Who Wants a Transformation?

*Faith raises hand*

Don't tell anyone, but...I went for a walk last night. It felt...weird. It was nice to be back in my running shoes again. I am eagerly awaiting the day when I can once again feel the pounding of the ground and the warmth of my muscles coming alive. Ahhh sweet bliss.

I am ready to slowly began rehab to get myself back into running shape. My plan is to spend the next 4 weeks awakening the muscles and slowly build back the strength. It will take a lot longer than 4 weeks, but my plan is to assess over the next 4 weeks. AFTER THAT, I would like to begin the H.I.T transformation routine again! If you were following me last year, I did the Fitness Rx H.I.T transformation in November (but did not post about progress). Stay tuned and you can join me. I'll post meal plans and workout routines for both home-monkeys and gym-monkeys. If you do not have a gym membership I do recommend you get 3 progressive weights, a jump rope, green level theraband and running shoes (importance).

Hope everyone is eating clean! Diet is 80% of your health & fitness.

No Excuses Training Streak

I am on Day 20 of my 40 day training streak. "No-excuses Training Streak"**. The habit of not allowing anything to get in my way of my training is formed! I had one of those "I just want to get into my sweat pants" days, but I donned my running shoes without a grunt! What a great feeling.

Two weeks ago or so the half marathon became this daunting cloud of doom, but after Thursday's run (Day 16 of No-Excuses Training Streak) I felt very confident - I am ready!! Bring it on, Austin,TX!

**A runner I follow on twitter, @libbyruns, inspired me to start a 40 day training streak of no excuses. I really enjoy being on twitter, bodybuilding.com, and this blogsite because it allows me to connect with other like minded people. Staying connected with like-minded people is one of the key elements to staying motivated.

Stay motivated everyone! Keep your goal in front of you!

Still Coughing, Still Training

Ack! Silly cough won't leave me alone!

Yesterday, was speed training. I just ran 2 miles but shaved 6 minutes off my time. *awesome*

My legs were feeling pretty tight/knotty...I think I need to learn how to massage my muscles. Or get a membership to Massage Envy...

Friday night is my final run day before the race and is also the night before the early morning race. I am debating whether to opt out or to do an easy jog. I would prefer to at least jog, but I want to be as strong and rested as possible. *debating*

I've been eating a lot of fruits lately, which has probably increased my sugar intake, but oh well.

I have tweaked our menu to replace turkey for beef. I still will work in maybe 1 meal a week to have ground sirloin or grass-fed 98% or a super lean steak. Our meats have been mostly chicken and turkey - ground, sliced, whole, baked, sauteed, grilled, broiled, stir-fried...you name it! Going on 3 weeks of the meat transformation and haven't had a boring meal yet!

I'm still secretly waiting for some *physical* signs of fitness improvement. ^_^ Would be nice, but interestingly, I'm staying motivated by the seeming lack of progress.

Being Sick SUCKS!

I lost a whole week of valuable training because I got sick. I do not even know what I had. Probably just a cold. It wasn't too bad, but it knocked me off my game. I started feeling sick on Tuesday night, woke up Wednesday feeling it coming on strong, but went for a run that evening anyway (only made it 3 miles because I was feeling pretty weak and didnt want to risk injury). Thursday and Friday I pushed through work, but crashed on Saturday. Sunday felt MUCH better, but played it safe and just rested.

Last night (Monday) was my first day back on the treadmill and I pushed through 4 miles with ease.

The weather is gorgeous...if I can get off RIGHT at 5, maybe I will have time to run OUTDOORS before it gets dark!! FUN!!!

Weight Report: 119
I think I might have hit a plateau at 119, which would be awesome. I'll give it till next week to see. If it is a plateau that would be awesome, that means just a little tweak here and a little tweak there and progress will be in sight!!

60 minutes

Weight Report: 119

60 minutes on the mill. Boom baby!

I took my speed down quite a bit to ensure I could complete the hour without injuring myself. It felt great and I could have definitely kept going, but I need to stay within the boundaries.

I'll do this for the whole week, so I will be trying to pick up the pace. Then next week bump up the time!!

Goal: to run 1.5 hours for 2 weeks prior to race. (that way the last half hour wont seem like too much more)

Thanksgiving Goals

I really want to push myself and one way I love to accomplish that is....SIGN UP FOR A RACE!

Turkey Trot 2009, baby! Its an Thanksgiving morning annual "fun run" so you can race it or you can run it. You can even jog or walk! Participants register for whatever suits them best. The 5k fun run is for families and runners.

2007 I had a blast running this with my girlfriend. I was still recovering from knee injuries, but we still made pretty good time. She was kind enough to walk a few breaks in between.

I just registered for this year's run...8 miler, here I come.

5 weeks to train.

www.thetrot.org

Losing and Improving

Weight Report I officially dropped a pound. I am now consistently weighing in at 121.0. Rock on.

Running
Milestone: arrived home from airport. unpacked running shoes. went running.

Milestone: ran 3.3 miles and finished 4 miles with a brisk walk at a 7% grade incline.

Diet The husband and I made a pact to stop eating out for the purpose of convenience. I have been making or preparing breakfast every morning, packing lunches and cooking well balanced meals every day since we got back. our new motto: "as close to the ground as possible" We have decided to revamp our diet to be clean. Example: we made homemade applesauce instead of mott's all natural. We include the skin in our processing so we get ALL the nutrients from the apple. We add a little cinnamon but no sugar (it doesn't need any). Blended with a small portion of water during processing.

My current cheat food: small portion of super low sugar vanilla yogurt (O-organics) with 2 med strawberries and pinch of fresh coconut.

My I-can't-take-it-anymore food: a tsp of Nutella on a half slice of dark rye toast.

Current personal goal: Weaning myself away from energy drinks and coffee. switching to tea. (no special reason, just a personal decision...I do this sometimes.) I love green tea and various black tea grades.

RAWRRR!!!

Even with all the birthday parties and the sugar that comes with the celebrations, I have managed to keep a focus. I have hit the 3 mile mark every day with the exception of my rest day. Even last night! Yesterday I left my house at 8:30 to practice on the church piano (I was filling in for the pianist); after church I went to my parent's house for a birthday celebration for my dad; after lunch I took a couple of my younger cousins and one of our family friends out for some hangout time; after bringing them back I helped with the after-party clean up - DISHES!! Then I perused through my parent's luggage to find one I could use for our trip this Thursday. I finally got home around at 8:50. Without letting my brain think about it, I donned my running shoes and went down to our super awesome apartment fitness center. I put in that 3 miles and patted my self on the back for a run well done. I made excellent time. I am looking forward to tonight's run.

Feeling a little overwhelmed trying to wrap my mind around all that needs to be done before I leave the country (at work and home) *sigh*, but God is in control, I just need to trust that. [prov 3:5-6]

5:00 am

NEW! Morning run. today,first day...LOVED IT!!! ...but no lie..5:00am is painful

Benefits of running in the morning: higher fat burn in AM vs. PM

Weight Report: 120.4

Low Calorie Week: Day 3

MEAL PLAN
Meal 1: 1C Cascadian Farm Honey Toasted O's in 2% milk
Coffee

Snack: less than 4 oz applesauce (mott's all natural no sugar added) and 1/4 cup purely O's (Cascadian Farm)

Meal 2: 1 scoop Optima slimfast powder in 80z skim milk

Snack: sugar free pudding (Jello banana chocolate) + almonds

Meal 3: 1 scoop vanilla protein powder in skim milk + blueberries + yogurt. Usually I add yogurt but..I NEED to switch to plain yogurt. The light yogurt has too much sugar still. I need to cut the sugars!

Snack: sugar free pudding (Jello Banana chocolate) + almonds

Meal 4: TBA date night with the husband, I will be looking for perfect options and will post here tomorrow.

WORKOUT PLAN
1 mile at 5.4
2 GP
.5 mile at 5.2
3 sets Tricep - cable
2 sets kick backs
4 superset Skull crushers + dips

AFTER-COMMENTS: Meal 2 and Meal 4 will swap (see post entitled Sabotage under category "Eating right when eating out" AND husband has been working for 22 hours so I want to let him sleep. maybe date night will be breakfast =).

Low Calorie Week: Day 1

I neglected on my grocery shopping and so was super low on food today...ugh

Breakfast of Champs
7 Jelly beans (11 cals) they were on the receptionist desk and I just did not resist...
1/4C Purely-O's - Cascadian Farm organic cereal DRY
Coffee
8 oz water

Snack - 1/4C purely-O's
Coffee
8 oz water

Lunch - turkey breast wrap, small tortilla, lettuce, mustard and avocado

Snack - 8 oz whole milk + 1 scoop optima protein (250 cals)
8 oz water

384 total calories before dinner...wow...and surprisingly not starving...work is busy...that helps.

Dinner - garlic wine chicken breast with squash and zucchini

SUPER MOTIVATED ABOUT TONIGHTS WORKOUT:
CARDIO - 2 miles
ABS -
4 sets hanging leg raises
2 sets hanging side raises
3 sets flat bench leg raises
3 sets Broom
2 sets Planks (30 sec each)
2 sets side planks
3 sets on swiss ball

Oh Cardio, how I love thee

Last night I ran for just over 2 miles, burned 180 cals, then jumped on the elipticle and told my self "100 calories". I got to 100 and I thought Thats a total of 280 calories...I might as well finish it off with just 20 more to make it 300. So I did. Then I thought Gosh, thats 160 LESS than I did on Sunday...maybe I'll burn 160 more. So I did. ok just 10 more calories. So I did.

470 calories with each machine set for 121 lbs and age 25. I miss being 124...it displayed a lot more calories for my energy :(...aww I'm losing weight, isn't life rough?... ^_^

It's a Great Day to be Alive

Weighed in at 120.8
That means I successfully maintained my weight, but it does mean I also did not meet my goal of losing 1 lb this week. Let's give it another shot. Lookout 6/9, the scale is going to show one pound less!!

Sunday's long run burned 360 cals over 60 minutes on the treadmill. Whew. That was a long trek. I had set out to burn 400+ cals, but the treadmill cuts you off, so I hopped on the elipticle and revved the intensity so I could burn 100 more cals in 7 minutes (before Luke finished his workout). I made it just in time!

All my other workouts this past week have been phenomenal. My diet however...has been GREAT with the exception of Thursday when I ate 3 donuts over the course of the day (its just SO good with coffee) and dried mangos for breakfast on Monday. Obviously I did really well on all other accounts, because I kept my weight! Rock on.

PS...Pumpkin protein recipe is forthcoming!

Almost

1. I almost ran my "5-6 mile" goal
2. I almost missed a workout

This morning I weighed in at 120.8. so I lost those 2lbs I gained and I'm ready to keep trucking.

I have been trying so pretty awesome proteing recipes...Pumpkin Muffin with protein and protein icing. Super delicious and PACKED with protein. Barely any fat and sugar (if using non fat milk and splenda). Chicken Wild Rice Casserole with protein. Yukon Gratin Potatoes. Low Fat Beef Stroganoff with extra protein. I have been adding protein in a lot of my other recipes now that I have the hang of it.

Saturday I put in a good solid 3+ mile with incredible ease
Sunday I fell asleep after a long day (but it was only 5pm) and I was so sleep deprived (because of my life style of not sleeping) that I slept till Monday morning at 6! So I missed my Sunday workout, but made up for it on Monday.

Monday I ran 4 miles (1-2 miles short of my goal because I wanted to make it in time to take yoga) . Immediately after, I stretched for 10 minutes then ran to the groupx room for some hot yoga. Not a good idea after losing water in a run. I was so dehydrated and fast getting overheated because of it. I quit the class half way through for the sake of my health. This wa smy first taste of true yoga. I have done bits and pieces of yoga movements that were interwoven to other core classes. It certainly forces you to stabalize and really opens up your chest and sholders to have fabulous posture. I had a great back and upper body workout that i was expecting, but to my surprise we had a great lower body workout as well! It was like dance without the cardio. The movements were controlled so you're thinking "easy...no sweat" but the room was so warm and you feel everything!!! So you really burn those calories with a capital "C". I do NOT like the spirtual aspects of Yoga...praying to the gods, etc...but most yoga classes I have heard of have been exercise oriented only, no meditation or praying elements. and THAT I can live with ^_^

Today (tuesday) is my off day since I made yesterday my Sunday O_0.

Tomorrow...WAKEBOARDING!!!

The Rule of accountability

Fitness is a hard road when you go it alone.

I have enlisted the partnership of my friend Mary. We are super stoked because we both have extremely similar goals. I really believe this will help us reach our goals faster.

FAILURE NOTICE: The past week or so I have struggled with some serious cravings and 80% of the time I caved. I have successfully put on weight because of my bad choices. I weigh in at 124 PM and 122 AM. That means I have about 10-12 pounds to lose by October. Approx 3-4 lbs a month.

Today I will be running this set: 1 mile + 5 1:00 min AI + 1 mile.

If I have time to do pilates this evening I will squeeze that in as well.

In 4 weeks I will be able to run 5 miles without distress and after verifying this for 1.5 weeks I will progress to the "9 weeks to a half" routine:
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-244--6851-2-2X5X8-4,00.html

weight report, running progress, new diet

My 3 miles are solid. I can handle the monotony now psychologically...SO ITS TIME TO KICK IT UP! Wednesday I am going to go straight into a 4 miler. I am not going to do a transitionaly run of 3.5. Instead, I will run the first 3 at a 5.0 pace and on mile 4 I will evaluate to maintain speed or reduce to a jog. Thursday is an off day and this weekend we will be on the road, so I may not get another opportunity to run till Sunday. That will be a nice long rest for my knees and lower back. Assuming all goes well, I will attempt it again on Sunday, rest Monday, and do it again on Tuesday and forward.

New: I am on week 3 of a new rule - "No carbs after 4:00". It has been good, but every now and then I have stopped carbs at 1:00 and then my workouts were not as strong...gotta be careful about cutting out too much. Its been difficult to monitor because of how busy we have been, but...no excuse, right? That's just life!

I now weigh in at 121.2 AM weight; 123 PM weight. that is about 4 lbs from my goal weight.

3 Mile Marker

Woohoo - I have now been running a solid 3 miles each day. Next Tuesday I will make a small increase in the distance. Meanwhile, I'm working on my time. My first two miles I have successfully shaved off about a minute off each mile. Mile 3 is half tempo, part up tempo and part reduced. Up till now it has all been for completion. Now that my brain is a bit accustomed to the time, I think I can kick it up and improve my timing.

tempo: 5.3mph
up tempo: 5.6
down tempo range: 5.1-4.8

10 mile goal

My goal is to be able to complete a 10 mile run solid by 9/5/09 .

Right now I am completing a measly (but solid) 1.5 with a .5m cool down for psychological endurance for a 2m. I think the 2m is just around the corner. This week I was supposed to increase by 10%, but Sunday's workout didn't happen and tonight will be stolen as well. Tomorrow and Friday I will complete the usual, but time myself, then on Saturday and Sunday I will run the time outdoors (instead of the distance). On Sunday night perhaps I will evaluate my knees to see if I can up it to 1.63.

last week was bad...pizza one night, pasta another...*sigh*