Finally, She's the Bride to be

As my three months of craziness continues... I went to Bonita Springs last weekend with 2 other bridesmaids & the bride of the wedding I'm in next month.

I drove in with another bridesmaid who lives near me on Friday evening, we got in late but it was nice just hanging out talking with the girls for hours (wayyy past my bedtime... 12:30am?!).

Woke up early (naturally, you know me) the next morning and enjoyed the patio for a bit.

View from our room at the Hyatt, overloking Estero Bay

The other 2 bridesmaids and I had worked out a whole 'secret shower' for Allison the next morning at the Regency Club breakfast. We requested that mimosas be there, and we decorated with a little poster, a Disney princess tiara and rings. Of course we also got her a gift. (but she loves checking the registry so she was onto us a bit... knew that a gift had been purchased but hadn't been delivered to her house yet!)

Our little bridal shower

The rest of the day was spent relaxing by the pool... talking... By the time we all decided we had had enough vitamin D for the day, we headed in to get ready for dinner. We tried going to a little shop but it had closed already so we headed to the restaurant and were surprised to find a wait! But we spent it people-watching and it went by quickly.  We got the 'flaming cheese' appetizer. I'm an idiot and put my camera away right after our group shot and didn't get a pic of the flame! But mmm it's so tasty. Thanks, Sal, for dinner! :)

Cheers!

Sunday morning after breakfast we caught the first boat over to the private island and laid on the beach under the umbrellas for a bit. Got to see some dolphins!! We headed back to the hotel, grabbed some lunch, showered and then all parted ways. But don't worry! We'll all be together in a few weeks for Allison's Big Day!

I really slacked with my workouts the week between Atlanta and Bonita. Just couldn't get motivated and kept telling myself there was no point in getting into the habit if I was just going away again the next week. (rational... right? no?)

But this week I'm getting back into my game, and while I may not get an actual run in before my 6K on Saturday, I think I'll be okay. My goal is 32 minutes... We'll see what these trips & lack of exercise have done to my body. :)

Deep South, Y'all!

Woo... Ever get back from a trip that you kind of thought was a vacation but you also knew you'd be on the go the whole time, and just feel so much more exhausted upon returning? Well, that's how I felt upon returning from Atlanta and Birmingham.

But it was such a great trip! Dan and I got our own private tour with a guide of Turner Field. We got to go onto the field, in the clubhouse, to a few of the special club levels, the press box and the broadcasting booth. It was very similar to the Wrigley Field one, but Dan had goosebumps the whole time, it was great!

Perfect day at Turner Field

Our hotel in Atlanta for the first night was the perfect location. We got to wander around town, went to a little market, Centennial Olympic Park, wandered through the CNN Center, even got some nice t-storms!

Headed into Alabama the next day and met up with the bride-to-be and my best friend from college for the rehearsal dinner, then we headed to the sports bar next door to catch the end of the Braves game. :)

Following morning Dan and I drove into Birmingham and had a nice little breakfast than walked around downtown for a bit. Everything was closed because it was still early, but we came across a nice park (and they were setting up for a Cajun Cookoff!)

Park in downtown Birmingham

The wedding later that day was gorgeous, it was outside at a botanical garden just outside Birmingham (where the bride and groom went on their first date and got engaged).

Following day we headed back to Atlanta fairly early and were so glad that the Stonehurst Bed and Breakfast we stayed at were able to let us check in early. So we dropped off our bags, asked the innkeeper for the best local bar to watch the game at and headed out. My friend from college came out for a bit too and it was great to catch up with him, too.

Our last dinner was at Mary Mac's which was great... I got my last dosage of fried green tomatoes!

And finally on our last day, we got to walk around Piedmont Park. I LOVED this park. I mean.. aren't these sidewalks just BEGGING to be ran on? Unfortunately I didn't get the chance to, but I hope to some day! I'm sure that a 5K or 10K there would be quite an experience.

Piedmont Park in downtown Atlanta

Work has been very crazy this week but that's good because time goes quickly and it gets me back into the swing of things. I'm off to Bonita Springs this upcoming weekend for a girls' weekend for my friend's wedding that I'm in next month in Orlando!

We walked around a lot during our trip to the south which I am thankful for. And even hit the gym at the hotel one morning! But since returning, I haven't been able to get into gym mode (especially knowing I'd be gone again this weekend.) So I'm hoping to get hardcore again upon returning from Bonita.

I am all signed up for my 6K at the end of this month, too!

Playyyy Balllll

I got to experience something that some people never get to; went to a home opener baseball game. Granted, it was the Marlins but it was against the Braves. The crowd was there (about 34K for opening night; the next night's attendance? Dropped to a whopping 14K! ... and if you're watching the Marlins/Braves game right NOW, you can have a look at the crowd yourself.)

