French Fry Runner

Friday Five: About Me

I’m linking up with Courtney from Eat Pray Run DC, Cynthia from You Signed Up for WHAT?!, and Mar from Mar on the Run. This week’s Friday Five theme is Five Things about Me.

It was kind of hard to come up with things that ya’ll would think are interesting, but I’ve done my best:

I’m an amateur floral designer. I took a class in college, which I loved, and I’ve done a wedding will be doing another this spring. The Engineer always buys me unarranged flowers so I can make up my own designs. Some people might think that’s weird, but I think it’s the best.
I’m an excellent cook. (Toot my own horn much?) 🙂 Both my parents are great cooks, and they taught me when I was a kid. I’ve loved to cook ever since, was a food prep teaching assistant in college, and have a book being published: The Cheese Lover’s Cookbook (CFI, May 2015). I love making up new recipes and trying new foods too. The Engineer is a better baker, though, but I’ve been known to make killer cupcakes.
I have really nice handwriting. Once upon a time in elementary school, my teacher said she couldn’t read my handwriting because it was too sloppy. I took that personally and practiced all the time. Now I have excellent penmanship. Twenty years of practice will do that to you. 😉
I’m a linguist. My bachelor’s is in English linguistics, and I love dialectology and sociolinguistics. (I also speak German and a little bit of Spanish and French. And obviously I speak English.)
I collect journals. I love writing in journals, but I have a habit of buying blank journals too. I have a box of blank ones I really need to fill up! (I also collect chapstick.)

Join us for Friday Five: Five Things about Me (Just in case you were dying to know) @FrenchFryRunner Share on X

What’s something interesting about you? (I’m sure everything!)

What do you collect?

Baking or Cooking?

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That first step is always the hardest, isn’t it? Here’s what we need to do: set a goal, make a plan, and then just go for it and keep at it. No one is stopping us but us, right? Be tenacious, m’dears!

. . . The rest is merely tenacity. It's time for Thoughtful Thursday with @FrenchFryRunner Share on X

How are your 2015 goals going?

What’s your favorite candy? (Just curious. Mine’s dark chocolate peanut M&M’s.)

Are you on Instagram? (Follow me! @frenchfrywhit)

Top 5 All-Time Health and Fitness Decisions

I’ve been thinking about my top health and fitness decisions, and I was surprised how fast this list came to mind. In recent years, I’ve had a better grip on my mental and physical well-being, and I can attribute it to the following five things:

Quitting My Full-Time Job. I had such a hard time at my previous place of employment. I was good at my job and working in a field that I thought I loved, but, really, I didn’t. It didn’t bring me that much happiness or even a sense of accomplishment, and honestly, I became stressed, depressed, and unhealthy because of it (overeating, migraines, etc.). Since I gave up that toxic part of my life, I don’t get migraines, I’m not depressed, and I am so much happier (and I eat better too!).
No Soda. I’ll be honest, this is something that I constantly have to work on because I love Dr Pepper. I used to drink it all the time, but now I only very rarely drink any kind of soda. I just feel better when I stick to water, and the smaller waistline is a bonus.
BodyPUMP. I’m fairly new to this fitness class, but it’s totally my jam. I love to go to class, work hard, and feel empowered after. Now I can do push-ups like they’re no big deal, planks aren’t scary, and, the best part, lifting weights is awesome. If you don’t have a strength routine, I highly encourage you to find one you like. I feel and see myself transforming, and I love it.
Yoga. I love everything about yoga. I can kind of be all over the place, and yoga centers me, helps me set an intention for my day/week/life, and helps me get stronger. I’m so glad I have found a place for yoga in my life.
Running. What started out as a stress-reliever in college has transformed me. I have met wonderful people and have done things I never thought I was capable of doing (half marathons and triathlons and other races). I don’t really know what else to say about running except that I never thought I’d love it and now I don’t know what I’d do without it.

There you have it, my five all-time best health and fitness decisions. This post is linked up with others for The Fit Dish Link-Up. Thanks to Jill Conyers at JillConyers.com, & Jessica Joy at TheFitSwitch.org for hosting. Be sure to visit their blogs and others in the link-up.

I’m also linking up with April from Run the Great Wide Somewhere, Patty from My No-Guilt Life, and Erika from MCM Mama Runs for Tuesdays on the Run!

What are your all-time best health and fitness decisions?

Do you drink soda?

Have you ever attended a pump class? Would you?

Check out my goals for 2015.

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