New Years...WHAT?!

    So ...I've been on a hiatus (thanks Andrew Horwat)  from my blog for awhile. After I took on my new job I have been running CUHHRAZYYY busy!!! Not only did I take on a full time sales position at a local gym I also am still working part time with the pipe company, and teaching 2 classes a week with camp sweat (http://campsweatnola.com/) ! For those who don't know I got my personal training certification and I'm loving it! ON TOP OF ALL THAT... I am currently in flight back from Florida where I trained 41 high school all american mascots a half time routine for the capital one bowl. Needless to say I am a busy, busy girl. 

     This week one of my kids asked if I had a New Years resolution...legit question since it was January first!  I feel like I've always made one and said yeah ok that what I'm going to do this year... Normally it's something simple and I either do it or forget I wanted to (like everyone else) the more I thought about this question... I've decided I do not have a "New Years" resolution. The things and goals I would set for myself are things I should already continuously be doing so why would I make it a resolution for this year?!?! I will continuously strive and search for the best. Needless to say you can always be better than what you are, I have countless amount of goals and ambitions that I want to fulfill some might take more than a year or just a few months so why start with the new year?! I started last year, get ahead of the game.

2013 is the year of "insert name here"  so get out there and own it! Forget your resolution and just do your best at everything you do and better yourself everyday!

RANDOM fact of my blog today: people who lean their chairs back on airplanes are assholes. Don't be that guy. AKA the guy in front of me. Mean muggin the back or a seat...Just in case he turns around!

2012 was an eventful year an I can only imagine what 2013 will hold, Bring on the crazyness 2013 I'm ready to take on everything you throw in my path.

Tower of Terror 10 Miler!!!

   WELL... 3rd times a charm?! I typed this blog twice in the car on the way back from the race and my phone erased it both times! MAYBE my phone knew how angry I was and decided it would be a good idea for me to give it a few days...I mean it is a "Smart phone". 

   ONE MORE TIME (the blog NOT the race!)!

The weekend started off great Felicia and I Left for Mobile Thursday after work and made it into town around 8ish! Friday consisted of coffee, shopping and Mobile site seeing (Felicia loved it!). After Ashley got off work we packed the car and headed for Ocala, FL. The drive was really easy and didn't seem long at all! Felicia studied (shes so smart), Ashley graded papers/slept, Steven drove, and I read some Fitness books while jamming out... my own personal utopia! Once we made it to Ocala we grabbed Greek and beers...AS IS TRADITION! 

"Personal Utopia" haha

night before race beers

RACE DAYYYY!!! We all woke up excited and ready to take on the day! We left Ocala headed to Orlando (it's only an hour) for the Expo to pick up our packets and shop! We were there first thing when the expo opened, everything seemed really organized and simple, no worries there! We found some killer awesome matching  shirts for the run, this was unexpected but they were super cool so we had to buy them!  Ashley got the "Evil Queen" shirt... this describes how I feel about her when she's micromanaging everything (love you ash) and the back said "fairest of them all" this is how Ashley sees herself...everyone knows it to be true. Felicia got the "sea witch" shirt ... I don't really feel like shes a witch but the little mermaid is her favorite and Ashley said her hair resembled tentacles?!? Yeah ok?! I got the "captain" shirt... to be honest I only bought that one for the mustache on it! OH, did I mention they glow in the dark!? STELLAR!!! (yes we spent at least 20 mins holding them up to the lights in the hotel room and running into the bathroom with the lights off together.. who wouldn't?!)

MUSTACHE!

Front

Backs

While at the expo we also bought extremely over priced one day park tickets... I may or may not have sold my first born child to Disney to ride 3 rides and get a dole whip?! WORTH IT! We went to the park at 2pm and rode a few rides got a dole whip (be jealous Clark Ramsey) and wandered around till about 5ish. I will say that the first ride we went to was space mountain (it always has the longest wait) to get fast passes. The guys at the fast pass booth gave us immediate passes to go ride, i'm claiming its because I was wearing my chive shirt...KCCO Chris from lakeland! 

