Adventurous Friday

Happy Friday everyone! Hope your week ended on a high note and you all get a chance to relax and unwind this weekend!

Today was Day 3 of the running challenge, and oh did it live up to it's name! I decided to head over to Sharon Woods to get in a 5 mile run this afternoon. I've only run the harbor trail there once or twice, but I really enjoyed the course. There are hills and curves and the frequent appearances of the lake really make it an enjoyable run. So in the Indian Summer heat I decided it was a great day for another loop around the lake!

The run was a little shaky at first, but by the time I was wrapping up the first loop I definitely was in the groove. And then the adventure began. Since running the Flying Pig in the spring, I've been wearing a running cuff to hold keys, ShotBlocks, etc. while out and about. I laced up my shoes today and slid my car key in the cuff and took off. By mile 3.5 things were feeling great...until I checked my cuff and discovered my car key was missing. And then the scavenger hunt began! After about fifteen minutes of searching for my lone car key, someone walking by noticed the panic look on my face and mentioned they found a key on the path and placed it on a bench nearby! I started jogging back and there it was waiting for me. Moral of the story: hair ties secure keys to wrists better than running cuffs. I'm so glad to run in areas with such friendly people!

I'm learning more and more about myself with these outdoor runs. I can't wait to see what's in store for the next few runs! Please send your favorite routes and running spots my way, I really want to branch out of my normal spots!

Have a wonderful weekend!

October Challenge: Day Two

Today's run was off to a nice start, for about thirty seconds and then the rain set in. Normally I would have turned around and waited for a better time to get my run in, but I decided to stick with it since I'm trying to overcome my negative feelings running outside. It really wasn't bad at all, but one of my biggest pet peeves is wearing wet clothes. I hate the way they feel!

Luckily today's run flew by and I barely felt the rain. I may have been focusing more on trying not to slip on the fallen leaves.

I did notice I was moving a bit more quickly, which felt great since I'm trying to build up some speed after focusing on distance for so long. Overall, it was a great run to start the day despite the rain!

After my run I decided to head to the gym and work out my sore muscles with an awesome spin class. Since I lifted yesterday, I needed to get moving so they wouldn't stiffen up so much. Tomorrow I should feel great for another longer run before the weekend!

Have a wonderful afternoon!

October Challenge

Good morning everyone!

I hope your week is going smoothly and you're off to a wonderful start to the day!

I'm very excited about my newest fitness challenge that I began this morning. Last week I got an email from the Tone it Up team that explain their newest workouts and fitness plans for the fall. If you're interested you can check them out here. One challenge they came up with was 100 miles in October. The goal of the challenge is to fit in 100 miles, either by running, walking, biking, or swimming by the end of the month. I really liked this challenge because it seems very manageable (basically you need 2.5 miles a day) and because its a great way to build consistency with your workouts.

After thinking about the challenge some, I decided to take it on, but add my own little twist. Even though I've been running for the past three years, I still struggle with running outside. The most I enjoyed it was when I was training for the Flying Pig marathon earlier this year. I really liked seeing the city while I got a good workout in. I ran in new areas of town that I never really thought I would. After the race though my outdoor session immediately ended. Still it takes a great deal of mental prep for me to conquer an outdoor run. So here's my version of the Tone it Up challenge: I'm going to run 100 miles between now and Oct. 31st- outside only. I think this will be a great way to help me overcome by mental block with running outside!

I started the challenge this morning with a 2.5 mile run around a neighborhood track.

It was the perfect fall morning for a run! It felt great being outside and getting those miles in. Tomorrow I'm planning on a three mile run around the neighborhood. If you have any suggestions for running trails or favorite spots to hit the pavement please, please, please feel free to leave them in the comment section. Right now I have plans for more neighborhood runs, as well as a few at Sharon and Winton Woods. I've never ran at Lunken Airport either so I think I'll have to add it to the challenge list :). 

