I can't believe I did it. And now I am paying dearly.
After being sugar free for a few weeks I went on a crazy sugar binge this weekend while away camping. Maybe it wasnt "crazy" per say...but I did have a donut and a marshmallow. And on the drive home I picked up a coffee which I have not done in ages. I think between the bits of sugar and the caffeine I fell off the wagon hard.
I paying dearly for it.
My head is throbbing and I have felt like utter crap all day. I managed a great legs workout this morning and although I spent the entire workout telling myself I would not have to complete my three 1 min wall-sits, when I got to the end I did them anyway. That is a success. (I'm working on gratitude)
While at work a coworker was offering everyone chocolate. My addiction flew into over drive and I felt my pulse race as she offered me one but I managed to decline. (another success! )
When I got home from work I crawled into my pj's and drank plain peppermint tea while making dinner. Fortunately I was able to get some energy back to head to the park to play after dinner (success!!) but now my head is throbbing again (booo!!)
Who would have thought sugar could do this after a weekend slip up. Withdrawal totally blows.
Monday, July 27, 2015
Self Care
I really have to recommend reading this blog post:
http://stayhealthyfitness.blogspot.ca/2015/07/taking-control-of-right-now.html?m=1
I found it to be very inspiring and kind of just what I needed to read right now.
It is so easy to get bogged down when we experience problems in our lives. It can be hard to find motivation. If we fall backwards after we have made progress it's easy to beat ourselves up about it rather than just accepting what happened and moving on.
One of my goals in life is to respond to adversity rather than react to it. To use it to propel me forward, look for solutions, to grow. Taking a moment to feel the emotions and then taking control of them rather than wallowing and letting them take over me.
One way I do this is through my visits to the gym and running. This is time I take t be on my own and this is how I recharge, taking care of my physical self. I also use my bubble-bath time to relax and contemplate and try to take care of my emotional self.
I refuse to submit to self pity.
I refuse to wallow.
I choose to keep moving.
http://stayhealthyfitness.blogspot.ca/2015/07/taking-control-of-right-now.html?m=1
I found it to be very inspiring and kind of just what I needed to read right now.
It is so easy to get bogged down when we experience problems in our lives. It can be hard to find motivation. If we fall backwards after we have made progress it's easy to beat ourselves up about it rather than just accepting what happened and moving on.
One of my goals in life is to respond to adversity rather than react to it. To use it to propel me forward, look for solutions, to grow. Taking a moment to feel the emotions and then taking control of them rather than wallowing and letting them take over me.
One way I do this is through my visits to the gym and running. This is time I take t be on my own and this is how I recharge, taking care of my physical self. I also use my bubble-bath time to relax and contemplate and try to take care of my emotional self.
I refuse to submit to self pity.
I refuse to wallow.
I choose to keep moving.
Sunday, July 26, 2015
Sleep!
I have had my Fitbit for a few months now and I find the sleep monitoring to be fascinating. I have always thought that I slept well. It takes me a while to fall asleep as my brain just keeps going and doesn't shut down easily. In the mornings I fight to wake up because I am not a morning person at all, but I never feel like it is because my sleep is poor. My fitbit is telling me otherwise. Apparently when I go to bed at 10 PM and wake at 4:30 AM I average about 3 hours of non-restless sleep. The other 3.5 hours I am quite restless.
This weekend, however, while sleeping in a tent, on my own air mattress, outdoors, I managed to sleep over 6 hours each night without being "restless". That is amazing. And I actually LOOK well rested. What does that tell you???
That I need my own room!
This weekend, however, while sleeping in a tent, on my own air mattress, outdoors, I managed to sleep over 6 hours each night without being "restless". That is amazing. And I actually LOOK well rested. What does that tell you???
That I need my own room!
Thursday, July 23, 2015
Why work out??
Exercise is so hard for a lot of people to even think about getting into, much less starting the task of building a routine and making it part of your actual lifestyle and not just a fad.
I am at a point now where I can't imagine my life without my gym. I am not a morning person but my 5 AM workouts are something I look forward to. Would I rather sleep in? Oh hells ya. Would I like to just remain skinny and healthy and not have to actually do anything to get there? Of course! I am a naturally lazy person. But I am also afraid of growing old broken. I want to go into my older years fit and healthy and able to live independantly rather than relying on others to do things for me because I am too broken to function. I don't want my aches and pains to hold me back. I want to put off those aches and pains of aging for as long as possible. I wasn't always so interested in exercise though.
