Breakdown

Friday night I had mcdonalds, then hubby came home with magnolia cupcakes and I had one. The next morning I skipped my tri class, had another cupcake. Today I woke up and the only think I wanted was to get to the gym.

I felt crappy and I knew why.

Went to the gym and ran 4 miles, felt good.

However, when I got home I started getting the auro part of a migraine. If you have not had this it is hard to explain and it sucks. I lied down for a little and the auro stuff went away but I had a pounding headache all day.

I bought some probiotics, as well as some DHA for the girls and some proboitics for them, hubby bought some fish oil pills. Any one have knowledge on all these and what brands you like and why we should be taking them. I need to research.

Snow Day, Ultramarathons and running barefoot ?

Today is a snow day, luckily I was prepared with all the baking/cooking from yesterday and all the better shopping I do now that I am eating better. I went out to shovel again, since we have like 2 feet of snow or something insane like that. My younger one joined me for a bit, but my older one wants NOTHING to do with the snow, don't really blame her as I prefer a sunny beach anyday.

You would think on a snow day I would feel all ready to do laundry, clean, organize, i mean we have NO WHERE to go. BUT NO, I am still in my PJ"S (yes I shoveled in them) and really just hanging out.

I am currently reading the book Born to Run, hubby got me it for christmas. I am enjoying it, however it talks about ULTRA MARATHONS and I gotta admit I don't get it. I don't understand the concept ? why ? how ? who ? what ? where and when ? so if anyone wants to enlighten me feel free. do you ultra ? do you know someone who ultras ?

No gym today but busy

Today

• had my 3 year old's special day at school - so cute
• made banana bread
• made turkey meatloaf
• shoveled the driveway
• cleaned about a hundred bowls and pans (due to the cooking - see last post)

The gym was not in the plan but I was happy to go out and shovel the slush that was forming. Hubby hurt his knee the other night playing hockey so he is unable to perform the manly duties. Step up MOMMMY, so as the turkey meatloaf was cooking in the oven I was out shoveling. I felt quite accomplished.

I also have taken up knitting again.

Clean eating is messy

Besides all my exercise I am also trying to eat better. More healthy and more fresh. Less processed. This means I can make a pizza instead of get the frozen pizza. Make breaded chicken for kids instead of frozen nuggets. Making things from scratch. Yes I feel that if I make tollhouse cookies it is BETTER than a processed store bought cookie. BUT that is another post.

My point is I have been cooking, baking, preparing MORE at home and what I realize is that it makes a big mess. My dishwasher is filled to the brim AND I always have some big bowl, pot or pan sitting there soaking.

I just made a chicken pasta dish and used half of the chicken to make a chicken salad. It feels very good to make something and prepare something for the next day. Today worked out but somedays when I am doing it, I HATE it. I hate the mess, I hate that the meal I made might taste like crap, I hate that if I didn't plan ahead the meat was too frozen and didn't cook well. AND some days I am just exhausted and when I see that sink full of dirty crap it makes me pissy.

I am realizing that it is all about PREPARING !!! If I remember to take the meat out of freezer, if I remember to have all the ingredients, if I give myself enough time to cook, and freezing or prepping for the night where I don't have the time. Life is better. BUT it seems so disciplined.

What about you ? How disciplined are you ? does it help ?

ICE

Must ice shins tonight.

that's all folks

so it goes

Sunday I ran 4 miles on the treadmill. Need to start putting in some miles for the 9 mile relay leg I will be doing. Today was spin, I am really getting sick of the one instructors music. It is the same stuff, and she has house music in there. I just need something different. Plus I can't hear her. I have to start looking at a different spin day but this one works well for me and the kid's schedules. AND the other classes fill up and I chance not making the sign up.

I also need to get some strength training somewhere in my week. I am thinking of doing this at home in the evening. 20 minutes of abs and weights.

Do you take classes ? How do you feel about the music that is played ? Do you do any at home workouts ??

