2011 was a long, long year. And it definitely did not turn out as I planned.

I got sick, had to put a hold on law school (again), and then ended up interning at a law firm in China for half a year. For awhile, I lost sight of myself and I blamed everything on “life being unfair”. But now that I’ve had some time to remove myself from it all, things were definitely not as bad as I thought they were.

Shit happens. And the only thing we can do is learn from it and move forward because dwelling in the past doesn’t change the future.

Yeah, I put on some pounds (by some I mean a whopping 25) so I’m back to the 190 area. Is it a bummer for me? Definitely. But I just keep telling myself that I have to start from somewhere again. I can keep feeling bad for myself, keep putting myself down, keep regretting my decisions, or I can just focus and look forward.

I turn 26 this year in July. And my goal in life was to run 26.2 before 26. There’s no time to dwell on what I should have done, what I could have done, if only I hadn’t done that, if only I could’ve done this. Enough coulda and more “just do it”.

Oh, and I didn’t purposely disappear the latter half of 2011. My site’s blocked in China so I couldn’t access my domain without hacking the Great Firewall of China. My China stories will have to be saved for later though. China was a learning experience but a very, very stressful one and I don’t see myself going any time soon.

So that was my 2011 in a brief nutshell.

The good thing is: I’m back.

Related posts:

1. Happy New Year!
2. I AM ALIVE!
3. My Inspiration

Happy 2012. Yes, I am alive! More to come later. Much happened in 2011, some good, some bad, but overall a learning experience, so I guess not too bad.

I don’t even know who still reads this, but it’s my little spot in this big internet world, and I need it. More so for myself and my sanity than anything else.

It’s good to be home.

Related posts:

1. The iPhone Revival
2. Goodbye, California
3. Adios, Gym Membership

It’s been exactly one year since I started Half of Jess. And boy has it been a learning experience.

I went from barely being able to run a mile to running my first 5K race ever. The Carlsbad 5000 will forever be remembered as the day I conquered 3.1 miles. And having my entire family there to support me meant the world to me.

I switched from running with shoes to running almost barefoot with my gorilla feet.

I created a Life & Body Tournament bracket with goals I hope to accomplish. I’m glad to say that I’ve achieved a good chunk of them.

I ran my first half marathon, cried like a baby at the finish line, and learned a bunch of lessons about running. Do I absolutely love running? Yes, because I believe we were born to run.

I’ve accepted the fact that I run at a snail’s pace but am running intervals right now to crank up my speed. I finally managed to run a sub-8:30 mile but I’m currently a bit slower right now. Actually, a lot slower.

I finally reached the 170s but my poor balance between life and law school resulted in a temporary hiatus that caused me to regain some weight.

This morning, I weighed in at 181.0. This is my first official weigh-in on the blog since September. I’ve realized that I need to start doing weekly weigh-ins again to keep myself accountable, and so that I can view healthy living as a bigger picture.

Blogging has helped me learn so much about myself. I am a binge eater when I cannot cope with stress, but I’ve learned that exercise and training is a huge, natural stress-reliever. When I blog, I stay accountable, not only to others, but to myself. I force myself to think about my problems, to analyze why I am the way I am, and only then can I attempt to improve and change myself.

Has the year been filled with lots of glorious achievements? Sure. But it has also been riddled with some disappointments.

Disappointment that I’ve let myself slip. Disappointment that I’ve experienced some weight gain. Disappointment that I may yo-yo diet again, which is something I refuse to do. Disappointment that I no longer think a 10K is a short distance.

But the beauty is, these disappointments are not permanent, because I control my destiny. I make changes for the better. I create my own future.

This next year on Half of Jess, I want to…

Run a half marathon in March.
Run a full marathon by the end of 2011.
Race in a sprint triathlon.
Run a sub-30 5K.
Reach 100 pounds total loss.
Maintain that loss for at least a month minimum.
And, raise my GPA.

 
Thank you. Thank you for supporting me through this year. Thank you for listening to me whine, brag, complain, share about my experiences. Thank you for giving me advice, for sympathizing with my joys and pains. Thank you for being my reliable supporters and fans. Thank you for everything.

This journey has been so much easier, so much happier, because of you all. You who cheer me along, you who inspire me, you who advise me, you who call me out on my crap. Thank you.

Related posts:

1. Day 94: Bring on the Half
2. Day 69: Run, Jess, Run!
3. Help Jess Get to Vegas!

I hope everyone had a wonderful and safe New Year’s Eve and rang in 2011 with loved ones. May 2011 bring joy, success and happiness.

A ton of updates to share this week as well as my healthy living goals. Half of Jess turns one year old in less than a month and I need to establish a steady blogging regimen so that I can stick to my goals.

Will keep you all updated within the next few days! I fly back to Washington, DC in the morning and although I’m not looking forward to the cold, I AM looking forward to having time to work out again. I did not cope with finals well, both mentally and physically. But with one semester under my belt, I’ve gained some experience and realized what works and what does NOT work.