I clearly remember after having my daughter that I thought I would always be a bit overweight. I loved cake (I still do!) and I used the excuse of being a nursing mother for why I was consuming so many excessive calories. I was feeding another human, so that was why I kept stuffing my face with what ever I wanted. Whatever made me feel good. I didn't really acknowledge that I was also dealing with baby-blues and was likely eating to push down my emotions. It sucked but not eating cake also sucked.
Then I just started to feel gross. I hated having rolls and a belly and having to still wear maternity pants even though my "baby" was 2 years old. It was spring of 2011 when I thought that perhaps I should do something to lose the weight but I really didn't want to change my diet. Or exercise. I justed wanted to "think" my way skinny and it wasn't working.
My sister started using the Visalus program. I thought that perhaps if she could do it then so could I. I bought the shakes and quickly realized that although they tasted good, their ingredients did something horrible in my gut and left me in pain. I sent everything back for a refund. At work I went to a meeting and was sitting next to a colleague I have known for years but had not been particularly close to in the last 6 years. We started catching up and she told me how she works out in the basement of another coworker who acts as a "trainer" for a few other women. I signed myself up and started working out with them three mornings a week before work. The work outs involved weights with very little cardio. I didn't want to change my eating habits so I kept doing what I was doing and lost only 10 lbs in 7 months. December of 2011 my brand spankin' new gym opened up just up the street and I joined there. I was determined to lose at least 20 more lbs.
When I joined the gym that is when things really started to change for me. I started off just taking classes. I was intimidated by the weight room but felt comfortable in groups where I could attend with friends. I tried hot yoga, zumba, kettlebell and a boot camp. My boot camp instructor would talk to us about the benefits of working out for women and that is what really piqued my interest. Yes, I wanted to be skinny but that was not enough to really help push me into a regular routine, to stick with exercise as more than just a fad.
I started to research why exercise was good for me and what I found really made me want to exercise more and to actually venture out of the group classes and into the weightroom.
(I can't find the exact links to what I found in 2011...but this is what I have found now)
"Lifting weights is excellent for improving bone density, joint mobility and body composition, and relieving anxiety and depression," says Alexander Koch, PhD, associate professor of exercise science at Lenoir-Rhyne University in Hickory, N.C.
This is what stuck with me. I don't want to grow old and be afraid of breaking. I want to grow old strong and vital and healthy. So with that I narrowed my focus down to weight training. I kept my kettlebell class and my boot camp classes. Over the past two years I have given up both these classes in favor of working it out in the weights section and running. I have lost 30 lbs and managed to keep this off since October 2012. Even stranger yet, I have totally changed the way I think of food. I have stopped using food to feed my emotions and use it to fuel my body. I have given up excess sugar and am always on the lookout for fun new ways to integrate healthy foods (even brussel sprouts!!) into my diet.
My hope for anyone struggling with weightloss and dissatisfaction with their health is that they will find their own motivation. You can't do it for others, you can't do it to "be skinny", you have to find what is most important to you and find a way to work towards your goal. I wish everyone health and happiness :)
I am at a point now where I can't imagine my life without my gym. I am not a morning person but my 5 AM workouts are something I look forward to. Would I rather sleep in? Oh hells ya. Would I like to just remain skinny and healthy and not have to actually do anything to get there? Of course! I am a naturally lazy person. But I am also afraid of growing old broken. I want to go into my older years fit and healthy and able to live independantly rather than relying on others to do things for me because I am too broken to function. I don't want my aches and pains to hold me back. I want to put off those aches and pains of aging for as long as possible. I wasn't always so interested in exercise though.
I clearly remember after having my daughter that I thought I would always be a bit overweight. I loved cake (I still do!) and I used the excuse of being a nursing mother for why I was consuming so many excessive calories. I was feeding another human, so that was why I kept stuffing my face with what ever I wanted. Whatever made me feel good. I didn't really acknowledge that I was also dealing with baby-blues and was likely eating to push down my emotions. It sucked but not eating cake also sucked.
Then I just started to feel gross. I hated having rolls and a belly and having to still wear maternity pants even though my "baby" was 2 years old. It was spring of 2011 when I thought that perhaps I should do something to lose the weight but I really didn't want to change my diet. Or exercise. I justed wanted to "think" my way skinny and it wasn't working.
