Half Marathon Training: Day 7

Day 7 called for an easy 2-3 miles. Since I had just done 4 miles less than 24 hours ago, I decided that 2 miles would probably be my better option. It was. My quads and shins were not happy with me today. However, I made the best of the run that I could. The weather was crazy nice (I wore a tank top!) and it really was a great day for an easy run. 

Actually, even though my legs were hurting I had my best pace yet. I didn't push it either. I just went with what my body wanted to do and was able to handle with some walk breaks. It was really shocking when I uploaded my data and saw some of my best paces. If you remember from Training Day 2 I was doing a 16:34 Average Pace. In just a short amount of time I've gotten down to 15:28. It just goes to show that you won't be slow forever and you WILL improve the more you stick with it. 

The plan for the rest of the day is to finish up some cleaning/organizing, Financial Peace University from 3pm-5pm, and then rest and relaxation with the hubby and the kiddo. Very much looking forward to that. 

Happy Sunday, everyone.

Half Marathon Training: Days 4, 5, & 6

Day 4:
Was supposed to run. Didn't. Planned on doing it on Day 5.

Day 5: 
Was supposed to run. Didn't.

Why? Excuses. Thursday was understandable because the day didn't quite work out how I planned. So, I said I would run Friday instead. But I didn't. And Amber sure called me out on my BS. (Thanks, Amber) I NEED someone to call me out on my BS. My excuses got me to where I am in the first place: overweight and slow.

Day 6:
Saturday's are designated to long runs. Majority of people have Saturday off from work (like me) so it is easier to set aside time to do a longer run. I had a plan for the day and I sent it to Amber in the morning so that she could, as usual, keep me accountable. My morning was going to be consumed by helping Andrew replace all 88 elbows on a piano (yes, pianos have elbows) and it is a hell of a job. Very physically demanding and time consuming. It took us 4 hours to do.

See? Elbows!!! 

After we were done, we headed to my parent's house to get the kiddo and I planned on doing my long run in Taylorville. After we ate, I played with Carson in his ball pit, and then we laid on the couch and watched some Mickey Mouse. All I could think in my head was "I don't want to go run. I don't want to go run." Soon followed by "Amber will kill me if I don't. I'LL kill me if I don't. I committed to this so get up and do it." So, I went into the other room to change into my running stuff and headed out the door.

My first quarter mile was done at a very easy pace because my 85 year old grandmother went with me. (Go Grandma!!) We walked a little loop around the house and then she went inside. I had my mom's dog Fiona with me because Lord knows she needs the exercise. That dog made it 0.75 of a mile and then started to DRAG behind me. So, I took her into the house and grabbed Mia instead. Nope. That didn't work either. I said "Screw you dogs, you suck at walking" and went back out on my own.

I ran a couple loops around my parent's house to get up to a mile and a half and then I decided to venture out a bit. I ran to the bike path, ran it to Highway 48, turned around and went back, decided to do it again, and then hopped on 48 to go back to my parent's house. By that point I was at 3.75 miles and I was NOT going to stop with only a quarter mile to make it 4 miles, so.... I did the loops around my parent's house again until I got to 4.

Mile 2 was at 14:46 Pace. WOO!!!

I.did.NOT.want.to.run.

I am SO glad that I did. 

Those are the runs that are usually the best. Your breathing is spot on. You don't have any aches or pains. You feel in the zone. The weather was perfect. It was the best run I've had so far and I'm hoping I have more like it. When I was finished I was in the best mood. That's what I've missed about running. I always finish and feel wonderful. Refreshed. Empowered knowing that I did something to better myself.

You can all see from days 4 & 5, however, that it is incredibly easy to get off track and just stop all together. That's what happened to me. One day I didn't run. Then another day passed... and another.... and another..... until I ended up here...... back at my heavy weight and back at square one of running.

I am back at it though and that is all that matters. Looking forward to Day 7.

Half Marathon Training: Day 3

My day didn't start out so well. I woke up and did my normal routine: bathroom, brush teeth, start to get ready for work, etc. Then I went out into the kitchen and had my breakfast. I made vegan PB and carob chip granola and I couldn't wait to try it.

I poured some almond milk over it and sliced a banana into it. It was heavenly. One of the most delicious granola I have ever had......

