I woke up bright and early and headed out for my long run with my friend Julie. I needed to do 6 miles and Julie said that the trail we would run from her house would be about that. Well, we hit 3 miles and still had a 1.65 mile loop around the local YMCA before we would head back for the final 3 miles.
I tried to do what I could and around mile 5 I was experiencing some discomfort in my stomach and my ankle, so I stopped and walked for a little bit. After a while, I started to feel better so I ran the remaining 1.95 miles back to her house. Overall, and not including the walking part, I completed 6.95 miles in 69:39 for an average pace of 9:58.
5 Mile Stretch
Shortly after my run, I headed to a local CrossFit box for their guest days workout. I met up with my friend Justin and was surprised to see his sister Kaitlyn had decided to try it out too! (Side note - I used to babysit these two and their younger brother back in the day.)
The workout for the day was actually a group workout made up of 3 members, which just so happened to work out perfectly for us!
Musical Medicine Balls
100 Kettle Bell Swings
100 Burpees
100 Goblet Lunges
100 Toes to Bar, Knees to Elbow, or Crunches
Team "TooPhit": Kaitlyn, me, and Justin
The workout could be divided among the members in anyway, as long as 100 reps were completed before moving on to the next exercise. While one member was doing the work out, another member would be at rest, and the other would be holding a medicine ball overhead. If the medicine ball would be set down, the workout also had to stop.
KB Swings
Our idea was to do 10 reps each and then rotate. I didn't make any adjustments to the kettle bell swings and I think that we would have sped up our time if we had done as many as we could before we switched members but we didn't have that much time to talk about a game plan so we just went with it.
Burpees
Burpees. Oh how I hate burpees. First of all, with (what I believe to be carpel tunnel) my wrist problems, it's really had to put weight on my wrist when it is bent. Secondly, I have no upper body strength. Thirdly, on this fine day, I had thought it would be a great idea to run 7 miles before going to CrossFit so my legs were very sluggish. I did what I could, but I could tell I was slowing the team down. So I did what I could before I felt like death and then passed it to the next member. I felt terrible, but you gotta do what you gotta do.
Kaitlyn doing goblet lunges
The goblet lunges are lunges where you knee comes to the ground each time, alternating legs. Each leg counted as 1 so we each did 20 before passing it on. No adjustments were made here and I ended up with some nice bruises on my knees. I love me some battle wounds!
Crunches instead of toes to bar
The last exercise was toes to bar. Toes to bar are done by hanging from a bar and bringing your toes to the bar. You can alter this by just bringing your knees to your elbows. Originally, I planned on trying to do knees to elbows from the bar because I thought I would be okay with it; however, by time we got to this my arms were jello and decided I would just pound out the reps doing the least difficult move: crunches.
Team "TooPhit" (as I am dubbing us as it's Justin's nickname around the box) finished the workout in 22:40.
We completed the work out with a few minutes of stretching. Even though the workout had it's challenges, I still enjoyed it and wish that they did guest days once a month!
Do you ever get off a day and it seems like it takes you multiples days (for me, weeks) to get back on track? That is what happened to me. Although I was more than happy to help my grandpa move a couple of weeks ago, not having that time set aside so I could work around it really threw me off from my blogging streak' however, I maintained my running and eating which is what is really important (if I'm being honest.)
Here are a few highlights from the past couple of weeks that I have been silent..
STUTZMAN BIGGEST LOSER
On Sunday, July 7th, my family gathered for the results of our biggest loser competition. Some of my family I had not seen since Easter so their loss was noticeable. I did my best but wasn't able to pull off the win. My uncle Dewayne came in first, followed by my uncle Terry, and I placed in third. Overall, I can't be disappointed in my performance because I am 25 pounds lighter than when we started! Here is a short video that my aunt put together.