My sister started using the Visalus program. I thought that perhaps if she could do it then so could I. I bought the shakes and quickly realized that although they tasted good, their ingredients did something horrible in my gut and left me in pain. I sent everything back for a refund. At work I went to a meeting and was sitting next to a colleague I have known for years but had not been particularly close to in the last 6 years. We started catching up and she told me how she works out in the basement of another coworker who acts as a "trainer" for a few other women. I signed myself up and started working out with them three mornings a week before work. The work outs involved weights with very little cardio. I didn't want to change my eating habits so I kept doing what I was doing and lost only 10 lbs in 7 months. December of 2011 my brand spankin' new gym opened up just up the street and I joined there. I was determined to lose at least 20 more lbs.
When I joined the gym that is when things really started to change for me. I started off just taking classes. I was intimidated by the weight room but felt comfortable in groups where I could attend with friends. I tried hot yoga, zumba, kettlebell and a boot camp. My boot camp instructor would talk to us about the benefits of working out for women and that is what really piqued my interest. Yes, I wanted to be skinny but that was not enough to really help push me into a regular routine, to stick with exercise as more than just a fad.
I started to research why exercise was good for me and what I found really made me want to exercise more and to actually venture out of the group classes and into the weightroom.
(I can't find the exact links to what I found in 2011...but this is what I have found now)
"Lifting weights is excellent for improving bone density, joint mobility and body composition, and relieving anxiety and depression," says Alexander Koch, PhD, associate professor of exercise science at Lenoir-Rhyne University in Hickory, N.C.
This is what stuck with me. I don't want to grow old and be afraid of breaking. I want to grow old strong and vital and healthy. So with that I narrowed my focus down to weight training. I kept my kettlebell class and my boot camp classes. Over the past two years I have given up both these classes in favor of working it out in the weights section and running. I have lost 30 lbs and managed to keep this off since October 2012. Even stranger yet, I have totally changed the way I think of food. I have stopped using food to feed my emotions and use it to fuel my body. I have given up excess sugar and am always on the lookout for fun new ways to integrate healthy foods (even brussel sprouts!!) into my diet.
My hope for anyone struggling with weightloss and dissatisfaction with their health is that they will find their own motivation. You can't do it for others, you can't do it to "be skinny", you have to find what is most important to you and find a way to work towards your goal. I wish everyone health and happiness :)
I make myself sick...
We went out for dinner last night and instead of my usual chicken breast with goat cheese and rice..I ended up going with this:
It was so good and so bad at the same time. Pulled pork poutine and the spinach and cheese dip. The problem was that by the time we got ready to go out for dinner it was later than normal and I was starving. I went with my cravings (carbs and cheese) rather than the what would make the most sense for refueling my body.
I don't regret it though. Everyone deserves a cheat meal and I have been pretty good all week! For the last few weeks excess sugar has been cut and I am doing well with getting to the gym, so I am not going to beat myself up over a deliciously carbo-licious meal. SO YUMMY!!
This week has been pretty good!! Tuesday was chest and back and then Wednesday was shoulders/bi/tri. I have decided to go back to my normal shoulder routine. A couple weeks ago I found a shoulders routine online for age-defying delts.
It looked interesting but I could NOT figure out how to do the various moves in the lateral raise gigantic set. I even had others at the gym helping me out (this is the plus of being super social during gym time...lots of helpers) and we could not make sense of this set. So Wednesday was a bit of mish mosh of me trying to figure out what the hell I was doing and then just giving up and going back to my regular routine. I'm still going to try to switch it up again, but for now I might just rotate in and out a few favorite moves and not go for a whole new routine switch up.
This morning I was going to go run on the treadmill, ride the bike and do some rowing (cardio day!) but decided at 430 AM that I just needed to sleep. Unfortunately with all the holding of weights the Raynauds has flared on my left hand and my two fingers are swollen and are killing me. Taking a day off won't hurt and tomorrow I am back at with more legs, adding in some shoulders (to make up for Wednesdays craziness) and then some cardio as well. I may aim to wake at 4 to get there for 4:30 to fit it all in.
 |
| Clearly I dove right in and started eating before I thought to take a picture of the yumminess |
I don't regret it though. Everyone deserves a cheat meal and I have been pretty good all week! For the last few weeks excess sugar has been cut and I am doing well with getting to the gym, so I am not going to beat myself up over a deliciously carbo-licious meal. SO YUMMY!!