Stay tuned!

Related posts:

1. Moving Forward
2. A New Year, an Improved Me
3. First 5K of 2011

If you haven’t noticed, I’ve been a bit MIA on the blog.

It’s getting to that time of year (end of the semester) where my stress level has shot through the roof because of the approach of final exams. Unfortunately, unlike undergraduate, law school is not a cake walk nor can you cram the night before the final (yes, I’m one of those people).

I finish my exams on December 16 and fly home to California on December 17, whereby I will have 2 weeks of more “me” time and can resume blogging as well as planning out my life for next semester.

I have done poorly with managing school and healthy living. Training and exercising has decreased and stress eating has increased. I’m working on it, but I know I need to make a game plan when I get home.

I’ll be able to resume running the two weeks I’m back and I’ll need to make a running schedule as well. I can barely run a 5K now. That’s how far I’ve deteriorated.

I’ve somewhat failed at balance this semester, but I look at it like a learning experience.

I have a lot to write about regarding what I think about healthy living while in law school and balancing stress, and there’s plenty to say. However, I just haven’t found the time or energy to blog.

So bear with me.

I’ll be back.

Related posts:

1. A New Year, an Improved Me
2. Making Time For What’s Important
3. My First Law School Exam

I am stressed.

With law school.
Reading.
Outlining.
Studying.
Finals.
Job hunting.
Building my resume.

With cooking.
No time.
No energy.
No inspiration.

With running.
I haven’t been diligent with training.
Yes, I run for enjoyment, but my races have all been mediocre.
I have not committed myself.
I am half-assing.

With balance.
I can’t find the middle of the road.
It’s either all or nothing.
I need to re-discover my zone.
I want a pause button.

With blogging.
Not every post needs to be an essay.
My worth is not measured by daily visits or hits.
My writing has dulled.
Writer’s block.

I am trying my best to not complain, to just get her done, but I am tired.

Still, I will press forward and push on. I might be in a slump right now, but as long as I climb out, I will continue to make progress.

I can do this. I will do this.

How are you doing?

Looking forward to the holidays? Because I sure as hell am!

Related posts:

1. Happy New Year!
2. Moving Forward
3. A Life Worth Fighting For

I know, I know, this is a health blog and all but it also chronicles my life, especially what I’ve learned.

And over the weekend, I learned something VERY useful that needs to be shared.

Background info…

I was in New York City for the weekend visiting one of my best friends. We did a lot of shopping, eating, and partying. I also managed to drop my month-old iPhone4 into the toilet. And yes, I was completely sober.

It was embarrassing. I don’t have very good luck with phones. I’ve dropped mine in soup before (don’t ask), I’ve drowned one in alcohol, had one stolen from me in Thailand, dropped and cracked the screen, and lost one.

When I upgraded, I was determined to take super good care of the new iPhone4.

After all, it was $200. Lo and behold, barely a month later and it ended up in the toilet. Drowned. Dead.

I was devastated. What to do? Turn to my best friend Google.

I looked up how to fix a water-damaged iPhone and the consensus seems to be to leave the phone off since it is not the water that actually does the damage but the electricity combined with the water that causes the short-circuiting.

After leaving the phone off, there is the problem of drying out the phone.

iPhones do not open easily, like other phones, so you can’t separate the pieces. However, you CAN do one very, amazing thing.

Put it into a bag of rice.

Rice grains soak up water and moisture very effectively. After leaving my seemingly dead iPhone in a gigantic bag of rice for 3 days, I plugged it back into the USB port on my computer and magically, the low battery image appeared.

I screamed at the top of my lungs. I thought I would have to get a new phone. I was tempted to go without a phone until the end of December.

But a bag of rice saved my life. My phone is working just fine now. No contacts lost. Speed is still there. Battery power seems to be efficient. Sigh of relief.

HOW TO SAVE YOUR SEEMINGLY DROWNED iPHONE
1. Turn it off immediately.
2. Do not plug it into a power source.
3. Do not turn it on while it is wet.
4. Leave it emerged in a bag of rice for at least 2 to 3 days.
5. SAVED!

And that’s my little tip to share with you today. I hope you never experience a drowned iPhone because it is a disheartening, devastating experience. But, remember, there are definitely ways to go about solving your problems. For cheap too!

Have you ever dropped your phone in the toilet?

Share your horror mobile phone stories!

Related posts:

1. Day 109: Don’t Be THAT Guy (or Girl)
2. Day 33
3. Day 44

Over the weekend, I had been cramming my brain during the day and going out at night.

My brain still hurts today.

But I finally took my first law school exam. In contracts.

And it was rough. We only have one midterm, since law school is usually based on just the final. The midterm is just a taste of what law school exams are like.

