My name is Malissa. I am 22 years old and a recent college graduate. I enjoy running, yoga, and lifting "light" weights. At the moment, I am transitioning into a no a red-meat diet perhaps venturing into vegetarianism.
The Transformation in Body, Mind, and Soul
I just made the tastiest healthiest mini meal… BROCCOLI FRITTERS.
Here’s how ya do it.
Ingredients
- 3 cups chopped broccoli (1/4 inch cubes, steamed till tender)
- 1 egg (beaten)
- 1/2 cup flour (I used bread crumbs as a substitute)
- 1/3 cup parmasean cheese
- 1 small clove garlic
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- 2 tbsp oil
Instructions
- Prepare, combine, and lightly mash ingredients. (except the oil)
- Oil pan and put on moderate heat. (Flick with water to see if it’s ready… It’ll sizzle)
- Plop mixture into 3” rounds, lightly flatten with spatula
- Cook for 1-2 mins per side
- EAT!
(via titotito)
Weigh-in Wednesday
We are seeing some progress with the transitioning into more home cooked meals.
Tim and I both lost 2 lb. each! It’s a giant leap for me since it’s very difficult for me to drop any weight. I’ve been forcing myself to eat breakfast once I wake up. For a long time, I never ate breakfast. It’s been a habit I’ve been doing since I was a kid.
Tim
Start weight: 185
Current weight: 183Malissa
Start weight: 122
Current weight: 120
On a side note, I finally get the 15 weight loss since starting my weight loss journey all those months ago. My highest weight was 135 at 5’4”.
Looking Bangin’ for Bangkok, Thailand
13.1 miles and 13.1 pounds down, I am ready for the next challenge! Next month, I will be embarking on my first international trip with my boyfriend’s family for a destination wedding. I am nervous about the whole ordeal because of my past trip to Cambodia. People looked at me strangely because I looked pretty heavy for a 14 year old. Fast forward 8 years and an acquired palate in food eateries, I am feeling uneasy of how I will fit in with the natives of Thailand. Of course, I am an American and not even Thai or Siamese!
In the spirit of a healthy competition, my boyfriend has agreed to participate in a weight-loss challenge prior to the trip. It will be different from training for a marathon because the focus has shifted to a weight loss goal. We both have to be conscious of what we eat and how we exercise. Here is a little background on us.
I am a freelance writer/intern at the moment. My schedule is flexible in the midst of driving around LA/OC conducting interviews and brainstorming ideas. In contrast, Tim works full-time and has the traditional two days off work schedule. A few days out of the week, I will prepare home cooked dinners. If that doesn’t happen, we would most likely dine out every single night. Yes, it gets pricey!
Although this challenge is only a month, I do intend to have this as a lifestyle I would like to maintain when a full-time job, marriage, and two toddlers is in the foreseeable future. Who knows?
This is where we start off.
We are both considered borderline in Fitness and Athlete shape. However, defined muscle mass is absent in both of us. We still jiggle and wiggle.
I had a blast at the Long Beach Half-Marathon on Sunday, October 7, 2012!
It’s so hard to believe that all this training and planning has lead up to this single day. I think it’s all worth it! The week leading to the marathon, I decided to take it easy on the running due to knee pains from my ten mile run the week prior. I don’t regret it at all!
I had a lot on my mind on the eve of the marathon, but somehow things worked out right before I headed to bed. I finally slept around midnight with a wake-up call at 3:30am the following morning. I didn’t have too much problems getting up, especially since I went to bed with my marathon clothes on. I mean, you should always be prepared right? Good morning texts started coming in at 3:50 a.m. and we were on the road around 4:20 a.m. I live roughly 18 miles away from the race so it was a quick drive at that time of day.We arrived at Lot 3 across the street from Lincoln Park in the Civic Plaza of Downtown Long Beach. The morning crew consisted of my boyfriend Timothy, running buddy Brian, and future naval serviceman Gilmar. Of the four who had trouble sleeping, Gilmar didn’t have a wink of shut-eye that night but still came out to support Brian and me. Bless his heart for his dedication!