Happiest place on earth!

 KCCO

so FREAKING excited!

SPLASH MOUNTAIN!

So after the park fun we took some time to get ready and rest our feet till we had to be on the bus for the race. We got on the bus around 7ish... the bus dropped us off by our corrals so we wandered, hydrated, and took pictures till it was time to get in our corrals...About 2 hrs after we got dropped off. Once in Corral B (B stood for: Better than A, Beast mode, Badass ...Etc.) we made one last bathroom trip and by the time we made it through the line and chugged a water it was time to go to the start! The start line was great, they had great music to get everyone pumped up and it was working...till they talked on the mic for like 30 mins... SHHHHH, no one wanted to hear your terrible jokes just keep playing Gangnam style! 

Heres the start line!!!

After awhile waiting for the 2 wheelchair starts and corral A to go, it was our turn! They set off fireworks for every group so that was pretty awesome. Off we went to 10 miles of terror...Let's change that to 5 miles of terror and 5 miles of ...well I don't know what you would call the first 5 miles.

DISCLAIMER: I'm going off memory and estimating about where the miles were ish... this isn't going to be exact... i'm pretty sure I zoned out for a bit...

MILE ONE! This was out of Hollywood studios up an on ramp to the interstate that had us headed to Animal Kingdom...We had that on LOCK! They had black lights and loud music to motivate you going up that on ramp, but then again it was no biggie, IT WAS MILE ONE!

MILE TWO! At this point we were about to Animal Kingdom we had past one DJ and some puppeteers and an EXTREMELY annoying repeat warning us of a speed bump. 

ANOTHER SIDE NOTE: Keep in mind Ashley told me..."Don't bring you head phones, they will have music and stuff all over the place it will ruin the experience"... to her defense this is the case with most other Disney races...

MILE THREE: You know... I think the lion kings Hyenas were at 3 but that may have been at 2?!? other than that we had made the look at animal kingdom and headed back to the place we started, passing the same DJ we passed at mile ONE... (still counting that ONE DJ)

MILE FOUR:  I believe this was where there guy from the princess and the frog was and also an overpass headed down towards the wide world of sports! SOOOO Nothing too exciting...

MILE FIVE: It all went down hill from here... but sadly it didn't literally go downhill. Mile five took a wrong turn... well technically it was a right turn, INTO THE WOODS ON A GRAVEL PATHWAY IN THE DARK! Sounds cool right?! WRONG. The only thing cool about this was that they had pirates of the Caribbean music playing. It was dark and the change of the road consistency messed me up... this is normally the mile that I hit "go mode" THAT wasn't happening... NOT COOL!

MILE SIX AND SEVEN: Yeah... i'm just going to lump these two miles together in a paragraph of poop! These were all through the wide world of sports with bright stadium lights no music and the constant change of running surfaces from sidewalks, to tracks, to grass, to a baseball field?!? WHAT?  They had the Haunted mansion grave diggers on the track... they were pretty cool I guess... and then they had stitch off to the side at some point?! I may or may not have tried to block these out of my race memories all together...as Felicia would say "your brain wont remember the pain". Once we got out of Wide World of Sports I we got blatantly lied to by a hopeful race guy when he told us the next water station was "right around the corner" LIES!!!! We ran what felt like 1/4 of a mile past where there should have been  "the big bad wolf"... He was taking a break... I didn't feel sorry for the characters as I would have if I were not running 10 miles. As I saw him walking back to take his break I almost wanted to yell "I need motivation PANSY!!!" You can see how i was slipping into "ANGRY BRITTANY" mode. I didn't yell at him but I did yell at his handlers asking where the "around the corner" water station was... they gladly responded with "ONLY HALF A MILE!! " They sounded so cheerful....UGHHHHH!

MILE EIGHT AND HALF OF NINE: So we made it to the "around the corner" water station and kept running...shuffling...dragging... I mean whatever we were doing we were doing it at an 11 min mile pace?!? Felicia tried to sing to me...I told her to shut up in a very angry tone... I also yelled some terrible obscenity's at Ashley only to have the people behind us giggle, gasp, and say "whatever motivates you" ... there were some wooden cut outs of playing cards from Alice in wonderland and now i wonder if the "Red Queen" should have been there?!? She wasn't. BY THIS TIME, we were back to the on ramp to get back to Hollywood studios!!! 

MILE NINE AND A HALF AND TEN:  These were in the park... lets quote Ashley " were running through the whole park, people are watching!" ....::running running running::  behind the scenes "ok we can walk no ones back here."  lets make a side note of the fact that I know Hollywood Studios like the back of my hand from nationals... Ashley: "come on Brittany only 3 quarters of a mile!"  ME: "you have no F'in clue where we are do you?!" As we are running AWAY from where the finish is.... Thennnnn Felicia breaks into a sprint trying to get to the finish... what wasn't close... so Ashley tries to catch up... then they both slow down because i'm yelling its not close. Alas we all finished together!!! Actually one hundredth of a second apart... Felicia, Me, then Ashley. ONLY TO DISCOVER THERE'S A HUGE HILL RIGHT AFTER THE FINISH LINE...

We sat on a curb to re hydrated and eat some food to get back to normal... I slowly got back to normal non angry Brittany but not before the obese woman starred me down to remove my legs from the street...that struck a nerve... Steve and I rode Rock N Roller coaster only to find tons of sick people everywhere and we got stuck on the ride for about 10 mins. By this point we were all ready to go back to the room and crash...

Overall we had a great time... Other than the race!

dead

 this photo is a lie... we were all pretty angry...

Back to it!

     Well, it's been almost a month since my last blog post. I have been so busy getting back into the swing of things and getting over the summer camp depression (if you were there...you know). I have yet to get back to boot camp since I have been busy (I will be back in October Jess) but I have been able to keep up with my workouts...kinda.  I have been challenging a few friends, right now is "planktember" so i'm in a planking war with a few friends around the US and I have been going for runs with Kevin to prepare for my 10 miler in...15 days (shit).  My training process has been a weekly 2 short run, a medium run, and a long run every Saturday...Well, that's what it says in my planner. We'll see how this turns out...my photo at the finish line might be me crawling over the line.

        We made it through "tropical rainstorm" Issac with no damage to the house, cars, or us!!! Other than  losing the copious amounts of food in my fridge (jokes on you if you thought I had food in my fridge) and not having power for 5 days, we did perfectly fine. In fact we left the west bank on Wednesday night in the middle of the storm and came downtown to my wonderful parents apartment with power and Lafitte just 2 blocks away (I had a hurricane in light of the situation). The storm was more like a nice long rainy labor day vacay!!! Kevin said his proudest moment was when the power went out and he asked me to put anything I wanted to save from the fridge into the ice chest...I proceeded to the fridge, grabbed all the beer, put it in the ice chest, and then I went back to the couch... i'm such a lady!


          In other news I accomplished a goal I have been trying to reach for quite awhile!!! I finished a 5k in under 30 mins!!!!! YAY!!!! Here are a few photos from the saints run! 
                                                       
 Tebowing on the 10

              Typical Brittany thumbs up!

                  gotta love on the mascots!

NOWWWW for some GREAT news!!! :) I got a new job!! I have taken a full time sales and eventually training position with a gym here in town,  I filled out the paperwork and I should start in just a few weeks! I am really hoping that this is a good fit for me and works out well, I am ecstatic to be working with all kinds of people and in an environment that I truly enjoy! Keep me in your thoughts as I start out on this new "branch". KCCO! 

Mucking Fascots!

WOW... what a trip! The past 14 days have been 100 % crazy, fun, and unexpected to say the least. It was a nice little break from my normal routine of workouts and work and I swore I had eaten my weight in terrible cafeteria food, five guys, noodles, and Axles by the time I left Milwaukee. With no scale in sight, I just kept calm and carried on. When we got to Scranton we realized we were on the 3rd floor of the dorms with NO elevator not to mention the main gym at the school was uber hot! AWESOME! Between running  stairs all day everyday, sweating my butt off in the gym, and using my coaches as squatting tools (I maxed out around 180 ish) I ended up coming home almost 5-6 lbs lighter than when i left...my nightly diet may have contributed to some of that. Well enough of all that... lets highlight this awesome adventure of craziness. 

   SO, Milwaukee was awesome...as always. Lots of good friends were there and the kids are incredible. The theme this year was olympics (who would have guessed) 

USA

First, I STILL suck at dodge ball...ALTHOUGH, I did make one incredible catch resulting in my one and only out of the past 3 years (YAY) promptly after that I was pelted in the leg while celebrating my epic catch. 

Second, Axles is much more fun when the guys have another girl (thanks Katie) to pick on and i'm not the only one! 

Lastly, Milwaukee is just all around awesomeness every year! If you have any further questions check the photographic proof on the FB!

Dream team!

ON TO ScrantON!!!! Theme of the week...ohhh myyyy goddd. I was a little nervous coming into this camp (shhhhh) Since I have heard southpaw isn't the YouDees favorite person and I didn't really know any of the campers that would be there. SURPRISE!!! What was I thinking?! These guys were just as amazing as all the other mascots I work with. I was overjoyed and in love with this phenomenal group the instant we started camp! Camp went great, follies went great, and top of it all we got to do some awesome community service with the boys and girls club and a local nursing home! I don't know how many of you have had the chance to work in that type of environmental but its the most rewarding feeling ever!

Nursing home visit!

 Boys and girls club!

 Kenny made a new GF at the nursing home!

IT JUST KEEPS GETTING BETTER!!! We also learned Katie can fit 22 jumbo marshmallows in her mouth AND we had some killer karaoke stars!

you read right...22

my hump my hump my hump...

Dream team 2.

I know I made even more incredible life long friends on the trip and I cant wait to see them all again! OH YEAH... I also got to go to NYC (added bonus)! It was grand and awesome and huge, we had a blast... but it really just didn't top the two weeks of camps.

 

Hello from 33,000 feet!

Hey guys, its been a few since I've made a new post (sorry about that) but now as I fly off to Milwaukee for "work"(can I even call it that?!) I have plenty of air time to make a post!!! I have been thinking up some new things to post about and one came to me the other night in conversation with friends! I got asked a question that I kinda knew but not really SO I took it upon myself to research a bit and answer the question with a bit more confidence. The question I was asked was " what's the difference between good calories and bad?!" well to start I know you should eat healthy because the right foods fuel your body! Then came the question about counting calories! "if I'm given a certain amount of calories and I only eat that many does it matter what I eat?!" That one kinda stumped me. Technically you're intaking the Same amount of calories for your body to burn, so can you eat 1500 calories of doughnuts and your body burn it off just like 1500 calories of salad?! WELL OBVIOUSLY NOT was my first conclusion but I didn't have the answer other then some are good for you and others are "empty calories". I Went on a Search for these answers so now I can explain it and not say "well you know... You should eat healthy, it's better for you!". You can eat 1500 calories (please look up your personal calorie intake, it is not the same for everyone and I am just using "1500" as an example number) of crap and 1500 calories of health food and lose weight with both if that's your daily intake that your body naturally burns off. BUT WAIT JUST A MINUTE Before you go down a few dozen doughnuts... These "empty calories" do nothing for you, you can still lose weight BUT by choosing to eat healthy you will lose faster! I read that eating these empty calories will make you retain water, cause hair and skin problems, and lead to health risk (kinda the obvious right?!) Even though you are eating your daily intake you are not giving your body what it needs to keep you at your best! :)

*my apologies for any errors I'm iPhone blogging!

I seem to always get the wing!!

LIES and Disappointment...

This weekend we went to mobile to visit my friends (YAY) and in random passing conversation I hear something that BLEW MY MIND, I was a little outraged and dumbfounded as well. I know all of you are dying to know what was said...Prepare yourselves for the informative facts about a popular nation wide "sub shop"!!! THEIR WHEAT BREAD IS WORSE FOR YOU THAN THEIR WHITE BREAD...  AND TO TOP IT OFF, IT'S NOT EVEN WHEAT, IT'S WHITE BREAD DYED TO BE WHEAT!!!! WTF!!!!! I will give you a moment to soak that up.....

NOW, I decided to look this up...after all these years I  thought I was getting the healthier choice...I WAS WRONG!

WHEAT  vs. WHITE

Calories:  Wheat 210

               White 200

Calories from fat:  Wheat 20

                             White 20

Sodium: Wheat 310mg

              White 290mg

Carbs: Wheat 40g

            White 38g

::sigh:: I really don't what to do, my brain goes automatically to wheat when I think healthy. Maybe this is a lesson, things are not always as they seem, I guess I need to start reading more labels?! Although, I haven't found any evidence that they "dye the bread" as I heard this weekend but I have read that it's majority white with just a bit of wheat added in so they can call it "Wheat" bread... I feel like a small child who has been lied to.

HOLY HOTNESS!

   WELCOME TO LOUISIANA SUMMER!!! It is oh so hot here and working out outside is a beast, I try to do everything possible to "beat the heat" so to speak but sometimes you just need to sweat...or you really just cant help it because it so flipping hot!!!!  

  Yup... that says 114...

I'm going to share with you guys, my not so secret ways to "beat the heat!" These are all such common sense things but with this heat...memory loss is a possibility!  Lets start with the morning...we all know i don't do morning BUT if you want to get outside, morning and late at night are your best bet for the lowest temp! Personally I would rather go running at noon and possibly die then wake up at 5am, I value my sleep. My workouts are from 7-8pm and are on the lake so we sometimes get a breeze but  it's still pretty "toasty", they don't call it "camp sweat" for nothing! Since I am working out while the suns still up I take the normal precautions of HYDRATION and Light clothing  (Honestly if I could wear spandex and workout clothes every day all day I would) I make sure during my day I am chugging water, I try to drink a gallon a day especially on workout days.  Not only does water help to keep you hydrated for your workout, it also helps flush all the bad stuff out.  I tend to wear mostly Nike gear, it's just my personal favorite. When you're shopping for your workout clothes make sure you read the tags, look for things that "WICK" away sweat (My sister recently informed me it was WICK not WHISK so now I don't sound like in idiot YAY...except for the fact that I just told you I thought it was whisk... yes, I know a whisk is a kitchen tool) and keep you cool! Now I know working out outside isn't for everyone, One of my best friends seems appalled when I took her to boot camp and we "had to workout in nature." Find a gym or get in your living room  for the summer, they are cool and as long as you have the equipment you need at home you can always get a good workout in!

Whatever or wherever you may be working out  this summer just make sure you are making smart choices to keep yourself healthy and hydrated!!

ON TO THE NEXT ONE! This past weekend my sister, brother in law, and I decided to do the "Running of the bulls" here in New Orleans! What an experience it was, it was so much fun and we are already looking forward to dressing up for next year! If you are not familiar with this event it consist of around 400 roller derby girls and about 14,000 people all dressed in red an white running through the streets, of course the derby girls are chasing you (as the bulls would in the actual bull run) and hitting you with plastic bats. Sounds fun right?! It was! It was a very short, it might have been over a mile...MAYBE. Over all it was a great time, here are some photos from the event!  

On the ferry ride over!

This was after the run, you cant tell but we were soaked, SO HOT!

Just a few of the derby girl...OUCH!

Ditched the long shorts for spandex and post race beers at the gallery :)