Hey Hey Hey! How are y’all doing? Dylan and I have signed up for Rock ‘n Roll Raleigh Half Marathon April 12th so I wanted to fill you in on our training plan leading up to it. The two of us have started with about a 5mile base.
For Thursday speed work, use the first mile as a warm-up and last mile as a cool down. The middle portion of the run do some sort of pick-ups. For example, 1min hard, 30second easy jog till you have completed the entire middle portion of the workout. The purpose of this day is to get your legs turning over quickly and engage those fast twitch fibers.
So who else is training for a half marathon these days? What race do you have on the calendar? Comment below to let me know!
Hey y’all! I hope you have had a fantastic weekend so far. I am about to head out the door to work then am hitting the road to Greenville to see that boy. I will be sure to update you in the coming week on my weekend adventures. As for today’s post, I want to invite you to join me in a 31 day real food detox.
Similar to the Whole 30 plan that I tried about this time last year, I will be cutting out almost all processed foods, the majority of dairy products, added salt and sugar, and alcohol for the entire month of March. Unlike Whole 30, I will still have non-fat greek yogurt, skim milk, whole grain carbohydrates, real fruit juices, and legumes as a piece of my diet. I am doing this because I feel like I have slipped up big time over the last couple months and it is time to get my rear in gear especially as my training volume starts to increase and recovery is going to be extremely important.
So who else needs to get their booty in gear and wants to join me? I’ll be sure to keep you updated with my progress through the month.
Hey friends! How are y’all doing? I hope you all survived the crazy (or should I say wimpy) snow storm. I know my Raleigh friends got hit pretty hard but here in Charlotte, I have to say it certainly didn’t live up to the hype at all!! I am not complaining though, I had a nice couple days off because of all the hype which allowed me to catch up on a little sleep, see a couple of my favorite people ever (mom, dad, and grandma) and I got to finish off yesterday evening with a surprise visit from the boyfriend! I typically don’t see him Monday – Friday so a Thursday night dinner was a great surprise. Anyways, on to today’s post, my running and triathlon followers I think you’re going to like it.
Tonight I did a fun (yet tough) 2.5 mile run to kick things off. I broke this run into 4 parts (keep in mind I was already warmed up going into this):
Part 1: .25 rolling hills. I set the treadmill so it would go up and down (started at about 2.5 and built up to 5.0 incline) at an 8:34min mile pace.
Part 2: Steady 1mile run. This was done at a 1.0 incline and at an 8min mile pace.
Part 3: Tough mile. Starting at 8min mile pace, every 10th of a mile I bumped up the pace .1 -.2mph. I ended this mile at a 6:30min mile. It was extremely tough but felt great to get my legs turning over quickly.
Part 4: Slow jog into walk for .25miles. After part 3 I dropped my pace to a 9:30 and ultimately dropped it to a slow walk by the end as my heart rate came down.
After the run I completed a functional training workout. This type of training was recently introduced to me by the triathlon coach at the Harris YMCA. I am learning so much from her and this type of workout is just one of the many things she has taught me so far. Today’s workout was broken into 4 sets and each set was completed twice before moving onto the next set.
Set 1: 2 x 20
Step-up with high knee raise (20 reps each leg). I did one leg at a time (so all 20 reps were done with the right leg then all 20 on the left leg)
Tricep Dip. Using the step up block I completed modified tricep dips.
Bicep curl into over head press. For this I used a 7.5lb dumbbell in each hand and for an added challenge I did this as I stepped up onto the block like I did in the first exercise. This time alternating my leading with each step.
Set 2: 2 x 20
Stability Ball hamstring curls. Heels on top of the ball with hips raised off the ground roll the ball in and out.
Stability Ball lifts. Placing ball between your feet, lift ball straight into the air then bending at your knees bring ball down and back up.
From this position, bend your knees to lower the ball then straighten back into this position for each repetition.
Stability Ball side curls. Placing ball between your feet, roll onto your side lifting as much of your lower leg off the ground as possible then curl ball behind you. I did 10 each side for a total of 20.
From this position bend at knees to bring ball as close to your butt as you can then extend back out to pictured position for 1 repetition.
Stability Ball Toss. Placing ball between your feet to start, lift ball off ground at the same time as your crunch up switching the ball to your hands, extend back down then crunch back up switching back to your feet at the top.
Set 3: 2 x
Bosu get down get up (10)
Start from a standing position, then sit on bosu ball, lean back as far as you can lifting feet off the ground (as pictured), crunch back in returning feet to the ground then standing back up for each repetition.
Walk out push-ups (build starting at 1 push-up to 5 push-ups then go back down to 1)
Start from a standing position, walk hands out across the bosu into a push-up position leaving knees on bosu. Complete 1 push-up then walk hands back to bosu and finish repetition by standing all the way back up. For the next one complete two push-ups before walking hands back and standing up. Build up to 5 push-ups then back down to a single push-up.
