Running for Charity–Chicago Marathon Here I Come!!!

Posted by hellyontherun in Marathon, Race, Running and tagged with #TeamRMHC, Chicago Marathon, McDonald's, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Running For Charity April 29, 2015

So I didn’t get in.

And at first I was super bummed and quite honestly, sour grapes about the whole situation. It seemed that everyone I knew had gotten in–even my husband!! (This will be his first marathon 🙂 )

And then I started thinking.

Well, I could go and cheer my husband on for his first (knowing that I’d be back someday because I have to run Chicago) or he could decline and both of us try again next year….OR I could run for charity! Something I’ve been wanting to and planning on doing someday soon anyway 😀

After talking about it with my husband, we decided yes, this was the race and year for me to run for a charity. I knew I wanted to run for something important to me and there’s nothing more important to me than my kids. That was the focus point in choosing a charity–how can I help children. So I started looking at the list and it wasn’t long before I came across….

The Ronald McDonald House Charity

How perfect is that??

If you’ve been a reader for a while, then you know that I have a thing, an unhealthy thing, I know, for McDonald’s. Me and Ron are seriously BFFs.

Helly + Ron = ❤

On a more serious note, I’ve mentioned before how I’ve been dedicating my miles for quite some time to a little boy who has an immune deficiency as part of the I Run 4 Program. Unfortunately, there are not a lot of charities specific to what he lives with. His parents often use a Ronald McDonald House when taking him or his brothers for doctor visits (in fact, they’re at one right now) and that’s a huge reason I chose this charity. It not only helps children, but parents as well. And sometimes we forget that they need help too

But I’m not going to lie–there are a few things that worry me.

Well, one thing.

I won’t make the fundraising amount.

And even though that is something that scares me, there are other things that make running for charity so appealing to me.

1.) It adds to the challenge. I mean, training for and then running 26.2 miles is already a difficult task and adding having to fundraise money ups the stress level for sure. But I’m up for the challenge. I feel like with each donation, I’ll be adding to my race’s purpose. I’ll be running for my charity but I’ll also be running for each person who contributed to my journey to get to Chicago. It’ll be fun. I can do hard things, right? 🙂

2.) It’ll be more than me. I think for me, running brings me a lot of self satisfaction. Like, I totally do it to make myself feel better, be healthier, be happy-all for me, me, me. Running for charity will mean that the race isn’t all about me, me, me but for others. For the kids who will benefit from my fundraising, for the parents who will forever be grateful for my help, for the people who donated–it will definitely be about them, not Helly.

3.) Motivation. I’ve talked about how bummed I was not being able to run Phoenix Marathon. I felt like I was so ready to nail that sub 4:30 I’ve been coveting for a while. I think adding running for charity to my training will motivate me to really push myself towards that goal in Chicago. I’m going to be pushing myself to raise money for my charity and not let those kids down and I will be putting that same effort in training for the big race and not let myself down.

4.) I’ll be part of a team. The kids that I’ll be running for will be my team. The people who will be fundraising with me will be my team (Hi Maxfitgirl!). All the people who contribute to my charity will be my team. I’m going to be surrounded by sooo much support. How freaking cool is that?

5.) A race day like no other. When I get to Chicago, having met my goal, I’ll already feel like a winner. Seriously. ❤

I hope everyone has a good weekend!! If you’d like to help get me to ChiTown,
click here for donation info. #helphelly begins NOW 😀

#TeamRMHC

Thanks to the DC Trifecta ladies Mar, Courtney, and Cynthia for hosting the Friday Five Link up! You guys are awesome!

–Have you every ran a race for charity?

Mid-Week Confession

Posted by hellyontherun in Healthy Eating, Uncategorized and tagged with Bad Eating Habits, Eating Healthy, Food Cravings, Intervention, McDonald's, Running August 27, 2014

Okay, so I have something to tell you.

So you guys know how I’ve been doing this no soda thing. I haven’t cheated, not once–I swear!

But, well…

TheybuiltaMcDonald’srightdownthestreetfromworkandI’vebeengoingalmosteveryday.

There, I said it!

It’s seriously a rock throw a way from my job and I just can’t help it 😦

Last week I was going over paragraph structure with my students and I wrote an example to model what I wanted them to do. Here’s my example:

Yes, my paragraph was about how I’m and unhealthy person. And at least the first part isn’t true right this second. But the latter part of the paragraph is. I’ve gone to McDonald’s at least 3 times a week since work has started. I order lemonade instead of a soda but I know when my 100 days are up, I’ll be going back to getting my Coca-cola and addtional 300 calories.

Why can’t I just not eat there!?! Seriously, I’ve watched Super Size Me, Fast Food Nation. I’ve watched those YouTube videos where soda cleans a sink drain. I’ve seen pictures of how much sugar is in soda. I’ve seen pictures of how much I’d have to work out to burn the calories from my quarter pounder with cheese.

It’s done nothing.

HALP!!!!

–How do you control bad food cravings?

I know it’s okay to give yourself a break sometimes. But I’m beyond the occasional cheat day. Every day is cheat day. 😦

–Tips on ways to eat healthier??

–Confess something. Make me feel better.

Fast Food Struggles

Posted by hellyontherun in Healthy Eating, Running and tagged with Diet, Discipline, Eating, Fast Food, In-N-Out Burger, McDonald's, Running December 4, 2013

I’ve written about my love for fast food before, and I wanted to update you all on how I’ve been doing.

I have not eaten at McDonald’s in two months. I repeat, I have not eaten McDonald’s in two months!

This is huge for me. I was a crazy person when it came to the Quarter Pounder with Cheese meal and would have it 3-5 times a week. You read that right. Large size too (gosh, the McDonald’s fountain drinks are amazing–tackling my soda intake is for another day lol). I’ve tried quitting McDonald’s before, watching Super Size Me and reading Fast Food Nation to no avail.

But ever since post pregnancy I’ve become more serious than I’ve ever been with running and knew that if I wanted to improve, my diet would have to too.

CONFESSION: I still eat fast food.

I no longer eat McDonald’s or Burger King, KFC makes me nauseous just thinking about it, Arby’s has zero appeal but…. In-n-Out is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G.

I justify eating at In-n-Out by saying it’s the healthier of the fast food options but I’m not kidding myself, it’s still counts.

I think what makes it difficult to let go of fast food completely is that I love the convenience of it and I hate to cook. I’ve tried, but when what I attempt doesn’t come out tasty it’s such a blow to my self-esteem. I wish I had the same approach to cooking as I do running: practice, practice, practice. But, sadly, I don’t.

I wanted to tackle the biggest hurdle and I knew that was McDonald’s. If I could not eat that, everything else would be easier for me to handle and that’s proven true as I avoid all the other places I frequented.

I know eliminating all fast food, In-n-Out included, isn’t realistic. I believe in everything in moderation. I know someday I’ll probably drive thru McDonald’s again but it won’t be the same. It won’t bring me the satisfaction it used to. I’m so proud of how far I’ve come these past few months, not just in weight loss and training, but as a person. I’ve proven to myself that if I have a plan, I can be disciplined enough to follow through with it.

–What are struggles you face maintaining a healthy lifestyle?

–Do you like fast food?