The Little Things
April 13, 2012

I love 5k runs that are tied to different holidays. Do you remember when I did the Jingle Bell Jog and the Turkey Trot this past year? If not, I’ll wait while you catch up quick:) Anyways, the church I attend offered a 5k run on Saturday morning (between Good Friday and Easter), and my family was quick to sign up. We love being active, so this seemed like a great activity to do together.

After taking a long break from running due to an injury, I was anxious to get back into running. I’ve done a few shorter runs, but didn’t want to do too much too fast, so I decided ahead of time that I would walk a bit of the race, no matter how great I felt.

We started from the church and ran on a bike trail, doing an out and back pattern. At the halfway point I walked for a short time, and then picked it up again for the end. I felt great and had no shin pain, which was really exciting! Even though I have hardly been running since the beginning of February, and I took a walk break, I only was 4 minutes slower then my 5k PR which also made me happy.

Here I am at the finish line (please excuse the “i just rolled out of bed and finished a run” look). I cropped the picture to keep the identity of my family off my blog.

See my fun running skirt? I’m planning to do a review of this at a later date, but I wanted to show it off quickly here. I won this right before I was injured, so I have just recently gotten the chance to wear it! I had lots of people asking me where it came from (it’s from Sparkle Skirts).

Overall, the race was a fun opportunity to get up on Saturday and run. This will be my last race before my half marathon (which is coming up really quickly).

Now it’s your turn to share! If you’ve done a 5k before (walked or run), what was it/what was your favorite race? Have you ever done a holiday themed race?

April 12, 2012

Wow, this has been a crazy week. From a death I’ve been dealing with all week at work to a brief long weekend trip to my parents house for Easter, I’ve hardly had a moment to unpack and organize, much less post about anything health or fitness related. It’s even more fitting, then, that I take a little time to type up a few of the things I’m thankful for right now:

I’m thankful for safety while driving. I drove for a little over 20 hours this weekend, and I’m thankful that I was safe!

I’m thankful that I read the entire Hunger Games series. Two weekends ago I read all 3 books in a 50 hour time period. More on that later. But seriously, the series was really good and I’m glad I finally got around to reading them! So fun… so addicting… so good.

I’m thankful for Easter. It gives me hope and joy.

I’m thankful for the people at my workplace.  Most of the time they are full of support, love, and encouragement. It’s a HUGE blessing, and I try to focus on how grateful I am for that every day as I leave work.

I’m thankful for food that my mom cooks. She’s a good cook. Given that I had a very busy week this week, my mom sent me back with enough left overs to cover most meals for my week. Isn’t that thoughtful? It’s been a huge help for me to just plop food on my plate while I’m on the go (and know that I’m getting a balanced meal). Making food for people in busy/crazy/____ (fill in the blank) times can definitely be helpful to that individual!

I’m thankful for sleep. I’m behind on sleep right now, and I miss it. I’m thankful for the opportunity to sleep and to feel rested.

I’m thankful that my shins are finally feeling much better and I can actually run again. REALLY thankful about this one. I’m being careful as I ease back into it, but I’m running twice a week now and am happy about it!

Now it’s your turn to share! What are you feeling thankful for today? When people in your life are going through a tough time, do you ever make meals for them? 

April 10, 2012

Happy Easter (yes…. a few days late)! Because of the holiday I’m a few days late in posting again. Week 14 may be one of my most favorite training weeks in a long time, mostly because of a visit I had with sports medicine (this is coming in a later post) and because I ran a 5k on Saturday (will also be recapped in a future post). I’m taking a slight break right now with my planks, so that won’t be included in training this week. Here’s what the week looked it:

I’m not able to give a total for mileage for the week, but my running felt good and strong this week, and that’s what I’m happy about! I’m happy to be back running again!

Lesson Learned: Like I said, I went to sports medicine this week and got some physical therapy exercises, which I will talk about in a future post. I learned a lot from him though!

