A Little Sweat Won't Kill Me

It's Olympics time!  I could not be more excited.  I absolutely love the Olympics.  I always think that seeing all these amazing individuals compete at the highest level is so inspiring.  I sometimes wish I could be one of those people, but, let's face facts.  I am clutzy, have no eye-hand coordination, am slow, and am gettin' old.  Oh well!  That doesn't mean that I can't strive for my own version of physical excellence.

Weekly workout roundup:

Sunday:  Rest
Monday:  4.75 mile run
Tuesday:  Ripped in 30 - levels 2 & 4 (~60 mins)
Wednesday:  Rest
Thursday:  4 mile run
Friday:  Ripped in 30 - level 4 (~30 mins)
Saturday:  9.1 mile run (7.55 miles running, rest walking; 98 mins)

Total weekly hours working out:  ~4.43
Miles:  17.85

Yeehaw.  Okay, not my best week ever, but I am happy with what I was able to accomplish.  Some weeks are just more of a struggle than others.  I am shocked by my training run this morning.  I ran the first six miles straight - the longest I have gone thus far without stopping (60 minutes).  And you know what?  It really wasn't that bad.  The first mile was rough - and I felt slow throughout the run but who cares?  I did it!  Not too shabby for a girl that couldn't run the mile in school!

What I have been really struggling with is eating too much.  I'm not eating poorly and am still focusing on whole foods.  I have just been really hungry and eating a lot.  Calorie-wise, I am eating an amount that should maintain my weight so I am not stressed about this but I would like to get a little more control back.  Is it the running?  Stress of a new job?  Who knows.  I hope to adjust soon!

Random Topic of the Week:  If you look pretty when you are done working out, you didn't do it right

I give credit to my friend Renee for thought!

So, I typically work out in the morning.  I get up at a ridiculous hour (between 4:45 and 4:55am), wash my face, change, and get my butt either on the road or down in my basement for a workout.  I like working out this early for several reasons:

1. I feel better all day.

2. I don't have to think about an impending workout while I go throughout my day.

3. I am more likely to skip an evening workout than a morning workout.

4. It's so quiet and peaceful out at that time in the morning.  The only people I see on an early morning run are other morning exercisers, who are typically always super friendly and I'm starting to recognize the faces I've been seeing more often.
5. (and most importantly) I get to shower and go from looking like a crazy, sweaty, curly-haired mess to being a normal, professional person.

I see other people running when I'm on the road in the morning and they always look powder fresh.  HOW do they do this?  I just do not understand how you can be working out and not even break a sweat or mess up your hair.  Do they just not sweat?  I feel like if I don't have to shower when I come home, I didn't get a workout in.  I mean, this is what I look like after only a 38 minute run (imagine what I look like after my 9.1 miler this morning!):

Soaked through clothes, red in the face, puffy eyes (though this might be because it was 6am), headphones all askew, crazy look on my face.  Ah yes, this is what I should look like after a workout!



I used to feel so uncomfortable with this feeling and looking this way and didn't want to be in public like this.  What I have realized is that sweat is a badge of honor of sorts.  I worked hard for that and am proud of my commitment to my health no matter what I look like!  Now when people drive by and stare at me, I don't care and like to imagine that they are just jealous of my awesomeness (and dream about my impending shower).  :)

Back to the Olympics! 

The Second Time Around...Maybe

Happy weekend!  It's been a good but busy week and Saturday.  I, once again, met the majority of workout goals (5 days per week, 3 work mornings and 2 work evenings; I only missed one evening workout but I'm cool with that):

Sunday:  Ripped in 30, level 3 (30 mins) + 20 mins elliptical
Monday:  Travel for work (i.e. "rest")
Tuesday:  AM - 39 min run
Wednesday:  AM - Shed and Shred Levels 1&2 (cut slightly short due to lack of time; 65 mins); PM - Ripped in 30, level 4 (30 mins) - FYI this combo made my thigh muscles twitch for 2 days!
Thursday:  Rest
Friday:  AM - 43 min run/walk (mostly walk)
Saturday:  8.2 miles (91 mins; broken into 6 miles running, 2.2 miles walking)
5.8 hours working out total this week

What I realized this week is that I really, really, reeaaaalllly miss my half marathon training.  I miss the focus on something other than work craziness.  I miss working towards something challenging in my personal life.  I miss being that athletic and fit.  I miss that time to myself when I'm outside doing something productive.

Now, I am only 2 weeks into my new job and all signs point to things getting very, very busy come mid-August or so.  So am I crazy to think about doing another half marathon on September 23rd?  Probably. 

I have been worried about spending the money, especially since I'll likely need new shoes again in the near future.  But, I've decided not to join a gym in my new town and I justify the cost that I would spend on a bigger race based on the fact that I don't really have any other money-costing hobbies right now.

I've also been looking at my weight fluctuations.  I have been bouncing around with the same 5 pounds or so for the past 2 months and I'm sick of it.  With what I lost this week, I am only 12 pounds away from a healthy weight for my height and I am at a point where I need to kick my butt back into gear.  I am thisclose and I seem to have lost some of my steam. 

For comparison purposes, I lost 22.8 pounds during the four months of training for the GB Half (5.7 pounds/month average) and have lost 5 pounds in the last two months (2.5 pounds/month).  Yes, I lose slow and yes, this type of training is more intense than what most people probably want to do.  I enjoy it (otherwise, I wouldn't do it).  I'm not worried about meeting my weight loss goals during this training and I don't think it will happen but I do need a kick in the butt to get my calorie burn up a little higher.