RUNS
My average pace on my runs have decreased, which is exciting! Well, I guess more than exciting, it's unbelievable! I was running my long run on Saturday and when MapMyRun would say my split pace, I was shocked. I was holding a pace that I would have never imagined I could do for one mile, let alone for 6 miles. It just goes to show that hard work and dedication does pay off.
Training Plan
I am still making changes to my running plan as I need to. Because I have been feeling stronger and that I need less time to recover, I have added a an additional day of running during the week. Additionally, I am still going to use my split timer for my run/walk but am only going to use the walk time if it is absolutely necessary. I figure, if I can run 6 miles and walk less than 2 minutes of it, I really don't need to be walking 4 minutes on short runs. Here is this weeks plan:
Week 8Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday
3 minute warm up
3 minute run x .5 minute walk. Repeat 8 times.
3 minute cool down
Saturday 7/20 - 6 miles HEALTHY SURPRISE
I had placed my Healthy Surprise box in my pantry and kind of forgot about it. I figured I needed to start eating some as my next box will be arriving soon. Here are some of the treats I've tried:
Sesame Ginger Journey Bar: It wasn't like a flavor explosion in your mouth but it was still good. I would eat another one. It was 200 calories with 7 grams of protein. It is all natural, gluten free, non-gmo, soy-free, and vegan. They have other flavors and I would really like to try the Pizza Marinara. You can buy them online through the website and it breaks down to $2/bar. Not shabby!
Mango, Pear, Pineapple Fruit.0: Although the flavor was good, it was like eating baby food... or drinking a warm smoothie. It may have tasted better if it were cold but I'm not sure. If I get another one in a box, I will have to try it that way. It was 100 calories for the whole pack and you can purchase them online from their site. Cost breaks down to $2.50 a pouch. Maybe a good snack to pack for kids..?
Apples + Cherries That's it Bar: I loved this bar. It was soft and chewy and filled with flavor! I hope I get another one in my next box! One bar is 100 calories and only contained apples and cherries. Seriously! They have three other kinds, Apples + Pears, Apples + Apricots, and Apples + Mangoes. If you would like to try them, you can try all 4 flavors for $6.99 ($1.75 a bar) by going here.
Home Free Mini Chocolate Chip Cookies: These crunchy, bite size cookies were delicious! They took care of the cravings for crunch and sweetness all in a 100 calorie pack! The bits of chocolate were surprising soft and creamy compared to the crunchy cookie. The 100 calorie packs go for $1.50 on their website. That's about the cost of a candy bar, only these are a bit healthier.
SunBiotics Original Almonds: They're almonds. You either like 'em or ya don't; however, I saw on their website that they have Cheesy Almonds which I would LOVE to try! I absolutely love cheese! I wasn't able to find a store locator or a place to purchase these through their site, so I'm not sure how you can try these or how I will get the cheesy flavor... I guess I'll just wait.
...but the 30 minutes turned in to over an hour before I actually hit that pavement. Oops!
My phone recently had an update and ever since then the GPS has not been working properly. I was running along and hit the one mile spot waiting for MapMyRun to read my total time and distance.. and I waited... and I waited. I thought maybe I had forgot to start it, but when I looked at my phone it was only reading .70 miles. Ugh. Frustrating. But I continued and said I would just have to guess by the total time. These are the split times they gave me, none of which I am trusting because it obviously didn't take me almost 38 minutes to do two miles.
I did some stretching when I finished and then found this weird gross thing on my shirt. I wonder how long he was along for the ride.
I hopped on MapMyRun.com to fix the map as best as I could to see what my total distance was. I planned to do 5 and ended up doing 5.45 with an average pace of about 11 minutes/mile. I guess that just means that I will have to do 5.5 or 6 this coming weekend.
After I freshened up, I headed to IHOP for some delicious breakfast! Yes, I had bacon and waffles. My lovely aunt gave me some grief for posting this photo on Facebook but I explained to her that running has its perks. I ran over 5 miles and burned more than 800 calories, and the day was just getting started. The meal was about 660. It was probably less than that because I didn't get butter and I used sugar free syrup instead of regular. So, of you ran 5.45 miles, you could eat like this too! Well, technically anyone could have this but you can have it with less guilt if you ran first. Oh, and it is a fact All my running buddies know that we run so we can eat. :)
I then headed off to Tiffany Nails to get in the 4th of July spirit.
