Category: Fit Five Friday

Fit Five Friday and April 2022 Runfessions

So far this month went so much better.  Remember that student that I was struggling with last month?  Totally different kid.  For the first time in a long time I can actually take a deep breath and feel really good about myself.  Teaching is actually more fun now.  But I am still counting to the last day of the school year!

It’s the last Friday of the month which means Marcia has opened the Runfessional!  It’s also time for another edition of Fit Five Friday hosted by DarleneRenéeJennMichelle, and me!  Let’s get started, shall we?!

I runfess…
That I am annoyed about the Peloton price increase.  I know it isn’t a lot but still.  I know I’ve paid the same amount since 2019 but still.

I runfess…
That I said no more TV but have been liking “The Golden Girls”.  It is hilarious and I will say that Sophia is my favorite but I am definitely Dorothy.  Are you a fan?

I runfess…
That supposedly Spring is here but it does not feel like it.  The constant weather change is driving me nuts.  Shorts and short sleeve one day and then jackets and tights another day.  Sunny one day and rain and gloomy another day.  

I runfess…
That I really dislike American Airlines.  Last year I booked a flight and then had to cancel.  Then I used the credit from that flight for another trip which I then cancelled.  Somehow that trip was separated into a trip credit and a flight credit.  A flight credit only I can use it whereas the trip credit can be transferred to a sibling as long as they have they same last name.  I had absolutely no idea about it nor know why there are two separate credits.  I want to go to NYC during Memorial Day weekend and was planning to use the total credit amount (this was before I knew about the two credits).  I cannot use both the trip credit and the flight credit to pay for the ticket.  That leaves me with using the flight credit (since the amount is higher) but I still need to pay $73 for the difference which is the amount of the trip credit and cannot use.  The good thing is that I have until the Fall to use these credits.  I am also looking for flights to Mexico and not only are they expensive but there are no direct flights and travel time ranges from 6 to 16 hours.  🤦‍♀️ 🤦‍♀️

I runfess…
That I know I want to run a 50k but haven’t signed up for it.  I am debating between the Marine Corps 50k in Washington, DC and the Lakefront Ultra in Chicago.  I like Washington, DC but would need to travel whereas if I run here then I can sleep in my own bed.  Plus, it will be cheaper!  The one in Chicago is in late October/early November.  What also terrifies me is the weather.  I used to be hardcore about running in the cold but now am a wimp about it.

Thanks for linking up with us again this week!  We’ve got FIVE incredible co-hosts, and we are ready to link up every Friday to share YOUR weekly fitness favorites!  Join hosts My First 5K and MoreRunning With AttitudeRun Laugh Eat PieRuns with Pugsand Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday!  Please add your link below.  I am also linking up with Marcia for Runfessions.

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Fit Five Friday and April 2022 Ultimate Coffee Date


Wow, it is already April!  We are still dealing with Winter weather conditions since Mother Nature cannot make up her mind.  It is sunny so at least that makes it a bit better.  I’m starting off the weekend with a little catch-up over the Ultimate Coffee Date hosted by Coco and Deborah.  So grab a mug of your favorite beverage and let’s chat for a bit!

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that today is my last day of Spring Break.  It sure went by fast!  I taught a few of my students for two hours each morning.  Total there were 5 students.  It was very similar to what I did in the Winter.  We read a few books to discuss point of view and worked on a couple of math word problems.  They’re both difficult to teach and for students to comprehend.  Even more when they do not know how to or want to read.

If we were having coffee…
I’d ask you if you ever donated plasma.  There is a facility two miles from where I live.  On Monday I went to inquire about it and then went on Wednesday to donate.  I was a new donor so the whole process took about 3 hours – the donation itself is about 40 minutes.  It didn’t hurt and I got a debit card with $100 in it.  It came in handy because the next day I had to replace the microwave oven.  It was either that or risk an explosion or fire caused by it.

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that it’s been 3 years since my mother had her stroke.  It’s been an eye opening experience.  Many good things have come out of it too!

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that you can call me crazy for wanting to run the Marine Corps Marathon 50K.  Maybe it is a good thing I didn’t get in the NYC Marathon.  I haven’t signed up yet – not sure what is holding me back.  I’ve already talked to my coach about it and we will be working together again to train for it.  50K?!?  Yikes!!!