Skydivers (:30) balancing on the bosu on your stomach bring your arms out in front of you and legs up as high as you can behind you contracting your glutes and lower back.
Set 4: 2 x 10
Kettle bell dead lift. I used a 22lb kettle bell in each hand.
Sing leg kettle bell RDL. Holding kettle bell in the hand of the planted foot, again I used a 22lb kettle bell.
Squats. Holding one kettle bell at your chest, squat as low as you can leading with your hips and keeping your chest up. Again I kept with the 22lb kettle bell.
Cool down was 5min of foam rolling. I really focused on my hip flexors, hamstrings, quads, and IT bands.
This workout certainly had me sweaty and muscles burning but overall felt great. Comment below letting me know what you think and if you decide to give it a try.
Hello Hello!! I hope you are staying warm and off the roads on this cold, yucky, ICY night!! Today’s post is a quick update of what has been going on with me these last couple weeks….
1. SNOW DAY or should I say ICE DAY!!! Today I didn’t go into either of my jobs since the roads were such a mess. This was a super strange concept for me considering it was a Tuesday and not going into either job only happens like 3-4 times a month!!! That being said my first reaction this morning was “….uhhh what do I do today?!” Not to worry though, I did manage to clean the entire apartment top to bottom, run on the treadmill, run the stairs, sign up for another race, cook a pretty awesome dinner, and still sit on the couch for several hours. Pretty productive day for never leaving my building!
My own personal ice skating rink!
2. Speaking of apartment, it is coming together great! My roommate had furnished most of the apartment before I got here but it feels more and more like home to me everyday.
3. I am still on the Grilled Cheese kick that I talked about yesterday but today I traded out the chicken for a little canned tuna. It was awesome! I wonder what master piece I can pull off tomorrow?!
4. My race calendar is starting to come together for the year. At this point I am going to be running Rock ‘n Roll Raleigh Half Marathon in April, Beach to Battleship Half Ironman in October, and Ironman Cozumel in November. I am looking to add in 2-3 more races between May and September. Maybe a sprint and an international distance triathlon…not sure yet but I do know I need to find a few more to keep myself motivated all the way to the end of November.
A little indoor training for today!
5. My car finally has a name!!! I present to you Edna!!! Like the little lady that makes the super hero suits in the movie The Incredibles.
6. Work is super busy and by super busy I just mean I am working all the time. As a mentioned a few months back, I am working at both Jenny Craig and the Y. I love that I am getting to help people achieve their goals but dang it is hard to find a balance sometimes. I am fighting to keep my Sunday’s free as often as possible but that seems to be getting harder and harder to do each week.
7. Cookie butter and cookie butter ice cream might be my new favorite foods. If you haven’t tried them, stay far far away!! They are almost too good to be true!!
8. Did you catch the “us” and the “we” in the grilled cheese post yesterday?! Since “love” is in the title of the blog I guess it is only fair I share the latest update in that category too…..His name is Dylan and we have been on a few dates now. Two of which were to one of my favorite places in Charlotte, Freedom Park. We went there the last two weekends to either throw the frisbee or shoot hoops. Aside from the park we have gone for ice cream, bowling, cooked each other dinner, and checked out Lake Norman State Park for a little hiking. I’ve had a great time on each of these dates and I am really enjoying getting to know him more and more!!
Post hike smiles at Lake Norman State Park 🙂
So there you have it, a life update in 8 short points. And incase you couldn’t figure out why I titled this post 8 Point Win, it is because I am extremely happy with the way things are going these days as I adjust to Charlotte living…. basically it feels like I am winning 😉
Howdy, Hello friends!! How are you?! Hopefully staying dry and warm on this nasty evening. Here in Charlotte you’d think we had a blizzard coming as the shelves are empty in the grocery stores and the lines for the gas pumps leak into the streets. Yes, Northerners we are well aware that we are pathetic. However, regardless of how pathetic we are, the cold requires some delicious and warm comfort food. For me, that meant Grilled Cheese!! A long time favorite but this weekend it was taken up a notch….
Ingredients:
1. Butter…. sorry never said it was healthy 😉
2. Fresh Baked Farm Bread. So delicious. Can’t say I made it on my own but I can say Whole Foods bakery is awesome!!
3. Gooey, stringy Fontal Italian Cheese. The lady at Whole Foods really sold us on this one when we mentioned we wanted to make “yummy grilled cheese” and I have to say it was a great choice.
4. Baked chicken seasoned with salt and pepper.
5. Sliced Tomato
Butter the bread, melt the cheese, layer on the tomato and chicken and Boom! Holy Moly Grilled Cheese!!