After the nail salon I headed to get my hair done. It was desperately in need of a cut but was talked in to just a trim as everyone said they liked my hair long, so long it stayed. I think I am going to chop it all off when I hit my goal weight but we will see.
When I got home from running around all afternoon, I was in the mood for something salty and crunchy. So I took a look into the Healthy Surprise box I received a few weeks ago and found some Sesame Dijon Zucchini Chips from Just Pure foods. These were really good and I was sad when the bag was gone! The whole bag is one serving for 170 calories and 5 grams of protein. I can handle that! But I just checked out their website and one bag is $7! Yikes! Not sure I will be buying more of these after all.
SUNDAY
I kicked off Sunday with a smoothie made of pineapple, orange, ginger, kale and protein powder and then headed out to see my friend Britni.
After spending some time with her I headed to the grocery store to get all the fixin's for the week. I didn't have that much on my list and ended up filling the cart (and my cupboards) with things that were not necessary like chips, protein and other healthy bars, zero calorie flavored waters. I guess I was a little hungry.
When I got home, and after everything was put in its place, I made breakfast for lunch. Just a couple of eggs seasoned with Mrs. Dash, an orange, and a half of an Ezekiel English Muffin with a Laughing Cow Garlic & Herb wedge.
I was getting ready to relax when I noticed I had a voicemail from my mom asking me to come help her, my dad and brother move my grandpa. So much for relaxing. It was up off the couch and ready to work.
When we got there we had to pack everything up and load it, take it to his new home and unpack it. We got the major things done first, the kitchen, bath, and bed rooms. I had to leave at 8:30 pm because I was exhausted and I had things to do to get ready for work on Monday.
JUNE RECAP
Question: What do you like to eat after a run or workout? Do you splurge every once in a while or stick to the diet?
Yay! The weekend has arrived! Wow, this week has flown by and as you know I've been M.I.A. Sorry! I finished up training on Tuesday afternoon and I am back to working a real schedule and as you know I've been doing more cardio, trying to burn off as many calories as possible so I can win the weight loss competition.
I'm just going to do a quick summary of what I have had to eat these past few days along with what I've been doing to burn off those calories!
Breakfast
Tuesday: PlantFusion protein powder, banana, celery, romaine lettuce, water and mint smoothie. Wednesday: Smoothie of strawberries, orange, spinach, coconut water, mint and protein powder. Thursday: Pineapple, mango, cucumber, water, and mint with a scoop of PlantFusion protein powder. Friday: Strawberry, mango, spinach, mint, water, and PlantFusion protein powder smoothie.
Lunch
Cauliflower, broccoli, ground chicken, Fountain of Heath Roasted Garlic Hummus and Mrs. Dash Garlic and Herb seasoning. I have also made this with rice in it but left it out for a low-carb option.
Snacks
Tuesday: NutThins, cheese, with roasted garlic hummus. Wednesday: Apple and cheese. Thursday: Rice cake covered in Justin's Honey Peanut Butter with a banana. Friday: Apple with Justin's Chocolate Hazelnut Butter.
Dinner
Tuesday: Veggie burger with a Thousand Island and red onion dressing, topped with mozzarella cheese and pineapple, served on a bed of spinach. Delicious! Wednesday: Egg white omelet topped with red onions, mushrooms, bell pepper, and cheddar cheese. Thursday: Cumin rubbed chicken breast served with a cucumber relish (cucumber, tomato, onion, garlic, lemon peel, and lemon juice), topped with a greek honey yogurt dressing served on a bed of spinach. Yum! Friday: Honey BBQ salmon served with a blueberry-nectarine salsa (blueberries, nectarine, and oven roasted pecans). Holy Yum!! This was soooo good!
