The Little Things
April 16, 2013

I had this post typed up and scheduled this weekend. But then the explosion in Boston happened, and I couldn’t ignore it. My heart aches for those who were there, as well as those who are affected from afar. Every person needs to process and grieve in their own way. Some might write, some might talk, and some might run… We can’t let those who did this win…

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After experiencing some IT band pain on my long run a week ago, I was happy that this week I had previously planned another step back week. On Saturday morning I headed out to race a Cherry Blossom 5k! Ironic, however, because spring is definitely behind this year, and we don’t even have any leaves or flowers on the trees!

I was a little nervous about how this run would go. With my IT band aching last week, I really didn’t want to run yet another slow 5k this year. I raced it using my plan for the half marathon, running three minutes and walking one minute. I tried to keep my running pace between 8:45 and 9:30, and was happy at how that went. It definitely wasn’t easy, but I didn’t feel like I was dying either! There was no negative splitting that happened because I still haven’t been able to get that down (how do all of you do it??).

I tried to keep my breathing as controlled as I could as I set off. In races, with all the excitement and adrenaline, I tend to breathe weirdly and get a side cramp (just like I did at mile 2 of the Indy mini marathon last May); not today though! I hit mile one really quickly, and was surprised at how good I was still feeling. Mile two flew by as well. As I hit mile 3, I thought for sure that some IT band pain would kick in, especially because I was running at a much faster pace than my long runs I’ve been doing, but it didn’t! I finished the race feeling strong and happy:

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Not my fastest 5k, but definitely my fastest of 2013! I tried to run this race closer to my half marathon goal pace, and I think I was successful at that. If I feel this good on race day, I’ll definitely be happy.

Honestly, this 5k was a big confidence booster as I’m only a few weeks out from my race. It’s also fun for me to look back at my 5k race I did at this time last year and compare times. I ran that race in an 11:51 pace, so this race was significantly faster! Yet another confidence booster as I head into the same race I ran last year!

Now it’s your turn to share! How have you pushed yourself recently? What are some confidence boosters you’ve experienced before heading into a race? 

April 15, 2013

Humans like things that are easy, right? We prefer the path of least resistance and effort. The thing is, health often doesn’t work that way. Health and wellness is about adding positive factors into our lives, and that takes work and effort. Health isn’t a passive choice. I know- not a revolutionary thought, but sometimes we just need people to remind us of that fact. If health was the easy choice, I would stay up all night, eat chips and ice cream, skip the work outs that were hard, never floss, and all sorts of other things. It takes a lot more effort to turn off the TV at night and get into bed, get up early to get in a work out, cook healthy meals, and have healthy communication patterns.

Health takes intentional work and effort, the adding of positive factors into your life. The good news is that, like most things, with practice it does become easier! But, nonetheless, health involves an active choice.

It goes back to the idea of Owning Our Reactions (and Actions) in life. Being passive about things (including our health) means that we aren’t actively owning our “stuff” in life. Even if we are choosing to own them, we aren’t doing healthy ownership. The thing is, no one else can “make us healthy” or do the work for us. It’s ultimately on us.

My challenge to you this week is to look at where you are and are not owning your health, and where you could be more active in your health. Do a health analysis and see where you could move away from passivity. It’s a lifelong journey. I certainly don’t have it all together, and catch myself not being active in certain areas of life.

Now it’s your turn to share! What makes it hard to be active in our health? Where are you being passive at the moment? (sleep has been a tough one for me recently)

April 14, 2013

It’s always interesting to compare equivalent training weeks, and it’s been fun to compare training for the Indianapolis Mini Marathon this year and last year. Last year I stated that this week was my lowest mileage yet. Between a memorial service, long work hours, and a speaking trip, I was pretty busy. This week has been a great work out week though! Here’s how it looked:

This week was a great mix of pilates, strength training, running, biking, and walking. Sounds great to me! I enjoy keeping variation in my schedule, and it keeps me from getting bored. After last week’s it band flair up, I decided to do a shorter run this week but run at a faster pace to push myself. It was a great run!

I’m continuing to wear my orthotics while I walk, and I think my feet have adjusted really well. I don’t know how I’ll enjoy running in them, but they’ve given me know trouble at all while walking!

Now it’s your turn to share! How do you add variation to either your workouts or to life? 

April 11, 2013

It’s been a day of storms, but april showers bring may flowers, right? Actually- flowers are already starting to bloom, and we’re only a third of the way through April. Today is thankful thursday, a time to pause during your week and focus on what you’re thankful for.