This week has been pretty good!! Tuesday was chest and back and then Wednesday was shoulders/bi/tri. I have decided to go back to my normal shoulder routine. A couple weeks ago I found a shoulders routine online for age-defying delts.
It looked interesting but I could NOT figure out how to do the various moves in the lateral raise gigantic set. I even had others at the gym helping me out (this is the plus of being super social during gym time...lots of helpers) and we could not make sense of this set. So Wednesday was a bit of mish mosh of me trying to figure out what the hell I was doing and then just giving up and going back to my regular routine. I'm still going to try to switch it up again, but for now I might just rotate in and out a few favorite moves and not go for a whole new routine switch up.
This morning I was going to go run on the treadmill, ride the bike and do some rowing (cardio day!) but decided at 430 AM that I just needed to sleep. Unfortunately with all the holding of weights the Raynauds has flared on my left hand and my two fingers are swollen and are killing me. Taking a day off won't hurt and tomorrow I am back at with more legs, adding in some shoulders (to make up for Wednesdays craziness) and then some cardio as well. I may aim to wake at 4 to get there for 4:30 to fit it all in.
Tuesday, July 21, 2015
Motivated Monday..
Monday’s workout was awesome and was completed in record time. My best friend is away for two weeks and normally she will meet me at the gym. This is good and bad. It’s good because I adore her and we can’t seem to go longer than an hour without talking (this two weeks is going to kill both of us!! Well, her a little less because she is in SPAIN!). It’s bad because we like to talk. And talk. And talk. We don’t let a little thing like exercise come between our chats. I usually allow for a longer workout in the mornings, 5-6:30 AM…so I can usually get most of my workout done but there is no time to spare at the end and “stretching” really takes a hit and doesn’t get done. Today I was able to complete my entire leg routine PLUS add 15 min of stretching in at the end. It was fabulous. I would still rather have my BFF there though.
I have planned my meals for the week with the exception of dinner. It was easy to plan as I am just going eat the same thing every day. I like to keep it simple.
7:30 AM - After my workout I like to come home and make a shake. This morning it contained one scoop of banana flavored protein powder, half a banana (we were down to one and I had to share with my daughter who also loves a morning smoothie),
blueberries, cherries, kale and spinach topped off with coconut water. It turned out delicious, although now that I have cut down my sugar intake I am noticing that the cherries almost taste “too sweet”. (very weird having those words come out of my mouth!).
10:30 AM - hours later at work I had a half cup Super Oats (going to make 1 cup tomorrow). A friend had told me about them and I always like to at least try healthy things that others recommend. I added raspberries and blueberries and it was yummy!
11:00 AM – for some reason I always need to start snacking on carrots and cucumbers (and celery if we have it). I think this is just mindless snacking for me as I like to just graze all day. The carrots and cucumbers see me through to the end of work, just munching here and there.
1 PM – Egg salad sandwich. I love egg salad sandwich. I use Hellman’s and I probably shouldn’t, but I don’t care, I love it!. (only made with one boiled egg)
3:30 – ish – The second hardboiled egg and some mixed fruit (cantaloupe, strawberries and honey dew melon)
Then around 6 we will have dinner, not entirely sure what that is and I generally try to be in bed by 9 so I won’t eat again till I wake in the morning and have 2 cups of room temp water and my pre-workout drink. I have boiled enough eggs to see me through to the end of the week, I have enough chopped fruit to last and I am leaving my bag of Super Oats a work to continue with it as my mid-morning snack. Should be an easy week for keeping my eating on track as long as I don’t screw it up over dinner!
Sunday, July 19, 2015
Week at a glance
So last week was pretty unproductive fitness-wise. I was not getting much sleep and then the kids fell ill with a virus that involved a high fever (104!!) and lethargy. Needless to say they passed this onto me and I spent much of Thursday and Friday in bed.
Last week is well behind me now and I am gearing up for a great week of healthy eating and fitness!
My goal is to continue working on my glutes/thighs.
Yesterday (Saturday) I had my kickboxing class. Today I ran 2 miles.
Monday: legs day!
I will be attempting barbell squats for the first time in months. I managed to pinch something in my back months ago and could not squat for ages. I tried again about 6 weeks ago and it was still a problem but I hoping to start again with light weights (65lbs) and build back up from there.
