Showing posts with label birthday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label birthday. Show all posts

Thursday, October 9, 2014

40 steps to 40: Eleven months update

Did you know that I turned 40? Yep. It happened. Quietly and uneventfully. I didn't have a party or invited guests, but my colleagues bought me a cake and sang Happy Birthday to me in three languages.
Hubbs also made me cake (twice!), a non-dairy Far aux Pruneaux (which I devoured with orgasmic pleasure) and bought me a gift which I had been coveting for years (an iPad Mini). So, maybe there wasn't so much Bang! about this birthday, but I lived to tell the tale. I consider Goal #40 complete! Remember, I make them rules. Just like I decided to continue with those goals until the end of the year, because.

To recap, I have the newly completed goals below:

1. Finish Ironman Mt. Tremblant
DONE! You can read the whole saga about the swim, bike and run by following the links.

2. Clean up my diet
To further update you on this, I had an official allergy test done and I AM allergic to milk after all. All types of milk, but my body gets more or less rebellious whether it's cow, goat or sheep. I was told to avoid them all. I am now supposed to carry an EpiPen with me at all times. Yikes. Not fun. My oldest son is also allergic, so misery keeps company... at least I have one more reason to stay put and not go YOLO on my body whenever I feel like it. I have to be a perfect example of discipline. Truth is, whenever I have dairy, it feels like my insides are about to explode and I am super miserable and regret putting myself through this punishment. I am still a work in progress from this point of view, but man, it's hard... there is milk EVERYWHERE.
12. Go skinny dipping
Vacation, cottage, private access to lake, warm water, need to say more? DONE!

15. Bike the Caledon Trailway
DONE! Initially the plan was to ride about 80km on it, but I didn't get the chance until Zin asked me to ride beside him and carry his nutrition for the longest run before his next half marathon. I rode 24km at 13kph. A glorious fall day with ALL THE COLORS on the trailway - I say it counts!!
16. Climb a mountain
DONE! Mt. Tremblant, on the Thursday following the race. I may write a separate post for it because I have too many pictures to share. It was amazeballs. Quick look at Strava:
17. Volunteer at a race
DONE! (again) I volunteered at Ironman Muskoka 70.3 (again) and I had a blast putting medals around the finishers' necks, which deserves a separate post as well. These are piling up already... just like my Ironman bracelets (I did end up removing those on my birthday).
26. Go on a date night x 4
1 done, 3 to go!! We saw "Gone Girl" and I had absolutely NO clue what the movie was about and I think it was even better this way. I loved it, really well done!

24. Spend a whole day at the movies
Yeah, speaking of movies... I am too old for this shit. Two max, and I'm done. I will replace this goal with another one that is more adequate for my age.

27. Make something with my cork collection
DONE! I saw this at the cottage that we rented in Mt. Tremblant. Here, on the mantel... it looks artsy, right? (you may have to squint to see it)
And this is my version:
I tried getting drunk, but it didn't work. We need more wine.

30. Try paddle boarding
I said I would try this, but then another opportunity arose... and I decided to scratch this goal for... Riding a horse!
And that's it for the goals on the list. However, I am going to add to it a few more "fun" things that I managed to fit in and that I could not have anticipated when I made the list. 

I went to see a hockey game live (my first ever!) with hubbs and the boys. It was a great game that finished with shoot-outs and, cherry on the cake, the Leafs won!!
I went to New York with my mom for her birthday and we saw A LOT of tennis! Federer, Tsonga, Bouchard, Dimitrov, Sharapova, Robredo, Lisiki, Kyrgios and many more. Spent three days at the US Open and walking around Manhattan and ... more in another blog post (am I shooting myself in the foot here??)
I also saw (and took a picture with) Naked Cowboy. Because New York, yo!
Last but not least, my boobies got a squeeshy hug today from a machine that takes pictures and makes funny whirring sounds. Yep, once you're 40, you get to have Mammograms. Have you booked yours yet?
And that's enough fun for this post. It's making me depressed knowing that I only have 3 days left of vacation before the end of the year. Who's got more cake? I'm all out!

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Because I like making lists: 40 steps to 40

Did you know that in less than a year I'll be turning 40?

Yep, no matter what, 40 is happening. But how I get there, it's a different matter altogether. I want to turn 40 with a bang!! (I'll make sure to put that on the list by the way). Yes, I know that I've signed up for an Ironman, but I need some backup plans because shit can happen and then what?
Besides, if you dedicate your whole year to the Ironman and put on hold everyone and everything else, most likely you (that's me) will get alienated by the monotony of workouts and the constant focus on fitness. I think it is important for your psyche to keep a somewhat normal life around Ironman training because you never know when you're going to need to look back and say "this was not a complete waste of time". I've learned some lessons along the way...
I'm a big kid now
So I've made a list of 40 challenges, goals, stepping stones, whatever you want to call them, which should be enough to keep me busy in all situations. Half of them are fitness related because it just made it easier to fill up the list. The rest I got with help from friends, Pinterest and my bored mind. I want my 40s to be the best decade yet. Here we go. Deadline is September 18, 2014.
1. Finish Ironman Mt. Tremblant
2. Clean up my diet. I have a plan for that.
3. Lose weight to reach 125lb
4. Run a 5k race under 25min
5. Run a 10k race under 52min
6. Run a half marathon race
7. Complete a duathlon
8. Complete a 70.3 triathlon
9. Swim 1000m with flip turns
10. Swim 4x50m medley non stop
11. Swim with fins in open water for fun
12. Go skinny dipping
13. Bike to Niagara Falls and back
14. Bike to Blue Mountain and back
15. Bike the Caledon Trailway
16. Climb a mountain
17. Volunteer at a race
18. Volunteer at a soup kitchen
19. Read 5 books
20. Dye my hair at home
21. Find 100 new geocaches
22. Make a jar of something
23. Make 12 new dishes
24. Spend a whole day at the movies
25. Do something fun on New Year's Eve
26. Go on a date night x 4
27. Make something with my cork collection
28. Make a dreamcatcher
29. Use my 10 classes Yoga pass
30. Try paddle boarding
31. Learn how to roll sushi
32. Express gratitude for at least 40 days
33. Host a party/BBQ with friends at home
34. Ride the Leviathan rollercoaster
35. Ride the Behemoth with my younger son
36. Go fishing with my boys
37. Try a new food
38. Go to the reflexologist
39. Get a mani/pedi or a spa treatment
40. Turn 40 with a Bang!

This is a method to my madness. (I also put the list on the side so I can keep track more easily).
Everyone say hip hip hooray!