I’m thankful for marshmallows. I’m not really sure why I love them so much, but I’ve loved them my entire life. I specifically remember picking up a package of mini colored marshmallows for my 3rd birthday cake, and I’ve been a fan since that time. I love that there are marshmallows for different holidays. I’m specifically thankful right now for key lime pie mallows. AMAZING!

I’m thankful for a weekend at home. I love traveling, but I also love a low-key weekend at home where I’m able to relax and check some things off my to do list. I’m thankful that last weekend I got to spend some down time at home.

I’m thankful for pilates. I not only really enjoy doing it, but I find that it’s a great source of relaxation (and a work out!). Not only does it provide a great core and total body work out, but it’s really helped me keep my flexibility this training cycle.

I’m thankful for fresh air. This past Saturday I spent an hour and a half running outside, and I truly enjoyed the fresh, clean air the entire time. I’m thankful that I live in a place where I don’t feel like I have the choke on the air that I’m breathing.

I’m thankful for compression socks and sleeves. It feels so good to put them off after a tough workout! I only started wearing compression sleeves while running a year ago, and I feel a huge difference when I run with them verses without them.

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

April 10, 2013

I love oatmeal. I think it’s appropriate almost any time of the day: breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack, or dessert! While at the store the other day, I found this interesting bag of marshmallows, and knew I needed to make an oatmeal snack (dessert?) with these as soon as possible.

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Ingredients

I microwaved the oatmeal and almond milk for just under 2 minutes and then let it stand for a minute or so. I placed the key lime marshmallows on top of the oatmeal and then spread the coconut on top.

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DELICIOUS! By the time I had taken this picture the mallows were starting to melt a little, and by the time I went to eat the oatmeal they had completely melted into a beautiful type of frosting! It was a little like baby cake. YUM!

Now it’s your turn to share! Do you like Key Lime Pie? What’s your favorite type of spring dessert? 

© Caroline, Journey to Wellness, 2013

April 9, 2013

Almost two weeks ago I headed out on a Sunday afternoon to do the Jelly Bean 5k Virtual Race hosted by Run with Jess. It was my first full day in Florida, and it was in the 70’s when I headed out. Most of my runs in the last few months have been in the cold (with running tights!), so I’m not so trained for this weather. I also decided to run on the beach (the same beach as the Welcome to Summer 5k), which is a different sort of running then I normally do (on cement or hard grass).

Luckily my dad came out on the run with me, because, to be honest, I’m not sure I would’ve made it the 3.1 miles without another person there. At 1.3 miles, I remember telling my dad that running both of my half marathons was easier than that 1 mile we had gone. Every time my feet hit the sand they twisted a little, so my IT bands and hips were aching. The wind was blowing, and I was being slapped by sand. But it was beautiful, and I tried to focus on the sunshine (at least I wasn’t slipping on ice like runs in February!) and the sound of the waves.

We turned around at almost two miles, and it was instantly better. We found a place with more packed down sand and the wind died down. The rest of the run was beautiful, and we actually went closer to four miles instead of 3.1.

I tried to look at the run as a really good training run. No, my half marathon won’t be on sand, but I have no idea what the weather will be like that day. Maybe it will be pouring and really rainy. Maybe it will be weather that I trained in, maybe not. No matter what, this run in very different conditions helped get me in a different mindset.

My pace… now that is another story. I was running pretty pathetic 13 minute miles. OUCH. Luckily my runs since that time have been a bit faster or I’d be a little worried.

All of these tough runs are frustrating but learning experiences and important going into race day. Besides, I had a pretty great view (here).

Now it’s your turn to share! What’s the toughest run (or work out) you’ve had? Do you like beach work outs? 

April 8, 2013

There’s an interesting connection between our thoughts, our feelings, and our behaviors. In a nutshell, our thoughts influence our feelings which influence our behavior. We have thoughts about our behavior, and the cycle continues. It’s like a tiny wheel of activity that is constantly going on in each of our heads. That’s why cognitive behavioral therapy has been shown via hundreds (thousands?) of studies throughout the years to be the most effective therapy for a number of issues (OCD, depression, anxiety, etc…). (a side note: CBT is NOT the only type of therapy that is effective). The process of CBT involves looking at our thoughts and feelings about a situation or person, identifying what is negative or distorted, challenging these things, and changing them.

If we can change our natural thought process to something that more accurately lines up with reality, our emotions and behaviors get to a more realistic and positive place. However, this takes some time, work, and effort to get to know this cycle in our lives.