Activities Tuesday: I had intended to go to spin class but on my way home I stopped by a friends house to see if she wanted to join me and we ended up talking right through it. Oh well, time with her is more important. Wednesday: I completed my run in the morning with an average pace of 10:41. After work I dashed off to spin class. I was, once again, the only person in the class. But that's ok with me. The instructor is super nice and she actually remembered my name, which really surprised me.
Thursday: Another morning run? Sure, why not?! I've been good about getting up and getting it done. But I have noticed that when I work out in the morning, I feel more hungry throughout the day. My run on Thursday had an average pace of 10:30.
My GPS got funky and all of a sudden decided that I could run like Dash from the Incredibles:
Friday: Rest Day!! I did go for a little walk with the pup to warm up my muscles so I could do some stretching but that was it.
Article
Although I have been doing my runs in the morning, they seem harder and I'm more willing to give in to walking. I was wondering what the difference was and like magic I ran across an article from Runners World. Here are a few of the tips they suggested that I'm going to have to try:
Give your blood sugar levels a little pick-me-up prior to running by eating half a banana, 6-8 ounces of juice or a toast and jam 15-20 minutes prior to your run. Your body will tell you what it can handle and what it prefers. It may mean waking up a few minutes earlier, but it will pay off because your mind will wake up and you will have plenty of energy to get you through your run.
Walk for at least 5 minutes to properly warm your body up before you run. It takes a little longer to warm up in the morning so start with an easy walking pace and gradually increase it to a brisk walking pace. Walking for five minutes will make all the difference in allowing your body to more efficiently prepare for the transition to running.
After the five minute walking warm up, run easy for 5-10 minutes. Your body will reward you with a strong performance if you gradually bring it up to speed. Like warming up a car in the winter, your body needs time to wake up, warm up and run! You won't believe the difference! If that doesn't help, alternate running for a minute or two and power walking for a minute before you hit your running tempo. Run-walking works wonders in transitioning to running, especially in the morning.
It may mean waking up earlier (ugh!) but if it will improve my performance I'm game.
Question: Do you run in the morning? What are some things you do before you hit the pavement? Share with me in the comments below!
Week 5 Plan
Run/Walk: Monday, Wednesday and Thursday
2 minute warm up
2 minute run x 1 minute walk. Repeat 8 times.
2 minute cool down
Saturday 6/29 - 5 miles
I am in the home stretch of the Stutzman Biggest Loser - a family competition to see who can lose the highest percentage of weight. I am currently in first but have some tough competitors on my behind. So I'm really watching what I eat and ramping up some non-impact exercise classes that will include spin and my first pilates class. I've never done pilates before so I'm not sure what to expect.
On this note, I was talking to a friend and telling her how much I plan to work out over the next 8 days - the final weigh in will be July 3. Which prompted a question. No, it's not if I am crazy because I already know that I am. The question was: how much is too much when it comes to cardio?
Speaking of cardio... I was a good girl yesterday and woke up early so I could beat the heat and get my run in. While I was getting ready I munched on a Oatmeal Cinnamon Raisin protein bar. I only ate half of it before my run as I just needed a little something to eat since I wasn't going to be gone for more than 30 minutes.
The run felt a little rough as I was having some pain in my knee and hip. But I pushed through it and made it to the end.
I did some stretches when I got back and then packed my lunch and made breakfast so I could leave the compression socks on for a little while longer. Breakfast consisted of blueberries, strawberries, spinach, mint, coconut water and PlantFusion protein powder. I only used a half scoop of the protein powder since I already had part of a protein bar.
This week for lunch I combined broccoli, cauliflower, ground chicken breast, Fountain of Health Roasted Garlic Hummus, and some Mrs. Dash Garlic and Herb seasoning.
I was still a little hungry after lunch, so I ate the other half of that oatmeal protein bar. And then later I snacked on an apple with some cheese slices.