We made our way down to the race area near the Marina and the Rainbow Lagoon. This place is very iconic in my memory because I had taken many pictures with the Marina as my backdrop. The cyclists had already started lining up at the start-line for the 26.2 cycling race at 6 a.m. There were a mixed of cyclists in the crowd ranging from tour de France hopefuls, family of bicyclists, and just plain out silly folks on bikes. One group had inflatable duck floatation devices strapped to their helmets. There were a few false starts but it was exciting to see all the blinking lights of the bikes taking off as the sun rose around us.After the cyclists thinned out, I went to the UPS check-in and stored my bag of goodies. I really liked this system of belonging check-ins because it was well organized and staffed by volunteers. I finally met up with my mom, brother, sister, and her boyfriend, who made the 45-minute drive at 5am. I was glad to have them come out to support me, despite the rising price of gas and the early wake-up call. We took pre-marathon pictures and exchanged good luck hugs before I left to find the wave I would begin with.
Brian and I decided to take Wave 5 because we wanted to take this race slower. There was no way that we could have survived running at a 9:00/mile pace the entire half marathon. We settled for something more do-able and within our reach.
As we waited for the waves to start, I took a shot of GU energy gel in Tri-Berry flavor because I was feeling a little groggy. Boy, that was the worst decision ever. I started getting jittery waiting for our turn. The gel was gross without water to wash it down. 35 minutes into the start of race, it was finally my turn to cross the start-line. We lingered onto the right for our photo ops and we continued onto a loop that took us around a bend leading to the onramp of the 710 freeway. We circled around and we ran towards the Ports of Long Beach. Along the way we passed by waving spectators and volunteers. I really enjoyed seeing the Fireboat offshore sprouting water and the lighthouse on the hilltop.
I loved the varying geography along the marathon route from its urban downtown buildings, the seaports, the beach, and back into urban sprawl. The last 3 miles had to be the worst. Muscle fatigue was setting in and Brian started having knee pains. We jogged slowly to keep our momentum but at some point, Brian wanted to start walking. He had allowed me to go on without him for a short distance, but sure enough I saw him right behind him pushing through the pain.
The last stretch was downhill, Brian sprinted with the last ounce of energy he had. I was right behind him. I remember calling his name and we crossed the finished line together! The feeling of finishing the marathon is so surreal!
People, please don’t take your working and pain-free knees for granted! I am envious!
I ran my first 10-miler in my entire life. Here is a rough break down of what I was thinking.
“AHH the sun, the sun is my eyes, at least I can run down this hill.”
“Ahh, all these middle age people are passing me up.”
“I wish I can run with no clothes on, why is getting so hot?
“Oh wee, did I just finished two 5k marathons on this route?”
“Oh my gosh, Brian I want to slow down. Can we slow down?”
“This bottle is getting heavy!”
“Half-way, oh fiddlesticks another 5 miles to go? Someone loan me a bike.”
“How come those people didn’t cheer for us? Don’t we deserve it?!”
”The pier, 2 more miles oh yes! 20 minutes?”
As much as I would like to inform the cyber world that I have a crazy inspiring mantra running through my head as I run, this is far from true. I am like the rest of you, I enjoy the times when I can sleep in and watch weird reality shows with the beau. I am not this ultra sleek runner, I am just a person who honestly wants to make the $86 marathon fee worthwhile in dedication to my family and friends.
In some cases, it is worth it to have your knees feel like jello. Although, I would have liked to complete the run with minimal injuries. It comes with the territory of learning and experiencing something new. If someone asked me what a shin splint was some time around January, I would have had to wikipedia what that meant.
I just want to prove it to myself that you don’t have to be a natural born athlete to have a healthy physique. It’s been great to know that there are individuals that do read my blogs from time to time.
I do get this quite often, “Oh, I’ve seen you been running a lot.” Of course you would know with my constant updates on my social media newsfeed. I will take it as a good thing. (:
Putting all things aside, I want to thank all the individuals who have supported me through this marathon training. I know my constant updates can be bothersome and maybe annoying, but for all good reasons. Like I had said previously in my first blog, it keeps me accountable. In no way did I intend to turn a friend into a foe, virtually speaking from behind their computer screen.
Your constant support has made everything I have done worth it. Next week, I will think of you all whenever I want to stop running and finish stronger than ever!
Love you all!
13 days left until the Long Beach Marathon. It’s been a crazy journey thus far. I have logged a total of 176 miles on my Nike+ account with an average of 2.9-mile distance on my runs. Not to mention all the miles that I have walked and slow jogged before and after a run not accounted in my total. To be honest, that is one heck of an amazing feat. I remember when I first began writing in this blog; I had trouble comprehending the distance of a 5k (3.11 miles) because I have never gone beyond a single mile on a run. Looking back, I can understand the challenges of this journey.
I simply didn’t have a person to turn to for inspiration, athletic wise.
I turned to a person that I hold close to my heart, my pops. I have turned to him in many aspects of my life, whether it is in my story selections for journalism or just plain out life decisions. He has been the fuel to why I am making this whole switch up in my life. He is a missing aspect of my family’s life. So many major life events have come and gone without him here to support us through them. (My athleticism comes from my mother; refer to prior mom dedicated blog.)
When I signed up for the Long Beach Marathon, I decided to take the date of my father’s passing as the number on my bib (the paper that is pinned on your shirt that identifies you). I am not sure what drove me to pick that painful day in my life for something momentous and exciting. I think maybe it is because my dad was unable to attend many events while he was alive due to work schedule. On that painful date, he was release of his duties to provide for his family and sent to “Heaven” to watch over us. He can now freely attend each and every event in spirit, something he hadn’t been able to do while living.
I am proud of the little transformations I have seen in my body, mind, and soul. I say little because I can’t just jump on a scale to measure all these elements. Body wise I have loss 10-12 pounds and have kept it that way for quite some time. It might not be 30 or 50 pounds but it has been weight that I have been struggling with throughout college. I even went down a pants size, which says a lot. I haven’t reached my goal weight but I am happy with the progress. Yay, for jumping off the weight loss plateau and running up another hill!
For the “mind” transformation, I am transitioning into post-graduate life. It’s probably the most confusing and challenging part of adulthood. Some people don’t get out of it. I am thankful for the passion in my dreams. Everything is still pending in the coming weeks, months, and years, I hope and pray that things will sort each other out. I am mindful of my decisions and how it will help me get to the next step.
My soul has opened up greatly. I am not sure how I can describe or justify this, but I do feel that I have been coming to terms with a lot of things easier. There needs to be more development in this department, but I am ready for it.
Overall, I am beyond ecstatic with what this marathon has done for my life. I am ready to take this lifestyle into the next direction.
The idea of a warm fresh baked blueberry muffin sends my tastebuds into a frenzy. Yum and more yum. But the idea of possessing the muffin top on your body is another story. I know this post is going to get some eye rolls from my male and some female readers, but this is the truth!
In this quest to become lean and a running machine, I have learned a lot. My biggest problem has always been portion control. I am a girl that can eat, even though my petite frame can fool you. For a long time, I didn’t have self control. I would survive off a cup of instant noodle and a big bag of Flaming Hot Cheetos. It was my go-to-food because it was quick and easy.
Since my journey has started, I find myself reaching for more fruits and vegetables on a regular basis to curb sweet or savory cravings. My body is thanking me and my metabolism is almost back to normal.
My family has been complimenting me on my weight loss and I am excited because there has been progress! Almost no more muffin top!
I tried Insanity for the first time this past weekend. Boy, the program is intense to say the least. I can see how effective this program can be if you maintain this on a regular basis. I am just so conflicted on deciding to commit to it wholeheartedly when all I can think about is the Long Beach Marathon.
To be honest, I would like to complete the Long Beach Marathon in October more so than being beach ready in autumn/winter. The whole challenge of training for the marathon is maintaining a good pace for long distances and eating right. With the Insanity program, I find myself getting injured with all the power jumps and so forth. They are extremely effective on working the core, but not great for a runner who needs to keep all the joints oiled and greased for the running routes.
I think I might opt out of the program for now and do 15-20 minutes on my off days from running. I realize I am a cardio bunny and need to lift some weights. I rock the Barbie weights (5lbs) for now because I haven’t been consistent on my weight training. I am hoping when my life settles down a bit, I might invest in a gym membership for the weight room and swimming pool.
Oh right, I would need to learn how to swim! That will be on my list of things to do towards fitness. In due time, swimming will be achieved and conquered like other fitness goals I have set up for myself. In the meantime, I am content with the progress I have made thus far.
I will update you with the numbers and such when there is a greater change.
can i just be them please
Runners everywhere understand the short tan lines but yes, it wouldn’t hurt to be as fast as these two runners. I can only dream.
(Source: nextbestrunner, via running-from)