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that I turn 50 this year.  My birthday falls on a Sunday.  The next week is Thanksgiving and I only have to work Monday and Tuesday.  I am unsure of what to do.  Go somewhere warm?  Have a party with a few friends and family?  I am not really one to “celebrate” my birthday.  I wake up each morning, go for a run, and continue on with my day.  Nothing exciting but just grateful for being able to celebrate another birthday.

Thanks for linking up with us again this week!  We’ve got FIVE incredible co-hosts, and we are ready to link up every Friday to share YOUR weekly fitness favorites!  Join hosts My First 5K and MoreRunning With AttitudeRun Laugh Eat PieRuns with Pugsand Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday!  Please add your link below.  I am also linking up with Running with Perseverance and Confessions of a Mother Runner for the Ultimate Coffee Date.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

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Fit Five Friday: 5 pictures from this week

Happy Friday!  Friday is my favorite day of the week.  One more week till Spring Break.  I have parent/teacher conferences on Tuesday so that means 4 more work days.  Very excited about it!

I love taking pictures.  Right now I have almost 8,544 pictures stored in my phone.  I wrote a similar post last year and at that time I had almost 6,000 pictures.  I need to go through them and delete some since many are duplicates.  

Let me share with you 5 of those pictures from this week.

📷  Mateo is rarely affectionate with me.  Lately I’ve woken up in the morning to find him right next to me on the bed.  I don’t know what time he gets on it but it’s like he is trying to protect me.  There are plenty of other places he can sleep on but he picks my bed.  He does care about me.

📷  The balcony is one of my favorite places in my apartment.  I know my cats love it there too.  No more snow (hopefully) so I put out the chairs.  Once it is warm enough my mother and I will sit outside and hang out.

📷  My kids are pretty awesome.  No matter what, they’re still kids.  I love seeing them have fun.  One thing they like to do is draw and color.  They also enjoy doodling.  Here are some items they drew.

📷  Funny that I had a similar picture in last year’s post.  My neighbor across the street sells elotes and sometimes I get one to enjoy.  Definitely not the healthiest but it is yummy!

📷   I started running again.  Thank you for your encouragement and support!  It is warming up here and that makes me very happy (we’ve been able to have outdoor recess too).  I’ve done two days of running where I’ve run nonstop for at least 20 minutes.  Total mileage as of yesterday is 27.21 miles so running nonstop for that long is a HUGE deal to me.  

Thanks for linking up with us again this week!  We’ve got FIVE incredible co-hosts, and we are ready to link up every Friday to share YOUR weekly fitness favorites!  Join hosts My First 5K and MoreRunning With AttitudeRun Laugh Eat PieRuns with Pugsand Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday!  Please add your link below.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Fit Five Friday: 5 things I am loving

Hello there!  I am very happy it is Friday.  I was off on Monday but it still feels like a long week.  I have two more weeks till Spring Break and I am even more excited about that.  My plan is to relax and take it easy.  I have a race (8K) on the 20th and am not ready for it.  What was I thinking signing up for a race when I haven’t been consistent with running?  I am debating on whether or not to run it.

For today’s post I’m sharing 5 things I am loving.   

💖  Noxgear Tracer 2.  I have written about this before.  I know I haven’t been running as much as before but I still love it.  This is seriously the best running gear I purchased last year.  It provides maximum visibility, lots of different color modes, and it is rechargeable.  If you run in the dark, then you need to get it for you!

💖  Liquid I.V.  I was a huge fan of Nuun but wanted to try something different.  “A single serving offers 2-3 times the hydration that a single glass of water may provide. What’s more, the hydration multipliers contain electrolytes that are absorbed into your cells faster than drinking water.”  There many yummy flavors but my favorite is grape.  One thing I do not like about it is the sugar – each serving has 11 grams of sugar.  I use one packet for 32 ounces of water and it is sweet enough for me.  

💖  Salud –  I found out about these from my coach.  I sent him a few samples of Liquid IV and he sent me some of Salud.  The flavors are horchata, mango, jamaica (hibiscus), pepino limón (cucumber lime), and tamarindo.  I’ve tried them all and my favorite is pepino limón.  Even my mother likes that flavor.  The packet is small and it is enough for 24 ounces of water.  “Each serving of Salud is packed full of powerful benefits to support hydration and improve immune health.”  The best thing about it is that each packet is 1 gram of sugar.