Biggest Struggle: A crisis at work has created a lot of extra work over the last week (and for the upcoming week). I’m finding myself choosing between exercise and sleep, both of which I need right now. This has been a tough week to balance everything!

Now it’s your turn to share! What’s one of your accomplishments from this past week? What do you do when you have to choose between sleep and exercise? 

April 3, 2012

I’ve been busy catching up from my trip to Florida and enjoying time outside in the great weather, so I’m a few days late in getting my month recap up!

Here are a few exciting things that March brought in my life:

Yup, overall it’s been a pretty great month! I ran a few times and managed to keep my cross training up, and add in some strength training as well! I got to travel, cook a few new recipes, and enjoy some time with friends and family!

Now it’s your turn to share! What stands out to you when you think about the month of March? What are some of the goals you have for April?

 

April 1, 2012

First things first: Happy April! I’m not a huge fan of April, so I’m always happy when it’s over. However, I’m happy to be in a month that leads up to summer. Despite it being April 1st, my training for the week is no joke. Here’s what the week looked like:

Total Miles: 4.06 mi walk + 1.5 mi run + 2.55 mi elliptical + 6.2 mi bike= 14.31

Total Planks: 14:30!!

This is nothing like my high mileage last week on vacation, but I got in another run, plus some great cross training via both the elliptical and bike machines. It was great cardio!

Lesson Learned: Icing and compression socks are very very good! Sometimes it’s hard enough to find the time to work out, but then icing for 20-40 minutes a day on top of that can be kind of tedious. Icing has been really helpful, and I feel like it’s crucial after my runs.

Biggest Struggle: Wanting to run my usual 3-4 days a week, but only allowing myself 1-2 to start off. It’s so hard, and I want to run so much, but I also want to stay healthy and uninjured. At least I can run a bit!

Now it’s your turn to share! What’s one of your accomplishments for the week? Do you like compression socks?

March 30, 2012

Every once in awhile I like to share some of the inspirational quotes and thoughts I’ve found (or pinned from other websites myself) on pinterest.

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Courage. I’ve loved this quote for awhile, so I thought I’d share it here.

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One of the excuses that’s so easy to use for not working out is that I’m too busy/don’t have enough time. When I saw this on pinterest, I thought that it was a very challenging thought to the excuses we often use…

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Sometimes we need a little reality check, some encouragement, a bit of motivation, or a challenge to our thinking. I think these quotes do that.

If you’re interested in more “pinspiration”, check out this post and this post.

Now it’s your turn to share! What’s one of your excuses for not working out? 

March 29, 2012

How can this be my last Thankful Thursday of March already? These weeks are just rushing by quickly! Most of the things I’m thankful for this week are going to be about my vacation, so buckle up for the ride!

I’m thankful for beautiful palm trees! Seriously, how beautiful are palm trees as they blow gently in the freeze, with the faint rustling of the leaves? These are the perfect trees for any tropical location, and especially fantastic when they line a beach! I spent a week looking at them and am already missing them greatly.

I’m thankful for fantastic sunsets over the ocean. Sometimes my heart hurts a little bit when I see them because they are just so beautiful. Every day of vacation we spent 30-45 minutes on the beach at sunset, taking pictures and throwing a frisbee around. I love that little tradition we have on our beach vacations. It’s an intentional slowing down to enjoy the moment, which I appreciate!

I’m thankful for safe travels. On Sunday alone I spent 17 hours traveling, and there were 3 other travel days as well as part of this trip. That’s a lot of time for things to go wrong, and I’m thankful that nothing did and we all arrived home safely.

I’m thankful for long walks on the beach. Sounds like the start to a cheesy dating ad, doesn’t it? BUT SERIOUSLY, I walked 4-6 miles every day of vacation right on the edge of the beach where it meets the water. It was beautiful, fantastic, and the perfect location for work outs! I loved every single minute of it!

I’m thankful that I still get a spring break while at my job.  Working with students at a college definitely has this perk:) I love that I still get a spring break!

I’m thankful for the ability to go on vacation. 