Monday morning plan :
Barbell squat Superset with reclined leg press
Abductor/adductor (or innie -outtie machine as I like to call it)
Glute kickback machine Superset with valves
Ham curl Superset with leg extensions
Weighted walking lunges
Wall sits 3x one min each
Tuesday - chest and back
Lat pull down wide Superset with flat chest press
Lat pull down narrow Superset with sitting chest press
Row machine Superset with chest fly
Flat chest press one arm at a time Superset with dumbell row
Abs
20 min on the butt machine (I have no clue what the actual name of the machine is but it totally targets glutes.)
Wednesday Early morning run
Thursday -arms day!
For shoulders I am trying this new routine:
http://www.oxygenmag.com/article/agedefying-delts-10119
Dumbbell curl Superset with triceps extension
Barbell curl Superset with Bench triceps dips
Abs
Butt machine -20 min
Friday - Run followed by a repeat of legs day
So those are the workouts that I am looking forward to this week! The only bad part is that my best friend, who I can usually convince to meet me most mornings is now out of the country for the next two weeks :(
Last week is well behind me now and I am gearing up for a great week of healthy eating and fitness!
My goal is to continue working on my glutes/thighs.
Yesterday (Saturday) I had my kickboxing class. Today I ran 2 miles.
Monday: legs day!
I will be attempting barbell squats for the first time in months. I managed to pinch something in my back months ago and could not squat for ages. I tried again about 6 weeks ago and it was still a problem but I hoping to start again with light weights (65lbs) and build back up from there.
Monday morning plan :
Barbell squat Superset with reclined leg press
Abductor/adductor (or innie -outtie machine as I like to call it)
Glute kickback machine Superset with valves
Ham curl Superset with leg extensions
Weighted walking lunges
Wall sits 3x one min each
Tuesday - chest and back
Lat pull down wide Superset with flat chest press
Lat pull down narrow Superset with sitting chest press
Row machine Superset with chest fly
Flat chest press one arm at a time Superset with dumbell row
Abs
20 min on the butt machine (I have no clue what the actual name of the machine is but it totally targets glutes.)
Wednesday Early morning run
Thursday -arms day!
For shoulders I am trying this new routine:
http://www.oxygenmag.com/article/agedefying-delts-10119
Dumbbell curl Superset with triceps extension
Barbell curl Superset with Bench triceps dips
Abs
Butt machine -20 min
Friday - Run followed by a repeat of legs day
So those are the workouts that I am looking forward to this week! The only bad part is that my best friend, who I can usually convince to meet me most mornings is now out of the country for the next two weeks :(
Saturday, July 18, 2015
Food..food..food..
Now that the whole sugar thing is under control, cravings are gone and I can really live without dessert most days (a treat every now and then doesn't hurt!) I really need to get my meal prep in order.
I have seen so many blogs where women are showing their meals for the week, already prepared on a Sunday afternoon and I just sit in awe. I have always wanted to be able to accomplish this but I haven't been terribly successful.
One blog that was motivating me today is :
http://stayhealthyfitness.com/recipes-index/
I think that if I am ever going to achieve the body that I want I am going to have to pay some serious attention to my meals at least 5 out of 7 days a week. I have been researching some websites and blogs and am finding some yummy recipes. I've had friends make recommendations of good breakfast foods and snacks. Now I just need to get to work and make this happen. And then I need to go grocery shopping :)
I have seen so many blogs where women are showing their meals for the week, already prepared on a Sunday afternoon and I just sit in awe. I have always wanted to be able to accomplish this but I haven't been terribly successful.
One blog that was motivating me today is :
http://stayhealthyfitness.com/recipes-index/
I think that if I am ever going to achieve the body that I want I am going to have to pay some serious attention to my meals at least 5 out of 7 days a week. I have been researching some websites and blogs and am finding some yummy recipes. I've had friends make recommendations of good breakfast foods and snacks. Now I just need to get to work and make this happen. And then I need to go grocery shopping :)
Pour some sugar on me....
Or, maybe not.
On the 6th I started a 7 day sugar challenge. I was nervous going into it because I do love chocolate and junk food in general. I was afraid that the challenge would require me to cut out a lot of things that I enjoy but I was pleasantly surprised.
I was still allowed to enjoy as much fruit as I wanted (yay!!) and any other foods had to contain less than 5 grams of sugar. Turns out this was easy peasy.