This week, my challenge for you is to work on identifying the thought, feeling, behavior cycle in your life. Look at how this cycle influences you, both positively and negatively. Observe the outcomes of this cycle. We can’t change what we don’t know, so this week, get to know the cycle!

Now it’s your turn to share! How do your thoughts influence how you feel? How do thoughts influence behavior? 

April 7, 2013

Last week there were so many walks on my recap because I was at the beach, and who doesn’ t love long walks on the beach, right? Unfortunately, the extra walking definitely flared up my IT band a bit, and yesterday’s run was the first really bad IT band pain I’ve had while running since the fall. Here’s what the week looked like:

I had orthotics made to try to help my IT band, and have finally gotten around to building up some distance in them. I still haven’t taken them on a run, and have no plans to wear them in the mini. I put them in shoes and wore them around the house for short bursts of time, and my walk on Wednesday was the first walk I took in them. It felt just fine. I plan to continue to wear them on walks and maybe on short runs before the race, and then build up to longer distances in them throughout the summer.

As you can see, I’m also doing Tina’s Best Body Bootcamp. This week was the first week, and I am feeling muscles I didn’t really know existed. I’m planning to do a post on it soon, but I wanted to at least show you how it was scheduled throughout the week.

Now it’s your turn to share! Have you ever gone to boot camp? What is one exciting thing you did, saw, or ate this past weekend?

April 4, 2013

Oh boy. The day is closer to being over and I’m just now typing up this post. It’s been a busy week. You see, last week I was actually on spring break (yes- I’m a lucky adult who gets a “spring break” at my job!) in Florida, so I’ve been a bit behind since arriving home later on the day on Monday. I will mention that gave a lecture while down there, so I fit a bit of work in while down there too. It’s 58 degrees right now, and the sun is shining in my windows, and I’m ready to get thankful, so let’s go:

I’m thankful for long walks on the beach. Oh how cliche is this? One of the things I love most about Florida is getting to go on 3-4 mile walks with the waves hitting my feet each day. It’s so relaxing, and I love being able to stay active while getting to enjoy warm weather!

I’m thankful for sunshine. March was gray a lot of the time. Oh, and it was sleeting and raining and snowing a lot too. It was an abnormal and gross March. But being in Florida was great because it was sunny, and every day since I’ve been back has also been sunny. Does anyone else feel an instant mood lift when it’s sunny outside? For me it’s practically like drinking coffee!

I’m thankful for beautiful sunsets. Almost every night we were treated to some variation of a beautiful sunset. Here’s an example. Pretty, right?

photoPlease sign me up for this view every night!

I’m thankful for the snowstorm that I missed. One morning I was up with the sunrise, and went to sit out on the dock (in a pair of shorts!) to watch the sun over the water. As I was sitting there, I got a text from a friend back home showing the ELEVEN inches of snow that they had just gotten. Yeah… it  looks like I got out of town just in time. By the time I got home, all the snow was gone and it was starting to warm up already!

I’m thankful that I don’t have to dread coming back from vacation. I recognize how blessed I am. I know far too many people who hate coming back from vacation because they don’t like their jobs. But I have a job I love, and so while I love being on vacation and loving having days off, I also love going to work. I’m pretty thankful for that.

Now it’s your turn to share! Tell me what you’re feeling thankful for today! 

April 3, 2013

A few weeks ago I did a generic post about how and why I ended up doing meal preparation on Sundays, and shared some common meals that I make. I wanted to give you a further look into what that actually looks like:

Meal Prep 1 CollageFresh salad (prepped for the week, but wait to put on salad dressing until the day of!), roasted broccoli (reheats great!), spicy greek chicken (great for putting in salads), hard boiled eggs (great for salads, snacks, or easy egg salad sandwich!)

Meal Prep 2 Collage

Squash Ravioli, Quiche, French toast (reheats great, put on whatever toppings you want), and root beer float cupcakes (for evening snacks!)

Meal Prep 3 Collage

Fresh Strawberries. Half have the top cut off, while others have been cut into small slices for oatmeal- all ready to take to work. Sandwiches pre-made for the first three days of the week (just don’t put any mayo or BBQ sauce on until the morning of or they’ll get soggy). Amish chicken noodle soup (with veggies)- perfect for dinners!

So, that’s an example of two different Sundays of meal prep!

Now it’s your turn to share! Do you have any tricks to make meals throughout the week easier for yourself?