Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Feels Good

Stretching is so SO important, before AND after working out. Here are a few REALLY GOOD stretches:

Bringin It.. sorta

Yesterday was a great workout day for me. I went for an awesome 4 mile run; despite my obvious need to get new shoes {my shins, knees and now my ankles are telling me so}. Then when I got home my husband and I did day one of P90X. WOW! I was so beat, I fell asleep while reading {Dr. Laura's "In Praise of Stay At Home Moms"}. I feel great today though; sore but great.

So where does the "sorta" come in to play? Well we can't find our P90X dvds!! We moved and we haven't seen them in all our unpacking. I am so ticked! I finally get amped about strength training {something I don't love} and we can't find the program?!! GRR!! So today I'm going to dig some more and hopefully I find the thing!!! We know the strength programs well enough but not the yoga, plyo or kenpo! MUST... FIND... P90X!!!

Monday, September 28, 2009

Two birds...

What better workout than combining football AND dance?!!!

Saturday, September 26, 2009

Run For The Cure

Today I ran in a really fun race: Run for the Cure! I am happy with my performance though I know I could have done better, so that's a little frustrating. My legs were spaghetti from all the clogging and my light run on Thursday ended up being more than I should have done. Then to top it all off I slept like crud last night; I was up all night sick, lovely. So I'm a little ticked that I wasn't 100% but at the same time, I'm thrilled that I was able to get another PR despite those things!!

I hate pictures of me "in action", I don't like to leave ANYTHING on the trail so I always look completely spent... which is good but it's just not all the glamorous or photogenic! Yet here I am in all my tired glory! It was a really pretty run, following the river down half way, crossing a bridge and running upstream on the other side. I managed to come in 9th overall and 4th woman!! Pretty good way to end the year!! I may try to squeeze in one more race but winter will be coming soon here and it likes to stay for awhile!

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Dancing Queen

So last night was my first clogging class in ages... I mean AGES!!! I wonder if I'm in over my head but I'm going to give it a go. It's an hour long and it is a WORK-OUT!! WOW! My legs feel like spaghetti. AND it was A LOT of FUN!Dancing is GREAT for your health, physical and emotional! Dancing has been found to:

  • Increase energy
  • Reduce stress
  • Increased flexibility
  • Improve strength & endurance
  • Increase muscle tone and coordination
  • Lower your risk of coronary heart disease
  • Decrease blood pressure
  • Help you manage your weight
  • Strengthen the bones of your legs and hips
  • Provides an overall sense of well being
So whether you like hip hop, line dancing, swing, clogging, ballroom or just jammin in the kitchen while you mop the floor!! Dancing is a GREAT way to get in a FUN workout!!

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Vacation Run

I love to run while I'm on vacation. It all started about 4-5 years ago. I was battling postpartum depression; I had three children ages 3, 2 and 4 months. We had traveled to the Washington coast for the wedding of a very dear friend. Our hotel was ON THE BEACH!!! It was FABULOUS!! Anyway, I went walking alone out on the beach early in the morning and it was that moment that I once again felt peace and an inkling of happiness! Whenever I go anywhere near the ocean I HAVE to duplicate that morning.We have been planning a trip to Disneyland and San Diego {gasp! I HATE crowds}. One of my FIRST thoughts is, "where am I going to RUN?" I have had more fun planning this run than much of the rest of this trip! I've been scoping out beaches and parks near our accommodations and there seems to be a lot of options!! We will have Gramma & Grampa with us & they have offered to stay with the 4 monkeys so my husband and I can go run TOGETHER; a rarity but something we both LOVE to do!!! I am SO EXCITED!!!Do you know of any good running spots in San Diego? We'll be there for 3 nights; we'd LOVE to run a different place every day!

Friday, September 18, 2009

BEEF... it's what's for dinner

Beef has a bad rap in my opinion! What's not to LOVE?!! Mmm. My mouth is watering already! I think it's like EVERYTHING else... all things in moderation right?! Besides, it just tastes SO GOOD!!!I went right to the source for this one: www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com. They had this to say:
* Beef is packed with PROTEIN! Which is essential for good health.
* American's prefer "Grain Fed" beef vs. "Grass Finished". For grain fed beef the cows are moo-ved {hehe} to a feed lot where they are fed a high energy grain diet for 3-6 months. The meat tends to be more tender and flavorful. Grass finished graze in a pasture their entire lives; the beef from which has a distinctly different flavor.
* "Prime" meat has more marbling and usually only sold to restaurants though some markets may carry it. "Choice" is the most widely available grade. "Select" has the least amount of marbling; which means leaner but less juicy.
* There are 29 cuts of beef that are government labeled "lean".
A few selecting tips:
* When selecting lean ground beef, go for 90% lean!!
* Hit the meat counter LAST.
* Make sure the packages are cold, tightly and completely wrapped. No excessive liquid.
* Beef should be a bright cherry-red. No grayish or brown spots.
* Choose meat that is firm to the touch.

I think we will have beef for dinner tonight!!!

Thursday, September 17, 2009

For your watching pleasure...

I just LOVE these Nike Ads!!! How could you NOT?!! I happen to wear Nike's too so it just is an added BONUS!!!


2000!!!

