Motivations (and pics from my trip to Denver)

This is me last summer (2009), when I was at my absolute fittest I've ever been, back before I got sidetracked by my pesky gallbladder surgery and recovery. I was 145-ish and worked out almost everyday, without fail You can see that I'm not perfect and I'm not pencil thin. But I felt great. I felt like a well-oiled machine. Why was I so disciplined last year as opposed to this year? Maybe because last year was the year of weddings. And being one of the only unmarried (if not the only) people in my peer group, I wanted to at the very least look good, while I congratulated everyone else. Lame, I know.

This year has been all baby showers, so I didn't need any fancy dresses and there were no big parties to go see and be seen. That's a huge motivation for me, albeit misguided. I shouldn't be healthy or not healthy based on who's going to see me. I should be healthy because I remember how great it felt to be lean and clean.

You'd think at nearly 33 years old, the insecure high-school girl in me would just give it a rest already. I haven't run since last week because my plantar fasciitis has been acting up. I did A LOT of walking in Denver. A LOT. I would walk nonstop for hours, sometimes up to 6 hours straight. I just wanted to see everything or as much as I could. And I did!

Here are some pics from my trip. This isn't even the half of what I did. I spent EVERY free minute I had (when I wasn't at work) walking around and sight seeing. I actually had a lot of free time this conference, and my hotel was in a good location downtown. I had Wednesday afternoon after setup, Thursday evening, and all day Friday free.

One of the things I like about sight seeing alone is that I can wear myself out without hearing anyone complain about being tired because I never get tired when I'm sight seeing. I can keep going while in pain, literally for hours, which is why I'm taking a running break this week. I overdid it, but it was fun! And boy did I sleep well at night!

I can eat elk and reindeer when I want without the obligatory "so where do you want to eat?" I can walk from Coors Field to the 16th Street Mall and back again at my whim. I can walk all over the city looking for a the perfect souvenir several times over in a day. I'm barely in my room because that's where you feel the loneliness. I'd rather be exhausted than lonely.

yes, I ate a reindeer dog. It was AMAZING.

Deedah