So, am I going to do it?  Maybe and most likely.  I plan to train as though I am going to complete the half in September but I am going to wait to spend the money on signing up until I know for sure I can get my body into shape in 9-ish weeks.  I completed 8.2 miles this morning and feel very good today so maybe I'm not as out of running/walking shape as I thought I was!  The jump from 8 to 13 is a big one though! 

There are several things that I will be doing differently this time around, including:

1. Being smarter about my nutritional choices
2. Being smarter about hydration - I dehydrated (and thus got very sick) a couple of times during my last training.  I would think I would be fine but really, I was not.  Water, water, water!
3. Much more cross training - I can easily bust out 30-35 miles per week but it results in overuse pain in my right foot, a loss of upper body strength, and major workout burn out.
4. Including running into training - I will not be running the entire half as my knees would never go for it but I would like to include more running as long as I am enjoying it.  If I stop enjoying it, I will walk.  No shame in walking the race! :)  BTW - I have been finding that running is much easier than walking at a clip of ~4.7 or higher for longer distances.  I have yet to figure out why this is.
5. Never training (specifically running) two days in a row.  This wasn't as big of a deal when I walked but my joints cannot handle intense running two days in a row.  This also forces #3 to happen.
6. I will not be setting any time goals - I might wear a watch during training runs but I am not going to be putting an emphasis on time.  I will be wearing a watch during morning runs as I need to be sure I get to work on time!  Why am I doing this?  I care less about being super speedy than I do about being healthy.  Being worried about time takes the fun out of it.
7. Less training time - 4 months vs 2 months, enough said
8. Listening to my body - if I start burning out between training and work, I will pull the plan and go back to basics and not run the race.  No big deal.  The goal is to be healthy not put so much stress on myself that I start faltering in other areas of my life.

So, here we go again.  We'll see how this goes!

A Little Something Different

Last week was rough.  But good.  And now it's over.  I'm happy about this.  My least favorite part about starting a new job (or a new semester when I was a student) is the first week.  Remember the stress of figuring out where you were supposed to be and what you are supposed to be doing?  I hate that.  Unfortunately, it looks like it will be another few weeks of that.  My new work is renovating a room for my new job and my office is not finished yet.  Hopefully it will be soon so I don't spend all my time this summer walking across campus in the 90F+ heat everyday.  I cannot wait to get settled in...and to have a coffee maker in my office.  Oh, yes, coffee will be needed mid-day with this job!

For the most part, I met my fitness goals for last week.  To recap, go here.  Here's what actually happened:

Sunday:  6.38 mile walk

Monday:  Level 1 (38mins) of Jillian Michael's Extreme Shed and Shred (AM)

Tuesday:  Rest

Wednesday:  Levels 1 & 2 (80 mins) Shed and Shred (AM); 3 mile walk (PM)

Thursday:  Rest

Friday:  Levels 1 & 2 (80 mins) Shed and Shred (AM)

Saturday:  Rest

That adds up to exceeding my morning workout goals (min of 30 minutes, three mornings), falling short of my evening workout goal (2 nights), and not quite meeting my total workouts goal (5 days/week).  I'm going to cut myself a little slack on this one.  I'm actually surprised and very proud that I accomplished what I did.  Let's face it, I actually got up at 4:45am three mornings to workout on my first week of work.  Of course, I was ready for bed at 7:30pm every night.  I was not expecting to be so tired at night.  I think 'non-functional' would have been a good description for how I felt at night and on Saturday.

I'm still dragging today but I need to get things done.  I need to clean and get a good workout in because I feel like it's important to start my week out strong.  I'm going to leave my workout goals the same for this week.  I'll likely refine this schedule as I start getting a better feel for how my weeks will go as time goes on but this works for now.  I need to cook today too! 

This morning, I made this egg bake.  I need something different in the morning.  I am a little burnt out on oatmeal and yogurt for breakfast, so eggs were on the menu.  I made a four-serving egg bake to cover this morning and three breakfasts during the week.  It's very low in calories, so I can add in a fruit or pumpkin smoothie to round out the meal.  I wasn't quite sure what to expect with this bake but it was very, very good.  Next time, I might add a couple extra eggs (I only had 6 on hand).  I would think that adding cheese would be very good but I have a hard time digesting eggs and cheese together.  Kalamata olives and feta would be excellent add ins!

Mediterranean Egg Bake

Serves 4; 140 calories per serving

Ingredients:
3 large leaves of kale, chopped
5 portabella mushrooms, chopped
2 scallions, sliced
2 medium tomatoes, sliced
6 eggs
1/2 cup milk of choice (soy, cow, almond, coconut, etc.)
1 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper

On the stovetop, sweat out the kale, mushrooms, and scallions until slightly wilted.  Add in 1/4 cup of water and continue cooking until the water evaporates (note: this helps reduce the bitterness of the kale); let this mixture cool for about 5 minutes.  In a large bowl, mix the eggs, milk, and spices until well combined.  When the kale mixture has cooled, add it to the eggs and stir to combine.  Transfer to a small baking dish.  Top the eggs with the slices of tomatoes and add a small amount of salt to the top of the tomatoes.  Bake at 350F for 35 minutes.  Let cool for 5 minutes, slice, and serve!