric kept me motivated and challenged me to try some technical sections I wouldn't have attempted otherwise. By the end, I was really dragging, but I kept pushing and finally made it. I will admit I felt a bit pathetic.

Last night, we went to Linger. We made reservations about six weeks ago, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The service was great and the food was awesome. We went a bit overboard and ordered five entrees and dessert. We also had a wine on recommendation of the wine guy. I brought home the bottle in case I ever follow through on putting decorative lights inside.

Miraval Rose Wine

“Devils on Horseback” / Applewood Smoked Bacon Wrapped Medjool Dates, Herbed Goat Cheese & Sambal Gastrique

Sesame BBQ Tacos / Kobe Short Rib, Napa Slaw, Radish, Avocado & Lime

Carrot & Lentil Falafel / Garbanzos, Cashews, Turkish Chile, Scallion, Zucchini Pickle, Tomato, Herbs & Lemon-Tahini Yogurt wrapped in Butter Lettuce

Mongolian BBQ Duck Bun / Scallions & Miso-Pickled Cucumbers

Wagyu Burger Sliders / Peppered Bacon, Aged Cheddar, Curried Sour Cream, Sweet Potato Waffle Fries & Chipotle Ketchup

Salted Butterscotch Pudding w/ Lemongrass Cotton Candy