Blog Hop

Spotlight Day! | Blog Hop

livinglovingrunner

Happy Wednesday! And welcome to the new readers from the Grow Your Blog, Hop! hosted by Kristy at Runaway Bridal Planner. I am super excited to be a part of the blogger community and I look forward to reading more about everyone in the 3 hops over then next 3 weeks!

I didn’t put my about me section up until a few weeks ago – so I thought I would formally introduce myself – or at last write about my journey!

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Hi everyone! I am Lindsey and I am the sole contributor for Livinglovingrunner. My story starts way back when – I was always an active gal but always had self-image issues. I was the one that I was the tallest in class, one of the first with boobs, and was always bigger that everyone else my age. Growing up with a yo-yo dieting mom, I was always seeing the newest and “best” ways to lose weight, and then the weight would come back, and another plan would surface – and weight was always a topic of conversation (and sadly, still is to this day). I wasn’t ever put down for my size, I just internalized my own body issues.

In college, I gained weight, as most freshman do, but still remained “active” – frequent trips to the gym with dorm-mates was always on the schedule, but as I know now, working out doesn’t fix a bad diet.

I met my now husband in the Fall of 2006 and I was in a good place physically (at least I feel that now, looking back in pictures). Once we were in a comfortable relationship, the gain happened, for both of us, but more for me. Through the years, I just continued to buy larger clothes and didn’t think much about it.

At some point, I took a semester away from campus and moved back in with my parents. At this time, my mom was doing the Slim 4 Life program (which she still works with). My mom offered to pay for the program if I wanted to work on that aspect of my life while I was living at home. I decided to take her up on her offer and I ended up losing 50lbs in 5 months! Through the plan, my food intake was very strict but easily planned since the whole house was eating the same food. Junk food just wasn’t around so the temptation was non-existent. The only issue came when I went back to school in the fall…I just didn’t have the support needed to rotate back into “real life”. Within the next year, I gained half of the weight back. Yo-yo at its worst.

Over the next couple years, the rise and fall of my weight, and confidence was an issue. With friends getting married, I would try and eat better and workout in hopes that I would be comfortable in my dress. The second big change happened when I was preparing for my own wedding. I lost 15 pounds or so because I wanted to be happy about how I looked in my dress and I wanted to love my pictures – which all happened! We had a great day and I am glad I was able to accomplish those goals!

We bought the house, got a dog, and I started running again! Not long after I started talking about training for my first 1/2 marathon, we found out we were expecting a little guy! I stopped running and solely walked throughout my pregnancy. I developed gestational diabetes while pregnant (no fun at all…), partially due to being overweight before getting pregnant. After the little guy was born, I started running again – probably a little more, a little too fast.

About 5 months after out little man was born, I ran a 2-race weekend – a 5K Friday night and 10K Saturday morning – locally known as Hospital Hill. This is not the first time I ran this particular race, so I didn’t think much about it. After the 5K, I was pretty sore – tight legs mostly. The 10K the next day was brutal  – I ended up tearing up my knees pretty bad and was out of running (and general range of motion) for months. It was to the point that I didn’t think I would be able to get on the ground to play with my new little guy as he grows up. I was both devastated for my running to be over and the long-term affect on my body.

Tweet: Learn a little more about the voice behind LivingLovingRunner with todays Spotlight post! #GrowYourBlogHop #fitfluential #sweatpink

I kept away from running for the next 6 months while my body and mind healed. In that time, I found out that I have a patella issue that was the “main cause” for my knee pain – something I was never aware of until that time. I think that I just bit off more than I could chew at the time…live and learn I guess.

In the beginning of 2015, I started really thinking about getting back into shape. I wanted to get below my pre-baby weight and that ment that I needed to lose 10% of my body weight. I also set the goal to be able to run my first half marathon. I started my blog at the beginning of 2015 to be more accountable for said goals, and many more! You can read the first post here and the end of 2015 update here.