Not 5 minutes later I was hunched over the toilet puking my guts out. There went breakfast. I have been feeling nauseous and have puked a couple of times in the past month. I know what you are thinking in your head "OMG, YOU'RE PREGNANT!" No.... I am not. I even went to the doctor and had a blood test done. What is happening to me is the birth control I have been on is obviously not working for me. My hormones have never been quite right after having Carson and I haven't found the right tool to even them out yet. So, right now I am in the process of switching some meds and hopefully this nausea will go away. I definitely don't want a repeat of this morning.

Even though I had that episode this morning and felt nauseous the rest of the day I was still determined to run. I was NOT going to be derailed already. So, I had a mild dinner of short grain brown rice, tempeh, and some broccoli and then started to prep for my two mile run.

It went well. My stomach is kind of ishy now but at least my run is done with. My breathing was much better and I was faster already. Amazing how that works, huh?

I did have some hip and shin pain at the very beginning, but I walked and took it slow. Listened to my body and ran when it was comfortable which ended up being a lot more than yesterday. I'm very happy with how tonight went.

Tomorrow is a 3 mile run and I have to figure out when I'm going to fit that in. I have to work, go pick up Carson, figure out something to have for dinner that's portable, and then go to orchestra at UIS from 5:30-7:30. I'm thinking it's going to be a late night run after orchestra.... no matter what.... I will get it done!

This is my red face post run selfie ☺

Half Marathon Training: Day 2

My half marathon training started yesterday, but it was a rest day. How fun is that? My first day of training was super easy. HA! Today the schedule was a 3 mile run. I have a treadmill in my garage now and have gotten to a point of working in a pinch, but if I can run outside.... I am going to run outside. I set out all of my running gear last night, charged up the Garmin, and made sure I could just get dressed and get out the door in the morning in as little time as possible.

Amber sent me a text at 5:45am making sure I was awake. I was, I was in the bathroom getting dressing and brushing my teeth. Once I was dressed, I grabbed my Garmin and headed out the door.

Yes, I will in fact run for Cupcakes

It.Was.Cold. I chose to go in the direction that would have the wind at my back for most of the run. I mapped a route that was a half mile loop and I would run it 6 times to get my 3 miles. I didn't want to stray too far from the well lit areas and this way I ran by my house in case I needed anything. I hate carrying a lot of stuff while running, so.... this was a nice option.

As you will see by my time and my splits... I am slow. I haven't run in two years so my body is going "Hey.... hey... wtf is this?!" I didn't overdo it. I listened to my body and walked when I needed to. I felt really good, I was really happy, and I am glad that Amber has helped me recommit to this.

HOWEVER, there is a glitch in my training plan. Early morning runs are not going to work I'm afraid and here are the two big problems:

• I'm slow. I'm not mad about that, I'm just out of practice and heavy. Therefore, 3 miles will take me close to an hour. That means 4 mile runs will be over an hour. I don't have that kind of time in the morning unless I want to be out the door by 5am and that's just not going to happen. 
• Walter. Andrew said the minute I left he raised holy hell. That dog has separation anxiety. He would wake the baby. We were lucky this morning because Carson wasn't home. 

When I get myself down to about a 10 minute mile, I could do early mornings. I would just have to make sure Walter is either with Andrew when I leave, or put him outside. I just can't do that until it's warmer.

My plan is to run after Carson goes to bed at night. I will have Andrew to give me that extra nudge to get my ass out there. Plus, I can always rely on Amber. So, evening running it is!

Once I got done with my running I fueled my body with some delicious vegan pancakes (from my Thug Kitchen cookbook) with my homemade strawberry syrup and some chia seeds. I also had some green tea.

All in all, I am really happy with how my body  handled this run considering I've been inactive for so long. I am looking forward to improving dramatically over the next 10 weeks! We all know I'm a nerd and love the data!

Also, I did cancel WeightWatchers. I'm not tracking and following it as I should. Plus, with doing Financial Peace University (again) I am cutting back on as many monthly costs as I can. That's $20 a month back in my pocket. That's $240 a year, people. Instead of following that or counting calories (because that makes me crazy), I am focusing on QUALITY of food over QUANTITY. So far this has been working well for me. I'm eating a mostly vegetarian diet and trying quite a few new vegan things. All I know is that I feel so much better when I have a plant based diet and it will help my body to recover faster after runs. It will also help me to improve.

Oh! And weight stats:

Starting Weight for Training: 246.3

Pounds lost since 12/4/14 (After Carson's birth): 38.1

Half Marathons

Well, it's happened. My cousin has talked me into running the Lincoln Presidential Half Marathon on April 2, 2016. That gives me 10 weeks to get my fat ass back in running gear after a two year hiatus from running seriously.