What the challenge taught me was that overall my diet is pretty decent. It also taught me to remain concious about what I am putting in my mouth, to not snack blindly and make a concerted effort to stay away from sugar. I stopped eating choclate at work everyday and put away the two packages of cookies I had at my desk. (I have to admit the first day of the challenge I wanted to just quickly eat ALL of the cookies...but I refrained).
Day 6 of the challenge I was taking part in the Mudderella obstacle challenge. I spent the week thinking that I would be breaking the challenge to drink a bottle of wine to celebrate the night after the obstacle course. Much to my surprise, I didn't actually break the challenge. I felt no craving for sugar and the idea of successfully completing the challenge seemed more important than the wine. (gasp!!)
I have even managed to stay away from sugar since the challenge ended. My cravings are completely gone and my desire for healthy food choices has increased. My research into better foods has led me to many yummy sites:
http://deliciouslyella.com/
http://www.sugarfreemom.com/
http://www.healthydivalife.com/divas-recipes
Given that I am always up for a good challenge the next step is :
http://whole30.com/whole30-program-rules/
On the 6th I started a 7 day sugar challenge. I was nervous going into it because I do love chocolate and junk food in general. I was afraid that the challenge would require me to cut out a lot of things that I enjoy but I was pleasantly surprised.
I was still allowed to enjoy as much fruit as I wanted (yay!!) and any other foods had to contain less than 5 grams of sugar. Turns out this was easy peasy.
What the challenge taught me was that overall my diet is pretty decent. It also taught me to remain concious about what I am putting in my mouth, to not snack blindly and make a concerted effort to stay away from sugar. I stopped eating choclate at work everyday and put away the two packages of cookies I had at my desk. (I have to admit the first day of the challenge I wanted to just quickly eat ALL of the cookies...but I refrained).
Day 6 of the challenge I was taking part in the Mudderella obstacle challenge. I spent the week thinking that I would be breaking the challenge to drink a bottle of wine to celebrate the night after the obstacle course. Much to my surprise, I didn't actually break the challenge. I felt no craving for sugar and the idea of successfully completing the challenge seemed more important than the wine. (gasp!!)
I have even managed to stay away from sugar since the challenge ended. My cravings are completely gone and my desire for healthy food choices has increased. My research into better foods has led me to many yummy sites:
http://deliciouslyella.com/
http://www.sugarfreemom.com/
http://www.healthydivalife.com/divas-recipes
Given that I am always up for a good challenge the next step is :
http://whole30.com/whole30-program-rules/
Friday, July 17, 2015
So little time...
http://www.runnersworld.com/books/runners-world-complete-book-running
The other day the kids came home from shopping with Jeff and presented me with this book they found for me. So sweet for them to think of me while out. I am dying to find time to just sit and go through it but with summer here its hard to rationalize staying inside.
Now that I think if it....there is no reason not to read outside. With tomorrow being a high of 30 I see a swim party for the kids in our future and me poolside getting my read-on! Can't wait!
Now that I think if it....there is no reason not to read outside. With tomorrow being a high of 30 I see a swim party for the kids in our future and me poolside getting my read-on! Can't wait!
Monday, July 6, 2015
And so it begins....
It was a fun four days camping. Marshmellows, smores, lots of chocolate...now it's time to clean up my act!
This morning I will be running to the gym instead of driving and afterwards I will be beginning this :
http://cleaneatingonline.com/clean-eating-7-day-no-sugar-challenge/
As someone with an addictive personally...this is going to be hard...but I love a good challenge!
This morning I will be running to the gym instead of driving and afterwards I will be beginning this :
http://cleaneatingonline.com/clean-eating-7-day-no-sugar-challenge/
As someone with an addictive personally...this is going to be hard...but I love a good challenge!
Saturday, July 4, 2015
It's getting closer!
Next weekend is the Mudderella...and I am getting scared!!
While I have been doing well with getting to the gym, and my strength training is pretty good, my cardio is not.
Cardio has always been my weak spot. When I started the couch 25k last year, it was really hard at first as I felt like I couldn't breathe and my heart felt like it was pounding out of my chest. It was not pretty. Over time, however, I was able to run longer distances and grew to love running.
During the winter I ran on the treadmill and could run for over an hour without stopping. Getting back into road running has been much harder than I anticipated and I feel like I need to redo the couch to 5k. Doing that running program was the only way I could guarantee I would get in three days a week of running and build my stamina. I seem to be back to only wanting to get to the gym and my weights and finding the balance of running vs weightlifting is such a struggle for me. I love both but can't seem to have both. It makes me sad.
