I LOVE These Things: In My Head, 5:00/5:00 & A Big Announcement {Week of 4/19}

One more month till school is out.

I’m moving between emotions of..

a. Happy.
b. Sad.
c. Wondering what I’m going to feed them for lunch all summer because mama only cooks one meal a day.

And here are the three things this week that are making me happy…

1. Headspace.

Meditation is something Hubs and I have both played around with for awhile since he read The Depression Cure and started implementing their recommendations. In fact, I even talk about meditation in my The 20/20/20 Method – How Busy Moms Can Fuel Their Mind, Body, & Soul post.

And a couple of weeks ago, I stumbled on an article that listed the Headspace app as one of the best resources for starter mediators, like myself. The app was also free, so I figured what did I have to lose.

I’ve been doing Headspace’s 10 days for 10 minutes routine and really, really like it.

It’s super easy to follow and they don’t require any chants, incense, or cross-legged sitting to do their routines. (Granted, these are all things I thought you needed because of my weird stereotypes, but I digress.) You just need your phone, a comfy-distraction-free place, and earbuds. And I really dig the British dude’s voice who is the leader.

Meditation has helped me sleep better at night, be more productive during the day, and lower my stress level. And to be honest, I’m hooked. Natural, no-drug way to feel better everyday? Count me in.

2. 5:00/5:00 Running Method.

I love to run.

When I was in my 20s, it was my favorite form of exercise. And I was fast (in my mind, anyway) … and I would regularly run between an 8:00 and 8:30 mile.

Then I trained for a 1/2 marathon and completely JACKED UP my knees. To the point that it was hard to walk up or down stairs and when I would get out of bed in the morning my knees sounded like a popcorn maker with all the “popping” they would do.

So I quit.

Fast forward to five years ago when I tried it again. I ran slower, like a 10:00 mile, and I ran for shorter distances, like 3.5 miles.

And that worked okay, but I longed to run long distances again. So I tried. But my knees always hurt like an SOB after a six mile run and my times were horrible.

Until a month ago, when I decided to starting running 5:00 minutes and power walking for 5:00 minutes. I had this revelation after doing HIIT workouts where you would go ALL OUT for one minute and then rest for one minute. Those workouts helped push me, but provided enough of a break where I didn’t feel overtaxed.

The result is amazing. I can now do six miles without issue to my knees (or the rest of my body) and my times are really good. Last Saturday, I ran six miles in 1 hour, 3 minutes which is a 10:30 mile. It gives me hope that with enough training, I could do a half-marathon in the next few months, and that makes me happy.

3. Huge Upcoming Giveaway.

It’s not very often that I “tease” about an upcoming “something” in these posts…but I couldn’t resist this time because it is FREAKIN’ EPIC. I got the “all-systems-go” email this week and while I can’t tell you everything, I can tell you that there will be a giveaway every week in May and it will be for a $200 item and it is something that you use in your house once or twice a week. Get ready, it’s going to be awesome, friends. Stay tuned.

And in case you missed it, here are the new posts from this week.

Summer Hot White & Gold Accessories