I happened to see a “walking/running” challenge online – a 30 day challenge to get 30, 60, or 90 miles in a month. This challenge didn’t seem all that hard, since I had been walking 1-2 miles a day already – I signed up for the 90 mile challenge. The additional challenge was a Diet Bet alongside the walking challenge. With the Diet Bet, you bet for/against yourself to lose a particular % of weight in 4 weeks – called a Kickstarter (or the 6mo option – called a Transformer). I decided to also do the Diet Bet and was able to meet my first month’s goal! A $35 investment, a $50 payout – I was able to earn $15 just by losing weight! Due to my first month’s success, I started doing Diet Bets more frequently – in fact, I never lost a bet over the 7 months I completed these challenges! I completed bets “sponsored” by Jillian Michaels, Jen Winderstrom, Shaun T, Chris & Heidi Powell, and other people in the fitness industry. The motivation to learn how to eat better and lose weight  was strong and I made some great online friends in the process! Throughout 2015 (or at least February/March thru September), I was able to lose 25% of my body weight (while my goal for the year was only 10%)! Throughout this time, running was my main source for exercise and my love for the road grew!

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By the end of the year, I crushed my goal of running my first half marathon – and I had actually run 4 half marathons and decided to start training for my first marathon!

I basically forgot about my blog until towards the end of the year… By this time, I wasn’t sure what to write about, other than reporting back on my goals for the year. I started following a few fitness/lifestyle bloggers and started linking up with their weekly posts.

My posts include (but are not limited to) weekly workout wrap ups, marathon workouts, Weekly Wrap and Weekend Happenings with Tricia and Holly, meal prepping with Laura, “What I Ate Wednesday” with Jenn, “Thinking Out Loud” with Amanda, and many more! While these link ups are a good way to network, I have made lasting connections with some of the blogs that I frequent. While these bloggers don’t know the amount of impact they have on my day-to-day life, they keep me motivated and focused to work hard to reach my goals.

My current task and goal for 2016 is to run my first marathon! I am set to run the Garmin Marathon in Olathe, KS in April! I am super excited for this race – race is an arbitrary word, I will be running to finish the event, a race against myself!

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My goals for this year can be found here. I hope to see you visiting again!

Thanks for stopping by!

I’d love to hear from you! Leave a comment and start a conversation!

More Ways to connect with Lindsey from LivingLovingRunner :

Facebook > @livinglovingrunner
Instagram > @livinglovingrunner
Twitter > @livinglovingrun
Pinterest > @livinglovingrun
Garmin Connect > @lindseyyjoee
My Fitness Pal > @lindseyyjoee

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

29 thoughts on “Spotlight Day! | Blog Hop”

  1. Running is such an interesting thing, because it motivates so many different people for different reasons. But they all get to the same finish line. I’ve stopped over from the Weekly Wrap before, but officially I’m hopping over from Kristy’s hop today. & I love a good meal prep post & jotted down your venison bake recipe you shared earlier! I’ll be back!

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    1. Running has become more than “just for fitness” for me over the past year. Running is my go to for relaxation and a way to challenge myself 🙂 I am always looking for different ways to cook venison! With a freezer full, the hubs gets bored with the go-to recipes if I make them too often 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!

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  2. Great story! Running has had much of the same impact on my life. I forced myself to run a 5K to get out of my comfort zone, I never imagined I would fall in love with it. Running has changed my life! I see you ran Go Girl Kansas City! Go Girl is on my bucket list, I am running a race in every state and am hoping to use Go Girl to check Oklahoma or Missouri off the list! Did you enjoy the race?

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    1. I started with a 5K prep as well and just built up as the time went on 🙂 Go Girl was supposed to be my first full marathon (but ended up being my 2nd) – the run was great, but there wasn’t fuel at the miles they said there would be and I didn’t bring my own. At around mile 6, my PR goal turned into a “just finish” goal. I would totally do this race again, maybe in a different city! Thanks for stopping by 🙂

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    1. If you are interested in running but not sure where to start, I would suggest a “couch to 5K” program with a 5K race at the end. That way, the program is actually prepping you for a goal 🙂 I would also suggest going to a running store and getting a good pair of running shoes – and then only use them for running (I still struggle with this concept!)

