Tag Archives: playlist

Weekend Hangover and #WeddingWednesday

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I’m writing this post to you on Tuesday, for Wednesday, but it was originally supposed to be up Monday.

That should give you some idea of how this week has started for me.

I had a three-day weekend, which you think would mean that I got lots done or rested or got my ish together. Unfortunately, none of that was the case. The things I took off to do on Friday? Not done. Lunch with friends? Spoiled by a parking ticket (that I didn’t even deserve!). No time for the gym for three days between running errands, and rehearsals and choir concerts. Football Sunday was shaping up to be a good day, and then the Packers lost.

And then it was Monday and I forgot to write a post. So, here we are.

I think I’ve managed to move past that nonsense though, finally getting back in the gym yesterday with Clay (he’d been traveling for two weeks for work). Brilliant us decided that leg day was the best way to get back at it and though these deadlifts look easy, they were just the beginning of a “let’s just slay ourselves” evening under the barbell.

Picking up heavy things really helped me shake off the weekend and the general bummer that it was. I remembered that my guy was finally home and how much more I like working out when he’s with me. I remembered that even though the Packers lost, I still got to spend Football Sunday with good friends and enjoyed good food. I remembered that despite a parking ticket, I got to see some of my favorite people, even if it was just for a couple of hours. And at the end of the day, all the weekend lameness was just that. Lameness. It goes away.

There are so many more things to be grateful for – I really don’t need to complain about anything at all.

My mission for the rest of this week?

  1. Sleep more. I’ll feel a lot more together with more than 5 hours of sleep each night.
  2. Meal Plan.  Now that Clay is home, I can’t just skate by with half a grilled chicken breast for dinner anymore. Back to the list making!
  3. Gym. Our schedules are pretty normal for the next couple of weeks – time to find our routine again.
  4. Work on Wedding Playlists. We’re doing our own DJ-ing, so I’ve been collecting song ideas for the ceremony, cocktail hour and dance portions of the evening. Time to sit down and spend some quality time with my iTunes library and a spreadsheet.

Happy Hump Day!

What are some of your must-hear wedding jams? What gets you on the dancefloor? I’m taking suggestions!

See Jess Run: Volume 4

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Sometimes when I run or walk, or do whatever it is that I do for exercise, I like to slow it down a bit. And I don’t mean actually slow it down – although, yes, sometimes that as well. I mean, I like to scroll to the playlist that has the slow stuff. The stuff that makes me breathe a little deeper and be a little more present in whatever I’m doing.

Since I haven’t shared a playlist in a while, and because I need a little inspiration to get back out there on the road, I put together this playlist of songs that, while not your traditional workout music, is actually a really awesome companion to whatever your workout routine is. It just digs a little bit deeper than Britney (who I love!).

Hey, we all need a little reminder to slow it down every once in a while, right?

[8tracks width=”300″ height=”250″ playops=”” url=”http://8tracks.com/mixes/5079416″]

Do you prefer to run to fast music or slow? Any recommendations for tracks to add to my playlist? Talk to me in the comments! 

See Jess Run: Volume 3

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Okay, admittedly, perhaps this playlist should be titled “See Jess NOT Run.” Unfortunately, I’m having a wee bit o’ the asthma flare-up, so I haven’t been training. With any luck, that will be turning around this week, but I have been feeling pretty guilty about my lack of running.

In that vein (and also since I don’t have much running-related things to share this week), I decided to make a guilty pleasure playlist. You know what I’m talking about: it’s the reason you’d tackle someone if they tried to steal your iPod and browse through your downloaded songs. This playlist includes the kind of songs where, the first time you hear it on the radio, you say to yourself, “Ugh, what IS this?” But by the fourth or tenth or twentieth listen, you’re singing along to lyrics you didn’t even know you knew. For any of you who have seen Easy A, it’s the playlist equivalent of “Pocketful of Sunshine.”

Please note that my sharing of this playlist required a lot of courage on my part.

[8tracks width=”300″ height=”250″ playops=”” url=”http://8tracks.com/mixes/4222098″]

P.S. Please ALSO note that it took everything in me to include Backstreet Boys in this playlist, because I am strictly *NSYNC. But I mean…As Long As You Love Me is really good. I guess.

So now you know my musical secrets and shame. In return, I want to know what your guilty pleasure song is. Tell me in the comments! 

iTunes Gift Card Giveaway Winner

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Gather ’round, friends! After a super fun giveaway, a winner for the $25 iTunes gift card – of which you said you would buy music, apps, audiobooks, and other fun things – has been chosen!

Who is this lucky person?

Wait for it.

Wait for it.

Wait…for…it

Are you still waiting?

Are you still waiting?

Our winner is Dancing2Running, aka Kathryn! We hope you enjoy your songs, books, movies, TV shows, apps…whatever you end up snagging with your $25.

P.S. I had so much fun with this one, don’t be surprised if you see another giveaway pop up in the future. In the meantime, let me know in the comments what kind of playlist you’d like to see next! 

See Jess Run: Volume 2…and a giveaway!

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A couple months ago, I told you all about my plans to run the Disneyland Half Marathon. I also included my running playlist, which was almost more exciting for me than announcing my big plans.

Now, one thing you should know about me (I know I say this a lot): I am obsessed with music. I’ve probably told you all this, but it’s true and bears repeating. Music is what motivates me most when I’m exercising – more than getting in shape, more than burning calories, more than the promise of slimmer thighs and a tighter booty. I can’t work out without music. If I don’t bring my iPod with me to run – or whatever – I might as well go home because that workout is going to suck.

At any rate, since I had so much fun creating my first playlist, I wanted to bring it back with a fresh new playlist and something fun for you all…more on that in just a bit.

I’m going to theme it up for this one, and maybe future ones if you’re into it! This playlist’s theme is all about 90s music. I think that decade of music is just about the ultimate: Foo Fighters. Nirvana. Blink 182 and Nada Surf and Biggie and 2Pac and Salt-n-Pepa AND…

Maybe you just want to listen to the playlist:

[8tracks width=”300″ height=”250″ playops=”” url=”http://8tracks.com/mixes/3559601″]

Hopefully this playlist has gotten you all jazzed up for a playlist you’d like to make. And to help you along with that, we’re going to be giving one of you a $25 iTunes gift card! Just click the picture below to enter!

ScootiTunes

Giveaway ends March 11th, so get to entering!

What kind of playlist will you put together if you win the iTunes gift card? What kind of playlist do you want to see me do next time? Do you want there to be a next time? Tell me in the comments!