Wow!! TWO THOUSAND visitors!! I am pretty excited about that. I have had people find me through search engines; looking for specific workouts and dieting tips mostly. Others are my AWESOME family members and DEAR friends who are always SUPPORTING me!! How did YOU find me? I hope that you'll come back! Let me know what you want to see more of!!! Spread the word; help others get off THEIR butts & get FIT!!!

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Running Schedule

I found this AWESOME little help for running.

So I went looking for a FREE online running log. There are A LOT of choices but I really liked Log Your Run. Check it out... it has ALL KINDS of bells and whistles that are pretty stinkin cool in my opinion!! You can enter your SHOES!!! You track how many miles you've put on them! PS. It's not just for running either; you can log other workouts too!!! It's AWESOME!! I'm LOVIN IT!!!

Monday, September 14, 2009

Gene Pool

My uncle had a heart attack last week. He is 36. It turns out that surgery is not an option; the vein or artery {I'm not sure which} is too small so they are treating it with meds. Which he could be on for the rest of his life! He is home and recovering.

This has brought to the front of my mind things like heredity, genes, and lifestyle. I have always known that it's IMPORTANT to know what diseases and such run "in the family". That way you can make the CHANGES in your lifestyle to hopefully prevent or at least lower your risk. AND you can take EXTRA precautions like early screenings and being educated.

Do you know what you're at risk for? Talk to your family and your Dr. Make the choices NOW that will help lower your risks!!

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Surreal

This morning I got up bright and early and took off for a morning run. I was going by myself so I opted not to do a trail run {I wasn't in the mood to fight off bears or mountain lions}. So I decided to run the 10K course that I ran a couple months ago. It was pretty brisk this morning; I was glad to have had my sweatshirt!! It turned out to be a FABULOUS run!! It may not have been the race I was signed up to run but it would have been hard to beat this run!

At about mile 2 I was greeted by a doe; she wasn't 40 feet away from me! We just looked at each other; it was a really cool moment! Then after the turn around point I looked up into the sky and saw a hot air balloon! It was so fun to finish off the second half of the race with this postcard perfect image.

I started thinking about why I run and it's moments like this that I love. I get in the zone and just soak in my surroundings. It's an amazing feeling of peace. I was so glad that I got up and ran as if I was running a race, I ended up shaving a good 4 minutes off my last 10K PR. My watch read 56:22; almost exactly double my 5K PR!!

I'm feeling good & lovin life!!

Friday, September 11, 2009

Sacrifice

I am having one of those frustrating days. I have been all geared up and ready to run another 10K this morning. Things haven't worked out too swell so I won't be running {even though I've got my bib# and t-shirt, which I will feel like a cheat for wearing} today. I'm pretty put out about it.

I am a Mom & wife, first and foremost. I have FOUR small children that need me & a husband who doesn't have the best of schedules {retail... he works EVERY weekend}! So getting a good workout can be difficult at times. And getting in a race is even worse!!! As is evident by me missing this one. But that's what happens and it's okay; though it definitely is frustrating at times.

To make up for it I'm going to do one of two things. One: Run my own 10K EARLY or Two: go on a nice long trail run. Either way I'm getting out there in the morning and I'm going to hit the pavement!!! I may even wear my shirt and bib just for the heck of it!!!

Patriot Day

It's supposed to be Fabulous Food Friday. Since moving I haven't done one so I was all geared up with my food for the day {it's a good one too}. I started typing it up and it just didn't seem right. I kept thinking about it being September 11th. So I gave it up and switched gears for the day.

I am so grateful for this country. It's a BEAUTIFUL country isn't it? I love that I can put on my running shoes and hit the street or trail and enjoy this amazing piece of land. I love that I can be part of the process to choose the leaders of this great nation. I love that I can own my own gun{s} and go to church where I want. We have so much FREEDOM!! It's INCREDIBLE!!

To the families of those killed in the attacks at the World Trade Center 8 years ago; our hearts are with you again today. We will never forget! And a HUGE thank you to all the men and women in our military who devote their lives to protecting others.

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

And... I'm Back In The Game

Well that was a longer hiatus than I intended!! I hope everyone made healthy choices while I was away!! As for me...

I went on a road trip to the great state of Washington for a wedding. I hate traveling; all the junk food and being cramped in a little car for hours on end isn't fun {especially with a baby in tow}. But I think I did pretty good this time. Plus I made sure to go on a big run while I was there. It was a great run too. I LOVE running when I'm on vacation. I love seeing new places and it feels so good too!

Immediately after getting home it was a mad scramble to get our house packed and move. Yet another thing I hate. We ended up eating fast food {to avoid the messy kitchen and it's quick} more than I'd like to admit. But we're practically all unpacked {I still have 4 boxes that I HAVE to get to} and we're settled and back to our routines. I didn't get as many workouts in but hefting boxes is definitely a workout!!

I've got a good 10K race coming up on Saturday. I'm EXCITED. It will be fun to see how my times have changed from my last 10K. I really want to get in another 5K this summer too but I'm not sure if I'll get to. Signing up for these races keeps me motivated; the RUSH of a good race is totally ADDICTING!! ~Wish me luck!

I did my first weigh in since before I left. Nearly a month!! I was PLEASANTLY surprised. After all the junk that has been in my system, my workouts have done their job! I feel good. I CRAVE my workouts; I NEED my workouts. I am listening to my body and giving it what it needs and in return, it's taking care of me!!! It's a FABULOUS thing... try it... you'll like it too!

Nike Trainer

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