Although I'm really excited about the running challenge, I think I'm almost more excited about the goal at the end. I know, as a runner, the payoff for this challenge will be phenomenal. However I'm also human and a little incentive has never hurt when it comes to meeting a goal. I decided my incentive is a new Lululemon jacket or hoodie if I reach this goal! I'm so excited about this because I have been eyeing their fall line and could never bring myself to pay that kind of money for a jacket/sweatshirt. However, instead of rewarding myself with food (normally my mom meets me at the finish line of a race with coffee and a cake donut!) I wanted to encourage my healthy lifestyle choices in another way. I can't think of a better way than new workout gear. I haven't decided which jacket I'm aiming for but let's just say their website is definitely bookmarked for further research :). 

Time to tackel a huge to-do list waiting for me and rest up for tomorrow miles! Happy Hump Day!

Fitness Inspiration Wednesday

Helo all!

Hope you're enjoying your week and staying focused on whatever goals you have!

Maybe this will help you stay on track...

(Photo courtesy of Shape magazine). I've actually had that photo on my phone lock screen and it really helps me stay focused on any goal I've put in place.

Thinking about motivation, I've notice more and more the people who inspire me to stick to my fitness goals.

This week I want to focus on my gym "support group". I've been working out at the same gym for about four years and tend to keep my workouts to myself. Mainly because of my super-crazy school schedule, but I can also be pretty shy (only give me a few days and you'd never believe it!) For the past few weeks though I've been able to spend more time at the gym taking classes I enjoy. As a result my network of fitness buddies has definitely grown! And I am absolutely thrilled about it :)

I really enjoy group fitness classes because I tend to stick to the same routines. Lately, I've been going to spinning classes several times a week and it's always a great workout! Last week I completed a triple-spin with a great group of people! Each one was so motivating to make it through each class (even when I thought I might fall off my bike, haha). After our successful workout, we celebrated with some much deserved Mexican food and margaritas! Although my body was not up for much celebrating, I was so proud of my accomplishment!

I love going to the gym and seeing so many people support each other reach such a wide variety of goals! Everyone checks on each other and seems genuinely excited when a member accomplishes something they've sent out to do. Working out has been come less of a requirement and more of a social session filled with laughter and love!

Who/ what motivates you to stay on track when things are getting rough? 

Happy Hump day!

Summer Smoothie Challenge

With the warmer weather finally settling in, I've decided to take on a new fitness challenge! For 30 days I will test out thirty different types of protein shakes/ breakfast smoothies. I love how easy it is to fit is a whole serving of fruit (or sometimes vegetables, if its a green smoothie) into breakfast smoothies!

While I tend to be a creature of habit and make a recipe I love over, and over, and over again, I struggle with finding protein shakes that keep my energy levels up, and the hunger monster down. So my goal here is to try as many shakes in the next thirty days in hopes of finding the best the support scorning energy!

I actually began this challenge two days ago, but unfortunately couldn't snap a picture of two I've made so far. I will do my best to add photos to the summary of the smoothies with each post!

Monday I started off the challenge with Bob Harper's protein shake from his book The Skinny Rules. Harper's smoothie calls for:



1 1/2 c. frozen berries
1/2 c greek yogurt
6 oz. water or almond milk (I used Silk's unsweetened vanilla almond milk)

Unfortunately, I did not have enough frozen berries, so I substituted half of a frozen banana for the rest of the berries. While I enjoyed the flavor and texture of the smoothie, I found myself ready for a pick-me-up about two hours after drinking it.

Today, I created a hybrid of a smoothie. I based my shake today off of a a recipe for Peach Cobbler Protein shake from Dashing Dish and Banana Cheesecake Shake from peanutbutterfingers.com. The recipe included low-fat cottage cheese, frozen peaches, half of a frozen banana, almond milk, and a cinnamon wedge of Laughing Cow cheese. I LOVED this shake! I only wished it made a larger serving because it was gone way too fast! It also was a bit more satisfying than Monday's smoothie.

I'm not sure what tomorrow will feature (I desperately need to go to the grocery store!), but I'll be sure to fill you in with a photo and a summary of what I thought!

Back At It

         After completing my first marathon two weeks ago, I had a hard time getting back into exercising. I don't just mean back into a routine, but I was having a hard time getting into it because I stopped enjoying it. Today I laced up and headed to the gym hoping to find the fun in my workouts. When I set up a bike for spin class several people stopped to ask me about my race. It felt so good to hear people asking about my fitness milestone! And it helped me realize that I enjoy beating these challenges which means I have to sign up for the next one. While it may take me some time to be as "obsessed" as some argue I once was I felt great to be back at it.