When I got home, I intended to go to spin class but I ended up taking a little nap and didn't wake up in time. So I got up and made a Fajita-Ranch Chicken salad for dinner. Mmm... so good!
I shouldn't have munched before I went to bed, but my tummy was rumbling so I at some Mango Crunchies that were in the HealthySurprise box. They weren't horrible but they weren't amazing either. They were ok for 20 calories.
After I ate them, I realized that I didn't drink that much water so I was probably thirsty and not hungry. I blame it on my tired brain.
Questions: Have you tried any new eats lately? Was it a good choice or bad?
So, I just got in from a run disaster. I went out for my 4 mile run today. It was almost like any other day. I had my tunes on and Roxie with me. The difference was someone else wanted to go with me. Let's just say that this is the second time this person has attempted to go with me and each time I was left frustrated. The last time, I finished my run. This time, I was so annoyed that I couldn't get back into the running mindset. So I walked home. I am disappointed in myself for allowing that and not pushing through but it happened. So, I will attempt to do my 4 miles either tonight or tomorrow.
Let's get on with a few highlights from the past few days...
On Wednesday, Cosmo wanted to share my breakfast made with PlantFusion protein powder, water, celery, cucumber, cilantro, banana and lemon.
I snacked on some strawberries filled with a banana and greek yogurt filling. The filling wasn't very thick so I prepared this on Tuesday night and placed it in the freezer. They were really good!
After my run that night, I decided to make a little watermelon drink to sip on while I was cooking. It's just coconut water, lime, lemon, and watermelon. It was good, but not as pretty as Pintrest made it look.
I guess Wednesday night turned out to be a "try this pin" kind of night because I also made these grain free cookies I found on Pintrest that was pinned from Texanerin.com.
Thursday I hit my halfway weight loss goal! In just under four months I have lost 25 pounds and 16 inches off of my body! I am super excited about this. Here are a few before and after pictures (I apologize about the closet, but this is the only full length mirror in the house):
Thursday also came with a splurge dinner. Not to celebrate my weight loss but to see my recently engaged sister that was in town from SC. I had dinner with her, her fiance and his family at Chappell's Coral Grill. I had a house salad, almond crusted walleye that was served with a jalapeno tarter sauce, and then a turtle cheese cake that my sister helped me eat. (Sorry, no pictures!) It was all very delicious and it was great getting to spend a little time with her.
Friday was just a "blah" day. I had quite the week in training and my brain felt like it was in overdrive with all the information we were given. So when I got home, I just wanted to veg out. I think I was passing out on the couch around 9:30/10 o'clock. Yes, I am like an old lady.
It's now Saturday and as y'all read, it isn't exactly starting out the best. So I'm off to clean up, maybe run some errands (aka shopping), and then say good-bye to a good friend before he is deployed to Afghanistan.
Question of the Day: Have you ever had a bad running day? Did you push through it or did you give up?
Comments? Questions? Thoughts? Helpful Tips? Talk to me in the comments below! I would love to hear from you!
Tuesday's breakfast was a smoothie made almond milk, PlantFusion protein powder, basil, celery, orange, blueberries, and ginger. For some reason, this smoothie was really cold. It was still delicious, it just took a little longer to drink trying to avoid getting a brain freeze!
I had the turkey mixture for lunch, and had an afternoon snack of an apple with some Justin's Honey Peanut Butter.
When I got home from work, the tempature was around 80 and was perfect for a run. So I quickly changed and grabbed Roxie for a run.
I was really trying to focus on my stride during this run and I think it worked out pretty well. I was pretty pleased with the run as my pace was faster per mile. After my run, I did some stretches, rolled out my shins and calves, and rested on the floor with my Roxie for a bit while I read an article on Shape Magazine's website with a top 10 list of 80's workout songs according to RunHundred.com. Who doesn't love the 80's? If you don't, I would make an appointment to see your doctor... Just kidding! Ok, not really.