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  4. Loved your post! I had GD with both pregnancies but was able to manage it with running and walking. It is certainly NOT fun!

    The marathon is such a journey! Good luck momma! Training with young children isn’t easy!!

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    1. Thanks 🙂 I hope that being in a healthier place from the start of pregnancy #2 (no, not now and not even trying!) might help me not have the same issue with GD. I am having fun with training! And the little guy is enjoying it when the weather is nice and he can go with me 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!

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  5. Loved your story. With all the struggles you’ve been through, I think you’re a great motivation for someone on a weight loss journey of their own. For myself, I always say loosing weight sometimes is one of the hardest things to do.
    Good luck with your training, I have no doubt you’ll accomplish any goal you set for yourself.
    I love how you mentioned those bloggers who have helped you and motivated you. I always tell people one of the most unsuspecting surprises of blogging was the friendships I have made through it. Not only that, but how inspired I have become from my new blogging friends as well.

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    1. Through my weight loss over the past year has taught me a lot about how to eat. In the past, I would either starve myself, yo-yo diet, or over-exert myself on the workout side. With marathon training, fueling my body well is goal #1 🙂 Bloggers are a great motivation tool for me to reach my goals – I can only hope that I can inspire friends, family and strangers to take charge of their life, health, and fitness 🙂

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  6. Beautiful wedding pictures! Your fitness journey is very inspiring. I’m on my own weight loss journey right now and also trying to lose a certain amount of weight before my wedding day in June. It’s so true that you can’t exercise away a bad diet – that’s where I need to focus my attention!

    Stopping by from the blog hop.

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  7. Stopping by from the Blog Hop but already know I’m adding you to my blog list… you are my kind of girl – one who gets the struggle of that up & down on the scale. Sounds like you are on top of it now! Congrats to you!! Loved learning about your story!

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  9. Your wedding pictures are beautiful. I can totally relate to your battle with weight. I to have struggle in college I was at my heaviest and was over 160 which is a lot for a 5’2″ girl. I also than battle with an eating disorder. Weight has never been an easy issue for me. Good luck with your running.

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  10. What a great story! I’m glad you were able to overcome your injury and get back into running! It’s great you were able to find a love and passion for fitness. I am definitely not a fan of running, but have been pushing myself to do so more and more. I feel that running is an amazing sport and source of exercise. Even though it tires me out and intimidates me, every time after a run I feel so great mentally and physically. I can’t even describe it but I truly feel running is a form of healing as well as pushing yourself past the boundaries we create for ourselves. Thanks for sharing your story! Since starting my blog late last year one of the parts of the blogging world I’ve really enjoyed are link-ups! Hope to see more of your blog!

    https://curlycaroline.wordpress.com/

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      1. I agree! I’ve been trying to do more thinking when I run to avoid thoughts of wanting to stop! Lately I’ve been thinking of my goals and blog! It definitely helps the time/distance pass without much thought about it!

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  11. Love your story – thank you for sharing!!! You have overcome so many obstacles and are such an inspiration! I have no doubt you’ll accomplish anything you set your mind to this year!

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  12. I loved reading your story. It wonderful and inspirational to see how someone can get from one point to another through positive changes to their lifestyle. So glad you found the love of the run! Thank you for sharing your story Lindsey. So glad I met you though this FUN blog hop!!

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  14. What an amazing year with so many accomplishments! I’ve heard about Diet Bet before, but now I’m really going to check it out — I’m no stranger to yo-yo dieting myself and will do just about anything for motivation! Good luck with your first marathon — you’re going to crush it! So great to meet you on the Hop!

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