I run because it makes my clothes look good on me...

Today was a grey and dismal day.  I felt great though!  I wore a new outfit (new to me) that I bought at Value Village.  Nothing boosts your self esteem like wearing clothes that actually fit.  So here's the low down on the outfit.  The pants were $7.99, the top under the jacket (I actually bought new) $1.99, the jacket $9.99, the scarf was a gift.  So the grand total of my outfit was $19.97 plus tax. Not too shabby!  The photos are courtesy of my friend Michael.  He kept making me laugh and we were barely able to get a "normal" photo.

The pants and top are Joe Fresh, and the Jacket is Levi Strauss.  The scarf is a gift from somewhere in the Orient from my girlfriend Sharon.  I actually felt pretty wearing this outfit. That's a huge accomplishment for me.  I almost never feel pretty.  Past or present.  And getting used to my new body is taking some time.  Being my worst critic, I am sure that I will always find some flaw about myself.  For instance...my forehead is freaking HUGE!  Enough about me...I just wanted to plug the benefits of buying thrift!  It is soooooooo worth it.  Wait until you see what I scored yesterday.  I'll post a picture on Thursday!

I run with a lovely woman from Norway on Wednesdays and Sundays.  She's visiting Hamilton via an exchange for a few months.  She's scheduled to go back to Norway at the beginning of November, so our time together is limited.  I drive her home after our runs and she's a beautiful person inside and out.  She gave me a lovely gift on Sunday.  A bracelet that is made by the Sami People.  The Sami (her husband is Sami) are the indigenous people of Norway.

 

Their story of lost culture is very similar to that of the First Nation people of Canada.  When she gave me the bracelet, she wasn't aware that I am Ojibwe from Serpent River in Cutler, Ontario.  We talked about the hardships both the Sami and the First Nations people of North America have suffered through history.  It was so special for me to get such a beautiful gift from another indigenous tribe half way around the world.  I will always treasure the bracelet.  It's made from reindeer hide, the clasp is reindeer bone and the design across the top is pewter.  Isn't it beautiful?  I love it!

Tomorrow is my first weigh-in at the clinic since the beginning of July.  July 9th to be exact.  I'm looking forward to seeing where I am "officially" at weight-loss wise since yesterday marked the one year anniversary of my life style change.  My weight-loss is definitely slowing down.  But now, losing 5 pounds is noticeable on me.  When I weighed 290ish, I needed to lose at least 30 pounds before anyone noticed!  I'm guessing I have about 20 more pounds to lose.  I'm hopeful I'll be done by Christmas.

Yesterday I ran twice.  Once in the morning with my hubby, and again in the evening with my LTR group.  The group was very small and I ran with a young man (who happens to be Mohawk).  He has a significantly faster pace than me.  I took him on a trail where you run downhill, turn around and run uphill.  I had to keep up with him since I am the instructor and all I could think the whole time was "thank God we're only running 3k"!  I wouldn't have been able to keep up that pace for much longer.  If nothing else, at least I got in a good tempo run!  Just in case you're wondering, a tempo run is a comfortably hard run where you run 30 - 40 seconds faster than your current 5k pace.  You should be able to talk, but only in short phrases...not carry on a conversation like I normally can when I'm running. I was glad when it was over, but it made me feel good that I could do it!

Just in case you're wondering why I run.
Courtesy of my gal Beverly:)