My dad treated himself, Dan and I to the game. Duffy's was having a special where they provided a bus, $10 gift card plus tickets. Any way to NOT have to drive to that ridiculously located stadium is a-ok with me! (And no, it wasn't a "party bus." The median age of the people on the bus was 74.)

Marlins Park upon our arrival

We had great seats, too. Even had some Braves fans surrounding us. Of course I was excited because I knew more about some of the players than those around me. (Thanks to Dan!) Chris Johnson who went to my college played so that was cool to see him, too. But even more so is seeing my own fantasy baseball players hitting so well live & in person!

It was such a gorgeous night out, they even had the roof open.

However, the concession stands were NOT ready for the 'massive' crowd. The line moved so slowly and was always SO LONG. No one was exactly hustling; I'm sure that they lost out on much-needed revenue from this.

Though there was a nice showing of Braves fans, I do have to say that I was surprised by the number of people in Marlins attire. I didn't know they existed. Real, true, live Marlins fans? Well, I guess they're not very loyal judging by non-opening-day attendance.

Forcing a Day Off

I've been really very dedicated to my new workout regimen. It's even gotten to the point where at the beginning of the week I mentally "plan" my workouts. Monday & Wednesday mornings are usually my spinning classes at L.A. Fitness. Tuesday & Thursday have been saved for my new-found-love: Slash Fitness. Friday is a toss up. Saturday & Sunday are run-outside-days.

I have noticed dramatic improvements in myself mentally and physically since starting at Slash. I'm sure my body's glad to have me mixing it up again. And I love it because it's HIIT workouts and I'm done in 45 minutes but know I'm still burning calories WELL after it's over. I'm building muscle and losing fat.

I've been feeling that awesome sore muscle feeling after many Slash sessions, which always is reassuring to me. It's working!

Yesterday afternoon though I went for a 3 mile run. Now that I KNOW I can run it in 29 minutes... My body & mind think that running any slower than that is a letdown. So I pushed myself hard yesterday, especially since I hadn't really had a decent run since the 5K.

And boy did I pay for it.

taken from RunningMemes

I was even careful to stretch before & after which I know is important. But VERY soon after my run I got terrible pains in my achilles and all along the outer side of my lower leg. The rest of the evening was spent in bed with Tylonel & icing my poor legs.

Of course my bf reminded me that he told me I need to take rest days now and then. So today's Sunday... and I'm forcing myself to lay around and do nothing. (which is NOT ME.) It's really hard to not get outside & run. I'm all signed up for 5:30am Slash tomorrow. We leave for Atlanta/ Birmingham on Thursday so I'm hoping to keep up my activity levels!

And so it Begins

Well, I've been here before. Started a blog with high hopes, but I feel this time may be different. (Plus I'm a bit intimidated by my other blogging friends. Do I have the writing ability to do this? Am I funny enough? Do I have enough to even talk about?) But this time, I have more of a feel for what I want this to be. And today's a tad monumental  so I figured this would be as good a time as ever to have my inaugural post. 

Perhaps first I should begin with the meaning of my blog what I foresee this being. "Get Up, Get Out" has two meanings to me & that will be applied to this here blog. The first is the activeness of it, I'm always on the go and people are often amazed by my preferred workout time: 5:30 am. Get Up, Get Out.

Secondly, it's something often yelled at a baseball while it's in the middle of the air, sailing towards the stands... get up, get up, GET OUT -- homerun!!  And baseball is sort of an obsession of mine. Onto why today's monumental.

Today's OPENING DAY! I'm currently lounging on the recliner with the boyfriend spread out on the couch... We're checking our fantasy teams, flipping between all the games, waiting for the Braves to come on TV. (I'm a Cubs fan forever but the bf is a Braves fan and I'm officially drinkin' the Kool-Aid.) We went to a ton of Spring Training games this spring -- a perk of living in Florida! -- so we're all set for the season to start. 

Aside from that, this past weekend shocked myself and I think it really moved me to a completely different mindset. I drove over to Fort Myers to run a 5K with one of my sorority sisters from college (you can check out her blog here.). My goal was to complete it in under 32 minutes. I came in at 29:00 flat! I've been working really hard this month in the gym and apparently it has paid off. But it has really done something to me mentally. I realized that it really is mind over matter. I know this has been part of my training this past month but I never would've thought I'd finish that race as fast as I did! And it's truly motivating. 

Sprinting to the finish line, with 29:00 on the clock

I think this wraps up today's exciting (right?) initial entry. I'm going to reflect a little more on my 'goals,' especially given this past weekend's results. Stay tuned!