Climbing that hill. Or mountain.

Hello friends!  It's time to talk about the bit of damage I did while on vacation -- in numbers.  Eeeek!

So, before I left, I was one pound away from goal.  Well, the Thursday weigh-in of the week we returned yielded not-so-surprising results:  164.9 lbs.  Ouch!  But remember -- I knew exactly what I was getting into when I ate delicious hometown pizza and engaged in very little physical activity.  Can't say I was disappointed.  I got motivated again!  This isn't some slippery slope I'm rolling down...just a bunny hill that's slowed me down.

As mentioned previously, I've hit Weight Watchers hard again.  I am tracking everything and enjoying the regularity and calming effect it has on me.  It keeps me from asking "what if" because it's all black and white.  You choose the foods, the app tells you the points.  From there, you decide if it's worth it.  And a week of getting back to it meant that yesterday's weigh-in was pretty darn good -- I'm back down to 162.9 -- two pounds off.

Charlie and I also started running again, which is clearly an important step in training for a half marathon.  Right now, we are simply focusing on getting our running legs back.  We've run 4.5 miles this week, and would have loved to get more in this morning.  However, if you haven't heard, Dallas (and Texas in general) is suffering from the worst West Nile break out since 2002.  There hasn't been an aerial assault on these little monsters in since the 60's, but North Texas is home to 17 confirmed deaths this summer...and Dallas county is home to 10 of the 17 deaths.  In fact, I am hearing about it on GMA right now.  There have been 200 confirmed cases of West Nile in Dallas alone.  It has been called a state of emergency, so now the aerial spraying is the mayor's last choice, really.  I'm not a fan of either -- West Nile, or pesticides -- so I think I'm staying inside.

In spite of all of this craziness, Charlie and I are very serious about getting the work done to perform well in this race!  Well, I'd simply like to finish it!  In fact, I am hoping that I can manage to lose another 10 pounds following goal weight, but I need to get to goal first!  But losing the additional weight will only make it easier for me to compete in the race -- and healthier in the long run.

I'd love to ask any readers to join me in getting active.  Races in the fall are a lot of fun -- the weather is usually pretty decent -- and who doesn't love a race called the Turkey Trot?  I suggest looking up 5k or One Mile Fun Runs in your area.  Try it out!  I've become addicted to the feeling of running with hundreds or thousands of other people.  And if running isn't your thing, it's plenty fun and good for you to walk a 5k!

Now I must head off...GMA is doing a special segment on weight loss.  They are interviewing the individuals who were highlighted in the most recent issue of People magazine -- all of them have lost 100+ lbs!  Good ol' hard work paying off...inspiring stuff!