Challenges

This am was triclass with ironlady. Swam, spinned and then ran. Sometimes I find the swimming frustrating b/c I still have to use fins and do drills. It is as if you forget all the technique each time you leave the pool. BUT patience is a virtue. I also realize that I am learning to be a better, more efficient swimmer who will have endurance. Spin was good. For the run she told us we were going to run 15 minutes, first 5 at an easy steady effort, the second 5 at the goal pace we want to run in a sprint tri, then the last 5 at easy steady pace. I LOVED this. As soon as i heard it out of her mouth I thought it was great. I love challenging myself and I love the idea of actually thinking about a pace that you WANT to do in a race. So I started running at 5.2 and moved to 5.5 for the first 5, I was thinking about my goal run pace for a sprint tri and I want to be able to do 8.30 minute miles. So I pumped it up to 6.9 and started running. HOLY shit it was hard, but 5 minutes - that is all 5 minutes - I can do that right ?? So I am huffing and puffing away and ironlady comes over to ask what I am at, she says "ok, at 7 minutes put it up to 7.0 and then at 9 minutes put it to 7.2"

I said " REALLY", and she said "yes, you can do that, right ? for a minute you can do that." YES I can, and I did, and it was hard, and it was challenging and that is exactly why I am doing this class. BRING IT.

Who challenges you ? What challenges you ?

Heart rate monitor

I have a heart rate monitor, I also have a Garmin. However, I only use the Garmin when I am outside and lately I have not been outside. I am not really aware on how to use the heart rate monitor as a training tool, zones and such. I asked ironlady if she could help out and she needs me to send my age and my rest heartrate as well as my steady effort pace.

I am looking forward to using my heart rate as a training tool.

Do you use a heart rate monitor ? Do you use zones as a training tool ?

Goals

It is not enough to take steps which may some day lead to a goal; each step must be itself a goal and a step likewise.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

I have signed up for the danskin and one other and I will probably sign up for a few other tris, but i also want to make goals, on time and placing. Need to sit down and do this. step 1.

what are your goals ?

non running injury

Today was a day off.

I went to get money from the bank machine and the parking lot at the local supermarket was all ice, I was amazed that it was not shoveled. OK, not the parking lot but the walkway INTO the stores. It was not just icy, it was bumpy and there was NOT even salt throw on it. As I gingerly walked my way to the bank, I thought I was in the clear and WHOOP, I caught a piece of ice and fell. I ripped my jeans and got a scrape and bump on my knee, plus you know when you fall like that you wake up the next day realizing 9 other parts of your body hurt.

Tomorrow is swim with ironlady so I believe that won't be so bad for the injury, but spin or running on saturday at tri class...could be a bit painful.

Intervals on the treadmill

Today was RUNNING. I knew I would be on the treadmill and I knew I had to do an interval workout. However, I don't have any interval workouts and I really like having something written out that I can follow. So I checked my blackberry for an email ironlady had sent out for a treadmill run to do when she was not around and I followed that.

Run for 30 minutes

first 8 min steady effort (i ran at 5.5- felt tired right away not sure why ??)

then 4 x (30 seconds hard, 30 seconds easy) - i put hard at 6.5 and easy was back to 5.5, i was a bit bummed that I was not going faster

then 3 minutes of steady effort with a bit of incline

next 3x (2 minutes hard, 2 minutes easy) i did the same speeds 6.5 for hard and 5.5 for easy

then run steady effort rest of time.

Anybody have some interval workouts they would like to share ???

Sweat factor and some goods

Today was spin class. HOLY sweat factory, and I don't mean my class, the class before us ?? The floor was wet and the place stunk to holy heaven. It was gross. Our class was good and I am really loving my bike shoes the specialized motodivas. I can't wait for the weather to warm up so I can actually start learning to use them on my bike !!!

I got a few goodies today, first I got a new pair of goggles. I had small tinted ones and I really wanted a bigger pair, I am always taking them off my face the minute I finish each lap of a workout and that screws me up. I got the hydrospex2 from Speedo. I also figured a new bathing suit would be wise (how many suits do you have to swim in ?) I got a size too small - i did not try it on, i figured i would just come home and see what size my other one is. I hate that sizing on the suits ?? 32/34/36 ?? makes me crazy. I will have to return for a bigger size, I got a speedo, it was on sale for 40 bucks from 70. Lastly, I got a Brooks running shell. I have plenty of fleeces but NO shells to run in. Hopefully I will be able to start running outside a bit more with in the next few weeks. HINT, HINT mother nature, NO MORE snow and cold.

OK, going to finish watching the amazing olympics !!!!

It felt GOOD

Tri class today, 6.30am, I was actually on time, normally I am a good 5 to 10 minutes late, not today. We swam and ironlady said i was looking good. I was out of breath FAST. We went to spin which was fine, although I could tell I did not have the same UMPH I normally have. Then we ran on the treadmills, she told us to run for 2 miles and increase speed every quarter mile. Of course I hear this and I think ok what speed should I start at ?