I did get in two runs in the last few days at the Pinery. Each run was 5k and involved many of my favorite things: sunshine, nature and the smell of campfire!
I absolutely love camping at the Pinery. There is so much you can do there. I took the kids fishing since the tackle share program was there. We also managed to get in some canoeing (yesterday after dinner) and kayaking (today after lunch) which means I also got in a pretty fantastic upper body work out. I took both kids out (one at a time) in a tandem kayak today and they (and I!!) loved it. I am now on the search for a gently used tandem kayak with a goal of taking out the kids a few times a month. This would be great exercise and an awesome way to enjoy nature with the kids.
All in all it has been an ok week fitness-wise but I do need to ramp up my running so that I don't spend half my time at Mudderella all hunched over trying to catch my breath. Hopefully I get another run in tomorrow along with some roller blading with the kids. Health and fitness is a family affair after all!
While I have been doing well with getting to the gym, and my strength training is pretty good, my cardio is not.
Cardio has always been my weak spot. When I started the couch 25k last year, it was really hard at first as I felt like I couldn't breathe and my heart felt like it was pounding out of my chest. It was not pretty. Over time, however, I was able to run longer distances and grew to love running.
During the winter I ran on the treadmill and could run for over an hour without stopping. Getting back into road running has been much harder than I anticipated and I feel like I need to redo the couch to 5k. Doing that running program was the only way I could guarantee I would get in three days a week of running and build my stamina. I seem to be back to only wanting to get to the gym and my weights and finding the balance of running vs weightlifting is such a struggle for me. I love both but can't seem to have both. It makes me sad.
I did get in two runs in the last few days at the Pinery. Each run was 5k and involved many of my favorite things: sunshine, nature and the smell of campfire!
I absolutely love camping at the Pinery. There is so much you can do there. I took the kids fishing since the tackle share program was there. We also managed to get in some canoeing (yesterday after dinner) and kayaking (today after lunch) which means I also got in a pretty fantastic upper body work out. I took both kids out (one at a time) in a tandem kayak today and they (and I!!) loved it. I am now on the search for a gently used tandem kayak with a goal of taking out the kids a few times a month. This would be great exercise and an awesome way to enjoy nature with the kids.
All in all it has been an ok week fitness-wise but I do need to ramp up my running so that I don't spend half my time at Mudderella all hunched over trying to catch my breath. Hopefully I get another run in tomorrow along with some roller blading with the kids. Health and fitness is a family affair after all!
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
a little preparation would go a long way...
I am feeling so incredibly unprepared for Mudderella in 11 days!
I have only been out for a run less than a handful of times in the last few weeks. My last run was June 7th and my time was 34 min, which was not horrible considering it was trail running which I have never trained for. It did help give me some idea of what I will be in for with mudderella given that we will be running in grass, through mid, lots of hills etc. It also helped me discover that I kind of enjoy trail running. It would help if I didn't want to stop and explore the woods and capture photos....there is no time for that in a race.
I have increased my workouts in spite of the lack of running. 4 mornings a week minimum. I am feeling pretty good that way but I really need to improve my cardio. This is my plan for the next few days. We are headed to the Pinery for some fun camping. Last year I woke early in the mornings and explored the grounds by running. It was so quiet and cool...the silence while everyone else is still sleeping is so peaceful. The Pinery is a beautiful park.
Just hope the rain cooperates and hold off still Saturday afternoon when we drive home. Fingers crossed!!!
I have only been out for a run less than a handful of times in the last few weeks. My last run was June 7th and my time was 34 min, which was not horrible considering it was trail running which I have never trained for. It did help give me some idea of what I will be in for with mudderella given that we will be running in grass, through mid, lots of hills etc. It also helped me discover that I kind of enjoy trail running. It would help if I didn't want to stop and explore the woods and capture photos....there is no time for that in a race.
I have increased my workouts in spite of the lack of running. 4 mornings a week minimum. I am feeling pretty good that way but I really need to improve my cardio. This is my plan for the next few days. We are headed to the Pinery for some fun camping. Last year I woke early in the mornings and explored the grounds by running. It was so quiet and cool...the silence while everyone else is still sleeping is so peaceful. The Pinery is a beautiful park.
Just hope the rain cooperates and hold off still Saturday afternoon when we drive home. Fingers crossed!!!
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