Anyway, the article contained the top 10 and also listed their Beats Per Minute (BPM). Haven't heard about BPM? I talked a little bit about it in a post from over a year ago. Well, now that I am offically back into running - yes, it took me over a year to get back to it - I started thinking about my running music and how it can affect my running pace. The question is, what BPM is best for my pace?
I looked online and found a couple of different a sites that talked about it. eHow has a relativly short post on how to figure it out, and SelfGrowth has a longer post but gives a chart that shows steps per minute (or BPM) with the MPH for walking, running, and cycling. At this point it seems that I should be choosing songs with a 150 BPM.
If you read my previous blog post, you would know that I have had downloaded the trial version of beaTunes that would do the BPM for my music libaray; however, my computer crashed and I no longer have it. I might conisder downloading it again and paying the price unless I can find another similar website to use. You could also use RunHundred.com or jog.fm to find songs that match your deisred BPM.
What I am I really interested in is a site and/or program that would allow me to edit songs for a playlist. For example, when I'm doing my run/walk days it would be nice to be able to have the playlist set up to change songs for each run/walk time so I know when to change. I haven't looked into it yet, but will when I have some more time.
My tummy grumbled and I knew it was time to cook up some dinner. I made some spicy-ranch chicken and bell pepper, served on a bed of lettuce topped with salsa and cheese. I typically serve it with a gluten-free tortilla but I needed to cut back some calories so I did lettuce instead. It was just as delicious as before!
Question: Do you run with BPM or make edited playlists? What sites and/or programs do you use? Let me know in the comments below!
So my original training plan is turning out to be more of a guide at this point. The first three weeks I was only doing the run/walk plan two times during the week and then my "long" run on the weekend. I had also made some small adjustments to the times as I was feeling that my body was recovering faster during the walking time allowed and I felt ready to run sooner.
I am, once again, making some adjustments to the plan for this week. I am also going to plan a cross training day.
Week 4
Run/Walk Plan: Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday
2 minute warm up
2 minute run x 1 minute walk. Repeat 8 times.
2 minute cool down
Wednesday - Spin Class
Saturday - 4 miles
I started Monday out with a green smoothie for breakfast. I combined Naked coconut water, spinach, basil, pineapple, and PlantFusion protein powder in the blender until smooth.
This weeks lunch is just a mixture of ground chicken, rice, peas, and corn seasoned with some good ol' Mrs. Dash Garlic and Herb. Simple and satisfying.
For my afternoon snack, I had a handful of Nut Thins and a 100 calorie package of Wholly Guacamole. I was excited to see that Kroger had it back in stock. No more brown guac! Yay!!
When I got home I found a FedEx package on my front door step that contained my Zoot Compression socks! I'm a little bit of a match-y freak so I had to get the ones that matched my shoes.
The socks are left and right foot specific and sadly the box only contained right feet. If I had two right feet, I don't think I'd be running. So they e-mailed me a FedEx return label and will be shipping me a complete pair of socks. The exchange was easy-peasy. Now I just have to wait... again. I hate waiting.
I felt a little hungry before I headed out for a run so I grabbed a fruit strip to munch on while I was getting ready.
Running in 86 degree weather is not fun. I actually prefer to run during the winter. It might be freezing for the first five minutes but after that you're nice a toasty. When you start out toasty you go to burning after a mile. Overall it was a decent run. Not my best, but decent.
I cooked up some tostadas made with corn tortillas, black beans, ground turkey, tomatoes, salsa and lettuce for dinner. This is one of my favorite meals. You could add some avocado and cheese too. I leave them off because of the calories.
These little cookies are amazing! They are soft and delicious; however, each cookie is about 200 calories a piece. Yikes! I only ate one. I really wanted another but I didn't have an extra 200 calories in my calorie budget, so I passed on seconds.
Question: Do you make training plans? Do you follow it without change or do you make changes as you go along? Fill me in by leaving a comment below!
