Oh New Hampshire! The Great Outdoors

This is how I spent my morning:



Woke up early, put the dog in the kayak, and we headed out together!  We had this huge lake all to ourselves and It. Was. Glorious!!  The water is still, like glass. The only sound was us, the birds, and an occasional jumping fish. On Sunday Moose and I kayaked through the swamps that feed the lake. The lake ecosystem is actually quite the enchanting place.  Watching water bugs skid across the surface, feeling how tough the roots of the aquatic grasses and lillies are. And I still made it to my 8:15 meeting on time! (With warm, fresh baked oatmeal and Cafe du Monde coffee in hand!)  I could get used to this!
   In the short time we've been in New Hampshire I've been outside more and far more physically active than I was in the whole 3 years I lived in Central Illinois.  I think it has something to do with the fact that when I go outside here I don't immediately get asscrack sweat and heat stroke.  Seriously, this place is perfect! (I even heard they plow in the winter! Actually, what I heard about the winter was that we can take up ice fishing and go cross country skiing. Um, yes. This may be the year we learn skijourning!)  But back to the current season...I've been really sticking to my couch to 5K podcast and while I'm no where near a 5K, I am near the end of the program and 3 days a week I wake up early to wear Munroe out along the way. I've also started an abs/arms challenge with daily sets of crunches, planks, and push ups with increasing increments each day.
   I think a lot of great thoughts while running myself bored, and the last run, where we discovered and subsequently got lost in the woods, yielded some pretty great thoughts on fitness as we trudged home.  I came to the realization that I've never had fitness goals that weren't weight related, and honestly, I find that sad and horrifying.  I imagined this coming up as a topic of conversation at work because I've got this little lower tummy pouch enough so that I was (on more than one occasion) mistaken for being pregnant.  Anyone who has the guts to bring this up to women, God love ya, because you friend, are not long for this world...So, when discussing weight I will gladly point out this tummy blob as "the pouch I keep my extra cookies in" (stolen from Zooey Deshanel on an episode of New Girl.  Great show.) And then I imagined what I would say if the conversation headed in the body image direction and here's the list of fitness goals I came up with:
   1) I look great and I like the way I look.  I work out only to be healthy, not attractive.
   2) I want to run enough to not be the first person eaten in a bear attack.  I'm ok if I don't make it, just so long as I've outrun someone.
   3) I want Michelle Obama arms.
   4) When I walk in I want people to think, "Bam! MAndrews brought the leg meat!" (See what I did there?!?! Tina Fey two posts in a row!)
   5) I want to eat cookies.  Big. Mushy. Chocolate chip cookies.  Please note, I did not say 'cookie'. I most certainly did not say 'salad'. I don't even understand the concept of 'sugar free'.  I am an adult. If I want to have an entire batch of cookies for dinner, then I'm doing it.
   6) With that said, Cookies are a sometimes treat.
   7) I want enough energy to get up in the morning, have ONE cup of coffee, and stay awake until bedtime.
I think this is a pretty good start. I'm well on my way, one New Hampshire hill at a time.