Why run?

To be the fastest runner in case we ever have another Grizzly bear encounter!!!? Nope. If I know one thing about Grizzly bears is that you definitely shouldn't try to out run them. I also know that I am good at following directions in bear-related life threatening situations, so I probably will just do whatever the husband tells me to do...and he probably would not be one to yell "Run!!!".

So, why? Well, my friend Emy gets all the credit for getting me excited about trying. Here are the reasons why I have stuck with it:

• To lose the newlywed weight
  Yeah, like the freshman 15..only this weight gain nobody warns you about, and it just creeps up on you. Here I am, happy and delighted to be trying all sort of recipes to share awesome newlywed dinners with my husband. The husband...well, he happily eats them and rates them all. Of course by the time he sits down to enjoy his dinner, he probably burnt like 1,000 calories playing tennis.
  Meanwhile something was happening...yep, it's the newlywed weight creeping in....and I want it GONE!

• Boredom/ Wedding Planning blues
  A year of planning the wedding and working on all the details (and loving every second of it) is suddenly replaced with a whole lot of time to do a whole lot of nothing. Yes, I have an entire house to decorate and Alejandro and I have a lot to do...but that's not a day to day thing and I miss that. I miss all my planning, I guess I'm just a planner.
  
  No, I'm not completely bored, just a little bored. I need things to keep me busy and entertained...and depending on others for that can get very old, very quickly!. This little challenge is mine, I get to enjoy it, to hate it and to celebrate it...and I have nobody to blame or reward for the ups/downs but myself. So basically, it's me entertaining myself and sharing my results with you here (with all 3 of you :))

• Flexibility and no Excuses
  This sort of related to Number 1, but not completely. Ever since the wedding. I moved up here and my routine got all messed up. I had worked so hard to get myself into a routine for the past 2 years, but slowly started to lose it with my excuses. I started working from home (which has it's perks) but I also started travelling a little more for work. This means I had plenty of excuses of why I couldn't get myself in a routine. Running eliminates all that nonsense. You can pretty much run anywhere and anytime.
  

• Because I can
  My dad was a marathoner, so I feel like I have it in my genes (or so i tell myself). He inspires me and I know part of why he was so successful at it is because he's a planner. Hmm...sounds familiar?

Running is like no other exercise I have ever done. I was never much into sports but I can see what Alejandro means about it being all mental (he plays tennis). I would say running is 80% in your head.

You wouldn't even believe all the things that go through my head when I'm out there running. Sometimes I plan for the next day, or think of new recipes, or sing along. Other times (when the run is getting tough) I do visualizations. I visualize myself looking in top Marathon shape (even if I never actually run a fill marathon, it is still fun to picture myself!), I picture my legs strong and with effortless continuous motions...almost like they are not attached to my body and are like the wheels of a car.


Just a little update: I added two little boxes. One with my Monthly/Weekly running stats on the little box to the right and one farther on the right showing what I'm currently reading. I will be adding book reviews when I'm done (I've never been much of a reader, but it's just something else I started doing...Alejandro gets all the credit for getting me into that!!)

Welcome to our Blog!

Welcome!!!. I am not sure what the "proper" way is to introduce our blog...and I'm still trying to decide whether this should be in English or in Spanish!...so it will probably end up being a mix of both...depending on how I feel.

My name is Andreina...and I will be your blogger :)

Alejandro is my husband...we got married less than 2 months ago (2/22/08) and had the most beautiful, amazing and fun wedding!. Alejandro is the most amazing husband and friend. I am a very lucky girl (and he is a lucky guy...right? ;))

Now here we are...newlyweds and becoming our own little family...which brings me to the third introduction: Chepe. Chepe is our little black monster. He is a four year-old miniature schnauzer that loves napping, chasing birds and lizards and barking at the neighborhood kids!.

So I will do the blogging. Alejandro and Chepe will come along on the ride and will most likely not be big bloggers :). I love to cook and Alejandro loves to eat...it's a match made in heaven!. He goes along on my cooking adventures and gives me the occasional claps after dinner when something is just "outstanding". I call myself the "cooker" in the house...I cook, we eat, he claps!...it a wonderful thing.

What will I blog about? Good question. Most likely it will be about totally random things that go through my head...you will find posts about cooking, decorating the house, fitness and anything else we want to share with you...our family and friends.

That's it for now...See you soon!