Sure, between the time I really stopped running and now I would go for walks/jogs and do a little here and there. However, it was nothing compared to what I need to do to get in shape for this race. I have the perfect opportunity to do well on this race no matter what my size. Let's not forget the year mom and I did this same half marathon and I finished second to last and was crazy out of shape.

2013

2013

2013

The first time I ran the Lincoln Presidential was in 2012 only one month after completing the Disney Princess Half Marathon in Disney World. 

Disney 2012

2012

2012

2012

Looking at all of these pictures really makes me miss running and even more than that.... I miss running with my mother. It makes me sad that she has so many problems with her hips and feet. She doesn't think she will ever run again. I like to hold out hope that maybe she will... but I just don't know.

Anyway, Amber is going to come down to Springfield to meet Carson, hang out with her favorite cousin (me of course), and run a race. Having a goal to shoot for has kind of sparked my excitement about running again. I've even mapped out a training plan, told Andrew about it, and built a million reminders in my phone calendar. Ha! I also know that Amber will check in on me and make sure I am trying my hardest to be ready for this 13.1 miles.

Thank you, Amber. You knew exactly what to say (even though it wasn't much) to get me excited about running again. You're the best. 

Elementary School

* I took a hiatus from continuing this "about me series" but here is more:

I liked school. I generally liked all of my teachers at Fillmore. There were a couple that I didn't care for but I was still an excellent student for all of them. After kindergarten, my parents got called in to talk to the principal. They wanted to skip me ahead to third grade. Third grade! My parents thought it over but decided I needed to stay with kids my own age. Therefore, I went to first grade like my classmates instead of skipping ahead. My school did have a program for gifted students though and I was pulled out of my regular class for more advanced studies in the library a few times a week. I loved the library. I loved the smell of the library. Books upon books... it was a wonderful place to be.

We all remember in elementary school that we had to go to PE and Music class. I generally liked music class and you guessed it, didn't like PE much. Not because I didn't like being active... but once again I was chubby, slow, and ran out of breath easily. I could never climb the rope, I couldn't do pull ups during physical fitness tests, and the mile was torture. Music was more fun, my teacher was a little frightening but I liked music. I liked learning about the different composers and will always remember around Halloween watching the slide show of the Dance of Death with Danse Macabre by Camille Saint-Saens playing. I loved that song. To this day it brings back memories of that slide show.

Then one day in music class a woman named Mrs. Kendell came in and showed us different string instruments, told us about them, and let us hold them. That amazing woman changed my life that day. I was going to play the violin. I went home that night and told my parents. Mom told me that she and her sister had both played violin when they were younger and grandma still had their violin somewhere in her house. I was ecstatic.

They got the violin fixed up and I remember getting the first books/music for learning the violin. I.could.not.wait. That night after everyone went to bed, I got my violin out, got out my books, and started to teach myself. I stayed up half of the night trying to memorize fingering, learn the strings, learn the notes, how to hold everything..... it was all so exciting. I probably got about 4 hours of sleep that night but I didn't care. The next day was orchestra day.

I use the word "orchestra" but in reality it was 8 or 10 kids in a room learning string instruments. It was painfully dull and annoying that we weren't all child prodigies that could play the violin perfectly upon learning.... but that's OK. I still enjoyed learning, enjoyed practicing, and loved everything about the process of learning and instrument.

I always had friends in school. Kids were mean to me, but who doesn't get picked on for something in school? Bullies are everywhere and are so incredibly cruel. I got called fat, big, giant, etc. In 4th grade I had boobs. I had to get a bra and that was so uncomfortable and extremely embarrassing to be one of the only girls to have to wear a bra. Not to mention, I got my first period on Christmas Eve when I was 11. I didn't want to have all that happen to me.... but it did. So, it gave more fuel to the boys in school to pick on me even more. I really, truly tried not to let it all get to me and I never told my parents. I just dealt with it the only way I knew how. Food.

Food was my friend. I would get home from school and I'd finally be able to stay in my room, do homework, play, watch TV, read, play my violin.... and eat. Bags of popcorn, chips, candy, cookies, and soda. Food never judged me, never called me names, and it filled a void inside of me and gave me comfort. Then mom and dad would get home from work and dinner would be cooked and served. From the moment I got home from school until bed time. There was food, and I could never say no.