My normal running occurs with NO other activities before (like no swim and no bike), and I usually do 3 miles at about 10 minutes to min/miles. So where do I start ??? I started at 5.5 (10 is 6.0) I increased up to 6.50 or 6.7 I can't remember b/c I was concentrating on not passing out. Seriously, I was so out of breath and just had that mantra I CANT DO THIS, in my mind and I hate that. I feel like that is when you need mind over matter. I of course would have passed out before I quit b/c that is me and especially with ironlady running right next to me.

I feel great that I did it and I am done. Thinking I will try for body pump class tomorrow and plan out the rest of my workouts for the week. Loving being back to the gym.

What does a week off do to you ?

I have not exercised (besides snow tubing) since thursday of last week. I don't feel so bad about it b/c it was planned. I wanted to enjoy vacation and not feel the pressure of putting a run, bike or swim in. Tomorrow however it is back to the gym and I have to start off with a bang. I have my tri class at 6.30am. I don't even want to think about how much I will HATE getting up in the dark with the freezing cold and all the darn snow to jump in the pool. But I will do it. I want to get back to it, my body needs it, my head needs it.

I usually dread getting back into workout after some time away b/c I feel like I can't go hard and get tired easily BUT in the same breath there are plenty of times when I get back to it and feel super duper. The point is, I am not going to FEAR it, and I am not going to take it easy. I am going to push the same as if I had been in the gym everyday.

How do you deal with the time off ?

QUOTES

I love seeing an inspirational quote. It makes me happy. It makes me realize there are people out there who have that passion and want to pass it along. I am on a huge BE BETTER kick. I want to be a better MOM, WIFE, Athlete, Eater, person, friend, volunteer, sister, daughter, etc.....

So I figure I could use some quotes to keep me inspired and share them with you readers who KEEP me inspired all the time.

Here is my first one

Winning isn't everything, but wanting to win is.
Vince Lombardi

ps - just got the Pioneer Woman Cooks Cookbook in the mail - i won the chefdruck contest... wahoo. Now this book might not be part of healthy eating but i think it will be a way to be a better WIFE and make hubby some good grub. I love Ree and her blog, she rocks. I also have had the privilege of meeting Vanessa of Chefdruck in person, she is a doll and I am still bummed she left NJ ....

Snow Day

Everything we had scheduled today was cancelled, OT cancelled, swim class cancelled, tri class cancelled.

Instead we played in the snow, baked pumpkin bread, work on trying to get laundry done with no dryer working and pack for vacation for tomorrow.

I don't plan on exercising much while on vacation, I plan on snowtubing, playing in the indoor pool with my girls, and just enjoying life.

Bad food and bad planning

Well last night did not turn out as we planned b/c hubby DID NOT CHECK THE pool schedule before changing his date with me. You know we had a sitter so we could go out, I even got my hair done. He called saying he wanted to swim, that is fine, I will eat on my own (did at panera and was on the web), and I will meet you at the Y and film you swimming so you can see your stroke. Get to the Y before him and notice the lanes are mostly taken up by swim teams and such....hummm. a bit of background -hubby joined the Y and not the gym i go to b/c he thought it would be better. He arrives at Y and says oh yea I think that is the masters class in that lane and the swim team in all the others. He checks with front desk YES the lanes are all taken and he can't swim.....so guess what our date is back on. Of course I have already eaten. Now I am not the most flexible of folks, so for me this is hard to just roll with. But I tried and I did, we went he ate and I got dessert. Some decadent peanut butter chocolate thingy in a martini glass and I ate it all. ALLLLLL of it.

I did spin this am and instead of getting a shake for recover the damn folks were having a bake sale for charity so I had to have some sort of butterscotch cookie, and then I had to finish the huge sugar cookie w icing that my little one couldn't finish, then I got a whole wheat bagel with butter b/c at that point I just threw healthy eating out of the window and the rest of the day sucked donkey balls. I get vertigo and had it a bit this AM but pushed threw it and did spin. However at around 3.30 I got it real bad and knew I had to lie down, of course I have 2 girls to watch so this doesn't work so well. I put a show on for them and I fall asleep, they turned it off when over and went to play on their own, I wake a bit later and disaster has struck. Their is dental floss making a trail all around, they have written in pen in the nursing stool cushion and then tried to clean it so it was soaking wet. ARGHHHHHHH. So I have a cough, headache, vertigo, 2 kids who don't respect anything in this house and have eaten like crap.