      I thought I would take a break from grading papers this afternoon and continue the "back at it" theme by writing a post. After seeing this survey on PeanutButterFingers I thought it would be a nice way to catch up after being gone for almost a year.

So here's what's going on now in my world:

Current Book(s):

My students are reading To Kill A Mockingbird and I am loving reading it with them. I never was assigned to read the book in high school so it kind of fell below the radar. My sister teased me for years about how disappointed she was with the fact that I had never read it so I saw this as the perfect opportunity to take her recommendation.

Current Music:

I'm still enjoying my marathon playlist whenever I hit the gym! I love the wide range of genres on that list! It really helps keep me interested in my workout!

I'm also getting into summertime with some country music! I love summer country concerts and this summer looks particularly promising: Tim, Kenny, Blake, Jason, and Luke!  

Current Guilty Pleasure:

Sleeping in! I forgot how much I love it!

Current Nail Color:

Trying to decide between bright pink or Tiffany's blue. Place your votes in the comments section!Current Drink:

I have a bottle of Sequin white wine chilling in the fridge! I loved the design of the bottle so I hope the flavor is just as lovely!

Current Food:

I switched back to almond butter a few days ago and the jar is already gone! I need to find an economy sized one at this rate!

Current Favorite Show:

Still Big Bang Theory! I LOVED the season finale and hate that I have to wait months for more good laughs!

Current Wish List:

Books on C.D. I love listening to them on long drives!

Current needs:

Suggestions for summer races around the Midwest area!

Current Indulgence:

With the warmer weather and invasion of summertime thoughts we've been frequenting OrangeLeaf more than usual! I love the new fruity flavors with the warm weather! I can't wait to try all the combinations!

Current Blessing:

My family has been unbelievable supportive through the crazy and exciting year! From student teaching to my first full time teaching job to finish a marathon and everything in between, my friends and family have been fabulously supportive, as always!

Current Outfit:

Comfortable skinny jeans and rocking' the Batman t-shirt!

Current Excitement:

Summer! I can't believe there are only two weeks of school left. I can't wait for all of the fun summer plans in the works: concerts, sand volleyball league, weekend-get-aways, and much more!

Hurtling: Overcoming Health and Fitness Road-blocks

Time for a little honesty:

I know this challenge was mainly designed to help me get "back on track" with my healthy lifestyle. And while I feel as if I have been fairly dedicated to following the rules Harper explicitly lays out in his book I know I have not been as strictly adherent to them as I probably should be. There are two conclusions I draw from this: first, I consider myself to be a fairly healthy person. I'm not super rigid about my diet and perhaps I should be a little less lax. Second, I'm not sure I can reap the full benefits of these rules, in the sense of seeing clear changes, because I'm already a pretty healthy person. I'm not in any medical danger due to my size, nor would I consider myself (the BMI doesn't either) "overweight".

Therefore, I think I need to change my approach to achieving my goals. What I really want to focus on right now is getting leaner and stronger. When I think about the time I felt happiest with myself I immediately think of when I was at my strongest. I wasn't worried if I missed a workout or decided to splurge a little while out with friends. At the same time I was also more conscientious of sticking to a cleaner diet and a stricter gym routine.

So how do I get back to where I was? Well as I mentioned in my first post, I enjoy challenging myself physically and my newest challenge is CrossFit! I'm really really excited (and unbelievable nervous!) to start the program. I've been very interested in CrossFit for about six months now. Groupon just sent me an offer for a local CrossFit facility (http://www.crossfitanax.com) so I thought, "its now or... once I get a better income!" I love the idea of mixing intense strengthening moves with high-intensity cardio bursts. Since I'm not great at balancing these two out, I think following a program (and having  instructors pushing me to my limits) will help me achieve my over-all goal.

I still don't know very much about CrossFit so I'm sure I'll need to do some more research before classes begin. Walking into a session without a mild understanding of the concept of CrossFit just doesn't seem like a wise thing to do. These workouts are intense and I don't want to be surprised, or scared... too much! Anyone with any CrossFit experience or tips feel free to leave comments!!