No Bake/No Cook Peanut Butter Balls

This is one of my new favorite breakfasts. I love these little things and I eat two of them every morning along with a hard boiled egg and fruit of some kind. Then, I either have coffee or tea. Now, these guys are little and most people would say "That's all you eat for breakfast?" I kid you not, these little protein packed, sweet, delicious balls keep me full until I'm ready for my 10:00 snack!

These are also perfect for before/after a workout.

No Bake/No Cook Peanut Butter Balls:

Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 c Old Fashioned Oats
• 3/4 c  Creamy Peanut Butter
• 1/3 c Honey
• 1/3 c Chocolate Chips (I used Hershey's Milk Chocolate Chips)
• 1/4 c Chia Seeds (this is the secret ingredient for energy AND fullness!)

Instructions:

Put all ingredients into a mixing bowl

Mix all that delicious-ness together

Roll into Tablespoon size balls 

I was able to make 27 of them. It should make between 24 and 27. 

Store in a ziplock baggie in the fridge. 

These are 4 SmartPoints per ball. 

Enjoy! 

Shrimp Fried Rice

It sure has been awhile, hasn't it? I've been spending loads of time with Carson (who is now one), and figuring out my life. I don't think I will ever truly figure it out.... but as long as I am continuously in the process I think I am doing a good job at adulting.

That being said, adulting can be very hard. I've recently been torn between my weight, age, and getting pregnant again. Those three things are all related to what I want to do in my life and I will explain before I get to my (apparently awesome) recipe that I posted on WeightWatchers Connect the other night.

I am 30. In six months I will be 31. I'm not terrified by this nor do I hate it. I would much rather be in this decade of my life than in my 20s again. I am more established in my life now, I have my husband, my starter home, my baby, and I'm very happy with those things. My problem right now (and all of my life) is weight loss. I am still fighting the good fight and since having Carson I have lost 39.5 pounds. That's nothing to scoff at, but I still have a long way to go. I don't want to be this heavy when I get pregnant again, but I want to get pregnant before I get TOO much older (because of complications, etc. etc.) I have been back and forth in my brain about stopping the pill, taking the pill till I lose the weight, stopping the pill and letting fate do it's thing, taking the pill because I NEED to lose this extra weight, stopping the pill because I want to get pregnant again........

I finally took some much needed ME time to really relax and list out my pros and cons and a game plan.

WeightWatchers recently did an overhaul of their program to Beyond the Scale and SmartPoints. It focuses more on our mental and emotional health as it relates to food. I LOVE this. Not only that, but the new formula for food now incorporates both saturated fats and sugar. So guess what? This new plan almost forces you to eat clean, whole, healthy foods. Love, love, love, love, LOVE. I can have lean meats and vegetables for barely ANY points, but if I eat a bar of chocolate I spend at least 15. It's the best program I think they have ever come out with. When I follow this plan 100% I feel fantastic. I've been doing well the past week and I made my decision to lose at least 50 pounds by August 2016. That is completely doable. In fact, I could reach my goal by the end of 2016 if I stay on track.

If I don't reach that goal, then I don't get to try and become pregnant. I was miserable and uncomfortable towards the end of my pregnancy because I was already big to begin with. I don't want to do that again.
And since I want to get pregnant again, it's the perfect motivator to finally shred this weight.

Ok, enough rambling about my plan... here's the recipe. I posted this meal on social media and tons of people asked me for the recipe. I didn't realize how popular it would be considering I just threw things together in a skillet, which I do often when I don't feel like making a more elaborate meal.
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Shrimp Fried Rice

I posted this meal on social media and tons of people asked me for the recipe. I didn't realize how popular it would be considering I just threw things together in a skillet, which I do often when I don't feel like making a more elaborate meal.

Serving Size: 1 SmartPoints: 10

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp Sesame Oil
• 2/3 c cooked brown rice
• 1/2 c frozen mixed vegetables
• 4 oz previously cooked shrimp
• 1 egg, scrambled
• Soy Sauce (to taste)

Directions:

• Warm up sesame oil in a large skillet over medium high heat
• Add frozen shrimp, frozen vegetables, and rice, stirring and heating through
• Add Soy Sauce for flavor
• Move rice mixture aside and add egg to skillet stirring into the rice mixture
• Plate and eat

It's really that simple. If you have fresh ginger, adding some finely chopped or zesting some would add a lovely flavor. I don't normally have fresh ginger in my house unless I have it for juicing. 

I made this same exact recipe for Andrew, only instead of shrimp I threw in 4oz of previously cooked chicken breast which I bake, cube, and freeze in baggies for easy meals. I will do a blog post on chicken prep soon. It is such a HUGE time saver.