My question is do I blame all of this on that horribly wonderful dessert from last night that might have started my downfall and made me moody and cranky ? Or just chuck it up to having small kids ?? At least I got the spin class in. OH and hubby wanted to swim tonight but guess what NO lanes open...Y sucks, if he joined my gym he could have swam both nights.

swim, swim and more swimming

I probably talk about the swim the most b/c it is where I could improve the most. I swam with ironlady today and it was the first time i was allowed to PULL. Don't ask. Of course once my technique all fell apart she put me back to balance kick and catch up. BUT I do think overall I am getting a better more efficient stroke. The fun part will be when I start open water swimming. Because my problem is spotting, I get scared that I am going in the wrong direction and pop up to the breaststroke. This happens as well b/c prior to my classes (last year) i would just breath whenever, usually holding my breath for a few strokes, NOW after classes I breath every stroke and this should help with sighting.

I am also thinking bout buying a wetsuit. I wore my tri suit for the 3 tris i did last year and i was FINE in the water but they were in july , august and sept. There is a swim I want to do in May and i will need a wetsuit. Thoughts ????

I am going to the Y tonight and filming hubby swim so he can see how his stroke looks. We have a sitter and we were supposed to have dinner but we are doing this ?? are we insane ??

Revised workouts

The plan for last night did not happen, no workout yesterday, but I got a sitter today and was going to head to gym at 11 for swimming with ironlady, but ironlady had to cancel. No worries I will go to gym while sitter is here (so my formerly sick child can stay rested in order to attend school) I will run today, catch ironlady for swim tomorrow and spin on friday, then sat is the tri class, so I am still good, getting some workouts in.

Do you think a deep tissue massage could make you lose weight ? I swear to god i think I dropped 2 pounds after the massage. 2 pounds of toxins in my calves ??? is it possible ? or maybe just maybe my healthy eating is working and even though it is not perfect - the change is making a difference.

My daughter seems to be on the mend, fever free, energy BACK. Nebulized her, will give her the antibiotic right before school and send her off to be star of the week. wahoo.

How do you workout when kids are sick ?

I would say 99% of my working out is at the gym. That is because they have this awesome sitting room with awesome sitters and I have a 3 year old and a 5 year old, neither in a full day program yet. Which means they are pretty much always around, so if I want to work out, I go to the gym, put them in the sitting room, they have a huge fun playdate time and I get to work out.

Well my 5 year old has a fever again. I plan on taking her to the doc today to see what it is. Point is, this is 2 days in a row that I am unable to get my workouts in b/c I can't get to the gym. Yes I have a treadmill and a bike trainer downstairs BUT I can't do them until girls are asleep, which is really like 8 to 9 pm, and quite frankly I am exhausted by then and 99% likely NOT to do it.

How do you deal with a change in your plans ? Do you have a backup plan ?

My plan is if hubby is home and he is going to work out in basement, i will work out with him, one on bike one on treadmill and we will watch the biggest loser. any bets on if this happens

Kiss those toxins goodbye

So the massage that hurt me was awesome, because i felt great, I feel great. I swear I am a total believer that my calves were tight and had a bunch of shit stuck in them and this lady rubbed them the hell out of me. I believe that they were making me feel icky overall, not just causing a tight calf. Because something was different and that is the only thing I can contribute it to.

I did not get to work out today, I planned to run on the treadmill at the gym but my 5 year old was not in the best shape, cough and runny nose and she is star of the week at her school, so I figured i would rest her up as much as possible so she could make school. Mommy is not so selfish right ? I just hope I didn't push her by sending her to school and she is ok tomorrow.

I think my week will be

tues - spin

wed - swim w ironlady

thur - run (maybe outside b/c kids both have something, otherwise treadmill)

friday - normally i am off, but i am thinking bout doing something - maybe a weight class)

Sat - triclass

sunday - off - we head out for family vacation till wed.

I am really trying to get into this clean eating idea. Which means more baking and cooking. I really want to have one day a month where i just make a bunch of stuff and then freeze/store it and have it on hand. But needing to concentrate on house organization is the priority. I am just glad I am feeling motivated, I cleaned out the craft closet and that felt great. 4 bags of crap thrown out. How do we acquire all this crap.

So overall I have lots of goals:

House - organizing and make more livable, clean and comfy, as well as make sure it gets to a state that we can show it if we put on market

Body/exercise - keep up with exercise and start thinking bout the fact that i committed to run part of a relay for a marathon, i believe i have to do 9 miles. need to incorporate that into training

Nutrition - eat clean, try to get more veggies and fruit in, try to prep more, try to bake/cook more since then it is fresher ingredients.

Mind - seeing therapist soon due to my 5 year old's ocd