What tasty grilled cheese creations have you made? Please share in the comments below. I’m thinking adding avocado would be another great addition. Stay warm this evening friends!
Hey Y’all! How are you doing? Even though its already Wednesday night, lets back it up to Super Bowl Sunday when Alexie and I headed over to my parents house for a relaxing evening of food, drinks, laughing, and football watching. The commercials were good, the game was great, the company was awesome, and the food was fantastic! So in today’s post I want to take you through a few of the yummy highlights…. (PS just so we are clear, I can’t take credit for any of these, they were all chef mama bear and papa bear’s)
1. Barbecue Chicken Bites.
Basically healthier boneless BBQ chicken wings. We all loved the chicken but weren’t so sure about the dipping sauce. The sauce was much hotter than we had all anticipated.
4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs {They used only the white meat to further reduce the calories and fat} 18-ounce bottle barbecue sauce 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter 1 teaspoon smoked paprika 1 cup panko breadcrumbs Kosher salt and ground black pepper For the dressing: 1 cup sour cream 1/4 cup chopped pickled jalapenos 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 1/2 teaspoon onion powder Hot sauce, to taste Kosher salt and ground black pepper. TRIM any visible fat from the chicken thighs, then cut each into 2-inch pieces. Place in a large bowl and stir in 1 cup of the barbecue sauce. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 hours. WHEN ready to cook, melt the butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the smoked paprika and breadcrumbs and cook until the breadcrumbs are toasted, stirring continuously, 3 to 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside. MAKE dressing: In a small bowl whisk together the sour cream, jalapenos, chives, garlic powder and onion powder. Season with hot sauce, salt and pepper, to taste. Set aside. HEAT broiler. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and mist with cooking spray.USE a slotted spoon to remove the chicken from the barbecue sauce, allowing any extra sauce to drain away. Discard the excess marinade. Arrange the chicken pieces on the prepared baking sheet. BROIL chicken about 6 inches from the heat for 8 to 10 minutes, or until browned and cooked through. Brush the remaining barbecue sauce over the tops of the chicken bites, then sprinkle all over with the toasted crumbs. Serve with the dressing for dipping.
2. Baked Parmesan Zucchini
This was probably my favorite of the night. I don’t know what to compare it to but I promise it was really good. And according to chef papa bear it was super easy to make.
Ingredients – 4 zucchini, quartered lengthwise, 1/2 cup grated Parmesan, 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, 1/2 teaspoon dried basil, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, Himalayan salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste, 2 tablespoons virgin olive oil, 2 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley leaves. Instructions – Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a cooling rack with nonstick spray and place on a baking sheet; set aside. In a small bowl, combine Parmesan, thyme, oregano, basil, garlic powder, salt and pepper, to taste. Place zucchini onto prepared baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with Parmesan mixture. Place into oven and bake until tender, about 15 minutes. Then broil for 2-3 minutes, or until the crisp and golden brown. Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired. This recipe is from damndelicious.net.
3. Cilantro Lime Shrimp
If you like shrimp, lime, and cilantro, you will like this. It had me going back for seconds which is saying a lot since I am typically a plain jane, just give me boiled shrimp kind of girl so I was pleasantly surprised.
Ingredients: 1 1/2 pounds peeled and deveined jumbo shrimp, 1/4 teaspoon plus 1/8 teaspoon ground cumin, Kosher Salt and freshly ground black pepper, 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, 5 garlic cloves, crushed, 2 tablespoons lime juice (from 1 medium lime), 3 to 4 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro. Directions: Season the shrimp with cumin, and salt and pepper to taste. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 teaspoon of the oil to the pan, then add half of the shrimp. Cook them undisturbed for about 2 minutes. Turn the shrimp over and cook until opaque throughout, about 1 minute. Transfer to a plate. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon oil and the remaining shrimp to the pan and cook, undisturbed, for about 2 minutes. Turn the shrimp over, add the garlic, and cook until the shrimp is opaque throughout, about 1 minute.{cooking time was a bit longer than this, maybe a total of 7-8minutes according to chef papa bear} Return the first batch of shrimp to the skillet, mix well so that the garlic is evenly incorporated and remove the pan from the heat. Squeeze the lime juice over all the shrimp. Add the cilantro, toss well, and serve. This recipe is from skinnytaste.com.
There you have it, the yummies of my Super Bowl Sunday. What were your Super Bowl favorites? Let me know in the comments below.
Hey Hey Hey! How are y’all doing? Dylan and I have signed up for Rock ‘n Roll Raleigh Half Marathon April 12th so I wanted to fill you in on our training plan leading up to it. The two of us have started with about a 5mile base.
Eat Train Love 365 