Now it’s your turn to share! What are you feeling thankful for today?

March 27, 2012

I usually post this on Sunday, but last week was Spring break and didn’t get home until late Sunday night, and spent yesterday trying to catch up. So, here I am, finally getting ready to post last week’s work out on a Tuesday. Like I said, I was on Spring Break (in Florida on the beach!), so my work outs didn’t involve a gym at all, and since I’m still not really running, that pretty much left walking, and walk I did. Here’s what I did this week:

Total Miles: 34.5 mile walk, 1.1 mile run, 2 min plank

No excuses when it comes to working out on vacation, right? Also- did you notice. I RAN A MILE while there. It was beautiful and pain free, and I had a huge smile on my face the entire time.

Lesson Learned: Working out on vacation is very doable, especially on the beach! I had to be much more hydrated before my workouts though!

Biggest Struggle: Planks were my struggle this week, and I don’t think I’m going to hit my goal of 50 minutes this month. I’m only at 35 minutes so far, with only a few days left to go…

Now it’s your turn to share: What’s one accomplishment from the past week that you’ve experienced? 

March 23, 2012

I really enjoy The Pioneer Woman most of the time, and think she has some fantastic recipes. I’ve always loved chicken salads, so when I stumbled on a recipe for “Grilled Chicken Salad with Feta, Fresh Corn, and Blueberries” I knew that I needed to make it as soon as I could. I changed the recipe a bit, but it was incredibly delicious!

Here’s What I Included

I changed the recipe up just a little bit. The original recipe calls for grilled chicken, but I just cooked the chicken in the oven with a little olive oil, salt, and pepper on top, and it still turned out fantastically. I substituted red pepper for the celery; it keeps the crunch but adds in some other nutrients. I scraped the dill on top, used plain greek yogurt in place of the sour cream (in the sauce), and used lemon juice from a container and not from a fresh lemon. I also used frozen corn instead of fresh from the cob. For fun, I added in pasta, which the original recipe doesn’t call for. It’s DELICIOUS!

You’ll have to go to The Pioneer Woman’s site (i linked the recipe above) to actually get the recipe, and to see her beautiful pictures (mine don’t do it any justice). This is a relatively easy meal to cook, and holds very well in the refrigerator. Make sure to make extras, because you will not be satisfied with only one meal of this! You can easily change it up and throw in whatever veggies you’d like. YUMMMMM….

Now it’s your turn! What’s your favorite type of chicken salad to make? What fruit and veggies do you like to pair together? 

March 22, 2012

Wow these weeks are flying by! I truly can’t believe we’re so far into March already. Does it feel like time is going incredibly fast this year? Maybe the mild fall  and winter has something to do with it? Ok, here are some of the things I’m feeling thankful for this thursday (wow that’s a lot of “t’s”!).

I’m thankful for my foam roller. It hurts so good. Seriously though, I tend to have IT band issues frequently, so foam rolling regularly is a must for me. I also love rolling my back and using it to stretch my neck and shoulders. It helps loosen me up and even helps decrease headaches sometimes.

I’m thankful for medicine for migraines. Seriously. I’m SO SO thankful for it. I’ve had a migraine for the last two weeks, and the meds that I have allow me to continue to function pretty well, and I’m thankful for that!

I’m thankful for clean water to drink. Just the fact that I can turn on the facet and get clean water whenever I want is amazing. I’m thankful that I can drink lots of clean water every day.

I’m thankful for the ability to take pictures. Cameras are amazing inventions, aren’t they? I’m thankful I can document important events in my life!

I’m thankful for massages. Like I said above, I’ve had a nagging migraine for the last few weeks, and massages make a huge impact on my level of pain. I’m so thankful that massages are helpful.

I’m thankful for warm weather. 2 weeks of weather in the 70’s and low 80’s in March? YES PLEASE!

Now it’s your turn to share! What are you feeling thankful for right now? Have you ever gotten a massage before? If so, what was your favorite part of it?