Long. Hard. Tedious. Lots of issues. Get your mind out of the gutter…

The time constraint we get for the midterm is one hour. You’d figure one hour is a long enough time to write out all the issues, explain the rules and apply them to see how courts would likely find, but no. That was one of the shortest hours of my life.

I realize I didn’t budget my time well and spent most of it on the first problem instead of an even distribution. But hey, it was my first law school exam.

It was the same feeling as when I first ran a 5K distance without walking. Except when I ran the 5K, the time felt like it was forever.

But while running my first 5K, the thoughts of why I’m doing this to myself, why I’m putting myself through this torture, kept popping in my head. But I persevered and pushed through. The result? Pride. That I finished. That I could do it.

Same goes for the midterm. During the midterm, I kept wondering why I was in law school, if law school was right for me, if I was a good fit for being a lawyer.

But now that I’ve finished, my heart is a bit more settled. I did it.

Unlike the 5K, however, where I know my result and finish time, I don’t know the results of this midterm. Maybe I failed. Maybe I’ll set the curve for the lowest grade in class.

But it’s too late for regrets.

When I get my results, I’ll either know that I need to go to more office hours, study harder and more efficiently, or that I’m on the right track.

Either way, after my test, I’ve realized that this is where I’m supposed to be.

Like the great MizFit always says: Don’t dig up what you’ve planted in faith.

Do you ever doubt yourself and your abilities?

How do you overcome self-doubt?

Related posts:

1. Temporary Hiatus
2. A Life Worth Fighting For
3. Goodbye, California

Ever since I purchased my Vibram FiveFingers back in April, I have very rarely worn close-toed shoes.

The only time I subject myself to feet torture is when I decide to wear vanity heels. Otherwise, I’m usually in sandals, Vibrams or barefoot. Occasionally, I’ll wear my Chucks at the gym because they do not allow me to lift in FiveFingers.

Aside from those options, however, I don’t have many close-toed shoes. Ever since becoming a minimalist runner, I have not purchased any flat close-toed shoes. I just haven’t felt the need to.

Unfortunately, it’s raining today.

I really did not want to wear sandals in the rain, because the last time I tried, I ended up with cold, wet feet during class. Today, I’m wearing my faux Uggs. They’re super comfortable, but not completely durable in the rain. What to do?

As a Californian, I’ve never truly experienced rain. I didn’t own an umbrella until I moved out to DC.

Rain boots? Never heard of such things.

When it rains in California, we normally just brace ourselves and run, or hide in our cars, or skip class. It’s not a usual enough occurrence where I have to be weary.

In Washington, DC however, rain comes and goes whenever it pleases.

I’ve finally invested in a pair of rain boots, but they have not arrived in the mail. I’m contemplating investing in other close-toed shoes as well, but seriously, nothing is as comfortable as Vibrams. Most shoes, compared to barefoot or Vibram FiveFingers, seem heavy and clunky.

I never realized how constricted my feet feel when they are in shoes. Going minimalist gives me a sense of freedom and liberation, as if I have an additional bounce in my step, something that I lose when I switch back to shoes.

I could wear Vibrams in the rain, but they do get wet as well, although they do dry extremely quickly. Since I get cold easily, I particularly favor keeping my Panda feet nice, dry and warm when it rains. Wet, soggy, and cold is not my idea of fun.

As much as I love my Vibrams, I still have to factor in my every day life, including triumphing over the rain.

So I am asking for your help. I need your practical advice for bracing the weather.

What type of shoes do you wear in the rain?

If you are a minimalist runner, how do you adjust for the weather?

Related posts:

1. My Guest Post: Barefoot Running
2. Vanity Heels vs. Gorilla Feet
3. To Stand Strong or Compromise?

Follow Friday is a weekly occurrence in Twitterverse but sometimes, 140 characters just isn’t enough.

Since I’ve been pretty occupied with school, the best way I’ve been able to keep up with all of your blogs is through Google Reader. If you think I haven’t been reading just because I’ve been silent on commenting, think again. I am a stealthy stalker.

However, I’ve noticed lately that my Google Reader is filled with some defunct blogs and it really, really lacks organization. So I’m asking for your help.

Help me clean out my Google Reader by plugging yourself! I’d love to learn more about you.

 
Please leave a comment and…

1. Introduce yourself!
Your name, where you’re from, a brief background story, your favorite color, etc.

2. Plug your blog if you have one.
What do you write about? What is your message?

3. Tell me about a blog (or two) that you enjoy reading.
Why? What sets them apart?

4. What do you want to be for Halloween?
Personally, I plan on being a bumblebee. Or the Statue of Liberty. Or a bunny…

 
I hope to find some new blogs to read. Aside from healthy living and fitness blogs, I especially love food, travel and photography bloggers. So please share away!

Related posts:

1. The iPhone Revival
2. Running From Scratch
3. Day 12