Just a Pair of Running Shoes

Good Morning! I hope you all had a great weekend. I know I sure did, I headed down to Greenville, SC Saturday after I got off work to visit Dylan. Being our typical selves, we kept busy and had a fun and active weekend. Which is what brings me to today’s post… staying active while traveling. This weekend, I wanted to get in a good workout without any equipment and in less than an hour as to not take away from the weekend festivities….

To start since I love running in a new city (yes, I have been here before but I am still learning my way around) I did a mile run which brought me to the bottom of a big hill. At this point, I did a few dynamic stretches. I am always working to keep my hips loose as they tend to get extremely tight especially when I am going to be running hard. From here I set that I was going to do 4-5 hill “sprints.” I put sprints in quotes because it was a .35mile hill so I was running hard but I wasn’t exactly top speed by any means. Run hard up then nice easy jog recovery on the way back down. At the top of my 4th rep, I walked back towards Dylan’s apartment for a quarter of a mile then ran the rest of the way back.

Once I was back at his apartment, I found a spot in the grass and did a 15min strength workout using only my bodyweight…

3x1min plank (first 45sec plank finishing last 15sec with push-ups)
3x1min squats
3x:30 side planks (:30 each side)
3x1min walking lunges
3x:30 flutter kicks

So there you have it, a total body workout in less than an hour with only a pair of running shoes! Do you have any favorite workouts while you are traveling? Comment below letting me know your thoughts.

Have a great Monday!

Tuesday Things

Hey Friends! How are y’all doing?! Things are a bit crazy here so to continue with the chaos I call life, I bring you my most unfocused blog post yet. Here are some things going on in my life and on my mind these days….

1. Hallelujah!! 31Day Detox is done in just a few hours. Most days have been totally fine but goodness I have had several days (<–read like last 10 days) I have wanted sugar and salt!!! I will write a full update on my 31Day Detox experience later this week.

last weekends date night dinner…. low country shrimp boil and baked apple slices with cinnamon

2. Sorry 5AM, we have divorced and 4AM has taken my heart. I have quite a few more clients at the Y as of recently and dang it has made for some early mornings. I used to think getting up in the 5 o’clock hour was rough but now I have separated from that thought and have become good friends with Miss 4AM! Holy crow I don’t know that I will ever get used to this one!

3. The triathlon team at the Y is up and running for our next 8 week session and this go around I am an official coach and loving it!! The other two coaches are teaching me so much and it really is such a joy to go to each of the practices whether I am leading it or just participating.

4. Speaking of triathlon….Ironman training is in full swing! It definitely keeps me especially busy with my typical 2 workouts a day. Veteran Ironman competitors, any suggestions on finding the balance and fitting it all in? I feel like some days there just aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything accomplished or I am just exhausted. I am hoping as I figure out more of a schedule this will get easier.

look closely and you will see my new training partner Izzy! she is totally fascinated my by trainer.

5. Starburst Jelly Beans…get in my tummy!!!! …ahhhh just a few more hours!!! Is anyone else quite as obsessed as I am about these deliciously, fantastic candies?!

can you sense my excitement?!

6. Rock ‘n Roll Raleigh half marathon is almost here!!! Dylan and I did our last really long run (14miles) this past weekend and will be in full taper mode come Sunday! I am so excited for this race for a couple reasons…

Dylan and I are doing it together….we have already agreed that this race we will do start to finish together unless something catastrophic happens. Those who know me well will understand just how excited I am about this!
We are staying with my good friend Kathryn and her hubby in their NEW HOUSE!!! I cannot wait to see her and the new place!!
I am going back to Raleigh!!! Need I say more?!

a couple weekends ago, our 4:30AM 12 mile training run! head lamps and reflectors were a must!

7. I am always hungry. I think this is because I am starting to ramp up the miles in my training and the detox had me eating a lot of fruits and veggies which unfortunately don’t keep you quite as full.

8. Guess who has her first three days off in a row since Christmas….?!!?!? THIS GIRL!!!! This weekend I am taking off Friday, Saturday, AND Sunday!!! I am so ready for the break. I know I will still be training and running around crazy since I do date “the hyper one” as my mom calls him but I am so excited to step away from work for a full 3 days. I think this break will do me well. Plus I will be getting away from Charlotte and will be headed up the mountains with my family and Dylan for Easter weekend where it looks like lots of starburst jelly beans will be had, hikes will be taken, and baseball will be watched.

9. I am loving this warmer weather!! And added bonus Alexie just informed me that so many fun things happen in Charlotte come spring and summer….think concerts at the white water center and baseball games in uptown!! 🙂 🙂 🙂

10. We have had a great couple weekends in the mountains. Three weeks ago just for a day trip and two weekends ago for an entire 24hours! I love getting to spend a little extra time with my family and the hyper one.

baseball games and mountain hikes with my favorite people

11. I miss blogging. I know I have had my ups and downs with my posting frequency but I really enjoy it so I hope I am able to find more time to get posts up more regularly in the coming weeks and months. Speaking of which….what would you like to see more of on the blog?? Also, fellow bloggers, what is your strategy in a busy week to get a couple posts up?

I guess I will call it quits here….I would love to hear whats been going on with you and what you’d like to see more of on the blog. Be sure if you are a veteran ironman competitor to let me know how you find the balance of life and training. If you are a blogger, what is your strategy for posting frequently when you’re busy. And if you are just as obsessed with Starburst Jelly Beans as I am or if you have a different favorite Easter related candy!

Happy Tuesday Y’all!

Friday Night Workout

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.

Happy Friday Y’all!