💖  Cable management box.  I think I saw this in one of those work from home or home organization articles on Facebook.  I have a surge protector on top of my desk where I plug my laptop along with several USB adapters to charge my Garmin, computer mouse, etc.  This box keeps all of the cables organized.  I did have some trouble closing the lid because one of the adapters was too high but I replaced it with another one.

💖  Jot Ultra CoffeeYou all know I love coffee.  Jot Ultra Coffee is concentrated.  You add one tablespoon of it to whatever liquid you want to make an espresso, americano, cappuccino, hot coffee, or iced coffee.  The flavor is smooth and delicious.  I was actually very impressed with the taste.  Each 200ml bottle is $28 and makes 14 cups.  I bought this from an ad on Facebook or Instagram and there was a promotion going on.  I got two bottles of the coffee, a tablespoon, and a 12oz mug for around $40.  You can sign up for a subscription to get 25% off each order.  If you are interested in this coffee, use THIS LINK.  You get a free gift with your first order and I get a free bottle of coffee.

Have you tried any of these products?  Thoughts?  

Thanks for linking up with us again this week!  We’ve got FIVE incredible co-hosts, and we are ready to link up every Friday to share YOUR weekly fitness favorites!  Join hosts My First 5K and MoreRunning With AttitudeRun Laugh Eat PieRuns with Pugsand Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday!  Please add your link below.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

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Fit Five Friday and March 2022 Ultimate Coffee Date


Wow, it is already March and being excited is an understatement.  March means Spring, warmer weather, and Spring Break.  I am so happy that it’s Friday and that I am off on Monday for Casimir Pulaski Day!  I’m starting off the weekend with a little catch-up over the Ultimate Coffee Date hosted by Coco and Deborah.  So grab a mug of your favorite beverage and let’s chat for a bit!

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that as much as I like my car, I do miss my old one.  I miss it mainly because of the cassette and CD player.  Yep, my old car was from 2006.  I listen to the radio on my way to work and sometimes I get bored and tired of the radio broadcasters and the commercials.  I have 3 stations that I like and end up switching amongst the 3 of them.  I also listen to Pandora and Amazon Music but now want to listen to my CDs and cassettes.  Should I just get rid of them?  For now they’re in a shoe box in my car.

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that our District is now mask optional.  While it is refreshing and liberating not to wear a mask all of the time, I am still being careful.  I do take it off while teaching since I am not too close to my students and put it back on when they are close to me.  I find it easier to teach and talk.  I also think my students like to see my facial expressions (mostly when I smile at them).  

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that I’ve heard so much about Inside Tracker that I finally purchased one of their plans.  I got a discount code from a former coach but when I went online to purchase it, the company had a special going on that day.  Every plan was 28% off.  You bet I took advantage of that discount and saved almost $50.  Yesterday I made an appointment for Monday for the lab work.  Looking forward to seeing my results.  Has anyone else used Inside Tracker before?

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that while it feels good to run again, it was also hard.  I went one month without running.  It is weird how last year I was running everyday no matter the weather conditions.  There was snow, ice, and freezing weather and I was out there.  I thought about starting another running streak but already missed yesterday.  I slept in for a little bit and then I was too cold to run after work.  I didn’t realize how tired I was and ended up taking a nap after dinner.  I have a race coming up in two weeks.  Part of me wishes I hadn’t signed up but another part is also happy because I get to run a race again.  It’s been two years since my last one.  Let’s hope it isn’t too cold that day.

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that my one challenging student has had 2 good days and 2 bad days this week.  On the bad days the parents had to come in to talk to him and the assistant principal.  I was a nervous wreck on those two days.  I want to only think about and remember the good days.  I also had some concerns with another student and got a chance to talk to mom yesterday.  I also talked to the student in front of mom.  I reminded him that I care about him and that I want to help him.  I also told him that he needs to talk to me and not shut me out.  He is a sweet and amazing kid.  I know that not every child can open up and talk about their feelings to an adult, but I am trying.  I know these past two years has been hard on people, but I think that it has been TWICE as hard on children.  Teaching is rewarding.  It is the non teaching aspects that takes the joy out of it.

Thanks for linking up with us again this week!  We’ve got FIVE incredible co-hosts, and we are ready to link up every Friday to share YOUR weekly fitness favorites!  Join hosts My First 5K and MoreRunning With AttitudeRun Laugh Eat PieRuns with Pugsand Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday!  Please add your link below.  I am also linking up with Running with Perseverance and Confessions of a Mother Runner for the Ultimate Coffee Date.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter